Omaha daily bee., 1896-03-01
ZONE ONCE IN FOUR YEARS
Birthdays for People Who Were Born on
February 80.
PECULIAR CONDITIONS HAVE EXISTED
In Some Instances They Have Caused
Annoyance, While in Others They
Have been blessings In
Disguise.

Of the residents OF this city and with the
residents OF other cities, so far as that goes,
TO celebrate their annual birthdays even II
they have TO do so in the most informal
way. There are certain individuals, however,
who, when these festivities are going on,
simply stand around and bemoan the fate
which follows them through life. These peo-
pie are those who happen to have been born
on February 90 day which rolls around
only once in four years Time, OF course,
moves along with these people just the same
as II does with the majority OF mortals but
the fact remains that their birthdays are
not so frequent and as a natural result they
are deprived OF the annual pleasures which
so many enjoy.
Joel +. Peterson resides at 4244 Larimore
street, and around him he has gathered
family that consists OF a wife and four chill
dren, yet he figures 1t out that he is but
10 years of age, declaring that while he was
born in 1856 he has celebrated but ten birth
days.
BEATEN BY THE RECORD.
Mr.. Peterson is one Of those individuals
who happened to be born February 20,
and as a result, while other people are CIV
ing birthday parties, he sits around and kicks
at his luck
ut is this way" said Mr. Peterson the
other day, as he was pouring a tale Of woe
born down among the green hills Of Yer
mont, where my parents resided until l was
quite chunk of a lad. I went to school
summers and slid down the sides of the
mountains each winter after got into pants.
The boys and girls had their birthday par
ties but never had mine. After | got to
be about as large as good-sized S-year-old
boy l asked mother why she did not get up
a party for me. She laughed and answered:
Joe, you are only years old, and you are
too young to think OF such things or course
l could not understand the situation but
a few years later mother told me of the un
fortunate condition OF affairs that existed.
1t nearly broke my heart but | declared
that / would live down the disgrace. Mat
ters kept going from bad to worse, and in
1872 I entered the High school, There /
got along pretty we'll until the boys found
cyt about that birthday, after which they
made life a dreary waste by pokng fun at
me and insisting that ought to be in dresses,
as was but years of age. tried to argue
the point, but they sprung the record, and
there it. was in black and white. the figures
showing that had had but four birthdays.
managed, however, to get through school.
and came west, settling in Iowa, where
soon fell head over heels in love with
young woman. Everything went along in
ship shape fashion until the object of my
alteration discovered that / was one of those
leap year freaks.
= ON ACCOUNT OF HIS AGE.
the young woman whom | will desig
nate as Miss Blank accepted and the
wedding day was set. About that time one
of those boys whom had known years be-
fore dropped into the town, and few days
later started the report that I was mas
querading under false colors He insisted
that while l was passing myself off as
young man Of "a years, as matter Of fact
] was baby and could count but six birth
days. The young woman heard OF this and
asked me about It, / told her that was un
fortunate; that while l was "a years of age,
Il was fact that had never been called
upon to witness but six birthdays Soon
after this coldness grew up between us
and the upshot Of the whole matter was that
Miss Blank politely Informed me that she
was not prepared to take a child to raise.
The next day turned my back upon Miss
Blank and Iowa, coming to this state Upon
arriving here Just showed that birthday
one day ahead, destroyed the family bible
that / had brought along, and commenced
to live a new life. In due course OF time
married and here are the results
AS Mr. Peterson made the last remark, he
clasped his four bright boys in his arms and
declared that he had been amply repaid for
all of the trouble that the hoodoo birthday
had caused him during his early youth.
Asked II he ever took any account of leap
year birthdays, Mr.. Peterson said: II do
not go about the streets telling people how
old am but upon each of those February
birthdays I have joyful time. invite in
my neighbors, and during the evening we
make merry OF course, know that am
not boy. for feel the creeping OF the years,
even If the anniversary of my birthday has
been celebrated but ten times"
1T WAS A HOODOO FOR SAM.
or all the individuals who ever labored
under the handicap of birthday which only
called around once in four years, Sam Gra-
ham was perhaps the most remarkable ex-
Il, for IIttnh 1prra Inv
several years ago, and his story Is voucheh
for by Bob Johnson, whose veracity Is I'M
questioned outside of the city council cham
ber. Sans was case in which the
Gregarian calendar was hoodoo, with no ex-
tenuating circumstances. He was born in
Vermont on the last day Of February, 1864,
and even at that early date in his career
his evil genius was manifest. On the very
day on which his eyes first opened on earthly
surroundings his father was killed by
premature blast at the marble quarries where
he was employed. From that day to this
every recurrence Of his quadrennial birthday
has been marked by some serious misfortune.
Just before he was years old his mother
died leaving him without relative to care
for him, He was sent to an orphan asylum,
where he celebrated his second blrthday
by falling from window and breaking his
leg. Four years later he was taken with
black diphfheria and only pulled through |
by a scratch. When his next birthday came |
II found him In the quarries learning the |
stone cutters trade. 1t served him better |
than II had his father, for when the smoke |
of the explosion had cleared away he only |
missed a couple OF fingers and a liberal por-
tion Of his skin and hair. Four years later |
found him on freight train, beating his |
way west. He was locked in a car and
Travelled from Albany Ito Detroit before he
was released. He was so nearly starved
that he has been eating ever since to make
up for lost time. He finally worked into
good position in Illinoik, and was getting
along noblyswhen another birthday hove in
sight and shattered his hopes. This time
he improved the occasion and got married.
He said he. Thought it might break the COM
biuat.Hn, but afterward he alluded to 1t as
the greatest misfortune of his life. HIS
wife lived with him a year and then ran
away with a grocery clerk. After that he
gave up hope. He came to Omaha, where
be worked for nearly year, and then went
TO Denver, where he resided at last ac-
counts. Now that the fated occasion has
arrived for the seventh time, his friends
aro wondering whether he has fallen of the
city hall or married grass widow.
1T HITS A PREACHER, TOO.
Rev. Frank Foster is one of Omaha's res
dents who first saw the light OF this world
IN February 20, He celebrates only when
20 comes around, and consequently
lis birthday obserrances are four years
part He was just IL years old yesterday.