davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-03

, will come from any Redwood tree UNI
til he cuts into it, The centuries of
growth produce so many varying con-
! ditions, and each tree meets so many
vicissitudes, that the grain of its wood
runs extremely uneven. Sometimes the
fihres formed under different rates of
growth exert so great a tension
among themselves that when the log
is sawed the wood suddenly gives way
and splits with a report iikt a shot.
The Redwood is what foresters. call
an 'intolerant tree that is, it will not
tolerate too much shade and, conse-
quently. 1t cannot get along with 9TH
err trees that would rob 1t of its sun
light. The seeds of redwoods cannot
terminate at all in shady places.
Yet the sprouts that spring up from
suckers" that is. sprouts that rise
from the full grown root sand stems
of old trees. Will thrive under the
most remarkable conditions The roots
are so strong that they support them
and, unlike the seedlings, which would
die without sun, the sprouts have been
known to grow into saplings eight and
ten feet high in places so dark that no
ray of sunlight ever enters. In some
particularly sombre and damp forests,
sprouts have been found growing lus-
tily, although the darkness was SO
great that it had robbed them of all
color and they were as white as the
sprouts from potatoes, while they had
only few inches of pale, almost yell
low, leaves at the very top.
The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-03

through an accident it happened that
they did not get to the eyes of scientists
who would have realized their value.
So the precious material finally was
acquired one day by private -individ-
ual and at last actually was destroyed
as being of no account.
Then there came another period of
oblivion for the wild horse of Asia. But
at last a third traveller actually found
great herd of them and, fortunately,
he was a man versed in zoology, SO
that he was able to speak with au-
thority when he returned to Europe.
He announced positively that the
Central Asian horse not only was a
horse entirely different from all other
known types, but that II was without
doubt one OF the earliest forms OF
horse, a survival of an animal world of
many tens Of thousands Of years ago.
Fired by his description, animal COL
lectors fitted out expeditions and now
there are twenty-eight Of the animals in
the geological gardens in Hamburg.
AS result of this, naturalists have
been able to study the new animal
carefully and thoroughly and they have
agreed that the little horse is an an
Client form, one Of the genuine ances-
tors Of the horse OF to-day. One nat
uraiist. Salenky, holds that these wind
horses are the original links between
the ass and the horse. Prof. Noack
disputes this and says that the little
The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-03

the tree, nor a slab of marble to show
what a wonderful tree it was and its
historical Importance. But that was
not the fault of the tree, or of the club
which chose the name of La,kerim
Athletic Club, and proceeded to win
victories, or score goose eggs, in as
many games of as many kinds as they
could think of, or as their school hours
would allow them to play
This club was like a certain peace
of emerald hue; it grew, it grew. But
as it was founded by twelve charter
members, and as they did most of the
work of keeping it going, they came to
think that they We're pretty nearly the
whole club. And 1t is of them. these
twelve, who got into the scrapes and
foughts out the game of which / am
going to tell.
For the benefit of those who have
not had the honor of their acquaint-
ance before this, will introduce
them-not by their real names, which
they, themselves, hardly ever heard,
but by the nick-names which they
found much more useful
This strapping lad of muscle and
pluck is Tug" And the next one is
a fine broth of a boy called Punk"
rms immense youth who will be
taller than the telegraph poles if he
doesn't stop growing, very curiously
is named "Sawed-off" The next boy,
his sworn chum and cronie, is named
Jumbo" because he is so tiny.
The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-03

Come along SLEEPY" and open your
eyes long enough to let people see
you are alive after all.
Number six and number seven are
the twinniest twins that were ever
mother could hardly tell their red
heads apart, and as they always dress
alike their friends have no end of
trouble. One of them is called Red
dy," and the other is called "Heady,"
and if they were shuffied together for
a minute, you could never tell which
from t'other. Being twins, and hav-
ing such fiery red hair, 1t is natural
that they should be rather red-tem-
pered, too, but, though number six
and number seven are otter at skies"
and "sevens," they are much fonder
of each other than they realize.
The next one is Mr.. Robert beg
your pardon, Robert, l should say
Boobies" Number nine, with curl
osity written all over his face, is CALI
ed Quiz" because he is forever ask
ing questions. Even if you ask him
a question, he answers it with an
other.
Number ten had the misfortune to
be born with such fine features, which
call him Pretty" but certain DULLES
have made the mistake of thinking
that he does not keep his muscles as
we'll groomed as his hair and hands.
Number eleven, the wise-1ooklns
mite, with the spectacles on his nose
and his nose in book is well named
The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-03

teacher, and he Joined the strange
procession before it had gone half a
square.
Up the street they marched, Zeke
Higgins in the lead and strutting like
a drum major. Zeke could feel his
stomach swelling as If it would burst.
but when he saw that he was leading
a parade he didn't care II the whole
town blew up and never came back.
Then there came a dozen queer
clicks in his insides and hurdy-
gurdy seemed to change into a brass
band, breaking loose with a piece of
cake-walk music.
In a second every child had changed
from the regular march to the cake
walk step. The people of the town
rushed out, thinking a circus parade
was passing and they were just in
time to see the white-haired profess
sor catch his long coat tails in his
hands, bend over so far that 1t looked
as if he might break his back, and cir
Gle around and around, Sinking and
bowling right and left as he now and
then lifted his silk hat to the ap-
plauding spectators.
The cake walk tasted three blocks,
and as Zeke turned a corner, the music
broke loose on TRAMP, Tramp,
Tramp, the Boys Are Marching"
Zeke grew prouder at every step
and turned his head to gloat over the
immense throng which was at his
heels. The whole town seemed to
have stepped into line. Three thou
sand persons were marching behind
him and every blessed person keep
ing step to his music. He grew so
vain he couldn't keep his eyes off his
own private procession.
Workmen had dug trench across
The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-03

music box around in your pocket. Go
to school, sir, and don't dare let me
hear of your taking a saw there and
cutting up the desks again as you did
the other day. That cost me $50"
Thus it was that in short time
Zeke was at school industriously
studying when Prof Rogers asked him
a question in arithmetic. Zeke couldn't
have answered correctly in a week,
but he made a pretense of thinking
hard. He wrinkled his brow and
which the music broke forth with Tell
Me Not in Mournful Numbers"
The teacher grasped his black ruler
tightly and looked over his spectacles
in a suspicious manner. Finally the
master arose, and as he did so, the
music, with greater strength, began,
For he's Jolly Good Fellow,
Which Nobody Can Deny"
Pupils giggled and zeke quickly
pulled his right ear and the machine
slowed down.
"Zeke Higgins, step this way. sir :"
1t was the stern voice of the old
man and the youngster shame
facedly made his way up to the raised
platform where the master was trem-
bling with rage.
What do you mean by such con-
duct, sir?" and the voice of the teacher
wobbled with anger.
'I couldn't help it, sir" whimpered
the boy.
You couldn't?" roared the old fell
low. Then possibly a little exercise
will assist you in stopping such
things" and he raised the ruler, at the
same time clutching an ear.
Now, if he had grabbed the right
The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-03
LIVING HORSES OF
THE STONE AGE.

Twenty-four years ago Russian eK-
plorer returned from the wild interior
of Central Asia and reported that he
had found a strange species of horse
like animals--creatures shaped gem
orally like the horse of civilization, but
much smaller, longer in body and with
enormous heads. He declared that the
creature was a genuine wild horse. and
he tried to get naturalists and zoolog-
lists to make a new classification for the
animal. But they refused, because
they did not believe that the traveller
really had found any horse different
from the ordinary kinds. They held
that the Asiatic horse probably was
only n dwarfed horse and otherwise
like all the other known breeds.
Thus the story Of the strange wild
horse was forgotten again. A few
years afterward. the skulls and skins
Of about half dozen were brought TO
Russia by another traveller who had
however, not seen the horses himself
but had obtained the hides from Mon
golian traders.
These bones and skins finally reach
ed the St. Petersburg Museum, but
The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-03

ear this tale wouldn't have been worth
telling, but his hand caught the near
est one and it happened to be the ear
on the left-and again the music box,
very much stronger than before,
opened up for business.
1t was no longer a tiny, tinkling
music box. 1t was a ful1-grown bar
rel organ.
The schoolroom was filled with
THE Campbells Are Coming, Hurrah. j"
and in minute every child
there was dancing and shouting with
the tir. Zeke hastily pulled the right
ear as hard as he could, but the ma
chine merely slipped a cog or two
and started in afresh.
The harder Zeke pulled the ear the
louder the music became.
Prof. Rogers sank into a seat, too
much astonished to stand on his trem-
bling legs. The pupils yelled with
glee and sang to the tune Of eve
Won't Go Home Until Morning, Till
Daylight Does Appear"
There was such a rumpus in the in
side of Zeke that he felt there was
only one thing for him to do and that
was to get home in hurry.
So he grabbed his hat and started.
When he reached the street he tried
to run; but the air had switched to
military march, and he had to
1t is wonderful fact that few per-
sons are able to do otherwise than
keep time to march music and when
200 school children, of assorted shapes
and sizes, came streaming after Zeke
they couldn't do a thing but march, all
singing.
1t was too much for even the aged
The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-03

the street around one of the corners
Zeke didn't know this, and as his
eyes were gloating over the marching
people he didn't see it when he reach
ed the spot.
1t is a peculiar fact that just as he
took the step which let him suddenly
into this ditch the music began with
Down Went McGinty."
With a muddy thud he landed six
feet below the surface of the earth.
1t was all over in a jiffy.
The explosion which followed shook
the glass out Of all the stores for a
square around.
Three thousand persons scattered in
all directions.
Dirt and gravel filled the air.
And the Zeke Higgins Brass Band
was no more.
Horny handed but kind-hearted
ditch diggers dug the youngster from
under the great mass of earth and
carefully and tenderly placed what
was left of him in a wheelbarrow in
which they took him to the home of
his weeping parents.
That night seven doctors with eight
trunks filled with instruments-shin-
ing knives, saws and silver hooks
reached down his throat and hauled
out dozen cog wheels, quart or two
OF badly twisted copper wires and
twenty-seven and one-half feet of
strong steel wire.
One of the smallest cog wheels is
now on exhibition in the town hall in
Zeekesville and may be seen and ham
died by any skeptical person who
thinks any part of this sad story is
untrue.
(To be continued.)
The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-03

'Hist'ry," but he is a good fellow in
spite of knowing so terribly much.
The twelfth and last of the Dozen Is
''B. j." Come up B. J. and be intro
duced.
Why. where is he?-Oh! I forgot, he
has run away-run away from home,
and club, and all.
Now that you have the Dozen, and
have heard how b. j. deserted them,
you will realize why they are all look
ing so solemn, and why they are all
wishing that B. j. had never run
away, so that they could get him into
a corner and punch his head for run
ming away.
Most of these lonely and forlorn
Eleven had themselves threatened to
run away on various occasions. when
their parents were stubborn and dis
obedient. But not one of them had now
good word for B. ]. who was the
first to. make the break.
For, you see, the Dozen had for weeks
and weeks been worrying its twelve
heads almost into one trying to decide
just how to amuse its royal twelve
selves during the summer vacation
And it had just decided-at B. J. a
| own suggestion, mind you-to take a
long cruise about the lake in the club
war canoe.
And now b, j. had knocked that ca
| noe idea into a cockpit mean cock
cd hat-by clipping, not with the club
canoe, but with his valued self. lie
hadn't even taken his own little canoe
(To be continued.)
The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-03

awake, but those were the rare times
when the boys club, the Lakerim
Athletic team, had been beaten III
some game-which meant that a par
ticuarly hard battle had been fought
for the Dozen" did not die easily.
And when they did suffer defeat, there
was sure to be a late confab to decide
where the fault lay, and emphasize
the fact that it must not be repeated.
Which usually meant that each one OF
these devoted athletes would steep
we'll, once he had got to bed.
But on this particular morning, Mr.
Perkins knew that none of these
things was to blame, because there mad
been no game the day before; that is
to say, there had been no game so far
as B. j. had beenconcerned. His be-
loved club had indeed been having one
of the games of it's life with Greenville,
its arch enemy, but B. Us father had
refused to let him play, because he
had been so i'll that the family doctor
had kept him indoors. B. j., though,
had insisted that small matters like
health and doctors bills were not to
be taken into consideration when the
great Lakerim Athletic Club had a
game on.
His father had disputed this point,
and B. ]. had argued back as if the
not play in that game. The debate had
%axed so hot finally, that it ended in
B. Us being sent off to bed supperless,
a terrible humiliation for boy of his
age and prowess-a boy who had won
the name of Bridge Jumper" or u.
j. for being so brave and so foolish as
TO jump off. high bridge with the re-
suit that he was pulled out uncon-
sclous by the nape' of the neck, just
in time to save him from drowning.
But that was long ago. And this is
another time-a bright, branc-new
morning.
Now that the long night was over,
the boy had learned reason, and that
the anger and resentment in his hot
young heart had cooled, when he
found that the world was still all
right even if he had not taken part in
the game, which, as Mr.. Perkins was
going to tell him, had been handily
won without b. Us help.
Certainly the fathers heart was
warm toward the son. and after his
long vain calling. he climbed the stair5
patiently, tapped gently on the door
and murmured:
Get up, my boy. we have griddle-
cakes this morning"
II that did not bring him, what
could?
But still there was no answer, and
nnally Mr.. Perkins opened the door.
Then he fell back amazed.
There was no boy In the bed-nor
IN the room.
The bed had not been slept IN, yet
The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-03

the magician left the stage in order
to allow his assistant to rearrange
the paraphernalia, but, as matter of
fact, the assistant rearranges the stage
in order to fill up the time while the
magician is away getting the thing,
whatever 1t may be, which he wishes
to make appear next.
The Hindoo magician does not per-
form on a stage, and, consequently, he
does not use a rug. There Is no need
to prove to the audience that he does
not use a trap-door, for the exhibition
takes place out of doors, and the
audience can see that the magician
is standing on the solid ground.
There are no wings at the side OF
an outdoor stage for a magician 70
retire into. Therefore, as 1t is abso-
mtely essential that he shall get out
of sight of the audience occasionally.
he has a small tent into which ne
retires.
Any boy who wishes, for the amuse-
The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-03

stage an assistant always places rug
where the magician is to stand, in or
der to prove to the audience that no
trap-door is used. After each miraeu-
lous act which the magician accom-
p1ishes, he retires from the stage and
the assistant rearranges the rug and
removes the small boy or the dog or
the cook stove, or whatever it was
which the magician manufactured out
of thin air.
To the uninitiated it appears as IL
The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-03
THE QUEER CASE
OF ZEKE HIGGINS
PART NO. 2.
The Strange Boy Gets Possession
of Piece Of Music and Has a
Private Procession.
BY HARRY BAXTER MASON.

Zeke Higgins worried and wondered
for long time after the day his ears
turned to saws and ripped things gen.
orally in the town of Zekesville. But
nothing out of the ordinary happened
until one morning he felt a tickling as
if a few thousand mosquitoes were
playing on his left ear. He at once
reached up and pulled the lobe.
On the very instant he heard tiny
tinkling and music box began play
ing Away Down South in Dixie
Soon the air was finished and Zeke
heard a small click. He pulled the
lobe of his left ear again, there was
a rumbling of wheels and the box
began playing Mr.. Johnson, Turn Me
Loose"
Then the truth flashed upon the boy.
He must have swallowed the music
box sent him last Christmas by an old
The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-03
CHAPTER L

"Halv'
No answer.
"Oh. Hail.
No answer.
Hal, my boy. breakfast is ready
No answer even to that.
4 say. Hal. my son, your breakfast
is getting cold"
So was the silence.
"Hal-you, Henry Perkins, B. j.
you'd better get up before come and
get you up"
He couldn't even get up an echo.
Must 1 go up there and yank you
out of bed by the carr"
1t seemed as if there were no other
way to get the boys ear.
We'll, here 1 come. Tramp, tramp,
tramp"
But the imitation of climbing the
stairs was very bad, and there was
still no answer.
B. Us" father was used to having
OF the stairs and call long and loud.
He is not the only father on earth that
has this task, for other boys in this
same world have little way of snooz-
ing their hardest just when they are
most wanted by their parents. But,
while B. US father expected to sing
his serenade every morning, it was
not often that he had to climb the
stairs.
The magic word breakfast" would
usually follow B. j. wherever his
dreams might have taken him and
fetch him back to earth. And if the
word breakfast" didn't bring him
the imitation of tramping usually did.
Sometimes, it is true, when the
Lakerim Athletic Club had taken a
long jaunt or played a hard game,
the boys father found that his song
about breakfast brought no answer
and that all his terrible threatening
and pretending to climb the stairs
were vain: and he must march up the
steps for true. But, once up, it was
only necessary to pound hard on the
door to snake the boy out of his snug
slumbers.
Twice indeed B. Us father had had
to go into the room and shake him
The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-03

audience. old or young. 1t is very
spectacular and very easy to accom-
plish.
The illustration shows a magician
raising his cloth from the ground and
discovering to the audience a small
boy who apparently has materilized
out of the air. Yet the small boy Is
real flesh and blood. Dogs, cats. birds
lin fact. almost anything which the
manipulation of the cloth choose, can
be made to appear from underneath
his wonderful cloth.
When this trick is performed on the
The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-03

"B. ]. Come back and all will be
forgiven. Your mother is very lonely
without you. Dad"
Still no B. ].
Then Mr.. Perkins began to offer re-
wards, and to go about his business
with a haggard look on his face.
AS for the boys poor mother-well,
you'll have to ask somebody else to
tell you how a mother would feel with
her young laddie away in unknown
places and unknown dangers.
CHAPTER II.
The news of B. Us escapade was
the talk of the whole town of Lake
rim, as you may well believe. OF
couse it excited the boys most of all.
and most of all the most 1t excited
that crowd of B. Us particular GRO
MES who were known as the Dozen,
because, as you'd never guess, there
were Just twelve of them.
The town of Lakerim is not to be
found on every map, and probably
your school geography will not snow
YOU where it is. And l have been
requested not to mention what state
il is in, for fear that it will give the
town a bad reputation. The grown
UPS in that town already think they
have trouble enough with what boys
there are now to think UP mischief,
and grow sleepless over their games,
and risk their skin and bones, and
their parentss nerves, by inventing
new kinds of trouble to get them
selves into. So 1 shall not be able
IN tell YOU where it is, further than
to say that It is neither north Of the
North Pole, nor south of the South
Pole. =,
The latitude grows pretty warm in
summer. and the longitude gets quite
cool in the winter.
Perhaps it would be betraying the
secret too far to admit that the town
Of Lakerim is in the United states,
and vet not in the Philippines, Porto
Rico. Alaska, or Guam. The town, as
Won might guess from its name, is on
the rim of a lake. That lake is not
one of the Great Lakes, and yet there
are one or two smaller lakes in the
world. The people usually speak OF II
as "The Lake." but it originally mad
an Indian name, which | can't spell,
and which you could not pronounce II
/ could. So we will let it drop.
In this wonderful town, on this
mysterious lake, on a certain impor-
tant occasion, twelve boys had
sprawled under a tree, and decided
that they would organize themselves
into a club and build a clubhouse.
That tree is not so famous as the
"Charter Oak" or the tree that George
washington rode under when he took
command OF the Old ContineDtals. OF
the sour apple tree they once intended
10 use for hanging a certain person on.
There Is not even an iron fence around
The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-03

ment of himself and his friends, to
play the part of Hindoo magician.
can make a small tent such as the
Hindoo magicians use by following
the plan shown in the diagram.
Three light sticks bound together
at the top are erected as one erects
the tripod of a camera. This frame
work can be covered with any sort
of opaque cloth which happens to be
at hand.
A glance at the other figure in the
diagram will explain how this famous
trick is accomplished. Whatever the
magician wishes to make appear Is
hidden under the loose robes which
he wears. 1t is a very easy matter
to manipulate the large flowing cloth
The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-03

so that 1t completely hides the lower
part OF the magician's body from the
audience, and then to transfer the OBJ
ject from his robe to the cloth.
Two-thirds of the success of a trick
depend upon the performers ability
to act as if he were doing very
wonderful thing, to make many PASSES
and to mutter strange words. This
never fails to impress an audience, no
matter how well educated 1t may be.
or how much the spectators may scoft
at the idea of any power with which
they are unfamiliar.