The Logan County banner. [volume] (Logan, W. Va.) 1889-1903, 1892-07-21
OF GENERAL INTEREST.

"A Georgia shoemaker has made for
the use Of customer pair Of shoes
with soles fourteen inches long and five
and one half inches wide.
Lieut. Baker, recently special Co
lumbar exposition commissioner TO
Mexico. estimates that fully 10000
Mexicans wi attend the fair. Through
out Mexico there is great enthusiasm
over the exposition, and extensive
preparations are being made to have
that southern republic represented by q
splendid exhibit
Nothing varies 50 much in value rs
pearls With them fashion affects the
market constantly Sometimes white
ones are sought, while other tints at
intervals are in demand For some
years past black pearls have been the
rage. A fine specimen, worth 5000, will
fetch $1,000 perhaps If another can be
got to match it perfectly.
Diamond is used to cut diamond,
and with regard to the first process of
cutting two diamonds are mounted on
sticks or holders. The operater, taking
one in each hand, uses an angle of one
gem to cut off or reduce the angles Of
the other, and in this way the natural
angle of the stones are removed, the
dust being caught up for subsequent
use.
Henry A. Bower, of Adams town
ship. Hamilton county, in 1854 slipped
small cucumber in glass bottle, and
he permitted the vine to furnish nour-
ishmcnt until the cucumber had filed
the available space inside the bottle.
The vine was then clipped off, the bot
tie was flied with alcohol and care
fully sealed. The cucumber still re-
tains its original appearance, and it
looks as perfect as it did when bottled
up thirty-eight years ago.
The exhibit Of the harnessmakcrs
at the worlds fair, which is in charge
of the wholesale saddlery association,
will include not only trade exhibit,
embracing specimens OF the finest work,
but also collection of harness trap
pings and cognate things, showing the
evolution Of the harness industry from
carly times to the present. The sum of
$4,000 will he expended on this latter
feature. In the collection will be
saddle used by Napoleon Bonaparte.
Nearly two hundred Japanese
sword guards belonging to the Robert
son collection were sold the other after
noon at the American art galleries, says
the New York Tribune. The number
of collectors who take an interest in
these curious bits of metal are not
large, and yesterday the buyers were
few and the prices generally low.
Many fine specimens of iron work were
sold at 50 and a each, and guards of
red and copper bronze brought prices
ranging from IS to s12. The solid sill
yer pieces brought low prices, the high
est price for silver guards being $50.
The gem of the collection, an antique
sword guard of solid gold, was sold for
s195 to Hermann Schaus. The total
amount of the sale was ~, 149.
There were some interesting prices
at recent sale of objects Of art and
curiosity at the Hotel Drouot, New
York city. A watch in gold and en-
amel, garnished with fine pearls and
rose diamonds, of the period of Louis
XVI. fetched 176 francs; pair Of gold
earrings, set with pearls and roses, of
the same period, 355; an incense burner,
in antique Chinese cloisonne, 37s francs;
a whip handle, in silver. of Dutch make
Of the last century, 2o5 francs, and SO
on. A muskct of the sixteenth century
commanded 205 francs, and a sword,
period, Louis XVI, 100 francs. Among
old furniture and decorations similar
moderation of prices prevailed. Tho
figures are interesting by contrast with
those which such things command at re-
tail in the shops.
"A convenient automatic appliance
is being adopted in some of the rail
manufacturing establishments, an APP
paratus by means of which the number
of rails rolled is at once and accurately
recorded The device for accomplish
ing this result Is very simple counter,
but the method by which it is actuated
is quite a triumph of ingenuity and
skill, in view of the fact that this end
of the apparatus has to be in close prox-
unity to hot rail, the conditions under
which 1t operates being therefore very
severe. AS the rails pass from the saws
they strike small lever, which is thus
moved out of its normal position, and
this actuates a contact piece within
case which thoroughly protects the
mechanism to the recording instrument
Ian arrangement by which the record
can easily be read at any time, and the
precise amount of production be at once
kunxvn