THE NEWS OF ALL NATIONS.
Renew War Idyll After Fifty Years.
A romance of Civil War times will reach its climax in Richmond, Va., when Miss Gillie Cary, once one of the belles of Richmond, becomes the bride of Colonel W. Gordon McCabe, former headmaster of McCabe’s University School, who for some time past has been devoting his time to literary pursuits, writing for English and American magazines.
Sweethearts during the stirring days of 1861-’65, when McCabe was a dashing young officer in Lee’s army, the two are said to have been parted by a trivial lovers’ quarrel. The colonel, after the war, married Miss Virginia Osborne, of Petersburg, where he established his school and made it one of the best in the South, educating many young men who have since risen high. In 1895 he moved the school to Richmond, and seven years later retired from active work. In 1912 he lost his wife.
Not many months ago Miss Cary, who had remained true to her first love, was rummaging among old papers, when she came upon a batch of poems that the young officer of war days had written to her. Soon afterward she met him and the old flame was fanned to new life. The colonel once more became a suitor.
Now they are planning to spend their honeymoon in Charleston, S. C., where one of the colonel’s sons is head of a large cotton firm.
Empress’ Friend Dies in Poverty.
Countess Jeanne Demadre, once belle of European courts, convent mate, and friend of Princess Eugenie, who later became wife of Napoleon III., died recently in a humble cottage in a secluded spot in South Bend, Ind. Few knew her, and none of her acquaintances realized that half a century ago she was considered a world beauty and the associate of the crowned heads of Europe.
A brief twelve-line obituary chronicled the death of the woman, giving her name as Mrs. Peter Veuve and her age as eighty-three. Her only surviving relative is her heartbroken husband.
The countess was born the daughter of Count Hippolyte Henri Demadre Desoursins, June 24, 1831, in the mansion opposite the Royal Palace in Brussels, according to the register of the Royal Church, in Brussels.
She was sent to a French convent, and there she became a friend of Princess Eugenie, who was destined later to become the wife of Napoleon III.
She left the convent when she was eighteen years old, and when she was nineteen she became the wife of a Frenchman named Baudin.
Her presentation at the court of Belgium took place shortly after she left the convent, and after her school friend Eugenie became the queen of Napoleon III., she was presented at the French court and later at the court of Queen Victoria.
She invested a fortune in De Lesseps’ Panama Canal scheme after her husband died, and later she opened a toilet shop in Paris, and, by catering to royalty, amassed another fortune. During the Franco-Prussian War, she became a nurse and was decorated with a gold medal.
Her son met with an accident in New York, and his mother came to the United States to be with him when he died. She later married Peter Veuve, a Swiss. The latter made unwise investments, and twelve years ago, practically penniless, the couple came to South Bend.
How a Popular Preacher’s Mind Worked.
How does a great preacher’s mind work? Insight into this mystery is gained from the letters of the Reverend Frederick Robertson, a popular preacher at Brighton, England.
He died before he was forty, of brain disease brought on by overwork, broken down by the nervous strain of preaching.
Robertson wasted his strength very often in small controversies, such as Sunday observance, and the unfortunate fact that he had no sense of humor often led him to take seriously and regret childishly, and answer bitterly, criticisms which were not worth thinking about and critics wholly unworthy of his steel.
Robertson himself knew that certain serious defects of character are almost inseparable from the preacher’s office.
“I wish I did not hate preaching so much,” he wrote one day; “the degradation of being a Brighton preacher is at times almost intolerable,” and, again he regrets that he has weakened his nervous system by “stump oratory.”
Preaching always excited him, and a sermon would leave him for days too much agitated to work. He doubted often if he ought not to give it up—for the sake of his spirit—though he would not attend to his doctor’s advice and give it up for the sake of his body.
Blameless as was his life, and fruitful as were his exhortations, he could not escape the minor dangers which the pulpit shares with the stage. He grew sensitive and self-centered, he came to need the stimulus of a crowd moved to emotion.
Close as were his intimacies and wide as were his benevolences, the circle of his affections was latterly narrow, indeed. Yet he hated excitement as much as he craved it. He wrote:
“I am persuaded there are few things morally so bad as excitement of the nerves in any way; nothing—to borrow a military word and use it in a military sense—nothing demoralizes so much as excitement. It destroys the tone of the heart; leaves an exhaustion which craves stimulus, and utterly unfits for duty. High-wrought feeling must end in wickedness; a life of excitement is inseparable from a life of vice. The opera, the stage, the ballroom, French literature, and irregular life—what must they terminate in?”
What Men Grind Their Axes On.
Not many people realize that there is a special sort of whetstone for nearly every purpose. The proper sharpening stones or abrasives for use in various professions and trades and in household work are exhibited in the division of mineral technology in the older building of the United States National Museum, at Washington, D. C.
The exhibit shows specimens of the crude and partially prepared stones and the finished products ready for use, as well as a series of photographs which illustrate the operations of mining and preparing them.
Probably the first stone used for abrasive purposes was sandstone, a very widely distributed rock, and it is still used to-day. Its coarse grit and even grain first attracted attention, while the rough edge that it gave was all that was then required.
With the progress of the arts there began a search for various stones which could be used for sharpening objects of different sorts, so that to-day, not only sandstones, but mica schists, slates, and emery stones are used, besides several artificial compounds.
The hard, white, compact sandstones found near Hot Springs, Arkansas, are among the best whetstones known, equaling, if not surpassing, the Turkey stone, which for years has been considered one of the best. This Arkansas stone is known as novaculite, and occurs in two or three grades, intended for use with certain tools.
The hard, flintlike stone should be used only to sharpen instruments made of the very best steel, requiring very keen edges and points, such as those used by surgeons, dentists, and jewelers.
The other grades, although composed of the same ingredients, are more porous, the sand grains are not as close together, and a rougher edge is given to the sharpened tool. Because of their more porous nature, these stones cut faster, proving suitable for the finer-edged tools of carpenters, machinists, and engravers, and for honing razors.
Indiana and Ohio supply a whetstone made from a sandstone of a coarser grain than the novaculite of Arkansas, but nevertheless quite uniform. It may be used with either oil or water, and is useful for sharpening household cutlery, penknives, or ordinary carpenters’ tools. But since it is easily cut and grooved by hard and sharp steel, the fine instruments of dentists and surgeons should not be edged or pointed on this stone.
Scythe stones and mowing machine stones are practically all made from mica-schist rock found in New Hampshire and Vermont. These rocks are generally of a dark-gray color, and composed of very thin sheets of mica and quartz crystals interlaminated.
A simple experiment made about fifteen years ago led to the discovery of carborundum and crystolon. By heating a mixture of salt, sand, and sawdust, and powdered coke in an electric furnace, the variegated colored crystals of carborundum and crystolon were produced.
These crystals are extremely hard, cutting glass easily, and, in fact, almost any substance except the diamond.
Emery cloth and paper are very well-known commodities, but are little used to-day because the artificial abrasives are just as effective and cheaper. Experiments to obtain an artificial product having the main characteristics of emery resulted in the making of alundom and aloxite, both of which are shown in the museum series.
High and Low California.
California, with an area of 158,000 square miles, is the second largest State in the Union. It exhibits wide geographic diversity, for it includes the lowest area in the United States—Death Valley, 276 feet below sea level—and the highest—Mount Whitney, 14,501 feet above the sea.
Similarly there is a great diversity in scenic effects, climate, and vegetation. Records obtained at meteorologic stations in the Salton Sink indicate a maximum temperature of 130 degrees in the shade, the highest recorded within the continental United States, while it is probable that minimum temperature on the higher peaks, like Mount Whitney and Mount Shasta, approach the minimum within our boundaries, a total difference of nearly 200 degrees.
Records of rainfall in the most arid sections of the southern deserts of the State represent the extreme of aridity in the United States, showing an annual average of less than three inches and periods of twelve months or more, with only traces of rain, whereas the precipitation in northwestern California is very heavy, an annual average of close to one hundred inches being recorded at a few stations in Mendocino and Del Norte Counties.
The Boxing Bear.
“Learn how to box! Latest tricks of the ring taught! Exhibitions of shadow boxing with all the swings, jabs, and hooks daily! Reasonable fees—honey, apples, and all kinds of sweets accepted in unlimited quantities, honey preferred. Professor Zip. Studio, Central Park.”
“Bill” Snyder, head keeper of the Central Park Zoölogical Gardens, New York, N. Y., is the manager of Professor Zip, while James Coyle, who looks after the bear pen, is the active assistant of the professor. He has to think quickly and act quickly, for professor knows all the fine points of the boxing game, and when the keeper faces him for his training bout every day, he has to be on the alert. The professor knows the swings and jabs and can sidestep and dodge with the best of the ring artists.
Boxing is not the professor’s only accomplishment. He is “some” dancer, too, and plays his own music, furnishing original bear tunes for each lesson, playing it himself and composing as the dance proceeds. You don’t often find a boxing teacher who invents new dance steps and hops, composes music, and plays it, too.
Zip does all these things, and, besides, has tricks galore. For a nice red apple he’ll give an exhibition of shadow boxing that would shame any star of the ring. For a bit of candy he’ll turn somersaults and do all sorts of gymnastics, but when honey is handed to him, he is in his element, and that is the time he plays his bear tunes and steps off in a way that the best tango “bug” would envy.
Zip can be seen any day doing his “stunts” in the bear pen at the Central Park menagerie. He is a small, black-brown sloth bear, a new arrival at the park, for he has been there little more than a month, but in that time he has won more friends than any other animal in Bill Snyder’s collection. He is particularly popular with the children, who flock to his pen every afternoon to watch him dance and box with “Jimmie” Coyle. One particular friend of Zip is a young woman who visits the bear pen every afternoon with a supply of honey. Once he gets a taste of that, Zip goes through all his tricks. He plays the harmonica, dances, does gymnastic stunts, and then jerks “Buster,” his companion, to his feet and proceeds to knock him all around the ring. For Buster is a novice at the boxing game. Buster never could box until Zip came. Then, when he found that Zip got all the “sweets,” Buster became jealous, and one day tried to beat Zip at his own game. But Buster is too old to learn. He can’t get any music out of the harmonica on which Zip composes his dance music, and as for boxing, Zip just uses him for a punching bag.
When Jimmie Coyle found that Zip was a boxer, he, having ambitions in that line himself, went after the bear in true ring fashion, but Zip knew too many tricks, and, after giving Coyle a good pummelling the first two or three days, to show him how little he knew about the game, he permitted him to act as his trainer, so that every day the keeper and the bear have a few rounds in the pen, while Buster looks on and watches for pointers.
Zip was presented to the menagerie by Charles B. Knox, of Jamestown, N. Y. Mr. Knox got the bear when he was a cub, and in the next few months he became a great pet of the family. He used to ride with Mr. Knox on the front seat of his automobile and learned lots of tricks. Mr. Knox also had a big Newfoundland dog, “Jack,” and he and Zip became great chums; in fact, it is said that Zip learned all his dance steps from Jack, for they were often seen dancing together at Mr. Knox’s home. Finally, however, Zip became too big for a household pet, and it was feared that he might get too mischievous, so Mr. Knox offered him to Bill Snyder, who just then was looking for a bear to take the place of Buster’s mate, who died about six weeks ago. So Zip was shipped down to Central Park, and there he was in his element at once, for all the kiddies who know every animal in the park made friends with him and brought him good things to eat as soon as they saw he could do so many tricks.
Bits of Information.
Mining experts in the Philippines agree that a steady increase in the gold production of the islands may be expected for an indefinite period.
It is possible for the human ear to distinguish sounds over a range of about eleven octaves, but only seven and one-third octaves are used in music.
After twelve years of experimenting, a Dresden engineer has succeeded in perfecting a rocket carrying a camera to photograph objects and places over which it passes, being returned to the ground by a parachute.
Several of the most common diseases, including typhoid and arthritis, have been practically banished from the United States navy by the use of distilled water for cooking, as well as drinking.
Italian canners are now utilizing the skins and seeds of tomatoes, the former for stock feed and the latter for oil, in its crude form, for soap and illumination, and, when refined, for table use.
A project for draining and reclaiming 1,000,000 acres of land in Egypt, work upon which has been begun, is one of the greatest and most expensive tasks of the kind ever attempted.
A new automobile convenience is a wind or light shield for one person that can be mounted at any angle by rods connected to the steering post.
For public places there has been invented a drinking fountain that dispenses ordinary water free and ice water when a coin is dropped in a slot.
An observatory at Berlin holds the world’s most accurate clock, which is kept in an airtight glass cylinder in the basement of the building.
An old idea in the history of telephony has been revived by a British inventor, who has patented a transmitter shaped like the human ear.
A simple wire loop to be fastened to a doorjamb and locked around the necks of two milk bottles to prevent their theft has been patented.
A telescope with two parallel barrels, to permit two persons to see the same object at the same time, has been invented by a Swiss optician.
An ingenious tool has been invented to enable jewelers to remove stones from settings quickly and without injury to either stone or setting.
So that wheelbarrows can be used over snow and ice, a Wisconsin inventor has patented a runner attachment.
A new sled that can be steered has three runners, the odd one being in front, where it is controlled by a handle.
Peruvian petroleum is said to rank next to that of Russia in its suitability for producing high-grade lubricants.
With but three horses to each 100 residents, Switzerland has the smallest equine population of any nation.
The head of a new thumb tack is a clip to hold paper without puncturing it.
There were 1,220 accidents, causing 1,753 deaths, in British coal mines last year.
Powdered borax sprinkled on a garbage can or refuse pile will drive away flies.
In Our Great Melting Pot.
Nearly seven million white, foreign-born males over the age of twenty-one years are now in the United States. About 400,000 of these are English and 600,000 Irish, the total from the United Kingdom being about 1,300,000.
There are less than 60,000 French, about 800,000 Russians, and 1,300,000 Germans.
Of the English, sixty per cent are naturalized American citizens; of the Irish, about sixty-nine per cent; of the French, fifty per cent, and of the Russians, twenty-six per cent.
Of the Germans, about seventy per cent are naturalized Americans, showing a more marked and more permanent absorption into the life of their adopted country than is the case with the other nationalities.
Woman Ventriloquist’s Joke.
Miss Elaine Thompson, of Maplewood, N. J., is an amateur ventriloquist. Yesterday, on a street car, she frightened two Newark women into a faint by making a noise like a dog yelping under the car. The lines were blockaded and the car jacked up before it was discovered that Miss Thompson was just having a little joke.
Minister Upholds Fox Trot.
Fox trotting and other modern dances are proper amusement for young people, according to Reverend Allen A. Stockdale, pastor of the First Congregational Church, a meeting place for many of Toledo’s wealthiest families.
The assertion of the pastor came in response to the question if dancing had been indulged in at the church. Doctor Stockdale admitted that members of the church had danced.
Fish Schools Choke Harbor.
The city of Prince Rupert, B. C., Pacific coast terminal of the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway, has once more witnessed the yearly recurring phenomenon of having its large harbor so densely packed with huge schools of herring as to make the progress of rowboats a difficult matter. This year’s schools were exceptionally large, and so dense that the immense body of fish seemed like one solid moving mass. Men and boys on the G. T. P. docks hauled in literally millions of these fish in buckets, wire waste-paper baskets, and almost any utensil that was handy.
Some of these herrings were taken by the fish companies and frozen in boxes for use as bait in fishing for halibut. They are an excellent table fish, but so far comparatively few of them are being shipped, although several inland cities have made inquiries. Fishermen say that the herring took sheltered bays to escape the whales which prey on them in certain localities in the Pacific during their migrations.
Cougars Tame in Captivity.
Two cougars, trapped more than a year ago in a river cañon by A. J. Holman, of Mondovi, Wash., have been reduced to such docile temper that for many months their captor has daily entered the crib in which they are kept.
Tricks of a Two-legged Cat.
J. A. Hart, who lives about six miles south of Eureka, Kan., has a freak of nature in the shape of a two-legged kitten that walks, jumps, and frisks about like any normal kitten. The kitten is now about three months old, is plump and well grown, and appears to be a normal, healthy kitten in every respect except that it hasn’t the vestige of a hip bone or hind legs, and, what is more strange, it does not seem to feel the need of another pair of legs and feet any more than a duck or any other biped.
It walks about on the two front feet with easy, graceful equipoise, waving its tail over its back. When it pauses, it sits down naturally, and the casual observer might not notice the absence of the hind legs and feet. One mate to this kitten is normal in every respect, but another one of the same litter lacked the hip bones and hind legs. This kitten was growing nicely, but was accidentally caught in a trap and died from the injuries. Had it lived, the two would have made a strange pair of kittens.
Facts About the Human Eye.
People of melancholic temperament rarely have clear blue eyes.
The chameleon is almost the only reptile provided with an eyelid.
Eyes with long, sharp corners indicate great discernment and penetration.
Unsteady eyes, rapidly jerking from side to side, are frequently indicative of an unsettled mind.
It is said that the prevailing colors of eyes among patients of lunatic asylums are brown and black.
Eyes placed close together in the head are said to indicate pettiness of disposition, jealousy, and a turn for fault finding.
All men of genius are said to have eyes clear, slow moving, and bright. This is the eye which indicates mental ability of some kind—it does not matter what.
One Horse Power Per Second.
To lift 550 pounds one foot in one second requires what is known as one horse power. Similarly, a horse power is able to raise twice that weight one foot in twice the time or one-half foot in just that time. Moreover, it can raise half 550 pounds one foot in half a second, or two feet in a second, and so on. Therefore, when we lift one-fourth of that weight, 137½ pounds, four feet in one second, we are exerting a horse power.
Accordingly, when a person who weighs 137½ pounds runs upstairs at the rate of four feet a second, he is exerting the equivalent of a horse power. For a man weighing twice that much, 275 pounds, it would be necessary to climb at the rate of only two feet a second to exert a horse power. It is possible to do much more.
As a matter of fact, a horse often exerts many times a horse power. The average horse can draw a wagon up a hill where a ten-horse power engine with the same load would fail. A horse power does not represent the greatest momentary strength of the average horse, but is a measure of the power which he can exert continuously.
Dream of Wealth Comes True.
To be a poor little girl with the poor little girl’s dream of some day becoming a princess with untold wealth and then to suddenly find that the wealthy part of the dream has come true, is the experience of fifteen-year-old Josephine Romano, of Boston, Mass.
Josephine’s dream of wealth came true when she was awarded $16,000 by a jury for injuries sustained several years ago when she was hit and tripped by a live wire which was dangling from one of the Boston elevated poles. She was so severely burned about the head, face, and hands that the marks will remain on her body for life.
“It is so much money that I don’t know what to do with it,” she said. “I think I’ll put it in the bank and then be a real lady.”
Spain Faces Hunger Peril.
The economic situation in Spain is becoming steadily more serious, notwithstanding the efforts of the government to find a solution for the difficulties which confront the country. It is feared that conditions will soon become so bad that they may lead to a conflict fraught with grave consequences.
Dispatches from the provinces tell of numerous riots resulting from the high cost of food. In some interior districts and in the Canary Islands the people get food only every other day. Many families are said to be living on herbs and roots. A woman said to have been driven mad by privation, drowned herself with her children at Lazaretos.
Fierce rioting resulted at Lacele from the increased price of bread. The civil guards are reported to have fired into the crowd, killing one and wounding many.
Hen Egg Like a Goose Egg.
Miss Alma Brewer, of Como, Miss., is proudly exhibiting a common hen’s egg which she recently found in a nest which measures six and three-fourth inches around and seven and five-eighths inches the long way.
Russian Pillager is Hanged.
A more favorable view of the discipline in the Russian army in Galicia than prevailed during the autumn invasion of East Prussia is given by Leonhard Adelt, the war correspondent of the Tageblatt, who recently visited Neu-Sandec, on the Dunajec River, a short time after it had been evacuated by the Russian army.
At the corner of one street he saw a hook fastened to the wall, from which, as he was informed by the citizens, the Russians had hanged one of their soldiers for plundering. There was still visible on the adjacent wall the following inscription:
“The czar sent out soldiers, not pillagers, to fight for him.”
Adelt goes on to say that the Russians maintained strict discipline in the city. As further examples of their stringency, he mentions that one soldier who stole a ham was given fifty strokes with the knout, while another, who strayed into the quarters of other soldiers and made undue noise there, got thirty strokes.
In Bukowina the Russians demonstrated the sincerity of their newly acquired temperance principles by emptying all strong liquors into the gutters.
Prisoner Dies from Wounds.
The German prisoner who was shot through the lungs some time ago by a sentry while trying to escape from the internment camp near Kingston, Jamaica, is dead from his wounds. He persisted in stoning the guard who shot him. Since this affair, no other attempts to escape have been made.
How Many Auto Tires We Use.
In round numbers there are now 1,600,000 automobiles in the country, and not one of them can possibly get along with less than four tires a year. The most conservative estimate must place the number per car at six tires a year. This would be 9,600,000 tires. In addition, there are scheduled for manufacture during 1915 not less than 600,000 new cars, which must be fitted with at least 2,400,000 new tires, making a total of at least 12,000,000 tires. In reality, the number is much greater, even though a million or more tires are “retreaded,” fitted with “covers,” et cetera. Taxicabs and some of the high-powered converted racing cars could not possibly get along with less than twenty tires a year. The money spent for tires in 1914 in the United States alone probably exceeded $200,000,000.
London Will Retain German Street Names.
The London County Council is not encouraging the changing of German street names. Despite the fact that the borough council of Stoke Newington requested that Wiesbaden Road should be renamed Beatty Road, after the naval hero, the local government committee, in a report that will be submitted to-day, says it is not satisfied that a sufficient cause for alteration has been made out.
Recently the county council decided to take no action with regard to renaming Berlin Road Gatford Road. Suggestions have been made by many citizens to change the names of Hanover Square and St. Petersburg Place.
Big Ancient Statue is Found.
Libya, in Africa, again has given an ancient piece of sculpture to the world. At Cyrene, once the principal city of ancient Cyrenaica, a colossal statue of Alexander the Great, lacking only a part of the right forearm, has been excavated. It is a magnificent marble copy of the celebrated bronze of Alexander by Lysippus, which is known only by the copies of it on coins, the original having been destroyed.
The statue probably was made fifty or sixty years after the original, in the third or fourth century before Christ. It is larger than life and represents Alexander, entirely nude, standing, looking upward, with his right arm outstretched and his left holding a spear, on which he is leaning.
Boy Scouts Paid More than Middies.
Boy scouts are now engaged in the navy of Great Britain for signaling and are receiving more pay than midshipmen. More than 12,000 scouts have entered military service of one kind or another, and 2,000 more who are nearing the age of enlistment are in training.
At the outbreak of the war the scouts by thousands guarded telegraphs, telephones, and bridges, served as messengers, and performed countless duties of value to the war office and the admiralty. More than 5,000 medals have been given to scouts who performed not less than twenty-eight days of service. About 50,000 boys have served a fewer number of days.
The sea branch of the movement volunteered to carry out the duties of the coast guardsmen recalled to the fleet, and they were detailed to duties on the east coast. This required more boys than this branch could supply, and the land scouts joined, and now 1,600 boys are so employed in patrols of eight, under their own leaders and with their own equipment.
Catch White-and-black Rat.
The colored porter at H. T. Whitfield’s billiard room, in Murfreesboro, Tenn., captured a freak rat. The rodent’s head and front part of its body is pure black, while the other half is snow white, excepting a black line running along the center of its back to the tail. The rat is still in captivity, and the owner has been offered ten dollars for it. When caught, it was very vicious and made several attempts to bite its captor.
Three-mouthed Calf Born.
Will Pline, a farmer living five miles from Lebanon, Mo., was surprised on finding that one of his newborn calves has three mouths, and was as spry as any calf in his herd.
The mouths are all on the front of the animal’s head, one being up between the horns and another just below that, and the third a little lower down.
Mr. Pline feeds the calf milk, which it seems to relish as any ordinary calf. It seems as though the animal will live, for when any one enters the lot where it is kept, it will run and play as though it felt healthy and strong.
Tells of Cat-and-dog Wedding.
A cat and a dog can be friendly—aye, even more. The old argument was settled here with a statement from Reverend Father Bernard of the Fort Yates Catholic Church, of Fort Yates, N. D., that he had just married Miss Rose High Cat to Harry Poor Dog. They are Sioux Indians.
Sends Forest to Fair.
To accommodate visitors at the Panama-Pacific Exposition, the Southern Pacific Railway Company has constructed a building, 200 feet square and in classic style, standing between the west portal of the Zone and the Machinery Palace.
The structure has a cozy rest room for women, with a nurse in charge, and is furnished with writing desks, easy-chairs, and newspapers from all parts of the United States. There is a similar room for men.
The entrance leads through the heart of a California big tree. The whole inclosure is a miniature woodland, with trails winding among the trees. Through this woodland a path leads to the offices of the company, where a squad of information clerks are ready to answer all questions.
Opening out of the ticket office is Sunset Theater, a replica of The Little Theater, in New York City, where stereopticon scenes and motion pictures are presented. The company has engaged lecturers, and their talks are interspersed with musical selections rendered on the great Kimball pipe organ.
It’s Fish, Snake, or Lizard.
A strange creature, presenting anatomical characteristics which might be attributed to fish, snake, or lizard, has been placed on exhibition in a business house in Bicknell, Ind. No one has found a name that seems to fit the animal, or reptile, which was caught by Grant Hooper and Carl York, fishermen.
The body of the creature is twelve inches long, and in shape resembles the old-fashioned four-cornered dart kite. The head, in form, is like a snake’s, but the resemblance ends there, for four sharp tusks protrude from the mouth. Apparently the creature breathes through gills similar to those of a fish. The horns and ears, which follow closely the forms of the human ear, give a peculiar appearance to the head. The skin or hide is black and white in color.
Big Gun Crumples Car.
So heavy is a great fourteen-inch gun just completed, to guard New York City from hostile attack, that it broke down one of the two flat cars conveying it along the West Shore Railroad, near Cornwall, on its way to Sandy Hook, to be mounted.
It is said to be the most powerful fourteen-inch gun ever made. It was on its way from Watervliet Arsenal when the journal of one of the cars, overtaxed by its excessive weight, wore out and had to be replaced. The gun extends almost the length of the two cars, the breech resting on the rear one.
Old Man Hangs Up a Walking Record.
Becoming peeved over the fact that the Big Four Railroad did not have a train scheduled to leave at a time when he desired to return to his home, Benjamin Yentzer hung up a walking record for one of his age. Although eighty-seven, he walked from Tiffin to Adrian, Ohio, twelve miles, and made the journey in two hours. He was feeling fine at the end of the walk, too.
Cover Held on Kettle.
Much of the flavor and other virtues of meat and vegetables are lost while undergoing the cooking operation, being carried away in the escaping vapor and heat. In a recently invented kettle, a lid is sealed on under pressure. This prevents the escape of steam and facilitates the cooking process. It is claimed that not only is the cooking done in much shorter time, but that foods prepared in this manner have a more delicate flavor. The lid is held in place by means of a lever which is easily manipulated. In order to prevent the possibility of an explosion when the kettle is on the stove, the lid is fitted with automatic safety valve which permits the steam to blow off when the pressure approaches the danger point.
Passes Her 106 Birthday.
Still enjoying good health at the great age of 106 years, Mrs. Abigail Morrill passed another milestone, and has the distinction of being the oldest person in Newburyport, Mass.
Mrs. Morrill was born on a farm in West Newbury in 1809, and has lived in this vicinity all her life. She has for several years resided with her daughter, Mrs. Abby Morrill Oliver.
She is the mother of ten children, three of whom are now living; Mrs. Oliver, of this city, Louis Morrill, of West Newbury, and George Morrill, of Lynn, the two sons being survivors of the Civil War.
Her husband was the late Jacob Morrill, of this city, to whom she was married May 4, 1835. There are eleven grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. Except for being slightly hard of hearing, Mrs. Morrill has her faculties well preserved.
Stove in Shaving Mug.
The newest shaving mug is equipped with a little alcohol lamp. So little water is required that it takes but a short time to heat it to the boiling temperature. The invention is one that will be appreciated by traveling men especially, as the mug is not much larger than the ordinary kind, and is, of course, much easier to carry about than shaving outfits. In fact, it seems odd that the invention was not thought of before. The interior of the cup is of a substance not injured by heat, and the lamp is lighted from the bottom. Hot water may thus be obtained at any time in a few seconds.
Sneezed Out a War Souvenir.
After carrying a bullet in his head for nearly fifty years, or ever since the battle of Gettysburg, Calvin Cook, a Confederate soldier living in Catawba County, N. C., has sneezed from his nose a leaden pellet commonly called “buckshot.” He was wounded in the head at Gettysburg and eventually recovered from the wound, only to be troubled many years by what was designated as some sort of growth in his nasal passages. During a recent sneezing fit he “blew” his nose with uncommon vigor, and out rolled his souvenir of the greatest battle of the Civil War. His nasal trouble vanished when the “growth” rolled out.
Tobacco Habit Easily Conquered
A New Yorker of wide experience, has written a book telling how the tobacco or snuff habit may be easily and completely banished in three days with delightful benefit. The author, Edward J. Woods, 230 G, Station E, New York City, will mail his book free on request.
The health improves wonderfully after the nicotine poison is out of the system. Calmness, tranquil sleep, clear eyes, normal appetite, good digestion, manly vigor, strong memory and a general gain in efficiency are among the many benefits reported. Get rid of that nervous feeling; no more need of pipe, cigar, cigarette, snuff or chewing tobacco to pacify morbid desire.