davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03

are OF pure negro stock, and belong to the
Fan branch of the Eve family. The people
go about half naked, and they believe In
witches and have their witch doctors.
Along in about 1890, when Behanzin was in
the height of his power, travellers who
passed through Dahomey gave vivid pic
lures of him and his army. They say that
he sprinkled his ancestors graves once
every year with human blood. He was so
great at that time that when his people
approached him they had to crawl up to
him with their faces in the dust. The an
nual grave sprinkling took place in October
and 1t lasted several weeks. The Amazons
then acted as the executioners. and the
victims, who supplied the blood. were usu-
ally captives taken in war. When the time
for the killing took place these unfortunate
wretches were dressed In white shirts,
tied hand and foot and placed in baskets
on the top of Il platform. The king first
made a speech, and then the Amazons
hurled the victims down into a crowd.
where they met with a horrible death. +
have seen Il stated that their skulls were
used to adorn the palace walls and that
this king had a sleeping chamber paved
with the heads OF his enemies.
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03
EngIand's queen Protests.

Undoubtedly the traffic involves cruelty,
and the queen OF England when the facts
were put before her. abolished osprey al
together in the helmets of hussars and
dragon officers and substituted ostrich
feathers instead.
1t was represented to her that the cause
OF the birds must surely be safe between
white hands" as the Spanish proverb has
II. But there is immense profit in the
trade and undoubtedly the plumes are beau
tiful.
Thousands of women had given them
up, however, when suddenly plumes were
put on the market said to be artificial
Specimens of these were sent to Sir VIII
liam Flower, director of the British Nat
ural History museum. who reported as fol-
lows:
IT have examined a number OF plumes
whose wearers prided themselves on their
humanity, relying upon their milliners'
assurance that they were not real aigret
feathers, but manufactured. II did not re-
qulre very close scrutiny to see that they
were PROFESSIONALLY genuine The only
manufacture consisted In cutting the plume
in two and fixing the upper and lower
half side by side so that a single feather
did duty for two in the brush.
Some of these supposed artificial os-
preys were said TO be made OF split quilts.
fine whalebone and other material. Others
again were made from the flight feathers
Of the rhes. or South American ostrich.
Yet here the remedy was almost worse
than the disease. for the rhea Is a bird
Of the utmost scientific interest and i'm
portance and its extinction in a wild state
seems to be rapidly approaching
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03

body was covered with only a gray-blue
cape, which fell back as he half rose and
showed his skin almost to the waist. He
had on curious black velvet cap, COW
cred with gold embroidery. This cap fitted
his head closely, coming low down over
the forehead and covering the ears, falling
almost to the shoulders As he talked with
me he now and then pulled his gown up
but it kept falling back, exposing four or
five square feet of oily black skin. Upon
my presentation he reached out naked
black arm and shook my hand while he
said In French, Bon jour"
AS we chatted 1 could see two Of his
wives who were waiting upon him. One of
these seemed to be undergoing some kind
of punishment She was on her knees, lean
ing over a chair In the back Of the room,
while the other was crouched down fiat on
the floor on the other side of the cot from
where 1 stood. Both were jet black and OF
the most pronounced negro type. Their
woolly hair chung close to their scalps in
small lzinky curls, they had fiat noses
white teeth and each wore great plugs In
her ears. Their black necks, arms and
shoulders were perfectly bare, their white
skirts fitting up close to the armpits, where
they were tied by twisted white bands
which were knotted over the breast. The
king at his death had only four wives, q
paltry allowance in comparison with the
days of his prime, when he had three
fourths Of the young women of his whole
nation to choose from. All of the Amazons
were at his command and thousands OF
them were young girls Of eighteen or more
years of age. The king was slxty-thret
years old at his death. and the women
saw with him were, judge. each forty oil
fifty years old. No one knows how many
children he had He has left several little
ones here and some in Martinique. and he
had in his family also several good -sized
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03

VtXSs-G4I ldDlS5 over winch StOOp con-
noisseurs in color and quality
of feathers.
There are gorgeous tail feathers from
Australian Tyre birds and humming birds
from Venezuelan thickets, ibis wings from
up the Nile, parrots and tanagers from
the Amazon, with peacocks and pheasants
from India There are purple, yellow and
green fruit pigeons from North Africa,
orioles swallows, honeysuckers toucans,
trogens, the quetzal, too, sacred and re-
splendent, with crested orange and scarlet
cock-of-the-rock. Lastly, there are the
glorious bird of paradise from New Guinea,
with sweeping plumes of silk and gold,
and sixty varieties of aigret and heron.
Surely the world has been despoiled of
its feathered beauty for women's hats
And each bird differs in beauty from the
other, as one star differs from another
star in glory.
Item, 5,O26 ounces of osprey" the mil
liners pride, you read in the catalogue.
India, China, Japan, Australia, Africa and
both American continents have been dill
gently hunted for this fine and precious
stuff, filmy and delicate as woman's hair.
Each beautiful bird yields but one-sixth
of an ounce OF osprey, and go, 900 birds were
sacrificed for the Paris market alone last
season.
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03
warden Murdered nv Hunters.

At present the Florida aigrets are strictly
protected. yet such is the cupidity Of plume
hunters that Warden Guy Bradley OF the
local Audubon society was shot dead by
poachers while watching over his feathered
charges two or three years ago.
The plume hunters of the south, indeed,
find their occupation gone, and long for
the bad old days when Fort Myers was
local market with plenty Of money, and
ons wholesaler might employ nifty or sixty
gum ers, furnishing them with all supplies
and guaranteeing 70 take every aigret
plume they could get
Nowadays the hunter must go much
farther aheld than the southern states
The material Is worth a long journey,
however for at the last London sale os-
prey plumes touched the figure OF SS an
ounce. Ana the trade issued circular to
plume hunters at home and abroad that the
supply was at least 100 ounces short"
Al present india and the remoter states
Of Burma are being drawn upon, as well
as Mohsmmsdsn North africa, from Egypt
20 Morocco.
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03

they returned with food for little mouths
they would rest moment on the lookout
perch, Offering excellent mark to the
hunter below. The bird fell a slight re-
port did not alarm the others; and in a few
days most Of the parents would be slain
for the sake of their nuptial plumes.
Florida hunter once confessed to hav-
ing killed 300 aigrets in an afternoon while
another boosted that he and his party had
killed 10000 birds during one season. These
hunters ask from 10 cents to 81, according
to species And at one time there were as
many as fifty dealers in the various towns
of Florida, who bought bird skins at prices
ranging from % cents to $50 each.
Little wonder that the birds so prosecuted
have been all but exterminated. Down in
Charlotte harbor the white ibis swarmed,
so that one observer described a sixty-acre
tract as resembling "a big white sheet
thrown over the mangroves"
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03
Dahomey Under the French.

Everything goes by contrast, however,
and this allowance was as nothing to this
negro king who once numbered his assets
by millions of francs and his subjects by
hundreds of thousands His kingdom as it
now is under the French, is bigger than the
state of Illinois; and it's population is esti-
mated at more than a million. Its seat of
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03
brutality of the Attach.

BrutaIIty OF the Atthck'
The birds are attacked Just when their
young are fully fedged but not yet able
to fly. At that time the solicitude of the
parents is greatest and utterly oblivious
to their own danger they remain by home
and young until they fall ready victims
The havoc wrought among these beauti-
full creatures in Florida was enormous be-
for the Audubon societies stepped between
them and their slayers. The latter having
discovered a rookery by watching the birds
flying to and from their nests, would sur
vey the ground, learn the lines of flight
followed and the perches or lookout sta
tions commonly frequented. And then.
armed preferably with a small rife, the
plume hunter would secrete himself and
walt for his prey.
The busy birds. having families to pro-
vide for would be active all day. and as
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03
How the King Fought in 1889.


II is said that these female warriors
were at their best during the war which
Behanzin waged with the French in 1889.
During that struggle he caused number
of them to be beheaded on a charge OF
cowardice, and he tried in every way TO
make them perfectly fearless and In
different to pain. Among the most terrible
trials Of their courage was the climbing
up walls of cactus bushes sixteen feet
high to a roof carpeted with cactus several
hundred feet long. These barefooted and
batelegged girls climbed the cactus walls
and passed over the roofs carpeted with
cactus thorns and. the story coca, then
ran back and showed themselves 20 the
king, their faces wreathed with smiles,
although their feet and legs were covered
with blood.
One Of the French officers tells me that
the Amazons always planned 20 take their
enemy by surprise, and that they made
forced marches al night so as 70 fall upon
them early in the morning. They would
dash in upon their enemies before they
were fully awake. and then, with a terrlbls
cry, would spring TO the fray. This man
says that he once saw 1000 Amazons
grouped around King Behanzin and that
they were as muscular as the male war;
Tiors and quite as military in appearances.
FRANK G. CARPENTER
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03

or bushes or on water growing reeds, and
the nests, sometimes numbering 500 or
more, are placed close together The plume
hunters esteem themselves favored indeed
when they discover such a colony.
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03

waist, and shook hands with me as l said
goodbye.
How King Behanzin Was Guarded.
As went down the steps upon leaving I
saw the French white guard watching me,
and l was told that his majesty was never
alone for a moment II he drove out
with his wives a soldier or a policeman
went with them to prevent any possible
attempt at escape His captivity was, in
fact always before him, and he was
warned again anu again that he surely
would be recaptured If he attempted to
run away, and that although there were
in Algeria many Sudanese negroes as black
as himself, there was none like Behanzin.
He was warned that the news Of his loss
would put the army, the police and the
spies on the search and at the same time
his guards kept him always in sight.
Outside this surveillance the king was
fairly well treated by his French captors.
He had all his expenses paid by the gov
eminent. His villa was free, his French
cooks cost him nothing and his pro-
visions and his scanty clothing were sup
piled without charge. He had in addition
to all this an allowance of money of $1,000
francs year, which means about $1,000
OF our money, or just about so a day
This certainly ought TO have suficed to
keep him in tobacco and to have furnished
now and then a new ear plug for each of
his wives
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03

described. 1 have a photograph which Is
said to include the whole outfit, but this
contains only twelve.
He Would Return TO Dahomey.
One of my first questions to the king was
as to his health. He replied that he was I'll
and that he desired to go back to Dahomey
his own native country. He said Algeria
was too cold for him and that he could not
keep warm. He asserted that he was not
dangerous to the French; that his army
was long since dlsbanded; that he would
make no further wars, and that there was
no reason why he should not go home.
1 asked the king to tell me what kind Of
a country Dahomey was. He replied that it
was beautiful land, rich in Its resources,
and one where the tropical sun shone all
day long. His eyes lighted up as he spoke
of it, and it seemed to me l saw his thick
lips culver.
1 asked him how the people were get
ting on in his absence. He said that he
did not know; that he had been away thlr-
teen years and that his captors gave him
no means of communication.
then referred to the stories which have
been published of his Amazons. and asked
him whether those girl soldiers were as
brave as they had been painted. At this
the kings lips frightened and methought
I could see the lust of battle come into
his bleary old eyes. He replied that the
Amazons were brave and faithful; but
that the French had outnumbered and
overpowered them and that now he was
only a captive in the hands of his enc
mics.
1 told him that 1 was a journalist and
that 1 would tell the American people that
I had spoken with him. and that 1 could
carry a greeting from him to them IL he
wished. He replied Ami tous amis, "
Friends. we are all friends" He then
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03
King in Exile,

After a few moments word came that the
king would receive us. and we went with
Prince Ouallno around the veranda to the
other side of the house and were admitted
to the imperial presence. The room in
which the ex-king Of Dahomey was lying
opened on the porch, and we came right
upon him as we entered the door. He
rested on a sort Of a cot, with a white
pillow under his head. His naked black
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03

has also gone to school here. He speaks
French we'll and understands a few words
of English. He was only years old when
his father was carried away from his
kingdom, less than thirteen years ago, and,
like the old king, he desires to go back to
Dahomey. He Is quite dignified and has
what might be called an imperial air. He
told me that Behanzin had been Ill ever
since he came to Algeria, that the weather
did not agree with him nor his four wives,
and that they all wanted to go either back
to Martinique or on to Dahomey. He said
he feared his father would die If a change
was not made, and prophesied his early
death, which has SINCE taken place.
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03
About the AmazOus.

The army of Amazons was one OF tho
strangest features OF King Behanzin's out
fit. The most of them were young women
of from IS TO Is years OF age, and many
had been trained to fight from their child
hood. Others were wives who had been
found unfaithful TO their husbands and
others women who had been divorced on
account of their bad temper or their failure
to have children or for some other reason
which caused their husbands to want to
get rid OF them. They thereupon handed
them over to the king, and II they had the
requisite physical vigor they were drilled
for the Amazon corps.
These Amazons were armed with swords,
battle-axes and guns. They were wonder
fully brave and were trained to endure
pain of all kinds. A traveller who visited
Dahomey when BehanZin's power was at
it's height says they had one exercise of
climbing walls OF thorn bushes made for
the purpose, and that they would go over
them without finchng and pretend to taxa
the army on the opposite side. These
Amazons were the kings special guard.
and they fought better than the male
warriors in the wars with the French.
It is also said that after a woman Joined
the army she was shut off from marriage.
and that the virgins among them were
DOun0 10 perpetual IildluSHiloou cACSpl lhSy
were desired by the king. The Amazons
were trained to ferocity. and the French
say that in the war of 1889 their reckless
ness was increased by a liberal allowance
of gin. The girls had Just enough liquor
to make them devilish without interfering
with their lighting.
These famous black women warriors had
a uniform of their own. They wore tips
of horns on their heads and had sleeveless
shirts Of blue and white cloth which fen
TO the knees. Under these were short
trousers which made it easy to distinguish
them from the hslf-naked male warriors
In times of peace they also wore Deill
around their necks a warning to al
men not in the army to keep out OK theii
way The other sex was afraid OF them
too, and fed upon their approach as "
was death TO be caught paying them spe
cial attentions. The women took VOW
of chastity upon entering the army an'
they were in fact looked upon someWh@
as were the vestal virgins of old Rome
I have heard that many of these Amazohi
were beautiful. but II so they must have
been far different from the African queens
I saw during my audience with their
former commander and king.
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03
Beyond Human imitation.

The much sought after trophy consists
or the loose, slender waving plumes of the
snowy heron, which cannot be initiated
artihcially. Human fingers may dexter
ously model a white wax arum lily; rose
that would deceive the honeysucking bee,
but the snowy silver, fiber fine plume of
the white aigret is beyond imitation
And so the heron's enemies are abroad
over the earth. and the dealers In great
cities seek to REINFORCE them by making
tempting offers to traders, missionaries
naval and military officers on foreign sta
lions, consuls and explorers generally.
Two globe trotters back in town told the
other day how they were approached by
New York dealers while they were in far
Chungking, one of the most westerly prov
inces of the Flowery kingdom.
Il suppose" one of them remarked, the
supply OF aigret crests must be giving out
in South America. while the demand for
aigrettes proper is greater than ever. We
have received letters Offering US $50 an
ounce for fine osprey OF course we re-
fused, but our name was mixed up with
the business ineXplicably, and one morning
my husband received by mail in London a
tiny box OF herons' pIumes. which some one
wanted negotiated in open market. the
price asked being $3.50"
In China the blue bloused peasants call
these birds the good TO see" And they
encourage them to search the rice fields
for food. But now that the plume hunter
is found In every province of China, seek.
ing nodding punches OF slender beauty foa
women's hats. there is no more homing
Of the herons to their hereditary nests
above giant Buddhas. telling the hour OF
the dusk to all the village.
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03
word with the Crown Prince.

AS we tarried the crown prince. ouslino,
came around the corner and We ehatted
with him. He " a young fellow OF about
IS as black as your boot and with full
negro features. He IS intelligent. has been
educated In the schools Of Martinique ana
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03

EiyphIcs, and ''ths heart OF the renewed
sun" They regarded this bird as one rich
beyond others in beauty.
The South American species. greatly ad-
mired In the ZOOS of the world, is the
Ardea sibilatrix. The Guarani Indians call
IL the flute OF the sun. because OF its me
lodious cry--a graceful creature with white
ayes, green legs and beak. loose plumage
soft as an OWLS IN clear gray and pure
pale yellow. tremendously disposed
-
PIumaEe of Surprising WhiteneSs.
The snowy heron has plumage OF sur
passing whiteness. Viewed side by side
with u the swan. wood ibis and thu
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03
World Wide Slaughter of the Snowy Heron

* times year a sale Of plumage
birds is held in Mincing lane.
London. Look down the long
tables over which stoop con-
noisseurs in color and quality
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03
weddinE Garmeats OF the bird.

The finest tufts are really the wedding
garments OF both birds. They grow only
at breeding time on the aigret's back and
drop gracefully over the sides and tail The
less fine plumes, with shorter and stiffer
hlaments. such as form the yellow aigret.
are plucked from the bun backed or
sQuaeoo heron. which properly speaking is
not an egTet at ALL
OF these last six or seven species are
found In al hot ana warm countries. One
Omaha daily bee., 1907-03-03
fCopyright. Lea. by PRANK q. Carpenter.

4IDAH, Algeria, Feb. 8.-(Special
Correspondence of The Bee.)-
Long before this letter is pub
llshed the cable dispatches will
have announced the death of
Daily Arizona silver belt., 1907-11-19
Hearts Barred to X-Rays.

Ailments of the heart will be brought under the searching light of the Roent- gen rays if Dr. Leopold Jaches is per mitted to carry out his plans. He is a member of the Cornell University Med ical College faculty, and for three months he has been studying in German universities the application of the Ro- entgen rays to medicine. He got home yesterday on the Lusitania.
 "Prof. Albert-Steinberg, of Hamburg, has perfected instruments" said Dr. Jaches, "by means of which we may apply direct rays to a patient, thus talk. ing the dimensions of the heart ac- curately and detecting any variation from the normal. At present it is diff cult to make a correct diagnosis of heart troubles, and an instrument like Al bers-Steinberg is needed greatly. I believe this application of the Roent. gen rays is the mast useful yet dis covered, and l think it should be put into practical use by American phy. sieians at once.o
 Dr. Jaches said the patient was not endangered by the application of She rays, but the operating surgeon laid himself open to injury.
Daily Arizona silver belt., 1907-11-19
The Ferocious Rabbit Spared Again.

There is one man in Columbus who will not go rabbit hunting this fall, as he had ardently planned to do. He has oiled his gun, wrapped it up and laid it away. He has stopped training his dog, and the latter is getting fat and lazy.
 And why this ehangel All because a little girl, his little girl, hearing him talk one day about shooting rabbits while she was reading rabbit story in one of her books, dropped her book, rushed up to her father, put her little arms about his neck, and, with tears in her eyes, said:
 Papa, please don't shoot any dear little bunnies. I love bunnies. They are the sweetest little things. I am reading about two of them now. You won't be cruel enough to kill them, will you, papaP'
 And papa, looking long and deep into the heart of his child through those tear-wet portals, answered: "No, my little girl, I will not" :" . Then he unwound her arms from about his neck, kissed her moist lips, wiped the tears from her eyes, and, as he left her, was rewarded with a smile of joy that was worth ten thousand times ten thousand abbits.-Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch.
Daily Arizona silver belt., 1907-11-19
Already Had Cut It Of Twice

After a recent railway accident, among the victims taken to the hospital for treatment was a man who remained in the comatose state though the phy- sicians worked long and patiently upon him. Careful examination also failed to reveal any specific injuries, and the doc tors were puzzled to decide what was responsible for his condition. Finally one of the doctors suggested an opera. tion for appendicitis as a last resort. However, upon removing an undergar- ment, the following request was found upon a tablet suspended from the man s neck: "Please don't operate upon me for appendicitis, as I have had it cut out twice already" It transpired later that the man was subject to cataleptic attacks, and had learned from bitter experience the necessity of providing against injudicious surgical experiments at such time.-Philadelphia Record.