Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-05-05
CURIOUS CONVERSATIONS.

Mrs. Betsy AverhiIl, of New Milford,
will celebrate her lOad birthday to-day. She is
i said to be the oldest pensioner on the Govern
| ment rolls
Caleb Ellis, of Preston, Conn.,, has
calf that has six legs. four of them being set in
front. The animal is well, and Caleb is holding
| him for dime museum price.
The legal standard Of water in the milk
of other cities is 70 per cent. In ST. Louis it Is
| 80 per cent, with about ten per cent additional
| generously thrown in for good measure.
AN Opelousas, La, gander has learned
to turn the faucet of clstern with his bill, and
when the water begins to flow he sits down un-
der the stream, flaps his wings, takes a bath
and has good time generally.
r. E. Wishart, of Abbeville, Ca, hasa
tame deer that one of his muies delights in
chasing. Lately the mule made the race
hitched to a cart which was somewhat dam
aged by coming in contact with stumps and
logs.
"A novel way of raising money 10 build
a church has been adopted by a congregation
IN an Iowa town. They borrowed Sl20 900 and
gave life insurance on a number of the MEM
bers, which is to be applied on the debt as fast
as death ensues.
In each ton of camphor wood brought
to this country from Japan there is 25 per cent
of camphor and 20 per cent of waste More
over. one-haIf of the camphor evaporates dur
ing the sea voyage, leaving l2% per cent OF the
drug after reduction.
Three years ago q st. Clair county,
Mich, clergyman preached sermon over the
body Of good citizen. 1t was good sermon,
and the preacher charged the estate $50 for it.
Ihe bill has not been paid. and it IS now in the
Probate Court with sl1 interest attached
The old Mormon Theater in Salt Lake
City, built years ago by Brigham Young, is
about to be torn town and replaced by new
one. with all the modern Improvements. A
delegation of capitalists, who have bought the
old theater have Just come to New Y ork 10 Sc
cure plans for their proposed dramatic tenn
ple"
"A wealthy Georgia man died recently,
and after the last sad rites tho family made
search for the will but could not find it.
Finally someone suggested that the body should
be exhumed. This was done, and in the inside
pocket of the grave coat the will was found.
The careful citizen had put it there for safe
keeping.
"A genuine Roman pig of lead has re-
Gently been discovered at South Cave. in East
Yorkshire. The pig weighs nearly 40 pounds.
and it was found about two miles north of the
Humber, close to where the great ferry (Tran-
situs Maximus) of the Roman road called
Ermine street crossed from Lincolnshire to
Yorkshire
"A bookseller who observes the reading
habits of young women says that the young
women of New York seldom read back farther
than year. They keep up famously with the
new works of note in the lighter fields OF liter
ature, but that no one of them is found reading
the older English writer's, with the single ex-
ception OF George Eliot.
"A remarkable surgical operation was
performed recently near Red Oak Ia. A week
ago 1+year-old son of James Hall was shot by
hired man with 3S-caliber revolver the ball
passing into the abdomen and cutting the in
testInes IN four places. He was placed under
the influence of ether. the intestnes removed
and the cuts sewed up. He may live.
Next to the Birmingham and Chatta-
nooga districts, Southwestern Virginia has
been and is now the favored spot in the COM
mercial South. During Governor Lees admin
istration it Is estimated that sIOOOOO.OOO have
been invested in various enterprises within the
State, and yetsthe surface of Virginia's vast
mineral deposits has hardly been scratched.
Benedict & Lockwood, of New Canaan,
Conn.,, have just made pair of shoes for .
Charlotte, N. e., man. They are the biggest
ones ever made. The size is No. 81 Each
shoe is 20 inches long and inches wide.
The man who is to wear them is a clergyman,
8 feet 10 inches tall, and weighs 40 pounds, and
the county in which he dwells is roomy one.
Any law firm in New York with really
profitable business, expends from $4,000 to
$4,000 a year for rent, light fuel. stenograph-
still refuse to employ typewriters, and William
Allen Butler astonished some of his younger
brethren at Albany the other day by present.
ing yoluminous brief written out in his own
hand.
The Congressional Committee appointed
to investigate the immigration business report
the discovery Of a single square mile of terri
tory in New York City where 10000 people
live, which is s 900 more human beings than
can be found dwelling in any other square mile
on the earth's surface. These people are said
to be all Italians, speaking only their own
language, and observing foreign customs.
The four most valuable minerals in
Persia are coal, iron, copper and lead. while ir
has been ascertained that there are large de
pOsits of the purest petroleum IN Southwest
Persia. In the north coal field of great eX-
tent has been proved TO exist in the neighbor-
hood of Teheran. The coal has been tested,
and experts affirm that it will bear comparison
not unfavorably with the best English coal.
AN employee in the office o. the archi-
tect of the capitol. Washington, has invented
an electrical musical machine. The keyboard
is similar to that of ordinary typewriter,
and its keys are connected electrically with
number of electric bells arranged beneath the
table. Pressure on each key closes the circuit
of an electric bell and when the KEYS are
operated by expert any tune may be played
on the machine.
Commencing on Monday night the or
chestra in 10 theaters in New York twill play
the national anthem, ''The Star Spangled Ban
ner" as the closing feature of the evenings en-
tertainment. The idea is suggested by the Gus
tom of English theaters, where the orchestra
plays as the audience is leaving God Save the
Queen" The orchestra at Harry Williams
Academy of Music. in Pittsburg, took this pa
triotic step long time ago.
"A recent notable invention consists of a
lender for street railway cars run by electric
ty which is worthy ofattention. 1t presents
platform capacious enough to receive victim
10 unfortunate as to be caught upon the track
)efore a car At slope before 1t is a heavy
our-ply rubber betting. pliable enough to pass
,yer paving stones and similar objects but suf-
iciently rigid to prevent an arm or leg from De-
ng drawn under the fender.
II J. Athey, of Marion, Ark, has pat
nted a fire escape. 1t is an aluminium steel
ape one END. of which is attached to the build
ng and the rest wound aronnd small reel
Vith a brake attachment, which the person
sing il can manipulate so as to descend at
speed or stop at will. Mr.. Athey
ested it at Niagara Falls, and had himself rho
while hanging from the upper sus-
ension bridge, with 100 feet Of tape let out.
p. G.. Van Ostrand, of Elmore, Mich,
5 beginning to believe that the 9th of April is
day of fate for him. He was married on that
ate: two years later his wife died. Following
hat affiiction his wedding day anniversary has
zen observed in this way: His house burned,
is pocketbook was stolen, he was blown up in
MILL he was shot in the leg he was nearly
rowned, and last Sunday, when he had reason
o hope that his Nemesis was sleeping, he re-
eived word that his son had been arrested for
heft, and before he could interfere the lad was
ent to the reform school.