davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Commonwealth. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1911-1914, 1913-12-18

Q. Will you please answer the fol-
lowing questions through "The Com
monwealth":
1. We have what is called farm
er's telephone association. 1t was
built up by the following methods:
Each person put up IL poles and five
ed one share of stock and signed the
book of the association; we levy as
sessments to pay for switching and
other expenses; the company has
grown to 100 members. What we
want to know is: Is a shareholder
liable for any debts or judgments
against the association, or is a share
holder only liable for the stock he
holds in the association. The associa-
ton is not incorporated, but we have
franchise from the county commits
sioners to erect the line along the
county road.
2. Where a man and wife own real
estate and the deed is. in his name,
should either party die, leaving no
children, would the estate go to the
survivor, or would the brothers and
sisters or father and mother come In
for the deceased's part? J. N
A. l. The shareholder is liable
for the debts and judgments of and
against the association His liability
is not limited by the stock which he
has in the association, provided the
debts have been contracted for the
purpose of carrying out the objects
for which the association was formed.
2. The share of the deceased would
go to the father and mother: If none,
then to the brothers and sisters. The
whole estate would go to the survivor
only in case there was no issue, no
father or mother and no brother or
sister or descendant thereof.
The Commonwealth. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1911-1914, 1913-12-18

New Review, Melting Pot and Inter
national Review at Hills Book Store,
1929 Colby.
The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1913-12-05
MOST VENOMOUS OF SNAKES
"6ushmaster," South American Rep
tile, Absolutely Undisputed Mon
arch of Forests.

About the latest thing among snake
novelties is the bushmaster," writes
a London correspondent. This snake,
according to Baron Il. Leijonhufvud,
+. u. s., f. II. G.. S., is one of the rar-
est and shyest in the world 1t is at
home in tropical South America and
occurs in Trinidad 1t has the great
est venom of any Of the large poison
GUS vipers and as much as $50 mil
ligrams has been extracted at one
time from the bushmaster. The dread
ed rattlesnake, including the large
diamond, does not give more than half
the quantity OF venom. Attaining
sometimes a length of twelve feet, the
bushmaster is the largest of all the
poisonous snakes of the world The
| pattern is beautiful; pinkish yellow
ground color, with rhomboid regular
designs of darkish brown, having a
tnge of purple and terra Gotta. In
each darker pattern is brighter CEN
ter spot Its Latin name means the
silent rattlesnake;' 1t was given this
name by Linnaeus on account Of it's
tail, which Is tapering and horny,
made of the same material as that OF
the rattlesnake, but without the seq
| ments and consequently silent.
Charles Waterton, the famous nat
uralist, who made three Journeys to
South America, describes the BUSH
master in his notes of the first jour
ney IN 1912 as follows: 'Unrivaled
in his display of every lovely color Of
the rainbow and unmatched in the eff
feots OF his deadly poison, the "couna-
couchi' glides undaunted on, sole mon
| arch of the forests. Both man and
beast fly before him and allow him to
pursue an undisputed path. He some
times grows to the length OF fourteen
feet The bushmaster's head is en-
tirely heart shaped, and when reused
the serpent does not get into the posi-
ton of the other vipers, but keeps the
head slightly rnised with S-shaped YER
tical bends of the body. In striking it
lets out these bends like a spring and
can in this way reach very far. Its
food is the common rat, the rabbit and
the agouti.
"In Central America the bushmaster
is called by the Indians the pineapple
snake, because its scales are rough
and similar to the outside of a pine
apple. This exceedingly delicate
snak,, which is killed by the slightest
change of climate, is not nearly so
aggressive as its smaller cousin. the
fer-de-la nee, and does not affect ma
terially the mortality on sugar, banana
or coffe Q plantations"
The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1913-12-05
MIGHT NOT SAMPLE BY TASTE
parky Willing Enough to Listen to
Praises Of His Cider, But Was Not
Giving II Away.

Few OF the negroes in the southern
states are inclined to be thrifty and
saving, though many Of them are dis
posed to industry and live in consid-
cradle comfort. Some, however, have
acquired the saving habit and are not
only not wasteful, but are in the local
idiom extremely nigh"
A case In point Is an old man, once
the slave Of the Randolphs Of Virginia,
who has become the owner of one Of
their plantations, and is quite rich. He
converts into cash everything that is
not necessary for the maintenance Of
the household and gets profit from
many things that few negroes ever
think Of selling. Incidentally he makes
cider of all the unstable apples on
his place and sells it, and though he ia
very fond Of the beverage himself, he
never drinks with any OF his neigh
bors., unless they pay for the cider.
A young man OF the neighborhood,
who had been away for several years,
coming back home, remembered the
famous cider and dropped in to see
Uncle Wash. After some general talk
he casually observed, 81 suppose, Uncle
Wash, you still make that good cider,
you used to make IN old times?"
"Oh, yes" replied Wash, II still
makes my apples mostly into cider"
Then he called to Aunt Dinah, his
wife. "Dinah, fetch out god of dat
bes' cider"
The visitor naturally expected that
he was to sample the drink. But not
80. The old man took the gourd and
drained every drop. Then he handed
the empty vessel to the visitor.
EFF you don b'lieve dat am good
cider" he said, smacking his lips, you
jes smell dat go'd."-New York Eve
ming Post
The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1913-12-05
In Berlin Restaurants.

Not long ago the Boston Herald
discussed the cookery of futurists in
Paris. We now, writes Philip Hale in
that newspaper, hear of orders given
In restaurants of Berlin: Caviar and
whipped cream, mutton with Benedic-
tine sauce, Bismarck herring with
strawberry ice, apples and bananas
with ground cheese, liver in absinthe,
roast beef with pineapple chunks
dipped in kuemmel. But pepper with
Strawberries is known in London
among the conservative. DIR. Johnson
ate cream with his berries and visit
ed friends whose berries were famous.
That Germans have had strange
tastes in cooking is known to all
American students that have so
journed there, and other foreigners
have wondered III times past. as the
chronicler OF Charles ": 81 saw such
kinds OF meats eaten as a roasted
horse, cat in jelly" (today beware
of jugged hare), little lizards in hot
broth, frogs fried and divers sorts of
meat, which 1 never knew W they
were till they were eaten. And, for
Gods sake, what is he that shall read
my writing, that see what is com
monty eaten at feasts. that 1t will not
in manner break his hearth"
The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1913-12-05
He Kept the DaX.


Say, you" said the policeman, as
he crossed the street to head off a.
tramp that had just been driven away
from a basement door, what's up
around here?"
Il can't tell you." was the reply.
There's something loose around
here, but what it is 1 don't know"
Nor l."
Were you asking for something to
eat back there?"
Il was. l braced up to the cook
and asked for hand-me-out, and
after looking me over, she says:
"Do you keep Sunday, sir?'
II surely does, says l.
What do we have Sunday?'
"Ah. see," said the officer. "You
couldn't tell her that"
But 1 did, your honor"
What did you tell herr"
why, what should say except It
was because Christopher Columbus
discovered America. She went for
the broom and then went for me. and
II you can tell me where the Joke
comes in I'd like to hear 1t. I don't
want to go around having my feelings
hurt this way."-Baltimore American.
The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1913-12-05
MORE TROUBLE IN A GARDEN
Old Gentleman Went Too Far In His
Inquiry, and Demonstration
Proved His UndoInq.

An elderly gentleman walking
through his garden one day stopped
before a fig tree on which were two
figs just ripening. His favorites were
figs, and summer often came and
went without the fruit coming to ma
turity.
Shortly after, he met his gardener,
who, assuring him the figs were quite
ripe, was requested to send them to
the summer house, where his master
was about to rest
Picking the figs, the gardener sent his
little boy of seven with the basket. On
the way the little fellow stopped and,
removing the leaves, gazed upon the
tempting fruit
The attraction was too great; he ate
one. Covering the other with the
leaves, he proceeded upon his errand.
On being asked if the gardener had
not sent two figs, the boy, after a mo-
ment's silence, answered: 81 ate one"
You ate one? How?" exclaimed the
old gentleman, angrily. "How did you
come to do that?"
Dropping his eyes to the basket. "I
took it like this" said the child, taking
the remaining fig, "and l ate 1t like
this"
And suiting the action to the word,
he consumed the second fig before the
astonished eyes of the old gentleman.
The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1913-12-05
LITERAL IN HIS THEOLOGY
Darky Preachers Humorous Comment
on Biblical Text AS He Under
stood Its Meaning.

or old the right of individual private
Interpretation of the scriptures was
not accorded to the laity. Only the
priests or preachers were authorized
to say what was meant by the sacred
text. That has all been changed. and
no man will now be expelled from the
most orthodox church for believing
that Balaam's palace mule did not
really address his fellow citizens OF
Judea on the political issues of the
day, or considering that the statement
of the suns standing still at the order
of Captain Joshua was an illustrative
allegory and not the record of frozen
fact.
This advance in theology is illus
trated by the story OF the darky
preacher who delivered a sermon from
the text, "These eight did Micah
bear"
"Muffrinds," said he, "you is singu-
larly blessed by de Lawd in dis gen
Grafton. If you wants some milk you
done goes to youah COW, and at one
milk you gets enough of de laciferous
fluid foh eight people. In de olden
times of which de Bible speaks it
took eight folks to milk bear, en- 1
specs dey gets mighty little milk at
dat. Los Angeles Times.
The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1913-12-05
Spiders Catch and Eat Fish.

Specimens OF the spider known az
Thalassius Spenceri are in the mu-
scum at Durham, Natal, and the Gu
rator, E. G. Chubb, has just made sci
entiflc announcement of the discovery
of member OF this species in the act
of catching fish for food
One OF the spiders was captured
several years ago by the Rev. N.
Abraham at Greytown, and it was
placed in an aquarium. A servant
boy soon noticed the creature eating
a pet fish, and the startled clergyman
left his study to watch.
The spider, three inches across with
legs extended, stationed itself at the
waters edge, with two legs on a
stone and the eight others spread out
on the water. After a time a fish
came under the outstretched legs,
which were suddenly thrown around
1t as the spider made a plunge, driv-
Ing its fangs into it's prey, and then
at once climbing out on the rocks. 1t
soon ate a fish OF four times it's own
weight
The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1913-12-05
Soap Eater Like Critic.


Alfred Noyes. the English poet, toss
ed aside with II bitter laugh a roast
OF his last book.
This critic" he said, reminds me
of the old gentleman with the cold
only this critics cold is permanent
and. by jove, he's not aware he's got
i'll
"At a club, one day. was taking a
wash and brush-up, when / noticed an
old gentleman nibbling a cake of soap.
After each nibble he would chew the
soap thoughtfully, and then, smiling
and nodding his head. he would say:
Thank heaven, it's all right
Il asked the old gentleman what
on earth he was up to. He explained,
IS he nibbled away at a large pink
cake:
Well, you see, I've had such a
rotten bad cold for the last fortnight
that It's quite taken away my taste.
Every day, to see IL was improving,
I've nibbied soap. This afternoon, for
the first time, / find that the soap has
a quite distinct taste" He took a
large pink mouthful. Um-m yes
quite distinct. Therefore shant go
home this evening. I shall dine here
at the club"
The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1913-12-05
Followed a Good Examnla.

Bh-President Porfirio Diaz gatneu
national prominence and won his
spurs at the battle OF Puebla, where
tho Liberal forces made a gallant but
Intellectual stand against the French
who had invaded Mexico for the pur-
pose OF erecting a throne for Maxi
milan. Notwithstanding the fact that
the Mexican forces were defeated,
their defense against superior num-
bers was 80 gallant that the anniver-
Bary Of the battle OF the fifth OF May
became a national holiday In Mexico.
A brusque American once asked the
president: why do you Mexicans
celebrate a defeat, when you know
that the French finally took Puebla p
President Diaz. with twinkle In his
eyo, replied: Perhaps we have imi-
tated the Americans even to the ex-
tent OF celebrating our defeats, for +
have been told that the British de-
feated the Colonists at Bunker Hfll,
md yet you built monument to com,
caemoGate tho event"
The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1913-12-05
Ambitious,

A dusky porter. of religious inclina-
tions was employed in a downtown
brokerage office. His name was Sam.
One day he thought 1t was about
time he had had a raise, so he pre-
sented himself to the boss, cleared
his throat, and began a little grafton
he had prepared. Pardon me, sub,
for interruptin' you, sub, but I find
that with this here high cost Of living.
and endeavorin' to keep up my regular
church contributions, l can't support
my family properly. just got to
have more money, sub"
The great man grinned.
We'll, SAM" he said, II see your
trouble. and I'll give you that raise.
but remember, 1t is far better to give
than to receive"
Il knows that, boss" replied Sam.
but / likes to get on that reception
committee mahself once In a while"
New York Evening Post.
The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1913-12-05
BraziPs Rubber.

A large part Of the worlds supply
of crude rubber comes from the re-
public of Brazil, which has hitherto
paid little attention to the manufac-
ture Of that commodity. Another day
is coming. Brazil is about to engage
intelligently In the manufacture OF
rubber, an enterprise which, In course
OF time, may affect the manufacture of
that material in the United States and
In Europe. by bringing in a new and
formidable competitor. lie Bresil
Economique, OF Rio de Janeiro, says
that under favorable conditions offered
by the government refneries of
Caoutchouc (rubber) will be established
in number OF states and factories
for the manufacture of rubber articles
in the cities of Manaos, Belem in Para,
kecife and Bahia. There will be spe-j
cial exemptions in the way of dutiesI
upon articles imported for the carTy-I
ing forward OF this enterprise.
The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1913-12-05
DETHR0NED AS "BOSS"
NOW PoMPoUS ENGLISH FA-
THEIR MET HIS WATERLOO.
Must Have Come az a Shock to the
"RuIer Of the House," but Dauah-
Tor Also Had a VIII OF
Her Own.

Who is the boss In the typical
American family7' asked West Phil
adelphia mentor. A number OF men
ventured to assert they were chiefs OF
the wigwam, while others had men,
tai pictures Of mother" as the ruling
monarch. But the speaker proceeded
to answer his own question.
1T is the oldest daughter" he
said. From what | have seen Of do
mestic life l believe this is true In
preponderance of instances-from the
household of the railroad president
down to that of the porter who cleans
the cars.
The old gentleman. the nominal
head, is clay in her hands-tightwad
by no means excepted. He may shake
his head and growl like n grizzly bear,
but, just the same, he goes and buys
the piano.
THE American citizens daughter
rules the home by variety of meth
ods according to her type of charac-
ter. Sometimes she is naive, some
times she is crafty and sometimes she
Is tyrant.
Il have just heard the story of an
English gentleman who made the dis
covery, after moving to Philadelphia,
that being lord of the castle won't
work in this atmosphere.
This Britisher loved his role as
the master of the house. He was an
example Of the pompous Englishman
often delineated by English novelists;
his domestic sway was so intolerable
that there was a general sigh Of re-
lief when he left the house in the
mornings for business. He was a
man of strict integrity, however, and
was proud of his family.
His business necessitated a resi-.
dence in various countries OF Europe.
and children were born in England.
Scotland, Spain, France and Italy. He
had the odd Conceit to name the chill.
dren after the city OF their birth. l
remember there was Seville, a
Paris and a Milan. Not only that;
he made them dress after the fash
ion of the nation OF their cradle days.
This was accomplished in a modified
way without causing much excite
ment, but when it came to sending the
lad who hailed from Scotland to
school in kits rebellion against Brit
ish rule broke loose. AS you may
guess, the boy was pitilessly guyed
about his bare knees. The Oldest
daughter took up the case.
See here, father, you've got to cut
out this tommy-rot You march out
and get that boy a sensible suit OF
Clothes
The old man was dumfounded.
What's this miss? Telling me
what to do! 1 cannot believe my
Senses
Yes, sir. 1 want you to know
this is America, and we've made
up our minds to have our American
rights
"A cheer of approval went up from
the table. and from that day dated a
new dynasty"
The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1913-12-05
Gentle. but Pointed

A young practitioner had one trou-
blesome patient--an old woman who
was practically on the free list, but
who registered more kicks than all
the other patients put together. One
day she called to roast him for not
showing up when she called him the
night before. you can go to see your
other patients at night" she com
planned, so why can't you come when
! send for your Amt my money as
good as the money that them rich
people pay your" 81 don't know
ma'am." answered the doctor, gently.
Il have never seen any of yours"
The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1913-12-05
Settled the Bet,

Il woke up suddenly the other night
and thought 1 heard a burglar in the
room. sat up in bed, and that awoke
my wife"
What did she do?"
"She accused me, as usual, of hav-
Ing burglar dream. Said I'd never
hear real burglar If lived q thous-
and years. said I'd bet I would.
She said she'd bet I wouldn't. And
Just then a shadowy form rose from
behind the dresser and a hoarse voice
exclaimed: "He wins, ma'am!"
did you catch hIm?"
Catch him? l didn't try. I lust
laid there and laughed, and heard
him slam the door and run down the
stairs. And my wife was so mad she
didn't speak to me for a whole day.
But I'll bet one thing"
What Is it?"
"I'll bet that burglar 1gas a married
man"
The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1913-12-05
DRUMMEP'S LUCKY DAY
SCRAP OF CONVERSATION GAVE
HIM PLAN OF CAMPAIGN.
As 1t Turned Out, He Was Mistaken
In Conclusion Arrived at, but Il
Resulted In Capturing the
Order Looked For.

There Is a silk merchant in the
Fourth avenue district who never tires
of telling how he got certain retailer
in one of the smaller New England
cities as a customer when he was a
knight of the grip, says the New York
Times This is the burden of his tale:
All men on the road have the ex-
perience of humping into a stone wall
when it comes to selling a bill of goods
to certain retailers. That was my ex-
perience with Smith, up in Haverhill.
No matter what l had or at what il
was priced, Smith never wanted any
thing. Still he bought regularly from
several competitors. He wouldn't go
to lunch with me, nor would he accept
any of the other attentions that are
usually rendered good buyers.
81 had practically decided not TO
try him any more, when one evening
| overheard two other statesmen talk
ing in hotel office. l didn't catch
the name OF the man OF whom they
were talking, but when l heard one
salesman say that he never would ac-
cept lunch [ felt sure that they we're
discussing Smith.
cts a funny thing about him. the
salesman went on 'bnt ba o1,yovs GOO,
home to lunch. no matter how busv
he is. Jones told me tho other dav
that it was because his wife was the
boss of the household and made him
do 1t. She is very fond of disnIav foo
and often makes him do things for
her that ne doesn't want to do because
he is unwilling to spend the money
Thinking that I had something on
Smith dropped in TO see him the
next day right after he had come hack
from lunch. He hadn't had time to
tell me to get out when Mrs Smith
came in.
".NIo moro b,s;r,,, .,,5,.. rr,
The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1913-12-05
Enod for the shlnwreoked.


each, IS or depots for food and
clothinI; have recently been estab-
lished Joy the various governments on
most Of the dangerous islands under
their d,ominioo. And on many OF the
other there are sign posts and in
struc tions as to how to get to the
nearC 1st ishand where there is such a
depo t. 7They are kept in huts built
expr' sssly for the purpose or in nat
ural caves In the cliffs, where all the
prov isions will remain dry and keep
for a. long time. AS an example, down
in the Indian ocean are the islands
of 1kmsterd am, st. Paul and Kergue-
len. all dan gerous spots for vessels
in a storm. On each of these tho
FIR ench wars. hip EuTe has established
depots conta ming necessaries of all
kinds for cas- taways no matter what
their nationah ty may be. At Amster-
ttam island, iII a large cavern on a
hillside, there are supplies of beef,
biscuits, under clothes, blankets and
some matches Enclosed in hermetic-
ally sealed metal box There are
also in the same cave several cots,
a cooking POI and dry wood, left by
fishermen vTho occasionally visit
there. Cabbage and celery, fish and
Holsters abou nd on the island and in
the waters a bout it and castaways
could live there indefinitely. The de
pot is clearly marked out by a board
bearing the legend France, Wires
Vetements p' ,ur marriages, Eure."