"■ —■■■ - —"■
The Wage of
Treason
■■ -
This, as on every evening, Profes
sor Alexis Ivanovitch, scientist and di
rector of the Imperial Gymnasium at
St. Petersburg, pressed a kiss, half
tender, half mechanical, upon the fair
■white forehead of Dounia, and stole
away from the conjugal domicile,
while Dounia remained alone and re
flected. Where did Alexis Ivanovitch'a
nocturnal excursions take him? The
professor was no longer a young man
—he had passed his fiftieth year—and
science and his absorbing duties aa
director of the Imperial Gymnasium,
■where live hundred pupils studied un
der him, left him no time to devote
to amorous Intrigues. And then, waa
not Dounia young, robust, and beau
tiful, with her luxuriant auburn hair,
her steel-colored eyes, and her per
verse, enigmatical smile? She was
poor, obscure, and ignorant when he
married her; he rich, a grand digni
tary of the Slav University, and a
councilor to his majesty, the Czar. But
love had conquered al! obstacles, and
Dounia, daughter of a shepherd of the
Caucasus, became the idolized wife of
the director of the gymnasium. The
seductive Circassian had indeed often
triumphed in the heart of the savant
over despotic duty. How frequently
he sat by her, admiring her, and list
ening as she babbled in French, gent
ly criticising her linguistic errors.
Was not her naive conversation worth
a hundred times as much as the sub
tile literary and philosophical discus
sions in which he engaged with the
lettered men of St. Petersburg? Since
several months, however, Alexis Ivano
vitch's interest in Dounla's French les
sons had flagged. He permitted her
to confound the tenses, to ignore gen
der, and to forget the elementary
rules of syntax without correcting her,
as formerly. Moreover, he left the
house regularly every evening and
did not return until late at night. Was
Alexis Ivanovitch deceiving her? She
had discarded that supposition long
ago. Dounia was too sure of herself,
too proud of her extraordinary beauty,
to suppose she could have a rival.
Still, how could she explain Alexis's
absence every night? He did not gam
ble, for the money in the safe was nev
er disturbed, and it. is not usual to
visit the games with empty pockets.
Once only, a person of unpreposses- ,
sing aspect and poorly attired pre
sented himself at the door with a let
ter. Alexis, having read it, handed
the bearer a note of five hundred rou
bles without the least remark, the
stranger accepting the same without
even giving thanks. Gambling debts
are not paid in such a manner, and
when Alexis was asked about the in
cident he merely answered, "I am
helping along a good cause," and
Dounia did not dare to question any
further.
She was patient and waited, hoping
the inexplicable absence of her hus
band would cease soon; the thought :
to follow and spy his actions never oc- :
curred to her. Tills evening, however, >
he had hardly crossed the threshold
when, enveloped in heavy furs, her
face hidden by a hood, and her feet
encased in stout boots, Dounia follow
ed rapidly In his footsteps. She shad
owed him through the snow-covered
streets, oppressed and anxious, the
blood mounting to her temples, and
her heart beating violently.
This conjugal pursuit, in the night ,
and through the snow, did not have
Jealousy for its only motive. In fact,
Dounia had not the right to be jealous.
Dounia was guilty. A young instruc
tor at the gymnasium, a German
named Karl Strueber, profiting by the
director's occupation and the isolation
of his wife, had won her. And it was
the thought of this that tortured her —
that perhaps she alone was guilty,
and that he loved her still, and might
be able to justify his nightly absence
and convict her of treason, ignoble
and unpardonable. Ah, could she but
establish his faithlessness! She would
then be excusable for her own.
This is why Dounia followed her
husband, on that clear and frosty
night, through a strange and labyrinth
ine quarter of the city, whose narrow
streets were scarcely illuminated by
the mysterioils moonlight.
******
Alexis, having arrived at his des
tination, was about to rap on the door
of a house, within which all seemed
silent and dark, when he paused. Re
treating hastily, he hid behind the an
gle of the house and listened. Light
footsteps were coming in his direction.
"I am being followed," he thought.
Coolly and resolutely he drew a revol
ver from his pocket, cocked it, and
waited. Alexis raised his pistol ready
to fire. Just then Dounia, surprised at
seeing no one, and believing she had
been outwitted, threw back her hood
in order to get a better view of the lo
cality. The moonlight revealed her
features plainly, and Alexis, recogniz
ing her, ran from his hiding-place.
"Dounia." he cried, "what are you
doing here, unfortunate woman?"
"I was following you, Alexis Ivano
vitch," she answered, with trembling
voice; "it was wrong, I know, but I
could not resist the desire. I wanted
to know where you spent your even
ings."
"Curiosity is very often a bad coun
selor, Dounia," said the professor, i
gravely, after a few moments' reflec
tion; "heaven grant you may not re
gret wanting to know that which I
had determined to hide from you. But
perhaps. I am wrong after all. The
■wife should hide nothing from her hus
band, and the husband have no secret
from his wife. I love you, Dounia; my
love alone caused me to let you re
main ignorant of certain things, a
knowledge of which might prove dan
gerous to you. Do you know, by the
way, that, not knowing who you were,
I was about to kill you?"
"What, kill an unknown!—one who
has never harmed you? You must be
engaged in some very grave undertak
ing to harbor such a resolution."
"Very grave, indeed. But you wish
ed to see and know; come with me
and you shall be satisfied." And Alex
is Ivanovitch drew Dounia, still sur
prised and frightened, toward the low
door of the mysterious house, which
opened silently after he had knocked
in a peculiar and measured manner.
A regular meeting of the nihilistic
committee was being held within, and
they were discussing a circular to be
sent out which was to inform the af
filiated of an important attempt to be
made by the revolutionary party
against the life of the Czar. Alexis
Ivanovitch Introduced Dounia as a
neophyte, and, two or three women
approaching her, gave her instruc
tions. She was given pamphlets to
distribute, the names of prisoners and
sick persons whom she was expected
to visit and bring food to.and other
duties to perform. Tiie affiliation of
the wife of Alexis Ivanovitch, one of
the leaders of the society and the au
thor of numerous pamphlets secretly
published by the nihilistic press, seem
ed quite natural and aroused no sus
picion. Ways and means were next
considered, and were discussed quite
freely before Dounia, who listened, as
if in a dream, to the different plans for
carrying out their tragic purpose. The
; meeting then adjourned.
i **»*»*
| The following day, while Alexis was
at the gymnasium inspecting the
classes, listening to the complaints of
students, and attending to his daily
routine work, Karl Strueber, the
handsome German professor, visit
-1 ed Dounia, who had not yet recovered
from the shock the terrible experience
' of the night before had given her. So,
then, her husband was a conspirator!
I He was the associate, the accomplice,
'■ of those savage men who terrorized
the empire and whose audacity neith
! er Siberia nor the gallows could ar
-1 rest. Alexis wished to assassinate the
\ Czar! Ah, he filled her with horror
now, she was no more ashamed of her
fault, and it even seemed to her that,
in deceiving him, she punished him
for the crime he meditated.
So she abandoned herself to the em
braces of her lover with a frenzied
passion that savored of the primitive
ardor of the dwellers in her mountain
hone. The dull German! to be medi
tative at such a time. But he had a
mission to perform, and waited for an
opportunity, although he was for a
time disconcerted by Dounia's savage
voluptuousness. At last he succeeded
in putting the following questions to
Dounia: "Does your husband receive
many visits from men of peculiar as
pect, who, upon entering, hand the
doorporter a ticket?"
"No, never," replied Dounia, sur
prised.
"Well, then, does he go out often?"
"Every evening," she answered,
promptly, paling Immediately there
after as she thought of the terrible
! meeting which she had attended. In
! the meantime, a light dawned upon
her. Why did her lover ask her these
| questions? Who was this German,
j concerning whom vague rumors had
reached her ears? Quite a number of
Germans were employed in the police
i —could Karl Strueber be a spy?
Strueber, not noticing her abstrac
tion and carried away by his desire to
obtain more information concerning
Ivanoviteh's movements, continued to
interrogate Dounia eagerly, thus ex
posing himself. Dounia, a prey to con
flicting emotions, had answered half
mechanically, and now realized that
she had betrayed the secret of her
husband —consigned to the prison, the
knout, Siberia, or even to the gibbet,
the man whose honor she had already
sullied. A gust of pride and revolt
swept through her, and the wild na
ture of the mountain girl asserted it
self within her. She had, indeed,
consented to betray the husband, but
she would not betray the conspirator.
The Circassian never gives shelter to
a spy. Her resolution was taken Im
mediately. No, she would not deliver
Alexis over to the executioner. She
arose, trembling but superb. Strueber
sought to detain her. "Remain," she
murmured, with a bewitching and pro
voking smile; "I shall return; I am
thine forever." In the neighboring
room she wrote a few words, called
the moujick, and commanded him to
take the nqte to his master.
Ten minutes later, Alexis Ivano
vitch arrived at the threshold of the
chamber where Karl Strueber was
tenderly embracing Dounia, while en
deavoring to obtain further informa
tion concerning the vast conspiracy of
which the police already had an ink
ling. The next moment the bloody
form of Strueber, felled by a crushing
blow of a battle-axe. which Alexis had
torn from the wall In his library, lay
stretched at Dounla's feet, while Alex
is, with fiery enthusiasm, cried; "Rise,
Dounia, wife of my bosom! Thou hast
aided us to punish a treacherous spy.
Thou art a second Judith, my be
loved!" Translated for the Argonaut
from the French of Edmond Lepelle
tier.
Camera Aids Astronomers.
Before photography was applied to
stars the highest number catalogued
was 457,847. The number of stars the
camera will show is estimated at over
30,000,000.
Defined.
Willie —Pa, what are "Conversation
ul Powers?"
Pa- Oh, any of tbe South American
Republics.
GOWNS MADE IN BRUSSELS.
That City Turns Out Quantities of
"Paris Frocks."
"Do you know where many of the
frocks are made that American wom
en buy in Paris?" asked a man who
has lived abroad for many years.
"In Brussels," he went on. "That
is about the greatest dressmaking cen
' tre of the world. 1 know one woman
who has a dressmaking establishment
, in which she employs GOO girls. Her
i output is tremendous, and there are
many similar establishments.
"Every freight train that leaves
Brussels for Paris carries big consign
ments of dresses. Labor is cheaper
in Brussels than in Paris and condi
tions of living different. Then there
is no Sunday holiday for tiie workers
; In millinery establishments. The pro
prietors are so swamped with orders
that they keep their hands going.
"My wife tells mo that she can get
in Brussels an exquisite hand em
broidered gown for SIOO, and the best
turned out there —a court dress in
fact with train —for .$l4O. Brussels is
fast becoming an American shopping
centre."
WHEN A FISHHOOK SNAGS.
Two Simple but Ingenious Methods of
Releasing It.
In Ireland when an angler's hook
catches in a root under water he cuta
a willow sprout, bends It into a hoop,
passes it over rod and line and lets It
float beyond the obstruction, when a
sharp pull on the line generally frees
the hook.
| In England, says a writer in Forest
and Stream, an rngler Ims improved on
this method. In his kit he carries sev
eral of the wire paper clips used in
filing letters. If his hook becomes
Bnagged he attaches the clip to a bit
of brush, then springs the clip over
his line, and when the branch has
floated beyond the snagged hook the
clip acts as a pulley in freeing It. He
says It is an effective and cheap clear
ing ring, and it is not heavy.
A Peculiar Name.
There is a post hamlet In Cass
County, Missouri, with nothing pecu
liar about it except its name, and that
Is Peculiar. Its origin, according to
local traditions was as follows:
When the settlement had become
sufficiently populous to need a postof
flce, one of the prominent citizens sent
a petition to Washington to have one
j established. Indue course the petl
\ tion was granted and he was asked to
suggest a name that would please the
! people. He replied, "The people are
not particular so long as the name is
i peculiar."
Thereupon the postofilce was chris
' tened Peculiar, and the name has nev
er been changed.
Dangerous Insects.
i Recent Investigations have shown
i that the notorious tsetse of Africa is
! not the only insect capable of trans
| mltting the dreadful trypanosomiasis,
or sleeping-sickness. In the neighbor
; hood of Brazzaville exists an insect, of
! the genus Chrysopa, which propagates
' the same infection, and Doctor Martin
! now announces that trypanosomes are
: evolved in the body of a mosquito of
| the genus Stegomyia, another species
: of which is known as the propagator
; of yellow fever in America. The more
1 the subject Is studied, the more dan
gerous insects appear as spreaders of
disease.
Shorthand Without Hands.
A youth of fifteen named Possneck,
who two years ago lost both his hands
in a machinery accident at Arnstadt,
has accomplished the remarkable feat
of gaining a speed certificate for short
hand. After his mishap, by which his
hands were cut off at the wrists, he
was received into a cripples' home.
) The Duke of Saxe-Melningen, one of
; the patrons, took an active interest in
' the lad and paid for two artificial
; hands. The cripple soon became so
1 expert in their use that he is an ex
-1 cellent penman and can write short
hand at the rate of 115 words per min
ute. —London Tit-Bits.
New Coffee Plant.
The African explorer, Oarpentler,
has found in Sassandra a new species
of coffee-plant, which is very abund
ant in some places, although It Is a
dwarf form, varying in height from
1 three feet to less than a foot. In their
1 wild state the berries are not suitable
for coffee-making, but it is hoped that
by cultivation this plant may be im
proved, as other species in the Congo
! State have already been. At present
the new plant is only a botanical
curiosity.
Long Distance Pleno Record.
The world's record for continuous
piano-playing has been broken by C.
I W. Healy, who commenced playing a
piano at Prince's Court, Melbourne,
one evening at eight o'clock. Healy
played continuously until 10.30 at
night on the following Saturday even
' ing—a period of fifty and a half hours
1 —and he has thus constituted a new
record, the longest time before this
having been forty-eight and a half
hours. During the performance Healy
sustained himself on beef tea and cho
colate.
Antiquity of Bows and Arrows.
' One curious result of the recent
study of the mural paintings and en
gravings on the walls of caverns in the
Pyrenees anciently occupied as dwell
ings by men, is the evidence which it
has afforded that bows and arrows
were already in use at that very early
period. In a grotto at Niaux, bisons,
horses, deer and wild goats are repre
sented, and arrows are shown striking
Into many of the animals. Some of
the arrow-heads thus placed are col
ored red.
, Status of the Atomic Theory.
The suggestion has been made that,
owing to recent discoveries, the atom
ic theory of the constitution of mat
ter, established for a century, is no
longer tenable, since particles small
er than atoms are now known to exist
But Prof. Herbert R. Moody points out
that the theory is still as useful as
ever, since, under the conditions that
surround us on the earth, most atoms
de not undergo change that can be
discovered In any ordinary way. The
atomic theory Is based upon weighings
and the changes in weight which
1 atoms undergo are not such as can
be detected.
Gold from the Sea.
This has no reference to the wild
plans that have from time to time
been exploited for extracting gold
from sea-water, but it relates to the
attempts made in Queensland and
New South Wales to recover gold and
other precious metals from the sands
on the seashore. The treatment of
these sands has been undertaken, it
would appear, with some promise of
success. Not only gold but platinum
and uranium have been found. It Is
thought that the metals find their way
to the strand from submerged rocks
which are broken and triburated by
the violent waves assailing the coast.
Bleeding Fish to Keep Them.
The Norway fisher cuts and bleeds
Hell the moment they are caught. He
cuts the throat or bleeds them from
the tail. Fish so finished keep far
better. Fish are best Just before
spawning time, thereafter they be
come poor, then watery and unfit.
Some folk are grouched by herring
and mackerel, and will get sick every
time they eat 'em. No matter how
fresh the fish the people vomit, purge
and break out In bold hives. It is not
uncommon to find dead oysters mixed
up in the heap. These dead ones are
liable to poison the live ones.
Neon and the Aurora.
By means of sounding-balloons,
Telsserenc de Bort has collected specl
mens of the air up to an altitude of
more than eight and a half miles.
Analysis shows the presence of helium
only in the layers lower than above
six miles. Neon, on the contrary, is
found at all levels, and this fact is
regarded as confirming the identifica
tion of several spectroscopic lines of
neon in the spectrum of the aurora
borealls.
The Old Surf Bath.
It is not so many years ago when
1 surf bathing of a very primitive kind
prevailed at the eastern end of Long
Island and, for aught I know, at other
points. Every Saturday morning, or
afternoon, as the tide willed, through
out the Summer big farm wagons trun
; died down to the beach and wero
j swung around abreast or the line of
' breakers. Old flshhouses served the
! purpose of modern bathing pavilions,
and the sea costumes were those of
last year's village street. A long rope
was drawn from unCer the seats and
\ hitched to the wheel, and then some
; sturdy ex-whaler or life crew man in
red flannel shirt and old trousers tied
at the ankles slipped his waist through
the loop at the end of this primitive
life line and, wading out, kept it as
taunt as circumstances permitted,
while the women and children hunt
to it and reveled and wallowed and
shrieked, rejoicing in their "Saturday
tub."
Where Father Got Stung.
One afternoon not long ago, in the
| vicinity of Druid Hill Park, In Balti
' more, there might have been seen a
young man Industriously pushing up
; and down a baby carriage, Intently
reading a book the while.
"Henry! Henry!" called a young
j woman from the second story of a
I house opposite.
Henry heard not, but continued to
I push the baby carriage and to read
: his book.
In about an hour the cries for "Hen
: ry" were repeated.
"Well, what do you want?" he de
; manded, rather Impatiently.
"Nothing, dear," was the irritating
' response," except to inform you that
| you've been wheeling Harriet's doll
; all the afternoon. I think it's time Tor
the baby to have a turn now."
Explained.
"Why do so many sick people in
hospital wards like to be putin a bed
next to a patient from the country?"
, said the young nurse to the house
| doctor.
"Graft," said the doctor. "Most
country or suburban patients come
from homes where there are chickens
and maybe a cow. When the folks
come in for a visit they bring eggs
that were laid that morning and fresh
milk, cream and butter. If the person
lying beside the country patient Js
very sick he appeals to the sympathies
of the country visitors, and the next
time an extra egg and an extra pint
of milk come."
A Philanthropic Spaniel.
i Old Buller, the curly brown spaniel,
well known to Middlesex, is dead. He
was a philanthropist. With a money
box hanging from his neck he collect
ed for Ealing Cottage Hospital. In
the last five years he took in S4OO,
and he showed fine discrimination as
| to the sides of the streets he worked
In winter. In summer he frequented
parks, making his appeal to numerous
ladles and gentlemen. Old Buller was
110 years old, and died from pleurisy.
Trolley Lines In America.
There are 1,250 street and interur
ban railway companies in America,
with a total of 35,000 miles of single
track and 75,000 passenger cars. The
total number of passengers carried an
nually Is 10,000,000,000, and the groea
annual Income is 1440,000,000.
WORKING ON THE CARS.
No Place Like New York for
Says a Western Visitor.
"We have something of a reputa
tion out West for hustling," said an
Omaha man, "but I never saw such
persons as New Yorkers, both men
and women, for working on the sur
face, the subway and the elevated
cars, to say nothing of the ferryboats.
I wonder the companies don't find
some plan for renting desk room in
public conveyances. It is customary
to see men reading on the cars everjr-
I where, but you have to come to New
i York to find half the passengers on a
| car correcting typewritten manu
scripts, humming over musical scores,
casting up accounts in little memo
randum books or on the back of an en
velope, and poring over shorthand les
sons.
| "Persons studying foreign lan
guages read them aloud on the cars
and nobody appears to pay any atten
tion to them except visitors from
other cities."
The Dulcitone.
The dulcitone of Thomas Machell
of Glasgow has the keyboard of a
piano, but the key hammers produce
sound by striking steel forks — like
I shankless tuning forks —Instead of
wires. A semicircular steel spring
carries the vibrations from each fork
to the sounding board. The tune Is
softer than that of the piano, but It
has great clearness and carrying pow
er and is adapted for solo playing as
well as for accompanying other Instru
ments or the voice. Important ad
vantages are the lack of neceselty of
tuning and the portability. A dulol
' tone of five octaves weighs but forty
five pounds, but a piano of the same
range has a weight of 250 pounds or
more.
Reversible Turbines.
One of the objections urged against
] turbine-engines has been their inabil
ity to run backward as well as for
ward. John Ogg of Aberdeen has In
vented a form of turbine which avoids
this difficulty. The steam enters the
machine through a hollow axle, and
thence acts upon the wings of the ro
| tating disks mounted upon the axle.
; When it is desiied to reverse the mo
tion, a new set of disks, having their
wings set at a reverse angle, are
brought into play, and by means of
grooved valves the steam Is projected
against them, thus producing a back
ward motion. The reversal of motion
can be produced Instantaneously.
FREAK RUBBER TREES.
Revolted Against Parasites and Killed
Them Off.
Some years ago a big planter in the
Congo abandoned a rubber tract of
several hundred miles which had be
come infested with the parasite of
th« region. All the trees drooped and
(tied down to the roots, only these
surviving. Part of the trunk under
the inner bark continued to yield the
rubber milk, as usual, but the fluid
was found to be thoroughly poisoned
and apparently useless. A visit to
the abandoned tract some years after
the blight had fallen showed, to the
amazement of the owner, that the
trees had taken on a new life. When
the milk was tested he found that it
made rubber of a superior quality,
and now brings the highest price in
the market. Apparently nature had
revolted against the destructive in
sects and with their poison the trees
had inoculated themselves against
further affliction of the kind.
The Colors of Eggs.
Mr. A. R. Horwood of the Leicester
(England) Museum remarks that the
colors of birds' eggs can in a large
number of cases be traced to the
necessity of "protective resemblance."
White eggs are usually laid by birds
nesting In holes in trees, or in dark
situations, like owls, woodpeckers and
some pigeons. Most birds nesting on
or near the ground lay eggs of an olive
green or brown ground color. The
eggs of grouse, ptarmigan, and so
forth, resemble the heather amongst
which they are laid. Those of the
ringed plover, little tern and oyster
catcher resemble the sand and shin
gle of the beach. The dapwing's eggs
closely simulate bare soil or dried
bents. The young chicks show similar
"protective" colors.
An Animal Census.
According to an official of the
Smithsonian Institution at Washing
ton, the latest enumeration of the ani
mals known to science, includes no
less than three hundred and ninety
species. The real number is believed
to be much larger.
It has been estimated that of in
sects alone the earth harbors two mil
lion species; but the late Professor
Riley, a recognized authority on the
subject, held even that estimate as
far too low. According to his opinion,
ten million would be a moderate esti
mate of the number of insect species.
The number of individuals is, of
oourse. Incalculable.
Alaska's Great Mountain.
The claim of Mount McKinley, the
culminating peak of the Alaskan
runge, to be regarded as the loftiest
po!nt in North America, is sustained
by the report of an exploring party,
made by one of Its members, Mr. A.
H. Brooks. The party made a journey
of 800 miles on foot In Alaska during
the season just passed. Mr. D. L. Rea
burn, the topographer of the expedi
tion, believes that the measurements
of mountain heights which were made
have a probable error not exceeding
100 feet. According to these measure
ments Mount McKinley's elevation
definitely exceeds 200,000 feet; that of
Mount Foraker la 17,000 feet
Clever Thieves Get $85,000.
Aaron Bancroft, a broker, eighty
six years of age, was robbed in New
York city last Thursday afternoon of
securities valued at approximately
$85,000, but he did not discover his
loss until Monday.
The theft was committed in the ves
tibule of the Produce Exchange Safety
Deposit and Storage company.
For twenty-five years It has been
Mr. Bancroft's habit every Thursday
afternoon to deposit the Arm's valu
ables In a box rented by them from
the Deposit and Storage company. The
distance from his offices to the vaults
1s not more than 200 feet, and any
one making the trip is In constant
sight of the office windows.
Last Thursday Mr. Bancroft placed
his securities In a large envelope, tied
with tape, and with the firm's name
printed upon it. A flight of steps leads
from the street level entrance to the
vaults. As Mr. Bancroft reached the
bottom of the steps he noticed a young
man, whom he only remembers as
"rather undersized," leaning against
the corridor wall.
Just as Mr. Bancroft was about to
turn the corner, at the end of the cor
ridor, a tall man came running in the
opposite direction and came into col
lision with the aged broker. The shock
threw Mr. Bancroft off his feet, and
In falling he dropped the envelope,
j That was the cue for the "under
sized" young man. He stepped up to
Mr. Bancroft, assisted him to his feet,
and was so solicitous as to tuck the
envelope under the broker's arm. At
least Mr. Bancroft thought it was tho
envelope that fell. He went onto de
posit It in his box as usual.
; Monday when his son, George Ban
croft, unlocked the box he found that
the only envelope there contained
three old newspapers. A clever substl
! tution had been effected.
Jail For Huston Is Court's Decree.
| The judgment of the Dauphin coun
ty court in the case of Joseph M. Hus
ton, architect of the state capitol, who
was convicted of conspiracy to de
; fraud the state, was affirmed by the
superior court in Williamsport, Pa.
The lower court sentenced Huston
to from six months to two years in
the eastern penitentiary and to pay a
fine of SSOO and costs.
The decision means that Huston
must serve the prison sentence and
pay the fine imposed by the lower
court on his conviction of the charge
of defrauding the state in connection
with the construction of that building
unless it 1s overruled on higher ap
peal.
Taft Calls Extra Session.
Because the senate ignored his re
quest that the bill carrying into effect
the reciprocity agreement wUh Can
ada be passed, President Taft called
an extra session of congress, to con
vene on April 4, "to determine wheth
er congress shall by necessary legis
lation make operative the agreement."
The president and most of the Re
publicans wanted the session to be
gin on an earlier date, and the tima
dually was set as it was to please the
Democratic leaders, who will be in
control of the new house.
Extra Session Will Cost Clark S9OOO.
If there Is an extra session of con
gress, Representative Champ Clark, of
Missouri, the Democratic speaker to
be, will lose S9OOO.
Mr. Clark has signed contracts for
ten weeks on the Chautauqua lecture
circuit at S9OO a week and expenses.
He planned to start out from Philadel
phia on March 6 and talk his way
out to the Pacific coast and back, but
if the session is to begin on March 15
he will just throw up his hands and
say goodby to the S9OOO.
Queen's Attendant Slain.
Princess di Trigona, a young and
beautiful lady-in-waiting to Queen
Helena of Italy, was murdered at a
small hotel in Rome by Lieutenant
Paterno, an officer In the Italian cav
alry.
The tragedy has created a sensa
tion. The causes of the murder and
the details of the story that led up
to it are thus far unknown or sup
pressed. The authorities, however,
state that the lieutenant strangled the
princess and then shot her.
Honors For Commander Peary.
Civil Engineer Robert E. Peary got
his long deferred reward. By a vote ol
154 to 31, the house passed a senate
bill which proposes to retire Mr.
Peary with the rank and pay of a rear
admiral and to extend to him the
thanks of congress, which carries with
it the privilege of senate and house
chambers. Very few persons have re
ceived the latter honor since tho
foundation of the government.
Montana Electa Senator.
Henry L. Myers, judge of the dis
trict court of Ravalli county, waa
elected United States senator by the
Montana legislature to succeed Thom
as H. Carter.
Myers received every Democratic
vote, or a total of fifty-three votes, as
against forty-five for Carter and three
scattering Republican votes.
Burglar* Blow Bank Bafe.
Burglars entered the People's bank,
In Windfall, Ind., where they blew
the outer doors of the safe, obtainii.
about SSOO in silver and S4OO worth ol
postage stamps, left by Postmaster
Sholty for safekeeping. They were un
able to get into the inner vault, which
contained about $4500 in currency.
Bank Robbers Get S3OOO.
The Farmers' State bank, of Mat
thews, Ind., was entered by robbers,
who blew open the safe and secured
S3OOO. A horse and buggy were also
stolen from a farmer near Matthews,
and in this the robbers escaped with
their plunder.