davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-15
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ing to Foo Sing the part that he deemed
entirely worthless low, swampy stretch
of land. This he gave to Foo Wing with
great air of condescension and as little
money as he possibly could. Poor Foo
Sings heart was heavy within him at the
depressing poverty that he saw himself
doomed to. with this waste of useless
land as his heritage. Foo Sing knew that
his money would not last long. and he
had neither profession nor occupation to
earn money with.
He finally made up his mind to come to
America. He came, and while travelling
through the country doing little odd jobs
he always gave particular attention to
the methods used in cultivating swampy
lands in the west. He saw 1T reclaimed
and made to yield fine crops of rice. Then
he said to himSlf:
Il will return home and use the knowl
edge have CLEANED for the benefit of my
own marshy land. if my grasping brother
has not already appropriated even that
poor soil
When he returned to his native province
il was within two weeks of New Year. Il
was an utterly discouraging prospect, that
FIRST view of his ancestral acres. Pools of
Z, staenant water covered 1t. with rank coarse
grass. and rushes rose in dry clumps, and
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-15
MAJOR.
BY WALTER W. STORMS.

b1 WALLER w SIOhMS.
There isn't better natured mule in the
whole Congaree valley than Abner Davis
Major. Abner lives on the same plantation
where his father lived before him IN the
slave times. He is as roor In earthly pos
sessions as any one need be. except that he
has a great wealth of pickaninne7. On
any sunny day passerby may count more
than dozen of them. kinky-haired bare
footed and but partly clad in garments
that are either too large for them or too
small. In age the pickan nnies go all the
way up from one-year-oid Lucille. who
spends most of her time sprawling fiat on
the hot ground. to fourteen-year-old Pete.
who Is small for his age and never was
considered any too sharp.
On the plantation tifhy have always re-
garde6 Pete about as useless as they have
Major. At least so 1t was until Pe;e's re-
cent invention. Major was almost a found
ling. She was left an orphan colt at the
tender age of two years by fatal accident
to her mother, and young Master Lewis
told Abner to carry The baby mule down to
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-15

of shafts. Little ty title he helped Pete
during evenings TO rig out a set of home
made harness for Major. II was awkwaI
and ill-ftting constructed out of sc-gps of
old leather bits of rope and string. p4eccs
of wire and rusty nails. Yet II hung to-
gether on Majors back and neck. and Pete
had rosy dreams of many a fine ride behind
the family pet
The work of breaking Major to harness
was nothing. Both Pete and Abner had
expected more or less trouble when they
tried to strap her UP and put bit in her
mouth. but they were dislppoin \
lamb or a kitten could not have been more
gentle. Calmly she permitted the cart to
be drawn up behind her until she was fairy
within the shafts and harnessed to hem
Abner climbed in. drew up the Lines and
said. Get up"
Maj or d dnt bulge.
Abner clicked at her. but Major only let
her long ears flop down, sd ways. Then
Abner slapped her with the lines and spoke
more earnestly: go long there, Majorr'
When Pete took hold of the bride and
pulled Major leaned comfortably back
against the breeding rope IL was clear
that Abner had guessed right. Major was
balky. lie was Observation-Disclosures angry
Pete disappointed he nearly cried
But he was hoping that some way would be
found to coax her to pull. Even when Alb
ner threw down the lines and strobe away,
Pete kept on pushing and pulling and coax
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-15

seed floating on the water. "And that"
said he mournfully, sis the end of the last
shred of hope
When the flood had subsidized somewhat,
he visited the meadows again. He could
not keep away from the spo. but all he
saw was the same brown rushes and the
dead grass.
II will not go near the place again." he
said.
The night before Chinese NV Year the
angel appeared again to Foo Sing.
NOW, said he, go early tomorrow
morning and gather in your harvest of
gold, for it's ripe
Before the sun rose, Foo Sing FASTENED to
his treasure land" and there scattered all
over the dreary brown of the marsh were
small green shoots, with here and there
slender lance-like leaves. bearing among
them stalks of beautiful lilies. The swamp
was glorified with their white and golden
beauty. When Foo Sing took his lilies to
market in the nearest city establishment
was expressed at their wonderful loneliness,
and the eager purchasers gladly paid high
prices for the treasures.
Foo Sing reaped a fortune from his angel
lilies for he not only sold for New Year
day itself. but for every day of the cele-
bration, lasting an entire week
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-15

ing-even whipping Major took II all with
Indifference. She simply would not stir with
the harness her.
Day after day. Pete hitched her to, the
cart, and after a time of persuasion
hitched her again. II was no Major
was a failure.
One night Pete dreamed he was driving
his mule along the road. She going
beautifully and Pete was in ecstasies. Look
ing ahead he saw in the distance a large
| field of corn. Major, too. seemed 20 have
her eyes on the place. and was making the
best possible speed In that direction.
When morning came Pete told him his
| dream Suddenly he clapped his hand upon
| his wooily head, and dashed out of the
cabin leaving his breakfast but half eaten.
He secured long pole. and at the small
| end he tied three cars Of corn so that they
would bangle from il.
Major thought the corn was for her. and
she followed Pete around at every step.
When the pole and corn were ready Pete
harnessed Major to the car. jumped in. took
The pole in one hand and the lines i'm the
other. Letting the pole down he dangled
the corn two feet in front of Majors nose
Inc erect was like magic. Pete had all he
could do to guide her out of the yard
Dere he goesi Dere he goesr' shouted
the children.
Apner rushed to the door and saw the
outht gong up the road in front of a great
cloud of dust
Bless my hearth he exclaimed. that
coon VIII be good for something after ALL"
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-15
BILLY.

Billy had no mother. That was plain
enough II you but looked at his torn trous-
ers his ragged shirt and his battered straw
hat To be sure these were his everyday
summer clothes. and he did have better
ones for Sundays. His father was an hon
est man. who worked hard in the mills and
who might have cared more for his little
boy if he could have spent more time with
him.
When the schools were going Billy gem
orally went TO school, but all through the
long summer days he just ra nWfld. only
one person in the world seemed TO take
real interest in him and that was Miss
Alice who had been his teacher the past
year Even of her Billy was shy, though he
would have done almost anything to please
her. \ long while ago she had picked him
up on the street one Saturday afternoon.
and had led him to her home. There she
talked to him. showed him pictures. read a
story. and. finally. took comb and pulled
the tangles out of his frowsed. yellow hair.
That was too much for him. He could
stand the pictures and the stories, but for
a fellow of nine TO have his hair combed!
Since then he generally lodged around
the nearest corner If he saw Miss Alice
coming. To his thinking, tangled hair was
best suited to freckles and torn clothes
Anyway, he was not baby. to have his
hair combed. He did love Miss Alice. and
would not willingly have disp.eased her.
but yet he was very. very shy.
One day the bill posters came to town.
Up went the great haring sheets. yellow
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-15

the cabin for the pickaninnies to play with.
That Is how Major became a member of
Abner's family, She was equally at home
inside the cabin or out. Properly they
should have named her Princess or Queenie
or Duchess or even Julia. But Miss Ethel,
up at the big house, had a magnificent
black charger that she rode and that was
known the country round Major. So
when this awkward long-haired, orphan
baby mule was carried down to Abner $
cabin the children declared that her name
should be Major.
Well Major had a sunny nature. She
grew fast and learned none of the mean
tricks that other mules know and pract &c.
The pickaninnies would sit or Tumble all
over her when she was lying down. Wren
she stood up they would get upon her.
astride from her tall ears clear back to
her tail-a long. solid row of bare-headed.
bare-legged, grinning little coons And
Major always appeared to enjoy ii as niue
as any of them.
There was just one peculiar thing about
her. whenever there was anybody on her
back she would not move. At other times
she would run and play with the youngsters.
lodging and turning and scampering. like a
great dog playing tag. But let one or more
of her playmates get on her back, ana at
once she stood immovable as rock.
Abner did not like this. He took 1t as a
sign that Major was going to turn out
balky. When she was a half-grown mule
Abner brought down to the cabin an o.d
push cart and fastened to 1t rough PAIR
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-15

and red and blue, on all the sheds and bill
boards to tell the boys and girls and every
one else that the circus was coming on the
lith Billy read 1t all, just as the other
boys did. Perhaps he wished that some
fairy. or even some ugly old goblin, would
come along and give him the necessary half
dollar. but If he did wish that was all the
good there was in it. The bills were I'D
ten days before the show and Billy had
read them daily. but he knew he could not
hope to go.
On the afternoon before show day. Billy
went hshing, alone. He knew the fellows
he played with were going to the circus
ana that some of them were mean enough
to taunt him because he could not go In
fact. he had not been al the river a great
while before several of these very boys
came by. The first thing they did was to
call out:
"Oh. Billy are you going to the cIrcus?"
nope said Billy, crisply. Il went to
a circus once, and circuses are all alike.
They never have anything new; I'm not
going
"oh, ho!'' laughed the boys; Wouldn't go
II you could. would you?'
Billy felt his blood Jingle, but he did not
answer.
Suppose I gave you my half dollar, Billy.
would you go?'
1t was Tony who spoke, and who at the
same time ran his hand into his pocket as
II TO show that the money was actually
there. But just then Tony's face suddenly
changed its triumphant expression He
TO look in all directions. The coin was
gone.
Usually Billy would have felt sorry for
Tony, but somehow ne did not this time
He slowly wound up his fish line and start
ed home.
About half way across the meadow his
| eye caught sight of something bright living
| just ahead in the path. IT was silver half
| dollar. and it did not take Billy long to
| guess who had lost 1t. Here was his chance
| TO get even. All he had to do was take
the money, go to the circus and say moth
| ing Tony had teascd him, and deserved
! to miss the show.
| Something under the bosom of his rapeed
| shirt kept saying, run home and tell Miss
| Alice about it."
| No. Billy couldn't do that He knew
| quite well what Miss Alice would say. That
| settled 1t: With his teeth shut tight as If
| to keep his heart from jumping into his
! throat he ran back to the river
| Here Tony, / found your fifty cents
| You must have lost 1t coming across the
! meadow"
/ Tony was speechless Before he could
| md his tongue Billy was half way across
| the meadow going as fast as his short
| legs would take him.
| W men he passed the house where Miss
| Alice lived he did not mean to look Nm ar
| all But she saw him and called him in.
| saying she had been watching for him ali
afternoon. She felt sure he would dance
! with glee when she told him she had two
! tickets for the circus and that she wanted
him TO go with her Instead the great tears
I cheeks. as he started TO run away. He had
! gone nearly half square when he sudden
/ ~ stopped and called back:
hank you. Miss Alice. I'll go,'
| And Billy combed the tangles out of his
/ own hair for the occasion
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-15

rustied in the bleak wintry winds like the
dry bones of his vanished hopes. His Stock
of money was entirely too small for him 10
think of undertaking the herculean task
with it, As he lay sleepless that night in
his trouble, turning over In his mind what
he should do now, an angel appeared TO
him and dropped a package of seed TN the
bed.
Take these seeds" said the angel land
sprinkle them over every part of your
marsh. There lies a fortune for you In that
swampy place. Do not be discouraged, for
you shall reap a golden harvest from 1t.
With these words the angel vanished and
Foo Sing would have thought the whole in
cident dream, were it not that in his
hand lay the package of seed
Early in the morning Foo Sing set out to
SOW the seed before any one else wSs up.
to see what he about AMI laugh at
him for his folly planting seed In a worth
less marsh"
Day after day he visited the bleak waste
of land, and was as often disap2ointe al. Ev-
erythfng still seemed the same, and his
heart sank within him.
Then 1t rained-how it did pour! steady.
continuously. as IL 1t never meant to cease,
until all his marshy land was completely
flooded. Foo Sing could see the specks Of
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-15
The Chinese Baby.
From Leslie's Weekly.

From Leslie's Weekly.
On the evening of the first day after the
baby has arrived the paterfamilias. &C
cording to the Chinese custom, prostrates
himself before a joss. and. touching ms
head to the floor voices thanks to the
gods and to the honorable ancestors for
the small son who was sent perfect of body
and full of health.
On the evening of the second day the
ceremony is repeated. and on the third
day the voice of the wife joins that or the
husband in thanksgiving. Also on the
third day a limited number of relatives
and friends are called in to witness the
first head-shave. The rooms of the homo
are decorated for this occasion with green
branches of either fir, cedar or spruce. TO
insure fueng-suey Tor good luck) to the
house
Other ornamentations in honor of the
baby are long silk threads, bearing little
circles squares and hearts of gold and
scarlet paper. These are festooned from
the walls and are hung from the ceiling.
A few feet away the threads are invisi-
BILE and the gay scraps of paper appear
to be floating in the air. For the head
shaving the guests are seated in semi
circle before the joss. The mother is car
ried to seat of honor to the right of
the joss, and the baby, swathed in yards
of scarlet and purple silk, Is brought in
on an elaborate pillow.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-15
A Little Licorice.

From the Philadelphia Public Ledger.
Pretty nearly s20O0,OOo' worth of licorice
is used up in this country every year. 1t
all comes from the lands bordering on the
Mediterranean. : =, 9 II er.5ti y .s-
Most people think that licOrice comes from
the wooden twigs and branches of tree.
But in reality the licorice wood is the root
part of a very pretty. dainty plant, which
has beautifully shaped leaves that are col
ored bright green one side and pale sill
very green on the other.
The licorice plant is a perennial, and in
England, where they are trying to make an
industry of raising it, the experimenters
plant it in rows between cabbages and po-
tatoes. In the Mediterranean and Oriental
countries great plantations are given up to
it altogether. The licorice plant throws out
immense fleshy roots. full of juice when they
are fresh. They spread and burrow far in
the earth, and a good big hole has to be
dug to get them out.
The licorice wood as we see 1t here, rep
resents only about half the original weight
and size of the root, for fully so per cent
of the juice is lost in drying it. Therefore
the Iicorice dealers are getting to be more
and more in favor of squeezing the juice out
of the roots on the spot and then shipping
this extract.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-15
USING A MICROSCOPE.
Value of the Pocket Lens for Examin-
ing Lower Life Forms.

From success.
The season of swarming life. vegetable
and animal has come. and great joy
fills the heart of every possessor of a good
microscope. Man would not be worth much
as an intelligent creature If he did not
strive to enlarge the power Of his eyes and
his ears and of all of his organs of sense,
in order to perceive and comprehend more
fully the secrets and beauties of nature.
The two great allies of the eye that
science has given us are the microscope
and the telescope.
Every family should have a microscope.
There is no book more full OF instruction.
and few so full Of delight. 1t need not be
large and costly instrument. indeed. it
should not be for beginners. They might
easily become confused and discouraged by
complications and-except to expert hands
the difficulties of manipulate a powerful
modern miscroscOpe with it's delicate &c
cessories.
A simple instrument is best. A very high
magnifying power Is not needed. A single
cheap lens steadily mounted will do Won
ders. even when it magnifies but few
diameters. / have often been astonished
ID find how few persons, ever use even a
pocket magnifier or know how to use one
if 1t is handed to them. 1 have been ac-
customed for many years always to have
such lens about me. as inseparable a
companion as my penknife. Frequently
have two or three. of varying powers, in
my pockets. and I believe l could write a
book full of stories about the interesting
things 1 have seen with my pocket mag
nifiers and all of which 1 should have
missed without their ready aid.
On teeming summer day throw yourself
On the ground beside an ant hill, and see
what little lens. costing, perhaps, half
dollar. or less. will do for you in opening
before your eyes a world whose largest in
habitant is scarcely a half inch long, but
wherein there exists a perfection of social
organization. and marshaling of industry
that may we'll amaze a non-looklny pill
losopher.
For observation of minute life. of course,
something more powerful than a pocket
lens is needed. But the shops are fill OF
microscopes of every conceivable power
and price, costing from s. or $40 up to S1o0
or several hundred dollars If you get a
microscope whose magnifying powers run
from ten diameters. 1t will be all you will
need Remember that the superficial area
of an object is increased in apparent size
proportionately to the square of the given
magnifying power. For instance, fy'S
l. wing, with a multitude of delicate veins
and its simmer of prsmatic colors. APP
pears ten thousand times as large as lille
when magnified one hundred diameters, be-
cause it is magnified one hundred times
each way. OF course. you cannot see all
of a fy's wing at once, when 1t is mag
nified like that. but you can move it about
on the stage of the microscope and examine
different parts of it at your leisure.
With little ingenuity, and, perhaps, at
first the assistance of a more experience
observer 1t Is not difficult to see the blood
flowing in the semi-tranSparent foot of a
living frog, without injuring the animal
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-15
A Marvellous Dog.

In a big apartment house in New YORK
uves a collie who has well earned his name
of Marvel. He dwells with his mistress on
the seventh floor, and would get very little
exercise were he less clever. Marvel's mis-
tress trusts him to go out alone, and TINS
is how he goes about it. Does he tramp
down seven flights or stairs! NO indeed.
Marvel walks to the elevator, stands upon
his hind feet, and with his front paws
nresses the button which summons the
elevator to his floor In saunters Marvel.
When he has been out long enough. he
again rings for the elevator. and reaching
his own apartments rings the door bell;
MarveTs conduct suggests a conundrum.
Why is Marvel like the rider to Banbury
Cross? Because he has rings on his toes.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-15
A Trees Sprinting Record.
From the Los Angeles Times.

TOM ltlgeIes
A tree which grew nearly twenty feet in
a year and half has just gone from the
experimental station in Santa Monica canon
to the worlds fair to show what California
can do when in hurry for place in the
shade 1t holds the championship longsais-
lance tree sprinting record of the United
States. 1t is variety of eucalyptus. A
small grove of these trees was planted on
a shaggy cliff back of the experimental sta
ton, where it seemed that no tree could
grow at all. But the rate at which they
have shot up under skillful attention al
most staggers belief. When this particu-
lar tree was about a year and ahalf oil dit
measured four inches in diameter. They had
to pull it up for fear 1t would break the
Santa Monte speed ordinance. In order to
get it safely to the fair the whole tree was
carefully packed in MOSES and soaked
cloths.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-15
The Angels Golden Lilies.
A CHINESE NEW YEAR STORY.
BY +. Celestine Cummings.

Once upon a time. ever and ever so long
hgo there lived rich mandarin who had
two sons Foo Sing and Ii Wing. They
lived in a part of China where the land Is
low and swampy.
Now. Ii Wing had a horrid disposition
and was as jealous as he could be of his
sunny tempered younger brother. Foo
Sing was popular with every one on ac-
count of his pleasant disposition. and the
reverse could be said of his sullen-tem-
pered brother. Lii Wing managed to In
fluence his father so that when he
thought to divide his property between
his two sons he was led by the willy LII
Wing to think so much of his superior
wisdom that he left 1T to him to divide
the property after his death.
No sooner had the days OF mourning
passed for the old man than Lii Wing
FASTENED to divide the large estate. Civ
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-15
The Wonderful Banhah

The Baobab tree is considered one of the
most wonderful of the vegetable kingdom
IL appears that nothing can kill this tree
hence 1t reaches an astonishing age, as well
as enormous size. The natives make a
strohg cord from the fibers of the bark.
hence the trees are continually parked but
without damage. as they soon put forth
new Dark 1t appears impervious to fire.
and even the axe is resisted as IL continues
10 grow in length after it is lying on the
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-15

DOUBLE ADDITIONS.
Make the following changes by adding the
letter at the beginning and at the end OF each
word described Example-ChHnge large to speci-
mems. AnsHer-S-ample-s.
Change:
1. place where troops lodge to knavish fellows
2. penny to odors.
3. Evening 10 even.
4. An animal TO fat bottomed boats.
o. garden implement TO covering for the feet.
q. To devour TO resting places.
CHARADE
Without my first you'd be;
My second may be warm cold;
My whole Is day to celebrate,
Which makes you think you're growing old.
BEHEADINGs.
/. Aside and leave TO separate.
2. Custom and leave a plant.
B. To step and leave TO peruse.
4. One who moves and leave above.
3. AT no time and leave always.
INITIAL CHANGES
The words defined below alike except for the
/. To cali. 2. Part of the finger. 8 Receptacle
for water. a. Part OF yacht. s. The end q.
To weep. Z. A bar Of wood iron g. mode
of communication
Al. consonant in letter" 2. pronoun.
3, Not heavy. 4. Bashful. 5. consonant in
letter"
B-1. A consonant in rainy" 2. A beverage.
3. Prepared. A. To join. 8. A consonant In
rainy"
DOUBLE ACR0STIC.
My prinsls and finals both spell vegetable.
/. A medicine that increases strength. .. The
dark portion of q spot. g. To make a loud
noise. 4. At hand. g. An Indian plant used for
dyetng. @. sharp end.