davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1903-01-25
Renaissance OF the Banjo.

100 tCnlcaS04 IrtOune.)
II Is cheering to observe that the banjo,
after a long period of neglect and indif-s
ference, due In part to the decadence OF
the negro minstrers art and in part to
the advent of tinkling mandolins and
strumming piano appendages. which are
much easier to learn.-Afs how entering
upon new era. 1t may soon resume its
old place in the public favor and regain
the popularity which 1t enjoyed vAeu
such artists as Schoolcraft and Est
picked its strings. 80 ~
The American Guild OF Banjoists Is
holding Its first annual convention Ii,
Philadelphia this week. and is not only
planning renascence for the banjo but
proposes to set HIGHER standard Of per-
formance by granting diplomas certifying
to the proficiency of performers. There Is
need of such stimulus towards the ele-5
walton of banjo playing. It has been az
lowed to lapse into amateur hands and
there is nothing more exasperating than
q amateur performances on the banjo. Pro-
fessfonal PLAYERS seem to have given up
the instrument-the Worldwide instru-
ment of which KipIing has written so
convfncingIy. upon which Luke West used
to play SO eloquent1y. the Instrument
Which Thackeray wa not ashamed to say
made the tears come Into his old eyes
as he heard it PLAYED by nee-S min
strel In this county. It has bes left
too long to the old negroes down South.
although they are usually artists. in
pluckfng out IT'S hidden melody ard In
vestins Its .'plunks' with fascinating
charm. 557Z7ssE.I -
Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1903-01-25
: ~ =.
XvM, !. l.! $ ,JE;T 81,


u'ough. dissatisfied. until came 10 the
..iiuHisht incident beside the river. and
s ,pned how I had watched and wf1a { s
had witnessed. s1i11 " 49,
Wflat? he cried, starting Ia sudden
astonishment You act1allv saw him:
Ao on recognized Henry Courtenay?''
Is. he was walking with his wife
sometimes arm-in-arm.t'
he did not reply. but stood In silence
! IN The centre of the road, drawing a
seometrical design in the dust with the
lerruie of his stick. It was his habit
Wen thinking deeply.
watched his countenance It was that
OF man whose whole thought and en-.
esgy We're centered upon one object.
Ralph he said at last, what time Is
the next train to London? 2"
Two-thirtr, i think. 1t goes nm er-
press from Peterborough Why?''
must go at once to town There's
work Tor me thcre-delicate work. What
you've told me places new phaseounon
the affair, he said, in strange. anxious
tone. -
Does it strengthen your clue?n I ask
n certain degree-yes It makes
! .E Eiear one point which was hitherto a
mystery
tis3"And also makes it plain that poor
AlF Courtenay met with foul play?r /
suggested.
ss.Ah, For the moment this latest de-
velopment Of the affair is quite beyond
the question. We must har-- back to that
night at Richmond Road. l must go
at once to London" he added, glancing
Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1903-01-25
THE- RIeHMoND= DIsPA TcH-s UNDA YJANUARY 80

1ington sCausewayS to- the London road. nm.
til we#cane TO- row8of costermongers
sbarrows drawn up beside the pavement
Before one sofS these piled wifi Vegetables
ready for the Saturday night market, he
stopped, and was immedlat ely recognized
blythe owner-as tall, #consumptive7 looking
man. whose face. ST. uck me somehow as
being familiar.
I Ell, IS Lane my companion Aa1d.
Busy, Ell q
t.Not very, sir, was the answer, with
the true Cockney twang. Trade ainft
very brisk. There's too bloomin' many OF
us ere nowadays.
LEA wing my side my companion advanc-
ed toward the man and whispered some
confidential words tina t I could not catch ,
at the same time pulling something from
his breast pocket and showing it to him.
Oh. yes. sir No doubt abaWt III!
heard the man ;e1clai i'm.
Then, in reply to a further question from
Jevons, he said:
Arry ,Arding used to rork at Curtis
SOL fancy that E'ud be the place to find
out somethink: L M keepin' my eyes open,
you bet" and he winked knowingly.
Where I II had seen the man before
could not rem ember, but his face GER
tainly was familiar.
When we left him anu continued along
tEe& DuSy2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS elt SilOpS fclio
itinerant vendors, I asked my friend who
! he was, to which he merely replied:
well, he's a man who knows something
Of the affair I'll explain alter. In the
meantime come with me to Gray 81 Inn
roa a. i have to make a call there and
he hailed a hanson. into which we mount
ed.
Twenty minutes later we alfghted before
dingyS looking barber shop and inquir-
ed for*Mr. Harding-an assistant who was
at that moment shaving: customer OF
the WORKING class. It was a house wnere
one could be shaved for penny, but
where the toilet accessories appeared to
be somewhat primitive. 8
While i stood on the threshold, Amber
Jevon's S asked Lne BARRIERS assistant If he
had ever worked at Curtis. and If while
there he knew a man whose photog1 apll
( he showed him:
yes. sir,'' answered the barber
without moments hesitation. That's
Mr.. Slade. He was a very good customer,
and Mr.. Curtis used always to attend on
Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1903-01-25
continued his activity7 ~
rs Il believe so He has I5undersfand ffis-

continued his activity q ~
believe 80. He has. understand, dis
covered Clue -
What has he found ~ demanded the
old man, bending forward IN eagerness
across the table. He had been devoted
70 his friend Court enay. and was COM
s ,,aEn mourning OF me whether the po-
Ice had met with any success.
at present he will tell me nothing. ~
replied = AS :
Sir bernard gave vent to an exclama-
ton OF dissa tisfact.on. observing that he
hoped Jevon's efforts would meet with
success, as it was scandaIous that a
double tragedy Of that cha racter could
occur IN a civilized community without
arrested. >s.iN1 80 s-''s'1s'S'ii i
There's no doubt that the TRAGEDY wa
double one observed. al tlough the
jury have returned a verdict OF Found
, Ii,1nov In poor Mrs. Courtenay's case.
e+tacts. even as far as at present known
point undoubtedly to murder. y
70 murder!" he cried. ..Then is ii be-
5ile .y that she's been wilfu1ly drowned ~
nat fs the local slirTnfse.''
Why?" he asked, with an eager look
upon his countenance. for he took the
the affair s. 5ss-1
well. because it is rumored that she
had been seen late one night walking
along the river bank near the spot where
she was found. accompanied by strange
ma n. ;''sss7sif4s
strange man, he echoed his inter-
est increased. did any one see him suffl-
GENTLY close to recognize him ~
believe not,"sI answered. hesitatfng
at that moment to tell him all I knew.
The local police are making active in
quiries. believe.
wonder who it could have been %
Sir Bernard exclaimed, refectively Mrs.
Courtenay was always so devoted to poor
Henry. that the story of the stranger
appears to me very like some invention Of
Of the villagers. Whenever a tragedy oc-
ours in a rural district, all kinds of alb
surd scanards are started. Probably that's
one OF them. It is only natural for the
rustic mind to connect a lover with a
pretty young widow
Exactly. But have certain reasons
for believing the clandestine meeting to
have taken place." said.
Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1903-01-25

."Jt se.,,,. - 1890, : $40 Vet m,
tntorma,san e. eo,,a..,. =, ...,a .,a1 s,,afj
opinion r, IS ,,ts ,,,ys,e,sou. dea tn 3,
Mrs Co,-tanan ts,+ t,a ,,tterIyS mise,
all nv theatres. Teli me mainly Ralph
what causes You to SUSPECT fonl plly.
This IS NOT a limo for r,reyar.cation. NVe
must be omen Ind straightforward tt
each other. TeI, me the absolute truth
Should / tell him frankly OF the a..1sz.
ing lscoyery / had made? / feared tc
Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1903-01-25
CHAPTER XxVI.

AMBLER #JEVONS is BBUSY.
The sleepy-eyed tea-plender of Mark
| Lane remained plunged in deep reverie
| during the greater part of the Journey
| to town, and on arrival at Kings Cross
| declined to allow me to accompany him
| This disappointed me. | was eager
| to pursue the clue but no amount of per-
| lsuasion on my part would induce him tc
| alter his decision.
| AT present must continue alone. ole
fellow he answered kindly. 1t Is best
| Later on may want your help.
THE facts I have told you are OF I'm.
portance, I suppose?
| "Of the greatest Importance" he re-
sponded. 81 begin to see light through
the veil But If what suspect is correct,
litlfen the affair will be found to be abso-
slutely astounding.
la.g.of that Tn certcfn,' said. When
will You come in and spend an hour
..As soon as ever can spare time.
| he answered. Tomorrow. or next
day, perhaps. at present have q
very difficult task before me. Goodbye,
FOR the present. And hailing a hanson,
he jumped In and drove away, being care
| full not. to give the address to the driver
while within my hearing. Amber Jevons
had been born with the instincts Of asde-
tectire. The keenness Of his intellect
was perfectly marvellous Us.
On leaving him. ] drove to Harley
street where found Sir Bernard busy
with patients, and in rather an ill-temper,
[ having been worried unusually by some
smart woman who had been to consult
him. and had been pouring into his ear
ali her domestic woes. s5t
81 do wish such women would go and
consult somebody else, he growled.l az
ter hc had been explaining her case to
me. Same symptoms as all OF them.
Nerves to Indigestion, late hours.
and an artificial life. Wants ME 20 order
nor to Carlsbad or somewhere abroad
90 maj she can be rid of her husband
for q month or so. can see the areas sou
plain enough. She's got some little game
to play. Faught'' cried the old man.
Such women only fill me VIII olssus..,.
4 went ON to tell him OF the verdict
upon tho death OF Mrs: CourteIlay,
and his manner Instantly changed 20 one
OF sympat Thy. -
..Poor Henry!. he exclaimed. Poor lit
tie woman! q wonder that nothing mas
stranspired to give the police a clue: 20
my mind Boyd, there was some mys1er1-:
Gus element in Court enay's life that ne
entirely hid from his friends. IN later.
wears he lived in constant dread OF as
sassinatIon. 4 IS
ayes. that has always struck me as
strange, e 81 remarked
HAS nothing yet bean dfsoovered?'' g,
asked my chief. Didn't the police fol-.
low that man-servant Short
eyes: BUT to no purpose, they proved:
fo their own satisfaction that ne #iss In,
"a xnd Syour3 friend Jevons. the.tes dsal-I
8 IS sit kilA Of hoehyAeo 80
eta ~ ee -
Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1903-01-25
- =
The Hewitts at Sea.
(New York Press.l

New York Press.)
The principal incident In Mr. Hewftt's
life was In 1874. when he and Edward
Cooper were cast adrfft In leakya bout
wrecke fierce storm soon after
leaving Mediterranean for New
York. howed so high an order OF
ers took him into the bosom OF their
family. the lovely Sally, daughter OF the:
house. giving him her heart and hand
Il was that awful experience at sea
lever to rfsk the lives of the several
members OF; his family In a single vessel
when a voyage to Europe was to be
made. Wife sons. and daughters would
sail on different steamers and meet on
the other side "A few other heads Of
families have adopted these tactics In
imitation OF Mr. Hewitt
Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1903-01-25

at his watch '.win you come with
me?"
Most willingly. Perhaps can help
you?'
Perhaps. We will see..'
So We turned and retraced our steps
to the house of mourning, where, hav-
ing pleaded urgent consultations with
patients, I~took leave of Ethelwynn. We
were alone, and bent and kissed her
lips, in order to show her that my love
and confidence had not one whit abated.
Her countenance frightened. and with a
sudden joy lung her arms around my
neck and returned my caress. pleading
Ralph! You will forgive-you will for
give me. won't you?"
Il love you, dearest!' was all that I
could reply: and it was the honest truth
direct from heart overburdened by
mystery and suspicion.
len with a last kiss turned and left
her, driving with Amber Jevons to catch
LIE London train.
Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1903-01-25
first, and declared that by a certain
method Of treatment, too technical to be
here explained, q complete cure could be

S<AAAA
method Of treatment, too technical to be
here explained, q complete cure could be
effected.
Another case of hysteria followed, and
then terrible exhibition of a wild-haired
woman suffering from what the lecturer
described as a "Crise des Nerfs, which
caused her at will to execute all manner
OF horrible contortions as though she
were possessed She threw herself on the
floor on her back, with her body arched
so that it rested only on her head and
heels. while she delivered kicks at those
In front of her, not with her toes but
with her heels. Meanwhile, her face was
SO congested as to appear almost black.
The audience was, think, relieved
when the poor, Unfortunate woman,
Gained by Deboutin's method Of sugges-
ton, was led quietly away. and her place
taken by a slim, red haired girl of more
with strange stony stare as though
unconscious Of her surroundings. She
was accompanied by short, wien
faced old lady-her grandmother.
At this juncture the chairman rose and
said:
This case is Of great interest. mas
much as 1t is a discovery made by my
respected colleague whom we all know
by repute,s Sir Bernard Eyton.''
The mention Of my chiefs name was
startling I: had no idea he had taken
any interest In the French methods. In
deed. he had always declared to me that
Charcot and his followers were set at
Scharlatans.
I'VE have the pleasure of welcoming
Sir Bernard here this evening"" continued
the chairman; '.and Shall ask him to
kindly explain the case
With apparent reluctance the we'll
I'm nh 3c{o oft 41,a}p
daily welcomed to the platform by the
French savant. adjusted his old fashioned
glasses, and commenced to introduce the
subject. His appearance there was GER
tainly quite unexpected. but as glanced
at Amber, saw look OF triumph In
his face. We were sitting at the back
Of the hall, and knew that Sir Bernard.
being short-sighted. could not recognize
US at the distance.
81 am here at Dr.. Fulton's invitation.
to meet our great master. Professor De-
boutin. Of whom for many years I have
been a follower Then he went on to
express the pleasure 1t gave him to de-
monstrates before them a case which he
declared was not at all uncommon, al
though hitherto unsupported by medical
men
Behind the chair of the newcomer.
stood the strange-lo oking old 1ady-who
ter being mute Her case was one. Sir
Bernard explained. of absence Of will.
With a few quick questions he placed the
history Of the case before his hearers.
There was a Lad family historya father.
who drank and motherswho suffered
from epilepsy. At 10 the girl had receiv-s
ed a sudden fright owing to a practical
Joke. and from that moment she gradual
" came under the influence Of some hid.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-06-28
Sour Gropes Tbot Turned Sweet

gimme de pill, quick Mammy ncbber could git me ter swallow none of her pills, but can't git hole of yourn fas' ernuri''
 Extending his chubby little black paw, the excited child snatched the pill from the old man and swallowed it without wiggling his body or making moan or a wry face. What a miracle was performed in . momenti When Jake looked In the little pocket mirror that the old gentleman handed him his Joy was unbounded. In place of his old, black. kinky hatred self he saw q stout, fair-faced, red haired boy with blue eyes and many freckles.
 ''Gee-ru-shee!" exclaimed Jake, joyfully, tent a beauty? Frank can't hole a candle to me now"
 His joy was short-iiyed; for as soon as his eyes glanced at the greasy clothes and bare feet his face became as woe-begone as If he had lost his nanny and his last friend in the world.
 What troubles you now, Jake r. inquired the wonderful old man in seeming surprise.
 Why sartin en shore, ma rster, you mought ex well CT lef' me black. Ise rag eed en patched, en haz no money, en nun sight ruther be black boy dan white un dat has no money!-oh, don't want ter be no white poor buckra!" walled the distressed child most pitifuIy.
 Well, Jake, I'll make you rich; here's q roll of hundred dollar hills that will last as long as you live" And the gnyly dressed stranger handed the boy such large roll of money he could scarcely hold it Are you sure you're satisfied now-how about your sour grapes?"
 '-oh, sir. dem sour grapes dun turned sweet, now, dat kin hole dem in my han l- Jake laughed joyously as he looked carefully at his newly gained riches.
 You're just like many grown persons, Jake. You not only do wfthcut what you want and can't get, but you talk against is as well You know you wanted to be white and to have money when ysu said you dhd not Now remember, it is much worse to tell what is not true than 1t is to be poor and blackr'
 Before Jake could say "ycssur' the old 1 man disappeared down the ladder that led to the stable below, and, at the same mo 1 ment Jake heard a hen proclaim with loud cackie that she had laid an egg for her good mistress She was joined in her rejoicing I by the old red rooster, who made as much | noise as if he had laid the egg himself.
 Jake sat up, rubbed his eyes, looked af | hfs hands, felt his kinky wool and uttered q decp groan 'T declare" said he, 'T wuz asleep on dnt pile of hay, en drempt wus 1 white en dat sour grapes turned sweet when | de ole man made me richr' And poor little black Jake threw himself down on the hay 1 and wept.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-06-28
Kbo Wears Tbe Ring?

the ring, and that It is on the rfgnt hand, third finger, first joint. The performer re quests that the following calculations be made in secret:-
 1. Double the number of the person
The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-06-28

fAuthor of 'eWhen the Heart Is Young.')
 The general opinion in the Norwood MIL tnry Academy was that 'Frenehy" was bird" Exactly what a bird might be, no one seemed to know; but there was no doubt that "Frenchy" belonged to the ornitholog- icni species "Frenchy's" real name was FaIler-pronounce as though written Fal- laire, with the accent on the final syllable and he was instructor of the French and Ger man languages. But except in addressing him the cadets always gave his name the English pronunciation, making 1t rhyme with 'yaller." As regards him, the school was divided into two c1asses-those who hated him and those who admired him extraya- gantly There was no intermediate class, as no one was lukewarm regarding him. But friends and enemies alike agreed that he was ''bird, '' and 1t depended entirely upon who gave expression to this opinion as to whether n complimentary or uneomplimentary inter pretatio was to be given to it. When Porges, for instance, announced in pompous manner his conviction of "Frenchy's birdlfke quail ties, he was thereby understood to be giving voice to the utmost scorn of which the hu- man heart is capable. But as this feeling was returned In full measure by the pro- lessor, the score between them might be con
The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-06-28

On account Of certain mathemat tfcsi calcss- lations necessary to the performance Of the trick not more than nine persons should take part in 1t. The performer sees that they are seated in row, all facing one way, and then numbers them in order, from one to nine.
 Producing a finger ring, or borrowing one from a member of the company, he tells them that he is going to leave the room, and that while he Is out some one must put on the ring, and when he returns be will tell them who wears the ring, which hand it Is on, which finger of the hand, and which joint of the finger.
 The thumb counts as the first finger, the forefnger being the second and so on. The toint nearest the end is called the first joint; the right hand is called i, and the left hand 2.
 7 When the performer returns to the room he asks one of the party to do little muitL Dljcatk0n and addition, in order that the right result may be reached. To Illustrate the process, let us assume that person No. has
The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-06-28
The Robins.

Two little robins lived up In a tree (I3lov the wind-blow the wfnd-biowD, And those little fellows could never agree While their mother flew after their breax- fast or tea 70 the wind o the wind-oQ. When their mother would come. with fat little worm f9low the wind-blow the wind-bkow1. They'd holloa and squa wh, and wransse and squirm, Til the fat little worm in their stomaehs was firm 70 the wind-o the wind-OD- One morning, for breakfast, their mother went out fTtlow the wfnd-blow the wind-biowD, And they raised such a noise that the wind raised Shout, And ever since then the wind blows them about
 70 the wind-o the wisd-on.
 ! '. mfosHN.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-06-28
Godet Stories "frenobg."
BY W. ". WHITELocK.

swelled far out In front and whose head threatened to fall or backward from ex- aggerated self-importance. ventured to pro pound a similar question, he found himsef If elected from the room so quickly by the irate Frenchman, who followed up the cadets retreating form with an unfortunate ly abortiye elevation of the foot, that a week passed before Porges recovered his wonted supreme seff-satisfactfon.
 .Mllle tennerresi" cried the enrage1 for eigner storming up and down the room, but even in his excitement not forgetting to de- press his toes in true military fashion. 'sI some day surely shall introduce my foot to him. He Is a-a-chumpl"
 '.Frenchy" had no idea what '.chumps might be, but he knew that 1t was an un- complimentary epitbet, and, therefore, ap- plicable to Porges. Nor did any of the boys experience the slightest desire to become ac- quainted with his foot in the manner sug- gested, as his boots were delicately pointed and admirably adapted to the punishment of offenders. Besides, no one had the least doubt that the owner of the boots would promptly visit any form of physical or moral punishment which most appealed to him at. the moment on whoever aroused his ire. "Frenehy" was hardly of middle height, but thanks to extremely high heels and an adr
The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-06-28

sidered balanced. Porges, indeed, was the 7 only member of the second-year French class who was unable to distract "Frencay's" at tention from the lesson by reference to the Franco -Prussian War, and thereby to lead the exile to a long dissertation on the superi- ority of the French army as compared with the German, and a detailed explanation or the disasters of9T.
 Professor, heard a man say yesterday that the German sailors could shoot all around the French saiors,' some member of the class who had neglected to prepare the lesson would remark with an expression of innocence and all the other unprepared boys would sigh with relief and settle themselves for the ensuing lecture the merits of France. But when Porges, whose breast
The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-06-28
szfa she'd never teii. -

satd she'd never teif.-
 Dolly looked reproachfulfy at Beatrice swtt. But further explanations were drUvned in . gale of laughter.
 T fear that haven't proved that girls ezn keep a secret,'' said Rosalie, when the mcrriment had subsided. Let's all thfUw tfas stuff out the windows and air the room. girls. The smell in here must be strong enough to set fifty cats frantic. I'll tell and take the blame"
 But the girls wouidn't hear to 1t. They knew that the cat had not been harmed. wen all keep this secret for you, any how. Rosalie,- they promised And you shall be queen- You deserve to he, for you're the dearest, joiiicst girl, and have given us no end of fun"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-06-28

The person who has made the calculations now tells the performer the figures he gets after adding 35 Then the performer men tally subtracts 3,535 from that sum, 10 mat ter what It may be. In the present. case the remainder Is 3,131, which means that the per son is No. 8, the hand No. 1, the finger No. 3 and the joint No. L