davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17
A Remarkable Servant.

A few days ago there died in France
a woman who, although ill-favored and
disagreeable, exercised a most power
full influence on the desJinies of Europe.
Extraordinary though it may appear,
she was nothing but a servant girl,
with so little education that she barely
knew how to write her name, which
was Pepa. She was a Spaniard by
birth and was the maid and confidential
factotum Of Empress Eugene, both
before and after her marriage to Ma
poleon. 1t is generally admitted that
Empress Eugene was principally re-
sponsible for many of the most cruel
of Frances disasters. She was entirely
under the control of her maid, who
possessed all the vices and none OF the
virtues Of the Spanish character. The
emperor and many of. Eugenie's friends
and relatives repeatedly implored her
to dismiss Pepa, but without avail, and
it was current at the time that she
owed her exceedingly strange position
to some dangerous secret of her mis-
tress which the latter feared she would
reveal.
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17
Broke TIN the PARTY.

Some of the friends of a Portland
young man called on him the other
evening, says the Lewiston Journal,
and had pleasant time, but long after
midnight he commenced to wonder
why they did not thank him for his
hospitality and leave for home. As
dawn approached he abruptly left the
room. After few minutes had passed,
as the young man did not return, the
party went to search for him. They
found him on the front steps looking
anxiously about. He was peering over
the fence and poking about in corners.
''What are you looking for?" said ono
of the party. 'tOhl was just looking
for the morning paper" replied the
host. It worked.
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17
A Feline Tramp.

The usually strict railroad rules were
not enforced on the express train that
came into New London, Conn, the
other day. When the car inspectors
got to work on the train, one Of the
men discovered, lying on the truck, a
large cat of fierce de1neanor and SO
dusty that it's natural color could not
be ascertained. Some friendly over
lures were made, and rejected with
Kisses and yowls, so the conductor con-
cluded to let the cat tramp continue her
ride unmolested. He told the train
men Of it's presence. and they kept
watch at the stations at which the train
stopped; but the cat never left it's perch
until the train rolled into the station at
New York; then it fed, as if going to
see a near relation. 1t is believed that
the animal got on the car at Boston.
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17
A CROWS HuMoR.
Full of Mischief and Up to All Kinds OF
Tricks.

Full of Mischief and Up to All Kinds Of
Tricks.
It is fact not generally known that
monkey is as solemn and quiet as an
anchorite, compared with a crow. There
is no mischief-maker or practical joker
on the earth like a tame crow. Anyone
who wishes to see this illustrated, says
the Chicago Journal, has only to visit
the ''happy family cage in Lincoln
park and watch the crow members OF
the family circle. There are couple
of squirrels in the cage, and this crow
actually spends all his waking mo-
ments in catching these squirrels by
their tails and pulling them backward
around thu cage. The squirrels dislike
this very much and occasionally snap
at the crow in q way that makes him
hop away for dear life. But as they are
never able to come up with him and
punish him, they consider it useless as
ageneral thing to make any resistance.
Therefore, if they are nibbling at nut,
and they find themselves dragged OF
by the tail they know it is the crow,
and just keep on eating until the drag
cling operation becomes insufferable,
when they turn around and snap, and
the crow let's go. But it is not three
seconds before he is stealing up slowly
to repeat the annoyance, and with all
the more gusto when there is crowd
Of spectators around the cage. As
might be expected, this amusement is
not good for squirrels tail
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17
THE AGE OF SPORT.

Recreation Now Considered q Proper
Part of Life.
We are jollier people than we were
q generation ago, and by so much
healthier in mind and body, says the
New York World.
Men still living remember when in
most parts of the country it would have
been deemed strange sacrifice OF dig
nifty for any grown man to engage in
playing ball, while the woman who
should have played tennis or rowed a
boat would have been deemed hopeless
~ s'unsexed."
Now, we recognize sports as proper
part of life, and we are healthier men
and women for the change. Only the
other day young woman carried off
the tennis championship. Yesterday
thousands Of men and women OF this
town grew enthusiastic over the base
ball contest between Yale and Prince
ton colleges, and the grave dons of the
colleges were by no means the least en-
thusiastic observers of s'hot fouls" and
.sbase hits"
Other thousands devoted the after
noon to the superb struggling of the
New York and Chicago professional
mines and the contests of the splendid
athletes at Travers island, and On Tues
day vast N altitude Of people with no
instinct of gambling and with nothing
but a healthy love OF outdoor sport will
assemble at Sheepshead Bay to see the
great horse race Of the year--a thing
which their fathers and grandfathers
would have deemed it a sin to see at all
1t is a healthier world for all this.
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17
An Ingenious Calculation.

There is theory evolved by a French
scientist to the effect that the human
race is diminishing in size and will
finally become microscopic and vanish
into thin air. He says that statistics
from the days of the giants to the pres
emit time prove that man is getting
smaller and shorter and moro diminu-
tive in every way. By an ingenious
calculation he discovers the rate of re-
duction and tells just how many thou
sands years it will take to mako people
so small that they will be out Of sight.
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17
AMERICAN ENTERPRISE.
The Simple-Nindedness of Mexican Rail
way officials.

The Simple Nindedness of Mexican Rail-
way officials.
An amusing story is told in connection
with the building of the tramway be-
tween the towns of Zacatecas and Quad
alupe in Mexico, which are few miles
apart. The way from Zacatecas is
down grade. The cars go at great
speed by their own gravitation; no ami
mails are attached, for the descent is as
steep as a toboggan slide.
It requires six mules, however, to
draw each car back again. The animals
are harnessed three abreast, like the
horses in the Paris omnibuses.
Even the projectors Of the tramway
had no fixed idea as to how it should be
operated, and an American overseer has
been in charge from the beginning.
The cars were ordered from Philadel-
phia, and while they were being built,
the steel rails, which came from Liver
pool by way of Vera Cruz, were laid
down from one end of the route to the
other.
When the cars arrived it was found
that they would not run on the track,
three inches narrower than that for
which the cars were designed. The
Mexicans, in their ignorance, saw but
one way out Of the difficulty, that was
to rebuild the cars, make the bodies
narrower and cut off the axletrees to
fit the gauge of the rails.
The present superintendent, a practi-
cal American engineer, was in Zacate-
cas- at the time and took in the state of
affairs at a glance. He offered for five
hundred dollars to show the owners
how to get over the trouble without
altering an article on the cars. The
money was paid, and with twenty men
and proper tools the American took up
few rods of the track, made gauge
for the rest, and in one day had the cars
running over the short distance! The
managers of the road at once put the
American in charge, and he has held
the position ever since.
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17
A Perfumed Lake.

A rose-colored lake is one Of the nov
ell attractions in the Caspian sea. One
lake is covered with salt crystals strong
enough to allow man and beast to cross
the lake on foot Another is as round
as any circle and of a lovely rose-color.
Its banks of salt crystals form setting,
white as the driven snow, to the water,
which not only shows all the colors
from violet to rosy-red, but from which
rises perfume as Of violets Both the
perfume and the coloring are the result
Of the presence Of sea weeds, the violet
Polycystis violacea and the pink Clath-
rocystis rosea persicina.
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17
Breathing Fishes.

1t is well known that the gar-pike
often rises to the surface and breathes
the air direct, as it has pneumatic
duct connecting the throat with the air
bladder. Few, if any, of the modern
lung fishes inhale the air direct. It is
probable that the pirarucu Of tho
Amazons, which has large, lung-like
swimming bladder, breathes air in this
way; while IN southern Florida we
were told that the Jew fish or tarpum
rises to the surface every few minutes
. breathe, and that it has an air bladder
eighteen inches long. 81 u ss5
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17
Il a WHALES MOUTH.
" sailors Thrilling Adventure with !
85sa ~ 5S I.eyfathnu, Ss sa

w sailors Thrilling Adventure with =
Loviathan.
a: whale story, with more OF the spice
Of danger, is told Of an American sailor
named Leonard, who was one OF the
crew of the ship Mystery, whaler in
the north Pacific. One day. says the
New York Ledger, he was stationed
in the bow of q whaleboat, q long
distance from the ship, in hunt Of q
large whale. Our hero was the har-
pooner, and when within proper dis
lance he threw his harpoon, striking
the fish hard and deep. The line began
to run out, when suddenly it caught the
body of one of the men in such way
as to haul him overheard. As the man
sank, the harpooner transferred his line
to q boatmate and sprang into the
ocean in aid of the drowning sailor,
and just at that moment the whale,
maddened by the wound, made rush
for the boat. Remarkable to relate,
Leonard's friend happened to regain
the boat in safety, but Leonard himself
was caught by the whale between It's
jaws, his position being inside the mon
ster's mouth, with nothing protruding
but one of his arms If it had been
shark, Leonard would have instantly
been swallowed alive, but whale has
a very small gullet, and could not swal-
low baby. Still the harpooner's situ-
alton was none the less precarious, as
he might easily be crushed to death.
The whale instantly plunged down into
the deep, but the imprisoned man had
not lost his presence of mind. He mus
tered his entire bodily strength, and he
was very powerful man, actually
bracing himself in such position as to
compel the fish to spread its, jaws, and
with his sheath-knife cut right and left.
No sooner was there sufficient open
ing than he forced his way outside and
rose to the surface. Strange to say he
was within arms length of the boat
when he came up, and he was soon
hauled aboard, considerably sl2:sl<en up,
but otherwise sound and whole. After
this adventure, Leonard was known rs
ssthe second JONAH" and no wonder.
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17
SEA SERPENTS. |
Discovery of Remarkable Species Of
Shark. .s5E

Prof. Garman, in a lecture before the
Boston Society Of Natural History, gave
an interesting synopsis of searsnake or
sea serpent literature. besides exhibit
ing a specimen of the real serpent to
the astonished audience. The profess
sor, according to Boston paper, first
gave an historical resume of the earlier
literature upon the subject; going back
to the time Of Pontoppidan and review
ing it down to date. Farther on in his
lecture he gave figures Of some OF the
queer marine monsters which have
from time to time frightened sailors
and others almost to death, deftly
drawing each Of the figures on black
board specially provided for the oc-
casion. Prof. Garman also spoke of a
most remarkable recent discovery
which has brought to light a species Of
shark generally believed to have be-
come extinct many thousands of years
ago, the remains of the animal being
now found in the rocks of the Devonian
system. He is of the opinion that this
recently discovered sea-tiger is the
original of more than one blood-curd-
ling sea serpent story. The length and
general outlines Of this should be-fos-
SLED shark are such as to cause anyone
except a born naturalist to take it for
an immense serpent, an opinion which
would, of course, be heightened by
viewing a dorsal exposure of the
creature through glass in a troubled
sea-serpent stories, however, and is OF
the opinion that there are many Shiny
monsters lying far down upon the bot
tom Of the sea the like of which human
ewes have never vet seen.
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17
GIAhTs or THE DlLLERA,s.

They Guard Fabulous Treasures OF Colo
and silver In their Mountains.
IN western Patagonia, among the Cor
dilleras mountains, dwell the giants OF
whom so many big stories have been
told. AS a matter Of fact these Arau-
canians, as they are called, are rarely
under six feet in height and sometimes
reach eight feet, seven foot men beng
not infrequent, says the Philadelphia
Press. Though mildly disposed, they
admit no strangers to their territory,
and by stubborn resistance they have
compelled Chill to let them alone.
Fabulous treasures of gold ana
silver are believed to be stored
away in their mountains, but prospeo-
tors who have ventured thither have al
ways been driven away. They COM
monty adorn themselves with rich and
heavy ornaments Of these precious met
ais. The greater part of Patagonia be-
longs now to the Argentine Republic,
Chilli holding by treaty the strip along
the Pacific coast, which continues Its
shoe-string-like territory for nearly hall
the length of South America.
Most of the country is desert waste
cold of climate and contrasting strongly
with the richly productive pampas or
plains of the southern Argentine.
These pampas are remarkable for the
strange illusions which beset the eye OF
the traveller who journeys over them:
On any bright day distant thistle field
is as like as not to be transformed
seemingly into forest, while a few
clumps of grass will take on the ap-
pearance of troop of horsemen. Mir
ages are constantly in view, frequently
Offering delusive prospect of water,
nv which men are often deceived but
their horses never.
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17
Harched by q Bag.

A hen in Pike county, Ca, had been
set on fourteen eggs, and for two weeks
stuck to her contract faithfully. But
here she quit her nest on account
of the ravages of mites, lacking just
one week Of the regular time of hatch
ing. Putting some wool in a box the
owner placed the eggs on the wool and
threw guano bag, over them. In about
week he carelessly removed the bag
and was surprised to find twelve pretty
chickens in the place Of fourteen eggs.
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17
They Went work.

A labor problem Of very serious
nature is troubling the people OF Brazil
Tho recent emancipation Of the slaves
has completely demoralized the agri-
cultural and domestic labor OF the new
republic. It is very difficult to get sufH-
ciont field labor to cultivate the crops
IA many families are entirely without
5 ale;ri:,yants and are unable e set any.
fhe negro ex-slayes positively refuse e
X srk 3or love q money. .33
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17
saved by 3 Song.

GA young English lady artist while out
sketching in Colorado few days ago
was surrounded by a band OF about
fifty wild cattle, which moved threat
eningly toward her. Not knowing what
else to do she began singing the sol
diers' chorus in :'Faust," and one after
another the animals began to quietly
craze and she walked through them
without being nolested in the least
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17
Travel of Thunderstorms

The rate Of travel Of thunderstorms
has been studied by Herr Schronrock
from the record of 1877 such storms ir.
Russia in 1883. The velocity is found to
have varied from thirteen to fifty miles
an hour, with mean Of 2S.6 miles an
hour in the hot season, and increasing
to thirty two miles an hour in the cold
season. rs g; :5 4
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17

run. If the road was in Ohio, for ex-
ample, the sleepers on such roads were
named for some of the principal towns
and cities in that state. This plan.
however, was soon deemed unadvisable,
as it sometimes became necessary to
transfer the sleepers to roads in other
states. Then came the plan of Daming
the coaches after the sections Of the
country. Those which run on the roads
of the west were given Indian names.
As far as possible it is now the rule
for the names of the palace coaches to
bear some sort of relation to the nature
of the business in the section where
sleepers run. For instance, on the roads
running out of Washington there are
such names on the sleepers as 'Sena-
tor" 'sDiplomate," Congress" etc.
On few Lines which traverse noted
battlefelds some of the sleepers are
named in honor Of famous generals.
The books Of one of the principal COM
panies show that Achilles, Ajax and
Ulysses have been honored on wheels.
The present is an age of colleges.
These associations have associated with
their curriculum boating, football and
other athletic exercises. This same
company concluded for awhile to en-
balm the names of the leading literary
Institutes by painting their names on
their sleeping cars. This was the most
popular idea which the company had
adopted. But there is a limit to noted
schools in America, just as there is q
4<> {1o 7N1,o hot
discovered that there were not enough
colleges to go round or, which is the
same thing, there were toe many sleep
ing cars.
Then commenced the hunt on the at
las for names. The system Of naming
is now followed in this manner: A
young man is employed to make out an
alphabetical list from the atlas. Hav-
ing selected his name he goes to the
root of it and ascertains it's origin and
significance. When list is prepared
it is passed to the vice president Of the
company, who adopts or rejects.
Sometimes suggestions are sent in by
outsiders. They are filed, away in Or
der. and if any of the names thus sug-
gested are adopted in the course of con-
struction they find their way to the
gaze of the travelling public.
Dining cars are named, so far as the
names signify, for rivers, lakes and
bays. In the west for Indian chiefs.
Parlor cars are nearly always feminine
in nomenclature. The NEUROLOGICAL
deities on the feminine side have been
literally honored. The names Of some
of the more notable female characters
in history and fiction have been trans
;ferred to these palace cars of the rail.
The instruction to the young man
whose business is to keep up the lists is
to get the shortest names where they
have any significance, keeping in mind
at the same time those which are most
euphonious. .4
This is busy age. It not only costs
less to paint a short name, but you do
not want to stop to read or write such
word as Assinnaboine when there are
so many shorter ones, and ones which
are so much smoother to speak and
which mean more.
The naming Of these cars is no small
Job, and the man who has triplets to
christen is not half so much worried
about names as the vice president of
.sleepinp car companY.
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17
WILD HORSES.

why They Are Tougher Than the Do
mestic Equine.
crest and fat are the greatest enc
mics of the horse,' is saying of the
Arabs, and, if every horse owner would
embody it's truth in his practice, there
would be little need to write anything
further on the subject, says the Rider
and Driver. Its observances would be
potent to improve the horse in health,
strength, vitality, endurance and lon
gevity, and, by s'holding up the glass to
NATURE correct the irrational treat
ment and abnormal condition under
which ne is often reared.
Not that the conditions surrounding
the horse in state of nature should be
wholly initiated, for they do not all tend
to his Improvement in the quantities
adapted to mans use. But it is worthy
to note that the wild horse is tough,
sound and healthy; and, making due al
lowance for the influence of natural Sc
lection of the survival of the fttest
when it is observed that he is seldom in
a state of rest, that he lives unconfned
in the open air, upon natural food, it
may reasonably connect these as cause
and effect, and safely consider exercise,
pure air and simple diet the funda-
mental conditions upon which to build
up, by skill in breeding and training,
the highest and most perfect equine
type.
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17
Kicking Others Heels.

He is fortunate man who can walk
half mile on Broadway on busy day
and escape being trodden on by some
one behind him. 1t is curious fact
that nearly all of the men who-uncon-
sciously, of course-step on women's
dresses and wipe their feet on other
mems trousers, are victims of the un-
fortunate habit of ''toeing in" says the
New York Times. @sShow me man
who toes in and will show you man
who is eternally stepping on somebody's
heels" said Wall street philosopher
the other day. ''There are great
many men who toe in downtown, and
as l am oblighed to be on the street a
good part of the day have to suffer
from them. Why, some days it becomes
necessary for me to invoke a bootblack
three or four times in order to keep the
bottoms of my trousers clean, and to re-
new the polish on the heels Of my
Shoes:
The Irish standard., 1891-10-17
! NAMING CARS.
How Railroad Companies Secure
Appropriate Titles.
A Man Constantly Employed In Looking
Them photography and Mythol-
ogy the Principal
Sources.

There is young man in one OF the
Offices of each Of the great sleeping car
companies who is engaged every day,
except Sunday of course, in bending
over an atlas searching for suitable
names for the sleeping, dining and par
lor coaches which are turned out by the
company.
It is no small matter, says the Chica-
20 Tribune, when you come to under
stand that every name must signify
something, and there are already on
the road something like many hundreds
of such coaches and new ones being
turned out at the rate of two or three
hundred a year. When the first sleepers
were built the owners took the alpha
bet, lettering the first one ga" and SO
on until the alphabet run out. Then
commenced the search for names The
first sleepers to be named were those
run on the Pennsylvania limited be.
tween New York and Chicago. They
were named for the various nations,
that of America being the 'irst one
chosen. The original sleepers are (those
first named) America, England, France,
Russia, Scotland, Germany, and so on.
The next names wero taken from the
various towns through which the roads
run. If the road was in Ohio, for ex-
ample, the sleepers on such roads were
named for some of the principal towns
and cities in that state. This plan.
however, was soon deemed unadvisable.
as it sometimes became necessary ia