The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1904-02-11
MINOR TOPICS.

1t appears that the anti-Smoot people,
having dropped their charge of polygamy
as ridiculous, will demand the senator's
expulsion anyhow. He may not have two
wives. they say, but some Mormons do, so
he shouldn't be senator. That is reminis-
cent of Aesop's fable of the wolf and the
lamb. The wolf having decided to eat the
lamb, gave as his excuse the fact that the
lamb was muddying the stream where he
was drinking, but the lamb called attention
to the fact that he was down stream from
the wolf. well, you did it last summer"
persisted the anti-lamber. II was not born
last summer" pleaded the lamb "Then
it was your mother" said the wolf, and
he ate the lamb. Perhaps some CT Smoot's
ancestors were polygamists.
Jules Verne, the celebrated French au-
thor, celebrated his seventy-fifth birthday
this week. The aged author is yet in good
health except for an almost complete
blindness and he enjoys the reputation of
having written a book for every year of
his life. And the most of them are rattling
good books, too-pseudo-scientifc novels
that are absolutely impossible, but won
derfully convincing.
There is a good joke on Boston.
Whistler's portrait of Richard Garfield.
king of gamblers was to have been ex-
hibited at the Copley Hall show of por-
traits by Whistler this month Several
Bostonese objected to the portrait be-
cause of the subject. The objection was
overruled, but the portrait will not appear
after all. Mr.. Garfield objects to Boston!
poem from Rudyard Kipling on the occa-
sion of this Japanese victory over the Rus
sians and will be deeply disappointed If one
is not Immediately forthcoming. As for
Alfred Austin, he has universal permission
to keep still-a permission of which he will
no doubt neglect TO avail himself
A Massachusetts, man has been sent to
prison for three months for letting his
horse go three days without food or water.
n Boston paper remarks that it is discour-
aging to note the existence of such human
brutes. But, on the contrary. is it not
distinctly encouraging to note that they
are nowadays given long prison sentences?
In Akron (O) a man committed suicide
because his wife refused to play on the
piano when he asked it. Many have been
driven TO suicide by wives who were alto
gether too willing to perform, but this is
the first case on record where the opposite
has taken place.
Viscount Hayashi, the Mikados repre-
sentative in London, has been installed as
worshipful master of a Masonic lodge in
the British capital 1t will be readily APP
parent to all members of the order that IL
is particularly fitting that a man from the
far East should occupy that position.
A street-railway company is trying 10 en-
croach on the grounds of the Massachusetts,
summer home of Mrs. Julia Ward Howe
She is getting vexed about it, and If the
company is not careful she will write a
battle hymn that will scorch the rails
1.-The Grover Cleveland Gas Company is
one of the latest corporations formed in
New Jersey. The former President may
regard this compliment. but were he
not the reticent man he is 1t might well
be taken as a roast"
President Harper. of Chicago University.
has certainly met with some reverse or
other at the hands OF the oil king. Some