davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Big Stone Gap post. [volume] (Big Stone Gap, Wise County, Va.) 1892-1928, 1893-11-16
Tho" Hague.

Did you ever stop ia ask yourself or
your knowing friend the mcating OF
1.-THE" in the place named The IIague?
II you are looking for something that
will knock the aforementioned know
ing frieHd off his feet just ask him the
Specification OF the three letters quoted
in the headline. When he fats 10 an
swcr the question tell him that the
THE" as it occurs in the instance cited
is simply the anglicized form of the
Dutch word IS Gravcnhaan' or "S
GravenhaZe,' either of which in the
Dutch language means the counts
hedge or 'tho counts grove" OF
woods" Originally the location now
occupied by the city of The Hague was
the hunting grounds Of the counts OF
Holland. About the year 1910 palace
was built in the grove. Presently a
village sprung up around the palace
still it was called the counts hedge, ="
and finally and lastly large city,
which in the Dutch language has its
original Specification, but which in
modern parlance has been evoluted into
1.-The Hague, st. Louis Republic.
The Big Stone Gap post. [volume] (Big Stone Gap, Wise County, Va.) 1892-1928, 1893-11-16
Rnin on St. Sxifhln,s Dax.

The old superstition about st. Swith-
IN and the rain has very generally died
out. There are still, however, q good
many who incline to the bolicf that
such notion must have had basis of
scientific fact, or it could not have OBJ
tanned as it has done for centuries.
Some years ago the records Of Green
wloh observatory We're examined for
twenty years with view to ascertain
ing whethc; rs n matter Of fact rainy
July IS is usually followed by rainy
period approxi,nating to forty days. It
was found that the years in which ST.
Swithin's day had given no rain were
rather wetter during the following
forty days than other days. 1t was
concluded that the tradition had no
meteorological facts whatever to sup.
port it. Everybody has heard the old
story about the removal of st Swithin's
bones ON July IS, and OF the manner in
which the saint resented it by deluging
the district. 1t is u curious fact, but
we'll authenticated, that the good
'na1i;. bones were shifted from their
.. i. nal resting place in circumstances
% c.'aSi,!srable pomp and splendor,
lnoata dropof rain falling. The
Il aia- superstition was probably
4; ,oe' which in 1913 devas:
London News.
The Big Stone Gap post. [volume] (Big Stone Gap, Wise County, Va.) 1892-1928, 1893-11-16
ADJUSTED THE MATTER AT LAST
D.7crenco OF Opi,,Ion Bctwccn tho Fat and
the Ti,.n Nan.

Difference OF OpinIcn Setwccn tho Fat and
the Tain Nan.
"Whew" sail the fat man, as he
mop7ca the pcrspiration from his brow
and crowded the thin man against the
side Of ''c seat o. the open car NO
one suffers Hike fat man in this
weather.
',nAced"' remarked the thin man
sarcast;cally, Is he tr;od TO geta little
more room.
''fe*. continued too f;t man. Eve
hsrr ;noy. troubles ,han any ono III tho
:um:uc: time. haven't had u COM
fart&5'c rao:nent to-day
"Ioa hnvGn'tn"
20, haven't. Do You think look
comfortable now?'
No. ! don't bat possibly YOU think
a'h comfortable Eat man always
thinks ic HAS t;,c worst Of il, but ho
isn { n It with u thin man Do you
suppose. it you had got this seat frat
my ono would have come along aud
sQua.ted down beside yoH and crowded
you m against the rail? 80, sir. YOu d
nave spread vour anatomy over it and
hold III. whole seat until yon got of.
But it's ;iiTercn. with thin man. He
wnlilS th.cc o. four blocks 80 as TO be
SIRE To q: 4 goo scat and gets it. A
fat ,nan DROPS into the seat behind him
and u rlctiirm-Sizcd man into the one
in front. Tnca along comes an
oth"" big fcllow-onc Of those Fat
freaks who couldn't stand up without
blocking the aisle or even the plat
form lie look, along the car and spies
tho thin man and then he comes along
and plunxs himself into the seat, and
the thin man is crushed up against the
side and heated by the great mass Of
flesh, and he practically isn't in it.
Hes III luck If he doesn't have some
bones broken. Why don't you pick out
q man OF vour own size some timc??'
LOOK hcrc. sir you re getting por-
sonal DO You mean to say that fat
man has no rights on a caro-
no, s;r He has too alfred many
for the price he pays. They ought to
have scales on every street corner and
charge for avor,lupois Then thin
man would have some chance"
The fat man was breathing so hard
that ever breath made the thin man
groan rs lie was squeezed against tho
side of the seat, but the latter was
game. Finally the fat man blurted
out: I'm bigger man than you are,
but have half a mind TO punch your
head
''rhat's al right" rctorted the thin
man. I'm o smaller man than YOU arc,
but I'm quicker, and you'd never hit
inc bat once.
''What would You do?'
I'D belt You il the stomach"
They glarcd at each other for q mo-
mcnt.and then the fat man surrendered.
"a thin man does have Il pretty hard
time OF it he said Its these medi-
uni-sizcd fsilows that have it easy"
They agreed on that and trouble was
avertCd. Chicago Tribune
The Big Stone Gap post. [volume] (Big Stone Gap, Wise County, Va.) 1892-1928, 1893-11-16
Eh0Des cf Era,

Various attempts have been made to
account for the diversity in shape seen
in eggs. A recent study convinces DR..
Nicolsky that the differences may be all
traced to gravity, and he finds his idea
confirmed by all the eggs in the ZOO
logical collection of the st. Petersburg
university. He supposes that pressure
by the sides of the ovary tends to elon-
gate the egg before the she'll has hard
cned. In birds which keep q vertical
position while at rest, as do the falcon
and the owl, the soft egg is made short
by the action Of the weight of the
body against the ovarian pressure;
while in birds that. like the grebe, are
nearly always swimming, the egg is
heightened because the birds weight
acts with the compression by the
ovary. The egg Is made more pointed
at one end than at the other in birds
that, like the guillemot, are frequent
ly changing their position-sometimes
swimming and diving, sometimes
pcrching on the rocks, otc.-Scientifc
American
The Big Stone Gap post. [volume] (Big Stone Gap, Wise County, Va.) 1892-1928, 1893-11-16
=FHE G!ELD-TE-EPHONE.
An Ingenious Instrument FOX Tsr In Time
OF War.

An Ingenious Instrument FOX Use III limo
OF War.
The AZ hDle matter of military com
munication devotves upon the signal
service, and the signal corps OF the
army has, until recently, on account of
ASSIGNMENT to other service, been able
to do little more than keep Informed Of
the progress Of other nations in the de-
veloplncnt Of material and methods Of
conveying intelligence, and tocndcavor
TO Judge of the merit, Of improvements
byonicc tests rather than field trial.
After many test, ii iQgcirn devices
the government employed the Bel!
Telephone Co. to dcrise and manufac-
lure On instrument which it is hoped
will meet all requirements for com
munication in The field. In tni, in
stlrlmcnt The principles Of tho Eccard
hnapsaca teirpl!our, Il previous Amer
lean device, ;.nd the Trumpet telephone
of the German army ere combined. II
consists of an Ingenious arrangement
Of Bell ,clorhare. Morse key. and bat
tery, which are all contained i.a small
leather case worn by a strap over the
shoulder, The wire is coiled on 4
reel in a separate c.ee, and makes
load for one man. The tele-
phone part is so contrived that the rc
ceivcr and translnttcr are one piece
which may be held in place by one
hand, the receiver at the ear and tho
sranslnittcr at the mouth, while the
Other hand mauipulAtcs che key. The
key takes tlc place OF the call-box III
an ordinary telephone, ard makes
sharp click in the receiver at the other
end of the line. Winch calls the opera
tors attention.
If desirable, the instrument may aiso
be used to telegraph as well as to tcc
phone. Conditions might exist liz
action where cannonading and the like
would render it difficult to hear spoken
word, in the telephone. Tlrn if is that
the sharp click Of the telegraph key
spells The message through the tele-
phone receiver in the ear of the opera
tor. who hears it as clearly as if hun
dred miles from the scene of action
The wire used is light insulated double
conductor, which has Il tensile strength
that will withstand the strain Of being
run over by artillery wheels, and may
be safely laid on the ground. 1t is usu-
ally strung along fences, however, for
Tapid work, and on trees and light
poles wireH practicable. One man can
carry about one and ohe.half miles of
this wire, which would weigh with reel
ffty-two pounds. -Ilarpcr's Weekly
The Big Stone Gap post. [volume] (Big Stone Gap, Wise County, Va.) 1892-1928, 1893-11-16
THE SAlS OF CAIRO.
a Functionary Who Facilitates the MoTc.
ncnt OF Road Tra!TC.

lnCDt or HO1u RI ZIG.
TIE sails is a runner who keeps in
front of carriage ard warns common
people out Of the way, and who beats
them with a stick if they do not hurry
up about it. He is relic of the days
when the traffic in all Of the streets
was 50 congested that he was an alb
solutc necessity: now he makes it pos
sible for carriage to move forward NJ
trot, which without his aid it could
not do. 1t is obvious that 10 do this he
must run swiftly. Most men when
they run bend thcm bodies forward
and keep their mouths closed in order
to saye their wind The sails
runs with his shoulders thrown
back and trumpctin2 like an
enraged elephant. He holds his
long wand at his side like 4 nlus!iet,
and not trailing in his hand like q
walking stick, and lie wear, soft shirt
OF white stuff, and Il sleeveless coat
buried in gold lace. Ills brooches ar"
white. and as volumiuOus as Il woman $
skirts; they fall to few inches above
HIS iltcc. thc ICoC Va H!o - ~ ''' -
and rigid with muscle On bis head he
has IA fez with long black tasscl, ana
magnificent silk scarf ~ many colors
is bound tightly around MS waist. lie
is q perfect ideal Of color and move
lnent and as he runs he below, like 2
bull, or roars as !rou nave heard non
roar at frcding-tilnc in a menagcrlc
1t is not Il human cry at all. ana you
never hear it. even to the last day YOU
STAY in Cairo. without a start. Is though
it were 4 cry OF ''hclp' At night. or TIC
quicl1-clangng bell Of q fire-enginc
There is nothing else in Cairo
which is 50 satisfying. There
are sometimes two vi them run
ming abreast, dressed exactly alike,
and witt, the upper, part CT their bottles
as rigid as the wand pressed against
their side, and with the ends OF their
scarf ana the long tas,el streaming out
behind As they yell and below. don
keys and carriages and people scramble
out OF their way until the carriage they
preccde has roIlc, rapidly by. cnl!-
princcsses OF the ROYAL harcm, and con
suls-gencral, ana the heals OF the army
of occupation and the Egyptian army
nre permitted two sails; other people
may have one. They appealed 70 INC
as much more aatocratic appondagcs
than troop Of lirrguar;:s. The raAtc-
unairc who first introduces them IN
Pari, will make his name known in IL
The Big Stone Gap post. [volume] (Big Stone Gap, Wise County, Va.) 1892-1928, 1893-11-16
Tit for Tat.

Collector really can't understand
why you don't pay me my little bill.
You have nevcr given me single cent.
Hostetter McGinnis-If time was not
money ia explain it to You.
Now you are giving mo impudence. "
well, you were complaining just
now that hadn't given you anything.
You are always grumbling about moth
ing"
You promised to pay me three
months ago, and relied on you"
That's So
''And you lied"
Precisely SO. l lied on you and you
relied on me, SO we are oven. Good
by. Texas Strings,
At New York, Francs II. Weeks was
Tuesday sentenced TO ten years i'm
prisonment in Sing Sing prison. He
pleaded guilty on arraignment. and
Ehe entire proceeding did not occupy
Eve minutes. g55
The Big Stone Gap post. [volume] (Big Stone Gap, Wise County, Va.) 1892-1928, 1893-11-16
n ! : :: " HoTto|k=Hestern RI
MEfszESSs.yGG$-SSSa
EO2IrAyE BRISTOL. DAILY,

No. LEAVE BRISTOL, DAILY.
10 D. m, arrives At Pulaski lo.+3p. M. nriiv- f
Rahfoyl II Cop. IL. arrive Eonnok. LIZ p. IN
srrlre I.yncul'Hrg 5.23 T. n. l,scrohnrs 7.1"a M
Eichmoud s So 4 n au Norfolk loon y. n
punnsn s'ep.r br,~pl l1 aar.p:k alI lynch
burg 10 R!cinrond
40 p. m. Limited Stops onl. y, Ra'!torl arrives
Roanoke 1916 y. NJ. Ia Pullman Sc'pc'
FOR Washington vla Roanoke. Shtna'osi JUNCTION
and T. ( q. .l,o for New YORK Via lt'g'i stow
xAd Harrisburg. Iniuk cn.- rt's,i."l.,
No.4
100 :. m. arrives EoaGrHc u 10 r. M. l,.raJ GO.
=. NJ. Ilagcrs.0wn g 0p m, .rr.rs War!ng
ton. sis g. 1! o. r. r. aap Shrnadoak I-nctio
1886 y. Thrrrg! sleeper Tor New York
Arrive Il nc!hug .. - y. III. arrives Ict"gshu;i
60 p M, Richmond 80 y. m Norfolk 40 ?
4s'h n'r, r'1 .4I"s, to rs S"r%,
u =. M io' %.m''"r-S-i.m aad Intermediate
NORTH CAROLINA p,vIS!0N.--Ird,c lula.S : %
M, daily sAcrp annhsy, for l'cty link'r, nh.
,,G 81 !. IN, I,iiy lnr lyanhoe. ard 900 =. l.; ,
,aiy. foi lyai hoe and Gosson.
NEW RIVER HHNNCIi.--!.eayr Ra''or'! daily ga
a. M Tor lNu'f'd ard rncahontas end c"rl Re
Sion'rl<o FER all stations C!inch VALLEY an'! f..
Louisville Il" >or,on.
Leave Rrdord FAR Nuoilrd, rocnhonrnt. korov,.
Columbus Chicago and al points wc>t. rulmsi
Sieop"r- through from.Nor,"lk to Ch!c~sp viz
Esdlrrl.
CLIECH VALLEY nlyGSIOE.-lc4y- Wu.:cld lai
ly7... a. M, for Notion ahd i.l5 p. M. To-, No.
ton Lorisv. sud stations, t. Z y L. L. VIA ~"
DURHAM nivlSl"N.-!.a." E.,nehtqre Union II.
,ioul 10 H. m, sal 10 y m dim fnr S.r;i
Ips;"n, Dur,,,i. a.,' sl i,t .s,n '.ir'' stations.
Tr,i;, from Tic Las, arrive Er,tol Iii. =. 20 j.
n, l..45 tvc>,ihulr i!iait"d) = IA. u u n!sitt.
FOR further information Apply 10 +. {. Wight
Ticket Agent, i'.i+,ol.
" r EFVIIl e. +
The Big Stone Gap post. [volume] (Big Stone Gap, Wise County, Va.) 1892-1928, 1893-11-16
SNAKE CHARMING.
\ Talk About tho Art end It's Dangers b,
q Professional.

\ talk About tho art end It's Dangers by
Professional
Snake charming has become COM
mon thing nowadays said profess
sional snake handler the other day,
after reading the account Of "Dot"
Sonwcll's mishap, land the danger
about the work is just sufficient TO at
tract some people Yes, there is al
ways danger unless the poisonous fangs
are extracted 1t is almost impossible
to charm. or rather drug, some species
OF snakes 80 that they can always be
depended upon, They arc a trcacherous
Ect, and moro so when they have the
poisonous fangs In theiY mouth. They
Anow right away whom their fangs
slaro becn extracted They seem 30
sosc their pride and ferocity and they
will try to sneak away rathor than TO
S+Ter defiance have known the forest
%iHmond-hack ever brought from Flor
hla coil down us tame as a lamb when
DIR poison fang was taken out. Most
~ the snakes handled by charlners 90
Sf,e stage are harmless so far as poison
ing any one Is concerned. 1t should DO
u crime, too, to let those with the fangs
III be exhibited.
''What are the secrets of snake
charming? O. well, they are simple
simpler than most people imagine. In
the first place the snake to be handled
Is gorgc,l with food so that it is sleepy
and drowsy. Then it is cther-drugged
so that its senses are dazed and quiet.
Sometimes they are put in boxes con-
tanning ice and the cold puts them in a
:emi-torpid condition. In either case
the snake is very gentle and only half
in the possession of its senses. Then
the snake charmer uses certain motions
in handling the reptile, and by dint Of
dextority and strength the snake Is
easily passed from hand to hand and
allowed to coil its Shiny length over
arms, legs and body. The exhibitor,
however, must be constantly on the
alert When the snake becomes too
lively it is time TO place 1t in the box.
The hand must always grasp 1t at GER
tain places where the head can he
guided and held from the body. This
is the hardest thing the charmer has
TO learn, but it comes with practice
In handling reptile with the poison
Gus fangs in, one must be strong and
IN perfect health. Any nervousness or
temeritv might cost him his life. The
grasp and movements must be precise
and accurate. There is no room for
hesitancy or uncertainty, and the
strain Of ones system during the per-
torrance is great. The charmer is
really toying with death-and death In
one of its most horrible forms."--
Philadelphia Times
The Big Stone Gap post. [volume] (Big Stone Gap, Wise County, Va.) 1892-1928, 1893-11-16
THE poRpoISE.
Cuiniora OF business Men in Regard 20
Iits Commercial Faluc.

Ills Commercial Fn!uc.
Reports have come from around Que
bee OF business enterprise for the
catching OF the porpo;se. In n section
Of the gulf where they are very plenti-
ful colossal nets are to he spread for
their capture.
The porpoise has often been caught
before Capitalists have coralcd him
IN quantities while deportng himself
near Wilmington, Del. for instance.
Eut to these same capitalists he has
ever proved much of n white elephant.
Commercially he has been unsucccss-
full. and it IS pleasing to note that he is
so far appreciated to-day that band
of moncycd men are again TO push him
forward. 1t IS difficult thing to find
porposc man in New YorI: city. In
the business world the porpoise is out.
But a fish-oil man thus speaks OF him:
The catching Of the porpoisc is som"-
| thing that has never paid. When dead
he is useful in certain ways hut never
sufficiently so Under his skin is a
LAYER OF TAT tho bluhber- vhich is
made into an ordinary fish OF, such as
menhadcn, selling at twenty-five cents
gallon Tie only really valuable oil
about him is within the jawbonr. That
oil is very fine 1t sells at from three
IT, four dollars a gallon and when care
fully refined yerv nuch higher But.
of course, per porpoisn, there is a very
small quantity of that. OF tho ordinary
oil about ten porpoises arc needed for
barrclful 1t is used for the same
purposes that other fiah oils nrc-lu bri-
eating, The curing of leather and the
lighting of nlinoe. But, he concluded.
the amount of porpoisc oil actually
used is 50 small that we OF men never
take it into consideration at all.
The porpoiSc's hide is regularly
tanned for boot and shoe use. 1t is too
wet and oily leather to become a
material for bags, poclletbooks and
the like. Cut into strips for shoe
strings it has met with some favor. But
otherwise it is not wanted. Recently
man in the swamp, who used TO be in
the pogpsisc business, said.
Don't talk porpoise Ia ne. sir; there
is nothing in them nowadays. fcara
ago we thought there was going to be,
but 40. ~ ny stock now have sew
eral thousand porpoisc hides that ]
would ba glad to sell, but nobody
wants them. II this new company is
going to capture them by net II will
have a job on its hands. For the por-
poise is wriggler and the porpoise is
very strong, and the net Will have to
be of the l'vaYiest wire and tightly
woven together"
The porpoisc here referred to is just
the piain rdipary porpoisc such as one
may see rot far from New York and
even at times IN New York bay itself.
There is another kind OF porp0iso
known as the white whale" from
twelve to fourteen feet long, Of a caci-
mine wilderness from tip of tail to
head. But he is, strictly speaking, an
arctic porpoise and seldom if ever gets
so far south as the gulf of st. Law
rencc The ordinary species is but
half the lcngt4,, ard even less, Of the
white whale. "-Wavcrly Ma2azsnG.
The Big Stone Gap post. [volume] (Big Stone Gap, Wise County, Va.) 1892-1928, 1893-11-16
TIE FIRST PURITANS.
Few in Numbers, bu. Dangerous Drspcr-
ate, Determined Hch.

| ate, DCtccnllnPa 1ch'
bayc In my possession detailed &C
count of the temper of parties IN En-
gland, drawn up in the year 1850. three
years before the Armada came. The
writer was a distinguished Jesuit. The
account itself was prepared for the use
of the pope and Philip, with a special
view to the reception which an invad.
ing force would meet with, and it goes
into great detail The people Of the
towns-London, Bristol, ctc.-werc, he
says, generally herctics. The peers,
the gentry. their tenants, and peas
antry, who formed the immese ma jori-
ty of the population. were almost uni
yersally Catholics. But the writer dis
tinguishcs properly among Catholics.
There were tho ardent, impassoned
Catholics ready to be co1lfeesors and
martyrs. ready to rebol at the
first opportunity, who had re-
nounccd their allegiance, who de-
sired to overthrow Elizabeth and put
the queen of Scots in her place. The
number OF these, he says, was daily in
creasing. owing to the eXertions of the
seminary priests; and plots, be boasts.
wore being continually formed ny
them to murder the queen. There
were Catholics OF another sort, who
were papal at heart. but went with the
times 20 save their property; who
looked forward to q change in the
natural order Of things, but would not
stir of themselves till an invading army
actually appeared. But all alike, he
insists, were eager for a revolution.
they would all join him; and together
these two classes of Catholics made
thrccfourths OF the nation.
The only party" he says (apd this
is really noticeable), 1.-THE only party
that would fight to death for the
queen, the only real friends she had
were the Puritans (it is the first men
tion of the name which [ have found),
the Puritans of London. the Puritans
of the sea towns These, he admits,
were dangerous desperate, determined
men. The numbers Of them, however,
were providentially small.
The date of this document Is, as /
said, 1885, and | believe it generally
accurate. The only mistake is that
among the Anglican Catholics there
were few to whom their country was
as dear Us their crecd-a few who were
beginning to see that under the act of
uniformity Catholic doctrine might be
taught and Catholic ritual practiccd;
who adhered to the old forms of re-
ligion, but did not believe that ODE
dience to the pope was a necessary
part of them. One of these was Lord
Howard of Effingham, whom the
queen placed in his high command to
secure the wavering fidelity of the
peers and country gentlemen. But the
force, the fire, the enthusiasm came
Gas the Jesuit saw from the Puritans,
from men of the same convictions as
the Calvinists Of Holland and Rochelle;
mon who, driven from the land, took
to the ocean as their natural home,
and nurscd tho reformation in an
ocean cradle-J. A. Froudc, in Long
mans Magazine.
The Big Stone Gap post. [volume] (Big Stone Gap, Wise County, Va.) 1892-1928, 1893-11-16
A Word to nInthcra.

DO not always be drudge i'll your
own household. Rest q little when
over you can, and allow the younger
members of Your family to do some Of
the work Have chair by the stove
and when you peep into the oven sit
while you look, yea, even a moment
after; you will work all the faster for
the short change of poster. While
mcnding have your chair in the contest
corner. where good light will come in,
and let the sun strike upon you, if pos
sible, SO that you may get the
strengthening, health-giving intlu-
ence of it. Drop Your hands
occasionally and let them rest.
Let your eyes wander out through the
window glass as far as possible and
rest your eyes by looking at something
interesting out Of doors. Drop the
reins of household government for "
little while. unbcnd yourself, and sit
down on the rug and play with the
children, and as it were, become
again child. Economic your strength.
Sit when you can. DO not hold the
baby when 1t can rest and grow just
as we'll In It's crib. by resting when
you cun, by planning the work to be
done, and by being systematic and or
derby in all things, wornan's work at
homo is moro easily done.-N. Z.
Wecklv
The Big Stone Gap post. [volume] (Big Stone Gap, Wise County, Va.) 1892-1928, 1893-11-16
Sweet Charity.

Mother-What In the world are you
so busy at?
Small Son--Us boys is gettin' up a
charity circus, and l guess we'll make
Lot O. money too All the children is
interested in the cause.
Mother-That's noble. Anddyou in
tend to give it all to the poore
Small Son-Yes'm. Our teacher is
going to marry real nice man, and
we all feel SO sorry for him we wants
to raise money SO he Gun buy ticket
for somewhere and run away.-Gool
News.
Francis Murphy closed ten Gays
temperance meeting at Greensburg,
Ind, With over 1000 signers to the
pledge. Mayor Armstrong and Col.
Ed. Wolfe, Of Rushville, addressed tho
large audience.