The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1911-11-17

CURRENT NEWS.
Automobile fire engines are now
in use in few cities.
Almost four-fifths of the Panama
Canal has been excavated.
Constantinople il soon to be sup
piled with electric light and power
from waterfalls eighty miles away.
A man in Lawrence, Mass, wager
cd SD that he could drink pint of
alcohol in two cups Of coffee. He
won the bet, but the alcohol killed
him.
New York City expects within five
years to replace with motor fire ap-
paratus the 1900 horses that now
pull the fire-engines. The change
will cost 100000.
A 20 and 10-cent store trust" has
been organized, with a capital stock
OF $65,O0O,000. 1T includes not only
American but Canadian and English
stores of the same class.
On October p Fanny Crosby, the
wonderful blind hymn-writer, 81
years old, spoke Interestingly for
more than half an hour to a large
audience in Springfield, Mass.
An annual rat-killing day il OBJ
served in Gibson County, Indiana,
every June. On the last occasion A.
900 rats were slaughtered, thus max
ing saving to the county Of nearly
100000 a year.
Chicago, which has just prohibited
the public drinking-cup, has gone a
step farther in forbidding the use of
common public towels,-that IL, tow
els in any public lavatory which are
used by more than one person
Louisiana has embarked upon an
enormous enterprise, nothing less
than the drainage and reclamation Of
the Mississippi delta. Nine million
acres will thus be recovered, at a
total cost of perhaps $200,000,000.
King George and Queen Mary en-
bark this week for India, to be
crowned there as Emperor and En-
press. It is the first time a British
sovereign has gone there for the
ceremony, and it was King Georges
own idea.
Wooden shoes are now coming to
this country in large numbers, ac-
cording to a report from the Ameri-
can Vice-Consul at Amsterdam, Hol-
land. They are worn mainly by
Dutch immigrants in Michigan,
Iowa and Missouri.
a cable dispatch from Port-of-
Spain, Trinidad, says that a new is
land has suddenly appeared between
Trinidad and the Venezuelan coast
The island appeared after there had
been tremendous up-heaval Of the
sea, with boiling water and clouds Of
stream. The island was hot, and
gave out smoke and fame.
The United States Biological Sur
Eey keeps record of the hunters
who are accidentally shot, being
mistaken for deer or other animals.
1t finds that At have been killed in
that way this year. Michigan had the
largest number OF such accidents
fifteen. New York had nine, Wash
ington and New Jersey three each.
TO combine all the young peoples
religious societies in the u. s. to OPP
pose the liquor traffic and to fight
dishonesty in public life, il the OBJ
ject Of Americas Young People, %
an organization just formed at Chi
cago. The chief means by which these
things are to be attacked is through
campaign to induce young people
to enter politics; not for personal
ambition but as matter of patriotic
duty.
Though the Dead Sea il 30 famous
little is really known about it. The
Last scientific explorations were
made by an American officer, Lieu
tenant Lynch, in 1S4S, and by the
DUO dc Luynes in 1864. Now a Ger
man expedition, under DR.. Ludwig
Bruhl, is to investigate the tempera-
ture, density, animals, fish and vege-
table growths, depth, ETC., of the IA
nous lake of brine into which the
Jordan flows.
Attempts to revive lacrosse at
Columbia University are meeting
with little success
Only one college. SWarthmore now
recognizes this game as a major
sport. AT few others it Is played
occasionally as a minor sport. Yet,
forty or fifty years ago, lacrosse al
most rivaled baseball as a national
game.
The game was invented by Ameri-
can Indians and borrowed from them
by the white men
The meanest people have been dis
covered In Chicago. Some OF them
are rich, others in comfortable cir
cumstances, but they have been re
ceiving food and money from the
charity funds. More than 5000 peo-
pie have lately been dropped from
the lists in Cook county because they
have been receiving charity and
didn't need it. Fifteen Of these peo-
\ pie had bank accounts, some of them
as high as $1,000. Hundreds had
salaries of $50 to $3.50 a month, and
20 were found to be owners Of real
estate.