The Eastman times. (Eastman, Dodge County, Ga.) 1873-1888, June 04, 1874, Image 1

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KASTMAN TIMES. A Iteal Live Country Paper. rrBLIBHED EVERY THURSDAY MORNING —l3 Y— n. js. burt oisr. TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION t One copy, one year $2.00 One copy, eii months 1.00 Ten copies, in clubs, one year, each 1.50 Single copies scts THE MAIDEN'S LAST FAREWELL. IN THE DAY OF CREMATION. Then I he night wore on, and we knew the worst, That the end of it all was nigh : Three doctors they had from the very first Aud what could one do but die? >• oh, Wiiliam!” she cried, “strew no blossoms of spring, For the new ‘ apparatus* might rust; j(i it say tlist a handful of Hhavings you’ll bring, And linger to see mo combust. ••Oh, promise me,love, by the fire-hole you’ll watch, And when mourners and stokers convene, y. u will see that they light me some solemn, slow match, A’.d warn them against kerosene. ••It would cheer me to know, ere these rude breezes waft My essences far to ibe pole, Tnat one whom l love will inok to the draught, And have a fond eye on the coal. * ‘ Then promise me, love”—and her voice fainter grew— “ While this body of mine calcifies, You will stand just as near as you can to the flue, And gaze while my gases arise. ■' For Thompson—Sir Heury—has found out a way (;)f ins ‘process’ you’ve surely heard tell), And you burn like a parlor-match gently away, Nor even offend by a smell. “ So none of the dainty need sniff in disdain When my carbon floats up to the sky ; And I’m sure, love, that yon will never complain, Though an ash should blow into your eye. “ Now promise nie love”—and she murmured low*— “ When the calcification is o’er, You .will sit by my grave in the twilight glow— -1 mean by my f uruace door: “ Yes, promise me, love, while the seasons revolve On their noiseless axles, the years, You will visit the kiln where you saw me ‘ resolve,’ Aud leach my pale ashes witu tears.” PRACTICAL CREMATION. Shell* .v* Body C remated in Presence of I,ord Byron. It is rather singular that in the many articles written recently on the subject of cremation no account has been given of the most notable instance of burn ing tne dead in modern times. Wo re fer to the burning of the body of the poet, Percy Bysshe Shelley, on the shore of the Mediterranean in the sum mer of 1822, in the presence of Lord Byron, Mr. Leigh Hunt and Mr. E. J. Trelawny. Shelley, like Byron, was passionately fond of the sea, and loved to talk of ships aud sailors and of the adventures of the early navigators in their small craft. While in Leghorn ho would visit the vessels of all nations, and take notes of their shapa, build, rigging and decoration. His friend, Lieut. E. E. Williams, a half-pay officer of the eighth dragroons, recently from India, was his constant companion—a genial man, fond of books anti the sea. His family occupied the same he use with Shelley, on the Gulf of Spezzia. After much talking and planning, \Villiams, who had been three years in the navy, assisted Shelley in building a boat, according to his own cherished model, which the happy owner chris tened the “Don Juan.” She was fast and strong;, but it took two tons of iron ballast to bring her down to her bear ings, and the Genoese sailors considered her ft ticklish craft to manage. It was pleasant to behold Shelley’s boyish eagerness at the possession of this new toy, anticipating never-failing pleasure in gliding over the blue sea, beneath the cloudless sky of an Italian summer. Shelley and Williams were in ecstasies over their boat, and were hardly ever out of her. Their only assistant was a boy, quick and handy and used to boats. Trelawny advised them to add to their crow a Genoese sailor accustomed to the coast, such an one as lie had on Lord Byron’s boat, the Bolivar, but thinking their seamansh p scandalized, they re pelled the suggestion. Toward the end of June, 1822, Leigh Hunt and his family arrived by sea from England. Hunt aticipated great literary projects m conjunction with Byron and Shelley, and the pleasure which surpassed all th(> rest was of meetiug aud commun ing with his friend, Shelley. Alas ! for the brevity of their union. On the Bth of July, 1822, Shelley and liis friend Williams left Leghorn in the Don Juan, to go to Spezzia, where their families awaited them. Trelawny ac companied them to the offing in the Bolivar. They were fretting and fum ing to he off; it was getting late, and there was very little wind. Trelawny watched the progress of his friends’ Boat through a glass, while his Genoese mate observed: “They should have sailed this morning ; they are standing too much in shore ; the current will set in there.” “But,” said Trelawny, “ they will soon have a land breeze.” “Their gulf topsail,” continued the mate, “is foolish in a boat with no deck, and no sailor on board.” Then, pointing to the south-west, “Look at those black lines, and the dirty rags hanging on them out of the sky—they are a warning. Look at the smoko on the water—the devil is brewing mis chief.” Shelley's boat was soon after enveloped in a sea-fog, and was never again. A fnous storm ensued ; * , ”, ■•‘oatcl Trelawny watched every peck that loomed on the horizon V*" I . n vaiu 5 the boat had gone Wllh precious freight. After three ot horrible suspense L i lawny rode to Pisa and told his fears to Byron and Hunt. On the third day two bodies were found on the shore— one at \ ia lteggio, the other three miles distant. The tall, slight figure, the ickefc, the volume of Sophocles in one pocket and Keats’ poems in the other, doubled back as if just read, were suf ficient to identify the body of the poet; ' pother was identified as the body of Williams. They were immediately ~ rit Hie sand beyond the reach of the waves. * t 1 hen became the melancholy duty jl* to carry the sad news to Jjic lone house on the sea shore where , ie widows of his deceased companions jved. Mary, the wife of Shelly, was . 10 daughter of William Godwin and Wary Woolstonecraft, and herself a woman of genius; Jane, the lovely of Lieut. Wi liams, had just re turned from India. These young moth <i* were left by their husbands on a veranda, singing merry tunes to the k’utar, the happiest and most united of amilies. It was now determined by those most interested that Shelley’s re mains should be removed t > Home, and ’aid beside his child and his friend tveats, while those of Williams should be taken to England. To do this in their then far advanced suite of decomposition was almost im possible, and the ancient custom of burning amt reducing the bodies to ashes was resorted to. The Luccheseand I torentme governments having granted -two Dollars Per Annum, volume 11. the request mf de by the British legation “to ba allowed to remove the mortal remains of Mr. Shelley and his com panion, cast ashore by the waves of the sea, Air. Trelawny caused a furnace to bo in Leghorn of strong sheet iron, with iron bands around it, and also collected such articles as Shelley’s much loved Hellenese used on their funeral pyres. An .officer of the quarantine, with a squad of soldiers, accompanied the expe dition, armed with long-haodled tongs, nippers, poles with iron hooks, and di vers other implements. Lord Byron and Air. Hunt joined them on the beach, with the health officer and some dis mounted dragoons. There was also a considerable gathering of spectators fro Ti the neighborhood, aud among them many ladies richly dressed. A morbid curiosity drew most of these, but it is almost beyond belief that personal friends, men of birth, culture and gen tle breeding, could have witnessed the scene which followed. We copy Tre lawny’s account: On the removal of a layer of brush wood all that remained of our friend Williams was exposed—a shapeless mass; the head had fallen from the trunk on being touched. “Is that a human body ? ” exclaimed Byron. “ Why, it’s more like the carcass of a sheep or any other animal ; this is a satire on human pride and folly,” and he pointed to the letters E. W. W. on the black handkerchief tied sailor fash ion which had fallen* with the head. Byron looked on and muttered, “The entrails of a worm hold together longer than the potters’ clay of which man is made.” The remains were removed piecemeal into the furnace. “Don’t repeat this with me,” said Bvron ; “ let my carcass rot where it falls.” The funeral pyre was now ready. The materials being dry and resinous burned furiously and turned us back. As soo as the flamesbe came clear, and allowed us tp approach, we threw frankincense and salt into the furnace, and poured a flask of oil and wine over the body. The Greek ora tion was omitted, for we had lost oui Hellenic bard. It was now insuffera bly hot, the officers and soldiers seek ing shade from the effects of the fire and the sun. “ Let us try the strength of these waters that drowned our friends,” said Byron with his usual au dacity. “ How far do you think thev were out when their boat sank ? ” “If you don’t wish to be put into the fur nace you had better not try; you are not in condition for a plunge.” Byron stripped and went into the water, but soon returned sick and cramped. At four o’clock the funeral pyre burned low, and when we uncovered the furnace nothing remained in it but dark-colored ashes, with fragments of ILe larger bones. Pol©c wov now pul under tne rod-hot furnace, and it wps gradually cooled in the sea. I gathered together the human ashes and placed them in a small oak box bearing an in scription on a brass plate, screwed it down and placed it in Byron’s carriage. He returned with Hunt to Pisa, promis ing to join us the following day at Via Reggio. The next morning we went to Via Reggio with the same party and things, and began our preparations. In the meantime Byron and LeigU Hunt arrived, attended by the health officer and soldiers as before. The lonely and grand scenery that surrounded us har monized so exactly with Shelley’s gen ius that I could imagine his spirit soar ing above us. As I thought of the de light Shelley had in scenes of such loneliness and grandeur, I thought we were no better than a herd of wolves or a pack of wild dogs, in tearing out his battered and naked body from the pure and yellow sand that lay so lightly it, to drag him back to the light of day; but the dead have no voice, and the work went on silently in the deep and unresisting sand. The Italiaus showed a touch of sentiment and sympathy, and even Byron win silent and thoughtful. From Washington. The Pennsylvania delegatioi in con gress have been notified of the adoption by the Pennsylvania legis’atire of a joint resolution opposing any cancella tion of the contract maJo by the post master general with the Pacific Mail steamship company for additional mail services between San Francisco and China, as it would cripple if not break up the iron ship building industry in this country. The committee on ways and means have, by a vote of eight against two, expressed th mselves to the restoration of the ten per cent taken oft the rate of duty on certain articles in the second section of act of June (5 1872. [Tbi* ° ecfclon relates mainly to manuP'“ irerß cotiton wool, iron aty’ The committee on ways and means have authorized Mr. Foster to report a resolution censuring the secretary of the treasury, the assistant secretary and Solicitor Banfield for the tax and careless administration of the law in the Sanborn contract cases. Both houses of congress have resolv ed to adjourn June 22d. The Loudon Standard says it under stands that the queen will go to Russia iu the autumn. The house committee on naval affairs has agreed to recoinm* ml the purchase of Capt. Hall’s mauuscript relating to his Arctic explorations, at a price not ex ceeding $15,000, in lieu of giving Mrs. Hall a pension of S3O per month. Congress has appropriated the sum of SOOO,OOO to replace worn-out and muti lated national rank currency. The congressional delegations of the ftates of Arkansas, Louisiana and Mis sissippi have had a conference at the capital, with the viewof obtaining father goverment aid for sufferers by the over flow of the Mississippi river. It is<x pected that $500,000 additional will be asked of congress. —They tell a queer story about the doctors in a certain Texas town, who were all away last summer to attend a medical convention. They were absent about two months, and on their return found all their patients had recovered, the drag stores had closul, the nurses had op ned dancing schools, the ceme tery had been cut up into building lots, the undertakers had gone to making fiddles, and tka hearse had been paint ed and sold as a circus w’agoD. EASTMAN, DODGE CO., GEORGIA, THURSDAY, JUNE 4, 1874. SUMNER S BILL. It Passed the Senate on the ‘43*l by a Vote of !49 to 16. The followiug is the full text of the supplemental civil rights bill as it passed the senate: Section 1. That all citizens and other persons within the jurisdiction of the United States shall be entitled to a full and equal enjoyment of accommoda tions, advantagi s, facilities and privil eges of inns and public conveyances on land or water, theatres and other pub lic places of amusement, and also of common schools and public institutions of learning, or benevolence, support* and in whole or in part by the general taxa tion, and of cemeteries so supported, and also institutions known as agric il tural colleges, endowed by the govern ment, subject to the conditions and limitations as established by law, and applicable alike to citizens of every race and color, regardless of any previous condition of servitude. Sec. 2. That any person who shall violate the foregoing section, by deny ing to any person entitled to its benefits, except for reasons by law applicable to citizens of every race and color, and regardless of any previous condition of servitude, the full enjoyment of any ac commodation, advantages, facilities or privileges in said section enumerated, or inciting such denial, shall for every such offense, forfeit anti pay the sum of SSOO to the person so ag grieved thereby, to be recoverd in ac tion on the case, with full costs ; and shall also, for every such offense, be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined not more than SI,OOO, or shall be im prisoned not more than one year; provided that the party aggrieved shall not recover more than one penalty. If the offense is a refusal of burial the penalty may be recovered by the heirs at law of the person whose body has been refused burial. And, provided further, that all persons may elect to sue for the penalty aforesaid, or to pro ceed under their rights at common law and si ate statutes, and when they have so elected to proceed in the one mode or the other, their right to proceed in the other jurisdiction shall be barred; but this proviso shall not apply to criminal proceedings, either under this act or the criminal laws of tlie states. Sec. 3. That district and circuit courts of the United States shall have, exclu sively of the courts of the several stales, cognizance of all crimes and offenses against and violations of the provisions of this act, and actions for penalty given by the preceding section may be pros ecuted in the territorial, district or cir cuit courts of the United States, wliere ever defendant may be found, without regard to either party, and the district attornovo, marulitilo deputy mar shals of the United Srates, and com missioners appoited by the circuit aud territorial courts of the United States, with powers of arresting and imprisonment and bailing offenders against the laws of the United States, are hereby specially authorized and re quired to institute proceedings against every person who shall violate the pro visions of this act, and cause him to be arrested and imprisoned or bailed, as the case may be, for trial before such court of the Unit and States, or the terri torial court, as bv law has cognizance of the offense, except in respect of the right of action accruing to persons ag grieved ; and such district attorneys shall cause such proceedings to be pros ecuted to their termination, as in other cases, provided that nothing contained in this section shall be construed to de ny or defeat the civil action accruing to any person by reason of this act or otherwise. Sec. 4. That no citizen, providing he meets all other qualifications which are or may be prescribed by law, shall be disqualified for grand or petit juror in any court of the United States, or of a state, on account of race, color or pre vious erudition of servitude, aud any officer or other person charged with any duty in the selection or summoning of jurors, who shall exclude or fail to summon any citizen for the causes afore said, shall be depmed guilty of a mis demeanor and fined not more than SI,OOO. Sec. 5. That all cases arising under the provisions of this act in courts of the United States, shall be reviewable by the Supreme court of the United States, without regard to the sum in controversy, under the same provisions mid regulations as are now provided by law for the review of other causes in tho said courts. How to Kill Off Presidential Aspi rants. Only six of the presidents of the Uni ted States ever had seats in the cabinet, namely, Thomas Jefferson, James Madi son, James Monroe, John Quincy Ad ams, Martin Van Buren, and James Buchanan ; and all those six held the office of secretary of state. Mr. Monroe ■was the only one of the number who ever held auy cabinet office, he being secretary of war iu 1814-15, because there was little or nothing for him to do in the state department, and it was ne cessary to kill off General John Arm strong, not because he had been at the head of the war department at the time the British took possession of the vi - lage of Washington, but because he, being a New l’VVer, had presidential pretentions, that were working against Mr. Monroe’s “claims’' to “the succes sion.” Mr. Crawford, who was, first, secretary of war. nurl secretary of the treasury, could not get a presiden tial nomination in 1810, nor a presiden tial election iu 1824-25. Henry Ciav went into the state department, and there smothered himself, or rather his presidential hopes. Mr. Calhwun was the best secretary of war that the coun try ever had, and later he was secretary of state; but he never could get into the presidency, though he longed for it most ardently, and sought it as eagerly as it was sought by Mr. Clay. Mr. Web ster went into the cabinet twice, in the hope of passing thence to the presiden tial chair, but failed cn both occasions. How completely poor old Cass expended himself, we all know, —and yet he made a very good secretary of war. and a tolerably respectable secie ary of st ite, considering Louis McLane, of Dela ware, who was, successively, secretary of the treasury ands eretary of state, had presidential aspirations, but never In God )te Trust. could get any support* Judge Wood bury, who had been secretary of the navy and secretary of the treasury, probably would have been made presi dent in 1852-53, but that death cut short a most promising career. Chief Justice Chase, who was half crazy for tlie presidency, aud never got it, had been secretary of the treasury. Secre tary of War Stanton had presidential prospects, but Ue died before they cou'd ripen, if they had a ripening capacity. So it would seem to be the part of pru dence in politicians to keep out of the cabinet, if they * xpect to get into the white house,—and what American does' not espect to reside in that Uueligible mansion, or is not expected to reside in it by his mother or his wife, his sister or his cousin, his daughter or his aunt, his sweet-heart or his grandmother ? The Legend of a Missouri Cave. A writer in the St. Louis Republican says: “ On the dividing ridge separating the waters of the Meramee from the Missouri, in Franklin county, is a cave, mainly remarkable from a tragic event which occurred in the early part of the century. The mouth of the cave is funnel-shaped, and about eighteen feet deep. A horizontal passage leads off in a southwest direction to a dis tance of two hundred and sixty feet, when an enlarged chamber suddenly terminates in an abrupt chasm of un known depth. Early in the present century a hunter from St. Louis, named Labadie, connected with the families of that name identified with the history of this city, went out to Franklin county, then mostly a wilderness, in pursuit of game. He had his sou, a small lad, with him. They got on the trail of a bear, which they followed until the ani mal took refuge in the cave. Nothing daunted, Mr. Labadie followed the bear into its hiding-place and never came out alive. The boy heard the re port of a gun and then all was silent. He watched and waited at the mouth of the cave for his father’s return, but lie came not back. The boy remained near the cave all day and night, and then gave up his father for lost. With his hatched he ‘ blazed ’ the trees around the spot, in order identify the place, and then returned home. Whether search was made or not is not known, but the hunter, it is certain, was given up for lost, and his remains were allow ed to rest in their rock-bound tomb. Time rolled on, and about twenty years ago, when the engineers were laying out the track of the Pacific railroad, which passed the cave, they had the curiosity to enter, and explore its secrets. They there found the bones of a bear and a skeleton of a human being Iving close together. Not only this, but they also found an old musket-barrel, half-eaten lay th*me4>, a .and itjr o£ * French and feoauisli coin. All these circumstances pointed fo the old hunter Labadie as the person whose skeleton was thus revealed to the gaze of the explorers, and whose tragic history was preserved by tradition. The trees were also examined, and the old scars caused by the hatchet of young Labadie were distinctly traced. ‘ Labadie Creek ’ and ‘Labadie Station’ preserve the name of the daring hunter who lost his life in the vicinity.” Gardens of the Olden Time. A writer on life in this country in the last century, says : “ The present gen eration is scarcely aw r are of how little their forefathers knew of many vege tables, fruits, and flowers which are now seen to be so abundant. These have been successfully increased among us by so many gardeners, florists, etc. Tomatoes, orchra, and artichokes were first encouraged by the French emi grants, and had but very slow favor from ourselves. Afterwards came in cauliflowers, head salad, egg plants, oyster plants, canteleupes, mercer, and foxite potatoes, rhubarbs, sweet corn, etc. The seed of the canteleupe w r as brought to this country from Tripoli, and distributed by Col. James Barron. Formerly we had only a few fox and other grapes ; we have since several for eign varieties, and have discovered and propagated among ourselves the Cataw ba and Isabella. Once we had only one sort of small stiawbtrrics, and now we have mauy kinds and large. We had only the small blue plum, and now we have them and gages of great size. We have greater varieties of pears, peaches, apricots, and apples. The peaches were wholly unmolested by the worms. Our former garden flowers and shrubberies were confined to lilacs, roses, snow balls, lilies, pinks, and some tulips. The Jerusalem cherry was a plant once most admired, and now scarcely seen. Now we have greatly increased our gar den embellishments by such new things as altheas, seringas, cocoras, geraniums, verbenas, and numerous new varieties of roses, including cliampigneas and cluster roses, with many new beauties iu the class of tulips and other bulbous roots. In olden time, the small flower bed stood * solitary and alone,’ in most family gardenp, and : unflowers, and gay and rank hollyhocks and other an nual productions, were the chief articles for a greater display. Morning glories and the gourd vine were the aunual de pendence for cases of required shade.” New Plan for Raising Sunken Ships, At a meeting of the London Inven tors’ Institute, T. Yafea of Liverpoo 1 , proposed a plan for raising ennkeu ships, and also for preventing the foundering of ships. The main fea tures of the plan were, first closing hermetically the hatches, port-holes, and all other openings in the deck or upper or side parts of the sunken ship, and after having so closed the openings to pump down air to the bottom of the ship through tubes iuserted either through the bottom of the ship’s hull, or through the deck, each tubs being passed down ctose to the bottom of the ship. The air thus introduced rises by itself toward the undeiside of the deck, and, not being able to escape, presses the water contained in the fhip down and out through the hole made bv ac cident, or througli holes made for the purpose. The vessel will thus be ren dered buoyant, and will rise to the sur face. To prevent fouu eriog or reduce the risk to a minimum, the ships are provided with air-tight covers, which when force 1 over the openings confine the air therein, and keeps the ship always buoyant. THE PLOW. Wliat the Ancients Knew About this I’seful imp emeut. The plow is, par excellence , the em blem of agriculture, and its history, both authentic and mythological, pos sesses a peculiar interest. The period at which man first began to comminute the soil for the purpose of making it produce sustenance tor himself and liis flocks is so remote as to be lost in the obscurity of the past; but that it was at an early period is clear. It is also generally admitted that the ox and cow were in this age used as native farmers, and it is asserted that me'n and women captured in war and reduced to slavery were employed in this way before the ox was trained or the cow became accus tomed to the yoke ; for war, and its offspring, slavery, are older than agri culture. The earliest plow was a pointed stick, which the primitive man used to break up the soil. This was a slow and labo rious process, and one day the thought came to one wiser than his fellows that the forked limb of a tree might be made efiicient for this purpose. Acting upon this thought, he formed a plow by cut ting a forked limb from a tree and sh rpening one of the prongs, so that it would penetrate the soil. It took two persons to use this implement—one to draw it, which he did by a bark or raw hide trace, and one to hold and push it into the ground. This, the first plow, proved a great success, and was for a while thought to be the ne phis ultra of improvement in that line. In the course of time, however, some inge nious laborer began to question the per fection of this implement, and finding a limb of somewhat diffex*ent shape, he constructed an improved plow. The fogies shook their heads and muttered “humbug,” but the progressive men adopted it, and it ultimately superseded the earlier devices. Ages went by be fore the forked stick plow was succeeded by'another, composed of several pieces of wood held together by mortises and pins. This was improved from time to time, untill it approached as near perfec tion as it was possible for a plow com posed wholly of wood. The Romans were probably the first to use iron in the construction of the plow. The plow that Cincinnatus fol lowed was a rude affair, with no iron in it except the point and share. The Greeks have a myth which is interest ing in this connection. Prosperine, a daughter of Ceres (goddess of agricul ture), was abducted by Pluto while she was in the forest gathering flowers, and was installed as queen of the lower re gions. Ceres, inconsolable at the loss of her daughter, wholly neglected the agricultural interests in her search for I the. missing goddess. The result was that the whole earth eventually became a barren waste. Jupiter and the other gods implored her to return to Olympus and resume her duties as guardian of agriculture, but in vain. She could think of nothing except her lost daugh ter. Jupiter now visited Pluto and petsuaded him to permit Prosperine to revisit the earth and remain eight months each year, and then return and spend the other four with him. Ceres consented to this arrangement, and at once returned to Olympus. Before going, however, she instructed Tripto lemus of Eleusis in the art of agricul ture, and giving him her own chariot, drawn by dragons, commanded him to travel over the whole earth and distrib ute seed corn to its inhabitants. Trip tolemus was the inventor of the plow. The Greeks held two feasts a y* ar in his honor, one on account of the distribu tion of seed and the other because he invented the plow, without which the seed would have been of little use. Little improvement seems to have been made in the plow used by the Greeks and Rornate for over two thou sand years, and indeed it was a most clumsy affair, as recently as fifty years ago being only a wedge, clearing the soil and compressing the subsoil. it may be predicted that before many y ars, some Yankee Triptolemus will revolutionize the plo v by constructing one that shall combine the functions of both the plow and the harrow, and pos sibly other and valuable adjuncts not now anticipated. With all due respect to the great plowmakers, it must be ad mitted that the mechanical idea em bodied in the plow as now constructed is imperfect, and it is time this was re cognized and correct principles incor porated in its construction, that it might meet the demands of this progressive and utilitarian age. Some attempts in this direction have already been made, but they, like all first attempts to em body anew idea, have been only par tially successful. It is a recognized axiom of modern times, that “ Ameri can genius and perseverance know no such word as failure,” and it is confi dently expected that success in this de partment of mechanical invention will soon be achieved. New Explanation of the Aurora. Mr. J. A. Beeves, in the “English Mechanic, ’ offer.- an ingenious theory of the aurora borealis, as follows : 1. A large quantity of light from the sun falls upon the up; er pottions of the earth’s atmosphere, so far north that al though it is refracted and bent toward the earth, yet it does not impinge upon it, but passes on, illuminating the at mosphere over a vast egion beyond. 2. Other rays, which fall upon the at mosphere rather more southward, after being refracted, do reach the € arili’s sur face, but as that surface in the polar re gions consists of masses of ice and snow, the light is immediately reflected into the upper portions of the atmos phere, and comes in contact with the rav of light before mentioned, thus sufficiently illuminating the vaporous matter suspended in the atmosphere, to become visible in the form of the auro ra. 3. The shooting appearances of the aurora are produced by the rays of light continuing to cross and recross each other, consequent on the ever varying destiny aud changed position of the parts of the atmosphere through which the light is refracted, as well as the constant change of angular posi tions of the reflecting surfaces of ice and snow, by the revolution of the earth or is axis. 4. The various hues which the aurora assumes are a proof that the light composing it is refracted. The theory will hold good also for the aurora australis. Payable in Advance. NUMBER 1!>. GENEALOGY OF THE HORSE. The Darwinian Theory ns Applied to tile Horse. A correspondent of the New York Tribune, who has visited Prof. O. C. Marsh, of New Haven, gives au account of a remarkable series of discoveries made by the professor which seem to in dicate the ancestry of the horse and the gradual development of that animal from a remote progenitor in distant ge ological eras. The Tribune says edito rially, in speaking of the letter alluded to, which is too long for us tc publish entire: The number of eminent men who in this great conflict attack the various fc rms of the development theory upon purely scientific grounds is compara tively small, and it suffered a notable loss in the death of Prof. Agassiz. Perhaps the only opponent now left in America whom the believers in evolu tion consider worthy of their steel is Prof. Dawson of Montreal. What Prof. Agassiz might have done if his life had been spared, can of course only be a matter of conjecture. We cannot re construct a statue as the antomist can a skeleton, from a few fragments of bone; and in what Prof. Agassiz has left, there is little more than the pedestal and per haps the feet of the image which he had in mind. Yet it is well known that ardent as was his opposition to the theories of Darwin, his own belief as to the origin of man included the crea tion of several distinct races, and was compatible with the usual formula of evangelical faith as to the origin of the human species. Under these circumstances it is inter esting to know how Prof. Agassiz re garded these discoveries, in which Prof. Marsh has had so large a share. In a conversation with the great naturalist on Penikese Island, last year, when the more complete results of these research es were as yet dimly foreshadowed, he said, while expressing his warm person al friendship and admiration, for Prof. Marsh : “He seems to me like a man who" has only one page of a book be fore him. He has torn out the leaf of the Tertiary formation, and from it he would deduce the whole. The book of nature is too large to be learned from a fragment.” Bearing this criticism in mind, it must yet be admitted that the chain of argu ment in regard to the genealogy of the horse is strikingly interesting. From the lowest depths of strata a mile in thickness the remains are exhumed of animals more like horses than like any other living creatures, but small in size, having four toes to the fi re leet and three to the hind, all touching the ground. Higher up in the formation are found larger animals, similar in oth er respects, but having only three toes touching the ground, the middle one much enlarged. Still higher in these deposits are similar three toed animals, still larger, with only one toe reaching to the ground. Near the top of the formation not only does the likeness to the modern horse grow apparent, but the distinction becomes imperceptible. There are also similar changes in the head and neck of these animals ; they become gradually elongated. The teeth and the jaws undergo successive changes, equally marked. Admit the theory proposed, and there is a ready explanation for most of these changes in the needs of the animal for strength and fleetness in the struggle for exis tence. But after we have the whole story, some strange and as yet unanswerable questions remain. The horse existed all over this hemisphere. His fossil remains have been dug out of the cliffs of Escholt’s Bay, in Alaska, and out of caves in Brazil, where he was cotempo rary with the megatherium, and yet no trace of him is found in America coeval with man till the Spaniards brought him from Europe early in the sixteenth century. Modern theories of geology do not admit the notion of vast cataclysms by which the races of a continent could be swept away ; and thus the utter dis appearance of all evuine forms seems as yet almost inexplicable. But this is always a consequence of scientific in vestigations ; no sooner is one gieat dif ficulty surmounted than another and another is presented. To the student of nature as w T ell as to the poet, “Hills oeep o’er hills, and alps on alps arise.” A New Fabric. An improved or rather newly-invented felted fabric has been brought to great perfection by English manufacturers. In London it sells at prices which make it the rival of wovtn fabrics for curtains, upholstery, book-binding and similar purposes. It can be made to imitate the solidity of Cordova leather, the rich brocaded silks of Lyons, the ele gant cretonnes, Mulhouse, the purity and gloss of damask linen, and the mag nificent paper of China and Japan. It is, in fact, a species of Japanese paper. It is as durable as any woven fabric, is impermeable, light and warm, and par ticularly applicable for curtains and quilts, and needs no washing. Its colors never fade, and it is so cheap that ele g nt curtains three yards long, ready made with bands, sewn and lined, range in price from a dollar to five dollars the pair. It has not yet been manufactured in sufficient quantity to mfet the home demand, and therefore it is not yet in the American market. Patti. Patti’s presents are said to represent a fabulous sum, and her jewelry case contains gifts from all the potentates in Europe. The sum she received in money for her past engagement in St. Petersburgh was 280,000 francs, and she is to receive for her next tour in the United S ates 1,000,000 francs for one hundred evenings. Patti’s leading taste seems to be for fine dresses, which she Orders from Worth, in by dozens. Before they are sent to her she permits the autocrat of fashion to have what he calls a Patti exposition. There the'en tire wardrobe is laid out to be admired by the fashionable world of Paris. —A Detroit gentleman prides himself on his tine fowls, aud his neighbor is equally vain of a fine coach dog. Tho dog worries the life out of the chickens. A few days ago the owner of the dog re ceived the following note : “ Friei and You keep dogs. I keep chickens. If my chickens worry your dogs, shoot ’em.” EASTMAN TIMES. BATES OF ADVERTISING: sr\cß. 1 in. 8 in. 6 ni. 12 m. Onrsquare j ( 4 00 $ 7 00 flO 00 $ 16 00 Two squares j .fi 25! 12 00 18 00 26 00 Four squares <j v.-.j l‘j Go| 28 00 89 00 Oue-fonrth co! Ili 501 22 60] 34 00 46 00 Oue-h&lf col 1 20 00 32 A0 55 00 80 00 Oae column | 35 001 BO DO 80 00 130 Oi Advertisements inserted at the rate of $1.60 per square for the first insertion, and 75 cents for each subsequent one. Ten lines or leas constitute a square. Professional cards. $16.00 upr annum; for ata months, SIO.OO, in advance. FACTS AND FANCIES. —Nebraska people have found pearls in clams, and the coat-tails of dignified aldermen may be seen floating on the cold surface of creeks and ponds. —A little boy heard his mother tell of eighteen head of cattle being burnt the other night. “ Weren’t their tails burnt also ?” inquired the verdant youth. —“ Patrick,” said the priest, “how much did you steal ?” “ Well, I may as well confess to your riverence for the whole stack, for I am going after the rest to-night.” —A fish farmer in Illinois gets seven ty five cents per pound for his trout; thus a small string of fish will bring as much as a sheep, and they require neither grain, hay nor stabling. —A New Orleans woman wears a bus tle made of government bonds. Her husband looks over the bond market in the evening paper, before going home from the club, to see if her back is up. —A prominent public office in Nash ville lias this notice posted up : “ Don’t open this doorunder which some wag wrote the query, “ Why ?” and another responded, “Because, d —n it, you can’t; its locked.” A little boy a few days ago under took to see if he couid lift himself by hanging on a mule’s tail. He found out all about it, and the doctors think the skin on his forehead will grow up, but will leave a bad scar. —A gentleman of Louisville has a dog—a pointer. The dog ran up the steps of a house and refused to come down. His master followed, and found “A. Partridge” on the doorplate. This illustrates the force of instinct. —Hon. Jefferson Davis attended a re cent ex ruination of deaf and dumb children in London, and Earl Granville introduced him as a “distinguished stranger who wished to inform himself of the method of their education.” —Another Yankee wants the govern ment to pay him handsomely for a piv. cess lie has invented for making it rain wherever and whenever he pleases. Tia well tbe stars are up so high, Or some designing ass Would soon propose to take them down And light the world with gas. —A Cincinnati reporter says that there is something grand in the sight of a pair of runaway horses, but the Detroit Free Press believes that a good deal depends on whether a man is on a fence or trying to climb over the end board of the wagon. A bill has been introduced in the Canadian parliament to make each newspaper writer responsible to the law for his articles, so that, if an editor could prove that he had not written a particular article, he would not be lia ble to punishment for it. —lt is said that Robert Dexter, of the New York Bonner, has refused an offer of SIOO,OOO for his trotting horse Ledger, or words to that effect. One of these fine days that horse is going to lie down and die, and his owner will feel that he has made a dropsical fool of himself. —A regulation black- and-tan poodle, to be worth SIOO, must have a head about the size of a black walnut; eyes that stand outside of their sockets ; a tail about the size of a lead pencil, aud legs so attenuated that the animal falls over on his back every time he lifts his head to bark. —A company have purchased one thousand six hundred acres of land near Butte des Morts, Wisconsin, which is to be devoted exclusively to the raising of muskrats. Last yeat about four thou sand rats wore captured on this territory, and it is estimated that six thousand will be this year. —A literal-minded youngster was picked up by a visitor of the family, who, dandling him on his knee, said : “ I wish I had this little boy ; I think there’s money in him.” To which promptly replied the child : “I know there is, for I swallowed a cent when I w'as at grandma’s the other day.” —The British Government and people are giving a great reward to Gen. Sir Garnet Wolseley for taking command of 1,200 soldiers and whipping a lot of negroes in Africa. Parliament has voted him $125,000 in money, the prime min ister himself moving the grant ; and they have made him a major general, as w 11 as a K. C. B. and a K. C. M. G., the queen in person conferring the in signia of the latter order. —By a return j ust issued the area of London is 122 square miles. The river is crossed by seventeen bridges. Tho average daily supply of water is 514,- 269 metric tons, and the annual ratable value of property is £20,000,000 sterl ing. Last year the number of births was 121,100 in fifty-three weeks, or 2,- 285 weeklv ; and, as the deaths were 75,654, or 1,446 weekly, the excess of bir hs over deaths was 43,466, or 839 weekly. —Another horrible scene in the British royal family. The Duchess of Edinburgh had borrowed the Princess of Wales’ crimping-irons. In returning them she presented the hot ends to her royal highness, who thoughtlessly took hold of them, and then waltzed around with one hand between her knees for several minutes before she could speak. Eye-witnesses of the occurrence express their belief that the days of th Russian empire are numbered. —At the present time the postal rates between France and this country are so high that it is cheaper for letters between the countries to be first sent to England, then re-transmitted to their destination, either France or the United States, than for letters to be carried direct by the French mails. And there is an agency in London which makes money by undertaking this business of re-transmitting letters between the two countries. —The lawyers of Indianapolis are tor turing their brains ever an extraordinary problem. Some years ago a lady of that city was married, and four months thereafter separated from her husband, w r as divorced and remarried in a month, and four months thereafter gave birth to a child by her first husband. Quite recently the second husband procured a divorce, and the custody of the child was awarded tc; him. Now comes the first husband and claims the child. Who is entitled to its possession ?