The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-05-29
ITEMS OF INTEREST.

"A writer in BIackwood's says that
priests cannot change their priestly
mysterious reason the SIMULTANEOUS us
sue over the cheekbOnes and under the
jaws OF the cleric's face gets an undue sup
ply Of nourishment. which leaves dis
tinctive marks while the consciousness
Of a share in the Apostolic legacy gives
muscular set TO the lips"
A new religious sect has been started
in Missouri. The members elect an an
GEL whose business II Is to fly 10 heaven
every little while and fnd out what God
wants the members to do. Contrary 10
what might be expected, the members
had no difficulty whatever in nnding a
man who was both able and willing to
fly to heaven as often as was desired.
But when he makes the trip he insists on
being absolutely alone
The most freakish freak ever assumed
by pearls is exhibited in that extraordi-
nary curiosity known TO the gem fanciers
as the Southern Cross. says the 81.
Louis Republic. Taken as a whole II Is
a group of nine pearls grown together IN
such a manner as to form perfect Latin
cross. Seven Of the nine go to form the
upright of the cross, or main shaft, which
is exactly ~ inches in length. The arms
Of the cross, which II must be admitted
are hardly long enough TO give the hgure
good proportions. are each formed by one
pearl so arranged on either side that the
addition of a tenth of an inch to each
would give an elegant and perfect sym
metry and outline to the whole fgure.
There is not an ill-shaped or oh-colored
pearl in the group, and taken as a
whole. il is not only a remarkable freak
of nature, but IL is also a valuable col
lection of gems Of goodly size an fine lus-
ter. This wonderful freak was discovered
several years ago in the pearl fishing
grounds of Western Australia by a man
named Clark. He is said to have been
very superstitions man and to have re
garded the symbol exhibited in his find
as an i'll omen. on this account he dug
a hole, and after carefully wrapping the
Il EIN.1 iii 4
About twenty-one years ago, in 1874, the
gem was disinterred, and since that time
has changed hands several times The
last time it sold for sup equal to $4,000.
The quaint little town Of ST. Nicholas
| in East Flanders, boasts the possession of
| two children of such extraordinary alb
normal growth as to put completely in
| the shade all similar infant prodiges of
| TIMES. These v4ritable BrobdignEiSian
| youngsters are a boy and girl. The elder,
| Master Clement Smedst is - years of
| age, and weighs no less than 420 pounds
/ thirty stone); the circumference of his
/ body is six feet six inches; he measures
| thirty-siX inches round the leg and TWEEN
/ ty-eight inches round the arm. His sis
| ter Bertha is S years old and turns the
| scales at 2i2 pounds Sixteen stone). In
| spite of their enormous dimensions heir
| activity is remarkable, for they trip and
| and skip about with all the agility of
| other children of an equal age. 1t is an
| astonishing sight to see these infant
| mountains of humanity romping about in
| country lanes with other children of the
village One would imagine them to be
| the offspring of a race of giants, so high
/ do they tower over the heads OF their lit
| tie playfellows. Their appearance is de
| cidely interesting, both having extremely
! handsome and regular features. Bertha,
| like other girls of tender years, delights
in nursing a doll, which seems ludicrously
| out of place and proportion in the arms
| of the young Giantess. The couple are at
| tracing the attention of the country
around, and on fine days crowds of people
| flock into the quiet little town in order to
catch a glimpse of these colossal chill
| dren.
1t is singular enough says the Sta
| toner and Printer, that the oldest known
printed receipts for making common seal
| ing wax, published at Augsburg in 1913,
describes the use of almost the same IN
| gradients as those at present employ I'd.
! Rosin, the whitest that can be obtained,
| Venice turpentine and vermilion are the
components. For black wax lampblack
| is to be added for blue wax. smalt anu
| for yellow orpiment. When sealing wax
was more widely used than is the case at
| present, scented wax was an article fire.
| quently on sale at fancy stationers, but in
| this epoch of fevcrish impatience and
hurry. although our Gallo neighbOrs NAV
| have their sealing wax code with diff
! ferent significance for each color we rare
| ly go beyond the employments of black
wax Tor announcements of funeral and
| morn ary kind aud of red wax for bust
ness letters. on the whole, it may be
| said of sealing wax as of quill pens-nine
| out of ten prefer steel pen to 4 quill
| one, and about the same proportion prefer
| using a gummed envelope TO the trouble
| OF sealing letter with wax. Before the
introduction of the penny post envelopes
| were rarely used, because extra postage
! was charged for every paper inclosed in
| another and for years afterward a four
| page quarto letter was folded so as to be
self contained. When envelopes were first
sold they were not gummed, so sealing
wax was used. When such letters went
across the equator mostly in sailing yes
| sells, the wax used to run and stick all
| the letters together, especially when the
| ship got into the doldrumS" and friX-
| zled becalmed near the equator for DAYS
at stretch. 1t is quite within modern
| momery when postage stamps were first
| perforated. Before that they had TO he
cut apart with scissors or a knife or TO
| be torn from the sheet to the DISADVANTAGES
| of clumsy operator. The little discs
called waters" seems to have gone right
| out of fashion.
man travelling in Australia found
| a large mushroom of this genus weigh
| ing flve pounds, says a writer in st. Mich
| olas. He took it to the house where he
| was stopping, and hung it up to dry in
the sitting room. Entering after dark he
| was amazed to see a beautiful soft iiobt
! emanating from the fungus He called
| in the natives to examine ii, and at the
| nrst glance they cried ont in great fear
| out light for many nights, gradually de-
| cTeaSlng until II was wholly dry DR..
| Gardner, while walking through the
! streets of Brazilian town, saw some bovrs
playing with a luminous object. which he
at hrst thought was large FREELY; but he
| found on inspection it was a brilliant
mu u room (Agaric) which now bears
| ms name. 1t gave out a bright light Of
a greenish hue, and was called by the
natives flor de COCO" as 1t grew on a
species of palm. The young plants emit a
brilliant light, and the older ones a male
| greemsh light. Many kinds of fungi are
| Phosphorescent. Humboldt describes
some eXquisitely beautiful ones he saw in
the mines. The glow in rotten wood is
| caused by its containing the threads of
lhght-giving fungi. Not only human be-
| mgs, but cows, sheep, squirrels. and many
! kinds of birds are fond of mushrooms II
many places mushrooms are dried lust as
! our grandmothers once dried annIes
strung on strings, and hung from The
| celllng Tor winter use. Some Euronean
| species are used in coloring. one yieI5s
a yellow dye another an exquisite green
| Whicn colors the tree on which il grows:
| ana from this wood is manufactured ~
c T5a df Iunbridge ware. The poor peo-
and stitch together a certain hing Sc
| mushroom, which is then made into 90
/ mGnfEs and in RN1b -