rm
THE MEYERSDALE COMMERCIAL, MEYERSDALE, PA.
Be ——————
OPENING THE BIBLE
When the President Takes the
Qath of Office.
NO PLACE FIXED Ii ADVANCE.
The Passage of Scripture Upon Which
the Chief Executive Presscs His Lips
Is Entirely a Matter of Chance—The
Bible After the Ceremony.
The president before he eu!
the execution of his ofiice takes an
oaih or affirmation that he “will faith-
fully execute die office of presigeat of
the United 1 will, to the best
of my ability, preserve. protect and |
.defead the const (ion of the United i
States,” and this call is usually scal-
ed or coniirmed by the Kissing of the
Bible.
The kissing of the Bible as part oi
the inauguial ceremony is perhaps iol
Jéwinz a very in it custom. lie
E finns wil wed tor iba ith
Yo. yoveichif i ) sey:
y. a avaitie.
he custom re
Iy after the pros.ded
the oath, with haud on the Bille.
clerk of the States sup
couit shall throw open the book, and
the incoming chief magistrate shall im-
plaut a kiss on one cf its open pages.
Doubting Thomaases have always
thought that there was no element of
chance in this performance and that
the passage of Scripture is
carefully selected in advance, and the
book is held by the clerk of the court
in position so that the incoming chief
will kiss the passage that it is intend-
ed he shall kiss, but this supposition is
entirely wrong.
James D. Maher, clerk of the su-
preme court, said that the opening of
the book is entirely “haphazard” and
that no man on earth has the slightest
intimation in advance regarding the
passage of Scripture that will be thus
brought into notice.
Usually the Bible that is used in ad-
ministering the oath is bought by the
clerk of the supreme court and paid
for out of his pocket and is a small
Oxford edition costing $10 to $15. The
United
" late James H. McKinney, for many
years clerk of the supreme court, once
said, “You see, congress expends mon-
ey only by appropriation, and if we
were to wait for congress to appro-
priate the price of the book we might
never get a Bible on time.”
There have been exceptions, how-
ever, when the Bible came from oth-
er sources. For instance, when James
A. Garfield was inaugurated March 4,
1881, he carried in his overcoat pocket
to the capitol a well worn, leather
pound volume which had been pre-
sented to him by his mother. The
book was taken from the White House
and in a few years found its way to
the stall of a bookseller in San Fran-
cisco. How it got there has never
been known, nor is it likely it ever
vill be. A few years ago it was uf-
fered for sale at a very high price.
Chester A. Arthur took the oath of
office just after midnight at his home
th New York city Sept. 20, 1881. The
Bible used was one belonging to the
then chief justice of thé state of New
York. It is cherished by the judge's
family as an heirloom.
On March 4, 1885, when Grover
Cleveland was inaugurated president
for the first time, he, like Garfield,
kissed the Holy Book which was given
£o him by his mother. It was a small
volume, bound in red leather, and was
presented to him many years before.
#T'he book 1s now in the possession of
Mr. Cleveland's married gister at To-
jedo, O. The Bible upon which he took
the oath in 1893, eight years later
when he became president the second
time, was one presented by -his beau-
tiful wife, and she became its pos-
Sessor.
When Benjamin Harrison was made
president March 4, 1889, the Bible used
was one that his wife bad given him
on the day of thelr marriage in Ox-
ford, O., where President Harrison
spent ‘his achool days. The" Harrison
Bible is owned by Mrs. James R. Mc-
Kee, the daughter ¢f ex-President Har-
mn.
President McKinley used a Bible that
fad, heen presented to him by the
negro bishops of the country. It was
the biggest Bible ever seen at the
clerk's office, and Clerk McKinney in
relating the incident said: “The day
before the inauguration one ‘of the
bishops called at my office with the
Bible. It was a huge affair of the
ype known as family Bibles. It rested
-4n an ornate box lined with purple vel-
wet and ornamented with ‘gold. The
box was fastened by loek and key.
“When I rea that it would be my
‘Jot to’ carry that huge Bible from the
_genate chamber clear ‘out to the front
of the capitol my knees grew wellk
gnd I could mot Yefrain from asking
the bishop Jjekifgly where the wheel-
barrow was that should go with it”
The invariable custom is that on the
day following the inauguration the
clerk of the court takes the Bible to
the White House and presents it to
the first lady of the land as a keep-
gake.—Exchange.
Re-enforced ‘Concrete.
The ark in which Moses was placed
in the bulrushes, we are told in the
second chapter of Exodus, was an ark
of bulrushes daubed with slime and
with pitch. This is probably the first
recorded instance of a re-enforced con-
crete structure.
matters of wnscience first
ts a1 natters of pru-
best:
always |
Spanish Dc: loons.
| Should oie ind a pirate’s buried
{ treasure hé would have to dispose o-,
Tis Spanish gold at its chien valpe.
for singe Aag. 1. 1603, when the com-
! mon crier mdde proclamation from the
steps of Lhe Royal Exchange of Lon-
don that uiter tiat date ire Coubloon
woud ceas2 to be legal cencer, in the
Wost Indies, inelnding British Guiana
{Le doulloon has not been the precious
thing it was. In 1730 and for a cei
tury a‘ter it was wor. $3, more or
1 to be coined in its
sain. and since 1908
y unpopile
i dies, wher a long time it fi
fin a mixed cid tion, embracing Brit.
e 101
; ish, United Bt and Spanish coins. |
{ Ini the interes of rom . however. |
{ the name at least must survive. It}
i signitics nothing maore than that the
! coin was double the value of a pistole.
but the "doi * was never such a
mouth filling mockery as “pieces ol
eight,” which cests great riches.
| but means only Spanish silver dollars,
pieces equivalent to eight reals.—Roch-
ester Post-Express.
A Famous Mew York Streot,
Av oof Lae Lauasais f poopee who
1 and Jem
v early bis
u strest. And tt
is a bronze tablet which
the fallowin:
streets eve
rigot j
tory of Ne
at that cor
gives in concise forz
historical information:
Street, Known Originally
i as ‘the Street That Runs by the Pye |
Woman, Was La :t About 1695 and »
Was Named In Honor of the ilouse of |
Nassau, Whose Head at That Time |
Was William the Third, King of Eng-
“Nassau
public. Nassau Street Became Identi-
fied With the Jewelry Trade More
Than Half a Century Ago.”
The bronze tablet is on the exterior
of the building at the nortawest cor-
ner of Nassau and John streets. It
was erected by the Maiden Lane His-
torieal sccicty in 1916.—New York Sun.
William De Morgan.
In spite of himself Williom De Mor-
gan became famous. He <eliberately
violated all the rules made for the
guidance of novelists who seek to be-
come popular. None of his novels was
addressed to the greater public that is
avid for the latest thing of the moment
in fiction, but nevertheless they reach-
ed that public. He was a law unto
himself in the novels that he wrote
during his marvelous career that span-
ned only ten years. It is doubtful if
in English literature or in any other
can be found a writer whose life and
literary career are comparable to his.
| He was an old man when the world of
! readers came to know him. and his age
| was an asset toward celebrity. At
| seventy he was hailed as eagerly as
Kipling was hailed at twenty, and in
his way he was no less a prodigy than
the younger writer.— Bookman.
eos msm —————-
The Emerald.
The emerald has been known since
early timer both in Furope and in cer-
tain parts of the orient, where its at-
tractive color and rarity have. endowed
i it with the highest rank and a varied
i lore. Its name may be.traced back to
an old Persian word which pnpeareC
Jn Greek as “smaragdos,” mentioned
by Theophrastus over 300 yeays before
the Christian era, and again in Latin
as “smaragdus,” séen ‘in the writings
of Pliny, who particularized somewhat
on its properties and supposed me-
dicinal virtues and was even shrewd
enough to suspect its identity with the
much more common beryl, although
eighteen centuries elapsed before this
suspicion was verified by scientific
proof.
His Hard Luck:
A small boy whose record for de-
portment at school had always stood
at 100 came home one day. recently
with his standing reduced to 98.
“what have you been doing, my
son?” asked his doting mother.
“Been doing?” replied the young
hopeful. “Been doing just as I have
been doing all along, only the teacher
caught me this time.” — Philadelphia
Inquirer.
Where ls the Profit?
“I understand they sold their house
for $8,000 more than they pald for it.”
“How lucky!” ] !
«lucky nothing! After they'd sold
it they discovered that they've got to
pay $2,000 more then they received
for their house for another home to
live in.”—Detroit Free Press.
Books In Brszil.
In Brazil, as throughout South Amer
ica, French is almost universally read.
Editions of the classics are found in
most homes, and bookstores are filled
with modern French writers of prose
or verse, Sometimes fh]trénslation and
as frequently in the original.
. Went Further.
«pidn’t I tell you ‘tbat when you
met a man in hard luck you ought to
greet itm with'a smile?” said the wise
and good counselor.
“Yes,” replied the flinty souled per
son. “I went even further than that.
T gave him the grand laugh.”
Best Way of Taking Iron.
When anemic persons have to take
fron the best form in which to admin-
ister it is spinach, cabbage, green chic-
ory, asparagus, lentils, carrots and
peas, all of which contain much iron.
About the Same Thing.
Scribbler—Can you suggest a simile
for giving advice? Scrawler—How
would pouring water on a duck’s back
Go?— Philadelphia Record.
Be ——————
A “Sidereal Day.”
In answering a COrrespos
asked the meaning of the term
réal time” the Irish Times
that that is the only truly
iA Rr,
which astronomers and navigalor ‘
A “gidereal day” is the precise time
taken by the earth in revolving on its
axis and is twenty-three hours, fifty-
six minutes and four seconds. Our
sundials, however, record & very dit
ferent day.
If you set up a sundial in a garden
and observe when it is noon t and
again tomorrow you will find that it
a=ceed~ the “sidereal day” by three
minutes and fifty-six seconds. The
difference is due to the distance that
the earth has traveled on its orbit
while it has been revolving on its axis.
The orbit motion makes it necessary
for the earth to turn nearly four min-
utes longer in order to bring any place
to the same position with regard to
the sun that it ad on the previous
i day.
The Novice’s Mistake.
In ‘“Tales of the Flying Service” C.
| ¢. Grow tells about a strange entry in
the olteinl resort of an o.deer who hac
vocently joined the service aud was
| sent to pass a seaplane through its
test for the English navy. He had to
| co up as a passenger with the con-
| structor’s pilot and to keep a log of
what occurred during the test.
This is what he put down: 9:05 a.m.
left slip; 9:10 a. m. altimeter shows
200 feet above sea; 9:12 a. m, curious
phenomenon. Met a seagull
backward!”
That meant that the machine, flying
land and Stadholder of the Dutch Re- {at the rate of about eighty miles an
hour, overtook a seagull—which is not
a fast flyer—going at about forty miles
an hour, and that up in the air, with-
out any background to give a proper
sense of direction, the bird looked as
if it were flying toward them tail first.
Probably the officer knows better now.
Teach Children Thrift.
We Americans are notoriously the
most thriftless of peoples. You have
heard how much we throw away. We
are too prone to think of thrift as stin.
giness. We hate to hear about saving.
Dorothy Canfield Fisher in her recent
book, “Self Reliance,” gives parents a
strong word of warning. She says: !
“Phere is nothing in the fact of being
children which need cut off our & ;
and daughters from a great deal of &c-
curate information and considerable
practical experience with the ini
outs of wise money spending.
there is a great deal in the fact of
being Americans which will shut
off from such information and ex
ence unless parents make a very de
mined effort to see that they get
proper training, for the whole spirit:
the effort.”
The City of the Dove.
When mighty Amru went to conquer
Bgypt he camped on the east bank of
the Nile opposite Memphis, that great
twenty mile long capital of mud
bricks whose western verge was the
ps ramids and whose mud brick houses
have all vanished. Amru crushed the
Egyptizns and came back to get his
camp to move over and occupy iiem-
phis. A dove had built in the folds
near the top of his tent. Blood bathed
be disturbed. A mew city started about
his tents. It grew northward along
the Nile. It is today Cairo. Memph!
is only a name.
Can You?
Here are a few things that you can-
not do:
You cannot jot‘down the square root
of two.
You cannot sneeze or yawn with
your head under water.
You cannot state the number of but-
tons on your clothes.
You cannot draw an envelope by
only looking at the paper in a mirror.
You cannot put your left foot and
shoulder against a wall and then raise
the other foot.
And yet you think you are cleveri—
London Answers.
Theat Was Different.
it must have been when there we
only Adam and Eve in it! There wi
nobody to say nasty things about the
Mrs. Tattle—But, then, they had n
body to talk about. Mrs. Tittle—We
proved since their time.—Exchange.
Ahead of the Times. :
«The trouble with my boy Josh #8
that he’s always ahead of the times,”
remarked Farmer Corntossel.
“What has he done?’ /
“Went to town to see about a posi
tion.“ “He found a strike in progress
and joined the strike before he got the
job.”—Washington Star.
Our Vanishing Forests.
busy, chips are flying thick as snow-
flakes, and every season thousands ef
acres of priceless forests, with their
underbrush, soils, springs, climate,
scenery and religion, are vanishing
away in clouds of smoke.—John Muir.
Once Bitten, Etec.
“Why did that brilliant woman mar-
ry such a stupid man?’
genius.”—Boston Transcript.
Preferred Fare.
“What is the favorite fare of Wall
street bulls and bears?’
“Supposed to be lamb chops.”—Balti
more American.
Nature knows no pause fn progress
and development and attaches he:
eurse on all inaction.—Goethe.
manner of recording time and is that
Amru, the ruthless, would not let her.
Mrs. Tittle—What a beautiful wor@
I guess, after all, the world has hve
“Because her first husband was a
our country and age is against us in. Standard.
The ax and the saw are insanely |
day In Trying
Do not aliew yourself to just drift
5 through life. Set before you an
aim, Some real purpose. Cultivate hope
and ambition to accomplish something.
Do not be contented te let things hap-
pen; make things happen. Whatever
“your business or occupation alm to ex-
cel in it. Financial gain is not all one
gets from labor well performed. Your
character is elevated and your mind is
enlarged, and the satisfaction in hav-
ing done well is the most real joy.
Don’t be afraid to set your aim high.
Gild it with your highest ideals. Let
the hope of its attainment nerve your
every act. Turn incidents and circum-
stances toward the attainment of your
aim. If you have no aim you reach
nowhere. A life without a purpose is
a dreary thing, without real joy. Sup-
pose you fail to reach the heights you
have set as your standard; you will
have gone higher than if you had not
striven. You will be more useful, of
more worth, than if you had not tried.
—Milwauke¢ Journal.
An Expert In Motives.
Cousin Henry is an expert in mo-
tives. If you were reading off a list
of "names and overlooked Henry Le
wouid understand.
exactly the motive that prompted you |
to do it. If you don’t think to intro-
duce him to the man who is with you!
cenume CASTORIA
Right now he!
flying | is angry because his daughter was not
he can see through it. He may have
to go back four or five years, but he
will make a complete case against you.
In less than an hour he will know
what your motive was.
selected as valedictorian of her class.
You may think that the other girl de-
served to be selected, but you don't
know all that Henry kfows. It is a
long story, but he is willing to tell it
to you, and after hearing it you will
understand the motive—you will un-
derstand that it is a case of spite work.
—Claude Callan in Fort Worth Star-
Telegram.
How David Garrick Made His Fortune.
If David Garrick had had no more
than his salary as an actor he would
have had little to leave at his death.
He made his fortune as joint proprie-
tor, and for a time as sole proprietor,
of Drury Lane theater, so that the
amount set down to himself as salary
was practically nominal. When he re-
tired from the stage in 1776 he sold
half his share in the theater for £35,
000. He was prebably the only actor
who consistently made Shakespeare
pay, and, like Shakespeare, he was
actor, author and proprietor.
It may be recalled that Garrick, who
had no enemies outside his own pro-
fession, was the grandson of a French-
man exiled at the revocation of the
edict of Nantes and that his father
was a captain in the army.—London
Well Balanced Diet.
One of the most common faults of
the diet is the eating of too much pro-
tein foods. In excess this is hard for
the body to excrete and is likely to de-
compose in the intestines with the
formation of poisonous waste products.
Green vegetables and raw fruit are
important elewents of the diet. There
is little enerey in these foods, but they
supply mineral salts which the body
needs and curious substances called
vitamins, which are easily destroyed
by cooking.
One food expert has suggested a rule
for securing a well balanced diet. It
is: An ordinary family should spend
about as much for milk, vegetables
and fruits as for meats, fish and eggs
and as much for milk and eggs as for
meat and fish.
Follies of Science.
THe history of science has seven
problems which men in all ages more
or lesg have tried to solve, but which
have finally been given up by all. To-
day they are called follies.
The usual list comprises the follow-
ing: First, squaring the circle; second,
duplication of the cube; third, trisec-
tion of an angle; fourth, perpetual mo-
tion; fifth, transmutation of metals;
sixth, fixation of mercury; seventh,
elixir of life. Some lists put the phi-
losopher’s stone for the last three and
then add astrology and magic to make
the seven.
Toe Much For Him.
“I thought he was going to marry
that girl?” ol
“Well, he did think of it. But it
seems. when he called the other night
she threw him down.”
“Well, if she’s .as good as that at
wrestling I don’t blame him for quit-
ting.”—St. Louis Post-Dispateh.
‘Not That Bill
«f can’t tell a canyasback duck from
a barnyard specimen.”
“Experts say you can
“How se? The bill for one is al-
ways as high as the bill for the other.
That's what’ I'm Kicking about.”—
Courier-Journal.
tell dy the
Just’ a Chanss in Words.
Youmg Clerk—Do you like to stand
fn front of the store and see the crowds
go by? Old Merchant—No, but I like
to stand In the back of our store and
see the crowds come buy.—Exchange.
A Sticker.
Howell—Rowell is a man of tenacity.
Powell—Yes. If he werea dog and got
| a grip on your trousers you would be
perfectly safe in ordering a new pair.
Pistols.
Pistols were invented at Pistoja,
Italy, and were first used by English
cavalrymen in 1544.
Gold, like the sun, which melts wax
and hardens clay, expands great souls
and contracts bad hearts.—Rivarol.
_—
He would know |
The ind Yon Have Always Bought, and which has been
for over 30 Years, has borne the signature of
= and has been made under his per=
sonal supervision since its infancy.
Allow no one to deceive you in this.
jtations and ¢¢ Just-as-good *’ are but
.i:le wich and endanger the health of
ron—Ixperience against Experiment
is CASTORIA
Jarmless substitute for Castor Cu, Pare=
and Soothing Syrups. Ig is pleasant. It
ncither Opium, Morphine nor otlicr Narecotie
ee. its age is its guarantee. It destroys Worms
and ailays Feverishness. For more than thirty years it
Tas heen in constant ase for the relief of Constipation,
yay * i. Ty Te
ima 2CC. 1
{ ¥ MN, Ye TIE . - g
: » i It regulates thie Stomada Dowels, »
assipilnies the #eod, giving healthy and ©» al sleep.
| The Children’s Panacea The Iiother’s Fricnd.
ALWAYS
Years
la Use For Over 30
The Kind You Have Always Bought
THE CENTAUR COM PANY, NEW YORK CITY,
| g ET | a rl TSE -
%
The Brisk Smoke—“Bull” Durham
an alert-looking young man in a
lively argument roll a “Bull” Durham cigarette—it's
|
|
When you see |
|
| the natural thing. He likes to punctuate a crisp |
sentence with a puff of “Bull” Durham. His mind
responds to the freshness that's in the taste of it, and |
1
|
his senses are quickened by its unique aroma. | |
cigarette of “Bull” Durham just fits in with keen [8
|
thinking and forceful action. 1
i GENUINE 1
| ‘BuLC DURHAM
Made of “bright” Virginia-North Ask for FREE package of
Co ot ull” Daa
rich, fragrant, mellow-sweet—the GRY dix
mildest, most enjoyable of smokes. v.
| “Roll your own” with “Bull”
|
GENUINE
Durham and join the army o L.
IDURHAM
smokers who have found that so
good a cigarette cannot be ob-
tained in any other way.
An [llustrated Book.
: fr Hd
- way ‘to ‘Roll ‘Your
Gwan” -
| oma
Address Bull” Durham, Dx Cc
_ ‘THE AMERICAN TOBACCO 08.
yw | y O38 ~ . :
Prompt Plumbing Service
i The time that good plumbing egquip-
i ment is most appreciated is usually when
il the equipment is temporarily outof order.
Then we see how necessary good
plumbing is.
_ “Then you want a plumber and want
him quickly.
For prompt service and quality fix-
tures, the “Standard” make, call on us.
BAER & CO.
Meyersdale
PA.
©
Children Ory Children Ory
FOR FLETCHER'S FOR FL :
CASTORIA CASTORIA