davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Opelousas courier., 1889-03-09
LAWS or LocoMoTloN.
Rules and Practices That Have Beer
Adopted as by Common Consent.

Rules and Practices That Have Been
Adopted as by Common Consent.
The duty of every person w no meet
ing others to ''turn to the right" is
very generally understood and acted
upon throughout the country. The
rule and its practice seems to have
been adopted as by. common consent.
and is not confined to persons travel
ing in carriages, but is recognized by
those travelling on foot, and is COZ
sidered as the proper thing to do in
private. It has prevented many seri-
Gus accidents to travellers in vehicles,
and conducted much to the safety and
comfort of travellers on foot, for
who has not experienced the embar-
RAISING awkwardness Of being brought
face to face with some person who. in
attempting to pass, has turned in the
same direction.
This rule so generally observed has,
SO far as it relates to travellers in vehi-
cles been enacted in the Common
wealth of Massachusetts as a law, with
a penalty of a sum not exceeding $se
for its violation.
The statutes provide that when
persons meet each other on q bridge
or road, travelling with carriages,
wagons carts, sleds, sleighs orther
vehicles, each person shall seasonably
drive his carriage or other vehicle to
the right OF the middle Of the travelled
part OF such bridge or road. SO that
their respective carriages may pass
each other without interference
This statute, first passed in 1920 and
re-enacted in 1886, 1860 and 1882. seems
to be plain and clear, but already sew
eral questions of law have arisen relat-
ing to its meaning and have been
determined by our courts. Notice first
that the statute applies to persons
meeting on q bridge or road" The
word -'road" is not to be limited to
roads which have been legally laid out
and have thereby become public ways,
but to any place adopted and fitted for
travel and actually used for that pur-
pose by the public. The statute APP
plies. therefore, to private ways, and
to venue leading to dwelling houses.
clearinghouse. schools, railroad
stations. to private courts in cities,
passages to wharves, and TO any place
actually used and set apart for the
purpose OF being used for the passing
of carriages, whether set apart by
public authority or by license or per-
mission of the owner.
Second. The statute applies to
streets in cities as well as to roads in the
country. Persons in our crowded city
streets frequently find it more con-
venient to use the middle OF the street
or to turn to the left, and the rule re-
quiring them to turn to the right is
frequently disregraded. but the law
makes no distinction between caty
streets and country roads.
Third. Notice that the Asssate ~
aaisss ysfsssss 10 Rriys u fha right VI
The Opelousas courier., 1889-03-09

the middle Of the Travelled part Of the
road. There is Q distinction between
tia travelled part of the road and the
trao4.
The travelled part is that part of the
road which can be safely and conven-
iently used for travel. In case the
track is wholly on one side Of this
part, as Is frequently the case In
country roads, the traveller Is not
obliged to turn to the right of the CEN
ter of the track. II he turns to the
right of the center of the part which
can be safely and conveniently used
for travel he complies with the law it
there is room on the other side OF the
middle of that part for the other.trav.
eler to pass.-Horse and Stable.
The Opelousas courier., 1889-03-09
S FOOTPRINTS.
Bird tracks OF the Triassic Age Discovered
ia New England.

Bird Tracks OF the Triassic Age Discovered
ia New Englsud.
The publication of a of DR..
e. FL. Barbour's treatise or the first
discovery in America of the bird-like
footprints in stone at South, He'd
ley, Mass, has created renewed in
terest at Yale College in this interest
ing study. The collection of fossil
footprints at, Yale is said to be the
first in the world. 1t is for the bird
tracks that the Portland, Conn.,, brown
stone quarries are so widely known.
Those quarries have been of the great
est assistance to biologists in estab-
fishing much that is already known of
the ancient reptiles inhabiting the
Connecticut River Valley.
A delegation of Yale students is to
visit the quarries. Prot. Rice, of Mid
dleton, Conn, who agrees with the
eminent geologist, Prot. j. d. Dana,
that the tracks are those of reptiles
and amphibia, says that the Connecti-
cut River sand stone was deposited in
q long, narrow estuary extending from
New Haven nearly to the northern
boundary Of Massachusetts,. It's geo
logical age is triassic. The sand
stone lies in horizontal strata, and
every few feet there is q wen defined
horizontal crack. On lifting q fat
section OF the stone the tracks are
found on the Surface of the stone be-
meath, with corresponding projections
of the upper stone fitting into them.
All writer's agree that the amphi-
bians were of large size. Some walked
as bipeds on feet that made tracks 16
and 20 inches long and almost as
broad, with a stride ote3 feet, indicat-
ing a height o5 - feetes Tracks of
! much smaller fore feet are sometimes
found. A handsome trail of twenty
two consecutive tracks of II OF these
biped amphibians was laid open at
Portland in 1874. It was that of tho
D~inosaur or terrible lizard, a true rep
tile, which had its hind feet three
toed like birds. For many years they
were regarded solely as bird tracks.
The late Edward Hitchcock, father
of State Geologist Hitchcock, of New
Hampshire, and a famous writer on
geological topics, was the fsst to as
sign to these fossil tracks their true
significance. His views were received
with incredulity only a few years ago.
The Portland quarrymen find the
tracks frequently and keep tho best
One of them said yesterday: "We can
furnish bird tracks for VII thC, ~scientists
In ChYlssendon.. Tho supply under
ground Ia tu~sxhaastibIa, but 10 sskaass
time TO aBsgyss IL hs~M Z. aines.
The Opelousas courier., 1889-03-09
ELECTRICAL INVENTIONS.
One IL Q Positive Failure, and the Other II
Of Doubtful Utility.

One To Q Positive Failure, and the Other Ii
Of Doubtful Utility.
What will not our electrical invent
ors do nextP
One of the ingenious members IT the
New York Electrical Club has designed
a door opener, which relieves the dis
gusted traveller or visitor from the ne
cessity of showing a heavy mass OF
wood with his hands, or of wearing
out the toes of his boots kicking it
back.
A metallic plate set in the floor a
foot from the threshold is marked
"door-opener." The caller treads
upon it in the same style as the peace
full street car horse treads upon the
clumsy iron switch plates, which now
ornament every street where this kind
OF locomotion is in vogue. The plate
yields a quarterback to the pressure
of the foot and forms a circuit which
Immediately starts a tiny electro-mo-
tor that in turn opens the door, de-
spite door spring, air valve or counter
weight. TEs"' .a1arSment the visitor
passes in the plate is thrown back by
a coiled spring to it's former position,
the circuit is broken and the door
closes itself with Or without a reson-
ant bang as may be desired.
With swing doors the plate is inset
on both sides of the portal. With
double church doors two pairs Of
plates are arranged so that the sexton
can connect Or ~disconnect each pair
wien the plates ire connected, the
", ,rshiper's foot opens both doors, but
men disconnected, only one.
T. Another electrical device Of recent
origin has proved failure. This was
a clever mechanism which. when the
current was turned on, threw out
a perfect deluge of sparks and
c~oruscations. These are intended to
create ozone and destroy all germs and
impurities in the air. The machine
was very pretty as a curio. 1t was a
brilliant mass of metal inclosed in a
glass case and fastened to the wall
neal the ceiling. At twilight when
the machinery was in action, the effect
was magical. From a revolving plate
or cylinder a mass of flames shot out
increasingly which illuminated the
room and cast the strangest lusters
imaginable. theoretically, the inven-
ton was all right; practically it was
otherwise. 1t heated the air and pro-
duced a queer odor of some thing
burning. 1t magnetized the watch
works, knives and keys of every one
in tho room, and every now and then
would run down Or break off. One
used in the Tombs police court was
finally taken out in disgrace. The
presiding judge said that all he could
see about the thing was that it made
the court room more disagreeable
than ever and that it had put be.
watch into such a state that could
not tell within a hour wha' time Of the
day it might be.-N Mail and Ex-
Il npQ2G
The Opelousas courier., 1889-03-09
CORRUPTION IN TURKEY.
Acts of Depr< ,ddation Committed by TRUSTEE
Ofacsnls of the Sultan.

Acts of DeprS ,1ation COMMITTEES by Trusted
Oficsnls of the Sultan.
Not long ago'a certain Pasha of ex-
allied position borrowed a sum of
mopwEy from a Frenchman. and when
the ssme for repayment came he was
unsole to raise the required amount.
But" said he, "if I can not give you
money, for l have none, / can at least
give you a lucrative post-namely, the
repairing of the tombs of the Sultans,
which are in a bad state, and you can
remove those old tiles, which people
care for, and replace them by modern
,ones mcie in France" Needless to
say, this post was willingly accepted.
and on setting to work the delighted
Frenchman discovered, in a vault be-
Meath one of the tombs, a whole heap
Of ancient tiles which provident Turks
of a bygone age had put there with a
view to restoration, but OF the ex-
istence of which the Turks OF this
generation were ignorant. Endless
cases of valuable tiles were thus col
lected and dispatched to France, and
when it was found absolutely neces-
sary to make RESERVATIONS, cheap new
tiles made in France were put up, and
thus did the French creditor make
over and over again the sum of money
he had advanced to the Pasha. The re-
currence of such an act of depreciation
is practically impossible under Hamid's
strict supervision. A clever imam how
ever, contrived to outwit the police
regulations on this point in the fol-
lowing way. He was priest (ianan1 OF
a mosque some little way up the Gold.
en- Horn, which was very much out al
repair. This fact he represented at
headquarters and obtained an order
from the eukaf for the repairing of it.
The FIST thing he did was to have the
whole of the interior whitewashed
over, tiles and all, and, when all the
RESERVATIONS were completed to his sat
isfaction, he sent for the overseer,
whose duty 1t was to make an inven.
tory of every thing in and about the
mosque. This was accordingly done,
and the Mosque was registered as con.
tanning no tiles. The cunning imam
then kept quiet for about six months,
until he considered it safe to remove
by night the tiles from the walls and
whitewash the vacant spaces over
again. With these treasures he hu-.
ried to the shop of some friendly an.
tiquity dealer in the bazaars and made
his bargain. Such small acts of dep.
relation r of frequent occurrence
| still, and even the astutest director oil
q museum can not contend with them.
Contemporary Review.
The Opelousas courier., 1889-03-09
"
THE Turkish CAPITAL.
1t Presents More the Appearance of . Hug
Camp Than a Great City.

It Presents More the Appearance of . Hugs
Camp Than a Great City.
A1]teLnot7 III 4'Ssn,re than four hundred
pts ac| have elapsed since the Turks
lfpJll planted their victorious banners upon
the walls of Constantinople they have
never felt perfectly sure of its possess
sion permanently. The city at this
day presents o the appearance of
a gigantic camp than a great capital.
The Turks have always lived in this
state of insecurity, feeling that, at any
moment, they might he driven from
Constarssa59ppTfgs ofbaa Back to Broussa, the
ancient capital of the Moslem eng
pire. The Sultan and his Minister'S
live in Oriental luxury and magnif-
cence; the people live in Oriental
squalor and misery. Abdul Hamid.
the reignlng Sultan, is in the prime OF
life, being only forty years old. He Is
of the medium height, and rather
slender for a Turk; his hair and eyes
are dark, his complexion swarthy,
and he has a decidedly prominent
nose. He wears a full, black beard,
and although not a handsome man,
from the American point of view, he
has a more intelligent expression than
is usual among Oriental people. He
is a man of progress, but has been
thwarted in making reforms and i'm
provements which he knows are abso-
lute1y necessary for the future welfare
of Turkey. It is the interests of the
Ministers to maintain a conservative
policy, and to oppose all progress, all
change, all reform. But Abdul Hamid
has been gradually getting entire con-
troll of the Government, and in the
course of time, if he is not cut off by
assassination, he will adopt a line Of
policy in accordance with the spirit
of the age. Nothing has SO astonished
him as the wonderful progress of the
United States in wealth and popuasor
ton in so short a time, and knowing
that much of our prosperity is due to
the steam-engine, he is anxious to in
troduce into Turkey a system OF rail-
roads in order to develop the material
interests of the countg.-Eugene l..
Didier, in Chautauquan.
The Opelousas courier., 1889-03-09
THE OLDEST OBELlSK.
An Egyptian Monument Erected Nearly
Three Thousand Years Before Christ.

An Egyptian Monument Erected Nearly
Three Thousand Years Before Christ.
The oldest of all the obelisks is the
beautiful one Of rosy granite which
stands alone among the green fields on
the banks OF tie Nile, not far from
Cairo. 1t is the graVestone of a great
ancient city which has vanished and
left only this relic behind. h city
wac the Bethshemesh of Scripture, the
famous On, which is memorable to all
Bible readers az the residence OF the
priest of Potipherah. whose daughter
Asenath Joseph married. The Greeks
called it Heliopolis, the city OF n
sun. becatse there the worship OF the
sun had it's chief center and its most
sacred shrines. It was the seat OF the
most ancient university in the world,
to which youthful students came from
all parts Of the world TO learn the oc-
cult wisdom which the priests OF On
alone could teach. Thales, Scion,
Eudoxus, P~ythagorus and Plato all
studied there, perhaps Moses, too. 1t
was also the birthplace Of the sacred
literature of Egypt, where were writ
ten on papyrus leaves the original
chapters of the oldest book in the
world, generally known as the "book
of the Dead" giving a most striking
| account of the conflicts and triumphs OF
the life after death; a whole copy or
fragment of which every Egyptian
~ r-;,I1l 20 howe ht1rlnN
with him in his coffin, and portions OF
which are found inscribed on every
mummy case and on the walls ofevery
tomb. In front of one of the principal
temples of the sun, in this magnificent
city, stood, along with a companion,
long since destroyed, the solitary
obelisk which We now behold on the
spot. 1t alone, as I have said, has sur
vived the wreck of all tlaU glory OF the
place, as if to assure us that what is
/ given to God, however ignorantly and
| superstitiously, endures, while all the
/ other works of man perish. 1t was
| constructed by Usirtesen l., who is
supposed to have reigned two thousand
eight hundred years before Christ, and
| has o~utlasted all the dynastic changes
| of the land, and still stands where it
| originally stood nearly fo~rty-seven
| centuries ago. What appears of its
shaft above ground is sixty-eight feet
in height. but its base is buried in the
mud of the Nile; and year after year the
inundation of the river deposits its
film of soil around its foot, and buries
it still deeper in it's sacred grave
| Chicapo Interior
The Opelousas courier., 1889-03-09
THE

%Ea -.
rha Most Degraded of All OF the Suit ms
Degraded Subjects.
The Yezidees will not serve In the
Turkish army, because their religion
forbids them to mirsgle with the hated
Mussulmans, but escape by paying o
rood round Communication fee yearly.
The people are at the lowest stage o.
civilization, with no hope OF rising 30
long al Sheik Adi's rules are In force.
finder the influence Of their conditions
and OF the preiudices OF their neigh
b5rs against them. they have become
q sinister, malicious. treacherous peo-
nle. The rite of hospitality. so sacred
among the Bedouins, is unknown
amonp them. No n q feel safe
aynong them. They attach no value TO
human life. To these ordinary dangers
are added those arising from the I'm
barrassing etiquette of conversati onai
intercourse with them; for II any n
inadvertently lets escape the Wora
aavil. Satan, or any thing sounding
The il. he commits q mortal offense;
and to cut off his head is q God-pleas-
,no act and q sacred duty of the Yezi-
dee. the fulfliment OF which wiz In
s,re him a place in paradise. Several
letters are in like manner banished
from the language, chiefly those which
contain the sound OF 8 ashun"; also
the Arabic word n0lIet, .Ihou arr
damned.n which was spoken Dy God 70
The Opelousas courier., 1889-03-09
II OLD SLATE.

80 .,ate. with shattered frame,
u - whose full length there yawns
crack.
,.ca il furrowed DER with scars,
- ysterans from the wars come back
were It to gossip, l suspect,
ss,gbt Weld o vivid retrospect
~ scanes both lively md severe,
catered along each school-boy year.
a.,bened surface once contained
Iss.ssAers unknown on sea or land
go hare suspicious human forms
-. nenciled by the youthful hand;
al lest the mind might puzzled be
n Az their right identity.
s,eneath ca b one the artist wrote9
.Tbis is a man ~ This is a goatl"
.,ee convened Divisions court,
sssition kept official count.
s.aetton dwindled and reduced,
~ NJ rlamored for the right amount.
rnair victim tried. with mind intent
me figured fiends to circumvent,
And bending back and aching pate
TENT misery to the school boys fate.
his SCARED face was glossy black,
M arm and strong the splintered frame,
II sFayraret Webb, acrt IS the aisle,
Ysent some lines, and signed my name;
only scrubbed what is true
Tbat knives cant cut true love in two;
mt she wrote back: "sYou silly goose,
please put your brains to better uset"
Ssalnd this slate were 'ark %intrigues
srd ulots and schemes OF mischief laid,
vTsNe iokes we're cracked and apples ate
cecure behind the ambuscade-
Provided that my chum and 1,
n doing this upon tbs sly, a
Took care the teachers glance had seer
no ssgolngs on" behind the screen.
xrHed unto the garret's gloom,
Tbis battered and decrepit slate
Nav spends its days in different scenes,
Mid things dull and inanimate.
No more it dwells where life and youth
Were busy seeking Learning's truth,
nut like the veteran, old and gray,
Has played its part and had its day.
-P. C. Fossett in Golden Days.
The Opelousas courier., 1889-03-09
Eminent Statesman (walking ,

Eminent Statesman (walking uL
to reporter)-"My face is familiar to
you. / presumem Reporter--'I have
certainly seer you somewhere, and yet
/ a not exactly" Eminent States
man-"There is no use in trying to
keep any thing from the watchful eye
of a reporter. You recognize me, OF
course. as Congressman Blank?" Re-
porter-''Why, SO it is! May l inquire,
sir, the object of your visit to our
locality?" Eminent Statesman with
dignity)-'You may say, sir, that j
am travelling through here in a quiet
way, and as far as possible avoiding
publicity."-Chicago Tribune.
The Opelousas courier., 1889-03-09
Race and Mental Disorders.

V DIR. II. NJ. Bannister concludes from
a study OF this topic that: 1. In the .
white race the Oppressive types Of
mental disease are most frequent inf
the Germanic and Scandinavian people
and the least SO in the Celts; the re
verse of this appears to be the case as
to the exalted or maniacal types. 2.
General paralysis is not a disorder
from which any race is immune, but
one that depends upon causes indie
pendent of racial OF national pecu-
liarities. 8. The well known fact
that insanity is much more common
among the foreign-born than among
natives in this country is not to any
great extent explainabie by the ship
ment of the defective classes OF
Europe to America. The ''cranks"
and epileptics and other neurotic indis
viduals do not appear to be repre-
sented, in due proportion even, among
the foreigners in our asylums. The
cause of the excess of the foreign born
insane in this country is, it seems
probable, to be looked for mainly in
the fact that, supposiGg the immigra-
ton to include only It's proportion of
persons below the average of mental
strength and lexibility, the change OF
scene and associations, the difficulties
of beginning life among them, disap-
pointRent, inconsistencies and all
other accidents and trials that befall
the new corners together contribute to
break down mentally a vast number
who under other circumstances would
have escaped, and largely contribute
to the mass of insanity in this country,s
American Journal Of Insanity.
The Opelousas courier., 1889-03-09
SOME MEXICAN TRAITS.
People, Things and Customs to Be Seen
In Our Sister Republic.

= ~ AAAAh JAZZ W. OS ~OO
In Our Sister Republic.
A few days ago I met Richard
Weightman, the we'll known CORE
spondent, now editor of the Montgom-
cry Dispatch, His acquaintance with
Mexico and Mexican affairs extends
over a period of thirteen years. Dur
ing a conversation relating to his trav-
els In Mexico, / called his attention to
a paragraph in recent press reports
about a Mexican loan that had been
loated in London, the object being to
meet the expense of draining Lake Tez-
coco.
Eyes, I know Mexico and the Next
cans pretty we'll, having made five or
six visits. My first visit was in April,
E>ee875, and I happened to go with a
+. Their distinguished party, Mr.. Tom
Sc ut, the great railroad president;
Hoc@e William Walter Phelps, Senator
10 Parown of Georgia, and Ben: Perley
Poofaff, the veteran correspondent, we're
amoRg the number. Senator Morton
of Indiana and Simon Cameron of Rran-
sylvaIia had intended to go, and did.
in fach get as far as New Orleans, but
the reabseor of yellow fever at Vera
Cruz ore ,nged their plans and the
others RSSt on without them.
"It is>9nly when you meet men like
Romero Rubio that yG@ realize Mexi.
co.'s part; d + the drama of civilization.
and recall Inc fact that it has contrib
uted to h Zen iihry a chapter as serious
and as m~onagntous as can be found in
human annals. Then you remember
just as the curtain was falling on our
own National tragedy, and while Grant
Numbered his last summons at the
gates of Richmosa, the Mexicans, too.
were Waging war On slavery and stag
nation, and that under circumstances
so pathetic as to touch the hardest
heart.
1.-The largest and handsomest park
in Mexico Is the Alameda. More than
half a mile long and nearly half a mile
wide, it embraces a much greater area
than is usually devoted to public pur-
| poses in the heart of a populous city.
There are numerous broad walks and
fountains, though it is lferhaps more
densely wooded than anyenf u parks
are. The eucalyptus gibws here to
enormous height, and hundreds of
| specimens of tropical VEGETATION are
scattered about with LAVISH ~profusion.
This is the great mid-dafS resort on
Sunday. h
Perhaps there Is no more charac-
t~eristic phase OF Mexican life than the
universal interest taken in lottery
gambling and the solemn recognition
accorded 1t by the Government. There
are no laws more careful and precise
and elaborate than those relating to
this subject. They provide for every
detail in the transaction, from the time
the tickets are put on sale down to the
drawing and paying of the prizes. Be-
fore a ticket can be sold q sum OF
money sufficient to pay all the prizes
included in the scheme of that draw
ing must be deposited in a bauk or in
the National Treasury, subject to the
control of a Government officer. These
prizes must amount to sixty-two per
cent. of the whole fund to be derived
from the sale of tickets, supposing
them all sold. Then only eighty
Thousand tickets can be issued. And,
finally. the drawings are conducted by
Government officials, under circum-
stances Of absolute publicity
ington Letter.
The Opelousas courier., 1889-03-09
.Dnr;n0 the winter arrangap,e,

During the winter arrangements
should be made to give the plants as
much sunlight as possible. There r
few plants that will make good healthy
growth without this. II at rest they
may live, but II they nuke q 5000
growth. good sunshine during ths
winter 10 inaispen ssa!e,