The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-12-08


tact of his bare feet with the earth
and his head projecting into the atmos-
phere would make a perfect electrical
conductor, through which the electric
ity of the air would pass through his
body to the earth. While no apparent
harm is done, yet, being insulated from
the electricity of the earth by wearing
shoes, the electricity fails of its ben
eficiaI result. There can be no doubt
that it would be better for everybody.
especially nervous people, if their feet
were on the ground instead of in
shoes.
According to an Omaha correspond
ent of the Chicago Tribune, D. H. Hoff-
man, a Union Pacific machinist getting
SO a day, has received the palm as the
most extensively dressed man in that
city. The extent of his wardrobe was
brought to light in trial in Omaha,
where a man was charged with steal
ing a suit case full of clothing from
him. While under oath he stated that
the grip contained IS worth of neckties.
How many neckties have you alto
gether?" asked the attorney. He re-
piled: 81 have $500 worth of neckties %
| The court gasped and the attorney
turned, pale. "Is the rest of your ward
robe in proportion" asked the attor-
| pey. "It is" responded the witness.
Hoffman was dressed faultlessly.
Prof. Henry A. Ward, the veteran
| metorite hunter. recently found me-
teorite of tremendous size. 1t has a
length of thirteen feet and one inch;
width of six feet and two inches; thick
ness five feet and four inches and
weight fifty tons. Prof. Ward has
named it Bacubirito. after the mining
town near which it was unearthed,
and which is situated on the Rio Sin
aloa, Mexico. 1t took twenty-eight
able poems one entire day to I'M
cover its upper surface, making an ex-
cavation thirty feet on a side. with the
great metorite lying within. At the end
of the second day they were able to
bring the huge mass to a semi-vertical
position, the Mexicans standing aghast
at the revelation of their work.
To France probably belongs the
credit of using the camera for war
purposes in a most satisfactory man
ner at time when it was of the ut
most Importance, says the Chicago
News. When Paris was besieged COM
munication with the outside world was
had only by means of balloons and
carrier pigeons were photographed on
small films. which could be attached
to the feathers of the birds. and in
this way a single bird could carry
thousands of words. Likewise the aero
nauts who lowered over Paris used
the camera for photographing the diff
ferent positions of the Prussians.
These photographs were the first ever
taken of an invading army from a bal
loon. Profiting by this experience, the
French army and navy have increased
their carrier pigeon and balloon serv-
ice. Several hundred officers in the
French army are expert photographers
and every engineering corps carries
with it complete Photographic outfits.
IT never realized the value of time
tables until 1 got hold of class of
boys old enough to take an interest in
geography" said a New York public
school teacher, according to the Times.
$50 far as the study of maps goes,
can get better results from the use of
time tables than from all the geogra-
phies in the market. Maps that have
been prepared for the purpose of Gull
tivating the youthful mind in the mat
ter of locality are Stunned as bug
bears by all except the studious few.
But just set a dozen boys around a
pile of time tables and tell them to To-
cate certain cities, lakes and rivers,
any they will work like beavers and
come out letter perfect every time. For
most children times tables and accom-
panying maps are a source Of unfail-
ing interest, both in and out of school
hours. 1t Is true that this unorthodox
method may give the boys exaggerated
ideas as to the importance of certain
railroads, but they seem TO get enough
good out of the investigation to coun-
teract such impressions"
Three generations of Irish politi-
and they have all left literary memo
rails behind them, says the London
Chronicle. The memoirs of Gen. Holt,
one of the leaders of the rebellion of
1898, contain some of the most graphic
descriptions of life in the early penal
settlements. The. leaders of the 1S4S
rebellion were mostly authors and jour-
nalists, and those of them that were
convicted and transported continued to
ply their pens in Tasmania. John
Mitchell wrote his Jail Journal" Will
liam Smith O'Brien jotted down his
"Meditations in Exile" and Thomas
Francis Meagher, afterward a general,
in the American Civil War and Gov
ernor of the state of Montana, wrote
series of sparkling letters to the Dub
Australasia" OF the Penian pris-
oners transported to Western Austria
liza in the sixties, John Boyle O'Reilly,
afterward editor of the Boston Pilot,
and poetica1 contributor to the Amer
lean magazines, was the most notable.
He wrote a Western Australia novel
called "Moondyne," and a dramatized
version of it has just been produced
at the local theater. 1t is the story of
an escaped prisoner who gained enor-
nous wealth by discovering a great
gold field in the interior of Western
Australia, and came to London, with
the notion of utilizing his riches in
philanthropy.
TIL official report of the traffic
through the Manchester Ship Canal for
the ten months ending October, shows
very satisfactory increase of bust
ness and revenue as compared with
the corresponding period of last year.
For the month of October alone, the
increase amounted to nearly $22, 900, or
more than 20 per cent, while for the
whole period the total revenue footed
up to 81, 100000, or an increase over the
first ten months of 1901 of nearly Is per
cent This increase, it must be borne
in mind, has been recorded in a year
when the Atlantic eastbound traffic
(upon which the canal depends for a
great part of its revenue) has been un-
usually contracted in volume and ex-
ceptionally unremunerative to shin
owners. Again, ii must be particularly
gratifying to the Manchester people to
realize that their faith in the ultimate
success of the great undertaking has