davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Washington herald., 1911-04-30

A woodpecker hole. dug in a tree by
the chisel-like bill of the bird, is a cavity
OF considerable size. /. Is bottle shaped,
the lower part being somewhat enlarged
and the inner walls sufficiently uneven
to enable the bird to cling to them. The
opening is always inclined upward at
an angle of four degrees. SO that rain
cannot penetrate. and the walls are so
thick that changes of weather are un-
important to the occupants. At the bot
tom is a curious V-shaped trough. which
contains a mixture of mold and fine
wood shavings for the eggs to rest upon.
Copied the Hole.
Baron Berlepsch made copies Of wood
pecker holes. faithful to the smallest
detail. When he nailed them upon the
trunks and branches of trees or attached
them to buildings they were promptly
occupied by birds of various species,
which bred in them.
To- attract birds that nest in the open,
hedges are very desirable and 1t Is i'm
portant to avoid cutting down the under
growth in woods and tie outskirts Of
woods. Shrubs should be freely planted,
especially those of thorny kinds, to keep
away vermin. or those for which the
feathered visitors have a special liking,
such as the gooseberry. beloved by warb-
lers. II these are suitably pruned, so
as to leave branches terminated by null
tiple outstanding forks, the latter will af-
ford excellent opportunities for the con-
struction Of nests.
Fallen leaves should be left on the
ground. Birds find food under them, and
by their rustling are warned Of the ap-
proach Of enemies. 1t Is noticeable that
The Washington herald., 1911-04-30

birds generally avoid bare places.
Some day. when the business Of en-
couraging the propagation of useful birds
has become fairly established, an impor-
tant feature of II will be the providing
of food for them in winter. For this
purpose the Baron Berlepsch has in
vented an ingenious contrivance, which
he calls food bell It is a glass
receptacle. filled with hemp seed, and is
hung from a tree Being of glass, 1t is
easy to see when 1t needs refilling. This,
however, is merely the reservoir, which.
by an automatic arrangement, supplies
the seed to a dish beneath. AS fast as
the seed Is eaten it is replaced by more
from above. a bell-shaped roof over the
dish protects the contents.
A Food Tree.
Another and even more interesting de-
vice Of the baron is what he calls a
food tree" 1t is intended. to initiate a
tree thickiy covered with the eggs and
larvae of insects. But tho food material
used is a mixture Of beef fat or mutton
suet (for warmtO and. hemp seed. dried
and ground meat. white bread dried and
ground, dried elderberries, ants eggs. &C.
This is put up as a regular commercial
article In Germany nowadays. But any
preparation more or less similar will
serve the purpose, the method OF using it
being to melt the fat, put in the dry
ingredients and then pour the stuff, at
boiling temperature. over the branches Of
small pine or fir tree. All kinds OF
birds will eagerly seek such a food tree
in the winter. and. in a playground or
school garden, II affords delightful oppor-
tunities for the observation Of feathered
creatures.
The Washington herald., 1911-04-30
UNITED STATES TO
GROW CAMPHOR TREES

An unusual method Of harvesting the
camphor crop is recommended for this
region by the agricultural experts Of the
Federal government. 1t Is held by them
that regular annual profit of 500 to $50
an acre may be obtained from camphor
farm in the Gulf coast territory by cut
ting the camphor plants with moving
machine when they reach a height Of
aboutstwelve inches from the ground. in
stead Of waiting until the trees are Of
FULL grown size and then cutting them. as
Is done on the island Of Formosa, from
which the bulk Of the worlds output of
camphor comes.
1t has been demontrated that by cut
ting the plants yearly in the manner
suggested a larger percentage Of cam
phor can be obtained from the twigs and
leaves of the plant than II the harvest
ing is not done until they attain the size
Of a tree. The stubble left by the cutting
Of the plants soon send up new sprouts
and in twelve months it Is again ready
for another cutting. The camphor Is OBJ
tanned by putting the plants through the
distilling process.
The Washington herald., 1911-04-30

A. soap manufacturer offered prizes re-
Gently for ideas which might be used in
advertising his soaps, one Of which is a
brand whose sale is urged largely on the
ground of purity. One day the foreman
of his local warehouse come to the front
with q suggestion, something in this
form:
$50 pure the rats will eat II! Wise
rats leave other soaps alone, but get fat
on - soap"
He brought along several rats in a
wooden box to prove his statement. They
were the fattest rats any one in the soap
manufacturers ofice had even seen.
They actually had lost their rodent quick
ness and activity.
II caught 'em by hand. They're too
fat to run. and have so much fat on their
shoulders they couldn't turn around to
bite me-" said the foreman.
Among those who came to view the
rats was the company's chemist. He had
a ready explanation for the fatness Of the
soap-fed rats.
Some so-called emulsions Of cod liver
oil aren't emulsions at all, they are
saponifcations OF the oil, prepared with
pancreatin, from animal swestbreads. In
this form, the oil Is predigested and TAX
en- into the system. These rats have
taken another form Of saponified fat.
that's all"
do 1 get the moneyY' asked the fore
man, anxious for the SIS promised for
every accepted idea. After some consul
The Washington herald., 1911-04-30
SOME QUEER HABITS OF RATS

up q settlement Of rats lay for the head
female rat. II catch and kill her the
others disappear.
Peculiarities of Diet.
One Of the peculiarities of rats is their
undong when a general campaign Is
made against them. I have had q great
deal Of experience with rats in various
kinds of storehouses, and usually you
will find that in each place there Is one
special thing Of which they are very fond.
just as they are Of - soap In this
place. Sometimes 1t is tomatoes they are
after, sometimes oatmeal.
do you know what use as q bait
until have time to study the situation
and find out how they get into the ware
house and plug up their entrances?
Whatever they have been after especially.
everything else In a warehouse or other
building alone II a sufficient amount Of
what they have shown q fancy for is left
around for them. OF course, don't rec
ommend that procedure. I use 1t a. an
illustration.
II have no use for cats. Thay are use
less for attacking large numbers Of rats,
and II they are fed they will not attack
either rats or mice. When they are not
fed, they become too Wild and migratory
to be Of any value.
''But I can't see why the old man
doesn't think that would make q good
ad:
$50 pure the rats will eat II! Wise
rats leave other soaps alone. but get fat
on - soap!" complained the foreman.
The Washington herald., 1911-04-30

The United States may within the next
few years become a competitor with Ja-
pan in the production of camphor. The
experiments which the Department Of
Agriculture has been conducting in the
Gulf coast region of Texas in growing
the trees from which this article of COM
merce is distilled have proved beyond
question that 1t can be made a highly
profitable industry.
On the demonstration farm at Pierce.
Just north II Bay City. camphor seeds
were planted several years ago. and they
soon germinated, the trees having a re-
markable growth. In one years time the
plants reached a height Of eighteen
inches, which is said to be a more rapid
growth than they have In the camphor-
producing regions of the world.
The seeds were planted in rows and
were not fertilized, nor did they receive
unusual attention. Best results are OBJ
tanned by planting the seed under shell
ter, where the tender plants have pro-
lection until they are we'll enough ad-
vanced in size for transplanting.
The Washington herald., 1911-04-30
BERLIN INVENTOR PERFECTS
REAL MECHANICAL MAN

The invention seems. in fact. to dupli-
cate Bulwer Lytton's mechanical serv-
ants In his famous story, ''Thc Coming
Race" and at a later date H. g. Wells
conception Of the same solution of the
servant problem.
Writers Of fiction. in all countries and
ages. have found inspiration in the idea
of duplicating the complicated works Of
nature with mechanical constructions
To describe such imaginary mechanisms
is much easier than actually to construct
them.
Clockmakers. owing to their familiarity
with the means OF producing all sorts Of
movements in the transmission of power,
have always been the most ingenious
artificers on these lines. but they have
usually. connected their moving human
figures with the main purpose Of their
contrivances-to tell the time Of day and
the progress OF the seasons.
To construct q mechanical man IL
merely to triumph over mechanical difii-
culties-the man being Of no use. but
merely a curiosity when created-which
appears to be the case with Mr.. Whit
man.
The Washington herald., 1911-04-30
HOW AMBITIOUS STUDENTS.
WORK THROUGH COLLEGE

bers is kept up to the total membership
agreed upon with the boarding house
keeper who furnishes the meals. For
this work, It was learned, sixty-one stu
dents earned S,465.
Next in importance is clerical work. At
this 19S students amassed $22,224 The
greater part of the work was done dur
ing vacation. One Of the things that the
bureau insists upon Is that students
shall be willing to work in their vaca-
tfons. If they do this and save money
the problem Of working through college
is much simplified.
BY the efforts of the bureau New Ha-
ven business men have become interested
In self-supporting students and are quite
willing to provide them with work, es-
pecially in summer. as extra clerks. col
lectors, solicitors of custom, and deliver
ers of goods. Frequently work is pro-
Vided. too. by the New Haven gas and
water companies.
Employed By College.
College athletic and other organizations
often have a rush o; business requiring
extra help and apply to the bureau for
men capable of doing 1t. Moreover. up
per classmen Of known ability are en-
ployed in the deans office, the Yale CO.
operative store. and in various libraries
of the university AMI the city.
The college papers are run on strictly
business lines. If there is any surplus at
the end of each college year. after ex-
penses have been met, It Is divided among
the senior board Of editors on each paper
There are iour college papers. with
thirty-one editorial berths-nine on the
News, nine on the Record (the Yale hu-
morous paper), seven on the Courant,
and six on the Lit. Moreover. number
of Yale men do reporting for the New
Haven papers and earn good money as
purveyors Of college news to out-of-town
journals. In this way. according to the
most recent statistics. eighteen men
earned $3,319.
Small weekly stipends or. more fire.
Quently. lodging place are obtained by
students who take care of furnaces and
shovel snow from sidewalks in winter. or
keep gardens and laws in order during
the summer. The pay for such work is
from $50 to $3.50 per week. The figures
show that thirty-two men working at
such jobs earned $1,11.
Every year trained stenographers come
to Yale as students, also many men who
can earn money as copyists. For such
there is regular employment in certain
The Washington herald., 1911-04-30
Delivers Into the Mysteries of the P asst Bring
to Light Many New and Astonishing
Facts About the People of -.
the Long Ago.

Inexhaustible industry. vast learning,
and immense wealth are being daily ex-
pended to reconstruct for Us the mysteri-
Gus past. Experts have just restored
with remarkable accuracy the Cliff Pal
ace of the Mesa Verde in Colorado. the
last stronghold of a mysterious lost
American race. who struggled In vain to
maintain their civilization against the
fierce Indians. From this work We shall
learn much about the daily life Of those
early people.
In Peru they have found a prehistoric
cemetery filled with the bodies Of stran-
gled women. revealing another OF the
many ancient forms of ritual sacrifice.
In Egypt they have found the undoubted
mummy of Pharaoh Merneptah. who pur-
sued Moses and the Israelites to the Red
Sea This discovery proves that he was
not drowned in the catastrophe that
overwhelmed. his army. A new theory
has been advanced to explain the myste-
rious colossal monuments Of Easter Is
land.
All over the world scientists are delv-
ing for the bones of prehistoric men,
for the domestic utensils Of cave dwell
ers. for the buildings Of more highly ad-
'vanced ancient peoples. so that last
we may know how the human race came
into existence. developed, and reached Its
present stage of civilization.
Pharaoh of Exodus.
The bodies of nine of the old Pharaohs
OF Egypt have been found at once. They
were discovered by NJ. Loret. assistant
to Sir CASTOR Maspero, the Egyptian di-
rector Of antiquities. in the tomb Of Amen
ophis II. which is in the Valley Of the
Kings at Thebes.
Among these Pharaohs is the famous
The Washington herald., 1911-04-30

Whitman, a Berlin inventor, has, after
many years, succeeded in making me-
chanical man that can walk, and make
other human movements, and can speak.
sing, whistle. and laugh. This mechanical
masterpiece is so human that at dis
tance Of a yard It cannot be told from
Q living being.
The figure Is q mass Of intricate cogs
and machinery. In the chest . number
Of monographs are arranged. but how
the machinery Is controlled is secret
Of the inventor. II has been said that
wireless electric waves are at the bottom
Of the mechanical miracle. Each part
Of the figure is controlled by a little
electric motor.
The inventor carries about with him
disk upon which Is a little needle. This
Is attached to an electric coll OF his own
invention, which is in harmony with the
motors inside OF the figure By moving
the needle from one point to another. he
starts by wireless waves the parts that
he wants to move. And this principle IL
worked out in endless combinations.
The Washington herald., 1911-04-30
SILKWORM MAKES "CATGUT."

OF Naples. but most Of the silkworms EN-.
ployed are raised near Tore Annunziata,
at the foot of Vesuvius. The caterpil-
lars are killed just as they are about
to begin the spinning Of cocoons. the
silk glands are removed and subjected to
a process Of picking. which is . secret
Of the trade. and afterward the threads
are carefully drawn out by skilled work.
ers. mostly women. The length Of the
thread varies from a foot to nearly TWEEN,
ty incnes.
The Washington herald., 1911-04-30

Remote. indeed. from the common
places of everyday life as they are un'
derstood by the Anslo-Saxon. il the coast
Of Venezuela bordering on the Caribbean
Sea Mountains painted with the fiam-
ing colors of tropical vegetation, little
towns and villages Of adobe and red tiles.
or Of plain thatched huts. natives black
haired, brown-skinned. and dressed with
primitive scantiness-ali these are the
everyday matters wherever the lazy
waves OF the Caribbean lap the venex-
ueian beaches.
Therefore It was with astonishment
that an American lady who has been
living Of late on . plantation In venes-
uela, high up q mountainside 0vertop-
ping the sea. heard the country people
allude TO . spot In the neighborhood ~
''the tomb Of the Englishwoman."
The American investisated and soon
after set out for the spot on donkey-back.
Guided by Q native donkey driver. she
rode along steep bride path. lined with
dense tropical woodland resoundine with
cries Of brilliaut-hued birda.
In The vexy midse 81 thie ouklanl1sh
hndeeaDo - su11saay ea1D9 uDoa .
The Washington herald., 1911-04-30

When a horse falls in his harness his
natural inclination is TO get up again.
The shock of the fall has excited him
more or less. and in his efforts TO arise
he may further injure himself as well as
the harness
The first action should De to Lit on his
head. pointing his nose upward with one
hand, to keep him from struggling until
the traces and all other attachments to
the vehicle can be unfastened. If two
persons are present this can be done
without difficulty.
II a horse breaks his leg the most hu-
name as well as the most sensible action
Is to shoot him on the spot. 1t is true
that cases are on record where broken
legs have been successfully treated by
means Of suspending the horse in a sling
with pulleys but the experiments in this
direction have almost invariably met
with failure.
To shoot a suffering animal and kill
him instantly is not 80 simple matter
rs It at first appears. says Country Life
In America. Many shots are sometimes
fred before death results. How and
where should a horse be shot?
In the center Of every horses forehead
The Washington herald., 1911-04-30
Great Variety of Employment E Entered
Upon by Boys Determined to Get
an Education-Yale's Ap-
pointment Bureau.

earned during the college term and So. sss
in vacation. Adding 5000 for one term
Of first-year classes not included in the
above total, and an estimated $4,000 for
students who did not answer the bureaus
circular, the total amount actually earpkd
was about s21i.5Oo
Comparative EarninEs.
Eighty-eight members of the graduate
school earned the largest amount of any
one group Of students-$46.9I0. Next came
academic seniors. 70 men. with $2s.5io;
Shefileld Scientific School seniors So men,
with S2252S academical freshmen, 3 men.
with $14.427, and Sheffield Scientific fresh
men, IS men, with s1,34o. These figures
show that the finest plums in the way Of
employment fall to graduate students.
the men who have been longest on the
spot and have acquired experience in
doing work about college.
Teaching was the line Of work which
yielded most money to self-supporting
students Those who went into it were
mostly grads" and earned total OF
ss7.1s3 At private tutoring. l2 students
earned s27,260. Of this number scientific
school seniors got s.s23; members of the
graduate school. As20; academical Sc
niors So 975, and law school men. $3.50.
Academical and scientific school fresh
men earned only SSi3 and saso. respective
ly, as private tutors, employers evident
ly deciding that before being qualified for
teachers they should be students few
years longer.
Tutoring is the most eagerly sought
work among applicants to the Yale bu-
reau of employments as 1t diverts a stu
dents mind less from his course OF stud
les than other lines. and is we'll paid. the
rate varying from 81 to 50 an hour. ac-
cording to the ability and worth Of the
tutor
Next to private tutoring. the most mon
ey or its equivalent In board while So
journing at New Haven. is earned by
students who act as walters. chiefly at
small dining clubs. composed of from ten
to fifteen men. In this way, according TO
the bureaus statistics. 13o students earn
ed s1S.4s3 Academical sophomores took
the lead, getting 1854. followed by aca-
demical freshmen with S2,9li Scientific
school seniors with s1,Ii6, and academi-
cal seniors with S.327.
Work in Restaurants.
At the great university dining hall at
Yale 100 students get their meals, but
the hours for walters there are so long.
the work so arduous. and the discipline
that must be maintained so rigorous that
professional walters only are employed
to the exclusion of students. About twen-
ty-five students, however. are employed
as Checkers" to check the orders as
they CONS to the walters, and in various
clerical capacities.
Another popular employment among
students Is as managers of small eating
clubs. Tho duties of such a manager are
to form the club at the beginning of each
term and see that the number of men,
The Washington herald., 1911-04-30
ORIENTAL DISTANCE RUNNER

er the normal exertions Of the Kahar
post runners and the similar exertions Of
jinrikisha men shorten their lives. and It
appears that the Kahars. trained from
childhood to be distance runners. live to
be old men. They are not only able to
Withstand the strain Of running great
distances under . heavy load. but thrive
under IL.
The jinrikisha man. too. notwithstand-
ing his irregular diet. excessive uss Of
liquor. and exposure to the. elements,
lives 10 reasonable age. In Tokyo when
thrOo years ago there were found to b.
more than isOe Whe weso over nfty-llvo
yeas8 o. agA -
The Washington herald., 1911-04-30

Ordinary Marathon races seem rather
insignificant compared with the regular
performances of a certain East Indian
caste. These Kahars, also known as
Jhinwarb. live in the Punjab, where for
centuries they have acted a. runners.
fishermen. and water fowl catchers
The men are trained runners and are
said to be able to go hundred miles q
day without resting. According to Baily's
Magazine. there is well authenticated
instance that Tika Ram. the son Of Lslu
Ram, carried dispatches 800 miles In three
days-srom Nesn-Mir to Mesrut
The point discussed, however. q wheth-
The Washington herald., 1911-04-30

It is doubtful whether the average rod
and reel fisherman who angles with flies
and hooks strung with fine. translucent
cat-gut Is aware Of the invaluable friend
he has In the humble silkworm. The cat
gut is the most unbreakable substance
that holds the hooks against the fiercest
struggles Of the struck fish and comes
from silkworms. The principal center
of the manufacture Of this kind Of cat
gut is the island Of Procida, in the Bay
The Washington herald., 1911-04-30

departments Of the university and . good
deal Of general manuscfip, copying work.
These lines yielded $2.6n to twenty-nine
men.
There are students who work even as
motormen On the New Haven street rail-
way. some throughout the year. but most
OF them rs extra men in the summer.
Fifteen Of these earned N.ES.
Some Other Trades.
And here are some moro things which
those whose thirst for education is great
er than their means for gratifying It do
while they are at Yale:
Music teaching. singing In choirs. work
at summer resorts. religious and factory
work. civil engineering, farming. bank
work. indexing, &C., in libraries. boys
clubs. literary writing. printing, survey
ing. housework, acting as house agents,
and railroading.
Still others were ushers monitors cauf-
feurs, employees at summer camps, proc
tors. ticket sellers, law workers. guards
at Yale Field during games. masons, car
penters. furniture movers tourist guides.
ton agents. painters, meat cutters, and
interpreters. r.s ... p
Only one student earned money as q
fencing instructor. and the published fig-
ures show one only of the following:
Fencing instructor, fruit inspector, ball.
ner maker. publisher Of programmes
tester ir a rope factory. Janitor. lumber
man, Pullman conductor. sleight-of-hand
entertainer, clearer" Of the stage at the
Hyperion Theater. New Haven: collector
Of geological specimens. issuer OF blotters
as ads" laundry worker. pallbearer,
wheeler Of an invalid's chair, envelope
addresser. and vendor of spring water.
Rank High in Studies.
That the men who work their way
through college stand high in scholarship
is amply evidenced by what as been
CLEANED about such men at Yale. In the
class Of 1903 fifteen out Of the nineteen
highest appointments fell to men who
had been aided during the course by tut
tion scholars ships (the handling Of schol-
arships is another branch of the work at
the bureau Of appointments). In the
class of 1906 scholarship men, or men who
worked while in college, got thirty out OF
forty-seven hon ors; such men in the class
OF 1907 got fifteen out of twenty-three.
OF the thirty-one members in 1908 Of
the Phi Beta Kappa composed of men
getting the highest scholastic honors). If
teen were self-suppcrting students. In
1909 eight out Of the so-called ''philo-
sophical Grafton stand men-also leaders
in study honors-were self-supporting.
and in last years class seven out Of
twenty-one. Ten Of the high oration
men" in that class were also working
their way through college. making
total for the class OF seventeen self-sup-
porting men out Of fifty-five who attain
ed scholarship honors.
The Washington herald., 1911-04-30

When the Hudson Bay Trading Com
pany commenced trading among the In
dams it was found that bv selling the
Indians liquor they could moro easily be
induced to trade their peltries. The first
whisky was brought to this country in
large barrels, but in TRANSPORTING 1t over
land it was found more convenient to
divide It into small kegs.
The white traders soon became aware.
according to the American Wine Press,
that by diluting the whisky with water
more furs could be obtained. This was