The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, March 12, 1896, Page 6

THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, THURSDAY, MARCH 12, 18%6. CHARLES M. SHORTRIDGE, Editor and Proprietor. Su! BSCRI;TISN RATES—Postage Free: % .$0.15 ‘AL, six months, by mail.. 8.00 CALi, three months by mail 1.50 CaLr, one month, by mail. .65 1.50 Eonday CALL, oue year, by mail 1.0 WAEKLY CALL, ODe BUSINES! 710 Market Street, San Francisco, California. Telephone... cieoere. Maln—1868 EDITORIAL ROOMS: 517 Clay Stre Vehweit ..Maln—1874 felephone. - . BRANCH OFFICES: 530 Montgomery sireet, corner Clay; open until 8:80 o'clock. x street; open until 9:30 o'clock. 718 Larkin street; open until 9:30 o'clock. &W. corner eenth and Mission streets; opem ontil 8 o'clock. 2518 Mission street: open nntil 8 0'clock. 116 Minth street; open until 9 o'clock. OAKLAND OFFICE : 908 Broadway. EASTERN OFFICE: Rooms S1 and 32, 34 Park Row, New York Oity. DAVID M. FOLTZ, Special Agent. THURSDAY ___MARCH 12, 1896 THE CALL SPEAKS FOR ALL. ————— . Foraker will go for McKinley—but how ? The Benate might as well advertise to recognize Cuban independence while you wait. While the State committee waits the confusion increases and the people grow impatient. The bicyclers have made up their minds that wherever they see a record they will run over it. Olney’s secret visit to Boston is worth in- vestigating. He may be sprouting a little boom in his back yard. It is the general opinion that the funding scheme is dead for this session, but the thing will bear watching. Now that Sherman and Hoar have had a spat there is no reason why Sullivan and Kilrain shonldn’t return to the ring. Cleveland is said to be worried about Cuban independence, but he might get it ff his mind if he would takeit on his hands. The Spanish Embassador at Washington is another of those diplomatists who talk much without concesling their too Santa Rosa is far enough along with her festival to start the battle of the ballots for the election of a queen, and practically the frolic has begun. King Hu t be right in saying the Ttalia vet extract honor from Abys: he is more likely to extract nothi blood red dve. There is nothing sing 1n the dis- pri covery that Europe is opposed to the Mon- | ctrine, seeing that the doctrine is opposed to Europe. have bsen many new parties ed 1 various parts of the country rear, but in every case the platform n made of chestnut planks. There more bad breaks like those of nd De Lome will convince the advisability of using diplo- vium for the dumb. Senator Hoar has the honor of being the first to introduce the cathode ray meta- phor into the Senate, but somehow it did not seem to lighten up the subject. Tt is now reported that a serious conflict is expected between the Cnbans and the Spaniards, but it will probably turn out to be no more than a contlict of dispatches. macy s an a Now that the House has begun consid- eration of a return to the reciprocity sys- tem there is a chance for men of all parties to get together and do some good work for the country. The Cuban planters who have appealed to the Captain-General for a suspension of taxes are right. If laws are to be sus- pended during war the tax laws should be nung up with the rest. It is hardly worth while for Washington correspondents to contradict the story that Olney and Cleveland have fallen out. If they ever get out of the position they are in they will have to climb out. As Austria has followed Germany in placing restrictions upon American insur- ance companies, it seems more evident than ever that if we cannot have recip- rocity, we must try retaliation. When Senator Hoar accused Senator Sherman of saying “‘an improper thing in an improper way” he probably intended his remark as an illustration of how to say that kind of thing in a proper way. Congress has at last incorporated the National University and given it large grounds at Washington, but it remains to be seen whether it will grow as a great en- terprise or languish as a political job. Heavana loyalists denounce Congress, | Congress denounces Spain, Spain de- nounces the Cubans, the Cubans denounce the Havana loyalists; and so the talk goes round until the grand revolution of de- nunciation is complete. The Pittsburg convention, that proposes to bring together in a new party Populists, Prohibitionists, Silverites, Woman Sui- fragists, Greenbackers and Single-taxers, may effect a combination of the kind, but 11 never succeed in getting such a composed. amento Bee suggests that all cific Coast delegates should go to the National conventions impartial as to can- didates, but resolute for free silver coin- age, and the suggestion has sufficient merit to make it worthy of attentive con- sideration by all friends of genuine bi- metallism. Expert students of the drift of Republi- can sentiment arsert that Allison is the second choice of the friends of all other Presidential candidates in the East and leads them all in the West. ' On the basis of that estimate it would seem he 13 pretty sure to be the winner in the convention end before the country. The report that the admission of New Mexico as a State is strongly opposed be- cause it would add two silver advocates to the Senate shows the extent to which the eoldbugs are willing to carry their oppo- sition to bimetallism. They not only stand in the way of legislation, but even endeavor to check the development of the Union itself, | The movement in Sin Francisco | UNPLEDGED DELEGATES. Presidential politics this year means Re- publican politics. It is almost literally true that at this time there are no candi- dates for the Presidency except those. who belong to the Republican party. Num- |erous as are the factions into which | Democracy is divided not & single one of | them has a champion who is looked upon | as a possible party leader in the campaign. The Populists, though not so divided as | the Democrats, are equally leaderless, so far as the Presidential race is concerned. In consequence of this, all interest in the | choice of the next chief executive of the Nation is directed to the contest among Republican leaders, and their relative chances are being carefully studied by acute politicians in all parts of the coun A significant feature of the situation is that while every section of the East has some favorite candidate, the whole of the Greater West is virtually impartial. The | two great divisions of the country in this respect present a striking contrast. i Beyond the Missouri there is an incessant | struggle among the friends of the various favorites to win this or that advantage, |but on this side the continent there is a calm unbiased scrutiny of the situa- | tion, and a careful watch of the drift of | events for the purpose of determining | which candidate, all things considered, is | best fitted to lead the party to victory and most certain to assure the country an ad- | ministration that will advance the welfare | of all. The advantage which this condition of affairs gives to Western statesmen cannot e overlooked. With the East divided and the West uncommitted to either side, it is almost a foregone conclusion that the | Western delegates to the St. Louis conyen- tion will determine the result of the con- test and name the next President. It is | too early to speculate as to whom that wiil | be. It is fairly certain the great majority | of Western delegates will support the man whose nomination will give the most sat | faction to the country as a whole without | regard to local favorites. Having no local favorite of their own, they will be in a | position to do that effectively and promptiy and thus prevent anything like {a prolonged deadlock, which would be sure to result if the Western delegates, like those of the East, were devoted to some single candidate to the exclusion cf all others. i 1t seems clear, therefore, that the policy | of the Western States at this juncture should be to send unpledged delegates to | the St. Louis convention. However great | may be the admiration in this or that State for some particular candidate there | should be no attempt to bind the delegates | of the State to the fortunes of the favorite. | All the candidates are able men, well fitted to hold the high office of President. The one issue is to have the selection made in the convention by 1mpartial delegates and | without a heated contest. That can be done only by leaving the West as free as she is to-day, to review the whole situation | and name the man who best deserves the honor. | OAKLAND'S FREE MARKET. The people of Oakland, inspired by the earnest movement to secure a free market in this City, are agitating the question of such an institution on that side of the bay. The Oakland Enguirer has exploded the idea that Oakland really has a free market and shows how the institution at present there interferes with the legitimate busi- ness -of the city. A good many years ago the Council passed an ordinance permit- ting huci 8 to sell from carts on Lower Broadway, with the reservation that the carts should not block the street. Through some official mismanagement not ex- | plained by our contemporary the traff | in the street was so seriously impeded by | the carts that the ordinance was rescinded, and so the free market perished. | Then there appeared on the scene a | thrifty citizen who leased a vacant block | in the vicinity, built some sheds and let stalls to the hucksters at a small but | highly profitable rental. He has been 1‘ doing a handsome business ever since, but | the sitnation is inconvenient, and the growers have to pay for the privilege. Hence Oakland has no free market and does not enjoy the benefits of one. is slowly taking shape, but nothing definite | has been as yet formulated. An elaborate | suggestion fo the Harbor Commissioners | from the fruit-growers of Campbell, in | Santa Clara County, contemplates such a | surveillance by the commission as is not provided for in the law defining its duties, | Nevertheless the ideas are good, and | might serve as a suggestion to the Legis- lature. Itcoutemplates a strict regulation of sellers in the interest of honest dealing | and for the protection of purchasers. | The peddlers who cry fruits and vegeta- bles from house to house in the City sorely try the patience of many residents, for even the disfiguring sign, *No Peddlers,” does not prove a safeguard against all in- vaders. The police have just announced their belief that numerons burglaries re- cently committed in the Western Addition were the work of profesvional burglars taking advantage of the freedom permitted to peddlers. This has become a serious menace, and requires correction. To what extent a free market would cure the evil would have to be determined by experi- ence, but the fact remains that the ped- dlers are not growers and that they antag- onize the interests both of growers and | COLONY SUPERVISION. The Stockton Independent, referring to the Kenwood Colony scandal, near Santa Rosa, declares that throughout the San Joaquin Valley land-owners have subdi- vided fertile and inviting tracts, and, by reason of not having advertised them, are wondering why strangers are not attracted to them but are swindled by irresponsible colony managers. The problem furnishes its own explanation. Comparatively few colony schemes in | the State have been conducted on a dis- | honest or incompetent basis, but thelr number has been sufficient to work im- | measurabledamage. The Kenwood Colony may be used as an illustration. Eastern agents of the company induced settlers to cowe to California and buy homes in the colony with the assurance that the title was perfect and would shortly be deliv- ered. After the settlers had established themselves by the expenditure of consider- able money they were amazed to find them- selves confronted with ejectment suits broughtby the original owner of the land— the company had never paid for the prop- erty. That one affair, though not repre- sentative of our colonies in general, will cost California millicns of dollars. It would seem that in view of such frauds—perhaps it was merely a case of mismanagement—the Lezislature should provide for a careful supervision of all colony enterprises. Although it may not be desirable to increase the number of com- missions, such an institution might be the best for this case. Whatever the machinery provided for the supervision, colony com- panies should be required to file a deed and abstract of titles with the Secretary of State, a bond should be given for the pro- tection of buyers and a certificate author- ing the company to do business should be issued. In addition the company should be required to file copies of all con- tracts of sales made with purchasers and to report the exact condition of business at stated times. No colony should be cer- tified unless it owns a clear and undis- puted title to the land and means should be provided for recovery by the settlers in case of misrepresentation or damage. The earlier colonies of the State, particu- larly those in Fresno County, were hoaestly projected and have produced the most gratifying results. The colony idea is the best imaginable for inducing settlers from the East, and asitis the one plan that offers the strongest inducements to persons of small means, it should be sur- rounded with every possible safeguard. There are many honest new colonies in the State, but how is a stranger to distinguish between them and the others? Itis the duty which the State owes itself to assume supervision of the practice GOLD MINING IN .OALIFORNIA. The question of bimetallism or free coinage of silver apart, it cannot escape the attention of any student of the monetary situation that there is a renaissance of gold mining in California which promises not only remarkable but almost marvelous re- sults. Itisan old saying, but a true one, that only the surface of the ground has been scratched over in California, and that placer claims which seemed to have been worked out with pick, shoyel and rocker are now known to be only surface indica- tions of deposits of auriferous ore beneath the surface which can be developed only by patient research and the employment of scientific methods. X It isidle to make predictions asto the output of gold for the current year, but it is permissible to make surmises and con- jectures based on developments already made and the actual work that is being done, and, with this as a basis, it is within the bounds of reason and probability to say that California within the year 1896 will add to the world’s store of gold from $20,000,000 to $30,000,000. Itmust be borne in mind at all times that there are hun- dreds of gold mines held in private owner- ship which never make public their out- put, and so closely is the secret kertthat even the summary made yearly by Wells, Fargo & Co. does not include the work of these private holdings. Englisn papers and reviews have madea great potter about South African gold wines, promising all sorts oi dividends and profits to those who have invested their money on the advice of Barnato and his friends and allies; but when the bal- ance sheet is made up at the end of the present year no one need be surprised to see California resume her former position as the great gold-producing section of the world, and that, too, in spite of the won- derful discoveries and developments in Colorado. The mountains, hills, valleys and gorges of the Sierra Nevada and Coast Range are in reality almost an undiscov- ered country, and, with the aid of modern and cneap processes of extraction and re- duction, gold-bearing ore can be worked at a profit which a few years ago would have been pitched on to the waste dump or used in a crude way as macadam. We may look with confidence for the year 1896 to be a banner year for gold mining in Califor- nia, and to recali the traditions of the *‘fall of 49 and the spring of 72 BEWARE OF ALASKA. Thewarning of an ola resident of Alaska to all who may be tempted to seek their fortunes in the gold fields of that region should be heeded. He declares that near!y helf of the men there now are destitute and unable to secure employment. All the established mines accessible from the coast are fully stocked with miners, and prospecting and developing are all that is left. As for employment in other voca- tions, there is none to be had. There is no doubt that much truth exists in the accounts of rich discoveries that have been made there, but the hardships which accompany the industry are too se- vere for any except those sufficiently equipped. Provisions are necessarily very dear, and no work of any kind is possible during the greater part of the year. The mines which have secured rich returns are owned by wealthy corporations enjoying every facility which a poor man is denied. The recent reduction in steamer rates to Alaska, coupled with the fabulous stories of rich discoveries, has resulted in crowd- ing the boats engaged on the run. Hun- dredswith barely sufficient to pay their passage are going north. Theyv do not realize that the conditions are wholly dif- ferent from those in new mining camps elsewhere. The extreme cold imposes lim- itations which prohibit an ordinary min- ing boor. An evidence of the severity of the cold is shown in the fact thavin pan- washing for gold the quicksilver will not act as it does in a milder climate, but per- mits all the float gold to escape, retaining none bnt coarse gold. Alaska has great possibilities for weslthy investors, but not for men who devend on their daily labor or who want to take the chances of making a valuable discovery in prospecting. It isone thing to find a rich deposit in that remote and difficult region and another to obtain a purchaser. As for depending on what may be secured by van-washing in the glacial moraines, con- sidering the very short season during which that may be done, it should appall the hardiest spirit. Besides, the richest deposits are far inland, to which no one dare penetrate unless he be amply pro- vided with money and provisions, ' AN INGENIOUS SAFEGUARD, George A. Fleming, a fruit-grower of Visalia, has devised so ingenious, simple and efficacious a scheme for protecting orchards from frost that it shoula be known as widely as possible. It should be borne in mind that frost occurs only when the air is still. Hence fires built around an orchard will send their heat and vapors straight up into the air, while building them among the trees would be dangerous. Mr. Fleming, after varions experiments, hit on the following plan. He thus de- seribes it: “We built wire frames on our low truck wagonms, stretching them from four wagon-stakes and heaping wet manure over them. Dirt was thrown on the wagon-beds to protect them, and pots of burning tar were set underneath the straw roof. A barrel of water on the wagon was used to keep the straw wet. These wagons were driven about and did the best work, as they could go wherever most needed. ‘The smoke and vapor were carried to the rear as the wagon moved, and, being at once out of the rising heat, fell close to the ground in a long white trail. At aaylight our whole 400 acres of orchard was covered with a white foz gx- tending from the ground about twenty feet high.’" That seems to be a perfect solution of the problem. The wazons may be driven among the trees or anywhere else, and the ‘blanket of vapor left behind is a sure pro- tection against frost. The idea is econom- ical, the question of fuel being one that every grower can answer for bimself, . QUINCY ON SINGLE TAX. BOSTON'S ARISTOCRATIC MAYOR SURPRISES AND DELIGHTS THE DIscrpLES OF HENRY GEORGE. The single-tax advocates of Massachusetts consider that they have won & Victory by en- listing Mayor Josiah Quincy of Boston in their behalf. Mr. Quincy belongs to the blue-blooded stock of the old Bay State. Ata recent single- tax banquet Mayor Quincy was one of. tha speakers and brought forth great applause by his sentiments. He declared that it was a great pleasure to meet with a class of people Who appreciated the definite and vital 1mpor- tance to & community of its tax 1aws. It strikes me as the most important thing about this single-tax movement,” said Mr, Quincy, “that you recognize so fully what the average citizen fails to recognize, not only the importance and influence upon & community of the tax-laws, but also that you see the great Denefits that can be wrought out by wise and intelligent changes in the laws_affecting taxa- tion, which will remove the burdens from in- dustry, which will give a better field for busi- ness ‘and which will distribute taxation e'fl‘“‘hly and justly throughout the commu- ! ‘Since I have seen the progress of the single tax, since I have seen :Ee gnqmber of active and intelligent citizens whom it has enlisted, and seen the enthusiasm which it has aroused, 1 have felt that the single-tax doctrine and the single-tax movement was something that would have to be reckoned with. “Itseems to me from the standpointof the single tax that you are right in feeling that you are snppordn‘ & movement for the sim- plification of our present tax system In this commonwealth and for placing the whole burden oflocal taxes upon real estate. “Iam astrong believer in one of the ideas made very prominent in the single-tax move- ment, thé benefitof a simple system of taxation as against the mass of complexity which we 1abor under to-day. “T am also in hearty sympathy with the idea embodied in the principles of the single tax that the attempt to levy taxes on_personal property ought to be abandoned. If experi- meuts have proven anything, they have proven the utter futility and impossibility of collecting taxes upon personal property. “A tax of that nature must be unequal in its effect and a penalty upon the man who is hon- est enough to be willing to disclose all his property, and it must of its very nature give gre(erence to those who believe that the State a8 no business to levy taxes on their personal property. 2 “1 feel very strongly in favor of the idea of leaving a broad tfield for business and enter- prise, which I understand is one of the cardinal poinis of the single-tax doctrine, and tne more 1 reflect upon the subject the more I am impressed with the great and effective change which it would muke Lere in the city of Bos- ton, if we could lift the taxation off enter- vrise and commerce and industry and leave as broad & field and as broad & scope as possible in this mel!o{:ulls of New England for the de- velopmeut of every productive industry and trade and commerce. ‘ “We have made some progress in this direc- tion, and I think the businass men of Boston very generally are in sympathy the idea that the general welfare o: the city, its growth and development, require that some of the heavy burdens that now rest upon business and ‘industry and commerce should be re- moved and that there should be a bigger field for the enterprise of our citizens and the pro- ductive use of capital, and that means a larger field for the employment of lsbor and higher wages." AS SEEN FROM MARS. And all life shrani In instant death. The granite hills, The 8bining sea, Burst into fame And ceased to be. On neighbor Mars A student wise Leveled his glass To scan the skies, Dear me!” he cried, is us I feared That little pl Disappeared. Exiy HEWITT LELAND in New York Sun. RELIC OF OLDEN TIMES. Hugo Fisher, the artist, is the owner of a centes-table that is perhaps the oldest piece of furniture in San Francisco. Itcame into his possessfon through his deceased wife, who was a Miss Pond, and it was an beirloom in her family for 200 years. It is now about to pass into the sixth generation. When and where the table was made is not known, but from its appearance it is of Dutch origin. The earliest record of the table is that Ttaly, sgainst the Prificess Anna Maria Tor- lonia of Rome, which has just come to an end in the former city, has excited widespread in- terest. It had & curious origin. In 1821 & Torlonia was married to a Marescotti and brought him a marriage gift considerably less than had been promised. The Marquis of that time sued for the difference, and the present Marquis received a verdict of 267,000 francs against the family. PERSONAL. J. B. Porter, a business man of Salinas, isin town. R. Rowlands, a mining man of Placerville, is in town. Dr. W. B. Sherman of Manchester, Iowa, is at the Palace. N.B. Grahem, a business man of Seattle, is in the City. George H. Bell, a mining man of Carson, has arrived here. Charles B. Devereaux of Portland 1s at the Cosmopolitan. J. H. Lesher, a prominent attorney of Chieago, is in town. Charles E. Swezy, a merchant of Marysville, arrived here yesterday. L. R. Wing, a member of the Chicago Board of Trade, is at the Palace. David Starr Jordan, president of Stanford University, is at the Occidental. Dr. L. C. McKinnon of Stockton is a guest at the Cosmopolitan, accompanied by his wife, H. L. Herzinger, editor of the Ukiah Herald, is in the City. He reports that Mendocino County is prosperous. D. S. Parke, who has for some time been at Apia and other places in Samoe,is here, ac- companied by his daughter. Dr. T. A. Rottanzi has returned from a two weeks'sojourn in the Eel River country, about which he is very enthusiastic. .Y.‘L, Zobinette, one of the proprietors of the California Odd Fellow, published at Sacra- mento, was in the City yesterday. About twenty-five Raymond and Whitcomb excursionists, who heve been seeing different perts of the State, are ut the Palace. Judge W. T. Arteny of Walla Walla, who was Justice of the Peace and Police Juage in that city, is registered at the Cosmopolitan. Charles Erickson, the railroad builder of San Luis Obispo, who has been at work for the Southern Pacific Company, is at the Grand. _Joseph Ladue, oue ot the pioneers of the Yukon River, who has been engaged in mining and trading for many years, is on a visit Bere. W. J. Thompson, who for several years was president of one of the Lanks of Tacoma and who was largely interested in lands and in various enterprises, is in the City. John Scoweroft, one of the heaviest mer- ¢hants of Ogden, who has been there & num- ber ot years and who is well known throughoit Utab, is here on one of his semi-annual busi- ness trips. Senator William Johnson of Courtland, who is one of the Commissioners on California rivers and harbors, arrived here yesterday from Washington, where he has been for about amonth past. Senator J. M. Gleaves of Redding, who has been at Washington, D. C., in reference to im- provements on the California rivers and har- bors, is at the Grand, accompanied by Dr. C. C. | Gleaves of Redding. CALIFORNIANS IN NEW _YoRK.,@ NEW YORK, N. Y at the Albemarle, J. J. Bryce at/the Windsor, E. Mason at the Westminster, G. A. Moore at | the Astor, R. H. Pease at the Brunswick LETTERS FROM THE PEOPLE. PLACER CDUSTY FRUIT. THE CROP NOT MATE: La: To the Editor of the San Francisco Call—SIr: I have watched with interest the reports sent | out from here regarding the damage done by | frost to the fruit crop in this district, which have Leen very much exaggerated. At first the outlook was rather blue or seemed so, as it was impossible to ascertain the exact extent of damages. The last couple of days I have teken the trouble to investigate many orchards on both high and low land, and I am confident that the output for Newcastie will be fully as much as last year, and may exceed it. It will be only a few growers that will not be compelled to thin their peaches. The Kelsey Japan plum and apricotis probably affected the most of any fruit, and there will'be a good half erop of them. There is some little com- plaint of Black ()nll;\m cherries, but the tar- tarians ure loaded. I'might say that there are but few apricots grown here, so it really does not effect us much. From the dispatches published in the San | Francisco papers the county newspapers are writing from, and I have alréady seen & couple of articles which state that Newcastle is all frozen up. GEO. M. BISBEE. Newecastle, March 10, 189¢ TALLY (NJURED BY THE PROSTS. Center-Table Over 200 Years Old. [From @ sketch.] it was once the property of Mrs. Van Brooklyn, who resided in Long Island about the year 1700. Shelived to be an old woman and at her death left the table to her daughter, who was then a Mrs. Mead. For some reason the table alwa owners on the female side. it went to her daughter, Mrs. Logistron, who in turn_bequeathed it to her daughter, Mrs. Pond. Mrs. Pond left it to her daughter, who aiterwaras became Mrs. Fisher. Not having any daughter Mrs. er left the table to her husband, and it wi ventually pass to one of their sons. The table is a splendid example of the join- ers’ art. It is beautiful in form and is made of solid maho, y and rosewood. The .different pieces are dovetailed together aud there is no sign of glue being used. In spite of its great age it is still as good as the day it was made. TH@ varaish is seratched in flaces, but evers joint of the woodwork is perfect. Not a single piece shows llgnl of warping. The table is the regulation height and the top is about two and a half feet square. It weighs over sixty ounds. There are two drawers in front that ave the original locks on them. The ke holes are peculiar, being surrounded by pieces of inlaid brass that are smoothed off even with the frontof the drawer. Mr. Fisher does not keep his treasure hidden away as & curio, but uses it in his studio as a color stand. for which ii is admirably adapted. P ARAGRAPHS ABOUT PEOPLE. Rosa Bonheur is 74 years of age and still paints horses. There is agrowing conviction, founded on statistics, that great painters are long lived. Sylvester Dixon, “the grain king of South- ern Kansas,” is accumulating a great store of corn at Wichita, and four days before the Na- tional Republican Convention he will starta train of forty cars of corn for St. Louis. changea From Mrs. Mead It is rumored in London that the Queen con- templates conferring a dukedom upon Prin- cess Beatrice. It is probable if this intention is carried out that the Princess wili be created Duchess of Kent. Miss Frances E. Willard notes it as a token of the progress of temperance reform in the South that it is no longer considered bad form for a gentleman to decline a drink. Miss Wil lard attributes this change of sentiment solely to the influence of women. Miss Ella Cohen of Atlanta holds the posi- tion of register of vital statistics and clerk for the Board of Health, with credit to herself and her sex. She is declared prompt and polite at the same time, a combination keenly appre- ciated by those with whom she is thrown. Jose Maceo, the Cuben general, when a mountain bandit, plotted. to capture John Sherman when that personage was making the tour of Cuba some years ago. Maceo ex- pected that the United States Government wou&d pay & large ransom for the distinguished captive. The suit of Marquis di Marescotti of Bologne, SUPERIOR TO ANY OTHER. Fresno Watchman. Under the progressive management of Charles M. Shortridge the San Francisco CALL has gone rapidly to the fiont as & newspaper. Its system of collecting State news is probably supericr to that of any other California paper. Its publication of metropolitan events is in the most choice form and abreast of the hour. Telegraphie reports from all over the world are most elaborate, and are artistically headlined and attractively presented. Mr. Shortridge il- lustrates in the editorial department the jus- tice with which he has been termed a brilliant writer. Of course, we deprecate the tenacity of his adherence to the Republican party, and while recognizing his abl and THE CALL'S merit we console oursclves with thz belief that he is vet young enough to eventually ripen into a Democrat. A JACKET COSTUME FOR GIRLS. Jacket offects are always extremely becoming to little girls, and the one shown here is an unusually graceful cut. The full undedront is becoming alike to stout or very slender fig- ures. A stylish addition is the narrow belt, which may be of leather, gilt braid or ribbo; The skirt is simply gathered into the band, a five-inch band of hair eloth or some stiff inter- lining being set on the bottom to give the proper flare. Wash dresses are simply hemmed at the foot, and worn over very full petticoats. A dress of cadet blue had a full vest of blue and green shot silk. The revers and collar were likewise of the silk, with green spangles get on. The rounda yoke at the top of front had rows of green braid. A dress of dark blue mohair had a vest of ste, crossbarred with stripes of many bright colors. The sailor col- lar was of the same fabric, the revers being of the mohair. : A white duck dress had a full front of fig- ured white lawn. The collar, revers and Jacket lining were of dull myrlloanun silk. The heavy cottons, such as duck, chaviot, ete., make up beautifully after this model. One of a blue and white broken cneck had a vest of white iawn. The round fringe of all-over em- broidere mbric. Rows of white braid edged the sailor collar and revers. “ MUSIC AND MUSICIANS. There are more ways than one of growing famous. In these enlightened days greatness avails a man nothing if he cannot impress the fact in & new and startling meanner on & blase world. There is Seidl, for instance. Any one would imagine that he wad great enough to tour the land, depending on the magic of his conducting slone; but Seidl knows & trick worth two of that. His musical lore and his artistic temperament are all very well in their way, but the public likes to have something to stareat and talk about, and Seidl means to give them what they want. The other day he and his orchestra of sixty-four musicians went to Menlo Park, N. J.,to visit Edison. La- chaume, the pianist, accompanied them; so did Sauret and Rivarde, the violin soloists of ton Salvayre. -One must Charles Constantine obtained the second prize in 1861 and 1863.” The Bayreuth festival this year will last from July 19 to August 19. A reserved seat for ihe whole series of music dramas only Ce: s $20, but of course the expense m untsup in the cost of living. There will be five representa- tions of the ‘‘Niebelungen Ring.” The “Rhein- gold” will be given on Sundays, “The Walkeure” on Mondays and “The Dusk o_l the Gods” on Tuesdays. “The Rheingold” 'Wl]l be given without entr’actes and will begin at 3, o'clock in the aiternoon. “Parsifal” will not be performed this year. «Aycassin and Nicolette,” a new opera which has been expected and talked of for a long time, has just been presented with success at Anton Seidl, —— the Conductor Who Is to Inaugurate an Epoch in Electrical Advertising. the Seidl tour. The orchestra played all sorts of Wagnerian selections—the fire scene from | “‘Die Walkure,” the prelude and glorification from “Parsifal” and other exalted gems—aund mammoth phonographs drank up the sounds, while kinetoscopes reproduced Seidl in the act of condncting. Then Rivarde played con- certos, so did Sauret, and they were repro- duced phonographically and kinetoscopically, 50 were Lachaume’s performances, and when the party left Edison he assured them that by the 2d of May, when the Metrovolitan or- chestra starts on its tour, 2 number of ma- chines would be ready to send on ahead of the artists, which would far surpass the work of | any human press agent. This is notall, how- ever, that the wizard has promised to do for Seidl. Of course the great man and his solo- ists are to travel in a special car. Inside this will be & car of the common or garden variety, | but electrieity is to be so used in its outward adornment that at night wondering rustics will see for miles around the word “Seidl"” written in letters of fire .as the train flashes through the country—all of which shows that | Seid], in addition to being a conductor, is a men who knows the spirit of the timesin which he lives. | Ambroise Thomas had a pet retreat, where he retired from the world each year to medi- tate and compose. It wasa littie island in the archipelago of St. Gildas, off the department | of Cotes-du-Nord. He bought it over twenty | years ago and built a charming villa there, close to the little harbor, which was large | enough to shelter his yachts Mignon snd | Trecor. M. Ardouin-Dumazet, writing in Le | Temps, has this to say about Ambroise Thomas’ retreat: “Very tiny 1s this isle of Illiec. It is | composed of three immense rocks, joined by & strand of pebbles, on which thick grass has grown up. Between two of these rocks Am- brofse Thomas built his villa, a granite structure one story high with a gabled roof. Three of the windows look on a vine-covered walk, another three command a view of the terraced lawn, beyond which is the wide ex- panse of the ocean. At the foot of the rocks is a litile garden, and among the crags and cliffs are pine trees and little paths in which the celebrated composer loved to wander. “It was in this little kingdom that Am broise Thomas composed ‘Mignon.” The viila was furnished by him with odds and ends that he had been picking up for years; old curiosities, benches and chests that had iong served the peasantry in the Surrounding country, but the living-rooms were fitted up with more comfortable furniture. His own room was very simple, howaver; a little iron bed in a corner and an old chest of drawers inlaid with copper were all the furniture he used, but the room was hung with antique Gobelins tapestry, The island, situated as it is between the restless ocean and the calm waters of Port Blaue, is a charming retreat. One quits it ‘with regret, casting a last look at its horten- sias and yuccss, which fraternize with the cabbages in its little garden."" In Europe it has hitherto been supposed that Americans possess the monopoly of inventing patent transformable furniture. Some writers have gone so far as to say that in American households if you take up a hand mirror you are apt to find that it is a frying-pan on the other side; that musical boxes are disguised as armchairs; tea cosies as footstools; and thut neariy all the window draperies are instantly transformable into fire escapes. European in- genuity has lately set itself to work to achieve something transformable on {is own account, and M. J. F. Cuypers, a manufacturor of in- struments at The Hague, now proudly an- mounces that he has invented a new type of harmanium, which can be changed at will into & writing-desk, a dressing-table and & book- case. The Continental press bestows consider- able praise upon this latest addition to the ranks of musicel instruments. German composers continue to employ the shining hour by composing new works and sending thent to the theaters subsidized by the different courts, where the works are carefully examined and form for the most part the object of a special report. The Royal Opera- house of Dresden received last year no less than thirty-seven new scores, which were almost all rejected, and the other theatershave had equal evidence of the industry of com- posers. Even third-rate theaters in Germany do not hesitate to produce an entirely new lyrie work, but the production of new operas 80 far exceeds the consumption that it is im- possible for all to be roduced. Le Menestrel “A simple little docu- ment shows the value of Ambroise Thomas as o teacher. Itisthe list of his pupils who in the space of fifteen years obtained the grand prize of Rome st the Paris Conservatory for composition. This is the list Colin: 1861, Theodore Duboi; gault - Ducoudray; 1863, Victor Sieg; 1865, Charles Leneveu; 1868, Rabutean and Wintzweiller; 1870, Charles Letebvre; 1871, Gaston Serpette; 1872, Gas- the Royal Theater, Copenhagen. The music is by August Enna, 8 young composer whose former opera, “The Sorcerer,” caused him to be locked npon as the coming Danish come poser. The new work has notdisappointed the hopes which had been based on Enna’s future. At Brussels ““Mignon” was being performed when the news arrived of Ambroise Thomas’ death. Marie Van Zandt, the American prima donna, who was winning great appiause in the title role, came before the curtain atthe end of the second act and placed a beautiful yreath between the leaves of the score as a tritjite to the master. . Frederick Cowen, best known in this cauntry | as a composer of songs, has been chosen suc. cessor to the late Sir Charles Halle as conduc- tor of the famous Halle Symphony orchestra, which gave such fine music to Liverpool, Man- chester and many other cities of the United Kingdom. At the Municipal Theater of Basle & new opera, “Gudrun,” by Hans Huber, has met with great success. Hermann Levy's mental condition isreported to be growing worse. There is no possibility of the great conductor’s even being present at the Bayreuth festival this year. It is expected that the Seidl orchestrs will reach this City May 18. If satisfactory arrange- ments are concluded a three weeks’ season will be given he CURRENT HUMOR. Mr. Faxon—Did you observe anything in the way of & temperance movement in the mining towns out West? Returned traveler—Well, the nearest thing Isaw toone was out in Livingstone, Mont. Qut there they charge 25 cents for beer.—Somer- ville Journal. Bennie—What's a conversationalist? Jennie—Oh, it's a man who doesn’t have to stop talking when he hasn’t got anything more to say.—Truth. Little Billy—What is meant by the Indian reservation, ma? His mother—Their disinclination to talk, of course, Will you never learn?—Roxbury Ga- zette. Boggs—Can you rely on Jones’ friendship? Fogg—I am afraid not. He owes me some money. Boggs—Can you rely on Brown’ Fogg—Oh, yes. Iowe him some.—New Yor] World. “Mary,” asked the old man, “whose picture is that on the front of the paper you have “That is a picture of President Cleveland,” said she. “Great Cwsar's ghost!" exclaimed the old man. “Has he been cured of something, too?"'— Adams Freeman. Mot “well, here is the money you've been tor. menting me for,” said a rich uncle to his spendthrift nephew. “Use it wisely, and re- member that a fool and his money are soon parted.” “I don’t know about that,” replied the young scrapegrace. “I've been coaxing you more than & week for this.”—Harper’s Bazar. «“Twins, your Majesty,” announced the nurse, “and both girls.” The King started violently. “Well, that beats me!” he exclaimed with emotion.—Detroit Tribune. Amateur tenor—Did you hear me sing last night? Frankman—No; the fact is, I got into the jam at the door and couldn’t hear anything. “wWhat! Was there such a crowd trying to get in as that?” *No—to get out.”—Spare Moments. CrTrIC horehound cough drops. Townsend's.® — e CALIFORNIA glace fruits, 50¢ Ib. Townsend's.* ———— EPECIAL information daily to manufacturers, business houses and public men by the Prass Clipping Bureau (Allen’s), 510 Montgomery. * . Casimir Felix Badeni, the present Premierof Austria, is the son of a cook. His father, who 'was the chef of one of the last Kingsof Poland, was created a Count. Then his aunt, the famous German actress, Anna Wierer, left him the half of her large fortune. In 1871 he be. came District Chief of Zolkiew, and two years later entered the Ministry of the Interior. GROWTH in knowledge is the only cure for self- conceit. Falth in Hood's Sarsaparilla 1s & sure cupe for indigestion. loss of appetite and that tired feeling so prevalent in the spring. e b 5 v hs':nral:lnl rmxucovnn, SORE THROAT, ete. sl be constantly supplied with *Brown' Bronchial Troches.” ot — Ir you suffer irom looseness of the bowels, D Siegert's Angostura Bitters will surely cure you.