Morris tribune., 1881-03-31
Facts and Fancies,

The only objection the average man has
to the coming of spring is that with it
comes house cleaning. ..l
The beautiful pampas grass, so highly
priced for decorative purposes, is begin
ming to Le systematically cultivated for mar
ket in southern California. 1t is said that
three quarters of an acre planted in pampas
grass Welded at two and one half cents per
head, $500. One grower sold all he could
raise at and one-half cents per head. Last
year the produce of that region was 10, 900
heads of plumes.
A Boston critic says that the average the
alter goer is not an intellectual in fact, hard
ly an average intelligent person. He likes
handsome face, good voice, an obtrusive
woman on the stage. The critic goes on to
say that perhaps he, the critic, would enjoy
his life better in some of its phases If he
were more fastidious than the average thea
ter goer.
The importance of these two items as
branches of the lumber trade Is not gen.
e1ally understood. We have in the United
States about $4,000 miles of railway. Each
mile requires the use of about 900 ties; so
| that the enormous number OF 24O. 0JO, OOO
! ties are in constant use. One tenth OF this
number or 24,O0O,000 are annually c,,nsu-
med in the United states for repairs alone,
aside from those necessary to the construc-
ton of new lines. The amount Of railway
construction for the present year, which
will aggregate 1000 miles, with the annual
nun Der of ties required for repairs, will
give consumption in the United States
for 1881 of the vast'total of As, O0O, 900.
Seth Green says there is always great NOR
tality among fish in ice-locked waters. He
says After every long steady winter like
this, many more fish die than anybody sup
poses. People have an idea that all fish
float when dead, and that the only dead fish
are those that they see on the surface OF
the water. The fact is that in the case OF
dead fish but one in ten comes to the top
We have determined that by actual count
at the state ponds" This mortality is cas-
lily prevented, Mr.. Green says, by choppine
holes here and there in the ice, and thus
giving the fish fresh air.
A marriage service was in progress at st
Johns church, New Orleans. A closely veil
ed woman with an infant in her arms, walk
ed up the centre isle just as the clergyman
asked if any one objected to the union. {"
do" said the intruder, pulling off her veil
and laying her baby at the feet of the bride
groom. Here is your child. You are m.
husband. I am lawfully your wife ant
you shall not marry this woman" Sh
made a furious attempt to attack him
but was restrained by the ushers, while tn
bride screamed and tainted. 1t transpire'
that the woman was not the mans wife
though he had for years made her believ
so by means of forged certificate.
For the first time in four years an execu
ton has taken place in Prussia. The cul
prit, wife murderer named Gohrke, wa
recently beheaded in the Jail yard of Cosi
by "a man named Krantz the executioner O
the would-be regicide Hodel. The execu
ton was conducted in the old style, an
} with an ak and block instead of guilotine
AS soon as the head fell into the basket
number of superstitious bystanders rushe
forward and dipped their handkerchiefs 1
the culprits blood in the belief that thei
business would thereby prosper.
Some of them I never heard of before,
was comment made upon the Cabinet b
: very worthy Boston gentleman, as if thi
lack Of knowledge implied that sew
eral nobodies had been selected by Pres
t ident Garfield. This is great country AN
even the reading men of Massac nusetts can
not be supposed to know great deal abol
all the big men of the great west, while bus
mess men have little time to follow the ca
Ieer of rising men. The Boston Journ'
says: A man is not nobody because he
not known in Massachusetts. There al
not to day fifty men in this city who ca
tell you the name of the governors of til
six New England states.