Evening Star Newspaper, August 16, 1890, Page 13

BAKING BY MACHINE. How Washington is Supplied With a Myriad of Loaves Per Diem. BREAD BY WHOLESALE. How the Loaves Are Turned Out by Millions— Making the Dough and Bak- ing 1t—Pan Bread and Other Bread— TheWay in Which It is Distributed. —_— EN THOUSAND loaves of bread a day to go toward feeding the people of Wash- ington. Such is the contribu- tion of a single bakery here; | and each Friday it turns out | 17.500 loaves to help carry | the hungry population over | the Sabbath. One of the | most wonderful things in the \ world is the system by which jan establishment of this sort | produces‘on @ gigantic scale | = almost entirely by ma- { chinery the most essentia ) food of the domestic econ- omy. Mount, to begin with, as a Stan reporter did the other day, to the sec- ond story, where are piled 2,300 sacks, equiva- Jent to 2,000 barrels of flour. Three-fourths of | it is spring wheat flour and the other fourth winter wheat flour, because a mixture in those roportions has been found to make the best | try Spring wheat is planted in the spring and winter wheat is planted in the fall; that is the difference between the two, the spring wheat, however, being of a better and more | nutritious ity. ‘ihe wheat used for bread | comes in the shape of flour from Wisconsin | and Minnesota to the factory described. So the flour, in the proportions mentioned, | fs poured imtoa great circular receptacle of wood 10 feet in diameter, in which is made to revolve by steam belts a series of wooden paddles that stir the contents all up together | In the most thorough way. A hole in the floor of the receptacle is covered with a coarse wire sieve through which the flour passes, leaving hi rge cylindrieal tank still furt: this cylinarical tank revolves a skeleton screw nearly as big as the tank itself, which keeps stirring the Fup asit revolves and atthe same time propels it toward a hole at one end of the cylinder. The flour, thus care- fully mixed and refined. passes down through the hole in the cylinder by a pipe to the story below ready for use in making bread. Thus far you see only the flour and its preparation for bread making have been spoken of. MAKING THE DOUGH. Go down stairs a flight and you find yourself on the bread making floor. Behold a huge | tub of iron holding 1,200 pounds of dough } swung on pivots, with a revolving scoop inside of it. The baker pours into the tub 35, pounds of ordinar: t dissolved in water, then he adds more water until 24 gallons have been putin. He slides on the belt of the machine and the ingredients are rapidly mixed by the revolving of the scoop. When the operator 18 ready to putin the flour he simply pulls a lever and down it comes ina stream through the pipe from the mixer, which holds 2,000 pounds, aud as fast asthe mixer is emptied more flour is supplied from the bags above in vulmited quantities. Two thousand barrels last the bakery described just about seven wwoeks. The bread maker mixes with his mschine the Yeast, flour and water, and dumping over the tub that «wings on pivots he empties the dough into a big trough. This he leaves to rise at its | leisure, which takes three hours, and then the | dough is put into the mixer aguin; several | pounds of sugar and lard. with 13 gallons of | milk and 10 galions of water are added. and | the whole is stirred up once more until the ; elements are thoroughiy combined. After this | the dough is dumped out once more intoa | trough and left to rise for two hours and a half. The next step (you observe this machine method of making ‘bread is somewhat elab- ») is to take the finished dough from the | trough in big chunks and pase it under a roller, which presses it out toa sheet and dis- poses of 2il lumps. While one workman puts the dough into the roller another takes it put and tumbies it in sh into a second hy and now, at length, it is ready to make into bread. TURNING OUT THE LOAVES. For this purpose the trough is wheeled over to the bake room. where half a dozen stalwart | fellows with bare arms, stand about a table manipulating the dough. ‘They take masses of it from the trough as itarrives and slap it down on the table. Then they divide each mass into pieces as ne as possible of the same size, taking the pieces by deft manipulation spher- ical and laying them aside in trays like big rs, Whenscveral trays are in this way hey empty them again, ¢ Oue thing very important is to piece of dough as solid us possible. and in turning them out the workmen indulge what in seems to be the most violent! exercise, punching the dough and slap-| ping it resoundingly upon the table as if they had « speciai spite against the lumps | they happen to be handling. At the conclusion of this operation they put the embryo loaves | back imto the trays, which are stacked on | trucks. and the trays are wheeled to the ovens for baking. each knife, cross beautify the final product, but chietly for the purpose wo keep it from bursting. as such a loal is likely to do in swell- jug. Hence the three cuts observable on each | Vienna loaf—and it is Vienna, the ordinary baker's bread of contemporary consumptiun that the above description applies to, Considering what a little scrap of dough swells up into the big 5-cent loaf of commerce, One is not surprised at the bargain a Philade! bia baker made with a customer one day. he baker agreed to take all the flour that the | customer would bring him and return, free of charge, the weight of that flour in loaves of Certainly there is no doubt tit any of what is kuown today as “French” | would find such a bargain profitable, | considering how large a proportion of water | there is iu bread of that sort, Remember that | one barrel of dour makes 250 loaves! WHAT YEAST 14, a partly to slanting, | ing used by hardware dealers for | all of these agents are deadly poisons. THE EVENING STAR: WASHINGTON, D.C., SATURDAY, have seven cents out of every dollar he receives, takes pains to go into every grocery or other shop where he thinks he may obt custom and drums up trade. Not less important, ne duns the customers who owe and makes them pay. This latter business is of the utmost con- sequence; bakers are frequently cheated and it is money in their pockets to be careful about beats. Each driver for the bakery receives each trip the number of loaves he demands, is debited with that number and is responsible for returns. The flour in a 5-cent loaf of bread costs 23¢ cents; add something for a fraction of sugar, = fraction of lard and fraction of milk and mak- ing allowance for the labor involved, you have my profit for the manufacturer. The gro- cers and other shop k who sell bread make almost nothing by its sale; they sell it mainly to oblige their customers, In return the baker makes it his rule not to deliver bread to families in the hborhood of a “store” that sells his bread, lest the business of the store be interfered with. MACHINERY VS. HANDS, One great advantage of the system adopted by this wonderful bakery is found in the fact that haman hands hardly touch the materials used. Machinery stirs the flour, makes the | “sponge” paste ond turns out the final dough. Hands are only employed to shape the loaves and pat them in the oven. ‘Maryland bis- curts” are passed through a roller that takes them on to an endless canvas belt; the canvas belt carries the sheet of dough from the roller under a stamp that strikes off the biscuit, shapes irom the dough by dozens and throws them off into a basket. The main difficulty in making breakfast rolls seems to be found in providing for each roll the same amount of material. It wouldn't do to have them of dif- ferent sizes, so a contrivance is used that stamps alump of dough into thirty-six equal pieces. These the workmen first roll into spherical shape and then roll around a small stick into the shape which, baked, produces the folded rolls familiar to the morning meal, HOME MATTERS. . Every-Day Hints and Seasonable Sug- gestions to Practical Housekeepers. Two Dessertsroosrvts of liquid or four tea- spoonfuls make one tablespoonful. To Briautex Canpsts wipe them with warm water in which has been poured a few drops of ammonia. Tenresting axp Brack Varwte# is the black- rotecting stoves from rust. If puton properly it will last through the season, Pot Frescu Cuack on Magnesta on SILx or ribbon that has become and hold it near the fire. This will abser! grease so it may be brushed off. Inox Rust May pe Removep From Mansie by taking one part of nitric acid to twenty-five parts of water and applying it carefully to the spots. Rinse off with ammonia and water. A Stmpix Coven Remepy is made of an ounce of flaxseed boiled ina pint Of water, a little honey added, an ounce of rock candy and the juice of three lemons, the whole mixed and oiled well. A Snirie axp Errectuat Remepy ror Ivy Poisontne is said to be sweet spirits of nitre. Bathe affected parts two or three times durin; the day and the next morning little trace the poison will remain. A Give ror Arracaixa Leatuer To Inox may be made by adding about 5 per cent of glycerine to good glue, and just before using add 5 per cent extract of eak bark or tannic avid. Use thick and hot. For Wasuixe Five Nice Féaxxets, nothing will cause them to look so nice as borax in the water, a tablespoonful of borax to a pail of water being the right proportio: Tiwaye wasn baby’s littie flannel skirts, shirts, &c., in this. Lesxox Dumprtxas.—Take one quart flour, one cup milk, shortening the size of a walnut, two teaspoons baking powder. Sauce for above: One lemon, one cup sugar, one cup mo- lasses, one-half cup butter, one cup warm water. Let it come to a boil and put in dump- lings and boil, ‘Tus ts rae Way Tey CLEAN axp RENOVATE Furs in Russia: Some rye flour is put into a pan upon the stove and heated, stirring con- stantly with the hand so long as the heat can be borne. Then spread the flour all over the fer, rnbbing itin well; then brush it gently with « very clean brush or beat it softiy tll all the flour is removed. It is claimed that this method will make the fur appear almost or quite like new. Amer Sovr.—Take a knuckle of veal, a car- rot, an onion, # small turnip, simmer slowly for nine hours the day before wanted for use. Strain and let stand over night. Remove every particle of fat. Have a cup of tupioca soaked over night. Take two quarts of the stock made the day before, add the tapioca and cook slowly for an hour, Salt to taste. Add celery or thyme if desired. Just before serving add a cup of sweet cream. Wax Disappears if, after saturating with benzine or turpentine, it is covered with folded blotting paper and a hot flat iron put upon it. Paraftine is removed by boiling water or hot spirits. ik spot or rust *yields to oxalic acid. in comb iou with hot water; chloride of gold or silver spots to # weak solution of cor- rosive «ublimate or cyanide of potaysium, but Sealin, x is dissolved by hot spirits and then rabbe off with ossia sepia; india ink is slightly brushed over with oil, and, after twelve hours. | with saponified salmiac; any particles of color still remaining must be removed with rubber. A Cemest Waicu Witt Apuenz Perrect iy to glazed surfaces, repair broken minerals, or in fact stick to anything, is made by taking two ounces of clear gum arabic, 1}¢ ounces of fine stazob, 3g ounce of white sugar. Pulverize the gum arabic, and dissolve it in as much water as the laundress would use for the quantity of the starch indicated, Dissolve the starch and sugar in the gum solution, Then cook the mixture in a vessel suspended in boiling water until the starch becomes clear. ‘The cement should be as thick as tar, and kept so. It can be kept from spoiling by dropping in a lump of gum camphor or a little oil of cloves or sas- safras. To Traysrer Paixts to Grass, first coat the glass with damar varnish or Canada balsam dissolved in an equal volume of turpentine, aud let it dry until it is very sticky, which takes half a day or more. The printed paper to be transferred should be well sonked in soft water, and carefully laid upon the prepared glass ‘after removing the surplus water with blotting paper, and pressed upon it, 40 that no uir bubbles or drops of water are seen under- neath, ‘This should dry a whole day before it Parenthetically it is worth while to speak of Yeast. which iv « by-product of the breweries | and distilleries, being ascdimentary deposit of | the distilled vegetable substances scraped up | sud pressed out Into blocks. When stirred up | with the dough of bread it produces earbonte | acid from the small amount of sugar present in the mixture, and the carbonic acid gas lib- erated from the dough causes it to rise. Such is the philosophy of the “raising” of bread. The yeast used im this Washington bakery it delivered at the: bakery each morning by the Washington agen: of the yeast making com- pany in New York. The stuff will not keep as ‘ell, and so it must be always fresh made. Ten “doughs” —that is to say, ten troughs of | dough—for white bread are made each day; | @ue extra dough is made for rye bread and Other for graham. For French rolls separate doughs are made, richer in sugar, lard and | milk than ordinary bread. The Vienna bread and the rye bread is baked | simply on the floor of the ovens, but all otuer | kinds of bread are cooked in pans. It isa fact | that the baking of bread on the floor of the | Oven gives it a sweeter flavor, but other kinds | of bread will not bake well that way, All other | kinds of bread besides the Vienna and the rye | have to be put into pans on skeleton iron stacks | in steam-heated closet to raise them, after which they go to the loaf-making department. IX THE OFEXS. There are seven ovens in the bakery de-| scribed and their manner of working is remarkable. The fire that communicates heat | to them is at distance one side—the dry heat | simply flows around the ovens, without any contact of and the cooking is accom. plished. Each oven will hold 200 loaves. ‘The for such of the loaves as are cooked that ‘way are in shapes square, oblong, round, &c., that form the ioaves on accustomed to buy. y the way, is made from t unbolted and unrefined. People who do not like its flavor may be encouraged iu eating it by the reflection that it is about three times a8 Butritious as white bread, the nutriment from which is painstakingly ab- stracted by bolting and other retining pro- ceases. DELIVERING THY BREAD. After the bread is baked the loaves are Packed in trays and wheeled to the delivery de- partment uf the bakery. The factory employs it, own men the delivery of ite cents on every oduct and is touched; ther, with wetted fiugers, begin to | rab off the paper at the back. If this be wkill- fully doue, almost the whole of the paper can be removed, leaving simply the ink upon the varnish. When the paper has been removed, another coat of varnish will serve to make the whole more transparent. Use ron Otp Parers.—Newspapers are in- valuable for packing away the winter clothing, the printing ink acting as # defiance to the stoutest moth as successfully as camphor or tar paper. For this jon Lewspapers are useful under the carpet, laid over the regular carpet paper, The most valuable quality of newspapers in the kitchen, however, is their ability to keep out the air.’ Itis said ‘that ice ee enveloped in newspapers, so that all air is shut out, will keep a longer time than under other conditions, aud that a pitcher of ice water laid in a newspaper with the ends of the paper twisted together to exclude the air, will remain all night in any summer room with scarcely any perceptible melting of the fee. Th facts, if such, shouid be utilized oftener than they are in the care of the sick at night. In freezing ice cream, when the ice is searce, puck the freezer only three-quartors full of ice and salt, and finish with newspape: and the difference in the time of freezing id quality of the cream is not perceptible trom the result when the freezer ked full of ice. After removing the dasher it is better to cork up the cream and cover it tightly with a packing of newspapers than to use more ice. The newspaper retains the cold already in the ice better than a king of cracked ice and salt, which must have crevices to admit the air, ee coe Horrible Story of Cannibalism. A horrible story is told by a cqrrespoudent of the Natal Mercury. He says that e wife of one of the chiefs neor Fort Pine was taken ill with parently the ductor himself stag bn subject to abstract the fat from. tho orders the doctor was therefore chief’ LINE OF BATTLE SHIPS. The Three Monsters to be Built for Our Navy. MERICA bas just taken the step in the building of war ships that was taken by the great naval powers of Europe nearly two decades ago—that is, she bas decided to build some of the larg- est line of battle ships that can be economically floated. This is considered by some a mistake, but the concensus of naval opinion is largely in favor of the groat ships. They are to be heavy craft provided with enormously heavy guns and equally heavy armor, and will in every re- spect be quite the equal of the best of those that have been built on the other side of the Atlantic. Bide for these vessels will be opened at the department on the lst of October next. The full title of a ship of this sort is» ‘‘sea- going coast-line battle ship,” and there were three of them provided for in the naval appro- Priation act approved on the 80th of last June. SEA-GOING COAST-LINE BATTLE BHIPR. The act provides that they are to be ‘de- signed to carry the heaviest armor and the most powerful ordnance upon a displacement of about 8,500 tons, with a coal endurance of about 5,000 knots on the total coal capacity at the most economical rate of speed, and with the highest practicable speed for vessels of their class,” to cost, exclusive of armament and of any premiums that maybe paid for in- creased xpeed, not exceeding $4,000,000 each. che following are the general features and im tor line, 332 feet; extreme breadth, 69 feet; normal displacement, 9,000 tons; | normal draught, 24 feet; maintained sea speed, 15 knots; main battery, 4 13-inch B.L.R.; auxiliary battery, 48-inch B.L.K, 46-inch B.L.R.; sec- ondary battery, 20 6-pdr. K.F., 6 1-pdr. RF, 2 gatlings. THE ARMAMENT, The 13-inch guns are mounted in pairs on the conter line under the protection of improved | steel turrets 17 inches in thickness, working in- side of a raised, steel-armored barbette 17 inches in thickness, These barbette turrets are of the same type as those, adopted for the Puritan, Amphritrite, Maine and Monterey, and are of the latest improved design. The armor of the turrets being in- clined offers the resistance of 19 inches thickness horizontally. ‘he 8-inch guns are mounted in similar barbette turrets 6 inches in thickness. ‘The ammunition is supplied through armored tubes, and every consideration lias ions of the vessels: Length on load wa- | —- to realizing as rapid a service as sible. PoThe four 6-inch guns are fought under protec- tion of 6 inches of armor and have the usual shields, The fire from four 13-inch guns, three 8-inch, two 6-inch and eight 6-pounders can be concentrated on either bow or quarter, THE PROTECTIVE ARMOR The water iine is protected by a belt of steel of a maximum thicknes of 18 inches, backed up by wood, behind which are two thicknesses of %&-inch plates powerfully stiffened by a sys em of vertical and horizontal girders. Above this belt is a casemate of 54g-inch armor to prevent riding above the belt and to break up projectiles charged with high oxplosives. Diagonal bulk- heads are worked at the ends of the belt and from the armor deck (which 18 worked over the vessel at top of belt) rise the redoubts, pecternas the turning and loading of the irrets for the heavy guna A deep belt of coal is carried above the armor deck, adding still further protection against gun fire. In wake of the boilers are four skins and a 12-foot bunker of coal, making it practically impossible for a torpedo to make a hole that wil let water into the fire room, Behind the armor of the belt and surrounded on all sides by coal are two wide passages, one on each side, connecting the passing rooms for ammu- nition atthe ends, So ail the handling of am- munition will be well protected and, in these passages, lighted by electricity, the men can carry ammunition to the various tubes and trunks leading to the guns above, THE MACHINERY, designed by Engineer-in-chief Geo. W. Mel- ville, U.S.N., chief of the bur of steam engincering, consists of twin-screw vertical, inverted cylinder, triple-expan- sion engines of 9,000 LH.P. under forced draught and 7,000 LH.P. under natural draught. Each engine is in a separate wator- tight compartment. Steam pressure, 160 pounds; revolutions (maximum), 128; I. H.P. under forced draught, 9,000; LH.P. under natural draught, 7,000. CAPACITY. The vessels are to be built on the bracket system, with a double bottom extending from armor shelf to armor shelf, with many subdi- visions and water-tight compartments. Every approved device adding to the health of the crew, the safety of the ship and the efticency in battle will be fitted, Each battle ship will carry four hundred and fifty men, including a marine guard of thirty- #ix men, and thirty officers, Especial attention bas been paid to the ven- tilation and drainage. Any compartment can be quickly c leared of water in a short time by powerful hand and steam pumps, while fans of great aapacity will supply air to all the living | and storage spaces, A MARCH TO THE GRAVE. A Grand Army Procession 1s Necessarily a Solemn Thing. From the Boston Transcript. The best part of yesterday's demonstration, as is true of everything else in the world, was before it began. There is a passage in the Roman history of that unconscious oid realist, Gibbon, where he gives a picture of the gath- ering of the Gothic tribes. It makes one sce them sweeping down together under northern misty ékies, through dim northern woods, and itis worth a great dea! more than the whole account of the war which follows, After get- ting that picture one doesn’t care a rap how the war came out. There was something in the hour-after-hour inward rush of hundreds of nds of people yesterday forenoon that was like that old Gothic gathering. We had the same gray sky and the sifting mist, at any rate. The hill on the common was the place from which to see it, and the best hour was about 11 o'clock. There was one mighty roll and throb of drums. ‘Iwo bands playing near each other make horrible cacophony; fifty bands, all play- ing at once, at a httle distance, and you in the midst, lose all their individual sound in a sort of strange, wild harmony. ‘Ihere were the gay uniformsof the musicians, bright patches of color here und there; the nodding standards; the moving blue lines of the Grand Army posts, some marching this way,some that, but all tending in a general southwestward direction arouud all the great moving ocean of spe tors, surging onin the same direction, with white dresses of women like flecks of foum ou the dark waves; above, and framing the scene, (ue raw green Massen Of olm-tree foltage, seem ing to be borne onward by the northeast wind toward the same goal,and uoble towers of buildings rising above the foliage —altogether a rand and imposing sight, full of high in- spiration; and you, you diiletante Boston art- ists, you wcorned it, and puttered away at your commonplace canvases, some- where a long way off, missing the picture that might have immortalized you! The first thing that a thoughtful person thinks of in obser ‘ing a great Grand Army pro- cevaion is necessarily a solemu thing. In spite of all the merriment of a great reunion and the horse play of the veterans on the street the color of the whole thing is somber. ‘The march is simply a march to the grave. All humanity, to be sure, is engaged in a march to the grave; but humanity will be replaced and the Grand Army of the Republic will not be replaced. Shoulder to shoulder, in broad, solid phaianx, with the swinging lope of a great victorious army, the Grand Army marciied, under yeater- day's leaden sky, in its own funeral procession, It would be folly to say that the veterans were not conscious of this and did not often show it, in spite of their proper tendency to get the most fun out of the encampment they could. The presence of the Sons of Veterans seemed | jy an interview. a to be a solemn thing to them. “I like to see you fellow: Listener heard one grizzled old soldier say to the commander of a camp of the youngsters— “and I don’t like to ee you. I commanded a company once that looked just like your com- pany. by heaven! it was just such a company to a Tthat I ted out in 136i—smooth-taced chaps, all the way from eighteen to twenty-five, with blue coats and jaunty caps and all that. We don't look so jaunty today, ch? Well, we see ourselves in you 48 we were—and as we ain't, and that’s one reason why I don’t much like to see you around.” The typical Grand Army post was not by any means one of the handsome city posts that were so well represented in the line. These well-dressed city men correspond with the more it | theatrical a ieee and gencrals that went, out early in the war. Soon the service took the wind out of those theatrical regiments and generals; they “‘flatted out,” as the boys suid, and the business of saving the Union settled down upon the shoulders of the plain fellows with staying qualities, who had the motal in them to bear the horrible, dull, grinding monotony of war. The diugy, sun-buraed, grizzled. unkempt country Grand ete posts represent the victorious monotone of the Their stooping shoulders iook as if they were not unacquainted with sach things us knap- sacks. ‘Their thin and hollow cheeks teil of | w, ill nourishment upon hard-tack and bad bacon, and their sper cat 4 searcity of razors and shaving soa) slouch hate and their half uniform, with blue coat perhaps, aud no matter what sort of trousers, tell of the disarray that long, ged marches brought the volunteers to. Your hei- meted, white-gloved post, like the Lafayette of New York, is handsome beyond a doubt, but it is made up of picked men, with money to back them. Wait till the Maine or New Hawpshire post comes up, some of whose members have to travel 12 miles to attend a post mecting. They are poor men, and they are in war yet—the bard war merely for a chunce to live in the world. Lifeis a solemn strugyle with them. Their thin faces, their ‘shoulders, show it, They are your true voter: and it is the sight of them, with the lope of the ‘‘foot cavalry” still in their stiff legs, that makes the heart beat fast. coo Alabama Cvlored People Swindled. ‘Ten days ago a well-dressed, intelligent col granting thom « pension of $10 month, and that for a feeof $5, to be paid in advance, he }d to secure their ted some $80) in ar. | of the men and also knew what they struck for ECHOES OF THE STRIKE, The Strikers Say Freight is Not Being Moved to Any tent at Albany. The strikers say they are dissatisfied with the way the newspapers of the country have been treating the status of the Central strike and the following bulletin is in front of the head- quarters of District Assembly 246 of Albany: “To all comrades, greeting: Owing to the fact that the press of the country to a lurge extent are misrepresenting our cause, the executive board of District Assembly 246 © resolved to issue sem+daily a bulletin of the exact con- dition of affairs as they exist at the time of such issue, the same to be forwarded to our district assomblies along the road by the first mail. The condition at present is a great improvement upon the strike as it atood at 7 o'clock p.m. of August 8. The bost of feeling prevails along the line, all our members being hopeful and re- maining stanch and true tothe cause. Re- ports which are constantly being received here that the compuny are moving freight as well as passengers are entirely untrue, None is being moved toany extent and they still refuse to receive all shipments of freight offered them, which entirely disproves Mr. Webb's assertions, ‘The effort ot the compauy to incite our people to riot and violence by employing Pinkerton detectives with clubs and Win ter rifles has so far been an utter failure. Caution all of our brothers to remain firm d vigilant and all will soon end in our favor. E, Poutixy, Corre- sponding Secretary of District Assembly 246, Anights of Labor.” The executive board of locomotive firemen have been in session today in this city. They met behind bolted doors and ne one bus been found who will divulge any part of the pro- ceedings, Firemen from other roads than the Central are present at the meetin; The secrots are guarded from the striking knights, It is suid the members of the board wil! uot tall because they do not want to apprise the oflicialy of the New York Central and Hudson River railroad of their action prematurely. ‘Thursday night's extended meeting of the switchmen at Buffalo, which lasted until 2 ‘clock in the morning, killed the strike dead. Lhe switchmen decided that they remain at work. Yesterday morning # visit was paid to the headquarters of the strikers, but the place was empty. Some of the men stood over on Michigan strect chatting amoug themselves, aud were apparently in a not very hopeful frame of mind. The Hudson River railroad pay car reached Hudson, N.Y., afternoon, coming up le thence to the city over tho, and A. The men were paid off, many receiving blue envelopes. ‘The iuen were informed they could resume work if they did so this morning. Mr, Chauncey M. De New York Central and w. president of the Hudaon River railroad, t Homburg yesterday, was of | asked his opinion of the situation of affairs in the | regard to tl r e strike on that road. Mr. Depew, in reply, said he did not think it was necessary to express an opinion, in view of the fact that the strike was ended. POWDERLY IN NEW YORK. Grand Master Workman of the Knights of Labor Terrence V. Powderly arrived in New York last night to look into the causes of the recent troubie betwcen the New York Central Railroad Company and its striking employes, Mr. Powderly arrived too late to begin his mis- sion of arbitration. and he will call on Vice President Webb im the Grand Ceutral depot this morning. Mr. Powderly comes, it is snid, simply to show that, as the leader of the Knights of Labor, he does not ignore the ac- tions of any part of the order. The remark, however, which he made before he left Detroit, , that he would commend the company for the stand it took against ite employes if he found , that the men were wrong, is construed by the chin beards of the | Their | gre ~ persous who know Mr. Powderly to mean that upon his arrival here and after Lis interview with Mr. Webb he will decide that the men were in the wrong when they struck. Itis well known that Mr. Powderly knew all about the grievauces Jong betore the tie-up was ordered. When Mr. Webb was asked yesterday if he ‘ould meot Mr. Powderly and 6 to submit the trouble to arbitration he sax “Iwill mee Mr. Powderly with great ploas- , as man to man, but my views on the ques- tion of arbitration*were clearly defined when Arbitration Commissioner F. F. Donovan called on me. They have not changed siuce that time. The company has nothing to arbitrate. The road is rnuning in its normal condition, =F what more do hia tf ‘i eis as g ven out authoritatively yi t the members of the gencral ccesuresiverd of the knights will meet and confer with the local executive board this morning. CLAIMS ON A $7,000,000 ESTATE. A Wisconsin Woman Says She is the Widow of Millionaire Davis. Another alleged widow of A. J. Davis, the Butte, Mont, millionaire, over whose will sev- eral heirs are fighting, has been heurd from. She writes to District Attorney Nolan at He- lena, Mont, as follows: “Lam the la wedded wife of A. J. Da- then parted by mutual consent, I agreeing to bother him as ssh ved and he Fully kept ha promive aud I epi mine Thave AUGUST 16, 1890-SIXTEEN PAGEs. DROP A NICKEL IN THE SLOT. If Kt is a Bogus One the Kesult Will Not Be Satisfactory. UITE a new counterfeiting industry has sprung up re- cently, which is not subject to any penalty that the law is abletoinflict Its product isan imitation 5-cent coin. not at all resembling to the eye the “nickel” of com- merce, but successfully de- signed to pass fora real haif- dime with the unfortunate deaf, dumb and blind slot machine, In short, a busi- ness has grown lately into being and prosperity of manufacturing metal disks of the size and weight of « 5-cent piece for fraudulent deposit in slot contrivances. ‘The disks are made of brass, aud they operate the mechanical affairs just as well as do real nickel, About twenty of them per day are found in the boxes of the Phonograph- Graphophone Company, which has ite ma- chines in various places about town. Now, it might appear as if the production of these brass disks would surely ruin the nickel- in-the-slot business. widely circulated ata few cents per hundred, though the price varies somewhat, and the ad- vantage of using them in piace of the real S-cent piece for obtaining chewing gum, chocolate sticks or a record of one's weight, with incidental music, is palpable. Fortuna’ for the proprietors of the machines, however, there seem to be comparatively few people who care to save Scents by cheating a helplese piece of mechanism. Curiously enough, the nickle-in-the-slot pro- Prietors take pains to keop the brass disks that they find in their machines and employ them for a very useful purpose. You sev, it is not an uncommon thing for one of these contriv- ances to fail temporarily to work. The cu tomer, in the beer saloon or elsewhere, having drorged in his five cents without result imme- tely becomes enraged promptly “goes for” the proprietor as if he was responsible. Of course the proprietor does not like to offend his customer, and his impulse is to make things right by sup- plying other nickles to start up the ma- chine. But may be the machine refuses to be started up and this means expense to the pro- prietor. Onesaloon keeper put in one day recently a claim for €%20 in nickles against the company having a slot nmchine in his es- tablishment, the amount having been duly and conscientiously expended in trying to make the thing operate. 80 now the company supplies the proprietors who exhibit its machines with a small stock of the piratical brass disks wherewith to stir up apparatus when it needs it. Furthermore, the company employs the brass disks itself to test the working of the machines in order to see if they goall right. No one seems to understand where these fraudulent brass disks come from, but it is be- lieved that they are stamped out of brass sheets in New York city and circulated from that quarter. Of course they cost hardly any- thing, the value intrinsic and of the labor in- volved being very little, Great factories in Connecticut are given con- tracts by the Treasury to turn out nickel and copper “‘b.anks” for 5-cent pieces and pennies, which a beequently stamped with Uncle Sam's designs and circulated. These nickels and coppers are merely tokens, only worth in- trinsically a small fraction of their face value, and the blanks are delivered like any other merchandise at se much per 1,000 to the gov- ernment. Laborers in the Connecticut fac- tories find these “blanks” as available for “slot” machines as if they bore the minted im- print, and through them, it is alleged, very many are distributed. ng Leud disks cut out of ordinary sheet lead are commouly used to cheat the slot machines. Their success depends wholly upon the care- fulness with which they are carved. Pasteboard 6-cent pieces are aften tried, but they have not the weight necessary to set the contrivances going und merely clog the machines, so that a mechanic's skill is apt to be required to remedy the trouble. It requires acertain amount of “check” to deliberately beat the slot machine. For—in the ease of the photograph apparatus—one must drop one’s bogus nickel where it remains in sight behind glass until another customer has introduced his coin, whereupon the imitation is forced out of sight, Thus any customer can see the coin deposited by his predecessor and the predecessor would usually feel embarrassed to run away. ee ea METEORIC SHOWERS. Prof. Harkness Tells What They Are and What Causes Them. “When I wasa small boy,” said Prof. Wm. Harkness of the naval observatory to a Stan reporter, “I used to be very much interested in watching shooting stars, and I always won- dered why it was that though I could see them so oftenI never was able to see one start. Very likely children, and, a3 you say, per older people as well, wonder why it is that shooting starsor meteors always appear to start out in full motion and suddenly fade away, without seeming to get anywhere in particular. The explaination is simple on when one only understands what meteors really are, Star gazers through all time have been interested in the phenomenon of metevric showers, but it was not until well in this cen- tury that Schiaparelli, the astronomer of Milan, gave an explanation of them. In 1863 consid- erable work was done here at the observatory in working out the problem of meteors, WHAT METEORS ARE. “What are they? Why they are simply small bodies that the earth encounters in inconceiv- abie numbers in its annual revolution around the sun. They are very small, indeed, much too small ever to be seen by the most powerful telescope. I doubt if they would average in weight a grain apiece, while one as large and heavy as an ordiuary buck shot would make a very brilliant meteor indeed. ‘They are pieces, robably, of some heavenly body that was Prokos up at some time or other and they have kepton moving around the sun, each in its own orbit, ever since. Then there are grea: groups of them moving around in the same or- it and when the earth in its course around the sun passes through the path of one of these ae > we have what we call a meteoric shower. That ix the explanation of the August shower. the most brilliant reguinr shower of the year. About the 9th or 10th of August the earth passes through the orbit that is traveled by innumerabic me- teorotds. ‘They are all around the orbit at the game time, and thus it is that we can be cer- tain of running into them every summer, “In the case of the November meteors, how- ever, it is quite different. They move in one bunch around the sun, with the same orbit and the same period, a little over thirty-three years. ‘Thus we only have a remarkable No- vember shower when the position of the earth coincides with the position of this group of meteoroids, SHOOTING STARS BY MILLIONS. “Still as you have noticed, of course, shoot- ing starscan be seen almost every night in greater or less numbers. This is explained by the fact that there are countless millions of these small bodies scattered all through the region of the sidercal system. Some move to- gether in bunches or groups, as I have said, while others are isolated examples, but exch is rushing around the sun in a well-defined orbit. Although the total mass of these bod: small, yet their number is beyond all tion, According to Prof. Newton's estimates seven million shooting stars ure run into by the earth every twenty-four hours, This wouid make two or three thousand million meteoroids met with in the course of a year. The curth, of course, would only encounter a very small fraction of those even in the solar m. It has been estimated that while there is but a single meteor to several million cubic kilo- meters of space in the heavens, still the total number is immensely great, because a globe ‘including the orbit of Neptune would contain millions of millions of millions of millions of cubic kilometers. “Why is it that we only see them as we do? For the simple reason that a meteoroid is so small that it cannot be seen. it cannot shine of its own light, for,it has none, and it is too in- significant even to shine by reflected light. DESTROYED BY FIRE, So it has to wait until it strikes our atmos- phere, where, moving at the tremendous rate it does, evon in the rarified sir way up there, it is e0on on fire and completely ed by the in heat that the friction one 4 be- the earth. i [ | WOMEN IN THE DEPARTMENTS, Government Clerks Who Share Their Small Salaries With Dependents. A FORTNIGHTLY SCENE AT THE BRANCH Post OFFICR—MONET ORDERS FOR THE FOLKS at HOME—AMONG@ THR CONORESSMEX aT THE CAPITOL, N THE ist and on the 15th of each month the little branch post office near the Treasury Department is crowded with women, some young and fresh looking, some old—old beyond their years—and worn by the everlasting grind of care and responsibility. This branch office is chiefly for the conven- ience of the uptown departments—the Treas- ury, the War, State and Navy, the Agricul- tural and all the outlying bureaus, Those semi-mgnthly visitations of women are from the departments. The women workers in the de- partments,some of them drawing good salaries, some picking up the pittance they are paid for sweeping up the dust and scrubbing the floors of the great government workshops, go to this office as soon as they have drawn their pay to send off registered letters, postal notes or money orders to distant dependents. The same scene is repeated at the city post ofice, where go the women employes of the Post Office and Interior departments and the Census Office. The amount for which the money orders are drawn isa large proportion of the salaries earned by these hard-worked women, Around the postal window are assem- bled women and girls who send out seeds from the Agricultural Department, who feed the presses in the Burean of Engraving and Print- ing, who scrub the floors in the Treasury De- partment, count money all day long or occapy important desks in the departments. Away off in their old homes they have, perhaps, an aged parent, an invalid sister or brother, or orphan children left as dependents upon them. SHARING THEIR SALARIRS. They work hard from week to week, and,tak- ing from their earnings only that part which is necessary for an economical existence for them- selves in this city, they send off the rest to these dependents, who look for the coming semi-monthly letter from Washington to pay their bills at the corner grocery store and the butcher shop. Thore is no more self-sacrificmmg heroism in the world than is to be found ong the women in the government depart- teat Washington. Those people who are 80 fond of speaking lightl: # describing their rich dre should spend balf an hour at th post office on F street during ti pay days, There may be women in the de- partments who spend more money than they earn and who are dashing and dress elegantly; but there are five hundred hard-worked, seli- sacrificing women there to one of these. There are some beautiful women in the departments, some fresh and pretty young girls, but few re- tain long that beauty which is remarked upon, end most of them have traded off the beauty of freshness and youth for that of patience and amiability, which does not attract gener: tention. There are many remarkably fin ing women in the departments, but they are not the giddy, flaunting, flirting set imaginative writers and gossips delight to describe. You may go through the departments for days and never xee a woman who is not becom- ingly and neatly dressed. But this is not becanse they spend large sums of money in dress, but because necessity has taught them economy and good taste, SELF-SACRIFICE. What was said before the committee investi- gating the civil service a few days ago is apt to give a false impression and to injure the repu- tation ot many honest women who work in the government service. In one of the very divi- sions referred to is a woman who has given up the romance of her younger days, refused ail opportunities of marriage—the aim, i of woman's life—and devoted support and education of four children left de- peudent to her care by the death of her brother. She might have been marred, with a home and childrea of her own, but she gave that dream up Decause she could not and would not burden @ poor man with the four dependent upon her and she wouldnot forsake them. These orphan children are clothed, fed, educated and loved asif they hada mother. Cam any man cast a slur upon such a woman? Yet she is but one of many hundred in the departinents who have given up all their pros- pects in life and sacrificed themselves to others, ‘The women m the government service usually work hard, and the ciass of work th such as could not be done as well by They are put at tedious tasks which impatient man could nut do, and they labor hour after hour persistently and skillfully. In all of the departments there are some very responsible positions which are held by women and ad- ministered successfully where men would fail, ‘There are some designing and some frail and foolish women in the departments, but they are in a very small minority, and at the worst they are trying to earu an honest living by pretty hard work. POKER AT THE CAPITOL. Between the visitors in the galleries, the grog in the restaurant and gambling in the commit- tee rooms, the Capitol is about as well stocked with the ordinary every-day vices as could be desired by the most exacting. The seductive game of poker is not only breaking a quorum in the House two or three times a week, but, if reports are true, is “breaking” some members also. These games in the committee rooms are played nearly every day, it is said, and beiore going into one of them members araw four, five or six hundred dollars from the sergeant- at-arms, The curious feature of it is that what many members take out of one safe is replaced by acorresponding amount lett by one mem- ber in another safe ina big envelope, which has now grown to great proportions. The sor of the envelop+ isa popular man frot the west, who is said to be the most amiable man and the vest poker player in the House, ‘The other parties to the game do not keep an envelope. THE PERPLEXITY OF AN AMIADLE MAN, Acertain Congressman who has a reputation among his colleagues for good nature was found by a Stak reporter the other day greatly perplexed and annoyed over # letter he was trying to write. He threw down his pen as the reporter took a seat beside him, “This 1s a pretty state of things,” he exclaimed, ‘I am trying to write an apology and I have no exctse to put into it, Itis to Mrs, Wilkins of my district, She used to be of my district at some time or other, and now she is in one of the depart- ments. She came here forme to get hera place. She is rather advanced in yeurs, and I exerted myself to get her as comfortable a po- sition under the government as I could. There was no especial reason, by long acquaintance or strong influence, why I should bave exerted myself for her particularly, but got her a good place. She had’ not been in it long before she sent for her son and I asked to get bim a , which I did. Then she asked me to do thing for some other relativ: which I was giad to do. By that time she wanted an increase of pay. She gotit. Then her son's family had increased aud she wanted his salary to increase accordingly. That was fixed, I thonght that was about enough. Well, yesterday I got aletter from Mrs. Wilkins ask~ ing what evening 1 would be at home. that ehe wauted to see me on important business and expressing the opinion that there would be no impropriety in her calling to see me, as she knew my wife. who is now with me. The let- ter was all right enough, only I did not think I could get any more public favors for Mrs. Wilkins. Iam afraid I wrote her a very sharp reply. I told her that any business she might have with me must be of a public character and that she would have to see me at the Capitol; that I did not want to be bothered with business at my house. When I got home in the evening my wife told me Mrs, Wilkins had called. I expressed surprise and told my wife of the character of the letter I had written ~=4 T told her that while I was glad to do what I hed for the lady, I could not be bothered any ore. co ‘Why,’ said my wife, ‘you have made a mis- take. is is our old friend Mra Blank And- soforth Wilkins.” “ Iam trying to write an explanation to stan bony tu the de it, who must have been surprised by my letter.” Lost in Four Feet of Water. with his wife and six-year-old , and yesterday reported that they had been drowned by the accidental of the He was under arrest, the police lieving that he is ee ee oF and child. and Mrs, Horton but recently con- more. The water the drowning oo- et church: She never ____ PROPOSALS. QEALED PROPOSALS WILL BE KE BR the office of the | Supervising Archites Department, Washington, 1. OCLOC P.M. on the DAY UF AUGUST. 1600, for sll. . material reguired to repair ting apparatus in the Cs De Niue. Wander Treasury Department dui Dullding. and the U ceaury Dey Photo- graph Gallery, . 1B aecorlance with epeci ication, copies of which may be had ov plication at this off te proposals must for the w unt be coompanted and eact y a certified check f: 00. The Department Feject all bids receive. ing the same: aise ti with all the require: a Dosals must be sealed and indorsed, “Proposal for pe Pairs to heating apparains in the C 8. Ly yf Dee — Dutiding, Winder busiding, and t . s Treasury Department Photograph Gallery,” @s the (Case way be. an. reteet te JAS, 25 BIND EAM, Supervising Architect, August 12th, 18 ROPOBALS FOR GRANITE CURB eed ou ‘asiuingt the ington, cy . Le received at this office until T on THUKSDAY. SIEPTY ME Fornauing Curb te E GOSHEN LAND AND IMPROVEME m, Hotel Goshen, Va Beal © L COOKE, nd and Traprowement Oa NSTRUCT : a ta Ticht ie reserved te deenied advert detucta Al om tiers, Washington, Sealed proposals will be ceived at this office wutil TWELVE MONDAY, ALGUS constructing a Com Canal street avenue, r b a "Phe right is ree bide, eM. RoBRNT. bug! r am eur Com 11-ut _ LADIES’ GOODS. QRONTS! FRONTS! FRONTSIM Always in onder by plain combing ‘ MLLE. MJ. PRANDI'S, 1320 Fat. now. (Mrs. Harrisou'sh Importer uf Fine French Hair Goods, Hairdressing. 3y22-im* Shampootng. Becu ayes ING ESTABLIS 7 sen ANT formerly with A. Fischer pay * A, DAY CLEANING PSTaB- & WORKS, B06 i five pears’ oxy rund deliv on specialty. i lirty Goods cailed rie red - LL-WOOL GAKMENTS, MADE UP OR KIPPED, dyed a good mourning Linck. A. FISCHER, ole 906 G st. now. FINANCIAL = — JX ©. Connon JNO. W. MACALTNES, Member .¥. Stock Bia, CORSON & MACARTNRY, GLOVER BUILDING, 1419 F ST. XW, Baukers aud dealers in Government Bouda Deposits. Exchange. Railrond stocks aud the r Loans. Coilectiot nds, aud all securities Listed York, Philadelphia, Bosom sold, ade inert secu and ail Local Rasbroad, Gas, Ins: ck deait ip, one Stock bouxbt and sold jy 18 PROFESSIONAL KOF, CLAY, JHE OLD-LSTALLISBED OXL¥ Teliable genuine and baturel-botu_ Ciairvo: Astrowxer aud Medium ty this city, boru with ¥ Bhd WonUertUl proj Lele waft of eecond aught. reveale €¥ery Luaen mystery, hude lost orstolen property; Urns reparated toxe am Lusi 3 adv OU axe iu GoULt ot, 4 KDOWN to Liours, ¥ am, WS:30pt Bandaya 2to 8pm Sittings, 50c. _ Parlors, 603 12th st. nw. ME karBa, Tur cx aul6-6e EBRATED CLAIKVO¥> ULE aud Astrojogint, the seventh aausiter, bora with cau Ls power es Lanes whd lucky dates, Dou't imi tw see this lady, hoom 10, 910 F st. uw. Div sor KRIVAL EXTRAORDINARY ! 1 ‘The Star of Mystery just arrived from Berlin, Ger- many. Free testa. Free teste, Prof Meese, trance me dium, seventh son, born witha double veil and won- derfui gift of second sight, has the power of any two mediums you ever met. This he is prepared to prove, Tells your entire dite, past, present and future, in 6 dead trance; every Lidden inystery revealed , tells the ful name of his callersand of your :wture hue band or wife, with age and date of marriage and tells whether the one you love is true or false. telis all your business affairs with the utmost tru wives advice on divorce, contested wills, speculations, & , tells whether stocks will rise or fall; tells your life from the cradle to the grave, Not a fortune teller, but « genuive spirit med: Positively no imposition, re- veals everything, settles lovers’ quan causes speedy, haypy ma om. humbugged by #0 t fortune te.iers and cord Prot. beens, fe will give MOS h thun others tor money. 0 those whe desire « sitting, Parlors at aw N. b.—1 his is the Professor's first visit to America, auls-6r z at X ME, BROOKE TELLS ALL THE EVENTS OF Lisk. Ail business confidential Ladies fen tienien 90 Cente each. iy « 40 L mt., between #cb: B16. RINTERS. NEVE LINOIYPE COMPANY, PRINTERS AND PUBLIS! Lith st (star B nag). 2) Pek CENT Lae 414 TYPE BET Fi MACHINERY THAN HAND COMPOSILION Special rutes to the trate. auS-lu GILL & WALLACE PRACIICAL bOOk AND JOB PRINTERS. Proteseional J rinting a Specialty. 1107 & st. nw. Estimates furnished. iTesswork for the Trade, oul H L Megtsta, ¢ - FKINTER AND PUBLISHER, is-1116 Edi. NW Orders for Le 2, 18, 9, 4,1, 12. 22,5,9,1%. G12, 15,21, 18 These figures are the numbers of the alphabet which: spellout the uame of the VERY HIGHEST GRADE SPRING WHEAT PATENT FLOUR ‘Manufactured im the world, the justly Celebrated BRIDAL VEIL FLOUR, And for sale by the following First-clees Grocers: CHARLES 1. KELLOGG, Mzsouic Temple. W. E. ABLOT I, 1721 Peuusyivanse ave, andcor. 11th and H sts. GEORGE E KENNEDY & SONS. 1209 F ot and 1116 Connecticut ave. B. F. BACON, C40 Pennsylvania ave, G.G. COKNWELL & SON, 1412 Pounsylvania ave, ©. C. BRYAN, 1413 New York BEALL & BAKEK, 456 Penusylvaniaave, E. E. WHITE, 630 Louisiaua ave. & R WATERS, 1342 7th st. 4.0. WKIGHT, 1632 14th st. now. BUKCHALD & CO., 354 Pennsylvania ave W. 2. GIVEN, corddand Hstenw. ap 2d-whke? GRATEFUL—COMFORTING. kPPS's COCOA BREAKFAST. “Bye now iedwe of the natural laws: c= of vB and Chita