davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-09-19

minute he smoked fast and furiousiy.
trying to think what he could say or
do. At the end of that time he turned
and looked at the pathetic little heap
and saw her stir.
What an idiot 1 am" he cried,
springing to his feet. Mermaid or
girl, she needs attention, instead of
foolish gazing at-where's my fask?"
He found it, still uninjured in his
hip pocket, and STOPPING, he gently
forced the pretty lips apart and poured
few drops Of brandy into her mouth.
Where am II" she said, pressing
her hands to her ears, and making
that time honored remark in excellent
English. "Did l go under again?" An
embarrassed expression came across
her face, as she added, "And you had
to go after me? 1t is too bad-but I
am very grateful, sir"
Sir? Van Holden looked again. She
was a mere child, not over fifteen or
sixteen at the most, and-Gracious
Heaven! she was stripping off that
remarkable extremity, as if it were
made of rubber!
AS she shook herself free from it and
stood up in very fetching bathing
suit and stockings, he smiled-and
took swallow of the brandy himself.
IF you'll excuse me-" he said apollo
getically, "I-your appearance rather
upset me-" A rare, but strangely .pa-
thetic smile answered him.
II don't WONDER" she said; "you
must be colder than l." Shaking her
self free of the sand which chung to
| her dress, she gathered up the remark
able covering and rolled it into bun.
4 die which she tucked under one arm
81 am very grateful to you," she sale
again, "and hope you have not worr
| yourself out"
NO" he interrupted. "but befor,
you go will you kindly tell me VIII,
you are out so early in the morning
alone, and with that most peculiar
!. peculiar costume on?"
/ The girls pretty face grew seriousl
wistful. my father" she said, an
then went on in lower tone, "Yo
must not breathe word of this, for h
would punish me if you did, but h
makes me learn to swim so. M
mother died last winter Then m
father, whom | had never seen befor
came and took me away, and I al
learning to swim with that tail. It
like swimming without your feet-an
that wouldn't be very easy, would it?
II should imagine not" answere
! Van Holden grayely. = think you
b father should be thrashed himself fc
making you do this How old are 70,
Ilmy little siren7' q
The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-09-19
-------------------------
PYGMIES OF AFRICA,
Queer Little People Found in the For
est Thicknesses

eSL lnlckneSSeS.
Henry NJ. Stanley and Paul Du
Cha1llu, in their accounts of travels i'm
Africa, have both spoken of the pyg
mics. the queer little people who live
IN the dense forest. A. B. Lloyd de-
scrlbes his own impressions of them in
one of the most interesting chapters of
In Dwarf Land" We had now been
IN the forest for six long days, and
| began to believe that, after all. the
pygmy stories were not true But one
aay my D e6p yh9 S Ma S gSt bsh j5 WHIT
he described as man monkey" /
thought it must be a gorilla. / could
only see that it must be creature of
large dimensions to be SO near the top
of a high tree. l therefore raised my
rifle to my shoulder, took careful aim
and prepared to fire. l had very nearly
pulled the trigger when my boy called
out: Don't fire! It's a mani" I al
most dropped my gun, so great was
my establishment. Could it be man?
Yes, there he was; | could clearly dis
tinguish him. He had discovered us,
and as we stood there gazing, the little
man ran along the branch on which
he had been standing, and jumping
! from tree to tree, soon disappeared.
1t was a pygnly, and how nearly had
he paid the penalty of climbing trees.
Late in the afternoon, while casually
looking up from my book, became
aware Of a number of little faces peer
ing at me through the thicket. Just
in front of me was the huge trunk of
a tree, and from one side of it peeped
tiny figure. For a moment | was
taken aback; it seemed like being in
fairy-land and receiving visits from
fairies. My boys caught sight of these
strange little beings, and came at once
and fetch the little people, that 1
might talk to them; but he was afraid
and refused to leave my side. At last
l called out in the language of the
people Of Toro, and to my pleasure one
little man returned my greeting. 1
:. asked him. to come to me, and very
slowly and shyly he cTept along, hid
ing his face behind his hands. now
had a complete view of my visitors.
| Although lHSy dl q fely oHolI, dDouI
four feet high, they are broad-cbested,
with muscles finely developed, short,
thick neck. and small bullet head, with
legs massive and strong. The chest is
covered with black curly hair, and
most of the men wore thick black
boards Each carried a bow and ar
rows, or short throwing-spears. They
never cultivate the ground, but wan
der from place to place, gathering
fruits and nuts from the trees. Often
they follow a wounded elephant for
days, shooting into it hundreds of little
iron-tipped arrows, until the poor crea-
ture dies from sheer exhaustion. They
make their little camp and live upor
the flesh as long as it lasts; ther
away they go again to seek other food
The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-09-19

proverbial wisdom in tba - nt,,re of
the hopper from which 4 aI,as honey
blrds presumably know certain poison
GUS insects by instinct At the sight /
OF some caterpllars one would be re
pelied and naturally think of these OBJ
lru1s.o 'tsecls as most poisonous
There is where one is mistaken. for,
as a general rule this ferocious ap
. a.. go 10 simply for the purpose OF
enloMii,s Dust in the eyes of their
preylng brethren. The birds however. 4
as soon as they sight one of these gor-
geousiy-altlred caterpillars. are all a
lutlel, ana eagerly bouncing upon
MIN, 'hey forthwith devour him with
aVldlty As soon as he is Matched,
sometimes before the caterpillar has
enemies lying in wait for him. While
tne butterfly is depositing her eggs.
announcer insect comes along and as soon
as Tue FORMER gets out of sight the lat
.el proceeds to lay her eggs among
those OF the butterfly This insects
young d e similar to human parasites,
and rapidly developing, they hatch
pefore thelr unfortunate neighbors and
as the bptterfys young appear they
are speedily devoured. 1t is pitiful to
note the tragedy that occurs when
the handsome butterfy's hereditary
enemy, the ichneumon fly, discovers
them. This winged economist lays her
eggs on the back of the caterpillar, just
previous to the latter's going into Sc
elusion' preparatory to md amorphos-
ing into butterfly. Am the eater
pillar has spun its coed and costly
ensconced itself in its H. the fy'a
eggs hatch and the youn inject preys
on the poor caterpillar 49, strong
enough, when it eats ita INTO the
outer world, there to still her pur-
sue its work OF destructf Thus it
may be demonstrated TIL an insect
must kill or be killed. fSy the laws
OF destruction among insects are inn
ml1fa HE
The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-09-19
TO BE SEEN AT A
SOUTHERN RaILyyaY
STATION.

came close and exciting in the extreme.
Inc Federals cut the telegraph wires,
tore up the tracks and set fire to the
bridges in their efforts to retard the
pursuit. But their water and fuel fin
ally giving out, they were compelled
to abandon the engine and take to the
woods. They We're, however all cap
tured, and eight of them, including
Capt. Andrews, We're tried and exc
cuted. The old locomotive which fig
ured in this caring and disastrous en-
terprlse has been frequently exhibited
at G. A. r. encampments and other
reunions OF War veterans. Recently it
has been erected on a solid pedestal
as shown in our photograph and given
a place OF honor near the union depot
In Chattanooga, where it may be seen
hereafter among other valuable relics
OF the war about that city.
The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-09-19
ROADWAYs IN NORWAY.
Row They Are Constructed and AM
nually Kent in Rcpair

nually Kept in Repair.
In Norway the national government
builds the main highways, while thu.
crossroads are built by the parishes
| The management is in the hands of a
bureau in the national department of
public works, and the maintenance
falls upon the people who live in the
nelghborhood, under the supervision of
local inspector. Every farmer has a
piece of road to take care of, according
to the amount of land he owns, and at
intervals slabs of cast iron are erected
bearing his name and the section of
! the road he is required to keep in or
der. Thus every mans reputation is
at stake in the neighborhood, and if
there is a muddy place or rut, every
body knows who is to blame for it,
Commissioners Bhh iia7a'ffs ha 'e'1 to the eo'ntv
On the outside of ealh road is line
of large blocks of stone set upright,
which serves as barrier to prevent
wagons from going off into the ditch.
There are now $500 miles of main
highway, and II 600 miles of cross
road or a total of IL 500 miles of roads
| in Norway, and the total expenditure
| upon them by the national and local
| authorities will average million and
half of dollars every year.
! The first cost of road is usually
about So 900 mile. They first dig an
excavation about three feet deep, as
if they were going to make canal
On the bottom are thrown heavy blocks
of stone, through which the water can
filter, and occasionally there is little
drain to carry it off. Upon this is a
layer of smaller stones, and then still
smaller. until the surfacing is reached
which is macadam or pounded slate
mixed with gravel and stone.
The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-09-19
Increase in Southern Lumber Mills.

In 1880 the southern lumber mills
had an output valued at $3S 5000
In ten years this had advanced to
$105,575,S19. Since then there has
been a steady increase in production
until today it may be conserWatively
estimated that the value of the output
including the material used for cross
ties, fuel and fencing and the naval
stores hy-products, is between 1925.
100000 and $3.50 100000.
The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-09-19
Our Flag and the Sun.

During the summer months it is said
that the sun always shines on some
portion Of the territory of the United
States, but at other times during the
year there are periods of the day when
the United States with its possessions
is in darkness. 1t is stated that Great
Britain, France and Holland are the
only countries having colonies so To-
Gated that the sun always shines OR
some portion of them.
The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-09-19
Rich Men without Chance.

1t is a rather curious fact that vera
rich men are SO often caught without
money Ina their pockets. The late
George W. Childs was SO careless il
this respect that not infrequently
other passengers in street cars would
pay His fare for him. Philadelphia
Recoid. 81
The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-09-19

see that she was indeed in need Of as
distance, he tossed his pipe and hat
beside bis coat, and plunged into the
hves, and struck out for the
Iere she had gone under. Accus-
as he was to fresh water swim
he found it easy enough to
peed here. and bythe time she
- 70 the surface again, he was
Slipping one arm beneath
turned upon his backss and
k to the baseh. I'M that mat
way III which he was wont
ythipg. Once there, be car
ripping little iigure to q dry
laid A.r down. The Girl was
The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-09-19
The Idol of the Roys.

Few books are better known among
English-spealSing boys than Tom
Browns School-Days at Rugby .
Thomas Arnold, Jr., was at Rugby
when Thomas Hughes, the Tom BiAwn
of the SCHOOL life. was a pupil there,
and in Passages in Wandering.
Life gives his recollections Of the
boys hero Tom Hughes at fifteen was
tail for his age; his long. thin face. his
The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-09-19
The Mermaid.
BY d. JACK. APPLETON.
Copyright, 1901, bysDally story Pub. c

Copyright, 1901, by Daily Story Pub. Coz
He sat on a gray, wave-scarred rock
and gazed thoughtfully out to sea. 1t
was early morning and tiny salt
breeze was blowing inland, of which
Van Holden was pleasantly but indo-
lently conscious. His straight, aristo-
cratic nose was tilted at the proper
angle to catch this odor so keenly APP
preciated by these who live far from
the ocean, and his soft hat was tilted
the other way, over his keen blue eyes.
Van Holden was not in love. He
was not even contemplating suicide.
He had merely arisen early to ENJOY
the novelty of such thing and had
4 wandered half mile from the summer
hotel to this protected little cove. AS
his digestion was excellent he took
from his pocket now briar pipe, filled
and struck a match.
If it were not so beautiful, - che re-
Skked aloud Hooking out to the sea
lie match burned up, IF it were not
Eal saAnisA to disturb the absolute
this scene-and if other
Jt go in so much and muss
p-It believe l would take
here and now" The
g gone out, Van Holden
bther and lighted his pipe.
Iclasped his hands about his
md rocked gently back and Tor :,
81 ought really to be IN love-
ut on, $50 that / might spout
A. this very minute. Poor ola
ocean! How much you have borne
4 from .love-sick individuals who insist
on numbering good verse, with you as
an audiences! 1t is really too PAD. bul
cannot improvise, and I never could
quote, SO you'll be saved this mornlhs'
\ | ought to be in love, but as no moo
ern Venus is apt to rise from the
wayes-by all the gods, I'm not so
sure! What's that?'
His eyes opened widely as his sol1lo-
ouy was interrupted by the appearance
of a rapidly moving, graceful figure,
swimming easily toward him from
around the little promitory at his
right and Van Holden held his breath
for moment as he gazed at it. 1t
was assuredly what he had thought at
first glance-a girl or young wo-
man. swimming toward shore, her rosy
face turned to one side, her white arms
cleaning through the little whirl of
4 foam that she made with long, grace
full, overland strokes.
But before Van Holden had decided
that a noiseless retreat was his cue,
she caught sight of him, and then,
with little scream, seemingly more
Of fright than surprise, she turned
quickly and started seward again.
But something seemed to retard her
progress, and in moment more the
golden head, with masses of soft hair
piled high upon it, had disappeared
beneath the water.
Van Holden sprang to his feet and
threw off his coat. Waiting only tc
The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-09-19

Fifteen" she answered. He wants
me to DE a mermaid in the show this
summer. You wouldn't make me do
that-if you were my father, would
your" she added suddenly, as if struck
by happy thought.
Assuredly not" answered Van Hol-
zen, taking one of her cold little hands
IN MS; what is your fathers name?''
Frank Moran" she answered. 1T
is Moran's Great Three Ring Circus,
you know"
Yes" said Van Holden, curious
light coming into his eyes, II do
know" The child came closer to him
ana looked up at him for a moment
without speaking. Then:
'Yol are good" she said slowly;
you ae strong, too. l think l like
you veg much" Ere he could stop
her. she stood on tiptoes, pressed her
pretty lips to his, and turned and ran
fieetly away toward the hotel in the
far distance Van Holden smiled and
called after her, Goodbye, little mer-
maid."
She paused 4 moment to wave her
hand to him, aid answer, Goodbye.
good mani Then she was gone again.
Frank Moran indeed" said Van
Holden, the determined lines about his
mouth showing plainly. He is adding
kidnapping to his other fine arts.
Well, MI. Moran, l have stopped some
OF your smaller games; I'll see if 1
can put an end to this. Poor little
mermaid"
BY five o'clock that afternoon Van
Holden was back in New York, and a
day later there was a brief Tut intense
scene in the room which Nj. Moran
occupied at the seaside hotel. At the
end of that scene, in which Van Hol-
den, Moran, an old but detel mined
lawyer from New York, and a fight
ened, shabby dressed little woman
who proved to be the small mermalas
aunt, took part, Van Holden shove
the circus owner the door, with the
admonition: Il give you two hours to
get away; at the end of that time if
you are still here or if you try to
take this child again by pretending to
be her father, or any other relative,
into the penitentiary you go.'
And that evening the little mermaid,
whom her delighted aunt called Ma
rian, was placed in the motherly care
of Mrs. Hargrave, the manager of the
hotel. A few days later Van Holden's
mother came, looked at the child,
looked at her son-and took the
former to her heart, for all time
The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-09-19
Sheep Raising
ION Ranches

Sheep raising, while it may seem
simple to the Inexperienced, is most
difficult business to successfully con-
duct, says the Anaconda Standard.
The sheep must be carefully herded,
and one day of neglect will scatter the
herd for miles and entail loss OF hun
dreds of dollars. Then there is the
feeding and watering during the win
ter months@which must not be neglect
ed: and the worst work of all comes
with the spring time, when "lambing'
begins, and for weeks neither day nor
night is there rest for the men who
work in the lambing herds. A lamb
does not look large, but let cold
storm come on when several hundred
of them are dropping daily and the
pens are crowded to suffocation, and
ii the men rest for an hour it means
.dollaIl gone to the bad.
! ! ! !. !. !. !. !. |:
hearing, which
that Z men to do the
u,a,,. Il see that the work
l. 49,, Hr out of the "a.
&C. Lhout reason in many
+,,ina,, slightest thing out of
~ =, in their everyday life
49,, loss of thousands of dol
- =. wper. In the winter time |
. Nil. ay come up and dive them
l5oforn ; br miles, until at last hum
dreds Nhem are piled up in some
ra,,inoEd are lost. Two years ago
last t6ber the storm which visited
,,or+,M Montana meant loss OF
thonH kis of dollars to the sheep own
ars i also it meant death to seven
ebe@erders on the range, who We're
40, & out and endeavored to be faith
fuao their charges. In corral 1t
g .times happens in the winter time
~, the sheep get cold and crowd to-
The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-09-19
Maine Sardines.

"The sardine towns on the Main
coast says the Kennebec Jourgn
& ..sare congratuIating themselves on.
fact that herring are beginnin
come. Every year the little fishe
called upon to do their ligll
change act BY arriving - herril
departing as sardines. B
The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-09-19

That was five years ago! Today Van
Holden is no longer careless, ire
sponsible bachelor. If you care to
look him up, you will find him en-
sconced in a delightful little fiat, deep
ly and increasingly in love with his
wife-graceful and beautiful in every
way-and calling her, at times, "mer-
maid dear"
The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-09-19
POLITICS IN FRANCE.

that IN. lie Col Bryan first
came into fame as one Of the strange
half-sayage bands of cowboys wig
roaned over the far west lighting theyS
Indians and wild beasts. ImitatinE{
.perhaps. the custom of the Indian
chiefs. each of the cowboys bore
nickname based on some OF MS eN
ploits as a hunter or fighter. Thus Nc
le Col. Bryan's title among his rough
but brave and sturdy comrades W3as
Silver Bill, the Dead Shot. After q be
treaty of peace was signed with q
indians at Chicago in 1896 Col. Brya
went out of the cattle business az.
became one of the bonanza farmer
the west. He can n sit on his
stoop. as the rear " Is cafe
| America, and look
corn stretching fart
can reach in every
suit of his early til
where he spent M
out an opportuT
>esher human
presfdsnt (t1(
during
ly tacituM
issues of
thor of
The Fl
his en-
Tam4
\ scril
The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-09-19
RELIC OF A DARING RAID.

sandy hair, his length of limb and his
spare frame gave him a lankiness of
aspect which was the cause, 1 suppose.
of the boys giving him the extraor-
binary nickname of "aXecutoner." Nc
name could be less appropriate, for
there VS. nothing inhuman or morose
or surly III his looks, and still less in
his disposition; the temper of bully
was utterly alien from him, and he was
always cheerful md gay. He was one
OF the best runnes in the school, and
many a time l HAYS seen him in the
quadrangle just befolt hare and
hounds'-he being one Of he hares
lightly clad, and with a bag OF scent
strapped around him. He was too
keen-eyed and observant to be sp ~
ly popular, but all the small boys
him because he was kind a1illil
to them. He reached the
but left before he had rise
| elsewhere.-D buth-s comp
The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-09-19
Plea for Single -!


Two in bed is the us}f al custom of
sleeping, in the United States at least,
and also in Canada aJd Englnd. But
in Germany and Frshce single beds
are the rule. The lltter plan is more
healthful and comfoJrtahle, says med
ical authority Ii is gradually coming
into use IN this q ountry. Single beds
involve more linet more work in MAX
ing beds and more washing, but
never knew a fanlily to return to the
old plan after onfe giving single beds
fair trial ESPECIALLY in summer is
the single bed TO be preferred or even
sleeping on the floor, to two in bed.
Many families declared they never
knew what comic was during the hot
summer nights until they adopted the
single beds | might add word of
protest against allowing babies or
young children to sleep with old peo-
pie. The latter certainly draw upon
the vitality of the former. Tvs rs
probably true as between ad5 oe6fek{
lows one of whom isAsrhly or Leg,
strong than the othel >tGnsfnptigS,n
and other diseases have Gtet cen
communicated from one bedfexg DO
another.
Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1901-04-20
Caught a Dreadful Cold.

Marion Kooke, manager for L. M
Thompson, a large importer of fine mill
linery at 1868 Milwaukee Avenue, Chi
cago, says: During the late severe
weather l caught a dreadful cold which
kept me awake at night and made me
unfit to attend my work during the day.
One of my milliners was taking Cham
berlain's Cough Remedy for a severe
cold at that time, which seemed to re-
lieve her so quickly that | bought some
for myself. 1t acted like magic and |
began to improve at once | am now
entirely well and feel very pleased to
acknowledge its merits" For sale by
A. j. Jones.
Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1901-04-20

One of the uost enjoyable social occa.
sions Of the season took place at the
opera house last Thurs lay evening. The
Goo Coos "a new organization of the
young people, invited a few of their un-
fortunate friends (married) to spend the
evening with them. The amusements
consisted of music, cards and dancing.
At about 11:30 the tables were spread
and each and every member ofthe party
did justice to a most beautiful repast.
1t was one of the most jolly affairs that
ave took place here and all those pres
ent hope that it may occur again very
soon.
Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1901-04-20
Question Answered.

Yes, August Flower still has the larg-
est sale of any medicine in the civilized
world. Your mothers and grandmoth-
ers' never thought of using anything
else for indigestion or biliousness. Doc
tors were scarce. and they seldom heard
of appendicitis, nervous prostration or
heart failure, etc. They used August
Flower TO clean out the system and stop
fermentation of undigestcd food, regu-
late the action of the liver. stimulate
the nervous and organic action of the
system, and that is all they took when
feeling dull and bad with headaches and
other aches. You only need a few
doses of Green's August Flower. in Ii.
quid form, to make you satisfied there
Is nothing serious the matter with you.
Get Green's Prize Almanac. A. j..
Jones.