University of South Carolina Libraries
t THE COUNTY RECORD. Published Every Thursday AT UNGSTREE, SOUTH CAROLINA, B T LOUIS J. BRISTOW, Kdltor and Proprietor. Black powder has seen it* last days. The American troops at Santiago, with their black powder, made a target for the enemy, which gave them great ad vantage in locating our soldiers, wnn smokeless powder aud modern guns of hisb penetrative power the American regular will be more thau a match for any soldier in the world. ^As American soldiers go out from ? Porto Eico American business men if * are going in, and the islanders are already feeling the good effects of the ^ Yankee methods aud Yaukee "golieaditiveness." The Porto Eicau merchant is said not to be wholly larking in shrewdness, and he may be safely expected to share in the benefits bis island is to receive from American rule. Boarding-house keepers will rejoice to know that the war with Spain will , not cut off entirely the supply of their staple table delicacy?prunes. California has come to the rescue with a crop of 84,000 tons this year from orchards \\4iich aggregate 55.000 acres. At least 10,000 more acres will be in bearing next year, aud a crop of 100,000 tons of green prunes is prophesied for the first year of the next century. The assumption that a majority of criminals would reform it tliey could but secure honorable employment forms the basis of a new movement in the interest of ei-convicts, says the Omaha (Xeb.) Bee. While there is no doubt that many can be thus reached, it is certain that all of them caunot. It has been ascertained that the average age of 82,359 criminals in American penal institutions was under thirty-one, nearly one-half under thirty,and about a third under twenty5< five, and nearly one-eighth under twenty. The average age of American paupers, on the other hand, is about fifty-seven. The fact that professional criminals are as a rule young persons siiows that maiiv of them are bred to crime, and since young persons find it easier to secure employment than older ones, it is fair to iufer that but few of them are driven to crime by hard times. d * Tlief name leather has long since passed from the exclusive vocabulary pertaining to animal skins and hides in their prepared state. Recently, says the Zeugdrncker-Zeituug, a German inventor has brought to public notice an improved kind of asbestos material, and the method of it* manu" :facture. The asbestos is at tirst -divided into very tine fibres of the greatest possible length, then immersed in an india rubber solution, the whole being then thoroughly intermixed until every fibre is coated with tiie solution; the solvent for instance, petroleum benzine is thereupon evaporated. By this treatment the asbestos fibres cohere perfectly, and the mass may then be pres.-ed into any desired form, or may be The inventor calls the maim factored prod net asbestos leather, and it is faid to resemble leather very closely in its peculiarities and structure and in it", industrial adaptation. The total number of public libraries in Connecticut is 131, of which 77 are absolutely free aud 51 subscription libraries, jpays the Hartford (Conn.) Tirnt8. Forty one of these libraries are under the control of the state. Three new libraries were organized during the year, and movements are on foot to institute others. Within a few years there will be a li/brary in every town iu Connecticut. T.ie total number of volumes in the 131 libraries of the state is 593,221, and the total circulation during the past year was 1,599,195. The number of new books added for the ? twelve months closed was 52,365. The total amount paid out in salaries during th'e year was $">0,197.93, ami tlie amount expended for books was $23, 015.81. All of these figures are largely in excess of those of the previous year and >.li >v, an increasing interest in lil ie every where. The annual report of school libraries shows 08$ in all. The amount expended on new books was $21,885.7 >, and fhe total number of books is 136,899. During the year several schools were equipped with libraries, and 8 )39 books were purchased. The New Britain Normal school library is the largest public school library in the ecnt'-y. the total number of volumes brine nearly lli.GO A CLEVER WOMAN BOTANIST. tl c'-? a straft Ilress Into til an Outiiis Costume. fo "I could give people points about how to climb mountains and wade P4 streams in a silk-lined gown," says a clever woman botanist. "When I go off on short expeditions with my hus- ?' band, I never know where we are going to be, and usually on the way it is necessary to look respectable. We 415 can't cairy a trunk for a few days' n trip, and we have a certain few things, st such as dry shoes and stockings, that ?' are necessary, for we are sure to get wet on our tramps. " "I had an experience the other day. I wore away from home my light s! woolen suit, silk-lined skirt, and 81 jacket. We went to the mountains and stopped at a hotel, where I was c< appropriately dressed, but not for tue te trip which followed the next day. We rs climbed the mountain, wading up a mountainstream to get the treasures 111 we were after. With a newspaper ct and four safety pins I improvised a u: satisfactory mountain costume, and, c{ though I was soaked up to and above my knees, my gown was not injured in the least. "When we got into the wilds and st away from civilization, I took my b< jacket, tied it by the sleeves around w my waist; my dress skirt I turned up g] around my waist, and over it my ? longest underskirt, which protected ai it entirely, and fastened them both around my waist with my four pins. I w wore a blouse waist, which was all cc right, but as, unfortunately, it rained, ca I protected that by taking a newspaper, making a hole in the centre he through which I put my head, leaving n( it standing out on either side over my st shoulders, protecting them entirely, th To protect my hat I took off the m trimming. fr, "When the work was completed, I gi had a satisfactory if somewhat unique ja mountain costume. In it I climbed Jj the stream all day. I sat on a wet jn rock in the rain and ate my luncheon, When we had nearly reached civilization again, I retrimmed my hat with pi pins, took off my newspaper shield, th unpinned my skirts, put on my jacket, ia and I was a respectable member of he society again. I had been soaked aE above the knees, but, changing shoes he and stockings and leaving off a short CL skirt that was wet, I was all right for dinner, and not the least the .worse Wi fov mi? oYnpripnc.fl in hodv or aDDarel. J took a brand-new sun umbrella with tia me, too, and that' also survived the th trip."?New York Times. 10 be ~ Shirt Waists For Little Girls. wj All shirt waists should be made as th simply as possible for children. The rows of bias tucks are quite too old, and any attempt at trimming entirely spoils the childish effect. The best pattern has a little yoke at the back, a very narrow yoke in front, and suf- m ficient fulness in front to take away j)V that flat look that is so trying to a |r slender child. They have the bishop j sleeve, bnt quite small, with a stiff i m cuff. The.shirt waist should be made j with the buttons, not to wear with 1 studs. A little liueu collar cau be , " - u..i a. ?: nr worn, or a stock; um mo picuicot j ^ shirt waists are those which are worn ' with the soft siik Windsor ties of dif- j ferent colorings as mothers generally prefer. m Tke plain colored waists are the ^ smartest looking, but not the best. j>. There is a kind of Madras with a white ground and narrow stripe of blue or ^ pink that defies the attempt of the laundress to fade it out. Then there are the linen, or wood-colors rather, that wear splendidly, $nd look very hwell with the linen skirts. A ribbon jr belt is better style than a leather one for little girls to wear. It should bo ar put twice around the waist and fasten CJ in front with a bow. The watered ribbon about a finger's width is the best to use. All white shirt waists look very cunning with the white duck skirts, but are really a trifle old. White frocks are very sweet, and most appropriate tor children; but they should be elab- ^ orate in desigu. It is a mistake xo make them iu a severe style. The ^ Roman silk makes very pretty little :a shirt waists for children, and the lit- *? tie tine checks also look well to wear 0 on cool days with serge skirts. The .0 Roman silks are very thin taffetas, as a rale, aud will not stand much hard 30 wear; but they can be worn as the : season advances under Eton jackets or with reefers. For present wear, however, the Madras, the ginghams, 1 ! and the percale waists are the best 7" made on the simple lines already de- 13 scribed. ? Harper's Bazar. a* si A Woman Asricultusist. m The number of women entering agri- ol cultural tields is constantly iucreasing. ! oc Women are realizing tbat the nervous temperament, with which most of the sex are endowed, is grfcatlj* benefited by living out in the open air. Hosts ro of women throughout the land are now conducting successful stock farms. Mrs. Pliebe Tabor Willetts is the uos- h< sessor of a fancy stock farm at P.oslyn, Ik Long Island. She started first to make I M butter, which found ready sale. Hut t G she soou realized the necessity of hav- j H ing first-class cows to make lirst-class | si butter, so turned her attention to the ' to breeding and raising of Guernsey cat- C< e. Mrs. Willetts now has one of th< aest herds on Long Island. She ha; und time as well to keep up her tint juse, rear several children andattenc jrsouclly to her household affairs Old Brick" is the name of the home ead, aud it is one of the landmark: : that part of the country. It wa: te first brick house built in that sec on. It is a large dwelling, standing noug fine old trees and a beautifu wn. Near it is situated the old home ead, which has been in the family foi rer 200 years. It is remarkable foi sver having a death within its walls t a short distance is the dairy. The utter is made in pound priuts and arnped "Old Brick." The farm con sts of 260 acres. On it is a fine able, capable of sheltering over 10( >ws and storing corn fodder from fif :en acres of land. Mrs. Willetts alsc lises fine trotting horses. Succes: id not come to Mrs. Willetts withoui any depressing adventures. Hei mrage has been monumental, and a.' sual it crowned her efforts with sue jss. Chicago Record. % ITollr To be thoroughly graceful Ions eps and quick, short steps should 3 equally avoided, remarks a Freud oman. A stiff walk is also very un aceful, and that is the great fault ol nglish girls. They walk too stifflv id take too long strides. Spanish women have a very pretty alk, naturally, as also have Italian mntry girls and all accustomed tc rry weights on their heads. To exercise walking a weight on the iad is a very good lesson. Yon must )t be content, however, to walk raight before you without letting e weight fall from your head. You ust turn backward and forward, and om side to side, as Italian country rls do when they carry their water rs from the well and cau turn in all rections without a drop of water beg S2>illed from the jar on their head, ore marriages are made up at the ell in Italy than at any other public ace. Young rustic fellows stand by e well to watch the girls fill their rs and carry them away on their sads with a grace given only to them; id the most graceful among them is the most admirers from whom to l. . l.iiahoT,.! VU3C iim uuouuuvi. The French are also very graceful ilkers. Study your walk, girls. Take mcing lessons to begin with and en repeat your lessons before your ug toilet glass. A pretty walk is a autv in itself, and everyone who ill can acquire this beauty. Do it, en, at once now without losing lother day. New York Herald. Irish Point Lttce. Let it not be supposed that this lace simply an imitation of the Italian odel. At first the stitches were few, it witn time anu practice some uuned new ones have been invented, id these so complicated that it is alost impossible to rip them; conselently this lace, which looks light as ssamer, has great durability, and ows more valuable with the lapse of lie. It stands wear aud tear and u be washed aud made up without itriment. It is often compared to e finest old Brussels Point, which it ore nearly resembles now than the a'ian Point, from which it sprang, nt, what between the number of new itches invented by the lacemakers, e variety of the designs and the srfection to which the work has been ought, the Irish Point has a right to 5 name as an original fabric, though it onlv came into existence as an isli industry within living memory."' It'is made entirely with the needle, id demands the greatest skill and ,re. The finest is very costly, rising $40 a yard for deep flounces, $15 r a handkerchief and $25 for a fan. Gowns For Travel. What to wear when traveling is a testion that interests the minds of omen who only go away for a day or ro at a time just as much as those ho are fortunate enough to be regnr travelers. It is quite as necessary look well for a day's outing as it is r a long journey, and nobody likes be inappropriately dressed in these lys when it is possible to put aside >me shabby old gown with the idea at anything is good enough to take a nrney in, for there are few places here a gown shows more thoroughly i good and bad points than in a railay ear or on a steamboat. The day gone by for people to go about with ly amount of hand luggage; everyiing is put in the trunks that is posble, aud only enough left out to ake one perfectly comfortable, withit carrying a quantity of shawls and >ats as formerly. Tlie Woman's Koa<l." The Stockton anil Tuolumne Railad is popularly known as the Woman's Road." Mrs. Annie Kline Rikert is at the ?ad of the railroad. Associated with jr as directors in the company are rs. Sally M. Green, Mrs. E. T. ouKl, Maggie Gowning Brainnrd and annah Lewella Lane. This i-oad is xty miles long, runnin g from Stock11 to Summertville, in Tuolumne jnnty, through a rich uiiniug region, ADVENTUROUS SHARK FICHTING. " The Malay* Ilnnt These Man-Eaters ol the South Seas For Sport. The Malays who are engaged iu diving for pearls at the bottom of the sea are certainly very adventuresome fellows. Accustomed to plunging into the tropical sea where abound all manner of daugerous fish, including the shark and the octopus, ever ready to seize the falling body on its way to find the pearls at the bottom, they have acquired fearlessness by experience. It is no uncommon exploit for these Malays to attack whole schools of " sharks and to wage a destructive war? fare upon them, as the following nar< rative proves, taken from the strange 3 story of castaway life related by Louis I De Rougemout, in the Wide World . Magazine. In writing about his Malay divers, n he says oi their extrordiuarv shark < killiug: ''Three or four of our divers would j go out in a boat and allow themselves [ to drift into a big school of sharks. . Then one man, possessed of more r nerve than the rest, would bend over r the side and smartly prick the first , shark he came across with a spear > taken out for ti*e purpose. The mo[ ment he had succeeded in this the . other occupants of the boat would i commence yelling and howling at the ) top of their voices, at the same time - beating the water with their paddles, > in order to frighten away the sharks, j This invariably succeeded, but, amazt ing to relate, the shark that had been pricked always came back alone a j few minutes later to seo what it was . that had pricked him. When he is seen coming in the direction of the boat, the Malay who has accosted him in this way quietly dives overboard, armed only with his small knife and | a short stick of hard wood, exhetly like a Dutcner s skewer, iroout nve i 1 inches in length, and pointed at each " end. 1 "The man floats stationary on the surface of the sea, aud, naturally, the shark makes for hira. As the creature rolls over to bite, the wily Malay glides out of his way with a few deft 1 strokes of the left hand, while with the right he deliberately plants the ; pointed skewer in au upright position ' between the open jaws of the expectant shark. The result is simple, but surprising. The shark is, of ! course, unable to close his mouth, and the water just rushes down his throat aud drowns him. Needless to remark, it requires the greatest possible coolness and nerve to kill a shark in this way, but the Malays look upon it as a favorite recreation and an excit1 ing sport. When the monster is dead its slayer dexterously climbs on to its back saddlewise, and then, digging his knife into the shark's head to serve as a support and means of balance, the Malay uses his own legs as I middles anil so rides the carcass, so X - - to speak, hack to the boat." CURIOUS FACTS. A Persian carpet lias been in use for 200 years in the main ball of the shah's palace in Teheran. In some parts of Italy the Government lias to spend ?3000 to collect $2000 worth of taxes. A naval seaman has once every day to salute the quarterdeck of his ship, even if no officer is upon it. The occupants of the Philippines represent such a variety of races that thirty-one languages are spoken there. In China a man may wear the same garments for a lifetime without being out of style, so little does tue iasnion change. A bugle on which the charge was sounded that sent the Light Brigade to destruction at Balaklava was sold at auction in London recently for $3935. The so-called singing shells are a marvel of Batticaloa Lake in Ceylon, and on a quiet evening the weird phenomena produces an effect that is decidedly pleasing. Bagdad, Turkey, has long been famous for a breed of white asses for which that city is the chief mart. The inhabitants freduently dye the animals' ears and tails a bright red, and thus adorned they look quite comical. Her First Order. She was newly married, and did not know a little bit about either housekeeping or shopping, and she was giving her very first order. It was a crusher, but the grocer was a clever man and was used to all kinds of or, ders, and could interpret them easily. "I want ten pounds of paralyzed sugar," she began, with a businesslike air. "Yes'm. Anything else?" "Two cans of condemned milk."' "Yes'm." He set down "pulverized sugar" and "condensed milk." i "Anything mure, ma'am?" "A bag of fresh salt. Be sure it's , fresh." i "Yes'm. What next?" "A pound of desecrated codfish." He wrote glibly "desiccated cod." "Nothing more, ma'am? We have some nice horseradish just in." ' ' " * # 5 it'i 1.3 1 P I ;no, sue saia; luvoum uc oi uu use to us. We dou't keep a horse." Theu the grocer sat down and fanned himself with a patent washboard, although the temperature was nearly ::cro. New York World. A Motor-Cab Wedding. At a wedding which was solemnized i at South Hackney Church, London, the proceedings attracted a good deal ! of attention from the fact that the bride and bridegroom, together with i other friends, were conveyed to arid from the scene of the ceremony in motor-cabs. It is claimed for this occasion that it is the first time that this new motive-power for vehicular trafiic i has been brought into use in Eugianvi i for the transit of a wedding party. gf Corn Meal vs. Short* For Pic*. J ( Experiments at the Indiana Station ' ( to determine the comparative value ; ( of pure com meal and a ration con- k sisting of equal parts of corn meal ' j and shorts showed that there was j , practically no difference in the two , foods when used for futteniug pork. ! \ The corn meal used cost sixty-five J j cents per 100 pounds and the shorts ] seventy cents. j Stnrt the Incubator. If yon have had no experience with incubators do not wait until the time for hatching to get that experience. | ^ Start now and by actual experiments i with the machine learn how to con- : j trol it so that in the hatching season ! ^ von will be able to go on with the work intelligently and successfully. I Should you be so fortunate as to be j able to handle the incubator successfully from the start, the stock thus raised will bring good prices later. If failure or partial failure is the result of your trial, the experience will be gained at a time when it will not be as costly as it would be if the experimenting were done at hatching, tim9. Then a loss of the hatch would l-- - - ~ Irvt intn tlio mortrpt iJi iny <i Dctuuu iut niiv when prices would be low. Destroying Corn Smut. Dairymen and others who feed ' largely of corn have noticed that most animals do not object to the portions ] of the ears and stalks that are covered j ' with the black parasitic growth known j ] as corn smut, but on the contrary j' seem rather to enjoy it. For this j < reason less care is taken to stamp out < the disease than would be the case if ? feeding it was found injurious. The 1 fact is overlooked, however, that the 1 consumption of these smut-affected i ears and leaves by no means destroys the disease germs, but that in the deposits of the animal they are distributed over the ground, possibly to 1 appear the second year in a much 1 more marked cegree. It is hardly 1 probable that farmers realize the im- ] mense amount of damage done by ( this disease, or the practice of feeding < amiif.nnrarod nrtrn TVOTlld stOD. It is I DlUltW WfViVU w* " ~ r* " I 4 claimed that in 1895, in Ohio alone, | i the loss by corn smut was more than j one hundred thousaud dollars, and i more in some other States. The dis- i ease should be taken in hand early in 1 the growing season in order to stamp 1 it out as quickly as possible. Go over < the corn held every ten days or so and j cut out and burn all parts affected by 1 smut. Just before, the corn is cut ] go over the field and do the same ] thing so that there will be no possible < chauce of its being fed to cows to do j ] more harm another year. i I'uttliiR Up Karbetl Wire. The illustration shows a handy contrivance for ''paying out" barbed wire when building a fence of thi3 FOR MAKING WIRE FENCE. material. A stout stone drag has a round stake set in one corner well i braced. The reel of wire is put on as ; suggested for attaching the upper | wire and below the braces at various j, heights when putting up the other wires. This brings the wiie right; along beside the stakes and at just the i height desired. When ready to staple, let the driver of the team take : of one arm of the reel to keep it; t from turning, starting up the team a 1 few feet to stretch the wire. His! companion then staples firmly, when J more wire is unreeled aDd the process , is repeated. A slow-moving team | should be used, or it will not be safe to attempt holding the reel. New York Tribune. Watering Trees in Autumn. Perhaps many will think that the fall of the year is not the proper time to water trees, but the fact is it is much more important that orchard land should be thoroughly flooded during autumn than at any other season, especially if the latter part of the j summer and early autumn has been j extremely dry. If the ground is al- j lowed to freeze about the trees with ? ? - -A i-1 ! I out tlie application 01 moisture, tue i , chances are life will be extinct by the I following spring. There is a great j deal of talk about dry summers killing , ornamental and fruit trees. In mv : a opinion it is not the dry summer, but < the lack of moisture just before the 1 1 ground freezes. This being the case, j late autumn is the time to water, and ' \ by so doing the tree will come out in ; good shape in the spring and make a ! ? satisfactory growth. If allowed to ; j freeze up dry, the severe cold during j the winter impoverishes the trees and next spring they arc puny and sickly with not sufficient vitality left to carry ; j them through the summer. The best way to apply the water ? * . ' -i : 2 ! ,i_t . ! Wltil tue ICilSI waste isiu si:nxt u 3<jiul gtick of timber two feet loug anil: ^ about four inches in diameter and '( sharpen oup end to a point tapering j * back to within six inches of the top. Drive this down about eighteen t inches close to the main root of the c tree. Kemove it every evening and t till the hole with water. Repeat i 1 ? I ;vevy evening until the roots are thor-t mghly soaked. The hole should be jovered with a stone to prevent jvaporation and filling up. After the process is completed ?11 the hole with \ ?.arth. The best time for doing this * ivork is the latter part of October or i. _ l i. XT-??u?1 nru:? ,ue nisi ween m nutcmuci, xuis nay seem like a great deal of work, but it i3 better to do this than to see jroves and orchards die. American Agriculturist. A Valuable Wheel Hoe. This illustration shows a handy title implement for home garden use vliich may be easily made. Two small u'oad-tired wheels (solid wooden vheels without tires would do admiribly) with a handle to which is fastened a blade made of thin steel and sept sharp. A handy man will readily ttiMnr T/%T? fl A PnPV TTQT!_ 11 A .> 1 l.Urii?<JiCi^X X V*? UUMVM.. ^ . 3ee from the cut how the tool is made. The handles may be aftef the styie of plow handles, or a single handle may be used with a cross bar at the end to permit the use of both hands. The blade should be made to run the width ef the rows between vegetables and as slose to the plants as is possible with3ut injury. Care must be taken that the blade is made of thin steel and kept sharp at all times.?Atlanta Journal. Protecting Timothy Sod. Timothy grass grows* very siowly tvhen it is cut after it gets into full bead. The stubble remains a long time exposed to blazing suns during the hottest period of the year, and in this time the sod, unless somehow protected, is apt to be so injured that the growth the following year will be decreased. The best method of protectingtimothy sod is,of course, to sprinkle 1 little rotted manure over it. This used to be objected to by some, who believed that much of the ammonia in the manure will be lost by exposure \ during hot weather. But the ammonia is only formed while manure is rotting. After fermentation ceases, what nitrogen the manure coutaius is in the form of a nitrafb, which is soluble in water but which does not easily eyaporate. Even if the manure is wholly unfermented there is rfo loss of ammonia. It simply dries up except as rains set it to fermenting again. If the rain Innnr nr ia VlPftW it is mOrA likely to wash nitrogenous fertility into the soil than to liberate it in the atmosphere. There is very rarely any smell of ammonia on a manured hay stubble. Therefore, there is not probably any loss of fertilizing material by evaporation. But if manure cannot be obtained, a grass stubble can be other?ise effectually protected. What it needs most is something to keep the mn from drying up the grass roots near the surface. A thin covering of my fine substance, like road dust or jven coal ashes, -will answer this purpose. Of these we like the road dust nuch the best, as it contains the ex:rement of horses and has most nannrial value. But a dressing of nuck answers an excellent purpose, md is less likely to harden than is >rdinary road dust. The muck if fine enough to spread evenly makes a coatug over the surface soil that keeps ho grass roots moist, and it also lets he rain soak down as fast as it comes, resides by its porosity preventing if rom evaporating. Even if no manure .can be had, and t is deemed too much labor to cart ine muck or other soil on meadow itubble, the same result may be eached by harrowing the surface, so is to stir the surface soil. It will jreak many grass roots, and if done n a dry time it may look as if the jra33 was injured. But so soon as a leavy rain comes the harrowed stub )le will very soon turn green, and the rield next year will oe better man it would be if nothing had been done to t. Still, it is a much greater advanage if some fine manure or mineral ertilizer is spread over the surface >efore it is to be harrowed. American Agriculturist. _ Poultry Notes. Bran keeps the chicks' bowels open ind in good condition. Perches should occasionally be satirated with coal oil. The hen is a sweet-tempered, hardworking, productive bird. Droppings must not be allowed to iccumulate and ferment. Onceaweek s sufficiently long to allow them to renain. It is found that when charcoal is aided to the food of fattening turkeys hey gain more rapidly. It absorbs jases and relieves acidity. Save all the small potatoes; you vill need them before the wiuter is-^t >ver for your flock. Vegetables of all tiiuls should be kept for them. MOW IS U1C Illllti IU mauo uuoti ?? ions for next year, to note the result >f any new experiment ami to be able < o overcome diOlculties of like nature text season. ' ,- ! M . 1 J