The Corvallis gazette., November 14, 1879, Page 4, Image 4

WEEKLY CORY ALMS G.4 Z ETTE
CORVALLIS, - - NOVEMBER 14, 1879
A COURIER'S STOBY.
My name is Carl Johann Roeckel. By
birth and nationality I am a Swiss, but
cosmopolitan in every tafc and habit.
In mv early days I regtuHiy followed
the pl-ofession of a courier, as I do now
occasionally, when any of my old pat
rons or their friends require such ser
vices, which is rather infrequent, the
taste of the tiaveling public having de
generated into hasty journeys by express
trains, with the consequent loss of all
enjovment of the different phases of
scenery through which the travelers
are passing. In the course of my many
years experience I have been witness to
many strange occurrences, have assisted
in many a secret and adventurous under
taking, and have been subject to many
perils. From among such varied expe
riences I give the following strange story,
suppressing for obvious reasons the real
names of those interested.
Many years ago I was engaged as
courier to his Excellency the Honorable
Fredrick Eslington, embassador-extraor-dinary
of his Britannic Majesty King
George, on a special secret mission to
one of the great continental powers.
Having finished his duties and success
fully attained the object of his mission,
we started on our homeward journey in
the summer of 18 . The period was one
to be long remembered, from the politi
cal excitement which existed throughout
all Europe, almost every government
having unsheathed the sword. We had
traveled a considerable part of the first
stage of our return journey, when his
Excellency, who was teeiing tne iaugues
of the incessant traveling in the heavy,
rumbling carriage, said he should stop
at the next town we arrived at, and take
rest and refieshment, both of which be
was much in need of, besides having im
portant state documents to transcribe.
In due course we arrived at the small
town of S , on the confines of Ger
many, where we put up. We staid a day
and a half there; and I was then instruct
ed to have the carriage and horses in
readiness to continue our journey. His
Excellency meanwhile had completed his
writings, to which he had assiduously
applied himself, and told me, as it was
a fine afternoon, he would take a short
walk, and on his return resume his jour
ney at once, and I must therefore make
all necessary preparations. He accord
ingly left the hotel. But he was never
seen afterward, nor was anything known
of his fate.
I waited for upward of an hour anx
iously, and then made a close search for
him, which I continued for several days,
but not a trace could I discover of my
master. A villager, however, living out
side the town, brought to me at the hotel
a pair of overalls, which he stated he had
found in a neighboring copse. I recog
nized the garment as belonging to his
Excellency, and at once repaired with
the villager to the copse, and closely ex
amined the spot, but found no trace or
sign of any struggle.
Finding it useless to prosecute the
search, I at once returned to London
with his Excellency's traveling gear,
which I handed to his family. The Brit
ish Government at once instituted in
quiries, as also did his Excellency's fam
ily, and large rewards were offered by
both, and advertisements widely dissem
inated for any information respecting
the missing ambassador ; but they failed
one and all, to gain any information or
the slightest clue to his fate. A certain
amount of suspicion attached to me, but
it was only momentary, and I at once
cleared myself of it, and assisted the dis
tracted wife and her missing husband's
family as much as lay in my power.
Well I remember the agonies of anxiety
and suspense caused to the ambassador's
wife and family by the distressing cal
amity. Magisterial investigation was
made, experts were employed, and every
endeavor made to penetrate the dark veil
of mystery surrounding the event; but
all efforts were unsuccessful. One of
his Majesty's ambassadors had myster
iously and completely disappeared, with
out leaving a clew to' light up the awful
obscurity which enveloped the tragic oc
currence. Several years had elapsed since the
distressing event, and the memory, the
painful memory of it, was beginning to
fade from my mind, when I happened to
be in Antwerp, on a short tour through
Belgium with patrons. And while list
lessly strolling by myself on the quay
one "summer's evening, watching the
passengers disembark from the newly ar
rived steamer, I was accosted by a mean,
haggard-looking little man of beggarly
appearance, who spoke to me in Flemish.
'Are you not Herr Roeckel, the cour
ier?" he said.
"Yes," replied L "What do you want
with me ? Who are you ?"
"I suppose you have quite forgotten
me ?" said he.
I stared at him keenly. Tiie man's
features were somewhat familiar to me,
yet I was confused in my remembrance
of how and where I had seen him. "I
dont know you,' said I.
"Yes you do, and very well," replied
he. "My name is Ludwig Kuhl, and I
have frequently driven you in the first
stage out of Vienna. I did so when you
were courier to his Excellency, the Hon
orable Eslington, in the summer of the
year 18."
(The courier is remembered even when
the patron is forgotten, for it is to us
that landlords and their servants look for
their gratuities.)
I stared at him, and then recognized
the haggard looks. "True," said I; " I
remember you well now. How goes it
with you ? What do here in Antwerp ?
At the old trade, eh ?"
"Ah,no," he replied with a deeply
drawn sigh, "it's a long story, and I
can't tell it to you here in all this noise
and bustle. Let us go to a quiet cabaret."
I agreed ; and in our short walk I re
volved in my mind all those circumstan
ces, so dark and impenetrable in their
profound mystery, which had happened
years before. And I remembered how
our postilion,Ludwig Kuhl, had assisted
me in the unavailing search for his Ex
ceUency. Soon we reached a little cabar
et, their name is legion in Antwerp in
one of the back streets near the cathe
dral; and with a glass of his favorite
Boonjekamp in front of him, he seated
himself, and told me the following sequel
to the mysterious disappearance:
"You must remember me, friend,' he
began, "when I was in a better condition
than you now see me;" and he scanned
his wcetched garments, shrugging his
shoulders with an impatient air.
I nodded acquiescence.
"Well," said he, "you must also know
in your long experience of travel that all
classes of society on the continent, and
particularly in Vienna, have their secret
club. The postilions had theirs; but it
was subject to the rule of the Chief
Secret society. In my younger days,
friend, I was induced, in an unlncky mo
ment, to enroll myself as a member, and
take the oaths of the Secret Society of
Postilions. Bitterly have I repented
since, for it is to that circumstance I owe
my present deplorable state of mind and
position."
"But what has that to do with the mys
terious case of his Excellency?" I asked
of him, somewhat impatiently.
"Much more than you imagine or can
ever know, friend," replied he, senten
tiously wagging his head. He paused
for a moment. "Well, I wiU tell you,"
continued he, "though you must not
break my story with your inquiring com
ments. Firstly, then, you must know
that I was on the establishment of Herr
Sputzen, the carriage-master and stable
keeper from whom his Excellency the
Honorable Eslington hired his traveling
carriage and horses for his return jour
ney. It was known to the Chief Secret
Society that his Excellency was in pos
session of important papers, and it was
also known that he was upon the point of
starting with them for England. The
Chief Commander had important reasons
for obtaining these papers, or copies of
them, and of one in particular above all
others, by f ir means or foul; and what
the Chief says is to be done, is done in
variably at any cost . Tne committee had
balloted for the person who must execute
tfieir orders, and their choice had fallen
on me as postilion, and the more likely
to effect a successful result. By virtue
of my oath I was bound to obey, or I
should have suffered a secret death, by
assassination probably. I need not tell
you my instructions; but a dreadful fate
awaited you m the event oi you or ms
Excellency obstructing our wishes. In
every town through which we passed
there were emissaries of the Chief Soci
ety to assist me, eo great as the organiza
tion ; and when I received your orders to
pull up at the next town, which, if you
remember, was 8 , I knew the wishes
of the Chief Commander would be
effectually carried out. The landlord of
the hotel you staid at, and the head host
ler were known to me as members of the
Chief Society, and there were other resi
dents in the "town also members, whom I
did not know. So you see my friend,
how his Excellency and you were encom
passed in a net from which there was no
escape," and he chuckled to himself as
he said it. "Now you remember how his
Excellency was always engaged in
writing his dispatches and documents.
Well, there was consequently great diffi
culty in getting a view of the papers
without adopting foul means, and time
was of great importance to the Chief
Commander.
"What!" I exclaimed, in great aston
ishment, my hair almost on end with the
suddennessof the confession "what! Do
you mean to tell me, Carl Johann
Roeckel, that you murdered his Excel
lency in cold blood?"
"Not exactly that, friend," he quietly
replied. "When His Excellency went
for that short walk, the head hostler also
went for a stroll in the same direction.
A short distance from the town the host
ler met a friend, also a member, and they
quickly bound and gagged His Excel
lency and carried him to the cellar of the
latter's house, where they kept him
secretly until after the excitement of the
disappearance and search had subsided,
when he was taken to Vienna in the in
voluntary disguise of a dangerous luna
tic peasant, and afterward " And he
made a significant sign indicative of
strangulation. "The papers were ab
stracted by the landlord, and handed to
me, and I in turn delivered them to the
Chief Commander personally. Nothing
was ever said about the missing docu
ments if you recollect, because only one
other person besides His Excellency
and the Chief Commander knew of them,
and he dared not say what they were."
"But how," asked I, "was everything
kept so quietly, as the British Govern
ment made a great ado over the matter,
and large rewards were offered ?"
"Well," replied he, "those to whom
the matter was referred were mostly
members of the Chief Society, which,
yon must remember, numbered in its
roll members of all ranks and stations.
The pair of overalls found in the copse
some days after the disappearance were
purposely placed there to lead and en
courage the belief that His Excellency
had been robbed and then murdered."
"But you do not account for your be
ing here in Antwerp now," said I.
"Well, friend," continued he, and he
drew himself closer to me and spoke in
a very low tone "well, the Chief Com
mander, in consequence of the stir made
by both the British and our Government,
and fearing disclosure on account of the
large rewards offered, took effective
steps to prevent it by ordering the
deaths of those concerned in the tragedy.
The landlord of the hotel, however, sud
denly decamped to America where he
will be tracked, never fear after hear
ing of the deaths of the hostler and his
friend, who were found stabbed in their
beds; and I escaped here, by circuitous
routes, and I have remained in hiding
ever since. But I am really known and
discovered, and I go daily in fear of my
life. The sign of the Black Dagger
here" and he tore open his vest and
shirt, disclosing the print of a dagger on
his breast "is known to all members of
the Secret Society. My death-warrant
has long ago been signed, and I am
studiously watched, I feel certain. Even
now " And he suddenly stopped, cast
ing a cautious glance around the room,
and pointing to a stranger who was
silently smoking and drinking, to all ap
pearance engrossed in their enjoyment.
"I must leave you," he said, in a hur
ried hoarse whisper, "Good-by, friend;"
and he crept out of the cabaret quickly.
The next morning Ludwig Kuhl's
body was found floating in the canal,
near its entrance to the Scheldt, pierced
in the breast by a short dagger with the
device in German on its flat black han
dle, "We wait."
The V eat a -Trap
Graham Bkead in Histoby. The
Phrenological Journal for October is
the authority for the historical feature
of Graham bread. It says: During
the administration of William Pitt, in
England,, there was a scarcity of wheat,
and in order to make it go as far as
possible, Parliament passed a law that
all the bread for the army should be
of unbolted wheat meal. History states
that the result was snch an improved
condition of health among the soldiers
as surprised them, and also their
officers and the surgeons. The latter
declared that never before were the
soldiers so robust and healthy, and
that disease had nearly disappeared
from the army. For a long time this
kind of bread was used almost exclu
sively, but when the wheat became
once more abundant, its use was discontinued.
Nature's glazier Jack Frost.
Mr. Warren, the mate of the whaleship
Roberts, was loved and respected by
every man in the vessel, with the excep
tion of Harry Thompson a tall, dark
browed youth, of an evil, quarrelsome
disposition. Thompson had taken a dis
like to the mate from the moment he dis
covered the latter was a man calculated
to win the esteem of his crew. He
(Thompson) had hoped to excite the
men to mutiny; but Jten he perceived
how kindly they were treated by the first
officer, he knew to accomplish his pur
pose he must first remove Warren from
his path. Night and day, therefore, he
watched for an opportunity to take the
life of the mate to strike the murderous
blow in such a way as to avoid detection.
Days, weeks and months glided on; the
ship rounded the stormy Cape Horn,
bowling along toward the sperm-whale
cruising ground off the GaUipagos, and
still the dark-browed viUain waited for a
chance to accomplish his hellish work.
One evening, just after sundown, while
the hands were eating their supper, the
weU-known cry of "There she blows!"
came down from the masthead, causing
every man to spring to his feet. Whales
were discovered about a league off the
lee bow; and the captain, having ordered
the main-yard hauled back, darted aloft
with his glass slung over his shoulder.
Soon after he was ordering his mates to
lower their boats.
With a glad shout the men sprung to
the davits, the ropes slid through the
tackle-blocks, and the boats, dropping
into the water, were soon manned.
"Give way, lads!" cried the mate, seiz
ing his steering oar. "Give way with a
will!"
"Ay, ay," responded the crew, and the
voice of Thompson, who pulled the bow
oar. was the loudest.
A strange light shone in his evil eyes;
his teeth were compressed, ne seemea to
think the moment for which he had
waited so long was at hand.
The four boats glided swiftly over the
long, heavy swells so common in the
Pacific, the mate taking the lead, and in
a short time the spouting of a whale was
heard a few fathoms ahead.
"Your paddles men your paddles!"
gritted the first officer through his
clenched teeth. "Stand up, Hal!"
Hal was the boatsteerer or harpooner.
He sprang lightly to his feet, his iron
readv in his hand. But just as the mate
was on the point of giving the familiar
order, "Give it to him! " the monster of
the deep turned flukes and disappeared.
Warren fairly turned pale with dis
appointment. "There, we've lost him!" he cried.
"I think you're mistaken, sir," said the
harpooner. "Yonder," pointing to the
mast, "is the top of the moon's disc just
rising above the sea. We'll have light
enough, I reckon, to see that humpbacked
chap when he comes up again.
"Ay, ay, you are right, Hal," answered
the mate, rubbing his hands. "I never
before whaled it by moonlight; but we'll
have a chance to do so now, for I'll keep
on that fellow's track until we get a
chance to plant an iron in his hump, if it
takes me all night, This is our first
lowering since we sailed, and blow me if
I don't mean that it shall be a lucky one.
Pull ahead!"
The crew obeyed, and in the course of
half an hour the spout of the whale was
seen rising like a jet of liquid silver about
a quarter of a mile ahead of the boat.
The moon had by this time risen high
above the horizon, sprinkling water-stars
all over the surface of the sea.
"Pull ahead stretch yourselves, my
lads!" cried the mate. "We'll soon have
an iron in that chap ahead."
The men pulled with a will, and in a
short time the boat was within six fath
oms of the monster.
"Stand up, Hal!"
And the boatsteerer sprang to his feet.
"Give it to him!"
The harpoon clove the air with a rush
ing sound, and was buried to the socket
in the hump. Then came the order to
"stern;" and as the whale sounded, the
mate and boatsteerer changed places.
The boat was now rushing through the
water with the speed of lightning, the
spray foaming and boiling around her
bow, and her gunwales forward almost
on a level with the water.
With a triumphant flash lighting his
snake-like eyes, Thompson stooped side
ways from his thwart to unlash one of
the lances secured to the side of the boat.
"Quick! Quick, my man! Hurry up
with that lance! exclaimed the mate,
stretching out his hand to receive the
weapon
"Ay, ay, sir," answered Thompson in
a hoarse voice ; and suddenly rising up
with the deadly steel in his hand, he
he contrived to stumble in such a man
ner as would, he hoped, cause the blade
to pierce the bosom of the mate.
The latter, however, avoided the stroke
by stepping nimbly to one side, when
with pretended anxiety Thompson quick
ly rose, declaring that he never could
have forgiven his own awkwardness if
the mate had suffered from it.
' 'Don't mention it," exclaimed Warren,
"Accidents will sometimes happen. You
were not to blame for stumbling," and
he took the lance from the other's hand.
Foiled in this attempt upon the life of
the man he hated, Thompson quickly re
solved to make another. The slackening
of the line soon afforded him the oppor
tunity he craved. While the men were
hauling upon the rope, he contrived,
unobserved, to twist into several kinks,
the part which was nearest the mate,
just as the whale came looming up from
the ocean, within darting distance of the
boat.
"Now, then," Thompson mentally ex
claimed, "the moment the whale sounds
one of the kinks I have prepared will be
come entangled about the mate's leg, or
his neck, and drag him overboard. There
goes the lancel" he continued aloud, as
Warren hurled the weapon, with unerr
ing aim, into the monster's body.
Up went the flukes of the whale, and
the next moment he disappeared a sec
ond time beneath the green chambers of
the sea.
Then, as the line ran whipping through
the chocks of the boat, the kinks which
had been arranged by Thompson to en
snare the life of the mate, flew upward
like wreathing serpents, forming a
"bight," which, glancing past the firstof
ficer as he dodged to avoid it, caught
tightly around the neck of the villain who
had prepared the infernal trap, and
pulled him overboard with the velocity
of a cannon ball. The mate instantly
severed the bine with a blow of his hatch
et, but Thompson was never seen again
by the crew of the Roberts.
A few days afterwards the whale was
recaptured, killed and towed to the ship.
At a funeral service the minister in his
remarks, was dwelling upon his loss to
the husband, when the worthy spoke up:
"Never mind me. Just throw your heft
l on the corpse."
od Stories About the Prince of Wales.
The Prince of Wales has scored
several points in the line of popu
larity this summer, at which one
may be the more satisfied because he
nevor aims at popularity. Instead
of the rumors of fust flirtation at
Trouville or elsewhere, which in
other summers have reached the
clubs and percolated among the peo
ple, the gossip this year is all of a
healthy, hearty, rustic kind, such as
paterfamilias ldves to rehearse to his
daughters as proof that the Prince
has sown his wild oats, and that the
high character of the throne is safe.
The Prince has been picnicking in
Devonshire and yachting and making
himself agreeable to humble people.
On one occasion while picnicking
with aristocratic hosts it is found
the cream has been left behind; tea
is ready all but that. The Prince
espies in the diutance another pic
nicking party, rushts off, and ex
plains to the ladies the melancholy
condition his party is in. He cries
"We are creamless!" The ladies
give him plenty of cream, not know
ing to whom they were giving it
for the Prince has a taking way
among ladies which would avail him
were he only Mr. A. Edwards. And
now behold the Prince walking o'er
moor and fen, o'er lonely sands by
the wild sea waves, bearing a jug
full of cream without spilling it!
This will remain for some future
laureate to place among the Idyls of
the King! or Jimperor!
The other day the Prince con
cluded he would like to see the in
terior of Kent's Hole, which is just
outside Torquay. Popular tradition
says that the cavern's name is de
rived from the circumstance that a
dog which went in there once came
above ground in Kent county, about
180 miles away. But the clerical
tradition is that it is a by-way to an
unmentionable place where the
Prince of Darkness forges fossil re
mains for skeptics to fling at Moses.
The scientific exploration of this
cavern is under the official superin
tendence of the geologist Pengelly;
and it being necessary that a cave in
which human remains are found
along with extinct animals should
not be tampered with by fanatics,
care is taken that parties shall not
be admitted to the important part of
the cave without Pengelly's permis
sion. Pengelly is nearly always
there, but he happened to be absent
when the Prince called. The Prince
knew nothing of the regulations; he
walked about two miles to the spot;
he found there a boy of sixteen at
the door, As ho was entering the
boy said: "You can't go without a
candle." "Will you please give me
a candle?" asked the PnircA lil am
ordered not to give a candle unless
Mr. Pengelly teHs-me, and be is
away now." So spake the boy, and
a fire breathing dragon could not
have been a more effectual guardian
of that Hades. The Prince asked
the bay for a light, lit his cigar, gave
the lad a piece of silver and trudged
back again, no doubt reflecting on
Frederick the Great's definition, "a
Prince is only the first of subjects,1'
well enough translated in the motto
"Ich dien."
Finally, it is pleasant to know
that the Prince of Wales, having
sent his sons on a voyage round the
world, has gone on his yacht to
Copenhagen, no doubt to visit his
wife's relations. London Corr. Cin
cinnati Commercial.
A TlTRTIiK AND STURGEON FlQHT. C.
S. S. Home, while fishing recently in
Flint river Georgia, was disturbed by
the continual falling of some heavy body
in the water. After listening for some
time he concluded that something un
nsurl was going on, seizing his gun,
went forward to investigate. On the
opposite side of the river he saw a white
object with a large dark one attacking it.
A boat being handy, he bailed it, and ex
pediously and quietly passed over. He
struck the bank about twelve feet above
the cause of the disturbance, seized his
gun, and as the boat swung around with
the stream fired at the head of the dark
object. He then dropped the gun, and
as the beat drifted he lifted an immense
logger-head turtle into it, after which he
pulled in the other object, which proved
to be a large sturgeon. Before he could
recross the river, the turtle, which was
only stunned by the bird-shot, recovered
and showed fight. The situation was
lively and interesting. The boat was
leaky, and the water deep and swift, the
turtle large, strong and determined on a
fight. It advanced with open mouth, and
Cul's gun was empty. He gave the boat
all the impetus possible, stuck the
paddle in the beast's mouth, drew a little
penknife from his pocket and tried to cut
its throat. As the turtle kept its hold on
the paddle, he succeeded in this after
several efforts. He then carried his prize
home, and found that it weighed fifty or
sixty pounds. The sturgeon, he sup
posed, weighed thirty or forty. Ameri
can Republican.
A Remarkable Monstrosity. With
all of its other wonders, North Carolina
has now given birth to one of the most
remarkable monstrosities ever known to
the medical world in this or any other
age. This phenomenon has been dis
covered to exist a few miles from this
place, It is stated by the father, a negro
living some ten or twelve miles south
of this place, that this prodigious lusm
naturae is an almost counter-part of the
frog, with hands, feet and in form of
body very near similar to that of this am
phibious animal. In habits almost the
same, it exhibits a decided preference for
the watery element, and at night, when
croaking, guttural notes of the number
less neptunian choirs are re-echoed and
reverberated throughthe wood land
marshes, this would-be aquatic peals forth
its strange, unnatural song, which the
father avers is almost the same in in
tonation and sound as that produced by
the pond frog, only on a coarser and.
louder scale, keeping it up until about
the hour of midnight, when he, she or it
lulls him, her or itself into quietness and
sleep. It has been on exhibition in this
place for the past few days. The creature
has attracted a great deal of attention,
and a number of medical men from dis
tances have come here in the past few
days to examine it.
Death of Cora Pearl.
Emma Crutch, better known as Cora
Pearl, the "first horsewoman of the sec
ond empire," is dead at the age of fifty
years. The genesis of this pleasing per
sonage is uncertain. Her own story of
her birth and early life varied with her
auditor, and was romantic or prosaic as
was prompted by the fancy of the mo
ment. Certainly she was an English wo
man ; probably she was the daughter of a
respectable music dealer, whose shop
was in Regent street. Being disowned
by her parents, and being driven out of
England by a prosecution for debt, she
took up her abode in Paris in the days
when the second empire was in the fuU
flood of its artificial prosperity. She had
not a handsome face, but she had a fine
figure, and she rode superbly. Liter
ally, she galloped into notoriety in Paris,
and under the rule of the third Napoleon
notoriety was fame. Her great conquest
was Jerome Napoleon, whom she captured
whilst out with the Prince's staghounds
at Mendon riding to hounds and riding
to heart's were pretty much the same
thing with this cheerful young person.
Counts a many and Dukes a few served
also in her train, and stray Americans
possessed of large fortunes were permit
ted to purchase her smiles at the ruling
rates of the market. The ruling rates of
the market uniformly were high. With
the Franco-Prussian war and the com
mune the star of Cora's destiny paled;
and as she was growing to be an oldish
woman by this time it never again
recovered its brilliancy. Astronomically
speaking, she reached the point of
her highest ascension simultaneously
with the empire that is to say,
in 1867, the exhibition year. It was in
this year that she played Cupid in the
opera of "Orphee aux Enfers," dressing
the part expensively, tastefuUy, but not
excessively, in a zone and necklace of
diamonds. After the wreck of the empire
Cora returned to Paris Jiaving been tem
porarily domiciled in London and gath
ered together the remnant of her court.
But it was a dark time in Paris; she was
growing old; her titled friends no longer
were numerous, and the few left to her
were far less friendly than of yore. But
she was rich, for, with commendable
prudence, she had garnered her harvest
while tne sun still snone. unaer inis
combination of circumstances the time
seemed favorable for her turning devo
tee. However, young Duval, the rich
proprietor of the many cheap eating
houses in Paris founded by the worthy
butcher, his father, appeared upon the
scene, and his plaint expressed fre
quently, and always in four figures was
heeded. All .Fans laugnea at tnis con
quest that the industrious Cora had
made in the youth of her old age, and
Cora laughed, too, for the francs that she
was winning were plentiful and real.
When the francs were all gone she
dropped the butcher's son as she would
have dropped an orange that she had
squeezed dry. The butcher's son being
refused admission to her apartment, in
continently shot himself upon the
threshold. This was in Christmas week,
1872. The upshot of the affair was that
Cora was ordered out of France. Since
that time she has drifted about Europe,
leading not a very satisfactory life; for
the never very great charm of her per
son has staled with custom and withered
sadly with age.
A Centenabian Smoker. We lately
chronicled the death of a stout centena
rian in the Isle of Skye, an old woman,
but the really "oldest inhabitant" is only
now dead, and she, too, was Scotch, Mrs.
Margaret Robertson, or Duncan, died
two days since at Coupar Angus in her
107th year. She was born in Glensee,
we are told, in 1773, and had lived under
the reign of three British Kings and one
Queen. Until about six or eight years
ago she retained possession of her facul
ties, but then she became blind, and,
about a year since, bedridden. She was
very intelligent, it is stated, and talked
in terms of becoming scorn of the poor,
feeble creatures who could not manage
to live longer than a paltry eighty or
ninety years, which, she declared, "nae
age ava" (Anglice, "at all"). But how
did this seasoned old dame, it may be
asked, manage to "top" the century in
longevity? For one thing she was a de
voted smoker. The clay pipe was con
stantly in her mouth, and she repudiated
the notion that it could do her any harm.
When spoken to about the injurious
effects of the tobacco, her invariable an
swer was, "I've smoked a' my days. It's
has plenty time to dae me ill, and it's
never socht" (sought) . Mrs. Duncan's
deduction from her long experience- will
be admitted to be perfectly sound, and
every smoker will refer with pleasure to
the tough old lady, of Coupar Angus as a
conclusive proof of the antiseptic proper
ties of his favorite weed. London Tele
graph. A Grateful Country. When we are
informed that the expenses of a funeral
of an English soldier in Zululand are de
ducted from the arrears of a man's pay,
our breast swells with emotion while we
contemplate upon the overpowering
gratitude of the Christian nation under
the benign sway of Her Most Gracious
Majesty the Queen of Great Britain and
Ireland and Empress of India. We feel
just like forsaking father and mother,
sisters and brothers, and our maiden
aunt, and cleaving into a suit of badly
fittidg raiment, a gun, a knapsack, haver
sack, canteen, and ten dozen pounds of
other personal baggage, and, after wal
lowing for years in mud and mire, and
going through fire and water, lay down
our life for that great nation aforesaid,
gladly giving our last cent to pay for the
funeral vouchsafed to us by our grateful,
noble, high-minded, conscientious, en
lightened and Christian countrymen.
Bismarck's Detectives in Vienna.
Prince Bismarck was accompanied to the
Kaiserstadt by six Prussian detectives
under a leader, Herr Krieger. A great
crowd assembled in the courtyard and
around the portals of the Imperial Hotel
to see the Chancellor drive off en grand
tenue to his audience with the Emperor;
and Herr Krieger, with his head doubt
less full of attentats, begged the Aus
trian police to clear the people away, as
is nowadays unceremoniously done in
Berlin when a swell has to pass. The
surly Prussian mouchard, however,
started in astonishment when he received
the laughing rebuff by the Inspector.
"Sir, we in Vienna are accustomed to
allow the people to stand where they
like in the public street as long as they
behave decently. I have no order to
clear away the crowd, and you may reBt
assured that there is not the least cause
for anxiety.
A Milwaukee girl suffering from lock
jaw was left alone with a mouse by the
shrewd physician, and she contrived to
open her mouth wide enough to give a
yell that made the crockery in the china
closet rattle. Boston Post.
Afghan Justice. The method of dis
pensing and carrying the law into execu
tion in Cabul seems to be somewhat
primitive, judging from the following in
cident which is supplied by the corres
pondent of the Lahore paper: In a quar
rel between two artillerymen and a sort
of accident of a kind that sometimes
happens on purpose, the bayonet of one
man became implanted in the stomach of
the other, and inflicted a wound that re
sulted fatally. The friends and relatives
of the deceased declared that they would
only be satisfied by the life of the de
linquent being left in their hands, and
according to the usual custom in such
cases, the prisoner who made over to
to do what they liked with him. It was
immediately agreed that hanging was
the most appropriate, and all the neces
sary preparations for the ceremony were
completed, when one of the relatives,
more bloodthirsty than the rest, de
manded the privilege of cutting the un
fortunate man's throat. At an interest
ing period of the tragedy the Colonel of
the prisoner's battery arrived on the
scene with a bag of Rs. 1000,of which ob
tained an instant reprieve for the mori
bund artilleryman. Bombay Gazette.
SAFE & LOCK COMPANY,
CAPITAL - - - l,00,0
General Offices nd Wannfactory
CINCINNATI, OHIO.
PACIFIC BRANCH,
No. 210 Sansome St., S. F
Agency for Oregon and Washington Territory,
with HAWLEY, DODD k CO., Portland.
HALL'S PATENT CONCRETE
FIRE-PROOF SAFES.
Have been tested by the most disastrous confla
grations in the country.
They are thoroughly fire proof.
They are free from dampness.
Their snperiority is beyond question.
Although about 150,000 of these safes are now
in use, and hundreds have been tested by some
of the most disastrous conflagrations in the
country, there is not a single instance ou record
wherein one of them ever failed to preserve its
contents perfectly.
HALL'S PATENT DOVETAILED
TENON AND CIIOOVB
BURGLAR-PROOF
-AFEJi.
Have never been broken ofien and robbed by
burglars or robbers.
Hall's burglar work is protected by letters
patent, and his work cannot l equaled lawfully.
His patent bolt is superior to any in use.
His patent locks cannot be picked by the most
skillful experts or burglars.
By one of the greatest improvement" known,
the "Gross Automatic Movement, our locks are
operated withont any arbor or spindle passing
through the door and into the lock.
Our locks cannot be opened or picked by bur
glars or experts, (as in case of other locks), and we
will put from $1,0(10 o $10,000 behind them any
time against an equal amount.
The most skilled workmen only are employed.
Their work cannot be excelled.
Hall's Safes and Locks can be relied on at all
times.
They are carefully and thorugbly constructed.
THEY ARE THE HEM SiFK
Made in America, or any other country.
One Thousand Dollars
To any person who cm prove that one of Hall's
patent burglar-proof safes has ever been
broken open and robbed by
burglars up to the
I resent time.
B. i. WILLIAMS,
Agent for Oregon and W. T.
Office wlili Han-ley, I. odd Co..
28febl6:9tr. Portland.
Eef.s Hamlin. Emmett F. Wbenn.
DRAY ACE !
DRAYACE!
Hamlin Sc Wrenn. Propr's.
TTAV1NG W&T RETURNED FROM
Salem with a new truck, and having
leased the barn formerly occupied by James Eg
lin, we are now preja:ed to do all kinds of
D RAYING AND H AULING,
either in the city or country, at the lowest living
rates. Can be found at the old truck stand. A
share of the public patronage respectfully solic
ited. Corvallis, Dec. 27. 187S. li:52tf
JOB PRINTING.
THE
Gazette Job Printing House
IS NOW PREPARED TO DO
Plain and Ornamental Printing,
As neat and Cheap as it can be done by any
Office on the Coast.
Bill Bead,
Abetter Head
note hrada.
P. orrannct,
Ball Tickets.
Invitations
Circular,
ttaiae-s ards.
Visiting Cards,
Labels.
Dodgers.
feuiall rasters.
Kaveloaes. .
l.eal Blanks'
Bank Botes,
anipplas; Receipts,
Order Books,
Unas,
TaB.
.le., Etc
a-Orders by mail promptly filled. Esti
mates furnished.
AUGUST KNIGHT,
CABINET MA.ICEW,
AND
UNDERTAKER.
Cor. Second and Monroe St.,
CORViLLlB, - - oRteoH.
Keeps constantly on hand all kinds of
FURN1TU3E
COFFINS AND CASKETS.
Work done to order on short notice, and
at reasonable rates.
Corvallis. Jan. 1, 1877.
books mvm ARE B0UKS.
Good. Books for All."
W.?!",f8 which should be found In every library
Within the nuwh nf oil .J i '
. . . , , ... loutcis. nums w vu-
tertain, instruct and improve. Copies will
sent by return post, on receipt of price.
Z 2fTT' or 8,gua of Character, as
manifested through Temperament, and Exter-?1l;0J'r07-nud
"'P80'11"' n the Human Face
h more than 0ne Thousand Illus
trations. By Samuel R. Wells. 768 pages.
Heavy muslin. $5.80.
Hydropathic Encyclopedia; A system of Hygiene
embracing Outlines of Anatomy, Physiology
of the Human Body ; Preservation of Health :
Hygienic Treatment; Special Pathology and
Therapeutics including the Nature, Causes
Symptoms and Treatment of all Known Dis-
Tra11' M-D- X
Wedlock; or The Eight Relations of the Sexes.
A Scientific Treatise, disclosing the Laws of
WhJUfrtlSe?t;rn- Show!nS Who May and
Who May Not Marry. By Samuel R. Wells.
How to Head; and Hints in Choosing the Best
Books, with a Classified L;st of Works of Bio
graphy, History, Criticism, Fine Arts, Poetry,
fiction, Religion, Science, Language, etc. Bv
$tm00 e 6tiW' 22PaSes- 12 mo, muslin.
Sow to Write,- a Manual of Composition and
Letter-Writing. Muslin, 75c.
How to Talk; a Manual of Conversation and
Debate, with mistakes in Speaking corrected.
75C.
How to Behave; a Manual of Republican Eti
quette and Guide to Correct Personal Habits,
with Rules for Debating Societies. Muslin
75c.
How to do Business ; a Pocket Manual or Practi
cal Attains and a guide to Success, with a col
lection of Legal Forms. Muslin, 75c
Choice of PursuiLi; or What to Do and How to
Educate Each Man for his Proper work, de
scribing 8eventy-five Trades and Professions
and theTalents and Temperaments required
By N. S zer. $1.00.
Expression, its Anatomy and Philosophy, with
numerous Notes, and upwards of 70 illustra
tions. $1.00.
How to Paint; Designed for Tradesmen, Mer
chants, Mecbanfes, Farmers and the Profession
al Painter. Plain and Fancy Painting, Guild
lng, Graining, Varnishing, Polishing, Paper
Hanging, Ka sominingand Ornamenting, For
mulas for Mixing Paint in Oil or Water. By
Gardner. $1.00.
Combe's Constitution of Man. Considered in
relation to External Objects. $1.50.
Combe's Lectures on Phrenology. With an Essay
on the Phrenological mode of Investigation,
and a Hi-torical Sketch. By Andrew Board
man, M. D. $1.50.
How to Read Character. A new Illustrated
Hand-book of Phrenology and Phvsiognomy.
With 170 engravings Muslin, $1.25.
How to Raise Fruits. A Guide to the Cultiva
tion aud Management of Fruit Trees, and of
Grapes and Small Fruits. Bv Thomas Grege.
Illustrated. $1.00. "
Letters to Women on Midwifery and the Diseases
of women. With General Management of
Childbirth, the Nurserv, etc. For Wives and
Mothers. $1.50.
Science of Human Life. By Sylvester Graham.
With a Copic us Index and Biographieal Sketch
of the Author. $3.00.
Phrenological Journal and Life Illustrated. De
voted to Ethmology, Physiology, Phrenology
Physiognomy, Psycology, Biography, Educa
tion, Art, Literature, with Measures tp Re
form, Elevate and Improve Mankind Physi
cally, Mentally and Spiritually. Published
Monthly in octavo form, at $2.00 a year in
advance, or 20 cents a number. New volumes
January and July.
Inclose amount in a registered letter or by a
P. O. order for one or for all of the above, and
address S. R. WELLS & CO., Publishers, 737
Broadway, New York. Agents wanted.
RUPTURE
CURED!
From a Merchant.
Davton, W. T. Feb. 10, 1879.
W. J. Home, Proprietor California Elastic
Truss Co., 720 Market street, San Francisco Dear
Sir: The Truss I purchased of you one year ago
ha j proved a miracle to me. I have been ruptur
ed forty years, and wore dozens of different kinds
of Trasses, all of which ruined my health, as
they were very injurious to my back and spine.
Your valuable Truss is as easy as an old shoe and
is worth hundredsof dollars to me, as it affords
me so much pleasure. I can aud do advise all,
both ladies and gentlemen, afflicted, to buy and
wear your modern improved Elastic Truss imme
diately. I never expect to be cured, but am sat
isfied and happy with tho comfort it gives me to
wear it. It was the best $10 I ev.T invested in
my life. You can refer any one to me, and I will
be happy to answer any letters on its merits,
remain, yours, respectfully.
D. D. Bdnxell.
Latest Medical Endorsements.
Mabtixez, Cal.,Feb. 17, 1879.
W. J. Home, Proprietor California Elastic
Truss Co., 720 Market street, S. F. Dear Sir:
In regard to your Cal. Elastic Truss, I would say
that F have carefully studied its mechanism, ap
plied it in practice, and I do not hesitale to say
that for all purposes for which Trusses are worn
it is the b st Truss ever offered to the public.
Yours truly. J. H. Cabothebs, M. D.
Endorsed by a Prominent 91 eilU-al Inmtl
tme.
Sax Fba.vcisco, March 6, 1879.
W. J. Home, Esq. Dear Sir . You ask my
opinion of the relative merits of your Patent
Elastic Truss, as compared with other kinds that
have been tested under my observation, and in
mnlv I franklv state, that from the time my at
tention was first called to their simple, though
highly mechanical and philosophical construction,
together with easy adjustibiiity to persons of all
ages, forms and sizes. I add this further testi
monial with special pleasure, that the several
persons who have applied to me for aid in their
cases of rupture, and whom I have advised to try
yours, all acknowledge their entire satisfaction,
and consider themselves highly favored by the
possession of your improved Elastic Truss.
Yours tiuly, Barlow J. Smith, M. D.
Proprietor of the Hygienic Medical Institute,
635 California street, San Francisco.
A Remarkable Cure.
San Francisco, Oct. 26, 1879.
W. J. Home, Proprietor California Elastic
Truss, 720 Market street, 8an Franoisco Dear
Sir: I am truly grateful to you for the wonder
ful CURE your valuable Truss has effected on my
little boy. The double Truss I purchased from
you has PERFECTLY CURED him of his pain
ful rupture on both sides in a little over six
months. The Steel Trass he had before I bought
yours caused him cruel torture and it was a hap
rv day for us all when he laid it aside for the
CALIFORNIA ELASTIC TRUSS. I am sure
that all will be thankful who aie providentially
led to give your Truss a trial. You may refer
any one to me on the subject. Yours truly,
Wm. Pbrit, 638 Sacramento SU
This is to certify that I have examined the son
of Wm. Peru, and find him PERFECTLY
CURED of Hernia, on both sides.
L. Dextbb Lvfobd, M. D.
Surgeon and Physician.
Trusses forwarded to all parts of tlte United
States at our expense, on receipt of price.
ad Ktamp tor lliaairated Catalog-ae
" and Prlee List.
Giving full information and rules for measuring
California E'-Acso,icP.TMRY,;88
720 Market Sim t, 8. F.
fS. H. BURH AM,
HOUSE PAINTING,
8UINW6 AND PAPER HANGING.
ALL WORK IN MY LINE PROMPTLY
attended to on reasonable terms. Paper-
hanging a specialty. Orders may be left at
Graham, Hamilton and Co.'s drug store, or S. G
McFadden's carpenter snop.
CorvauiSj April i,