Evening Star Newspaper, September 29, 1894, Page 16

16 Sie tm grrrer? EVENING Stan, SATURDAY, ‘seprevpnt! $ TAS —— §, is04 TWENTY PAGES! HATTERAS FOLKS A Quaint Community Cut Off From the World. UNWRITTEN LAWS NEVER BROKEN People Who Are Always Contented and Virtuous. ALL TEMPTATIONS ABSENT Correspondence of The Evening Star. CAPE HATTERAS, North Carolina, September 25, 1804. APE HATTERAS IS a little world in it- self. An ideal com- monwealth, where there are few written enactments, but where even the un- written laws are never broken. A con- stable here could live a lifetime without be- ing called upon to make am arrest,while a lawyer would die from sheer inani- tion, for all the aifferences are settled by the preacher, who is the Richelieu of the island. It is as utterly cut off from the outside world as any island in the Pacific, and here, “far from the madding crowd,” the islanders live their simple lives, undis- turbed by the cares and ambitions which harass those who dwell in cities. If free- dom from all the obligations of society and the absence of the temptations of wealth insure happiness, the Hatteras islanders should have attained the summit of human biiss, The only form of recreation, especially for the women folk, is afforded by their at- tendance at the Baptist Church. The serv- ices are held at the plain, bare little struc- tere which serves the double purpose of school house and church, and are of the emotional order, very much the same as those of the early Method.sts. “Love feasts” and “experience meetings,” followed by a sermon, common to all the country districts in the ante-bellum days. These homely ccn- gregations are untroubled by doubts or Types of Coast Girls. creeds, and nothing has been heard by them of the “revised edition.” I asked an old inhabitant what was the “besetting” sin in this good community, and, after thinking deeply, he said it was envy and backbiting, and these were accounted for by the fact that positions in the lif? saving service and Nght house stations are much coveted, as they present the only immunity from almost unpaid labor known to these people, and naturally the struggle for “place and power’ fs made here as elsewhere, and the quali- fications of the rival contestants are dis- cussed at the kafing place—the grocery and post office—always combined. ‘The homes of the dwellers of the Hatteras district, outside of the government light- house buildings, are pretty much salike. They are built for use, and nothing else. A native would as soon think of wearing a silk hat and of carrying a cane, or of en- couraging his wife in wearing false hair and padding, as of erecting a bay window, or indulging in any departure from the re- ceived and recognized style of architecture. These houses are generally made of lumber, which is cheaper than logs. They have a large single room, which is the general sitting room by day and sleep- ing chamber by night. Overhead Is the attic, with a ladder to climb up to it. A cupboard with no door holds the family china and plate, these being limited to cups and plates and a scanty. array of tin es. A rickety table stands on the mid- die of the floor; an oilcloth tacked on fur- nishes the table “linen,” which is “swab- bed” off after each meal, and remains in use as long as the faded tatters adhere to the boards. The cooking utensils are very simple and few. A pot to boil in, a frying pan and a tea kettle comprise the measure of the de- mands of the islander, and the one outfit will usually last a lifetime. In the corner of the room stands the pride of the matron and the admiration of the children—the bed. It is a huge affair, some three feet thick, and broad and long in Proportion. A baby pitched into its capa- cious depths will sink out of sight as com- pletely as if absorbed by a quicksand. This Fepresents the “savings of years” of wild goose feathers and the down Hatteras Light. ef the swan. It is supported upon a bed- stead whose posts are as thick as a young tree. The slats are ropes corded and inter- laced. On a cold winter's night these beds are all one could desire to dream in, but on a hot night when the thermometer is sta- tioned at high temperature it is a place of torture, which none would undertake to en- dure the second time. The Hatteras people never change the style of their bed. It rests there, an object of veneration, from season to season, from year to year, and is handed down from gen- €ration to generation. This bed is always tendered as a mark of the highest respect to the guest, the “stranger within the gates.” The grown daughters sleep with the younger children in the trundle bed in the attic, the old cou- ple on a “shake down” on the floor. It is etiquette for the guest to arise first in the morning, dress, go out and make his ablutions in the back porch, where a bucket of water, a tin basin, a homely coarse towel and a “gourd” of genuine soft soap—which smells like sulphur and sticks like tar—are the adjur cts of the toilet. Then he can take a oll, and on his re- turn will find the family pursuing the or- dinary avocation of preparing the break- fi Sometimes it happens he returns too soon, when he may catch a fleeting glimpse of bare legs flying up the ladder or a dingy white-robed form diving under the bed. It is considered bad form, under such circum- stances, to apologize; only light your pipe at the fire and go out again, preserving a discreet silence, The people of Hatteras are exceedingly hospitable. A tramp could live among and upon them indefinitely. The latch string here literally “hangs outside the door,” and what they give is given heartily. The food is not choice. Corn bread and fat pork—the latter fried or boiied—varied only by the fish, which are plenty, together with a kind of drink called “youpon,” which ts a native tea plant, is the almost invariable bill of fare. This tea plant is found In the woods. It is a shrub not over three feet high and blooms in July. It is known in the north as the “New Jersey tea,” and enters lazgely into the adulteration of the genuine article. Though the island has plenty of cows, there is no milk or butter in use. Come to think of it, there are many things which we denizens of the city consider indispensa- ble that these Hatteras people know noth- ing of. Trey iuave never tasted a straw- berry or tce cream; buckwheat cakes and sorghum are undreamed of luxuries, and vegetables are exceedingly rare. This diet, poor and coarse, has told upon the natives, and has made their personal characteristics marked. As a type he is long-legged, long-armed and long-bodied. He ts skinny, with a long wrinkled neck, like a turtle, which resem- blance is still further emphasized by the fact that his neck, like the turtle’s, sinks back between his shoulders, when not it use. He merely shaves, but his beard is never of luxurious growth, nor ever ornamental. His features are coarse and rugged and Weather beaten, to a dusty tan color. His movements are slow and deliberate as is his speech. They all chew tobacco. They all wear “store clothes” now, as they are cheaper than homespun. Withal they are as honest as the day, and truthful. The women, especially the young girls, are silent and undemonstrative. They are all retiring and modest, and rarely answer in more than monosyllables. Some few are buxom and voluptuous look- ing while In their teens, but at middle age they are far from being beautiful to look upon. Their style of dress is primitive in the ex- treme, and a dressmaker’s bill is unknown. The universal calico dress presents no A Hatteras Store. variation In make, and very little in color. It consists of a long straight skirt, narrow and untrimmed, and a waist or “body,” plain and “unfitted,” with unshapely sleeves fastened most unbecomingly close to the wrist, in a straight uncompromising line. This is most trying. even to a plump and shapely arm, but when it accentuates a long red wrist the effect is painful. The color of these gowns {s selected with an_eye to “wear” only, and it would seem useless to make any choice as judging from the predominant hue, a dingy blue or tan— they might have all been originally cut from the same piece. The slab-sided sun bonnet falls limply about the faces of matron and maid alike. No one objects to the ungainly head gear in the case of the former, but one sometimes ‘wonders why the possessor of a sweet come- ly face should submit to its distiguration. But vanity seems eliminated from the Hat- teras feminine heart. Gloves, ribbons, laces and flowers may enter into their visions cf a future life, but most certainly give them very little concern in this. Their morality is most marked. There has not been an illegitmate child born upon the islands within the last ten years. This showing, in a community of four hundred souls, speaks volumes for the virtuous lives led by these people. It pays to be boy or a man “critter” as the girls‘ call him in North Curolina, es- pecially in Hatteras, for he has every ad- vantage that can be given him. A girl is Uttle better than a slave to her father and brother, and after marriage the care of the entire establishment falls upon the wife. She rises before dawn, makes the fires, cooks the breakfast and waits upon her husband while he eats, keeping off the files and humbly awaiting her turn, for never under any circumstances does a Hat- teras woman seat herself at the table with any man—father, brother, lover, busband Hatteras Live Oak. or son. AJl the domestic duties are at- tended to by her. The cattle are driven to pasture, the piss fed, water carried, all the sewing, knitting, cleaning, cooking, washing and ironing, is her portion, and always these duties are in addition to the care of her children. Here is found the in- evitable and ubiquitous baby. I never saw a Hatteras woman idle. For her there is no “spare time” from daylight to dark. The men undergo hardships and labor uncomplainingly at their calling, but while at home are nothing but idlers. It would seem that this state of affairs is but the continuation of customs and habitshand- ed down from the Indians, who originally occupied Hatteras, this being a most fa- vyored spot for them, the ocean and sound supplying them with fish and fowl and the land with fiesh. The early white settlers naturally caught their ways and such hab- its strengthen with growth, and it would be a brave “reformer” who would attempt an innovation in such glorious liberty as the men here enjoy. But these women do not realize their condition. They accept Hife and its demands unquestioningly and uncomplainingly, and are presumably con- tent. Life is not a struggle for bare subsist- ence to them. They have shelter, fuel and food for the taking, and being in ignorance of the luxuries of life, they have no unsat- isfied longings. The men are all, perforce, watermen, there being no industry, outside of the government service, in which a man could make a living on the land. Agricul- ture does not warrant attention or toil. The little patches of corn and straggling vegetables take daily chances of being smothered with the sand. There used to be gtoves of splendid live oaks at Hatteras, which protected the island from the en- croachments of sand and sea, but this wood —its “knees and forks”—is_ peculiarly adaptable for shipbuilding, and, with the usual shortsightedness of man, where the present penny outweighs the possible pound, the islanders fell upon their natural pro- tectors, the trees, and laid them low, and from that time the sand gradually swal- lowed up every vestige of vegetation. On every side the waste flat Jands stretch out in desolation, the unsightly stumps of the faithful oaks making mute but unavailing protest. At the breaking out of the war the peo- ple of this section were divided in senti- ment. Some volunteered into their state regiments, but the majority pursued the even tenor of their way. One loyal man hoisted the national colors on a flagstaff near his house and endeavored to raise a company for the Union army. The con- federates sent a force from Roanoke Island to conscript the last man of them. The attacking party approached in a sloop, with @ company of infantry and one piece of ar- tillery. Their advent caused a flutter such as Hatteras rever witnessed before or since, A few men were secured, but the many, panic-stricken at the noise and roar of the cannon, took to their boats and actually put out to sea, nor did they return for sev- eral days. After the first year the islanders, as a general thing, enlisted in the federal serv- ice, and made fine guides, fishermen and scouts. Those readers of The Star who note with Interest the sporting reports from the rivers, forests and heather, have rarely, if ever, seen the name of Hatteras mentioned in this connection. Yet, at some seasons, Hat- terag has no fe saad as a game preserve on _this continent The ocean and the sound and its estuaries afford feeding and resting grounds for num~ berless wild fowl, while the flight of bay birds and snipe surpass computation. The yellow-lege make their appearance about the Ist of May, and by the middle of the month js the season for bay birds. But the great distance to a market debars the “pot hunters,” end the price of ammunition the hunter generally. The light house keeper had the only set of decoys I saw while there. The manner of killing these birds is very simple. One scoops a hole in the sand Near some shallow pond in which he places the decoys; he then squats down and whis- tles the birds to him. After a rainy night these birds could be killed by the thousands. Later, come the “robin snipe,” who feed on the beach. They are in great flocks, and one shot into their midst will supply a fami- ly for a week with tender bits. Then there are the game curlew. These rarely go in flocks, but solitary wings its flight above the decoys. To get one of them, the gunner is obliged tu take a long shot. In June, when the first flight of the bay birds is over, the weak fish begin to bite; then the trout are freely taken in the sound. Crabs and clams are here by the million, but no one seems to care enough for them to pre- pare them for the table. But the flush times for the natives is in the autumn. The migratory wild fowl, fol- lowing the trend of the ocean, driven by the storms, seek shelter on Hatteras. The brant, that king of wild fowl, “pintails,” “shuffiers,” mallard and teal come to this section in uncounted numbers. This is the time when the Hatteras native really hus- tles. He cleans out the old fowling plec touches up his wild fowl decoys (if he hi any), and builds his blinds of cedar boug! in the shallows of the sound and then lie: in ambush with his decoys around him. Some have battered sink boxes and big guns. This game finds ready market, there being always schooners and sloops in wait- ing to buy up game and fish and to trans- port the same to Norfolk, where ice-filled reservoirs are prepared for their storage, from whence they are shipped to northern markets, Very lite of what Is made in this busi- ness falls to the share of the Hatteras native. Possessing no facilities himself of reaching the market for game and being unable to secure a monopoly of the gunning he needs must divide very unequally with these roving traders, for they not only take at low prices all he can shoot, but they do business on their own account, and keep up a conatant fusillade, by which the birds are killed or driven away. In the spring comes the wild goose and swan shooting, and Hatteras has always been famous for the number of these wild fowl Mantities of swansdown are secured here, and thousands of wild geese are an- nually sent to the northern markets. The sale of the feathers is a great consideration in_ itself. In shooting geese and swan live decoys are almost absolutely necessary, as these wary birds soon learn to avoid the wooden decoys. When an islander wings a wild goose or swan he will chase it for miles to secure it alive. Ie places the wounded fowl in a pen with such others as he may Possess and it soon becomes tame. The geese wander at will during the day, but they always return to the pen at night, which is a wire inclosure on the side of some stream half in and half out of the water. Here they are sure of finding their corn or meal feed. A singular fact in con- nection with their captivity is that they Must be kept carefully penned during the of May and November, for during these months the migratory instinct is so strong within them that the staidest, quiet- est, tamest goose will, if at liberty, sud- denly spread its wings, for montns unused, and disappear, either north or south, as its wild mates may be winging their flight. They make irvaluable decoys, and very few wild geese are killed without their aid. The live swans are very valuable, because of their scarcity. The owners of these beautiful birds take no chances, but keep io carefully confined in their pen all the In the summer the native takes life easy. He lounges, loafs and chews tobacco, while the patient woman keeps the “pot a-boiling.” Nothing arouses him, excepting the news that “the bluefish are off the coast.” Then he harnesses up to his primitive cart and hastens to the beach, for these bluefish are the pirates of the ocean, and when schools of them advance everything else in the finny kingdom darts in terror before them. They chase the trout and mullet, which, in their blind fear, literally flash through the breakers onto the shore by the thousands. For miies the beach is strewn with the wriggling mass. The best is selected for food, and such natives as own a little Patch of ground, dry enough to raise vege- tables upon, gather up cartloads of these fish, with which to fertilize the sterile soll. The oysters of this vicinity are of an in- ferlor quality. The salt waters of the ocean, which pour trough Orinoke inlet into Pamlico sound, mixes with the fresh water and forms a brackish fluid, which gives the oyster a flat, insipid taste. There are many places around Hatteras which would make fine oyster préserves, but these grourids will never be utilized until the facilities for reaching them are improved. A stranger leaving Washington Monday morning, going through the inland sounds, and depending upon chance opportunities of transportation, might consider himself lucky if he reached Hatteras by Saturday night. The mail is due here twice a week, but often a week, and Sometimes two, will pass before the sailboat can make its way eeninae the head winds to deliver the mail- s3. In proof of the “uncomeatableness” of this place I mention that, with the exception of government officials, who called upon the life saving service and light house on their round of inspection, I was the first visitor at Hatteras for five years. ALEX, HUNTER. —_———_—_ Indian Summer, From an Exchange. As frosty age renews the early fire ‘Whose eager flame in hazy warmth appears, And brings again, across the shadowy years, ‘The vanished dreams that kindle and inspire; As time repeats the hour of young desire In smoother laughter and more tranquil tears, And childish pleasures mixcd with needless tears Stir through the pulses of the withered sire— So when November, sharp with frost and sleet ‘And moaning winds about the rocky helght, Has reaped the shining forest to his hand, ‘The charm of spring returns In mellower beat, ce above . ks RA REED GOODALE. Anarchists Wear Black Cravats, From the London Daily Telegraph. Blazing red ties or cravats were supposed to be much favored by red revolutionists, The anarchists, it appears, have taken a new departure, and are adopting the cra- vate noire. Most of the persons who were tried recently with Jean Grave in the Paris assize court wore black ties of butterfly shape. At Havre the other day two men who were tried and condemned to trans- portation for manufacturing explosives and publicly indorsing the assassination of M. Carnot declared before the court that the rallying sign of anarchists in their district was a black riband in the buttonhole of the coat. It is hardly possible, however, that fashion will decree the abolition of eo black cravat because anarchists favor article, ——+e+_____ From Life. “Slow work a paddiin’ this ‘ere raft with me hands! Now, if I only had some way o’ riggin’ up a mast an’ sail, I could”—— “Shiver me timbers, if there b’ain’t the very thing what I was a wishin’ fer!’* SIGNS OF? TRAMPS How t' o, Wanderers ;Mark Fences and Gate Posts, THE MEANING OF THE. CHALK MARKS Giving Points to Those Who May Come After Them. A STRICTLY BUSINESS CODE ‘There are sermons in stones, books in the brooks and chapters on gate posts, board fences, and other prominent features in the landscape of a territory through which tramps delight to lay out their itineraries. There is no pcetry in the cabalistic lan- guage with which the knights of the road smooth the pathway of their brethren who may come after them. with an unerring course of directions about the people who permanently reside along by it. All is prose, and meaning prose at that. There is none of the grace notes of literature; none of the high lights of intellect. The prosody is dislocated and ragged; the code it follows has neither rules or rhythm. It may consist of a single word or a rough, uncouth outline of the hind leg of a dog. But despite +l its shortcomings, from a university standpoint, it is as full of mean- ing as its students are full of hunger and thirst, and those sad symptoms are what it jeals with. wie’ saividual who lives isolated in the country or in a more gregarious manner in a suburban neighborhood krows a good deal more about the tramp genus than the dwellers in cities, but in a great majority of instances he doesn’t know half enough. If he did, he'd keep a big, ill-tempered dog with a hearty appetite and would feed him only once a day and leave him free to roam about the premises at his own sweet will. When such an animal is seen cavorting about the front yard of a suburban dwell- NT SL, fwegooe) ' Ysamerevies.® "Tur Reverend a aaa “ust noah Deane oF, Fer 17! TH DOG. ing with blood in his eyes and half a yard ofred tongue hanging out of a tooth-filled cavern of Cevastation it is a safe bet that the person living there is past grand master in the knowledge of tramps. There are few of us—or rather few such people, however, because the human heart is a pretty tender thing, and it shocks most of them to see a poor man and an indig- nant dog mix up suddenly in a catch as catch can event withgut,any limit to the number of rounds. Consequently, such soft- hearted individuals feel ‘a great pang of pity when a shoeless; hatless, ragged fel low comes shuffling up tothe door and tel a doleful tale about having lived on a Uf- cult and a half for seventy-two hours. Then they seat him down, go to the pantry and bring out cold ham and light bread and sardines and crackers and milk and pre- serves and fill the hungry visitor until he distends like the pouch iof a small boy's crying balloon. ud 9 The chances are that.a first experience of this kind on the part of a suburban householder will be followed by another and another, the visiters being only differ- ent in their persons and the degrees of their dilapidation. Their periods of hunger are almost identical, and the ravenous gus- to with which they interview the proven- der that is set before them precisely the same. . The diurnal procession ef such callers is Mable to cause the charitable entertainer of them all to ruminate on the immense amount of poverty caused by the depres- sion of business, and he will expatiate to his friends upon the immense number of honest workingmen going through the coun- try in seach of employment, illustrating his statements with allusions to the horny- handed sons of toil who have called at his own house and told such pitiful stories of hardship and ill fortune. ‘: Of course, this is all very apparent to the unsuspecting raconteur of the incidents, but older suburbanites could have told him that the supposed unfortunate workmen were simply professional tramps, who had me aware of his kindheartedness and were playing a tune upon his heartstrings with consummate cuteness. The old subur- banite would have told him that he would have never seen another tramp if he had given the biscuit-and-a-half-seventy-two- hour starver two minutes to get off. the premises in the first place, instead of all that bread and meat and preserves and other things. Why? Because as soon as that men finished his repast, simulated Eo} hoor oor humble gratitude and shambled off on to the road he pi led to leave hieroglyphics upon some prominent-displayed surface like @ gate post, fence rail or flat, stationary rock along the roadside near the entertain- er’s house, which conveyed to every other tramp coming that way that good cheer in | emmy awaited his asking at yonder itchen door. If the first comer has been fired out or chewed up by the dog, what then? He would have left an indelible warning to that effect in the same manner that would have caused all his brethren who might fol- low to quicken their steps in passing such &@ dangerous dwelling. That is the a spoken of at the be- ginning of this article—the language of the great army of worthless huiks of humanity, derelicts in the path of decency, who neith- er toil nor spin; who are too cowardly to steal when there is any possible chance of their incurring personal danger and who confine their peculationg largely to the lunch barkets of frightened school children, and who shuffle up down the roads and lanes of the country and the back streets and alleys of cities prey! on the sympa- thies of the pitiful and eking out an exis- tence appalling in its :mtter uselessness. These professional tramps have a system of signs and sigrals which they leave tn their wake and which are «understood by every member of the multiti which is com- prised within their fraternity. A small diamond-shaped chalk’ drawing on a fence or gate see near a house is a gladdening sight to the eyes of Moist Mike or Hungry Henry, It means that the residents are full of the milk of human kindness and will give food or other ‘assistance when ask- ed, without question. The simple sign of the cross on the other hand warns the tramp to pass the house, as its occupants are cold and unsympa- thetic, and have no ears to lend to the plaint of poverty, either real or assumed. The triangle pointed downward indicates that the house it refers to has been prétty steadily visited by tramps and that its ople may have become tired of the con- inued assaults upon pantry and patience, but that no harm could ensue from a trial. A cross within a circle suggests a proper ine of procedure to him who tramps and reads, It tells the nomad to gotothe house and be a humble-minded sinner of a deep religious turn and speak of holy things, and assures him that such hyprocisy will be well repaid by the really pious people with- in. A square with one corner cut off makes the average tramp shudder. It means that the house in sight !s occupied by people whd believe in the dignity of la- bor and that if he wishes to get assistance from them he must work for it. There ate only a few cases on record where a tramp has approached a house pointed out by such a mark, and these prove that sudden insanity does not discriminate among class- in attacking society. He also makes a Setour around the house, whose gatepost or fence ts decorated by a square having a dot in the center. This means that thé premises are permeated by bne of thosé dogs hereinbefore alluded to. There are numerous other signs used, and there are words and phrases, too, in the silent lan- guage of the tramps, and the suburban readers of The Star might take a glance at their fences and find out with the key given above just how they stand in the es- timation of the men who never work. dens ———_+e+_____ TO HAVE THREE EYES. Developed Human Beings About to Appear, According to Theosophists. From the Chicago Herald. In her lectures in this country the’Count- ess Wachtmeister, next to Annie Besant the most famous of women theosophists and for many years the most intimate com- panion of Mme, Blavatsky, has said con- stantly that the sixth race is preparing to appear and that it would make its appear- ance in America. It is not at all new among theosophists, this idea that the sixth race is about to appear, but it has not be- come generally known outside of the soci- ety. The lectures of the Countess Wacht- meister have called popular attention to it. New York’s foremost and most learned theosophist, William G. Judge, today gave some suggestion of the persoral appearance and characteristics of the sixth race, which will have men thirty-three feet tall, who will wear no clothes and will weigh a ton. Mr, Judge explained that theosophic philos- ophy divided life on this globe into seven races, or seven great families of people. This septennary division is an assertion based upon rules of nature which have been remarked by sages of all ages. Each race is marked by the development of a sense which the previous race had not at all or Posessed only in a rudimentary degree. The theosophists believe that America will see the first development of the sixth race, because here are gathered people from all nations of the globe. The amalgamation of different people is here more complete. It is held that preparations for the coming of the new race have been going on for some time. Mr. Judge thinks that the first of the new race will be looked upon as being eccentric, y and abnormal, but they will soon be in the majority. The theoso- phists say that the first race was not se] arated into sexes and that the individua had two spinal cords, and in the sixth age, when the race is oS its perfection upon this globe, individuals will again have two spinal cords. In the seventh race sex will disappear altogether. With regard to the personal appearance of individuals of the sixth race Mr. Judge says frankly his opinion can be taken for nothing more than a nga but it is a guess sed upon philosophic study and many hours’ reflection. To begin with, Mr. Judge thinks that the individuals of the sixth race Will be thirty-two fect tall on an average. They will have a third eye just above the forehead, which will possess ever so much more power than eyes now have. They will appear in a luminous atmosphere personal to themselves, discarding trousers, waist- coats, shoes, frocks and bonnets. The men will have no beards. They will have fine, noble features and thin, silky, flowing hair. The individuals will live 1,000 years, ———_+ e+ —___ CHILDREN’S FIRST TEETH. They Have a Great Effect Upon the Second Ones. From the Philadelphia Press, The first teeth have a very considerable effect upon the second, and, therefore, when the little one begins to eat something besides milk, he should have cereals which are rich in the bone-making elements. Sugers and candies are bad for the baby’s teeth, as well as for his digestion. A tiny tooth brush, soft and pliant, should be used by the small child, and the least de- cay should be warrant for calling on the dentist. To lose one of the first teeth pre- mattrely is a pity. When the second or permarent t appear care must be ex- ercised that they are not crowded and that they ccme in evenly. Let the dentist see the child at least twice a year, and oftener if there is need. In this way disfigurement and subsequent pain will be avoided. Medicine which may blacken the teeth or injure the enamel should be taken through @ glass tube. No care is too great if in- telligently bestowed upon the teeth of little children. Toothache is a malady that no child need suffer from if the right amount of attention is bestowed on the growing teeth during the first eight years of life, Here, at least, the minimum of pain can be secured by watchfulness. Avoid denti- frices and pain-killing drops alike, and keep the teeth in order, thus preserving health and good looks. ——+o+—__ Can You Tell a Professional Beggar? From the Louisville Post. “Say, gents, can’t you give a poor fellow a few cents to get something to eat? Haven't had a bite all day. Can't you give poor fellow a few cents to get something to cat?” He was running alongside of them, re- peating his plea over and over again in a sing-song voice. One of the men hesitated, and then put his hand in his pocket, but his companion took him by the arm and turned upon the beggar. “Get out of this,” he said, in a tone that seem2d almost bratal, and the beggar turn- ed away abruptly. “Don’t you think you were pretty rough to him?" asked the man who had shown an inclination to give alms. “Not at all,” answered the other; “the only way to get rid of him.” “But he may be deserving. He may have been driven to it. He rather appealed to me. He fnay be desperately hu ve" “No,” answered his friend, unsympathet- ically, “he’s a professior.al.” “How do you know?” “Just keep your wits about you when a ar approaches you. That fellow ‘gents.’ That's professional. He called himself 4 poor fellow. That's professional. He asked for a few cents. That's profes- sional. And, what's more to my point, he kept repeating his sentences over and over again. He has learned to sing them over that way by repeating them a thousand times. When a man who is not used to begging asks you for help he doesn't do it that way. He just stumbles along uctering any appeal that comes to his lips. He zt anything by heart. He doesn’t sing it, and it doesn’t slip off his tor 80 glibly. The professional beggar is ike an actor. He has his lines, and he always reads trem in the same way. Don't let one of those fellows fool you again,” ———_+oe+____ More Boys Than Girls Stutter. From the Boston ‘Transcript. The report of the director of ‘physical training in the Boston schools for the pres- ent year has some interesting statements in regard to stuttering among school chil- dren, After remarking that the stuttering nabit almost always proceeds from lack of control of the breath for speech on the part ef the subject, the report goes on to say that efforts to cure stuttering are largely wasted unless the central breathing mus- cles are first set right. Successful treat- ment begins with gymnastic exercise of the breathing muscles, and later deals with the development of normal habits of action, first in the muscles of phonation, and then fn those of articulation. In other words, successful treatment is the application of the principles of physical training. It is gafe to say that out of every 1,000 children in the Boston schools, 7 stutter or stammer. Of all boys in the schools, 1.12 per cent are stutterers, while only .42 per cent of all girls stutter. This is in accord with ob- servations of European experts, who say that three or four times as many boys as girls stutter habitually. Boston schools show a smaller proportion of stutterers than German and Russian schools, oe The Latest Strike. From Truth, - ARTISTIC IDEAS For Renewing Worn and Shabby Places in the Living Rooms, WHERE THE CHILDREN CAN BE HAPPY The Effects Produced by a Care- fully Selected Wali Paper. PARLOR AND BED ROOMS Written Exclusively for The Evening Star. 1TH THE WAN- ing of the summer the prudent house- wife's thoughts turn toward the putting ef her household goods in order for the winter. As the autumn houseclean- ing days approach spots, rents and Scratches appear as if by magic on farni- niture and carpets that must, in many cases, last until next year. In the sitting room this shabbiness is more apparent, the long-suffering family sofa making the loudest complaint. A patient tour of the shops now will re- ward the searcher with many choice finds in the odd rugs, pieces of furniture and lergths of brocade and silk that are such aids in smartening up. The wise woman waits for just such opportunities, pre- ferring good quality and design to cheap imitations of “the latest thing out” in her furnishings. In a family where there were three chil- dren the sitting room was remodeled with the view of giving them a place to study and have their young friends in the even- ings, and at the same time serve as eed for the older An old-fas! Grasses, and two old plates. Under the other a lamp with purple shade, games, etc. A table and you have the room a charming wherein to read one’s favorite books. Problem of the Parlor. Like a sensible little woman, she furnish- ed her house in this order—the bed rooms, kitchen and dining room—and when she came to the parlor her purse was well- nigh empty. So certain cherished items were struck off her Mst, and the little Woman put on her thinking cap, well con- yinced that the health and comfort of her family were more important than an up-to- date parlor. “A handsome paper goes such a long Way toward furnishing, 1 put all the money I could possibly spare in this,” she said to the assembled family. And here she had shown her cleverness. The pale shell pink Paper, with deep frieze, garlands of roses and green ribbons on a cream ground, and silver picture rod, gave an air of quiet ele- gance to the dainty little parlor that was wantirg in many far more pretentious. The woodwork and furniture were done in ivery enamel, having first been made very strooth and given several coats of or- dinary white house paint. The set—spin- dle-legged settee and high-back chairs—was brought from the factory in the wood. Ruffled cushions of cream cretonne, with rose wreaths and green ribbons, were tied to the seats with pink and green bows. An oval mirror was enameled and put over the mantel. A pair of silver jesticks and & small Chinese porcelain punch bowl of blossoms—an heirloom, by the way—deco- rated the shelf. A low, two-fold screen hid the ugly fire- board, and by it stood the little enameled table, with afternoon tea equipage. Another table held a silver lamp, with green crepe paper shade, with a big: bunch of nodding wi morning glories, tipped with nh. A tall old bureau was also enameled and fitted with silver pulls. On the top books and bric-a-brac were arranged. White nus- jin curtains, with tiny pin dots, very much beruffied, were at every window, and a cream pink and green Japanese rug coy- ered the floor. Several of Prang’s art studies, delicate, misty sea views, were framed in silver and ivory, Rooms for the Children, As soon as possible give the children rooms of their own. It will teach them a sense of respoasibility and respect for the rights and belongings of others as nothing else can. Of course, in a moderate-sized house a separate room for each child is out of the question, and mamma will have to ex- ercise much tact and firmness in the man- agement of her little people at first, but soon they will take great pride in ki their room “as nice as mamma's,” and a spirit of friendly rivalry in promptness and tidiness will work wonders in curing untidy Kitty and disorderly Tom. Children need plenty of alr and light, and their rooms should be chosen with this in view. For the little giris’ room a pale blue paper, with frieze of Greenway figures or flowers, with dancing butterflies, is pleas- ing. The floor should be stained, cov- ered with a that can be taken up and shaken often. The little beds of iron, en- ameled, or brass, should be without dra- pery. A bow of ribbon on the knobs or twisted through the bars will give a touch of color and cheerfulness. Children appre- clate pictures. Cultivate their taste by giv- ing them the space over the bed to hang their favorites, and buy them photographs and reproductions of famous pictures. Many charming studies in a wide variety of sub- jects come with the art journals, and are within the reach of the most moderate purse, Each ttle dressing case should be draped in white and blue, and a mirror covered with blue crepe paper, with morning glory vine drooping over the top, hung above it. A closet is imperative to hold shoe bags and other little belongings that make a room so untidy when left lying around. Tack a fan on a corner of the door frame and a group of pictures on the door itself. A chiffonier is also useful, giving a drawer to each child. If paper is not liked the walls may be given a rough finish and painted in light colors—green or yellow is @ good choice. The frieze may be done in distemper or Japanese fans and lanterns grouped to form one. When this latter arrangement fs used, tip a Japanese parasol over the closed door and suspend tiny lanterns and dolls from the ribs. This Japanese decoration is a good one for the boys’ room. Their room should be furnished very much like the girls’, only omitting many of the little trifles and knickknacks, and substituting small tables of polished wood with linen covers for the muslin-draped dressing cases. A set of shelves, no matter how small, will be appreciated, and serve to keep the boyish treasures orderly, —$_—$_——— Invited to Call Again, From Tid-Bits. Head of the House (to young man at front door)—“Haven't I told you, sir, never to call here again?” Young Man—“Yes, sir; but I haven't call- ed to see Miss Clara this time. I have a three months’ gas bill to collect.” Head of the House (in a milder tone)—“T see. You will please call again.” members of the fam-.| ET THIN. DRINK OBESITY FRUIT SALT, G. G. C. SIrris, Cor, New Tork ave. and isth st. MERTZ’S , EDIONSTON, rockery,&c., 1205 Pa. Av. Shoes Given Away. Every sy one of our customers Presented with s pair of Shoes FRER Shoes which will cost you §3 or $3.50 elsewbere. Extraordinary Bargain: Today. Ladies’ Button Shoes, sizes 1 to 3% (which used to sell for $2.50 to $4), When —you buy a Fall Hat be suro it ts a “right'® Hist for the season, @ becoming Mat and @ Gurable Hat. If it is @ Koox Hat it will be all of these. Knor's only at Stinemets’s. B. H. Stinemetz & Son, 1287 Pa. ave. 204 mere ae i Physical Culture Corset THINGS YOU WANT + AND THINGS WE HAVE. Corsets, Waiste, Small Busties, Hip Pads Dress Forms, Braces, Abdominal Supporters, Hose Supporters, Gafety Belts, Sanitary, Towels, Corset Clasps, Protectors, Shields, Laces, Silk and Linen Materials and Sup- Plies, Everything priced at the lowest Price that'll buy the quality. Mrs. Whelan, Mgr. C. Hutchinson Co., 1829 F SBT. WOL OPEN FIRST WERK IN OcTORER WITH A PERSONALLY SELECTED STOOK OF Fine Millinery, Laces, Dress ates Trimmings, &c, 2107 G ST. , NO BRANCH,