Evening Star Newspaper, October 24, 1896, Page 23

ASK FOR THE GENUINE serene CHINESE FIRE DEPARTMENTS. Primitive Methods of Fighting Flames —Engines of Antique Type. From the New York Tribune. If Li Hung Chang would submit to an interview on the subject, it would be inter- esting to know what his feelings were as he sat upon the grand stand at Union Square and watched the exhibition of one of the most efficient fire departments in the world. The difference between the work- ings of that department and the one which he has known in Peking must have aroused foretbly his remarkable powers of com- parison, A slight inkling of his impressions, how- ever, may be gained by a brief outline of the workings of the fire departments to ich he is accustomed in China. These departments are considered very effective even by foreigners to that land, and it may be they are when the construction of Chi- nese dwellings and buildings is taken into account. There is scarcely a house there over two stories high. But even for houses of that diminutive height the Chinese method of fighting flres must appear very erude compared to the system here. In the larger cities of China there are sta- “tioned throughout their length and breadth fire watchmen. Upon bamboo poles is built @ sentry box with a narrow balcony cir- cling. These sentry boxes are stationed at regular intervals, say, the distance of five or ten of our city blocks apart, and In each ene a watchman is on duty day and night. ‘The instant signs of fire appear in his dis- trict he sounds the alarm either by voice or by a gong, and the dread cry is hastened along to the nearest fire engine house. In these houses, which are none too numer- ous, are kept hand engines somewhat like the antique types known here. They are dragged by running Chinamen, and at the alarm the engine is rushed off to the scene ef the fire with really creditable rapidity, and the engine “pipes’’ are put in connec- tion with the nearest canal. These canals are so numerous throughout the large cities that one is nearly always within reasonable distance of a fire. If there be not one near, a well or cistern is utilized as the source of water supply. There is little organization in a Chinese fire department, but the crowd that gathers lends a willing hand, and can usually extinguish a fire in the building in which {t originated. As the ings are only of two stories, as al- Tealy explained, the difficulties presented to the Chinese firemen are not great. Should the fire get beyond control, however, there is a precaution which the Chinese alone of all nations have adopted to prevent its ex- tensive spread. At frequent intervals in the crowded parts of the cities fire walls ef brick have been built. These walls in- clude fixea areas, beyond which no flames can travel. Besides these engine houses and fire walls, are maintained, in the city of Canton, at least, one or two stationary engines near central points upon the banks of canals for se in case of fire. The engines are in puildings designed for them, much after the manner of reservoir pumping stations here, but, of course, of a much less elab- orate design. From these engines iron pipes run over the roofs of neighboring houses for some distance, and from fre- quent outlets along the line of pipes water can be distributed in time of fire upon threatened points. When the ambassador of the Chinese em- peror beheld New York's splendid machines in full operation, the primitive method of fire protection in his own country must have seemed crude indeed. ————_+o+____ A WOMAN'S WATCH. How One Fair Matron Managed to Keep Hers in Perfect Order. From the Detroit Free Press. ‘They were sipping chocolate at a cafe and taiking of watches. “I have carried my watch for ten years,” said the senior member of the party, “and ver cost me a penny for repairs.” exclaimed another one, “how did you manage?” “I took care of it. You know men are always making disagreeable remarks about wemen's watches, and when my husband ave me mine he said it would prdbably be out of order most of the time. And I just made up my mind to show him that there Was cue woman in the world who knew hew to take care of a watch.” “But have you never lost ft or had it stolen r. I dropped it several times af first, but it didn't show any marks.” But do the works never get out of order?” ‘he what—?” “The works inside. Have you never broken the mainspring?” “T never look inside?” “But how do you wind it?’ “I don’t wind it. That's how I take care of it and keep it nice.” They all stared a moment. Then they said, “Oh. you clever thing,” and ad- jJourned sine die. + e+____ Then They Ceased to Neighbor. Cleveland Leader. Ethel—“Yes, we are poor. be my fortune.” Nellie—“And I suppose you'd be willing to take fifty-three cents on the dollar for it, too." My face must BUTTONS! ELECANT BUTTON FREE WITH EACH PACKACE : Cigarettes AN OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE A COLLECTION OF BUTTONS WITHOUT CosT. ———Don’t blame you a bit for kicking about your laundry. Make achange. Try the Yale, 514 1oth st. *Phone 1092. Wagon calls. It Chauncey M. Depew Eisner & MENDELSON Co., Gentlemen :—The genuine Johann Hoff’s has been used in my family for some years. ~ © Johann Hoff’s Malt Extract. Ail Others are Worthless Imitations. THE EVENING STAR, SATURDAY, OOTOBER 24, 1896-TWENTY-FOUR PAGES. 23 WRITES; GRAND CENTRAL brPo} December 16, 1895. it Extract hu (ce 7 cad NISHAPUR TURQUOISE MINES. Lazy Methods by Which the Stones Are Gotten Out. From the London Times. The famous turquoise mines of Nishapur, im northern Persia, are believed to be the only turquoise mines in the world which have been worked extensively or which have produced the turquoise of perfect shap2 and color. On approaching the mines 4 Nishapur, afier entering the low hills and gradually ascending, one arrives, first, at the villages inhabited by the miners, which are on undulating ground about 5,000 feet above sea level. After another gradual ascent for about a mile by a very good road the foot of a hill about 1,000 feet in height is reached. All the mines are on the south tace of this hill, and from the first to the last the distance as the crow files is not more than half a mile. The Reish mine, which is the only one worked on a large scale or with vigor, produces the greater part of the turquoises at present sent to market. It is near the top of one of the highest ridges, at an altitude of about 6,000 feet above the sea level. The entrance is a hollowed-out cave, about twelve yards across, with a vertical shaft some five yards in diameter. Two men were reclining at the mouth of this shaft with their backs against the wall of the cave, and turning with their bare feet a rickety wooden wheel, which brought up the debris from below in a small sheepskin bag holding no more than a peck perhaps. This was re- ceived by a third man, who unhooked, emp- tied and reattached it. The other two men removed their feet, and the bag went down with a run some forty feet, where three other men were similarly engaged on a ledge im the shaft. The mine itself is 80 feet or 90 feet from the surface. The mi- ners first descend by means of a narrow diagonal tunnel, and then scramble down the rough sides of the shaft. At the mouth of the cave, which is on the precipitous hillside, half a dozen men were seated close together on a ledge, breaking with small hammers the frag- ments of rock as they were broughi up from below. When a turquoise was dis- covered it was placed on one side in its rough state, incased in rock, and sent to Meshed. Unfortunately, though the mine is very productive, and the turquoises of good shape, their color soon goes. Since the Abdur Rezai mine fell in it may be said that the stones of perfect shape and color are very rarely found. But, though really good turquoises are rare, there is. abun- dence of imperfect and bad stones, which are eagerly bourht, for all orientais prize them, and the very poorest like to possess even a green and spotted one set in a tin ring. It is more than likely, however, thai the hill contains an abundance of good stones. Some of those now found look ex- cellent at first, but the color in most cases soon fades, or a green tinge is developed, or spots appear on them. Some of these white spots can only be detected at first with a glass, and then as a mere speck, but in time they may expand and spread right across the stone. The color of most faded turquoises can be temporarily revived by dampness. In Meshed no one would dream of buying a turquoise of good color without poasessing it first for some days, for it is the most treacherous of.all-prectous stones. The turqupolse, as soon as they are cut jn Meshed, are nearly all sold at once for ex- port, and their price in the town rises at least 1,000 per cent. Some years ago one cculd obtain in Meshed gcod turquoises of perfect shape, fine color, fair size and with- out a flaw for a few shillings each. Tur- quoises are at present far cheaper at Tifils and Constantinople than at Meshed, and at those towns one might perhaps find some of good color which have been in stock for years. a DECEPTIVE FINERY. Sealskins Made Out of Tame French Rabbit Pelts. From the Cincinnat! Enquirer. There was no mistaking the old plush imitation sealskin, and many who could not afford the real declined the counter- felt, but it is stated that among the com- ing winter's fashions will be skins sc cleverly dretsed to imitate the eovering of the seal that detection will be possible only to the expert. It is expected that this in- novation will be one of the most remark- able developments the fur trade has ever known. The new fur !s called “electric seal,” and consists of the skin of the ordi- nary French tame rabbit electrically treat- ed. The process involves a careful first dressing to obtain softness and pliability the coet afterward passing under a ma- chine of extraordinary delicacy, which catches and shears down the stronger and coarser hairs, giving at the samé time a softness and “flow” to what is left. The dyeing is skillfully managed to give artt- ficial gradations of golden brown under the surface. The final stage of manipulation before the skins go to the manufacturer is reached through the operation of a really marvelaus electrical mechanism, which re- moves any undesirably stiff hairs that might have been left by the first machine. Unfortunately experiments have been made with both the common wild rabbit and the imported Australian skins have been at- tended with scant success, and only the fur of the domestic variety appears to be available for the process. The idea is not new. It has been con- sigered for many years, but it is only through recent modifications and improve- ments in mechanism rendered possible by electricity that it has become a factor tc be seriously reckoned with in the whole- sale fur business. —+. “THE RETIRED BURGLAR. He Meets With Another of His Pro- feasion in the Same House. the New York Sun. ‘Contrary to my usual custom,” said the retired burglar, “I went one nightin a house that I had called at, straight up- stairs, and explored the rooms on the sec- ond floor, with fair results. On the way down, just as I reached the head of the stairs, I saw in the hall below a funnel- shaped beam of light, that could come only from one source, a dark lantern. The man holding the lantern stood in a doorway that opened from the parlor Into the hall— another burglar. He had thrown the beam into the hall at the foot of the stairs. I knew it would come up a moment later. I set my bag down back of me on the floor and my hat beside it, and when it did come I appeared in the light, the man of the house standing there waiting for the bur- glar_with a pistol. “He stood perfectly still.-He had his lamp in one hand and his bag in the other, and he knew I had him dead. “ “My friend,’ I said, ‘I've got a sick wife and I don't want a row. I’m willing you should go if you'll.go quiet. There's the door right in front of you.’ y ““Why,’ he says, cool as could be, ‘I wouldn’t disturb the lady for anything,’ and he steps over to the front door easy, unlocks it, and goes out and shuts the door behind him; and I heard him go down the steps and down the path, and off. “When I got down stairs I found he'd cleaned up things there while I'd been at work upstairs. He'd got the things to- gether in a cloth on the dining room table ly to carry off. All I had to do was to take "em away. “It seemed kind 0’ mean to take advant- age of his labor in that way, after. driy- ing him off, but what could I do?” ———+or______ Anxious to Please. From Puck, He—“She asked me what color of hair I liked.” She—“That’s just like Maude; she’s al- ways anxious to please.” Cee ee Ee | BAGS AND LOCKS 5 A Visit to the Shop Here Where Mail Pouches Are Repaired. OVER A MILLION YEARLY PATCHED All the Bags Used in the Postal Service Come Here. MAKING THE LOCES —————— N THE WHOLE federal service there is probably no busier an institution than the big factory on C street, near 6th street northwest known as the “Mail Bag Repair Shop.” It is in this “shop” (a curious official term, when it is con- sidered that nearly two hundred and + fifty names are em- braced on the establishment's pay rolls) that every mail sack and mall pouch in use on the broad continent sooner or later finds its way for an overhauling. Hun- dreds of thousands of them pass through the skillful hands of the employes of this government factory many times before their Period of usefulness has passed and they are thrown on the condemned pile. The United States government owns and uses every day nearly 5,000,000 mail sacks and pouches. Of this number, exactly 1,643,139 were patched up and sent out again as good as new at the mail bag repair shop last year. Just now, about 7,000 sacks and pouches are being thoroughly overhauled every day. In the same building, an ad- Jjunct to the mail bag repair shop, is the Post Office Department's machine shop, wherein is made every lock and key used by the postal authorities throughout -the United States. All Centered in Thin City. Not many years ago the Post Office De- partment had its mail bags taken care of by private contractors, who made annual bids for the work. This plan was discov- ered at length to be not only too expensive, but unsatisfactory in other ways; and the department started mail bag repair shops of its own in four large cities—-New York, Chicago, St. Louis and Cincinnati. This scheme of collecting and rehabilitating the mail bags was also found cumbersome and impracticable in the course of the rapidly increasing postal business. So, ten years ago, Maj. R. D. S. Tyler, the chief of the mail equipment division of the Post Office Department, organized the general repair shop in Washington, and the institutions in the other cities were abandoned. The work was centralized here on a compara- tively small scale at first, but the mail bag repair shop is now a miniature department In itself. It may be that the tiredness which is the universal affliction of baggage handlers is also a characteristic of the postal employes throughout the country who directly juggle the sacks and pouches of mail in transpor- tation. At any rate, the appearance of the mail bags that arrive by the thousand at the repair shop from all parts of the United States every day would seem to indicate that the physical act of lifting is a thing unknown among such employes, for the greatest amount of damage to the bags is attributable to the dragging process. Even the stoutest leather mail pouch will not withstand many months of dragging over rough, nall-studded railroad platforms, and the ordinary jute sacks used for second and third-class matter, strongly as they are made, soon exhibit evidences of wear at their bottoms and sides under this treat- ment. The sacks and pouches are made by contract, according to Post Office De- partment specifications, but no guarantee fg ever exacted of the contractors as to the length of time which the bags are to last. The mauling which is constantly in- flicted upon mail matter in transit is too thoroughly appreciated by the Post Office Department authorities to make such a guarantee of any use. Average Life of a Bag. “The average career of usefulness of th jute or canvas mail sacks for second and tkird-class matter ts about three years,” said Superintendent Edward P. Cullen of the mail bag repair shop to a Star reporter who visited ‘he establishment yesterday. “A newly issued mail sack Is likely to turn up here for repair within a month after it has been put fn service, and a sack that stands three years of the mauling and tuggirg and dragging to” which ft Is sub- jected in the intervals between {ts being patched up here about a dozen times is pretty near ready for the scrap heap. The lcather mail pouches often last for as much as fifteen years, although their average lifetime is about nine years. These pouch- es, which are used solely for the carrying of first-class mail matter, cost from $7 to $8 each, however, while the jute sacks are bought by the government for about 50 cents. The canvas sacks, which are grad- ually displacing those made of jute, cost about 95 cents. “Every through train that comes into Washington trings scores of these sacks and pouches to this shop for repair,” Mr. Cullen continued. ‘Postal employes of whatever grade engaged in the direct han- dling of mail matter are aware of the rega- lution that no sack or pouch Is to be used that is in the slightest degree worn. The tinfest tear in a mail bag makes it unfit, according to the well-known rule, for fur- ther service until the rent has been patch- ed. Thus in every post office in the coun- try and on all the railway postal cars the empleyes are constantly on the lookout for these damaged bags. “As soon as they run across them they ship them here, with neither letter of ad- vice nor comment, for every bag tells its From Life. own story as 800} it. gets into the hands of the bag Teenie Post offices very rarely get bac same bags they ship to the shop for repair. Such a thing cou!d only happen by “ctident. When a pot master needs moré!mail sacks and pouches than he has on tend he simply makes a requisition for the number he wishes, and they are sent to him-out of the general heap of thousands which we always have on hand after thé¥ have gone through the hands of the repairers.’”” How theWork is Done. As soon as the’bags are unloaded from the wagons that! bring them from the trains, they are passed upon and sorted by the inspectors, Whé do their work on the first floor of the G'street factory. If it bea tern or unrivetedleather pouch, it is imme- diately sent to thé’ leather workers, who have a corner of the building to them- selves. If it be @ torn or worn jute sack, it is sent aloft, with hundreds of others in the same condition, to the women emplcyes who attend to the machine and hand-mend- ing. If the drawing string that closes the bag is broken, it 's sent to the “stringer” for the renewal of the cord. For the sack or pouch, in whatever condition of dilapi- dation, there is the appropriate workman or workwoman to attend to its refurbish- ing. About one-third of the force employed in the shop are women. They are, for the most pmrt, machine operatives and “string- ers.” The jute and canvas sacks are all patched and mended by large-sized sewing machines ‘operated by these industrious women. There ‘are sixty of these ma- chines, all furnished with steam power. ‘The belting runs through all of the floors to the fourth floor, where this work is car- ried on, and the simplicity of starting a sewing machine in operation by merely touching a léver is a thing that many a housewife would appreciate. The women operatives’ perform their work with in- credible rapidity, which is not a thing to wonder at, when it is considered that they are paid for thetr work by the piece. The average number of jute and canvas sacks patched by each woman operative a day is 102. There 1s one especially clever operative who has made a record for the past three months of 127 bags repaired a day. They take the bags as they come, sorfe of them requiring much more work than others. Some of the sacks are patch- ed and repatched more than Huck'!ehberry Finn's“ knee-pants ever were, and when they are nearing the end of their course, otteny contain none of their original na- terial. In a Work Room. Mail sacks are not very clean things to handle, and the women employed in the patching dress themselves with this point in mind. The immense room in which they work is overhung at all times by a dense brown fog of dust, arising from the con- stantly handled bags, and the women em- ployes haye all fashioned for themselves large, oddly constractsd head coverings, made for the most part of newspapers, for the protection of their hair. ‘The “stringers” are the women who re- ew the brokem draw cords of the sacks. heir work requires both skill and speed, and, curiously enough, the most adept of | the “stringers” is a totally blind lady, Miss Hattie Maddux, who has been an employe of the repair shop tor seven years. It 1s wonderful to see her threading needles and slipping. the cords intricately through the holes in the tops of the sacks. Her work is always perfectly done, and none of it has ever been decided against by the inspectors who pass upon all of the work performed by the operatives. Miss Maddux works so tapidly that she sometimes rung out of bags. During these jntervals she takes up some crochet work Uf what seemed to the reporter the most—remarkably involved character, and it {8 said that she never missés a stitch. ! The “‘darners” dre‘the women who attend to the bags which do not require patching, being merely worn-in spots. Their worl has a home and ‘fireside look about it that seems oddly out of place in the big noisy reom, where the whirring of many belts makes conversation impossible. There is no talking whateyer“among the operatives, perhaps as much 'for'this ofvtous reason as for the other reason. that they appear too busy to talk. t The leather workers, all of whom are men, have the third floor. The extraordi- nary facility with which these skillful me- chanics conyert an‘ apparently hopeless, tattered, ripped, utterly worn-out maii pouch into a whole affair, just about as good as new, is temarkable. Nearly all of their patching Is done with rivets, and ma- chinery: for ‘this purpose is largely em- ployed. Superintendent Cullen showed the reporter, however, ‘three leather pouches recently made tor thé carrying of State De- partment mail, any one of which might easily have taken a prize in an exhibit of leather Wérking done by hand. There are about a dozen men employed to do this fine fancy” sewing with the sailmaker's needle. ‘Nearly all of these men have been sailors in their time, rated as sallmakers. = Weight of Mail Bags. The greater portion of the work of re- pairing is dene by the women, however, for the men operatives only work on the Teather pouches, and there ts only one of these to be repaired to six of the jute and canvas sacks. The Post Office Department is seriously contemplating the doing away with all of the leather pouches, on account of their excessive weight. The United States pays the raflroads for hauling mail by the pound, and every effort is.made to economize in the- matter of weight, when such economy is possible. The leather pouches used for the carrying of first-class mail matter weigh twelve pounds. A strong canvas puuch, leather-trimmed, has lately been devised and tried for first- class matter, which only weighs six pounds. By adopting these canvas sacks, which only cost one-third as much as the leather pouches, the government, would thus save six pounds of weight on every pouch of first-class _mail matter in transit. Second Assistant Postmaster General Neilson, who takes a strong interest in the work of the mail bag repair shop, is one of the adyo- cates of the change. “Here ts a kind of mail-carrying contri- vance that is not often seen in this part of the country,” said Superintendent Cullen, exhibiting to the reporter a kind of saddle, with a pouch, broad and capactous, at each of its ends. ‘This is slung over the backs of the horses who do the mail carrying on the star routes. There are not many of these routes left now, but the old horse- pouches turn up here once in a while. One was repaired here the other day that bore the stamp of 1809. It came from one of the star routes in the Pan Handle of Texas. It did not require much patching, either, AT THE COUNTY FAIR. “Sur!! That's me husband!" and will probably serve its purpose for a good many years yet.” Passed Their Usefulness. The “dead house” of the repair shop is the large room where the condemning of the quite worn-out sacks and pouches is carried on. The bags that reach the “dead house” are these that have been rejected by the foremen of the various departments as unfit for further mending. The em- Ployes in the condemning room remove with large shears whatever good portions there may remain of the old bags, and throw the residue on the scrap heap. The most interesting feature of tue Post Office Department's machine shop on the top floor of the building is the secret room in which are performed the labors of the expert locksmith who makes and repairs all of the locks, keys and registering de- vices for the registered mail pouches. This remarkably expert and taciiurn mechanic works all alone. None of the other em- ployes of the machine shop or of the mail repair shop is permitted to enter his quarters, for the sacredness of registered mail, and the locks and keys thereof, is a thing which the department does not’ wish to tempt any of its employes to violate. The foreman of the machine shop, B. L. AnGrus, quite a young man, recently pre- sented to the government a key which he had invented and patented, ond the a: japt- able character of which is such that it will unlock any post office box in use in the United States. ee X RAYS AND BALDNESS, A Western Man’ Sitting. From the Baltimore American. William Levy of Eau Claire, Wis., who recently had an X ray examination of his skull made by Professor Frederick 8. Jones at the physical laboratory of the Minnesota State University, had an experience in con- sequence not generally supposed to accom- peny that process. Levy was shot in the head about ten years ago by en escaping bank defaulter. The bullet had been somewhere in his head ever since, and in July he made up his mind to have it located. Accordingly he came up and gat from 8 o'clock in the morning till 10 at night for a Roentgen ray picture of his head. The bullet had passed into his skull just above the left ear, going toward the back of the head. After taking a couple of negatives, they finally found where the bullet was located. The doctors wrapped his head up in wires, which were definitely located. A picture was taken through the skull from the frent toward the back of the head, the tube frcm which the rays radiated being, for this purpose, placed inside his mouth. The picture thus secured showed the bullet very distinctly to be lying at the junction of two of the wires, which crossed right under the occipital bone. It indicated also that the bullet had struck the back of the skull and turned forward again, for the point of the bullet, being further from the plate, showed dimmer on the negative. These ex- pesures had taken up nearly the whole day, but the patient felt no bad effects at the time. He had been warned that the experiment might cause him the loss of his hair, but that did not deter him from tak- ing the risk. A very strong current, about 100,000 volts, had been passed through the tube in making the exposure. ‘The next day Mr. Levy began to notice a peculiar effect cn his skin wherever it had been most exposed to the rays, and the hair on the righ* side of his head, which had been near the wire, began to fall out. In a few days the right side of his head was perfectly bald, his right ear had swollen to twice its natural size, and presented the same appearance as if very badly frozen. Sores were visible on his head; his mouth and throat were blistered so that he could not eat solid food for three weeks, and his lips were swollen, cracked and bleeding. In fact, the long exposure of the X rays, while giving him no pain at the time, seemed to have produced very similar ef- fects to a very severe burn. Mr. Levy has recovered from the effects of his burns, but he still has half a bald head. He is a plucky man, about thirty years of age, and intends to have the in- vestigations carried further and the bul- let removed. He has already written to Prcfessor Jones, asking for another sitting. It is necessary now to have a negative showing how far below the surface the bullet is located before the doctors decide whether the operation can be safely per- fcrmed. ae eS eee DOES NOT NEED IT. Rev. Thomas Sherman Shrrenders His Interest in the General’s Estate. From the Cincinnati Em-uirer, Rev. Thos. E. Sherman yesterday trans- ferred all his interest In the estate of his father, the late Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman, United States army, to his un- married sister, Miss Elizabeth Sherman. Father Sherman !s a Jesuit priest. The vows of poverty he has taxen prevents him from holding any property in his own right. Jcintly with his sisters, Miss Elizabeth Sherman end Mrs. Rachel Thorndyke, and his brother, Philip Tecumseh Sherman, he was the owner of the old Sherman man- sion, 912 North Garrison avenue, St. Louis, a ten-rocm house on the south side of Lucas near Ewing, and a three-story welling on Clinton near 9th street. SREREICE Seats sen sae Third Crop of Apple: From the Cincinnati Enquirer. R. A. Brelsford, a farme- residirg in Lynn township, this county, has an apple tree that his shown strange productiveness this year It bore a crop of good, large apples, ard before they were gathered it blossomed and a second crop is now growing, and ere they are fully matured buds and blossoms are shooting forth for the third crop this season. Fruit trees in this locality have been known to bear & second crop in one season, but for a third crop to appear has rever before been recorded. Where She Had Him. From the Cleveland Leader. Jones—There is no truth in the saying that a house divided against itself must fall.” Brown—“How so?” Jones—"Green's wife's taken to wearing bloomers against his wish, but, you know, she once found a letter from another wo, man in his pocket, and all he can do is grin and pretend that ‘he doesn’t care.” N THE CHURCHES . The Rev. Dr. J. E. Gilbert, secretary of the American Society of Religious Educa- tion, has just returned from a trip through the south. Dr. Gilbert went to the south- ern states at the instance of the regents of the society for the purpose of opening up the work in the south. He has made Ashe- ville, N. C., the headquarters for a terri- tory embracing ten states south of the Potomac and east of the Mississippi. It is proposed to erect a building at Asheville, in which a school of the English Bible will be held, and also a biblical assembly in midsummer. This will be for all denomina- tions In the entire south. It is proposed to establish at this school a systematic course of biblical instruction for Sunday school teachers, lay workers and ministers. The real estate matters of the southern district Will be in the hands of a board of trustees. It is proposed to raise $100,000 for this pur- pose. The Rev. P. L. Groome, D.D., of Greensboro’, N. C., has been elected super- intendent of the southern district and will devote his entire time to the business of the office. A novena is to commence in St. Augus- tine’s Catholic Church this evening. The exercises are to be held every evening until the 2d of November, the Feast of All Souls. The pastor of the church, Rev. Paul Griffith, is in charge, assisted by his two assistants. A call has been issued for the convocation of the city of Washington to meet in St. John’s Church, corner of 16th and H streets northwest, Wednesday, the 4th of next month. There will be holy communion celebrated ir the morning at 10 o'clock, followed by a business session. At the afternoon session there is to be an address by the Rev. Alexander Mackay-Smith, 8. T. D., on “System in Church Work,” which will be followed by @ discussion. At the evening session the Rev. Thomas A.Tongue, rector of Grace P. E. Church, South Wash- ington, is to speak on “The Mission of Convocation,” followed by a@ discussion. The presiding officer is the Rev. Thomas Spencer Chiids, D.D., archdeacon. Twelfth Street Methodist Church, under the direction of its pastor, Rev. W. G. Cassard, has succeeded in placing the mis- sion recently started by it upen a firm fcundetion. The membership now amounts to about fifty. Officers have been appointed to manage the mission affairs as follows: Superintendent, James H. Allen; treasurer, Mrs. Charles A. Williams, and secretary ard organist, Miss Byrde Bobb. At a recent meeting of the Ladies cf Charity, an organization connected with St. Patrick's Church, the following officers vere clected for the ensuing year: Presi- dent, Mrs. Mary L. Stephens; vice presi- dent, Mrs. Ella O'Connor; treasurer, Mrs. J. E. Rodriguez; corresponding secretary, Miss Emily Semmes, and recording secre- tary, Mrs. Frances J. Hill. The ladies hold meetings Wednesday mornings of each week. The committee appointed by the Metho- dist Ministers’ Association, headed by Pre- siding Elder Luther B. Wilson as chair- man, which has in charge the arrange- ments for a missionary mass meeting jas decided to hold meetings during the early part of December, probably simultaneously in two or three different churches. The Rev. Dr. J. A. Palmer, corresponding sec- retary of the Missionary Society of the Methodist Church of the United States, has consented to address one of the meetings. Other speakers are also to be provided. On Tuesday of this week the first fall meeting of the Clericus of the Diocese of Washington was held at the rectory of St. James’ Church, Rock Creek parish, Rev. James A. Buck, pastor. The Clericus is composed of thirty-five Episcopal clergy- men of Washington and will meet once a month from October to May. At the meet ing thie week Dr. Buck tendered the Cleri- cus a luncheon and then read a paper on “The Church—Its Origin and Unity,” which was followed by a general discussion. There were about twenty-four ministers present. The president of the society is the Rev. Gilbert F. Williams. Rev. Father M. J. O'Donoghue, assistant priest of St. Peter's Church, is now at At- lantic City for the benefit of his health. A mission was held recently at Zion's Protestant Episcopal Church, Beltsville, Md., of which the Rev. Walter L. Mitchell is rector. A number of the local Episcopal clergymen took part in the services. Among them were the Revs. William Tayloe Sny- der and Thomas O. Tongue. The Rev. George Glaab, pastor of St. Mary’s Mother of God Church, has de- c'ded to sail on the 14th of next month for Rome, where he is to take a course in canon law. Mr. E. G. H. Austin, treasurer of the Washington District Epworth League, re- signed that position this week on account of removal from the city. Until a new treasurer is elected the position is to be filled by Mr. G. E. Armstrong, who is also to have charge of the treasurers’ confer- ences at the coming convention of the Ep- worth Leegue. The Ladies’ Aid Society of the Vermont Avenue Christian Church reecntly elected officers, as follows: President, Mrs. Emma Lattimore; vice president, Mrs, F. M. Gid- eon; secretary, Mrs. J. G. Thompson; treasurer, Mrs. E. J. Perkins, and auditor, Mrs. Joseph S. Van Arsdale. The society, together with the Women’s Missionary So- clety of the church, recently held a joint all-day meeting. The Epworth League of Dumbarton Ave- nue Methodist Episcopal Church have elect- ed delegates to the Epworth League con- vention in November, as follows: Rev. J. B. Stitt, Mrs. Waugh, Prof. E. A. Frisby, Miss Laura Artz and Messrs. R. E. Layton and Cc. 8. Bremerman. ‘A forty hours’ devotion began in St. The- resa’s Catholic Church last Sunday and lasted through Monday. A special choir was organized for the occasion, as follows: Sopranos, Misses Bean, Bolger, Branson, Braumer, Casper, Coleman, Greene, Mock- abee and Baptista; altos, Misses Fowler, Leonard, Madigan, Rhodes and Soper; ten- ors, Messrs. Burns, Bolger, Harrison, O’Brien and Smith, ‘and bassos, Messrs. Downey, Greene, Petit and Mvore. The pastor of the Vermont Avenue Chris- tian Church, Rev. F. D. Power, is planning for a series of revival Services. They will probably be conducted by the Rev. Z. T. Sweeney, who is a former consul general to Constantinople. Dr. Power is thinking of being absent from Washington month, and if he does, will Sweeney preach for him. The Young People’s Society of Christian Endeavor of the Gunton Temple Memorial Presbyterian Church has elected officers for the ensuing six months, as follows: President, Miss Lizzie M. Warman; vice president, Miss Anna S. Hamlin; recording secretary, Miss Emily H. Rose, and treas- urer, Miss Sallie Wright. The session of the church has now under consideration the rames of a number of ministers from which to select a sucecssor to the former pastor, Dr. Patch. Last Sunday the services were conducted by the Rev. Oliver S. Dean, D. D., of Patterson, N. Y., while tomorrow they will be in charge of the Rev. W. W. Casselberry of Haddonfield, N. J. At a recent meeting of the executive committee of the Lutheran Young People’s meeting of the District a set of by-laws were adopted. The committee also decided to hold the next mass meeting in the mid- Gle of next month at Zion’s Church, corner of 6th and L streets northwest. The Girls’ Club of Epiphany Episcopal Chapel, Rev. A. M. Hillaker, assistant min- ister, in charge, met this week and listened to an address by Mrs. General Pickett, who entertained the club with a number of stories of events during the war and at other times. A new chapter of the Epworth League has been organized at Severn, Md. The formal organization exercises took place last Sunday afternoon, and were conducted by the president of the Washington District Epworth League, Mr. Fred E. Tasker, as- sisted by Messrs. Frank T. Israel and George KE. Gibson. The pastor of the church, Rev. H. C. Smith, has gotten to- gether a chapter of about thirty members. Col. William Bird has resumed charge of the Sabbath afternoon Bible class at the Young Men’s Christian Association. The time of the class has been changed to 2:45 p.m., and the studies are of the interna- tional lesson, one week in advance of the regular Sabbath. A social was given Thursday evening last at Haines’ Hall, East Washington, for the benefit of Twelfth Street Methodist Episco- pal Church. The occasion was called a “Hard Times Social,” and was in charge of the yeung people of the congregation. Rev. Thomas S. Childs, archdeacon of the convocation of Washington, left Wednesday morning for New Haven, Conn., and is not expected to return before next Tuesday. The trustees of Grace Methodist Church have adopted plans for the remodeling of the front of their building. In the center of the front, beginning just a little above the base of the second story, there are to be built three narrow windows, which will be separated from each other by galvanized cornice’ work. Over the three windows there is to be a large semi-circular rose window. The windows will be filled with stained glass. The trustees have also de- ut a have Mr. How The Public is Imposed Upon. BEWARE OF FRAUDS. For The Sake of Profit They Will Sacrifice Principle, Health, Etc. Unscrupulous dealers are try- ing to sell ordinary Glauber Salt ora mixture of Seidlitz Powder as “Artificial Carlsbad Salt,” “Sprudel Salt,” “German Salt,” and under other similar names. The natural remedies of Carls- bad cannot be imitated. Artificially made wines will never replace the natural juice of the grapes. Neither can the natural waiers of Carlsbad, nor the Carlsbad Sprudel Salt be re- placed by the cheap substitutes offered toa guileless public for the sake of the larger profit made thereon, by these unscru- pulous dealers. The Carlsbad Spradel Waters are a specific for all diseases of the stomach, liver and kidneys, and have been used with great benefit by hundreds of thou- sands of people. The Carlsbad Sprudel Salt, which is evaporated from the Sprudel Water at Carls- bad, is an excellent Aperient, Laxative and Diuretic: is an al- terative and eliminative remedy, which dissolves tenacious bile, allays irritation, and removes obstruction by aiding nature, and not by sudden and excessive ir- ritation, as most cathartics do. Insist upon the genuine, which is imported direct from Carlsbad, and must have the signature of Eisner & Menpetson Co., Sole Agents for the U.S., 152 Frank- lin Street, New York, on bottle. cided to renovate several of the outbuild- ani ings of the church and parsonage, place a new fencing around the © church property. It is expected that work will begin next week, and will be finished in about three weeks. Rev. C. Morhardt, pastor of Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church, was offered some weeks ago a professorship in the the- ological department of Concordia Colleg, at Conover, N. C. The college is under th direction of the Missouri synod, to which Mr. Morhardt belongs, but he was obliged to decline it. Mr. Morhardt left today for Richmond to officiate at a church there to- morrow, and in nis absence the Rey. Mr. Gaensle of Baltimore is to preach at Christ Church. Last Sunday was rally day at the Metro- politan Baptist Sunday school. Mr. D. J. Sharp has been selected a3 superintendent of the Sunday school. Mr. Sharp was for- merly widely known as worker in San Francisc tendered their friends a social yesterday evening. The newly elected director of tie society, Miss Edna Mills, was in charge, and was assisted by Miss Rosa Marcia Chureh and Mr. Gilbert E. Clark. Tenleytown Epworth League Chapter has elected as delegates to the annual conven- tion of the league the pastor of the church, Rev. J. R. Cannon, and the Misses Mary C. Dean, Nannie Shoemaker and Ida Paxion. The Washington District League united in a meeting Wednesday evening of. this week with Friendship Chapier of Alexan- dria in Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church of that city. Quite a number of the local leaders were present in a body. The Woman's Auxiliary Foreign Mission- ary Society of the Vermont Avenue Chris- tian Church has elected the following ofi- cers: President, Mrs. Frances Parker; vice president, Miss Annie Johns; secretary, Mrs. J. T. Orchard; treasurer, Mrs. H. M. Whitcomb; auditor, Mrs. J. 8.’ VanArsdale, and superintendent of literature, Mrs. Ei ma Lattimore. A Young People’s Society of Christian Endeavor was organized last Sunday at the Southwest Christian Church. The pres- ident 1s Miss Lena Summy. The new church which was recently organized there has now a membership of about fifty, and the pastor of the church, Rev. W. J. Wright, together with Revs. F. D. Power and E. B. Bagby, are now on the lookout for building sites. The quarterly meeting of the Woman's Presbyterial Foreign Missionary Society was held Tuesday moruing in che Presbyterian Church. A number of ve gates represented the society ai the an meeting of the Baltimore synod, Thursday of this week at Wilmington, Several days ago a leading Methodist church advertised in-The Star for a so- prano for the choir, and as a result there were forty responses. The committee, ow- ing to the large number of applicants, has been unable to decide as yet to whom to give the preference. Revival services have been in progress for some days at Grace Methodist Episco- pal church, of which Rev. G. V. Leech is pastor. Dr. Leech has been assisted Revs. L. B. Wilson, J. L. Walsh and Hartsock, and Mrs. Weech of Alexandri: A missionary concert was given yest day evening at the First Baptist Church, corner of 16th and O streets northwest, by the young people of the congregation Rev. James A. Buck, rector of St. Paul's Church, Rock Creek parish, has been a minister of the Protestant Episcopal Church for over fifty years, spending all of this time within the boundaries af the dio- cese of Maryland and the present diocese of Washington. Last evening, for the first time, he gave his experiences during this period in a lecture delivered at. the resi- dence of Capt. Herman Gross, for the ben- fit of the Church of the Advent, Le Droit Park. At Trinity M. E. Church, Rev. G. W. Hobbs pastor, a series of protracted mevt- ings have been held during the past two weeks. Several of the Methodist pastors of the city have asststed in ‘the work and there have been about twenty conversions. The meetings will be continued during the coming week. he > Treating the Stomach by Electricity. The «pplication of electric current in the treatment of nervous diseases of the stom- ach has always heretofore been attended with both risk and discomfort. It was nec- essary to apply only small doses, which had to be under perfect cortrol. Some experi- ments in France have demonstrated that this can now be done. The current is ap- plied directly to the affected organ by means of a special electrode, which the pa- tient passes into his stomach. This consists of a rubber tube one inch thick, wh has at its lower end a vulcanite tip, and which contains a co: ducting wire. The patient first drinks two glasses of lukewarm water and then the electrode is introduced attached to the negative pole of th tery. From 15 to 20 milliamperes of c: are employed for five minutes. The treat- ment has been so successful that French electrotherapists now look upon it as one of the standard treatments for nervous dis- orders of the stomach and intestines. Looks Like a Dad Cane. From the Cleveland Plain Dealer. ‘hat man Blinkum is dreadfully cross- eyed, isn't he?” “I should say he was. goes to vote they the blanket “What for’ “So that he can look at one and mark the other.” Why, when he ays give him two of she tae ey A New Trick. From Up to Date. Saml. Johnsing—“See hayr, yo’ contience nigger, de hoss dat I done bo't ob yo’ yus- tidy has died.” George Washington—“Daide? Lo’d, dot's de fust time dat he eber done dat, shoar!"