St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-10-07
SOCIAL TOPICS.

SOCIAL TOPICS.
A few days since prominent lawyer
in New York city, who had nearly
reached middle life, who had large
and lucrative practice, who was the
heir to millions of money, who occupied
the very highest social and professional
position. committed series of extensive
forgeries, and is now fugitive and a
criminal. From Father ADAM to For
ger FOSTER is long stretch of time.
But the same explanation will suffice
for both. 1.-THE woman, she gave me of
the tree. and did eat," is the plea that
has been advanced in extenuation of
wrongdoing ever since EVE tempted
the founder of the race with forbidden
fruit. To say that woman is at the bot
tom Of all the mischief on this eventful
globe would be ungallant, as we'll as I'M
true. That she almost invariably plays
a conspicuous part in such escapades as
that of FOSTER is, however, the simple
fact. The missing defaulter was not
different from many of his fellow-crim-
inals. While keeping up appearances
as conservative bachelor of good hab-
its and respectable associations. he led
a double life, and secretly maintained a
separate establishment, presided over by
a fair enslaver.
To have lived luxuriously on his in
come would have been an easy task. 1t
is not difficult, however, to understand,
in the light furnished by exposure of
his social relations, that he could, with
out much eXertion, have managed to ex-
pend double the amount he is accused
of stealing. Having once surrendered
to the promptings of vicious nature,
his downfall was as inevitable as the
ultimate detection that followed. The
demands OH him were incessant. He
responded literally and lavishly; life
for him was dream of delightful pleas
ure. And yet, like his predecessors on
the broad road to ruin, he was living in
FOOLS paradise. His associations were
certain to turn out as Dead sea apples on
his hands. The gulf Of shame was as
clearly defined before him at the Begin
ming as at the end of his swift journey
to disgrace.
~.#
He was not compelled to take step
in the dark. What his collapse shows
is, not that he was all honest man forced
by circumstances into error, but a
knave, whose moral nature was rotten
to the core, rascal who would rob his
colleagues to pander to his vices, an I'M
desirable neighbor and a faithless
friend. Like most of his kind, he was
pretentious, domineering and hypo-
critical. 1t Is fortunate that one more
rascal has been unmasked.
a."
In a few weeks more we shall have
our first whirl of winter snow. 1t
comes and goes with the changing sea-
sons, whitening the tawny sands of the
rivers margin, and turning black and
grimy on the streets-then disappear
ing. But further west, along the great
mountain ranges, the virgin gown lies
on all the peaks in eternal purity. 1t
has the soft look of a doves breast; it
rests on rocks, thing of beauty. Yet
is this fair and lovely thing a dangerous
element. 1t falls in soft, pure flakes,
clings to all the projections, covers
rocks with charming traceries, and
spreads itself like sheet of white satin
over the upper mountain tops. But the
touch of passing eagles wing, the
light weight of mountain goat or the
step of an expert climber will detach it
from it's crest and send it down. Then
it goes sliding, rumbling along, breaking
and reforming as it falls, ever increas-
ing in volume and velocity, land pursuing
its way, becomes devastating, terrible
avalanche, overwhelming miners cab
ms and often burying unfortunates be-
meath it's drift.
The daughter of the king of Shov has
recently married the eldest son of King
JOHN of Abyssinia with splendor I'M
paralleled in modern ceremonies. The
crown worn by the bride is believed to
be the one which decked the head of
the beautiful queen of Sheba, whose
dusky loneliness sent thrills of rapture
through SoLoMoN's wise old heart.
According to national records, it has been
in the possession of the Ethiopian kings
for twenty-five centuries.
-
There is revolution impending In
landscape gardening. The movement
is to abolish the irr ocular features of
casual lawns, flower beds and shrubber-
les, and to establish.the style of old Ital-
ian and Dutch gardening, with every
thing in straight lines, terraces, balus-
trades and all the piquant and intricate
conceits with which men and women
adorn the outward surroundings of their
homes.
There comes story across the At
lantc that the Whitechapel homicide is
to be hunted with bloodhounds. AS
to the crimes themselves, they have
been so stealthily committed, and have
been attended by such peculiarly brutal
and fiendish conditions, that the reali-
ties surpass the horrors imagined by DE
QUINCY in "Murder as a Fine Art" or
by Poe in 1.-THE Murders of the Rue
Morgue." 1t is not surprising that the
authorities are arising to some extraor-
binary means of detection under circum-
stances so startling.
-
1t is claimed that RIDER HAGGARD's
popularity is on the wane. This idea,
however, may be only the impression or
IF oil