Port Royal standard and commercial. [volume] (Beaufort, S.C.) 1874-1876, December 16, 1875, Image 1
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VOL. IY. NO. 2. BEAUFORT, S. C., THURSDAY, DECEMBER 16, 1875. $2.00 J8P inn. Single Copy 5 CeitT 1" :1j|
, An Old Van.
? t . i r
The hoar far spent, the harvest in,
- He goes serene along bis ways,
Blessed with the sunshine that befalls
The Indian summer of his days.
A dear old man whom all men love,
Who loves all men. and ronnd whose head,
As round the brows of ancient saints,
n The silver locks a nimbus shed.
Jnet as the sun comes sifting through I
The violet vapors on the hills,
Building a land of promise where
^ The vista with new glory thrills,
* So shines his smile on all he meets,
i A tender after-glow and mild ;
^ He sees the other side of life,
And takes it sweetly as a child.
/ For genial as the autumn day.
^ That spells us with its soft surprise,
Life seems to wait, as waits the year,
Obeying his benignant eyes.
He dreams not of a dark unknown
So close at hand, so chill, so drear,
The ioe-oold and snow-oovered grave:
He only sees the sunshine here.
i '
He lifts his eyes up to the hills
Whence cometh all hie help, and stays
To bless us with the light that fills
f The Indian summer of his days.
| "777
P SWEET, RESTFUL HOME.
A " Hntt.r'i SaiardaT Nliht" la Dubarr.
It is Saturday night?the dear close of
a tossing, struggling, restless week.
To-morrow is the Sabbath?when all
labor and care are held in abeyance.
Saturday night stands like a rock before
the day of rest, and says to toil and
worry: "Thus far shalt thou oome, and
no further." Blessed Saturday night.
The wearied husband and father approaches
his home. He looks ahead
and sees the light streaming in cheerful
radiance from the windows, and wonders
if that boy has got in the kindlings. <
He steps up op the stoop and opens the |
door. His faithful wife meets him at
the entrance and greets him with:
11 Why on earth don't you clean your
feet, and not lug the house full of mud ?
Don't you know I've been scrubbing all
day?" And thns he steps into the
boSom of his family, grateful for the
mercies he has received, and thankful
that he has a home to come to when the
worry and care and toil of the week are
done. Yes, he is home now, and has set
his dinner pail on one chair and laid hit
hat and ooat on another, and with his
eyes full of soap from the wash is shouting
impetuously for the towel. Saturday
night in the household! What a beautiful
sight 1 The bright light, the cheerful
figured carpet, the radiant stove, the
neatly laid table, with the steaming teapot,
the pictures on the walls, the spotless
curtains, the purring oat and the
bright-eyed children rubbing the plates
with their fingers and looking hungrily
at V the canned cherries. Even the
wearied wife is visibly affected, and, as
she steps to a closet with his and coat,
she unoonsciouhly observes to her hue
band:
> "Will you never learn to hang your
things up f or do you think I've got
nothing else to do but to chase after you
all the'while you are in the house ?"
He jmakes no reply, but as he drops
into his seat at- the table, with a sigh of
relief, he says :
44 What's the matter with that infernal
h lamp? Is the oil all out, or ain't the
P?-- chimney been cleaned? It don't give
no more light than a firebug."
"Turn it up, then," she retorts.
" It was right enough when I put it on
the; table, but I suppose the children
have been tooling with ii They never,
can keep their hands out of mischief for
an instant." ^
"I'll fool 'em," ne growls, "if they
don't keep their finger? ofTn things,"
After that sally a silence reigns, broken
only by a subdued rustle of plates and
cutlery. Then comes a whisper from
one of the youths, which is promptly
met in a Ipod key by the mother :
Hot toother mouthful, I tell you.
You have had one dish already, and
that's enough. I ain't going to be up
all night wr&stling around with you,
young woman; and the quicker you
straighten that faoe the better itH be
for you."
The offender looks with abashed inquiry
into the faoes of her brothers and
sisters, and gradually steals a glance
into the face of her father; but finding
no sympathy there, falls to making surreptitious
grimaces sit the mother, to
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flcation of the other children.
The tea is finally over, that delightful
Saturday night's meal, and as the appeased
father stretches back in his chair,
and looks dreamily at the flame dancing
in the stove, he says to his first-born :
" Is them kindlings cut, young man?"
-JM course they have not been, and the
youth replies :
44 I'm going right out to do it now,"
and steps about lively for his hat.
"You'd better ; and if I oome home
again and find them kindlings not cut, I
won't leave a whole bone in your body.
Do you hear me?"
"Yes, pa."
"Well, then, start your boots."
They are started, and the relieved
father comes back with his eyes to the
glad flame, and watches it abstractedly,
while his thoughts are busy with the
bright anticipations of the coming day
of rest.
44 Ain't you going down street, or are
you going to set there all night ?" asks
his wif*. He turns around and looks at
her. It's a sort of mechanical movement
without any apparent expression.
44 There'8 got to lie something got for
dinner to-morrow, and I want yon to go
to Adam's an' see if my hat is done, an'
Thomas must have a pair of shoes, an'
there Ain't a bit of blacking in the
house," resumes the mother. 44 You
can tell Burroughs that that last butter
he sent up ain't fit for a hog to eat, an'
if he ain't got anything better than that
we don't want it. You'd better get a
small piece of pork while you are down,
an' if you see Parks ask him when heV
coming here to fix that wall. He has
got the plaster off, an' there it stands,
an' there's no use of trying to put the
room to rights until the wall is fixed. I
don't see what the old fool is thinking of
to leave a room like that."
Heieupou the head of the house gets
upon his feet, takes a brief, longing
glance at the pleasant stove, and wants
to know where in thunder his coat and hat
are, and if nothing can be left where
it is pat Then she tells him that if he
looks where he ought to he'd find the j
things fast enough. He does find them,
and then goes into the kitchen, and a i
moment later appears with a very red i
face, and passionately asks if a basket
can be kept in that house for five min- j
utes at a time, and moodily follows liis i
wife to where the basket is, and looks
still more moody when he is brought
face to face with it, and sarcastically
asked if he could see a barn if it was in
front of his nose. Thus primed with the
invigorating utterances of the home
circle, he takes up his basket and goes
down street, leaving his faithful wife to
stand as a wall of granite between the
children and the canned cherries, and to
finish up the work. As he reaches the
tho drmr nnATiR and fihe shouts after
him :
" Remember to get some matches ;
there ain't one in the house ; and don't
be all night, for I'm tired an' want to get i
bo bed at a decent hour, if possible." i
"Go to bed, then, an' shut up jour i
mouth," and with this parting induction
he strides gloomily out into the
darkness. It is not exactly known what !
he is thinking of as he moves along, but ]
it is doubtless of the near approach of ;
the Sabbath. As he comes into the !
Light of the stores it is evident that I
bright influences and tender memories ]
and glad anticipations are weaving them- i
selves in his heart, for he meets Parks ;
trith a smile, and after a pleasant chat ]
about the winter's prospect, they part ]
Laughing. Only twice in the trip does ]
his face fall, and that's when he goes in 1
after her hat, and when he gets the shoes, j
A half hour later he is in the grocery 1
sitting on a barrel, while his goods are i
being put up, and carrying on an ani- <
mated discussion with the grocer and !
several acquaintances. At nine o'clock i
he starts for home. He has several re- .
c . ipted bills in his pocket?each of which j
being in excess, of course, of what his <
wife had estimated before he left home; <
and as he struggles along with an acbiDg
arm, and stumbles against various ob- <
fractions, he remembers it is Saturday i
night, the end of the week of toil, and i
tries to recall bits of verses and sen- <
tenoea of beautiful sentiment appropri- j
ate to the hour. He don't believe in '
grumbling at everybody, and so he re- t
serves his trouble with the grocery bill, <
his indignation at the milliner, and the i
various annoyances he has been subject- i
ed to, until be gets home, and then he I
hulls his thunder at all these people and 1
objects through the head of his wife. 1
And she, the dear companion of his life, 1
having got the children from back of the 1
stove and to bed, by the hair, and dis- i
covered that he has forgotten the <
matches, and got more bone than meat <
in the steak, is fully prepared to tell him ]
just what she thinks of him. (
And while they talk the flame in the <
stove dances happily, the lamp sheds \
a rich, soft glow over the room, and the t
oolors in the carpet and the pictures and t
the reflective surfaces of the mantel or- 1
namenta blend into a scene of quiet t
beauty. It is the night before the Sib- f
bath?the calm, restful Sabbath?and as t
the two workers prepare to seek thfir i
well-earned repose, she says that if she ]
has got to be harassed like this she'll be 1
in her grave before the winter is over, t
and he is confident that if the bills keep t
mounting up as they are doing, the t
whole family will be in the poorhouse i
the first thing they know.?Danbury
NetcB. I
The Cost of an Epidemic. t
Dr. Benjamin Lee, of Philadelphia, 8
jread befpre the American Public Health 8
Association a very long, full and inter- 1
esting paper on " The Cost of a Great 1
Epidemic to a Great City." The object 8
of the paper was to furnish an estimate 8
of the cost of smallpox to Philadelphia 11
in the winter of 1871-72, and to suggest H
to what degree judicious sanitary legis- u
lation would have prevented the malady 8
and its cost. The author took the view }
that an ounce of prevention was worth a *
pound of cure, and divided his theme *
into " What Was " and " What Might
Have Been." Under the first head were I
recited the actual expenditures of the
board of health, the loss by diminished c
travel and traffic, the loss by sickness, 1
the loss by death anl the loss by disa- a
bility. Under the second, liberal esti- '
mates for increased expenditures by the 8
board of health, and a determination of c
the degree in which the measures thus 8
carried out would have diminished the
losses. The sum of $56,464.84 was ex- ?
pended by the board of health in those a
years over and above expenses in conse- ?
quence of the smallpox. The loss by J1
travel on passenger railways alone was
eight per cent.; on incoming railways, J
six per cent, and outgoing, four per *
cent. Hence a loss to hotel keepers and *
- l ?i j f1
WUUituaiO ivuu icuiii mciuuaiiiio. a. iicoc
items were detailed in fignres by Dr. F
Lee, showing a total loss in meney value c
of 85,429,149. Then oomes the loss by P
sickness; in the details of cost of care, n
wages lost, loss of production, oost to
hospitals, etc.; the loss of productive
labor estimated at $1,072,065. The loss
by disability was carefully estimated at ,
$10,000 000; the expense incurred in care '
of sick at 8203,879, and the loss by death, a
placing a fnoney value upon human life .a
of from $500 to $2,000, according to J!
age, at $5,013,000. To this must be
added the expense of premature inner- *
als, reckoned at $74,420. The items 0
above enumerated make a total loss of n
$16 363,364. Had the board of health ?
taken the precaution suggested by Dr.
Gross and the State medical society, 0
vaccination would have been enforced; ?
the staff of vaccinating physicians
doubled; a central bureau of vaccination
founded, with a chief; a vaccine farm
established for propagating kine pock, .
thereby removing the danger of vaccinal 11
syphilis, but a disinfecting station would 1
certaiuly have been established. Dr. ,
Lee, continuing, estimated the degree to
which smallpox might have been pre- %
vented by thorough vaccination, careful ?'
re vaccination, and disinfection at ninety
per cent, of all cases, and ninety-seven rj
and one-half per cent, of cases in adults.
Summing up the matter, it is calculated
that had Philadelphia made an addi- J
tional expenditure of about $20,000 for y
prevention, with the hearty oo-operation h
of its citizens, $25,478,978 would have o
been saved. f<
POISONS IN AGRICULTURE.
A Paper Head Before the American llealtli
Association by K. C. Kedzie.
In this contest with insect foes the
farmer often finds poisons the most
ready means of defense, but great care
should be exercised in the use of
such agents. Not only the immediate
benefits, but also the remote and contingent
consequences demand attention. A
safe insect poison should combine the
following properties : First, it should,
in small quantity, effectually destroy
the iusect; seqpnd, it should be easy to
apply; third, it muifc not injure the crop
in any way or endanger the health of
the oonsumer of the crop; fourth, it
must not injure any succeeding crop ;
fifth, it fhust not injure the health of
the person who applies it; sixth, it
should be easily distinguished from
other substanoes in use on the farm and
in the household. No substanoe has yet
been found whioh combines all these
qualities. Mr. Kedzie's paper was confined
to the consideration of the arsenical
poisons, viz.: "white arsenic,"
arsenate of soda, and Paris green, and
after pointing ont the dangers from
their use and the influenoe of arsenic on
plant-life, citing the experiments of
Prof. Edmund Davy, and counter-experiments
of Ogston, of Daubeny and
Brodie, also the experiments of McMurtrie,
of the department of agriculture,
he considered the questions : Will
pans green poison plants f Will it reappear
in those parts of plants used for
food ? Used in large quantity it may
kill the potato vines, but does not reappear
in the potato tuber. Such potatoes
have been used for years in large quantities,
but no case is known of poisoning
by their use. Direct inquiries made
by the Michigan State board of health
resulted in answers from more than 1,000
clerks of local boards of health, and in
1873 only five clerks reported cases of
poisoning by the use of paris green.
By further examination it was found that
in the cases reported no one was poisoned
by eating the potato, but only by
careless handling of the paris green.
When paris green is applied to wheat
luring its period of growth, or is present
in the soil on which wheat is grown
from having been applied to a previous
crop, the arsenic did not appear in the 1
jrain, and thus injure or destroy its
ralue as food, nor was it found in the
itraw. Experiments with cabbage raised
on soil dressed last year with paris green
to destroy potato beetle showed no
irsenic in the cabbage. To the questions
: What becomes of paris green in
the soil t Why does it not reappear in
vegetables, nor poison our wells and
fountains ? The reply that it is insoluble
in pure water is not enough, for it
s sensibly soluble in the natural agrimltural
solvents. The paper, in dis- 1
jussing these questions, cites many exberiments
to show the action of the soil
m chemical substances, and particularly
m paris green, which established that
baris green after three months' con- 1
act with the soil, does not exist as aoetotrsenite
of copper; that the material 1
lad not washed out of the soil, and that 1
he arsenie comported itself, so far as
mlnhilitv in nnnnerned. as it would if it
(listed in the form of basic arsenite of 1
ron. The conclusions drawn are that (
>aris green being a deadly poison should
>e handled with extreme care, as inhalaion
of the dfist by contact of the ma-erial
with sores and raw surfaces, and
)ven by oontact with moist and perspirng
surfaces, it may produce dangerous ]
(fleets ; that while classed as an insolu- |
>le substanoe, paris green becomes
joluble to a sensible degree by the ac- ;
ion of what may be called the natural i
igricultural solvents, of which carbonic <
khd and the solvent action of the minute i
oots of plants may be regarded as the i
nost active ; that solutions of arsenious ;
kcid and of arsenites tend to pass into i
in insoluble condition in the soil, in
irliich arsenic is insoluble by the natural ]
igricultural solvents; tnat wrnio omer i
igenta may assist in fixing arsenious
eid in the soil, the hydrated oxide of
ron is probably the most potent Jactor
n producing this insoluble condition ;
hat enough of this oxide is present in
il fertile soils to render inert a oom>aratively
large amount of arsenic, and
hat it is to this agent that we probably
?we our safety when paris green is ap>lied
to the soil. When paris green is
pplied to the soil in such quantity that
he hydrated oxide of iron present in
uch soil is not sufficient to speedly
hange it to the inert condition, we
hould expect this agent to injure the
tealtb, or even destroy the life of the
lant. The limit of safety would naturlly
vary with varying composition of
oils. Mr. McMurtrie places the limit
a one instance at nine hundred pounds
0 the acre, a quantity vastly in excess
f any requirements as an insect poison.
Anally, the power of the soil to remove
rom solution and hold in an insoluble
orm arsenious acid and arsenites, will
irotect the water supply from deadly
ontamination by this agent, unless the
K)ison is used in excess of any requireaents
as an insect destroyer.
Tj Life Agiin.
The Yokohama (Japan) Herald rentes
a remarkable occurrence which
bows that some of the Japanese have
n extraordinary capacity for withstandig
the effects of fiery potations. An
fsaka man offered a prize to any one
rho would drink one aho?one quart,
ne pint,and one-half a gill?of a certain
ative liquor about as strong as spirits ]
f wine. A coolie performed the feat, B
ut died the same day from the effects ^
f it. They buri'nl him in a shallow [
rave, and about midnight the next day c
le earth absorbed the liquor from his c
el] soaked body, and he woke up from t
is debauch. Pushing off the light soil [
tiat covered him, he rose from his grave j
1 a white shroud, and startled some 8
abbers near by who were counting c
od dividing their money. They t
>ok the strange apparition for a j
host, and ran off in dismay. The t
oolie picked up the cash, and reported <j
> his wife the same night, a sadder but c
icher man than be was before the spree, c
p
Tom presented his bill to his neighbor t
ce. " Why, Tom, it strikes me that c
ou have made out a pretty round bill 8
ere, eh?" "I'm sensible it is a round B
ne," quote Tom, "and I have come
jr the purpose of getting it squared!"
A Christmas Legend.
It was Christmas eve. The night
was very dark and the snow falling fast,
as Hermann, the charcoal burner,
drew his cloak tighter around him, and
the wind whistled fiercely through the 1
trees of the black forest. He had been 1
to carry a load to a castle near, and was *
now hastening home, to his little hut.
Although he worked very hard, he was j
poor, gaining barely enough for the
wants of his wife and four little children. ]
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a faint wailing. Gnided by the sound,
he groped about and found a little child,
scantily clothed, shivering and sobbing
by itself in the snow.
" Why, little one, have they left you
here all alone to face the cruel blast?"
The child answered nothing, but
looked piteously up in the charcoal
burner's face.
" Well, I cannot leave thee here.
Thou would'st be dead before the morn
^ ft
rng.
So saying, Hermann raised it in his
arms, wrapping it in his cloak and
warming its little cold hands in his
bosom. When he arrived at his hut, he
put down the child and tapped at the
door, which was immediately thrown
open, and the children rushed to meet
him.
"Here, wife, is a guest to our Christ
mas eve supper," said he leading in the
little one, who held timidly to his finger
with its tiny hand.
" And welcome he is," said the wife.
" Now let him come and warm himself
by the fire."
The children all pressed round to welcome
and gaze at the little new-oomer.
They showed him their pretty fir tree,
decorated with bright, colored lamps in
honor of Christmas eve, which the good
mother had endeavored to make a fete
for the children.
Then thev sat down to supper, each
child contributing its portion for the
guest, looking with admiration at its
clear, blue eyes and golden hair, which
shone so as to shed a brighter light in
the little room ; and as they gazed it
grew into a sort of halo round his head,
and his eyes beamed with a heavy luster.
Soon two white wings appeared at his
shoulders, and he seemed to grow larger
and larger, and then the beautiful vision
vanished, spreading out his hands as in
benediction over them.
Hermann and his wife fell on their
knees, exclaiming in woe-struck voices, ]
"the holy Christ-child!" and then em \
braced their wonderful children to joy '
and thankfulness that they had enter- 1
tained the Heavenly Guest. (
The next morning, as Hermann passed <
by the place where he had found the ]
fair child, he saw a cluster of white
flowers, with dark green leaves, looking !
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Hermann plucked some and carried them 1
reverently home to his wife and children,
who treasured the fair blossoms and ]
tended them carefully in remembrance (
of that wonderful Christmas eve, calling j
them Chrysanthemums ; and every year, j
as the the time came round, they put
aside a portion of their feast and gave j
it to some poor little child according to i
the words of the Christ: " Inasmuch <
as yo have done it unto one of the least \
of these, my brethren, ye have done it '
unto me." i
]
Utilization of Refuse.
Jackson S. Schultz, of New York,
made a statement before the United J
States Public Health Association on
" the utilization of animal anl vegetable refuse
substances in large cities," giving j
the results of his two years' observations
on the New York board of health. The 1
advances of European cities in this direc- ]
bion were mentioned and eulogized. 1
New York as lately as 1827 depended on (
the swine to do its scavenger work. In 1
1830 the ordinances discountenanced the 1
presence of swine in the street, and now 1
the hundreds of tons of valuable feed are
weekly collected, towed out to sea and {
cast overboard.. This may answer a
3anitary purpose, but it is not economical
It should be made a source of income.
The present board of health is
embarrassed by the fact that it must pay
twenty cents per hour for poor service ; '
while another public department has in J
its care hundreds of paupers and thou- '
> - m LI. L . 3.*. J * _ i
ianas 01 auie-oouieu pn?oiiei?, wuuuo
labor is turned to no good account. :
But how to make profitable use of this 1
waste, with one hand tied and the other '
paralyzed by the political lazzaroni, ;
with which they are compelled to work,
presents a problem which no man can (
?olve. A family of five persons pro- ]
luces enough of vegetable and animal '
refuse from the kitchen to support one *
pig. I propose to keep a city swill- *
barrel and feed one hog for every family 1
xmtributing. There are in New Tort 8
sertainly 60,000 families. If we supple- *
nent hotel kitchen and market refuse ?
with the nutriment to be derived from j
hose animals, now so imperfectly and
langerously utilized, fully 66,000 swine 6
sould be supported. Mr. Schultz pro- *
-ested against contracting for sanitary *
work, as no adequate specifications can 1
ye drawn by a board of health. Hotels *
n New York sell their garbage for from 1
?500 to $2,000 per year to men who feed *
iwine in the suburbs. The garbage from ;
titchens is collected by private persons, *
ind more than p^yr the cost entailed, to x
itilize in various ways. A wholesale colection
was urged by the city. It was
proposed that New York buy, or lease,
me of the numerous islands in Long
Island sound, erect adequate shelter for s
wine and feed them from the city offal. ?
The labor of paupers, who now eat the c
iread of idleness, should be employed E
>n this island. It is also proposed to e
lonvert all the dead animals into nutri- T
ious food for hogs. In New York one ^
mndred horses die each week. The hide s
s worth $4. Fat ones dying by accident
hould be used for swine's food and fl
ithers for fertilizers. The work, except b
hat of collecting, can be done by pau- ?
>ers. It is calculated that the remunera- j
ion to New York would be not less than ?
>720,000, which would compensate a
loubly for collection and utilization. In E
ilosing his paper Mr. Schultz said the ?
dan he suggested would absolutely conrol
at one place all the offal and refuf?
>f a city, by methods at present under- B
tood and by labor which at present is ?
rnprod active and worse than wasted. e
. b
The pmaUeet women admire ty-men. a
t
WHERE HE STARTED FROM.
Incident* la the Life a! John Morrlurri
the Nevr York Gambler.
The old inhabitants of Troy, N. Y.,
jays a correspondent, tell some very
lueer stories about the hardships of
John Morrissey's early life, and it certainly
was strewn with more hard knocks
than roses. The principal industry of
Troy is iron manufacturing, and the
men employed in its works have long
been oelebrated for the perfection of
their physique and their prowess.
Though as well behaved as the generality
of men of their class, they are fond
)f the manly art, and the younger portion
of them are adepts in its mysteries.
This was especially the case when the
jubject of our sketch was a boy, and he
*as one of the sort that "didn't take
se^er from no one." Many is the turnip
he has had with them just to set at
rest the vexed question, "who was the
best man." It is related that he was
lever a quick fighter, though he was a
stayer for all that was out. There were
iozens of the lads in his day who could
make his faoe look like a raw beefsteak
In ten minutes, but just about the time
that he ought to have cried enough, he
trould turn upon his antagonist with
rach fury tnat ne would soon oe compelled
to acknowledge himself a whipped
man. An old competitor of his
mce remarked: "John didn't never
ieem to know when he was licked, and
lost as you got tired thumping him, he
iind o' got his second wind, an' then
iron might as well give up trying to
nake any headway against him." Of
he iron industries of Troy, stove-moldng.
is the most important, and in the
lays of Morrissey's boyhood every
nolder had his helper, or " Berkshire,
is he was called ; and when he was about
lineteen years old he became a Berkihire
in the Clinton stove works, the
argest at that time in the world. He
loon became a valuable man in the shop,
lis great strength enabling him to do a
jreat deal of what is called "jackass"
vork with ease. Among other incidents
}f his shop life, it is related that he
voulii often, for a small wager, stand
barefooted and lift a ladle of molten
ron at arm's length breast high, an
ichievement never before or since accomplished.
* **?*?
After the Stein way hall tragedy, Morrissey
settled down somewhat, and won
Lhe affections of Miss Sally Smith of
Troy, daughter of a prominent steamboat
captain and the belle of her native
city. This was the most fortunate step
bf his life, for he now began to think of
making money. With this object in
new, he started a barroom in Troy.
Selling whisky was net profitable enough,
however, and he borrowed $500 and embarked
in the faro banking business.
While thus engaged, he found time to
patronize other forms of sport, and he
developed quite a passion for cock fighting.
One night, while attending a fight,1
he got into a quarrel with a man named
Heenan and his son Tim, which resulted
in his whipping the pair. Heenan had
ei son in California who had acquired the
soubriquet of the Benicia Boy, and considerable
reputation as a prize fighter.
When the Benicia Boy learned of the in
suit to his kin, he determined to return
home and thrash the man who had struck
his father. When he reached New York
he soon found friends to pit him against
Morrissey, and the wife of the latter
having given her consent, a match
was made for the chatopionship of
America. The battle was fought in
rkniulft. and was one of the most terri
ble in the annals of the ring. In the
Irst round Heenan broke Morrissey's
nose with a blow that would have taken
the fight out of half the sluggers in the
sonntry; but Morrissey bided his time,
sind on Heenan's smashing his hand
igainst a stake in the fifth round, he
sailed in and put the " boy " to sleep
nrith ease. This ended Morrissey's
career in the ring.
A Chimney in Scotland.
Glasgow, in Scotland, claims to have
the tallest chimney in the world. The
total height from foundation to top of
joping is 468 feet, and from ground line
to summit, 454 feet: outside diameter
it foundation, fifty feet; at ground surface,
thirty-two feet, and at top of coping,
nearly eighteen feet. The number
)f bricks used in the erection was
1,400,000, equal in weight to 7,000 tons.
Rfhen within five feet of completion, the
jhimney was struck by a gale from the
lortheast, which caused it to sway seven
feet nine inches off the perpendicular,
ind it stood several feet leas in height
;han before it swayed. To bring back
;he colossaf shaft to its true vertical portion,
"sawing back " had to be resorted
;o, four men working at a time sawing,
ind two pouring water on the saws,
rhe work was done from the inside,
doles were first punched through the
tides to admit the saws, which were
vrought alternately in each direction at
he same joint on the side opposite the
nclination, so that the chimney was
>rought back in a slightly oscillating
nanner. This was done at twelve (liferent
heights, and the men discovered
rhen they were gaining by the saws geting
tightened by the superincumbent
eeight.
Dancing on Christmas Ere.
The custom of dancing on Christmas
ive is very old. It would be hard to
ay that it began in 1012, but that is the
Lrst Christmas dance on record, and the
lircumstances attending it were as rennrkable
as they are well attested. Sevral
young persons, so the story goes,
rere singing and dancing in a churchrard
on Christmas eve, and their doing
o disturbed Father Robert, a priest
ho was saying mass in the church. He
,sked them to stop, but the more he
>egged the more they d. nced. Since
hey would not cease dancing, Fat ler
lobert, as the next best thing, prayed
hat they might dance without ceasing,
nd so they did for a whole year, feeling
[either heat nor cold nor hnnger nor
hirst nor weariness nor decay of ap>arel;
but the ground on which they
lanced, not having the same miraculous
upport, wore away under them until
hey were sunk up to the middle. At the
nd of the year the (Jancing was stopped
>y Bjshop Hubert's giving the company
bsolutjon.
&
THE PENITENT'S LIGHTHOUSE.
A Legend from the French. (
Bofore they had built the two light- J
houses on the coast of France, which i
shine at night like two stars between
Oleron and Re, you might have seen, on ?
the top of the Roche du Bone, a post 1
strengthened with iron clamps, and surmounted
by an enormous lantern, f
Every evening the coastguard lighted it, 1
and the boats that came up to the rook *
turned away when they perceived the
light Worthy Rebard, whose age no (
one knows, has often told me about the ,
coastguard Kern an, who spent the ]
greater part of his life contemplating j
the lantern, ana people saia ne was m
love with it. The lantern, at all events,
was always bright and in good condition.
In stormy weather, when the sky was black
and thundery, when the broken shingles
rolled like thunder, it was visible at the
end of the post; and the sailors, who
thanked Heaven when they had escaped
the reefs, blessed Kernan a little in their
hearts. He was the only one who loved
and protected the lantern, for it had
many enemies. All the wreckers on the
coast hated it. Formerly, a storm was a
good thing for them, and after a night of
misery to those at sea, they snatched up
all the riches that were thrown upon the
coast. It was a devilish trade ; bnt
amidst the waifs there were often rich
finds, and the lantern had rained them.
They had attempted to break the lantern,
and to throw down the post; bat Kernan
declared he woold shoot any one he
found attempting such a thinglagain.
Amongst those the lantern had beggared
was an old woman called La Mouette
(the seagull), bat nevertheless, she ought
to have had pity upon others, for her
?on, a brave sailor, was at sea. He was
twenty years old, and called Jack, whom
every one in Lalen loved, because of his
good heart.
The season had been fine that year,
and a number of the wreckers had gone
inland to seek work. La Mouette blasphemed
from morning till night, and one
day, threatening the lantern, she said :
" Infernal lantern, they have placed you
there to ruin people ; but that must be
put an end to."
" You are very wicked, La Mouette,"
Kernan answered, "andGod will punish
If
you.
It was at the time of the equinoctial
gales. The sea found its bed too narrow.
One night the waves, like giants
escaped from prison, rose up towards
the sky; the wind howled like a guilty
i spirit; and signals of distress were heard
i at sea. Kernan filled his lantern with
the best oil he had, he put in a fresh e
wick, and when he saw the beneficent ?
light shedding its rays around the rock,
he went to bed, praying God for those <
who were in danger.
La Mouetto had watched his pro
ceodings, and when he was gone, she
i climbed the rock in her torn. By dint
of throwing stones, she had succeeded
* in breaking one of the sides of the lantern,
so that the wind and rain rushed
in and put out the light. At sea the
i signals of distress were redoubled, but
i at daybreak, Kernan, to his dismay,
found his lantern broken.
La Mouette on her side ran to the
shore. It was covered with fragments
i of all kinds; but there were also some
dead bodies. She ran from one to the
other, pulling off the rings, turning out
; the pockets. But suddenly she grew
' pale,-she stumbled, and then fell on her
l knees on the white stones. Her eyes
' were bloodshot; she turned one body
over and over; she put her hand to the
heart; she kissed it, crying like a mad
i woman, for she had recognized her son
i ?her son Jack I She carried the body
L away, and brought it to her hut. There
i she wrapped it in wnrm linen, and called j
her bov bv name, imploring him to an- c
swer her. After that day she never left j
i her cottage. She remained like a
statue of grief, seated night and day on ,
i a stone.
Some kind neighbors gave h&Pfeome c
food. The cure of Lalen came to see
her; and she prayed and cried so much,
that people came from miles around to *
see her. One morning?so they say? c
she was found dead on her stone. They
wished to cany her away, but nobody a
could succeed. The water that dropped c
from the rock had petrified the old c
woman. She was there, sad and pale,
like a statue of grief. And as people p
bad often bestowed money on ner, me a
cnre of Lalen, according to La Mouette's
wish, had another beacon put instead of ^
Kernan's lantern. It is to this day call- :
ed '' The Penitent's Lighthouse." v
I
The India Census.
p
When the last census was taken in* t
British India, it created not a little t
alarm among the natives. The motive c
. of the government was at first supposed
to be the imposition of fresh taxes, the ^
raising of troops, or the getting rid of e
the surplus population. The delusion
that an evil wind would cripple all who
were abroad on the night of the census .
was encouraged, as it materially aided *
the enumerators in their work. The
census of the women, however, excited "
the most apprehension, as the natives j
could not understand its purpose. That 1
the women would be taken to supplv
wives for the soldiers, that they were all
to be sent to Calcutta for government inspection,
and that the whole census was
a mere subterfuge by means of which to ?
obtain two virgins from every village in
India to fan Queen Victoria, were the 0
theories current with the natives.
-- x
A Wonderful Feat.
Mme. Senyah has been doing some *
terrific leaping in South America. The c
Lima papers tell, for instance, of one ef- s
fort far more than usually thrilling. |
Mme. Senyah was to make a flying leap n
in open air from a stand fifty feet high. 8
In the leap she was to catch a stationary s
rope suspended perpendicularly; swing- l
ing on this she was to catch another ?
rope fifty feet away and then swing to q
the trapeze. In making her swing to
catch the last rope, she flew past it, but s
seeing that she conld not catch it she i<
threw a back summersault and caught |
the extreme lower end of the rope as she
was going down. She was saved. The 8
excitement was intense, and many ladies c
fainted. The feat mentioned is simply
imposijjblo; but the story is pretty r
nearly as good for all that.
[ ' " *
-
Facto and Fancies.
The American railroads, on an itstge,
cost per mile $60,425, whije the
British roads cost oyer $180,000 p?
nile. "' *
The customs of an enslaved people are
i part of their servitude, those of a free
people are a part of their liberty.
A woman purchasing some cups and
laucers was asked what color she would
lave. "Why, I ain't particular," said
ihe; " any color that won't show dirt"
One of the Latter Day Saints has in
>ld Milanese dancing girl for one of has
rives, and Brigham Young's cook is an
[talian who owns a small harem of
iwenty-eight wives. ^
If the ark had been manned bJ ?
Mississippi steamboat captain, he woold
lave been very unhappy during the enire
voyage, because there was no opjoeition
ark on the river to race with.
An Arkansas man ate a pint of sawdust
i few days ago on a bet An intelligent
ihysician, who was called in, told him
hat he would have pain in his lumber
tgion if he stuck to such board as that
A young lady, about to be married,
nsisted on having a certain clergyman
? perform the ceremony, saying: " He
ilways throws so much feeling into the
ihing; and I wouldn't give a fig to J>e
narried, unless it could be done in a
itvle of arushinsr rhapsody.
- W? v -?m- w
There is a rising boy in Springfield,
TL His father said : " How, Georgie,
roil may take your choioe?go with me
0 visit grandpa, or have a new velocipede."
The urchin scratched his head,
ind answered: "111 go and see grandpa,
ind make him bny the velocipede."
They are arresting folks ont in Shelby
xpunty, Iowa, for playing billiards. The
wurts call it gambling when the loser is
ixpected to pay the expenses of the
rame, and for such gambling one Peter
Sock, who runs a billiard had, has been
impelled to meet the penalty?pay a
ine.
A scholastic professor, in explaning to
1 class of young ladies the theory aooordng
to which the body is entirely renewed
every seven years, said : " Thus,
diss B., in seven years you will no longec
)e Miss B." " I really hope I shan't,"
lemurely responded the girl, modestly
jasting down her eyes.
Forty-foor Syracuse ladies, living on
>ne street, subscribe $3 apiece * toward
;he purchase of books, vhich are circuafced
regularh' from house to house unil
all have read them. Ho member is
dlowed to keep a book over a week .A
rear's reading is secured by this method,
ind at the end of the year the books are
told at half their cost.
The Ohio river is the greatest coal ^ ?
carrier in the world, notwithstanding the
act that it is frozen np during most of
he winter, and nearly dried up a large
portion of the summer. A "ran" of J
?al was made daring the month of July
ast, when 375,923 tons were shipped in
orty-eigbt hours. It would have load>ver
37,000 eight-wheeled cars, which
vould have had to be made np into
ibout 1,000 heavy freight trains.
The following precaution is suggeuwu
)j a Western exchange : In retiring for
.he night spread newspavjars loosely upm
the stairways and in front of the doorrays
and windows. The noise produced
it the dead hour of night by treading on
iracklihg newspapers, or attempting to
emove them from the \iathway, be the
he burglar ever so stealthy and expert,
s sufficient to give almost any sleeper
:otioe of the presence a id whereabouts * >1
>f the midnight foe.
Detroit Free Pressings,
In a breach of promise case tried in
[owa the other day the jndge said that
>nce in four weeks was often enough tor
overs to sit up and spar?:.
The Sandusky Register has decided
hat writing two poems per year and
etching fish the rest o'1 the time canlot
justly be called a literary pursuit
Kansas has still another castor oil
actory?still another inducement for
thildren to be good. /
The New York Times has struck
nother libel suit, Thry make good
verooats to keep a paper warm through
old weather.
China is getting ready for war. Her,
reparations oonsist in marching soldiers
round the towns and blowing horns.
Liars do abound in Arizona, or else
hat is a heap of a country. It seems
mpossible <that one man lulled ninety
rild geese at one shot, but an Jgtt&na
aper says so in good bbvck ink.
The vital statistics of this oountry
rove that a woman will spend more
ime to bide a pimple on her forehead
- ~4
nan one win w us&o uuc
hiidren.
The man who doesn't read the adverisements
in a newspaper is like a travel>r
who passes along a strange road with>ut
consulting the guide-boards.
An amile tree grows on the line divid g
twoiots on Elizabeth street, and the
ot owners can never divide thefrnit
atisfactorily. At a mass convention of
he two men held at the tree one of
hem remarked : 'v
" It's a good thing for yon that they
tave abolished the tax on aogs 1"
And the other hotly replied :
"And it's well for you that thev have
[iscovered a remedy fo, hog cholera !"
Then the angel of peace had to get out <
f the way of the flying apples.
Winter Furs.
The following are the prices of furs .
or ladies' wear, as given by a New York Wi
ity paper:
ea 1 akin Back*, in length 28 and 33 in.$75.00(2 $250.00 j
eal akin muffa 12.00(9 00.00 Jt
eal akin boas, two yards long 10.000 27.0C
lack marten mnffa 6.000 15.00
lack marten boa* 6.000 15.00 "2
[ink aeta, raqff and boa 20.000 100.00
able aeta 100.0001000.00
,ynz aeta. for mourning 10.000 25.06
eal skin sets for children. 20.000 35.00
blnchilis sets for children 20.000 40.00
iray sqnirrel sets for children. 4.000 T.5C
rsy Astrachan sets for cblldrea ?0 10.0C
rhite cony cloaks for children 3.500 18.00
liver cony cloaks for children 10.000 20.0C
eland lamb cloaks for children 10.000 28.00 ]
ilver cony sets, muff and boa ?0 4.0C
eal |kin caps for girls, Berlin, Duchesse
snda English walking bat. S.CO0 16.06
eal skin 'caps for boya, in trirbana *
and Scotch caps 6.000 10.06*
ommon furs, in sole?mvakrat,
sqnirrel, Imitation aable, French
lynx. 5.000 10.06
or trimmings, in all width* and
every miety, per yard. 400 1kOO 'W