Springfield weekly Republican. [volume], November 10, 1910, Page 6, Image 6

About Springfield weekly Republican. [volume] (Springfield, Mass.) 1851-1946

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CHRONICLES OF A WANDERYEAR.
HOME OF THE DUKE OF ATHOLL.
\ peep at t lnse-Gonrdetl Blair » aetlr
Where Rests the Beal W hite < oeW
erte A Defense of Game t ondltlons
In England—The Valor of the 4gd
Kilties.
XIII.
Pitlochry. Scot., September IS.
Best Beloved! —
t om- ve br Athotl. lad itT the pbilabeg.
Peon by the Tuinmel and banks the <-arry.
Saw the lads wi' their bonnets and white
Leaving **their mountains to follow Frlnce
These r arc the lines which have been
singing themselves in my mind of late, not
only because this is Prince Charlie s land,
where the Tummel and the Garry dash
together over their rocky beds, but since
with these eyes I saw the veritable white
cockade worn by that Lord George Murray
of whom it was said that ' had Prince
Charlie slept during the whole of the ex
pedition and allowed laird George Murray
to act for him according to his own judg
ment there is everv reason for supposing
ho would have found the crown of Great
Britain on his head when he awoke. m
stead, you know what did happen, and ho\v
th» Smart cause in Scotland, which had
so manv ardent followers, was lost for all
time, not only. I fancy, because they were
outnumbered, but largely because they
were outbrained. and never had m the pre
tender a man quite strong enough to win.
When one reads that the Chevalier de St
George, who would have been J ames 111
had he succeeded in his undertakings,
"burst into tears" as he stepped into the
boat which was to carry him forever from
his country's shores, ones sympathies are
not so much with him as with his follow
ers. and we agree with the courtier, who
muttered under his breath. “Tears do not
win kingdoms.”
How and where I saw the white cockade
is a story I hope will interest you. To
begin properly I must tell you that since
my last letter, written from the "House
of Delight." we hare moved down the
hill to the dearest, quaintest old inn, just
on the roadside, where from my window
I see the constant little pageant of the
village life. In the early morning. while
the air is still full of the mist which the
sun later gains strength to disperse. I hear
a bird-like whistle, and. looking out. see
the bsker on his early ronnd. not wish cart
and horse, but on his own sturdy feet, and
balancing on his head a large flat basket
piled high with rolls. Hearing the whistle
the housewives come to their doors, pen
nies in hand, and while he reaches up into
the basket and feels for the rolls each one
demands, he passes the time of day and
the latest village titbit.
After he has served them all and de
parted there is heard another and a dif
ferent whistle, a patter of pony’s feet, and
the milkman in his turn ladles ont the de
sired quantities, at the same time adding
his contribution to the gossip. Then the
blacksmith, the shoemaker and others go
bv on their wsy to the shops, and the ball
rolls. Sometimes the matter seems to be
vastly entertaining, and again of so serious
a nature that fists are shaken to emphasize
as words fail to do, but it is all life, and
as important and varied to these simple
villagers as what seems a larger and more
inspiring outlook to us.
The inn is in part very old, has been
built across two sides of a square, and
with its whitewashed, rose-covered walls
is a veritable “trap to catch a sun
beam,” where we luxuriate, like lizards
on a wall in any southern clime. Our
pretty eitting-room, with its bright, chintz
covered furniture, opens on the ground
floor almost on the village green, and
when the herds of cattle and sheep lounge
by, stopping to look at us, and dogs drop
in and wag their tails, we feel a new and
pleasant intimacy with them all. and as
if we had got to the very heart of Mother
Nature. Later on in the day a. however,
when the world of summer visitors has
awakened, the horns and dust of motors
dashing by, make us sadly realize that
there are no longer any secret places. No
longer may we please ourselves with the
thought that we have found a place “far
from the madding crowd”; motors go
everywhere, and. alas! when we are in
them, we, too, find satisfaction in that
fact, as much, perhaps, as others who do
not grieve in secret that the age of ma
chine and steam has put an end to much
primitive pleasantness. Certainly your
Princess, for one, should not quarrel with
a condition which has enabled her to see
much that would have been impossible in
earlier days.
Am Invitation to Blair Caatle.
One afternoon we were invited to see
Blair castle, which is filled with relics
and traditions of the past, most ably
shown and explained by the daughter and
daughter-in-law of the duke of Athol!,
whose home it is. The marchioness of
Tullibardine. whose husband is the eld
est son and heir of the duke, has written,
or perhaps I should say edited, a "Mili
tary History of Perthshire." and she is
so much an enthusiast over the history of
what is her country as well as his that
she is somewhat gibed about it by the
family, and when we asked her to tell
us about some of the treasures she was
laughingly admonished by Lady Helen
Stewart Murray to “he sure not to take
more than half an hour over each pic
ture!” If she had done so we should
be there still, ss the pictures are num
berless, and though few are of any very
great value as coming from the hands of
noted painters, yet they have a great
value in family and royal annals.
Among them I especially noticed a
charming sketch of Prince Charlie, a por
trait of Mary, queen of Scots, with her
ton, James A I, who in this picture looks
much more like a girl than a young man,
and one of James V and Alary of Guise,
the father and mother of Queen Alary.
These alj hung in a smaller drawing-room,
into which we were first ushered and
where we were interested in the windows,
which were built in embrasures, show
ing the great thickness of the outside
walls —10 to 12 feet. In the large draw
ing-room there were several family groups
and a portrait, particularly interesting to
us so lately at Heidelberg, of Elizabeth,
daughter of Charles I. who married the
elector of Hanover and had built for
her that part of Heidelberg castle fa
mous as the "Elizabethan Bau.”
In this room, too. there is a remarkable
collection of miniatures, five of Prince
Charlie, showing him first as the charm
ing, beautiful boy. aud then marking only
too clearly the deterioration which history
tells us lame later in his life. A minia
ture of George 111 is curiously interest
ing. as it pictures him absolutely without
any forehead, his profile a complete tri
angle, with ihe nose for the apex. What
could he expected from such a physiog
nomy but the regency, and how can we
wonder at the profligacy of a son with
such an inheritance! As wo passed from
room lo room we were shown the ex
traordinary thickness of the inner walls,
as well ns the outer, and also many al
coves which are supposed to have been
guard stands in the old days, when
treachery lurked behind every door. In
•he halls were, nmnng myriads of others,
a picture which is famous in this part
of the world, of Kiel Gow. the Scotch
violinist, a name almost better known
just now as that of a rave horye. A fine
portrait of Lord George Murray, anti
two at different ages of that remarkable
Woman. Charlotte tie Cremonillc. who
married a Alurray. the family name of
the dukes of Atholl. and of whom one
reads in “Peveril of the Peak,” An
other recollection of Iter was In a bed
room which was hers, ami where the
lied curtains and tester were of n ereatn
colored woolen material embroidered by
her own hands in applique.
The White f’nrltade.
In the dining-room, s large, fine room,
tyere many handsome old pieces of si'vtr.
among them a rose-water beaker and
salver, which in earlier times. I suppose,
were handed about after dinner in lieu
of the modern finger lstwls. 'Hie curiaics
'o ibis room are of the Stewart uirtatu
In keeping with the kilts and plaids worn
bv tile footmen, and also by the family.
In a small room next the dining-room was
a glass case containing “Stuart” relics,
one of which, the White Cockade. 1 sang
to you about in the beginning. Here
also were a lock of Prince Charlie's hair,
cut from his head in 17117, his. gloves, the
compass he used when in hiding, a piece
of his tartan, a jowelled collar of
some order which lie wore. and. what in
terested me almost most of all. one of the
tickets h.v moans of which only admission
was gained to the Jacobite meetings. These
tickets were pieces of plain white paper
cut in the pattern of a rose, and on them
were inscribed in finest pen and ink
characters the names, amounting. I think,
to between 70 and SO. of those executed
in the cause.
The older part of the, castle was built
in 1200 and we climbed up endless wind
ing stairs and out on to the roof of the
old tower, to see from The battlements a
wonderful view of the park and gardens:
beyond, toward the west, the famous
mountain Schehallion. and on the
east some of the Grampian hills. Notic
ing an odd-looking cross standing ,u :i
nearer hill I asked what it meant, and
Lady Helen Stewart Murray, who was
standing by me. said. "That is the hill
where the gibbet used to be, and it is
called 'Tom-na-Oroich,’ the .Gaelic for
•Hill of the Cross!' ” Then she xtdded.
smiling. “You know in those days if we
had anything against a person we just
ordered them to he hanged.” The power
of regalities, ii was called, and the earl.;
of Atholl could order hangings with as
little ceremony as Alice in Wonderland's
queen ordered "Off with his head!"
There are some very magnificent state
bedrooms, the beds hung with priceless
satin brocades, and one in particular
where the top was crowned by four nod
ding bunches of plumes, looked extremely
hearse-like, except for the color, and must
have been a ghostly place before the days
when electricity illumined all dark cor
ners!
The Home of the Dtieal Family.
The family live in a long wing on the
ground floor, charming rooms basking in
the afternoon sun. and all opening on a
long corridor, which, as you look down
it from the entrance, seems a canopied
forest of horns, all antlers of deer shot
by the duke in his own forests. Hanging
under these are prints of all sorts aud
kinds, making it a fascinating place to
study. One in particular. I remember, is
a colored picture of Qtteen, then Prin
cess. Victoria, riding a pony. She spent
much time at Blair and here, it is said,
formed her love for Highland country.
This print is quite imaginary. Lady Tul
libardine told us. and appeared after a
newspaper account of “Princess Victoria
pursuing her favorite amusement at
Blair.”
It would have been an impossibility to
see everything in this fascinating old place
at one view,_and, our time being too short*
to allow of another visit, we could not
neglect the gardens altogether. Blair cas
tle is approached from the main road h.v a
perfectly straight avenue lined with beauti
ful old trees, which turns at right angles
near the castle, so that it is hidden from
the approach and hursts upon one as a
complete and delightful surprise. As we
drove up this avenue on our entrance we
could but think of those who had been
there before us, Rob Roy. treacherously
captured; Robbie Bums, Prince Charlie,
Queen Victoria and a long, long line of
princes and illustrious great, since before
our baby country was even discovered!
The old moat has still a running stream
at the bottom, and makes a delightful bar
rier on one side, and crossed by a bridge
to the tennis court and gardens beyond.
These ere approached by a long wide grass
path with shrnbberies on either side, and
at the end in the-distance a statue which
gives it the name of “Hercules walk.”
Just before we reach the end a little green
door in a wall is unlocked, and, to our in
tense surprise, an unexpected and beau
tiful garden lies before us. It was laid
out some time in 1600, at the same time
and by the same artist who rebuilt and re
stored the castle, and is in the best sense
a work of art.
A Beautiful Garden.
Two slopes, one to the south and the
other to the north, give, as Lady Tullibar
dine said, a delightful opportunity for ex
periment in all kinds of planting, and in
the valley between these slopes is a lake,
or what would be more rightly described,
as a system of ponds, islands planted with
shrubs and trees, bridges, etc., making a
very charming semblance of Nature’s vary
ing moods. Grass walks not only sur
round the lake, but pass between the va
ried plantations, which, as so often in this
land, are a sensible as well as beautiful
combination of vegetables and fruit and
flowers, and to see a garden at this sea
son a blaze of color and with exquisite
fresh green turf and ferns, is to realize
how far more beneficent to all growth is
this climate, than with us. where love's
labor is so often lost by heat of sun and
want of moisture.
I have allowed myself to run on about
Blair to a point at which I trust you
are not bored, because, in the first place,
it commands the deepest interest and ad
miration. and, secondly, because it is not
shown to the public, and. therefore, not a
thing of guide-books. At one time people
were allowed to walk freely through the
grounds, but, as it so often unfortunately
happens, the privilege was much abused,
and therefore at present a fee is charged
and the visitors restricted to the outer
park.
A Lesson for Socialists.
In these days of socialism, one hears
much about the injustice of the great
places being kept for the benefit of the
few when they should be cultivated for the
many, and such like doctrines. The duke
of Atholl, who has. I should he afraid to
say how many thousands of acres, not
long ago invited n committee of such mal
contents to spend a day with him. go
over his estate, and point out, if they
could, what lands were being sacrificed to
game, etc. They came and he walked
them over hill and date until they were
forced to cry for merev, aud in every in
stance where, on plodding through the
heather which makes agriculture so dif
ficult. not to say impossible, they saw
and exclaimed about a bit of green far
ther on. they came up with it at last, only
to find a peat hog nr a marsh and were
obliged to admit that the mighty public
bRd little cause for complaint, and that
these lands could not be used for any
better purpose than as a home for game.
Upon this subject of game I hare lately
been stirred to wrath by a newspaper let
ter from the I nited States accusing En
glishmen of being butchers and only mock
sports, and bestowing upon them the
epithet of "game hogs." This point of
view is held largely in this country hy
men who are ton lazy to work, and who
would like to “poach, otherwise to steal,
what does not belong to them, and while i
it is possible that there are among the
myriad of shooters some few to whom the/
term "a good sport” would not be
hie, yet I think it i» quite true that no
one who has been intimately associated
with men in any part of the kingdom who
“preserve" their game would ndmit for a
moment that they were other than true
sportsmen in the best sense. I have been
privileged to see many estates where the j
shooting is most rigidly cared for. and have
never failed to find the most conscientious
kindness toward the poorer tenants, and a
very generous distribution among them of
the hares and rabbits they are forbidden
to steal, and rightly punished for so doing.
It is true that grouse and pheasants arc
only legitimately food for those who can
pay for them. so. 1 might remark, are
chickens and turkeys with ns, and if it is
"butchery" to kill game on a "drive." is
it not equally such to raise and kill
THE SPRINGFIELD WKEKLY REPUBLICAN: THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 10. 1910.
1 poultry fed from the hand? In the I'nifcil
States everything lias been free and open
| with what result: Game of every size
■ and description almost exterminated, and
' too late lie arc seeing the error of our
: Mil v- and making stringent bitvs, alrttidy
I nint h grumbled ahonr. No. the man who
! tinds fault with ids neighbors bail last
l "Stop, look and listen” in sport, as in other
| matters lest he may have overlooked good
j reasons.
The mark XVatch.
i do not want to tome to an end with
out one other mention of the part tin*
dukes of Atholl have taken in history.
Everywhere since coming to the Highlands
I have been noticing posters about the
Kinck Watch and recruits being wanted.
Who or what the Black Watch might lie
1 was quite .as ignorant as was a very
"modern" young Englishwoman xvith whom
1 was discussing novels when I asked her
if she cared for Trollope, and got for
reply, "What is troliope?” What is the
Black Watch? I asked of all who seemed
likely to know, and for reply received
the surprised and somewhat hesitating an
swer. ' rite Black WatchV Why—it's just
the Black Watch.” bo it is, and enshrined
with pride in tile hearts of all true High
landers. and little do they reek how the
name came, or why they wear the “red
hackle" in their bonnets, or any other of
the small customs which are swallowed up
in the great and glorious fact of their
being. Not so to me, however, and failing
in getting my questions answered other
wise I sought refuge in hooks, and dis
covered much.
The Black Watch was originally an in
dependent company of Highlanders, "raised
by their chief. John 11, earl of Atholl,
under a commission of Charles 11. clad by
him in their native dress, and maintained
by the state.” The name was given them
to distinguished them from the guardsmen,
or "Red Soldiers,” as, in contrast to the
red coats they, even with their plaids,
which are dark blue and green, appeared
almost black en masse. In early days so
lawless was the Highlander considered
that even educated people are said to have
believed that they killed their prisoners,
and “sucked their blood after the manner
of other savages.” but though undoubtedly
often in those days a source of mischief,
their fine qualities have been turned to
good account in the service of their coun
try. and the Highland regiments, as every
one knows, have often saved the day m
battle by their splendid courage. Led by
their pipers, the scream of the pibroehs,
added to their savage attacks, has proved
a source of terror to many an enemy, and
secured irresistible victory. So independent
were the Black AVatch in their early days
they were vastly annoyed at being sent
down to Englaiid, protesting that they
had volunteered only to serve in their
country. A story is told that a small com
pany' of them being asked to display their
skill before the king ar.d he, in his pleas
ure. presenting each with a guinea, they
were incensed and presented the guineas
in their turn to the porter at the gate,
saying that “the king had no doubt mis
taken their character and condition.”
In the war with Napoleon, while in
the Netherlands, as the British retired
upon a village near the Waal, the French
seized two guns which had been deserted
by the cavalry, and the Black AVatch
turned back, charged the enemy, retook
the guns and dragged them in triumph to
the village. For this they were
awarded the “red hackle,” or vul
ture’s plume, to be worn as a badge
in their bonnets. AVhen T visited at
Dunkeld the old cathedral, much of which
is in ruins. I saw there, hanging
against the wall of the restored choir, the
original “colors" of the Black AVatch, a
few bits of faded blue and rose-colored
satin, sewed on gauze to preserve them.
Among the folds can still be seen, em
broidered in gold, the names Waterloo.-
Corunna, Egypt, Pyrenees, Fnentes d'Onqr:'
and no doubt there were many others hid
den or perhaps torn away in battle, for
the 42d Highlanders, ns they have since
been gloriously known, have taken a prom
inent part in almost every great battle
since their inception in 1667.
It was at Corunna, I think, under the
very eyes of Sir John Aloore, where in
a case of hesitancy about orders, some
one shouted, “Come on, you can't do
wrong to follow the 42d!” There are
many such anecdotes to be told, but I
dare say you are not as ignorant about
the 42d as I was about the Black AVatch.
To most of what I have learned I am
indebted to the marchioness of Tulli
bardine’s history, which is almost of too
local a character to penetrate across the
ocean, even to a booklover, but its chap
ters on the Black Watch are inspiring
reading, and are as much as history can
ever be the real work of the author, not
simply edited by her. A picture in this
book of the regiment in South Africa,
where so many are left forever on the
lonely veldt, is most amusing, as it por
trays the Highlanders in tribulation ford
ing a Rtream. when, with accouterments
and kilts, they appear to have as much
anxietv, big warriors that they are, as
any girl in petticoats.
At Dunkeld cathedral there is, besides
the “colors,” a monument to the “mem
ory of officers and privates of the Black
Watch who fell from their creation to
the close of the Indian Mutiny in 1859,”
and also a very ancient tomb to the "AVolf
of Badenoch.” so ancient I . have been
quite unable to discover who he was or
what he did. Underneath these, tradition
says, lie the bones of St Columba, who
founded an abbey here which flourished
for centuries. It was what the eustodian
called the "Cuidee chu’ch,” a faith, or
sect rather, which I have since learned
was a Rpmati Catholic one. not, however,
recognizing the authority of the pope, and
which has died out since many cen
turies. The abbey and the sect are, I
believe, undoubted facts, hut the “tra
dition" had best not be inquired into. Al.v
researches have led me to conclude that if
one wishes to believe a legend one must
not tie too curious. Dunkeld is beside
Alaobeth's country, but he must wait for
another letter. Princess.
SENATOR TREADWAY SEES LIGHT
And Set* Iflmself flight on fin Im
portant Public Matter.
Senator AUen T. Treadway of Stock
bridge and the Berkshire. Hampshire and
Hampden district, president of the state
Senate, deserves credit for coming: out
clearly on the right side in a hitherto j
disputed matter, as will appear in the i
following letter sent by him to Joseph i
Lee of Boston and the Massachusetts
civic league. Mr Lee gives the letter to
the public, as follows:—
Dear Mr Lee: After carefully reading your
argument made before the highway r<»tmni*-
siou at the hearing that It granted on October
20, I have changed my opinion regarding the :
law. and am now convinced that the statute
which allows a private citizen the right to re
move certain signs upon highways is n
proper provision of law. I trust the report to
be made by the highway commission will rc !
suit In the adoption of a uniform system of :
signs, giving tho traveling public such Jnfor- I
matiott as to localities, distances or safety !
' as they nm.v be entitled to receive, but in no i
way allowing such sign* to be a defacement ;
of natural scenery or a source of advertising.
| No one 1* more interested than I In the re
tention of the natural attractions of our
; state, and no one would be more loath to sac
rifice any features of It to commercialism. 1
will gladly co-operate in any way I can with
I your organization to this end. Very truly
| yours, AM.bn T. T&badwav.
A nmn who had been living at a Mills
hotel in New York went into n public
library and asked for a hook on electricity
and one on metallurgy* He t<>ok them to
;< table at the rear of the room, uml the
librarian soon noticed that he was tearing
pages from the books and sliding them
under a newspaper. In the night court
the man said he had sjolfii pages.. n»n*;
mining information that would assist him
in getting a Job. He wu* sent to the work*
houM* for 1U day*
VISITING THE YOSEMITE VALLEY.
DETAILED COST OF THE TRIP.
' Traveler Who Tells of Things
s *‘ r niliiKly intitosftible to Learn oh
th«* Other < oattt.
[Written by Wai.iki. IT Adams for The
Ketmhik'iui.l
If you are in San Francisco, and some
friends say to you. “Why don’t you drop
over and see the Yosemite valley?” don’t
drop! Yqii cannot “drop over” and see
tile Yosemite; it is not a to he done
op in a day. When 1 was leaving El
Portal I met a man who had come down
j from Sail Francisco to see the valley. He
had ridden from San Francisco on a train,
: having a t 8.20 in the morning, and at 7
i o’clock in the evening he had reached El
f ortal. which, as its name suggests, is
the portal of wonderland. This man
thought he was going to he able to do
tin* whole of the Yosemite trip in 24
j jours, and In* was much astonished when
I told him of my trip and the time it
hail taken me to go through the valley,
and hurry as 1 did. My own trip was
unsatisfactory because I could not stay
longer, and my experience in endeavoring
to find out thd time necessary to see the
valley, and the approximate cost of the
trip, leads me to write this article for
the benefit of others \ylio may wish to go.
The circulars and printed matter gen
erally relating to the Yosemite trip con
tain a great deal of valuable information
about proper clothing lo take along, and,
very properly, a description of the prin
cipal attractions of the valley; but they
do not contain, and 1 could not find out
in railroad ticket offices and other places,
the information that 1 wanted about the
trip, which seems to me to be the very
information that every traveler going to
the valley would like to obtain. For pur
poses of illustration, therefore, we will
assume that the traveler has arrived at
San Francisco and is going to visit the
Yosemite valley. He can go from San
Francisco at night, leaving before 10 p. m.
in regular Pullman sleeping-cars, which
are hauled from Merced over the Yo
semite Valley railroad to El Portal, land
ing him there in the morning about 7.30.
At Del Portal hotel he cau get breakfast,
and then he is ready for the stage trip
to the valley itself.
The stages are strong, heavy, tour-horse,
open Concord coaches, driven by experi
enced drivers, and it is a noticeable thing
about the stage service throughout the val
ley that the drivers have been employed
in this work for long periods, some of
them serving over 25 years. The distance
from El Portal to the floor of Yosemite
valley is about 12 miles, and the traveler
is landed at the Sentinel hotel after an
interesting drive, at about 11.30 a. in.
Here he is set down in the very center
of the valley. Looking from the front of
the hotel, he sees Sentinel Rock and Half
Dome, and if- he passes around to the
veranda of the hotel, he tinds the Merced
river flowing beneath, and. looking acros#
the valley, he sees, in all its glory, the
magnificent falls of the Yosemite, flanked
by high peaks, and below, at the left, the
wonderful, white, gleaming mass of sheer
rock called El Capitan. The round trip
from San Francisco to Sentinel hotel, in
cluding railroad and stage fare, but not
including Pullman fare, is $22.35.
After the ride down on the train from
San Francisco at* night and the ride up
the valley in the forenoon, the traveler
is well contented to spend the afternoon
and night at the Sentinel hotel, where ho
can get good accommodations on the
American plan at $4 a day, or more if
he wishes extra accommodations. He can
spend the afternoon delightfully in short
walks about to the points of Interest near
to the hotel, or he efin spend it most sat
-ijfactorily in contemplating the wonderful
scenery which is alV"aboat him.
After a night’s j?|e'ep and a breakfast,
he is well if. his time is limited
as mine was, to go on; and the next step
in the journey s is 1 'r&. proceed to Glacier
Point and r This trip will cost
Slo, and includes the stage and mule-back
trip to Glacier* Point and the stage drive
from Glacier Point to Wawona. the stage
trip to the big trees;at Wawoha,. and the
stage trip back from Wawona to the val
ley, for it must be remembered that the
Yosemite valley is a pocket, and, like anv
other pocket, you have .to go out the same
wav you go in.
Therefore the traveler leaving Sentinel
hotel in the morning proceeds at first bv
stage until he comes to the trail; there
he mounts a safe, sure-footed mule for
the trip up out of the valley on the trail io
Glacier Point. This is perfectly safe and
easy, even for those unaccustomed to the
saddle. By this method you reach Glacier
Point before noon, and you have time be
fore luncheon to zee the magnificent view
from Glacier Point, which is admittedly
the one view of the Talley which no trav
eler should miss. After a satisfactory
luncheon at the little hotel at Glacier
Point, which costs SI, the traveler hoards
the stage and reaches AVawona after a
drive through a magnificent forest of what
we in the East would call big pine trees,
but to which the adjective “big” cannot
be applied, as that is reserved in the
A'osemite country for the giants in the
Mariposa grove. A'ou reach the hotel at
” awona in time for a 8 o’clock dinner,
and in this comfortable tavern, which has
been kept for so many years by those two
j fine old A'ermonters, the Washburn broth
j ers. you pass the night.
Now. if you have to hurry, as I did,
you ran set up very early in the morninit
and drive up to the Mariposa strove. It
is eight miles from the hotel. You ran get
hack to the hotel in time, for an early mid
day meal, and at 11.45 a. m. take the
stage which will carry you hark into the
\osemite valley and out to El Portal. The
sls which you paid for vour ticket at the
Sentinel hotel pays all your traveling ex
penses bark to the valley, and vour return
ticket is good from the valley to K 1 Portal
and thence by rail to Han Francisco. pre
suming that you are ftoing hack to that
city. By doing as I did. you will get to
El Portal in time for a late dinner, and
then yon ran take the train that evening
and he back in San Francisco the follow
ing morning. But to one who is not in
surh a hurry as I unfortunately had to
be. another day can he spent at Wawona
By taking this extra day you do not.
have to get up at 5 o'clock in the morning,
but can take a more leisurely breakfast,
nnd after that you take the stage and go
to the big trees, have your luncheon there,
and spend several hours in inspecting
these great giants of the forest, of which
there are two groups, known as the lower
and the upper groves. If you take this
extra day at Wawona. you leave at 1] 30
a. m. the next day. and reaeh El Portal
about dpi in. The Wawona hotel is also
moderate in its charges, and is managed
on the American plan at $4 a day. So
11 is seen that at least four days should
lie allowed for even n hurried trin through
the 1 osermte valley, nnd the idea that
j you can “drop over" nnd see it is all
| wrong.
J Indeed, the fnrtnpate person who does
I not have to hurry through Yosemite. hut
who can spend at the Sentinel hotel at
j " iiwona and at Glacier Point davs
| enough to take in all that lliev offer
I in the wav of attractive trips, is to he
j congratulated. It waa my misfortune that
I had to do the valley in the hurried
American manner." hut even that hurried
trip, which took me four days, is an ex
perienee which no one can forget, nor will
lie ever regret the time nnd the monev
lie spends. There is nothing like it in the
world, nnd after seeing it one niny well
tom in tho chorus, “800 your own oountfv
first.
PI.AVIXi < MESS BV WIHKIiBSB.
Voxel Entertainment In I rml need by
Two I,oral Ainntetirs.
The past week litis seen the introduction
; of a pew pastime for the loesj wifeless
’ cmlmsinsis.- K. <l. r.dlhis us X 5« I rri.sit
I street and .1, p. Hahn of IlKl Pearl street
liu this city who bav« devised
a Way to plat; ' chess by wire
loss. They have hit upon a new way of
designating the moves of the various pieces
which greatly facilitates the plaviug of
the game. This was nrompjished by num
bering the squares of the board, from 1
to 6-t. Narrow strips of paper wen pasted
along one set of the lines that divide the
squares. Then, beginning at the left hand
corner with 1. each square was designated
h.v the next consecutive number continu
ing ftr-ross the eight squares of the board
and retitniinpagain to the left end and pro
ceeding similarly with the next row. In
playing the game when it is desired to
move a piece from one square to another
the number of the square on which it
is resting is given, followed by the number
of tile square to which it is desired to lie
moved. In this way tile moves are made
clear without the necessity of naming the
pieces or squares. Appropriate abbrevia
tions are used for the various terms of
chess such as "check, castling, etc.” This
plan lias been proved successful in actual
operation by its originators.
IRISH DANCING COMPETITION.
Oxer 1500 People Attend Fels In
Hibernian Hall In this City.
Irish jigs and reels proved a greater at
traction at the Irish feis and aonach than
the singing contests and story-telling of
the preceding nights, and Hibernian hall
was filled with a crowd of over 1500 Thurs
day night to watch the contesting dancers.
Every available seat in the building was
pressed into service and on the main floor
and in the galleries all the space was oc
cupied. This large attendance was. per
haps, due to the fact that old Irish dances
are easier to appreciate and understand
than the Gaelic tongue in xvhieh the reci
tations. stories and songs were given. The
reels and jigs as given by the contestants
were stately and dignified forms of danc
ing. and not, as might be supposed, rough
and mirth-provoking. Con AlcAuliffe with
his Irish bagpipes gave lively and good
old Irish dance music that made many a
one in the audience long to shuffle his
feet.
Jigs were done by James Clohessy of
Springfield. James Cahill of Charlestown.
Alichael Kennedy of Springfield and Ali
ehael Callahan of Springfield. Mr Cahill
wore an Irish costume and met with much
applause for the skill with which he danced.
Emily O'Donovan and Bridie O'Donovan,
who were down on the program for jigs,
did not make an appearance. Three teams
furnished a lively contesr and an interest
ing exhibition in dancing four-hand reels.
Aliss Mary Fitzgerald. Aliss Catherine Fen
ton. Miss Mary Aloriarty and Aliss Johanna
Fenton formed one team and were attractive
in Irish court costumes and danced grace
fully. Another team was made up of Ali
chael Callahan. Daniel O'Connell. Miss
Alary Fitzgerald and Aliss Mary Sayers.
The third team was composed of William
O'Neil, T. Shea. Aliss Minnie Aloriarty and
Aliss Kate Fenton. The judges were Fionan
McColuim. James Gloster and John Shea.
Air McColuim characterized the jigs as
“step dances” and the reels as "figure
dances.” The jigs were done with graceful
movements of the arms, bodies and feet.
The old Irish dances. Air McColuim
stated, were dying out and were being
replaced by xvaltzes and other modern
dances, but since the Gaelic league be
gan its work the Irish dances have be
come popular and are now taught iu ail
the dancing schools of Ireland. The fol
lowing are some of the Famous old Irish
dancing airs which Con AlcAuliffe played
upon his bagpipes: “Nora Creene” (with
greatest variations!. “The Rambler from
Tralle,” "The Divil among the tailors.”
"The song of Paddy Whack” and “Tail.v
ho. to the grinder.” The prize winners
for all the contests were announced Fri
day evening.
ADDRESS ON LAW ENFORCEMENT.
Rev F. E. Tower of Albany Tells of
Work of law and Order League,
The regular Sunday morning service at
the Massachusetts agricultural college
this week was held in the chape! at
9.15. President Butterfield introduced
as the speaker, Rev F. E. Tower
of Albany. N. \\. the founder and
superintendent of the law and order
league in New York state. Air Fowler
said in part: I found in conjunction with
several friends that in New York state
the enforcement of the law and the pre
servation of order was of vital importance.
It was a question in the minds of the
people. The people were beginning to de
spair. Liquor men and others had trampled
on the law with impunity for many years
and all efforts toxvard reform had been
unavailing. But if 1 were to ask you what
would ultimately become of the country*
if this state of affairs grew and continued
I know that you would admit that it would
be the downfall of the nation. Government
is not a set of laws, it is their enforce
ment. or a school is not effective by virtue
of the teacher's rules, but by virtue of
the obedience she obtains to these rules.
Thus gentlemen we are dealing with a
question of first-class importance.
I have followed this line of work for
12 years in New York state, and never
in all that time have I found a town
where the liquor men did not break the
lav. I speak of them especially because
they up the worst offenders, hut there
ire ■ there. Towns which had gone oo-
ItcMise went back to license be
cause. they said. “Selling goes on the
same in either case.” However, should
these people give up in despair thus?
No, it can be stopped. The gov
ernment gives us the laws to govern our
selves and we are responsible if we are
trampled on by maldoers. T took as my
headquarters. Air Tower said. Poughkeep
sie. and in that section the invariable an
swer to my question if I would succeed
nr not was. “You can’t." Now "can't"
is no word for a live man. a patriot or a
reformer, (hit off the "t” and go ahead.
.Men said: "The liquor men are too strong.
Vttssar college was built on beer, liquor
men control the town, county and state
courts, and people will not contribute mon
ey enough fur you to live on." But here
I am to-day. They gave me money for
my work and men to help me. To-day
I have from four to eight men employed
constantly. Then they said, you ain't
get indictments. Imt I have obtained 177
from 16 counties. But even then the
pessimists declared, you can't get con
victions. I have gotten 93 convictions,
with tines imposed of $9500, in four years.
Where arc those “cant's"? You can't
break their political machines, they pro
tested. hut we have broken them, pulver
ized them for good in many cases. Gen
tlemen. throw out that word can't, I hate
it. Remember the motto, “They can that
think they ran,” and you will find that in
the end those on the Lord's side are in
the majority. Yes, we can, I say, but now
how ?
Two things arc necessary. First the
good must co-operate like their evil con
spirators. They have local, county and
state organizations, and we must have the
same. T binL of die state of our country
where organizations are formed to nullity
the law. Next select the proper basis for
your campaign. The county is the right
basis. The people of one town fail to get
conviction* of good evidence because the
district attorney cannot risk his neck lor
a few of those who elected him. and the
liquor men control lie jury lists. But if
alt the county people unite there will be
no sidestepping of attorneys or juries
either.
M.v methods of procedure is to interest
and enlist all the Christian voters in tho
; county, hut speaking throughout the coun
ty. Then a convention is held of those
interested, and they sign documents show
ing their connection with the fight. They
are organized into a lan and order league,
mid the rest is comparatively easy. To
illustrate, f once obtained coninieVe evi
dence of illegal sale of liquor, and took it
to Lite district aitoruey. He said when 1
first clinic in. "I hope you haven't come to
throw that load tin me." but when I
showed him a roll of over 1200 signatures
of men iu iiis enmity backing me up he
immediatel) 1 melted and convicted the
: cases. Mr Tower exhibited a roll of names
t the length of the chapel floor, containing
j over 12110 names, to illustrate what lie put
up to the attorneys.
Mr Fowler said the convictions of this
case astonished Ihe whole state and "broke
the ice” for o f tier victories. We obtained 04
indictments. .”.2 convictions aud three men
in jail, am) the next election every saloon
in the county was voted out. At the end
of the year the liquor men combined to de
feat the prosecuting attorney of that case,
but we backed him up in his election cam
j paign ns we did in his prosecution and gave
I him another term. If we line up against
! the evil combines and neutralize bad votes
w ith good ones we can win. I might men
tion. in passing, that last November seven
more counties went dry in New York state.
Lastly, gentlemen, I have one profound
conviction in connection with such work,
and the case I have just cited is character
istic of all the counties, and that is this;
AVe should educate the school children in
regard to their duties as a citizen to their
community and their state and teach them
Ihe sacredness of citizenship, the sacredness
of the ballot and the wrong in selling their
votes. These doctrines are far too scantily
touched upon in our public schools. We
should educate the children to know what
their duty would he if they should hold
public office and instill in them the sacred
ness of public trust. Think of the foreign
children especially. Our salvation in the
future depends on these teachings being lead
to our children. Alen constitute the gov
ernment, and only men knowing and realiz
ing their duties to this government can
rule successfully."
STRIKES NOW AND LONG AGO.
Interesting Fnets mill Reflections
From the Sngp of Deerftelrl.
To the Editor of The Republican: —
History repeats itself. In a late number
of The Republican 1 read an item giving
an account of a labor disturbance iu Alan
chester, Eng., which was threatening seri
ous trouble to the workingmen and the
citizens generally.
Five minutes later 1 happened to take
up another paper, and found another item
oil the same subject. This was the North
ampton Mercury, a weekly newspaper
printed in England July 23.'1753. I send
you this item as being of social and his
torie interest, applying to the conditions
now as well as then. The slice! from
xvhicb I copy is an original issue. It was
sent to the Pocumtuck valley memorial
association by the present editor of tin*
Mercury. W. W. Hadley, through Itev
R. E. Birks. secretary of our association
It has been well cared for in the office of
the Alertur,v for 157 years. The paper is
perfectly preserved and clean; the ink all
that could be desired. In appearance the
newspaper of to-day would suffer in com
parison.
In The Republican we read:—
The federation of master cotton spinners at
Manchester, Eng., yesterday refused to en
tertain the revised terms of a compromise
proposition suggested by George ltanken
Askwith. controller-general of the commer
cial labor and statistical department of the
hoard of trade, aud accepted bv the opera
tives. Accordingly the lockout of l.'io.coq men
continues. Much disappointment is fell, as
the indications Sunday night were that' Air
Askwith had found a Way out of the un
fortunate situation. I
The Mercury of 1753 says:—
Mam-better. July 6. butt Week the Jour
neymen llonfe-Carpeuteis and Joiners here
left their Work, and oliftiuatelv pvertft not
to return again, except their Matters aug
ment their Wages: and this Morning the
Bricklayers and Labourers followed their
Example. A great Number of them were
this Afternoon before Jiiftlce Birch, who
earueftly requested them to return to Work,
till the next Quarter .Sessions for the com
mon Wages; and then the Bench of Juftlces
would take that Affair under conflderation;
But they were not in the |e«ft fatisfled with
what the jufttce said: so that Budding Is at
present entirely suspended In tills Place.
Tile old, old question seems to be. as ram
pan; in Manchester in Blip as in 1753.
The same question aud the same exhibi
tion of human nature appear.
So file appeals of Mr Birch au'd Mr
Askwith were equally unavailing. Eight
score years have not changed the condi
tion of affairs at AlauchCster, for the spirit
of the-strike and the lockout are identical
The strife for tlie mastery between capital
and labor still continues, regardless of riie
rights of a third party, the long-suffering
public, and I fear it will continue until
human nature gets a new tailor, who will
clothe it in garments of a different char
acter.
■The strike and unrest nt Manchester in
lino was not confined to that town. There
are other items in the Northampton Mer
cury bearing on the same subject. It
spenks of a riot in another town, which
"as only suppressed by calling out the
militia and actual bloodshed In another
place there was a rising and wanton de
struction of property on account of the
high price, of provisions. But how this
proceeding was to lower the price does
not appear. In another case a rieii man
was charged with causing a rise in me
price of corn. This was done by buying
up the crop, grinding it in his mill, and
exporting it. This was stopped bv a
tumultuous mob of his brawny fellow,
citizens, men and women. Hundreds of
men stood on the banks of the mill stream
and cheered while hundreds of women tore
down the mill dam. Thij everlasting fric
tion between capital and labor is signally
out of place. Each is absolutely interde
pendent on the other. Capita! is of little
value without labor. A ton of gold was
worth no more to Robinson Crusoe than a
ton of rook or sand. On tin* other hand,
thousands with the stoutest brawn would
fall by the way and starve in the fattest
land lacking the guidance of brain. Cap
ital and labor, brain and Ifrawn must and
will eventually work together in harmony.
Hasten the glad day!
May we not hope that an age, which in
physical science has spanned the enormous
space from Franklin to Marconi, will bring
forth a genius who shall evolve from the
heart of humanity some scheme of profit
sharing which shall harmonize the interests
of both capital and labor, do euuai justice
to all concerned, nnd so give birth to the
millennium in thg industrial world. With
the same brain to contrive and the same
brawn to execute there must he peace and
prosperity for nil on both sides of the
Atlantic. The generation of to-dnv should
learn something from the man who lias
accumulated his millions. He is no kid
glove milksop and idler. He has a big.
busy brain. He is industrious and per
sistent. His wages are not poured guzzling
down bis throat or sent puffing into the
air. or even spent on a summer vacation.
He is not howling for short hours and lias
lUf time for lazy lounging. He finds tile
uj&st profitable employment in the cultiva
tion of hi* savings. The young mun of to
day who seeks to emulate this mail's
career will eventually make good provided
he has pluck and perseverance.
1 have been speaking of the man who
acei mulates. The man who inherits his
wealth belongs to another and different
class. Some their be who call money
getting and money-saving "low business!"
Who are these criticsV Are they pro
duct rs? Have they ever done anything to
increase the wealth of the community'/
Are not those who make this point apt to
he drones nnd hangers-on in the com
munity? Are they sufe advisers? Is it
not the high duty of every one to provide
for tlie future so that in his declining
years he may retain the respect of the ptib
lb and his own self-respect bv subsisting
upon his own store rather than on the
fruits of another's labor.
Deerfield, October 25, Iff JO, n. s.
THE CONVENTION SHOULD GO.
To the Editor of The Republican:--
Your editorial on "Money in Connecticut
polities" is calculated to set a .Connecticut
man to thinking. It is not to he aup posed
that human nature in Connecticut differs
froth human nature in another state. No
dob lit there is buying and selling votes
in all the stages more or* less. The state
convention is chiefly obnoxious as present
ing a tempting field for the exercise of (Ids
particular game in polities. No more eap-
itnl device could have been invented for
the Vanity Fair it has turned out to lie.
The convention is a sufficiently undemo
cratic idea to justify its condemnation. It
invites the degradation.of politics by the
secrecy it offers to the corrupt use of
money. There is no security the lenders
in it will be men w ith a single eye to the
good of the people. They may be selfish
men of no principle. We cannot hope for
purity iu politics so long as the convention
continues to offer a field for traffic in
voles. The remedy is the abolition of the
convention. It should go into the scrap
heap of antiquated politics to be known
no more in our American life. How then
shall we find our candidates for office?
Ihe primary vote is our salvation. Let
every man have a voice in tlieir selection.
There is no representative here, appointed
by those who stny at home, who may sell
Jus vote. Each man has only to express
his own choice. This eliminates the con
vention, that banc in American polities.
It restores the spirit of democracy and is
a safeguard for purity in tile political life.
T he whole force of those who are in pol
itics for what they can make out of it will
oppose this purification. These will quit
a party that tries to lift up an ideal. They
cannot sec jt, for their eyes are always
bent on the earth. Such a party will ae
comphsh its mission better without them.
Hartford, Xovembcr ,i. 1910.
SOMETHING Mlll| T SHOIIDY.
Mr George Represented ns For From
the Truth.
To the Editor of The Republican
It is with astonishment and regret that
I find you quoting with approval the fol
lowing extract from a stump speech by
Henry George. Jr.:—
How is shoddy made? It is made hr taking
old woolen clothes, bundles of rags gath
ered from ash cans and everywhere, putting
them into a grinder and reducing them to "
dust. Then the manufacturer makes a pa«p»
of the dust, and he takes cotton and blows
the paste info it until the cotton looks tike
wool. And ns you wear your shoddy suit the
wool wears off. leaving the cotton, and the
first rain shrinks it up.
Shoddy is not made by reducing rags io
dust. The manufacturer does not make a
paste of wool dust and blow it into cotton.
The shoddy in cloth does not wear off.
leaving the cotton to he shrunk by- the
rain. Wool and shoddy are more likeh ! 1
sltrink by being wet. than is cotton. The
fact is tile extract quoted by you from
Air George's speech is about what we
expect aud would laugh at in a school
composition by a child of in years.
Shoddy is reclaimed w nil, and if wool
xvt-ro not reeiaimod -and used over again
aud again and still'again, and then some
more, human life in tonioerate and mil
climates would in- impossible on anything
like the present scale. This will he’ math*
evident to you by the fact that if all the
wool grown in the world were niauiif.o
tlived into pure wool doth, it would yield
annually about 13 ounces of cloth; or a
piece 35 inches square of a medium weight
fabric for . each person living outside of
tin* tropics, if that fact were impressed
on liic minds of the American people
Henry George. Jr., would be hooted when
he gave his explanation of how shoddy is
made, and there would i«> a rush to erect
a monument to the discoverer of the
actual process.
This process of reclaiming tdd> wool con
sists in tearing old cloth and yarn apart
so as lo reduce it lo a fibrous mass suit
able for reworking into doth. If the oid
• huh or yarn is soft twisted and made
of long wool, tlie reclaimed wool is. longer
and in every way better for making clotn
(ban much of the wool that conies directly
from the sheep's skin. such, for example,
as shearings stripped from sheepskins,
wool of*four months' growth, etc.
Alost of tile misunderstanding about wool
shoddy arises from the colloquial use of
the word "Shoddy” as meaning not gen
uine. sham, pretentious. The French and
the Germans escape this confusion by giv
ing reclaimed wool names in accordance
with tile truth. The former call it lain -
renaissance, regenerated wool: tjie latter,
ktinstwolje, artificial wool.
Schedule K. the wool and wool goods
tariff, needs revision, hut that necessary
work is: thwarted by the absurdly ignorant
statements -such as you quote from Henry
George. Jr., for such statements give the
opponents of honest revision a longed-for
opportunity to ridicule and discredit the
work of real reform. Before Air George
discusses further the wool and wool goods
tariff and schedule K lie should spend a
few weeks or months in woolen and wor
sted mills studying the facts, in order that
he may be able to instruct others. He
may. as he asserts, "adhere to the prin
ciples of his father, believe in free trade
and in a single lax with his lust breath."
but he certainly has departed far from the
practice of his father, which was to de
termine the truth before he attempted to
expound it. In conclusion 1 want to sug
gest that no journal is better situated for
putting Air George on the right track as
regards the manufacture of. wool goon
than your own. owing to vouf convenient
access to mills in which that 'ndnstry is
carried on. Samuel S. Dale.
Boston. Xovembcr ■i. 19,10.
SUPERVISION OF SECURITIES.
Hadley's I oil!mission will I’rofinMy
ReKin Hearings on the 28th.
Vital ']liestinns concerning the issues of
stocks and bonds by all the railroads en
gaged in interstate commerce will be in
vestigated by the railroad securities oni
mission, which will begin « series of public
I'Miring* at Washington, probably on the
28th The Washington hearings will oe
held in offices just established in the Sen
ate office building, attached to tne Capitol,
hud other hearings mat lie held itt several
of tin- larger cities at dates to be deter
mine.’ later. The commission was created
m der provisions of section It! of the rail
road tiili passed near the close of the iast
session of ('engross. 11 i s headed by Pres
ident Hadley of Yale university, who lias
been abroad studying European conditions.
V.. E Griswold is secretary.
The commission has been actively col
lecting data, and Saturday announced its
readiness to receive information from all
persons in a position to furnish factß of
values. Tiie matters to be investigated
relate primarily to flie advisability of fed
eral regulation of the issue of bonds and
stocks of interstate railways, the method
nnd extent of such regulation and the ex
periences of tlie various states. The wovk
of the commission involves consideration
of matters that will result in recommenda
tions to Congress.
ROYAX SLAUGHTER OF GAME.
l r.nr "Hunt*’' In the Sew Preserve of
■he Knlser.
Emperor Nicholas hunted Saturday in
Emperor William's new game preserve
near Oranienhurg, -’ll miles northeast of
Potsdam. A battalion of soldiers with
foresters had assembled some 1.100 deer,
hare and other four-footed game within
an enclosure and from which the animals
were driven out Snturda.v past a tine of
platforms concealed by pine branches, and
upon which the troynl party nnd 22 other
court hunters had taken positions ready
for the killing. Emperor Nicholas was
permitted the first shot. Early Saturday
the forest was thoroughly searched bv
troops to make sure that it contained no
one whose presence was unauthorized.
There lias been much interest in the dis
covery or tlie mummy of Monephtah. the
Egyptian pharaoh who with his horsemen
nnd eluuiots pursued the Israelites and
whose host, according to the hook of Exo
dus. was destroyed in the Red sea. The
discovery of the nimvimv hits no hearing
on the .aptbruticity of he biblical strtrv,
a*-It is noi Stated "ill lire'-Bible that the
| king himself lost Iris life when tlie waters
rushed together after being parted to admit
I the paezing of Moaee and the Israelite*.