Elizabeth daily monitor. [volume] (Elizabeth, N.J.) 1868-1880, 1873-09-03
A BATCH OF ANTIQUES.

The crop OF centenarians, for the last
six months, is a good one. 1t consists
of twenty-four conspicuous specimens
half of them dead and half OF them liv-
ing-and most of the specimens are dis
tinguished by some one notable charac-
teristic. Stephen Philbrick of Tam
worth, N. H, dead at the age of 1902
years, month, and 90 days, had never
called in doctor, and had always mo-
derately partaken of spirits and tobac-
co. Two old ladies of Pernambuco-
names not given--dead at the respec-
tive ages of 103 and 109, could number
118 immediate descendants, extant in
the flesh and visible to the eye. A
black man, aged liz, dead at Evans
vile, Indiana, had never been known to
Washington. He claimed, however, to
have been owned by member of the
good mans staff. Still more remark
able was the case Of black woman,
Nancy Harvey, dead in Baltimore, aged
lit, who had been heard to say that
she never nursed Gen. Washington and
in fact never made his acquaintance.
OF Mrs. Beulah Hunt of Randolph,
Mass, who has demised at the age of
1O4, the historian briefly records that
she was born on Friday, and kept her
memory to the last-whence we infer
that she never showed her spectacles
back on her venerable head and then
spent the afternoon in searching for
them. Quite instructive is the case of
q Scotch veteran, who sleeps his last
sleep, at Baltimore, aged Ill, and OF
whom it is intimated that he fell a VIC
tim to the blood-thirsty ambition of
Napoleon Bonaparte. Against this war
rior our Scotch friend contended at
Waterloo, and there he received the
wound which has now carried him off.
More fortunate was the aged Russian
dead at 1877 years-who fought in all
the campaigns, from 1895 to 1914, sur
vived the Man of Destiny, and quite a
number of other men, and peacefully
became a cook to the Empress Catha-
rine. This parsonage has been inurn-
ed at Mini Novgorod.
Another of the dead is William Burns
of La Sale, Wisconsin. He founded
that city, and stayed in it till he was
113 years old. Still another is Mrs.
Shelley of Peasenhall, Suffolk, Eng
land, who rests, aged 104, and of whom
it is stated that her intellect showed no
signs of decay. Joseph Miller of
Coatesville, Pennsylvania, aged 100,
had taken no snuff, and, therefore, his
days were long in the land but Jane
Kirk of Gainesville, Bucls County,
took all the snuff she wanted, and it may
be said that she saw him and went
one better, for she lasted till the age
of 101.
Among the living centenarians we
read of ancient gentlemen who are very
lively indeed, and evidently have not
yet come to those years OF discretion
which David Hume said were, in some
cases, never reached at all. Here is
"Uncle" Abner Huntly of Cuba, N.
Y, for instance, who has attained his
106th year, and who occasionally breaks
highspirited horse, just for pastime.
More audacious and reckless still is the
Count de Waldeck of Paris, France,
who is LOT years old, and who is going
into theatrical management. This en-
thusiast surely ought to be restrained.
Another light and prancing spirit is M.
Villemain, who capers nimbly in Phar-
salia N. Y, and takes his tod regu-
lar"-as the terse paragraphist records.
This veteran served under the First
Napoleon, and has always used tobacco.
His liveliness is great, but it is surpass-
ed by that of "Uncle" John Bullock of
Bristol, aged 104. Uncle John endur-
ed severe attack of pneumonia in June
and when he was convalescent he called
his boys about him and remarked
"That was severe attack. If I'd been
an old man, / guess it would have fetch
ed me-"
Quite sprightly also is Mr.. Robinson
of Minnesota, aged 122, who goes Wis.,
iting to his son in Illinois, aged SO
Jack Noble of Arkansas is accounted
brisk at farming, and Jack is 10. Lady
Smith of Lowestoft, England, is frisky
too, for she lately celebrated her Tooth
birthday, by banquet to hundred of
her Oldest acquaintance. Phoebe
Thompson of Wilmington, Delaware, is
103. John Williams of Providence, r.
l., is 105. David Stiles of St Paul,
Minnesota, is 10S. Robert Smith, a
mulatto, of Cincinnati, is 112. One
veracious paragraphist tells us that the
Emperor and Empress of Austria, on
the occasion of a recent religious cere-
monial, bathed the feet of female men
dicant, aged 106 another makes men
ton of John Oliver of Liverpool, sal
l)r, aged 100, who was on board the
Victory when Nelson fell, in the glo-
rious sea-fght of Trafalgar and still
another records of John Owens of Gran
ada, Mississippi, that he is close on the
age of 115 years, and has been drinking
whisky and chewing and smoking to-
bacco for almost century
I he eminent Faraday thought that
there is no occasion for any man to die
till he has reached the age of 100 years.
1t may be consoling conviction and,
though occasions for shuffiing off the
mortal coil do seem to arise, that prove
sufficiently persuasive to most persons.
it is conviction that does not lack
comfort and support in these modern in
stances of longevity. - Tribune.
A cold-blooded exchange tells of an