Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1869-05-06
VIRGINIA NEWS

enniary fortunes by an appeal to the liberahty
of New Workers. Many citizens OF that sac
Including the App!etous and Harper', have
acted with great generosity heretofore IN PIE
senting books for its library. :,
The scene of general activity now displayed
at the Navy Yard at Gosport Is exc'edlnHiy
gratifying to witness after such a ,protfact.d
and complete importation as existed previous
to the first Of April. Over thous1hd ln5-
chanics and laborers are Low buslly employed
Major Stanton Auditor of Public Accounts
is prosecuting the delinquent Sherltfs through
out the State. The number Of SheritfS VINO
have, UP to this time, failed TO make proper
returns. is one hundred and ten.
Wardwelis trial before Military CommiS
sion. in Richmond, progresses slowly, as al
tbe evidence has to be taken down IN wfltihg'
In Richmond, yesterday, William +. Cava-
naeh. a map dealer. committed SUICIDE oy
shooting himself through the heart.
General Candy will announce to-day h''
of several hundred appointments oil STATE
officers.
THE INVENTION OF Colts REVOLVER
Tho Louisville Express is responsible Tor the
following curious story in reference to the In
vention Of the pistol which goes by the name
- .sl,olr's revolver" 1t the story is not true,
II il At all events ingeniously devised 20 pear
.ho camhlanca Of truth, but it is simply gwen
here as curiosity: ., mill roll
-ou a nueer story about the way in which the
Iate Colonel Colt invented the repeater when
hears his name, and which enabled him to leave
- r;dow with an income Of nearly four hundred
thousand dollars. They say that some twenty
or twenty-five years ago gunsmith from
Fayetteville, in that State, came to Nashvliie
in search of employment, and as he was ski
fnl workman and sober, industrious man he
soon found something to do IN one CT the SHOPS
there. He was what the world calls a good,
easy fellow, always at work, but always poor,
wasting much of his time upon inventions OF
his own, some of which were worthless, and
some of which he lacked perseverance and the
means TO complete and introduce to the pubic.
Among the last named was q repeating pistol,
a model of which he had made at Fayetteville
and brought with him to Nashville tie had
never had it patented, for twenty or twenty five
wears ago it was far more troublesome to pro
cure patent Tor a new invention than il is in
our day, inventors in obscure villages knowing
patents we're obtained.
working in the same shop with our fayelte-
vile gunsmith was young iourneyman from
Connecticut, named Colt The new-fangled
pistol was drawn from the inventor trunk one
day, and exhibited to the workmen. Colt took
O good look at it, examining all It's machinery
with the greatest care but like the shreWd
Yankee he was said nothing as to its merits.
In few days Mr.. Colt threw up his situation
| in the Nashville shop and returned to his ma
| tive State Nothing more was heard OF HIM
until he turned up as the inventor aud paten-
| tee OF Colts repeater identical repeater
| the FAYETTEVILLE guusnith exhibited to him III
Nashville.
This is the story they tell in Tennessee
| We do no vouch for the truth Of it, though we
think it likely that it might safely be done.
| Colt died millionaire, leaving wife end
several children to mourn his loss and rejoice
| in his genius, and to enjoy an income OF 1897
600. The Fayetteville gunsmith may or may
not have starved to death Ii he did not, II
was no doubt because it is and always had beer
impossible II s'arre in so plentiful country a:
| Tennessee.
| A GAMBLER DEVICES. "A gambling house
in Washington city has just been torn down.
| Tie gambing-rooms were in the second story
front. Over them were two garnet rooms witt
| dormer windows. In the flooring OF each Of
these upper rooms trap-door had been Gu
about six feet in length and three in width. -
| The trap being taken up shows an aperture be
tween the floor and the ceiling of the room
| below of size to accommodate the gambler
| confederate and series OF small perforations
| 10 the ceiling afforded him full view of thu
room beneath By his side was the end OF q
thin wire, which, passing along under the floor
| Ing of the attic to the walls, ran down to the
flooring of the room below (playing upon nice
~ adjusted pulleys at the angles and 50 unit
it reached point directly under the card table.
Here very ingenious pedal arrangement
came into play, by which, with springs OF a
| spiral wire, a triangular piece OF iron was
made to work up through minute aperture
| in the floor under the foot OF the swlndline
gambler. WASH Republican.
GREEN Cur HAY.-Very seasonably the ques
ton of the great advantage of cutting hay when
in green state has been taken up by some Of
our agricultural publications, although there
can be no doubt concerning the propriety Of
doing so; for every farmer who cuts a second
crop knows how superior it is for milk-produc.
| ing and feeding purposes generally, when COM
pared With nay WnlcI mas Ueen cut Wu!Ie III U
ripe state, and when almost all the saccharine
matter in it has gone to constitute woody fibre.
No season has been so favorable Tor trial Of
| the ea,ly moving plan than the present, which,
so far as We can learn, promises to be good for
two crops-if the first is seasonably harvested
and when the rowen or second crop may Turn
out as liberal in quantity as the first one. The
subject is one farmers would do well to think
over and act upon, even should hoeing be par
TALLY neglected when the moving season comes.
In connection with this subject, the method OF
drying hay in the shade, in the cock, and par
italy in the NOW, may also be considered
Marlboro, (M, } Gazette.
AMERICAN NUT,EGs. Mr.. Qaigley, OF Lit
tie York, has presented US with branches tax
en- from the 80 called nutmeg tree, q few OF
which are to be found in that locality. Ii seems
there are two varieties of the tree, differing
slightly in appearance and in the color OF their
fruit. In height they vary trons ten to twenty
feet and rarely exceed ten inches in diameter.
Our informant states that he has used the nuI
as a substitute for nutmegs for number Of
years past, and cannot detect any difference IN
tba tactic or onalitv nj It's flavor Whether