davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Opelousas courier., 1884-11-29
A Swarm of sharks.

While the Pacific Steam Navigation
company's steamship Chala was leaving
Bahia, one of the cooks who was ASLEEP
on the rail, fell overheard. An alarm
was Immediately given, the ship wal
stopped and backed, life-buoys were
thrown, and with amazing rapidity {
boat was in the water and in charge Of
Mr.. Kellick, the first officer, pulling hare
in the direction of the man, who was S
splendid swimmer and who made goo6
progress in the direction of the boat
Suddenly, however, the place became
alive with sharks and it at once became
apparent the unfortunate mar wa.
doomed. Once he threw himself almost
completely out Of the water in an cffor1
to escape the jaws of one of the monsters
but a few seconds afterward he was evi
IDENTIFY seized and dragged under, a
nothing more was seen of him. Othe
sharks, apparently disappointed in thei
hopes of prey, were then observed rush
ing through the water in all direction
and even appeared to mediate an ATTACK
ON the boat, which, after an incffectua
search, pulled back to the ship. TIT
sharks were apparently ~rayenous, and The
rapidity with which they swarmed around
the unfortunate man amazed all who wit
messed this striking proof Of the v~oracious
ness of these denizens of the deep.-FGa
ana Star and Herald.
The Opelousas courier., 1884-11-29
Lucky Days for Weddings.

Marriage superstitions hold great
sway in Philadelphia, and the number
of people who fear to violate them is
large. June always ees a great in
crease in the number of weddings, be-
cause May is not considered so lucky.
There are certain times and dates,
however, which are considered more
fortunate than others for the Marriage
ceremony, owing, perhaps, to aDme old
ideas of a~strology. and if any one will
notice it will be found that they are ex-
tensively observed. 1t must not be
forgotten that this is leapyear, and the
days which superstition fixes upon as
being the most fortunate are: Febru-
airy 6, z, IS; March /, 6, s; April e. IL
May 5, G., z: June z, Is; July z. Is;
August Is, 19;September g., z; October
s; November Is, IL, and December Is,
Is, IL. Whether it has anything to do
with it or not, the moon at these days is
In thesame sign of the Zoliac. -Phila-
delphiG Times.
The Opelousas courier., 1884-11-29
LADIES DEPARTMENT.
Feminine Butchers.

There are several women meat shop
Ee,pers in the Old Washington Market,
NewYork. Mrs. Bradwayis one of them
She has occupied the same stall for
forty years and earned a competency
"Lizzie, the Butcher" is another. She
has had her stall for twenty-five years.
and can cut up a veal as skilfully and
rapidly as any man. Mrs. Barker is a
third meat merchant, who has been in
her place tweHsy-six years. She sells
veal and mutton. Women used to de-
pend on the butcher to select their
meat, she says; but now they read the
market reports in the newspapers SO
much that they can do this for them
selves as we'll as the dealer car; they
know about the price, too, from the
same source. Newspapers are a bless
ingl
The Opelousas courier., 1884-11-29
Done By a simple 7,vist Of the wis,

1T was as good as a circus said
Sergeant Mulholland. II was walking
along Broadway this morning when I
Saw a ~black-and-tan cab coming furi-
ously up Murray street. The driver
seemed to be doing his best to stop the
animal. but it was unmanageable. A
tall, well-built man, who did not see
The runaway, was crossing the street.
Everybody cried out to him, but the
horse was close upon him before he
saw it. Quick as thought he put out
his right hand, seized the horse by the
nostrils, gave a sudden twist, and the
runaway was lying fiat on his side on
the crossing. The cab driver was too
much astonished to say a word. and
the stranger picked up his hat and
walked off as coolly as though nothing
had happened learned that he was
MI. I.emuel R. sturges, the owner of
a cattle ranch in Texas. He knew a
trick that the cowboys have Of throw.
ing q steer by giving its head a little
twist. He practiced it on Broadway
aud that runaway horse got a lesson
that he won't forget if he has any
sense.-Neso York San.
The Opelousas courier., 1884-11-29
Annette or OrelIana.

DIR. Henry, who lives on a fine place
situated on the banks of Lake Dora,
has q tree or shrub of tbs above name,
believed to be the only one in the State,
Being a native of Brill and French
Guiana, it has been found very difficult
to grow the tree successfully IN this
country, but at present writing Dr.
Henry has one in bloom, the blossom
being a beautiful white. 1t is a purely
tropical plant. Annotto is a colorlng
substance obtained from the reddish
stBi1a Orellana,'' Gas it is called by one
writer, a middle sized tree growing II
Guiana and other parts of South
America. One mode of preparation il
as follows: The pulp is separated by
bruising the. fruit, mixing in with water,
then straining it through a sieve and al
lowing the liquid to stand until the I'm.
dissolved portion subsidies. The water is
then poured off, and the mass which re
mains, having been sufficiently dried, is
formed into fiat cakes and sent into the
market. In commerce there are two kinds
of annotto, the Spanish or Brazilian and
French, the former coming in baskets
from Brazil, the latter in casks from
French Guiana. The chief uses TO which
annotto is applied are for dyeing silk and
cotton orange yellow, and for ~colorine
cheese. The color, however, which il
imparts to cloth is fugitive. It has been
given internally as a medicine, but it is
not-now used, and probably exercised Lit.
tie influence upon the system.-Ftoride
Semi ITopi .GL.
The Opelousas courier., 1884-11-29
Character. of the Horse.

In the selection of a horse, strength
soundness, size, form, health, age
pedigree, color, ETC., are all taken into
consideration, but the good Or bad
qualities, the character, receive little
attention. Still nothing adds to or de-
tracts more from the animals real
value. | think this indifference arises
from a common notion that the char
acter cannot be determined beforehand
But it is revealed as plainly as are
.soundness, age and strength. The plan
to be adopted IS this: Select two horses
whose dispositions you are familiar
with-one gentle, n vicious. The
points to be observed are all about the
head. Study the head well. Look
first at the eyes, then the nasal contour
then the ears, and afterward all the
other points about the head. When
you have done this, select other horses
whose characters you know. In a sur
prisingly short time you will have
learned wherein the eye, nose, ears, etc,
of a vicious horse differ from these
organs of d gentle horse. Then select
two horses again-one intelligent and
one dumb. Study the same points,
most particularly the eyes, however,
and you will 500 be able to distin-
guish an intelligent horse from a dumb
horse.
In this way a person of ordinary
ability can learn to distinguish the
character of ahorse in a few months of
study. The information thus gained
may save him a runaway, perhaps a
limb or life, andit is especially valuable
to one who has young horses to train.
1t is apparent that a nervous, excitable
horse should not receive the same treat
ment accorded to a heavy, sluggish
animal. 1t may be necessary to use
the whip on the latter, when to apply
it to the former would be the worst
policy imaginable. So a horse that is
very sensitive, thin skinned and Tot
b1ooded, or n vicious or ~treacherous
should be treated entirely different in
training from the kind, docile, "family
horse" Ignorance of these facts very
often increase, instead of diminish, the
faults Of the horse. Accorded right
treatment the high-strung colt might
De reduced to submissiveness; but
wrongly treated he is rendered vicious.
And have found that wrong treat
ment of colts in training proceeded far
mole often from failure to critically
distinguish traits of character than
rom any other fault. ID. Stohl in
NeW York Herald.
The Opelousas courier., 1884-11-29
A Washington Romance.

An attachc Of q wig-maker's establish
ment at Washington tells the following
story: "There was a fashionable we'd
ding in this city not long ago where q
beautiful young girl married an Old mar
and did not know it. And what is more,
she lives withhim now and has not found
him ont. The groom was a handsome
man. and was looked upon as a young
man in society. in which he figured quite
prominently. He had q youthful face,
was quick and erect, and by coloring his
hair, which was snow white, he easily
passed with the youngest. With his al
fable manner and gallantry, he won the
heart of the young girl he married from
a number of other %suitors, many OF them
young and handsome. The bride was
very young and a great belle.
''Just before the weddingtook placethe
man came here and had his own hair emf
off and a wig made. Dyeing his hair had
worked very well while he was counting,
but when it came to getting married he
knew he could not use dye without his
wife finding it out, SO he adopted a wig
to get out of the difficulty. The idea OF
his young wife indingout that he was an
! old man nearly set him wild, and when
he had gotten well settled under his wig
he was the happiest man ! ever saw. On
his wedding day he was as frisky as 8
boy, and no one suspected his secret.
This happened some months ago, and the
bride has not yet found it out that he
is an old man and wears a wig, and she
will probably never find it out until old
g asserts itself so strongly that it car
be no longer concealed. They live here
in the city now, and the secret is known
probably to none save the groom and hii
Aairdresser.n
The Opelousas courier., 1884-11-29
Bcautifylng omen.

In one of her New York letters
Clara Belle says: My attention. was
called to a house remarkable for the
ugliness OF the women who entered
and emerged. They varied in age and
degree of unattractiyeness, but were
lamentably alike in possessing some
sort or other of undesirableness of ex-
terror. They were too fat or too lean,
too pale or too florid; or else their
features We're ~irredeemabIy coarse.
Chance made me an observer of these
p~eculiarities in the very numerous
callers at that house. If they had SO
uniformly excelled in prettiness /
should have drawn IN ungenerous con-
clusion, and let it go at that; but the
subject distracted me SO that, when ]
came across an explanatory advertise
ment in a newspaper / screamed with
delight. The announcement was that
a Nine. Francois beautifed women on
these very premises. 1t was instantly
clear that the callers were in quest OF
Improvement. I dropped in the other
fine day, and the Madam seemed at a
loss to guess what I wished done.
am not saying that I'm pretty, MOI yet
denying it; but the ugliness of the
customers had been SO great, Isuppose,
that q moderate degree of presentabil-
ity was unusual. An arrant humbug
vas this operator on human forms
feminine. She was willing to under.
take anything. She would guarantee
to bleach the salloWest complexion to
radiant fairness; to wipe away freckles
and other skin blemishes like the tears
that they caused in their possessor;; to
smooth out wrinkles and crow-tracks
rs one might iron a shirt-front: to
make hair grow OF drop off on any
designated spot, or to increase or de.
crease the flesh in any desired manner,
The Opelousas courier., 1884-11-29
Froek, Dress and Gown.

There is talk as to- whether frock
lress or gown is the best word. Dress
t must be remarked, first. is a more
comprehensive term than frock OF
gown and may be used as inclusive. II
was generally SO used until within the
past thirty years or the lifetime of the
basque. Fifty years ago a woman's
dress was in one piece and was called
gown; the girls dress a frock. The
loose Jacket and skirt worn by the
poorer class of women about their
work was known as short gown and
petticoat. The jacket was cut straight,
not shaped to the figure and tied or
belted in about the waist. Ar indie
pendent bodice was known and worn
about that time and was subsequently
called a Spencer" The ea6liest at
tempt at a basque consisted in adding
a short tabled skirt TO this independent
waist.
A gown is properly a dress made in
one piece, and the term "tea gown is
correctly applied to the afternoon
toilets which are all of a piece, not
neglige enough for wrappers, nor con-
yentional enough for dinner OF even
Ing dress.
Frock is obsolete. 1t was always
oetter applied to children than to the
dress of a lady, but the gathered blouse
worn by laborers and cartmen in
English agricultural districts and
known in their vernacuIar as the
'smock frock" has been revived for
girls and boys of late as an apron for
In or out Of doors and classed as a
sKate Greenaway" garment. A long
princesse dress, open in front, showing
q stitched Or ornamented breadth sup
posed to be the petticoat, was a "robe"
dress. Afterward manufacturers called
pattern dresses, dresses in boxes
with fiounces and trimming, robe
dresses and the distinctive a~ppellation
was lost.-Jennie June,
The Opelousas courier., 1884-11-29

ceaseie5s war upon insects which infest
and destroy the products of his fields.
And yet we have afforded us, in the
cultivation of the fig, a paradox which
VIII surprise most of our readers. The
wild fig, which grows plentifully in fig
growing countries, is uniformly perfor-
ated by an insect, which bores into the
fruit and matches out brood of insects,
which devour the fruit before they
leave their home. 1t would appear
not to be a very desirable insect to have
about in a fig orchard, but such is not
the fact, for the fig cultivators of Italy
and Asia Minor go into the fields and
gather the insect-infested wild figs,
and hang them on the branches of the
cultivated fruit, in order that the in
sect may enter it. Can anything be
Stranger than this? The f~ig-groWers
think that the entrance of the insect
prevents the fruit from falling off the
trees, hastens its maturity, and i'm
proves its taste.
When the insect enters and lays it's
ef 5gs in the wild fig, it does so to win
ter and secure food for its young.
When the eggs are laid in the wild fig
they are Matched, and destroy the fruit;
when in the cultivated, they are laid in
the wrong place, and therefore the pro-
geny never develop. But they do an
important work, for they carry with
them into the cultivated fig, which
usually has only female flowers, the
male pollen, and thus cause the ferma-
ton of seeds. Those who have been
consumers Of the delicious fig in its
dried state cannot fail to have observed
that connected with the best fruit
there is very often q Worm-hole in the
end of each specimen, and this is the
work of the insect alluded to.
Among fruit growers opinion is di-
vided regarding the efficacy of caprifi- !
cation, some considering it injurious;
but as the practice has been followed
for many. centuries, it is not likely to-
be dropped very soon.
The Opelousas courier., 1884-11-29
And SO she did.-Dauid Ker.

Where the WnsEigsgtOns Flourish.
Not very far from Charlest own, w
Va. which, by the way, was named after
Charles, the youngest brother of Wash
ington, and laid out on his land, is Lee
town, where stands the historic man.
sion, .HareWood." It is a roomy,
square house of gray stone, fairly en-
broideled with rich, green moss, and
was the hospitable house of Washing
toms brother, Samuel. Here he lived
happy and content in turn with each
of his five wives, and in the broad hall
dividing the double suites of parlors
hangs his portrait in oils surrounded by
the pictures Of the five women, whom
he was said to have adored. The
youngest Of them represents a bright,
sparkling maiden of 16. She was his
first bride, and, like the second, very
pretty. The others look homely, but
good.
in Che parlors are two well-preseryed
mantelpieces of black marble which
Lafayette presented to Samuel Wash
ington when he built the house, and in
these same parlors James Madison was
married, and Louis Philippe and his
brothers, the Duke of Montpensier and
Beaugolais, were entertained.
The house is noW occupied by Mr..
Lee, a.direct descendant Of the Wash
ington family, and who has generously
given some of his most valuable relics
to Mount Vernon. He says, laughing
", that self-preserYation has been at
the bottom of these gifts, for he wishes
to turn the tide of tourist curiosity
more to Its legitimate channels and Sc
cure a quiet home for himself.
Not far from Hardwood Islands the
picturesque ruins OF an ancient church,
erected in the reign of George III, and
supposed to have been haunted ever
since the duel Of Lawrence Washington
and Col. Briscoe, which took place close
to its walls, and In which the former
was killed; his spirit is said to wander
about the ruins moaning the name OF
the fair lady he fougfnt for, ard not one
Of the colored popnistion In Che neigh
borhood will go neal It after dark
Chicago Ins6g-Oceasg.
The Opelousas courier., 1884-11-29
MOSQUITOES Under the Microscope.

Al gentleman has examined Mr.. Mos
quito under q microscope, and his de
scription Is, to say the least, Startling
II appears that in the ssbill" of the little
beast alone there are no fewer than five
distinct surgical instruments. These ar,
described as d lance, two meat saws, /:
suction pump and a small Corliss steam
engine. IL appears that when a ssskeeter'
settles down to his work upon d nice ten
der portion of the human frama.thc lanes
ii first pushed into the flesh, then ths
two saws, placed back to back, begin t.
work up and down to enlarge tho hole
then tho pump il inserted and the vic
Eim's blood is siphoned up to The reser
vcirs carried behind, and finally, 10 com
plete the cruelty Of the performance, The
wretch drops d quantity of poison int
the wound to keep it irritated. Their
Aile diminutive fend takes d ii around
Just to digest your gore and makes tracks
for d fresh victim, or If the first one ha'
been Of unusually good quality Iii returns
10 the same happy hunting ground. Tht
mosquitoes marvellous energy, combined
with his portable operating che I, make
dim at once a terror and q pest.
The Opelousas courier., 1884-11-29
Co,s,,ts,y school.

Pretty and pale and tired
She sits in her stiff-backed chair,
While the blazing summer sum
Shines in on her soft brown Hair,
And the little brook without,
That she hears through the opszn door,
Mocks with lis murmur cool
Hard bench and dusty floor.
1t seems an endless ound-
Grammar and A. b. c.;
The blackboard and the sums;
The stupid geography;
When from teacher to little Jim
Not one of them cares a stra"
Whether "John " is in any "casl,
Or Kansas in Omaha.
For Jimmy's bare brown feet
Are aching to wade in hes stream.
Where the trout to. his Turing bait
Shall leap with a quick, bright CLEAN;
And his t acher's blue eyes stray
To the flowers on the desk hard by,
Till her thoughts have followed her eyes
With O half unconscious sigh
Her heart outruns the clock,
AS she smells the faint sweet scenfs
But when have time and heart
Their measure in unison blent?
For time will haste or lag,
Like your shadow en- the grasss
That fingers far behind,
Or flies when you fain would pass.
Have patience, restless Jim,
The stream and fish will wait;
And patience, tired blue eyes
Down the winding road by the gate,
Under the willow shade,
Stands some one with fresher flowers;
So turn to your books again, I.
And keep love for the after hours.
&C. n. Cutler.
The Opelousas courier., 1884-11-29
ID Told Hlm Wllat sle Tlonght.

A dude who called on q young lad,
tile other night for the first time SHOWED
mot the slightest intention Of leaving
although tho young lady threw DIT yari
ous hits about the approach Of midnight
Are not tight ~pantaloons ektremel,
nncomfortable2'' she asked, for want b
some more entertaining expression.
Not ut ALL he said; lean SIT dowr
with the greatest ease
Fes, SO ! perceive; but / thought /
Mas impossible to get up
Then the dude jnmpedt to bis feet with
such suddenness that be sawed LIS eai
oil On his cellar.
The Opelousas courier., 1884-11-29
Concerning FIGS.

There are very many inexplicable
things in nature, and man is led by in
stinct or observation to do many acts
which appear also to be strange and
contradictory. This thought occurs
upon reading Count Laubach's recent
report upon fig culture at Naples. One
OF the most pressing duties Of the
farmer and fruit cultiyator is to waas
The Opelousas courier., 1884-11-29
began to read, a move not lost upon
his four comrades below.

his four comrades below.
"Good chance to make our "dry man.
a wet man-eh, boys?" whispered Jack
Fitzgerald, glancing at the rigging,
and then at the h~ose-pipe, which the
sailors had left lying on the deck.
Fright you are" grunted Seagrave'
who was rather cross that morning,
having found Lucy and Clitheroe in
such close conversation when he came
on deck, that he passed almost I'M
.noticed-"there, you hold the pipe, and
I'll pump"
But this mischieyous design, like
most other designs Of the sort, recoiled
upon their own heads. The jet of
water, striking against the planking of
the foretop, fell back upon them in a
perfect del1ge, while the few drops
that did pass between the timbers
wasted themselves on the thick plaid
upon which Clitheroe was lyiI
: II say, this won't do, you know
growled Jack, shaking himself like a
water-dog. "Hold hard for half a
minute, while l go aloft with the hose
Up the rope-ladder he climbed like a
cat, with the nozzle Of the pipe over
his arm. But the wary American was
not to be caught so easily.
just as Fitzgerald came within arms
length of him, and gave the signal to
pump, Clitheroe suddenly stretched his
arm over the edge of the stop" and
Selling the pipe, turned it back right
upon Jack himself, who was Instantly
drenched to the skin, and so staggered
thas he all but tumbled down head
foremost, while his discontinue was
greeted with a hearty burst of laughter
from the crew, the captain, and, worse
still, Miss Forester herself.
But, as if to blot out the memory Of
his misnap, the four cavaliers became
more attentive than ever; and Lucy,
sorely puzzled what to do with them,
asked the advice of her friend, the
aptain.
swell, my dear" said the old sailor
If you want to know which of them
likes you the best, that's easily settled,
Well anchor off Pernambuco to-mor-
row, and its smooth water inside the
reef, and no sharks about; just you
manage to fall overheard somehow,
and see who'll jump after you"
The idea delighted Lucy, who was
perfectly fearless, and could swim like
a Fijian.
Scarcely had they been anchored an
hour, when a loud scream startled
every one, and Lucy was seen falling
from the pinnacle into the sea. Her
four courtiers instantly plunged after
her; but Clitheroe (who had seer too
many real accidents to be deceived by
Lucy's acting, clever as it was). guess
ed at once what was intended, and
watched the progress of the scene with
quiet amusement.
It was lucky for poor Lucy that a
boat was so promptly launched to pick
her up, for her four champions, in
their eagerness to save her, seemed
much more likely to drown her instead.
But none the less vas the experiment
a failure, and the puzzle as great as
ever.
'Oh, dear!' whispered she to her
counselor, s'it's no good after all. for
they all jumped together! Which am
l to prefer ?"
(which? p echoed the captain, look
ng with a broad grin from the drip
ping heroes to the im%perturbable Clith-
eroe-.which? Why the dry one, Of
coursep'
And so she did.-DGoid Kea.