The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1897-01-31

questions tina, are OF general interest. lts
msin object Is 20 supply ont-oi,,n e ~. :
OF personal Interest only Will not be an
swered. No business or personal address s', i
VIII be riven. All CORRESPONDENCE shouii
ilc addressed to The Letter Box, ca-e
Houston Post. owing to The large mum.
Der OF questions received answers can not
always be given promptly
Has the amount OF silver In the unitsa
WHY.
In our silver dollar the proportion o,
alloy was changed from one-,welr,h 10
ne-tenth during Jacksons adnr''sstraioti.
out the quantity OF pure silver--SlN
rrains---in our standard dollar has never
been changed II remains as nxed by the
FIRST coinage act OF the United States n
1852 Before tho United States established
a mint. Spanish silver dollars were legal
tender here ana were generally accepted
as the unit of value by the people. There
forc. In establishing our mint. the aim
was to make our unit Of exactly the same
value as the Spanish dollar. In order TO
carry out tins purpose. Alexander Hama-
| ton. then secretary of the treasury IN
| Preaden. Washington's cabinet. got about
a dozen OF tho most perfect specimens OF
tho Spanish dollar he could hni and
|
assayed. In this way he ascerta!ned that
tho Spanish dollar contained s'iA grains
of pure meal. and the coinage act of 1892
decrocd that the standard sgver dollar of
the United States should contain the same
quantity.
VIM you kindly tell me the origin Of
, ,ne name cocktail" as applied to VOL
known drink Topper.
The cocktail was the invention of Col.
onel Carter of Culpeper Courthouse. Va
Many years ago In that locality there was
a wayside inn named ''rhc Cock and Bot
tie, tho semblance of an Old English tav-
ern' and which bore upon It's swinging sign
IL cock and bottle, meaning thereby thl,
draft and bottled ale could be had within
tho cock" In old vernaculnr, meaning
the tap. He, therefore. who got the last
and mouldy portion OF the tap was said 20
have received the Cocktail" Upon ono
occasion, when Colonel Carter Was sub
tedted to the indignity OF having this mud
dy beverage put before him. he throw It
angrily upon the floor and exclaimed:
Hereafter l viii drink cocktails of my
own brewing" and. thon and there. in
ap!red evidently by the spirit OF Gany.
medc. he dashed together hitters sugar,
the oil OF lemon peel, and some old Holland
gin. ard thus and then and there was the
original cocktail concoctcd.
Is there sect known as the Shakers!
If SO. whore are they located and what
arc their characteristics
Subscriber.
Shakers Is tho name commonly applied
TO religious determination of which the
official utle Is The United Society of Be-
Nevers in Christ's Second Appearing"
The order was founded by Ann Lee, in
England. about 1862, They We're called
Shakers because. Hike the early Quakers,
they were siezed with violent trembling
and shalSlngs when unier the influence of
strong religious emotion. They preached
that the second coming OF Christ would lie
in the form of II woman. Ann and eight
OF her disciples emigratel to America and
lande! in New York on August !, l71i |
There are about twenty-five Shaker COM
munit.es In the United statos at this tmo.
They believe in the reality Of constant In
tercourse with tho word Of splnls, and
have socialist Villages in Connecticut.
Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts. New
York. New Hampshire ard ONO, every
thing being owned In common.
Who ,Gayo. Blaine the title OF the
"Plnmed knght?' Had the expression
P.O.K,
Colonel Ingersoll gave Mr.. Blaine this
title At the republican convention OF 1876
Colonel lngersoM made the speech placing
Mr.. Blaine I'm nomination, in the course
of which he said: Like an armed war
ror. Hike plumed knight. James c.
Blaine has marched down the halls OF the
American congress and threw his shining
lance fun and far against the brazon fore
head OF every defamcr OF this country and
mal!Erer of fs honor" The phrase was
not wholly original however. In the con-
vcntion OF 1850, John a. Andrews. In nomI-
mating Lincoln. said of Seward: I'm the
tr.ckcs' ard the hottest of every battle
there would be the white PLANE OF the gal
laat leader of New York" Botn of these
speakers had In mind, no doubt Macau-
laws Nnes;
Itess where YOU see my white plume
wave,
Cried Heary OF Navarro.
or what ruler was 1t said. HE gave
polish TO his people and was himself IL
savage" Kate O.
Nol,aire used those words IN referring
TO Peter the Great. who ruled Russia
forly-thrcc years. from Lose 10 l725. The
entire tribute was az follows: He gave
rofsh to Ms people and was himself
savage; he taught them the art of war
OF which Ito was himself ignorant: from
the sight of Il small boat on the river
Moskwa he created II powerful fleet; mado
himself an expert shipwrieht. sailor, pilot
and commanders he changed the manners
customs and mws OF the Russians. and
ives In their memory as the father OF his
country"
., understand that the CITY OF Mexico has
the higheit death p,te Of any town in tho
word. ~ per 1000. Az IL has a very high
attitude. how do you account for INA
great mortality? OK VS.
The city rs 700 feet above the sea leya,
1t Is true but its defective drainage coun.
terac's any advantage gained from its
hsh loeouon. The Mexican minister at
Washington explained IN a rccen. ar,lcI.
that when the water in Lake Taxcoto 81
hlsh 1t backs up Into the sewers until tho
soil undor the houses and in the Streets ia
saturated with sewage.
rave studied Pitman's Shorthand h,r
aih nor able to finish VI. ] have tho ua,ns
20 atcNh n shorthand school i,,, 49,.