The San Francisco call., 1896-02-02

Spanish name for an herb that grows in Cali
fornia and was claimed by the old settlers
to have been cure for great many ills. The
definition is sa1nted herb.
BLAcKsNAKE-E. G. s., LiVermore, Alameda
County, Cal. Blacksnake, as applied to whip
made of plated rawhide with snapper at the
end, derives its name from It's close resem-
blance to the snake of that name.
r. s. v. P-Subscriper, San Jose, Cal. The
letters R. S. V. P. are French for responder sill
| vous plat, which translated means please
answer. The initials are usually placed at the
bottom of an invitation to social function.
MONKEY WRENcH-E. G. s., Livermore, Ala
media County, CAL Monkey wrench applied to
| a tool in common use is a corruption of Munka
| wrench. The tool was named after Munka, the
| inventor, and was in time corrupted into mon
Key wrench.
GOAT island. T. B., City. Goat Island, in
| the harbor of San Francisco, was formerly
| called Yerba Buena Island, because OF the
| herb yerba buena-good herb-which grew
| there, and which was used by the old Mex
/ leans and Spaniards for medicinal purposes.
Some time after the Americans took possession
of the State an enterprising Yankee started an
experimental goat colony on the island, and
| ever after that it was called Goat Island.
E1roUErrE-subscriber San Jose, Cal. There
is no rule of etiquette that says at which side
of lady gentleman should sit when at
lunch. The rule generally observed IS to take
seat where directed by the host unless the lady
happens to be hard of hearing of one ear and
requests her escort TO exchange place with her.
At formal dinner or supper at a ball the
cort takes the lady on his right arm and leads
her to the dinner or supper table ana shows
her to the seat on his right.
HoBo-E. G. S., Livermore, Alameda County,
CAL There is no certainty about the origin Of
the word hobo, but it is traced to the Western
States, where the people applied it to class OF
men who wander from place TO place under
pretext of looking for work and hoping that
they may not secure any. 1t is believed to be
q corruption OF ho-go, which is an old English
term used 10 designate loud-smelling fish, and
which is itself a corruption OF the French
words haut goux, strong taste or strong smell.
ANGEL ISLAND. T. B., City. Angel Island,
in San Francisco Bay, was named by Juan de
AyaIa, who commanded the San Carlos, the
first vessel that ever passed through the
Golden Gate That was on the 9th Of August
1775. A few days before that he passed through
the straits in a boat hewn out OF tree and
landed on the island, which he named "La Isla
leans curtailed the name TO Angel Island, by
which il has since been known.
HELEN HUNT JAcKsoN-M. E. L.. Vallejo, Cal.
In June. 1884, Helen Hunt Jackson, the'writer
and novelist. was injured by a fall IN her Colo
RADIO home. She was taken to Los Angeles in
this State. and was subsequently removed TO
San Francisco. where she died August IL, 1880.
Her body was taken to Colorado and buried
near the summit of the Cheyenne Mountain,
four miles from Colorado Springs, place OF
her own choosing, but the reckless vandalism
OF tourists were such that the remains were re-
moved TO Evergreen Cemetery, Colorado, where
tleV