The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1893-11-08

with information as TO the moons phase,
a conjecture of the weather, stories about
how the months and the days of the
week got their names, and clumsy, old
fashioned cut representing three boys
skating and man choPping wood. The
picture is supposed to be specially appro-
pirate as setting forth the occupation
of the people in February.
Flowing with Oxen.
On the March page two men are build
ing a fence, while another plows with a
yoke of oxen. The fence is not barb
wire nor the pillow "a steam machine.
because John Gruber's HagerstOwn
town and country almanac sticks to
primitive things and does not run by
steam. If the man wanted TO pillow by
steam he could not lug his modern con-
traption into the Staid old almanac. He
would have to put it in a rival patent
medicine almanac that is given away.
Along with the picture are the moon
phases, the weather conjecture for
March, and three articles supposed to
be of general interest. One of the
articles is about the country jake,
and 1t shows how grandly superior the
rural article is to the flashy. unstable
city variety Of man. This article is eX-
ceedingly popular on Maryland hills
and in Virginia valleys and is read at
every school house lyceum, being
gravely announced by the president as
select reading by James Mullikin."
The other March article is for fruit
raisers and tells all about why plums
don't ripen red and juicy.
April has thirty days, a weather con-
lecture, some moons phases. a recipe
for potato yeast ard a picture of another
man blowing with another yoke OF
oxen, in the HagerstOwn almanac. The
page also tells about the farmer selling
water Ii follows:
The farmer soils tons Of water and gets
good price for it. 4 ton of potatoes
contains over 1,S0O pounds of water. and
large quantities of water exist in all
foods. The solid portions of milk aver
age about L per cent, and the farmer
who sells milk therefore sells about IS
per cent of water.
May has thirty-One days and a picture
of some girls who look as if they would
be at least seventy-five years old by this
time. They are sitting under a spread
ing tree in easy attitudes and are sup
posed To be enjoying the balmy spring
air that diffuses itself over this page
People are urged TO eat more fruit and
less hog and hOminy' as the almanac's
summer approaches. AS a special feat
ture this Columbian year an article is
printed telling where Columbus got his
idea 1t says he got it from Marco
PolO's book of travels
Four men are cutting wheat the
June page of the almanac. They swing
about the new headers and Irvine bind
ers, and il they had they could not get
them into the HagerstOwn almanac.
Against Modern Civilization.
There is a plea on this page for less
Of modern civilization. This is part Of
it.
The fact is we are breaking down UNI
der our load Of fashionable civilization.
D.,
that is driving us into insanity and nerv-
GUS invalidism. There are too many
dishes. too much dressing. too much cook
ing and too much fuss and feathers
about everything. Look at the most rich
ly and fashiOnably dressed ladies in So
ciety. Their dresses are magnificent; not
SOlomon's robes were equal to the won
derful creations Of modern dressmaking
artists. But the ladies' faces are with
cred and gray 10y the time they are thir-
ty-five. They look ready TO drop with
fatigue, and the ste lines about their
mouths. the labby folds of skin around
throat and chin, tell OF suffering TO
which the Japanese women and the wild
Indian squaw are strangers. 1t Is a Suf-
fering that is all useless. too
July works a transformation scene In
the almanac. The scythes are too mod
ern and rapid and have been replaced
by men harvesting with sickles about
the size of table knives. The page has
two stories and two queer" items. One
story tells about a parrot pressing an
electric button when IL saw burglars
enter the house. The other story is a
"crack" at the way city chOirs sing an
thems This is part of it:
&" stir up this stu-stir up this stu
was the only the 'fuguing. form of Stir
up this stupid heart to pray And so
with And take thy pil-and take thy
pilgrim home My poor pol-my poor
pol-my poor polluted heart And more
eggs-more eggs-and more exalt our
joys Il love thee bet love thee better
than before And catch the flee-and
catch the fleeing hour and many more
entertaining instances Of perverted sense
in song. Two trebles sang, And learn TO
kiss two trebles and alto, And learn to
kiss two trebles. alto and tenor. "And
learn To- kiss bass solos. 1.-THE Rod"
one Of the queer items states that
the name of God is spelled with four let
tiers i'm nearly every language on earth.
The other queer" item says IL you hire
a man at a cent the first month and
double IL each month for three years his
last months salary will be S275. 900 600
spiders have eight eyes" one page
says. Another says shat If coal oil
catches fire throw -four on IL and never
put on water.
The Hagerstown almanac Is a famous
book. Long may II live to regulate the
lives Of farmers and roll money into the
pockets Of old Jacob Gruber's descend
ants.