The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-01-04
ABOUT PEOPLE AND THINGS.


Charles Dickens left 100000 to his chill
dren. but all of his descendants are said to
be poor. Not a writer of fiISt-claSS aDlllty
has appeared among them.
Runaway horses are unknown in Russia.
No one drives there without having thin
cord with a running moose around the neck
of the animal When an animal bolts the
cord is pulled, and the horse stops as soon
as it feels the pressure on the windpipe.
Queen Victoria has accepted as a jubilee
gift from a private person the engraved
signet ring of Queen Mary II, wife of Will
liam III. The same collector gave her Maj
esty the diamond Signet ring or Henrietta
Maria, King Charles rs queen, ten years
ago.
1t is believed that Adam Wicks, now a
resident of Ventura county, California, is
the only person now living who was present
when James Marshall picked up the first
gold nugget. 1t was found in sluice that
led to General John A. Suffers sawmill at
Coloma.
Mrs Susie Yeager, now ninety-one years
of age, who was schoolmate of Abraham
Lincoln, writes that the martyred President
was fond of play, most assduous in his
studies and learned to read well at ms 1rst
lesson. His favOrite recreation was bending
down saplings for horses.
1t is told of Tennyson that when dining
time when his lovely little volume of lyrics
appeared, he suddenly observed: II don't
think that since Shakespeare there has been
such master of the English language as
l." When those at the table looked around
as if astonished. he added, calmly: ITO be
sure, I've got nothing to say.
e. P. Turner general passenger agent Of
the Texas & Pacific Railroad, when an OBJ
scure ticket agent at little Texas town
hung out sign that 1t was no trouble to
answer questions. He was besieged by the
people of the town with all kinds of foolish
Inquiries, but through it all he preserved
his good humor. He says he owes mis- eleva-
ton to the fact that he has never been too
busy to oblige anyone.
Congressman johnson. OF the Sixth Indiana
district when struggling young lawyer,
was given a suit of clothes by benevolent
member of the same profession. Recently
Mr. Johnson learned that the son of his
former benefactor had been forced by re-
verses to leave college, where he was
studying law, and secured for him po-
sition in Washington which would enable
him to continue his studies
The report that verdis health has been
seriously affected by the recent death of his
wife is denied. Nine. sStoltzs who has re-
Gently spent several daysowith the aged
composer at SAINT Agata, writes to an
Italian journal to reassure Verdi's admirers
and friends. She says that Notwithstanding
the terrible dow OF his VIE O6dIn, lie has
shown great strength of mind and a beau
tiful resignation. The general state of his
health is satisfactory, and his mind is I'M
clouded.
A bell tower, to contain a chime of eleven
bells, is being built on the campus of the
Iowa Agricultural College at Ames, as a
memorial of the late Margaret Mcdonald
Stanton wife of Prof. E. w. Stanton, of the
chair of political economy and advanced
mathematics. The bells are to be the huS-
bands memorial to the remembrance of his
companion: the tower is erected by the
State to testify to it's appreciation of Mrs.
StantonS services as pioneer educator and
one of the women who helped to found the
college and make it what it is.
The bacteria idea has been utilized in a
number Of stories, and sOuida" in her ro-
nance, Toxin" actually introduced fic-
titious animalculae as affording new Ital-
ian mode of secret poisoning. But the first
really conspicuous use of bacteria by the
fin-de-siecle novelist has been made by Mr..
H. G.. Wells in his story 1.-THE War of the
worlds In this romance the Martins,
queer people, come to the earth in great
shells and nearly depopulate the planet by
means of their fatal heat rays, when they
themselves are finally all killed by the bac-
terra of this mundane atmosphere. Another
recent tale tells Of an. Anarchist who sought
to destroy his victims by means Of wide
spread disease germs