davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Ashtabula telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1874-1880, 1874-08-15

TO WhOns 1t May Concern :

TAKE this opportunity of saying
nv natrous and friends that having left Ashts-
b1ls, desire speedy settlement Of nv accounts,
and 10 invite all 70 eall upon l. o. Fisher, Esq,
who has in his hands all my books Of account, and
will give due attention to the business. Express
ing the hope that the same promptness and atten-
tion that has characterized your deal with me In
the past may be continued, / an as ever -
lQ3D = Yours o. B. MOSS.
Ashtabula telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1874-1880, 1874-08-15
AT COST

=
sOrtAs next thirty days.
Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1874-04-18
Having a Picture Taken.

The operator is just about to with
draw the cloth. His back is toward
you. The index finger of his unoccu-
pied hand marks the place for the eye.
Every nerve in your body is braced for
the ordeal. The cloth is drawn, and
the noiseless and unseen fingers of the
prepared plate are picking up your
features one by one and transferring
them to its mysterious surface. What
an influence is this you are under and
which you cannot explain, which weak
ems every nerve and unloosens every
cord and muscle, and sets free upon
and over you myriad of sensations
you never knew before. The eye of
the camera glares upon you like the
eye of an offended and threatening
power. Prickling sensations are felt
in under your scalp, and heat evolved
within with amazing rapidity fushes to
the surface of your body and leaves it
pierced with thousand pains. You
stare at the mark with an intensity that
threatens to obliterate your sight.
Heavens how slowly the time drags.
Your eyes grow weaker and weaker,
filing with water as they die out. You
know they are closing, but you cannot
help yourself. Will he never put back
that cloth? A thousand reflections
upon your appearance, on the sounds
in the street, on things irreverent and
disastrous to your composure, flood
your mind, and take such hold upon
you that you cannot shake them of.
And yet no move to restore that cloth.
He stands like statue cut from flint.
And you-quivering from the sole of
the foot to the crown of the head, with
eyes blinded by tears, with perspira-
tion oozing from every pore, and every
muscle strained until it seems ready
to snap and let you down upon the floor
mass of disfgured and palpitating
flesh. He need not put up the cloth
noaO. The opportunity which he con-
trolled to reproduce you in perfection
is gone. It matters not now how it
looks, only that you may get away and
he at rest. You grow hysteric in your
despair. 1t settles down upon you like
a cloud COMPRISING your throat within
it's grasp until your breath surges back
on your lungs as if it would rend them.
A weight is pressing upon you. You
struggle to wrench yourself free from
the dreadful oppression, and yet not
muscle of your body is in motion.
What dreadful thing is this You must
shrek; you - The cloth is up-the
thirty seconds have expired, and you
are photographed. -Danbary Nea0s.
Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1874-04-18
4 New Pledge.

One feature of the temperance revi-
val is both commendable. In certain
places a pledge is now circulating
among young men by which the sign
ers bind themselves to refrain from
asking other men to drink. There is
nothing that is more absurd, in itself
considered, than the theory that man
is under obligations to pay for the
drinks consumed by his friends. No
man thinks of asking friend out to
take social pair of boots or a friendly
barrel of -four, and yet he is regarded
as committing breach, of etiquette if
he ventures to drink without asking q
friend to drink with him. No man
would feel otherwise than insulted if an
acquaintance asked him to accept o
friendly fifteen cent stamp, and yet he
feels himself insulted if he is not asked
to drink fifteen cents worth of ardent
spirits. The exceeding folly of the
custom is equaled only by the evil in
fuence which it exerts. Many q man
is forced to drink by one of o group of
acquaintances when he is not in the
least thirsty, and he is thus in turn
compelled to invite them to drink a
second time with him to the detriment
not only of his purse but of his health.
1t is not too much to say that at least
one-half of the ardent spirits consumed
in New York City is drunk by men who
do not want it, but who are compelled
by stupid and senseless custom both
to drink when invited to do SO and to
invite others to drink with them who
had much rather not do anything of the
kind.
The pledge against " treating" ought
to produce good results. 1t commends
itself to all sensible men, and the fact
of having signed it gives them a suf-
fcient excuse for ceasing to observe a
preposterous custom. The new pledge
ought to be vigorously circulated, and
the more signers that can be obtained
for it the more hope there will be of
putting an end to the folly Of social tip
pling.
Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1874-04-18
What Constitutes q Car Load.

Some one who has been investigating
the subject says that in general 10000
pounds is car load, which might con-
sist of 70 barrels of salt, 70 of lime, 80
of flour, 60 of whisky, 200 sacks of
-four, 6 cords of hard wood, 7 of soft,
18 to 20 head of cattle, 80 to 60 head of
hogs, 80 to 100 head of sheep, 5000
feet of solid boards, $1,000 feet of
siding, $1,000 feet of flooring, 10000
shingles, one-half less hard lumber,
one-fourth less green lumber, tenth
less of joists, scantling, and all other
large lumber, $40 bushels Of wheat, 800
of corn, $50 of oats, 400 of barley, 800
of flax seed, 800 of apples, 4S0 of Irish
potatoes, $50 of sweet potatoes, 1000
bushels of bran. The foregoing figures
may not be exactly correct, for the rea-
son that railroads do not exactly agree
in their rules and estimates, but it APP
proximates so closely to the general
average that shippers will find it a great
convenience as matter Of reference.
Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1874-04-18
Catching the Sea Lion.

So far as can learn, says CORE
spondent writing from the California
coast, the Farallon sea lions are seldom
disturbed by men seeking profit from
them. In the egging season one or two
are shot to supply oil to the lamps of
the eggers and occasionally one is
caught for exhibition on the main land.
How do they catch sea lion? Well,
they lasso him and odd as it sounds,
it is the best and probably the only
way to capture this beast. An adroit
Spaniard, to whom the lasso or reata is
like fifth hand, orlike the trunk to the
elephant. steals up to sleeping con-
gregation, fastens his eye on the big
gest one of the lot, and, biding his
time, with the first motion of the ami
NAL, with unerring skill, filings his loose
rawhide moose, and then holds on for
dear life. 1t is the weight of an OK and
the vigor of half a dozen that he has
Juggling at the other end of his rope,
and if score of men did not stand
ready to help, and if it were not pos
sible to take turn of the reata around
a solid rock, the seal would surely get
away. Moreover, they must handle the
beast tenderly, for it is easily injured
Its skin, softened by it's life in the
water, is quickly cut by the rope its
bones are easily broken and its huge
frame, too rudely treated, may be SO
hurt that the life dies out of it. AS
quickly as possible the captured sea
lion is stuffed into a strong box or
cage, and here, in a cell too narrow to
permit movement, it roars and yelps
in helpless fury, until it is transported
to it's tank. Wild and fierce as it is, it
seems to reconcile itself to the tank
life very rapidly. If the narrow space
of its big bath-tub frets it, you do not
perceive this, for hunger is it's chief
passion, and with a moderately full
stomach the animal does well in cap
tivity, of course with sufficient water.
Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1874-04-18
Thomas Hood and His Wife.

I never was anything, dearest, till I
knew you-and I have been better, hap
pier, and more prosperous man ever
since. Lay by that truth in lavender,
dearest, and remind me of it when I
fail. I am writing fondly and warmly !;
but not without good cause. First your
own affectionate letter, lately received !;
next the remembrance of our dear chill
dren, pledges-what darling ones ! of
our old familiar love; then delicious
impulse to pour out the overfowings of
my heart into yours and last, not
least, the knowledge that your dear
eyes will read what my hands are now
writing. Perhaps there is an after
thought that, whatever may befall me,
the wife of my bosom will have this ac-
knowledgment of her tenderness
worth-and excellence-all that is
wifely or womanly, from my pen.
Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1874-04-18
An Office Holder,

We are quite serious, says an ex-
change, in recommending oflice-seekers
to go to Gainesville, Florida. A cor
respondent sends paragraph from the
paper published in that place, which
says: "When the Hon. Il. G.. Dennis
left us for his Northern trip, to be alb
sent several months, we lost in him our
Senator, county commissioner, board of
instruction, deputy marshal, deputy
sheriff, deputy county clerk, treasurer
of school funds, custodian of county
treasurer's books, senior councilman,
and acting mayor. Nearly all public
business was suspended until his re-
turn"
Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1874-04-18
Adventure with a Panther.

Nearly half a century ago, when that
beautiful section of the country, now
thickly dotted with villages and i'm
proved farms, along the Nolachucky
river, in upper Tennessee, was compare
lively a wilderness, the hero of my
story had an adventure with a panther,
which have often heard him relate,
and which I shall never forget.
Immediately after nightfall he found
that he was lost in an extensive forest,
without even a path by which to find
his way out. His first impulse was to
dismount, lie down and try to rest until
morning but with the hope that he
might be heard, he resolved to halloo,
which. to his horror, was Immediately
answered by loud, shrill cry, which
was soon repeated much nearer him,
and again in close proximity to him.
He was riding young, but spirited
horse, and at once knew that his only
safety was to remain upon him if posi-
BILE.
The panther was now crouching before
him-the noble horse leaped furious
ly over him-the panther in turn leap
ing over both horse and rider. He gave
the horse the rein and bade him go
through the trackless forest. The
fight was rapid and inexpressibly ter
rife; and great drops of perspiration
fell from the riders brow, as he felt
the keen breeze, made by the panther
in leaping over him. Hatless, lacera-
ted and bleeding, the rider was carried
over fallen trees and young saplings,
until the bride caught over one, as it
sprang back to its place. Having no
knife to cut the rein, various attempts
were made to bend down the sapling,
or unbridle the horse with last des-
perate effort the bride was loosed, and
the horse, maddened almost to despera-
tion, again bounded forward until he
reached cleared field, and having been
trained in a regiment of light horse, (of
which our hero was Colonel he leaped
the fence and the pather gave up the
chase.
A light was seen in the distance,
which, when reached, proved to be the
abode of a friend, who took the horse
and bade our hero 'go in > and upon
going into the house and seeing the
scratched and bleeding condition of his
guest, declared that he would not have
put up his horse for all he possessed,
if he had known of his hair breadth
escape.
The next day, after hearing of the
adventure, Maj. James Britton and
others started from Greenville with a
pack of hounds in pursuit, and reach
ing the locality, soon struck trail, and
on reaching the river beheld a large
panther emerging from the water on the
opposite side, which finally made its
escape.
The adventurer, bending under the
weight of nearly four score years and
ten, now lives within 18 miles of
Athens, Ga, having survived all of ten
children but three. He worked on the
Arsenal near Richmond, Va, and has
built forty public buildings in Tennes-
see and North Carolina, and was q
member OF the Georgia Legislature
during the ar.
Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1874-04-18
The Great Wall of China.

Seen from the Chinese side, the
Great Wall resembled a huge earthen
mound, crowned with battlements built
of brick. Everywhere it had an old and
dilapidated appearance. In some
places it had been altogether destroyed.
On the Mantchoorian side, on the other
hand, the Great Wall seemed construct
ed of bricks, resting upon pavement
of stone. It is fanked by square tow
ers throughout its whole length. These
are placed at the distance of about two
bowshots, in order that the enemy may
be everywhere within range. It de-
scends into the sea in two parallel piers
or jetties, which slope so gently that
one can ascend to the top from the wa
ter flowing between them. The largest
ships may approach within two miles
of The wall, and, indeed, it is the very
place at which visitors should in future
disembark.
Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1874-04-18
The Lion and the Unicorn.

James I. was the first who united the
lion and the unicorn heraldically,
adopting the latter beast from the sup
porters of the Scottish sovereigns. The
conjunction of those animals on an
ecclesiastical vestment of the period of
the Reformation must be attributed to
religious symbolism rather than to any
heraldic arrangement; the lion typify-
ing fortitude and strength, while the
unicorn is typical of fortitude and
chastity. AS such the former may have
reference to the Lord, "the Lion of
Judah" and the latter may be an en-
blem of the blessed Virgin Mary. The
tradition with regard to the unicorn,
that it never would be caught, except
by virgin, and that if its skin was de-
filed it pined away and died, is well
known. It's capture was favorite sub
iect with the medieval artist. 1 have
before metwith these animals as o pow
ering for vestment, I think, among
the inventories in Sir William Dug
dale's" History of st. Pauls. ."-NoteS
and Queries.
Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1874-04-18
The Stars.

Here is beautiful thought of
Thomas Carlyle: When I gaze into
the stars, they look down upon me with
pity from their serene and silent space,
like eyes glistening with tears, over the
little lot of men. Thousands of gener-
ations all as noisy as our own, have
been swallowed up by time, and there
remains no record of them any more,
yet Arcturus and Orion, Sirius and
the Pleiades, are still shining in their
courses, clear and young as when the
shepherd first noted them from the
plain of Shinar What shadows we are,
and what shadows we pursue !"
Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1874-04-18
COnnubialitieS.

A pretty little maiden
Had a pretty little dream,
A pretty little wedding
Was the pretty little theme,
A pretty little bachelor
To win her favor tried,
And ask her how she'd like to be
His pretty little bride.
With some pretty little bushes,
And pretty little sigh,
And some pretty little glances
From a pretty little eye;
With a pretty little face,
Behind pretty little fan,
She smiled on the proposal
OF this pretty little man.
Some pretty little Gloves"
And some pretty little " dears,"
And some pretty little smiles,
And some pretty little tears;
Some pretty little presents,
And pretty little kiss,
We're some pretty little preludes
To some pretty little bliss.
This pretty little lady
And her pretty little spark
Met the pretty little parson
And his pretty little clerk,
A pretty little wedding-ring
United them for life,
A pretty little husband
And pretty little wife.
The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1874-07-10
The German Empire.

The German Empire has now popu-
lation of II 060, $40 of which 20, $50, 900
are males and 20, 900, 900 females-prob-
ably the nearest to an equilibrium of
sexes in any country of an equally large
population. Sixty-three per cent. of
the inhabitants are over the age of ff-
teen years, and these are also pretty
equally divided in regard TO sex. Forty
per cent. of those over the age Of ff-
teen years are unmarried about nine
per cent. widowed, and one-ffth per
cent. divorced. OF the whole popula-
ton, 100000 are Poles, 10000
Wends, 90 900 Ozechians, $50, 900 Lit
thauers, 10000 Danes, and go, 000
French. The Professionals claim %, $40,
7S1 of the inhabitants, the Catholics
II, S51 450, the Jews 512, 1853. Thirty
one per cent. live in cities, sixty-nine
in the country. OF the cities, thirty
one claim a population of over 50, 000
each. The number of dwelling-houses
in the Empire amounts to 5, 1868, 900, and
these inhabited by S,605, 600 families
81. Louis Democrat.
The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1874-07-10
The Hardship of Work.

Murat Halstead, one of the most
practical of American journalists, gives
as his recipe TO make capltallst-Six
teen hours of work per day, for sixteen
years and it may be considered IN
fallible The good indefatigable work
er is sure, some day to become CAPT
talist, to greater or less extent. All
our great men are great workers. No
man ever achieved eminence whe COM
menced by reducing his hours of labor
to the smallest number per day, and no
man ever worked very hard and attained
fortune, who did not look back upon
his working days as the happiest of his
life.
The fact is, work is the best thing we
have got, and the more we can do, the
better it is for us not in n money point
of view alone. but from moral and
intellectual point of view. Work is not
a hardship; it is the want of it that is
the hardship.
How good work is to us how many
good things it brings to us Itlightens
our griels, soothes our disappoint-
ments, and brightens the darkest day
as nothing else can. 1t gives us home,
friends, good things to eat, clothes to
wear, pleasant objects for the eyes to
rest upon. 1t makes us able to crafty
the wishes of those nearest and dearest
to us, and it constantly makes the
world better to look at and better to
live in.
Let us magnify work then, love and
honor work, not whine over it, and
complain of it, Let us sing its praises,
rejoice over it, and show our real APP
probation of all it is and all it does for
us, by doing our share of it we'll, by
putting the best that is in us into our
work, and leaving it as a memorial of
which we shall not be ashamed
He0rM and HOnlc.
The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1874-07-10
A Remarkable Magnetic Chamber"

The author of "Sinbad the Sailors
Adventures" must resign his laurels.
One w. Ii. Stokes has been exploring a
recently discovered cave near Pine
Grove, Amador county, Cal, and writes
to the Sutter Greek Independent an ac-
count of his Investigations. Mr.. Stokes
vouches for the exact truth OF ms mar
rative in every Particular, ana we
doubt not the reader will readily credit
it from the following specimen descrip-
ton of one OF the chambers the party
entered. After iourneying for mile
and quarter through the underground
passages, Stokes and his party found
themselves in a long and rather mar
row chamber, the walls of which are
not limestone, but yellowish- brown
and black iron-ore. This chamber
beats Sinbads magnetic mountain,
Which drew all the nails from his ship,
and thus caused it to fall to pieces, all
hollow. Listen to Mr.. Stokes " Upon
entering this chamber we noticed Il
most peculiar disturbance of the mag
net, the needle constantly vibrating
from side to side, and frequently
whirling around for minute at time
with IL velocity which rendered it in
visible. We also experienced singu-
lar sensation, a sort of chill appearing
to commence ut the back OF the neck
and extending to the very tips of our
fingers and toes. AS we advanced in
TINS chamber we found these singular
sensations to increase in intensity until
it became almost unbearable. We
ventured on still further, however,
though it became evident that we could
not long remain in this mysterious
place. | omitted to mention that the
walls and floor of this chamber, especial
" particular rocks therein contained,
were highly magnetic. and became
more so the farther we advanced toward
the north. One Of the party who car
ried a hatchet had it suddenly wrested
from him by a magnetic rock near
which he passed, and the combined
strength OF four of us was insufficient
to detach it. A pocket-knife which ac-
cidentally dropped to the floor, had to
remain there, none of the party having
sufficient strength III his fingers to pick
it up. Mason, who had pu on for this
occasion q pair of miners boots, the
soles of which were filed with nails,
could walk with difficulty, and, hap
pening to step upon portion OF the
the floor unusually magnetic, found
himself suddenly affixed thereto and
unable to move. He was compelled to
withdraw his feet from his boots and
leave them there, tearing up his coat
and wrapping the pieces around his feet
to protect them from being cut by the
rocks. We had remained III this cham
Der about ten minutes, when suddenly
the chilling sensation began to increase
the feeling being as if a cold and pierre
ing wind was blowing upon us and be-
coming each moment more intensely
cold. We hastily retreated, and soon
reached, feeling more dead than alive,
the large chamber containing the hot
spring. We then retraced our steps
along the Irvine, and in couple of
hours emerged from the cave.
The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1874-07-10
How 10 Drive a Horse.

Young man, / see you are about to
take drive this morning, and will
offer you some advice. Your horse is
FESTIVE and wants to be off before you
are ready; you may as well break him
of this now as Mt any other time, and
hereafter you will find il has been q
half-hour well spent. Just give me the
reins while you put your foot on the
step as if to get in; the horse makes a
move to go; tighten the reins and say
Whoa" Now put your foot on the
step again; the horse makes another
move hold the reins and speak to
him again. The horse is getting ex-
cited. Pat him little on the neck and
talk to him soothingly. Put your foot
on the step again, and repeat this pro-
cess until the horse will stand still for
you TO get in and adjust yourself i'll
your seat and tell him TO go. A few
such lessons will train him SO that he
will always wait for your order before
starting.
Now, as yourhorse has just been fed,
drive him at gentle pace for the first
two or three miles, until he warns up
and his body becomes lighter. But be-
fore you start let me show you how tc
hold the reins. Take them IN your left
hand, have them of equal length from
the bit, and TO cross each other i'll your
hand, the off-side one resting on your
first finger, the other on the fourth fin
ger, the back of the hand upward
Now, in guiding the horse you have
only to use the wrist joint, which will
direct him either right or left, as you
wish. Keep your arm steady, with a
gentle pressure on the bit, no jerking
or switching of the reins. If more
speed is wanted, take the whip in your
right hand TO be gently used for that
purpose be careful not to apply it any
harder than is necessary to bring him
up to the required speed. Speek TO him
soothingly, and intimate in the most
gentle manner what you want him to
do, and he will try to do it. So noble
an animal should not be handled rough
ly nor over-driven. When you return,
have the harness removed at once, and
the horse rubbed down with a wisp Of
straw or hay. Give him bite of grass
or hay, and let him cool off before he is
watered or fed Every one who handles
a horse or has anything to do with one,
should cultivate acquaintance let him
know that you are his friend, and prove
it to him by your kind treatment. He
need this TO inspire confidence, and
when this is gained, he is your humble
servant.
If your horse gets frightened at any
unusual sight or noise, do not whip
him, for if you 60, he will connect the
whipping with the object that alarmed
him, and make him afraid of it ever
after. If he merely SHES at the object,
give him time to examine it, which,
with some encouraging words from the
driver, will persuade him to pass it,
You get frightened, too, sometimes, ana
would not like to be whipped for it.
Americdn Stock journal.