St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1877-02-09
to receive them. and fall helpless to the

to receive them. and fall helpless 10 tnt
pavement.
You can hardly conceive of anything
more exciting than this race but it is al
cruel as bull fighting; a horse which
has run that gauntlet, if he does not die
at once, is seldom good for anything
afterward and l believe this feature o.
the carnival has been omitted during
the last year or so. The idea of having
one day of masquerade and burlesqut
in this city has been received with muct
favor, and several German, French anC
Italian societies are actively interesting
themselves to ensure its adoption anC
success. Should this plan for Mard
Gras be carried out l shall take pleasure
in chronicling its important features fol
the benefit of your readers.
Two months ago the coroner's jury
was impannelled Id the Brooklyn fire
case, and the work of inquests begun
The work of this body has just been
completed, and long report, in which
the management of the theatre in which
the disaster occurred is severely censur-
ed, and long list of recommendations
submitted for the prevention of similar
catastrophes in furture. / am afraid
that any weeping the Coroner may have
done in this case must have been ''crOc-
Odile tears" for he didn't lose any rel
atives by the accident and, if he gets
the regular fee of $3.50 for each body
upon which inquest has been held, he
will receive for his work over So, 500,
the largest corOner's fee ever known.
His claim for this amount will be re-
sisted by the city on the ground that
but one inquest was held but as it is
made according to law the fortunate
official will doubtless collect it in full.
Meanwhile the terrible calamity which
comparatively few weeks ago sent a
shudder throughout the land has been
practically forgotten, and will hereafter
be only occasionally recalled to mind
through some casual remark or news
paper item, and then will hardly excite
feeling of any kind. Such is life
and more especially death-in this cold
world.
A favorite subject for city writer's to
display their wit upon is the greenness
OF the cOuntryman visiting the great
metropolis, and the ease with which he
is taken in and done for by the city
sharp. One of the events of this week
goes far toward proving that verdancy
is not an exclusively rural attribute,
but may appear in one whose life has
been spent among the bricks and paw
ing stones. In the circumstances re-
ferred to, an old New Yorker who had
$25, 900 worth of diamond jewelry, on
which he wanted to raise a loan, ac-
cepted the kindly offered services of
young man who volunteered to help
e.
preliminary negotiations arranged by
the disinterested young man, in which
he managed to gain the entire conf
dence of the diamond owner, the two
drove one day to down town hotel
where the transaction was to be con-
cluded. AT the door the kind young
man took the jewels, saying he wished
to show them to some one inside first,
and requested the other to "wait for
him." The latter did 'swait for him."
and that's all the good it did him, for
the Jealous youth walked in the front
door and out by back entrance. The
thief has been caught. The S25, 900
diamonds have not. Moral: city men
should not laugh too hard at their
country cousins for falling an easy prey
to swindlers.
In recent letter | spoke of some of
the curiOsities of hard times in New
York. Since then there has come under
my notice another practice which the
prevailing scarcity of the circulating
medium has caused to be quite general.
This is the selling of wedding presents
by newly married couples who find they
cannot live entirely on love and rose
leaves in he ,,fl
comforts than their purse
will afford. In a fashionable wedding
it frequently occurs that many duplicate
ale given, as well as many that
are of no practical value to the recipi- |
ents. Such facts are learned by the |
half dozen dealers who make this bust
ness speciality, and week or two
after the occasion, one of them will call !
on the young couple and cautiously
breach the subject of purchase. AT
first his offer is usually refused with |
Indignation, but in the end he will often
carry off, under the promise of the |
strictest secresy, the largest share of
the wedding offerings for which he has |
paid say from third to one half their
value.
The Nep York Herald, which is al
ways riding some hobby horse, has Just
changed from the subject of heating
the street cars, which it could not bring
about, to war upon dogs in general
and Spitz dogs in particular. The num-
Der of cases of hydrophobia from the
bite of this breed is constantly on the
Increase, and the paper mentioned gives
rs daily editorial demanding their ex-
ii good thing, undoubted-
y, if it could be accomplished, which
t can't.
Our Aquarium is for the third time in
for similar bereavement.
The last white whale is dead, and is
low lying in state in his late home for
| few days previous to going to his last
'esting place. He is said to have died
rom consumption. Rather an aristo-
ratio disease for fish, should think.
The indOmitable manager, Mr.. Coup,
will not give it up, however, but says
lie shall get up another expedition at
'nce to replace the lost curiosity.
One of the magnificent boats of the
Fall River Line which went ashore in
he harbOr of New Haven early in Jan
larry, has been got off safely after TWEEN
y-six days of Imprisonment in the sand.
fortunately the floating palace is al
most entirely uninjured, and is again
unning her regular trips. RADIx.
MAD DOGs.-Central Massachusetts
las been sadly afflicted with mad dogs,
low fol many months, and many
precious lives have been lost by that
lreadful disease, hydrophobia. 1t is
Wonder that the people of that state ;
uffer dog to live after such expert {