pont.
Bellefonte, Pa., January 28, 1927.
James McManes, a Philadel-
phia Character.
AUTOBIOGRAPHY.
By Rev. L. M. Colfelt D. D.
In June, 1875, I was joined in mar-
riage with Rebecca McManes and
went on our wedding trip to Long
Branch, New York City, the Catskills,
Lake George, Mt. Washington and
Newport. We returned from our wed-
ding trip to the house of her father on
North Franklin Street, the conditicn
of whose consent to our union being
that we would make his home ours
which we did for several years and
later removed to a furnished house at
1322 Pine Street, generously given
his daughter. Mr. James McManes
was a much misunderstood man and
like many a political leader was giv-
en a newspaper reputation which was
a gross caricature. For this reason
I shall try to draw his portrait with a
strictly truthful hand, having no
earthly reason to panegyrize or gloss.
He was a man of middle height, com-
pact of frame and not unhandsome.
Always neatly dressed in dark clothes,
after the manner of those days, he al-
ways wore boots and a high silk hat
and might have been taken for an
Irish Barrister or Judge. He had a
singularly piercing eye that looked
through you and a great deal of per-
sonal dignity. As far as the East
from the West was the popular imag-
ination of his appearance and char-
acter from the reality, being a man of
remarkably retiring disposition, no
“mixer” whatever in the political
sense, and characterized by such aloof-
ness that the man must needs have
great temerity who would dare to slap
him on the shoulder. On one occasion
at a dinner at Judge Finletter’s, a
woman of the company, looking at him
with astonishment, said she never
imagined that he was the type of man
that he actually was. Mr. McManes
quickly retorted, “Madam, did you ex-
pect that I would have horns?” Liv-
ing as I did in his home and coming in-
to intimate contact with him through
the years, I had unexceptional means
of forming a judgment of his personal
character. He was absolutely devoid
of private vices, smoking but seldom,
very abstemious in the use of drink,
clean in domestic life verging indeed
upon idolatry for his wife and daugh-
ter and grandchildren and last but
not least, his horse. He had a sing-
ular love of all his possessions. He
was a stay-at-home, detested travel
and made no considerable trips, not
even to Ireland. His diversions were
few, consisting cf an evening in go-
ing to the store of Al Roberts, at 7th
and Vine, swapping witticisms with a
few cronies and an occasional visit
to Carncross and Dixie’s minstrels,
where Irish comedians played their
roles and exploded their political
squibs. Indeed he was a personal
friend of Mr. Carncross, who was a
man of superior culture and manners.
Of afternoons, he drove through the
park, of which he was a Commission-
er, in company usually with Albert
Roberts, Frederick Wolbert and
Judge Kelley, fellow trustees of the
Gas Trust. He was extremely simple
in his living, contenting himself with
a modest house, well furnished and
plain, wholesome viands. No man had
a greater contempt for parveneus—-
newly rich men—men in many in-
stances whom he had made rich by
helping them to “Row Offices” who
passed hin: by in his unpretentious
home and went to live on broad
avenues in brownstone mansions and
paraded their newly acquired wealth
in fine equipages and opera boxes. His
wife told me, that in the little two-
storied house in Kensington in which
he persisted in living for years longer
than he was able to afford a better
home, he often had $200,000 cash of
his own in the house. Later he lived
most of his life in a $11,000 house at
Franklin street, and it was only at
the close of life he allowed himself
the luxury of a brown stone residence
on Spring Garden Street, of moderate
proportions and a two horse carriage,
always having been contentwith a one
horse coupe. His relations with my-
self were always considerate and gen-
erous and I never had a fault to find
with his treatment. Though I had a
deadly hatred of the system of bosses
in city and State and never avoided
an opportunity of testifying against
it yet I felt if the people consented to
such a system and must needs have
it, its evils were reduced to a mini-
mum under the sway of a man of the
type of Mr. McManes, who honestly
tried to sense public opinion rather
than to force it and choose, so far as
his power went which was by no
means omnipotent, men for office who
could be elected and meet the appro-
bation of the average voter. People
often forgot that the so called boss is
really no Czar at all but his choices
are the resultants of all the complicat-
ed influences of a corporate, financial,
industrial, and “organization” charac-
ter playing upon him. Too often it is
a compromise between ambitions and
clashing leaders and it must always
be a working mean between the high-
est and lowest elements. It is not
alone the highbrows that must be
considered but the lowbrows—the
mass of laborers on public work and
the whole army of minor officials who
attend almost exclusively the prim-
aries and always vote at the polls—
while the highbrows are conspicuous
by their total absence at the prim-
aries and their presence at the polls
depends upon mood and weather. Such
is partially now and in those days was
wholly the system in vogue. :
Mr. McManes was a past master in
working this system and gradually
got control of almost every depart-
ment of the city, building up a vast
personal following. He did not be-
lieve in buying men, the purchase of
a voter converting him into an enemy
with a standing grudge against the
briber for the forfeiture of his self-
respect. He said the man that con-
sented to be bought had to be bought
over again. He consolidated his
EC
power by attaching thousands to him ' tributed amongst the newspapers for
by personal service, accounting no
the publication of mercantile lists, it
pains too great to obtain a job for a | was hoped the press of the city might
day laborer on public works, a posi-
tion in the gas works, water works,
police, fire and park departments,
school teachers’ certificates, appoint-
ments in the Post office, Custom
House, infinitum. There were some
20,000 of these appointments and
slowly through the years by keeping
them in places he won the deathless
loyalty of such numbers that no
weapon formed against him prospered
and in the deadly wars that broke out
amongst the bosses, all efforts to down
him failed and “the old Irishman gen-
erally wiped up the floor wid ’em.”
His almost romantic and phenomenal
success did not altogether arise from
building up a personal following but
from an almost uncanny prescience in
sensing the trend of public opinion
and the demands of the party organi-
zation and thus picking out the win-
ner. Time and again he went to State
conventions assembled to choose Su-
preme Judges and Governors and
though controlling but a fragment of
delegates, almost invariably threw
them to the successful candidate thus
enhancing his reputation and gaining
friends. He always did his utmost to
further the choice of fit candidates but
sometimes was overborne by other
leaders and the rank and file as was
the case in the choice of John Bards-
ley for City Treasurer, whom he
strenuously opposed to no purpose. He
dared to be undone politically at the
National Convention in Chicago, run-
ning counter to the wishes of Cam-
eron and Quay and by joining his 30
delegates to a like number of dele-
gates controlled by Judge Robertson,
of New York, defeated the nomination
of General Grant for a third term.
This temerity in these two instances
though meeting the approbation of
many, cost him dear. Bardsley’s hos-
tility was not only inspired by the
knowledge that Mr. McManes had op-
posed him but by the fact that Mr.
Bardsley was heavily in arrears for
taxation upon some rows of houses he
owned and knowing that Mr. McManes
had great influence with the Collector
of Delinquent Taxes, having had him
appointed, wrote a letter asking him
not only to delay but cancel the pay-
ment. I saw the letter preferring the
request. Mr. McManes refused. When
Cameron and Quay came back from
Chicago, their colors drooping, they
swore vengeance and set to work in
earnest to bring about his downfall.
They employed “Burnt Faced” Brews-
ter to conceive and set on foot the
legal machinery and together they in-
duced John Bardsley to introduce a
resolution in Common Council to in-
vestigate the Gas Trust. Mr. Brews-
ter received his compensation in the
appointment of his brother as Attor-
ney General of Pennsylvania and later
of himself as Attorney General of the
United States. The brilliancy of his
official career at Washington was
somewhat marred by the limp man-
ner in which the case known as the
“Star Route Fraud” was conducted.
Mr. Bardsley’s compensation was in
the satisfaction of his private ven-
geance. The equity suit against the
Gas Trust dragged its weary length
along until finally quashed without
finding any proof that Mr. McManes
was worthy of political death. He re-
gained most of his power which, hav-
ing grown weary, he exercised per-
haps in a modified form until the Bul-
lit Bill Charter was enacted and the
Gas Trust abolished.
While on the subject I must record
my conviction from personal knowl-
edge that James McManes never made
an illicit dollar out of politics though
his enemies satisfied their impotent
hate in calling him “the Gas Trust
theif.” If they who dubbed him such
were half as scrupulous as he in
money matters they must have been
paragons of honest acquisition. “Hon-
est” John Bardsley was one of the
number and he was jailed for malfea-
sance in office. The Hunter brothers
and son-in-law, Field, were particulay-
ly virulent. Oe of the former forged
notes for $500,000 and fled to South
America and the latter committed sui-
cide. If a man is known by the ene-
mies he makes Mr. James McManes
was highly honored. The basis of his
considerable fortune was the office of
Prothonotary, to which he was elected
in early life, the fees of which during
his incumbency amounted to $20,000
per year. This capital he employed
successfully in building and selling
rows of small houses. His surplus
capital was used in discounting city
warrants during that period in which
the city was always millions behind in
the payment of its vouchers. I have
seen lists of vouchers in his home run-
ning into hundreds of thousands. Later
with his surpassing means of advanc-
ed information of the securities mar-
kets derived from the financial powers
that made markets, he was phenome-
nally successful. Know beforehand
combinations of railroads surely pre-
destined to take place, bonds and
stocks of underlying branches that
were to be taken over and guaranteed
by parent systems and made giltedged,
he invested in heavily, always buying
outright and never on marginal specu-
lation and thus made fabulous profits.
This to my certain knowledge is a true
history of his success in the realm of
finance. Such @ man with the touch
of Midas did not need to soil his hands
with dishonest gains. His ruling pas-
sion was to be a Warwick—the King-
maker. To wield power was his obses-
sion, money making but his diversion.
Contrary to the general opinion,
though a Director of the Peoples Bank
and afterwards its President, James
McManes was never an ally of William
H. Kemble and neither trained with
him politically nor financially. His
balance at the bank during Kemble’s
administration was negligible and
Kemble was always in close partner-
ship with Senator Quay in the manip-
ulation of the State Treasury and in
aiding Quay’s ambition to gain as
complete ascendancy over the city as
he wielded over the State govern-
ment. First, Bob Mackey, Mr. Quay’s
lieutenant was imported into Philadel-
phia to compass McManes’ downfall,
then the Recorder’s Bill was passed
and David H. Lane filled the office
until Mr. Quay took it over in person.
With its patronage in the shape of
hundreds of thousands of dollars’ dis-
be controlled and employed for the
downfall of the “City Boss.” The first
show-down was in the Convention that
nominated Judge Fell for the Supreme
Court, in whose success Governor
Hartranft was deeply interested. Mr.
McManes took no chances but presided
over the Convention in person and
came forth not only a winner in secur-
ing the nomination of Judge Fell over
Judge Thayer but enhanced his pres-
tige. The deadly battle between the
State machine headed by Quay and
Kemble and the City machine continu-
ed with varying fortunes until Mackey
died, owing the Peoples Bank $90,000
and the Recorder’s Bill was repealed
through Mr. McManes efforts, reducing
Quay to political bankruptcy which
lasted till Quay came on his knees to
Mr. McManes to assist him in securing
the nomination for State Treasurer
and a truce was patched up which led
to Quay’s rehabilitation. It was dur-
ing this period that the Peoples Bank,
is known to but few, was shaken to
its foundations and in imminent dan-
ger of collapse through over extension
of loans to politicians and to the
United States Hotel at Atlantic City.
On the day in question Mr. McManes
warned me to draw any money out I
might have on deposit in the Peoples
Bank. Later he said Mr. Kemble had
informed him “The Peoples Bank
would be compelled to close its doors
the next morning.” Though a director,
he was quite oblivious of its condition.
He said “If this bank closes down not
one of us will be able to lift our heads
in Philadelphia! How much money will
be necessary to avoid the disaster?”
Kemble answered, “Three hundred
thousand dollars before the opening
tomorrow morning!” Mr. McManes
and Ex-Sheriff William Elliot took
their private securities to their banks
of deposit as collateral and each fur-
nished $150,000 which relieved the sit-
uation. This was the basis for the
statement of Mr. McManes made to
me, that Mr. Kemble and his financial
associates, Elkins and Widener, never
took him into a financial deal of any
value but only called upon him when
they were in a hole. Mr. Widener was
his bitter political enemy and engi-
neered the revolt against him by
Councils under the Presidency of
Joseph Caven. He could not lend his
powerful aid in making him Mayor to
succeed Stokley, who was finishing his
second term. Mr. McManes told Mr.
Widener that while he had no personal
objection to him that the demand for
Stokley for a third term was over-
whelming because of the masterly
manner in which he had handled the
riot in Philadelphia. I was a witness
to the interview. From that day Mr.
Widener was implacable and had much
to do with organizing the Gas Trust
investigation. He possessed large
financial resources, having been City
Treasurer practically two terms, Mr.
Southworth being but a substitute for
himself and at that time the Treas-
urership netted its occupant about half
a million during a single term. Mr.
McManes was not in sympathy with
Mr. Kemble’s pardon which was forced
by the powerful influence of the Penn-
sylvania Railroad in whose interest as
lobbyist at Harrisburg he had incurred
his sentence. He regarded it as an
outrage upon justice calculated to
bring all law into disrepute. To me
he particularly deplored that a man
of the high type of Attorney General
Palmer should be practically forced to
join in voting for the pardon and thus
destroy his political future.
As to the final collapse of the Peo-
ples Bank, Judge James Gay Gor-
don knows more than any living man
of the true inwardness of that event
and of the sacrifice which Mr. James
McManes made of a half million of his
private means that no depositor might
suffer loss. It is my conviction that
the Loper hue and cry was but a false
scent and pure camouflage. So far as
my knowledge goes while Mr. Mec-
Manes was at home with a disease
from which he never recovered, the
bank’s money with the consent of the
voung cashier was used by a pool in a
gigantic speculation in the securities
of a company whose shares would be
profoundly affected by senatorial ac-
tion of which, inside information was
to be supplied by a member of the
group. But in spite of the action of
the Senate the hoped for debacle of the
shares did not materialize. The Wall
Street foxes were too sagacious for
the Philadelphia hares. One man to
my knowledge lost $125,000. Another,
nearly if not quite a million and what
the manipulator of the bank’s funds
lost will never be known. An inkling
may be gained from the fact that the
cashier said before self-destruction,
“The moment I permitted the half mil-
lion gilt-edged collateral to go out of
my hands I was undone.” Poor fellow!
More sinned against than sinning! The
innocent, ignorant tool of men who
were past masters in the arts of
chicanery and financial juggling.
Mr. McManes abhorred political cor-
ruption and fraud and everything cal-
culated to pervert the ballot box from
being a true organ of the expression
of public opinion. He stigmatized to
me the fact that Joseph Caven, candi-
date for Mayor, had been ‘counted out’
in the Mayor's office where the ballot
boxes were opened and the votes can-
vassed on the night of the election.
We are far from representing that he
was a political saint. He dearly loved
a political fight and in that epoch of
warring leaders every particle of polit-
ical power he possessed was won at
the sword’s point. But he believed in
fighting fairly and in a slugging
match any man who struck him below
the belt could not hope to escape his
vengeance to the limit of his power
and syord’s point. But he believed in
the heat of political battle indulged
in anemadversions upon his personal
character. As long as he lived he did
all in his power to thwart the ambi-
tion of these men and in most in-
stances was only too successful. Wil-
liam Henry Rawle for some such rea-
son awakened the profound personal
resentment of Mr. McManes. On going
on one occasion with him to Atlantic
City he saw Mr. Rawle sitting in the
car we were about to enter. He drew
back as if stung and said “Let us go
into the rear car, there is ‘a man in
there whose presence I cannot abide.”
! Mr. Rawle was forced upon the State
ticket as candidate for Supreme Judge
by the railroad interests contrary to
the wishes of Mr. McManes. Sharing
his counsel with no man he swung his
whole political following against the
entire State ticket and accomplished
its defeat by the election of Governor
Pattison and Judge Trunkey. It was
not from any hostility to Mr. James A.
Beaver but the determination to elim-
inate Mr. Rawle.
secret than secrecy
soundless bullets.
He was more
itself and fired
rector of the Pennsylvania Railroad by
Councils which by reason of the city
owning a block of that company’s stock
entitled - Councils to the privilege of
choosing two directors. This awaken-
ed the fears of Mayor Stokley and his
political associates that Mr. McManes
was about to annex the influence of
that powerful corporation to his al-
block of shares to the Pennsylvania
railroad, abolishing the city directors.
The move was unsuccessful as Mr. Mc-
Manes was thereafter chosen Direct-
or by the body of Pennsylvania rail-
road stockholders. None the less, he
regarded it as malevolent and insult-
ing to himself. He told me if he
found Stokley was implicated he would
adventure all his political fortunes to
defeat him for re-election. I know not
whether he secured the convincing evi-
that the defeat of Mr. Stokley and
the election of Mr. Fox for Mayor
grew out of this incident.
Mrs. McManes was one of those
gentle beings whose mission in the
home is to be felt rather than heard.
Unselfish to a degree she lost her
life to find it in that of her husband.
She was his other worldly and spirit-
ual self. Penetrating as sunlight and
induced by the fierce conflicts in which
he was engaged. She was the power
behind the throne and it is question-
able whether women in sacrificing this
mighty indirect influence for direct
participation in political life are not
yielding up the substance to grasp at
the illusive shadow.
A Regular Butcher
One day little Betty heard her motn-
er giving a detailed account of a re-
cent tonsil operation to an afternoon
caller,
“Yes, I had a perfectly dreadful
time. My doctor was a regular butch-
er,” said Mrs. B—
To her surprise, a few days later
she overheard the following conversa-
tion between her small daughter and
a little neighbor girl:
“Some day I am going to have my
tonsils taken out.”
“Are you going to the hospital like
my sister did?”
“No,” replied Betty, “I am just go-
Ing down to the butcher shop where
mother had hers cut out.”—Indiznapo-
lis News.
Insects on Increase
For a century and more scientists
have been listing and classifying in-
sects found in the various countries,
hoping they might have, some time,
a complete list of the insect family,
i but the task seems to have no end,
new species being found in all lands,
so many, in fact, that more than 6,000
are being listed, each year, says Na-
ture Magazine,
The scientists tend strongly to the
belief that new species are being pro-
vided by some means, for each year
discoveries are made of which no
scientist in the past ever heard and
man must admit in the bug listing
business he is a long way behind.
European Air Lines
\' There are 42 commercial air lines
operating daily to all parts of cen-
tral and eastern Europe, including
Berlin. There are many small com-
panies, all now consolidated with the
Deutsche Lufthansa. There are 120
commercial planes and 160 pilots. One
hundred and ten planes are constant-
ly in working order. In 1925 the Ger-
man commercial air service carried
approximately 133,639 passengers and
6,600 tons of freight.
mercial service in passengers and
freight carried and miles traveled
preceding year.
Chinese Official Journal
The Tsen-Tse-Kwan-Pao of Peking,
China, recently celebrated its thou-
sandth birthday anniversary, and fis
said to be the oldest newspaper in the
world. A recent article says that “ev.
ery issue of this newspaper has been
carefully preserved and filed in the
official archives of the palace at Pe.
king. The penalty for making a mis.
statement in this newspaper has been
decapitation, and it is said that mora
than a few of its editors have suffered
this fate in the past. Since the revo.
lution the paper has changed its title
to Tsen-Fou-Koun-Pao, which means
*“Officlal Government Journal.”
Eradicate Deadly Weed
Recently 17 boys of a county home
were severely poisoned as a result of
eating leaves, roots and flowers of the
water hemlock, reports Hygeia Maga-
zine.
This plant grows im swamp land,
along irrigating ditches and in mead-
ows, and is known as cowbane, snake.
weed, wild carrot, wild parsnip and
death of man, The boys found it
growing ‘in a swamp mear the play-
ground. Since it has [little if any
usefulness and i8 poisonous to men
and animals, farmers and others im
tharge ‘of open lands should do every-
thing possible to eradicate It.
tripled its volume of business over the :
In the course of
events, Mr. McManes was elected Di-
ready overswollen political fortunes |
and they introduced and passed a reso- !
lution by Councils of sale of the city
we —
Flying-Machine idea
Older Than Balloon
Contrary to popular belief, tle prin-
ciple of the flying machine was !ntro-
duced long before the balloon came
into notice. But the lighter-thun-air
carriers were for a long period consid-
ered the only possible method of air
travel, and for that reason have be-
come the symbol of pioneer aeronau-
tics.
Without even considering Ovid's |
mythological tale of the mechanical
flying bird, Aulus Gellius, in his
“Attic Nights” writes of a wooden
dove invented by the Greek mathemu-
tician, Archytas of Tarentus, in the
year 400 B. C. The same Archytas is
said also to have invented a navigable
kite.
There is then a long gap in “aero-
nauties” until the Fifteenth century.
when Leonardo Da Vinci, famous as
the painter of “Mona Lisa,” is reputed
to have in about the year 1480 out-
lined the plan of a flying machine.
Nothing has ever been found of the
draft.
Two hundred years later one Borelli
presented a pair of mechanical wings
to a wondering public, while in the
i
same period Besnier. a French lock- °
smith, built a pair of oscillating wings
with which he is reputed to have trav- |
. eled short distances.
dence but have no doubt personally
as noiseless, she had a boundless in-
fluence upon his moods, soothing the
nervous agitations and high tempers |
! Va,
Perhaps the most definite and prac-
tical plan for an airplane left to pos-
terity, prior to the modern conceptions |
"of Maxim, Langley, the Wrights and |!
others, is that conceived by Sweden-
borg, the extraordinary universal
genius of the Eighteenth century. His
carefully worked out draft was
planned about 1720 and is now in the
archives of the government of Swe: |
den. Swedenborg also left plans, or
working drafts, of a submarine, air-
gun, universal musical instrument, a
mechanical carriage, etc.
Bedtime Story
Jnce there was a statesman who
decided that a new era had come.
“Illiteracy has vanished from the
and,” he said. “The people are now
enlightened. Bunkum is as obsolete
as the 30-cent dinner. Henceforth I
shall tell them only the truth.”
30, when he came up for re-election
ne made no extravagant promises.
He told them that business was bad
and he didn’t know how to make it
any better.
de told them that he had voted for
taws that he now believed were rotten.
He told them that taxes would have
to be raised and that no millenium was
in sight.
But he added that he would do ali
chat a normally intelligent person .
could do to improve conditions.
Adis opponent got the biggest plu
rality in history.—Kansas City Star.
Another U. S. A.
speaking of United South Africa; 1
addressed a letter once to Richmond,
U. 8. A. The letter, with a
| Richmond, Natal, postmark, was re-
| turned indorsed: “Address unknown.”
i
Moscow. Seventeen lines radiate from
In 1925 the com- |
| Wisconsin resident,
On complaining to the post office I
was indignantly informed that U. S. A.
stood - for United South Africa, and
that the United States of North Amer-
ica should be U. 8. O. N. A. American
friends, please accept this, the only
imitation. Of course, it may be per-
fectly all right when mail sorters get
to know it, but I am afraid if I mailed
a letter to Savannah, Georgia, U. S.
0. N. A,, it would be put in the bag
for Asia Minor, or wherever the orig-
inal Georgia may be.—From Sped-
ding’s “Reminiscences.”
Dveralls for Evening Wear
Wearing overalls to an evening
party is regarded as good form in the
gold-mining districts of Alaska, ac-
cording to Edward McKelvey, former
who knew Jack
London and Rex Beach in the early
days of the Klondike fields, says the
Milwaukee Journal.
McKelvey, who recently spent. three
days with relatives at Prairie du
Chien, Wis.,, was a partner with Rex
Beach in a wood-cutting contract.
The noted author, McKelvey says,
spent eleven years in the Far North
laying the foundation for most of his
stories and nearly all of his charac-
ters were persons Mr,
known, with only a change of name.
Graduated as Dog Nurses
It is the established custom about
the country homes in Great Britain to
keep a number of dogs, some as house
pets, some for hunting, others for no
special purpose save to gratify the
Englishman's love for dogs. Hence
there is a continual demand for vet-
erinary service for the dogs. Recently
the animal hospital at Totterridge
graduated a class of young women
who had completed the training for
dog nurses, their plan being to locate
in the wealthy country sections and
sell their services to dog owners
whose pets might be in need of medi-
cal attention, and they expect to make
a fortune in their profession.—Ohio
State Journal.
English Name Hurt Singer
Beatrice Sherrard, a soprano who
made her debut last year at the Mu-
nicipal opera house of Rio de Janeiro
in “Aida,” said that her English name
was such a hindrance in Italy when
she went there to study that she was
forced to adopt a Latin substitute.
“I succeeded in obtaining a hearing
before the Italian impresarios only by
assuming the name of Beatrice Ghe-
rardi,” she sald. “They scoffed when
I was introduced, exclaiming ‘What,
vou are Englisht They have no tal
ent!” Miss Sherrard’'s mother was
Brazilian, her father English, She
was born in Brazil.
Beach had
Almost Impossible to
Fool Master of Magic
A student of the history of magic,
i Re had collected a large library of
the literature of magic, containing
many rare volumes, and few persons
; were more familiar with magicians
of the past and their feats than was
| Houdini, writes William Johnston in.
the New York Times.
Yet he was always eager to hear
about new stunts. The surest way to:
get an audience with him was to tell
him you had a new trick. He imme-
diately wented to see it and learn how
. it was done.
| One night when he was at the New
i York Hippodrome, just about ten min-
. utes before it was time for him to
| appear in his act, word was brought
to him that a young man with a new
trick wanted to see him. Houdini
bounded out of his dressing room to
meet his visitor.
“What have you got?’ he asked
eagerly.
“I can stop the beating of my pulse
at will.”
i “Let's see you do it,” demanded the
magician.
The young man extended his arm.
Houdini felt his wrist. His pulse
: was beating normally.
“Now watch,” said the visitor.
| Houdini felt the pulse again. No
{ movement of the pulse could be de-
| tected.
|
|
i
“Do it again,” said Houdini.
The young man complied, beginning
' to feel triumphant that the trick was
baffling the great master.
{ He never had seen the trick before,
but his logical mind reasoned that the
easiest way to stop the pulse beats
would be to apply pressure to the
artery. He suspected that the effect
was produced by a pad under the arm,
and sure enough it was.
As Others See Us
An aspiring candidate, with a keen
sense of humor, relates an unique
slant that he got on his own rather
. dubious position before the recent elec-
tion. Several weeks before November:
2 he approached a man in his district
in order to see what his chances might
be with one who was known to vote
a split ticket.
“Did you know that I was running
for councilman, Sam?” the politician:
asked optimistically.
“Yes, I knew that you were run-
ning,” reluctantly replied the nonpar--
i tisan voter.
| “How did you know that I was run-
! ning?”
I “Well, George told me.”
“What did he say about my running
* when he told you?’ the candidate
. hopefully questioned.
“Well,” more reluctantly, replied:
: the voter, “he didn’t say anything—
he just laughed.”
Nervy “Borrower”
The cheekiest person 1 know is a
girl who came over to our house one:
Friday and begged my mother to lend
her a new old-rose dress of mine
which I had worn once; her reason—
she was going to be a bridesmaid the
next day (Saturday) and didn’t have:
a dress to wear nor money to buy a
new one,
Mother refused at first, for we never
were in the habit of lending clothes to:
anyone, but after seeing the girl in
tears and listening to her hard-luck
story, mother consented, making her-
promise to bring back the dress the
next day.
She took the dress and then asked
| mother for some carfare. Having 30:
' cents in change, she gave it to the
girl. Time has passed, but we never
did see the dress, the 30 cents nor:
the girl.—R. R., in Chicago Tribune,
Ancient Paper Sarcastic
In a recent cleaning of the cellar of’
the University of Pennsylvania Ii-
brary an old southern newspaper was
discovered printed on the back of a
piece of wallpaper.
| The newspaper, called the Daily
| Citizen, was published in Vicksburg,
i Miss, July 2, 1863, by J. M. Swords.
Following is a quotation from the pa-
per:
| “We are indebted to Major Gillespie
for a steak of Confederate beef, alias
meat. We have tried it and can as-
sure our friends that if it Is rendered
necessary they need have no scruples
at eating the meat. It is sweet,
savory and tender, and so long as we
have a mule left we are satisfied our
soldiers will be content with it.”
Institute’s Good Work
The Institute of Politics is a move-
ment inaugurated by the trustees of
Williams college in September, 1919,
and consists of annual sessions at
which are discussed foreign affairs so
as to promote a more sympathetic un-
derstanding of the problems and poli-
cles of other nations. This Is done
by offering courses of public lectures
delivered by distinguished scholars
and statesmen from foreign countries
and by setting up round table and
open conferences presided over by
recognized authorities.
Real Stage Tragedy
While the audience laughed and ap-
plauded, thinking it a superb piece of
acting, an actress taking the princl-
pal part in a musical comedy at a Ro-
man theater died on the stage during
the performance. At the end of the
second act she stumbled, then clutched
at the neck of one of the actors. Both
fell heavily to the floor. The curtain
fell amid deafening applause and
laughter, and nobody realized what
nad happened until the manager an.
nounced the death of the actress
through heart failure,