The Wahpeton times. [volume], June 26, 1890, Image 7

About The Wahpeton times. [volume] (Wahpeton, Richland County, Dakota [N.D.]) 1879-1919

Image provided by: State Historical Society of North Dakota

                
Mr
and
6**-
KTSik
*J vi
(Bloody Hto of tha Frsa Zona en the
Mexiosm Border, ......
ft',
Ufa and AdvantiiKi of the Infamous Juan
Hepnoamo Cortina, a Barn Bandit and
Murderer—Bis Wholesale Hobbery and
Wanghter of American Citixani,
Texas has Ion? been uoloi as a land
of terrors, and, to own the truth, the
title is not altogether unjust, says a
.Fort Davis letter to the New York
Times. Due allowance should be
mude, however, for her vust extent of
territory, her mountain fastnesses and
lf7' bottoms of chaparral and mesquite
!«!»-/(some ol the latter nearly as thick
IK ""3 Impenetrable as an East Indian
^.jungle), and especially should Texas
fe?b© commiser.ited because she is the
unfortunate neighbor by some hun
dreds of miles of boundary to the very
worst country on the face of the earth
for outlaws, renegades, and hard
characters generally.
Railroad trains plunging along
through wild, unsettled tracts offer
special inducements to "road agents"
p'VS
highwaymen, who are almost cer
tain of immunity from c.ipture. Then,
again, tho Rio Craude (pronounced
Keo Grandee) in a dry, sandy trough
eleven months out of twelve, and
rascals committing depredations on
^is side can easily skip across into
is known as the "Zona Libre,"
or Free Zone, and be safe from both
governments.
iliis little belt of nondescript soil,
stretching along the Rio Grande on the
Mexican side for sixty miles or more,
is and has been for yenrs the safe
refuge or retreat for all tho cutthroats
and outlaws of the soutwest Steal a
lior.-ie, murdor a man, rob a train or
commit some other deviltry, and all
they had to do to be safe was simply
to cross the Kio Grand dry-shod and
hide themselves amid the mountainous
rocks of "Zona Libre."'
To give an idea of vvlv.it a man can
do in this country and oscape hauling"
it is only neco.ssary to recite a few ex
periences of Juan Xepucemo Cortina,
who is now alive, prospering under
the cure ot' the Mexican government
lhis old rascal gray and aged in crime
now, is a born bandit and murderer,
and the catalogue of black crimes
charged against him would alono be
suflicient to lill a good sized volume.
He always had an inherant hatred for
citizens of the United States, and es
pecially Texuns. No red-handed
Apache or any other savage or Indian
has ever caused to our countrymen
one-tenth of the sorrow and
this villain has. In his face
be discovered tho avaricious, malig
nant, cruel sneer which has been a
true exponent of his living character
or all the years of his life.
nnsory
may yet
When the war with Mexico broke
out, Cortina was a stalwart young fel
low, who look possession of nearly all
of the lower Rio Grande country and
carried on a deadly guerrilla warfare
against our people. He was, I believe,
really commissioned by the Mexican
government as a spy and assassin.
When the Mexican war closed the
guerrilla settled down, nominally to
ranching and farming, but his true oc
cupation was horse stealing and the
running oil' of stock. When he stole
from Americins, a market was found
for his plunder on tho opposite side of
the Rio Grande at Matamoras, Ciudad
Victoria, and other towns of the Mexi
can stale of Tamaulipas. When he
despoiled his own countrymen, the
animals were crossed over and driven
far inland into Texas, principally to
Goliad, which was then a nourishing
frontier settlement on the lower San
Antonio river. His skill at roping
was remarkable and his horsemanship
superb. None of that day could equal
him in either of these aecomplish
ments. An old Texan ranger, who is
himself pretty well along in years, thus
speaks of Cortina in his palmy days:
"I knew tho fellow well. Ho could
handle the lariat better ihan any cow
boy the northwest or southwest has
over produced, and as to his nerve,
why with all his wickedness I must
.^4 say that he was the nerviest and quick
est man with a shooter I ever saw.
One day in Brownsville (old Brown
was a tough town then) Cortina was
standing in the door of a saloon smok
ing a cigar and apparently looking at
everything and everybody in sight
His waist was a perfect arsenal of lire
arms, and among others I noticed a
large, double-barrelled, old-tashioned
horse-pistol, which was stuck conven
iently in front and within easy reach
for quick use.
"A row sprang up at tho other end
of the town which created some ex
citement. A Mexican came running
down the street, and at his heels the
city marshal with pistol cocked, who
Called to the fugitive to halt. The
pursuer stopped, leveled his big pistol,
and fired. The Mexicau fell, winged,
but not very badly hurt. Cortina
stood quietly looking on and made no
move to interfere until the Mexican
tumbled heels over head in the dust.
Then he threw away the cigar he had
been smoking, walked over to the
marshal, cursed him in Spanish, drew
his pistol like a flash, and shot the
officer in the face. Then leaping on
the nearest horse (it was not bis own),
with revolver in hand, he rode dht of
town yelling defiance at all Americans,
but especially at Texans.
"In the night he collected thirty
desperadoes from somewhere, armed
to the teeth, and dashing back into the
town at daylight rode to the Browns
ville jail, determined to liberate every
criminal and horsethief therein con
fined. Of Johnson, the jailer, they
demanded the keys.
'Come and get them,' said John
son, holding, them out with his left
hand. One of the Mexicans spurred
forward, and as he was about to take,
the keys the jailer shot him. Then
retreating, he opened fire on the gang,
but thirty revolvers riddled him with
bullets, and the outlaws hacked his
yrho were nearly all Mexicans of. the
"brat type. One of the latter had a
grudge against the prison blacksmith,
Morris, for no other reason than be
cause he had forged the fellow's fet
ters. Morris was called from his bed
and ordered to knock the shackles off
|i11 of them, and whan he had finished
men
the poor
this
uuwelcome job the prisoner
tioned deliberately blew
blacksmith's brains out.
"Quite a number of citizens were
murdered before the day's work was
done and many stores were robbed."
As a matter of fact, this outrage
outlawed Cortina—that is, as far as the
.United states and Texas were concern
ed. When Maximilian came along to
attempt the conquest of Mexico Cortina
was soon in the saddle and practicing
guerrilla warfare against the usurper.
He actually porforined great service
for the home government, and in re
turn received a cotnmision of full
brigadier-gener.il in the Moxicati
army. Soon afterward he became
governor of the state of Tamaulipas,
and when holding this exaltod position
ho encouraged the worst men in his
piovioncu to raid across tho Rio
Grande and steal cattlo and sheep from
the Americans.
While he was governor of Tamaulpas
tho grand jury at Brownsville at one
sitting indicted him no loss than
twenty-seven times for murder, each
one being a true and personal bill
against the Mexican governor for sep
arate offenses. But the Mexican gov
ernment, as well advanced and as fair
and just as it is to-day, cannot see in
this arch rascal very much to condemn
for he is now roaming the streets of
.Mexico a free man and without re
straint, while the result and effect of
hi1 crimes against Americans will not
V.«, forgotten nor overcome for years to
come.
THE LAND OF OPPOS1TES.
Influence of Location on Human
Tastes and Actions.
Chinese do nearly everything con
trary to the way it is done in this
country. We shake hands with each
other tho Chinaman shakes hands
with himself. We uncover the head
as a mark of respect the Chinaman
not only keeps his head covered but
pulls off his shoes if he wishes to be
very polite.
We shave the face: they the head
and eye brows. We cut our linger
nails they consider it aristocratic to
have nails from five inches to a foot
in length. The Chinaman's shirt is
worn outside his trousers. We blacken
our shoes ho whitens them. We want
wine ice-cold the Chinaman drinks
his scalding hot. We bury in the
earth: they on the surface. With us
black clothing is a badge of mourning
in China white garments indieato the
loss of friends. In that land of oppo
siles it is the old men who fly kites,
walk on stilts, play marbles, shoot
lire crackers and play shuttlo-coek,
and to keep up their odd ways of do
ing things, they play the latter with
their feet instead of their hands. In
China, women do what we consider
men's work, and tho men are tho mil
liners, dressmakers and washer
women. With us the right hand is
the place of honor with them it is
tho left We live, cook and eat on the
ground lloor and sleep up stairs with
the Chinaman the reverse is the rule.
In dating letters we write the year
last tiiey place it first. In speaking
of compass they always say it points
south. Wo pay our doctor when wo
arc sick they pay as long as they
remain well, but as scion as they get
sick the pay stops. Hero men kill
their enemies: a Chinaman gets re
venge by killing himself. They
launch ships sidewisc: ring bolls from
outside and turn screws in a contrary
direction.
St Antho.iy'a Tempatiox
"There many devils that walk this world,
Devils large and devils small,
Sly devils that go with their uls upcurled,
Bold devils that carry th*m quito un
furled,
Weak devils and devils that brawl
Serious devils and laughing dovils.
Imps for churches an.l imps for revels,
Devils so monger an 1 devils so stout,
Devils with horus and devils without."
Ferdinand Ward.
Of all the prisoners in Sing Sing it
is probable that Ferdinand Ward feels
his degradation more keenly. He is
employed in a little printing office ad
joining the head keeper's quarters,
and has the best employment of any
of the involuntary tenants of the place.
His office is bright and cheerful, if any
place within a prison wall can be
considered cheerful, and his task is a
light one. The walls of his workroom
are adorned with many lithographs
and opposite his "case" may be seen
the photographs of a handsome, woman
and a pretty child, his wife's and his
child's. With all his faults Ward was
a devoted husband and a loving father.
What memories must have rushed
through his "mind when he learned of
that wife's death, and what thoughts
filled his brain when he reflected that
his acts had divorced him from her
dying bed and prevented him from
shedding a tear over her coffin! For
him Sing Sing is no health resort, and
if his mental anguish is as great as his
appearance indicates ho is likely to
end his days within its walls.—New
\ork World.
Important to Druggists.
ANew York druggist who spent the
winter in a Texas town for his health
was asked by the genial clerk of the
hotel:
"Stranger, what might your business
be?"
"lama pharmacist."
"A what did you say?"
"A pharmacist"
"Oh yes, a pharmacist Well, you
can buy as good farming lands in this
neighborhood as you can find in Tex
as. You have struck the right local
ity, stranger, if you want to farm.
I'll take you out this afternoon in my
buggy and show you one I've got to
•eU."
•-T
0
In domestic quarrels it was usually
the wife who took hair of her hus
band's.
When a barrel is full it usually gets
buneedjup. And this is the case with
a man.
Marriage is not one-tenth as much
a failure as tlie average summer re
sort engagement.
A barroom that caters to the
'longshore-men'scustom isalljthe bet
ter for having a water front.
When any reforming is to be done,
affmn begins first with his neighbors,
and leaves his own case till last.
It isn't necessary to let a married
lady know that you admire her if she
knows that you admire her children.
Ona-lialfof the world does not lcnqw
how the other half lives, and it is just
as well that it is so, for a great deal
of scandal is thereby saved.
He—"Wereyou'everin love?" She—
"I thought I was once, but since I
have rend.a few of the modern society
novels I have concluded that I wasn't.
Wife—"If I were to die to-night,
darling, what would you do?" Hus
band—"Telephone for the undertak
er.
Sympathetic Housewife (to ragged
tramp )—"Poor mail, your garments
are sadly frayed." Tramp—"Yes,
indeed, mum,' fraid of the dorg."—
Merit often turns up in unexpected
places, but it isn't worth while to
spend much time looking for gems on
tiieo-eent counter ol humanity.
The man who hasn't money enough
build a woodshed is usually the
man who spends the most time study
ing the plans for new homes in the
building magazines.
Little May, who was very fond of
tho liquid part of the honey, and one
day at the table asked: Papa please
give mo some honey. 1 don't like the
comb, I just want some of the brush!"
A farm journal says a cow can be
prevented from kicking by tying her
hind legs together. But a man can't.
He would "kick" if lie had no legs.
That's his nature.
A young farmer wrote to the editor
of a country paper asking the best
way to "look out for Lams and
the editor told him to keep away
from a crowd when a fight was going
on.
"Now, Susan, haven't I told you
time and time again to eat your
bread with your meat?" "True,
mamma but haven't you also told
nie over and over again that 1 must
never try to do two things at once?"
Physician (reflectively)—"Il'm!
The
case is one, 1 think, that will yield to
a mild stimulant. Let nie see your
tongue, madam, if you please." Hus
.juul of patient (hastily(—"Doc
tor, her tongue doesn't need any
stimulating."
Harry—"She has jilted me and I
know I shall die. The disappoint
ment will kill me! Aunt Hannah—
"1 know how disappointment effect
one, Harry. But you'll get over it.
I felt just as you do now when I set
that yeller hen on thirteen eggs and
only got just one poor chick out of
the lot.
"-Ma, I've an idea that some of the
folks in this graveyard haven't gone
to heaven." You -don't say! What
makes you think they haven't?" "Be
cause I read it on the tombstones."
"No?"' "Yes, I did, though. It was
carved on ever so many—'Peace to
his ashes' -Now, there ain't any ashes
'cept where it's very hot, is there,
nia?"
Two New Jersey farmers had a
fight over a drink of water and one
stabbed the other with a pitchfork
so that he will die. Water must be
scarce in New Jersey. Perhaps the
men were in the same situation as
once confronted the gentleman from
Kentucky. Said lie: "I was- once
offered the entire site where Omaha
now stands for one drink of whisky."
"And you refused?" said his listener.
"Gentlemen," said the Kentuckian,
a proud smile on his face, "you for
got there was but one drink in the
flask."
Miss OVvpi* npd Airs. -.swu
unexpectedly prevented by the floods
romrSfajrninghome for an indefinite
time, wliwi Mrs. Brown, weeping- pro
fusely, exclaimed: "Oil, oh, no one
could be
more unfortunate than I am,
to have a busband waiting icr me at
home and to have to stay here."
Miss Oliver tearfully answered: "jVty
dear Mrs. Brown, my case is much
harder than yours, for I haven't a
husband anywhere."
Idle Banana Pickers,
A general strike of plantation
hands for shorter hours and better
pay is now in progress in Jamaica,
and the result is to increase the price
of bananas. The doctrines of the
eight-hour movement have been dis
seminated among the negroes and
other laborers on the banana farms
in the island of Jamaica with disas
trous results to the planters who de
pend upon their banana crop. The
laborers, pickers, etc., have been
working long hours for starvation
wages, and not being able to 6tand
it longer, they revolted, nearly
3,000 men and women being out, and
all work in this industry is at a stn nil
still. On the iuland plantations in
Jamaica thousands of bunches oi
bananas are ripening on the trees,
which spoils them for market, are
rotting in great heaps on the ground.
This has caused a comparative scar
city of bananas and the price has
therefore gone up.
WINTER & Co., coal merchants ol
Swanscombe, England, have sued the
owner of a menagerie for $250, the
value of a horse alleged to have died
from fright at the sight of one of the
menagerie elephants. The horse was
being driven along the road, when it
saw the elephant, it gave one spring
into the air and dropped dead.
J*}?
Tti« Manner of Its Formation—A
Solution of Its Mysteries.
Probably two or possibly three per
sons in every thousand who get pre
scriptions from physicians, says the
Kansas City Star, understand tho sig
nificance of the cabalistid characters
thero inscribed by the "medicine
man," while tho other 997 see Latin
names and somo things that look like
the letter Z, and his brothers, hunch
backed and playing leap-frog.
Every prescription consists of four
parts—the superscription, tho inscrip
tion, the subscription, and the signa
ture. In the^pper loft-hand corner is
the symbol R. It is a combination ol
an old mythological sign intended as
an invocation to tho deity,and the ini
tial of the latin verb "recipe," which
means "take thou." It is intended as
a direction to the compounder. Then
comes the inscription, which tells ol
the ingredients and their quantities.
The subscription contains directions as
to tho form tho compound shall assume.
In tho matter of ingredients a pre
scription may contain the base, which
is tho principal active agent the
auxiliary, ail adjuvant to assist the
base's action a corrective, to counter
act any unpleasant efl'ects of tho base
and adjuvant and the vchiclo, some
pleasant-tasting, inactive substance,
either to hold the foregoing in solution
or to give a consistent form to tho
preparation. atcr is a vehicle large
ly used.
Every physician should bo a phe
nomenal mathematician. He has to
solvo hard sums in what is called in
arithmetic compound numbers, at all
hours of tho day and night and with
the anxious friends and female relatives
ringing in his oars such questions:
"Oh, doctor, how long will ho live if
he gets over this?" "Isn't ho sure to
have tho cholera next summer because
he had the 'grip' last winter? 1 saw
it. in tho paper that ho might," with a
rnoliou of her head that is intended to
carry conviction. Questions of this
idnd havo a tendency to "razzle-dazzle"
the doctor and in proscribing stronc?
remedies a mistako in determining tho
sizo of his doses—if tho proscription
clerk does not discover and correct it
might be a vital error for tlio patient.
Co3t of a Building As30cia i0 Loan.
There is an impression current that
when a poor man borrows money from
a building association and pays not
only six per cent on the loan, but a
premium besides, he is undertaking a
load which would not bo necessary if
ho could go to a bank or to a money
lender and secure the accommodation.
Tho knowledge is pretty general that
some building associations pay divi
dends to their borrowers as well as to
their lenders. That is, they credit
dividends on the deposits of tho bor
rowers and regularly every year do
crease the rate of interest tho bor
rower is compelled to pay on his loan.
A gentleman who had some very satis
factory experience in borrowing from
a building association of this kind
recently said he negotiated a loan of
four shares amounting to ijii.OUO oil
January, 29, l.s.s }. Tho debt was
squared on the 1'lst of last month,
alter seven years, two months and
twenty-two days. He had paid six por
cent interest and six cents premium
on each share. Tho amount of inter
est to be paid each week had been re
duced at the cud of each year and semi
annually the association had credited
him with dividends ranging from six
to seven per cent. When the mort
gage was finally cancelled in April of
tiie current year an inventory of all
receipts and payments and the balance
struck showed that for his $•_',( )0U loan
he had actually paid back $2, Sol.
That is to say tho licit cost of his loan
was :()1.59, which is at the rate of
about two-tenths of one per cent. Who
says building associations is a burden
to the borrower?
A Jolly Country.
"Neither Americans nor American
newspapers havo everbeon slow to ex
press their opinions about me," said
the Duke of Manchester, better known
to Americans as the Duko of Mande
ville. "I do not know that I should
be doing them a good turn if I were to
express my opinion of them. But,
aftc il is said and done, America is a
jolly ountry for a fellow to visit, and
if he has got any grit and can mako
his way and fight for a home there, I
know of 'so place in tho world where
he lias a hotter prospect of success. I
do not know of n, country which offers
a young man of the right sort better
opportunities f(,» success. Despite all
that has been saVl about mo, I havo a
great many warm i-ienas there, and so
has my wife. It
a
little rough at
first to read and to liLar all these un
pleasant and untrue th'.ngs that wero
said about one, but om jjot cured.
Some day I hope to go
0
America
again. I like the country a. the peo
ple in it, and I particularly '.iko New
York."
Wantad a Toothpick.
Philadelphia Timos: "The
iua
of
sending that there fellow to colijn-e!
Just look at his style!" "Why, Reub
en you are certainly not going to ind
fault with your son's manners at Vie
first real meal ho has eaten in tho houU
in four years." "But," presisted tlL
old man, "think of his studying French
and asking for a toothpick before thd
dinner was half over!" "Now, Reuben)
"Now, Reuben nothing. I can't
stand and I won't stand such jiirs.
The notion of a boy of mine wantin' a
toothpick, and him with a fork in his
hand all the time!''
Wants a Patent.
An Ohio man named Burton has ap
plied for a patent to dissipate a torna
do or cyclone before it can do any
damage. He does it by firing off an
anvil heavily charged with powder, or
by using afield piece. This is done
when the sky shows symptoms of a
wind storm, and he claims that he
concussions send the cyclonea to do
damage else where.
"W
4
SI» DOQght a »prlDR hafcof Mm*
Somebody, whose name begun with
Mc—that is to say, when her name
began. She paid enough for it to buy
her husband four suits of clothes and
a new cradle for the baby. She had
a mansard roof put on the big parlor
pier glass, and then she surveyed her
self with the satisfaction which only
a bonnet of the Eiffel Tower pattern
can produce in the mind of sweet fem
inity.
There was a flower garden on that
hat, and there would have been an
apiary also had it-not been that birds
were not the latest agony. It was a
real nice hat and no mistake, and if
sheconld only have worn a mortgage
on it I do not think that fashion
would have produced a finer or more
complete piece of architecture.
Armed and equipped with this inter
esting piece of millinery, she went to
church and said the responses in a
voice both firm and loud. Shenoticed
that the congregation about her
seemed interested iii that hat, and she
felt a thrill of pride such as the
most pious must experience when la
boring under the knowledge of too
tooness that exalts one above one's
neighbors. But coupled with the
interest was an inexplicable dis
position to smile that she could
not comprehend nor rejoice in.
She wondered what it meant. And
she found out, for suddenly, in the
midst of tho Iitany. ie.-u'i'ul noise
filled the sanctuary. It came from
the region of her hanging garden, and
the way people a boutlur sl ulfcd their
Imndkcrchiefs in their mouths and
eyed her showed that it was this hat
and nothing else which was thus
squallimrlikean infant who lacks the
maternal comforts of babyhood.
Horrified beyond measure she sailed
down the aisle, the awful sound ac
companying her, and fainted at the
door. They picked her up tenderly,
and a frightened usher stepped on
the grand hat and crushed it out of
shape, at the same time making a
tremendous pop and silencing the
shrill voice of complaint.
They made a post-mortem on the
ragged remnant and found, what do
you think'.'—one of those bailoon-liko
rubber babies, the latest fad ol fash
ionable society, which a mischievous
younger brother had perched among
the llowers. ami which had gone oi't'
just at the time when its col laps would
work the greatest mischief.
She wears a bonnet of sober brown
now. It is only one story high, and
the thatch upon the roof is of the
simplest fashion. Her lather says he
is laying up money, and hopes to de
clareadividend on hiseariiings before
the year is over.—Xew York Herald.
Their Relative Value.
A rcccrit opinion rendered by the
Virginia court of appeals shows that
the law recognizes a graded valua
tion of wives. The complainant had I
sued for damages for the loss of his
wife, who had been accidentally kill
ed through tho negligence of the de
fendants. On the" trival evidence
tending to show that ho deceased
had been a superior wife was offer
ed, and, presumably influenced by
this, the jury gave the complainant
a verdict for .s(i,0()). The defend
ants objected fo proof as to the
character of the wile, and carried tho
issue to thehighest court of 1 he state.
The tribunal holds that such evidence
was perfectly proper as means of es
iiaaling the damage suffered by the
husband. "If the character and con
duct oft lie wife,-' says rlie court, "bo
such that her death will causebu' iit
t!e soi io'iV, suh'ei'ing and mental an
truish to the husband, then the fair
and just proportion of'the damages
to be awarded by in jury wid be
measured Mvordingly. But if, on
the contrary," the court adds, "tho
wife be loving, tender and dutilul to
her husband thrifty, industrious,
economical and prudent—as the evi
dence in this case proved Mrs. .Mc
onncll to be—then her price is far
above rubies, and the loss of such a
wife, of such a helpmeet, of such in
fluence, of such a blessed and potent
ministry and companionship, is a,
proper element of damage to be con
sidered by the jury in fixing the sola
tium to bo awarded to the husband
for tearing lier from his heart and
home."
All Kinds of Men.
From tim UuiValu ('iiu-ii.'r.
ill the course of an excellent ser
mon on character, which the Rev. Dr.
Phelps, of Delcware Avenue .Metho
dist Church, preached one Sunday, lie
said that ho once visited a certain
farming community to solicit funds
for a needy educational institution.
He was accompanied in his calls by
a shrewd old farmer, who knew ail
the people in the settlement', and was
a keen student of human nature. As
they approached the first farm house,
the farmer said: "if you want to
get any money out of this man you
appeal to him on the highest mo
tives, that's the only way to reach
him." Coming to the next house he
said: "Here's a man wlios6 pride
must be touched. If you hope to
get a subscription from him tell him
what his neighbors are giving." As
they neared the next farm ho said:
"If you want to get anything out of
this man you must talk to him in bis
barii." "In his barn?" cried the
amazed dominie, "why in his barn?"
"You must get him out of the way of
his wife," answered the farmer. "She
has such dominion over him tlia* he
floes not dare say his soul is his own.
So go for him in the barn, dear
brother, go for him in the barn."
IT IS Relieved in England that
Earl Spencer will be the successor of
Mr. Gladstone. He is one of those
loblemen who interpret favorably to
the observer of the scheme of hered
itary aristocracy, and he has a gen
erosity of spirit and a breadth of in
tellectual vision, that incite enthusi
asm.
VMn. and Mus. Henry ViLLAitDand
family will sail July 2 for Europe for
nffitay of a year or longer. They will
first to Berlin, which will be their
adquarters
Ijei
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$"4"
ta •fc-u'v
home, fiTemileiii^eTHiiity
this state, aged?70 years. He was a
most remarkable character, says a
Charlotte, N. C., special tothe Globe
Democrnt. He was born an idiot,
but since infancy has possessed phy
sical strength to a rare degree, and
was well formed in every particular*
with the exception of his head, which
wasso extremely ill-shaped as to give
him more the appearance of a beast
than of a man. When but a child he
was often so violent that it was nec.
essary tochain him to the floor. Not
withstanding this unnatural exist
ence, he grew and strengthened day by
day until his chain was not sufficient
to hold him, and two or three times
he broke loose and fled to the woods.
During his brief liberty he was as
violent as a tiger, and it was difficult
to recapture and return him to his
place of confinement. He was fasten
ed with stronger bonds and, with the
exception of a few days, he remained
chained to the floor in the same room
for about fifty years. He had an in
satiate desire for tearing to pieces
anything that he could get, and at
times it was impossible to keep him
clothed. Flax was spun into coarse,
strongthreadsand woven into cloth,
which was doubled and quilted and
madeintogarmcntsforhim, but with
his teeth^ and talon-like fingers he
tore them into threads. He has been
known to tear to pieces a solid stick
of hickory wood with nothing but his
teeth and fingers. He ate as raven
ously as a lion, and could drink,
without the slightest pain, boiling
colloe.
On several occasions members of
the family narrowly escaped beinv
killed by him. One evening a siste:
started to go out of doors. She
passed too near him and he sprang
at her with great force, knocked her
through the door into the yard, so
badly injuring her that it was not
thoughtpossible for her to live. His
father provided for him before his
death, leaving property enough to
maintain a wretched life through all
these years. It was stipulated in tlie
will that lie should not be taken to
an asylum, and that he should bo
kept on the old homestead.
About Chloroforming1,
The statement that when a hand
kerchief is thrown over a man's head
lie immediately goes into a trance is
interesting and raises a curious point.
There are many lawyers who are
wont to declare that the evidence
given from time to time at criminal
trials leaves no doubt that there ex
its some drusr which, when spread
upon a cloth and placed over the
nose and mouth, immediately pro
duces unconsciousness. On the oth
er hand, chemists assert that the
thing is an impossibility, and that
no such compound has ever been dis
covered.
Chloroform and the other recog
nized anaesthetics require at least
three distinct inhalations to produce
the loss of sensation. To reconcile
this conflict of testimony seems im
possible, unless, indeed, we adoptthe
sensational theory that somecamor
ra among the criminal classes in
possession of a trade secret as yet
unknown to science. Probably, how
ever, this notion is too fantastic, and
we should rather incline to the sup
position that the immediate loss of
consciousness is due to something
comparable to mesmeric action.—
Spectator.
Hot Water.
The efficacy of hot water in Bliav
ing, says the Suu, is more fully ap
preciated by the people of that re
markably-advanced country, Japan,
than in tho younger civilizations of
the West. Japanese barbers shave
nearly all of the exposed surfaces of
a man's head. They shave the ears
the outside and inside of the nose,
the eyebrows and a portion of the
scalp. The victim sits on a very low
stool, while the barber perches on a
higher stool and takes his customer's
head between his knees. Then lie
seizes a very small razor, dipsit in
to hot water, and begins the work.
It is no light performance to shave
a Japanese gentleman. No lather is
used, but a keen edge is kept con
stantly on the razor by dipping it
into hot water once or twice during
the operation. Men whoshavethem
selves will tind that hot*
water will
put a better edge on their razors
than any strop ever invented.
A Ginger Bread Barometer.
It is nothing more or less than the
figure of a general made of ginger
bread whichClavette buys every year
at the Place du Trone. When he'gets
homehehangsliispurchase on a nail.
You know the effect of the atmos
phere on ginger bread. The slightest
moisture renders it soft in dry
weather, on the contrary, it grows
hard and tough. Every morning on
going out Clavette asks his servant:
"What does the general say?"
The man forthwith applies his
thumb to the figure and replies:
"The general feels Happy about the
chest you'd better take vour umbrel
la."
On the other hand, when the symp
toms are "hard and unyielding" our
worthy colleague sallies forth in his
new hat.—Almanach de 1' Alelier.
Her Legacy Is Just.
A Kingston man left by will a life
interest to his widow in alittleestate
valued at $2,000, the property after
her death to bedividedamongtwelve
heirs._ There being a small mortgage
on this property foreclosure proceed
ings followed, and the costs of court,
lawyer's fees, etc., made the judg
ment foot up $1,999. During her
life the widow will be entitled to the
interest of the remaining dohar, and
at her death two of the heirs will re
ceive 20 cents each, five of them will
be given 4 cents each, four ol them
will be given 5 cents each, and one of
them will recieve the annual interest
on 25 cents during his lite.—New
York Press.
&
of mm ip h&.uprtown eati the
night, according to the New
Tribune. "The poor
as the rich, though there issotbe
cuse fortheformer. A fanny
of the kind came under my
down at Coney island last snimnef.'
It was rather late in the season^ and
most of the restaurants which add a
musical program of some sort to their
bill of fare had dispensed with these
performers as the patronage began
to fall off. This was one of those hot
days that sometimes come in the fall
having
something to eat with our beer in a
restaurant, whose band, as I said,
had blown itself back to town for the
season.
"Along came a hungry-looking
music-butcher with an old violin, and
stationing himself near the door, he
was accustomed probably to invita
tions to 'strike up a march,' without
using his bow, began to reveal the
skeleton of'Wliite Wings' atour feast.
A howl of discontent arose from the
people at the tables and a waiter was
about to eject the offender, when
Schmidt, who was with us. and is, aa
you know, an excellent violinist, pas
sionately fond of music and of a gen
tle heart withall, though somewhat
conceited, interferred and befriended
the poor devil.
"Just what induced him to do it I
do not know. He said it was the
hungry looks of the man. I think
myself it was Schmidt's vanity at
bottom. Similar stories are told
about Paginini and other great ar
tist and singers' you know, and brob
ably he wanted to emulate thera.
Anyway, he took the violin from the
man, and, tucking it under his chin,
gave us fifteen minutes of excellsnt
music, considering the awful old in
strument. The crowd caught on to
the humor of the thing and applaud
ed the kindness as well as the music
heartily.
"G iy
ing the violin back to its owner,
Schmidt sat down, beaming with
pleasure and trying to look uncon
scious.
"Now pass around your hat,' he
said to tlie tramp.
"The fellow was apt enough to that
kind of work, and a liberal shower of
dimes and quarters rained downinto
the croyra of his greasy old headgear.
After he had completed the round he
approached Schmidt, and he waited
to hear what he would say. Schmidt
was evidently getting ready to stop
his flow ol'gratitude in a grand seig
noir style, but tlie fellow only held
out his hat for Schmidt's contribu
tion. We were actually flabbergast
ed for a minute and then we roared
with laughter.
"Why. confound your impudence,"
said Schmidt, getting mad, 'you've
got enough money to keep you drunk
for a week. Get out!'
'An' ain't you goin' to bay me
noaing for de use of de violin?' whined
the tramp, as he pointed to a broken
Btring.
'I'll! give you a concert pitch for
it my fine fellow,' said Schmidt, as
he grabbed the tramp by the coat
collar and fairly threw him out of
the door."
Down on Agriculture.
The basest fraud on earth is agri
julture. The deadliest ignis fatus
that ever glittered to beguile and
dazzle to betray is agriculture. We
speak with feeling on this subject,
and we've been glittered and beguiled
and dazzled, and deceived by' the
same arch receiver. She has prom
ised us bees, and they flew away after
putting a head on us promised us
early potatoes, and the drought has
withered them. She lias promised us
cherries the curculio stung them
they contain living things uncomely
to the eye and unsavory to the taste.
She has promised us strawberries,
and the young chickens havedevour
ed them. We were in the sheep busi
ness, and a hard winter closed down
on us and the lambs died in theshell.
No wonder that Cain killed his broth
er. He was a tiller of the ground.
The wonder is he did not kill his fa
ther, and then weep because he did
not have a grandfather to kill.—
Walla Walla (Ore.) Journal.
The Difference in Prices.
Why is it that the biggest kind of
Jiflerence exists between the clothes
that are exhibited in a ready made
clothier's window and the suits shown
as soon as one gets inside? I mean
in price. Really it would require no
serious strech of the imagination to
think yourself in another establish
ment. I have at last come to the
conclusion it's the window glass that
softens and mellows the look of the
cheap suits there exhibited.—Phil
adelphia Times
A Fighting Lioness,
Early one morning W. Blake, who
lives near Daunt, Tulare county*
C'al., was aroused by a visit from a
California lioness and her three cubs.
They appropriated a young colt and
a fine porker, when Mr. Blaketurned
loose three hounds while he went for
his gun. The dogs killed one of the
cubs, but they were all killed by the
lioness, who retreated in good order
before Blake was able to fire.
A Streak of Fortune.
Mrs. W. Kellar, of this city, had the g*o£
fortune on the 1
!)th day of April to be noti
fied that ehe wna the holder of a twentieth
o.' ticket number 21,303 of The Louisiana
State Lottery which drew the capital prise
800,000, and last week she received a sack
of twenty-dollar sold pieces from the Lottery
Company, amounting to $15,000, which aha
has deposited in the First National Bank for
the present. Mrs. Kellar when a«ked about
the good lortune said, "I have been baying
tickets lor the last three years and won two
prizes before amounting in all to $30. Thia
time 1 sent lor the ticket and told the mee
Henger to procure a high number as I did not
want a low number.' I received the ticket
with number21,303 and was overjoyed when
1 saw that the number on my ticket was th*
wijiner of the capital priie." When aaked
what she would do with ber little lortune re
plied. "I shall save it and invest soma." Did
yon make a present to ths party that acM
yon the ticket? Yes, I made tke gmtkMa
a present off 50."—8aa Lois OMape (Oafci
tepnUkt May 16. '\fj
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