davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28
DEATH VALLEY.


The Arid Desert where Men Mine
Borax.
Every housekeeper knows the white
powder sold as borax, and that II Is
death to water bugs and reaches. Hard
" q housekeeper knows that to mine
that white powder is deadly dangerous
to human beings. Borax comes from
the most desolate section OF the whole
world. Not even the most arid part of
the Desert of Sahara can compete with
Death Valley, where are the great
borax fields Of this country. Death
Valley is well named.
There Is not one living thing In 1t
save the men who mine the borax and
the animals which draw 1t to the rail-
roads. 1t is impossible for man or
beast to cross the valley from one side
to the other. There Is not one drop Of
water In the whole desolate place, and
the heat Is so intense that not enough
water can be carried to sustain life
during the trip. The valley is nearly
200 feet below the level of the sea, and
the summer heat In the shade never
gets below 104 and often reaches 14O
A man cannot go an hour without
water. and IL he does he goes insane
and his skull cracks open. 1t is a
place of the most awful stiffness. The
sun blazes down on a glittering white
expanse OF alkali, and not bird dots
the sky. There is only brazen sky
and the snow-white earth. the intoler-
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28
The Polar CITY.

Numbers of explorers who have
sought the Arctic regions in quest Of
the Pole, have told Of a mysterious city
mirrored against that northern sky
stately buildings in choice architecture,
tall and imposing spires, but such as
differ from anything we know Of
Whether the foundation Of this mirage
is reality and only unacceptable be-
cause of transposition as to directions,
whether 1t Is a work of some mysteri-
Gus remnant of our race that once oc-
cupied the Pole, or whether this is some
fanciful feature Of the frost, as the pc
culiar shrubbery we sometimes see on
the window pane-whatever this Is, 1t
must be consigned to the perplexing
enigmas Of the unknown region. Who
knows but that some spot, once the the
alter of busy and advanced human life,
may have escaped the general cata-
clysmal wreck and that this city may
be the silent and as yet undiscovered
witness Of pre-polar time, standing
alone In the dead desolation, in the
rigid shroud of now polar death! If
we must be barred from entering this
undiscovered country, we may add to
our equipment by a careful noting of
its mirage. and then give to the bases of
these phenomena a most thorough
Studv
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28
The Thaw-HOse.

Frozen fire plugs are the terror of the
firemen these cold days and nights
They constitute a serious obstacle right
at the time when all are anxious to get
to work on the burning building, and in
case of bad fire are often RESPONSE
BILE for great loss. The moment fire
engine reaches its position at fire
during zero weather, what is known rs
a thaw-hose Is Immediately attached
to valve connected with the boiler,
and turned on the frozen plug. IL 1t Is
found to be frozen a considerable dis
lance down, the long brass nozzle of
the hose is damned into the hard
ground. The powerful steam jet soon
accomplishes the desired purpose. The
thaw-hose, which Is part of the outfit
OF every fire engine, Is often used 10
thaw the engine pipes as well as frozen
plugs. philadelphia Record.
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28

the earth than the treasures are worth.
"Gunsight Lead" is one Of the famous
silver strikes Of the State. 1t, too, has
the pail Of death thrown over it. When
the lost party was traced to the edge
of Death Valley ten years after its dis
appearance, the last camp was found.
Everything was just as the party left
1.-THE ashes Of the fire. the wagons
and the bleaching bones. Near the
long-dead campfire was picked up a
little bit of ore. 1t was pure silver.
The finder had it made into a gunsight.
and, though wonderfully rich, the lead
was never worked.
Before borax was found in Death
Valley it was brought only from Asia
or compounded chemically. 1t cost 40
cents a pound wholesale. Since then
the price has fallen to cents a pound.
and the annual product Is millions upon
millions of pounds. Borax is mined
upon the edge of the valley and trans
ported to a railroad by mule teams Of
twenty pairs of mules. From there 1t
is taken to Oakland for refining.
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28
FREAKS OF FASHION.
How They Manifested Themselves In
the Olden Times of Henry III.

How They Manifested Themselves In
the Olden Times of Henry III.
At Christmas. 1464, Bernard of Rohr-
back. at Frankfort-on-the-M Main, donned
a brown tunic that was SO richly en-
broideredo with silver that one sleeve
alone weighed eleven and a half
pounds! Fgfke wedding dress of Maria
de Medfci Had train five ellis in length,
and trimmed with lilies of pure gold, In
which Maria shone like the sun break
ing through the clouds. At the chris
tening of her son, afterward Louis
XIII. of France. this queen wore a
dress trimmed with $1,000 pearls and
) 900 diamonds. On the same occasion,
Marshal Bassompierre bought half a
hundred-weight OF pearls to trim his
coat with. When Queen Elizabeth Of
England granted an audience to Mar
shall Biron, the French ambassador, she
wore dress on which 100 persons
had been at work for three weeks. A
very curious custom prevailed among
the young gallants of the period Of
Henry III. After making their pur-
chases Of silk stockings. they would
ask their bellies to inaugurate them by
wearing these integuments themselves
for a few days. Henry Nv. bought
masks into vogue, which were worn
in travelling, walking, or visiting, in
order to protect the skin from the effects
of the air. the rain and the sunshine.
In the seventeenth century-befOre the
existence of fashion journals-German
ladies used to have large dolls sent to
them from Paris. dressed up in the full
costume of the day, and they also sent
their tailors to the French capital to
study the latest fashions.
During the reign of Louis XIV. lace
cuffs were worn which were almost an
ell In length. We all remember to have
heard of the giant pyramids Of hair,
ribbons, and flowers which last CEN
fury danes balanced on their heads.
That inflated protuberance. yclept tour
nure, or dress-improver, which has now
happily disappeared, was all the go
under Francis H.. at which time the
gentlemen sought to give themselves
an air of dignity and responsibility by
the adoption of large false stomachs.
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28
A Profitable Investment.

The history of gold mining in Cali
fornia is full of instances where aban-
doned claims have subsequently yield
ed rich return and where shafts
sunk as far as capital would permit
have afterwards made rich fortunes for
more fortunate capitalists.
The stories told about such expert
ences in the Comstock and in other ia
nous mines are as household words in
mining circles, and there are occasional
anecdotes In connection with less his.
torical enterprises. One story relates
to the casual visit Of John Jillson to
Siskiyou County years ago in search Of
a recreant debtor who owed him $500
Times were hard, and Jillson. when
he found his man, accepted $500 ION
account and started home again.
what is land worth hereT asked
Jillson.
"Not much of anything" was the re-
ply.
But you fellows seem to like IT,
persisted Jillson.
"OnIy because we can't get away"
nat VIII YOU tahe ior youi ciaiH.
asked ,Jillson.
Zone hundred dollars cash."
Done" said Jillson, going down into
his pocket.
The price was paid, a deed given.
the sellers walked away, the buyer
took off his coat and went to work.
The next day he struck it rich and In a
month cleaned up $13,000.-San Fran
cisco Chronicle.
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28
wheel settled into a rut. The horses
were suddenly jerked back and the

wheel settled into a rut The horses
were suddenly jerked back and the
wagon came TO a dead stop.
1t was bad hole into which the
wheel had settled and the pull was up
grade. The driver took the reins in his
left hand and began lashing the horses
with long whip. They lunged for
ward with frightened snorts and the
harness Squeaked with the strain rs
they tried in vain to start the load
? Go on there. Git ep! G'wan.'
shouted the man in the seat, cutting
one horse and then the other with the
whip. They scrambled, swayed from
side to side. dug their iron shoes into
the hard footing-but the wheel re-
NAMED in the hole. Then the man on
the wagon swore and jumped to the
ground. He kicked the horses and
beat them with the slack of his lines.
They jumped frantically and swung 10
one side. This annoyed him and he
jcrked each Of them by the bit anil
pounded it in the nose with his gloved
hand. The man was vexed because he
couldn't deliver that load of coal on
time. The horses should have pulled
the wagon right along.
Some women were watching him
from windows in the neighborhood and
a man who had halted ut the entrance
to the alley ventured to come forward
and say: II wouldn't beat the horses
that way. 1t doesn't do any good
They haven't strength enough to pull
the load out of there" This amt
none of your business" said the driver.
I'm handlin' these horses, and you
keep your face closed" Thereupon he
once more began beating the animals
with the lines and they plunged and
scrambled until their sides were heav-
ing. But the wagon didn't move, and
the driver, whose patience was about
exhausted, kicked the horses some
more, and called them horrible names.
In the meantime the man who re-
monstrated with the driver had pro-
ceeded to the corner drug store and sent
n telephone message. After doing this
he returned to the alley to watch the
determined man continue his punish
ment. The animals, putting from the
continued exertion, seemed ready to
totter and fall in their tracks, but the
driver informed the four or five peo-
pie who had paused to watch his exhi-
bition that he would "make 'em pull
1t out or kill EN-" He was big and
dangerous looking, so no one interfered
with his plans. By way of experiment
he tried the whip again and he was so
busy laying the welts across the horses
that he didn't notice the approach Of
square-shouldered, gray-mustached
man wrapped in a chinchilla overcoat
He felt hand on his shoulder.
stop whipping those horses" said
the man who had just arrived. The
driver told him to go to a certain place,
aud just then the chinchilla oyercoat
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28
Wanted His Gall.

A Napoleon of finance picked out n
promising western town and decided
to build it up" He moved to the
town, organized nupber of stock COM
panies, started bank, deposited all the
money of the companies in his own
bank, and then went into bankruptcy.
Some Of the principal sufferers went to
learn whether anything could be saved
from the wreck. They found him in n
magnificent apartment. II regret very
much, gentlemen" said he, "but have
practically nothing left. My wife owns
this house and some business property,
but l have nothing. Believe me. IL I
could do such thing, would give you
my body and let it be divided up among
you, for there is nothing else can do"
whats that propositions" asked
rather deaf old gentleman, who was
standing at the back Of the mournful
company. "He says" explained one
of the sufferers, "that we can take his
body and divide 1t up among u.s." swell,
in that case" said the deaf old gentle
man, Il speak for his gall"
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28
French Army Conscripts.

The French army has some notable
conscripts this year, among them Sar-
dou's son and Max Lebaudy, the 'little
sugar man. of the boulevard, a spend
thrift young millionaire whose eccen-
trlcitles of prodigality have amazed
even the Parisians. On account of his
diminutive stature he was deemed unfit
for service in the ranks, and was detail
ed to drive mule wagon In the ammu-
milton corps of the Fifth Squadron, an
occupation distasteful to most con-
scripts. But while engaged in this
humble work he will occupy q fine
house at Fontainbleau, with large sta
bles attached for his horses and roomy
quarters for his servants. Another
conscript In whom all France Is inter-
ested is Gen" Geleoc, a French Tom
Thumb. His height is only feet 91a
inches.
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28

dren. the overlooking of wagons and
the consequent overtaxing of horses,
the exposure Of animals in bitter-cold
weather, the malicious torture of dogs,
and a thousand wrongs which cannot
be reached by the Humane Society.
Women who are threatened by their
husbands, tenants who are compelled
to live amid unhealthful surroundings
and employees who have been robbed
of their wages come to the headquar-
tiers, believing that the society's mis-
sion is as broad as its name.
The organization is kept sufficiently
busy in its attempt to prevent cruelty
to children and animals. When COM
plant is received an officer is sent to
investigate the facts in the case No
warrant Is sworn out unless the Of
Tense is aggravated and the offender
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28
able heat and skeletons here and Their

able heat and skeletons here and there
to show where death came from thirst.
A party Of thirty people left Salt
Lake City in 1850 for the new FL Dora
do Of California. They were too anx-
ious to follow the slowly, moving teams
across the Nevada plains. They
thought to find a more direct route and
struck down into Southern Nevada.
Man had never been in that country be-
fore and there are still places where
man has never been. 1t is the one alb
solutely unknown part of the United
States. Years afterward the party was
traced by the glistening bones along
the route, and by the messages they
left scratched on rocks and written i'm
the sand. All told one sad story and
sent one sad cry to heaven through the
blistering air-"waterv That is how
Death Valley got its name.
Carrying out the gruesome smile,
the mountains that flank the valley are
the Funeral Mountains. The two
precipitous cliffs that flank the en-
trance are called Headstone Rock and
Coffin Peak. There is a river in Death
Valley. But 1t Is only river by cour-
tcsy of the geographers. 1t is called
Furnace Greek, but it is only n sink in
the sand Up in the black mountains,
where no man has ever been, there Is
water, and 1t finds it's way down
through the lava rocks to the edge OF
the valley. There 1t Is lost in the sand
But Death Valley is rich. In min
eral deposits Of all kinds there are few
places in the country so wealthy, but
the treasures of the soil are more eff
fectually guarded than if they were in
the big safes of New York banks. The
climate of the valley is such that 1t is
all but impossible to mine the stuff,
and when once mined it is so difficult
to transport it out Of the valley that
no profit is left. 1t costs more in money
and human life to dig treasures out of
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28

sion of deep humility on his face. His
under lip quivered and there was
pleading in his eyes. When he tried
to talk he very nearly choked up. He
said he was a poor man with family
to support, and any kind of fine would
fall heavily on his wife and children.
For their sake he hoped to have mercy
shown him. He then thought mercy
was a good thing. The officer of the
Humane Society said he didn't want
to prosecute women and children. That
would be almost as bad as beating
helpless animals. The magistrate told
the driver how mean and despicable
it was for man to maltreat dumb
brutes, and the fine was reduced from
$40 to So.
This instance, being one of hun
dred, serves to Illustrate what the OFF,
GERS of the society have found to be al
most invariably true. The man who is
a brute In his treatment of weak and
helpless creatures is an arrant and
some authority greater than his own.
The roaring desperate who pounds
his horses on their frostbitten noses
will whimpcr like baby when he is
brought into police court
The Illinois Humane Society has a
building at $50 Wabash avenue. This
is general headquarters for the work in
Chicago. Here the complaints are re-
ceived, and from this Office the agents
Of the society are sent out on missions
of investigation. All day long an Off
Ger sits at desk to receive complaints,
and these come in so rapidly that his
time is well occupied.
What are these complaints? They
refer to the abuse and neglect of chill
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28
THE SCIENCE OF sHIpsUILOINo

Architect's Perfect Design, Showing
Every Piece Used In Construction.
A man-of-war is built upon paper be-
fore single plate Of steel Is forged.
Not only Is the design and model made.
and sketch to show how she will look
when she Is floating on the brt1y deep
but every piece that enters into her con-
struction, whether 1t be Of iron or wood
or steel, Is measured and drawn out
with even greater care than an archi-
tect exercises In designing the details
Of the mantels and door jambs and
plumbing of house. Not only Is the
length and breadth of the ship decided
upon In advance, but the naval con-
structor will tell you to an ounce how
much water she will displace when her
armor and guns are placed upon her.
how many times her propellers will re-
volve In a minute with a given pressure
Of steam, and how many tons of coal
an hour must be consumed to drive her
at a certain rate OF speed. The science
Of ship-building has reached such per-
lection that Of the forty ships that COM
pose the new navy Of the United States
only two have not fulfilled or exceeded
the plans and promises Of the men who
designed them, with reference to horse
power, speed and other qualification.
The Atlanta and Monterey did not de-
velop quite the horsepower that en-
gines were designed to give, and their
builders had to pay forfeit. The Cas-
tine and Machias were found to be top
heavy when they got all their armor
on, but that was an error Of judgment.
They were given too many guns for
their tonnage. but the defect was easily
repaired.
When the plans of a ship are given
to the contractor the first thing he does
Is to reproduce the design, or at least n
cross-section full size. with chalk on
the floor Of his loft, and wooden pat
terms are made from the chalk marks
for the use of the founders in casting
her ribs and beams. Then wooden
plate Is made for every steel plate that
Is needed and marked with white paint
to correspond with that 1t represents on
the pen-and-ink design. Then the
keel is laid and the skeleton is riveted
together until it stands out in the air
like the steel buildings that are now
being constructed fifteen and sixteen
stories high before a brick or stone is
laid for the outside walls. When it
comes time to put on the plates the
wooden pattern is used first to see IL 1t
is perfect fit and to mark where the
rivet holes must be made. The steel
plate is then laid upon it, the places for
rivet holes are marked and then drilled,
and finally it is fastened by red-hot
steel bolts where it belongs. In ship
Of 5000 tons there are over 1000 or
5000 different pieces of steel and $4,000
or 10000 steel rivets.-Chicago Record.
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28
A Modern Author.

We give below a few gems" culled
from the works of Ponson du Terrail:
"Her hand was cold, like that of a
serpent"
"The Countess was about to reply
when door opened and closed her
mouth" -
"'Ha! har he exclaimed in Portu.
guese."
The Colonel paced backward and for
ward, with his hands behind his back.
reading the newspaper"
AT this sight the negro's face grew
dreadfully pale"
"The man was dressed in velvet
jacket, and in pants Of the same color."
lie Figaro. g
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28
A Neryy shark.

Fisherman Charles A. Byrne was
standing In three inches of sea water
helping pull in a net of mullet when
he saw a shark trying to get a meal
out of the catch, says dispatch from
st. Augustine, Ella. He kicked the
shark, but instead of making Off it
turned and circled about him.
Byrne caught the fish by the tail and
threw 1t on it's side toward the shore.
Then 1t showed fight. 1t caught his
left hip, let 60, caught the leg again
near the knee, and threw Byrne down.
The shark tried to drag his victim to
deeper water, but an incoming break
err rolled man and fish nearer the shore.
Fisherman Edgar Pomar came to the
Byrne when he came up, and in wrig-
Cling out cut Byrne's sides with his
fins. The fish snapped his jaws at
Pomar and swan away. Byrne has
fourteen wounds on his left leg. They
are not serious. A shark lacerated
the leg of Fisherman Reynolds last
June.
Some folks say sharks never attack
human beings. Herman Oelrichs Is
one. Three years ago he offered 800
for any authentic CAGE of a shark bit
ing a man. This brought him bushels
of argumentative letters, but he did
not have to pay the 500. Later he
is said to have increased his offer to
$4,000. He has often freely offered
his life by swimming for miles in
water said to be inhabited by the man
enter
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28

printed % closely with Chinese type
that not an inch seems to be wasted.
The headline or title OF the paper con-
sists Of two Chinese characters, taking
up space not wider than one Of the
columns OF our newspapers, and not
more than an inch In length.
Its price Is 10 cash, which. allowing
for the difference In currency, makes
It equivalent to half cent of our
money.
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28

Some of the boat builders In New
England have discarded the use of
aluminium In the building of shells. At
first the extreme lightness Of this metal
made II favorite, but Il has been found
that 1t will corrode, and the shell will
then be full of pin holes. On the other
hand. musical instrument makers are
using aluminium In the manufacture
of drums Made OF this material, they
are not only Of light weight but give
out better tone than the ordinary
article.
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28

shows a disposition to continue his
cruel practices. The society does not
seek to punish, but rather to educate
in humanity. John G. Shortall is presi-
dent, and the work is -ustained by
many prominent and wealthy men Of
Chicago. During many years Of his
life Prof. David Swing was an earnest
supporter of the work.
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28

In Vienna they still talk in whispers
about the tragic death OF Prince Ru-
dolf, and no one dares to refer openly
to 1t as a case OF suicide. An Ameri-
can tourist who was being shown
through the royal stables said when he
saw the Princes riding horse: "Al,,
yes; that was the Prince who commit
ted suicide"
mo. madame; he died." said the at
tendant In a serious tone.
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28

opened and underneath was big star.
"Im an officer Of the Humane Society.
and you're under arrest quietly re-
marked the man with the mustache.
"You send to the yards for another
team to help get this load out of here
and then you come with me- what
have done?' asked the driver, whose
eyes hal widened Mt sight of the star.
you've abused these horses because
they couldn't pull load that was too
heavy Tor them.v II didn't mean any
thing by IT," whimpered the driver.
or course he didn't But he had to send
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28

Caller--I am going to send my little
girl to cooking school at once, Does
she care for such things?" Caller
Dear me, no; but am sure she will
make a good cook, she breaks so many
lovely dishes.-Ch Chicago Inter Ocean.
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28

Green--rm dreadfully troubled with
insomnia. simply can't go to sleep at
night. Brown-Why don't you make
up your mind that you have to catch
midnight train and resolve to stay
awake New York Herald.
Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-03-28

lines and encouraged them by shouts
and clucks. He swung the team into
m alley. which is between Michigan
aad Wabash avenues, and just after
the wagon entered the alley a hind