Bellefonte, Pa., March 18, 1921.
ODD BELIEFS OF JAPANESE
Popular Superstitions Have Mostly
Sprung From Moral Precepts
and Are Quite Harmless.
There are many popular, as distin-
guished from religious, superstitions
in Japan. These originally sprang
from mostly moral precepts and are
‘quite harmless. They prevail more
widely among people in the rural and
mountain districts than among city
"RICH ASIA MINOR PROVINCE
| Smyrna, Blessed With a Fertile Soil
and Temperate Climate, Is Pleas-
ant Dwelling Place.
The modern province of Smyrna is
the most favored of all the provinces
of Asia Minor. It contains three of
the most considerable rivers of the
' country, including the Meander, whose
dwellers and among the older and ig- |
norant classes than among the young
and educated groups. Some of these
superstitions are:
At a marriage ceremony a dress of
purple color is taboo, lest the mutual
love of the bride and groom be socn
lost, as purple is a color most liable
to fade.
If while a person is very ill a cup
of medicine be upset by accident, it
needs medicine no longer.
Fire is the spirit of the god Kojlin.
It is supposed to have a purifying ef-
fect and must be respected. To step
on fire, to throw refuse in it, will
cause the wrath of the god and hence
a calamity.
in Japan, and the Japanese are pes-
‘ told of the beauties of the city
serpentine course has given the Eng-
lish language an expressive verb. Fer-
tile soil and temperate climate have
added to the region’s attractions, while
the possession of a port and city—the
city of Smyrna—unequaled by any oth-
er in Asia Minor has contributed an-
other immeasurably important asset.
Though imperfectly tilled during its
control by Turkey, the province of
Smyrna has nevertheless been noted
for its fine fruits. For a long time it
has furnished the best figs and rai-
sins which reach the markets of Eu-
rope.
Poets and travelers have sung and
of
Smyrna throughout the ages. The nu-
cleus nestles in the lowlands about its
| harbor, and behind, the city rises tier
is a sure sign of his recovery; he
: lands.
The bore is not unknown |
tered with visitors who sit their wel-
come out and drive their hosts into |
a frenzy of eagerness to get rid of
them. The Japanese recipe of getting i
rid of them is as follows: Go to the
kitchen, turn the broom upside down, !
put a towel over it and fan it lustily. |
The tedious visitors will soon depart. |
Japanese babies and children are |
not allowed to look into mirrors, for
if they do, when they grow up and
marry they will have twins.
When measles, chickenpox or whoop-
Ing cough prevails in a neighborhood
and parents do not wish to have their !
children become infected they put a
notice on the front door stating that
thelr children are absent.
The Yellow World.
It is easy to see why China's im-
perial color is yellow, writes a cor-
respondent from Yangste river,
Her |
rivers are yellow, her long plains are !
yellow—especially in a famine year
such as this, and as for her seas—the
boundaries of her world—so desert-
yellow is their color that a string of
camels crossing them would look more
in keeping than a string of junks.
And so one can understand why the
very heart of the heart of China. the
Imperial city, should lie like a shim-
mering lake of golden tiles within her
lotus-besieged walls. Even against the
evidence of my own eyes I cannot he-
lieve that the Great Wall is built of
solid ordinary stones laid one upon the
other.
of the stuff of which the mountains
themselves were made, long ago when
Rather it seems moulded out !
the world was plastic and empty of !
all save possibilities. There never
was so sinuous a thing as the Great
Wall built by men, I think, so sinuous
and so aspiring.
Does Away With Long Climb.
Something unusual has been accom-
plished in the completion of the en-
trance to the Southwest museum. in
Los Angeles. The building is situ-
ated on a high hill and until recently
it has been necessary for pedestrians
to make a long and laborious climb
above tier against the neighboring high-
Unlike many cities that have
survived for long ages, Smyrna has
retained the same name from the dawn
of history. This city should be dear
to the heart of the modern feminist,
for it took its name from an Amazon
«ho is reputed to have played an im-
portant part in its early life.—Nation-
al Geographic Society Bulletin,
FORTUNE AWAITS LUCKY ONES
Prospecting for Radium in Madagas-
car Is Latest Lure Heid Out to
the Enterprising.
The exciting days of prospecting in
Cripple Creek or Alaska may be over,
but anyone who is looking for experi-
ence and is willing to suffer a few dis-
comforts for the chance of gaining a
fortune can do so in Madagascar, ac-
cording to Secretary LaCroix of the
French Academy of Science, who has
completed an exhaustive study of
radium-bearing deposits there.
M. LaCroix says that millions prob-
ably are there awaiting to reward the
patient searchers who are able to start
out with the proverbial shoe string as
far as finances are concerned, but it is
recommended that intending pros-
pectors take along a few camera dry
plates, developing outfits and, if pos-
sible, a gold leaf electroscope, al-
though the latter is not absolutely es-
sential.
Madagascar
and is brownish-black in color
irregular radium content.
only one milligram is obtained from
each ton of mineral examined, it will
mean 200 francs to the prospector,
while certain -deposits are so rich as
to assay as high as 15,000 francs a
ton,
with
Patching the Czar’s Trousers.
In his recently published memoirs
Count Witte, a member of the old Rus-
sian regime,
ture was matched by his personal
| thrift: “Alexander III was extremely
- economical with his wearing apparel.
up the hill to reach the main entrance. |
Now, however, the climb has been ab-
viated by an artistic as well as prae- |
© ‘Well,
I had a curious proof of this when I
accompanied the emperor on one of
his railway trips. Since I found it
impossible, on account of my responsi-
bility, to sleep of nights, I would often
catch glimpses of his majesty’s valet
mending the emperor's trousers. On
one occasion I asked him why he
didn’t give his master a new pair in-
stead of mending the old so often.
I would rather have it that
. way,” he answered, ‘but his majesty
tical improvement. A tunnel, 22t |
feet long, was bored into the hili and
ended in a large octagonal waiting
room, on one side of which is «
twelve-passenger electric elevator
of the automatic type.
The elevator,
makes a climb of 108 feet, delivering ,
the passenger into the main hall of
the museum,
Copper’s Value as Alloy.
The use of a small proportion of
copper in all iron and steel products
exposed to air and moisture is ad-| jo 0m0) is to take the form of a
vised by D. M. Buck, metallurgical en-
Plate company. The use of 0.15 to
0.25 per cent, in normal open-hearth
or Bessemer steel greatly lessens cor-
rosion, but heretofore the use of cop- |
per steel has been chiefly confined to
sheet metal. It is estimated that the
iife of the sheet metal is at least
doubled by the addition. Copper melts
at about 700 degrees F, below the aver-
age tapping temperature of the steel,
and it diffuses readily threugh the
metal without tendency to separste
out afterward.
Savages Give to Missicns.
Two hundred boys from the Neg:
Hill tribes of Assamz went to the wa:
in France, and all were baptized inte
the Christian church while in the
army. Upon returning home every
won't let me. He insists on wearing
his garments until they are thread-
bare. It is the same with his boots.”
Huge Stone in Roosevelt’s Honor.
The greatest chunk of stone ever
quarried or transported in the United
States or anywhere else on earth is
going to be hewn and brought to
; Washington for the monumental Theo-
adore Roosevelt national memorial. The
: .. lion, some 86 by 40 feet in dimensions
S < Al | 2 y
gineer of the American Sheet and Tin | sid it is to be carved hy Carl Ethan
Akeley out of a solid block of rock.
Where the stone is to come from ap-
pears not yet to be determined. One
authority suggests it may be neces-
sary to build a special railroad and
equipment to bring it to Washington.
{ The memorial will be the biggest job
in stone, it is said, since the sphinxes
were set up on the plains of Egypt.—
Philadelphia Public Ledger.
Floats for Boats.
S. E. Van Horn of Manhasset, N.
i Y,, is the inventor of a scheme for
one donated 2 menth’s pay to mission |
work as a thank offering for their
preservation.
A Come-Back.
“1 wouldn't be a fool if I were you!"
“That's the only sensible thing
making boats unsinkable. The safety
boat is provided with a couple of um-
brellas of rubberized fabric, one on
the port and the other on the star-
board side, attached to the gunwale
by a sort of outrigger.
When not in use the umbrellas are
, collapsed and take up little room, the
: outriggers being swung alongside of
' the craft, out of the way.
But in case
of danger the outriggers are hastily
| swung outward into position, the um-
you were I you certainly wouldn't be |
a fool.”
The Useless Bell.
“The bell on your house has been
out of crder for weeks. I should
think you would have it repaired.”
“What's the use? Nobody ever
zings It any more. Our friends just
sit out in their cars and honk their .
auto horns until
door.”
we come to the !
S _ brellas spreading automatically.
you've said during this discussion. Ii,
Harrowing Experience.
“What's the trouble?’ asked the sec-
ond assistant sporting editor.
“I've just had a cal! from a woman
who had written some ‘free verse'"
said the Sunday editor, who was
shaking all over.
“That ought not to upset you.”
“Ah!” groaned the Sunday editor.
“But she read it to me and threw in
a lot of gestures.”—Birmingham Age-
Herald.
But even if |
relates that Alexander |
IT's prudence in government expendi- |
: P E & I © auto tags came by mail, but we will
i who
FIGURED IN HISTORIC PAST SROWTH INFLUENCED BY RAIN |
Representation of Monarch of ihe
Time of Abraham Now in
Pennsylvania Museum.
en.
In the dim old days of the patriarch
they do now, judging from the olCest
representation of human figures un-
earthed by the toiling brotherhood of
archeologists. Two striking figures,
one standing and one seated, are in-
cluded in the elaborate design of the
clay seal, or “postage stamp,” which
Quservations of Travelers Show Re-
markable Difference in Vegeta.
tien of Tropical Forests.
Tropical forests are divided by Hann
Abraham people looked very much $3 | into those having months of less than
' 81x rainy days and those having no dry
season proper. Those with no dry
i season are constantly humid, although
has excited the enthusiasm of Dr. Le- |
grain, curator of the Babylonian sec-
tion of the University of Pennsylvania
museum.
Dr. Legrain has figured out the in-
scriptions of the little tablet as indi-
cating that it dates from the period
when “Ur of the Chaldees,” mentioned
in Genesis in connection with the his-
tory of Abraham, was a flourishing
kingdom. And he finds reason to be-
lieve that the seated figure, decorated
with flounces of beautiful accordeon
plaiting, is a portrait of his majesty
Ibi-Sin, the last king of Ur and pes-
sibly an intimate friend of the Father
of Israel.
To the modern eye both figures are
remarkably well drawn and lifeilke
in attitude, especially considering the
fact that they were modeled in clav
on a very small scale. Dr. Legrain
thinks the tablet served the double
purpose of a seal and i postage stapin
on a sack of meney forwarded te S
banker ramed Shulpae by his rever-
ence the high priest of the temple of
Ur, at which Abraham worshiped.
TOO HEALTHY FOR MEDICINE
Peopie of Tristan da Cunha Throw
Supply Left by British Cruiser
Into the Sea.
The island of Tristan da Cunba is
described as “an unspoiled haven of
rest for the weary soul, a mecca for
those who long for relief from worries
of life,” by the chaplain of the Brit-
ish cruiser Dartmouth, which has just
returned from a visit to that isolated
spot.
“No need to worry over money
there, for there is none,” said the
chaplain. “There are no taxes, no
doctors, no lawyers, no clergymen, no
policemen, not even a head man,
Newspapers and mail arrive, with luck,
about once every two years.
“There is not even any medicine,
for the latest supply of remedies was
thrown into the sea by the inhabitauts,
are remarkably healthy. Epi-
: i ! demics ar k ’H,
The principal radioactive mineral in | (€11ics are unknown
is known as betaphite |
“Tristan is a British possession in
the south Atlantic, between
Africa and South America.
capped peak towers nearly 8,000 feet
above sea level. It is only 21 miles
in circumference, The nearest Iin-
habited place is St. Helena, 1,20
miles away.
tion of it is a tongue of fertile land
at the foot of the precipitous cliffs.”
The Wrong Number.
South |
Its snow- |
the varying seasonal moisture has its
influence even here. Undisturbed con-
stantly humid regions are nearly al-
ways covered with evergreen rain for-
est; periodically dry districts are oc-
cupied by deciduous woodland and
savannah. With every slight annual
| precipitation the vegetation becomes
| that cf the desert.
Seen on approach-
ing, a tropical rain forest shows a
much more irregular and jagged sky-
line than the temperate forest, and its
varied shades of green are usually
dull, but often broken by white, red or
other brilliant-hued flowering tree
crowns. The tree tops, moreover, are
often overhung by climbing vines and
parasitic plants. The interior of some
rain forests is a dense mass of tangled
foliage from the ground up to the tree
tops, but others are like immense dark
columned halls which afford a free pas-
| sage and a clear outlook, with only a
The only habitable por- |
Mrs. New Auto owner, all excited. |
called her husband over the telephone
at his office, and announced: “The
have to send them back. They sent
the wrong number.” Business of con-
i siderable questioning from the busi-
ness office end of the telephone.
Then: ‘Well, they're not the same
numbers we had last year, so I
thought they had made a mistake.”
Explanatory: The machine had come |
into possession of the family late in
the year, a license number was ob-
tained that had six figures and the
husband got in early for a 1921 li-
cense hoping to obtain a smaller num-
ber and he got it.
Anyway, the wife had a good laugh
at her own expense when the hus-
band arrived home that evening. And
she is learning something each day
about autos.
Pellagra and Income.
After a three-year study of pellagia
in the cotton-mill villages of South
Carolina, the United States public
health service shows that pellagra
varies inversely with the family in-
come in this locality. As the income
fell the disease was found to increase
and to affect
same family. As the income rose the
disease decreased, and was rarely
found in families that enjoyed the
highest incomes, even though this
highest was still quite low.
A recent statement given by one of
the large life insurance companies in-
dicates that the food standards of
Southern wage earners must have im-
proved remarkably of late, for the
death rate from pellagra has fallen
from 6.7 per 100,000 in 1915 to 2.3 in
1019.
Much Gasoline Wasted.
About one-third of the gasoline used
in automobiles is wasted. This is the
conclusion reached by A. C. Fieldrer
of the United States bureau of mines,
from experiments under traffic condi-
tions to determine the air polluticn of
the vehicular tunnels under New York
city. The waste is chiefly due to too
rich gasoline mixture. It is estimated
that an improved and practically au-
tomatic carburetor might save Ameri- |
can auotmobilists $34,000,000 a year.
Free Medicine.
A prominent city man, who is as
parsimonious as he is wealthy, is very
fond of getting advice free. Meeting
a well-kyown pliysician one day, le
=aid to him:
“I am on my way home. doctor, and
1 fell very seedy and worn out gen-
erally; what ought i to take?”
“Take a taxi,” came the curt reply.
-—Tit-Bits, London.
more members of the |
few ferns on the ground and tree stems.
As examples of light column forest
Schimper mentions those of a species
of Canarium on the mountains of
Dominica and of many tree ferns in
Trinidad. In the closed forest, the
trunk and even leaves grow mosses,
algae and flowering herbs. The strug-
gle for light, intensified by great mois-
| ture, is a feature of the virgin rain
| forest.
MODERN “CARMEN” AT WORK
Cathering of Women Cigarmakers Pre-
gents a Colorful Sight in Span-
ich Cities Today.
The Carmen of the opera is no idle
fancy of a poet. She was and is very
real in Spain today. They are known
as cigarreras, and their age may be
anything from twelve to sixty. They
are paid but a peseta a day, and as
no human being can live on that, they
devote a good share of their time to a
business said to be the oldest in the
world. It is no uncommon thing to
find as high as 50 babies in cradles
or crawling about the feet of the
girls as they work. For comfort the
girls discard the greater part of
their clothing when they start to work,
but retain a red rose in their hair
or great silver earrings.
They are boisterous and rough, and
the visitor is hailed with demands
for money and given the vilest of
curses if he refuses. But the girls
cing as they work. Every one has a
tiny mirror before her in which she
sends constant glances, and the little
clothing she retains is colorful as the
rainbow. They all have lovers who
almost without exception abuse them,
beat them and take away their earn-
ings. She stands this as long as the
lover is true to her, but if he looks
elsewhere he had best beware of a sti-
letto blade between his shoulders. The
colder women make the cigars and
the younger the cigarettes.—Denver
News.
Right Way to Read.
The only way to read with any
efficiency is to read so heartily that
dinner time comes two hours before
you expected it, Sidney Smith wrote.
To sit with your Livy before you and
hear the geese cackling that saved
the capital and to see with your own
eyes the Carthaginian sutlers gather-
ing up the rings of the Roman
knights after the battle of Cannae and
heaping them into bushels; and to be
so intimately present at the actions
you are reading of that when any one
knocks at the door it will take you
two or three seconds to determine
whether you are in your own study
or on the plains of Lombardy looking
&t Hannibal’s weather-beaten face—
i that is the only kind of study that
is not tiresome, almost the only kind
that is not useless.
Land of the Incas.
The Peruvian Central railroad is
a wonderful mcnument to the science
of railroad engineering, the climb be-
ing made through a system of “switch-
backs” and having 54 tunnels in its
traject. At one point, Ticklio pass, it
rises to an altitude of nearly 19,000
feet. The mines are rich in historical
lore, having been operated in a primi-
tive way by the Inca Indians a long
time before the advent of Pizzaro, the
famous conquistador of Peru.
In the near vicinity of the mines are
many ruins of old Inca temples and
atker evidences of a remote but well-
developed form of civilization that
dates back to ages that as yet have
not been definitely established.
Pointers for Aviators.
Prehistoric birds resembled the
early airplanes in their small wing ex-
panse and large tails, according to a
British engineer, indicating that man’s
and nature’s development work have
been parallel. Flying fish are more
likely than birds to yield information
about soaring flight, in the opinion of
another observer.—Popular Mechanics
Magazine.
May Be in Earnest.
“This burlesque queen says she's go-
ing to play Hamlet.”
“For why?"
“She says she wants to do better
werk,”
“She's bluffing.”
“lI don’t think she’s bluffing. Shs
ucedn’t hunt for an excuse to wear
xights.”
Shoes.
Easter Flowers
ON SALE AT
Yeager’s Shoe Store
I have taken the agency for the Fairview
Green House at Milton, Pa., and will have on
sale the week before Easter potted Begonias,
Cinerarias, Daffodils, Baby Roses, Hyacinths,
Tulips, Geraniums, Heliotropes, Azaleas, Pri-
mulas, Cyclamen and Easter Lilies. These
h flowers will arrive on Wednesday, the week
c before Easter.
tc My Store will be Open Evenings
and I invite you to call and view them. I
solicit your trade and will make an effort to
give you a good stock to select from
Book your Orders Now
and Avoid Disappointment,
Yeager’s Shoe Store
THE SHOE STORE FOR THE POOR MAN
Bush Arcade Building
58-27 BELLEFONTE, PA.
Come to the “Watchman” office for High Class Job work.
Lyon & Co. Lyon & Co.
THE STORE WHERE QUALITY REIGNS SUPREME.
Easter Fashions in Full Swing
We feel we can say with all truthfulness that we can save all
our customers from 30 to 50 per cent. on any Coat or Suit bought
from us. We bought all our new merchandise when they
reached rock bottom.
LaVogue of Cleveland, Ritter Bros. of New York, and other
high class Coat and Suit houses, which mean the perfection of
tailoring, with the finishing touches, lapel, arrow heads, braid-
ings and embroideries that are only found in high class hand-
tailored Suits.
Parisian Dresses
We have a new department, specializing in high class Dresses
Canton Crepes, Chiffon, Taffetas, Satin
Selections
for I.adies and Misses.
and Fine Serges; exclusive styles, perfect fitting.
that will satisfy the most discriminating taste.
Special Notice
Our Mr. Lyon, who is continually looking up manufacturers
in the East, has made a large purchase in Men’s Neckties.
Among this purchase are ties ranging in values from $1.50 to
$3.50. We have put them on our counter for sale at the low
price 85 cents. The first buyers always get choice.
Easter Over Blouses and Shirt, Waists
We have just received a large line of Georgette Blouses and
Shirt Waists; all new colors, exquisite styles and marvelous
values.
House Cleaning Time Here
We have Rugs, Carpets, Linoleums, Lace Curtains, Draper-
ies and Cretounes at pre-war prices.
Shoes . . . . Shoes
Our line of Spring Shoes for men, women and children is
here. Ladies’ Oxfords in black and cordovan, at a saving of
two and three dollars per pair.
We Extend a Cordial Invitation to Visit Qur Store
Lyon & Co. « Lyon & Co.
THE STORE WHERE QUALITY REIGNS SUPREME