davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Los Angeles herald., 1905-10-01

into it's contents. Everything went or
innoculously until the end
At last they got to the very bottom
of the trunk, when, 10 and behold. they
came upon a great succulent ham, ac-
cursed of Moses and the law, reposine
in utmost indifference to the Penta-
teuch! big" Morris was not particu-
larly pleased with the ruction which
had been made in his baggage by the
federal myrmidons, but these latter
were chagrined indeed.
1t Was a Ham
1t must be borne in mind that a
luscious sugar-cured ham was not often
to be seen in Los Angeles in those days.
But what was it doing in the baggage
of the portly and popular and orthodox
Jew was the question. Probably he
was bringing it down to accommodate
some friend!
Old Louis Mesmer got to Los Angeles
even before Sam Prayer, who found
him on hand when he arrived here in
1854. Mesmer established himself where
the United States hotel and his sons
shoe store stand now. The edifice in
which he did hotel and saloon busi-
ness was somewhat more primitive
than the present buildings, but for fifty
years a thriving trade has been done
on that corner under all sorts of man
agements, but under the one Mesmer
proprietorship.
Louis was a dauntless old Alsatian
of pronounced German facial and vocal
characteristics, who remained an Ell
thusiastic Frenchman in racial SYM
pathies to the day of his death. He and
his friend Briswalter, also an Alsatian
and a French sympathizer, must have
had many a lugubrious conference dur
ing the Franco Prussian war in the
lager beer and billiard hall which then
ran under the basement of the Mesmer
property. He was q staunch Catholic
and was largely instrumental in the
building of the st. Vibiana cathedral
which, for building erected thirty
years ago, when Los Angeles was Il
town of only 5000 or 5000 people, was 4
great achievement. He showed in that
work the energy which his son Joe has
shown in fixing the new postoffice site
at the corner of Temple and Main, and
which he is showing in making the fight
to plant the projected new city hall
next door to it.
The old man was a we'll known and
characteristic figure, as he stood daily
for months and months experimenting
the workmen on the imposing new
building, his breast swelling with pride
as it progressed. One day, as he was
thus looking on, three or four quid
nuncs, some of them ready for joke
drew near him. The letters d. o. NJ
had just been put up over the mair
door. the abbrevative of the Latin for.
mula "Deo Optimo, maximo," to God
the best and greatest"
sd. O. M. What's ID. o. M mean?'
said one.
Il don't know replied his interloc-
utor.
Los Angeles herald., 1905-10-01
Copyright by Joseph B. Bowles.

Copyright by Joseph 3. Bowles.
WYE have added to the show the
w most remarkable animal that
ever was-a baboon that dresses
like a man, and eats at table, using
knife and fork, and napkin. This
baboon has been playing an engage
ment with the -Four Hundred at New
port, dining with the crowned heads
at that resort, but the confounded
baboon got to be too human, and he
fell in love with an helress, and
scared one of. the Willie boys that was
also in love with her. His friends were
afraid the baboon would cut Willie out
entirely, or get jealous and injure
Willie, so the manager of the -Four
Hundred show decided to Danish the
baboon, and our show sent pa to New
port to buy the baboon and bring him
to our show at New York.
We had the darndest time getting
him away from Newport. Pa couldn't
do anything with him, but he took to
me, cause he thought I was his long
lost brother, and L could do anything
with him. We got him in our state
room on the boat, and took his clothes
away from him, cause he only wears
his clothes when he is being dined and
wined. and we chained him in the up
per berth. He just raised the very
Los Angeles herald., 1905-10-01

drunk, and is the understudy of every
body. We got one act that just cur
dies your blood, a cage in the ring,
with lions and tigers and leopards, who
go through all kinds of stunts. One
lion rides a horse and jumps through
hoops, and lands on the back of the
horse, and jumps on staging and
let's the horse go around the ring, and
then jumps on again. The horse is
blindfolded, so he don't know it is q
lion that jumps on his back, but thinks
it is a man.
The tigers ride bicycles, and the
leopards jump about wherever the
trainer tells them to; monkey acts
make-b believe automobile. That act
alone is worth the price of admission.
Trainer Went to Coney
Well, the regular trainer went to
Coney Island and got drunk, and we
ance or give back the money, and the
manager was wailing about it, cause
nothing makes a circus man wall like
giving back good money. Then pa said
he would save the day by taking charge
of the animal act. He said he had
watched it every day and knew how to
do it, and he could dress up in the
clothes of the regular trainer, and the
animals wouldn't know the difference.
Gee, but 1 was scared to have pa try
to run that animal show, and 1 think
everyone in the show believed it would
be pas finish. L felt like an orphan
when pa came out of the dressing room
with the trainers clothes on, though
pas stomach was so big you would
think blindfolded horse would know
pa was no trainer.
Well, pa went in the round cage,
made of bar iron, and motioned to the
attendants to send the animals into
the cage through the chute from the
animal quarters. The first to come
were two tigers that were to ride
velocipedes. l trembled for pa when
they went in and waved their tails and
looked at pa as much as to say: "Oh, we
won't do a thing to you!" They actually
Los Angeles herald., 1905-10-01
Ex-Governor of wisconsin,.

bulance carried the injured to hos
pitals. Pa stampeded with the ele-
plants, and never showed up till noon
the next dag. BY that time at least
1000 people had filed claims for dam
ages, and all the lawyers from Albany
to New York were on the trail.
The managers appointed pa to settle
with the injured, and the way he
argued with those people was cau-
ton. One old woman was killed, and
pa tried to show her relatives that as
she was old and helpless, and more or
less burden to the family, they ought
to pay the show something for getting
her off their hands. One tramp had
his feet cut off, and pa tried to show
him how much he would save in shoes
the rest of his life, and that he was
in big luck. We left pa at Pough-
keepsie to settle the cases and went on
to New York. and we heard the people
had lynched him, but he showed UP
in a couple of days with money left.
Now all the lawyers in New York are
after us, with claims, and they have
attached most everything, and the show
is up against it,
What a difference 1t makes VINO
wants damages! When we were work.
ing the railroad for damages it was a
cinch, but now that the people are
working us for damages. for being
smashed up under our tent, we look
upon 1T as a crime, and tell them it
is an act of Providence, and that the
show is not to blame for windstorm.
But the lawyers can't be very pious,
for they won't believe in the act of
Providence racket, and we shall have
to cough up all the profits Of the sea-
son.
Since we got settled in New York for
a two weeks stand, in Madison Square
Garden, we are having the tents re-
paired, and don't have to put up and
take down tents, and ride all night on
trains We areaRll stopping at hotels,
and getting rested, and pa is having a
chance to shine.
The managers think pa is trying to
commit suicide, for he wants to take
the place of anybody who is sick or
Los Angeles herald., 1905-10-01

- T is very much a question whether
any lawyer can commit any offense
in California heinous enough to lead
to his disbarment. Some quite emf
nent barristers of this state have run
through all the offenses allowed and
forbidden by Polonius in his injunctions
TO Laertes when he was starting that
youngster out in life without, that any
one could discover, injuring their pro-
fessional standing in the least
Some twenty years ago there was an
occurrence in Los Angeles that very
nearly resulted in the disbarment of
two well known attorneys About that
time there arrived in the Angel city
man named Hoyle. He was the alb
sconding treasurer of one of the leading
southern coast cities. He carried with
him some three thousand dollars, which
he intrusted to his attorneys, ]. G.
Eastman and John Robarts. He was
arrested and Jailed, pursuant to a war
rant telegraphed from the city he had
defrauded.
1t was generally understood that
plan had been concocted to get him
down to Mexico, and the noted Joe
Dye was engaged to assist in carrying
out the plan. There could certainly
not have been better hand for such
an adventure than Dye, as he had the
reputation of fearing nothing, human,
divine or diabolical, and had many
h ID 70 teJ
arrival of officers from the south pre-
vented the carrying out of the pro-
gram, and Hoyle shot himself in the
old 'dobie jail. 7 saw him die: and, as
his death was somewhat protracted,
heard him gasp out the declaration that
back home and confronting his old
friends dishonored man.
There was a great outcry at his
death. It was known that he possessed
n large sum of money on his arrival
here and he was vigorously searched
when he was locked up, but had no
arms. The question arose, and was
generally discussed, who gave him the
pistol with which he killed himseIf?"
There was little doubt amongst the
public that either Eastman or John Ro-
barts handed him the weapon.
AS Hoyle was well known and popu-
lar in the community in which he had
lived, there was a large howl at the
circumstances of his death and the dis
appearance of the money. A brother
of Hoyle's, a gallant young officer Of
the army of the United States, came
out here to look into the matter. He
called a meeting of the bar, which was
generally attended, and made really
eloquent and ardent speech, arraigning
the robbery of his brother and the pro-
curement of his death. He was listened
to with great attention and a number
OF lawyers spoke their minds freely on
the transaction, but that was all that
came of it, and the devoted brother had
to go back home knowing that East
man and Robarts still retained their
places i'm the California bar.
On an earlier occasion, when East
man admitted that he had induced
witnesses to cross the Mexican line, in
an important case In which the late
Los Angeles herald., 1905-10-01
Hebrews Factors i'm Early Los Angeles
Written tor The Herald By JOseph D. lynch


I Col. R. S. Baker was the defendant
an undoubted and admitted felony for
which he was fined a thousand dollars
which Col. Baker good naturedly paid =
ne still kept his position at the bar.
Many Hebrews Here
Los Angeles at all stages of her his
tory was noted for the large Hebrew
element of her population. This was
as marked fifty years ago as now. I'm
til he died very recently, one of the
most notable figures on our streets was
Morris Morris, who was known amongst
his familiars by the name of Big Nor
ris He was a strikingly handsome
man, and when active in the ceremon-
impressive figure. He was a devotee in
practice of President Roosevelt's anti
race suicide" cult, and was the father,
amongst other children, of number of
beautiful daughters, some of whose at
fractions ran into a tost through the
southland and even in the east.
big" Morris arrived in Los Angeles
in 1856, and was for over forty years
business. In the early days, about all
the Jews in Los Angeles were Demo-
Gratis and all remained so until the
Bryan campaign of 1885, when l. w.
Hellman and some others at least par
TALLY affiliated with the G. o. p. For
this detection the favorite abracadabra
-16 to 1-of the distinguished Nebras-
kan was responsible. The early day He
brew prediction for Democracy was
largely due, no doubt, to the great
number of charming southerners who
were resident here before, and whose
number was greatly increased after the
war. Gen. Hancock, Gen. Magruder
and many other popular officers who
for so long We're stationed in the An
gel city, even when they We're not
southerners, We're Democrats, and min
gled with the people in a genuine CANA
raderie.
There was a large southern senti-
ment here when the war broke out,
and many Democrats were supposed to
lean very decidedly to the confeder-
acy. This resulted in the stationing of
an armed force of loyalists in Los An
geles. Many of her citizens were placed
under very unpleasant surveillance;
and amongst these was Big" Morris.
In the earlier days of that momentous
struggle that gentleman had occasion
to go up to San Francisco on some bust
ness concerns. When he came back a
lot of officious federal officials were at
the wharf and manifested a very par
ticular interest in a notably large trunk
which Morris had brought down from
San Francisco. These worthless at once
came to the conclusion that the trunk
smacked of miching mallche of some
kind-it probably contained something
contraband, which was to be shipped
to rebel sympathizers in Arizona, New
Mexico or Texas via Uncle Billy Ru-
bottoms, at Spadra. and Hall Hanlon
at Yuma. They were determined to see
what was in it at all hazards; and
presto! against the violent protests of
"Big" Morris they opened it and dove
Los Angeles herald., 1905-10-01

see they were laying for pa, and L
wished he was out of the cage. Ihe
wind-up came when the lions were
seated OH benches, and the elephant
was between them, and the tigers and
leopards made pyramid, and the
monkey was clawing around pas legs
The signal was about to be given Tor
the animals to return through the
chute, when the monkey tackled pas
legs like a football player, the elephant
pushed pa over, and the lions paved
him and snarled, and the tigers took
mouthful out of pas pants, and the
leopards snatched his red coat off, and
the signal was given for them to get
out Of the cage, and they went out like
boys at recess, leaving pa in the cage
with the blind horse, with not clothes
enough left on him to wad gun. He
animals having just combined to humil-
late pa.
The audience cheered. Pa said:
"Well, wouldn't that skin you!' They
threw him an overcoat to put on, and
he bowed like hero, and quit the ring
cage and was met outside by the whole
show management and congratulated
on having more nerve than any man
alive.
Pa said "If you will give me shot
gun loaded with bird shot 1 will make
those animals get on their knees at the
next performance and beg my pardon.
You can discharge your trainer, and L
will teach them a lot of new stunts
Say, pa is a wonder, and he has al
ready got old Barnum beat a block.
Los Angeles herald., 1905-10-01

I
w the actual cause of great part
of that "tired feeling" which
conquers civilization in the tropics
has been declared by science. The
chronic aversion to work which char
acterizes the population of the West
Indies is to be overcome and the
indolent, shiftless Porto Rican turned
into hustling American.
This transformation, it appears, is
! simple process once you know how
and the medical profession is now
confident that 1t knows how. The
problem is the familiar one of educa-
ton In. the elementary principles OF
hygiene and sanitation.
Recent Investigations have shown
that 80 per cent of the rural popula-
tion Of Porto Rico are sufferers from
the ravages of the "laziness germ"
dignified by science with the name of
uncinaria. Their apparent laziness IS
actually the result Of a well-def1ned
malady known as an uncinariasis or
anky-lostomasis, and more of a
scourge to the inhabitants Of the island
than the dreaded yellow jackI in its
palmiest days.
Widespread as it is in tropical and
semi-tropical climates, in the tenn
perature zone it can thrive only under
exceptionally favorable conditions
notably in mines, tunnels and other
| Ia
posed to infection through muddy
water.
Just Reaching Here
While various industrial centers in
! Europe have suffered severely from
| the work of the "laziness germ from
| time to time, the United States has
hitherto been singularly free from 1t.
Now, however with the undeveloped
resources of Cuba at our doors, with
our flag flying over Porto Rico and
with the Panama canal still undug,
the ills of the inhabitants of these less
favored regions have become import
ant to us and American medical men
are entering with eagerness into the
| great 1leld open TO IneHl Ill lHe lIopiCS'
| The manner in which yellow jack
has been driven out of Cuba, after it
had ravaged the island for more than
| two centuries, by the knowledge that
mosquitoes are responsible for its
spread, and the success of the meas
ures adopted to check the pestilence In
New Orleans, show how great are the
results which can be accomplished.
The unwillingness to labor hard and
| long displayed by the average Porto
Rican is really physical incapacity, the
hresult of inoculation with the "laziness
germ" The existence of this malicious
little parasite, only small fraction 9f
an inch in size, is believed to have been
known to ancient Egyptians and on
papyrus dating back to 1850 B. c. there
has been found description of dis
ease very similar to the modern un
cinariasis. At the present time so per
cent of the Egyptians are said to be
affected with the same trouble.
In ST. Gothard Tunnel
Although of such long standing in
the world the little germ did not
Los Angeles herald., 1905-10-01
LOW-KEYED AMERICANS
National Taste In Mems Dress Is Som.
. ber and Leaden

Der ana Leaoen
OF many perplexing characteristics
of the American civilian not the strang-
est is his adherence of color in his
dress. His raiment suggests dreary,
leaden skies, wild-grown swamp land
and smoke-choked lake harbors. Let
one appear upon the street with a
chameleon tie or CHINA nabar-dyed
waistcoat and the police consider it
just to run him in for blocking traffic.
No man on earth is more fanciful, im-
aginative and inherently poetical than
the American. Yet it is one of his stock
Jokes to point to the Englishman, who,
though so matter-of-fact and common
place of mind, drapes himself in broad,
vivid checks. The Frenchman consid-
ers it no offense to wear long, chisel-
shaped pink shoes and cravats like the
pennant of yacht club. The Russian
of hapless melancholy and confusion
with brave red boots and prismatic
mufflers. Even the Scot, dwelling in
land of fog and rain, rounds off a sweep
and Lapland emigrants offset bearing
of scarlet beard with bonnet running
the gamut of the spectrum.
That the American has really in his
heart an ambition for color is appar-
ent in the uniform he assumes upon
occasions of secret society meetings,
the encampments of militia, and in his
good nature over the bills of his women
folk. When proper excuse is given him
he can riot in chromatics that would
dull the following of the lord of an In
dian cipality.-Cleveland Leader.
Los Angeles herald., 1905-10-01

arouse much stir in the medical world
until 1879, when the tunneling of the
great st. Gothard pass through the
High Alps began. On the progress of
this engineering feat the eyes of the
whole civilized world were bent and
when the laborers began to sicken and
die by the hundreds the secret of the
mysterious epidemic was sought for
until it was found to be the same germ
that is now working such havoc in
Porto Rico.
Between the climate of a high AL
pine pass and of Porto Rico there is
little resemblance, but in the tunnel
itself much the same conditions pre-
vailed as on the island today. Men
worked half naked in great heat, often
up to their waists in muddy water and
with comparatively little regard to
sanitary precautions. The unshod
West Indian working in the coffee
fields or the sugar plantations is eX-
posed to the same danger with the
same results.
1t is a popularity of the "laziness
germ" so fatal to the development of
the natural resources of lands on which
nature has lavished all her wealth.
that it finds it's way into the body more
often through the skin than through
the mouth. For this reason uncinari-
ass has been called a poor mans dis
ease, and the poorer he is the more ex-
posed is he to infection. The well-clad
citizen of the towns, familiar with the
ordinary rules of hygiene, in general
escapes 1t is the laborers in the fields
the great bulk of the population of
Porto Rico--who suffer the most, with
their scanty clothing, their ignorance
or contempt of common precautions,
and, above all, the contact with the soil
necessitated by their daily work.
Once within the body the tiny para
site makes it's way unerringly to the di-
gestive tract and there feeds at leisure
upon the blood of his victim. The
peasant is usually found to be inocu-
lated not once but many times with
these germs-the favorite entrance be-
ing through the feet-and the effect is
as if a multitude of little veins should
be opened and allowed to bleed. Under
this continuous drain the patient 8
blood becomes thin and watery and the
inability to take any violent exertion,
from which the uncinaria derives its
popular name of the "laziness germ,
becomes more and more pronounced.
Time Cures 1t
In cases where the victim escapes
further infection and has good food and
plenty of it, time usually works his
cure. These are, however, unusually
favorable conditions. The mass of suf-
ferers confined in a narrow valley or a
coffee plantation on a mountain side
are affected again and again. AS they
grow weaker their earning ability
grows less and food becomes scarce.
Thirty per cent of the deaths in the
island, it is estimated, are due to unci-
nariasis and this is exclusive of the un-
known number who, weakened by
years of suffering, fall ready prey to
more violent maladies. Such curse
has the disease become that to the sim