The Firm of
Girdlestone
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BY
A. CON AN DOYLE
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t4t4T
CHAPTER III (Continued.)
"You're raving, Baumser," ssid Major
Clutterbuck, excitedly. "Why, man, the'r
Halm's are above suspicion. They are
looked upon as the soundest vneern iu
the city."
"iHit may be; dat may be," the Ger
man answered stolidly. "What 1 know I
know, and what I say I say.''
"And how d'ye know it? D'ye tell me
that you know more about it than; the
meu on 'Change and the films that do
business with them?"
"1 know what I know, and I say what
1 say," the other repeated.
"And you won't tell me where you
heard this of the Girdlestones.'"
"It would be no good to you. It is
t-uough that what I say is certain. Let
it (suffice that they are people what are
bound to tell other people all that they
know about anythiflg whatever."
"You don't make it very clear now,"
the old soldier grumbled. "You mean
that these secret societies and socialists
let each other know all that comes in
their way, and have their own means of
getting information."
"Dat may be, and dat may nit be," tho
German answered in the sama oracuhr
voice. "I thought in any case, my good
friend Clutterbuck, that I would give you
what you call it in English the straight
tap. It is always well to have the
straight tap."
"Thank ye, me boy," the major said
heartily. "If the firm's in a bad way
either the youngster doesn't know of it,
or else he's the most natural actor that
ever lived. There's the tay-bell ; let's g-st
down before the bread and lutther Is
all finished."
Mrs. Robins was in the habit of fur
nishing her lodgers with an evening mesl
at a small sum per head. There was only
certain amount of bread and butter sup
plied for this, however, .and those who
came late were likely to find an emp.'y
platter. The two Bohemians tell that
the subject was too grave a one to tr'fle
with, so they suspended their judgment
upon the Girdlestones while ihey clat
tered down to the dining room.
r-r-
i CHAPTER IV.
Although not a whisper had been heard
of it in ordinary commercial circles, there
was some foundation for the forecast
which Von Bauinser had mad-j as to the
fate of the great house of GU dlestone.
For some time back matters had been go
ing badly with the African traders If
the shrewd eyes of Major Tobjas Clutter
buck were unable to detect any indica
tions of this state of affairs in the mari
ner or conversation of the junior partner,
the reason simply was that that gentle
man was entirely ignorant of the mimi
lieut danger which hung over tis head.
As far as he knew, the concern was as
prosperous and as flourishing as it hid
been at the time of the death of Johu
Harston. The momentous secret wti
locked in the breast of his grim old
father, who bore it about with aim as
the Spartan lad did the fox without a
quiver or groan to indicate the care
which was gnawing at his hart. i'lac-d
face to face with ruin, Girdlestone fought
against it desperately, and, witnal. cool
ly and warily, throwing away jo chance
and leaving no stone unturned. Above
all. he exerted himself and exerted him
self successfully to prevent any rumor
of the critical position of the firm fro;n
leaking out in the city.
Mauy things had contributed towards
this state of affairs. The firm had be.-n
Involved in a succession of misfortune',
some known to the world, and others
known to no one save the elder liird'e
ctone. Lines of fine vessels from Li vet -pool
and from Hamburg were tunning o
the West coast of Africa, and com peti
tion had cut down freightage to the low
est possible point. Where trie Girdle
stones had once held almost a monopoly
there were now many in the field. Again
the negroes of the coast were becoming
educated, and had a keen eye to busi
ness, so that the old profits were no
longer obtainable. The days had gonj
by when flint-lock guns and Manchester
prints could be weighed in the ualane
gainst ivory and gold dust.
While these general causes were at
work a special misfortune had befallen
the house of Girdlestone. Finding that
their fleet of o?d sailing vess-is were t"0
slow and clumsy to compete with more
modern ships, they had bought in t-o
first-rate steamers. One was the I'rov;
dence, a fine screw vessel of twelve hun
dred tons, and the other was tne Even
lug Star, somewhat smaller in size, b'lt
both classed A 1 at Lloyd's. The former
tost twenty-two thousand pounds, a id
the latter seventeen thousand. Now, Mr.
Girdlestone had always had a weakness
for petty savings, and in this instance he
determined not to insure his new vessels.
If the crazy old tubs, for which he had
j.aid fancy premiums for so many years
with an eye to an ultimate profit, met
with no disaster, surely those Dew pow r
ful clippers were safe. It chanced, how
ever, by strange luck that as the. Even
ing Star was steaming up Channel in a
dense fog on her return from her second
voyaj, "he ran right into th Providence,
which had started that very morning from
Liverpool upon her third outward trip.
The I'rovidence was almost cut in two,
and sank within five minutes, taking down
the captain and six of the crw, while tin.
Evening Star was so much damaged about
the bows that she put into l'almouth in
a sinking condition. That day's work
oost the African firm ftiore than five-anrt-tbirty
thousand pound.
Other mishap had occurred to weaken
the firm, apart from their trade with Ce
coast. Tne senior partDer had engard
la anaculation without Uit knowledge of
his son, and the reault had been disas
trous. One of the Cornish tin mines in
which he had sunk a larg'i amount of
money, and which had hitherto yielded
him a handsome return, became suddenly
exhausted, and the shares went down" to
tera. No firm could stand agamst such
a run of bad luck, and the African trad
ing company reeled before it. John Gir
dlestone had not said a word yet of all
this to his son. As claims arose he ran
tied them in the best manner he could,
ftiil postponed the inevitable day when
he should have to give a tins account
of their financial position. He hoped
against hope that the chapter of acci
dents or the arrival of some orllllant car
goes from the coast might set the concern
on its legs again.
From day to day he had been expect'.ng
news of one of his vessels. At last otitf
morning he found a telegram awaiting
him at the office. He tore It eagerly opeu
for it bore the Madeira mark. It was
from his agent. Jose Alverclras, and an
nounced that the voyage from which ho
had hoped so much had been :i total fail
ure. The cargo was hardly sufficient to
defray the working expenses. As the mer
chant rend it, his head drooped over tne
table and he groaned aloud. Another of
the props which upheld hlra from ruin
had snapped beneath him.
There were three letters lying beside
the telegram. He glanced through them,
but there was no consolation in any o?
them. One was from a bank manager
informing him that his account was som
what overdrawn. Another frm juloyd's
Insurance Agency, pointing out that the
policies on two of his vessels would lapse
unless paid within a certain date. The
clouds were gathering very darkly ov r
the African firm, yet the old man bo.
up against misfortune witn aaunties
courage. He sat alone in his little room,
with his head sunk upon his breast, and
his thatched eyebrows drawn down over
his keen grey eyes. It was clar to h m
that the time had come when he must
enlighten his son as to the true state of
their affairs. With his co-operation ho
might carry out a plan whicrt had been
maturing for some months in bU brain.
A moment or two later the green baize
door flew open, and the young man came
in, throwing his hat and coat down .on
one of the chairs. It was evident that
something had ruffled his temper.
"Good morning," he said brusquely,
nodding his head to his father.
"What's the matter vth you? Yo
don't look yourself, and haven't for some
time back."
"Business worries, my boy, business
worries," John Girdlestono answered
wearily. "I have not got a gd balance
at' the banker's"
"Pretty fair, pretty fair," hU son said,
knowingly, picking up the lonst thin vol
ume in which the finance of the firm was
recorded, and tapping it r.gainst the ta
ble. "But the figures there are not correc.
Ezra," his father said, still more huskily.
"We have not got nearly so much as
that."
"What!" roared the junior partner.
"Hush ! Don't let the clerks hear you.
We have very little. In facr, Ezra, we
have next to nothing in the bank It is
all gone."
For a moment the young man stood mo
tionless, glaring at his father. The ev
pression of incredulity which had appear
ed on his features faded away before the
earnestness of the other, and was -o-placed
by a look of such malignant pas
sion that it contorted his whole face.
"You fool !" he shrieked, springing for
ward with the book upraised as though
he would have struck the old merchant.
"I see it now. You have been speculat
ing on your own hook ! What have you
done with it?" He seized his father by
the collar and shook him furiously in hu
wrath.
"Keep your hands off me!" the senior'
partner cried, wrenching himself free
from his son's grasp. "I did my best
with the money. How dare you address
me so?"
"Did your best !" hissed Ez -a, hurling
the ledger down on the table with a crash.
"Whaf did you mean by speculating wi' fl
out my knowledge, and telling me at the
same time that I knew all that was
done? Iladn t I warned you a thousand
times of the danger of it? You are not
to be trusted with money."
"Remember, Ezra," his father said
with dignity, reseating himself in the
chair from which he had risen, in order
to free himself from his son's clutches, "if
I lost the money, I also made it. This
was a flourishing concern before you were
born. If the worst comes to the worst
jou are only where I started. But we aM
far from being absolutely ruined as yet."
"To think of it !" Ezra cried, flinging
himself upon the" office sofa and burying
his face in his hands. "To think of nil
I have said of our money and our re
sources ! What will Clutterbuck and tho
fellows at the club say? How can I
alter the ways of life that I have learn
ed?" Then suddenly clenching his hands,
and turning upon his father, he broke out.
" must have it back, father; we must,
by fair means or foul. You must do if,
for it was you who lost it. What can
we do? How long have we to do it in?
Is this known in the city? Oh, I shall
bawhamed to show my face on 'Change,
So he rambled on half-maddened by the
pictures of the future which rose up in
his mind.
"Be calm, Ezra, be calm !" his father
said imploringly. "We have many chances
yet if we only make the best of them.
There is no use lamenting the past. I
freely confess that I was wrong in using
this moneyy without your knowledge, but
I did it from the best of motives. We
must put our heads together now to re
trieve our losses, and there are many
ways in which that may be done. I want
your clear common sense to help me in
the matter."
"Pity you didn't apply to that before,"
Ezra said sulkily.
"I have suffered for not doing so," the
old man answered meekly. "In consider
ing how to rally under this grievous af
fliction which has come upon us, we must
remember that our credit is a great re
source, anil one on which we have never
drawn. That gives us a broad margin to
help us while we are carrying out our
plans for the future."
"What will our credit be worth when
this 'matter leaks out?"
"But it can't leak out. No one suspects
it for a moment. They might imagine
that we are suffering from some tempo
rary depression of trade, but no one could
possibly know the sad truth. I have
more than one plan in my head by which
our affairs may be re-established oo tteir
old footing. J Tve can once get win4
dent monej t antisfy our present credit- '
ors, and so tide over this run of bad luck, '
the current will aet In the other way, and
all will go well. And first of all, there
Is one question, my boy, which I should
like to ask you. What do you think of
John Harston s daughter?"
"She's right enough," the young man
answered brusquely,
"She's a good girl, Ezra a, thorough
good girl, and a rich girl, too, though her
money is a wnall thing in my eyes com
pared to her virtue."
Young Glrdlestone sneered. "Ot
course," he said, Impatiently. "Well, go
on what about her?"
to recelv s mv rf,rht.r-!n.in, iM.w,'re 73 P cent more on this ration
you rogue, you could come round her:!than uPn a ration of Kafllr corn meal
you know you could." The old man
poked his long bony finger in the direction
of his son's ribs with grim playfulness.
"Oh, that's the idea, is it?" remarked
the junior partner, with a very unpleas
ant smile.
"Yes, that is one way out of our diffi
culties. She has forty thousand pounds.
which would be more than enough to save
the firm. At the same time you would
gain a charming wife." harvesting. An earlier experiment at
"If we are reduced to such an expedi-1 the same station was tried to deter
ent I think I can answer for the result. J mine the value of alfalfa pasture for
The girl's not a bad looking one. But you j hogs. The hogs were allowed to run
said you had several plans. Let us hear ; upon the alfalfa during the summer
some oi tne otner ones ir tne worst
I; " 1 u"BUl wu"'
that on condition, ot course, that 1
should have the whole management of the
money."
"Quite so quite so," his father said
hurriedly. "That's a dear, good lad. Aa
you say, when all other things fail we
can always fall back upon that. At pres
ent I intend to raise as much money as
I can upon our credit, and invest it in
such a manner as to bring in a large and
immediate profit."
"And how do you intend to do this?"
his son asked doubtfully.
"I intend," said John Girdlestone, sol
emnly rising up and leaning his elbow
against the mantelpiece, "I Intend to
make a corner in diamonds."
CHAPTER V.
John Glrdlestone propounded his Inten
tion with such dignity and emphasis that
he evidently expected the announcement
to come as a surprise upon his son. If
so, he was not disappointed, for the
young man stared open-eyed.
"A corner in diamonds !" he repeated.
"How will you do that?"
"You know what a corner is," has fath
er explained. "If you buy up all tha
cotton, say, or sugar in the market, so
as to have the whole of it in your own
hands, and to be able to put your own
price on it in selling it again that is
called making a corner in wheat or cot
ton. I intend to make a corner in dia
monds." "Of course, I know what a corner is,"
Ezra said impatiently. "But how on
earth are you going to buy all the dia
monds in? You would want the capital
of a Rothschild."'
"Not so much as you think, my boy,
for there are not any great amount of hens lay Is lean meat. When the sup
diamonds in the market at any one tlmej ply of eggg fall8) stop a1 other foeds
The yield of the South African fields reg- flKd fml ean meat or ,. flnd h
w ?efnPrTme Si Id eats 111 answer, and it will be found
my head for some time, ana nave studied
the details. Of course, I should not at-, Perlor to anything else that can Le
tempt to buy in all the diamonds that are "swl- Oveen bone, containing a large
in the market. A small portion of them proportion of lean meat, is even bett;r,
would yield profit enough to float the firm provided the fat portions are removed
off again." I from the bone.
"But if you have only a part of the It will be found cheaper than grain,
supply in your hands, how are you to reg-, because it will make eggs. One reason
ulate the market value? You must come wuy tne hens fall to lay when they
down to the prices at which other holders hflve I)lenty of grain ls tuat they re
are selling. quire a change and meat supplies the
"Ha! ha! ery good! very good!" the ' lieedful. If the uens are fat glve one
humoredly. "Bu.t you don't quite see my '
plan yet. lou have not altogether grasp
ed it. Allow me to explain to you. I
did some business in diamonds myself
when I was a younger man, and so I had
an opportunity of observing their fluctua
tions in the market. Now, there is one
thing which invariably depreciates the
nrice of diamonds. That is the rumor of
fresh discoveries of mines in other parts
of the world. The instant such a thing j rather than small seed, and the plant
gets wind the value of the stones goes jng should be after the danger of frost
down wonderfully. The discovery of dia
monds in Central India not long ago had
that effect very markedly, and they have
never recovered their value since. Do you
follow me?"
An expression of interest had come over
Ezra's face, and he nodded to show that
he was listening.
(To be continued.)
An Eno-llah Amenity.
A striking difference between our
mflnners and those of our English cous
ins was shown one day at a garden
party. The hostess, an American, wag
speaking to one of her guests, an En
glishwoman of rank.
"Dear Lady B.," she said, "here are
, i
mv own hands, nartleularl v tar vmi.
.
our American sandwiches and how
good they are. Here are different
sorts. lettuce and cucumbers, if you
care for 'grass,' or If you like a savory
better try the cream cheese ones with
r.lfiiontru.u 1'vo Komn uvvoi.t nnna tcist '
raisins and nuts chopped together
which will you try first?"
She held a plate in each hand, a
plate filled with dainty looking sand
wiches, and they were extended Invit
ingly toward her guest, who looked at
them critically, then said in the clear,!
high pitched voice of the well bred En
glishwoman :
"Oh, thank you. so kind of you, but
no you kiiow i nccr loucn ine nawstj
things?" Cleveland Plain Dealer .
Two I.ap.e. nf Memory.
Mother Tommy, what did I say I'd
do to you If you touched that jam
again? I
Tommy Why, it's funny, ma, that
you should forget, too. I'm blamed if
I can remember J Philadelphia Tele
graph, j
Take. it. on c;it.
"Time waits for nobody," sighed th.
senior partner. ,
True." rejoined the Junior Dartner.
"but the office boy worries each after-
noon because It will hurry for nobody." t
A If Hi fa for Ho.
At the Kansas Experiment Station
hogs were fed on a ration of alfalfa
"lone. For every bushel of Kaffir corn
! meal and 7.83 pounds of alfalfa hay,
the gain Was 10.88 pounds, while upon
Kadlr corn meal alone the gain was
7.48 pounds per bushel. It is shown
that the hay gave better results when
cut early and that the chief nutriment
was in the leaves, which should be
reruiiy saved during tne process or
d fed M tl f graln
After deducting the probable gain for
the corn it was found that during the
summer each . acre of alfalfa pasture
'troduced .776 pounds of pork.
Scoop Gate for Wanron Box.
The end gate for a' wagon box here
of anything known for hauling corn or
anything which Is to be scooped from
the wagon box. The left figure shows
it closed; being fnstened'by a hook on
each side. When ready to unload,
loosen hooks, swing gate down and.
as It is supported by a chain on each
side, you can staud on It and cotn-
WAOOW-BOX 8C0OP OATE.
nieuce scooping. It is fastened to bot
tom of the box with strap hinges which
should be sunk into box and gate so
that it leaves an even surface to scoop
over. The gate should be about thirty
inches high and wide enough so that
side boards of sum will fit over out
side of box as shown in right hand
igure.
Meat for Layer.
One of the best foods for making
ounce of lean meat each day, allowing
no other food for a week or two, and
watch the results. Column's Rural
World.
I'aj to rtaUe White Beans.
Common white beans are a good
crop for the fanner to grow, if they
are grown under the best methods.
Good-sized seed should be planted
is past, as the leaves of beans will not
stand frost. The fanner should at
least raise enough for his family,
which can easily be done on a very
small strip of land that has been only
moderately manured. This small de-
niand wor manure is due to the fact
that bean plant roots have on them
nodules containing bacteria which
gather nitrogen from the air. White
beans need food cultivation, so that
the soil around the roots can be well
treated, which favors the development
of the nodules.
Cleaning- Drinking- Veaael.
Unclean drinking vessels are doubt-
less the immediate means of spreading
. .
some or our contagious diseases, such
i as roup. Roup is a disease In which
slime accumulates iu the mouths of tin
, fowls and strings out of their mouths
when they open them to drink. Noth
iug is easier than for such a fowl to
leave slime in the drinking water.
, which is then partaken of be the other
fowls. This leads to the fowls all be
wining quickly affected. As roup conies
on in the fall very often when we get
the changes in teir.ierature at night,
it is nessary that the drinking ves
sels be kept clean and every fowl that
shows signs of a cold should be taken
at once from the house so that It will
not be possible for her to spread the
.jinse.
Ketarned to Uae of Oxen.
A Missouri farmer has returned to
the use of oxen on bis farm. He says
he finds them cheaper and better thau
horses and mule?. In addition to hav
ing oxen for general farm work, he
has trained a bull to run a treadmill
that pumps water, churns butter and
docs all of that kind of work. This
animal beats a windmill or gasoline
engine "all to pieces." and the work
kP h,s "Vr sweet and prevents
him from doing damage with his horns.
Other farmers are watching the experi-
meat, and "horseless farms" may soon
all the ragt
Jood Care of the Saddle.
A manufacturer of saddles. is credited
with the statement that one of tho best
of polishes for riding saddles and bri
dles Is new milk. This should not bo
rubbed In the leather, however, until
the latter has been cleaned with slight
ly warm water and soap. Hard-working
stock saddles can be kept In good
condition by thoroughly rubbing with
three parts of palm oil and one of
neatsfoot after first washing with soap
and water. For the leather lining of
saddles that comes next to the horse
there ls nothing so good as neatsfoot
oil. The salt which exudes from the
animal's body Is very hard on the
leather. Vigorous and protracted rub
bing: of the leather ls essential, what
ever dressing Is used. "
Valn'ir Commercial Fertilisers.
The pure nitrate of soda, muriate oi
potash, super-phosphate or ground
bone, can be used in the garden, but
unless a person has had, experience or
handles these very carefully, results
are apt to bo disapiwlntlng or disas
trous. Plants of which the leaf or
stalk are the edible portions must have
plenty of nitrogen, which Is available
in the guano and animal manure.
When the roots or fruits are to be
eaten, phosphoric add should be added
in
the shape of wood ashes or super
phosphate. Ground bone ls too slow in
becoming available.
Early Layers.
Frequently a pullet starts laying be
fore the others and continues to !ay
well all the year; such a one should he
carefully watched-and her eggs naved.
providing sufficient size was attained
before she begnn laying. Other pul
lets will lay a few eggs In the autum
and then cease until spring; theso
should, of course, be discarded. Those
that begin laying prematurely are noi
desirable, as they should attain the
size characteristic of their breed be
lore commencing, and then lay con
tijiuously during the rest of the fall antf
winter.
An Acre of Land.
To measure an acre tie a ring i.
each end of a rope, the distance beins
just 60 feet between them ; tie a piece
of colored cloth exactly in the middle
of this. One acre of ground will be
four times the length and two and
one-half, times the width, or the equal
of 10 rods one way and 10 rods the
other, making the full acre 100 square
rods. Keep the rope dry, so it will noi
stretch. A rod is IGMt lineal feet. An
acre ls 4,840 square yards or 43,5ik7
square feet.
A Good Condition Powder.
Dr. Smead advises the following con
dltlon powder -for live stock: Two'
nounds of cround flaxseed as a base. In
which mix 5 ounces powdered gentian,
ti ounces of ginger, 4 ounces of powder-
ed sulphate of iron, i ounces of powder
ed nitrate of potash. To this add 2
ounces of powdered charcoal and 1
pound of common salt. Mix all well
together. Give at first two tahlesioon
fuls In feed of grain twice a day. Af
ter two weeks give half the quantity.
Purple-Top Iluta-Baica.
Prof. Rane of the New Hampshire
station recommends the American pur
ple top ruta-baga for the following rea
son: it is a flue market sort, often sell
ing in the markets for double the price
or me eariy wnire turnip, n is also a
splendid keeper and ls usually freej
from alj spottiness. While it cannot
be planted as late as the early turnips,
It can be used as a follow crop after
early peas, provided the seed Is sown
not later than July 10.
Angle Iron for Pout.
Angle Iron is being used for making
fence posts with great success. One of
the valuable features ls that a post of
this description may be driven in place
by a heavy mallet, and digging ls,
therefore, unnecessary. A non-cllmbable
fence ls made by bending the post so
that there Is an overhang of twelve
or eighteen Inches, with the wires
strung regularly In the very top. The
difficulty of climbing such a fence will
be apparent at a glance.
'ow Differ.
In their milk producing power cows
differ all the way from 3,000 pounds'
of milk per year to 12,000 pounds a
year. That being true, why should riculture he is not considering the so-call-fartners
be satisfied to keep a cow thrit ed "arts and crafts" movement as it ap
wlll produce but ten pounds of milk peals to the leisure crass. What he has
(about five quarts) per day for 300
days?
Avoid This Kind of Pail.
The use of the strainer iu a pah
where the dirt which falls Into the
opening is likely to be driven through
by the succeeding streams of milk Is
not desirable. Its use tends to in
crease the germ contents of the milk
and Injure Its keeping quality.
Get Some New Rooster..
The outlay attending the purchase oi
new breeding males will be well re
pa Wl by results. Do not practice In
breeding If you want your stock to do
well.
Note, of tho Farm.
The feed problem is getting harder
There Is no excuse for the filthy hos
pen.
The more succulent the feed the bet
ter It Is for sheep.
Be a good farmer If you are going
to be a farmer at all.
Clean and sort your seeds and thus
Insure larger and better crops.
Water, pure and plenty of it, should
be provided for the dairy cows.
Young stock should be thrifty to re
turn a profit Keep them growing.
Teach the boya to be gentle with the
cows. It is better for the cows, and th
bora, too
THEVEEEO.Y
10RIAN
i-fttfi. I
1055 Cromwell dissolved "Parliament.
lGGtl France declared war against Eng
' land.
1077 Arrival of royal commissioners to
investigate the causes of the rebel
lion in Virginia.
1712 Conference for peace opened at
Utrecht. j
1700 Benjamin Franklin examined in
the House of Commons respecting
the stamp act.
1775 Second provincial Congress met at
Cambridge, Mass.
1778 France acknowledged independence
of the United States Burgoyne'a
army denied embarkation at Bos
ton. 1781 Gen. Greene took command of
Morgan's army.
1S07 Pall Mall, London, lighted with
gas the first street of any city so
illuminated.
1810 Guadaloupe surrendered to the
British.
1811 The famous Boll Rock lighthouse,
off the coast of Scotland, first light
ed. 1813 Spanish Cortes abolished the in
quisition. ..
1830 Independence of Greece declared
by the allied powers.
1834 Richard Lawrence attempted to
assassinate President Andrew Jack
son. '.S30 Alpaca wool first introduced into
England.
1847 Lord Elgin reached Montreal and
took the oath of office as governor of
Canada.
1852 State house at Columbus, Ohio, de-
stroyed by fire.
1S50 Chilean war steamer Cudox Caza
den wrecked, with loss of 318 lives.
! 1S5D James Francis Smith, governor
general of the l'hilippine Islands,
born at San Francisco.
1I Kansas admitted to tne Miion.
J he ironclad 'Monitor luuncnea.
1 . . I t . C 1 . I . n 4 . n . . I. n .1
lOO V onie'ieruie guiiuoins aiiucat-u
blockadipg squadron at entrance to
Charleston harbor.
180" Gen. Sherman left Savannah on
his northward march.
180S United States Congress exempted
cotton from the Internal revenue tax.
1S70 Steamer City of Boston sailed
from Halifax for Glasgow with 191
souls on board and was never heard
of again.
1871 Paris surrendered to the Germans
after a siege of 131 days.
1878 The Russians occupied Kazan.
lfjSThrce million dollar fire in Buffalo,
x. Y.
isnollt,rpmp (v,lirt derided Nebraska
governorship contest in favor
James E. Boyd, Democrat.
of
18U5 Japanese captured Wei-Hai-Wei
from the Chinese.
1808 Great strike of engineers in Eng
land came to an end. '
1902 Anglo-Japanese treaty signed.
11)00 Frederick VIII. proclaimed King
of Denmark.
Handicrafts for Farmer.
The editor of the Craftsman in the current-
number proposes that the federal
government aid in bringing about a much
needed reform in the industrial system of
the United States by extending the work
of the Department of Commerce so as
to assist small farmers in developing
home arts and crafts and assist them in
finding a market for the products of such
craftsmanship. J he editor takes pnins to
say tnat in tnis appeal ior government
recognition of handicrafts allied with ag
in mind is practically to.eneourage me
chanical industries ns a means of correct
ing the evils of the factory system, doing
away with the menace of the unemployed
and relieving the congestion in our cities,
lie refers to the official encouragement of
such crafts in Hungary, and to the re
markable success resulting therefrom. He
believes that President Roosevelt has tak
en an important step in this direction by
his recommendation that both State and
national governments, should encourage
the growth of institutional nad social
movements among farmers. It is not con
templated that this development of hand
works in the home would ever take the
place of the machine, but thnt it would
open the door of opportunity 'to many in
dividuals starving for self-expression
apart from the routine of either farm
or factory. The principal field for home
crafts would seem to be in producing
sensible rugs, furniture, pottery and any
of the things that enter into the life of
he homo.
MeCordr Laogh. at Nnlta.
Richard A. McCurdy, former president
of the Mutual Life Insurance Company,
who has spent two years in Euroie. re
cently returned to his home in Morris
town, N. J. When asked about the suits
for restitution of several million dol
lars which the management of his old
company has brought against him, he
laughed and said: "I have lawyers and
they will takecare of the suits. They are
not worth talking about. I am 73 years
old. The real question is which will last
the longest.' the suits or myself."