The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1904-01-19
ITEMS OF INTEREST.

Perhaps the oldest relic i'll London
| of a medieval kitchen is at Westmin-
| ster Abbey, though little remains to in
dictate it save the rubble flooring, the
buttery hatch and an adjoining cellar,
now the handsome dining hall of Ca
non Wherefore.
-Englishmen in Queen Elizabeth's
time dined at II a. m. and Shakespeare
rung up the curtain at the Globe The
alter at l p. M, the performance end
ing between and o'clock. By the
time of Charles III. dinner had adj
vanced to 1 o'clock and the play began
at p. m, as Pepys records A CEN
fury later Horace Walpole complained
of dinner being as late as o'clock and
evening not beginning until o'clock.
Up to the middle of the last century
the theaters opened at $50, dinner be-
ing proportionately earlier.
An invention on car seats which
may prove far-reaching was recently
made by B. Repsdorph of Houston,
Tex. By this design two ordinary car
seats may be easily converted into a
bed. This change is regulated by a,
wheel, which is on the upper part of
the aisle end of the seat. A lock is
also placed on the outside of the same
end, which is used to lock the seat in
bed the seat is thrown forward and
the back thrown in the opposite direc-
ton until it reaches d level; then
locked.
In former times the Danes used
to sail up the mouths of the English
rivers to pillage the churches. When
they were caught they were skinned
and their skins nailed to the door of
church thew attacked n
time all the exposed portion would peel
Off, but that covered by the nail would
be protected and thus bear testimony
to the cruelty of the ancient English
men. In the London College of Sur
geons may be seen three specimens Of
human skin bearing labels such as
this: Portion of human skin, said to
be that of a Dane, from the door of
church at Hadstock in Essex" A sec
ond specimen is from Copford, in Es-
sex, and third from the north door
Of Worcester Cathedral. Such frag-
ments of Sacrilegious Danish hide have
been found on doors in Westminster
Abbey.
The celebration of a bi-centennial
by a church has been an event that
has only been observed by a few con-
gregations in America since it's discov-
cry, says Leslie's Weekly. The Falck-
ner Swamp Lutheran congregation at
New Hanover, Pa, celebrated Nov. 2S
and 20 last the 200th anniversary of
its existence as a congregation, being
the oldest Lutheran congregation in
the Western world worshiping in the
oldest Lutheran Church in America.
Lutheranism in America dates back to
June "a, 1894, when the first Lutheran
services were conducted in German
town, Pa, by Heinrich Bernhard Kos
ter. Other Lutherans soon crossed the
Atlantic, and in 1900 the Rev. Daniel
Falckner brought little band of Ger
mans from Langon- Reinsdorf, Saxony,
who settled in the Falckner Swamp
region, the region being named after
the leader of the little army of Ger
mans. The congregation was organic
ed in 1903, and it formed the nucleus
of the church in North America, which
now has 100000 members.
There is rejoicing among high liv-
ers in Europe that the Nicaragua gov
eminent has not thought well to per-
Sist in it's attempt to tax turtles and
turtle-catching off the Mosquito coast.
The crews of the turtling fleet were to
be taxed at 81 a head and the turtles
at SO cents a head. A bout ITO turtles
arrive at Southampton, England, ev-
cry fortnight and are taken to Lon
don. where in the properly fitted up
establishment of a specialist who is
called the turtle king" these curious
creatures flap about in their straw I'M
til the inevitable hour" arrives 1t
needed no tax to make turtle soup eX-
pensive, for the risks in carriage are
described as enormous. Between
Southampton and London especially
the mortality is considerable despite
all the care taken. A dead turtle is
called an angel" but the angelic stage
is not always recognizable, and many
q cook has been knocked down by the
fin-fiap of an apparent "angeP' which
has suddenly and literally turned tur-
to-"
Capt. Doenvig, the Norwegian in
ventor who has recently perfected a
most remarkable device in the form of
a "life-saving globe" has recently CIV
EN- further public tests of the appara-
tus. The DoeAvig globe is composed of
steel and glass. The bottom, or sub
merged part, is made of metal. while
the upper half is set with glass in steel
frames. At the top there is a water
tight man-hole, through which passen-
gers can pass one at a time. One of the
main features of the sphere is the up
right position which it maintains in the
water, this being due to a well-man-
aged system of ballasting, thus insuring
the safety and comfort of the passen-
gers. The boat has been the object of
an unusual amount of interest display
ed by several prominent steamship
lines. The captain was given a chance
to show the quality of his invention in
a recent storm off the peninsula of
Jutland. Capt. Doenvig, with the gov
eminent committee and several ac-
quaintanCes. was taken out into the
stormy Skager Rack by the cruiser
Heidmal. He and several friends got
into the globe and We're lowered into
the sea. The great waves time and
time again completely submerged it,
but each time it righted itself. They
finally grounded, and We're taken out
by lifeboat crew. They were unani-
nous in their praise of the crafts ac-
tons, and said they experienced no un-
pleasantness, and that little or no shock
had been felt when it grounded. The
apparatus is now on exhibition at Co.
penhagen.
Near Santa Catalina Island, off the
coast of California, was caught re-
Gently the largest sunfish ever taken
or perhaps seen. 1t was literally i'm
possible, even with all the available
tackle used in lifting huge tunas and
black sea bass, to weigh this fish
entire or to lift it from the ground. so
that its weight was guessed at a, ton.
while conservative estimates placed it
at from 1900 to 1900 pounds. The cap
tors discovered it while fishing from
l4nnQh ENyl esrnrfv, ,s,.,.