El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1899-10-02
For the Better Half
Written for the HERALD.

ing for breath, the swelling veins in
her forehead and her strained nerves,
have been reciteo, coupled with the
statement that she nervily kept on in
her famous bicycling, determined to
do her seven centuries. What profit is
it for her or for the world that she
should ride seven hundred miles, none
can say. Here has been a tremendous
amount of energy and determination
and pluck expended upon feat which
is of absolutely no benefit to the indi-
vidual nor to the world probably but
rather is OF immense harmfulness. Not
only has the woman harmed herself.
for she certainly cannot undergo such
an immense strain with out lasting in
jury though in the pride of her achiev-
ment she may be blind to it-or may
conceal it-but also she has set bad
example for others to waste themsel-
yes. Riding century is an inane
men who try it-and why a woman
should deliberately waste herself in
riding seven is question too
puzzling for the ordinary thinker.
There was not even cup or purse Of
fered. 1t was voluntary contribution
on the part of the young woman.
The war department has so many
requests from army officers wives
that they may be allowed to join their
husbands in the Philippines that Score
letter on the subject. The letter is
very courteous but very decided and
the ladies must stay at home. It reads:
| 81 have your letter in behalf Of,
who wishes to go on a government
transport with her husband to the
Philippines. l regret very much. in
deed. but l am constrained to deny her
request. On account of the exposure
and danger to which they would be
| subjected, Gen. Otis has protested
| against sending any more ladies to the
Philippines as long a. an insurrection
exists on the Island of Luzon. These
are uniformly declined, not only on &C
count of the recommendation of Gen.
Otis, but because of the limited pas
senger accommodations at the disposal
OF the government. Moreover, the
war department is of the opinion that
the best interests of the service, as we'll
as the safety and welfare of those most
concerned, make it inadvisable for
ladies to accompany officers now serv-
ing in the Philippines under hazardous
conditions, resulting from active mill
tary operations in the field.''
The standard yard stick for England |
and America is made from English |
measurements-Our standard measure |
being merely a copy of theirs. The |
first standard yard was measured in
176O by famous scientist of that day
by name Bird, It took Bird six or
seven years to make his yard stick.
The English government did not for
mally recogniz it until 1924 and ten
years later, when the house Of Parlis
ment was burned the standard yard
was destroyed by the fire. Then
Sheepsbank made four yard sticks &C.
cordiug to Birds measurements and |
that England might not be without q
measure again one was put in the !
Royal Mint, the second given into the |
care OF the Royal Society, the third |
was deposited in safe place at the |
Greenwich observatory, and the fourth |
was Embedded in the walls of the new |
house OF Parliament. There are two |
bronze yard sticks in the United States |
which are kept by the government for |
stan dard measures. They are exact |
copies of the British measure snd are !
OF bronze because that ia modified the |
least by time and weather, of all ma |
terials. The United States treaeury |
and the United States Naval Obser- |
vatory each have one. There are also |
standard inches of bronze, which are in |
fact used more than the yard stick for |
determining accuracy in measures.
Statistics of immigrants are some |
times interesting as one considers the |
impulse that drives people from far
away shores to our newer land, or
holds them back to the ills they know
rather than to fly to those they know
nothing of. 1t seems the natural
proportion that out of the whole num-
Der of immigrants 60 are men and only
40 are women. 1t seems right that the
men should hazard the hardships of
beginning life in new country with
the extraordinary difficulties of new
language and yet there are more Irish
and German girls Who migrate to
America than boys from those coun-
tries. The young peasant women of
,hese two countries have very rosy
1resms of life here of better wages and
,f good husband in time. So year af-
Ter year they will save little sums until
there is enough for the passage money
across the great water. Many of these
'osy, thrifty girls who come over here
Ind after year or so of work have
q arried we'll and found life much east
r. than they or their fOrefathers
,ver dreamed of in the old country.
They have written home and set the
lesrts of sisters and cousins longing. :
There were some 1900 or more China
nen landed last year in America and
My ii Chinese women. or the few S
1awaiians who left their island to =
make homes here, there were more 7