Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1899-10-13
ODD AND QUEER.

Weary Willie and his friend FrOWsy,
strolling along the seashore, stop be-
fore a sign read: Notice! Bathing is
Dangerous. Quicksands." Weary
Willie-Dere, Frowsy; dere's true pub
lie spirit for yer. Dat mans a true
public educator. I don't know who
dat Teller Quicksands is, but he's got
de right idea NV things an amt afraid
to say so, an if he WIZ here I'd take
off me hat to m."-Leslie's Weekly.
The King of the Belgians recently
paid visit to his unfortunate sister,
the Empress Charlotte of Mexico, at the
Chateau de Bonchote. 1t was her six
tieth birthday. She does not look her
age, but her mind remains isreparably
impaired. She is able to amuse her.
self by playing on the piano and by
copying miniatures, but the least noise
alarms her, and she is frequently
seized with fits of terror, in which she
is under the impression that she sees
enacted before her the dreadful death
of her husband, the Emperor Maxi
milan.
The Russian government has, after
many years discussion, determined to
abandon the old-style or Julian-Greek
calendar, which is twelve days behind
the now universal system of the
Gregorian cycle, and which has been q
source of annoyance to Russians dong
business with other countries, who
were compelled to use both dates, as
we'll as to foreigners trading with Rus
STA. The st. Petersburg Astronomical
Society has taken the matter in hand,
and with the cooperation of the min
listers will appoint commission to be
composed Of sixteen persons, nine of
whom are to be members of the AS
Economical Society, who will arrange
all the details. 1t is expected that the
new-style calendar will go into effect
in 1901.
The romance of Australian gold min
ing is not inaptly illustrated by the
history of the Wyalong gold field, in
New South Wales. Less than seven
years ago it was simply a grazing dis
trict, consisting largely of crown y Is.
At the end of 1894 the settled pr y
ton in the Wyalong and Barmd
districts was between 1000 and
the number Of claims worked
about 300. In 1895 the quantitsaof
gold obtained was 25,497 ounces; in
1896 it was 1895 ounces, and in 1897,
34,370 ounces, being the largest auri1er-
GUS output of any gold field in the
colony, the next richest being Hill
grove, with 1885 ounces. The total
yield from the Wyalong gold field from
its discovery at the end of 1893 up to
the present, has been estimated at $780,
900 ounces.
A company has been formed in
Telemarken, eastern Norway, 1or
breeding and raising reindeer on a
large scale. The company has already
bought 2,400 deer for $4,000 kroner
($7,5O4), and by degrees it will in
crease the herd to between 5000 and
1000 deer. When this number has
been reached, the company will be en-
abled to kill 1000 deer a year without
diminishing the herd. When slaugh-
tered, deer is worth about 20 kroner
($7.36), and there are good markets for
this meat, especially in France and
Belgium. The company also hopes
to induce England to purchase it. In
order to prevent the Cutting OF the
market during the winter season, a
canning plant will be attached to the
farm for the purpose of preserving the
meat.
German capital in United States rail-
roads is put down at 180,0OO,O0O. In
America, Germans have undertaken
manufacturing. They have used Ger
man money to put up breweries, hat
factories, spinning, weaving and paper
mills, tanneries, soap-boiling esta blish-
ments, candle mills, lighthouses, miner
al water works, iron founderies, ma
chine shops. dynamite mills, etc. Many
of these mills use German machinery,
and not few German help. The Lie
big company, the Chilean saltpeter
mines, the Chilean and Peruvian metal
mines. many Of the mines OF South
Africa, etc, are in large part controlled
~ German money and German forces.
Two hundred different kinds Of foreign
,onds or papers are on the Berlin.
hamburg ana Frankfort exchanged.
sS a