Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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C i nun BY E. B. MUEEAY & CO. ANDERSON, S. C, THUESDAY MOENING, JULY 29, 1S80. THE TUNNEL'S FIRST VICTIMS. ?A Xenib]?0?,atastrop*he Under the Sad son. ' Jersey City, N. J., July 21. At 5 o'clock this morning the cass ion ?surrounding the-deep-well leading to the -entrance of the Hudson River Tunnel in the course of construction at the foot of ?Sixteenth sheets in?th&%ity, caved iq <?Tryin^wilh?itart?JnuTiense jquantity of ?Barth. Twenty-one workmen were buried. Seven were soou after taken out alive and fourteen remained underneath. Tayjv viator .fromvfthe, river flowed, in rapiSly OTt^stearij fire" engines, were set to wort: toisave,l'if possible, those who might still be alive from drowning. The workiogmen resided in the vicinity of the tunnel, and a very large and excited crowd of persona soon congregated. Thfi pight gang of thirty men, includ? ing Assistant Superintendent Woodward and two firemen, entered the shaft at midnight, the hours of work for this Sang being from 12 to 8 o'clock. The epth of the shaft is sixty-five feet, and while most of the men were employed at the, bottom of the shaft about one-third of the gang*were engaged on the brick wall of the.arch, twenty-five feet higher. It -wW th?r litter1 -stfuad; who were all bricklayers, that escaped, except two. The -main arch of the tunnel .runs out from thel shaft jv distance of about thirty feet, when it^p'eha into two dis? tinct arches that form the tunnel.? Through some negligence of the men it is supposed that the air lock was not properly adjusted. When the process of shifting comromenced the .brick wall connecting the two arches gave way, and the water rushed into the cave. The superintendent Hunts ;tlf?, air in . the tunnel must have Scaped through the silt. He has put a gang of one hundred men at work to dig a new passage to the tunnel, but ftey -mil not be able to reach there in less than three days. AN OFFICIAL ACCOUNT. The following is the official report of the Hudson River Tunnel Company throogh,rta-engrneerv Messrs. Speilman and Briish~Jielat?g t?the accident to the Hudson River Tunnel, which occurred at tb^^Qt qT'BtxteleQth street, Jersey Citv: ^T61?niho'rnTng^--?b??t "half-past 4 o'clock, while the men were changing shifts, that portion of the iron roof ad-' joitfih'S jhejshaft of sthef connecting chaiab^lbetp-een thejtwo tunnels and the sinking shaft fell in. Twenty-eight men were in the tunnel at the time, of whom eight escaped through the air-lock and twenty were killed. The accident occurred at the connection of the iron plates- with -the -hrrck wal 1 of the working shaft, which, during the changing of shifts, was probably not watched by the men as closely as it should have been, and the, compressed air was allowed to escape. This compressed air is relied upon to assist in supporting the roof, which was also sustained by strong ti m b er -braci 11g, a n d the escape. of. air has always been'prevented by stopping any leaks with waste silt As the roof fell the plate closed the door of the air? lock into the tunnel, and the water rising rapidly cut off the escape of the twenty men Who were killed." !t,! 'further detarLS. * -The botMtng-of the-xonnecttng cham? ber, though a difficult piece of. work, progressed until now. The roof was all in position* ana seeurely^oltedf'The connection of the iron plates was being made at the time of the accident." The . work will be prosecuted night and day with all the men that can be advantage? ously used until the bodies can be recov? ered, which will, probably take about days the accident will probably delay the work about three weeks. The. following statement was made by ">?<?ioj/tbM 'ih?? i who escaped: After eight men had escaped one man in trying to pass through the door leading from the air-lock into the temporary chamber' of the tunnel wes jammed'in ?he door*- ? way, and in spite of the efforts of those .??head could not be brought out, as the door closed upon him ana held him fait? * Peter Woodland; ^alwistant snperinted- ' dent, told the men to try and get out, and . when the . ninth man was fastened in the doorway called out to those who bad escaped, telling them to hurry and try and get assistance to help the?rest -and himself who were left behind. He refused to leave himself, saying that he would stay and make ever^e"^f^^feQt^the rest out, and if it wertffic-f sWWe,:$a> those. Who - escap? ing must try to get the rest and himself out, alive if'possible. Almost all of those killed, as well as those saved, resided in Jersey City.? The men who were rescued did uoi reach the surface a moment too soon, for the water rushed after them with amazing rapidity till it reached a'level within five feet of the top of the shaft. The survi? vors were so bewildered that they seemed to lose all presence of mind, even if assistance could be rendered to the poor fellows in the pit. Nearly all the men employed in the tunnel lived in proximi? ty to the works in 13th. 14th and 15th streets, and their friends and rela? tives rushed to the place in tbe most excited frame of mind. Tbe news of the disaster sirread like wild-fire through the surrounding cities. 'From all points im? mense crowds thronged to the scene of the calamity. About the fatal excava? tion the awe-stricken spectators stood. A cordon of police officers were station? ed About ' the shed and engine room to prevent'any interference with the laborers at work to recover the bodies. Through the brokeu windows of the shaft-house the faces of distressed wives, mothers and children were seen distorted with anguish as they sought in vain for the forms that would never be seen again alive. Thomas Van Nostrand, one of the men rescued in the waste lock, gave a reporter a thrilling account of his narrow escape. He said: There were twenty eight men at work in the tunnel. They went on 12 o'clock last night for an eight hour shift. I was at work near the east end of the wasle lock and in the west end of the tunnel. It wan about half-past 4 o'clock that I heard the bolts wimp and the braces give way. At the same time I felt a rush of air in my face. I started back with seven of the men who were near me and ran into the air lock. The air pressure crowded the door shut at the east end. At first it was blocked by a joist which we pulled out, and then "the door slammed to. The lock has doors at both ends and glass : deadeyes to admit light. Through the deadeyes we could see the men inside the tu n tie I. The water was rushing in. Peter Woodland, city assistant superin- I tendent, stood at the door outside the waste lock which was stationary. It W iiild not move without our knocking out the deadeyes. This would be fatal to the men outside as the water would get in and drown the men in an instant. Woodland knew this, but he stood at the door. His face was ghastly white and he realized the danger. He said to me, "Tom, quick, burst the deadeyes and do what you can for us.'* I knew it was death to us all if I did not do so, and I obeyed his order. As the glass broke the air rushed in and the waste lock shot out into the main shaft leaving the men to drown, as the space occupied by the shaft, filled with water in an instant.? We were wholly stripped of our clothes when we crawled out. I heard the rush "of water at our lock. It filled in fast, but the obstructions kept it back long enough for us to escape, from the main shaft. .It was all we could;do to save ourselves. Woodlaodywas ? standing in the water up to his^Waist 'when I last saw him. It was sure death and I had to knock out the dead eyes as I told you. He knew as well as I that it was all over with them. I shall never forget the loot: on, his face, or the sound of his voice as he told us to save ourselves, though the vary act was to insure his death. BORING THE TUNNEL. How the Workmen Dig their Way Through the Mud and are Protected from Danger ?Wonders of Compressed Air. From, the New York Times. Piles of boiler-iron plates, a heap of bricks and masons' materials, and a col? lection of low sheds with an immense smoke-stack towering above them, mark the spot at the foot of Fifteenth street, Jersey City, where the Hudson Tunnel Kail road Company have couimedced the mighty work of tunnelling the North River." The work is well under way, and is being pushed forward day and night, with no let-up on Sundays or holidays. Already 300 feet of the tunnel have been j completed, 200 of which are under the the river itself, and within a month's I time the workmen will be adding to its length at the rate of between four and five feet every twenty-four hours. The method of building the tunnel is different, it is claimed, from anything ever before attempted. The^ principle is adopted of using compressed air to exclude the water, evaporate the moisture of the silt, so that the lat? ter, by being thus dried, can be easily handled at the heading, and is rendered less liable to cave in, and to aid in up? holding the iron and brick work after they are placed in position. Col. Hoskius has secured a patent in xxnrnection' with the application of this principle, under which the tunnelling is being done. The land in this vicinity is largely of cinders, which hayej?een filled* io, and it; is so porous that when the" tunnel was first commenced there was a constant escape of the air which was forced into the ex? cavation. This was remedied by burying laige sheets of canva6 several feet below the surface of the gtouDd. ; The lower the tunnel went, however, the more compact the filling became, and the less annoyance was experienced from this source. Now that the silt has been pen? etrated, this difficulty no longer exists. The pressure of the compressed air now used in the tunnel is about twenty pounds to the square inch. The two air com? pressors are kept running day and night. They pump the air into the air-reservoir, which is of tough boiler-iron, cylindrical in shape and has a diameter of five feet eleven inches. A gauge at its side always indicates the pressure of the air in the tunnel.> From the reservoir the air is pumped into the tunnel through tbe air? lock. Upon this supply of pure air and a careful regulation of its pressure the lives of the workmen and the success of the work depend, and a constant eye is kept upon the movements of the gauge finger as it balances itself unsteadily over the dial. The tunnel was gradually pushed dowuward from the air-lock until the proper level was reached, instead of being commenced at the bottom of the shaft and continued on the required level. This was a temporary device, and after the work had been thus prosecuted for a distance of 300 feet the heading was bulk headed, nnd the workmen, turning in their tracks,' began to dig toward the shaft and to clear away obstructions in this direction. Here the grand arch at the mouth of the tunnel will be built. Its width will be 32 feet and its height 30 feet. Upon this work the men are Vow engaged. There will be two tunnels thrown across the river, each being 18 feet wide and 16 feet in the clear when completed. They adjoin one another, but will be sep? arate and distinct pieces of workmanship, uniting, however, under the grand arches at the working-shaft on either side of the river. A single track will be laid in each,, and, as one of them will always-be-used iti going inand the other in coming out of the New York depot, collisions can never occur. Tbe approaches to the tunnel on both sides of the river will be 26 feet wide and 25 feet high in the clear, and their walls are to be of the best hard burned brick laid in hydraulic cement. In this city the tracks will not be less than 15 feet below the surface, and at no point, when the tunnel is completed will tbe surface be disturbed in the streets except for entrance to and egress from the underground depot. In shape these twin tunnels will be nearly round. Their shells are cylinders made of boiler-iron about 22 feet in height and 20 feet in breadth. They are made in sections which are welded together, and the completed shells are pushed ahead as fast as the excavations are made. The iron of one of these cylinders is J-iuch in thickness. The sections or plates are 2 feet 6 inches in width. Some of them are -3 feet and others 6 feet in length. On each of their four sides are flange3 2J- inches in width, through which the plate is bolted to every one of the plates around it. The joints are broken as the plates are wedged together to give addi? tional strength to the cylinder. As fast as the cyliuder is advanced the masons follow, and line it with a wall of hard burned brick two feet thick iu hard cemen?. As this wall extends completely around the interior it presents the form of an arch against any outside pressure, wheth? er vertical or lateral. Four classes of men are employed in building the tunnel ?miners, welders, laborers and masons. At the heading the miners advance with pick and shovel, the welders bring to? gether the iron sections, the laborers dis? pose of the diggings, and the masons throw up their wall. Transplanting in the Night.?A gentleman anxious to ascertain the effect of transplanting at night, instead of by day, made an experiment with the fol? lowing results: He transplanted ten cherry trees while in bloom, commencing at four o'clock in the afternoon. Those transplanted during the daylight shed their blossoms, producing little or no fruit, while those transplanted in the dark maintained their condition fully. He did the same with ten dwarf trees, after the fruit was one-third grown. Those transplanted during the day shed their fruit; those transplanted during the night perfected the crop and showed no injury from having been removed. With each of these trees he removed some earth with the roots. The incident is fully vouched for, and if a few similar experiments produce a like result, it will be a strong argument to horticulturists, &c, to do such work at night.?Floral Cabinet. THE CUP THAT CHEERS. Gen. LeDac'H Flans for Filling It with Fragrant American Ton. St. Paul and Minnesota Pioneer Press. Gen. W. G. LeDuc, Commissioner of Agriculture, arrived in St. Paul yester? day from Washington, via his home at Hastings, and was captured by a repre? sentative of the Pioneer Press instructed to obtain the latest intelligence on the subject of his famous hobbies, American tea culture and universal sugar. The Commissioner was full to overflowing of his favorable subjects, and manifested a cheerful willingness to impart the desired information to the Pioneer Press. Pioneer Press?Gen. LeDuc, a good deal has becu said in tbe papers, not always very encouraging, about your efforts, since you became Commissioner of Agriculture, to introduce new branches among agricultural industry in the United States?among others, tea cul? ture. Will you be kind enough to tell tbe Pioneer Press, which has been a little incredulous about naturalizing tea cul? ture in this country, what success has attended your efforts ? Gen. LeDuc?I can answer that ques? tion iu a very few words. I have demon? strated three propositions. First, that just as good tea can be raised and manu? factured in America as cheaply as any? where in the world. Second, that we can produce it as well here as anywhere in the world, and, third, that we have as good soil and climate for the production of tea as any country in the world, with enough area suitable for its cultivation, not only to raise all we want ourselves, but to enable us to enter the markets of the world in competition with tbe people of China, Japan and India. Pioneer Press?In what portion of the country can tea be raised ? Gen. LeDuc?Tea can be profitably raised from the James River southward on and near tbe coast of tbe Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico to Eastern Texas. Not all the soil included in this region is suitable, but included within it are area adapted to tea culture, enough to raise tea for the consumption of the world. Some of the soil is admirably adapted to the purpose; some only moderately so. But the most favorable localities, so far as my present knowledge will enable me to speak, are the Carolinas, Florida, Georgia, and probably Alabama and Louisiana, within from twenty to fifty miles from tbe coast; although tea can be grown successfully for family and neighborhood uses in all parts of those States, and probably further North. ? Pioueer Press?How do you know this? LeDuc?Well, I do not make this statement on my own personal knowledge or examination simply, but upon the tes? timony of experts; and more especially upon that of Mr. John Jackson, of Aber deenshire, in Scotland, who has had fif? teen years' experience in raising tea in India. Upon his judgment and skill I think implicit reliance can be placed, especially as he has given evidence of his faith in the capacity of this country for the profitable production of tea by investing his own means in a plantation, and in starting a tea garden in Georgia, where he has now 160,000 growing plants, and intends during the coming yenr to more than double the area planted. Pioneer Press?Who is this Mr. Jack? son of whom you think so highly? LeDuc?Mr. Jackson is, as I have al? ready said, a Scotchman, of Aberdeen shire^ who at the age of twenty-one went to India to seek his fortune. There he became associated in a subordinate capacity with the great tea company know as the Scottish Asoara Company. He was eight years in its employ, and after three years of training he was pro? moted to the management of the com? pany's extensive tea gardens and proper? ties in Assam. For two years he re? ceived the highest average prices paid for any Indian teas sent to market?a pretty good proof that he understands his business. Of late years he has been associate^with his brother in the inven? tion and manufacturing of improved tea machinery, which has supplanted the ruder appliances of manual labor, before in use in India, to such an extent that in 1878 they sold $300,000 worth of this machinery in that country. One of his rolling machines does the work of 200 best coolies. They received the silver medal at the Paris exposition for their tea machinery. Owing to his wife's ill health he withdrew lor a time from active business to travel with her in America. While at Saratoga he acci? dentally saw an article in a New York paper epitomizing a publication of the Department of Agriculture on tea, which aroused his curiosity and resulted finally in bis going down to Washington to see the Commissioner. I was delighted to find in Mr. Jackson just the man for whom I had been long looking, and I engaged him to assist the Department in tbe development of this industry. His long experience and special knowledge of tea culture have been of immense advantage. For the past two or three weeks he has accompanied me in a jour? ney through South Carolina, to examine the tea soils of that State, of which we found an abundance, nnd to examine the condition of the tea plants, which have been distributed so largely by the De? partment within the past two years. We found tbe tea plants which had been set out growing, but not with the luxuriance at all points which was necessary to profitable tea culture. In some locali? ties we found tbe plants growing splen? didly. Pioneer Press?But what evidence have you as to the quality of this tea? LeDuc?I myself took samples of the tea raised and manufactured by Mr. Jackson to Lowe Brothers, the largest tea importers in the United States; the well known grocers, Thurber & Co., of New York, and others, who all bear high testimony to its supreme quality. I also sent a sample to Messrs. W. J. & H. Thompson, of London, well known over the world as tea brokers. Here is a copy of their letter, which, as it is short, you can use: 38 Mincing Lane, London, ) 24th June, 1880. j" W. G. LeDuc, Commissioner Department of Af/rirulture, Washington, D. C.: Dear Sin?We duly received your letter of tho 5th instant, also tbe samples of tea from the Georgia plantation, and we now have the pleasure of reporting upon them as required. The samples represent teas of a high type. The flavor, though not strong, is remarkably fragraut; the iufused leaf indicates somewhat too light fermenta? tion, but has all the characteristics of high quality. The dry leaf fairly repre? sents the four classes specified, but it is somewhat large in the twist; this of it? self would be a drawback, but the fine and delicate flavor quite counterbalances any deficiency in the make of leaf. In ' appearance the samples resemble Indian tea, but the flavor is more like that of tbe finest China black tea, or of the hill teas of India. The question of flavor is all-important, for should the teas, when made in bulk, lack the fragrance and aroma of these sample? they would at once sink to the level of a lower grade on account of their want of "strength." We know of a hill garden in India whose tea from thi* cause has this year suddenly fallen 8d to lOd per pound in value. The nominal market value of these samples is as follows : ! Pekoe.2s 3d to 2s 6d per lb Pokoe Souchong.Is 9d to 2s Od.per lb Souchong.Is 4d to Is 6d per ft Congou.Is Od to Is 2d per lb Thanking you for the opportunity of seeing and reporting upon these teas, we remain, dear sir, Yours faitbfullv, W. J. & H. Thompson. The other testimony 13 of similar im? port. Martin Gilette & Co., one of the oldest tea houses on the continent, are enthusiastic in their praise of the Amer? ican tea, as also Burchell, of Washing? ton, D. C., a large retailer. Pioneer Press?Then you regard the success of the culture and manufacture of .is assured ? LeDuc?I regard it as certain as the solution of a problem in geometry under which we used to write as school-boys, "Quod erat demonstrandum." The fact that we can produce and manufacture a superior quality of tea, so cheaply as to enable us to compete successfully with any other country in the world, is no longer a problem. It has been practi? cally demonstrated beyond all question, and needs only that the capitalists of the country shall do as the English capital? ists have heretofore done in India?form corporations for the culture and manu? facture of tea, and like them reap the rich rewards of their enterprise. Pioneer Press?It is tbe common opin? ion everywhere in this country that it is impossible, witb the high price of labor in this country, to raise tea in competi? tion with the cheap labor of the East. How do you solve this problem ? LeDuc?The price of labor per day is only oue of the factors in the cost, and should be considered with reference to the kind of labor employed. For ex? ample, Mr. Jackson informs me in refer? ence to the negro labor he has employed in Georgia, that one negro, for whose labor be pays forty cents a day, is quite equal to that of two coolies in India, for which he pays a much smaller sum, to be sure, but pays it for every day of the term of service?whether sick or well, or whether he is at work or idle. But a much greater difference in cost is found in the use in this country of labor-saving machinery, such as plows, cultivators, horse-shoes and like implements, which are entirely unknown in India?the tea gardens of which are hoed over with a heavy iron hoe eight times daring the year. Then again, the tea boxes, lead and other material are obtained much cheaper in this country than they possi? bly can be in India. Id India and China the tea is transported on the backs of men very many miles before it reaches a more convenient and cheaper mode of transportation. Then the tea has to be trausported many thousand miles to reach a market, and has to pass through the hands of a long series of shippers and brokers and commission men before ir, reaches the consumer. A very large f)ortion of this expense, which forms a arge part of the current price of tea, will be saved by its production in this . country. * Pioneer Press?What will be the ac? tual cost of producing tea in this coun? try of the superior quality of the sample passed upon by the experts whose testi? mony you have referred to? LeDuc?Mr. Jackson estimates the cost of producing such teas at from fif? teen to twenty cents per pound, and that a tea garden should produce, in the fourth year, when it comes into bearing, 240 pounds per acre, which should be increased upon its arrival at full matu? rity to from 350 to 400 pounds per acre, which can be maintained for a number of years. When the tea plant is from fifteen to twenty years of age it is found advisable to cut it down to the ground aud let it spring up afresh from the stump. Pioneer Press?At this rate the culture of tea should be very profitable ? LeDuc?It is undoubtedly by far the most profitable of all agricultural pro? ductions. This is well known to tea pro? ducers everywhere, and large fortunes have been made in England aud Scot laud by persons engaged in the cultiva? tion of tea, who never saw a tea plant and have never even been away from their insular homes. The stocks of the Assam and other companies are quoted daily like railroad and other stocks, and wheu the advantages of America for tea culture are understood by English aud Scotch capitalists, they will hasten, T have no doubt, and that is Mr. Jackson's view too, to invest their money in tea enterprises in this country, similar to those in India. Pioneer Press? But if tea can be pro? duced so cheaply in America the result would be to reduce the price of tea. LeDuc?Yes; undoubtedly in the end. But we are now importing teas to the value of from thirteen to twenty-two millions per year. It would be many years before the production in America, even if carried on with the enthusiasm with which Americans pursue profitable investments, would equal the demand, aud in the meantime the present price of teas would be approximately maintained. In fact, the American tea would for sev? eral years command fancy prices, because it would be known to bo a pure article, whereas foreign teas are generally known to be adulterated. Pioneer Press?The successful culture of tea in this country, then, means a great saving to our people? I LeDuc?It means a saving of from ?13,000,000 to $23,000,000 now sent every year chiefly to England to pay for Chi? nese, Japanese and Indian teas, and which would be retained at home to feed our own industrie-5. It means more than this. The necessary effect of this large increase in tea culture would be to eventually reduce the price of tea?per? haps to half its price?which would be another great saving to the people, while still leaving a large margin of profit to the producer. Pioneer Press?Have any enterprises been started other than that of Mr. Jackson ? LeDuc?None of much magnitude. One tea garden has been established near Georgetown, S. C, which is very promis? ing indeed?and one also in the lower part of Alabama, of which I have heard, but which I have no personal knowledge. The results thus far reached simply de? monstrate the practicability of profitable tea culture in America. And this hav? ing now been clearly demonstrated, I have good reason to believe that upon proper information eastern capitalists will be prompt to seize the opportunity of profitable investment which these facts point out to them. THE SUCA It QUESTION. Pioneer Press?What about the sugar to sweeten this tea? LeDuc?My visit to Minnesota is part? ly for the purpose of observing and en? couraging the development of the pro? duction of sugar from sorghum and corn stalks. Pioneer Press?In general terms, how is this getting along? LeDuc?Admirably. I find lhat there are quite a number of important factories with appropriate machinery for the man i'acture of sugar and syrup, nnd so far as may be possible to test the practicability of producing sugar from cane raised in Minuesota, as they do in Louisiana and Cuba, I desire to say that there is no question whatever about our ability to produce our own sugars. This was suffi? ciently shown by the exhibition at Min? neapolis last Fall. What is now wanted is machinery such as is used in Louis? iana and Cuba for working up sugar from cane. Pioneer Press?You feel pretty well satisfied, then, with the success of your hobbies thus far? LeDuc?Yes; but they are not con? fined to tea and sugar alone. There are plenty of other agricultural plants of great commercial value which could easily be naturalized in the United States. Among them is cinchona, from which quinine is made. A very fair article of coffee has been raised in Florida. But you must excuse me from going into these subjects to-day. I will only say that in my judgment it is possi? ble to raise in this country agricultural products for which we now pay hundreds of millions of dollars to foreign coun? tries. Good afternoon, sir. Pioneer Pres3?Good afternoon, Gen? eral. The practice of growning a crop of corn fodder to supplement tbe failingmid sumtner pasture is growing more and more in favor every season. During July the feed becomes dry and brown, nnd cows fall off in both milk and flesh if there is not some provision made for tiding over the time until fall rains have revived the pastures, or the cattle are turned into the newly seeded fields, greatly to tbe detriment of the latter. This habit, with the equally pernicious one of allowing stock to roam over mow? ing lands from the time the hay is cut until cold weather, is grndually giving away to the sensible one of providing fodder crops. The stalk crop is of great importance in this connection. Com for feeding; both in a green state during summer and dry one during winter can hardly be overestimated in value. There is indeed, but little if any dif? ference of opinion as to the merits of fodder though there exists a variety of practices concerning the manner of raising and curing the crop. Sweet corn has come to be preferred over other varieties for this purpose as there is not near the waste to this fodder there is to the gourd, seed sorts. The majority of farmers now drill the seed in, though occasionally'it is sown broadcast. A plan which brings good results is plant? ing in drills three feet apart (and about six inches between the stalks.) Thicker planting will make more fodder, but it loses in quality what is gained in quan? tity. Many of our best farmers are using only one to one and a half bushels of seed per acre. This amount gives a yield sufficiently thin to allow the stalks to stand up in ordinary summer weather to gain the full effect of sunlight and air. For early use the first planting of fodder corn should be early, of course, but tbe seed can be put in any time during July with good results, as it makes a heavy growth on land comparatively dry and in dry weather. During the season the crop ought to be cultivated several times. It is nest to begin as soon as the plants are out of the ground by running a cultivator close to the rows. Corn fodder may be fed green when two feet high. All forage crops give best results which are cut before they are out of bloom. Corn is no exception to this rule, but owing to the difficulty some experience in curing it in an inmature s'aie it is often allowed to become too ripe before cutting. Chemical analysis has demonstrated that fodder deterio? rates in two ways by standing, namely, by the lessened proportion of albumi? noids and by decreased digestibility. Another objection to permitting the stalks to stand until the ears are per? fected is that they grow so tall that they are troublesome to handle, and are more liable to fall and lodge under a hard stoue. Furthermore, early cut fodder is in itself a complete ration, rich enough in albuminoids to make good feed with? out mixing with other materials. Last, but by no means least, the greener tbe crop when taken off the land the less ex? haustion to the soil.?New York World. A Shower of Lightning.?Our Ge? neva correspondent writes, under date ol June 20: "A remarkable electrical phenomenon occurred at Clarens on the afternoon of Thu. :day last. Heavy masses of rain cloud hid from view the mountains which separate Fribourg from Montreaux, but their summits were from time to time lit up with vivid flashes of lightning, and a heavy thunder storm seemed to be raging in the valleys of the Avants and the Allizal. No rain was falling neai the lake, and the storm still appeared far off, when a tremendous peal of thunder shook the houses of Clarens and Tavel to their foundations. At the same instant a magnificent cher? ry tree near the cemetery, measuring a meter in circumference, was struck by lightning. Some people who were working in a vineyard hard by saw the electric fluid play about a little girl who had been gathering cherries, and was already thirty paces from the tree. She was lit? erally folded in a sheet of fire. The vine dressers fled in terror from the spot. In the cemetery six persons separated into three groups, none of them within 250 paces of the cherry tree, were enveloped in a luminous cloud. They felt as if they were being struck in the face with hailstones or fine gravel, and when they touched each other sparks of electricity passed from their finger ends. At the same time a column of fire was seen to descend in the direction of Chatelard, and it is averred that the electric fluid could be distinctly heard as it ran from point to point of the iron railing of a vault in the cemetery. The strangest part of the story is that neither the little girl, the people in the cemetery, nor the vine dressers appear to have been hurt; the only inconvenience complained of being an unpleasant sensation in the joints, as if they had been violently twisted, a sensation which was felt with more or less acuteness for a few hours after. The explanation to this is proba? bly to be found in Prof. Colladou's the? ory of tbe way which lightning descends, as described in a letter on the effect of lightning on trees, printed in Lhp. Times of May 18. The Professor contends that it falls in a shower nor in a perpetual flash, and that it runs along the branches of trees until it is all gathered in the trunk, which it bursts or tears open in its effort to reach tbe ground. In the instance in question the cherry trees is as completely shivered as if it had been exploded by a charge of dynamite. A part of the shower which destroyed the tree fell where the little girl was stand? ing, but distributed over the grass, left her unharmed, and was so disseminated in tbe cemetery that the six persons upon whom the electric rain descended escap? ed without serious injury."?London Times. Corn Fodder. Complete and Partial Starvation. Dr. Tanner's fast is commonly sup? posed to have demonstrated that life can be sustained in the absence of all nutri? ment for a much longer period than has hitherto been supposed to be possible. This is an error. It has demonstrated that there is a greater sustaining power ? in mere water than was before definitely : known to mcdicial science. Dr. Tanner j may be said to have proved Dr. Ham ? mood's assertions and his owti as well, j The former, speaking from all previous [ experience, declared that the duration of : human life wheo totally deprived of nu ' triraeot, which included water, varies ; from nine to twelve days, and he ex j pressed grave doubt whether it could be longer sustained under this condition, however favorable the surroundings should be. Dr. Tanner's fast has proved as certainly as any event can be proved which has not happened that this view was correct. It has shown that under favorable conditions, involving but slight nervous waste, a man cannot be expected to hold out over the twelfth day in cir? cumstances of complete starvation ; and that even with the free use of water ex? ternally, and the frequent drinking of very small quantities, about sixteen days will produce so alarming a loss of vitality as to make a fatal termination of the fast a near probability. When Dr. Tanner asserted his ability to fast for forty days he contemplated a free drinking of water. Nevertheless, when he began his task, he determined to abstain from drinking, merely using water externally and to rinse his mouth, on which occasions he usually absorbed about a drachm. He adhered to his res? olution for sixteen days, except that he once, after great nervous excitement, drank four ounces. During this period he grew more and more into the condi? tion of a fever patient. His craving for water became incessant and of growing intensity. Night and day he rinsed his mouth at intervals, which steadily be? came shorter; he kept his head wet with towesl; he saturated his pillow; he sponged his neck and face constantly; he kept a wet sponge in his hand always ; his sleep became short, broken and rest? less; his mind was so affected that he grew murose, silent and feverishly irri? table to a degree that made attendance upon him a severe trial of patience and temper. "Water, water!" was his cry night and day. Yet no amount of mouth rinsing nor of external application suf? ficed to satisfy the burning thirst which seemed to be consuming his whole sys? tem. At last, on the sixteenth day. the chief physician in attendance, seeing that the man must break down utterly in two or three days, urged him to drink. Others, who were also closely watching the changes taking place, agreed with Dr. Gunn that the end was near at hand. Dr. Tanner could hold out no longer. He began to drink, and to drink freely. On the day named he drank forty-four ounces, or two pounds and three-quarters of water, and it was then that he was found to weigh a pound and a half heavier at night than he had weighed in the morning. But the. increase in weight is the least surprising of the changes which the water drinking has affected in the man. It has operated as a stimulant of wonderful energy both to mind and body. Very soon the moroseness and irritability disappeared, and the Doctor has become cheerful and almost jovial ; bis heavy languor has gone; he again enjoys a chat with those about him ; his daily rides give him keeo pleasure; he has "discarded sponges and wet towels; his sleep is profound aud restful. In fact, with the free drinking of water he became a changed man. How long the stimulating effect of this will last the attending physicians do not pretend to guess at. The turn will be seen when the fasting man again begins to lose in weight. Whether he will last the forty days is doubtful. His suffer? ings during the first sixteen must have seriously wasted his vital energy. Had he been cut off from the use of water in aoy form from the first day oot a mao of those who have been most close in their attendance upon bim believes that he would have been alive or sane at the end of twelve days. That he could have gone twenty days usiog water externally and only very small quantities internally is considered improbable by many, and those whose opinions are most eotitled to weight. But with freely drioking all the water he feels inclined*to, he may per? haps complete bis self-imposed task. He will, in that event, have demonstrated that there is a great and hitherto un knowo degree of nutriment in water, but not that life can be sustained under con? ditions of complete starvation for a longer period than previous experience has shown to be possible.?Xcio York heratd. Famine, Violence and Death.?A Protestant pastor in the city of Mosul, Asiatic Turkey, writes as follows concern? ing the famine there: "People eat cotton seed, blood and even the carcasses of pack animals. All business is at a stand-still; there is no profit, no employment; there is theft and robbery by night and by day; all manner of iniquity abounds, not even the fear of God is left. On every hand there is violence, oppression, wickedness, drunkenness, ruin. The poor in the streets cry out till the middle of the night, "We are starving! 0, merciful ones, we are starving!" The daily deaths from starvation are from five to ten. In the villages around Mosul they eat a kind of earth, also blood, carcasses, cotton ana hempseed. They die from fifty to one hundred per day. The num? ber of deaths, of people, beasts of burden, and cattle is beyond computation. In Mosul itself we see many offering their children for sale, and none buy; hut in El Kash the Kurds have sold "hundreds of girls at from ?1 10s. to .?2 each, and with the price of a soul they buy a few measures of wheat. From Dairiki, a day's journey West of Mardin, news comes that the stores of grain are ex? hausted. Men did go on a day's journey for bread, but the roads are so unsafe now that they dare not stir. Women go out and gather grass, which they eat like the beasts of the field." Oxioxs.?From our own experience, and the observation of others, we care? fully indorse the testimony of the St. Louis Miller, on the healthfu' operties of the above esculent. Lung and liver complaints are certainly benefited, often cured by a free consumption of onions, either cooked or raw. Colds yield to them like magio. Don't be afraid of them. Taken at night all offense will be wanting by morning, aud the good effects will amply compensate for the trifling annoyance. Taken regularly they great? ly promote the health of the lungs and the digestive organs. An extract made by boiling down the juice of onions in a syrup, and taken as a medicine, answers the purpose very well, but fried, roasted or boiled onions are better. Onions are a cheap medicine, within everybody's reach, and they are not by any means as "bad to take" as the costly nostrums a neglect of their use may necessitate.? Seien lific A merican. Rust in Cotton. The rust is a disease that does more injury to the cotton crop and causes greater pecuniary loss to the South than all the other diseases of the staple com bined. It is probable that it more or less affects about one-third of all the cotton fields in the seven Southeastern States, and, according to the virulence of its attacks, reduces the yield to only about two-thirds, or three-fourths of what it would be otherwise. If this estimate approximates the truth tbe loss to the planters in these States last year was upwards of $25,000,000. The disease attacks cotton only in fields that have been under cultivation some years, seldom or never appearing in new ground. This fact leads us to the con? clusion, confirmed by other observations, that it is caused by the impoverishment of the soil and the lack of vegetable matter therein. Last season we planted a field of about thirty acres in cotton, all of which bad been ploughed to the depth of nine inches in February. The rows were run north and south, (as cDtton rows should always be run if practicable,) and the entire field, with tbe exception of six rows, about the middle of it, was ma? nured with one hundred pounds of phos? phate and three bushels of cotton seed per acre. The north end of the field covered six acres of poor land that had not been planted in cotton for some years, because the rust was there always fatal. These six acres had been left fal? low in 1878, and tbe growth of crab grass thereon was ploughed under in Novem? ber of that year. At tbe south end were three acres that had been planted in cow peas the same year, the peas were picked ofT, but the vines ploughed under. By the middle of July the rust appeared in the middle section of twenty-one acres, over which it spread in the course of the rest of the month and August, only very slightly touching the six rows that had re? ceived no phosphate, and entirely stopping assoon as the twosectionsof sixandthree acres at opposite ends of the fields were reached. The middle section of twenty one acres produced a yield of one hun? dred and eighty-five pounds lint per acre, while those at the two ends averaged two hundred and seventy pounds. The six rows that had no phosphate produced more cotton and remained green longer in the twenty-one acre section than those on either side of them. These results demonstrate that humus in the soil will prevent rust, and also, that unless there is such humus, the application of one hundred pounds of phosphate per acre will not repay its high cost. The problem to be solved therefore is, how to put humus into a cotton field of 100 acres or more. Anything can I ? done with one acre, and from such a small patch enormous results may be obtained, clearly demonstrating the pos? sible?results very interesting to agricul? tural chemists, and those intelligent planters who may have ample cash capital, but of not much practical value to the average farmers of the South, who do not understand chemistry and have no cash capital whatever, it appears to us that the only practical solution is the application of cowpeas. This is a means within the reach of all farmers. At the time of the last working of the crop, about tbe 15th or 20th of July, a furrow should be run between the rows with a bull tongue plough, in which the peas should be sown at the rate of a half bushel per acre. They .?-I- ?.1 be cov? ered with a sweep, which wiil also give the last ploughing to the cotton. The staple crop will, by this time be so ad? vanced that the pea vines cannot injure it, and as cotton cannot grow sufficiently large" in land in which it rusts to shade the middles, the peas will make good vines, which will supply to the soil the needed humus if allowed to die on the land. Salt is considered by some as prevent? ive of rust, but like lime, it is efficacious only when the soil contains humus or vegetable matter not yet decayed. The principles enunciated, and the remedy suggested, are being practically tried this season by the writer. Last summer a growth of cow peas was obtained over twentwty-six acres of tbe field above mentioned and a portion of one adjoining; the vines died on the land aud were ploughed under. This spring not a pound of phosphate was used, but the land was manured with one hundred and ten pounds Turk's Island salt, costing seventy-seven cents, and four bushels of cotton seed per acre. At this moment, nearly the middle of July, the crop is tbe strongest and healthiest that the field has produced for several years, and is producing an unu? sual quantity of fruit.?F., in Charleston Weekly News. Judge Black's Choice. The great Democratic lawyer, the Hon. J. S. Black, of Pennsylvania, is now in Europe, and, in his absence, the Republican organs have been quoting him rather freely as the special apolo? gist for Gen. Garfield; but a letter just written to the editor of the Philadelphia limes by the veteran lawyer puts rather a damper upon their delight. "If," says Jud'o Black, "he (Garlield) would carry the principles which regulate his private life into his public conduct, he would make the best Chief Magistrate we have ever bad. But he will act for the interest of his party, as he has acted all his lifetime and that will require him to take the advice which Stephens gave to Montpelins in the buckshot war. I do not know any really good man who has done and assisted in doing so many bad things in politics as Gen. Garfield." For Gen. Hancock, on the other hand, he has only words of praise. "You let drop," he says, "an expression in 1808 concerning Gen. Hancock and his then particular friends which impressed me with the notion that you did not admire either him or them up to the point of their merits. I see now that you appre? ciate not merely his gallantry aud heroism as a soldier, but those far higher Siualities of mind and heart which go to orm the character of a great ruler in a constitutional government." Judge Black is the personal friend of both the candidates, but as will be seen from the above he does not hesitate in deciding between them as to which will be the better President. ? A dispatch from Wytheville, Va., to the Philadelphia Times, says: "Mrs. Sarah Collins, a dissolute white widow, died here on Friday afternoon, after a brief illness, and was buried Saturday. Just after her death a strong disagreeable smell rendered the room untenable, and during the deodorization a flour barrel was discovered containing the festered remains of five small children murdered by the deceased. The remains were past recognition, but hanging from the skulls were long straight locks of blonde hair, proving them to have been white chil? dren. Acting Coroner Obenchain took the remains in charge, but death had placed the guilty woman beyond the grasp of human laws." The Wytheville Enterprise of Saturday confirms the find? ing of the remains of five children, but mentions no names. Protection Against Heat?How to Pre? vent Prostration. j The intensely hot weather of July and August not unfrequentiv results in phy I sical prostration and sometimes actual sunstroke?not, however, to that extent that is reported in the large cities of the North, ft may not, therefore, be with? out interest to many of our people to publish the following circular issued by ! the New York Sanitary Commission as a j matter of information and precaution to I those whose occupation keeps them much j in the sun: "Sunstroke is caused by excessive heat, and especially if the weather is 'muggy.'1 It is more apt to occur on the second, third or fourth day of a heated term than I on the first. Loss of sleep, worry, ex i citenient, close sleeping rooms, debility, j abuse of stimulants, predispose to it. "it j is more apt to attack those working in I the sun, and especially between the j hours of 11 o'clock in the morning and 4 o'clock in the afternoon. On hot days wear thin clothing. Avoid loss of sleep and all unnecessary fatigue. If working in doors, and where there is artificial heat?laundries, etc.?see that the room is well ventilated. If working in the sun, wear a light (not black, as it absorbs heat), straw, etc., and put inside of it, on the head, a wet cloth, or a large green leaf; frequently lift the hat from the head and see that the cloth is wct.^Do not check perspiration, but drink what you need to keep it up, as perspiration prevents the body from being overheated. Have, whenever possible, an additional shade, as a thin umbrella, when walking, a canvass or board cover when working in the sun. When fatigued do not go to work, but be excused from work, especial? ly after 11 o'clock in the morning on very hot days, if the work is in the sun. If a feeling of fatigue, dizziness, headache, or exhaustion occurs, cease work imme? diately, lie down in a shady, cool place ; apply cold cloths to and pour cold water over head and neck. If any one is over? come by the heat send immediately for the nearest good physician. While wait? ing for the physician give the person cool drinks of water and cold black tea, or I cold coffee if able to swallow. If the skin is hot or dry sponge with or pour ! cold water over the body and limbs and I apply to the head pounded ice wrapped I in a towel or other cloth. If there is no ice at hand keep a cool cloth on the head and pour .cold water on it as well as on the body. If the person is pale, very faint and pulse feeble, let him inhale ammonia, tor a few seconds, or give him a teaspoonful of aromatic spirits of am? monia in two tablespoonfuls of water, with a little sugar." ? This story is told as having occurred at a picnic near Asheville, a short time ago, and the moral of it will readily ap? pear. A young lady, a charming gush? ing young creature, full of fun, who had been leaning against a tree, surrounded by a lot of the North Carolina Press As? sociation, suddenly trembled, and hitched around, and then finally said: "Is any of you a sluggard?" They all said they were not. "Then," said she, turning to a young lady friend, "Jane, you will have to reach dowu my back and catch that ant." Tbe young fellows went away, and when one of them repeated the quotation, "Go for the ant, thou slug? gard," the rest all said, "By shimi-ny ish dot so." ? A Convention of Commissioners of Agriculture, Chemists of Agricultural Departments, Professors of Chemistry in State Universities and State Agricultural Colleges, will be held at Washington, D. C., on July 28, for the purpose of arrang? ing some uniform system for determining the value of commercial fertilizers, and for the transaction of any other business deemed expedieut or important. Great good to tbe planters is expected to grow out of this meeting, where a free inter? change of opinion will be had from those experienced in these matters. The Com? missioner of South Carolina will attend. ? A census enumerator in New Hamp? shire town found one family where the mother's age was twenty-six years and and that of her eldest son fourteen years. Inquiry revealed the fact that the moth? er was married when eleven years and six months old to a man twenty years old. She is a native of Rhode Island, and claims to have been the youngest mother in the State. ? Denver (Col.,) dispatch states that before daylight Monday morn? ing robbers entered the apartments of Gen. Grant and wife, and Mrs. Fred Grant, at the Beebe House, Manitou aud stole $400 worth of jewelry and money. The robbery is supposed to have been committed by sharpers, who followed the Grant party to Mauitou. ? Noah Towner committed suicide at Central, W. Va., because he had not been true to his sweetheart. "I deceived her," he said in a letter, "and now I am going to ray everlasting reward, whore the smoke of my torment will ascend up for ever and ever." ? The first bale of new cotton was re? ceived at Galveston, Texas, on the 12th. It classed strict middling and was sold in New Orleans on the 15th for 16 cents per pound. It was forwarded to Fall ? Gen. Sherman is credited with the remark that newspapers generally print ninety-nine lies to one truth. In print? ing this remark we unhesitatingly place it among the ninety and nine. ? The Mexicans hold their elections on Sundays, often voting in their church? es. Gen. Gonzales was elected President at their recent election. ? Shriner's Indian Vermifuge saved three thousand children from disease and death. It is the wonder of the age. It will not deceive you. ? There are three things in which the average North Carolinian excels, uamely, discussing politics, drinking whiskey, and good nature. ? Senator McDonald and ex-Governor Hendricks have both accepted appoint? ments on the Indiana Democratic Exec? utive Committee. ? In tbe great grain growing State of Kansas there are reported not less than 15,000 people actually .'Ufering for food and clothing. ? Paris has a new dog club, to which no one can come unless accompanied by a bulldog, King Charles, terrier or setter. ? A clear conscience is like a corner lot. Everybody would like to have it, hut few are willing to pay the price. ? A partridge nest with 200 eggs in it was recently found in Lexington, Georgia. ? There is always hope in a man that actually and earnestly works. ? Ink to which sugar is added will not dry up rapidly. Honored and Blest.?When a board of eminent physicians and chemists announced the discovery that by com? bining some well known valuable reme? dies the most wonderful medicine was produced, which would cure such a wide range of disease that most all other remedies could be dispensed with, many were skeptical; but proof of its merits by actual trial has dispelled all doubt, and to-day the discoverers ofthat Great medi? cine, Hop Bitters, are honored and blessed by all as benefactors.?Democrat.