Evening Star Newspaper, March 28, 1896, Page 14

THE EVENING STAR, SATURDAY, MAROH 28, 1896--TWENTY-FOUR PAGES, ie steamboat business,” observed Gen. Demont, supervising Inspector general of steam vessels, “pays better for the amount of capital invested than almost any other business in this country. The lines that run from Troy to New York city pay 0 per cent on the investment, and others almest as handsomely. There are in all about 8,000 steamboats licensed in this coun- try. Of course, the risk is large, and ex- pegses heavy, but the losses are reduced to the minimum oy careful and constant super- vision and inspection. ‘Just now we are gi ving attention to the stmmer boats, which are getting in order for the excursion business. There are over »00 of them, so you see it Is quite a job. They, of course, won’t get into running or- der until June, for the excursion business not commence until then, but there is considerable work in seeing that they are in every respect In shape. It is remarkable, considering the millions of people they carry taily, during the season, how small the per- ntage of mishaps is. At one time there Was an impression that riding in a steam- beat was attended by danger of some kind. Experience has shown that there is much more Janger to persons who walk about the streets.” kee KE “Probably three-fourths of the lima beans consumed in this country,” said Mr. R. W. Gates of Los Angeles, “are grown in Cali- fornia, and a great proportion of them are raised in the Santa Clara valley. The climate and surroundings there are espe- clally suited to the raising of these, for it is so dry that the beans can be grown right on the ground, thus saving the expense of poles and of propping the vines up in any way. You don’t find over one bad or im- perfect bean in a bushel. The result is that it costs 3o little to grow them that they can in tern be sold cheap. You can buy them in the markets and stores here at retail at four and five cents per pound. Out in Cali- fernia the growers are glad to get one cent per pound for them—shelled and dried. 1 knew of one farm that shipped seventeen carloads of these beans last season. As a bedy and brain food, the lima is much more valuable than the ordinary white or black bean.” Ce cee few months Since,” remarked a recent- ly returned traveler, “I kad occasion to hunt up the American vice consul at Luxor, on the Nile, in Egypt. He proved to be an -\rab of probably Nubian blood, for he is as dark in color as the average colored man. He had never been out of Egypt in is life, could only speak Arabian and kr.ew no more about the United States than the ordinary hog knows of Christmas. I had considerable fun, but could transact no business with him, for there was no one abont the place who could taik anything but Aranian, and that was beyond me. He however, an American flag in his, office, which was some satisfaction to me, for I have met consular agents in various parts of the world who did not know even how it looked.” * ee * was much interested in The Star's : le on the ‘two-minute horse,’ ’* said Mr. Tom Riverton of Lexington, Ky., “though I think our Kentucky breeders have about given up the idea that they can Produce the horse in question. We will skow 's year that may trot down to 2.06, ven that is uncertain. While in New few days ago, I was told that Mr. on Forbes, the owner of Arion and Hanks, had an offer of ! the foal that Nancy Hanks will drop in r when the feal reaches the twenty- nith day of its age. As a year-old I think this foal will sell at $50,000, for it is the = n lest that horses can produce in this world, it the: is anything at all in the science of ag. That it will be a world beater is ‘SS, but that it will be a great is certain. I happen to know aiso that the one of the pledges that Mr. Forbes made to the late Leland Stanford, when he paid $125,000 for Arion, was that he would breed Nancy Hanks to Arion. “ Stanford thought much of that 1nion and of the chances that a two-minuto horse would be the result. Gov. Sianford, however, wanted Nancy Hanks to be bred before she got “tired” campaigning on the race track, for he had little hopes of a tired m producing anything wonderful in the way of speed. No old racing mare ever has cone so. He thought the two-minute horse weld be foaled by a young dam instead of a ten-year-old as Nancy Hanks now is. When this pledge was made Nancy Hanks was in the five-year-old form, and Arion, — is now seven, was then a two-year- ond.” eek KK Oe have done away with the two-mil- r bundle of money that we used to allow the brides who visited the vaults handle,” said a treasury guide, ‘and they o not seem to be pleased with it. Many !s the bride to whom I have handed the bun- le, marked ‘two million dollars, with the remark: ‘Now, you can say you had two dollars in your hands.’ It tickled onderfully, and they went away but ignorant of what they handled, was in the bundle? I don't remem. her dis but there was no money in it. The weight, 1 know, was made up of io oll census reports.” It served them as Well as real money.” ee eK OK “I was talking to a man im St. Louis to- night,” remarked an obl-time telegrapher the other eveni “whose reputation for accuracy is unsurpassed, and he told me en unusual as well ag an extraordinary telegraphic error he had made, or ‘bull,’ as we call it. “We “la message addressed to ‘Dr. Glaseo,’ and there being such a deiivered to him, but the w there must be an erro-, and re- 1 the message to th2 company, and it S corrected. Now, whai do you suppose turn: a he correct name in that address?” he asked. I confessed my ignorance in this line, and he replied: “That message shoul] have read, “Drew Gla: mad C the error is easily or ‘bulled’—and there is not a week ‘8 but what I ‘hear of something of sort.” ee ee crusade against ready- made petitions to Congress is na new thing. Thess machine-made petitions have heen coming to Congress for years, and though an occasional protest is and has een made against them, they continue to cous along and probably will. They have their effect upon those who receive them for presentation to Congress, although it may end there. Tons of petitions, some of them a quarier of a mile long if the pieces of paper could be strung together, have been received in the Senate and House, ning thousands upon thousands of ature im connection with the temper- Sunday observance and moral and suffrage reforms. The petitions for and @gainst what was known as the “sewin= ne combination,” probably numbered © th. on any other subject. * Senator Hill's cont Twenty-five yeirs ago there was applica- tion made to Congress for an extension of the patent fer the “four-motion feed.” It Was the vital principle in the manufacture of sewing machines, for without the u: notion feed no sewing machine uccessfully operated. The patent 2d by a combination of the then reat sewing machine compan They charged such a great royalty f5 use that no new machine could be the market with any profit, thus ¢ preverting any competiiion in the sewing ss. The patent had run f eight years, having already had ion of fourteen years. Congress seemed slow to act on the ap: Plication for the exteasion of the patent mH for | ‘and the sewing machine combination be- wan to ‘have ready-made petitions sent in from all parts of the country asking for favorable action on the same. Every sew- ing machine agent, subagent, solicitor and canvasser throughout the country, and there were thousands of them, had orders | to have petitions signed and forwarded to Washington, and instructions to have each petition as numerously signed as possible. | As may be imagined, it was not long before the petitions began pouring in by every mail. The argument was used by the sew- ing machine agents that the higher price aid for machines was really a blessing in disguise; because of the cost the®ma- chine would be carefully used. It was strange that s> many subscribed to such a dectrine, but they did. After awhile the manufacturers of the lecs-known machines found it would be to their interest to offset the operations of the combination by opposing petitions. They argued, and their argument has been proved by subsequent events to be true, that if the extension of the patent for the four-motion feed was refused, a fair business com- petition would be the result, and machines could be purchased for one-third of the prices maintained by the combination, and still leave a fair profit for the manufacturer and handler of the machine. It was not very difficult for the ordinary person to comprehend this, and then they began s'gn- ing ready-made petitions on the other side. In four years it was estimated that enough petitions were received on both sides of the question to fill up a room fourteen feet square. Certain it is that they were so numerous that the rooms of the committee on patents of the Senate—for the great contest took Place in the Senate, the House having do- feated everything looking toward exten- sion of the patent—were so crowded with them that they had to be sent to the base- nent, whence they were afterward sent, as Senator Hill said, to the junk shop. The committee on patents reported against the extension, and the four-motion feed be- came public property, so that any one could use it, and, of course, the public got the ma- chines for less money. xe OK KK Shippers and railroad men are more or less worked up over the Supreme Court de- cision upholding the law which gives the federal courts and the interstate commis- sion the power to compel contumacious witnesses to testify in rebate cases, even though the evidence demanded be self-in- criminating. It, in effect, grants pardon in advance to witnesses turning state's evi- dence, and arms the courts with the au- thority to punish them for contempt for re- fusing to testify. Theoretically, the de- cision places it in the power of the inter- staté commission to put a summary stop | to the rebate abuse. Yet it would seem that all is not lost. Mr. Murray Nelson, a veteran clevator proprietor and commission merchant on the Chicago board of trade, is one who thinks that business will continue to be done at the old stand as usual. Mr. Nelson stopped off here last night on his way home from Flo He had only just heard of the decision, and was naturally in- terested in getting the particulars. “Well,” he remarked, when he had heard the worst, “I don’t know that it is going to cause the boys serous inconvenienc They | will just have to swear to a few lies, that’s all ‘That won't trouble them much. I den’t think that, as a rule, the fellows who give and take rebates would lie about lit- ue things. That is, they wouldn’t lie for a dollar, but they might tell twelve lies for five dollar * * A gcod story is told of hunters from Washington who went to the coast of North Carolina to shoot ducks. There were six men in the party, and they had three dogs with them. They hunted in couples, each two having a dog. Shooting was good, and from each of the six couples the sound of guns being fired notified their friends of their success, for | they were only a short distance apart. Each couple were somewhat indignant because, whenever a duck fell, their own dog failed to get it, one dog seeming to se- cure almost every one of the wild fowls. At lunch time they all came together. “Well, what luck?” was the general greet- irg. “Elegant, but your dog got our ducks,” was the universal. response. Then they looked at each other, while from out the little bay glided a skiff loaded with ducks, in the forward end of which sat the dog that had gathered them in. ABOUT DRESS GoopDs. Some of the Shades That Appear in the New Gowns. Green and violet seem to be the favorite colors for spring, but this is a natural im- itation of nature. The new Persian weaves come in exquis- ite shades of rich violet, green, blue and red. They are very soft and silky in ap- pearance. These and the new cheviois are favorite spring materials. The cheviots are speck- led and checked in light fawns and grays mixed with white. Mixed goods have come out in the new dresses and offer endless suggestion for va- riety in trimming. A material that has red and black and pale green almost equal- ly distributed can be trimmed with any of the three. One that I have seen had a pale green velvet vest, with a basque of the material piped with green. There were broad cuffs of green veivet. The lady who wore the dress carried a dainty kerchief under the sleeve and falling over her hand. Fancy fronts are growing fancier. A pretty trimming for one of blue chiffon is a row or two of Valenciennes lace with clumps of tiny white pearl buttons no bi ger than glove buttons set on at regular interval The fronts are finished at the neck with a heading of chiffon or with a collar and points. | ‘Those turnover point woven in embroidery 1 they can be bought y the pair. The new spring: wraps are either the box coat or tight-fitting coats with full backs-- with here and there a cape. — Some Satisfaction in It. Frem the Boston Transcript. Of course, it is more comfortable to a lady to sit down than to stand up in a street car; but we are credibly informed that quite as much pleasure comes from the latter position, inasmuch as the sitting men are all feeling just as mean as they by the way, are the yard, and can feel. The knowledge of this fact causes the standing lady to feel quite happy. ee The Practical Night Watchmen. | From Fliegende Ba! i | 3 “Gracious! How will we get these mem- bers of the rath haus home? Wait, I ART AND ARTISTS Mr. Thomas Waggaman has just made an important addition to his collection in the Troyon, which he secured last week. It is understood that the price paid for this painting was $10,000, and {t is a worthy ex- ample of that artist, who is generally con- ceded to hold the first place among cattle painters. The subject, a white cow and a sleepy-looking black mule standing idly in the pasture, is not as interesting as some of Troyon's works, but the handling is up to his best. As in most of his canvases, the landscape Is subordinated to the figures, so as to be scarcely noticed, and in this lies one of the secrets of his greatness. He never forgot that the animals were the mest important part of his picture, and did not allow himself to elaborate the acces- sories up to the point of distracting atten- tion. The effect of slanting sunlight on the cow is especially well brought out, and both animals stand out strongly against the landscape. * * * Two pictures formerly in Mr. Wagga- man’s possession, a darkey boy, by Richard N. Brooke, and one of Boughton’s typical English figures, are now at Fischer's. There is also on exhibition there a large painting by Oscar Bjorck, a Swedish artist, nct very weil known in this country, showing the interior of a smithy, with a group of iron workers busy at their trade. The picture shows a careful study of the effects of light, and is quite a strong piece of work. Es * Ok Mr. S. Jerome Uhl has recently started a portrait of Secretary Herbert, painted for the Navy Department, and, though still in an unfinished state, it promises to be excel- lent. One of the most interesting thin that he has done for some time is a head of Edgar Allan Poe, the face of which plainly tells the story of his life of sorrow and misery. All the facial characteristics of that most unhappy man, the broad, high ferehead, about which his dark locks hang lcosely, the weary expressive eyes, are there; in fact, the whole personality of the pcet has been se‘zed and fixed upon the canvas. Mr. Uhl has been mounting in an artistic way a number of woodland tches, made last summer at‘ Chauta qua, which he has now brought out from their hiding places. The artist has also Leen busy with portraits of Mr. and Mrs. Washington Cowen. * % The lecture on the “Upgrowth of Art” given on Friday at Columbian University by the well-known New York sculptor, William Ordway Partridge, is the first of @ series of lectures on that subject. As Mr. Partridge brings to his hearers pract cal experience as well as thorough know edge, his series will be a most interesting one. sl * Miss Clara Hill is working on a large, full-length figure of her sister in pastel, but most of her time {s occupied in model- ing. She has been busy with several small figure sketches in clay and an excellent bas relief of the delicately chiseled proiile of a friend. A portrait of Lady I by the old English m. ney, is now exhibited with specially ar- ged lighting at Heitmuller's gallc The portrait is the property of D1 and though in fairly good conditior somewlat faded, and the pain off in a number of places. Lady Ham is seated, resting her elbows on a dre: table, faintly outlined to the left wears a picturesque castern head dr some light filmy material. Her f turned directly toward the observer, an is well drawn and fresh and clear in colo but there in the draw eling of the hands and arm: they are, which shows the ar ceful as early training and of thorough tech: knowledge, though this in itself ment against its genuineness, a has often been ¢ ed tor tho: faults. portraits of women from a certain di: ive grace and sweetness found in the! it is said. that Lady Hamilt what was most beautiful Whether authentic or not, this i an old picture, and is worth an { On Tueséay a dnesday Mrs. Hearst’ collection of pictures was thrown open for the benefit of the Decorative Art Soctet The paintings were well worth se specimens of the Barbizon school, th French school and examples of German, Dutch, English and italian artists are in? cluded in her valuable coll * Mr. A. G. Heaton has under way a iarze rical painting, showins Baron St-ubon drilling the raw recruits at Valley Fory: The composition of the picture and the grouping of the figures, no small task when the number ef people introduced is considered, is now accomplished, but the faces of the military leaders still require to be studied chat accurate likenzsses may be given, and many of the minor details are wanting. The picture vhows Baron Steuben standing in the snow in front of the troops and going through tho manual of erms himself, in order to better instract the ragged, half-starved recruits, who are erdeavoring awkwardly to imitate nim. To the right of the canvas stan e house which Washirgton occupie Valley at Forge, painted from a sketch Mr. Heaton } raade of the old bnilding, and in the back- ground rises a chain of bleak, snow-cove ed hills. Near the door of the hous» Mar- tha Washington and Gen. and Mrs. Gre ferm an inierested group of spe tor: and Gen. Washington, surrounded by si eral officers, stands in the foreground in- tently watching the drill. 'T. valley, girt by the wind-swept hil wearing an aspect of dreary isolat well carried out. * sk ook The miniature of well-known woman, which Mrs. S. M. Fassett has n. pleted, promises to be an exceptionally fine piece of work. It is done, as is most of her work, from life, without the aid of a photegraph, and the flesh tints are pariicu- larly delicate and true, and the hair is ad- miratle. Among her recent work are min- jatures of Mrs. George B. Chittenden, Mr Adam Kirkpatrick and Mrs. Percy ‘Hills, and one of the musical publisher Raphvel Fassett, the artist's son. Mrs. Fassett ins tends some tim i the near future to make an oil portrait of Lincoln as a com- panion piece to the one of Gen. Grant that she painted not long ago. The portrait of Grant is from a photograph taken on the day he was appointed lieutenant general, showing him with Lincoln at his siae. * * Ok Mr. E. F. Andrews is putting the finish- ing touches on a three-quarter length figure of Dr. McKim. The portrait gives satisfac- tion in all quarters, both on account of the pose, which is easy and natural, and of the excellent likeness. A deep red curtain, happily introduced to the left, is exactly the right thing to offset the dark tone of the clergyman’s black coat, and to relieve the portrait from somberness. His likeness ef Dr. William B. Bodine is now finished, and rapid progress is being made with a strong Rembrandtesque portrait of Mrs. Charles Klotz. When this canvas is com- pleted, which will be in a short time, it will be exhibited at Fischer's. * * Mrs. Andrews is well along on a portrait of Counsellor Carter, which she has been painting for Mrs. Carter of Oaklands, Va., from an old paixting thought to be by Joshua Reynolds, and she has not only represented the original faithfully, but has caught the spirit of it as well. Some of her time has been taken up with a bold still life pieee in oil of a well arranged group of objects. * * x ~ A beautiful bunch of La France roses in a glass bowl is at present claiming Miss Aline Solomons’ attention. Lately her work has been for the most part in the line of ; portraiture, both In oil and pastel, though | she has done work of a varied character in her interesting composition studies. * : * OK Mr. J. H. Moser’s exhibition of water col- ors closes this week at Fischer's, the sale | of quite a large number of pietures being t's lack of | 2 effect of the | the best possible indication of their popu- larity. Next:week there will be an exhibi- tion of paintings by Felix Bernardelll, a Brazilian. 3. ; ‘ » x * Miss Katherine Chipman’s water color head of MissiLizzle Patterson is one of her best portraits, and a most satisfactory like- ness. Miss‘ Pattersqn is dressed for the street, and there is a certain style about the Carrlage of; the head that is admirably ren- ered. Miss ‘Chipman has recently painted a likeness'bf<Mrs. Carroll, and one of the late John ©. Hoadly, of Boston, and is now at work oh a portrait of an old lady. Her charming full-length figure of a little child has return&d>from Providence, where it has Leen on exhibition. In addition to her more important work she expects to do several Kittle study: heads this winter. > * * Max Weyl .went over to New York on Wednesday, in order to be present on varnishing day at the National Academy of Design. His contribution to the spring ex- hibition this year, a large landscape show- ing the Potomac marshes near Washington, was at once accepted, without question, afi has been honored by being placed “on the line,” a distinction which means a good deal to an artist. Mr. Weyl’s friends will be pleased, though not surprised, at his good fortune in this respect. His pictures, full of atmosphere and color, are so well known here that this success in another city {s no more than was anticipated by his sviends. On April 6 he will hold his annual exhibition at Fischer’ * 208 OK Mr. Elihu Vedder, the distingutshed Amer- fean painter, who has an important commis- sion in the mvral decoration of the new library building, has been in the city dur- ing the week, the guest of his ccusin, Mrs. Robert I. Fleming. Mr. Vedder, who won an_ international roputation by his mar- vclous illustration of the Rubayit of Omar Khayam, has occupied a studio in Rome for twenty years, but visits his old home often enough to keep in touch with the progres: i iment of his native coun- try. 3 for the library have been put in pla temporarily, and add sreatly to the artistic attractions of the new building, A Fortunate Circumstance Warded Of the Impending Death Penalty. A Star reporter had an army oflicer as a listener, and he was expatiating on the way he would shoulder a musket and fight, bleed and die for beloved country, in case there was war with England or any other © monarchy tottering cn a tum- bling throne, or words to that ettect. “Did you ever do guard duty on a nz night in the enemy's country?” the officer. “Well, no, ated the reporter. “Then don’t say what you would do until you have tried it. It reads nicely in the Papers, and lots of men deiight in imagin- ing the high-stepping styie that they would trot along the crimson path that leads to glory or the grave, but when the crimson is mud, or the path is in a thicket, which at any moment may blaze up with a volle it isn't half so nice to think about. The fighting is the least disagreeable thing about war, and the glory is won at an high pric n't. stand ity inquired rted the reporter; and have bod. “Well, Ww else do the guarding.” I didn’t begin my sold: y,"% said the offic 1 not yet ed duty 1 to prot Let me tell you a career “1 was a pri- » and the amount emed to me to be e armics in the story of how I did might. Tt Was a dark ané dismal down on tie Potomas, and we had ding ground in the m nd coid he heaft was entir We had moved field it one time nd Ww, Under such ¢: given o to be watch? on his post sure. ! in an exposed position, strict, indeed. Won ef land 1a monopoly » but L hada round in front of no enemy I knew nd y trust death roach Witty uch depended on im. 1 knew that if-T betray would he my portion was only a be and could hardly stand many and how long. Nature can't rudely aroused from a be home by « Violent shat Whispers and curses of d. Jn a rainute | knew what and there flasne! through ture of a Dlindfolded sotai Ung ou his coffin with a fiving ps tanding in front of him. [ got to my by the help jerk or two hy the offi | and then I expected more abuse, and it and kept on getting it until I’ got back to the officer's tent. Fortunately { kept my. mouth shut until we reached the light of the tent. “There the officer got a good look at me and discovered that I was covered with blood. So did I, much to my surprise, but | I felt on the instant that I was saved, for the officer asked what the blood meant, and 1 told him T must have burst a smali blood vessel and falien in a faint on my beat. I was scared so badly that 1 was ick, and 7 didn’t have to argue long to prove my case, notwithstanding the very ent om I stood it for 1 and ever. the cer of the suai hoarse ious results that might have follo my dereli of duty. T had no gu duty to perform after that for a long time, {and an death ac offense that was punishable by iy turned ot to be a tine snap as a boy I rather enjoyed.” * inquired the writ bleed, to which before I had been sub- presume my weakened condition j brought it back again, but why it should have resumed operations at such an oppor- tune time I cannot s I can say, though, on my post again,” and d to think of his Tow H | escape. -—_>___ and the Man With the Camera. Frem the New York ne There was a squirrel sitting on a bush in Central Park. A man who came along took a pocket camera from his pocket and aimed | it at the sat the squirrel sat perfectly till. Snap! went the camera and the man put it back in his pocket. Then the man held out a nut to the squirrel. The squir- rel came down promptly and took the nut from the man’s fingers. It was all us though the sguirrel had sat perfectly still for its picture in expectation of the under- stood reward. |The Squirre es Good Advice. From Truth, She—“The doctor says that you mustn’t call any more.” He—“Did he say that?’ Sne—Well, he said that I needed eight hours’ sleep.”” a Things One Would’ Have Expressed Different! From Puncli. “How are you, old chap? Are you keep- ing strong?” . “No; only just managing to keep out of my graye.” “Oh, I'm sorry to hear that!” IN HOTEL SORRIDORS “I saw James Keene, or “Jim” Keene, as everybody knows him, the other day in New York,” said R. F. Billings of the metropolis at the Ebbitt. ‘He is preparing to end his business carcer as he began it, mining. in the west, and has purchased some extensive gold properties, among them being one in California, that he once lost money in when he could not afford to lose. Keene’s life has been a remarkable one. He was a poor laborer about’ the mines, and in some way got in on the Com- stock lode with Crocker. He left the Pa- cific coast with ten millions of dollars, which he lost on wheat, made and lost another fortune in the same way, made an- other on the cordage trust that wrecked so many others, and will now return to Lis first love, that of gold mining. He is not going to confine himself to speculating in stocks, but is buying property for the vurpose of developing and operating it With Keene in the field, a wonderful sur+ vival of interest may be expected in gold mining operations.” ©. A. Hawley of Cincinnati is at the Cochran, Mr. Hawley has just returned from a trip across the Atlantic, and, in telling his experiences, related some that were exceedingly interesting. “Upon my way to London,” he said, “T became acquainted with three young Eng- Ushmen who were returning from the far west, very much disgusted. They had each paid $100 to a man in London to obtain them positicns in this country, one to learn the cattle business, one to learn wheat farming, and one orange farming. Each bad a contract by which they were to be boarded and clothed for two years and re- ceive all necessary tuition and experierce in exchange for their services. Upon. in- quiry I learned that this is consilered a good contract in Engiand among young men who desire to learn farming. ‘They have enough money to enter into the busi- but lack the practical experience, This they are glad to pay for, and the London agent, who advertises to find such openings, reaps a goud ha: st. There are a number of such adveruisemen:s in. the English papers. Bogus names are inserted in the contracts, and, as a rule, the Eng- lishman, who pays for the situation, finds another here and does not go home. If he does, the agent claims that the man simply failed to find the one fe was seni to, and succeeds in clearing himseif. “I found that the scheme was rather ex- tensively worked. Of course, It is against the alien contract labor law, but that does not seem to deter either brokers or cus- tomers.”” “Lepresy has been on the increase in the United States for the past ten years,” said Dr. E. W. Munshall of New Orleans at the Arlington. “Very little is said about it, but Louisiana has had to provide a scparate hospital for them, as has California. There are a good rrany cases of genuine leprosy, and the number has been increasing until very recently because no cure has been known. Now, there is a cure that I pe- lieve will prove an absolute specific, and the reports I have received from it in Mo- alai, the leper is!and, are such that T will be surprised if it does not practically ban- h leprosy from the world. The remedy s discovered by Dr. Goto, a Japanese physician of great reputation, and it has ready received royal sanction in Japan. li is now being tried in the Pacific islands. and I am informed by reliable authority that cases have been cured where no oth remedy would have had the le: t “They taik about the drink habit, the to- bacco habit and the morphine habit,” said Dr. E. C. Briggs of Pittsburg at Willara’s, but the worst habit to which a man can become addicted I have never seen men- tioned in print. I refer to the reading habit. Reading is at once a source of rec- tion and profit, when properly regulated, but when it becomes a confirmed habit it wrecks a man mentally and phys rendering him entirely 5S world. Ever, to whom I refet ng habit read every brain becomes ficapable of realizing the 1 affairs of earth, and they no more understand other men than though they had never seen one. They are, of course, possessed of inexhaust.ble information, 4 person to talk to one casually would suppose him to be a great man, when, a$ a matter of fact, he is no more fitted to ke p n the affairs of the world than a child in the cradle. If they have money, .it is soon gone in visionary hemes, they are nuisances to those because they do not under- ‘their e is entirely wasted ing, and there is no ble object on earth than the man inilicted with the reading mani minute, around them, stand th em, “In parts of Texas and Arizona I found a river to be a streak of sand across the rrairie, whil> a lake is a body of sand sur- rounded by mosquito bushes,” said Pe L. Ireland of S:. Louis at the Metropolitan. “No trace of water is visible in some of the Iskes ard rivers, except immediately after a rain, but they are valuable never- theless, as by scraping a hole in the sand water can be obtained. The Virginia Dale gold mine fs situated at the end of one of these lakes. It had a five-stamp mill, and was run with profit for so small a plant. While I was out there, a storm came up, the sand shifted and for several days no one could ventur2 out on account of the sand. When it subsided, no trace could be seen of the stamp mill. It had been cov- ered by the sand. It would cost more to | dig it out than to build a new mill, so the company is now putting up a new ten- stamp miil cn top of the old one. A thou- sand years from now, some one may un- earth the mill and write learned articles upon the age in which it was buil Whether or not the anecdote told by on’ Weems about George Washington and the cherry tree is true, or whether the father of our country ever told a lie, one of its defenders has heen found who will not,” said Arthur Briggs of Los Angeles at the Howard. “A man named Patrick Kennedy, whose friends are all dead and who is unable to earn a living, applied for admission to the Soldiers’ Home. He had served three years, was honorably charged and his papers were clear. He had tramped a hurgired miles across the moun- tains to reach the home, and was almost a ictal physical wreck from his long, weari- some journey. Had only his papers been looked at he would have been admitted, but the usual questions were asked, among them being whether or not he had ever aided the confederate cause. His face turned white, and tears came into his eyes. He knew that to answer the question truthfully meant to deprive himself of the benefits of the home. But he did not hesi- tate. He stated that he had been con- pted and served one year, constantly ng to desert and join the Union army, in the cause of which he was in thorough sympathy. He seized the first opportunity and fought three years for the stars and stripes, but he was not ¢ligible to the home, and he turned sadly away to suffer Gestitution.” —__.__ DIDN'T USE POPGUNS. Contingency Which Spoiled All of His Calculations. A Star reporter overheard the following story of one of the leading politicians of Alabama: He is a violent partisan, and when mak- ing a stump specch indulges in prophecies with the conviction of an oracle. He has been one of the most popular campaigners in the state for forty years, and at the time the question of secession was being agi- tated he was ardently in favor cf it, al- ways closing his speeches upon the subject with a bitterly sarcastic comparison be- tween the north and the south, saying: “Why should we fear war? We can whip the Yankees with popguns. During the last campaign he was equally certain that the democrais would carry the state against the populis*s ard ridiculed any other opinion as being ebsurd. During one of these addresses an old man arose and said: “Judge, I don’t want to Interrupt. But before the war you said we could whip the Yankees with popguns. Now you say we can beat the populists easily. Have "you any better proof of what you say now #at what you said about the war?” “No, sir,” replied the judge, “I have not. I don’t want any. I said before the war that we could whip the Yankees with pop- guns. I say so now. But they wouldn't fight us that way.” dis- | WHERE EASTER LILIES GROW. Bermuda ts the place beyond all others to’ “consider the lies, how they grow.” Whether they are indigenous to the soil or not, they are certainly acclimated, and un- der the sunny skies and gracious air of that island, “where falls not hail nor any sncw,” they respond to rather indifferent culture in a manner to make the northern grower mad with envy. With us “one stately row of stalks is a precious possession; they are the aristo- crits of our garden. In Bermuda they are a crop, like potatoes or onions, and whole flelds le like drifted snow with their mass- es of white bloom. Tnese fields are not, indeed, very large, being for the most part mere dimples in the coral ridge, of which the islands are formed, averaging not more than half an acre'in area. But in these lit- tle depressions the thin soil becomes richer by the washings from the slopes, and the bulbs flourish accordingly. They are plant- ed in rows and cultivated much like pota- tees, the weeds being kept down with a crude implement called by courtesy a hoe. It looks as if it belonged to the stone age. It is Interesting to note with what precision the bulbs advertise the condition of the soil, the plants becoming pale and shrunk- en as soon as they begin to climb the slope. At first the commercial value of this crop lay entirely in the bulbs, which were shipped to other countries in great quanti- es, But in these later years a new indus- try has sprung up; the blossoms themselves are successfully sent everywhere. The United States gets the most of them, though vast quantities are sent to England, and even the Australian Easter is bright ened by them. It must have been American spirit which suggested this new enterprise. Of course, the Bermudan, with characteristic English conservatism, strongly opposed it on the ercund that it was a rank innovation and woull ruin the bulb trade. As became the descendants of the old Saxon Witenage- mote, they held an assembly and drew up what Uncle Remus would call a “peramble wid some wharfo’es in it,” setting forth the dangers of such a course and remonstrat- ing with their erring brothers. Meanwhile, as the bulb men talked, the bud men kept on packing, and Easter altars all over the country were glorified with the beauty of Bermuda lilies. These buds are picked while they are still quite green, und are packed in cubeshaped boxes holding about two dozen stalks each. Some of these boxes are furnished with frames similar tothose used in packing eggs, £0 that each stalk is kept separate. There is little advantage in this, however, and for the most part the buds are snugly packed with a sprinkling of a kind of sea weed clesely resembling the coarse moss of our bogs. This sea weed ‘s kept in water and wrung out as it is used, and keeps the buds damp. Before packing each case is lined with a large sheet of paper, the ends of which are long enough to fold over the buds after the box is full. A printed slip ef directions is invariably packed inside each case, the first Ine of which strongly reminds one of the Celtic signboard warn- ing travelers that “this ford is dangerous when this board is out of sight.” For these directions instruct the receiver to put the Lex, before opening, into a dark, cool place for a time, and then to open it very care- fully. As the box must be opened before the advice is available, its value is slightly impaired. ———_.—__ REMENYI AND HIS IDDLE. It Wax Restored by the Skill of John Birch, the F Street Hermit. “The illness of Remenyi, the violinist, cut in Towa, and the greatest of them all efter the famous Ole Bull,” said a well- known local musician to a Star reporter, “recalls to my mind a visit he made to .this city some years ago. When perform- ing in Paris, his principal violin and the ene on which he relied the mest suddenly became dumb. It flattened out so in sound that Remenyi could not make its music heard in the large concert halls in which he appeared, and the loss of the instrument scriously interfered with his business. He consulted a number of artists of renown in violin circles as to the cause of the trouble and a remedy for it, but failed to get any valuable advice or assistan~ Ole Bull took the violin in hand and trie his utmost to make it ‘speak,’ but it no use, the violin did not respond, even at the master’s touch. ““Lay it aside for six months,’ said Ole Bull, ‘and it will cure itself. I have nad the same thing happen to me several times and the rest cure ¢id the work. ““‘My engagements are such,’ answered Remenyi, ‘that I cannot spare it for so long a time. Can't I hurry its cure up any way? ““The only possitle thing I can recommend in the case,” replied Ole Bull, ‘is that you take it to the United States and to Wash- ington. There is one man there who can put life into it, if any one can. I don’t re- member his name, but the music stores there will tell you his name, and where you_can find him.’ “Remcnyi returned to Paris, finished his concerts and started in less than ten days for this city in search of a man whose nime and address were unknown to him. On arriving hare he was directed to the haunt of Jchn Birch, a hermit, who had for manyyears lived in a tumbledown shanty on F street, two or three doors east from 10th street. The rear part of the lot ran down to the old Ford’s Theater. The front on F street was a bill board, and was covered up by show bills. In this place Birch and his sister Hved for many years. Though the sister, Mary, was now and then seen on the streets, John never put in a public appearance except on Christmas and the Fourth of July. He was generally regard- ed as insane, though there was not much evidence of it in his conversation or man- ner, except that he persisted in living the life of a hermit. “His pastime was music, the invention and repair cf musical instruments, though his leisure hours were devoted to the working out of 2 machine for perpetual motion. One of his inventions was a bass instru- ment, in size not much larger than-the or- dinary accordeon, by which he thought sounds equal in volume to the bass violin could be produced. “Though Birch had lived in the same house for over forty years, there were but very few persons who had ever seen or ever hezrd of him. “In an hour after Remenyi had arrived in Washington,” continued the speak: ‘he ; Was in Birch’s shanty, and had produced | the dumb violin from its case. Birch look- ed it over carefully, and said it could be cured. “Return in a half hour,’ he said to Re- | Teenyi, ‘and I'll have it fixed. But Kemenyi declined to allow his violin to be that long out of his personal control, and urged Pireh to fix it while he was present. This Birch consented to do provided Remenyi would not look at him while he was at work on it. In less than five minutes he handed the violin to Remenyi, with the re- mark, ‘Now try it, and see if it is not as &eod as ever.” Remenyi did try it, and to his great pleasure he found that it was as good as ever. “He feared to let Birch touch it again, thinking that possibly he might take the charm of life ort of it, but played several of his best selections fur Uirc Though Birch had been repairing violins as well as other instruments nearly all of iis life, he had never before heard a great perforner play. In the enthusiasm and excitement of the mcment Remenyi packed up his violin and walked away. In talking about the in- cident afterward, Birch told me that Re- menyi, in his imlescribable pleasure, had actually forgotten to pay him for his cure. ‘That feilow,’ said Birch, ‘is the wildest fiddler I ever heard of or saw. The only thing the matter with bis fiddle was that the bridge was too high. He had put in a rew bridge without thinking of it, and sup- pcsed the old bridge was in all of the time. All I did was to t it out and sandpaper it off at the botto: —_——__. Unexpected Good Luck. From the Philadelphia Record. “Your money or your I'fe!” cried the footpad. “Thank heaven! An unsolicited order,” exclaimed the belated book agent, opening his valise; “take my life, by all means. I am offering here my autoblog- raphy, replete with anecdotes of Lincoln and personal recollections of—gracioug, what a!!s the man?” eee Further development of Roentgen’s dis- covery.—St, Paul's. MUNYON'S HOMEOPATHIC REMEDIES, - A CURE FOR EVERY DISEASE Prof. Munyon's office, 713 14th st. n.w., open daily 9 te 5; Sunda: to 12: Monday and ‘Thars- day evenings, 6 to 8, where these sp consulted frve of charge on all disease mb?24-tu,th&s3t A NARROW ESCAPE. Mr. Lackyman Was Innocent, buat Could He Have Proved It? “As an illustration of how easy it is to ba- come the victim of circumstances, and how the strongest kind of proof may be extab- lished against a person entirely innocent of criminal intent’ merely through false appearances, i wish to narrate an incident iz my own experience,” said a gentleman to a reporter of The Star. “Some years ago I occupied a house on — street in this city, and as there was More rocm than the family needed the third floor was rented, the occupants there- of being a rewly wedded cou; ‘The hus- bend’s work kept him from home at night, though scmetimes, when work was siack, he would get in before daylight. My sleep: irg room was immediately beneath that occupied by the tenants. “At the time I speak of there was also another lodger in the house, ot confined to eny particular floor or room, but hav- ing the run of the whole premises. This was a pet cat, a great favorite with all of us. This same cat came very near gelling me into serious troubie. On one occasion she took a week's leave of absence. We never ascertained where or how she spent the time. and no trace of her could be found. But ‘the cat came back.’ “One night I was aroused from a deep slecp to hear a piteous mewing at the upper door. I hastily arose and without taking the time to even put on my slip- pers I hurried down and admitted the warderer. Then I started upstairs ‘9 m room, but by some mental aberration I seemed to forget its location, passed it by and went on up to the third floo: “The only way in which I can explain my mistake is this: There was a basement to the house and I vsually entered thet way. To reach my chamber in such event I was, of course, compelled to ascend two flights of stairs, and the habit thus formed may, ir my sleepy state, have led to thc The first thing I knew I was stat clad only in one very much abbrey garment, inside the tenants’ room. dcor was unlocked and I had opened it anc stepped in without disturbing the sole or- cupant, the young wife. There before me, by the light streaming in through an open window, I could plainly see madame Wrept in slumber, unconscious of the prox- imity of a stray man, calmly, yet not quiet ly, snoozing away. “For a moment I was completely upset and failed to realize the situation. Then, recovering my senses, I softly stole out, without attempting to close the door. T had been in my ewn room less t five minutes when there was a rattle at the front door as a key was inserted and in walked Mr. Younghusband. Quieily ho sped upstairs, and soon after 1 heard scmewhat animated discussion, in wh! the fact of the room door being ed to cut quite a figure. I didi end explain the matter. In fa sc impressed with the narrow escape I i made that I was compelled to resort to the contents of a small bottle I kept in my room 2 rves, w min- may make in the affairs of mankind. I was never before so struck with the Value of time. What Might Have Happened. Now, suppose I had beer. discovered by. the young wife as I entered or by ti : band as I came out! What construction would have been put upon the situation? Weuld my explanation have availed? Hardly. Suppose, as is most likely, a row hau occurred, avd’ the matier goue into the courts. “What would a jury have thought of my apparently all” too dia- Phanous story? I hate to think of what the consequences might have been, bota to myself and to others. “It is true, my character was, and still is, fairly good, and the cat was there to testify in my behalf, but 1 fear that would not have helped me much. But. supy me exonerated by a jury. Woul ‘suspicion, strong as proof of holy writ,” have damned me in public estimation? “I haven't the least doubt of it. “The experience of that, to me, eventful night taught ane a powerful lesson. I have since been exceedingly careful in passing judgment upon others when the evidence is based on appeurances only, no matter how convincing these may seem. “I sometimes meet my former tenants, Pow pater and mater familias, but I never do so without experiencing an uncomforta- ble feeling. “I may say, in conclusion, that T am a’so mighty particular how I travel about at night, especially when garbed only « rectitude and a very short robe de nui _ SAT! HE WANTED ACTION. a Police Officer Appeared and Interfered in a Scrap. He was quite a reputable-looking citizen, and as he approached the desk of the edi- ter of the crank department of The Star that worthy wondered what the mischief the office boy had sent that kind of a look- ing man in that direction for. However, he hadn’t time to wonder long, and he cluded to meet his visitor in the prop. spirit. “Gcod morning,” the call on the c: “Morning,” re: agreeable tone. satisfaction.” The crank editor entirely stopped wonder- ing now and got ready for development “Well,” he i, cheerily, “you've come to the right place to get it. You just put advertisement in The Star, and if you get satisfaction you'll be different everybody else who has tried it.” don’t mean that,” explained the caller. “What I want is satisfaction for the way po.icerran treated me last night down where I live, in Southeast Washinzion,” “How did he treat you?” ‘Arrested me, and this morning I got a fine.” “What did you do with it?” inquired the editor,bracing up and recovering his wonted sand and spirits. “Do with what?” some surprise. “The fine. Didn't you say you got one?’ “Aw, you come off,” said the visitor, in a mer indicating an entire lack of ap- preciation for this brand of editorial humor, “I got fined in the Police Court.” “Why?” “Beczuse the policeman arrested me, of course. “But why did he arrest you, “That's what I want satisfaction for.” The editor wes beginning to feel the need of something of that sort himself. “Well,” he said, rather sharply, “go ad and tell me about it.” ‘That's what I've been trying to do ever since I come in here. You see, I Seen forty fights and read in the newspapers of a thousand all over town when there the dickens of a scrap, and never a pol! man in sight till the whole darn thing was over. I say I've seen forty fights like that myself, and I never seen a policeman till the battle was over. Well, last night I met a neighbor of mine that I've been hav- ing it in for for six months and he began sassing me right away and calling names, and the next thing he knew I was on top of him, thumping the everlasting stuffing out of him, and glad of the chance, when a policeman come banging ‘round the corner and pulled me off when I had just got warmed up to it and Wasn't half done with him. Of course, I give up to the policeman and went along and give bail, and got fin and paid it, but I didn’t get my money's worth, and what I want to know now is If I can’t get satisfaction out of that med- dling policeman? Been r he said, briskly, getting ler. mded the caller in a dis- I've come here to get asked the visitor in “I'm afraid not,” ventured the editor, thoughtfully. “Sure? “Quite sure. “Well, goqd-bye. That's just. my luck. I'll bet if I'd been getting the licking I was giving to that chump there wouldn't have been a policeman there to stop it in three weeks,” and he went out under a halo of, gloom and disappointment.