davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Washington times., 1902-05-18

Indies a belief that the fairest island OF
all the seas is the abiding place Of a
terrible genius, and to verify that belief
in fearful fashion.
Their idea seems to have been handed
down from the aboriginal inhabitants OF
Martinique. Strangers from the Old
World saw, when they first saw this isle, a
veritable jewel set in a silken sea and
beneath the bluest and tenderest of skies,
and, seeing that, were sure that If there
was any spot in which contentment and
peace had a permanent home that spot
was Martinique.
This opinion they expressed in their
enthusiasm to the aborigines. and upon
doing SO were told that, on the other
hand, the island was no more and no less
than the most beautiful of women. cap
tive to a monster spirit, cruel, omni-
present, and unacceptable. And that decla-
ration the subsequent history of the ISL
and seems TO have fully borne out.
For within its small compass more ter
rible incidents and events have come 10
pass than have come to pass in any other
spot upon the earth in the same length of
time; and from cut OF the Islands won
drous heart have stepped more figures
who shine in history. pathetically splen-
did and splendidly pathetic. than havo
come from anywhere else.
MassaCres unparalleled have drenched
the fair land with blood; pirates have
The Washington times., 1902-05-18

made. the saddest perhaps. and the one
declared to be most peculiarly illustrative
of the island, Is the story of Demoiseile
Du Buc. II is. this story. almost as splen-
did as the story of her cousin Josephine,
and more pathetic than that pathetic
chronicle, and an infinitely more remark
able freak of chance.
She, this Demoiselle Du Buc, was, one
might say, the daughter of Mont Pelee
itself; that Grass Caliban. For she was
born far UP on its green sides. and spent
her young girlhood upon the breast of
the monster. whereon her father. NJ
Du Buc de Rivery, distinguished French
soldier, had his estate
The girl, as beautiful and as natural
as Virginia, was, when she reached a
suitable age. sent to France by her father
and put into the Convent of the Vista
tion. at Nantes, to be educated.
In that institution she DEVELOPED into
one of the most beautiful and accom-
pIlshed women OF her time. and became
singer of surprising sweetness.
When her education was completed. and
when she had reached the age of eighteen,
she was sent for by her parent. and.
under the care OF her goveFness. embarked
on a French ship for her native island
This vessel was attacked by pirates off
Maiorca, and, after fight whose details
are bloodcurdling, the Frenchmen were
defeated and the French ship taken. and
The Washington times., 1902-05-18
WEIRD AND APPALLING FAGNFCENCE OF A VOLCANO
Close Connection Between
Earthquakes and Volcanic
Eruptions Disturbances in
One Part of the World Fol-
loved by Similar Ones in
Far Distant Quarters. :. :.

the beautiful and tender Aimee Du Buc
dc Rivery seized by the Algerines.
The fair prisoner was found by her can
tors to be so exceedingly fair, that they
conceived the idea of giving her as a
present to the Dey. Which determination
was duly carried out, and the Dcy. imme-
diately he came into possession Of the
beautiful girl. established her amid the
most gorgeous splendors. and proceeded
to pay court to her-his slave.
These advances she repulsed time after
time. until finally the AIgerine. half in
despair and half in rage. sent her as q
present to selim III, Sultan OF Turkey.
Upon her arrival In Constantinople she
was duly installed in the Sultans harem,
amid the most beautiful products Of Geor-
gia and Circassia, and outshone them all.
and by her charming tact and winning
ways and lute-like voice, won the friend
ship of them every one.
The Sultan. accustomed to presents Of
beautiful women, did not bother himself
to inspect the latest arrival, and for some
time the girl was left to herself.
One day. however, while she was par
ticipating with other ladies' of the house,
hold in a sort of concert, the Sultan pass
ed by. and heard her voice. and was en-
tranccd by it.
A wonderfully sweet voice wonderfully
cultivated 1t was. and it was singing a
from an opera with which he
was familiar and he. after pausing for a
The Washington times., 1902-05-18

that given in the year 1900 AT the Great
Hotel. then the largest tavern in the city
which was kept by n man named Blod-
gett, ald was located on the site now oc-
cupied by the old PostoffiCe Building
Whether this Blodgett was the originator
of the celebrated Blodgett claim which
created such stir in the District some
years ago. is not known. The plays which
were presented on that occasion, or the
actors who participated therein, are like
wise involved In mystery.
The first building in this city devoted
exclusively to dramatic amussmcnts was
erected in 1901. II was situated on the
corner of Eleventh and c Streets. and was
built by a stock company. 1t was called
simply The Theater." 1t lasted for sew
eral years, but was at length buried
down. and the site sold to MIR. Carusi.
who reconstructed it. and named it Tho
City Assembly Rooms" Here Carusi held
his dancing academy, and here also were
given many notable parties and balls In
1857, Carusis saloon, as it was generally
called. was remodeled into a theater, and
excellent performances took place there
for number OF years before it became a
variety hall. 1t was called. in its palmy
days, the Washington TheGter." and
many fine performances were given
there by the Wallack and Davenport com
bination. In this company were included
Miss Rose EtynGe. Harry Placide. and
others. The first week of the engagement
was devoted to the presentation of the
new play. How She Loves Him." with
Wallack as the suffering Tom Vacil;
Davenport as Captain Gawlcy. Harry
Placide as Diogenes. and Rose Etynge as
Atlanta Cruiser. The second and last
week was given to English comedy. and
the School for Scandal" Honeymoon"
and still Waters Run Deep" were pre-
sented.
The Washington times., 1902-05-18

took place in Chile, on the 7th day Of No
vember, 1887, an extraordinary commotion
OF the sea was observed at all the islands
OF Hawaii. The waters first receded. and
then suddenly rose to great height, swept
the shores and did great damage in the
destruction of life and property. Similar
phenomena worked like disaster in 1919.
Following Immediately In the train OF
a violent earthquake. occurring on the
coast of Peru, on the 9th of March, 1868,
OF Mauna Loa, on the island of Hawaii,
attended by a long series OF earthquake
shocks which covered period of six days
and eliminated in a terrific shock which
destroyed every stone wall and razed
every kabitation in the district. At
Rapapala, twenty mileg distant from the
crater, the final shock caused a destruc-
tive land slide, commonly known as the
mud 1ow." An enormous mass OF marshy
clay was detached from the high bluff at
the head of the valley. and. forming 4
stream half mile wide and thirty feet
deep swept down a distance OF three
miles SO swiftly that thirty -one people
and over five hundred horses, cattle and
goats were overtaken and buried In the
mass.
Coincident with the final OF the series
of earthquake shocls. tremendous wave
fifty feet in height rolled in upon the
The Washington times., 1902-05-18

Mr.. L. Moxley, of this city, possesses an
old poster OF the date OF November 16,
1855, 10yl2 inches in size. which announces
the Last two nights of the Old American
Company" the comedies OH the bill being
THE School for Scandal" and Love a Ia
Mode 1t Is stated that this poster came
from the collection of theatrical remi
niscences made by the late Peter Force,
who was wont TO assert that the perform
ances took place in theater which was
located on what is now the south side of
Pennsylvania Avenue. between Four-and-
a-half and Sixth Streets, the exact site
being now occupied by coach factory.
1t is contended. however. by other au-
thoritics that the performance must have
taken place ia some other city, as Wash
ington at the time mentioned in the pos
ter was nothing but a wilderness.
II appears that in or about the year
1896 there was felt a longing by the peo-
pie of Georgetown and adjacent settle
ments for some form of public amuse
ment. a chr onicle OF the year mentioned
refers to the lack OF dramatic entertain
ments, and publishes from a London pa
per an announcement to the effect that a
play had been brought out at n Venetian
theatcr with universal applause. entitled
Two Gentlemen Of Verona" taltered
from Shakespeare). with Senor Buona-
parte in tho role of First Gentleman and
SenOr Beaulien in that of Second Gentle
man." etc, with a triumphant entry into
Milan, in which an archbishop danced n
hornpipe." II was stated to be the inten-
ton of the company to visit London. This
was at the time that the great Napoleon
was spreading terror throughout Europe
and 1t was feared that his triumphant
march would not be checked until he
should make an assault upon the British
capital.
In all probability, the first dramatic per-
formance to take place In Washington was
The Washington times., 1902-05-18
:. COSTLIEST CLOAK ON EARTH. =.

IF OLD fashions prevailed now our Gov
ernment officers in the Hawaiian Is
4 lands might be called upon to wear
cloaks that represent value OF at
least $1.O0O,OOO One now in the National
Museum is said to be of that value.
1t is surely without n superior in eth
nological interest and uniqueuess OF work.
manship. At one time it belonged to
Kekua sEalani. one OF the highest chief
tains of the Sandwich Islands. After
the abolition OF idoIatry there in 1919, lie
rebelled against the king and attempted
to re-establish the ancient religion. In
bloody battle he was slain, however,
and this wonderful cloak, which he wore
in that fatelul battle. fell into the hands
of the conquerors, and thus passed into
the possession of King Kamchameha III.
The Solitary" or Lonely" From him
it descended to King Kanikeaouli. and was
later presented to Captain j. II. Aulick,
OF the United States Navy.
Some idea OF the amount Of work ex-
pended in making this war cloak may be
gathered from the fact that the time re-
Guired for its manufacture extended
through eight reigns preceding that OF
King Kamehameha. II is four feet long
and has a spread of eleven and half feet.
The groundwork Is of coarse netting,
made OF olona. native hemp from the
fiber of the hau tree. and to this the
feathers, which are exceedingly delicate
and very small, are skillfully attached,
overlapping each other and forming
perfectly smooth surface. The feathers
around the border are reverted. and the
whole presents bright and beautiful ap-
pearance as of mantle OF gold. The
upper and lateral borders OF the cloak,
The Washington times., 1902-05-18

emptied its lava through underground
assures, and the central part of the floor
collapsed, forming h pit 1000 feet long
and 500 feet deep, With sloping sides. The
lava from the crater OF Mauna Loa, at
point $500 feet above the sea, spouted
up in great fountains, several hundred
feet high, and flowed to the sea, a dis
tance of ten miles, in less than two hours,
destroying habitations and cattle and
overiowing 1000 acres Of land. A yerit-
able river OF molten lava.
Nine years later similar disaster fol-
lowed in tie wake Of a terrible earth
quake in Peru.
1t was the pleasure Of the writer to be-
hold, in part, the action of Mol1uaweo-
weo, on the Island OF Hawaii. in July,
1893. Though possibly not to be held in
comparison with TINT of st. Pierre in
violence or magnitude, the scene was one
of lifetime. 1t beggars description and
bsfIles the pleasing ingenuities Of Ian
suaEc. The skill tf camera and brush
fail alike-memory alone can faithfully
recreate the picture. There were at the
time eigat fountain, varying from 100 to
$50 feet in height, in active play, throw
ing molten lava In immense bodies to
heights of Geo and 100 feet, beiching forth
smoke and gaseous steam. From the
mouth Of the cone immense powders,
some as great as 80 feet in diameter, were
The Washington times., 1902-05-18

which are corded with a string OF the
olona, are decorated with alternate tufts
OF red, black. and yellow feathers. The
body is decorated with alternate figures,
generally crescent-Shaped. composed OF
either red or yellow feathers. The inner
surface is without lining. and shows the
oi0aa network and the quill ends OF the
feathers. The cord OF the upper margin
Is prolonged TO form a fastening at the
threat.
The yellow feathers are those of the
rare bird 90. or Uho. Mohoa nobilis. while
the red feathers are taken from the body
and neck of Drepanis coecinea. one of the
most abundant birds inhsbltiug the Ha-
waiian group. 1t is the yellow feathers.
however. that are of such great value.
They were at one time used by the natives
in payment OF poll tax to the king. Only
two of these feathers are obtained from
each bird from under the wingsl. so that
the number OF birds captured from which
a sufficient number OF feathers could be
obtained in making this cloak must have
been very great.
The capture OF these birds is effected
with much care and toll. Long poles,
smeared with some adhesive substance
and well baited, are placed in the vicinity
of their haunts. The bird alights on tho
pole. and. being unable to disengaEe itself.
is readily caught. The two such much
desired feathers are plucked and the bird
is then set at liberty. At one time three
of these yellow feathers were worth Sl.50
and it is largely this basis that the
value of this cloak has been estimated,
as mentioned at the outset.
Until recent years cloaks OF this kind
were counted among the most precious OF
the royal treasures of the kings of the
Sandwich Islands, but since European
dress has been adopted they are now rare
ly or never seen.
The Washington times., 1902-05-18

moment or two, passed into the apart
ment where the ladies were. to identify
the singer, and found thereupon she was
the girl sent him by the Dey of Aigers.
Forthwith then. he became interested
in the fair Creole. and began to question
her concerning her life history. Which
story she told with so much of womanli-
ness and tenderness. that she not only
excited his sympathy. but aroused his
love. and a day or two after the first in
terview, he informed her he bad deter
mined to make her his first Sultaha.
This determination SeIim carried into
effect. and the Martinique Creole in such
wise became the celebrated Suitana
Validi. and the mother of line of Sui
tans- Mahmoud III was her son, anu the
present Royal Turk. Abdul Hamid. is
sprung directly OF her.
The splendor of which she finally be-
came the head and center did not, how
ever, bring to Demoiselle Du Buc the
happiness which at one time that other
Martinique Creole. Josephine. enjoyed.
a prisoner in land and among a peo-
pie utterly strange TO her-her mind and
heart always fill of her beautiful island
and her father. crd her friends upon that
far away s7ot-denicd even the consola-
tier Of hope-the free and buoyant daugh-
ter of Mont Pelee, the Sultaua Valid pre-
sents one Of the sadGest pictures that
circumstances Syer wrought or fancy ever
conceived and she was from the moment
of her capture off Majorca till her death
as melancholy a figure as the captive
princess in a fairy story.
The Washington times., 1902-05-18

TN looking over the newspapers pub
lished in the early days of Washing
L ton. one comes across interesting no.
tices of the state of the drama,
which appears to have always flourished
in these pats. The people were evident
ly better informed on the dramatic art
than on matters which would seem, at
this time, to be of more Importance and
immediate interest; for. while the advent
of that eminent engineer Major L'Enfant,
is described in a Georgetown Weekly
Record" of 1894, as that OF distinguish
ed astronomer" there is no mistake made
in another number of the same journal
for 1893 regarding the accomplishments
of a company Of strolling comedians un
der the management Of one Archibald
Marlborough Hamilton Sterling.
Whether the manifold and brilliant
promises of the advertisement were car
ried out In the actual performance there
are no direct means of ascertaining. In
view of the fact, however. that the latter
was given necessarily by candle light,
and without any of the mechanical ef-
fects now in vogue. it may be inferred
that much was left to the imagination of
the audience.
II is stated. by the way, in the adver-
tisement for this performance, that the
manager petitioned the town authorities
in behalf of himself and his associates to
remit the onerous tax that was then i'm
posed on theatrical entertainments.
amounting to Sc per night. and 1t further
transpires that the selectmen did meet
and graciously consent to suspend the
operations OF this tax law while the
comedians we're In town.
The Washington times., 1902-05-18
Disaster Which Overwhelmed
st. Pierre May Sooner or
Later Be Repeated on Our
Own Islands in the Pacific.
What Has Happened in Ha-
Waii During the Past Century
BY EDGAR cAYPLESS.

VT HE appalling disasters Of st. Pierre
and ST. Vincent, and the succeed
i ing disturbances in volcanic re-
gions, warrant grave concern re-
garding the safety of the Hawaiian ISL
ands; with those having ties or interests
there, ii must assume the Importance OF
fear. The recent and multiplying activi-
ties in what may be termed the volcanic
belt of the world, justify serious appre-
hension as TO their possible, If not prob
able, effect or influence upon the Hawaiian
group.
From the volcanic history Of these ISL
ands tfor the data of which the writer Is
indebted to Prof. W. ID. Alexander, of Hon
olulu), the activity Of its craters seems
to have been a condition at all times in
dependent of that OF distant volcanoes. and
TO have exercised very little, il any, phys
ical influence, beyond the radius of their
operation.
Ii would seem almost certain that later
details of. the eruption OF Pelee must
show 1t TO have been preceded by earth
quake; if this be true. i is at least not
improbable that volcanic waves may be
transmitted to the Hawaiian shores. As
result of the great earthquake which
The Washington times., 1902-05-18
. SOME MAY DAY FOLK LORE. ::

Dunstan would sell himself to him. Dun
stan accepted, but stipulated that the
blight.ng of the apple blossoms should be
done in three days, and those days fell
on the 10th, 18th. and 18th of May. The
legend does not say how Dunstan evaded
his part of the bargain. unless we may in
fer that the task of blighting all the trees
in three days was too great even for his
satanic majesty. but we Go know that the
dev.l never got the better OF St Dunstan
SIN, On ST. Dunstan's day the 18th OF
May, owners of apple orchards watch
anSiously for blight. which sometimes
comes.
May, named originally for the Greek
goddess Maia. under the Christian era. be
came the month OF Mary, dedicated to the
Mother OF God, and in every land flow
crs have been named in her honor as tho
May flower. the May thorn, the lady's
slipper, and countless others; those. so
named being always the swe etest 1ad
purest and most delicate blossoms. The
custom OF decorating in flowers during
this month is universal. each nation hav-
ms its own traditions. In Dorsetshire on
May Day the children of the fishermen
deck The prows of the fishing boats with
flowers and throw flowers into the sea.
In Magyar lands the feast of St John
Nepomuc, May IL, is kept by throwing his
image into the sea, while boats filled
with flowers end music fellow 1t.
From Port st. Louis, France, thousand
hshinf boats form a procession. led by a
gaiiy decorated barge, to the fishing
grounds. where priest blesBes the sea.
Whalers in Arctic seas on May / hang
between two mgsts = rope ornamented
with knots OF ribbon. love tokens of the
cailors for their sweethearts. This rope is
left suspended until the voyage is over
II is very bad omen should any OF its
decorations be removed or any accident
happen to It.
The Washington times., 1902-05-18

HE EAY is in some respects the most
JN important month in the year.
lfl Every girl who wants to be
pretty (and the girls who do not
want to be pretty are In such an insig-
nlcant minority that they need not be
considered here) will agree with me, for
on the 1st of May. so the English tell
us, the maid who goes at daybreak to
bathe her face in the dew on hawthorne
tree viii be handsome ever after.
Dew that forms in the month Of May
has many virtues. In Iceland those who
desire the gift OF prophecy catch a
familiar spirit and feed him, among other
things, on May dew. This spirit viii then
tell his captor all the future.
In Suffolk great care is exercised not
to permit branch Of hawthorne to be
placed in a sleeping room during the
month Of May, as dire misfortune vii
surely result.
n you sweep the house with blossomed broom
in May,
You're sure to sweep the head Of the house
away.
English also is the saying that warm
January makes a cold May. A warm May
is unhealthful.
In Scotland all healing or magic wells
had peculiar power the first Sunday In
MAY. The sick came then to battle and
drink, not infrequently spending the pre-
vious night at the well.
On the 20th OF May. called Beltan Rec,
the Picts expected q storm.
ST. Dunstan once made q very large
brewing of beer. The devil, knowing that
Dunstan would want to sell his beer at
The best price he could, came to him and
offered him TO blight all the apple crop
no nc one else could make any beer, III