The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1880-11-10
RITS OF INFORMATION,

y THE first telegraph line ever built was
that between Washington and Baltimore
in 1874.
THE first attempt at theatrical per-
formances in the United States was at
Boston in 1850. The first regular thea
ter was in New York in 1893.
THE finest emoralds come from Peru
and other parts OF South America,
though they are sometimes brought
from the East.
PApYRUs is the reed from which was
made the celebrated paper Of Egypt and
India, used for writing until the discov-
cry Of parchment about 100 Is. q. Ptol-
envy prohibited the expectation OF it
from Egypt, lest Eumenese OF Pergamus
should make a library equal to that OF
Alexandria. A manuscript OF the anti
qlities Of Josephus on papyrus OF in
estimable value was among the treasures
seized by Bonaparte III Italy, and sent
to the National Library at Paris; but it
was restored in 1915.
ASBESTOS being almost indestructible
by fire was highly priced by the nations
Of antiquity, who spun and woye 1t into
! cloth, with which they used to form
shrouds, in which the bodies Of royal
and illustfious persons were arrayed
at the funeral pyre. AS the asbestos
did not consume, the ashes of the dead
we're kept from mingling with those Of
the wood. 1t is said that the Brahmins
sometimes made themselves clothes Of
is. and also employed it for wicks to
their perpetual lamps. The Romans
used the cloth for napkins, which were
cleaned by throwing them into the fire
and burning them until the dirt was re-
moved.
The standard of the eagle was first
borne by the Pcrsins and the Romans
carried figures Of the eagle as cnsigns,
in silver and gold, and sometimes repre-
sentod with thunderbolt in its talons
on the point Of spear. They adopted
the eagle in the consulate Of Mnrius,
1902 b. c. When Charlcmagn became
master Of the whole Of the German EN-
pre, he added tho second head to the
eagle for his arms, to denote that the
empires of Rome and Germany were
united in him, 800 A. ID. The eagle was
the imperial standard of Napoleon and
is that of Austria, Russia, Prussia and
France. 1t is also the national emblem
of the United States. The Austrian
eagle is represented double-headed.
An Extraordinary Correspondence.
A correspondence with hair was once
attempted between notorious Partisan
thief in durance vile and his comradt
outside. A letter was sent to the pris
oncr from his sweetheart, containing
;; merely lock Of hair wrapped III the lea
of book. The jailor did not conside'
the souvenir important enough to be de
livered, but in few days there came {
similar Enclosure, and yet another
8 This aroused suspicion, and the Cover
nor took the matter in hand. He exam
4 med the leaf Of the book it was that o
I O common novel, twenty-six lines on
page. Then he studied the hair an,
n noticed the small quantity of the gift
: Counting the hairs, he found them of IN
equal length, and twenty-six in number
: the same rs the lines on the page
Struck with the coincidence, he laid tn
: hairs along the lines of the page whic]
P they respectively reached beginning a
Z; the top with the smallest hair. Ate
p some trouble he found that the end G
9 each hair pointed to u different letter
u and that these letters combined forme
o q slang sentence, which Informed tin
u prisoner that his friends were on tn
u watch, and that the next time he left til
prison to be examined an attempt woul
= be made to release him. The Governo
n laid his plans accordingly. Theatteml
u was made but the rescuers fell int
u, their own trap.