Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1909-07-13

Yours very truly,
w. w. Finley,
President Southern Railway.
Washington, D. C. July 8, 1909.
TINY cURIosITIEs.
Dressed FIeas and Jumping Beans OF
Mexico.
Though one expects to find every
thing different in foreign country
from things in his native land, he Ii
not always prepared for all the unu-
sual sights which come within his vis-
ion almost as soon as the border is
crossed. Even little journey into
Canada on the north or into our sister
republic of Mexico on the south will
broaden the mind and show us that
the earth is In reality quite respect
able sized ball after all and that our
own community Is only very small
portion of the universe, whereas we
may have thought before that It was
It's centre and that everything else re-
yolyed about 1t. While Canada can
show us broad fields Of wheat In the
summer time and broad fields Of snow
In the winter, Mexico can show us the
palm, the cactus and the rose and new
er ending sunshine, whether we 60
there in summer or winter.
There are many big sights In both
countries, but just now want to tell
you Of some Of the smaller things
which can be seen in Mexico, q coun-
try which have visited many times
and in which ! have always found
something new to me on each occasion.
One Of these oddities Is the dressed
fiea," but for me to tell you that such
tiny creatures as fieas are really sold
all dressed for social occasion may
sound somewhat "fshy' to you and I
cannot blame any one for doubling
that such things exist, for must con-
fess to q higher degree Of doubt when
shopkeeper told me he had some in
stock. Noting my look Of incredulity
he pulled open a drawer In his show
case and took therefrom q small box
and from 1t smaller one, not over q
quarter of an inch in any Of its dimen-
sions, and made Of paper about the
thickness Of leaf Of book. he hand
ed the tiny receptacle to me, together
with large reading glass, and asked
me to see for myself. looked through
the glass and beheld two fieas, one OF
which was dressed up like a young
nobleman, while the other appeared az
damsel gowned for q ball.
In explanation and to satisfy the
amazement which was apparent in mo
the shopkeeper said that the wearing
apparel is made OF q form Of wax and
that the dressed flea" will retain its
shape for long time with proper care.
In further explanation he handed me
a small circular printed by the whole
sale house which handles this diminu-
tive article of commerce and will
quote from 1t In full, as follows:
these are real feas, guaranteed.
They are dressed by woman here In
Mexico. She does the work with her
hands only, uses no pincers. The fieas
are dead, they will not come to life.
She does not chloroform the flea be-
fore she dresses him or her. We give
1t up how many she can dress In q
day, but we should Judge that 1t takes
quite a while to dress one, and then
the catching Of the flea Is the most
strenuous part Of the process; she gets
them from the dog and two cats, which
she keeps for the purpose Of supply
ing her with the means Of making her
living. She has been widow for a
little over two years; has one child;
the child does not help her dress the
fieas, as 1t has not had time yet to
perfect itself in the art(?. Yes, the
fieas-not the dressed ones-get on the
child; they cannot help 1t, as the child
is always in the immediate vicinity OF
its mother. Yes, we sell very many Of
them to the Americans who come to
this country. No, We would not tell
you a lie about these curiosities, as
you will in all probability buy one at
rs cents, and we positively will not tell
you an untruth for that small amount"
Another Of the tiny curiosities which
one finds in Mexican shops is the
jumping bean," which looks much like
kernel Of coffee and is about the
same size. During the spring months
people passing the windows Of the
curio stores will see saucers Of these
beans, and the collection seems to be
animated to a high degree as the in
dividual beans hop, step and jump"
around in the saucer. To take one out
and place 1t on sheet Of paper, an
open book or even on the table and
watch its movements is an interesting
pastime, for the bean will commence
to creep about in q most uncanny
manner. While in the case Of the
dressed flea" there was the element Of
doubt in the tourists mind, he Is now
possessed with curiosity and immedi-
ately, asks for an explanation.
Upon inquiry one learns that the
bean jumps or creeps along because
there is worm in the shell. 1t Is sup
posed that the worm turns about or
strikes itself against the inside Of its
prison and thus gives 1t a forward
movement or even turns the bean
completely over. The bean comes from
the states Of Vera Cruz, Sonora and
Guerrero, and is generally secured in
April. With ordinary care the worm
will live for months. The bean should
be kept warm and not be handled II
the worm is to show its activity. The
Mexicans know these beans as "brin-
cones" which means Jumper" In
some sections they are used In games
of chance, such as placing them In cir
cles and seeing which mans bean will
hop from the centre to the outer ring
first. Sometimes large sums are staked
on this most uncertain results.