davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The herald., 1898-02-13

Mars? Would they not guess what we
We're about, and redouble their prepa-
rations to finish us"
Upon the suggestion of the President
of the United States, an executive COM
mittee, representing all the principal
nations, was appointed, and without de-
lay a meeting of this committee was
assembled at the White House. Mr.
Edison was summoned before it, and
was asked to sketch briefly plan upon
which he proposed to work.
l need not enter into the details of
what was done at this meeting. Let it
suffice to say that when it broke up in
the small hours of the morning, it had
been unanimously resolved that as
many thousands of men as Mr.. Edison
might require should be Immediately
placed at his disposal: that as far as
possible all the great manufacturing
establishments of the country should be
instantly transformed into factories
where electrical ships and diSintegra-
tors could be built, and upon the sug-
gestion Of Professor Sylvanus P
Thompson, the celebrated English elec-
trical expert, seconded by Lord Kelvin
it was resolved that all the leading
men of science in the world should
place their services at the disposal OF
Mr. Edison in any capacity in which
in his Judgment, they might be useful
to him.
The members of this committee were
disposed to congratulate one another
on the good work which they had 81
promptly accomplished, when at the
moment of their adjournment a tele-
graphic dispatch was handed to the
President from Professor George f
Hale, the director of the great Yerkes
Observatory, in Wisconsin. The tele-
gram read:
professor Barnard, watching Mars
tonight with the forty-inch telescope
saw a sudden outburst of reddish light
which we think indicates that some
thing has been shot from the planet
Spectroscopic observations of this NOV.
ing light indicated that it was coming
earthward, while visible, at the rate OF
not less than one hundred miles a sec
ond"
Hardly had the excitement caused by
the reading of this dispatch subsided
when others of a similar import came
from the Lick Observatory in Califor-
MIA: from the branch of the Harvard
Observa tory, at Arequipa in Peru, an6
from the Royal Observatory at Pots
dam.
When the telegram from this last.
named place was read, the Emperor
William turned to his Chancellor and
said:
II want to go home. If am to die
The herald., 1898-02-13

The scene from the outside was even
more imposing than that which greeted
the eye within the brilliantly lighted
enclosure. Far away in the night, ris-
Ing high among the stars, the vast
dome of illuminated balloons seemed
nke some supernatural creation, too
grand and glorious to have been con-
structed by the inhabitants of the
earth.
All around it, and from some of the
balloons themselves. rose jets and
/ fountains of fire. ceaselessly playing,
and blotting out the consultations of
the heavens by their splendor.
The dance was followed by a grand
: banquet. at which the Prince of Wales
proposed toast to Mr.. Edison.
'It gives me much pleasure" he said,
''to offer, in the name of the nations of
the Old World this tribute of our ad-
miration for and our confidence in. the
genius of the New World. Perhaps on
such an occasion as this, where all
racial differences and prejudices ought
to be, and are, buried and forgotten, l
should not recall anything that might
revive them: yet I cannot refrain from
expressing my happiness in knowing
that the champion who is to achieve
the salvation sof the earth has come
forth from the bosom of the Anglo
Saxon race"
Several of the great potentates looked
grave upon hearing the Prince OF
Wales's words, and the Gar and the
Kaiser exchanged chances; but there
was no interruption to the cheers that
followed. Mr.. Edison. whose modesty
and dislike to display and to speech
making We're well-known, simply said:
Il think we have got the machine
that can whip them. But we ought not
to be wasting any time. Probably they
are not dancing on Mars, but are get
ting ready to make us dance"
These words instantly turned the cur
rent of feeling in the vast assembly.
There was no longer any disposition to
eXpend time in vain boastings and re-
joicings. Everywhere the cry now be-
came: Let us make haste! Let us get
ready at once! Who knows but the
Martians have already embarked, and
are now on their way to destroy u.s."
Under the impulse of this new feeling,
which. it must be admitted, was very
largely inspired by terror. the vast
ballroom was quickly deserted. The
lights were suddenly put out in the
great dome of balloons, for some one
had whispered:
Suppose they should see that from
The herald., 1898-02-13

Potomac; a space of ten acres was
carefully leveled and covered with
polished floor, rows of columns one
hundred feet apart We're run across it
in every direction, and these We're dec
GRATED with electric lights, displaying
every color of the spectrum.
Above this immense space. rising in
the centre to a height of more than a
thousand feet, was anchored a vast
number of balloons, all aglow with
lights, and forming a tremendous
dome, in which brilliant lamps were
arranged in such a manner as to eX-
hibit, in an endless succession Of COM
bnations, all the national colors, en-
signs and insignia of the various coun-
tries represented at the congress. Blaz-
ing eagles, lions, uncorns, dragons and
other imaginary creatures that the
different nations had chosen for their
symbols appeared to hover high above
the dancers, shedding a brilliant light
upon the scene.
Circles of magnificent thrones were
placed upon the floor in convenient To-
cations for seeing. A thousand bands
of music played, and tens of thousands
of couples, gayly dressed and flashing
with gems, whirled together upon the
polished floor.
The Queen of England led the dance
on the arm of the President of the
United States.
The Prince of Wales led forth the
fair daughter of the President univer-
sally admired as the most beautiful
woman upon the great ball room floor
The Emperor William, in his military
dress, danced with the beauteous Prn-
cess Masaco, the daughter of the
Mikado, who wore for the occasion the
ancient costume of the women of her
country, sparkling with jewels, and
glowing with quaint combinations OF
color like gorgeous butterfly.
The Chinese Emperor, with his pig
tail flying high as he spun, danced With
the Empress of Russia.
The King of Siam essayed a waltz
with Queen Ranavalona of NADIA gas
car, while the Sultan of Turkey basked
in the smiles of a Chicago heiress to a
hundred millions.
The Car chose for his partner a
dark-eyed beauty from Peru, but King
Malietoa of Samoa was suspicious of
civilized charmers, and avoiding all
their allurements. expressed his joy
and gave vent to his enthusiasm in a
pas seul. In this he was quickly joined
by a band of Sioux Indian chiefs, whose
whoops and yells so startled the leader
of a German band on their part of the
floor that he dropped his baton and,
followed by the musicians, took to his
heels.
The herald., 1898-02-13
Breaking Monte Carlo.

Interesting accounts are published in
London of immense winnings at Monte
Carlo in the last fortnight by an Amer
ican gentleman whose name has not been
ascertained. He played without sys-
tenn, going from one table to another,
stalking at haphazard large sums and in
varlably winning. His movements around
croupiers, for many other players fol-
lowed his luck. and the tables lost heav-
lily.
He has not been seen at the tables in
the last four days, so 1t is presumed that
he has left with winnings estimated al
between s150,Ooo and s250.00o us g,
The herald., 1898-02-13
@xM(,a.@Q) ~ ar :. + eF HSerWSS
,yright, 1898, by Garrett P. Serviss.
SYNOPSIS.

iCopyr1ght, 1873, by Garrett +. SerVlSS. ]
SYNOPSIS.
After an invasion of the earth by the
Martians, in which their march of de-
struction is stopped not by human effort,
but by the breaking out of pestilences
among them, the few survivors return to
Mars in one of their travelling cars.
Despair falls upon the world again when
astronomers announce that there are in
dicaNons on Mars of preparations for a
new attack. This despair is short lived
however, for it soon becomes known that
Thomas A. Edison has invented prac--
tical air ship propelled by electricity, and
a wonderful engine of destruction which
he calls the "Disntegrator that will
cause the constituent particles of any OBJ
ject at which it may be directed, to so
vibrate that the object will be instantly
resolved into its molecules and complete
ly dispersed. With these two inventions
it is believed that a second attack of the
Martians can be successfully resisted.
But there is a universal demand that the
inhabitants of this world shall assume the
offensive and proceed against the Mar
tians. The rulers of all the nations as
semble at Washington, to discuss the
campaign, and raise a fund to prosecute
the war with Mars.
The herald., 1898-02-13

prefer to leave my bones among those
of my imperial ancestors. and not In
this vulgar country, where no king has
ever ruled. I don't like this atmos-
phere. 1t makes me feel limp"
And now, whipped on by the lash OF
alternate hope and fear, the earth
sprang to its work of preparation.
| "
1t is not necessary for me to de-
scribe the manner in which Mr. Edison
performed his tremendous task. He
was as good as his word, and within
six months from the first stroke of the
hammer. hundred electrical ships,
each provided with a full battery of
disintegrators, were floating in the air
above the harbor and the partially re-
built city of New York.
! 1t was a wonderful scene. The pol
ished sides of the huge floating cars
sparkled in the sunlight, and, as they
slowly rose and fell. and swung this
way and that upon the tides of the air,
as If held by invisible cables the bril-
liant pennons streaming from their
peaks waved up and down like the
wings of an assemblage Of gigantic
humming birds.
Not knowing whether the atmosphere
of Mars would prove suitable to be
breathed by inhabitants of the earth.
Mr.. Edison had made provision, by
means of an abundance of glass-pro-
tected openings. to permit the inmates
of the electrical ships to survey their
surroundings without quitting the IN
terror. 1t was possible by properly Sc
lecting the rate of undulation, to pass
the vibratory impulse from the disinte-
orators through the glass windows OF
car. without damage to the glass IL
self. The windows were so arranged
that the disintegrators could sweep
around the car on all sides. and could
also be directed above or below, as ne
cessity might dictate.
To overcome the destructive forces
employed by the Martians no satisfac-
tory plan had yet been devised. because
there was no means to experiment with
them. The production of those forces
was still the secret of our enemies. But
Mr.. Edison had no doubt that If we
could not resist their effects we might
ait least be able to avoid them by the
1-apidty of our motions. AS he pointed
out, the war machines which the Mar
t:ans had employed in their invasion
of the earth. were really very awkward
and unmanageable affairs. Mr. Edison's
electrical ships, on the other hand'
The herald., 1898-02-13

tributions (the Great Mogul was reck-
oned at three millions) it was found to
be still one thousand million short OF
the required amount.
The Secretary of the Treasury was
instantly on his feet.
"Mr. President he said, 81 think we
can stand that addition. Let 1t be
added to the contribution of the United
States of America
When the cheers that greeted the
conclusion of this business were over,
the President announced that the next
affair of the congress was to select a
director who should have entire charge
of the preparations for the war. 1t
was the universal sentiment that no
man could be so we'll suited for this
post as Mr.. Edison himself. He was
accordingly selected by the unanimous
and enthusiastic choice of the great
assembly
How long a time do you require TO
put everything in readiness?" asked
the President
Give me carte Blanche" replied Mr..
Edison. ''and I believe l can have a
hundred electric ships and three thou
sand disintegrators ready within six
months"
A tremendous cheer greeted this an
nouncement.
Your powers are unlimited" said the
President; draw on the fund for as
much money as you need" whereupon
the Treasurer of the United States was
made the disbursing officer of the fund,
and the meeting adjourned.
The herald., 1898-02-13
] V

The promised exhibition of the elec-
trical ship took place the next day.
Enormous multitudes witnessed the eX-
pertinent and there was a struggle for
places in the car. Even Queen Victoria,
accompanied by the Prince of Wales,
ventured to take ride in it, and they
enjoyed it so much that Mr.. Edison
prolonged the journey as far as Boston
and the Bunker Hill monument.
After the exhibition was finished. and
amid the fresh outburst of enthusiasm
that followed, it was suggested that a
proper way to wind up the congress
and give suitable expression to the
festive mood which now possessed
mankind would be to have a grand
ball. This suggestion met with
immediate and universal approval.
But for so gigantic an affair it was.
of course. necessary to make special
prepara tions. \ convenient place was
selected on the Virginia side of the
The herald., 1898-02-13


The necessity of some contrivance by
means of which we should be enabled
to converse with one another when on
the outside of the cars in open space,
or when in an airless world, like the
moon. where there would be no medium
by which the waves of sound could be
conveyed as they are in the atmosphere
of the earth, had been foreseen by our
great inventor, and he had not found 1t
difficult to contrive suitable devices
for meeting the emergency
Inside the headpiece Of each OF the
electrical suits was the mouthpiece of
telephone This was connected with
wire which, when not in use, could
be conveniently coiled upon the arm OF
the wearer. Near the ears, similarly
connected with wires, were telephone
receivers. -
When two persons wearing the ar
tight dresses wished to converse with
one another 1t was only necessary Tor
thern to connect themselves by the
v,ires and conversation could then be
easily carried ON.
Careful calculations OF the precise
distance of Mars from the earth at tine
time when the expedition was to start.
had been made by large number or
experts in mathematical astronomy.
Rut 1t was not Mr. Edison's intention
to go direct to Mars. With the excep-
tion of the first electrical ship, which
he had completed, none had yet been
tried in a long voyage. 1T was desir-
able that the qualities of each of the
ships should be carefully tested, and
for this reason the leader of the ex-
pedition determined that the moon
should be the first port of space at
which the squadron would call.
1t chanced that the moon was so sit
uated at this time as to be nearly in
The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1898-06-02
BEFORE BABY Is BORN"
A Valuable Little Book of Interest
to All Women Sent Free,

Every woman looks forward with feel
ings of indescribable Joy to the one mo-
mentous event of her life compared with
which all others pale into insignifi-
canoe. How proud and happy she will
be when her precious babe nestles on
her breast - how sweet the name of
"Mothern And yet her happy antici-
patton of this event is clouded with
misgivings of the pain and danger of
the ordeal, SO that it is impossible to
avoid the feeling of constant dread
which creeps over her. The danger
and suffering attendant upon being a
mother can be entirely prevented, SO
that the coming of the little stranger
need not be looked forward to with
fear and trembling, as is so often the
case. Every woman who reads this
paper can obtain absolutely free val
liable and attractive little book emit
tied Before Baby is Born" by sending
her name and address to the Bradfield
Regulator Co., Atlanta, Ga. This book
contains priceless information to all
women. and no one should fail to send
Tor it.
The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1898-06-02
A Nautical Term Which Is Much In
Evidence.

Probably there is no nautical term
more frequently used during the
present naval war than the word
knot" The word is SYNONYMOUS
with the national mile, of 6,0S0,27
feet. while, as every one knows. the
geographical mile is $3.50 feet.
This would make the knot equal to
l ID 100 of geographical miles. and.
therefore. in order to compare the
speed of a boat expressed in knots
with 4 railroad train it is necessary
to multiply the speed in knots by
l Is 100. Another point to remem-
Der is that speed means distance
travelled in unit time. so that when
one speaks of a boat having speed
of 20 knots it is not necessary or
proper to add per hour. as the word
itself when employed as unit speed
signifies nautical miles per hour
A cruiser that makes 81 knots travels
2i.15 geographical miles per hour.
The fastest speed yet obtained by
any boat is said to have been attained
by the yacht Ellide. which is known
to have a record of one geographical
mile in one minute, thirtv-siX and a
half seconds. or 80 > miles an hour.
In fact. recent article in one of the
engineering journals states that a
record of 40 miles an hour has been
made by this boat.
The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1898-06-02
CONFEDERATE nUSEUM.
The Cape Fear Chapter, Daughters of
the Confederacy, Taking Steps
to Form One for the State.

Desiring to form Confederate
Museum for the State, the Cape Fear
Chapter, Daughters of the Confeder-
acy, have begun the collection Of Con-
federate Relics, and ask the assist
ance and support of all North Caro-
linians, and particularly those be-
longing to organizations of Daugh-
tiers of the Confederacy, or Confeder-
ate Veterans. All and any articles
will be valuable and acceptable. that
are connected with the Confederate
War or with that time; not only what
is of military character, but those
illustrating the sacrifices and self
denials of the Southern people-the
straits and contrivances of daily life
at home as we'll as in the camp and
field. Photographs of North Caro-
lima Confederate soldiers particularly
desired. The chapter is prepared to
receive and care for any articles sent
them, either as gift or loan. and re-
quests that every article be accom-
panied by the name of the donor, or
lender. or the person who makes the
loan or donation and with the writ
ten history of the article. No pains
or expense has been spared in ar
ranging for the safety and security OF
these precious relics, which mean SO
much to North Carolina and will tell
SO much of her glorious history, and
the Chapter hopes to be able in the
future, as may be needed, to enlarge
their accommodations. so that not
only the Daughters of the Confed-
eracy but our whole State may view
with qualification and pride the re-
suit of their efforts.
All letters on the subject, and all
articles or packages should be ad-
dressed to
Miss HETTIE JAMES,
Ch'm'n History and Relics Com,
Wilmington, n. c.
The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1898-06-02
Climate in Cuba Not as Dangerous as
Has Been Reported.

Fred S Summerford. who was re-
Gently sent to Cuba by the War De-
partment to communicate with Gen.
Gomez, the insurgent commander,
has returned. Speaking Of the eli
mate and the invasion of Cuba by the
United States, he SAYS:
Now about climate dangers. The
greater part of such talk is nonsense.
/ believe mortality from disease in
an American army in Cuba in any
season will be less than among the
Cubans. / say this after long resi-
dence on the island and more than
year with the insurgents. The heat
in Cuba now and for many months to
come is not nearly so severe as sum-
mer heat in a ma ioritv of the States.
Danger from yellow fever and
smallpox is greatly exaggerated. 1t
does exist to a considerable extent in
coast towns but this is largely due to
the ineffective sanitary precautions
and the mortality is very small. The
night is cool and there is heavy dew.
If United States troops are sent
into Cuba they should be provided
with tents. If they are so provided,
observe ordinary sanitary precau-
tions and are supplied with whole
some food they can 90 through a
campaign with as little danger from
climate causes as if the scene Of OPP
erations was at Chickamauga Park.
Forty thousand troops from the
United States are enough to annihi-
|. TO RIopcO-c army opJ toEo Havana
and threefourths Of them can return
after a campaign OF a month. The
Spanish soldiers will fight. They re-
mind me of pack of mules. As long
as they are fed they can be driven.
Their officers literally drive them into
battle. generally taking position be-
hind the troops to urge them on.
They are enduring and will stand
hard treatment.
''lf United States troops invade
Cuba at any time within two months
not more than 5000 insurgents are in
position to cooperate. These are
now stationed in Havana and Pinar
del Rio provinces under Generals
Rodriguez and Diaz. These troops,
such as they are, can be available
within five days after notice is given
them.
Gomez could not get to Havana
from his present camp with any body
of troops in less than twenty-five
days, and it would take Garcia six
weeks. Gomez advises that only
light artillery be brought into Cuba,
such as Calling guns and light field
pieces. With artillery the torcha can
be broken in any point in an hour.
If American troops are landed they
cannot afford to wait for GomeZ.'
The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1898-06-02

some good work early in the season, is
in high state of efficiency, and the
farmers arc pulling the heaviest loads
over it. This road was almost impassa-
BILE for heavily laden wagons until this
year. We are fully satisfied with the
work we did and shall continue Oh the
same lines this season and reconstruct
many miles of the principal highways
in the county,"
The new method calls for the use Of
II horsepower grader which is used
for removing the earth from the sides
of the roadway and piling it up in the
center. AS fast as it is deposited there
it is spread out and thoroughly pulver-
lied by slender toothed harrow,
which is followed by roller weighing
several tons. The loose earth is put on
in layers of only about an inch in thick
ness, each subjected to repeated rolling.
In this way roadway, often several
feet III thickness is built up, firmly
compacted from top to bottom. The sur
face has an oval form which sheds the
water readily. Formerly in the public
highways a short distance from the city
there was only one narrow roadway
where all of the vehicles travelled, turn
ing out only to pass each other. On the
new roadways a surface of from 20 to
40 feet is used.
The roadmaking committee in the
county board announces that the same
general plans of last year will be fol-
lowed this year and that all of the taxes
realize! from the l mill levy in the
general road fund of the county will be
devoted to the work. This fund has
yielded about $50. 900 year for many
years, and it has been the practice here
tofJra to apportion it to the several
townships and permit it to be used un-
der TIC direction Of the township road
supervisors, who have expended it, to-
gether with the additional township
levy, to defray the cost of annually
blowing up the roads. The board will
endeavor to induce the city to consent
this year to the REIMBURSEMENT of its
share of this fund to be used in making
permanent roads in the immediate vi
cinity of town.