The ledger. [volume] (Gaffney City, S.C.) 1896-1907, April 16, 1896, Image 3
I
THE WEEKLY LEDGER;: GAFFNEY, S. C., APRIL 1G, 1890.
RUFUS SANDERS.
Two Homoly Stories from
Forks of the Crook.
tho
Old MIhph \Vj;t-,on and Her ‘'Little RteTe”
—doom* Stiiffper Went a-I'liililn
ami (tot Snrike IMt—I’.sBay
on Man.
f
ihj tj, ,'* t .
X
White people, do you know what it
means ami how it feels to be a
country b o 7,
and the only-
ost boy on the
place at that?
If you don't
know, nil tho
preachers and
poets 'and phi
losophers and
jKjIiticians in
in tho whole
disco v e r e d
world can’t tell
you. Hut I re
member by ji: :-n, I remember like It
was yewtit lay haw Infernal handy a
cotton-h' ' ‘1, hatchet-faceted, shirt-
tail lx)Y c •'‘roe.nd a farm.
Hut tl • <>ld lady Watson—which the
Wat.soa they have l»een llvln down
there In the forks of Ia>ii£ (’reek for
vcar.'t and t ' a; -she come by our
home one day last week and made me
porry. 1 ' v;; s sorry when she come,
mid sorry when she went away, and I
am sorry I'll yet. I doubt mighty tte^
ih.tis if I could t'11 von what I am sorry
about n: 1 v. lie I nin sorry for. But, at
any rates, I inn sorry.
pure old broken-hearted, God-for-
paken won.an, with her gray head
Pow'd down In sackcloth and aehen,
has « line to r.d.’c her tears and share
her r rrers with you,” snys .Vises
tVat; ’ii 1 !u ?i she first drlv up to the
horsi r ic’.. ! hit. a rainin. Then me
ami 11.other ive went out. and told the
old lady to ii'-ht and come in and take
a cln.ir and make herself nt home till
the shower passed over. And she went
with us.
“hittie Steve is }p ,no . Jlufite," six*
went on to say between her soIm and
terr. “I.ittl - Kteve is dead and gone,”
(Dii with that she broke down and
tuned loos • and cried and cried as If
her heart was cplit wide open. By
this time mother she had l>ren hit la
is-ift s; ( . and the tears rolled down
hrr pretty checks as fast nnd free as
the r ;hi ’reps from that April shower.
Jlut she hrneed lierself ti[) ns beet she
rould red ; ut lier arms nround the
trend T 1 and troubled old sotil—eofl
ind te; d r 1:’ e and sooth In as she
rcuhl ami 'jiiotod sotnc famlllons
Script are and told her it. would all
turn out for the Lest somewheresdown
flie line
1 l :i. irr : i : ''on. :o hot or so cold
1 1 e: ■;!il call mi little Stere and
1 “I t tlier.',” slie went on,
hi !.i ;• 1 amis and roekin 1f> and
i' uas r ich a iu Ip and comfort
to Ilaail.r !»n<l So rriwf.
“lie 1 : s -) l.a.r.dv and so peart, Itufua
I —bait you. all ' nnv ed little Stere," rays
rhe. an ! tl.< n it seems like she broke
out in a fr h place and would jcM. nat
urally ■ p In rseif away. "It nerer
was *
but v
he n
wrir;:
fro.
i'imI M -sin to his poor old w hide red
mot her.
“My other b y Hob—he Is still with
me in the tiesli. Htif even w hen he woa
the rifrht size Hob was never so peart
mid handy and n ady and ivlllln ns little
Stew. And then as to Hob—he has
now come tip that pint in life where
he nint fitten for nothin mucli hut
to loafer and swell and swash around
thirin the day and go pallia crery
nipht t!:e po id Lord seruls. If Hohnlnt
a man—nith a, few scattcrln whiskers
on his face and woman on his brain, he
ja fool erou'.rh to feel like one, wh'ch
limoiints to the same thir.fj with his old
mother.
•‘Hut little Steve—he was so nlmhle
and so rnick, so l.andy and so peart,
Hufus. lie ccnld stay up later and git
up soor.cr. and ptt faster and come
cjuicker, Sind turn o!T more (xlds and
jol*. in Icu.i time than any hoy that
ever come to lipht nnionpst t!ie Wat
sons. If in his love and wisdom the
good Lord had but only took Hob I
could stand it a. whole heap L'cttrr.
Hut to see lit ile Kluvc—my onlyest little
Kteve—i>ut in his enfTn and toted o\if
and liaillcd olT and ia’d away to rest—
it was too much for his jiorc old
widdered mother to hear."
And with that. the «dd lady let loon**
onct more, and wept and went on at
b.icii a treinen lius rate til! 1 thought in
my soul she v onh! faint on the spot.
Hut mother she made a rush for tlm
camphor Lol l le and her last rrnr>
turkey tail fan, and between the two
we hrui'.g the old soul to her senxctw
“How can I forp“t my little Stere.
and hew can 1 ever give him up? lie
was so handy and so peart. In summer
heat or winter cold lie could pi* up at
the break of day and split the klndlln
and fetch in the wood and make the
fires and feed the stock, and draw tlm
water and tote out the s!o]>s and drive
tip the cows aad rope oil the calves and
chum the milk, and sweep the yard
and hoe the garden and tend to the
chickens and rock the cradle and nurse
the baby. I reckon no doubts our lit
tie Kteve is better elT where 1m Is- Im-
vond this tale of sulTerin and of sin.
. Hut he was the apple of Ids pore old
widdered mother's heart, and 1 will
never see the like of him no more. He
was so linr.c’y. Flufns—so handy nnd so
peart."
Hy this time tiiat April shower ha'’
passed over. Then presently old Vise:
Wot so 11 1 braced up sunieient to sat
good-by and driv on back home. And
through round about the old log,
fchoolhou.se— In them plain okl days,
when jieople want so eonsonnded pox-
tielar as to keep two schools a rttnnin,
anc for the males and one for the. fe
males—when the boys made Ilyin Jen
nies, grapevine swings, seesaws and;
sleh like—when you bo3’s and girls
w ent rovin after chinkypins and chest
nuts, after heart leaves, after sweet
shrubs—when the sap Is bilin upards
nnd the bark slips on the hickory, and
you feel like j - ou would love to make
some whips and flutes nnd whistles—
anything to please the children—when
you feel too dadburn lazy to do any
thing to speak of— t
Well, that’s the time for fishln.
So it come to pass one day last week
—the weather was so w arm and dreamy
like, and pleasant—that Hunk Weather
ford and old man Jeems W. Staggers
they took their hooks and lines nnd bait
gourds and went down on Murder creek
a fishln.
Maybe you would love to know who
In tho thunderations Is Jeems W. Stag
gers? You n.sk me ruthcr quick nnd
nuddeot, hut I will tell you nil I know,
lie Is a 5nn of old Ml«cs Ktnggers. In
his own wild nnd wicked way, he Is a
right tolerable good roan. Hut so far
n« I know, the pulpit nnd t.l>c amen
comer never have been seriously threat
ened with bin manly presence. An to
religion, Jeems W. Staggers never did
even nor ter make out like 1»* had got
nny, and I reckon Aunt Xnncy Xew-
ton was right when sho put him
down n« “aljout the inoet wickedest
man in this w We and wicked world."
Hut tl*e good Ix>rd never blowed tho
breath of life Into a better soul than
old man Ebone/.er Staggers, which he
mnn a preacher of the word In his day
and generation and tlm father of Jeems
W.
Xo more of thot. It h'nka out now
that Hunk and old man Jeems W. didn’t
hare no tremendlus big ran of Im'k In
rrgartl.H to fish. Hut a man hy tho
aaaie of Jeem> W. Staggers got snake
hit, aad that ia what makes me tell you
wh»t. I do.
"Yon see, I!life, I had went down
the creek, whilst. Hunk 1m* took up the
creek," says old man .Teems TV.. In
giving out. the fnets to me. M I was no
sea ndIons Ixul off for one good mci-w of
flati till I could smell the gravy, you
nudoratwnd, and eonaequentlally I
didn't go down them lookin for snakes.
Hut, by thunder, I found one, Rufr,
and he found me. All of a suddent I
stumbled over owe of these big old
rusty nioceastus, and he nailed me on
the calf of my left. Irg. Naturally, of
course, I pimi'ed up and down right
there In the same place till the snake
turned hmse nnd I had slomimd him
to death. Then I laid down and hul-
k>red for Hunk, arid him a mile np the
creek. So there I w as. Rufe, wny down
there In Murtler enek swamp snake
bit, three miles from home, ten miles
fmai the doctor, with my old leg swell-
in to l>eat. six bits, and narry drajt of
s|»erits. Somethin had ta lie done,
ftnfe, right awny iinmediafclj', nn<l for
the first time in my life I felt like I
w ould love to pray. Hut, to be plum
honest with you, 1 didn’t know how.
Tp to then, you understand, 1 never had
scraped tip nny acquaintance with the
Lord, and I felt like 1 was :t rank stran
ger to Him. In the main time the
luirt.in nml the swellin went on, with
Hunk Weatherford a mile up the creek.
So at last I pitched In nnd told the Lord
who 1 w n.s nnd where I come from, nnd
then prayed to the best of my feeble
ability.” '
IN FLORIDA AGALN.
Arp Is Now Down Whoro tho
Flowers Aro Blooming.
from that
• ail mi:
Tolls Who Ho Mot Thoro-How a Flshtns
Party of Young People Caused Great
Anzloty to Their Friends
and Relatives.
till this blesseii
hour I have I ivn raleHi.-ry nlmiit some
thin or other. To rave my life I
couldn't tell you fnr certain what j
t.i 1 : >11 a! >nt or who I urn sorry f ir
Hut I a:n i >1 ry.
A Ftraa-rr to I lie l.a.-it.
In tin* Fpr.i.gtiliie, gentle Annie,
when 1 he d )“wootl bloomH are bloontiti
—when you think n 1mmit. them old
tinieii, und the , Idett duysi you went
A Rnd ami Funay Sl?hf.
from (he wny In which Hunk Weath
erford tells the news. It must of been a
sad and funny alglit to see old man
JeeniM W. Stnpgeni ravin hia prayers
for the first time down there in Murder
Creek swamp.
"When I come, up to where I could
see Jeems W.," says Hunk, "he wan lay-
la there on the ground flat of his hack,
wnvln his hands on high and gesturln
nt a fast and furtotin lick. And to the
best of my recollection, this is what 1
heard him sny In a loud voice:
'* 'Oh Lord, I reckon you don’t know
me. Hut 1 am snake bit. My name In
• leems W. Staggers. I am the wild nnd
wicked sou of old Parson Kbenezer
'taggers, which I reckon you knowed
iiim. Me wan a preacher of the Word
neeordln to the old school Haptlsta,
nid a mighty good man. I am his
onlyest son. and snake bit at that.
Oh. Lord, have mercy on my lost and
innt souI. Yours truly, Jeems W
flaggers.’"
■f hat was a day of terror and of
trouble, and no doubt Jeems W.
thought his Cm'* had come. Hut by the
Messina of Him with whom a 1I1011-
■zml years are r.« n watch in the night,
he old man still Hngeta jet n little
w hile In the liorder land. The dfK*tors
ay he will recover anil git well, nnd
I do ho|<* he will. Kometlines It takes
.1 heap to liring a mr.n to his senses, but
it really looks to me like Jeems W.
Staggers has now come up to the forks
of the road.
For why? Well, the other day on 1113*
leturn back home from a trip down In
1 he stump hill country I rid around by
there to see how Jeems W. v. iin comiti
on. In the general confabulation which
followed, he went on to tell me how
thankful he ought to lx*, and how he
bivrd the liium* and recollections of his
good, old father.
"Ami 1 never will feel plntii
antnrnI." he went on, lookin lovlnl;i
flown tlfHm his snnkehlt leg. M I never
"'ll feel plum natural nnd right, Btife,
till I run git tip front here nnd slip oil
• low n to the lot and sing a few stanzas
from that good and familiar old song:
" 'Arr.nzln Krure! how sweet the sound.
Which cavod a wretch like me.* "
Man. born of woman, is of few days
rod sorry teeth, and full of foM notions.
Hut yesterday he v\us too bi M 'for hi*
:.reechos. To-day he iu kiuiiII potatoes
rod few in the hill, with the rows six
feet w ide. To-morrow—the g<*od Lord
’ nows what not.
Some people have sense, nnd nomo
jieuplc have tlta. KtrLs Haxueiib.
With but little warning I bad to
leave home nnd wife and two daughters
und numerous grandchildren and run
down to Florida on business. Here I
am again at Clearwater, breathing its
balmy air and feasting my vision upon
the- same beautiful sunsets and dancing
waters and tropical scenery that al-
wn3'S charm me when I come. I am
happy with three other daughters and
two dear little grandchildren and with
congenial friends who greeted upcom
ing and gave me a glad welcome. Life
is still worth living, if for nothing else
but the pleasure of meeting those w ho
are dear to you and receiving the cordial
salutation of friends. They tell me
that if I did not discover Clearwater,
I uncovered it to the southern people,
who had never heart] of Such a place,
and now I find scores of visitors who
arc looking In upon the beauties of t his
place ami buying prci>erty, and pre
paring to plant here their winter
homm. 1 was surprised to see so matp
of Atlanta’s good jieople visiting hero—
the Illllyers, Ilomphiiis, Howells, In-
mane, Swanns, English, Col. George W.
Scott, Dr. Palmer and others—end even
Mr. Plant nnd Col. Wrenn and their
wives did for a time leave the Tampa
Ha3' hotel and found a hapjp hiding
place In Clearwater. Just think of
Cap*. Evan Howell staying here a week
or two without saving a won! about
Cleveland or finance or conventions or
nny other politics during his stay. The
calm serenity of this heaven favored
sjKit puts jiollties to the blush and
smothers all selfish ambition and un
godly thoughts. The tired mind comes
here in search of rest, and finds it,
Evan Howell used to smile tit my
gushing letters and declare there was
no such jilace this side of Heaven; but
now that he has seen it with his
C3*es, he can’t find adjectives enough to
express his admiration, and, like u loy
al husband, has gone after his wife
to come down nnd make a choice of a
Imy-front lot. He says lie is jirejiared
to believe anything I say—y»-s, even my
flsh storiixi. 1 told him about an old
ltul3* who hud lived near here for Y)
)‘e*rs. nml when she wanted fish for
breakfast, walked down the bluff
nnd waded out a few yards Into the
crystal water and held out her ajiron
and let tho fish jump in it. Evan
smiled, but Raid nothing. Ncxtmorn-
ing I met 1113 - old fiiend Turner, who
publishes a jiajier nt Statesboro, Ga. I
introduced him to Cnpt. Howell as a
mnn who w as boro and raised here, and
captain, thinking to jiutolV a good joke
on me, told Mr. Turner what I said
about, the old woman catching fish here
in her apron before the war. Mr. Tur
ner looked at him solemnly and serious
ly and said: "He told 3*ou the truth, sir;
(lint woman was up mother."
When a man first comes here and sees
extraordinary^ things, he is almost
afraid to tell of them when lie goes
back home, and he begins to look
around for a credible witness. Col.
Kcott, the quiet old gentleman who
founded the Agnes Scott institute, has
Ixiught a beautiful bay-front, with an
orange grove attached, and asked me
to walk down and see him measure a
grnjie fruit tree. He did it very care-
full3', and found it was inches around
four feet from the ground. He said
that he had measured it before, but
wanted a witness. So, for fear he imp
lie suspected of exaggeration, I had just
ns well giro the cert'fieate. That tree
is 17 Inches In diameter four feet up
from Its base. The groves around
here have j>rTtt3’ inueh recovered from
the freeze and arc now covered with
111001 oh. Some groves sutTcred but lit
tle, nnd never lost a crop. Mr. Hailey's
grove, near Clearwater, gave him an
average croji, and so did Mr. Mark bp's.
Our home market has not been without
a supply of fine, first-class fruit, as far
Mijierior to the Californiaoranges as an
ajijile is to a persimmon. If I had
mone3\ I would invest in a grove or two
on speculation, for hero lathe safety
line, and Florida oranges and grape
fruit will command high j.rices for
some years to come.
Yesterday morning our young jieople
made uj> a grouper j>ariy and sailed out
to the coral reefs in tin* green blue gulf.
I was resjieetfully Invited to stay at
home nnd l<K>k after the little girl, and
they promised to ho 1 ark by four
o'clock. I read and wrote and nimin-
nted nnd jilayed with tin* child and
heljied her make sand |>les, until the
sun was nearing the horizon, but. still
there was no sail In sight. Every few
minutes I seamed the distant waters
ami the two jiasses between the islands.
The twilights are brief down here, and
w hen the dark had sjimul it* lonely cur
tain I began to be troubled, and walked
the veranda with anxiety and
Impatience. Then I walked down
to the dock, and was com
forted with the information that
our boat could not possibly get in
until the tide rose and brought them,for
there was not a breath of air to move a
sail. F,lowly and sadly I enrm* home,
nml our little household had Ktijqier nml
rheered the lingering hours w it h j.rose
nnd poetry nnd conversation. Ever aad
anon I came out and listened for n wing
to float Its melody over the waters, for
they always come buck singing; but
there was no sound save the ominous
notes of a screech owl and the jilaiutixe
song of the whlp-jioor-u ID in the grove
near by. At nine o’clock we put. the lit
tle girl to lied, but f be, too, had become
excited, nnd couldn't sleep. 1 sat by
her and stroked her hair and her ham!*
for an hour, when at last, with a sigh,
she dmpjied asleep. Eleven o'clock
tame aad 1? ami 12:HO o’clock, nml I
reasoned that the boat was on a rand
bar and could not get off ♦•IJ morning.
A IkkiI jiarty from Duneden wasstrand-
m! on a bur last week and hid to stay
(here all night, and their families and 1
friends were greatly alarmed and sent
5ut searching jiarties for them. All Is
not gold that glitters even at Clearwa
ter. At half-past one o’clock, while l
was nodding in my chair, 1 was sudden-,
I3' aw akened by the sound of voices, and
my heart bounded with gratitude and
joy. The long suspense was over, for 1
had imagined many distressing things.
Twice the little girl had talked in her
sleejj and sighed and said: "Oh,
“ECONOMICS.”
Sam Jonos Writes a Chapter on
tho American Working GirL
inorev
The Ktnblllty of Our Government and Per
petuity of Our InHtltutlonit Threat
ened by Our Indifference—A
Plea Entered.
My daughter threw
chair and exclaimed:
tired and so thankful;'
daughter said: “Now,
herself into a
“Oh, 1 am so
’ and another
don’t scold us
one bit. but listen to our tale of woe;
\Ve started back at three o’clock, but
soon found our boat becalmed aw , a3*out
in the gulf, and we could not move half a
mile an hour. When night came we
were five miles from home, and after we
got into the north pass we lodged on a
sand bar and had to wait for the tide to
rise und float us off, and the four gentle
men then got into the little boat and
pulled at the oars with all their might
for three hours and towed the big boat
after them. Oh, it was awful, and soma
of the girls got aw fully sea sick and fed
the fishes and lost their dinner, and we
had a new jiilot and lostour wap - ; and it
was just awful, awful! If I live u thou
sand years, I will never go out so fur in
the gulf again.”
Well, of course, 1 did not scold them;
but I w ill bet two dollars they go again
next week if t.lie3' are invited. Already
this morning they are lioustingof what
a good time tlxp had at the grouper
banks, and how thC3' caught 37, und one
that, Miss English caught was three feet
long, and would weigh 30 jiounds. There
is such a charm about t hese w aters, that
they cannot keep away from them.
Hut I am going home to my better and
bigger half to-morrow and work in m3'
garden, and in hers, too, of course, for
“t he winter is over and gone. The time
for the singing of birds lias come, and
the voice of the turtle dove is heard in
the land.” Hill Ann.
3POOKS OF LIBERTY STATUE.
Striuiijn Sounds Come from tho Illjf Figure
In Now York Harbor.
T!m* statue of liberl3 - is tenanted by
ghosts. At least, that is what the river
men claim, and sa3' the statement is
Kuseejitihle of proof. They sa3', and
know whereof they speak, that
as the witching hour of night ap-
jiroaehes most unearthly noises are.
heard, a.s if the wtatue was jiossessed.
There Is a scientific explanation, how
ever, of these ghostly disturbances, but
It does not Interest the harbor men and
sailors on board ships 13'ing at anchor
within a stone's throw of Liberty is
land, their hulls brought into strong
relief by tho electric torch. Many a
"fo’cVle" yarn laws been spun about tho
midnight carnival of spirits within the
goddess. The sailors in the creaking
of joints hear the ghoulish shouts of the
reveh-rn. When the night is calm and
bitterly cold the mysterious din is
jiiair.ly heard.
The most ten Hying of these n^vstcri-
ous sounds for those who are not in the
secret are the sjiirit rapptngs. The
goddess rivals tho most expert sjiir-
itual mediums. These rappings ma}'
be heard almosteve^' night in the 3 - ear.
During the daytime the solemn figure
is as quiet as a graveyard, but w hen
darkness settles down it Is eas3’ to
Imagine that several spiritualistic
; ranees are being curried on successful
ly in this glooni3'interior. The expla
nation is, however, exceedingly simjile.
The statue, as eve^body knows, is
formed of enonnous jilates of cojijier
bronze, firmly riveted together. The
act ion of all sorts of weather, to which
this very exjioscd position renders the
statue subject, tends to gnuluaii3'
loosen these little bits of steel. Tho
danijmess which is drawn in from the
water from all sides forms n thick coat
ing of cojijxt verdigris on the rivets,
eating away the eopjier. This does not
weaken the statue materially, but it
aiTords a certain amount of piny' be
tween the overlapping sect loos. The
goddess under the gentle influence of
old Sol exjiands throughout every part
of her enormous figure. At night she
in a measure draws her mix's more
closely about her ns if to jirotcct her
self from the cold. The contract ion of
the eojijicr sheets, it may readily be.
seen, causes a gentle motion which
jirodtices a very faint rap. But this
reverberates through the vast interior,
which magnifier} It over and over again
and lends to it a glooni3', hollow sound.
The members of the guard of honor
who attend the goddess throughout the
night toll many strange stories of the.
haunted statue. Several of these watch-
mi n lum* jireferred to give uj> their jio-
sitious rather than listen to these re
markable object lessons In acoustics.
They could not 1m* persuaded that the
mysterious figure was not haunted, and
nil said they had never in their lives
heard of any haunted house which
‘■ould boast half as many* hair-raising
noises a.s the dignified goddess. It
somet imes hujipcim, when the contrast
of temjKTftture is greatest, that the
groans and rajijiings are loud enough to
be heard on the boats jmssing close to
tin* island. The sound of hollow groans,
aeeomjianUd by weird rnttlings and
other uncanny noises, has frightened
more than one Rujierstitious sailor as
lie floated across the dark waters.—N.
Y. Journal.
Tlm Tramp.
Existence hns no charms for him;
With It he cannot cope.
For everywhere he rocs he sees
That while there's life there’s soap,
—N. Y. Iteeurifer.
Wake up your liver but he sure
you take Simmons Liver Regulator
to do it with—it will dolt every time,
und do it so well that you’ll feel
wonderfully refreshed und strength-
fried. It is Simmons Liver Regula
tor that does it. There is only one
Simmons Liver Regulator, and you’ll
know it by the Red Z on the package.
Take nothing else, und you’ll ho sure
to get all the good health promised.JJ
Amid the rush and roar of our busi
ness life thousands meet thousands.
Lusty millions pile up on one side and
paupers multiply on the other.
Amid the business depressions and |
the wrangling of jioliticians some men
aro thinking over the problem of wage
earners of this country.
This article is only written to touch
one jihase of that subject, and that
jihosc* embraces the interest of all
working girls in America, and, 1 suj>-
pose, their number runs into the mil
lions. In the absence of the statistics
on that subject, 1 cannot say their jire-
cise number, but there are millions of
them in the factories and stores and
ofliee.s, and. in fact, in nearly all call
ings, we find the working girls.
1 believe that the stability of our gov
ernment and perjietuity of our Insti-
tutionsw ill lie tested at this pointmorc
fiercely than any other, for thousands
of these girls hardly obtain enough to
subsist by the honest toil of their
hands.
Heartless merchants, heartless wom
en, heartless corporations frequently
grind these girls to the dust. The
manufacturers of clothing, the society
women, frequently, and those for
whom the girls toil, have already put
them between the upper and nether
most millstones.
A boy or man. with the hrnwnj' mus
cle and brawny frame, can stand the
kicks and rebuffs and hardships of life,
but frequently the frail, pale girl goes
down under the strain.
1 honor the working girls of our
land, and God forbid that one word in
this article should reflect ujion their
noble characters, but the old adage,
“Hunger knows no law,” either human
or divine, may cover the question we
are discussing in some instances.
A working girl must have clothes
to wear, food to eat, and comfort 1)3'
night, and a jiillow upon which to rest
herhead. Aboveallthingshercharactcr
must be protected. There Is a jioint
with some where resistance seems to
l>e imjxwsibie, and they an*engulfed by
a tide of circumstances, that carries
them out into the sea. w here they drift
on in jjerdition and ruin.
Those girls are laboring daily In the
cities, In 11:111)3' instances their wages
will not pay their board, where their
characters are protected. In many In
stance's the laboring girl, who has not
the fostering care of a father or moth
er over her at night, should Is* jirovided
a home In every cit3', jiresided over by
a governess, and the girl boarded at
a minimum sum. It should be the duty
of this matron to be a mother to the
girl or girls, throw around them the
very l>est of inlluenees, shield their
characters and protect their lives.
Some cities already have the working
girls’ home, neatly and elegantly pro
vided for their wants, and shielding
their characters.
Philanthropy and benevolence can
find no j)laee where dollars can be so
wiscl}’ used, and benevolence so amply
rewarded, as in this direction.
\Ye are hurrying along, every man
for himself, with the understanding
that everyl>ody else must look out for
himself. This might do as between
man and mnn, hut our noble, sweet
girls, whose characters form the pil
lars on which rest the j>erpetuity of
our civilization itself, cannot be consid
ered ns having a jduec in a fallni^’ like
this. There is enough for all to have
a ooinj)etenc3’. There is character
enough in the manhood of America to
j>roteet and jirovide for womanhood,
if It 011I3’ could be made to muster and
materialize.
There are movements on foot in
many cities, hearts and hands are
read3' now. Let those who are able to
furnish the means consider what this
work would be for humanity, and join
hands and hearts which arc now ready,
and thereby furnish the means to jiro-
vidc for the honest, laborious girls,
whose lives are a blessing to the world,
and whose characters arc as priceless
as jewels.
The hard worked and hard working
girls only ask that we give them In re
turn for their faithful labor adequate
reward in the way of salaries and foes.
\Ve cannot do less for them than they
demand without hurrying on a state of
things which we will deplore. Our
resolutions and purjtoses along the
lines of betterment for humanity can
count nothing unless thi*3' materialize
along practical lines, which give the
helping hand nnd the fostering care.
\Ye ma3’ run our normal schools nnd
business colleges and teach both boys
and girls how to work, but until wages
are better and sympathies are broader
between rich and jmor we cannot turn
aside from the contemplation of a sub
ject like this, without incurring the
displeasure of God nnd an aching con
science by nnd 1)3'.
I have preached to thousands of these
working girls over this country, and a
thousand times my heart has Ik'cmi
touched and dralvn out toward them,
und with nil my heart 1 commend their
case nnd cause to the consideration of
the benevolent mnn. who ought to
think und who ought to give. \Ye are
too prone to think along selfish lines.
Caring not that it is true, “that man’s
Inuiunanity to mnn makes countless
thousands mourn.”
Tho working girl has coroc to sta}*;
she Is an integral part of our society.
The working girl hns her place; there
is no shunning of this fact, nnd, above
almost any other class, 1 ask for her
consideration, rare und protection.
A w orking girl’s home, large enough
nnd nice enough, w hich she makes her
home to jirotcct and care for her, when
she is well, and where she may rest
her aching body when it is sick, with
no fear of landlord’s rent, or board bill*
unpaid',
You have only to know many of these
girls, nnd their struggles, nnd then you
will know how* wisely I have sjx>ken,
and how my heart is In every word
of tins article.
Let us talk this thing up, nnd prac
tically do for them that which we must
do, or our failure to do will lie an in
justice, and will react uj)on us. God
bless the working girls of our land.
It is well enough that we have In
stitutions which i)rej)are our girls for
the various callings of life, but the pro
tection of our girls a.s the3' labor with
their hands is all imjwrtant.
\Ye sn3' l>oys can rough it, nnd per
haps too jnnn3' of them do rough It.
The Iw's may recover from a fall, hut
a girl seareel3' ever. I am sure of this,
that a girl has temjdations to fall when
reduced 1)3' a meager salnr3' nnd unpro
tected hy a mother’s influence.
There is no deeper dyed villain than
one who lies in wait to desj>oil a sweet
girl who Is making an heroic effort
to earn her living, or j)erchanee to sup-
jx>rt a w idowed mother and orphan sis
ters. Yet there are all around us vil
lains like this. Sometimes it Is an
emplo3'er, sometimes u dude, some
times a 1>o3' w ho lalxjrs under the same
roof. Thej f shall have their reward,
where tlic worm dicth not and the fire*
are not quenched. Sam 1*. Jones.
PERMANENT CURE.
Experiments In Dentistry with tb«
Cathoile Rays.
Dispatches received in this clt}' re
cently brought the information tliutun
American dentist in Haris had discov
ered a cure for toothache which waa not
te.mj)orar3' in its effecta, but which, onew
apjdied, would permanent!3' prevent th«
recurrence of the ailment.
The assertion created a stir among
thedentistsin New York,who have been
regarded in advance of their profes
sional brethren In other parts of the
world. The}' discussed the announce
ment from many jxdnta of view, and
were particularly interested in the ad
ditional statement that the medium
which was to be used hy Dr. Leavitt
was the X rav's.of which so many things
have already l)eon written and many
many more promised.
The general Impression seemed to Ikj
that Dr. Leavitt sjx)kc to the rej^orter
of the I.c Soir, the I’arislnJi new spaper
which first gave publicity to the dis
covery, In parables. The supposed In
fluence of the cathode rays is to di»-
sijKitc certain accumulations, but
whether they will have any effect on
congestion of the dental nerves required
in the treatment of toothache the den
tists in this city are inclined to doubt.
A number of dentists seen agreed that
what was intended hy Dr. Leavitt in ap
plying the cathode rays to dental sur
gery is in producing a much Biore ef
fective method of studying tho
jihenomenn attending the development
of local irritations of this sort than In
jiossihlc now. At present the Interior
of a tooth may be Illuminated by means
of electric bulbs placed within tho
mouth against the part of the jaw
affected. The result of this illumina
tion is to bring out very clearly most of
the conditions of a diseased tooth,
though not all.
The X rays would lie of immense ad
vantage. dentists say, In discovering
nny accumulation of diseased mattcr-
nlong the jawbone. This Is too opnquxs
to j)eruiit the necessary limited illv*.
mination possible at present to jvene-
trate. There have been several weB--
hnovvn dentists Investigating this poo-,
slbility in the use of the Roentgen!
ray, and, though tlvey say that they aro
not yet ready to make their deductions
public, they sjieak of what they have
found ns of much Interest, not alone to
the jirofesslon, but also to those unfor
tunates who have poor teeth.
So far ae n jM*rinanent cure for tooth
ache Is concerned, the dentists ray rt
has Inen already found; but It Is no*
on** of those things which ran be
bought ut the nearest dn * store or at
the nearest electrician’s, but It Is 11
matter of gradual development of tl>o
jierson wIk) desires to lie without this
torment. The recent statistical infor
mation of the Now York college of
dentistry shows that, unless persons
are very careful. In the course of
a number of successive generations
the Caucasian race will be wlthoutany
teeth at all.
There is a general Inclination nmong-
the more civilized jieojdo to nvoi<|
foods which are hone makers. TV*-
general dislike of fats nnd of fuo*H.
w hich have large j>ro|>ortlons of llr»e-)m
them is doing Its work very nijvldl}';;
and eonijiaratlvely soon. It Is said, there-
will be no toothache, because there will)
be no teeth.
It lias been found that among many
children recently the second or |M*rmn-
nent teeth arc apjienrlng w ithout tho
necessary enamel to j>rotect them. T1k>
result of the formation of teeth of
this description Is that they are not
as lasting as the first teeth, nnd oneo
the nerve is reached the suffering of tlio
child Is of course Intense. It lo now
the practice to l>egin the treatment of
children for their teeth before they are
born in Instanowi where the mother
Is not strong, or w Ix-rr whe hns shown
nny marked fragility of the l>ones.
Foods ore given her that arc hone-pro
ducing, so that the child may reap tho
benefit of this kind of nutriment.
Where this has been b«*gun too Into
tho child is put on a systematic diet
of cod liver oil und jdiosjirtintes of lime
nnd soda, with other natural foods
which will go to the formation of
enamel on the tooth nnd lK»ne. Dentist*
declare that, if a system Is Insisted upon
by parent*, and carried out with anti
septic treatment of the early teeth,
there is really no reason why men and
women who have been subject to thl*
early care should have toothache, or k in
deed, lose their teeth nt all save by seci-*
dent.—N. Y. Herald.
—A sleej) without dreams, after »•
rough day of toll, Is whnt we covet*
most; and yet how el«y shrinks back,
from mere quiescent clay.—Byron,