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OLD WORLD HOME Drafting Methods by Which Their Strength Is Maintained. TRICKS OF THE CONSCRIPTS. All Manner of Dodges Are Adopted by the Eligible Young Men to Avoid the Enforced Military Service That Is So Hateful to Them. We hear a good deal about conscrip¬ tion, but few people know what It ac¬ tually means. In no country Is every person who is able to fight drafted into the army. All males who are lia¬ ble to serve undergo a physical exam¬ ination, resulting in only a certain number being passed as fit for service. No government has sufficient funds to draft the whole of these men Into the regular army, so a selection is made by ballot, the number of men en¬ rolled varying according to the funds in the hands of the authorities. The pay provided for the conscript is necessarily very trifling indeed and will not compare with that paid to vol¬ unteer soldiers. In fact, it is generally true that the conscript must fall back upon his private means. The methods vary in each country. But take the case of one European power. Every male subject not phys¬ ically incapacitated is liable to enter the army at the age of twenty, al¬ though those who care to enlist may do so at eighteen. A register is kept of all the youths who reach the age of twenty In the particular year. Men under five feet two inches in height are exempt from service, as well, of course, as those who suffer from natural Infirmities which render them unsuitable for ac¬ tive service. Other men are also exempt if they have helpless dependents — thus the only son of a widow or of a disabled father, the latter category also includ¬ ing the only son of a father who is above seventy years of age. Then the eldest of a family of orphans is ex¬ empt, and in the case of two sons only one is liable, there being various other exemptions. The term served by the conscript is one of twenty-five years, three years being spent in the regular army, six and one-half in the army reserve, six In the territorial army and the re¬ maining nine and a half years in the territorial reserve, all liability to serv¬ ice ceasing at forty-five. The service is frequently so hated that all manner of methods are adopt¬ ed in order to avoid it. In many cases substitutes are provided by the wealthy, though there are stringent regulations with regard to the pro¬ vision of the substitutes. In most European countries military malingering in order to avoid compul¬ sory military service has reached the stage of a fine art. In fact, a formida¬ ble list of new crimes has been added to the statutes as a result, and medical men frequently have to suffer for their assistance in this particular kind of fraud. Thus some time ago a number of Cologne doctors were arrested upon a charge of having administered pills to young conscripts. These pills consist¬ ed of drugs which produced the symp¬ toms of heart disease so effectively as completely to deceive the military au¬ thorities, with the result that the con¬ scripts were declared unfit for service. In this case the fraud was brought to light by one of the conscripts dying as a result of an overdose of the medi¬ cine. In Germany, where the conscript is frequently treated with the greatest harshness, there are very few towns where there are not specialists whose living depends solely in inducing such a condition of affairs as will render young men exempt by reason of unfit¬ ness. In the French army it is quite com¬ mon for youths to feign all manner of ills, deafness being the usual ailment trusted to in order to escape the serv¬ ice. As a result the military doctors have made an especial study of meth¬ ods of detecting feigned deafness and to trap the cunning youth who acts the part of a deaf man. Another common practice in France is to tamper with the eyesight, though this frequently results in permanent injury. For instance, short sight Is produced by wearing powerful con¬ cave glasses for a considerable time despite the risk of bringing about per¬ manent blindness. It is no uncom¬ mon occurrence for men to commit sui¬ cide rather than submit to forced serv¬ ice in the army. In eastern Europe most brutal meth¬ ods are adopted by parents in order that their sons may be able to work for them Instead of serving in the army. The boys are frequently ill treated, and It is not at all uncommon even for their limbs to be broken or their sight to be destroyed in order to prevent any likelihood of their having to become soldiers. Switzerland probably has the cheap¬ est army and the least burdensome methods of conscription, the service being much lighter than in the other continental armies. Indeed, the con¬ script in the infantry army has to un¬ dergo actual training for only 136 days during the entire period of his service. —Philadelphia Ledger. Knew Her Minutes. Bridget—Will yez have your dinner now, sorr, or wait for the missus? Head of the House—Where is your mistress. Bridget? Bridget—There’s an auction beyant the corner, sorr. an' she said she’d stop there for a mlnnlt Head of the House—Have dinner now, Hrtdget—New York Sun. INSTINCT AND REASON. An Interesting Illustration of the Two Traits of Monkeys. An illustration showing the differ¬ ence between instinct and reason in monkeys came under the observation of David Starr Jordan, the famous naturalist. At one time he had two lively Macacus monkeys called Bob and Jocko. These were nut and fruit eating monkeys and instinctively knew Just how to crack nuts and peel fruits. At the same time he had a baby roou key. Mono, of a kind that bad the egg eating instinct. But Mono had never yet seen an egg. To each of the three monkeys Dr Jordan gave an egg, the first that any of them had ever see#. Baby Mono, descended from egg eating ancestors, handled his egg with ail the iuberited expertness of a long developed in¬ stinct. He cracked it with bis upper teeth, making a hole in it. and sucked out all its substance. Then, holding the eggshell up to the light and see¬ ing there was no longer anything in it, he threw It away. All this he did mechanically, automatically and just as well with the first egg as with any other he afterward had. And all eggs since given him he has treated In the same way. The monkey Bob took his egg for some kind of nut He broke It with bis teeth and tried to pull off the shell. When the inside ran out aud fell on the ground he looked at it for a mo¬ ment In bewilderment, tbeu with both bands scooped up the yolk aud the sand mixed with it and swallowed It. Then he stuffed the shell Into his mouth. This act was not instinct; it was reason. He was not familiar by inherited instinct with eggs. He would handle one better next time, however. Reason very often makes mistakes at first, but when it Is trained It becomes a means far more valuable and power¬ ful than Instinct. The third monkey, Jocko, tried to eat his egg in much the same way that Bob did; but, not liking the taste, he threw it away.—St. Nicholas. EASY MONEY. Picked Up by the Sharp Chap Who Bet on a Word. Just by way of showing bow easy it is for some men to pick up a few dol¬ lars by their wits a young fellow strolled Into a cafe the other after¬ noon and, joining In conversation that was being carried on by convivial spirits, declared he was the most “In fortunate” individual on earth. He Immediately began telling a story of his personal troubles, but before he had got the narrative well under way there was a chorus of interruptions, and the talkative young man was po¬ litely informed that his English need¬ ed revising, since he should have used the word "unfortunate” Instead of "in fortunate.” The newcomer insisted that In fortu¬ nate was the correct word to use. and the argument waxed warm. Finally, with a show of beat, the young man who started the trouble declared that while he had only a few dollars he would wager them that he was cor¬ rect. So anxious were his friends to lay wagers with him that be did not have money enough to meet all the de¬ mands. but he succeeded in putting up $15 in separate small bets. The men who were certain that the garrulous young man was wrong In the use of the word infortunate sent out for a dictionary only to find that they had been “stung” on a "sure thing” bet. the big book on spelling showing that lufortunate is perfectly proper and means unfortunate. “Yes,” said the winner of the bets as be pocketed his new portion of wealth, "I have won money on that before. I collected $10 this afternoon on a similar wager.” — Philadelphia Record. Flying Fishet. A dazzling silvery splendor per¬ vades the surface of the body of the best known species of the flying fish. The summit of Its head, its back aud its sides are of azure blue. This blue becomes spotted upon the dorsal fin. the pectoral flu and the tall. This fish is the common prey of the sea birds and the more voracious fishes, such as the shark. Its enemies abound in air and water. If it succeeds in es¬ caping the Charybdis of the water the chances are in favor of its meeting its fate in the Scylla of the atmosphere. If it escapes the jaws of the shark it will probably fall to the share of the seagull. Too Honest. Woggs—Young Smith has failed in business again. I’m sorry for the boy. but too close adherence to high princi¬ ples ruined him. Boggs — How so? Woggs—He advertised, "Our product is thoroughly tested before it leaves the factory.” which Is a very hard thing to live up to when yon are man¬ ufacturing dynamite.—Puck. Quite at Home. Bacon—And did you feel at home traveling in Russia? Egbert—Oh, quite at home. When the brakemen called out the stations I couldn’t understand them any better than I can over here. —Yonkers Statesman. Thousand Dollar Illustration Income, $1,000; expenditure, $999.99 —happiness. Income, $1,000; expenditure, $1,000.90 —misery. Income, $1,000; expenditure, $1,500 gay time.—Puck. Poor Living. Madder Brown—There goes old Dau¬ ber. He’s living on his reputation. Maulstick—No wonder he look* so thin. —Illustrated Bits. THE COVINGTON NEWS II STROKE OF FORTUNE The Bit of Good Luck That Over¬ took Barney O’Connor. WEALTH THRUST UPON HIM. The Visitor That Called to See the Man Who Had Been Injured—The Sight That Greeted Him and the Hasty Proposition Ho Handed Out. Several years ago two brothers named McDonald were In busiuesa iu Halsted street. Among the habitues of their establishment was a man named O’Connor. A man Darned An¬ derson then was claim agent for the street railway company that connected Halsted with Chicago. Barney O’Connor was a happy-go lucky chap who didn’t worry much about anything. He was partial to his beer, had no kith or kin to be re¬ sponsible for, cared little for clothes and worked only when It was abso¬ lutely essential, which wasn’t often. McDonald Bros, liked to have Bar¬ ney around on account of the wit he had brought with him from the ould sod. and so they found little tasks for him to do. One day Barney was loaf¬ ing around McDonald’s about balf il¬ luminated and In an extremely rosy frame of mind when they decided they wanted some goods over in the city. Barney was delegated to go after them. He stopped at the corner buffet, hoisted another one and took a car for the loop. The car was crowded fore and aft, and Barney got on the aft. He didn’t get much more than halfway on the step when there came a Jolt. The crowd surged back on Barney, and he, with several others, was dumped Into the street. Barney suffered worse than the rest, as he was underneath. But he wasn’t hurt badly. He was knock¬ ed unconscious, but after they carried him Into a store and threw cold water on him he came out of It in good shape. All that remained were a few cuts. The conductor, however, was ex¬ cited. He was new at the business, and when he took the names and ad¬ dresses of the victims of the crash he got considerably balled up. Perhaps he made Barney’s injuries a little more grave than they really were. After O’Connor got over his dizzi¬ ness he went on uptown and bought his stuff for the McDonalds. He also visited a drinking place on Randolph strqet. It was there that he learned of a clam bake that was to be held that night at a saloon on lower Hal¬ sted. Celebrations of this sort ap¬ pealed to Barney, and he resolved to be on band. He was. They had a lovely time. Along about 12 o’clock the festivities became superjoyous, and arguments arose. Barney was in the midst of these. Fisticuffs followed forensic froth, and O’Connor was numbered among the slain. How be got to his room he couldn’t explain coherently. He sure was some beat up. What they didn’t do to him wouldn’t take long to tell. It was the completest walloping be ever bad experienced. He slept late. When he woke up he wished he could have slept later. He found moving undesirable after an at¬ tempt or two at it, so he stayed in bed. About 2 o’clock in the afternoon the landlord of the rooming bouse came up and told Barney a man wanted to see him. Seldom had Barney bad visitors, and his curiosity was aroused. But it wasn’t strong enough to induce him to get up. He told the landlord to have the man sent up to the room. Anderson, out to settle early and avoid the rush, came in and took a look at Barney. He nearly fainted. "Jf I get out of this on less than $1, 000 I’ll be lucky,” be told himself. Then he proceeded to business. “It kind o’ bunged you up, didn’t it?” he began as a feeler. He couldn’t say less, for he had a conscience. “Well, some," acknowledged Barney, not grasping the pertinence of the question, but realizing its truth. "You know, a suit always Involves a lot of delay and trouble, and the company has better facilities, and It’s better for the plaintiff to settle”— “Wot are yez talkin’ about?" Barney broke In. “Why, I'm from the street railway, and we want to see if we can’t fix this up for you for getting hurt. We want to do what’s right; but, of course, you understand”— Barney saw a great light. It made him forget his woes. “Do yez mean ye want to pay me fer failin’ off the car yistiddy?” he asked. "That's the idea,” answered Ander¬ son. “Well, here I am,” said Barney. “How much am I offered?” Anderson hesitated. “Uh—er—I think—er—how’d two fifty strike you?” “I think it’s worth at least five,” be replied. “Now, look here.” explained Ander¬ son, "if you fight this case it’ll cost you at least $100 for a lawyer. Yon might get $300 in a trial, and still again you might get nothing, it’s al¬ ways a good idea”— “D' yez mean ye’ll give me $250?” interrupted O’Connor, sitting up quick¬ ly despite his aches. “That’s it,” replied Anderson, so fas¬ ciae ted by the picture of war’s horrors portrayed by Barney’s face that be failed to notice the surprise in his tones. “I’ll take it,” said O’Connor in a hurry. “Bring it to me all In quar¬ ters.”—Chicago Tribune. The period of deepest sleep varies from 3 o’clock to 6. (? We Are The Only Factory in the South Selling Direct to Yov at Wholesale Prices. We guarantee to save you $20.00 on your buggy. Or¬ der from us and save the Middle Man’s Profit. We build but one grade—THE VERY BEST. The best grade work built in the South. Repairing and Rubber Tiring Done By Us. Covington Buggy Co Covington, Ga. FOR RENT. Two 5-Room cottages for rent. One 4-Room cottage for rent. With electric lights, water, sewerage, or without. Buggies, Wagons and Harness Easy Terms. D. A. Thompson, Covington, Ga. Watches and Clocks j Repaired. 1 am prepared to repair your Watches and Clocks and can fix them so they will run, for less mon¬ ey than my competitors and guar¬ antee all my work. When you are ready for your work give me a trial. J. SIEGEL At Dr. J. A. Wrights Drug Store. A PRETTY UNE OF JEWELRY AND STANDARD WATCHES. —FOUND—Four full grown turkey hens, found something like a month ago. Owner can get same by paying for feed and this advertisement. Call at this office. They were found north of the Georgia Railroad depot. Are You A Woodman? If Not—Why Not? THE WOODMEN OF THE WORLD Is the Strongest Fraternal Beneficiary Insurance Order in the United States. Membership, over 700,000. Rates very reason¬ able but adequate. $12,000,000 Surplus in reserve fund. Woodcraft stands for all that is Good and Noble in a Strong Brotherhood of the living and provides a Substantial Legacy for our loved ones when we are gone. For further information see. A. S. HOPKJNS, Secty. Elm Camp No. 206 Phone 2J6