Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1892-10-27
THE NUMBER THREE.
Some of Its Curious Reia tionships A
Hero Presented.

THE NUMBER THREE.
Some of Its Curious Relationships Are
Here Presented.
Much has been said about the
magic number SEVEN. but as all the
digits, especially the odd numbers,
have much that is curious associated
with them, our readers may find
something of interest in this brief
presentation of some Of the curious
relationships Of the number Three.
First, we have the Trinity, or three
in one of religion, and then there are
the older Brahma, Vishnu and silva
of the Hindoos. Abraham, Isaac
and Jacob are always mentioned to-
gether, and the sun, moon and stars
constitute anotherverbal trinity. The
lightning of Jupiter is always repre-
sented with. three forks, and Nep-
tunes spear or trident had three
prongs. The beginning, the middle
and the end are three matters usually
mentioned together. Cerberus, the
watchdog of the internal regions, Is
represented in mythology as having
three heads. The Pythian sat on
three-legged stool, and tripods and
derricks with three supports are
very common. We have three meals
a day, and morning, noon and night
are the three demarcations of the day
of twenty-four hours. On most pub
lie work, in mills and in mines,
men work In three shifts Of eight
VI HHn ic Col nnlln
and Liber, and the moon is Luna,
Diana, and Hecate. The Sabines
prayed three times day and Moham-
medans do likewise. A period of
three years is a usual one for MEM
bers OF the various. municipal boards
to serve, one-third Of the whole num-
Der going out each year. Old medical
books tell Of remedies to be shaken
three times, to, be filtered three
times into a like number OF dishes,
and to be taken or applied three
times to effect cures The surface Of
the earth has air, land, and water.
There are three witches in Macbeth"
who "round about the cauldron CO."
The triumvirs of ancient govern
ments are frequently mentioned in
history. Two eyes and one mouth
make the three fiat openings Of the
face, and the ears and nose make the
prominent features of the head.
Yesterday, to-day, and forever" are
three common divisions of duration.
Bread, meat, and potatoes constitute
the leading articles of our food, and
tea, coffee, and water are the common
drinks. The prominent features of
a female society meeting are giggle
gable, and gobble The three king
doms of Nature are the mineral,
vegetable, and animal. A circle may
be made to pass through any three
points not in the same line.
In all governments we have three
distinct general departments-the
legislative, judicial, and executive.
Mechanics require three things, q
knowledge of the material upon
which they are to operate, the tools
with which to effect the operation,
and thirdly the skill to effect the
operation. The story of man on
earth Is his birth, life, and death,
anu LIS dOOuC 10 Cul hCdNCuS vi
hell. Three-bladed pocketknives and
three-tined forks are the most COM
mon articles of the kind in general
use. Armies are composed OF in
fantry, cavalry, and artillery. Three
years are ordinarily occupied in prepar-
ing for college, and the same time is
required for course Of professional
CT hrn IN
der, and ball, and fisherman re-
quires a hook, line, and rod. A
family must have father, mother, and
child. A dude is only fully equipped
when he has an ill-ftting suit Of
clothes, an eye-glass, and a cane.
Every insect, like fly or bee, is de-
vided into three distinct parts. To
publish a paper three departments
are necessary-the editorial, business,
and mechanical departments. Judas
betrayed the Savior for three
times ten pieces OF silver. There
are only three fundamental colors.
Three barlycorns make one inch,
three feet make yard and three
miles constitute a league. Three
masts are common for sailing vessels,
and three-story houses are most Eu-
merous. 1t has long been a custom
in England to print stories in three
volumes. "Three cheers for the red,
white and blue" is line familiar to
every child, as are the red, white and
blue colors Of our national flag, and
the colors OF BARRIERS pole. Three
months make season. Many plants,
like the clover, have three-lobed
leaves. Lemons, sugar and water
make the most refreshing beverage
for these warm days. In mythology
there are three Fates- and also three
Furies. A rather pretty objection to
the number three is found in the
lines
How happy / could be with either,
Were 'tother dear charmer away.
Some fevers run three weeks. Three
times the magic number seven makes
a man "of age" The three days of
grace are well understood in banks.
The tricycle. and the three horses in
Russian vehicles and the three wick
cts of the cricket game are other
illustrations of the curiosities of the
number three. To say all these
things requires pen, ink and paper,