Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1900-01-18
PASSION FOR PEANUTS MADE ED
WIN HOLLIS AN OUTCAST.
PERSISTED IN EATING THEM
At Last He Was Driven From the
Clubs and From Church Loss-Per-
mitted to Enter Theaters Condi-
tionally-Loss of His Bride Capped
the Climax of His Affections.


sion for Smelling peanuts has robbed
Edwin Levine Hollis of a bride, drove
him from several swell clubs and os-
tracized him from society. He is only
permitted to enter the theaters con-
ditionally, is invited to leave the
trolley cars, is told that he is not
again wanted at a church, and is or
dered out of the Salvation Army bar
racks. At several places of amuse-
ment he is fatty refused admission
under any circumstances, and the park
guards have orders to keep him away
from the monkey cages in the zoo,
and his queer penchant is compelling
him to close his cracker factory
But the urchins love him for his pea
nuts, ready shelled," and the news
boys follow him for squares when they
see the left hand pocket of his over
coat bullying out, for they know that a
peanut feast is in store for them
What makes his friends marvel still
the more at his strange passion is the
fact that Mr. Hollis declares that he
has never eaten a peanut in his life
and could not tell what they taste like.
Mr.. Hollis frankly admits that he has
tried innumerable schemes and con-
trivances suggested by his friends in
a vain endelavor to find a less con-
spicuous substitute for his unexplain-
able passion. But he loves the music
produced by the crunching, cracking
and the dull thud of the peanut shell
between his thumb and fingers, and
confesses that he can find nothing to
take its place. Mr.. Hollis estimates
that he shells and gives away a full
peck of peanuts every day of his life.
Mr.. Hollis is AZ years of age and pos
sesses considerable wealth. Conse-
quently he is not, in a measure, dis
turbed by the criticisms heaped upon
him because of his passion. Stranger
than the passion is the strange man
ner of acquiring it. Some years ago
MIR. Hollis conducted a cracker bakery
in Philadelphia. His factory produced
the little hard, brown crackers so fire.
quently found on the table of the first
class oyster houses and cafes A
yankee economist from down east hap
pened along one day and suggested
that the crackers of batch that was
so badly burned that it became mere
waste because its sale was impossible,
might be turned into profit by grind
ing it into cracker dust. Packed in
prettily labeled boxes, it will sell readi-
ly, said the shrewd yankee. And so
from this suggestion cracker dust be-
came household staple. Mr.. Hollis
stood by and watched the yankee de-
Ielop his suggestion to utilize the
waste and all day long the crunch
! ing of the stone-hard cracker would
ring in his ears. Go where he would
and try as he. would at night, he says,
| the sound of the crunching of the lit
| tie brown cracker followed him.
Money poured in upon him from the
sale of cracker dust, and soon i'm
proved machinery took the place of the
wooden hand roller But not a sound
would it produce. He had found diff
fculty in cOntenting himself when
away from the music of the wooden
roller at night, but now that even this
was gone Mr.. Hollis craved the sound.
! AS a lark someone at the club one
night suggested that the party attend
the opera from the peanut gallery"
and the cracker baker Joined the
party. They took seats amid a group
of urchins who were crunching pea
nuts between yells. Mr.. Hollis at first
started, and when his friends inquired
the cause the nervous cracker baker
explained that the noise of the crunch
ing OF the peanuts was music to his
ears, because it reminded him of the
sound of the crunching OF the little
brown cracker by the old wooden roll
err For several successive nights
| following Mr.. Hollis was found in the
peanut gallery" distributing peanuts
to the urchins, simply that he might
hear them crunched. His actions be-
came noticeable and he was obliged to
abandon the peanut gallery" and
take to the peanuts himself. And this
he did with a vengeance.
Have some peanuts?" was his query
to everyone he met. whether at the
club, in the church, on the street at
the hotel or in the cracker bakery. At
first the club members did not de-
cline the offer, because Mr.. Hollis was
f, exceedingly popular, the church folks
took the peanuts because they liked TO
eat them and the frinds and acquaint-
ances met on the streets and else
where took the proffered peanuts be-
cause they were ready shelled and
toothsome. But it finally reached the
point that to meet Mr.. Hollis was
equivalent TO eating a pint or so Of
peanuts, and as a steady diet some
folks object to peanuts. While the
crunchings and cracking and dull
thud were as music to the ears Of Mr..
Hollis the incessant crunching Of the
peanut shell became a great annoyance
10 the members Of the club. Mr.. HOl-
lis was a regular nightly visitor at the
club So were his peanuts. At each
visit he found his way into the whist
room, but not since the first visit 10
the peanut gallery at the opera had he
taken a hand Of cards. Instead he
would place himself behind a players
chair and there would be a constant
crunching and cracking Of the peanut,
much to the annoyance of the mem