The Arkansaw traveler., 1885-08-29
TROUBLE ABOUT CHEESE.
Peck s Sum-


 Peck's Sun.
 One day last week shipment of sixty thousand pounds of Limburger cheese vas made from Monroe, Wis, to Chicago via Janesville. The train arrived at lanes vile at about ten o'clock in the morning of one of those terrible hot days. The hrs. indication the people had that any thing was wrong was telephone message from the blind asylum, asking if the peo- pie in town noticed a peculiar and strange odor. The message said that a dark cloud had passed over the asylum not long before, and something in the cloud must have broke, as deathly, sickening odor pervaded the asylum, and many of the inmates were complaining that their breakfast did not set we'll. The message was received by Dr. Whiting, one of the trustees of the asylum, and he went out on the front steps of the house, which is Tn the highest part of town, and took a long sniff. He did not smell anything at first, but the second time he drew in his breath he thought something had crawled into the air and died. His horse was at the door, and hastily leaving orders to burn rag in the house, he drove down town with the wind from the arriving train in his face. How he ever lived to get down town he does not know, but he got there and called upon several mem bers of the board of health. They had all smelled the strange odor, and felt tn at something should be done, so they held meeting. The mayor, Mir. Winans, came in with his handkerchief to his nose, and asked what was to be done. He said he had been Democrat forty years, had been in congress and had attended eau. cuses, but that smell beat anything he ever encountered. Dr. Palmer said the smell evidently came from cholera germs or microbes, that had been blown from cholera infected Spain, and the only thing to do was 10 disintect. and not get scared He said fright killed more peo sle in chol era times than the disease itself. MT. Van Kirk, a prominent business man. said he was not scared. He wouldn't have anybody think he was scared, but a smell that would enter store and stop a clock and coffee grinding machine, and cause Norwegian butter to turn pale, was something that needed attention at once, and he was in favor of burning tar in the streets and creating a smudge. MT. Best wick, another merchant, said in times of battle and epidemic the first thing was to send the women and children away, and he was in favor of the mayor issuing a proclamation. The mayor said proCla- nation wouldn't make first payment on that smell. He wanted the board of health to act The president of the board of health said they couldn't act sintelii gently until they found where the smell came from, and he suggested that M. Meyers, who used to, be a butcher, and own slaughter house, be appointed committee to disc over where the smell came from. Mi. Meyers said that in the course of his career he had smelled a good many bad smells, but this held over anything in his experience, and he had no theory in regard to its origin. Mir. Wilson came in, holding his handkerchief to his nose, and said tha when he was taking the census, there was place down towards Monterey that smelled something like this, and his theory was that light ning had struck the place. Colonel Brit ton said he had had good deal of expe- rience as undertaken, and he had noticed such an odor frequently when the de. ceased had been tramp that had lain in the woods for time after death, and it was his opinion that the woods were full of em, that needed buying. The com mittee decided to go out and walk around town, aad see if they could not fathom the mystery, so they went. examined the river to see if the fl sh were not dying, ex. amined the drain pipes and everything. Merchants were on the sidewalks discuss. ing the phenomenon, and many had closed their stores to go home and die. The committee stood on the bridge across the river, drinking in the terribl. odor, and wondering how long people could live in such an atmosphere, when Tom Croft, agent of the C, NJ. & St. Paul rail- road, came driving down from the depot, with three men in his democrat wagon, pale and sick. The committee stopped him and asked him what they should do to be saved. He told them that had three brakemen who had come in on that Limburger cheese train from Monroe, and that they were almost dead, and he wanted something done for them. In the meantime he said he had hired new set of hands for the train, and started it on its way to Chicago, via Milwaukee. and the city was saved. The board of health went about its business. merchants re- opened their stores, and in a short time everything was moving along the same as usual. But in about two hours dis patch came to Croft from the agent at Whitewater, wanting to know what on earth was in that train that stopped at his station for wood and water. Those whose duty it is to ship train loads of that cheese ought to send it through the country at night.