davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1896-05-29
LOOKED LIKE AN UMBRELLA.
But 1t was Second-Story Sneak Thief
Step Ladder.


Step Ladder.
Maj Moores office in the District
building is a curiosity shop. He has
there collection of articles used by the
criminals who have been run down by
the metropolitan police; but there is one
particular article among them that is
probably the center of interest. In ap-
pearance it resembles an umbrella that
has seen; much service, or it might be
taken for stage umbrella, such as is
used by Marks in Uncle Toms Cabin.
the property of burglar, and it was by
its means that he was able to enter the
second story of building. Removing
the cover, a stick wound with rope is
revealed. The stick opens like tele-
scope. or. 1. jointed tishpole. Wound
around it is rope ladder. made of strong
material. and about thirteen feet in
length. The ladder is only wide enough
for one foot to be placed on the rounds.
one end of the ladder to the window
through which the operator wished to ell
ter, and on one end Of the ladder are
tw" hooks to be fastened to the sill. The
cont ivance was taken from colored
burglar named James Moore, who is now
serving out a twenty years sentence in
the Albany penitentiary for house break
ing.
Moore was first arrested about ten
years ago. 1t was then that he made
use Of the ladder to gain admittance to
the houses that tempted him. He was
an Old sailor, and while on board ship
he learned the art of making and spite
ing rope; Entering the field of crime.
he conceived the idea of the rope lad
lers: 1t: is regarded as one of the most
Ingenious affairs ever made use of by a
THIEF He carried no other tools, as he
wasswhat is known in police circles as
Il ''almmcr thief" one who works wht1,
windows are left open. Moore operated
alone, as he was afraid to trust u pal
Washington Post. -
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1896-05-29
MADE BLOCKADE WHISKY.
Handsome Young Woman and Her Hus.
band Sent to Jail.

band Sent to Jail.
Mary Sharp Il handsome young wonl-
an. was sentenced by Judge Swayne, in
the United States court at Pensa cola.
Fla, to pay a fine of $500 and serve
eighteen months in the penitentiary at
Columbus. Q. By the woman's side was
her husband, William Sharp, who re-
ceived similar sentence
The couple were convicted of illicit dis
tilling, having operated in Jackson coun-
ty, Fla. for several years, giving the
revenue officers more trouble than any
other moonshiners in the state
Mrs. Sharp was the brains of the com
bination and by her ability she flooded
West Florida with blockade whisky and
at the same time eluded detection. The
government has spent hundreds of dol
lars trying to secure evidence to warrant
the couples arrest, but Mrs. Sharp was
too shrewd for the revenue agents.
Once a spy visited her home and being
very pretty Mrs Sharp induced him to
fall in love with her and for nearly a
year she made the governments paid
agent dispose of the illicit liquor made by
her husband and herself.
Mrs. Sharp's success, however, made
her careless and last January the reye-
nue. officers came upon her and her hus-
band as they were distiling whisky in q
dense SWAMP.
Mrs. Sharp showed fight. Selling a
rifle she sent bullet through one officer;
but before she could fire again the off
GERS took the gun. Then she drew a
knife from her bosom and slashed an
other officer.
She has always claimed that she would
have whipped the officers if her husband
had aided her. Mrs. Sharp's father was
an expert sinner and when she was lit
tie girl she aided him. She received her
sentence stoically. The couple have NO
children, but they have a comfortable
fortune accumulated from the profits of
the mOonshine industry,
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1896-05-29
"A ROYAL Romance,

The Princess Louise of Wales really
: fell in love with the Duke of Fife tor
rather, the earl. as he was them, when
she was a little girl She was not 4
pretty child. and her birth had been dis
appointing to her parents. who had
wished for an heir to the English throne.
The earl, who was her senior by some
fifteen years, was good natured young
fellow. and feeling very sorry for the
little girl. used to show her great deal
of amiable attention, smuggling bon
bons into the nursery and begging her
off from her lessons when there was
something pleasanter ON the tapis. In
return the little princess lavished her
childish affection upon him. and used to
make presents of impossible pieces of
fancy work done by her own fingers.
AS they grew older she continued to
adore him. and to make penwipers and
pincushions for his birthday. but which
tliffidence prevented her from presenting
when the time came. The duke. seeing
that she no longer treated him in the
frank, friendly way that she had done
that she was growing proud and af-
fected, lost interest in her for time
One day somebody discovered among
the princess belongings the accumula-
ton of unpresented gifts bearing the
dukes monogram and coat-of- arms, ard
made point of telling him about it.
He was deeply touched, and all his old
feeling for the princess returned in a
moment. The story was told to the
prince, to whom the duke very shortly
afterward intimated that he would like
to marry his daughter. And thus the
marriage came about.
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1896-05-29
DIGESTION IN SLEEP,
Old Tradition Exploded-Ol
Reason for Prevalent Insomnia.

Another Old Tradition ExplOded-One
Reason for Prevalent Insomnia.
The old tradition that to eat anything
just before going to bed was sure to pro-
duce indigestion and render sleep i'm
possible is now happily exploded. 1t is
not good, as a matter of fact, to go to bed
with the stomach so loaded that the un-
digested food will render one restless
but something of a light palatable ma
ture in the stomach is one of the best
aids to quietude and rest. The process
OF digestion goes on i'll sleep with as
much regularity as when one is taking
violent exercise to aid it, and so solnr-
thing in the stomach is Il very desira bile
condition for the nights rest. Some ply
sicians have declared, indeed, that a
good deal of the prevalent insomnia is
the result of an unconscious craving of
the stomach for food in persons who
have been unduly frightened by the
opinion that they must not eat before
going to bed, or who have, like many
nervous women, been keeping themselves
in {; state of semi-starvat1on.
for the night than to take bowl of hot
broth, like oatmeal cruel or clam soup.
1t is a positive aid to nervous people,
and induces peaceful SAUNDERS. This is
especially the case on cold winter nights,
when the stomach Graves warmth as
much as any other part of the body
Even a glass of hot milk is grateful to
the palate on such occasions, but light,
well-cooked Cruel is better, and in our
climate, during the cold months of win
ter. should be the retiring food Of every
woman who feels, as many do, the need
of food at night.-Canada Lancet
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1896-05-29
FROGS HER GAME.
A New Jersey Woman Shoots the Ba-
tr;lchianS for Revenue.

"A New Jersey Woman Shoots the Ba-
tr.chians for Revenue.
Miss Mona Selden of Friendship, n.
she bags is frogs For seven years she
has been supporting herself by her
unique athletic exercise. Now she is
one of the most prosperous citizens in
the little town, and she is reputed to
have bank account which, if it keeps
on growing, will eventually enable her
to give UP frog shooting.
Before she took to frog shooting Miss
Selden taught school in the country re-
gions for $40 a week. She did not par
ucularly enjoy teaching, for her pupils
We're frequently boys about twice as big
as herself, and they had that particular
form of humor which shows itself in be-
ing obstrepcrous. Moreover. $40 week
did not satisfy Miss Selden's ideas of
proper compensation. Consequently
when she found that frogs were Il costly
luxury she resolved to invest her savings
in Il frog farm. Friendship being rich
in boys and swamps Miss Sclden bought
about twenty acres of land. fenced it in.
and began to raise frogs for the New
York market, to the scornful delight of
her neighbours They thought she was
Il harmless and amusing lunatic when
they saw her practcing shooting frogs
But when they learned that she cleared
$500 the first season. those who came
to scott remained to initiate. and frog
shooting became Il popular occupation in
Friendship. The other shooters sell
their game to Miss Selden, who in turn
sells it to tho market
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1896-05-29
HINTS FOR THE HOUSEHOLD.

Ink may be taken out of paper in the
following way if the stain is not too Old:
Take teaspoonful of chlorinated LINE
and pour over it just enough water TO
cover it. Take a piece of old linen and
moisten it with this mixture. and do not
rub, but pat the stain. and it will slowly
disappear. If one application does HoI
remove the stain let the paper dry and
they apply again.
An excellent remedy for cough is
made by slicing two lemons thin and
adding to them 10 cents worth of whole
faxseed, 10 cents worth of licorice root,
one gill of water, and little sugar.
Boil until quite thick and strain.
If piece of camphor gum is placed III
the drawer where are kept dress waists
that are trimmed with steel it Will pre-
vent the steel from furnishing. -
Wormwooi boiled i'll vinegar and ap-
sprain or bruise is an invaluable remedy:
The affected member should afterwird
be rolled in fiahnels to retain the heat.
A small piece of candle may be made
to burn all night by putting finely pow
dered salt on it until it reaches the
black part Of the wick. A small even
light may he kept in this way.
1t is said that if parsley is eaten with
onions or salad containing onions the
odor of the onion will not affect the
breath. The sprigs Of sparsfey should
be eaten as you would celery.
To stain wood to look like ebony, take
solution of sulphat of iron and wash
the wood over twice. When the wood
becomes dry apply two or three coats
of strong decoction Of logwood. Wipe
the wood dry and polish with a flannel
wet in linseed oil.
To set the color and prevent delicate
colored cambrics and dimites from fad
ing when washed. dissolve cents worth
Of sugar Of lead in Il pail of cold water
and soak the garment in it two hours;
then rinse and wash.
Clover tea is excellent for purifying
the blood. clearing the complexion. and
removing pinfnlts Dried clover may
be used for the tea.
Do not wash oilcloths or linoleum in
hot soapsuds Wash them with tepid
| water and wipe with a cloth dampened
| in equal parts of cold milk and water.
Salt added to new milk will curdle it;
| therefore. in preparing porridge, custards
or gravi.'S, DO not add the salt until the
| last thing.
70 prevent Drulse from discoioring
| apply immediately hot water. or, if that
| is not at hand. lnuisten some dry starch
| with cold water and cover the bruised
| place.
In filling cracks in plaster mix plaster
| of paris with vinegar instead of water.
| 1t will be like Il mass Of putty. Push
| it into the cracks and smooth off with an
old case knife. The plaster will not
become hard for half an hour if mixed
| with vinegar. but if water is used it
will become hard Immediately. almost
| before you have time to use it.
To remove the finger marks from var
nished furniture rub them with cloth
dampened with sweet oil. TO remove
them from oiled furniture use kerosene
| oil.-\ew York Herald.
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1896-05-29
Twisted the Lions Tail.

Fred Schmidt is a German Shoemaker
in Chicago with intensely American
ideas. He went to the circus the other
day. When he visited the lions cage
he saw chance to rap old England very
hard. The king of beasts had hung his
tail out between the bars and it dangled
there: ~Schmidt's patriotism reached the
twisting point, and he followed the ex-
ample of Grover Cleveland, Dom Paul
Kruger and others. Grasping the tail
with both hands, the shoemaker gave it
mighty twist.
The lion was surprised. He leaped the
length of his cage, and, of course,
Schmidt released the tail. But the lion
was so badly ratified that he unwisely
turned around and let his appendage get
in reach of the twister again. Schmidt
gave it another wrench, and then came
trouble.
Policeman Stible was in the menagerie
and heard the commotion at the lions
cage. \ crowd had collected. and
Schmidt excited, was telling why he had
twisted the tail Of the British lion. He
argued that be had paid his money to sec
The show and could do as he pleased,
and it pleased him to be patriotic espc-
cially when the chance was so good. The
policeman, however, didn't see it that
way. He arrested the patriot, charged
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1896-05-29
Had His Morals.

A recent governor of Georgia was
known to be great church man and
sincerely and unalterably opposed to
gambling and drinking, relates the At
lanta Journal. These charges had been
preferred against an applicant for a
vacant judgeship.
a convivial friend of the candidate
came to Atlanta to see the governor in
behalf Of his friend. He was better
known for his good heart than for his
good Judgment. His Judgment and his
breath were both mellow when he went
to the governor.
'9ov, old boy he said, Charges
beer made Jim plays poker He plays
less pOkern any man in the. county.
Now, femme me tell you, old man, I've
poker player ever saw in m life, and
you can't get the fool over a 50 limit.
And as for whisky, Gov, lemme tell
you:about that. Known him all nv life,
and III take paralyzed oath never saw
him staged morn twelve times in NV
Gfe:: Old sport, you jess appoint Jim,
He's all right. He's got stuff, governor.
But he's the poorest poker player ever
-
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1896-05-29
STONE WALL BUILT BY INDIANS.
1t is 1870 Years Old and Proves of Use
tn,

1t is $50 Years Old and Proves of Use
to IL Surveyor.
BY the finding of Il stone wall, which
$50 years ago was erected by Indians
as Il dividing line to mark off property
purchased from them. Surveyor Lanter-
man of Belvidere, n. Y, saved consider
able time and trouble in running a
boundary line of 400 acres of land at
Green's pond, in Warren county. The
property was recently purchased by
party of New York capitalists, who in
tend to make Il summer resort out of it.
The land was originally owned by In
dams, and in 1717 the wealthy English
people in the neighborhood first bought
it from them. In the deed it was agreed
that the Indians should build the stone
wall as a dividing line. which they did.
The people who purchased the property
from the Indians held it until 1926, when
it was purchased by Gen. Green. and it
was named after him. 1t was held by
his descendants until 1850, when the
Anderson family bought the property.
and they have sold it to the New York
capitalists In making the survey Ian
terman could trace the wall. It was
as good as when built by the Indians
but was covered over with moss. He
WAS greatly benefited by finding the
wall. as, according to the deed, it formed
one of the boundary lines and allowed
him to compete the work in short time.
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1896-05-29
Some One Had Preceded Him.

Eleven years ago Patrick McKernan
of Lansing, Mich, then sheriff, got ac-
1uainted with jackson convict, serv-
ing life sentence for numbering the
cashier of bank, from which the con-
vict stole $4,000. some thirty years ago.
On his deathbed the convict confided to
McKernan that the money had been
placed in tin box in the south cellar of
the Franklin house in North Lansing.
For some reason McKernan did no ex-
cavating till two weeks ago, when he
and o. V. Fuller dug up space of
thirty feet square and four feet deep.
No box or money was found McKer-
nan still has faith in the convict's story,
hut thinks some one got ahead of him.
as the ground appeared to have been re-
Gently disturbed.
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1896-05-29
ROCK-RIBBED "GIB."
The Immense Importance of Gibraltar tc
England's Naval Supremacy.

The Immense Importance of Gibraltar to
England's Naval Supremacy.
Gibraltar (about 1000 miles from Eng
land) is of immense Importance as being
the great watch tower from which the
movements of warships can be observed
and telegraphed as they pass into and out
of the Mediterranean sea. Moreover,
situated as it is near the flank of our
trade routes both to the Cape and to the
West Indies and South America, it is
the point at which vessels would natu-
rally call for news, orders. coal and pro-
lection during the continuance of a war.
When you consider that in every second
of time twenty tons of shipping 80 out
or come into our home ports, and that,
as matter of fact, the stream is con-
tinuous and never ceases, and that the
value of the sea-borne trade of the Brit
lsh empire is calculated at f93O,OOO, 600,
of which about f25O.OOO.O0O neither
comes to nor goes from the United King
dom, it seems difficult to exaggerate the
value of the fortress of Gibraltar or to
realize the congestion of British shipping
which might seek it's protection in war
1t has at present no drydock. Its gar
rison consists of seven companies of ar
tillery, four companies of engineers and
three battalions of infantry 1t is the
meeting place of our channel and Med
iterranean squadrons. The roads do not
afford safe anchorage in all winds. and
an enemy could conceivably shell them
it he mounted heavy guns on Spanish
soil.---NatiOnal Review,
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1896-05-29
Monument TO Richard Proctor.

The Worlds Proctor Memorial asso-
citation has announced that it will erect
the largest observatory in the world OH
the summit Of Mount San Miguel, near
San Diego, CAL, as a memorial to the
celebrated astronomer and author, Rich
ard A.. Proctor. The association was
organized some years ago in California,
but it is proposed to make the observa--
tory of an international character, and
secure, if possible, the cooperation of the
leading governments of the world The
Intention is to equip the institution with
the largest telescopes ever constructed,
the first one to have lenses five times the
size of the Lick and four times that of
the Yerkes telescope; if it proves sue
cess, still more powerful instruments will
be constructed on the sectional-lens prin-
ciple invented by Astronomer Gathman
Of Chicago. Mount San Miguel COM
prises about $4,000 acres and has an ele-
walton of 5000 feet.
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1896-05-29
BLIND DURING THE DAY.
Little Girl Who Can Only Sec In til
nArk

Little Girl Who Can Only See in the
Dark.
Physicians are puzzled over the case Of
9-year-old Tillie Hardy, whose parents
live in Brooklyn. The child is suffering
from hemeralopia, or day blindness, but
there are many other things connected
with the case which are interesting the
doctors. Little Titles head is covered
with white hair. The eyes are of change
able c6lors. She has the figure, though
not the stature, of "A grown woman, and
her mental powers are remarkable. With
never days schooling, she can read
and write, and is bright accountant
and ready calculator. Among the neigh
bors little Tillie Hardy is known as an
albino. But Il physician who examined
the child said she was not of that class
of individuals. The parents of the child
were strong and robust. Her mother
died in August last.
\ test of her powers at night showed
that she can read in total darkness. a
newspaper was handed to her, and she
read from it, although no other person in
the room could see the print. Her father
and her aunt then requested the news
paper man to turn the gas on in full,
and hold objects up SO that the girls
sight might be tested in a light \ metal
badge was held three feet away, but the
girl declared that she could not see it.
Lowering the light, so the room was in
partial darkness, the piece of metal was
again held up. '"That is il watch" said
the girl.
The light was turned still lower and
the girl exclaimed, "Why no, it's piece
None of the others in the room could
see the piece of metal, but the girl de-
clarcd that she could see it plainly and
SD" even read the inscription ON it.
'Thc sunlight hurts my eyes awfully."
she said; when go out in the daytime
| have to hold my hand over my eyes"
Can you see all right in the day.
Ight?' she was asked.
III ! cover up my eyes with my
hands, she said, Il can see ii man or
what it is"
One of the doctors present said: 1T
would be useless to venture an opinion at
this time. but when a test has been made
OF the girls eyes, | am sd tsfed that the
result will be highly interesting to men
IN general, and to eye specialists in par
ticular: In the first place, the fact
that she is known to be suffering from
day blindness is in itself interesting, for
there are very few cases of this kind
that have been thoroughly investigated.
Hemeralopia, which is the medical term
for day blindness, is often incorrectly
termed nyctalopia. Sometimes it is a
symptom of diseases of the retina and of
the optic nerves. In some cases it is
found i'll certain congenial faults of the
eye. Among nocturnal animals, such as
owls and bats, it is the normal condition.
That it seems to be the normal condition
i'll this case makes it of unusual interest
to SCIENCE
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1896-05-29
HIS ANNUAL PRESENT.
A Paris Official Who Gets a Box
Candles Every Year,

"A Paris Ohlcial Who Gets Box of
Candles Every Year.
A Paris official receives an. annual
present of ten pounds of candles. The
man thus favored is the police commits
sary of the District of Germania TAuxer-
rois: hereceives his box of candles from
the chamber of notaries. The origin of
this observance dates long way back.
1t arose out of a dispute between the DO
lice commissary of the Chatelet and the
corporation of notaries. The duty of the
former was to hold lighted candle at
the door of the chamber as the legal gen
tlemen were entering it, and on one occa-
sion, the. commissary, with the spirit
which animates many men in office, com
planned that it was unfair for the ex-
pense of the candles to fall upon him,
contending that he ought rather to re-
ceiye an indemnity for his services.
He gained his point, and from that
time forward the commissary was given
300 pounds of wax candles annually. In
the course of time the 300 pounds of
wax candles gradually melted and dwin-
died. till in the present day the ancient
custom has come down to the gift of
q ten-pound box of composite Candles
Exchange