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HEREDITY AND HEALTH THE ViEV3 CF FAWILY COCTCRG AND LIFE INSURANCE t.'.tU, lie dent Throrl.- n Ui I'oimlMli.y of Inti?rl!lni: iJl.tMue-Ti,,, Ne,r in.-fln l!-tiiril Ut TiiIm irulDiUIi.xiinliy W Not a 1I:m terliil Disease. I'iKiti few questions Imvc medical m n been ho ilivHi'il as upon the poi I'lilty of Inheriting disease. Opinion on this subject has undergone much Change within the last fifteen or twenty years, but even , to-day doc tors are not unanimous on tho sul .1ot. Then, again, there Is nnother class of f:eit!nti!lc people who thco rlze regarding the phenomena of phys ical life ami conduct laboratory exper iments. These men call themselves biologists, and they are unquestion ably n learned lot. Yet their conclu sions are often different from those reached by tho physicians. In cen tral. It may be said that biologists Incline to accept Weisstnnnn's doc trine that acquired traits cannot be transmitted to progeny, while medi cal men, though differing as to details, have more or less confidence In the possibility of inheriting physical In firmities. The discovery of bacteria ns the cause of most maladies has had a revolutionary Inlluence upon the old doctrine of Inheritance regarding tu berculosis. Once It was believed that a whole family was hopelessly doomed If either of the parents died of this dis ease. "Wo have ripped that notion up the back," paid the medical ad visor of a leading Insurance company the other day. "Phthisis is a contag ious disease, and results from associa tion with a victim of that trouble. I should sooner look for it In the hus band than In the child of a woman who was thus affected." The doctor who passes on the appli cations made to another company put tho case less radically. He attached some Importance to the fact that par outs had died of consumption. Even granting that It is purely a contagious malady, offspring sometimes appear to inherit a susceptibility or an abnor mally low power of resistance to It. It Is asserted that even when the chil dren of tuberculosis parents are wide ly separated In their youth, and grow up apart, a larger percentage of them develop the disease than that of other people's children. The preponderance Is not marked, perhaps, but there are those who believe that it exists. This same expert remarked, however, that formerly his company did not regard a man reasonably safe from inherited consumption until he was forty years old, whereas they would take him now with little hesitation at thirty-five, If he then showed no signs of the mal ady. Both theory and practice are un degoing slow changes on this point, apparently. Insanity is not regarded as a bacter ial disease, and yet it has a physical basis. Tho brain undergoes local or general changes in structure. The dis order cannot be acquired by associa tion with other victims of it, but many experts believe in the possibility of In heriting a tendency to insanity and Its first cousin, epilepsy. Doctors recog nize what they call the "insane dia thesis" or a predisposition to Insanity, and then take a good deal of stock in the notion that this is an inherited weakness. Most life insurance com panies discriminate sharply against applicants whose ancestry exhibits two or three cases of insanity, or one of Insanity and one of epilepsy. Cancer is another aflliction which was once believed to be transmissible to offspring, but that view of It is now almost entirely abandoned. Occasion ally there are cases of death from this cause in mother or father and son only a few years apart. But, sugges tive as such a coincidence is, doctors do not all Interpret It alike. One of the leading life insurance companies of this country, which puts its terms up where consumption or Insanity ap pears in the parents' or grandparents' history, ignores cancer except In the applicant himself. These are the three diseases to which the most attention is given by these companies in considering the infirm ities of parents and grandparents. Still, it is asserted that lack of long- pvltv. Brisrht's disease and other Bigns of weakness appear to be char acteristic of some families and not of others. There Is little evidence of the Inheritance of a predisposition to apo plexy. Indeed, this trouble, whjch Is due primarily to a weakness of the walls of the arteries, has been round to be about equally characteristic of persons whose weight is abnormally great and those who are abnormally light A great deal has been written of al coholism and heredity. Some of the expressions on this subject are ex travagant and misleading. It is par ticularly Interesting to note whether drunkenness or other moral railings develop in parents before or after their children were born, in me lat ter case heredity would seem to afford n inadequate explanation of baa nan- its or disease. Nevertheless, there is much evidence that in one way or an other immorality affects offspring. It .ir,ni co chiefly by impairing me pnyi cal stamina cf the latter, and rarely ! muslinr nur n i-Hn! ill-, .n In- iraneo ci .;.'!.! i ay Utile nUi tiM i: t nb-ohollsm hi the parents of n ; ' 1- Mills, riot because thev have no fail I: n Its Inllneiir. ;, but ber -use t IfV can ecognlze the latter la tmdersizc, Ight Weight, nervous ueaktiiM or ther peculiarities of the children. Such characteristics nerve us a more Useful guide. Perhaps the firmest believers In the Id Mosaic declaration about the "sins f the fathers" are medical praetltlon- rs In towns of moderate size, family ihyslclans who know grandparent?, Ttrents and children socially as well a professionally. Their observation almost Invariably convinces them not nly that moral Infirmities are trans a ted Into physical weakness In the second and third generations, but r.b-o that maladies which are In no sense related to Immorality sometimes leave heir impress on tho young. -Very often this effect is nothing more than a predisposition, which, once recog nized and dealt with in time, may be skillfully antagonized by diet, exercise aud environment. New York Tribune. " BLIND MERCHANT IS HANDY. Carl Wells Never Saw the Light, Yet Is Successful Grocer. There is a small store on the corner of South avenue and Clover street. where are sold Ice cream, canned goods, "package groceries," and the various other things which go to make up the ordinary stock of such an es tablishment. There are hundreds of other stores in Syracuse exactly like this one, but It Is unique because of the personality of the storekeeper, a young man of twenty-one, who Is to tally blind. If you were to see Carl Wells mov ing briskly about, waiting on custom ers and never making a mistake In finding tho right article or In making change, you would find It difficult to realize that the world has been dark to him from the hour of his birth. Al though his father and mother are both endowed with eyesight, a strange fatal ity seems to hang over their children, for Mr. Wells has a brother and a sis ter also afflicted with congenital blind ness In the case of all three, the op tic nerve is paralyzed, and no light af fects the retina, so that the blindness is quite Irremediable. "There Is a long Latin name for It, Dr. Brown told me, but I don't remem ber it," said Mr. Wells to a Herald re porter. "But then, of course, I don't miss my eyes as any one would who had had them and lost them. When I was a child I made up my mind that I must learn- to do things for myself, for if you wait for some one else to help you, you generally have to wait a long while, and I am fortunate in having a strong sense of location. I always put my own goods in their places on the shelves and then I don't have the least difficulty in finding them. Once I know how the outside of any special package feels, I know It for keeps. Of course, If some one were to disarrange my work and put things out of place, I should be com pletely lost." Syracuse Uerald. Abandoned Schoolhouse to a Ghoet. A ghost has received official recog nition in the action of Trustee Jesse Martin, of Jackson township, of Car roll County, Ind., when he gave a con tract for the erection of a new school building In the Walnut Grove district. Several years ago Amer Green was lynched by a mob for the murder of his sweetheart, Luella Mabbitt, the hanging Jaklng place at a walnut tree in the Walnut Grove schoolyard. Since then the children have been filled with superstitious terror in regard to the place, and the once large school dwin dled to two pupils last winter, and after a few weeks' effort to get others to attend, school was dismissed. Strange stories were told about the place. Green's ghost was reported to have been seen, and the teachers re ported that they heard unexplalnable sounds about the building. The wal nut tree, before then a large and thrifty one, never bore foilage after the lynching, and stood a bleak re minder of the tragedy. No teacher could be found to accept the school for next winter, and in re sponse to the Insistent demands of the. patrons a new building will be erect ed a short distance away, the old site being abandoned. Indianapolis Jour nal. J Carried Kittens "With Ills Teeth. Stradley is three years old and a polite young man, as is indicated by the fact that he gravely doffs his hat when meeting a woman with whom he is acquainted. He also believes that In some things nature's way is the better. A family of kittens came to Strad ley's home, much to his delight. He carried one of the kittens about with him and marveled much that the kit ten should cry. The other day he saw the mother cat carrying a kitten in her month, and a great light broke on Stradley. That afternoon he walked solemnly in to the house, holding a struggling kit ten firmly between his teeth." "Why, Stradley," said his mother, "you should not carry poor kitty that way." "No?" said the little man, and then added: "Why, It's mamma does." New York Mail and Express. t t i . r . - X ConijiroiiiUf Sinlljr I.n IiIhk 'I '' He wnril of riTeernee I'roirlsloiied A t'si-les Adjunrt-Tlie l.i-on..ll.lllly Mltilr Airt-lieunl(ii IIojH'ful, lAc. "Will yon pive me n nti van ya'i.t W hen 1 tun warned t mi Jack?" The youth win vine, and. like a shot, Gave her a little smack! -Lif. 8adly Lacking, Baby Swellkld (to friendi-'ilow awkwardly that common child walks." Friend "Yes; she has no carriage at hlir-Chlcago News. The llewurd of Perseverance. "Why, I didn't think you Intended to encourage him." "Well. I didn't at first, but It was Impossible to discourage him 1" Puck. Provisioned. "Did little Jim tnjoy that children's party?" "1 guess so. He wasn't hungry until the next afternoon at four o'clock." Puck. A Cm-lean Adjunct Ascum "What's the Idea in your new story V" Wright "Idea? Why, it hasn't any. It's a society novel." Philadelphia Press. Tho Itcspoiislbllltr She "Did it ever occur to you what poor talkers the men are?" He "Did you ever consider that It Is the women who teacli babies to say things?" Boston Transcript. Midair Apprehension. Pinching Bug-"Say,' It is 6llly for you to wear your headlight on be hind." Lightning Bug "Not at alL I'm aw fully nervous about rear-cud col lisions." Hopeful. lie "Do you suppose we will ever have enough to get married on?" She "Surely. Why, Jack, we don't need a million. A couple of hundred thousand will do to start on." Detroit Five Press. Glad of It. T read somewhere the other day that the American people spend $15, 000,000 a year for golf." "'Good! I'm glad to hear It If they didn't blow It In that way they might spend It on fireworks." Quite Out of It. Mrs. Bluegore "But they are very fashionable, are they not':" Mrs. Swellman "Fashionable? Most assuredly not Why, they permit the care of their children to Interfere with their social obligations." Philadelphia Press. None liver Lost. . "People will find fault." "It seems Inherent in human na ture." "The surprising part is so much fault is found wnen so few seem to lose any of their faults" Philadelphia Times. Helping Illin to Like. "Yes," he said, with a deprecating sweep of the hand, "this is a very small world, after all." "I know it" she replied; "sometimes it really astonishes me that you can back up or turn around on it without slipping over the edge." Chicago, Itecord-Herald. Justified. "So you didn't think, before we met" she said, with an arch smile, "that I was beautiful? Why?" "I had heard several of your lady friends say you were 'such a nice, sweet little thing,' " he replied. After that she naturally had less confidence in herself. . The Price of Knowledge. "I sent away a dollar," she sadly said, "to a party in New York who I offered to tell for that amount how to make the guests at summer resorts ; love your children." j "Oil, did you?" her friend asked. "What do you have to do?" "Leave them at home!" Chicago record-Herald. . j Sclf-Iisteem. ' "Yes," aid the youngster's mother, "Mr. Bliggins insists that our boy Is going to grow up to be a wonderfully intellectual and estimable man." "That is only a natural parental pride." "Perhaps. I am not quite sure whether it Is parental pride or belief In heredity." Washington Star. Well Fixed. "But, mamma," said the beautiful Fouth American heiress, "do you be lieve I will have any trouble In being received in society in the United States?" "I don't see why," answered her mother. "You have plenty of money pnd you can make the best of them look like smail change when it comes to being a daughter of the revolution." Indianapolis S':n. " wiltl TnC rOf1rr fni- r.. I """oettfl-jjiuie 111 TUP Atmmn - C00D POPULAR J0N CI f.CARCC. firciit lilt 1 civ Ninml,i j , All time,; t Music Publishers Are II tit!!ii(;. "It Is hingular, but true," paid a music publisher, "that there ate very few big bits In popular m-ii-i nowa days, that Is, fiom-s that bae reach id the million mark In rales, vvu-h as After the Ball, 'Annie Rooncy.' 'Dalsey Bell.' 'Down Went McGlnty,' 'Two Lllth' Girl In Blue' mid 'Com rades.' Many songs published slnco th"n have been very popular, to be sure, but they cannot be compared with the old-timers. "Many dealers have asked me the cause of this, but thus far I have been tmablo to explain It satisfactorily. It Is all the stranger when you take Into consideration the fact that there are more slngeis and better facilities for pushing songs than In former years. "Years ago a good sung would firce Itself upon the market. At present a publisher has to humor the singers and do a lot of hustling. Some of the top lint rs require pay to sing songs. In the old days they were only too glad to get a good ballad. To cater to the whims of the singers a publisher must have at least three pianos In his estab lishment, employ expert players and vocalists to teach the songs, print professional cards and do a thousand other things. You see the competi tion is keen, and If you should hurt the feelings of any singer, especially a man or woman of reputation, you will have considerable trouble In making your songs popular. "Publishers have to take a lot of chances, too. For instance, to popu larize a song you must have slides made for stereopticon views. This costs quite a sum. One publisher spent $400 to take pictures for a set of slides for the song 'Sing Again That Sweet Refrain.' He had to employ a troupe of colored minstrels, a band ami a' hall. Fortunately the song made money and he did not lose anything. There are other things to contend with, too, such as lawsuits, etc. There was a dispute over the ownership of one song, for Instance. After fighting In the courts for some time one of the firms concerned compromised by pay ing the other ?2000 In cash and the costs of tho suit" Cleveland Tlain Dealer. Glrln Wlio Sing Over Hard Work. Young girls in Japan are employed to perform a task which cannot be done In the same time and with the same ease by any other body of work folk In the world. They are engaged at the different ports In loading the large steamers with coal. The coal barges are swung alongside the vessel, from stem to stern of which are hung a series of platforms, the broadest nearest the base and diminishing as they rise. On each of these platforms a girl stands. Men on the barges fill baskets containing about two buckets c" coal each, and pass them to the girl standing on the lowest platform. She passes them to the girl above her, and a continuous and unbroken line of baskets pass into the vessel from 10 In the morning until 4 In the after noon. The girls will handle from sixty to seventy baskets of coal per minute. and over 1000 tons of coal a day. This really arduous toil they perform as If it were mere play, for they keep up a running fire of jokes, and their laughter Is continuous. They often break into a song, the notes of which are clear, melodious and stimulating. Chicago Record-Herald. I'.atlnc Locusts. The Filipinos In Manila are having an unexpected feast. It came to them like the manna to the Israelites, being furnished by a swarm of locusts, which recently flew over the city. To these people the locusts are a great delicacy. The insects are served dry or In a pot-pourri They are also made into pies and cakes, and in some instances ground Into powder and steeped In liquid so as to make a bev erage. At times catcximg the insects becomes a very profitable business. In Manila aud the other large cities they sell at $2 a sack, gold. These sacks hold about a bushel. When dried the locust can be kept indefinitely. The natives never eat the grasshoppers green, but they eat them In every form, dried or cooked. They even car ry them in their pockets and eat them as they would candles and other con fections. When dried the locust Is nice and crisp, and tastes something like gingersnaps. Some confestlouers iress the grasshoppers in various ivays, serving him up occasionally with chocolate trimmings and coats 5f sugar. New York Post. Hare Yon Met This Woman? Her husband is all right but he Is so fat! Her little boy Is all right but he Is growing so spindling! Her home Is all right but the paint is too light! Did she like the last lecture at the club? Liked what he said very much but his hair was cut so short like i prize lighter! Her new tailor suit is all right but Mrs. Zyz has her coat a trifle, the merest shred, longer, and it's much better! Her new hat Is cleg-ant but If that ribbon was a shade Jarker, now ! Boston Herald. m jf -.A UMI-V J '- S CILM I INC b -.i v ", i I M HI 1ST R 1 A i ) 'rV ' 1 Two French physicians have made cpciimcnts which, I'd to the v Liiclu Hoii that a nutritious, meat diet and absolute bodily rest are the beat means of nrrestir.g consumption. Three aluminum electric trnnsmis- slon lines have recently been Installed In Italy near Naples. Tho lines trans mit power fit .UK) volts from thrce-horsc-powcr turbines tu the valley of Point II, to Sarno, and to Torre An numiata. The lengths of these lines are two miles, nine miles and two miles, re:-pectlvily. A sheep raiser in Guadaloupo I County, N. M., Is shearing his sheep' with power furnished by electricity. He haB established a camp on the Rock Island extension two miles from Juan Pais and Is there shearing lio.Ooo sheep. The machine secures about three quarters of a round more wool from each sheep than did the old hand method. One man can shear -00 sheep a day. The prize of !?200 offered some time ago by the Association des Indus trltlles of France for the best insu lated glove for t'.lectrlclans was won by Mr. Franz Clouth, of Cologne. The prize-winning glove had an electrical resistance of 52,500 megohms and la a break-down test it withstood a pres sure of 11,000 volts for three minutes and 12,200 volts for one minute before being penetrated. The glove Is of rub ber lined with tricot Geologists, after a careful study of the question, have given It as their opinion that the new oil belt, which at present is doing so much to boom Texas, extends from Beaumont down the Gulf Coast to the mouth of the Rio Grande and far into Mexico. Should this prove true, that country has before It aperlodof prosperity such as Its people never before dreamed of. American prospectors are already ry work, and are sinking pipe-lines P. j hundreds of Dlaces in the State oi- Chihuahua, M. Becquerel reports to the French Academy of Sciences that as a result of carrying In his pocket for several UlUii lllO Ifc C iLI till UUUl V V A. BUU.l J i. il metal radium his skin under the pocket became considerably burned. M. Curie also reported that the exposure of his hand to radio-active material six hourr caused a burn which did not heal up for several months. In their power to burn, therefore, as well as In vari ous ouier cnaruciensucs, me muiuiu rays show analogy to the X-rays. Fiber pipes and conduits, made from tvood pulp and treated with a preserva tive, are now being put In use. After the usual grinding the pulp Is washed, screened, passed through a beating en gine, then screened again. These op erations completed, a thin sheet cf the pulp is wound on a core until the de sired thickness Is secured. After dry ing the tube is treated with a pre servative. Its ends are then finished In a lathe to any desired form.. It is claimed that this product possesses the advantages over bored logs of a homogeneous material throughout, free from grain, and thoroughly Impreg nated with the preservative, thus avoiding variations in hardness, dry ness and amounts of resinous matter. A Clever Tostofllce Horse There is a clever postoflice horse In Brooklyn which for some time past has been getting double rations, and will probably continue to do so until the postoflice men discover his trick. From the sub-station at the corner of Ninth street and Fifth avenue are sent out a number of mail collecting , carts through the surrounding dis trict When the horses drawing these carts come in they are driven up in front of the station to stand until it is time for another collection. While thus standing they are fed. On the curb in front of each horse is placed a bag of oats. None of the horses are tied, for standing is a part of their business. This Is when the horse with a double appetite has his opportunity fl per form a skillful manoeuvre at each meal. He waits until all the rations are distributed, then, paying no at tention to his own allotment, he be gins slowly to back. Slowly, but sure ly he backs into the horse below him, which In turn pushes back further and further until in a few moments the clever horse In front who started the backward procession Is standing in tho place of his neighbor la the rear with his head in that animal's feedbag. Then he begins to eat ravenously, fin ishes his neighbor's oats as soon as possible, and steps nimbly back to his own place, eats his own oats, and settles contentedly for a stand-up nap with a well-fed air of placid Innocence. But the horse at the end of the line suffers. That Is no affair of the clever inventor of th? scheme, however. New York Times. A single workman can cut C'JM watch glasses a day. !