A LtTEUAHT HOAX.
.b'.x w.!?ce!?f,lU3r tn.-t4t im
???rtth, Boston PrW ClnbTon tetany
evening. BmnllMm were read, snmrtlii to
fromdtotMmiabed tadiTWSS
ecterisiie poem, which the author of tse " Heathen
Chinee" vroold, we thick, be almost willlns to
eJUn a IndW, if, not Vy himself, certainly by a
"doable." Mo assertion mi made at the table that
rSStFJf flf e"m ,rom B,t with
"U present, nn the few in the secret,
ItuBped e the fallacious conclusion : end eo have
ererel of the paper eisoe. The Unes were. In
fact, wnttes ere the initials " B. H." by J.
CheeTjj Goodwin, and all will agree that he waa far
snore than a parodist, and excuse the locoes cheat
very willingly.
Here lathe Brett Harte poem of the occasion :
rmxaft-nooM biij.
Bill was cuss ;
Slept all night en a pile of stock
Hard as a reck.
But what'd he are ! He'd no friends
That would make a muss
If he slept in the streets.
Bo he seuda
For a pot of beer, and a bite to eat
In the press-room,
Where, with jes' room
To stretch ont straight.
He'd wait
Till the boys got round in the upper regions :
And by legions
He fed the shorts to the hungry maws
And iron Jaws
i Of the press.
I.I You can guess
How he loved the machine and bis work.
He shirk T
When he ffare his word
That settled it sure. Whatever it was
Ton eould be pox
That he'd do as he said, if It took a leg.
Not a peg
Would he move, whatever he saw or heard,
To break a promise
Was farthest from bis
Thouirhts of what waa the duty of man.
And where the law of right began.
One night the boss
(Member of Congress now, they says)
Game down stain
- Putting on airs -(His
usual way).
Pretty soon he came across
Bill, who was putting the forma in place.
" B1U," mays he,
" I want a copy brought up to me
At four o'clock in any case ;
, For I leave at ttve
By an early train.
So look alive ;
- " Or" here his language became profane
'YouHdoit,BlT'
Bays BUI, " I will."
That night at just about half-past one.
The bells begun
The awful clangor that tells of fire.
Twasourold place
That was being burst.
When Bill learnt
The fact, by his linen coat tails'blase.
The room was getting about red hot.
There was just ons spot
That the are had managed, so far, to spare,
And the press stood there.
Bill wssnt a crier,
And when he saw
There was no ue trying to ssve a thing
Out of the fiery dragon's maw.
He gave one spring
' For the stock ; there wasn't an atom left.
Bill says the heft
Of his heart, when he found there wasn't one
Identical sheet that he could use,
- Waa more'n a ton.
. In his two hoars' snooze.
He hadnt taken his garment off.
They came off now.
' That is he Stripped, as if for a row,
Down to the buff.
Let us draw the veil,
' And end this tele
With a scene that morning sharp at four.
BUI knocked at the door
Of the boss's house, and out he came,
. a iTot knowing the place was all aflame ;
"Get the paper?" Says Bill, " You're right,
The ola office bunt down to night,
. There wssnt no one hurt,
And I got you a copy." Here he gave -The
boss, who was just beginning to rave,
- An impression struck off on his shirt.
P. S. Twas Bill's shirt, not the bosses.
I tell you Bill was one of the hosses.
Kovwbeb 5, 1874.
DUELING IN ILLINOIS.
TB History of the Code In she Backer
State Remarkable Duels of Rmfc.,
le Persons The) M.etimfj Between
, Abraham Lincoln and Clem. Shields
The Many Other Affairs Which Grew
Ont of It.
From the Chicago Inter-Ocean.
In no other State in the American
Union, and perhaps in no other place
- in all the world, are there eo stringent
and so efficient laws acrainst duelinr as
in Illinois, To be either principal or
seoona in an an&ir ox nonor ; even to
write or bear a challenge, though no
snoc snouia oe exchanged, is an infam
ous crime, and renders the parties for
ever disqualified from holding any of
fice of trust, honor or profit within the
State. Before any offioer, elected or
appointed, can enter nDon the dicharff
of his duties, he is required to make
oath that he has not been engaged in
any duel in the State, either as princi
pal or second, and that he has not
(since 1818 left the State for the pur
pose of engaging in' any affair of that
kind, elsewhere. This stringent pro
vision has had a very cooling effect
upon the sanguinary temperaments of
tnese amoiaous partisans amoncr wnom.
under ordinary circumstances, the pistol
has been a frequent arbiter. Compelled
to oiioose between disfranchisement or
a fight, without much hesitation they
forego the latter, and other methods of
satisfaction' are devised or the affront
meekly borne.
Previous to the Constitution of 1848.
belligerent parties who sought to settle
their affairs by the barbarous code had
only to cross the state line, and for bat
tles foncht on the soil of another State
they could not be held to an account by
the authorities of this. As a preventive
of dueling among our citizens, there
fore, the statute was a comparative fail-
tire ; but in the Constitution of 1818 a
provision was inserted reamnnor tne aa
ministration, to every State offioer, and
to eyery voter whose ballot was received
under challenge, a solemn asseveration
that the party had never been engaged in
anyduel in this State since 1848, nor
had-ever left the State for the purpose
of engaging in any elsewhere.
HOW TErtS FRO VISION WAS ADOPTED. .
.The circumstaxces under which the
last clause of the oath was adopted
were peculiar and interesting. Among
the members of the Convention of 1848
were Mr. O. C. Pratt and - Thomas
Campbell, both of Jo Daviess county.
During the sittings of the convention,
the question of alien suffrage came up
for discussion' and Mr Pratt opposed
the granting of the elective franchise to
foreigners before they were naturalized.
To this Mr. Campbell replied, favoring
the broadest extension of the franchise,
and in the course of his speech taunted
Pratt with having obtained his election
by pledging the foreigners in his dis
trict tht he would support their cause
in the convention. Mr. , .Pratt denied
the charge indignantly, and attributed
his colleague's mistake .to the pres-
, ence of a barrel of beer and a keg of
' whisky."
Campbell instantly denounced, the
iiiflinnation as, fae and, cowardly, and
concluded, fey edsrhig ithat jie held
himself personally accountable for his
language. ' .
TH3B CHAXJjEXOK PASSES.
Two hours -aferJie' received a note
from Mr. Pratt, simply requesting his
Eresence' at the Planters' House, St.
ouis, at his earliest convenience.
Campbell replied that he would be on
hand promptly, -and -departed at once.
The seconds were arranging the terms
of the meeting when a St. Louis Alder
man, named Blennerhasset, caused-the
arrest of both parties; and they were
placed under $3,000 bonds to keep the
peace. . ,
The affair was thus ended, and the
parties returned and resumed their
seats in the convention. sThe fact that
two members of so important and hon
orable s body as the Constitutional
Convention could violate the spirit of
the State law against dueling and es
cape ail the penalty by the simple de
vice of crossing the State line, caused
unfavorable comment, and drew atten-,
tion to the weakness of the law upon ;
the subject, A few of the leading mem
bers met in private consultation, and
decided upon a stringent statute whicn
should cover ail such cases in me iu
ture. Hence they devised and framed
an oath of office, and incorporated it
into the Constitution, so broad in the
terms of its disfranchisement, and so
comprehensive in the structure of its
language, as to cover not only Illinois,
but all the world Desiae. as was aimeu
at the murderous practice, without re
spect to place, circumstance, or time,
save only that the offense should date
from the adoption cf the new Constitu
tion. The measure was introduced by
R. B. Servant, of Randolph county,
and passed by 74 yeas to 44 nays. No
law ever so completely fulfilled the de
sign of its framers, and it was adopted
entire by the Constitutional Convention
of 1870.
In this connection, it may be inter
esting to give a brief history of the var
ious duels in which citizens of the State
have prominently figured. Of ten af
fairs of this nature which have taken
place since the organization of the
State, it is noteworthy that in only one
were shots exchanged; that was the
first one ever attempted, proved fatal
to one of the combatants, and the sur
vivor was afterward tried, convicted,
and hung. This was known as the
Bennett and Stewart duel, a full ac
count of which was published in the
Inter-Ocean a few months ago.
XlTNCOLN and shields.
The most noteworthy affair of this
kind was that between the late Abraham
Lincoln and Gen. James Shields, now
of Missouri, which took place in 1842.
In that year there was great public ex
citement caused by the refusal of the
State officers, among whom was Gen.
Shields, then State Auditor, to receive
the bills of the State Bank in payment
of taxes, said bills being worth in specie
only about fifty cents on a dollar, xne
measure provoked universal denuncia
tion, and Mr. Lincoln, then a young and
comparatively unknown lawyer, wrote a
communication on tne subject, wmcn
was published in the Sangamon Jour
nal, the Whig organ at Springfield, over
the signature of "Rebecca," dated
" Lost Township, Sept. 2, 1842.
The article was in the form of a dia
logue between "Aunt Rebecca" and her
Democratic neighbor, in which she
handled the officers of the State savage
ly for their order refusing the State
Bank money, and was particularly se
vere on Shields, calling him a liar and a
fool, "dull as a cake of tallow." Shields
-was a bachelor, and very vain, and his
appearance at a lair in the city was car
icatured, his demeanor criticised, and
he denounced as a "conceited dunce.
The article soon became the talk of
the town, and the excitable' Irishman
fairly foamed with rage. He proceeded
at once to the editor of the Journal,
Simeon Francis, demanded the name of
the author of the offensive communica
tion, and that of Mr. Lincoln was given
him. Lincoln was at the time attend
ing court at Tremont, Tazewell county.
but thither Shields Hastened, accom
panied by his " friend," Gen. "White-
sides, and immediately on his arrival
sent a note to Lincoln stating that his
name had been given him as the author
of an insulting article signed " Rebec
ca," and requiring " a full, positive and
absolute retraction of all offensive allu
sions to hi personally, and an ample
apology for the insults conveyed."
It so happened that two friends of
Mr. Lincoln, Dr. Merriman and William
Butler, learned of Shields' departure for
Tremont and the object of it, and,
mounting their horses, rode all night,
and communicated with Mr. Lincoln be
fore Mr. Shields did ; so he was in a
measure prepared for the hostile note.
THE PRBTiTMTK ABIES.
The same evening he replied, refusing
to offer any explanation, on the ground
that Shields assumed the fact of his
authorship of the article in question,
and while not pointing out any particu
lar part to which he objected, demanded
a general retraction, accompanying the
same with threats and menaces in case
of a refusal. One or two other notes
were exchanged, when Shields sent a
final rejoinder, designating Gen. White
sides as the friend selected to arrange for
the meeting at which the satisfaction he
demanded should be tendered. Mr.
Lincoln promptly responded, and named
Dr. Merriman as his friend.
Furtner proceedings were, however,
adjourned to Springfield ; but the fact
that a hostile meeting between the two
parties was imminent soon became
known, and in order to avoid arrest Mr.
Lincoln suddenly retired to Jackson
ville, leaving with Mr. Butler the fol
lowing instructions for his "friend,"
Dr. Merriman, who was conducting the
affair in his behalf :
MB. LiTN'COLN's BOTES FOB THK FIGHT.
"In case Gen. Whitesides (Shields'
second) shall signify a wish to settle
this affair without further difficulty, let
bim know that if the papers already
passed be withdrawn, and a note pre
sented from Gen. Shields asking if I
am the author of the articles of which
he complains, and asking that I shall
make him geutlemanly satisfaction, and
that without menace or dictation as to
what that satisfaction shall be, you can
assure him that the following answer
shall be given :
" I did write the " Lost Township "
letter which appeared in the Journal of I
. i n t. X 1 1 1 i- . - . I
tne zu nunuiii, uul una no participation
in any form in any other article allud
ing to you. I had no intention of in
juring your personal or private charac
ter or standing as a man or a gentle
man ; and I did not then think, and I
do not now think, that tne article could
produce, or has produced, that effect
against you ; and had : I anticipated
such an effect, I should have forborne
to write it.' .
" Such is the tenor of the apology I
am willing to make, providing all former
demands are withdrawn. If no arrange
ment is arrived at, the preliminaries of
the fight are to be :
"1. Weapons Cavalry broadswords
of the largest size, precisely equal in
all
respects, and such as are now used
... A T .
the cavalry company at Jackson
ville. ' ; :
"2. Position A plank ten feet long
and from nine to twelve inches broad,
to be firmly fixed on edge on the ground
as the line between us, -which neither is
to pass his foot over on forfeit of his
life. Next, s line drawn on the ground
on either side of said plank and parallel
with it, each at the distance of the
length of the sword and three feet ad
ditional from the plank, and the retreat
ing of his own accord over such line, by
either party, during the fight, shall be
deemed a surrender of the contest.
"3. Time On Thursday evening, at
5 o'clock, if agreeable ; but in no case to
be deferred longer than Friday evening,
at 5 o'clock. -
" 4. Place "Within three miles of Al
ton, on the opposite. Bide of the river,
the .particular spot to be agreed on by
you! Any details coming within the
foregoing rules you are at liberty to
make at your discretion, but you in no
case to swerve from these rules or pass
beyond the limits.
"Abraham Lincoiin."
Dr. Merriman read these instructions
to Gen. Whitesides, who, in the absence
of his principal, declined to discuss the
terms of settlement until they should
meet in Missouri.
All parties now left for Alton. Lin
coln's friends met. him at Jacksonville,
where the weapons were procured, and
a surgeon Dr. A. T. Bledsoe added
to the party. When Shields and his
party arrived, all crossed into Missouri,
and the work of laying off the ground
commenced. .
Fortunatelv. at this luncture. Colonel
J. J. Hardin and Dr. R- W. English,
warm personal friends of both parties.
arrived on the scene, having come all
the way from Springfield with the -sole
Snrpose of bringing about an accommo
ation and immediately presented the
following proposition :
ALTON, Sept. 22, 1842.
Messrs. Whitesides and Merriman :
As tbe mntnal naraonal friends of Shields
and Lincoln, but without authority from either,
we earnestly desire a reconciliation ol tne mis
understanding which exists between them.
8uch difficulties should always be arranged
amicably, if it is possible to do so with honor
to both parties. Believing that such an ar
rangement can possibly be effected, we re
spectfully but earnestly submit tne xoiiowmg
proposition for your consideration : Let the
whole difficulty be submitted to four or more
gentlemen of your own choosing, who shall
consider the affair and report thereupon for
your consideration. Josnr J. Habdik,
tt. v. uouai.
This paper was laid before the princi
pals and accepted. Mr. Shields prompt
ly named Gen. Whitesides, W. L. D.
Ewing, and the surgeon who had accom
panied him, T. M. Hope, to conduct
the negotiations on nis benaif.
Tne demand for an apology and ail
other belligerent papers were with
drawn, when Mr. Lincoln tendered the
explanation he had already promised,
which proved satisfactory, the parties
were reconciled, shook hands, and re
turned together te Springfield. So ended
.Liinooln b nrst, last, and only duel, xsm
the affair did not end with Lincoln's
withdrawal from it. The blood of all
the parties who had been connected with
it was up, and nearly half a dozen chal
lenges grew out of it, nearly as many as
nave occurred in tne wnole History ox
the State before or since.
SHTEXiDS AND BUTLER.
Butler, it will be remembered, was
one of Lincoln's seconds, irt his affair
with Shields, and had urged the fight
with great vehemence. Greatly dis
trusted at the fiasco, he returned to
Springfield; and published a letter in
the Sangamon Journal which was very
severe upon both Lincoln and Shields.
The latter was greatly irritated, and
forthwith sent a menacing note to the
author. Mr. Butler made no other re
sponse to the note than to accept it as a
challenge, and without further circum
locution fixed the
Time Sunrise on the following morn
ing. Place The Allen farm, one mile north
of the present State House.
Weapons Rifles.
Distance One hundred yards.
Position The parties to stand with
their right sides toward each other ; the
rifles to be held in both hands horizon
tally and oscked. Neither party to
move his person or his rifle after being
placed, until the word fire.
Shields was net a little surprised at
the promptness with which his overtures
had been met, but protested that as a
State officer he could not fight within
the limits of the State. He also claimed
that the position would give his oppo
nent the advantage, as he was left
handed. Mr. Butler, with his friend,
the inevitable Dr. Merriman, was at the
place appointed, and at the time
designated,' but failed to find any ad
versary. There followed some rather caustio
criticisms on Shields' declination of a
meeting he had so ostentatiously in
vited, whereat he sent another note ac
cepting the original terms; er, if that was
not satisfactory, he would " go out to
some lonely place on the prairie and
fight, without seconds, and beyond the
danger of molestation."
Butler replied that he had once offered
him battle, which was refused, and he
would now have no more to do with him.
So the affair ended, so far, at least, as
the principals were concerned.
THE SECONDS THIRST FOB GORE.
But the seconds took up the affair
where the principals laid it down. In
the course of the correspondence con
nected with the unpleasantness between
Shields and Butler, in which White
sides and Merriman had acted the
part of seconds, the former had
severely censured the course of
the latter, who responded that "the
arrogant, dictatorial, rude, and ungentle-
manly character ot the note precluded
ail furtner correspondence on tne sub
ject." Strangely enough. Abraham Lin
coin was the bearer of this message, and
thus repaid tne servioes of tne man wno
had served him in the same capacity but
a day or two oerore.
To this note Gen. Whitesides laconi
cally replied:
Meet me at the Planters' House,
St. Xjouis, on .Friday next, wnen you
will near furtner from me."
' Dr. Merriman as laconically answered.
" I wish to know if you intend your
note as a cnaiienge. ii so, my friend
Capt. Lincoln will wait upon you with
the conditions of our meeting."
Whitesides responded: .
" You shall have a note of the char
acter yon allude to when we meet at the
Planters' House, St, Louis, on Friday
next. ; , - - -
. Merriman replied, denying the right
of the challenger to name the place of
meeting and suggested Xiouisiana, Mo,
Whitesides then called noon Mr. Lin
coin and informed him verbally that he
could not accept that proposition ; that
he had business in St. Louis, and that
place was as near as Louisiana.
. Merriman then dropped the matter.
Finding he could not force a fightat
St. Louis, Whitesides sent note by the
hand of Gen. Shields offering to meet
his adversary at Louisiana, but Merri
man refused to reopen the matter. . So
ended another bloodless battle of the
braggadocios.
It is a singular fact that out of the af
fair of Lincoln and Shields grew nearly
aa many aueiB, or attempts as duels, as
have occurred in all the previous and
subsequent history of the State. It is
a little singular, too, that amid all this
blaster not a sword was unsheathed or
a pistol cocked. The affairs did not
even end in smoke, for they did not
come tnat near to actual hostilities.
ibb xungnamton imen prints a copy
of an original letter of President Lin
coln, now in ' the possession of Hon.
Henry R. Mygatt. of Oxford, to whom
it was given by the confidential clerk of
tne secretary of War, soon after it was
written. t reads as follows :
Executive Hakbiob. WAantitnToic. Not. 11.
1861. Hon. Sxcbktabt of Wab. My Dear
Mr . I personally wish Jacob B. Freer, of
New Jersey, to be appointed a Colonel for a
ooiorea regiment, and this regardless of
whether he can tell the exact shade ol Julius
Ciesars nur. lours truly, A liincour.
iUl Sorts.
Fectt canners are engaged on pat-np
jobs.
At Benicia, Cal., there is aow on ex
hibition a grape measuring 4 5-8
inches one way and 3j inches the
other.
Thb Bostons retain the base ball
championship for the third season,
with the Mutuals second and Athletics
third.
Good nature, like a bee. collects Its
honey from every herb. HI nature, Use
a spider, sucks po.son from tne sweet
est flower.
Germany has just launched her sev
enth first-class iron-clad, and the
eighth, now being constructed, is to be
afloat in April.
Senator Goldthwaxtil of Georgia.
is thinking of resigning on account of
ill-health, and General . Morgan is
spoken of as his successor. ,
Some folks call it "Boss-town "
others "Bawston," and others "B-os-
ton," but the real , pronunciation is
Boz-ton, dwelling long on the "z."
A dsad man can drift down stream.
but it takes a live man to pull up
against it. That is the time that tries a
man's soul when the tide is acrainst
him.
Ristori has been quite successful in
studying tbe English language. She
can say "ridiculous improbabilities"
with ease, and is practicing on
"thirsty."
Mr. Geobgx EL Nbttlbton has bei
appointed General Manager of the Mis
souri River, Fort Scott and Gulf. Rail
road, with full powers and authority as
its chief executive officer.
The following' striking lines forms an
inscription found at Melrose Abbey :
The earth goetb on the earth, glistening In gold ;
The earth goes to the earth sooner than it wold ;
The earth builds on the earth castles and towers ;
The earth sajs to the earth" All shall be ours I
A California temperance association
limits the beverages of its members to
wine, beer and cider, "except when
laboring under a sense of discour
agement, and then whisky will be al
lowed.
Thb mild weather is hatching ont the
grasshopper eggs at the West, and the
fields swarm with young insects. 5 The
farmers exult in the thought that win
ter will kill them and they will be free
from the pest next season.
Coii. Wiixiam Wilson, who raised
the famous corps known as " Billy
Wilson's " zouaves," at the beginning of
the war, died at New York city last
week. He fought gallantly throughout
the war, and had since lived a quiet
life.
Three little girls in Hartford. God
bless 'em, spent a week on fancy work,
and tnen neid a fair, wnicn netted nine
dollars, with which they purchased a
ton of coal for a poor widow lady of
that aity.
Thb invention of the musical scale, or
gamut, occurred in 1022T Vlt was the
work of an Italian monk. ana. contrib
uted much to diffuse a taste for music.
The inventor, Guido Arctine, was sent
for thrice to Rome to teach it to the
clergy.
Thx annual report of Superintendent
Bangs, of the Railway Postal Service,
shows a variety of interesting facts,
prominent among them being the state
ment that of all the mail carried under
his superintendence 77 per cent, is news
matter to regular subscribers.
Prince Bismabck is now reported to
be in excellent health. The weund in
flicted by Kallmann has left a scar, but
it is perfctly healed. Close to it, how
ever, on the wrist of his right hand, a
red mark remains, which is still sore
enough to make writing a somewhat
painful exertion.
Such a death as that which occurred
at Uxbridge, Massachusetts, recently,
is extremely rare. The body of an un
known man, sixty years old, was found
hanging with ad downwards on the
fence of he cemetery. He had appar
ently caught his ankle between the
rickets over the fence, and had evident
y been dead a day or two.
Thb habit of breathing through the
mouth instead of through the nose tends
to weaken the whole respiratory appa
ratus, diminish the capacity of the
lungs, and when commenced in early
infancy, to distort tne jaws and deform
the teeth. Many of the tribes of Ameri
can Indians as explained by the emi
nent artist, the late Mr. Cblton are
particular never to allow a child to
sleep for a moment with its mouth
open, and unsymmetrical teeth are un
known among tnem. wnenever a
child is inclined to open its mouth dur
ing sleep its watchful mother or nurse
presses its lips together, holds them
closed. , and preserves the corrective
process until the abnormal habit is
overcome and breathing the natural way
established..
Physical and Mental Disease. A
writer in Chambers' Journal speaks of
the fact as decidedly noteworthy that
the common opinion that excessive men
tal occupation gravitates toward insanity
is not only not yenned by facts, but tnat,
on the contrary, one of the foremost
living physicians doubts whether aliena
tion of mind is ever the result of over
strain ; it is to physical, not mental,
derangement, he thinks, that excessive
work of the brain generally cives rise.
Insanity, he points out, finds the most
suitable material for its development
among the cloddish, uneducated classes,
while the worst forms of physical- dis
eases are originated and intensified by
the educated, overstrained brain
workers. Thb railroad casualties fof October
in the United States, that have been
reported, amount to eighty-one in all,
makincr an averaire of about three acci
dents per day during the month. There
has been also during the same time
about one person killed in every two
days, and two injured every day. Dur
ing the year ending November 1, there
were about 1.000 accidents, over 200
killed and over 700 injured. It is a
fact well-known to railroad men that
not nearly all the casualties on the
lines are reported to the general public
or the statisticians. If they were, the
averasres in the taoies of accidents,
deaths and injuries on railroads would
be materially increased.
Burnt i and Ground " Coffee. Are
you fond of your coffee? An official
investigation has just been made in
Paris as to the materials of which this
" delicious beverage " is made. There
are five nrinoipal compounds :
1. Burned bread and coffee grounds :
2. Powdered chiocory, sand and
brick duet. -8.
Ci hirvnrv and burned bones.
4. Chiooorv burned, mixed with but
ter anrl ralnmd with Prusian red.
5. Burned cabbage, rot and boiled
norse liver ' i A -
A Dying Man The Latest Detroit
Dodge -
Wednesday morning last a stranger
entered a dry goods store on Woodward
avenue and inquired for the proprietor,
whose feelings are herewith respected
and his name suppressed. The stranger
introduced himself as Fiske, and said
that a man who lay dying at a certain
boarding-house on Lamed street west
nad something to say to tne mercnant
before he passed away. Thinking it
very singular, the mercnant put on his
overcoat and went down to the house in
company with the stranger. On a bed
up stairs he found the dying man. The
merchant expected to find a pale,
emaciated patient, but instead he found
a pretty healthy looking fellow, who
was, however, snugly covered up in
bed, and whose voice was away down in
his throat. . ,
"You wished to see me, did you?"
asked the merchant as he sat down.
" I did." answered the patient.
"The doctor says that I will not live
twenty-four hours, and I want to con
fess a crime and ask- your forgiveness.
You don't know me. hut I know you.
You were keeping store in St. Joseph
in 1857." t
" Yes," answered the merchant.
" Well," continued the man, " I hap
pened to be in St. Joseph that year, and
one day while you were at dinner and
your clerk busy I stole a pair of boots
and a cap, amounting in value to per
haps six dollars. It is the only theft I
ever committed, and it has caused me
endless anxiety. Now, before I die, I
wish to ask your forgiveness and to re
store the value of the goods." -
The merchant could not remember
anything about the affair, nor of the
man, who said his name was Jefferson.
and he replied that it was all right, and
tnat he didn t care foi compensation.
But both men pressed him to take at
least fifteen dollars for the amount
stolen so long ago, and he reluctantly
consented. The dying man pulled out
a roll of bills, all of the denomination
of 0100, and the merchant handed back
nfty-fonr dollars, ail the money he hac ,
and told the well man to come to the
store after the rest. He shook hands
with the patient, hoped that death
might be arrested and returned to the
store alone having the $100 bill in his
vest pocket. The stranger had not
called up to 2 p. m. and the merchant
finally took a closer look at the bill.
Mis bair began to raise up, and he
started for a bank.
Best counterfeit 1 ve seen for a
ear,' remarked tne
cashier
he
Landed the bill back.
The merchant then secured the ser
vices of a detective and they hastened
to the boarding-house to find that the
men had departed before noon. They
came there the evening previous, paid
for two days' board, and the landlady
did not know anything about them, but
supposed the merchant knew them
both. One at least must have known
something of the merchant's former
history, as he referred to facts, and al
though they did not get the stake they
played for, they nevertheless made a
good enougn tning of it. liver since
Wednesday a detective has been looking
for the men, and the greatest care lias
been taken that the reporters shouldn't
get hold of the item. Detroit Free
Press.
A Lover's Revenge.
Some five or six weeks ago a young
man, named Charles Perrin, 23 years
old. a earoenter bv trade, fell in love
with a good-loeking girl whose parents
reside on Urcnard street. Unaries nad
red hair and a freckled face, and al
though the young lady treated him
courteously when he called at the
house, she had her mind made up that
she could never wed a red-headed man.
After an acquaintance of three weeks
he asked her to become Mrs. Perrin,
and was greatly taken down when she
told iim that she couldn't think of such
a thing. Charles then sought to have
the old folks put in a good word for
him, but they declined to interfere.
He continued his visits, perhaps hoping
to soften the young girl's heart, but
Thursday evening the crisis .came. He
went to the house with a bottle of
acid in his pocket, prepared to spoil
her beauty if she did not give him a
favorable answer. There was no one at
home but the girl and her mother, and
Perrin first wanted the girl to take a
walk with him. She refused to go, and
he asked to see her alone. She also re
fused this request, and the lover had
just got ready to draw the bottle from
nis pocket when something bit him.
He thought it was a dog, but it wasn't.
The cork had worked out of the bottle,
and his coat-tails were turning brick
color at the rate of a yard a minute.
The acid wasn't content with
the coat-tails, but struck out
for flesh, and in about a minute the
young man was dancing around the
house as if to escape a bullet. Shout
ing and whooping he got out of doors
and threw off most of his clothing and
rolled in the mud, and it was some time
before any one could find out whether
he had snakes in his boots or had sat
down on a brad-awL He was so badly
burned that two men had to help him
to his boarding house on Fifth street,
where a physician dressed the burns.
There is a good deal of laughing at his
expense, and if he makes his -appearance
at the house again he will be ar
rested, as he told one of his friends in
advance that he meant the acid for the
girL Detroit Free Jreas.
A Poet's Prosperity.'
Bryant .has made more money than
any poet that ever lived. It has, how
ever, not been the product of his Muse,
but of his newspaper. To this is to be
added the fact that he is of simple hab
its, and cannot but be moderate in gen
eral expenses. He is estimated to be
worth from $400,000 up to $600,000,
which is certainly doing very well. No
other editor except Bennett has exoeded
this sum, or even equaled it, while, as
for poets, which of this gifted clan ever
dreamed of such success ? Bryant, in
deed, reminds us, (in this point at least)
of what Jeffrey said of Byron in his
critique, 'He never lived in a garret
like thoroughbred poets." , But wealth
never inflated his vanity. ' It came as
the earnings of a great journal, and was
never used for display. New York
Dstter. -. - " , ..
Thb Center of Pofuzatioit; North
and South, the center of population
steadily clings to the thirty-ninth
parallel, along which are situated Balti
more, Washington and Cincinnati. At
no time from 1790 to 1870 has the center
of population departed north or south
of this line more than twenty-six miles.
It has marched westward 399 miles in
that period, the greatest leap being
from 1850 to 1860 (eighty-one miles)
when the transfer of a small popula
tion to the Pacific coast gave a sudden
elongation to the Western arm of the
lever and necessitated the moving of
the fulcrum quite a distance. It ' is
now forty-eight miles east of Cincin
nati, and in 1883 will nearly coincide
with that city ,
A GIGANTIC RAILWAY PROJECT.
An Eight-Track fload between New
York and Chicago Six Thousand
yrelght Trains in Constant Motion
How Freight Rates Mmy he Reduced
Three- W ourtns.
A new and important railroad move
ment is said to be on the tapis. It is
understood that the management of the
New York Central and Lake Shore rail
roads are contemplating the formation
of a joint company, with a view to lay
ing exclusive freight tracks all the way
from Chicago to New York and Boston.
The extra two tracks between Albany
and Buffalo are nearly complete, and
the plan is to continue the extra double
tracks from Buffalo to Chicago. When
this is done it will be possible to carry
freight at very much cheaper re tea than
it can now be handled on the Baltimore
and Ohio railroad, notwithstanding the
shorter distance on the last mentioned
railway. It is believed that the freight
can be transported on an exclusive
freight track at rates not very much
above those charged on the Brie canaL
The trains are to be run at the rate of
eight miles an-hour, which is the rate
that gives the least wear and tear of
track and cars. On a uniform time
table, the freight track not being ham
pered by passenger trains or trains of
unequal rates of speed, an incalculably
large-amount of business can thus be
done. Under such an arrangement it
would be possible to run trains which
would be less than half a mile apart.
Now, as the distance from New York to
Chicago is about one thousand miles, if
we allow that under such regulations as
the above there would be three trains
of from ten to twenty cars per mile, we
should have the enormous aggregate,
on the two tracks, of six thousand trains
constantly in motion. Such a stupend
ous amount of business as this would
enable the companies to reduce freight
charges to a point far below anything
now thought of. Under a uniform time
table it would be possible to throw open
the freight business to general competi
tion and take private cars upon the line
in the same way that private canal-boats
are taken upon our canals. This would
give free trade in freight in its most
perfect form. With a quadruple track
it is believed that the Central railroad
could defy competition, and carry freight
at one-third the charges of the Balti
more and Ohio railroad, and the imme
diate effectof the change would be the
ruin of the Erie railway. The way this
crand scheme is to be carried out is as
yet undetermined, but it is in contem
plation, we are assured; in fact, it is
forced upon tne New York Central by
the exigencies of the situation. Of
course, in taking tnis departure, tne
New York Central will cut loose from
all connections with other trunk lines,
and will undoubtedly force the Pennsyl
vania Central .into a similar arrange
ment, which would give these two roads
the practical monopoly and complete
command of the freight business, at
the same time meeting the growing dei
manas oi tne country ior cneap ixeigni.
The cost of this vast improvemen
would be commensurate with its im
portance, but after all would not amount
to such a sum as to be impossible for
such a powerful corporation as would
be formed by the combination of the
New York Central and Hudson River
and the Lake Shore and Michigan
Southern companies. The first named
company, with the lease of the Harlem
road and its additional tracks, now
nearly comoleted between Albany and
f Buffalo, has practically a quadruple
track from Mew Xork to isullaio. and of
the whole distance between Buffalo and
Chicago 541 miles the Lake Shore
and Michigan Southern Company has
now 823 miles of double track. There
remains, therefore, but 219 miles of
single track to be laid to make that
section a double-track railway and but
541 miles more of double track to com
plete the quadruple track, from New
York to Cnioago. At the latest prices
paid for honest and economical con
structions this work could be done for
$25,000,000. The united capital of the
two roads amounts to $139,428,300 and
the funded debts of the two roads are
about $64,000,000. An addition of
$25,000,000 to tbe latter would make
the aggregate liabilities of the com
bined company amount to $228,000,000,
which, with the new tracks proposed
and present length of main road and
branches, would make an average ih
debtedness per mile of single track of
less tnan $3 , UUO. Jew iorJc urapmc.
The Great Fire at Cronstadt, Rossis.
A St, Petersburg letter, dated Novem
ber 5, says:' "The great fire at Cron
stadt is still the universal topic of con
venation here. Uronstadt, as every
body knows, is on an island at the very
mouth of the River Neva. How, there
fore, a fire in such a place can be allowed
to spread so as to destroy the dwelling
places of from 10,000 to 15,000 people
puzzles many wise men hem The local
paper, the Cronstadt Boten, of to-day,
cives the following details: 'Nine
squares or blocks of houses, including
the Uostinni JJwor, or liazar, nave
been completely destroyed. The mass
of .houses thus laid in ashes was in
habited by 15,000 people. The build
ings consisted -of 101 wooden and 18
stone housed, 1 church, 2 chapels, 50
shops in the Gostinni Dwor, and 78
shops attached to the marine, barracks.'
It will, perhaps, not appear so extraor-
dinarv that a considerable Dart of Cron
stadt has been destroyed by fire, when
it. is remembered tnat it nas not yet
been supplied with any, civilized system
of water-works. People who require
water in Cronstadt have to fetch itf rom
the river which washes its shores, and
as such an operation -can hardly keep
pace with the demand in case of a con
fiogration. it is only astonishing that
the result has not been more disas
trous."; '.. -
lV Facts Worth Remembering.
'The following was gathered by ob
servation and inquiry while buildin
my house the ' past summer, which
willingly give for the benefit of those
designing to build.
One thousand Bhingles' laid four
inches to the weather will cover one
hundred square feet of surface, and five
pounds of shingle nails will fasten
them on.
One-fifth more sidimr and flooring i
needed than the number of square feet
oi jranaoe to De covered, because cf the
lap in the siding anA the matching of
the floor; ......
One thousand lath will cover seventy
yards of surface, and eleven pounds of
la. :ii 'll .1
u uiui viu ubui tnem on.
Eight bushels of (rood lime, sixteen
bushels of sand, and one bushel of hair
will make enough of good mortar to
plaster one hundred square yards.
A cord ef stone, three bushels of
lime, and a cubio yard of sand will lay
one hundred cubio feet of wall.
Five courses of brick will lay one
foot in height on a chimney, six bricks
in a course will make a flue four inches
wide and twelve inches long, and eight
bricks in a course will make, a flue
eight inches wide and sixteen inches
long. W. Oreen, in Prairie
Farmer, 1
Political Pimts.
; The vote, for Governor of MiVinigmi,,,
except four small counties, is r Bagleyv
Rep., 111,353 ; CJhamberlain. Item..
105,700.
Eighteen of the members of the
Forty-second Congress who voted audi
kept the back pay nave been elected to
the Forty-fourth. Of these, nine ar
from the Northern and nine from thsv
Southern States.
Thb Khoxville (Tenn.) Chronic&v
says: The full returns of the recent,
gubernatorial election in this State.eot
oept Johnson county, foot up for Pbr
ter, 104,455 ; Maynard, 54, 9 ; leavingr
Porter's majority 49,486. .
Thb Topeka Record of Nov. 18 clas
sifies the Legislature elect of Kansas a,
follows: Senate 21 Republicans, 13
Opposition ; House 70 . RepubUoanav
36 Opposition. The Senate holds fox
two years, the House for one.
Nevada has got all the returns col
lected. 'The Legislature will stand:
Senate, Republicans, 18 ; Democrats,
7. Assembly, Republicans, SI ; Demo- -crats,
17 ; Independents, 3. Republi
can majority on joint ballot, 22.
Official vote of New York for Gov
ernor :
Tilden, Dem. '.
Dix, Rep
Clark, Temperance ,
..Ml.eeav.
... j,tt
Tllden's clear majority . . . t. 7Sc
The vote of North Carolina in August -has
been declared by the Legislature
as xouows :
Superintendent, 1874. Governor, 1871.
Fool, Deu 98,217MerrinHn, Dea. ..S.Mf
PnraeUi Bep ,18ljOail well, Rep. .. . UHi -.
The ' vote of Pennsylvania, as
officially reported, for Lieutenant-Gor
ernor, is as follows :
Latta, Dem... TTJ,3K .
Olmstead, Bep .TTt.5M r,
Ijstta's majority 4,CI
The majority for Dunnell. Republi
can member of Congress-elect from tbe
First District of Minnesota, lacks only
5 votes of being 3,000. Strait's (Rep.) ,
over Cox, in the Second District, is 221..
and King's (Rep.) over Wihon. in the.
Third, is 42,348.
The votes for members of Coaeress
in Maryland are : -
Dirt. Bepub. j
1. Goldsboro. : . . .10,147
Dem.
Jfs.
2,31 It
3,444
,&
3,4-M
1,410
7S-.
Thomas 12,460
Hubert. ...... li,6)tt
O'Brien ..... ,28C
Swann .. 10,234
2. Elisor 8,238;
3. Snter 4,834
Cox 610
Haftner. . . . .....JO.ni
Henkle U.HO'i
Walsb...,....12,'S;
6. Lowndes... .....12,89
The official vote of Alabama,
pared with that of 1872, is as follows :
Governor. 1874,
Governor, 18T2.
Houston, Dem.. .107,118
.Henidon, Dem.... Kl,3m.
Lewis, Rep y3,krjl
Lewis, Hep K.b .
Totsl 201.04 Total.. 171
Dmd. mai..: 13,iatllKp. maj MW.
The Arkansas V. V. Smith is a son of -
Delegan B! Smith, who went to Iowa .
from New York in 1846, and remained
there tilt 1852, when he went to Oregon
where.'after several years' prominence
in politics, he in 1859 was elected Sen- -atorof
the prospective State, but died
in I860. -
3?he statement that the last Demo
cratic Governor of Massachusetts was .
elected in 1839 is an error. George
Boutwell was first elected by the Demo
crats in 1851 ; then by the Coalition in
1853, which re-elected him, sent Charles -Sumner
to the Senate, made Henry
Wilson. President of the State Senate. ,
and Banks Speaker of the State Legis
lature.
The Columbia Union-Herald gives
the vote of South Carolina for Goverao
as follows:
Governor, 1874. I Governor, 18T7.
Chamberlain, Bep. 80,531 iMoase, Rep '
Green, Opp C8,INI4 romlinaou, Opp . . --
Tne Unton-Merala also ciassines tne -
Legislature elect :
' " " Senate. BMim TettU. .
BepabUcans 1 71 M
Democrat. 7 y
Independents.... 7 an -
So far, five colored men have been
elected to the next .House of Bepre- -senta
tires, and they are all bow men..
Two are from South Carolina, one front
North Carolina, one from Alabama. antX
one from Louisiana. One of the South
Carolinians (Lee) is a Democrat, and.
was eleoted by a Democratic and bolt
ing Republican constituency. One col-
pred man B. - K. Brucehas been
elected to the United States Senate-
from Mississippi.
A Washington telegram says : " A
gentleman of prominence in Indiana.,
politics arrived here a few days ago
and says tnat tbe canvass for t he
United States Senators hip is becoming:
ratber -warm, lie be neves tna Uae- -
choice will fall on either McDonald- or -Voorhees.
Intelligence received di-
rect from Senator Chandler says that ;
he is confident of his re-election from.'
Michigan. Congressman Hale, nt
son-in-law, now here, feels also assured
of Chandler's re-election."
The vote of New Jersey foots up s
follows : For Governor, Joseph D. Bedle,
Democrat. 97,254: George A. Halsey.
Republican, 83,945. The whole vote i
22,454 -greater than the vote for Gover
nor in 1871. The returns from Congress .
give footings as follows :
Diet. ' Rrpub. t 'Dem,
1. Slnnleltson......l4,WMi
Aleertson. 13.01.
Smith...., 13,us
Hoes .. l&,cnt
2. Dobbons.
.13,1(71
8. Clark...
4. Place.... ,
ft. Phelps...
..13,643
.. .9,941
..11,672
..13,7
.. 8,272
Hamilton...; I4.SM-
uutler njgtesi.
Terse .. ..isjwvj
t. win. ...
T. Scndder.
Hardenburg 11,1S
A story is told of a ' young man oi
Louisville. Ga,, becoming smitten withe
a young lady of Savannah, and oftessv
visiting her at her father's home. Tins-,
father did not like bim as often hap
pens, and bethought him of a way to
get rid of the visitor. It was a very
pious thought too; The couple- were in .
the parlor at 11 o'clock one night, andt
the rest of the family were ia the si&--ting-room
very sleepy. The old mas,
invited the couple to join in family
worship, and asked the young man soJL
emnly to read a chapter from tbe family- -Bible.
He was obliged to submit, and',
stammered through the' chapter. At.
the close there was a pause and tbm
the old man asked the .reader to lead ir
prayer.' This was more than heeouha
stand. He dropped tbe book, seized!
his hat and bolted for the front door.,
which was quickly bolted after hisa
The young man walked to the first rail
road station out of town and waited for
the morning train. He has since bad
no call to Savannah, and there is not so
much worship in -that house as for
merly. - J'
A patent has been renUv taken
in England for a substitute for IeilMv
whichgis produced in perfect
of different ds of leather., TW
sheets of fibrous pulp, from which th
material is made, are pressed into renl,
skins of leather, the grain of the ak,
to be imitated being thus Mcnrately is
produced. The article is called leath
erette, costs one-eighth as much mm
leather and is stronger and of mar
uniform-quality. The British . Trod
Tnirnal. which describes it, does
give any description of the .process
manufacture. , ,
Handles without gloves
forks, generally.
-Knives ansa