Evening Star Newspaper, November 28, 1891, Page 8

_ THE EVENING STAR: THE CHARTER OAK. THE SPREADING OAK. How to Recognize the Species Grow- ing in the District. LARGEST OF FOREST TREES. Among the Druids—Historic English and American Oake—Hundreds of Vurieties— Some Peculiar Characteristics—A Sim ‘Lesson in Practical Botany. cakes Written for The Evening Star. IKE FAMILY TO WHICH THE OAK belongs is one of the largest of all our forest trees. It contains some 400 species and is widely scattered over the earth. Of the oak itself there are about 300 different kinds. and they are found in the temperate regions of America, Europe and Asia, extend in the ‘mountainous regions to the central portions of America on the west and into the Malayan archipelago on the east. They are entirely ab- sent from South Americs, from the whole of Africa, except about the Mediterranean, from Australis and from the Pacific islands It is not probable that the family can boast of any great geological antiquity, both on account of the number of species now living and of their long history species are bat few, and these fe are of rather limited distribution. The vari Dility is one of the most interesting peculiari- ties of the genus. Qne authority has stated Mhat of all the characters used to separate the various forms there is no one that is constant, and that while 300 species is the number usu- ally given it is probable that two-thirds of these are only entitled to the rank of varieties. AMONG THE DRUIDS of France and Britain the oak was sacred. The priests lived in oak forests. and their sacrifices were made beneath the trees. Oak boughsand leaves were used in their ceremonies. Every- thing which grew upon the treo was sacredand idered as a gift from heaven. Itis ssid that the mistletoe when found growing on the oak was gathered with great ceremony on the sixth day after the first new moon of the year. ‘Two white oxen placed in the yoke for the first time were brought beneath the tree; then the sacrificing priest, clothed in white garments, ascended it and cut off the mistletoe with a OAKS ATTAIN 4 GREAT SIZE and s great age. In England there are many examples of venerable trees that have histories connected with them. One near Norfolk was seventy feet sround near its roots and forty feet sround a little higher up. It was entirely hollow and had inside of it a table and seats. It fs said to have been a hoary tree in the time of William the Conqueror, and has been estimated be 1,500 years old. Another specimen is said have sheltered the Scotch hero, Wal- 300 of his men. Its branches covered a Scotch acre of to more than 55,000 feet, but relic hunters have so reduced ing now remains but the trunk. Greendale oak. In 17240 hit ‘wide enough to carriage four horses to pass ‘The tree is over thirty-five feet in t — G ts another, so known because the celebrated highwayman of that name was wont to take his stand behind it when waiting for some belated traveler. It boasts an antiquity of several centuries. Pistol balls have been extracted from the bark from time to time, supposed to have been fired by timid travelers as they toseare away the bold robber. The oak once sheltered Princ? Charles when after the battle of Worcester in, 1676. long since gone from earth Prince oak has been transplanted to the heavens, and “Robin Caroli” is the name of a small constellation in the southern hemis- Being of slow growth the oak requires sixty to se to attainany considerable size. inarily ite height is from sixty to eighty iny mentioned trees su 1,200 years old. In some of the a‘ i one is ment 1,000 years old, while others, still af vigorous growth, sre kuown from Becords to be 500 years old. ISTORIC OAKS IX AMERICA arefew. One, known as the “Lig Tree,” stood on the banks of the Geneseo river, in western New York,when Indian an.i white first met. It ‘was revered by the Senecas, und they named their town from it. In 1457 it meastred 26 feet 9 inches in circumference and was esti- maated to be 1,000 years old. It was destroyed by a flood in’ the river during November of that year. Then there was TRE CHARTER aK, supposed to be over 600 years old when de- sizoyed bya storm in 1854. A foot from the Ground it was twenty-five feet in circumfer- ence. It wastinto a cavity in this tree that the charter of Connecticut was thrust to prevent the petty tyrant Andross from securing it, when, in 1687, he entered the assembly house st Hartford.’ The objects of ornament that ave been made from the wood of Charter oak wonld be enough to make several trees like it in California there are some magnificent ex- amples of oaks. One of these, known us the ‘Sir Joseph Hooker oak,” hasan immense head @f branches, covering a circie sixty feet in diameter. In many places through central and southern California are other large trees, worthy of adorning the park of auy English lord or Bpanish grandee. The flowers of the oaks are all of the same Renersl character—small, greenish, in droop- ing or pendent catkins, the few feuile flowers Giusteres at the base of the numerous male flowers. The acorns. however, present a wide Tange of variation. some, as in the chinquapin, smail and black ‘and less than half an inch long: others, as in the English onk, being ever sn ineb in length and pinced ina very shallow cup; or. as in the overeup oak, being an ineb anda half across the cup and over al, imch long. Some are sweet and pala neatable. THE OAKS OF THE DISTRICT, as given in one of the catalogues, are nineteen im number. Some of these are of uncertain there they are extonainely planted. Ndmerous varieties, twenty-three in uil, may be found in the De- twent of vulture grounds bordering on ppooes to be| tl ‘uglish parks | themselves sufficient to distinguish speci For practical purposes,it is believed, the follo} ing key to the species, taken in connection with the accompanying explanations, will enable the observer to distinguish the more common varieties of our oaks: 1.—Leaves entire. 1. Willow oak. 2 Laurel or shingle oak. II.—Leaves serrate. 8. Chestnut oak. 4. Chingnapin. IIL—Leaves wedgo shape. 5. Black jack. 1V.—Leaves sharply lobed. 6. Spanish oak. 7. Scarlet oak. 8. Binck oak. 9 Red oak. 10. Pin oak. e V.—Leaves obtusely lobed. 11. White oak. 12. Post oak. 13. Bur oak. 14. Swamp oak. THE WILLOW AND LAUREL OAKs of the first division present little resemblance to the oak _as commonly known. Tho peculiar frnit gives them their place in tho genus. |The leaves of both are long, narrow and without any notches on the margin. The willow oak has the narrower leaves of the two, and they are smooth jon both sides and light green. The laurel oak has thicker and broader leaves, which while smooth above are downy beneath. Both grow to be from thirty to fifty feet high. ‘The two figures show the dif- ference between the leaves. ‘TRE CHFSTNUT AND CHINQUAITN OAKS: (Nos. 3 and 4) differ from the first two in hav- ing conspicuous teeth on the margins of the leaves and in their being broader and sharper pointed. Tho chestnut oak grows to be a mwe- dium-sized tree, forty to fifty feet high, and has accrn3 about an inch long, with « thick cup, one-half to one inch across, with hard scales or tubercles on the out- side. Tho chinquapin is a close ally, sometimes laced as a variety of fhe other, but is n dwarf, growing only three or four feet high. The leaves are similar, bnt orns are much re more abundant and sweeter. ‘ns are sometimes produc among the scales on the cup. The figure given is that of the chestnu: oai:. ‘THE BLACK JACK is also a well marked species. The leaves may be accurately described as wedge shaped, being very broad and ‘flat at the top and tapering al- most to s point at the bottom. — Occasionally there are three or four little bristle points pro- Jecting beyond the top of the leaf. — The tree is small, only from fifteen to twenty-five fect high, and lives principally at } the south. It is very hafdy and its leaves turn in the fall to a particularly beautiful shade. GROUP Xo. IV, including the Spanish, scarlet, red, black and pin oaks, 18 well characterized by the sharp- pointed lobes of the leaves and their large size. It is, however, dificult to give dis- tinctive marks to all. The leaves have Lit N for arranged been grouped together of comparison, in. the order mentioned above. In the Spanish oak five lobes are long, sharp pointed and slightly curved, like the’ old fashioned aword, whence comes the scientific name, falcata. In the scarlet oak the lobes are more numerous, about seven, they are slightly notched near the ends and are not curved. convenience In the red oak the leaves are broader, the lobes about nine and the notches not nearly 80 deep. In the black oak the leaf is broader at the top than at the bottom: it has about nine lobes, is not so deeply cut, nor are the lobes so sharply pointed. While lastly in the pin oak the leaves are somewhat like the scarlet oak, but are not so broad, are more deeply cut and more spiny. GQuOUP NO. ¥, THE OBTUSE LOBED oaxs contains four species. ‘The leaves of these also are grouped together for comparison. They are the white, post, bur and white swamp oaks, arranged in this order in the figure. All of them have obtuse and rounded sinuses, in some cases cut down nearly to the mid rib and in others with shallow sinuses. Of the four it ae it An interesting feature is in the acorn. This varies in size and Sometimes it shlong and then others are one and one-quarter inches fringe, while nt. 'Some- hides the nut completely, or elee it is folded down on the inside of the cup. The figure shows two forms, the typical fringed acorn and a variety in which the top only of the nus shows. Lastly the WHITE SWAMP OAK has leaves from five to seven inches long and two and one-half tofour inches wide. They are irregularly toothed, resembling somewhat the chestnut oak in shape, but aith blunt in- stead of pointed teoth. white under surface, contrasting great: the bright green above. The tree grows inlow swampy grounds and reaches @ height of sixty or seventy feet. uP, +0 - A TRADE SECRET. What # Grocer Learned by Looking Into = Corn Factory. From the New Yerk Herald. “Ain't you got nocorn like we've been havin’? That you sent me this mornin’ ain't sweet corn It’s nothin’ but cow corn.” ‘6 see,” said the grocer, replying to the woman's complaint. “What kind of corn have you been having?” “Why you called it ‘Honey Drop,’ ” answered the woman. “And what kind did we send you today?” ~The label was jest the same.” “Well, madam, both lots is from the sa factory, but there may be a little difference in the doping.” “The ‘doping!! Wha “Why, the sweetening the next lot vou cook and then i like the old.” “Put sugar in corn!” exclaimed the woman, greatly astonished. “Why, certainly: there's sugar in every can of corn put up. Didn't you know that? Prob- ably not. Most people don't knowit; but it’s a fact all the same. It's wort of a trade secret that I found out for myself. “I used to think that all the difference was in the corn itself, but that’s bosh. Of course some corn is better than other corn—tendere: and naturally sweeter—but none of it i enough to can without the use of sugar. “Dear me, I never heard of that before,” murmnred the woman. “Probably not,” responded the grocer, “but it's so. There are lots of canning concerns down in Maine, and only last September I had & chance to look one over. It's a great business and no mistake. “The farmers bring in their corn by the wagon loadsand dump itin the y: Then the Ro at it, men, women and children: about half the town in that one yard. The husked cars are put into baskets and carried into the factory. “The corn is tuken off the ear by a machin~ that works quicker than lightning, Before you could say ‘Jack Robinson’ the falls out of the window, leaving behind in pan every bit of the corn with which it wa covered. “Then cowes the packing into the cans, thou- sands ovcry day, an enormous number. And now listen to this: Into every single can there goes a quantity of sugar. When the corn is a| choice lot there is little sugar ueeded; but when it's inferior or has been kept over night they dope it in great shape. “So, madam, use the sugar, and I'll guuran- tee that your boarders wil! like that corn as well as any they ever ate.” ‘Well. Fil try it,” said tho woman, ‘and if it works well it'll be @ grand good thing to know. Ferhaps I'll be able to buy cheaper corn here- iter.” “May be," answered the grocer, but he looked a little bit dubious. SSeS Piain Toothache, From the Detroit Free Press. ‘There was a woman at the Wabash deput the other afternoon who walked up and down for a Jong time with her jaw in her band, and who finally sat down and shed tears until general attention was attracted to her. After several ladies had spoken to her and fallen back a little old man who had been rubbing the calf of his right leg to get the rheumatism out went ove> and sat down beside her and asked: “Lost your father, mother, husband or any other close relashion?” “No, sir.” she replied as she wiped her eyes. “Husband been abusin’ ye?’ “No, sir. “T've known husbands who have kept their wives boo-hooing half the time, and as much out of spite as anything else I helped tar and feather such a feller once, and it did him a power o' good. st any money or anything?” ‘No, sir, “Glad o° that, Last time I was in Detroit I lost a pillar-slip chuck full o” things, and my old woman hain't got over blowin’ about it yit. T've allus suspected that a cross-eyed man who claimed to be a missionary stole them’ things I'm a-keepin’ my eye out fur him now, and if I find him he'll have to talk. mi straigh* to satisfy me. You hain’t runuin.’ away from your husband, eh?” “No, sir! Wives do run away, you know, and sometimes they can't be blamed fur Xt. Jest plain toothache, is it?” “Yes, ur.” “Wall, we'll see about that. I've got aholler tooth that jumps on me once in a while, and so Igo prepared. Let's see what I've got.” fe went over and got his satchel and took from it some cotton, peppermint, paregoric, camphor, cinnanion essence and’ two wooden toothpicks, aud continued: “Jest help yourself, madam, and thero won't be no charge.” She accepted his offer, and in five minntes the ache was goue and she was profuse in her 8. “Oh, that's all right,” he replied, as he re- placed’ the articles in’ his satchel; “I kinder suspected at first that you had bin abused or was runnin’ away and J didn't know jest how to handle ye. If you'd hollered — toothache an hour jo you needn't have suffered two minutes, I'll be right over thar’ in plain sight and at the first ache you canter right over after seme more of the stuff aud never mind no in- troduction.” eee Servitude Dress Clothes. From t! yw York Herald. The swellest New York hotels require their elevator boys to wear dress suite. To be cast in a dress suit before 6 o'clock is the mark of servitude. No gentleman wears a dress suit before 6 o'clock: consequently, during the day at least, the elevator boy is no gentleman. As the elevator boy is often a tough-looking indi- vidual, over twenty years of age, perhaps it is better not to mention this fact to him. rs elevator boy is the smart office b magnified ‘wine handred. diameters, Print, iv pendicular to suit himself. T invariably approach the elevat Yeeling of respect slightly discolored with I¢T only knew what that of my kind I could write! a The | shee mot ple | It fell A STRANGE PET. A Naval Officer's Experience With a Puma Cub. HIS SAVAGE NATURE, Held tn Subjection, Would Break Out Occa- sionally and Cause Some Alarm—Going for Ducks and Sheep—His iret Experience ‘With a Snow storm. tinier ‘Written for The Evening Star. fet U. & 8 ATLANTA WAS SWINGING to her anchor in York river, and the first watch at night hung heavily cn our hands, when senior licutenant who had seen twenty years’ service caine ont on the quarter deck and Joined ‘n the conversation. The theme was pets, and this gave him an opp~rtunity to tell ua a pleasant story of a strange pethe bad once Possessed. ‘The lieutenant said: “It was in the month of November, 1879, aud the Marion was lying in the burbor of Sandy Point on the blsak const of Patagonia, I was abcve prospecting with one enlisted man, when two of the natives approached us and offered for ale two puma cubs about three weeks old. They were kittens, about the size of large demesti2 cats, with bean- tiful dark brown stripes on @ lighter ground “One of the coins Inrgely used in trading with a large copper affair known plunk and worth about 4 cents in American I took a fancy to the little brutes, and eived the idea of bringing them home and presenting them to some men: ‘ie. The na- tives prize the plunk coins very highly, and | polish them up for ornaments-—earrings and | the like—so 1 had no trouble in purchasing the first ono for 8 plunks, or avout 22 cents. When I tried to purchase the second one, how- ever, 1 struck an unexpected difficulty, for my stock of plunks was exhausted, and when I tried to purchese the eub for 4 silver dollars the natives refused to sell him, and it was only when I added 4 planks, which the blae jacket with me had, thet they parted with their big kitten. 5 TAKEN ON BOARD TAP. SUIP, “We put them in twogunny bags we had with us, and carrying them at arm’s length to keep them from scratching us, for they were vicious little brutes, we took them on board. I had the carpenter make a cage with two compart- ments and then began to train my pets into docility, At first it was slow work, for they were far from tractable, and seemed | possessed of an innate determination not to be tumed. I tied them together with a small ropo several feet long and let them run at will, but their wills seemed decidedly contrary, Tor if one wished to go one way that was a sure sign for | the other one to take the upposite course. “But little by litle they became more gentle | and learned to take milk from a large spoon and not tobite and scratch any one that stroked thei silken fur, and little by little Jnck and Fanny came to be favorites with every oue on board the man-of-war. They were often given fall liberty of the ship, and one day Fanny went ona foraging expedition into the stew- ard’s pantry. ‘The irate steward kicked her out against a gan and broke one of her fore legs. With the assistance of the surgeon I set the broken bone, but the little lioness refused to eat, and after four weeks’ suff she died. An autopsy developed the fact that her back was nearly br@ken also. and it seemed wonder ful thai she could have lived so long iu such = ion; but thie only shows the endurance epeciee, with their proverbial ni JACK GREW UP ALONE. “Jack for awhile seemed quite disconsolate, but soon recovered and thrived nicely on ship rations. He grew rapidly and we soon had to build a larger cage for him. He was generally very goad natured. but sometimes the wildness s hature came out and he spread his claw sbowed his teeth and jooked quite belligerent Ina few months Jack was as large as a New- foundlund dog. and the dark stripes had faded till be was a solid dark brown; his fur grew quite long and be was a beautiful, graceful Nada bongs acle teutie optiee tanta for him with an iron ring in it, to which I se- cured a rope several yards in length. In good weather I brought him out of his cage and tied him to the anchor on deck or toa guncarriage and allowed him to amuse himself. He would crouch behind something and wait for some one to pass by, then swift a flush he would leap’ forward on any tine jacket that passed by—but his attucky were harmless, and resulted in nothing worse than tearing clothes. One night I had # midwatch and was playing with Jack upon the quarter deck. Thad been allowing him to jump after | aball of spun yarn, and his antics reminded | me of a kitten at play. Suddenly the chiet en- | ginecr, who was afraid of Jack and said that he would get flerce some day and kill some one, came down the gangway and Jack tugged at} his collar, for he seemed to dislike the chie probably because the latter had shown some tear of him. SYRANG AT THE CHIEF ENGINEER. “I waited till the chief was just abreast of us, about ten feet distant, and then let him go; paused justan instant, nervously lifting his feet, then sprang for the chief. Iheld on to the rope and then tried to check him, so that he fell short of the chief, but as last resort he threw out his long forearm and his claws just caught the chiefs coat, ripping it from the shonid down. ‘The chief, thoroughly frightened, rushed below and never stopped. till he was safely locked in his room, while I laughed at his expense. “In order to have fresh provisions at sea we took some geese and ducks and half » dozen sheep to sea. We aliowed the geese and ducks to run loose about the decks and kept thesheep ina pen amidships. Jack looked with longing eyes on the fresh provisions, and finally one morning he wormed his head out of the collar and clearing the fifty feet that separated him from the nearost duck seized the fowl by the neck and trotted off. The officer of the deck started toward him and Jack began to make belligerent signs. The officer grabbed a cutlass and retreated to the star- board end of the bridge, while Jack ensconced himself on the other end, snarling and showing his teeth as he tasted the warm blood of the duck. A.erowd of men surrounded him and one held the door of his cage open. ‘This array startled him, and thinking to enjoy his duck alone he rushed for the cage. Ashe ran down the gangway some one hit him with a rope's end, and this so surprised him that he dropped the duck and dashed into the cage, the door of which was closed behind him. fie then discovered that his duck was gone, and he was mad for hours, throwing his head from side to side and pawing und gnawing at his cage. AFTER FRESH MUTTON. “A few days Inter he was again tied out on deck and tugged and gt.awea at his rope for hours to get at the sheep, but he found these efforts futile aud so resorted tor other tactics. He wi eeereey fed hich untied him to put him in the cago, was not asleep and had evidently laid a deep plan, for no sooner was the rope loose than he like a flash for the sheep pen. In a few bounds he was at the pen, but some one had grabbed Tope an secured it just ad i e prevent hi from securing «a sheep. but Jack aguld etched out his long forearm and cat away a claw full of wool from the nearest . By the timo we, reache United States Jack weighed over 200 pounds and was sometimes inclined to be fierce. itors he was @ great curiosity ‘shown off.’ MIS FIRST SNOW STORM. * “In the winter of 1880 we went into Ports- ath, N. H., and here Jack saw his first snow. about @ foot deep, and I took Jack , and allowed. the ladies him to pat his head ital iniveti F WASHINGTON. .D. c. aatonn ah woxalins 28." 1891 iH ibs 3 ? HE é i Hath inet i 4 NEW STUDY OF CHARACTER. Mon Tell What ‘They Are by the Way They Pay Car Fare. scanning the penmanship, another by looking at the ear. Still another by the walk, anda fifth by manner of wearing an overcoat. But the chief olerk in one of the railroad offices has hut on an index quite-out of the ordinary. He has been riding on street cars to and from his work for the past fifteen years, and for s good deal of that time he has watched, in odd mo- ments, the peculiar manner in which people pay their fare. One man presents a nickel to the condnetor in a manner perrcn f Chesterfieldian; another bands the nickel in a regretful manner, watching it disappear down the leather-bushed ocket of the conductor. The first man is rawing an ordinary salary, but is enjoying it; he has hard enough work paying expenses and occasionally dreads to meet the rent man. But he has the heart of a boy and bis wife has everything she wants if money will buy it. ‘The seoond man is getting rich on half the come. One man sits with his arms settled and his overcoat fastened around him comfortably wedged in between people, and never makes a move to find car fare till the conductor stops still and makes ita personal matter. Another gets his money ready and offers it three or four times, handing it past three or four people and holding it up so ail the cur can see it. The first is a curmudgeon who browbeats the children, makes his wife do the housework, quarrels with | the landlord and grieves profoundly whenever he pays a bill. If he had the whole seat to him- self he would occupy it, it he had to lie down. He has a grudgé against everything in life. The gas collector runs the risk of his life every time he approaches, and when he goes to water rates the city hal! thinks an eclipse darkened the sun. He stan t ihe front of the elevator and never budges till every one has crowded past him, in and out, and he finds | his level on the top floor. He never buys the Earet throngh the week, and while readi a rrowed copy--which he always does—tells how a newsboy mude him mad one time, When the cable stops with him on the car he makes life miserable to the conductor. His kind of man is what makes people hate to have the cable break. They don't care so much for loss of time, or broken engagements, bat the | chronic promotor of pedal sticulations wearies them into waiking. The man who offers his fare before the conductor is ready is the same man who talks constantly of the us | sistance he has given to this or that successtul man or the blessings he has conferred ongresi- ness. He was the first one to tell Bob Burdette ho conld write. He introduced Blatchford Kavanaugh to Prof. Roney. He suggested to Chicago the bringing of ‘Theodore Thomas. There ix the man who always drops his nickel from between the very ends of his finger and thumb. If nothing happens the conductor may catch it, If the car be in motion it falls to the floor. And there is the dther man who extends his paim witha fiat uicke) in the center. It is not easy to yet, and he never lessens the difficulty. The first of these is a quick-tem- pered fellow who cannot take care of himself, and yet he usually has a large family for which he onght to provide. He moves every May day and wonders constantly what becomes of the farniture. He never aspires to any thi than inferior wages and never 6a them. |The man with the open p dreamer of dreams. He wants to fly high, but does not quite reach it. He is full of great plans that are never quite formed. If he had all the money he wanted he would do some- thing startlingly original, and then live on the recollection of its failure to the end of his pov: erty-stricken days. ‘The man who hands in more than the fare and then waits for the change, with his hand extended, isa great raiser of money for the heathen. | tearfully in the plan of converting East Indians to our religion or carrying the gospel to the Africans, even though it involves the Yormer in the opium habit and Inti sort of laziness. 1g isconfined to American Tract Society publications and his devotions to such church us will oftenest per- mit him to make addi Most women conductor's palm from a thumb and finger that hold the coin in suspension. They al- ways bave the money ready, usually the exact change, for they do not like to display their wallets openly, to be seen of men. But even when the mode of depositing is limited to that one action there may be a variety of methods employed. Some of them seem to lean back little as they extend their hand. They are ti cold and distant sort who never chew gum be- cause it costsan effort. ‘They never thank » clerk, no matter how obliging he may be. They'never saya good word of any one, but are bountiful ina snappish, sarcastic sort of Slander. ‘The women who lev forward a little, giving up the money with a graceful recovery of pose, are the great-hearted kind who “muke our earth an Edeu.” ‘They are courteous to every one, good friends, delicious sweethearts, forgiving wives. ‘They like music and good books. “They like companionship. ‘They are the kind about whom no evil is spoken, because every one admires thew. No matter what they do, the kind construction is pinced upon it, vause they never suy evil of others. d for fifteen ‘The chief clerk is a bacheior, years he has been looking for that kind of a woman. When he finds her he will marry her. ————+e-—____ ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGo. Work Performed by Women Daring the Eighteenth Century. ‘From Queen. ‘The scarcity of domestic relics at the Guelph exhibition left many visitors under the impres- sion that needlework, like all manuai occupa- tions, was much negiected by the ladies of the Georgian era, : Happily this imputation is clearly refated by sweet Cowper, witty Dr. Johnson and humorist Addison, who all agreed in their praises of the needle, so inspired were they by the astound- ing quantity of every kind of work executed by their acquaintances, Who is not familiar, too, with the capacious work bags of our grest-grandmothers, as well es with their quaint samplers and pictures om- broidered in a flat style, which contrast greatly with the raised and complicated productions of the needie during the reign of the Stuart? ‘The example 2f women’s activity came, as usuai, from high quarters. We'read with no little amazement of the prodigious number of tapestry chairs worked by the Electress Sophia, mother of % who left tokens of ber nimble fingers to pal aces, convents and churches all over the coun- try, which diu not prevent this girted princess from learning five lauguages, besides being re- | thre midst of the nowned asa clever painter and gardener, as wall es » profound a ec Caroline, when Frincess of Wales, teres! in the silkworms kept in the men and broidery ‘Lhe pupils wei | rest. \be taken ‘advantage of. TRIP TO GORILLA LAND Prof. Garner’s Remarkable Expedi- tion to Talk With Giant Apes. TO BE CAGED IN THE FOREST. ‘Be Will Start With an Unheard-of Arme- ROF. GARNER'S CONTEMPLATED EX- pedition to gorilla land is exciting consia- erable scientific interest here His learned friends are assisting him in the preparation of the most remarkable equipment ever carried by an explorer. It will incinde phonographs, telephones, photogrsphic apparatus, an elec- tric telegraph nnd » complete taxidermist’s outfit. There will be a big cage, eight fect cube, whict the traveler himsel! intends to occupy, also a email cage to holds gorilla, in caso one is captured alive. The armament to be taken along for offensive and defensive pur- poses will be altogether extraordinary ani of a character unheard of hitherto. ‘THe EXPEDITION will enter the month of the Gaboon river, just under the equator on the west coast of Africa, and, having secured an escort of natives, will Proceed up the stream for a distance of 112 miles. At that point the first of aeries of cataracts and rapids is reached, and there the party will disembark, plunging southward into the tropical forests of the gorilla country. A locality that is particularly infested by these giant apes will be sought, and there, in the midst of the howling equatorial wilderness, the Professor will set up his cage. He will occupy it alone, at night as well as in the day time, being merely connected by tele- Phone wire with the rest of the party, which will be located at a distance of half a mile or more. Itis necessary for his purpose that the animals whose language he is desirous of studying should be distu in their native haunty as littleas possible His conversations will be solitary dialogues, unless, ce, be should be 80 fortunate as to se- cure the presence of several gorillas at once around bis inclosure. THE CAGE will be constructed in New York. It is tobe made of aluminum, for the sake of lightness, and will be built in eighteen sections. Thus it All of ite joints when it is set up. The floor will be of rubber Strong steel cbains Will fasten it to the ground, lest any gorillas should take » notion to walk away with it. powerful electric battery will be so arranged that by the touch of s button the entire cage, save only the rubber floor, will be instan- taneously charged with electricity. If Prof. Gurrer sees any hostile and di us crea- ture approaching he will merely have to press the button and the electric finid will do the The fierce gorilla—supporing such a ease—upon grasping the bars will receive a shock of 50C volts. 1his is enough to kill a man, who is able to survive a more powerful stroke of such lightning than any other animal. ourse would not be had to such means of detense upless it absolutely necessary, because the professor's object is to cultivate friendly relations with the gorillas, and not to ‘njure them. But these bi are said to be the most dangerous and ferocious creatures inexistence, invariably attaching man on sight, and go it isas well to be prepared. A short dis- tance from the cage on all sides will be ex- tended copper wires, arranged in such « mon- ner that they can be drawn taut at about two feet from the ground at a moment's notice, though ‘ordinarily they simply lie slack in the grass. suppose that a whole troop of fierce animals, enraged by the presence of the cage and its occupant, should make arush tc destroy the one and captur> the other. Then the bold scientist would touch a button, the wire barriers would spring taut all sround him, and the foes spon touching them would be knockeu hors au combat bye tre- mendous shock of electricity. The battery will be powerful enough to sustain in the cage a voltage of 500 volte for thicty minutes, which ts likely to be sufficient for all purposes. HOW THE GORILLAS WILL BE ATTRACTED. Some curiosity has been expressed. as to the means by which Prof. Garner will attract the gorillas to his cage in order to interview them. He does not anticipate any difficulty about that. In the first place these ani are so aggressively disposed that they may approach him of their own accord for that reason. Again, their curiosity is likely to draw them. But reliance is had for the purpose upon cer- tain devices. Effigies resembling human beings or gorillas, or both, will be constructed and placed in natural attitudes near the cage, to serve as decoys. Every one knows how fond 2 monkeys are of looking at themselves in the be taken along with the outfit, will be set up, outside the cage, and any gorilias which catch sight of themselves in these looking glasses will presumably be induced to stay aud make remarks concernii their own personal appearance. Besides ail this, the professor hopes to excite the interest of the beasts by learning the meaning of their varied howls and responding to them himeelf ag seductively as possible. Fruit, too, 1; which gorillas depend chiefly for their diet, will be scattered around for bait. RECORD TAKEN. Having induced the gorillas to come nearthe cage, when they will doubtless have plenty of observations to make in their own language, the next thing requisite is to record what they say. ‘This will be done by means of a phono- graph which Mr. Edison is now making ressly for the {Parpose. It will be ait: ferent from any other phonograph ever seen. For one thing, it have two cylinders, which will be worked simultaneously by an electric motor, one cylinder receiving and re- cording sounds, while the other one grinds out remarks. The object of this is readily ex- plained. Suppose that a gorilla comes up the cage and uttersa lot of what seems | gibberish, the horn attached to the instrument absorbing it and « revolving cylinder tak- ing it down. Subsequently ‘another gorilla approaches, and it is desired to find out’ what it will say in re sponse to the utterances of the first. By com- paring tho two it is hoped to get an inkling of the meanings inten So a blank cylinder will be wet going on the machine to receive the words of the second gorilia, while at the time the first cylinder is kept repeating aloud the yelps and No. one. INGENIOUS PHOTOGRAPHS. For the purpose of demonstration, after his graphs of the gorilla, the cage and himself by an ingenious plan of his own. cameras will be axranged outside the cage eo co te make pictures at any moment desired. It will add Sed ot stan tare hie a eae oan “ ioe hic oremmcrinee” wed 4 himself in the act of interviewing goril fothing striking can well be imagined =~ Prof.Garner anticipates that there will be ‘some danger to be met with, but he goes pre- pared. He wants particularly to secure a live forilla to put in the little cage in order that talk. "He. will with ‘him not ‘only but blow guns i i | i 1H : &s it se ro) ih il Ki -SIXTEEN PAGES. lass, and this weakness of theirs is to | Large mirrors, to | ‘on superstition, ‘as powerful fetches. 4 POWERFUL ANIMAL. The gorilla is probably the most formidable suimal in existence. Imagine a man six feet two inches in height and measuring ,four feet nd « half host of seventy inches and arms long enough to reach nearly to his ankles When he stands erect. Make him muscular in proportion, with huge canine tusksand a jaw strong enough to crush a rifle barrei. Suppose bim to have no neck, an immense belly, very short bow lege, long black hair ail’ over «flat these | animals do not exceed five feet in height, with breadth of four feet across the shoulders Mucb as they resemble men when grown, they are much more human in appearance during =a BATS ANP GoWNs, Tailor-made gowns are «till made of “Harrie” tweeds, and Redfern is turning ont any quan tity of them. Large checks and the striped materiale called troaserings lend tn@m@eel ves to this style more readily than more fancife materials, early stage of their being, having « likeness to babies in many ways that is most striking. HOW THEY LIVE. Gorillas live in family groups, each consist- ing of a male, one female and ber young. They do not frequent the same sleeping place often, Usually spending the night wherever they bap- pen to be. Choosing # full-grown tree to build | slodging in they bend the branches together jst a height of twenty feet or more, thus |making a sort of bed, which they ‘cover with twigs torn off for the purpose or | with leaf moss. The male spends tho night | crouching at the foot of the tree, against wine he places his back, in this way remaining on | guard to protect the female and young in. the | nest above from attacks by leopards. These | powerful carnivora are always ready to devour any species of ape they can capture. IN THE DaYrore the gorilla family roams about the forest sock- ing food. In walking the animals totter along with @ swinging gait, supporting themselves partly by resting the knuckles of their bands upon the ground. Much of their Jocomction, however, is accomplished by climbing from tree to tree. They are very skillful climbers, and if one branch does not seem sufticiently strong to bear their weight they will use three or four at once. As soon as a young male reaches maturity a confliet for the mastery en- sues between itself and ite father, which re- sults in the final settlement of the question as to the ownership of the family, the weaker one Doing either killed or driven ay. 4 GOD FIGHTER. When the male gorilla fights he stands erect upon his hind Jegs, the hairon bis head and the nape of his neck bristling, his frightful teeth displayed and his forehead wrinkling with a feartal scowl. At the same time he beate his aoe pond chest resounding blows with bis fists and utters most terrific yells of “kh-ah, kh-ab’ which make the forest re-echo. He’ parries blows with the dexterity of a practiced boxer, and his method of attack is usually to seize his human adversary by the arm, crunching the limb in his teeth, or bo throws the man down and rends him’ with his huge canines. The best thing that the hanter can do at close quarters is to permit the beast to seize the barrel of his gun, which it will at once carry to its mouth, Thus directed, a bul- let is likely to be asettler. Otherwise, the go- rilla will quickly crush the gun barrel between his teeth and proceed to wipe out his opponent. Toran awar is en utter impossibility in the thick woods. IN CONFINEMENT. Young gorillas have been found very tracte- ble inconfinement. There was one in the Ber- lin aquarium a few years ago which was re- markably human in its ways. it slept in an or- dinary bed. covering itself with the bed clothes, and ate at the table of the keeper, sitting in a chair and partuking of the ordinary fare of family. It ate with its fingers, never taking more than a decent morsel at one mouthful, and would drink water from a glass, carry steadily to its mouth without spilling and setting it down carefully. Tt died of consump- | tion in 1877. This complaint seems invariably to carry off gorillas and chimpanzees when they are confined or domesticated. Gorilla has thirteen ribs on each side, whereas a man has only twelve; it has also one | more vertebra in its backbone than man hae. | Philosophers have been disposed to attribute the [progresé of mankind beyond the authro- | poids to his possession of a serviceable thumb, ‘upon which all his ability for manipulation mainly depends. Many of the great apes have most human-like hands, savo for the thumb, which is not nearly so well developed “and lacks certain impor- tant muscles. For example, « gorilla cannot possibly perform the operation known ae “twiddling.” His muscular strength, hot ever, equais that of at least half a dozen of | most powerful men. ‘The of his chest cavity is more than ope-third greater than that | of a man, which contributes enormously to bis endurance. OTHER sPectes. There are several other most interesting species of great apes in the region which Prof. Garner proposes to visit. One of them is the bald n'schiego, natives call it, | which stands about four feet high when erect, and extends its arms seven feet from finger tip It builds most remarkable uests high as fifty feet from the g for its home the loneliest Part of the forest. ‘These shelters are made of jeaty branches, which the female gathers while male performs the process of construction. The branches are fastened together with vines and the roof is so closely and carefully eon- | ructed as to resemble human handiwork. ‘These animals live in pairs with their young. like the gorillas, though sometimes o solitary bachelor n'schiego, covered with the silvery | hair of age, will be found dwelling alone. The! build a new nest every ten or fifteen days, the old one serving nolonger asa protection against fain when the leaves which serve to thateh it have become dry. LIVINGSTONE's FIND. The soko is another species of about equal size, which was made known first by the ex- plorer Livingstone. It lives in communitics ground, choosi males, not counting the young. Each male hes his own wife, and ail intruders from other colo- nies are driven away. Jn fighting with each other or with men who hunt them for food the soko always tries to get hold of the hands of his adversary and bite the ends of the fingers off. The natives believe that the spirits of the dead rise as vokos. Still another great ape is of an extraordinary frog-iike shape and is known as the koola-kamba. It has a ery of “koola, koola!” which it continually repeats, THE CHIMPANZEES are found all the way across Africa in the same F FE yf tal FEE Hi Hi 5 i dl L a & H f M FE = i I Fe i if a i il ; i i i of about a score each, half males and half fe- | and the In millinery fur is much used for the borders of hat brims and fur tailsas trimmings The hat gven iu the sketch i of hunter's green vel- jet bordered with sable, and rable tails and Jetembroidered ribbou are used as trimnsing The collarette is made to wear withand to match the hat. The high coilar is made of « @milar fur with a band of jet-embroidered silk with lapets in the front and a gathered velvet frill falling from it which is lined with soft silk of shot green and brown fulk. This gown is a suitatle one for receptions at homes or any onclal gatherings where oe efor: ive high-mecked gown of rich and an upper sleeve of loose brocaded bronre and cream velvet worn over them. ‘The train of the velvet and the silk skirt hase border in front of acable of voivet and fur, surmounted with jet embroidery. ‘She bodice is buttoned behind and a collar of gathered real lace worn, falling at the throat. 02 Woop COUNTY WHISKY. Two Obie Brands and Their Peculiar #f fects. From the Toledo Bes. Yesterday Richard Kerlin was paying off h men, and among others who presented their claims for an allowance was Jim Duffy. I thought you were working in the Seld, Jim,” said Mr. Kerlin, as he looked at Dufiy's time slip. “I was, sor, but Imet wid an accident.” “An accident. How was that?” Jim, who is a strapping big, brawny fellow, looked sheepishly at bis questioner but did wot answer. “What kind of an accident did you meet ” Mr. Kerlin again asked. “Treed? Why there are no bears at Oye- I don't understand you,” said Mr. Kerlin, now somewhat curious, “Well, sor, “twas this way. You see they've got what they call @ equirrel whisky down at Cygnet, and when you drink it the devil of « squirrel gets into you and you begin to climb trees right off. It's terrible stuff, so it is.” Jim's story was drowned in « roar of laugh- ter. “You needn't langh.” Jim continued when the laughter had subsided. “but I'm not as bed off as Charlie Lathrop.” What teppened Charlie “Cbarlie wont down to Van Buren and be drank some of the muskrat whisky down there y haven't seen him since.” Yhat do you suppose bas become of hits, jim: “Uh, crawled into a hole or maybe a sewer "sno tellin what wan will do when they Wood county whisky. not eaten a mouthful of meat in twenty years.” “A vegetarian, eb?” queried the listener. “Ne. i i i I i i Hb cf i rt é =8 Hi Hi t] i idl flr ul RE I . diets f tet