The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1880-12-30
UElks OF HTEREsT.

try was manufactured in 1890, at Hart
: ford, Conn, by Jeremiah Wadsworth,
and the first suit made out of it was
worn by George Washington
An iron church. forty by twenty feet
in size, was sent from London, Eng, to
the Esquimaux, and after being two
years on the way at length reached its
destination. and was dedicated.
When Jenny Lind visited America the
famous caricaturist Cham amused him.
self by representing an American walk
ing about with his hand in a glass case.
II do not use it any longer" said the
American, ..since Jenny Lind has shook
. it."
Ole Bull, by his last will, bequeathed
to the Museum of Bergen, Norway, a
number of his Jewels, medals and decor
ations, given him in the course of his
long professional careersby Kings, En-
perors and other titled personages. In
cluded in the bequest is the golden
crown, set with diamonds and pearls,
presented to him some ten years ago by
citizens Of San Francisco.
A farmer away down in Maine mar
ried love of a school girl. who didn't
know the first thing about housekeep-
ing. or farming. When he took her
home she neglected her household du-
ties, and went ranging about the farm
'.botanizing'' and studying geology.
The neighbor's wives did not like her,
but before they knew it she had discov-
cred on her husbands land a mine
worth $4,000.
In southern California the tomato is
perennial. A vine in Los Angels has
been trained over the sunny side of a
house, and is now twenty-five feet high.
1t has blossoms and ut the same time
fruit in all stages of growth In San
Bueneventura grape vine, planted
seventeen years ago, measures forty
inches around the stem, and covers an
area of about eighty feet. 1t yields an
annual crop of about one thousand
pounds. single clusters averaging three
and half pounds
HI. Currier, of Biddeford, Me-, one of
the proprietors of the Biddcford Ma
chine Works, is having constructed for
his own use a steam road-wagon, which
is expected to make good time on any
ordinary highway. The vehicle looks
very much ike an ordinary wagon, ex-
cept that it has no shafts, and weighs
but $50 pounds. 1t is designed to run
25 miles without having the fire re-
newed, and will cost about 800.
The tale that Gambetta, when child,
voluntarily put out his right eye in order
to be removed from q seminary which
he abhorred, is pronounced an absurd
fiction. The real facts are, that one
day, when only 8 years old, while look
ing at cutler boring holes in the handle
of knife with dri1 fastened to an old
broken foil bv a piece of cat-gnt, this
rude machine gave way by reason of too
81. g.
the right eye of the child with great
force, perforating the cornea- This ter
rible accident causing him to be one
different from his kind, he was petted,
pampered and spoiled by his parents,
his every whim and fancy indulged, and
every caprice of his ardent and violent
character allowed free play.
Probably the largest rock in the known
world is the south dome of the Yosemite.
Standing at the fork of the upper valley,
it rears itself, solid, rocky loaf, 600
feet above the ground. A more power
full hand than that of a Titan has cut
away the eastern half, leaving a sheer
precipice over a mile in height. No
man ever trod the top of this dome un-
til last year. Former visitors gaZed in
wonder at the spikes driven into the
rock by hardy spirits who had repeated
ly endeavOred to scale it. The shreads
Of rope dangling in the wind told the
story of their failure. Last year, how
ever, after thousands of dollars had been
expended, several persons found their
way to the top of the dome. and this
summer two sheep were found browsing
on the hitherto inaccessible peak.
Nevada is a dand of curious natural
phenomena. Her rivers have no visible
outlet to the ocean. She has no lakes
OF any magnitude She has vast stretch
es of alkali deserts, however, that give
every indication of having been the beds
or bottoms of either seas or lakes. Down
in Lincoln county there is a spring of
ice-cold water that bubbles up over a
rock and disappears on the other side,
and no one has been able to find where
the water goes. At another point in the
same county is large spring. about
twenty feet square, that is apparently
only some eighteen or twenty inches in
depth, with a sandy bottom. The sand
can be plainly seen, but on looking
closer it is perceived that this sand is in
n perpetual state of unrest. No bottom
has ever been found to this spring. 1t is
said that teamster, on reaching this
spring one day, deceived by its apparent
shallowness, concluded to soak one of
lis wagon wheels to cure the loOseness
of its tire. He therefore took it of. and !
oiled it into the, as he thought, shallow
water. He never laid eyes on that wagon
wheel again.
EuphOrbium is gum resin which |
eNudes from the euphOrbia, shrub |
growing on the slopes of the Atlas |
Mountains, in Morocco. The dust of |
the plant is excessively acrid, producing |
violent sneezing and even delirium. In |
one instance an Irish laborer was rem |
dered so insane by it as to insist on say |
ing his prayers at the tail of the mill |
horse. Lately, however, the resin has |
been turned to valuable uses as a pre- |
ventive of rust. Some labOrers at Natal |
that metallic surfaces coated |
with this material no longer oxidized, |
and plates of iron were coated with it |
and immersed in water by way of exper- !
iment. These were completely preserv-
ed from rust, although the waters of |
Southern Africa are well known for their
injurious action upon metals To make
practical application of the discovery, |
the euphorbium was dissolved in alcohol,
and the mixture applied to the hulls of
with complete success in pre-
cOrrOSiOn. The varnish, if it
may DC 81 CdhCh, aioo
erable lIlstre and preserves those objects
to which it is applied from the action of
the atmosphere 1t is now being intro
duced into England
.fOhn j. Jacoby, his wife, and only
child. little girl of 4 years, live in
They had in their en-
ploy a servant girl of Scotch extraction
named Mary Campbell. She professed
to be warmly attached to the family,
and by her actions led Mr.. and Mrs.
Jacoby to beli,)ve that she passionately
loved their little Mamie. Some time
ago Mrs. Jacoby received letter from
relatives at BordentOwn, N. j., inform
ing her that her mother was lying at
the point of death. Being an only
child she fastened to the bedside of her
parents, leaving her child at home with
her nurse and husband. After spend
ing q week in Brodentown Mrs. Jacoby