davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Opelousas courier., 1883-08-04
POPULAR SCIENCE.

80 J @#E.E =ZSEr E5s .LH
The great and peculiar value OF
steam is it's power of creating at one
moment a high degree of elastic force,
and losing it instantaneouslythe next
moment.
Among the special features of the
Munich electrical exhibition was a
giant telephone, which transmitted
music so as to be audible to the entire
audience in a large hall. Rs
Amongthe strongest evidences, per-
haps, now cited in support of the the
ory that coal is Of marine origin, is the
very considerable percentage of nitro
gen in its constituents. The distilla-
ton Of coal invariably develops guam
titles CT ammonia, which is rarely de-
veloped from peat or Ignite. Such a
large proportion of nitrogen, it is
thought, may be due to the innumer-
able animals that lived on the seaweed,
from which latter, this theory assumes,
the coal was formed.
It has been estimated chat at east
5000 meteoric stones reach the earth
annually. These stones are usually OF
inconsiderable size, but as they have
been falling since a very remote period
in geological history, the aggregate
mass which has thus been added to our
planet must bevery great. The largest
meteoric stone ever found is IN the
ROYAL academy of Stockholm and
weighs twenty-five tons. The museum
at Copenhagen contains one OF ten
tons: the Brit sill museum one OF more
than five tons :Sthe museum at st. Pc
tersburg one of 1850 pounds; Yale
college one of 1856 pounds, and the
Smithsonian institution n of I,4OO
pounds.
In the opinion of the Scientific
american there is a possibility that
the wonderful comet of 1872 may
make its reappearance before the year
closes. Encke computed o this comet
a period of about seventy years. II
his computation be correct it may sud
denly fame forth in the heavens at
any moment. A more rigorous in
vestigation of the comets path has re-
Gently been completed by MN. Schulz
hof and Bosseri that give, aperiod of
seyenty-three years. They have fixed
upon September 4, 1884, for the next
perihelion passage. But comets, with
their perturbations, retardations and
accelerations, are the most unreliable
members of the system. 1t is not inn
possible, in spite Of all the wise calcu-
lations of tie mathematicians, that
the comet of 1912 may steal a march
upon us before the year closes. "
The Opelousas courier., 1883-08-04
....... ~
The Great Desert

The newspaper reader has not yet
turned thirty years who IAN remember
when the map in his school geography
had the words "Great American Des-
ert " printed across all the unknown
space between the Territory of Kansas
and the Rocky mountains. If n of
the old geography makers is alive to-
day he would rub his eyes in astonish.
ment to get hold of a newspaper pub
lished in Denver, a city of fifty thou
sand inhabitants, and read columns of
interviews with architects as to
whether the new capital of the State
of Colorado should be built. rs he ex-
presses it, in the style of the French
renaissance" or, as another thinks,
"like the Louvre of Paris" or, as athird
prefers. latter the school of the Eng
lish renaissance" or "rigidly classic
or "purely American" as others sug-
gest. Great American Desert, in
deed
The Opelousas courier., 1883-08-04
and orderly among themselves, hut the

and orderly among themselves, hut the
man who runs counter to the sentl
ments of the community, whether
white or black, "isn't allowed to open
his mouth in dis place" The break
ing up of this settlement would be a
great misfortune, not only to the IN
habitants but to the agricultural part
of the community. as laborers are hired
here for miles around. During cot
ton-picking season they go off in
gangs" men. women and children,
those of the latter who are old enough
to pick cotton. The farmers engaging
them furnish shelter and rations, u
they take their own bedding and cook
ing utensils. During the fruit and
vegetable picking sea on they ret I'm
home every night, and sometimes make
as much as 81 a day. They also work
in the canning, but not in the cotton.
factory.
The Opelousas courier., 1883-08-04
Going A.Fishing.

Did we not go fishing it would not
be summer. Conversely, If it were not
summer we would not 60 a-ishing.
We are going fishing next week"
said MI. Oidboy, land I want to be
sure we've got all our things to-
gether."
"Got a tent2' asked his partner.
Eyes, I've got a tent"
"And a boat?'
Eyes /; that's engaged"
"Whisky?"
"Lots OF it"
"Some pilot biscuit?"
"Yes, a whole box"
"Five or six dozen of beerf"
"Yes."
"Cigar5"
aHundreds of 'em."
aPlenty Of whisky2'
"Yes."
aHam and canned meats2"
EYES,"
"A good lot Of baer?"
yes"
you'll want, some ice"
II have thaEs and | have lots OF
canned goods, plenty of beer and cigars,
no end of whisky and bread, and
everythingI can possibly think of, and
yet it seems to me I've left something
out"
Got your tackle, haven't your"
.By George shouted MFR. Oldb0y,
"you've hit it. That's just it-fish-
hooks aud lines, wen need some Of
them, won't we? / knew | had for
gotten something"
/ do not know why it is, but for
some reason nearly every fishing party
carries with it a lot of hooks and lines
which are only good to tangle up and
sfrch in the dropping branches of the
whispering tire s-BWdette, In Gin
cinnGH Enquirer.
The Opelousas courier., 1883-08-04
HUMOROUS SKETCHES.
THE One He Didn't Take.

"James
"Yes, pa"
"1here were seven California pears
In thai cupboard. Six of them are
gone. Do you know anything about
itp"
at never took one of them"
Sure?
"Certain, pa. Wish I may die, if
"You wicked, bad boy; how Often
have 1 told you never to use such an
expressi0n2 Here comes ma; let lis
see if she knows anything about it"
Mamma says she saw James take at
least five of them.
"You little rascal How dare yon
tell me you never took one, and here's
only this little one with the grub-eaten
side LETT" 2
sob, pa, don't hit me. | said |
didn't take n of them-and-and-
and that's the one / didn't take"
Pa relented.
The Opelousas courier., 1883-08-04
A Clock Made Out Of Bread.

A Peruvian, living in Milan, has
made a clock entirely out of bread.
Too poor to purchase metal, and with
only a certain allowance OF brea daily,
he deprived himself regularly of the
soft portions of the loaf, satisfying his
hunger with the crusts. lie used a
certain salt to solidify the material,
which then became hald and p rfectly
insoluble in water. The clock keeps
good time, and the case, made OF
hardened bre ad, is handsome.
The Opelousas courier., 1883-08-04
Science Pints the Way.

Science has had a hard struggle, said
Brother Gardner, at the Lime-Kiln
club, but she am now top of de heap
! an kin reward her frens an forgive
her enemies. How do we know dat
de airth revolves on her axletrees,
same as delwheels of a wagin? Sci
ence has told us. How do we know
how to cross de oshun2 Science pints
de way, How do we know dat de
great desert of Sa-hary was once an
ocean? Science has dug way down an
fonn' clam shells and sharks jaw
bones. Widout science we should be
a world widout o~yercoats in winter or
sodyWater in summer. We shouldf fall
from harvest apple trees an pick our
selves up widout KNOWN wheeler grab
itashun or agitashun made us cum
down instead Of goin' up. We should
see de moon, same as now, but some
would say it was inhabited by mon
keys an odders would have an ideah
dat it was q splendiferous locality for
q persimmon grove. De sun would
rise an sat an warp the shingles on de
roofs, but men would 60 round bluffin'
fur bets dat she WASH fifty miles away
an was held in placeaby Wires.-De-
trojt Free Press.
The Opelousas courier., 1883-08-04
I'M EMBARRASSING Posifiea.

Years ago there lived In the State DC
New York the two brothers Thurston.
They were twins, and so closely re-
sembled each other iii appear ance and
manner--even the tones of their voices
were alike-that few could tell John
from George Their love for each other
was AS intense as that which led
David TO say Of Jonathan: Thy love
TO me was wonderful, passing the love
De WomaEaa
HI their calloW days they were asso-
eiated With al incident that combined
The righteousness of the Two Dromios
with the pathos of John Alden's
courtship Of Priscilla for Captain
Standish.
Georgewa engaged to q YOUNG lady
III d nEgzhoring town, and made his
counting visits every Saturday night.
It happened one Saturday that he was
taken suddealy III In a spirit Of rare
undergraduates he asked his brother
John % take his place Join, for the
fun Of the thing. readiy consented,
and promised TO do his Best.
he was warmly received by the un.
s~uspecting girl. anafar ashort time SC
managed e play part as to remain
undiscovered. But many little secrets
exist between engaged couples. and one
such caused Johns fall from his un.
warranted position.
At last his future sister-in-law sur.
sea him with the question
the way, George, fSse yon goi
The Opelousas courier., 1883-08-04
Japanss Army

The Hochi Shinbun, a Japanese
newspaper, gives some particulars of
the army of Japan, as follows: General
officers, 80; colonies, 2553; captains,
.ieutenants. etc, 1859: staff officers,
2,662 cadets, 78 n.n-commis-
stoned officers, 6,9I8; rank and file,
I094966: workmen. etc, 0@; total,
pI.oo
The Opelousas courier., 1883-08-04
He FOX the Hint.

A sad-faced man, looking as though
he had recently lunched off a cholera
epidemic, went into a Western news
paper sanctum and remarked
81 hate to speak about it, Mister
Editor, but there are some mighty thin
things creep into your paper onee in q
while"
q / know it," said the editor. eand
there are me mighty thin things
creep into a newspaper Office once in 8
while, too; and if you don't skip out
pretty quick I'll turn the sewer gas
and blow You through the key hole"
The mar took the delicate hint, and
along with it his departure.-Cheek
Tn tho French arn % Il
The Opelousas courier., 1883-08-04

"speaking of carrying the ! ii IIssl
remarked the cal tain, "Wnen 40 ]
on Feather river, California, i { Il
saw the mail carriers and ~ sspa
way of travel. They had sor sa = ss ii
shoes, and they would 60 uop thrs
mountain side at the rate = IS .
miles a minute. I've seen e., en- sg'os
fast that the friction turner ~ lies
to steam, and a good many s;assr
were blown up by it in one u)sn',atsip
How did they get up q aTha@
side?" inquired a listener, 80 iii
would go down one hill $ las y s.
the impetus would carry thean ansain,
top of the next" replied hee
Brooklyn Eagle.
The Opelousas courier., 1883-08-04
Testing a witness.

witness who was confident Of his
accurate notion of time, and was re-
quested to- give his ideas of two
minutes. Awatch was held, and at
the end oftWenty seconds he declared
that two minutes had elapsed.
ThelaWyer resolved to try the OK
pertinent on a sailor in the hospital,
whose deposition he was taking in
regard to a collision, and the time
which had elapsed after Tie vessel
left the wharf. The sailor answered,
'sabout ten minutes"
.Man, q saidtlle lawyer, = how long
do you thinkten m nutes to bel"
About ten minutes. 'assss 81
Ont came ttffe lawyers watch, as he
said: ri tell you when to begin and
syoH tel nae when the ten minutes are
8a1IuasHN s#aaFza MI 7A FAstaas5
1 sye, aye, sir said the sailor.
The lawyer stood with his back to a
manteIs ON which d little clock was
afaGingathessailor. $685.
After three minutes the lawyer ex-
claimed, fsSee here are you going to
keep upehere aldayaa tse.
No ansWer..f s4 8aaig4s
me hand of the clock was on the
exact notch of ten minutes as the
sailor said, carelessly: @Gness the time
mus be about up asalsa a
+ Well,a said the Sawyer, ".of all
men, dying or alive, that / ever saw
you can measure time the BEST Gi
.saaz ~ taTopHsody. s sG
Whiie Afe. aTopBn5ody was taking
breakfast the other morning he re-
marked to his wife, 81 sx "a
dear. .tbisis my birthday
as1WelI,' she answered, |. it isn't your
atst one, is iti2a 80
n /, not exactly; butt thought I'd
speak of it anyway. as a reminder, If
you had anything to give me common
oratiYeof the occasion. aa
might give you apiecegof my
mind for making me get upsand build
the kitchen fire This morning"
"Idon't think Iwaat any. You've
given meas much already as you can
spare. 7 should think.
aDon't get excited, Topnoody. May
be you can tell me what you'd like TO
have mesglYe you ~ 81
Well my deal, 81 can easily do
that
sYou think yon can, do youpa
" know 1t, my dear; but I don't
know whether you'd give It TO me or
not
II can If T want to, 4 reckon"
81 don't know about that; you never
have given it to me yet, and the
novelty Of the gift. more than it's in
trinsic cash value, IS what prompts me
TO ask IT, $3.50
"Don't beat around the bush, Top
moody; what is it, aI
We'll, mysdear. I'd likessto have you
give me d rest. II ssssss+@5a
Before Topnoody could get out Of
the house heAwas sorry he had ever
been blessed with q birthday,-Meg-
ehaast+zsaureIer. III a
The Opelousas courier., 1883-08-04

Mrs. Mackay. the wife of the l eo' 81 sss
millionaire, is accompanied ATT
she goes in public by a prlva. 81 he
tive, whose duty it is to pfosos.
against diamond thieves.
The Opelousas courier., 1883-08-04

In the French dockyarsss are 23.000
men; in the English $4,000.
The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1883-06-08
Political Points.

The cOlOred men of illinois meet i'll
convention Oct. 8 to discuss political
topics us affecting their race.
"IIon. A. L. Rice of this district
seems to have the pole in the race for
Lieutenant. Governor" is the way the
Glencoe Enterprise puts it.
1t having been stated that the
President advised the calling of the
late convention of cOlOred voters at
Washington, Fred Douglas steps out
and gives the story q denial.
The Granite Falls Journal nOmin-
ates Henry BOrdewick, of Yellow
Medicine county for state treasurer.
Mr. BOrdewick is Il Scandinavian and
has the support of his cOuntrymen.
He is now spending his fifth term as
auditor of the country.
The Albert Lea Enterprise says his
vacancy, Mayor Ames, of MinneapO.
lis, will probably re the Democratic
nominee for Governor this fall. The
spirit of the Minnesota Democracy
seems determined to follow the eX-
ample of the demOniacs of Gadara.
The Iowa State Register says the
initiation fee in the Silk Stocking
Democratic club is $25. The fee is
made thus high In order to keep ont
all plcbcians. mechanics, farmers AMI
working people generally. All men
who join this club must be rich pco-
pie or dudes.
The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1883-06-08
Russell Sage.

Russell Sage. they say, leads 1.-THE
street. now. He is 81 years old; some
thing between Brother Jonathan and
PantalOon. Wherever he is, there is a
circus. Repentless, resembles, but not
relentless, he hardly has an enemy,
never INDUCES in that luxury. always
calls you "My son." and scratches your
midrifi. He is everybody's paw-paw.
apparently healing them by the laying
on of hands. "My son." ne says "shO,
shO! l must get in my stray bets. My
son, I've got million and quarter of
them puts and calls ont now. ShO! it'll
never do, my SOM BY this time he has
lovingly fastened on to your spare-rib
or arm-pit, or crazy bone, and when he
says "Sho'' you feel like chicken chuck
ell up to be counted and fed ON meal.
Some put Sagc's wealth at $50, 900. 600,
some Mt half as much more, He Is the
original, the vast insurer of spectators.
He will sell you put, call or "a strad.
dle''-the latter an insurance both ways
and at double cOmmissiOn-and he is
said never TO have ''squatted" or re-
pudiated these puts and calls, and sell
dom or never paid them beyond the
moment marked for their presentment.
"My son." he says, cit is 10 minutes
past l; that trades off, He is regard
ed as the most phenomenal leader the
street has ever had; natural, almost
womanly, with mind averse to violence
or sinister things; and feeling also
prevails that he has y classical educa-
ton, which he does not claim for him.
self. He was in Congress thirty years
ago, was the Treasurer of Troy city and
county many years. and possessed popu.
larity then az now. In Congress lie
wanted the Government to buy Noun,
Vernon---a piece of shameful oversight
that they did not--NeW York Tribune
The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1883-06-08
About Letter. Writing.

As rule, every letter. unless insult
ing in its character. requires an answer.
To neglect to answer letter, when
written to. is rs uncivil as to neglect to
reply when spoken to.
In the reply, first acknowledge the re-
ceipt of the letter, mentioning its date,
and afterwards consider all the points
requiring attention.
ii the letter is to be very brief, COM
mence sufficiently far from the top OF
the page to give nearly an equal amount
of blank paper at the bottom of the sheet
when the letter is ended.
Should the matter jim the letter con.
tinue beyond the first page, it is we'll to
commence letter above the middle OF
the sheet. extending as far as necessary
on the other page.
1t is thought impOlite to use hall
sheet of paper in formal letters. As q
matter Of economy and convenience fol
business purposes, however. it is Gus
tomary to have the card Of the business
man printed at the top OF the sheet, and
single leaf is used,
In writing letter, the answer t.
which is OF more benefit to yourself
than the person to whom you write, in
close stamp for the reply.
Letters should be as free from era
sures, interlineations. blots and post
scripts as possible. II Is decidedly bet
ter to copy the letters than to have these
appear.
A letter of introduction or recon
mendation should never be sealed, o.
the bearer to whom it is given ought t
know the contents.
The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1883-06-08
Ignorance in School.

An examination of the younger child
rem in the Boston public schools not
long since revealed some rather GU
riOus facts. The examination was acct
dental. 1t was also quite out of the
usual line of school tests. Ii the ques-
toner had asked the children something
that was in their books they doubtless
would have answered brilliantly. I'm
doubtcdly they would have told him
what a participle was. But he asked
them about everyday things, and mere
were the answers he got: Eighteen per
cent. of the young ones didn't know
anything about Il COW, except from pic.
lures: 81 per cent. had never seen an
ant, and 65 per cent, had never seen
corn growing. Ninety per cent. of these
children educated in the public schools,
which are the glory Of America, did moi
know where their ribs We're, or exactly
what they were. When asked what aud
where their stomacls were. however,
all but per cent. seemed to have some.
thing like correct idea. They had
had stOmach-ache often enough to know
that, bless the little creatures!
The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1883-06-08
What Thirteen Women Had to Say Over 9
Fallen Horse.

Thirteen women and one man occu-
pied seats i'll u street-car coming down
town Oh Saturday. The old conductor
was just telling how half-a-dOzen Of the
boys had retired with fortunes after an
experience Of only two years on the line,
when the driver wound up his brake,
and brought the car up with jerk
The old conductor showed up his sleeves,
forced his hat down hard on the back OF
his head cleared the back platform with
bound, and ran up forward to see
what WI; up. All the women inside
the car jumped to their feet, and then
the entertainment began.
"Why, it's II poor horse" exclaimed
one woman, looking around at the 9TH
erS.
$50 it is" said another, sand he's
fallen down hole"
poor thing! and the cart has run
over him, too"
"Yes, and if he's fallen down hole
they'll have a hard time to get him up. +"
"NO, he hasn't fallen down hole
He's fallen down, that's all"
"Oh, the poor horse. wonder if he 8
hurt"
81 do believe he's dead"
No. he isn't dead. Just see him
wag his tall
"Why don't the men back the cart off
Of himP"
They can't; don't you see he's fallen
on the shafte"
II never did see such lazy set of
men. Why don't they do something?
Just wish Twas n man."
why don't they cut the harness?
Did you eUer?'
II don't believe single one of them
has got knife. OH, just hear that con-
ductOr swear?"
Then there was peace in the car for q
moment. The harness was unbuckled,
and the old conductor and r half-a-doz-
en- men seized the cart and rolled it Oft
| the track. The women watched all this
in silence, and the solitary man in the
corner went to sleep. Then they broke
out again:
"Well, they hare done it at last"
| "Oh, just see that man kick that poor,
poor horse. Isn't it just too brutal for
anything?'
Il do believe he is dead. They can't
make him stir one bit"
| HCt W III MIN uiS IiuS JUDI uS
sure"
"See that arfM man with the whip.
/ just wish the poor horse would bite
him."
"rhere, now he is getting up. Well.
did you ever see such a looking thing?
| do. believe he was too weak to stand"
"Why, you can almost see through
him"
They oughtn't to let such looking
horse rs that out. He's enough to scare
1people. )"
-"HcU; if I'd known he was such q
shadow as that wouldn't have been
wasting my sympathy"
just then the old conductor rang the
Jell and the car started off down the
street with rush. The man in the
corner woke up. and the women settled
back in their seats. and watched the
horse until he had been left behind out
of sight Times.
The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1883-06-08
The Atmosphere in Mexico.

The strangest feature OF Monterey 10
Northern eyes is the cloarness of the air.
such as that which made me. rs stood
on the Mount of Olives, think the Dead
Sea within an hours walk. though l
found it n days ride. Among the
strange aerial phenomena here class
the foot hills standing out so promin-
emily that you think you can see round
their corners and into the interspaccs
between them and the secondary ranges.
The most distant peaks, too, seem pres
sing forward to peep over the shoulders
of those nearer. Everywhere the lights
and shades contrast no less than those
of electric illuminatOrs. On tho whole.
the atmospheric brillianoy surpasses
whatever is known in the North as
much as our Northern sky surpasses the
London fOgs, where men are forever
doubtful VIII ther their celestial lumin.
airy is the sun or moon.
The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1883-06-08
Whv Thew Killed the Marshal.

Didn't they murder the city Marshal
of Fort Dodgep" l asked.
"Waal. yes" the cow boy replied with
smile. s'The Marshal Of Fort Dodge
did go to glory last winter"
"How did that happen?"
"Waal, you see." he said, "the Mar
shall was rustler, and he played his
game on the wrong party. He used to
catch tenderfOOt, with rocks now and
then, lock him in the cooler, pinch his
Doodle (rOb him of his money!, and
then order him to leave town. That
would do as long Us he played it on tend
erfeet. but COW boy went East for a
spell, and when he came back with a
long-horned collar aud bald-faced
shirt the Marshal tried the game on him,
and that was the end of it,"
"What did you dop"
..We only plugged him."
''Was he killed."
'rhai's what the coroner said"
ssrhcn you do shoot sometimes~
Eyes. there's considerable shooting
going on now and then. When man
comes out here and punches COWS fOl
three or fopr years it won't do to play
no games on him" - Correspondence
| ChicagO Inter Ocean.