davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1908-02-01

stricter sort of new Hindus. He as
sured me that the woman merely lived
with him to take care Of his house;
and that he is not married to her.
India is full of stories of the fmmor-
alities of these holy men," who, as
they march in procession stark naked
through the streets, are truer to type
than when on their visits over seas
they sit, picturesquely clad. the
adored center of groups of American
women faddists.
One More DisilIusionment.
At Benares l discovered grievance
against the stories l used to hear and
read, when a youngster in Sunday
school, about these ''fakeers," and the
other Hindu pilgrims to the Ganges'
cleansing food. / saw thousands OF
the latter In a single day. 1t used to
be represented that these men and
women were all so smitten with a
sense of their sins, SO burdened with
their consciousness Of unholiness, that
they performed all their exacting vows
in order to secure spiritual release.
But missionaries on the spot tell me
that the Hindu is as lacking In a
sense of sin as found the Japanese
and the Chinese to be. They know
little or nothing about what the Anglo
Saxon experiences as consciousness
of personal sin. What these people
are trying to expiate is the dread bur-
den of life itself. and to secure, by
the favor of the innumerable gods in
their pantheon, a mitigation of life's
ills in the next birth. in the long order
of reincarnations.
Every Hindu's dread Is that he may
n death be transmigrated into lower
caste man. or even into a woman. or
into an ass, q snake, a toad, or some
The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1908-02-01

other loathsome creature. His hope
Is that he may be reborn into a
higher caste, possibly a Brahman;
and eventually, in the dreary process
sion of ages, into Nirvana; which.
while mystically explained in various
ways, amounts really to the extinc-
ton of personal identity. Some OF
the holy men even expect to proceed
from this present life into Nirvana.
Wash Day on the Ganges.
Therefore all these washings. Early
in the morning the people of this old
city-Benares far antedates the Chris
tian era-and the pilgrims from all
parts of the empire, come down by
thousands to the western bank of the
Ganges in order to battle. From in
fants to decrepit old men they dip
into the water and mutter their pray
ers, with an earnestness and sincerity
which cannot be doubted. The great
CHATS, or steps down into the water,
are thronged with devotees. Many
carry away the water, for household
use, or to be borne laboriously back
home to the pilgrims native village.
Only the western bank Of the Ganges
is efiicacious, to die on the eastern
bank is to be reborn an ass. So the
western bank is lined with temples,
CHATS, and palaces. IN various stages
of disrepair. There is merit In erect
ing one of these structures, but no
merit in maintaining one after another
man has built it. One huge brown
stone palace especially, wonder OF
workmanship, has sat down" In dis
orderly ruin on the bank.
II ever modern science takes hold
of India, the popularity of Benares
is gone. for this worship of the Gauges
is thing TO give believer in germs
the shudders. People battle and drink
the water, right from the spot where
sewage is seeping through the CHATS.
They are not troubled by the proxim-
ity Of bathers in all stages of disease.
The fact that corpses are soaking In
The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1908-02-01
PROVIDE FOR ONE MORE.
A Good Rule to Follow In Arranging
Dinner Parties.

The danger, in giving a dinner par
ty, of not providing for an extra per-
son, has been so often enlarged upon
and so often defended, that 1t is too
late in the day to preach about it now,
but If one has IL guests invited and
quail is a dollar apiece, 1t Is truly
hard lines to have to buy thirteener.
1t is not always. however, the unex-
pected guest who overthrows the best
laid plans of the anxious hostess.
Listen to the sad story of a friend
who was giving a dinner of IL not
long ago.
She had ordered IL quail and no
more. That in itself was quite an
item, but this was special occasion.
AS the dinner proceeded and CONVEX
sation warmed up, the hostess noticed
slight disturbance of the portieres
which concealed the door to the but
ler's pantry. Then the curtains part.
ed and there appeared Spot, the much
petted fox terrier, carrying in his lit
tie jaws one of the quail. Just as he
emerged into view, hand reached
out and pulled him back. She held
her breath, but the guests had seen
nothing. Again the curtains parted
and the maid appeared bearing plat
ter on which the agitated hostess
counted IL quail.
II took quail" she said. but
didn't eat it. 1t may not have beer
Spots quail, but didn't want to take
any chances"
The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1908-02-01
Know No Old Age.

Brazilian cocoanut palms live from
600 to 700 years. and the Arabs assert
that the date palm frequently reaches
the age of 200 to 300 years, says the
Dundee Advertiser. Wallan's oak near
Paisley, Scotland. is known to be over
700 years old. and there are eight oil.
i've trees on the Mount.of Olives near
Jerusalem which are known to have
been fourishing in 1899. The yews
at Fountains Abbey, Yorkshire, were
old trees when in 1882 the abbey was
built, and a redwood In Mariposa
Grove, California, is manifold GEN.
tenarian. Baobab trees of Africa have
been computed to be over 5000 years
old, and the deciduous cypress of
Chapultepec is considered to be of q
still greater age. Humboldt said that
the Dracena Draco at Orotava, on
Teneriffe, was one Of the Oldest inhab-
itants Of the earth.
The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1908-02-01

the stream just above them does not
disturb the worshippers a particle.
The practice of burning the dead at
Benares is famous. After the body,
wrapped in thin covering, has lain
for a time in the Ganges, rough
funeral pyre. three or four feet high.
is built of logs and sticks bought for
the purpose. and it is consumed with
more or less thoroughness. The parish
dogs thrive by the fact that the job
is not always well done; saw one
cur gnawing a burnt fragment Of a
human body.
/ came to Benares prepared to find
much to admire in Hinduism; but
somehow l cannot get past the dirt
and filthiness of it all. There, for
another example, Is one well, the most
sacred bit Of water in India. This is
a pool, the size of the swimming tank
in an ordinary gymnasium, without
inlet or outlet, filled from the Ganges,
and cleaned out only once a year. To
battle in it one must pay high fee.
as well as buy the flowers, milk. con-
dictionary, sandalwood and other
votive offerings that are poured into
the pool by the bathers. AS result
of all these accumulations, the con-
tents, instead of being merely dirty
water, are viscous mass, nauseat'
ing even to looA upon or to smell
Yet tottering old women, strong men
and blooming youth ducked In this
place. I was impressed by a touch
Of human sentiment here; man and
woman went into the pool tied to
gether, thus hoping to insure that
when they should be born again they
would once more become man and
wife
The endeavor to give . fair repre-
The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1908-02-01

chief should BE- the wife Of tine prest
dent, or ofhcio. and of each succeed
ing republican president, with regents
and vice-regents In Washington. and
in The states where the league may be
established. The yearly dues and
membership fees would form q fund
which could easily be added to by sub
scriptions, when needed. and the only
pledge required Of the members of the
league would be that by their personal
exertion they procure. outside OF their
own family connection. one or two
votes at most to be cast at the gen.
eral elections for the Republican party.
The question of q national flower
has been a matter of discussion for .
long time. but the golden rod grows In
every state of the Union. and a. its
color suggests sound money" what
better emblem could be found for the
party which has taken that issue az
q part of its political faith? With the
general election every four years, with
no prime minister whose tenure ex-
tends indefinitely, we lose the pretty
custom which obtains in England,
where Primrose day" 10 celebrated
by wearing primroses and by decking
Beaconsfield's grave with the bright
eyed flower Of spring. That, no doubt.
would save the woman who may
choose to inaugurate league such az
described the reproach of the Anglo
phobists-that we are becoming UNI
American, and even that awful thing.
imperial. by sharing the old honor
with old England of maintaining .
floral and political society.
The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1908-02-01
CUPID IN THE CORNER.


When people FIRST saw Nathaniel
Seaforth they nearly always exclaim-
ed: What a dear old gentleman!'~
When they knew him better, they
generally added: But bit too fond
of interfering"
For Mr.. Seaforth was the sort Of
man. who prided himself on taking
an intelligent interest" in other folks
affairs.
Now, of all things, he loved" .
love AFFAIR. He invariably scented Il
afar OF. and did his best to help It
along. One day he was comfortably
esconced In an electric car when two
young people entered-a girl and .
man. There we're only two vacant
seats. and they, alas, were ON oppo-
ssite sides Of the car. and at different
ends.
The young people seated themselves
in these, but Immediately Mr.. Sea,
forth, with benign smile, rose cum
brously, and gripping each successive
strap In hazardous fashion, left his
seat, which was next the young wom-
an. and accosted the astonisaed young
man at the other end of the car.
take my seat" he said. in the
voice Of one who would add. land my
blessing. too" The young man obedi-
emily stumbled to the other end Of
| the car.
The eyes of the whole company
were riveted in sympathetic interest
on the blushing couple now reunited.
and Mr.. Seaforth chuckled into his
venerable beard a. he said to hia
neighbor:
II don't like sweethearts to be sep
arated. was young once, myself
Fares, pleased"
The conductor approached, the
young woman dived into her purse and
paid for herself. while the young man
paid his nickel?
Had they Quarreled!
The company were more interested
than ever. The young man hastily
the girl in stony silence. At last an In
got out at the next corner, passing
quisitive but kindly disposed old lady.
who could no longer restrain her curl
osity, turned to the girl:
why don't you kiss and be friends,
my dear?".
I've never seen the young man be
FORE" was the frigid reply; and, fol-
lowing the direction of her angry
glance, the entire company gazed In
| silent condemnation at the would-be
Cupid in the far corner.-Chicago
Tribune.
The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1908-02-01

and In fact will do some Of the work
herself She expects to have but one
servant. She will cook, she has told
her friends, which has been one Of
the ambitions of her life.
In their enthusiasm over the idea
these friends say that Evelyn will
prepare dainty dish every day to be
sent to her husband in the Tombs.
One of them who is very close to
Evelyn, says she told her the follow
ing:
Il want to escape this notoriety.
want to meet my friends quietly and
The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1908-02-01

Benares, India.-This is holy Hindu
ground. Even II such an outcast as
q European should quit earth on this
most favored spot, he might hope to
be born again as a Hindu. This is the
best place in the world to die. accord
ing to the belief Of POI, $4,000 Hindus.
That is why thousands Of persons are
yearly brought here for that express
purpose, and wealthy rajahs build
palaces along the river bank in which
to spend their dying days. The SIM
pie fact of dwelling in this sacred
city imparts sanctity to one. More
than Mecca is to the Mohammedan,
Benares is to the Hindu.
Obviously, this is the place to study
Hinduism. Obviously, also, Hinduism
here is not the Hinduism Of the Chi
cago parliament of religions-or OF
Boston "parlor meetings" All the
washing that is done in Mother
Ganges" can scarcely make Hinduism
clean enough to be presentable In
good Anglo-Saxon society.
Holiness and Dirt.
The hottest" Hindu is the dirtiest.
He has his face and body completely
smeared with ashes, whereas the or
binary Hindu has only his arms and
breast and forehead so marked. This
holy mans hair hangs In matted ropes,
uncombed, unwashed and ash-filled.
Although his sanctity Is so great that
he is worshipped-I saw the act, more
than once-he is not obliged to bother
about the common moralities which
go along with the western faiths.
One of the hottest. as well as one
of the brainiest, was reclining on q
couch of sharpened nails Ia torture
which probably looked more horrible
than 1t felt, for this man underwent
It with no sign Of discomfort) when
! interviewed him. through an inter
prefer. / asked him about the holy
woman" at his side, comely even
through her ashes. on account OF
whom this celebrated "fakeer" Is con
sidered outcast by certain OF the
The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1908-02-01
TOOK NO CHANCES.
But They Gave the Judge an oppor
tunity to Be Generous.

But They Gave the Judge an oppor
tunity to Be Generous.
The recent agitation for the better
safeguarding of money deposited BY
clients with solicitors must not be al
lowed to suggest that all solicitors do
not look faithfully to the pecuniary
interests of those who put their trust
in them. Especially il the contrary
true In the case where A having
placed a sum in the hands Of B, b
has been compelled to hand 1t on to .
greater man in the person of C.
For example, Judge. now deceased.
had many briefs on hand at the mo-
ment Of his elevation to the bench.
A solicitor who had instructed him
In one case called and suggested that
as his client was not rich man. the
new Judge might properly return the
sum which he had been paid for the
conduct OF . case which he could No
longer take.
His lodrship was profoundly sensi-
BILE of the morality of the suggestion
It ought undoubtedly to be done
nothing could be more just; but then.
It was not for him to establish a pre-
cedent which would be unwelcome to
the profession. He was naturally Of
a retiring disposition
Exactly, my lord" answered the
solicitor. I'VE quite anticipated that
yoa would experience such a difficulty.
and for that reason we have stopped
the check"
Whether the language the new
Judge must have used. II only to him.
self. was of judicial nature the
chronicles do not relate. 1t may be
| taken, however. that Il would have
sounded odd from the bench. and
must have been blacker than toe
black cap.-Londou Sketch
The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1908-02-01
Euelyn 7hav Learning to Cook

Mrs. Thaw told one Of her friends
she wanted to live as quietly as pos
sible and that the house furnished
her the best means of doing 30. Also
she declared that it would keep her
mind occupied and give her some
thing to do while waiting for the
tedious process Of the law to bring
her husband to trial again. She In
tends to superintend the whole es-
tablishment-it is not very large
The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1908-02-01
PostaI Card Costs Him $ss.

Kansas City. Mo. = Roy Mitchell. q
young photographer of Liberty. Mo-.
sent a fancy postal card to man he
did not like. The card showed the
picture Of a hog and lines making the
picture applicable to the addressee.
Mitchell was indicted BIZ the federal
grand jury. and at the trial was fined
$25 and costs amounting 70 $50.
The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1908-02-01
Drink Water.

The Japanese know what Is good
for them when they insist on their
women drinking quantities Of water
each day. We would hear fewer COM
plants of utter fatigue. and needless
assistance from beauty hints II our
women, one and all. would follow the
example Of their almond-eyed sis
tiers.
No day should pass without at least
a quart Of pure water being drunk
better yet two quarts. 1t Is wiser.
however, to begin with the smaller
quantity or you may feel yourself
water-logged, and depart from the
good habit altogether.
The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1908-02-01
Makes Pulling Easy.

William Bardell. American consul at
Bamberg. Germany, reports the dis
covery by DR.. Radard, Geneva den-
list, that blue rays of light can be
used as an anesthetic In the extraction
Of teeth.
The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1908-02-01
Political Clubs
for american
Women
By Jeanie G. Lincoln

Oy /S15uS Os AtssSOU
Well-Knom Washington Woman
Advocates the Founding Of a
Political Society for Women
"The League Of the Golden
Rod" Might Be Made Similar
to THE Primrose Club" of Eng
land Woman's influence Should
Purify the Ballot.
The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1908-02-01

have the freedom to enjoy the few
pleasures can without being gazed at
constantly"
The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1908-02-01
evepares Dainty Dish Every Day and
Fakes Il to Husband in the Tombs.

New York.-Evelyn Thaw is keep
rx house. She's going to cook. too,
and her friends say lead the simple
Hfe.
The Thaws have rented furnished
house in Park avenue and Will re-
main in seclusion all summer.
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1908-08-29
SHOOTING THE SUN.
Simplest Way of Locating a Ships
Position at Sea.

The average transatlantic traveller
displays very little interest in the nav
igation of the vessel beyond watching
the ships officers, sextant in hand,
making observations, says a writer in
Travel Magazine. Very few have any
idea Of the process by means Of which
the modern navigator is enabled to &C.
curately place the ships position at
q stated time on the chart Out of
sight of land a ships geographical po-
sition is determined either by keeping
a careful record Of the course steered
and the distance run, known as dead
reckoning, or by the combined use Of
chronometer and Sextant-that is, by
observation Of the heavenly bodies.
The operation of finding the latitude
and longitude of observation can be
performed in q number of ways, OF
which the simplest and most conven.
lent is by measuring the altitude of the
sun above the horizon at noon, as Is
indicated on the vernier Of the sextant
and spoken of at sea as shooting the
sum-" An arithmetical computation by
the aid of logarithms is thus quickly
made which shows exactly how far
the ship is north or south of the equa-
tor, or, in other words, the latitude.
Finding the longitude, however, is q
somewhat longer process. An observa-
ton is made either in the forenoon or
afternoon, the chronometer time Of the
horizon contact of the suns image be-
ing noted. A calculation is then made
which gives the exact time at the spot
where the ship happens to be, and, as
the chronometer carried aboard shows
the exact time at Greenwich, the prime
meridian of longitude, the difference
between the two expresses in hours
and minutes easily convertible into
degrees and miles, the distance east
or west of Greenwich.
Having thus, roughly speaking, found
the latitude and longitude, dot placed
on the chart at the exact point where
the lines of latitude and longitude
cross denotes the ships position.
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1908-08-29
Cured Hay Fever and Summer Cold.

A S. Nusbaum, Batesville,
Indiana, writes: Last year suf-
fered for three months with a sum-
mer cold distressing that it interfered
with my business. l had many of
the symptoms of hay fever, and a
doctors prescription did not reach my
case, and I took several medicines
which seemed only to aggravate it.
Fortunately l insisted upon having
Foley's Honey and Tar. 1t quickly
cured me. My wife has since used
Foley's Honey and Tar with the
same success. j. T. Bennett.
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1908-08-29
A MANS HAT.
Why Is 1t Always Regarded as Fit
Subject For Jokes?

Why Is 1t Always Regarded as a Fit
Subject For Jokes?
81 wonder why it IS" says a young
gentleman who spends most of his lei
sure time studying human nature at
populous street corner, that a mans
hat is always regarded as a fit subject
for jokes? Anything that happens to
his shoes is a serious matter, and, al
though his vest, especially if it is out
of the usual in design Or color, is
sometimes made the subject of pointed
remarks, disaster to any other garment
is regarded as a matter of sympathy.
But if he goes to church and puts
down his hat at the end of his pew,
where somebody kicks a dent in it
and knocks it five feet down the aisle,
or if he places it carefully beside him
in q lecture room or theater and a
preoccupied young woman comes in
and sits down on it people laugh with
out seeming to feel the slightest SYM
pathy for him or his sky piece.
ga man chasing his hat through the
street on a windy day will always at
tract grinning, unsympathetic crowd
ready to lay bets on the distance the
hat will travel before he catches up
or on the amount of damage it will
sustain before it is finally recovered,
and so irritated does the owner be-
come when he finds his vicious dabS
and grabs at it greeted with ironical
applause that he generally forgets to
thank the man who stops it by stamp
ing on it and hands it back. l be-
lieve Joe Miller perpetrated jokes about
chasing the hat, but the heavy felts
and cooked hats of Miller'S time did
not lend themselves readily to joking
purposes, for when those old fashioned
headpieces were blown off they drop
ped to the ground and stayed there.
A panama, stovepipe or even derby
may run and fly by turns from Broad
way to the postof1ce and attract as
much attention as a runaway team
st. Louis Globe-Democrat.
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1908-08-29
Soldiers In Battle.

Those who have taken part in bat
tie have confessed that were it not for
the shouting and the noise they would
lose their nerves and run away. There
is always an interval of cowardice in
the soldier, but it is quickly overcome,
and he fights grimly, unmindful of i'm
pending death. Bands were, of course,
invented to raise the spirits of sol
diers. Martial music, whether froll
the drum or the bugle, has done a
great deal in saving campaigns. No
body can fight in a cold blooded man.
ner, and in the excitement Of a gen.
eral engagement the most nervous of
fighters recover wonderfully.