Evening Star Newspaper, October 21, 1893, Page 19

A STORY OF MONEY. A.Descending Replacement Among | the Metals Used in Coinage. SOME ANCIENT MEDIA OF EXCHANGE. Many Primitive Forms of Barter Among the Uncivilized. THE FIRST COINAGE. ONEY IS A SUB- ject that has risen in- to such prominence of late that the first extraordinary session of the United States Congress since the seventies has been convened particularly on its account. This event seems to be one of the later stages of @ sort of descending replacement among the metals used eotnage, a process that has, during the cen- turies and milientums of human history, slowly but plainly substituted copper for fron, silver for copper and gold for silver. Each of these metals seems to have made ? 3 e 3 oS Ey . 4 e g FA a@re even ready to speculate on ible appearance in the future of more rare and costly metal to coveted yellow standard lower done to silver. Iridi- jum and palladium, metals scarcely outside the chemist’s laboratory, mentioned, but hardly with seriousness. Russia, in 1828, undertook the coinage of platinum, but the scheme was abandoned in 1845, because’ of the great cost of mint- ing, and because of the instability of its value. Aluminum seems to have larger pros- ects of gaining a place in the monetary system, particularly on a level below silver, ‘with a probability of displacing copper, for the intrinsic value of the material in the URGE nll g i The recent dis- covery of means for the extensive produc- tion of the new competitor is made in part to account for the depreciation of silver. Cause of the Progressive Decline. This progressive and genera! decline in the value of the material basis of the cur- rency is attributed to the corresponding {industrial and intellectual progress of the Face, whereby wider adaptability in the choice of materials is steadily gained, and whereby the walls of custom, erected by human fancy, are generally prostrated. A speculation more inviting than that re- garding the advent of a new substance is Primitive Money, ‘contemplation of a time when this progress shall have either wholly displaced cr radi- degraded all the metals as the medi- value. It may, perhaps, some day be seen from a study of the history of money that the values which men attribute to the precious metals are largely imag- el In the mind of one reared in a civilized try of modern times the idea of money easily connected with that which in the Present stage of human development hap- to be used to perform its functions. in many cases the name of the concrete ob- ject which officiates as the medium of ex- change is the only term by which refer- ence can be made to the abstract function. ‘The word denoting money to the people of one of the north European races has an equivalent in the Lappish language, which still retains its original significance as the mame for a skin in common with its later use. So money to a citizen of the United HI A Comparatively Recent Convenience But perfectly coined money is a compara- tively recent convenience, and the story of the development to that which is at pres- ent im use ts full of interest. Fortunately for the scientist, the present Fetains remnants of the past. The astrono- mer studies the solar system in its early ages by turning telescope and spectroscope toward the primitive cosmic masses that still give variety to the stellar spaces some- what as the old-fashioned animals of Aus- tralia add curious interest to the zoological world. The biologist is favored with exist- ing representatives of some very early forms of life, and the numismatic student is aidéd in his researches into the history of money by looking about among the peo- ies that still swarm upon the various finas of the earth. The natives of the Society Islands as they lived-not many years ago will serve as the subfect of the first lesson. A Paris- fan singer, making a professional tour = ym — aS s Flawrci, Disks. Dentatinny Aborigines’ Money. around the world, gave a concert in the islands. She was to receive a third part of the receipts. When counted her share was found to consist of three pigs, twenty- three turkeys, forty-four chickens, five thousand cocoanuts, besides considerable wantities of bananas, lemons and oranges. t the French capital all this material would have added 4,00 francs to her re- sources, but on the islands it was worth to her only the value of that part which could be consumed. Primitive Barter. Other travelers among tribes where primi- tive barter has not yet developed somethi having semblance to a common med of exchange have been siven a still keener 4 appreciation of the advantages comt from the use of money. Wallace, wh the Malay archipelago, could not procure supplies for dinner without a special bar- gain and much bickering upon each occa- sion. Because the vender of edibles did not always happen to meet with some desired among the articles which the haé to offer in exchange, Mr. Wallace his companions were often compelled to ¢ without a meal. These experiences led to hold in readiness a supply of such eles as the natives would invariably ac- cept. Such was doubtless the first form of m ey—any commodity which was « all persons, which would be rei el at all times, and which pessess in u “ eralized value which constitutes the lubri- cator of commerce. Probably the most primitive mone sisted of the skins of wild anir foundation of this theory {s the assump’ that the earliest creatures which could be called men were hunters. The meat which was procured did not possess the requisit durability, the bones lacked hist, but the dried pelts possessed poth Etymological researches, n show that the earliest races used skins as the representative of value. Classical writ- ers have recorded traditions to the effect that_the earliest currency used at Rome, Lacedaemon and Carthage was made of leather, and such money is said to haveveir- culated in Russia as late as the reign of Peter the Great. In time some particular skin seems to have become the standard. This among the aborigines about Hudson's bay the early traders found to be that of the beaver. Sheep and Cattle as Negotiable Proyp- ery. Sheep and cattle appear to have succeeded as negotiable property. In the time of Homer values were measured in oxen. It is interesting to know that pecunia, the Latin word for money, is derived, doubtless, from pecus, cattle, and that the English word fee comes from the Angio-Saxou word meaning alike money and cattle, which in the German vich still retains only the origi- nal significance. Because counted by the | head, the kine in early Roman times was | called capitale, and to this word is’ traced the business term capital. | An enumeration of the multitude of media of exchange that came into service during the ceatures of human growth would constitut an article but a volume. Cowie shells are well known as the money of the Ind'es. Grain was used in remote Parts of Europe from the time of the ancient Greeks to the present, and in Nor- way it is even deposited in’ banks. Corn formerly circulated in Mexico and Central America. Olive oil performed a similar service in the Mediterranean countries, and tobacco was for a time the money of the plantations of Virginia. Eggs are sald to have circulated in Alpine villages of Switzeriand, salt In Abyssinia, Sumatra and Mexico, cubes of tea in Tartary, dried cod- fish in Newfoundland, hoes among the Malagasy and whales’ teeth among the Continental Dollar. Alaskans and Pacific Island tribes. C1: sical authors allude to a wooden money used among the Byzantines and the state- ments of early writers prove that iron was extensively employed for the same purpose in ancient times. Iron money was not long since used in Japan for small values, In the Homeric age iron seeris to have been much more valued than copper, then the more common and useful. ‘The Precious Metals. The precious metals probably gained posi- tion as the pre-eminent medium of ex- change because of the esteem in which they were held for ornamental purposes. Along with objects of utility those used for adorn- ment early met the requirements of a cur- rency, and because of the constant and universal demand for them they steadily acquired superior place as common stan- dards on stores of value. The finely worked stone implements frequently discovered by anthropologists, it Is suggested, may have been among the earliest media of exchange. Just as diamonds and other costly jewels have been made the means of storing great Values so the bright metals were pruuluvely hoarded and acquired a monetary use. The several offices filled by money were at one time performed not by a single coinage, as how, but by several materials, some con- stituting the medium of exchange, or the standard of value, and others the store of value. When oxen were used in the times of Homer in the former capacities gold was as yet employed almost alone in the latter. Primitively copper, silver and gold were Passed about in ercde lumps and grains. Such were the shekels of the early He- brews and the aes of the ancient BEtruscans, ‘The latter was copper, and held place until silver was first coined by them, in 269 B.C. But earlier than this, as declared by tradi- tion, Paeidon, King of Argos, struck silver money, about 8% B. C., and the tradition is supported by the existence of small stamped ingots of silver which have been found in Aegina. Coined money was unknown in Homeric times. The date above given ts assigned with some degree of probability because coins were used in the times of Lycurgus, and so must have made their appearance about 900 B. C. Early Forms of Metal Money. Some of the earliest forms in which the crude metal was shaped were small bars or spikes, and wire, rolled into bracelets or rings. Abundant specimens of this ring money have been found fn various parts of Europe and Asia, and probably constituted the first approximation to coinage. It is said to be still current in Nubia. Impressions were first made on only some portion of the ingot, spike or ring. The early flat coins were stamped on but one Shell Money. side, and rough edges prevailed until com- paratively recent times. While circular coins vastly predominate, the forms into which others have from time to time been cast are peculiar. Many octagonal and hex- agonal pieces have been issued in Germany, and money in the form of squares and loz- enges has been used in England. Plates of copper, seven and a half inches square, bearing an imprint in each corner, circu- lated in Sweden in the eighteenth century. The Japanese coinage is composed of ob- long flat pieces of silver covered on both sides with designs and legends, and oval Pieces of copper with a square hole in the center. The square holes in the center of the circular Chinese money permit the coins to be strung. Scimitar-shaped pieces formerly circulated in Persia. The first issue of continental currency in 177% figured a sun over a dial and the bore the admonition, “Mind your busi- This, however, was but an experi- mental issue, and until the mint was es- tablished, dn 1792, the several states main- tained each its own currency. The designs are fantastic and varied. To go back to the earliest currency {s- sued by those of European nationality in America, the date reached is 1520 A.D., when Cortez coined copper at San Domingo. The “hog pennies” of Bermuda. 1620, are the earliest American issues by English author- ities. The New England sixpence of 1 was a silver disc bearing on one side simply the letters NE and on the other the nu- VI 5 largest collection of coins in the United States ts that at the Philadelohia mint. Other fine exhibits are at the Na tional Museum, the national treasury building, the New York subtreasury and the rooms of the Numismatic Societies of Philadelpaia and New York. Money Systems of the Indians. The money systems of the American aborigines are peculiarly interesting. The Indian standard of value best known to white people is the wampum belt. This was made legal tender by the court of Massachvseits in the seventeenth century. It w pre-eminently a relic of the orna- ment type of money, and consisted of strings of shell beads made into a belt of ornate design. The shell used was the com- | mon clam of the Atlantic coast, the belt | form of wampum being characteristic of ew York and other northeastern ‘Ihe clam beads reached the tribes Missourl by traftic, where they met ¥| the horn-like dentalcium shells used in a | similar manner by the Indians about the mouth of the Columbla river. The brilliant colored ear shell of California traveled in- land to the Pueblo Indians, and from Mas- sachvsetts to Florila the large spiral shell, rula, was used as currency without mod- on. Apparently the currency of the “mound ‘s"" was the same as that of the In- known to the Europeans, for it is eded that there is no break of contin- en them. The pyrula shell, shell Tennessee river pearls have been the polished stone figures were ed for money as well as for ceremonial cannot of course be settled. Prof. Mason of the National Museum 1s adualiy colecting the material from m time it may be possible to de- > a satisfactory science of American iginal currency. RUSSELL THOMPSON, m the mounds in large numbers. | THE EVENING STAR: WASHINGTON, D. C., SATURDAY, ‘OCTOBER 21, 1893-TWENTY PAGES. = ee |GREEN GOODS GAME. The Old-Time Swindle That Catches the Greenhorn. Tt ALWAYS PROVES SUCCESSFUL, And the Man Who is Deceived Deserves No Sympathy. CLEVER TRICKS OF CROOKS, a i HE EXHIBITION of a genuine green goods or confidence circular by a man of some prominence in Washington, accom- panied by the state- ment that he had re- ceived it through the mails, led a represen- tative of The Star re- cently to make some inquiries as to the manner of operation ss resorted to by conii- dence men In securing victims, A call on Capt. Jas. A. McDevitt, the de tective, was all that was necessary to ob- tain the desired information. “So you want to know sg ething in regard to the methods of coniidence men in the conduct of their business,”, said he. “Well, to begin with, they take the simplest and most eff plan tor finding out the name of a prospective vie- tim. They usually accomplish this through the medium of the court clerk, to whom they write for a poll list giving the name and address of every voter in his county. A confidential letter is Ucn writicn to sev- eral of them, stating thet should they so desire, they will be furnisied with couater- feit notes that the treasury experts are un- able to detect, and in evidence of tais state- ment they will inclose a clipping from a newspaper, usually «ne of some prominence. The clipping is, vf course, favorabie to the scheme, and ts usually gotten up by the confidence men themselves, although they can sometimes run across a paper contain- ing an article favorable to thelr business. The clipping thus arranged by them usu- ally gives an account of some shrewd fel- low who has been arrested charged with having in his possession counterfeit money. He is tried and acquitted of the offense, for the reason that it cannot be definitely de- termined whether or not the money found in his possession is genuine. According to the bogus story it is afterward found out that the man is a notorious counterfeiter and passer of spurious coin. The ctreular shows further that {t is folly to work hard for money when the same can be procured at a very small cost to the purchaser, and he is also assured that no evil consequences will ensue. When the Victim Bites. “Of course in hundreds of cases no re- sponse is received from these letters, but eceasionally a favorable answer is recetv- ed, and if the victim appears at all inclined to bite, he will be sent a genuine dollar note, and told that that is a sample of the money sold by them, usually at about 10 per cent of the face value of the notes. The unwary countryman is instructed to mix the bill in with other money he may have and pass it on some one, thus trying its efficacy as a good imitation. The money being genuine, of course goes through all right. This naturally encourages the vic- tim, and more correspondence ensues. He is cautioned about talking to any one, and told to be exceedingly careful in the conduct of his correspondence. A cipher is sent him to use in his correspondence, and he is told to mail his letters from some other town than the one in which he resides. When the matter has reached a focus the victim is directed to go to a certain city not far removed from New York, go to a certain hotel, register under a certain name, provided by the confidence man, and to re- main qosely in his room until visited by one of their agents, who will give him a Im New York. “The agent upon his arrival keeps a strict surveillance over his man, and cautions him against holding intercourse with any one, telling him that he is in danger of be- ing captured, and that he must conduct himself according to directions or he will have trouble. After the would-be passer of counterfeit money is thoroughly frightened and in complete subjection to the will of the agent he fs placed on a train and taken to New York. He is at once taken to some obscure hotel, and, after being kept there for a period of about an hour while the agent is arranging for his reception at the headquarters of the gang, he is led into an out-of-the-way place and into a shabby office, as far removed from the street as ible. Sitting in the office is usually found an elderly man reading a paper, who, after being introduced to the victim, lapses into quiet again, simply referring the party to his son, whom he states attends to the business for him. The son, a dapper young man, is then introduced, and after some conversation is indulged in, and the victim again reduced to a state of fear bordering on insanity, a large amount of money, varying in the sizes of the notes from one to fifty dollars, is spread out on the table, and the purchaser told to select the denomina- ttons which he may think he can use to the best advantage. This usually results in his selecting notes ranging in sizes from one to five dollars. The money shown him is, of course, genuine money, and an examina- tion always proves satisfactory. After the bargain is made, and the victim has given up his good money for the supposed spu- rious money, the amount purchased by him is placed in a satchel before his eyes and carefully sealed. This is placed on the table, which, by the way, has a false bot- tom, and conversation is again entered into. During this conversation the victim's atten- tion is attracted to something which re- quires him to turn his head in an opposite direction from the satchel, and by the use of an automatic spring attachment in the table another satchel, containing sawdust or some other substance weighing the same as the one in which the money is placed, is substituted. The satchel being exactly similar in every detail, no suspicion is aroused on the part of the countryman, and he departs with the sawdust, not, how- ever, before having been cautioned not, under any circumstances, to open the satchel unti! after he has gotten outside of New York. Ninety-nine out of every hun- dred cannot resist the temptation to take Lng te the satchel after they get back to their hotel, and the deception is discovered. If he has the nerve to squeal he hes no clue with which to capture the swindlers, for he is unable to locate the place in which the transaction was conducted, and even should he be, the chances are very much against his catching them, as they have flown ere he can return. The police, knowing this, and also having very little sympathy for the victim, don’t usually make much effort to assist him. Numbers there are who, after having been thus swindled, keep their mouths shut, fearing danger themselves. Professional Thieves. “There are a large number of profes- sional thieves in the business now. The profits are as large as those to be made by burglary and other like crimes, and the business is less hazardous. The head man is usually the largest winner in the trans- actions, but the runners get a large per- centage of the gains, and manage to live handsomely thereon. “The men who usually bite at these con- fidence games are often men of some prom- inence in their respective neighborhoods, and it is surprising to me why they do not Treason with themselves that if the money is so perfect in every detail and can be so easily passed why it is that the confidence men themse'ves do not pass it, instead of selling it to others at a great reduction. But I guess it Is, as Mr. Barnum so aptly put it, ‘the American populace loves to be swindled.’ A Servant Girl Burglar. “Captain, can you recall any incidents of special interest that occurred during your connection with the metropolitan police force?” was asked of the detective. “Why, yes,” said he. “When I was attached to the detective bureau I had a number of very peculiar cases. I remember,” said he, he lolied back in his chair and puffed away at his cigar, “one cold, blustering night I was seated in police headquarters waiting for something to turn up, when a gentleman whom I well knew entered my office and told me that his house had been entered by two burglars and about $700 worth of jeweiry stolen. He stated that he and his wife had been out to pay a visit to a friend, and that during his absence the friakteatus the epees neat ‘1 had escaped frightening the in ir} fresh, and together we e of the robbery. When I en‘ the house I found the parlors filled with neigh- bors discussing the affair. I immediately asked to see the servant girl, and to my astonishment she was seated in the parlor answering the questions of the guests. “Where did you live prior to your entering the service of this gentleman” I asked her. ‘With Mrs. Starr, in town,’ was the Prompt reply. ‘Whereabouts in George- town? I asked. ‘She has moved now to the first ward,’ she evasively replied. When questioned further as to the exact residence of Mrs. Starr she stated that she did not know exactly where she lived, but thought she had removed to Baltimore. I then took the girl into the dining room, where I made her tell me the whole story. She stated that shortly after the departure of the gentleman and his wife she had occa- sion to go into the back yard to get a pail of water. In a room on the second floor she had left an infant sleeping. Upon open- ing the door she said that two men had sprung at her, and one of them pointed a pistol at her and told her that if she made a noise he would blow her head off. She, of course, made no noise, and they entered the house unmolested. They went immediately to the scond story and entered the room in which the child was sleeping. She stated that she thereupon rushed into the room and snatched the child up, rushed to the front window and hollooed murder. This, she ciaimed, frightened the burglars away, and they escaped with only the jewelry which was in that room. Her story appear- ed plausible enough with one exception. I knew human nature well enough to know that not every mother would have rushed into the room where burglars were at work to rescue her sleeping Infant, and 1 was positive that no servant girl would do so. I thereupon decided that she was the guilty party and told her I would have to hold her lor the robbery. She cried bitterly and firmly protested her innocence. The lady of the house also expostulated with me, saying that she was positive that the girl was innocent. When the girl found out that I was firm in my intention to arrest her she broke down and told me that if ° would let her go she would get me every piece of the missing jewelry. 1 assented to this, and she asked to be allowed to go up This I would not allow, but her to go provided one 'S Of the house accompanied her. young ladies present said she and tn a few minutes h ail of the stolen She had tied it in a handker- froitly tied it on the inner side One of the would accompany her, the girl returned wit pr chief at of her skirt. Innocent People Charged. People are often charged with crimes of ‘2 they are innocent. Some time since I Was sent for by a lady who claimed to have a diamond set out of a ring. She had en in her kitehen immediately before din. ner and afterward had been tn her par. tor ying on the piano. 1t wag at the lat- ter that she missed the setting, and search was at once instituted. She was sure that the servant had it and asked that arrest her. 1 declined to do this until fur- ther proof of her guilt was given me, and in ‘the meantime recommended that a thorough search of the house be made. The result was that the diamond was found in the plano among the wires, where it had Nen out of the ring, and the lady after- ward remembered that before playing on the piano she had dusted it, and the set- ting, in all probability, was lost then. Another case, similar to this, I remember, happened shortly after this one. The wife of a prominent politician who resided at Willard’s Hotel, reported to me the loss of a handsome diamond ring, valued at $1,200. She stated that her servant girl al- Ways took charge of her jewelry, when not in use, and that several days previous to the supposed robbery had shown them to one of the porters in the hotel. The lady was positive that the porter was the guilty one, and after an interview with him I was positive that he was not. She in- sisted so strongly on his arrest that I was forced to take him into custody. He was locked up to awuit trial and remained in jail several days. The lady in the mean- time had gone to New York. I wired her to make another search among her effects, and was rewarded the next day by a tele. gram stating that the ring had been found stowed away in a box, where she herself had placed it. Of course the pris- oner was released, and restitution was made by the lady’s husband. “Only a short time ago I was called to the residence of a prominent physician, Tesiding near the Arlington Hotel, to try and trace a $1,300 eardrop, which had mys- teriously disappeared. In the house were employed four colored servants, and the doctor was positive that one of them had made way with it. I could prove nothing on any of them, and was preparing to leave the house when I asked if they were the only occupants of the house. “All except @ young lady, who is employed as a seam- stress," was the reply given by the doc- tor’s wife. When I asked to be allowed to talk with her, both the doctor and his wife united in protesting that she was inmocent, stating that they would not think of sus- pecting her. I was allowed, however, to interview her and found her to be a pretty white girl, very delicate looking and apparently suffering from consumption. I was closeted with her about fifteen min- utes and at the expiration of that time had gotten a full confession from her. Shi had taken the eardrop and pawned it. She was not prosecuted. ——+e+___ Mra. Disraeli’s Economy. From the South Wales Daily News. Of the rigid economy practiced by Mrs. Disraeli there is one very good story told. Mrs. Disraeli and her husband had come down from London to spend the Easter‘va- cation at Hughenden, and had called on the various tradesmen at Wycombe to order the groceries and other requirements for their ten days’ or fortnight’s stay. It so happened that their sojourn was rather abruptly shortened, and Mrs. Disraeli was seen calling at the grocer’s and other pur- veyors’, taking out of the carriage the non- consumed wares and asking the shopkeep- ers to receive them back and have them re- weighed, and 30 to make a reduction in their accounts. The great statesman, with folded arms, was leaning back in the car- Tage, perfectly nonchalant, but evidently desirous to have no share in the frugal transaction. Such rigid economy was no longer required after an old lady who so admired his books died and left him her entire fortune, amounting to over £40,000. + 0s Net for His Palate. From Puck. Wandering Willy (who has gotten a little off his route and strikes an Indian reserva- tion).—“Look here, squaw; I'm hungry an’ I'm goin’ to help meself right out o” that pot. Oh, yer needn’t yelp; all the bucks are miles away!" Wandering Willy (as he Ufte the lid).— “Great Barleycorn!’ I sees dem every- The Squaw (as she puts the cover bn the pot).—“Hul Dirty paleface thief no like ——eo—_______ ‘How is that revolution in Cubs progressing?” Jinks (who reads the papers).—“It’s all ove You don’t say! What became of the revolutionists?” “They were both caught, I believe.”—Life. this day. toda: gul 19 ARTIFICIAL STONE. How Cunning Man Imitates the Process of Nature. A RAPIDLY GROWING INDUSTRY. Slabs Can Be Made Larger Than Can Be Quarried. MAKING PRECIOUS STONES. HE MANUFAC- ture of artificial stone is one of the Most important and Tapidly growing of the industries of the United States. Over a large part of this country no natural stones for building purposes are found. An area al- most destitute of con- solidated rock is the great plain forming the eastern edge of the United States, from northern New Jersey southward to Florida, extending around the gulf coast, and stretch- ing as far up the Mississippi valley as Cairo, Il. There is practically no material of the sort to be had in the southern cotton belt, where a negro said to an officer of the geo- logical survey the other day: “Say, Mister, ean you tell me where I can get some stuff to make tombstones out of?” Fortunately, in nearly every portion of this region, nature has provided abundant stuff which can be formed into stone by artifice. However, artificial stone is used not only in districts devoid of the natural product. It is manufactured extensively in the very neighborhood of great quarries. In Vermont the debris of the marble quar- ries is ground up and made into a cheap grade of marble. In Illinois and Indiana, where there is plenty of limestone, sand- stone is produced artificially in immense quantities, The kind of artificial stone most universal- ly used is “Portland cement”—a mixture of clay, lime and silica. Silica is obtained by dissolving flint, which may be combined in liquid form with soda, making what is called “silicate of soda.” This silicate, poured over sand, Cements the particles to- gether and forms artificial stone. Such mix- tures of silica are the great cementing mater- jals of nature. The beds of sandstone and conglomerate now quarried were once loose sand and pebbles, which have been solidi- fled by silicates. Now, the clay, lime and silica, which com- pose Portland cement, are prepared and mixed in a dry state. When moisture is ad- ded, the silica dissolved and glues the particles of lime and clay together in a solid mass. The value of the Portland cement manufactured in the United States annually is $5,500,000, and as much again is imported, though there is no reason why all of it con- sumed in this country should not be made here, the raw materials required being read- ily available in unlimited quantities. imitating the Methods of Nature. Crockery, chinaware and all clay products are artificial stones. The methods employed in making them are merely workshop imita- tions of the processes adopted in the labora- tory of nature. In every case the ordinary rock materials of the earth are taken and mingled in definite proportions, as the Great Designer has mixed them, silicates being ad- ded for cementing and solidifying the parti- cles. Sometimes the results are accomplished by means of moisture, as with Portland cement, and in other instances by heat, as with crockery and bricks. All artificial stone products may be divided into these two classes, just as the rocks of the globe have been formed by water or by fire, being classified Accordingly as “sedimentary” or erhaps the most successful application of this interesting art is the production of “granolithic’ pavement. The imitation stone so called is equal to the natural in all ways, and in some respects is more useful. It can be made in larger slabs than can be quarried, and they are often formed with Grooves, so as to expand and contract with- out breaking, whereas those cut out of rock are soon cracked by changes in tempera- ture. The counterfeit may easily be shaped into elaborate patterns for cornices or what not, thus saving much expense for costly carving. Other forms of artificial stone are manu- factured out of gypsum, familiarly known as plaster-of-paris, of which vast beds un- derlie great areas in Texas, New Mexico, Kansas and Colorado. In the mining of these valuable deposits only a beginning has been made. From this source was ob- tained the stuff resembling marble, called “staff,” of which the buildings of the Chi- cago exposition are constructed. The most common use of gypsum is for wall-plaster, which is an artificial stone. But for this Purpose it is not employed here nearly as extensively as in countries inhabited by the Latin races, where beautiful effects are ob- tained with it in the shape of “stucco,” molded to imitate cut and carved stone ai laid over brick. One reason for this fact is that the climate of the United States is Not suitable, the stucco not enduring moist- ure and extremes of temperature as well as artificial stones of silicious composition. In Mexico the use of artificial stone is et A ae pare Under that head may even be ine! the crude adobe, or unburned brick, employed for building, which is simply mud bound together with straw. Nearly every “plaza” in that country is adorned with large and massive fountains and benches of lime and sand. Some of them are two centuries old. Antiquity of This Process. Artificial stone has been used almost ever since the birth of architecture, the earliest forms of it being mortar and sun-dried brick. Mortar, you see, is really an artifi- celal stone—a mixture of sand,clay and lime, which “sets” solidly. Extending over wide areas on the great plains of the west, in Kansas and Texas, is a geological formation which resembles in all respects a mortar- bed on a gigantic scale. It is composed of pand, clay and lime, mingled by the hand of nature. In that region it is known as the “mortar beds.” Here, then, is yet another illustration of imitation by man of pro- cesses employed by the Creator. In some of the ruins of ancient Greece and Rome the mortars have proved more enduring than the natural stones which they cemented. It is largely owing to thei: excellent quality that many interesting structures of antiquity have been preserved to , Those artificial stones which are produced by the fusion of particles un- der the action of heat, brick and chine- ware, are among the most enduring of all known substances, being but slightly sus- ceptible to attacks by chemical agents of air or water. The inscriptions which the men of Babylon, more than 3,000 years ago, wrote with a stylus on clay tablets, which were afterward baked, are perfectly legible y. Go through a cemetery, and you will find that the lettering on tombstones only 100 years old is usually indecipherable. One of the most beautiful products of Italian industry is called “scagliuola,” and is a perfect imitation of brecciated marble— a peculiar marble filled with an- lar 5 The counterfeit is clay into slabs, cor- or architectural ornaments. A mosaic may be termed an artificial “brec- cla—the word, meaning broken bits, being applied to any stone so composed. But nowadays the manufacture of artificial mosaic is pursued on a great scale. Marble or other stone is cut into little cubical or Aiamond-shaped chunks, and these are placed on end close together all over a bi sheet of paper, to which they are attach with glue. Then the a holding the little blocks is turned upside down upon a bed of oft cement, There they are held fast, and, the cement having hardened, the paper and all inequalities are removed by holystoning. An Imitation Marble. One of the most recent novelties in arti- ficial stone is the manufacture of marbie from chalk, whereby effects are produced which are hardly distinguishable from those of the natural material. The chatk, which is very porous, is placed in a bath of some mineral oxide, which percolates through it and gives it color. It is the ‘same process that nature employs, to which the various colorations of marbles are due. The slab of chalk is then placed in a bath of liquid silicate, which permeates it in all its parts and cements its particles together. The resu!t is a stone having the hardness, temperature and the “ring” of real marble. It ie copabie, of receiving a most exquisite polish. Many artificial marbles are now being manufactured, and find a ready sale, owing to the high cost of quarrying and working the natural material. However, there is no danger that they will ever drive the real stuff out of the market. They are of no use ae or for certain other pur- poses. The chalk process will not yield slabs more than six inches thick. " Chemists have attempted with only very moderate success to reproduce some of the precious stones artificially. ds have actually been manufactured in the labora- tory, but of such small size as to be valuable exhibited at the British Moseusy, ees ex at the British Museum, gumm upon cardboard, a magnifying glass being interposed between them and the eye of the observer. Rubies are today counterfeited to a considerable extent. When the process for imitating them was first heard of, about six years ago, it was understood to consist in fusing many small “sparks” together, so as to make a gem of size. The very small rubles known as “‘ ” cost almost noth- ing, so that their utilization as raw mate- rial would be inexpensive. However, it is mow believed that the method used, which is kept secret, involves merely the employ- ment of crude mineral substances. The re- sults obtained are not very satisfactory, the home-made “rubies” resembling real ones not closely enough to deceive anybody Who possesses any acquaintance with gems. They are full of cavities, due to imperfect crystallization, and these cavities are rounded in form. The cavities which occur in natural rubies, on the other hand, are angular always. Besides. the counterfeits have cloudy spots. In Paris the powerful association of jewelers had a law passed some time ago prohibiting the sale of these “fakes” as true rubies. The manufacture of imitation stones of various kinds ts a rapidly growing indus- try In this country. It ts encouraged by the demand for a great variety of rock mate- rials in the building of modern cities. Architects are always looking for new sub- stances to create variety and lend orna- mentation in construction. The produc- ton of artificial stones ts one of the most important of the indirect results of the de- velopment of geologica’ science. INITIATING A NEWCOMER. Drummer That Came in Town. From the New York Sua. “It was while I was stationed at Fort Ni- obrara,” Col. George Barry began as he lighted a fresh cigar at the Lotus Club the other night, “that the first commercial traveler—drummers some people call them— made his appearance in Valentine. He was a slim little fellow, and he seemed to have given a good deal of care to his personal adornment. Where he made his mistake was in taking too serious a view of himself. “He dropped into Valentine on one of the first trains that got through over the new road. He had a couple of fancy yellow grips that must have looked very pretty to him, for he lugged them with him when he went into Dutch George's saloon to get a drink. His other accouterments were a very light striped suit and a jaunty little straw hat which aroused the mirth of the cowboys. “It’s surprising how little some fellows can pick up in traveling around the earth. Now, that chap didn’t know any more than to drop those yellow grips right in front of Dutch George's bar and call for a Manhat- tan cocktail. Yes, sir, he wanted a Man- hattan cocktail, and he wanted it d——a@ quick, too. “You ought to have seen Dutch George look at him. Then he winked a couple of times at the row of cowboys sitting along the side of the room and turned round and began to mix a lot of things together for dear life. The little drummer leaned one arm on the bar and looked round at the row of cowboys without seeming to see the chap that had edged up behind him. Just as Dutch George finished mixing whatever it was he had fixed up for the drummer there was a pistol shot, and one of the boys sit- ting at the sidé of the room gave a yell and fell out of his chair in a heap on the floor. A big six-shooter fell to the floor beside the little drummer and a little cloud of smoke rose between the drummer and the bar. “Well, sir, you can believe it or not, just as you like, but I am telling you that there was a row. Those cowboys yelled like the devil and @wore that the drummer had shot the fellow who had fallen out of the chair. Three or four of them pulled their guns and were for shooting the drummer right there, but one fellow proposed to lynch him, and that proposition went through with a whoop. Some of them carried out the cow- boy who was supposed to have been shot, and Dutch George began looking for a rope. The drummer just two or three times and wilted down into a chair white as a ghost and scared almost to death. Once or twice he tried to say something, but all he could get out was a whispered ‘Why, gentlemen, I—why—what—I assure you I—.” “So they started to take the little chap out to hang him. There wasn’t a tree that would serve in forty miles, and they were a good deal puzzled as to how to get a satis- factory gallows on such short no They kept talking it over before the drummer in the coolest sort of way, and I tell you he was scared. Just as they got to the door of the saloon there was a shout that the sheriff was coming, and before any one could say ‘jack rabbit’ the sheriff and an- other man were there with their six-shoot- ers in their hands, demanding the prisoner in the name of the law. The little drummer was so relieved that he could have hugged the sheriff, and he began to try to talk to again. The sheriff told him to shut up if he wanted to get out alive, and started with him for the door. But just as soon as his back was turned one of the cowboys shout- a: “‘Shoot him! Shoot him! Don’t let him get away like that.’ “The sheriff and his man swung round and whipped out their six-shooters again. ‘Keep back,’ he shouted. ‘I'll shoot the first galoot that touches this man so full of holes he won't need a grave.” “The cowboys took the challenge, and in less than a quarter of a second more than forty pistol shots were fired. It sounded like an ergagement of infantry. The room was full of smoke. Two or three of the cowboys fell to the floor, and the man who was with the sheriff went down with a groan, crying that he was done for. Some- how or other the sheriff got off all right, and while the shooting was liveliest drag- ged his man out into the street. The little drummer was near having a fit from fright, and the sheriff had lost his hat. It was a particularly fine sombrero, with a band heavily ornamented with silver, and the sheriff wouldn't have lost it to save four- teen men from being lynched. So he took the drummer to the corner of the saloon and said: ‘Now, I'm going back there for my hat. Don’t you wiggle out of this spot till I come back. If you do you're mighty liable to lose your life mighty sudden and unpleas- ant.’ “With that the sheriff left the drummer standing there at the corner and went back to the saloon. He hadn't any more than opened the door before the shooting began again, and what had been done before! wasn’t a marker to what {t was that time. The little drummer listened to it for a min- ute and then all of a sudden seemed to re- alize that he was alone and that the road was before him. The next sixteenth of a second he was off up the road like a quar- ter horse, with never a thought of his two fancy yellow grips. “He'd got about a hundred and fifty yards away when the door of the saloon opened, and Dutch George and the sheriff and half a dozen cowboys jumped out into the street with their guns in action. Weill, the way the bullets dropped around that drummer's | feet would beat a Kansas hail storm. And the more they dropped the faster he ran You can talk about your Salvators and the rest of them! If I had a horse that | could run the way that little drummer foot- | ed it out of Valentine I'd bet there wouldn't | another man get a race. I’d win them all, | by gad, sir, I would. I’d break up the horse | racing business. And when it was all over and the bullets wouldn’t carry to the little drummer any longer, the sheriff and the, cowboys, including all the dead and in-| jJured, danced a jig in front of the saloon | and then went inside to drink the place dry, | and.I guess they pretty near did it. And what d’ye suppose that d——4 fool was trying to sell? Ribbons, by gad; yes, sir, ribbons. Trying to sell ribbons in Valen-| tine. Was ita put up job? Yes, sir, it was, and 4——4 well put up, too, for they haven't seen him since. ———e0—______ Music d Insanity. From the St. Louis Globe-Democrat. The effect of music upon children of clouded minds is a subject that is creating much interest among the alienists and neu- rologists of the country, and some remark- able stories are going the rounds about the ; awakening of the minds of little ones who ; Were deemed stupid, if not idiotic. The |mind was clouded, as it were, and music, | that power of divinity, had broken up the | darkness, and after that education was a {simple matter. There may not be a great | deal in the idea, but it 1s worthy of a trial, and music, which hath power to soothe the | | Savage breast, may, after all, be one of the | great agents, when property applied, of re- ; fleving clogged and congested mental forces that need nothing but a stirring up. WORK, WORK, WORK. Tedious Weariness of Modern Nouse- keeping. The Nervous Strain It Costs Many a ‘Woman to Run a Home. Evaug-Jist Chase and His Wife Both invalids for Years. Work, work, work “till the brain begins to swim: Work, work, work ‘till the eyelidsare hesvy and dim, The pressure of housekeeping grows greater every year. Running a home, once a pleasure, is Row the cause of nervous ailments and final break» down. Many a wife, no matter how numerous her ser vants, holds the home on her own shoulders. Her cheery smile grows less frequent, tired nerves make her fretful, and nervous prostration at last exacts the full wages of excessive housekeeping. Paine’s celery compound makes sick, despondent men and women well aud full of the love of living. ‘The nerves demand prompter repair tham the MRS. JOHN K. CHASE other tissues; the changes that go on are more Tapid than in other parts of the body; nervous ex- haustion 1s a cry, for food appropriate for rebuild- ‘ng nervons tissue. The dood also has demands Peculiar to its complex organization. With the most advanced scientific knowledge concerning waste and repair in blood and nerve ‘Ussue, Paine’s celery compound was first prepared. ‘Tt has made thousands of people well. It has meant life and hope to many @ household. Read what Rev. John K. Chase, the evangelist, says, writing from Amesbury, Mass.: “Both myself and wife have been benefited by the use of Paine’s celery compound. I esteem it ‘no jess than my duty to say 8 word in favor of this popular medicine. Both myself and wife have been invalids for a number of years, I being broken in health by long years of arduous work in the ministry, my wife being troubled with nervous Prostration, insomnia, ete. For these conditions of Weakness and debility we have found Paine’s celery compound excellent as a tonic and strength-giver, calming the nerves and producing sleep, sharpen- ‘ing the appetite, relieving the tired feelings incl- Gent to this condition, and imparting vigor and vitality to the entire system, We hear the remedy spoken very highly of by others, and take pleasure al in recommending It to our friends and ac quaintances.” Rev. J. K. Chase, whose lifelong efforts have been devoted to the cause of Christianity, and whore earnest, untiring activity in the evangelica’ field bas been fruitful and far reaching in its ef fects, 1871 years old. In his lifetime he has preache¢ Something like 4,000 sermons,” as he expresses it. “ETERNAL ‘VIGILANCE IS THE, PRICE OF LIBERTY” —Therefore, be VIGILANT For you are amid shoals and quicksands. Fraué and fakirs abound in stperabundance, and you must pick your why carefully—particularly ir the matter of trade—be cureful of WHAT you buy, WHERE you buy and of WHOM you buy. These are thp three essential points to be observed, and you'll bave comparatively safe sailing. If it’s ay You want—we have lots of them in medium ané heavy-weights—Kerseys, Meltons, Tweeds, Cassi meres and Friezes—from Or a SUIT OF CLOTHES—Single or Double breasted Sack Conts—Cutaway Frock Coats Cheviot, Tweed, Shetland, Cassimere, &. We "$7.50 AND $10. A Best SCHOOL SUIT for your boy at $1.00. Other TWO-PIECE SUITS—that are of strictl ajl-wool material—Double-breasted Jackets—of ex- cellent make and well trimmed—brown and gray— our woo PoP B= MEMS PANTALOONS For variety, extent and general excellence must excite your admiration. The prices, too, are eB tremely low— $1.60, $2, $2.60 AND $2.78 ‘The above quotations are “indicators” merely— Serving to show what may be expected when you dive deeper into one of the choicest storks of FINE READY-MADE CLOTHING ever put upon this particular market. VICTOR E. ADLER’S Tex Pen Cext Crormye Hovse, 927 Axp 929 7m Sx. N. W. CORNER MASSACHUSETTS AVA STRICTLY ONE PRICE Open evenings until 7. Saturdays until JA par sold-3in Dr Carleton, 807 12th st nw. at "experience. SURGEON SOOCALIST TO GERTLEMEN ONLY. Ueaduated London, land, 1565; New York, 187. diseases of “the ‘Genito-uriuary System, Bladder Ki or Skin Diseases, Nervous Delstl ity. SCIENTIFIC, SKILLFUL, SUCCESSFUL TREATMENT GUARANTELD. Beware of unskiliful and unlearned endera, Special experience ia abeo- ve it x fossils and bumb lutely necessary. . Carleton is positively the only physi. cian in the city of Washington who limits bis Practice to the treatment of men exclusively. Hours, 9 a.m. to 1 pm and 4 p.m. to es 2 p.m. ‘Sundays, to 2 pm. culy. Consultations et? et the Best. LUTZ & BRO, 497 Penn. ave., adjoining Natisas >! Trunks and Satches at low prices, SELTERS WATER from the Royal Prassian Springs Administration, NEIDER-SELTERS, Nassau, Germany, Just received N. W. Barchelt. 135 Foot