The commonwealth. (Scotland Neck, N.C.) 1896-1929, 1899-04-13

They have lived on an isolated farm
| which i. Stunned by every one.
Women are taking charge OF things
| in Kansas. In the city election oil
Beattie in that State, Mrs. Charles Tot
ten was elected Mayor, Mrs. Schlight.
Mrs. Smith, Mrs. Kirlin, and Mrs. Wa
kings city council, and Miss Mcneil city
clerk. However, there Is hope tor the
city yet as the police, judge, and mar
sh.ls are men.
"Lost motion" in machinery is a
source OF great annoyance to the opera
tor and also a source of great loss to
the owner. Just so is it with the pub
lie roads of North Carolina. The vast
ed energy on bad roads in the worry
and wear upon teams and vehicles
would justify considerable per cent
of taxation for good roads.
Wireless telegraph will soon be test
ed across the Strait of Dover. Such
has been given out from Paris. Won
der treads upon the heel of wonder
and we need not be surprised at any de
velopments we may see. The wireless
telegraph will probably be no more ot
a wonder dozen years from now than
the telephone was few years ago.
Perhaps a democratic newspaper il
not expected to say it, but candor com
pels THE COMMONWEALTH to observe
that the last Legislature made many
ludicrous mistakes which seem mex
cusable. Almost every day some mis-
take made in copying the laws is pub
lished. As the laws are being publish
ed these mistakes are coming to light
some of them and perhaps others that
| we do not hear of. To say the least o1
1t, there seems to haye been gross neg
ligence somewhere in allowing so many
| mistakes to creep in.
THE COMMONWEALTH has not kept
any very close watch on the progress OF
Samoan troubles, and we we're begin
ming to ieel little behind the times
from the big head lines we saw In the
papers, but the following observation
by the Charlotte Observer has set or
conscience at ease about not keeping
up with the troubles:
eThis Samoan rucus is a gay affair.
The whole kingdom of Samoa is en-
brsced within an area OF LOO square
miles, and the entire population, in
cludlng the suburbs, is 35 900, just a
little bit in excess OF the number OF
people we have here In Charlotte. But
the interesting point is that the total
American population in Samoa is 26.
Why not pay their railroad fare home
and let Samoa go? Unless some such
course 10 adopted these 26 wards OF
America may yet cost us millions in
diplomacy"
The most wonderful discovery for
locom otion yet made is the power OF
| LIQUID air. Mr.. Charles e. Triple, oi
New York, has brought to light pow
er of liquid air which he says will revo
lutlonize all manner OF locomotion
He thinks its power for locomotion
will be 70 per cent. cheaper. than steam
power. Wonderful experiments have
been made, and having mastered the
secret of the production, he proposes te
make application of it. A correspond
ent who witnessed an experiment ir
Washington says:
"Liquld air is manufactured by al
apparatus which Mr.. Triple has invent
ed. The first gallon or two is made b!
the use of coal or any other ordinar,
fuel, Just as ice is made in a factory
but thereafter he ls able to reproduce
10 gallons of the fluid by the expendi
ture of two. A railway locomotive o
steamship will therefore create it
own power from the atmosphere as
passes along its way, and factory en-
gneer Will simply turn the key of
ventilation pipe, start his machine an
manufacture fuel as he needs it.