The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1890-06-05
MISCELLANEOUS.

An Opelousas (La.) gander has
learned to turn the faucet or . ciste.n
with his bill, and when the water begins
70 how he sits under the st. cam, flaps
his wings. takes . bath and has good
time generally.
1t Is estimated at tie War Depart
mcnt that II any foreign power should
tackle this country It would be con-
frontcd BY the enormous total Of 7,000.-
600 fighting men. OF course it would
take some timo to put that host in the
deld.
-"Spif1s" ara premiums placed on
certain articles, not of the last fashion
indicated by marvellous hieroglyphic
put on the price-ticket These marks
are we'll known by the salesmen, and
the almost invisible mystic sign explains
why IN article, wholly unsuitable, Il
foisted on the jaded customer as ''just
the thing"
The largest beer barrel ever made
in the world is the attraction Of . St.
Louis saloon. II is twenty-three feet
high. twenty-five feet wide, and has :
capacity Of 81, 400 gallons, or 1,7O0 ordin-
ary beer barrels. A dining table Is set
up in the interior of tho barrel, and
many people have enjoyed the novelty
Of taking their luncheon in tho big
barrel. It was made in st. Louis ten
years ago.
I'm gratitude for their recent deliver
ence from the perils of the voyage in tho
Inman liner City Of Paris, the passen-
gers, before landing, subscribed G6O0 -
thank Offering and appointed q COM
mittee to decide upon its application.
1t is understood that the committee
have decided to hand over f400 to the
Seamen's Hospital, Liverpool, for its
general purposes, and to endow with
the balance . bed in the same institu-
tion for sick American sailors.
Tho experiment of constructing .
large building chiefly OF paper has been
successfully made at Hamburg, Ger
many, where IN immense hotel, with its
facade and other important parts COM
posed Of that material has been erected.
It is claimed that the building is abso-
lutely fire-proof and also impervious to
the action Of the elements which render
brick. stone or wood unsightly or unsafe
under prolonged exposure.
Charles Lamb had a horror Of mo-
toriety, and of being .'lectured" in pub
lie places. Impertinence or offensive
interference Of any sort he could not
brook. An overbearing head Of adepart-
ment in the East India House approached
him one day. when Lamb was busily en-.
/ gagged, with the Paul Pry question,
| ''Pray, Mr.. Lamb. what are you about?''
''Forty next birthday" he replied. II
don't like your answer" said the man.
"Nor your question" was Lambs re-
ioinder.
| The age Of the high hat is under In.
vestigation. A correspondent writing
to the Manner Journal says: "Among
the marginal illustrations. bv Albrecht
Durer, OF the famous prayer book Of the
Emperor Macmillan, there 10 . man
wearing high hat. and in q book oi
crests and escutcheous OF JOSH Amman,
published in 1859. high hat forms the
crest Of nobleman. Had these hats
not been worn at the period, great art
lists like Durer and Ammana would
certainly not have painted such misera.
bly, ugly things. which are the most IN.
slightly pieces OF furniture the world has
over seem"
Mrs. John g. Curtis, OF New York, is
the founder OF one of the most remarka.
BILE orchestras in existence. 1t is com.
posed Of men and women, girls and
boys, gathered from poor families. The
few who can afford 1t paw : small fee
Theodore John, formerly conductor oi
the city orchestra of Freiburg, has
trained the performers SO thoroughly
that at the end Of three years many o.
his pupils are able to take places IS pro
fcssional performers. Mrs. Curtis draw
Ing room is their practicing hall, and
1t her desire, they play occasionally IL
public for charities.
1t is seldom that the trivial causes
which lead to the overthrow Of thrones
receives SO clear an illustration as tn,
following statement by ex-King Thee
baw. Of Rurmsh: my late father, tn
royal Mindoon Min, the golden-foote,
lord Of the white elephant, master Of
thousand gold umbrellas, owner Of tn
; royal peacocks, lord Of the sea and OF tn
world. whose face was like the sun, al
; ways smoked the Esoof cheroot whil
meditating on his treatment OF the bull
faced, earth-swallowing English. Ha
] done the same should never have lei
my throne, but used the opium-drugge
: cheroot from Manila. and the trash &C
lace was sent me from San Francisco
and fell. l."-Chicago Journal.