davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20
The Value of Kangaroo Skins.

Up to 1869 kangaroos were killed
and eaten in Australia, and their hides
were cut into shoestrings But an
Engllshman named Brown in that
year discovered the remarkable char
acter OF the leather and brought sever
al thousand skins to this country.
He tried to sell the hides to tanners.
but they were shy of the novelty, and
he had to sell them at a sacrifice to a
bookhinder. The bookbinder made
triangular corner pieces in ledgers and
commercial books out of the skins, and
SO ascertained the good quality of the
leather. 1t was in this way that the
large leather factories were first at
tracted to kangaroo hide. Nature.
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20
HUNTING ALLlGATORS.

The Usual Price Paid For the Saurians 81 to
So Per Foot.
The demand for full-grown alligators
fer Northern museums and aquariums
begins with the warm days of spring,
and many an alligator's retreat has been
carefully marked by the alligator catch
nrs who when the signs are ripe, will
dig the saurians out and sell them at
from 81 to So per foot according to the
length of the animals. The negroes
loop ropes around the big alligators and
drag them out in triumph.
Mr.. Gugie Bourquin, who is an au-
thority in such matters, says that he
has known S25 to be offered for 12-foot
alligator. TIE colored men on his place
have two big fellows ''boled," and when
the weather is warmer they will be dug
out He g yes the negroes the alligators
and they give him all the terrapins found
in the holes.
Queerly enough the alligator and the
terrapin live in the same domicile and
upon terms of the utmost harmony.
This may be due to the fact that the
swallowing capacity of the alligator is
not equal to the occasion, as only small
PARTICLES can be swallowed by the
saurians, the gullet being dispropor-
toned to the anatomy of the alligator
mouth, and as result of which wht
the alligator kills such animals as dog
and hogs it is said they guard theil
prey until decomposition sets in so thai
that the food may be in such condition
as to make deglutition easy.
The alligators are said to be getting
fewer in the waters of this section, as
they are continually being hunted and
killed from the me they come out I'M
til they lay up again for the winter
Hundreds of them are shot for the mere
sport of shooting, and no effort is made
to find them after they are shot. 1t is
only in unfrequented streams and along
marshes and impenetrable swamp
where they are now numerous
The Cold Air Cure.
On returning from a crowded lee
ture hall. sitting sickroom, a stuffy
omnibus. ETC., remove my bed to the
draft side Of the house, and open a
window the full extent of it's mechan-
ism, taking care to 60 to sleep facing
the draft. [ have often been awakened
i'll the morning with my head grizzled
with hoar frost, but without the
highest vestige OF the catarrh which
nad announced its approach the night
before. Cold is all antiseptic and a
powerful digestive stimulant The
hospitals of the future will be ice
houses. Dyspepsia, catarrhs and fe-
vers of all kinds can be frozen out of
the system, not by letting the patient
ihiver in the snow bank, but by Civ
ing extra allowance of warm bed
clothing with the additional luxury Of
breathing ice cold air, which, under
such circumstances, becomes as prefer
,ble to hot miasma as cold spring
water to warm ditch water Herald OF
Health.
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20
The Effect of Tight Lacing.

In order to test the injurious effect OF
tight lacing on the respiration, DIR.
Lauder Brunton, while in India, made
number of experiments on female mon
keys, for the simple reason, as DIR. Brun'
ton ingeniously explains, that they are
more like women than dogs are. A
monkey was enveloped in plaster OF
Paris jacket to initiate stays, and tight
bandage was then tied around the aldo
men so as to initiate the band which
would sustain the petticoats. They were
then given chloroform. The result oil
the experiments is reported to have
been very marked indeed" so much 81
that several of the monkeys died very
quickly. DIR. Brunton added that the
survival of some of the animals expert
mented upon was probably due to the
fact that the diaphragm is able to COM
pensate to large extent for the en-.
forced loss OF chest Observation-Disclosures
Record.
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20

too, but was so tired that l could not
hear it all, but I know his text was:
In my Fathers house are many man.
SlUno
"Hush! They are singing down there
now. Their voices grow stronger and
the words ring out clearer and palmer.
1t is the same sOng-the one l always
loved so we'll and the one Marian used
to sing-'Nearer Home Do you hear
them say it? Nearer home. Yes, we
are nearer home. We are almost there.
Now the minister is preaching. He is
telling about that other home not made
with hands, eternal in the heavens 1t
is beautiful place, for as he talks
can see it, 1t is fairer than the old
home we have been looking for so long,
and it's fields are green and its waters
clear and soft Its gardens are all
abloom with beautiful flowers and the
air is filled with their rich perfume. |
see it all clearly now, and hear the
softest, sweetest music, and there are
angels coming, and as they float down
through the air they sing of the land SO
bright and fair. Be still, now, and let
me hear them before we go on. l will
rest little longer here and listen to
the songs of the angels before l go
home"
The old man closed his eyes and one
hand rested in that of his son while the
other lay affectionately on the little
dog that had been his only friend and
companion through all the years OF
his wanderings in search of his
home. Twas thus he waited for the
coming of the angels, and in a little
while he was at LAST sat home."-
Thomas p. Montfort, in Detroit Free
Press
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20
A NEW LINCOLN STORY.
He Played Ball the Day Before He Wa
Nominated.

He Played Ball the Day Before He Wa
Nominated.
One among many memories of prom.
inent public characters stored away BY
Mr.. Edward w. Cox, of the Dennison
House, is recollection of having play.
ed hand-ball at Springfield, ILL.,, with
Abraham Lincoln the day before the lat.
ter was nominated for the Presidency.
Before the nomination of Mr.. Lincoln,
Mr.. Cox was travelling in the West for
an oil house. During his travels he for
several days used trains which were full
of people bound for the Chicago conven.
ton. Mr.. Cox and a fellow drummer.
who was out for GAINESVILLE ink house,
polled all the travellers they could reach
and found the utmost enthusiasm for the
Illinois lawyer.
Thoroughly convinced that Lincoln
would be the nominee, the pair Of drum.
mers took run down to Springfield to
see the coming man. They found no
excitement there, and on asking to see
Mr. Lincoln were told he could be found
next day, which was the one before the
convention. down at the ball park play.
ing hand-ball, game of which Mr.. Lin.
coin was passionately fond. Next day
they visited the park and there they
found the man of destiny busily engaged
in batting ball against blank brick
wall and endeavoring to strike it in such
a way that it would rebound out of reach
of his opponent. There was quite
crowd sitting about watching the game.
Nv In, 0tb
ments, longtailed, black coat, and an
old felt hat, which tended to magnify his
tall, ungainly form and prominent fea.
lures and he looked quantity pictur-
esque as he danced about, now hitting
the sphere hard blow and again ''ba-
bying it, so easily that it barely reach
ed his antagonists. When Mr.. Lincoln
sat down on the players bench, having
finished triumphant turn, Mr.. Cox was
introduced to him. Mr.. Lincoln received
him cordially, asked if he ever played
the game, commiserated with him when
Mr.. Cox said he didn't understand it
and offered to teach him. Mr.. Cox, how
ever, was thinking of the convention and
said:
'Mr. Lincoln, believe you will be
the nominee" Mr.. Lincoln laughed
and said: 81 think not. 1 believe those
Eastern chaps will euchre US out of it.
but you are very kind to think 1 will be
nominated, and 1 am much obliged to
you"
Finally one of the players dropped
out, and Mr.. Lincoln invited Mr. Cox to
take hand Mr.. Cox of course did so.
for he was anxious to play with the man
he was sure would be nominated, and
the game lasted some time. Mr.. Lincoln
displaying great skill and strength.
When the game was finished Mr.. Lin.
coin kept score for another set of play
ers by notching the points on stick and
calling out ''score" in loud voice.
Cincinnati Times-Star,
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20
WIT AND WISDOM.

The man who takes things as they
come never has any ego" to him.-Bos-
ton Post.
The man who thinks he is bright is
seldom inclined to keep 1t dark.-Buf-
falo Courier.
1t seems strange that the sharper
man is the harder it is to make a tool of
him.-Boston Post.
The silent man is the one we always
listen to with the greatest pleasure
Richmond Recorder.
The talent of success is nothing
more than doing what you can do well,
with thought of fame.-Longfellow
If you can't marry a woman with
dollars, the next best thing is a woman
with sense.-Binghamton Republican.
Pride is wise when it goeth before
fall. If it waited until afterward it
could not go at all.-Milwaukee Jour-
nal.
Sometimes, to unkindness and in
justice, silence may be softer than even
the soft answer which turneth away
wrath.
"A horse has the advantage over man
in one thing. He's worth more after
he's broken than he was before.-Berk-
shire News.
Failure after long perseverance is
much grander than never to have striv-
ing good enough to be called a failure.
George Eliot.
"A man will always confess that he
is like other men, but he will never adj
NIT that he was ever anything like any
baby he ever saw.-Atchison Globe.
The world is full of would-be philos-
ophers; but, like the majority of physi-
clans, we do not find them taking their
stock prescriptions when occasion arises.
Boston Budget.
Whatever man personal fOll1eS
may be, he never succeeds in showing
the depths of idiocy to which he can de-
scend until he tries to run the universe
for other people.
They who have never known pros
perity can hardly be said to be unhappy;
it is from the remembrance of joys we
have lost that the arrows of affection
are pointed. Mackenzie.
Love is the highest happiness. 1t
Aoy oioO OO ohO oOOpOoo dAS u1ou. AL
unloving heart can not take any deep
hold on Joy or sorrow. The more we
love the greater the possibility of bliss
or agony.-Cumberland Presby terrain.
He that will give himself to all
manner of ways to get money, may be
rich; so he that lets fly all he knows or
thinks, may by chance be satirically
witty. Honesty sometimes keeps man
from growing rich, and civility from be-
ng witty.-Selden.
Moderate desire constitutes a char
acter fitted to acquire all the good which
the world can yield. He is prepared, in
whatever station he is, Herewith to be
content; has learned the science of be-
ing happy; and possesses the alchemic
stone which will change every metal
into gold.-Dwight.
"A genuine aspiration is never other
wise than noble and unselish, even
when it draws one away from the natu-
raj companionships of life; separates
one, that is, not in feeling or in sympa-
thy or in the common facilities, but in
taste and habit and intellectual CON-
panicnship.-Rural New Yorker.
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20
CHINESE COTTON MILLS.

A New Departure, With Possibly Far.
Reaching Results.
The efforts of Ii Hung-Chang to es-
tablish an extensive railroad system in
China have evidently awakened emu
lative progressive feelings in the breasts
of certain other high Chinese officials.
The latest evidence of this is a memo
rial prepared by Chang Chih-Tung, Act
ing Governor of Canton, advocating the
establishment of cotton mills under
Government supervision within the
boundaries of his province. 1t is point
ed out that India and Ceylon are sue
cessfully competing for the China Tea
trade, making it necessary to take in
hand some other enterprise with view
to improvement of trade and the pre-
vention of the outflow of money. The
memorial states that as lit is at present
impossible to prohibit the import of cot
ton goods, the only alternative that re-
mains open is to purchase machinery to
reel the cotton and to weave the cloth
in order to improve the welfare of the
laboring and mercantile classes, and to
safeguard the source of gain" After
establishing the mills under Govern.
ment supervision and by Government
aid, it is proposed, as soon as the success
of the undertaking is demonstrated, to
make them share-owning concerns, the
capital raised paying off Government
advances. Later aGvices from En-
gland report that arrangements have
been completed there for the purchase
of 1000 looms for the preparation of ma
chinery suitable for Keeling yarn, dying
yarn and for preparing cotton for bro
cades, as we'll as for boilers, furnaces,
pipes, etc., involving an expenditure OF
about $780, This looks as though
the project had passed from hope into
fruition. Dependent upon the fortunes
of these first mills are other schemes to
construct cotton mills at Shanghai and
Hong Kong, and later on at Tientsin and
other parts of the Empire. Of the sue
cess of these cotton mills the Acting
Governor of Canton has no doubts what
ever. He points out that there are ten
different kinds of cloth (cottons) most in
demand in China; three Of these can be
manufactured from Chinese-grown cot
ton alone, the other seven requiring an
admixture of some 80 per cent. of foreign
cotton. The low cost of labor is, how
ever, the great point in favor of success,
and, with the easy market .obtainable
for the goods, excellent profits ought to
be realized; the Governor expects much
greater profits than those derived in
foreign countries" IN. Y. Commercial
Du11oti,,
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20
THE DYING WIFE'S FAREWELL.

Raise my pillow, husband, dearest,
Faint and fainter comes my breath.
And these shadows stealing slowly
Must, know. be those of death.
Sit down close beside me, darling,
Let me clasp your warm, strong hand,
Yours that ever has sustained me
To the borders Of this land.
For your God and mine, our Father,
Thence shall ever lead me on,
Where upon throne eternal
Sits his love and only Son;
I've had visions and been dreaming
Ger the past, of JOY and pain;
Year by year l wandered backward,
Till was a child again.
Dreams of girlhood, and the moment
When stood your wife and bride,
How my heart filed with loves triumph
In the hour Of woman's pride.
Dreams of thee and all the earth cords
Firmly twined about my heart
Oh the bitter, burning anguish,
When knew that we must parti
1t has passed, and God has promised
All my footsteps to attend;
He that's more than friend or brother
He'll be with you to the end.
There's no shadow DER the portal
Lead1ng TO my heavenly nome
Christ has promised life immortal,
And It's He that bids me come.
When life's trials wait around thee
And its chilling pillows swell,
Thou'lt thank Heaven that I'm spared, then
Thoult feel that "all is we'll"
Bring our boys unto my bedside
My last blessing let them keep
But they're sleeping, do not wake them,
They'll learn soon enough to weep.
Tell them often OF their mother,
Kiss them for me when they wake;
Lead them gently in life's pathway,
Love them doubly for my sake
Clasp my hands still closer, darling,
This, the last, last night Of life,
For tomorrow shall never
Answer when you call me "wife."
Fare thee well, my noble husband!
Faint not meath the chaSt'ning rod:
Throw your strong arm round our children,
Keep them close to thee-and God.
Memphis Bulletin.
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20
A Fiber from Chinese Grass.

Ramie, rhea or Chinese grass, is by
no means a new discovery. 1t is the
fiber of species of nettle and has been
used almost from time immemorial by
the Chinese for the fabrication of light
clothing, nets and lines. TWAS intro
duced into England about ninety
years ago, receiving the commenda-
ton of the manufacturing institutes,
and since that day efforts to make the
fiber available to modern processes
have not ceased. Not less than 81, O0O,-
600 has been sunk in unsuccessful at
tempts, some of which have produced
cloths of beautiful texture and finish
Boston Herald.
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20
The Sound Of Light.

One of the most wonderful discov-
cries in science that have been made is
tue fact that a beam of light produces
sound. 4 beam Of sunlight is thrown
through a lens on a glass vessel that
contains lampblsck, colored silk or
woi'sted, or other SUBSTANCES A disk
having Sits or openings cut in it is
made to revolve swiftly i'll this beam
of light, SO as to cut it up, thus max
ing alternate flashes of light and
shadow. On putting the ear to the
glass vessel, strange sounds are heard
SO long as the flashing beam is falling
on the vessel.-American Art Jour
nal.
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20
About the Ear.

Ears vary greatly in form and size,
and the peculiarities of shape they as
sumo sometimes give an index to the
character of the individual. Women
have much better shaped ears than
men. They are usually much smaller,
and lie close to the head. Some peo-
pie possess singular muscular power
over the ear, and can move the upper
part at will, but it is rarely met with.
Pail Mall Gazette.
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20
A Mathematical Demonstration

Danvers-Come, Markham, surely
you are not going to propose to that
absurd Miss LeavenwOrth, are you2
Markham-Why, man, she has a
dozen splendid farms out in Kansas.
Danvers-Yes; and she's at least
fortytwo.
Markham-Oh, you miss it by about
fifteen summers, my boy.
Danvers-You are being deceived,
old wofully. | heard her de-
scribing the fourteen year locusts; and
she said nobody could tell her any
thing about them, because she had
seen them three times. -Harper's Ba-
Ear
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20
Ribbons Instead of Sleeve Links.

Apropos of the things men wear.
you must drop your sleeve links and
substitute for them a very narrow rib
bon, which is tied in a stiff little bow
through the two button holes.
This is lie dernier cri in Paris, and no
end of surmises come up as to how the
fashion arose. Most fashions have
their birth from accidents, and it is
fair to conclude that Alphonse, in a
spirit of gallantry, gave his sleeve
links to Therese, Elise or Marie, md
that she, returning the compliment,
drew the pretty little ribbon from her
lingerie and fastened together, in a
feminine fashion, the cuffs that were
inkless. p philadelphia Times.
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20
Strong Evidence.

Young man." said the boarding
mistress, sternly, your comments are
out OF place. | made biscuits. sir, fifty
years ago"
Very likely" was the sinners re-
ply, adding III an undertone to his side
partner, land if circumstantial evi.
dence goes for anything, this speci-
men I'm whetting my teeth on is one
OF 'em. "--Philadelphia Times.
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20
mo, NO, WILL NOT GO WITH YOU. I"

mo, NO, WILL NOT GO WITH YOU"
he would only speak of his old home,
and of it's beauties and end by saying
that he was going back soon.
Often when the days were clear and
warm he roamed in the woods and gath :.
cred wild flowers, or wandered along the
banks of the little river picking up
shells and pebbles. On such occasions
his little Cog trotted by his side, and
sometimes the old man would stop and
talk to him about the flowers and shells,
and the dog would look up as though he
understood it all.
autumn days came on. The people no
ticed that the old man appeared on the
streets less frequently, and it was sell
dom he and his dog went out to roam as
OF old. They noticed, too, that he was
growing thinner and his step was be-
coming feebler.
Then there came time when he did
not appear at all, and when two days
had passed, the little dog came to a
house where they had always been kind
to his master, and in his way begged
them to come with him to the cabin.
Something has happened" some one
said, ''and the dog wants US to 60.
Perhaps the old man is sick. or dead"
They remembered then that he had
not been seen, and they followed the
dog home, there to find it was as they
feared. and that the old man was sick.
He lay on poor bed Of straw and leaves
and tossed about with fever
They entered very quietly and talked
In low whispers so as not to disturb him.
but his quick ears caught the sound Of
their footsteps, and attempting to shrink
away from them, he put out his wasted
hand as if to stay their approach.
mo, no." he said. Il will not GO with
you. will not be locked up as pauper
where there are no flowers or birds, and
no green fields and no beautiful forests.
am going home directly, and they can
not send me away again. Go away now,
End let me go on, for the journey is not
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20
A Curious Birth-Mark.

Joseph II. Rotherman, acarpenter, re-
siding at Connellsville, Pa, has a cres-
cent-shaped birth-mark on the back Of
his neck which has aroused considerable
curiosity in that vicinity. When the
moon is new Rotherman's mark is hardly
noticeable, but as Luna turns the first
quarter it begins to turn red and swell.
BY the time of full moon it has swelled
into hornlike roll over two inches in
thickness. AS the moon wanes the mark
decreases in size and color until it again
becomes a blueish, crescent-shaped
mark. hardly raised above the skin.-
st. Louis Republic
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20
Our Ounces.

Among persons who have good
cause to congratulate themselves that
their lines have been cast in the 80
called Nineteenth century" is our old
friend the school boy Ounce. Ounces
are now going to be treated on scien-
tific principles. Twenty or thirty
years ago they were made to stand on
a bench with a paper extinguisher on
their heads as sign of disgrace
London Telegraph
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20
Soft Coal a DiSjnfectaut,

The belief that smoke from soft coal
may have beneficial sanitary effects is
gaining ground. 1t is claimed that
sulphur in the coal when burned be-
comes highly disinfectant. Further,
that creosote and it's allied products
are thrown off with the fumes of btu
minous coal, and that an atmosphere
charged with carbonic acid must be
freer from germs of disease than an APP
parently purer air.-New Orleans
Picayune.
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20
Horrors of POmneii.

But among all the beauties there are
many horrors in Pompeii that leave
lasting impressions. There are casts
taken from the molds of ashes that in
cased the victims of the great catastro-
phe, showing their writings and ago
MES as plainly as though they had
just died. There are signs of the daily
life that was being lived when the
ashes began to fall; occupations half
done and suspended in the awful mo-
ments when the danger became only
too apparent. Washington Star.
The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-06-20
GOING HOME.
The Old Man Reaches the Fair
Place of His Dreams at Last.

. WAS an old
man and his
h e a d W q 8
whitened by
the frosts of
many win tiers.
His form was
bent and his
step was totter-
ing. His eyes
had long since
grown dim and
his hands were
f e @ b | @ and
wrinkled.
Often and
often of even
ings he sat in
the twilight,
and as he
gazed up and
aWaV in the