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About Lincoln County leader. (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 28, 1898)
m . . m B9 em zrm a m. m m. i. t v- 4 npRT , TILLMAN GRANT had come to the end of Ills tether mid he knew It. He made no fuss about the matter, and any of his ' frolnds who met him that evening 'could not have .told from his manner that anything was wrong. Grant had taken big chances to Increase his fortune and now he real ized that the Jig was up, exposure might come In h Week, or It might be de layed for a month, but It wns sure to come, unless lie had 1,000 In hard cash, and that amount he knew ho could not get. Of course If exposure could have been staved off for some years every thing might come out., all right; old Mouektou might die and young Monck ton come Into the business. Old Mouckton, Grant's employer, wns a hard-hearted skinflint who would have no . mercy when Investigation showed that his assistant was a de faulter, lie was hard, even to his own on, and It wasn't likely that he would show mercy to oue who was no relative of his. . On the other hand Stlllman 'Grant, ho was a calculating young fellow, and many times helped young Monck ton when In trouble of a monetary na ture, lie did this not because he liked the young man -'particularly, but be cause lie was his employer's sou and would some time come Into the busi ness. ' ' Young Monckton owed Grant money, but even If he paid It all that night It was not enough to cover the defalca tion, and so was useless. Grant had taken the money, not In any momentary weakness, but because he calculated he could make himself a rich man by the use of it. These cal culations turned out to be erroneous, and for months Grant had been exercis ing his Ingenuity to stave off exposure. He had not deluded himself with nny false views as to what would happen when exposure came. He had made up his mind. There should be no trial with imprisonment at the end of It. He knew nu easier way out of the ditilcnlty thun that. He had bought a quantity of morphine which he knew, when the time came to take It, would Insure him a swift and tolerably easy death. He knew that six. or seven, or perhaps ten years' Imprisonment was the penalty for his offense nnd ho had no desire or Intention of faring such a punishment. He walked that night to his rooms everlooklng the Thames embankment. In I II . 1 ''AWa in BE .WATCHED IT AS IT 8:. ,W . T SETTLED. He went to a enpbourd rind spent so'mo time In choosing with particular cure a bottle of wine be Intended to drink. Ho .poured out a small draught of the bev erage and taklug the paper of morphine fce opened It carefully and sprinkled the white eonreuts qn the surface of . the wlite.: He watched It as It slowly . settled aud Dually disappeared In the liquid; then be poured another class of wine and drank It ofT. There was no hurry about drlnklug the poisoned cup; -he had all the night before him, so he drew his comfortable. arm-chair up to the fire and sat down wondering who would Ond his dead body In the morn tnjj. At Inst taking up the nolsonpil glass he paused for a moment with It lo his hand, thinking he heard a sten on the stair. The next mluute his sur prise was a certaluty as someone rapped at his door. Hastily putting down the glass, he shouted, "Come In," forgetting the door was locked; then he rose hurriedly, drew the bolt back nnd opened the door. "Hullo, Charley," Grant, said when he saw who It wns. The son of his em ployer entered with a radiant look on his face. "Well, Stlllman, I have come to se cure my debt to you. I have made up my mind that you shall not suffer by my having borrowed money from you." "Oh, that's all right," said Grant carelessly, "I don't need the money." "No, I know you don't need It," said Monckton, "but it struck me that If anything-happened to me my father would never acknowledge the debt and you would be out of Just that much." "It doesn't renlly matter, you know," said Stlllman Grant In the same uncon cerned voice. "I shall always be happy to lend you money when you need it aud I have It." "Thanks, old fellow, I know-that," said Young Monckton. "You are as generous as the old man Is stingy. Nev ertheless, I got a windfall the other day aud the minute I received the money I thought of you." "Ah," said Grant, with his eyes brightening somewhat. "How much was It?" "Five hundred pounds in one Jump," answered the other. "Oh," suld UrniiMn a disappointed tone. . "You don't congratulate me," cried young Mouekton.ii "Five hundred pounds are not to be scoffed at." '.' "No," replied Grant; "still 500 1s'u't a fortuue, you know." . .. "It Isn't, but it might be turned Into a tidy sum of money. Now let me tell you what I have done, Grant. I know I will never be able to pay you that sum of money; If I became a partner In the business it might be different, so I took part of the 1)00 nnd insured my life for 2,000, making It payable to you at my death. If I live 1 will evenutally come Into the business nnd then you will get back the money you have lent me with handsome interest; but If I j.nni cut off In one of my sprees, which I is more than likely, then yon -will get back all your money with Interest at several thousand per cent." As' the young jnaa said this he drew from an Inner pocket what Grant saw was evidently an Insurnnce policy. "There you are, my boy, with the first year's premium paid," said Mouckton, as ho threw the policy on the table. "I'll leave It with you, because you are a steady, sober fellow. If I can't pay the next premium when It falls duo you'll pay It for me and charge it up to the account I already owe you. You see, my friend, you are quite safe ns far as your money is concerned, whethr er I become a st.iid, respectable aud rich man of business, or whether I am cut off' In the Uower of my youth." Grant lay back !ri Tils chair with his eyes partially closed, as he picked up and examined the document, lie saw It was all right and perfectly legal. At last he said, In a low tone and with de liberation: "I think you might have spent your money much more profit ably, Monckton, than In paying a year's premium on your life. Bless me f you will live till you are tM)." ; . "I hope so," said the young, man. "but meanwhile you take care of. that 4 document, and If the time ever coiuee that there Is money collectable on It you are the man who Is to- have; It. As you see, I have made the policy solely to you." '- "Thanks, old man," said Grant, as he placed the policy on the table. "wen,'- sakt Monckton, "I must be off. Won't you come out aud take a drink?" "I think not," said Grant; "I'm busy to-night, but If yoa wish a drink, have a glass of wine with me." ."I don't mind If I do," said young' aioncKiou. Grnnt pushed towards his the glass of wine lu which he had sprinkled thn morpmne, then he poured out wine for himself In another glass. "Here's to you,- ne said, drinking. Young Monckton drank off the wine nl ..mucked" his ll'ns after. "ThaLbfls a curious taste, Grunt," he saidj'wtiat; is it?"- .... ' ':". ".0.ii.it Is a special brand I -drink J when I am not sleeping well, .louwin "Ami It very' soothing." ' , t'Well, good night, Stlllman, old fel low' ::vr-: . ' "Good nigliTt'o you, Monckton, and pleasant dreams." "Oh, I'm not going to dreams 'yet awhile," said. Monckton. "A few of us are to have some games at the Kaquct Club." "' ' ' "Ah," said Grant,1 "that's a long dis tance from here. Better have a han som. Come, I'll see you out."' j They walked down the stnlr together and at the door young Monckton snld: "Yes, I think I will' have a hansom. I feel rather drowsy." " . - "Oh, you'll be all right when you get Into the fresh air;1 rejoined Grant. The. young man staggered slightly, as if he were Intoxicated. The other watched him go down the street and hall a cab.-: 'Toor devil," said Grant to himself, ns he turned away. "He was an un lucky chap to. come In at that moment on that particular errand. There is a time for everything, and that was not the time for Insurance policies. I sup pose tjiat, notliavlng premeditated the murder, I have left some loose clew that will enable the police to trace the thing to me. Still I shall be no worse off than I was an hour ago, and after all, nothing matters very much. Bet a fiver I'll be caught." But he wasn't. The medical men said the young' fellow had died of a dis ease with a long name, nnd then the Insurance company claimed It had been defrauded by the fact of his having the malady concealed from them. Thus was the honest man defrauded out of if fill 'COMB, I'M, SHOW YOU OUT. nis insurnnce money, and he was nabbed by the police for his defnlcii' tluus before he ' could purchase more poison.' In one of her Majesty's prls ous he now regrets the fate . of his friend. Detroit Free Tress. ' The Er of Peace. Great Britain Is now building eighty, nine war vessels; France Is a close, sea ond, with eighty-three; Russia Is now working on thirty-nine peacemakers, Italy on thirteen and Germany on nine teen, but the lute large appropriation for the German navy will greatly en large the Kaiser s-operations. Explo sive millets nave been . long excluded from civilized warfare as barbarous. but sensitive Britain Is chuckling over a new missile designed to convert henthen Afrldis and Africans from the error of their ways, which simply menus murder, expanding from a clean round hole nt.the-polnt of entrance to n ragged chasm three or four inches In diameter. I'.qnnl to Nerve Tonic. ';Hear about the robbery last night?' asked the grocer. o, replied the early customer "where did It occur?" t.T) I 1. A 1 It I . iiiKiu neie, sum tiie grocer "thieves broke Into my store nnd stole three barrels of sugar." "Well," mused the customer. "I sun pose they will have sand enough to xacKie a Dank the next time.'1 A New Envelope. An envelope for carrying merchan dlse through the malls Is so construct ed with reversible flaps nnd a stiffening strip attached to the closing flap that the inside of the envelope may become the outside, and the same "envelope used to return merchandise In the same manner lu which It was forwarded. ! ! i An In fortunate Offer. Adoipnus Dudingtou (pleadingly) - uou oe cruet nntl hard-hearted, col onel, iiive me your daughter's hand, nnd I promise she shall never be sep- urmeu irom nor iamily. - CoL Bluntly That's nreelselv whv object to the marriage. Detroit 1 Free xTess. ... T Might Be Tme. . .Doctors-There is, one thins, in, the scriptures that puzzles me, and that Is to what the longevity of the anclenU can be attributed. Have you any the ory to offer? "; "', "' ' " -Mlnlster-It may nave beettowing to the fact that there were no physicians iii muse uays. The hotel clerk who puts on a brill tout front Is not the only Debbie, great many newspnper men use paste : , Fi-iniHHl a Dew mi-' clothes and took liu to- T. i. """" ' BOtll The tint of birds' eggs,' especially "the light colors, are apt to fade, on expos ure in museums to , too great sunlight. This Is the case with the greenish blue gs, ns those of the murre. By ex periment the darker colored eggs of olive brown or chocolate hue have been. found-. to uudergo litlh? change. A very curious method of making an underground coudult or pipe is reported from France. A trench is dug; and ce ment or concrete placed la the bottom? On this an Inflated canvas-covered rubber ttibe Is laid, and more cement Is added until the tube Is covered. When the cement has set, the tube Is allowed to collapse and Is withdrawn.; leaving a concrete or cement conduit.' A Russian chemist has discovered a most powerful anaesthetic. It Is sever al thousand times more powerful than chloroform, volatilizes most readily, nnd nets when freely mixed with air at great distances. Experiments are being lhnde at St. Petersburg to see If it can not be euclosed In bombs, which would have the extraordinary effect of an aesthetizing Instead of wounding the enemy. .. ... A correspondent of Nature teJls a re markable story of a dog, which hav ing, through an accident, lost both legs on the right-hand side, has learned to walk and to run on its two remaining legs. Enough remains of the right foreleg to serve as an occasional prop, but when running the dog touches the ground only with the two left legs. With these it hops rapidly along, aud having been a trained sheep-dog before the accident it manages to herd its flock as It did when It had all its legs. The Scientific American describes an electric trolley road wagon which has been Invented and tested at Reno, Ne vada. AVIres, like those used in city streets, nre stretched on poles along the road, aud the wagon receives its cur rent from those wires by means of a connecting cable, automatically, to two hundred feet, If necessary, thus permit ting the wagon to' turn around, or to follow curves In, the road. It Is .sug gested that water-power may be util ized to develop the electricity. The use of aluminum Is gradually spreading, nnd has now been applied to the making of violins. Violins made entirely of aluminum are said to have n richer tone than those made of wood, and the Inventor declares that "he has found a property In the metal which consists of a tendency of the funda mental tones to outweigh the upper tones. Foir this reason means are em ployed by which the player can regu late or Introduce, the partial tones to suit his individual taste. Naturally the feeling for wooden violins is still very strong, but the aluminum instruments nre having a steady sale. ' How often we hear the remark, "We sliall have rain, the atmosphere Is so heavy." The reverse Is true. When one sees smoke hanging from a chimney,- with a tendency to sink to the ground. it indicates that the atmosphere is light In fact, too light to float the smoke. When the smoke rises from the chimney it Indicates a heavy at-' mosphere. A column of smoke Is not a bad barometer, for a barometer simply records the pressure of thetmospbere. When the ntanosphere Is light and the smoke settles, the pressure of the mer cury Is light and the .column falls, in dicating storm. When the atmosphere Is heavy and the smoke rises, the pres sure is greater and the column rises. In dicating fair wenther. wottase'.. Love In ti,. ...... ''7,7 uu aa.y.-anout..'tliii.)r after the marriage thin vZIl interesting for him, and ,e dcllC? Shrew a plate at his his bucksaw, whistled to-lll8 ," "; left his wife tog,.tag she very prompxiyaHd.-C6,mcil iC Noupnre-ll.i TAMED HER UNRULY PUPIL. Thrashed Him nricl HU Slter and E pelted Them Hothn. ;.There Is one young schQqttiacher ta Long::Islnnd who need never be out of ll Job. So completely did she succeed In quelling a rebellion last week that offers from other places have firead, been Received, but the scho'ol Birectoii .Will, ink hear of her 'departure. Her name Is' Ella Hart, and here Is how she Came to establish herself so flrmlr Id her present position: John Coleman, who is a boy of tender 'years, 'but tough tendencies, hat for several any oeen living under the shadow of the rod. Miss Hurt ha8 an vmciul whip, ainl I niiay her experi enced observation told her that John Coleman wns ripe for castigatlon and she called him up to receive his due. The operation proceeded with cod plete success for a few moments. John, nle Coleman gave all the evidences of mortal anguish customary to such ocet sions. He squirmed aud twisted and rended the nlr with lamentations, pro. testations and ejaculations of peni tence. Stella Coleman, a stout girl of 16 years, sister of Johnnie, heard the walls of her brother and appeared at a rescue and punitive force. She dash ed into the room like it young whirl wind and attacked the teacher with t rush. The boy took advantage of the diversion to rub himself a few tlmei where he felt that rubbing waa neces sary and salutary nnd then Joined lo the attack. Miss Coleman scratrted vindictively and reached for her teach er's hair. Miss Hart proceeded Beth. odlcally and according to the molt ap proved principles of pedagogics Shi first captured the girl's hands and then tripped her up, threw her and sat on her. Then she reached for iwr whip and thrashed Miss Colemuii until aO the fight and most of the family affec tion were thrashed out of her. After that she caught Johnnie Coleman and began on him all over agnln. Having completed her work conscien tiously and thoroughly, she expelled both the offenders nnd appeared before the trustees, scratched and somewhat Ijnttered nnd disheveled, but triumph- fant, and reported her action. She was sustained and the school will probably continue Its exercises peacefully, - VENOMOUS CONFLICT. Aged M m a Wander r. - Investigations regarding the report that an old man named Alonzo Hunt ley had walked from this ejty to Nlles, Mich., has resulted in a carious, story.. The old gentleman not only hails from Council Bluffs, but he has a remarka ble history. He has relatives in various portions of the couutry who nre will ing and able to care for him, but he ab solutely refuses to take up a perma nent abiding place. There Is something pathetic about his wanderings. Years ago his Wife died, and from a happy, steady husbaud he. developed into a veritable wandering Jew. With the grief occasioned by that event his mind became unsettled, and he could not be satisfied nny place. He has a Bister, Mrs. Tlnnell, .of Monona County, In this State, and. a niece in' tills city, Mrs. FJ M. Phillips. He was staying with the IUiUHps family, but last, spring became restless, and started to find his sister, Mrs. Badger, sup posed to live near Niles, Mich. He in variably carries his bucksaw: and Is followed by a devoted little black dog! His .wanderings have covered a large area of the Uni ted States. He dependrf upon hts wood sawing for a living, and when money Is given hlm by his rela tives he saves It and .walks rather than spend It for ear t nrer .Qnce he started from Michigan and tramped to Cali fornia In senrch of Mrs. Tlnnell, whom he found on his return trip at Platts mouth, Neb. Eight or nine years ago he had a Job of wood clearing near this city and de elded to marry ami settle down ouce Ficht Between a Tarantula and Rattlesnake. The- mention of a tussle between a spider and a srake does not conjure op a very exciting scene; but the descrip tion recently given of a meeting of rat tlesnakes nnd a tarantula snider shows that the insect Is by no uieaus a despic able opponent. ' As I caught sight of them (sa? U narrator), .the tarantula was bristling, while the rattlesnake reared his head and thrust forth his forked tongue with the rapidity of lightning. Tbustbetw strange and deadly creatures remain" for a moment, gazing at each otier. Suddenly there was heard the tinn ing whirr of the snake's rattles, sad with the pliancy of a steel spring r snake threw himself into a his head raised in the center and brating rapidly from side to side, w tarantula was as Immovable ns If can ed In stone. -Then 'with a motion al most too swift for the eye. to follow, the rattler struck! but he missed M mark, for the tarautuln, wlthtbespw" of lightning, bounded Into the air, W descending on one of the serpen" colls, sunk bis fangs Into the flesb ' The snake Instantly began thrasnw and dislodged his fpo. Agnta the aiw tula became Immovable, nnd m ' serpettt colled and struck, only to w foiled. Fire seemed to' flash from eyes of both the contestants, and Wi appeared to know that It ws a " " tne aeaui. , mn(in, ; There was now a tremulous m Visible in every limb of the tanrn" oooteB' Wits and it was evident that he was plating orrenuive urc "- j huge leap he bounded upon bis roe, , once more sank his fangs Into the . . .. ... mi.i. !.,,. it was 1" . .. . .iti and flounoH ior uie senum w - . for the tarantula clung to hla ... r.f o lllllldOg. witn me uami-uj - , . hw,ia The spider was bruised and W some of his legs .were broW. W held on with desiierate courage, gradually the efforts of the rtfWJ weaker, until at Inst bis colls re and,, with only a faint vibJ tall, he lay stretched upon tie dead; The venom of the tarantul Atvna ito wnrk. ... .The fight lasted onS ferocity and courage. T br.'tttftlorWb;it was BwrvW.-' t"SW' avoldea ueia -serpent. . The druggist would rather pound or cure iuau a -ventlon.
