davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-10-16
Poisoned Whiskey.

The Philadelphia Price Current says
Western distillers have recently invented
u new system Of manufacturing whiskey
by means of which peculiar strength
and Dlor is impaired to the product,
highly injurious to the health OF the
consumers. and certainly not creditablc
TO those engaged in It's sale. Neither
the noxious Ingredients themselves nor
the process OF manufacture are known
to many outside the ring, but sufficient
has leaked out to show tho character OF
the men aud the business. Sulphuric
acid is blended with the mash or applied
directly to the product OF the stills,
which imparts a disagreeable odor to
the whiskey; and so powerful is its ef-
feet upon it that it corrodes and eats mp
the inside OF the barrels in which the
foul compound is kept.
Another feature Of this rot-gut, sold
under the name OF whiskey, is that it
cannot be extracted by any process OF
distillation, redistillation, or rectifca-
ton. This fact has caused its presence
to he traced in high wines purchased
from the West by respectable distillers
here, and prompted them to shut down
on the nefnrious traffic rs injurious to
lite and the interests OF the trade. By
experiment it has been tested that il q
small piece Of iron or copper is inserted
into barrel of whiskey adulterated
with this acid the entire mass will be
instantly blackened, and Il left in it for
short time will evolve large quantity
Of disascetate OF copper or verdegris.
Such II compound cannot fail to prove
iearfully injurious to the public health,
il brought into general use, and we are
glad to perceive that IL combined effort
is contemplated by the trade to discard
it altogether. If this hc not sufficient,
the consequences are sufficiently serious
to cell for some Legislative enactment by
which the sale of this poisonous stuiE
shall he prohibited under the severest
penalties,
The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-10-16
The Wishing Gate.

The tWittering sparrow greet4 the morn,
The robin softly calls his mate;
maiden, midst the ripening corn,
Stands musing at the wishing gate.
All, well dlyl
Fair mRidGn, may
Kind fairies on thy wishes wait
Wish not for riches-they secure
BliHseB that lose too soon their ZGst
But wish thy heart may e'er bC pure,
AH now II beats In thy Young breast;
Wish that thy love be blest With love,
No turn Offortuue may abate;
Serene as now the skies above
Shine nu thee at the Wishing gate
Then well dayl
Fair maiden, may
Kind fairies on thy wishes wAitl
Wish that the heart thou fain wouldst win,
with thine to mate through woe or veal,
Neer make thee deem perhaps twas sin
Thus to the Wishing cato to steal.
Wish those that to thy love are born
May tread along path as straight
and pied with nOw'rs, as that this morn
Thou cam'st by to the wishing gate.
Then we'll dayl
Fair maiden, may
Kind fairies on thy wishes wait
Wish that though time thy charms may fade,
Affection still shall deck thy life;
And cen above the blooming maid
Shall bu beloved tho faithful wife.
iint what 1.-THE form IL TINT see
Spring to thy side with Joy clatc2
What bolO those looks, 10 proud and free,
Bent on thee at the wishing gatG2
Ah, well day
r MCthinks they say
.-flnd fairies on thy wishes wait
The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-10-16

NEw YoRK IN THE CENSUS. s.-Some very
curious statistical facts are evolved from
the thorough analytical investigation to
which the census returns are being
subjected. For instance, the total pop.
ulatiou of the State of New York, MS
has already been stated, is 1882, 759,
while the total number of those in all
the States who were born in New York,
is 4,0Gl,3iS; of this number 2,0s7, ,77G
still reside in the State 23l, 800 being
in Michigan, 1G3, 404 are in Illinois, 105,.
600 aro in Wisconsin, "a, 100 are in New
Jersey, S7,s76 in Pennsylvania, and the
others scattered throughout all the
States and Territories, the smallest num-
ber in any one being 4l5 in the Terri
tory of New Mexico. Considering the
large immigration into the State, par.
ticulnrly from foreign countries, this is n
curious and interesting showing.
The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-10-16

In CLOSE QuARTERs. "A Washington
paper snys "thc Indies club for the re.
formation of fallen women OF that city,
are in possession of facts of the most
startling character concerning men OF
prominence in business and pretensions
to piety. 1t has been suggested that
this knowledge might be used to quicken
the benevolence Of such individuals. "If
such thing were done" the paper ap.
prchends, "thnt these gentlemen would
get very little sympathy, and the act
would meet pretty general condonation,
IL not positive approval" "
The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-10-16
Che democrat.
RATES OF ADVERTISE n C
Facts aud I'anCIes.

Capital furniture-the weather bureau.
The great American ism"-Jourual-
ism.
A question of timc--asking u lady her
age.
"Do you keep accounts Dick ?" "Yes,
I reckon"
The best tobacco stamp-stamp it
under foot.
A cheering" signGHurrah for our
candidates.
Can ship with two owners be called
a partnership?
Funny that "square" dances are
coming round again.
The foreign workmen are leaving
Newcastle, England, and going home.
In regard to newspapers, young ladieS
prefer those which make the most bustle
Oarsmen object to rough water. They
say there is no use going for stakes in
chop sea.
A drummer is the fastest man in the
world, because time beats all men but q
drummer beats time.
"You seem to walk more erect than
usual, my friend" Yes, I have been
straitenGd by circumstances.
A Dcs Moines parent offers s. for a
name for his young son, and has rejected
three hundred already offered.
An Irish Judge said, when addressing
n prisoner, You are to be hanged, and
I hope it will prove warning to YOU"
A correspondent wants to know wheth-
or, considering the great utility OF the
ocean, poets are not wrong in calling il
"waste Of water"
Throw u card of thanks and boquet
to sercnaders when you can't invite
them il. II you haven't card throw
the water-pitcher or the boot-iack.
A shrrwd confectioner in Bangor has
taught his parrot to say "pretty crea-
turc" to every Indy who enters the shop,
and his business is rapidly increasing.
1t is said that good way for people
to improve their lives is to write the
cpitaph they would like to have on their
tombstone, and then try and live up to
it.
Ornaments for the hair are beetles.
butterflies, and snails, made OF small
gay-colored feathers, fastened in the
centre OF large ribbon bow with three
long ends.
The trosseau for n bride which is be.
ing made in New York will cost twenty
five thouSand dollars. One dress alone
being trimmed with lace valued fifteen
hundred dollars.
"My dear doctor" said lady, AZ
suffer great deal with my eyes" "B"
patient, mndam," he replied "you
would probably suffer a great deal more
without them"
A Cincinnati wife left her husband
and Joined travelling show. The latter
bursted ind left her 200 miles from
home with no money. She Ind TO walk
back, and now can't find her husband.
When gentleman asks Indy to drive
with him, he does not care about waiting
nm extra hnlf hour at the door with rest
less horses, while she puts on her best
bonnet and gloves, and extra tonche.
A man who has been arrested ms
vagrant has protested that he had reg
ular tradc or caling-viz., smoking gla+'
for total eclipses of the sun and, as
these occur only few times in n CEN
tury, he was not to blame for being out
of employment good deal.
A winter in village tavern looked in
blank nmazement when party of New
Yorker, asked for wine card, md pro.
tested he knew not what they meant.
"Well, said one of the party, impatient.
ly, shave you any dry Sillery? ?" al
think not, replied the waiter, prompt.
ly, "but We have some coli cabbage"
American Exirurnpnncn Illnsirntch.
The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-10-16

HIS MoTHER.N-LAw.-He stood on
his head on the wild sea.shore, and JOY
was the cause Of the act he felt as hc
had never felt before-insanely glad, III
fact. And why? In that vessel that
left the bay was his mother-in-law sailing
to tropical country where tigers and
snakes prevail. Aud moro than one o,
his creditors, too-those objects OF con
slant dread-had taken berths in the
ship, Curlew, whose sails were so blithely
spread. Oh how he might look for
quiet life, which he never had known n,
yet. 'Tis true he possessed wife, ant
was not quite out Of debt. But h
watched this vessel, this singular chnI
DER the waves, as she upped and downed
and he felt exactly ms Il the edifce wa
crowned. Till over the blue horizon
edge she disappeared from view; the
up he lenped on n chalky ledge MI
danced like a kangaroo And man
and many joyous lay he pealed o'e
the sunset sea, till down with eff
sank the orb Of day, md then he went
home to ter
The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-10-16

How LAND Is MADE IN HoLIASD.-As
the current nears the sea it slacks it's
speed. and the suspended matter falls to
the bottom. In time this raised the
river bed and caused tho soil-laden water
to spread laterllly on both sides. In
this way n true delta OF vast extent was
in time created. By taking advantage
of low stage of the water the river was
shut in by dykes on either side. History
is silent MS to when or how this was first
done. For over five hundred years the
present dykes are known to have been
in existence. This shutting the river in
caused it TO deposit its sediment in n
narrow channel that in time lifted the
river to n higher level. The old Dutch.
men of those days raised higher tho
banks of their dykes to keep pace with
the water. The result is the river flows
not in u channel cut through the soil,
but in canal raise above the general
surface of the country. For agriculture
this hns resulted in an enormous acreage
OF new land. The marshy bogs through
which the sluggish stream wandered
have become the sites of some of the
best farms in the world.
The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-10-16
How he Saved his Life.

Strange ms it may appear, says the
CARTE des TIfbHndrl.r, n man is at present
confined in one of the prisons Of Paris
who owes his life to the fact of having
claimed the benefit of article IL Of
the Penal Code, which declares that
"evcry man being condemned to death
in France shall be executed by having
his head cut off," On the 9th of May
last man named P, who had, prior
to the 18th of March, been sentenced to
death for murder, aud who was waiting
his execution in the prison of La Ro-
quctte, was set at liberty by the last
defenders OF the Commune. He at once
joined his libcntors and accompanied
them to the barricaic on the Boulevard
du Prince Eugene. lie passed the night
in eating and drinking, but the next
morning he and his new comrades were
made prisoners by the soldiers of the
line and ordered to be shot. 1t wns then
that P with presence OF mind, cried
out that "he had been condemned to
death by the Court of Assizes of the
Seine and that he refused to be shot,
such not being the punishment fixed by
law." The officers, greatly embar used
by so extraordinary demand, handed
him over to the civil authorities, who
will soon determine his fate.
The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-10-16

A meeting OF the workingmen Of New
York was held n few evenings since for
permanent organization. At this meet
ing it was stated that great strike
similar to the one in England and Ger
many, would take place early next
spring throughout the whole OF the
United States and Canada, and that Il
proper finance committee be appointed
in order that it might not break for
want Of funds. Much discussion follow.
ed on this announcement, many being
of opinion that the workings OF the
strike committee be carried on ut night
in secrecy in order to take the chooses"
by storm, while others thought that the
utmost publicity, should be given to the
affair, nnd that notice should bs given
the "bosses," in the same manner that
tits in England, and that il the,dealings
between master and man were on n
more honorable footing, both parties
would he benefited thereby. 1t was
urged again, on the other side, TINT il
the "bosses" had notice Of this intend
ed strike they would provide labor from
the market on the other side OF the At
lantic. A motion was adopted to have
the grand working mans demonstra-
ton in early spring without fail, and
arrangements were made for securing
money to carry ont the strike.
The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-10-16

st. HELENA. Since Napoleon lived
and died in st. Helena, TINT island has
been pursued by misfortune, Such, in.
deed, has been the eunremtting character
Of the disasters that have occurred there
ms almost to Justify superstition concern.
ing it. In the latter part Of July, MS the
final term Of long catalogue Of woes,
st. Helena was almost literally washed
away by floods, Five hundred OF the
inhabitants were swept out Of thoiI
houses aud lost everything they possess,
ed. All the roads were destroyed, and
the island " now said to he uninhnbitN
Ible,
The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-10-16

WHAT TO Do WiTH THEM.-Aproros
of the question, What will be done with
influential persons who are responsible
for explosions and other avoidable dis
asters !? it may be well to notice the rig.
or with which the British Board of Adj
mimlty has dealt with those to whom was
attributed the responsibility for the loss
Of the Agincourt. The board hOs re-
vised the light sentence of the court.
martial, has compelled Vice-Admiral
Wellesley to strike his flag, while Rcar.
Admiral Wilmot is superseded from his
command, as also are Captains Beamish
md Knight. Staff. Commander Kiddle,
to whom primarily the disaster of the
grounding of the Agincourt was due,
Is placed on half.pay, and censure mud
punishment have been meted out with
no sparing hand. The effect of this nc
tion cannot he but salntary.
The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-10-16

LAND AND WATER. The sheet Of wa,
ter which conceals the greater part oil
the solid earth is considerable compared
with the dry land, but is very small Il
compared with the entire mass OF our
planet II We divide the globe into j.
7sG equal parts by weight, and take one
thOso,we will have IL. total weight oi
tue WNfer Of the ocean
The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-10-16

THROWING THE SLPPER.-Ihg origin
of throwing the old shoe us n good luck
wisher is still enshrouded with mystery.
Throwing the shoe is differently con
ducted to the general way. When the
carriage starts with the "happy pair"
the bridesmaids are drawn up in row,
and the groomsmen in another. The
old shoe is then thrown rs far as possible,
and the bridesmaids run for it, the sue.
cessiul one being supposed to be the first
to get married; the lucky one then throws
the shoe Mt the groomsmGn, the one who
is hit by it also being supposed to be the
first one who will enter the bonds Of
wcdlock. Urquhart, in "Pillars Of Her
culcs," says the custom of throwing .he
shoe arose from the usage in the East Of
bearing slipper. before the couple in
token OF the brides submission to her
husband. II this be it, the brides of
the period will grow rcstive and refuse
the salutation of the usual avalanche of
old white satin shoes, MS they don mind
loving, but they don't care for the sub
lection or obeying. Among the mobiles
in Germany it wns formerly the custom
for the bride, when she was conducted
tothc bridc.chamber, to take oil her shoe
and throwit among tho bystanders, which
every one strove TO catch and whoever
got it thought it mn omen that they
themselves would shortly lie married.
The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-10-16

It is said to be difficult thing for n
woman to get ready to go anywhere
And yet there is nothing she dislikes
more than nm intimatiOn that she may
possibly miss the train. BnyfOglc gives
an instance of this. Mr.. Bray was to
take the 10 o'clock train on the Bee
Line to visit some relatives in an interior
town. Having suffered on previous oc-
casions for injudicious suggestions, Bray
thought that for once he would let things
take their natural course. So he slipped
his coffee and ate his eggs and toast,
while Madame curled and powdered, aud
danced attendance on the lOoking.glass,
and tied bark on the back Of her head
Then Bray sat by the stove an hour and
read the morning paper, while Madame
still continued to get ready. At last,
just MS he reached the final paragraph Of
reading matter, and was beginning on
the advertisements, Madame tied her
bonnet strings under her chin, took one
long lingering, loving look at the image
reflected in the glass and sweetly an-
nounccd:
"Well, my dear, I'm ready"
"Ready for what ?" asked Bray in
well-afiected astonlshment
"To go to the depot, to be sure, said
Mrs. Brayfogle, tartly.
"Oh |" said Bray, I'D forgotten !;
well, Madame, continued he, looking at
his watch, "that trim has been gone
thirteen minutes. Just keep on your
things, and you'll be ready for the train
tomorrow morning."
The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-10-16

At a meeting held at Southampto
recently, gentleman present said b.
had received an intimahon from Nj
Russell Gurney to the effect that l A.
claims by Englishmon upon tho Unit
States had already been handed 10 hin
The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-10-16

Too MASY.-Some preachers complain
that although they preach doetrinal SER
mons often, they fail to make some OF
the staunchcst adherents of their creed
understand II. For example Father
Ballou,' said an elderly Universalist
who had for twenty year. dclightedly
attended his preaching, in your sermon
today l got the idea that you thought
everybody was to be suved-them Ortho.
dox fellows as well rs We Universllists.
Did We mean thnt2 Certainly" wns
the reply CHATS our leading principle. "
"Wel, was the disappointed rejoinder,
ait never struck me so before
thought II was the Univesalists alone
who we're to he snvCd--them who had
some faith in the doctrine
The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-10-16

NsASTY.-It appears that insanity is
greatly on the increase in England. In
the year 1859 the population was l0,0SG,-
70l, of which number 3G,762 were lunn.
tics otidiots. In the present year the
population is 22,7Oi, los, of whom sc, 1856
are lunatics or idiots. This is fearfully
large numberL5G,OO 600 persons make a
G, ,1lO private patients. In the yer 1870
alone there was an increase Of 2,0i2 in
the number of the insane. The number
OF cures in even the hest hospitals bears
II sadly small proportion to the number
of cases and tits more than hinted that
the whole system Of llcrding insane per.
sons together in largc numbers is cruel
and wrong and that the insane, in the
majority Of cases, can be far better
treated by retaining them in their own
families under proper supervision.
The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-10-16

Eastern men WHO have rushed blindly
into mining operations on the Pacific
slope. without knowing anything OF the
business, have sometimes suffered severe
ly through the incompetence or dis
honesty Of the agents whom they have
intrusted with the management of then
affairs One company paid $4,000 fol
mine in Nevada, located in bowldei
of eight or ten tons weight, resting fal
from its original bed, and built an exten.
sive mill to reduce their ores. Finding
that this mine gave out very suddenly,
the company determined to get even on
the country, and so bought another mine
fer the very reasonable SUN of $4,000.
This proved to be a small slide from q
mine belonging to other parties, and
yielded Just five tons of ore, after which
1t gave out the company having expended,
S2O0,0 900 in developing the two mines.
The Reese Rircr RereiRe, published at
Austin, gives M account of the sale of a
mine in 1866, which very likely was one
of those mentioned above. An agent
from New York arrived in Austin, very
anxious to secure mine at Silver Peak.
Some Of the sharp fellows about town
procured light wagon and q pair Of
horses, made bee-line for Silver Peak,
located claim according to law by
posting a notice on the bowlder, and,
returning us soon MS possible, sold their
newly acquired property TO the New
York agent for $4,000 in greenbacks.
The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-10-16

ARTIFICIAL LEATHER. "A process has
lntely been brought out in England foi
working up scrap leather and such parts
of old boots and shoes MS have not been
burned, or the fiber of the leather other.
wise destroyed, into sort Of artificial
leather, which is claimed to be nearly
or quite equal to any in point Of wear.
The scraps are first reduced 10 pulp, To
do this the thicker and harder pieces nre
put into n suitable disintcgrating oi
crushing mill, where they are broken up,
care being taken that tho fiber is moi
injured They are then put with the
thinner pieces which did not require
crushing, and the whole thrown into Q
powerful rag engine and converted into
pulp with water or thin solution oi
gelatine, after which 1t is converted into
sheets. These sheets are next, inclosed
between other sheets Of thin bit perfect
leather A sort OF compound sheet II
thus obtained, which, after being sub
iected to pressure Is ready for ,lse
The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1871-08-12
Public Sale.

Estate Of Pierre S. Guidyy.
PY VIRTUE of an order of the Hon. Pro-
- bate Court of the Parish of st. Landry,
there will he sold at public auction, to the
highest bidder, by the undersigned, or by
a public auctioneer, at the last residence of
the deceased, in the parish of St...Landry, on
Wednesday, august 18TH, 1871,
the following described property belonging
to the estate of Pierre S. Guidry, deceased,
to.wit:
!. Forty arpents of land, more or less,
situated at Barry's Landing, being a portion
of land acquired by deceased at the success
sion sale of estate of Honore Dejean and
Euphrosine Barre, his wife, made the 9th
April, 1870, bounded north by Bayou Cour-
tableau, south by Raymond Deshotel, east
by David P. Saizan, and west by land of
Victor Bourdin.
2. A lot of beds and bedding, a lot of
crockery, one creole horse, one creole mule,
one sett of harness, a lot of household fur
niture, a lot of kitchen furniture.
Terms-Cash.
D. P. SATAN, Admr.
July Is
The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1871-08-12
Proper Time TO Skim Milk.

The milk should be skinned as
soon as all the cream has risen, and
before the milk has thickened. The
exact time required for cream to rise
will of course depend upon the tenn
perature, but a little experience will
enable one to tell. At the time the
cream should be removed, it will
have a bright, healthy appearance
a rich, yellow, uniform color, and
such adherence of particlesa as willie en-
able one sometimes to remove the en-
tire cream at one dip of the skinner.
If allowed to stand too long with
out skimming, both the quantity
and the quality of the cream will be-
seriouly affected; the surface will
became discolored, blotched, and
knobby, while underneath the cream
is rapidly yielding to the corrosive
tendency of the acid i'll the milk.
The thickest cream may be as surely
destroyed by standing on the milk
as would the finest fabric in a bath
of sulphuric acid. When thus des-
troyed, the cream is replaced by a
thin, watery substance, having no
resemblance to milk or cream.
These facts, which may be easily
verified, show how essential it is
that the cream should be taken off
before the milk has acquired any
great amount of acidity. Yet, in
order to make the largest quantity
Of butter, care must be taken not to
remove the cream too soon. Many
neat and thrifty housewives make a
practice of "skimming up" the milk
at stated intervals, so as to be
through with the job. This is Of
course very pleasant, but it in
wolves considerable loss, as they do
not get the full cream from the new
est milk. The milk should all be
skinned at the same age. provided
it has had the same conditions as
regards temperature, etc. 1t follows,
then, that some milk should be skim
med every night and morning..
Northwestern Farmer.