Evening Star Newspaper, August 21, 1897, Page 20

THE EVENING STAR, SATURDAY, AUGUST 21, 1897-24 PGES. THE INDIANA IN DRY DOCK. IN A BRITISH DOCK At Home in the Water, but Can’t Get Out of the Water at Home. THE BATTLESHIP INDIANA AT RALIFAX The Need of More Docking Facili- ties for the U. S. Navy. AT A DISADVANTAGE IN WAR Written for The Evening Star. ‘The Indiana is the largest ship that has ever been docked at Halifax, and"the in- habitants of that quaint old town are mak- ing much of the occasion. Two years ago the Haligonians rejoiced in the report that the Indiana could be prepared for her of- 1 speed trial only by docking at Hall- but for political reasons the ship ran ber course with a foul bottom, and, in the ame of patriotism, he> builders had to cream of the other quarter knots and the ed bonus she would certainly have gain- e@ had she been properly slicked. After a venturesome effort and a favoring gale, so the craft was docked at Port zle experiment: sufficed, our ship is in a British dry dock. al weakness of the United States is in her lack of efficient dock- nd no matter how strong e of battle, we shall be ly handicapped so long as we are docks of sufficient size and strength n case Halifax minus u to handle the largest of our ships. the ef war h Great Britain, cock would be closed to u: in the event of trouble with the laws of neutrality would deny that & to us except our ships were really in a sinking condition. The Homeless Indiana. The Indiana, which is ome of the navy’s most powerful battle ships, has been in the water for the past sixteen montas. It Was proocsed some weeks ago to dock the in dry dock No. 3 at the navy yard, y York; but the mishap to that stru precluded that. Next, the depar t turned its attention to the dock Port Royal, S. C., but Rear Admiral E. O. Matthews, chief of the bureau of y ds docks, strenuously objected, fearing ructure might give way under the weight and wreck her then and there. Finally Halif: was resorted to, and this government if paying a very pret- ty figure to the corfpany in control of that deck. Had it not been for the danger of perma- nent injury to the ship the department would have kept the Indiana in the water till the work on the New York dock was finished; but Chief Constructor Hichborn urged that any further delay in cleaning end painting the vessel would result in damaging her bottom plating, while the added cost of propulsion, owing to her foul- €¢ betiom, would grow well nigh daily. The United States owns but eleven docks for the accomn.odation of its naval vessels, and at present the Puget sound dock is the enly one available for handling a battle ship. The United States Docks. The following table gives the size and cost of our docks: Station, Cost. Capacity for snips of Portsmouth, No H Boston, Mass. ‘ork : + GUS.SL i2 soing statement of cost §100,- 00 should be added for the repairs of dock No. at New York, $ modifications to dock at Li gue Island, Pa., P . 2 at Norfolk, addtion to others just completed cost- ing $12,000, and $18,521.42 pald builder of Port Royal dock for loss and damage due to cyclone of August, 1803. In nee, then, the United Stat leven dry docks, including one bal- floating dock at the Portsmouth nay which ts limited in its capacity to els of 1,4 tons—craft of the gunboat type. Of the ten docks of large capacit four are of masonry. five are of im ard one, that at Puget Sound, is of timber With a masonry entrance. Ali of these are actically ready for use at present except large new timber dock at New York. The Lack of Docking Facilities. The first dry docks constructed for the navy were those of granite masonry at Boston and at Norfolk. Next was built the granite dock at New York, and then the &ranite dock at Mare Island, Cal. All built in recent years have been wholly or chiefly of timber; and the result cannot be said to be entirely or radically satisfactory. Of the masonry docks, dating from 1834 down to 1891, only one, the New York dock, has had any considerable repairs; whil> the timber dry dock just completed at New York is undergoing repairs amounting to @ cost of $100,000, and the timber dock at Norfolk and the timber dock at League Island will have cost nearly the same lump sum to put them in condition as intended. in a few months we shall have eleven serviceable dry docks, but at present the only dry dock owned by the United States government into which the largest of its battleships can be placed is that at Puget Sound, on our extreme northwestern boun- dary. Out of four completed battle ships of the first-class, only one {s on that coast. The Puget Sound dock is the largest in the western hemisphere. It has a fine masonry entrance, and would have been construct- ed entirely of masonry and concrete had the appropriation so permitted, but the al- lowance was too small. When the t:mber portion requires renewing, the masonry and concrete entrance and abutments, with the catsson, will constitute a cofferdain, @nd the entire interior can be renewed in concrete, making it one of the finest docks fn the world. reat Britain's Dock Equipment. While we have only ten serviceable docks in the United States, Great Britain has six fine dry docks at our very door, which she controls through ownership by her colonics, by subsidies, or otherwise. Five of these are right on our northern boundaries, and are at Vancouver, B. C.; Kingston, On: Quebec, Quebec; Halifax, N. S., und St Johns, N. F. Four of these are fine, sub- stantial masonry structures. In England, Great Britain has about fifty dry docks and locks, in which she can dock her naval vessels, and ahout twenty More are scattered over the world wierever they will do the greatest goo. She has | snow more docking facilities in either of the dock yards of Chatham or Portsmouth than we have throughout our entire couniry. France has more than thirty dry docks, and at Brest alcne her docking establish- ment exceeds our total aggregation. ‘The docks of the United States are on an extended coast line, and only two of them are on the broad reaches of the Pacific coast. What We Need. A naval expert, speaking of the matter, said: “We need additional dry docks of the most substantial kind and material. Docks into which the heaviest and most costly of vessels may be placed with absolute safety, and, without the constant expense of in- cessant pumping. We eed more docks and better ones than those built in the last decade. The government began well in the early years of this century; but it has got down now to a day of cheap things, and to a condition no other first-class power would tolerate.” The great dry dock building at Bremer- haven was subsidized by the German gov- ernment only on condition that it be built of stone, instead of wood, as was originally proposed. * There can be no question as to the inti- mate connection between numerous dock- ing facilities and an efficient navy; and if the matter be considered only in the light of the cost of coal and the added expense of propulsion with a foul bottom, again we must have more docks. One way or the other, we need them, and the instance of an American battle ship in a British dock in times of peace points instructively to our danger in times of trouble. There is a patriotic and also a very prac- tical side to the question, and may both strike home. CAL. ee NOT IN LOVE WITH THE KLONDIKE. John T. Lowell, the Owner of Lowell, Alaska, Tels People to Stay at Home. From the Boston Traveller. The Aleskan gold fever was raging in this neighborhood, Bucksvort, Me., and four young men had quit work in the saw mills preparatory to an early start for the Klondike, when John T. Lowell, who set- ted in Alaska In 1870 and owns and con- trols the village of Lowell, 300 miles north of Sitka, came here for a short visit to his surviving kindred and related the story of the Yukon mines as they appeared to him when he visited the place late last fall. Lowell 1s an old sailor, who served through the war and went to Alaska soon after its purchase by the United States, marrying one-of the native women, and getting a liv- ing by fishing and hunting until his boys grew up and were able to support him. Having amassed considerable property and having built a small village and named it Lowell, h+ has spent the last two sum- mers in running a trading schooner be- tween his home and San Francisco, bring- ing down seal skins and dried fish and tiking back supplies for home use and to sell to the residents. This year, while his vessel was in port, he slipped across the continent to give his sister a suit of seal skins and to ‘istribute a few ounces of goid dust among the friends of his youth. After reaching home last August he took a party of miners over the mountains and conducted them down the Yukon as far as Circle City, making a very rapid p: e all the way. Believing the Yukon would freeze up before he could get out, he went up to the Klondike regions, where a few miners were picking the half-frozen mud and washing out gold. While the yield was gcod, netting an industrious miner from $15 to $20 a day, the climate was very cold, even in September, fcod was hard to get at any price, and the surroundings were so gloomy and forbidding that he made haste to get back to Circle City, where a few of the rich miners could afford to burn kero- sene oil to light their cabins. Seon after he reached Circle City a party of twenty- ne men, who had collected a good lot of gold, offered him $10 a day and board to lead them out to salt water. The Yukon was frozea z foot deep at Circle City, and no boat could get out. Dressed in furs and carrying condensed food, they ascended the Yukon beyond Miles canon, where eight of the company became discouraged and turn- ed back. The rest went en, crossing the lakes, ascending the mountains in blinding storms, and finally reaching the coast late in October. Of the twenty-one men who started, eight went hack to Circle City, five died of cold and exposure, and one fell down a steep bleff and was dashed to pieces. The seven who gained the coast were frostbitten and nearly fumished. “The man who quits good work in the United States and goes to Alaska for gold,” said Mr. Loweil, “is a fool, a blamed fool, who cught te be shot or locked up before he gets a chance to start. A man who even gets $1 a day on a Maine farm, or $2 a day rurning a street car in Boston or New York, stands a better chance of getting rich than the prospector who goes to Alas- ka. It seems a big thing for a man to wash out an ounce or an ounce and a half of gold in a day. It would be a big thing here, where food and clothing are cheap, but up there you have to pay $1 a pound for flour, 50 cents a pound for salt junk and $5 a pound for tea, and no matter how bested a you earn you Can never buy ha!f the stuff you need. Two-thirds of the men who go in are so exhausted by the time they reach the diggings that they can do little work, and generally stay there and die or get sick and go cut before they have earned enough to pay their expenses. The few who are tough enough to stand the climate and the work ar mostly gamblers, who lose their money as fast as they earn it to the professional sharpers who hang around Circle City and all the mining camps. I tell you, the man who has a roof ever his head and a coat on his back in the United States is a darned sight better off than the best of them are in Alaska.” Turning Away Students, From the Boston Transcript. It is not usual for a college to adopt a pelicy one of whose declared ends is to reduce the number of its students, but ac- cording to the North Adams Transcript, Williams College is about to shape her course with that as one of the purposes in view. Only about 300 students are desired with present accommodations, while the incoming class and other classes are crowd- ing her up toward the 400 figure. To bring about the result proposed the college au- thorities have adopted two measures rais- ing ‘the standard of admission and giving less college financial aid to students. The whole aid to needy students has been about $14,000 annually, which was more than the legitimate income of the benevolent funds, and some of this the college will cut off in justice to itself. Ralsing the standard of admission and making the whole course ene of higher scholarship will probably have as restrictive an effect as reducing the supplies. The requirements for admis- sion to the scientific course wiil be even more difficult than those for the classical course, especially in the matter of French and German involved. A preparatory study of three years and a knowledge of the his- tory of French literature from the earliest times to the beginning of the eighteenth century are among them. Questions and answers in the examination must be writ- ten in French, and a text book in the French language must be used. At a re- cent examination only one candidate out of ten was accepted, though some: of them were able to enter Princeton. High stand- ards are good things, but the college must be careful that they are not overdone, GLIMPSE OF ARCADY The Eastern Shore, Its Big Men and Modern Progress. OCEAN CITY AS A WATERING PLACE Chincoteague, the Boats, the Drum- mer and the Beach Ponies. COBB’S ISLAND GOING Special Correspondeace of The Evening Star. OCEAN CITY, August 20, 1897. Hardly any locality of the old state is so little known to the rest of the Union as this section of Maryland and Virginia. Yet it was settled hundreds of years ago and its people have participated in all the movements which mark the history of the country—the building up of commonwealths which wrestled first with the savage and later with John Bull in the struggle for independence. It has not been wanting in an honorablo, virtuous and sturdy pop- ulation, and while it can boast no large cities it has contributed its share of tribute to cities like Baltimore, Washington, Rich- mond and Philadelphia, and it can boast of producing sons who have easily won their way to a national reputation. The names of James Alfred Pearce, Ephraim K. Wilson and Philip L. Thomas figure among the most notable and worthy of the sons of Maryland. Ail of these gentlemen went to the United States Senate. Only a few miles to the southward in Accomac ccunty, Va., lies the flourishing town of Onancock, near which was the home of Henry 8S. Wise, one of the remarkable men who had the nerve to oppose the administration of andrew Jackson, a great orator before the people and also in the old hall of the House of Representatives—later a supporter of President Tyler, then the most distinguish- ed figure of the anti-know nothing cam- paign of 1855, which culminated in his being governor of the commonwealth of Virginia. I recall him as one of the most unique characters both in public and private life of this century—tall, gaunt, original, loqua- cious, eloquent and fearless. Going to Bra- zil as the American minister, Thomas N. Bayly, a neighbor and kinsman, took his place in the House of Representatives, and while less eloquent and aggressive than Wise, he was probably more weighty and influential. Bayly was the friend of Thom- as Ritchie, of President Polk and of nearly all the eminent Virginians of that day. In the adjoining county of Northampton—a small county but one of richer soil and holdings than Accomac—lived Abel P. Up- shur, one of the strongest writers on the side of states rights and nullification, but censidering his admitted genius, force and influence, he has left comparatively few monuments of the power he exercised among his contemporaries. His career was cut short by the bursting of the cannon on the Princeton which killed two of Mr. Ty- ler’s cabinet, and came near killing others of equal eminence. If my memory is right, Luther Martin, who was one of the great leaders of the federal school and who fig- ured on the Aaron Burr trial, was from this same section of Maryland. ‘The experience of the earlier days of the republic proves abundantly, if proof were needed, that plantation life was no im- pediment to the study, thought and mental development which fitted men for the high- est plac The names I have mentioned are only a portion of those who have borne well their part in the battle of life, coming frcm a community which for many genera- tions has been more distinctively rural, home-like and homogereous than almost any portion of this country. Coming of Railronds. It was a long time before this section could boast a railroad. Latterly it has had a fair share of steamboat communi- cation. The stage coach and the “pungy” or small schooner plying to Baltimore long served the needs of the people. A few years ago came the railroad. The eastern shore railroad built a communication from Claiborne to Ocean City. The Pennsylva- nia railroad and others have run lines down through Delaware to Chestertown, Centreville, Easton, Crisfield, and more re- cently we have a line known commonly as the Cape Charles route, which extends from Wilmington and Philadelphia to Ac- comac and Northampton down to the flour- ishing town of Cape Charles—not the real Cape Charles, which is the northern en- trance of the Chesapeake bay. Thanks to the same Pennsylvania railroad, I came early this morning by boat from Chinco- teague Island to Franklin City and then teok # train to Berlin, Md., and from that point to this place—so you see the old eastern shore of Maryland and Virginia is now pretty well penetrated by railroads. The towns have a new, fresh appearance, and the residences have put on a good deal of style. One can get along pretty well in this country, and if a man should happen to lose his railroad train I think he could for a little money lay his hands on a bugsy, and if the worst came to the worst he would find that the traditional hospitality of the eastern shore was not yet a defunct institution. I had the vaguest possible idea of Chin- coteague Island up to two or three years ago. The fact is that while the island has been there as long as we have known any- thing about the waters, the oysters and the fish, the place had until a few years ago no note except for its beach ponies. These are a breed of grass-fed horses much smaller than the usual size, but tough, hardy, strong and capable of a great deal of go. They don’t grow up in a hot house or a fine stable, and so, left to scuffle along as best they may, you have a survival of the fittest and a valuable ally to man over the sand and mud which abound on the island. I saw yesterday a herd of these nomads who in a day or so were to he “penned,” branded and reclaimed to elviii- zation by Solomon's favorite method. They were feeding on the rich marsh grass, all unconscious of their glorio stiny. Chin- coteague Island is about seven miles long by one to two miles wide. It has easy ac- cess to the sea, but its outside neighbor is Assatcague Island; also with a good growth of sand, trees and mosquitoes, but only a small population. Chincoteague’s Growth. Some twenty-five years ago the popula- tion of Chincoteague Island, I believe, was only fovr or five hundred. Now there are 3,000 people. The city or town has most of these, and it stretches along the beach for three or four miles. In the rear you have trees, small farms, pools of water, inlets, mosquitoes and whatnot. The town pretends to no style, but it has two hotels and quite a number of nice, modern houses and pretty shade trees. There is a wide bay between the island and the main shore—not very deep—which is one grand oyater bed, and here, owing to the vicinity of the sea, you have oysters equal to any in the world. The nearer the oyster to the sea the firmer, fatter and better flavored he 1s. I fear these oysters go mainly to Philadelphia, and I regret it, for what Philadelphia man could relish a good oyster like a Baltimore or Washing- ton man? The crabs here are not equal to those of the Potomac. The waters abound in fish, especially in the Atlantic outside. Five hundred to a thousand pounds is no uncommon catch for a sail- boat with only two or three hands. The abundance of the oysters, thelr superior flavor and the facility of growing and get- ting them has developed a big industry and made Chincoteague what it is today. As a natural result of all this the small sailboat is the distinguishing feature of Chincoteague life. It is a pretty sight to see these boats sailing or lying at anchor. The other morning I counted near me while fishing away out in the bay over twenty such boats. One might expect a fair share of dissipa- tion in such a seafaring and boating popu- lation, but I saw no trace of it. On the contrary, there was an unusual freedom from disorder and riot. The population are a natural, happy and contented people, not working over-much, perhars, and tak- ing the world easy, but not begging or filling the jails. There are a number of intelligent citizens, and probably more of individuality than one would find in five times. that number of ct people. The importance of or commercial traveler. does nut ne- Chincoteague. I went over on boat I was the only one not in this line. I felt somewhat A our friends the Baptists had a big gather- ing there, which quite relieved the pre- vious situation." Thé’ Baptist gathering eclipsed everythfhg, of course, but prior to that event bi griving and fishing seemed to be ng everything before them. On the whole, itters went peace- fully on Chincoteague, and the only row wo had wac the universal unceasing war with that persistent enemy of man known as the mosquito. ‘The result of that war I leave to some optimistic historian of the future. = E Ocean’ City. If you come to. natural advantages, I do not know a better place than Ocean City. The climate is delightful; there are no vio- lent transitions in temperature between day and night, as in some mountain re- sorts; there are a pleasant surf and a safe teach, with no dangerous undertow; the Mosquito pest ‘is practically unknown. There is easy access to the cities of Wash- ington and Baltimore. It is a pleasant trip—albeit, not as short a one as it ought to be. The market supplies are good. Put- ting everything together, it is safe to pre- dict for Ocean City that it will ere long be one of the most popular of our water- ing places. I have seen hotels at the north thronged with fashionable and wealthy people where the quarters, comforts and prices could not compare with those of Ocean City. What Ocean City needs is a quicker and more frequent route to Wash- ington city and Philadelphia, and this will surely come. It is hard to imagine a well-established watering place handing in its checks and going out of business, but I have now one before my mind. One of the most interest- ing and unique seaside places I have ever known was Cobb's Island, situated about nine or ten miles from the mainland of Northampton county, Virginia, and about fifteen miles northeast of the true Cape Charles. I knew the island long ago, when it had just one settler on it—one Nathan Cobb, an old New England whale fisher- man, who had taken a fancy to this bar- ren strand. He built a plain house, planted his fig trees, and probably would have planted his vine also, but the vine was out of the qugstion. I didn’t think any- thing would grow there but old Cobb's sons, the salt water trout, crabs, sharks, “spots” and “hog fish,” the wild fowl and such like. But Cobb persevered, and this sand strip with a matter-of fifty to one hundred acres became a watering place— plain, cozy, jolly, for half a hundred or so of good people, who went there from year to year, fished, hunted, bathed, laughed, danced and had a good time. There was no style, no extravagance, but the best of sea air and lots of fun. Cobb’s Island Disappearing. And so in this happy, unconventional style life flowed cn until some years ago Old Ocean determined to clean us all out. Year by year he began clipping off a plece of our little happy island. We didn't have much land to spare, but no regard was paid to that circumstance. For a while I ob- stinately refused to believe the evidence of my own eyes, but last October incredulity was no longer possible. The very “Balti- taore”’ cottage where I used to tabernacle and sally forth by the early dawn to pur- sue the fish in bay or on the sea was car- ried off bodily by the wrathful Atlantic and the very site of the cottage was ap- propriated by sad sea waves. And thus the glory of Cobb's has departed. The place is closed for aye. It will know us no more. To say I am sorry does not half meet the case. The emotions of a genuine lover of old Cobb's over this catastrophe are far too deep for utterance. I can see no justice in this dispensation of the forces of nature. The prince said of poor dead Falstaff, he “could better have spared a better man,” and I am sure I would have traded off Newport or Bar Harbor to the sea rather than lose that quaint old resort of health- ful, natural life, with its boats, birds, song, dance and wine ‘of life coursing through our veins. I did not suppose the ocean could be so meah atobber as this. L. Q W. URCHES IN THECH Recently Mrs. Clara L. Roach of this cityy secretary of the Baltimore Confer- ence Woman's Home. Mission Society, or- ganized home missionary. societies at Hern- don and Falls Church, and a Conference Society, with the following officers: Presi- dent, Mrs. 8. A. Bell; vice presidents, Mrs. L. I. McDougle, Miss Eva Knepp, Mrs. D. C. Hedrick and Miss Lula Moore; record- ing secretary, Miss Edna Luttrell, and cor- responding secretary, Miss Ida N. Ball. Mr. George E. Gibson has been elected first vice president of the Epworth League of Waugh Church, in charge of the spirit- ual department, in place of Rey. Thomas J. Clark, who was appointed several months ago pastor of Langdon Church. Rev. W. 8. Caughy, pastor of St. Ste- phen’s Church, left this week for Saratoga Springs, where he intends to spend a va- cation of several weeks, during which the parish is to be in charge of the assistant pastor, Rev. P. J. O'Connell. The pastor of Gorsuch M. E. Church is expected to arrive in Washington this afternoon, after an absence of two months, which was spent in the west as a vacation and bridal trip combined. Pastor Rich- ardson’s church has been in charge of the official board during his absence. Several of the local colored preachers are taking active interest in the colored church which is in progress of formation out at Kensington, though of what de- nomination the church ts to be has not as yet been definitely decided. The various Methodist bodies through- out the world, as they have been holding their annual meetings during the past spring and summer, have appointed com- mittees on an ecumenical conference. The committee of the Methodist Episcopal Church of the United States, on which there are three residents of this city, Bishop John F. Hurst, Presiding Elder Luther B. Wilson and Senator J. B. Fora- ker, is expected to meet with the other committees, probably this fall, and decide whether or not to hold a conference, and, if their decision is in the affirmative, where to hold it. The large evangelistic tent belonging to the Central Union Mission has completed its work in Southwest Washington and is now being taken around through the towns of Virginia and Maryland on an evangel- istic tour by one of the workers of the mission, Mr. R. B. Redding. Mr. Redding has been particularly active in starting new missions, and he expects, with efforts begun by means of this traveling tent, to gather together the nucleus for several missions in the smaller cities. The services at the First Congregational Church during the absence of the pastor in New Hampshire are being conducted by Rev. Prof. Isaac Clark of Howard Uni-, versity. The North Presbyterian Church has ap- pointed Mr. Samuel J. Armstrong as one of its members on its standing committee of the Central Union Mission. The vested choir of Epiphany Protest- ant Episcopal Church is taking a rest from rendering the church music this month, and their places are being taken by a vol- unteer choir. 5 Pastor W. Bishop Johnson of the Second Baptist Church is,taking very little respite from his numerous ministerial duties, but is engaged in ratging.money to complete the main auditorium of his handsome new church, which was not fully finished when the church was erected.two years ago. Be- fore another year,is passed it is expected that enough money will be realized to put the church in perfect shape. ‘With the object in view of supporting the new mission in South Washington of Trin- ity Episcopal Church, a ‘Church Mission- ary Society” bas been formed among the members of the perish. The Washington, chapters of the Brother- hocd of St. Andrew are electing delegates to the coming international convention of the order, which is to be held at Buffalo in the first part of October. Severs of cs clergy will atten cluding the recter 0! the Pro-Cathedra? Chirch of St. Mark, Rev. Dr. Devries... -¥ ‘The Baptist Ministers’ Association will soon resume their.sessioas at Calvary Sun- day School House. - ice their adjourn- ment in June what jbusiness the assccia- tion has had to transact has been attended to by a committee composed of Revs. Granville 8. Williams of Metropolitan Church, W. 8. 0. Thomas of Gay Street and Hugh T. Stevens of Anacostia. ‘The pastor of the Assembly Presbyterian Church, Rey. Dr. Gecrge ©. Little, is to resume his services at the church the first family’ navg spent the months of July and family heaye spen ie months of July an Aueuneane fnebuidport, Me. The health of his wife, who was quite sick just before she went , 1s much improved, accord- ing to a letter received in this city by one of the members of the congregation. - Architect Willlam J, Palmer has pre- pared preliminary sketches for a new bull ing for the Deaconesses’: Home and Trai ing School. The building is to confain novel features and numerous well- ia- in- some ed rooms, and work on it is to be com- menced within a year if the coming Meth- dist bazaar is as successful as anticipated, A number of the deaconesses have been working among the congregations of churches in Maryland, and one of them 1s row at Cumberland assisting the pastor of Trinity Church, Rev. Martin Rice, D.D. well known here as a former pastor of Dumbarton Church. The health of the rector of St. Margaret’s P. E. Church, Rev. Richard Lewis Howell, is reported to be all right again. Rev. Mr. Howell left the city sick in the latter part of June for his summer home up in the Adirondacks, and his pulpit has been filled by the associate rector, the archdeacon of WES Rev. Thomas Spencer. Childs, The contractor in charge of the work of erecting the new St. Thomas’ P. E. Church has had workmen engaged on the edifice this summer, with the result that the ex- terior is practically completed. .If suffi- cient funds are raised by the congregation in the fall steps may be taken toward com- pleting the interior, which is to be equally as handsome as the outside. Rev. Dr. Hugh Johnston of Metropolitan M. E. Church has sailed from England fot home, but is to go to his summer home at Niagara-on-the-Lake, and not to return for several! weeks as yet. The Epworth League is looking after the evening services dur- ing the pastor’s absence, and various of the local ministers, including Revs. Henry Baker and J. H. M. Lemon, have preached in_the morning. The trustees of Rehoboth Baptist Church, located In Southwest Washington, are try- ing to make financial arrangements by which they will be able to start their pro- posed house of worship. Plans have been prepared by the architect, Edward Woltz, for a handsome structure, but if the build- ing is erected it will be put up as plainly as possible, reserving the decoration for a time when the congregation has more means than at present. The boys of the Brothers of Nazareth Home, on 10th street, are at a country place near Leesburg, Va., but their studies are not neglected. When the party comes back to Washington it is probable that the accommodations of the home will be en- iarged to receive more inmates. It was expected that the corner stone of the Ninth Street Christian Church would have been laid before this, but the officers of the congregation are waiting until the scattered members of the congregation are home again. The contractor is rushing work on the building in order that services may be held in the lecture room before it gets too cold to use the tent in which they are now worshiping. Pastor Bagby, to- gether with Rev. Dr. Power of the Ver- mont Avenue Church, has returned from Tappahannock, Va., where they attended the sessions of the Tidewater district of the Christian Church. The Junior Brotherhood of Andrew «nd Philip of the Western Presbyterian Church has discontinued most of its regular work and meetings, though the athletic branch of the brotherhood exercises, consisting mainly of a base ball team, has only just concluded its season. The brotherhood is under the superintendency of Mr. Jonn W. Matson, a young member of the church, who is studying at Columbian University with the intention of entering the Pres- byterian ministry. The pastor of Ryland M. E. Church, Rev. Dr. Hartsock, and his family are still out at their country place, though they expect soon to move into the city. This is Dr. Hartsock’s last year at Ryland Church, he having served the full term of five years allowed by the Methodist discipline by the time the next conference meets. Rey. Z. Val-Spinosa, assistant to the Rev. Richard P. Williams of Trinity P. E. Church, is spending the month of August in St. Mary’s county, Md., where he was formerly stationed. For the past two Sundays the pastors of Kendall and Gay Street Baptist church- es, Revs. Theron Outwater and W. S. O. Thomas, have exchanged pulpits. The for- mer, Rev. Mr. Outwater, left this week for a vacation of two weeks, accompanied by his family, to be spent in the upper part of Maryland, during which time the services at Kendall Church are to be in charge of the Rev. E. W. Bliss. Rev. Joseph T. Kelly of the Fourth Pres- byterian Church is up in Maine, near Port- land, where he will remain for the next three weeks. Rev. Mr. Kelly was present at the Northficld Bible conference the first part of this month and took part in several of the exercises. Rev. B. N. Stewart of Arkansas City, Kan., is preaching at the Fourth Church until the return of the min- ister. The warm weather has not interfered in the slightest with the operations of the Methodist bazaar committee, while on the contrary there have been several gather- ings of the general committee, and all the chairmen and members of the more im- portant subcommittees have been definitely announced. Several weeks ago Mrs. B. Street of Hamline Church started a “la- dies’ auxiliary,” and is enrolling members with the object of securing one hundred ladies from the various Methodist church- es. During this and the next two months the members of the auxiliary are and will b2 busily engaged in making fancy articles, each lady having agreed to become respon- sible for the making of ten fancy articles. The movntains have a decided charm for the pastor of the Luther Memorial Church, Rev. J. G. Butler, D.D., and he is accor 1- ingly spending his vacation, which em- braces the latter half of this month, with Mrs. Butler up at Mountain Lake Park. On the way home the doctor intends to visit at Harper’s Ferry for a few days. Rev. Howard Wilbur Ennis of the West- ern Presbyterian Church returned home from Asheville yesterday, and is to-preach at his church tomorrow. Next week he expects to leave for a trip of three or four weeks, taking in Boston, Montreal, Nova Scotia and Long Branch, at the latter place of which Mrs. Ennis has been spending the summer. Mr. Ennis is to spend a good deal of time studying this winter, as he is to.come up for the master of arts degree at his alma mater, Rutgers College, next spring. Plans have been prepared by which the capacity of the National Lutheran Home for the Aged at Ivy City may be doubled. Ii the design is carried out, and it is prob- able that it will be, the home will be able to accommodate about fifteen people. The plans provide for well-ventilated, large. single bed rooms, a commodious dining hall and other necessary improvements. The improvements to St. Theresa's Cath- clic Church are about completed, and Father Sullivan expects to celebrate his first mars in the rebuilt edifice the first Sunday in September. Rev. Albert M. Hilliker, minister in charge of Er:phany Protestant Episcopal Chapel, is to leave Monday week for Mack- irac, and does not expect to return to Washington until about the first of Octo- ber. Mr. Hilliker is a sufferer from hay fever, but he usually escapes most of its unpleasantness by going north. During the absence of their minister the people of the congregation will be looked after by the Rev. Herbert Scott Smith of the Chapel of the Good Shepherd, who returned a few days ago from the Virginia White Sulphuc Springs. The executive committee of the Sunday School Union of the District of Columbia is making preparations for one of the most important werks it has ever yet under- taken. The union has decided to make a house-to-house canvass of Washington on Saturday, October 16, and for this purpose is gathering together a band of canvassers, composed mainly of members of the var- lous young people's societies, who, on the date mentioned, will visit every house in the city and gather reljgious statistics of all the inmates. These facts, embodied in printed slips, will then be turned over to the pastors of the churches, who will look up the non-churchgoing population of their respective parishes. This and other work has kept the: president of the unton, Mr. Pierson H. Bristow, very busy this sum- mer, and consequently he does not intend to take a vacation. “Papa,” said Billy, téarfully, after a playful romp with the good-natured but rather rough St. Bernard puppy, “I don’t believe Bingo knows what kind of a dog he is, He plays as if he thought he was a little pug.”—Harper’s Bazar. Sides Ae Quatrains and Couplets. Written for The Evening Star. ‘There was a time, nor very long ago, ‘When he who would express his thought in song, Composed, at least, a passable rondeau, 4 A sonnet, or a lay two stanzas long. Now quatiains are tn vogue—four filmey lines, ‘With scarce a shade of meaning—wretched stuff: Methinks each bardling in his heart divines ‘That of such verse that surely is enough. Yet some there be who aim with even less ——— |THE POSTMASTER'S CRIME A True Story. By An Ex-Officer of the Government, Written Exclusively for The Evening Star. “Almost any man can steal, but it takes a mighty smart man to successfully dispose of the plunder.” The above remark was made by one of two gentlemen who entered a popular cafe and took seats on the opposite side of a table at which I was sitting. I was casu- ally glancing over the morning paper while awaiting the arrival of a friend, and the statement caused me to look up at the speaker. He was a large, ruddy-faced man, with hair and mustache almost white. His language was free, easy and well chosen. Sitting as we were at one table, it was im- possible to avoid overhearing all that was said by the two gentlemen, but as they talked with the utmost freedom, I made no effort to do so, although apparently ab- sorbed in my reading. The subject they had evidently been discussing, was the al- most absolute certainty of detection by |.Uncle Sam of any one who attempted to rob him. “It's no use,” continued the speaker, “for any man, I don't care how smart a¢ is, nor how well he plays his game, to try to beat Uncle Sam, for he will be found out, sooner or later, just as sure as he is a living man! It may be months, or may be years, the government may change hands, and the crime be unknown or forgotten by there in power, but there comes a time when the rogue thinks it will be safe to use or dispose of his plunder, and that is the very time he is sure to be nabbed. I have a_case in my mind now, which on the face of it was as safe as a case could possibly be, but which was as easily unraveled as a stocking. I don’t mind telling you about it, only I will omit names and the place where it occurred, for although years have since passed and the parties are most of them dead, I might unwittingly injure innocent persons. But before I begin let_us wet an eyé! What will you have? Won't you join us, sir?”—addressing me. “Very pleas- ed to have you do 80, if agreeable.” I thanked him for the courtesy, but de- clined, at the same time expressing a de- sire to listen to his story if he had no ob- jections. To this he heartily assented, and the drinks were brought and disposed of. Handing each of us a cigar and lighting one himself, he began: “It was during the latter part of the war, when an officer in the Army of the Potomac, who had saved up his money until he had over a thousand dollars in hand and due him, asked the paymaster to bring him on his next visit a $1,000 United States bond, as he wished to send it home to his wife. The next time the paymaster came he brought the bond, as promised, and duly delivered it to the officer. The latter wrote an affectionate letter to his wife im her far-off home in Maine, inclosed the bond as a present to her, carefully sealed his letter and deposited it in the army post office. That was the last he ever saw or heard of either letter or bond, for shortly afterward he was killed. His body was recovered and duly sent home to the stricken wife. No letter or bond ever came to her, and she only knew by letters received before the death of her husband and after he had sent the boni that any such good fortune was intended for her, and now she was doubly bereft. “Having nothing to show as evidence that svch a bond had ever been sent to her, the little woman, after waiting for months for the missing letter to turn up, finally gave vp all hopes and buried her dream of com- fort along with the tender memories of her greater loss in the grave of her husband. “Nine long years went slowly by,when one day a letter came to the Treasury Depart- rent from the postmaster of a little town ir. Maine, containing a one-thousand-dollar bond, snd asking for five hundred dollars’ worth of stamps and the balance of $500 in cash. I will say right here that the law at that time permitted postmasters all over the country to sell internal revenue stamps of all kinds in addition to the reg- ular postage stamps, and that large orders were not infrequent. But to have so large an crder come from so small a place ex- cited some curiosity. Everything, how- ever, appeared straight and right, and I was directed to fill the requisition. I did so, and took the bond over to the loan branch of the treasury and told the cashier what I wanted, at the same time casually asking him if the bond was all right. He said it waz, and I left to complete the put- ting up of the assortment of stamps and having them verified prior to mailing. “The next day I went to the treasury to get a draft for the $500, when the cashier said: ‘See here, B., there's something wrong about that bond you left here yester- day. The numbers have been altered! at the same time handing it to me to examine. Although I had at that time as good eyes as any man, I could not by the closest scrutiny discover anything wrong with the numbers. They seemed absolutely perfect, and I said he must certainly be mistaken. “Take this magnifying glass and look again,’ said he. “I did so, and bless my soul if the pen lines on those figures didn’t show up as big as straws. It was as clear as day that they had been so skillfully altered to defy detection save under a gla My surprise was so great for a minute or two that I couldn’t say a word or do a thing but look at those figures. ““Where did you get this bond?’ asked the cashier. I told him the circumstances in full, and of our surprise at receiving so large an order from so small a town. ““Very well,’ said he, ‘there is evident- ly a screw loose somewhere. Report what you know to the department officials and obey orders. I will keep the bond until necded.” “Having mace my report, the ‘orders’ were speedily forthcoming. I was direct- ed to prepare for an immediate trip to Maine. A pass book over all roads, «team vessels or otherwise, together with cre- dentials appointing me as a special post office inspector, and $50 in cash for inci- dentals, were given me, with instructions to use my own discretion and judgment in the matter and to report results. “Two or three days later I entered a lit- tle Maine village about noon and went to a hetel, where I registered as from Memphis, Tenn. I don’t know what on earth made me do this, but my new official responsi- bilities 2s an officer of the government of the United States gave me the idea that everybody must know it the moment they saw me and I must do all I could to throw them off the scent. Although I had twice pessed the post office that afternoon and knew its every outside detail like a book, that evening I innocently inquired of the clerk if he would kindly direct me to it, as I wished to mail a letter to my wife. "He did so, and I again walked slowly down the street, cogitating how I was to bag my game and mi no bad breaks. From casual inquiry about town I learned that the postmaster was a man of the highest standing in the community, a member and deacon of the church and full of charity and good works. I further learned that he was far gone with consumption, and it was felt that in the event of his demise the town would lose one of its brightest and most highly respected citizens. All this made my task the harder, for if I should make a mistake the sooner I got away the better. I walked past the office and then, without entering, returned to my hotel for the night. The next day I took especial care with my toilet, and about 11 o'clock Walked bravely down to the post office. I asked to see the postmaster “Ho came to the door, and with a series of hollow hs politely invited me into his private in the rear. I showed him my credentials as special post office '; Whereat he expressed his pleas- ure in me, and turned the entire office to me for examination, with ur- ders to his clerks to afford me every fa- gllity. I at once proceeded to go through his forms, etc., pretending great care and scrutiny—although I had no more idea of an inspector's duties than the man medel greatly, and he became quite talkative. And right here is where he put his foot in it. Unconsciously he dro) ve so that I could enjoy myself fully, to all oi which I, of course, assented. “That evening I took a well-known citizen of the town with me and started for the post office. It was the sheriff. Upon en- tering the post office we re both heartily welcomed by the postmaster, the sheriff being @ personal friead of his. I fancied I detected a slight pallor spread over his ce aS we stepped into his private office, and an expression of surprise that I should have picked up an acquattance so soon, and he the sheriff. Mowever, he said n ing further than to ask us to be seated, at the same time pointing to the box of cigars and bottle of brandy on the table as at our service. I glanced at the sheriff and Le slightly nodded. Witaout waiting anoi moment I stepped up to our host, ay: ing my hand on his s! ider, said, as firm- ly i steadily as I could: ““Mr. S—, it is my painful duty to in- form you that you are under arrest! “The pallor which had spread over his face when we entered was blackness c pared to the awful, ghastly whiteness of his blanched cheeks. He staggered to t table for support, and then, in a voice so hollow and low I could scarcely hear it, asked ““What for? “For the theft of that $1,000 bond.” “My God! Has it been found out “It has,’ said I. ‘We know all about ft and I am here to take you into custody.’ “He sank into a chair and buried his face in his hands, while the sweat stood out in great beads upon his white ferehead ““Mr. Sheriff,” said I to that official, will leave Mr. 8. in your charge until 1 turn from my hotel. I shall not be gone long.” “Going out I hurried to the house of the prisoner, and was met at t wife, a sweet-faced woman. that I had simply called to sa a her husband and I would be detained at the office very late, and possibly until morning, as we had a lot of reports, ete., to make that out. She was naturally a bit surprised, but knowing I was in town—her husband had told her—she said pleasantly, “Very well. I'll not look for him,then, until he comes.” From what I could see, I don’t think she had the remotest idea of the dreadful blow impending nor of the cause of it. Like the good woman she the moment I had gone she went in prising every delica office with her compliments to me and her Jove to her husband. Alas! the last ten! message her wretched husband was eve! receive on earth. “Upon returning to the office, T found the unhappy man somewhat recovered and i clined to talk. Believing that all was known, he determined to confess every thing, and as far as lay in his power, make restitution to the wronged widow of the dead officer. And here is an astonishing Phase of the man’s mind, which was made clear by his confession—a clouding of the intellect and a warping of the judgment when under great mental distress, that to an ordinary mind is simply amazing. All he tad tc do at any time during his pos- session of the bond was to inclose it in an envelope, together with the original letter accompenying it, and pass it over to its rightful cwner with her other mail m ter, ard‘no one could have been the wi Put this, it appears, never once to him. He—but here is his conf which explains itself: “For nine long years I have carr’ed a hell in my breast. Not a day nor an hour hes passed but I have thought and hoped and prayed that some way might open for me to deliver the bond to its owner, but every plan I could conceive or scheme I invent seemed to lead to sure detec and like a coward I carried the awful secret with me until it has brought me to the verge of the grave. So long a tims having elapsed, I believed everything for- gotten and thought if I could only get rid of the bond and obtain $0 on it £ would make up the balance myself. Then I would place the money in an envelope and watch my opportunity to slip it under the widow's door, throw it into her ya or in some #y get it to her, and thus lift the awful load off my heart and science. But the fates were against me. I took the surest way for discovery, and, in a sense, I am glad of it, for now the wrong will be righted. For myself I care but little, but God in heaven pity my poor wife! She knows and God knows that I am not at heart a rogue, but in a moment of weakness and under great temptation I yielded to an act that has blasted my happiness and wrecked my life. God for- give me! “Then Mfting his eyes to the ceiling, with an impassioned voice he exclaimed. “And if, Blessed Redeemer, Thou canst blot out my sin and avert from the inno- cent head of my precious wife this great scrrow and disgrace by my yielding up my life, I pray Thee take it, but restore it to me stainless in the morning of the er day, for Thy dear name's sa His head dropped upon his breast for a mo- ment, then suddenly straightening himself cut in his chair and clasping his hands in front of him, his head fell backward and the awful whiteness returned. The sheriff and I sprang to his side and lifted up his head, but a short, quick gasp and the cant'stare of the eyes told us only too surely that he had passed the portals of the great unknown. “A physician was speedily summoned and his verdict was ‘Heart failure.” The sheriff and I agreed to bury the secret In our own breasts for his wife’s sake, and the physician's verdict is all she or the community ever knew. Upon my return to W: «ton, the officials promptly for- warded the bend with accrued interest to the rightful owner, and the tragedy was ended. In corclusion, I want to sa’ that, while I am not playing a star engagemer as a Christian, if I ever believed a man’s prayer Was answered at the time, and will be fully answered at the last great he asked, I believe that man’s pray N. pe A Delicate Fiatterer, : From the Seattle Times. “I suppose we all have our little vant- ties,” said the Hon. James Hamilton Lewis when complimented on his many accom- plishments. “You remember how a shrewd person warmed even the heart of the iron duke by remarking when presented: ‘I have longed, your grace, for the honor of meet- ing the one man in Europe who is proof against flattery.’ But the palm for deli- cate compliment belongs to a man who called me to the door of the House the other day. ‘Is this Col. James Hamilton Lewis? he asked as I faced him. ‘Plain Mr. Lewis, at your service,’ I answered. ‘Mr. Lewis,’ said he, ‘I was so much struck with a speech you made in the House last week that I went to the document room to get a copy for myself and another for a friend. They charged me five cents for a copy, and I hadn't the change. Could you lend me enough to buy two copies?’ As it happened, I had not made any speech the week before, and, of course, they don’t sell speeches at the document room; but I let him have the dime he wanted. I reproached myself afterward for not making it a quar- ter. Such an artist at flattery as he ought to drink something better than ten-cent whisky.” ——+or___— Helpfulness of a Good Cry. From the London Hospital. In women the beneficial effect of a good cry is proverbial. This is partly due to the increased depth of respiration and the im- provement in the often languid circulation thereby induced, but to a large extent it is the result of the muscular exercise in- volved, by which the general vascular ten- sion, and especially the blood pressure in the brain, are much reduced. The profuse flow of tears no doubt acts strongly on the cerebral circulation in still further reduc- ing tension. The sobbing movements, again, have a good influence upon the circulation. We should not, then, too hastily intervene to stop a woman from having out her cry, “The Good-Bye at the Door.” From Life. .