The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, August 26, 1900, Page 7, Image 7
7
for saving life at sea.
I’ARIS EXHIBIT THE RESULT OP
sinking of buhgqyjie.
A .lory of All Xlltlons Trie* to Decide
Wliieli Is tbe Best Life SavinK Ser
vice—A Twenty Thousand Dollar
Prize Still to Be Won—The Jnry
Deriilea Thnt the Problem of Life
Saving! at Sea Is Vet to Be Solved.
Great Proress Has Been Made,
However.
By Valerian Gribayedoff.
(Copyright, 1900, by V. Grlbayeloff.)
Paris. Aug. 21.—'It's an ill wind that
blows nobody good,” or, as some otlvr
proverb-maker expresses it, "from great
calamities oft issue public advantage."
When on the fourth of July, 1818, the
French soamship La Burgoyne went
down with all on beard off the Newfound
land coast, the world was honitied by the
disaster, and the newspapers of different
countries renewed the discussion of meas
ures to prevent such wholesale lose ot
life.
Among the passengers on the way from
the United States to France, who were
lost on the Burgogne, were Mr. and Mrs.
Anthony Pollok of Washington, D. C.
More keenly and personally afflicted by
tbe calamity than the general pub ic, the
heirs of Mr. and Mrs. Pollok decided to
found a memorial prize to be awarded for
the b>st meihod or device for saving hu
man life in shipwrecks. To this end the
(State set aside the sum of S2O 000 to be
styled the Anthony Pollok prize, and ask
ed the concurrence of the United States
and French governments in whatever
measures should be deemed the most prac
tical for the furtherance of
the project. Both governments
promptly acceded to the request, and it
Some of the Inflatable Systems Thrown Out by the Jury
was decided to make the competitive
display of inventions for saving life at
sea a part of the Paris exhibition of
1900.
The general character of the Pollok
prize, and the conditions attaching to
its award, were widely advertised in all
the countries of the world, so that through
the utmost publicity every man or set of
men in the universe who had an idea of
interest or value In the premises, would
be Induced to compete for the prize, and
to disclose his theories in the interest of
humanity.
Appreciatingthe vast philanthropic scope
of the undertaking, the exhibition author
ities set apart for the purpose a long, ca
pacious gallery in the building known as
the Palace of Navigation and Commerce,
where all designs submitted should be ex
hibited; and with the approval of the Pol
lok heirs, placed the whole subject in the
hands of a Jury of well known experts
in all naval and maritime matrers. The
high and cosmopolitan character of this
Jury makes their Judgment authoritative.
This expert commission has virtually
terminated its labors this week, three
steady months of tireless devotion to the
examination of all the inventions submit
ted, whether in the form of miniature
models or simply written documents ex-
isgqf** "^^mf'*'i^' T
1. Life Raft Being Launched from the Top of Deck-House.':. Life Raft, Equipped After Leaving the Wreck.
plaining the devices or method*. The duty
"as a moat exacting one, for the collec
tion of life-saving Inventions is enormous.
They were sent from all parts of the world
and many of them evidently represent
years of care and preparation.
in such a big exhibit of "ideas” there /
ere naturally many things of an eccentric I
character. plainly the handiwork of j
‘'cranks;" but, on the other hand, many
thoroughly practical devices are submitte l I
whose application hereafter will surely i
t-'nd to minimize the loss of life by tied- >
dents at sea. . .J .f j
The Problem Still Unsolved.
The Jury, however, regard the great ;
problem of life-saving in shipwrecks as i
siill unsolved. While admitting the Inesti- |
mable \alue of some of the inventions, i
they consider that none of them quite ful- |
fills the specific object of the founder of
the Pollok prize. 6ome of the devices,
say the Jury, would vastly lessen the
chance of accident on vessels, but such
accident* may occur, for which no sure
means of saving life by the wholesale, as
it were, has been provided. For ttiis rea
son the Jury ore of Ihe opinion that the
sum of 120,000 should not be awarded in It*
entirety to any exhibitor, but that n cer
tain part of It should be awarded to the
Inventor of the best method or methods
proposed, while the balance of the prise
should he set apart as an incentive for
f iriher competition* of the same kind, to
be held during ihe next two or three
years. If the group Jury approve* Inis
de, Itlon of the elate Jury, perhaps only
two or three of all the exhibitors repre
sented et Parle will com*' In for u ensre
nf the pi it*.
The utmost secrecy It preserved by Ihe
commission as to the inventions that hove
V*n u-em*d of the highest merit, forjl
is not expected that the names of the win
ner or winners will be announced within
a month. Your correspondent learns, how
ever, that it was partically decided to
tule out all inventions whose life-saving
qualities depended either upon any inflat
ed belts, germants, or equipments, or
which employed any material whose effi
cacy could be destroyed by perforation.
This decision very materially lessens the
range of likely winners, for the greater
part of the devices exhibited rely entirely
upon the buoyancy they imparl to a hu
man being, thus providing against death
by drowning.
Variety of Inventions.
Inventions of this sort extend over an
Infinite range of ingenuity. If protection
against drowning were the only condition
to be fulfilled to win the Pollok prize,
any one of these inflatable devices could
lay a strong claim to the award.
The old-fashioned life-belt Idea is work
ed out in a bewildering variety of meth
ods, from the simplest to the most com
plicated system. One exhibitor contem
plates the presentation of a little pad of
rubber about as big as a card-case to
every passenger who mounts the gang
plank. “All a passenger has to do,” says
the inventor, "is to hang the pad around
his neck. If by any chance he finds him
self in the sea, the pad will swell until
it is buoyant enough to float an ele
phant.”
Another competitor for the prize ex
hibits a set of life-saving pajamas which
“are just like any other garment until
the wearer falls into the water; then they
inflate themselves and It would take fif
teen horse-power to pull them under."
A French rubber manufacturer exhib
its an admirable system of air pads that
could be worn constantly at sea, and
which require only about thirty seconds'
blowing to distend them from a perfectly
flat state to the shape of toy balloons
capable of sustaining the weight of two
men in the water.
Still another inventor submits a species
of automatically Inflating life belt, the
principle of which Is based on the ex
panding Influence of water on acetylene
gas, with which the belts are charged.
Many of these ingenious devices are per
feet in theory, but they apply a remedy
only to the cases of ptrson* who have e-
I eaped from the damaged ship to the rag-
I ing sea outside. Most of them woull ba
! useless, and some of them suicidal, if
I worn by passengers on a ship aflie, for
the elements of a number of the devices
are so explosive that they would blow the
j unthinkng wearer into sml hehreens in an
instant.
Another inventor submits a model mat
tress on which a passenger may s> p
blissfully in hours of repose, or float dis
dainfully in hours of danger; but the time
required to transform the couch into a
life saver is Just about eight times as
much as is often needed for a hurried
trip Into eternity.
Some methods of life preservers are
submitted to which the Jury's objection
about inflatable substances do not app y.
One of these. Invented by an old Eng
lish sea captain, ha= the merit of serving
a double purpose equally practicably. If
everything is going all right aboard ship,
tho thing looks Just what it is, a comfort
able arm rhalr The seat of the chair is
formed by two transvtrse straps of wi'e
leather. II any sudden exigency neccssi-
I tates the passenger going overboard, he
1 unstraps the leathed band, pulls the
framewoik of tha chair up under his arm.
and attaches It there by fastening the
straps over his shoulders. The thing Is
light enough for a child to handle, for be
side the woodwork, the only other things
about the chair are two large tubes of
aluminum, charged with air. A projecting
nail, or sharp corner, or collision with a
pointed object in the water, inflicts little
damage on this life saving apparatus.
The exhibit of life rafts is vast and
varied. They are made of every possible
sort of substance, and of every possible
shape and slxe. One is built on the archi
tectural lines of n string of linked sau
sages; most of them are "doubled bar
reled.” and two or three have three or
more air chambers. The Catamaran Ida
is worked out in extreme. For all of
these rafts the same pre-eminent virtuo
is claimed unslnkableness. In most
cases this merit was demonstrated by the
expert tests, but other .qualities were re
quired. too, the chief of which was their
portability und gei-at-ablenei*. Some of
the Inventors seemed to have forgotton
ait about this qunitty. or to have assumed,
perhaps that steamship lines would keep
a supplv of the rafts floating about the
•cean. after ordering the captains never
to get shipwrecked unless a life raft was
near.
One of the most amusing samples of
thin sort of absent-mindedness on Ihe
part of Inventors is the model of a so
called life raft submitted by a Hun
garian ship carpenter. It Is shaped like
a gigantic, pegr, and the Interior la ar
ranged In fvur stories. The lowest, a curt
of sub-c'dlar, la laden with ballast weigh
ing an any ion*, so disposed •* to keep
“rsor" upright. Above that art- the adore -
room* for tho provisions and general
supplies On th* nevt floor ars the sleep
THE MORNING NEWS: SUNDAY, AUGUST 26. 1900.
50
Per Cent.
Discount
On lots of desir
able things.
25 Off
On lots of other
lines.
ing quarters and hospital, and above that
the dining and living room.
Asa design for a floating model, the
plan was excellent, but it was somewhat
impractical as a life raft. "Where would
you put it aboard ship?” one of the Jury
asked the inventor.
"I hadn't thought of that," replied the
Hungarian.
"Why, on the deck of courae." suggest
ed another Juror, winking to his compan
ion.
"Ya-as, dat's so,” assented the inventor.
"Put id on de deck.”
"But you would have to build a ship
around It," said the chairman of the Jury;
"and It would have to be four times
wider than any ship ever built.”
So the Hungarian's design did not get
even honorable mention. Yet there was an
idea in his head and that idea was ad
mirably worked out in other exhibits.
Thus, a French shipbuilding firm sub
mitted a model of a big trans-Atlantic
liner, which carried an enormous lifeboat
equipped throughout and stored with pro
visions, etc., for Instant use. The
uniqueness of this invention consists in the
fact that the lifeboat ip not visible at all
under normal conditions. It ie imbedded
In the forward part of the ship, and a
passenger might walk over it a hundred
times without suspecting its existence. But
in case the big ship should be in danger
of shipwreck. Ihe captain has the deck
board covering the lifeboat Instantly re
moved, and orders the passengers to crawl
down Into their places. There the passen
gers wait. If the huge vessel is destined
to sink the occupants of the lifeboat are
safe When the ship keels over and dis
appears beneath the waves, the lifeboat
Is released automatically, and Issues out
of the foundering carcass like a phoenix
from the ashes. Air chambers make the
lifeboat unslnkable, and a clever device
la provided which enables the lifeboat to
resist the auction from Ihe sinking ship.
A nearby exhibit from another French
Arm of Shipbuilders shows an automati
cally detachable deck which separates ll
self from a foundering sesm*h4p, and as
sure* a safe asylum to a hundred per
sons.
"Poper's Inventions for Raving Life at
Sea" I* the inscription on one of th* walls
of the long gallery. The exhibit of this
English manufacturing establishment,
that I* famous for that branch of indus
try Is the largest and are of the most
complete In all th* exblb'tlon. Each de
v|,e i* d*mon*trat#d by working mod
els shown in a big tank tilled with water
One of th# most practical and effective
of the R.yper Invention is a t*ei iif* raft
bulk In cellular compartments for sir
chambers. On* <*eWeo employ* this r*ft
The End
Of the BIG VALUE for NO PRICE
season, is in the neighborhood. At no
part of the year can
Such Bargains
Be possible as for the next few weeks---
not in one line or department, bat
THROUGHOUT. We seldom carry
over anything. We WON T carry for
ward ANYTHING THAT ANY
BODY IS DISPOSED TO BUY. We
have nothing that you need feel afriad to
invest in for FUTURE use.
MEN, WOMEN,
Boys’, Girls’ and Children’s
SUITS, UNDERWEAR
and FURNISHINGS,
Straw, Soft and Stiff Hats and
NEGLIGEE SHIRTS,
Are just like Government Bonds in
QUALITY and VALUE.
B. H.Levy&Bro.
as the captain's bridge on an ocean
steamer. Another shows It stowed on
top of the deck house. For both of these
me!hods a thoroughly practical apparatus
with which the ship Is equipped enables
two persons to launch the raft, right side
up, with the utmost speed. When this
appaartus, hastily sprung Into position
by turning a crank, is in place, the raft
glides smoothly to the sea surface, even
If loaded to its maximum capacity. Oars
or sails may be employed as a motor for
the raft.
Other practical Inventions of the same
exhibitor are a series of patent davits,
infinitely simplifying the usual methods
of shipping lifeboats. By the use of
these davits, worked by powerful winches
operated by two men, a boat with her full
complement of passengers and stores al
ready aboard can be lowered In less than
one minute, how'ever rough the sea. An
Improved releasing gear, operated by one
person, disengages both ends of the boat
simultaneously, doing away with the dan
gerous "hanging up" of lifeboats, so of
ten responsible for great loss of life.
A potent procsss for closing bulkhead
doors Is ar.o her practl al British exhib
it The invention is made appllcabe equal
ly by electricity, by hydraulic or steam
pressure, or au omatically. By the simply
turning of a lever, requiring no expendi
ture of force whatever, all the bulkhead
doors of a ship may be closed simultan
eously from' the captain's bridge or the
chart house Expert* consider this a most
valuable contribution to the means of
preventing wholesale loss of life at sea.
An inventor of New York city sends a
model oil rock, t design to spiead oil on
the troubled waters, in Its most literal
seme, which ha* been of en ; roven to be
an effective means of preventing disaster
at S'a. The mortar or canton shoo s a
metal proje ti e a dis an e of a couple
of hundred yards. The, projectile 1 loaded
with ell, which is automatics ly released
from the flac n by the Impact of the fall
ing object against the water. The class
Jury were much Impressed by this inven
tl n Another American lrwentloa of a
s artling character is the model of a ship
sent by a New York-r, who has patented
a projecting rubber bet, fitted on rubber
springs, covering the entire circumfer
ence of ihe vessel. The purpose of this
armor is to serve as a buffer In case of
collision, the Inventor considering that
the elasticity of the rubber would send
two colliding ships bounding back again
like billiard balls.
In fact, It would take a book to de
scribe al lthe. clever, quaint, interesting,
ecctntric things tent to the show. Even
if ihe general result and and no. warrant the
award of the entire prize, it is the unani
mous opinion of the evp rt Jury that the
exhibition has been a great step toward
tha deveio- ment of improved methods ot
life saving at sea.
A Delicious Smoke.
The Herbert Bpencer Is an elegant cigar
and is truly a delightful enjoyment to
Inhale the fumes of this fine tobacco; it
is evhilarating and delicious.
Bee that the name of Herbert Spencer
is on every wrapper of every cigar, with
out which none are genuine.
The Herbert Bpencer cigars are only
sold by the box of 80. Conchas at *3.50, and
Perfectos, $4.50 at Lippman Bros., whole
sale druggists. Barnard and Congress
street*, of this city.-ad.
“Anew line of eegant fire proof safes
from the largest manufacturers | n the
United States can be ten at Lippman
Bros, wholesale druggists In this city.
Price and qua lty will be of Interest.”
—ad.
e*ll Cored Me.**
"Oraybeard broke up rheumatism on
me," says Mr. Chas Thomas, ths Jew
eler on Whitaker atreet. "And put me In
better health than I have enjoyed In a
long time,”
Take Oraybeard Pill* for that dlisy
feeling—Boat *rpt|le, and follow It up
with • bottl* of Oreybeard l< I* all you
need, R<*p*rs Drui Cos., sole props.,
Savannah, Oa.-ad.
CURIOUS AMERICAN EXPORTS.
REINDEER H trUKG AMERICAN MA
CHINERY OVER SNOW.
Ilagduil la Invndeil ly the Yankee
I,limp, India by lee Maehlnes and
Sodn Fountains, Igipl by Merry-
Go-llouudi, China by l.aundry Ma
chines, nnil Muscovy by American
Burlier Chairs and Shaving Appli
ances.
New York, Aug. 24.—There Is no civil
ized land in the world and few savage
ones where evidences of American in
genuity and skill do not confront the
traveler on every side. Up In the north
of Sweden trains of reindeer are drawing
American wood-cutting machinery to
points not far distant from the North
Cape. The machinery has to be hauled
hundreds of miles over the plains of snotv,
but the shrewd Swedish lumbermen have
found that its use almost doubles their
profits. Again Puntas Neras In Tierra
del Fuego is the most southerly conttnen
tiaj spot on the globe. The important
lighthouse there is equipped with elec
tric machinery manufactured within a few
hundred mile* of New York city.
Some, of the schemes devised by the
enterprising Yankees arc so daring that
they might have been almost eacrtllgious
in a less practical age. A large consign
ment of steam pumps was lately shipped
to the east. Their destination was the
Jordan. Formerly pilgrims with an eye
to the main chance had found it profit
able to secure calabashes of water from
the sacred river and sell their contents
to churches and convents, to be used as
holy water. A wide-awake American
saw his opportunity. He devised a steam
pump of convenient size, a number of
which were set up at suitable points along
the banke of the Jordan. The result was
a profitable business in retailing to the
churches all over Europe.
Again, American devices are finding
their way inio the Vatican Itself. The
sovereign pontiff has recently been our
customer for a flashlight apparatus,
which stand* by his couch and can be
ignited at any moment during the night
by pressing a button.
Tradition has assigned to Bagdad the
honor of producing the most celebrated
of lamps. But a New York house has
superseded Aladdin and his genii. The
lamps are of fanciful pattern, and are
decorated with devices ofien more pleas
ing to the eye of the Oriental than the
morals of the ascetic. They are of sim
ple design, operating without a chimney,
on the principle of the blast furnace. They
are conveyed to a point on Ihe Persian
Gulf, from whence they are hauled over
some 300 miles of desert on camel hack.
They are then transferred to rafts and
towed a hundred miles up the Euphrates,
where they are again loaded on camels,
which convey them to their destination.
200 miles from the river. These lamps
are quite the thing In the Orient. Among
the residences that they decorate are the
palaces of the Sultan of Morocco, the
Prince of Slam and several rajahs In Brit
ish India. They are also populur In Je
rusalem.
In India, too, It looks ns though at no
distant date the punka will be a thing
of the past, and the punka walla seeking
anew Job. A demand for lectrlc funs
of American manufacture has arisen
among the more up-to-date of the natlye
prlnees, a little- Sultan In Borneo In par
ticular having laid til a considerable sup
ply. The torrid climate of Indlu opens
up a number of possibilities lo the enter
prising trader, A few sola fountains have
recently heen shipped to Calcutta experi
mentally, and it Is thougnt a considera
ble trade In this typically American arti
cle may ensue. Ice plants, too, have been
shipped to various parts of tlie- country,
and there |s n call for mote Another ar
ticle con-id-red Indispensable In many
parts of Mils country, mosquito curtains,
is becoming |e,pulsr In Ihe East, and a
large consignment has recently Item ship
ped to Hyrla
Nor doe* the ancient land of Laypl tutu
OUR
Windows
Lend an idea of the
beauty and true
value of some of
our summer-end
SLAUGHTERS.
COMPARE
With other visible
alleged
BARGAINS (?)
up its nose at our new fangled contriv
anc e-t. The supply cf Image* In the pyra
mid* having run ra h r low, owing to ihe
depredations of curio hunteig, an Ameri
can firm has been filling up the vacancies
with most interesting and antique api car
ing Util* statute. Asa matter of fact,
they arc manufactured by anew patent
process from various condiments, but >hey
look >o like ancient stone that they would
deceive any but an expert. Egypt appears
to be getting frisky In Its old age An
American tr.erty-go-round of the Coney
Island type has recently been set up at
Cairo. It Is latgply patronized by the
Arabs, who cut a line figure In Ihilr
snowy burnoo cs bestriding the gr*n ad
gold tigets and el phants. It is driven by
i team, end its music is the same old
American rag-time. Another coun ry, on y
less venerable, which has become a cus
tomer for American merry-go-rounds Is
Spain.
But unquestionably our mos‘ important
cus omer in the east Is China The grea <r
part of the railroad equipment, engines,
rolling stock, rails, all a subject of the
deepest annoyance to Ihe Boxers, come
fr.,m this country. And In this connection
it may be observed that one of the prin
cipal reasons that the Chinese show su h
a violent hatred of railroads Is that they
are afraid that the gravts of their ances
tors, which are scattered pretty freely
over the country and not confined to grave
yards, may he disturbed by the fixing of
ihe ties. An Important and novel recent
shipment to China is the machinery for
waterworks *o be set tip In the northern
part of the emi Ire and operated by native
labor. I his will be a remarkable Innova
tion in a country whose people have hith
etto eontmtod llnmm.lves with wells and
not boh red about typhoid germ*.
Manchuria is one of the most fertile
countries In Ihe world. Seven crops of
wheat can be raised in the year at cer
tain parts, yet flour for the Russian
troops Is being Imported. The cause of
this Is a complete absence of modern flour
mills, the Chinese still clinging to the
old, slow and Wasteful processes which
they employed 2,000 year* ago. However,
an up-to-date flour mill has Just been
erected In the Inferior, the machinery of
which Is American. Others are lo fol
low. and there is no question but that at
no distant date Manchuria will feed Its
own teeming population and Ihe legions
of the Czar, with a considerable surplus
for export.
But the most remarkable testimony lo
our mechanical ability comes In the form
of an acknowledgment that we arc su
perior even In matters of wnshep-washee
to those whom we are accustomed to re
gard as the apostles and high priests of
the science. An American Arm has ship
ped to China the machinery of a monster
laundry plant, on which Chinamen arc
to be exclusively employed, where there
Is no hand labor, and from which 5,000
olecos are turned out dally at a cost of
1 cent a piece, whether It be large or
small, complicated or simple. The coat of
the machinery Is $40,000.
Next lo China In importance as a mar
ket for American goods corny* Japan, but
the cleverness Of the Japanese Is an ob
stacle to extended trade. As Imitators
they have no equal, and It Is their cus
tom 4o buy a few American samplea and
reproduce them In large quantities.
In spite of the abuse that ha* been
poured forth on our beer and the unfav
orable comparisons that have been Insti
tuted bc'ween It and Ihe foreign product,
he foreigners apparently see something
in our method*. It Is not so long since
Mr. Allsopp, the famous brewer of Blor
ton-on-Trent. England, started a large
lager beer brewery. In which American
methods and American machinery were
exclusively employed and even Germany
herself, whose beer Is usually considered
without rival, ha* recently been Import
ing American brewing apparatus and
adopting the ny*tem of Milwaukee
Germany, thoroughly wide awake aa she
Is In mailer* commercial, ha not heen
blind lo the merit* of American method*
and wares. A great deal of Ihe caviare
which Is served at the table* of our ho
tel* and private houee*. nod fetch** a high
price, owing lo the belief that li I* man
ufactured abroad, really ha* Its birth with
in ihe coniine* of ihe United Slates, and
having been shipped to Germany, la i
ehlpped hither under a German label. (Jar-
Many, too, a* wU a* France and Italy.
is one of our customers for colored glass.
which is manufactured hero by a patent
process, and almost equals In beauty of
coloring lhot which adorns the old rathe
dials of Europe. Many c.t the new Eu
ropean churches are equipped with this
Amerean glass.
In nutters of the toilet, too, we havo
strode to the front. Even the Musco
vite. who. if we. are to believe the pic
tures, should not have much call for
shaving appliances, is a good customer
of ours for barbers’ chairs and toilet dip
pers. France, too, Is buying our dress
shields and our hoot polish, luxuries
which she herself was the first to devise
and of which for many years she held the
monopoly. Finally Australia, which baa
long been our customer for axes to chop
its plentiful timber, has at last turned to /
America even for articles of wood, and is j
buying plentifully of our wooden handles '
for tools, clothespins and golf clubs. And
if further proof of our skill in the manu
factuie of articles of sport were needed
than the last article all Europe recognizes
that American clay pigeons have no equal.
T. G. Knox.
A PORTO RICA* PROVERB.
“Stubborn n* the Man Who Would
< limb the Tree.”
From the Youth's Companion.
Our new fellow-citizens to be, the na
tives of Porto Rico, are a iolite people.
They have many courteous proverbs de
rived from the sententious Spanish, and
many circumlocutions and phrases of com
parison-allusions to local events or to
personages of more or less remote epochs.
Some of these phrases are equivalent, for
instance, to our ’‘Hobson’s choice.”
You will, perhaps, hear one Porto Rican
reprove another for persistence In en
deavoring to perform impossibilities. “You
aro as stubborn us the man who would
climb the tree,” he will say; for the Por
to Rican la too polite to compare a hu
man being to a mule. Many natives could
not explain what this meant, as many of
Us could not tell much about the origin
of ’ Hobson’s choice.” But an old woman
was found In one of the interior villages
who could tell the story of the stubborn
tree climber. This Is it:
Once upon a time a planter was telling
a thrilling story to his friends of how be
had been chased a mile or two by an angry
bull. He told them that he barely es
caped with his life, thanks to his fleetnes*
of foot.
“I don’t think so much of that feat,”
said one of the listeners.
• No'” said the planter.
“No,” said the man.
"What would you have done?” asked
the planter.
”1,” said the man, “would have climbed
a tree.”
"Rut, my dear sir, how could I climb
n tree when there was none with
branches strong enough to support my
weight?”
”1 don’t care,” answered the man. “I
know that I would have climbed a tree.”
"Rut I have Just told you there were
only saplings about me. You certainly
weigh even more than 1 do.”
”1 don't know whether I weigh more
or less than you, but I am sure,” said the
inan, doggedly, “that I would have climb
ed a tree.”
The planter was losing his patience. Ho
mastered his feelings by a strong effort,
and asked;
"Supposing you found yourself In a.
prairie, miles and miles in extent, with
nothing in sight save the blue aky above
you and the green sod all about you—-no
shelter of any kind whatsoever, no house*,
no bowlders, no rocks, no trees, no fences,
no fallen trunks, no brush, no bushes,
nothing at all except the boundless, level
prairie—and of a sudden you saw rushing
toward you an infuriated bull, bellowing
terrifically, with horns lowered to gore
you, what would you do?"
This was a serious problem. The m*n
thought and thought, with his forehead *ll
wrinkled up, because he wanted to be sure
he had grasped the question entirely At
length his brow cleared and his eye*
brightened.
"I think," he said, "that I would ellmb
a tree."
"But," said the planter, "I have told
you that there was no tree In sight; the
nearest one was hundreds—thousands—
million*—of mile* away. There was not
even a small bush, no growing thing save
the little blades of grass. I repeat, thore
waa no tree—nothing but the grass-cover
ed prairie and the blue sky. and the
charging, bellowing bull and you—nothing
else, absolutely nothing else. What would
you do?"
Again the man pluitged into a profound
meditation. He seemed to be going over
Ihe question once more. The planter and
his friends hegan to think that he had htt
Upon some Ingenious plan for escaping *
terrible death, when he lifted his head and
looking straight Into the planter'* eye*,
said determinedly:
“I would climb a tree, anyhow!"
CAGLE A GREAT FIELDER.
Swoop* Info Danbury nnd Cntche* s
Dropped Rabbit on the Fly.
From the New York World.
Danbury. Conn., Aug. 23—Elke light
ning from a cloud a monster bald-headed
eagle flashed down in a crowded street of
Danbury yesterday and, seizing within
two yard* of the ground a rabbit that had
fallen from Us talons high In air, soared
into the sky again, before Ihe hundreds
who taw could realize what had happen
“persons on White street, one of the
principal business thoroughfares, got their
first warning of Ihe fierce bird * nearnes*
by hearing a shrill cry above them *nd
then the whirr of wings. Looking up, they
saw a whi*e rabbit a hundred feet or to
from the. earth, falling through the lr.
Above it, with wings half drawn In, cut
ting tli* air like a knife, came the eag.e
after It* prey, which had slipped from
Us claws. . . .. .
Tho rabbit had slmo*t reached _ **>•
ground when the eagle overtook II t*nd.£-
scribing a sharp circle and crying In tri
umph. mourned into th* air with the rab
bit last in its talons.
REES I’INCTI RED PEACHES.
Ho Brother William fined Brother
Jeffrey for SIOO.
From the New York World.
Chester, N. Y., Aug. 23. -William H.
Utter, a farmer of Amity, Orange coun
ty, grows peaches, his brother, Jeffrey W.
Utter, rabies bees. . ,
William allege* that hi* brother* bee*,
in seeking moterial for honey, have punc
tuted and sucked the substance from hi*
peaches, to his serious loss. He wa
brought suit against Jeffrey to recover
1100 damages. . ,
William place* his loos at 100 basket* of
peaches, and demand* pay at $1 t basket.
Th beekeeper baa employed one of the
leading lawyer* of the county and will
defend the. suit, his chief defense being
that If the damage was done by bee* the
plaintiff-oannot prove that It was th*
defendoms bees that did It.
Both litigants are rich.
BLACK
VELVET
RIBBONS,
All width*, at
The Bee Hive,
St. Julian and Whitaker ata.