davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10
Pension Claims of Ready-Made Widows

where many negroes who were in the
Union army, are buried. Recently
from one such community LOG claims
for widows pensions poured into
washington within a few days. all of
them being from widows of colored
soldiers in that neighborhood. Sus.
picion was aroused in the minds Of
the examiners and it was found that q
sharp lawyer had worked up the
claims for a commission. Today only
four of those claims remain on y the
books and it is probable these, are
false but evidence for wiping them of
has not been unearthed.
, The rule which makes seven years
absence a presumptive proof of a SOL
'dier's death has sometimes come into
widows pension cases in peculiar
ways. A man committed murder and
left his state. His widow made claim
but the department ruled against her.
Dependent mothers furnish some
trouble to the pension department
with their claims, though many have
remarked since the war. In some
cases lawyers have coached them into
destroying all records of their mar
rage and then to claim the common
law marriage which makes more trou-
bic for the pension office. - ::
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10

r HE United States battleship Maine,
i destroyed in Havana harbor in
February. 1898, with a loss of many
lives. was blown up by an internal
explosion, and when the ship is raised
it will be shown that the Spaniards in
Cuba had absolutely nothing to do
with the destruction of the vessel.
This is the opinion of Off Gals of the
war department, based upon informa-
ton conveyed to them by army off,
GERS engaged in the work of raising
the shattered hull
Persons who have arrived in Wash
ington recently, and have an intimate
knowledge of the work of raising the
battleship, it is learned, agree that the
destruction of the Maine was due to
the explosion of one of the alright
compartments used for the storage of
ammunition. This theory is borne
out, it is claimed, by the evidences al
ready developed. It has been found
that in the mud and silt surrounding
the hull of the Maine there is a great
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10

rH1CAGO.-FraRk Moy, the mayor
- of Chicago's Chinatown, has
passed along a recently issued i'm
perial decree that all celestials are to
part with their queues After wear.
ing braid for about $50 years John
Chinaman has come to the conclusion
that 1t Is nuisance and ait would
hardly do to say "a relic of barbar-
GUS age" China has awakened to the
fact that its advancement has been
retarded by the way it wears its hair,
and the whole empire is going to have
haircut. The matter has been
agitated for some time by leading
Chinese among them WI Ting-Fang.
former minister to the United States.
A cablegram received from WI,
who IS in the government service in
China, announces the date of dispos-
ing of superfluous appendages, which
date In the Chinese calendar CORE
spends with the 18th of February in
the Gregorian calender, the Chinese
new year falling on January 30.
1T is a good, sensible idea,'' said
Moy. II had my queue cut off sew
eral years ago and l don't know that
! ever felt the loss of 1t. 1t is no
good, anyway, and it makes lots of
work for the wearer. 1t has got to be
braided every day and washed once or
twice week and that's no small job"
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10
Defies Icy Walks With a Sand Brake

There is continuous flow of the sand
and icy sidewalks are rendered as
pleasant as the woodlands of Vallam-
brosa.
In the two previous winters Brady
slipped on the ice on his way home
One time he was laid up seven weeks
with broken kneecap. The other
time he hurt his ankle and was laid
up at home for over month. At the
beginning of this winter he began to
think of what possible thing he could
do to protect himself this winter. For
a time he tried "creepers," but these
were not satisfactory. Then came
the brilliant thought.
He took possession of the family wa
ter bottle and hunted up some old gas
hose. One difficulty was in getting
the sand to fall at the right spot and
also to adjust the flow. Finally he got
little plug. This he could open with
q string leading up to one pocket that
allowed the sand to flow at regulated
speed. But the sand would fall by
the wayside and not go under his
shoes. Brady is mechanic and made
a little metallic thing he called a
"sprea6er." This caused the sand to
slip under the soles of his shoes.
Brady thinks he ought to get a patent
out on the sand "spreader."
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10

D PHILADELPHIA, Pa.-A rubber wa
/ ter bottle filed with sand and
strapped around his body, with an at
tached gas hose leading down through
devious channels that terminate un-
der the instep Of his shoes. Is the
strange contrivance used by Thomas
Brady, North side fire alarm operator,
to sand his route home on icy morn.
ings.
foot! Toot!" whistles Brady as
he starts for work each morning.
Then he pulls little cord that opens
plug and the sand starts to flow. At
first there was a ticklish feeling when
the sand ran ccwn the tube. but
Brady has got over that. The con-
trivance, notwithstanding its bulk, is
a grand success.
Brady lives about six blocks from
the old Allegheny city hall. The sand
receptacle holds about two quarts and
this is just sufficient for the daily trip.
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10
e IXTEEN thousand claims for pei

G 1XTEEN thousand claims for pen
- sions growing out of the Spanish
war are on file in the pension Office in
Washington. All the pensions Incl
dental to this war are being disposed
of more promptly than those growing
out of the Civil war, because the ma
chinery was in full operation at the
time the claims accrued. The events
are recent enough that they do away
with the difficulty of finding witness
es; the records of the hospital sur
geons and of the field hospitals have
been carefully kept from the start
Indeed, all conditions are favorable to
q prompt examination and adjudica-
ton of these claims. But when it
comes to the Civil war things are diff
ferent
Widows claims have always been
source of interest in the pension Of
fee. In fact, the widow business has
developed into q highly organized in
dustry in some of the border states.
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10
Accident Is Said to Have Sunk Maine

quantity OF coal. Human bones have
also been picked up outside the hull.
An internal explosion naturally
would force outward large part of
the contents of the vessels hull. This
condition has been found. The report
was prevalent in Havana and in the
United States shortly after the work
of raising the Maine was begun that
wires had been found close to the hull
of the ship which communicated with
the shore, but this report was found
to be false. The wires were those in
use between Havana and Casa Blanca.
This, it is believed, establishes that
no outside force could have been used
to blow up the vessel.
The battleship sunk in % fathoms
of water. It's bow Is plunged deep
into the clay, and in the years that
have elapsed since the disaster the
constant washing Of the waves has
increased the depth Of the deposits
that surround this part of the vessel
below the water line until now it is
surrounded by from IL to IA feet of
mud and silt
1t was at first supposed that the bed
OF the bay where the Maine was sunk
was composed of sand, but divers
quickly discovered that it was clay.
which will be of great help in the
work of raising the vessel
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10

NEW YORK.-Reuben s. Simons,
~ supervisor of 100000 children in
the Juvenile league, is blind, but he Is
the most valuable man in the street
cleaning department. and he is not
unhappy over the loss of his sight be-
cause he Is too fond of work and too
busy to be unhappy over anything. -.
Ilnever think OF: my :blindness,"h he
says. except when l hear someone
speak of the poor blind man. That
cuts like knife. do my work as
well as though I had my eyes, maybe
better. There are no distractions in
this world within which live T; only
think of my work. What the eye does
not see the heart does not <grieve for"
Thirteen years ago Reuben Simons'
eyes began to pain him. For the past
seven years he has been totally blind.
And yet within that time he has or
ganized movement among the school
children of New York in which 1907
600 are now enlisted. They pledge
themselves to aid the street. cleaning
department in keeping the thorough
fares free of rubbish Their duty is
not merely the passive one of refrain
ing from throwing trash upon the
street.
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10
. ASH1NGTON.- 1nteresting tales
W If frauds aro told IN thu roport


" Of frauds are told in the report
OF Robert S. Sharp, chief inspector OF
the postoftice department.
During the year 1850 postof1ces
were robbed as compared with 1860
during the previous year. There were
1865 arrests, Of which AT were post
ONCE burglars, as compared with 1898
arrests during the previous year, of
which 416 were postofice burglars.
VI the number arrested 100 were
postmasters, IS assistant postmasters,
% clerks in postoffices, Is railway pos
tai clerks. 36 city letter carriers, 81
rural letter carriers and 10" were
mail carriers. OF the total number
1879 were persons not connected with
the postal service.
Train robberies in the west occurred
with alarming frequency. Since
March, 1908, nine mail trains have
been held up and robbed and a large
amount of registered mail has been
stolen and rifed
Postoffice inspectors have worked
on the cases with unfagging zeal and
energy with the assistance and CO.
operation of the local authorities. In
all nine men have been arrested and
convicted for these train robberies,
one being sentenced to Is years in
the penitentiary and a fine of $4,000,
one to 43 years and a fine OF $4,000,
two to serve As years each and five
We're sentenced to life imprisonment.
A very important case recently han.
died by postoffice inspectors covered
the operations of the so-called Ma
bray gang. The swindle is believed
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10
Chicago Chinese to Amputate Queues

DO you know that the Chinese did
not always wear queue? This fash
ion of wearing the hair was intro
duced by the Manchoo dynasty about
ESQ years ago. The Manchoorians,
or Mongolians, as they are called, had
more hair than they knew what to do
with. In some way they seized the
reins of government and the first
thing they did was to issue an i'm
pe-ial order that every Chinaman
must wear queue. Before that the
Chinese wore their hair like the JAP
anese and Koreans. If Chinaman
refused to wear a queue his head was
chopped off. He was compelled to
adopt the Manchoorian style of wear
ing the hair.
1T is common belief among Amer.
leans that the reason Chinaman
doesn't cut off his queue is that he
thinks he cannot enter heaven WITH
out it. That's only a story China
men, the world over, will welcome the
decree to cut off their queues. In
Chicago there Is a Chinese popula-
ton of about 1000, of which one
fourth have no queues. The other
three-fourths, with few exceptions,
will climb in the barber chair on
February IA and say, Give me a hair
cut"
"A dealer in hair goods called on
me the other day regarding the cut
ting off of queues. He wanted to
know if he could purchase all the
queues that will come off in Chicago
Some of my countrymen have long,
glossy black braids that ought to be
worth $50. These braids will last q
woman a lifetime"
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10

THERE is little chance of food prices
/ ever returning to the old low stand
ard, according to Willet NJ. Hayes. act
ing secretary Of agriculture. To sub
stantia:e this he cites the fact that
only one-third of the total population
of the country 10 now engaged in pro-
ducing, food for the remaining two.
thirds. He says this will be shown by
statistics soon to be issued by the
census bureau. - -
Only two generations ago, he de-
clared, two-thirds of the population
was engaged in production. TO this
remarkable reversal. he says. is the
high cost of living mainly due. "'
The increased cost of living has no
terrors for the American farmer.
judging by the conclusions Of the de-
partment Of agriculture. In the last
.en years the value of bis products
has been increasing at such rate
that the hller Of the soil Is now able
to afford hitherto undreamed Of luxu.
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10
Indian President of a School Board

mental in having public school dis
trict formed which includes his hand
some residence in the foothills of the
Wichita mountains. He donated q
large tract of land and subscribed to a
fund for maintenance of the district,
He was chosen president of the board.
While the government maintains q
Comanche Indian school one mile from
Lawton. Chief Parker has never taken
very kindly to sending his. sons and
daughters to the tribal school.
For one year his son attended tho
white school at Cache. IL miles west
of Lawton and near his home, but tho
other families strenuously objected.
Then the chief reluctantly kept his
boy out Of school. This was his in
centive in establishing the new dis
trict in western Comanche county.
The admiration of Chief Parker for
his white neighbors is great. 1t is his
ambition that all his children should
marry into the families Of the Ameri-
cans.
Recently Quanah Parker, Jr, was
united in marriage to Miss Laura
Clark, the attractive daughter of Rev.
and Mrs. A. Clark, Comanche mission
aries. This is the first instance, in this
locality, of an Indian man marrying
into a white family.
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10

T ;AWTON, OKLA.-Firmly convinced
l. that the full blood Indian can never
be induced to attend school with white
children long enough to get an educa-
ton, Congressman Scott Ferris Of the
Oklahoma delegation Is drawing a
bill that will 'perpetuate the exclusive
Indian schools.
The plan is to have those Indians
whom the secretary of the interior
considers incompetent segregated and
have a portion of the fund set aside
as a permanent fund to establish and
maintain schools for these Indians,
from which all other children will be
excluded.
Chief Quanah Parker, the half-blood
Comanche leader, Is a strong advocate
of mixed" school, where his children
may attend the same institution
where their white neighbors are edu-
Gated.
Last fall Chief Parker was instru.
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10
Uncle Sam Nips Many Postal Frauds

to have been the most gigantic
scheme of this kind that the postal In
spectors ever had to contend with. It
was worked by an organization OF
confidence men by means of fake
horse races, athletic contests, etc.
The swindle was perpetrated sue
cessfully in various parts OF the
United States and victims in all parts
of the country were robbed of sums
varying from $1,000 to 100000. 1t Is
estimated that the promoters secured
approximately 100000. =
John C. Mabray, the principal Of
the organization and eighty-nine OF
his assistants were indicted in connec-
ton with this scheme and many OF
them have already been tried and
convicted. ;>--f'.'.
A scheme to defraud, international
in it's scope. known as the gold
brick" swindle, BY which victims:
have been feeced out of various
sums, ranging from $500 to $25,000-
and it is believed the swindlers &C.
cured over a million dollars-has-
USVA III Opc1dIA d AuAAOSA VI ~NS'
Letters were mailed in the United
States addressed to deceased persons
in Great Britain, the general idea con-
veyed being that the deceased was In
terested in mining speculation: that
the undertaking had been successful
and that gold in vast quantities had
been discovered.
The purpose of the letter was to OBJ
tain the deceased persons instruc-
lions as to how his share should be
handed over to him, and finally TO-:
induce representative of the de-
ceased to come to the United States.
The investigation of this case re-
quired the utmost skill on the part OF
the inspectors handling it; trip to
England was necessary to obtain i'm
portant information and evidence
and investigation had to be made in
various parts of the United States
and Canada.
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10
STARTED AT $3.50 4 WEEK

James A. Farrell, the new president
of the United States Steel Corpora.
ton, who will receive 100000 a year.
was laborer at 16 years of age, earn
ing $3.50 a week, or 1884 a year. He
reached his high station by hard and
persistent work.
Born in New Haven in 1868, Mr..
Farrell is of athlete build, over six
feet tall and weighing 220 pounds. He
is married and lives in Brooklyn. His
family consists of two girls and three
boys. When Mr.. Farrell was asked
for short sketch of his career, he
said:
We'll, quit school to go to work
when l was is years old. because my
father, who had several sailing YES
sells plying between New York and
Liverpool, was getting too far along
in years to carry on his business. l
bHgan work in steel wire mill at
New Haven and remained there nine
years, doing manual labor.
"Cooinp hi0por fold in pittchuro
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10
OFFICER FORCED FROM NAVY

After service of Al years in tho
navy, Rear Admiral Edward B. Barry,
late commander-in-chief of tho Pa
cific fleet. has been retired upon his
own request. his action being based
upon the demand of the officers of his
flagship, and West Virginia, that no
either resign or stand court martial
on charges Of grossly immoral con-
duct. He refused to resign and send
a telegram to Washington asking that
he! be retired-a request which at
once was granted: The scandal has
created sensation in naval circles
and outside them, for .Barry's long
service had made him one Of the best
known officers in tbs country.
When the grave otfense, OF which
Barry is accused and which in effect
is substantiated by his act of retire
ment, was discovered the officers on
his flagship at first determined to
send him a loaded revolver, with re-
quest to use it. Upon further consid'
oroeiov, thov dooi1o1 IN allowing him
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10
See Little Hope for Low Food Prices

ries and the old homestead has been
fitted with every modern convenience.
In the Crop Reporter just issued by
the department considerable space IN
devoted to the cost Of living problem
from the farmers roint of view. The
Reporter says: within the last ten
years the purchasing power. of the
farmer has increased more than fifty
per cent. Such conditions are having
and will continue to have more force
in keeping the rising generation Of
farmers children upon the farm than
volumes upon volumes Of printed ad.
vice to stay there"
With the mass Of figures before
them from which to draw compari.
sons, the statisticians set to work and
now announce that while the cost of
articles purchased has increased. the
increase in purchasing power of each
farm acre has outstripped It and the
farmer is left with comfortable mar.
gin Of profit for his work.
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10

Now a medical expert has cut out a
mans lungs to cure tuberculosis. The
operation is claimed to be new one,
but If successful will be followed up
by the theory Of curing diseases gel,-
orally by the simple process of re-
moving the organ affected so that a
man with more than his average
share Of trouble in the shape Of dis
ease will find life but hollow sort
of affair."
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10

Official figures from annual reports
show that the post office department
has nearly reached the point where l..
is self-sustaining. And there are sew
eral changes which might yet be effec-
ted in tie, interest of economy and
the saving Of public money. 1t. is no
function of the government to make
a profit in carrying the peoples mails.
but everybody would share in the
benefit should the cost be so reduced
as to permit lower postage rates:
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10

Impressive as IS the new worlds
record for continuous flight, 352 miles,
It loses: something Of its value by
having been made over an aviation
course instead of straightway. with
an the uncertainties and difficulties
of such a trip. Still. it presages such
an achievement sooner or later.
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10
INVENTS MULTIPLE 'PHONE

Maj. George o. Squires, of the Unit.
ed States army, has just given an i'm.
portant invention to the world. The
patents issued to him cover a system
of multiplex telephony and telegraphy.
These patents have been dedicated to
the public, and anybody is free to
make use of them without paying q
cent of royalty. They cover devices
which can be applied to telephone ap.
paratus now in use, and as many as
ten simultaneous conversations may
be carried on over one wire without
interfering with each other.
The major is As years old, a Mich
higan man and a graduate from West
Point "a years ago, and is unmarried.
He believes his invention will soon be
in general use and that it's adoption
will reduce the cost of operating tele-
phone exchanges and make telephone
service cheaper.
The invention is regarded as especi-
ally valuable for long-distance use, az
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10

Following the hobble we are to
have the bi-plane skirt. AS it is to
be bifurcated garment man had bet
ter look to his own. Plainly the trend
OF feminine fashions Is toward the.
mannish; but the more manlike wo1u-
an becomes the less womanly she Is.
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10

A Nantucket fisherman hooked a.
large Goldfish, from whose stomach.
when cut open, flew out good-sized
duck. whose escaping flight was.
stopped by d sportman's bullet. Both
Jonah and the champion fish story are
surpassed, while even the Ananias
club is g@~sping with establishment: :
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10

The wife of Pennsylvania farmer
found a nugget of gold in the crop
of a chicken she was dressing, and
now there is great excitement, the
community having resolved itself into
n prospecting party. But tho chances
are that there is more gold in chick
ems killed and prepared for market ut
present prices than in mines or
placers In the keystone state.
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10

In trying to get rid of corrupt po-
lfcemen Gotham seems to have leapcd
out of the frying pan into the fire.
They are more honest than they used
to be, but they now write ooetry.
The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1911-02-10


nese
the
Barry born in New York s 1869
val Academy midshipman
His place commander of the Pacific