The Washington herald., 1907-12-21
AT THE HOTELS.

the New Willard. Mr.. Cairns Is a cable
engineer. and what nc doesn't know about
cables isn't worth while. He is a highly
interesting talker on the subject which
seems TO be uppermost in his mind.
''The vicissitudes Of submarine cable
are many" said Mr.. Cairns. TT may be
torn 5y an anchor. CRUSHED by q rock. or
seriously damaged by a coral reef. such
as abound in the tropics Some of the
growths often found on a cable tend
gradually to decay the iron sheathing
Wires. Then again q cable is sometimes
severed by a seaquake. II may be
fatally attacked by the sno.t Of a saw
fish or the spike Of swordfsh But per
haps the little animal that makes itself
most objectionable from the cable en-
gineer's standpoint is the insignificant
looking Teredo noyaiis. This little beast
Is intensely greedy where gutta percha is
concerned. working its way there be-
tween the iron wires and between the
serving yarns.
The silica in the outer cable com
pound tends to defeat the teredo's Efforts
al making a meal of the core. and this
defeat is further effected by the core be-
Ing enveloped In a thin taping Of brass.
but where the bottom Is known 10 be
/ badly Infected with these little monsters
OF the deep the insulator is often com
/ posed or India rubber. which has no al
/ traction for the teredO. and possesses a
/ toughness. moreover. which IS less suited
Tor its boring tool than the comparative
/ ~ cheese-like gutta percha- From one
/ cause or another faults occur In most
] rgbfec fror- Inn 70
These require 10 be electrically localiz-
( ed from the cable testing hut. and a shin
sent out 20 the supposed position 10 Crap
pie for the line. pick fl up. and effect the
} necessary repairs. When the cable has
really been hooked and picked up-an
operation which may entail several
I weeks, or even months. II only in waiting
+ FOR favorable weather-the blight Is Sc
I cured at the bows and afterward cut.
/ Each end IS then brought on board
/ alternately and tested electrically. II
found 10 be sound, the necessary repairs
T are then effected"
/ J. Y. Slattery, a mine operator. OF ST.
verton- Colo. is visiting Washington. 20
spc4C the holidays with his children. who
are going &C school in this city Mr..
Slattery IS registered at the Raleigh
/ Colorado is just as rich In ores as Il
ever was" said Mr.. Slattery: in fact.
/ the deeper we go the better we hrd
I the ore and II richer quantities. Fortunes
have keen made in Colorado mining in the
I past and there is no reason why fortunes
should not be made IN the future. Some
districts are better than others. and old
I mines that have been abandoned years
ago and that were taken in hand again
recently with improved machinery showed
good paying deposits at greater depths
THAT farming in New York CITY IS
more profitable than Il has been in
half century is shown by the rise in the
value Of agricultural lands on Staten Isl
and, where in the last TWO years there
has been a great demand for farms OF
almost any description"
That's the manner in which the agri-
cultural activity was sized up by Werner
H Robertson. a wholesale commission
merchant Of New York. who is also inter-
ested in truck farming on Staten Island.
Mr. Robertson is AZ the Metropolitan,
taking in. the sights OF Washington"
Records in the county clerks Office in
Richmond show that in the last year no
fewer than ninety farms have changed
hands, the majority having gone into the
possession Of men who practice the in
tensive farming that is taught at the
agricultural colleges. For many years
the old style farming on Staten Island
was supreme. and as a result the farms
+ gave :A4i- owners no profits. and many
! OF them were practically abandoned Sew
eral Of these were purchased by New
T Jersey farmers, who saw in the farms
/ proximity 70 the city markets an oppor-
tgnity Of lettering their conditions.
These men IN few years brought
their lands 70 a state Of high cultiva-
ton. installed all the modern agricultural
I devices and raised crops according 10
I the newest scientific methods. As "a re-
suit OF this expenditure Of energy and
( this application OF gray matter their bank
/ accounts grew 10 such an extent that
scores Of their former neighbors in New
Jersey were attracted 70 the island The
I influx Of the New Jersey farmers has
already changed the physical appearance
( OF the western and southern parts Of the
/ borough Farms that had not been cul-
uV3ted fer years are now in splendid
condition, waste lands and wood lands
nave been turned into good. arabic fields.
and the old barnyards that five and six
years aSo had an appearance Of desc
latlon relied with neatly painted mar
/ ket wagons. well-kepI buildings. and sleek
I horses and cattle. From one end OF the
farms 70 the other there is en- air Of
prosperity that Is reflected in the glowing
faces Of the farmers and their families
! don't see why we should change
Presidents when the country is prosper
Gus Roosevelt for another term il. good
enough for me and for my friends The
people ought 20 demand that he allow
Z his name 10 be presented az the couve1-
ton He is the best President this cour-
try has had for many years"
The humble peanut has found a sturdy
defender in Rev. William y. McCaus-
Z land, missionary in the Congo land.
who is registered az the New Willard
The missionary. who recently returned
from a stay Of several months in the
heart Of Africa. declares that some Of
the most robust natives OF that country
sabsist mainly on peanuts. many Of them
passing the century mark
The natives rot only use the peanut
as a staple food" said the missionary.
"but it is also one Of the first articles
/ OF trade among many Of the tribes.
Many tribes eat little else than peanuts.
but. unlike the American lovers of the
nut. they eat The food raw Peanut but
ter was first made by the Central African
natives. l met with a great surprise
when I learned how universal the peanut
is as food in the Ba-Kong While there
is some game shot or trapped. the ma
afa sf.HlT