Evening star. [volume], July 02, 1898, Page 14, Image 15

About Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972

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-There are lots of peopU- wbo^o* their
patriotism in eating. or at
thev order to eat." ^
a popular restaurant to For
"whu do not show it in an> ? which
Instance, take the Spanish mackwel. which
has always been In d.-mar.d for breakfasts.
Now. as a matter of fact, what ? known as
a Spanish mackerel is csughtonly inAmer
ican waters, and is as rruch an American
fch as rock fish. sea trout or any other Kind
of fish, t.ut since the war opened up there
Is no rail for ?? ?"<! the taste for U feM"!
to have been lost simply because it was
called Spanish mackerel. The ordinary cus
wmer has got the idea that there is some
thing Spanish about it. and that settles it,
r..r the pr.?ent at least. I have one cus
tomer who shows his patriotism in another
,jv. his meal consisting of Maryland bis
cuits. Boston baked beans and corn beef
ai.i cabbage, Virginia style. Sometimes he
comblnis several other states up in his
meal."
*****
??The strangest cure for hemorrhages
trom the lungs that I ever heard of. and
which has proved itself to me to be the
most effectual, was presented to me recent
ly," said a War Department clerk to a Star
reporter, "and though I had but littla confi
dence in it, I tried it and it has worked
wonders. With that view. I think I may be
doing others good to make it public. My
?wifi had been seriously ill for several
-weeks with a lung trouble; indeed, so much
so that her life was despaired of. Our phy
sician had uaed the remedies of his profes
sion. but somehow they had failed. I * as
talking of my wife's illness in a grocery
store in the eastern part of the city, when
a colored woman told me of what she re
garded as a miraculous cure. I mentioned
the matter to my wife and we tri;d it, and
the result has been that she has not had a
hemorrhage since. The remedy may be in
the category' of faith cures, but that Jo?s
not matter as long as it cures. I am not a
Christian Scientist, but am a believer in the
Bible, and so is my wife. The remedy is to
copy the sixth verse of the slxtsenth chap
ter of Ezekiel?look into your Bible and you
can see what It is for yourself?and then tie
the paper containing the verse up in a bag
and let thj sufTerer wear it around the
neck. I am exceedingly grateful to the wo
man who told me of It. and hope all others
similarly afflicted will try it. I hope also it
will work as well in all cases as it did with
my wife."
*****
"Watch repaiiers have a horror of
touching a clock that has been tinkered by
amateurs," explained a watch repairer to
a Star reporter, "and they would rather
get out of such a Job if they can do so.
for the loss of one of the smallest parts
means considerable work to reproduce It,
and much more work than the general
customer expects or wants to pay for.
They try to get rid of such a Job when
they can. for in nine cases out of ten the
result Is not entirely satisfactory?people
who have a good clock, unless they know
something about the way clocks are made
and how they should be-taken apart, will
do the wise thing to let It alone when it
gets out of order. Experimenting with it
often means the ruin of the clock. It is
absolutely dangerous to try to unwind a
mainspring, as man have discovered for
them^el\ta. unless the proper tools ari
handy. Now a clock repairer has a con
trivance known as a spring controller,
which grasps the spring and holds it.
whiie being taken out or put into the
clock, so that there Is no danger. The
spring lor an eight-day c!ock is otten two
yards li ng, and when suddenly let free It
fiies out with nearly the force of a
charge of shot from a gun. Some time
ago an officer of the signal corps thought
he would tinker his clock. He did tinker
it, and in taking out the main spring it
got away from him. In its (light it took
off a five-dollar lamp from a parlor table
ard crushed in the glass of a twenty-dol
lar mantel mirror, besides doing oth;r
damage. The four-dollar clock cost him
In damage exactly twenty-five dollars, be
sides cutting his hand seriously."
*****
"There is an entire absence of law pro
tecting the army uniforms." observed an
army officer to a Star reporter, "and. pe
culiar as it may seem, it Is not a violation
of law. military or civil, for any unauthor
ised person to wear the uniform of an
officer or soldier. In other words. It would
not violate any law if any one paraded the
streets attired In the full military uniform of
a general, colonel or other officer. In Europe
It is entirely different, and if an unauthor
ized person publicly wore the uniform of
an army or naval officer without authority
he would be gobbled up. stripped of his
military or naval fixings and would have a
long stay In prison for his offense. There
have been a number of efforts in this coun
try in the state legislatures to make it a
Crime to wear the uniform, without prop
er legal authority, of an officer of the state
National Guard or militia, but somehow
they were never crystallized into law. The
offense does not often occur, but should it
happen, and it has happened sometimes,
there is no penalty. Of course. If an un
authorized person committed any offense
agaiiist the law. such as false pretenses,
he would be liable to punishment under the
Coni ral law to prevent frauds. There is a
rass band in New York city each member
of which wears a full general's uniform.
With the stars on the shoulders, and some
of the National Guani of that city tried lo
have It abolished umler existing law. but
they failed to do so. The Orand Army
badge and button, as also the badge of the
Cnion Veteran l-egion and the Regular
Army and Navy I'nioti and of the Mexican
Veterans' Union. ar? protected to some ex
tent by law. in that the regulations of the
army and navy provide that those entitled
to them can w.,-ar them on certain official
?ocasions. but even they are not as fully
protected by law as the* should be. The
game absence of protection, legal protoc
ol R ASM AL
fCcpjrijctit, 1H98, Life Publishing Company )
The Rag!*?"So offense, yard, but this
NGS :HEARD
ip?>q^ei?Hs>
Hon I mean exists In relation to wearing
the 'medal of honor, awarded by Congress,
and it is known that certain persons have
medals of that kind and have worn them
without the authority of Congress. The
bow of the Army Legion of Honor is. how
ever. provided for by law. and it is a viola
tion of law for any unauthorized person to
have or wear it."
* * * * *
"Every time I pcss through the Capitol
and notice the water coolers at the Senate
and House end of the main corridors I am
reminded of the late Senator Preston B.
Plumb of Kansas." observed an old poli
tician to a Star reporter. "There had been
spasmodic efforts every now and then for
over fifteen years to have water coolers
placed on the main floor of the Capitol for
the benefit of strangers and Others vlslftng
the Capitol, but somehow they never suc
ceeded. No one seemed to specially object
to them, but as they never had been there
no one seemed specially enthusiastic about
having them installed. There was always
plenty of ice water in the committee rooms
and other places at the Capitol, and it was
handy enough for persons who were ac
quainted with the building to get a drink,
but it was entirely different with strangers.
If they were thirsty the only way for
them to relieve their thirst was to go to
the restaurants in the building and get
soda water or lemonade. On the theory
that the restaurant people had kept out
public ice coolers, Senator Plumb went to
work, and simple as the proposition ap
peared to be on its face, it required of him
constant agitation for nearly two years be
fore he got his desire granted. He tried
It with a direct bill, but the bill would get
lost in some committee room. As a last
resort he had an amendment put on an
appropriation bill and then had himself
made one of the conferees on the bill. There
were indirect efforts made on him to give
up the idea, but he announced his ultima
tum that if he could not get his ice water
amendment through he would defeat the
entire bill. That settled it. and during the
following recess the necessary pipes were
built In the walls and the connections
made. There is no expense in keeping the
water ice cold, for, according to his own
plan, this is done by running a coil of pipes
through and around the store room in the
basement of the building where the ice for
use in the committee rooms, restaurant,
etc., Is stored."
DIG IK)\V\ DEEP,
Prairie Doica Have Holed That Go to
the Water Level.
"The most interesting thing I have seen
in many a day," said Mr. Harvey Geer of
Lumont, Col., at the Ebbltt a few nights
ago. "was a prairie dog well. Did you ever
see one? It isn't often that achance occurs
to explore the homes and haunts of these
expeditious little inhabitants of the plains.
A few miles from my town a large force of
men has been at work this summer mak
ing a deep cut for a short railroad up into
the mines. A friend of mine is in charge
of the Job, and I went out a week ago to
see him and the workthat had been done.
The first thing that attracted my attention
when I got there was the fact that the cut
was being made through an old alfalfa field
and the roots fringed the sides of the cut
and hung down fifteen to eighteen feet. Up
at the surface of the ground were the stub
bed green plants and reaching down deep
into the earth were the fat, businesslike
roots, getting their living far below where
ordinary plants forage for subsistence.
"But the most remarkable thing was the
prairie dog wells that had been dug Into.
The cut went through a dog village, and
being a deep one?some forty feet?It went
below the town. There has always been a
discussion about where the prairie dog gets
his drink. Some say he goes eternally dry
and does not know what it is to have an
elegant thirst on him. Usually their towns
are miles from any stream and In an arid
country where there Is no surface water at
any time sufficient for the needs of an ani
mal requiring drink. The overland trav
elers back in the days of pioneering used
to find the dog towns out on the prnirie
scores of miles from the streams. There
was no dew, the air was dry as a >>one,
the buffalo grass would be parched br.<wn
and there would be absolutely nothing to
quench thirst. I remember a discussion be
gun thirty years ago In the American Nat
uralist by Dr. Sternberg, now surgson
general, on the subject, and he argued In
favor of the well theory. But there near
Lamont 1? ocular proof of the well theory.
The nest holes of the dogs were five cr six
feet deep, but four or five holes went
straight down as deep as the excavation
| had been made and evidently on into the
water-carrying sand beneath. These holes
appeared to be U9ed by the whole colony
commonly, and were a little larger than
the holes used for their homes."
THE PROOF OF IT.
A Kentucky Regiment Would \ever
Drop Their Canteens.
The war correspondent, who had re
turned from the scene of action In Cuba
or who said he had, was giving the crowd
of listeners a lurid account of a fight he
had witnessed on the skirmish line In the
vicinity of Sevilla. Everybody In the crowd
was taking the story right down without
the least sign of a doubt aB to its absolute
accuracy, until a long, slim party with a
smooth face and a ruffled shirt front be
came an interrogator after the facts.
| "Did I understand you to say It was a
Kentucky battalion that had gone right up
the hill over the brush and rocks In the
very muzzles of the enemy's guns?"
"That's what," asserted the narrator.
"And they threw away their knapsacks
on the first Jump?"
"You bet they did. They didn't want any
handicap in a race like that."
"Then they threw ayay their coatsT"
"Indeed they did."
"And their hats?"
"They went into it bareheaded, like the
daredevils they were."
"And dropped their cartridge belts?"
"Every one of them, and went for the
foe with their cold bayonets."
"And their canteens?"
"Everything. By George, they went Into
the scrap stripped like prize fighters."
The smooth-faced man coughed and
shuffled his chair.
"That's all right." he said, firmly. "They
were not Kentucklans. That's their style
of fighting, but you can bet a farm that
Kentucklans never would have thrown
their canteens away."
Carry Im/g It Too Far.
From Puck.
"I hear that Alfred Austin Is writing a
dirge to the men killed on the Maine."
"Confound him! That's no laughing mat
ter."
CELEBRATION.
A HUNDRED - DOLLAR PIE
One of the beat known "newspaper men
in Washington Is Jim Waters. He was
lure long before the war and has cer
tainly been here a long while since. His
venerable horse and antique green wagon
have been contemporaneous with much of
the history of the capital and have like
wise formed no small part of the same.
Jim and the horse, and probably the wag
on, have known every newspaper corre
spondent and reporter In the city for the
past forty years. All his life Jim has been
gathering information?tons of it at a cent
a pound. To be brief, he deals in old news
papers And he deals also In a good story
row and then.
"I have Just been over to the camp at
Dunn Loring," said Jim this morning to
a Star reporter, "and 1 went over to sec
if there was an opening for any business
In my line. I did a good deal of business
during the war?in several lines. I sold
thousands of your Star extras for twenty
flve cents apiece. That was in the Union
camps. 1 sold hundreds of them In the
southern lines for several times that. And
I sold a good many things beside news
papers. too, I can tell you. For a year
I did a rushing business with an old wag
on that had a false bottom in it. More
than once I was chased by the cavalry on
both sides, but I knew the lay of the land
and I always got away to bob up serenely
somewhere else.
"The best stroke of business X did was
in selling plea in the camps. I got rid of
tons of them and they paid well. Soldiers
seem to like pie better than any other
class of hutnan beings. I suppose It re
minds them of home and mother. Some
of the pies I used to sell them must have
reminded them of their grandmothers.
Now and then the baker couldn't make
pie fast enough to keep up with my trade
and then I had to make them myself. That
was the kind that probably made the boys
think of the old folks at home.
"I think the best customers X had were
the Pennsylvania bucktails. Great Scott!
But they were pie destroyers! Every one
of them stood six feet in his stocking feet
and the way those long-bodied citizens
could put away my goods was a caution.
"I felt sad today when I saw the boys
over at Dunn Loring. They were all mere
children compared with the Pennsylvania
giants. I couldn't make a cent selling pie
in that camp.
"One of the pleasantest recollections I
have of my army experiences was of a
little transaction on a pretty June day
when I sold a plain old custard pie for
the gentle sum of one hundred dollars.
I had disposed of all my stock except this
one old pie that had been around with me
all day. As I was coming across the Long
bridge I met a Jersey artilleryman. He
stopped me and as'<ed me if I had any pies.
At first I was tempted-to tell him I hadn't.
But he lifted the lid of my big basket and
saw the one pie. Then he rammed his
hand deep into his trousers pocket and
pulled out a bill. Grabbing the pie wl'n
one hand he shoved the bill at me and
went on. I called out that there was some
change coming to him.
" 'Oh, go to with your change." was
all the politeness I got for my honesty,
and I took up my basket and went on.
"I hadn't gone far before I looked at the
bill, which up to that time I had supposed
to be a dollar note. To my surprise it was
a one-hundred-dollar bill of the Allegheny |
Bank of Cumberland. That was In tha
last days of the wildcat system of bank
ing. I thought I had been fooled with
some worthless paper, but reconciled my
self with the thought that the pie wasn't
any better than the bill. In fact, I was
sure the pie was bad and there was yet
some donbt about the bill. The next day
I took It to the bank and to my everlast
ing surprise they cashed It for The
Jerseyman had evidently won It at poker
and did not know its value. He probably
thought he was playing a good joke on
me.
"Those were good old times. We shall
never see their like again. Think how Im
possible It would be for anything like that
to happen now."
ONE KIM) OF SIMMER GIRL.
It W?i Her Engagement Ring That
Made Him Shudder.
She was Jaunty of air, with a twisted
cord of the national colors flying from her
white parasol, and she wore a white gown
with a blue sash about her trim waist
and a red bow at her white throat.
It was patriotism and prettiness In most
delirious and delightful combination, and
yet the young man shuddered.
"W.iat's the matter with you?" Inquired
the elderly party with him, whose eyes
were crossed trying to follow the vision of
loveliness around the corner.
"That girl," he responded. "By Jove,
he hurried on to explain, "she beats the
kind of summer girl you read about In the
comic papers. I saw her two days ago and
as early in the season as it is she had on
what she called her summer engagement
ring. It was a cluster?
"Didn't know," interrupted the elderly
party, "that engagement rings came In
clusters. Tiought they were solitaires."
"Not the summer kind," explained the
young man. "A summer girl has so many
engagements, you know, that she has to
wear a cluster ring. See? Well, this one
wears that kind of a one and she has let
patriotism and perverseness and peculiar
ity show Itself In It?not to say a strain
of cruelty no kind of women except flirts
possess. Her ring shows a ruby, dia.
monds and sapphires, the red white and
blue. So mueh for patriotism. For the
sentiment, the diamonds are for the fel
lows who will not or have not gone Ulto
the war: the sapphires are the fellows
who have donned the blue, and the ruby
Is for the one who was killed in some way
since he enlisted. Either shot by the
enemy or killed by aocident, 1 don't know,
for when she told me of it, and turned the
ring my way. I'll be blamed if somehow
It didn't give me the creeps and I couldn't
ask her any more about it," and again the
young man shuddered.
AN EXCEPTION TO THE RILE.
He Wan Not Called tpon to Support
His Wife.
He did not look as If he were composed
of the stuff of which heroes are made,
but there must have ben some of the di
vine afflatus of courage in his system or
he would not have been before the re
cruiting officer seeking to gain admission
into the ranks of those who were offering
themselves as a sacrifice upon the altar of
their beloved country.
"What is your name?" inquired the offi
cer in charge.
"John Smith."
"Your age, Mr. Smith?"
"Forty-three, next October."
"Where were you born?"
"In Indiana."
"Do you reside here?"
"Yes, sir; have for the last ten years."
"Are you married or single?"
"Married."
"Ah. Is that so?"
"Yes, sir."
"Well, you can't enlist?"
"Why not?"
"Because you are married.'"
"What's that got to do with It?"
"Can't take married men into the serv
ice."
"Why not? Hasn't a married man got
courage enough? Can't he be as good a
patriot as a bachelor?"
"I suppose so, but wo can't take mar
ried men. They have to stay at home and
support their wives and families."
The applicant's face gleamed like a sun
rise.
"Oh, that's all right," he laughed easily.
"You needn't worry on that account; my
wife keeps a boarding, house, and has
ever since the second year we were mar
ried."
Dutch Horticulture.
I'rom tbe Loudon Chronicle.
In view dtthe coronation festivities which
will take place at the end oU August and
the commencement of September next, the
Dutch florists are exerting themselves to
grow red. white, blue, and, in particular,
orange-colored flowers, with which to adorn
their country on the great occasion. The
montbretias furnish beautiful oranee flow
ers, with which the royal crown and Ini
tials are traced against the black mold;
and there is a new orange rose, which, at
the suggeation of the Grand Duke of Lux
emburg. has been given the English title
of "Sweet Little Queen of Holland"?a
very pretty and welcome Idea.
inH?r"TOU 8eem e?^-dlstant this even
She?"Well. your chair isn't nailed down."
?Indianapolis Journal.
SAILORS WHO RE-ENLIST
On the day after his enlistment for ?
period of three years the American man
o-wars man begins to figure on the
anaount of time that is to intervene before
his discharge He has two years and a
butt to do. the "butt" being the remain
?Je n months ?nd twenty-nine days of
fi,rl* year- On the day following his
ompletion or the first year of his enlist
ment he has only a year and a butt to get
?^rTK^' N? "V161" lf the butt is only a
Ingle day under! year in length, the blue
Jacket contemplates ^ the term with the
blandest compIafBanti; it is not. at any
rate, a whole year. though it be .164
til*' a^Jhls Pf throttling each
range, Wnen he has put in eighteen
h^m ^ tn enlistment. he breaks out the
dow ^"wli Pennant; he is going
achi?v<^? an^ ?hen be has finally
achiev ed two years and has only the butt
to accomplish. Joy flHs his cup
strictlv* t??a!l?r alway? a 8,111 or" is not
Amfllr f mes-o'-war's men of the
th^m? ?knaVy' ?nIy al>out one-half of
for Rnntw?,h?mptete one enlistment ship
Tor another three-year cruise. But about
nine-tenths of the men who put in two
anc^ln a"'? tjJ a Itfe"lonK continu
years of navy life
vhJS thl 'horou?h'y inoculate them with
n hiLio Germans call wanderlust. When
fn a few of his summers
in the latitude of the .North Cape and a
I *'nters down among the Ber
hl uTiimJ? salubrious South Pacific
mJ! ft? ?- acquire a dislike for the cll
iT-fq mLi ? iUi! States, and this dislike
formi? hi ^ n a!,ythlnK else in
forming his decision to remain in the navy
??e hS tft,er * few years ln the naVy
if ^f^et t?ems t0 become possessed
?n J ,k J that h* I* really doing noth
ing aboard ship to earn his pay?that the
aflTandi f Which he 13 kePt from
at iH*hr i niorning until pipe down
at night Is really not work, and with this
FiISJ1 not,on also acquires an exceed
ingly exaggerated idea of the terrific
Derform ?i grrt"dln? 'abor a man has to
perform in order to gain a livelihood
ashore. Put to a bluejacket who has put
" a couple of naval cruises the direct ques
tion, Areyou going to 'ship over' when
ten"" he^wm and' ,n n,ne cases out of
ten, he will look you in the eye with an
? stuPefactlon and inquire:
work? >0U tMnk I m ffoinK t0 do~
countrv ? ?"*" h?1?* dipped back to this
L a man-of-war are not compelled
!?? 2 ^5 ... "hip's work; they simply
fnH if m'1Uary ealls, eat their meals
and smoke their pipes, watching the while
with lazy happiness fhe daily round of la
??Jh i ? 'ortunate bluejackets at
members of the crew of the ship
on which they themselves are practicauy
ejr8- The overtime men occasional
y emit arrogantly humorous directions to
these temporary shipmates, the ship's com
E boat that is hauling them
hri^hi i,Wan', now' an" ?hlne up that
bright work,, ye long-time swab!" they will
L?U t "i S hand when the officer of
"(jtt ,? . aft and ou't of hearing, and
Uit down to your bunker, ye grimy flat
of?thiandthake ?Ut your coal!" ,s th? kind
heaxsf frnm^hi*" 0f the black gan8r beIow
? 1 pa^ngers" whenever he
to gallant fo\?sle. & P'Pe ?n ,he
Immemorial customs of the
Jt, I to ?ecrB'? in the ditty bag
of the discharged shipmate who is about to
go ashore a can of corned beef, a few po
tatoes and perhaps One or two other ar
ticles of sea food!' This is done in order
ren?lni1 the dUcharged man when he
v,!1 g ^e 4fit in the opinion of
his shipmates he will be unable to earn
enough to eat on land V he takes It into
his head not to ship 'ttVer, and that they
therefore, taken a small measure to
shield him from atatyation with a little
rinv" K^,b *hon ,hp- -has "spent his pay
'"p1barsed men try all sorts of
i 1? ? 'It3 stn?f from being placed
in their bags. but'WvMtheiess they nearly
alwa>s find it theirs vrhfen they get ashore.
THE Hl\8 FROM above.
It Came Read???! for tbe Poverty
Stricken govern.
It was a time ,foi^ Reminiscing, and it
was the reminiscence ,of iove instead of
war" .i t.d. , ., ..
"When I was tw?B?y,y?ars old," said, a
veteran of many dollars. r>l was working
on a farm in Massachusetts not far from
8prlngfleld. where lived a pretty little girl
as poor as I was. the daughter of a Metho
dist minister, with whom I was desper
ately in love. One day. under the shade or
a big tree ln the church yard, I told her
how much there was in my heart and how
little there was in my pocket, and asked
^,rv ? ?.anfy me. She was seventeen and
sui> and she consented on the spot For
an hour or more after that we sat un
fsh" thin?e?wk|n8r ?Ver lh" falr an'l fool
Ian things that lovers dream, when it oc
thl r"u t.hat an engagement ring was
the correct thing for such an occLlmf
began bemoaning the poverty which
presented my getting one for the rteareit
?n earth It was absolutely trul ^o
for 1 really did not have enough monev to
buy a tin ring, much less the only S J
thought Jknie ought to have. Bm Janie
,h CfeJor the rtn?- She said we ought
Providence that we had efch
,u a , et the old ring go. Sho was
but we soon got over that, and as we ^ooL
?? r: Vi7dkzi'7ShB r5
heaven on our sweet^d pure Tove^ fr0m
dropped it*a? a? jo^ "^ut ^ ^ l? have
have reach" usJby 'any ' wafvltotTUld not
from above we proceeded f than
tree. Nothing could s?arch the
ground and I climbed ud tr!!i , J?m the
in the fork a tote ^ hfgh ?n Tr"' ?,VCr
SaA,*sCk??
susrJsH? 3-Sfr
BTAtysskwa!- "?
gra sltssS;?v ?
the ring, the- lady rava ?t ho 8t0ry of
that It was now mine to n ?!Land aaJd
Pleased. She hoped I wo?m? Wlth as 1
those who had been my friend. n?u forKet
no diamonds, and then n 1 had
the lady I had never ?e^h?5 there befor?
the ring on Janie's finger M^kisJi'PhPed
As soon as I had done ?Ko. . u ,Klsse<l her.
'anle. and r!) be .hot^f'
me, too, and as we w?n? i f ^idn 1
tears in her eyes irlistenlr.? iiJ e wero
mond on Janie^ fln|er " ^ iUte the dla"
kxew it- ail.
_Lti L&i
A Veteran Wko Wnnid I'ndertnke to
Coadnet,1 the War.
He claimed to be,!,a veteran of the late
war and went to the White House to tell
the President how Co Whip the Spaniards.
There was some dMibtV6however, that he
had ever been a soldier. He stopped at the
White House door To r^earse his story to
an audience of officials and irreverent
newspaper men. bi 31
"Yea' lhe said, after^drawing himself to
a military pose, "I Heel Itlat I could great
ly aid In the capture at Havana, and the
Preetdent has my alamer under considera
tion for a high position. I know as much
about war as any nan. 1 have been under
tire."' A. :i
"Was the roof of apnt? house you were ip
burning?" blandly-.iiumlred a newspaper
man, who has grown tired of, hearing such
talk from the fellows who know it all.
He frowned slightly at the interruption,
but did, not seem to have caught the
sarcasm of the Question.
"1 have seen men fall as thick as flies. 1
myself led a regiment of (pen against three
regiments of the enemy, and we whipped
them easily. I was always where the bul
lets were thickest?'
"That must have been Under the ammu
nition wagon," said the same irreverent
man. That broke up the party. Several of
the younger men snickered. The speaker
said, "Sir!" and looked fierce. He gathered
himself, walked rapidly away and up the
steps to the business eAee of tho White
House. He Old not get to see the President,
but be worked off his old story on Door
keeper Simmons, who mttl the attack on
Newb^rn*._ .. f
IT WAS A NARROW ESCAPE
A party of newspaper men were talking
the other evening of the shooting of Ed
ward Marshall, the New York correspond
ent, in that Spanish ambuscade of the
rough riders and regulars near Santiago,
and the conversation drifted into the nar
ration of narrow squeaks that some of the
men present had had In the the course of
their newspeaper careers.
"I was about seventy miles from the
point at which I came the nearest to drop
ping out for keeps," said a Chicago man,
"and yet I was less than sixty seconds
from death at that. It happened this way:
"The city editor of my paper?the liveliest
paper In Chicago at the time?wanted a
Sunday story written about 'a midnight
ride on the engine of an express train.' He
wanted a page of it, with illustrations. As
I was regarded as the spell-blnder-ln-chief
of the reportorlal staff, the city editor
picked me out for the Job. He detailed one
of the paper's artists to go along with me
to make the sketches. I didn't particular
ly relish the Job. for even then I was ad
dicted to the desire to occasionally get In
as much as four hours' sleep in the twenty
four, but I was detailed to make the engine
ride, and there was no use kicking about it.
So I went to an official of the 'Big 4' rail
road whom I knew, and made arrange
ments with him for the trip. The artist
and myself were to board the engine of the
through express for the east about ll:3u
one summer night, and ride about 1UU
miles. Then we were to drop off and re
turn to town to fix up the story.
"On the night that we were to start on
the trip, I was working away down at the
office,, reeling off my hotel interviews. I
was the hotel reporter at the time. About
10::i0, when I was about ready to dig up my
artist and start for the station, a telephone
call from the Grand Pacific Hotel notified
me that Secretary of the Treasury Charley
Foster had Just arrived at that hostelry
from Washington, and the hotel clerk who
telephoned me said that if 1 didn't want to
get beat in my hotel column I'd better
chase down and have a talk with the Sec
retary, who was at that moment corralled
by half a dozen of the hotel reporters of
other papers. There was a lot going on
Just then in the nation's finances, and I
didn't want to get beat on an interview
with the Secretary of the Treasury. So I
told the city editor that Foster was at the
Grand Pacific, and lhat I'd letter nab him.
He agreed with me. and away I went to the
hotel. I got a good talk out of the Secre
tary?one of the three-minute variety that
he was so fond of giving out when he was
nailed and had to?and was back at the
office, writing it, within half an hour after
I left It. I wrote that copy with cyclonic
speed, the artist who was to accompany
ma on the engine trip standing at my
shoulder all the while, telling me to chop
it off and run for the train. 1 needn't have
hurried, for, when I was nearly through
writing the financial interview, the city
editor came in and told me that he had
sent another writer and another artist to
take the midnight engine ride- Although
I didn't want to go on the trip, 1 didn't
particularly relish this thing of being sup
planted by another man, and I told the city
editor so.
" 'Well,' said he, 'you've got six minutes.
If you can catch the train, go ahead, and
send the other man back.'
"I started on a hope for the Big 4 station.
Just as I got up to the gate, the gateman
was closing it, and the train was already
moving pretty swiftly. I made a run for
It, all the samee, but I wasn't-as good as
steam, and 1 lost.
"I went back to the office to stand a trick
of emergency duty?which meant staying in
the office until 3 in the morning?and I
felt a bit sore, because I knew that the
man who had taken my place on the en
gine trip would write a swell story of It,
for he was a top-notcher and a formidable
rival.
"At 1 o'clock in the morning a messenger
boy crept sleepily Into the office and handed
me a dispatch?for I was on the desk, read
ing copy. The dispatch announced that the
Bfg 4 express had gone through an open
switch, about seventy miles from Chicago,
right smack Into a round house, and that
the engine had been smashed to bits in a
turn-table pit, killing the engineer, fireman,
the man who had taken my place and the
young artist, and injuring a score of the
passengers."
CHINESE SHOES.
The Comfort anil HnlHifnliiMi of the
Woven Straw Saadnl*.
"I may seem to be quarreling with my
bread and butter," said an up-town chi-cpo
dist to one of his best customers the other
day, "but In my humble and somewhat pro
fessional opinion, the most sensible of all
men in the matter of footwear is the China
man. Did you ever notice his feet? I don't
believe there is such a thing as a corn or
a bunion in all China. Chiropodists would
starve to death there so far as the require
ments of the masculine foot are concerned.
Whatever the deformities inflicted on the
feet of the women of China may be, the
men certainly enjoy sound and comfortable
understandings Look at the Chinese laun
drymen here In Washington; they stand at
their work eighteen hours a day. No class
of worklngmen I know of spend so many
hours on their feet as they do. Yet they
never break down there, and physically
they are a wonderfully healthy race.
"Simple living and freedom from the ner
vous pursuits of our civilization may have
something to do with it, but I attribute
their exemption from foot weakness and
disease to the kind of house shoe so univer
sally worn by them. I have a pair that I
have worn for several years and I wouldn't
wear anything else for genuine Indoor com
fort. They are woven of straw and sea
weed and soled with horse hide. There is
a thick sole of straw above the leather and
through this the air can circulate freely,
keeping the muscles of the under part of
the foot always cool. The laundrymen. you
notice, are usually barefoot, which Is an
added advantage In the matter of health
fulness. There is about as little material
in the uppers as Is consistent wtth the idea
of a shoe, and this is Just enough to keep
the thing on the foot. This upper, too, is
woven loosely of seaweed, so that the air
can have access to the foot. Nowhere does
this shoe pinch or in the least degree press
the foot.
"These are the indoor shoes of the China
man. On the street here in the United
States nowadays he wears very commonly
the leather shoes or boots of American
manufacture. That is one of the ways In
which he is becoming Americanized. But
the outdoor cloth shoe of China is a great
deal worn also. That, like the indoor shoe,
is very thick and soft in the sole and the
foot is never pinched or strained by it.
The healthiest footgear ever known prob
ably was the sandal of the Greeks. It had
no upper, and, as you will see In statuary,
the feet of men and women were ideally
perfect. All the sandal afforded was a
protection from the ground. "To him who
wears sandals,' say the Arabs, 'it is as if
the world were stood with leather.' The
Chinaman seems to follow out this motto
and his rtioes are nearly soles and nothing
more. But the great secret of the excel
lence of his indoor shoe is the half-Inch
straw sole through which the air circulates
to keep the foot cool. If our fashions
would bring the Chinese shoe Into use I
think it would be a very good thing for us
?that Is, speaking broadly. I don't think
It would be so very good for people In my
line of business. But that is another mat
ter, and the danger Is not so very near or
great."
VALUABLE WASTE.
Refuse of Photograph Galleries
Turned to Good Account.
"Kefiners of nitrate of silver for the use
of photographers," said a man engaged in
this line of business in New York to a Star
reporter recently, "have agents traveling
constantly all over the United States <^>l
lectlng the waste clippings of sensitized pa
per that accumulate in every photographic
gallery. They buy ail they can find and
Jay for it in new nitrate, allowing the pho
tographers a good round price for his
waste.
"The waste is shipped to the refiners,
where the nitrate in the paper is separated
from it by chemical processes and prepared
for market again. This re-refined nitrate
Is as good as it was originally, and is sold
for Just as much. The refiners, of course,
make a big profit out of the waste, and the
photographer Is able to get a good supply
of material for the old scraps that would
otherwise be of no use to him.
"When one thinks of the great number of
photograph galleries and studios in this
country, and the fact that the waste paper
of them all is closely gathered by the re
finers at a price that will average a dollar
a pound, he may get some idea of the pro
Krtion of a business that is utterly un
own outside the persons directly inter
ested in the trade. Not only the scraps of
silver sensitised papers, but those of the
paper treated with a solution of gold, are
eagerly sought by the refiners, and the
photographer is always very willing to ex
change his accumulation of. to him, worth
less waste for a new stock of valuable ni
trate."
BY ~~
PHILANDER.
jOHNSOM/
Written for The Krening Star.
Interruption.
I're tried to live most proper-like, In quiet
an' content,
A-doln' of my duty, day by day.
A-schooiin' of ray disposition, so'a I won't
resent
The fractlousness that people oft display.
I thought that I was glttin' settled com
fortably down
To travjl in accordance with my plan
I Of never makln' much complaint nor wear
In' of a fro* n.
An" a-tryln" for to love my fellow-man?
When along comes a drum, and a fife
a-slngln' shrill.
An' the marchln" of a weapon-wearin'
clan;
It's somethin' most confusln' for to feel
that martial thrill
When you're tryin' for to love your
fellow-man.
They say, "Forglvj your enemies." It's
hard to stop and think
Hpw them same enemies have raised their
hands
For deeds from which you might suppose a
savage beast would shrink.
And scattered terror over many lands.
It mak;s you feel uneasy. If the record you
review
That's wrote In blood an' tears which
freely ran;
If you think of treachery an' hate toward
laddies dressed in blue.
When you're tryin' for to love your fel
low-man.
I know that duty bids me kesp my
angry passions still;
I chide myself an' do the best I can
But along comes the drum an' the fife
a-fingin' shrill.
When I'm tryin' for to love my fellow
man.
*
? *
A Realisation.
The mild-faced man with the big straw
hat, gold glasses and a palm-leaf fan had
just turned his back on the mercury, which
was trying to wend its silvery way out of
the top of the thermometer.
"Well!" exclaimed the friend who wore a
canvas helmet; "I must say you look used
up."
"I'sed up!" was the rjjolnder. "I don't
i suppose you are aware that this is one of
the times when I am supposed to rejoice
and be proud and happy."
"What has happened?"
"When a man finds that a long-cherished
wish has be in fulfilled," he went on, a lit
tle crossly, "ain't It his business to be
happy?"
"I suppose it is. Is that your cass?"
"To be sure it is. Just look at me. Here
I am utterly oblivious to the price of coal.
I don't wake up in the night any more In a
ccld perspiration after dreaming 1 have
been shoveling twenty-dollar bills Into the
furnace. When I go into a warm room I
don't have to wipe the stezm off my glasses
before I can see, and when I go out I'm not
afraid of bjlng hit with snow balls. I
don't have to empty the slush out of my
shoes when I go home at night, nor put on
woolen wear which tickles, nor put my
feet in hot water, nor take cough syrup.
These are the days I have been looking
forward to ever since the first of December.
It's my turn to be Aappy. and 1 don't want
to be disturl>ed nor irritated when I'm try
ing to attend to It, iither."
*
* *
Ail ArgimeatatlTe Kffwrt.
The editor of the Pohick Clarion pushed
the door open and called to the boy who
was feeding the press:
"l*em," he said, "you can stop running
off the edition and let the rest of the sub
scribers wait an hour or two. I want you
here.''
The noise of the press ceased, and the
boy came rather slowly into the room.
"I've been invited to make a speach on
the annexation question tonight," said the
editor. "Some of the people around here
are kicking because of the attitude of our
congressman on the subject, and he lias
just written me that if I wanted any help
from him, I'd better get Into line and do
something to keep folks good-natured."
"Haven't we been writin' editorials
enough to satisfy him?"
"We've done our best. Lent. But he
wants to get em all together In a ball. We
can't give away iced drinks and ham sand
wiches and other soothing and convincing
commodities in an editorial. I've got my
speech started, and I want you to listen
and let me know where the applause is
likely to come in. so I can sort of pause
and wait for it."
The boy gave a look at the clock, and
pushing off a lot of manuscript, sat down
on the editorial table.
"Friends and fellow citizens," began the
orator: "We are gathered here this evening
to discuss one of the most Important sub
jects of the age. That question Is the an
nexation of islands In the Pacific ocean."
He paused for recognition from the audi
ence, but Lem was engaged in seeing how
close to each othtr he could swing his feet
without hitting them.
"Most people," he proceeded, "have an
erroneous Idea about Islands. They think
they are nothing but spots of dirt sur
rounded by water. 1-et us pause before we
undertake a tremendous and unwieldy re
sponsibility. Islands, my fellow citizens,
are not independent geographical quanti
ties. At a first glance. It might seem that
nature in her wisdom had stuck them fast
to the bottom of the ocean, so that they
would not wobble. But the truth is that
they are merely projecting pieces of the
ocean bed which did not happen to be
planed off before the water was turned on.
And, therefore, my friends. If we take pos
session of these landa.we Inferential!}- take
possession of the entire bottom of the Pa
cific. They are too intimately connected to
be severed without damaging the earth. I
shall not point out to you the undeslrablli
ty of taking In a climate where the
weather Is so warm that they have to use
telegraph poles In making thermometers,
nor shall I dwell on the fact that they arc
full of extinct volcanoes, further tiian to
remind you that such things are among the J
worst nuisances known to civilization. In
all my experience I have never met any
thing harder to spell and pronounce than
the name of the average efctinct volcano. I
have often expressed myself freely and
fully on these points In the columns of the
Clarion, which has done yeoman service
for the cause with Its unparalleled circula
tion of one hundred and seven-eighths
copies a week."
"Where do the seven-eighths come in?"
"Nowhere." replied the speaker, looking
at him over the tep of his glasses. "That's
to make It look like we figured close."
Lem mode no reply, but putting his head
on a pile of papers, stretched out on the
table and gazed at the celling. The ora
tor went on: "I confine myself to the eco
nomic and scientific aspect of the case. Tell
me, oh. my fellow-citizens. what does the
American eagle want with a lot of water
logged earth, where nobody could live ex
cept mermaids, and where we couldn't raise
anything but seaweed? If we must have
more territory, let It be something that you
can get close enough to to put a mortgage
on it."
He paused again for applause. But Lira
was fast asleep.
*
* *
How It Baffcact.
"There's never any telling what moment
! a man's fortunes are colng to turn," r
I marked the man who likes to tell stories.
"Of course, opportunities are sure to
present themselves," commented the off
hand philosopher. "The only question is
whether the individual Is a nan of cour
age and resource. capat>le of recognising
and seizing them."
"That consideration doesn't always
count. I was In Cuba soma time ago
when a young fellow was promoted In the
Spantsh army and proclaimed a hero
through hla native country. Wherever he
went there was an ovation. He was sun*
about in the theaters and his photograph
was In demand everywhere. He had been
sent out to meet an attacking party of Cu
bans. Ke didn't want to go at all He fairly
trembled when he confessed to me that It
was the first call he had ever had for dan
gerous duty and that he'd give anything
he possessed to be out of the affair. In
less than twenty-four hours the town was
ringing with stories of the way he held
his ground when all the men he started
with had beat a retreat. It was a marvel
that he was not captured, but he stayed for
several minutes single-handed to face and
fire on the advancing foe. The wonder
was that he got away at all."
"It was merely one of these famlllir
cases of a man's suddenly finding hia
courage In the presence of real danger."
"No. He was riding a mule, and Just at
the critical moment the animal balkod."
*
* *
(?(tod Intention*. *
When we boys are playing ball ;
Father always comes around.
Doesn't like the game at all.
But you'll find him on the grnunfl.
Bat In hand, to take his stand;
Perspiration on his brow;
Hollering, too, to beat the band.
Father wants to show us how.
When a circus comes along
Father doesn't care to go:
But he feels It would be wrong
For we boys to miss It. so
We all see the elephant.
Pelican and sacred cow.
Try to feed 'em. but we can't.
Father wants to show us how.
Fireworks, they're all foolishness;
But we have 'em once a year.
Mother locks 'em in the press.
Different kinds, so big and <jueer.
Pinwheels?safe and lots to spare?
They are all that he'll allow
l*s to shoot when he Is there.
Father wants to show us how.
Ol K SPANISH PRISONERS.
How They Are Brine Cared for at
Fort McPherson.
From I^eslle's Weekly.
Within easy access of the city of Atlanta
by electric cars, railway and the tine gov
ernment highway, lies the splendid wooded
reservation of Fort McPherson. It is re
garded as one of the safest Inland fortifica
tions in America. Here are k?-pt the Span
lard* who have beea captured by our war
vessels?our first foreign prisoners of war
thus confined since 1S12. It Is nam*d for
Gen. McPherson. Only a few soldiers are
left as guards, and a lieutenant Is ranking
officer. It reminds one of nothing so much
as a great university In the holiday ume.
Three times a. day th; prisoner* are
marched out across the sunny lawn to m* ss
and back t.gain. The privates move In won
dering silence. Thfc officers affect an indif
ferent air. Stalwart negro soldiers, stolid
and silent, mon in front and behind. At
the meal hours the sergeants have orders
to clear the lort of crowds, if any crowds
gather. The management at Fort McPher
son is admirable. The buildings are cl< an
and airy, the grounds beautifully kept and
the prisoners are treated with courtesy.
The Secretary of War has wired special
orders as to their treatment. Sine** their
arrival the prisoners hav* Improved mar
velously In appearance. Even the privates
have regained a certain confident air, the
relaxation from the fear plctur^l on their
faces at first h?ing quite npparent. An of
ficer of the fort, who speaks Spanish, has
learned that they expected nothing but In
stant death.
The group Is typically Spanish, the offi
cers alert and Intelligent-looking, the men
spiritless. vac?nt-*yed ? mere underlings.
Col. Cortljo, the brother-in-law of Weyler.
who has just been released to be exchanged
for an American newspaper correspondent,
is a gray-bearded veteran, apparently, and
has a strong but vicious face, not unlike
Weyler hlmstlf. While here he was the
ranking officer, and always preceded the
others in going to and trom meals, walking
wltii a swaggering gait, carrying a can?.
smoking a cigarette, with his eyes riveted
on the ground in front.
A Hot Dlasrr,
From t lie Taoiua Ledger.
The warmest meal on record on Puget
Bound was eaten Saturday nUfht near
Buenua, on the east shore of the sound be
tween Tacoma and Seattle. The feaster
was a member of tbe Bruin family, and
beehives loaded with honey and living,
stinger-loaded honey-makers was the bill of
fare.
The hives belonged to Dr. Oliver and were
standing in his yard near Buentia. Their
delicious honey attracted the bear and
tempted him beyond resistance, bees and
their weapons notwithstanding
Mr. Bruin was not at all backward In
helping himself, and when the feast was
done he had swallowed the honey and bees
of one hive and part of those of a second.
He left nothing to tell the tale except his
footprints on the sand, the partly demol
ished hue ir.d the home and the remainder
of the homestead, together with the doctor,
who is busy explaining how It happened
and congratulating himself upon his for*
tunate escape.
(Copyright, 1898. IJfe Publishing Cuuipany.)
One advantage of