The morning call., 1891-01-30
MEN ABOUT TOWN.
Short Stories Gathered From the
Street Gossips.
Knew the Value of Notice-Discovered His
Mistake-He Recognized Rundown
in Central America.

lie was man widely known, and in re-
spouse 10 the questioning look of the news
paper scribe he added: "WhyP Well, it is
an old story and will make the reason plain.
| When Cincinnati was thriving town, with
but few thousand people, my father fol-
lowed The trade of clock-making there.
| Clock-makers in those days, you know.
were looked up to as men of Importance
! Grover Cleveland's father, history SAYS, fol-
| lowed the trade. and was reckoned good
one. My father was passing along the
! street one day, when he espied ragged
| urchin sitting in the street, absorbed in
molding mud images. The former watched
the boys movements. and observing his
dexterity, asked him how he had learned to
do so well.
Merely by doing it, answered the boy,
still intent upon his work.
Becoming deeply interested my father
took him home with him, gave him a bath,
clothed and led him. aad secured a place for
him in the establishment of local marble
cutter. Here the boy quickly developed
wonderful talent, and his work was reyela-
ton to all who saw it. Recognizing the
latent genius in the lad, my father succeeded
in interesting some of the prominent men of
the town who joined together and contrib
uted a sufficient sum to send the young mar
ble-cutter to Florence to study. That boy
was Hiram Powers, the author of the Greek
Slave, and the world knows the history of
his triumphs by heart. My father never saw
him again, and the only thanks he ever re-
ceived for his disnterested kindness was
mention by one of the biographers of Powers
that it was said that lie had been given some
slight encouragement in his younger years
by Cincinnati cloek-maker 1t taught me
IA rin tp1 90
FOUND HIS MISTAKE.
Chauncey Milton St. John, the Berry Wall
of San Francisco, is again in the city. He
arrived from the East few days ago, and
his coming has set society circles all agog.
On the day of King Kalakaua's funeral he
stepped from an overland train at the oak
land pier clad in suit that bore evidence
OF being the latest production Of the tailor's
art.
Hurrying aboard a waiting ferry boat he
cast longing eyes toward the hills of San
Francisco, while dreams of social conQuests
f1oated through his mind AS the boat
ploNed the waters Of the bay his mind
reye.led in delicious tancies of the pleasure
awaiting MIN in the meeting of old friends.
| When Goat Island was passed and the Mar
ket-street slip doomed up in the near dis
lance his eyes alighted upon the crowds
that lined the hills and docks to witness the
sailing of the Charleston with the body of
the King. Over the face of the returning
wanderer there stole a look of glad surprise,
ana a moment later great tears of JOY
courSed down his checks.
Just to think" lie murmured gratefully,
''that MY coming should excite such an
unusual degree of interest. l shall always
look back 10 this as the proudest day of my
life."
Tears cboked his utterances and he could
only bow his Acknowledged of the splen-
did tribute.
When he discovered the mistake he hird
him 10 the seclusion of his room, and four
days elapsed before he could II iSter courage
TO resume his desk at the CustOm-house.
DOWN IN CENTRAL AMERICA.
There is not in all Of Central America
newspaper or newspaper man in the
sense that we use those terms, said eX-
Minister Miner last night. 'Of course there
are few poor journals that print official
proceedings, but not newspaper. While l
was at Guatemala an American newspaper
| reporter-from Chicago, | thiIk-by the
name of Cunningham drifted in from a
| south-bound steamer and asked me TO assist
| HIM In securing employment He was
| bright, active young fellow, and | gave him
letter 10 President Bariilss. The latter
| took fancy to hin, commissioned him Col
| onel IN the Guatema!an army and sent him
| TO the front with a special escort of twenty
| FIVE cavalry. The new-made Colonel made
| quite record in short time, hOattd back
| To the capital and was recriyed with open
arms by the Government. The gay life got
| nately, he was compelled to cancel his debts
| by leaving the country.
HE RECOGNIZED HIM.
It was during the usual cOnlmotion caused
| by the change of Chinese Witnesses yester-
day afternoon that Commissioner Ward
McAlister Jr.'s face suddenly lighted up
with a smile of recognition. Joe Shew, one
| of the "unces" of the applicant for admis-
sion into this country, had just replaced one
OF the applicants cousins" and Commits
Mo list hp ic nj IN tba ii
vive for fraud, thought he recognized Shew's
face. He was sure he did, and asked him
whether he had ever been before him be-
fore. When Louis Mong interpreted the
question Shew shook his head.
Never been here as II witness before?"
mo, your Honor"
Nor as an Interpreter"
mo, your Honor"
We'll, now, Pm sure I've seen him some
where" continued the Commissioner, soto
vOce. whats your business ?"
"Pawnbroker."
'Ah"
A REAL DEATH VALLEY.
"All this newspaper talk about the famous
Death Valley of Colorado is growing little
tiresome."
The speaker was Paris Kiburn, the Sur
yeyor Of the Port, as he stood in front of the
Grand Hotel and looked critically at a group
of young ladies' across the street.
That valley has been explored long ago,
but in Lower California there is q real val
ley of death that never has been explored,
and the interior Of which but one civilized
man on earth has ever seen. Colonel En-
sign OF San Diego claims to have penetrated
il while out prospecting. but it is hard work
to draw him out on the subject The valley
in question is located a few miles back of
Ensinada, and it is said to be utterly desti-
tute of water or vegetation. No human be-
ing can miintain life in it. while the passes
leading into it are infested with a war-ike
tribe OF Indians. The Colonel, few years
agr, got into it by some unaccountable
means, and describes it as marveIously rich
in gold. lie was compelled to beat haSty
retreat, but not before securing good-siZed
nugget to bear out his story. On his way
out he was captured by the Indians ard
stripped OF every stitch OF clothing, but
MANAGED 20 escape, bearing his nugget with
him. He made his way across the desert
in a state OF complete nudity and managed
to find his way back to camp. where he told
his story"
MARBLES EXTRAORDINARY.
Speaking about gambling and gamblers
said an old travelling man as he sat in one of
tie arm-chairs at the Palace yesterday,
looking over an interview with Pat Sheedy
| in recent issue of the New York sun. "
saw not long ago in Texas one OF the most
peculiar games l ever witnessed in all my
experience. l dropped into a town in the
western part of the STATE, and found every
body in a state of unusual excitement.
From stray remarks dropped L Surmised
that a big game oil some KIND was In prog
| ress; so as soon as had secured room at
the hotel and had removed the marks of
travel from my clothes began to make in
qniries. l wa, told that a game of marbles
for $1,000 a side was being played on the
plaza, and that it was then under way.
fastening to the place indicated, found
| several hundred people epngregated, while
within an inclosure, marked off for the pur-
pose, two men in their shirt-sleeves were
engaged in an old-fashioned game of mar
| bles
Quite naturally, began to ask questions.
| and to my astonishment learned that they
] had been pumping for the goes, as the
| boys say, for three weeks, and neither had
| gained an advantage.
They may be playing yeti
AN ELECTION CoNUNDRUM.
| There is in the Pullman service, or was