davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1900-04-14
A .

One of the cuiosities of nature u
known as a plant atol. There are but
two or three of these known to sciea-
lists. This atol is made up Of q circle
of growing plants. They are found
floating on the top of ponds or lakes.''
They form a hoop-shaped figure and,
are closely matted together at the
roots, which make a sort Of cup Or
basin. to which mor or less vegetable.
matter falls or floats. There is a sui
ficient amount of nutriment in this to
keep the plant growing. Az It I'M
creases. the roots become longer ana.
larger, and in time the plant may an>
Choir itself in the soil at the bottom OF
the pond. These rings, after many
years Of accumulation and growth.
make what appear to be small islands.
It is the opinion Of certain SCIENTISTS
that islands may have been formed II
this manner. The roots catch all d
ing vegetable Or animal matter. Leaves
collect and form mold. and after 1.
while birds may drop plant or tres
seeds on the little pod that floats on,
the top Of the water. These take root
and further assist in the growth Of the
little island. It may take centuries Tor
the plant to come to any aize, but WITH
nature a thousand years are but -
yesterday. M
The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1900-04-14
Baron Roth.ohld,. Favorlte Residence.

Baron Rothschild's Favorite Residence.
Baron Rothschild's favorite resi-
dence is his beautiful castle at Pregny,
about a mile and a half from Geneva.
Mont Blanc ia visible in the distance,
and the blue lake of Geneva below.
The castle is really the property of the
baroness, but her husband pays for the
maintenance Of the buildings. The
Rothschild flag flies from the main
tower. The. laws'bf the canton Of ,Ge-
neva prohibit the hosting OF a foreign
dag within the boundaries of the pro-
vince, and intimation: t., THAT effect was
promptly conveyed toAthe baroness, who
as promptly announced her intention
to shake the dust Of Geneva from her
feet. Conscious Of the loss her .depar-
ture would be to the state; the authori.
ties sent the state councillor to tender
her an humble apology and assure her
they would be delighted If she would
keep her flag flying and remain with
them. With customary liberality,
BartonsRothschild founded, in the city
of Geneva, some years ago a hospital
for the treatment of diseases Of the eye,
Since then. he has enlarged and Inn
proved the, building. The hospital is
,u~nsectarian and free to all %nationali'
ties. : ~.
The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1900-04-14

Of the last footprint that you can see.
and then look on in the same direc-
ton, but we'll ahead of you-say TWEEN
@ty to thirty yards-and in the grass
you will generally see the blades bent
or trodden. and on the hard ground
possibly stones displaced or scratched,
and so on-small signs, which. seen In
q line one behind the other, give. a
kind Of track that otherwise would not
be noticed. / once tracked q bicycle
on q hard macadam road, where It
really made no Impression at all. but
by looking along the surface oftheroad
for q long distance ahead Of me. under
the rising sur. as It happened, the line
&c had taken was quite visible through
the almost invisible. coating Of dew
upon the ground. Standing on the
track. and looking down upon Il close
TO my feet, I could not zee the slight
est sign Of Il.
The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1900-04-14

a gentleman in the Grunewald lobby
last evening. what was it?" in
quired a friend; "did he shave some
body without telling him his thatch
needed trimming Stranger than
that" replied the other; 81 saw him
cutting his own hair. 1t was the first
time I ever witnessed anything of the
kind in my life, and I would have
sworn that it couldn't be done, but this
chap seemed to experience no trouble
whatever with the job. He was sitting
down before a mirror on a small table
and had another looking-glass, propped
up on a shelf behind him. That gave
him a pretty fair view Of the back of
his head, and when my attention was
attracted to the performance he was
working away with comb and scissors
as If it was the most ordinary thing in
the world. I noticed that he was ambi-
dextrous, and used both hands with
apparently equal ease. something that
must have helped him materially, but
nevertheless it was a remarkable feat.
He got through before I escaped the
chair, and afterward I took a close
look at his head. It was as neat and
ever a piece of hair trimming as any
Body would care to see, and had been
graduated down the back in the best
style Of %tonsorial art. The man told
me when I questioned him that he had
cut bis own hair for years. and
Es*wouidn't TRUST a. barber on It, He
said he had just picked it up. and that
It. came sort Of natural ri bet, all
the same, that he looked like a ginged
cat while he was. learning. It's n6t:a an
uncommon thing for cinnamon to
shave their own heads, but we expect
all sorts of extraordinary things from
the Chinese. and fhis h%air-cutting act
struck me as a fdfize exploit for a plain,
everyday whitJ man."-New orleans
Times-Democr3t.
The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1900-04-14
MoNooosE AND COBRA

Combat from Which the Little Animal
Came on Victor.
I have an uncle who is in India, ana
he wrote me a note telling about a
fight between cobra and a mongoose.
l liked it so much thatrI want other
people to enjoy it, too. Any one who
has read the jungle Books" will, 1
am sure, like 1t very. much. Here it
is: "You remember 'Rikki-tikki-tavy'
in The Jungle Book?' Well, the little
mongoose's tail did bristle out just
like a bottle brush, and the cobra
struck at him again and again. The
little mqngoose's eyes got as bright as
beads and he naver took them off the
cobra for a second as it reared above
him; and every time that it struck
quick as lightning the little Rikki-
tikki-tavy jumped away quicker than
lightning, leaving the cobra's head to
come down with a bump. He watchad
his chance and then sprang in close
on the coils of the snake, and somehow
managed to grab him by the lower jaw.
Then such a circus as there was! It
was just a whirl of snake and bottle
brush tail and beady little eyes. Once
or twice the snake coiled too tightly
around him that he almost choked him
of, but the slim and sleek little body
of the mongoose seemed able to wrig-
gle out of anything. Quick as a flash
he changed his hold and his teeth
sank into the snake, just back Of the
head; then it was only a matter of a
few seconds before the cobra was
stretched out dead. Rikki had his
mouth too close to the poison-sacs Of
the snake, and after the battle lie
spit and frothed and scraped his
mouth in the dust until his little nose
was as red as fire. He was just as
tame al a kitten. and I wanted to
send him home to you, but he would be
sure to die on the way."-St. Nicholas
The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1900-04-14
Col. Bdden-poWell Author of d Delight
full Book.

Col. Baden-Powell declares that
"man-stafking" is the best game of
which he knows, and the colonel has
had experience enough as a hunter of
both two and four footed animals to
know. He has written a book called
aids to Scouting" and in it he clearly
lays down the rules of the sport.
The! scouts ten commandments, he
says. are pluck and s~elf-reliance, abil-
ity to find his way in a strange coun-
try and use his eyes and ears. He
must be able to keep himself hidden,
track the enemy, get across country,
take care of himself and his horse,
and report his information.
The most reliable assistance in find
ing your way is the compass, but in
South Africa, where there is much
dronstone In the ground, a compass be-
comes very unreliable. The sun, by
day gives you the east in his rising,
and west in his setting, and north or
south at noon, as you happen to be
south or north of the equator.
vi SSo1 GlQ6 VII q COAud1oSdnCC IL
you see a mountain, say, to the north
ward Of you, it will serve as a guide.
Similarly, when you pass any con
spicuous object, like a withered tree,
broken gate or a strangely shaped
rock. keep it on your mind. On pass
ling such landmarks, do not omit to
look back, and see what their appear
'ance is from the other side.
It should be a point of honor with
q scout that nobody see any object
that he has not already seer for him
self. Your eyes must be never rest
ing, continually glancing around in
every direction, and trained to see OBJ
,jects in the far distance. A scout must
have eyes at the back of his head.
A moving enemy is easy to see, but
one who stands still or who is the
same color as the ground around him
is very hard to see for the Impractical
eye. Common sense and a little re-
Election will often suggest to you the
most likely points to look to find him
Once L was having a match with a
sshikari, in Kashmir, as to which of us
could see the farthest.
He pointed out on a hillside some
distance off and asked me if I could see
how many cattle there were grazing on
1t. It was only with difficulty that ]
could see any cattle at ALL; but pres.
emily I capped him by asking him II
he could see the man in charge of the
cattle. Now, I could not actually see
this myself, but, knowing that there
must be a man with the herd. and that
he would probably be uphill above
them, and as there was a solitary tree
above them, and it was a hot, sunny
day, I guessed he would be under this
tree. A look through the glasses
showed this surmise to be right.
Besides looking far afield your. eyes
should miss nothing close by that IL
likely to mean anything.
The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1900-04-14
QUEST OF THE FRENCH NATION
An. Indians Girl. Who Wears the CrosA
Of tho Legion OF Honor.

An, Indisna Girl. Who Wears the CrosA
Of tho Legion Of Honor
Jennie Greek of Milgrove, a little VIII
lage In Indiana, is an American girl
who is certainly to be envied. She has
been invited by the National Humane
society of France to be tho guest Of
honor Of the French government dur
ing the Paris exposition. Jennie Will
wear upon her breast when she starts
for the other side of the water one Of
the proudest decorations In The gift Of
the French nation, the cross OF the Le-
gion Of Honor. She received this high
mark of distinction for a deed of ex-
ceptional bravery performed six years
ago., when she was but IL years Of age.
The story is no doubt a familiar one to
many of our readers. On tue afternoon
Of Sept. 10, 1893, Jennie, while wander
ing through some woods belonging to
her foster father, her parents having
died some years before, suddenly caught
the smell Of burning wood and on go
ing to investigate found that a rail-
road bridge over a gulch IN. the Pan
handle road, which ran near by, had
burned away. Almost at the same in
slant the brave girl heard the rumble
of an express-the Worlds Fair train
rushing on to destruction. She knew
that she must act quickly or the train
would plunge into the yawning chasm
with its precious freight of human
lives. Tearing off her red underskirt
she waved it frantically before the on
rushing train. The engineer saw the
signal Of danger, reversed the lever
and came to a stop almost on the verge
of the gorge. Jennie was carried
through the train in triumph and the
passengers took up a collection for her.
On board were a number of French
people, returning from the fair, and
when they reached their native land
they told the story of the brave little
American girl. The result was that
she receive the f1ve-pointed gold star
of the society of the Legion of Honor.
The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1900-04-14

gre. .t.rL - .a
ing is like bread and butter without
the bread. The first thing to learn is
to distinguish the pace at which a
horse or man was moving when he
made the track. It will be seen that
a horse walking leaves pairs of foot
marks, each. hind foot coming close
to the impression of the fore foot. At
a trot each pair Of footmarks Is at a
greater distance from the next, and
the ground is more forcibly struck, the
toe more deeply indented than at a
walk. At a canter there are two l
gle footmarks, and then a pair; at a
gallop single footmarks deeply indent-
ed.
With a man walking, the whole fiat
of the foot comes equally on the
ground, the feet a little under one yard
apart. Running. the toes are more
deeply indented in the ground, and
the feet are more than a yard apart.
Native crackers boast that not only
can they tell a persons sex. and age
by their tracks, but also their charac-
ters. They say that people who turn
out their toes much are generally liars.
It was a trick with highwaymen of old,
and with the h~orse-stealers more re-
Gently, to put their horses shoes on
the wrong way round, in order to de-
cieve crackers who might follow them
up; but a good tracker would not be
taken in. Similarly, thieves often walk
backward. In tracking where spoor
Is diflcult to see--such as on hard
ground Of in grass-hote the direction
The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1900-04-14

long ago IN which twenty-five at
tempts were enumerated, seventeen of
which were followed by rain in from
two to t%hirty-six hours. This extraor-
binary percentage of success is readily
explained by the skeptics. The rain
makers are I've called in, they say,
except after a long period of drought,
when the probability of it's natural
termination is increased daily in COM
pound ratio. In other words, 1t would
rain anyhow, bombs or no bombs. You
don't see much about the business in
the papers for the reason that the rain
wizards shun publicity. They deal
mainly with farmers societies."-New
Orleans Times-Democrat.
The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1900-04-14
RA,NMkklno OUTFITS.

Although Not fOften Heard OF. the Rain
maker4Is WorEing Away.
"Most people SUPPOSE that rainmak-
ing is a played-out fake" said a carni-
val visitor from Wichita, Kas.. .:but
that is a great mistake. know two
or three different rainmakers who
have all they can do in the dry sea-
son, and are making money hand over
fist. The most successful Of the lot is
what is known rs the sunders Chemi-
cal Rocket company, which has head
quarters in st. Louis. and keeps several
wagon outfits on. the go through Kan
.sas, Nebraska, Missouri, Iowa. South
ern Colorado and Oklahoma. The out
ITS are rather interesting. They con-
,giSt Of powerfully built wagons, lifted
up with apparatus for making hydro
gen gas and all the other parapherna-
liz of the business. The process is, Of
course a secret. but l have seen the
Saunders people at. work and know in
a general way what they do. The
wagon is stopped at some convenient
point in the. midst of the droughty
district and several small balloons are
inflated with gas. The balloons are
about eight feet in diameter and are
made Of vanished paper. They carry
rockets. which are discharged by
means Of time fuses when they reach
q certain altitude, supposed to be the
cloud strata. They make q tremendous
noise, and can be heard distinctly for
miles. sounding exactly like sharp peals
OF thunder Three balloons are sent
up to begin with, and IL It doesn't rain
in thirty-six hours the experiment Is
repeated; In fact, they keep on put
ting up balloons as long as the farmers
keep putting up cash. The system Of
the other rainmakers is practically the
same. although one concern owns "a
small gun Of about: two or three inch
caliber. from which It. shoots bombs
into the clouds. It is q very curious
and undeniable fact that showers do
actually follow their efforts In the
great majority Of cases, and the list of
places and dates. which they uses 81
their circulars II . powerful argument
with: any farmer. l saw q folder not
~ rEHLr srls ID
The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1900-04-14
~senator.s Lunch

At precisely 2 o'clock everyday Sem
ator Corkrell Of Missouri. leaves his
seat, goes into the cloak room, pokes
his hand into his overcoat pocket and
pulls out two big apples, says q Wash
ington paper. Then he sits down in
q comfortable chair before the wood
fire crackles In the chimney place and
proceeds to eat them. He Is regular az
the sun. and the senators rather set
their watches by him than by the old
clock that hangs over the entrance to
the chamber. He takes no other
luncheon, eats nothing else between
breakfast ct g o'clock and dinner q
Is O'Clock In the Afternoon, and be-
uev4s that apples are the healthiest
xs5f nature has provided for man.
The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1900-04-14

Japanese tribes make pretty and In
exp,ensive souvenirs for q child's party.
Tiny fans Of different kinds, kites ana
baskets. all Of paper. and little silk
bags filled with ribbons, please chill
dren. Bonbon boxesAln various shapes
OF fruit and animals are pretty but
more expensive.
The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1900-04-14
full Book.

large tree with an enemy up in it, and
lever noticed him till he fred down at
me.
Tracking mean following up foot
marks. 1t is called "spooring" in
South Africa. Scouting without track
The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1900-04-14

Natures loving proxy. the watchful
mothsrrBulwer.
The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1900-04-14
BARBER CAUGHT

In the Extraordinary Act Of Cutting
His Own Hair
II saw a barber do a most extraor-
binary thing the other day." remarked
Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1900-09-29
HOLD THEMSELVES kLOOF.
Number OF Men at North Franklin CollieY
Treyerton, Refuse 10 Strike.

Shamokin. Pa, Sept 2S-When the
North Franklin colliery at Trevel,nn
closed down, this evening number ot
men who are not on strike. decided
that they will continu" work. next
week. and that. meantime they would
hold themselves alOof from strike agi-
tators The latter are putting forth
their best efforts 10 induce the men to
tic up the colliery. The Reading COS.
deputies will not permit strikers to s-
seynble near the collicry to hold up men
on their way to ana from work and so-
licit them to strike.
The real reason of the TrcvcrtlH
men for not having struck long ago
Is the fear that the company will Clnse
the mine for an indefinite period. The
Colll-ry is the only industry in the
town.
Everything was quiet i'll this region.
tonight. Strikers continue to refrain
from commenting on what hey shall
do in case an increase " 10 pt-- cent
is granted with the understanding that
the operators will net recognize the
United Mine Workers as a union.
Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1900-09-29
DAY OF INACTION.
Continued from page ID

is untrue. My belief is that the strike
Will come to an end some time early
next week. 1t will not be ended by a
blare of trumpets or by sweeping gen
eral orders. but by the men quietly go
Ing TO work in colliery after cOlliery
day after day at the 10 per cent ad-
vance. There is no inclination to rec
esnize Mitchell in any way, but as 4
matter of fact, the miners really de-
serve the 10 per cent. advance and they
probably would have obtained IL, any
how. when the question first came up
If 50 many of the members Of the diff
ferent boards OF directors Of the min
ing companies had not been away or
their vacations"
Prices for anthracite coal in this city
have, today. decreased so OF . cents
per ton. indicating that the end is IN
sight and the rush of the retailers to
buy from the wholesalers is almost en-
tirely stopped,
Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1900-09-29
RETURNihG HOME.
18th Annual Meeting Of Aiaine Free Bapus,.
at Dover. kdjOufns

Dover. Me-. Sept. Is tSpcciaD Tho
18th annual meeting Of the Maine Ere.
Baptist Association came To d close
with an enthusiastic meeting. Thurs
day evening when the church was I'M
Cd to its utmost capacity. Every meet
ing of the session has been largely att
tended 50 that the pastors who are
today returning to their charges have
q pleasant ana successful meeting ID
look back upon.
The Young Peoples Society. which
had charge. Thursday afternoon. again
conducted the evening service. The
usual prayer and praise service a,
the opening was followed by a discus
sion Of the question. Are Our State
Societies Sufficiently United in Work2"
by Rev. {. w. Rogers Of Steep FAILS
Mr.. Rogers answered the question neg
auvely ana spoke Of the need Of better
representation among one another.
The closing address was given TN
rev. A. r. Howard ot South Danyiiic
\. H., president Of the New Hampshire
Young People. His theme was "Flllow-
ing christ
It was an able discourse The visit
ors and delegates to the association
meeting are, today. departing for their
homes.
Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1900-09-29
MAINE POLO LEAGUE.
Prospects Bright Tor Fast Sport in the State
This Winter.

The formation Of a Maine Polo League
for the coming season looks bright, and
the different managers who are interested
are working hard to have ii a grand sue
cess in Maine. Maine has been educated
to the fast game ana in order to make ii
a success the game must be even taste:
than mas been seen in this State. This
season men of high rank in polo circles
will be seen on the polo surface in the
Maine League, looking for an open shot
at the cage. The organization will be new
managers, and the franchises will be
given accordingly. Any manager holding
a franchise in the old Maine League will
nave to make application for membership
ana be heard by the committee. This
year II will be run for the good Of the
game and all rules and bylaws will be
lived Up 70 the minute. The league Is
he held very soon to finish matters and
arrange for schedule
The circuit looks complete with Gardi-
ner, lewiston; Bath. Rockand, Portland
fast team and are tirst-class polo cities
The season Will probably open about Nov
49, and close about Fen. IS This Will
make tbs season shorter than has been
the custom. but il will not drag along
ana. the support Of each team will be
better and good. fast, clean, scientific
POLO VIII be the winter sport in Maine
Some clever National League players
Will be seen in the Maine League. Nc
Gilvray and Murtaugh will handle the
Eath team. Phillips ana Leyden viii look
out for Gardiner as they secured the re-
lusal Of the Coliseum some time ago.
IheN Will nave the best material obtain
abe. Manager French Of Rockland. will
undoubtedly have a crack team. while Ed
Kicker Of Biddeford the owner and man
agtr ot the polo team there will have Il
strong team. Portland will have a team
bur the management has not been de-
cided upon as yet. Fred Doe. one of the
fathers Of the game. will undoubtedly
handle Lewiston: that speaks Tor itself.
This move has been on foot since juno
26. when a meeting was held iii Augusta.
and il has been progressing ever since
III! now It has reached success and every
thing is ready Tor the final meeting r j.
Phillips Of Augusta. ana Nick NcCfilvrav
of bath will nave the honor of bringing
the game back r. Maine. this season. as
they have worked hard to 40 since June.