L P Fisher
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VOLUME VI.
B I n j l
Tlie President is preparing n mes
sage to Congress in which is ii complete
statement of facts with regard to Fed
end proeeflngs In Louisiana In sup
port of the P. S. Court. Grant l op
posed to any legislation by Congress
ordering a new election In that State,
although he ha no hesitation In saying
that the. election was an organized
fraud from beginning to end. fr the
benefit of those now in possession ol
the State government, and that there
has not yet been a fair count of the
rotes; that the pretended result has
been reached by dishonest means, too
well known to be repeated. Still his
conviction Is that Congress has no
more right, to order a new election
there than it lias to order an election
In any-other State because of local con
flicts, all the States now being on nr.
equal status in the Union, and entitled
to the same protection for illegal or
unconstitutional interference by any
branch of the Federal Government as
they are against invasions.
Woman suffrage has received a blow
in Missouri. On the 27th, the Ilon-e,
after a spirited debate, voted down the
hill to allow women to lie elected to
office under the school laws, the vote
landing 30 for to 75 against. Be
uighted Missouri !
On the 27th, Judge Walte, the new
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of
the United States, in a brief but grace
ful speech, tendered his resignation of
the Presidency of the Ohio Conven
tion. Dr. Wyroan, having held an autopsy
of Prof. Agassi, reports the cause ot
bis death to have been, disease ami
obstruction of the arteries of the
brain.
Ex-Chief Justice, James Thompson,
of the Suprein Court of Pennsylvania,
fell dead in the Court room on the
morning of the 23th.
At Aurora, Indiana, on the 28th.
even persons were lying at the point
ot death fi om eating fresh pork with
trichina In it.
The chief of the Portland Police
Board Is said to have contracted "rheu
matism" from the frequency (,f his
visits to the "dives" of that city.
Rufus King, of Cincinnati, has been
elected President, of the Ohio Consti
tutional Convention.
Unfortunate Mr. Baii-et. A
indent In the State University at
Iowa City, by the name of Bailey,
wrote to Bailey of the Danbury Aetf.
to ask If the man of humor was any of
lib, kin. He received this reply :
"Dakbprt, Conk,, !ee. 8, 137J.
'In answer to your note I am com
pelled to say that some one lias got np
a corner on my relatives of the name
ot Bailey, and' that at present I am
not in possession ot one, to my knowl
edge. "It is a fearful thing to stand alone
hi the world, without a single, or mar
ried, relative in the distance, but I am
to successful in concealing my sorrow
that no one suspects its existence.
Whether my ancestor came over
In the Mayflower depends in a large
maamre upon what was the passage
money, Ifanvtblngatall, I am in
clined to believe that they 'went
round."
-When asked If t ain a relation of
Toon, you should kindly, hut firmly,
deny it. It is going to be too liard a
whiter Nio lake on relations.
Yours in svmpBthv,
".I. W. Bailey "
"Mfmohiam" cards are not yet used
in ihls country, hut in. England it N
tli-tomary to lsne them in memory of
t trieud or relative almut a week or
tf u days after the decease. Those who
receive them are at liberty to make a
v1l of condolence to the bereaved
family. Thev are of white hrlstol
board with a black border, and '"ear
lie word, hi wiemorrtw. with the name
of flte deceased, hU age, the place
jjul time of death, the place of Inter
ftaut. and the name uf Mimvor wlio
tU cards.
Kpt-akliiff Muunrely.
"1 fain would climbbut fear I fall."
To Bess wrote Raleigh.
"If th.V heart fail, climb not at all,"
Begs answered fairly.
So answered ltaleigh sweet Queen
Bes
In words that did a world express.
Few lietter read the human heart
Than Courtier Raleigh.
He plays at love a humble part;
That speaks not squarely ;
Then Raleigh donned a holder face
And won the sovereign lady's grace.
Long shone the light In courts and
camps
Of Soldier Raleigh.
He may have been the worst of scamps,
But he spoke squarely ;
And so prevailed on Mistress Fame
To breathe a magic o'er his name.
Yet who can say the task is light
Of speaking squarely ?
True lovers in their ladies' sight
Are bold but rarely.
Else had I beenWre blessed to-night,
Than Walter Releigh.
But I like Mm h ive feared to fall.
And therefore have not climbed at all.
Springfield HcpvUiam.
OORiOUS Vf TRUE. The most pow
erful telescopes present the moon so
far oft" that only the larger objects can
be seen. But ii photograph here gives
ns some assistance Such a picture
presents all the minutest details, and
these can be magnified by a powerful
microscope1. The latter may magnify
many millions of timea. Now placing
a minute section of such moon photo
graph under such a microscope, there
appears no obstacle to our penetrating
all the mysteries ot the moon, even
down to the smallest rabbit. In it; were
it not for the unfortunare factfliat
the smoothest surface known to science
becomes so rough under the micro
scope as to obliterate all photographic
Impressions there may be on it. Na
ture must supply, or art be able to
furnish, some surface that will remain
smooth nniler the microscope, and that
materia! is the object now to be found.
A French scientist thinks he has ob
tained it In the silk like floss of the
common 'milkweed, reduced by a
chemical solvent to a pulp, and then
manufactured into paper. It has
answered every purpose, and a first
ropy taken by the camera afforded
undeniable proof that the moon is in
habited by a queer race, that need
neither air nor water to preserve life.
But owing to the fact tliat the photo
graph was taken when the moon was
full, the inhabitants presented an ap
pearance of flies on the ceiling, so that
nothing could he seen of them but the
crown ol their heads.
... -
Who Can Explain ? Says the
SnimtMe Aiiwrinm; The "creeping"
of railroads has attracted some atten
tion of late, and while we do pot at
tempt to explain it, we offer a point
on the tact that on lines running
North and South the Western "creeps"
faster than the Eastern rail; that is,
this very strange movement of the
rail toward the South is more marked
in one rail than in the other on the
same track. Furthermore, it, h is been
noticed that on such a line the Eastern
rail wears out; the fastest. Both of
these points, we think, can be explain?
en by1 the motion of the earth as it
turns from the West to the East. Ev
erything that has free motion is drag
ged after the whirling globe; every
wind that blows, and every tide that
moves, feels the influence, and our
trains going South or North are pulled
over toward the East, and naturally
presses the Eastern rail the heaviest.
The Western rail being thus relieved
from its share of weight, "creeps"
more frequently and quickly. It is
! also not iced that the Eastern rail wears
out the fastest, and we think that the
earth's motion Is the true cause. The
nrnctlcal side ot this Is. that the East
ern rail and wheels should be made
I stronger.
The London Times thus closes a
sketch ol Professor Agassi.'s career:
III Agassiz tbe world has lost a philos
opher and naturalist whose name will
lie remembered with those of Buffon,
Cuvier and Humboldt, and of whom
both his native Switzerland and his
adopted America might well be
proud.
Jul my. aged six. Is the hero of this
tale, bist Thanksgiving day his m
ternal remarked, while at the table,
that the turkey "fairly made his mouth
water." That lieing a good sentence,
Johnny laid it by for future use. and
to-dav" (Christina") while at the table,
he fairly startled the company with
the remark. "I say, father, that tur
krj Curly mafc water to my mouth."
ALBANY, OREGON. JANUARY
JOHN STMAY.
TIIK HEROISM OF AN WKfKltER AT THE
SIEGE OF CHARLESTON.
hi a novel lately published entitled
"Mark Oildersleeve," the hero, an
officer in the Pnion army during the
late war, iJ represented as performing
an exploit which, although seemingly
fanciful and extravagant, is neverthe
less the recital of an actual occmreiice,
and is worth recording as an extraor
dinary instance of cool courage and
steadiness of nerve in a situation of ex
treme peril.
In the fictitViiis narrative Captain
Mark (illdersleeve is made, while In a
venturesome mood, to unspike a can
non during the seige of Richmond, di
rectly in the face of theenem.v's slmrp
shooters. Now. the true hero of this
feat was not a "curled darling in
shoulder straps." as Captain Mark is
represented to be. hut sturdy old John
Stray, a private in the first New York
Volunteer Engineers, and the scene of
action was not in Virginia, but in
South Carolina, on Morris Island, m
July, 1463. after the disastrous attack
on Fort Wagner. Baffled in the as
sault. General Gilmore lost no time in
taking means to reduce the fort by
regular approaches, aiid in a few days
after
TffE BLOODY REeTLSB,
The first parallel had been opened and
a breaching battery was in position.
During a night attack on the Pnion
works the rebels succeeded i" driving
the men from their position, and spik
ing the guns in ti e battery. This was
u serious check, as the rebel sharp
shooter, in r'.lle-pits. effectually stop
ped further progress by the engiueer
ing corps. One of the spiked guns, a
200 pounder Pairot. completely raked
the rifle-pits, and it was of the utmost
importance that it should lie brought
into action. In thlsdlfldllty the Chief
ol Ordnance called tor volunteers to re
store the piece to service To do this
it was necessary to mount thejcannon
and drill out tlie spike obstructing the
vent while the foe were diligently try
ing to pick off
THE VENTI KESOME WOEKMAN.
From his perch. As no one seemed
ambitions to undertake the venture,
Colonel Mordecai applied to Stray,
who. besides beinga skilled machinist,
had given proof of unusual coolness
and daring. At the request of the
Colonel be inspected the gun. but
the shower of bullets which greeted
his appearance was not calculated to
encourage him. and he reported that
he did not think one could live long
enough on the cannon to unspike it.
Without trying to influence him
against his inclinations, the Colonel
replied that if he were willing to make
the attempt and should be killed be
(the Colonel) would see that his family
were provided for. This promise de
cided Stray. At nightfall ho went
forth
ON HIS nCHlLOrS ERRAND,
Armed simply with a brace and bits.
Straddling the breech of the moustrous
piece, and crouching as low as posssi
ble, he plied the drill vigorously. No
sooner had he begun than the enemy
perceived him. and flash alter flash
succeeded from the rifle-pits. Stray
could see, as he worked, the rifle-pits
of the rebels, not a hundred yards (lis
taut, ablaze with light of fifty rifles,
and feel the wind of their bullets ns
they whizzed past him. Occasionally
one struck the cannon, as he noticed
by the peculiar chirp of the Impact.
Favored partly by the obscurity, and
more by good" luck, he remained un
scathed, save by one skin-scraping
shot. In fifteen minutes it seemed
to him an hour tin) vent was clear.
As the gun was loaded, a lanyard and
primer were passed up to him. and
these fixed, he slipped quickly off.
The rebels, seeing him drop, imagined
they had shot him and sent up
A YELL OF EXULTATION,
Which was suddenly checked as a dis
charge of grape scattered death among
them. The rifle-pits were at once
abandoned, and our sappers and miners
enabled to proceed without further in
terruption. The Captain of the Imt
tery reported twenty-two lead marks
froin bullets that had struck the piece.
In reward for this exploit Stray was
offered a Second Lieutenancy, bNt be
ing a modest man. aial not fitted by
education for the position, he inclined
It and was satisfied to accept the posi
tion of master mechanic lu the Ord
nance Department. This was by no
means the only perilous adventure
that Stray was engaged In during the
war. and his history would make a
readable volume. He was jjreseuted
by Major-General !llmore with tte
bronie medal for Valorohs conduct, ot
which, we beliove, but thirty-nine in
all were distributed. Stray (a now an
engineer employed la ia factory bt Jer
31, 1874.
sey City. He Is a short, thick-set man
of fifty or so. with a gray beard fring
ing a quiet but-determined counten
ance. Many a less deserving name
will be handed down to posterity to
become illustrious with time than tlu.t
of this obscure hero. John Stray.
A Vegetable Monstrosity. We
do not vouch lor the truthfulness of
the following story, or of the paper
that originated it, but give it just as
it comes from the Centralis (Mo.)
CmmK That paper says: "Mr. J.
E. Walker, residing midway between
this place and Fayette, on last Monday
brought to tills office, for our inspec
tion, a cornstalk measuring the en
ormous length of twenty-six feet anil
eight Inches, which was grown on
his farm the past Summei. Tlie only
product of this mammoth corn-stalk
was a strange monstrosity in the corn
line, it being a combination of live
fully developed, healthy ears of corn,
grown compactly together in one solid
mass, while at the lower end was a
curious formation, with six perfect
and faultlessly formed Angel's, the
latter being blood red while the bal
ance of the corn is of snowy whiteness.
This wonderful freak of nature meas
ures twenty-seven inches in length by
fifteen inches in circumference, and
weighs thirty-two pounds. It grew
within five feet of the ground, while
the balance of the stock lowered aloft
like a flag staff, and was bare as a
bean pole, with the exception of the
tassel on the top. Tt grew in rich bot
tom land, and although there vcre 40
acres of corn surrounding it. no other
stalks grew above the usual height.
Mr. Walker intends sending this mon
strosity to the agricultural museum at
Washington."
Roseburg has got one of the cham
pion thieves in jail. Re gives his
name as James Field, and everything
he touches sticks to his fingers. The
I'hiiwieah'r says that after he was ar
rested, parties went to his cabin and
demanded of a woman he had been
living with a mile or two above town,
the articles Field had stolen. She
commenced handing them out. and
among a hundred different articles
there were several blankets, sheets and
a feather bed. a Bible, tin buckets,
lamps, wagon sheets, etc. In addition
to this, the woman stated that his
thefts had extended from Portland to
Douglas county, and that on the trip
he stole twenty-three hams, several
sides ol bacon and a iminberof chick
ens, and robbed three bee-hives. The
Wtimah is a character herself, hut
more honest and a harder worker than
her wretch of a paramour. During
the winter she has cut two cords and a
half of wood a day nearly every day,
and is proud of her strength and pow
ers of endurance.
I stopped at the Metripolitan Hotel
in Coiinnc. I Juxtapoeltloned with
a historical cuss the first thing.
Says he, "So he's dead is he ?" Says I
"Who?" Says he. "Napoleon."
Says I, "Dead as a mackerel." Says
he. "Stranger, I'm from the mines,
and I only just heard It. One ot 'em
died years ago, I believe, but stranger,
what gets me is, what became of the
other hundred and nine. ?" Says I,
"Hundred and nine? My dear sir.
there never was a hundred and nine."
Says he. "Stranger the was a hun
dred and eleven of em." And he took
out a book and pointed to Napoleon
HI. and says he, "What's that but
Napoleon one hundred and eleven?"
The Professor of Natural Philosophy
in a certain college recently gave the
class a problem to think of during the
night, and answered the next day.
The question was this: "If a hole
were bored through the center of the
earth, from side to side, and a ball
Into it. what motions would
; the ball pass through, and where
j would it come to a state of rest?" The
i next morning a student was called up
' to solve the problem. "What answer
have yon to give to the question?"
! asked the professor. "Well, really."
i replied the student, "I have not
i thought ot the main question, butota
. preliminary one. How are you going
i to get that 'hole bored through? '
I Mrs. Julia Ward Howe asserts that
! while men riot and revolutionize,
"iliere is nothing but dumb submission
I for women." Which the Kingston
i Freeman supplements with the sym
i .....i.fi. wmark. that "Julia's dumb
ness Is one of the most efleeting spec
tacles of the age."
In the Indian Territory every settler
who marries a squaw is hereafter to
be presented with a section of land.
A eood-looklng gentleman coold
gobble up the whole Territory In a
year or two.
NO. 21.
PACIFIC OAW tiVMH.
The average temperature at Baker
City for tlie week ending Jan. 21st wa
42"' 7' abovezero. The maximum was
U7J, and 'he minimum lO.
Messrs Patterson and Mndge, hate
contracted for Ihe first bait to be con
structed at their new Astoria ship
yard. It will be for use at one of the
Columbia River fisheries.
The Baker City IfnnM learns that
Horace Knowlton, an engineer at work
nut at the Virtue ledge, had the mis
fortune to scald his right foot quite se
riously one day last week. In pulling
off bis boot the skin came with it.
The Connor Creek mines. Baker
county continue to "pan out" liberallv
in fact they iuprnve the deeper down
thev go. A mill Is being constructed
80x60 feet, having a HO foot overshot
wheel lor propelling the machinery.
The question. "Where shall Uma
tilla county be divided ?" now agitates
the minds of her citireiis.
Yamhlllians are agitating the prop
osition for a railroad exteiislon between
McMinnville and Carlton.
A reliable gentleman from Wallowa
Valley reports bat very little snow and
cattle doing finely without feed.
In driving up from Umatilla T.and
ing to Pendleton on Wednesday nieht.
the stage driver lost his way. and did
not get his reckoning until daylight.
A new turbine water-.vbeel is to be
placed in the Salem Flouring Mills for
the purpose of obtaining power to keep
the mill running during iiigh water.
The town clock bell of Salem fails to
please the citizens any more on ac
count of a crack, a foot or so in width
from top to bottom, by ringing the old
year out in too hearty a style.
The criticisms of ex-Governor H.
S. Foote. of Mississippi, on Jefferson
Davis, continuing to tie quite auuov
ing. a friend of the latter wrote to
him. calling his attention to the mats
ter. Following is Davis' reply.
Memphis Teun., Nov. 25. 1873.
"Dear Sir: Yours of the 20th inst. Is
at hand. I have not seen any of the
articles which you Inform me II. S.
Fotrte has written in abuse of me. nor
have I any desire to read whatever he
might write. In the year 1S71 I pub
lished him as constitutionally a liar,
and his subsequent career only ferved
to confirm me in that judgment.
Since that date, therefore. I have taken
no heed of the utterance of Foote. His
flattery'when he was seeking political
preferment in the Confederacy and his
abuse when, faithless to his trust as a
Representative hi the Congress of tlie
Confederate States. Ik- was preparing
for his desertion to their enemies, were
alike disregarded by me. You are at
liberty to use this as you think proper.
I remain respectfully and truly voure.
JkFFERson Davis."
-. -
A New Hampshire fanner's wife,
fell Into a well, and it was four days
before he missed her. ami made search.
He said he thought the house unusually
quiet, hut he didn't know what made
It so.
A New Y'ork lady has Invented a
corset which will squeeze a woman to
death in five minutes, if she feels like
suicide.
We hear a great deai about tin
necessity for cheap labor, and we
are told that the prosperity of ag
ricultural and manufacturing inter
est depend upon it. Cheap labor
is another name for poor and in
efficient labor, and this can lie ap
plied only to coarse and cheap
products. " AYhat is really wanted
is skillful labor, and it may be
cheap even if it is called dear.
Merchant and business men un
derstand this well enough, tor they
can afford to pay a good salesman
or manager high wages, while thev
cannot afford to have poor oiiet. at
any price. Farmers, bowever;i'
little about skilled labor; H thev
want is that it shall be cheap, and
when they run behind they demand
as a remedy that labor shall lie
cheaper still.
The Philadelphia wool market
is strong California fine sod medi
um, 30 to 35c; cpwse, 34 to 28c.
Snow tell on the Mission mou
tains near gaa Francisco, tout
Sunday,