Omaha daily bee., 1902-09-21
Quaint Bits of Life

DIS vi Liz
Imagining that he was endowed with a
harm to hypnotic snakes, Reuben Cross. a
young farmer, residing at Flowers, near
Susquohanna, Pa, reached into a barrel
where a big rattlesnakc had been placed by
a party of harvesters, and held the reptile
at arms length. He made mysterious passes
about the snakes head, hut instead of being
subdued the snake darted it's poisonous
fangs into Cross wrist. He dropped thu
snake and FASTENED to a physician. Despite
the best medical attention Cross died.
II is a common practice I'm Berlin for the
wife to stay at home when the husband and
family go to the seaside. In this way the
wife enjoys her own holiday. For there is
no housekeeping to be done; she foregath-
Crs with friends-"grass Widows" like her
self-and they take their meals at restau-
rants, spend their afternoons and evenings
at popular places of entertainment and
thoroughly enjoy themselves.
What is supposed to be the smallest dis
tillcry in the world was recently uncarthcd
in a public park at Atlanta 10y the revenue
officers. The plant consisted of n quart
milk can with a tiny funnel. Some twenty
four inches of copper tubing served as 4
worm and the tank was made Of a half
gallon paint can. The revenue men de
scribe the apparatus as a "parlor stilI"
and say the advantages of it is that a man
can carry it around with him from one
place to another and distill whisky I'm
small but prnhta bile quantities Il. localities
where no enc would ever suspect him.
Thirty-cight years ago last week a troop
of United States cavalry clattcrcd up to the
smithy of John Wilkinson, a blacksmith i'm
Montgomery county, Maryland. and had
about half their horses shod, the troop
farrier having been lost in a skirmish a
day or two before. \ few days ago an
aged man, evidently in humble circum-
stances, applied to Mr.. Ritman, the audi
tor of the War department in Washing
ton, and asked him to examine certain
tattered slips Of yellow paper which he
produced from an old wallet. They proved
to be orders from the commanding officer
Of the troop Of cavalry on the quartermas-
ter for payment of the Maryland black
smith. An investigation showed that the
notes had been made by the officer COM
handing the cavalry. and the payment
was made to Wilkinson without the claim
having to go through the circumlocution
described by Mark Twain i'm his celebrated
beef contract story.
1t is perhaps well that President Roose-
welt was not accompanied by a photogra %
pher when he was hunting i'm Corbin park.
While on that expedition the president wore
a hunting suit belonging to Senator Proctor
of Vermont. Now, the senator is six feet
and a couple of inches to spare, with Abe
Lincoln arms and legs, and how in the
world the president was ever able to fire a
gun without his sleeves catching in the
hammer or how he was able to get around
at all without the superluous trouser legs
getting under his heels is a mystery. Be
sides, the president is a good bit plumpeI
than the Vermont statesman and if he
drew a deep breath in his pursuit Of bears
the damage must have been considerable
A snapshot Of the chief magistrate in tina
getup would be worth money.
| The city marshal of Mexico, Mo, is caus
ing a good deal OF disturbance in that city
Re insists on enforcing the ordinance which
provides that all places of business shall b,