ABRAHAM LlNCOUfi
NEW WAY TO KILL SNAKES,
The fcour was on ns; where the man?
The fateful Bands unfaltering ran,
And np the way of tears
He came Into the years,
Ocr pastoral captain. Forth he came,
As one that answers to his name;
Nor dreamed how high his charge,
His work how fair and large
To set the stones back In the wall
Lest the divided house should fall,
And peace from men depart,
Hope and the childlike heart.
We looked on him; " 'TIs he," we said.
"Come crownless and unheralded,
The shepherd who will keep
The flocks, will fold the sheep."
Unknightly, yes; yet 'twas the mien
Presaging the Immortal scene,
Borne battle of His wars
Who sealeth up the stars.
Nor would he take the past between
His hands, wipe valor's tablets clean,
Commanding greatness wait
Till he stand at the gate;
Not he would cramp to one small head
The awful laurels of the dead,
Time's mighty vintage cup.
And drink all honor up.
No flutter of the banners bold
Borne by the lusty sons of old,
The haughty conquerors
6et forward to their wars;
Not his their blare, their pageantries
Their goal, their glory, was not his;
Humbly he came to keep
The flocks, to fold the sheep.
' The need comes not without the man;
The prescient hours unceasing ran,
And up the way of tears
He came Into the years,
Our pastoral captain, skilled to crook
The spear Into the pruning hook,
The simple, kindly man,
Lincoln, American.
New York Independent.
Aunt Selina's Valentine
't 'I' 'I' '1 t ! r S' fr 'fr S 4 8 r f"fr S r r8Mr
CTjHE postman's whistle was cloar
"JPand shrill that morning, the 14th of
c February, and as he lifted the
knocker on Aunt Selina's narrow green
door the sound echoed through the house
and reached the ears of the little lady,
who hastily threw aside the brush she
was using and, shaking the dust from
her long print apron, opened the door
with a pleasant smile.
The smile vanished, however, and a
look of surprise took its place as she was
given a large square envelope, pure
white, and tied with dainty pink ribbons
and quaint little bows, which even her
nimble fingers found it hard to untie; but
a little later it was spread out on the
table before her, a valentine, all lace and
flowers and satin bows, with two angels
bearing up a line of love.
Aunt Selina's face was a study. In
deed, she made a picture sitting there by
the old fireside trying to solve this mys
tery, and when evening came and when
she went to feed her chickens and dog
Rover, her only companions, she was still
asking herself over and over:
"Who in all the wide world can care
enough for me to send me such a mes
sage of love ?"
Aunt Selina's life had been a quiet one;
her mother had died while she was a
child, and, with the help of an old nurse,
she had been housekeeper for her father
and one brother, older than herself, and
when this brother married shewas Aunt
Selina, not only to his children, but to
their little friends as well, for her sunny
nature made her a favorite with them
all. When her father died she was left
with the cottage and little garden and
enough money to live comfortably in a
quiet way.
But, though 30 years of age, she had
never had a lover, so now as her mind
ran over the gentlemen whom she knew
she could think of no one who would
send her a valentine. Still there was the
Baysville postmark, the town where she
lived, and once again she went through
her list of acquaintances.
"There's Deacon Hayes but he is so
jld and gray it can't be he. And Carlos
Brown, he sits in the pew at my right,
ut he is really too poor to think of
taking a wife."
For, some way, Aunt Selina felt that
Jt meant that, else why should one send
c- costly a valentine to an old maid?
Once she thought of asking the post
man, and then laughed at the idea. As
if ie would know. He was a bachelor
of middle age, and rumor said that he
had no liking for ladies' society, owing to
some experience before coming to Bays
villa. 1 Aunt Selina thought that his manner
bore out this statement, as he had made
few friends and seemed not to care for
the cheerful "Good morning" which she
gave him whenever he stopped at her
door.
It must be confessed that when the
next Sunday came, Aunt Selina was- un
usually careful of her dress. She wore
her new black silk, and: her wavy brown
. hair was neatly coiled beneath the small
velvet bonnet, which she had freshened
up" with a new satin bow, for she felt
sure that her valentine friend would be
at church that morning, and as she en
tered the color rose in her fair face, for
aha felt that the deacon had spoken
more kindly than usual, as she came
up the gravel walk, Mr. Brown had tak
en her hand in greeting and 'Squire Wat
kins, her father's old friend, had in
quired for her health.
As she went back to her quiet home
he wondered if a brighter future were
In store for her, something besides the
loneliness that had been her lot for many
years.
Time passed, and at length, hearing
nothing more from the sender of her val
entine, Bhe decided that either he did not
wish to be known, or had not the cour
age to carry the matter farther, so the
Jittle token was laid away, the one ro
mance of Aunt Salina's life.
One day a boy came running to her
door with a message, which read:
"I am very sick; will you come to me?
Your postman. JOHN MOORE. .
"Bleak House, Baysville."
Yes, Aunt- Salina would go, she was
always ready to help the suffering, but
when she entered the room where John
Moore lay, - the nurse came quickly to
ward her, telling her that he had not
long to live, and she thought the same
when she saw what a wreck the fever
had made of the once strong man.
Perhaps it was his constitution that
brought him through, ' or it may have
been Aunt Selina's cheerful face and gen
tle ways, for John Moore did not die,
.although it was many weeks before he
could travel his rounds again, and dur
ing that time Aunt Selina learned how
much he had cared for her, and that it
was he who had sent the valentine, hop
ing the little mnssago would, in some
way, help him to gain her love, for it
"was not true, the report which the gos
sips of Baysville had brought against
him, but more a reserved nature which
had made him seem indifferent to those
who would like to have been his friends.
Aunt Selina soon found that he was a
. noble, true-hearted man, one she could
trust with her whole love and life," and
when he asked:
"Will you share the home. I have made
ready" with the thought of you?" she did
not refuse, but a little later went quiet
ly into the church which the children
had filled with tlowers, and when she saw
te sweet blossoms and realized that all
BORN FEBRUARY 12, 1809.
" Let us have faith that right makes might; and in that faith let ns dare to
do our duty as we understand it."
this had been done for her, tears of hap
piness filled her eyes and she thought:
"How fair is life and all changed for
me by the aid of a valeutine." Indian
apolis Sun.-.
A Valentine.
The February sun Is coldly slipping
From ridge and frozen rill.
A February wind Is rudely whipping
The hedge-row on the hill.
But rude winds can not chill, "
Nor cold suns blight, nor still
The new-born joy that through my heart
comes tripping.
Full well I know that spring is Cupid's
playtime
Eare mornings decked with dew
And scented eves while summer with Its
haytlme
Brings joy to lovers, too.
But, dear, my love for you
Shall flower all seasons through.
And find in each a summer and a May
time. To-night, aglow with royal winter roses.
Your radiant face I see.
Beneath your wind-blown lashes love, dis
closes Its treasures, timidly.
Dear, though the years should be
Unkind to you and me,
Joy can not die In hearts where love re
poses. Criterion.
LINCOLN'S LIFE.
Characteristics of the Great Emanci
pator as Told in Paragraphs.
When 19, in building a fence, Lincoln
split the rails that played so prominent
a part in his first presidential campaign,
twenty-eight years after.
In youth he was an ardent advocate ,
of temperance, and delivered discourses j
on cruelty to animals and the horrors of
war. He liked stump-speaking much
more than the ax he had to wield so
often.
Among the first situations he obtained
after coming of age and striking out for
himself was as a flat-boat hand to New
Orleans. The slave auction he witness
ed there bore the ripe fruit of after years.
It is said that then and there, in May,
1831. the iron against slavery entered
his soul.
Tall, lanky, sallow, dark and slightly
stooping he was in appearance, being a
muscular 6 feet 4 at 17. His dress in
those days was all tanned deer hide, coat,
trousers and moccasins. The luxury. of
wearing garments of fur and wool, dyed
with the juice of the butternut or white
walnut, was just being adopted iu his
neighborhood, and Lincoln was not a
person to take the lead in elegance.
Thought, conversation and observation
were his preferences, and when growing,
up he had rather a reputation for lazi
ness and forwardness, because he loved
reading and thinking- so much. Even
from a boy he liked to have the first
word, and to converse with any one near
enough to talk to, even to strangers de
siring to be directed. He is described
when just reaching early manhood as
exceedingly talkative, yet elemental, un
sifted and raw.
Lincoln had very little actual school
education, his first goings, at the age of
10, were in Indiana, to a woman named
Hazel Dorsey. He was often taken from
school to work or hire out. At 14 he
went again to Andrew Crawford's school,
and at 17 he saw the last of his school
days under a man named Swaney. All
the education he obtained afterward was
through his own exertions. "Education
defective" was his own definition given
to the compiler of the Dictionary of Con
gress, although it was not a pleasant
thought to him.
Being raised in a community supersti
tious in the extreme, Lincoln believed in
supernatural portents all his life. Fri
day he considered fatal to every enter
prise and, as it turned out, well ' he
might. He had many dreams which he
considered forecasts of coming events,
once sending, a telegram to his wife to
take away "Tad's" pistol, as he had had
a bad dream about him. A good dream
presaged the victories of Antietam, , Mur
freesboro, Gettysburg and Vicksburg. He
related an ill one just before, his assas
sination. .
Too Many Bills.
vb
"Lord Needmonneigh asked me if he
could be my valentine."
"And you told him -"
"That there was too much postage due
on him."
i mr . y ya
HOUSE IN WHICH LINCOLN
DIED GOING TO DECAY.
The raoid decav of the house in Wash-
ington in which Abraham Lincoln died is Bional and sporadic instances even of unlawful and violent
attracting public attention, ind it is prob- action. These will always occur whle human nature re
able that something will be done to pre- mains unchanged and are not to be considered too seriously
Serve it. It Contains the Oldroyd COl- - h0rMv Tin a wnnhllc ennnnt livo if anv hnir nt
lection of Lincoln relics, and until re-:
cently was in the care of private tenants,
who charged a small admission fee to .
visitors. Now it is in the care cf a so-1
ciety. but nothing has been done to Dre-
serve or repair the walls or the interior,
The house is directly across the street
from the site of Ford's Theater, where
Lincoln was shot.
LINCOLN'S NARROW ESCAPE.
Fiendish Plot to Tnocnlate Him with
the Smallpox.
The demand for an additional body
guard around the White House recalls an
incident of the civil war within the mem
ory of many residents. During the excit
ing .period of '61 great fears were enter
tained for the safety of the President,
and every precaution was taken to insure
his personal protection.
One morning there appeared at the
White House a woman, closely veiled,
demanding an immediate interview with
Mr. Lincoln. ' Approaching Messenger
Perkins, who guarded the door of Mr.
Lincoln's private office, the visitor made
known her request and pleaded earnestly
that she be admitted to a personal inter
view. The doorkeeper's orders were, how
ever, very strict, and finding her eloquence
all in vain, she finally compromised by
confiding her message to the courteous
but firm employe. Taking him to one
side, the veiled lady took both his hands
in hers and tenderly rubbed them as she
extracted a promise that he would imme
diately deliver her request to the Presi
dent. Perkins was almost overcome by a
most peculiar odor that appeared to ema
nate from his companion, and hastened to
get rid of her without creating a scene. Mich. This venture was very proflt
No sooner had he accomplished this than ' able, and made him , wealthy. He
"V. VUUUUCU KJ UUC UL LUC UUUSV11U1U L II ti
effect produced upon him while in con
versation with the importunate visitor.
A physician who was present promptly di
vined the truth and instituted a search
for the woman, when it was learned that
she had driven rapidly away in a carriage,
and all trace was lost. Perkins was im
mediately ordered to return to his home
and await developments.
Within the usual period he was taken
ill with one of the worst cases of viru
lent smallpox on record, and for weeks
lay at the point of death. Upon his re
covery the faithful messenger, whose de
votion to duty doubtless saved the life of
the President, was appointed by Mr, Lin
coln" to a permanent position on thecleri
cal force of the War Department, which
office he has continued to hold up to date.
Lincoln's Lugie.
A man who heard Abraham Lincoln
speak in Norwich, Conn., somo time be-1 . , . . , 777"
fore he was nominated for President, ' moved to Milwaukee, but the inactivl
was greatly impresed by the closely knit of c,ty life Palled on nIm and he
logic of the speech. Meeting" him next decided to found a city in the primeval
day on a train, he asked him how he ac- forest. -quired
his wonderful logical powers and He traveled up the Wisconsin valley
such acuteness in analysis. Lincoln re- till he reached the place where Toma
plied: It was my terrible discourage-' hawknow stands. There he built a
ment which did that for me. When I saw mill and a large hotel, with ap-
aSaH,ZTi mar WC ?t0 an ofl1ce Pointments equal to those found in
to study law. I saw that a lawyer', 1 fre citiea started a newsnanpr
business is largely to prove things.. I C "j68: f startea a newspaper,
said to mvself. 'Lincoln wi,n i. Am.! i bnUt and stocked a general store, and
proved?' That was a noser. What nnnl
stitutes proof? Not evidence; that was
not the point. There may be evidence
enough, but wherein consists the proof?
Fgroaned over the question, and finally
said to myself, 'Ah, Lincoln, you can't
tell.' JThen I thought, 'what use i3 it for
me to be in- a law office if I can't tell
when a thing is proved? So I gave it up,
and went back home. Soon after I re
turned to the old log cabin, I fell, in with
a copy of Euclid. : I had not the slight
est notion of what Euclid was, and I
thought I would nd out. I therefore be
gan, at the beginning, and before spring
I had gone through the old Euclid's ge
ometry, and could demonstrate every
proposition in the book. , Then in the
spring, when I had got through with it,
I said to myself one day, Ah, do you
know when "a thing is proved?' and I an
swered, 'Yes, sir,. I do.' 'Then you mjy
go back to the law shop;' and I went.'
&00D FIELD FOR AMERICAN CAPITAL
By 7 somas tiast. Late V- S- Consul
Ecuador is reasonably healthy, espe
cially In the country, the prevailing dis
eases being malarial fevers. One soon
gets acclimatized. In Guayaquil and
along the coast the climate during the
wet season (from January to May) is
very unhealthy.
The chief industry of Ecuador is cacao
growing, which Is extremely profitable.
'I w
if lH
The world's supply
to some 90,000 tons, and of this Ecuador
produces 27,000 tons, or about one-third
tbomas nast. of the total. Land can be obtained at
about $1 per acre. It requires about five years to bring a
cacao estate into bearing, at a cost of 15 to 20 cents per
tree. The trees yield on an average one pound each. For
a plantation of 100,000 trees it costs to bring into bearing,
say, $17,o0J. At the end of five years it is worth $50,000;
at seven years, $75,000, etc". The production of 100,000 trees
would be 100,000 pounds, worth $11,000 at present. The
cost of putting this quantity on the market, including labor,
etc.. would be $4,000, leaving' a net profit of $7,000.
Estates are easily sold at the above figures, and if -a cap
italist can wait for results for five years he is sore of a
good income. In the mentime, "catch crops," such as rice
or corn, can be grown on the same ground, which is so
fertile that forthe growing of rice, etc., it is never neces
sary to plow; a hole Is simply made with a machete and
the seeds put in, and good returns are obtained.
The planting and growing of rubber trees is considered
one of the best investments; but very few have been
planted, on account of the large supply of wild rubber and
the fear that some artificial matter might be discovered to
take its place. There are plenty -of good opportunities in
Ecuador for the investment of money.
LABOR'S RIGHT TO COMBINE. , K
By Senator Hoar, of Massachusetts.
I cannot see why if capital may com
bine in corporations, labor may not com
bine in labor unions. Every corporation
and every partnership is an aggregate
of individuals. So when a single work
man desires employment he has to make
his bargain not with one employer, but
with many employers acting as one.
He is also at another disadvantage. The
thing he has to sell is his day's work. If
he goes down in the morning to make
his engagement, the thing he is to sell
BEITATOB HOAB.
is perishing with every hour of delay lri
making his eontract. These associations of capital fre
quently extend through the whole country and control under
one head and with one will every establishment in the coun
try in which a skilled workman might hope to find em
ployment So I can see no reason why the workman should
1 not combine to make his bargain as to the rate of wages,
-as to the hours of labor and as to the comfort and safety
of his occupation.
But, on the other hand, he has no right to interfere by
violence with the freedom of any workman who does not
choose to belong to -his union. Of course where men act
'n masses and are under excitement
men undertake to impose their own will
freedom of others.
Subject to this condition I believe
true Americans is on the side of labor
better its condition. Unless the American workman shall
have good wages and" leisure and comfort,
in his home, shall send his children to
comfortably for his old age.- the republic itself will be no
longer worth living in. Capital and wealth will In the end
take care of themselves, but to the elevation of labor,
which Is but another name for the elevation of citizenship,
the whole force and power of the republic should be bent.
SHE CLAIMS $40,000,000.
The Sum Left by the Man She Married
! . on II is Death Bed.
In all probability Mrs. William H.
Bradley, of Tomahawk, Wis., will
come into possession of the $40,000,000
left by, her husband, William H. Brad
ley, a pioneer lumberman and the rich
est man in Wisconsin. -Three days be
fore his death he married Miss Marie
Hannemager, who for twenty years
was his ' private secretary and who
knows more than any other person
about his vast estate.
Bradley was as eccentric as he was
wealthy. He was a native of Bangor,
Me., where his father, as the son
proved to be, was a successful lumber
man. -In the early 60s he went to
Wisconsin and entered the lumber
business in a small way. ,Then he got
in with some Milwaukee capitalists
and began ODerating near Muskesron.
4 yi t jtf
ski .nn: ?
W. H. BBADLKT.
UBS. W. H. BRADLEY.
i then waited for the population which
he was sure' would follow him. As
the timber : about his mill was out
down and shipped to market he built
railroads, adding miles and miles as
he needed them. Everything he touch
ed seemed to turn to gold, and invest
ments which to others seemed the
height of folly brought him fortunes.
While Tomahawk was still in its In
fancy Mr. Bradley established another
town at Spirit Falls, and In this, too,
he was successful. He became fabu
lously rich, and the fortune left hier
widow Is estimated at $40,000,000.
Utlca Globe. : .
His Notion or tbe West.
"This surely is a great country, since
we have arrived at the point that
geograhpical terms no longer convey
any adequate Idea of location' remark-
it
i
rJT y J)
General at Guayaquil
It is for this that
this that we have
And It is for this
life.
PRAISE AND BLAME
of cacao amounts-
He is in
the management of
in tbe end to become
fled that his services
Too much praise
harmf ul, though In
little for the future,
there will be occa-
upon the lawful
the sympathy of all
and its attempt to
shall have books
school, can provide
MANY UNDERTAKINGS OF THE FEDERAL GOVERN
MENT N THE FARMERS' INTEREST.
T
HE National Geographic Magazine asserts 'that no other government
In the world does so much as the United States to promote the agri
cultural interests of thecountry.
- Through Its efforts tea is now being successfully grown In South
Carolina. , . . -
Through its encouragement Connecticut will soon be raising all the Su
matra tobacco consumed in the United States $6,000,000 worth annually.
- A new variety of long-staple cotton, having nearly double the value of the
old, has been created; new wheats and new rices, and even a frost-resisting
orange has been evolved. - And these are only samples of what has been
done. "
The American farmers have an Invested capital of $20,000,000,000, This
is a great agricultural nation, and Uncle Sam doesn't forget 1L Glance at
some of the things he does to help and protect the farmer:
The bureau of animal industry made last year nearly 60,000,000 ante
mortem inspections of meat animals and about 39,000,000 post-mortem in
spections. The meat inspection stamp was .affixed to over 23,000,000 pack
ages of meat. And this is only part of the bureau's work.
The land grant agricultural colleges have an attendance of 42,000.
The export trade in fruit and vegetables is assisted by the introduction
of Improved methods of handling. Imported food products are examined
for injurious substances. Important investigations have been made in the
sugar laboratory with a view to improving the quality and quantity of table
syrups. Weather bureau warnings are of the greatest assistance to agri
culture. The Department of Agriculture Is a worker for forestry, the bureau
of forestry being a part of it. The bureau of soils employs over 175 persons.
The department published last year 757 different publications, with a total
circulation of 10,586,580. Although the cost of publications amounts to
$800,000 a year, It is Inadequate to supply the demand.
ed W. S. Crouch of Tacoma, Wash., at
the Raleigh.
"The other night, shortly after ar
riving here, I got Into an accidental
talk with a gentleman who chanced to
be my vis-a-vis at dinner. He was a
stranger, and as I was In the same cat
egory it was pleasant to have" someone
to chat with. Moreover, he was evi
dently a gentleman of standing and re
spectability and looked like a man of
good intelligence. He was well dress
ed and his whole aspect betokened pros
perity. "He found out that I hailed from the
West and the Information pleased him.
'I like Western people Immensely,' he
said. 'They are not so ceremonious and
so hard to get acquainted with as those
who live In the East. I am a Western
er myself and am tickled mightily to
meet you. Come here, waiter, and take
the gentleman's order.' As I was say
ing, being from the West myself, it Is
a real comfort to run across you.
"'And may I ask where your home
is?'
" 'My home, sir, Is Pittsburg, Pa.,
I am proud to live In such a great and
enterprising city,' Later on, when I
told him that I hailed from the town of
Tacoma, he asked me If I was In
Washington Territory, and seemed sur
prised when I told him Washington had
been a State for the last thirteen years."
Washington Post.
, , Artificial Limb,
The manufacture of artificial limbs
is of very ancient origin. The grand
father of Catiline In early life lost his
right hand in battle, but made himself
an iron substitute with which he could
we have schools and churches. It la for
tariffs. It Is for this that we have law.
that the republic must live or bear no
BOTH OF VALUE.
By James r. O'Brien.
The two greatest factors in securing the best,
work from employes are praise and blame. I am
sure that neither alone will answer the purpose. ;
The man who must be scolded and found fault
with continually is of little value in any position,
disfavor jvith his superiors in office be-
cause tney cannot irust mm to perrorm nis auues
faithfully. As for the man himself, his many
delinquencies cause him to lose confidence in his
own ability; he becomes careless and forgetful, and finally
loses his place altogether. A too frequent use of praise in
employes is productive of undesirable
results of a different character. The man who Is continu
ally Draised after ft whilp hecomps Imbued with the Idea
that he is "IT." He has an exaggerated idea of his own ' of the squirrels, catching them by the
importance and Is liable to assume a patronizing air toward legs as they passed In and out, swallow
his associates and customers that is. not at all desirable 1 ing them whole as they do frogs,
in fact is decidedly harmful. Such a man Is almost certain I For five or six years the struggle for
so intolerable that he Is at last notl-
are no longer required.
or too much blame is therefore equally
a different way. A judicious use of
both is highly desirable. When a salesman makes a good
sale, it pleases him to receive a word of commendation
from the manager and It spurs him to do better. On the
other hand, if he is impolite to a customer or does some
thing he ought not to do, he should be reproved gently but
firmly. This will make him more careful In the future,
and In the end he will be more valuable to himself and the
firm.
Much depends upon the manager himself. If he pos-
sesses good common sense, has a fair knowledge of human
nature, and has personal magnetism, he will have no
trouble with his employes. If, on the. other hand, he is
unjust, hard, and unsympathetic, he will be unable to keep
good salesmen or saleswomen in his employ for any length
of time. No one of spirit will submit to being cursed and
reproved before his shopmates by the man from whom he
receives his orders. Dissatisfaction is certain to show it-
self among the other employes, and the entire force soon
becomes demoralized.
CHOOSING AN OCCUPATION. ". .
By Hamilton D. Maxwell.
Many a young man falls to make his mark In
the world because he does not make a choice of
occupation. This is a very commonplace remark,
and so also Is the inquiry why is a choice not
made? . '
The painful, fact is that the young men who
think and consult about the future, and come to
some well-defined plan of life, are in the minority;
while the men who take things as they come, care
and plan less for It, are in the ma
jority. But there are a large number of men who are in
perplexity about the future. They almost wish some over
whelming circumstances would force them into an occupa
tion or a profession. '
Man Is endowed with the power of choice, and we must
decide for ourselves. True, adman's choice will be modi
fied by circumstances not in his Immediate control, but,
after all, one must act for himself.
The power of choice does not, of course, prevent the ask
ing for that wisdom from above which will be liberally
given to those who devoutly seek It.
The first inquiry is: What can I do? I may be able to
do several things, and do them reasonably well, but there
must be a selection, and hence the second inquiry: What
can I do best? Then follows the question of opportunity.
Where and how can one find not only opportunity, but
the largest opportunity to do what one can do best? The
man who finds "the largest opportunity to do what he. can
do best" has chosen his work, the method and the field.
handle sword or lance. About fifteen
years ago a tomb was opened at Ca
pua, which contained . a remarkable
specimen of a well-made artificial leg.
It was composed of thin sheets of
bronze, riveted together, and fastened
to a wooden core. Iron bars connected
the leg with a bronze belt round the
wraist of the skeleton, and there were
traces of a wooden foot. The iron nand
of Gotz von Berlichingen Is historic,
but among the German knights of his
time there is record of one who had
an. iron foot which weighed nearly ten
pounds, and with this pedal extension
he could kick so hard that his servants
finally stole it and threw it into the
Rhine. He had a second made which
shared the fate of the first, and he
then contented himself with a foot
made of German oak. The servants
and retainers of his castle did not ap
parently mind being kicked with an
oaken foot, but they drew the line at
Iron.
Famuus Frosts in England.
The lowest temperature recorded in
London .during the past forty years
was in January, 1867, when the ther
mometer fell to 6.7, or nearly 26 de-
grees of frost, but this undesirable
record was almost equaled during the
famous long frost of 1895, when for
one whole day In February the mer
cury never rose above 8 degrees. The
coldest December was In "1890, the
coldest February In 1895 and the cold
est March in 1883. The warmest De
cember occurred in 1888, the warmest
January in 1884, the warmest Febru
ary In 1869 and the warmest March In
1859.
Squirrels Have Devised a Method of
Getting the Best of an Enemy.
A new condition of animal life has
developed on Indian Island, In the
State of Maine. As the Indians who
Inhabit the island never kill anything
they do not eat, and as they eat
neither squirrels nor snakes, both of
these species have multiplied greatly
of late years, and they have become as
nnmmnn oa r-i-a ochnnnoro arm n 11T1-
afrala of man
It came about in this way: The natu
ral food of the large striped snake con
sists of insects with now and then a
' plump frog or a toad for a holiday
feast. As the Indians do not kill
snakes unless they are very hungry
the reptiles Increased so fast on the
Island that all the frogs and toads and
most of the Insects were exterminated,
compelling the snakes to eat chipmunks
i
or starve.
They chose the chipmunks.. Though
these small squirrels are found all over
the island, they are most plentiful In
the little cemetery at the south end.
The big striped snakes soon learned
where game was thickest and began to
make raids upon the undefended holes
-mastery between the chipmunks and
the snakes was a hard one. 1
The ratio between the two was decld-
edly in favor of the snakes, and the
, chipmunks were in a fair way to be
wiped out, when an inventive squirrel
, discovered a way of killing the snakes
without fighting them.
While a snake will enter any hole In
the ground that Is large enough to re
ceive Its body, no snake has yet been
able to dig a hole for itself, and when-
ever a snake Is plugged Inside of a hole
that snake remains where it is until it
dies of starvation,
Somehow the chipmunks learned this
f weak spot In the defense of snakes
and they began offensive operations,
( Every day they went leaping among
the graves and snuffing at the holes to
learn If there were snakes Inside. As
Boon as one was discovered the squirrels
carried earth In their cheek pouches
until the hole containing the snake was
filled with earth and beaten down level
with the grass.
They kept close watch for prying
snakes for two or three years In succes
sion, and last summer there was hardly
a large snake to be found on the Isl
and, while the chipmunks had increas
ed so rapidly that they ate up many of
the growing crops upon which the In
dian depended for cash bounties from
the State.
In digging among the graves of their
ancestors to rid the island from a pest
of chipmunks the Indians unearthed
hundreds of dead snakes which had
been buried alive by the squirrels. Then
the world was enlightened as to a new
way of killing snakes.
"LIKE SO CENTS."
How a Current Slang Phrase Started
on Its Travels.
The origin of slang has always been
a puzzle to philologists, but once in a
while a current phrase can be traced
to its source. The colloquialism "To
feel like thirty cents" Is apparently
nonsensical, but it Is certainly the
most forceful expression of the day
for denoting anything small, mean and
contemptible In one's own sight- Its
origin is thus explained by a Philadel
phia lawyer, who sometimes practices
in New York:
"There Is a vacant law in New
York under which a person having no
visible means of support may be plac-' :
ed in durance. It has also been de
cided In that State that a person hav- -ing
so small a Bum as thirty cents in
his possession has 'visible means - of
support.' Now there is no law in New
York except the vagrant law under
which pool sellers and gamblers may
be held. Shortly after the decision just '
mentioned was formulated two - gam
blers were captured In a raid and tak-
en to the Tenderloin station house.
They sent for a lawyer, who came and
had a talk with them. 'It will never
do to make any show of money here,'
he said. 'Give me your rolls.' They
handed their wads over to him and he
gave each of them a quarter and a
nickel, with instructions to produce the
coins when be asked them to do so In
court.
"When their cases were called the
lawyer got them off on the plea that ,.
they were not vagrants, each having
the legal amount of funds in his pos
session. Just as the decision was ren
dered in favor of -his clients a messen
ger entered the court and required the
lawyer's presence at the Supreme
Court. He left without seeing his ell- "
ents, and they wended their way to the
nearest saloon
"How do you feel?" said one.
"'I feel like thirty cents,' said the
other, 'and probably will until I get my
roll back, or what's left of It.'
"And that's how that phrase was
started' In its travels." New York
, Mail and Express.
Snuff-Taking.
.In 1712 the London Spectator com
plained of snuff -taking as an Impertl-
' nent custom adopted by fine women
and equally disgusting whether prac
ticed sedately or coquettishly. Some
used the box only as a means of dis
playing their pretty hands; but the
thorough-paced woman of fashion
pulled out. her box In the middle Qf
the sermon and freely offered her best
Brazilian to friends of either sex and
asked the church warden to take a
i pinch as she dropped her money Into
the collecting plate. Thus for a time
the snuffbox was as much a part of
the "fine lady's" toilet as the fan It
self. More than once the snuffbox has
played an important part in political
life. v After the banishment of Napo-
leon to Elba, and while the Bonapart-
; ists were plotting for his return, they
used to fill their boxes with snuff
: scented with violets his favorite
flower. When desirous of learning
which side an individual favored they
would offer a pinch and significantly
ask, "Do you like this perfume?" "
Talleyrand always said that diplo
matists ought to take snuff, as it af
fords a pretext for delaying a reply
and gave opportunities for covering
any Involuntary expression of emotion.