THE NEW BATTLESHIP PENNSYLVANIA. ONE OF FIVE TO BE BUILT FROM IDENTICAL PLANS AND FOB WHICH BIDS HAVE BEEN ASKED, gcoooooooooooooooooooooooo | The Future Home § g in Belgium of q | Ex-President Kruger 112 P o 3CQOOOGGO3CCOOOOCOCOOCOOOO As soon ns ex-President Kruger readies Belgium he will Dud his future home all ready for him. Thanks to the generosity of Oswald d'Aumerie, a lioer sympathizer in Belgium, the Chateau d'Anderleclit has been put at the disposal of the refugee ex-Presi deut by its owner. M. d'Aumerie has owned this chateau only two years, and when he bought it it was exceed ingly run down, but he spent money on it liberally, and made it look as if it really were an ancestral seat. M. d'Aumerie has had great sym pathy witli tlif Boers all along, not be cause of any special hostility to Eng land, but because he believed in ob serving inviolate the sanctity of small nations. So, when it became known that Kruger was on his way to Bel- ■ v - —— nflinr- "* . —' |fc;a "2Cf ~M M SSSP" SSSP" « • "ISwf ** S^~" CHATEAU D'ANDEBLECIIT, WHERE KRUGER WILL LIVE. giuin, the Belgian got together several of his friends ami fellow countrymen who believed in the Boer cause, and proposed to them that he give lip his chateau to the use of the refugee. They were willing, of course, a at", so the scheme was brought about. Anderleeht Is a pretty suburb south east of Brussels and consists of hand some mansions dotted about in grounds of limited extent on the slopes of tin- undulating eouutry. The chateau is reached by a drawbridge crossing a narrow moat, and the road leads directly to the colanuiides which form tiie front of the mansion. The m-ilu gate is Hanked by two colossal busts, which formerly belonged to the Casde of Uravesande. On the right of the vestibule is .Mr. Kruger's antechamber, which is furnished in (iothlc style. Here the ex-l'resldeut will tlnd a large Bible, of which hook he Is said to be MI fond. is more than seven Inches thick, and was printed in 1772. The grounds have an area o. ten acres, laid out by M. d'Aumerle. who also drew the sketch of the chi'.tenu and Its sur roundings accompanying this article. There are two odd coincidences eon rrjfcr r : | 1 VIIAT TUB llnKtt HIKI.K Hl* t.citili I.IKIt, tie.',.*d with this gift, t'lithollr tuotik« bull !h< chateau three centuries ago, and MOW It Will shelter the ex I'resi •lent of a I'rotesiaut republic, who Is >t descendant of the IlllgUeUots. Itenldf* this, the chateau ouee was occupied by King l.i o|>i>hl 1 , who slept lu the name Ix-diooui which U assigned lo Air. Kruger. A rifle pit hhrdly realizes one's ideal of what a subterranean dwelling ought ■j"7~iii"r~ 1 QUIET CHAT IN A RIFLE PIT. to be, even when hollowed out and en larged into quite a respectable bomb proof, like that shown In the accorn- panying Illustration. But the pit served I its purpose admirably from the Boer point of view, and many a gallant Britisher came to an untimely end through the Boers' persistent use of tills Ingenious hiding place on the veldts and kopjes of South Africa. Snugly ensconced in their bottle shaped retreats, with spirituous re freshments contained in vessels also bottle-shaped, at baud, their guus tightly grasped and a companion ever alert for the enemy's approach, the Boers were continually on the watch for a chance to "snipe" the foe, while the shells whistled and screeched over head and the battle waged fiercely around them. It Is claimed tlint the art of digging rille pits, or "sniping" or sliarpshoot lug and the use of sand bags In de fensive earthworks were all derived from observation of American meth ods. Kvrryttilni; Mutlr uffrlith IVitt, A large Ouhlin manufacturer has :i room entirely furnished with Irish peat. The carpets on the floors, the curtains at the windows and the paper on the wall are made from this sub | stance. For years he has experimented ' with the material, which is now very largely exported as fuel, and he ha» discovered that from it it I* (tosslble i to produce almost any kind of fabric The process Is simple- the (litres which are strong mid tough, being ex ! traded and woven like cotton or silk I The fabrics have the toughness ot linen aud the warmth of wool. Blank ets made of tbein are found to excel In warmth aud lightness anything yet discovered. Nrwa|*»|i*r« of Keiflllirit!*. Most of the llriliadl regiments have their own newspapers, published once a month. Tim news consists ehietly of matters pertaining to the ortlcer* and men of the regime ut and their fatal li« s, but tile papers also devote regll lar columns to sporting news, huuior, poetry <>r other departments. All con ' trlbutioiis are from members of the leglmcut. These patters are much lu favor among the otbeers and soldier*, aud many of theut are tery well edi' ' ed, I . _ i A number of Moitilsli grouse tutu Iwe II Imported by the t.'anadlau tin I I ernilieUl frolll lilt) highland* of Meol land for the pur|HMM> of atocklug the I pro* tuclsl parks. DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA CENTENNIAL Description of the Memeinto Fabricated by the United States Mint in Philadelphia. The medal to be struck in commem oration of the hundredth anniversary of the day upon which the District of Columbia became the seat of the Uni ted States Government was received in Washington December 1. It was made at the United States Mint In Philadelphia, and In point of work manship, ns well as excellence of de sign, is one of the most expensive of the sort ever issued. 'rffl m\ <£-a oyrT? a&5 rc JJ c MEDAL COMMEMORATIVE OF TNE HUN DREDTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE DIS TRICT OF COLUMBIA. The bronze used is of rich dark color. The medal is one and three fourths Inches in diameter. The ob verse tide carries the heads of John Adams anil William McKinley In pro file, with the following inscriptions encircling the heads: "John Adams, 1S00;" "William McKinley, 1900." On the reverse side, across the centre is a panel with the Inscription "Com nieorative of the establishment of the National Government at Washington." Above this panel is a view of the Capi tol building as it is to-day. over which is inscribed "United States Capitol, 1900." Below the tablet Is a view of the Capitol building as it appealed 100 years ago, over which Is inscribed "I'nitcd States Capitol. 1800." The metal used In the manufacture Is from the old portion of the Capitol building, and some that was used at the White House. Chinese fortius in a Field. A common sight in China is the ex posed cotliu or casket containing, of course, the corpse of some departed t'elestlitj. without any covering of earth or Inclosing tomb. The first and highest ambition of every ChliiniitßU 1* to have a splendid coffin, and he will hull' starve himself it ml family for year* In order to ac qillre the coveted casket. The buying of It does not dc|H.|itl at all upon the slate of his health, but of his finances, and iu Hits couuectloii niuny will re call the statement Hint It llting ('hang, when he made his tmtr of the I'liltcd Mtaies, look Ills eotllii with hint. 'Vllcll the coltlu Is purchased. It Is f.Veti the place of honor 111 the house i suit Is looked up..ii us the most vnltrt I hie piece of furulture ill It. A* no I Chinese iamity of any pretensions would seem lacking in respect for Its I head, iteinl or alive, the Chinese sou | will deprive himself of comforts for I half hi* life lliul lie may lie able to present Ills (ather Willi a fine ctilHu on hi* sluty first birthday, and when lu* revered par. ut die* he will give a gor genu* "selld off" at tile ftlllclal, evcll If he haa to wall mini) iitoou* to do ui. With the d.-af mute act lull* always speak louder thau word*. | A T B * as RancH j | as Jarge as i | Two States. | The largest ranch In the world Is to be found »n Texas. This Immense do* main is known as the X. I. T. ranch, and is owned by Chicago capitalists. This ranch Is so extensive that some States could not contain it. Connecti cut, for example, could not hold it by several thousand acres. The two States of Rhode Island and Delaware combined could not contain this great rancn, which consists of over 3,000,000 acres, or almost 5000 square miles. About twelve years ago, when Texa* needed a new State capitol, the Legis> lature adopted a novel plan to get it. A promise was held forth that a vast tract of unappropriated land would be given :n exchunge for a suitable gran ite building at Austin. Among those tempted by this offer were ex-Senator Charles B. Farwell and his brother John, who ultimately formed a syndi cate in Chicago, and took upon them selves the responsibility of erecting the proposed capitol. Indue time they came into the possession of this domain known as the X. I. T. ranch. The ranch is situated in the extreme northwest corner of the panhandle of Texas, and covers or touches nine dif ferent counties. Its northern bound ary is "No Man's Land," now a part of the Territory of Oklahoma, and its western limit is the line between Texas and New Mexico. In width (from east to west) it averages about twenty-five tniles. In length it is about 200 miles. The land lies in what is known as the Staked Plains, a high plateau. The soil is mostly of a black or chocolate color—very fertile—anil covered with a thick coat of buffalo, mosquito, grama and other grasses, which cure 011 the ground and furnish winter as well as summer pasture for stock of all kinds. At the southern end of the tract the altitude is about 2300 feet and at the northern end about 4701). The climate is pronounced to be very delightful, the air being brac ing, though dry. When the Farwells obtained the land they Inclosed It with a substantial barbed-wl e fence. There are many cross-fences upon it, separating the territory into from twenty to thirty large divisions, besides many small ones. To make these fences it required 1500 miles of barbed wire. The syndi cate also built ranch houses, bored and dug wells, of which there are now about 350, averaging 120 feet In depth, anil having earthen or wooden reser voirs and drinking attachments; erecu jjggES/nrrn - I&two ' ! sMirr iA/n eees s||- HOCM.EY \M t— ————— R.AII S 1 EST RANCH IN THE WOULD. td windmills over the wells; built dams aen ss arroyos to conserve the rainfall, and In various other ways made the place suitable for a success ful ranch on it large scale. They placed cattle upon it IIM fast r.s it could be putin safe condition to receive them, and have since continued to add to Ibe herd from time to time by pur chase and breeding until they linve at present about 120.»KH» cattle, besides IHi m horses. The calf crop branded In IMKi exceeded SO.Otsi bend. The whole property Is valued at SUUHMI,O»H>. Cat Hod* t'jO Million it k A Maltese cat Jumped into 11 Inrg. flywheel of the Plymouth Itefrlgeraun Company's engine, at Slievbnygnn Wl*., tin* otlier ilny. As the etlglueei could not very well stop and shut on lights to release the animal, he waited until the usual time of shutting down Utl stopping the engine lie found tin eat alive and clinging to tile flywheel The wheel Is twelve feet 111 dlilluetei ami in.ikes eighty seven revolution* • in inn 11- Consequently. timing two niitl hall hours the eat covered 11 illstHtic. •112 nbout 12" miles. Tim cut lives, and Willi I lie cxceptloli of 111 luetics* tip p' lis til bo Untie the Worse for tile 10 ICI ient e XeW York Times. Mulut* t or Wat 1. .'1 Hardens* Ti e Idea of utilizing a i.iot. .112 bind age til connectiou with the tnaritel gar in it near 11 metropolis tin» ls«t tit, gested of late, Motor vehicle* Wol'lil obviate ■otue of the lUU.tlllles thai market gardener* have now to eticoiin tor In getting their produce to market iilnl It Mould certainly pay senile »u tirprlslug carrier to make the venture A full ilggeil ship ha* thirty tlir ■ •«• •nil*, fourteeu of which are Jib* aud foresail*. OR TALMAQE'S SERMON tUNDAY'S DISCOURSE BY THE NOTED DIVINE. Jnbject: A Way Over Jordan Tlir Lord Will Send u Boat From the Otlier Shore It Will Come to Transport the I'ultliful to Kterual Life. (Copyright l»uu. I WASHINGTON, D.C.— From an unnoticed incident of olden time Dr. Talmage in this discourse draws some comforting and rap turous .essons. The text is II Samuel xix, 18, "And there went over a ferryboat to carry over the king's household." Which of the crowd is the king? That thort man, sunburnt and in fatigue dress. It is David, the exiled king. He has de feated his enemies and is now going home to resume his palace. Good! I always like to Eee David come out ahead. Hut be tween him and his home there is the cele brated River Jordan, which has to be lHssed. The king is accompanied to the bank of the river by an aristocratic old gentleman of eighty years, ISarziliai by name, who owned a line country seat at Rogelim. Besides that, David has his fam ily with him. But how shall they get across the river? While they are stand ing there I see a ferryboat coming from the other side, and as it cuts through the water I see the faces of David anil his household brighten up at the thought of so soon getting home. No sooner had the ferryboat struck the shore than David and his family and his old friend Barzillai, from Rogelim, get on board the boat. Kither with splashing oars at the side or with one oar sculling at the stern cf the boat they leave the eastern bank of the Jordan and start for the western bank. That western bank is black with crowds of people, who are waving and shouting at the approach of the king and his family. The military are all out. Some of those who have been David's worst enemies now shout until they are hoarce at his return. No sooner had the boat struck the shore on the western side than the earth quakes and the heavens ring with cheers of wel come and congratulation. David and his family and Barzillai from Rogelim step "shore. King David asks li'i old friend „o go with him and live at the palace, but Barzillai apologizes and intimates that he •B infirm with age and too deaf to appre ciate the music, and has a delicate uppc- I'te that would soon be cloyed with lu.vu r ous living, and so lie begs that David would let him go back to his country seat. 1 once heard the father of a President of the United States say that he had just b onto Washington to see his son in the White House, and he told me of the won derful things that occurred there, and of what Daniel Webster said to him, but he declared: "I was glad to get home. There was too much going on there for me." My father, an aged man, made his last visit at my house in Philadelphia, and after the church service was over and we went home some one in the house asked the uged man how he enjoyed the service. "Well, I enjoyed the service, but there were too many people there for me. It troubled my head very much." The fact is that old people do not like excitement. If King David had asked Barzillai thirty years before togo to the palace, the prob ability is that Barzillai would have gone, but not now. They kiss each other good bye, a custom among men Oriental, but in vogue yet where two brothers part or an aged father and a son go away from each other never to meet again. Xo won der that their lips met as King David and old Barzillai, at the prow of the ferryboat, parted forever. This River Jordan, in all ages and uniong all languages, has been the sym bol of the boundary line between earth and heaven, yet when, on a former occa sion, 1 preached to you about the Jordanic passage I have no doubt that some of you despondingly said: "The Lord might have divided Jordan for Joshua, but not for poor me." Cheer up! 1 want to show you that there is a way over Jordan as well as through it. My text says,"And there went over a ferryboat to carry over the king's household." All our cities are familiar with the ferry boat. It goes from !>an Francisco to Oak land, and from Liverpool to Birkenhead, and twice every secular day of the week multitudes are on the ferryboats of our great cities, so that you will not need to hunt up a classical dictionary to find out what 1 mean while 1 am speaking to you about the passage of David and his family across the River Jordan. My subject, in the first place, impresses me with the fact that when we cross over from this world to the next the boat will have to come from the other side. The triue of Judah, we are informed, sent this ferryboat across to get David and his household. 1 stand on the eastern side of the River Jordan, and I find no shipping at all, but while 1 am standing there 1 nee a boat plowing through the river, and as 1 hear the swirl of the waters, ami the boat comes '.o the eastern side of the Jordan, and David and his family and his old friend step on board that boat, i am mightily impressed with the f;i<'t that when we cross over from this world to tli next the boat will have to come from tlfc opposite shore. Kvery day 1 find people trying to ex temporize a way from earth to heaven. They gather up their good works and some sentimental theories, and they make a raft, and they go down. The fact is that skepticism atnl infidelity never yet helped one mini to die. 1 invite all the snip carpenters of worldly philosophy to come and build one boat that can safely cross this river. I invite then) all to unite their skill, and lloliiigbroke shall lift the stan chions, and Tymlall shall shape the bow sprit, and Spinoza shall make the main topgallant braces, and Kenan shall goto tacking and weiring and boxing the ship. All together in IU.IMH) years they will never lie able to make a boat that can cross this Jordan. Why WHS it that Spinoza and ll!.uiiit and Shaftesbury lost their souls'. It was because they tried to cross the stream in a boat oi their own construc tion. What miserable work tin v made of dying! Diodorus died of mortification be cause he eouid not gut .s a < 'lllllll.lllllll which had b un proposed to hint at a public dinner; /euxis, the philosopher, dietl of nut *h, laughing at a curi'.iture of an aged woman, a caricature made by his own hand: while another of their company and of their kind died saying: "Must 1 leave all these beautiful pic tures?" and then asked that lie might be bolstered up in the bed 111 his last mo ments ait.l be shaved and painted and rouged. Oi all the uuSieltev• 1s of all age* not one died well. Some of them sneaked •ut of life, some blasphemed and raved Itud tore their bed e.ivi is to tatters This is the worldly philosophy helps a man to the. \ guide at Niagara Kails said to me, "Do you see that ruck down 111 the lap ids?" I .aid, "Ye." "WfU." lie m9 "some veai» ago a lit in got into the rap lis IM lb. lied do.vu until he MOM 1., that i' 1 k, and lie clutched that iin.l Mid ..a We sent five lifeboat* .a different tiiuee out to 111111. and the) were all brut, in I 1 splinters After awhile we got hint swift.' lood. bat he could not lit it. He seemed to have it., appetite lie Hint .1 to get u.ltorr, slid the poor fellow held on and h> lt| on, and, with a sillies 1.iu.1. 1 thill the thunder uf the eat.naet In st ul over " M lieu a mall put* out from the altote uf this world on the river ul death 111 a b at of his own coust taction, lie has »utw disastel (hail that ship »i.. It, eternal shipwreck. Ui««M<i b* Ci JJ, titer* w • boat caaiuig ] from the other side! Transportation at last for our souls from the other shore} everything about this gospel from the oth< er shore; pardon from the other shore; mercy from the other shore; pity from the other shore; ministry of angels from the other shore; power to work miracles from the other shore; Jesus Christ from the other shore. "This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation that Chrisl Jesus came into the world to save sin ners," and from a foreign shore I see the ferryboat coming, and it rolls with the surges of a Saviour'* suffering, but as it strikes the earth the mountains rock and the dead adjust their apparel ai that they may be fit to come out. That boat touches the earth, and glorious Thomas Walsh gets into it in his expiring moment, say ing: "He has come! He has come! My beloved is mine, and I am His." Good Sarah Wesley got into that boat, and as she shoved off from the shore she cried: "Open the gates'" I bless (Jod that as the baat came from the other shore to talce David and his men across so when we are about to die the boat will come from the same direction. God forbid that I should ever trust to anything that starts from this side. Again, my subject suggests that when we cross over at the last the King will be on board the boat. Ship carpentry in Bible times was in its infancy. The boats were not skillfully made, and I can very easily imagine that the women and chil dren of the king's household might have been nervous about going on that boat, afraid that the oarsman or the helmsman might give out and that the boat might be dashed on the rocks, as sometimes boats were dashed in the Jordan, and then I could have imagined the boat starting and rocking and they crying out, "Oh, we are going to be lost; we are go ing down!" Not so. The king was on board the boat, and those women and children and all the household of the king knew that every care was taken to have the king, the head of the empire, pass in safety. Blessed be God that when we leave this world we are not to have a great and perilous enterprise of getting into heaven; not a dangerous Franklin expedition to find the northwest passage among ice bergs; only a ferry. That accounts for something you have never been able to understand. You never supposed that very nervous and timid Christian people could bs so unexcited and placid in tho last hour. The fact is, they were clear down on the bank, and they saw there was nothing to be frightened about, such a short distance —only a ferry. With one ear they heard the funeral psalm in their memory, and with tho other ear they heard the song of heavenly salutation. The willows on this side the Jordan and the Lebanon cedars on the other almost interlocked their branches- only a ferry. My subject also suggests the fact that when we cross over at the last we shall find a so'.id landing. The ferryboat, as spoken of in my text, means a place to start from and a place to land. David and his people did not find the eastern shore of the Jordan any more solid than the western shore where he landed, and yet to a great many heaven is not a real place. To you heaven is a fog bank in the dis tance. After the resurrection has come you will have a resurrected foot and some thing to tread on and a resurrected eye and colors to see with it and a resurrected car and music to regale it. Smart men in this day are making a great deal of fun about St. John's mate rialistic descriptions of heaven. Well, now, my friends, if you will tell me what will be the use of a resurrected body in heaven with nothing to tread on and noth ing to hear and nothing to handle and nothing to taste then I will laugh, too. Are you going to float about in ethet forever, swinging about your hands and feet through the air indiscriminately, one moment sweltering in the centre of the sun and tho next moment shivering iu the mountains of the moon? That is not my heaven. Dissatisfied with John's materialistic heaven, theologi cal tinkers are trying to patch up a heav en that will do for them at last. 1 never heard of any heaven I want togo to ex cept St. John's heaven. 1 believe I shall her.r Mr. Topladv sing yet and I.'aac Watts recite hymns and Mozart play. "Oh," you say, "where would you get the organ?" The Lord will provide the or- .in. Don't you bother about the organ. 1 believe I shall yet see David with a harp, and I will ask him to sing one of the songs of Ziort. 1 believe alter the resurrection I shall sec Massillon. the great French pulpit or ator, and 1 shall hear from his own lips how he felt on that d iv when he preached the king's funeral sermon and llung his whole audience into a paroxysm uf grief and solemnity. And so you and I will be met at tha landing. Our arrival will not be like step ping ashore at Antwerp or Constantinople among a crowd of strangers. Jt will ha among friends, good friends, those who are warm hearted friends, and all their friends. We know people whom we have never seen by hearing somebody talk about them very much. \\ e know them almost as well as if we had seen them. And do you not suppose that our par ents and brother* and sisters and children in heaven have been talking about us all these years and talking to their friends? So that, 1 suppose, when we cross the river at the last we shall not only be met by all those Christian friends whom wo knew on earth, but by all their friends. They will come down to the landing to meet us. Your departed friends love you now more than they ever did. You will be surprised at the Inst to find how they know about all the alfairs o| vour life. Why, they are only across the terry, and the |J >.»t is coming this way, and the boat is going that way. I d . not know but thev have alivady asked the l.ord the day, the hour, the moment when you are coming across. and tint they know now, bet I do know that you will be met •it the landing. The poet Southey said he thought he should know Hishop lleber in In ivi-n by the p rlints ho hid seen o| li ni in Loudon, and Dr. Kindolph said he thought be « mid ku iw William Cowpi-r, i he poet, in hcnvi n from the pictures he li:i| men of hull in hut we Mill kBOW AWT dei-iiVd km lied hv the por 'raits hung in the throne room oi our hearts. On starlight nights you look up and 1 suppose it is so with any one who hat friends in heaven -OR starlight nights you '• U up. and you cannot help but think o| 'how who have gone, and I suppose the* !o"k down and e.uinot belli but think o| li- Hut thev have the advantage oi us. We know not just when* their world ol ,>v is. They know where we are. Hut there is a thought lh.it comes over ni" lil- : ' an electro* »li »«-k Do I belong to I Die King', ho .Id* Mark you, tho text MVS, "And th'ie went over s ferry boat to e.rry over the king's household," i.d i 0... hut the king < h u>. hold 'Mien I A, Di I belong to the li .ii~ hold' l>o vi.u* If vuti di not, (.nine today and he adopted into th.it household. "Oh," »avs •.one - 'il hero, "1 do mil knou «hither (lie K u Want. 111. " 11. doe*. 11.. ilors. lli th \ ire from the throne, "I will li» f'Mvi- to til- 111, .»» I D..V -h ill 1..- My -HIS ...1.1 daughters, »«itll the Lord \l " ,'hty." ' linn Dist cum Di unto Me," < brist says,"l Mill in Rowis? cast out " I'.aiu inl • the Kuig'i household Kit ■ln## at tin# King > table. Come in ami take your apparel (mm the King's ward i..lie cvsit the wedding garuient oft bust's righteousness. fonts in and inherit the King's r alth t'oui* tit and crow m Ujg Rug's (eti) t.at.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers