The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1907-08-22
SNEEzE FAD LATEST
GIRL ACCIDENTALLY STARTS
NEW DIVERSION IN JERSEY.
Was a Victim of Hay Fever-Queer
New Frollc at Summer Resort
Guaranteed to Drive
Away Blues.


Away Blues.
New York-There are all sorts Of
epidemics at summer colonies. There's
the embroidery epidemic, the crochet
epidemic, both flourishing best in
piazza surroundings. Then of more
active variety, there is the epidemic of
tennis, croQuet, Switchboard, and 9TH
ers more prevalent among the young
folks" than with the piazza cotegie.
But it was left to the colonists at
small lake in northern New Jersey
to discover the joys of sneezing. There
the sneezing epidemic developed.
1t all happened in this way. A
young woman who arrived one morn
ing at the little country station was a
hay fever victim. On her drive from
the station to the lakeside cottage
where she was to stop she passed
through field after field of new-mown
hay and as is the custom of hay-fever
victims she began to sneeze: All
through that drive she sneezed. She
frightened the horse, she frightened
her friend who was driving, who
thought she would gradually use up
all her strength in those uncomfortable
sneezes. She frightened herself for
she had never been in such an uncom-
Portable state.
They drove to the village drug store
and there she asked the village doctor
for some remedy He advised a Ger.
tain kind of medical snuff, and she
quickly invested in a bottle. That was
the beginning of the epidemic.
1t got to be joke, the way she
sneezed, but always after the volley
Of sneezes consequent to the snuff TAX
ing she would be free for a while.
When she found that she was anus
ing her friends she wanted some Of
the same kind of amusement herself
and prevailed on some of the younger
members of the family to join in hel
sneezing and try her bottle They
rather enjoyed it and the various
kinds of sneezes caused so much mer
riment that it soon became daily
performance to pass around the bottle
and have sneeze frolic.
Some young people came over tht
lake in their canoes one night There
were ten of them and they all sat OF
the piazza and talked lake gossip
They were finally told about the nev
habit, and as young people in tn,
country are usually ready for any neV
; experience, they consented to try
Soon there arose such a hubbub a
was seldom heard on the quiet sum
mer nights there. Mingled with laugh
ter came the sneezes and gasps, thicl
and fast. 1t lasted for five minute
or more, with an occasional spasn
from some one with special proper
sity for sneezng long after the other
had stopped.
a Where did you say you got that?
al asked one enthusiastic young gues
IN the village?" and they all wen
n away in their canoes still laughing.
v The next day four bottles of tn
>. stuff we're bought and four cottage
/ were supplied. From then on it wa
n no uncommon thing fer the silent pat
a dlers who canoed along the moonl
J. lake to hear all along the shore at th
g different bungalows and cottages th
wild volleys of sneezes and the roar
of laughter that always accompaAie
them. New victims were continual
arriving, and these were especially il
4 teresting to those who had becom
accustomed to. the new art.
1t soon developed into a scienc
Y Some progressive and thoughtf
@ young man made a "sneeze book"
n which he carefully noted all the di
IS ferent kinds Of sneeZes and wro
down the characteristics of the ow
n ers. 1t got to be as popular as
d palmistry book. More books we
copied from this one and finally cha
X acter reading became a case
70 "Sneeze and I'll tell you what "
q are"
1t The sneeze epidemic has not passt
yet at this New Jersey resort, and
70 1t harmful or otherwise it has certai
IN ly been the cause of enough laughs
e, drive away indigestion and the blue