The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1878-11-07
History of Il Dead Letter.

Some time in 1877 It soldier stationed
with the cavalry in Texas died very
suddenly, and was buried with military
honOrs by his comrades, and the spot
carefully marked. On his person was a
discharge, which he had received the
day before for physical disability, and
a letter from his mother in England,
and one evidently from his sweetheart,
but signed only by her first name. These
were carefully preserved by the lieuten-
ant of the company aud forwarded, by a
letter of sympathy, to the bereaved
mother in England. In due course of
time the letter was returned to the
United States Dead Letter Office as I'M
deliverable, the mother not being at her
former address. it was then opened,
and, after an examination, returned in
its open condition, with the suggestion
that the contents would enable the En-
glish post officials to discover the person
it was intended to reach; but i'll due
course of time it came back the second
time as unbelievable.
The letter was then turned over to
one of the lady clerks in the Dead Let
ter Office, who on reading the contents,
with a woman's instinct, OWNED that
the collie" spoken of in the letter and
the Miss L pokenof in the mothers
letter was identical. What is techni-
cally termed letter of discovery
was addressed to the supposititiOus lady
at the address in Scotland post-marked
,,, l,or lottar Db;u Lot tar an roo nb am, thnt
Office was forwarded to London, whittier
the young lady had gone, and the Dead
Letter Office at Washington has Just re-
ceived reply from her, with thanks
for the diligence displayed in endeavor-
ing to secure the delivery of the letter,
stating that it was the first they heard
of the soldiers death, and giving the
present address of the mother of the sol
dier, to whom the original package has
been forwarded, making its fifth trip
across the Atlantic Ocean.
THE famous marble quarrics of Carrara
although they have been worked since
the reign of Augustus, and have fur
nished steady and enormous supply to
the whole civilized globe seem to be in
exhaustible. They compose an entire
mountain range, and embrace every
variety and quality of marble, from the
coarse, common kind to the statuary mar
Bile, Monte Crestola and Monte Sagro
yielding the largest and finest blocks.
The blocks are detached, drawn out by
oxen, and rolled down the hill. The
quarries number some five hundred, only
about twenty of them furnishing the mar
BILE used by sculptors. Most of the inhabi-
tants of Carrara and the vicinity-some
5000 workmen in all-are employed in
the labor at forty cents to sixty-two
cents a day. The marble taken out dur
ing the year before last was about 40, 600
tons, valued at S2,4O0,G00, of which
10000 tons went to the United States
The export of marble to this country
has increased immensely within twelve
to fifteen years, the third largest firm
of marble quarry owners now at Carrara
being American. The American Consul
there is a member of the firm, and his
Consulate is said to produce larger in
come than any other in Italy.
THE two rooms occupied by NOltaire
in his chateau at Ferney have been
kept lovingly and reverently as he left
them His sleeping apartment, with Its
truckle bed and its walls hung round
with portraits-among them Milton and
Newton is exactly the same ~ when he