University of South Carolina Libraries
I SAKHj -s-s Almost as Large as Divided Between Jc JSC}?*. HE question of Sakhalien1 ^ __ has \*emained in suspense O I O for more than fifty years; K in fact, it is a very "old quarrel." Prior to 1S5G Sakhaiien was called Karafuto by the Japanese, and was then exclusively inhabited by Nippons and I Chinese. It was a navagator from the j Rising Sun, Mania Rimo, who first, in j the year 1S04, located its safe anchor-! ages which had, however, already been roughly noted by the Frenchman. La Perouse. in 1777. So far back as 1S5G the Japanese protested against a convention which was ratified and executed in 3Sob, in virtue of which the Sakhalien Island was shared between Japan and Russia, the 50th parallel of latitude forming the limit of the zones of influence. Later, in 1S75, unh' der the treaty of St. Petersburg, the Japanese part of the island also became Russia's property in exchange for the mediocre archipelago of the Kuriles, the yield of which is nil from an economical point of view, and on that occasion Japan lodged another protest. Sakhalien is situated to the north of Japan, a strait dividing it from Yeso. The Russians converted it into a penitentiary colony, where the convicts and their issue numbered about 30.000. They were given the charge of colonizing the island, a task that they performed with as little eagerness as success. The natives are very primitive and very wild, but at the same time quite harmless; they are known by the name Y of the Guiliaks and the Ainos: and they camp along the large rivers of the island, that is to say. the Tyme and the Peronai. . The width of Sakhalien ' varies between sixteen and 150 miles, but so long is the island (over G50 t miles), that its area equals tiie sixrn . part of France, or about 4G,000 square miles. The island is particularly wealthy in gold, silver, timber, amber, iron, plumbagine, furs, coal and petroleum deposits, the latter being more extensive than those of the United States, and it is now known that the petroleum springs found in the vicinity of the Nooteva River, which is one of the main streams of the island, are more Important than those of Baku. Although the island is covered with snow for so long every year, and during July ice is still found at a distance of less than one yard from the surface of the earth, the Japanese were espe. cially anxious to take Sakhalien because fish is the National food in Japan, and since the beginning of the war they have had to get it from the Formosa and Indo-China coasts. And Japan is not naturally a rich country; its principal agricultural products are rice, mulberries, vegetables and indigo in limited quantities; and so poor is the soil that it rcouires more manure than that of any other country in the world. Consequently, fish is npt simply pf one of the chief foods of the Japanese, but it supplies them with an excellent fertilizing material for their fields. In olden times the Japanese agriculturists to enrich their lands and rice fields made use of bean shells, which were imported from the ports of China and Korea, Shanghai and Chefoo Fusan and Chemulpo. The bean manure had the advantage of being very cheap, ' * ? * ?- ^ t* ^ r\ gvw* Its COSt Demg oniy a miu ui uic v1 lv-v I of the fish manure, but the latter lias a chemical power incomparably stronger, and the fields amended by its employment yield very rich crops, so that the most skeptical Japanese, having been taught by experience during the war against China, are now convinced that it is advantageous to use fish, fertilizer, in spite of its higher price. In past times, fish used to come in great numbers on the shores and in the Japanese rivers, and could be easily captured. The Yeso Island was especially famous for its fish, but those fine (lays are gone, for salmon have little by little deserted the rivers owing to the irrational and immoderate fishing. The herring has abandoned the Japanese waters, having undoubtedly been frightened by the boats, which became more and more numerous. They like quietness and dislike noise, and sometimes the firing of a gun is quite enough to make a whole shoal leave the bay where ii had taken up its quarters. All this, however, does not mean that fish are scarce in the seas and rivers of Japan, but they are sensibly fewer than in the past. Fish,, on the other hand, are more numerous than ever in the Russian seas of the Far East. In Kamtchatka they arrive in shoals so compact that they have been known to capsize boats on their, passage. In the bays, which are so numerous on the continent, the natives catch fish in abundance, which, ben:*; dried in the sun and stored, supply them with food during the winter: and at Sakhalien, at the time the salmon reascend the rivers, they are so numerous that the natives are often able to catch them with the hand, and shoals of herring are occasionally stranded on the shore. Th-* fisheries of Sakhalien are so im- j porKmt that they require the presence in the town of JtvorsaKovsK 01 a Japanese Consul, whose role is rather difficult. for lie has very often to solve most delicate questions. Each year between r?(XH> and G000 Nippon fishermen are occupied during the season, and there are 250 fisheries in exploitation yielding salmon, trout and herrings. Round the consulate each year are grouped a certain number of representatives of the firms of Hakodate. Otaro \LIEN. i-BCuba is the Island lpan and Russia. - main I and even of Yokohama. Thqflipfct boat leaving the Sakhalien waters before they are closed by the ice brings back the whole colony home. The fisheries are managed by Japanese, and two among the more important belong, one to Mr. Damby, who is an Anglo-Saxon, and the other to a former convict. What makes the wealth of the managers of the fisheries is, above all, the herrings. Had the Japanese been compelled to give up abruptly the fishing of the Sakhalien salmon the consequences would have been very unfortunate, but the loss of the right of herring fishing would have been almost disastrous to them, and the stroke to the Japanese industries would have been a real calamity. In such case the most important Hakodate firms, and even those of the whole of the l'eso Island, would be ruined, and the whole of Japan would suffer a very grave economic crisis. j It can be said that from their arrival in the Sakhalien Island the Japanese will modify entirely its character and its aspect. These little men, merry and industrious, form a striking contrast with the natives and convicts around them. and one Hears people I who laugh heartily in that convictladen atmosphere. It is amusing to see the Japanese fishermen, who courageously run to and fro with naked legs in the icy streams of the Sakhalien seas as they sing some popular chorus. They are not well paid, but Japanese have few needs, and know how to live comfortably with little money. All themanagers of the fisheries turn their attention to the herring, and only a few occupy themselves with whales. The whales which appear near the coasts of the island are small and are seen in great numbers in the Bay of Ivorsakovsk. As the Japanese fishermen, numerous as they are, cannot properly cope with the fishing of the herritfg, a great number of natives are engaged as extra hands, and the managers of the fisheries find this advantageous, for the natives are easily exploited or duped, and it is not expensive to feed them. As a general rule they are paid in kind, receiving a small part of the fish they have caught, some rice, clothing, some thread and needles. With the promise of a glass of* rice brandy they are willing to work for many hours. It occurs frequently that these poor creatures are cruelly deceived, for when they have finished their task they get nothing. It is the^ employer convict who takes the fish away and drinks the eau-de-vie, and the poor wretch must think himself lucky if he does not receive blows in* stead of fishl Jtteiptni air. Darucr. The helpfulness of a good man. when it comes to assistance in domestic affairs, is apt to be very much like that of the Mr. Barker whose exploit is narrated below. His wife had asked him to hang a picture she had purchased for the parlor, and he said that he would, do it "in a jiffy." "You must get me the cord and a picture hook," he said to his wife', "and tell the servant girl to run down into the cellar and bring up the stepladder, and, carry it into the parlor; and Where's those two little screw thingumajigs that go into the back of the frame at the sides to put the cord through? Look them up for me; and I'll need the gimlet to bore a little hole for the screws. Somebody get the gimlet, or maybe I can drive them in with a hammer. Johnny, you run down into the cellar and get the hammer. "I don't know but a chair would be better than the stepladder for me to stand on. Somebody go out into the kitchen and get me a chair. I don't want to stand on one of the parlor chairs. "Got that cord? Just measure off about the light length and fasten it in those little things at the side. "There, now, there's your picture all hung up in good shape, and no fuss about it. The difference between us men and you women is that when we have anything to do we go right ahead and do it, and no talk about it." i nree i.oys ?uu ? viuvo? Three boys in a bouse were told to go and take the exact time by a clock in the town. The first lad went, looked I at the clock, came back and said: "It is 12 o'clock." In after life he became a prosaic bookseller. The second boy was more exact. He said on returning that it was three minutes past 12. He became a doctor. The third lad looked at the clock, found out how long it had-taken him i to walk back to the house, returned to the clock, then added the time of his I walk to the time of the clock and re| ported the result thus: "It is at this moment 12 hours, 10 minutes and -15 seconds." That boy came to distinction as Helmlioliz. the scientist.?London Daily News. Gold Mining; in Britain. In a paper recently read before the Institute of Mining Engineers in London. J. M. McLauren gave some curious facts about golTl mining in Great Britain and Ireland. In all. gold of the value of $2,094,915 has been found. Of this England contributed barely $3000; Wales, $1,400,000, and Ireland $145,000. The largest nugget, weigh I ing twenty-two ounces, was discovj ered in Ireland. It was made into a : snuff box for George III. THE M0R9 FIRE MAKER. BY C. H. CLAUDY. The matcli is said to be the greatest eivilizer of the world, but it has not yet completed its work. There are still tribes of barbarous and semibarbarous people who use nature's means, for producing fire, either by friction with or wilhout apparatus, or the contact of two substances which produce a spark, as flint and steel. The Moros, of great interest to us on account ot our experience with . them in the East, use a method disI tlncitve from other savage races, ami of 'nterest not only for its uniqueness, but as showing the effect of environment on invention. This apparatus consists, as shown in the accompanying photograph, of a bamboo stick, a bit of china, ami tinder. The cylindcrical cases, which are also shown, are part of the device as it is used, one being a case for tobacco, and the other {pease for the china AIORO FIRE MAKER. BAMBOO T TIN and tinder. The whole, connected with cords, is worn at the belt. To use the apparatus, the native takes the bamboo firmly in his left hand, and in his right holds the bit of china by the finger' and thumb, and on the thumb side pinches a bit of tinder. The edge of the china is then struck sharply down and along the bamboo, producing a bright and long spark, which catches in the tinder and ignites it. Very little practice is required to enable even a novice to light a fire by this means. Obviously, when the apparatus was first devised, no china was available, and doubtless some sharp stone took its place. Now, however, bits of broken china such as are found in cheap eating houses, are regarded as best for the purpose, and universally used. The thoughtful reader will at once draw an analogy between this means of fire making and the flint and steel of our own ancestors. In the Eastern tropics, however, bamboo is the UUUIUIUUI'M UL ^ uvun, unu DU IIUO doubtless observed many times to where flint, in contact with metal, was.seen once. In consequence, after the first bright thinker had devised this way of using the spark, the method held its popularity and obtains to this day, although the flint and steel is so much simpler, easier and more portable. The philosophy of the device will at once be apparent. The sharp edge of the china scrapes off a bit of bamboo ?not much, because the wood is hard and the outside has quite a glazebut enough to be made incandescent by the friction of the the stroke. The tinder catches this spark, and the desired flame is the result. The photograph was made from the object in the possession of Mr. W. W. Dinwiddie, of Washington, D. C. ? Scientific American. Mr. Shaw's Dress Theories. Forgetten as a statesman. Brougham is remembered as an elegant vehicle. Generations hence, when his dramas and his political theories have passed into oblivion, Mr. Shaw may be remembered by a shirt?self-adjusting, selfcleansing. a paragon and a paradox of a shirt.?Illustrated London News. The giant of the whole spider family is the "hound" or "dog" spider of Madagascar. A MAX-OF-WAR PRE11 Everything that can possibly be remov bare, as shown in 1 \iku C'ourajre. Yesterday the aeolian harp was silent all day in the window, not a fugitive air wooing it to music; to-day it is wild with melody from every wind ot the world. So shall the brave music j of your hopes be renewed. Have no care of the dead and barren I riKtwiinvs ? thev were croud unly tc carry away all your mistakes, all youi maimed purposes, all your vain brood ing. all your irresolution, all your cow ardice. Concentrate on to-day ant your soul shall be strong to meet to SELF-HEATING SOLDERING HON The operation of soldering is a raucli , more exacting one than the inexpert5 ] enced person imagines as he witnesses^ J the facility with which it is conducted under favorable circumstances. It re- j quires a knowledge and expertness J which is secured only from long prac- ( tice to have the iron at the proper de- I gree of heat and the surfaces to be joined in the necessary condition of absolute cleanliness before the solder will now. unless an or tnese require- j ments liave beon complied with the ; amateur will be surprised to find that . i the leaden stick will not be influenced in the least by the application to the c heat of the soldering tool. ?. The expert workman who is sure of ! ; his ground is somewhat hampered in j his work by the fact that there is much ; time lost while he is waiting for the t iron to heat. A novelty in the line of l tinsmiths' tools has been recently iutro- ? ttuced to the trade, which is a self-oonr [ y " ' * ^ .. ;' M- &' 1 . r-'v.'. : : w , *. i ' < rr,_ , ? 0 BE STRUCK WITH CHINA AND < DER. < . ( tained soldering iron, dispensing with the use of the charcoal fire usually 1 made use of f6r the purpose of heating the iron. This tool is self-heating. 1 The handle contains a supply of gaso- i line and is fed to the copper point by < means of a pressure generated auto- 1 matically from the heat. It Is merely 1 necessary to give the copper point an ; initial heating by means of an alcohol ! lamp. The latter operation requires 1 f I 1 ' ft I SELF-HEATING SOLDERING IRON, about five or six minutes, and after ] that the device is self-acting as long as the fuel supply holds out. The consumption of the fuel can be accurately regulated, and thus it is possible to , adjust the heat of the copper to any j desired point for different kinds of work?Philadelphia Record. To Get a Splinter Out of Yoar Hand. When a splinter has been driven into the hand it can be extracted by steam. Fill a wide-mouthed bottle nearly full of hot water, place the injured part over the mouth and press it slightly. Ttio or.+irm tlins nrn?lnr?Pfl will flrnw thp flesh down, and in a minute or two the steam will extract the splinter, also the inflammation. Try it and be convinced.?National Magazine. The earliest known mention of shaving is in the Bible (Genesis xliv, 14): "And he [Joseph] shaved himself and came before Pharaoh." ; AIIED FOR BATTLE. 'ed is cleared away, leaving the decks :he above illustration. morrow. Hope, courage, energy?anc you!?against whatever odds. Lift up your heart!?The Papyrus. ' Speaker Heed's Wit. : Senator Piatt's remark that if lie had his life to live over he should model i his political activities 011 other lilies, ) recalls the reply of Speaker Reed, who, when asked by the lady reporter of a . Sunday paper if. having another oppor. ttinity, he would not be a better man, I said solemnly and sadly that he did - not think he would.?Harper's Weekly. oiiisi Federal Aid an Obligation. ^ac.ujem, HY should the Federal f hhh it Government aid in im 3 AAA O proving the highways of t the country? The answer to this question is a logi:al one. The policy of the Government should be to so use the funds placed it its disposal by the people for naionnl purposes and to so shape its fis:al and other legislation as to promote he best interests of the people. It is lardly susceptible of controversy that he thing which will do most to pronote the further prosperity and derelopment of the country is a system )f improved highways reaching out nto the farming districts. As has oeen wisely said, city development vill take care of itself. Indeed, it has joue on in the past at the expense of ural development principally because :he great burden upon agricultural communities of wretched public roads las kept back agricultural developnent. The Government has recogaized its obligation to aid in furtherng means of transportation by the aelp it has extended to railway and ivater facilities. The improvement of >ur highways will mean the rounding )ut of transpOi. ration facilities in the country, the giving to remote districts adequate means of reaching markets rnd distributing centres, and perform :he linal work in national progress md prosperity. These are some of t.- 1 T7^ ,-v ? .-? 1 LUtf least* LI 5 wiJ) tut? rcuaai uuvciument should and is improving the highways. The Brownlow-Latimer Mils, in House and Senate, point the way to most happy national results. Senator Latimer epitomizes some reasons why the Government should recognize its obligation in the matter which we think well worth reproduction. They are: First. Because the history of road building demonstrates that a complete system of public roads has never been constructed in any country except by the aid of the General Government of that country, and during the 100 rears of our national life the United States has not proven an exception to this rule. Second. Because the revenues of tk? Government are raised largely upon articles consumed by all the people, thereby distributing taxation equally, and as all the people should contribute to the construction and improvement of the roads, it is only by Federal aid that this can be accomplished. Third. Because it is the duty of the Federal Government to bear its just proportion of the expense for the construction and improvement of the roads which it uses for the delivery of the mails and for military purposes in time of war. and which are the arteries of iniersrate commerce. Fourth. Because better roads are a national necessity; they closely concern the general welfare of the nation, and are therefore a proper object of national aid. Fifth. Because the money in the national treasury belongs to the people and should be expended for their benefit in a manner which will accomplish the greatest good to the largest number, and because the power to borrow money at low rates of interest, if it be found necessary to supply the money in this way, enables the General Government to undertake this improvement with greater advantage than the States or the people. In the foregoing statement we have the proposition for national aid boiled down to the practical point of clear understanding. Less Expensive Roads. The town boards of Oyeida County, X. Y., made the following suggestion: "We would not recommend that every town in this county have built within its borders a road costing on the-average $7000 a mile, as we believe each town should govern itself according to its own local conditions, but we have provided figures to show that no matter whether a town has a high or a low assessed valuation, it could, under the $50,000,000 bond issue, if its own board so desired, have, without excessive taxation, just as wide and just as expensive roads as any other town in any -'* * c*+.-,+n Tf fhrv prmntv uuicr petit ui mc kjlulv.. ?**. w ^? and town can devise methods by whicli the roads to be built should have an average cost of $4000 a mile instead of $8000 a mile, the charge to the town under the bond issue for each mile of highway built would be $30 for each mile the first year; and to the county, the increase in tax the first year for each mile of highway would be $70, and to the State it would be $100. In other words, under me $50,000,000 bond issue the State, county and town could obtain a road costing $4000 a mile at an increase in their annual tax levy of $200, which under the present system of payment would call for the expenditure of $4000 in cash, "or under the bond issue they could obtain a road costing $8000 a mile for an increase in their tax levies of $400 in place of raising $8000 in cash, as provided by the present method. "Under the bond issue each town and county is free to select as expensive c* road or as cheap a road as the local conditions require."?Tribune Farmer. Triplets Ttrice in a Year. From Germany comes the strenuously delightful news that a Bavarian frau lias borne no less than six children in one year. Triplets burn in January, 11)04. were joined by another set of triplets the following December. i KIDNEY TROUBLE _ Tiie ^^tive of PE-BTJ-NA in Kidney Disease the Talk > of the Continent? Nicholas J. Hertz, 3Iember of Ancient Order of Workmen, Capitol Lodge. No. 140, Pearl Street Hotel, Albany, N. Y., "writes: "A few months ago I contracted a heavy ~,4 cold which settled in my kidneys, and each time I was exposed to inclement weather the trouble was aggravated until finally I was unable to work. "After trying many of the advertised remedies for kidney trouble, I finally took Pernna. J ** "In a week the intense pains in my , 0 ^1 hack were much relieved and in four i weeks I was able to take up my work ^ again. "I still continued to use Peruna for an- . ' other month and at -the end of that time - ,1 11 1 was penecuy wen. "I now take a dose or two when I have been exposed and find that it is splendid V-^ to keep me well." Hundreds of Cures. v Dr. Hartman is constantly in receipt of -vl; >? testimonials from people who have Deen cured of chronic and complicated kidney disease by Peruna. For free medical ad- ' vice, address Dr. Hartman, President of The Hartman Sanitarium, Columbus, Ohio. "ST <s m AAA BANK DEPOSIT M dTvJaUUU R.R.FarePaM. NotesTtk? \Jtll 500 FREB CODBSES 4tJ?? Board at Cost. Write Odd ./h3?2 SE0R6IA-ALABAIIABUSIHESSC0UJ6g.lUCM?.Q. MONEY$$$wE?5?!?S? H ??? > Portrait of Gen. Robert E. Lee. The faot that too frequently It tran- ^1|| spires in American history that no accurate and authentic portrait of her; great men is faithfully preserved has . caused a number of the devoted ad'. mirers of General Robert B. Lee to interest themselves to cause a perfect picture of the great general to be made and to be preserved for all fu- > ^|l| ture history. This work, after a lapse of forty years, is now under way by the John Mag A. Lowell Bank Note company of Boston, who are using for this purpose ~ the exact photograph made at Gen j eral Lee's residence in Kicnmona a : ^ few days after the surrender, which picture has always been considered by the I ~e family and friends a$the most perfect likeness ever taken of : the general at that period. The work when finished, will be of the highest art of steel engraving, so > 0: that it will thus be preserved# for all future time.?Clipping from tht Post, Washington, D. C., September 17, British Coldness. The first encounter with an Eng> iishman, though he be but your fel- ^ low passenger in boat or train, is in very truth terribly discouraging. &e- yy served and cold to a degree that Ji"; chills us Frenchmen to the very marrow, he absolutely ignores the thousand and one trivial little amenities which?though it is possible we may exaggerate them ? so effectively smooth away the asperities of exist- :~j-y; enc$.?Adolphe Brisson In Grand Magazine. A MYSTERY EXPLAINED. "It's strange that you should a f p ways to so gaunt," remarked the bear ? to the wolf. ^ ^ 1# ' ^ "Well, you see," replied me wwu, "It's all because o! the- part I'm compelled to play in life- Y?u see, I'm - - - - always obliged to keep from the door -,|Vg until there's not a thing left In the house to eat"?Philadelphia Press. ... zw$m "COLD COLD" "Good," He Ssya, "But Comfort Better." X "Food that fits is better than a gold :?j mine," says a grateful man. ; "Before I commenced to use GrapeNuts food no man on earth ever had a worse infliction from catarrh of the stomach than I had for years. "I could eat nothing but the very lightest food* and even that gave me great distress. "I went through the catalogue of prepared foods but found them all (except Grape-Nuts) more or less indigestible, *?^ generating gas in the stomach (which if in turn produced headache and various * 'lt other pains and aches), and otherwise unavailable for my use. .. "Grape-Nuts food I have found easily digested and assimilated, and it has renewed my health and vigor and made me a well man again. The catarrh of the stomach haa disappeared entirely with all its attendant ills, thanks to Grape-Nuts, which now is my almost sole food. I want no other." Name > f given by Postum Co., Battle Cregkf ^ ' Mich. Ten days' trial tells the story* ? mere a u xeuauju.