davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1908-03-17
LITERARY BULLS.

For Instance, tho "Groan That 6ursIes
From the Slain"
Macaulay once reviewed poem In
which a climax Of absurdity was reach.
ed with this line:
And hearst each groan that gurgles from
the slain.
The poetic license which lets a groan
gurgle from a slain man Is capable Of
letting him walk into town from the
field Of battle, collect the amount Of
his life insurance policy and hand it
to his widow. 1t brings to mind the
heroic warrior Of whom 1t is said that
thrice he slew the slain" and the Irish
member of parliament who convused
the house of commons by exclaiming
that he would die as a soldier first and
q man afterward.
But, strange to say. Macaulay himself
has made similar blunder. In his
Battle Of Lake Ragillus" the follow
Ing lines occur:
The shouting Of the slayers
And screeching Of the slain.
Did these writer's make these slips
In the heat of battle or were the!
testing the intellectual acutencss o.
their readers? There Is story OF 4
German schoolmaster who used to call
out his class In history and begin t"
tell them OF the Thirty Years war. "ies
children" he would say. "this Is sub
ject In which | am especially interest
ed, as my grandfather often told me
about It. He was a well to do innkeep
er, and one day as he was standing In
his doorway mounted soldier came
gall0ping up Mt q furious rate. What's
the matter? asked my grandfather
Matter enough answered the dragon
Don't you know that the Thirty Years
war has begun todayT" At this poln
the ancient pedagogue would pause ana
survey his class. Then smile would
oyerspread his rubicund countenance II
q hand was raised and boyish treble
asked how the dragoon knew the war
would last thirty years. Perhaps our
poets. too. would play the schoolmas-
ter and smile II we should ask them
how 1t is possible for the slain to groan
or screech.-George Seibel In Pittsburg
Gazette-Times.
Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1908-03-17
II Happened In Lewiston.

Not long ago a certain V. s. had a
black PAGER to sell. He corresponded
with a man in Massachusetts,, setting
the day for him to come to see the
horse, promising to meet him at the
train. Three days before the man was
to land in town he sold his speed to
local purchaser, but failed to notify the
Massac husetts customer. 1t is barely
possible that it occurred to the Vet
erinary that il the Massachusetts, sport
did really land in town he would buy
something before he left. So be let
him come but failed to meet him at the
train.
There is blacksmith shop not many
miles from the corner of Main and Lis
bon Streets where more trades are made,
more races won and lost, and more
arguments held, than in all the other
shops in town. Here the "hOssmen"
meet, tell their stories, and enjoy them
selves.
The Veterinary is often found holding
down one of the nail kegs. The Massa-
chusetts man soon learned that the
Veterinary was to be found in the shop,
also learned before reaching said shop
that the black horse had been sold
several days. He was stranger in a
strange land, but he would not let them
take him in. He was an athlete, built
to go we'll and 60 the route out. When
he blew into that shop and inquired for
the Veterinary he showed plainly that
he would make it very busy meeting
for that gentleman if he found him.
The smith, who was q student OF
human nature, saw at once that the
stranger had it in for the veterinary
(who was sitting behind the stove) and
no. wanting any cripples loafing around
his shop in the future, told the athletic
looking gent from the city Of long words
that "the Veterinary would be in soon,
better take nail keg with the boys and
cool off," But he would not sit down,
walked back and forth repeating the
name of the man that had stung him.
The Veterinary got scared, sneaked
around until he saw the doors opened
then he showed more speed in getting
out of the strangers sight than he ever
showed In the city of Lewiston, and be
was driving-nothing but the shoes thai
he had on his own feet.
That Veterinary can 60 soms.-Cor
Turf, Farm and Home.
Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1908-03-17
Tia Irandnnr Snider

One Of the most singular specimens
Of insect life Is the trapdoor spider OF
Jamaica. His burrow is lined with
silk and closed by trapdoor with a
hinge. The door exactly fits the en-
trance to the burrow and when closed
so precisely corresponds with the sur.
rounding earth that it can hardly be
distinguished even when its position Is
known. 1t is strange sight to see
the earth open, little lid raise, some
hairy legs protrude and gradually the
whole form Of the spider show Itself.
These spiders generally hunt for food
by night. and in the daytime they are
very chary Of opening the door Of their
domicile. and II the trap be raised from
the outside, they run to the spot, hitch
the claws of their forefeet In the lining
Of the burrow and so resist with all
their might. The strength Of the spider
Is wonderfully great in proportion to
its size.
Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1908-03-17
Commercial Fertilizers for Grass.

In order to get the best results for
top-dressing for grass, moisture is re-
quired to cause the fertilizing material
to soak down to the roots of the grass;
hence, low, moist land feels the effect OF
fertilizers best. 1t is often the case that
wood ashes used as top-dressing will
produce splendid grass, but the cost is
too much, and besides, there is no nitro
gen in wood ashes.
A few years ago | tested small plot
Of grass with nitrate of soda alongside
another piece treated with rather low
grade fertilizer. The nitrate was care
fully applied on measured ground at the
rate of 200 pounds per acre. The fer
tilizer was not as carefully applied, but
not over 200 to 800 pounds per acre was
used. The fertilizer produced better
grass than did the nitrate, but even the
latter increased the yield of grass quite
a good deal.
FERTILIZER INCREASES YIELD.
This led me to try more fertilizer, and
last spring l used five bags OF grade
that contained nitrogen 25 to 80 per
cent, available phosphoric acid to IL
per cent, potash 8 TO 4 per cent. This
fertilizer was scattered as evenly as
possible, and at the rate of not more
than 200 pounds per acre L should
Judge. The result was the heaviest
crop of English hay we ever raised.
Another remarkable thing was the ex-
tent to which clover came into land that
had but very little, apparently, previous
to the use of the fertilizer, and more
than that, where the land had been
treated with fertilizer the previous year
the effect still showed In the increased
growth of the grass last spring.
The question naturally arises, If
fairly cheap fertilizer will do so much
will not high grade do infinitely more!
have no doubt but it would; but the
high grade would cost at least twice as
much as the low grade, and in order to
keep the cost down to the same amount
but half as much per acre could be ap
Piled. Even then there would be as
much nitrogen and more potash, but fal
less phosphoric acid, and it is very much
harder to SOW evenly 100 pounds fert'l-
izer per acre than it is TO SOW 2Oe
pounds, unless a machine is used. IL Is
also true that fertilizer must be wei
balanced in its chemical ingredients t.
produce the best results, as was seen II
the nitrate of soda test, where five t
seven pounds nitrogen per acre, wei
balanced with other chemicals in th'
commercial fertilizer, produced better
results than the 10 pounds actual nitrate
found in the nitrate of soda did wher
applied alone. On some land heavy
application of high grade fertilizer ma!
pay the best.-Albert f. Tenney, Essex
County, Mass, in New England Home
stead.
Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1908-03-17
NUMBER II.

tl.ion that separated him from Bas-
.om's cCmpa,tIIent. and the clerk look.
I'd up.
"Tired ont TimY he asked kindly.
Its tough job. III be glad when it's
dope. I'm us sick Of money as girl
I'm candy store Is Of chocolates"
Tim nodded. and Bascom went on
counting the rolls Of gold coin. whis'
Ting softly as he worked. Tim started
as the tune caught his attention. 1t
was "Harrigan." and Bascom was
whistling the chorus:
H-a double r-i-g-a-n, you see.
It's name that shame never has been
connected with.
Harrigan-thats me.
Tim slipped off the high stool and
went over to the water cooler. The
iced water reduced his fever. and he
went back to the dull drudgery Of the
count. his momentary madness gone.
He was proud of his name. He never
could face Nell burdened with secret
knowledge OF guilt; he never could
offer her home that was bought with
stolen money. The song had saved
him.
1t was late In the afternoon when he
tabulated the results Of his count and
took them to the president. The gray
haired old man gave a sigh Of relief as
he saw the total.
1T is not us bad rs had feared" he
said slowly. passing the memorandum
to the examiner. Douglas hit US pret.
ty hard. but he did not deal death.
blow"
The bank will keep open?" cried
Tim. a smile spreading over his face.
With the bank closed. marriage with
Neil seemed further away than ever.
THE bank will keep open" verified
the president And that reminds me!
Mr. Waring is to be promoted TO the
position of cashier. aud he has recon-
mended you for his place us assistant
1t will mean raise Of $500 q year.
You are married?'
Tim shook his head.
"Only engaged" he said simply. But
with the raise | can afford to get mar
rled"
"Come to me If you want to borrow
money to set up housekeeping WITH"
said the president kindly. I'VE want
our men to have hopes. 1t steadies
them down"
An hour later notice was posted on
the bank doors that the institution
would resume payment in the morning.
and the line Of watchers began TO drift
away. The last We're still lingering
about as Tim Harrigan came jauntily
down the steps and hurried up the
street with springy stride to bear joy
ful news TO Nell. And rs he strobe
along the street the smile that played
about his lips gave place to a pucker
and he whistled-
It's a name that a shame never has been
connected with.
Harrigan-that's me.
Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1908-03-17
killinn n kina.

In all monarchies the killing Of the
king or emperor, the Law Journal Of
London points out, "is perhaps the
gravest form of high treason" The
Journal adds: "In one country, Italy.
sentence of death cannot be imposed,
and In Portugal we believe that capi-
tai punishment is not used, II not abol-
lshed. Under the law Of treason OF
the United Kingdom. which has been
applied to most Of the kings dOmin
ions abroad, with or without statutory
notifications. the killing Of the king
is a capital oIeuce by the statute OF
treasons It l.; there described rs com
passing or Imagining the death of our
lord the king Ey later legislation (of
1900, the elaborate pr0risions special
to trials for treason do not apply to as
Eassination Of the sovereign ~ Il direct
attempt on his life ana such o.renses
are tried In the same name: as wil!ful
murder The result Is that In sub
stance. though not II form. ..ie l:i!!ia:,
Of the sovereign Is tria'j!e al punish
able I'm the sane r.nn nncr ns tie wiilful
murder OF n c':b'p,'t but the crown
may direct the execution t. lie by de
capitation ins'ea;l ~ hanging
Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1908-03-17

MacauIay's Almost Superhuman Gift
For Absorbirq Literature.

Fer Absorbing Literature.
Here is an interesting list Of the vol
umes read by Lord Macaulay in Pc
riod Of thirteen months. during which
time he was also busted with his oiti-
cial duties as one of the members or
the supreme council of India. Il have
read Ischylus twice." he writes
friend; "Sophocles twice. Euripides
once, Pindar twice, Callimachus, APP
pollonius Rhodius. Quintus Calaber,
Theocritus twice, IIerodotus. Thucydi-
des, almost all Xenophon's works. NJ
most all Plato. Aristotle's 'POitic' and
good deal Of his 'OrganOn.' besides
dipping elsewhere in him: the whole OF
Plutarch's Lives about half Of I.u-
clan, two or three books Of Athcnaeus,
Pluutus twice, Terence twice. Lucre-
thus twice. Catulus, Tibullus. Proper
thus, Lucan. Status, Silius, ltalicus,
Livy. Velleius Paterculus. Sallust. Gaze
sar and lastly Cicero have indeed
little Cicero left. but shall finish him
in few days am now deep In Aris-
tophanes and Lucian."
Manifestly Macauay had an almost
superhuman gift for reading Trevel-
van said Of him: "AIacaulay's extraor-
binary faculty OF assimiatlng printed
matter at first sight remained the same
through life. To the end he read books
faster than other people SKINNED
them and skinned them as fast as
my one else would turn the leaves.
And this speed was not In his case OBJ
tanned ut the expense Of accuracy.
Balzac's ability to take In at Il glance
half n dozen or more lines OF page Is
a well known incident Of literature.
and the Frcnchman got all the mean
ings and the shades OF meaning from
the page. BalZac was not systematic
reader and boasted that he never read
a book through But he. too. had the
power of "assimilating printed mat
ter" NJ. Brunetiere says that Balzac's
capacity for absorbing knowledge as
we'll rs learning Is not to be judged at
all by the standards Of ordinary men.
lie SdUle pTIHClpIc iu'iueu'ai's 10 tho
sufficient answer to those who doubt
that Shakespeare wrote Shakespeare
because there Is proof that he was
never n student.
Doubtless these who have been men,
toned were exceptional readers. or.
rather. devourers OF books. But their
example is interesting not because 1t
is exceptional. but for the reason that
industry in reading is really not ex-
ceptional. The photographers attach
ing to meritorious works Of history at
test stupendous neutrality-suspicious.
10 the man who Is content to merely
do" the magazines. The learned per-
son who occasionally advises that a
reading Of Shakespeare and the Bible
rs enough" has doubtless himself
read wisely.
Even a cursory survey Of the subject
conv inces that reading and It's amount
depend upon ones temperament and
habit and has nothing whatever to do
with time.-Kansas City Star.
Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1908-03-17
Changes in Aroostook Farming

The beginning of farming in Aroos-
took County took place in Presque Isle
about 1910. LAUNDERING was the chief
business and oats was the money crop.
These were sent out on the Aroostook
and St. Johns Rivers and Bangor, 200
miles away, over poor roads, was the
principal market. The first boom in
this section was on cloverseed. The
red clover grew large vines, but made
poor, coarse hay. Cattle we're often
better wintered on straw, turnips and
potatoes. Glover pastures were excel
lent when they could be afforded, but
the seed was large and fine and the
price high, so most of the crop went to
seed.
The hop crop was then a great IA
vorite and for some time considerabl
money was made from hops. Later
sugar beets were tried and sent to a
factory at Portland. Good crops could
be grown, but the cost of transportation
ate up the profits. Then came the
starch factory and the railroad and ma.
chinery for better farming.
POTATOES THE BASIS OF PROFIT.
Potatoes sold from the field at %
cents per bushel and brought on boom,
as there was money in them. The land
had to be cleaned up before machinery
could be used and this greatly improved
the farms SO that horses could do most
of the work. Potato crop is now the
king of crops for money in Aroostook,
but no better beef, mutton or pork can
be raised than right here. While pota-
toes will bring 81 per barrel, no other
kind of farming will pay so well.
Some good farmers believe that we
will finally so sap the soil that it will be-
come barren, but by rotation we find
that fertility can be kept up and still
larger yields can be produced. By
growing one or two crops of potatoes,
then wheat or other grain, then seed to
clover and cut one or two crops OF hay,
then plow for potatoes again, is good
succession. Last year was poor one to
grow any crop except hay. The early
frost injured potatoes, or at least large
part of the crop, before help could be
secured to dig them. There are but few
silos in this section, as corn is not crop
to depend on. Some Southdowu and
Cotswold sheep are being kept with
profit and Berkshire and Chester White
hogs are favorites. Heavy horses are in
demand.-G. F. Whidden, Aroostook
County, Me-, in New England Home
stead.
Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1908-03-17
He Could Run Putty.

A laborer In search Of work was
asked by builder to whom he ap-
piled II he could run putty.
He replied that he could and was
told to be at the works at o'clock
next morning He arrived at the time
stated. and when asked If he were
ready stripped of his overcoat and dis
closed himself to the astonished build
er clad In running costume and pumps
"What are you going to do In those
things?" inquired the employer.
"Run Putty" answered the man.
"But want you to run 1t down into
this hole" said the builder.
"Oi don't care II It is down drain.'
replied the man. "Throt him out, and
Urll run h!m."-London Telegraph.
Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1908-03-17

Although many horses are clipped In
the fall, the best time TO do this work is
in the spring of the year, at which sea
son the animals sweat easily, and long
hair tends to hold the moisture. When
the horse is clipped. perspiration dries
out easily, so there is less danger OF the
animals laking cold and less drain upon
his recuperative powers. An experiment
made by a streetcar company on an
extensive scale proved conclusively the
value of clipping horses in the spring
Suburban Life.
Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1908-03-17

he faced her resOlutely.
There must be mistake about
this" said he. "I'm very sure he's
mine"
"Yours?"
"Let me prove 1t to you. He knows
his name Here, Ptolemy."
The dog came obediently to Rave
nor's side. He sat down and looked
up expectantly.
The girl gasped. II don't under
stand It," she said. "Now let me try
the same proof. Here, Caesar"
The dog trotted over to her and re-
peated his maneuvers.
"Good heavensw said Ravenor, utter
" bewildered for the moment. Then
suddenly he had an inspiration.
did you buy him recently?" he
asked.
"This afternoon" she confessed.
"Of n seedy, shifty eyed man."
She nodded.
Ravenor drew q long breath: then he
laughed. THAT explains it." he de-
clared. ~ bought him Of the same
man at Z this morning"
"Ohw said the girl; then she, too, fell
to laughing.
"Come." said Ravenor at length, '1et
me walk home with you, and there
we'll decide who has the better claim
to Caesar or Ptolemy. or whatever his
name is"
1t was a long talk they had before q
roaring fire in the cozy hall. 1t settled
many points besides the ownership or
the dog. When it was finished 1t was
twilight. and two very contented young
people were enjoying their rightful
heritage of happiness again.
"And about the dog?" Ravenor sug'
gested when he finally arose to leave.
"You take him." she said. Hes
really yours by right Of priority. Yon
bought him first
"I'll tell you" Ravenor said, with
conviction. Lets call him Ptolcmy
Caesar and own him jointly. and-aad
-lets-er-well, fix it SO we can have
him with us both, you know. Will
you, Katherine?'
The girl fell to laughing until the
tears rolled down her checks.
"Oh, what a way of putting It." she
cried. but there was light in her
eyes that brought Ravenor to her side.
And the newly christened Pto.Hm
Caesar lcaped about them with yelps
of joy
Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1908-03-17
Advisability of Pruning Young Pines.

Advisability of Pruning Young Pines.
Editor Maine Farmer:
have been trimming my pines where
there is a thick grove in my pasture,
and have been told that it is better for
the lumber not to trim, but to let them
grow, and let nature trim them.
would like to know through the Farmer
what others know about 1t. The trees
are small young pines.
Eff. BRYANT.
OXFORD Co.
This question was referred to the best
recognized authority of this country.
The reply follows:
Harvard University,
Division of Forestry.
Editor Maine Farmer:
In regard to the advisability of prun-
ing small pine trees, it seems to be
fact that the pruning often does more
harm than good. Setting aside the
question of expense, the cases where it
is beneficial are those of trees less than
five inches in diameter, the lower limbs
of which are either dying or dead. If
such branches are cut off smoothly and
flush with the trunk, as could best be
done with saw, the healing over of the
stub is compact and the wood subse-
Quently laid on is of course clear. On
the other hand, if trees ten inches and
over with large, thick branches are
pruned, the result is apt to be a stick OF
timber inferior to the one which would
have developed without pruning. The
reason is that whatever defects may
occur at the point of cutting will be
located well out in the board, and it is
much more difficult to make cut, even
with the saw, which will heal over tight
IL. In great many cases such branches
stub splinters back below the surface of
the bark. This causes pits and cracks
in which, if the branch has any life in it,
pitch may collect and which never fill
up with new wood. The consequence
is that when the log is opened up,
either loose knot is found at that point
OF a pitch streak or an irregular gap in
the board. In timber which is going to
make rough lumber or box boards, it is
better to have tight red knot running
all through the log than to have por-
ton of it clear and portion of it very
defective. 1t seems, therefore, better
not to prune pine trees, except when
they are very small and when the
can easily be cut off smooth
without the danger of subsequent flow
Of pitch.
| do not think that the question OF
pruning young pine trees has been ab-
solutely settled either one way or the
other, but so far as my kno Wedge and
experience goes, these conclusions seem
TO be correct.
Very truly yours,
r. T. FISHER.
Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1908-03-17

around I passed Miss Taylor's room
and looked into the window and saw
Professor Balch holding her hand In
one of his and patting II with the
other.
"Count 8. That the night In Octo-
Der when 1t blew such gale lot Of
papers were blown from the profess
or's window. One Of these be didn't
recover from the yard next morning
was a'half sheet on which he had writ.
ten two verses Of poetry to Angelina's
eyes. There is only one Angelina con-
nected with this secluded school. and
she is not a teacher
"'Count G. That we don't have blan-
kets enough on the beds to keep US
warm.
"'Count Z. That the only three girls
who get sweet cake are the three who
keep asking the principal when her
twenty seventh birthday will arrive.
"'Count 8. That this secluded and
highly moral and refined prison for
girls ~
"Just one moment, Miss Hartnett,"
interrupted Miss Taylor in her sweet
est tones. 81 think we are at cross
purposes"
Eyes. ma'am."
"When | come to look again at the
record read you 1t appears to apply
to Miss Harker instead Of Hartnett.
Similarity Of names. you see."
"Yes, ma'am."
"And when you come to look again
at your record
at seems to be couple OF verses
of poetry that ! scribbled or last
night. hope 1t is not against the
rules to write poetry, ma'am!
"Well, no, not If you submit 1t to the
teacher. You may leave this, II you
will, and I will look 1t over and see If
your meter is correct. You may 60,
my dear. Please tell Miss Vaughn to
step in here. | must tell her that she
doesn't seem to have the interest In
her studies to be expected Of her,"
Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1908-03-17

The horses feet often receive i'm
proper care. The shoes ought to be re
set at least twice in three months, ever
iu the case of driving horses which are
not given much work. When the shoes
are allowed to remain on too long, they
NAV contract the horses feet.-Suour'
ban Life.
Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1908-03-17

1t is time to begin to shape the plans
for the work on the farm the coming
season, to get together the new and the
best seeds to plant and provide the best
tools to do the work with. The matter
OF the best seeds of their kind will war
rant the most careful attention.-Maine
Farmer.