davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Savannah morning news., 1904-01-31
WHAT WAS THE SIGN?
BY j. w. MULLER.

The Indigo Witch sat in her nod
ding palace of Deadly Nightshade and
her wicked old head was shaking even
harder than the floors of her house.
She was mad all through-from the
sole of her clawed indigo foot to the
tip toe of her rumpled indigo hair;
madden even than usual, and that was
born mad, and every birthday she got
a little madness added to it. And she
was a million and three years old, so
you can imagine how extremely mad
she was when this story opens.
Her name was Hoot loot, partly
and partly because it seemed so ex-
Sressive.
She was particularly mad this morn
ing because she had stepped on bees
sting that a careless bee had left
on the ground when it dropped from
his head while he was engaged in NOR
tai combat with Gen. Wasp, who had
tried to steal the honey.
The sting was of the finest super
tempered material. and had just been
sharpened on a hail stone: so when
Hoot loot stepped on it it went
clean through her thick shoe of hick-
DRY shell and came out on top. 1t
bled like anything and Hcot loot left
great trail of deep indigo blood be-
hind her as she limped along. lament
ing and screaming.
Old Hoot loot limped to DR..
Spruce and got a prescription of his
famous gum. The minute it was rub
bed on, the pain in her indigo foot
stopped; but the Indigo Witch had d
pain i'll her temper that did not stop
So she sat, shaking her head and plan
ming revenge on all bees.
1t was not long before she got an
idea. Most persons do not know it,
but ideas are forever fitting all around
everybody. like swarms of flies; only
they are invisible, and very much
quicker on the wing than even the
quickest fly. and you have to catch
them with a stroke like lightning
Some ideas are good and pretty, like
butterflies and lady bugs, and others
are evil and mean, like yellow Jackets
and mosquitoes. The idea that was
caught by the Indigo Witch was one
The Savannah morning news., 1904-01-31

And this is the letter written by
Omar to Prester John:
From the Wisest King in the World
I. to the Greatest King under the Fir
mament:
Peace and good will The Lord of
the Sunrise has added to the store of
our wisdom and increased his own
greatness. Whereas we were account
ed the wisest king in the world yester-
day, when in our foolishness we
dreamed ourself the greatest, to-day
we are truly wise, knowing ourself ex-
ceded in greatness by Prester John as
the sun exceeds the moon. Let it be
peace between us. Omar"
When Prester John received this
letter he was greately pleased, and had
no longer any desire to die. He enter
tanned Selim like a prince. And when
Selim returned to Bagdad he was made
Grand Vizier by King Omar.
For" said that wise King. IF Sc
linn could save my kingdom by a hair
when but a beardless youth, what can
he not do when he has beard of his
own"
The Savannah morning news., 1904-01-31

stood around. puzzled and frightened
Among them was a youth named
Selim, an archer.
Shall 1 shoot the bird?" he cried.
Eyes, yes" shouted the King.
Draw your bow. boy! Honors and
riches for you if YOU bring down the
red Digeoni"
Selm fitted an arrow and drew the
bow to the arrows head.
Omar. with his kingdom in the bal
ance. plucked his long beard and
trembled.
Fate seemed TO be against him. The
treacherous cord snapped. and the ar
row fell to the ground.
Woe is mel" walled the King.
Selim's eyes blazed. The cord had
broken when all depended upon it.
He glanced quickly around. The
King was madly plucking his beard.
With a cry Selim snatched a long
| hair falling from the Kings beard. In
a trice he spliced the raveled cord
wound the strong hair about it, fitted
the arrow again, and drew the bow.
The bird was high above them, pois-
ing an instant before darting eastward
toward the kingdom of Prester John.
The arrow sang through the air. 1t
sought out the pigeon and pierced the
feathered breast. The bird quivered
anu -eIl ike Il iuIIlp OIL lGdu d. liz
Kings feet.
Saved. Saved" cried the King,
with sparkling eyes. "a kingdom saved
by a hair"
Omar's men of war were devoured
with curiosity. Omar did not stay to
explain matters. He grasped Goon's
| arm, and returned to the throne-room,
reckoning to Selm to follow.
You shall take a letter and gifts
to the mighty Prester john" said the
King. He is the greatest King UNI
der the armament. Behold 1 was ac-
counted the wisest King in the world
but am wiser now then ever"
The King wrote a letter to Prester
John, and sent it, with the choicest
gifts in his kingdom, by the hand of
Coon He sent Selim with Coon to
visit Prester John and bring back de-
tails of his greatness.
The Savannah morning news., 1904-01-31

tear it to pieces, but curiosity got the
better of him, and he opened it.
Let it be war;" the letter ran. IF
Omar thinks he is the greatest king
under heaven, as well as the wisest,
he is neither. The red bird of war
brings millions of soldiers to your
gates. Tremble Omarl You must be
slave or die. This is the word of
Prester john King of Kings, Lord of
the Sunrise"
While the King was reading this
letter, Coon slipped from the room
into the court yard. and united the
cord that bound the red pigeon to his
wrist. The bird circled around and
around, flying higher and higher.
The King. in a panic. jumped down
from his throne and ran after Coon.
What does this mean?" he cried.
Woe is me- Fools have been my
councillors. Prester John is greater
king than l, and a wiser. Woe is me!
Oh, if l could fly and overtake that
birdi"
The King plucked his hair and his
beard, and wept. His men of war
The Savannah morning news., 1904-01-31
THE BELL WITH
THE CHILD'S VOICE
Little Ko-Ngai Cries Out of Cam
toms Wonderful Bell for Her
Pearl Slipper.
BY H. IRVING KING.
Illustrated by Dederick.

In the great Chinese city of Canton
there is beautiful pagoda. It's roof
is covered with glazed tiles of red and
blue and yellow which shine in the
sun. Below. in a dim temple, the Bud
dhist priests burn~joss sticks before
ugly idols. Outside of the temple, on
a wooden crossbeam between two up
rights, is a great bell; and when an
officer of the temple comes out, rust
ling in his dress of plum-colored or
white silk, and taps the great bell with
a hammer, it gives out a sound which
is heard all over Canton.
First, the bell calls out "Ko-Ngai,
Ko-Ngai," and then, after little
pause Hi Hi! Hi Hi" in a wailing
undertone that sounds like the voice
of child.
All the millions who live in Canton
and burrow i'm the dark and dirty
streets of that crowded city hear the
sound of the bell, and the children
pause in their play or their work and
say: There is Ko-Ngai crying for her
slipper"
And this is the story the Chinese
mothers tell their little moon-faced,
slant-eyed, pig-tailed children when
they rock them in their arms at night
fall-the story of the great bell and
the lost slipper.
A great many years ago, when the
Emperor Isl Chi ruled over China and
built the great wall. he journeyed to
Canton, where he was received in
great state by the Viceroy and the
people.
Thousands Of banners fioated every
where, and the sky was filled with gaily
colored kites. The soldiers, with their
cleaning spears and their bows and
arrows, shook the walls of the city
with their tread, and the Viceroy gave
a great feast at the palace, at which
there were fifty-eight courses, begin
ming with sweetmeats and ending with
the very best kind of birds nest soup.
But what Isl Chi desired most was
10 see the bellmaker, Wang Ho, who
dwelled just outside the city, and whose
fame had gone abroad through all the
land
So, after going to the temple and
burning great quantities of colored pa
per with writing on II 10 the spirits Of
his ancestors, and setting up any
quantity Of joss-sticks before the ugly
taols, he passed out Of the porcelain
The Savannah morning news., 1904-01-31

King. Il do not want to live if there
is il greater king than L.
Prester John thought long time,
and talked with his gray-bearded wise
men. Finally he sent for Coon.
Here are two letters and two pige-
ons," said the King. "One letter and
one pigeon are white. which means
peace. One letter and one pigeon are
red which means war. You are to
take my swiftest camel and go to this
King Omar. Give him the white letter.
If he is pleased, let the white pigeon
go and it will fly back to me. If
Omar is angry when he reads the
white letter, give him the red letter,
and instantly let the red pigeon fly"
20 King. live forever" said Coon.
Il shall begin my journey this mo-
ment."
BY the mighty Prester Johns COM
mand the camel driver was dressed in
the richest clothes and supplied with
gold. The swiftest camel in the king
dom was loaded down with gifts for
Omar. and Coon started on his long
journey.
After a years travel he arrived at
Bagdad. and went TO the palace of
Omar. There he was received by the
King, to whom he presented the gifts
and the white letter
The white letter said:
From Prester John, the Greatest King
Under the Stars, to Omar, the Wis
est King in the World:
Greetings and good wishes Though
we are the greatest monarch under
heaven, yet we envy the wisdom Of
Omar. 1t is our wish to be friends
therefore we send gifts. Peace be with
you. PRESTER JOHN
The face of King Omar had been
very bright when he looked at the
gifts, but 1t became black as a thunder
cloud when he read the white letter.
"Who is this Prester John who says
he is greater than u" he Numbered
"a trumpery king! Take back his silks
and jade,'
Read this, my lord" said Coon,
the camel driver, handing the red let
ter to Omar.
Omar snatched it and was about to
The Savannah morning news., 1904-01-31

of the latter kind.
After she caught this idea, she held
it to her ear and listened to it's hum,
and as a result of what it told her, she
presently emerged from her palace of
Deadly Nightshade. She hobbled to
the barn and harnessed up her team of
black spiders-great hairy sanimals,
each as big as a thimble with legs like
fuzzy wires The harness was made of
poison ivy stems and the wagon was a
great leaf of thorn apple.
She loaded it up with a strange
array of material-some out of her
laboratory where she and Prof. Miasma
brewed fevers and night frogs for the
wholesale and retail trade; some out
of her arsenal, where she kept her in
sect traps and bug killers; and others
she brought down from the lumber
room, where she stored the raw ma
terial for the years product of weeds.
The spiders were FESTIVE and they
bucked and reared and tried to bite the
harness; but the Indigo Witch was a
fine driver and she laid her whip of
nettles over them till they found that it
was wise to obey, and off they went at
a spanking pace.
On the way they ran over three rain
worms and two caterpillars of excel
lent standing in the community. Horse
Fly, the mounted policeman, tried to
arrest Hoot loot, but the spiders
champed their jaws when they saw him
and he scampered off and made a re-
port at the police station. And that
was all anybody could do.
Before many minutes, the painting
spider team was stopped at a dim, flow
cry trail 1t was Bee avenue, and the
Indigo Witch leaped from the wagon
and began work.
First she got a lot OF stems out and
tied them together swiftly, till they
formed the framework for an imposing
though strange plant Then she deck
ed them out with enticing flowers and
rustling leaves.
Then she carried out lot of thorns
and made traps-the worst and cruel
est traps that were ever made She
hid one behind every leaf and in every
flower.
They weSe made with hundreds of
curved teeth and nasty hooks and lit
tie and big points, all so formed as
to catch and hold, and then to cut
end carve and slice and pinch and
tear and pull and bore and scratch and
bore and rip and chop and twist and
mangle-not all at once. but slowly,
so that the unhappy captive would
suffer for a dag and a night and an
other day and then three hours and
fifteen minutes before it died.
HoOt loot chucked Indignantly as
she viewed the completed work. Then
she dived into the wagon again and
brought out a huge walnut shell of
black paint, distilled from the blacklist
black mud that could be found in the
blacklist pond in the world. To be
sure that it should be as black as
black possibly could be black Hoot
loot and Prof. Miasma had worn
black gloves and goggles when they
mixed it, and had boiled it down in
the blacklist midnight of the year. So
it was very good indeed. warranted
not to fade or to wash out.
IIoot loot quickly twisted some of
the stems this way and that. Then
The Savannah morning news., 1904-01-31

with brush of fine caterpillar hairs
peared as great, big, beautifully shaped
letters that spelled a work.
1t was q common word; yet it was a,
magic word. For it was a word that
would be sure to lure any bee to seek
the queer flower and climb into 1t and
then-presto! the traps would begin
TO work.
'"There!" said she. when the bees
begin to come down Bee Avenue on
their way to work. every one of them
will be sure to see the word. and I'd
like to know Swhat bee that ever was
could pass such a sign as this. Hoot.
Toot!"
Then the Indigo Witch climbed
hastily into. the top of the plant where
she sat hidden just as if she were
sitting high up in gallery, to watch
the cruel things that would happen.
Before many moments she heard
loud singing down the road.
Zoo! Zoo! Zoo!" it went. Zoo
tletootlety. zoo. zoo. zum!"
1t was young Buzzer z. Beefellow
going to his fathers big beeswax
factory.
"Hee. hee, hee!" chuckled Hoot
loot. "Hee, hee, hee! Hoot, toot
And it seemed that Buzzer 2. Bee
fellows fate was sealed, for another
instant would bring him to the plant
with the Turing sign.
But Hoot loot, the Indigo Witch
was doomed to bitter disappointment
Old Uncle West Wind had seen her
build her wicked traps. He was sitting
away and away up in cloud, and he
was going in a great hurry, for he
had an engagement to blow into the
sails of a ship and blow it from Boston
to Liverpool.
But when he saw the traps he de-
cided to stop a moment; so, when his
favorite nephew, Buzzer u. Beefellow,
came along, old Uncle West Wind was
just jumping down from the cloud.
''Whoof!" went his breath. 1t was
only one puff, but in that moment the
sign was all twisted aSkew and every
which way, and the consequence was
that Buzzer couldn't read the magic
word; so he flew right on and never
got caught in the trap.
Hoot loot ground her teeth with
rage till the points began to break
off; then she Strengthened the sign out
and settled down to wait for another
bee. But it was in vain.
Every time a bee came along, KIND
old Uncle West Wind said ''Whoof!"
and the world would get all mixed UP,
so no bee was caught.
At last Hoot loot got so mad that
she jumped up and down. And she
slipped and fell down kerchunk! on
the off spider of the team. There
upon both spiders reared and bucked
and trampled and bit her to death
Old Uncle West Wind hurried away
and he was laughing so hard when
/ he blew into the sails of the ship that
the captain and the mates nearly
burst, shouting 'Belay!" to the sailors
Now what was the magic word on
the plant? Cut out the stems that
Hoot loot twisted and painted black
and put them together properly, and
you will see.
The Savannah morning news., 1904-01-31

who was as much greater than Omar
as Omar was greater than a beggar.
This king was the great Prester
John.
His horses were as common as flies.
He had more elephants than an army
of men. His soldiers were as count
less as the sands of the seashore. He
had as many cities as Omar had SOL
diers.
Prester John with one look could de-
stroy city. His armies ran over
other kingdoms like ants and swallow
ed them UP. So Prester John was the
greatest king under heaven.
He did not claim to be the wisest
man in the world, but he knew he was
great.
One day Coon, a camel driver. bow
ed in the dust before Prester John.
20 King, live forever" he said. II
have Travelled in far countries. The
King Omar is the wisest man in the
world, except Solomon, and he thinks
also that he is the greatest king under
heaven"
Il am much troubled" replied the
The Savannah morning news., 1904-01-31

provisions for keeping liquors in bond
often make it profitable to ship wines
and brandies to queer ports, where
they can be put in bond cheaply until
they are wanter. So a person who
studies the voyages of sherry. as
shown in tables of exports and i'm
ports, is amazed to discover that of all
unlikely places Newfoundland is
one of the great points of import for
sherry. OF course. Newfoundland is
not wealthy enough to be a sherry
drinking country. The wine is simply
sent to it to go into bond.
One of the great national foods of
Germany is the goose. Christmas and
Roast Goose in Germany are as
inseparable as Thanksgiving and
Turkey in America. But the
national bird of the Tauton
isn't a Teutonic bird at all. Long,
long ago. it appears. the Germans ate
up all their own geese, and now they
go around begging other countries
for their geese. Russia has thrown
herself into the breach, and her peas
The Savannah morning news., 1904-01-31

covered city gates into the rice fields
and so TO the azalea-covered hills, until
he came to where Wang-H o was sit
ting under a Towering plum tree be-
fore his house
The house was close to the forge
where he melted his metal and cast his
famous beils-bells of the clearest and
most beautiful tones which were ever
heard, so that people, hearing them
ring, would say that they heard the
singing of birds in spring time or
the sound of the sea on sunny beaches
or the wailing of the wind through leaf
less branches, of the rustling of
leaves and the sound of falling waters.
Wang-Ho fell to the earth and
knocked his head three times in the
dust, making the kowtow, as all we'll
bred Cinnamon are supposed to do
when they see the Emperor.
Wang IIo" said the Emperor,
they tell me that you can make the
most musical bells of any man in my
Kingdom. I myself have heard some
of your bells speak, and they say
pleasant things to me. l have heard
the waves and the winds. and the
waterfalls and the singing of the birds.
Now. ] would have you make for me
The Savannah morning news., 1904-01-31
SIXTH ANCHORAGE.

Long before out great King Haroun
al Raschid Cmay he live foreverD was
born, the country was ruled by Omar
may he rest in peace, who was a ia
nous king.
Omar was the wisest man in the
world, except Solomon Omar thought
he was also the greatest king under
the stars, because the people told him
so. He had new horse to ride every
day, and his soldiers were like the
hairs of your head, they were so many.
Omar could kill man with one
word, or he could make a beggar rich
in a second. So be believed he was
the greatest king in the world.
Now Omar was mistaken, as kings
often are. In the country of the ris-
ing sun, far to the east, lived king
The Savannah morning news., 1904-01-31
Solution of the Picture Puzzle OF the
Fairy Garden.

The magic word that was woven o''
Of the blaek-painted stems by the IN
digo Witch in order to lure the gee
into the fatal traps was Honey. Ins
picture printed to-day will show you
just how you must cut out the sterI n
in last Sundays picture puzzle - sE''
out the sligo
The Savannah morning news., 1904-01-31

ants are turning into goose farmers
In parts of Russia. near the German
boundary, the traveller can see herds
of geese now instead of herds of
sheep.
How big these goose herds are can
be estimated by the fact that more
than seven millions of Russian geese
were shipped into Berlin alone last
The Savannah morning news., 1904-01-31
THE GORGEOUS ANGEL. FISH.

Some Queer Things About Its Color
and Habits.
1.-The angel fish," says. Mr.. Spencer,
of the New York Aquarium, lis one of
the most beautiful of the dwellers of
the water, salt or fresh. In West In
dian waters and thence to Brazil it is
commonly known as the blue angel
fish, but All Key West, the same species
is known as the yellow angel fish.
The Savannah morning news., 1904-01-31
Solution of Last Sundays Picture
Puzzle of the Rainbow and the
Pot of Gold.

The picture shows. by means OF Dl-
secting lines, the chunk Of the ralnoo"
that Polly Molly Sweetlythings ga"
in time for Robinson Crusoe Petts
whistle to cut it out and fit it into nv ,,,
gap. You will find that 1t fits eXac'''
when you turn it upside down.
River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1904-12-01
LEFT FOOT is THE LARGER
Dealer Says That Accounts for Fact
That the Right Shoe Lasts
Longest.

Did you ever notice that people are
right-footed?" asked the proprietor OF
a shoe store of a Shoe Retailer man.
Watch my clerks and you will see that
invariably my customers will put out
their right foot when going to be fitted.
Now watch that woman going to sit
down over there" The woman took a
seat, lifted her curtain of black yelling
and as the clerk approached her she
poked her right foot from beneath an
expanse of skirt Its always the case
and don't believe ever knew it to fail
The shoe manufacturers evidently are
wise to this fact, as in the cartons the
right shoe is always packed on top. Once
l had lot of shoes come to me with
the left shoe on top and it caused me so
much annoyance that I wrote to the
manufacturers, calling his attention to-
the matter, so that it would not happen
again. The majority of people are right
handed, yet left-handed person has the
right-foot habit The right hand is
larger than the left, as it is used more,
and consequently develops the muscles
to a greater extent. On the other hand,
the left foot is larger than the right in
most persons. The difference is so
Slight that we seldom have trouble in fit
ting shoes, however. It is the left shoe
that wears out before the right, and
probably for this reason"
River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1904-12-01
COMPLICATED DINING TOOLS
Hostess Who Keeps Track of Them
Must Be Somewhat of
Mechanician.

The hideOuS custom, lately come into
vogue, of the hostess helping herself
first is the result of an artifciality
which is spelling our national manners,
says Smart Set.
= Either the hostess fears, knowing her
cook, that the guests may be poisoned,
and heroically offers herself as the first
victim, or she feels obliged to teach them
by example the uses of the various in
struments lately introduced to perplex
the innocent and please the ostentatious.
There is the new kind of oyster fork,
with an apparatus attached which en-
ables the barbarous to cut too large
oyster.
There is the new fish knife, with re-
pository for the bones in the handle,
which is of gold and platinum.
There is the entree spoon and fork
combined, especially adapted to lobster
a Ia Newburgh.
There are the new imitation Sheffield
affairs, which resemble complicated
thimbles. You fit them to your right
forefnger and thumb, and you are thus
enabled to hold the leg of quail or
squad with safety and style"
There are the combined fork and scis-
sors for mangling Iettuce-these are
sometimes used-and this is almost too
horriblei-for cutting spaghetti into
the lengths required by the Goths of our
time.
There is, too, the orange cup, with a
little spring in it, which grips the gold
en- fruit as in wise. The hostess shows
you how to tpSfch the spring!
All this reminds me of the answer Of
young friend of mine to person who
asked if he still kept samovar: 81
did," he said, until the engineer
struck
The hostess of to-day, who wants to
keep in the current of table Improve
ments' must be something of me-
chanician; but even skill, laboriously
acquired and exhibited by the aid Of
electric lights, changing in color with
each course, does not compensate for
the loss of that simplicity which permit
ted dinner to be merely perfect back.
ground for conversation.