davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The courier. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1894-1903, 1901-02-23
Ethslbert Nevin,

There is none TO take his place
though there have been and are great
er composers. Modern times are not
prolific of lyric writers. OF course
there are mediocre coon song writers
and balladists, but Of poets and song
writers there is now not one in Amer
lea. Nevin's milieu was song writ
ing though he had an ambition, which
he was sure would be realized, to
write operas aud longer and more
complicated themes than songs, which
pleased the critics, the singers, maid
ems and little children. Within
narrow range Nevin's genius was uni
yersal. His work was like those ex-
quisite small tigurines green and gray
with mould of Egypt and Greece. He
had great respect for his work and its
perfection is direct result of the care
and reverence of a genius. The music
that he wrote for StevenSon's verses
for children illustrate his comprehen-
sion Of the limitations of those who
were to sing his music, which for the
Stevenson libretto never leave the
tones and the mild swing Of a child's
voice.
The courier. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1894-1903, 1901-02-23


coats, lap-robes and harnesses innum'
cradle. July was the worst month OF
the year. A circus arrived and the
thieves who accompanied it were al
lowed to pursue their work undis-
turbed. In july of 1896 thirty-three
complaints are recorded by the police
reporters in the daily papers OF Lin
coin. Twenty successful burglaries
were committed. Pick-pOckets filled
the city. Losses were reported but
no pick. pockets are reported arrested.
August was month Of sneak
thievery and of eight burglarieS.
September, October and November,
the thieves in the city were evidently
not reinforced bv circus followers.
Hen.roosts. entrys. ice chests and gro
ceries furnished food and overcoats to
the leisure class Of the old residents
of Lincoln whom the present admin.
istratiun has driven out OF town. The
record of December is a very long one.
1t was cold and no man with an over
coat dared to leave it in an Unlocked
hall-how-sO e'er defended. There
were thirteen burglaries.
Anyone who cares, can verify this
list and add to it by consulting file
Of any Lincoln daily. The papers do
not now often contain reports of hold
ups. robberies and complaints of pick
pockets, because these men have been
driven out of town. As soon as they
arrive in Lincoln and before they
begin their work Detective Malone
whose knowledge Of and acquaintance
with criminals is exhaustive noses
them out, they are arrested and Chief
talks with them. They in
admit their business and he
gives them the choice between a
trial on their record and an opDOrtu.
nifty to leave town Immediately. Not
one has yet cared to remain for trial.
And this is the inhabitants of
this town can 60 home safely at any
hour of the night, can 60 to sleep in
the cain serenity that they will lind
their treasures in the morning where
they left them the night before. Ia
these days or on these nights hens
remain on the rOOSts their owners
nave built for them, horses remain in
heir stalls, and harnesses and lap.
'obeS are not mOlested. Sneak thieves,
lobos, tranps of all kinds no longer
nfest the town, there are the same
number Of horses, hens, just as many
watches and rings and many more
pocket-bOOks. But among
.rafters Lincoln has bad name. 1t
S mo good" The mayor and the
hief Of police are blind to the advan-
ages of treaty with the grafters
Who are now living in town where the
mayor and his appointees are willing
to live and let live"
The courier. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1894-1903, 1901-02-23

Il don't see how he can live az he
does and sing"
Il don't see how he can stag as he
does and live"
The courier. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1894-1903, 1901-02-23

Miss Sinnick- do you think of
Miss Heigh?
Miss Verigood-Ob, don't know;I
think che lacks repoee.
Miss Sinnick-Impossible, my dear;
she lives in Philadelphia Town Topics.
The courier. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1894-1903, 1901-02-23

One touch OF nature makes the whole
world blush.
The courier. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1894-1903, 1901-02-23

How was the 6iuner las: mighty"
Fine. old man, the beet ever
drank. Town Topics.
The courier. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1894-1903, 1901-02-23

thieves stole
harnesses nnum
The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1901-11-28

The inhabitants of the countries bor-
dering on India have their own meth
ods of making fire. A Burmese mes
senger recently brought note to an
English officer, and the latter observed
something resembling boys popgun
hanging by the messengers side. Gu
riosity prompted him to ask the native
what it was, and he was surprised to
find that it was machine for making
fire.
The native exhibited the apparatus
and explained the working, concluding
with a practical demonstration. It
was tube, closed at one end and fitted
with a piston. AT the end of the piston
was a groove or cavity, smeared with
wax, which was used for making
thread or inflammable material adhere
to it. The tinder, to keep the old name,
is pressed on the wax when light is
required and is not kept there always.
Placing the wisp OF cotton on the
wax, the native inserted the tightly
fitting piston in the tube, then forced it
along the latter by giving it sharp
blow. On withdrawing the piston the
cotton was found to be alight, having
been ignited by the concussion with the
compressed air.-Pearson's Weekly.
The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1901-11-28
THE ARMY CANTEEN

TIME army canteen question may
be fought all over again at the
next session of congress.
Regimental and post COM
manders are reporting to the war de-
partment that saloons in the vicinity of
the posts are multiplying, while drunk
enness among the soldiers is increas-
ing.
Saloons may increase, but that is no
sign that drunkenness is increasing. 1t
takes money to buy whisky, aud the
pay of the soldier has been reduced
since the abolition of the canteen. Now
a soldier has his months pay at each
pay day, where formerly he owed it all
to the canteen. have seen regiment
after regiment paid off and almost
60 per cent of the men handed most of
their money to the canteen officer.
1t has always been the custom to
give credit to soldiers at post canteens,
and most of the men took advantage
The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1901-11-28
= Some ParadOxes Of u,
" Life. ~
Life.

that denounced the other. In some Of
our cities where the better class de-
nOunce the saloon and saloon element,
these same persons honor and fire.
quently have among the leaders of
their society the families of the whole
sale liquor houses that supply these
saloons.
Two men become involved in an
alteration and the aggressor is van
quished; if the victor has less money
and the poorer lawyer he goes to
prison condemned, degraded, maligned,
while the other continues to be a re-
spected citizen. Again, two men become
involved in an alteration, the one
with very decided prOvocation or
acting only in defence of self or home,
gets the better of the encounter, goes to
prison for long term of years or for
life. But man may engage in war,
even foreign war between two
countries in which he has no interest
whatever, simply actuated by desire
for the novelty of the experience, or a
desire to shoot something, or prejudice,
or to earn few paltry dollars in
wages, may kill hundred or thousand
men and he is "lauded to the Skies"
Wars, terrible storms, cyclones, mine
disasters, ship disasters. railroad dis
asters, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions,
conflagrations, drouth, famine, horrible
epidemics, floods and other fearful
calamities, involving millions of dollars
and millions of lives, bringing wretch
edness and misery to tens of millions
The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1901-11-28

fare, and "would l in kindness to a
poor widow and children in distress
carry them as far as went?"
1 asked her why she had not asked
for aid in K, telling her that 1 had no
right to carry her on a freight. She
told me she did not like to ask for
charity in a big town and have it get
in the papers. About that time the
children began to cry and blubber:
Mamma, can't we 60 home? Won't the
man let us go? We are so hungry"
The wailing would have spftened a
heart of stone, and I am sure they
would have ridden to the end of the
division with me, but for one thing
every time l raised my lantern the
woman tried to conceal her face, and in
spite of all that could do I could not
get good look at her. After awhile
climbed up in the cupola and told my
brakeman to go down and see if he
knew the woman. He climbed down
and few minutes later returned and
said / could carry them if wished,
but he would throw the whole bunch
off without stopping the train, were he
in my place. He was man of good
judgment, so l told him to stop the
train at the next station. When we
reached there [ unloaded the widow
while she called me names.
On the return trip asked the opera
tor if she had seen widow and four
orphans around the station the other
morning. She said she had, and wanted
to know why l asked. 1 told her about
throwing them off, and she then told
me the woman was spotter who had
picked up four kids in Detroit to use
in her business. When reported the
case to the division superintendent he
smiled and said he had heard ABOUT it.
If 1 had listened to that hard luck
story and carried the woman, she
would have reported me and would
have been fired. SILVER.
The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1901-11-28

Money, Not Man. ;
hood, Lacking in
the Ottoman En-
pire. Race Not
Decaying.

gone so far as to say that with their
climate and disposition, their faith sup
plies their needs better than the Chris
tian faith would do.
Other nations have historians to tell
of their achievements and hopes; Tur-
key has none. The average man re-
ceives his information regarding the
empire from magazine articles, lec-
lures and letters, and these are, as a
general thing, anything but impartial.
The authors are usually missionaries
who have grievances to air. If these
people are used roughly in Turkey, l
for one don't see that they have any
business to complain. When a man
goes where he knows he is not wanted
he should be willing to abide by the
consequences.
Look at this another way: Suppose
Turk should start preaching his reli-
giOn in Boston; suppose he should force
his way into the houses and tell those
stiff -necked Yankees that they are
heathens because they looked up when
they pray, instead of turning their
faces toward Mecca. Suppose he should
tell them that they would have soften
ing of the brain, instead of the heart,
if they ever gave over hypocrisy and
practiced what they preached about
forgiving their enemies; suppose a
Turk should do this, what do you think
would happen? Why the Bostonians
would fight to see whether that Turk
was due for the frog pond or the police
station. And their actions would not
be considered outrageous either; merely
the expression of an incensed people.
If you would see fanatics, don't 60 to
Turkey. There are plenty of them at
home. And ontrages! why there are
more committed in the United States
each year than in all the rest of the
world combined. Go south, young
man. Go south. r. j. H.
The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1901-11-28

of this. A soldier is never happy until
he is broke. If credit is given him he
will buy anything, and of course if he
drinks he will buy all the "booze" he
can. But now those who care to drink
have to 60 to town, while those who do
not drink are not molested and
awakened at all hours of the night by
drunken men, One drunk each month
is about all soldier can get now on
his $13, but formerly it was possible to
get canteen jag at almost any old
time. -e.-.-.-
OF course the officers kick at the new
order of things. 1t was very convenient
for them to buy their beer, wine, whis-
ky and other beverages at wholesale
prices. While was a soldier in Cuba
an officer could get bottle of ice cold
beer for ten cents, but an enlisted man
had to pay quarter for bottle of corn
soup.
The equipment, fixtures, ETC., of
post exchange belonged to the enlisted
men, purchased with money subscribed
by them. An officer, generally cap
tain, was in charge of the canteen,
and received his pay from the govern
ment, but all other employees, such as
steward, clerks, bartenders and swamp
ers, were paid out of the profits from
the sale of beer. What was left after
all expenses were paid was supposed to
go to the mems mess, but the mess gen.
orally got left. While the goods were
purchased with the mems money, the
men had no voice in their selection.
The exchange officer bought what and
of whom he chose. The only benefit
the men rec eived from the canteen was
the privilege of getting drunk when
ever they felt like it. If Uncle Sam
can't keep his soldiers without the can
teen, let him disband the army. P.
The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1901-11-28

7 AM not a pessimist. Pessimsm
is bad for the digestive organs,
bad for the liver. Optimism is
healthful and makes life hap
pier; therefore 1 like to take optimis-
tic views of things. But it is generally
conceded that there are two sides to all
questions, and one side may have as
strong points in its favor as the other
side, and sometimes, perhaps, stronger.
Thoughts which are presented here
may seem pessimistic to many persons,
but may in some future issue of THE
MIRROR treat with the optimistic side
of these thoughts.
The idea frequently occurs to me
that the smaller the offence the greater
is the penalty and public condemnation;
and there are pursuits which, when
followed on a small scale, are looked
upon by the so called better class as
dishonorable, degrading, disgraceful,
but which, followed on large scale,
are sanctioned and the participants
honoreG in society.
To illustrate: In almost every city,
town and section of our country man
who is found to be gambling by any of
the various ordinary methods is de-
nOunced by the so called better class
and has to 60 to Jail or court and
generally pays fine. A man who
CANDLES on large scale, as on the
various games in Wall street, on the
Boards of Trade, ETC., throughout the
country, is honored and frequently
lionized and idolized by the same class
The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1901-11-28
The Waysof Spoilers.

I AM AN old time railroad man,
and frankly admit that of all
/ Objectionable people, the ''spotter"
is the most Objectionable. l have
no use for him at any stage of the
game, and regard him as most people
do reptiles.
Some years ago l was an extra con-
ductor on one of the eastern trunk
lines. A new president had recently
been elected, and his first order was
that no conductor or engine man
should carry anyone free under any
circumstances without permission from
the superintendent or trainmaster. And
fearing we might forget his order, he
lined the road with spotters-men and
women. The men were bad enough,
but the women were worse. They
would not only check over the passen-
gers, but would engage the conductor
in conversation and then report him
for being too attentive to ladies on his
train. One of them turned in report
against one of the boys for flirting
with his own wife. / encountered one
of the female gender who was terror.
1t happened this way:
One dark and rainy night l was in
charge of freight. When we got to
K, the order board was urned to hold
in for orders, which we nd. When we
started out [ caught onto the rear
platform of the caboose and stood
there till we were over the last switch
in the yard. Then 1 opened the door,
and as stepped in. the light from my
lantern shone on woman and four
children crouched in corner. She was
dressed in black and crepe veil covered
part of her face. asked her where
she came from and whittier she was
going, and she replied that she had
been up in the slorthern part of the
state to bury her husband and was
now trying to get back home with her
orphaned children. She had enough
money, she said, to pay part of the
The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1901-11-28
FROM THE TURKS
~ VIEWPOINT. ~

N TOONE can form true cOncep.
VI ton of the character of a
race as the worth of a nation
if test of civilization foreign
to that race as nation is applied. The
Mahometan faith has raised civiliza.
tion altogether different from that OF
the Christian, and in the 1000 years of
its existence has lost none of its virility
Every nation should be judged by its
own standard of right and wrong
and not by the standard of others. The
nearer they adhere to their own ideals
the higher and better becomes their
civilization.
The Turks, and for that matter all
Mahometans, have become a byword
for the rest of the world on account of
their vices, but if we will investigate
we will find that what we regard as
vices they practice as virtues. For
what the Bible is to the Christian the
Koran is to the Mahometan. TO the
Christian the Turk is an infidel; to the
Turk the Christian is an unbelieving
dog. A man will fight for his religion
"quicker than for anything else, and the
Mahometan loves his religion quite
rs well, if not better, than the Christian
loves his.
Writers are fond of speaking of the
decay of the Turkish empire. That is
nonsense. 1t is money, not manhood
that is lacking. Twenty-three years
ago at Plevna, the Turks commanded
the admiration of the world. Had they
been of any other nation they would
have been termed heroes; as they were
Turks they were called fanatics.
A fair question to ask is, Do they fol.
cow the teachings and precepts of their
prophet as we'll as Christians do the
teachings of Christ? Everyone with
any knowledge of them says yes. They
are better Mahometans than we are
Christians. Some intelligent men have
The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1901-11-28

of helpless women and children have
been of daily occurrence during all our
lives and the lives of our ancestors.
Yet millions of sufferers daily praise,
honor and thank one whom they con-
slider responsible for this state of
affairs, for all these occurrences, one
who is all-powerful, all wise, all
just, all perfection. Funny world! !
but it's the best we ever lived in-and
according to teachings the best most of
us will ever live in.
"Man born of woman has few days
There ne'er was statement truer-
And fate contrives in divers ways
To make those few days fewer.
On every side the microbes lurk
To shoot their poison through him;
The doctors then get in their work.
Between the two they do him.
"He takes ride, the trains collide,
And into giblets dash him.
He stays at home,la building falls
There's something bound to smash him.
He rows, and some one rocks the boat
In fun, of cOurse-to drown him;
Where'er he turns some idiot
Is lurking round to down him.
"A festive cyclone blows him up,
He falls into well-hole;
He dallies with the brimming cup
And gets dopediin a hell-hole.
He meets live and sizzling wire,
Whose juices quickly fill him.
By shpwreck dire, or food or fire,
There's something sure to kill him.
"But if by chance he should escape
From all these woes that trail him,
Grim death assumes another shape
And that can scarcely fail him.
Should he the gauntlet safely run
And footpads dA not slug him.
Some lunatic behind gum = sss
By accident will plug him.
"Of all the craZes that abound
This is the most accursed one
The Juggling of a cannon round
Is certainly the worst one.
But there are fools in every place,
This world is but bubble,
Man born of woman has few days
And they are full of trouble
The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-12-19
RUDE FERNS WHIPPED
BATTERED DOWN BY JOE wALCOTT,
THE RARBADOEs BLACK.
Fight stopped by the Referee, Who
Saved the weIter-weight Cham
pion from Being Knocked Out.

BUFFALO, N. Y, Dec. B.-Rube Ferns,
to defeat at the hands of Joe walcott, the
Barbados black. in five rounds in the
arena of the International Clubhouse at
Fort Erie tonight. Walcott battered down
Ferns with terrific body blows and right
and left swings to the head. To save Ferns
from being completely knocked out Referee
Mcbride stopped the bout and awarded the
decision to Walcott.
In the fifth and last round Walcott sent
Ferns TO the boards on two occasions, and
Rubet twice took the count. When he arose
the second time he was I'm a weakened con-
dition. The fight while it lasted was the
fastest and hercest fought in the new club
house. Ferns landed some terrible blows
on Walcott's stomach, but Walcott was in
the pink Of condition and laughed at
Ferns's efforts. Ferns began to weaken in
the third round, and his admirers saw the
beginning of the end. In the fourth round
both went TO the floor in a clinch, and
Walcott assisted Ferns to rise. Hardly had
the two renewed hostilities before Walcott
almost sent RUDE through the ropes. He
ropes and gained his feet. He fought
gamely and desperately. Walcott went at
him with vicious blows and had Ferns
almost out when Referee Mcbride inter
fered.
The men fought at 142 pounds, and the
bout was scheduled for twenty rounds.
Jack Hanley and Curley Supplies handled
Ferns and Kid Mcfarland and others
looked after the new welter-weight cham
pion.
The preliminary bout between Hiram
Goldstein. of Buffalo. and Mike Ward. OF
Canada, developed into a smuggling match
and the men were stopped by the police,
The bout was declared a draw.
After the fight Walcott issued a chal-
lenge TO fight any man in the world, Tom
my Ryan preferred.
KANSAS CITY. Mo, Dec. 1s.-Tommy
Ran, who claims the title of middle
weight champion. said to-night that he
would ignore the challenge from Joe Wal
colt. II have defeated every man who has
beaten Walcott,' he said. "and l don't
consider the latter in my class"
The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-12-19
MANY BOXERS BANISHED
HOW RUSSIA CLEARED MANCHURIA
OF INSURGENT CHINESE.
Mail Advices from the Orient, Which
Say a Rising of Natives Is
Feared at Manila.

VICTORIA, B. c., Dec. 1S.-The steamer
Keosa Maru. which arrived here to-day
from the Orient, after a very rough pas
sage, brings advices from V~ladivostock of
the manner In which Russia has cleared
Manchuria of Boxers and insurgents. A
total of 2,216 soldiers and Boxers have been
arrested by different expeditions from
Tune to Nov. 4. Some have been ban
ished. The more trustworthy have be-
come native police.
Reports are given of a volcanic erup-
ton in Kamtchatka, where Mount Witch
is active. A Vladivostock dispatch to the
Kobe Chronicle, dated Nov. 10, says: "a
terrible roaring, underground noise, that
was heard for nearly one hundred miles,
preceded the eruption The lava continued
to flow for several days. The lava has
flowed into the rivers, poisoning the waters
and killing the fish, thousands of which can
be seen everywhere. A volcanic dust COW
cred all the trees and underground in the
whole of southern Kamtchatka, and the
inhabitants, through breathing this dust,
have become affected with a peculiar
cough. A serious earthquake was felt
throughout Kamtchatka. No loss of life
occurred"
The Hong-Kong Press says: Upon re-
turning from a visit to the United States
flagship Kentucky in Hong-Kong harbor
on Nov. is, Consul General and Mrs. Rub
lee and a friend were set upon by -four
or five German sailors. The matter has
been referred to the German consul"
The authorities in Manila evidently fear
a rising. for Manila papers report that ar
tillery is being placed in places about the
city heretofore unprotected. Calling guns
nave been placed In the headquarters OF
the department of Southern Luzon and II
is understood that a small %gunboat Will
take up a position in the lagoon at the
rear of the headquarters building. Old
fort Santiago, too, is bristling with guns
Two rapid fire Calling guns have beer
mounted on the ramDarts, one of them
commanding a full sweep of Gale Principe
and the river front. A small Calling CUR
has been mounted on the Buffalo, General
Chaffee's private launch.