davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1884-03-27
The Growth of a Child's Ideas.

Prof. Straight, of Oswego, in an ad-
dress before the school teachers of Con-
necticut says: 'If we can think of the
little child, just born into the world, its
senses just opening to the world-the
eye, the ear and the touch-of the i'm
.pressions from the external world
showering down upon those senses
there is the beginning. The waves of
ether from the bright light beat upon
the eye and the child at once distin-
guishes the bright light from darkness.
Soon bright colors attract the attention;
and so it begins at the outset to study
optics, discovering light and shade.
Form next comes into its consciousness.
Thereby it learns to distinguish its
mother or nurse from other people. /
was told of an experiment tried lately by
a teacher at the kindergarten. A very
young child had been accustomed to see
a bright dress upon its mother, and knew
her only by color. A young lady friend
put on the mothers dress and came into
the room where the baby was and was
taken for the mother. The
child had not progressed far enough to
distinguish between them by form.
Other children were similarly expert
mented upon, but they had been edu-
Gated in form and color so as not to be
After discovering optics and
forms the child begins to study sound,
and soon distinguishes the mothers
voice from any other voice. 1t also
learns to distinguish striking sounds
from sounds produced otherwise. Next
follows the knowledge of number. AS
soon as child has one pain and one
pleasure it begins to learn number;
when it realizes two pains and two pleas
ures it has learned number. 1t is just
as easy for the child to learn number by
using cubes and triangles as by Illus
trating with oranges and apples. And so
within its body-in one of its limbs or
It's head-there is the locality, the be-
ginning of geography. Its striking,
kicking and wriggling enables it to dis
cover the smoothness and roughness of
bodies. The child next begins to study
its own form-its hands and feet. 1
never shall forget the pleasure and sur
prise that my own little boy showed
when he discovered that he had ears.
When he put his hand on the side of his
head and found something that he had
not known of before there was a thrill of
discovery. This joy of discovery is like
that which thrills every true discoyerer.
We can see these powers of discovery in
the first few weeks or months of the
child's life."
News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1884-03-27

a million of dollars of the sum spent
upon the German army of 400, 900 men,
so that what the United States army
lacks in numbers it makes up in pay.
"Ours" he said, sis the best-paid army
in the world"
"FrJ PERKINS" SAYS HE DID not per-
sonallv know Colonel Hunt, of Michi-
gan who bequeathed him, "Josh Bill
linps" and the mother of 'Artemus
Ward" $1,000 each. ga year ago, how
ever" he says, 81 received letter from
him requesting me to send him two of
nv humorous works. did SO, and adj
ded copy of Josh Billings and BIZ
oeraphy of sArtemus Ward.
DIR. julius Rec, JEWISH banker of
Hamburg, who accumulated large for
tune in Rio Janeiro, but losing all of his
children there by sickness, returned to
Germany, has died, leaving will which
beoueathed four aseill;ssil. ,ntslTks for the
erection of dwellings te be occupied
free of rent by deserving poor families,
and by aged persons without means.
Two BowERY PRIzE-FIGHTERs MADE a
match for 5000 and let Funny" Cooke.
an English buffer, hold the stakes. They
neglected to hold Cooke. The conse-
auence was that he sailed for England
with the money, and the loser of the
fight feels a fiendish satisfaction in the
discontinue of the man who whipped
him
News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1884-03-27
The Standard Boat Captain.

Says AN old lake captain: ''There is one
standard fer mates and another for cap
tains. For instance, mate may shout:
is your line clear P and not feel it neces-
sary to freeze the souls of passengers
aboard, but thecaptain views it in differ
ent light. When he utters an order or
shouts an inquiry he expects to see
splinters fly from every warehouse. Why,
sir, when the captain of first-class pro
peller cries out to go ahead or back hel
he expects to paralyze everything for 6
mile around.
"And he needs a voice ?"
SAY, sir, he must have voice as heavy
as the roaring sea lion. When he has the
voice he must study pose. When he has
the pose he must practice facial expires
sion. To be-a successful captain he mus
have voice like Mccullough, pose lik'
Barrett and dignity of look which
might belong to an offended lion.
News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1884-03-27
A Chinaman's Pigtail.

1t is curious that what at first was the
token of Chinese subjugation at the
hands of the Tartars, the pigtail, has
now become the pride and glory OF the
race. Gut off the queue of Celestial
and suicide is the only honorable course
open to him. If he is especially .ena'
cious of life, however, he may don a false
article until his hair has grown again.
While at work the coolies wear their pig
tails wound up on the back OF their
heads; but when they have occasion to
present themselves before you, 1t is in
variably unwound. For Chinaman to
appear in your presence with his pigtail
in a knot would be equivalent to your
entering a drawing-room in America
with hat on and your pants in your
boots, Lake Tribune,
News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1884-03-27
Cured of Nostalgia.

The Washington correspondent of the
PhiIadelphia Record tells this one ''Do
you know how many soldiers died OF
homesickness during the late war p said
an ex-Federal colonel. Eyes, sir; they
call it lgia-that's the medical
term for homesickness. Men died ap-
parently without a cause-not from
fright; homesickness was the cause i'll
nine cases out of ten. remember at
one time I was in charge of depot at
Louisville, KY, where $4,000 GONZALES
cents were waiting for strength to go to
the front. I noticed that many of them
grew worse, instead of better. 1t puz-
zled the surgeons. 1t was not due to d
relapse; it was not the old disease at
all. It did not seem to be a new dis
ease. looked into it little, and then
told the surgeon that thought it was
nothing but nostalgia. I had a chance
sick we'll men came to me the next day.
Colonel, he said. 4 want leave of ab-
sence for day or two. I want to go
home and see my folks. am pining
away for sight of my old home. be-
lieve shall die if I don't CO.
'On inquiring found that his home
was right across in Indiana, and that he
had an idea that he could see the smoke
rising from its chimney. He had not
been home for several years, and he was
fretting away in sight of that smoke. l
was not supposed to let any of my con-
valescents go anywhere except to the
front, but determined to try an expert
ment with this sallow, pale-faced young
man. well, SIR 1 said, now long will
you be gomez This is Friday, he re-
piled; Il will be back on Monday No,
said, you can stay until Friday of next
week. All right he said looking bet.
ter already. On the next Friday he re-
turned new man. I'm all right again,
colonel he half shouted when he saw
me; I'm ready to go to the front at once
1 went home, saw my mother and father
and sisters and brothers, had some gooc
home food and some good home sleep
and fought all my battles over again dowr
at the village store. That was all
wanted 1t was a fact. He had beer
| cured of nostalgia" "
News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1884-03-27
Still Another PeMsion giII.

The bill introduced in the United
States Senate by Senator Blair provides
for an increase to $40 month of the
pensions of soldiers and sailors who suf-
fered an amputation at the hip joint, or
an amputation of foot or leg, of such a
character as to prevent them wearing an
artificial limb, or who suffered an am
putation through the shoulder joint, or a
wound or injury thereto. which renders
the entire arm useless, or who suffered
an amputation Of one hand and one
foot, or are totally disabled in
one hand and one foot, or those
who are otherwise SO disabled as
to be incapacihted for the per
formance of any manual labor, but not
so disabled as torequire the regular per
sonal aid or abundance of any person.
1t also provides hat those who have lost
the sight of oneeye shall receive a pen
sion at the rate of $12 month, and in
cases where thi other eye shall have
been injured, the person SO dis,
abled shall be eititled to an increase OF
his pension, moi to exceed-when the
loss of sight is less than total-$40 8
month; also, tha those who have totally
| lost the hearing If both ears shall be en-.
titled to receiv pension OF $50
month, and for my loss of hearing less
than total deafniss a pension at pro,
portionate rate.
News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1884-03-27
He Popped Off.

"say. George, I'm going to pop"
The young man reached for his hat
with frightened expression OF counte-
nance. and faltered out something about
an engagement with man down at the
hotel.
"Why, George, you amt going SC
early, are you? was just going to say
that. if you'd stay little while longer,
I'd pop"
George disappeared through the parlol
door, and was hastily fumbling for the
catchlock in the hall.
"Say,. George-what's the matter 2
she cried, rushing out after him. "What
are you going away in such hurry for
If you will stop for just few minutes
longer l will pop" shof
But George was thrashing around IL
the storm house, and jabbing the dool
all over to find the latch. He finally
bursted hinge off and was kiting down
the path like frightened deer, when his
girl stuck her head out into the frosty
air, and bawled so that she could be
heard block away:
"Say, George, if you will come back,
I will pop some corn y
George came back.
News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1884-03-27
Wonderful Little Machines.

Many of the tiny screws used In this
country in matchmaking are turned out
on three little automatic machines in
Danbury, ct. One of them, while turn
ing out a perfect screw at fair rate of
speed, is considerably improved on by
its companions. The machine takes up
but little room. A man could carry it
under his arm without much difficulty.
A wire is fed through a tube into the
machine. 1t is carried forward by re-
volving teeth. As it appears knife
cuts away the surplus metal to make the
stem for the thread, just as the chiseI
operates at the lathe of the wood
turner.
AS this is finished a small tube, in
which the thread is formed, advances
and clasps the stem, forms the thread at
lightning speed and falls back. As this
is done, two knives cut that portion of
the wire off, and the completed screws
fall down. The wire again advances and
the process is repeated. The marvel Of
the machine is best grasped when the
size of the screw formed is understood.
The largest sizes are now being made.
They are an eighth Of an inch in length,
and it would require 200 of them 10
weigh an ounce. The thread on tha
stem is so small that it is scarcely dis
cernible to the naked eye. Each ma
chine will make 5000 screws day. Tho
machines have been at work little MOI .
than month and are the result of years
of patient investigation.
News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1884-03-27
The Elephant Business.

The controversy about Mr.. Barnum's
sacred white elephant lis sacred and
white-promises at least to serve as an
object lesson in natural history, if the
controversy is ever decided. A london
newspaper correspondent calls the brute
pink, and says it is no more white than
an alligator. A gentleman who has just
returned from Siam declares that it is the
color Of Jersey mud. The Siamese Min
lister at the Court of st. James's says
there is no such thing as white ele-
phant, and the Rev. Wilbur F. Crafts
told his congregation Sunday evening,
that Mr.. Barnum was trying to palm OFF
a leprous elephant on an outraged COM
munity for white one.
News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1884-03-27
The Prime of Life.

People call the age of forty ''the
prime of life" Who invented the mock
ing phrase? Some subacid cynic, doubt
less. Because it is not the prime o.
life, by any means. At forty the hail
of your temples Is whitening; at forty
your ''figure" is broadening; at forty
YOU begin to be called "a harmless old
fellow" by your pretty nieces and their
friends. A most disgusting time of life.
When with dignified steps you march
toward your yawning grave at seventy
five, you are at least an object OF respect
and reverence-if you have money.
Your white locks and your snowy beard
crown you with the majesty OF old.
But to be fortyl You are neither young
nor old. Your hair is pepper and salt
in color. Your speech has become, IN
spite of yourself, set in stilted sentences.
You perhaps would firt, but in the
ATTEMPT YOU meet with dire disaster.
This enterprise is met with the giggles
of girlhood, and you are driven igno-
miniously from the scene by some
masher'' of twenty summers. The
real prime of life is when your muscles
are like twisted cords of the finest Bes-
semer steel; you don't care much about
girls at that time and your lungs are ike
the bellows that blow the smeltlne
furnace; when you have only to say one
pretty thing and show your white teeth
and twist up the ends of your youthful
mustache, and any pretty girl you want
inst sighs once and tumbles into youl
arms. That is the prime of life. 1t If
all over when you begin to grumbl'
at the breakfast buttered toast. Whe1
you have become a Judge OF wine 1t
indeed time to leave the arena ana ac
cept the worn-out gladiator's gift OF tn
wooden sword. - Vanity Fair.
News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1884-03-27
THE LONDON EXPLOSION.
English Newspapers Charge the Affair Upon
Irishmen.

Colonel Maiendie, Chief Inspector of
Explosives, asserts that there is no doubt
that the explosion at the Victoria station
was caused by nitro-glycerine.
The London Times referring to the
explosion at the Victoria Railway station
says:-"It is clear that we have to deal
with one of those cowardly outrages
whereby Irishmen imagine that they are
furthering the cause of Irish independ-
ence. We have in our midst a set of
cowardly desperadoes who are not
ashamed to abuse their freedom by reck-
less attacks upon life and property. The
leaders of the Land League will do well
to exert their influence with the dyna-
miters to repress outrages, since the
British, however longsuffering, will not
indefinitely permit the murder of inno-
cent persons, but may supplement the
imperfection of the legal machinery with
exceedingly unpleasant reprisals upon
Irishmen whose presence they now toll
crate. "
The London NeaOs says:-"There is
no reason to fear that the dastards have
the power or the opportunity to infiict
really serious injury upon the nation
The real object is to keep up state of
irritation and alarm which is profitable
to themselves and their friends. 1t is
designed to hasten the contribution OF
the poor Irish laborers and servant girls
OF America to the -sl,,SS111uf fva1 Rosa and
other dynamite funds, which when OBJ
tanned will be squandered by the alleged
trustees of the fund in riotous living"
The London Standard says:-"Fenian
war fare at one o'clock in the morning
upon travelling bags and portmanteaus
and to the alarm of half dozen railway
officials may have awkard results for the
perpetrators. But it will certainly have
no effect upon the British constitution. ,
News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1884-03-27
THE WAY OF THE boi'-

There safe crow on i0,.
W., ws.cbing the world go by
IA saw throng that sweP' o.'
x;1b laughter loud and hisn'
- ont through the motley fou''
Pale ghosts stole on unseen' .u,oat
-. - SasTts we're. longing for one SWEEP
=. .Ss love that once had been.
"a ~ III I;,,, tl,srS spoke their names,
Nevsr tear was shed;
qts crow looked down from his lofty tree'
:. rs the way of the world, he said
A singer stood in the market-piaee'
singing tender lay,
NJ n. one needed his sorrowful face,
No one had time to stay.
I he turned away; he sang no more;
How could he sing In vain
And then the world came to his door
Bidding him sing again.
Rnt he recked not whether they came OF
went
He in his garret lay dead;
rrbe crow looked down from his lofty tree,
4ssIis the way of the world, y he said.
There safe Queen by a cottage bed,
Spoke to the widow there;
Did she not know the same hard blow
The peasant had to bear?
And she kissed that humble PEASANTS brow
And then she bent her knee:
a God of the widow, help her now,
As Thou hast helped me-
s. Now God be thanked, said the old, old crow
As he sped from his lofty bough;
. The times are III, but there's much good still
In the way Of the world, / trow.''
T. E. WEATHERIY,
News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1884-03-27
A Queer Mouse Trap.

81 say. Hans, exclaimed Mr.. Blank,
entering the store of a corner grocer,
''that mouse trap you sold me is a
fraud, and he held up trap of the old
fashioned sunar-leaf- f-Li,,saz-~vlricl,-t
mice are able to enter through a wire
tunnel ending in sharp, springy points
which are supposed to prevent the animal
from forcing his way out again.
els dot so?" asked Hans, examining
the trap critically.
eyes, resumed Mr.. Blank, "those
wires are so thin and so easily bent
that the mice have no trouble i'll getting
out"
"How you know dot %
because the cheese 1 put in it at
night is all gone by morning and there is
never any mouse to be seen.
"De trap is all right, insisted Hans,
who would rather argue an hour than
take anything back.
81 know it looks all right" answered
Mr.. Blank; ''but it don't catch any
thing"
'No," asserted Hans, "dot trap is not
dot kind of trap. Dot is an anti-sus-
picion trap"
ga what %
can anti-suspicion trap. Itvas new
kind and is to disarm suspicion, dot is
ALL"
81 wish you would explain" said Mr.
Blank becoming interested.
'Vell, you see, if you put pieces O
cheese around de house de mice dom
go near dot cheese; dey is afraid it ii
poisoned.
"Indeed?"
''Das is so. Veil, it is because de!
knows you not leave cheese around d.
house dat way already, onless dere i
some dings de matter with him."
"Yes."
"Vell, you see dose traps is made s.
dose mice can get out, and dose MIC
see dis and dey say: ''Ah, ha ! Di
ole feller dink he catch us, but dos
trap is no good, and dey go in an eat d
cheese"
r'Well %
"Vell, you put poisen on de cheese i
de trap, and dot is de way you fool dem
already. "-PhiLa. EUening eau.
News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1884-03-27
NAMING ZHE,BABY.


What shall we name her, little wifes
What shall we call this feather Of hfeT
Little newcomer to Lilliput-land,
Lying as light as a kiss on my hand,
Whose quaint wee face with its rosy skin
But measures finger from brow to chin,
While span from the point Of her butto
nose
Will reach the tip of her tiny toes.
What shall we call her? She's too small,
think, to have any name at all.
Could we peer down on the vale OF tears,
Draw the curtain that hides the years
Could we Just for a moment see
What is our darling's destiny
Is she heiress to high estate?
Will she be taking king for mate?
King of the people-she their queen?
Royal is the name of Josephine.
Will she, meek, with sorrowful heart,
Choose, like Mary, the better part?
Will she be gentle, tender, true
A copy, dear little wife, of you2
Will she be dauntless, brave and strongF
Will her spirit escape in song,
Carolling gayly in golden words
All the Joy of the sun-loved birds?
Will her hands give erst unknown
Voice to canvas or life to stone?
Shall we christen her Florence, Fan,
Constance, Dorothy, Margery, Anne?
Watch the weirdly Pickering flame;
Read her fortune, choose her name.
What shall be All, p'r'aps It's well
None of us can the future tell.
But there's pleasure in painting yet
Fancy portraits of our pet.
At two, tiny queen we see,
Ruling the world from papa's knee;
Then, when risen to five or six,
Prattling tease with her saucy tricks;
Ten years more, and full-grown miss,
A bit coquettish and coy to kiss;
Then young Love, with his sweet alarms,
Will add grace to her woman's charms;
Then wife, and the by-and-by
P'r'aps may bring us another tie,
And baby's baby may crow, "Hurrah
For dear old granny and grandpapa |"
Strange by your bedside tits to sit,
In this room by the fire-fames Lit,
Picturmg thus, in colors bold,
Life for our baby three days old.
What shall we call her? We've not yet
Chosen name for our sleeping pet.
-HdT.peT'S Weekly.
News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1884-03-27
THE JOY OF YOUTH.
Rev. Robert ColIyer on the Springtime
and Autumn of Life.


The Rev. Robert Collyer spoke to the
young men of his charge Sunday morn
ing, finding a text in Ecclesiastes, XII, 8:
"Rejoice, oh, young man, in thy youth,
and let thy heart cheer thee in the days
of thy youth, and walk in the ways of
thine heart and in the sight of thine
eyes, but know thou that for all these
things God will bring thee into judg-
ment. The sermon in opening gave an
account of the writer of the text, Solo,
mon, who, in his youth, had all that
mortal could desire. His father was a
poet, warrior and a prince. He was
gifted mentally and physically and his
son was like unto him. Solomon had a
youth of rare culture, and in his later
years he was not unsuccessful, as the
world would Judge him Yet there was
something which replaced the promise
of youth with the gall of old age, and he
wrote as a man who had known both the
sunshine and the shadow of life.
To-day the world and society are full
of men who are long past the meridian
of life, yet look back only on wasted
youth. 1t were idle to expect that
young people should follow the course of
life which so well BELTS their elders.
There is a springtime as well as an
autumn in the existence of each human
being, and it is as idle to expect to
raxarCa tho 1oocitiopc 90 II iS n nbaolr
the singing of the birds or to turn back
the babbling brooks. The old Puritan
fathers of New England tried it and
failed, for the young people had their
frolics and would go love-making of a
Sunday despite all the blue laws and all
the tyranny of Salem and Boston. The
Quakers tried it in more recent days,
but gave it up as failure. A spring
time there must be and time of turn
ing leaves, but see to it that there be no
such riotous spring as shall leave no
fruitage but bring instead a premature
winter.
Enjoyment and the love of enjoyment
is the evil which threatens the young
men of to-day. There is an attempt in
the buoyancy of youth to do too many
things, and not the more solid desire to
do one thing well. Superfciality re-
places thoroughness, and while the
world keeps up a gIittering, sham ap-
pearance the humanity of the world is
crushed out. Religion comes in for like
treatment with every other serious con-
Germ. 1t is looked at and regarded as a
very good thing and passed by. There
is danger ahead, and the only safe
watchwords are godliness and thorough
ness.