I A WESTERN FAIRYLAND. §
The Trans-Mississippi Exposition at Omaha is an
Artistic Triumph. |jjs
In that great stretch of mountain
and prairie known to eastern people
only a few short years ago as the Wild
West a veritable fairyland has sprang
into existence, with scarcely a louder
herald than the swish of the saw or
the sound of the hammer. The Trans-
Mississippi Exposition at Omaha,
Neb., which was opened by telegraph
by President McKinley, in Washing
ton, on June Ist, has grown into pro
portions far beyond its original con
ception, until it stands to-day stamped
with an international character, count
ing its friends in every section of the
globe. Day by day it has developed
into a living reality, and the magnifi
cent buildings are typical of the art,
the science, the enterprise and the
progress of the West.
The project, as it first found ex
pression, contemplated a great fair to
manifest to the world the resources of
the territory west of the Mississippi
River. Gradually its scope broadened.
Congress recognized its National
character; foreign countries appre
UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT BUILDING AT THE TRANS-MISSISSIPPI EXPOSITION, OMAHA
ciated the value of the opportunities
offered; State after State fell in line,
demanding space for proper represen
tation until, when it was opened, it
had assumed the magnitude and im
portance of a World's Fair.
The site selected is just north of the
city of Omaha, on a plateau, and a
visit to it is like a trip to fairyland.
On every side is the element of orig
inality. It is a copy of nothing ever
before attempted in this field. From
the beautiful auditorium at the east
ern extremity down to the magnificent
building abutting the western end of
the lagoon and dedicated to the
United States Government every de
tail strikes the eye as being unique
and original. In one respect only
does it suggest Chicago. It is a white
city, every building being finished in
the material known as "staff." In
every other respect the "dream city"
r* ihe Trans-Mississippi and Interna
tional Exposition is like nothing ever
before planned and accomplished in
America. Every crown, cap, figure
and pilaster is cast from models en
tirely new, rich and tasteful, and all
are typical of the culture, the refine
ment, the progress and the resources
of the West.
Besides the usual buildings devoted
to the arts, trades, sciences and natural
resources of the West, nearly every
State west of the Mississippi River
has erected its own representative
structure.
In the Grand court at the Trans-Mis
sissippi Exposition, looking east from
the island which occupies the center
of the lagoon, one is impressed by the
artistic architectural effects before him.
When the great Government building,
with its massive dome aud flanking
colonnades, was built at the west end
overlooking the court, it was thought
difficult, in view of the fact that a i
■viaduct at the east must connect the
bluff aud main tracts, to finish that
end in a like artistic and imposing
manner. But the architects happily
solved the difficulty in making the
viaduct not only a thing of beauty and
usefulness, but one of the most artis
tic conceits on the grounds. The vis
itor may go by boat the entire length
of the basin from the Government
building to the Sherman avenue via
duct, passing many of the main build
ings. Arriving at the east end he will
see a beautiful green sward rising in
terraces, adorned with sculpture aud
shrubbery, before him. Beyond this
and facing him is a great hemicycle
Itairway, thirty feet in width, adorned
en either side with a tower, which is
3r °wned by a kiosk or minaret.
Sweeping out on either side and con
necting these towers with others ,of ■
like design are graceful arches, llaek
of all this and rising i n five gently
graduated towers, and crowned with
statues of heroic design, are the two
great viaduct restaurauts. The tow
ers and stairs are tinted to an old ivory
shade, decorated with dull Tompeiian
solors.
Beyond and across the viaduct, the
bluff tract has been transformed' into
a park, where the various state build
ings are located and which also is the
site of the great Horticultural build
ing and some of the larger structures
of the amusement section.
At the eastern end of the laaroon the
auditorium, with a seating capacity of
twenty-five hundred, rears its front,
and abutting the western end of this
grand canal the United States Govern
ment Building stands, a majestic
structure, overlooking the broad
basin, surmounted by a handsome
dome with a statue of Liberty bearing
aloft the flaming torch of progress
and enlightenment. The lagoon,
which is widened here by excavating
a trefoil, is nearly 400 feet in width
and forms a water-ampliitbeatre,
which, with the colonnades surround
ing it, easily forms one of the
prettiest effects to be found in the ex
position.
Lining the lagoon on either side
and reflected into its waters stand the
buildings devoted to arts and me
chanics. That of Mines and Mining
and the Machinery and Electricity
Building are splendid structures. The
lagoon itself has many novel
features made possible by the rapid
improvement in the methods of elec
tric lighting. At the east end are
located electric water grottoes, the
Blue Grotto of Capri and the Mam
moth Cave.
The educational features of the ex
position have not been overlooked.
They are in the hands of representa
tive Western women, to whom has
been assigned the management of
philosophic and scientific congresses,
the Boys and Girls' Building, as well
as all branches of woman's work.
They will have charge of the exhibits
of the work of public schools, kinder
gartens, art, reform, industrial and all
schools of special instruction.
Not the least important feature of
the great exposition is the ethnologi
cal exhibit. It is possible that never
again will an effort of this character
be enabled to secure an Indian ex
hibit ot the proportions contemplated
by this. The Indian race is rapidly
disappearing, and the opportunity to
study clear-cut types of every known
tribe will be hailed with delight by
every lover of ethnology.
_ ' (View of the D.l iHs h'islap d
And the Midway. The management
lias provided a programme of unique
and wholesome attractions, and is
adding to it daily. Novel and mer
itorious show features are encouraged,
and the visitor will not lack amuse
ment. Foreign villages are in abun
dance. An exact reproduction of
Cripple Creek in miniature is exhib
ited. This concession alone occupies
15,000 square feet and requires 300 I
people to produce it. The AfrojJ
American village typifies
phfeu; of their life. A novel
of engiitfwj-ing B kjn j 8 Sherman'jEF"
brella, byw'jich passengers
vated to a heijjW re
volved within a eirflfc of Tweet.
The Moovish village will b. so
will the Irish, Tyrolean and C^h' uese
villages, and many others.
will be left undone to contribute
the satisfaction and pleasure of tit l ®
visitors. V
The Pope does his private writing
with a gold pen, but the pontifical sig-|
nature is always written with a penl
made from the feather of a white dove. 1
—Pittsburc DisDatoh. '
.SLAND OF ST« THOMAS*
A Splendid Base For Fleet Operations lo
the Caribbean.
"There is not any doubt," said a
foreign officer of high rank at present
in thiscouutry, "that it has been a set
tled poiut for some time between
the Danish Government and the
American Administration that St.
Thomas will pass under the dominion
of the Flag of the United States. It
will be acquired by purchase just as
soon as the war with Spain is over.
"If the arrangements had been com
pleted before the opening of hostili
ties, the possession of St. Thomas
would have been of incalculable value
to America just now. It would be a
splendid base of operations for the
fleets in the West Indies and would
contribute much to assert American
dominion in the Caribbean. Conced
ing even that Porto Rico will be
held by the United States, St.
Thomas easily could be made a little
Gibraltar."
Denmark's possessions in the "West
Indies consist of the islands of St.
Thomas and Santa Cruz, also called
St. Croix and St. John. The most
important of these is St. Thomas,
which is about the same size as Man.
hattan Island, being twelve miles
long and three in its greatest width.
St. Thomas is of great importance,
both commercially and strategically,
having one of the best harbors in the
West Indies and possessing coaling,
dry and floating dock and ship repair
ing facilities that surpass anything in
that section, even including Havana.
In times not so long ago St. Thomas
was the emporium of the Caribbean
Sea, but the enormous expansion of
the stream navigation enabled the
other islands to enjoy direct and rapid
communication with the northern
countries aud caused the loss of the
bulk of this trade to St Thomas.
The island would be an especially
valuable possession to the United
States, as it has immense coaling
depots and a floating dock capable of
accommodating the largest ships that
frequent those waters.
Santa Cruz is wholly given up to
agriculture, being especially famed for
its sugar and rum. St. John is of lit
tle or no consequence, being very
scantily populated.
The inhabitants of the Danish
Islands are still in favor of annexation
to the United States, since they know
that their fortunes aro more closely
allied with ours than with those of any
European JHn-ion. Even among the
Danish ofJ^Pil 8 there is the same strong
feeling would result to the ben
efit of for the rank and
file relieved from service so far
country, and the higher
oftii^^B®' n d officials would be retired
on pensions. The Government
expensive and somewhat
The annual deficit to
is from §50,000 to 8100,000,
Pppd there are no means of alleviating
Rhe financial distress. Like the in
habitants of all the islands of these
seas, the people see that their only
salvation lies in closer political con
nection with the United States, since
that would imply increased commercial
advantages and resultant prosperity.
As the people all speak English,even
the Danish officials, there would be uo
violence to national or racial preju
dices, and the transfer could be effected
with very little friction.
I In an oratorical contest at the Idaho
University for the Watkins medal
Jennie Hughes, the only colored stu
flent in the institution, was the winner.
MRS. NELSON A. MILES.
She Hsu Taken Interest in Flighting Since
Site llecame a Soldier's Wife.
Mrs. Nelsou A. Miles, wife of the
commander of the United States aroiy,
is one of the most attractive and hos
pitable women in Washington, and
MEM. NELSON A. MILES.
deeply interested in every move that
is made by the American arm}. She
has always taken an interest in fight
ing since she has been a soldier's wife,
tears ago when the general was only
Uolonel Miles, in command of the
Presidio in San Francisco, he and Mrs.
Miles were called "the handsomest
couple in the army." Mrs. Miles has
uot lost much of the charm that made
her the goddess of every young fellow
from West Foint, in her young days in
California. She was Mary Sherman
befbre her marriage. Her father was
Judge Sherman, a brother of the
senator and the general. Her hair is
dark and abundant, her eyes are a
grayish blue and her manners are
winning. She is as kind and attentive
to the wife of a second lieutenant as
to the wife of a brigadier-general, and
that is why she has ever been popu
lar, no matter where stationed. Mrs.
Miles accompanied the general ou his
trip to Europe last year. She accom
patiied him, too, on some of his expe
ditions against the Indians, and wa?
often within sound of the shooting.
Our Clilrf Naval Strategist.
J Since Captain Alfred T. Maban ha?
returned from Europe and lias been
assigned to a place on the Naval Strat
egv Board at Washington be lias bad
a splendid opportunity to put to an
actual test many of the theories advo
cated by him in his books and niaga
y.iue articles relating to sea power. Hp
J ' i
I
CAPTAIN ALFRED T. MAHAN.
is the foremost expert in his specialty
in all the world and his views are con
sidered the last word on naval mat
ters both in England and here at home.
flours Which tiring Had Luck.
Common as is the superstition that
Friday is the most unlucky of days,
and thirteen of numbers, the belief in
unlucky hours is equally widespread
an the European Continent and in the
East.
Gambetta was so firmly convinced
that certain hours of the day are lucky
and others unlucky that be would
Qever commence anyimportaut under
taking or start on an important journey
without consulting a famous reader
Df cards as to the auspicious hour,
»nd President Faure, who was pru-
Aeut enough to select a lucky hour for
starting on bis recent journey to Rus
sia, is said to share Gambetta's super
stition. President Carnot was less
3redulous, and selected an unlucky
liour for starting on the journey to
Lyons, where he was nssassiuated by
Caserio. The superstition is so com
mon in Paris that cards tastefully em
bellished and containing a list of
"hours to be avoided" are extensively
sold.—Philadelphia Record.
More Deadly Than Bullets.
The sudden changes of climate en
countered by soldiers when troops are
moved from one quarter of the globe
to another are estimated as increasing
the annual mortality of Europe by
50,000 men.
Youthful Patriotism.
"Say, Mister .Policeman, can you
tell me where the war is? My papa
says they need all the ships they can
get and I want to give them mino."
Judge.
•pfE.
TARM
Peafowls.
Eggs of peafowls hatch in from 24
to 29 days. The chicks may be hatched
and reared by common hens.
Deepens a Flower's Color.
The color of hydrangeas is deepened
oy putting iron nails, green vitriol or
alum iuto the soil. The cojor of
daffodils is deepened by increasing the
richness of the soil they grow in.
Fnt in Cheese Milking.
The quality of cheese is uot deter
mined by the percentage of fat in the
milk, but this of course is one factor.
Experiments indicate that an excess
of fat is no advantage in cheese mak
ing.
The Dairy Cow's Vacation.
The dairy cow should rest one
seventh of lier time, seven and a half
weeks. To guard against milk fever
watch the udder during the time the
cow is dry; if limp feed ge lerously, but
if it swells and gives indications of be
ing feverish, reduce the feed.
Money From Herb*.
A great deal of money can be made
from common garden herbs. Sage,
thvme. marjoram and even catnip all
have their devotees. Most city cats
very rarely see catnip except as a
package. If it is purchased done up
in a closed and sewed bag, and given
them to plav with the antics they will
perform with this plaything are ex
tremely amusing. In the country cats
And enough catnip growing around
houses. If fanners' boys would gather
siime of the leaves and sew them up in
balls they could make some money
out of the business. There is nearly
always a good demand for herbs used
in making the dressing for fowls and
other baked meats.
Movable Henhouse.
The great evils of vermin and dis
ease among poultry are best combated
I by keeping small Hocks of hens and
' housing them in a number of lien
j houses made small enough to be easily
] moved from one place to another.
! Such houses need not be expensive,
ami if a stouo boat is fitted with a
broal platform the henhouse may be
placed on it and drawn anywhere oa
the farm. Wherever insect enemies
i are depredating it is well to place sev
eral of these henhouses near by, aud
let them help clear away the vermin,
and also be getting the larger part of
their living. It may require that a
yard be built up so as to keep the
fowls from straying too far. But hens
with cuickens are the be-it scavengers,
and they will remain near their tem
porary home and return to it at night.
Cow Pea Culture in the North.
Owing to the fact that clover is fre
quently damaged by freezing in win
ter and by drouth in summer, there is
some inquiry for another leguminous
crop which is not open to these ob
jections. With our present knowl
edge, 110 substitute for Indiana can be
ottered that is equal to the common
red or large English clovers, both of
which are thoroughly acclimated and
flourish throughout the state.
Notwithstanding this fact the cow
pea has souio points of advantage,
among which are, (1) greater capacity
to endure drouth, (2) ability to grow
on soils too thin to nourish clover, (3)
ability to produce a large amount of
forage or green manure in a few
months of warm weather, and thus
avoid the fio.sts of winter and early
spring.
Cow peas ava highly esteemed for
forage in many parts of the south.
They are pasture,l, #ut green and fed
as a soiling crop and also cured as
hay. Where they seed well they fur
nish an excellent pasture for pigs, in
which case the land is left in fine con
dition for subsequent crops. In this
state only the earliest sorts would pro
duce much seed. In the richer soils
the tendency would be to run to vines.
Cow peas produce a very wattery
growth and are therefore not easy to
cure for hay.
How to Msthe Hens Pay.
Lyaauder S. Richards of Plymouth
county, Mass., writes: Before * I had
attained any degree of success in ttie
poultry business, I started with a
fiock of 50 and at the close of the year
I made them pay §1 a head or SSO on
the flock. Well, I figured the same
as many others do, that if 50 will pay
SSO, 200 will pay me a profit of S2OO,
but somehow hens don't figure that
way. They figure that just in propor
tion to the increase of the Hock, the
profits will decrease in the same ratio,
especially with beginners, 1 started
with 175 the noxt year, aud before the
winter was out I began to discover the
truth of the above maxim, which if
more generally known would save
many heart-breaking sobs of the over
zealous beginner.
The following year I told my folks
that I would sell all but 25 heus and
make a study of them and if I could
not make them pay I would go
out of the business. At the clo'se of
the year I made them pay $2 a head
and I was satisfied. The following
year. I increased the flock very grad
ually, kept 50. At the close of the
year I made them pay $2 a head and
was satisfied. The next year I in
creased my flock to t>s and woke up
the morning of the new year and found
I had made #3 a head on common,
mixed hens with eggs at the ordinary
market prices at the stores. When i
got up to a flock of 203 hens I had to
be satisfied with $2 a head profit with
eggs at common market prices. Dur
last winter, there were rolled out of
my flock of 130 hens 70 to 80 eggs
d aily.
Propagation of the Chrysanthemum.
The usual method of propagating
chrysanthemums is by means of cut
tings. If large plants are desired
they are started in January or Feb
ruary, but when large blooms are
wanted for exhibition purposes
the cuttings are often started as
late as May or June, and the plants
are grown to single stems and allowed
to develop but one flower. In order
to grow healthy plants that will give
large and fine floivers, strong and vig
orous cuttings will be necessary, an i
they will be best if taken from plants
that have not been forced. It is a
good plan to select strong plants in
the spring and plant them out of doors
as early as it is safe. From these
stock plants cuttings can be taken that
will give <;ood plants for single flowers.
In the fall, take up the old plants,
place in boxes, and keep until mid
winter in a cold frame where they will
not freeze. Then take into the house
and a large crop of excellent cuttings
can be obtained. The earlier ones
will be just the thing for pot plants
and for planting out as stock plants.
In April another crop of cuttings
should be taken. These will answer
for six-incli pot plants, and for either
single stems or"spravs,"to be planted
n the houses for cut flowers. Another
crop of cuttings can be taken in June,
but it will be better to take them from
plants set in the open ground, as rec
ommended above- While most of the
cuttings for late blooms should be
struck about the Ist of June, the Ist
or even the 15th of July will not be
too late to secure good results if they
are properly handled.—New England
Homestead.
I'r.itpctioii ofVoong Krult Trees.
Many states have passed laws pro
viding for official inspection of nur
series and nursery stock, and the re
suits of work along this line in 1807
by the New York agricultural experi
ment station indicate that such in
spection is more than desirable in
New York. Only a few nurseries were
examine.!, and none of them were
seriously infested; yet ten species of
injurious insects were found whose
chief :;:eth>>d of gaining wide distribu
tion is by shipment of nursery stock
carrying either the insects or their
eggs. Bulletin No. 136 of the station
describes the methods of inspection
used by the station entomologist, out
lines tlie benefits to both nurseryman
and orchardist of sytematic inspection
of nurseries, summarizes brieriy the
work of the station in 1897 and give*
descriptions of the insects found, il
lustrations of them and their work,
and methods for their destruction in
both nursery and orchard.
The insects found may be classed in
four general groups: Scale insects, in
cluding oj-stershell barklouse, scurfy
barklouse, New York plum Lecaniuni,
oak scale and Han Jose scale; plant
lice, including woolly louse of the ap
ple; case bearers, pistol-case bearer
and cigar-case bearer and bud moth;
borers, including peachtree borer.
The remedies to be used against the
first two classes of insects consist of
caustic washes, such as whale-oil soap
solution, kerosene emulsion or kero
sene-water mixture in the orchard,ap
pli id in strong solutions in fall or
winter after loosening the scales by
brushing or gentle scraping,or weaker
solutions in the spring when the young
lice and scale are somewhat unpro
tected. Iu the nursery similar meth
ods are to be used on growing stock,
but it is thought that fumigation iu
the packing houses or storage cellars
with hydrocyanic acid gas wilF be a
practical means of getting rid of these
and all hibernating insects.
The case-bearers and bud moth must
be met in the orchards by spraying in
very early spring, just as the b ids
are breaking and leaves unfolding,
with Paris green, London purple or
green arsenite. The borers should be
kept out of the trees by mounding
with earth, surrounding the base of
the trunks with shields or smearing
with some offensive mixture to pre
vent the mother moth from depositing
her eggs in the favorite location.
Once established, the only way to get
rid of the borers themselves is to cut
them out with a knife or pierce them
in their tunnels with a sharp wire.
Learning Does Not Make Xavnl Officers.
A man may be an academician and
yet not a good naval officer. Lieuten
ant Julien Viaud, better known a?
Pierre Loti, having advanced high
euougli on the list to be a candidate
for the rank of commander (capitaiue
de fregate) has been retired from the
French navy together with fourteen
other lieutenants, on the ground that
they stand no chance of promotion.
Not long ago u torpedo boat under
Lieutenant Viaud's command was in
collision with another vessel and
much damaged.—New York Suit.