Newspaper Page Text
(B&rlttztoilU Umericwn.
VOLUME 111.
DEAR UTTLE HANDS.
Dear little band*, I loved tlieru an!
And mow they ere lying under the snow—
Under the snow, so cold and white,
I cannot eee them or touch them to-night.
They are quiet and still, at last, ah md
How l>oay and restless they used to be!
But uow they can never reach up through the
snow,
Dear little bauds, 1 loved them so
Dear little hands, I miss them so!
All through the day, wherever I go—
Ad through ibe night how l<m< ly it seems,
For no little hands wake uie out of my dreams.
I rulss them all through the weary hours,
I miss them as others miss sunshine and
flowers;
D.y time, or uight time, wherever I go,
D>ar lltlje bauds, I miss them so!
Dear Ut'U hands, they have gone from me
now,
Never again will they rest on my brow—
Never agaip smooth my sorrowful lace
Nvvr c\iv*|> me tn childish emnraot*.
Aud now my forehead grows wrinkled with
care,
Thinking of Utllo hands once resting there;
But l U'tow in a happier, heavenlier clime,
Dear little hands, I will clasp you some time.
Dear little hands, wheu the Master shall call,
I'll welcome the summons that comes to us
nil—
When my feet touch the waters so dark and
so cold,
And 1 catch my first glimpse of the city of
gold,
If I keep my eye* fixed on the heavenly cate,
Over tho tide whore the while-robed ones
wait,
Shall I know you, 1 wonder, among the bright
bands,
Will you beckon me ovtfr, oh! dear little
bunds?
TOOMBS AND ÜBDEHS.
How a Debt wan Paid and a Presi
dent Fleeted.
During the earlier days of Gapt.
Isaiah Rynders, who died a few days
since in New York City, and when he
made sporting excursions throughout
the South, mischance wrecked him in
Wafrenton, Ga.
The cards had run unluckily, for a
flush sport rarely collides with the law,
atid the Captain found himself facing an
indictment for dealing faro, with no
friends on the jury panel, and no coun
sel to stand between him and the prose
cuting attorney. Robert Toombs, then
a young attorney who rode the circuit
in which Warren county was embraced,
was at court, and espoused the cause of
tho friendless and uulucky gambler.
8o skillfully did he conduct the case
that Oapt. Rynders escaped with no pun
ishment more severe than a nominal
tine and a reprimand from the presiding
judge. Counsel and client parted at the
Court House door, and the gtimbler
promising to redeem the obligation, the
young counsel, flushed with triumph,
putting away the effusive thanks with a
lordly air.
Yearn rolled by and Toombs had be
optqe a prominent member of the Whig
party and <* leading member of Con
gress, aud Oapt. Rynders with his Em
pire Club was a power in the politics of
New York city on the Democratic side.
After the Mexican war it w ill be re
membered that a movement was made
by B tilia Peyton and other Whig leaders
of the South to nominate General Tay
lor for the Presidency. It was met by
the prompt and intense opposition of
Mr. Clay, who ruled his party with an
iron rod, and who had a following as
powerful and devotee], os that now num
bered by Mr. Blaine. New York city,
then as now, was the political centre,
from which all political movements ra
diated. It was of the highest importance
that a Taylor boom be inaugurated at
that point, but the leaders of the Whig
party of the city, who were partisans of
Mr. successfully resisted any at
tempt to accomplish this. Every speaker
that was sent there was publicly received,
wined and dined aud greeted by a large
meeting, but so soon ns he attempted to
set forth the merits aud claims of Gen
eral Taylor, he wag silenced by hoots,
yells, cat-calls, thistles, and nil the
appliances known to be effective in
breaking down a public speaker.
At length Mr. Toombs was selected to
l§ad the forlorn hope. When he arrived
iu New York and announced his pur
pose, Mr. Griunell and leading Whigs
assured him that his mission would be a
fruitless one. He kept his council
and his temper m.d retiiwi
his hotel, the Astor House, from which
he addressed a note to Capt. Rynders.
The summons speedily brought the
Captain. Toombs told of liis mission
and its difficulties, and invoked his as
sistance. “Come down,” paid the C a P*
fain, “andlee the boys.’*
Toombs was carried down to the head
quarters of the Empire Club, was intro
duced wirh proper commendation by the
Captain, and over a friendly glass all
round, accompanied by cigars, the cam
paign was laid.
“You shall speak as long as you want
to,” said the Captain, “or I and my
boys will know the reason why you
qanV’ Cautioning Toojnbs to bandy
with the crowd for awhile at night, they
separated.
The hall was filled to overflowing, the
stage was occupied by all of the Whig
leaders, but prominent among the spec
tators might have been seen Captaiu
Rynders, and here and there the most
fearless of the members of tht Empire
Club. Each one of thwe bore a piece
of chalk and was instructed to mark the
backs of all who were engaged in dis
turbing the speaker. Toctnbs was in
troduced regularly and proceeded with
his exordium. When he referred to
General Taylor, a din arose as though
bedlam had broken loose. Toombe
coolly received the angry o ration, and
responded to those most prominent and
noisy. AH at once Rynders mounted t
chair and with the voice of a Stentor.
shouted: “Put out the chalk-backs
d—n them; put them out!” r*nd seizin?
a burly rough lie proceeded to executi
the order. In a moment the feilows win
had been trained and hired te pat dow
Taylor speakers were sprawling upo
the sidewalk, with torn Clothes, battere
hats and bruised faces.
There was profound order in the hall
and Toombs proceeded with his fi
eloquence to advocate the claims of “Ok
Rough and Ready.” Ho carried tin
audience by storm, aud the movemeu
was successfully inaugurated in New Yorl
that cuimiuaTed in the election of Gen.
Taylor to the Presidency. Oapt. Rynders.
the Democrat, had settled his indebted
ness with the young Whig lawyer who
had years before befriended him, am.
the incident was for years afterward re
called, wheu political reminiscencei
were in order aroundthe social board.
Painting; Dead Men’s lik*ces.
fNcw York Herald j
“Have you ever heard of dead menV
faces being painted to make them look
natural?” asked a Broadway barber of :•
reportorial customer who had jusl
dropped into a chair.
“No,” was the answer.
“Well, I have done several jolts of
that kind so artistically that the friend.*
of the deceased complimented me and
paid me big money. Drop your chiu a
little—there. I was called by an under
taker a while ago to paint tho face of a
wealthy man who had accidentally shot
himself through the temple so that the
wound discolored both eides of the face.
I took water-color paints and fine
brushes along, and after applying col
lodion to the discolored parts of the
face, I painted it as near the natural
oomplexiou of the deceased as I could
Of course, I was alone with the corpse
and the und'ertaker.’s assistant, and none
of the relatives of the dead man saw me
do the job. "When I got through the
face looked so natural that it surprised
me. The relatives of the deceased were
called in and pronounced the face very
natural and true to life. But 1 took care
to find out when the corpse was going to
be buried, for I knew’ the discoloration
would return again after the paiut got
dry; so I finished up my work a couple
of hours before the lid was put on the
casket. I got a big price for that job.
Have a sea foam? No?
I got another job; it w*s to paint the
face of a man who had died in California,
and as the remains were being brought
here they became greatly discolored.
The relatives wanted to have the corpse
look nice and the undertaker sent for
me. I struck a bargain, as an artist in
such work would, and secured a bigger
price than I expected. Well, I worked
like a beaver over that blackened face,
and got it to look quite natural; but I
knew it wouldn’t last long, bo I got the
uudertakor to burry up the funeral,
which he did. Everybody who saw the
face said it was very natural.
“O, I can do such things to the
queen’s taste, but I haven’t had a call fox
some time. I have frequently calls from
up-town swells, who have accidentally,
you know, got their eyes blackened, and
for a dollar or two I rub collodion over
them aud touch' them up with flegh
colored water-color paint. I can make
dead faces look live ones. Ffteea cents,
please. Thanks. Brush!”
The Wheat Empire,
[.lnterview with Kev Joseph Coot:.]
While in St. Paul I asked a professor
who is intimately acquainted with the
northwestern country to place one arm of
a compass cm St. Ijaui, and open the in
strument so that the other end would
touch the extreme northern limit of the
w heat belt lie did so. I then asked him
to describe a circle with the compass
opened at that distance. The eastern cir
cumference of that : - etc ' he( j into
the Atlantic ocean and the §Qiiihpw\
the Gulf of Mexico. In other words,
there is a greater extent of fine wheat
land north of St. Paul than there is either
east or south of it.
The American consul, at Winnipeg, Mr.
Taylor, divides North America into three
agricultural belts, the cotton, the maize
and the wheat zones, and he places three
quarters of the wheat belt north of our
national boundary. The climate of
Manitoba seems better adapted to wheat
than that of Ohio or Michigan. There
are two hours longer of daylight there in
summer than in our country, and the at
mosphere and soil produce a finer berry.
An Alabama negro was heard to solilo
quize philosophically: “I>e sun am so
ho*, de oottou am so grassy, de work am
so hard, dat din darkey feels called upon
to preach.”
A Chinaman has run away with a Chi
cago man’s wife. It is understood that
the husband encouraged the thing be
cuuse he hates Chinamen.
CARTERSVILLE, GEORGIA, TUESDAY, JANUARY 27, 1885.
INSIDE VICKSBURG
o
RECOLLECTIONS OF AN EX-CONFED
ERATE CAPTAIN.
Seltlrd Down for g ltigular Siege -Bom
burilment by Land ano WaUr -tx
plosion of Mli.t -Tho Flag ot
Truce--atirrondered.
St. L *oii Kepoblioan.
The enemy settled down to a regular
siege. He increased his force of skirmish
ers, enlarged his rifle pits, erected new
batteries and opened a steady fire alonp
the entire line of works. lie made no at
tempt to bury the brave fellows that gave
up their lives in the charge, and after tw<
days the bodies of his dead became sr
offensive that at last he was compelled tc
grant a few hours truce to perform this ad
ofhumanitv. This work done, the firing
was resumed and kept up by the enemy
day and night for about six weeks. Hi
force was so great, and his advantages by
land and water so many, that he was able
bv reliefs and reinforcements to keep up s
continuous fire on Vicksburg from al!
points. At night the bombardment from
the mortar fleet was fearful. Large shells
were thrown high into the air, where their
lighted fuses looked like large sky-rock
ets. Then they would burst like a clap o
thunder, and the fragments would be
hurled down into the place, frequently
killing and -wounding the men. Othen
would plunge down into the streets and
explode after entering the ground, tearing
up the earth and leaving immense holes
Shells would tear through houses, caus
ing dreadful destruction. Hospitals wen
struck time and again, and many of the
sick and wounded killed.
Notwithstanding the dreadful situation,
the bombardment by land and water was
kept up, the defenders were determined.
During the first week our rations were is
sued in the usual quantities. After that
they were cut down to fourteen ounces ot
food daily. This at last was changed when
our beef and bacon gave out and mule
meat substituted. For several days it wat
hard to get the troops to touch it, but
hunger requires no sauce. Sickness pre
vailed to an alarming extent. Famine
and want were ever present. We hoped
against hope for Joe Johnston’s command
to relieve us. We heard so much by thf
“grapevine route,” about the mighty army
under Johnston that had been organized
at Jackson, how Lee and Bragg had sent
on their veterans to rescue us. It kept up
our hearts and hopes, and every day we
expected to hear their guns.
The enemy, in the meantime, had drawn
his line closer and closer, until only a few
yards separated us. He invented about
this time a devil’s mortar, made of wood
and bound with iron. It held just enough
powder to throw a shell over our works,
when it would burst right in our midst,
killing and wounding our men dreadfully.
u e responded with hand grenades, and
learned, after the siege, with the same
deadly effect. Nevertheless, this wooden
mortar was a terror to us.
Then we mined and could hear the en
emy" in their tunnels at the same work.
This continued until the first day of July
at noon, when an immense mine was ex
ploded in fronf of the Sixth Missouri, Col.
Sentiny. It seemed as if hell itself had
joined the efforts of the enemy to dis
lodge us. The ground about us fairly
trembled; clouds of earth were thrown
high into the ah; with an appalling roar."
The dreadful loss of life it entailed and
the deafening roar of fifty pieces of the
enemy’s artillery concentrated on this
spot, it was thought would make our
troops abandon this point. On the con
trary, they stood firmer than ever. We
moved into that awful breach, supporting
the gallant Second Missouri, Col. Cock
rill, who rushed to the front of his regi
ment, saying: “All of us must die here
before this point is carded. Men of Mis
souri, stand firm, the fate of Vicksburg
depends on you.” We answered him
with a cheer: “Stand to your ground, col
onel, the First Missouri will die with you
too.” Our colonel, Riley, was at his side
in a moment to assize him qf our help.
For two hours‘those two regiments lay in
that breach, with bursting shells and his
sing bullets all around us. The wounded
from the explosion and those buried in'
the luius vy.er,e dug out qnder this dread
ful fire. It was horrible to look upon the
blackened and mutilated bodies taken out
ofthisplaoe. The wounded were eared
for as tenderly as possible. All this time
we were expecting a charge, but it was
not mad?,
uark tt[la of the line was repair
ed and the following morning the line
presented a very good defense. During
the day we understood Johnston had ar
rived at Big Black river, and was fighting
his way toward us. Great excitement
prevailed, and the troops desired to be led
over the works and cut our way to John
ston’s command.
The next morning, July 3, about nine
o’clock, a flag of truce was sent out by
Gen. Pemberton. The firing ceased, and
shortly after Gen. Bowen and Col. Mont
gomery passed out of the works. The in
terview that was held was not satisfacto
ry, fo? they returned about an hour later,
and the firing was resumed. About the
middle of the afternoon another truce took
place. Gens. Pemberton and Bowen and
Col. Montgomery went out and held an
other interview with Gens Grant, Mc-
Pherson and others in plain view .of the
regiment. It was then settled and Vicks
burg was surrendered.
The formal surrender was to take place
the following day. The storm had passed
quiet reigned that night, the first in
almost fifty, and we passed amidst the
horrors of war. The silence was at first
so unusual that it became in a manner
painful, and produced a feeling of restless
ness. This in time passed away and we
slept that night without danger. About
noon the next day’, July 4, the troops
marched out and stacked arms in front oi
the works. We returned to our former
position and the Federal forces marched in
a division and took formal possession ol
the city.
About a week after the surrender we
were ready for the march. Paroles had
been furnished to all, and we bid adieu to
>ur captors, who treated us royally in
leed. There was nothing too good for
the defenders of Vicksburg. We frater
nized as readily as if no trouble had ever
.•xisted between U3.
fHE HISTORY OF A SPEECH.
How Ben Hill Came to Deliver
his Great Speech n the Am
nesty Bill,
Washington Letter iu Cleveland Leafier.
One of the greatest Hpeecbes de
iivered since the war was that of Bet
Till on tne amnesty bill in the House
about ten years ago, and Hill was
coached f r this by a man whom yon
nay now see any night sittiug in the lob
bies of Willard’s Hotel. This man who
vas a Confederate officer during the war.
md came from one of the first families
>f Virginia, was disgusted with the bold
iratious of Blaine and Garfield, and
looked in vain over his State delegation
•(> find a man strong enough to answer
them. There was none.
At last his eyes fell on Hill, of Georgia,
aid he walked up to him as Hill sat in
his seat at the end of the middle aisle of
the House, in his customary position,
e leg crossed over the other, his head
half hangi tg.a id his bright eye upon old
speaker Kerr, who, more dead than
ilive, sat in the presiding chair. He
aid to Hill, “You must answer that
peech of Blaine’s. Virginia has not a
nan in the House that am do it, and
,ou are the only Southerner equal to it.”
Hill objected modestly, but the Yir
riauiau persisted. “But I haven’t got
the data,” said Hill.
“I’ll get yon the data,” replied the
Virginian.
“But the Speaker won't recognize
me,” said Hill. “I oan’t get tho floor.”
“I will arrange all that,” was the re
ply. “It is now about 4 o’clock, and the
douse will adjourn when the next man
is recognized, giving him the floor when
the session opens to-morrow. I will nr
irrange it with Speaker Kerr that you
be recognized, and immediately there
after I will have one of our friends to
move an adjoxirnment.”
With this understanding, the Virgin
ian, who was an intimate friend of Kerr,
left Hill and sought out Kerr’s son, who
was in the House, and told him to go
and ask his father to reoognize Hill as
the next speaker and then to adjourn
the House.
The boy did so, and told Mr. Kerr the
plan proposed by the opposition, and
the Speaker consented to it.
“I was standi tig,” said the man who
engineered the scheme, “by Hill at the
end of (he aisle, and Kerr’s boy left his
father, and I saw Ken look toward Hill
and myseif, and bow his head in ac
quiescence. The boy came around a
moment later and told us it was all right,
and that Hill would be recognized. At
this Hill got slowly np and walked easily
down to the front of the chamber, and
took a seat on the front row. As the
man who had the floor concluded, a
a dozen men sprang to their feet in
different parts of the chamber, and tried
to get tlm Speakers eye. But Mr.
Kerr said: ‘I recognize the gentleman
from Georgia,’ before Hill was half way
out of his seat. Before Hill began
speakiug, Beebe, of New York, who
hid been by rose and asked
Flill if he would yield for a motion.
In Ills courtly way Hill said, ‘Certainly,’
with a bow, aud Beebe moved that the
House adjourn was qarnqd with
i rush, au(| we had from 4p. m. to 10
a. m. to prepare our thunder. Aa the
Houso adjourned Sam Rand-41 and other
prominent Northern Democrats crowded
around Hill, and tried to persuade him
not to speak, on the grouud that it won£
stir up bad feelings and lap/,
at the Hoxtli. Hill, however, replied
that he did not intend to have the South
slandered without an objection from him,
and when the statesmen parted they
were not in the best of tempers. I then
went to the library and got Stanton’s re
ports, which in themselves proved the
misstatements uttered by the Republi
cans, aud made the extracts from these of
will which constructed Ills speech. As I
gave them to him, I tokl him I hoped
that he would use them for all they
were worth, and that he would not bo
afraid of hurting the feelings of his op
ponents. He repled with a laugh that
he did not expect tQ spare them, aud
you know the most powerful and the
most vindictive speech since the war.
The galleries were crowded when it was
delivered, and it made Hill so popular
throughout the South that it secured his
election to the Senate some time later.”
“There! that explains where my
clothes-line went to!” exclaimed an Ohio
woman as she found her husband hang-
I mg iu the stable.
HOW TO NOMINATE YOCK
MAN.
4ome Valuable Advice to Oratori
cal Members.
Adopted from the Chicago Next
1. Button the lower button of your
ooat aud allow the lapels of the garment
to puff out over your shirt front. This
will give you a sort of massive diguiry
which cannot fail to impress the specta
tors.
2. Lean one elbow on your desk and
cross your legs carelessly. This wi 1 in
vest you with au appearance of abandon,
ind people will say you have remarkable
<e.f-possession, if your boots are not
blacked, so much tho better. The hu
man mind that is absorbed in statesmanlv
reflection seldom stoops to the vulgar de
tails of a dandy’s toilet.
3. Give two or three premonitory
“ahems,”and cast your eyes about upon
the vast concourse before and around
you, as perchance the Roman gladiators
did when they took in the dimensions of
the foe preparatory to disemboweling
him.
4. Cpmmenoe your speech by utter
the words “Mister Speaker,” iu a loud,
commanding tone. Do not say ’Ster
Speaker, as the vulgar do, but say
‘ Mister Speaker,” and evory human eye
will be rivited upon you.
5. Pause for a moment. A calm pre
cedes the storm. Let an ominous silence
prepare your auditors for the hurricane
of eloquence you are about to let loose.
6. State that you arise for a purpose.
Do not forget to assert, this fact, that yon
irise. It is one of the fundamental prop
ortions of every truly great legislator’s
remarks.
7. Frocaed to say that your purpose
in rising is to place in nomination a man.
Tims you define the sex of the object
you are about to extol.
8. Deolare that this man is known
throughout all the length and breadth of
fhe State; that Iris name is a household
word; that in points of intelligence, abil
ity, energy, industry aud integrity he
has few equals and no superior.
9. Refer to his record as a soldier:
dwell at length upon his heroism on the
field of battle; picture Rome scene of car
nage from weich he issued with ten
thousand sabre outs and as many more
mnsket wounds; intimate that his coun
try owes this battered hero muoh more
than it can ever pay, but expi-ess a wil
lingness to compromise temporarily on
the office in question. At this juncture
you may uncross your legs, apply your
handkerchief to your eyes and await
thunders of applause.
10. Proceed to repeat the somewhat
trite saw that peace hath her victories no
less renowned than war; say that this
scarred veteran has served his country in
a private, capacity with ns much fidelity
as he did upon soil that reeked with gore.
Refer to the gentle, modest, manly de
meanor of your candidate; say how be
loved lie is by all who know him; how
charitable he is and how law-abiding. If
he has ever been a bum constable or a
special deputy sheriff dwell at some
length upon the ability with which he
discharged the. responsible duties confid
ed to his hands by his admiring fellow
citizens.
11. Now you may allude to the rival
candidates, damning them with taint
praise, and if necessary, damn them with
out faint praise; express your willingness
to submit to the will of the majority if
the majority sees fit to ignore the super
lative qualifications of your friend for the
claims of a less competent but no more
honorable candidate.
12. Refer to the demand which these
trying times rnakos for the best men in
office. Warn your party to beware of
intrusting its interests in the hands of
untried men, and ask upon whom conld
reliance be placed more safely than upon
the §o}qier citizen whose name you are
about to pronounce.
13. Here you may take & drink of wa
ter, and in doing so have a pare to act
vqqr jyq't so well as to leave no lingering
suspicion ia the minds of the spectators
that you are only slightly acquainted with
the beverage.
14. The peroration. Make a pro
tracted synopsis of all yon have said; be
sure to ring iu a little mass of flul>dul>
find flapdoodle about th. 9. \ogfc oause and
the Viipiu barred banner.
15. Mention your candidate’s name
in a clear, ringing voice and with a ma
jestic swing of both arms. 1 hep sit flown
and wait {or {he applause to die away.
16. Hand a oigar to eaeh of the news
paper correspondents with the remark
that you are a constant reader of his pa
per, and are ready %t all times to do it a
service.
A New York lady is said to have a
dress of spun glius trimmed with cut
crystal beads, the glass being iu the pal
est amber tone, in exact coloring of the
hair of the fair wearer,
Leprosy is increasing so rapidly in
Honolulu that government action is
about to be taken to prevent its spread,
if possible.
Pbiadelphia enters the new year with
6,000 saloons, not to mention many good
citizens who keep a demijon at home.
A burial obituary relates that “the de
ceased had accumulated a little money
auil tfu children,’-
GRANT’S GALENA GRANGE.
His Creditors Contemplate Con
fiscating it,
[New York Telegram.
Considerable anxiety is felt hero lest
General Grant’s residence in this city,
presented to him by Galena friends, be
swallowed up in the maelstrom into
which his property is likely to be cast
for tho benefit of his creditors. The
house, while not the finest in the city, is
however, a pretty one, built of brick,
and stands upon the most sightly and
beautiful spot in town. It overlooks the
entire country for miles around aud cat
i>e seen, when the leaves are off the
trees, from almost every poiut of ob
servation. The residence, furnished
handsomely from top to bottom, was
given to Grant while he was general of
the army. It was occupied from time
to time by the illustrions owner during
his periodical sojourns in Galena and
was* last vacated by him when he re
moved to New York. It is now the
homo of Rev. Ambrose C. Smith, pastor
of the South Presbyterian Church, of
Galena, a warm friend of the General,
who has it rent free. Much of the
original furniture remains in tho honse,
also many articles of bric-a-brac and
curio, whioh were presented to the Gen
eral and Mrs. Grant before and during
tlioir trip around tho world. The prin
cipal things of value, however, were for
worded to New York at their request.
Tho residence is a great object of in
terest to tourists, hnudreds from all
parts of the world visiting and inspect
ing it annually. In this respect it di
vides honors equally with the more un
pretending little brick house on the
west side of the river, which was the
General's first home iu Galena when he
was clerking in his father’s leather store
at S4O a month.
A MERMAID SOLD BY A SULOB.
How the Purchaser Was ladefclved—The
Work of a Clever Taxidermist.
The foreman of Hoe’s press works
one day last week, says the New York
Tribune, made the acquaintance of weather
beaten sailor, who sold him a mermaid fora
good round s>um. The tar related the story
of the mermaid’s capture near the coral is
lands of the South Pacific. She had been sur
prised by a party of sailors, while sitting
on a rock combing her long tresses. Every
effort was made to keep her alive on the
voyage home, but ten days after the ship
had sailed out of Bight of her native reefs
and caves the mermaid died of a broken
heart.
Many friends of the foreman inspected
the mermaid and declaired it was genu
ine. “Doubtless,” thought the lucky fore
man, “the government will pay high for
the body of the only mermaid ever caught-
My fortune is ready made.” He was ad
vised to communicate with Commissioner
Blackford, who is authority on the value
of mermaids, and to try to sell it through
him to the National Museum in Wash
ington.
“My poor fellow,” said Mr. Blackford
as he inspected the wonderful inhabitant
of the South Seas, “some scamp of a
sailor has taken you in. That thing is no
mermaid, but it is an imposition made by
a clever taxidermist. Tho tail is that of
a hake and it is so nicely joined on to the
upper part of a monkey’s skeleton that
it would deceive any one. Those tresses
are from a horse’s tail. Find that sailor
and tell him to repent.”
The blood of foreman fell ten de
boiow zero as hta visions of wealth
resolved into thin January air.
“Those taxidermists ought to be prose
cuted,” said Mr. Blackford. “That mer
maid business is worked extensively in
this city the victims feel so ashamed
p( themselves that they never say any
thing abont it.
Me Settled at Once.
“fYit’s w-ut ye git from foolin’ ’round
wid dem yere lawyers!” he said as he
joined a group of oolored idlers ou the
market-place.
Being asked why he had been to see a
lawyer, he explained:
“You know dat Buck Williams! Pow
erful bad nigger he am. Gits drunk an’
kiqks in doahs an* clubs windows. Come
round to my oabin one night las’ week
an’ stove de doah in an’ wanted to clean
out de shanty. I falls out o’ bed an’ goes
fur him wid an ax-hand!e, an’ dey war
gwine to ‘rest me for ’sault wid intent to
kill,”
“Well?”
“Wall, when dey tole me dat he had a
cracked head, a broken arm, an’ war all
broke up, I wanted to settle de ease.
My ole woman qoaxod me to go and see
a lawyer, an’ de lawyer he taxed me $5
an’ advised me to offer Buck m) ole boss
an’ wagin’ an’ $25 in cash.”
“And you did?’’
,f \u' I didn‘t! When I got home his
wife wav dar waitin’ fur me, and -he said
if I didu’t ban’ ober $2 ia oasb an’ a sack
o’tt ur she’d mutilate me wid a lawsuit
clean up to de S’preme Co’rt. Took me
jest sebenteen ticks o’ de clock to settle
on dat basis, an’ now I can’t be mutilated
nohow. Lawyers. Dar, I paid five dol
lars to one of ’em to tell me da,t I mils’
reduce mysef from poverty to affluence
to settle a case wliar’ de complainant
didn’t ax but three dollars, an’ would
hev gin me fo’ty off on dat ef I had
kicked.”
NUMBER 38.
SHEEP NOTES.
L. Pageot writes to the San Antonio
(Texas) Wool Journal: “I have used cot*
ton seed oil meal for tnree years, and have
found it to be the cheapest and most nu
tritious food to be had. In two month*,
by feeding a pound per day, to each sheep,
I can make them fat enough for market;
and if I only want to keep them in good
dondition through the winter half a pound
a day is sufficient. I can further say
that since I have been feeding ‘he oilcake
meal lam satisfied it has increased the
growth of wool, producing a very long
and fine staple. In a word, I consider it
the best feed for sheep I have ever tried,
and would recommend it to every sheep
man in the land.”
The age of sheep is easily told by ex
amining the front teeth. A two-year-old
sheep has four permanent front teeth in
the lower jaw. These teeth are easily dis
tinguished from the temporary teeth by
being broader and larger. A three-year
old has six of those teeth, the other or
last two appearing at four-year old —mak-
ing eight front teeth in all. No sheep
older than this should be chosen for
breeding purposes. To be sure, some
sheep of Merino crosses keep their teeth
for many years, and if not grazed on san
dy land may have good teeth at eight or
ten years old, but such cases are not
very numerous.
A farm can be stocked with sheep for
less money than with any other live stock,
and come nearer utilizing everything that
grows on the farm, than any other animal;
less labor is required in feeding them,
while the returns come in sooner and of
tener than any other farm stock except
hogs. Less money is required for shelter
ing as well as for fencing, and less labor
involved in herding, particularly where
outside pasturage is accessible. And,
finally, a handsome income on the invest
ment can be had without the sale of the
animals themselves.
Remember that in caring for your sheep
this winter wet weather is more to be pro
vided against than cold, especially if it
should turn cold after a rain, and the wet
wool freezes on them. This leads to lung
troubles and to catarrh among the flock.
It is well, therefore, to keep the sheep dry
in the winter, instead of allowing them to
be exposed to all kinds of weather.
A correspondent of the Ohio farmer
says that on a recent visit to the Union
stock yards at Cincinnati he obtained
some points of interest from the Bupt.
of the sheep department, who said that
“as a mutton sheep the South-down rank*
ahead of all others, and the Merinos corns
next; I mean, of course, matured mut
ton. Fer early lambs the Merino ranks
below the Downs and the Cotswold.
This is not because the mutton is inferior
in itself, for Merino mutton, when equally
fat, is as good as any in the world—indeed,
I am not certain but that it is finer grained
than any other, but the point is to have it
fat.
Wliero Not to Start a Paper.
In his letter to the amateur journalists,
Robert J. Burdette offers some sage ad
vice regarding the starting of newspapers.
Says he:
If he starts a paper in a town where
nobody wants a paper;
Or where there are already five papers
in a itwo-paper town ;
Or, if a long primer man tries to start a
nonpareil paper;
Or if he try to run an eight-column pa
per on a two-column basis ;
Or, if he skip, his home advertiera and
cut rates for foreign ads ;
Or, if he start out by giving a $3 puff
for a 10-cent comb;
Or, if he start a paper because he baa
failed at everything else;
Tken, indeed, hath he bitten off more
than he can masticate, and his paper, be
loved by the gods, will die young and
fresh,
Fashion Notes,
Square court trains are revived.
Fur-bordered turbans are very popu
lar.
Edelweiss brooches of silver are beau
tiful and quite the rage.
Lace and fur are combined in many
dressy reception toilets.
The jersey oorset cover bids fair to re
place those of cotton or linen.
Jeweled pins are the favorite orna
ment for the hair with evening dress.
Bonnets are worn with trained dressetf
at full-dress receptions and olmroh-wed
dings.
Among the most fashionable revival*
of the season are the matelasae cloths and
silks.
The newest skirts are perfectly plain,
falling in straight line-t from the waist to
the hem.
Ail velvet dresses for evening wear ara
made of two kinds of the same color, m
brocaded and a plain velvet.
When a St. Louis policeman is asked
any question about city places he takes
from his pocket a small guide book and
offers to sel’ it for twenty-five cents.
The city of London contains more
Jews than does Jerusalem, more Irish
than Dublin, and more Roman Catholioi
than Rome.
A bright, unworn cent of the coinage
ef 1804 was recently sold in New York
for S2OO.
Telegraphing rates are now almost a*
cheap as postage was half a century ago.