Evening Star Newspaper, May 25, 1895, Page 16

16 OPERA IN PARIS Blighting Influence of Government Assistance to Musical Composers. WHAT A PARISIAN AUDIENCE EXPECTS In Matters of Modern Music the Gay City is Ignorant. THE COMING NOVELTY Special Correspondence of The Evening Star. PARIS, May 7, 1895. HE PARIS OPERA is not only a mag- nificent palace; it is a palace so magnifi- cent that Frenchmen long ago ceased to consider whether oth- er nations have good rausic or good artists. It is a temple for music so surpassing all the others, with such troops of priests, all decorated with the ribbon of the with such throngs of worshipers legion, with diamonds, silks and black dress coats, that good old favorites like Rossini’s ‘“Wil- iam Tell” and Meyerbeer’s “Robert” and “Les Huguenots” suffice it. It is a temple 80 magnificent that it precludes ali compe- Huon; so the Parisian soul is not disturbed by foreign troupes and modern idols. Owned and patronized by government, the Paris opera is administered on well-con- Hdered civil service principles. No disloyal rivalry may mar its decent regularity. No curipe enterprise disturbs its mild serenity, content to bring out two new pieces every year, and say that all {s well. ‘The public of the opera would’not have it otherwise. The orchestra and parquet chairs, reserved to men in evening dress, make calm digesting stools for clubmen, Where the well-known strains of Donizetti’s masterpieces comfort them and aid their talculatious for tomorrow’s races and to- night’s dear bacgarat. Between the acts, instead of being called upon to be wise in the things of Dresden, Milan, Berlin and Vienna, it is more pleasing to stand up, put on one’s hat, adjust one’s opera glasses and pounce on the ladies in the boxes with prolonged and comprehensive stares. “They talk aloud now, having whispered through the act. To do otherwise is to show that you have no acquaintances around you; and to be alone in the parquet indicates that you are not a subscriber to the season. Now for a subscriber to be oc- cupied with the music is to lack the per- fect tone. The second division of the public com- wises the “great world” of the boxes. he parquet circle is a line of boxes, Maught but boxes, gorgeous frames for beauteous ladies eating caramels; and as it 1s below, so on above, dress circle, balcony and second balcony, all boxes, boxes filled with toilettes claires,stout,bare-armed ladies sleeping; slim, bare-armed, agitated maid- ens peeping, and plump, bare-armed wives and mothers listening demurely to the compliments and anecdotes of gentlemen who come to pay an evening call. If regular subscribers abounded in the parquet, here then do they superabound. And as these latter pay some ten or fifteen thousand franes a year, and the black coats below pay scarce two thousand, it is but Just that there should be more chat around the ¢ircle of the boxes. Of course, you krow, they do not really own their boxes, and have but the right to occupy them on set nights. These nights most occupied are the most brilliant. And, as the romance- searching tourist does not cross the deep hear “Le Prophete,” nor_yet “Romeo et ‘ullette,” he naturally seeks these brilliant Pights for his own visits. Can he obtain baie of a box he should be happy, d his wifé and daughter, too. Bare but yful, with their hair dressed by a man ho charged $1.25 each to come and do it at the boarding house, they sit with dukes and countesses, French, Russian and Italian, half-breed diplomats from southern republics, Jewish bankers, unwashed Turks, with jeweled rings on their fat hands, and fobles from Roumania and Montenegro, with finger nails in mourning. The last section of the public consists of People of no consequence, packed away in single seais in the fourth balcony and also the fifth, and all those crowded and per- spiring groups who have found seven-franc seats back, back in the parterre, on the ground floor. For all the curtain rises on a maxtmum of grand opera as understood by our fa- thers and a minimum as understood in tae Paris of today. The “opera of the future” may or may not be, as defined by the Phil- fstine, “music which is really better than it gounds;” but certainly it would be noth- ing but a compliment to tho expensive and @elebrated ballet of the Paris opera to ex- plain its vague “flutterings as ‘dancing, which is really better tha 1 @eed, the tourist may cons!ler himself for- tunate if he sees more than a fugitive @anco interlude, say in the second act. Where is the ballet? If you desire to see the Paris opera t your best plan will to go to the races with am experienced mide. All these ladics attend t ravishing scusonable toilettes,where they might be taken for so many’ duch- earing ts i in fact cont which are not too we id” of Ma rtant (becaus S$ some oper: own to Amer jortl , z temple, th Ye ps and w e e 1 by cigarettes d the soft-ii Dee ng on the marble stairway, 1 to pass a iment, ughts of auty from g i ¢ Branita, ies white and yellow, porphyry and ocatello, The one stairway is thirty-two t in width till it divides to curve in circles. Marble columns grouped pairs tige to the height of the third floor. The @ frescoes represent the gods of all Olympus, great attention being paid to the Triumph of Harmony and the Instruc- tlveness of the Opera, with Apollo in his chariot. . This splendid entrance way, which is the great possession of the opera, is free — and open to atl com even those who take the cheapest seats-in tie top gallery. No difference is made between the cus: tomers of the-orchestra chairs at three dol- lars and twenty cents each and the hot tribunes in the roof, where you are asked to give up fifty cents. The visitor has opportunity to note the real magnificence of the auditorivm, the in- creasing brilliance of the audience, the im- mense size of the orchestra, and-the air of richness, of finish and of greatness which clings about this greatest of all European opera houses. But one thing ts lacking, and that is the serious attention which in English, Ameri- aan, German, Spanish, yes, and even Ital- ian audiences, is the sign of love for rausic Till you are used to it, there is a something almost jarring in the sound of caramel- sucking, ‘ogram-rattling, body-squirming and skirt-switching French vivacity, not to speak of the low hum of whispered con- versation, creaking shoes and slamming doors. It makes it difficult at first to breathe in the full spirit of the opera in this tapage, which goes on unceasing till the favorite aria, perhaps, has quieted down the people for a moment. You can- not hear a pin drop at the Paris opera. Why should you? The opera is a place— it has become so—for display and mutual recognitions. It is like a great cafe for the aristocratic world of wealth in the French capital. The government contractors who administer the monument are not unpleased that this should be so; for it justifies them in their course of bringing out as few. new operas yearly as they may by the terms of their contract. Indeed, it happens some- times that instead of bringing out the four new pieces yearly, to which they oblige themselves, they choose to pay the stipu- lated forfeits to the government and bring out but two or three. They have for their excuse the, fact that the great public ! comes in any case. And, further, it is a real hardship to them from an enterprising business standpoint to be tied down to the expensive red tapism, against whose bur- den it is hard to struggle profitably. For it should be known that the actual direc- tors of the opera are private speculators. They are appointed to their places for a period cf years. The opera _and its stock are handed over to them. The prices for seats are dictated to them, as well as the number of obligatory representations year- ly—obligatory not oniy in the winter, but in summer as well. They are bound to give so many “popular representations” at re- duced prices, to give preference to the works of such French composers as have distinguished themselves at the Conserva- toire in their selection of new operas, and, lastly, are tcrbidden to reduce the blessed civil service personnel or any of their sal- aries. It is small wonder that the Paris opera is conservative. And it results from this that the Pari- sians are, in matters of modern music, the most ignorant people in the world. It would be easy to name offhand a dozen world- famed operas which have never yet had hearing in the gay French capital, yet each and every one of which are well familiar to Americans. There is the “Mefistofele” of Boito, the “Life for the Tsar” of Glinka, the “Demon” of Rubenstein, Goldmark’s “Queen of Sheba,” to say nothing, of the Wagner pieces and the modern’ Italian school. This 1s a heavy price to pay for govern- ment assistance to the musical composers of one’s country. Still did results show a constant flame of genius the Parisians might count their loss a gain to their dear patrie and the world at large. Unhappily, the results show nothing of the kind. The year 1803 saw the production of but a new piece by a French composer— the “Deidamie” of Marechal, which ran nine nights and stopped (Chabrier’s “Gwen- doline” had already been produced outside the Paris opera). The year 1804 saw Massenet’s “Thais,” with a successful run of twenty-seven nights, thanks to the arms and corsage of Miss Sibyl Sanderson. The other new piece, Lefebvre’s “‘Djelma,” not being favored with the same accessories, ran nine nights and stopped. Indeed, the musical events of the cele- brated Paris opera were, in 1893, the pro- duction for the first time In Paris(!) of Wagner's “Walkyrie,” and, in 1894, the first production in Paris of Verdi’s “Othello!” ‘The present year of 1895 has so far known naught but the stillborn “Montagnes Noires,” and as that work was written by a lady it is not polite to say how many times the curtain rose for it. It now appears that “Tannhaeuser” is to be the chief novelty to be presented to the Parisians in 1885. ‘They have never heard it. They tried to bring it out once years ngo—long, long before the Franco-Prussian war. At that time it was chased from the stage with indescribable noise and con- fusion, the hubbub being led by the gentle- men of the Jockey Club, resentful because Wagner had refused to introduce a ballet in the second act. The times have sa changed since that they will not call for the ballet now. STERLING HEILIG. Trath Not Always the Best. From the New York Herald. “I always used to be told,” said Foot- it, “that frankness and truthfulness en- deared a man to his friends, but the whole thing is a delusion. It is lying that makes a fellow popular. 5 “Now, take my experiences of today. My wife made some wheat cakes for me with her own little hands. They were the worst slabs of putty I ever tried to eat. When she asked my opinion of them, being a truthful man, I told her that I never put anything so unpalatable in my mouth, and that a ten-year-old girl could have done better. Then she began to cry. fter that-I went down town to my store. A woman came in to get some dress goods. She picked out a material entirely unsulted to her years. Having been taught that truthfulness commends itself to a customer in the long run, I said to her: ‘You're much too old for that sort of a dress. It 1s not sulted to a woman over ty." I thought she would be obliged to me for my tactful interest In her appear- ayce, but instead of that she flounced out of the store in a rage, and I think she'll never come back. “[ don’t believe frankness is the best policy at all, and I'm going to make the acquaintance of scme first-class Mar and get him te give me a few lessons Why not make an ensemble with your dog ?—Litfe, THE EVENING STAR, SATURDAY, MAY 25, 1895—TWENTY PAGES. ~ TO COME WITH HEAT Those Afflictions, the Mosquito and House Fly, Will Be Here. THEY CARRY DISEASES Some Equally Wicked Relatives of Theirs Which Do Much Harm. PESTS OF THE HOUSEHOLD SS Written for The Evening Star. ARM WEATHER W came and went, but it will be here again soon, and with it will come those inevitable pests, the mosquito and the house fly. They are ancient ene- mies of mankind, but only recently has it been discovered that they are dangerous as well as annoying. Late investigations have proved beyond a doubt the fact that they carry and propagate various diseases. There are supposed to be about one hun- dred and fifty species of mosquitoes in the world. Already twenty-one species have been identified as native to North America. The largest varieties occur in the tropics, where insect life of all sorts obtains its fullest and most pestifercus development. Nowhere, however, are these blood suckers more abundant than in far northern lati- tudes, as in arctic Alaska, where they ap- pear in countless swarms during the brief boreal summer. There are at least three or four species of Jersey mosquitoes, -one succeeding another during the progress of the season. The biggest known mosquito is only found as a fossil, happily. It liv ‘Tas 1s THE dtasty Mesquite HiGnby Maceiriey: Mab Rraoy Fon Business = in Tertiary times, being contemporary with the mastodon and megatherium. To it has been given the appropriate name of “culex damnatorum,” meaning “gnat of the damned " ‘There is uo reason to doubt that mosqui- toes carry diseases, and they are seriously suspected of propagating yellow fever. It has been noticed that yellow fever comes with them and gces when they depart; also that it is worst in seasons when they are most plentiful and in localities where they are most abundant. But respecting this complaint comparatively little has been definitely ascertained. The mosquito fs likewise accused of prop- agating malaria by carrying the infection from one person ic another. This charge is not proven, however. To Suppress the Mosquito. Not long ago Robert H. Lamborn of New York offered a prize for a practicable method of suppressing mosquitoe, Hun- dreds of suggestions were offered, the most notable being to the effect that dragon flies should be artificially bred for the purpose. This idea, though not lacking in novelty and picturesqueness, was not deemed ac- ceptable, simply because it could not be carried out on a scale sufficiently exten- sive. Dragon flies under natural conditions kill a great many mosquitoes, but to multi- ply their species to any great extent would not be possible, partly on account ofethe manner of their developméht. They cannot be reared in a box like silkworms. The larvae of the insects are uyly-looking worms, known commonly as “helgram- mites,” which crawl about in the muddy bottoms of ponds. Another odd suggestion offered to Mr. Lamborn was that spiders should be em- ployed in the war against mosquitoes. Some time previously, however, Prof. L. O. How- ard, United States entomologist, had de- vised and experimented with a method which was proved to have much practical usefulness—namely, to pour oil on tie sur- face of waters that propagate mosquitoes. A small quantity of kerosene employed in this manner will go a long way. If there is a stagnant pond or overflowed marsh in your vicinity, you cannot invest money more profitably this summer than to ‘buy some kerosene and apply it. The process is very simple, the oll spreading itself far and wide in an extremely thin film. Five gallons, costing 60 cents, will cover 10,000 square feet. A single application will suf- fice for the season, and will absolutely pre- vent the production of mosquitoes over the area treated. The coating of oil quickly suffocates and kills all wrigglers. The Female the Biter. It has long been known that only the fe- male mosquito bites. The male possesses no lance for inflicting a wound such as his mate is provided with. The purpose of his existence is merely to perpetuate the species, and he never enters a house unless by accident. The natural food of the fe- male is the juices of plants, and it is not known why she seeks blood. The indul- gence seems to be a kind of dissipation with her, like whisky and tobacco with human beings. Unlike the latter, she never gets full-but once. Her sting consists of five extremely sharp needles, two of which are barbed. They unite and form an awl, which, having inflicted the puncture, serves as a tube for sucking the blood of the vic- tim. The suggestion that a poisonous fluid is introduced into the wound far the pur- pose of making the blood more liquid is mere theory. : The female mosquito lays her eggs in a boat-shaped mass on the surface of still water. From these the larvae, called “wrigglers,” are hatched. When the wrig- gler considers that he has wriggled long enough, he comes to the surface and care- fully extricates himself from his skin, which serves as a raft for him to stand upon. This is the danger point of his life, for the least breath of wind may upset the raft and drown him. Happily escaping this fate, he flies away as soon as his wings are dry. If a “she,” the insect loses no time in seeking for some animal or person to torture. It has been contended that the larval mosquito has some useful- ness, consuming miasmatic germs in the water, but this is more than doubtful. The Pestiferous House Fly. It is very certain that the world would be much better off without the house fly, notwithstanding its alleged value as a seavenger. There is no doubt that it is a carrier of diseases. It conveys infection sometimes from sores. It is a pleasure to know that one charge brought against the house fly is unjust— namely, that he sometimes bites. He could not bite if he wished to, because his mouth ends in a sucking disk. It is commonly said that ‘flies bite before a storm,” The files that do this are stable flies, belonging to quite a different species, though in ap- pearance they so closely resemble the museca domestica as to decelye anybody not an expert. These stable flies do not enter dwelling houses under ordinary cir- cumstances, but are sometimes driven into open windows by approaching storms. Acrobatic Fents, It {s not true, by the way, that files are enabled to walk on the coiling by means of sucking disks, Each of the slx feet is pro- vided with a pair of little cushions and two hooks. The cushions are covered with hairs, which are kept moist by a secretion, causing them to adhere to a smooth éur- face. The hooks help thé insect to walk over rough surgacas. The female house fly lays her eggs in fgesh manure, the warmth of which hatches; out the young larvae. ‘These footless margots, after a few days, contract into smal! brownish objects called “puparia,” from ;which the perfect files -emerge later on. Bred in filth, the insects never get oves-their nasty habits. Inas- much as every ure heap is a propagat- ing bed for flies, {t is obvious that such re- fuse ought not to; be permitted to accumu- late unnecessarily, : Ortektal Flies. In Egypt and’ other countries bordering on the eastern/Mediteranean eye troubles are extenstvely propagated by certain small flies which carry gérms from one individual to another, being 'lattracted by the moist- ure of the organs., Recently two American entomologists, Schwarz and Hubbard, have discovered that similar complaints are oc- casioned quite extensively in this country by flies of the same kind, or at all events of nearly related species. At least two species of these insects are found in great numbers in the south, and there is one spécies in the neighborhood of Washington. Where the flies abound they may be seen on any sunny day hovering about the heads of dogs. One species is very plentiful in Florida, where whole schools and cgm- munities sometimes suffer from epidemics of sore eyes thus caused, the effects being serious and lasting. Dangerous Relatives. Of the same family as the common house fly is the terrible “tsetse,” which renders parts of Africa prgctically uninhabitable. It is one of the greatest obstacles to civili- zation in the dark continent, because it makes the keeping of domestic animals im- possible. Horses and mules die in a night from a single bite, and cattle likewise. Even the elephant succumbs to the poison. The nature of the latter is unknown, though happily it is not fatal or even very serious to man. This abominable insect, which is somewhat smaller than the house fly, fre- quents marshes and watering places. Its loud and peculiar buzz will render a cara- van panie stricken in an instant. It is known that the house fly acts as a distributing agent for some diseases of plants. Another interesting thing recently ascertained is that the complaint known as Texas fever depends for its propagation upon the common cattle tick, which con- veys the germs from one animal to an- other. A point worth noting is that the bite of any unknown insect is apt to be laid to the spider, owing to popular superstition. You get up in the morning with a smail swelling on your person, and nine people out of ten will diagnose it as a spider bite. The house fly seems to be a comparatively new insect. At all events, no specimens have been found fossil. RENE BACHE: Se MATERIAL FOR A NEST. A Bird Stole a Ten-Dollar Bill and Used It as Lining. From the Cincinnati Enquirer. A $10 bill, which had mysteriously dis- appeared, was recovered by Assistant Coln Teller Phil. Turpin of the subtreasury ina peculiar manner. He has a beautiful farm out on Cliff creek, near the Little Miami river. In that section birds fairly abound. One evening about the beginning of May Mr.,Turpin was getting ready to attend a soiree at his next neighbor's in Newtown, about two miles distant. The weather, it will be remembered, at that time was un- ustally warin, and he left the windows of his room open. Mr. Turpin had taken his money, among which was a $10 bill, and laid it on a cen- ter table, intending to put it in a pocket of his other trousers. The room is at the corner of the house, and has windows cn both sides. : He stationed himself at one of the win- dows and commenced to shave. The birds were singing outside and flying about the house and through the open windows, joy- ful, no doubt, at;the advent of spring, while others were busy in trees building nests. It was luxury to shave umid such surroundings, and when Mr. Turpin finisaed he looked sleeker than ever. After wash- ing he prepared to don his Sunday-go-to- meeting clothes. After he. arranged his necktie to give the best effect he went to the center. table am began picking up his money, but was not a little surprised to find a $10 bill missing. He thought that the wind might have blown it on the tloor, and he began looking there for it. After a long time spent in vain, he gave up the search there. He “then went out into the yard, and began hunting among the flowers and grass for it, thinking that it might have been blown through the epen window, but he had to go to that soiree minus a $10 note. Day before yesterday the severe wind storm blew a robin's nest out of a tree near the front porch, Mr. Turpin picked the nest up, and was about to cast it away when he noticed what seemed to be a piece of paper of peculiar color. He examined it, and found it to be currency of some de- nomination, but it was not until he had carefully torn the nest apart that he dis- covered it to be a $10 bill. It was apparent- ly the one he had lost a couple of weeks ago, a bird having flown into the room and snatched up the money. The bill was in pretty bad condition, and he redeemed it at the treasury yesterday. — QUILTING FRAMES. Tkese Make the Best Possible Cur- tain Stretchers. From the New York Times. Fortunate are housewives who still possess the quilting frames of their grandmothers, for these serve admirably to dry curtains upon, Two or three curtains can be dried cn them at once. One curtain is stretched ever the others and each held in place by pins or tacked with coarse stitches to the lasting or cloth that is bound over the quilt- ing frame. Indeed, so much more con- venient are these frames than the tedious methods of pinning the curtains to the floor with sheets spread out f protect the carpet that every housekeeper who has her curtains laundered at home should have cne. Some large furnishing stores have them for sale, and where these stores are not accessible, any carpenter can make a frame. It will not be expensive, as it is extremely simple in design, and takes little material. Four boards, each about three inches wide and one inch thick, are all that is needed. Two of the boards should be eight or nine feet long, and the other two five feet. Having measured the longest curtain you own, let the carpenter bore several holes in each board so that the four pegs he will turn for you may fasten the frames into an oblong the size of any curtain in the house. While the curtains are drying they can be laid on the grass or against the fence in the back yard, or, in stormy weather, stood up in any convenient recom. ————_+e+______ POETRY NOT WANTED. A Leading Publishing House Will Deal No More in It. From the Philadelphia Times. It looks as if the life of the average poet is to ke made even harder in the future than it has betn in the past. His channels of publication have been few enough, and now cne of the leading houses in New York has decided to issue no mére books of verse by any author, save if a Holmes, Longfellow, Whittiér or Lowell should hap- pen to send his manuscrivt into their of- fice. “The fact of the matter is,” said the head of this book house to me last week, “the old saw that poetry doesn’t pay is far more true than people imagine. We have now some twenty-seven volumes of poetry of all sorts on our list, and in going over the sales with our manufacturing man a few days ago I learned that we had not sold 81,000 copies of all the twenty-seven books, and that figure includes 12,000 copies of three of the books—the only ones which Have really paid for themselves, to say nothing of getting a profit. The people seem to care less and less for books of poetry, and are not buying them even to the moderate extent which they did two op three years ago. And s0 we have de- clacd not to undertake any more volumes of poetry whatever, except in rare in- stances. And, I assure you, they will have to be very rare indeed. We are through with poetry.” - +ee—____ First Impression of Chicago. From the Ohicago Tribune. “Uncle George,” said the little boy from the country, “are these the buildings they call sky-scrapers?” “They are, Tommy, uncle, ‘Tommy took a comprehensive look over- bead. “The sky does need scrapin’ here pretty bad, don’t it, Uncle George?” he rejoined. answered his city SERVING ON JURIES Citizens Not at All Anxious for the Honor. EFFORTS 0 ESCAPE SUCH DUTY How the Jury Boxes Are Filled in the District. — MANY EXCUSES OFFERED —— In the estimation of the vast ma- jority of the male citzens of this and other localities jury service is about as irksome and thoroughly unpleas- ant a duty as can well be imagined. Hence, a summons to serve as a juror is almost invariably as much dreaded as if it were a summons to appear in court to receive sentence. And when the jurors-to-be ap- pear in court, rarely, indeed, is it that the judge is not besought and implored and deluged with all manner of excuses, that the duty of jury service may be avoided. At the commencement of every new term of court a grand struggle is made to es- cape the duty. Usually the more intelli- gent, responsible and otherwise competent the citizen is, the more persistent is he in his endeavors to evade jury service. The term of service here since the act of Congress of March 1, 1889, has been but a month, grand jurors and Police Court jurors excepted, this limited term of serv- ice being provided for among other things to render the duty less unpleasant by rea- son of the reduced length of the term, which, before that time, had been about three ‘months. But the hope that such a reduction of the term of service would not only secure, as a rule, more competent ivrors, but would also reduce efforts to evade service to a minimum, has not by any means been fully realized. In fact, there seems to be a rapidly growing feel- ing among the members of the District bar that the term of jury service is too short, and it is not at all improbable that an effort will be made during the coming Congress to extend the term of service, How Jurors Are Chosen. The manner of selecting jurors, their qualifications, duties and experience are matters of no little interest. In the first place, no person (male, of course) shall be competent to act as a juror here unless he be a citizen of the United States, a resi- dent of the District, over twenty-one and under sixty-five years of age, and a good and lawful man, who has never been con- victed of a felony or misdemeanor involv- ing moral turpitude. And the courts have held that a man residing temporarily here is subject to jury service here, even though he retains a right to vote elsewhere. The jurors are selected by what are known as jury commissioners; that is, these commis- sioners, nine in number, are appointed by the District Supreme Court from the sev: eral sections of the District, and they, from time to time, select names of compe- tent citizens, which names, written on separate and® similar pieces of paper, so folded or rolled up that the names cannot be seen, are placed then in a box provided by the clerk of the court. These names are selected, as near as may be, from the citi- zens of the several sections of the District in proportion to the number of inhabitants residing therein, respectively. From 800 to 1,000 names are placed in the box, which is then sealed and placed in the custody of the clerk of the court. The seal is broken only when it becomes necessary to draw names therefrom to impanel new juries or to fill vacancies in current ones. - Many Men Exempt. Quite a number of classes of men are, by law, exempt from jury duty here. The Frovision of law in question reads as fol- lows: “All executive and judicial officers, salaried officers of the government of the United States, commissioners of police, and those connected with th2 police or fire de- partments, counselors and attorneys-at-law, ministers of the gospel and priests of every denomination, practicing physicians and surgeons, keepers of hospitals, asy- lums, almshouses, or other charitable in- stitutions created by or under the laws relating to the District, captains and mas- ters, and other persons employed on ves- sels navigating the waters of the District and keepers of public ferries, shali be ex- empt from jury duty, and their.names shail not be placed on the jury list.” Magis- trates, delegates, coroners, schoolmast=:s, overseers of highways and constables were also exempted during their continuance in their respective stations or business, under an old Maryland act, that of 1715, and under the English statutes of 6 and 7, William and Mary, apothecaries were ex- empted, and their apprentices were, too, unless they voluntarily consented to serve. But apothecaries or druggists are no longer exempt here. The above-named qualifica- tions and exemptions apply, of course, es- pecially to grand jurors, jurors in the circuit and criminal branches of the Dis- trict Supreme Court, and to Pplice Court jurors, it being doubted whether they all apply in cases of juries in condemnation proceedings, in proceedings in lunacy or in coroner's juries. Available for Duty. According to the best obtainable data in the matter, it is estimated that the num- ber of men available for jury duty in the District today runs from 20,000 to 25,000. Fully 12,000 otherwise available men are, it is estimated, exempted because of their employment by either the general or Dis- trict government. Physicians and the members of ‘the legal profession form the next largest exempted classes, clergymen ranking next highest. Those disqualified by conviction in criminal cases are, it is gratifying to note few indeed, and to the credit of the jury commissioners it can be said that the name of such a disqualified man is rarely, if ever, found-on the list of those summoned for jury service. As has been already stated, the jury com- missioners place from about 800 to 1,000 names in the box, and they endeavor to keep that many constantly in it. At least ten days previous to the day on which the new juries are required the clerk of the District Supreme Court is required to pub- licly break the seal of the box and draw the names of the persons who are to serve. The grand jury is composed of twenty- three members, and a new grand jury is drawn three times a year, serving during January, February and March; Apyil, May, June, July, August and Septembe: Octeber, November and December, tively. The juries serving in the and criminal branches of the Distr preme Court begin their term of service, respectively, on the first Tuesday in ch and every month in which jury trials are had, and, unless sooner discharged by the court, their term of service terminates on the Monday preceding the first Tuesday of the following month. The Circuit ‘and Criminal Court panels consist of twen six persons, as does the panel for the Po- lice Court, but the jurors drawn for ser ice in the last named court ‘serve three months, a new jury being drawn at lea ten days previous to the first Tuesda: January, April, July and October, at which times the terms of the -respective Police Court juries begin. But when any jury has been actually empaneled for the trial of a cause the jurors composing it shall be Hable to continue in service until they have been discharged from the further consideration of the case. Summoning the Jurors. When the clerk of the court has drawn the names of the men needed for the new juries he forwards the lists to the marshal of the District, and that official formally notifies, ds he is required by law to do, each man drawn by serving on him, at least flve days before the beginning of the term of service, a written notice of his se- lection as a juror, designating the court he is to attend and the day ang hour he is to appear. Such notice must be given to each juror in person, or be left at his usual place of residence. The marshal makes a return to the clerk of the court, stating what men on the list were served and in what manner. The clerks of the respective courts have the returns before them on the day the new ? 2s report, and-if any men who was duly uotified to attend fails to do so without sufficient cause he ren- ders himself Mable to a fine of not more than §20 for every day he ‘'s absent. This matter of “sufficient cause” does not mean the personal inconvenience of the juror or @ pressure of business, or even mere indis- position, and now and then a man who makes the order pf the court a secondary matter brought suddenly beforé the court on an attachment. That means that he {a taken into custody by a deputy mar- shal and required to show cause why he should not be held for contempt of court. Upon the day when the new juries ap- pear in court, the judge first proceeds to satisfy himself that each and every man is qualified to serve as a jurcr. Each man is first sworn by the clerk of the court to make truthful answers to such questions respecting his qualifications as the judge may ask. Very often, to save time, the judge explains to the first man called the required qualifications of a juror, request- ing the others to carefully listen, that the same thing may not have to be repeated to every man examined. As a@ rule, the judge first decides just what men are quali- fled before listening to any requests to be excused. = Many Excuses. But, the moment the examination fs con- cluded, he finds, as a rule, that nearly half of the jurors declared qualified wish to be excused. All manner of excuses are made, but the two most generally urged are ill health or pressure of business. Of course, some of the judges are much more lenient than others, and Chief Justice Bingham has the reputation of being such a kind- hearted judge that a man has a very poor excuse, indeed, when he cannot induce the chief justice to excuse him. Judge Bradiey is, perhaps, the judge before whom a man seeking to be excused has the least show, and he must possess an excellent reason for urging a request for release to induce Judge Bradley to excuse him. Judge Ccle is another member of the court who ‘s exceedingly slow in excusing a man, and yet he is one of the most ap- prcachable members of the court. Judge McComas believes that business men. are just the cnes needed for jury service, and they are generally the ones least Ikely to be excused by him. The judge, nevertheless, is always a very popular man with his juries. Judge Cox, like Chief Justice Bing- ham, has the reputation of being very kindly disposed toward jurors asking to be excused, but Judge Hagner invariably in- vists that where it is not absolutely {m- possible every citizen, when selected, should Ferform jury service. Character of the Juries. This question is often asked, Are the juries of today composed of better material than years ago? While there is unques- tionably a great divergence of opinion, the answer of the majority of those competent to know would be in the affirmative. The reduction of the term of jury service in the Circuit and Criminal Courts from three months to about a month undoubtedly did much to induce good men to more readily serve. Having served twenty days on one jury, a man cannot be required to serve again for one year. The present manner of selecting jurors prevents, of course, any such thing as a repetition of the profes- sicnal jurymen, observable here some years ago. Jury duty is not nearly so irksome or unpleasant as is generally imagined, and is really a valuable school of instruction. It is sought now and then, but the fact re- mains, nevertheless, that by the great ma- jority of citizens, particularly the class of men who make the best jurors, jury duty is shunned and avoided whenever it is pos- sible, and yet, as was once remarked by a disgusted member of the District Supreme Court, those very men are the first to com- plain when poor material is observable in the jury box. ———_—_. EVILS OF THE CORSET. Injures the Muscles and Robs the System of Air. The evils of the corset are strongly paint- ed by a writer on “Hygienic Dress.” She calls the corset an “immense bandage of splints.” “Suppose,” she says, “you splint your arm for six or eight weeks; what weuld become of its muscles? A heavily boned corset would do very well to wrap ercund a broken arm or leg until it heals, but it is a crime to wear it over the soft abdominal walls which encase the most wonderful system of organs, which only in their full development can give us a worthy race. Even with the splints pulled out, this garment would be hot and debilitating, and, tightly worn, it interferes with the secretions and excretions of the skin. If beres must be in the waist, they should rot run the wrong way of the body, but in conformity with nature's lines. “Out of the hamonious lines with the ribs, they throw a great many-muscles out of use, interfering with the natural breath- ing, the powerful intercestal muscles be- neath the corset become shriveled and partially paralyzed; it becomes impossible to properly distend the diaphragm, and, therefore, the proper amount of life-giving oxygen is not inhaled. “The corset wearer makes her own record in the misshape of her body, in her in- ability to breathe correctly, and in defraud- ing the system cf oxygea. It is necdless to say that the blood becomes impure, and that functional action of important organs is interfered with. Digestion and circula- tion are ruined, and the complexion de- clares the folly and the sin as plainly as Cain bore the mark of murder on his fore- head. “What is true as to tight dressing of the feet and waist is as absolute truth for the neck and the whole body. Everything should be so loosely worn that a perfect circulation of air, feeding the system on its surface, could go on at all times between the body and the clothing.” ——__+-e+— HELD A LOSING HAND. It Was Not the One She Wanted, but It Was Welcome. From the Kansas City Star. A charming young woman, who lives’ on the West Side, and her young man found the Summit street cars packed to the doors last Friday evening when they started heme from the Auditorium. Nothing daunt- ed, Miss West Side sought a place upon the step of the platform. She had barely room for one foot and as the car lurched and heeled she clung to Charley's big, strong hand. Occasionally, under cover of the darkness, she squeezed it tenderly, be- cause—well, because she and Charley are ergaged. And so she held on to the hand for many blocks. “Charley,” said she, “aren’t you about worn out holding me on the car with your one, poor, tired hand?” “What?” cried Charley in a horrified tone. Mademoiselle looked up and then dropped the hand frantically. She had been hold- ing to and squeezing the hand of an entire stranger, a-young fellow with black mus- tache and a pleasing eye. “I beg a thousand pardons!” gasped mademoiselle. “Don't mention it!” replied the stranger. “You were entirely welcome.” a SIGNS “FAILED. THE SURE It is Not Always Possible to Tell When. Folks Are Newly Married. From the Detroit Free Press. ” There is a young couple in this city who can never go away from home together without beirg taken for a newly married pair. So they decided to ask the waiter at a hotel where they stopped what tue signs were. The gentleman began the conversa- tion. “Would you think we were just married, John?” he asked on the second day after their arrival. “Yes, sah,” said John, with a broad grin. “I spotted you as scon as I see you. I been ten year in dis hotel, an’ dere can’t nobody fool me.” “Now, John,” said the supposed bride- s he slipped a fee into the waiter's ust tell me what the symptoms John. fus if she like briled eyesters, an’ you tell her she mus’ learn to drink her tea straight ‘cause it was bettah, an’ you ask her whar “I hears you ask yoh lady at break- she want suah, sab “But,” said the young matron, husbands talk in the same way? “No, indeedy, miss—'scuse me, ma'am, they don’t, indeedy. Sides, yoh gentleman hand you de mornin’ papah, ‘sted of readin’ of it himself. An’ dere ain’t no gettin’ aroun’ the lovin’ looks he been castin’ on you, miss,” and John smiled with an air of superior wisdom, “Now tell us how the old married men conduct themselves,” said the lad “Deys mighty short, miss, mostly, read the paper jes like dey was alone.” “And the lady—what does she do?” “Jes waits, miss. Kind of looks tired, an’ waits, an’ look at the res of the folkses in the dining room. You see, miss, it's a heap of difference, an’ tain’t all in the close dey wears, either, dat makes the honeymoon— no, sah, it ain’t.” They did not undeceive John, and he does not yet know that for once all his signs had failed him. 5 go fus; dem all signs, certain ‘don’t old an’ TORTURED FOR YEARS A Fireman's Battle With Rheuma~ tism. How He Conquered the Disease After Years of Misery. Henry Wagner, assistant engineer at Fire Station No. 5, Cleveland, sass: “For the past sme ears I have had rheimatism at intervals afd sut- fered greatly. I would be off duty from ten days to two weeks each (ime, and although I tried many different so-called remedies, could not obfain aay relief. When I first heard of the remarkable cares Monyon’s Rbcumatism Remedy was making I was very skeptical, but Just about then I had a ¥i bad attack and concluded to give them a trial ‘The firat bottle relieved me very mach, and by the time I had taken the second bottle I was completely cared. I have not had a rheumatic pain snce, although I have been wet many times. Now I use Munyon’s Remedies in my home and find them most excellent. Munyon's Itheumatism Cure is guaranteed to eure rheumatism in any part of the body. Acute or muscular rheumatism is cured in from one to five Tt never fails to cure sharp, shooting psins rms, legs, sides, back or breast, or soreness tn any part of the body in from one to’three hours, It Is guaranteed to promptly cure lameness, atift and swollen joints, stiff back and all pains in the hips and loins. Chronic rheumatism, sciaticn, 1an> bago or pain in the back are speediis, cured. e Munson Homoeopathic Remedy Company of Philadelpiia put up specifies for nearly every disease, which are sold by all druggists, mostly for 2% cents a bottle. ‘Those who are in doubt as to the nature of their disease should address Professor Manyon, 1505 Arch street, Philadelphia, giving full symptoms of their disease. Professor Munyon will earefally diagnose e case and give you the benefit of his advice ab- lntely free of all charge. The remedies will be sent to any address on receipt of retail price. 3 ts annoying and offensive. Nearty every one suffers from ft fn greater or Jess degree, bu: it ean be cured, speedily and effectually, by Foster’s German Army and Navy: Catarrh Cure. Foster Medicine Co., Baltimore, Md. 42012r8 Used fn mumerous eases with ouvarying success. Is also a positive semedy for Coid @ in the Hest, Hay Fever and all inflamma- ©OOO40006600000660986000068 GAS STOVES. ARGAINS. tion of the nasal passages. 50 CENTS 4T DRUG STORES. Imperial—only one—manufacturer’s sample—€3.00_ Worth $5.50. . A 3-burner, slightly used, but good as new—§200. Original price, $3.25. . Combination Gas Stove, with oven, and complete ‘with brofler—$6.00. Original price, $11.00. One large 3-burner, carried over from Iast year— very hot burners—$2.75. Original price, $5.50_ GA. Muddiman, JUARTERS FOR GAS FIXTURES, 614 12th St. SOOTHE SSS OSO SESS ESS SEG SSOO {Our Shoes sTlake Friends —make new ones every day—and keep the old ones, too. Style, workmanship and material — may have changed—but eur methods are the same today as they were 56 Years ago—the old-time method of gelling HONEST SHOES st HONEST PRICES. One fair, bonest profit is“ail we wish—a profit ridiculously small to uptown dealers. That's why we sell their $350 and $4 Shoes for $3. (Popular shedes—bigh or tow cut—in RUSSETS and Tans—Chil- dren's Russet, Kid and Patent Leather Slippers — at HONEST PRICES. $Robt.Cohen& Son 630 Penn. Ave. N.W. DOWNTOWN AMERICAN SHOE MEN. 3 | Sa ; DAELELSS TS SO SOS OOOO IES HA Crump’s Celebrated Tonic. A Deticioce 2nd Invigorating Tonic of FRUITS AND SPICES. A SURE CURE For Dyspepsia, Indigestion, Constipation and All Stomach Troubles. ‘A PURELY VEGETABLE REMEDY Compounded of the essences of FRUITS AND SPICES. THE CRUMP MANUFACTURING ©O., 304 Ind. ave., Washington, D. C_ Bold by JOHNSON & BALLINGER, 1400 14th st. THOS. K. SHAW, 7th and I n.w.; ED. P. MERTZ, 1th end F nw. ; $ 3 " POSPEOL IS: ar my2i-Im N.Y. av i SIOSSOSTDHSS OSS SSS OSS IAA sHot Weather sAhead! WHY not, prepare for it NOW, while it’s cool and comfortable getting around? Shopping is pleasant these days. It will be irksome a Uittle later, Every family should have a “White “Mountain” ICE CREAM FREEZER—$1.50 up—t -qt. to 50—will freeze cream in 4 min- utes. _ “The Eddy” REFRIGERATOR standard. shelves—wrought ice racks A DOTH9O00O9 economical consumer of ice—eas' cleansed — handsome — DUR these are a few of the poiut t commend “The Eddy" to homes out America, up, according to size. oo: M.W.Beveridge, 1215 F St.and 1214 G St. POTTERY, PORCELAIN, GLASS, ETC. > setesseees 246490004808 THE FINEST Engraving Work | Nothing short of supplying our patrons j with the very best wouid fit our poltey, | Our Printing and Engraving are.of a strictly | high class order. Wedding, Visiting Canis, | ete., are our especyil specialties, ete. Decker’s, mm F St. Bookseller and Stationer. Pr my23-202 SAILORS, | $1.25 up. Come and rummage in our stock of Ladtes’ Straw Sailors—you’re sure to find what you want—but you don’t bave to buy it unless. you want to. You won't find as accommo Gating clerks anywhere else—tbey'll show you every Satlor in the house if you can spare the time. GFSole D. ©. agents for Dunlap Sallors, Willett & Ruoff, 905 Pa.Ave. my24-204