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2 Imperial Press Saturday, May 4, 1901 PACIFIC COAST ITEMS A Big Klondike Clean Up— Fight With a Mountain Lioness A San Diego Murder Mystery— A Big Court-Martial — Twelve Men Over come by Gai San Francisco.— The State commis sion in lunacy has filed with the board of supervisors a demand for the pay ment of 11380, expended by the State for the maintenance of insane per sons from this city at the Mendoclno hospital. In its communication to the board, the commission aoks that provision for the payment of these claims be made in the next tax levy. Bis; Klondike Clean Up Seattle, Wash.— James H. Arden, of one of the mining companies of Daw son, came to the city on his way to London, England. Arden said that the clean-up this year in the Dawson camp, would, from a conservative estimate, amount to $30,000,000, making it the biggest output in the history of the Klondike. Mr. Arden has had an extensive ex perience in the Klondike, and says that the new strike in Eldorado, below the level of the old bedrock, is not in the least exaggerated. He is taking to London samples of the quartz from the ledge lately struck in the country rock, and which runs from Victoria Gulch on Bonanza to Eldorado. This quartz, ■which is said to be fabulously rich, is free milling gold, Mr. Arden thinks ■will raiße the Dawson camp a great deal in the estimation of the financial centers of the world. SAN DIEGO MURDER MYSTERY A Man's Body Is Found In a Car Loaded With Hay San Diego, April 21.— What appears to be a case of murder came to light this afternoon when some men began to unload hay from a Santa Fe car that came in Thursday and has been standing on the track on Che wator front. In the car was found the body of a man dressed us a laborer. <md lying on the hay, apparently asleep. An examination quickly showed tha,t ho was dead. By his side were his shoes, and in one of them was a bottle of morphine, and the supposition was that death had beon cause by the drug, but when the corpse was taken to the morgue the physicians discovered that his neck was dislocated, and they de clare that he was dead drunk when he was placed in the car. The identity of the dead man is un known, and the affair Is a mystery. Fight With a Mountain Lioness Phoenix, Ariz.. April 22.— John Asher, had a fearful fight with a great mountain lioness in the Four Heads country several days ago. While looking after his cattle he ■was attacked by the brute, and only the aid of his dog saved him from death or fearful injury. The lioness leaped upon him from a high rock, before Asher could loosen his gun from his saddle. The cat and man rolled to the ground together, and the lioness was getting the better of him when the dog, a big mastiff, Joined in. The diversion allowed Asher to get his gun and he soon killed the lioness. The dog was so badly mangled that it died. . - J Big Court-Martial San Francisco, April 22.— A court martial of unusual rank has been ord ered to sit at the- Presidio. Several officers of General Shatter's staff are appointed to sit on it, and Major John A. Hull, judge advocate of the depart ment, Is judge advocate of the court. There are thirteen members of the court. All this seems to indicate that an officer is to be tried. All the officers are under oath to pre- Berve the utmost secrecy in tEe matter and claim either that there is nothing unusual on foot or that they know imperial prcae nothing about It. No officer stationed in this department is known to have committed any court-martial offense, but is is possible that, among the num erous officers who have been return- Ing from the Philippines lately, Borne one may have been sent to General Shatter under arrest and with orders for his immediate trial. Twelve Men Are Overcome by Gas SEATTLE, Wash. — Overcome by smoke and gas from a passing freight train, twelve men fell Insensible In the Great Northern tunnel through the Cascade Mountains. One hour later a track-walker stum bled over their prostrate bodies. Sup posing that all were dead, he hurried back to the town of Cascade for as sistance. A special engine and crew were sent out and brought In the bodies. Eleven were resuscitated, but J. A. McDonald, who fell Into a ditch through which water was running, was beyond help. It is supposed that he was drowned rather than suffocated, as he fell face down In the water. THREE BIG TRUSTS I Are About to Be Floated—Telephone Trust, Stove Trust, Theatre Combine San Francisco. — The Bulletin prints a story to the effect that a gigantic combination of all the telephone In terests of the United States has been accomplished, and that John J. Sabin, president and manager of the Pacific States Telephone company, with head quarters in this city, has been chosen president of the largest and most im portant division of the new combine, with a salary of $35,000 a year. The presidency and management of the Pacific States Telephone company will be retained by Mr. Sabin, who will reside in the east for a period, however, until he has replaced the system there upon a basis comparable to that of San Francisco. In the majority of the eastern cities flat rates are in vogue, the subscribers paying for their telephones by the year. The California man is to introduce the graded rate system now in effect in this city and along the coast. The American Telegraph and Tele phone company has assumed practical control of the telephone lines of the United States. The capital stock of this company is $90,100,000, and the number of its stations 800,880, while it has 1,961,000 miles of wire strung over the entire country. Detroit.— A special to the Evening News from St. Louis says: Although efforts are being made to keep it secret, the fact has leaked out here that the organization of a huge stove trust is nearly completed, taking in all the large stove manufacturing concerns of the United States. New York.— A partnership has been formed by George W. Lederer and M. B. Leavitt to establish an amusement circuit in the principal cities of Cuba, Mexico and Yucatan. Novel Horse Race Prescott. — A novel race occurred here between two horses owned by Dan Reams and Joe Ray, of Big-Bug. The wager was $400. Reams was required to cover a distance of twenty-six miles on a wagon road, while Ray was to select his own route, the one reach ing Prescott first was to win the money. Ray selected a trail seventeen miles in length, between the two places, and covered the distance in "one hour and seventeen minutes in spite of the fact that the trail is quite precipitous at several places. Reams, whose horse was much larger and stronger, covered his twenty-six miles in an hour and forty minutes, contrary to expectations. Neither animal is apparently injured. Kasson Resigns Washington— John A. Kasson has seveTed his official connection with the stato department, where he has been since the beglnnning of Mr. Mc- Kinleys administration, engaged as special plenipotentiary to conduct the negotiations which resulted in the drawing of a number of reciprocity treaties and arrangements under the terms of the McKinley act. Although thus severing his officia connection, Mr. Kasson holds himself ready to respond to any call of the de partment for the special information of which he is possessed. Meanwhile the bureau iv the state department which he organized will continue In ex istence. FOR THE FARMER A Few Items Gathered for the Inter est of Our Rural Readers STARTING YOUNG GRAPEVINES A Boycott Declared on California Straw- Berries— Heat of Wood and Coal— Disposing of Sick Chickens Reports from various parts of Mex ico Btute that unusually heavy and late frosts have caused great damage to the grain crops all over th^repub c. Wheat has suffered particularly. Fruit orchards on the west coast have been slightly damaged and the orange crop will be cut down considerably. A farmer near Phoenix, Arizona, planted one grain of white Australian wheat and at harvest time from it had sprung 1360 grains of large fat wheat. He planted ten acres of this wheat and harvested 177 sacks, each weigh ing 138 pounds. The single grain spoken of produced thirty-six stalks. To prevent the loss of fruit on trees by frost, the fruit-growers of the Yak ima valley, Washington, are building movable fire sheds which can be drawn through the orchards by horses. By the burning of wood and damp straw, a dense smoke is caused, which effec tually dispels the frost and Prevents injury to the buds.— California Culti vator. Oranges in London W N. White, Covent Garden, Lon don. England, wrote to the New York Fruitman's Guide under date of March 15. as follows: "Oranges— There is great trouble in this trade. Many are useless. The weather in Spain spoiled quite a lot, and some of those that have been shipped ought to have been left at the manure heap, as they have to be thrown away here— freight, packing charges and boxes all lost. Others just pay the expense. Those that are good fetch high prices. At yesterday's sale Murcia Bloods, 150s to 200s, fetched 9s. to 11s.; sweets, 4205, 16s to 265..; 4205, large, 265. to 405.; 7145, 15s. to las.; extra large 7145, 18s. to 265. Cali fornias are in demand, those here being Washington navels. Seeing that best oranges are now so badly wanted, I recommend some 150s to 175s budded seedlings of good quality, as I think we can give a good account of them. We could also do with some California mandarins and grape fruit." This item is of Interest as showing the situation in London a month ago.' when California oranges could not reach New York for want of trans portation facilities.— L. A. Herald. Farming in Alaska It will be a matter of surprise to most people to hear that Alaska will produce farm feed of great value. Prof. C. C. Georgeson, the special agent of the United States Agricultural Depart ment, in charge of the experiment sta tion at Sitka, after two years of ex perience, says: "There Is not the slightest doubt that grain can be matured almost anywhere in Alaska. I have obtained this year samples of perfectly ripe bar ley, oats, wheat and rye from several points in the interior as far north as Eagle. These grains were grown and matured there this year. With one exception they were volunteer products from, seed accidentally scattered and grown wild. If grains will grow and mature without culture, it stands to reason that they will grow and im prove with culture. I also grew flax at Sitka the first year. It attained a height of more than three feet, ma tured seed and produced a fiber of ex cellent quality. There is no doubt that flax can be made a successful crop in the coast region of Alaska. Starting Young Grapevines There Is a general stampede all over the State to plant grapevines and all sorts of methods are used. In the north, anything that is not on re sistant roots is not considered worth while planting, on account of the phyloxera. At this end of the State people are importing standard varie ties on their own roots, from phyloxera infested districts of the north. These importations should be stopped, wheth er the insect is discovered on them or not. It would be an easy matter to quarantine against the phyloxera from the north if proper steps were taken. Lincoln. There are many fine vineyards la Southern California tkat will continue to pay well for perhaps a generation, provided the phyloxera Is kept out.— California Cultivator. Boycott on Berries PHOENIX, Ariz., April 19.— The Art zona Berry Growers' Association has been perfected. Plans were made for a boycott of California strawberries, which are being shipped here in large quantities. Imported berries are of in ferior quality and in bad condition by the time they reach here, and some of them, shipped, out of here as Arizona f-uit, have caused serious damage to the reputation of local berries. Sick Chickens About the best way to treat a sick chicken is to kill and bury it. If it is grown, cut off its head, selecting a place for the operation where the healthy birds will not get at the blood. Bury the body near a grapevine, if you grow grapes. If It is a deformed or sickly chick do not bother with it, but kill it and bury It near a potato plant. It will give more profit there than it will In any other way. In most sicknesses the fowl is neglected until it has spread the disease. The attempt to doctor, if made at all, should be made just as soon as the bird begins to mope. Cholera, the worst disease we have to contend with, is spread through the droppings. A cholera in fected bird may be kept in the next pen to the healthy stock wlOi only a wire netting to separate them and will not spread the disease among the flock. But the trouble often Is the sick bird is not separated from the flock soon enough. A poultry raiser of our ac quaintance is very successful, and he rigidly enforces the rule to kill every fowl that shows signs of sickness. He says that others may spend their time doctoring hens if they wish to, but he has no time to do it and does not care to run the risk of having sick birds about. He boasts of raising ninety chicks out of one hundred. In a loft in his hen house he keeps a salamander stove, which he can readily heat up, and in that stove he burns every sick fowl that he kills. As intimated above, we think a dead fowl can be put to better use than that and not endan ger the flock either. On a smaller scale I have tried the killing remedy and it has worked well. Do the best we may, and we shall lose chicks and have some sick fowls. However, cleanliness, ex termination of lice, careful feeding and care not to overcrowd will reduce sick ness to the minimum. Much of the trouble that comes to the young flock Is the result of weak stock, and a weak, sickly chick is better dead than alive. It Is folly to breed from weak stock if we know it, but having done it. weeding out the flock Is advisable, and a necessity. Save the strong chicks and destroy the weak ones. Weed out as heroically as you weed out a herd of cattle of sheep. — Optimist. Heat in Wood and Coal Farmers as well as others have oc casion to consider the fuel question as one of some importance In Southern California, and therefore they will be interested in the statement made by the Rural New Yorker that the pro portionate heating power .of coal and wood has been found by experience to be that one pound of charcoal heats seventy-three pounds of water from 32 degrees, which is the freezing point, to 212 degrees, which is" the boiling point of water; that one pound of an thracite coal heats seventy pounds of water In the same way, and one pound of dry wood heats thirty-five pounds of water the same, so that the coal has just twice the heating power that dry wood has. and a little less than char coal has. Of course wood that is not dry loses a proportionate heating value corresponding to the quantity of water remaining in It, and air dry wood has on an average 12 degrees of water in it. So that we may reasonably esti mate the value of one ton of anthra cite coal to be equal to two cords of wood. "Honest Tom" Sampson New York. April 20.— "Honest Tom" Sampson, detective, army veteran and life-saver, died last night at Mount Vernon, N. Y. Captain Sampson had sixteen medals for meritorious service, a number of them for saving life, one being awardede to him by Congress. He aided in the arrest of Mrs. Surratt. Miss Fitzpatrick, Edward Payne and Dr. Samuel Cox, who were implicated In the plot to assassinate President