Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-05-07
CURIOUS CONVERSATIONS.

| LlelOuS III Sl9HG-
| "A number of prehistoric skeletons were
recently unearthed in Rome. They were Of
males and females and averaged seven feet
| in length.
| 1t is reported from Oregon that a belt
of freshly fallen snow, half mile wide,
was seen near PendIeton the other day,
| the ground on either side being perfectly
| bare.
"A Georgia man has in his possession
| palm oil lamp made in Madrid. Spain, I'm 1904.
| 1t was dug up in the woods some time ago,
| ana is supposed to have been lost by Ponce
| de Leon.
1t is believed in Pennsylvania that the
| first person to enter q new house must die,
| therefore it is the custom to throw in pre-
| liminary cat or dog. Tho Scape-cat is, how
| ever, to be preferred.
In mythology Jupiter Ammon appeared
| to Olympias as Il serpent and became the
father of Alexander the Great; Jupiter Cap
ftoltnus assumed similar form to become
the father o. ScipiO Alfricanus.
In this country, it is said, if cat runs
away, when recovered she must be swung
three times around to attach her to the
dwelling. The same is done with stolen
cat by thief if he would retain it.
What is claimed to be the plow which
General Putnam left in the furrow up in
Connecticut when he rushed to the defense
OF HIS country lIO years ago, Is e8llDlCeu IN
front of q hardware store in Danielsonville,
Conn.
In Japan the man of equality" never
forces his steed out OF n walk: if the errand
is one which demands speed, the rider dis
mounts, ties the fore legs of his animals to-
gether, and strikes of at q brisk Sallop on
foot.
There are two water companies in Dem
ver Col. Recently, according to 4 Dispatch,
,rn tl,o nd
began cutting rates, until now one company
has announced that. until further notice, it
will supply the public free of charge.
The Gvpsies believe that witches use
eggshells to make plates. pots and dishes to
feed out of at their banquets Witches, to
preserve their &ealth, must with every in
crease Of Jhc moon, suck the blood of such
men as were born at the increase of the
moon.
There are many mysterious things about
beetles. Those of Brazil are famed for their
brilliant metallic hues, yet no one has been
able to find out what makes these cOlOrs.
Some are of gold others of silver, vet Others
of blur enamel, seemingly. and so Oh through
an endless variety OF tintS-
A ''sea fox" or thrasher-in ichthy-
ology Carcharias vulpus-was washed
ashore on Monday. 1t is IA feet long.
The tail. which is about half the length of
the fish, is z powerful weapon-GlmOSt as
SnarD on one euTe as q knl1e. NOtuln3 IkG
it has 5Yer been seen before.
The largest wooden bridge in the world
is that at Two Medicine, on the st. Paul and
Minitoba Railway. II is 75l feet long and 2l1
feet above the water. In this bridge arc
40, COO feet of lumber, and anv one piece can
be removed and replaced when worn out
without disturbing the rest.
The Greeks had superstition that one
who had had his ears licked by serpents
~
This superstition arose from the fact that
Cassandra and HclenuS. bOsh of whom were
said to foretell events, had their ears licked
by serpentS while sleeping in the Temple of
Apollo.
The Roumanan has, in every walk in
life, q fierce and savage pride which causes
him to abhor the idea of medicine and sur
gerry, and to consider the loss of Il limb as
terrible as that of life itself. He has become
accustomed tt the idea that only beEgars are
so disfgUreG. and believes that no necessity
should constrain him to such Il loss
-Mermaids have been said to comm only
appear in the form of seals while in the
water, divesting themselves of the skins
when they come on shore and assuming the
aspect OF beautiful girls. sometimes they
are OF an amiable disposition, while on other
occasions they are extremely miSchievOuS-
In Russia they are disposed to tickle batherS
to death.
Magic qualities are attached in Hun
gary as in Germany to the lime or linden
tree. In some villages it is usual to plant
one before a house to prevent witches from
entering From early times the lime tree
was sacred to Ycnus among the Greeks. ns it
was to Lada among the Slayonians. This, it
is said, was due to its leaves being of the
shape OF heart.
What is claimed to be the biggest port
wine safe ever known in England is ar
ranged to take place next month, when l2,-
hot will hn Off, PI To rrat
bottles out of tine auctiOneer's hands will
cost over 50 1000. and yet this amount of
port does not represent more than seven
months ordinary consumption in the
United Kingdom.
Apollo was the old god of music, and
his favorite instrument, the lvre, was in
vented by Mercury. When the latter was
hours old he found the shell of a tortoise
and made it into a Tyre with nine strings. in
honor of the nine MUSES.. This inStrumen5
Mercury gave to Apollo, who became a Won
derful player upOn it. The Tyre was used BY
the Greeks in oden times, and from it was
fashioned the harp.
Among collection of curious plants re-
Gently received at the Kew Gardens, Eng
land, is u specimen of a curious tree from
the Solomon Islands. II is believed to be
new genus of the order of Sapotsrcee, to
which the SapOdllCr of Florida belongs.
The tree is known to the natives of the SOL
omon Islands the turtle seed tree" on
seeds bear to the turtle.
BY a novel legal technieality Mr..
sNig" Scoring, one OF the most promising
Young tou@hS in Charlottesville, Ind, has
escaped Il term i'll the Northern Penitentiary,
and now poses before the community as u
martyr. lie was indicted for stealing q box
of cigars rom grocery store, but in the
trial il was proved coucluSIve!y that he left
tile box and only t0nk the cigars. On this
ground he discharged.
Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, is to
have an artificial water fall, said to be the
highest of the kind in the world. 1t Will
start from the upper reservoir of Strawberry
HILL and have u fall of - feet. il gorge is to
be cut i'll tae face of the hill as nearly like u
natural rayine possible. This will he
aligned on either side with Semi-aq uatic
plants and flowers, and at the base large
bOuIders will be arranged to throw the
water into separate streams and dash it ou5
i'll sprays.