The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-03-07
ITEMS OF INTEREST.

is fond of lettering in bed. He is fond also
OF afternoon tea and Of a game OF back
CANNON, and he can sleep whenever and
wherever he pleases.
The most celebrated violin maker Of
the Amar family was Nicholas His in
struments most sought aner. however. are
tnoSe OF the large or grand pattern. which
are powerful as well as sweet in tone.
and the viOlins equal TO most Of those Of
Stradivarius. His instruments are valued
al from 500 to $1,000.
An authority on birds tells US that on
the continent where the winters are more
severe than in Great Britain. the willow
grouse mouths in the autumn and turns
a whitish brown, the natural color of his
surroundings, which protects him from
birds of prey. When the ground is COW
cred with snow the bird mouths a second
time and is perfectly white.
Sir George Newes. the proprietor of
the well-known weekly, Tit-Bits, intends
to publish a daily bicycle newspaper
While it is feared that it NAV he too
early to issue daily paper of this char
acter in England, Sir Nerves has been
so successful with other papers founded
by him and is SO we'll supplied with funds
that ne may succeed anyhow.
There will be a great decrease in the
production Of hops in Oregon and Wash
ington this year. says the New York Sun.
me mop industry in previous years has
been one of the largest in these states
put oVerproduction has brought the price
down to an Improbable figure, and in the
last year or two insect pests have caused
great loss to the growers. A great many
mop helds in various parts Of the two
state have been plOughed up and il is re-
ported that this spring more will be turned
under.
Celebrity of production is the demand
of the day. That shop which has the
best system can naturally turn out its
product in the quickest time. The de-
mand for engraved calling cards has
grown with the passing years into an i'm
menslty. one house which makes a spe-
clalty OF engraving calling cards and we'd
ding invitations, says the jewelers. Circu-
lar, prints during a year 10000 per day,
line, end to end, they would form a strip
OF 4l3 miles long. If laid out tile-like they
would pave Broadway for over ten city
blocks. If done up in packages of 100
cards to each package, and placed in a
pile, they would reach to the hight of
three miles. The company employs a force
OF from rs to so hands, making use of II
plate presses and II stamping presses. and
keeping nine engravers busy all the time.
The punishment Of the bagno (bath),
one of the most cleverly cruel infections
ever devised by an official of the torture
chamber, was administered in Italy, prob
ably in Venice, where the water of the
lagoons played so prominent a part in
It's ptlldt SySleIl- ne prisoner was placed
in vat, the sides of which were slightly
in excess of the average hight of a man.
In order to hold in check the rising tide
of supply of water, which ran into the
was furnished with a scoop with which
to bale out the water as fast as it
came in. The respite from death by i'm
mersion thus obtained was more or less
prolonged, according to the powers OF en-
durance of the victim. But imagine the
moral torture, the exhausting and even
h
and spitiless toll by night and day, to
stave off the dread moment fast ap-
preaching, when, overcome by sleep and
fatigue, he was unable to struggle any
longer against his fate!
The meteorological records of the
world chronicle several instances of black
rain, says an exchange. One would al
ways like to see these things for oneself
however, before accepting them as gospel
truth. The most historical fall of black
rain took place in Ireland, extending al
together over an area of about 400 square
miles, The raindrops which fell were as
black as ink. The shower took place in
broad daylight 1t was preceded by a
darkness so dense that it was impossible
to read without the aid of artificial light.
After the darkness had continued for
tended by lightning, but without the least
Semblance of thunder Then the black
rain began to fall. This rain had an evil
smell. Those who tasted it repented their
rashness. Cattle refused TO drink it, or
even to eat the grass on which 1t had
fallen, until, fortunately, another shower
came and washed the unpleasant traces
away. There is no doubt that the rain was
black for this reason, that all light-col-
ored animals and all articles of clothing
exposed to the storm were stained.
THE Marine Band, now the pride of
the nations capitol" said an old musician
to a Washington Star writer, had but
few brass instruments except bugles when
it was organized. Indeed, there were but
rev brass instruments in use in those
days, for comets, alto horns and tubas
are comparatively new. ! remember to
have seen the Marine Band marching
through the streets of this city, led by
six violinists, with two or three Violas,
a fiddle In size between the ordinary Vio-
lin and the Violoncello. Nearly all the
other instruments were reed hageolets
and clarionets, with an occasional French
horn. The big attraction of the band for
street parades was chime of bells, which
were carried on big stick above the
players head. He shook them as the
band marched along, and made a great
deal of noise If not music. Cymbals,
drums, bass and snares were more in evil
dence as features than they are now. The
Marine Band had the honor and credit of
inventing what was called the hoom-pah
horn 1t was horn of immense size 1t
was not intended so much for musical pur-
poses as it was to carry off plumber.
Whenever the band officiated at recep-
lions, banquetS and the like the bands
men packed it fun of good things for the
children at home"
Anything that may be penetrated by
needle is food for the sewing machine.
says the Chicago Record. Some wears
ago when the domestic, plain sewing
straight single needle machine represent,
ed the best there was in the sewing ma
chine line, the statement. which is made on
the authority of an expert would NOT
stand the test of proof. But to-day sewing
machines make loop and chain stitches
through cloth of any kind and thickness
heavy duck, wood veneers, leather. heavv
carpets, rubber and anything that the
needle can go through. A woman who
sits a home, with her foot working the
treadle OF purring, mechan-
cal seamstress, may see the
needle make 600 stitches a min
ute. This is high speed compared with
hand sewing, but one of the great sewing
machine manufactures of the world re-
Gently constructed a wonder which zins
through $500 stitches in sixty seconds
That means 1900 separate and distinct
movements in the stitchmaking part Of
the machine, for each complete stitch re-
CURES the needle to enter the cloth. first
loop to be formed, the needle to be with
drawn and the second loop to be formed
and all of these are done $500 times whiIe