West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1877-10-06

made of silk, was more capable of
bearing rain and wind. To the upright
arm of the cross was an iron point
the lower end of which was i'm contact
with the string by which the kite was
raised, which was hempen cord. At
the lower extremity of this cord, near
the observer, a key was fastened; and i'm
order to intercept the electricity i'm its
descent, and prevent il from reaching
the person who held the kite, a silk
ribbon was tied to the ring of the KEY,
and continued TO the hand by which the
kite was held.
Furnished with this apparatus, on the
approach of storm, he went out upon the
commons near Philadelphia accompanied
by his son, To whom alone he commune
Gated his intentions, well knowing the
ridicule which would have attended the
report of such an attempt, should it
prove unsuccessful. Having raised the
kite, he placed himself under shed,
that the ribbon by which it was held
might be kept dry, as it would become a
conductor of electricity when wetted by
rain and 80 fail TO afford that protection
for which it was provided. A cloud, APP
parently charged with thunder, soon
passed directly over the kite. lie OBJ
served the hempen cord, but no bristlng
oil its iibcrs was apparent, such as was
wont to take place when it was clectri-
fed
He presented his knucklc to the KEY,
but not the smallest spark was percepti-
BILE. The agony of his expectation and
suspense can be adequately felt by those
who have entered into the spirit of those
experimental researches. After the
lapse of some time, he saw that the fibers
OF the cord near the key bristled and
stood on end.
He presented his knuckle to the key.
and received Il strong bright spark. 1t
was lightning. The discovery was COM
plete, and Franklin felt that he was inn
mortal.
MOusey.-None of the little creatures
around us seem so timid as n mouse.
Al the slightest sound the little nibbler
VIII scamper away to his hole He
seems To know that, for all his sleek.
handsome coat, and bright, bead eyes, we
do not pardon his thefts. He knows that
he has host of enemies, cats and dogs
and weasels and owls, and that men see
him in their merciless grip without feel
ing spark of compassion. Indeed he
does not think poor mouscy has enemies
enough, so he sets traps to entice him to
his ruin.
Yet mousey can be made pet. Kind
ness will convince him that YOU mean
him no harm, and then confidence will
come. Many poor prisoner anguish
ing in his lonely cell has made n pet of
a mouse, and fed it with crumbs, so that
it would come and play with him, giving
him some little relief from the dreary
hours of his confinement.
When tanned, we can study the little
creatures, and see how they are in
fluenced by passions. Who would think
mouse could be Jealous? Yet the
Rev. j. G.. Wood the naturalist tells this
story:
A young lady one of my correspon-
dents, had succeeded i'm tanning n com
mon brown mouse so completely that il
would eat out of her hand, and allow
itself to be taken up off the floor. She
had also tame white mouse i'm cage.
One morning when she went to feed the
white mouse rs usual, she found il living
dead in the bottom of the cage, and beside
1t was It's murderer, the brown mouse. The
cage being opened, the latter made its
escape, but how it contrived to gain adj
mission was mystery"
The New Haven Comm Register tells
the following of the alleged murderer,
Andersen, who is awaiting new trial in
the county Jail in that city: He some
time since caught mouse i'm his cell.
Gagged him and carefully trained him. An
dersen will hold a string suspended from
his fingers, and in broken English com
mand the mouse to up like a sailor,
whercupon the little animal will Law
hold OF the string with his little feet
and climb to the prisoners hand. The
mouse will sit ut command on his hind
legs on tea-cup, will crawl up the pris-
oner's face, through his mustache and
over his nose, and finally Jump from the
mans head to his hand, completing his
graceful bow. One of the most inter
esting things concerning the history of
this little acrobat is the great love it has
for the prisoner. When Andersen was
moved few weeks ago to another and
| darker cell the mouse was lost, and al
though carefully sought after by the
keeper, could not be found. Andersen
was deeply grieved over the disappear
ance OF ms tiny companion, who he
feared had been killed, and even the
prison officials expressed regret that the
little creature should have dropped so
completely and mysteriousIy out of the
usually dull routine of prison life.
Great was the joy, therefore, of Ander-
sen, and of all in the Jail, when one day
mouse made its appearance at the door
OF Andersen's new cell, and running i'm.
resumed its accustomed place by the
prisoners side. 1t is stated that the lit
tie animal seemed as greatly reioiced as
its master nvar tho ro,,n;o..