davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1886-08-21
THE ORIGIN OF "SWAN-HOP-
PING"

No doubt it is owing to the kingly pat
ronage bestowed upon the swan that it
was regarded for centuries as royal, ev-
cry bird found on the river or sea being
claimed as Grown property. Out Of this
custom grew the curious ceremony of
"swan-hopping." Good Queen Bess or
dered all the swans in the Thames and
its tributaries to be taken up the river
once year, for the purpose of being
duly marked on the skin of the bill be-
fore the kings swanherd, who was in
those days parsonage of some conse-
quence. The Crown birds were marked
with five nicks-three across the bill and
two iengthwise-while private swans bore
distinctive signs selected by the individ-
uals to whom they belonged. For exam
pie, the Winners Company of London
adopted two hicks, whence arose the we'll
known inn name and device of the "Swan
with the Two Necks,' which ought really
to have been with the Two Nicks." It
is interesting to observe that the ceremo
ny of swan-upping, as it should correctly
be called, was performed until recent
period on the first Monday of August
now held in England thanks to Sir John
Lubbock-as public holiday.-Little
Folks Magazine.
The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1886-08-21
RussIA's RIVAL CAPITALS.

Moscow has never quite recovered from
the fires which followed and put an end
to the French occupation in 1912. Except
upon certain high days and holidays, an
air of languor hangs about the holy city,
which for many centuries was Russia's
actively beating heart. Perhaps it is
partly for that very reason that it is far
dearer to the Russian mind than st. Pc
tersburg, the younger and more animated
rival which has supplanted it. The city
which Peter the Great founded on the
swampy islets at the mouth Of the Neva
fairly represents the force and energy OF
the Russian Government, the splendor of
the mobiles, the might of the military. But
Moscow, with its hundreds of churches
and shrines, its repose suggestive of some
land where it is always Sunday after
noon, is far more in keeping with the ideas
nearest to the heart of the Russian peo-
Pile; more in harmony than the glittering
northern capital with the deep devotion
which the peasant feels toward the church,
and toward that fatherland with which
the church is in his mind SO intimately
connected. From all parts Of the empire,
from the swampy homes OF fever and
plague where the Volga pours itself into
the Caspian, near Astrakan, from the
shores of the lakes and the shades of the
forests lying far away northward toward
Archangel and the Arctic Ocean, from
the rich "black soil" lands of the more
genial south, and from the far-off settle
ments stretching away in progressive
lines into Central Asia, there come bands
of pilgrims, who wander from one shrine
to another, visiting the spots which are
to the Russian mind most dear and holy,
and who return to their native villages
with vast store of religious experience
and with reputation somewhat akin to
that of the medieval palmer who had
visited the holy places at Jerusalem
Such are the visitors whom we see stand
ing before the porch Of the Cathedral OF
st. Basil at Moscow. The men in rough
caps and sheepskin tunics, with shoes
made of lime-tree bark on their feet, theiI
legs bound round in the old Scythian Oh
Sarmatian fashion, the women with hand
kerchiefs tied over their heads, all witt
wallets sluug around them and long pill
grim-etaves in their hands, form very
picturesque groups as they gather before
church doors or in the courts and clois
sers of the Picturesque
Europe.
The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1886-08-21
REMARKABLE NATURAL CURIOS
ITIES

Phoenix, the graphic correspondent OF
the Cincinnati Commercial Gazette, thus
refers to the petrifed forests which are
situated near the head waters of the Lit
tie Colorado in Arizona, and extend over
an area of several miles in extent: The
trees are silicifed conifera of gigantic
size. One has been discovered that
measures moro than twenty feet at the
base, and at break 100 feet from the
base it was ten feet in diameter. Limbs
and branches petri6ed to solid rock, are
scattered in every direction: the texture
and form Of the dead trees are plainly
discernable, resembling much the i'm
mense redwoods of California. Many fos-
sis of animal of species now extinct are
found scattered about amongst these
ROCKY trunks, solidified to pure mague-
sian limestone. The heart Of some of
these fallen monarchs of the forest is a
mass of sparkling crystals, while others
show sections of the purest quartz. A high
ly polished section of one OF these trees
formed the top Of a handsomely mounted
table, which was conspicuous object in
exhibit at the New Orleans Ex-
position. The table brought a high
The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1886-08-21
FACETIE.
Adam and Eve established the first
appellate court.

Adam and Eve established the first
appellate court.
Lawyers are about the only class OF
men who successfully oppose a woman's
will"
-"She's secret as the grave, and SO
Her word you can not doubt it,"
"True; but some graves have stones, you
know,
That tell one all about it,
Standing before clergyman who
was about to marry him, rustic was
asked, Wilt thou have this woman?"
etc. The man started in surprise and
replied: Gay, surely Whoy, 1 kummed
a puppus.'
- There is an old German play in
which, when the curtain is rung up on
the first act, beautiful forest is pre-
scented, in the midst of which Adam is
seen Fastening to the Garden OF Eden
to be created.
The Hindoos are said to have $780,
100000 gods. In order to give the requi.
site attention to their religion these
heather must have lot of idol time at
their disposal.
Once upon time belated traveller
applied for shelter at farm house in
rather a wild part of New England, and
after being taken care Of for the night,
was invited to join the family at morn
ing prayer. The host prayed with due
fervor for the stranger within his gates;
aud also that his own sons might be like
two hemispheres. The guest, failing to
his exact meaning, yentured
70 ask it later on. The good farmer
ooked q bit puzzled, said he didn't ex-
,ctly know, and after a moments hesita-
ion, said: But 1 guess it's a pretty
good word, amt it?"
The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1886-08-21

price from New York banker. The pet
rified forest belongs to the carboniferous
period, and is evidently portion of the
vast extent of wooded land which once
existed in this treeless waste, and which
now forms the great coal measures which
underlie it's surface.
The plateau of central Arizona con-
tains another remarkable curiosity Of
this remarkable country, the natural
bridge of the Tonic basin. The crown
of the bridge at it's southern spring is
168 feet, the span so feet; it's total width
is about $50 yards. Eight feet from its
southern edge, exactly in the center of
the arch, is a natural hole cut into the
interior, through which one looks down
a perpendicular depth Of 168 feet into the
bed of Pine creek. But to obtain true
idea of the grandeur of this arch, il
sho1ld be viewed from beneath. The
gigantic limestone walls spring in per.
feet curves to the perceft arch above and
the huted columns, meeting in the semi
obscurity, far aloft, remind the beholdel
OF some vaet cathedral. The stream that
winds amongst the huge boulders which
etrew the creek, lies here and there il
dark fathomless pools. The sides of the
bridge are pierced by grottoes whose
windings lead one into the bowels Of the
mountain. Many Of these have been ex
plored, many more have never beer
trodden by the white mans foot, though
from arrow heads, pottery, and scraps o
fbrous mating, mingled with bones ant
bits of charred wood, we fancy thu
| Apache knows of these retreats.
The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1886-08-21
THE VOCALIST THE ROCKIES

THE VOCALIST OF THE ROCkIES-
The burro is condensed jackass. He
in little all over except his ears and voice.
He has long hair all over his body, four
legs, two ears and one tail. As vocalist
the burro stands without a rival. He
starts off with low, sweet "Ohy-he-ohy-
he, haw- haw-haw-he, hawr and keeps it
up until you tremble for his life; and just
as you think he will surely stop or die
and get out of misery, he disappoints all
your fond expectations by turning on a
little more sound, reversing the action
and retracting all that he has just said.
A vocal solo rendered by an equipped
burro is an experience never to be for
gotten. I have seen strong men moved
to tears as they listened to his sweet but
melancholy cadence because they mad
no club OF battering ram with which to
show their appreciation and soothe their
perturbed spirits. The burro cannot
sing without raising his tail. AS his
vocal organs timber up, his tail ascends
until it is extended in a horizontal
straight line, and from the tip of his nose
to the tip of his tail ne is one continuous,
harmonious, exultant wave Of sound. I
used to think the burro sang with his
tail, but this was mistake. But this I
know from experience, the best way to
ride burro is to hire cowboy to do it
for you.-Amserican Musical journal.
The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1886-08-21
HEALTH ACROSTIC.

The Trinity Church Ass ociation of
New York City distributes gratuitously
among the tenement houses in the lower
wards of the city the following hints on
the preservation OF health, in verse, print
ed on card:
AS soon as you are up, shake blankets and
sheet;
Better be without shoes than sit with wet
feet;
Children, if healthy. are active, not still;
Damp beds and damp clothes will both make
you ill;
Eat slowly and always chew your food well;
Freshen the air in the house where you dwell;
Garments must never be made to be tight;
Homes will be healthy if airy and light;
If you wish to be well, as you do, I've no
doubt,
Just open the windows before you go out;
Keep your rooms always tidy and clean,
Let dust on the furniture never be seen;
Much illness is caused by the want of pure
air,
Now to open your windows be ever your care;
Old rags and old rubbish should never be
kept;
People should see that their floors are well
swept;
Quick movements in children are healthy and
right;
Remember the young can not thrive without
light;
See that the cistern is clean to the brim;
Take care that your dress is all tidy and trim
Use your nose to find out if there be bad
drain,
Very sad are the fevers that come in its train;
Walk as much as you can without feeling
fatigue;
Xerxes could walk full many a league;
Your health is your wealth, which your wis
dom must keep;
Zeal will help good cause, and the good you
will reap.
The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1886-08-21
The Aome Girele.
THE LAST YEAR.

Tender lights on sky and sea;
Milkwhite blossoms on the tree;
Lull of storms and tempests bleak;
Faint bloom on a wan young cheek.
.spring, the blessed Spring, is night
Said my dar ing hopefully.
yiolets' breath and primrose rays;
Sunshine threading leafy ways;
Gentle steps, that weak and slow,
Through the woodland pathways go.
at were sad in Springto die'
Said my darling wistfuly.
Glorious SUMMER, crowned with howers
Dreamy days of golden hours;
Sunset .crimsoned hills atar;
Dewy eve and silver star.
"streneth may come with by and by,
Said my darling patiently.
Growing fruits and ripening grain,
Languid days and nights of pain;
Field so golden, earth so glad,
And young life doomed "Tis sad
Through the bright days here to lie,
Said my darling YEARLY.
Signing winds and falling leaves:
Yearning love, that vainly grieves;
Patient eyes, with farewell gaze
Greeting the wan Autumn days
Happy world fair world, good-oy'
Said my darling tenderly.
Waiting storms and weeping skies'
Soft wings spread for Paradise;
Solemn whispering accents thrlliea
with the awe of hope fulfilled.
Life! blissful life on hlgh
Breathed my darling rapturously'
Urestb;np srowdrifts, far and wide,
Mantling DER the lone hillside,
Purer than that stainless veil
Like folded lily pale,
While the moaning blast go by,
Sleeps my darling peacefully.
Chambers Journal
The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1886-08-21

guise them by boiling them down en-
tirely and destroying their form and
texture, to prevent their being detected"
Potatoes are now the chief article of the
German peasants food Mary Gordon.
in the Adrdnce.
The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1886-07-09
.-,-,~3 y. THE WIFE THAT'S TRUE.

,,. .........c. o.. Oh i = lips OF the child--
... .,.ur parting At n'-lt.
r.#..r. .., ,GyU hcLI,iai,
~, ..-..., ..., ch."'y .ul bri@tt;
,.... ... .. 'y "g orb who meet.
..'r ,.s5 IN iC&:
g: ..... ki-, thai last, aoi makes life sweet,
j. ,u, ,i>- ol the ".ic tha, ) trUc.
;I.-.., - nii.,- a countless as sands -
.. I.rnb,njp, betrayal. deceit;
.I.r.. $50 ru ii,c eyes the forehead AMI hands,
T..r h;-, Ihn' i aw w<war'l and neat;
lrr ,..- ju... even the one we steal.
Il.. ,.. li:,; nwl&rs ~ NIL through
H.. p. .,.,i.~i i;isS that lips can feel,
..,.. a,.S II the wi.c that's true.
ia...... .... h'.- 1t "Dutn aui the kiss of gears.
}a., .l. o..> W. .ly Ill the grave
r. .-~ ..c press IA ~uusalnc AMI tears
BE-. J.. TOR iHc brow It the brave
$50. .r. .,,-, ;H;,l l. the KISS Uf HE,
4. .r..l. l.,lu the ;,r3.tts run through
.ur, ...,-. >Ur,cn.c To anguish AMI strife.
i,'a, j,i,. ol the wife that true.
- rs Boul.s. L,rl, JuH' ..
The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1886-07-09

SCARLET FEVER-Anothcr rts9 show
IL. ih; co,umuu!cabiIty Of contagious
diseases b. clothing i,rcYrr,cd from bath,
Ne, where girl bad s,alct fever at Il
IJ,.iinS school. After recovery shc re
tuvUel home. and trunk c,utaping the
clothing she wore While sick was l,uc away
in tie yIIIct. Six muLtnS later Two little
children were playing iu the gprret and,
opening the trunk, took out some Of the
clothing. In 4 week both were taken very
Ill with the disease, and one died. There
were 10 ether persons i'll with scarlet fever
!a the community. S@Ht1'c Imcricdn
lIE SAILOR AND TIE SuAEK-A
Sailor who fell overheard in iarbor
where many Sharks were swimming about,
aal Was rescued withoU. 4 S;crntvh turned
- Tie Fish a"d Hcturncl Ihanks for the
greet courtesy SHOWN him.
'Oh, rs to that. replied 4 Shark who
came swimming near yoa owe Us nothing.
We Happened to be Busy .ja.t thcn on a
Dead Horse. Wei see yea later
Moral Don feel too grateful to the
!!anSmau until you arc out ur Hanging
State,
United States Commissioner Pride, at
i;OcI; llilt i'll the last tan days has bound
nvcr i,,,. irirl ct III, tr,u-t form, Of RI,
The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1886-10-09
Ear1n, alnrne and Garden.
HOUSE AND FARM NOTES.

If the farmer has an evaporation, says
the Grunge County Farmer, and should
diligently run it through the berry sea-
SOD, keeping the children occupied and
hiring others to help, he would have
Melted a handsome sum, as evaporated
berries find ready sale.
Keep dairy salt and all other that is
to be used for human food in clean pack
ages and away from sll foul odors, for
salt will absorb impurities from bad air,
and afterward impart it to food with
which it comes in contact. Serious loss.
es have occurred from ignorance of this
fact.
DR.. Bowman has found that wool
washed in tepid water is bright, but be-
comes lustreless when washed in warm
water. Some of the sheep dips in use
also tend to make wool lose its lustre.
The surface of the scales is covered by
formation resembling gelatine, and very
delicate. High temperature causes fer
mentation and the destruction OF this
coating, with consequent loss in luster
and value of the wool.
The guinea fowl is great forager,
and destroys many insects that the hens
will not touch. They do not scratch in
the garden, and though not easily kept
near the house, they make known the
places where they lay by peculiar noise,
which enables one accustomed to them to
find all the eggs they lay. They really
cost nothing to raise, and when roosting
near the house create an alarm when in
truders make their appearance.
The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1886-10-09
A KEY TO WoMAN'S HEART.

Don't think that because a woman
shrieks at the sight Of mouse or black
beetle, or unblushingly owns to being
afraid of the dark, that she is likely to
forgive a man for any show of cowardice
one whit the sooner. Indeed, believe
the less bravery she has the more courage
she expects of the other sex. She knows
that even in her capacity of first-cabin
passenger, she would "give up the ship
before the storm had fairly begun, but she
expects marvels of the commander, and
despises any one who f1inches or shows
himself incapable. II dragged by any
means upon battlefield she would igno-
miniously run away, shrieking as she ran,
and she knows it; but the soldier who
has forsaken his post receives more than
his need of scorn from her. Nothing can
lower a man in the estimation of the most
timid girl more than the acknowledgement
of timidity. Nothing can make him seem
so admirable as to prove himself brave
by actions, of course, not by words. And
a man whom the world knows to be won
derfully courageous, the fame of whose
bravery is spread abroad in the land, may
be as ugly as Vulcan, and yet have no
fear but that he may win the love and the
pride of the fairest of her sex, for he
holds the master-key to woman's heart.
The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1886-10-09
HOW SHE SETTLED 1T.

1t was a summer boarder who listened !;
the summer boarder who knows the true
meaning of summer rest, and who had
come from the most active and engross-
ing of lives to this quiet nest among the
hills, where nobody thought of dressing
for dinner, and everybody owned ham,
mock, and used it. And if this last state
ment seems unnecessary, let it be noted
that to the New England mind not train
ed by long intercourse with the summer
boarder, there is sense of an almost
sacrilegious defiance of the value of time
in the deliberate giving of an hour to the
hammock.
"She might "a braided two rugs in the
time she's jest lain on her back an stared
up into tree" said an indignant old
lady, whose proudest boast was, that in
her forty-two years of married life she
had braided one hundred and eighty-two
rugs. There had been nine children, all
of them vsnished into that uncertain and
always widening region known as "Out
West" and one would naturally have ex-
pected some hint of the methods involved
before this launching became possible.
But no. The single result of this life
time, SO far as her own summing up rep
resented it, lay in the one hundred and
eighty-third being well under way.
"Pve cut up everythin' that could be
cut up, an some that couldn't, or any
way, hadn't ought to "a been," pursued
the old lady.
"There was Hiram's regimentals.
They'd hung in the garrett, an I'd
brushed an shaken 'em, to keep the
moths out, till was fairly tired. An
there come time when 1 had to have
more black for the big rug made for
Almiry's front chamber, an there didn't
seem no other way, an I'd secured the
neighborhood for black, an 1 said what
was the good o these hangin' there; dark
blue, an nigh enough to black, an jest
took 'em without more words an stripped
'em up. L shan't never hear the last oft;
an the worst is, Almiry never realized
that some of that rug had been in the
Wilderness, an got bullet hole right
through one o. the tails, an she put it in
the hired girls room because it didn't go
with the things in the front chamber.
That amt neither here or there. What
1 begun to say was, that city folks hain't
no sense o. time nor responsibility, nor
nothin' you'd think accountable human
bein's had ought to be sensible of, an /
The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1886-10-09
THE RIDDLE OF THE SPHINX.


The London Standard says: The rid
die OF the Sphinx is at length on the
point of being solved. The great man.
headed, lion bodied monument which
has for ages been more than half-buried
by the accommodating sands OF the desert,
is now being rapidly brought to light,
and ere long one OF the most extraordi.
nary relics of Egyptian civilization will
be once more visible in it's entirety.
The work has been going on ever since
January last, when, at the suggestion of
M. Maspero, the chief director of the de-
partment Of antiquities in Egypt, the
French public, in the course of few
hours, subscribed sufficient funds to
enable the work of excavation to be car
ried to completion. The interest OF such
news for Egyptologists may be con-
ceived, when it is remem bered that the
last time the Sphinx was dug ont of the
sands by King Thothmes w., fifteen
centuries before Christ, or about 3400
years ago. Scholars, in fact, are of the
opinion that the Sphinx is the oldest
monument in the world. 1t appears, in
any case, to have been erected or chigeled
out of rock more than forty-fve centu-
ries before the Christian era, and, there
fore, about 6,400 years ago. The size of
the strange image is very remarkable.
The body is more than $50 feet long. The
ears Of the human shaped head are
about six feet from top to bottom, the
other features being in proportion. The
learned explorers who are engaged in the
work of excavation, hold it probable that
when the statue is fully brought to light
a number Of other important discoveries
will be made. In any case, this extraor-
binary relic of the oldest human civiliza-
ton cannot fail to form a more attractive
sight than ever to all visitors to the land
of the Nile.
The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1886-10-09
BATHS.

The value of regular habits in food
clothing and bathing cannot be over
estimated, and this fact is being noticed
and acted upon by people who value good
health and recognize its value in the
business of life.
The old fear of cold water baths is
yielding to a more intelligent conception
of their action as stimulant and invigo-
rator. A prominent physician, recently
writing on this subject, says, in speaking
of special baths and their uses:
"The practice OF systematic daily
sponge bathing is one giving untold bene-
fits to the followers. Let person, not
over strong, subject to frequent colds
from slight exposure, the victim of chron-
ic catarrh, sore throats, ETC., begin the
practice Of taking a sponge bath every
morning, commencing with tepid water
in warm room (not hot), and follow the
sponging with friction that will produce
a warm glow over the skin, and then take
five minutes brisk walk in the open air.
See if you do not return with good ap-
petite for breakfast. After having used
tepid water for few mornings, lower the
temperature of the bath until cold water
can be borne with impunity.
The daily cold spongipg of sensitive
throat or lungs will often result most
satisfactorily if persistently and consci-
entiously followed. The cold, ante
breakfast sponge bath should, however,
be avoided by the weak person and the
ones whose lungs are already diseased,
as the reaction following might not be
strong enough to prevent colds which
might hasten fatal results. Another use
of the cold bath is to induce sleep, by
calling the blood to the surface; the con-
gested brain is relieved, and sleep comes
in consequence. 1t is on this principle
that the winding ot'the leg in cold, wet
cloth proves 60 efficacious in provoking
Sleep"