davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-10-04
BLASTING GELATlNE.
How the Terrible Explosive Is Prepared
and Handled.


BY far the most important as we'll as
the latest form of dynamite or solidi
fed nitro-glycerine are those desig-
mated not too happily as blasting gela-
tines" Many persons imagine, quite
naturally. that these consist of some
form of gelatine, isinglass, or glue,
converted by chemical means into IL
powerful explosive. But blasting
gelatine" contains no particle what
ever of gelatine, properly so called, the
term being applied to mixture of
nitro-glycerine and nitry-cellulose.
1t is prepared at Ardeer, in Ayrshire,
n. b., by heating uitro-glycerine in
"jacketed" pans to between 40 degrees
and water at 60 degrees Centigrade
Gao degrees Fahrenheit) certain pro-
portion of dry guncotton of the ''solu-
bic" kind. A current of hot water at
90 degrees Centigrade GAO degrees
Fahrenheit) circulating between the
outer and inner pans keeps the con-
tents of the latter at the required tenn
perature, and the mixing is effected by
| mechanical stirrers.
my IlSt VI uDo'C IT, Wv
greeS Centigrade Ql3 Fahrenheit) is
! quickly checked by turning into the
| outer Jacket stream of cold waite.
in place of the hot for Il time. In the
course of about an hour the nitro-cot-
| ton is dissolved in the nitro-glycerine,
| the two bodies uniting to form a more
| or less stiff, homogeneous jelly; it may
indeed be compared to the Photographic
collodion. thickened by evaporation,
the guncotton having been dissolved,
not in the usual alcohol-ether mixture,
but in nitro-gl ycerine. Whencomposed
of % per cent. of the latter. with per
cent cotton, we get a most powerful
explosive. Mr.. G. Macrobcrts, the man
ager at Ardeer, observes upon this
| point;
''Of all the nitro-glycerine explosives.
blasting gelatine is The strongest. If
the energy of dynamite be represented
by 100, that Of blasting gelatine will be
$50; nitro-gelstinc itself shows less
energy than blasting gelatine. Nine
teenth Century.
The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-10-04
The Habits of the Walrus.

Although the walrus is a formidable
looking animal, especially when he
rears his huge head and cleaning tusks
ont OF the water within a few feet of
Your boat Mr.. Elliott says he is not
only timid. harmless and inoffensive,
but not even given to fighting in his
own family. His tuslls, which vary in
length from twenty to thirty inches,
and in weight average from six to eight
pounds each, were given him to dig
CLANS with, and are of precious little
use to him either in fighting or defend
ing himself from attack. He sleeps
comfortably in the open sea. floating
bolt upright in the water, with his nos
trils ont and his hind flippers hanging
ii dozen feet below. Nature purpoHely
built him in the shape of buoy, so
that when sleeping or resting at sea
the buoyancy of his huge. blubber-
cased forcquarters brings his noStrilS
ont of the water without the slightest
effort on his part. He grunts and bel
lows great deal. solely for his own
amusement, apparently, and many a
time have vessels been warned off dan
gcrous rocks in thick, foggy weather
by the grunting Of the walrus lying
upon them.-St. Nicholas.
The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-10-04

March. in spite Of all temptations Of
offered food. The natural instinct was
SO strong that it refused to be over
come by appetite alone,
There is another very curious thing
about the Information of the black
bear. His den is usually a hole dug
under the roots of either standing
tree or an uprooted tree. but it may be
in 4 hollow tree, hollow log. or more
frequently. miniature cave in rocky
hillside. Sometimes he makes q bed
OF leaves and moss for himself, but
often he does not. In ''holing up
under the roots of tree he is FREE
o1ttentlv completely showed in, and
under such q condition, the warmth of
his breath keeps the snow melted i'm
mediately around him. This moisture
freezes on the inside OF his den, and
presently he is incascd in a dome of
snOW. lined with ice. the hard lining of
which ever grows thicker from the
frozen moisture of his breath. As a
result. he often wakes early in March
to ind himself prisoner in a hollow
dome of snow and ice, from which he
cannot escape for days, and where he
is often found self-trapped. and shot
without the privilege OF even striking
blow at his assailants. And there
is where nature serves poor Bruin a
mean trick. | have never seen a bear
in such an ice cage of his own build
ing, bat Dr. Merriam has, in the
Adirordacis. and this information is
borrowed from him,-W. 4. HornaGay,
in st. Nicholas.
The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-10-04
FACTS AND FINDINGS.

THE Chicago Lever, referring to the
recent riots in that city, said the
spirit of alcohol was omnipresent, and
the police were almost powerless to
prevent trouble
In Southampton, England, which has
a population of IS, 900, the convictions
for drunkenness are one in 406; in
Gothenburg Sweden, with a popula-
ton of 1000, the convictions for
drunkenness are one in 20.
A GREAT wine trust" has recently
been organized in California by leading
wine-dealers who expect to control at
least eighty per cent. of the wine pro
duct of that state for the next five
years, and thus no doubt the value of
the crop. The capital stock of the
company is ten million dollars. The
financial success of this combination OF
liquor capitalists will mean degrade
ton and ruin in many homes.
REGARDING the offspring of habitual
drunkards, s;:ys DR.. Paul GARNER, OF
Paris, who has made a special study OF
children of the slums, there is a flaw
in the very nature of these young
wretches that the psychologist sees
clearly and notes with apprehension
the absence of affectionate emotions,
and where they do not become lunatics
they show insensibility and pitiless-
ness"
AT congress of army chaplains, held
recently in Chicago, the subject ol
army canteens was considered, the pres
ept 'post-eXchange system" was recog'
nized as "a shade better than the old
post-trader system" and the declara'
ton was added that there is needed a
better conformity to the temperance
principles that now obtain in civil life.
They concede the integrity of purpose
in the framing of the post-cxchange
system, but affirm that lit does not
meet the alleged needs of the army As
regards its drink department, and hops
\ the time will soon arrive when the lat
ter may be made to disappear. We sec
ond their hope.
The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-10-04
JAPANESE DEVICES.
Clever and Ingenious Articles of Useful

ness
The Japanese have ii mode of prepar-
ing stencils which is better than ours,
in that it admits of great deal Of
open cutting. In our method cOmpl-
Gated figures must be di vided by broad
lines of paper in order to glue the
paper together and make the stencil
strong enough for use. and these bands
Of paper leave blanks in the design,
which must often be filed in by hand.
The Japanese leave no uch bands in
their stencils. They cut their stencils
out of two or sometimes three thick
neSseS of thin but tough paper; then
between each two of these sheets they
Law crossing one anO Their in all direc-
tions. human hairs or tiberS of raw silk.
These are especially laid across the
open parts of the design, and when the
several layers of the stencil are glued
together they serve the same purpose
as the bands of paper left by our stem
Gil cutters, but they form no obstacle
to the application of the color, and
leave no blanks in the design.
The same clever workers use rice
paste applied with the brush or with
stencils. for stopping out in dyeing
or in painting with dyes. When the
color is fixed the rice paste can be
washed away. They also obtain the
opposite effect on silks of European or
American manufacture. Having found
that these often fade quickly, they ex-
ecute ii design on them in rice paste,
then treat them with chloride of lime
until they are bleached. The rice paste
is then washed away, leaving the design
in the original color. The Art Amateur.
The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-10-04
PUNGENT PARAGRAPHS.

--Teacher-'Give me another proof
that the earth is round" Fritz
"Round-trip tickets. "-Fliege nde Blat-
ter.
-Brown-''What tobacco are you
smoking most of now?' Bunker
'Other Fellows. Boston Transcript.
-Mollie-''Let's write a poem, Tom
mic" Tommie-'All right. I'll pick
out the words and you arrange en-
Harper's Bazaar.
A soldier being asked if he met
with much hospitality in Ireland, re-
piled that he was in the hospital nearly
all the time he was there. -Eit-Bits.
That actor is 4 clever fellow. He
can talk French, German. italian and
Spanish Indeed, Isn't it Il pity he
| cant talk English"'-N. y. Herald.
-Phenomenal-K itty-"Mr. De Slim
| makes up in good looks what he lacks
in brains Jane-"TIe must be phe-
| nomenal beauty. "-Detroit Free Press.
The following appears in a small
provincial paper: The bridegroom's
present to the bride was a handsome dia-
mond brooch, besides many other beau
tiful things III cut glass. "-Tit-Bits.
Your wife takes great interest i'll
! the woman question she does. sir;
she is so much taken upwith the rights
of woman that she forgets men have
any. N. y. Press.
| Mrs. Bingo-''Ca have a bicycle,
dear Bingo-''Pshaw. you'd never
learn" Mrs Bingo-''Wcll. I've had
enough practice working the sewing
machine. N. Y. Herald.
| -fle-"Do YOU know how to make
good bread"" She-"O, yes; but don't
mean to; when | marry | mean to get
husband who will be rich enough to
buy me cake. Bonneville journal.
1t is more blessed to give than to
receive, and the fact that so many
people are willing that others should
have the blessing shows that people
are not SO selfish as some folks would
have us believe boston Transcript.
| -Customer-"How soon can you cut
my hair?" Barber John, run over
and tell the editor if he's done edith
the paper to send me my scissors. Gen
tleman waiting for haircut. Atlanta
Constitution.
Nervous Old Lady lin saloon of
| Steamerl-"O. steward. where do |
sleep?' Steward What is the num-
Der of your berth, ma ann" Nervous
Old Lady, don't see what that has
to do with it; but if you must know, it
is third; there were brother and sister
bord before me. -lit-Bits
Here's something great-simply
great" exclaimed the street fakir, as
he blocked the path of a portly citizen.
Il don't doubt it, was the reply, but
| belong to that class of people, sir,
who object to having greatness thrust
upon them, "--Washington Star.
The lady had given the small boy
an apple. and b. had said nothing in
recognition. What does little boy
say when lie gets anything?' asked the
lady, insinuatingly. He hesitated a
moment Some little boys" he said
says Thank you some says Much
obliged, and some just keeps thinkin'
how much better an orange is than an
apple. Household Realm.
The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-10-04
POVERTY AND LIQUOR.
Relation of tho Saloon to the Poor of the
Large Cities.


Commissioner of Labor Carroll D.
Wright lately forwarded to the presi-
dent the results Of his Investigations,
ordered by congress, of the slum dis
tricts of New York, Philadelphia, Bal
timore and Chicago. Two points have
most important relation. In the first
he shows where saloons thrive:
''In the city Of New York there was,
at the time of the investigation, one
liquor saloon to every 200 persons, but
in the slum district canvassed there
was one saloon to every 1919 persons.
In Philadelphia, in the city at large,
there was one saloon to every $50 per-
sons, but in the sum district
canvasSed there was one such sa-
loon to every 5O2 persons. In
Baltimore, in the city at large,
there was one saloon to every
22S persons, but in the slum district
canvassed there was one saloon to
every 100 persons. In Chicago, in the
city at large, there was one saloon to
every 2l2 persons, while in the district
canvassed there was one saloon to
every 127 persons. In these calcula-
tions fractions have been dropped"
Farther along he says of earnings
The earnings of the people living in
the slum districts canvassed are quite
up to the average of the people gener-
ally and at large, but as there are no
data with which to make comparisons
of average earnings the results of this
investigation must practically stand
alone; yet from all that can be learned
from various sources the statement
made is believed to be correct"
From which the inference is plain
abolish the saloon and the poverty OF
the slum will disappear.-Temperance
Bulletin
The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-10-04
Metbuselah of the Horse World.

The latest Methuselah story comes
from England. This time it is rot
from a man who has distinct recol-
lection of Napoleon's grandfather, or
an old, old lady who witnessed the ex-
ecution of Charles I. or nursed the in
FAINT Cromwell; nor yet does this story
tell OF a devoted couple, who arm in
arm. have wandered down The path of
time together since their wedding day,
the same day that George Washing
tons father and mother were married,
and are now about to celebrate their
platinum wedding. This time the
hero is a horse, and very grand
fatherly old horse, too. He belonged
to the Mersey 81 Irwell Navigation com
pany, but left their employ recently
and embarked for the happy hunting
grounds ut the green old age Of sixty
The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-10-04
A MONDAY REST.
The Best Preservative OF womans Health
and Beauty.

A great nerve doctor, famous in two
continents. says that every woman
whose nervous strength is at all de-
pleted, or whose life is an active one i'll
MANY directions, should devote half
hour to an hour of every day to abSo-
lutte rest isolated from all. Her room
should be darkened and orders given
that she shall not be disturbed, when,
with closed eyes and relaxed muscles,
she shall lie PROSTATE, hushin9 herself
to all busy thoughts and cares, and
striving to attain to a condition OF quasi
inaninity. Even ten minutes so spent
will be "a refreshment. and the busiest
life may spare that much from its ac-
tivities. since one is thus made capa ble
of longer endurance
The physician before quoted thought
that the most convincing argument he
could advance to recommend his plan
of a regular monday rest was that it is
the best way known to science to
brighten young eyes and retard the
dreaded coming of wrinkles to the
middle aged.
In this busy rush of life we all need
to pause now and then to take breath.
We are too busy planning for happiness
in the future to enjoy life in the pres
cnt. As sydney Smith says, We are,
in our search for happiness, like an
absent-minded man looking for his hat,
while all the time it is on his head.
We are SO busy getting ready to live,
hat life is over before we have time to
ealize what we have. --Harper's Bazaar.
The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-10-04
Gcd and her own soul will ever know.

God and her own soul will ever know.
we have seen genius from it's lOftiest
flights descend into the lowest depths
OF misery and wretchedness because of
incompetence; we have seen the strong
est ln.ellects shattered until all their
brightness and power were gone for
ever; we have seen the tongue of elo-
quence palsied IN its utterances until it
gave forth only the chickering's of an
ldlot; we have seen the light in the
poets brain go out in darkness that
was hopeless; we have seen the strength
ana buoyancy of youth stricken with
the feebleness of old age; we have
seen the strength of manhood
turned into brutishness, and the fair
now9rs of womanhood stained and
crushed until they were but scentless,
Wlt4ered things trodden under foot of
man; we have seen the picture of every
village in our land married by the UNI
signify blots which incompetence has
placed there: we have seen our land, so
bread in extent, so beautiful to look
upon, filed with humiliation because
OF the drunkenness of those who should
haEe been her pride and glory; we have
seen poverty exchanged for riches,
sickness for health death for life,
cut es for blessing; and wherever we
have seen these evils of intemperance
wpmans head has bowed in the dust,
Yoman's heart been bruised and
bleeding, woman's hopes blasted, a
woman's soul filed with despair
| Josephine X. Nichols, in Demorest's
| MapaZine
The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-10-04
ABOUT FISHING TACKLE.
How to Mend n Rod and Smell Instead OF
Throwing Them AWAY.

One of the first things young fish
erman must learn is to do everything
neatly. A bungling bit of work, es-
pecially about the hook, will be apt to
scare away game fish. Some prefer
plain hooks on this account, as they
can be fastened to the line more neatly
than hooks with eyes. If possible, have
a silk line rather than a linen one. IL
will not cost much and is stronger and
drmer than linen. Always take along
a bit of shoemalier's wax and spool of
stout silk, red or white being the best
colors. If your isherman's kit can be
further provided with a pair of pliers
and vial of asphaltum varnish, so
much the better. Many fishermen use
hooks attached to smells or lengths of
gut. The diagram given in Fig. l.
shows the best way of attaching the
loop at the end of the smell to the line.
1t is most easily done when fastened IN
this way. Put knot in the extreme
end of the line (a), pass it through the
loop of the smell {b-B1 and proceed as
in diagram, drawing smell and line
tight to make the knot fast Well,
suppose you are out for days fishing
and your smell breaks, as il usually
does just where the hook is fastened to
it. Do not throw them away, but
scrape the shank of the hook clean or
take Il fresh hook. Soak the smell in
water about ten minutes to soften it.
Hold the hook with the left hand,
or with pliers, take the silk, well
waXed, and twist it several times
about shank of hook, as seen in Fig.
II. between a and b. Lay end Of gut
and, reversing the direction. wind the
silk firmly around all Zig III.),
whipping it closely and evenly along,
and pulling the silk tightly at each
twist, occasionally showing the twists
closely together with the thumb nail
or knife. Continue the twisting about
half an inch, then make a loose loop
Gig. Ill, g, lay the slack end Zig. Ill,
b. OF the silk Ilong the outside of the
coil. Continue the wrapping for three
or four twists outside, of b, slipping
the loop (c) over hook each time, then
draw tightly and cut off all loose ends.
Rub this wrapping well with wax,
smooth down with knife handle and
cover with waterproof varnish. If this
is properly done, the joining is stronger
than it originally was. If no varnish
is handy the hook could be used for
a day without it. As gut and hooks
can be bought separately cheaper than
the tied hooks, preparing them all in
this way will save pocket money.
Watch the tying and revarnish when
necessary. Keep an eye also on the
smell and wrappings and repair or re-
place them when they appear at all
Worn, or else you may lose a big fish
some day.
If the gut should break at the head
of the loop. soak it until soft, lay il
back on itself sufficient distance to
form new loop and tie in common
knot, cutting the short end off.
When rod breaks cut the broken
ends slantwise, being careful to make
these ends fit together as in Fig. ".
The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-10-04
THE BOY AMONG HIS BLOCKS
BRUINS QUEER HABITS.
Curious Facts Regarding the Black Bears
Winter Sleep.

Curious Facts Regarding the Black Bears
Winter Sleep.
One of the most curious things about
the black bear land the grizzly and
cinnamon also is the way he goes into
snug winter quarters when winter has
fairly set in, and lies dormant in his
den without either eating or drinking
until the next spring. This is called
Information; and during this period
the ordinary processes of digestion
seem to be entirely suspended. In our
semi-tropics bears d. not hibernate,
but nature undoubtedly planted this
instinct in the brain of the bear of the
north to enable him to survive the Sc
we're winter period when the SHOWS lie
deep, and all food is so scarce that
otherwise he would be in danger Of
starvation. This period of Information
is from about the middle of December
to the middle of March 1t has been
stated that if bears have plenty of food
they will not hibernate, even in the
north. but this is mistake. | know
IF at least two instances wherein bears
in captivity have ''holed up" in De-
cemoer and remained dormant until
The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-10-04

Glue them in that position, or if there
is no glue handy use wax. Whip silk
over in even coils until they more than
conceal the break, proceeding exactly
as was done in Figs. II. and Ill, until
the final fastening, Lay pencil or
the finger along the coils Zig. ",
a-b). wind the silk over all three
times, insert end under last coils, as
shown in Fig. v, C, remove pencil.
draw close and cut off the end of the
silk Rub smooth and cover with
shellac varnish.-N. Y. Advertiser.
The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-10-04
Wasted Millions.

The Baltimore Baptist says that in
vestigations in that city show that % Il
per cent. of the restitution in that city
comes of intemperance, and 7614 per
cent. is not due to that cause-and re-
Dukes those who turn from the desti-
tute, on the plea that it is of their own
evil-doings. Well, we have 1000
saloons in Chicago. Those saloons can
not be run for less than an average OF
500 per month The rent takes two
thirds of that and the tax the rest.
Now allow what you like for the sup
port of the saloon-keeper and his fam
lily, say $500. There is $4,000 average
profit that the saloon must earn. How
much for the wholesale cost of the
liquors? Say $500. Now we have 81
500, TO be multiplied by 1000, the num-
Der of the saloons-$17, 500, 900. That
would give dollar day for year to
over $4,000 men. Destitution. Well,
of course, there is restitution. - In
terror.
The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-10-04
4 Circus Trick Exposed.

An amusing incident recently occur
red at d town in the south of France,
during the visit of Il circus One of the
chief attractions Of the show was a
troupe of performing dogs, and, after
they had gone through various feats
their trainer announced that Azor, the
most accomplished of them all, would
favor the audience with a piano-forte
solo. Accordingly Azor mounted the
chair and struck up the Marseillaise ."
At this moment some one in the audi
ence shouted Rats and Azor made
one bound ir the direction of the cry.
This created great laughter, which
doubled when it was noticed that the
piano went on playing thus revealing
the trick that had been perpetrated.
The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-10-04
But Was lie Rcan7 IA Man ?

A newspaper funny man has in.
vented not an absolutely fresh, but a
comparatively new joke upon very
old subject. Miss Timid was talking
about her own nervousness and her
various night alarms.
Did you ever lind man under your
bed, Mrs. Bluff she asked
YES" said tlht worthy woman.
''The night we thought there were
burglars in the house found my hus-
band there"
The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-10-04

The youngest sea captain in the
coasting trade is believed to be Mark
L. Gilbert, who runs the schooner Ad-
die Vessels between Rocliland, Me-,
and New York. He is only seventeen
years old, but has followed the sea
since he was ten years old, having been
mate for his father for two years
The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-10-04

I'm not concelted," Quoth the fly
Upon the pantry shelf,
But since struck this ieulos. pia
In stuck 3poB myself"
-Hsrpers Young People,