The Columbus journal., 1899-02-08
OF CURRENT

Those interested in the drift OF oper'
attic taste in view of the special per-
fcrmances of Wagner operas IN New
York, which have attracted so mucn
attention, will find the Wagner opera
figures for the season of 1898 IN
Germany of some significance. There
the interest in Wagner still holds its
own. In the year in question there
were I.202 presentations Of his works,
~..Lohengrin" leading with 2S1 perform
ances, ard "RienZi" fetching up the
rear with forty.
Mrs. n. Fleming. CT the Harvard as
tronC.nical observatory. has been ap-
pointed curator Of astronomical photo
graphs, a position for which n Is
said to be eminertly fitted by years
CT experience and achievement. Hers
IS the first name OF a woman entitled
to a place along with the officers in the
university catalogue. She has about a
..3zan women assistants, most of whom
ere computers of long experience, and
some Of whom have made discoveries
that have entitled them to mention In
~zcientific publications.
On one Of ex-President Clevelaads
numerous fishing trips he was accom-
panied among others by ice Jefferson
and w. II. Crane. Mr.. Jefferson is a
strong believer in s~piritualism, and
was anxious to convert the president.
One CT the party told a very improba-
BILE story illustrating the power OF
sriritualism, and Mr.. Jefferson became
greatly interested. When the yarn
was finished the narrator asked Mr..
Cleveland what he thought of it. On
replied Cleveland. Just tell that over
to Jefferson: he'll believe anything
A novel charity work is being done
in n Of the poorer sections CT New
York. Clothing for men, women, girls
and babies is sold for whatever price
the purchaser "a afford to pay for II.
Sometimes the clothing is Sold for L
cent, sometimes mere. Good clothing
too: clothing which cost the original
purchaser $50. and even $!5 a SUIT.
Many of the purchasers are washer
wCmen, seamStiesses, hCuSemaid n
scrubwomen. The men cutOmers are
usually Cut OF employment, and also
out at the knees, elbows and tees as tC
attire. To these ale sold comfortable
secondhand. partly worn clothes at
whatever price the would-be purchaser
can afford to pay. Often it is 81, n
sometimes only l cen II some pay
ment is made and this payment is all
that the buyer can afford. the manage
ment of the charity Is satisfied.
Austria-BungIry, Italy, Poland and
Russia, while they furnish but 9.io per
cent of the total population Of New
York city, furnish, it is statd, Dill
per celt of the slum population; while
the immigrants from England. Scot
land. Wales, France. Germany and
Scandinavia furnish 1913 per cent OF
the population. they furnish hut S.t4
per cent of the sium population. The
report CT the United States commls-
sioner of labor shows that of every
100 aliens. tf:y-niEe were i!literate IN
the slums of New York, and that OF
every l00 of these illiterate aliens
there were seventy-eisht males of vot-
ing age. There are foreign cities
within the limits Of New York where
scarcely 2 word of English is spoken,
and the people aIe under the dominion
of ideas utterly foreign to American
PRINCIPLES. In New York state, 3S per
cent of the foreign Dor ncannOt speak
the English language.