davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22
THE TOWNS OF CRETE.
Now Notable on Account of War
RumOrs.

Now Notable on Account of Wa
RumOrs.
A writer in the St. Petersburg We'd
omosti gives the following account of
the towns of Crete: Gambia, Retimo,
Canea, are of the Crete of the hundred
towns the only three cities existing,
and in using the word city every at
~tenuation must be understood. Gambia,
situated at the mouth of q. little river,
the Geofiro, was built in the ninth CEN
fury by the Saracens on the site of
Heraklion, n of the ports of Cnossus.
The distance between Cnossus and Can
dia is under an hours walking, and in
antiquity the two places were connect
cd by walls, which recalled those be-
tween Piraeus and Athens. In the time
of Venetian sovereignty Gambia en-
joyed great prosperity. To-day it's as
pect is essentially Turkish on account
Of its houses, it's mosques, it's minarets
and it's bazars, in which are exposed all
the products of the east. 1t is sur
rounded by a Fashioned wall, almost
triangular in shape. Within there is
another wall separating the old town
from the new, the latter being nearer
the river, The Notifications date from
the Venetians, but wal and earthquakes
have left little or nothing of the city's
ancient splendor. Tournefort has
called it only the carcass of a city. It's
chief monuments are the remains of
the church of st. Francis and the old
Latin cathedral to St. Titus. It's popu-
lation is between $4,000 and $4,000,
mostly Mussulmans. The port is pro-
tected by two moles, but the sand has
been allowed to silt up so much that
only very small vessels can enter. Its
chief trade is with Trieste, which takes
from it raisihs and oil in return for
soap. Canea next to Gambia,
with a population of 1900, equally di-
vided between Christians and Moham-
medans. Canea is the ancient Cydonia.
The modern town dates from 1882, and
is the principal port of the island, the
commercial capital, and the residence
of the foreign consuls. Not far from
Canea is the admirable anchorage Of
Suda bay. Retimo, the third town, is
SIS miles southwest of Gambia. Its popu-
lation is not far above 3,000."-N. Y.
Post EE
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22
FOLLOWED HER INSTRUCTIONS.
A Servants Obedience to Her Mas
ter's Orders Proves Embarrassing.

A Obedience to Her Mas
ter's Orders Proves Embarrassing.
Some people are so careful about in
structing their servants to beware CT
confidence men that they have trouble
getting into their own houses afterdark
when they have forgotten their keys.
One south side resident regrets that he
ever aroused the caution of the faithful
housemaid who runs things at his home.
He has often instructed her not to
give any coats or grips or other valu-
able things to the willy stranger who
comes around with a glib story about
Mr.. Smith sending him up from the
Office to get his overcoat. But one of
the chilly days last week he went forth
with a light o~vercoat on and stopped at
the corner barber shop. While waiting
his turn he decided the day was too
chilly for so light a coat and, giving
it to the colored porter, asked him to
run to the house and exchange it for his
ulster. The boy fastened away with
the coat and a few minutes later rang
the door bell of the residence.
"Mr. Smith is down to de bahbah
shop, ma'am, an he lows its too cold
fob dis coat, an he wants me to get his
heavy coat" he said to Hannah, the
housemaid, when she looked out sus-
piciously through a crack in the door
way. She regarded him silently a few
moments and recognized the garment
on his arm as chat of her employer.
"Give me that coat!" she demanded
suddenly, reaching for it. The boy
turned it over without a word. Closing
the door to the original crack she
shouted triunphantly:.
you'll get no coats here with your
confidence games, me bould bucko!"
And she slammed the door on the
porter. Five minutes later the SILVER
ing citizen, left thus with no overcoat,
hurried home with coat collar turned up
to his ears and climbed into his ulster.
But he had no instructions to give the
Observation-Disclosures Chronicle.
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22
SULTAN GOES At FULL SPEED.
Ministers Have to Run to Keep Up
with Him.

~
with Him.
Abdul Hamid leads a life of retire
ment, a political necessity which does
o Interfere with his amusements.
Once a week his visit to the mosque, a
laborious journey of some so yards,
provides the spectator with an admira-
BILE entertainment. The card of the
British embassy admits you to "A pa
vilion where, as the sultan's guest, you
are handsomely refreshed with tea, cof-
fee, sweets and cigarettes-the eternal
cigarettes, without which the whole MAJ
ehinery of Turkish administration
would cease to act. 1t Abdul Hamid
knew that a visitor had lacked a cigar
cite, I believe he would take to his bed
and refuse to exercise that subtle hu-
manity for which his regime is SO just
ly renowned.
Once upon a time the commander
of the faithful used to ride a white horse
to the mosque. That became too fa-
tiguing, and he took t. a carriage, which
was driven slowly back to the palace,
while the ministers walked on either
side. Sometimes, however, such is tho
impetuosity of the sultan's nature, he
drives himself back in a park phaeton
at so fiery a pace that the unfortunate
ministers have to run, clutching one
another by the coattails, for it is their
duty to reach the palace steps in time
to receive their gracious master when
he alights. Should they be too late
they would be, 1 presume, a very per-
emptory redistribution of salaries. So
the ministers have to engage in ath-
letic exercise quite unsuited to their
mode of life in order to preserve their
-hard-earned emoluments and perquis-
ites=English Magazine.
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22
TIE 8 OF GREECE.
Soul Stirring Memories OF the For.
mer

Soul Stirring Memories of IA FOre
mer Conguests.
With what burning words did Byron
OF the beginning Of this century call
upon Greece to cast OF the shackles
with which the Turk had bound her
and resume once more her rightful
place among the nations of the earth.
They were needed. With the soul-stir-
ring memories of Marathon and Their
uIopylae, of Salamis, Platea and Arbela
in mind, the Greeks commanded by
Marco Bozzaris and Lord Byron him
self, succeeded in Overwhelming the
Turks and achieving a h~ard-earned in
dependence.
1t is a well-defined axiom that in war
the morale engendered by the business
of the principle contended for frequent
ly utilities the preponderating forces of
an adversary. Nowhere is this more
evidentthan inthe history OF the Greeks
themselves. When in the fifth century,
d. c., the hordes of Darius and Xerxes
successfully burst upon southeastern
Europe it la not alone the existence
of Greece that was threatened, but the
whole progress of human civilization as
well. This truth is pertinently ex-
pressed by Sir Edward Greasy, who says
that had the battle of Marathon result
ed differently the Persian would be the
prevailing language of England to-day.
OF course, the Greeks could not foresee
the vast consequences which at that
time depended upon their heroism, but
they knew that they we're fighting for
their liberties, and that was enough.
At Marathon over 100000 Persians were
put to fight by 1000 At the
naval battle of Salamis the Greek feet,
although outnumbered seven to one,
achieved an overwhelming victory, and
at Thermopylae 300 Spartans and zoo
Thespians, under Leonidas, held the
pass for three days against the assaults
of 200, 900 Persians.
Napoleon, "the coarse~minded sa-
breur," as the perfidious Talleyrand
termed him, once remarked that God
was always on the side of the strongest
artillery, but he lived to realize his mis-.
take. Had any such doctrine as that
been universally believed the round.
heads of Cromwell, the minute men OF
Lexington and Concord, and the pa
triots of Maceo and Gomez would neve1
have been heard of, and this it is that
with her glorious past in mind, encour
ages Greece TO hope for victory in hel
strugglewith Turkey.-Syracuse Stand
ard.
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22
scHooL ANp cnuRcH

-
Herbert Spencer has declined the
offer of Cambridge university to mako
him a doctor of science, on the ground
that he has always refused to accept
such honors.
The Evangelist says it is q notable
fact that, with the accession Of DR.. Hail.
nearly all the chairs in Union seminary
are filed by men who have been trained
by DIR. Briggs, and that there are no
less than 81 of his former pupils now
occupying professors chairs in diaer
emit Institutions.
"A numberAof papers of interest TO
Methodists have been discovered in two
boxes at the Wesleyan conference Office
in London. Among them are "A letters
of John Wesley to his brother Charles,
and so by Selma. countess Of Hunting
ton, the founder Of the sect known as
the Countess of Huntington's Connec-
tion, written to Charles Wesley.
Bishop Grafton was on the streets
recently, and when asked what he
thought of the new cult of King Charles
l., which was begun in Philadelphia
the unwilling of a portrait oger one OF
the affairs of an Episcopal church-said
that it was "the worship of a king who
had his head chopped of by a NUM-
Der of very respectable persons who had
lost theirs!"
Cologne has been celebrating the
carnival by a historical and artistic pro-
cession around the cathedral, including
young women who represented St. Ur-
sula and her 1000 virgins, the town
tower, and the m~ercenaries employ ed by
the archbishops when they were secu-
lar princes. 1t is asserted that the
carnival has been held at Cologne since
Pre-Christian times and that it is the
direct representative of the Roman
Saturnalia.
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22
a TELLER.s
How He Caused n Shortage of Five
Hundred Dollars.

How He Caused n Shortage of Five
Hundred Dollars.
Beware of the man who processes
never to make mistakes. The caution is
general, but is particularly applicable
to banking men. A national bank ex-
aminer, who was conversing recently
with a reporter for the Dispatch, says
that as a rule errors are of daily oc-
currence in every large bank. Most of
them are at once corrected, of course,
but now and then a really serious error
seems for a time to be utterly inexpli-
cable. Upon this point the examiner
recalled an interesting case which hap
pened under his own eye.
"a curious error was discovered some
years ago in one of the banks of this
city, let us call it the Sixth national,
while under examination. Twas weigh
ing the gold in the vault with the teller,
and found a bag marked 5000, which
weighed about "a troy ounces less than
it should have done. l opened the bag
and counted $4,000 only.
A search was made, lasting far into
the night for the missing $500 dollars.
The ~teller's cash book showed 20
overs or shorts" of any large
amounts recently, and his character for
honesty and integrity was unquestion-
able. In my report to the comptroller
Ispoke of it as one of those errors which
will sometimes occur, but which for the
time being are inexplicable, and added
that as the teller was heavily bonded, no
loss could occur to the bank.
ST pass over the mental sufferings of
the teller, and of the officials also,
who feared there might be a thief in the
bank, but could not tell whom to sus-
pect.
1.-TWO or three weeks afterward l was
weighing the gold in another bank then
under examination-let us call it the
Seventh newfoundland found a bag
marked $4,000, which weighed $500.
The seal showed that it had Come
from the Sixth national and had
been received from the Seventh in pay
ment of clearing house exchanges. /
explained to the cashier the error dis
covered in the Sixth, and he promptly
sent for the teller and restored him his
money.
THE mistake had been made in the
simplest manner possible, as you may
suppose. The teller of the Sixth had
two open bags of gold on his counter;
one contained $1,000, as he knew, and.
the other $4,000. At the close of the
days business he put $500 into the
wrong bag, tied and sealed up both
without first weighing them, labeled
each $4,000, and put them in his safe.
1t is not necessary to say that no such
carelessness ON his part ever occurred
again."-Pittsburgh Dispatch.
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22
when Blind People See.

Blind peoples first experiences Of
sight are curious. An old man who was
born blind received his sight by the
removal of a cataract. When the band
was first removed the patient start
ed violently, and cried out as If with
fear, and for awhile was quite nervous
from the effects of the shock. For the
first time in his life he looked upon
the earth. The first thing he noticed
was a flock of spanrows. In relating his
experience he said that he thought they
were teacups, although a few moments
afterward he readily distinguished q
watch which was shown to him. It
is supposed that this recognition is
owing t the fact that he heard ticking.
The blaze from a lamp excited the most
lively surprise in his mind. He had
no idea what it was, and when it was
brought near, wanted to pick it up.-
Golden DAYS,
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22

Every man must patiently bide his
time. He must wait, not in ~listless
idleness, not in useless pastime, not in
%querulous detection, but in constant,
steady and cheerful endeavor, always
willing, fulfilling and accomplishing
bis task, that, when the occasion comes,
he may be equal to the occasion. The
chief secret of success is nothing more
than doing what you can do well, with
out a thought of fame. 1t is very in
discreet and troublesome ambition
which cares so much about fame, about
what the world says of us, to be always
looking in the face of others for approx
al, to be always anxious about the eff
feet of what we do or say, to be always
shouting to hear the echoes of our own
voices. Cherish patience Is your favor
lite virtue. Always keep it about you,
You will find use for it oftener than for
all the rest. Being patient is the hard
est work we have to do through life
Detroit Free Press,
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22
Practice WalIking.

An easy way to practice walking we'll.
is to start out right. just before you
leave the house walk up to the wall and
see that your toes, chest and nose touch
it at once; then in that attitude walk
away. Keep your head up and your
chest out and your shoulders and back
will take care of themselves. A SOUTH
err school-tcacher used to instruct her
girls to walk always as if trying tolook
over the top of IN imaginary carriage
just in front ofthem. 1t was good adj
vice, for it kept the head raised. Don't
think these things are of no value. They
add to your health and your attractive
ness, two things to which everybody
should pay heed.-St. Louis Republic.
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22
Frenh nnd SAID Wnter.

A striking illustration of the different
effect of fresh and salt water on the
hulls of ships was recently afforded
by the steamers which ply on Loeb Lon
mond when undergoing their annual
overhaul. The woodwork of the YES
sells, as usual, showed signs of active
deterioration, but so well does the fresh
water of the loch preserve both iron
hulls and boilers from corrosion and
pitting that the makers name uponthe
material of one of the vessels built 30
years ago was found intact and per-
fectly clean and sharp. The inside OF
the boilers was also found extremely
free from the deleterious coating of
any kind. The effect of the sea water
upon iron and steel is exactly the re-
verse of this, but the saline properties
of the ocean tend to improve woodwork.
Chicago Tribune,
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22
plFeERENcE IN MErHops.
The Way That Won and h Way
That Dtdn't.

The Way That Won nnd the Way
That Dtdn't
The young contractor had his choice
to secure the right of way for a railroad
in Texas or help construct a monstrous
iron bridge in Mexico. He chose the
former undertaking because it Kept him
in his own country. Successful negotia-
tors are born, and he is not n of them.
He lacks ad%aptability. In the wild and
woolly districts of the Lone Star state
he was like a cat in a strange garnet.
With the big ranch owners he would
have had no difficulty, for they appre-
riated the advantages of the proposed
road. But these cattle kings were in a
hopeless minority and were not in touch
with local public sentiment.
The grim old moonshiner was among
the first to call on the young pioneer.
81 don't keer to have no railroad run
MIN inter this deestrict," was his blunt
ultimatum. 81 kim in here an opened
up a still an 1 kin sell all tn stuff / kin
make. It sells fur a good price, an I'm
not goin' ter have any competition.
I'm %runnin' what yer might call q sins
g~le-handed monoperly."
"But your little one-horse business
can't stand in the way of a great rail
road enterprise"
Eyes, it kin, young teller. You can't
run no train through here so fast that /
can't pick the engineer off, an with him
closed out L reckon yer rollin' stock an
passengers wouldn't be much account.
I put a injunction on tn road an when
a man puts himself inter contemp' with
me he's huntin' trouble"
Then came trappers who didn't want
game ~interfered with, cattle thieves
who didn't want to be run down with
trains and telegraphs, and the keeper
of a little frontier tavern who fondled
two guns while arguing against a new
railroad.
Finally the novice received notice 10
leave and he wisely obeyed. Then a
smooth little Yankee went to the scene,
talked like a candidate, put money
wherever it would do the most good.
passed mountain dew around as if il
were water, and inside of three weeks
had every objector on his paid staff,
ready to shoot in defense of the railroad
project.-Detroit Free Press.
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22
Grent sun streamer.

During the eclipse of the sun last
summer, a party of Russian observers
in Finland succeeded in getting ten
photographs of the solar corona, which
have been combined in a picture recent
ly published in Nature. An enormous
ly long streamer Of lights extends
enthusiastically from the sun to a
length of more than 1000, 900 miles, or
about nine times the distance of the
moon from the earth!-Youth's Conn
panion.
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22
Rirreat Henthen TempIe.

The leargest heather temple in the
world is in Seringapatam, and it COM
prises a square, each side being one
mile in length, inside of which are six
other squares. The walls + twenty
five feet high and five feet thick, and
the hall where pilgrims congregate is
supported by 1000 pillars, each cut from
. single block of stone.-San Francisco
Chronicle.
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22
Her ExnInnntInn.

MI. Grayson-You say hat this Mrs.
Sappington is a bad woman, and yet
Tou invite her to your house. I'd like
&c know how you justify yourself?
Mrs. Graysop-Oh, bur society hasn't
bund her out.-CleveIand Leader.
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22
4 Hintoric Foreet.

When the duke of Monmouth was ex-
ecuted, in the reign of James H., for
treason, the duchess ordered every oak
in the park to be cut on the fateful
morning. The new growth, belonging
to Lord Ebury, is n of the finest for
ests in Britain.-San Francisco Chron-
lola
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22

1 had to repeat the
dost, took and got
married to another
man one day last
week. Old m a n
Lish Mulligan and
the Widder Barker
they brung on the
said weddin match.
Mind you now, it
don't make a blame
blessed bit of Diff
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22

The Customer-Confound you, you
have cut my cheek.
The Darber-By Jove, * I have. I
was wondering what had taken the
edge off my razor.-Tit-Bits.
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22
rhnnkn to the 0Ynter.

She-Oh, Jack, here's a pearl in thiA
oyster.
He (excitedly)-Ethel, may-may I
have it set in an engagement ring2-r
Pick-Me-Up.
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22

ference with me So far as l am
concerned old man Lish is plum welcome
to the wilder. and so far as everybody is
concerned the wilder is more than well
come to old man Lish so long as life
shall last. You must recollect I never
said that I had spit on the bait and set
my hook for the Wilder Barker. But
I lowed in truth and ~soberness that she
was the onlyest wilder woman in my
general acquaintance which 1 would
marry if I was necessary compelled to
go forth into this wide and wicked
world oncst more and tangle UP with
another bunch of ribbons and calico.
Cause why? From the simple fact
that her first husband-NewberryB Bark
er was his name-went off somewheres
out west two or three years ago and
about the next news we got from him
he had been hung by the neck till he
was dead for stealth horses. Conse-
quentially 1 don't reckon Misses Null
hgan, as she is now, will be forever and
%eternally throwing it up to old man
Lish about what a marvelsome great
and good man her other husband was.
In a general way the wilder was a right
tolerable good woman anyhow, and,
by gracious, she can't make no volup-
titus big brags about Newberry Barker.
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22

of to marry his third wife, I'M nat
nrally of course time was almighty
scarce and precious with him.
/ The weather was wet and rough, and
the road was most outlandish had. To
make it still worse for the old parson
and the major. the driver had patched
up a terrible sorry team ofhorses. They
didn't have IL speed to speak of, and
they wouldn't ppll a lick only when it
suited them. They would run away
goin down every hill, and then stall
aud stop goin up hill. The more the
driver ripped and snorted and slashed
the worse they got.
Way along late in the shank of the
evenin they run inbr a scandalous had
swamp. where the load was sloppy
and soft enough to bog a saddle blanket.
The wheels went down in the mud,
and the horses come to a dead stop,
The driver he whipped and he slashed,
but there they stuck and there they
stayed. In the main time Mai. Wash
he was thinkin ABOUT that big pile of
cotton, and half crazy to pitch in and
cuss out creation-which, of course,
he would ruther not do that right there
in the presence of the good old parson
whilst Parson Brittenham, he was
thinkin about the various and sundry
felonious good things he was missin,
aud confirm his remarks to Bible Ian
guage as best he could.
Finally at last about first dusk they
heard the steamboat whistle BLOWN
for the landfn, seven miles away, and
the stage coach stuck there in the mud
and water. Well, Mai. Wash he jest
simply couldn't hold in no longer. He
jumped up and down two or threC
times in the same place, got red in the
face, and said, with a loud and furiou:
voice:
Dam them horses!"
The old parson smiled the mos
broadcast and sympathetic smile, made
a low and heavy bow to Maj. Wash and
said:
THANK you, major-thank you, sir
The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-05-22
tories AND SKETCHES.
PAINT and Fresh from the Coun-
try Folks
&c OF Raeky creek Misses His
,Mainest Chnnoeo TO Marry
~Wtdder WOman"-Human PeO-
pie Everywhere.

fhe onlyestwidderwom whichIhave
Ter knew that 1 would marry if in case