The Somerset reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1868-1909, 1909-03-11
STATE AND GENERAL ITEMS.

March 81 is the date suggested by
many propheN for Legislative ad-
journment.
Fort Fairfield i. the first Maine
town to announce big Fourth OF July
celebration this year.
An Infatuated COW held complete
sway in the business Sc. tion of Bid
deford for some time one day last
week, and caused more excitement
than has been known for month g,
forced people to flee for their lives
and was finally prevented from doing
serious damage only by being shot
with q 44-caiiber rifle by Squire L.
Libby of Buxton.
The official Catholic directory just
published shows marked increase in
the Catholic population of Maine,
against a population of 1900 in the
Catholic census of 1908 that Of the
present year shows population of
1851, an increase of 3,647 in one
year. There are 154 priests, l13
churches, 400 religious teachers, with
1865 children in parish and parochi-
al schools. There are five orphan
asylums caring for 415 orphans.
Sentences were imposed Saturday
in the Androscoggin S. S. Court at
Auburn On George w. Perkins, aged
SO, and his son, John F. Perkins, aged
II, who were convicted OF man
slaughter, after being tried jointly On
the charge of murder, OF their neigh
Dor, Chas. A. Strout of Poland, Aug
3, 1908. George W. Perkins was given
eight years in state prison and his son
who IL is alleged did the shooting, at
the command of his father, six months
in the county jail, by Judge A. Z.
Savage in the Supreme court. They
will begin serving their terms at once.
During the month Of January 1874
893 bushels Of potatoes were shipped
over the b. & A. railroad, making
from total crop of 1908 up to and in
GLIDING January 81, 1906, 1885 bushels
or an Increase Of 4 1854, 089 bushels over
same period in 19O7-08. The figures
for the the ''big year OF 1905" are as
follows: shipped in January, '07, l.
341, 0Sl - a little under last January.
The total shipments over the B. & "A.
from the 1906 crop up to Feb. /, 1907,
were 6,553,810 bushels, making the
amount gone forward over this road
OF the 1908 crop 652, 1925 greater than
the ont go CT the 1906 crop for the cor
responding months.
Here's a remarkable tale from Nor
rill. Miss Adelaide Merriam, the lit
tie four-year- old daughter of Herman
Merriam, was sliding down hill few
rods above the dam near her fathers
mill the other day, wnen her sister
was thrown from the sled over the
bank into the river. The older sister
made an cutlery, and the father who
was at work in the mill, as we'll as
others, fastened to the rescue. He
jumped into the river and shortly saw
her floating under. the water and
caught her as she neared the, sluice-
way. The little girl had floated 1870
feet under water, 40 feet of the dis
lance under ice which reached from
shore to shore. She came out crying,
but perfectly conscious, and in a
short time was seemingly as we'll as
ever. She says that while she was
travelling under water she saw a
snake and frog.
A feature of the state council, d.
A. R., held at Bath March and 4,
was the awarding of prizes for histor-
10 essays written by Maine grammar
school pupils, by Mrs. Alma 3. Board
man of Bangor, chairman Of the COM
mittee. There were 81 essays sub
mitted, most OF which were neatly
written, some typewriter. The COM
mittee really enjoyed the work of
criticising the essays, and making the
awards. Tho prizes were awarded as
follows: frst, $500, Bon Homme
Richard and Scraps, Master Marion
White of Waterville; second, S6 90,
The Battle of Lexington, Almira T.
Sturtevant, Bath; third, $500, Ar
nold's Treason, Rebecca Whelan, Ma
chias. All the essays received honor
able mention from the committee.
The report was signed by Alma
Staples Boardman, Mrs. E. p. George
and Mrs. George LeFavor.
II 10 v,nuch aacior RI ho critical than