SEA WOLVES AT WAR
Planet BATTLE BETWEEN * SPERM
WHALE AND SWORDPISH.
The UflalkM Kept on th. fnific* by
llntttr While tha Tbrailuii Stubbed
falsa to Death—Thrilling Combat Wlt
aaaaad la tha facUi Ocean.
"Did you ever see a school of thrash
era after a whale, with a swordflsh as
sisting the sea wolves?"
Some of the party had witnessed the
sight, others had not; all, however,
were cognizant of the close association
existing between the thrasher and
swordflsh, but the story was asked for.
"It was from the deck of the old
brig Firefly, plying In the fruit trade
between San Francisco and Tahiti,
during the seventies that I saw this sea
battle," said the shipping man. "We
were oft tho Marquesas and lolling
along with the equatorial drift, not
enough wind blowing to keep the sails
from slatting against the masts. The
heat was something deadly in its inten
sity, and there wasn't enough energy
among either crew or passengers to
even read.
"Suddenly we were roused by a call
from the lookout: 'Something coming
up, sir! Two points off the lee bow,
and at the break of the horizon!'
"In a moment we were all on our
feet, and leaning over the port taffrall. i
Far down near the horizon could be
seen a flurry of foam and a jumble of
dark objects. These would appear and
disappear, with each appearance the
white spray we had first noticed show
ing clear against the blue of the equa
torial sky.
" 'Number of native canoes out after
a whale, I make it,' said Captain Tur
ner, as he handed the glass over to me.
"I got a steady sight on the object,
which were rapidly approaching us.
With the second flurry of foam, as the
black spot appeared on the surface I
could make them out. It was a big
sperm whale being chased by a school
of thrashers.
" 'But the whale doesn't sound long
enough to have thrashers after him,'
■aid the captain. 'lt must be natives
in canoes and the swell hides them
from the deck.'
"To make certain I went aloft. In
the 112 re ilgg ng. and from the top could
make out the fight distinctly. But,
just as the captain had said, I was
puzzled at the short lapses of time
transpiring between the whale's fluking
and his again appearing on the surface.
"The whale was headed straight for
os, and working along at a rate that
within half an hour would bring him,
with the thrashers abreast of the brig,
providing he did not change his course
Thiß, fortunately for our excited curi
osity, the whale did not do, and at a
distance of less than 300 fathoms, the
people of the Firefly were treated to
such a sight as seldom comes, even In
the varied incidents which goto make
up a life at sea.
"We had all been offering conjectures
as to why the whale did not sound to
a depth the thraßhers could not fol
low. When the big fellow had ranged
just off orr quarter the question was
answered.
"Fluking high and bringing his tail
down with a swash that would have
crushed the life out of any thrasher
caught beneath the blow, the whale
attempted to sound. He could not
have reached five fathoms deep, when,
with a bellow of pain, he shot to the
surface flinging his huge bulk high in
the air. Simultaneously a cry went
up from all of us. Dangling from the
whale's belly was a swotdflih, its sword
embedded deep in the blubber. Twist
ing and throwing itself, the swordflsh
seemed endeavoring to work loose
from the whale before the latter could
again land its great body in the sea.
This It succeeded in doing a fraction of
a second only separating the fall of the
swordflsh and that of the whale into
the ocean. This was sufficient, how
ever, for the swordflsh to gather depth
and with another prod, keep the whale
on the surface. Then with a rush the
school of thrashers were upon the
whale. Setting their teeth <nto its
sides, half of the school woald tear
great chunks of blubber from the bel
lowing leviathan, while the balance of
the school, with fearful blows, would
thrash at the whale with their flukes,
the swordflsh in the meantime keeping
up a steady stabbing from beneath,
until at last. In sheer agony of pain,
the whale would sound, dragging the
swordflsh, with Its sharp saw tooth
blade of bone sunk deep in the blub
ber with it.
"It seemed Impossible, however, for
the whale to reach any depth, impeded
as it was by the twelve-foot swordflsh
hanging to it and with a bellow It
would again come to the surface. Three
times, while life remained In the whale
did we see the huge bulk shoot out of
the water, the white body of the sword
flsh hanging from its side.
"Stranger still, though, was the tac
tic* used by the swordflsh, to so wound
the whale's blowhole as to incapacitate
It entirely from sounding. Twice, when
the whale had been stabbed at the sur
face *nd the thrashers had taken good
hold, the swordflsh, ranging close to
the whale's head, threw Itself out of
the water and with its sharp-tooth-sd
sword endeavored to cut open ttie
whams' blowhole. That the swordflsh
had succeeded In one of these attempts
prior to our getting a close view of the
fight, was evidenced by the scattering
spray In which the whale sent forth
its 'blow' on rising.
"The whale had hardly gone three
miles astern of us, before its body,
floating, still on the ocean, showttl
that swordflsh and thrashers had con
tioersd."
OLD GRADDLfIS HAD APHASIA
A li«uu»iMlratluii in Nervous Falliology
That Cost 98.40.
Old Hardy Oraddles, who had limped
around in the Teton Basin for years on
a muscle-tied foot, at last wearied of
the wobbly exertion, went down to
Salt Lake to have the defective mem
ber treated. He came back after an
absence of a month, and his neighbors
gathered about him to hear the strange
tales which he would have to tell of
experience In a great city. He describ
ed the Temple and the Tabernacle and
the Dooley Building, and quite en
chanted them.
"What was the finest thing you see?"
finally asked Si Redee, In recapitula
tion.
"Well, men," said Hardy, "the best
—reely thebest —thing I see was a fel
ler in the hospital. He in-trusted me
a lot, an' I heerd all about him. He
had aphasia," speaking the last word
with a proud deliberation. Redee look
ed at Watts, and Watts glared intently
at Red Pete Ruble. The last mention
ed broke the spell.
"What's that? A for'n country, ain't
it? Seems I heerd of It afoie in a jog
gify."
"Naw," said Hardy, scornfully. "It
ain't a place—it's a thing. Somethln'
out 0' gear, you know."
But they did not know. They were
even worse confounded than before.
"Like a Russian thistle, mebbe," said
Pete, dubiously, still clinging to the
geographical theory.
"No such. A man fergits how to
talk or somethin'."
"Deef an' dumb man? I seen" —
"Naw. Naw. Man that kin talk jis"
fergits how. Fergits everythin'."
"It can't be did," declared Pete with
decision.
Haidy looked at him pityingly.
"Ecg it all, I scy it kin; I seen it
Here—l'll show you. Who's got a $lO
note?"
Among them they got together $8.40,
and Hardy said that he could illustrate
to some extent, perhaps, with that
amount.
"Now," he said, taking possession of
the money, "you all know that you
give me this money, don't you?" They
did and said so.
"Well," rolling his eyes and assum
ing a rigid attitude, "I've fergot it. Fer
got all about it. That's aphasia."
"Humph!" grunted Ruble. "Seems a
fool of a thing, don't it? Gimme my
?2.<0."
Hardy gated at him in a stony, va
cant way.
"Give me my $2.40," Ruble repeated
with some show of sternness.
"I —I—seems like I heerd somethln'
about a si:m o' money some'res," Har
dy responded, in a hesitating way.
"1 here's a dollar and a half comin'
to me," Redee uttered fiercely.
"Gents," said Hardy, sorrowfully, "I
can't remember it. I'm sorry. I don't
know what you're talkin' about. I've
got that there aphasia."
They gathered around him, clamor
ing for their funds. They now began
to understand. But they could not con
vince him.
"I'm sorry, as I say, gents," Hardy
said, meekly. "Eut its scientifick. It
ain't my fault. On the subject of any
money you might 'a' give me —an' meb
be you d d give me nome, p'raps—my
mind is like a blank sheet o' paper. I
am a poor victim of a pe-cu-liar disor
der, as you might say. Good-day."
He was a man of six feet, four inch
es, and, although along in years, he
had been the hardest and best fighter
in the Basin, even in hi 9 crippled
time. They looked at him gloomily,
therefore, as he walked away, and no
man dared say him nay. Only Red
Pete Ruble expressed the general sen
timent when he made certain feeling
and torrid remarks which imparted to
the world at large the fact that he was
utterly disgusted with science In all Its
forms.
Intensely I'rauticule
Wall® |P \
Ilarry Dnuntown (to country sweetheart)
—Miss Milkyweigh, do you play and sing
| "When the Cows Are in the Corn?"
Miss Milkyweifcli—Lord bless you, no.
I get the dogs and chase 'em out.
A Political Trip.
should it be your one ambition to write
a humorous verse, pick out some
ancient subject and express In
language terse. The editor
may rejoet It, if the me
ter's out of joint;
but if you fashion
it like this,
he'll surely
see the
point.
1 , A L»p<«e.
Employment Agent—"See here! How
, Is this? You stayed two weeks in your
, last place. How did that happen?"
1 Domestic —"Sure, Oi dunno. Oi must
, av overshlept mesolf." —New York
, Weekly.
I j Escaped l»y a llalr'a Krenrtfb.
! Dulby iwould-be novulisi) —"I've just
) finished a new novel. If you have a
, mon.ent to spare I'll show you the
I proi.rs." Wilby—'"Oh, never mind
■ j about the proofs. I'll tnks your word
tor it."—Chicago Record.
' HIS ADVICE —DON'T.
XI« llml l'n luted lie I lon'* T ill nn.l
IZvidenc* to l'rove It.
The man sitting en a salt barrel hml j
a hand on whk . only two fingers were j
left, and sizing him up for a veteran :
of the war I him if he hadn't
been wounded by an exploding shell.
"No, not as I remembers of."he re
plied, as he held up his hand and turn
ed it over and over.
"I thought that might have been the
case, but you probably got caught In
some sort of machinery?"
"No, not exactly machinery, sir."
"Gun explode in your hands?"
"No; no gun didn't explode."
I gave it up at that, but after a few
minutes the man looked up and said:
"Stranger, you've eeua a lion, I reck
on?"
"Oh, yes."
"Seen 'em caged and looking es
harmless as cats?"
"Yes; they generally look that
way."
"That's the way I sired up one in a
cage in a circus. He lay there, looking
so sleepy and good-natured and harm- j
less that I thought it was a swindle
on the public and I'd try to rouse him
a bit."
"And so you poked him?" I queried.
"No, sir, no poking. I Jest, calcula
ted to gin his tail about three twi3ts
and make him feel that life wasn't all j
beef and bones and sunshine. I wait- I
ed for my chance and then I reached 1
my hand in. How far Is it from a li
on's mouth to the middle of his tall?"
"Several feet at least."
"I thought it was about a rod, but I
know better now. I hadn't more'n got
hold of his tail when he got hold of me
and was gulpin' down them mls3in'
fingers. He wanted the hull hand and
arm, but they beat him off. I thought
at first I wouldn't explain matters, but
then I thought I would. I look a good
deal like a fcol, don't I?"
"Hardly that."
"Well, you do, and that's why I ex- I
plained. I was fool 'nuff to want to
twist a lion's tail, and you may be fool
'nuff to want to poke one in the eye,
and so my advice is—don't."
How Tliey Love Eaili Other.
"Pid you see that an evening parer said
that I had created the part?"
"That was referring to your complexion,
dear."
A HtidgeL of I>eiiuition9.
Dude —Another name tor a tailor's
goose.
Diary—A continued story that ends
before it's finished.
' Hyphen—The one plausible excuse
i for breaking your word.
Nothing—A thing that isn't a thing
because it's no-thing.
Dollars — Stamped cclns made to rep
resent financial circle 3.
Bachelor —A bird of freedom that
' some of the caged ones envy.
' Drill—A bore—especially to the of
ficer who trains raw recruits.
1 Cigarette —A rank concoction with a
light on cue end and nothing on the
other.
Scruple—One-third of a drachm, al
though some men take a dram without
any scruples.
Tf|i«'H Out of the I'omloir.
"I didn't want to keep you waiting,
Mr. Westend, so I came down just as I
was," said Miss Darlington, sweetly, as
she entered the parlor.
"Oh, what a whopper!" exclaimed
her small brother. "You know you on
ly had on" —
And then Tommy was violently hus
tled out of the room.
1110 I'liiloaophy.
. "And so, Pat, you think Dennis had
, the wrong side of the argument? But
' what reason have you tote so sure of
this?"
"Faith, he hadn't another worrud to
say after 01 hit him wid me first
brick."
' I'not*.
We hear of people every day
Who overstep the rules.
And, by their doings, show that they
are various kinds of fools.
The woman in flesh colored tights
Who dances, kicks and sings;
The man that on the frail trapeze
So perilously swings;
, The brazen one who stands before
A multitude, and twists
A slimy snake about her neck;
„ The tough with heavy fi3ts,
r Who meets another In the ring,
And pounds him till he dies;
t The man that on a parachute
Ij Drops from the starry skies—
I These and a hundred others we
i Look at In speechless awe.
And then declare them all to be
1 i The biggest. fools we ever saw.
a
e But, after all is said and done,
d Is ti e fcol that thrills us so
a j Moie foolish than the gaping one
Who pays to see the show?
Tl<.» Fm'th apppnrs to be booming
fre. Us jst now. At Ox.'oid. North
Uiui.Uu, a cyclone ;;a:ispoi'te(i ,
through tho air a two-atory frame j
house, and set It down on a more i
sightly site, 200 yards distant from
the point of embarkation, the family
being at dinner and undisturbed by
their little whirl. We may look out
for this item again, when it has gath
eied its second wind. When it comes j
around the next time the house will |
probably be of bricks. Alabama mod- j
e3tly enters leading by her apron '
stilngs a woman who wa3 struck by
lightning without knocking a spawl off
her cheek. The encounter occurred
seven years ago and the wom.m has
never mentioned it —in fact, she has
not spoken since—but her eye 3 al
ways blaze like blazes and shine with
the intensity of an arc lamp just be
fore a thunder storm. Georgia peeps
In and exhibits a Macon woman who.
In breaking an esg to make a pudding,
ended at an early stage the career of
i chick with four legs. Texas weakly
attempts to rival Georgia by cackling
md clucking about a Galveston woman
who exhibits as a production of her
awn hennery a chicken in good health
having two beaks In good working or
ler for bugs and currants, and three
>yes always on the lookout for pro
render. There nre others.
The newspaper correspondents are
funny fellows. They frequently as
tonish "the natives" of a locality by
making It famous when the na:lv s
know how entirely bottomless is the
paper tub upon wh cli the fame o' t! <ir
locality is set afloat. The corespond
ents are funny in so many ways, too.
Every man on Puget Sound and every
ooy in 'lacoma. Puyallup and Steila
coom knows that Tacoma's nietenti
ous hotel, the iacoma, has been an
elephantine consumer of cash; an un
usually expensive luxury for the man
agers or owners; yet the corieipond
i ent gravely wires to the world at ia;ge
j ihat Dan Lament, et als., have tele
' graphed for an optional lease on the
I Tacoma hotel! As if that lease has
not been blowing abovt the country
for years searching for some one tore
! lieve the owners of some of their hotel
deficits.
I —.
A Horrible Ri.ilroad Accic'ent
is a ilnily chronicle ml >ur pn| ef; n't-o
the deal li of some "leu ß lrieii<t. WHO luid
■ lit'ii with Coiifiinipiion, wlicrene, it' lie or
■"lie hud tnkeii O t» H Cure tor Tlirom und
l.ungdisi-HHes in lime, lil'e would have
lieen rendered Ii a | pi-rand |•> rha | wived.
Heed I lie warniiijr ! It von have 11 eoiigl.
ior any alleeiion of the Throat and builds
1 Call on T -I Keeler.Laporte; \V. L
lliilliiian, 1111 IK r >w; H Lani'aeter
Forkfvillej C. B .Ifiininir*, Eciella;
•Ino, W. Buck. Soiuvtown, ami >ret »
trial paeka>re tree. Lar>:e size 50c and '2sc
HU'IEL FORTER.
Canton Street,
SHUNK, PA.
W. E. PORTER, Prop'r.
First elate in hII i»t appointment.
Rates very reasonable. Good sialilii |
Specia l iiiiention given to transient truw ,
ALL THE BE."! FORMS
OF MODERN
LIFE mum
ATE WRITTEN BY THE
PENN MUTUAL
P IBSUHABCFI CTI.
OF PHILADELPHIA.
If you want Life Insurance,
don't fail to find out what this
old and well-tried company
can do for you. Its agent
will cheerfully give you the
desired information. A postal
card addressed to the under
sigi.ed, giving name, age itnd
address, will bring you full
particulars.
M. A. SCUREMAN,
Dushore, Pa.
LAPORTE LIVERY AND
EOARDING STABLES.
Connected with the Commercial
Hotel. First-class Horses and
Carriages.
Kates reasonable.
CHAS. COLEMAN, Prop.
BLACKSMITH
AND WAGON SHOP
! Just opened at the Laporte
Tannery.
I Custom work solicited. AH work
; guaranteed.
o. w. BENNETT, Prop.
Ouod Mews.
No other Medicine was ever given euch
' a lest lie Cure. Thousands <• bot
I ties of this great German remedy are be*
in . disiiilxiud KI KI: 01 ( IIAJIOE, to those
a'H oted with Consnni|ition, Asthma,
i t'ro i|>. severe Coughs, l'nei luonia nml nil
i llir«>at and Lung diseiieeß.giving the piO*
pie proof thm OtioV Cure will . ure ihim
: For sale only hv T. J. Keeler, Laporie;
W.L. Hoflman,llillsgrove; >t.S. Lancaster
ForksvilU; C. B. .letiliings, Estelln; Jno.
IW. Buck, Soneßtown. Sam plea I'ree.
Large Unties oUc uuJ 25c.
January
Reminds us of
•EW HEATING STOVES.
Pipe, New Stove Repairs~Coal
Sieves, Coal Buckets, Horse
© }j| Jf Blankets, New Bedroom Suits
'Mi Apple-butter Crocks, Yardan-
Hu iei s > F et 'd Cutters, Stone Jugs,
111l 1 ia ' rs ' L; mps.
THIS SOLID OAK
$2 25 to oi r cu:-timers.
Jeremiah Kelly,
HUGHESVILLE.
HAVING PURCHASED THE
GRIST MILL Property
Formerly O wned by O. W. Mathers
at this place
,
1 am Now Prepared
To Do All Kinds of Millinf cr Vti) floit
Notice With W. E. Starr ai Miller.
Please Give a Trial.
FEED OF ALL KINDS 0.1 H\ i J
W. E. MILLER,
FORKSVILLE, PA.
N. B. All parties knowing themselves indebted to me will
confer a great favor by calling and paying the amount
due, as I need money badly at once.
Respectfully yours, W. E. MILLER.
January 1898!
Will close all our winter goods and Ladies' Coats and Capes oui
: at nearly half price, in fact, a good many articles at
At Less Than Half Price.
Our stock is very large and prices will lie no ol ject. We her<
! mention a few prices exactly as we intend to sell. this is no bluff oi
' fake, but a FACT, that you can save nearly 40 to 50 per cent, by buying
now: Men's suits at $3.25, regular price 50.50; Men's overcoats a
?2.75, arc worlli SO.00; Hoys' suits, 3 piece-, at 82.75. are really worst
c 5 50; Children's suits at 75c and SI.OO. are worth nore than double
Men's pants in all wool and all different styles SI.CO, are '2.00 aiu
, .3.00 values; knee pants at big 1 argainp; Men's underbills at less thai
iiaff price; all wool Micks- 2 pair foi 25c; heavy cotton seeks 4 \ air foi
''s 'the largest variety of boots and sin es in this section at prices t<
! suit' everybody, ltubl cr l.ools ai d slices we ?< 11 cheaper than any otliei
store in the count} . We w i.l make you such low prices in Ladies
Coats and Capes
That you will surely le stirpri-ed. All we a;k it> to call and sc<
.hem. We will! c glad to give you our best prices, ladies' coats n
,he latest styles at §2.75, regular pi ice $7.00, we only have about 15 o
these coat, left in ll.car.d Hack, rocgh goods; Ladies plush capes a
#5.00, regular price 89.00; extra lorgplmh capes at 87.50; a lig vanetj
of Llidies' ceatsat 84.50 ai d g5.00; Ladies' cloth capes at 82.25, les
than half pri. e, they are heavy aid good let gh. We have about \l
Children's coats, age from 4 to 12 years, in very fancy patterns ai.d ii
•: the litest styles, at nearly half price. We cannot mention all of ou
I good! but whatever you may need in our line we will sell accordingly
' We will surely sell as we advertise as our stock is very large and w
' must sfcll.
Prices Will be no Object.
4e have good attendance and are always pleased to FI.OW ou:
' stock whether you buy or not. You can buy here now for 8100 a
much as cither places for 82.00. We find this to be a fact.
_ \< r% The Reliable Dealer in Clothing
Jacob Per B OO .S -^-« sville>