davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1874-04-16
Cheese for Cannon Shot.

The queerest ammunition heard of
lately was used by the celebrated Com
modore Coe of the Montevidian navy,
who, in an engagement with Admiral
Brown of the Buenos Ayrean service,
fired every shot from his lockers.
"What shall we do, sir?" asked his
first lieutenant. "We've not single
shot aboard-round, grape, canister
and double headed are all gone"
"Powder gone, eh?" asked Coe.
"No, sir lots of that yet"
"We had very hard cheese--a
round Dutch one--for dessert at din
ner to-day do you remember it? p said
Coe.
ct ought to; I broke the carving
knife in trying to cut it, sir"
''Are there any more aboard ?"
"About two dozen we took them
from droger."
"Will they go into the eighteen
Founders ?"
"By thunder Commodore, but
that's the idea will try 'em p cries
the first lieutenant. And in few
minutes the fire from old Santa Maria
Goes ship, which had ceased entirely,
was reopened, and Admiral Brown
found more shot flying over his head.
Directly one of them struck his main
mast, and as it did SO, shattered and
flew in every direction.
"What the deuce is that which the
enemy is firing?" asked Brown.
But nobody could tell.
Directly another came through port
and killed two men who were near him,
and then, striking the opposite bull
warks, burst into flinders.
"By Jove, this is too much This
is some new tangled paixhan or other,
I don't like 'em," cried Brown and
then, as four or five more came slap
through his sails, he gave the orders
to fill away, and actually backed out OF
the fight, receiving a parting broadside
of Dutch cheeses.
The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1874-04-16
THE ATLANTIC ICEBERGS,


The reports from the Atlantic demon
strate an early and extraordinary de-
scent of ice fields and icebergs from the
Arctic Ocean. Large fields of ice were
reported from st. Johns, sailing off
towards the Grand Banks of Newfound'
land. The Cunard steamship Calabria
"passed great quantities of ice, latitude
43 deg. north, longitude so deg. west"
and, on the same day, the Frisia, within
u hundred miles of that spot, encoun-
tered a mass of these icy fotillas. But
the steamship Idaho, in latitude As deg,
them, and stopped her engines two
hours. 1t is not known to many seamen
that occasionally, as Sir Leopold Nc
Clintock found in 1860, great quantities
of ice accumulate on the coasts OF
Greenland, afterwards to be dislodged
and precipitated toward the mid Allan
tic. In that year the accumulation of
ice exceeded anything like it in the past
thirty six winters. The unusual mild
ness of February, it would seem, has
been potential, even in these high lati-
tudes, in unloosing them on the swift
Polar currents, which, sweeping through
Davis Strait and along the Labrador
coasts, commingle with or underrun
the northern margin of the warm Gulf
Stream.
The early and apparently excessive
precipitation of these islands into the
vapor- laden region of the warm Atlantic
current may probably afford q clew to
the mystery of the terrible gale of the
9th Of February. in which SO many
steamships were disabled. The Antarc-
tic icebergs which penetrate the warm
water belt eastof Cape Horn are said to
cause the violent hurricanes of the high
southern latitudes. The infusion OF
immense ice masses, with their wide
spreading boreal influence, to the south
east of Newfoundland, would undoubt-
edly cause rapid and excessive conden-
sation of vapor, and hence rapid fall
of the barometer and the invariably
consequent tempest. The same chill
ing agency would also explain the
furious snow storms which were re.
ported by several of the disabled yes
sells.
McClintock describes one of these
frozen monsters two hundred and City
feet high, which was aground in five
hundred feet of water in Baffin Bay, ,and
ships, we know, have passed hundreds
of smaller ones on the transatlantic
voyage. To melt single one of then
an inconceivable amount of heat mus
be drawn from the surrounding air an(
ocean and their temperature be conse
quently reduced.
AS the indications favor the move
ment of unusually large numbers o
these ice mountains into the North At
lantic double skill and vigilance are de
manded of the steamship captains. N
doubt the equinoctial gales that hav
now set in, and the early approach o
spring, will occasion great dislodge
ments of the glaciers on the Arcti
coasts, and render unwearied caution
on the Atlantic necessary, not only b.
reason of collision with ice, but also b,
reason of the tempestuous weather th'
ice serves to breed.
The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1874-04-16
Can PARALYSIS be Cured z

Paralysis, according to an English
traveller, is rare, much that passes for
paralysis being durable, especially
through the imagination. The opinion
is supported by the statements of one of
the best medical men in Paris, who, in
1S49, was a physician in the great hos
year this hospital was particularly IA
nous foI the cures effected in 1T, and
many were the hypochondriacs whose
imaginations sent them home well after
a stay in its wards. One odd case was
that of young girl in the department
of the Ain, whom sudden fright had
rendered dumb and paralyzed. Local
physicians could do nothing for her,
and at last asserted that only the doc
tors of the Hotel Dieu could cure her.
Firmly believing this herself, the girl
was sent to Paris and admitted to the
hospital, where the hurried physician
merely examined her as matter of
form, promising to return the following
day. When he came he heard to his
astonishment that the patient was in
clined to speak. He spoke to her and
she answered instantly that she thought
that she could walk with q little help,
and she did walk twice around the
ward very easily. The next week she
returned to her native village as well as
ever.
"I knew" she said, "that the Hotel
Dieu would cure me p
1t would be hard to find more strik-
ing instance of the mysterious power of
the imagination, and of strong belief,
upon the physical structure.
The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1874-04-16
How Kellogg Lives.

Speaking of Miss Kellogg, gentle
man writing from New York to San
Francisco, says: "She sings as well
as, if not better than, ever, but she is
growing too stout for grace or beauty.
The innkeepers at the various provincial
towns where they stop lay it to the onion
soups her mother makes for her, and
while they do not deny that they may
be appetizing and conducive to en6on-
point, 1T is said, for some reason or
other, they object to them. Madame
Kellogg has the genius of Soyer:
She can broil herring or the caudal
extremity of a Cincinnati poker over the
CRATE fire of private parlor in such a
way as to render herself invisible for
the smoke, and to make ones eyes and
ones mouth water at the same time
at least such is her reported ability"
The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1874-04-16
How to Check Coughs, Sneezing &c.

DIR. Brown Sequard, in his last Bos-
ton lecture, says there are many facts
which show that morbid phenomena of
respiration can be also stopped by the
influence of arrest. Coughing, for in
stance, can be stopped by pressing on
the nerves on the lip in the neighbor-
hood of the nose. A pressure there
may prevent a cough when it is begin
ming. Sneezing may be stopped by the
same mechanism. Pressing in the
neighborhood of the ear, right in front
of the ear, may stop coughing. 1t is
SO also of hiccough, but much less so
than for sneezing and coughing. Press
ing very hard on the top of the mouth
inside is also a means of stopping
coughing. And L may say that the will
has immense power there. There was O
French soldier who used to say, when
ever he entered the wards of the hos.
pital, "The first patient who coughs
here will be deprived of his food to-
day." 1t was exceedingly rare that G
patient coughed then. There are many
other affections associated with breath
ing which can be stopped by the same
mechanism that stops the hearts action
In spasm of the glottis, which is ter
rible thing in children, as you vel
know, as it sometimes causes death, anC
also in whooping cough, it is possible
to afford relief by throwing cold water
on the feet or by tickling the soles O.
the feet, which produces laughter, ant
at the same time goes to the gray mat
ter that is producing the spasm ant
arrests it almost at once. L would mo-
say that we can always prevent cougl
by our will but in many instances
those things are possible, and if yor
remember that in bronchitis and pneu
monia, or any other acute affection O.
the lungs, hacking or coughing greatly
increases the trouble at times, you cal
easily see how important it is fer tn,
patient TO try to avoid coughing as bes
he can
The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1874-04-16
Il Babv

She is not beauty, my ,weet little net
Her mouth not rJsebud, her eyes are not
like jet,
Her nose far f-om Grecian, her skin not like
snow,
She is not a beauty, dear me no, no, no!
Dut theH she is winsome this bird of my bower
And she grows on my heart every minute and
bour.
She ~ not beauty, my sweet little pet,
On dimples more witching my eyes have been
set;
Her mouth, must tell you, is large like
mamma's,
While her chin, to be sure, is just like her
But ,ohen she smiles trustingly, what can
With this gem Of my casket, bright, sparkling
and fair?
She is not beauty, my sweet little pet
Far handsomer babies each day can be met;
Her brows are not arching-indeed they're too
straight
Yet time will work wonders, with patience I'll
wait
But if she's not handsome, it matters not-no
This bud of my bosom is pSre as the snow.
She is not beauty, my sweet little pet,
That her forehead is too low l cannot forget;
No, no, she's not beautiful must confess,
(Between you and I, would her mouth had been
less)
But she loves me so dearly, oh, how could 1
part
With this light of my pilgrimage, joy Of my
heart?
The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1874-04-16
The Size of Countries.

The Red Sea would reach from Wash
ington to Colorado, and it is three
times as wide as Lake Ontario.
Madagascar is as large as New Hamp-
shire, Massachusetts, Vermont, Connec-
ticut, New York, Pennsylvania, New
Jersey, Virginia and North Carolina all
put together.
Palestine is one-fourth the size of
New York.
Hindostan is more than one hundred
times as large as Palestine.
Great Britain is two-t thirds the size of
Japan, one-twelfth the size of Hindo-
stan, one-twentieth of China, and one
twenty-ffth of the United States.
Greece is about the size of the State
of Vermont.
The English Channel is nearly as
large as Lake Superior.
Lake Huron is as large as the Sea of
Azof.
The Great Desert of Africa hes nearly
the present dimensions of the United
States.
The Caspian Sea would stretch from
New York to st. Augustine, and is as
wide as from New York to Rochester.
The following bodies of water are
nearly equal in size: German Ocean,
Black Sea, Yellow Sea; Hudson's Bay
is rather larger; the Baltic, Adriatic,
Persian Gulf and Ggean Sea about hall
as large, and somewhat larger than
Lake Superior.
The mediterranean, if placed across
North America, would make sea naviga
tion from San Diego to Baltimore.
The Gulf of Mexico is about ten times
the size of Lake Superior, and about as
large as the Sea of Kamtschatka, Bay
of Bengal, China Sea, Okhotsk Sei
or Japan Sea. Lake Ontario would
go into either of them more than fifty
times.
Great Britain and ireland are abou
as large as New Mexico, but not al
large as Iowa and Nebraska. They are
less than New York, Pennsylvania, an(
| Ohio,
The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1874-04-16
'Tis Sweet for Ones Country To, Etc


Happening one day in his travels to
be belated, Senator Collamer stopped
at q substantial and comfortable farm
house, and was entertained and hospit-
ably invited to make himself comfortable
for the night. He accepted the invita-
ton, had a good supper and very
luxurious lodgings. The next morn
ing Mr.. Collamer made survey of the
farm of his host, and was much sur
prlsed with the comfort and substantial
thrift and prosperity of everything
around. He could not but congratu-
late him on his apparently happy lot.
His fields were well-fenced, his barns
were filled, and his crops most prom
ising. Besides, too, the farmer had an
industrious and amiable wife, and
several bright and healthy children.
ga farmers life," remarked Mr.. Cola
mer, sis certainly the happiest of all
human lots, and / must say, my friend,
that you are us happily fixed as any
farmer ever knew"
wall" remarked his host, "that's
your notion, but 'tain't mine. intend
to sell out and move next week."
"Whither are you going ?"
"Down into Texas" ..-..
"What, into that wild and disturbed
country, menanced by the whole Mexi-
can army and by rowing bands oi
Comanches, and marauding Greasers
leave this peaceful and happy home fol
such a savage country, where you
would have to sleep every night OF
your arms, and carry your rifle strapped
across your shoulder whilst ploughine
ing in the fields ?" lea =
"Yaas sir-ree," was the eager reply
"who would give a cuss to live in {
country where he couldn't fight for hi
liberty ?"
The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1874-04-16

e A wide-awake minister, who found his
congregation going to sleep before he
had fairly commenced, suddenly stopped
and exclaimed, Brethren, this isn't
fair it isn't giving man half chance.
Wait till 1 get along, and then if I amt
worth listening to, go to sleep, but don't
before I commence; give a man a
chance"
The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1874-04-16
Greenland Glaciers.

Some of the Greenland glaciers attain
a vast size. DR.. Kane reports the great
Humboldt glacier as sixty miles wide
at its termination. Its seaward face
rises abruptly from the level of the
crater to a height of 800 feet, but it is
not known how deep it may extend
under the sea. Another important ice
stream is the Glacier of Elsblink, on
the Northwest part of the island. 1t
projects seaward so as to form q
promontory thirteen miles in length.
1t comes from an unknown distance in
the interior, and plunges deeply into
the sea.
The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1874-04-16

Corn DROP CAKES eorn-meal
with boiling new milk until you have a
thick batter; put in the patent pans at
once, and bake for twenty or thirty
minutes.
The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1874-04-16
Obtained Entrance.

One of the new men on the Holyoke
police force proved himself master of
the situation in getting into John Sui
livan's saloon, one Sunday morning re-
Gently, where some men were playing
cards, but the windows and doors of
which were locked. Suddenly brill
liant idea struck him. He caught cat
which was near, and carrying it up to
the steps just outside the door, gently
but firmly stepped on aforesaid cats
tail, which caused such a mewing and
screeching as to speedily bring some
body to the door, when the officer walk
ed in and found four men, whom he
walked off to the lookup.
The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1874-04-16

He LEARNED ia firm dealing
largely in coal in one of our Western
cities had in their service an Irishman
named Barney. One day the head of
the firm, irritated beyond endurance at
one of Barney's blunders, told him to
go to the Office and get his pay, and
added, "You are so thiek-headed L
can't teach you any thing" Begor-
ra, said Barney, "I larnt wan thing
since I've been wild yel" whats
that ?" asked his employer. "That
sivinteen hundred made a ton." Barney
was retained.
The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1874-10-29
Death Of u FsnalO Aermlt.

From the Springfield tMassD Renublican.
The life Of Mary Ham, Of Rye. New
Ham pshire, who recently died at the az.
of 90, wa, roma ntic and interesting in the
highest degree. For the 10 years immsdi-
ately preceding her death she lived the life
Of a hermit IN lonely hut. TO which water
and the broom were strangers during all
her r.sit encs in it, and which Was 20 filthy
that an ordinary person could hardly bear
to be in it for . moment. Here she ate
and slept and got drunk, and was never
glad TO see company. The only thing that
in any measure relieved this hovsl Of it's
drcariness va, package Of well-worn love-
letters, and these explained her eccentric
life. She was very much admired when 20
years old, and was very coquettish, withal:
but she finally fell in love with ono Charles
Waldron, and thei, love-letters were OF the
warmest sort. He tired Of her 6ckleness,
however, and dismissed her. THE broke
her heart, but to make it appear that she
cared nothing for it, she engaged herself to
brilliant young scspegrsce named John
Ham, who had been expelled from Dart
month College, and being himself disappoin-
j.. ted in love, married her 10 q fit Of reckless
ness. lie died nineteen years ago, and
ever after she lived her strange life. There
have been many interesting stories told
about her, one Of " hich was that she had .
large sum Of money concealed in her hut
but search after her death disproved this.
The letters, however, showed that her love
affair had gone 80 far that her wedding out
tit had been prepared and the day appoint
cd, when the .huDderbolt came. The cir
cum.tances Of her ls.t sickness led to the
suspicion that she had been poisoned. She
xas found with bottle by her side lying
on bed in the EXTREMIST agony; but rum
sno mental suffering probable account for
all. The town authorities determined to
"clesu out" her den few days before her
death, but they were Obliged to tear her
from it, screaming and struggling, and the
! publication required two days worx aud q
bonfire. The neighbors gave her every
Comfort possible in her closing hour, and
! q niece whom she had not seen for twenty
years visited her, and the cid woman recog-
mixed her.
The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1874-10-29

The process of eoid-beating is exceedingly
interesting in its various details, and is che
which requires the exercise of judgment,
physical force and mechanical skill. The
coin is FIRST reduced in thickness by being
rolled through what is known as mill, ;"
machine consisting of iron rollers operated
| BY steam, power. 1t is then anuealel BY be
ing subjected to intense heat, which sof.
tens the metal, and next cut up and placed
| in jars containing nitro-muria,ic acid, which
diss0lves the gold and reduces it to . mass
resembling Indian pudding, both in color
and in form. This solution is then placed
| in Jar with copperas, which separates the
gold from the other conpcnents of the mass.
The next process Is to properly alloy toe
now pure gold, after which it is placed in
crucibles and melted, from which it is poured
into iron molds called inaots, which measure
ten inches in length and one inch il breadth
and thicknes When cooled it Is taken out
In the shape Of bars and then rolled into
what are called ''ribbons,P usually measur-
ing about eight yards in length, Of the thick
ness Of ordinar, paper, and retaining their
original width. These ribbons" are then
cut in pieces one and = quarter inches square
and placed in what is called "cutch )"
which consists Of pack of French paper
leaves sembling parchment, ea Oh three inch.
es in square, and the pack measuring from
three quarters of an inch to enc inch in
thickness. They are then beaten for half
al. hour upon . granite block, With hammers
weighing from twelve to fifteen pounds, after
other pack Of leaves called "shoder.'-
These leaves are four and q half inches
square, and the gold in the Ssh ,dern il
beaten for four hours with hammers weigh
ing about nine pounds; after which the gold
leaves are taken out Of the "shoders" and
placed in what Is called mold" These
'molds' consist of packs Of leaves similar
to the other packs and made Of the stomach
Of an OK. Amer being made ready in the
''molds" the gold is beaten for four hours
more with hammers weighing six or seven
pounds each.
The thinner the leaf becomes the lighter
are the hammers used, and it is also
necessary in beating the gold, especially in
striking the mold }" that the blow should
be given with the full fat of the hammer and
directly in the center of the mold The
leaf after being taken out of the mold" i.
cut into squares of three and three-eighths
inches, and placed in "books" of common
paper Each book" consists of twenty FIVE
leaves, twenty books" constituting what is
known as a pack "-I,on Age
The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1874-10-29

Frank Was g bright little ave ysnr-vld
fellow, full Of fun and anxious to make him
self Of consequence. Armed with stick. b
would feel ~ brave 60 . hon among the
hens and chickens; and ~ they seadded
away from this dresdful creature to take
shelter wherever they could 6ud it be would
say to hiaself. II suess they think I'm .
giant" only be pronounced the word "shi
ant" He would even stssct the old coci
and ~alk right up 70 the big turkey COB
bier.
Bat their Vas one animal which caused
Master Frank 20 quail with terror, especially
when alone and after dark. Do you wan,
to know what it vast will tell you Il
was . mousei Yes; . Little brown mouse,
With bis brigth eyes and pretty taperinl
| tail, would make our bold little boy tremble
aud scream; and if he chsncsd to light OF
several Of these pretty creatures playing
together you would have supposed that he
| had run against . h,rd Of buffaloes. Very
SILLY, wasn't It.
Now, every night on bis way to bed
Frsnk had to pass through lonely room
where mice and rats would sometimes peep
out Of their holes and soamper over the
door. frightening him sadly and causing
him 70 CLASP mamms's hand more tightly
and hurry along ~ fast a. possible.
But one night. when it came bedtime,
mamma Was sick up stairs, aud nurse away
and no one with Fraok IN the sitsingro ON
bet papa, who was busy reading his news
paper. So the little boy IS told to march
up stairs to bed alone.
"Oh, papal" said he, "Tm afraid to-"
"Afraid of WHAT" said papa.
Afraid of the rats and mice, papa, 10
the blk lumber room"
ooh. nonsenser' said papa; ''if that's
all Ill soon fy you out"
So papa took his writing materials and
wrote this:
TO ALL TEE RATS AND NICE IN THIS HOUSE,
oREKTISo;
You are hereby ordered to let my little
boy Frank pass safe through the lumber
room, and oil other rooms, At all times.
This order will stand good til counter
msrded. Any rat or mouse disobeying
will be dealt with according to law. Wit
ness my hand and seal.
Then papa signed the paper, and sealed
it with big red seNl, and gave it to Frank,
who thanked papa, kissed i'm good uight,
ard trudged up stairs without another
word; for he had often seen papa give
passes to people who wanted to 90 some
where, or do something, and he had high
opinion of his fathers "passes."
So, when he came to the door Of the lum
ber-rocm, he aung it wide open and called
out, "Ho! Misses rats and mice, you can't
touch me; here's my pass" And every
night when he went up to bed be held out
his pass to the rats and mice; and none Of
them ever did him any harm.--The Nurs-
cry.
The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1874-10-29

The United States firm have almost en-
tirsly eaaished the French glass eye from
this continent; the Eng.ish eye never toct
well here. vas never popular. Tbsy are
also patertees Of the strabismic glass eye,
suitable for cross or cock-eyed peopis.
With each dozen glass eyes . copy oil
directions how to wear glass eyes is sent
It il to be hoped that shis book will be
studied. rs some Of our be-. citiseus display
r disgrsceful csrelessness 10 the manner in
which they wear their eyes To be gL,red
at with an eye upside down is apt to dis-
turb . man; indeed, it is extremely disa.
reeable.-Ner Orleans P,cayxne.