davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
Oriuin of the Letter v.

The letter V may be regarded as the
mutilated remains Of one Of the SYM
bols used by the ancient Egyptians In
their hieroglyphics or picture writing.
A common animal In their country was
the two horned sandviper, a represen-
tation of which stood for V. The priests
ultimately found that for the practical
purposes Of everyday life 1t was a
waste Of time to use elaborate hero
glyphics and invented kind Of short
hand to meet the occasion. In this the
snake was reduced to V with dash
w. to represent horns and body.
The Phoenicians adopted this letter,
and from them we get our V by loss Of
the dash, leaving only the two little
horns of the original picture. This
snake is still common in Egypt and Is
probably the one mentioned in Genesis
Xix, II. Dan shall be serpent by the
way, an adder In the path, that biteth
the horse heels. so that his rider shall
fall backward" Travellers tell US that
it is still addicted to this unpleasant
habit.
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
Madagascar.

The great island of Madagascar, in
the Indian ocean. lying off the east
coast of Africa. was officially recOgniz-
ed as a French colony in 1896 after a
war Of occupation. The majority Of
the natives are not Africans. the Ma
layan element predominating in their
greatly mixed blood. OF the total pop
ulation of more than 100000 by the
last census, the IOvas, the dominant
race, numbered about $4,000. and they
are regarded us belonging to the Ma
layan stock.
The Sakalavas. whose negro affini-
ties are strongly pronounced. rank next
In numbers, and besides other indigo
nous races there are many persons Of
Arab and Indian descent. The seat Of
the government is at TananarivO.
which has a population of about GOOOO
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
Chicory IN France.

Chicory, so extensively raised IN
France. is harvested either by hand or
by blowing. As fast as the plants Id
one line are pulled the roots are gather
ed in heaps after the removal or the
leaves and are roughly cleaned. They
are then transported to the factories,
where they are mechanically washed
I'm flowing water and dumped on a per-
forated conveyer that permits them to
drain while travelling toward the root
cutters. The roots, when cut in small
pieces, are conveyed to the malt kllns
or special driers. where they remain
thirty-six hours or more, and after
cooling they are bagged. The chicory,
having now become friable, passes into
a series of crushers. After each crush
ing the broken material is passed
through sifters that divide it into four
grades. From the crushers the chicory
goes to the roasting retorts and then
receives a final manipulation, that OF
tinting, which consists in giving the
grains a coating of impalpable chicory
dust The last operation is that OF
packing the chicory, either by hand Of
by neutrality-suspicious.
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
A Curious Ball Gam.

Theodore Roosevelt, writing IrI Scr;h
ner's of his Brazilian JOURNEYS. d.
scribes a curious game Of ball plavod
by the Parcels ILuians. in which tbo
head alone il used.
''There nfe, of course" he writes tho
such rules as in a game among civi
lied men. and saw no disputas
There may be eight or ten or MANI
more players on each side. The ball 10
never touched with hands or feet or
with anything except the top of the
head. 1t is hard to decide whether 70
wonder most at the strength and dow
terity with which it is hit or buttad
with the head as it comes down througb
the air or at the reckless speed and
skill with which the players throw
themselves headlOng on the ground IN
return the ball if it comes low down.
"Why do they not grind off their
noses l cannot imagine. Some of the
players scarcely ever failed to catch
and return the ball if it came in their
neighborhood and with such Il vigorous
toss Of the head that it often few in q
great curve for really astonishing dis
lance"
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
Clever Reasoninu.

Rather an original lesson in political
economy was that once taught by the
japanese nobleman Awoto and thus
translated by Sir Edwin Arnold in
"Seas and Lands"
One evening as he was going to the
palace to take his turn in keeping the
night watch he let 10 cash drop out Of
his finder case into the stream and
then bought 80 cash worth of torches
to search for the lost coin. His friends
laughed at him for spending so much
In order to recover so little. and he re-
piled, with frown:
"Sirs, you are foolish and ignorant Of
economics. Had / not sought for these
10 cash they would have been lost for
ever-sunk in the bottom of the Nam
erigawa. The so cash which l have
expended on torches will remain in the
hands of the tradesman. Whether he
has them or | is no matter. but not Il
single one of the sixty has been lost
and that is a clear gain to the country"
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
u,..,.ah ,,. Not Listening.


In the course Of q visit to Nagpur, the
capital of the central provinces, writes
Mr.. Stanley Coxon in his Indian REM
niscences, / heard Of an amusing end
ing to a civil case. 1t was an appear
case, and on one side was Mr.. stan
yon, an English barrister, and on tne
other a number of native pieaders.
The arguments on both sides had been
heard, and the case closed for 1uog-
ment-
Suddenly one Of the native pleaders
got ND and addressed the court once
more. Mr.. Stanyon suffered 1t for some
time; but, losing patience, he also STOOD
up and, addressing the court, sald'
"Your honor, / would beg with all re-
spect to point out to the court that my
learned friend opposite is entirely out
of order in addressing the court, and II
I may be permitted to say so the court
has no right to be listening to him.
The court, who at that time was
writing, put his head over the desk
and said, "Mr. Stanyon. it's a great
piece Of impertinence on your part 70
assume that the court Is listening 70
him"
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
Mountain Trees.

Some interesting facts relating 20
mountain trees are given by Enos a.
Mills in his Rocky Mountain Wonder
land" He says:
"a few timber line trees live a thou
sand years. but half this time Is ripe
old age for most of the timber line vet
Grams. The age of these trees cannot
be Judged by their size or by their gen
eral appearance. There may be centu-
ries of difference In the ages OF two
arm I'm arm trees Of similar size. l
examined two trees that were growing
within few yards Of each other In the
shelter of a crag. One was fourteen
feet high and sixteen inches In diane
ter and had 337 annual rings. The
other was seven feet high and five
inches in diameter and had lived 1872
years.
Zone day by the sunny and sheltered
side of a bowlder found a tiny seed
bearer at an altitude Of II 800 feet.
How splendidly unconscious it was OF
its size and its utterly wild surround
ings! This brave pine bore a dainty
cone, yet a drinking glass would have
completely housed both the tree and Its
fruit"
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
Music of the Church.

Nothing is palmer than the seemingly
hopeless decadence of the music Of the
church as compared with modern pos
sibflities and realities of musical art to-
day. 1t is now some 200 years since
the spirit of music left the church
since the church could hold and spir-
itually feed a great composer as it had
done in the preceding centuries. The
spirit Of music. emancipated from the
materialistic and puritanical influences
which overlook established religion,
brought forth the great modern art of
music, with Beethoven as its leader,
says Musical America. What has hap
pened to that art at the hands Of COM
posers less lofty and less spiritually
minded than he the world knows only
too well, especially of late. The d.
vorce has become almost complete.
Not only has music, in its greatest pow
ers, forsakea the forms of the church;
latterly it has departed from spiritual
vision and aspiration within its own
artistic province.
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
Double Action Waterfall.

There are a good many salt water
cataracts in existence. They may be
found in Norway. southern Chile and
British Columbia, where narrow fords,
or arms of the sea, are INSTRUCTED by
barriers of rock. The rising tide flows
over the filters through such reefs into
the great natural reservoirs beyond,
but the water is held back at the ebb
until it breaks over the obstruction In
an irresistible torrent. Most curious
of all is the waterfall at Canoe pas
sage, where the island of Vancouver
approaches the British Columbia main
land. Here the f1oodtide from the gulf
of Georgia to the southwark Is held
back at q narrow cleft between two
islands until it pours over in boiling
cascade eighteen feet high with per-
haps double the volume of the Rhine.
At the turn Of the tide. however, the
waters from the north rush back into
the gulf. producing cascade of equal
height and Volume. The waterfall ac-
tually flows both ways.-Baltimore Sun.
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
Women and Golf In oIden Days.

Clark, in his Golf, Royal and An
cient Came" printed a few decades
ago, recounts how strangers at the old
st. Andrews course abroad were given
a trial on the famous holes, and if they
proved to be Of the tribe Of turf dig
gers and sand filters they were igno-
'miniously thrust into the outer dark
ness of the "women's green" The ac-
commodations accorded to women in
the old days were in the nature of a
sop to Cerebus, merely to keep them
quiet and satisfied while the men in
dulged in the more serious pursuit Of a
serious business with a better equip
ment on a finer course. In the annals
Of one old golf club it is recorded that
since a certain green was habitually
flooded and generally useless it was
recommended that a new hole be built
in its place and the old green given
over to the women.
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
British Red Tape.

An English officer who had been,
through mistake, reported killed In
action" on his return from the front
went to his bank to cash one Of his
checks. The clerk at the counter, In
stead of asking the welcome question,
"How will you take it," looked doubt
full and puzzled. stared at the soldier
and finally hurried away to seek ad-
vice elsewhere. He presently returned
with the news that the check could not
be cashed. But you know me, and
that is my signature" exclaimed the
astonished officer. "M-yes," said the
clerk hesitatingly, but the fact Is, sir,
that you're-you're dead, you see, and
I'm told We shall require you to give
proof to the contrary before we can
pay the money"
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
Watch Your Shoulders.

When standing before looking glass
notice if your shoulders are the same
height. Generally the right is higher
than the left. The reason for this I'M
evenness lies in the way one sits. You
get into a comfortable chair at your
desk, and at once you rest your right
elbow ON the arm of your chair or
your desk. thus throwing one shoulder
higher than the other. This is especial
" the case where one writes great
deal. When you notice that one Shout
der is higher than the other the thing
to do is to change your way of sitting
at your desk. Two simple exercises
will be beneficial. The arm of the low
er shoulder should be extended up
ward, the hand grasping a dumbbelL
That of the higher shoulder should be
lowered and made To support heavy
weight.
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
The Ewes of the Musk OK.

The skull of the bull musk OK Is re-
markable for the development of the
eye orbits, which project sufficiently
beyond the plane of the frontal bones
to compensate for the interruption the
horns would otherwise make in the
range of vision. The musk OK, how
ever, does not seem to rely greatly on
keenness of sight, far less on acuteness
Of hearing, for the ears are of small
dimensions and are completely covered
by the heavy growth of fur about them.
The organs of scent are evidently more
highly developed, and they exact Of the
hunter his greatest cunning.
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
Nature the Healer.

The influence of the forms and ac-
lions in nature is so needful to man
that in it's lowest functions it seems to
lie on the confines of commodity and
beauty. To the body and mind which
have been cramped by nOxiOus work or
company nature is medicinal and re-
stores their tone. The tradesman. the
attorney comes out of the din and
craft of the street and sees the sky and
the woods and is a man again. In
their eternal calm he finds himself.
The health of the eye seems to demand
a horizon. We are never tired so long
as We can see far enough.-Emerson.
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
Birds as Oracles.

\ most remarkable superstition Of
re Kenyahs of BOrneO is the consulta-
ion of birds. If. for example, Ken
-ah has to undertake long journey
re will not risk it without having first
CnSulted the "flakki," kind of hawk.
the hawk flies with its wings spread
ut To the right side it is a good sign.
ut if it goes to the left or flaps its
wings then the journey is not begun In
ny circumstances. The next day the
Ienyah tries once more until the hawk
lives the sign which he wants. Thus
- continuation of the journey de-
ends on the flight of the birds. Some
birds are of greater Importance than
others. and also to the singing of the
birds attention IS given. Other animals
IRE also. consulted. and the sea Dyaks
call every animal bird when they
consult it.
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
The Early Circus.

Leaving out of count the great cir
cuses of Rome and Antioch and COM
ing down to something Of modern
times, the first circus in England was
on a footpath known as Halfpenny
Hatch, in the Waterloo road, London.
There, in ITO, Astley's first perform
ance was given, with the aid Of a
drum, two flies and one clown. A
charge of sixpence was made for the
front standing places. There was no
building and not even tent, but mere
" a ring Of ropes and stakes. PRINT
tive as were the arrangements, Ashley
soon attracted good audiences and was
able to add to his program conjuring,
transparencies, vaulting and tumbling,
with displays of fireworks. In course
Of time he was able to hire an inclosed
ground and erected seats under sub
stantial roof He called the place Asst
leys amphitheater riding house.
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
MOVING Picture Shows.

An observer says the reason that all
classes like motion picture plays Is
that each person puts into the mouths
Of the silent actors the EXPLANATIONS,
words and lines that he himself would
use under like circumstances.
Incidents and situations are flashed
on the screen, but the spectator tells
the unspoken story to himself, ana
there is no possibility Of artificial
strained or incomprehensible dialogue.
What the spectator imagines Is the
thing that is natural to him To one
who watches Hamlet with Yorick's
skull the words Of the play may come
"Imperious Caesar, dead and turned to
clay, might stop hole to keep the
wind away" To another's Imagination
Hamlet says, "Well, we all gotta come
to it"
Could explanation be simpler, yet
more profoundly true? - Richmond
Dispatch.
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
One of Garrick's Reforms.

1t was Garrick who first struck a
blow at the custom of allowing mem
bers of the audience upon the stage, a
practice which ut Lincoln's Inn thea
ter, in London. in 1921. led to most
dangerous disturbance, only quelled by
calling out the military. In October,
1147, a Drury Lane playful had the
following appended notice: LAS the ad-
mittance Of persons behind the scenes
has occasioned'a general complaint, on
account of the frequent interruption In
the performance. it is hoped that gen.
tlemen won't be offended that no mon
ey will be taken there for the future"
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
The Sleap of Seeds.

Oats, corn, fennel and some flower
seeds were exposed during 11S days
to a temperature of 40 degrees F. be-
low zero. Afterward, when placed in
suitable surroundings, nearly all Of the
fennel. oat and corn seeds and many
of the others terminated. 1t is con-
cluded that the protoplasm, or the prin-
ciple Of life, in a resting seed is In a
state of inaction not comparable to that
Of a smoldering fire, but rather like
that Of a chemical mixture which Is
capable Of forming a combination
whenever the required conditions Of
temperature and illumination are pres
ent.
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01

Phonoqraph Records.

monograph records are made by the
utting of lines in wax. from which q
matrix is then formed for the manu-
facture of the records for use. Edison
found that this matrix could be made
10y gold plating the wax impression
and backing up the film of gold with
copper. \ special wax is used, made
If Stearin and paratfin. and when the
record is originally made on the wax
it is electrotyped with copper and
nickel to give il Il hard wearing sur
face. The actual records used on the
monographs are made from the ma
trix of shellac. wood charcoal, barium
sulphate and earth coloring matters;
the matrix is heated and placed in the
warm plastic material, where 1t is
pressed and cooled. Records are made
by the various photograph manufac-
turerS.
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01

SECRETARY DANIELS.
edge or have had some technical train
ing which would fit them for service
in the navy.
"The applicants who qualify will be
required to sign an application blank
for enrolment. In this application the
recruit Obligates himself to hold him.
self during the cruise subject to the
navy regulations, obey all authorized
orders and perform such work on board
ship as regularly assigned.
The objects of the training cruise
are To help equip properly equipped
men To act as reserves in time or war
or uational emergency by giving them
course of training on board warships
under naval officers and naval condi-
tions.
The total expenses Of the cruise,
outside of the cost of transportation to
the point of embarking and for return
ing home, will be about $50. Upon re-
porting on board the ship to which as
signed each recruit will deposit $50,
which will cover the cost Of bis SUBJ
sistence and the necessary clothing
outfit. Should the actual cost Of sub
sistence and clothing be less than this
amount the difference will be refunded.
upon reporting on board the civilian
clothing of recruits will be turned over
for storage, and they will be issued a
sufficient outfit Of uniform clothing.
When all recruits are on board the
ships will leave their respective naval
districts and cruise for period or four
weeks, during which time the recruits
will be given practical instruction In
the duties required on board ship.
"a portion Of each day will be given
to the study of special subjects, which
will be largely optional, so that those
who have an aptitude for or knowledge
Of such subjects as navigation, signal
ing, radio work, steam or electrical en-
gineering, etc., may have an opportu-
nifty to specialize. Boat drill viii be
given and landings made, and recruits
viii be taught the manual OF arms and
military formations.
During the final week Of the cruise
the ships will return to the naval dis
tricts whence they came, and, In add
ton to the courses of instruction, re-
cruits will be given a general idea OF
their own naval district and its defen'
sive problems. During the final week
also residents of the district who own
yachts or motorboats which would be
useful as auxiliaries In time Of wal
will be given an opportunity to operate
In conjunction with the ships.
"Enrollments will be closed on June
/, and no application will be receiv'
Cd after that date. Application blanks
will be furnished to all who desire
them by the navy recruiting officers
st the various recruiting stations
throughout the country"
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
RULES FOR NAVY'S
CIVILIAN CRUISE
BattIsships Will Be Used In
Summer Training,
COURSE TO Be FOUR WEEKS

Those EnIisting For Trip Will Have
to Pay Travelling Expenses to Sea-
board and Deposit $3o-Startins
Points Will Be at Coast Cities-En-
roIIments Close June 1.
Washington. - The navy's civilian
cruise, which is expected to do for the
navy what the Plattsburg training
camp did for the army, will begin Aug.
15 and last until Sept. II, according to
an announcement made by Secretary
Daniels department.
Battleships of the Atlantic reserve
feet will be used for the cruise, 1t Is
stated, and the starting points will be
Boston, Newport, New York, Philadel'
phia, Norfolk and possibly Charleston.
Civilians enlisting for the cruise will
have to pay their travelling expenses
TO the seaboard and return and also q
deposit of $50 to cover the expenses
Of the cruise.
The detailed regulations issued by
the department, which will govern the
cruise, have been tentatively adopted
and In part follows:
Recruits for the cruise to be citt,
zens of the United States between the
ages of nineteen and forty-fve, and
must be able to pass prescribed physi,
cal examination. They must be able
to demonstrate to the recruiting officer
that they possess some nautical knowl
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
Factors That Determine Salaries.

In the Woman's Home Companion a
Successful business man says that sal
aries are fixed by the amount and quail
ity of work that a man can deliver.
"Pull," in his opinion, is a negligible
factor in the business world.
"And that applies to the man who Is
getting $4,000 year just as truly as
1t does to the man who is getting $50 a
month. The only way that / can be
paid more money than l am getting IS
by delivering more work to my COM
pany than l am now delivering or by
showing my company how to save
more money and so have larger profit
at the end of the year."
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
Wax Matches.

Wax matches, so called, are made by
drawing strands of fine cotton thread,
twenty or thirty at a time, through
melted stearin with a small admixture
of paraff1n. The wax hardens quickly
upon the threads, and the long ia
pers thus produced are smoothed and
rounded by pulling them through iron
plates perforated with holes Of the de-
sired size. Finally the tapers are cat
into match lengths and dipped.
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
How She Was Named.

A little colored- girl, a newcomer in
Sunday school. gave her name to the
teacher as Fertilizer Johnson" Later
the teacher asked the childs mother
IL that was right.
"Yes. ma am. dat's her name" said
the fond parent. you see. she was
named fer me and her father Her IA
theirs name am Ferdinand. and my
name is Liza. So we named her Fer
tilizer"-Boston Transcript.
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
Social Distinctions.

what train do you take coming into
town in the morning?"
81 used to take the Pinochle express
at 7:44, but since became a member
Of the firm I've been travelling on the
Bridge Whist limited, which leaves at
S.23."-St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
Exclaimed.

"Our air mattresses" said the deal
er, "are filled in the months of April
and May. That accounts for their re-
markable resilient qualities"
ais the air of those months better
than others?"
"They are the spring months, you
w."-EXchange
The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-04-01
Growing up.

Percy Poodles - Congratulate me.
I'm engaged TO Molly Multirox. Amt
I the lucky dog:
Polly Pickles You certainly must be.
But how time does fly! Ii seems but
yesterday | heard her father speak OF
you as n puppy.-New York Globe.