The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1908-11-18

Why did the fleas the pup love so?
Oh. that is hard to guess;
But as they thrived he had to grow
Just less and less and less.
The fact of being so bereft
For of him she had only left
His collar and his tag.
indianapolis News.
Found a Deed of 1853.
| A deerskin parchment deed or in
denture, dated at Trenton, N. J., Au-
gust 20, 176S-14O years ago-was
found in the waste brought to the
Burnside paper mill a few DAYS ago,
and now reposes in the Connecticut
state library at the capitol as one of
the finest specimens in most remark
able collection of ancient documents.
Its recent history is hardly less in
teresting than the history which it tells
on its face. By the indenture, Andrew
Reed and Charles Pellit, assignees,
transferred nine acres of land to Heze
kiah Howell
The story of the parchment's trav-
els TO the waste heap is unknown. 1T
tied up in bags for paper "stock."
After the bags had been opened and
the contents scattered about for sort
ing TINS deerskin was picked up by
DaVld Z. Burnham. 1t was as neatly
rolded and practically in as good con-
d1t1on as on the day Mr.. Howell filed
II. nearly a century and a half ago.
When c: w. Vibbert. an expert, saw
square, he Immediately advised send
ing 1T to the state collection, and it
delighted the heart of the librarian,
George S. GODDARD.
After the manner of the period the
deed is indented with scaIlops across
the top, part of the parchment hav-
ing been left behind as a stub The
writing is very plain and distinct
The nine acres transferred were in
Trenton. bounded by property of
James Trent, Elizabeth and Benjamin
Biles. and Samuel Johnson. The sum
of $50 les was given for it. The
names of the assierors are Hugh Rob
erts, BENJAMIN Clew, Abel James, John
Kidd, William Humphreys, Joseph
K9ed, IT. Moore Truman, and Thomas
Reed, and the form of giving power of
attorney Is clearly brought out
stephen Skinner, as "king's counsel"
attested for the lawyer
A remarkable feature is the seals
me lawyers signed for each assignor
Then opposite each name was placed
a red seal, stamped with a Pine Tree
shilling: On each seal is the plain
print of thumb mark, no two alike.
Evidently this was an early form of
the Bertillon method used in place of
the cross 'his ark.'-Hartford dis
patch to New York Herald
Citizen Crusoe of Boston.
Judge Dodge, of the United States
district court, was at his desk the 9th
er day when William H. Fraser, sec
rotary of the Seamen's union ana the
Rev. George L. Small, of the Mariners
home, came in conducting a weather.
beaten sailor who wanted to be nat
uralized. The sailor laid his papers
before the Judge, who glanced at the
smiled.
DO 1 understand that your name is
Robinson Crusoe?" said he
Yes, sir; Robinson Crusoe"
PRIV tRa- t.
he was born in Wardo, Norway. A
years ago and that he is a mariner,
engaged mostly on coastwise vessels on
United States shores. He first came to
this country in 1897 landing in New
York on the ship Jason, although not
the Jason Of the Golden Fleece expedi-
ton. Crusoe did not know how he get
his name, as he had had it so long, but
he was called Andorf in Norway In
spector Moore asked him various ones
lions, to which he answered diffidently
He thought President Roosevelt had
been farmer in the country and that
if he died somebody else" would be
president. The judge had to admit the
correctness of the reply, and Robinson
Crusoe is now a full-fedged citizen of
the United States.-Boston Transcript.
Sight Restored by a Rabbits Eve.
Much interest was aroused among
physicians yesterday by the announce
ment of the successful grating of the
cornea from the eye of a rabbit upon
the eye of a young man who had been
blind since his ninth year.
The case was reported to the medi-
cal board by Henry r. Lesser, of
West Ninety-third street. According to
his account the patient, a man of "a,
had been without useful sight for Is
years, from leucoma, a disease of the
cornea.
Three months after the operation, DR.. |
Lesser said, the graft is in perfect po-
sition and the patient is able to count
fingers at a distance of IL inches. He
is gradually learning to distinguish col |
ors and is able to go about unattended. !
Specialists in optical surgery said !
yesterday that while the transplanta- |
ton of the rabbits cornea is one of
the oldest of plastic operations, it is |
not common and often does not yield |
such good results as in this case.-New |
York Herald.
Village Degeneracy.
The human population of country |
villages, most sad 10 see, is every year |
rendered less intelligent than it was 100 |
years ago. All the enterprising, intel |
ligent young men and maidens are |
"fshed" away, drawn by bats and !
hooks to the great towns; only the |
dull and relatively incapable are left |
in the village to marry and produce a |
new generation. The village popula-
ton necessarily becomes made up Of a
dull stock-incapable, as appears from
official reports, of being educated be-
yond a very low stage. In some dis
tricts 70 per cent of the children are