The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1906-10-24
FORTY YEARS AGO.
MEN LIVED WITHOUT MUCH NOW
DEEMED INDISPENSABLE.
Telephone Is Only One Of Many Con.
triVanoes Which Have Added
tc the Comfort and Profit
Of the World.

Forty-iive years marks, We may say.
the man OF middle age, yet Che re.
Prospect of the last % years will point
to many of the most remarkable. and
as now considered, Indispensable, in
ventiOns and devices OF civilized life.
says the Philadelphia Record. These.
the middle-aged man. as a boy, did
not even dream of Going back to
the time when the man now 45 was
five, we will find that he and all the
rest of mankind lived very satisfac-
torily without telephones Scarcely
house OF any considerable size would
now be deemed habitable without one.
When communication with a distant
point was needed quickly the tele-
graph was brought into requisition.
II great haste was not requisite, let
ter sufficed.
The expedition with which business
Is now transacted was obviously inn
possible without the telephone, al
though other inventions, then equally
unknown, contribute much to the hur-
ry of today. The electric light, like
most other electrical inventions. was
as distant as the telephone; though
gas and oil principally the former.
made what was considered satisfac-
tory illumination. Great construction
works could not. however. be carried
on by night with gas. while now. by
arc light. they may. In that day the
miner toiled underground by the dim
lickerlng illumination of candle
At present large mines are strung
with incandescent electric lights and
kept practically as light as are sur
face establishments by night.
Forty years ago a speed OF 80 miles
by rail was deemed wonderful, aud
continuous trips of more than 200
miles We're rare. Changes OF cars
We're frequent ON long distance Jour
neys, and as the segments OF road
We're in those days controlled by diff
ferent companies, there was much
transferring OF passengers and bag
gage and buying OF new tickets. Din
ing cars We're unknown, and wayside
lunch counters, with their familiar
gOngs and summary AN aboard ter
limitations TO unsatisfactory and alb
breviated repasts, were the rule
The postage rate on domestic let
ters was then three cents, and foreign
postage was charged to Canada and
Mexico; while every negotiable doou-
II ent, deed. check, bond or legal in
srument bore an internal revenue
stamp Bankers, brokers, stationers,
druggists and even saloon keepers
kept supply of revenue stamps on
sale. and merchants had them in
sheets ready To be affiNed to receipts
II even for the most trifiing amohsis
Every bank and merchant. and prao-
tically every storekeeper then sub,
sclibed to some publication which
gave a weekly list Of new counterfeit
bank notes; and these publications.
owing TO the then imperfect methods
OF engraving and registration, were
usually many pages in eXtert
Songs of the war, printed on single
sheets of music, We're strung along
l'ark fences, and sold al penny
apiece the dealer being generally q
wounded soldier Of the civil war, in,
2apaoitated for work Small change
was mostly Of paper In denominations
OF three, dve, ten, 25 and SO cents.
For time a i5-cent bin was circu-
lated, but II was soon Withdrawn.
Nickel three-eent pieces. as substi.
tutes for silver three-cent pieces. were
also In circulation, though the silver
three cent piece. OF "scally. was not
rare. Plugged silver pieces. when
there were amy silver pieces. usually
Ave or ten esne. pieces. We're the rule
rather than fhe exception. thoQgh tina
holes and ad hling seemed IN no
way 10 interfere With their circulat.
ms capacityi