WlJVUJLUU.Ly.JML EmSS K THE PITTSBURG DISPATCH, SUNDAY. APRIL 19, 1891. t fire Si irai4 ESTABLISHED FEBKUAKY 1S46. Vol. 46. o. 7l.-Entcrcd at Pittsburg rostofflcc. JvovcmbcrH. US. as second-class matter. Business Office Corner Sniithfleld and Diamond Streets. News Rooms and Publishing House 75, 77 and 79 Diamond Street EASTEKN AlVEI.TISIG OFFICE. ROOM a. TK1BUE BU1LDIXG, NEW YORK, where complete files ol THE DISPATCH can always be lound. Foreign advertisers appreciate the con venience. Home advertiser ana friends of THE Dlbl'ATOn. while lu ew York, are also made velcome. THE DISPATCH is rtgritorty on sale at r.rentnno's. S Union Square. Xew York, and 17 .H-c de FOpeia, Fat is, Fiance, where anyone irho lias been disappointed at a hotel neics stand can obtain U. TERMS Or THE DISPATCH. rciMAc.r. feke sx the exited states. JlAlT-T DIfrATCn. One Year I M 1UILT DIsrATCH, Per Quarter -00 DAILY DlsrATcn, OncMonth 70 DAILY DIsrATCH. Including Sunday, lyear. JO CO DULY Dii-patcii, including Sunday,8m'ths 150 Daily Dif-r-ATCU. including Sunday, lni'th M CMAT Dispatch. One Vear : Mllkly DisrATCH. One Year . IS5 1 he Daily Disfatcii la delivered by carrleri at cents f" week. cr inducing Sunday edition, at 1 cents per week. Thit Issue of TltE BTFATCII contnlns 20 pnee, mnde tip of THREE PARTS. Tniliiro on the pnrt or Currirm, Agents, Ncwsilenlers or Newsboys to supply pa trout with a Complete :(urabcr should be promptly reported to tlii office. Voluntary coniributors should keep copies of articles. If compensation is desired the price expected must he named. Tlie courtesy of re turning rejected manuscripts trill be extended tchen stamps for that purpose are inclosed, but the Editor of The Dispatch will under no circumstances be responsibleor the care of un solicited manuscripts. POSTAGE All persons who mall the Mindny iiiue of Tlio Dispatch to friends tliould bear in mind the fact that tho post nee thereon is Two (2) Cents. AH double mid tiiple number copies ol The Dispatch leqnlrc n tJ-cent stnmp to insure prompt delivery. PITTSBURG. SUNDAY, AfR. 19. 1591. ORDER MUST RULE. The reports that disorder was again re sorted to in the coke regions yesterday, if confirmed by further investigation, wiil con vict the strikers of bad faith in their prom ises lo maintain order. Especially if it is true that dynamite has been used to destroy property it will utterly turn the public sym pathy against the cause for which such de spicable agencies are used. The troops were withdrawn on the express representations tnat order would be main tained without their presence.- Snch pledges should not have been necessary, as the laws ought to be supreme without any pledges. But since disorder had preceded the call for militarv authority, and the promise of good order secured their withdrawal, the re newal of riots within forty-eight hours after they were withdrawn will impress the pub lic with the belief that such promises are worthless. The State authorities will be exposed to sharp criticism for having placed reliance on such worthless pledges; but the severest reaction cannot but be against those who made the promises, evidently with the intention that they should be broken. It should be made especially plain that this country has no toleration for dynamiters. If any of the strikers have been using ex plosives to destroy property, they have fur nished good reason for using the most stren uous means to secure their punishment. THE .NATIONAL POLICY. Before the commercial convention at Kansas City went to pieces on the rocks of the tariff, legal tenders and other political issues, it improved the opportunity by in dorsing the building of canals from the Mississippi to Lake Michigan, from the upper Mississippi ts Lake Superior, and from headwaters of the Ohio to Lake Erie. In this respect the convention recognized two important facts. The first is that the improvement and connection of the internal waterways of the country furnishes the most complete solution of the transportation problem that is possible, securing the cheapest freight charges for thegreat staples of transportation. The second is that the connection of the lake system with the river system will give con nected water routes practically furnishing transportation for the entire country be tween the Appalachian range and the Eocky Mountains. It may be that the con vention did fully take in the. magnitude of the plan to connect this system of water ways with the ocean by an enlarcement of the Erie canal or by a new canal' through Pennsylvania or Maryland; but its recogni tion of the fact that a connected system of waterways is a national project, is a broader view than has usually been taken. This is the first indorsement of the canal projects which The Dispatch has been urgiug, by a body of national scope. It takes the right ground that the project of internal waterways planned to reach all sections of the country, is one for the whole nation to support. EDITORIAL TREASON. That it is an ill wind that blows nobody good is pioven by the action of a certain Italian paper published in .Sew York. Be fore the 2ew Orleans affair this sheet was unknown outside of a limited circle, and its editorial opinions were not quoted very often. All this is now changed. The editor lias seized his opportunity, and displays great zeal in making the most of it His perspicaeityand enterprise would be worthy of commendation were it cot that his indus try lias evidently run, away with his dis cretion. In his desire to write editorials he has neglected to keep within the bounds of reason, and only succeeds in writing himself down as a hot-head. His latest effusion is the most objection able. Though the misunderstanding be tween the two countries has been put in a lair way to settlement by diplomacy, he is unsatisfied and clamors loudly for war. M'ar of the most destructive kind and noth ing else will satisfy this expatriated gentle man, and from the tenor of his hysterical remarks it is to be expected that, jf fighting should ensue, he will immediately join lorces with Italy. This no doubt would give Italy a great advantage over this coun try. With such a redoubtable.man- not as a fighter of course, but as a director of the plaa of campaign victory would be Italy's, speedily and certainly. We wonder il our Italian cotemporary is a naturalized citizen of the United States. If he is, he should be informed by some of bis friends that he is committing treason in writing his stuff. Of course it has no -weight, cither one way or the other; but treason is a crime that can be committed in intention Tcn if the deed is sot consummated, for this reason the Italian editor's safety re quires.prompt action on tho part of those who love him, and have an eve to the inter ests of hjs family, if he has one. COOPER'S SOUND VIEWS. The Dispatch is very glad to note the practical agreement between itself and the Hon. Thomas V. Cooper on the subjects of ballot reform and the constitutional conven tion. It has often been compelled to differ from that Republican leader on questions of State policy. But when he supports our conclusions for practically the same reasons it is safe to conclude that the conclusion on which The Dispatch and the auburn haired and long-headed Cooper are agreed is certain to be right The past and future Republican State Chairman correctly says that the State does not require any tinkering with the Consti tution so urgently that it needs to hold a convention to do it Mr. Cooper bases his opposition to the convention on the fear of cranks. The Dispatch thinks that cor porate advocates aud jobbers are more to be dreaded. But whether the danger comes from crankishness or corporation influence, it is certain that there is no need of expos ing the State to the influence of either, in muddling the present excellent Constitution. The view of the ballot numbering clause of the Constitution in connection with bal lot-reform, taken by Senator Cooper, is ex actly what The Dispatch has maintained. It is a valuable protection against fraud and is by no means irreconcilable with thor ough ballot reform. The numbering of the ballots can be made strictly secret by seal ing the lists and folding over the numbered ballots, until some judicial authority shall call for the ballots to determine a contest In this way thorough safeguards can be pro vided both against fraud and undue influ ence; and political workers will, as Cooper says, be restricted to the legitimate work of convincing voters by proper arguments. Let the present Legislature give the State practical ballot reform, and let us maintain the present Constitution and enforce it If ex-Senator Copper will jojn the movement to enforce the excellent provisions of the present Constitution, we will gladly welcome him to the ranks of reform. FOR PURIFICATION OP WATER. One of the principal subjects under dis cussion by the American Water Works.As sociation during its session at Philadelphia was the purification of the fluid for drink ing and manufacturing purposes. Dr. Leff mann. a chemist of that city, read a paper on the "Purification of Water by Metallic Iron" n method now used in Antwerp with great success. He showed that the same or somewhat similar plan could be used by American cities. The method is to pass water, through a slowly revolving cylinder containing metallic iron in the form of cast iron borings or steel pinchingc, these by the motion of the cylinder being continually showered through the water. The estimated cost of purifying a million gallons of water in this way is $1 44. Simplicity and cheapness seem to be combined, making it worthy of attention from those places where water is impure. The great fault of many ot the plans proposed for the purification of water is their cost and complications, but if the Antwerp method is what it is claimed, it is not open to these objections. Allegheny and Pittsburg especially the Southside-are vitally interested in any thing that will tend to improve water, and the Antwerp method might be tried with good results, for the first-named place, with its new water works in contemplation, the plan seems to be particularly opportune. The Southside people, also, in their reach ing out for better water, might with pro priety call the attention of their company to it. Anything that will tend to give pure water to the people should receive careful thought. NEARLY AN EVEN RECORD. The record of our political history with regard to the public verdict upon wanton and extravagant increase of government appro priations is quoted forcibly by the New York Sun. That paper gives figures showing the appropriations of a Democratic Congress in the decade before the last and the greater appropriations of a Republican .Congress. The figures for a similar showing in the last decade are also given. In each case the logical result is declared by the Sun as fol lows: "And the Democratic party elected the next President" The logic and the figures are equally im pressive; but the Sun omits to point out one impressive and instructive fact. That is that the second total of appropriations which bythegroupinc cited illustrated Democratic outlay is lound on examination to exceed the total of extravagance for which the Re publican party was previously defeated. The disposition of Democratic Congresses follow along as rather poor second in the race of public wastefulness is illustrated in the most recent case. ' The appropriations of the Fifty-first Congress made a sweeping increase on those of the fiftieth, and the Republicans were overwhelmingly defeated as a result But the fiftieth Congress, in its turn, distanced every preceding Congress in the wildness of its appropriations, and the Republicans elected the next President Of late years the function of the two seems to be a wild competition as -to which can waste the public funds most recklessly. Sometime it is to he hoped politicians will prove capable of learning that the best way to maintain a party in power is to adminis ter its public trusts honestly and economi cally. AN OBSERVANT .DUKE. The article of the Duke of Marlborough in the Fortnightly Review on American railways has been widely and approvingly referred to by a certain portion of the press of this country. The declaration of our re cent ducal visitor that the railways carry freight and passengers immense distances at charges unheard of in England has been widely quoted as an endorsement of our railway system. The conclusion of the class of papers who deem it their function to swear by the corporate methods is that His Grace is a man of much clearer judgment than they took him for. I It is somewhat surprising to find from the article itself that the. DJike indnlged in some very plain talk thatrby no means dis credits his judgment, butvj-bich our friends, the organs of railway opinion, entirely neglected to quote. He brings out the fact that it has been a common practice to build railways entirely on bonds, and the shares are only "Toting papers." "Hot one penny of the money paid for the latter," he says, "'was ever spent on the railway." He en larges on the floating of such shares as gambling counters in a way that confirms the belief that the ducal mind was able to appreciate the niceties of-etock manipula tion, whether he learned" them by costly ex perience or not , The article a few sentences of which have found so much acceptance does not stop there. It gives a detailed description of the manner in which a clique of great speculators proceed to annex a system or railway belonging to other people. He de scribes the processes by which they first discredit the value of such property and depreciate its stock, indicates that such a process may be followed up by creating a money panic, breaking down values to prices expressive ot the degree of panic, and all the while secretly buying up the depre ciated stock of the company they desire to control. By this "scheme of plunder," more wholesale than the operations of the first Marlborough, the control of a property of immense possibilities is secured at a mere fraction of its actual value by the thimble rigging of the stock market This feature certainly justifies the belief that His Grace of Marlborough has been studying our system of corporate control with decided results. He may not have mastered it all. Such details as the owner ship of industries which furnish traffic at prohibitive rates in order that independent shippers may be crowded out; preferential rates to the friends or partners of railway managers; the wheels within wheels of con struction companies, freight lines and pri vate car companies, have not yet been as similated by him. But he presents a sketch of one notoriously successful practice which may be copied with profit by the admirers of corporate methods who have quoted his words of praise so promptly. Votes for Senators are quoted at 500 each in Florida. This is entirely too cheap, and leads to the belief that a second-class man 1 will represent, the extreme southeast in tho Upper House of Congress. According to the testimony at the Coroner's inquest on tho victims of the Mary land Central disaster, the trestle that gaf o way has been unsafe for two yenrs. This puts the railroad company in a bad light, and a verdict charging neglect on its part is quite proper. The only thing to ,do now is to push the case before the proper courts, and have justice meted but. It is almost to be rezretted that the persons responsible can only be punished once, for every time that tbey allowed a train to cross the trestle since it was first known to be unsafe, they committed a crime. The announcement that Jay Gould has left the Indian Territory causes an Inquiry in Wall street as to bow it happened. It is the first time that Wall street has known Gould to leave anything. Deacon White and Brother Clews made a very correct statement of the frame of mind necessary for the Will street magnate when they said it is one of pious calm and com posure. It is a well established fact that the poker player who cannot attempt to blow out. his antagonist on a spoiled flush, with a serene and undisturbed countenance mil quickly come to the poorhousc. In the greater gam bling game of Wall street the same qualityl s all the more necessary. We regret to observe that the Germaa, Government still maintains its unreasonable edict against the American hog in his most available form of hams, lard and bacon. Corrected returns show that the total city population of the Union is 18,235,670, or 2i per cent of the total population. Ten years ago tho urban population was 11,318, 547, or 22 per cent The rapid concentration of population in the cities is one of the phe nomena of the age that requires study. It it does not stop before long we may yet reach the point where we will be all city people, and will hire other nations to raise our agricultural products. The statement that 5250,000 a month is extorted from the New York police as a cor ruption fund, gives the impre'ssion that the "Finest" are all millionaires. It wonld be distnrbing to learn from Indiana that Nebecker, the new United States Treasurer, is "one of the rottenest politicians in Indiana and could not bo elected constable in nis own county," if the information did not come from tho Indianapolis Sentinel. The De mocracy of that journal is so rampant that if the President had appointed an angel to the place it would have Taiscd a row over it.. The appointee's character is still a matter of dis cussion. A perpetual motion machine having been sold for SI in Delaware. Keely. of Phila delphia, can now work with some hope of ade quate reward. Senator-Governor Hill some time ago made a touching plea for ballot reform, and the other day snubbed a delegation that wanted to discuss the matter with him. He was angry because they thought that he was in earnest, and his anger is justifiable. They should have known him better. That The Dispatch's estimation of Bismatck was correct, is proven by bis speech to the deputation of Kiel Conservatives the other day. Lieutenant Tottes's explanation that he did not prophesy that the world is com ing to an end in 1899, but that the millenium will arrive then, is open to the criticism that in or der to establish a millenium tno" shortest way will be to abolish the world, as well as the flesh and the devil. In this day of conventions, the Whist Convention at Milwaukee shonld be followed by a poker convention at Council Bluffs. THE Washington Post commiserates "poor old Pennsylvania" on its hard luck in being threatened with a Constitutional convention. We are happy to assure our cotemporary that tbe threatening symptoms are passing off so as to dispel the fears of grave results. Newfoundland, in its anxiety to be caught, reverses tbe usnal method of fishing when it offers bait to Uncle Sam. A Kentucky court has decided that con fectionery is a necessity and permits ice cream to be served on Sunday. This is a decided divergence from the rulings of Pennsylvania courts, which frown down even the sizzle of the soda watei fountain on that day. That tornado which is said to have de stroyed an Oklahoma town may have been the wind from a bursted boom. Secretary Foster remarks that he does not know anything about civil service re form. It so, it is to be hoped- tnat before bis term is over the Civil Service Commission will be able to give him some. instruction on tbe point If that Washington jawing match leads to bloodshed, the international complication will have done its worst Nebraska farmers are encouraged by warm rains to expect big crops. Perhaps the effectof thison future elections may demon strate that a well-managed weather annex is mightier in politics than the Farmers' Alliance. TTUd and Woolly Names. Tbe State of Washington has brought into tbe union a choice collection of Indian names, beside wJilch the local appellations of Penn sylvania and Maine appear tame. Here are a few. taken at random from a recent issue of the ost-lnteiugencer, oi Seattle; Snohomish, gtlllsKuamlsh, hkaclt. Pilchucfc, hnmas, Wooiev, Whatcom, Walla Walla, -Kittitas, Ok&nog&n, Wahkiakum, Klickitat, Kitsap. Puyallup. Twill Be Cheap Enough, There Cleveland Leader.t A free trade cotemporary complains of the advance in tbe price of brimstone. It seems it is a material in which it has a large prospective interest. MURRAY'S MUSINGS, Where tho Sons of Italy Arrive Now York ers Setting Their Timo Piece A Brill iant Tenor FroroPittsburc; Responsi bility or Directors. The dally scenes enacted at the Barge Office in the reception' ot emigrants have been fre quently depicted, but they never fall to impress the casual observer as one of the most interest ing novelties of the great metropolis. Few people leave New York without having paid the vicinity the honor of a call. "This sight," said a Philadelphia gentleman, alluding to the customary daily influx of our foreign relations, "is to me the most remarkable thing to be seen in your city." The Barge Office w,as grinding put Italians singly, in pairs and by the half dozen, while their anxious friends who bad undergone this process six months or perhaps six years ago awaited tho newcomers from the respectful distance outside enforced by the police. Every time a fresh batch of aliens was shot Into the country from the Barge Office dootthere was a general craning of necks among the crowd. Amid deep silence the new party advanced ex pectantly along the line. Then all at once a glad shout from somebody in the crowd an nounced that the new party was recognized and a way would bo quickly made for both to meet Men grasp hands and kiss each other with a resounding smack. Sometimes it Is on both cheeks, with respectful politeness, bnt it is usually square on the lips, as a youth might kiss a pretty girl. And talk? Well, never was heard such delightful chatter. And the dark, liquid eyes shine, the bronzed skin is full of happy wrinkles, and sometimes not often tears of honest joy course down rough cheeks. "Just imagine." remarked the Philadelphlan, "imaeino yourself landing thus in a strange country among a people of another language. Your friends may possiblv be numbered on the lingers of one hand and these are at the dock awaiting you. They may be dear relatives and yet not know but that you have died on the passage, or that you did not sail. On the other hand, they, too, may have vanished from earth; or, they may not hare received your last letter and would not be looking for you. A thousand things may happen. And when the cloud of uncertainty is swept aside and you and they meet well, It is a case for hugging aud kissing and lrlngled laughter and tears." These Italians are for the most part active and robnst young men, decently clad in un patched garments, and are ready and willing to go to work at anything to make.a- living the very day after their arrival. There are" no Italian loaters or beggars to be seen in the streets of New York. Settinc Their Watches. At the corner of Cortlandt street and Broad way you will see a scrambling crowd of bnsi ness men, clerks, messengers, etc., hovering in front ot a jeweler's window. Early and late, rain, snow, mud, dust or sun, the little tangled knot of humanity is always there. What are they looking at? Why that look of intense anxiety on every facet No; it Isn't a dead man' it isn't a rare and curious piece of jewelry. Nobody is frying doughnuts or pulling candy. It is Benedict's chronometer. Why men are so awfully concerned about their watches is one of those queer things, like running a block and up 50 steps of elevated stairs to catch a train running on two minutes headway. The look on a man's face as he elbows bis way to the front, watch in hand, is something of great moment. He caretully compares bis time piece with the ominous dial. If he happens to be pretty close in point of time, a big, round smile of satisfaction spreads over his face and be resumes his swinging pace down Broadway as one who has just had a load removed from bis mind. If be is very close indeed he will stop every time he passes, just to see bow "she holds her own," and Incidentally to cast a contemptu ous glance at the more uncertain dials of his fellow ineu. Tboir troubled faces as they sneak away setting their timepieces makes bis In ward joy more complete. As for them they hate him. and hope bis confounded watch will fall down the elevator shaft. But the man who is "regulating bis piece" who is very, very near to his ideal, but gets ten seconds' too fast one day, then 15 seconds too slow the next day is the most deserving ot our commiseration. He loses flesh visibly, or takes to drink as a sort of interior chronometer balance. Poor innooentl He doesn't know that the watch has never been made that will run neck and neck with' that fat little chronometer in Mr. Benedict's window.. A PIttsbnrger in Opera. This Is the time when operatic and theatrical people are preparing their lists of attraction to draw the shekels from the pockets of the public. next season. Among the new ones it behooves your correspondent to notice a favorite and promising young Pittsburger, Mr. Charles S. Clarke, who has three engagements for-onora with prominent companies. Tho first is in , "King Calico." tbe new opera of Mr. Fred Solomon, which opens at tho Academy of Music herein June. Mr. Clarke has an un usually fine tenor voice, very sympathetic and of much the same quality as tbe voice with which 'William Castle delizhted lovers of En glish opera 20 years ago. air. Clarke has been studylnir with Prof. Sweet, who prophesies a fine success for him. For the fall he has au engagement with Lillian Russell In the "La Cigale." The management of "King Calico" is under Mr. H. S. Moore, and both music and libretto are said to be bright and sparkling. One Phase of New York Life. Perhaps a New Yorker rarely notes certain peculiar characteristics ol metropolitan life ibat invariably strike the out-of-town man at once. The other day one of these innocents was taken Into Cafe Savarin about 4 o'clock and was expected to admire the costly sur roundings. He looked around in an absent way as he leaned up against a Manhattan cock tail. "Bnt where in thunder are tbe custom ers?" he asked. It was a fact that save the waiters, barkeepers, cashiers, etc., we were tho only persons in all tbe big place. The stranger had been loafing around the Hoffman art gallery and been piloted through Delmonlco's earlier in the day, and bad made a Bimilar observation up town. Those places were also practically de serted. He couldn't understand it. Nor would he fully believe the story poured Into bis ear of how business New York led a sort of dual life until be visited the downtown places at mid day and almost lost a rib or two fighting for sl sandwich. In no other city of the United States can such conditions exist What a Smash-Up Revealed, The same ii true of another feature of dally life in tbe metropolis. As the out-of-town man strolled along Broadway in tbe vicinity of Cortlandt and Wall streets studying tbe crush ing novelties of city life, one of those big wheeled trucks came along, causing the earth to tremble and the tympanum to swell to burst ing under the weight and noise of tho long, heavy iron girders slung beneath. Those Im mense Iron beams held the right of way un questioned aud undisputed. The powerful Norman horses struck lire from the smooth stone blocks at every step. As they were turned toward a side street and tbe girders commanded tho entire width of Broadway, in cluding a portion of the opposite sidewalk, something cave way and Broadway; was hope lessly blocked. Did car drivers and truckmen holed in there indefinitely like rats in a trap swear and howl and dance frantically aboutf Not a bit of it. Tho driver of the unfortunate truck simnly and slloutly climbed down and blanketed' bis steaming horses. Other truck men and the Uroadway carmen rushed lu and began working with a will to break the block ade. A couple of hundred pedestrians stood by and occasionally volunteered advice. When the difficulty had been overcome they heartily cheered the workers, who scattered back to their respeciive teams, and all went on as be fore. There pervaded that crowd a degree of calm and self-sustaining philosophy that wonld havedone credit to the most distinguished field marshal that ever lived. Directors Who Do Not Direct. Tbe questions whether or not directors direct and if tbey do or don't what is the extent and measure of their liability will probably not be fully settled with a decision in tbe tunnel case, but the trial of Depew- and his business asso ciates will cnqiKStlonably serve to narrow down tbe now vague relations between corpora tions and the public to something tangible to tbo ordinary comprehension. There are in this city quite a number of professional directors. That is to say, there are numerous respectable and respected Individuals who havo no other business than the alleged business of directing. Their names are- enrolled npon the engraved paper of several to a dozen corporations. Thejf meet regularly with this board and that board, skipping joyously, as we may say, from flower to flower at so much per skip, every working day lu the week. Sometimes the recompense is 5 a minute, that length of time being usually sufficient to conform to the law by registering "present." Sometimes it is a good dinner or a S20 gold piece, or both. In almost every case this sort of a director is tho holder of but & single share and has no Interest whatever in tbe business of tbe company beyond that small bonus for attendance. Tne professional director knows aud cares absolutely nothing about tho affairs' of some of the corporations of which he is a legal super visor. And tbe less be meddles with those af fairs tbe better he is liked. He is a director because of bis well-known respectability. He is of unquestionable moral strength. His only c.nlnabiiitv lies in bis false position. His sin is one ol omission, Ilie public- believe nun re-J sponsible for the business affairs of the bank or other corporate body with which bis name Is identified. He is not. He knows he IS not He is only masquerading. He is pnt there to deceive, and be does deceive the innocent. Morally the directors of a rotton bank are re sponsible to the robbed shareholders and de positors; by operation of Jaw their responsi bility is a myth. This Is tho evil a judicious in dictment and trial of the professional directors may tend to mitigate. masting Has Lost Its-Novelty. The operations of the blaster on the upper west side ot the city were nover so extensive as now, and the explosions of dynamite, accom panied by showers of dislocated rock, re verberate from block to block throughout that whole section. When the exposed -tenants of that aristocratic neighborhood see a red flag they do not charge it, like the traditional ani mal in a cornfield, but "lay low" until the shower is over. If an occasional fragment of Manhattan Island is hurled through a Kitchen window, the maid of all work simply gathers it tip and pitches It out again. "Drac 'em I" fully covers the situation so far as she Is concerned. She ought to be frightened into spilling the family soup, bnt she Isn't It would be a mere accident II a single square of ground can bo found aboro Sixty-flf th streot that is now being untouched by the blaster. Most of these steam drillers are boring foundations for expensive prirate residences, though here and there along the great bonlovard are whole blocks of exca vations for the coming flats. Laid Up With the Grip. I've got it the grip. This is very probably the very last paragraph I shall ever write. Meanwhile, tho intelligent compositor can go on jawing about "takes." dropping hair spaces, jeffing for drinks and working the "typellce" racket on tho apprentices. 1 don't care. The grip is a great thine;, an absorbing thing. That is the way I feel aboutlt. CHAELES THEODORE MURRAY. New Yoek, April 18. A QUEEE LAKE. It Is Near Tanganyika, Africa, and Is Slowly Drying Up. Ooldthwalte's Geographical Magazlne.1 Cake Hukwa is about 100 miles long and from 30 to 40 miles wide. The lake lies in a very barren- and inhospitable country, in which ro spect it forms a great contrast w(th the sur rounding regions, which are among tbe most fertile and prosperous in Africa. The lake is cast of Lake Tanganyika, and about GO miles from it in about longitude 32 east of Green wich. The parallel of 8 south latitude crosses the lake, and the sheet of water extends much moro to the south and east than is indicated by the dotted lines on our map. Its waters are dark in color, brackish, muddy and quite un drinkable. A boy who went into tho lake to bring a speclrden of its water to Mr. Cross had to go a distance of 300 yards before he could fill his bottle, and then he was knee deep in mud. The lake is apparently the shrunken vestige of a much greater lake. Trees are pointed out to tbe explorer as having a few years ago been at the water's edge, thouch they were now several miles from tbe lake. There are no hippopotami, crocodiles or canoes in tbe dark, uninviting waters, as far as Mr. Cross 'could ascertain. Tho mud on tbe shores is really a form of lime, and is covered with a crustaceous deposit of white salt. There has been no rain In tho neighborhood for two years, and the Sonque river, which enters the lake, Beems to lose itself to a great extent In the sand as it approaches the lake. It may be Inferred, therefore, that Lake Hukwa is rapidly evaporating. All the natives affirm that there is no outlet, and Mr. Cross thinks that this is undoubtedly the fact . AMM0KIA IS DANGEROUS. Housekeepers Should Re Careful With tho Volatile Fluid. The Washington -Post takes advantage of the house-cleaning season to call attention to the dangers of ammonia. It is not necessary to know the chemistry ot ammonia, or to know how it is made from old hoofs and horns and rank gas liquor, to realize that this drug should be handled carefully, and be kept out of the reach of children. Serious accidents from am monia are by no means uncommon. Quite a number have cume under our notice within a short time, two of which aro given below with the same startling headlines used in the papers. Many details, of conrte, areomitted,but enough are given to point a moral. AJI1I05IA KILLED IIIJI. New. York World. Herman Harrowltz, a Russian painter, suffering from cramos. entered a druir store to ODtaln a remedy. As he lelt faint the druggist handed him an ammonia bottle to Inhale. Harroiritt, through Ignorance, drank the ammonia, and at once fell to the floor in great agony. Ho clutched his throat and stomach and .btood gushed from his mouth. ,Hls throat, mouth and lips becams fear fully swollen and Inflamed, and. although un an tidote was administered, he died In great agony. KILLED BT DRINKING AMMONIA. Philadelphia Inquirer. -William Hoffman, who gulped down a bottle of ammonia, believing It to be whisky, died at the Pennsylvania Hospital, whither he had been Re moved. His suffering In his last hours was fear ful. Diluted ammonia is useful In the household for tbo coarser forms of scouring and cleaning, but housekeepers should see that the ammonia bottle is kept nut of tbe reach of all who are ig norant of its dangerous properties. Better Left Unsaid. Chicago Mall. Mike De Young is a member of the San Francisco reception committee, and President Harrison will do well to omit all references to "tbe recent grand triumph of Republican prin ciples in tbe election of Senator Fenton." DEATHS OP A DAT. ajor General Charles Hamilton. Major General Charles S. Hamilton, re tired, died Friday night at his home in Mil waukee. He was a classmate of l.encral Grant's at West Point, and took a prominent part In the Civil and Mexican Wars. He was born at West ern, Oneida county, N. Y., in 1822. In the war with Mexico he was engaged in the battle of Mon terey, siege or Vera Cruz, capture ol San Antonio and the battle of uhurnbusco. He resigned from the army AdHI SO, 1S53, and began business as a farmer and flour manufacturer at Fond du Lac. Wis. He re-entered the armyjn 1861, and served during the rebellion, 1861-3, in operations on the Upper Potomac and in the Shenaudoah Valley. He was In command of the District of Corinth and left wing of the army of the Tennessee In General Grant's flank movement to Oxford, Miss,. October, 1862, to January, 1SC3. He re signed April 13. 1SG3, and returned to mercantile business at Fond da uac. He was regent of the Wisconsin State University since lSE3,nnd United States Marshal for tho district of Wisconsin. March 31, 1809, to March 31, 1S77. Obituary Notes. GENERAL KlLBOUBN- KNOX, Governor of the Soldiers' Home at Milwaukee, died Friday night after a long Illness. He was a member of General Sherman's staff during the war. Ex-assemblyman Moody, orLockport, N.Y.. first President of the American Nurseryman's Association, formed at Chicago, and a well known horticulturist, died yesterday. CHARLES (J rant Tia ke it, second son of Charles A. Tinker, General Superintendent of the West ern Union Telegraph Company, died in St. Al bans, Vt., Friday alter a brief illness. Ciiahles H. BAEDEii.of the glue manufacturing firm of ISaedcr. Adamson Co.. of Philadelphia, died yesterday, aged 49 years. Tneflrin of liaeder, Adamson .t Co. was iounded by the father of the deceased man 63 years ago. ' DR. FRANK M. Marbouro, a promising young physician of Bcrtford'dled yesterday a ftcr a short UliiCBS. Dr. Mirbourg was attacked about a werfc ago with the grip. He was in his 30th year and had a bright prospect before him. Sister Maby Dennis, known to the world as Josephine McLaughlin, whose homewas In Phila delphia, died Friday night at Slnslnawa Mound, Wis., at the mother house or the Dominican order, or which she was a prominent member. John MULlioaN, who sld he was over ICO years old. and who was said to have been the oldest member or tho Grand Army of the Republic, is dead at his home in Mechanlcsvlllc, Saratoga county, N. Y. He was a member of the Ono Hun dred and Fifteenth Regiment, Jiew York Volun teers. illt. D. H. UlLLMAN, oue of the most promi nent physicians of Rochester, Pa died at his home Friday evening of pneumonia, the result or grin. At 18 years ofage he enlisted In the Seventy eighth Ohio Volunteer Intuntry; took part lu all Its many battles, Including Shlloh, Vicksburgand Atlanta,' and was with Sherman on bis march to tbe sea. EDOAJl SHEFFIELD FOSTER, son of the late John Addison Porter, and nephew of ex-Prcsl-dent Porter, of Yale College, died suddenly in New Haven Thursday night from heart trouble. He was one o'l tho best known authorities on dogs In this country. He was a member of several clubs In New York and London, and had traveled extensively. He was about 33 years or age. John Addison porter, editor of the Hartford Post, is bis brother. COLONEL CHAnLES UODEN Wood, of Indians, died at His rooms In Washington yesterday of pneumonia He took the second company of In diana volunteers into camp Morton, and was for a time Maior of the regiment raised by General Lew Wallace. Subsequently he was appointed a Lieutenant in the regular army and served as an ofllcer of the Ninth Infantry throughout tbe war. He was conspicuous in quelling- the anti-draft riots in New xotkUtx. FOUB BIO THINGS. Works of Man and Nature Larger Than Others of Their Kind. Illustrated American. 1 Tbe largest sailing ship in tbe world is said to be in the possession of Franee. Her name is tbe France. She is a vessel with five masts; on four of which square sail is carried. Tbe length is 344 feet with a beam of 49 feet The cargo which the France could carry is no less than 61,000 tons. The ship Is built of steel, her masts and yards being of tbe same material. She is at present trading between France and tbe Pacific. The biggest rnby in the world is found in tbe Czar ot Russia's crown, which has the distinc tion of being the finest ever worn by any sovereign. In sbapeft resembles a bishop's mitre, and on its crest is a cross composed of five superb diamonds, which support the "big gest" 'ruby. A foliated arch, composed of 11 magnificent diamonds, supports this eross, and on each side of the arch Is a boon of 38 pearls, than which there is none handsomer in tbe world. The biggest flower in tho world was recently discovered by Dr. Alexander Schadenberg. It was found on Blount Parag, which is situated on one of tbo Southeastern Philippine Islands. Tbe nativo who accompanied Dr. Schadenberg cauea xne nower "Doio." The nolo in Dloom is a flve-petaled flower, ncarlya yard in diameter, as largo as a carriage wheel. A single flower welshed over 22 nounds. The five netals of the immense flower are oval and creamy white, and grow around a center filled with countless long violet-hued stamens. The largest organ in the world has just been built by Messrs. Hills, of London, for the Town Hall of Sydney, New South Wales. The next largest Is that at the Albert Hall, but this lias only 110 stops, while the Sydney one has 150. The reed stop is of the enormous size of 61 feet, and there are five manuals, this belnc tte only organ which has so many. The number of pipes is exactly 10,000. and the structure in cludes every known method and invention re lating to organ building. The cost has been 00,000. K0TES OH HOXABIHTIES. The Kino op Cokea is said to be con templating a trip around the world, but Is afraid if he leaves the country China will not allow him to go back. Mr. Gladstone's admirers in Hastings have made advances to his hair-dresser, offer ing to buy as much hair as can be cut from the grand old man's head at sixpence a strand. The Sultan of Turkey is said to be an expert at the great American game of draw poker, though where or from whom he learned it is not known. Our Ministers to his court are not suspected. Secretary Balfour's sister is an ex pert photographer and has produced some very clever work. She is now in Ireland taking snip shots at localities made famous by her brother's administration. Mrs. Annie Besant's face would im press even a casual observer with the con viction that its owner was a woman thoroughly in earnest and with an unwavering beliof in tbe jnstice of her own cause. Presidekt Harrison's presence at the formal dedication of the Leland Stanford University is so much desired that an effort will be made to arrange tbe date so as to se cure bim during bis present tour. The Vanderbiljs have given up posses sion of the Herbert mansion, in which it was expected they were going to give a yearly series of entertainments. It has been leasod to the Earl of Severn and Melville. Mrs. Grover Cleveland is said to be a liberal purchaser of rare books. She has a passion for unique bindings, and knows a genuine article from an imitation. She baa a very finely bound and complete collection. Thomas Edison's house at Orange, K. J., Is a beautilul and luxurious one, and is about a five-minutes' walk from his laboratory. His family consists ol bis wife, a daughter about 18 years old, two boys and two babies. Rev. George Howard Wilkinson, Bishop of Truro, is the thirty-first Anglican pre late to resign in tbe last 21 years; which, though a small proportion perhaps, shows that it is not true ol this class of office-holders that "few die and none resign." Prince and Princess Henry op Battenberq, who were with Queen Victoria 'at Grasse recently, wished one day to enter the hotel by a private entrance leading into the .garden, but a sentry of the Alpine Chasseurs, not recognizing their Royal Highnesses, re fused to let them pass. Tbe Prince ia vain ex plained his station, and it was not until one of the officials had intervened that the Prince and Princess were allowed to enter. THE POWER OF WATER. What tho Generally Manageable Fluid Can Do Under Pressure. New York Sun. Mr. Louis Glass, for 16 years the Superintend ent of tho Spring Valley mine, California, states that ho has seen an 8-inch stream, under 311 feet of vertical pressure, move in a slnggish way a two-ton bowlder at a distance of 20 feet from the nozzle, and that the same stream, striking a rock of 00 pounds, would throw it as a man would throw a 20-pound weight. "No man that over lived," adds Mr. Glass, "could strike a bar through one of these streams within 20 feet ol discharge, and a human being strnck by such a stream would be killed pounded into a shapeless mass." Mr. Augustus J. Bowie, of San Francisco, the au thor ot a atanuara dook on nyarauuc mining, estimates that the stream from a 6-inch nozzle nnder 450 feet vertical pressure delivers a blow of 688,735 foot pounds every second, equivalent to 1,070 horse power. "It is absolutely im possible," says Mr. Bowie, "to cut such a utream with an ax or to make an impression on it with any other instrument." Mr. Bowie adds that, although never to his knowledge has a man been strnck by such a stream as it comes from the pipe, several accidents have occurred where miners were killed by very much smaller streams at distances ol 150 or ZOO feet from the nozzle. A TEMPEST IK A TEAPOT. The Matter of the Sale of Tennessee Coal and Iron Property. New York. April 18. In regard to the dfvis ioninbe East Tennessee Coal and Iron Com pany's stockholders over the sale of a part of tho property, ex-Senator Thomas C. Piatt, President ot the company, in reply to ques tions by a reporter, said that tbe whole matter was a tempest in a teapot The directors ot the company, however, bad authorized bim some time ago to give an option on some ol the out lyine property ol the rompany in Tennessee to an English syndicate for 82,500. 000.- He believed that the sale, if consummated, would be lor the benefit ol the company. It would strengthen it financial!;-. Tbe price named was a good one, and personally he pro. Eosed to sell; Tho question, however, would e left to the stockholders to settle. It might be that the proposal would fall through on ac count of the local sentiment against it, but, nevertheless, he believed the majority of the stockholders were in favor of it A Blsmarckian Test . New Xork Tribune. M. Pouyer-Quertier, the Frenoh political economist, who died a fortnight ago, was sub jected to a curious test by Bismarck in 1871, when at Frankfort with Jules Favre arranging a Franco-Prussian treaty. The sturdy Teuton gave bim at dinner a drink compounded of English porter, schnapps and champagne, and he pulp of roasted apples Deaten up In It. M. Favre could not touch It but M. Pouyer-Qper-ticr quaffed as many bumpers of tbe horrible brow as the Prince and kept his bead. TVeather on Imagination. New Orleans Picayune. The weather expected soon is that which will allow a sane man to sit three bours on a bard plank, under a burning sun, to witness a gamo ol baseball, and make him think he en joys it. KOBIN BED BREAST SINGS. What does poor robin sing ? What doss he sing ? "C'blng-a-Ung, chlng.a-llng I M ow is soring, now is spring I Trill up, troll up. My mate I'll call up 1 Our next to the apple tree soon will cling." What does poor robin say ? What does he say f "Cheek-a-leec, cheek-a-leek 1 Days were bleak, days were bleak I Clouds are gone, days are sunny: Bees are out seeking honey. And soon within our nest four eggs we'll lay." What does poor robin do 1 What does he do 7 Mill he's singing, still he's singing. While sweet blosioms from earth are springing: "My mate is brooding, my mate li brooding; No Intruding, no intruding; Then with ev'ry springtime we'll come and sing to you. " J . Buchanan siozbs. Dayiqx. o, THE PARADISE FISH. A Handsome Member of the Finny Tribe Found in China. Nature's Realm. Tbe paradise fish, like tbe German canary, is the production of cultivation.as there Is no plac known where it is found in a wild state. It is a native of China. There they are cultivatedand kept jn aquaria as ornamental fish only. The male is tbe larcer of the two sexes. measuring, when full grown, from tbe mouth to tbe caudal fin. three and ahalf inches. Tbe body is shaped very ranch like that ot a pump kin seed sunfih. Its colors surpass in bril liancy any fish heretofore cultivated for the aquarium. The head is ashy gray, mottled with irregular dark spots. Tbe silts are saurine blue, bordered with brilliant crimson. Tbe eyes aVeyellw and red, with blaek pupiL The size of the body and the crescent shaped caudal fin are deep crimson: the former having 10 or 12 vertical bine, stripes, while the latter Is bordered with blue. The under surface of the body is continnally changing color sometimes it Is white, at others gray or black. The dorsal and anal fins are re markably large, hence tbe generic name of tbe fish macro, large: ponus. the foot or fin. Both fins are sbaped.alike. They are striped and dntte d with brown and bordered with blue. Tbe dull-colored ventral fins are protected by a brilliant scarlet colored spine, extending three-fourths of an Inch behind tbe fins. The pectorals, situated directly above the vertlcaf tins, are well shaped, but being transparent, show no color. ' All these colors above desenbed are most brilliant when the fish is excited. For in stance, when engaged in combat for the "pos session of a female fish, or when courtinir, he shows the most brilliant colors. In order to at tract tbe attention of bis ladylove, she being especially fond ol bright colors. PETTICOAT CAMARILLA. Another Story to Explain Bismarck's Po litical Downfall. New York Sun. There died at Frankfort the other a day a local celebrity named Stolz, who in his younger days had made himsell particularly obnoxious to tbe Prussian Government by the sharpness ot his pen and the pungent favor of his wit, or what he was pleased to think was wit During the present week a friend of tbe deceased writer has overhauled the papers of the latter, and has discovered evidence which throws quite a new light on the relations of the Emperor and his erst. while Chancellor. It appears that toward fhe close of the year 1885 Stolz got wind of an order of Bismarck to tbe chiefs of police in Prussia and tbe Prussian authorities in Schles-wig-Hols.teln, prohibiting the exhibition or sale nnder any circumstances of portraits of tbe Duke of Augustenburg, then a candidate for tbe throne of Schleswie on behalf of his daughter, tbe hereditary Princess, then a child of 7. Stolz made use of the Information to picture Bismarck as a persecutor of babies and an enemy of petticoats generally, and for doing so was banished from bis native citv. when a year.later Fr&ukf ort fell under Prus sian rule. . This hereditary Princess is now the German Emperor's wife, and althongb she is the most amiable of women and never meddles with pol itics, it is more than likely that the persecu tions to which Bismarck subjected her in her infancy, together with the rest ol her family, embittered her against the ex-Chancellor. The incident, which has only just con-e to light, evoked general comment corroborating as it does previous surmises as to tbe hand tbe Em press bad in Bismarck's downfall, coupled with the Prince's own remark that the "petticoat camarilla" was not yet extinct. THE FIRST FISH IDi Derry Has an Early Bird Who WU1 Out Blossom Orange Blossom. The Dispatch has received the following from Derry station, P. R. R. As the opening effort of theflshingseasonit is worthy of notice: To the Editor of Tue Dispatch: Yesterday a message was received by the oper ator stationed at Derry that J. McCabe. assistant trainmaster, and E. O'Brien, roundhouse -foreman, had caught a monster salmon la the C'oue maugh, and asking for assistance on arrival of mall train. The train, due at Derry at 6:30 r. M., was anxiously awaited by hundreds or employes of the Pennsylvania Railroad. It did not arrive, however, until 7:15 F. M., being delayed by Jour nals on baggage car running hot. caused by the baggage master insisting on having the monster laid In the car over the trucks. The fish, arter being unloaded, was Disced on tbe track scales of the Pennsylvania Railroad and weighed 173 pounds. Messrs. McCabe and O'Brien both state they were fully four bours getting the monster out of the water. Your correspondent sought an interview with the above named gentlemen, but was not successful on account of both being com pletely worn out with the day's sport. Late last night the butcher of the Co-operative Meat Market, assisted by Mr. George Yonker, cut tbe flsh up and round In Its stomach a mall black bear bide that Mr. E. Pitcairn shot at Hill side several years ago. After supplying Messrs. McCabe and O'Brien and giving the head, liver and tall to Mr. YonRcr.the remainder was divided among tbe charitable Institutions of our town, the Home for Superannuated aud Decrepit Kail road and Newspaper Liars receiving the largest share. THE PASTETJB TBEATMEHT. A Synopsis of the First Year's IJeport on Inoculations. ' Scientific American. Dr. Paul Gibler, Director ol the New York Pasteur Institute, in his first annual report gives as follows the results of tbe preventive inoculations against hydrophobia nerformed at tbe above institute during the first year of its existence, (February IS. 1890, to February IS. J891): 823 persons having been bitten by dogs or cats came to be treated. For 643 of these persons it was demonstrated that the an! mal3 which attacked them were not mad. Consequently the patient were sent back, after having bad their wounds attended, during the proper length of time, when it was necessary. In 185 cases tbe anti-bydrophobic treatment was applied, hydrophobia ol the animals which inflicted bites having been evidenced clinically, or by inocnlation in the laboratory, and in many cases by the death ol some other persons or animals bitten by the same dogs. No death caused by hydrophobia has been reported among tbe persons inoculated. Indigents were treated free of charge. The persons treated were from all parts ol the country. DIAMONDS IN THE A8HES. A Dayton Lady Unwittingly Throws Away a Fortune in Jewels. Dayton. O., April 18. Mrs. Larry H. Heist wile of the lessee and manager of the Grand Opera House and Park Theater, of this city, was tho loser to-day of diamonds valued at 780. In order that tbe sparklers might be secure from a burglar's grip, she put them, on retiring, under herpillow. They were carefully wrapped In tissue paper, and consisted of ear drops, brooch and tbree finger rings, one of the latter being her engagement and another a wedding ring, and in all 11 stones. On arising this morning Mrs. Reist reached for the bit of tissue paper containing her dia monds, and then proceeded to arrange her room. After gathering up orange seeds and pieces of paper which tbe children bad scat tered about tbe room, she tossed the handful of articles, diamonds and all, into a stove burning soft coal. Later in tbe day tbe ashes were emptied into an alley, bnt Mrs. Belst did not miss her diamonds until the return ol her hus band this afternoon. "Whistling "Yankee Doodle." Washington Star.J Those Italian newspapers which have been refused at the New York Postoffice and re turned, becauso they contained lottery adver tisements, aro now engaged in organizine a combine against tbe United. States and charg ing tha't the exclusion is simply an act of re venge. In the meantime. Uncle Sam sits quietly on the jpostoffice steps, whittling and whistling. PEOPLE WHO COME AND 00. Colonel James Andrews and C. L. Magee returned from tbe East yesterday. County Commissioner Mercer and W. T. Espey wont to New York last evening. H. R. Wilson, of Clarion, and E. H. McDermott, ot Kane, are at the Buquesne. W.J. Hilcuman, of Mt Pleasant, and G. W. Heil and wife, ot Erie, aro registered at the 'Monongabela House. Lew McQuestion, a Butler lawver, and Barnard Abel, of Titusville, are stopping at tbe Seventh Avenve Hotel. W. W. Patrick, the banker, left last evening lor a sbort stay in Newport He has not been well lor sometime. David C. Bryan, President of the Union Iron and Steel Company, ol Indianapolis, was alter a contract in Pittsburg yesterday. Eobert C. Adams, Esq., of Scrantoo, private secretary to Lieutenant Governor Watres, is spending a day or two with friends in the city. Ex-Congressman James H. Hopkins, of Washington, was In the city yesterday. He says be has decided to return to Pittsburg to practice law. CURIOUS CONDENSATIONS. , Ontario, Ore., has been shipping frnit trees to India. A Philadelphia tailor makes this dis tinction: "'Pants, S3 50; trousers, $8." . Land vines in Berlin are said to have increased 63 per cent in the last ten years. Since the first of tbe year over 600,000 timber trees have been set out in San Diego county. Call One of caltured New York'a musical papers recently spoke of Kansas City as being in Nebraska. The Michigan Agricultural College has ordered 1,500 kinds of weeds and grasses from Berlin for the use of tbe class In botany. Alter a recent rainstorm at Folsom, Cal., gold nuggets were picked np in the streets. A lucky boy found one that he sola for !9. The first carload ot cedar .wood was shipped from Arkansas to Europe the other day. ic will come back In the shape ot lead pencils. It is said that the large bananas, sucb'as are shipped to us, are seldom eaten in Cuba, being considered too coarse. A very small banana, which is a favorite fruit there, never reaches us, being too tender for shipment For startling enterpriser certain Harlem merchant is unapproachable. His latest scheme to draw custom is the checking of babies while their mothers spend money over his counter. Tbe little ones are numbered just as if they were wraps or umbrellas at a ball, and are only returned to persons holding duplicates of the tags around their necks. London is said, to enquire adaily supply of more than 150,000,000 gallons of water. Of this 15.000,000 gallons come from deep wells in tbe cbalk, the rest from other sources, princi pally from the rivers Thames and Lea. The water irom tne chalk, though very free from organic impurities, is exceedingly hard, and if not softened costs tbe householder endless expense for cleaning boilers and obstructed pipes. In 1890 there were strnck at the St. Pe tersburg mint gold coins to tbe value of 23.150. 090 roubles, silver coins of the valee of 91,760 roubles, coins part silver (five-tenths standard) to tho value of 2,000,000 roubles, and copper moneoto tbe value of 130,003 roubles. The mintage for tbe last five years has been as fol. lows; In 1886. 20,916,041 roubles; 1887, 23.165,544 roubles: 1883, 28.117.129 roubles; 1889, 26,094,785 rou bles, and In lb90, 3,371,858 roubles. According to statistics, a large propor tion of soldiers, ol all arms in the Austro-Hun-garian regiments whobave received medals and decorations for conspicuous bravery on the battle field are Hebrews. A further striking testimony to their soldier-like qualities is of. fered by tbe fact that the only gold medal for bravery possessed among the 16 different hussar regiments adorns the breast of a Hebrew who has only recently been elevated to the peer age. The report of tbe council of the Society for the Preservation of the Irish Language, says that during the past year over 1,000 more books bave been sold than in the previous year, thus bringing tbe total nnmber ot books sold since the society was founded to over 100,000. Though difficulties and drawbacks still hamper and impede the spread of the national Ianeuage, nevertheless the movement advances. Nearly 1.000 pupils presented themselves for examina tion in Irish during the past yearin the national schools. A resident of Chatham, N. J., a few days ago. It is reported, while making so me re pairs in his house, came across an old iron bound chest, about one foot square, firmly im bedded in the masonry of the walk Tbe cover was securely fastened with a large old-fashioned padlock. On opening it there was found a small box in which was a roll of paper yellow witn age. It was an old UnVl grant, written on parchment and signed by William Penn. Tbe grant consisted ut 40 acres of Philadelphia property made to an ancestor ol the tinder. In tbe same box there was also found a quantity of wampum (Indian money), and a beautifully carved Indian pipe. The origin of the French fashion of taking before breakfast some beverage, which either takes tbe shape of coffee or chocolate, or some less "innocent" fluid, is carious and amusing. Tbe custom is still popularly called "killing the worm." It is explained In an old diary of the time of Francis L, in connection with the sudden death ot tbe wife or one of the King's court officials. When she was opened a living worm which had pierced Jier was found upon her heart. Then they put scSno mlthridate npon the heart in order to make the worm die. But It did not die. Then they pnt some bread, soaked In wine, and from eating it tbe said norm died. It therefore follows that it is expedient to take bread and wine in the morning, at all events in times ol danger, for fear of the woim. A merchant of Moscow sent for the copy of a deed to tbe St. Petersburg Criminal Court and received it from the clerk, for which he transmitted one rouble by mail, as a lee. But the furnishing of copies by that court Is free, and so the rouble was mailed back, for which the postoffics charged 8 kopecks. Tbe merchant had cone to Twer aud tbe remaining 92 kopecks followed him at a charge of 6 ko pecks. Meanwhile he had gone to at. Peters burg, and the 86 kopecks went after bim and diminished to 72. He had left the capital for Cbarkow, and Twer and Moscow. The money followed bim. shrinking continually by the charges of the postoffice for transmission till, finally, reduced to one single kopeck, it wa de posited to bis order in tbe Government office at Moscow. Some curiosities are collected in an ar ticle on "Tbe Censuses ol tbe Century." One Englishman, 82 years of age, returned himself as deal a touching trait ol his truthtulness. though, of course, deafness, as an infirmity of old age. did not come within the scope of cen sus inquiries. On the other band, a clergy man refused to return the schedule to the par ish clerk, who was the enumerator, and sent it direct to the central office, alleging thatil he bad done otherwise his wile's age would have become a topic ot gossip in the beershops ol the village. In, Devonshire a middle-aged man refused to make 'out bis schedule, saying that he did not know either his name or his place of birth, "and he wonld not perjure himself bv making a false entry." An author added to his return a note stating that bis wife said he was "both idiotand lunatic" The approaching marriage ot a couple who have been en gaged for 50 years has been officially announced in Berlin. Tbe man is 79 years of age and tbe woman 73. In 1841, when troth was plighted, tho prospective bridegroom was a superintendent of a large farm a tew miles from Berlin. His fiance was the daughter ol 'a Government official, who opposed the match. Tbe father and tbe young man bad a violent quarrel, and the lovers were separated, although both refused to terminate tbe engage ment Tbe young man became tired ol life near tbe scene of his disappointment and came to America. It was reported in Berlin that he had died here. At the same time word was sent to him that his old love bad married. About Ave years ago be returned to Berlin and took bachelor quarters. He beard nothing ol the woman whom be loved until at a reception in a University a sbort time ago he met her. She was unmarried and still loved bim. Tbe engagement, which had not been broken, is to have its happy ending. SOME SUNDAY SMILES. Of the heroine in one of the latest sensa tional novels it is said "Her eye chained him to the spot." She must have been links-eyed. Texas Sitings, "Did I hurt your finger last night, dar ling, when I Squeezed your hand?" he asked ten derly, bending over her to catch the fragrance of the rose that an hour before bad cost him a week's salary. "It 1s of no consequence, dear," she answered merrily, striving with her Jersey City choir ac cents to reassure him. "It Is somewhat dis figured, but," she added quickly, noting tht sharp look of pain that shot over her lover's face, It is still la the nng."-Cfa Sniew, POLITICAL POETBT. Jones is a man of weight Who "pays the freight" And to himself doth say t "If I only had the power, 1 would crush the Flower ibat springs up in my way.'" . -Pue. "Do you believe in the power of mind over matter?" 1 do. I remember In the battle of Gettysburg a comrade of mine had his legs shot off and I'll be banged if the legs didn't run on" the Held ss ft as they eould to." Judge. She I haven't seen yoa for five years, Mr. Barker. How's that little romance of yours wlttrMlss Henderson? Barker-Miss Henderson is no more. bhe-What? Dead? Barker No; marrUd, She -na! ha! Yon are still rrtendj. thouzh? Birker-No. She married me. Life. ''I have just tvun up against a mind weader," said SImllngtoO. "Did you ask him to read your mind?" -Yes. buthedldn'tgiveme any satisfaction at all, don't you Know. 'Alt be did was towecora mend me to Ignatius Donnelly, because be was the greatest expert-in ciphers." Washington Fott Jlik--JlL-io!'siLIS miSBkSs&M esssm i
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers