The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1898-10-23
HOUSTON POST LETTER BOX

ana curious Information. suesi'ohs "a u
sonal interest only will not be answered., ~
business or personal addresses VIII DO er ash.
All correspondence should be addressed 10 h no
Letter Box, care Houston Post. owing 10 tno
large number Of questions rece,Vea
can not always be given promptly
Touching our controversy about tne inu y,
from Congrevo. writc to state tna, an - y
receipt OF a letter from Prof william Soin
Of tho University OF North Carolina, IN wnicn
no says tina. In an edition by Leigh nun.,
Loncon, OF date OF 1870. the WORDS ar. Ma ai
has charms TO- sense ,ay say Wsrd Encyclopedia
Of Cuotatlons'' 1.-THE latest and besO gives
breast and so does another me one' on
may add that in recent pupiiea.toh , -, ~ T..
titled "Ilome Cutnre,' the word breast 70
given, have also heeD potified tina, an
1902 edition OF Chngreve's Loems gives tile
same rendition. II Is nottceablc that III .n'
mcnareries connected with the clrouse1 @nsr,
arc greatly excted--walk around their cages
ami erowI Many horses break their briuies
aud run on afrighted rs a orass Dan" ap-
rroacles.' w. II. Baiiey' d. H1D
1t is undoubtedly true that all editions OF
Congreve's poems that are now TO pc op-
tnine0 render tho llae az quoted, but the Let
tor Box editor still believes that Congreye
hii.self wrote 1t as follows
Music has charms to socthe the savage
beast
To soften rocks. or bend n knotted oak;
I've read that things inanimate have moved
And as with living souls, have been In
fcrmd. .
by magic numbers and persuasive sound"
The first edition mentioned was prepared
more than 125 years after the original poem
was written. and the one dated 1902 was got
ten out seventy-five years after Congreve's
DEATH Nearly every editor and compiler Of
Shakespeare's poems takes the liberty to
change hundreds OF the great bard's words,
and no doubt Congreve has been treated the
came way. In regard to the suggestion that
modern music can not charm Wild animals,
1t might BIO we'll to remember that poets have
often attributed such power to that art, never
thciess. Mythology. which contains SO many
beautiful and poetlcal suggestions, tells
us OF the musical power OF Orpheus, whose
lutte brought the widest animals TO his fest,
and even mado tho trees and the mountain
tops bow themselves. Conyrcve no doubt tried
to convey the Same idea when he spoke of the
power of music to soothe the savage beasts.
soften rocks AMI bend lnotted oaks.
Please give the depth OF the deepest well
yet drilled In the United States. Where is 1t
located, ana are there any deeper at any other
place In tho world? Mcdonald
The Mining and Scientific Press is respon-
slble for the statement that the deepest we'll
in the world IS now being bored near Pitts
burg, Pa. 1t Is now much more than mile
deep and It is expected two miles will be
reached before II is finished 1t is said the
object in boring this well is purely scientific.
Prof. Hallock OF Columbia college is of the
opinion that at depth OF 10, 000 feet--the pro-
posed depth OF the well--the temperature will
be 22S degrees Fahrenheit. AS at tempera-
ture of 2l2 degrees water Is converted into
vapor 1t Is thought this we'll will afford an
ample supply of natural steam TO keep all the
machinery In the vicinity in operation.
What is the meaning of "Sortes VigiianceT.
Gaze.
1t is a term applied to telling ones fortunes
by consulting virgil's Aened You open the
book at random, and the passage you first
put your finger on does the fortune telling,
A curious instance of this is told about
Charles and Lord Falkland, while they were
at Oxford together. The king put his finger
on passage which may be translated: EVIL
wars will break out and the king lose his
life" Lord Falkland touched the passage
containing the lament OF Bvander over the
death OF his son Pallas. Both fortunes"
camc true; for the king mourned over the
death of Falkland at Newbury. and after
wards lost his own life.
lease give me some statistics as TO the
number OF indians in the United States.
C.PA
The Indians in The United States number
about 100000. or these some 1000 live in Min
nESrtn yhnugn ba
ported In Michigan there are 1000 more, and
In Wisconsin about 5000. New Mexico has
10000 Indians; Arizona, 1900; South Dakota
10000; North Dakota. SOCo California, 5000;
Washington State. 10000; Oregon, 1000; Idaho
4OOo; Nevada, 5000: Nebraska. 1900; Oklahoma
tVN' and the Indian Territory, 9OOO In the
Five Civilized Tribes are $1,000 people and in
the Six Nations about 5000
tou. 'H'' sIoM Cot-
Inc United States, British India. Esvn, nna
bralu produce practically the cotton s,nn,v
OF the world. Cotton is grown also IN chin,
turkey, Burmah, the West Indies and On
Central and South America, though thu Wa,
iH'iah ana Peruvian supply has dwindled
CONTINUOUSLY since the beginning of the CEN
" f''P"4u VHS NJ present insignificant
mere are several other sources of SUNNY
such as Italy. the Cape of Good Hone Noto,
and other parts of Africa, Queensland. Aus.
tfaiia' FIJI Tahiti etc. but all are of minor
Importance.
My neighbor Is a German who came g.,
LOUISIANA shortly before the war and enlisted
AT NeW orleans in Louisiana regiment lie
' M"s mustered into the Confederate service for
eMelVs months, unless sooner discharged He
served his term. but at the end Of fhe vear
was conscripted again Not liking This 10
deserted, made his way north. aud aftsr
years wandering around. enlisted in me Fei'
erai army and served until the Close of ~
war After being discharged he took ont nat
ntaiizanon papers and became a citizen ~
siony 10 PEN
lie Is doubtless entitled to pension Z,
wounded or otherwise disabled during his
service in the Northern army.
lease iet me know whether a battleship "a
armored an over the hull. Let me Know a.
particular if tina Maine wes a,,nnrsi S', ~. IA
bottom OF the hull An Ola Pau "a .ne
Inc general plan of construction in b.,
ueship or armored vessel Is to surround Tho
engines, boilers and magazines with a wall q,
steel srinor OF various thicknesses seven or
eight feet high extending usually four Zoo,
below the water line and three feet above q
Ihere Is no extra protection OF the hui, hs,ov,
the four-foot line. The Maine was n second
class battleshin with amman 10 ,-h 49,,