Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-06-23
CURIOUS CONVERSATIONS.


play ball.
"A woman and her husband are master
and engineer respectively of trading steamer
on the Columbia river, Washington.
"A private soldier says that desertions
from the army are largely due to the tyranny
Of the younger officers and the drunkenness Of
the older ones
AS Will Durocher, of Escanaba, Mich,
was eating his supper few nights ago stroke
of lightning violently removed his shoes and
trousers. leaving him badly burned and
shocked.
"A citizen of Virginia is seeking to have
the sulphur springs of that State indited
as nuisances injurious to health. He has
lived near one for three years. and be SAYS
that Strawberries and dead dogs now smell
alike to him.
In the Dutch portion Of Borneo the
natives used to adorn their huts with human
heads. and they were not particular whose
head it was. Over 1000 of them have had to be
killed IN order to put stop to this practice,
which is now absolute.
There is larger proportion Of the boys
and girls nf New Jersey than of any other state
in the Union who go to Sunday school Il ap-
pears by statistirs recently taken that there are
just about 230.O10 children In the 9g7 Sunday
schools Of New Jersey.
The old Planters House in st. Louis.
which gained historical interest from illusions
in Dickens american Notes" and from
whose front balcony Andrew johnson made one
o. the speeches that are said to have led to his
impeachment Is to be torn down.
"A Pennsylvania editor has discovered
several centuries late--that everything in nature
is playful. He says: ''The Lightning plays. the
wind whistles, the thunder rolls, the snow flies,
the waves leap and the fields smile. Even the
trees shoot and the rivers and streams rum"
News comes from Toungu, Burmah,
that Koh Pal Sab, timber merchant there,
has founded new religion. which is described
as sort of mixture of Buddhism aud Christi
anity. The disciples. who number several
thousands. keep the Christian Sunday and alb
stain from strong drink.
"A cat in Falkirk, Scotland, is bringing
up brood of chickens. But the prize cat is to
be found in the hamlet of Trinity Gask, Perth
shire. Scotland 1t is seriously related of her,
that, having been deprived pf her kittens she
caught mouse, which >he adopted, and is now
mothering with great tenderness
For the convenience OF those wishing to
punch two big turtles that are displayed in front
of store IN Punxsatawney, Pa. the owners
have placed some large sticks beside it. 1t an
nDyed them greatly to see the expression Of
pain on mans face who stopped there to look
at the turtles and could not find stick to prod
them with.
-Florida's typographical appearance is
exactly like that of pistol. The Pensacola end
of the State would represent the muzzle Ap-
palachicola the trigger Fernandina the ham
mer and all South Florida the handle of the
weapon. Annexation to Alabama west of the
Chattahoochee river would cut of the muzzle
and good part of the barrel.
1t is reported at ReidsvilIe, Ca, that
last week man In Tattnall county, while dip.
ping turpentine, was struck about the corner
OF his mouth by large rattlesnake. He seized
the reptil and was struck on the arm. He
then tried to throw the snake from him. and
was again struck on the thigh. 1t is said he
died before reaching house.
"A "Guide to the Churches of London
shows that the number of metropolitan churches
have increased between 1873 and 1859 from s29
to l,0l6. Altar vestments are now the rule in
SO churches as against 81 in 1888 altar lights in
1l9 as against ga in 1853, and the eastward
position in 1896 as against 9Oi in 1883. In the
same period the number of churches in which
the communion 1s celebrated in the evening has
decreased from 2S9 to III
AN eccentric old gentleman who re-
Gently died in Tyler, Tex, left a sum of money
to be divided among persons now living in the
South whose birth was concident with bis own
May 9, 1895. If every person who is entitled
to share puts in claim there will not be
much for each one. There are in the United
States at least 400UO persons who were born IN
the United States in the year 1885 and of IL ose
the number in the Southern States wOuld be
about 10000. Assuming that the 9th of May
OF that year was an average one for births,
there are now living in the United States l. 100
persons VINO were born on that day. and 4U0 or
them are residents of the South. z
1t appears that wood pavements have
met with greater success in some of the couu-
tries of Europe than in our own, the reason as
signed for this being the fact of their having .
foundation of concrete to rest upon in the for.
mer, at the same time receiving more attention
there in the way of maintenance than here.
Owing to its hardness and resinous uuality
American yellow pine it is said, has become
the favOrite wood for this purpose in Berlin
and Hamburg and an official report saws that
Frederick's bri ge, Berlin, which vas paved in
the spring OF 1873 with the wood in question, is
still In gDod condition. while the approaches
paved with granite blocks, have twice since re-
quired repaVing.
"A Boston paper tells Of an old burying
ground in large southern New Hampshire
town there is an interesting group OF seven
tombstones. Each of six of them marks a
little strip Of earth where rests the remains Of
one of the wives of one man. and the seventh
Is the gravestone of the Blue Beard himself
The epitaphs of the wives are short and simple
enough, but the filth bears, underneath the
name and record Of the wOmans birth and
death, these words: The Pesceinaker" One
can only speculate as to what the eircum-
stances were under which she exercised her
benevolent art: but no doubt she had to be a
peacemaker to enable her husband to get along
in any sort Of comfort wi h all his deceased
wives relations. But the epitaph on the hus-
bands tombstone is gem. 1t reads thus:
REST, WEARY PILGRIM.
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