davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-10-21

A Frenchman naturally thinks the
Partisan detectives the best English
men swear by tine shrewdness of Scot
land Yard men, and Americans, of
course, swear by the New York detect
ives. After three years residence in
China (says traveler). do not think
either of the three bodies is entitled to
the credit given it. The Chinese beat
them all
They are at one time the most expert
thieves and at another the most skilled
detectives in the world. A Chinaman
can steal your watch while you are look
ing at il, and he can catch the man who
stole it, if it happens to be some other
man than himself, when a French de-
tective could not.
have seen evidences of detective
ability among the Chinese which would
startle even Lecocq. 1t is impossible for
ali evildoer to long elude the Chinese
detectives. They scent "a crime and fol-
low it to the last before civilized detect
ives would know of it
The Chinese detective force is secret
body, and the best organized in the
world. They have AN eye upon every
man, woman and child, foreign or ma
tive, in China. and in addition watch
over each other.
Informers are encouraged, and col
fusion is impossible. The head of the
Chinese police is not known. but there
is one, and very active one too. l
have heard that the present head was
once an ambassador to European coun-
try, but really do not believe that any
one knows who he is. There are said To
be over 60, 600 men under him and his
assistants who control the various DIS
tricts. Pearson's Weekly.
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-10-21

The silicifed trees of the Flcriss2nt
basin are q marked curiosity of the
United States They are less known
than the "stone forest" of Arizona or
than the similar mausoleum of the Nel-
Iowstona region, but it is only because
they have not yet been brought 10 the
attention OF the tourist. The trees are
at the present time represented only by
their stumps. In wandering over the
green meadow the eye here and there
rests upon a seemingly bald spot.
Over it are scattered white and yellow
chips, and, for anything that the eye
can itself distinguish, these could easily
be the chips left in the path of work OF
a recently passing wOodsman. The de-
ception is absolute, and 1t belongs 10
the stump as well. The knots and gnarls
and annular rings are perfectly presery-
ed. The bark stands in prominent relief
both by ruggedness and color. and al
this not in wood, but in the monumental
substance Of stone. The precise manner
IN which the substitution Of silica for
wood was effected cannot now be learn
ed. but in a general way we know 1t to
have been brought about as the result
Of a slow iufiltration into the tree trunks
of heated waters containing silica in so
luton.
The remains are fairly numerous, but
what strikes one with special aStonish-
ment is the giant size which some o.
them attain. DiameteTs of six, seven
and eight feet are by no means unccm-
mon, and we measured three specimens
which spanned ten feet or more. II
most instances the stumps hardly ris1
above the surface. coming mp flush with
it; therefore without excavation il Is
impossible TO say at what height above
the roots the measurements were taken.
Popular Science Monthly.
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-10-21
New Plant. Are E,nonsiye,

Our beds and our. borders become
crowded, and vet we are always meet
ing with plants we should like TO pos
sess and might easily grow; while, as
if in despair of keeping pace with the
times, societies are formed which de-
vote themselves TO the cultivation of
some particular flower; firms associate
themselves primarily with ,oses, lilies,
chFysanthemums or orchi6s and are rec
ognized as authorities, and costly Illus
trated books make their appearance at
such frequent intervals that "a some di-
rections they bid fair TO develop into
libraries, with the varieties of ore fow-
ct as their subject No pains or ingenu-
ity or money is spared, and unique
specimens are searched for in the most
distant parts of the world. The outlay
in some cases is enormous.
Orchids being very special branch
of the gardeners art, il is well we
should refer TO the enormous sums that
are expended in forming a collection of
these fascinating flowers. Syndicates
are constituted for their importation
and number of skilled collectors. who
often carry their lives in their hands
are always at work in the East Indies
in Mexico, in the hot. steamy swamps
Of Brazil, in Madagascar, searching
for new specimens. Twenty thousand
pounds and more, il is said, may be
easily spent upon collection; 80 guin-
cas- have been paid for Cypripediun
stonei, 800 for Wanda Sunderland, 235
for Hrida laurencise, 220 for Cattle
va mendeli bluntii and the prices of
a large number Of others range from
100 TO 200 guineas a plant.
Review.
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-10-21
How to Sec the Wind.

Take a polished metal surface Of two
feet or more and with q straight edge.
a large handsaw will answer the pur-
pose. Take windy day on which to
make the experiment. paying no atten-
tion TO atmospheric conditions, for such
an experiment can be as successfully
made on a clear day as it can ON a
cloudy one, and the results will be
equally good in summer or winter. The
only thing you need to look cut for il
that you do not attempt to ''see the
wind" on a rainy or murky day, as con-
ditions are then very unfavCrablo
When everything is in readiness, hold
the metallic surface at right angles to
the direction of the wind-i. G., if the
wind is in the north. hold the metal
east and west, but instead Of holding it
vertical incline il about 42 degrees to
the horizon. When this has been done,
sight carefully along the edge of a
sharply defined object for some mo-
ments and you will see the wind pour
ing over in graceful curves almost like
water.-St. Louis Republic.
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-10-21
Wanted, a New Kind of Humor.st.

So far from its being possible TO in
ternationalize" humor. we may think
ourselves lCcky if we can manage tC
preserve even national type The
Dickensian humor, it would seem, is
off" the American droll, after q
vogue Of good many years is appar
entity ceasing to amuse; the inverted
aphoriSn" had but short popularity
and ultimately perished in calamitous
and indeed uEmentionable circum-
stances, ard nothing seems growing VI
30 take its place. The new generation
= 'kuocking 1T the door, rat tats with
qCifs portertous gravity. This K, nc
dOub:. an Improvement ON the Older
generations, who thought it first rate
strcke Of wit 10 wrench off the knocker,
bit their successors are surely carrying
a virtue 10 excess.
1t seems pity that they should be
unable 10 laugh, but the most respected
and intellectual" among them can
not. Itwas the way of certain frivolous
old fogies few years ago TO twit them
Giih their supposed taste for what was
then called the new huuor, but there
was really 10 foundation for the taunt
The new humor turned Out 10 be simply
the old buffoonery writ small, " and
whoever its patrons are or We're they
are not 10 be found among the thought
full young men who represent the gen
Grafton with its hand on the door
kECcker-Fcrtuightly Review
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-10-21
cHlyALRous CONDUCT.
The Cards Were Marked and Colonel Da
len Refused His Guests Money.

r,,a Cards Were Marked and Colonel Du-
len Refused His Guests Money.
81 once had a sample CT southern
chivalry," said Judge Wildly after he
had adjourned court and dropped into
the village tavern. THAT made deeper
impression on me than anything l ever
read about the subject. After / was ad-
mitted 10 the bar was pretty well run
down in health, for ] had gone faster
pace than is good for any young man.
There didn't appear TO be any ilnpera-
tive demand for my services IN the
ranks of the profession. and, as my folks
still had some money that they were
willing TO spend upon me. i decided ON
a southern trip.
81 did good deal OF wandering
through that delightful part of the conn
try and finally brought up in the north
ern part Of Texas. where the climate
Just suited me and many people II the
town had nothing odo bat ,nlov them
selves. The hunting was good. and there
were always a dozen young fellows
ready to join in the sport. The girls at
the female seminary were charming,
and the clandestine fiirtations | carried
OH will always be a pleasant memory.
"But | met my chivalrous friend III
Colonel Dulen. His manners and con-
yersation betokened good breeding, but
he was lover of horses, cards and high
living. One day he told me that there
was going to be "A stiff game of poker
and asked me if ! would like 10 see 1t.
Notwithstanding ii was Sunday, went
along. We walked TO the rear of the city
hall, where be quickly unlocked rear
door and stood ON the inside acting as
lookout until half a dozen young men
were admitted. Then he led the way TO
the council chamber, and there the game
was played.
"The colonel did not ask me TO take
hand, but some of the Others did, and
/ gratefully accepted. 1t did not require
long TO discover that it was the colonel's
day. In three hours he had all the
money, several Il o US and my gold
watch. Through it all he was suayity
itself and cool as a northwest wind. He
went with me to my room at the hotel,
locked the door, counted ont what he
had won from me and laid it. with my
watch, ON the table. / Indignantly de-
clined to be thus reimbursed, but he
coolly disposed Of the matter by saying:
'An the cahds weah mawked, suh, so
could have read them across the stree.
That gang has been robbin me, and
was gettin even, suh. You played squah
and had no show. See you in the
mawnin? "-Detroit Free Press.
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-10-21
FORGOT the Niolets.

Among the characteristics Of Walter
Savage Lander, the famous author,
We're his ah1entmindednes and his pas
sionate love for animals and the yege-
table world. On one occasion, having
suffered not long before from leaving
the key Of his portmanteau behind him,
he took special precautions before start
ing ON journey to see that his keys
were in his pocket When, however. he
produced them in triumph at his jour
ney's end, he found that he had left the
portmantesu behind. Lander. thoash
he often handled his fellow men some
what roughly, hated to see an old tree
felled and even shrank from plucking q
rose. One morning be collared his nan
cook and Arng him out of the window
Then, suddenly remembering on what
bed in the garden the man would fall,
the flower loving Lander exclaimed
Good heavens. l forgot the poor vio-
lets!''
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-10-21
A Modern sIndbad.

Some imaginative writer tells the
tale of a sailor who was shipwrecked
three times, was in four collisions and
two fires at sea. suffered from sun
stroke and yellow fever. lost finger or
two By frostbite, had one eye gouged
out in a fight at San Francisco, came
home. married shOpkeeping widow,
who henpecked him. got out Of his
course one foggy day and walked into
the river, where he was found next
morning still chewing his overnight
quid Of tobacco, but without his glass
eye. This is the novelist's type and is
perhaps somewhat highly colored. bet
it may be compared with some actual
types.
One of the men we have in mind fell
frcm the ;nain yard and broke his left
arm before he had been at sea month
ON his first voyage as an apprentice. On
the return voyage from San Francisco
he fell from the same yard and broke
one of his legs. The vessel was wrecked
in n gale of the southwest coast of Ire
land, and this unhappy youth, fato pro-
fugus, was sayed, with three Others, ont
OF crew or 26, only, however, to find
that his next ship, laden with coal, took
fire ON the other side of Cape Horn and
had to be abandoned by her crew, who
We're six days in their boats before a
hoIneward bound ship picked them up.
His third vessel ran ashore at the en-
trance TO Hongkong harbor III her hur-
~ 10 get inside before q Yankee with
whom she was in company. When our
friend found his fourth ship dismas,ed
in cyclone in the Indian ocean, he
came TO the conclusion that sea life,
which he had been quite prepared to
like, was too exciting for him and he
decided forthwith. provided be got safe
ly out of that scrape. to leave it to those
with better uck.-Macmillan' Maga-
vino
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-10-21
THB REASON WHY.
Every Why Has Wherefore and 'Tis
Well to look for it at Times.

In these days people want to know
Why's and wherefores.
The 18th century man is a natural
skaptie.
I he why and wherefore of such is plain,
lie reads statements of supposed facts,
lie Is told every aiiment can be cured.
lie t.7es some panucea.
result.
Such experiments make him look ask
ance at future claims.
Often the fault is his. but he don't
see why.
He may have a backache OF perhaps
lame or weak back.
He used plaster or liniments. they re-
heyed hlm for time, but failed to cure
the trouble.
This is his fault: the why is that he
did not know the wherefore of his aches.
Had he known that the kidneys were
the cause.
That baekaehe enerally means kidney
ache.
That the kidneys must filter the blood.
That failure to do 50 affects the back.
That backaclle is only the first step to-
ward many kidney Disorders.
Urinary troubles follow. Retention Of
urine. Excessive urine. Diabetes
Bricht's disease
Doan's Kidney Pills are positive spe-
ciiic for all kidney complaints.
The aching back has no greater enemy
than Deans Kidney Pills-not injurious
to the most delicate constitution. Don't
act ON the bowels. but direct on the kid
neys. For sale by all dealers. 80 cents
per box, or six boxes for $40. Mailed
on receipt of price by Foster Milburn Co.,
Rrffalo, y. Y, sole agents for the United
States
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-10-21
The Punishment of the Harno.

In former times the punishment Of
the bagno (bath), one of the most clev-
erly cruel infections ever devised by IN
official of the torture chamber, was adj
ministered in Italy, probably in Venice,
where the water of the lagoons played
so prominent a part in its penal system.
The punishment was as follows:
The prisoner was placed in vat the
sides of which were slightly in excess
of the average height of man. In order
to hold in check the rising tide Of a
supply of water which ran into the vat
IN a constant stream the criminal was
furnished with a scoop with which to
bale ont the water as fast IS it came in.
The respite from death by immersion
thus obtained was more or less pro-
longed, according TO the powers Of en-
duraEce possessed by the victim. But
imagine the moral torture, the exhaust
ing and even hideously grotesque efforts,
the incessant and pitiless toll by night
and day, TO stave off the dread moment,
fast app oaching, when, overcome hy
sleep and fatigue, he was unable &c
struggle any longer against his fate, =
AoBiteur du Puy.
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-10-21
Air Bubble Nests.

Paradise fishes come from Japan. and
their nests are very odd, indeed, fer
they are composed of air bubbles. Un-
like goldfish. they will breed and raise
their young in an aquarium or even a
glass globe, and, as they raise three or
four broods each year, the girl OF boy
who owns pair of the interesting pets
is almost sure to have large fish fam
lily in a few months.
Ordinarily the male paradise fish is
of dull silvery color. but when he goes
accounting be puts on brilliant coat.
striped with streaks of red, blue and
green. When the female fish is ready
to lay eggs, she builds her nest by swal-
lowing air and making bubbles. which
are held together by sticky secretion
that comes from her mouth.
The eggs rise in the water and find a
resting place among the air bubbles. TO
which they cling. The female fish tries
TO swallow the eggs, but her husband
drives her away and keeps guard unit!
the eggs are hatched. If the cir bubbles
burst, the male fish blows some more.
so that the nest is always floating on
the surface OF the water.
st the end Of five days the young are
hatched out. They cannot swim. but
cling like tadpoles TO the air bubbles
If one falls. the father fish catches it in
his mouth and blows it up among the
bubbles again. He does not leave Lis
little ones until they are able to swim,
and then they take care of themselves
The paradise fish grows to length
of three or four inches and thrives best
ON chopped up angleworms. If th,.
are kept from the cold, they increase
rapidly and make fine pets.-ChicaGH
Rfcnrd
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-10-21
ORIGINAL Definitions.

a teacher in the mountain field give:
IN a recent letter some of the answers
that came an from the pupils in then
examination papers. Some Of them art
amusing.
Climate is the combined space oi
heat ard moisture.
The solar system is situated in that
part Of the heavens called the milky
way"
The polar circle is parallel, running
slanting round the earth. I"
''It is the winds duty TO refresh anC
cherish the earth. :"
"A volcano is the safety valve CT al
earthquake. 50
Digestive organs are termed dice
tive organs, and the different races q
men were given as Indians, LeGrces,
whites and French. ''-American Mis-
sionarv
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-10-21

A good story is told OF Judge W. ID.
Greer, prominent lawyer OF Paducah.
Once during a visit to ST. Louis he had
a severe attack Of toothacbe. Ee sought
a densst's Office and was met by a
Young man who was scrupulously neat
and clean. The latter bowed suavely,
and the judge began:
II believe you profess to be able TO
extract teeth without pain.
'Yes. sir, was the reply, "and If
] don't do it I'll refund your money.
The Judge was seated in the operat-
ing chair. and the last thing he remem-
bers was the dentist inserting small
tube in his mouth. He got dose Of gas
and became unconscious When he came
to. the young man was under table,
his erSfwhile spotless shirt and collar
covered with blood and his clothes ton
almost beyond recognition. Hewas ces-
perate.y waving the jude OF, saying
all the while: Get ouftf here. Get
out of here.
He seemed very anxious 20 have The
iudge get out, but he couldn't Oe IN
duced to leave his retreat under the
table
"Why. young man, what's the mat
ter?'' asked the judge, who DIDN'T an
derstand the situation, in surprise II
I've done anything, I'm willing TO pay
for l..
The young man obtruded his head fol
a moment, glanced reproachfully about
at the demolished furniture and his OWL
sor1y plight, wavered for moment
and then exclaimed: PAY hell. You
get out of here"
1t seemed that the judge, under Tho
influence Of the gas, had cleaned out the
establishment, and the dentist didn'i
get the tooth either.-Paducah Stand
ard
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-10-21
CEimneys Are Pickle.

1.-The hardest problem the builder ha'
TO wrestle with, )" said a well known
member Of the profession, ''is the
chimney. What the heathen Chinee i:
TO the human race and the left handed
mule TO the animal kingdom the chin
ney is 10 the various appurtenances thai
go to make up a human habitation.
There is no safe rule for the construc
tion of chimneys. You can build chin
ney all right in theory, bnt when il
comes down to practice that is another
matter. Build two chimneys SIDE by
side in precisely the same manner En-
ploy the best skilled labor and construct
them exactly ON the same principle
One may draw all right and the otheI
one smoke like Chcctaw. Yes, sir,
the chimney is beyond all understand
ing, and any builder will tell you so. .
New Orleans Times-DemOcrat.
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-10-21
Wilt a German Wants.

Merchants in the foreign trade have
hard time. The following is an exact
copy of letter received i'll this city
rom Germany. If the writer had only
written IN German, the American firm
would have known what to DO. What
does this mean:
''It Is me still always not successful
10 received Grain Exporters Of New
York. Please work you once more for
me and seek you me TO procure u repre-
seltation CO a Exporters in Wheat in
New IoIk. Boston Bulletin.
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-10-21

a man was accused of having stolen
pair of-irousers. There We're several
witnesses, but the evidence was rather
meager, and SD the accused was acquit-
ted. He was told that he could go. but
he remained. His lawyer, to whose sue
cessful defense he mainly owed his lib
erty, hinted to him again that he was
free to depart, but still he staid.
There being no more cases TO be heard
the court was getting empty, when the
lawyer, growing impatient. asked. with
some asperity, why he didn't go. The
injured, innocent man whispered in his
ear: The fact is. sir, did not like to
move till the witnesses had left the
court.
tWhy so:''
Because, sir, / have got on the trous-
ers that s.ola London Tit-Bits.
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-10-21
That swell Count d,orsay.

Mrs. Newton Grassland, whom the
count once took into dinner. remarked
that his hands, Large, white and appa1-
emily soft, had not the physiognomy
which pIeases the critical observer and
student of hands, for they indicated
self indulgence. He struck her, more
over, as being ''mannish rather than
manly, and yet with touch of effem-
macy quite different from that woman
like tenderness which adds 10 the excel
lence Of man. Thackeray met the
splendid humbug in 1850 and describes
him as Giving IN a charming atelier.
which be has fitted up for himself with
arms and trophies, pictures and looking
glasses, the tomb Of Blessington, the
sword and star Of Napoleon, and a cru
cifx over his bed. And here he dwells, s"
writes the cynic, without any doubts
or remorscs, admiring himself in the
most horrible pictures which be has
painted, and statues which be gets done
for him. -
The count had received within ~
months Of his marriage a sum Of e20,-
600, while Lord BlesslngfGn arranged
that after his decease a similar sum
should be settled upon him for life. So
generous a dower-a genuine pretium
quell9. as it was-might have made
him kindly disposed toward his child
wife, who. three years after her mar
riage, when she had reached the age Of
10 grew to be a remarkably handsome
woman. Not for her was the brilliant
witt ard wonderful fascination"
which made D'OrSay the pet of society.
That was reserved for others.
Instead Of being the wife of her hus-
band and the mistress of her home, she
found herself q supernumerary in a cir
Gle with which she had no sympathy.
Disagreements followed, rebellion set
in, and in the autumn Of 1881 she and
Count d'Orsay separated by mutual
consent. Academy
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-10-21
Tscs Of wild Rice

Few know mere Of the reed of our
river mud flats than that il furnishes
tie food on which fattens for the cpl
cCre the reedbird of autumn dinner
fables. the bobclink of other seasons
I Gf as wild rice, Zizania aquatica of
fcl..-,S. II has played no mean part in
tire service of man Ii was the staple
iced Ct the Indians that formerly in
habi;ed northern Wisconsin and Min
nescta. where the plant abounds on tine
margin of lakes. Dr. Elliott Cone says
that it is still the chief recourse Of the
Objibway Indians on the reservations Of
Minnesota They not only gather it for
their own use, but for the purposes OF
srade. \ common name is Indian rice,
ard the lakes along which the plants
aboaDe are known as rice lakes. Whole
Indian villages Will be tenantless in au-
tumn, the inhabitants having gone
''ricing. as tine harvesting is termed.
The Indians push their canoes into
masses Of rice, bend the heads of rice
over a crctched stick and thrash the
grain into the bottom cf the boat.-In-
depeudent