davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Evening star., 1938-10-02
Matchbox Rises
By Magic P0wey
BY THOMAS THE MAGICIAN.

DS A"oAhS 4Hb MASTlSIAN.
WE HAVEN'T discussed any match
tricks for some time, 50 today
believe that I'll describe bit OF
"match-ic' that Was at one time in.
strumental in deciding whether or not
was to be magician.
saw 4 chum perform this trick.
and was SO fascinated by its apparent
magical effect, that decided I should
like very much to learn to do such
wonderful feats.
One trick led to another. until today
I have collected quite show, with
which tour the country from coast
forecast
Effect: After having passed for ex-
animation an empty penny matchbox.
the magician places it upon the back
OF his hand. He then announces that
by his magic power. he will cause the
box to rise at his command.
So saying, he makes some mystic
passes over the little box, and sure
enough, 1t rises an inch or 50 of the
back of his hand!
Explanation: Hold the arm extended
with the hand tilted slightly upward.
and with the palm toward the floor.
When you place the box on the back
Of your hand, open it slightly and
place it upside down against your
wrist. As it is held firmly in position.
elnsA the dra uer Tn thie u,o-, =, hit of
the loose skin will be caught therein.
Now. when the hand is lowered a
Bit. the loose skin will become a bit
tense and the box will rise of the
hand.
II you practice this effect q time
or two. I'm sure you'll agree that 1t
will become q real mystery.
Evening star., 1938-10-02
. EADERS of the Junior Page had
. plenty Of fun" on their sum-
mer vacations. judging by the
4 y letters the editor has received

neI VACATIONS. judging Dy the
letters the editor has received
during the last couple of weeks.
Patricia Barrett, for instance, re-
ports the accumulation Of "a store of
pleasant memories" while camping on
the shore of cove of Chesapeake
Bay. Patricia, a 13-year- Powell
Junior High School student living at
3l5l Mount Pleasant street NV, de-
scribes some of her camp activities in
the following letter:
When we went swimming, we had
to have buddy and stay near each
other: then if your buddy got into trou-
BILE, you could call to the life guard. At
intervals. a counselor blew a whistle,
and buddies raised their hands to-
gether. Our names were taken when
we went into the water and were
checked off the list as we came out.
Il learned to swim, but did not get
70 take the lifesaving test. However,
was rescued by one Of the girls taking
the test, and she passed
CAMPING also occupied Madeline
Brennan, IA, of 1886 Monroe steet
NV, a Sacred Heart School pupil
One afternoon. the campers were
feeling blue because 1t had begun to
rain and we could not go on the sup
per hike we had planned" Madeline
reports. "Soon a camp leader came
and told us to put on our raincoats
and follow her.
She led us over to the barn and
up to the hayloft. There we were
handed empty plates, and sent over to
Evening star., 1938-10-02
Mans Biggest
Is Told
All Inventions
Depend on
Finding.

w YHAT is the most wonderful
\A discovery ever made by
Think hard-for it is one
OF those things which We take too
much for granted.
All modern inventions depend upon
it. Without it We would have no civil
lization, for everything since its dis
covery has been only another step
further in the direction pointed by that
first most important discovery.
The first step in human progress
the boldest, the newest. of all dis
ooveries-was that of fire and its
uses
To know how it came about you
will have to think back thousands of
years, when primitive men sought the
shelter Of caves.
Before that-some $4,000 years be-
fore it-men were more primitive still,
with great jaws and ugly heads and
faces. These Neanderthal men, as
they are called, used rude stone tools.
But 60 back still farther, to a time
$4,000 years earlier, when very prim-
tive human beings had already
learned the trick of making a fire.
Wherever We find remnants of this
early race-their simple tools or their
bones-there we find charred wood and
charred bones, too.
SCIENTISTS do not agree on how
these simple people made FIRE. We
know they had probably seen fire
made in nature-forest fires, caused
by lightning probably. or perhaps the
fire vomited by some volcano But they
must have been much too terrified by
the sight to try to investigate the ma
ture of fire. They probably ran away
as fast and as far as possible. and told
their children Of another fearful mon
Evening star., 1938-10-02
Boys Chameleon
Disappears in
Back Yard.
PRIZE CONTRIBUTION.

PRIZE CONTRIBUTION.
BIZ FRANK FREED, 13, OF 613
Lexington place Me-, Stuart Junior
High School.
A FEW years ago attended a circus
where I saw man selling
chameleons. I was allowed to buy
one after promising my mother I
would take good care Of it.
Naming it Oscar, I tied 1t up, in
my back yard and fed it fiies and
sugar-water. One day I made the
amazing discovery that it turned the
same color as any object 1t rested
upon.
A few weeks later Oscar disap-
peared. After making brief search of
the yard I concluded that the cat
next door had eaten it. dismissed
the matter from my mind.
While pulling up some weeds in the
yard about j. month later l was
greatly surprised to find Oscar. He
had undoubtedly been catching flies
and drinking the water had put on
the grass.
Evening star., 1938-10-02
Messages Sent
On Kite String

WHEN flying kite you may get
additional thrills by sending
paper messages" up the kite string.
Tear q tiny hole in a piece Of paper,
place the string through the hole,
then let the wind carry the message"
up to the kite.
There is even more fun in sending
spinning propeller up the string.
Whittle the propeller from light wood.
Shape 1t so that it resembles a
double -bladed airplane propeller.
Punch hole IN the exact center.
then slip the kite string through this
hole. A strong wind will set the pro-
peller vhirring and viii carry It up
Evening star., 1938-10-02
Boys Puppy Obeys
Order to Bring
Cat Home.
PRIZE CONTRIBUTION.

PRIZE CONTRIBUTION.
THEY call him mixed" That is be-
cause he has a long body. a big
bushy tail, and short. crooked legs.
His tail is so long and his breastbone
so big that he can sit for two minutes
and beg. His name is Spot, and he Is
my puppy
One day, Spot went out with our
cat Mother called him and the cat
to come in, but kitty wouldn't come
So mother said, Get the kitty. Spot. :"
Spot barked at the cat. but she
wouldn't come He came back to the
door, and mother said. mo, you can't
come in until you bring the cat"
SPOT took kitty by the neck and
dragged her up on the porch. Mother
opened the door, and the cat walked
in. Spot came right behind her.
By RICHARD WELSH GUY, .,
of ! West Woodbine street, Chepy
Chase, Nd. Takoma Park Elmen-
tdry School.
Evening star., 1938-10-02

by a boy in the neighborhood nearly
three years ago.
'Petey did many funny things"
Doris says, such as drinking out of the
goldfish bowl and going to sleep in
the waste paper basket. He loved to
sleep in my doll crib"
Doris pet died August 81 while she
and her parents were on trip to Cam
ada
"Petey was nice rat" Doris de-
clares, land I miss him a lot."
JUNIOR JoTT1NGs:
Speaking of pets-Robin White,
10. OF 2l5 Thirty-seventh street NV,
Phoebe Hearst School student, tells
of baby bird" that he found wig
Cling on the ground" beneath a tree
He and his sister placed the little fell
low in a nest they found in their back
yard. And then" Robin says, I'VE
left it alone" Good boy. Robin! i.
Evelen Trageser. Is, OF Silver Spring
Md. reports that she earned consider
able spending money during the sum-
mer by moving lawns and picking and
selling berries. Il can buy my school
supplies she adds, "and save the ex-
pense to by mother and father" {.
Listening to broadcasts of the WASH
ington baseball teams games has been
the summer hobby of Lucille Sanders,
IL. of 1850 S street NV, Francis
Junior High School pupil. Il keep my
own score and compare it with the Of
f1cial score in the paper at night" she
says Violet Hall. IA. of Monrovia,
Md, collects pictures of movie stars.
She keeps her collection in compost
ton book, half of which is devoted to
Shirley Temple, Jane Withers and
Mickey Rooney.
Evening star., 1938-10-02

oldster: the curious Willie, younger
Willie, jr.; an even more youthful
Little Willie and the only girl among
Bills favorites, Julia. g.,
I've never bothered to name any
OF the others because as a rule,
can't tell them apart Bill explained.
The whole bunch is pretty quiet,
except when they get to fighting" he
continued. Sometimes Willie, jr.. and
Little Willie fight over food They
stand up on their hind legs and box
just like prize fighters Once in
while some of the other boy rats get
into 1t, but the girls Just keep quiet
and watch"
r ECENTLY, Bill lent six of his pets
"A mother and Ave babes-to q
teacher at Hyattsvillea Elementary
School, where he is a seventh h-grade
pupil. "She used them to teach the
first-grade pupils all about rats and
how they grow" he explained.
AS for the legendary Pied Pirer,
whose magic music caused all the
rodents in Hamelin. Germany. to
drown themselves-he'd come in
handy right now, Bill admitted.
'.These rats of mirle are all nice
pets" he sighed. but I've just got to
get rid of some of them. I tried SELL
ing them for scientific purposes. at IS
cents each, but only got rid of few
hate to have them killed but
shucks. I've got too many. that's all"
Bills problem is. he conceded. very
similar to the one that baffled the
principal characters in Pigs Is Pigs"
The only difference is" he added.
that with me it's case of rats Is
Evening star., 1938-10-02
Spending Money
Earned by
P1ox-c
PRIZE CONTRIBUTION.

PRIZE CONTRIBUTION.
By SHEILA YOUNG, II. Of 503
Maple Ridge road. Bethesda, Nd,
Bethesda Elementary School.
SOMETIMES I make spending money
- by giving plays. My twin sister
and a friend join me in the making
Of these plays. Three characters are
enough because one of use can play
two parts.
The last play We had was abolt a
poor girl who was taken away from
her mother by witch. A fairy found
her and took her back to her mother.
Finding costumes was very easy. 1
had a witch's outnt thai 1 had worn
on Halloween; the poor girls costume
was an old dress With few patches
added, and the fairy's costume was an
organdy gown. My sister maze pair
of fairy wings to 60 with it.
After the play we served refresh
ments. We had the show again that
night for our parents. The play was a
big success, and we made good deal of
money. Later in the year We expect
to give more plays.
Evening star., 1938-10-02
Mystery Story
At Sentry Boz

YOU'VE probably heard many tales
Of haunted ruins and ghosts, but
you seldom hear the solutions to the
mysteries. Here We are going to tell
you the mystery and partial solution
Of THE Haunted Sentry Box" found
at the Spanish fort OF San Cristobal.
near San Juan, in Puerto Rico. The
sapnish name for the story is la
Garita del DiAblo."
This. sentry box juts out over the
ocean and in the old days, when Spain
ruled in Puerto Rico, 4 sentinel was
stationed there every night. One night
the sentinel who had the first watch
disappeared. His gun was found lean
ing against the wall.
At first every one thought he had
fallen of to the water below, but
few weeks later another sentry dis
appeared. And then two weeks after
that the officer in charge. when max
ing his rounds. got no response from
the new sentry, who was supposedly
on duty there He investigated and
discovered that the man was gone.
but that his gun was there and also
small cross. There was slight odor
Of sulphur and he Immediately de-
cided that the devil had been car
rying of the sentries. Thereafter
soldiers refused to enter the box, and
it was labeled haunted"
Many years later, at q large party,
someone told the story Of the haunted
sentry box. An old man, seated in
one corner, laughed and admitted
that he was the third sentry who had
disappeared. He said that he had
left his post that night long ago to
get light for hjs cigar, and that
he had dropped his cross when climb
ing over the wall. On his way back
he had passed . house where 4 dance
was going on and had been lured in.
He soon forgot his duty and. when
he remembered, he realized that he
would be shot for deserving his post
- b. tast Gioappearod.
Evening star., 1938-10-02


Hyattsville. Md.
Il was tickled to death to get such
q nice pet" Bill said. THE lady
got it from told me it was boy rat
so named 1t Mickey"
Bill soon learned. however. that the
woman was mistaken-so sadly mis-
taken. in fact, that by the time he
moved to the Washington area last
December he had 20 rats.
And now" Bill lAmented. 1--WE got
at least a hundreds hundred pretty
white rats that don't know what to
do with"
At FIRST. Bill related, the uncle
and aunt with whom he lives
Mr.. and Mrs william S. Moore-kept
the pets in wooden boxes.
But that didn't work 10 we'll" he
continued, because they kept gnawing
their way out. Now We just lock them
in the cellar. where Snowfall, our pet
cat, can't get at them"
All OF Mickey's descendants are
tame, but this doesn't prevent them
from getting into mischief OCCASION
ally. Once. for instance, young Mr.
Willie Rat-an adventuresome fellow
who has succeeded Mickey in Bill S
afIections-found his way upstairs and
made feast OF a tweed suit belonging
to Mrs. Moore
Ordinarily, however, the rodents are
content with oatmeal bread and scraps
from the Moores' table.
About the only thing they don't
like" said Bill. who feeds them twice
daily. lis apples. They'll even eat my
Uncle Bills cigarettes when they can
get at them"
Only a few Of the animals have
names-Mickey. now totterine
Evening star., 1938-10-02

ster that threatens the peace of their
lives.
But about this time the weather
was getting colder because the glacial
period was coming on And these
primitive men proba bly, sought desper-
ately for some means of keeling from
freezing.
Perhaps sometimes they had seen
the spark made by the rubbing of the
branches Of trees in the wind And so
they learned to make fire by rubbing
two sticks together-a method still
used by savages
Perhaps. too. in making his rude
stone tools, some man saw that the
flint sent spark to some dry leaves
which kindled into flame. And the
chilly tool-maker probably enjoyed the
small warmth that came from the lit
tie accidental fire, so he may have
tried it again.
Evening star., 1938-10-02
HE'D BE QUIET.

A YOUNG Englishman on q visit to
the wild and woolly West de-
cided to 60 riding. A cowboy asked.
do you prefer an English saddle or q
Western saddle?"
The Englishman looked puzzled.
Whats the difference?" he asked.
THE Western saddle has . horn,"
said the cowboy.
Il don't think III need the horn."
said the EngliShmAn. Il don't In.
tend to ride In heavy trsh1c."
Evening star., 1938-10-02

proval Of the change.
But. more pleasing still, there has
Abeen a noticeable increase in both the
number and variety Of letters, stories
and other material sent in by our
readers. In addition to the usual run
Of letters on personal experiences. we
have received stories, poems, riddles,
drawings-in fact, just about every
type Of contribution imaginable.
The best OF these contributions will
be published as rapidly as space limi-
tatlons permit. Instead of being con-
hned to Letter Box" column, how
ever, they will be scattered over the
page. in whatever spots they can be
used to best advantage. Thus, our
boys and girls will not have merely
column Of their own, but whole
page-a full-sized newspaper page to
do with pretty much as they please.
Every contribution published will
bear the name, age, address and school
Of the author, and the five selected
for the weekly prizes of 81 each will
be plainly marked Prize Contribu-
, ton" Rules OF the contest are printed
elsewhere on this page. and-well, this
Is a personal invitation to all chill
dren to come on in!
R1LL MOORE, whose rat problem
Is described in detail Just across
the page, may be able to get rid OF at
least one OF his pets if he'll get in
touch with Doris Mae Hand, IL, of
COS Daniel street. Colmar Manor, Md
Doris. seventh-grade pupil at Cot
tage City School. was saddened re-
Gently by the death of her white rat
Petey. The rodent was given to her
Evening star., 1938-10-02

OF IS M street NV, Langley Junior
High School.
~ NE sunny Sunday afternoon
my parents and l visited a
popular seashore resort about
~ 80 miles from Washington.
There was rope stretched the entire
length Of the beach for the protection
OF bathers, and beyond this was a
wooden pier for diving.
1t was announced through a loud
speaker that there were to be some
speed-boat races. Naturally, many
people crowded into the water to watch
the exciting sport, and l was among
them.
Before long. the shot that started
the races was fired Around and round
the boat sped, several of them tipping
dangerously as they rounded the
curves.
Every one was on tiptoe to see the
finish when. to the horror OF every
body. one Of the boats headed straight
for the shore. Many people began
screaming, and looked back to see nv
mother and father shouting frantically
for me to come ashore.
nNCE again looked at the rapidly
approaching boat, but it seemed
as If l was rooted to the spot. BY
now, could look into the boat. There
was no driver behind the wheel: he
had been thrown into the water at the
last curve.
About 10 yards from me, the boat
swerved and struck the pier, throwing
many people into the water. No one
was hurt, however
To this day. dad says it was Gods
hand that turned the wheel of that
boat and saved many from being
killed or injured.
Evening star., 1938-10-02

~ NE day several years ago,
I while investigating the con-
tents OF seldom used
~ drawer, I found two pieces
of money l soon realized they were
useless for buying ice cream, because
one was a halfpenny from Ceylon
and the other q dime from Canada
As was looking at them very sadly. I
suddenly had an inspiration. That
was the beginning. of my hobby
My collection consists of is coins
from IL countries. The largest is
Chinese copper piece about the size
of our half dollar 1t is covered with
the mysterious characters of its coun-
try.
The baby is tiny Holland coin
about half the size Of penny On
it is stamped a lion. the symbol OF
Holland, and the words "Koningryk
der Nederlander." the oficial name
of the kingdom Of the Netherlands
since 1913.
A MOTHER coin in my collection is
Belgian 5-centime piece
adorned by large a." standing for
the name Of the late King Albert,
and the inscription "Royaume d. Bel
gique," or kingdom OF Belgium.
The queerest thing about this coin
is little hole in the middle, a custom
dating from the time when people wore
their money on ribbons or chains
japanese coins also have holes in them.
Other than those I have mentioned
coins in my collection are from India,
Egypt. Switzerland, Greece and
France.
Although this small collection is
worth very little in cash, it is 4 for
tune of nlea sure and learning To nns
Evening star., 1938-10-02

Below We have four kinds of pals"
words beginning with the same three
letters. Can you fill the blanks and
form the words? Here's a hint on
No. 2-they are found along a river IN
the Eastern part Of the United States:
!. Pal-t-a-
2. Pali--d-s
;. Paid
1. PALMS.
;
In the sentence below. each Of the
missing words is pronounced the same
but spelled differently. Can you fill
the blanks with the correct words?
Blinded In the -. We the
right road.
Evening star., 1938-10-02
Vacation Fun Detailed
Children Write of Pleasures
Found During Holiday.

Nancy Hubbard. also IA, of ldl Le-
land street, Chevy Chase, Md, gives an
interesting account Of week that she
and her sister and two boys spent on a
farm about 80 miles from Washington.
The farm was on the Virginia side
OF the Potomac and right on the
water" Nancy says. Mr.. Stone. the
owner, had 25-foot motor boat, and
we had the most fun with this.
The boys found half of a table top
and made it into a grand aquaplane.
Evening star., 1938-10-02
Posers

STEP right up. folks, and let's see
how much you know about these
eight posers. Can you answer them all?
l. Who wrote Little Women?"
z. Who was Franz Schubert?
s. What is the largest river In the
United States?
4. What was the name of the noun.
tain on which Greek gods lived?
5. What is peat?
g. OF what country is Lisbon the
capital?
I. From what continent Is the great
est quantity Of hemp obtained?
Q. What Is q shilling?
ANSWERS.
I. Louisa M. Alcott. 2. An Austrian
composer. 3. Mississippi. 4. Mount
Olympus. 5. A moss which is dried
and used for fuel 6. Portugal. Asia.
3. An English coin.
Evening star., 1938-10-02
CROSSWORD PUZZLE.

The definitions:
Across.
/. Riding whip.
4. To become weary.
8. Southern State (Abbr.).
.. Joined.
II. Stump Of . broken branch.
II. Mathematical quantity.
l3. Hole.
IS. Round brimless hat.
II. Uncooked.
10. To hurry.
20. The science Of exact reasoning.
%. Pigpen.
"a. Upon.
IS. Rush.
~. Noiseless.
20. Either.
80. Scrutini1e.
81. Free from DANGER.
Down.
!. Applaud.
2. The sun god.
3. Play on words.
4. Wild animal.
S. Neuter pronoun.
6. To be penitent.
7. Prepare copy for printing
10. Grasp.
II. Male deer.
IA. Pertaining to irony.
Is. Aquatic plant.
1S. To make broader.
20. Bereavement.
II. Be able.
a.. Tinsl long past.
26. Streets (abbr.).
%. Musical note.
-. Belonging 10.
Evening star., 1938-10-02
Right Either WAY.

Employer-"Really. Tompkins, your
figures are disgraceful. Just look at
that three; any one would take it for
Q five."
Clerk-"It is a five, sir"
Employer-"Well, I should have
sworn 1t was q three"
Evening star., 1938-10-02
Accuracy.

Captain (to gunner: See that man
on the bridge miles away?
Gunner: Yes. sir.
Captain: Let him have q 12-inch
in the eye
Gunner: Which eye, sir?
Evening star., 1938-10-02
Sound Reasoning,

And then there was the Scotchman
who bought only one spur because he
figured that II one side Of the horse
went, the other sids would % also.
Evening star., 1938-10-02
Given Pet Rat by Kind Ngbo Boy Now Has Hands
Boys and Girls Approve
Letter Box Change
Children Sending In Greater
Variety of Material
For Junior Page.
BY PHILIP H. LOVE,
Junior PAGE Editor.

weeks ago we announced that beginning today the
Junior
wider our
The response that
Letters
h ad ino,
Evening star., 1938-10-02
Rodents Multiply Quickly,
Create Big Problem
For Young Owner
Animals Gnaw Way Out
OF Wooden Boxes, Win
Freedom of Cellar.


Y n Pied Piper Hamelin"
For Bill who ~ has rat probeman extremely perpexms
problem
guinea pigs in Ellis Parker Buffers wide-read Pigs Pigs
all
n but
Evening star., 1938-10-02
No CabOOse.

WO L 0OOOy1.
Smith: Railroad trains are mighty
dangerous. The last car always get
smashed up.
Jones: Well, why don't they leave
OF the last cAx1
Evening star., 1938-10-02
For the Puzzle Fans

.
Behead word for extra and get
to peel. Curtail this and get a golf
term
Behead a fireplace and get a price.
Behead again and get consumed.
Reverse a small body of water and
get a fold in a rope.
Reverse an instrument and get
plunder.
NOTHING TO IT!
What is nothing?
A footless stocking without any lez
ANSWERS TO LAST WEEKS
PUZZLES.
i. Crossword puzzle solution.
Evening star., 1938-10-02

2. FOOT-boot-bolt- -bold-bald-
BALL.
GOAL-coal-coat-cost-POST
3. P, rib, regal, pigskin. baked,
lid. N.
4. Block. penalty and defense.
5. Balloon, ballast, ballroom and
ballot.
Evening star., 1938-10-02
Of
Coins Leads
Hobby
Collection Small,
But Is Fortune
To Owner.
nnIzr cnNrpInIrTInN

PRIZE CONTRIBUTION.
By DOROTHY KING, IS, of 1853
Ridge road Sc, rAndcostia High
School,
Evening star., 1938-10-02

ward to the kite. OF course, the string
must be free from knots, and the wind
should be strong enough to make the
propeller revolve.
Evening star., 1938-10-02
Pilotless Boat
SCareS Girl
Bather
Craft Drives Into
Crowded Pier
At Beach.
PRIZE CONTRIBUTION.

By DOROTHY CARLETON, n,
OF IS M street NV, Langley Junior
High School.
Evening star., 1938-10-02

ster that threatens the peace of their
Evening star., 1938-03-11
Meet me at Je||eff's tomorrow"

a
planning
a
Evening star., 1938-03-11

Softened to suit the new softening Of fashion
AS smart with tailleurs as with dressmaker
suits. ON THE SQUARE and bow be-decked,
the fitted bodice blouse OF rayon crepe Roma
sketched. Choose it with an eye for color in
dusty rose, Victorian blue MAIZE chartreuse
80 to SO.
BIouses-Third Floor