davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Turner County herald. (Hurley, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1884-05-08
Chinese Use of the Rifle.

When the French troops made their
first and unsuccessful advance against
Sontay some importance was attached
by the special correspondents of the
English papers to the circumstance that
the Black Flags apparently fred low.
1t was pointed out that the bullet
wounds received by the French soldiers
were found in the legs and lower parts
OF their bodies. OF course the practice
OF firing low is one strongly urged upon
the troops, shower of bullets being
much more effective if fired low, even if
it strikes the ground in front of the ad-
vancing hostile forces, than it would be
If sent into the air over the heads of the
approaching enemy. But we heard a
rather interesting explanation of the
reason why the Black Flags and their
allies fire low expressed the other day
by one who has had great amount of
experience with Chinese troops, He
said that the bulk of the Chinese had no
idea of the use Of the sights Of the rifles,
and it was almost useless to at
tempt to teach them the use of such
contrivances. Thus, o Chinese soldier
armed with modern rifle, would never
" AoAAoAot5 edO cAShu VI ulb WGdpOQ
when he was called upon to use it. es-
pecially in the face of the enemy. He
would fire at an object 6OOyards off with
with tho sight down, the consequence
being that the muzzle of the rife not
receiving the necessary. elevation to
carry the bullet over a long dis
tance, the ball would strike
or descend very close TO the ground
before it reached its destination.
It was also asserted that some of the
Chinese soldiers actually knocked the
sights off their rifles as being entirely
useless: We need hardly to say that
the Chinese can newer become effective
soldiers until they appreciate the value
OF sighting the rifles; and the circum-
stances We have narrated will go as fur
ther proof of the miserable condition Of
the Chinese forces; the supineness and
incompetency Of the officers, and the
ill-prepared state of the Chinese armies
to resist European troops.
Turner County herald. (Hurley, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1884-05-08
A Lion in the Schuylkill.
From the philadelphia Record.l

[From the Philadelphia Record.]
a sea-lion has been seen in theSchuyl-
kill River at Nor1istown by number of
persons during the present week, and an
effort is to be made to capture the
strange visitor by DR.. w. T. Slemmer,
the druggist, who does great deal of
amateur fishing in the river. He said
yesterday that there could be no doubt
of the fact that genuine sea-lion has
made its home in the deep water be.
tween the Bridgeport bridge and the
dam. 4 sawit plainly enough on Mon
day" said he, sand had good view of
it for at least fifteen minutes. I was
fishing below the dam, at Simpsons
Mills, when l observed small school of
fish dashing like mad, near the surface
of the water, about $50 feet from where
| stood. Some of the fish would jump
out of the water, and I wondered what
could have caused such commotion.
After watching for long time my pa
tience was rewarded. J. saw something
iise to the surface of tho water, which at
first took to be log. In minute,
however, found that the object was
alive, and was after the fsh-in short,
that it was sea-lion engaged in a chase
after its morning meal. It's back, about
five feet of which could distinctly see,
was black. The animal several times
turned over on its side, exposing its
belly, which was light in color. For
fifteen minutes watched the lion catch
ing the fish, at the end of which time it
sank into the water out of sight, but the
continued wild flight of the fish con-
vinced me that it was still in the neigh
borhood."
Since that time several persons have
seen an animal near the same spot an
swering to the description given by DR..
Slemmer, and yesterday an italian fruit
seller and several companions reported
that they had seen very large black
fish in the river near the bridge on the
Bridgeport side, and their description of
what this big fish was like convinces
every one that it was the sea-lion dis.
covered by the doctor.
The latter gentleman says that he
proposes to make an effJrt to capture
the lion, but has not yet hit upon a plan
to his notion. He thinks that the an
imal must be one that escaped some
years ago from the geological gardens at
PHILADELPHIA,
Turner County herald. (Hurley, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1884-05-08
The White Specks on Cigars.
lFrom the Mail and Express j

ltrom the Mali and Express
"Why do men always want to pick out
their own cigare?" asked reporter in a
cigar store.
"Well," said the proprietor, "becanse
men are fools. They have strange fan
cies about cigars. Some men will hunt
over twenty boxes of cigars for a cigar
marked with little white specks. One
man that comes in here won't smoke any
other kind of cigar than such a
speckled one. He would smoke a cab
bage leaf, suppose, if it only had his
magic specks on it. I.don't know Just
what causes the specks, but guess some
worm has eaten through the leaf. May
be worms have good taste, and knowing
men are glad to follow their example.
Some men like strong, some mild,
some dark and some light cigar.
Each man has his pet fancy about cigars
and thinks everybody else's fancy is sill.
~. Tastes differ in everything. Some
people can't eat certain things. l have
a brother who would prefer snake pie to
strawberry shortcake."
"Why?" asked the reporter.
"When he was 10 years DID," an
swered the cigar-dealer, he took 5.
yes.r.old brother strawberrying with him.
On the way home my little brother sat
down on stump and begnn to eat straw
berries. While sitting there rattle
snake stung him. The 5-year. old BROTH
er died within an hour. Since that time
ii my brother sees a strawberry he loses
his appetite. l have often seen him
hurry out of restaurant at the sight of
strawberry. There is no accounting
for tastes-even in cigars"
Turner County herald. (Hurley, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1884-05-08
The Race of the Kicked Stick.
[From the Millstone.l

From the Millstone.1
The national game of the Zuni is III.
kVa-aoe, or, "The Race of the Kicked
Stick. Two little cylindrical sticks of
hard wood are cut, each the length of
the middle finger. These, distinguished
one from the other by bands of red
paint, are laid across the toes of either
leader and kicked in the direction the
race is to be run. At full speed Of tile
runners these sticks are dexterously
shoveled up on the toes, and kicked on
and on. The party which gets it's stick
over the goal first is counted the win
ming side. This race is usually run by
no fewer than twelve men, six opposed
to an equal number. The distance or
dinarily accomplished without rest or
even abatement, is twenty-five miles.
Now the time taken in running this race
is marvelously short, never exceeding
three hours; yet, were you to ask one Of
the runners to undertake the race with
out his stick, he would fatty tell you he
could not possibly do it. So imbued
with this idea are the zunis that fire.
quently, when coming in from distant
fields, and wishing to make haste, tbey
cut q stick, and kick it on ahead OF
them, running to catch up with it and
so on. The interesting feature about all
this is that the Indian in this, rs in most
things else, confounds the cause with
the effect, thinks the stick helps him.
instead of himself being tho cole motive
power of the stick.
Turner County herald. (Hurley, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1884-05-08
A Mysterious Language.
trrom the New York Dial


"Three up, coff!" called the waiter.
The reporter looked curiously to sec
what the unusual order meant. The
waiter brought the customer three smal;
cakes and cup of coffee.
"One brown buck" cried anothe,
waiter. In few minutes he brought
the customer plate of buckwheat cakes
done brown.
"Beef and''' and cham and" were fro.
quently heard, and the orders were filled
with beef and beans and ham and eggs.
Give mo plate of beans," he said
to the waiter.
( "One plate of Boston strawberries. ,
yelled that funcGonary.
The old gentleman was startled, but
soon received his favorite dish at cost
of ten cents, while New York Strawberries
would have cost him fifty.
"Cincinnati quail, have it fat" was
the next order.
F The cook cut off a large slice of ia,
pork and put it Oh the range. ,.s
"Allwaiters, " said the proprietor, who
sat at the door 10 see that no mar
escaped without paying his bill, ahave
a system OF abbreviation and q peculia,
nomenclature for food. Some of on,
customers know this technical form q
ordering 80 well that they use it them
selves"
A well l-dressed man here entered. and
taking seat at the table, ordered The
waiter to bring him two fishballs.
''One sleeve buttons" cried The
waiter, while the cook softly repeated
ttsleeye-buttons."
Turner County herald. (Hurley, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1884-05-08
GERMAN SOCIALISTS.

II it be true, as reported, that Bis.
marck is preparing revision of the
constitution of the empire, with a
special view to excluding Socialists from
the Reichstag, he has undertaken con-
tract that will be likely to give him
trouble. The liberal sentiment in Ger
many has made rapid progress during
aa,e past ten years, and an attempt to
carry out such scheme as the one sug-
gested caa not fail to strengthen and
inftame tito an extent that the grim and
imperious chancellor will find it difficult
to control. If he is wise, he will not
provoke controversy of that kind.
Turner County herald. (Hurley, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1884-05-08
To Keep a New Piano Clean.
tFrom the Southern Musical journal,

tfrom the Southern Musical Journal.l
Dust the piano only when necessary,
and always ye-y lightly. A soft feather
duster is best, but the ends of the feath-
ers must be uncut. A very soft cloth or
chamois may be used. The surface of a
new piano being very bright, it is easy
to dull it by bearing heavily on it, even
when the softest fabric iB used, for the
dust that may be lying on it causes the
scratches. For this reason feather
duster such as mentioned is the best,
Often has the remark been made to me,
why. the more rub the surface the
worse it appears, even when make use
OF silk handkerchief" Exactly so, and
for this reason it must NOT be rubbed.
Dust the piano only when necessary.
and always lightly as possible. But it
may be observed, 'It is very hard to
keep the piano clean and free from
dust. Not more 30 than other articles.
except that the dust shows itself on a
dark and polished surface.
Be careful to cover the piano when
sweeping the room or dusting the fur
niture.
Hand marks should bewiped off as soon
as possible. They can be removed easi.
ly if done immediately. If difficult to
remove, breathe Cd them as you would
in cleaning glass, or you may use o
damp chamois, using o gentle pressure.
Do not permit the rays of the sun to
fall on the piano. Keep it some distance
from the heater or register and if plsced
near window keep the latter closed, es-
pecially during damp or wet weather.
Ii near the ses OF. any damp locality, il
should be kept well covered.
Be careful not to place anything damp
near the strings, otherwise they will
Turner County herald. (Hurley, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1884-05-08
TWO VILLAGES BURNED.


lGiiman,s Depot N. r.. and I,risbin. Pa,
&, Destroyed-OtherF Fires.
PoRT JERv1s, N. Y, May 3.-The en-
tire village of Gilman's Depot on the
Port Jefyis & Monticello Railroad,
burned yesterday afternoon and last
night the residents were obliged to flee
for their lives, being unable to save
anything. Not over halfa dozen houses
remain standing in radius OF fivemlles.
The fire is still burning. Gilman's tan
merry and saw mills are destroyed. The
whole settlement was owned by him.
Loss 100000. Two railroad bridges
were burned.
ALTOONA. Pa, May 3.-The town OF
Brisbin, Cleartield County, was totally
consumed by fire yesterday afternoon.
Also the large lumber yard and mill OF
Hoom, Hughes & Co. The loss is esti.
mated at from $3.50, 900 to 5000. 600.
Fully insured.
Troy. N. Y, May 3.-Five buildings
of the Chateauqua Iron Company ut
Bradley's Pond have been burned. 1t
is reported that man, woman and
two children persisted.
ASHLAND, Pa, May 3.-All danger
from forest fires is believed to be over.
Four farmhouses were destroyed. A
man named Westhoffer is supposed to
have perished with his house. From
forty five to fifty square miles of timber
land has been burned. The damage in
the burnt district is estimated at $l12,-
Turner County herald. (Hurley, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1884-05-08
PHILADELPHIA LaJY.

Tho ways of the law are passing
utrange. A Philadelphia newspaper
publisher was recently complained of on
the ground that his presses unduly dis.
turbed the peace and quiet of a nervous
neighbor. The Court refused to grant
an injunction, but held that the w1it
should remain in terrorem as an admon-
ltlon OF what might be done in case the
noise should reach the point of becom.
ing nuisance; and also that the pub
fisher mnst pay half the costs Of the
suit An appeal was taken to the SUI
preme court, and that learned and dis
criminating tribunal decides that the bill
must be dismissed, as there was no legal
cause of action, but that the assessment
OF half the costs on the defendant was
right and proper. Why man should
be mulcted in costs who gains suit is
one of those mysteries which only the
legal mind" can solve.
Turner County herald. (Hurley, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1884-05-08
Loss By FIRE.

The extent of the annual loss by fire.
representing an absolute obliteration of
property lis something of which people
in general have but limited conception.
Some recent tables on this head, pre-
pared with care and from authentic data,
show that in theslast nine years such
losses III the United States and Canada
have aggregated the enormous sum of
over SITS, 100000 AS the statistician
.etrikingly puts it, ''this is more than the
aggregate valuation of the real and per
sonal property in sixteen states and ter
risories, numerically one-third of the
Union" The rate of destruction by fire
is increasing, also, it is shown, in pro-
portion to valuation, while our popula-
ton is doubled each thirty-three years.
our fire loss is doubled in twenty years.
notwithstanding our multiplied and ad.
mirable appliances for tire-fghting and
ire-prevention.
Turner County herald. (Hurley, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1884-05-08
The Author of "My Maryland. y

Washington Letter to the Philadelphia Record.
James r. Randall, the gentle author
OF that fiery war song, "Maryland, NY
Maryland" is one of the most delightful
men in Washington. You find it difficult
to believe that this quiet, liberal, broad
minded man wrote that narrow, passion
ate appeal. he was very young, how.
ever. He Is young still, but wiser and
broader. He has come to that poin,
where he is willing to admit that tha,
disagreeable characterization, North.
ern scum, " in the last stanza was simpl,
put in for the sake of the rhyme. He
would not write such song now. Yel
he copies the old song again and AGAIN
IN response to requests that come from
the four corners of the earth. / saw
true copy Of it yesterday. II is rarely
printed correctly. 1t is generally mai.
gled in quotation, and it is ALWAYS
mutilated in the newspapers. I hear
that MIR. Randall contemplates gather.
ing it and half a hundred other lyrics in
a volume to be published shortly.
Turner County herald. (Hurley, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1884-05-08
Dead.
[rrom the Arkansaw rraycller.

tFrom the Arkansaw Traveller.l
The alligator that was sent from Flor
ida to the editor of this paper is dead.
After ife's ftful fever, he sleeps as well
as circumstances will admit. The gen.
tleness and persuasion OF man have thus
far failed to place an alligator on social
basis. In this world of selfshness the
alligator has selected his own course and
desires to scramble for himself. The
glass tank, with bed of gravel where
the reptile could crawl out and sun HIM
self, was looked on, not in the light of a
great favor, but as q matter of course.
There never was, in either one of his
eyes, eingle CLEAN of thankfulness.
His tank was shared passively with q
brother that came in the same assort-
ment with him, but there never passed
between these descendants from q par
ent stem single sign of recognition nor
word of kindly greeting. They would
sometimes. in kind of dreamy forget
fulness, bump their noses together, but
they would Immediately turn away with
out change of conntenance and fall
into deep reverie. Tennyson, the one
whose cold claws are now folded in
death, seemed to be in average health
until few moments before the summons
came. He had taken bath and was
lying on the gravel, when his keeper
noted change of countenance. kev-
olution of expression, with an alligator.
has ever been regarded as precursor Of
coming dissolution. The owner was
summoned to the gravel-side of the suf-
ferer. He seemed to be suffering with
meningitis, for his head was bent like
buil-tongue plow, and cords hitherto
unobserved arose to the surface of his
neck, so tightly drawn that they almost
cut through his rough hide. He opened
one eye and closed it slowly. A Florida
man who stood near the tank shook his
head omlnously, and an old Florida dog
that had doubtless gone through many
narrow escapes, walked off to one side
and shook with laughter. Tennyson
reached out one claw and began to feel
around. He then extended his hind
legs, braced himself and slowly turned
and lay on his back. The old dog
observing this movement, walked away
and laughed in retributive chuckle.
The sufferer lay for time, breathing
at long intervals, and then, turning, he
raised up on his elbows, looked at the
sun and fell back dead. This proves
that he was sun worshiper and con-
sequently settles question which has
long been in dispute, Herbert Spencer
holding that alligators worship the moon
with the morning star as delegate and
the north star as an alternate
Turner County herald. (Hurley, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1884-05-08
DAKOTA ENTERPRIsE.

The vitality of Dakota newspapers
a constant source of remark. In the ab-
sence of prospectus or other formal an.
nouncement, the following, as related by
Q correspo pondent writing from live Da-
kota town. is certainly novel and neat
manner Of proclaiming a newspapers ex-
istence: 'tA straggler carae in our town
last week and dumped a load of mer-
chandise in front of an empty building
and without any ceremony took possess
sion of the same, closed the door, locked
hsmself inside; everything had dark
mysterious look. The folio wing morn
ing, at every doorstep was found a we'll
gotton-up newspaper called the Press;
the secret wis out; plucky editor had
planted his stake in our midst"
Turner County herald. (Hurley, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1884-05-08

the good willSof another, he makes him
a present Of d good ;solid, heavy coffin.
Tie gift is put into an honored place IN
the house ready for use, and is shown
for the admiration of any friends who
may call. The owner would rather go
into his coffin than part with it, and,
generally speaking, though Chinaman
may get into debt and be very harshly
treated by his creditors, they will leave
him his coffin, not wishing to predju-
dice his entry into the next world, which,
according to the Celestials, depends
very much upon the way in which a.
man is buried, was told that half the
Chinese living in bong Kong We're al
ready in happy possession Of their cof-
fins, and ready to en.s,er them when
wanted
Turner County herald. (Hurley, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1884-05-08
swALLowEo BY THE SEA.
The Steamer State of Florida Wrecked i
Mid Oneau-No ParticuIara.

The Steamer State of Florida Wrecked in
Mid-Ooean-NoP Particulars.
New York, May 3.-Austin, Baldwin
& Co., agents for the State Line of
steamships this morning received q
dispatch from Glasgow as follows:
"The steamer Devon, from New York for
Bristol, picked up April ~, two life-boats of the
State Of Florida, without occupants or gear.
A sailing vessel bound west was signaled by
the steamship City of Rome, April %, in la.i-
tude 46, longitude AZ. She had the shipwrecked
crew Of the State Line steamer on board"
The City of Rome arrived at Liver
pool, April ~, from Now York. The
State Of Florida was 1000 tons. She
was built at Glasgow in 1879.
ANOTHER DISPATCH.
LONDON, May 3.-The City of Rome
makes the following statement in re-
gard to the sailing vessel spoken April
%: The first signal was shipwrecked
crew." Then followed two other sig
nails, the first supposed to be state :"
and presumed to refer to the state of
Florida.
Turner County herald. (Hurley, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1884-05-08
-----
Curi0sities of Nature.

[From the New York SUM- r
'''Here is curiosity" said a botanist.
1t WAS little ball of wood or fibre that
when held in the palm seemed endowed
with life, rolling over and over and leap.
ing into the air.
'I've had people come to me with
these" continued the speaker, s'and say
they were bewitched. One man believed
he had discovered spontaneous genera
ton; another wrote an exhaustive paper
which he tried to read at all the learned
societies, showing that here was the be.
ginning of both animal and plant life.
In act, the little gall, for that is what it
is, has attracted good deal of atten-
tion."
$50 it is only plant" said the re-
porter.
"Not exactly plant, but the unnatu-
raj growth of vegetable matter on trees,
bushes, or shrubs, caused by the eecre-
ton in the bark of an insect egg that
matches and causes the growth. In this
case you see, the gall is little larger than
a mustard seed. -
"The gall is produced in this way:
The egg of very small dark-colored in
sect, known as cynips, are deposited in
the leaf, and from some secretion intro
duced into the wound, the vegetable
matter entombs the insect in ball of
fibre separate from the leaf, from which
it finally drops. The larva's move
ments in restraint create this curious
activity.
"There are many kinds of gals, and
though they are inj urious to trees, they
are invaluable to man, and are staple
commodities. The ordinary oak balls OF
commerce are made by cynips. When
they are green, blue, or black, the in-
sect is in them, but when white it has
escaped. England is the center of the
trade, and receives gals from Germany,
Turkey, Egypt. China and Bombay.
The gals are used for variety eff pur-
poses. One sort of blasting powder is
made Of powdered gals and chlorate,
but the most valuable product is ink.
This is made from them almost entirely.
"Seeds often jump about in the same
mysterious way. In Mexico strangers
see curious seed known as DEVILS bean,
or jumping seed. In appearance it is o
small triangular body. The first time ]
saw these seeds I was sure that they
WOAc iI1duSeu WILL mecuuu1cal springs,
as they not only rolled about, but jumped
several inches in the oir. But open one
of the seeds and the mystery is ex.
planned. The shell is hollowed out, con.
tanning nothing but white larva that
has eaten out nearly all the interior and
lined it with silk. It's motions occasion
the strange movements.
Some seeds move by an entirely diff.
ferent process, that of exploding. A
friend of mine got some seeds in 1ndia
once and placed them on the cabin table.
All at once came an explosion like that
of revolver, and he received a blow on
the forehead that drew blood, while q
looking glass opposite was shattered.
The seeds had become heated, and all a,
once the covering exploded, scattering
the seeds in all directions. That is the il
manner OF dispersal, and large numbe,
of plants have simular method of scat
tering their seeds.'
Turner County herald. (Hurley, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1884-05-08
THE LOyG ISLAND MURDERER

Charles Rugg, the colored man who
has been on trial for the Maybee
murders, on Long Island, was found
guilty, the other charges against him not
being presented at this time. The sew
cral crimes Of which Rusg is accused.
including that of whichhe was convicted
evince disposition which seems to ths
average man only little short Of mon.
strous. Cupidity. cunning and heart.
lessnees characterized the murder of the
hapless Maybee ladies, and the subse.
queht assaults credited TO Rugg were
committed with q determination and
cold bloodedness almost phenomenal.
The trial OF this monster has been fair.
and, the evidence. although wholly cir.
cumstamtial, has been overwhelming and
cumulative. 1t remains to be seen
whether all of the mystery of Riggs
criminal career can ever be unrayeled.