davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03
FAKIRS IN BRITISH INDIA.
volubIe and Dirty, If Holy Men, Causing
Much Annoyance to Europeans.

Voluble and Dirty, If Holy Men, Causing
Much Annoyance to Europeans.
The Indian newspapers are complain
ing of fakirs who, they say. are getting
to be particularly Objectionable as rail-
road passengers. These holy men are
generally very dirty, as thcV can not
spare time from their religious dcvo-
tions and incessant begging to attend
to their toilet. The fakir is addicted
to the practice of rolling himself in
filth and smcaring himself with dis
gusting substances in order to propi-
tiate the deity he serves. II is hard to
decide what to do with these objection
able persons when they apply for tick
cts on the ears. The ticket agents
fear that il they refuse To let the
fakirs ride it might raise re-
ligious disturbance. 1t is estimated
that three million of these mendicant
priests are in the Indian peninsula.
Most of them are regarded by the Eu-
ropcan population as mere humbugs,
who are too lazy to work for living.
1t is believed that many fakirs become
what they are ont of sheer religious
devotion: for it is hard to suppose that
any human being, through a mere love
of imposture, would consent to keep
his fists closed until his nails grew
through the back of his hand. or would
hold both arms above his head until
the limbs became withered. The gem
cral feeling, however, seems To be that
most of the present generation of fakirs
in India are rogues of the worst descrip-
tion, who use their supposed sanctity
to make money out of their dupcs.
A fakir who applied at a railroad
ticket office not long ago illustrates
the peculiar problems with which In
dian railway officials have to deal. He
had contracted the erroneous notion,
that in order to show his Sanctity it was
necessary for him to wear on his person
| q greater burden of chains than prison
convict ever staggered under. Chains
| and iron bands were loaded on his per-
son until he could hardly walk. When
| he asked for railroad ticket the agent
did not feel disposed to allow all that
weight of hardware tn he carried on the
/ price Of passenger fare. He thought
| it a dangerous precedent to establish.
lie thercupon informed the iron-bound
| theologian that If he wished to travel
| by that line he must put his iron chains
in box or other receptacle and for
ward them mt the ordinary freight
rates. In other words, he would not he
| permitted to travel unless he stripped
| himself of his armo-.
The fakir is usually most voluble
| person. and that particular specimen
was nothing ioathe to argue the mat
ter. He talked for more than an hour,
but could not change or soften the
heart of the station agent. and at last
he betooll himself away in sadness and
with all his iron drapery wrapped
about him. The railroads have also
had considerable trouble with the
fakirs because they have refused to
transport their devotional instruments
free of charge. Altogether the fal<ir is
regarded as u troublesome and unpleas-
ant parsonage by all Europeans who
come in contact with Hmm. Y.
| sun.
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03
DRUNKEN FRANCE.
Drink Undertaking n Formerly Greas
Nation.

NarhDn-
The Fortnigatiy Review says that in'
sanity is increasing in Paris in the pro-
portion of thirty per cent. from 1872 10
1Sss. DR. Garnier, the chief medical
officer of the prefecture of police, says
that the progress of alcoholic insanity
has been SO rapid that the evil is now
twice as prevalent as it was fifteen
years ago.
This striking remark is made by t,ie
writer in the FortnigS.lY Review. ''Tae
aecompliee of two thirds of the crimes
committed. upon which the criminals
themselves throw the responsibility OF
their evil deeds. and whom the police
never succeeded in discovering, exists.
That accomPliee is alcohol. 1t visits
upon the child the sins of the father,
and engenders in the following gene
ration homicidal instincts
IL is known that there has been for
twenty-five years a vast increase in the
drinking of the strongest distilled
liquors and such fata, combinations OF
alcohol and drugs as absinthe- We used
to hear that there was no drunkenness
in France, and now and then some nat
urally or wilIfully blind traveller sayB
the same thing. France is rapidly be-
coming one of the most drunken coun-
tries upon the earth
Light wines are no preventive OF
drunkenness. No drunkard ever comes
back from stronger liquors to wine.
The taste for wine, often fortified by
the addition of distilled liquors. leads
on to the latter. Making allowance
for exceptions. beer and wine may bo
called the primers of drunkenness.--N.
v Christian Advocate.
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03
LONDON FIFTY YEARS HENCE.
Probability That Its Inhabitants VIII Then
Number Over Seventcen Millions.

Probability That Its Inhabitants VIII Then
Number Over Seventeen Millions.
A committee of the London county
council, as well as n royal commission.
have been for some time considering
the means of increasing the water sup
ply,which is inadequate even for the
present population. AS any of the
works proposed could not be constructed
in less than ten years, and as it would
be absurd to arrange for supply only
just sufficient to meet the wants of the
city at the end of that period, it has
been decided that the works should be
on Il scale commensurate with the
probable number of inhabitants fifty
years hence.
1t must be remembered that the dis
trict now controlled by the London
county council is less extensive than
the area whose inha bitants are entirely
dependent on the metropolitan water
supply. The number of persons in
this latter area is five and
thrce-quarters millions, and il is
their increase which must be es-
timated before the quantity of water
hN'h'u ibii a. 'tntuIN can ne tie
fined. The estimates will, of course.
differ. according to the factors of
growth assumed. If it be taken for
granted that the British metropolis will
continue to grow at the rate exhibited
between the ccnsuses of 1851 and 1891
| then in 1871 it will contain no fewer
| than 17,521 ,645 human beings IT, on
the other hand. we suppose that the re-
cent rate of progress can not be kept
up, and that the metropolis hereafter
will only expand by means of the
natural increase of births over deaths
then the population fifty years hence
| will he 10, S:iG,9S?. II, finally, all ratios
of increase should be- disregardcd, and
we should simply add for each decade
the precise number of persons addc.l in
| the ten years preceding 1891, we should
obtain 9.9d6,GS5 as the population of
1871. After weighing all the consider
ations that might affect the calcula-
| tion, the committee of the county coun-
ell determined To accept II, 800, 900 as
| the most reasonable estimate of the
population of London fifty years hence,
| and they accordingly recommended
| that the scale of the new works should
be adjusted to this computation.
This estimate is too low, and in max
ing t the committee are falling into an
crrn" similar to that of the commission
which in 1863 was appointed for the
same purpose. The latter body eX-
pressed the conviction that the time
WAS very remote when the population
| of London would he 800, 900. Yet
now, when only twenty-three year,
have passed, the metropolitan popula-
tion dependent on the water supply is
nearly 6.00O. 900. That is to say, the
rate of increase since 1869 has been
! considerably greater than that pre-
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03
VARIOUS NOTES.

On the Bowery. New York. whisky
causes drunkenness; on Wall street it
causes alcoholism; and on Fifth avenue
it causes heart failure.
TEMPERANCE congresses are to form
n prominent feature of the worlds fair.
Temperance reform will be advocated
by both men and women, and special
conventions have been arranged for
each. Archbishop Ireland and Miss
Frances F. Willard are the Leaders.
DURING the eleven months ending
May 81, 1s9,, New York firms sent 100
gallons of alcohol to Liberia, S.7Is gal
Ions of alcohol To Egypt. 4O99 gal ons
of rum To Egypt, and 1O,;;ii gallons of
rum and 23i gallons of WHISKY To
British Africa Boston firms dealt
largely in rum, and 63T, L.. gallons were
sent to British Africa
Ar recent political meeting in
Glasgow. a gentleman testified on his
honor that wien he and two friends
made the rounds of the streets be-
tween eleven and three o'clock they
met fully five thousand people OF
this number, at least four Thousand
were either wholly or partly drunk.
They saw girls under fourteen decided
" under the influence of liquor.
THE children of women addicted to
opium are liable To die within forty
eight hours of birth for lack of the
drug upon which they have become
Prenatally dependent, but fortunately
the liability To motherhood is reduced
among such women, and perhaps it is
mercy of nature also that their prog
eny are Thus early called in and
saved from world of troubles
Foote'S Health Monthly.
WOEkNEN in the American sugar re-
fnery in New Orleans lately quit work
and more threatened To strike. Tho
trouble was over a question of beer.
The work il bot and the men have
been in the habit of going out for a
drink. The company objected to the
loss of time. and established bar
room in the building at which drinks
and lunches could be hat at cost. The
men still objected. because they
wanted Whit of fresh ai- aS well aS
beer. The bar in the retiIscry disposed
of ten barrels vi beer i day.
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03

viously exhibited. and there can be no
reason why corresponding increase in
the rate of growth should not again
disclose itself. Assuming, however,
that the rate Of growth will remain
precisely what il was between 1881 and
1891, the inha bitants of the metropoli-
tan district would number, as we have
seen. upward of seventeen and half
millions.
Contrastcd with city Of such mag
nitudc all over conglomerotions of
which history bears record shrink into
insignificancc. By the side of the Lon
don of half n century hence, the Baby
Ion described by IIcrodotus and the
Rome of Aurclian or Thcodosious seem
but petty provincial towns. Stand
ing far outside the category of cities,
London, rs De Quincy predicted.
would take rank among the nations.
But what an extraordinary nation from
an economical viewpoint-with its sew
entecn and half millions packed with
in n radious of seven miles around
Charing Cross, an area which in year
could not produce enough to feed 1 per
cent. of the people for two years.
1t is obvious that no city comparable
in size with the London of the future
can ever exist upon the continent of
Europe until there is a general disar-
rangemcnt of the nations and univer-
sal acguiescencc in the regime Ofpeace.
To such huge urban population,
masscd under supremely artificial con-
ditions, the relative security afforded
by England's insular situation is indis-
pensa BILE. Paris, Berlin, Vienna must
necessarily contemplate the possibility
of invasion, and it is certain that no
city containing seventeen millions of
inhabitants could withstand siege.
The unprecedented magnitude which
London seems destined tn attain is due
to the fact that its rampant is the sea;
and with every year it will become n
matter of more vital moment to make
certain that the British navy keeps the
rampant safe. London Spectator.
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03
FROM FATHER TO SON.
The Terrible Inheritance OF Little
Child.

Child.
A few months ago | was present in
DIR. Garnier'S consulting room, says n
writer, watching the prisoners from
the depot filing past. We were in
formed that child had been brought
by its parents to be examined. These
people were shown in; they belonged
to the respectable working class, and
were quiet and well hammered. The
man was the driver of dray belong
ing 10 one of the railway stations. and
had ali the appearance of a stalwart
working man. The boy was only six
years old: he had an intelligent, rather
pretty face, and was neatly dressed.
"Sec here, NJ. lie Docteur," said the
father, I'VE have brought you your
boy: he alarms us. He is no fool: he
begins to read; they are satisfied with
him ut his school, but we cannot help
thinking he must be insane. for he
wants To murder his little brother, a
child two ycars old. The other day
he nearly succeeded in doing so. 1 ar
rived just in time To snatch my razor
from his hands
The boy stood listening with indiffer-
ence and without hanging his head.
The doctor drew the child kindly to-
ward him and inquired:
is it true that you wish to hurt your
little brOther?"
With perfect composure, the little one
ccplicd:
Il will kill him-yes, yes-I will kill
him
The doctor glanced at the father and
asked in low voice:
DO you drink
His wife exclaimed Indignantly:
lie, sir. Why, he never enters a
public house, and has never come home
drunk"
They We're quite sincere. Neverthe-
less, the doctor said:
stretch out yOur arm"
The man Dbcyed; his hand trembled.
Had these people told lies. then, in
ktating that the Dsan had never come
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03
HOUSEHOLD VERSUS POETRY.

Beneath this pie crust that i roll
j see-Oh. lovely spot.
wild, wild nook,
a shaded brook.
c'crgrown with cherries wild.
Whose fragrant plumcs are tossed in air
On waiting brccZcs mild.
And in these cups slowly work,
] sec-a meadow fair,
Where daisies grow,
And clover, too,
With grasses everywhere,
And broken fences all grown DER
With wild grapes growing there.
And while polish bright my stove,
sea mountain gorge,
With powders gray,
And DER them lay
Long briars all filled with bloom,
And dainty ferns of maidcnhair;
hear the wild birds tune.
And sweeping floors and busting chairs,
i Sea pasture green,
A velvet floor.
That's all grown DER
With waves, a grassy sea:
Where buttercups are growing gay,
Which nod 10 you and me.
And so In all the work ] do
] SEGA picture sweet,
A lovely spot
That cheers my lot,
And makes my daily care
All bright with blossoms and with songs
From natures wild woods fair
Lydia A. Smith, in Good Housekeeping.
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03

In iourneying from country to conn
try the change in the value of coins
is apt to In confusing. But guineas,
and flnrinS, and kreutzcr, and double
ducats have ceased to he pcrplexity
To- me. ask the price of thing,
look wise as il knew all about il,
and then hold out my hand and let
the vcndcr take his pick. As riches
take wings and fly away. | am deter
mined to- lose nothing in that manner
Fifty years from now a Turkish pias-
ter will br worth to- me as much as a
Holland guilier, aud it worries me not
when | am cheated, for the man who
cheat. me must, in the end, suffer more
than !, So that my chagrin is lost in
compassion for his misfortune.
mage, in Ladies' Home Journal
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03

plums. and plenty Of currants. They
''Vcn in his garden a man has some
fruit. must not his family eat it?" said
the tenant of my stable. ! added the
value of the fruit to my expenses.
The bulldog, shortly attached to the
premises, ate the Maltese cat one morn
ing; but | was thankful that he did not
also eat the old lady, whose lawyer let
me off from a suit for damages, on pay
ment of twenty-five dollars.
The year was nearly half over, and
things were not as bad as they might
have been, when we were surprised by
q festival which was held in the back
garden. There were music, dancing,
fireworks and acrobatics; and many of
the guests, being too fatigucd to return
to their homes. slept upon the porchcs
of my dwelling. should not have
minded it SO much, had we not been en-
tertaining Rev. Mr.. Praiswcll and fam
lily that evening. lie spoke of it as an
orgy, and could never hold me quite
guiltlcss of an affair that came off in
my own garden.
We had another surprise next morn
ing, in being seized upon by fircmcn
and carried in our bedclo.hcs to the
road below. We had grown so used to
the clattcr of milk-cans and the noise
of the stable family, that the engines
had not awakened us. The house was
insured, and the owner was happy; but
my furniture, my wardrobe, my books
| and pictures, were either burnt to ash
es, or had been carried bodily away.
Nothing was left. And vet, thank
| Heaven! no one was hurt. We reached
town in garments of all sizes, loaned
to us by charitable neighbors, and in
this guise presented ourselves before
Uncle Benjamin Franklin, who. must
say, was very kind to us, and did his
| best to comfort me.
''Fate has been against you, my dear
Fenella," he said. but comfort your.
self with this thought: You have
economical. You would have been
sixty dollars more out of pocket if you
had not taken my advice and let yOur
stable. You have learned, my dear
child, that "A penny saved is always a
penny got"
And that was so true that | couldn't
contradict it.-Mary Kyle Dallas, iu
Demorest Magazine.
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03
ITALY'S HOLD ON ART.
Laws Devoted to the Preservation and
Propagation of Artistic Work.

Laws DeNoted TO the PRESERVATION ana
Propagation of Artistic Work.
The idea of putting a stop to the de-
struction of art relics first eliminated
in Rome. Soon papal decrees took up
the complaints helping indirectly with
out doing any great good. These laws
treat entirely of the preservation of
antique works of art in public places
and the disposal of those found by ex-
cavating, 81 that in less than a century
necessity demanded the protection of
the law Ia be extended to modern art
works and To- those in private possession.
In 1871 a law was passed in Toscana
requiring palace owners to preserve
weapons, devices, etc. of the founders.
In 1902 law followed which for
bade the expectation of paintings by
eighteen masters, and in 1910 Pcrugino
was added to the list. Finally in 1874
the papal government took Il decisive
step, forhidding by law the expectation
of both ancient and modern art works
without a previous license.
From that time on law followed law,
finally terminating in the famous edicts
of Cardinal pacca of March :. 1919. and
April :, lSaO, which hold good in Rome
to-day, and testify To "A fine conception
of art. They are summed up as fol-
lows: The expectation of art works
without special permission is forbid
den; competent commission is tn
make an inventory of all impor-
tant works of art, to bc rcspon-
siblc for their disposal and their
future state Of preservation, and to de-
eide whether Il specified work shall he
exported or not; art works of high
art istic or historic Importance must not
he exported at all; modern art works
of living artistiStS are subject to no
tax; it is forbidden to conduct cxcava-
tions without permission, and immc-
diate notice must hc given of any find;
il is also forbidden to make any changes
, ON art works without special permits
sion (cspccially rcsturationS or tudam-
| age them in any way; all these stipula-
tiuns apply both to the art possessions
"f churches, corporations, etc. and To
those of private Individuals
However, this general inventory. and
the restrictions. especially in regard tn
restoration. are crying demands of Sci
ence unSatiSficI as Chautauquan
SMALL Buy-"Papa, are not sailors
,.r,- .u,..il EApI E'nth., y
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03

home the worse fcr driGh? No; bnt
all through the day wherever he
had called to lcaye a package, the pco-
pie had given him something To drink
for his troubic. u, had become
drunkard without knowing il: and the
poison that had entered his blood wasat
that moment filling the head Of he 1T
tie child with the dreams of an assassin
-FOrtnightly Review.
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03

'Do you know how very pretty a
pretty Irish girl is?" asks IA well-known
and enthusiastic writer. 'She is tall
and slender. Crisp little black curls
lie against her white neck. Her skin
is clear red and white, and her fine
black brows and curved lashcs accent
uate it. And then, her eyes! Why
should poets sing of the dangerous Orbs
of Oriental houris or the violet eyes of
the fair women of the north when the
Irish girl has them all at one and the
same time? Starry eyes have sparkle
and glow. You think they are darlIly
brown until some day she turns them
upon you as she stands in the sunlight,
and Il sapphire is not more blue, and
as you watch her in surprise they are
gray and they are black, and you de-
spair of telling what color they are,
but are content to watch them assume
whatever shade they will; and then if
the brogue is not too pronounced, what
a charm il constitutes To unaccustomed
ears Weekly Telegraph.
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03

The aspiring genius had written a
play which he called "A Tramp" and
which by some occult influence he had
succeeded in getting manager to
read.
Il think you said this was realistic
play?" said the manager when he had
finished it.
"Yes, SIR" assented the author
'twixt hope and fear.
"And it works up to several fine eli
MAKES"
Il am glad you think so, SIR"
"Wcll, it does. but it won't do. 1t is
altogether ideal"
Il don't quite" but the manager
interrupted him with wave of his
hand.
''Who ever heard of a tramp working
up to anything?" he said, tauntingiy.
al tell you it is purely IDEAL and the
people won't have it. Change the
title and I'll talk to you," and the
title was changed.-Dctroit FREQ
Press.
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03
xorIcE TO CORRESPONDENCE.

Az comm ubcsuons Tor this paper should be assen
panied by tn. OF the author; not nscsssarily 70
publ icaton, but evidence of good faith On IN
rart the winter. Write oaly enc sits Of the
per- Be srticulsrly careful giving and dsi.
io have the letters and figures plain and DISTINCT Prcp
Zen difhcult TO dsciphsr, hseaSss sfts
e.rsiess 10 which ihey writtsA-
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03
From an Unpublished Report.

Alexander the Grrat-lf | were not
Alexander would he Diogenes.
Diogcnes- Confound you; you don't
know good thing when you've struck
it-Imrk
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03
One of the Causes of Famine.

The wanton despoiling of Russian
forests during these last thirty years
has led to such widespread devastation
in the woodlands that industrial west
ern Europe is at present richer in
woods than central Russia. The havoc
wrought in the forests has had the re.
suit that the abundance of water in
rivers and inland lakes has decreased;
that immense masses of quicksand have
been formed, which cncroach steadily
upon the cultivated land; that the Rus
sian territory is becoming desiccated
and nature impoverished; that the tenn
perature in summer has increased by
three degrees and decreased in winter
to the same amount. Prof Bogdanow,
who has diligently studied these sub
jects for years, predicts, upon the above
grounds, that the mctamorphosis of the
black earth" into a desert will he ac-
complishcd within the next century,
unless this destruction of woods he pro-
ccedcd against with ruthless energy
German Agricultural Journal.
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03

The largest coin find in the col
lection basket this morning." said Rev.
Mr.. Nilgus, ''is a ten-ccnt piece. III
the members of this congregation are
expecting to pay their way into bet
ter land on the installment plan, it
seems to me that they are calculating
on much longer mundane life than
has been allotted to man since the days
of Methuselah. indianapolis Journal
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03

The natives of Vera Cruz do a large
trade in fircflics. which they catch by
waving Il burning coal ut the end of a
stick The insects fly toward the hg ht
anI are captlred in nets.
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03
IL Made No Difference.

Seven or eight of them were talking
in the courthouse the other day about
the best position in which to sleep.
IL lie ON my face" said one.
81 lie on my back" said another.
81 lie on my left side" said a third,
and So on until it reached an old fellow
writing at Il desk.
ut doesn't make any difference to me
how lie,' he said, without stopping his
work, I'm a lawyer. Free
Press
Blue-grass blade., 1892-09-03

SMALL Boy Papa, are not sailors
very small mem" Fond Fathcr-''No,
my sen; why do You asll?' Small Boy
We'll, see by the paper that one
went to sleep ~ his watch"