LINCOLN COUNTY LEADER
CHA6. F. & ADA E. SOITLE, Fuba.
TOLEDO OREGON
Tbere wns a dross before there was
a loom or a fashion-plate.
When it comes to modifying election
results at times the back counties ure
anything but back numbers.
Do not jump at conclusions. When
a man flatteringly says that you look
like ready money he may mean 30
cents.
The editor of an Eastern paper has
discovered that Dewey turned around
Is "Ye Wed." We fancy we see the
editor turning Dewey around.
The trouble with that Chicago man
who accumulated forty-two wives was
his failure to Interlard his marriages
liberally with Chicago divorces.
Evil wins' now and then, not because
It Is stronger than good, but because
good does not realize its owu strength,
and does not use it to the best advan
tage. One New York railroad wants to
abolish sleeping and dining car tips,
but so far as the result Is in the hands
of the waiters and porters they may be
expected to hold out to the end.
A California minister has denounced
kissing games at church socials. This,
however, is not given as the reason for
the removal of the author of "The Man
with the Hoe" from California to
Brooklyn.
Isu't it about time that something
were done to make It dltlicult to obtain
carbolic acid? It can be had for the
simple asking In almost any drug store,
and thus an easy way of "shuffling off
this mortal coll" Is practically placed
within reach of those who are weary of
life. There would be fewer suicides if
carbolic acid were difficult to obtain.
There are few more successful meth
ods of duping people, in their desire for
wealth, than for some impecunious
trickster to tell them he has a "sure
thing" by means of which they can
speedily get rich. They never stop to
ask why he does not make himself
rich, although the precept, 'Thysielan,
heal thyself!" is so old and hackneyed.
"We do not suppose," remarks a
critic of lighting, "the majority of us
have any overmastering desire for the
fierce delights of personal combat."
The black eyes and bloody noses of our
youth remain as a vivid memory. Man,
when he Is grown, prefers the fighting
at long range, which is one of the re
sults of invention and the higher civili
zation, lie can get all the fun out of.
It that Is In It that way.
A recent expose of the brutal treat
ment of privates In the army of France
by their officers gives new emphasis to
the danger of nrbltrary power. It Is
also reported that In Austria the cus
tom of boxing the ears of soldiers and
recruits has lcen so common and so
violent that thousands of them have
suffered such Impairment of their hear
ing as partly to unlit them for service.
The minister of war has recently issued
a prohibitory order.
"One of the remarkable sights of the
present day is that you don't see any
bicycles," remarked n gentleman. "And
6t ill more remarkable." he continued,
"Is the way American people take up a
fad and run It Into the ground. Four
years ago the bicycle was the craze;
before that It was tennis; now it is golf,
and the Lord only knows what It'll be
next. Hut from n clothes standpoint
golf is the captain of 'em all. A man's
golfing suit and his fixings make his
bicycle rig-out look like thirty cents, as
the saying Is. And the women ain't
far behind."
A census "family" means the number
of people who are fed from the same
pantry. A hotel, a boarding-school or
a prison Is a family In the eye of the
census. Domestic servants are always
counted as a part of the household with
which they are living. This use of the
term makes the average size of the
family In a town which happens to
have a great Institution unusually
large, but In the long run It works out
about even, since actual families must
be reduced In number by so much to
supply the members of these Inordinate
ly large families.
Truth should be double edged, and
cut both ways. Now there's the bird
question. Possibly the time may come
when women will not allow them to be
killed for their adornment nor will men
kill them for the pleasure of killing
something, says Beacon. I have never
been able to understand why It Is not
as well to preach against the enormity
of shooting birds for fun as for shoot
ing them to make women look prettier,
but I notice that the emphasis Is nil
placed on the latter. Probably the
pigeon that Is shot nt In a shooting
match does not enjoy it any more than
the hummingbird which Is killed out
right for a woman's hat, yet for oue
word that Is said against the former
Instance there are hundreds said
against the latter. I suppose it is easier
for a man to preach for his sister's
benefit thau to practice for his own.
But constant agitation may in time
cure both evils and so educate man that
he shall see no pleasure in killing help
less birds and animals without any
purpose other than sport.
Dame Fashion, who Is not only
whimsical and eccentric but frequently
very unwise, has made a departure in
the matter of women's skirts that must
be commended. By a recent irade,
ukase or decree the good dame has or
dered that the skirts shall lack a cou
ple of Inches of reaching the ground.
This Is most sensible. There never was
any reason why a woman's skirt should
be so long as to touch the ground any
more than there Is for man's coat tails
touching the ground. A few skittish
old maids may take a duck-fit when
they Imagine someone can see the toes
of their shoes peeping out from under
their draperies, but unless the foot Is
tantalizingly small and poignantly well
formed little attention Is ordinarily
given to It.
Mr. Forter, the United States Ambas
sador to France, has reported to the
State department that the grave of
John Paul Jones has been discovered
in Paris. If there Is no mistake In the
Identification of the grave Congress
should not hesitate to take prompt ac
tion for reburial in this country and the
erection of a fitting monument to the
memory of the great sea fighter, who
was the first to make the Stars and
Stripes respected on the seas. No naval
hero has more worthily earned the
gratitude of the American people than
the lion-hearted sailor who fought the
powerful Serapls and Its consorts with
that rotten old hulk, the Bonhomme
Richard, which apparently was no bet
ter fitted for a fight than Kipling's old
huWi of Bolivar Bay.
A Newark (N. J.) court has admin
istered a new and most effective cor
rective for juvenile crime. Five boys
were caught stealing fruit from freight
cars and arraigned before a police jus
tice. When proved guilty the justice
sentenced them to twelve lashes with
a policeman's belt. It Is said the young
culprits were perfectly satisfied with
this method of punishment and agreed
they would behave themselves In fu
ture, while other boys who have been
In the habit of misbehaving have sud
denly manifested a violent and uncon
trollable desire to reform their habits.
A thorough spanking by a vigorous po
liceman Is a much more salutary form
of punishment for a young boy than
sending him to an Institution where he
will learn more deviltry and practice It
when he is released. For extremely
youthful persons bent upon going in
the wrong direction there Is nothing so
certain to turn them Into the right road
a spanking. It Is much more effective
than Incarceration or milk-sop rem
edies. A Chicago dentist and inventor claims
to have discovered a method by which
the soft coal of the west can be suc
cessfully coked so that soft coal coUe
will be equal to hard coal coke for
blasting nnd smelting purposes. In
commenting upon this discovery the
Ottumwn, iowa, Courier remarks that
if the discovery Is practicable, the Iron
Industry will witness a great change,
and the production of pig-Iron In the
Western States where soft coal is
plentiful will be vastly Increased. Up
to this time the great Eastern Iron
making centers have had an advantage
over those of the West Both'have de
pended almost entirely upon the Lake
Superior mines for their ores, but the
Eastern Iron furnaces are located so
much nearer the great sources of the
coke supply of the world that they have
had a great advautage over tlu Western
furnaces. If the Chicago man can do
what he promises, however, the condi
tions will be Just reversed and the West
will have the advantage over the East.
The bituminous coke can he
made for from $2 to $2.50
per ton, while the authrncite coke
costs ?5 to $5..r0. Pennsylvania Is
a great Iron manufacturing State al
most solely because of the fact that It
Is the great nuthiaeite coal center, and
when this new coking process Is
brought Into use there Is no reason why
the West should not become a great
Iron manufacturing section. Last year
the Western furnaces smelted but one
fifth of the iron ore taken from the
great Iron mines In the Lake Superior
region, but now that they can produce
their coke at home. Instead of shipping
It all the way from Pennsylvania, they
may be expected to take a large share
In ah the Industries to which Iron ore
gives rise.
A Gonreoin Bicycle.
A gorgeous bicycle has been sent
from France to an Indian Rajah, the
parts which on au ordinary machlue
are nickel-plated being made of gold.
Even the spokes are cased with gold,
while the gold-eased rims are studded
alternately with turquoises and rubles.
A scarlet cloth held down with Jewels
covers the saddle.
An epigram Is a lot of words fitted
together In such a peculiar manner that
their lack of menulng Is eouceuled by
the brllllaut effect produced.
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VER and over again John Mars
den had been told that his noc
turnal rambles would bring him
Into contact with unpleasant citizens.
If he had contented himself with walk
ing upon the main highway that ran
past his suburban home, his midnight
walk, which he said was absolutely
necessary to his getting sleep when he
went to bed, would have been safe
enough. But there were byways In
that neighborhood, some of them nar
row, many of them with evil reputa
tions, all of them very dark and entirely
deserted by honest citizens at a quarter
to 1 in the morning which was John's
favorite hour for a solitary stroll and
these queer byways were his favorite
strolling paths. Again, if he had had
nothing about him to tempt a footpad
his friends would not have been so so
licitous, but, for a man in which there
was no suspicion of foppery, John Mars
den carried a remarkable collection of
valuable Jewelry about his person.
There was his watch, with a circle of
brilliants and a remarkable enameled
miniature set In the back, presented to
him as a souvenir by a famous foreign
actress whose life he had saved in a
railroad wreck; there was also a won
derful old Intaglio bloodstone, an heir
loom, which he wore in a huge signet
ring, and lastly, there was, as a general
A HANI) FLEW STRAIGHT AT HIS TUKOAT
thing, the Moma diamond, which ought
to have been kept In a museum or a
safety vault, but which John Marsden
persisted In wearing constantly as a
cravat pin.
He said .he wore the Moma diamond
for luck, but no one who knew him be
lieved that the man had even one super
stition. It would have been worth the
while of any footpad to engage profes
sional assistance Just to get possession
of the Moma diamond, and hundreds
of persons connected with that profes
sion knew that Mr. Marsden always
wore that stone In his cravat. It wns
a wonderful stone, not by any means as !
large as a pigeon's egg, or even a spar-i
row s, u is true, only about the size of
the point of a man's Index finger, In
fact, but of a luster so dazzling and so
peculiar that the Jewelers nnd lapida
ries of Amsterdam, who still remember
It from the days before It crossed the
Atlantic, say it Is unmatched In all the
world.
And at last the warnings of John
Marsden's friends were Justified. He
wns walking on a dark, autumn night
along one of his favorite byways, with
a row of blank, windowless brick walls
on his right, and on his left a ditch and
rail fence, when there was a sudden
leap of something from the ditch, nnd a
hand flew straight at his throat.
Instantly as if he had been exnpptln
y uu-i'i mo (main jusi m mat spot 1
John Marsden's left list darted out and
up, and there wns a sound like the
word "Chow," followed by another like
the fall of a bale of hay on the earth.
Then he leaned forward cautiously, and
the next moment he was glad of his
caution. The man leaped to his feet al
most as soon, It seemed, as he had
touched the ground, nnd then. Inatoml
of drawing knife or pistol, he went nt
jonn m tue most approved pugilistic
fashion.
Very likely, if the fight had been In a
twelve-foot ring, by daylight, begun in
regular form, the other man uilght hare
won the Moma diamond supposing it
to have been the prize. As It was the
footpad had been taken by surprise,
nnd, still worse, Marsden's very bony
fist had fitted Itself snugly Into the deli
cate space between the triangle of the
lower Jaw and the Adam's apple. The
mere fact that his antagonist had recov
ered himself so quickly after such a
blow assured Marsden that he had no
ordinary fighter to deal with. Still,
that first blow placed the other man at
a disadvantage, and the fisticuffs did
not last long. In less than two minutes
Marsden's assailant wns back In the
ditch from which he hnd sprung, only
now he lay kicking convulsively and
irfiK TMs ?y fm (0 0ft
iza 'j
Diamond. ?
coughing In a way that meant, as Mars
den knew, internal hemorrhage.
Now, when you have been assaulted
on a lonely road In the small hours, and
the assault has been with the evident
Intention of stealing your valuables,
you nre generally Inclined rather to go
your wey rejoicing, and leave well
enough alone, If you have been as for
tunate as to knock the Intending thief
silly. That Is what most people would
do. But Marsden was In many ways
unlike most people. He sat on the edge
of the roadside ditch, lifted the man's
head, and fanned his face until, In the
darkness, he could detect signs of re
covery. "Feeling better now?" he said.
The only answer was a struggle to sit
up, which ended in the beaten man
sinking back exhausted. Then there
was another pause, aiid Marsden began
to be really alarmed. He had almost
made up his mind to go and look for
water when the patient suddenly made
one more violent effort, succeeded in
Sitting Up, uiij Btuieu at hiui.
"Who are you?" were the first words
that came, In a hoarse, half-strangled
whisper. "You're not a policeman?"
"Oh, no," said Marsden, "I'm not a
policeman. Hope I haven't hurt you
badly. Now, look here, young fellow, a
man that can box like you Isn't a com
mon thief. That's sure. If you had
been a common thief, you would have
come at me with a pistol or some
thing." The prostrate man said nothing.
"See here," Marsden went on. "I can
easily hand you over to the police, you
know. Oh, you needn't try to get up
and run. I could give five yard's start
and catch you In 100, as you are now.
I'll let you go. I'll take you to my
house and fix you up ship shape, if
you'll do one thing. Tell me why you
have turned highway robber just to get
the Moma diamond?"
At that question the man seemed to
start. Marsden Waited a few seconds
and then reepated, "Tell me about It."
"Where did you get It?" was at first
the only answer vouchsafed him, and
that in a vehement, angry whisper.
Then the man in the ditch went on:
"You're right. I didn't want your
watch. The diamond is mine."
"Aha!" said Marsden. "I thought so.
I knew there was something wrong
about that blessed diamond. Did you
see me wearing It?"
"No."
"Did some one tell you I wore it as a
scarf-pin?"
"Yes."
"Well, you can't go on talking in the
condition you are In. Come to my house
and let me give you a drink. It isn't
far."
There must have been something very
frank and convincingly honest in the
ring of Marsden's voice, for the man
actually did consent to go with him,
even leaning on his arm for support on
the way.
They entered the house together,
stealthily, for everyone else was in bed,
and the lights all out. Marsden struck
a match and lighted his highwayman
friend to his own den, where he soon
found means to stimulate his powers.
"I am a stranger to you, you see,"
said the guest, recovering after a
mouthful of diluted brandy.
It was not the face of a thief, certain
ly. It wns rather the face of a well
bred, If not Intellectual, man, but It
was unshaven, and suggested that Its
owner had fallen upon hard luck. Oth
erwise, it was not at all an uncommon
face.
"You have treated me fairly," he said,
"so far, at least. Tell me where you
got my diamond, and I'll tell you how
I lost It."
"Your diamond-lf It Is yours," said
Marsden, "was won by me nt a game of
cards. I staked $1,000 In American
money against it. The game was played
in the smoking-room of an ocean
steamer."
"Was It an elderly man you were
playing with?"
"Yes. A Brazilian, I believe wore
the stone in a ring."
"The Impudent scoundrel! Anything
peculiar about his eyebrow?"
"One eyebrow had a cut across It that
gave It a peculiar tilt."
"That's rlght-the left eyebrow. And
the gentleman always spoke as If his
mouth was full, didn't he?"
"He did. You have described him
perfectly. He was a Brazilian."
."I beg your pardon. -He was my ma
ternal uncle, Charles August Froeham.
My father borrowed money from him to
buy shares In his confounded bogus en
terprises, and gave him mortgages on
everything we possessed. It was un
derstood, when the mortgage was
drawn on our household effects, that
my mother's Jewelry was not included
At my father's death the rogue put In
a legal claim for the Moma diamond
because, he said, it was set In a ring
which my father wore and not my
mother's. The lawyer advised my moth
er to let It go, for fear of the expense
and uncertainty of litigation. In that
way the scoundrel got possession of .
Jewel worth as much as three times all
the money he had lent my fatQ
When his stock-watering tricks wer
found out he had to leave England
That was five years ago."
"That was when I met him," said
Marsden.
"And now at last I haye been obliged
to come to this country and try to earn
a living ns a car conductor. I ca.t
complain of that; I was always an Idle
good-for-nothing fellow." '
"H'm," said Marsden. "And your
uncle I mean the Brazilian gentleman
-said this stone was called the Moma
diamond from the name of the ne-i0
who found It In Brazil Was that
rect?"
"Perfectly."
"Now, please give me your own ad
dress and Is your mother still living?"
"I AM A BTRANQKU TO VoU. '
The would-be highwayman gaveboth.
That night he slept In Marsden's house.
A month later he sailed for England,
a steerage passenger, but rich, for the
eccentric Marsden had made him a
present of the Moma diamond. Pitts
burg Press.
A "Witty Peasant.
A thunder-storm overtook the Em
peror Francis Joseph of Austria, when
out shooting in 1873 with old Emperor
William of Germany and Victor Eman
uel. The three monarchs got separat
ed from their party and lost their way.
They were drenched to the skin, aud,
in search of shelter, hailed a peasant
driving a covered cart drawn by oxen
along the high road. The peasant took
up the royal trio and drove on.
"And what may you be, for you are
a stranger in these parts?" he asked
after awhile of Emperor William.
"I am the Emperor of Germany," re
plied his Teutonic majesty.
"Ha, very good," paid the paant,
and then addressing Victor Emmanuel,
"And you my friend?"
"Why, I am the King of Italy," came
the prompt reply.
"Ha, ha, very good indeed! And who
are you?" addressing Francis Joseph.
"I am the Emperor of Austria," said
the latter.
The peasant then scratched his head,
and said with a knowing wink, "Very
good, and who do you suppose I am?"
Their majesties nplled they wou'd
like very much to know.
"Why I am His Holluess the rope."
Big Ben's Tone.
Whntever complaints may be mnd
against the tone of Big Ben. the famous
London clock, and musicians say It Is
a terribly bnd "E," nt any rate, every
one will acknowledge that the clock lu
the House of Commons tower Is a won
derl'ul timekeeper, not varying n second
in time nil the yeur through. Tlu
mechanism for setting in motion the
massive hammer which brings out the
tone of Big Ben's sixteen-ton bell i
very interesting. The striking machin
ery Is driven by weights of about a ton
and a half, which hang on a shaft 174
feet deep; nnd it is so arranged that
after the chimes nre over the hninmet
falls on the big bell within one second
of Greenwich mean time.
Timothy's Mistake.
Timothy Knockdown, the auctioneer,
took his wife for a seaside trip to
Margate.
On the second day of their visit Mr.
K. evinced a strong desire to return
home. "And pray fur what reason,
Timothy?" angrily Inquired his better
half.
"Simply because everybody knows
my business down here. To-day, for
Instance, I have been confronted by at
least forty grinning bontnian who rem
inded me that it Is "a nice day for o
'sale,' " sadly responded the unhappy
auctioneer. Answers.
The Dewey I I ant.
A blooming plant, with clusters of
blood red tassels depending fiom 1
glossy leaves, is to be seen not far fro'.u
Broad nnd Chestnut streets. It Is lab
eled "The Dewey riaut" In conspicuous
letters. Six mouths ago the duplicate
was seen in another pnrt of town, with
an Inscription declaring it was "Admi
ral Dewey's favorite iow.r!" The plant
is a uative of the Philippines islands.
Philadelphia Record.
Some people are willing to let a good
excuse answer for good conduct