Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-08-11
CURIOUS CONVERSATIONS.

| -OaVerndKe forest, one OF tne most
famous estates in England, has been sold for
"a, 10000.
There Is mountain of coal in Wild
Horse Valley, Wy, which has been burning
Tor more than 30 years.
"A farmer near Garden City, Kan, at
tackled column of grasshoppers with 20
, turkeys, and was soon master of the situar
tion.
was laid to rest few days since in a coffin
which was given to him four years ago as q
birthday present
More than 5000 clerks, salespeople,
teamsters, potters, janitors and other wage
earners are out of work because Of the recent
Dig fire in Chicago.
The COreans are the largest eaters
known. Their stomachs are generally alb
nomal in size, and the one possessing the
largest Is generally considered the richest.
Helena, Mont, boasts of young wo-
man who is made of the right sort of mate
rial. She Is a very successful member Of the
BAR and is also the secretary OF large lum-
Der company
Boys in Charlottesville, Ind, have q
balloon parachute craze, and cats are daily
sent up, the parachute being so arranged
that it will detach itself from the balloon at
certain time.
Fishermen tell lots of tough yarns about
dogfish, but the toughest one yet is the story
of the dogflsh at North Haven, Me- that ran
up to the head of the mill stream and barked
at the hens and turkeys.
"A hotel in Hamburg has been built en-
tirely of compressed wood, which bv the
pressure to which It is subjected is rendered
as hard as iron, as well as absolutely proof
against the attacks of fire
circumference, II feet in diameter and I75
feet high, will be blasted with dynamite, as
there is no saw that will cut it and no mill
that can cut 1t in boards.
Some specimens of mangel wurzel beets
grown at Santa Anna, Cal, have been sent
to the permanent exhibit at Chicago The
largest beet weighed 66 pounds. One meas
ured feet inches in length, and six OF
them weighed 313 pounds
Another scientific observer publishes q
pamphlet to show that the European jaw Is
narrowing through the lesser severity of its
labors that accompanies civilized food The
lower jaws of the later English are smaller
than those of ancient Britons, OF even of
Australians.
1t is reported that hail which fell in
Palmyra, N. u last week was composed of
small blue-white stones with q coating of
ice. Most Of the stones were transparent,
and several are in possession of Palmyra
residents. Where they came from is q
mystery.
The hide of the former Cincinnati ele-
phant, Old Chief, which was shot last Febru-
ary, has been stuffed, and, with the mounted
skeleton of the brute, will be housed in a
special building at the Cincinnati Geological
Garden. The hide weighed !, 100 pounds, and
it has been stuffed with oakum.
"A foolish COW near Thompson, Ga, that
got fits tail caught somehow in a tree made
trouble worse by going around the trunk
until she wound up like a clock. She then
became frightened, and giving lunge,
pulled the tail out by the roots Afterward
the tail was found as described by the ami
mails owner.
One man in Oxford county, Me, can
appreciate the practical as well as the
aesthetic advantages of doing without
fences. His next neighbor hired a man to
hoe his crops and the man, knowing no
meets and bounds, works away until fence
confronts him, the result being that Edward
gets his crops hoed as well as the man who
hired the laborer.
"A philanthropic Portland lady who
earns her own living, became interested in
family that lived in great misery and desti-
tuition. She almost supported them and
took time that she could i'll afford TO spare
to cook for them, especially for the aged
soon after. Sewed up in q mattress was
found 1880, which her miserly nature had
kept Gecreted while she accepted the lady's
charity. srI % -s..... '.,.'-7
1t is doubtful if the record of early sx-
penditures OF any great man begins with a
more creditable disbursement than that Of
Webster while pedagogue at Fryeburg,
Me-, which is preserved there as a memento.
The first charge set down is "for soap, one
stx-pence," on January 9, 1907 The items
that follow are not unworthy of this be-
ginning They are: "a comb, six-pence,"
"quills, one-and-six-pence": pencil, seven
pence; and "a book, four-and-sixpence"
The items, "a ring, five shillings," and zone
pair Of silk hose, fourteen-and-six-pe pence"
might have given ground for a suspicion Of
to be afterwards justified.
A penurious old fellow went to a Maine
country grocery store, one day, and asked
the price Of an empty molasses hogshead
The price was not satisfactory and q long
wrangle finally resulted in the old man
making q very mean offer which was indig-
nantly refused. mo, SIR" said the grocer,
''you cannot steal that hogshead but will
give it to you If you earn It by rolling it
home" 1t was in the spring and there was
D layer OF soft snow on the ground, but the
was accepted and old Parsimony
rolled the hogshead distance Of more than
4 mile. He was not strong man except In
will and it cost him his life for he never did
any more work and died in q few weeks.
Hannibal Hamlln's uncle Merrick .
soldier, once met bear and
stoned him to death. II must be confessed,
that he had an unfair advantage
Of suitable stones lying all around him and
Of position some feet higher than the
BEARS. As he saw him disposed for an at
tack. he hurled for dear life a heavy stone
W nich struck the bears pate and stifrened
him for the moment. Such o rain Of stones
rzrIr hi h a
The hill is called Bear Mountain to this day
The historian must needs admit that Hanni-
bal Hamlin never killed bear although he
,ried it once with charge Of partridge shot,
Is many an Oxford county boy has done.