The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, November 29, 1903, Page 30

INSTR BY /NO 2 . Facts . BY MALCOLM M 1bout Coal. rs of the Bowles.) w long the ast serves to act that every getting 1 in many e o sug- eration may trans: sion of om dy devel- al will not purposes ted power, studded with vers, each wheel lifting wa » or driving an rming the wind energy. eam engines and » get more power »w each other is fairly on s urging its claims, ress is in the the belief the question, ill the world’s coal ill be of live interest gists—the power user will ncerned. world's prog ant: is taking the place 1 for reducing iron t furnaces. The t in the experi- doing the in these years, when al revolution es act the Wherever and to-day nd mechanical metallurgist are to make electricity d coke in the , copper and other rfalls in the wil- harnessed to great sending the elec- 100 and 150 miles y are utilizing the electrical in furnaces to fuse the clays aluminum and to bring fierce heat of the elec- e hey are the are elements in lime and powdered coal-which combine to make the m carbide which gives forth when touched by water. current welds iron and for making glass, and this yrks the same whether it 2 few feet from a dynamo by 2 stationary engine or is brought scores of miles through forests and over mountains from a waterfall. Chicago is called the “Windy City,” not alone because of the supposed lung s optimistic citizens, but be- cause its average wind velogity—and there is always wind blowing over Chi- n miles an hour. Last Head, one of the ens, in a lecture de- power of it livered before the students of the Uni- | versity of Chicago, made the sugges- tion that the city could be electrically lighted by building a cordon of wind- mills around it, each mill pumping elec- tricity into a storage battery. The elec- triclans viewed the proposition with some doubt—they said a practical stor- age battery which could be charged by a windmill driven dynamo was not on the market. But now it is proposed to couple the windmills with air compres- #ors, to store up energy for operating the machinery of the innumerable small shops and factories, and the air compressor men declare the proposition is practical. An experimental plant is to be installed and if it proves success- ful every sky scraper in the Windy City soon may be crowned with a tiara of whirligigs jamming compressed air into reservoirs, storing up mechanical en- ergy night and day. . Audacious engineers are scheming to put an electric belt on the father of waters. The plans contemplate a dam | across the Mississippi River at Keokuk, Jowa, for a hydraulic plant capable of developing 50,000 electrical horse-power. The falls of the Ohio at Louisville, Ky., will be grinding out electricity if pres- ent plans are realized. Niagara Falls for some years has been driving im- mense turbines. Seattle and Tacoma draw their electricity from waterfalls, miles distant, and the mountain cas- cades in California furnish power which is carried a hundred and more miles to the pl:oe of consumption. . . But the aggregated power which can be furnished by all of America’s great waterfalls is insignificant compared to the possibllities which lie in the con- trolled energy which can be stored up by the winds and waves. Motors actu- ated by the waves of the ocean and the great lakes are In sight. The limitless power of the waves and tides trans- formed into electrical energy, which can be transmitted by copper or alumi- num wires far inland, is not the dream of & visionary. Hydraulic engineers de- clare that the day is near which will find wires radiating from points all along the coast line of the United States, each wire pulsating with its burden of wave-started electricity. Ti- dal mills and pumps operated by wave- UCTIVE_JTUD | ! scale were 1aid out, and a party of en- t | gineers is now examining several points | 1 _—— ~$ {on the Atlantic Coast with the purpose | | of installing a great power plant to fur- | | nish electricity, which will be used for | industrial purposes. It is proposed to build an immense reservolr, = which, when filled by the tide, will hold back sufficient water to work a large number | of turbines until the next tide replen- ! ishes the reserveir. This reservoir will | be a double one, each equipped with | gates. One will furnish the “head”— | that is, the waterfall; the other will! serve as the tail race while the tide is [out. When the tide rises the gates of | the lower reservoir will be closed, pre-! venting the sea from entering, and| thus maintaining the lower level re- quired for the operation of the water- | wheel. ‘While some scientists are wondering what will happen when coal gives out, others are working and experimenting to ecliminate waste, decrease [friction, | save heat and take up lost motion, to | the end that one ton of coal will do what two tons of coal couldn’t do. Smoking chimneys are looked upon as the visible signs of prosperity; as a atter of fact, they are unfailing in- ications of waste and needless ex- e. The sequence of impr ments in steam-using machinery, the utiliza- tion of nature's forces for industrial purposes and the almost daily invention of new methods and revolutionary ap- | ces all Jead to one end—smokeless factory chimneys and a corresponding reduction in the w s coal bill. . . o The anthracite coal of Eastern Penn- | sylvania is but a small remnant of the original coal fields preserved in a few synclinal basins, or hollows, produced during the wrinkling up of the surface in the formation of the mountains, and which have escaped the action of the extensive denuding agencies which have transformed the region. These fields probably formerly extended en- tirely across the Susquehanna Valiey to join the bituminous fields in the western part of the State. But the por- tion of the strata that were folded up has been worn away, while that which was in the bottom part of the folds has remained. It follows that almost every- where they have to go down to get the coal. The answer of a mining expert to the farmer who lived on the eroded portion and wished to know how deep down he should have to bore to find | coal contains a whole lesson in geology. “My friend,” he said, “to find coal on| your farm you must go up into the air about 2000 feet.” This contortion of the rocks and dislocation of the strata in coal regions gives great trouble to min- ers and calls for the highest degree of geological knowledge on the part of mining engineers. Frequently the coal seam will run out against a bare wall | of rock, when it becomes a question | whether one is to go up or down to find | the dislocated end, and in either event a vast amount of expense is involved. In North America the coal measures are distributed about as follows: In the Appalachian field, 60,000 square miles; in the central field, 47,000; in the western, 78,000; in Michigan, 6700; in Rhode Island, 500; while in Nova Scotia there are 18,000. On account of the thickness of the seams and the quality of the coal, the Appalachian fleld is| probably the most important in the | world. In Pottsville, Pa., the total | thickness of the workable seams of coal | is more than 100 feet, and this is an- | thracite, which has been so subjected to heat and pressure that all the bitu- | minous and volatile matters have been ‘remnved, so that it becomes the most | valuable fuel in the world. Its smoke- | |less character gives to our Eastern | | cities, where it is principally used, an| advantage which is almost incalculable. | The Pittsburg coal seam is one of the most remarkable in the world, being from fifteen to twenty feet in thickness, |and extending over several thousand square miles, and being exposed on the N { banks of 2 navigable river, where it can | be mined with the least difficulty. It is | of such purity, also, that when made | | Into coke by burning in kilns to expel | the volatile matter, it is the best coal | | in the world for use in the manufacture | of fron. | Owing to the relation of the great | tron mines to the great coal mines of | | the country, the region of e Great | 1 Lakes is now the most economical place | for the manufacture of iron. The great prcblem of the century is to bring to- gether the iron ore of the Lake Superior district and the coal of the Appalachian | region. Since in the smelting of iron about two tons of ore are required for | one ton of coke, the ports on the Great | Lakes which can be entered by large | | vessels from Lake Superior, and which | can be reached by the shortest haul from the Appalachian coal fields, have & permanent advantage which it would seem cannot be taken away from them [in all the future. Pirates of the Sahara. In writing in Harper's Magazine for December of the masked robbers who invade the Sahara and are known as Tawareks, W. T. Harding King tells | of some curious love customs among these strange people: : “The young Tawarek gallant, mount- { ed on his swiftest camel, armed with | sword, dagger and lance,” says Mr. King, “roams the Sahara like a knight errant of old, protecting and guiding the caravans under the charge of his tribe, redressing and avenging the wrongs done to his slaves and serfs, or, in order to bring glory to his lady- love, whose gage d’amour he wears, and to find the necessary dowry to set- the caravans under the protection of the neighboring tribes. “From time to time, when an oppor- tunity occurs, he sends a letter to his and his exploits. The letters are writ- ten in the old characters of the Ber- moved floats have been in service in a|are written in cipher, of which the small way for some years, but they| writer and the recipient alone possess have mnot proved to be satisfactory.|the key, and not infrequently they take Some months ago plans for a tide- mmu-mmn%:y water power development on & large! the absent Tawarek to 3 { for any of the skilled manual occupations. 'S THE FfAN FRANCISCO CALL, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 1903. THE SAN ERANCISCO: CALL | JOHN D. SPRECKELS, Proprictor. . . . . . . . . .-Address All Communications fo JOHN McNAUGHT, Manager | Publication OfiCe.....coeececersrorsescnsoncosrenaas @ iessasssesnene.e... . Third and Market Streets, S. F. — SUNDAN.. ... 5., viveeee...NOVEMBER 29, 1003 THE NEED OF TRAINED MEN. NN the past it has been customary to point to the number of men ho have achieved success though lacking in cducation. It is to be noted that the success in such cases has been in the line of money making. But that is not nor is money making the noblest achievement in life. There are other things of greater worth to the world, such as steadiastness to great principles, the betterment oi man by the study of the resources of nature, the narrowing of the field in which superstition enchaifis the mind, all are worthy objects of endeavor. But in mere money making in the future the trained man the only success in {is to have an advantage over the untrained. Mere scholar- ship is not all that is needed. The proper study of mankind L'he country is receiving an enormous annual incre- ment of illiterate immigration. It is the material upon whech the American mind must work to achieve the suc- cesses of the future. The mind that trains it in things other than burden bearing, that uses its brawn to develop wealth, but at the same time has human touch with it beyond its brawn, to assimilate its ideas with our ideals, is to be the in- fluence that saves the republic from destruction. Americans need a training that does not lead so generally to the professions. The dignity of labor is as great as in he days of our fathers. Avenues to all occupations must be held open and kept free. With the training that precedes special instruction in the professions men are better qualified The art of the blacksmith and carpenter, of the electrician, the stone and brick mason, is equal to the so-called learned professions. In another direction the art of tilling the soil, of getting is man. iirum it the best fruits of the field and orchard and vine- | yard, has risen to rank equal with the professions. When President McKinley was here and the members of his Cabi- net attended the commencement exercises at Berkeley only one graduate of the Agricultural School appeared and that was a lady. Associating agriculture with the plow and prun- ing hook, the students indulged in a rather derisive out- burst to the confusion of the lady agriculturist. But Mr. Wiison, the wise farmer at the head of the Agricultural De- partment of the Government, turned this feeling into one of respect when he welcomed the lady and spoke not only of the dignity but the high scientific standing of modern agri- | culture. OQur universities cannot put too much stress upon the im- portance of agriculture as a scientific calling. When it is known that science can breed corn and wheat and all field crops to secure greater excellence and therefore better re- turns the necessity for the best training appears. We have recently spoken of the great lack and the crying need of trained vegetable physiologists and pathologists. When they appear every tiller of the soil will acquire a better knowledge of the constitution and the diseases of plant life. It is the duty of every university to teach its students that ownership and scientific care of the soil and its crops is one of the most useful and most necessary of human occupa- tions. The old legend, derived from the Assyrians and by them from some older race far the other side of the beginning of history, planted the human race in a garden, not in a bank, nor a lawyer’s office, nor a doctor’s apartments. It was the expression of a sense of the ultimate foundation of things. When high school and college men with trained minds, self- centered and able to think their way through a proposition to a logical conclusion, seek the soil for a livelihood we will hear less about the loss of farm profits during the transfer of the product from the producer to the consumer. If every orchard and vineyard planter in California had the benefit of such training, making him wise not only in producing but in the commercial branch of his business and in the law { which rightly invoked protects him, does any one suppose that outside investigation would be invoked and outside help accepted to protect him and the consumer from the trained rapacity which intervenes between them? * Agriculture has been too long left out of the class of occu- pations which require special training. As its fruits must support the life of the world they should not be left to the rule of thumb and the law of haphazard. The mission of the United States to feed and clothe world is becoming plainer as older populations increase and the product of the soil declines. 'We can get along with no better lawyers or doctors than other lands have, but we cannot get along without better trained agriculturists, The Americanization of Hawaii is progressing rapidly to inevitable success. The grand jury of Honolulu busied it- self recently in an investigation of alleged election frauds. The inquiry ended with the verdict, made in opposition to the opinioas of the natives of the jury, that absolutely no evidence of fraud could be found. Can anything more ap- propriately American be suggested? SAVING THE BIG TREES. OME interesting results have followed the effort of the Outdoor League to induce the Federal Government to purchase the Calaveras big trees. The league has asked the co-operation of college presidents and Governors oi States all over the Union. The favorable replies show that this effort, local to California, has been the means of re- newing national interest in the subject of forestry. When the Governors of Vermont and of South Carolina concur in offering their active support of the project there is offered evidence that the big trees have become a national issuc and the means of inducing a general movement in behalf of all trees and of all forests. It is proposed that the Government expend five millions in acquiring continuous forests in the Appalachian Moun- tains to reserve them as a protection of the watershed and a scenic feature. A movement is also started to preserve the forests in the White Mountains in New Hampshire, which have recently been invaded by sawmills and are rapidly fol- lowing the long disappeared forests on the lower slopes of the same mountains. We can well afford to make dommon cause with all these movements. A country stripped of its forests rapidly declines in its fertility and offers less and less shelter and advantages for the homes of its people. The Appalachian forests have been persistently passing to the axman since the famine in pine and hard timber fell upon the country by the destruction of the white pine of Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota, and the oak, maple, ash, hickory and ‘cuther hard woods of Indiana, New York and Ohio, There is a great dearth of cooper stock and wagon timber because the harvest has been destructive. Had the hard wood forests been properly cut under the direction of expert. foresters the supply would have been preserved. There is yet a chance to save much that would be carelessly sacrificed and our Outdoor League is to be congratulated upon having sounded a note that is just in harmony with such a general and widespread sentiment. There is no doubt that the Calaveras trees will be saved. The private owner will not be in a hurry to convert them into poor lumber. Theéy are worth more to him standing than sawed, for that species of sequoia has not much timber value and the trees are so immense that it is impossible to fell them without breaking and splitting them, so that but little is left to be sawed even if the commercial value of the lumber were greater. It is estimated that petitions for their purchase bearing a half million signatures will go to Congress and the President as a result of the splendid and intelligent activity of the league, and it will be difficult to resist an appeal that comes from so many citizens and from so many parts of the coun- try. The true California spirit is getting a useful advertise- ment in the matter and it will be the pleasure of the press to aid the league in promoting its great purpose. e —— An ordinance establishing a fine of $500 or imprisonment for six months for bribing a police officer has been adopted by the Board of Supervisors. Does this mean that bribery has become so common as to be cheap, or do the Super- visors wish to impress the idea that the bribery of policemen is an offense of some seriousness? Can any one suggest a method of removing the temptation? D Francisco. We have two members of the House. They sit and watch things, but the House has been ungrate- ful. One of them got the floor once, but it got away from him in a few minutes. He saw how things were going. He felt the fabric of the constitution tumbling into brickbats around him and he noted the indifference of his fellow mem- bers. He saw the Democratic leader, Mr. Williams, sit un- conscious of what was happening and blithely indifferent to the distress of the goddess of liberty. Even Champ Clark swapped jokes with Republicans and ruminated his cud in fancied security just as if the wreck of matter and the crush of worlds were not going on right under his nose. Then our member felt a great purpose quicken within him. Fate and fortune had made him the Arnold Winkelried of the crisis. He would rush upon the embattled ranks of the enemy and receive their spears in thesbreast of his Prince Albert. To emphasize his heroic mission he would make it personal to himself alone, and he rose therefare to a ques- tion of personal privilege. Now this kind of rising is only POOR OLD CONGRESS. URING the present special session of Congress permitted when the member has been misquoted in that | lively organ, the Congressional Record, or has been misrep- resented in an outside newspaper or has had his name mis- placed on a rdll call or has been personally attacked on the floor during his absence. As his eagle eye swept the floor and the galleries he was called on to state his question of personal privilege and proceeded to say that he had discov- ered that in the Panama matter the President of the United States had invaded and destroyed “the prerogative of Con- gress.” Before he could proceed further a member moved to adjourn and the floor slid from under him like a banana peel. Woe to an ungrateful House that will not let our mem- ber rescue it from destruction! Woe to seasoned Speaker Cannon for not letting a member hold the floor to save the House as a personal privilege! Woe to John Sharp Williams of Mississippi, member of seven Congresses, and to his Democratic colleagues, Grub Humphreys and Adam Byrd and Shedric Hill, for letting the floor slip! The House has fallen upon evil days and nights when even the minority does not want to be saved. What a legislative Sodom and par- liamentary Gomorrah it is when only one righteous man is there and he can’t hold the floor. By and by Congress will need to use its prerogative, and when it feels around for it it will be gone, and then our member will reap the credit of seeing it go and trying to grab it and put it back in its place. e e If it were possible to transfer explosive figures of speech into something more tangible than wind energy Senator Morgan and his mouth might blow the isthmus of Panama into the sea and solve the problem involved in the digging of the canal. The Senator’s oratorical effort in the upper house forever eclipses the historic value of the day of the big wind. THE VALLEY’S GROWING MARKET. HE San Jose Herald perceives the trade significance T of the fortunate geographical position of the Santa Clara Valley. It is near the greatest market on the Pacific Coast for its varied products. San Francisco and its populous suburbs and the towns and cities of the valley and of the adjacent territory on the peninsula insure a continually augmenting home demand. The promise far outstrips the present magnitude of the business to be transacted. Of the one million acres of land in the Santa Clara Valley, says the Herald, there are many thousands of acres that are particu- larly suitable for stock, dairy and cattle ranches. With the vast growth in populatign that has come because of the fruit industry the products of these ranches are always in demand at profitable prices. With the extension of the fruit acreage, the -increase of the population and the consequent lessening of the stock ranch area the products of the latter will steadily become more profitable. The time of cheap mutton, beef and pork has gone by. Milk, butter and cheese are staple products and these are certain to command good returns. Concerning the fitness of the county for the industry the Herald says: “The winters in this valley are open and mild and there is generally an abundance of green feed every- where by the first or middle of December and in certain sec- tions of the county the natfiral moisture is such that green pasturage exists all the year around. * * * Here is a diversity of valley, foothills and mountains, with an abun- dance of pure creek, spring and artesian water and ample shade for the summer months. Numerous streams flow into the valley from the mountain ranges east and west and every little mountain valley and nearly every canyon has its own small stream or perennial spring.” $ The Herald finishes its alluring picture by referring to the profitable dairies north of San Jose, by hints of fine herds of Jerseys, Holsteins and Durhams, and by the assertion that “for the raising of beef cattle with a few hundred acres in the mountains one may begin in a modest way and in a few years find himself along the highway to independence and possibly wealth.” CE——— The American Federation of Labor and the Knights Templar will hold their next annual conventions in San Francisco. And we are conscious of our ability to entertain theim as they wish to be, each in its way. It is a tribute to our breadth of view and to our versatility in hospitality that organizations so diverse in objects should choose our city as the scene of their national reunion. R U By a miracle of good fortune San Francisco has escaped in the last few days several bay disasters horrifying in their possibilities. Almost as great as this good fortune is the splendid record of bravery, coolness and decision which has attended the conduct of the men who have had so many lives in their keeping. Instances of incapacity or cowardice on the part of sea captains make San Franciscans gasp in in- something has happened that vitally interests San | - TALK_OF THE o~ A Promise Kept. “Speaking of human interest storles, said a reporter the other day to a group of newspaper men, ‘“four years ago I was shorthand reporter in the District Attorney’s office of Alameda County and had a desk in the same room with the genial Harry Melvin, at present the well known Superfor Judge of Alameda County. Late one afternoon a wealthy female client, whose acts of generosity were about as frequent as hens’ teeth, called and said that a family occupying a Fruitvale house of hers was behind in the rent and she wished them eject- ed. She sald the head of the family was an upholsterer and although claiming to be i1l was in fact too lazy to work and for us not to be imposed upon by him, as he was shamming. Judge Melvin made out the usual legal notice, giving the tenant three days to leave or suffer ejectment, and asked me if I would serve the paper. I con- sented, and upon reaching the house !ln question I was ushered into the j main room of the dwelling by a poorly | dressed Spanish woman. It teok but a glance to see that poverty and {llness were In full control. None of the signs were missing. An old German, the master of the house, lay upon a ragged lounge in a corner of the otherwise bare room and the look on his face was that of resigned despair that follows fl- ness, but with the acknowledgement that fllness had won in the game. He turned an inquiring look in my direc- tion and feebly asked my business. I | stammered something about the paper I had to serve, but quickly added that | I was sure there was some mistake and that the conditions were not known to the house owner, although I knew that I was lying and that they were well known, or she would not bhave given such explicit directions. In | answer the invalid simply said: “Tell | her I shall go as she ordegs within the | next three days.” I hurried back to the office and informed Melvin that the man was almost beyond the reach even of charity. He was shocked and said | that in the morning something must | be done at once to relieve the unfor- tunate. But before anything could be done in the morning word was received that the man was dead. He had gone before his three days were up. The next day the landlady called at the office and inquired: “Well, did you give him my notice to quit?” I said I | did. She sald: “And has he done so?” {1 said “Yes.” ‘“Ah,” she'said, “that’'s good. Where did he go to?” I an-| | swered: “I don’t know, madam, but | you and he will never meet in this| life or the next.” Stanford’s Methods. ‘While the late Leland Stanford was president of the old Central Pacific Railroad Company, he was the idol of thousands of employes of the system. Senator Stanford’s popularity was in large measure due to his policy of main. taining a high wage and salary sched- ule. His consistent adherence to this doctrine was the cause of no little fric- tion at times, but in his discussions with other directors of the railroad President Stanford would invariably maintain his position. A former chief clerk in the railroad employ under the old regime tells the following story as illustrating Stan- ford's attitude. “During one of Senator Stanford's trips East or abroad,” said the old rail- road ‘man, “the management decided that a cut of 10 to 15 per cent in the wage, schedule affecting subordinate clerks, agents and the like would be about the right thing. An official circu- lar announcing the reduction, to be ef- fective on a certain January 1, was is- sued, and all interested employes re- ceived the notice. “Of course, there was a great hue and cry throughout the system. Every- body was talking and, perhaps, doing a | bit of hard swearing. But the days rolled on and the time was approaching. “Shortly before the date fixed for the new order to go into effect, President Stanford returned home. Among the first matters called to the executive's attention was the wage-cut order. “Stanford looked it over and turned to Curtis, then assistant to the general manager, and said, quizzingly: “‘So you think these clerks’ ought to be reduced, do you?" “‘Yes; there's the proposed sched- ule.” “ ‘Well, if there's to be any cut,’ re- plied Stanford, ‘let us start at the top and include Towne, Goodman, Fill- more and the rest of the general of- fice management.” “Curtis looked at Stanford, slowly gathered up his papers and retired. “That was the last ever heard of the proposed reduction.” The One Talent. A special agent of the United States Treasury Department, who has been located here for a number of years, was In a reminiscent mood the other day and for about an hour bubbled over with stories of San Francisco in early days when the now veteran Govern- ment agent bore a commission in the army and was stationed In this depart- ment. One of his yarns tells of the foundation of what is now ooe of the largest manufacturing concerns in the country. “I used to live at the old Cosmopol- ftan Hotel, corner of Bush and San- some streets,” sald he. “I was pre- paring to turn in one night when there came a loud knock on the door of my apartments and in response tc my in- wvitation Captain Blank of our regiment stepped into the room. He was flushed and in a state of feverish excitement. “ “Will you take care of some money for me until morning?’ he gasped. “+How much have you got and what the dickens ails you? Been holding up the stage?' I replied. « ‘Busted Jack Gamble's faro bank. ‘Went down there after dinner with $20. Cleaned up $31,500 and have it down- stairs in a hack. Two of my men are watching the hack, but I'm afraid to take it to the Presidio to-might. - Too many of the wrong sort saw me win i’ . - “I took the money. Next day Captain Blank resigned his commission and went to Europe, where he traveled for about a year. With what was left after his vacation he went into business. He pay TOWN was successful from the start and Is to-day one of the most prosperous man- ufacturers In the land. You know his name. It is now one of the vest known in the country, but only a few of his brother officers know that the Blank fortune was founded on a double eagle properly applied in a faro game.” The Panamino Minister. Le Figaro of Paris claims Bunaue Varilla, the Minister to Washington from the republic of Panama, as & Frenchman and describes him as fol- lows: M. Philippe Bunau-Varilla, Minister Plenipotentiary and Envoy BExtraordi« nary from the new republic of Panama to the Government of the United States, is a French engineer, who was once a student at the Ecole Polytechnique. He is 43 years old, a man of middle height, of modest and almost timid manner, but possessed of incomparable energy, which, veiled beneath an exterior all smiles and simplicity, has been kept at the height of its intensity by incessant activity. For nineteen years he has patiently followed the affairs of Central America and observed all the phases of the gigantic enterprise to which France first lent her name and which the storms of politics and party warfare seemed until recen to have compro- mised and ruined beyond reparation. At 26 he was in Colon, ranking as director of the interoceanic canal, and under his leadership the work went forward at a pace unknown before. But as the canal advanced the difficul- tles of its construction became dally more alarming and seemd less and less surmountable. Then, quitting the easy position in which he had had more of distinction than of hard work, he as- sumed the heaviest of tasks and fear- lessly attacked that massive wall of the Culebra, that gigantic barrier of granite which nature has buillt across the highway sought by men from one coast to the other. Hindu Grammar. Lady Curzon, who was Miss Leiter of Chicago, gets a lot of fun out of her life in India. Among other fads, it is said that she makes a point of collect- ing any amusing attempts made by Hindus to write English that come un- der her notice, and has many ludicrous specimens in her scrapbook. Recently she got from Bombay a letter that two brothers sent out to their patrons on the death of their father, who had been the head of the firm. The letter ran: “Gentlemen: We have the pleasure to inform you that our respected father departed this life on the 10th inst. His business will be conducted by his be- loved sons, whose names are given be- low. The oplum market is quiet, and mal. 1500 rupees per chest. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? We remain,” etc.—Leslie’s Weekly. Answers to Queries. QUOTATION—Jane. The “Oh, for a touch of a v-.nhm and the sound of a volce that is still,™ is from the writings of Tennyson im “Break, Break. Break.” BROADWAY-T. R, City. " The width of Broadway, New York City, is eighty fee®® It starts from the Battery, runs northwest six miles and joins the Boulevard at Seventy-eighth street after crossing five avenues. The width of Broadway, east of Larkin street, in San Francisco, is 82.6 feet. MINER'S INCH—M., Oakland, Cal A miner’s inch is the amount of water that will pass in twenty-four hours through an opening one inch square under a six-foot pressure. According to F. P. McCray, a mining engineer, the amount of water according to the miner’s inch that will flow in twenty- four hours amounts to 12,925.44 gallons, GOVERNOR GENERAL—The Gov- ernor General of Canada at this time is Right Hon. Gilbert John Elliot, Earl of Minto. He is the appointee of the sovereign of England. The following named have been Governors General of Canada under the present constitution: Monck, appointed 1867; Lisgar, 1868; Marquis of Lorne, 1872; Marquis of Lansdowne, 1878; Lord Stanley, 1883; Earl of Aberdeen, 1893, and the pres- ent Govemnor, 1898. This shows that the term of office of these have been respectively one, four, six, five, ten and five years. MEXICAN FLAG—Subscriber, City. The flag of Mexico is composed of three vertical bars, green, white and red; the first named color at the staff. These colors are symbolical of the guarantees of the plan of Iguala; white denotes the purity of the Catholic religion, green independence and red the union of the Spanish elements with the Mex- ican. The eagle that appears on some of the flags is perched on a nopal grow- ing on a rock rising from the waters of a lake. In its right claw it holds a snake and is in the act of tearing it to pieces with its beak, which symbol- izes the punishment of treachery. —_—— Townsend's California glace fruits and candles, 50c a pound, in artistic fire- etched boxes. A nice present for Eastern friends. 715 Market st., above Call bldg. * —_—— bodahhlzmormflon supplied daily to business uses and public men by the Press Clipping Bu: . D ru\n(munn)i-q- 4