Evening Star Newspaper, December 9, 1893, Page 14

14 _THE EVENING STAR: WASHINGTON, D. C. SATURDAY, DECEMBER 9, 1893~TWENTY PAGES. REAL ESTATE GOSSIP. The Proposed Heavy Cut in the Ex- penditures of the District. APARTMENT HOUSES T0 BE POPULAR. A Great Scheme for Reclaiming an Entire Locality. SOME IMPROVEMENTS. If Congress adopts the views of the Sec- Tetary of the Treasury there will be nearly @ million of dollars of the money which will be paid this year into the treasury by the eitizens of the District which will not be expended in meeting the current expenses. it will remain in the United States treasury or it may be paid out to meet the extra calls which Cong-ess has of late been mak- ing im the form of charges which come wholly out of the District funds. The hole in the ground which is commonly known as the aqueduct tunnel has not yet been j aid for, and it may be that this year an effort will be made to get a big slice for this debt out of the District. However, the impo-tant feature’ of the policy proposed by the Sec- retary of the Treasury is that there will be ‘&@ much smaller expenditure than the rev-, enues for the year justify. It is proposed | that the appropriations for the District ior | the ensuing year shall be the same as the | &ppropriations for the present year, in spite | of the fact that owing to increased taxation | this year as compared with last year the property owners of the District are paying considerably more into the public treasury. it seems that the proposition now is to de- prive the people of the main benefit that comes from heavier taxes, which is the in- creased expenditure in improvements which concern the entire city. } A Big Reduction in the Fands. | Owing to the a>rangement which exists of dividing the current expenses as represented by the appropriations between che general government and the District the loss in funds available to be spent during the com- ing year will be much greater than the fig- ures given above. These figures represent only the District's share in the difference between the sum estimated for and the amount which Secretary Carlisle recom- mend: to Congress to appropriate. If the money was appropriated as the District Commissioners have estimated, and, as is Well known,this estimate is based strictly on the revenues of the District then $1,750,000 would be available for the next year, more than will be the case if only the same amount as was appropriated last year is allowed. The-e is pressing need for the use of every cent of this money to meet the various needs of the District, as stated by the Commissioners in their estimates. The Proposed cut is one of the heaviest ever rec- | ommended, and, in addition to the injury from the scaling down of necessary ex- penses, there ts the injustice of refusing to expend for legitimate municipal purposes all the money which is paid by taxpayers, in many cases this year with great effort and | sacrifice. { If Congress determines finally to leave un- expended nearly $1,000,000 of the money of the taxpayers of the Dist-ict it is not likely that the propositions which have been made to secure authority ‘or the issue of bonds in order to extend the sewer system and the Streets of the city out into the suburbs will meet with much favor. Howeve>, an effort will be made to convince she appropriation committees of the need of iollowing closely the estimates made by the District Commis- sioners, and in that event the city will enjoy the benefit of the increased burden of tax- ation. Apartment Houses. j It Is likely that people who have money | © invest will be apt to look with more fa- Wer in the future upon schemes for the erection of apertment houses than has been the case in tie past. One or two large buildings of this character are awaiting ealy the coming of easier times in the money market to pass out of the condition of being “on paper” to assume the more Substantial outlines which solid walls of brick and stone give. In the past the great majority of such schemes never advanced any farther then this chrysalis or paper stage, and unless the dust has dimmed the lines or the mice destroyed the form they can still be seen along with other speci- mens of architectural drawing which form the litter of nearly every architect's office. At is evident that the time is approaching whea there will be a place for such build- ings in this city, and then, of course, more of them will be erected. The demand for accommodations of this character is shown to some extent by the crowded condition of the apartment buildings now in use. Thus far, with some minor exceptions, the buildings already erected are used more as hotels or large boarding houses than, as they were originally intended to be, fully equipped houses. The occupants of the flats in this city evidently prefer to be rid of all housekeeping cares and so instead of hav. ing a kitchen as a part of the suite they dispense with that necessary domestic ad- junct and take their meals in the cafe, which is a feature of the apartment nouse. In the same way they are rid of personal Fesponsibility for the servants and that is @ consideration of vast import to the aver- age housekeeper. It is probable that the advent of the full fledged apartment house here will yet be delayed for some years to come, and {t may be that it will never be- come one of tne institutioas. In some other Places this cv-operative system of living is not admired as much in practice as it is in theory. A Usefal Speculation. It is a wonder that some one with a long head for speculation does not see money in| @ condition, which is somewhat peculiar to this city. At least it is frequently men- tioned by euthors of descriptive articles about the city in which attention is called to the contrasts presented by the pr. oximity of the houses of the poor and the rich, the stately brown stone cheek and jowl with some little frame shanty. These contrasts are found on the finest residence streets of the city. and there are cases where, instead of single houses, there are whole blocks which present the same extremes in the character of the improvements. One block is faced with fine modern houses, while on the square adjoining the improvements are mean and cheap. The locality is the same and yet there is this pronounced difference, not only in the style of the houses, but im the value of the land. The difference in values is sometimes represented by one or two dollars a foot. It seems that there would be money for any one who would buy outright all the property in one of these squares that have me run down at the heel. Having once gecured pcssession the old buildings could be vemoved and then the value of the ground would be enhanced one hundred per cent and perhaps more. The deterioration ts due to the character of the improvements, and when all that is changed, of course the effect on values would be appreciable. ‘There are several localities where a scheme of this sort could be tried, and even if there Was no promise of gain the plan is a good one, because its execution would be a ben- efit to all the property in the immediate Reighborhood. The Value of Property. When people become sufficiently interest- | ed again in real estate to get excited over values, especially in connection with an as- sessment, the recent sale of property on the North side of F street between 13th and 1th streets will be the subject of a good deal of argument. Last week the property was of- fered at public sale and was knocked down for $14 per foot. According to the new as- sessment, the bottom value of this property fs $8.50 per square foot. If it is claimed that the price obtained ac the auction rep- Fesents the bed rock value of the property, thea it may be argued that the valuation of the board of revision is too low, the same time it may be claimed ¢ Judgment of the first board of 2: Which placed a valuation of about $1 Square foot. was nearer to the Whatever view is taken, the conciusion safely be expressed very cult ma arriv of proy is when the law in re: of taxable values reads, as is the c: the law th: Hes to property i trict, that the true val. be taxed. The basis of half of the market value, but the true or real value, and the attempt to comply with the law 2 at the « “ime avoid @ burdensome tax constitut the Dis: of property should sed really, the chief diffleulty that confronts the District assessors in their work. Some Improvements. Plans have been prepared for a new build- ing for the use of Gonzaga College. It will be locatet on North Capitol street, and in the vicinity of the buildings now occupied by the college, and will be three stories in height. The material used in the construc- tion will be brick with brown stone trim- | mings. The dimensions of the building will be 75 by 156 feet. The architects are Messrs. Barry aad Simpson. Seven small houses are to be erected on Irving street between 6th and 7th streets by D. B. Groff, according to the plans which have been prepared by Julius Germuiller, | architect. 1 | The southeast corner of 7th and M streets | is to be improved by W. Preston Wiiliamson by the erection of a three-story building. The lower floor will be fitted up for use as stores, while the upper stories are designed for living apartments. Joseph C. Johnson is the architect. E. S. Morgan is building a new two-story frame dwelling on lot 10, block 4, West Brookland. As soon as the weather moderates A. Mellen will begin the laying of a foundation for a two-story frame dwelling on lot 3, biock 28, Brightwood Park. A neat two-story frame dwelling is in course of erection on the Bowen road, Good Hope Hill. Dr. W. Sinclair Bowen has commenced the erection of a new two-story and base- ment brick dwelling at 1228 i6th street northwest. The plans were prepared by Ar- chitect Robert Head. A private stable will shortly be built in the rear of 1313 7th street northwest for J. Xander. The record of the building inspector for the week ending yesterday shows a total of six permite for new dwellings at an estimat- ed cost of $12,750. pad es A YOUNG LIFE WRECKED. And All on Account of the Name Given Him by His Parent “You shall not go!” “I must go. I must. It's nearly 5.” The two young men, so dissimilar, stood facing each other, the younger, but stronger Icoking of the two, with his back against the closed door of the handsomely furnish- ed rcom. The elder man, his slight fo>m clothed in correct afternoon costume, clutched nervously at the back of a chair as if for support. It was a strange scene. One brother bar- ring the door to the other. What a diffe> ence in the faces. In the eyes of one could be read unflinching determination, tinged with gleams of pity. The other's told of en- treaty, piteous entreaty, and abasement. The Swiss clock on the wall ticked the seconds away as the brothe-s faced each other. There was a click and the doors of the ornam-nted chateau on top of the time- piece opened and a bird, bearing the fea- tures of an administration Senator, appear- ed and cuckooed five times. The slight man sank into an arm chair. “Let us talk sensibly,” said the other, as he placed a chair against the door and sat in it. “For the sake.of your family, for the sake of your friends, for your own future, cannot you break loose from this horrible habit, that 1s sapping your energy and brain. Three years ago I left you well and happy, and now I find you in this terrible condition.”” “It's all cf no use. Of no use. I have struggled madly, wildly.” “But how did you, a sensible young man, come to fall so far?” “It was our parents’ fault."” “What?” “Oh, you may say please, but it’s true just the same. were all right. You’ were iucky. cailed you Bill, did they win,” There was no more h man named Balfour at an Irish pienic. ‘We didn’t realize what it meant, but you can remember how things were. Your name was Bill and your hair was cut when you put on your first trousers. My name was Herbert Edwin and they put me in Faunt- —a —_ we =e hair grow and tried to curl it, although it had pane no more curl to it enn wis t rough school and college. Why, 1 mign: have been on the foot ball team if the aie tain had not said, ‘Herbert Edwin! Weill, F Suess not.’ That settled it, and all the hone ors I got was a place on the sophomore re- You ‘They and there you were. What ope for me than for a ception committee, which ee Was worse than “Honestly, Bill, when I grad) college and came ‘daria home, I firmly det to do the right thing. ae will show these people becoming a credit in cumstances. I will liv rather, I will rise superior to its baleful in- fluence.” ‘That was what I said, bur it w of no use. aim iors “In a moment of careless Yoolhardiness 1 went to an afternoon tea. No thought of my terrible danger came to me. Through the waving petals of the chrysanthemum ou my coat I could catch occasional glimp- ses of the dim, wintry sun, and. I went calmly to my fate. On the sidewalk in front of the house a benevolent looking old gen- tleman handed me a tract with a pleading, Warning look. It was headed, ‘The ‘Terri- ble Curse, Or Why Thomas J. Bippus Be- came 7. Juniper Bippus.’ 1 thrust the tract in my pocket. Ah! If I had only read it then and taken heed. “As I went up the steps a man pushed by me, putting on his coat as he went. { recog- nized him. His name was Ebenezer Isaac. ‘Where's the nearest bar” he said wildly. ‘I've been poisoned.” With a happy smile the tract man point Ebenezer disappeared. “Inside there were twen one man. His name was Reginald Alger- non, and he owned the place. I was intro- duced 2s Herbert Edwin and was made much of. I drank tea and then I drank more tea and I ate little combinations of air and sugar, clled in flattery cakes, That night I wen home with no a) for dinner, but thoroughly steeped in tea and small talk. The next morning I awoke with an utter loathing for tea. If the Chi- nese nation could have had only one pig tail IT would have spent hours tweaking it. But I recovered and went again. “Ii is needless to speak of the steps in my downfall. ou see the result. I am a con- firmed 5 o'clock tea’er. I make afternoon calls and as soon as 5 o'clock comes, if i cannot get to a tea, I go nearly frantic. Bill, if you love me, if you have any re- membrance of our boyhood days, you will make me some tea, rustle the furniture about, and talk to me of the curious com- plexion and perfectly lovely lace Miss Me- Swatt wore at the reception yesterday.” Herbert Edwin staggered across the room and fell weeping on a divan. See THE CULPABLE PARLOR CLOCK. I said to myself, “I an example of a man spite of adverse cir- ‘e down my name, o1 ty-six ladies and The Part It Pinys in the Traditional ‘Tardiness of Women. From the Philadelphia Times. “it is my firm belief,” emphatically said an emphatic woman recently, “that the un- punctual habit with which we women are most justly accredited can be put duwn, in great measure, to the parlor clock. I con- sider that the influences of that piece of bronze and ormolu, of marble and brass, of iron and gilt, of Sevres and crystal—of whatever its composition—are most pernic- | fous and wide-reaching. It is rarely right, if it goes at all, and yet it is the regulator of the movements of the women of the fam- | ily. They pin their faith to it and set their uncertain watches by It, and rush through life missing trains und appointments, dis- trecting lovers, husbands and sons and get- ting themselves into all sorts of trouble from this one source of evil. “A man discards a watch that varies two or three minutes a week. ‘I must have an accurate timepiece,’ he says; but, bless you, a woman goes gayly on, year, late at church, at club, at the theater Sev vhere—because she will continue to hazard a guess at the hour from the par- lor. clock, in which she knows there is no truth. And there is a question of morality in- Yolved, too,” goes on this forcible speaker. “It is giving our children a false standard of right and wrong to ha’ Jock fair Without and false within always before them. Why may not they s. ‘If I only look well and am an ornament to society it makes no difference about the internal springs of my being?’ I tell you, there is a principle in this matter that we ought to regard. oo as Kranich—I vas be sufferin’ mit insomnia, tox. Doevor -Indeed! do Kranich—Yah. Vhen I vas be asleeb, I vas snore so loud dot I vas geeb mineself avake der whole nighd.—Lite. FOR INDIGESTION Use Horsford’s Aci Phosphate. Dr. W. W. GirDNER. Springfiet, Mass, sa | value it as an excellent preventative of indigestion, and a pleasant acidulated drink when properiy diluted with water and sweetened.” ‘what’ as much as you | christen me? Why, “Herbert ba. | and from that day I was doomed. | he way it was right along | ed to the corner, and | petite | 365 days of the | THE NATIONAL GUARD | Ready to Resume Rifle Practice on} Indoor Ranges. DETERMINED T0 DO BETTER. ene one The Schedule of Company Matches For the Coming Weex. enti Sistine FROM NEW eee NEWS YORK. ‘There was gratifying response to the in- ‘ations issued by the inspector general of rifle practice to officers of the District Na- | Uonal Guard to meet on Saturday evening | last at the Washington Light Infantry Corps Armory. Of course there were many ab- sentees, but those who were present repre- sented nearly, if not quite, all the com- mands in the brigade. Every one of the officers who crowded irto the room of com- | pany C, first battalion, was interested in the object of the meeting, and this interest was made evident as long as the assembly held together. Wor about half an hour Maj. Har- ries argued for an access of enthusiasm in the vital matter of rifle practice. Then Col. Clay, who commands the second regiment, | | Save some excellent advice, calling especial | attention to the fact that drill in the inan- ual and foot movements was useful vy 8 meke easy and speedy the movement aM soldiers to the point where their presence was needed; that the real work of the scl- | dier did not commence until each man was called upon to use bis rifle as a weapon, Generai discussion followed the close of Col. Clay's remarks ind some of the conclu- sions reached will donbtl>ss be of considera- ble value during the current an} ceed- ing seasoi Appiying the Ax in New York. A great evil—from which the National Guard elsewhere frequently suffers—has not as yet made its appearaase in the local or- ganization. Except on vlection nights, Wash- ington is a non-partisan sort of a e!ty, and that political consideracions do not prevail in the D.C. N. is gro < tion, But in New York things are some- what diNerent. ‘There the eighth and s'xty- ninth regiments buve each been reduced tu the style and ns, fe panies of ea: evirg been disban ivates and nor-commirsioned « discharged, and ti cers rendered sap>renui correspondent, comma Politics has a_great deal to do with the demoralization. The remedies supplied by the military laws of the state were not used when their need was first seen because the ; people they would reach had ‘pulls’ that} kept them in the place they were not fit to hold. The usual consequences of a prefer- ence of political Influence to practical worth and personal efficiency followed. Now the most radical sort of cure has to te taken in order to save the regiment from disBand- ment.” Adjt. Gen. Porter's ax has also been oper- | ated outside of New York city, for yester- day the thirty-fifth separate company of Ogdensburg and the forty-fifth separate company of Cortland were disbanded, both ompanies having been beiow the minimum strength and very faulty in all the other es- sentials. Shooting Has Commence Work in the rifle galleries for the season of 18 has fairly commenced, but there has | been less shooting than was expected. Next week there should be a considerable increase in the number of those practicing, for, each evening has been set apart for the respec- tive battalions to conduct, within thet. selves, company team matches. The sched-+ ule provides that the first battalion shall have its four teams of ten men each shoot the scores required—ten shots, in two scores of five, at 200 yards—in its own gallery on |° | the evening prescribed by Maj. Ross. Other | battalions will be represented in the brigad2 | gallery as follows: Monday, second bat- Tuesday, third battalion; Wednes- fourth battalion; Thursday, fifth bat- : Friday, sixth’ battalion; Saturday, engineer corps; Monday, December 18, first seperate battalion; Tuesday, December 11), first and second ‘separate companies and light battery A. The scores made in these matches will be reported by the battalion \inspectors to their regimental inspectors | and the latter will forward them to brigade | headquarters. | A Change in the System. | Several rifle practice reports have not yet been received at brigade headquarters. Sev- eral that have been received will soon be on their way back to the company commanders for correction and completion. The blanks upon which the reports are made could not be less complex than they are, yet more than two or three captains have neglected to attend to some of the important features deemed necessary to a satisfactory report. All reports will be turned over to the regi- |mental inspectors and will be subject to their action until the condition of ea¢h Laper is perfectly satisfactory. When that | Pcint has been reached, Capt. Cash and | Cap*. Bell, each for his regiment, will make an annual report as to the qualifications achieved, ‘and also as to why certain por- tions of their regiments are weaker than others in such an important matter as rifle | Practice. At the close of the current season it is expected that the report system—ex-j tended to the regimental inspectors for the: first time—will be further extended, so as to include the battalion inspectors, and in that way much valuable information not now on record may be secured and filed away for | reference. How It is Worked in the Empire State. In no other brigade in all the National Guard of the United States is qualification as a marksman so difficult as it is here, so comparison between ‘the District of Colum- bla National Guard and other subdivisions of the great “reserve” is not possible. A clear statement of the New York methods, by which so-called “marksmen” are quali- fied by the hundred, will be at once interest- | ing and instructive. ‘The narrative (which appeared In the New York Times) has for | its author one of the cleverest officers that holds a commission in the empire state. Said he: “Did you ever stop to think what takes place at Creedmoor during the shoot- ing season of a regiment? To begin with, | each company is assigned so many targets by the chief of scorers, and each captain de- tails two of his best shots to look out for | the shooting of his men at the targets so as- signed. Supposing a company gets four | targets, ft requires a detail, then, of four | experts (2) to act as ‘qualitiers.’ Ninety per cent of the companies, however, have not a sufficient number of such gentlemen, and | this explains why the number of marksmen varies in different companies. “Let me make this matter clear. John Smith ts called to the firing point and is handed a rifle, which has been sighted by the ‘qualifier,’ and which is equipped with various improvements not supplied by the state, such as a better barrel and improved front and rear sights. His own rifle, the | fife, that ts, which he brought to the range, | | and with which, according to regulations, ne | | is suppsed to do his shooting, is taken away |from him. But John Smith ts not kicking | ata little thing Ike that; and, so long as no | objection is made to the exchange by his | superiors, those in authority on the range, | he is content. John Keeps Pegging Awny. “He loads, fires the first shot of his string | of five, and probably makes an outer at ‘7 o'clock.’ The qualifier promptly pats him on the back, and immediately manipulates the wind gauge so as to ‘bring him into the | bull,” if he takes the same sight. But the poor unfortunate knows nothing about sights, so he proceeds to take in the whole of the front sight, with the result of get- ting an inner at ‘lt o'clock.’ Then he gets blessed’ by the qualifier, and the sight is again altered. The man is kept pegging away until he succeeds in making a score sufficient to give him a medal with the le. gend ‘marksman’ on it. From start to finis! he has learned nothing whatever about ‘full or any other kind of sight, nor does he un- dersiand how the moving of the wind gauge has moved him in or out of the bull. As secon as he has qualified the ‘qualifier’ loses all interest in him, and {f ft so happens that the man has not fired the full number |of shots going to make up the string, he may hit the moon ff he can with those re- maining for all the notice that is taken of him. Imitation Efficiency. “This is a true story of winning the marksman’s decoration,” said the speaker. “I do not believe that 15 per cent of the members of the National Guard understand the correct principles of aiming and sight- ing,.and not 10 per cent could hit a man at 500 yards if they had to estimate the dis- tance. The figures and results of the volley firing at Creedmoor bear me out in this statement. The collective practice, or vol- ley firing, calls for two shots at 100 and four shots each at 200 and 300 yards. Now, say that a company takes 40 men te Creedmoor. it will probably qualify 36 of these, and 32 of this humber will take part in the volley firing. so there will be 320 shots fired by the | company, out of which there may be pos- sibly 80 or 90 hits, What, then, has become of all the ‘marksmen’? Ought not the men who have been certified to by the state as ‘experts’ with the military rifle—the weapon with which they are armed and upon the adequate employment of which the common- wealth relies—ought not these medalmen , to be able to hit the target at least five | times out of ten at 800 yards, and particu- larly so when the target is the figure of a man, or group of men, over six feet hig! ‘This diserepancy in results, which is a er; ing disgrace, can all be corrected in the armories. The Times is absolutely right when it says that the pathway to accurate volley firing leads through the armory rifle range.” —— A FAMOUS “BEAT.” The Story Told by the Retiring City Editor. From the Westminster Gazette. | “Looking back over your work for the Times, what do you consider the best thing you have ever done’ Mr. Crump showed little hesitation in an- Swerlng this question. “Beyond doubt," he replied, “the biggest coup which I ever achieved on behalf of the Times was that | effected over the Baring crisis, of the first intimation of which the Times, as you will doubtless remember, had the exclusive announcement. I suppose it is no exagger- ation to say that never before nor since has a piece of financial intelligence of such tremendous import been the exclusive pos- session of any one paper. Of course, it is the business of the Times to be first, as we all (know,” added Mr. Crump, with a laugh, - “but all the same, I cannot help congratu- lating myself on the part which I was able to play in sustaining its reputation in this respect on that occasion. It was the Times first and the rest nowhere, and I confess I am proud of it. “How did I manage it? Well, it was not easy, and it would take too long to tell the story at length. The first direct intimation 1 had of anything amiss was received from a well-known financier, whose name it is needless to mention, who called on me here. He was evidently in a state of great excit ment, but beyond the bare hint that some terrible financial calamity was impending he could divulge nothing. ‘I cannot teil | You,” he said, in answer to my inquiries; ‘it |is impossible.” However, what he had told me was enough to convince me that some- thing serious was about to happen, and to determine me to leave no stone unturned until I had discovered what it was, even if it involved my remaining at the task all night. Accordingly I instructed my as- sistants to keep the office open and to walt my return, and sallied forth in quest of in- | formation. To whom I applied first I need Not now state. Suffice it to say that he was, and is, a very important personage in the financial world. As it proved, beyond the mere corroboration of the fact that some grave trouble was at hand, he could give me no information, and I ‘was com- pelled to depart no wiser than I had come. “Pursuing my inquiries elsewhere, I found my way eventually to the Bank of England, where I was in hopes I might discover what 1 was seeking. It was past closing time when I got there. The clerks and oflicials were taking their denarture, and not until I made myself known did [ succeed in ob- — admission through the half-closed lors. my way with ail speed to the directors’ quarters, and on doing so observed at once from the presence of various people about that something unusual wes afoot. My sus. picions were confirmed when on entering the ante room [ found the place all lighted up, and learned on inquiry that, notwith- ‘anding the lateness of the hour, the di- rectors of the bank were within in council with the managers of various other great London banking institutions. Of course L realized at once the profound significance = this, and soon made up my mind what to jo. “I sent in at once a note to the governor, and asked Mr. Lidderdale to see me. To my delight he came out almost immediately, and aceompanied me into an adjoining waiting room. From his manner I saw im: mediately that the situation was serious, but more than this I could not ascertain at first. At length, however, 1 put the ques- tion point blank, ‘is is Barings?” He did not answer, but slightiy inclining his head Indicated that my suspicion was correct. ‘Do I understand, then,’ I pursued, ‘that Barings are in a position which necessi- tates recourse to outside assistance?” Again Mr. Lidderdale signified assent in the same manner as before. And then, of course, I was in possession of all that was necessary fer my purpose. Before there had been sus- picions, but they were only suspicions, and until they were verified could not be acted upon. Now I had obtained my verification, and the time for action had arrived. 1 re- turned, of course, to my office forthwith, and the next day all the world was in the secret.” soe, LAUGHS AT LOCKSMITHS, The relar Keeps Abreast With Safemakers imgenuity. Detective William Henderson of Philadel- phia discussed the evolution of burglars’ tools in a recent interview: “The modern burglar is like love in one particular,” said he, “inasmuch as he laughs at locksmiths. His seemingly simple tools indicate that the attempts made to bar his progress are not difficult to overcome, and yet not many years ago they were possessed of a very different idea, and in Old Man Hope's prime brute force was in a measure the leading idea in forcing a safe. In those days one crook was selecteg to go with the gang not because of his brains, but on account of his muscle, and his duty was to carry the heavy tools. Big crowbars, huge logs and strong men were then the order-of things. Safes were literally dragged apart. © “In a few years things went to the other extreme. Men intending to rod a safe would take hardly any tools, but would break into a conventent blacksmith shop, get a crow- bar and a sledge, and then go to the plac to be robbed. As safes were then construc: ed,-a few blows with the sledge would knock off the hinges of one door, and then a pry with the bar would wrench the door away. But safe manufacturers soon caught on, and when the handle of the safe was turned by the owner, bolts shot both ways, removing the responsibility from the hinges. “Then came the era of powder. A sate would have the crack running around the doors plugged with cakum, two little spaces only being left. From one all the air would be drawn by a pump, and through the other powder would be allowed to sift in. When they touched it off the safe would be ripped apart. But this method, despite all precautions, was noisy, and then came the modern tools. In the case of an ordinary safe, the knob is knocked off, a punch re- moves the combinations and a plece of wire throws back the tumblers. In better safes the drag is used. if 1 had a safe, no matter how good, with many valuables in tt, 1 would not trust a burglar alone with it for over ten minutes at the outside. So far the burglars are abreast of the makers of safes, and no improvement is made by the latter that the former in a short time do not learn to circumvent oe Appetising Finds. From Puck, Ragged Robert (on a weary journey “Wot's that yeh jus’ picked up?’ Tired Tolliver—“A bundle o’ some feller has dropped.” Ragged Robert (hungrily) — “That's en- couragin’. Mebby we'll find a finger-bowl by-an’-by.’ toothpicks Having done so, however, I made | FADS IN FANCY WORK. Ja Flower Designs the Poppy Reigns Supreme. A Namber of Timely Hints That Can Be Embodied in Pretty and Appropriate Presents. | Written for The Evening Star. Designs for linen embroidery show noth- ing new, simply because there is nothing hev under the sun. Surprisingly novel ef- fects are accomplished,however, and enough variety to please individual tastes. In flow- er design, the poppy reigns supreme for center piece, doilies, and tea table covers. it supersedes the hop design, the orchid or the many curled chrysanthemum. White and yellow poppies are in favor, but the warm effect of the red poppy in bold re- lief on the white linen is considered most effective. The fancy for round work still holds. Center pisces are round and fringed, so with doilies and mats for dressing table. | Covers for tables are round or square, to fit the surface of the table. A design more unique than artistic is that of the willow pattern, done in shades of blue, and showing the slight unevenness of the trees, houses, impossible boats on impossible water, that is so familiar in the duction that for want of contrast Nan- keen and India are effeciually killed when dished upon linen of this design. Most effective luncheon cloths can be done in heavy linen or duck with a border design conventionally treated in blues, The real German table linen of the kind called “Black forest cloth: have frequently mot- toes in the quaint blue lettering of the old German text. Fancy having one dozen exquisitely em- broidered table cloths and napkins sent by a@ mother-in-law from Germany, as did a young bride! 1a home reproduction of these cloths, any motto is effective; the German text being rather untranslatable to the uninitiated. As a variety io the dull blues the Russian blues and reds in geometrical designs make most effective borderings. These colors, done in old-fashioned cross-stitch on white canvas, are quite the rage for sofa cushions, chair backs and bordering. A bordering in the old keystone pattern, done in red and blue on a white cover, 13 really pleasing to look upon and very simple to carry out. Ii is generally known as tapestry work, but a well-educated kinder- garten infant could discover tke simpie cross stitch on the canvas squire. A Fashion Review. Another old fashion Vived Is emi- nently genteel one of tatting. Machine- : made edge closely resembling tatting is pop- j ular this season on duylies und covers, but , the peculiarly iong effects for hindkerchiet | borders, trimmings, ctc., shoull be made by hand. It is becoming work to a pretty hand, though the interminable weaving in and cut of the litue shuttle is better suited to Miss Austin’s heroines than to a more modern maiden, with a large visiting list and shoals of friends to give Christmas presents. The Mexican iriwwa work is always beau- ‘ttul, and fully repays ove jor the time spent in “pulling ou: threads and sewing theia up ag: as a bewild maseutine [mind describes the pru | Honiton Work is simpler and very fascinat- ing to design and carry out. Reels of Hou- ‘iton lace braid, a fine cambric square, some | Sea island cotton called Honiton thread and plenty of patience are requisites for success. Patterns are traced on the glazed side of tracing linen with very decided ink that shows through on the dull side, on which ; the braid is sewn. The lozenge shape forms jot the braid are filled in with bars and wheels of fine needlework, making exqui- ‘site effect when the linen is cut out and the edge is sewed on with infinitesimal stitches. , Heavy cord crocheted in carved or fret- | work designs over rings or molds make ef- | fective frames for photographs. A new de- sign on the stamped linen is of Louis Quinze wreathings and lovers’ knots sus- pended by a smiling Cupid from the corner of the frame. The little god is already clothed in flesh tints and requires no extra stitches, while the design is carried out in | Pompadour or Dresden colors. A stylish, if somewhat stiff, frame is made of linen, cut and button-holed at intervals that a broad ribbon may run through on each side of the picture and fasten in standing bows on top. Some Dainty Gifts. For small and useful gifts are little linen Jewel bags. These are square bags of chamois leather, covered with white linen on which the monogram or initial letters are embroidered in fine white cotton. The small size are for the little jewels and can be worn around the neck, while the larger bags hold heavier pieces, and hang from the waist. They must be supplied with stout linen tape, and strong sewing is carefully enjoined that no stray diamond may roll between the stitches. Glove and veil cases are useful for travel- ing, in brown linen, outlined in different shades of brown; they lack the refined dain- tiness of th> white linen. Highe: mathematics confront us every- where in the geometrical figures that adorn table covers, sofa cushions and chair backs. “I only wish I had given more time to geometry and trigonometry,” sighed one artistic aspizant as she vainly tried to circle a@ square corner, with a design requiring mathematical precision. Xmas gifts for tiny babies are all soft and sheer. A pillow cover- ed with fine white nainsook embroidered in rial, the hem rolled and narrow lace edge whipped on in the neatest way possible. A Most useful gift is the bathing apron of soft white flannel, heaviiy outlined in a border around the broad hem. ‘This Is tied on with wide ribbon strings in apron fashion, but protecting the lap like the usual bath blanket. The narrow straps of white linen, daintily embroidered and fastened by knots of ribbon to the carriage sides, are very simple and useful. One little carriage blanket, white ground covered with sweet pea blossoms, had a line from Keats artistically woven in and out among the vines. Here are sweet peas On tip toe for a flight. > THE WALL, sy Way to Rouse Sleepers When the Door Bell Fails. A man who lives halfway between 59th Street and Harlem, New York, spent last summer in town alone in a big brown stone house with two servants. He likes to sit up late at night writing. At 2 o'clock the other morning he finished a batch of let- ters he thought important, and wishing to catch the early mail he started out in smoking jacket and slippers. As soon as he had closed the front door behind him he remembered that he had left his keys in a side_pocket of his street coat. He posted the letters at the street corner, went back and rang the bell. The house, as silent as the tomb, gave back mocking echoes of the gong that jingled in the sement as he pushed the button. The servanis on the fourth floor both slept unmindful. I've pushed that button until my thumb is sore,” said he to the policeman under the nearest elevated station. “What shall I do?" The “cop” went back with him and they made futile efforts with the officer's bunch of keys to unlock the street door, The policeman gave it up. The locked-out man went in despair to look for a drink. On his way he met a Herald man returning home from work, and told him his plight. “Easy enough to get in,” said the latter. On the way the reporter picked up a loose stone the size of one's fist. “Not going to break a window, are you? I wouldn't like to do that,” said the homeless one, anxious- ly. “Never fear,” was the reply. The reporter climbed the stoop and rapped once, twice, thrice, quite genily with the stone against the brown stone front wall. The effect was surprising—even stariing. Windows in three or four houses on either side flew up, and as many heads were stuck out of windows inquiring in perturbed a cents what had happened. A very sleepy maid servant looked out of the exile’s hom “Oh, iUs you, Mr. Arthur? 1 thought b: glars were getting in. I'll let you in once." “Confound Mr. Arthur middle-aged neighbor. had been exploded in my parlor. can’t get home at decent hours— bang! went his and the other windows. You can hardly hear it from the street, but it sounds like an earthquake inside the house—that rap on the wall. It’s an old ck, found useful by the reporters sent out late at night to wake up some prominent citizen when important news requires that he be seen at once. The leaden butt of cabby’s whip is the favorite weapon. RAP GEN An at sang out a “I thought a bomb and old blue china. So faithful is the repro-/| If people | RATS IN A Of Value Miners Seavengers and in Giving Warning of Danger. The first rats were brought to the Com- stock from California in freight wagons Principally, most likely in the big “prairie | schooners,” stowed away among boxes and crates of goods. Their rapid increase after their first appearance on the Comstock was astonishing. From ten to fourteen are pro- duced at a birth, and, according to the En- gineering Journal, there are several litters each year; besides, a rat is a great grand- father before he is a year old. Then the rats that colonized the Comstock towns en countered no enemies. There were no cats in the country. The rats soon discovered the mines and found therein a congenial home and a home free from the terrifying presence of members of the feline tribe. Never was a cat seen in any of the lower levels of the mines, though they sometimes | prowl about the surface of the tunnels. In | the first opening of the mines there was no place for the rats, but as soon as the tim- ; bers began to be set up and cribs of waste rock built they were able to find safe hid. ing places; also there was room for them everywhere behind the lagging of the drifts. As they facreased in numbers there was on LVER MINE. rapid extraction of ore by the miners. They doubtless scon discovered that, though man was their enemy on the surface, he was their friend down in the underground drifts and chambers. He shared his meal with them as they scampered by. ‘The warmth of the lower levels appeared to be very congenial to the rats, both old and young. Cold is a thing unknown to them. 1 is as though they had been given immense ture they desire, from 60 to 130 degrees, is at their command. Rats are useful as scav- | engers in mines. They devour all the scraps ground by the miners while at lunch, eat- ing even the hardest bones, thus preventing bad odor. As the decay of the smallest thing is unendurable in a mine, the miners never intentionally kill a rat. The miners have a high opinion of their Sagacity. The rats generally give the miners the first notice of danger. When a big cave is about to occur they are seen to swarm out of the drifts and scamper about the floors of a level at unwonted times. The settling of the waste rock probably pinches the animals in their dens, causing them at once to leave in search of less dangerous quarters. At times when a mine has been shut down for a few weeks the rats become ravenously hungry. Then they do not scruple to devour the young, old and weak of their kind. During the suspension of work in a mine that is not connected with other mines that are running everything eatable in the underground regions is devoured, even to the candle drippings on the floors. When work is resumed the almost famished crea- tures are astonishingly bold and fearless. Then they wili come out of their holes and get upon the underground engines (even when they are in rapid motion) and drink the oil out of the oil cups, quite regardless of the presence of the engineers. A fire in a mine slaughters the rats by the wholesale. Few escape, as the gases penetrate every nook and cranny of the underground re- gions, and often so suddenly as to asphyx- fate them in their homes. — see. SHUTTING HIM OFF. An Assumed Ignorance Was Too Much for the Street Car Bore. From the Buffalo Express. “Well,” said the man with the battered derby to the man who sat next to him in | a West avenue car last night, “I see that the silver bill was passed. “Up or down?” inquired the man who sat next to him. ““Up or down? Why, neither; just pass- ed, you know. Passed the Senate. “Made the Senate take his dust, hey?” “Made the Senate take whose dust?’ ‘Why, Silver Bill's ‘o, no. This wasn’t no trottin’ race. The stiver bill pased the Senate, you know “Anybody hurt?” By this time the man with the battered derby didn’t know what to say. He stared at the man who sat next to him in amaze- ment. Then he straightened Up and tried it again. “Of course, nobody was hurt. How could they be?” & Wasn't running on the same track, ‘On the same track? Do you think this was a bloomin’ cattle train goin’ by a fast mail or somethin’? The silver bill—that bill about repealin’ the purchase clause in the Sherman law—passed the Senate of the United States. Now do you understand?” “Didn't the Senate want it to get past “Why, certainly, most of it did, or it Wouldn't have passed it, would it?” > “I dunno. They might have built a fence ma the waik or locked the door or some- In The man with the battered derby clasped and unclasped his hands nervously and hitched away from the man who sat next to him. “Say,” he said finally, “didn't you ever heat of the Senate of the United States? You must have a kind of an idea that it’s a hoss car line or a plank road or a@ cement sidewalk. You must be tired.” “I suppose I am,” said the other man, ‘but did you ever stop to think that that bray of yours might make people who want to think a bit weary, also?” The man with the battered derby caught the connection and was so effectually si- lenced that he made signs to the conductor when he wanted to get off. NEGRO SUPERSTITIONS. Voodoo Women Who Cause Any Amount of Trouble by “Picking up Tracks. “Did you ever hear of‘picking up tracks? ” Congressman John Allen of Mississippi asked a group of southern members. It Was something new to all of them, says the St. Louis Giobe-Democrat. “Well,” explained Mr. Allen, “it was new to me until a short time before I left home to come here for this extraordinary session of Congress. I went into the country vis- iting some of my people. When I got there I found great excitement prevailing. A tracks,’and it had broken up families. very- body was afraid. Nobody knew whose track might be picked up next. “It seems the young woman had a grudge of some kind against a man and a woman. She had followed them and had ‘picked up their tracks.” Then she had gone off and buried the tracks she had picked up. She had put dog’s hair with the tracks of the man and cat's hair with the tracks of the woman. After that the man and the wo- man couldn't live together any more t a cat and a dog could. They separated and the whole community was in a state of uproar when I arrived. They were about to send off some thirty mil for a negro prea = med that he was gifted with the power to break the spell. One woman said she never gave the voodoo wo- man any chance to pick up her track: Whenever she saw her comiing she sat right down wherever she might be and waited until the voodoo woman was out of sight. “Picking up tracks,” continued Mr. Alien, “seems to be a new idea among the negroes. You've heard of people perishing with lizards and snakes under the skin? I had a little experience with a case of that kind. A justice of the peace aciually bound a | man under $1,000 to go before court for putting lizards under the skin of another man. I had the prosecuting witness in my room, and put him through an examina tion for the benefit of my fellow lawyer The negro had his arms tied tightly with strings. I asked him what that was for. He said it was to keep the lizards from get- ting together. He actually believed he could feel the lizards moving about. After a tew questions, he forgot he had said that he had lizards confined by the bandages, and told a story that didn’t agree with it. He jsaid that whenever he ate anyt | could feel the lizards his shoulders under stomach to get their questions to him and belief in his affliction. lizards under the skin. out that some lizards had been buried at jthe foot of a tree. If these buried lizaras had been discovered earlier the life of the afflicted man could have been saved, but his friends didn't know where the lizards were until it was too late. That was what the negroes said. ———-eee coming down from his chest to his part. 1 put many couldn’t shake his That man died of Then it was found | A White Dressing Table. From the Ladies’ Home Journal. A very pretty toilet table seen recently at one of our large shops, and intended for a young girl's room, was finished entirely in white, the entire frame being covered with double-faced white canton tlanne ‘The mirror was a large square one. the top was a broad band of finely dotted Swiss muslin, caught at ner with rosettes of white gros-grain rib bon. The side draperies were trimmed wi narrow ruffles of the muslin, and the lowe jpart with the musiin in large box | plaits, finished at the upper edge with a quilling of ribbon. Over the top of the table was a cover of the musiin lined with wht silk and finished with five rows of narrow white ribbon. This was made as a sachet and perfumed with orris r ler. The pin- cushion which was to accompany this table Was a large one of white sill and musiin. all sides an increase of space through the! hot houses tn which to breed. Any tempera-| of meat and other food thrown upon the | young negro woman had been ‘picking up | ing he | [HACKNEYS IN VIRGINIA. Half Bloods at New York Suggest a New Field for Horsemen They Could Be Prone ly Raised in the Olé Dominion for the Washingt Market. | Henry Fairfax of Loudoun county, Va, passed through Washington the other day returning to his home, Oak Hill, near Aldie, the old farm of President Monroe. Mn Fairfax had been to New York to attend the horse show, where his prominence as @ hackney breeder made him one of the lions | of the week. His shrewdness in importing in SSS, when the hackney was almost un- known to American horsemen, that won- derful stallion Matchless of Londesboro’, has brought him praise on all sides. Matchless, now the propery of Dr. Seward Webb, won the champion prize under the judgment of Mr. Frank Usber, who came from England to award the honors in the hackney compe- titions. It seems strange that so fine a horse as Matchless should not have been | kept in the neighborhood of Washington, | Which is famous as a market for hackney coachers, and probably contains as many | fine turnouts of this breed as any city in | the United States. Dr. Webb, however, was willing to pay Mr. Fairfax $15,000 for the | horse in view of his excellence as an indi- vidual and the remarkable performances of | his sire, the famous Danegelt, who sold last year to Sir Walter Gilbey for $25,000, a price that has never before been paid for purely coaching or roading horsefiesh. Mr. Fairfax was well-treated at Madison Square. He gave the New Yorkers a splen- did surprise in a class created by himself for the special purpose of showing what cculd be done with the hackney cross on American trotting and thoroughbred mares. This is the practical side of fashionable horseraising, and Mr. Fairfax demonstrated that Maryland and Virginia, the region round about the capital, possess rare ad- vantages for a profitable business in pro- ducing half-bred stock. He showed eleven three-year-old half-breds that were bred on his farm by the horse he formerly owned, Matchless of Londesboro’. Seven of the eleven were from Virginia-bred mares. The others were from Canadian mares, whch Mr. Fairfax bought from M. H. Cochrane of ihurst, Canada, the noted hackney farm- er of Quebec, who has imported several sons of the great Dancgelt, and among them Danesfoot, now at Oak Hill farm. Made a Sensation. Mr. Feirfax took first prize with the chest- mit filly, Alantna, and second with another chestnut filly, Alberta. Alantna was show in the Philadelphia horse show last spring, and there created a sensation. She is a su- perb specimen of the coach type. There were scores of men who openly declared that this beautiful Virginia filly was the handsomest piece of horse flesh in the show. Certainly it would be hard to conceive of a better form, and a sweeter neck and head never came down the road. Her action is superb, both for harness and saddie. The high sensational gait of the hackney is somewhat toned down by the cross-breeding, and the trotting ancestry of her dam shows forth in a stride that not jonly conquers space but exemplifies the most delightful poctry of motion. It is to be Tegretted that the canons of fashion require | Such a severe docking as her owner suffered | Alantma to undergo. Her magnificent con- j tour is seriously injured by this unhorse- |manlike practice. The young horses Mr. Fairfax took to New York show that the hackney cross brings good size—greater than the pure-bred hackney attains—and |there is undoubtedly a gain in form, style and harness qualities, Qualities of the Hackney. The hackney is unsurpassed on the road for steady speed and endurance for long distance. This the half-breeds are said to possess, as well as a disposition to show speed,which they get from their trotting and unning mothers. Mr. Fairfax sold two of ais three-year-olds to go to California for the handsome price of $2,000. This for half- blood stock is remarkably good price, and seldom heard of. These two fillies will be put to use by their new owner before a car- riage at once in their three-year-old form, and have the size and subs.ance to endure steady work and plenty cf {t. As much could never be expected of aay other coach breed known to American horsemen. it points a moral, especially for farmers | and horsemen around Washington. Instead of breeding trotters and forever gambling in the hope of getting a Direct or a Nancy Hanks they should study the practical busi- ress side of horse raising and try to pro- duce a style of horse for which there is and always has been a gilt-edged demand here in Washington right at their own doors. There is some sense in raising thorough- breds, for they possess substance for work of the race track, and there never was a ‘etter horse for saddle or wagon than the geod old-fashioned English thoroughbred. The horse that is bred for a mile spurt ts ali right enoush, provided he can make the spurt in 2.04, but if he takes 2.90 to it he is simply good for nothing—he cannot pull a buggy or a meat wagon, is a torture under the saddle and, with his ewe neck and light wet is never a thing of beauty. ; The hackney half blood is not only a beauty, but a worker, and for him there is today the best market that any class of horses ever had in this country, notwith- standing the general prostration of the hy market and the genetal financial de- pression. If stockmen around Washington Would take the nint given by the success of the Fairfax half-bred hackneys in New York they would put many dollars to their credit and bring sunshine and prosperity where now is oniy gloom and loss. ——_ Rearing of Japanese Children. From the Medical Press. Custom and national sentiment would seem to have made the lives of children in Japan delightfully attractive for them. pan nas even been described as the para- dise of childhood. One of the most curious points in this connection is that the chil- en are always suckled by their mothers; artificial lactation is altogether unknown. The children are suckled until their sixth year, and in language unmistakable may be rd asking for the lactatious fountain. | ‘Thus: as no cow's milk is required, the cow is only used as a pack animal in the cities. In view of the almost universal use of cow's milk in other countries, ite exclusion from the diet of the Japanese raises the interesting subject of inquiry as to whether or not the race benefits by custom, and Dr. A. S, Ashmead of th New York discusses the question in the cur- he Sel-i-Kwai medical jour- place it is assumed that rent number nal. In the first indirectly the absence of cow's milk is | most benef in consequence of no | other nour ent being available, the r is compelled to suckle doing which she feels the king after her own health mothers chiefly live on and other pro- and beer are this nd child- he chil- | Japanese if uthor holds ao ae reulosis is cow's milk is by no but the among the upper . in om the systematic custom ob- s of close intermarriage.