davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1905-10-19
DESIRE COMPANIES BOOKS.
Further Hearing Of Oil Cases in Mis-
souri, Postponed.

souri, Postponed.
st. Louis, Oct. 19.-The further hear
ing of the quo warranto proceedings
instituted by Attorney General Hadley.
against the Standard, Republic and
the Waters-Pierce Oil companies has
been continued until Nov Ia.
Attorney General Hadley stated he
could not proceed further in the in
quiry into oil company methods until
the question of the production of books
in court was decided by the supreme
court. The quo Warranto proceedings
come before the supreme court on
J ct. 81.
The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1905-10-19
J GUILTY ON EVERY COUNT.
Nerdicl in Case Against Stanley Fran
/. -: ~ S .s: els of Philadelphia.

Nerdict in Case Against Stanley Fran
s:s e. els of Philadelphia.
Philadelphia, Oct. l9-Stanley Fran
els, who has been on trial in the Unit
ed States district court since Oct. 9
charged with using the smails to de-
fraud in connection with the defunct
Story Cotton company, has been found
guilty on every count in the indict-
ment.
Francis, who was known under sew
eral aliases, was charged by the gov.
eminent with being a principal in the
Story Cotton company, which, when
closed by the postal authorities, owed
$2,926,578 to customers throughout
the country.
Application was made for a new
trial.
DESIRE COMPANIES BOOKS.
The Washington times., 1905-05-21

tson that it is a plane they do not de-
pend on Bible cosmogony alone They
declare they can prove il by facts which
can easily be tested. II can be demon
strated. they contend, that water is
everywhere level. and does not follow
the alleged curvature OF the earth Be-
tween Welney bridge and Bedford bridge
on the Bedford canal is a stretch of wa
ter six miles long. Professor Proctor,
the noted astronomer. once said: IF
with the eye a few inches from the
surface of the Bedford canal an OBJ
ject close to the water six miles distant
from the observer can be seen, there
manifestly would be something wrong
with the accepted theory"
Lady Blount asserts that she has
proved, and proved by the. camera. that
this six miles Of water is absolutely
level and consequently "the army of
Zetetics are right in their contention
that the world is not a globe
A photo-telescopic camera Of the lat
est pattern was used in the experiment
II was placed in position less than two
feet above the ground level under Wei
ney bridge by an expert operator. At
Bedford bridge a screen was fixed. If
the world be n globe having a circurn-
ference of z. 900 miles, says Lady
BIount, 1.-The bottom of the screen should
have been over twenty feet below the
line of vision in the six-mile view. AS
the whole of the screen and It's reffec-
tion in the water beneath were OBJ
served and photographed. no curvature
can possibly exist
The Washington times., 1905-05-21
Genesis Her Platform

Lady Biount's letter was written in
reply to some queries made apropos OF
a lecture on the earths alleged fiatness,
which her ladyship delivered in London
the other day. Pinning her faith to
what She calls the divine system of
cosmogony as revealed by the Creator" !"
she boldly declares all the teachings of
astronomy. since the days of Gaiilee
false and pernicious. leading to pagan
ssm and perdition. She asserts that the
earth. instead OF being a giddy ball.
wnirItne through space at the rate OF
as scientists have taught us to believe
Is fixed. fiat. and inimoVable plain.
Lady Blount is a clever woman with
the courage of her convictions. and very
much in earnest. She edits a Journal
called The Earth. IN which the pan
cake theory OF the world is upheld.
On the platform, backed up by Genesis.
she is ever ready TO maintain the same
Views against all eomers, Several doc
tors OF divinity and other men of sup
posed light and learning are among her
followers. Branches of the society OF
which she is the high priestess have been
formed in the principal countries with the
exception OF benighted Russia, where The
Earth is not allowed TO circulate. She
hopes some day to visit the United
States and convince folk there that
Moses was better posted on the con-
struction and working Of the universe
than Herschel and all the rest of the
Astronomical noyelists of the globular
school, as she calls them
The Washington times., 1905-05-21
Surprised Tie Photographer.

The photographer, Mr. Clifton, in a
letter testffying to the fairness of the
conditions under which the test was
conducted. says: 'T arrived on the spot
with the distinct idea that nothing could
be seen of the sheet at the distance OF
six miles. but on arrival at Welney
was surprised to find that with a tele
scope. placed two feet above the leve
of the water, I couiG watch the fixing
of the lower edge of the sheet. and af-
terward focus it upon the ground glass
Of the camera placed in the same posi-
ton | should not like" he adds, ''tc
abandon the globular theory off-hand
but, as far as this particular test is con
cerned, / am prepared to maintain that
(unless rays of light travel In a curved
PATH these six miles CT water present
a level surface"
The Zetetics have dore a lot of crow
ing over this matter. 1t IL now up tC
the scientists, they say, TO reconcile the
existence Of a six-mile level stretch OF
water with a giobular earth. 1t Is a
curious fact that many years ago this
same canal was alleged to have furnish
ed irrefutable evidence that the world
is a sphere The experiment on that
occasion was conducted by Prof. Alfred
..Physiography, thus refers to 1t: "A
convincing experiment to prove the ro-
tundity of the earth was made by Mr.
Wallace in 1870 in the Bedford level
Three signals, each thirteen feet four
inches above water level. were erected
at distance of three miles apart. On
looking through telescope adjusted in
such q manner that the line touched the
TONS of the first and last poles il was
found that the middle signal was up.
ward of five feet above the line. This
rjse was of course, due to the conYexity
of the earth's surface"
There does not seem to be any way
of reconciling observations yielding suci
contradictory results. Meanwhile Lady
Blount maintains thai her photographs
witnesses that are not susceptible o.
bribery or bias. prove that the earth |,
fat She lightly dismisses the famil
lar argument IN favor Of the earth
rotundity founded on the fact that whe1
q ship sailing seaward is observed from
the shore the hull first disappears, by as
serting that 1t is "expfainable by tn
laws OF perspective"
The Washington times., 1905-05-21
A PAEAN TO FOOD.

You may talk about the uplift of .
bumper with booze,
You may prate about the benefit you
gather from a snooze;
You may gable OF the good you get
from ruralistic rest.
And of how you fiercely fatten on the
ozone from the west.
But I know a stimulation that is better
than them all
Quite the finest yet discovered on this
loam-incrusted ball;
There's no other sort of stimulant I'M
parts so much OF zeal
AS a healthy man can gather from
good square meal.
Catch fellow all discouraged, travel
weary. on the bum.
Just so sore on mundane living that he
longs for kingdom come;
He's q pessimist-the limit He's 8
crank TO fare-you-
He's the worst the worlds encountered
since the time when Adam fell.
Ten TO one the fellows hungry and he's
aching fer a feed,
Though himself he doesn't savvy what's
his f4aost especial need
Treat him gently then; enttce hiEl with
fatherly appeal
To assist You in demolishing good
square meal,
Baltimore American.
The Washington times., 1905-05-21
Needed Two Hundred.

Dear Landlord: I am closing a deal
for a fine pair of horses and a carriage.
with which I shall leave here tomorrow
morning for Muskegon. I am trading a
few diamonds on the deal, but the man
has held me up for $500 boot money,
which 1 wish you would let the bearer
have for me. 1 also have on another
diamond deal, which 1 expect to cIineh
today. Yours, etc.
Not daring to intrust the messenger
with the diamond mans thousand dol
lar package. and not feeling justified
in opening it, the landlord instantly
sent the 5000 in cash out of his own
pocket. First, however, he questioned
the messenger and learned that he was
an old resident of Grand Haven. and
knew everyone there.
The next day we expected to see a
handsome team driven into town, and
were really disappointed. when night
came. and none had arrived.
The next day was stfn more dlsap-
pointing, especially to the landlord
On the following morning, the hotel
people began discussing the matter quite
freely. The landlord brought out the
envelope. upon which was written the
diamond dealers name and the amount
of cash inclosed, and although he claim
ed TO feel perfectly secure 1t was plain
that he was much parplexed
At last, not hearing from the young
man, the clerk went to Grand Haven
and, to his astonishment, found the
landlord there walking the floor in his
anxiety to know what had become of
the man whose package. containing
1880, he held in the safe. and for
merchant friend a couple of days be-
fore
The Washington times., 1905-05-21
"You've Cot to Show Me-

Instead of doing SO. he landiord said
You claim there is thousand dollars
here, do your
''You saw me count It," replied the
CRATER.
$50 [ did," answered the landlord,
but I didn't count II myself, SO I'll
just open 1t up and count it,
So saying, he cut open the envelope
with his knife, but with a single bound
the young man bolted through the door
The last seem of him he was cutting
down the railroad like race horse.
minus baggage, but with his cash and
diamonds intact.
On a trip from Cleveland TO Chicago
81 few days ago the porter of the sleep
ing car undertook to play me for q
little graft which was both unique
aud amusing in its manipulation
When nearing Chicago in the morn
IinS he came to my section, brushed nv
overcoat carefully, and gave the clothes
L was wearing 4 slight brushing. When
he had finished I handed him the only
! 50-cent piece l had.
The instant / did So / observed that
he half turned his back TO me as hi
stepped nearer the window and begar
carefully scrutiniZing the silver piece
and that very instant it flashed through
my mind that the coiored gentleman was
planning to graft me.
After taking a careful look at the
money. and having had just about time
enough TO shift the coin / gave him fol
any old thing he might have about him
he said.
The Washington times., 1905-05-21

case. he had hastily exchanged the en-
veIope containing the money for the
fake envelope when the landlord turned
TO the safe.
Anerican-like, these landlords pocket
ed their losses. and said nothing.
On my way North that summer I re-
lated this incident to all the hotel men
I met. including the proprietor of a
hotel at Ishperning, Mich
The next year, when on another trip
in that territory. the Ishpeming land
lord told me that a young man, answer
ing my description, appeared about six
weeks after I left and laid plans to
bunko him with the 81. 900 fake envelope.
Il hadn't the least suspicion of him.
said the landlord, until he called for
his case of diamonds. when it suddenly
dawned upon me that this was the very
man you had told me about
As on the previous occasions, the
CRATER counted out the money. wrote
his name on the enveiope. and said:
Landlord. just place this in the safe
viii you?"
The Washington times., 1905-05-21
Called His Game.

The porter had a ole struck exactly
the size of 50-cent piece. upon which
he had stamped John Miller. Denver.
Col"
He always had one of these In the
palm of his hand, while brushing a
passengers clothes. The tip at the end
of a nights journey, is seldom less than
a 50-cent piece, and whenever one was
given him he would instantly palm IT
In his right and quickly stepping near
the window, as If TO get better light
to examine it, he would say:
''Mistah. 1 reckon you done gone and
gin me youah pocket piece, 'spectin' 1t
was a half dollah. See passing it back.
OF course the unsuspecting passenger.
presuming that some one had passed q
pocket piece on him, would instantly
take it up and hand the darzy another
piece.
But, as usual with such grafters, the
end finally came.
One morning the porter played his
little game on a man who proved TO be
one of the stockholders and officials OF
the sleeping car company. Seeming
graft he called the porter to account.
and forced him to empty his pockets.
wherein were half dozen pocket pieces.
This was how he happened TO be out OF
a Job.
The Washington times., 1905-05-21
The Fifty-cent Graft.

Say. mister. I guess you done gone
and made y mistake and gin me a sill
yer piece with plug in it. besides its
very badly Wo n and batteed, too
rs that so?" I answered 0knowing
very well that I had given him an al
most new silver piece. Lets see -
said /, and, as he handed it TO me,
Cant you use it?'
NO. sab" he quickly answered; Il
don't want that kind of money"
do you want me to keep it?'' asked.
Yes; I'd rather you would keep it,
sah.'
"Very well" said 1, II can use it,
and dropped it into my pocket.
He stood there anxiously watching
and waiting for me to give him another
50-cent piece, and az last, discovering
that I apparently had no intention of
replacing ii, he said;
rs You all swine TO give me nothah
half dollar. mistah? q"
Certainly not" I answered. Is there
any reason why I should give You a
new half dollar just because You were
foolish enough to give me an old one?
Why, of course not. You said that you
could not use it. and I think I can"
Well then-wel1, thcn"-he stammer-
ed reckon I'll take it back"
We'll" l replied, ~ reckon you won't
take 1t back There is no Indian about
me: when I give a thing away, or re-
ceiye a thing from anyone, ] never give
back. nor take back
The Washington times., 1905-05-21
1Azzk LShezz zD1uZaz5 15EUggeo sors1z PFC Zoy5aS
Slse .p117 Car cez77 pa zI

But" said he. .you took back the
50 cents you gave me-
Indeed. I did not.' I answered. The
and the one you gave me is a different
Il think 1 shall turn in this plugged
50-cent piece 10 the sleeping Gag COM
pany when 1 report this little episode
10 them
Tne poor darkey became excited ard
turned ALMOST white. and was SO beside
himself with his apologies and excuses
that he forgot every other passenger
or the car.
AS I was leaving the car, on our ar
rival in Chicag ne brushed up against
me, end stammered: "sa-sa-say mis-
tab, please don't say nofn' bout dis
yer 'Ereement tween you and me, fer
got wife and fou' little ehiliuns to
sport. and I can't ford 70 lose ma
job
On returning home I told this little
experience to my employees In the Of
flee. Cur celored porter rolled his
chalky eyes about and, with a broad
grin, said.
Mistah Johnston, you got that feiiah
all right, suah nufr: I nevah heard
bout de plugged silver piece racket be-
foh, but a fellah what I used TO room
with tot me bout a mighty good hold
up scheme he used TO wo'k. aITnos like
dat, when he was Pullman po'tah.
Well. Gene" l said. '.go ahead and
explain II to us
He did SO, and the graft was this.
The Washington times., 1905-05-21
MAxIm,s AuTonArIc GUN.

Hiram Maxim was once asked how
he came to think OF the idea of the
automatic gun that made him wealthy
and his name famous. The idea was
kicked into me" he replied Soon aft
er the end of the civii war [ was in
duced to fire one of the oId-fashioned
Springfield rifles. There was tremen-
dous energy In the recoil and my shoul-
der was so sore afterward that / set
about finding some way TO utilize the
superfiuous power. The British gov
ernment ordered the first gun, stipu-
lating that 1t should weigh no more
than lC9 pounds, and that It should fire
100 rounds in enc minute, and coo rounds
III two minutes. Mr.. Maxim furnished
an engine of death weighing forty
pounds and capable of firing 600 cart
ridges within one minute.
The Washington times., 1905-05-21
And Then They Understood.

A yalise similar to the one left at
Muslkegon, had also been left at the
Grand Haven Hotel.
Putting two and two together, 1t was
plain that both landlords had been duped
by this smooth CRATER. and thereupon
the envelopes Were opened. Each was
found to contain a lot of brown paper.
cut IN the exact size of dollar bills.
On comparing notes, the hotel men
found that his methods were the same
In each case. In both instances he had
previously. without the knowledge of
the proprietors, secured u large envelope
from the hotel stock, on which he had
written the name and amount. and in
which he had placed the brown paper.
Later. when calling for the diamond
The Washington times., 1905-05-21
A Novel Catechism.

Compared with the boundless dimen-
sions which modern scientists have
aseribed to it, the universe as pictured
by Lady Blount is dwarfed to the size
of a mere celestial potato patch. The
sun and moon, which she credits with
being by far the largest of the heaven
y bodies, she says. are not more than
about thirty miles in diameter. The
most distant Of the stars she places
e.probably not more than six or seven
thousand miles high"
In the form of a catechism, with
questions and answers. she tells faithful
Zetetics what they ought TO believe. ac-
cording to Biblical science. concerning
the earth and the heavens. Here are
some extracts from it,
Did God create the earth movable?
No. lie laid it's foundations that it
should not be moved forever. or until
the ages. 1.-The world also is established
that 1t cannot be moved. Psalms
xeili:f
TO what NAV we liken the earth?
We may Hken it to q vast fat and
floating vessel. fastened by its f0unda-
fions like an anchor. For He hath
founded it upon the seas, and estab-
iiahed it upon tbs doods. Psalms
xxiv:2
The Washington times., 1905-05-21


IAutnor of Twenty Years of rfnsfltng -
What Happened TO Johnston etc.1
Copyright 1905, by Joseph B. BewIes.l
NE day a very anterprising look
ing young man registered at
the hotel where I was staying
In Muslsegon. Mich. He claim
ed 70 be diamond dealer. and handed
the clerk a small pocket case which, he
explained, contained an assortment OF
diamond studs and rings. He asked that
this ne put in the safe.
The following afternoon he stepped
up 20 the Office ard asked the landlord
for s. iarse-sized envelope. On receIvinss &
it. he tock from his pocket a large
roll of bills and, after counting them
In the presence of the proprietor. writ
ing his name on the envelope, and put
ting down the amount as $1,000. he
said
Please get that pocket case OF dia-
monds from the safe. I am going over
10 Grand Haven this evening on a dia-
mond deal. and Will be back tomorrow
or the next day"
AS the landlord gave him the case of
diamonds. the young man handed hin,
the large envelope. which he had care
fully sealed, and said:
just put this In the safe, landlord =
That evening he started for Grand
Haven, carrying with him a small
handbag, and leaving behind a fairly
good-looking, medium-stzed yalise
The following day young man
aiIghted from the Grand Haven traia,
and, going to the hotel. presented a
letter from the diamond dealer. which
read as follows:
The Washington times., 1905-05-21

What did God make on tho fourth
day?
The sun and moon and the stars, TO
divide the night. These are lights"
only and are all intended for this world.
God said: Let there be lights in the
armament of the heavens. to give light
upon the earth; and IL was So Genesis
liz.
DO not the theories of modern astron-
orny contradict this account of creation
The Washington times., 1905-05-21
Titled Englishwonan IS.
Convinced That the
Sun Moves.
j She Considers Modern
Science the Curse of
Mankind.
With Aid of Photography
She Is Advancing a
Pancake Theory.

London, May Is.
A MONG the fads of titled DANES
that of Lady Biount is unique,
~ She believes IN a fat. immov-
able earth, and deyotes most OF
her time to writing and iecturing
against the modern scientific conception
OF the universe This excess of zeal
misguided zeal many consider it-has
won her the presidency OF the Universal
Zetetic Society -Flattists" the world
over do domage TO her. Not few of
them make pilgrimages from America
to visit her and absorb wisdom at her
feet
Thousands of so-called Christians" A"
wrote Lady Blount IN a letter the other
day. believe that the Bible is right on
religion, but wrong on science. This
position is untenable. II the Bible is
the word OF God, it is absolutely true.
We must accept it as a whole or else
have none Of it. We cannot divorce the
religion of the Bible from the science OF
the Bible; hence the Glebists cannot be
Bible Christians-nor can Bible Chris
fions be followers of Newtons philos-
oDhy.+'
The Washington times., 1905-05-21
"Distrust Human Wisdom"

Yes. they contradict the teachings of
Moses (which the Christ indorsed) In
aging that the stars are worlds. etc.
The Bible never speaks of but one
world or cosmos. and 1t calls the stars
mere lights" and the sun a greater
light" and the moon another and indie
pendent light Now. it is absurd to
make a light" or lamp one million
four hundred and nine times the size
of the place TO be lighted. Astronomy
also contradicts the word OF God In
calling the moon an Opaque. dark body
in itself, for the Bible clearly states
that God made two great lights, the
sun and the moon. while astronomy afr
firms that the moon is only a reflector
But no sphere would reflect light over
q full disc. as the moon does. hence she
cannot be a reflector.
HoW should we look upon human wis
dora when it conflicts with Divine?
With distrust. for theoretical science
is mere speculation. The Creator is
surely wiser than the creature; and the
wisdom of this world is fooliahness
with God"
Rejecting, therefore. as 'foolishness''
the teachings of astronomy wherever
they conflict with the aff1rmations of
Holy Writ, Lady Blount accepts without
any reservations Jobs description of the
armament as strong and as a molten
looking glass" Even as the dome OF
St. Pauls Cathedral is made of solid
material" she says, $50 the armament
is solid expanse above our heads. If
ii were not solid 1t would not be able
to support the. great weight of water
above the armament.
"The Sun Do Move.''
THE dome of the Heavens. which is
made of solid matter, Is concave toward
us, 50 that the sun, stars and moon can
move around and abo, the earth free
~, being borne around in their respec-
tive orbits by the subtle matter which
fills the solid space within the dome of
the Heavens. 1t is not unlikely" she
adds naively, that the nirror-like quail
ity of the armament causes sceptical
scientists 10 imagine that they can,
with their glasses, peer into what they
call space. which they, in contradic-
ton to Inspired Writ, assert to be
boundiess.'
According to Lady Blount's astronomy
the sun, moon and planets all revolYe
daily. at comparatively short distances,
around and above the earth In spiral
orbits. approaching more or less closely
TO exact circles. These motions are all
attributed 10 the circling currents of
the ether" which I'LL the space between
the fiat, disc-shaped earth and the solid
dome that overlays 1t like a dish cover.
"As these electro magnetic currents
have different rates on notion" says
Lady Biount, the various heavenly
bodies are carried daily around the
earth in different times. some in less
and others in more t7ian twenty-four
hours" That half the earth is in dark
ness WSile the other half has light is
attributed to the small size Of the sun.
which is insufficient to illuminate the
whole surface at once
1t is against the assumption" as they
call It, OF scientists that the earth is a
globe. that the Zeteties wage their
l@tinest fight. TO support their conten-
The Washington times., 1905-05-21

which
the
of the
twenty the line of vision The