The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1880-06-24

ToIns were frst paid BY vessels pass.
ing the Stade on the River Elbe, 100.
In England toll-bars originated in 1867.
9 penny being asked for every wagon
that passed through q certain manor. and I
the first regular toll was collected few
years later for mending the road In Lon
don. between St Giles and Temple Bar.
BUNKER HILh monument is 221 feet
high, and is built Of hewn Quincy gran
tie. The corner stone was originally
laid by Lafayette, on the fftieth ami
versary Of the battle, June II, 1925, but.
like the corner stone of the Washington
monument he laid in Washington
square, Philadelphia, afterward, moth
ing sprang from it. IN March, 1927,
another corner stone was laid on Breeds
hill; and for several years the work
fingered along until the ladies took it
up. They raised subscrip ions, and got
Fanny Ellsler to give a benefit in aid of
the fund. Thus supplied with money,
& the managers erected the monument
and completed it July 2, 1912.
The BooMERANa.-The boomerang is
an instrument used in war and In the
chase by the aborigines Of Australia. It
is about two feet in length, flat on one
side and rounded on the other, and Is
made of hard wood bent into q curve
nearly resembling an 1obtuse angle. The
method Of using this remarkable weapon
is very peculiar. It is taken by one end
with the bulged side downward, and
thrown forward as if to hit some object
twenty five yards in advance. Instead
of continuing to 60 directly forward, as
would naturally be expected, it slowly
ascends in the air, whirling round and
round, and describing curved line till
it reaches considerable height, when
it begins to retrograde, and finally
sweeps over the head of the protector
and falls behind him. This surprising
motion is produced by the reaction Of
the air upon missile of that shape.
The Australians are said to be very dex-
ferrous IN hitting birds and other small an
imals, as being behind the thrower they
are unaware that they are the object of
! attack.
GEORGE ABRAHANs was extravagantly
fond of cold cabbage, and one day, see
ing that quite dishful was left. after
dinner, asked his wife to save it for his
salad at night. About midnight George
came laboring under stress of heavy
weather. Feeling hungry, and thinking
Of his favorite cabbage, he asked where
| it was. His wife replied: In the
/ pantry, on the second SHELF" Down he
went, found the cabbage, got out the
oil, mustard, and vinegar, cut up the
cabbage, dressed it to the Queens taste
and ate it all. In the morning his wife
noticed the plate Of cabbage where she
had placed it the day before, and, turn
ing to her .dear George" innocently
asked why he did not eat the cabbage.
81 did" he said. 6 How did you like
it?" "Oh! not very well; it was tough
and stringy.'' ssBut here is the cabbage
now; where did you find any more?''
"Why, on the second shelf, where You
told me" A quick look at the shelf by
the wife and then a cry Of agony.
"Why, George, you have eaten $40
worth of lace collars and cuffs that
had put in starch; stringy cabbage, in.
deed!'
/ The word month is derived from
moon, and accurately means the time
taken by the moon in passing through
its regular phenomena from one full
moon to another, or from one new moor
to another. It was naturally the easies
4 division Of time to make, and was usei
the world over by all barbarians. Th
next great division Of time was the yea
+ or return Of the seasons. But twelv,
lunations are not enough and thirtee1
are too many to make year, SO yariou
expedients were used by Assyrians
Egyptians, Jews, Greeks, Romans an,
Chinese to patch the calendar. Juliu
Caesar reformed it altogether, and on
July is named for him as August is TO
Y Augustus Caesar. It cannot be said tina
anybody ever discovered that time wa
reckoned wrong, or that anyone eve
rectifed it as he might barrel Of high
wines. Chronology was always loosel
kept. Events were recorded .as in tn
blank year of the reign Of King Tumble
bug" Officials documents still keep
up, statutes in England being known
for example, as Il Victoria, meanin
statute passed in the fourteenth yea
of her reign, and even in this countr
proclamations are dated Gin the yea
Of the Independence Of tn
United States the