Evening Star Newspaper, December 24, 1884, Page 3

ad THE EVENING STAR: WASHINGTON D. C ROLeGY, | Some Striking Stories Concerning aNew ‘Pest of Character. & LARGE COLLECTION OF TYPICAL EARS—A MAN WHO REFUSED 4 TYP FOR HIS HEARING APY HOW THE DEAD EAR MARKET Is RUN try fairs on the quality of ail k, the ju H of the anim: 4 horse, a Berkshire hog, a ¥ specini breed, from a toy terrier toa ther it were a Cots the ear was alw a thoro: dog of ar buil or poin wold or Southdown s' one of the chief pot slithe other good ties went for naught. This set me thinking that, as men represent every Guality known to the brute creation, th ears ot men would be likely to serve as pre sure indicia of c! acter. I then commenced studying. I first of wil procured @ good speci- men of what we will call the normal human ear. one taken from the head of a man of good char- acter, and in whom ail the various qualities and propensities had been about evenly balanced, headed practical man of th Istudied until Ihad thorough!y mastered all the couvolutions and surfaces that it presented. “You say you procured an ear; you mean a model of 2 “No, agenuineear. I've bought hundreds of them, and now have xbout 200 typical ears that I'll show you.” With this, the old gentl safe and produced two pack- ages tied up in olled silk, soft and flexible as kid, and semi-transparent. Untying one of these packages, there fell out on to the table a number of nondescript fragments of mummi- fied looking stuff, which, on examination, proved to be dried, or, rather, partially tanned human ears, ali in a perfect state of preserva- tion, so far as the retention of shape is con- @erned. “Why, where did you get all these?” “ Bougnt ‘em, of course.” f the hospitals?” ‘o, of the undertakers. The ears of crimi- nals and paupers would be no use to me. ‘They would serve no purpose in the way of stud: the character of the criminal is so clearly mar! ed that one type is sufficient to know all by, while paupers have no character at all. No, what I want, and have generaliy succeeded in securing, is the kind of ear that has belonged to some one of marked character, some man who has achieved something in the world. It would make some people stare if they should exhume their deceased relatives and tind that they are aleeping the last sleep with only one ear to help them listen for the last tramp.” “But is it possible that you can buy the ears | of dead people from the undertakers?” Vhy not? Some are foolish enough to let prejudice get the better of business instinct, but very few. And then, see how easy it is to quietly slice off an ear after the last look has been had, and how can $25 or be earned easie Besides, it is all in the interest of human know. uu do meet with difficulties sometimes, ‘Certainly, and men always will who investi- gate patural phenomena in the face of preju- dice. But the most obstinate fool I ever had to deal with was a half-starving artist whose ear I wanted to get on account of its remarka- bleformation. He was a man of extraordinary imaginative qualities: totaily incapable of con- ducting ordinary business affairs, but a real genius. I offered that man $200 for one of his ears, and the stupid fellow refused it.” ‘Offered to buy a live man’s ear trom him?” ‘Yes, why not. He was poor, half starved, didn’t, I belieye, know where to get the next meal for himself and his wife and children, and one would have thought that he would have jumped at the chance to get €200for such a ‘ifling inconvenience. I assured him that I only wanted the external cartilage and did not mean to deprive him of the ear-hole, which is the onty really indispensable part of the organ after all. Moreover, I offered to supply him with a false ear, so as to keep up appear- ances, but he would not listen to me, and I missed one of the finest opportunities of my Iife.” “Have you any tropical ears among this lot on the tabie?” “Yes, I opened this particular package to show you one very remarkable example. See here (turning over rapidly one after another about a score of the leathery-looking articles), here are all sorts of ears; ears of men who were deeply imbued with religious feelings—there's an ear, for instance, of a revivalist; ears of pro- nounced atheists, ears of houest men and ears of rogues; ears of acute lawyers and ears of dull money grabbers, whose only study in life has been how to hold on to a dollar. Here’s the ear of a somewhat noted newspaper man—' What!” “Oh, don’t be aghast; newspaper men’s ears are generally first-class specimens, fall of char- acter. Some of ‘em are awfully long, but the poor fellows couldn't help that. But here’s the particular ear I was looking for.” THE THIEF'S EARS. “Now, just see how the lobe of that ear goes down into the check: in front there is no lobe to theearat all. I don't Mark you, that every one who has an ear of that formation is a thief, but I do say that he has the propensities of one, and only needs opportunity or tempta- tion to develop them. You know Becky Sharp said that she could have been an honest woman on 25,000 a year, and there are hundreds of peo- ple who are only not dishonest because they are 80 fortunately situated financially as to be be- yond the reach of temptation. In some very marked cases, such as in that of the former owner of this ear, which is remarkably typical in formation, even the possession oe Wealth does not prevent from stealing or cheatinz. This ear, in its principal characteristic, is almost the counterpart of a pair that are worn bya man of former high standing in the business | world, but who is now serving aterm in the penitentiary. I used to have occasion often to meet this man in busines? and was surprised. for years, to see him retain the confidence of his employers; indeed, his apparent trustworthi- ness almost caused me to doubt the value of my theory. Atleast. [had come almost to regard him as an exception to the rule but the event proved my views to be correct. He was detected in an enormous system of theft that had been going on for years. It is only a week ortwo ago T| had occasion to let a contract for building an extensive wall,and among the bidders was one who offered to do the work halfadollara thousand lower than any one else. But when | I saw the man his ears told me not to trust him. Iknow he would have robbed me in some way had he got the contract.” “The establishment of such atheory would raise the price of ear-muffs considerabl “Yes, or create a demand for false ears; they | make very natural-looking ones out of glass pow. But see, here’s another typical ear.” THE USURER'S EAR. “You see this thin cartilage, with the roll dis- appearing in the northeast corner, and the ear itself coming almost to a point, somewhat likea | fox’s. That is the ear of a keen, unscrupulous, hard-hearted money-lender; one of those chaps who seem to take a positive delight in oppress- ing the unfortunate and in wringing from them | extortionate interest ior small accommodations. Some of these ears set well back, like a fox’s when it is snarling; theyare the worst cases. In others the upper point stands slightly forward; such men are rather shrewd and cunning than ; cruel, but they are not very pleasant folks at the best. Others of this sort, again, are mov- able at the will ot their owners. “These chaps add to their other amiable qualities a quarrel- some disposition that will make them snap and snarl at everything and everyhody.” “But, about the study of ears, what is the best way to acquire this knowledg “The only way is to select a few noteworthy > eoonarsog Study the ears of some men whose el you are well acquainted with, and make their respective peculiarities. Then com- pare those men of similar characteristics, and see where their strongest resemblances are; the first discovery of a principle for yourself is the only difficulty. It is like the St. Denis miracle, only the first step that las to be accounted tor, all the rest is easy.” “Are ladies’ ears susceptible of similar inter- pretation?” “Certainly. If anyone is about to get married, I could tell him whether the woman he is about to wed Is likely to agree with him or not. I could save many a divorce, or worse, if the ple wanted me. But, of course, I couldn't have time to do that work, though I have served some of my friends in that way. Oh, you may set it down for a fact that the ear is the true index of character. Tell me before you print anything about this, and I'll corner the ear-muif market, and we'll divide the profits.” A Phrenolegist’s Services Needed. From the Boston Sunday Courier. “None of these barrels are labeled with the Bature of their contents,” said the wholesale liquor dealer to his clerk; “this is a great blunder. We shall ge obilged to bore them and draw off a little of the liquor or we shall not be able to tell whether we're selling brandy, gin, — orrum.” = ~ “Suppose we send for a phrenologist, a gested the clerk. Est What for?” "A phrenologist? “He may be able to tell us what is in the bar- wels by examining their heads.” THE COST OF LIVING. Present Prices Compared With Those of Eighty or Ninety Years Ago. From the Philadelphis Record. In view of some curious efforts to Increase the emoluments of government officers, on the sround that it costs two or three times as much tolive now as it did when these offices were created, it may be well to recall sundry statis- tics given by Senator George, of Mississippi, in arecent speech. Having repeatedly found his objections to the modern Increase of official - | salaries met by the broad assertion that it costs | three times as much to live now as it did when the government was founded, he determ ined to be no longer nat down by this statement with- vut finding out exactly how far it wastrue. He deived among the books of the Congressional and the conclusion he reached was all the substantials of life, all the nec- essaries and the comforts of lite. the prices were higher during Washington’s and the elder Adam's administration than they are now. [ allude especially to provisions, things consumed y men. Of course, we all know as to clothing that the improvement in labor-saving machin- ery, the invention of the sewing machine, have greatiy reduced the prices of those necessary articles. As to fuel, I have looked into that, and the price of coal is now less than it was during the administration of Washington.” Rents, of course, are enormously greater now in the large cities than they were in the begin- ning of the century: but, while this fact must be kept in mind tor those places, Mr. George in- sists that even rents “in the rural districts in the non-manutactuting and non-commercial states are as low now as they ever were before inthe south.” Here are some of the 3tatistical comparisons of Senator George: “Beef per barrel was worth in 1795 #13,in1796 it was worth $14, in 1834 it was worth $8.50, and the average price of beef for the forty years commencing in 1795 and ending in 1834 was 310.95 per barrel. In the last ten years the price of beef has not been less than $10.25 per barrel, “Take the article of corn, a yery necessary article. In 1795, 1796 and 1797 it was worth $1 per bushel and over. That was the lowest price. The average price for the forty years from 1794 to 1834 was 8614 cents per bushel. In the last ten years it has never been as high as this aver- age, except in 1852, when there was a drouth and corn was exceptionally high, “Take the article ot coffee. In 1795, 1706 and 1797, it was worth, respectively, 21, 25 and 26 cents per pound, and the average price for the forty years upto 1834 was 22 cents. For the Jast ten years it has not been up to that aver- | age. “Take the article of sugar. In 1795 it was worth 14 cents per pound. It went as high as 17 vents in 1816, and never got as low as 10 cents till 1820. Now the price is from 6 to 8 cents. So there has been a fall in the price of sugar.” Mr. George at that point noted that it was shown a year ago in Congress that sugar was a leading item of expense in a boarding-house for factory operatives. He then added these fig- ures: “Take pork, sir. In 1795 it was 18 per bar- Tel; in 1801 it was $26. In 1808 it fellto $15, and was never as low as #15 again until 1820, and then It was $14.50. The average price for the forty years from 1795 to 1834 was 816.99 per barrel. "It is less than that now. ‘ake flour. a very essential article of sup- port. The average price of a barrel of flour from 1795 to 1834 was $8.51. In 1795 it was $12, in 1796 it was $16, in 1801 it was $13, in 1817 it was $14.75, the average being, as I have stated, $8.51. It is now. and has been for a long time, much lower than that. “Take wheat. My statistics of wheat do not go beyond the year 1806. I cannot find them beyond that time. In that year the average price of wheat was $1.35; in ikon 1808 and 1809 it was 91.25 per bushel; in 1810 it was $1.50 per bushel; in 1811 it was $1.75 per bushel, whereas the price to-day in Chicago is about 98 cents. Since that time wheat has fallen lower. but the fluctuations through speculation do not affect the general comparison. “Take rice, another article of consumption. In 179 it was worth 7 cents per pound; in 1796 it was worth 8 cents per pound, andthe average for thetorty years from 1795 to 1834 was $4.61 per hundred, 4.61 cents per pound. and this was caused by the low price from 1820 down. Before that time it was higher. The average for the last ten years would be but very littie more.” These figured may in some particulars be at- tacked, and there are other considerations that should be taken into account. It is no doubt true that the number of things classed as neces- saries and comforts, or, in other words, the number of things deemed ordinary requisites for a given condition or calling in life, has been multiplied of late years. Doubtless food is not relatively so great an item of the total «xpeuse in many families as it was informer generations. Never heless, Mr. George’s investigations are interesting. and perhaps may lead to some cau- tion hereafter in accepting assertions hitherto So little cnallenged as to have almost become axioms. ——_—_—~-e-_______ ‘The Anthracite Coal Trade. From the Pottsville Miner’ Journal. The steady operations at the mines since the first week in November has largely increased the accumulation of coal at the tide-water shipping points. There is now stored at these points about one million tons, and some of the sizes are in such quantity that it has become a prob- lem as to what to do with it. This is particu- larly the case with pea and buckwheat, which have suffered in competition with bitu- minous for manufacturing purposes. Broken is also in considerable quantity, while all the domestic sizes are very little in excess. Next week there will be a suspension of rta- tion, and good policy would dictate also a total suspension of mining, which would be effective in materially reducing the accumulations; but the practice of the year has been such, in mans quarters, as to justify the belief that there wi not be more than three dave’ actual suspension, and the three days’ work will produce about all the coal that will be sold during the week, leaving the stock in hand about tha same quan- tity as now to be carried over to the new year. Much of this coal may be placed at once, but it will be at a sacrifice of price, and this reduction wili set an example for the year that will be hard to break. It would thus ap that the inevitable fate of all but the domestic sizes Is to be sold at a reduction of price as com- pared with the year now drawing to a close. About 29,000,000 tons will be marketed thi year. Next year it is reasonable to expect a sale of about 30.000.000 tons. The collieries all working on full time, except enforced stop- ze3, when the depositories and cars would all filled, would produce about 40,000,000. The basis of next year’s operations will be 30,000,000 tons, and an arrangement will be agreed upon to restrict the production to that quantity. In 1879. the last year of full time, the average price obtained for coal in Philadelphia, exclusive of freight and tolls, was $1.61. The cost of this coal, delivered at Schuylkill Haven, was $1.90, showing an actual loss to the operator of 29 cents on every ton sent to market, and in 1877 the loss was 27 cents a ton. It will be seen from this that the coal trade requires to be very in- tellizently handied to secure the producing in- terests trom actual loss. The aoaitity of coal sent to market for the week ending December 13, was 705,224 tons, as against 639,029 tons tor the same week of last year. The quantity for the year so far is 29,202,630 tons, against 30,747,903 tons for the corresponding period of last year, a decrease of 1,545,313 tons. ————_ee0 —___ GHOSTS AT THEIR WORK. Specters Scare the Geod People of Cleveland Out of Their Wits. A alspatch from Cleveland, Ohio, says: Cleve- land is enjoying a reign of ghosts. About two weeks ago mysterious lights were seen and piercing screams heard in a tenantless house in a lonely region on Woodland Hills. Hundreds of persons have visited the strange place. In- deed it has become quite the fashion to organ- ize excursion parties of Bacchanalian young men to visit the house at midnight. A scientist was exploring it one night when a party of young military men, wild with wine and armed to the teeth, surrounded the house, intending to fire on anything that resembled the ghost. ‘The scientist emerged to see a score of shining barrels pointed at him. He cried “Hold!” just in the nick of time. wealthy Ger- ‘arrensville A few nights ago Wm. Figg, a man, discovered & ghost on the Ws road, near @ pond where a soldier was drowned last summer. Every night since that time the sober old mule which he drives into the cit; with milk for the leading hotels has reared and plunged and refused for an hour to pass the specter which William claims hye have seen stalking ie sponte see beside Its watery grave. who several years as orer, is now worth a quarter offs a lavorer, million, and be departed from his habit of omy to pay a restaurant waiter $5 drive the mule past the pond. shouting the waiter succeeded. Asaside ba ays it may would By THE GENESIS OF LIFE. Early Conditions at the Pole—Light Shed upon Prehistoric Times by the Science of Astronomy—Mr. Procter Holds that the Theory that Life be- fam at the South Pole is Inconsistent with Facts, Mr. Richard A. Proctor, the astronomer, has written au interesting letter to the New York Tribune in reply to a theory advanced by “Tau Sigma” tn the Tribune that life had begun around the south pole. M. Bailly, the French astronomer, who perished on the scaffold in the French revolution, Mr. Proctor says, wrote a book on the Atlantis of Plato, in which he strove to show that science liad had its origin in high latitudes, if not actuaily around the north pole. Of course he was unable to find the slightest evidence of any old system of astronomy in which the various relations corresponded to a pole-star nearly overlead. All Bailly could attempt to show was that the astronomical records ot old times seem to retain traces of a system of astronomy belonging to a higher latitude than any passing through the Assyrian, Egyptian and Indian regions to which the origin of astronomy has usually been as- signed. He showed some evidence in favor of latitude fifty degrees north as having been that to which early astronomy belonged. “Tau Sigma” in his interesting and sugges- tive letter in the Tribune ot Friday, November 28th, presents the southern polar regions as originally more suitable than the northern for life’s commencement. He conceives that lite had begun round the south pole. aud progressed some distance toward the equator, before life began round the north pole. He appears to base this opinion on the actually existent rela tion between the position ot the earti’s axi and that the direction of the time of apses—as astronomers pleasingly term the major axis of the earth's orbit. His wordson this poiut are these: “Ifthe relative position of the earth to the sun at the beginning of organic life on this planet was about the same as it is now (and we have no astronomical indications to the con- trary) either the first suitable temperature, and, consequently, the first vegetable and animal life on the earth, cccurred at or near the poles,” and Jater, ‘in this in- quiry it must be taken into consideration, among other things, that the south pole at the time of its midsummer in the earth’s perihelion, is some three million miles nearer the sun than the north pole at the time otf its midsummer in the earth's aphelion.” So tar as can be judged, his whole arzument is based on this consideration, and fall to the ground if this consideration is ejected. As a matter of fact astronomy would not only be unwilling to concede “Tau Sigma’s” view, but would emphatically reject it. It is uot only a scientific fact that the earth’s peri- helion is changing with the lapse of ages, but absolutely certain that the relation now exist ing between the apses and the soistices has been reversed and re-reversed several times since life began upon the earth. Not to use techinal expressions, the earth is now nearest the sun a few days after the midwinter of the northern hemisphere, which ofcourse is the mid- summer of the southern hemisphere. Thus, whereas the effect of varying distance from the sun partially corrects the effects of varying solar elevation with us in the north, these effects are intensified for the inhabitants of the southern hemisphere. We draw nearer by 1,500,000 miles to the central fire in midwiater and recede as many miles from the fire in mid- summer, the entirerange of distance being about 3,000,000 miles; in the southern hemis- phere they draw nearer to the fire in summer and recede from it in the winter. But this only for awhile. In a few hundreds of thousands of years, which, in problems relating the genesis of life are only as seconds, our northern hemisphere will behave as the southern hemi: ae does now, and vice versa. Not only so, ut the range of distance, on which “Tau Sig-. ina’s” case in like manner depends, undergo great variations. It has been many times in the past, and will be in the fature much less than itis now; while again it has in the past often been far greater than at present. T have before me a picture of the earth’s orbit which I originally drew for an illustration to my article on astronomy in the encyclopedia, in which the orbit of the earth 850, years ago, at atime when it had very nearly its greatest possible eccentricity, is represented, instead of the eccentricity being as now only about one- sixtieth, it was at that time more than atwelfth of the mean distance. In other words, instead of the earth ranging about 1,500,000 miles on either side of her mean distance, she then ranged about 8,000,000 miles from and toward the sun, making a total range of distance of about 16,000,000 miles. At that time, tien, very much more remarkable varieties of climate must have existed on the earth than now, Mr. Proctor expresses himself of having no doubt that the present arrangement by which the southern hemisphere is the chief oceanic region, is the result of a disturbance which has caused the center of gravity ofthe earth’s solid mass to lie measurably south of the actual center. A proof of this, he thinks, Is found in the low barometer of the southern hemisphere. The seas are drawn southward because the earth’s center of gravity is south of the center ofthe figure. Whether with achange in the position of the perihelion the water will be drawn northward, and these relations reversed, remain to be seen—a few thousands of years ence. A SEA SERPENT KILLED. The Marvelous Adventure of a Whaling Crew in the Arctic, ‘The San Francisco Chronicle makes the tollow- ing report of a strange adyenture to a boat's crew from the whaling bark Alaska in the Arc- tic ocean. The story told by the first officer, George Johnson, is to the following effect: “On the 16th of last October, when the vessel was 46 miles south of Alaska, an object was perceived in the distance, whose proportions and shape Indicated it to be a monster sea lion. A boat wi mediately lowered and paced in charge of it Officer Johnson and five of the crew, named Andrew Nelzon, William Wilson, Antone Niaga, George Marshflela and Hans Stuten. As the distance was being decreased between the bark and the huge animal, they became con- vinced that It was the famed eeaserpent. When they came witbin a few hundred yards,the mon- ster made a dash for the boat, striking out its immense tail against the cratt. Several of the occupants were precipitated into the water, but were rescued with difficulty. A harpoon and lance were fired into the body of the beast, and it disappeared beneath the surface. Half anhour later it reappeared, floating on the water. dead. It was secured with ropes and towed to the vessel and hoisted on the deok. There the cap- ture was seen to bea villainous-looking thing. Its head closely resembled that of a lizard. It measured thirty-three feet in length, the tail alone being nine feet long. The tail was cut off and stuffed and brought to this city, and is now on exhibition in a water-tront saloon in San Francisco.” Why We Laugh. Life is short and time 1s fleeting and if the mugwumps wish to hold sweet communion with the rest of us they must answer to the name of “Mugs.”—Cincinnati Enquirer. The Bartholdi Statue Pedestal committee has held another meeting. It was resolved to strike Gould and Vanderbilt for five cents more next week.—Philadelphia Call. President-elect Cleveland has re-engaged the White House coachman. He is an old man and Mr. Cleveland has no daughters.—Philadelphia jews. “I don’t see,” observed Mrs. Grap, “why, when they are giving away all them offices, they don't let women hola something.” “The: would, my dear, but the women won't do it, answered her husband. ‘Well, I should like to know. John Grap, what they’ll let them hold?” He took his hat, looked to see that the hall door was open, and in trembling accents mur- pipes “Thelr tongues, my dear.”"—Boston He (solemnly)—You had avery narrow es- hay 8 last night, Miss Julia. he—Mercy, what do you mean? He—Well, you see, I had a dream about you. I thought I was just about to kiss you when the Chinaman rapped at the door and I woke up. She (after a pause)—Tie Chinese must go. ed the intimate friends of the family in- vited.|—Schenectady Union. ——__s9-___ Of That Blithe Throat of Thine, Walt Whitman in Harper, for January. (More than 83 deerees See in close water bird Of that blithe throat of thine, from arctic bleak Yitmind the lesbon, solitary bind: tet ‘too wel. come chilling sat ‘ Wen the profoundest chill, as now—a torpia pulse, " ‘Within tte Winter bay—(cold, Old age land-lock’a cold, O my feeble arm, my frozen ‘Theso snowy A PERILOUs BIDE. An Old Man’s Unsuccessful Trial of a New Flying-Machine. Zephaniah Phelps, of Hartford, Conn., is a man seventy-1 years of age, and a correspon- dent of the New York World says is regarded by the few of his neighbors who know him as a crank. Phelps lives in an old hut inthe woods near Avon, and has for years devoted all his at- tention to mechanical inventions. He has two pet hobbies, perpetual motion and an aerial navigating craft. Incidentally he has devised several machines which inno case have been patented. Many years ago he applied for a patent but failed to obtain it and. disgusted with the whole system, he made no subsequent attempts to secure legal protection for his in- ventions. The models were thrown aside and in many cases burned by their eccentric inven- tor. Phelps is adistant relative of Congress- man Phelps, of New Jersey. The whole region in which he lives is thronged with people of his name, but Zephaniah velongs to a branch now almost extinct, He married early in life, but for years has beena widower. One daughter was the result of his matrimonial venture. She is married and lives somewhere in the vicinity of West Troy, New York. Wadsworth tower is a tall wooden structure over 100 feet in height. It is built on the sum- mit of Talcott mountains and gives one of the finest views in the country. It is_ fifteen miles from this city and is in summer a favorite resort of pleasure-seekers. In winter it isutterly deserted, the keeper, a man named Bartlett, ng ‘its breezy and freezing altitude for warmer, if more lowly, quarters. On Friday morning Zephaniah Phelps made his way to the top of the tower. He made several trips, each time carrying up pieces of machinery. No one intertered with him, and about 10 o'clock he had his latest machine in order and ready for use. It consisted of a strong but light gas generator, a combination of cogwheels and pulleys and two light pitch turbine wheels, both arranged at a slight angle to the vertical. The whole contrivance, including two criangular wings, weighed about 60 pounds. The’ gas generator was easily worked, and within a few minutes both turbines were in con- dition to start. The old man opened the valves, and, seating himself in a loop of rope suspended under the generator, pushed his machine from the tower. The turbines lowered rapidly and the flying machine and its rider moved slowly away. For a moment the machine rose a few feet and then began to drop. Phelps found his generator losing power with every second and attempted to discover the canse. By some mis- take he opened the discharge valve and instantly was falling rapic with his turbine motionless and useless, The only check on his descent were the two triangular wines. These spread out and checked somewhat the descent. Still he fell with constantly increasing velocity, and after a descent of several hundred feet he struck the trees onthe Simsbury plains below. His fall was broken, but nevertheless he lost his Rold on the rope loop, and, while the machine caught in the branches, he fell with terrible force to the ground below, breaking his hip and several ribs. The old man fainted from the pain and lay un- conscious for nearly half an hour. Comiug to his senses, his groans finally attracted the atten- tion of a chance passer-by, who came to his rescue. The old man was nearly dead from pain and cold, and fainted on being removed. He was taken to a neighboring house, about a mile distant, and is now lying in a critical con- dition. + id Actor. Reminiscences of An From the Baltimore Sun, Dec. 13. The gift by Miss Mary G. Caldwell, a young lady in New York, ot €300.000 to the Plenary council, lately in session in Baltimore, for the foundation of a Cathoile university, has excited very general interest. but comparatively little has been stated concerning Miss Caldwell her- self or her antecedents. It now transpires that her paternal grandfather was James H.Caldwell, an actor of high repute from 1816 to 1843. He was born in England in 1793, and his first ap- pearance on the stage (asa child) was in the Manchester theater. He came to America in 1816 with Manager Holman, and made hisAmer- ican debut at Charleston, 3. C., in November of that year. He was a ma’: of wonderfal energy, and had many ups and downs, both as actor and manager. In 1817 he managed a theater in the city of Washington;in 1818 he built a theater in Petersburg, Va.,where Junius Brutus Booth played in 1821; in January, 1820, he engaged the French theater in New Orleans and gave the first season of English performances in that clty, | acting himself all the leading high comedy roles, such as Belcourt, Doricourt, Duke Aranza, Benedick, Young Wilding, Charles Surface, Felix, Gossamer, &c. He commenced the erec- tion of the first English theater there in 1822, and opened it January 1, 1824. He had Junius Brutus Booth for his stage manager there and Edwin Forrest ag an actor. In 1826 he built the Nashville theater; In 1827 he altered a building into a theater in St. Louis; in 1828 he com- pleted a theater in Natchez, Miss., and in 1832 he built a fine theater in Cincinnati. He com- menced the first and the finest theater on the site of the present St. Charles theater, New Or- leans, on the 9th of May, 1835, and opened it on the 30th of November of the same year. He re- tired from the stage onthe 14th of January, 1843, appearing as Vapid in “The Dramatist. In the interval between 1820 and he built other theaters besides those named, including one at Huntsville, Ala, and probably at Sa- yannah, Ga., and Mobile, Ala. The circuit held by him was sold to Russell & Rowe. the- atrical managers In those days, the former being the father of the famous actress, Mrs. Farren. Although beset by all the trials and mistortunes of such an adventurous and uncertain business career, Mr. Caldwell preserved the highest char- acter for probity. and in the end justified the confidence of his friends by his business success. He was very fond of public life, and became a leading citizen in New Orleans. He was the first president of the gaslight Went which he established there. He was in Baltimore in 1818, when Mr. Kembrandt Peale began the manufacturing of illuminating gas at the old museum, afterward the City Hall, on North Holliday street, and gave great attention to the processes of gasmaking. His experience here evidently led him eventually to his successful effort to introduce it in New Orleans, which he did in 1833, thus laying the foundation of the great fortune that was bequeathed to his son with the significant name, “William Shakes- peare Caldwell,” and by the latter to his two daughters. Mr. James H. Caldwell was twice married—first to Mrs. Twomley, of Fredericks- burg. Va., and afterward to Miss Rowe, dauzh- ter of Manager Rowe. He continued to reside in Néw Orieans until 1863, when. chafing under the rule of Gen. Butler, he left there and went to New York. where he died, at the age of 70, Sept. 11, 1863. His granddaughter, Mary, was born the same year. The writer of this sketch met him in the Crescent City tn the winter of 1852-3, but a few years after his retirement from the stage, in the prime of his manhood, already opulent, useful and fall of advanced business ideas that had afterward rich fruition, enabling his granddaughter at this day to lay the foundations of a school of theological learn- ing the good results of which will doubtless extend to the end of time. He Experimented. From the Detroit Free Press, He was a bashful wooer, but there was a cer- tain manliness about him which indicated that he only needed a littie encouragement to let himself out. She saw this, and she resolved on a policy of encouragement. “Do you believe these stories in the funny papers,” ahe asked, “about the willingness of young ladies to be kissed?” “1—I really can’t say,” he replied. may be true.” Then, gathering courage, he added: “I hope they are true,” and he drew closer to her. » “It seems to me,” she said, “that there is only one way in which a young man can dis- cover whether they are true or not.” “And what way is that?” he asked. There was a brief pause. Then, with @ far- away look in her eyes, she answered: a aoe experimenting when he has an opportu- nity.” He experimented. “They Origin of the National Museum. From an illustrated article by Ernest Inger- soll, in the January Century, we quote the fol- lowing: ‘In no single respect, perhaps, hasthe Drogress of the American capital been more striking than in the history of the National Mu- seum. Originating in a quantity of ‘curiosi- ties’ which had been given to the United States by foreign powers, or sent home by consuls and naval officers, old visitors to Washington re- member it as a heterogeneous cabinet in the Patent office. {t included such diverse objects aa the temur of a Missouri mastodon, Ws ton’s kn and the oriental spoils of the Wilkes’ expedition around the world. In 1846 a step was taken toward something cohe- rent and creditable, by an act of Congress es- tablishing a National Museum, following the it of a dozen or more other nations; this intention took effect very slowly, though various exploring and em- bassies largely increased the of the collec- ee in tee insoative Denlky of this Yan- race crowded the Patent office with models, the ‘cabinet of curiosities’ was trundled over to the Smithsonian Institution.” en = THE FIRST SPIRITUAL TEMPLE. A Notable Structure in Soston, Correspondence New York Tribune, Boston, December 16.—In the very heart of the fashionable portion ot the Hub, in close con- tiguity to the Hotel Vendome, Trinity church and Copiey square, a nearly completed new building is attracting the attention of observers. Its whole appearance is extremely odd, as It bears mo resemblance whatever to s church, Tmuseum. schoo! house or place of business. It is simply unique. although the architecture ts said to be of the Romanesque order. It is square, 120 feet In height from the sidewalk to tte top of the cupola, and has dormers and gables in the roof. The windows are irregularly disposed and of different siz arranged hap-hazard to light apartments at convenience, without regard to out metry. The locality of the buildin: corner of Exeter and Newbury streets. the arched entrance on E. ten ‘First Spiritual Temple” in intertwined with delicate trac les of fo age. w It is, in fact, the first place the spirituallsts” have ever owned where they could publicls practise the forms and tenets of their pe: belief. Unlike other religious sects o United States, they have been pc for inthis respect: they have con halls, or private parlors, or wherever it has chanced to be in keeping with their pecuniary ability. Very shortly this state of affairs will be changed for the spiritualists of the New England metropolis, at least, through the gen- erosity of Mr. Marcellus 8. a wealthy bachelor and w grocer on State strect in this city. been a de- liever in spiritualism for many s. but only four or five an active exponent of its doctrine: A few months ago he determined to erect a suitable butlding for the use of his fellow be- Heyers, and the magnificence of his giftcan be estimated when_ it is stated that it will cost when finished 000. The chief mater ple is light gray stone. In red granite. A belt of exquisite cary around the building at the top of th story, an extended vine of flowers and le more than a foot broad, and in two ov ot the red stone, one on either side of the trance, are carved symbols of the spiritualistic faith. The basement is « ed toa free read- ing-room and library of books written most noted writers on Spirituali school roum capable of seatin offices and toilet rooms.‘ y one grand auditorium, a cheerful, bright room with frescoed walls, painted windows. z a, a platiorm for sp. ra chairs of the most comfortable de Above this is a ription. story divided into eight lecture halls, janitors’ | ii quarters, a kitchen, etc. Still above t air chamber, roofed and floored wi where the rain and wind can sweep thro! lattices inthe roof and ventilate the whol house by air ducts that lead into it. Every sani- tary arrangement of the building is as near perfect as can be. The furnishings of the great auditorium, etc., will be paid for through the subscriptions of the spiritualists of Boston and its vicinity. amounting to $50.000. When the temple is entirely completed Mr. Ayer will give itto the Working Union of Progressive Spiritu- alists ef Boston. He will retain, however, cei tain proprietary rights as to the uses that m: be made of it. He intends to have Sunda morning lectures given by the more celebrate and talented speakers on spiritualism; a Sunday school on Sunday afternoons and lectures on. Sunday evenings. Every week day evening there will be lectures and meetings in the smaller halls. Mr. Ayer affirms that there are millions of spiritualists in this country who have openly professed themselves to be so or have made a partial confession to that effect, and, with the example he has set for them, he thinks other temples will be inaugurated wherein they may worship according to their taith. 2 A Gun-Boat Running the Gauntiet. From an ijlustrated article by Rear Admiral Walke, in the “Operations of the Western Flo- tilla” in the January Century, we quote the fol- lowing: “Having received written orders from the flag officer, under date of March 30th, Tat once began to prepare the Carondeltt for the ordeal. | All the louse maternal at hand was collected.and on the fourth of April the decks were covered with it, to protect them against plunging shot. Hawsers and chain cables were placed around the pilot-houre and other vulnerable parts of the vessel, and every precaution was adopted to prevent disaster. A coal-barge laden with hay and coal was lashed to the part of the port side on which there was no iron plating, to protect the magazine. And it was truly said that the old Carondelet at that time resembled a farmer's wagon prepared for market. The engineers led the escape steam, through the pipes aft, into the wheel-house, to avoid the puffing sound it made when blown through the smokestacks. “all the necessary preparations having been made, I informed the flay-officer of my inten- tion to run the gauntlet that night, and received his approval. Colonel Buford, who commanded the land forces temporarily with the flotilla, as- sisted me in preparing for the trip, and on night of the 4th brought on board Captain Hol- lenstein, of the Forty-second Illinois, and twenty-three sharp-shooters of his command, who volunteered their services, which were gratefully accepted. Colonel Butord remained on board until the last moment to encourage us. I informed the officers and crew of the character of theundertaking, and all expressed a readi- ness to make the venture. In order to resist boarding parties in case we should be disabled, the sailors were well armed, and pistols, cut- lasses, muskets, boarding-pikes, and hand- grenades were within reach. Hose was attached to the boilers for throwing scalding water over any who might attempt to board. If it should be found impossible to save the vessel, it was designed to sink rather than burn her, as the loss of life would probably be greater in the latter case by the explosion of her magazine. During the afternoon there was promise of a clear, moonlight night,and it was determined to wait until the moon was down, and to make the | attempt, whatever the chances. Having cone 80 tar, we could not adandon the project with- outa bad effect on the men, equal almost to tailure. “fat 10 o'clock the moon had gone down, and the sky, the earth and the river were alike hid- den inthe black shadow of a thunder-storm, which had now spread itself over all the heay- ens. Asthe time seemed favorable, I ordered the first master to cast off. Dark clouds now rose rapidly over us, and enveloped us in almost total darkness, except when the sky was lighted up by the welcome flashes of vivid lightning, to show us the perilous way we were to take. Now and then the dim outline of the landscape could be seen, and the torest bending under the roar- ing storm that came rushing up the river. “With our bow pointing to the island, we passed the lowest point of land without being observed, it appears, by the enemy. ll speed. was given to the vessel to drive her through the tempest. The flashes of lightning continued with frightful brilliancy, and ‘almost every second,’ wrote a correspondent, ‘every brace, post and outline could be seen with startling distinctness, enshrouded by a bluish white slare of light, and then her form for the next minute would become merged in the intense darkness.” When oppofite battery No. 2, on the mainland, the smoke-stack blazed up, but the fire was soon subdued. It was caused by the soot be- coming dry. as the escape-steam, which usually kept the stacks wet. had been sent to the wheel- house, as already mentioned, to prevent noise. With such vivid lightning as prevailed during the whole fe, there was no prospect of es- caping the vigilance of the enemy, but there was good reason to hope that he wouid be un- able to point his guns accurately. Again the smoke-stacks took fire, and were soon put out; and then the roar of the enemy’s guns began, and from batteries No. 2.3 and 4 came almost incessantly the sharp crack and screaming sound of their rifle-shells, which seemed to unite with the electric batteries of the clouds to annihilate us. “‘ While nearing the Island or someshoal point, during a few minutes ot total darkness, we were startled by the loud, sharp order, ‘Hard a-port!” from our brave and skilitul pilot, First Master Hoel. We almost the island, and it ap- pears were not o} ed through the storm until we were close in, and the enemy haying no time to point his guns, fired at random. In fact, we ran so near that the enemy did not, poy could not, depress his gunssufficiently. ‘hile close under the lee of the island, and du- ring a luil in the st and inthe firing, one ot our pilots heard a confederate officer shout, ‘El- evate your guns!’ ‘Yes, confound you,’ said the pilot, in @ mach lower key, ‘elevate.’ it is | eae that the muzzles of those guns had in depressed to keep the rain out of them, and the officers, not expecting another night at- tack in such a storm, and late, ordered the elevated just in time to save us from the direct fire of the enemy's heaviest fort; and this, no doubt, was the cause of our remark- as though they were | he | THE CZAR’S MERRY CAPITAL. Frivolity and immorality that it is the Governme: Policy to Encourage. Correspondence New York Sun_ St. Perenssurc, December 2.—This fs a cap!- tal of the country known as the Holy Russia. It is in the state of lesser sleze. It is ruled by 4 ministry in which zealons church members de- cidedly preponderste. It 1s believed that unde several of its streets there are mines char; with dynamite. Though being a capital rarely sees its angust master. Now, one h would believe that under such circumstan this town conld bea merry one, and yet what it is. Nay, it is madly merry, and for t! | tion and encouragement of the gover In the vei pr of this capital th itutions for the 1 ran imme t room is the hall containing buffet, | rooms. and at the Orpheum merchants. f en &, Ye women of doubt | amorous compli | Without any inter’ the staze the erett: ebveen h to the ou ndwiches int turas into | the Orpheum h month he the kind, the Goiden ¥ rincely man- sion. Its dreamed would ever fered and indu| | say a word. of Ale perform such pieces as ‘A Wife to hire, the floor the public, sometimes as u! luundred pair at a tit | rageous dances. Whe <ween the acts the | performers and the public mix up, ene hardly ! can tell who belongs to the stage and who to the audience, to such an extent do the ballet costumes and manners predominate. Here, too, | vodka, beer, wine aud obscene conversations in flow. us tens of thousands of the poorer peopie of the Czar’s capital pass ail taeir evenings and nights. Besides the places 1 have mentioned, there are se of others whieh intéct the ou shirts of thi In all of them the public are | | allowed to stay through the night. It Is known here that the goverunient favors this kind of in- stitutions. It is the men and women of the | | type Brutus that the imperial Minist fear, | | and persecute: they fear nothin m th jolly men and frivolous women who frequent | Orpheuins, Golden Palaces, Palaces of Pleasure, dancing rooms, and s of the kind. nd this state of thin: : sughout Rus: in alltowns and yillages. It is a kind of | interaal poli What a of the present Ministry. if y a government could be | atic | delusion! strengthened by 5 It we look up from below we find things only | apparently cleaner. On the stace of th | rial theaters great dramas and noble ope replaced by operettas and lizut pieces of F make. In the fashiundble clubs and hotels the | aristocratic and rie public pass their eveninus in dancing, drinking wine and playinz cards, Even the ladies of high dirth are a card-playing. Well, by using ap the the runds of the charitable stitutions under her majesty’ tion. It isan imperial privilege tom | sell cards here. Russian newspaners, though in an iron grasp, | protest against the systematic demoralizing of the people. Thus the Novoe Vrenia said: We are told that Vienna and Paris are known for | the light morais of their residents. Butta our c ap ital there are things unknown to elther of those elles In Paris t 1 places of pubi amusement at 11 07 ki, a het ‘y are allowed to last Unrough tne nicht. Our Prospect, even during the day,is turtied intoa huge | disreputabie house. Only under the directory in | | morality. rene e and | France were their morals so loose as ours to-day. | The St. Petersburg Vedomosti said on the same subject: Nowadays everybody and every’ crowd, which becowes inigatic | Kings.’ ‘The crowd has its 6: priests, and priestesses. Every bo | Serves the crowd. See what tues, and naked forms are oifered | new master of the world. A pyschical coutazion | 1s spreading unchecked. We are liviug In a ioral | revolution, But the czar’s government does not care for any revolution that has no smell of dynamite about it, and thus it lets all pyschicalcontagions and moral revolutions work their own way. Se | “Early English” in Manners, Washington Correspondence Boston Home Journal. Some Americans have the fault of adopting customs that they call Englisk—most things that are oufre now are called English, it seems —and which are decidedly ill-bred and vulgar, and are anything but an honor to England or to | any other nation to which they might be as- | cribed. And one of the gravest of these is not | to introduce people when they meet in the same drawing-room as guests of the same | | hostess. To fail to do so decides the hostess to | | be a snob, and a snob has no largeness of heart | certainly, ot her | own y for men are never | so absurd, and if they did act in this way they would mean to be insulting and to give posi- | tive offense: and furthermore, they would expect | | to answer for it. It is to be observed that | women who indulge in this practice regard themselves a: ultra fashionists, when in reality | they are ultra under bred, and it is a pity they | cannot realize it. When people are guests at the same time in the same house, it is the one occasion when when they must be introduced, and not to be allowed to stand and stare at each other like blanks. They are. for the time, at le equal ground, and should be so recognized. Dis- reputabie peopte are not supposed to mix with genteel ones in a social way, and this lack of in- troduction so often practised gives the hostess in the eyes of cosmopolites, and of those of nate breeding, the appearauce of knowing peo- ple that she is ashamed to make known to others. I have met people here at receptions who did not know a single human being in the room, acquaintances of the hostess from a dis- tance, whom she knew to be strangers visiticg here for the first time, and whom she did not re- lieve from the embarrassment by a single intro- duction, and who were allowed to stand or sit during the visit, unconsciousot the names or | FINE CLOTHING AT TEN F v v RRR K K ¥VY¥O OR R KK ¥¥ © ORR KK Y © OR BAKE ¥ ook RK K sSSs ss. s 3 AD Independent News; Principle, but not Controlk Intors: De News of t inne of Manipy- With the greatest poseibl . BY MAIL, POSTPALD: . 200 DAILY and 8 70) WEPKLY, per ¥ . 109 aIS-2kw.8 Adi Wo Kui ED s, THE SUN, Now York City Cock Rosi WE DEAL FICTION IN FACTS, NOT A visit to the TEN PER CENT CLOT NG HOUSE, P NORTHWEST. 927 AND 9 STREY thing there for M The Tr the © ad Cooked the 4 HOUSE killed The popularity of « = lis won the day We used “THAT ues 1 tor tn our “PROCLAMA- wed, and laid on the We have won under difficult tory more glorious, bot to public, which makes the Vie- ives wud the general THAT We wish you ali a sorry Christmas, THAT We will be pleased to have you call at the TEN PER CENT CLOTHING HOUSE, $27 axp 29 Sever Srumer Noxrawest. Corner Massachusetts Avenue. CENT ABOVE ACTUAL COST OF MANUFACTURE, STRICTLY ONE PRICK. ‘Open evenings till 10, Saturday till 12. EF Please bear in mind, we have no connection witb any other house in this city. en Crorcesr Friovn. Attention is called to my BRAND BEST FAMILY FLOUR, WHICH I THINK HAS NO FOUAL POR MAKING WHITE AND DELICIOUS BREAD. N. W. BURCRELL, @20-c07t 1325 F street. Rove. ROUGH-FACED GOODS MAKE TRE BEST OVERC! MEAN NOT FINE IN Qt VERY FINEST “WOOL IN THE MONTAGNAC MADE FROM LOUGH GOODS ARE. WARMER AND NOT SO HEAVY AS SMOOTH-FACED, CLOSELY WOVEN BEAVERS OR KERSEYS, OVERCOATS WE HAVE A MONTAG HARRIS MILLS; IT 1 MAKES A GOOD LOOK’ COAT. THE PRICE Is $25. .C MADE BY THE MADE, AND SEKVICEABLE GEORGE SPRANSY, ONE PRICE CLOTHIPR AND TAILOR, 607 SEVENTH STREET, dc19 Opposite U.S. Post Office, Sen-Asscat Repveriosa SILK VELVETS and DRISS GOODS, CLOAKS, NEWMARKETS, VISITES and JACKETS at greatly reduced prices We have a much larger stock than usual, and have determined to close them out at very low prices, Great barvains are being offered im choice goods. Special sale of Colored Velvets at $2.50, marked down from $5.50. Tricot Cloths, in choi Brocade Velvets, in black marked down, and will be sold very cheap Colored Brocade Silks reduced from Full Bleached Damask 4 shades, reduced from §2 50 to and colors, bave been 0 to $1. vwels reduced irom 34.50 to ack Satin Merveilienx reduced from $1.75 to @1.50, 20 pieces German Velvets, all colors, reduced from $1.10 a1. ‘Our stock was never larger, and our goods are first- class and of the newest styles We have just received e choice lot of evening Silke and Crepes, Crepe de Chines and Satins. W. M. SHUSTER & SONS, 919 Pennsylvania Avenue. ONE PRICE. B—THE BEST IS THE CHEAPEST. als identity of those around them. And we are told this is English. English what? Certainly not English gentility. ——__~+--____ Gunning in Ohio. From the Cincinnati Enquirer. “One of the funny things aman sees when he hasn't a gun” is a Columbus dispatch to the Cleveland Herald giving an “interview” with some.unnamed person, who says that Judge ‘Thurman has received a letter from Daniel Man- ning substantially assuring him of a cabinet position if he will accept; that the juage has written that he “could not, under the present condition of the party in Ohio, accept a place in the cabinet,” and that “it seems to be unwise able escape. Nearly all the enemy's ahot went over G. T. Kees, TAILOR, No. 414 Ninth Street Northwest. OPHAM’s FINE LEATHER GOODS FOR HOLIDAY PRESENTS AT REASONABLE Pxic! SADDLES, and inadvisable to select any Ohio man for a | OPERA BAcs, Oe TPS. cabinet position, as such a selection would | BAND.EACS .... |LADIES. AND GENTS naturally widen the breach, from the fact that | BRIEF AND CLUB BAGS,|CNuLISa Chl BigE it must necessarily be made from the ranks of | LETT! CARD. CIGAR! GOLD AND SILVE one or the other of the factions of the state.” | parkpnp eee CASES , MOUNTS. The man who gave out this alleged information oot pane COACH HAKN! should not have hesitated to give his name for Phy CUPS, Soot Erestote publication. He could have commanded | yanicune LAP LOBES, i RR museum. we . democracy, and has received many hon- | CAYMEN LEATHERS. Sa = Tra a, ti Harvess, Traveling Bags, ——— TOPHAM'S, 1231 Pennsylvania: