davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21

"Look dis" he said, opening hi
hand. In the centre of his brown
palm glowed a diamond OF great size
and brilliancy, the largest Ned had
ever seen.
"You take him, Ned," he said.
"Den you come out dat hole and hum
good deal"
"You give it to me?" cried Ned.
mo want him. S'pose you glib me
gun, dat all right" said Kanadu.
Ned eagerly accepted the offer and
quickly had the jewel, fearing that
other eyes might see it. Other eyes
had seen it-those of Lascar Joe, and
be was literally stricken dumb at the
sight of the wonderful diamond. Ned
was busy all that day, and in the
night, with only Kanadu for a COM
panion, he slipped away, and before
morning was far away from the camp.
He had bought another revolver at
the mines and Kanadu had a beauti-
full rife, the price of the big diamond.
That night they camped beside q
shining river, and the Hottentot kept
watch while Ned lay down to sleep.
He was tired and awoke after some
hours as q cry of agony rang through
his ears, and started up with his re-
volver ready, to see Kanadu lying on
his face, his blood soaking the earth
and two men %springing at him, with
knives aud pistols cleaning in the
moonlight-men whom he know
Lascar Joe and Matt Fralick.
"Give up the diamond and you
shall go free!" Kissed Matt, as he
leveled his pistol.
"Never!" cried Ned.
The pistols cracked together and
Matt fell dead and Ned staggered
back, with o bullet through the tiesey
part of the arm. He fell over the
PROSTATE form of the Hottentot and
before he could rise the foot of the
Lascar was ON his breast.
Ned vas weaponless, for his pistol
had fallen from his hand as he re-
ceived the bullet.
"Fire!" cried Ned. ';I'll never beg
for life from such as you; don't think
it."
At this moment came q loud roar
and a great, hairy body passed over
the PROSTATE man, sending the Lascar
to a distance of 20 feet. Ned stag
CARED mp and ran iuto the woods, leav-
ing his enemy a prey to the lion,
which had come to his aid so oppor-
timely. Five minutes later he was
joined by the Hottentot, who had
been stunned by the bullet which
grazed his skull, and the two kept on
their way all night, and finally reached
the settlements. Here Ned babe the
Hottentot farewell and reached Cape
Town. The diamond sold for $780,
000, and Ned owns o ship which runs
from New York to San Francisco.
But he never saw the African coast
again, and probably never will.
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21
How the Referendum Works.

Al interesting illustration OF the
worl ing of the referendum was given
here Secently, when the state council
lors Undertook te secure an increase
of theifsoficial salaries. Their rea-
sons faS1usking larger remunerations
werehccepted as sound by their public
press, all the newspapers, Conserva-
tive, Radical and Socialist, warmly in
dorsing the proposed increase. The
approval of the electors was regarded
as almost certain, but to the great
surprise Of the councillors, the result
of the vote showed that only $500 out
OF q total of %, 800 voters were in
favor of increasing the salaries as
planned. Similar differences between
the opinions of the people and those
OF their lawmakers have been noted
many times before, and the sentiment
in favor of al obligatory referendum
is growing rapidly throughout the
country. The Courier de Geneye
now afirms that it is essential that
the electors have the obligatory refer
endum instead of the optional refer
endum, it having been demonstrated
that q law which has not been sub
mitted to the electors is not unlikely
to be o law contrary to the wishes OF
the public. Geneva Letter in the Chi
cago Record.
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21
PEARLS OF

Occupation is the scythe of time.-
Napoleon.
Where love is, there is no toil.-H.
). Bernard.
Sorrows best antidote is employ
nent. -Young.
What has a eonsecrated life to do
with being afraid?-Frances r. Haver-
gal.
Unselfisbness is the only salt that
preserves u soundness; unseltish'
ness is the only fire that purifies and
betters and makes perfect. IS. H.
Holland.
Whoever looks for q friend without
imperfections will never find what he
seeks. We love ourselves with all our
faults, and we ought to love our friend'
IN like manner.
True life is righteousness, love, Joy,
peace. It is out of doors and in in
;ellectual and spiritual sunshine. 1t
!s never among the dissonances Of
nature nor the jar of affairs. Eli Fay.
Never, if you can help it, read o
poor book. By a poor book I mean q
weak book, a thin book, a book in
which the facts are loosely or inaccu.
lately stated OF are il~l-arranged, abook
in which the ideas are either vague or
commonplace. james Bryce.
Courtesy is due to others. 1t is
Aelpful to others. Treat even a base
with respect, and he will make OF
east one desperate effort to be respect
able. Courtesy is an appeal to the
better and nobler nature Of others to
which that nature responds. Il is
1ue to ourselves. It is the browning
grace of culture, the stamp of per.
upon character, the badge Of
the perfect gentleman, the fragrance
If the flower of womanhood when full
blown,
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21
GOOD EFFECTS OF SINGING.
a Valuable Form of Exercise for Persons
With Weak Lungs.

A Valuable Form of Exercise for Persons
With Weak Lungs.
Many medical men are now econ
nending their patients to study sing
ing, which is a most salutary exercise,
| both by virtue Of its influence on the
emotions, on the respiratory move
ments, and on the development of the
lungs. Nothing better shows the
beneficial influence of singing in de-
veloping the chest and warding of
lung diseases than the freedom from
pulmonary affections among profess
sional singers. Moreover, their gen.
eral health is exceptionally good, and
This is probably in q large measure at
tributable, not only to their neces-
sarily careful plan of living, but also
to the exercise of their calling. Some
physicians maintain that for defective
chest development, and in chronic
heart trouble, singing is an unequaled
exercise. The singer should be clad
so as to allow absolute freedom of the
chest movements; there should be no
construction Of the neck or waist; the
collar should be low and ample, and il
corsets are worn they should be roomy
and loose. One error into which sing
srs, and especially amateurs, fall, is
to practice too much. The length of
time to be given to the exercise de-
Ponds much upon the character and
condition of the voice. Specific rules
cannot be given. Melba, when asked
how many hours of practice a day she
would advise for a pupil, said, "No
hours for a beginner, but minutes. ],
myself, never practice more than one
hour a day, and usually much less"
DR.. Il. Holbrook Curtis considers
forty minutes or an hour of actual
voice practice daily as quite sufficient
20 develop most voices. This time
should be divided into periods of ten
or fifteen minutes each. Regularity.
and not long practice hours, which
only fatigue the voice and wear it out,
IS ..ae greatest aid to advancement.
The voice develops very gradually, and
any attempt to force its growth is q
fatal mistake. st. Louis Globe Demo
srat,
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21
THE SOUTH SEA BUBBLE.

All England Was Mad to Support This
Surprising Delusion.
The advances in science lead to hopes
of the sudden accumulation of gold,
just as the discovery of new worlds
led our ancestors to invest in many
inflated enterprises of and
conquest. This older temptation has
passed away, for there are no new
worlds to discover, and this small
globe has been practically staked out;
but the mysterious domains of science
are still illimitable, and afford vast op-
portunities for inflated schemes which
have their prototype in the South Sea
Bubble.
Let us refresh our memory OF this
surprising delusion. 1t arose in the
reign of Queen Anne, nearly $50 years
ago, and when we consider the extent
of the speculation and gambling which
it caused and the number OF those
who lost eyerythinga and who consigned
their families to bitter poverty, we are
tempted to class it with those other
calamities which preceded it and
which afflicted England so heavily
the great fire of London and the
plague. The South Sea company
claimed to have enormous sources Of
profit in certain exclusive privileges.
obtained from the Spanish govern
ment, for trading in their possessions
in South America and Mexico; and it
may be well for us in these times of
the fotation of schemes for obtaining
gold from salt water and from sands,
of power from air and something more
ethereal than air, to be reminded of
the many bubbles that came into OK
istence and burst at the time of the
collapse of the South Sea Bubble.
The stock of the South Sea company
rose from one hundred to a thousand,
and an army of future victims crowded
the Offices of the company, anxious to
invest in what they believed would
suddenly enrich them. Indeed, all
England seemed to go mad, and the
craze of the time is reflected in the
writings of Pope and Swift. Prof.
John Tsowbridge. in Appletons' Pop
ular Science Monthly.
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21
WITH LovE-FRoM MOTHER.

There's a letter on the bottom OF the pile,
Its envelop a faded, sallow brown,
It has travelled to the city many a'mile,
And the postmark names a little unknown
town.
But the hurried man Of business pushes all
the others by,
And on the scrawly characters he turns q
glistening eye.
He forgets the cares Of commerce and his
anxious schemes for gain,
The while he reads what mother writes from
up in Maine.
There are quirks and scratchy quavers Of
the pen
Where it struggled in the fingers old and
bent.
There are places that. he has to readSagain
And ponder on to find what mother meant.
There are letters on his table that inclose
some bouncing checks;
There are letters giving promises of profits
OH his specs"
But he losses all the litter by, forgets the
golden rain,
Until he reads what mother writes from up
in Maine.
At last he finds with love-we all are
WE'LL"
And softly lays the homely letter down
And dashes at his headlong tasks pell NELL,
Once more the busy, anxious man of
town.
But whenever in his duties as the rushing
moments fly
That faded little envelope smiles up to meet
his eye,
He turns again to labor with a stronger
truer brain,
From thinking on what mother wrote from
up In Maine.
Through all the day he dictates brisk re-
plies,
To his amanuensis at his side,
The curt and stern demand and bust
The doubling man cajoled, and threat
defied.
And then at dusk when all are gone he drops
his worldly mask
And takes his pen and lovingly performs a
welcome task;
For never shall the clicking type or short
hand scrawl profane
The message to the dear old home up there
in Maine.
The penmanship is rounded schoolboy style.
Fol mothers eyes are getting dim, she
wrote;
And, as he sits and writes there, all the
while
A bit Of homesick feeling grips his throat.
For all the city friendships here with Tom
and Dick and Jim
And all the ties of later years grow very,
very dim;
While boyhood's loves in manhood's heart
rise deep and pure and plain,
Called forth by mothers homely words from
up In Maine.
Holman F. Day, in Lewiston Journal.
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21

The Aberdeen Examiner prophecies
that "within ten years from the time
of the installment Of the cotton man
ufacuring plan for our school Of textile
industry at the A. and IL. college. this
little factory will have developed into
an enormous manufacturing establish
msnt that will not only supply Missis-
slppi and the neighboring states with
spinning and weaving experts for cot
ton mill superintendent and mana
gers, but will give to tie markets Of
the world fabrics Of high repute and
peculiar excellence, and largely con-
tribute to the support Of the govern
ment OF the commonwealth.
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21

Ben Tillmsn, the one-eyed orator
from South Carolina, viii visit Bir-
mingham, Ala, this week, to lead the
~dispensary movement. When old Ben
steps intalthe arena, with his pitch
fork, we expect to hear something
drop VITA heavy thud. Jefferson
county is already stirred from center
to circumfSanpeSfFE nth politics, but
when thisNyearless advocate takes the
stump Bibmingham's hottest furnace
will appear as an ice factory compar-
ed to the white heat he is to blow
nm
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21
The Art of Shell, Dodping.


Frequent mention is made in the
dispatches of war correspondents of
''shell lodging" says Tit Bits, and
the average reader is at first at a loss
10 understand the precise meaning Of
the words, until their constant repeti-
lion leads one to believe that probably
it is possible to see shells in their
srial fight and consequently the SOL
diers are able to dodge them.
P. w. recently had an interview
with a sergeant major of the artillery
IN the matter, and learnt from him the
true meaning of the words. In all his
long experience, and he took a some
what prominent part in the Khartoum
battle of last summer twelve-months,
be said he had only seen three or four
shells actually in the air, and they
same from the gun he himself fired.
He explained that there are a few
guns with a somewhat slow muzzle
velocity, and the men firing these can
sometimes catch a glimpse of the
shells in their fight; but it would be
impossible for any man to see a shot
coming toward himself.
Dcdging shells is done by getting
under owe Immediately before o gum
is actually fred.
tFor instance" said the sergeant
major, "if I were climbing a hill, at
the top of which o gun was directeI
against me, I could tell exactlY16ere
a shell was likely to come bounding
along. Before the order is given to
fire the men in charge of that piece
stand clear and that is the warning
note. so to speak. Keep your weather
eye on the gun directed against you,
and when the gunners stand clear you
dodge the shot"
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21

There is Q mingled and unde6nable
feeling Of pleasure and pain in the
hearts Of q majority Of the cotton
planters Of the south - pleasure to
know that cotton is worth nine and a
half cents per pound, and pain to re-
member that most OF the crop was dis
posed of at o much lower figure. Taken
an q whole, however, 1t may be truth
fully said that the cotton raising sec
tion of the s3uth is in better financial
condition today than at any period
since the late unpleasantness, which,
as "Bob" Taylor facetiously says,
placed the north on the pension list and
the south on crutches. Not only this,
but the prospects for the coming year
are indicative Of q better price for the
great product OF the south than that OF
the present time. There were hundreds
OF cotton men in the south who had re-
liable reports s. to the effect Of the
weather on the cotton In various sec
tions. and all the probabilities were
against . big crop. II Neili did not
possess this informi hon, he must be
set down Al Q mere guesser. IL he
did possess Ii. hssti nds convicted OF
distorting the facts B suit certain pur-
poses OF his own.
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21

Dr.. J. Il. M. Curry, Of Washington,
agent for the Peabody fund, has noti-
fed State Superintendent Whitfield
that Mississippi will receive 90, 500 for
the support Of the summer normals
this ear. This amount ia less than
that which was received last year. 1t
will be necessary for places desiring
these normals to assist by local sub
scriptions.
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21

Port Tampa Cir Fla. has adopted
) Curfev law thai recognizes the color
line. After - o'clock p. m /. all male
negroes must be ct home and In bed, or
at least out Of the streets. unless they
can show a pass from Mayor Dempsey.
If they are not the paterole will gather
them in. The pass Of the mayor cor
responds to the pass Of the master In
ths old Gays, but is rarely used. The
object ofsshe law is not race oppression
but II was designed in order to put an
end TO the offenses and crimes that
darkness pf motesand renders feasible.
AS all good negroes and all negroes
who hassht employment can read
lily procure Rsses from the mayor. no
real oppression exists, but as u matter
Of fact, few pssses are needed. Thus
lar the ordinance has given satisfaction
in Port Tam City. Fewer arrests are
made, fewer offenses are committed.
It Is conceded that the law Is desirable.
Its oonstltutionality has not, however,
been atestted.
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21
Two Definitions.

The humors of examination papers
we're illustrated by Dr. Haig Brown,
who, speaking at the City of London
college upon the responsibility which
rested upon examiners in weighing
fragments Of knowledge, said that the
question, s'What are the Chiltern
Hundreds?" once received the reply,
Small animals which abound in such
numbers in cheese" The inquiry.
what is o chernb?" elected, in it's
turn, the answer. San immoral being
of uncertain shape."-Argonaut.
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21
opEIoUsAs. 1oU1s1ANA.
According TO the nesU estimation GnsS
has been furnished we have now more
than one thousand colored physicians.

Tine object of the New York Diet
Kitchen is the furnishing of nourisl-
ing food to the sick poor. The twenty.
seventh annual report shows that four
kitchens are now maintained for this
purpose, and that IN the year 1899,
III, 945 quarts Of milk were distrie
buted, at a cost OF $4907. 80, the total
expenses Of the association being ST..
$780, 81.
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21
Sinall Enough.

A little fellow Of four years went to
q blacksmith shop in o neighboring
town to see his fathers horse shod
and was watching closely the work of
shoeing. The blacksmith began to
pare the horses hoofs and thinking
this was wrong the little boy said
earnestly my pa don't want his
horse made any smaller. Ohio State
Journal.
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21

The platform adopted by the Nebras.
ka state convention, and which w. ].
Bryan favors forcsdoption by the ma
tional d democratic convention, reafirms
the Chicago platform, opposes a large
standing army, denounoss the action
of the republican party on the Porto
Rican tariff bill, declares against
trusts and Imperialism, and fsvors the
election of United States senators by
popular vote.
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21
How to Ten Gold Articles.

Twenty-four-carat gold is all gold;
twenty-two-carat gold has twenty-five
parts of gold, n of silver aud one OF
copper; eighteen-carat gold has eight
cen parts Of pure gold and three parts
each of silver and copper in its com
position; ~twelye-earat gold is half gold.
The remainder being made up of three
aud a half parts of silver and eight and
. half parts of copper.
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21
ACADEMY
OF THE
IMMACULATE : CONCEPTION,

OPELUUSAS, La.
Uzaer the Direction Of the Sisters Mgxiaaitaa
Of Holy Cross.
Offers to young ladies every facility
for acquiring Q thorough christian ed
ucation. Constant attention is paid 70
home and social culture. Lessons are
given in music, painting and other
uaeful arts. The siEtera also hays
charge Of the boys school. The course
OF instruction is two-fold-Pseparatory
snd Commercial. French is taught in
the two courses. For particulars, ed.
dress SISTER SUPERIOR.
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21

There should be no danger Of civil
war / n Kentucky if all parties to the
Ncontested election case are willing to
recognize the majesty of the law in the
settlement Of their claims.
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21

The value Of a newspaper as an
advertising medium consists ia
lite circulation.
When You can secure the com.
bined circulation Of two papers
for the price Of one, it is money
saved!
"G.he st. Landry Democrat"
was consolidated ON the 3D. Of
March, 1894, with " The Opelou-
vas Courier" The advertising
rates have not been increased
while the price Of subscription
has been reduced to % o year.
THE COURIER being by odds
the best paper in the empire Per.
lsh Of St. Landry il therefore thu
AsansgtG
The Opelousas courier., 1900-07-21

King Martin, q negro. was hanged.
y Kaufman, Texas, for criminal assault
u i white wousn.
Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1900-08-17
"Our Queen"
herring.

The American Law Review is the leading
law publication of America. In its issue of
editorial that should be read with grave appre-
hension by American citizens. In this editor
ial, the editor of that journal paid very
high tribute to the character of the Queen of
England, but he did not not stop there. He
concluded his editorial thus:
"Many of us feel that she is, in sense, our
Queen; and whenever she wants the American
boys to fight for her honor, or even for her po-
litcal rights, they will embark or cross the
Canadian frontier for that purpose in such num-
bers as will tax British resources to arm and
equip them--every one of them spelling for
fight, and they will acquit themselves as gal
lantly as their Canadian cousins have done in
South Africa"
Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1900-08-17
Our Policy in the Philippines.

We clip the following editorial from the Chi.
cage Record:
The announcement made in Manila by Judge
Taft concerning the intentions of the commits
sion over which he presides gives little indica.
ton of the attitude of our government toward
the people of the islands we acquired from Spain.
He says, practically, that the commission will
examine the situation and inform itself about
the difficulties to be overcome, and will then
make recommendations to the president in re-
gard to the measures it considers most suitable
for the country. Meanwhile the army will con-
tinue its task of suppressing the Instruction.
1t is to be regretted that the commission was
not instructed to make two definite declarations
on its arrival at Manila; First, statement of
the kind of government intended for the islands,
clearly showing what the natives could look for
ward to. If permanent annexation is part of
this plan, the fact should be made known now;
but if our energies are to be directed toward
educating and helping the Tagalogs to become
capable of sef-government, the sooner they un-
derstand our purpose the better. Second,
the determination to overcome the armed op-
position to the United States authorities should
have been expressed in the most forcible
language possible. Such policy would have
been understood by the natives, and they would
have known what they had to expect. AS it is,
they ale invited to banquet consisting of the
justice, generosity and clemency of the United
States, but are not allowed to look under the
covers of the dishes to learn what kind of meat
will be served to them. l: will not be strange
if they consider that they have no certainty of
either fish, flesh, fowl, or even good red
herring.
Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1900-08-17
Schlatter'S Prophecy.

Some months ago, Schatter, the "divine
healer" made the following prediction, which
now seems like prophecy. He predicted that
the Boer war is a prelude to the downfall of
England, as the various European powers
brought about the downfall of Napoleon in
1875. Said he:
"The world is now coming to the most stir
ring time in its history. The world will be
divided early in the next century between the
United States and Russia. Russia will get
England and the United States will get India.
l will predict something more startling than
this. All signs now ripe for the second
coming of Christ"