davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Opelousas courier., 1885-07-04
Vaaaries OF the Insane.

zE FE&t
A lunatic at the Morris Plains Asy.
lum was mute for five years. Even the
physicians thought he had lost the
power Of speech. One day he caught
two Of his fingers in a Washing-ma-
chine, and they were horribly mangled.
TO the establishment Of every body
who heard him he exclaimed: by the
great and jumping Moses. a devil is
better than an inventor" That was
three years ago, and he has not spoken
since. Another patient, a boy In the
same institution, is a lightning calcu-
lator. The most intricate problems
are solved by him in fractions OF q
minute. The boy believes that his
head is filed with little blocks with
figures upon them, and that they in
stantly fall into different positions and
work out the problems. He thinks
his brain, In fact. is multiplication
table. his insanity seems pardonable,
for only a few SANE men can compete
with him as a mathematician. Every
day he soaks his head in water to pre-
vent the blocks from rafting, and oc-
casionally he begs for oil to put into
bis ears so that the imaginary squares
will slip upon each other more easily.
-MoTgistoaDn JegsegnsGns
The Opelousas courier., 1885-07-04
Low Water I'm Wells a Cause OF
Typhoid Fever.

DR.. Henry B. Baker, Secretary of
the Michigan State board of health,
has collected statistics throughout the
State regarding the cause of the great
prevalence of typhoid fever during
part of 1882. He finds q close re-
lation between the prevalence Of this
disease and low water in wells. The
theory is that when the water is low
it is less pure, and the germs of
typhoid fever develop more abundant
ly and become. more concentrated in
the well. The remedy would seem to
be thorough filtration and other puri-
ication. Shallow wells are equally as
dangerous as where the water is low.
Some facts regarding the impurity Of
shallow well water have been made
known by the analysis Of the water in
418 of them in England. They GER
tainly show, as a rule, a frightful
state of contamination, the organic
carbon amounting on the average TO
.258, and the organic nitrogen to .070
in 100000 parts of the water. One
Of the purest shallow wells contains
only .053 organic carbon, and .003
organic nitrogen, whilst a very bad
specimen contains as much as .931
organic carbon and $40 organic nitro
gen. The enormously large proportion
of the latter points distinctly to ami
NAL contamination, and this sample is,
a great deal worse than any
Of the rs samples of land drainage
from sewage farms. In many places
In our own country shallow wells are
to be found, and there can be no doubt
they are q frequent cause of disease
The Opelousas courier., 1885-07-04

gave MIN his violin. IL was not such
a very poor one. but the fiddler played
1t badly. The gentleman tuned u as
true as d bell. and said, Nov my good
fellow, you take your money, and !
will play" Then he began to play SO
beautifully that the fiddler locked at
his violin with curiosity, and thought
it never could be the same instrument
for the tone seemed to pierce through
the soul, and the music to roll out like
pearls. 1t seemed at times as il angels
voices were rejoicing, and then as if
deep tones of sorrow came out of it,
which so moved the heart that all eyes
filled with tears.
And now the people remained stand
ing looking at the gentleman, and lis
tening to the wonderful music ; every
n say how he Was playing for the
poor man, but no one knew him. The
audience grew larger and larger even
the carriages Of the richer people
stopped, and every n discovered
what was the intention Of the for
eigner, and gave literally. Gold, sill
yer and copper fell into the hat, &C
cording az the giver felt disposed.
The poodle began to growl ; was it
from pleasure or anger? He could
hold the hat no longer, SO heavy had it
become. ~
Empty it. old man 1" cried one of
the spectators, at will soon be full
again."
The old man did so, and sure enough
he had to empty it again once more
into his bag, in which he usually put
his violin. The stranger stood there
with beaming eyes, and played so that
bravoes rang out n after the other.
Every one was charmed. At last the
violin broke out into tho splendid air
of the song, "God Preserve the EN-.
peror." All hats and caps were i'm
mediately removed for the Austrians
loved their Emperor Francis with all
their hearts, as he truly deserved /; and
the enthusiasm of the people reached
such a heighttl,a they all suddenly
began to sing. The yiolinist played
until the song was ended then he
placed the violin in the pensioners
lap. and before the old man could say
a word Of thanks he was gone.
"Who was that?' cried the people.
A gentleman stepped forward aud
said II know him well, he is the
accomplished violinist Alexander
Boucher, who has been employing his
art in the service of charity. Let IS
never forget his noble example"
He then held his hat, and again the
money poured into it for the benefit
of the old pensioner. Every one gave,
and when the gentleman had emptied
this money into the poor mans bag, he
cried, s.Three cheers for Boucher r
.'Three cheersl' cried the crowd, and
the pensioner folded his hands and
prayed that choicest bsnisons might
descend upon the home of his amiable
natrOn.
The Opelousas courier., 1885-07-04
PAem0sssessom Expssssssea.

Westerner-Yes Stree; IT, trles
too. The grounds % which Virginia
City stands las nlovsd thirty Inches
since 75.
strangerVell, I suppose III VI
but II doesn't seem possible
wi course all right. I've got
tha measurements 70 prove r
How 81 account fer The rhsno-
naa0f 3
don y knew. kalWay Nas
The Opelousas courier., 1885-07-04
Fashion Notes.

SSkaAWAR INVaCss
The overskirt is moribund.
Coiffures grow higher and higher.
Dress bodices are cut to produce
| square shoulders.
The popular craze in Washington is
mandolin playing.
Stringless bonnets are worn by
youthful women only.
The fine embroideries on fine bon
nets are maryels of artistic work.
Corsage bouquets are very lar9e,and
worn in the centre of the bosom.
Sleeves with a sagging puff at or
above the elbow are coming in vogue.
Full belted waists grow in favor for
wash dresses, both white and colered.
Fans of large and unique forms are
the only ones that should be used for
wall decorations.
Large bows of wide ribbon or of
piece goods, generally soft silk, adcrn
many summer frocks.
Chartreuse is a color that embraces
many shades of green. from old bottle
to pale cress green.
The latest version of the gable roof
bonnet is the Jude poke, small but
pronounced and very chic.
Absinthe and pale coral is a French
colony combination much in favor on
the other side at present.
Embroidery, flowers, feathers. and
tinsel are the combinations found in
dressy summer bonnets.
Egyptian and Arabian fancies in
furnishing and decorating rooms are
the caprice of the moment.
Velvet bonnet strings are being laid
aside for those of lace and gauzy stuffs.
especially gauze ribbons.
A cluster of water green feathers
looks well as the only trimming of a
fine black straw bonnet. the lining and
strings being OF black velvet.
Dresses composed entirely Of black
lace, real Chantilly, Llama, yak, or
weolen lace, piece lace or laize and robe
dresses, are all the rage in Paris.
Wooden net or tulle-de-lame is a
novel fabric and is made in all colors;
but being aloose, transparent material,
it requires to be laid over silk, which
shows through.
A pretty novelty In jackets, likely
to prove a favorite with young ladies,
is made of stockinette, which is en-
broidered by anew patent process af-
ter the jacket is made up.
The Opelousas courier., 1885-07-04

wives without comment on the par
gain. Most American writers labor
under the erroneous impression as to
Chinese social life, suggested III the
trite remark s'the Chinese are partial
to male infants and that the females are
not much thought Of" These l quote
from Gutzcaff. There, is. perhaps, no ma
tion except Turkeyin which the females
are less seen aud less known than
China. Their absolute seclusion from
public gaze, both in the street and at
home, makes them strangers to their
own face. This is so truethat | can
safely say that married men in China
do not know the opposite sex, except
through their W wives. Woman
hood is so sacred that it is shut in and
begirt by prejudices and customs more
completely than by a Chinese wall. A
wife, daughter and mother in the Mid
die Kingdom are like the Lares and
Penates Of the early Roman house
hold.
Women associate with women
and men with men upon all occa-
sions and under all circumstances.
This is strihgently carried out in
all well regulated Chinese fami-
lies. Even brothers and sisters are
not allowed to eat at the same table,
but have their separate servants and
meals. In China private dwellings
are built in such a manner as to pre-
vent visitors of the opposite sex from
meeting or " seeing the women Of
u family. Under these circumstances
1t might seem difficult to describe the
condition of the Chinese women and
their treatment. But this condition
and treatment are formulated by the
common law of China. They have
been taught, generation after genera
ton, at school and fireside, and have
become the public and private law of
the land. Exceptions are treated as
misdemeanors and are punished ac-
cordingly. The girl of Pc Chi Ii is
brought up on the same basis as her
sisters in Shanghai. OF course, this
training is widely, if not dramatically,
different from that followed in chris
tian countries. Yet the enforced Sc
clusion is 20 greater than that which
prevails in France. Spain and Italy,
and the fashionable compression of
a girls feet is not to be mentioned
in the same breath with the voluntary
compression of the waist and vitals SO
noticablei in America.
The Opelousas courier., 1885-07-04
MOmEETOUs

DIR. Crichton Browne states that
headaches are increasing among chill
dren in England attending schools
where methodical and effective venti-
lation is carried out, and such head
aches can only be traced to the incl
dence of intellectual work upon brains
of low educability or badly nourished'
and so easily fatigued and exhausted.
Headaches in children used to be rare,
and were regarded az almost always
importing organic disease of the brain,
but they are To- of daily occurrence,
In the central agricultural districts
of Russia, the whole number of inhabit-
ed houses is nearly 100000 and of
these only about $4,000 are built Of
stone. In the manufacturing prov
inces there are $500 stone houses in a
total of 100000 dwellings. These
figures give an idea of the extent to
which wood is used for house building
in Russia, and the demand is pretty
constant, for fire is SO frequent that,
according to trustworthy estimates,
wooden Russia is wholly burned down
about once in every seven years. A
great deal is also used in the con-
struction of boats to ply the Russian
waters, as one-quarter of the entire
number of vessels thus employed are
destroyed annually.
Much has been said of the great
opportunity which will be presented
to this country for increasing IL for
eig1 commerce in the event of war
between England and Russia when
the extensive merchant marine OF
those nations will be classed as bel
ligerents, and vessels sailing under the
American flag will be exempt from any
annoyance of seizure, search, or cap
ture. But there is a trade which the
United States ought to cur nearer
home, and which it would seem could
be obtained by the proper effort by
our merchants and manufacturers
without much delay. That is the
trade with South America. Investi-
cation shows that last year the exports
from all South American countries
amounted to 1912, 10000 and the
imports to 1896, $4,000. The United
States only secured one-sixth of this
trade. while England had one-third
and France one-fourth. OF the small
proportion which this country obtained
the imports into the United States
were two-and-a-half times as great
as the exports: that is, we bought
nearly SIS, 100000 of South American
products while we sold only 100000
600 worth of our own. In regard to
England and France. their exports and
imports with South America were
nearly equal. The United States a
and do produce nearly everything
required by these South American
states, and there seems to be no good
reason why We should possess so small
a fraction Of their extensive trade.
The Opelousas courier., 1885-07-04
Ga1vanic Treatment of rheumatism.

NNulSAHAkG AICAGAAkC4kb VA
Some very small batteries have been
constructed by an Austrian house, for
curing neuralgia in and around the
mouth. AS described, they consist OF
a silver tube about half an inch long
and three-eighths of an inch in diane
ter, in which are placed five sets of
thin discs Of zinc, paper and copper,
as in any ordinary voltaic piles. the
ends of the tube are closed with sill
yer disks, which are screwed in, press
ing the plates closely together, and the
silver is perforated with numerous
holes, allowing the liquid to enter on
all sides. To use this little battery, it
is dipped for a moment into salt water
and then placed between the gums and
the cheek where the neuralgia is, one
pole being against the gum and the
other against the cheek; it is easily re-
newed by taking it apart, washing it
and replacing the paper disks with
new ones. Half an hour is said to be
sufficient to cure the pain by this
means.
The Opelousas courier., 1885-07-04
TsCss VILLAGES.

Over the river on the hill !
Iieth d village quiet and still;
All around it the forest trees
shiver ard whisper in the breeze.
Over it, sailing shadows 60
Z soaring hawk and screaming crow,
An mountain grasses low and sweet
Grow la the middle of every street.
Over the river under the hill
Another village Iieth still;
There + see in the cloudy night
.Twinkling stars Of household light,
Fires that CLEAN from the smithy's door.
lBiists that curl on the river shore,
And in the road no grasses grow
For the wheels that hasten to and fro.
In that village on the hill
- Neera sound ON smith or mill;
The houses are matched with grasses and
flowers,
Never d clock to tell the hours;
The marble doors are always shut,
You cannot enter in hall or hut,
All the village lieth asleep,
Never nc ain to sow or reap,
Never in dreams to moan or sigh,
Silent and idle and low they lie.
9s$ss
In that village under the hill
When tho night u starry and still,
Many q weary soul ID prayer
Looks to the other village there,
And Weeping and signing longs to go
Upto that acme from this below,
.Ss&@E% .EEs as --Es -. ~ -. 4-
Iongs to sleep 10 the forest wild,
Whiilo. have vanished wife and child,
And hearetii praying, this answer fall
sPatiencss This village shall hold you ALL"
- Eserg Other Saturday.
The Opelousas courier., 1885-07-04

AD extremely novel and puzzling
problem in the variations of ships
compasses was solved in Baltimore re-
Gently by Captain Levi Crowell, of the
schooner Jacob M. Haskell. The case,
which is a most remarkable one, is thus
related by the captain: 1.-The schooner,
laden with pig iron, from Pensacola
for New Haven, was struck by light
ming on February q last and lost her
m~izzenmast off the Tortugas. She
reached Key West in distress March |
and sailed again as soon as her new
mast was ready. Up to the time of
her being struck with lightning we
never had any trouble with her, but,
from that moment we were always in
difficulty. With each revolution of
the wheel the compass would move
either to the right or left a point, SO
that the helmsman on dark nights was
always chasing the compass instead Of
using it for a guide. When she
reached New Haven I sent her COM
passes to Boston for adjustment. but
no sooner had she got to sea than the
same trouble was experienced. AS
soon as / reached Baltimore / had an
examination made. The eompasses
when removed were found perfect in
adjustment. / then had her wheel
condemned and sent to Boston, where
the schooner vas built. for i duplicath
wheel. That came and was put in.
and since that aoment there has been
10 trouble
The Opelousas courier., 1885-07-04

A decision has been rendered in the
federal court at Des Moines, Iowa, by
Justice Miller Of the United States SUI
preme court, of interest to married
men. Welker Given, private secretary
to Gov. Sherman. sued a telegraph
company for $4,000 for failure to de-
liver to him promptly an important
message. The message notified him of
a lucrative editorial position that prob
ably would have been offered him if
he could have responded in time. Mr..
Given was out Of the city when the
message was received, and, instead Of
sending it to his Office in The capitol,
where his whereabouts were known,
the message was delivered to his wife.
who did not know where he was. A
further delay also occurred in retrans-
hitting the message to him, SO that
when ne received it the position had
been offered to another. Justice Mil
Ter decided for the defendant, holding
that the proper place to deliver an un-
official message was not at the private
secretary's office, but at his home, to
those who were most interested in
what concerned him. Remarking on
the fact that plaintiffs wife did not
know where he was, the court, with a
touch of humor, said that this case
would suggest hereafter that men
should be on very confidential terms
with their wives.
The Opelousas courier., 1885-07-04
THE FAMILY PHYSICIAN.
Meat Food for Nervous People.


Pork is good for nervous persons,
but is not easily digested. Wild game
is excellent. Fish is good for nervous
people. Eggs boiled just enough to
harden the white are easily digested.
1t is d mistake about people eating too
much. The majority do not eat
enough. Nervous dyspepsia comes
from working too hard and not eating
enough. When a man begins to suf-
fer from overwork he should eat plenty
of good bread and butter, drink two
quarts Of milk a day, and eat plenty
of good meat. When such a person
resorts to a vegetable diet he grows
weaker and loses his nerve power.
The Opelousas courier., 1885-07-04

hive secured the services CT Mr.. Walton
A Sandoz, a competent an | experiencd
druggist, md will be prepare | to fill all pre-.
scriptions at any time, and give p-ompt at
tention to all matters in M line Of business.
/ respectfully solicit a share of the public
patronage
r. M. LITTELKs
Proprietor.
Opelousas, Sept. 6, 1888
The Opelousas courier., 1885-07-04
OpELOUs 5 FINALE INsTI UTE.

Opetousas. ST. Landry Parish, La.
This Institution will resume duties Mondas, Sep
4 tenber It'll, 1885, under the immedt ute supervision
of Mrs, NJ. NJ. Hayes and Mrs. NJ. A. D wis, withcom-
petent assistants. The scholastic year consists of f,riy
weeks.
OF TUITION;
Preparatory Department, per m NTH, -.".....S go
Academic ....... sra
Music, with use of piano, ........ %
Boa riding, including wishing. light and fuel. s16.W
Embroidery, wax flowers. painting, drawing,
Incidental fes, EM
DISCIPLINE; Is
The government of this school is strict but parental
no hard tasks or restrictions are imposed, bat every
student must comply with the rules. and must prepare
up to the me lsure of her ability, the lessons assigned.
Our course of study and and mode OF instrnetiun are
to train the IN nj to hab is of correct, n. mixing and
tiiorDu h lave .~tigation. No student will bs allowed to
enter higher classes without thorough preparation. Pa
rents and guardians may rest assured that tfa manners,
hea It'll and morals of the children and wards shall re-
ceive due attention.
M deduction for absence, unless in case OF prftract
ed illness. The location of the town 10 heaithful and
easy OF access. The boarding department IS under
the immediate charge of Mrs. Havcs. hofrders will
provide themselves with blankets and towels For par
ticulars address
MRS. NJ. n. HAYES,
July 2s.33-nov 277q. Principal.
The Opelousas courier., 1885-07-04
A Reward Of $5O---Fifty Dollars

II S OFFERED by the Central st. Landry Pr9tectIVe
Il Live Stock Association. fer evidence that wilt lead
to the apprehension and convection Of any persons
guilty of stealing horses or cattle belonging TO any
member of said A association. A record of the bran.fs
of members of the Association may be seen at the
house of tho Secretary. Jno. M. Ware, in BelteYues
or at tn, Clerks Office in Opelousas.
JNo. NJ. WARE. sec'y.
JNos e. PELToN, Pres't. I'll.
The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1885-02-18
FIghting tho South Sea IsIanders.

Letters have been received from Mel
bourne containing particulars of encoun-
ters which the Miranda, Captain Ack-
land, had with the natives during a six
months cruise among the South Sea
islanders. During her cruise she put
into Havannah harbor. The schooner
John Hunt was in port, and the crew re-
ported that her captain had been muir
dered by the natives at Bushman's Bay.
Hither, consequently, the Mirandi went,
where she was joined by the Undine,
and both vessels took up positions favor
able for covering landing parties. The
natives assumed very hostile attitude,
and when informed that the murderers
of Captain Hunt must be given up they'
attempted to spear the interpreter who
conveyed the intimation to them. Three
or four days were spent in vain, attempts
to bring the natives to terms, but they
remained defiant, and assembled in large
numbers on the beachRrmed with spears,
bows and poisoned arrows
After receiving due Warming and re-
plying that they would rather fight than
give up the murderers, the Miranda
opened fire upon the natives with two
Finch guns, two ,l64-pounders and two
Gatlings Mostof the natives speedily
took to the bush, but number remained
on the beach and sent volley of
poisoned arrows after the AIiranda's
boat, which, however, did no harm.
The Mranda's fire was kept up for an
hour, and large party of men were
landed to destroy the village, but it was
found to be so far inland that they gave
up the task.
The Miranda afterward proceeded to
kpi and demanded payment of the fine
imposed some months since upon the
natives by Captain Dale, of the Diamond,
for the murder of the government agent
and two OF the crew of the Lavinia.
The surrender of Koro, the chief muir
derer was also demanded, but neither of
these requests being complied with,
party of one hundred men was landed
under Lieutenant Fisher Thereupon
She natives deserted the place, and the
SNlSge was at once burned down and
IS plantations destroyed. London Ne,os.
The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1885-02-18
A Young Doctors Experience.

When DR.. Koch, the discoverer of 8,
eral kinds of bacteria, or the germ ST
different diseases, brought forward che
cholera bacilli, which he aveTed could
not be mistaken for any other, the enthu-
siasm among scientific men was so great
that several students offered themselves
as subjects for experiment, urging that
they should be allowed to swallow the
bacilli, to prove the truth of DIR. Koch's
discovery, and to help establish the
chance of cure.
Such heroism and willingness to sacri-
fee life to promote the science of the
healing art has been not uncommon
among medical students in all times. A
still more recent case shows physician
not only offering to die. but really risk
ing and losing his life to save that of
another.
DIR. Rabbath, young physician in
London, while removing the deposit
lately from the throat of a child dying
with diphtheria, applied his own mouth
to the tube and sucked it out, as the last
hope of rescue. The heroic sacrifice was
useless in saving life. Both the child
and the physician died within few
hours. But it was not in vain. DIR.
Rabbath might have lived unknown, as
an obscure physician. But the story of
his death was told all over the English
speaking world, and quickened men to
unselfish heroism as with the sound of
trumpet. "a living man." said one
writer she entered heaven with living
child P'-Youths' Companion.