Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1899-02-13
LOBBY LECTURES.
Drummer Poses as a False Weather
Prophet.
SMALL CHATHAM SHORT PARA
GRAPHS PICKED UP IN HOTEL
CORRIDORSt-JACK FROST AP-
PLIES BRAKES TO A RAILROAD
CAR.

PLIES BRAKES TO A RAILROAD
CAR.
1t is generally conceded that milk
men, street car motormen and hack
drivers have right to grumble about
the weather, especially when it plays
such beastly pranks as it did last week,
but those important individuals havn't
a monopoly on the privilege of passing
disparaging reflections upon the at
mospheric conditions. Even the COM
merciai traveller, that hale fellow well
met has been fingipg the toe of his
kip at the weather gods, who by the
way must be practical jokers to want
} to metamorphiZe men into monkeys
s with red noses and watery eyes with
hand first on one ear and then on
'tother. Yes, even the drummer has
had kick about the weather, not SO
much because of personal discomfort,
for the knight you know is always
fat and sleek and well clothed, as on
account of a falling off of business.
But there is one advantage which this
species of humanity has over the aver
age mortal. He can sit in the hotel
lobby all day long and crack Jokes, tell
tales and be happy, and many and var
led were the diversions OF this cnar-
acter witnessed within the past week
in some Wheeling hostelries while the
mercury worked its algebra In minus
quantities on the outside.
"The American Spirits Manufactur-
ing Company, the new whisky trust
that is reported to have been organized
with a capital stock OF S60,000,00O, Will
rnfSltiAn in the WAY
of the proposed Kentucky whisky
pool" remarked a gentleman at the
Stamm. The Kentucky distillers Will
differ with the Chicago concern in the
fact that the bulk of their trade will
be for bourbon, while the other COM
pany will handle practically rye whls-
ky alone. The Kentucky distlllers
have come to an appreciation OF the
fact finally that it will be necessary
for them to get nearer together than
ever before to control the markets they
have more or less dominated in the
past and will prosecute their fight on
vigorous lines Kentuck whisky the
past few months has been moving at
a remarkable rate the sales during the
past six months being estimated to al
most equal the entire sales Of the pre-
ceding year. Many brands have almost
doubled in price the past three months
and in every department Detter con-
dition is reported"
There are a number of abandoned
gold mines in southern Virginia along
the North Carolina border that could
be worked with profit should sufficient
capital be placed behind the effort,
from that section
conversation at the Windsor. Il visit
ed one of these some months ago and
found that it was filled with water
and virtually past the stage of work
ing. If handled at all it would have
to be done through another opening
and with the assistance of considerable
heavy pumping machinery, Through
out that section there have been many
profitable ventures made in a small
way and many hundreds of dollars
have been washed out of pay dirt
foo4lo ia mines that were operated
wholly on the prlnClp1u Ur 1ISuC Uoal
mining. The percentage of pay dirt,
though, has been discouragingly small
for the amount of earth handled, and
then the failure in the past to secure
substantial results in the Georgia field
has also worked against determined in
vestment in Virginia. | believe, how
ever, that there is paying gold mining
to be had in all that country"
Last Thursday night l saw some
thing that / have but seldom met with
in my long experience in the business"
began a veteran railroad man at the
Howell. About ten o'clock the Pan
Handle yard engine went up to the Top
mill to do some shifting and on it's re-
turn trip brought down thirteen loads
of iron ore. The temperature, you
know, was fierce and the brakemen
had a swearin' job in getting the
brakes loose and the couplings made
The engineer whistled "Off brakes sew
eral times. but still the train didn't
start as rapidly as he would have
liked. He presently got her under
Roadway, though, and came whizzing
down the grade. He knew, however,
that something was wrong, and after
stopping at the Belmont mill began to
look about. What do you think he
found? Both axles of the front trucks
under one of the cars had frozen in the
journals and the wheels had not turned
an inch all the way down to the city.
In the previous run the boxes had evil
IDENTIFY gotten hot and the snow melt
ing the water ran into the journals and
Jack Frost did the rest. They were
firmly locked"
The clerical force at the Mcclure
House are waiting for a certain Chicago
salesman for ice machinery to come
around, for they think treats are due
from him. When the aforesaid. repre-
sentative of the Windy City was here
the latter part Of January he was
tickled clear down to his boots over the
prospects for selling ice machinery. He
said between smiles and chuckles. You
see, there hasn't been much natural ice
put up this season. The great harvest
ing companies along the Hudson, the
Kennebec and the great lakes haven't
put up pound yet, and what's more
of it, they won't have chance to do
so now. The backbone of winters gone
after the fifteenth of Janury, so the ice
haryesters simply amt in it, Now. it
is plain to see there must be more arti-