The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1897-09-16
In Anecdotal Strain.

llonaire went over the telegram carefully
a second time, condensing it SO as to save
a franc.
relic just acquired by the Paris Mil
itary Museum is the wood and iron log of
General Daumesnil, who lost one of his
own legs at Wagram and replaced 1t with
a continuance of timber and iron springs
When the general ON later. day was
summoned to surrender fort near Paris
his reply was, 'Give me back my leg and
you can have Vincennes The veteran
survived until 1882.
The wife of the late Prof. Aga SSH was
one morning putting on her stockings
and boots A little scream attracted the
professor attention. Not having risen,
he leaned forward anxiously on his elbow
and inquired what was the matter.
why, little snake has just crawled
out of my bootP' cried she. "Only one,
my dear?" Intercepted the professor,
leaping out of bed; there should have
been three" He had put them there to
keep them warm.
The German traveller. Otto Ehlers, tells
about singular Chinese potentate whom
he visited in the Latos States, while on
his way from Siam to Tonquin. The
prince leaves the care of affairs chiefly to
his wife. He has had his throne placed
in the palace kitchen, SO that he can re-
ceive visitors and watch the preparation
of his meals at the same time. His sub
jects seem to be content with his manner
of administration, and admire the dem
~ 80 A., l. ,l1 80
a thrOneroom.
An amusing story is told of the late
Miss Jean Ingelow. "Once," SO Lon
don newspaper says, "when she was stay
ing with some friends in the country, it
appeared that she had never heard the
nightingale sing. So one night the whole
household went out in the moonlight es-
pecially to hear them. After remaining
silent for five minutes, while the night
by Miss Ingelow asking: Are they sing.
ing? I don't hear anythingP' With a
Londoner's dread of draughts, the poet
ess, before going OUT in the night air,
had filed her ears with cotton wool. -
N. P. Willis was usually the life of
the company he happened to be in. His
repartee at Mrs. Gales's dinner in Wash
a card to her niece, at the other end of
the table: 'Don't fiirt SO with Nat Will
lis" She was herself talking vivacious-
ly to a Mr.. Campbell. Willis wrote the
niece's reply:
"Dear aunt, don't attempt my young
feelings to trammel,
Nor strain at Nat while you swallow
a Campbell
late General Benjamin f. Butler, which
is new to me, and as the old hero him
self told it to General Robertson it may
be new to you as we'll. 1t happened one
time when General Butler was in Port
land A great reception had been ar
ranged in his honor, and the largest hall
in town was engaged to hold it i'll. The
place was lavishly decorated, and one
white muslin banner especially attracted
ed in large black letters: General Benja-
min F. Butler, the hero of Five Forks. :"
And beneath the big letters somebody had
written, "And goodness only knows how
many spoons. Washington Post.
Though learned lawyer, the late Sem
ator George knew little of the ordinary
things of life. He did not mix in society
and held it rather in contempt. An
apocryphal story is told of him: He
dined at swell restaurant in Washing
ton with a. party of Mississippians. One
saw the word Menu" "What kind of
a dish is menoo?' he asked. The Sena-
tor laughed heartily. $50 back to Yazoo
delta. Bob," he said, land stay there.
Eat craoklin bread and drink buttermilk.
It's all you're fitted for" After the
repast he called one of his companions
aside. "Say," he whispered, anxiously,
what kind of truck is that menoo, any
howr'
The Paris Figaro is authority for an
anecdote of Nj. Lagarde's trip to Abys-
sinia. The French Plenipotentiary,
knowing that the Empress Of Ethiopia
was most anxious to have sewing ma
chine included one in his baggage. But
when he arrived at Addis-Ababa, and
the case was opened, he found to his dis
may, that owing to the roughness of the
journey the machine was in bad condi-
ton, and could not be made to work.
AS he was examining the machine, Meme
lik approached, and, after looking the
apparatus over, pointed out a screw
which was bent, with the remark
"Straighten that and it will work all
right. Then with his own hands the
Negus took little hammer, and succeed
ed SO we'll in setting things to rights that
the machine worked perfectly, much to
the delight of the queen and the astonish-