Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1873-05-01

Mayors OF 1913 cities, together with the
members of the Committee on Water
Lines of Congress, to take part in the de
alterations of the Convention to be held
in Atlanta on the Goth of May, to take into
consideration the subject Of water COM
munication with the ocean through the
State of Georgia.
A PERSON signing himself Charles
Weightman, the "Man-Fish,' proposes in
a New York paper to attempt the feat OF
swimming from the Narrows to Long
Branch, distance of 26 miles, pet
summer. lie processes himself confident
of accomplishing the feat. lie will do
more than any swimmer ever did before ii
he does. A professional swimmer, named
johnson, attempted to swim across the
British Channel from Dover to Calais, a
distance OF q miles, last summer, but he
gave out after accomplishing only one
| third Of the distance.
A MAN from Leon County was arrested
and fined in Bryan City, Texas for carry
| ing concealed weapons, who had upon his
| person, when searched, two siX-shOOters,
one derringer, a pair Of brass-knuckles,
| three "tens" and a pair OF "sevenS' IA
poker 'full''), together with one Of the lar
gcst knives the editor Of the Bryan 1ppcat
ever saw, and seven or eight morphine
| powders. In GXtenuatiOn of this eXtraOr-
binary outfit. he pleaded Ignorance Of the
laws and fashions of civilized society, and
was released by paying a minimum fine.
SOME time ago New Hampshire farm
er discovered a large toad near hi" bee
hive actively at work catching and de
vouring bees. With that wonderful for
bearance and kindness of heart character
istic Of New Hampshire farmers, he ten
| derby picked up that frog and carried him
a half mile away from the hive. The next
morning that identical frog was back
again at the old stand, actively at work as
before. He again took him up, carried
him long mile away, and dropped him
But in twenty-four hours he was back
again, reducing the number of bees as
successfully as ever
AN AGED BIRD-Thc death in that city
Of the oldest robin on record is announced
by Troy N. " newspaper He was
taken from the rest in June, 1857, and 50
was nearly sixteen years old. For ten
years he sang ceaselessly from morning
until evening. Then his pipe begun to
show signs of giving out. For four years
he has had no feathers on his head or neck,
and for one year he has been totally blind,
not being able to find his perch, and re-
naming, poor bird, ANONYMOUSLY on the
bottom Of his cage. He had always re-
| sided in the same cage in which he was
| first confined.
| TRAVEL IN WALEs-The only convey
ance between Aberystwith and Aberayron,
| Wales is a tWO-hOrse WagOnettc. First, sec
| Ond and third class fares are booked in this
| primitive conveyance, and the following
curious distinction is made between the
| passengers: First-class passengers are al
| lowed to retain their seats throughout the
| journey; sccond-class have to ret out and
walk up the hills, which are both numer-
Gus and steep, after the fashion of the
| WEIGH hills; third-cIass have not only to
| get out at steep places, but have to assist
| in pushing the vehicle up them. This ar
rangement works very well, but the pace
! Is not great.
| LUXURY OF DOGs.-Professor Tracy re-
| Gently read a spirited essay on dogs, be
| fore the st. Louis Farmers Club After
| telling what he knew about good dogs, he
| used his mathematics upon the question
witt about the following results: There
are, according to his estimate, about 5000
600 waste dogs; the food they eat would
| fatten 100000 hogs, worth, say, $50
| 100000; add to this a few millions for
sheep killed by these ravenous CANNES,
and we begin to see what these dogs cost
this country. Just think of it. dogs
enough to half pay the interest of our pub
lie debt
CONTRAST
The exquisite charm of springs first ringing laugh
We measure only by the winters gloom:
The waiiing winds, the whirling SHOWS, make
In our half frozen hearts for sunshine after.
If every morn were fair and all days golden,
nj mi tnrf pJrt foot troI
Our stated souls would tire of velvet sod.
Our eye in spells Of snow-capped peaks beholdenl
We gauge the f0w'rets beauty by the mould
That lies so long and dark its sweetness over;
As absence makes his rapture for the lover,
Who sees no light till he fond eyes behold
So God be praised for wintry blasts and SHOWS,
That end Their lessons when the violet blows!
-Hafper's Magazine
SMOKING FOR THE PLAGUE-Thomas
Hearne, in his diary, writes: "11O-21,
January ed have been told that in the
last great plague in London, none that
kept tobacconists' shops had the plague
1t is certain that smoking was looked upon
as most excellent preservative insomuch
that even children were obliged to smoke.
And [ remember that I heard formerly
Thorn Rogers, who was communicable,
say that, when he was that year, when the
plague ragged, school-bo at Elton, all the
boys of that school were obliged to smoke
in the school every morning, and that he
was never whipped so much in his life as
he was one morning for not smoking"
To Stop THE RAvAGEs OF MoTHs.-Cam
phor will not stop the ravages of moths
in carpets, after they have commenced
eating. Then they pay no regard to the
presence Of camphor, cedar or tobacco.
good way to conquer them is to take a
coarse crash towel and wiring it out Of
clean water. Spread it smoothly on the
carpet, then iron it dry with a good hot
iron, repeating the operation on all sus-
pected places, and those least used. 1t
does not injure the pile or the color OF the
carpet in the least, as it is not necessary
to press hard, heat and steam being the |
agents; and they do the work etfectuallv |
on worms and eggs. Then the camphor |
will doubtless prevent future depredations
of the miller.
A NEW YORK correspondent writes re-
garding the Nathan mansion, that though |
it will be three years next summer since /
Benjamin Nathan was murdered there, |
the house still stands without tenant 1t |
is one of the handsomest and most desira |
bic residences in Twenty-third street, and |
yet it cannot be let to a private family at |
half the price it would have quickly |
brought before the tragedy. The sons of |
the murdered man have tried to lease it, |