davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
Dazzling :

The hotel clerk told the following
story: Charles L. Davis. the actor, 9TH
erwise known as alvin Joslin," was
IN the lobby of the st. Charles. in New
Orleans, when a man from Chicago
stepped in front of him and looked over
his head in search Of an acquaintance
that be supposed was in the hotel lobby
Davis. installing the Chicago mans
purpose. remarked "Ah! Isee You ad-
mire my diamonds. This one"-indicat-
ing the stone on his shirt bosom-''cost
me IS. 900. Thesc"-showing his cuff
buttons-'.cost me Sc. 500 each. and my
wife has a trunkful up in our ROOM"
The Chicago man did not say much.
but that evening. by arrangement with
the head waiter. Davis was placed at
supper alone at u table where there
were several vacant chairs. Presently
several men. all commercial travellers.
entered the dining room. and each n
had a large cut glass fruit dish fastened
on his breast. while glass prisms hung
pendent from each coat and vest button
Soberly marching to Davis table. the
seven men took the vacant seats. and
the Chicago man entertained the actor
with: "Ah. l see you admire u dia'
monds This one"-pointing to the
fruit dish-''cost me $4,000. COO
Discriminating the prisns-''cost
$3.50, 900 each. and we have three car.
loads like them at the depot waiting to
be side tracked" Davis not only chang
cd his table. INT went to another hotel
Louisville Courier-Journal
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
Keeping VI Appearances.


A licensed pawnbroker'' who does a
great deal of work in the west end Of
London lately gave to the writer par
ticulars Of a strange sort of pledging
that has become common Of late and
THAI often defeats men of his kind.
Backing up his statement with actual
names and dates, he said:
ga bailif and I enter a snowy fiat.
say, and my accustomed. eye at once
falls on a handsome or at least a pre-
tentious piano. I say to myself that
this piano will sell for what l require.
I 60 to it, but find that it is locked. l
ask for the key, and when this is reluc-
family produced I find that there is in
reality nothing but a case. All the in
side of the instrument is gone. The fact
is that people in difficulties who still
want to keep up appearances can Eor-
row money. while still apparently re-
tanning their piano, by allowing the
lenders to take away the main part, or
inside. of the instrument. One man in
the west end in particular does a con-
siderable business by lending money on
pianos in this way.
81 suppose that when visitors want
to play on an instrument of this kind
the host pleads that the key is lost
Anyhow I have in my own business had
quite SO examples of Quilted pianos dur
ing the last two years. and l never
mark a piano down in an inventory
now till I have closely examined it. -
London Answers,
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
Too Well Initiated.

It is no easy matter for a violin maker
to rival the famous Stradivarius instru-
ments, but this an American maker did
and did. so %effectually that experts pro-
nounced his violin a genuine Stradi-
varius.
The successful man was the late
George Gemunder, a famous violin max
er of New York. His remarkable ability
as a preparer of violins was known to
many a distinguished player, such as
Ole Bull, Remenyi and Wilhelmj. But
he made, so runs the story, his greatest
success at the Paris exposition of Eiffel
tower fame. To that exhibition he
sent an imitation Stradivarius, and to
test its merits had it placed on exhibi-
ton as the genuine article.
A committee of experts carefully ex-
amined the instrument and pronounced
it a ~Stradivarius. So far Mr.. Gemun-
der's triumph was complete. But now
came a difficulty. When he claimed
that it was not an old violin, but a new
n made by himself, the committee
would not believe him. They declared
he never made the instrument and pro.
nounced him an imposter. He had done
his work too well.-Youth's Compan-
ion.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
Cured Him.

An intimate friend of Rear Admiral
John W. Philip tells the following ancc-
dote of the gallant naval officer Though
Philips religious side has been much
emphasized and commented on, he is a
determined nan and will brook no op.
position, Once when he was in charge
of the Pacific Mail steamer China he
carried two passengers of foreign ma
tionality who persisted in smoking in
their staterooms during the hours when
smoking was prohibited. Philip, then
captain, called their attention to the
fact. but instead of needing his warn
ing one answered him impudently
Nothing further was said at the time.
but the next morning the offensive pas
senger was h%andcuffed to the upper
deck for three hours, and for the re-
mainder of the trip that particular per-
son seemed to have lost all desire to in
dulge in back talk to the captain.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
WHEN FIRE BREAKS OUT.

Keep Cool ana Remember and Fol-
lew These INSTRUCTIONS.
In case Of fire. if the bui ming articles
are at once splasi,ed and sprayed with
a solution of salt and nitrate Of am
monia an uncomfortable coating is
formed. This is IL preparation which
can be made ut home@k !; trifiing cost
and should he kept IN hand. Dissolve
20 pounds Of con:,aon salt and ten
pounds of nitrate OF rn:i"onia in seven
gallons of water. Poar this into quart
bottles of thin glass and fire grenades
are at hand ready for use. These bot
ties must be tightly corke1 and sealed
to prevent evaporation. and in case Of
fire they must be thrown zeal the
flames. so as to break and liberate the
gas contained. At least two dozen Of
these bottles should be ready for an
emergency.
In this connection it is we'll to re-
member that water on burning oil scat
ters the flame, but that flour will ex-
tinguish it. Salt thrown upon a fire If
the chimney is burning will help to
deaden the blaze. If a fire once gets
under Roadway and prompt exit be-
comes a necessity. q silk handkerchief
dipped in water and wrapped about the
mouth and nostrils will prevent suffoca-
ton from smoke; failing this. a piece
of wet flannel will answer.
Should smoke fill the room, recall
your physics-remember that smoke
goes first to the top of the room and
last to the floor. Wrap a blanket or
wooden garment about you. with the
wet cloth over your face. drop on your
hands and knees and crawl to the win
dow. Bear in mind that there is no
more danger in getting down from a
three story window than from the first
floor if you keep a firm hold Of the
rope, or ladder. Do not slide, but go
hand over hand. New York Tribune.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
The Poverty of Rome,

There is Il terrible poverty in Rome,
of which the beggars who await you ut
every street corner are but too genuine
Il sign. The first gesture learned by the
children of poor people in Rome is to
hold out their hands for aims They be
gin when they are SO young that they
can only totter. and they are still hold
ing out their hands for aims when they
can only totter because they are so old.
Yet another sign of it l find in the
5000 cabmen of Rome. sitting hungrily
on their boxes. in their worm eaten fur
coats. too lazy to do anything but sit
there holding out their whips to solicit
every passer and unable to make a de-
cent living even in a place so frequent
ed by strangers and a place where every
one drives. But even here. in these beg
gars and cabmen. is there not a certain
participation. at all events. in that
open air life which is the felicity Of
RomeY "Abbiamo pazienza." say the
poor people. and sit in the sun.-Ar-
thur Symons in Harper's Magazine For
April
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
Air CaStlen.

Living in the future is living in an
air castle. The man who says he will
lead a newer and a better life tomorrow,
who promises great things for the fu-
ture and does nothing in the present to
make that future possible, is living in
an air castle. In his arrogance he is at
tempting to turn water into wine, to
have harvest without seedtime, to have
an end without a beginning.
If we would make our lives grand
and noble, solid and impregnable. we
must forsake air castles of dreaming
for strongholds Of doing. Let us think
little Of the future except to determine
our course and to prepare for that fu-
ture by making each separate day the
best and truest that we a n Let us live
up to the fullness Of our possibility
each day. Man has only one day Of life
today. He did live yesterday, he may
live tomorrow, but he has-only today.
Saturday Evening Post.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
Lovable Little Pigs.

While the raising of swine is not ex.
actly a poetical occupation, it is said to
be a paying one and mi that would be
practicable for a woman to engage in.
"One of the most thoroughgoing,
capable business women of the day.
says The Practical Farmer, sis a breed.
er of fine swine. and she has won a
reputation that is enviable. She has
made thousands of dollars from the
business and is proud of and enjoys
her work. Poultry and swine breeding
as a part Of the farm wife'e business
ventures forms both a happy and profit
able combination. Even the word hap
py, che says. is we'll placed. for it is a
happy work caring for and owning
handsome sows and pretty. thrifty pigs,
fine shotes and marketable hogs. Little
pigs. she asserts. are as lovable as baby
chicks, and through actual ownership
one takes pride and comfort in watch
ing them grow and looking to the COM
forts and needs of the entire swine
herd. New York Tribune.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
Motel Life In washington,

At breakfast the other morning q
Washington young woman found a lit.
tie note at her plate saying that her
aunt had arrived from the east the night
before and vas 1T d we'll known hotel.
About 8 o'clock she went to the hotel
indicated and asked the clerk whether
the newcomer had been down to break
fast yet The clerk informed her that
he did not believe she had been down
and offered to send up Il card
"Oh. never mind doing tbati' she
replied. ''You just tell me the number
IF her room. and l will so up.
mo -. promptly replied the clerk.
and the young woman took the elevator
Upon arriving at the door of No -.
instead Of rapping, she softly put her
ear to the door and listened in order
that she might not disturb her amt if
she were asleep She heard no noise
and so took out one Of her cards, and
after writing, will come again at 10
Jane. she tied a little bunch of flowers
TO it and left it ON the knob. where it
would fall into the doorway when the
door was opened
At 10 o'clock she came again. The
clerk had not seen her a,s,t and did not
believe that she had left her room So.
after looking about the f%arlors in vain.
she went to tie door of No and soft
ly tapped.
who isit?" came a gruf voice. and
at the same time Il maj opened the
door and stepped out into the hall
'Oh you are the party who was
coming again at 10. are your" contin.
ued the man smilingly "Well, what
can | do for your
Nothing. thank you. she reTlied
unless you ONE down stairs and help
me thrash that hotel clerk Wash
ington Post
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
A NeiEhfng Cock.

Camden says the Thames was once
called the Cockney, and therefore a
cockney means simply n who lives
on the banks of the Thames. Wedge
wood says a cockney, or cockerney, is
one pampered by city indulgence, in
contradistinction to rustics hardened by
outdoor work. There is, however, a
legend, almost too good to be true
namely, that a Londoner who had never
before slept out Of sound Of Bow Bells
had occasion to 60 into the country and
was detained all night.
He was much disturbed by the low
ing of the cattle, the grunting of the
pigs and other sounds Of country life,
which he could not understand, and in
particular he was frightened by the
growing of the cock. In the morning,
in response to the farmers inquiries,
he said the sound of the wild beasts had
kept him awake. Just at that moment
the cock crowed again, and the Lon
doner said: ''That's the onel He's been
neighing like that for hoursl" Since
then Londoners have been called cock
neighs, or cockneya
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
He Wa. Clean.

The advantage of a trained nurse is
that she knows not only what to do.
but what not to do. since unnecessary
attentions merely exhaust the patient
The point is illustrated by the follow
ing story from an old Cape newspaper
of the time of the Zulu war. when
kindly but uninstructed ladies rushed
off in embarrassing numbers to give
their services at the military hospitals.
"What can l do for you, my poor
fellow 2" asked one Of the gentle nurses
of a sufferer.
"Nothing, thank you. miss
S'Not anything7" said the charming
visitor persuasively.
81 don't think so." murmured the
wounded man YEARLY.
cat least" she said mildly but firm
ly, II can wash your face" She fetch
ed the necessary materials and secured
Mr.. Atkins rueful c~ountenance.
''Therei' sine announced. "Now you
will feel nice and clean"
II ought to, miss" said the soldier,
with a faint smile. you're the ninth
lady who's washed my face this morn
in1I"
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
An Unfortunate p.rticiple.

Arecent discussion at a dinner table.
whether ''gotten" or "got" were the
preferable participle, received a practi-
cal solution, at least for the Geographic
service. from an experience related of a
college professor who preferred sgot-
ten" He had telegraphed to his wife
"Have gotten tickets for the theater to.
night. Meet me there"
The telegraph operator rendered this
into "Have got ten tickets" etc.
Mrs. Professor was delighted with the
opportunity Of entertaining her friends
and accordingly made up a party Of
eight besides herself. whose greetings to
the professor at the rendezvous were
probably more cordial than his feeling
until matters were explained. He now
makes an exception to his customary
use Of ''gotten.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
Easy way to Be Generous.


In the Baptist church Of q New Eng
land village was an old man who had
all the Christian graces save one, and
that one was the grace of iberality.
he would do anything in the world for
the cause Of religion but give up his
money. At the close of the financial
year 1859 the church found itself $500
in debt. A church meeting was called,
and it was voted to circulate a subscrip.
ton paper on the spot and endeavor to
thus raise the sum needed. This was
done. and the old gentleman did not
Pot his name on the paper. The result
was rather disheartening, $500 only
having been pledged. Silence reigned
for a moment, when one of the most
generous men in the church moved that
1--WE double our subscriptions" In
stantly the old gentleman was on his
feet, and with extraordinary fervor
cried, II second the motion"
He evidently felt that he was thus
doing his part in fastening a most de-
sirable result.-Harper's Round Table.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
Tie Ashea of Love.

The women are telling of an Atchi-
son mar who treated his wife with in
difference and cruelty in their early
married life. They say he is now down
on his knees blowing into the dead
ashes of her love trying to revive a
spark Of affection for him. How women
love to picture a man in such an atti-
tude! It is probably the dream Of every
neglected wife that some day her hus-
band will try to warm his hands like a
frozen Cupid at the fires of her love.
and will find only dead ashes there.
There are enough dead ashes in the aver
age woman's dreams to macadamize a
road. -Atchison Globe.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
L'ENvOl.

Tho smoke upon your altar diea
Tho flowers decay, y
The goddess of yoar sacrifice
Eos flown away.
Whit profit, then, TO sing or STAY
The sacrifice from day 10 day.
1--WE know the s..ri.e is Void" they said.
"The 80 less i!oSa-
Yet wrca:hs are on the altar laid
Th" altar s.n::e
Is black win fumes of sacrifice,
Albeit she had fed our eyes.
'For it ma he. if still we sing
And tend tho shrine,
Some deity on wandering wing
May there incline,
And fndin. all in order meet
Stay while We worship Mt her feet"
-SUiyard Kipling.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
A Subtle Plea.

While Sir M. E. Grant Duff was gov
ernor general of Madras a judge i'm
posed a fine on a native Christian. The
latter had no lawyer to defend him, but
he put in the following remarkable
plea "Your honor may be right, l may
be wrong; | may be right, honor wrong.
Let honor give me back the fine, and
then at day Of resurrection. when all
hearts will be open. if l am wrong !
will most gladly. sir. return your honor
the money
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
The English For CAMILLE.

During the Tichborne trial, where
MIR. Justice Hawkins was opposed by
DR. Kenealy. in the course Of a discus
sion whether equivalent terms could be
found in English for French words. and
vice versa, Mr.. Hawkins was asked
whether he thought the word canaille
could be adequately rendered in our
language. He answered without a mo
ment' s hesitation. Yes, 'Kenealy. ~
Green Bag.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
Drum,nond Was on Top.

Professor Henry Drummond had a
boyish spirit when a man., and at the
age of 26 invented a game for some
friends at a country house one rainy
evening He said "They play it in
America with bowie knives. Four men
are locked in a dark room, each in a
corner, and the survivor wins. Well
do without the knives; the door and
the shutters shall be shut, each Of us
will stand in a corner, and the first who
gets on another mans back will be the
winner
DR.. Smith was in the game. and he
says it was the most exciting n he
aver played. ."Nobody stirred from his
corner for 20 minutes. Then l heard a
scufHe between two of the others, felt
my way to fling myself on both of
them. when Drummond pounced on me,
and we all rolled in a heap. he, of
course, on top, as he always was
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
What Love 10.

Miss Sophie Loury employs an ex-
ceedingly communicative old colored
man to attend to odd jobs about her
studio now and then, and his sayings
have become %proverbid among Miss
Loury's familiara He came to work
one day not long ago very full Of the
goings on Of q young man he knew,
who was in love.
"But what is love, uncle1" asked
Miss Loury.
Uncle wagged his head wisely.
"Miss Sophie" he said solemnly,
''love is dizziness, unixziness and in
attention to business"
And really I don't know of any defini.
ton more concise, complete and alto
gether adequate than that.
ton Post.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
A Matrimonial Mu.inr.

The average young man thinks he is
in a position to marry if he has $3.50
in the bank and a steady job. Hope is a
great factor in q love affair. After the
man is 40 he wonders how he ever did
it, and when he eats pie at night and
has the nightmare he always imagines
that he is marrying again on $780,
Atchison Globe.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
Swift Bird.

The Mexican road runner has only
two short legs, but he can beat a horse.
a hound or an electric carriage and give
them a handicap start.
Speed is not his only recommended
ton. He eats as he runs, or rather as
the things run away from him. Snakes
are the principal part of his diet. big
and little. His crop is as elastic. as his
legs are swift, and when he wants to
prepare for a long journey he coils up a
RATHER or two inside Of his neck and
sets out across the Mexican desert with
a swiftness that makes it look like a
bunch Of dust or a record breaking tour
around the world
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
Inferi0rity of Nature,

Visitor lat art store)-Here is a fam.
lily group, now. that illustrates what l
was talking about a moment ago. The
figures are correctly enough drawn, but
so utterly stiff and unnatural that l
can't imagine where the artist got his
idea
Dealer-My dear young lady, that is
not a painting 1t is a colored photo
graph from life. Chicago Tribune.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29

then looked around triumphantly. as
much as to say. "Ask another"
"Yes. But what else?" said the in
spector
This was not SO easy, but after a
pause a boy ventured to suggest. ga
little man
"Yes, but there is something more
than that"
This was a poser for the youngsters.
but after a moments puzzled silence
an infant phenomenon almost leaped
from his seat in his eagerness and cried
to the inspector:
"Please. sir. l know-an ugly little
mani
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
rinkl

Even very young women are seen
with strongly marked wrinkles in the
forehead which they have acquired
through contracting the brows. A friend
tells me that these wrinkles will disap-
pear under the following treatment:
Bind the forehead at night with a
compress Of new linen soaked in a mix.
ture of equal parts of alcohol and white
of egg. Allow the compress to remain
on all night and continue the treat.
ment until the wrinkles have disappear.
ed.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
He support. the Proposition.

He Supports the Proposition.
Mrs. Blickens-The president Of our
club is going to lecture next Tuesday
evening on Conversation as a Lost
Art"
Mr.. Dickens (yawning)-That so7
Mrs. Blickens-Well, why don't you
60 on and make some sarcastic COM
pent about the impossibility of CONVEX
sation being a lost art while women re-
main on earth? OF course that is what
you think.
Mr.. Bliekens-No; I agree with your
president. Conversation is a lost art.
When only n side can be heard, it is
merely talk.-Chicago News.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
When the Kettle sinr..

The reason why hot water makes a
simmering noise is a very simple one.
As the water heats, little bubbles Of
steam are formed at the bottom Of the
kettle. These rush upward and. being
attracted to the sides of the kettle, they
make a commotion which sets the metal
in vibration, and the kettle ''sings."
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
They Were Both Right,

Hicks-I saw Cable and Maunder a
little while ago. l was quite delighted.
Wicks-Delighted to see a couple of
such outrageous bores2
Hicks-They had just separated as l
came within earshot. Cable solilo.
quized. "That fellow makes me so
wearyl" and Maunder said to himself,
''I'l bet I've lost a pound of fesh."-
Boston Transcript.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29

Richard Sykes of Manchester, Eng,
has returned to the state and expects to
dispose of the $4,000 acres of land he
still holds in the James river valley.
In the Glendale election E. j. and
George Hubbard, father and son, were
opposing candidates for alderman from
the Third. ward. Hubbard, ST., won.
Three hundred and twenty personal
taxes, amounting to over SIG, ZOO, were
collected in Griggs county during the
month of February. This makes an
average Of $50 a person.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
study It out,

Here is a highly interesting paradox,
which may amuse or bewilder, as the
case may be. It is supposed to have
been invented by Socrates: A. says that
all Athenians are liars. A. is an Athenian
and therefore a liar. Therefore his
statement that all Athenians are liars
is not true, and consequently all Athe-
mans tell the truth. A. is an Athenian,
and hence tells the truth. Wherefore
his statement that all Athenians are
liars is true. Therefore he is a liar and
his statement false, and SO on.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
Learning the Truth,

A school inspector was examining a
class in grammar and trying to explain
the relations of adjectives and nouns by
q telling example.
"Now, for instance" said he, "what
am II"
That was an easy question, and all
the children shouted, "a mani and
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
JApau1R Area.

The empire Of Japan is composed of
four large and 8, 900 small islands, form
ing an arc of a large circle extending
from the northeast within a few miles
of Kamchatka, southwest about Q, 900
miles. and. with Formosa nearly 8. 900
miles from an arctic climate, to one Of
perpetual spring and everlasting sum-
mar. keystone.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29

The Oldest medical recipe is said by a
French medical journal to be that of q
hair tonic for an Egyptian queen. 1t is
dated 400 B. G., and directs that dogs
paws and asses hoofs be boiled with
dates in oil.
The Dickinson press., 1899-04-29
Why Letters Go Astray.

In the United States there are 80
Washingtons, % WILLIAMSBURG, IS
Daytons, IS Springfelds, "a Portlands,
az Richmonds. 10 Columbuses. 10
Brooklyns, II Burlingtons, II Charles.
tons, 16 Bufaloes, is Louisvilles, ID
St. Josephs, is Quinceys, Is Lowells.
IA Nashvilles, IS Wilmingtons. 10 St.
Pauls, II Bostons and 10 Clevelanda.