Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-06-21
CURIOUS CONVERSATIONS.


The proprietor of a German watering
place, desirous of catching English custom, in
his advertisement 'beseeches note excel
lent station for friends of the fschport, ships
and riding room in the house
The real red poppy" has recently been
found to have the valuable power of binding
with its roots the soil in which it grows in such
a manner that it will prove most valuable IN
supporting embankments. Already several en-
gineers have undertaken the sowing Oh railway
embankments with poppies.
GA great many people still firmly be-
lieve the old notion that friction on the head
stimulates the intellect" said barber the
other day, as he strapped his razor with con-
templative air. Il know several lawyers VINO
lust before they are to make plea lnMr,aIlaDly M,ay
nave enelr crowns vigorously rupoeoI hneS h1y hSny
that 1t not only brightens up their IDEAS, Due
gives greater power of concentration upon
single thought"
Last week the postofice in Alma, Me-,
was removed from its old place in p. b. Jones
building to the store of F. l. Weeks. The next
morning driver Perham. of the Alma and Car
lner stage, Iett MS horses for a moment at tne
new office, when they started called round as
the old postot1ce, waited a moment. and then
started of at quick dash down the street to
connect with the morning train at Wfscasser:
They were overtaken and captured about half
mile below the village
The total coal consumption of the world
is said to amount to upward of 100000 quin-
tails per hour. OF this quantity about 10000
quintals are required per hour in order to heat
the boilers for stationary and marine engines,
loeomobiles, locomotives. etc. The production
of pig iron absorbs 100000 Quintals, and that of
other metals $1,000 quintals per hour The
average hourly consumption of household coal
is reckoned at 1000 guintals, but the total
production is estimated at 10000 to 33,O0O000
per diem. SO that it still considerably exceeds
the consumption
There are said to be 20 street bands in
New York City, most of them italian. a few Of
them German. Some of them favor the listen.
ing crowds with masterpieces by Mozart or
Beethoven and airs from martha" or 'Trova-
tore" but others prefer to give more popular
selections. In few of these string bands
there are excellent performers, possessed Of
real artistic ability Many of them at this time
OF the year find employment at picnies or in
steamboat excursions 1t is said that band
OF half dozen pieces, while playing in the
streets, will often pick up from $40 to SIS day.
"A debating club in Germany has been
discussing for two years the question whether
it is possible to get nothing for something.
The realists say yes, and adduee numerous in
stances in commercial transactions. But the
idealists say no. FOR, they argue, 'if nothing
really is nothing, how can you get it?' Then
everybody drinks beer for month or two un-
til some bright realist thinks up an answer to
this question. The beerseller in whose hall the
club meets says it is one of the finest debates
he has ever heard, and he confidently expects
it to run along for another year at least.
"A st. Louis paper offers prize for the
best list of ten books for boys and girls. The
competitors must be under 16 years of age.
Twenty-Five lists are published and they make
interesting reading. On the % lists the follow
ing authors are mentioned: Bunyan, timesg
Mrs. Burnett IL times; Miss Aleott. Il times;
Hans Christian Andersen, times; De Foe, IL
times; Shakespeare, times; Dickens, 10 times;
Grimm. L; the Bible, times. Here is one of
''riffany's Diamonds Peter the Whaler,"
THE American Orators" Hume's or Good
rieh's History of England ~. 'Iyanhoe,"
"Frederick the Great" "Robinson Crusoe.p
Comparatively few fairy tales are mentioned
in these lists.
The famous London companies or guilds
have met in convention 70 consider the plan of
the eity's county council for dividing up their
enormous wealth. The original purposes of
the guilds, says the county council, are no
longer served, and their usefulness has passed.
The gross value of property vested in "A COM
panles is estimated at Els, COZ. .000 with proba-
bility of large increase during the next quar-
ter of a century. The available revenue is
taken at &440, 600 and the actual expenditure at
f425,0O0. Of this revenue, larger than that of
many a German grand duchy, the companies
or benefcence akin to the charitable trusts of
which they are the almoners. one hundred
thousand pounds goes for ''banqeting," and
another 100000 on management, that is, for
salaries of officials and the court fees payable
to members for attendance at meetings.
Joseph Oscar johnson, of Macon, Ga,
is queerly affected, and is condemned to laugh
all his life. He is paralytic, and one side Is
entirely useless. The stroke came on him some
two months ago. He is locomotive engineer.
It was in the town of Clinton, s. c., that the
stroke came on him. He was one day doing
some work on his engine and talking to some
one standing near. At the moment he received
the blow he was in the act of laughing and
strange to say, the muscles and nerves of the
face that are brought most into play in the act
of laughing are the ones that are most affected,
and over these he has no control whatever. He
cannot ;ell of his troubles and tine doubts and
fears that torment him without laughing. He
has wife and five children. and when this
affliction came upon him he went to his father
in-law, who lives in Wilmington. N. C., and
told him of his condition and OF his inability to
care further for his family. The recital of his
parting with his wife was most pathetic and
yet with tears IN his eyes and a
heart full of agony he was forced to laugh as
though he had been telling the most ludicrous
incident. He dares not go to church lest he be
accused of making sport of the services and be
to leave the church. And as for a
funeral it would be out of the question for him
to attend one. His case is a most pitiable one,
and is the more so because he is only awaiting
he would hail with pleasure and almost prays