The Portland daily press., 1894-12-29
TRIPLES MAKE FOR WAR.
Notable Instances in the History of the
Worlds Great Events.

The Shake of Peasants Head Perhaps
Gave wellington Victory at Waterloo
The Declaration of Independence At
fected by the Annoyance of Flies.
Think aught tri1e tho it small appear;
Small sands the mountain, moments make
the year,
And tr1f1es life.
The truth of the quotation is daily reali-
Zed in the lives of individuals who play
part in the worlds affairs. In his wonder
full sketch of the battle of Waterloo, drawn
with touches as bold and masterful as the
crayon strokes in one of Michael Angeles
cartoons, Victor Hugo describes the fate oil
the world as hanging on the nod of a peas
ant. When Napoleon was examining the
ground on which the English forces were
awaiting his attack. he searched every spot
carefully with his glass, but failed to dis
cover the sunken road of Chain, which Old
not make SO much as ripple on the hill
side 40 comuIetely was 1t hidden from view.
Turning to the guide. a peasant of the
neighborhood, he asked il there was any
obstacle to the advance of cavalry. The
guide shook his head. The cavalry were Or
dered to charge. They did so. and Hugo
says that 700 horses and l,5O0 men were
buried in the sunken road. This he de-
clares to be the beginning of the long list OF
disasters which determined the fate OF Ma
poleon at Waterloo Had the guide nodded
instead of shaking his head. the cavalry
might have been ordered forward by anoth-
er route. and the fortune of the french en-
peror and the history of the world might
have been changed. AS though. however,
to counterbalance this, the same writer
says that had the little cowboy VINO acteo
as guide to Butcher advised him to de-
bouche from the forest above f1lschemont,
rather than below Planehenoit. the shaping
of the nineteenth century might have been
different. Both incidents may be, and PROB
ably are apocryphal. says the st. Louis
Globe-Demucrat for only one authority, and
he by hearsay, speaks of the Butcher cow
boy. and the existence of the sunken road
of Chain is disputed by several. who boldly
assert that there WAS no such road at the
point indicated; but either Incidents Sig
nifcant as showing by what trif1es the
course of history is detected.
FLIES ANNOYED THE NATIONS
FATHERS.
Jefferson was fond of telling story
which illustrates in torcihle manner the
importance that absurdly insignificant mat
tiers may sometimes ass me- When the de-
Lucrative body that gave the world the deg
Iaraton of independence was in session its
proceedings were conducted in hall close
to which was situated a livery stable. Inc
weather was warm. and from the stable
came swarms of flies that lighted on the leg
of the honorable members, and, biting
through the thin silk stockings then In
fashion, gave infinite annoyance. 1t was
no uncommon sight, said jefferson. to see
member making speech with large hano-
kerchief in hand and pausing at every
moment to thrash the flies from his th1nly
protected calves. The opinion OF the booy
was not unanimous in favor of the doCu-
ment. and, under other circumstances, DIS
cusaion might have heen protracted for
days if not weeks, but the flies were lntol-
cradle. Efforts were made 10 find another
hall free from the pests. but in vain. AS
the weather became warmer the flies grew
worse, and the Tapping of handkerhlefs
was heard all over the hall as an accompan-
jment to The voices of the speakers. In
despair at last some suggested that
matters be hurried SO that the body might
adjourn and get away fIom the flies. There
were few mild protests, ssbut no one heed
ed them, the immortal declaration was bur-
Iiedly copied and, with handkerchiefs in
hand fighting flies as they came, the men,
bers fastened up to the table to sign the
authentic copy and leave the flies in the
lurch Had it not been for he lively stable
and its inmates there is no telling when the
document would have been completed, but
it certainly would not have been signed on
the Fourth.
The personal history of Martin Luther
was full of accidents. He might have been
a lawyer had not accidental discharge OF
lightning killed his friend by his side and
disposed the mind of the future reformer to
serious thoughts. His selection of a con-
vent was an accident: his journey to Rome
was an accident; SO, also, IN certain
sense, WAS the equally famous journey to
Worms to attend the, meeting Of the diet.
1t was an imposing gathering that Luther
was Ga lied on TO face There is evidence
10 show that, however bravely he talked,
Luther was really much alarmed when the
ban of the empire was put on him and his
teachings. An eyewitness of the scene,
who appears to have played leading part
in the negotia tons, the historian Gulcclar-
DIM. says that after Luther was prescribed
and his writings had been condemned, he
was reduced to the utmost despair. and
that had his personal feelings been respect
ed it would have been an easy matter by
giving him some place of authority and re-
sponsibility to induce him SO to modify his
utterances as to make them unobjectionable
at Rome. and so to secure his silence. if not
cooperation. While a confer renee with this
end in view was in progress, however, the
papal delegate a man of hasty words, lost
his temper and applied 10 the former an
insulting epithet. That settled the matter.
The personal indignity, to man of Luz
theirs temper, over balanced the sense of
fear. He rejected all overtures. quickly
left Worms to escape arrest, and the fate of
Huss and the Confession of Augsburg was
she result.
HISTORY CHANGED BY A HORSESHO E.
Two historians of the time of Henry VIII.
of England are responsible for the state
ment that a lost horseshoe changed the relig-
fous and possibly also the political history
of the insular power. After the fall of
Anne Boleyn, and when her death had been
determined, the papacy prepared terms of
reconciliation so favorable in every partic-