davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1896-11-14
AN EVERYDAY WONDER.


I've lived in this here world of ours, now
sixty years and more,
And things don't seem to strike me Just as
they have heretofore;
I've been a-thinkin' hard about a lot cithings
Of late,
And folks once despised sort OF look upon
as great,
For instance, there is old De Gull, who's
OWN every one;
used to hold him up as an example for to
shun,
see the way he lives,
And think of all the parties and the charity
he gives!
Iwork for what have, and don't owe any
man dime,
While he rides round in carriages, and has
agorgeous time;
He goes in high society and lives most like
aking,
While folks don't think that amount to
scarcely anything.
Now, what l wanted to get at was something
like this here:
It takes genius to be a fraud, and yet up.
pear
As II he was the greatest man person ever
saw,
While people that he owes stands off and
gaze at him an awe,
-Cleveland (Ohio) Leader.
Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1896-11-14

like cloud, they we're SO thick.
what have we hereP' he thought |;
some dead animal, perhaps. and went
to see. Sunkin the mud where the river
washed over it at high tide, he found
barrel, from which proceeded very
nauseous smell. His curiosity was
aroused, 80 he put in his head. feeling
something hard, he drew it ont. 1t
was skull. the skull of man, and
projecting from the upper jaw was a
long tooth, like tusk. AHA! he
cried, Sleimsnl'
"He went and told the police, and
they came and took the cask, and the
murder was proved. because the
clothes and the tooth were those os
Sleiman. So Tong was hanged, and
his wife is in prison now in China Jail
in Singapore. She will never come
out till she dies.
"And 'Tijah is my wife, and l love
her and she loves me, and we are very
happy. She is gresteful to the
mosquito, which Taun denounces."
My pipe was finished, and l knocked
out the ashes.
"Thank you for your story, Mat.
which proves once more the old adage,
Murder will out feel special in.
terest in Kstijah since you have told
me her romantic history. And now
perhaps those blessed mosquitoes will
let me have some sleep. Anyhow I'll
try, and you had better do 80 too."
And as we turned in, Mat murmured
once more "Tuan. st. Paul's.
Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1896-11-14
Draft Monkey story.

Cne OF the drollest instances OF tie
power OF mimicry that we have met
with is the following. A retired al
mira ard his wife living at ChelteE-
ham had favorite monkey. One day
the lsdy, hearing strange noise IL
the dining.room, look ed in to see whaS
it was. The sight which met her eyes
was ludicrous one. Seated in the
arm chair. with the admiral's smoking.
cap on his head, and the admiral's
spectacles on his nose, was the mon
key; and in his hand was the open
newspaper, which he shook anil patted.
while he jabbered and gesticulated
with great emphasis at the cat which
lay blinking on the hearth-rug. 1t
was clever and carefully studied imi.
tation of the testy old admiral's tone
and manner when reading to his wife
some passage from the newspaper
which excited his wrath or indigna.
tion.
1t is strange that so little attempt is
made to utilize this strong initiative
faculty in monkeys. They might easily
be trained to perform as athletes and
acrobate. Some fifty years ago an
Italian count who had villa on the
shore of Lake Albano kept monkey
which he had taught both to. row and
sail small skiff. The monkey used to
navigate this tiny craft with great
skill; but, unfortunately, one day,
when climbing the mast, he capsized
the boat and was drowned. As Jockeys
moneys might surely be made useful.
and would fulfil every purpose for
which tho mannikins who ride on race
horses are artifcially stunted and
sweated. -Chamhers's journal.
Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1896-11-14
bowlder on which I stood shake and

bowlder on which I stood shake and
give sudden downward lurch. 1t
then dawred upon me that the bear
was undermining my stronghold, and
within few minutes it would topple
over and be delivered over to his
tender mercy. In this emergency I
bethought myself of bottle OF brandy
which carried in my pocket. Think
ing that by pouring its contents over
the ground the bear would desist from
his undermining operations, I emptied
half of it, but he seemed to be all the
more refreshed by the smell, and
worked away more vigorously than
ever.
"There was but half of the handy
left, and things were beginning to
look serious, when tried, as last
chance, the extreme remedy of empty
ing the remainder of the flask on to the
back of the bear and throwing q
lighted match tc the brandy. The
flames Immediately euveloped the ami
NAL, and, with shrieks and yeiis Of
pain, he skedaddled, to my great re-
lief.
"I was presently rejoined by my
companions, and with loaded gun we
followed up the bear, whom we soon
discovered licking his burnt sides, on
which very little fur remained. He
was so weak after his adventure at the
bowlder that We had no difficulty in
dispatching him."
Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1896-11-14
His Horse Saved His Life.

When Surgeon-Captain Grey was
riding alongside the wagon which
served for an ambulance in the retreat
from Hartley he was knocked off his
horse by bullet which wounded him
severely in the hip. He lay on his
lace IN the grass, the enemy keeping
up heavy fire all the time. When
the rear guard came along the doctors
horse went with them, but nftor going
about 300 yards he circled back to the
spot where the doctor was lying and
put his head down to see what the
trouble was. The doctor promptly
seized the reins, got on his back some
how and rejoined the column. There
is no doubt that, had it not been for
this extraordinary sagacious action on
the part of the horse, the doctor would
soon have bled to death; and he says
that if he can get permission he will
never part with the friend who did
him such excellent service in the time
of his worst need. -Rhodesian Times,
Salisbury, South Africa.
Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1896-11-14
Frozen Mutton.

The reason why Argentine mutton
generally is of inferior price to that Of
New Zealand has three.fold explana.
tion. In the first place, New Zealand
possesses to day mutton.producine
breed superior to that grown in the
Plate. In the second, the New Zea.
lander feeds his stock during the win
ter time with extra forage, while in
the Argentine the sheep are allowed to
Craze upon the same bare pa,npa dur.
ing tue dead season. The result of
this is that the New Zealander pro-
duces an even. well.grown carcass,
while there is sent home from the Plate
one upon which hasty covering Of
fat has been put during the spring
months OF the year. The differ
ence between the two carcasses
will readily be noted by anyone who
pays a visit to the cattle market.
Thirdly, the freezer in New Zealand
freezes the mutton on account of the
breeder; and in the Argentine the
freezer buys from the breeder. The
disa Vantage OF the latter system, so
long as the breeder has no knowledge
OF the requirements of the market, is
apparent The New Zealand breeder
selects his wether. with care, rejecting
any Which will give an inferior weight,
or which are insufficiently fattened for
the butcher. He RENTS them in small
droves to the freezing establishments,
and takes every care that they shall
arrive in perfect order. The Argen-
tine breeder, on the other hand, makes
q contract with the representative OF
the freezer to sell given number
aud the latter binds himself to remove
them within certain date. New York
Ledger.
Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1896-11-14
Belgian Blocks Peculiar.

The public works department of
New York City is importing Belgian
blocks for street paving. A consign-
ment of Is, 900 OF these blocks arrived
by an American line steamer few
days ago. and they are now piled up
on the wharf awaiting removal. These
blocks are marked each with q large
red NJ. Water Purveyor E. P. North
said: 'The blocks are of peculiar
stone found only in Belgium. The
stone has no grain such as our granite
has, and the blocks are more durable
than any we have here. The stone is
of queer formation, due, it is said.
to ancient volcanic disturbances. The
blocks, cut, come direct to us from
Belgium. They will be used in West
street, Broad way and Canal street,
where the eaviest trucking is."
Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1896-11-14
Why the Truck Horses Are so Big.

Nobility may die and the world may
expand, according to Nansen's idea of
things frigid; but one thing is sure
never to happen. Nobody has ever
seen a thin horse on brewers wagon.
The chances are that this sort of
equine will never come under the OBJ.
servation of man so long as brewers
horses are fed on brewers grain. Who
has not seen brewers horse and
wondered at its rotundityl Like the
stations OF q famous soap firm, the
horses of brewers cart are 80 round
ed out in strength and fine physique
that they remind one OF dozen old
time prizeAghters rolled into one.
Brewers grain is not salable. Sew
enty per cent. of it consists OF water,
and, for that reason alone, cannot be
utilized for transpor tation, at any
great distance, except at big expense
and sacrifice OF weight. Sweet milk
does not sour any quicker than brew
ers' grain. That fact is another draw.
back against its long transportation
by rail or otherwise. 1t is true that
farmers use it frequently to feed cattle
all through the winter in many cases,
but it. has always been question
whether it was advantageous to do 80.
The brewers themselves supply their
horses with the grain as soon after it
comes steaming from the brewery as
it is possible to do 40. In the vicinity
of the metropolis there are about 50OC
horses used in brewers work, supply.
ing beer to this city, Brooklyn and
close points in Jersey. Horses are as
necessary to the brewery business as
magni6er is to jeweler, The trucks
luey HAUL axe CumDCA CAsvuiO ..a 49,
cargo Is heavy load, too, which the
driver sometimes supplies; it is, there.
tore, necessary to have stout horses,
and there is nothing like the residue
OF the brewers process for making a
horse stout. The stuff is 100 per cent.
cheaper than oats or hay, yet the de.
sired effect is frequently entirely
different.-New York Mail and Ex
OreSa.
Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1896-11-14
A Daring (ioorkha.

An anecdote illustrative of the de.
voted gallantry of the native Indian
soldier has been told recently by an
English writer who was eye witness Of
the deed. In an expedition against a
troublesome tribe of native hill rob-
bers little party OF the guides, twen-
ty-tive in number, had seized stock
ade but the enemy were too strong in
force to render it wise to leave the shell
ter and make an attack. They would
have been shot down to man if they
had ventured on sortie. Then it was
that young Goorkha stepped forward
and. saluting the British officer, said
''Sir, we mustn't stop here all day. l
will jump on top OF the parapet and
the enemy will fire at me, and then
we shall be able to rush on them be.
fore they can reload"
So saying, he sprang upon the para
pet, waved his sword, and in loud
voice hurled every epithet of insult
and distain that his copious vocabulary
could supply upon the enemy. In an
instant bullets by the score were
whistling around him. but, strange to
say, he was not touched by one of
them; then, when every musket was
emptled, shouting, "Now, sir, come
on /" he leaped from the parapet, fol-
lowed by the British officer and his
comrades, and the enemy was driven
headlong.
Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1896-11-14
A Screw PrOiectilp.

The latest idea in projectiles is the
screw, and it is claimed it has both
greater accuracy of flight and pene-
trating power than NIL other sorts.
The entire body of the projectile is
formed OF two twisted threads or
blades; that is to say, its shape ia
similar to what would be obtained by
the twisting of riband Of metal upon
its own axis, thereby producing q
body without any cylindrical center,
and somewhat in the form of portion
of u twisted auger or twist drill. New
York journal.
Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1896-11-14
FOur.Legged POstman.

A farmer in the south OF England,
whose cottage is some distance from
any Of the neighboring villages, has
trained his dog (which, by the way, is
a spaniel) to trot to the Southwestern
Railway station, and there pick up
the London papers, which the guard
of the train throws to him. m.-Phils.
delphia Ledger,
Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1896-11-14
Pigeon Warriors,

A short time ago the Navy Depart
ment decided to train carrier pigeons
for use in case of war, and the Kittery
(Me.) naval station was selected for
the training of pigeons. A large dove
cote is now being erect I'd. aud large
coop OF the finest birds of the carrier
breed will be kept there, and navy
officer assigned to train them. twill
be the practice to ship pigeons several
hun dred miles away and let them re.
turn by wing to the coop at the yard.
Boston Journal,
Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1896-11-14
Wildcat and Scho oolnla'am.

As Miss Fielding, schoolmistress at
Pleasant Mount, Wayne County,
Penn, opened the woodshed door be-
fore opening school, few mornings
ago, she was startled to see good
sized wildcat spring from a woodpile
toward the door, which was shut.
Miss Fielding ran toward the door for
the purpose of letting the animal es.
cape, when the cat attacked her. Get
ting out into hallway, she succeeded
in grasping poker, and with q few
we'll directed blows she killed the
animal. which weighed forty pounds.
Miss Fielding was not injured.
Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1896-11-14
Beat on the Bear With Fire.

An English tourist, recently re.
turned from Nevada, tells how he mar.
rowly escaped from the clutches of a
bear. He had scrambled to the top Of
q large bowlder, and the bear,
wounded in one of its legs, began
scratching in the ground at the foot Of
the bowlder.
''Suddenly." he says, II felt the
Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1896-11-14

The Czarina OF Russia has 257 cos
tunes in her wardrobe.
Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1896-11-14
THAT BLESSED MOSQUITO,

)NFOUND tn o Sc
mosquitoes I" l ex-
claimed aloud in an
outburst of indig.
nation ; whereupon
my guide and SER
want, Mat, a CHEEKY
and intelligent Ma
lay, calculated a
confrmatory "Tu-
an" (which means
"Master, but is
freOuentlv naad as
Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1896-11-14
INDIAN ARROW.TlP POISON.
THE DEADLY VENOM USED BY
APACHES AND PIUTES.

Obtained From Rattlesnakes of the
Arizona Desert When Their Poi
sOnis Most tPOwerful-POisOn Tests
The morning times., 1896-11-15

to set the ball rolling toward the light silk
hat and away from the stiff funereal
tile. But he has few iniitators here.
Whitney likes the bell crown-the broad
brimmed bell-that can be Worn all winter
with an 0vercoat without looking small,
as those narrow bells are apt to look. He
wears the new frOck coat with silk facing,
and in trousers he likes the shepherd plaids
in tweed.
more extreme dresser Is the always
handsome Frederick Gebhard This gen
tleman wears a dress suit with velvet
collar and is extreme enough to allow
the collar to roll on many of his evening
suits -
Very elegant men have several dress
suits, or rather dress cUlts. They wear one
and then another. The skirts Of all are
lined with silk and the bright plaid
Innings are seen here and there. but the
plain white ribbed or the plain black are
the most popular.
THE TURN OF THE TOES.
Shoes will insist upon being pointed. The
newest points either turn right up at the
toe or right down. If up, they are called
the toothpicks: if down. the Piccadill V
points. They are immensely long, and
the wonder is that men can dance in them,
yet they do. The alternative is the squa re-
1oed buckled shoe, and that few men will
wear.
Neckties have gone so pcrsstently back
to the string, square ON the ends that
dealers have turned from mourning to
joy. They are making the best of such
a bad bargain as small string against
4 broad four-in-hand, and are catering to
The morning times., 1896-11-15

their string customers. Strings can he
purchased long enough for the bow knot
upon Grover Cleveland's front. or short
| enough for the little tie under the chin OF
7. C. Piitt. Yet one gentleman must W ear
an eighteen or twcnty-irch collar, and
the other not over a fourteen. The ends,
that were always either too long or too
short. have been remedied by different
| lengths.
There are two new kinds Of cuffs.
| They are the cuffs that link and the
cuffs that button. The latter are fast
ened with Il pearl button and buttonhole.
The button is ripped off when the cuffs
are laundered and carefully sew ed on again.
| The button is large, of fine pearl. and
| is to he used like any button The button
| hole is pressed over it after the cuff is
upon the hand This may be as easy as
| slipping the hand through prepared cuff.
| but it gives the wrist very neat ap-
pearance and makes the hand white and
| shapely.
| The other cuff button Is the new link
| The links dangle free like a lady's bangle
| chain The link-holes are very broad and
far back, and are intended for receiving
the chains. They are quite danffted In
| looks but no more so than the bow w-knots
| that threatened the wrist tofself-respecting
! men year ago.
The morning times., 1896-11-15
,aa the dog hastens back after the sur.

and the dog hastens back after the sur
geon.
4ne race of dogs employedis the st Ber-
nard in all cold and temperate latituies,
but in very hot zones the bloodhound can
do better work, though he IS less easily
taught and is less reliable He works
more rapidly and better, and were it IL IT
fol his brutal Instincts he could tHke the
place of his centler friend, the St Bernard
1t was questioned at first whether the
dogs would not work the same for friend
and foe alike. This has been their training
for ages. The Benedctinc monks taught
their dogs To rescue the perishing, no thought
OF religion or color, none of dirt or fine
linen, none Of age or sex. And it was
feared that these dogs, in their inbred hu.
manty, might not be able To discriminate
But this was found wholly erroneous.
Upon experiment with two army coats
a red and a blue, it was found that TIN.
dogs either did distinguish color or were
able to tell the coat from the scent Of the
cloth.
Two perfectly new army coats were lait
side by side and two intelligent st. Bernards
taught to bring the one and leave the other
Time and time again they responded per
fcctly to their orders to s'Seek!'
DOGS TELL COLOR.
Other coats We're then brought In and
mi xed toge ther. The dogs had been
taught to ''Seek'' the red coats and they
picked them out with wonderful rapdity
from the pole Of garments of both colors.
1t might have been the scent of the red
dye that guided them. Perhaps, they could
tell red by looking at it. Anyway, how
The morning times., 1896-11-15
QUEEN v1CToRIA,s RECORD.
Her Long Reign Smashes Regal Rec
Ords Right and Left.


Ords Right and Left.
Queen Victoria has outlived all the mem
bers of the privy council who were alive
in 1897; all the peers who held their uJies
in 1887, except two; all the members OF the
Commons who sat i'll the house ON her
accession except six.
During her time there have been eleven
lord chancellors, ten prime ministers,
six speakers OF the commons, at least three
bishops OF every see, and five or six ofmany
sees, five archbishops of Canterbury, and
six of York, and five commanders-in-chief.
She has seen seventeen Presidents OF the
United States, ten viceroyS OF Canada,
and fifteen viceroys OF India. During
her time France has been ruled by one
king, one emperor and six presidents.
FIve kings have occupied the throne of
Prussia during her reign, and three en-
perorS have ruled in Russia. The Kings Of
Prussia have enormously increased their
power by the unity 81 Germany. The in
81 significant Italian states have been CON
SolIdated under the House OF Savoy into
Il powerful empire. The Sultan OF Turkey
has lost the M iority of his possessions, and
new and prosperous states have arisen in
the Balkan. Navies have been built where
none were before, and, the position Of
Great Britain as Mistress of the Seas is
seriously disputed.
dustry and commerce have been developed
to such an extent that both sources of
wealth are no longer in the sole posses
sion of Great Britain. In territorial ex-
pansion the British Empire under Queen
Victoria almost kept pace with Russia and
the United States, but the only attempt
made to conquer a nation OF European
desc ent, the Beers, failed. Neither ill
science, nor in art, nor in engineering
has Great Britain fallen behind any of
the m ost civilized nations.
Queen Victoria's reign is singular for
its freedom from serious wars With the
exception of the Indian urutiny no struggle
occurred which could be said seriously 10
endanger the prosperity OF her empire. in
the Crmean War. where Great Britain
fought with France, Turkey and Savoy
against Russia, her troops We're not called
upon 10 play an important part. Her
battles in Asia and Africa against native
rulers luckily did not demand greater eX-
ertions than those made by France and
Russia, or by the United States in her
Indian wars. This freedom from the hor-
rors of war has had 4 very beneficial effect
upon the population of the British Isles,
and her majesty now rules n larger num-
ber of more Immediate subjects than are
contained in France. while the population
| OF The British empire is greater than that
of any other.
The morning times., 1896-11-15
Near the soIdier,s Monument.

He had just finished a mighty silver
Grafton, and gazing on his hearers. said;
rs there any man who would like To
ask any questions?'
II would" said a workingmcn.
Very Well. / defy the opposition Go
on"
How old are you?"
''Sixty-seven."
Worth any money!
I'm not worth a cent said the orator
Ever make a living?'
mot very often.''
Well said the workingman. moving
away, III you're sixtyseven years old,
and ha vent saved cent, and never could
make an honest living, you're not the kind
OF a fiuancier / want to see running the
finances Of this great United States OF
American
And the crowd laughed in enjoyment OF
the orators bumi miliation.-Detroit Free
Press.
The morning times., 1896-11-15
His Faulty pronunciation.

There is Il merc.,ant in town who has a
very funny way OF dividing his words
when he pronounces them, giving each
syllable as distinct a character as If it
were n separate word. Not long ago he
received communication which contained
business proposition that greatly dis
gusted him. He read it aloud to his part
ner and made several severe comments on
its contents.
by jove!'' he added, lit is pernicious!'
who is he?' quoth the partner
who is who?''
why the fellow W no signed the letter.
"I didn't mention any fellow. What do
you mean"
why, you looked at the signature and
ssid it was per Nishus. Who in thunder is
Nishus?''
And then the man who emphasizes his
syilables had to explain. but 1t took him
some time to do oit.-Clevelapd Plain Dealer.
The morning times., 1896-11-15
1t Would Look so.

''They have such queer notions in school
now. The children are not taught TO spell
at ALL"
''Gracious me! What lot of typewriters
there will be few years hence" Indian
apolis Journal.
The morning times., 1896-11-15

ever they did 1t, they made no mistake.
on battlefield the dogs would know
their own and would ''Seek!' them. Pos
sibly they might be taught afterwards to
get the wounded enemy. But neither dogs
nor arm WV ouldha To carry humanity
quite SO far.
The morning times., 1896-11-15
autunuaI Greetings.

Mason-fiow are things out your way?
Hi!son-Oh, some things are creeping up
slowly.
Maseu-well. what, for instance?
uuson-Weil, the bicycle skirt in a high
wind. for instance.-New York Evening
Iournal.