Pittsburg dispatch. (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, February 17, 1889, Page 4, Image 4

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ESTABLISHED FEBRUARY 8. IS46.
Vol. 44, No. 10. Entered at 1'lttsburg Po6t
oSce, N0TCiaberl4, 1SS7, as seeona-ciass matter.
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News Rooms and Publishing: House 75,
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of Philadelphia, Its advantages as an adver
tising medinm will be apparent.
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Voluntary contributors should keep copiet of
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the Editor of llfE Dispatch unll under no
circumstances be responsible for the care of un
solicited manuscripts.
PITTSBURG, SUNDAY. FE& 17, 1SS9.
A SATISFACTORY BACK DOWN.
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has
distinguished itself once more by overturn
ing its own decision and holding that the
limitation of damages to be secured in the
case of death by accident was. repealed by
the Constitution.
This is a decided improvement on the
former ruling of the court that the act could
not be repealed by the constitutional enact
ment. The reasoning of the court as sum
marized in the report elsewhere, is clear and
unquestionable, the act of 1868 limiting
damages was a contract without consider
tion; the right of repeal still lay in the
Legislature; and a fortiori it lay in the Constitution-making
power. This puts an end
to the anomaly ol paying less in damages
for the wanton destruction of a life, than
the corporations for whose benefit the law
was enacted, pay yearly in salary to a third
class official.
But is it not a rather telling commentary
upon our administration of law that it is 15
years after a constitutional provision has
been enacted, before the Supreme Court
will uphold it.
A BULE OF SELECTION.
The annual appeal to city people to go to
the polls in February and vote for the "best
men" for Councils is so old, so familiar,
that every reader who is of age must be able
to repeat the incantation in some one of the
numerous forms in which the newspapers
present it. From very use and custom the
advice long ago lost its freshness and force;
and, as time rolls on, the Councils of one
term are seen to be very much like their
predecessors.
It may be that if in the present year of
. grace the formula is again trled.it will have
no more effect in getting, in every instance, a
transcendantly superior quality of Council
man; but at any rate it can do no harm to
state the plain truth thai the coming year
ih considerably more important to Pittsburg
and Allegheny than any which went before.
There is an immense lot of work which the
needs of the growing cities require should
be done. The question of expense in all the
departments is, likewise, always present.
There are half a dozen subjects ofprime im
portance even now pending at Harrkburg,
such as railroad crossings, street improve
ments, electric lighting and passenger rail
way bills, upon which Councils should have
the first say. All these things, and many
more, will affect the interests, the pockets
and the sentiments of tax payers in time to
come. Of course there should be capable
and fit men in Councils to judge of the
right and the wisdom of the questions herein
involved.
There are very few citizens who, each ia
his own precinct, cannot tell which candi
date he would vote for if his own private
business, in place of the city's, were at
stake. By applying that simple test the
best selections in nine cases out of ten are
sure to be made. There is no other rule.
W0X WAEBAHTS NOT BOOKmB.
It is rather satisfactory than otherwise to
find that the conservative members of the
pig iron industry are disposed to look very
coolly upon the project of turning their
staple into a football of speculation. The
example of the crude petroleum interest fur
nishes them with a warning that most of
them are ready to lay to heart. Those who
produce iron that is fit for nothing else than
to gamble with, may hail the warrant
scheme as establishing a market for their
production; but the great mass of manufac
turers will do wisely to continue as hereto
fore selling their metal on its merits and
permitting the markets to be ruled by the
free action of supply and demand. If any
warrant scheme is to be undertaken the iron
men might follow the example of the silver
men, and demand that the Government
shall issue the certificates for all the metal
they deposit, and make the certificates a le
gal tender for all debts, public and private.
That would make a general boom in other
things besides iron warrants until the bub
ble burst.
CHTJECHES AND CHEISTIAHITY.
The remarkable utterances of the sexton
or manager of a New York church, who
turned a strange lady out of a pew in that
fashionable edifice because the pew did not
belong to her, has created a good deal of dis
cussion. It is no more than fair to say that
the pastor and wardens of the church dis
avow the action of their representative, and
declare that strangers are welcome to their
church. Nevertheless the idea that peo
ple who pay for expensive pews in high
toned churches, have the right to be exclu
sive and are outraged if they must .be
crowded by unknown persons, makes itself
heard. The following from the editorial
columns of the Philadelphia Press is an ex
ample: W hen a stranger in a large city goes to hear
Booth or Barrett in tragedy or Christine Nils
son or Madame Pattl in opera he pays from $2
to $5 for his seat and would think it an un
speakable outrage if his stall were encroached
upon. But he will present himself at the door
of one of the costliest churches in a city and
become speedily indignant if he is not shown
to a pew, every seat in which bag been rented
for more than he paid for bis opera stall.
This is just the idea of the New York
sexton,to the effect that he does "not care for
salvation; it is the dollars that are wanted."
It the chnrch rests on the same basis as the
theaters the logic is indisputable. But
there is an avowal by every church that it
professes and tries to practice the principles
taught by Christ. These principles cannot
possibly be mistaken for lack of definite
statement. "When we find such a contrast
to the rale of conduct laid down in the
direction to the rich man to "sell all thou
hast and give unto the poor," as is afforded
by the rich men who object to let the poor
sit beside them in the services that are sup
posed to worship the Teacher of that doc
trine, it is a remarkable instance of the gap
that can exist between profession and prac
tice. We think that the great value and
strength of the Christian chnrch oT to-day
lies in the fact that the mass of the churches
are sufficiently cognizant of the principles
they profess to avoid such undisguised ex
hibitions of selfishness as this example.
Christianity is taught in most of the
churches; and to the degree in which it Is
taught the influence of those organizations
for good is live and effective. But there is
hardly a more decisive corroboration of the
deadening influence upon a church of
making money a leading criterion than this
practical denial of the doctrine that, in the
worship of the Maker, all men are equal.
In this particular respect the Catholic
Chnrch shows a greater appreciation of its
doctrines than any other denomination, by
making everyone equal in the place of wor
ship. Prince and peasant, millionaire and
beggar worship side by side in the sanctua
ries of that denomination, and to that fact
may be attributed a great share of its vi
tality and its hold upon the common people.
But even in this church there has recently
been a remarkable exhibition of the differ
ence which it can make whether influence
or great power is confronted, instead of
weakness or obscurity. The denial of
Christian burial to John McGuire, of 3few
York, because he held erroneous views on
taxation, while the same rite was granted
to Prince Eudolf, of whose death the most
creditable explanation was suicide, is sn
addition to the long list of proofs that the
mundane representatives of religion are
often prone to forsake their principles in
order to flatter or conciliate the great, rich
and powerful.
Nevertheless the power of Christianity is
most fully shown in that, despite such ex
hibitions of inability to appreciate its teach
ings, it still lives and furnishes the light of
the world.
THE NECESSABY.ItEStrLT.
Prof. Shalers special contribution in an
other column, shows how the exactions of
the copper syndicate in cornering the mar
ket for that metal, and establishing exor
bitant prices, has caused such an active
search for new mines and such an increase
of production, that it is on the point of
breaking down under the bnrden it has cre
ated for itself.
This sustains the rule which The Dis
patch has always urged, that nnless such
a combination has the power to exclude new
production by some lever either of control
ling transportation, or owning patents, or
fastening its grip on a limited field of pro
duction, it is sure to defeat itself. One or
the other of these barriers to new competi
tion has existed in the case of every combi
nation; or else it has gone to pieces.
But the fact thatsuch conspiracies against
the liberty of commerce must eventually
bring their own punishment, does not yfeld
much solace to the people who are burdened
by them while they last. The law should
be powerful enough to punish such attempts
in their inception, instead of letting them
flourish without caring for the ruin that
must succeed them.
THE ELECTBIC LIGHT DUEL.
The public will watch the outcome of the
fieht between the two great electric light
companies with keener interest than fthey
follow the technical arguments of counsel.
Here is an article coming into very general
nse, passing in fact from the list of luxuries
into the expanding category of necessities.
Freely recognizing that the inventors and
promoters of electric lighting should reap
handsome rewards from their skill and
energy, the public will still" regret any un
happy chance that may turn this new
article into a monopoly like the telephone.
Of course the wishes or interests of con
sumers will have no part in shaping events,
but recent experience will cause an ex
pression of feeling none the less. The ex
tortions of trusts and combinations in almost
all lines of business have led to a strong
sentiment which, sometimes with good reason,
takes certain phases of the manipulation of
patents within the range of its antipathy.
The big capitalization of both the Edison
and Westinghouse companies, and the pro
fits made by each concern, even when in
competition, show that the demand for their
wares gives elegant compensation as things
now stand. If one concern get absolute
control of electric lighting there will doubt
less be many more "millions in it," but
these millions will come from consumers'
pockets; and for that reason the public will
pray, if anything; for other Eichmonds to
enter the field, rather than that either of
the existing concerns should have new op
portunities for the watering processes by
which immense values in these days are cre
ated, otten out of nothing more tangible
than mere opportunities.
THE BEGULAB SPECIFIC.
Some of the principles or methods if they
can be dignified by either term of the so
called "Christianseience," as exemplified by
a work recently published, arouses the
sarcasm of the Buffalo Express. It quotes
the following directions for treating a com
mon ailment:
Suppose you have a cold in your bead. You
may find yourself much better, or even cured,
by saying to yourself once, or several times In
succeslon, or until you feel a change, as follows:
"I deny the fact that I have anything tbe mat
ter with me. I have no fear." (Lay great
stress on this; say it very coolly and calmly; say
It several times over, varying the words If you
like.) "Sitting in draught has no power to give
anybody a cold." (Here you can assign what
ever reason tbe people around you Insist was
the cause of your cold.) "My head is not
heavy, my eyes are not swelled; I am not deaf
and stupefied." (You can enumerate as many
or as few symptoms as you like; bat mention
them only to deny them, and do not think that
tbe more effort you make to name all of them
the better yon are treating yourself.)
The judgment of our esteemed cotempor
ary that this sort of denial of existing facts
is "neither Christian nor science" can
hardly be disputed; but it must be admitted
that it is human nature. A very little
thought will show that it is the treatment
adopted by the greatest and most influen
tial for the treatment of a good many worse
troubles than a cold or any other mere bod
ily disorder.
Here is a monopoly that has crushed out
all competitors. "When its exactions raise
a public protest it adopts exactly the course
prescribed above. By means of high
priced attorneys it denies that it tries to
monopolize the market; protests that it
never receives special rates from the rail
roads; declares that It does not try to crush
rivals; and represents itself as a philan
thropic institution, until "by the weight and
respectability of its millions, it becomes so
in the opinion of the publicists. A politi
cal organization got up for the purpose of
making money, effective in elections, takes
the method of persistently protesting that
it does nothing of the sort. A reform ad
ministration puts an avowed spoilsman in
charge of the reform and goes on protesting
its fidelity to the reform principle. A great
railroad combine organizes to force rates
that will yield profits on watered stocksand
protests that it does not intend to put any
burdens on the public. "What are all these
but the systematic declaration that the
things that make the trouble do not exist,
as recommended by the exponent of Christ
ian Science? .
If declaring that there are no monopolies,
no political corruption, no betrayal of re
form pledges will cure the corruption,
monopolies and betrayals, why will not the
"lie well stuck to" suffice as a specific for
colds or any physical indisposition?
The news that the parties indicted for
that Federal street accident cannot be tried
on the'graver charge of manslaughter will
be received with a sense of thankfulness
that they can be tried for anything at all.
Out in Ohio the doctrine that "the greater
the truth the greater the libel" does not
seem to find much favor with the lower
courts, at least A well-known citizen of
Akron recently had his hands and feet
frozen by the unusual, but not wholly inex
plicable, act of going to sleep on the curb
stone during a cold night One of his fam
ily, learning that a paper was about to pub
lish a statement to that effect, went to the
office and destroyed the" form containing
the article. .The court fined him 5100
and costs, with the outsp'oken declara
tion that "the press must be protected
in publishing the news of the day," and
that whatever blame there was for such
an article "should rest on the party that
brought it on himself." Gentlemen who
are in the habit of making a lodging of the
sidewalk will regard this loosening of the
libel with general disapprobation.
The patriots who are desirous of serving
their city in Councils are more than usually
busy at present in convincing their con
stituents that they should be permitted to
sacrifice themselves.
Mrs. Maby Dow, the President of the
Dover, New Hampshire, street railway,
reports an eleven per cent dividend, ad
vanced wages, improved service and a sur
plus in the treasury of the company, as the
result of her first year's management of that
corporation. This record of success in a
novel field for woman's efforts may be taken
as proof presumptive that Mr. Dow did not
regard her work to lie exclusively in the
manipulation of the market for alleged
fifty-dollar shares on which ,ten dollars of
cash is actually paid in.
The extra session looms up as a warning
to the Democrats that if they can possibly
make a compromise on the tariff question in
the next two weeks it will be money in their
pockets to do it.
One of the instructive features of the
markets of tbe day is the promptness with
which the millers boost the price of flour 30
cents when the price of wheat goes up 5 or
10 cents, and the firmness with which they
do not reduce flour when wheat goes down.
The danger lest the poor should be afflicted
with cheap and superabundant bread ap
pears to be fully guarded against.
Notwithstanding the daily report of
a decisive defeat or victory for one side or
the other, the West "Virginia contest con
tinues to maintain its chronic and malig
nant form.
Delta Lockwood's assertion that she
"talked prohibition before the prohibition
party was born" is rather severe in its re
coil. As there was a party which supported
practical prohibition in the shape of the
Maine law when men now middle-aged were
infants, this sets Belva down among the an
tiquities. Supebindent Higbee'b clean coat of
whitewash for the McAlisterville school is
more conclusive in its ranking of Superin
tendent Higbee than it is concerning the
school,
Another "princf " who has been atten
tive to American heiresses, turns out to be
an ordinary, vulgar criminal instead of a
genuinely titled one. It will soon be ap
parent to the nobility purchasers that the
only Highness they can tie to is H. B. H.
the Prince of Wales.
Russian honors to Sir R. D. Morier are
an affront to the German magnates, which
can only be avenged by throwing some more
of the late Emperor's friends in prison.
The Edison-Westinghouse electric suits
present the unusual feature of patent liti
gation in which the public is not especially
interested on either side. Consequently
there is no side which has no chance of
winning on the face of the case.
The trial of the real issue in the Parnell
case is just commencing. Heretofore it has
been getting ready to commence.
Eveby one is talking for a bull move
ment in stocks and petroleum, but it is in
structive to note how all the talkers are
ready to dump their bundles on the market
the first minute they think there is a good
chance to unload.
PB0MINENT PEOPLE.
Mb. L. P. Morton will give the use of his
Washington house to the ladies of the Garfield
Memorial Hospital, for a charity art exhibi
tion, before he takes possession of it next
month.
The only negro in the next National House
of Representatives will be H. P. Cheatham,
from the Second North Carolina District He
is 82 years old and is a prominent man in his
community.
The dress that Mrs. Harrison SVM probably
wear at the inauguration is of pearl-white
brocade, made with a long train, the front of
which is of almost solid gold embroidery. The
corsage opens a little at the throat and shows
a fall ruche of real old point lace. Tbe sleeTes
reach the elbow.
The State Senate of Delaware is a body of
nine men whose principal occupation, accord
ing to a correspondent is to sit around, tell
stories and wait for the House to do some
thing. When, a visitor appears they make a
pretense of transacting business but the
momenthe leaves they resume their occupation
of killing time.
The official jeweler of the Kappa Sigma
Society is at work on a costjy badge that 'is to
be presented to Miss Winnie Davis, the daugh
ter of Jefferson Davis, in pursuance of resolu
tions adopted at the last conclave of the
fraternity, held in Atlanta. The badge will be
in the form of a star and crescent fully jeweled
with diamonds and rubies.
Lord Rothschild is popular in London
among the poor. "He is a good 'un, he is,"
said an omnibus driver, passing his palace. "If
all the bloomin' swells was like him they should
have my wote and interest" "How's that?"
"Why, every Christmas he givs my mate and
me a brace of pheasants, and so he do all of us
wot passes his door. Good old Baron."
The beeping letters which Mrs. Harrison re
ceives from people who wish her to intercede
with her husband to secure them an office
number about 35 a day. As soon as Mrs. Har
rison gets far enough along in the reading of a
letter to ascertain that it Is of an office-seeking
character she stops reading It at once and con
signs it to tbe waste-basket The appeal is
never, under any circumstances, brought to the
attention of her husband.
THE " PITTSBURG- DISPATCH,
THE TOPICAL TALKER.
Umbrellai and Those Wbo Stoal. Them
Rachel' TJmbrel' Stocking! Wanted
A Chapter on Chickens and Calves.
Umbrellas yesterday were at a premium.
The man that hadn't one, or couldn't borrow
or steal one, was indeed to be pitied. No pity
was wasted on me, for I stole one. It was my
own, to be sure, but I hadn't seen it for so long
that it was almost as pleasant as Stealing it
when I borrowed it from the obliging friend
who bad had the usufruct from it for many,
many months.
A plan a friend of mine has to circumvent
tbe umbrella thief has some things to recom
mend it He has a large tablet of silver riveted
into the handle of his best silk umbrella,
whereon is inscribed the following notice: ,
THIS UMBKELLLAIS STOLEN
: ' Fitoa
: ALPHABET SMITH.
He says bo has found it operate very effect
ually upon forgetful friends, but once it rather
embarrassed him. He was traveling in a Penn
sylvania train, and in the seat infrontofhim
was an elderly lady of rural antecedents. Her
face seemed to be familiar to him, and he
looked at her several times. She for some reason
took fright at these glances, and the next time
the conductor camo through tbe car she whis
'pered her suspicions of the man in the next
seat His umbrella with the notice of theft
plainly In sight lay in tbe corner of the seat,
and the conductor happened to see it It was
with some difficulty that my friend convinced
tbe conductor and the old lady that he was not
a crook upon mischief bent
.
Have you ever seen one of the old-fashioned
umbrellas of cotton that our grandslres or
some of them used to carry with immense
prideT
An old character who was well-known in tbe
Bewickley valley for I don't know how many
years-sho isn't dead or forgotten yet had an
umbrella of this sort by which she set great
store. It was of blue cotton, with broad, white,
circular stripes, and to what era it belonged
old Rachel did not know.
They say she only lent it once. One day, a
score of years ago, her husband, who was a
track walker on the Fort Wayne Hallway,
screwed up his courage enough to ask her to
lend him the sacred umbrella. She brought
out the blue and whlto treasure from a corner
of the little station house where they lived,
and, with many Injunctions to be sure and
bring it back, gave it to him.
He had to walk three miles into tbe country
that day, and when he had reached his destina
tion it bad stopped-ralnlng. Tbe sky was clear
when he started for home, and I suppose that
was why he forgot the blue and white um
brella. He never thought of. it again till he was at
the threshold of bis borne, and there bis wife
confronted him with her 200 pounds of muscle
and bone.
"Where Is it!" she said in a low and ominous
tone.
"Where is what, Rachel 7" was her husband's
meek reply.
"Where's that umbrel't"
"Sakes aUvel I left It behlndl"
"Before you git into this house you'll fetch
that mnbrel',"
Jim, that was her husband's name, knew that
Rachel would do as she said every time, and
he walked back tbree miles and then retraced
his steps, bearing the umbrel'."
.
What a remarkable old woman Rachel must
have been in her prlmel
She used to boss the neighborhood in which
she lived, and most of the time she was at war
with all the boys for miles around. On eof.tho
boys tells me a good story of those days.
He and a few more juvenile brigands used to
delight in tormenting old Rachel. Their ways
and means were not unlike those popular
among the boys of to-day. One trick which
always had the effect of aggravating old
Rachel to the verge of insanity was to knock
at her door and then scoot away to a safe dis
tance. ,
When Rachel lived in tbe old station house
atEdgewortb, her enemies, the boys, were
wont to get under the -station platform and
with a piece of telegraph wire keep up an in
termittent storm of raps upon Rachel's door.
She neTer solved the mystery of. that rapper
who could never be caught though she often
opened the door SO times an hour armed with
some weapon or other.
V
The boys got tired of this mechanical device
after operating it the best part of one summer
morning, and came out on to the railroad track
just as a book and map peddler happened to
come up. He asked one of the boys where he
could got a drink of water, and the urchin
obligingly replied: "Yes, Rachel will give you
all the water you want if you knock at the
door." .
Which was strictly true.
The peddler knocked at the door, and it flew
open faster than any door that peddler had ever
known before. A tall, bony, broad-shouldered
woman, her face livid with anger, filled up the
doorway, and a jugful of hot water hit tbe
book agent in the face. He turned and ran
away as fast as he could down the track, shak
ing his fist at the boys, who stood at a safe dis
tance and shouted to Rachel that she would
surely be arrested.
V
When Rachel's husband was killed by falling
off a band car, she was apparently over
whelmed with grief. She walked up and down
outside the station house with a stride and
gait as though she was stepping over tall grass,
and screaming at the top of her voice. The
neighbors one and all came down and tried to
calm her. But she would not be comforted.
Neither would she hear of having the funeral
the next day.
One of the neighbors, who had known her all
ber life, tried to reason with her on the subject.
She was obstinato and insisted that the funeral
must be postponed. Her reasons for wanting
delay she would not give at first, "but after
much pressing, she said: "I ain't got no black
stockings!1
A tottno and presumably tender chicken in
whom I have taken some interest of late has
been ailing for several days, and though it has
refused to eat has presented a distended, not
to say balloon-like appearance.
The proprietor of tbe chicken instituted an
inquiry, and several witnesses were called.
One, a small, but intelligent child, knew a great
deal about the chicken. She was positive that
the' Bantam for of that small and comely
breed the Invalid is had eaten heartily on a
very recent occasion.
"Why," said she, "I gave it a lot to eat my
self." "What did you give It?" the inquisitor asked.
"Rice!" was the reply.
"Uncooked rlceT"'
"Yes."
"Ohl"
Now that small chicken attracts no attention
from the curious; it still Is of abnormal girth,
but is convalescent See what a few grains of
rice can do I '
V
It affords me great pleasure to note the latest
progress in suburban dairy farming.. Here is
one of the latest notes in my book: An East
End gentleman is bent upon raising calves, and
at present there are four as pretty young Al
deraeys as a man may see in his stable. Tbe
other day I met the daughter of this gentle
man, a little mis3 of 8 summers. I inquired
after everybody's health, and last of all I
asked how tbe calves Were.
"Oh," said she, "they're getting along all
rightnow. Papa's feeding them lime water."
"Isn't that a queer thing to give calves," I
asked.
i'You see we've not enough milk now for
them all, and lime water looks just like milk,
you knowP'
Afterward I met the gentleman who owns
the calves, and told him how glad I was
to hear that his " calves were thriving on lime
water. As he seemed puzzled at the remark, I
repeated to him what his daughter had told
me.
"Lime waterf" said ho, laughlne; "It is flour
and water, and my little girl, I suppose, mis
took it for whitewash."
And so what I deemed a discovery In cow
feed vanished out of sight
Hepburn Johns.
Effect of tbe Weather.
From the New York World.l
General Greely informs Congress that a
large percentage of the officers In charge of
the Signal Service of the country are mentally
unfitted for the performance of their duties.
Surely the weather of the past year has been
erratic enough to shake the Intellectual facul
ties of anybody who gave It close attention.
SUNDAY; ' " KEBRUART
L0G-E0LMKQ.
A Tlmoly Warning to Those Who Join Mu
tual Admiration Societies.
Prom the London Globe.
Thecultusof mutual admiration Is not con
fined to any time or any rank. Maudle and
Postlethwalte have cut their hair and given up
beslobbering one another with verbal adula
tion; but they "log-roll" for one another in the
magazines and the weekly papers, which comes
to much the same thing. The practice, more
over, is not confined to. literary and artistic
circles, as may be learned from an interesting
case which came yesterday before Judge Eddis
at the Clerkenwell County Court. In 1836 there
were in Islington several gentlemen who
served the publfc on boards of various kinds.
Determined' that their zeal should be duly
recognized they used to get up testimonials to
one another at frequent, intervals. At last it
came to be the turn of Mr. G. S Elliot then a
member of the Metropolitan Asylums Board,
and now of the London County Council, to
score a succes d'estime of this kind. Two of
bis friends undertook the arrangements, and
suggested'a dinner at a local public bouse.
But Mr. Elliott was not going to bo fobbed off
with that Ho insisted upon the venue being
the Albion of City fame; and, moreover, de
termined upon being treated in good style, told
the landlord that though a 63. (3d. dinner was to
be ordered, a 103.84. was to be supplied, he
(Mr. Elliott) agreeing to pay the difference.
So far, so good.
Five thousand circulars were distributed
among the parishioners, the dinner was held
and a portrait and a gold watcb (purchased by
the recipient) were duly presented to him "as
a small token of our Tespect and esteem" by
bis udmiring friends. But trouble arose, as It
has often arisen before, over tbe wine. Some
gentlemen, it seems, were under the impression
that the 6s. 6d. which they had paid for their
tickets included wine an impression which, we
need hardly inform the frequenters of public
dinners, was entirely erroneous. Accordingly
the bill was not settled; and hence yesterday's
action, in which Mr. Elliott himself was one of
the co-defendants. Tbe case may serve as a
useful warning to. other gentlemen who join
Mutual Admiration Societies. So long as every
one "plays fair" nothing can be nicer; but when,
after you have rolled your friends' logs and
paid for their dinners, they refuse to move a
finger or to put their hands in their pockets,
the game hardly seems to be worth the candle.
WOULD BAK THE SATIOE.
The Sexton of St. Thomas' Stands by the
, Rich The Pastor Indignant.
New York, February 16. Only half the
story has been told of the first interview Sexton
B. W. Williams, of St Thomas Church, had
with a reporter when he advanced his ideas on
business and religion as partners. Shortly
after the sexton had, as alleged. Insulted Mrs.
G. W. Moore, of Detroit, and hustled her out
of a pew because she was a stranger, a reporter
called on the sexton and had a long interview
with him, most of which has been published. It
is now, however, for the first time made known
that the reporter, at that interview, said that
tbe Savior sought rather the poor than the
rich, and in the sight of God both were judged
from tbe same standpoint of morality.
Mr. Williams responded in this way: "That
is a beautiful theory, but it would not be prac
ticable in our present state of civilization.
Most probably if Christ were to present him
self personally for admission to St Thomas'
Church as He appeared on earth (meaning in
poverty's garmeuts), and had not paid for his
pew in advance" here the sexton shrugged his
shoulders and concluded, "you know." Even
tbe Savior could not enter St. Thomas' Church;
that was the unquestionable impression the
sexton conveyed.
Rev. John Wesley Brown, rector of the
church, was seen by a reporter, and asked if
any formal comnlaint had been made against
Sexton Williams.
"Not that I am aware of." he replied.
"Will the church stand by the statements
Sexton Williams has made to reporters?" the
rector was asked.
"Is tbe newspaper responsible for the state
ments of a reporter on a horse car?" was the
rector's way of answering that question; "Why
the old gentleman." he added, "who has been
with the church for 30 years, should have al
lowed his tongue to gallop off with his reason is
more than I can say. St Thomas' Church is
one of the roost hospitable churches in the
country. No one is turned away from its doors
because he or she is too poor to pay for a pew.
It is unfair to judge of the sentiment of our
congregation by the expression of a paid em
ploye. I think, however, that too much has
already been said about the matter."
ANDEEW JACKSON'S HOMESTEAD.
The Movement to Preserve the Hermitage
as a National Memorial.
Nashville. February 16. A bill was intro
duced in the Legislature to-day looking to the
disposal of the Hermitage property to the Her
mitage Ladles' Association. The bill provides
that the dwelllngjhouse, tomb, improvements
and 260 acres of land shall be sold to this asso
ciation, hereafter to be organized,and that they
shall beautify and adorn the same as a national
and historic possession. Tbe associatlou shall
not 'dispose of the property,' mortgage it or
otherwise encumber it and the same shall be
open to tbe pupllc, under rules and regulations
established by tbe association.
If the friends of tbe bill succeed in getting
It passed, regents and vice regents will be im
mediately appointed in all the States of tbe
Union to raise the funds wherewith to pay the
purchase money and. other necessary expenses.
The property will then be kept up upon the
same plan as that whereby Mount Vernon is
maintained as a national memorial.
DEATHS OP A DAY.
Colonel David Fleming Honston.
Special Telegram to the Dispatch.
LANCASTER, February 16. Colonel David Flem
ing Houston, a prominent citizen of Boanoke,
Va., met with an accident causing his death here
to-day. He arrived in Lancasterat noon from In
dianapolis, where he had been to visit President
Uartlson. He went at once to the store of his
cousin, Robert J. Houston, and soon started to
the latter's residence fo'r dinner. As the Colonel
-was about entering: the front door be slipped on
the Icy step and fell heavily, striking his chest.
He did not seem hart at first, but soon began
bleeding and died la less than half an hour of in
ternal hemorrhage, caused by the fall. The de
ceased was 45 years of age and unmarried. He
was a son of John Houston and was born in this
county, but went kouth years ago. Hewasmana-
fer of. the Crozler Steel and Iron Company, of
ioanoke, and treasurer or the Houston Coal and
Coke Company, of West Virginia. He was a lead
ing Kepubllcan politician and was elected a mem
ber of the Virginia State Senate by a small major
ity, altera big fight last year. He had Intended
leaving for home at 2 o'clock this afternoon.
Henry IMchter.
Henry Rlchter died early yesterday morning at
his residence on Center street Allegheny, of
Brlght's disease of the kidneys. He was well
known on the Northslde, and was for IS years In
the employ of Joseph Lautner & Co., hardware
merchants on Ohio street, and an active member
ofTwln City Council No. 121, Jr. O. V. A. M.,
Lieutenant 1rsle Camp No. 2, 8. of V., and Alle
gheny Lodge No. 54, A. I A.
William A. Ilumberstone.
Heath for the first time this year has entered
Post 83, or Allegheny City. Comrade William A.
Ilumberstone died last evening at 7:30, aged To
years. Funeral Tuesday, at 1:30, from his resi
dence. No. 14 Chartlers street Allegheny. Grand
Army men In general are requested to Join with
Fost 88 In paying tribute to his memory.
HISTOEIC NOTES.
Envelopes were nrst used In 1839.
Anaesthesia was discovered in l&U.
TnE first steel pen was made in 1803.
The first air-pump was made in 1654.
The first daily paper appeared in 170Z
THE first Inciter match was made in 1798.
The first iron steamship was built in 1830.
Mohamhed was born at Mecca about 670.
The first balloon ascent was made in 1798.
Coaches were first used hi England in 1569.
THE first horse railroad was built in 1826-27.
The Franciscans arrived in England in 1224.
The first steamboat plied tbe Hudson in 1807.
The entire Hebrew Bible was printed in 1488.
Ships were first "copper-bottomed" in 1783.
Gold was first discovered in California in
1818.
The first telescope was used in England in
1608.
Christianitt was introduced in Japan in
1549.
The first watches were made at Nuremberg
In 1477.
The first sawmaker's anvil was brought to
America in 1819. '
The first almanac was printed by George von
Furbach In 1460.
The first newspaper advertisement ap
peared In 1652.
Percussion arms were used in the United
States army in 1830.
The first use ot a locomotive in this country
was in 1829.
OuNTBtJSES were first introduced in New
York in 1830.
IT, 1889.
WASHINGTON GOSSIP.
Insldo Facte Concerning the Smalls-Elliott
Contest An American Lady With
Parisian Experience Objects to Oar
Crude Manner A Clock Wound Up by
an Earthquake.
Special Telegram to The Dispatch.
Washington, February 16. The "nig
ger" Is finally knocked out of Congress. I
nso the orthography of the g-g's because we do
things largely in the Southern way here, and
the Southern man or woman who spells ,it
n-e-g-r-o is unworthy of being noticed by the
rest of Southern mankind. To be sure, the
"nigger" ha only been a figure in this Con
gress as a contestant but that was bad enough
in the eyes of the South, and so they deferred
his case as long as they could in the fear that
a sufficient number of Democrats would be
afflicted with a sense of the justice of the
claims of Smalls, and vote with the Repub
licans for his admission. If he was to be ad
mitted it were better to defer the calamity to
within a couple of weeks of the end of the
Congress in which he would sit as a member.
r If Democrats had voted according to the
prompting of their consciences. Smalls would
have been admitted. I long ago had the per
sonal admissions of more than a dozen Demo
crats whom I could name, that they believed
that Smalls was honestly elected, and that they
would probably vote for him If tho case was
ever brought to a conclusion; but when the
final test came the Southern wine of the party
ruled, and only 2 of the 12 or 15 had the nerve
to fly in tbe face of the party leaders. It is a
fine comment on the honesty of the others, tbe
vote of Wilson, of Minnesota, and Russell,
of Massachusetts, two Democrats of the House,
who, of all others, are noted for their broad
knowledge of the law and their rigid integrity.
Judge Wilson is one of the most learned law
yers and able jurists in either branch of Con
gress. He had made a profound study of the
Smalls case. He bad decided that Smalls was
honestly elected by a large majority, and
nothing could turn him from his purpose to
vote for his admission. If Judge Wilson
reached that conclusion It is proof enough for
me that everyone who voted the other way was
wrong, either ignorantly or deliberately. Un
doubtedly many Democrats voted against the
contestant because they neither Knew nor
cared about the justice of the case. It is a
habit of most of the members on both sides of
the House, and in the Senate as well, to leave
the decision of all matters to committees
having them in charge. This enables tbe com
mittees to perpetrate all sorts of wrongs, and
receive the support of their party, and they do
not hesitate to go to the most outrageous ex
tremes. American Manners.
"I am going to Paris in tho early spring, and
I don't care whetherl ever see America again,"
said an American lady to me the other day,
who has spent most of her time of late years in
the French capital. "The manners of the
Americans are so disgusting they make me
sick. I did not notice it so much before I lived
abroad, but now I can't endure'it Tbe loafing
in front of the hotels and public houses and on
street corners, on tbe main business streets,
where ladies mutt go to do their shopping, the
offensive manner in which the loafers stare at
you, the insulting remarks they make loud
enough for you to hear them, and worse than
all, perhaps, their filthy habit of chewing to
bacco and ejecting their saliva all over the
pavement are things which are seen in no Eu
ropean country. A man who would chew to
bacco in any of those countries would be looked
upon as worse than a pig. Why, here in Wash
ington, the capital city of America, I do not
dare to wear a good gown on the street Unless
I were to bold it higher than the law allows It
would surely be ruined trailing through the
pools of sickening tobacco juice which mark the
whole length of the sidewalk, I have a little
boy who was born in France. He had never
seen a cuspidor until last fall we came home to
America on business. It was in an
elegant parlor just think of it! and 'was a
very pretty one of fine Japanese pottery. The
little fellow picked it up and ran to me, ex
claiming: 'Oh. mamma, look what a pretty
vase. But why don't they have flowers in it
and set it in the window like we do in Paris?'
I did not dare to tell him tbat it was used for
the members of the family and visitors to de
posit quids of tobacco and filthy spittle, for
fear the child's criticism would grate on the
ears of the elegant company present. I can't
imagine how women can endure tbe attentions
of any man who chews tobacco. If my husband
used it I would consider it good ground for a
divorce. I certainly would not live with him.
We had intenaed to make Washington our
home, but these horrible dark blotches every
where on the sidewalks, and their nauseating
fumes everywhere in the air. have so disgusted
and sickened me that we have absolnteiy de
termined to fly the country forever."
The Tobacco Habit.
Now, this lady is not nervous or sqeamisb.
She travels the ocean in the roughest weather
without seasickness, does her own marketing
and housekeeping, though she is wealthy, and
is' really one of the bravest little women In the
world. I agree with her. When you get south
of the Pennsylvania line nearly everybody
chews tobacco and smokes, to say nothing of
what is done north of that line in smaller de
gree. If I were to go about to reform the
health and habits of the Americans I would
begin with the smoking and chewing of to-'
bacco, if no farther back, for the use of the
weed is infinitely more disgusting than the use
of liquor, generally speaking, and a thousand
people are killed by the nicotine where one is
sent to grass by excessive use of stimulants.
AVhy do not Prohibitionists include tobacco
in their anathemas? And why do not
some of the saints who anathematize
both, indulge in an occasional lecture on the
habit of gorging at meals, which is put down in
tbe books as a saintly custom, from time imme
morial? Excessive eating leads to nine-tenths
of tbe other excesses of the human kind.
Why do not the temperance advocates begin at
the root of tbe evil? Of course it is all right to
endeavor to back off the fingers and toes of a
dragon which devours his thousands of human
victims every day. but why don't they stick
him in the stomach? That's where he lives.
Given a good, healthy beginning, it is our food
that makes or unmakes us: yet what advocate
of temperance begins at that point and what
learned physician attempts to prescribe a rea
sonable and scientific diet to prevent sickness?
Verily we are a topsy-tnrvy race that begins at
tbe wrong end of everything.
It's French, Yon Know.
If we must ape' foreign customs and use
foreign words and phrases at the capital. It is a
relief to know that all is not English that glit
ters, though I am aware that the Impression
has gone out probably on account of the repu
tation of the State Department that we are all
English, you know. A little hotel on tbe ave
nue has swung out the sign of "The Pension
Bourgeolse." Lest tho unlearned may think
that this has some reference to the Pension
Office it may be well to explain that a French
"pension" Is a kind of private or family hotel.
A laundry on the avenue has the word "Blan
chisserle" on its front and a baker on Four
teenth street has had painted on his window
"Charcuterie et Patisserie." You see we are
progressing. But I fear that little hotel keeper
is too ambitious. It is a very humble looking
house, and "the sign should have been "Pension
Proletalre."
The Earthquake and the Clock.
A member of a South American legation
tells me a pretty story of an earthquake and a
clock, the latter one of those wonders of the
old clockmakers of medieval days, which has
no counterpart in these times of shoddy and
cheap utility. It had stood for generations in
tbe old family mansion and no living' person
had ever heard it tick or strike. A not far dis
tant' volcano had been in a statcof eruption
for several days, and then one night It began
to rumble and roar and rock, and the earth was
shaken tremendously throughout a circuit of
several hundred miles. A gay company was
gathered at the old mansion, which had the
fun Knocked out of it to some extent when the
ancient building began to sway from side to
side, and the stones to fall from tbe chimney,
and the crockery to tumble from the cupboards.
Following an awful shock there was a silence
thatwas hardly less awful in expectation of
another ye, more destructive shaking up, and
in that moment of stillness there was beard a
cheerful, homelike tlck-tock. tick-tocK from
the old clock in the hall, and In a moment the
musical old bell, which may not have tolled the
hour for a hundred years, began a deep, melo
dious, drowsy d-o-n-g-g-g. d-o-n-g-g-g, d-o-n-g g-g,
till it had struck tho hour of 12.
Long before the generations who listened to
it were born it had "run down," and had never
been rewound. The shaking of the earth had
roused the ancient weights to a new effort, and
they had tugged at the wheels until, In concert
with the swinging of the.pendulum, started by
the swaying of the walls, the entire rusty ma
chinery was put in motion. One of the com
pany got a stepladder, laid hold of the mighty
key which hung on a projection of the case,
wound up the massive weights, and from that
hour the old clock way as good a timepiece as a
Spaniard would want, that luxurious creature
who takes no note of time, and to this day it
ticks and tolls in that ancient mansion In mem
ory of the great earthquake. ' L. . L.
One Consolation.
yrom the New York Herald. 2
Mr. Jay Gould is baying real estate. WeU,
there's one consolation you can't water the
soil without improving It
GOSSIP OP NEW T0RKERS.
CHXW TOBS BtJBEAtX SPICIALS.l
New York; February 16. Forty-six mem
bers of the Crib Club, a wealthy organization of
young Harlem bloods, crowded up',to the bar of
the Harlem Police Court this morning. The
club had a prize fight at its house last night
between the "Yorkvillo Rasher" and the "Har
lem Spider." The fight was such a tremendous
success that by the time the eighth round was
finished all the spectators were yelling like
mad. The disturbance attracted the attention
ot the police, who broke into the clubhouse
and arrested everyone they could lay bands on.
Some 30 clubmen dropped out of the windows
and scurried away, hatless and coatless, across
lots. Fifty-one prisoners, including five re
porters, marched to the police station, two by
two, at the head of a howling mob. They were
balled out after a few hours' confinement This
morning they all swore that the prize fight, in
question was only a sparring match and were
acquitted.
A Mark of Identification.
In deference to tne wishes of Archbishop
Corrigan, who recently askel the Commission
ers of Charities to assist him in identifying
Catholics among the pauper dead in the hospi
tals, the Commissioners will hereafter brand
the coffins of Catholics dying in the institutions
with a cross. Archbishop Corrigan has blessed
a portion of the potter's field, in whioh conse
crated ground Catholics may henceforth be
buried.
Ran Away and Failed.
The disappearance of Christopher A. Wyatt
the general partner of the firm of C. A. Wyatt
& Co., woolen commission merchants, at 253
Church street resulted to-day in the Sheriff
taking charge of the store on attachments In
favor of Rawitzer fc Co. for $14,000 and Stewart
& Co. $12,273 against Mr. Wyatt Thomas F.
Ryan had previously been appointed receiver
on the application of Henry C. Newhall, of Los
Angeles, who was the special partner with Mr.
Wyatt having put $50,000 special capital In the
business. Mr. Newhall is a brother-in-law of
Mr. Wyatt and is President of tbe California
Bank at Los Angeles. It is said he became a
partner last November, the copartnership to
run five years, and Mr. Wyatt claiming to have
$50,000 capital of his own. Mr. Wyatt disap
peared about ten days ago, ostensibly going on
a business trip, and his present whereabouts is
unknown to his creditors. Mr. Hersbf eld, ot
Honirtz & Hersbf eld, attorneys for Rawitzer &
Co., said yesterday tbat as near as be could
learn Mr. Wyatt's liabilities were about $100,
000, and he had left very little assets behind.
He had.no idea where Mr. Wyatt had gone.
Dudley Mast Face the Mnslc.
On the application of the counsel of the
Evening Post, the Supreme Court of the Dis
trict of Columbia has granted a subpsna di
rected to Colonel W. W. Dudley, the Treasur
er of the Republican National Committee, for
his examination on the 27th instant in Wash
ington under the open commission heretofore
granted by Judge O'Brien, of 'the Supreme
Court of this city. The value of this is that
Colonel Dudley's attendance can now be en
forced under the usual penalties. He is, how
ever, not likely to absent himself .from Wash
ington, as it is now tho principal sphere of bis
activity. His examination will be an Interest
ing prelude to the inauguration.
HABEISON'S STATE CARRIAGES.
They Aro Handsome Vehicles, With Noth
ing; Gaudy Aboat Them.
Chicago, February 16. The two state car
riages made to order for General Harrison ar
rived in Chicago to-day, and will be forwarded
to Washington next Wednesday. The vehicles
were made in the factories of tbe Studebakers,
at South Bend, Ind. One Is a full leather
landau for tbe President's use, plain in appear-,
ance, but of the best material and finished in
elegant style. The other is an extension front
brougham for Mrs. Harrison. Tbe finish of
the gearing and exterior woodwork of both
carriages is a dark green body with black strip
ing and highly polished. All the trimmings,
although exceedingly plain, are of silver. The
brougham is upholstered in green cloth and
satin. The lamps are silver globes of fanciful
designs, with cut-glass panels.
In the front of tbe brougham is a little seat
especially for the grandchildren. Under tbe
driver's seat la an alarm bell attached by a wire
to a button within easy reach of the occupant
within. Besides the brougham and landau, a
mail buggy of similar trimming and finish has
been made. The Stndebakers are also making
the harness to go with the carriages. Car
riages, harness, and horse furniture are esti
mated to be worth 87,000 or S3,000.
NO EJfD IN SIGHT.
The Election of a Senator Still Far In the
Fntnre.
Special Telegram to the Dispatch.
Charleston. W. Va. February 16. Al
though many of Kenna's friends believed that
he would receive the vote of President Carr
to-day, which would have resulted in his elec
tion, they were again doomed to disappoint
ment President Carr and the two other Union
Labor members returned to their own party
candidate, Wirt R. 'eale, and voted for him
on each ballot five of which were taken. Dele
gate Ford again deserted tne itenna ranKS, ne
and Delegate Dorr voting for R. P. Chew.
Kenna received S9 and Goff S3 on each ballot
The resolution providing for an extension of
tbe session was defeated in the House by a
vote of 28 to 30. and will meet with the same
fate in the Senate when considered.
NATURE'S QUEER FREAKS.
A Perfectly Formed Living Calf With Two
Heads at Scottdale.
Special Telegram to The Dispatch.
Scottdale, February 16. D. R. Baird Is the
proud owner of a calf with two .perfectly
shaped heads on one body. The neck of each
Is very nicely formed, and joined together and
forms a letter V from the shoulder blades.
The calf has four legs and a very well-shaped
body, handsomely marked black and white
spots, with a star in the center of each head.
This curiositv, which is but a few hours old,
has excited tbe neighborbood to a great ex
tent The farm being close to Scottdale, it has
attracted crowds of people from the town to
witness tbe curiosity.
An Empress Author.
From the New York World.
The Empress Frederick, it is said, is about to
join the noble army of authors or the army of
noble authors by writing the memoirs of her
late husband. The book will have to be pub
lished in England to avoid the terrible blue
pencil of Editor Bismarck.
They Are Only Women.
From the Louisville Courier-Journal. 1 I
The footpads of Chicago are great fools.
They seize and rob ladies on the sidewalk. If
the rogues would get on tbe street cars they
would find that women nearly always leave
their hand-bags and pocketbooks on the car
seats.
So Some People Think.
From tbe Oil City Bllzzard.l
The unkindest cut of all is the average' wood
cut
PACTS AND FIGURES.
Last year $10,164,000 were Invested in new
enterprises in West Virginia.
The United States manufactures 8,750,000
pounds of Llmburger cheese annually.
It is said tbat tbe present United States Sen
ate comprises 30 millionaires in its member
ship. The imports of specie for the week amounted
to $183,802, of which $178,618 was in gold and
$7,156 In silver.
Since April 17, 1888, the Treasury has pur
chased $31,390,050 of 4 per cents and $36,602,450
of 4 per cents, a total of $110,900,100, at a total
cost of $130,468,376.
It is estimated that the production of window
glass in this country, with the imports, will ag
gregate 4,200.000 boxes for the fiscal year end
ing July L 1889, against 4,189,717 for last year. -
Twestt shares of the New York Chemical
Bank stock were sold last week at $4,195 a share,
the hlgnest price ever paid for the stock; The
par value of this stock is $100, and there are
but 3,000 shares in all. Tbe bank declares bi
monthly dividends of 23 per cent
Statistics gathered from the United States
Geological Survey show a marvelously rapid
gain in the mining and quarrying industries of
the country. Their total values In 1884 were
$413,000,000; In 1883, $428,000,000; In 1886, $465,
000,000; in 1887, $542,000,000. The figures for 1888
are not yet known, but it is estimated that they
will reach, if not exceed, $600,000,000.
CDEIOUS CONDENSATIONS.
George Comar, a resident of Virginia
City claims to have been visited by Satan, and
to have bad a long talk with the old boy.
A countryman at Palatka, Fla., who
saw the street car for the first time Saturday,
referred to it as a "new style omnibus on baby
wheels."
Mrs. Gloin, of Chardon, O., whojdied,
to all appearances, Saturday, revived after
being placed in the coffin, but "died" again next
day, and since the doctors have been watching
her closely for signs of returning life.
Mr. Snnrtreon. the well-known London
preacher, has a beautiful residence at Beulah,
Upper Norwood, with extensive grounas ana
handsome conservatories. A silver casket
from the Queen is one of his most precious
household gods.
A large meteor fell on a farm in the
town of Highlands, N. Y., on the 7th inst. It
was very brilliant in color, being yellow, tinged
with -green. It broke into a thousand small
pieces. The snow covering about an acre was
perforated as with gravel.
A young lady of Orlando, Fla., Is tho
proud owner of a large Thomas cat which is an
expert bird catcher. His style of bunting 1
peculiar and decidedly original. He has learned
to imitate the notes ot birds, and In tbat way
entices them within his reach.
President Cleveland has never crossed
the threshold of more than two houses In
Washington outside the residences of his Cabi
net officers during his term of office. He has
never seen Congress at work, and in four year
be has not once entered a Department building.
A Boston young man says that he wrote
a good story, and it was declined by several
periodicals. He then rewrote It, misspelling
all the words, and it was accepted as a first-
'class dialect story by the periodical which had
nrst aecnnea it. ice .uosion young man spioa
a pretty tough yarn.
Fifteen daring young women of Phila
delphia have formed a clnb of which the sole
condition of membership is'tbat tbe applicant
forswear corsets. Eaoh one of the ladles com
prising the club has consigned her whalebone
cninusto the flames and now taxes ber inge
nuity to provide a substitute.
The "culture craze" has struck Louis
ville, and now that gentle village boasts no
fwer than six clubs devoted to the acquisition
of-refinement A Shakespeare club, a Blue
Stocking society, two Browning clubs, an
American History club and a Society for the
Study of Political Economy make up the list
Two spinster sisters up in Maine who
run a 65-acre farm are credited with being the
smartest women in the State. One of them
chops every winter the year's supply of fire
wood, going into the woods early in the season
and remaining until the work is completed.
She works in the hayfield In summer, and digs
from 70 to 100 bush els of potatoes yearly and
puts them In tbe cellar. The other sister is the
carpenter of the family, and has added all man
ner of improvements to tbe farm.
The new House of Commons in Japan
is to be composed of 300 members, and tbe
right of suffrage is to be exorcised by men 23
years old who pay an anuual tax of $23. These
requirements are more exacting than those
heretofore fixed for electors who are entitled
to vote for members of the city and pref ec
tural assemblies that determine the local tax
rates. In the case of those electors the voting
age has been 20 years and the land tax limit
about $5. There were nearly 1,700,000 such
voters in 1884.
Lexington, Ga., can boast of the most
unique clubhouse in the world. The young
men of that town built a log hut which they
chincked with clay, making it as snug and tight
as a palace. At one end is an enormous open
fireplace feeding up to a primitive chimney.
The club, which embraces the best young men,
has a weekly supper. The day before tbe sup
per a huge wood fire is built in the fireplace,
and the next evening there is abed of coals and
ashes tbat a king might envy. The birds, fish,
'possum and oysters are cooked in the glowing
ashes, and some wonderful bits of gastronomy
they turn out
A grave-digger in New York tells of a
strange sort of mental affection which troubles
people of his calling. It is termed "corpso
quake." and several of his friends have suf
fered from it. It invariably attacks a digger
while he ,is about tbe cemetery, the victim
shaking as though suffering from a chill. In
one case tbat the digger cltes.the man's health
became much impaired, but abandoning tbe
business, the poor fellow recovered, and then
took his old position. Almost the same day
tbe shaking returned. He again retired, but
suffered thereafter at the mention of a spade,
and died in a remarkably short time.
At a recent fashionable wedding in
New York tbe father of the bride wore a broad
grin as he walked up the church aisle with his
daughter. During the ceremony he chuckled
several times and at its close he broke into an
unmistakable langb. As be is a prominent
citizen of. unimpeachable sobriety and is
known to have the tenderest regard for his
family, and lor this daughter in particular,
many were somewhat scandalized by such an
apparent breach of decorum. At the wedding
reception the good gentleman solved tbe mys
tery. He bad suddenly remembered that tbe
last time he had been inside of any church
was when he wa3 himself married in that very
edifice.
Mrs. B. S. Bentell, of Spellman, Ga.,
has in her possession two breastpins of ancient
days. One Js a painting on ivory of her mother's
cousin, the work being done about 150 years
ago. The other is a most perfect design in hair
work. This pin represents the figure of Mrs.
Sentell's gTeat-great-creat-grandmother, stand
ing at the tomb of ber husband in tbe year
1600. Tbe tomb has this inscription: "Affection
Weeps, Heaven Rejoices." The carving on the
stone and the willow tree that bangs overhead,
and also tbe willows In the background are all
complete. It is oval shape, and only about an
inch, in width by one and a half in length. Tbe
work is exceedingly fine, and although it has
been 300 years since, it is as perfect as though
done yesterday.
FDNNY MES'S FANCIES.
Bachelors and spinsters should abbreviate
"Wednesday. Oil City Bliizard.
Flub He isn't so attentive to ber as h?
nsed to be.
Snub She's Jilted him, eh?
Flub No; she married him. rzn Blade,
Observing the proprieties. "Don't you
know, Emily, that It is not proper for yoa to turn
around and look after a gentleman!" Bat,
mamma, 1 was only looking to see if he was look
ing to see If I was looking." VMcago Sews.
Traveling on his Face. They1 were speak
ing of a mutual acquaintance when Boggs, in
response to a question, remarked: "Ho, he never
pays his fare anywhere, he rides free on the
strength ofhls good looks." "Ah, I see," Jones
assented: "his good looks, then, have a race
value." There is crape on the door of the
Jones mansion now. Albany Journal.
Fitzjones Did yon go to the theater last
evening. Percy?
De Brown Ifo; I attended a sllght-of-hand per
formance. ritzjones Where?
De Brown-I went to call on Miss Le Smythe,
and offered her my band, but she slUhted It.
America.
But He Didn't Go. He Tell me, Annie,
do you believe that women love men best when
they are gone?
She (positively) Yes, I do.
He (after a while) Annie, do you lore me?
She-No.
He (In Injnred tone)-What?
She (wishing he'd go) But I believe In those
words you have just quoted. Tankee Blade.
A CHECK ON THE FESTIVITIES,
There was laughter and dancing at Hominy
Hall.
And the ladles were happy, but gayest of all
Tbe cook lady was as she frolicked around.
While tbe nurse lady scampered with panther-like
bound;
The wash lady sat at her ease in a chair, t
While the lady who cleaned up the rooms fixed
ber hair.
But alas for their Joyl-ltwas brief and short
lived,
Tor the woman whose servants they were" bad ar
rived. Stbraska State Journal. '
ET THE SLEEPISO CAR.
In the evening, weak and weary, t
Entered I the sleeping car, ,
Found the porter, haughty, dreary,
As at e e the porters are.
Up and down the isle be bossed me,
Flung my baggage here and there;
In my every wish he crossed me
Till my soul o'erflowed with swear.
Long I sued, lmslored. beseecbed him
"aire me quarters for the night"
Till at last my pleading reached him
And he folded me from sight
In the morning, ah, how lowly
Bowed the porter down to me I
Brnshed my garments, meantime slowly
Placed his palm where 1 might see.
Tbns between mankind and porter
Time U ever shifting powers;
In the eve we beg their quarters,
In the morn they beg; for oars.
Washington Put,