SULLIVAN REPUBLICAN.
W M. CHENEY. Publisher.
VOL. xn.
The public «nd private indebtednosi
of the world is estimated to lie #IOO,■
000,000, 000.
Die Sv fan Gov) rumen| Ims ordered
iiiini ImmMot .'ill slaughtered cattl^
must 1 m mud' in . h ible before tlnl
knife is used.
A sage complains that, while it iii
true that "man wants but little hero
below," the trouble i that that litthi
is usually in someone else's possession.
An Kuropean mathematician of
wmld wide celebrity claims that from
a single potato a careful cultivator
could rai.se 10,000,000.M)0 tubers with
in a period of ten year j.
The Han Francisco Chronicle esti
mates that at the present rate of con
quest and colonization savage Africa
w ill be a thing of the past before the
quarter ot' the twentieth century
is rounded out.
\ correspondent of the Baltimoro
Sun asserts that ' there is no such
thing in all this world as sewer gas,"
and, further, that "there is no evi
dence whatever in fact and no ground
for believing in the theory that the
emanations from a sewer are in any
wise unwholesome."
Many lakes have been formed along
tin' banks of the South Canadian River
in Oklahoma, some of which are many
square miles in extent. They are
can- d. explains the New York Post,
by the sand blowing out of the river
until a high embankment is formed
aim the shores, and behind the bank
are formed the lakes.
An elderly gentleman of wide travel
and close observation remarked re
cently. after reading the story in the
New \ork Times of a cruel murder,
that lie had long been of the opinion
that the greatest calamity that has be
' vllen th" human race in modern times
was the invention of the revolver. It
is too easily carried, and too handy.
The report from South Africe that
the British recently liUlghtered the
■ like 'he e p is probably well
founded, say < the Han Francisco Chron
ical. The English have never been
noted for their tender regard of the
aborigine. The pioneers of Houth
Africa, like those fit" Australia, regard
the natives as hindrance to the develop
ment of tie country, and any pretext
which can be used to justify killing or
driving t hi m out of a district is eagerly
welcomed.
The St. Louis Star-Savings thinks
that, "one of the most gratifying
f-igns of the times is the operation of
the law requiring all navy ships to be
built at home, from materials of
domestic production ; American shipq
in American bottoms and the estab
lishment, oi ship yards capable of
turning en: w -els of war of the high
' 1■ 'i .MIL I capacity. Tt is a grow
in? <■"*• 'j rise and gives employment
to llnMa fa oi American laborers 112
and 'on we may anticipate that in
stea' ol '.".dug to other countries for
ide - and methods in ship armor and
g"i construction we shall have the
u.i i-i>i 'in;.' lo us to learn."
America holds the record in many
natural wo I>. rs and artificial
triumphs, l.oa-t the Washington Star.
Die hu la'io in the world (Su
perior . th " longest, river (Missouri),
the largest park (Yellowstone), the
finest cave ithe Mammoth), the
greatest waterfall (Niagara) and the
only natural bridge (in \ irginia) are
all to be found within the borders of
the United States, and here the big
gest fortunes are made, the most ener
getic commercial enterprises under
taken, the largest deals are effected,
mil the most wonderful inventions
•ire perfected, while the country
produces a greater amount of raw
material than any other.
the zone system of railroad rates
which is so successfully operated in
Hungary, has made a deep impression
upon James 1 ,. Cowlcs, well known in
railroad circles. He say s * ''Distance
cost., practically nothing in the
transportation of ireight or of pas
sengers. and. therefore, distance
should lie disregarded in the dis
crimination oi rates. The rate now
charged fur th-' shortest distance for
anv particular servic ■ i~ the rate that
should lie adopted for alt distances.
When oniv a tram-t iris from Boston
to San (■ raii<*isjo, there isn't a man
livuii, that can tell the difference in
est nl runniti that traiu, whether n
ipa— ir.:* I It i."- tie train at the first
station mi, o Boston or goos through
ti 'in th Vlhi'itic to th Pacific Coast."
.Mr C'owlfs further says that there is
Uot ti-u dollar- dirteieiicH between
' in true *,)i t'hi 'ago to \eiv
ini'u. lull ,i! |ja.-s. iivirs or empty.
RETROSPECT.
The roses were not just so sweet, perhaps.
As we thought they would surely be,
And the blossoms were not so pearly white
As of yore, on the orchard tree ;
Bnt the summer has gone for nil of that
And with snd reluctant heart
We stand at rich autumn's open door
And watch Its form depart.
The skies were not just so blue, perhaps,
As we hoped they would surely be,
And the waters were rough that washed our
botit.
Instead of the old calm sea ;
But the summer has gone for all of that,
And the golden rod is here :
We can see the gleam of its golden sheen
In the hand of the aging year.
The rest was not quite so real, perhaps,
As we hoped it might prove to be,
For instead of leisure came work sometimes*
And the days dragged wearily ;
But the summer has gone for all of that,
The holiday time is o'er.
And busy hands in the harvest field
Have garnered their golden store.
The B»mm»r was not sui'b a dream, perhaps,
Of bliss as we thought 'twould be,
And the beautiful tilings we planned to do
Went amiss for you and me,
Yet still it Is gone for all of that,
And we lift our wistful eyes
! To the land where beyond the winter snows
Another summer lies.
—Kathleen If. Wheeler, in Lippineott's.
THE LAST SCHOLAR,
BY IiOBERT BEVEKT.Y HALE.
rv USe< ' *° *' e *' ie
y\_J —\ 1 fashion togo to
Miss Lepington's
; school when my
' ' mother was a girl,
; l , all Schools came into
fashion just 11s
crinolines and
; I ill J' | puffy sleeves do.
jSt 11 l1 I know for a num
fl I yr ber of reasons that
it was the nost
fashionable girls'
I' school in my
mother's time;
and what makes it perfectly certain
I is that my mother would never have
gone to it unless it had been. Miss
; Lepington used to limit the number of
scholars to forty ; and there were many
stories current as to the early applica
tions made for a place in that, school.
It was no uncommon thing for a happy
father to send in an application as soon
' as a daughter was born; and it was
j said that when Tom Snelling and
| Eunice Dunbar were engaged, they
wrote to Miss Lepington that in case :
j they were married and had a daughter I
they wanted a place reserved for her. :
I don't exactly know whether to be
lieve that or not. Ido know that my
I mother applied only six years before
hand ; but then her mother knew Miss
Lepington very well, and so Miss Lep
\ ington was probably willing to strain j
j a point.
But things cannot always stay in
fashion. Hoop ski'-ts went out of style
after a time, and ever so many crino- 1
line makers were ruined. Even these
beautiful great sleeves must go out of
fashion. I greatly fear that they may j
have disappeared before this story j
comes out. And Miss Lepington's l
school went out of fashion, too. You
see, Miss Lepington would not have
German taught at her school; and
there was Miss Cartwright's school
that had a second eo»un of Goethe's
as a German teacher ; and nowadays,
of course, every girl ought to know j
German. That was only one reason
out of a dozen for the falling off in
pupils.
Miss Lepington must have noticed
the diminution in applications ; j
but she did not seem to. She
was sterner than over in her re- 1
quirements. She had never taken
any one whose grandfather was not!
"somebody," she said, and she never j
would. So at last the time came'
when there were only thirty-five
pupils ; and then the remaining ones J
dropped off, one by one, in a way that t
pains me to tell of.
But Miss Lepington never thought j
of giving up teaching. She was just ;
as erect as in the old days, and a little I
stricter; and she taught just as well a's J
ever—much better, I don't doubt,
than Miss Cartwriglit, whose ancestors I
were I don't know what when the j
Lepingtons were lolling at their ease ;
in Lepington Manor, or fighting for
their king at Agineourt.
I suppose one reason the pupils
stopped coming was because Hanover
street deteriorated so. Every one
lives 011 Euderby square now, or else \
on Collingwood avenue, aud you can't I
really expect a girl of fifteen to walk
past all those queer ihops on Hanover
street. It is a strange old place, and
one wonders how it could ever have I
been so fashionable.
Miss Lepington had a nephew, |
Densil Smith, of Smith, Aien A- Com
pany. They lived together in an old 1
house 011 Puritan square. He was
rich, and she must have been ijuite
well otl herself, lie was so wrapped
np in his business that he never knew
much about her school. He may have
had some little suspicion of what was ,
going on ; but one of his business rules !
was to get everything at tirst hand.
His news about Miss Lepington's i
school was always derived from Miss |
Lepington herself, and thushe thought
he was sure to know the truth. He !
was the only friend of Miss Leping- j
ton's who did not know it.
The school grew smaller and smaller, i
till there were only twenty pupils.
Then ten of these left in a body togo 1
to Miss Cartwright's. Then the reut ]
deserted, one by one, until—l don't'
like to say it—until Constance Alford
was the only pupil in Miis Lepington's
school. And now the worst is said,
for if any one were to have a school
With one scholar, Constance would be
just the scholar to have.
She always scented to me more
iito
LAPORTE, PA., FRIDAY, DECEMBER 15, 1893.
ft character in it story than 11 girl in
every day life. Slit: was very beauti
ful, in the Hist place, aud very amiable,
anil very good ; and she wag, as you
see, so loyal that she stayed with Miss
Lepington after every one else had
deserted her.
"I shall undertake the first class in
French myself this morning, Constance.
I have severed my connection with
Mile. Deroulet, aud until such time as
I have a new instructress, I shall dis
charge the duties of the position my
self."
Constance took out her French
books and followed Miss Lepington
out of the deserted schoolroom into
the recitation room.
"Read, Constance, if yon please."
Constance read. She read so sweetly
in any language that it was hard even
for Miss Lepington to find fault. I
should like to hear her read Russian,
but then I was always very fond of
Constance Alford.
' 'Look out for your 'puis,' Constance.
Did not Mademoiselle tell you how to
pronounce that word? Now after me :
puis."
"Puis," said Constance.
"That is more tolerable ; but practise
it, my dear, before the mirror. The
lips must move in ono particular way.
You can always discover a Parisian by
the way he pronounces 'puis.'"
And so on, till at last the French
was over. Then there was the study
hour, and then the English literature
class, which Miss Lepington taught
herself, for she had "severed her con
nection" with all the assistants except
old Miss Nutting, who came into teach
drawing once a week. And Constance
Alford often told me that she was vS-y
glad to get rid of the other instructors,
tor Miss Lepington was an excellent
teacher, though perhaps a trifle too
narrow in some wave.
| After English literature came recess.
This was the first break iu the dignity
of the school. Constance found a
, chair and drew it up close to Miss
Lepington's, and then they ate their
j lunch together, and talked affection
ately, for they were very fond of each
other.
"Did you know T waseigliteen years
old to-day?" said Constance.
"Why, my dear child?" cried Miss
Lepington. "And I have not given
| you a present."
"Yes, you have, dear," said COll
- stance (she never called Miss Leping
ton "dear" during school hours). "You
J give me a present of something every
| time you teach me. But I have some
thing to tell you ; but I hardly dare."
"Not quite so many 'bats,' " said
! Miss Lepington. stroking her favorite
j (and only) pupil's hand.
"Yes, dear, all the 'buts' I want in
| recess," said Constance, mischievously.
"What do you think I have done?"
"Become engaged to be married?"
Constance burst out laughing.
"Right the first time! Oh, how ro
mantic you are, dear! I never should
I have believed it."
Miss Lepington blushed. "Not
; romantic, my child. Perhaps it is that
T know a little of the world. My dear
j Constance, I hope that you will be
very, very happy, fam confident that
the gentleman both is and will be so.
Who is lie?"
".lack Mackenzie," said Constance, j
"He's splendid. But 1 haven't told ;
you everything. I thought—l hoped
you wouldn't mind—l—well—l think
that he rang the door bell just now. |
Did you hear it? I asked him to come
here to see you and me. You don't j
mind, do you, dear?"
Miss Lepington tried to look stern ; i
but she couldn't. No one could look j
stern at Constance. Miss Lepington
did look in the glass to see that her j
hair was all right, and then changed
her spectacles for her eyeglasses.
"You were indiscreet, my child, to |
ask a young gentleman to a girls'
sohool; but since he is here, of course J
we must welcome him. Jane, show j
Mr. Mackenzie in."
"1 hope you will pardon my intru- I
sion, " said Jack as ho came forward.
"But I was so anxious to meet the
lady who has been so intimate with
Constance ; and Constance would have
me see you where she had known you
and grown so fond of you. Will you
forgive me?"
Miss Lepington blushed again. She
was not used to fine speeches from
young men. "No one can be dis
pleased with Constance," she said,
"and I begin to think that her fiance 1
shares her immunity."
After that the three had a nice talk
about the old school; and Constance
told several anecdotes, which Miss Lep
ington had never heard before, about
things that had gone on under the
teacher's nose; and Miss Lepington
told the two young people stories about
their mothers, who had been class
mates, and pointed out the desks where
they had sat.
The time for the recitation in nat
ural history was past, and they were
in the middle of the hour for Latin
grammar, and still Jack stayed 011. At
last he ruse togo, and Constance rose,
too. They took hold of each other's
hands and stood facing Miss Leping
ton. And then suddenly Miss Leping
ton understood what was going to hap
pen.
Jack had come to take Constance
away.
Miss Lejiington was a consummate
mistress of her emotions, and yet Con
stance is very sure that her dear old
teacher's eyes were full of tears.
"Good by, Constance," she said, af
ter a pause. "I need not tell you to
be a good girl. See that you deserve
her, Mr. Mackenzie."
"I can't," said Jack, "but I'll try."
Constance and Miss Lepington kissed
each other and parted; and the two
lovers went out, leaving the teacher
alone iu the deserted schoolroom. Just
as they passed the doorway, Constance
looked back and saw Miss Lepington
with her head bowed over the desk.
C" pst "7 ut .e had never seen that head
' bowed before.
"Densil," said Miss Lepiugton th«
next morning nt breakfast, "I atn go
ing to discontinue teaching. Yester
day was tho last day of school."
Mr. Densil Smith looked up with hie
egg spoon half way to his month.
"Have your pupils been dropping
off?" ho inquired.
"Yes. One of the dearest I ever had
left yesterday."
"Why, that's too bad. But think ol
the rest of them," said Mr. Smith sym
pathetically. "Don't leave them sud
denly this way."
"Thank you for your kind interest,
Densil. But I assure you there is no
alternative. Let us change the sub
ject. Have you heard that Miss Al
ford and Sir. Mackenzie are engaged
to be married? I have been thinking
of what I shall give them for a wedding
present, and have finally definitely de
cided upon the school-house. I have
no further need of it."
And that is how Constance and I
came to set up housekeeping in Han
over street. —Munsey's Magazine.
A Rawhide Cannon.
A Syracuse man named La Tulip,
has invented a cannon known as the
La Tulip rawhide gun, of which great
things are expected. One of the guns,
made by its inventor, was tested at
Onondaga Valley. It weighs in the
neighborhood of 400 pounds, while the
cannon of the same calibre in use by
the army weighs nearly 1500. Its pe
culiarity lies in its lightness and the
easy manner in which it can be trans
ported. Across the breech it measures
about fourteon inches, and tapers to
about six at the muzzle. A forged
steel cone forming the barrel runs to the
full length, and is only three-quarters
of an inch in thickness. Then comes
layer after layer of the finest rawhide,
compressed until it has the strength
of steel. In fact, its toughness ami
staying powers are said to exceed steel.
The rawhide is put on in strips coiled
around and around,and is several inches
in thickness. On top of this lie two
coils of steel wire wound to its strong
est tension and then filed smooth. Tho
cap placed at the breech can be easily
removed for inspection of the rawhide
tilliug. The tests were pronounced
successful, and further trials will be
had. A five-inch bore will be con
structed as soon as possible, and when
mounted upon a movable carriage it
will then demonstrate whether it can
bo used effectively. The five-inch
caanon will be smooth bore and used
to discharge dynamite cartridges, a
trial of which will be made. Freder
ick La Tulip, tho inventor, has been a
worker of rawhide.for twelve years and
is conversant with it in every detail.—
Rome (N. Y.) Sentinel.
Origin of the Word "Trolley."
Most persons who use the word ' 'trol
ley" 'irobably do not know the origin
of this term, or why this name was
given to that apparatus by which the
electricity is conveyed from an aerial
wire. Twenty years ago, the word was
used to designate "a form of truck
which can be tilted, for carrying rail
road materials or the like." This is
the only definition of the word in
Webster's Dictionary of the edition of
1848. In the edition of 1892 of the
same work, three other definitions are
added. 1. "A narrow cart that is
pushed by hand or drawn by an ani
mal." It is noted that this meaning
of the word is in use in England, not
in the United States. 2. "A truck
from which the load is suspended on
some kinds of cranes." This meaning
is technical, according to Webster, and
employed only in speaking of machin
ery. 3. "(Electricrailway.) A truck
which travels along the fixed conduc
tors, and forms a means of connection
between them and a railway car." It
is easy to sec how the primitive form
of the electric trolley, which travels
upon the wires, came to receive its
name from the resemblance to other
types of trolley ; and the name, having
been immediately given to its prim
itive form, was naturally retained when
the method of connection was changed
from a little truck moving on a wire,
to a mast, having at its en.d a wheel
pressing on the lower servico of th'
wire.— Detroit Free Press.
A Battler's Bite.
I send you recipe for the bite of a
rattlesnake that I will warrant to cure
in ninety-nine cases out of every hun
dred. 1 have known it tried for forty
years in Illinois and have used it on
several animals that were bitten by
rattlesnakes since coming to Florida,
and have never known it to fail in a
single instance.
Thoroughly soak the wound and the
swelled part with pure hog's lard, and
let the patient drink one half pint of
this melted lard. In severe cases re
peat it in half an hour and give all
the sweet milk that patient can drink.
This kills the poison almost immedi
ately, and the swelling will disappear
in a few days. A horse or a cow must
be drenched with a much larger dose,
but dogs will eagerly eat lard and
drink milk, even when their heads are
so swollen that their eyes are closed
imd the yellow saliva is running from
their mouths. Don't call in a doctor
if bitten by a rattler (as they are more
laugerons than the snake), but use the
ibove remedy, and I will warrant a
sure.—Jacksonville Times-Union.
Aclion of Cold and Heat.
The generally accepted theory of the
looking of meat relates to tho appli
cation of heat, but Dr. Sawiczovosky
lias called attention to the fact that
almost precisely the same chemical
ind physical changes can be accom
plished by exposing animal llesh to ex
treme cold. Meat subjected to a de
jree of cold equal to fifty degrees
tielow the zero of Fahrenheit's ther
mometer looks and tastes exactly like
meat boiled in fresh water. St. Louis
Republic.
SUBDUING WILD BEASTS,
NOT BY KINDNESS, BUT THROUGH
FEAR ARE THEY TAMED.
A Trainer Tells How Hp Handles t'ne
Hensts When First Placed Under
His Charge—Nerve Required.
HEAD KEEPER CONKLIN,
in charge of a large men
agerie, tells the New York
Herald how wild beasts are
tamed. He says:
"We have a tremendous amount of
work to do with the wild animals up
in the winter quarters in Bridgeport
of which the public knows nothing.
Yon see we are getting new wild ani
mals all the time, and as they come to
us there is not a man living who would
dare togo into the cages with them.
During the winter we have to break
those beasts so that wo can handle
them as you see us handle them on the
road."
"And how do you do it?"
"Well, when they come to us they
have thick leather collars around their
necks, with heavy chains attached.
They are more savage then than they
were before capture, their capture
only having served to bring out all
that is ugly in them. They will spit
and growl at anybody who gets near
their cage and jump at the bars until
they exhaust themselves. We begin
to teach them manners the very day
we get them, and they take a lesson in
etiquette every day after that until
the show starts out."
"What do you do to them?"
"My men catch the end of the chain
fastened to the collar around the new
beast's neck and fasten it to the bars
in such a manner that the beast can
only move a short distance. Then I
take a good rawhide whip and stout
club and enter the cage. I take a
chair and sit down in the corner."
"Feeling perfectly cool, I suppose?"
"Yes, so long as I know that chain
is solid and securely fastened. Well,
the instant I get in the beast will give
a roar anil spring for me. I would be
torn to shreds if I was within reach,
but the chain holds, and instead of
getting at me the lion, tiger, panther
or leopard simply comes to the end of
his rope, as it were, is brought up
with a shock that sends him iti a heap
to the floor of the cage, and I give him
a lash with the rawhide. The beast is
at me again in an instant, and again
he goes down and I lash him. I never
have used the club 011 an animal, but
I always keep it handy in case it is
needed. I keep drawing my chair a
little <?lo>r t-- V::/. ■ this goes on un
til I get so close that they can touch
me with their noses but cannot bite
me. Then I just sit there and talk to
tliem, and you would be surprised at
the power the human voice will finally
be made to exercise over wild beasts."
"While I sit talking to one, just out
of reach of his teeth, if he gets ugly
and attempts to spring at met give him
the rawhide. I keep this up aud after
a dozen or fifteen lessons they get so
that they only snarl and growl at my
entrance. As soon as I think it safe I
try the beast without a chain. It is a
little ticklish business at first, but I
have plenty of help ready for the first
effort. If it is a success the first time
you generally have your beast mas
tered, although once in a while a brute
that has been tractable onough will
break out and go for his keeper. We
had such a case here in the Garden
two years ago, when Joseph Foster an
experienced lion tamer, was clawed by
a lioness and nearly killed.
Mr. Conklin modestly refrained
from adding that Keeper Foster would
unquestionably have met a terrible
death 011 that occasion if it had not
been for the fearless and prompt man
ner in which he -attacked the lioness
with an iron prod.
"Generally in the course of a winter
we can get a beast so that he will not
attack his keeper when he enters the
cage," Mr. Conklin continued. "We
not only have to got them so that they
will not attack their keepers, though,
but so that they will not attack each
other, and that is a mighty hard job.
Sometimes we can never do that.
There is an old tiger there, ono of the
most savage brutes I ever handled,
and I could take you into his cage
with him now without the slightest
danger. If I dared to put him in the
same compartment with that big Ben
gal there, though, I would have a dead
tiger 011 my hands in two seconds.
Notice the long mark 011 the belly.
That is where the Bengal ripped him
two years ago, when I tried to put
them together, as they would show
better that way. If the Bengal's claws
had not been clipped he would have
ripped open the other one and killed
him."
"What truth is there in the story of
the power of the human eye over wild
beasts?"
"It is a pretty thing to say, and
that is about all," Mr. Conklin re
plied. "A man who wants to subdue
a wild beast has got to lit! fearless and
go about it in a courageous way, and
the eye plays its part. The man who
attempted to handle a wild boast w ho
was not chained with nothing else
than a fearless eye would be iu a
pretty bad hole, though. What a man
must have is a good heart, plenty of
pluck—lots of sand 111 his neck, as the
prize fighters say. The secret of suc
cessfully handling wild beasts is to
become imbued with a confidence that
all wild beasts are really cowardly,
especially if they belong to the cat
famil-. If you are not afraid aud
you know how to do it it is easy
enough."'
An interesting ftuil is a library OK
COO volumes, including seventy inantl
(«Ti|«tt< of the tenth nuil eleventh. a:,.\
Rime with wonderful miniatured of tin
fourteenth centuries, which were re
cently diseovere 1 in n Franciscan
cloister near Kieti. Italy.
Termß---#I.OO in Advance; 51.25 after Three Months.
SCIENTIFIC AMI INDUSTRIAL.
A lump of ni skel weighing 450 C
pounds in worth half as many dollars.
The python lays eggs and hatched
them by developing a high degree ol
heat.
It is said that people eat twenty pel
cent, more bread when the weather is
cold than when it is mild.
Paris now gets its water supply from
six great springs. It travels througl.
eighty-three miles of aqueducts.
The Mediterranean has been com
monly supposed to be a sea withoui
tides; but, as a matter of fact, at
Venice there is a tide in the spring oi
from one to two feet.
The cave animals of North America,
according to Professor A. S. Packard,
of Brown University, comprise 172
species of blind creatures, nearly all
of which are mostly white in color.
The campus at Yale College is now
lighted by electric light. This is said
to be the tirst time in the history ol
the college that lights of any kind
have been displayed 011 the campus.
The pain caused by the bite of a
mosquito is caused by a fluid poison
injected by the insect into the wound
in order to make the blood thin enough
to flow through the mosquito's throat.
In calculating "exact time" at the
National Observatory at Washington,
the astronomers do not, as is generally
supposed, use the sun as a basis of
their calculations. Such deductions
are made only from the relative posi
tion of the "fixed stars."
The largest sun spot ever noted by
astronomers appeared in the fall of
1807. It was 280,000 miles long and
190,000 miles wide. Four hundred
planets the size of the earth, could
have been laid side by side in that
"spot" without touching each other.
A disoase known as peach fever is
common among the employes in the
fruit packing and canning establish
ments of Maryland and Delaware. The
more experienced workers seem to be
come proof against the irritant after
some years in the business. There is
no evidence to show that the disorder
is contagious.
Neither the turtle, tortoise nor tead
is provided with teeth. There is a be
lief that a turtle can bite off a finger,
but the turtle can do nothing of the
kind. Its jaws are very strong and
the horny membrane that runs around
the jaw, where, in other animals teeth
are found, is so hard and tough that
the turtle can crush the bones of the
hand to a pulp, but as for biting off u
linger, the feaHs an impossibility.
A Costly Walk.
It has been left to a St. Louis busi
ness man to construct a gravel walk,
neither long nor strikingly beautiful,
that is a modern if comparatively hum
ble rival of the glistening highways of
fiction and fable, for it represents
815,000 hard cash.
Edward P. Kinsella, Vice-president
of the Hnnley-Kinsella Coffeo Com
pany, is the proud possessor of this
unique walk. It is composed of sev
eral tons of Brazilian pebbles that
came to him in an ordinary business
way during the past few years.
This firm are heavy importers of
Brazilian coffee. Before the berries
are ready to be roasted for the market
the sacks are opened and the contents
carefully examined for twigs, leaves
and other impurities, the latter gen
erally taking the shape of small peb
bles about the size of a coffee berry.
These came with such regularity and
in such quantities that long ago the
idea they were accidentally in the sacks
was abandoned, and the conclusion re
luctantly reached that they were pur
posely placed in the bags to make
weight. The daily discoveries of these
Brazilian pebbles will fill an ordinary
water bucket. The importers pay for
coffee. Two years ago Mr. Kinsella
concluded to utilize this apparent evi
dence of dishonesty of the far away
coffee packer, and had the accumula
tion of pebbles carted out to his hand
some residence, 011 the West Pine street
boulevard, No. 4323, where they were
used to make a handsome garden walk.
The pebbles represent a weight that in
coffee would be worth .$15,000. The
gravel path is each month being added
to, and it is but a question of time
when Mr. Kinsella will have the most
expensive piece of garden path in the
world.—St. Louis Globe-Democrat.
Fooled Him Twice.
The examinations at a certain
"prep." school were in progress. The
boys were working busily over their
papers and the grim old professor was
watching sharply from his desk. Pres
ently he noticed that one of the stu
dents, a prominent ne'er dowell, was
consulting his watch with considera
ble frequency. The professor studied
him. In five minutes lie had looked
at the timepiece three times. This
was enough for the guardian. He
called the student to his desk and de
manded the watch. It was giveu him
and he opened it. Across the face was
a piece of paper bearing the legend
"Fooled." But the worthy professor
was not to be so easily deceived. He
gave the student a sharp, knowing
glance, turned the timepiece over and
opened the back cover. It opened
with considerable difficulty, and, be
hold, there was another slip of paper
bearing the information, "fooled
again. "--Boston Budget.
Where I'oe Wrote "The Haven."
The house where I'oe wrote "The
Raven" is still to be seen in New York
Jity, a few hundred feet from the cor
ner of Eighty-fourth street and the
St. Nicholas Boulevard, formerly the
>ld Bloomingdale road. It is a plain,
dd-fashioued, double-framed dwell
ing, two stories high, with light win
lows at either side and one at either
;able. It has a pointed roof, flanked)
>y two tall brick chimneys.—Detroit'
free Press.
NO. 10.
THE BILL WE NEED THE MOST.
Folks at the legislature—they tome from up
an' down ;
From old-time human nature, clear down to
Bill an' Brown ;
An' the last one's got his row to hoe : but one
thing bothers still—
The absenos, 'mongst the bills they liuvu o
the old five-dollar bill.
Tbore's bills tor county bridges, an' bills A •-
new town sites ,
An' many bills for mountain stills, whero
moonlight shines o' nights ;
But of all the bills we're after, the one that
bothers still,
Is the bill that brings tho laughter—the old
live-dollar bill!
—Atlanta Constitution.
HUMOR OF THE DAY.
Observed of all observers —Tlic look
ing-glass. —Hallo.
Struggles with the dentist generally
end in a draw. —Hallo.
"Ho is your closest friend?" "Yes,
lie never lends a cent."—Harvard Lam
poon.
Fly paper is gradually being with
drawn from circulation. Pittsburg
Chronicle.
Yachts take spins to show whether
they are tip-top or not. —Boston
Transcript.
Nearly every boy determines to whip
a certain school teacher when he grows
up. —Atchison Globe.
Belle—"I can't bear to think of my
thirtieth birthday." Alice- —"Why,
dear—what happened ?"—Vogue.
When you can think of nothing but
the weather to talk about it is a good
• time to keep quiet.—Atchison Globe.
It is noticeable that the man who
thinks he is a whole show by himself
seldom draws a crowd.—Milwaukee
(Journal.
There is some consolation in being a
bachelor when you hear a woman talk
| fifteen minutes without taking a
full breath.—Hallo.
Money on call is not to had ; that
,is, not on one call. It taikes many,
; and then you don't always get it. —•
! Martha's Vineyard Herald.
Miss Singleton—"l never expect
to marry." Miss Sateful—«"But you
jknow it is tho impossible tfcat always
" —Boston Transcript.
I "I guess I'll quit," said the boy who
was scraping a perch at a market fish
stand. "I'm tired of doing business on
such a small scale."—Washington Star.
'Tis now the heartless iceman,
With never the least ado,
Leaves 011 the steps a pieeo of ico
That will chili the whole house through.
—Chicago Inter-Ocean.
A boarder has good reason for sus
,'pecting his landlady of hypocrisy when
jshe advises him to eat sparingly if he
(wishes to be healthy.—New York Jou
r
"Painter Schmierlein's representa
tions of tropical life are so realistic
that any critic who examines them too
long is sure to be afflicted with sun
stroke." —Schalk.
"My sou, it' you think it is hard
work to get tip in the world, just try
jto raise a mustache and you will find
it infinitely more difficult to get down."
—Elmira Gazette.
Teacher (to class in addition)
"Now, take two mince pies and four
mince pies, what does it make?"
Johnny Longhead "Nightmare,
ima'am."—New York Journal.
Young Man —"I want an engage
'ment ring." Jeweler—"Yes, sir.
About what size?" "I don't know ex
actly, but she can twist me round her
•linger, it' that's any guide.".—Tit-Bits.
"While the lamp holds out to burn,"
Which lino an old song does begin.
In those electric days should read :
"While yet the dynamo does spin."
Buffalo Courier;'
"What are you crying for, Fritz?"'
"Because my brothers have a holiday
and I haven't." "But why haven't you
a holiday, too?" "Because I'm not
>old enough togo to school yet. '—Flie
gende Blaetter.
Bright—"By dividing your detec
tives into two squads you'd accom
plish a great deal more." Burns—
j"What wonld Ido that for?" Bright
I"So one-half could hunt clews while
{the other went after criminals."—
I Vogue.
\ Tommy (who has been studying with
fiiut poor success) —"Pop, my teacher
j'says history repeats itself; does it?".
Tommy's Father "Yes, my boy,
sometimes." Tommy—"Well, I wish
mine would repeat itself, 'cause I
jean't. "—Philadelphia Kecord. ,
! The Professor's Daughter "Oh,
Ipapa, here is the sweetest little bird,
Ithat one of the boys caught in the
yard. I would so like to keep it -for a
'pet, if I onlj' knew what it eats." The
Absent-minded Professor—"We can
.find that out easily enough. I'll cut
fit open and examine its crop."—lhdi-
S.-.napolis Journal.
A Puzzling Fact About Woods.
The problem has puzzled many why
| two pieces of wood sawn from the Same
'section of tree should possess very va
ried characteristics when used in dif
ferent positions. For example, a gate
post will lie found to decay much faster
•if the butt end of the tree is uppermost
than would be the case if the top were
placed in this position. The reason is
that the moisture of the atmosphere
will premeate the pores of the wood
much more rapidly the way the trees
grow than it wonld if in tho opposite
direction. Microscopical examination
proves that the pores invite the ascent
'of moisture, while they repel itt- de
scent. Take the familiar ease of a
wooden bucket. Many may have no
ticed that some of the staves appear to
be entirely saturated, while others are
apparently quite dry. This arises from
the same cause ; tlie dry staves are in
,the same position in which the tree
'grew, while the saturated ones are re
versed.— ('hieiigo Herald,