The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, July 4, 1904, Page 6

T HE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, -MONDAY, JULY 4, 19 \ | T [ | I L VA A T orpedo Culture. | At one time 1 was engaged in torpe- culture. I was not the gentie scien- | who was then evolving this ful-| nating arbiter of nations from the eon-holes of his brain into the ac- ties of perfact warfare. I was only | enc of the staff of attendants of an| 1 destined one d in its adult-| b burrow into battleships. This | ant baby was my charge ashore, ) . big brown kanaka sailor, who could overhaul a perpoise in its native b ine rded the small of Mars at . He s wet purse. Our charge was a veritable little @-vil. A full-fledged destroying angel of darkness Even at that extreme| juveniie period it appeared to possess | the soul of Cain and a deathless desire 1o get on some marine firing line. | Nursirg and training infant torpedoes was net, with me, a labor of love nor of my own volunteering. During that warm summer ial i the tropics I had a Quakerish reluctance to iabor srfection of implements for the tion of humanity and a general —and stronger—reluctance to do any-) Consequently T was rather in- stealthily to undo the inventor's and crush the future ship- work | smasher in the egg, as it were. My chief was Captain John A. How ell, U.B N “father of t was a ve; (now admiral, retired), the Howell torpedo,” apd I young sailor on board the vessell he then commanded. As I acted es his clerk my duties kept me much of t time in his cabin, where he was at work on his model. It was about as large as an ordinary salmon and when its machinery got speeded up was about as full of life. The captain would fill the big cabin bathtub with water and In this he schooled his child He was a very religious man acted of war. was Captain Howell and chaplain every Sunday, as h not officially rate one. In the pictur- esque diction of the sca, she didn't| carry enough guns to rank a sky-piiot. | On week days the captain would fill | the tub, launch his torpedo and call me from my desk to hold the little monster whie he made delicate altera- tions in rudder or propeller. Then we would have lots of fun with that buzz- | ing, splashing thing. With its clock- | work wheels whirling away and its| emall body piunging fore and aft in| the tub it woud make frantic efforts to get out and find something to fight. The skipper and I generally came out of these encounters with hands and arms scratched and wet from keel to truck So, | owing to my being closely asso- | ciated with Captain Howell in his sci- entific work (my desk was alongside of | his tub), he got in the habit of taking me with him when he gave the young- | ster an airing, or rather a watering, in | the bay. The big kanaka, all stripped | for a swim, and I with the model un- | der my arm would march aboard the | steam launch in the wake of the cap- | tain amid the sly grins and joshings of | the men; who called us “the torpedo | kindergarten.” We would find a_shal- | low stretch of water of about ten feet | in depth and drop the future cruiser- kilier. The convoying kanaka would | flounder overboard after it and we| would steam after them. Often the tor- | pedo would dive to the bottom, and he | would follow and haul the traant back | to school and the surface. Sherman—that was his name on the | #hip’s books, as the one his mother| gave him back in sunny Hilo was too | long and too unpronounceable for prac- | tical use—was solid with the skipper. He got gifts of many dollars and extra | liberties on shore, where he could spend | both to his peculiar liking, and that| was drinking. When the torpedo was | more unmanageable than usual, neces- sitating more swimming and more div- ing. the captain generously doubled the dollars and liberties, and Sherman | doubled the drinks. I sometimes thought that there was a job put up between the kanaka and the torpedo | down on the m of the sea to make | those trials as difficult as possible for | Sherman’s personal benefit. However, when the sallor was sleeping off his| thore dissipation up under the fore- castle the torpedo and I had our trials in the tub. Stll, I firmly believe in its mechan- ical heart the torpedo fairly hated the kanaka, and every steel spring of its small murderous soul was bent to his undoing. It would not only hide from him in the deepest and darkest places it could find, but it would try to run him down. Off it would go from the launch, the tiny propellers churning up the bubbles and he following them as | they rose to the surface, when it would | suddenly veer away at right angles to | its course and for a few minutes be loat‘ to Sherman’s X-ray ken. Then, while he was @iving through the water secarching for the runaway, it would find him. With all the power of its buzzing machinery it would plunge its sharp snout into his naked body or rake the skin from his kicking legs with its whirling propellers. Then that fright- ened kanaka would give a yell of ter- ror and make the water fairly boil in his drive for the launch. | malicious as much at home in the water as was Sherman. One day while in submarine flight made a sharp turn and Jjoyfully swung into the kanaka's slnrbonrdi row of ribs. The seal-brown saflor thought a swordfish had struck him below the waterline and kicked fran- | tically at the model which, urged, ahead by its little propellers, was | ramming him again and again. Sher- | man, sure that all his compartments were flooded, retreated for the launch while the torpedo bobbed serenely to'f the surface, looking for more kanakas i |to lick in fair open fight. | Only by convincing the timid island- | er that it was a swordfish and not a ! baby torpedo that had | tried to mine him could I induce Sherman to go on any more subma- | rime trial trips. But the captain needed him and the flash of several $5 pieces overcame his fear of fellow swimmers down in the vasty deep.; S0 he passed the summer drinking whisky on shore and herding that tor- | pedo at sea. When the kanaka was too drunk for scientific deep sea work out in the ba I shifted into semi- bBathing togs d acted as torpedo navigator in the bathtub. TOM GREGORY. Lag s Delay in Germany. A recent consular report from Berlin contains some instructive data the law’s dela upon | in Kaiser Wilhelm's 1 ul has this to say: “The highest judicial authority of the The Con ; German empire js vested in the Reichs- gericht, a Federal Supreme Court es- | t hed pursuant to the law of April 11, 1877, as one of the institutions re- sulting from the creation of the new | mpire, or confederation of states, af- ter the Franco-Prussian war of 187 7). The accumulation of business in the court is such that appeals cannot | reach a hearing short of from nine to; twelve months, and this condition is declared by both laity and the legal | ofession to be intolerable. Thus it would appear as if the people of this country are seemingly quick to deplore | those partial denials of justice involved in the delays thereof which the citi- | zens of the United States have endured more or less patiently for many years. The steady accumulation of busi- ness In this court and a consequent falling behind in its efforts to dispose of such increase has led to renewed | propositions for the relief of such con- | gestion, one or more of which will with | certainty be ultimately enacted into national law. The first suggestion made was for a further increase in the number of judges and of the sub-di- visions of the court, but it is urged that the practical limit in that regard | has already been reached, if not over- | stepped. Seemingly, the most practical suggestion, and that which is likely to prevail in the end, is a limitation of the | right to appeal in all cases of mere money judgments to those in which the amount Involved exceeds, say, 3000 ' marks ($714), by which limitation, it is reliably estimated, fally 90 per cent of ! the appeals now sued out in such causes will fall away. It is purposed to raise this limit if occasion should arise. As a matter of abstract princi- | ple the latter suggestion s opposed, be- | cause it would tend to make this tri- | bunal “the rich man’s court,” from the | portals of which the man of small means would henceforth be turned | away, and because the importance to | the individual of a legal controversy | should not be gauged by a mere resor to marks and pfennigs. The whole subject is being so thoroughly dis- cussed, both in the legal magazines of Germany and in conventions of law- | yers, that as soon as the divergenf | views shall have been crvstallized into | definite propositions action can be lcoked for from the Reichstag.” The l\'ihvfiin ],l:f::, Saving. Of late the kite has emerged from the position f a mere toy, and has been successfully employed for meteor- ological observations at high altitudes. | | A still more recent application of the kite principle is as a life-saving ap- paratus to be carried on shipboard, its' particuiar duty being to establish com- | munication between a stranded vessel and the adjacent shore. It stands .to reason that a ship in t position gen- erally has the assistance of the wind | in carrying anything shoreward, and it | would be far easier to iaunch a kite under such conditions than it would be to fire a rocket in the reverse di- rection. The kite carries a guide rope and contains in a pocket a set of signals and instructions. with apparatus for telephonic com- munication between the crew and their would-be rescuers. This life-saving kite is the invention of Count Brossard, who is to be re- garded as an amateur rather than a | professional man of science. Critics of his quaint appliance, while admitting its general utility, have questioned whether telephonic communication would be pogsible in a howling tempest. The kite is said, however, to have been recently tested with complete success at London and at Brest, Alligator Farms. The French are to have an alligator farm. Several French capitalists re- cently visited this country to purchase a few head of stock with which to start it. The point selected for the venture is somewhere In the south of France. The French prize the alli- gator's skin so highly that the leather dealers believe it will pay to raise the animals directly on home soil—or, more properly, in home waters. If they suc- ceed it will be the first farm of its kind in the world. Alligator skin is daily growing rarer and more high-priced, while the de- mand for it continues on the increase. The French require large quantities of it for shoes, bags, portfolios and toilet articles. President Loubet, not long ago, received as & gift an entire hunting suit made of the finest skins obtainable. A school for theatrical critics is to be opened in Paris. The students are to attend dress rehearsals and write them up for practice. O ! the work they performed. I | California. It is also furnished | THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL JOHN D. SPRECKELS, Proprietor » » . + - . . . Address All Communications to JOHN McNAUGHT, Manager L......Third and Market Strects, S. F. MONDAY - hcins o iy sl Na ek odaadueryss Tyt o il B e e el e S gl T SIRSPN G\ Sasie THE NATION’S DAY. NCE more the people of the United States are called to the observance of the anmiversary of the day upon which the thirteen British colonies in North America declared their independence of the British crown and empire and thereby laid the foanda- tions of the great republic that now holds a foremost place among the powers of the earth. It is « day so full of patriotic'memories that no intelli- gent citizen can fail to feel their influence; nor can the most indifferent be neglectful of the claims it has upon his attention and his reverence. So far as the making of nations is concerned the declaration of independence by the thirteen colonies is by far the greatest single event in human history. It was the act, bravely and wisely done at a critical moment, by which an old order of things was terminated and a new order of things begun. It was the birth of the America which we know; the first clear and unmistakable mgni‘ festation of that destiny which has so profoundly af- fected the whole world and in a greater or less degree shaped the course of national development in every nation under the sun. The men who signed the great declaration were Iin character and purpose worthy of the task to which they set their hands. The maintenance of it in war and in peace was intrusted to leaders of abilities so high that only in rare instances can their equals be found in the annals of history. Americans of this and every other generation can honor the memory of the great men of the Revolution tor their personal worth as well as for Indeed, as much of patriotic inspiration can be gained by the American youth from a study of the characters of Washington, Jefferson and Adams as from a review of the glory and the greatness of the republic itself. - It is a matter of profound regret to many that the cele- bration of so glorious a day in the history of the nation should be conducted in the manner which custom has established. As a rule, thé general observances of the day lack decorum, dignity and propriety. The stately parades, the lofty orations and the patriotic music, which should be the chief features of the celebration, are too often lost sight of in the general roar of firecrackers and other noisy and dangerous forms of popular demon- stration. That such regrets are in a measure well founded goes without saying. The fatalities of each successive Fourth of July are greater than those of many an important battle, while the frequent fires of each year impose upon the nation an enormous loss. Sooner &r later we shall devise a remedy for these evils. In the meantime we must guard against them as best we can. It behooves us then to give our hearts to-day to a free and full exultation in the greatness of our country, cherishing at the same time a profound loyalty to the memory of the great men who put their fortunes, their lives and their sacred honor at stake that the nation might be founded and that we might be free. It is such a holiday as is known to no other people. Let us rejoice in it with a true patriotic fervor and be proud that we are Americans. Uncle Sam has been kind enough to make a very liberal allowance of money for the National Guard of This decision is a compliment to the citizen soldiery of the State and a just tribute from the Federal Government. The National Guard of California was the first body of American troops ever to leave the conti- nent on a mission of war, and in the field our State troops fought as regulars for the dignity and supremacy of the flag. T to give a great adyertisement to Oregon, has de- vised a scheme of cash prizes and medals to be awarded for the best article or story written by any resi- dent of Oregon, to be published in any newspaper out- side of Oregon prior to October 1, 1904. While this competition is open to all persons the school children have been notified that they are eligible to win prizes under the conditions provided. In other words, the children may be utilized as promoters for the benefit of | their native State. | There is enough of novelty in this idea to attract at- It has a chance to work out well. There are !dp every community precocious young people who have some knack or other in a degree that is potent to sur- prise their clders. Children as competitive boomers of Oregon will be assisted by all their competent relatives to give good account of themselves.. Every one re- members the wonderful boy, Thomas Chatterton, as a literary landmark and more than nine days’ wonder. Mendelssohn wrote fine music when he was a mere lad; <o did Mozart; and at a tender age Zerah Colburn, math- ematically inclined, performed wonderful mental feats. History is full of mention of youngsters whose fame has | outlived that of the grave and accomplished adults of their time. Possibly-Oregon may possess a boy or girl whose capacity to write something attractive about, the State approaches a true genius. } In any event the outcome will be watched with curi- | osity outside as well as within Oregon. There is this to be said in favor of the boys and girls of any State. Under the present school system, facgs that are dimmed in the minds of adults by lapse of years and altered somewhat by intervening conditions, are familiar topics in class rooms. The school pupils know or have the fa- cilities to find out directly from copious encyt¢lopedias or elsewhere much about their topic. In addition to this there are youth, enthusiasm and the spirit of emu- lation keen within them. These are the factors to be counted on in any line of mental endeavor that does not call for the exercise of technical knowledge requir- ing years to garner. Viewed from another point the idea of having school children interested in helping their own State is good. Their researches will compel them to learn. They will read and discuss and will be the better citizens for what they so gain. 4 CHILDREN AS PROMOTERS. HE Commercial Club of Portland, in an attempt tention. are to obtain publication in papers outside of the State is not told. Possibly the Commercial Club has not fig- ured that out. Announcement is made that the success of any competitor will not- depend upon the class of publication in which it shall appear. It is intimated that the competitors should write for some Eastern paper, the selection to be in towns in which present Oregonians formerly resided. There are numerous small papers in the United States that might use the matter | so contributed, in lien of miscellany, when a semi-local trend is supplied by the announcement that the writer is the son or daughter of a former resident. Probably the best communications will be published b . ‘How the articles that are written by the Oregonians in the local papers in Oregon and subsequently given circulation in the East in some shape. Next year the Lewis and Clark Exposition will take place at Portland. It is to the interest of Oregon to have its name and fame extended as much as possible not later than October of the present year. ——t Some surprise has been expressed at the political jug- glery of the Board of Health in dismissing many em- ployes under one official designation, which has repre- sented their usefulness to the community, and then re- appointing them to office under another name conve- niently secured. The affair is simpler than at first glance appears. No change in duties has been made. The trans- ferred deputies had nothing to do in their old positions and have nothing more to perform in their new field of political favor. T prominence in this country by President Roosevelt and by the fierce denunciation by President Jacob Gould Schurman of Cornell University of men graduates of colleges who “deliberately elect bacheiordom” is of renewed interest in view of statistics lately compiled showing that men are far from being the only offenders in that regard. In fact, the record shows that college women commit the sin of matrimonial omission even more than do the men. Whether the cause for it is that the chance of being mistress of a household with its unesthetic cares of the kitchen and other homely duties is less attractive to the cultured college girl than freedom therefrom with a lov less life in professional or other channels is not known Or whether the prevailing idea that children are becom- ing more and more unwelcome, as evidenced by the “no CO-EDS AND RACE SUICIDE. HE question of race suicide recently brought into S R s R e s (e S Lvital Tl e R A landlords, acts as a déterrent upon the educated girl, is likewise difficult to learn. - At all events, that the Eastern college girl is less prone to give herself in marriage than the Eastern col- lege man is to take her is evidenced by the following figures gathered by the secretaries of the principal women’s colleges in the East. They show a variation of from one in six girl graduates married to one in two married, or an average of only about one out of three: College— Graduates. Married. Radeliffe . . 654 Baltimore 448 Holyoke 2696 Wellesley 1860 Bryn Mawr . 517 Totals . X 6 2101 The above shows Mount Holyoke far in the lead of the other colleges, with about one graduate in two mar- ried, Wellesley about one in four, Baltimore about one one recently made by Harvard men, who averaged about 72 per cent married. President Eliot of that college points out the serious fact that the educated portion of the American people not only fails to increase the population at all, but does not even reproduce itseli. He . gives as the reason in part the fact that the protracted education necessary for the professions delays marriage beyond the ordinary time limit. President Briggs of Radcliffe in speaking of the sub- ject says: “Of course the college woman is less likely to marry than the one who has no desire for study and has nothing else to take up her mind. The women who come to college prefer the fortune which an educated woman has before her in the various professions to a life of dependence. more fastidious about the men whom they marry. In short, it seems to me that the reports from the various women’s colleges show that women graduates are in- fluenced by much the same reasons that are affecting all women to a more or less degree—the tendency to eco- nomic independence rather than turning to matrimony for support.” it would be interesting to compare with the East the proportion of women graduates from our two California universities who have married, but we know of no sta- tistics at present available for the purpose. W occupied in some fightingwhich has muchless of glamour about it, but which bids fair to be quite as stubborn on a limited scale as the Russo-Japanese conflict. In the German province of Southwest Africa Kaiser William's forces are making but indifferent headway against naked savages, the Hereros. Away up on the heights of the Himalayan plateau the British Indian regulars are being held in check by barbarous Tibetans. While the civilized world startles at the news of battle- ships being blown out of the water, whole companies wiped out by the explosion of Shimose shelis and towns assailed with guns that throw masses of steel twelve and fourtee modern warfare is being written in African jungle and Tibetan steppe. There this same vaunted perfection in the science of killing, which secems to prove its titie in such a terrible way between combatants of the civ- ilized world, makes but a lamentably weak showing. Before the Hereros, with their savage lacking of all semblance of military skill, the goose-step of the Ger- mans has come to an indefinite “mark time”; the Tibetans and their leather cannons have brought Gen- eral Macdonald’s Ghurkas to a fitting realization of the task cut out for them. In each instance the punitive incursions against bar- barous peoples have been undertaken in the face of great natural disadvantages. In Africa the Germans have to fight their way against the stubborn resistance of the jungle, ignorant of the country, and a prey to all the dread diseases of miasmatic swamp and tropic fever ground. The Hereros are crafty as they are bloodthirsty and have already trapped their foes again and again. Upon the road to Lhassa the British have even a harder row to hoe. Over passes that are as high as the loftiest Sierra, where even a horse trail is dangerous, the Tibetan expedition has had to'drag its ever increasing line of communication. And the Tibetans are armed with Russian guns; they can shoot accurately and swiftly. Against the deadly perfection of the war game as it is now being exhibited in the Far East these two incidents shadow - forth a circumstance somewhat anomalous. Were England and Germany to fly at each other's throats either the one or the other would inflict crush- ing defeat and the issue would probably be quickly de- cided. In Africa, in Tibet, where the forces of their re- spective arms are brought to bear upon the remnants A LESSON IN WAR. HILE two of the pm-\‘ers of the earth are joined in battle in the Far East and the world | of savagery, there is a pause; the savage will not down. ’ ,’. " A children” signs put on city residences by discriminating | in five and Bryn Mawr and Radcliffe about one in six. | That is a2 much more astonishing showing than the | Then, too, college women may be | looks eagerly on, two other big nations are" iniles, an instructive chapter in the art of | TALK OF THE O Dousing the Glim. The lamplighter had been sopping up a goodly quantity of Barbary Coast booze. The evening shadows began to fall, but Pat was dead to the world. The pedestrians of the Latin quarter, which was Pat's beat, were compelled to wend their homeward way in darkness, while “the light” of the district nolsily slumbered. But for the lamplighter’s son the little world north of Broadway might have remained in darkness. Observ- ing the inability of his dad to navi- gate, the son went the route, carefully lighting every gas get. This was § o’clock at night. About 10 o’clock the fuddled guar- dian of the glim awoke with a start. The moon was shining brightly and Pat, blinking in the silvery light, thought the day was breaking and, | seizing the torch stick, started to jextinguish the gas light which !he deemed no longer necessary. \The population of Little Italy wag startled at the seeming saving | precautions of the city, as light | after light disappeared and left the | populous district in the clutch of | darkness. Pat, all heedless of ob- ! jections of various storekeepers along | the line, continued to douse the glims 11n a businesslike manner. | An alert bluecoat took exception to the lamp extinguisher’s work and halted him with, “What th’ dickens {are vou doing? Y “S'mornin’; gotter douse the glims,” | retorted Pat. A wordy war as to the time of night took place, Pat insisting it was morn- |ing, the officéer maintaining it was not | vet midnight. i ““Too bad—man can’t do his dooty,” | 1 observed Pat, as the patrol wagon trundled him gently over the ruts of | Kearny street to the City Prison. | “Charge 'im with bein’ drunk,” !said the minion of the law, and then | to himself: “Funny what this ’ere { firewater will do to a man's 'ead.” { Flozwers on Stormy Billows. My friend, the knowing. said in a gloom- ed hour: “Who bids the rose to grace in the fall our pathway? Who forth on stormy billows would casi | a flower? | Wien thunder rolls, who lists to the | birds of May-day? | | “Let song birds eces to carol when | storms are singing. Now drum and cannon sound through the streets and alleys, In forests grow the swords and I hear their ringing, i Downtrodden lies the flowers in Fin- | land’s valleys. “When darker grows the sky and the storm clouds lower, | And men with hand on sword stand i their homes defending. | How can a child’'s frail arm meet the i glants’ power? How to the gentle breeze should the cliffs be bending?” | {1 said: H battle's hour, | Swords rust. and bayonets on the field lie scattered; But e'er returns the song as the spring’s sweet power, | Forevermore heart's longing shall rise | unfettered. “Yet wounds shall heal after | | “Amid the battle’s din have the tones | alighted; Now floats the red, sweet rose on the stormy billows. To waft a summer thoug! benighted And bloom, a new-born the weeping willows. ht to the mind hope, 'neath ! “So shall the cliffs be moved by a loving power, % | So shall wild autumn's with fragrance laden. So shall the mild tones fall as a May- blcom shower And gladden yet the heart of dear Finland’s maiden.” 4 ~Zacharius Topelius. storm come | | { | Zacharias Topelius was a patriot and poet | of Finland, and the foregoing verses are from | @ book of his poems, published under the title of “Heather Blossoms,” in 1854. The transk | tion from the Swedish is bv Anna Cor k | now a resident of Berkeley and is copyrightad in her name. Self-Explanatory. | The Postmaster General is said to have received the following succinet | and self-explanatory communication: | YAM HILL, Ark., — 190— Dear Sir: I take my pen in hand to let you know that I hereby resign, for postmaster at this-place. Mebby you'll recollect that I've done resigned ten conseckertive times before. Once it | was b'cuz the emollients of the office was too puny for the responsibilities; and another time it was b'cuz the fleas was tco plegty. Upon a different occa- sion it was for the reason that an im- patient sort of feller that takes the only Little Rock daily that comes to this office got to shootin’ at me bcuz ! he wanted his blamed paper before I was through readin’ it. Once it was {b’cuz one of them Northerners that | think they are So infernal smart wrote a postal card to a gent hare sayin’ that |the full detalls of that there scandal | were as follows, and then put the rest of it in Latin or some such heathenish jage. Another time it was on ac- | ::x:‘: S batch of skunks rendevoozin’ ! under the edifice until you could almost | cut the atmasfearik disturbance with the flat side of a barrel stave; and later it was b'cuz an unreasonable cuss that wanted his mail came in through the side of the office with an ax, when ! he knowed good and well that I was off on a turkey hunt and would be back in two, three days; and the rest of 'em was on account of one little thing and another that don’t specially matter at this stage of the game. ‘As T said before, I have done resigned ten times already: also, the Gover'ment | wouldn't let me off on ary occasion. In | view of which I wish to remark that ,it’s no picnic to have a job that you can’t quit, although I ata ready to own up that T reckon the reason is that I'm the only gent in the community that could read and write and at the same time was fool enough to take the of- fice. But, anyhow, this time I am unani- mously through fiddlin’ about it, and this here 'leventh and last resignation of mine has got to be accepted, let the chips fall where they may. Along about four o'clock this afternoon a pas- no uncertain tones that if T wasn't up and gone by midnight they ‘lowed to tar and feather and rail-ride me out of our law-abidin’ little city, for a small matter that it ain't necessary for me the ‘leventh and last time, the job of| * " . y to go into the details at present, and a spell ago a friend let me know that they had reconsidered to the extent of decidin’ to make it nine o’clock instead of midnight, and were already a-bilin’ of the tar. So you can see for yourselves that it is high time for me to step down and out. No more at present from. Yours truly, T. J. WACKERBACK. P. S.—It's eight forty-two right now, and I'm gone.—New York Tribune. Block System Exhibit. The German Government railroad ex- hibit at the St. Louis fair shows the block system and switch signals now in use in Germany. More than ‘1500 feet of track, in the conmstruction of which both iron and wooden ties were used, have been laid. There are a sta- tion house, two switch towers and one intermediate block signal post. One of the switch towers is fitted with me- chanical and one with electrical sigpal apparatus. The block system makes | it impossible for a train to rum into an open ‘switch or for one train to run | down another between stations. The double track system prevents colli- | sions. By means of electrical appar- | atus all switches except the one open- ing the desired track are locked, mak- ing an error on the part of the switch- man impossible. As the last wheel of | the train passes, the switches are all | released by rail contact, making way for the next train. At intervals of about seven miles are placed inter- | mediate block posts, with a similar signal and switch apparatus. By auto- matic arrangement the levers are all locked, so that one train cannot leave | the stasion until the train ahead has | passed the next post, thus preventing | one train from running down another. | A1l the material used in construction was brought from Germany.—New | York Tribune. | Life in Old Missouri. The Webb City correspondent of the Kansas City Journal sends this “be- [ lated but interesting item™ regarding a | storm which took place near Neck City a few days ago: “J. N. Scott was not at home on the night of the storm last week, having gone to a neighbor’s, some little distance away, and was pre- vailed upon to stay all of Thursday | night on account of the threatening weather. When he arrived at what | should Have been his home the next morning he found that his new two- room house had entirely disappeared and not a trace of it was visible any- | where in tke vicinity. His shaving | mug and brush, which were in the | house at the time of the storm, have been found in a tree two miles away.” Answers to Queries. TO RENEW PIANOS—G. R. E, City. The following is given as a means of restoring the appearance of pianos: “Take equal proportions of turpentine, linseed oil and vinegar, mix: rub in well with a piece of flan- nel cloth. Then polish with a piece of chameois skin. This treatment will en- tirely remove the dingy appearance that' age gives to fine woods.” I GRSl X AMERICAN FLAG—S. H. 8, City. There is at this time no law prohibit- |ing the use of the American flag for advertising purposes. One house of Congress passed a law to that effect, but it did not pass the other house. At the next session of Congress a | strong effort will be made to have such a law passed. MARRYING—H. C. C., Seiad Val- ley, Cal. When a girl attains the age of 18 in California she attains her ma- Jority and is a sole agent. She is at liberty to marry the man of her choice, providing he has attained his majority, and the parents have “no legal right to interfere in the matter and prevent their daughter from living with the man she married.” PLANTAIN — Subscriber, Alameda, Cal. The plantain or plantain tree is one of the food products. It is one of the most important of the tropical countries and one of the most valu- able of the largest of herbaceous plants . of the natural order of museae. It is a native of the Rast Indies, where numberless varieties have been cultivated for thousands of years. It is now diffused owver ail tropical and subtropical regions of the globe. With the exception of two or three plants it would ndt be easy to name in the whole vegetable kingdom any plant applied to a greater numbes of uses than the plantain. The fruftt is eaten sometimes raw, though more generally—except that of the banana— boiled or roasted, and variously pre- pared. - It is both farinaceous and saccharine. In most of the varieties it has a sweetish taste; in some it is 7 in some it is sub-acid or asture. It isas much used before being perfect- ly ripe as when it is so. In the West Indies the plantain boiled and beaten in a mortar is the common food of the negroes. Plantains baked in the skin or fried in slices with butter and powdered over with sugar are favorite dishes in some tropica¥ countries. ——— Townsend's California Glace fruits tistte fire-atcted Dapet: 118 o e ——— m information reie _hw to B it i i