0?HE SUNDAY OREGOKIAX, PORTLAND, JAGUAR? 14, .1906.
4?
BLIND SNAKE OF SAN FELIPE
"T
HROW him into the rear cell."
commanded "the officer of the
ragged, . -villainous patrol .that
had caught me. It was in the province
of Oaxaca, well, back among the moun
tains and before Mexico was as peaceful
and quiet as It ismow.
The men ..who had roped me- off my
.horse and taken me prisoner were os
tensibly milIUry; but" In reality they
w6re bandits. They pretended that my
passports were Irregular. What they
wore really after was to take away my
equipment and what money I had and
then keep me in a cell till I should be
glad enough to let them keep all my prop
erty in return for liberty..
The cell was a mlserahle little den in
a tumble-down ado"be house. Had I
4een free to move about I could have
broken out In a very short time. But
my captors had reckoned on that.
They had tied my arms and also my
leg, so that I was forced to remain in a
6ittlng position. Every time I arose It
was only to fall down again after taking
a few tottering steps. So I soon thought
bettor of 11 and iinally I lay down to
sleep.
What awakened me I do not know. It
may havo been the noise or It may have
been instinct. At any rate, I awoke
yvth the strong impression that I was not
alone in tho cell. I was lying on my
side and the sunlight was shining on the
floor just beyond my face. My eyes nat
urally wandered there first, and my heart
Jumped hard at what they saw. Not five
feet away from my. -haa& .lay a huge fat
rattlesnuke, bloated" -and "nauseating.
I jerked my head back instinctively, and
at the motion the snake- movedV'too. lis
jevil wrinkled body writhed and swelled,
and Its horrible head arose and turned
in my direction. Then I saw; that the
thing was blind.
It had shed its skin recently and the
thin white membrane that forms over the
eyes of these serpents at such times had
not yet comeaway,.
My first impulse, was, of course, to
struggle to ms feet and get as far away
as 1 could. But the moment I scram
bled to an upright posture 1 fell head
long again, partly because my logs wirc
tied botli above and below the knees, and
partly because the tight bonds had
stopped the circulation Of tho blood so
inuch that boh legs were quite numb.
I SHOt'TUI) LUSTILY FOR- HEM.
And when I fell I fell in such a way
that I nearly landed on top of the sor
pent. So. I did not try to rise again. I sot
to my knees, and thus, on elbows and
knees. 1 scrambled away from the blind
snake as swiftly as I could. I could not
go far. for the cell whs not more than
ten feet long and less than seven feet
deep. In hustling away in my clumsy
position I kicked tho rattler with my
heavy riding boot, and this infuriated the
beast. With head erect, 'tongue -going
In and out busily, and rattles whirring, it
glided after me.
IX it had not been blind, I would not
be writing this story". '-The cell would
havo been far too small for mo to evade
tho snake had it been able to see. even
if I had been free to move. As it was,
I barely managed to escape "being struck
time and time again, for. blind though the
rattier was,' its 'other senses were keen:
enough and it could move like lightning,
whereas I. with my numbed, fettered
limbs, could only crawl clumsily.
I am not ashamed to say that I shouted
lustily for help. At last the face of one
of the bandit-patrol peered through the.
small window.
To my horror, instead- of moving to
give me aid he looked down on me calmly
and then said with a grin:
"Scnor is doing very "well. But the
senor will get tired soon, and then
With these words he rolled a cigarette
and disappeared.
Truly I was getting tired terribly tired.
And I knew that before long I would be
unablo to scramble out of the way quick
ly enough, and in that moment the tiro
less serpent would strike.
I happened to be in a corner at last
and the snake was gliding diagonally
across the cell toward me. I lay quite
still for a moment to get as much
strength as possible before beginning the
awful race again. Just then something
rustled in the rubbish in a .corner and
ti Trru n rat. .
rtnirv- I could. r rolled, over the. place;
i i. .tAnl Vln -thn .linnA thftt
the 'frightened thing might racardrnicTT
the cell looking for exit ana Tnus lurnwH
..I I .. m -mrrv snake.
So It happened. When the nit iburid.
hs Hole, blocked It darted .around In sud,
den panic. lp so doing it.-touched the
rattler, and quick as a wink the snake
struck, at it. rne rai. finsnivnw
imn v-o t m r- enran? it 'the 'blind- snake"
and fastened Its sharp teeth in.the snake's
. . . .... - . . 1 a-Ajli Intft or
neaa, .smKing one oi wiy 7
eye. The snake whipped around the cell
like a living cyclone, but the rat, held
tight and in a few minutes the -two lay
quite still, both dying.
As for me. I felt tlat on the floor when
the danger was over and went Into a stu
por from which" I did not awake till a
light shone UHo my. face and kind hands
untied mc.
A forco or real government regulars
bacl come" In. under ' the command of a
man whom I had met in Mexico City, and
he had recognized my horse in the posses
sion of one of my captors, with the result
that he soon found mc.
But it took a week of rest to help me
recover from those few hours in a Oax
aca cell. CAPTAIN A. B. HAWSER.
TRIALS OF POORHOUSE JOE
. . .
Then he gradually elevates his body
till his curious hood looks out between
his legs like a round ball. Then his
hands seize the bars and he lifts him
self to repeat the same operation for
the next climb. While he is doing
this his face remains as sad and mel
ancholy as always, and only his deep
brown eyos show by their gleam and
restless movements that he is watch
ing everything around him suspicious
ly. He remains equally grave and sol
emn when lie is eating:. His tcoth are
beginning' to how what terrible
weapons they will be when Petty lis
fully grown. Already he uses them
to hold on to ropes and branches.
Ho rarely shows any signs of joy or
excitement. About the only sign ho
gives Is to clap his hands slowly or
to elap the floor now and thou.
His face is coal black and the palms
of his hands look as if they were in
shining black, wrinkled, kid gloves.
His hair. Is chestnut brown and he has
a natural part on the top of his head.
TTHE little sisters, Molly and Peggy,
were 7and 6 years of age. Once upon
a time they owned ' dolls of which
they were particularly fond. A big boy
cousin came from another town to stay
with them, and one day he would insist
on playing that he was a brigand,. and he
took the dolls prisoners, in- spite of their
young mistresses. He tied them back to
back to the top of a. pole that stood in
the garden. And he laughed at the vain
attempts the little girls made lo ' reach
them. "
After he had gone, Molly and Peggy got
a chair to climb on, but even so. they
could not reach up high enough and were
obliged to give It up in despair.
Then they were called in to supper, and
afterward they had such a splendid time
playing games that it was not until
they were undressed and ready for bed
that they remembered their poor darlings.
Peggy wanted to rush out in her night
gown, but nurse would not let her.
Molly begged nurse to go out and cut
the dolls down, but nurse said she was
busy, and that the dollies would do very
well there till morning It would be a
new experience for them.
Molly and Peggy did. not think they
would like the experience, and wished
very muchthc dolls were safe in their
own wariii little beds, "but "there was
nothing more. to be done.
Next morning they ran out into the
garden at once. The dollies were no
longer on the. .pole!
The dolls' mothers ran hither and
thither t$ question tho boys, and all the
servants, :and even papa and mamma
but no one had seen or heard ' anything
of the lost pets. They searched the gar
den carefully and looked under every
bush, but no dolls were to be found.
Probably some man passing along the
road outsiae had seen the dolls over the
wall and thought they would be a nice
present for his little girl at home, and so
had climbed over and got them. Any
how, Molly and Peggy never saw' their
dear babies again.
Oh, how they cried!
Fred was dreadfully sorry. He did not
understand little girls , -.very ' 'we'll, as' he
had no sisters of his own, and he was
quite surprised they could make such a
fuss over a toy.
He resolved to make atnends. He hadn t
a very great deal of pocket money, but
with what lie had he went into town and
bought something. When he came back
he still felt too much ashamed of him
self to face the little girls, and got his
younger brother to present his peace
offering to them.
"Here, Molly and Poggy" called
Harry. . "I've got something for you from
Fred. He's awfully sorry he lost your
dolls, and gives you this instead."
He produced a creature made of wire a
male creature. One-half of his coat was
red and one-half was blue: one trouser
leg was- yellow and the other green; he
wore a pointed cap with a little boll sewn
to the end of it. and attached to his
hands were brass cymbals which clashed
together when you pinched him in the
middle of his body. It was the sort of
thing you amuse babies wlthl
Molly's heart sank, but she know that
Fred meant well, so she nobly put on her
best company manners and smiled polite
ly, thanking Harry warmly for the de
lightful surprise.
Peggy understood at once that this was
brave make-believe on Molly's part, and
quickly followed her examplo, protending
to be very much amused with the absurd
thing. ...
When Harry sauntered off.' quite pleased
with the success of the presentation, the
little girls looked at each othor with
mournful eyes.
"Does he think THAT will make up to
us for our own dear dolllos?" asked Molly
In a whisper.
"And only one between us!" added
Peggy, scornfully.
"But we mustn't hurt Fred's feelings!"
pleaded Molly.
And so they made a point of appearing
very pleased with the grotesque jester in
public Fred was quite taken in, and felt
comforted because he had done the right
thing. But when they were alone to
gether, the little girls lamented their lost
children and would say to each other
sadly and a little indignantly:
"Fred meant 'to be Wild, 1 know, but as
if we -could be mothers- to a thing like
that!". . . t
Beetles That Shoot.
Along the shores of the Amazon
there is a great beetle which is truly
a dragon of tle old fairy tales in min
iature. When an enemy tries to cap
ture It, It sends a Jet of something
that looks exactly like steam out of
its mouth.
If the jet strik&s a human hand,
the spot that Is hit will show a -little
mark like a burn. The jet of "steam"
is supposed to be some sharp acid, es
pecially as it smells like nitric acid.
Paul le Cointe, who watched and
studied the curious bug. calls it a
true, though small, dragon that spits
lire and flame, and he suggests that
once long ago there may have been
giant booties like this one that gave
rise to the dragon stories that every
nation tells to this day.
The sharp acid that is ejected by
thi beetle chances Into vrtpor as soon
as it touches the air. .and this makes
it look exactly-at If. the bug urcatneu
a jet of steam .from Its jaws.
London Beggars.
Kxchange.
It Is calculated that in London alone
about 4000 persons regularly make a liv
ing by begging: that the average income
for each amounts to 57.50 a week, or to
gether over $1,5W.0 a year. Last. year
about 'StJb persons were arrested -for beg
ging in the streets of London, and. many
of. them were possessed of conslfterable
sums of money and even of bankbooks-
. showing handsome deposits.
The Bert Hore.
Some berses run away with boys',.
Some of them try lo kick.
An some go bHmpety. bump, bump.
And throw a boy off quick.
Ami even wfien they arc real nice.
, .And .don't, hurt, boys at all.. -It'js
awful hard to rub them down
Because tlioy are not small.
And eo I've thought and thought and
thought. ,
And now rny only aim
I Just to have a ?cc-.aw horse.
Because It. Js so tame.
It does, not bite. It does net pranec
. It does not run away.
But like a kind, obedient beaut
Got s up and down all day.
Queer Ways of the
Man-Ape
"Dow lie Thiak That Will Make Cp to V
. lor Dear DeUtes?" Asked Moh.
ECENTLY I had the pleasure of
making a close and long study of
a 3'oung gorilla, which is In the
zoological gardens of Lolpsic This Is
a genuine gorilla not a chimpanzee,
or other sort or man-ape, like most
Of the animals that are called "goril
las" In shows.
Nobody knows exactly where this
one comes from. It .was bought in a
West 'African coast town from a sav
age hjbmer, who killed ..its mother
somewhere in tho interior! m
Petty Is about 3 years old. He does
-not act a- bit like chimpanzees or
other apes, w.hlch cling to their at
tendants arid keepers. Petty Is (re
served and- shy and- prefers to sit
alone. '
If anyone hands "Him; anything, he
takes' "it "very cautiously looks nt It.
smolls of'it and perhaps plays with
it a bit. but soon puts it away again.
. .Petty ii a. good.walkor and climber,
but he does not climb or run swiftly,
as monkeys do. He makes each motion
very methodically like a careful hu
man being. He walks upright, some
times "resting entirely on his feet and
at other times helping himself with
his hands, which reach the ground,
owing to the vast length of his arms.
When he climbs, he does It In only
one way. He catches hold of a trap
eze bar with his feet, lor Instance,
with his legs stretched far apart.
One night the counterpane be-.
came
A jungle filled -with fearful
game:
With savage beasts whose awful
screams
Awoke poor Peter from, his
dreams.
First, when ihe woke, he said:
"Oh, my!
Why did I eat that las mince
pie?'?-
But then he saw It was not so.
For standing In a dreadful -row
W'e.re. eb?ngtj of eucfa.. looks; and
size.
They surely never canie from
- -pies!
One creature with. . a waving
trunk
Said: "I am the eleph'antlmonk.
And this that stands here with a
smile
It Is the rhlnocrocodlle.
Behold the gentle tooaox
Gliding beside the giraffox;
And this that your hear laugh
ing so
Is Just the hyenuffalo."
The parroted came wriggling
then.
Behind the wondrous catnelhen.
And arm In arm the chlmpanz
owl .And possumoose came with a
howL
Till Peter cried: "I think that
yon
Are things that are not really
true!".
At" this such awful shrieks
arose,
Peter got scared from head to
toes
And tat bolt upright In Jils "bed
To find that all the beasts had
fled!
Then Peter said: Quite sure am I
That sight was never caused
by pie;
Such things could not come after
dark
Unless one ate a Noah's Ark.
I guess the thing that caused
this zoo
Is the hard studying I do."
CHAPTER Jir.
Juti sat a own on me Dea Desiae ine
legless man." of" the poorhouse. and
after n. TnVniit Mr "Phlllln snld: "It
a shame and, a disgrace .to the. people
the way. thrngaare run here. I have been
Iiere two.'yearp; and know all about it.
If the newspapers were told how we are
fe4 and how we are abused there would
be the biggest, kind of row and the super
intendent and his wife would have to
go. Things might bo better for a time,
but only for a time. Then they would
drift back to what-they are now. We arc
not here because-' .we are too lazy to
work, but because of-accident or misfor
tune. All people. -should pity .us, but as a
matter of fact no one does. We arc called
paupers, and people sneer instead of
pity."
Joe's tears began to fall again, and the
man laid a kindly hand on his shoulder
and continued:
"Before I lost my legs T was a brick
layer and earned 54 per day. Now I must
pass the rest of "my days as a pauper.
When I think of It f almost go wild, but
TMJUJ SIGHT WAS NEVER CAUSED BY ME."
-v YOO HAVE GOTTD.SDH KrtRi tt
U I t girt- . Tnc jQCMcx YOU GO ins BETTCPT 1
- t
what can I do? A man without legs can
not work at a trade. 1 can braid hats and
'sit and knit, but J could" not make enough
money to support myself if I left this
place. With you It is different. You are
only a yonng boy. but you are sfrong and
intelligent. Any farmer ought to be will
ing .to give. "you Ave dollars a month for
what you could do. and if you were In
town you. could. Ieara a trade. You have
no business in a poorhouse. my boy, and
the selectmen who sent you here deserve
to be kicked. I heard the boss whipping
you. and If I hud hud a pair of legs under
me I'd have gone in and made it hot for
him."
. "But what can I doS" asked Joe. "Tlwy
sent me here and said I must stay until
somebody adopted me."
"That's all nqn.sense." replied the leg
less man. "it you toliow my advice you
won't be here a week longer. Should
you stay on. some farmer will come along
after awhile and adopt you. He will
work you just as hard as they do here
and you won't live much better. He will
also be likely to beat you. Don't look
for anybody to be kind to a pauper."
"How can I get away?"
"Just walk away. You want to leave
here some evening after supper and wajlc
all night, and next morning must fce
you 20 mi res away." . . '
"But the superintendent said that-if! I
ran away he'd follow and catch me." i
"He will certainfy huht 1 dr you, butf ho
won't go-any great dfstance? and he won't
keep it up long. When'-once you stare
don't stop until yon "have1 gone at "leajst
20 miles. If you are asked your naine
and, of course, you will be. don't vgive :lt
as Joe Shaw. Take some other name.
Don't tell the name of the town you came
from. Never let on that you have been.
In the poorhouse. If any one asks If you
nave run away tell 'em yes. Tell 'em you
had to, which will be telling the truth."
"I don't want to stay here, and yet Tm
afraid to go," said Joe. after thinking
things over.
"Don't talk that way, boy," replied the-
man, "lou are old enough to take care
of yourself. I was earning my own living
when I was only 11 years old. If you
are a good, honest boy and" do your best
you will find people to help you. If you
stay here that man Tompkins and tho
superintendent are going to make it just
JLSi hard for von a 'thv ran. Tf thpv
fpind you out to some farmer after awhilo
he will misuse you simply because ha
.took you from the poorhouse and knows
that you have no friends. You have got
to run away, and the sooner you go tho
be.tteri" "But-1 have w money,, and how will I
get anything- to eat? - Where will I
rale)?'1:
"Don't. worry about that, my boy. In
the Ilrst place, if you s.top at any farm
house and offer to do chores for a cold
bite you will get It. It is Summer, and it
won't hurt you a- bit to sleep under a tree
or beside a haystack. You may possibly
find some farmer too mean to let you
earn a meal, but we will fix that all right.
When I was hurt I had just one dollar to
my name. They did not find and take It
away, and I have It yet. Here It Is, and
you arc welcome to It."
"Oh. but X can't take it," said Joe, as
he shook his head.
"But I say you must. You must not
start nut penniless. I shall have no uso
for money here. If you can't get food by
working for it. then you must pay money.
I was a pretty hard man up to the time T
lost my legs. While I was not lazy. T
drank and swore and was not always as
honest as "I should 'have been. Yes. I
have been pretty tough, but I can feel
for you and give you good advice just
the same. You want to get right out of
here and as far away as you can, and T
am willing to help you In any way. If I
had my legs back I'd walk into town to
morrow and hunt up those selectmen and
talk to them In a way to make their ears
burn. Tomorrow evening you go. Now
tumble into bed and get all the sleep you
can. Tomorrow night you will be walk
ing away from here as fast as you can.
and I shall be lying here and hoping you
will meet with the kindest sort of. people
and the best of luck."
(To Be Continued.)
JEAN'S AND ISOBEL'S FROLIC
4"TC they're going to be awiy
Y over Sunday." said Isobel. "And
mother said to ask your mother
If you couldn't stay with me. please, and
we can have the whole house to ourselves
and do anything we want and did you
ever hear of such a lark?"
'Oh h!" gasped Jean. "I never did.
But what if my mother .couldn't spare
me.v-It's awfully hard for her to have
all the -work."
"But-don't you sec." interrupted Isobel
quickly, "we can both go back to your
house in the mornings and help, and then
frolic the rest of the day and the even
ing. Bm sure It will work all right."
So Friday afternoon Jean packed her
Uncle Francis' tlrcss-suif case and she
and -Isobel -lugged it over and deposited
It In the big front room overlooking the
lake. Then they spent the rest of the
afternoon at the skating rink, where the
Ice was very bad but the fun with skaters
very .good. ...
They came back barely In time to slip
into their dinner, dresses and go down
to a -beautiful table set ror two anu
served with care and exactness. Just as it
was the first night Jean had dined with
Isobel. many months before.
After dinner they went Into the parlor
and played on the piano and sang awhile
and then 'began to speculate on some
thing more original and exciting to do:
"Let's dress" up in some of ' mother's
things,'.' suggested- Isobel, "and have a
play.'
'Oh. .fine!" replied Jean. "Only
wouldn't ,your mother mindr'
'r01i, mercy, no.' said Isobel. "I'll not
touch . anything, .that makes arty" difference."
They went up to Mrs. Strickland's beau
tiful room, with its gorgeous silver-laden
dressing table and dressing-room filled
with Innumerable closets and large pier
glasses. Isobel dived recklessly into
shelves and drawers and behind closet
doors and laid out treasures that would
have been enough to tog out all the girls
In school.
Jean protested against using some of
the things, but Isobel said she was quite
sure of the things her mother valued and
those she cared nothing for.
They certainly did make the grandest
ladles, in their sweeping trains and furs
and bonnets and waving plumes! The re
flections In the pier glass were most de
ceptive. Almost anybody would have said
that these two were grown society ladles.
Jean wore a black velvet suit with
broad cuffs and collar of heavy lace, a
large white hatt and carried a white fox
muff and boa to match.
Isobel was resplendent ' in pink cloth.
a huge black velvet hat and a feather
boa of .extraordinary length and fluffi
ness. "And now what shall we act?" inquired
Jean, when they had sufficiently admired
themselves and each other.
VWe're most too fixed up to do anything
useful. are't we?" giggled Isobel. "Can
you imagine yourself doing steps with
apryness and grace? And yet the women
on the stage do -with as many petticoats
as we have. '
"We'll have to do a society play,"
laughed Jean, "and sit In an easy chair
and drink tea and gossip."
"Jean." cried Isobel so suddenly that
Jean jumped. "I know what will be just
sport!"
"What?" questioned Jean eagerly.
"We'll go awfully soft down the stairs
and out of the door and then ring, and
when "Nora comes we'll ask for Mrs.
Strickland and pretend we've come to
call."
"Perfectly lovely." gurgled Jean. "But
'spose Nora should just say she wasn't
In and shut the door In our faces."
"We'll ask for Miss Isobel when she
says Mrs. Strickland Is out. -
"She'll know our voices and the
clothes."
."Never . mind. She'll be fooled for a
few" mfnutes, arid Nora's Trlsh and she
just loves a joke. - She and the cook 11
laugh for two days over It."
They got safely down the stairs. Iso
bel almost let the front door slam, but
saved It. It took them several minutes
to get over giggling. Then Isobel boldly
rang the bell.
"Is Mrs. Strickland in?" asked Jean
when Nora opened the door. Her voice
was most ladylike and fetching.
"No, ma'am," said Nora, 'It's out of
town she is."
"Too bad." replied Jean, and Isobel
shook her head sympathetically. There
was a moment's pause during which Iso
bel came near to bursting Inwardly. Then
Jean went on:
"Oh,. perhaps Miss Isobel can. see us a
moment. It's very important."
" "Yes," ma'am," v said "Nora: "I'll aak
he- If you'll please to step in and be
seated." .
The hall light was low and they stepped
into the parlor. Nora stood in the door
way. "And the names, please." she said.
'.'Miss Foster," began Jean. Then Jso
bol interrupted her with a mighty snicker
and the game was up.
Yet Nora could scarcely believe It.
"Though .sure I might have known, -the
Misses' fine clothes," she snid. "Do"wait(
till I'nln, forrKalte to come seethe fide
"ladles. Sure, it wjll cheer her heart.'
And" it was all Katie could do. to be
lieve that they were not grown up and
calling, anil she and Nora had a .long
laugh over' Nora's being so taken, in.
Charmed with their success, Isobel and
Jean arrayed themselves In sweeping tea
gowns and went up to. Isdbel's room.
There they pretended to be ladies in their
boudoir. They read aloud and ate cho
colates, which Mr. Strickland? had left for
them. " t "
At 10 o'clock 'they went-to ,bed. giggled
and told stories unity and' knew noth
ing more till :30 jhernext morning, when
Nora 'lapped at the door, entered and
iaidi . - . 1 -
L "Ladies; if it's Miss Jsobei you're want-
i 1 r. rS" L-fii-c , tinnl lic'11 ton -vmt dnivn
stairs any time you'll be comjng to breakfast.-
She was" not , at home when you
called" "last evening.!
The Art- oi Thimble-Making
Intricate Processes Are. Involved in Fhsliiohing; the Gold.
THE gold from .which thimbles are
made is bought, at a. United States
subtreasury in the form of snug little
ingots, brJck-shap'ed arid 2& Inches long
and an inch and- a quarter wide
and' an Inch thick. Each one contains of
pure gold 24 carats fine, metal of the
value "of 5600.
Gold of this fineness would be-much too
soft for thimbles and it Is alloyed down
to 14 carats, in which condition It is
rolled- into sheets of suitable thickness
In the first process of manufacture a
sheet of this gold is run into a machine
which cuts out of it a disk In size suf
ficient to form a thimble, the same ma
chine stamping this disk also Into the
form of a straight-sided capsule with ir
regular edges!
Then the thimble blank goes Into an
other machine, in which a die stamps it
into its conical shape. Out of this ma
chine It goes into an annealing furnace
for tempering and from that Into an acid
bath for cleaning and the removal of the
lire coating.
Then the thimble Is put Into a lathe to
be turned down to its fine shape and di
mensions. Shaping the Gold Bell.
With the repeated applications of the
tool the operator brings the crown of
the thimble into its perfect form and
cuts down along the thimble's sides to
bring the walls of the thimble to the
requisite thickness, defines and finishes
the smooth band that runs around the
lower part of the thimble and brings Into
relief the rounded rim that encircles the
thimble at its opening, at once to give
it a finishing ornamental grace there and
to -stiffen it. The glistening little gold
shavings that he cuts off In these various
operations all fall Into a canvas trough.
It lacks yet the familiar indentations
in its surface that serve to support the
needle and to hold it in place. These the
thimble-maker now proceeds to make.
It is done with a tool called a knurle.
There is an end knurle and a side knurle.
An end knurle Is simply a handle having
set in it a tiny, thin, revolving wheel of
steel upon whose periphery Is .a contin
uous encircling row of little bosses or
knobs corresponding in size to the In
dentations to be made. The side knurle
has in place of such a wheel a little steel
cylinder of a length sufficient to cover
that section of the thimble that is to be
indented on Its sides, this cylinder hav
ing knobs all over Its surface, as the end
knurle wheel has around its edges, and
turning, like the wheel, on its axis. ."
Kings of Dents Made.
The thimble In the lathe Is turning with
2S0O revolutions a minute and it seems as
If the application to its surface of any
sort of tool with protuberances on it must
leave there only a jangled and mlxed-up
lot of irregular marks. But now with
the end knurle, the thimble-maker makes
an Indentation in the center of the top of
the thimble and then he proceeds rapldly
and with perfect certainty with the end
knurle to describe around that center
concentric rings of indentations, with the
Indentations all perfectly made and tho
rings all perfectly spaced from the center
1 to the circumference of the top.
You may see him do this, but you can't
tell how he Isable to do It. Anil then
with the side knurle he makes the in
dentations In the sides of the thimble.
making there as well, as he deftly presses
the tool against 'it, indentations that run
absolutely uniform ;and true and that end
at their lower "edge in a perfectly true
encircling Une ,-
The Busy pee Exposed.
(The Sun, In a recent arflclo. claimed
that the proverbial Industry of the be is
purelr mythical; that, contrary to jreneral
belief, he Is one at the laziest of Insects.)
So. little "busy" feee. beware!
Although, your reputation's fair
And myths surround you
(Glamour of lrlne asres past)
Your doub'e life Is out at last
Reform bas..f&ujid you!
Don't blarney us about those hours
You say you spend- anions the Mowers
Engaged in dipping;
Let fools extol your merits lilch.
But WE are wise, THE SUN and I
We've caught you sipping.
You hypocrite! When you arrive
Each day with honey to your hive
And look your sternest, "
Doa't bufz at us! WE know the wnr
You've loafed three-quarters of the day
Not half in earnest!
Ah. poor illusions, oft deceived!
.Time was when most of us bejleved
In honest Judges.
Jn statesmen pure aa Pyrenees: ;
And being young, we thought of bees .
As willing drudges.
But now the horrid fact's exposed
And Graft in Beeland Is disclosed
By Truth her candle.
If in the honeycombs we peck
I'll bet a hat we'll find an Ec-
Wltable scandal.
And thus with faith both faint and aoant.
The Sluggard going to the Ant
May catch her bumming.
Much like the Bee, who, weak of will.
Is such a little humbug still,
With all his humming;
Globe and Commercial Advertiser.
J
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