Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1891-12-18

as to the quality of that particular article
:. AS tor the lady, she was delighted with
the Americans gift.
nHE flremen Of Caribou, Me-. were
called upon to perform feat rather ont
OF the usual line of duty. The bridge
across the Aroostock River, connectinp
the two sections of the village, burned,
and althoug h the adjacent BUILDINGS in
the main village were saved, those on the
opposite side Of the river, near tho end
OF the bridge, took fire and we're
threatened with destruction. All of the
nre apparatus was in the main village,
Wv orloge was destroyed, and there were
no boats at hand. Accordingly, the best
swimmers in the fire company were
selected to swim the river with a line Of
nose. They accomplished the feat, and
got across just in time to prevent the
obstruction OF $4,000 worth Of property.
LIEUT.. vARcEs has just made a remark.
aoie trip on horseback across India,
travelling often far from the railroads,
where the people see very few white
men. :. lie says the peasantry Of Bengal
were dlscourteous and exorbitant in their
charges. Hewas often compelled to paw
four or five times the price of the
articles he needed. Their inhos-
pitallty was in marked contrast with the
triendliness Of the peasantry in other
places. In the central provinces every
one helped him readily, and in many in
stances the people declined pay.
AccoRp1Se to Roy Meninger, travel
or who has just returned from Mexico,
there is rock near the village Of Chill
pancigno in the Sierra Madre del Sur that
possesses the virtue of foretelling rain
twenty-four hours before it falls. Mr..
Menlnger was incredulous until the rock
gave an exhibition Of its powers. It
stands alone in little valley of great
1ertlllty, and seems to protrude from the
ground, rather than rest upon the sur
face. 1t is about five feet in height by
ten in length, and is of dull, grayish
color, the surface being polished and
cold to the touch. About d day before
the rain comes the rock takes on a red
dish hue, and its temperature rises to
about 60 degrees Fahrenheit. The heat
and color increase until rain is precipi-
tated, when the rock cools and gradu-
ally resumes its origina! gray. In a
thunder storm the stone emits pale
blue light, and there is every indication
that it is charged with electricity.
Local mineralogists say the heat is from
q volcanic source.
HENRY COLLINS, q negro, who is 1O5
years old, applied for assistance under
the pauper act in the county court at
Nashville the other day. Henry says
that his uncle Of the same name lived to
be 1870 years old. A grandfather was
l25 years old when he died, and grand
mother l18. The old man smokes and
drinks and eats heartily.
A COW belonging to Samuel Drensor,
living on the outskirts of Austin, Mimi,
has given birth to wonder. One-half Of
the body resembles calf and the other
half deer. The tail resembles the APP
pendagc Of deer, and the head is i'll
clined to be on the human order. The
eyes are fiery black and vicious looking,
and one large horn about three inches
long protrudes from the forehead. The
freak has five legs, two in front and
three behind, and oil can be used with
the greatest Of ease.
"A LAUGHABLE incident occurred ut the
races at Exeter, Me. John Rogers, of
Stetson, owner of the trotter Molly
Withers, also owns a shepherd dog
which is very fond Of the mare, and
when the horses started in the first heat
Of the 2.4O class the dog came on the
track and trotted away ahead Of his
equine friend. Molly Withers soon drew
out of the field and took the lead, but the
dog easily kept six or eight feet ahead
Of her the first time around. In the Sec
ond half the dog held his lead until they
swung into the home stretch, where the
mare gained slightly, but the canine
racer went under the wire slightly in the
lead amid the cheers Of the crowd. The
mares time was 1854, and the dogs
record has been fixed at 236.
A REPORTER in Sherman, Mich, pub
lished an item announcing an approaching
wedding, and the next day was accosted
by the gentleman named as bridegroom,
who gravely asked him on whose au-
thority he had made the announcement.
Before the timid reporter could reply,
the man CROPPED for his pistol-pocket, and
the reporter thought his hour of doom
had come. Imagine his joy, when, in
stead of pistol, the man produced a
pocket-book, from which he extracted a
five-dollar bill. This he thankfully gave
to the reporter saying that the marriage
announcement had spared him the trouble
of popping the question.
AMONG the khirgise, Baskir and other
nomad tribes Of Eastern Russia and
Siberia there are frequently instances Of
longevity which call to mind the days OF
the patriarchs. At the present moment
there is living in the Government Of
Tobolsk, in the Dos-kazan settlement, an
old kbirgise named Noormoohamed
Moosrepoff, who has attained the age of
1853 years. His wife is equally old and
his eldest son is 1870 years Of age. The
old man has lost most Of his teeth and
has to be fed on milk. The pure air Of
the steppes and the koumis diet is with
out doubt conducive to longevity.
Two of the crew Of the schooner Mar
guerite of Seattle, Wash, met with a
severe accident at Port Muller, on the