TOPICS OF THE TIMES.
A CHOICE SELECTION OF INTER
ESTING ITEMS.
Ceaatati aa Criticlssas B
t C
, ths EipMli th Day-;
caj u Newa Kstea.
Japan Is Bleeping these times with
one eye open.
A Maine Ice company has been sold
tor $10,000,000. Cool sum.
The thrashing machine trust has
fallen through. It went against the
grain.
' Talking of eloquence, Is a good com
mand of miscellaneous language prefer
able to a proper control of one tongue?
The horrible thought arises that but
for the X-rays we should never have
discovered the man-who-swallows-his-false-teeth.
A new century may Justify the other
kind, but as a delightful form of the
new woman a great deal can be said of
a girl baby.
Mrs. Frances Hodgson Burnett has
married a man of half her own age. It
is evident that she is a confirmed vic
tim of the Little Lord Fauntleroy habit
A Philadelphia woman trained a mi
croscope on her walking skirt and saw
200,000 germs. Perhaps she had acci
dentally spilled some drinking water
on it.
An Eastern lecturer was compelled
to cancel an engagement because he
was afflicted with inflammation of the
ear. Usually it Is the hearers that
suffer.
The young woman who married for
a joke claims to have discovered that a
husband is not a choice bit of delicate
humor. On the contrary, he is a seri
ous serial.
It costs $2 to take a bath at Cape
Nome, but little complaint comes from
there on that account Comparatively
few of the people up there have found
it out as yet
One Joseph Zotlque La Joie, a Cana
dian trapper, claims to have found the
north pole. There is a Munchausen
flavor to Joseph's narrative. He Is
probably in training for a job In a dime
museum.
' How soon the electric car has be
come "the carriage of the people!" An
official report says that in Massachu
setts there is one thousand seven hun
dred and thirty-five miles of street rail
way, and that only four miles of track
is now traversed by horses.
When field guns are made that will
carry fifteen miles the chances are that
the combatants will take up position
sixteen miles apart. The men who
fought at Bunker Kopje got too close,
and a large proportion of them were
unable to trek when the battle was
over.
Mrs. Hetty Green, the richest woman
In the United States, has officially an
nounced that she does not want her
daughter to marry a Spanish duke.
She would much prefer to become
mother-in-law to "a bright and wide
awake newspaper man." As an exam
ple of "jollying," this puts Hetty In an
unapproachable class by herself a
sort of feminine Petronlous, as It were.
What etymological excuse Is there
for the substitution of "locomobile" for
"automobile" as a name for a horse
less vehicle? Automobile, though not
an exact designation, closely approach
es It. The word means that the ve
hicle runs Itself that Is, that it is in
dependent of attached power. Loco
mobile doetn't mean anything In par
ticular. It is not as good a word as lo
comotive, which is likewise an Inexact
designation. Therefore, if we are to
use either of the built-up names auto
mobile is the better. But why run to
Latinized appellations at all? Why not
stick to "horseless carriage" or truck
or wagon which is ordinary English
and understood by everybody?
' The last two years have seen
about a dozen phenomenal successes in
novel-writing. Each of the success
ful novels has quickly- run Into the
hundreds of thousands. Yet not one
of them Is really a great novel. Not
one, oftfeein compares In quality or
permanence witn "vanity fair, or
"Pendennls," or "My Novel," or "What
Will He Do with It?" or "The New
comes," or "The Virginians," or "Gil
Bias," or "Captain Fracasse," or
"TSe Nabob," or "David Copperfleld,"
or "Adam Bede," or "Bomola." In
this Judgment we are sure that every
critic and every intelligent reader will
agree. What then, does the phenom
enal success of these novels means?
What can It mean except that the pub
lic schools and the newspapers of this
country have extraordinarily Increased
the numbers of the "reading public,"
and that bright and well-constructed
novels find a wider constituency than
any books commanded a few years
ago.
A young freshman, while waiting one
day last autumn for a room to be as
signed to her in a college dormitory,
picked up an old newspaper and read
in it an editorial upon escape from
burning buildings. The suggestion
was there made that by once thinking
out a plan of action for an emergency,
the action Itself would become some
what mechanical. The girl laughingly
said to herself that an opera-cloak
would be a good thing to have near in
case of fire by night When she un
packed her trunk, her warm evening
cloak was given a hook near the
closet door. She decided also that her
night slippers might reasonably be kept
under the bed. A few weeks ago, on a
bitterly cold night that very dormitory
burned to the ground. The young girl,
aroused from sound sleep by the alarm,
had only time to seize her cloak and
slippers and flee for her life. Not an
other of her belongings was saved.
Having to run some distance for shel
ter, the wraps saved the girl from an
exposure which on such a night might
have been fatal.
n feels so strongly
odlcal Is to be Issued monthly as an
organ for the antis. The second num
ber comes out with nine challenges or
problems which it would be pleased to
have the vegetarians answer. Perhaps
the most Important one is a defiance to
produce the names of fifty consistent
vegetarians, living or dead, conspicu
ous for their vitality. The list may be
gin with Pythagoras and comprise any
one In the more than twenty-five cen
turies since his decease. Then there
Is the defiance to produce the nams of
twenty vegetarians besides G. Bernard
Shaw famous for their beauty. No
limit as to time or place is Imposed in
this proposition. Then it is demanded,
"What would Nansen have done with
only vegetarian diet permissible In his
equipment for his polar expeditions?"
And how would vegetarians have pro
visioned Columbus' vessel? Flanking
all these defiances and Inquiries are
letters from any number of actresses
famous for good looks as well as abil
ity testifying that they are firm believ
ers in the joys and sustenance to be
found in a mixed diet, with small birds
not too scarce. The most interesting
thing about all this Is that vegetarian
ism has reached such proportions that
those who for reasons best known tc
themselves oppose it think it advisable
to mobilize.
Many of the good, old, biblical in
junctions are being questioned to an
alarming extent, and Dr. Pentecost's
suggestion that to be led Into tempta
tion is a better ordeal for the soul than
forever to remain untested will cause
some consternation among the godly
minded. This Is, of course, the old
Browning theory, the belief In growth
through sin, and that evil is but a step
towards the good. Of course, these are
all well as theories, but to apply them
might be a dangerous experiment. Yet
sometimes there Is borne in upon one
the awful conviction that It is the
goody-goody people who are responsible
for much of the evil of the world, who
unwittingly, by the example of their
own narrow, arid lives, drive others to
the opposite extreme. A story is told of
how Thoreau's mother, a gayly-dressed
lady of 70, went to call upon Emerson's
aunt an austere maiden of 84, and how
when the former rose to go the prim
hostess remarked: "Perhaps you no
ticed, Mrs. Thoreau, that I closed my
eyes during your call. I did so because
I did not wish to look on the ribbons
you are wearing, so unsuitable for a
child of God and a person of your
years." Was not this enough to drive
a woman of spirit into the most violent
ribbon excesses? But this is the atti
tude of many would-be reformers, of
many misguided preachers. They look
at the sinner with mentally closed eyes,
and wishing to show him the folly of
wearing ribbons produce Just the op
posite result. In the final estimate of
erring mortals it will not be the nega
tive virtues that will count for most,
and Individuals will not be applauded
for refraining from sins that they had
no temptation to commit. On the con
trary, perhaps, a man who has broken
all the moral laws may have brought up
his general average by innumerable
"unremembered acts of kindness and
of love" and proved himself a man for
"a' that and a' that." This Is not argu
ing in favor of evil; it Is merely de
mandlng that judges should not close
their eyes because of ribbons, but
should try to discover if there is not
something under these furbelows. Why
should not grown people be treated in
the same charitable way that the new
educational theories demand the child
shall be treated? You must not say
"don't" to a child, but turn his activity
for evil Into the right direction. It is
useless to say, "Don't go to the degener
ates," but It is possible to make the re
generates more attractive. The reader
who revolts against the wishy-washy
literature of moralists may turn to de
moralizing Franch novels as an agree
able relief, but if he chances upon
Meredith and Barrie he may find the
squalid elemental portrayal of passion
of the Frenchman tame In comparison
with the piquant morality of the En
glish writers. It Is perhaps well to be
led Into temptation and it is still better
to be delivered from evil, but both the
leading and the deliverance must be
wisely accomplished.
Wild Fowl Attack: a Light
One of the keepers of the Hog Island
light on the Virginia coast relates a re
markable experience with wild fowls
at that light on the night of Feb. 22.
Between 7 and 8:30 p. m. the watch
on duty was aroused by the "honking"
of wild geese and brant accompanied
by the crash of breaking glass. He
hastily summoned the other keepers,
who responded with shotguns. They
opened fire on the bewildered birds
with every gun. The battle lasted for
an hour and a half. The guns got so
hot that it was dangerous to use them
and the shoulders of the men became
sore from the recoil.
The supply of ammunition gave out
and the fight ended. In the morning
there were found 268 dead brant geese
and ducks at the foot of the tower. On
the following Saturday morning the
tower was again attacked by the birds.
There being no stock of cartridges on
the Island, the guns were useless, but
the keepers fought with sticks and cap
tured 160 fowls, when a flock, appar
ently., containing thousands, rushed
upon them. They were compelled to
seek shelter within the tower. So pow
erful was the flight of the frightened
geese that the wire screens were pene
trated, the light In the watchroom ex
tinguished, and the panes in three win
dows destroyed. These fowl had taken
wing because of the severe weather
prevailing upon their feeding grounds
and were blinded by the Intense glare
of the powerful light In the top of the
tower.
Hog Island light marks one of the
most dangerous shoals on the Virginia
coast. It is an Iron tower and stands
180 feet above mean high water. It Is
a first-class light and can be seen from
the bridge of a steamer a distance of
about twenty-five miles.
Duties.
He It is a woman's duty to be beau
tiful, If she can.
She And It is a man's duty to make
her think she is whether she is or not.
Indianapolis Press.
When a man wants to advertise his
mine, he says that the Standard Oil
people are looking at it with a view
NO REST FOR LINCOLN.
Remain of the Martyred President
in a Mew Abode.
Fate seems to nave denied rest to the
great emancipator even in death.
When the body of Abraham Lincoln
was taken to a temporary vault In Oak
Ridge cemetery, at Springfield, 111., re
cently, it marked the eleventh removal
of the remains of the martyred Presi
dent. For thirty-five years the metallic
casket has been shifted hither and
thither to meet the exigencies of time
and change. The following table gives
TEMPORARY .VAULT IN OAK RIDGE.
the history of the unquiet remains of
Lincoln, from the time of his death
thirty-five years ago:
Died in a house near Ford's Theater,
Washington, in which he was assassin
ated, April 14, 1865.
Removed to White House.
Removed to Capitol Building.
Removed to funeral car.
Removed to Capitol Building, Spring
field, 111.
Removed to receiving vault Oak
Ridge cemetery.
Removed to temporary vault
Removed to sarcophagus, Lincoln
monument
'fiaLaWfan!
-Tjl-ffiMnoEfflfflHi i BsswMBSSs&sy I i. AHD 1 ' IS 1HbVi
yxBLJMjg'PjKJ'jajmffl SJSpSJSjMalfflBSj
THE LINCOLN MONUMENT AT SPRINGFIELD.
Removed to space between walls.
Removed to bed of cement
Removed to temporary vault
For several years the Lincoln monu
ment at Springfield has steadily fallen
Into decay. It was completed seventeen
years ago,, after fifteen years of labor.
Soon after It was finished the base of
the knoll on which It rested began to
ihift Gaping seams appeared in the
masonry, and the monument which
ivas one of the finest In the country,
has long been in danger of total col
lapse. Recently enough money was
appropriated by the State Legislature
to raze the old structure and rebuild it
m a foundation which goes down thir
ty-five feet to bed rock. This last re
moval of Lincoln's remains was made
aecessary on account of the rebuilding
f the monument The metallic casket
low rests in a crude wooden box In a
.emporary vault In Oak Ridge ceme
ery. TO PROTECT RIFLEMEN.
British Soldiers to Carry Armor Shields
of Bullet-Proof Material.
John Bull has seized upon the inven
tion of a Chicago man the Rev. Cas
iimir Zelgler and will use it In his
inn y. Mr. Zelgler perfected a material
:hat Is bullet proof, and suggested the
Idea of weaving It into shields to be
worn by soldiers. He presented his in
rention to the government and It satis
factorily met and passed all the tests
11 1 i - 111
PORTABLE ARMOR SHIELD TO PROTECT RIFLEMEN.
It was regarded unpractical, however,
aecause of Its weight It was said that
rapid movements In the field were Im
possible to soldiers weighed down by
the shields.
The material used In the manufac
ture of this shield was a composition,
the formula for which was, of course,
i secret It was believed, however,
that marble dust entered very largely
into Its manufacture. The new Eng
lish shield is said to be similarly con
structed except that It has solved the
problem of weight. In aiming at light
ness, impenetrability was sacrificed at
first but gradually the two requisites
were secured.
The new shield Is the product of a
Scotchman, who, taking Zeigler's ma
terial as a foundation, has evolved a
levice which is said to be impervious
to Mauser or Lee-Metford bullets at
100 yards, and to light machine-gun
Ire at 700 yards. It weighs thirteen
pounds and cannot be overturned by
the Impact of any number of bullets. It
s divided Into two parts, hinged to
;ether, each weighing six and a half
jounds,whichcanbe made interchange
tble. It Is intended for the use of
narksmen only not more than from 5
.o 10 per cent, of the Infantry. It is pro-
the British army In South Africa with
these shields, which will be used in the
manner shown in the Illustration.
WEDDING AMONG TAR HEELERS.
Shrewd Magistrate Who Did Business
on a Strictly Cash Basis.
When Capt Shaw was a justice of
the peace in a country place not far
from Raleigh, N. O, while riding home
late one afternoon he met a young
woman and a young man who wished
to be married at once. Now, the cap
tain had never witnessed a marriage.
He remembered having seen a book
about the house years before with a
form of marriage In it but where it
was he could not remember. A less as
sured man would have been sorely per
plexed, but not he. He lost no time in
removing his hat and, ascending the
split-bottomed seat of justice, remark
ed: "Hats off in the presence of the
court" All being uncovered, he said:
"I'll swear you In fust Hold up yer
right hands."
"Me, too?" asked the friend of the
groom.
"Of course," said the wise captain.
"All witnesses must be sworn. You
and each of you solemnly swear that
the evidence you shall give in this case
shall be the truth, th' hull truth, an'
no thin' but the truth. You. John Mar
vin, do solemnly swear that to the best
of yer knowledge an' belief you take
this yer woman ter have and ter hold
fcr yerself, yer heirs, exekyerters, ad
ministrators and assigns, for your an'
their use an' behoof forever?"
"I do," answered the groom.
"You, Alice Ewer, take this yer man
for your husband, ter hev' an' ter hold
forever, and you do further swear that
you are lawfully seized In fee-simple,
are free from all Incumbrance and hev
good right to sell, bargain and convey
to the said grantee, yerself, yer heirs,
administrators and assigns?"
"I do," said the bride somewhat
doubtfully.
"Well, John," said the captain,
"that'll be about a dollar 'n' fifty
cents."
"Are we married?" asked the other.
"Not yet ye ain't" quoth the cap
tain, with emphasis, "but the fee comes
in here."
After some fumbling It was produced
and banded over to the "court" who
examined it to make sure it was all
right and then pocketed it and con
tinued: "Know all men by these presents,
that I, Capt Shaw, of Raleigh, N. C.
being in good health and of sound and
disposin' mind, in consideration of a
dollar 'n' fifty cents-to me In band paid,
the receipt whereof Is hereby acknowl
edge, do and by these presents have de
clared you man and wife during good
behavior and till otherwise ordered by
the court" Utlca Observer.
Cheerful Antipodean Truthteller.
An ex-sea captain, now living In Syd
ney, many years ago was in charge of
a ship carrying some convicts. The
convicts mutinied, murdering the crew,
and ordered the captain to navigate
them to the Islands, and, being a pru
dent man, he did so. When satisfied as
to their course, the convicts deliber
ated, decided that he had behaved him
self well, and put him ashore on the'
first large island they came to. He was
a musician, and took his violin with
him. A threatening crowd of savages
greeted his arrival, but Orpheus play
ed to them till they thought him a god,
brought him unlimited pigs and yams,
and bowed In adoration. Finally he
married the chief's daughter, succeed
ed him, and railed the island for years,
till a ship came in, and he sailed away.
Sidney Bulletin.
Away Down la the Earth.
The deepest hole In the earth Is at
Schladebach, near Ketschau, Germany.
It Is 5,735 feet in depth and is for geo
logic research only. The drilling was
begun in 1880 and stopped six years
later because the engineers were un
able with their Instruments to go
deeper.
Women Make Good Prompters.
It has been discovered that the pro
fession of prompter Is more suited to
women than to men, as their voices
carry better across the stage, and are
less audible in the auditorium.
There are lots of good women, who,
when they get to heaven, will begin to
watch to see If the Lord goes out
LAW AS INTERPRETED.
The fact that a person : mortally
wounded cut bis own throat and has
tened his death Is held, in people vs.
Lewis (Cal.), 45 L. R. A. 783, Insuffi
cient to relieve the person who In
flicted the fatal wound of his liability.
Notes and mortgages owned by a per
son who is domiciled In another State,
but kept within the State by an agent
are held, In New Orleans vs. Stemple,
Advance Sheets U. S., p. 110, to be sub
ject to taxation by the laws of the
State in which they are held.
Guaranty of the prompt payment of
a note is held, In Holm vs. Jamleson
(111.), 45 L. R. A. 846, to be not annulled
by a judgment declaring the note void
for want of authority in the owner who
executed it as against one who took
the note .In reliance on the guaranty.
A statute retroactively vacating at
tachments Is held. In King vs. Cross,
Advance Sheets U. S., p. 31, Inapplica
ble to attachments levied in other
States at a time when by the opera
tion of the insolvent law the insolvent
bad not been deprived of dominion and
control over his credits.
Asessment of shares of stock In a na
tional bank without any deduction for
debts or for investments in nonassess
able government bonds is held, in Mc
Hanry vs. Downer (Cat), 45 L. R. A.
737, to be unlawful when State banks
are not taxed on shares of stock, and
are allowed a deduction of debts.
Constitutional provision against laws
respecting the establishment of religion
is held, in Bradfield vs. Roberts, Ad
vance Sheets U. S., p. 121, Insufficient
to condemn an appropriation by Con
gress of money to a hospital owned by
a corporation composed of the mem
bers of a particular church or a monas
tic order or sisterhood therein, but sub
ject to no visitation, supervision oi
control by any ecclesiastical authority
whatever.
A statute compelling a county to pay
three-fourths of the value of property
destroyed by mob or riot irrespective
of ability or exercise of diligence to
protect the property, is upheld In Chi
cago vs. Manhattan Cement Company
(111.), 45 L. R. A. 848, on the ground
that It is a police regulation for the
better government of the State, and
does not violate constitutional provi
sions against statutes imposing taxes
upon municipal corporations for cor
porate purposes.
"Glencoe Modder."
One of the effects of the war in
South Africa is to be found In the
registers of births in the several dis
tricts of England, some very peculiar
names, arising out of the Transvaal
campaign, having been bestowed by
patriotic but inconsiderate parents on
their children. In a populous town in
Lancashire, for Instance, there Is a
little boy rejoicing In the uncommon
name of "Mafeklng," given him In hon
or of his uncle, who formed one of the
garrison of that town under Colonel
Baden-Powell, while In one or two in
stances the name "Volunteer" has been
given to children as evidence of the
Intense interest which has been taken
in the departure of the "citizen sol
diers" to the front
The names of several of the leading
engagements which have up to the
present been fought figure prominently
in these registers, such as "Glencoe,"
a very popular name for a boy just
now; "Dundee," "Eland" (the full name
"Elandslaagte" having apparently
proved too much of a mouthful), and
"Belmont" the last a favorite name
for girls, while one boy living near
London will have cause In a few years'
time to bemoan the hard fate which
saddled him with the name of "Glen
coe Modder." With what must be
looked upon as a daring anticipation of
events, a girl In North London has
Just been registered as "Roberts Pre
toria' Speaking of Pretoria reminds
one that several children already bear
that name, though so far no one has
bad the courage to name his offspring
"Bloemfonteln;" "Kimberley," how
ever, has been utilized several times.
Helpmates.
Lord and Lady Roberts have always
been a singularly attached couple, and
during their long residence In India the
great affection which obviously existed
between them was often a matter of
comment in Anglo-Indian society. They
were constantly together, and Lady
Roberts sometimes even brought her
work into her husband's office, and sat
with him there if no Important busi
ness was being transacted. A tall, fine
looking woman, with an agreeable
manner, Lady Roberts, despite her hus
band's high position, cares nothing for
society. She shrinks from personal
publicity, and has refused over ''and
over again to be Interviewed. Of Lord
and Lady Roberts' six children only
two now remain.
The Prisoner Was Mixed.
"Prisoner," said the Maryland Jus
tice, as the case was closed. "You hav
been found guilty of stealing a pig be
longing to Col. Chllders. Have yor
anything' to say before I pass sen
tence?"
"I has, sah," answered the prisoner,
as he rose up. "It was all a mistake,
Jedge all a mistake. I didn't dun reck
on to steal no pig from Kurnel Ohilvers.
What I was alter was a ha wg belongin'
to Majah Dawson, an' how dem two
animals got mixed up and de constable
found de meat in. my cabin am gwlne
to bodder me 'till I come out o' Jail an'
lick de ole woman fur not keepln' better
watch at de doah!" Washington Post
Sticks to an Ancient Cnstom.
The Queen (Victoria) at home Is sim
ply attired In a black dress, not al
ways of silk, and wears a widow's cap
with small lappets at the back, her sil
ver hair plainly brushed on either side
her temples. Upon her fingers are
plain memorial rings, and she invari
ably wears a bracelet having the por
trit of he - latest grandchild or great
grandchild placed in It as a medallion.
The Queen always has a handkerchief,
bordered with lace, resting In her hands
as they lie folded In her lap, the sur
vival of an ancient fashion.
Wag s In New South Wales.
In New South Wales the government
has fixed the minimum wages of rail
way laborers at 7 shillings, or about
$1.75 a day. -
Usually the harder a man works tht
more be earns for others.
THE LARGEST DUCK FARM.
ft la Maintained by A. R. Loom is on His
Place Near Fort Dodge, Iowa.
The largest flock of ducks in the
world Is at the Loom is duck farm near
Fort Dodge, Iowa. There are 13,000 of
them. A. K. Loomis, whose extensive
operations have earned for him the
sobriquet of "the poultry king," has re
cently made a successful experiment
that promises to revolutionize one
branch of the poultry business. Large
dealers whose energies are devoted to
supplying the big cities with live poul
try have experienced great difficulty in
preserving the plumpness of fowls
when removed Into new surroundings.
The refusal of the birds to eat results
not only In shrinkage, effecting an im
mediate money loss, but makes them
less marketable. After twenty years'
experience in feeding fowls In large
numbers for market Mr. Loomis has
discovered that the ducks are the only
ones thai can be fed In large numbers
with success.
"I have tried fattening every kind of
poultry," said Mr. Loomis, "and I have
never had any success with anything
but ducks. Before the holidays I tried
to fatten 5,000 chickens. They were
bought from farmers In all parts of the
country. We put them into a large in-
A LIVELY CORNER
closure and tempted them with feed by
the barrel. It did not require long to
see that they were shrinking every
flay. I soon found that they would not
eat food that was greedily devoured
while on the farm. Most of their time
was spent on the roosts. The hens
would not come down and the roosters
were engaged In constant fight The
result was I lost a nice bunch of money
on them. Then I tried turkeys. The
result was just as disastrous. One big
gobbler that weighed thirty-six pounds
when placed In the yards fell away to
thirty-two pounds after being fed three
lays. With several thousand pounds of
live turkeys at 7 cents per pound and
shrinking one pound each day it does
not require much figuring to show the
financial futility of feeding them In
large numbers for the market. AH my
experiments with ducks have proved
different They don't roost and seem
to adjust themselves to new conditions
very readily. We started with a flock
of 5,000, which, proving a success, wai
gradually increased to its. present di
mensions of 13,000, that are now nearly
ready for the market"
As Mr. Loomis does not breed fowls,
only feeding them for market he does
not. require very extensive quarters for
his duck farm. A two-acre tract of
ground surrounded by sheds and
houses in the form of a hollow square
constitutes the field of his operations.
In this Inclosure 13,000 ducks quack,
eat corn and grow fat for dinner tables
In Chicago, Philadelphia, Boston and
New York. Troughs of shelled corn and
water are placed at frequent Intervals
In the yard and two men are kept busy
constantly engaged supplying the wants
of the noisy fowls. One hundred bush
els of shelled corn are required each
day for their feeding. The large flock
proves a good weather profit and on
any evening previous to a change in
the temperature the quack of the ducks
is deafening and can be heard a mile
away. When the ducks have accu
mulated sufficient fat to make them
marketable sixty men are employed In
slaughtering and dressing them for
market Some of the men become very
expert In this work, one man holding a
record of 182 fowls In ten hours, or one
every four minutes.
FEATS OF HORSEMANSHIP.
Threading a Fine Needle While Going;
at a Fast Gallop.
"The greatest feat of horsemanship I
ever saw performed was by a Riffian
Irregular cavalryman," said Capt J. E.
Rathbone, of Los Angeles, Cal. This
was In reply to a story related by an
ex-Confederate, who had served with
Gen. J. E. B. Stuart in the valley of
Virginia. The latter told how, on more
than ode occasion, Turner Ashby had
ridden up to an opposing cavalryman,
seized him around the waist lifted him
out of the saddle as if he had been a
child, and taken him back on his own
horse Into the Confederate lines. It
was agreed that this was more of a feat
of strength and display of courage than
horsemanship.
"I have seen Cossacks at full gallop
snatch a baby from its mother's arms,
! toss it into the air, catch it and repeat
' the performance," said Capt. Rathbone.
! "I once saw an Indian rider in the far
West spring from his pony's bare back
while the animal was moving at full
gallop, pick up an arrow, and remount
instantly in a standing posture. I have
Been other performances all over the
' world, but for a neat clever, clean-cut
! feat this Riffian exceeded them all, I
think.
"Several of us had been at Gibraltar
and found ourselves at the town of
Millla on the Riffian coast We were
entertained by the Spanish commander,
who did the honors finely. One morn
ing we rode outside the town and
reached a level stretch of sand, where
there were a number of Riffian horse
men. They were fine-looking fellows,
and attired In snow white burnouses.
Tbey were mounted on small animals.
' slight but quick and wiry, of the thor
oughbred Arab barb type.
"We were amused some time by their
charges and evolutions. They would
throw their swords and matchlocks In
the air, catching them by the hilts and
1 stocks Infallibly. Finally It was an
I nounced that something of unusual in
terest would be accomplished. One of
the men produced a needle and a piece
of thread, possibly two or three feet
tn length. They were both banded
around for inspection. I suppose tba
needle was a cambric one, and thai
thread fifty to sixty fine. When we
had duly inspected both, one of thq
men signified he would thread the
needle. He galloped his horse dowq
the sand about 400 yards or so. Hi
finally wheeled his horse and remaine i
stationary, facing us. The one whj
held the needle and thread waved thenj
in his hand and rode toward the other.
When he had covered about two-thirds
of the distance he halted and waved
his hand to the farther one. Imme
diately the latter spurred his horse Into
a gallop and came toward us at full
speed. As he passed the other he took
the needle and thread from his com
panion, bent over for a moment and
pulled up when he reached our party,
holding the threaded needle trl-.
umphantly over his head." Chicago
Inter-Ocean.
PORTO RICO'S PNEUMATIC FISH.
When It Appears Inflated the Young
People Hasten to Marry.
With two horns on the front of Its
head, a feather on its back, and de
cidedly bovine expression of face, the
coming of the cowfish Is welcomed In
Puerto Rico. It is migrating, usually
OF THE DUCK FARM.
appearing in May in schools of greater
or less extent While it lingers on the
coast it emits a sort of "mooing" sound,
because of which visitors often call it
a drumflsh. Anyhow, It drums up the
native population, who run to the beach
to see If the schools are large, in which
case they say: "There is milk in the
cocoanut" an expression equivalent to
the promise of a fruitful season.
When there is this expectation of
abundance of food many of the young
people get married at once. A family
can live on the fruit of the wild banana,
which is twice the size of those export
ed and of much coarser grain, but roast
ed in ashes it is not bad eating. Sci
ence has yet to determine what the
coming of the cowfish has to do with
the fruitfulness of cocoanuts and ba
nanas, but with its two black horns and
the music it makes, and the little
feather, which is iridescent as it moves
through the water it is very engaging.
The preserved specimens are stuffed
with air only.
The manatee of the Caribbean sea Is
sometimes called the cowfish because
it comes on shore and eats grass. The
manatee is becoming extinct, and is
oftener found on the coast of Cuba and
keys south of Florida than In Puerto
Rico.
It is entirely distinct from the Puerto
Rico variety, which Is a true fish, run-'
ning In schools, whereas the manatee Is
a mammal, nursing its young. This
latter Is hunted for its hide, which Is
manufactured Into canes that look like
tortoise shell. These canes are so elas
tic and powerful that they are regarded
as deadly weapons, and by the Cuban
laws a fine of $50 Is Imposed upon any
one who strikes another with a mana
tee cane. They cost from $10 to $23
each in Havana stores. The Puerto
Rico cowfish has quite a tough little
hide also, but as it is seldom caught
weighing more than a pound or two, 11
has no commercial value in Puerto
Rico, where there are such variety and
abundance of fish. It has almost a
balloon-like appearance when In the
water, and the mooing musical sound
it makes is supposed to be owing to the
distention and contraction of the skin
while Inhaling and emitting air.
PORTO RICAN PEASANTS.
Their Wants Are Few, Simple and
Easily Supplied.
The life of the peasant the peon, of
Porto Rico is not a dream of ease and
luxury; neither has he ever passed
through the nightmare of wretched
hunger and biting cold which adds so
vitally to the hardships of the poverty
stricken of northern climes.
In squalor and filth, in crudity and
Ignorance, the larger number of the In
habitants go through their compara
tively short lives; for one does not see
many aged people among them. They
die off from' fevers, contagious dis
eases, and troubles handed down from
sickened forefathers, at a comparative
ly early age.
At no period of the poor man's exist
ence can he suffer the tortures of star
vation because his job of work has
given out, fori while during whole
months of the year he may not earn a
single centavo, he still has his little plot
of vegetables on the hill; then, If worst
comes to worst, or the land-owner
turns him out he may live on the pro
fusion of fruits and roots of the forest,
or, as Is a common practice of the
country, upon the fruits filched from
his more opulent neighbor.
In the dry season he complains of the
cold of the early morning, yet he needs
but the merest rags to cover his naked
ness, for on no day in the year Is it
colder than our mildest of autumnal
weather. Shoes are a useless burden
to his bare and sole-leather-lined feet
which have trodden the rocky, briery
trails in their nakedness from infancy;
and a hat if he must have it he makes
In his own house from the grass grown
around the doorway.
The house In which he is domiciled
he builds in a few short days from
poles and thatch and bark rolls of the
royal palm; and a good house It Is in
spite of its primitive appearance, for it
screens him from the colder winds of
night, and sheds the water of the driv
ing rains like a duck's back. Harper' :f
Weekly.
They say figures won't lie; they art,
too biggest liars on earth, f