davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Savannah morning news., 1904-08-28
The Bagdad Ink Horn
and Its Weird Effect
How the Magic Property of Sinbad the Sailor Got
to the State Department in Washington

The sun was shining hot as it could
shine over all the United States; hot
test of all it shone down on Washing
young clerk in the State Department,
who sat yawning over pile of mail.
This is no sort of weather TO do
any brain work." said the clerk, yawn-
ing still harder and stabbing his desk
with the envelope opener. He did not
really do much brain work, even i'll
cool weather. but he imagined that he
did, and it made him feel just as tired.
The chief of the bureau was begin
ming to cough in the other room, and
that was always a signal that he would
soon arise to inquire why nobody was
working. So the clerk plunged his
enveloper opener into the envelopes.
slit them open and sorted them out in
piles for the various departments.
All at once he came to a queer pack
age full of foreign postage stamps.
Instead of being addressed, like all
the official mail to the Honorable
something or other, it was addressed
to him.
He looked at it indolently before
opening it. If he had possessed mag
nation he would have hurried, for it
was from the city of Bagdad, the town
of Haroun Al RasChid. However, he
did not possess Imagination, and he
knew that the package had been sent
by his old school friend who had been
appointed consul to Bagdad. SO he
yaWned again and took his own sweet
time to undo it. He wasn't very much
pleased when he saw what was in it,
1t was nothing, except a queer, bat
tered brass thing, shaped like a little
powder horn but with four tiny legs
so that it could be made to stand up.
There was a letter with it. In it his
friend wrote: Il send you little Gu
riosity that 1 picked up in a bazaar.
You will see that it is an ink horn,
and it is evidently very old indeed.
The Arabian merchant who sold it to
me told me it was magic. That's what
they say about everything out here. 1
thought perhaps you would like to use
it to write your reports"
That's a fine sort of a present to
send all the way from Bagdad," said
the clerk to himself. LAS if a man who
does brain work with pen and ink all
day long in the State Department
would enjoy having an old ink horn!'
He showed it into a corner of his
used it if the chief had not noticed it
and exclaimed:
We'll! You have a magnificent an
tique there! That is decided curl
osity."
Of course after that the young clerk
hurried to fill it with ink and use it
instead of the regulation inkstand.
1t had not been filled long before his
chief gave him a lot of statistics and
The Savannah morning news., 1904-08-28

ordered him to make reports out of
them. The clerk yawned as usual
and grumbled like anything to him
self Like most people. he hated the
very sight of statistics, and generally
his reports were drier even than the
statistics had been originally But this
time he had no sooner dipped his pen
into the ink horn than he became so
interested that his pen fairly flew over
the paper.
The first figures that he took up
were some about education in Bosnia
Immediately he saw sullen mountain
passes. with black pines waving over
them like plumes on a mighty hearse
He saw queer little gabled huts
hanging to crags. with eagles and fall
cons soaring over them. Ragged noun
taineers, with huge mustaches and
with queer strips of cloth wound crisis
cross around their legs instead of
stockings, and with long knives thrust
through their belts, we're riding UP
and down narrow paths on funny lit
tie horses.
Then these vanished. and he saw the
dark Orinoco running silently and Sc
cretly through the twilight of the for
ests. Long, clumsy canoes fioated
through the gloom. Serpents hung
from the branches and parrots and
monkeys quarreled in the tree tops
Here and there an alligator summed
himself on rotten log. Ever and again
there came a clear, strange cry like the
toliing of a silver bell: and the clerk
knew without being told that it was the
mysterious bell-bird, often heard but
rarely seen by man.
Well said he to himself, these
understanding figures are kind Of
entertaining"
he
of alarming figures. II was all about
sheep rearing in the far West Ordi-
narily the clerk would have yawned so
hard over this that he would have been
quite too tired to do any more work
az all that day. But this time every
dip of the pen into the old ink horn
made the figures alive and splendid
The blue spruces standing I'm sentinel
array on the eternal mountains: the
clouds hanging in torn streamers
around the caps of snow that cleaned
in the sun like rosy crowns the dark
green plains. and on them. crowded SO
closely that they seemed exactly like
vast. moving sheets of snow, sheen
grazing by the thousands and the tens
OF thousands. and herded by lean.
brown men on swift horses-all these
he saw. instead Of the official State De-
partment paper on which he was writ
ing.
So 4 was with all the other figures.
Every one Of them became fun of life
and beauty the moment he began to
write He finished his work earlier
than he had ever finished It before and
carried Il to his chief
Before long there came a cough ana
then a grunt and then n roar from the
chiefs office. and when the young clerk
went in the great man was red I'm the
face with rage. and cried
How dare you play your pranks
on the state Department We don't
want fairy stories and poetry from
YOU. What we want are reports. err"
So the young clerk tried 90 make
reports out Of them But, strange 10
The Savannah morning news., 1904-08-28

beer and talked of the sights he had
seen and the adventures that had be-
fallen him.
80 thy father was a sailor" said
the Traveller, when little Peter had told
him of his wish to go to the sea.
Yes" said the boy, land he sailed
away three years ago. and he has new
er come back, and my grandmother be-
lieves that he was drowned in the great
blue sea"
And thou?" asked the Traveller
gently.
Little Peter looked at him with stead
fast blue eyes.
II do not believe it, he said. for be-
fore he went away he gave me a pink
seashel. When 1t ceases to whisper
TO thee, little man, he said. then shalt
thou know that I am dead, but as long
as It sings to thee then shalt thou
know that / am alive and wen. "
And does the shell still sing?" ask
ed the Traveller with interest.
Listen" said little Peter and held
the shell TO the Travellers ear, but the
Traveller said soberly:
Il hear only the roar of the sea-"
"Ah." said little Peter. then it is
only to me that it talks. and says.
Come, come to the sea-"
Hum" said the Traveller. Then he
a mighty blow, Thou shalt go to the
sea-" he cried.
So that night the Traveller visited Pc
ters grandmother. and he talked long
and earnestly. and when he came away
he had her promise that little Peter
should go to the sea.
The next morning she baked an al
mond cake and put it into Peters bun
BILE with some bread and cheese. and a
few poor garments, and kissed him and
sent him on his journey.
May the good God bless you" she
cried, "and bring you back safely" and
Peter waved his hand and promised. 81
will come when the first snow flies
grandmother. ] will come when the
fret snow flies" and she stood I'm the
door and watched the sturdy little fig
ure until II was out OF sight
Now, when Peter came to the inn the
Traveller sat at a table in the yard. and
The Savannah morning news., 1904-08-28
The Pink Sea Shell and
What 1t Said to Peter
By TEMPLE BAILEY.
illustrated by Miss Truman.

he beCkoned to Peter. Thou hast a
long journey" he said. but when thou
contest to the sea thou wilt be glad
There is nothing in the world that is
so beautiful. not even the forest in the
spring" and his eyes wandered off over
the hills IS if he would pierce the bar
riers and see the white sails of the
ships he loved.
would I might go with you" he said
at last to little Peter with a sigh but
l am cid and lame. and I must stay
here. alas I must stay here in the
dark forest. and nevermore shall l
smell the salt breezes Of the great sea
-nevermore, nevermoTe,' and again Re
sighed.
Then little Peter said, What shall I
bring you from the sea, Traveller"
And the Traveller started and spoke
bitterly:
Bring me a bit Of driftwood," he
said, that it may remind me that 1,
too, am cast UP on the shore to Try
and rot in the sun
But little Peter shook his head. II
will bring you the driftwood." he said.
but it shall remind you of a safe ha-
ven after a stormy voyage.
The Traveller stared at little Peter,
and then his face broke into a beautiful
smile You are right, little one. he
should be content" and he slipped a
gold piece into little Peters hand and
sent him away.
When little Peter was we'll on his
journey he put the pink shell to his
ear and then he found that the song
was changed.
ITO the sea, to the sea,
Go we, go we,
# sang joyfully, and little Peter sang
with it.
For DAYS and days little Peter
plodded on, through villages and
through forests and finally through
cities. until he came at last to a long
stretch Of bare sandy hills. where the
wind blew wet and cola and tasted
salt against his lips, and then Peter
put the little shell to his ear. and this
was the song it sang:
I'VE are near the sea,
! shall soon be free.
On and on hurried little Peter to
The Savannah morning news., 1904-08-28

not lose your heads and run away the
first thing That is what the white
hunters expect you TO do. and they Will
be ready with their guns to shoot you
down. Wait until you know Just where
the natives are who are kicking up
such a hullabaloo. and then dash right
at them and break through. They
have no guns and will be sure to run
away"
A little later the old bull who had
spoken. called me aside and said:
You are now old enough to be Of
some use 10 the herd. We are on a high
hill. and IL the white hunters have not
gone they are on the open ground TO
the west of MS. / want you to go
softly through the forest until you
reach a spot whence you can see the
plains. II The hunters have not gone
you will see horses and wagons and
tents. and as soon as you return we
will move on and travel until midnight.
BE careful, now. and don't get into
any trouble"
This was the first time I had been
trusted by the leader. and I was very
proud OF the fact as | set out on my
errand.
told you IN the fret chapter that
an elephant can move through the
forest softly Indeed. he can go ale
most as silently as "a wolf. II you
had been Within twenty feet Of mo
a. ! passed along oyu would not have
heard me.
went along Tor q fun mile. ana
then ! reached spot whore I could
look down on the open ground. N
was on the edge ~ "a high hill. and
AZ stood there ! saw things ! had
never behed before. There were
The Savannah morning news., 1904-08-28

Mother Giraffe was a person whose
family was so aristocratic that she had
nerves of the most stylish fineness.
Consequently she was constantly wor-
lying about things that might happen,
and she learned everything that she
could for the sole purpose of worry
ing a bout it,
One unfortunate day she took up
the study of electricity; and as a re-
suit she ran to Father Giraffe, trem-
bling all over. and said
Good gracious me, what do YOU
suppose I have just discovered? Why.
The Savannah morning news., 1904-08-28

the very top of the windy hills, and
there before him stretched the sea-
the wonderful sea, all blue and gold
IN the sunlight, with the waves run
ming in a restless white line on the
shore, and the ships scudding in a
dancing white line against the hori-
ION.
Little Peter ran down to the very
edge and slipped off his shoes and
bathed his tired feet in the cool wa
ters, and then he threw himself on
the warm sands and slept peacefully.
He was walked by the bowling of
the wind, and when he sat up he saw
that it was almost night. and that the
skies were black, and the sea was
black. except where the waves show
ed leaping white crests.
Peter crouched under a sand bank.
and then. because he was lonely, he
held his little shell to his ear that II
might talk to him. and the shell said.
Listen to me. listen to me,
Look out to sea, look out to seal"
So little Peter stood up sturdilv and
looked out over the angry waters.
Presently a fash of lightning showed
him little boat, tossed up and down
by the waves. There was a man in
the boat-and then again darkness
fell. and the boat and the man were
plotted out.
So little Peter climbed to the top
of the barren hill, fighting against the
wind. and there he built great bon
fire. that shone red and yellow against
the night. Guided by the beacon. the
little boat came up and down over the
breakers, until at last it was flung
| against the shore
Peter waded as far as he dared and
| caught hold of the man and helped
him up. Together they staggered up
| the HILL where the man dropped
! shivering before the fire. Presently
| he murmured:
You saved me. boy. If II had not
! been for your light | should never
have reached the shore. Our ship was
wrecked-and l was coming home
| home"
| But Peter cried 1T was not I. but
[ the pink seashen l should never
The Savannah morning news., 1904-08-28

have seen you if it had not been for
the Sink Seashell."
At his words the man clutched little
Peters coat and drew the boy down
to where the fire shone on his round,
eager face.
The pink seashell! the pink sea
she'll" he cried excitedly, where didst
thou get a pink seashell?"
My father gave it to me-" said the
boy, my father who went to seal
What is thy name?" whispered the
man. What is thy Nance
Peter" answered the boy softly,
and wonder began to dawn in his eyes,
then suddenly he flung his arms about
the man.
1T is my father" he cried, my IA
Their who has come back to me-"
1T is my boy Peter" cried the man.
my boy Peter from the forest.
Thou shalt be poor no more said
his father, for l carry about my
waist the gold that 1 found in a
strange, cold country where l have
wandered all these years. Henceforth
thy grandmother shall sit by the fire
and fold her hands, and thou shalt go
to school and be a great man some
day-while l will meet thy Traveller,
and together we shall talk of our ad-
ventures and of the places we have
seen"
Peter clapped his hands, I'VE will
keep the pink seashell always, father, -
he said, and give il place of honor"
But when he held the shell to his
ear it murmured:
Throw me into the sea,
The deep, still sea,
l want to be free
Throw me into the sea-"
Peter told his father what the sea-
she'll said. and his father. answered:
DO as the shell says. Let it re-
turn to the sea whence it came
The storm was over, and the moon
light made a path of gold through the
dark waters. so little Peter ran down
to the very edge of the sands and
flung the shell far out AS it touched
the surface of the sea he cried, Good
by. little shell. good-by. Thou hast
brought me happiness-so l give hap
piness to thee-good-b
The Savannah morning news., 1904-08-28

Peter held the pink shell 70 his ear.
Come with me. come with me
To the sea. to the sea.
sang the little shell.
Now. Peter lived far up on the
mountain. and it was a long journey
to the sea, so he said TO his grand
mother.
Listen. grandmother. to the little
shell" and he put it to her ear. but
the grandmother shook her head.
1T says nothing sha mumbled,
''but it roars and roars like the sound
of the wind in the trees on a stormy
night"
1T is the sea. grandmother. that
roars," said little Peter. for the Trav-
eler told me of it. and when the waves
break ON the golden sands it is like
the splashing of water, when the mill
wheel turns
do not listen to the Traveller"
said the woman. for he tells many
tales and how could the roar Of the
waters be like the roar of the wind"
So little Peter said no more. and
every morning he picked up sticks in
the forest, SO that the old grand
mother could make a little fire to cook
y
when he went hungry to bed. he
would hold the seashell to his ear and
listen, and the little shell would say.
Come with me. come with me
To the sea, to the sea.
81 must GO said little Peter at
last, and he told his grandmother
what the shell had said.
That is the way with young peo-
pie" said the grandmother. Look at
me. I am content 10 stay here but
thou are only a lad, and yet thou art
restless to be away But then. thy
father was sailor il is in thy
blood'-and she sighed and went on
with her spinning.
And presently little Peter said
softly, May l go. grandmother ?" and
she answered sharply:
NO"
The next day little Peter sought the
Traveller, who lived at the village inn
and smoked many pipes and drank
The Savannah morning news., 1904-08-28

the lightning that we see every time
there is a thunder storm is nothing
less than electricity, and electricity is
always attracted by tall objects. 1 am
sure that we will all be killed in the
next thunder storm"
Nonsense said Father Giraffe. in
weary voice. 1--WE been living
ever since I was born, and 1 never
heard of a giraffe that was struck by
lightning"
But his arguments were no good.
Mother Giraffe kept at him, nagging
and nagging, and begging and beg
ging and crying and crying, and shud-
0ering and shuddering. till be built a
The Savannah morning news., 1904-08-28
Little Jumbo
Or the Adventures of an Elephant as
Told by Himself.
CHAPTER III.

CHAPTER III.
party of British officers had en-
tered the forest to hunt elephants. and
had sent a hundred natives to fright
en- us out on open ground, where they
could shoot us down. If we had not
had an old and wise elephant with us
one who knew all about the tricks of
men-we should all have been
slaughtered.
When we made our grand rush upon
the natives they FASTENED to get out of
our way but all of them did not es-
cape in safety -Four or five of them
We're killed by the lenading elephants,
and some others had narrow escapes.
1 came last, and although l almost
ran over a black man as he was run
ming away, l was too frightened to
harm him. We gained the thick
woods on a great hill and when we
were safely there, we kept very still
for an hour. Then, as we heard no
more from the natives or white men,
we all drew close together and our
leader said:
We have done well, and l want you
all to remember how it was done.
When a great noise comes you must
The Savannah morning news., 1904-08-28

bungalow for the family. After that
she kept the poor little giraffes con-
stantly on the run, for at the first
sign of any imaginary or real danger
she drove them madly into the bunga-
low
But unfortunately for Mother Gil
raffe, the little giraffes grew rapidly in
size While the bungalow did not grow
at all. Consequently, the process of
putting them in so that they would all
be under cover and yet not interfere
with each other or encroach on the
stars or grass marked in the diagram
became hard task. How did she ac-
complsh it? 1t can be done.
The Savannah morning news., 1904-08-28

Several Of the idle American war
correspondents IN Toxic are learning
japanese. opinion Is divided as to
why they are doing no. Some say It
may be- because they hope 20 make their
way 90 tho front disguised az Japs. and
others think n may be that they wish
20 thank the military censor in HE own
language for his many attentions 20
them their own language not being
expressive enough.
The Savannah morning news., 1904-08-28
SOLUTION OF LAST
SUNDAYS ARlTHMETICAL
PICTURE PUZZLE.

The answer to last Sundays picture
puzzle of how many apples were in
This is the way the answer is reach
ed: The first picture represents a
fort. Then comes a plus sign. Then
makes fort plus yoke. Then comes a
minutes sign and then a picture of an
oak. making the complete sum read
fort plus yoke minus oak. which leaves
fort-Y.
The Savannah morning news., 1904-08-28

that it must have been born in him.
and he explained just how his brain
had always been extra strong. But he
never mentioned the brass ink horn.
He wrote and wrote until he had
four thick books full of stories, and
everybody bought them. Then one
day, when he sat in front of his desk
he thought:
That old brass ink horn may be a.
great curiosity, but it isn't elegant
enough. 1 guess I'll buy an inkstand
that is more suited to an author as
famous as l am"
So he bought himself a beautiful
golden inkstand and put the old ink
horn away. The maid who cleaned his
room dropped it into the waste-paper
basket and it was thrown into the
dust-bin.
Now, I will write something better
than anything 1 ever wrote before"
He wrote and wrote. and 1t took
him much longer to write than any Of
his other stories. But when he sent
the story out. the editor returned it
with polite letter, saying that it was
not quite equal to the standard.
What stupid editor!" said the
young man, and sent it to another.
But he returned it, too
The same thing happened TO his next
story and his next. To cut a long and
sad story very short. it happened to
all the stories that he wrote with the
INK from the golden inkstand
So the young man decided that he
had nervous prostration. and all the
papers announced that his great intel
lect had been strained too much by his
wonderful work. Then they forgot all
about him, and so did the world.
After his money ran out and he
found that nobody wanted TO buy any
more stories from him. he got a posi-
ton where the work was easy and
hours short
But that wasn't the end Of the ink
horn.
The ink horn Of Sinbad the Sailor
was picked UP by a ragman. who sold
II to 1unkman. who sold 1t to a brass
founder. who threw IL into a great
box with brass faucets and brass door
knobs and brass odds and ends. One
day the stun was all made over again
into inkstands.
or course in the process Of manu-
facture the brass Of Sinbad's inkstand
went into the making Of many new
ones. Each Of these had some Of the
material Of the magic ink horn. but
not so much. The people who bought
these inkstands all got some of the
magic. but none Of them got enough.
That Is why all the critics say that
there Is an over-supply Of literature
nowadays and that IL is mostly mid
ding. Julius Miller
The Savannah morning news., 1904-08-28
Sleepy Willy Noddy

Sleepy Willy Noddy
Was a weary body;
He slept all night,
And In daylight
lie also slumbered Just as tight!
Alas" said he with weeping,
Some spell on me is creeping.
/ cannot make
Myself awake
Long enough TO keep from sleeping!
The Savannah morning news., 1904-08-28

Prof Thomas oliver. addressing the
industrial hygiene section of the sani-
tary congress in Glasgow. said the sys-
tenn Of rushing work introduced into
Britain from America. not only caused
unwholesome fatigue and many acci-
dents, but 'pfedisposed the Individual
10 il health and created o. taste FOR
eumulante, unhealthy recreation and
love ~ excitement such as was offered
by theaters and music halls"
The Record-courier. [volume] (Gardnerville, Nev.) 1904-current, 1904-11-04

COUNTY TICKET

Assemblyman
NJ. JACOBSEN
sheriff and. Assessor
NEI4S II. JOHNSON
Clerk and Treasurer
IL. G. 'JEPSEN
District Attorney
ID. W. VIRGIN
Commissioner long Term
+. SCHACHT
Commissioner Short Term
II. PARK
County Surveyor
w. e. EIELL
Public Administrators
IL. MARTTNSON
EAST FORK TOWNSHIP OFFICERS:
Justice of the Peace
l.. :. EIELL
Constable
NJ. SORENSEN
The Record-courier. [volume] (Gardnerville, Nev.) 1904-current, 1904-11-04
queen of Holland i. scientific.

Among the many accomplishment
of the young queen of Holland is her
devotion to the study of natural his
tory When she was in London dur
ing her minority a few years Il 90 she
and her mother. Queen Emma, made
several visits to the natural history
wuseum, South Kensington, for the
special purpose OF studying the min
erals. Her majesty is a dihgent read
cr nj scientific literature.