smithclay/nortonstories huggingface dataset:
Year: 1877

into the gloom Of the deep dark plight,


with painting breath, and startled scream,
swift as a bird In sudden fright,


Darts this creature Of eel and ss<sff.
Awful dangers are lurking n h


Rochs and ohasms are near the track;
But straight By the light Of its great white eye
II shoots through the shadows dense and


black.


Terrible thoughts and fierce desires,
Trouble Its mad heart many an hour,
Where burn and smolder the hidden fires
Coupled ever with might and power.
II hates, a. the Wild horse hates the rein,
The narrow track by vale and hill,
And shrieks with q cry Of frenzied pain,
And longs TO follow its own wild will
o what am I, but an engine, shod


With muscle and flesh by the haEd Of God,
Speeding on through the deep dark night
Guided alone by the souls white light.
Often and often my mad heart tires


And hates Its way with a bitter hate,
And longs 10 follow its own desires,


Leaving the end In the hands Of fate.
q mighty engine Of steel and steam


o human engine Of blood and bone
Follow the white lights certain beam
There lies safety and there alone.
The narrow track Of fearless truth


Lit by the souls great eye Of light,
Or passionate heart Of restless youth,


Alone might carry you through the night.
Year: 1877

awoke from his stupor, he found his
faithful dog lying near him. Dhu had
fallen over some little distance from his
master and had dragged himself, severely
cut and injured, 10 his masters side.
MacGregor spoke to the dog, who strug.
gled to rise and answer him. As his senses
grew clearer he saw that his only saliva
ton depended upon his dog if he could
only reach the nearest house they would
understand and follow him to the place
where the accident had happened. Lay
ing his hand on the dogs head, Mac
Gregor said slowly and clearly, HE,
fetch them, Dhup' Dhu looked in his
face, unwilling to leave him. The order
was repeated and the noble dog strug-
gled to his feet. Finding place where
he could scramble up, he started as quick
as he could down the brae. At last he
reached the small public house, some
eight miles down the glen, where Mac
Gregor was wont to water his horse. He
reused the people by barking, and on


opening the door they found him sunk
on the ground againstit, quite exhausted.
They recognized him at once and knew
some accident must have happened.
They carried him in and endeavored to
restore him little as he was indispensa.
BILE for showing them the way. When
all was ready they carried him out and


put him down on the ground. Dhu
seemed to know all depended upon him.
Gathering himself up, he turned to the
steep brae, down which he had previously
come, now marked with blood. The
storm ragged fercely, and they could only
make slow way. The gallant dog held
steadily on till he reached the place
where it was possible to descend. 1t was
inky dark by this time, and as the men
looked over the edge, they could see moth
ing but the CLEAN of foaming water be,
low them, and hear nothing but the wild
shrek of the wind. By the light of their
lanterns they cautiously followed Dhu,
clinging to the grass above them as they
clambered down. Presently the dog
quickened his pace and disappeared


round the jutting ledge of rock. A


few steps brought them to the object OF
their search. MacGregor was by this
time insensible, and as they turned their
lanterns on his face, they thought him


dead. He was a sight not often seen.
Living with his head on his masters
breast lay the body of the brave dog who
had guided them so truly. The neces-
sity for exertion was over; his work was
fully done, and death had released him
from his pain. MacGregor's life was
saved, though he never recovered the
effects of that awful night, in which he
used to say, "he had lost the best friend
he ever had" "Only a dogT-aye
only faithful, true dog-faithful in all
he had to give-his answering fidelity
Year: 1877

BIG LAKE, in Irwin County, Georgia,
began to run Out, about three months
since, at an opening in the bottom about
the size of flour barrel: and up to
short while ago ran down from a mile
wide and several long, to the dimensions
of few acres, when the whole county,
far and near, came to witness the sight
and get fish. Everybody was supplied
with all they could carry away of the
finest sizes and qualities of the finny
tribe. The basin now presents bluffs
sixty odd feet deep, and viii probably re-
fill in the course OF a year or two.
Year: 1877




japanese people are very superstitious,
and have innumerable signs and tokens
by which to regulate their conduct and
beliefs. They never sweep the rooms of
a house Immediately after one Of the in
mates has set out upon a jouney-this
would sweep out all the luck with him.
At marriage ceremony neither bride
nor bridegroom, wears any clothing of a
purple color, lest their marrisge-tie be
soon loosed, as purple is the color most
liable to fade. They have some curious
ideas in regard to the fnger-nails, which
are cut in certain times. When a per-
son loses tooth, either artifcially at
the hands OF a dentist-Japanese tooth
carpenter Dor by forceps, or by acci-
dent, in order that another may grow in
the empty socket, the tooth, if from the
upper jaw, is buried under the founda-
tion of the house; if from the lower Jaw
it is thrown upon the roof the house
OF hundreds of their superstitions, here
are few: If woman steps over al
egg-shell, she will 60 mad if razor, il
will become dull; if over whetstone
it will be broken. If a man should set
his head on fire, he will so mad. Children
are told if they tell lie an oni or al
imp called the tengu will pull out theil
tongues. Many Japanese urchin ha
spoken the truth for fear of an oni sup
posed to be standing by, ready to rul
away with his tongue. No such watch
man seems to be set before the unrul,
member of the scolding wife. OF thes
"edge tools that grow sharper by con
slant use " there is goodly number il
Japan. When husband and wife ar
quarreling, a devil is believed to b.
standing between them to go on from bat
to worse.


The man who owns kicking pul
Year: 1877

As the moon revolves around the earth
from west to east she advances east
wardly in her orbit about thirteen de-
grees every twenty-four hours. Hence,
when any part of the earth, in its revo-
luton, comes under the part of the heav-
ems where the moon was the evening
before, the moon is not there, but has
gone eastward thirteen degrees, and
therefore the earth must turn on its
axis as much longer as is necessary to
bring that part under the moon, which
requires generally, not always, about fifty
minutes. The same thing occurs the
next evening, and the evening after,
and thus the moon rises most of the year
about fifty minutes later each day. Now,
as the tides are produced mainly by the
moon, it will at once be seen, from this
eastward movement and this later rising
each day, why they must occur about
fifty minutes later each succeeding day.
While the lunar tide is thus daily lag
ging the solar tide occurs at the same
time. Hence these two tides begin to sep
arate after new moon, being further apart
each day until they again coincide at full
moon, when there is higher tide than
usual, called spring tide. Then again
they separate after new moon occurs,
when they once more unite, producing
another spring tide. 1t must not be sup
posed that the whole body of the ocean,
to its profoundest depths, is equally
moved by the tides. The tides are mainly
superficial, and except where the water
is of moderate depth the lowest parts
are only slightly disturbed but to what
depth the tidal current extends can
never, perhaps, be satisfactorily deter
mined. The Gulf Stream is about three
thousand feet deep, having for its bot,
tom a bed of colder water of vari.
Gus depths: but as the stream is the re.
suit of other causes than those that pro-
duce the tides, it is not safe to estimate
the depth of the tidal current by its
own.
Year: 1877

Celia Logan explains the origin of the
phrase "Wake me up when Kirby
dies" Kirby was the leading man of
the old Chatham Street Theater, New
York, and although a good actor of his
type and favorite with the boys, he
made no especial fame until melodrama
was produced entitled "Mike Martin"
in which he played the character of
Thunderbolt." 1t fell to his lot to be
shot on the roof of house. When he
received his death wound he leaped from
the roof to the stage. In order to make
realistic effect, he concealed in his
sleeve small sponge soaked with red
paint. When the shot was fred he in
stantly clapped this sponge to his fore
head, and the red drops running over
his face gave the appearance of a CHASTITY
wound, and that, coupled with his bold
leap and well-acted death, made great
sensation. He was nightly encored and
compelled to die over again. The boys
would often drop to sleep in the early
part of the play with a request to COM
panion to wake them up when Kirby
died.
Year: 1877

United States Senator Goldthwaite,
says an exchange, has long been afflicted
with absent mindedness. He has great
difficulty in keeping track of his wearing
apparel. He constantly loses his coat or
hat, One or two pages are kept running
q good deal of the time to supply the
gentleman lack of intellect If he goes
to the House, he will take his hat and cloak
there, and be sure to leave one or both
of them on a sofa or on some members
desk. He has often had to wait for
hours while pages and messengers were
hunting up stray garments. He ever
has the habit of taking other peoples
coats by mistake, particularly if they
happen to hang near his own peg. One
day a senator missed his coat, containing
about $500 in money. The disap-
pearance was attended by such pecu-
liar circumstances that the detectives
called at Senator's Goldthwaites house,
and asked him if he had his own coat.
After searching his closet for time they
returned his lost coat, saying "This
does quite look like my coat" The lost
money was found safe in the pocket.
This story told was by an officer of the
Senate.
Year: 1877

In South America even the weakest
woman may be not uncommonly seen
plucking the fruit at the tree tops. If
the bark is so smooth and slippery that
they cannot go up by climbing, they use
other means. They make hoop of
wild vines, and putting their feet inside
they use it as a support in climbing.
The negro of the west coast of Africa
makes a larger hoop around the tree,
and gets inside it, and jerks it up the
tree with his hands, a little at time,
drawing his legs up after it. The Tahi-
tian boys tie their feet together, four or
five inches apart, with piece of palm
bark, and with the aid of this fetter go
up the cocoa palms to gather nuts. The
native women of Australia climb the gum
trees after opposums; where the bark is
rough they chop holes with hatchet,
then one throws about the tree a rope
twice as long as will go around it, puts
her hatchet on her cropped head, and,
placing her feet against the tree and
grasping the rope with her hands, she
bitches it up by jerks, and pulls herself
up the enormous trunk almost as fast as
o man will climb a ladder.
Year: 1877

The New York 1fedical Journal re-
ports this case The patient was en-
gagged in machine shop, and while his
hand was upon the anvil of trip ham
mer, the hammer-weighing seven hun
dred pounds-fell. 1t so happened that
a file was on the anvil, and in this way
the force of the hammer was arrested
about half an inch before it reached its
bed. When the hand was examined it
was found that the whole palm was a
mass OF pulp. The metacarpel bones
were comminuted extensively, and there
was apparently but small chance of saw
ing the hand. 1t was, however, placed
in hot water, and kept there for two or
three weeks, and then taken out and
dressed.


In three months the patient was sufi-
GENTLY well to leave the hospital, and
now-nine months after the accident
he is able to move the fingers, and has
quite useful hand. Bruises and in
iuries do much better when treated with
hot than with cold water. The tempera-
ture should be about 103 degrees F. An
other case is reported of compound
fracture and dislocation of the ankle
joint, in which the proximal end of the
first metatarsal bone protruded from the
foot. The dislocation was reduced and
the foot placed in hot water. At the end
OF q week it was taken out and dressed
in the ordinary manner. The foot is
now doing well, and promises q good
result.
Year: 1877

A woman, accompanied by three of
her children, were one day in sledge
on the steppes of Russia when they were
attacked by wolves. On this she put the
horse into gallop, and drove toward her
home with all possible speed. 1t would
not avail, however, for the ferocious ami
mails gained upon her, and at last We're
on the point of rushing into the sledge.
For the preservation of her own life and
those of her other children the poor
frantic creature took one. of her babes
and threw it to the bloodthirsty pur-
suers. They stopped their course for a
moment, but after devouring the little
innocent, they renewed the pursuit, and
a second time came up with the vehicle.
The mother, driven to desperation, re-
sorted to the same terrible expedient, and
threw her furious assailant another of
her offspring. To cut short the melan-
choly story, her third child was sacri-
feed in similar manner Soon after
this the wretched being, whose feelings
it would be impossible to describe.
reached her home in safety. Here she
related what had happened, and tried to
palliate her own conduct by describing
the dreadful alternative to which she had
been reduced. A peasant, however, who
was among the bystanders and heard the
recital, took up an ak, and with one blow
split her head in two, saying at the same
time that mother who could thus sacri-
fee her children for the preservation of
her own life was no longer fit to live.
The man was committed to prison, but
the emperor subsequently gave him a
pardon.
Year: 1877

Ii we could approach the sun at the
moons distance from the earth, says
Professor Young, apparent jets of flame
would reach us. Could we reach its ap-
parent surface, we would find it com
posed of clouds of fine particles OF glob-
ules of molten metal, tossing and heav-
ing, rising and falling. Thousands of
flashes of lightning or of peals of thun-
der would be as nothing to the light and
noise. But the nearer the center should
be approached, the more quiet all would
become, and we would discover that the
main body of the sun was composed of
molten metal in a sort of gaseous state,
which, bursting out here and there into
eccentric action, produces the strange
appearances we so often observe. 1t is
estimated that the sun is contracting at
the rate of 125 feet per year. At this
rate, after the lapse of few million
years, it would be no longer a sun. But
God has made some law to regulate this
as well as all the other heavenly bodies
What it is, no man can say. We can fol-
low God little way in His works, but
after all it is only little way.
Year: 1877

A very searching investigation was car
ried on q few years ago in the north of
England by two families who We're
searching up their respective ancestry.
The strife was great between them, each
one determining to look back into anti
quities further than the other. One OF
the families, whose name was Spencer,
employed an artist to paint an historic
scene, representing the building of the
ark and the loading up of the ship by
Noah and his sons with its multifarious
and various cargo. On the gangplank
leading to the deck of the ark two men
were seen rolling up large box, on one
side of which was painted in large let
ters "Relics, insignia and papers be-
longing to the Spencer family" This
was considered a coup d'etGt hard to
beat, but the other family, determined
not to be outdone in the antediluvian
pretenses of their name, prepared at a
great cost and research record of their
antiquity. In describing the exploits of
one of their ancestors, at very early
day, who was represented as a man Of
some authority, this remarkable passage
occurs During this year Adam and
Eve were driven out of Paradise,
Year: 1877

A great deal has been said and written
about the great mathematical prodigy,
"Reub" Fields, who lives ut Fayette-
vile, Mo-, says Il local exchange, and the
more that is known of him the greater
wonder he becomes. He does not pos
sess the simple rudiments of a book edu-
cation-does not know a single letter or
figure by sight-and yet he can solve the
most intricate problem in an instant, or
can perform a calculation in less than a
minute that would require the work of
an hour by the ordinary modes. For in
stance We gave him the day of the
month and the year of our birth and he
told, in less than half a minute, our age
in seconds, minutes, days and years.
Give him the day of the month and the
year of any event, however remote, and
he will instantly give the day of the
week. -


We spent two hours with him, and,
Notwithstanding we have often talked
with him and seen him display his Won
derful gifts, yet we always find some
thing new in him.


We placed column of figures upon a
paper, equal in length to the. columns of
an ordinary sized ledger, and called them
off to him in rapid succession, and when
the last number was called he gave the
sum without moments hesitation. He
did not see the paper, and would not
have known a character on it if he had.
One hour later he repeated those mum.
bers in the exact order in which we called
them to him. We then began at the bot
tom and would call two or three numbers
correctly and then one incorrectly, and
he would correct us by giving the proper
number


More mysterious than this 10 us is the
fact of his ability to give correctly the
time of the day or night, whenever called
upon without any reference whatever to
a timepiece.


In this place the timepieces are all
regulated by railroad or St. Louis time.
If you ask "Reub" the time he will say
81 am fifteen and quarter minutes past
one if you have railroad time you have
so and So" giving the exact difference
between sun time and railroad time
| Another remarkable fact is that he
! gives the exact time of his locality. II
he is in Washington city he gives Wash
ington city time, if in San Francisco, the
time there. He can not possibly do these
things by any method of calculating the
passing time, for he will give time as ac
curately while waking from sleep al
night as if it were daylight and the SUI
shining.


There seems to be nothing too great il
numbers for his mind to grasp, and ye
nothing too small. He can tell what til,
interest on one cent would be for three
seconds at the rate of ten per cent. pei
annum, as readily and as easily as We
could tell the interest on one dollar for one
year at the same rate per cent.


He is indeed the wonder of wonders,
Year: 1877

"Got one Don't say SO Which did you


get


One of the kind to open and shet
Own it, or hire it ? How much did You pay!
Does ii go with crank or a treadle Say.
I'm single man, and somewhat green
Tell mo about your sewing machine"
Listen, my boy, and hear al about it
] don't know what should do without il.
I've owned one now for more than year,
And like it so well call it ''my dear"
'Tis the cleverest thing that ever was seen,
This wonderful family sewing machine.
It's none of our angular Wheeler things,
With steel-shod beak and cast-iron wings;
It's work would bother hundred of his
And is worth a Thousand, Indeed it is
And has way-you needn't stare
OF combing and braiding its own back hair
Mine is not one of those stupid affairs
That stands in a corner with what-aets and


chairs,


And makes that dismal, headachy noise,
Which all the comfort of sewing destroys;
No rigid contrivance of lumber and steel,
But one with natural spring in the heel.
Mine is one of the kind to love,
Aud wears a shawl and a soft kid glove,
Has the merriest eyes and dainty fott,
And sports the charmingest gaiter boot,
And bonnet with feathers, and ribbons and


loops,


With any indefinite number of hoops.
None of your patent machines for me,
Unless Dame Natures the patentee
l like the sort that can laugh and talk,
And take my arm for an evening walk;
That will do whatever the owner may choose,
With the slightest percsptble turn Of the


screws.


One that can dance, and-possib' y-firt
And make pudding as well as ashirt;
One that can sing without droppinga stitch,
And play the housewife, lady or witch
Ready to give the sagest advice,
Or do up your collar and things 30 nice
What do you think of my machine?
Amt it the incest that ever was seen?
'Tisnt a clumsy, mechanical toy,
But flesh and blood hear that, my boy
With turn for gossip and household affairs,
Which include, you know, the sowing of tares.
Tut tut-dont talk ! I see you're in thrall
You needn't keep winking so hard at the wall;
] know what your fidgety fumblings mean;
Would you like yourself sewing machine
Well, get one, then-of the same design
There was plenty left where l got mine.
Year: 1877

The Vine-street barber said he had a
shampoo he could recommend, and for
family trouble or business cares, or any
thing like that, it would pick a man
right up by the hair and set him down
in Elysium so suddenly he would think
his mother-in-law had swallowed her
tongue and died of suffocation. 1t was
better for the brain than two barrels of
fish-oil, and had more inspiration in it
to the drop than seven-dollar champagne
or Democratic majorities, which the
same-that is the shampoo-would con-
ciliate and pacify man when you
couldn't touch him otherwise than with
graphing iron; 1t would take right
hold of one and appeal to the SYM
wooden leg. If you had wealthy rela-
tive in poor health, only get him into
that chair, and one dose of the sham
poo would make him go right to law
yer's Office and WI you twenty. thousand
dollars; and all iis for thirtyfive cents.
If you wanted tcsleep, it would put you
into doze as sweet as beeswax, and if
you wanted to feel particularly lively
and wide-awake for sharp trade ten
minutes rub with that immortal elixir
would make you swap swamp lot in
Texas for fve-story block on Fourth
street, or money cheerfully refunded !;
and if it was appetite you wanted you
could go way willing to bet you could
eat raw dog without salt. 1t was a
cheap preparation at thirty-fve cents.
Cheaper by fifty dollars month than
doctors bills. 1t would just take rheu-
matism by the neck and heels and throw
it clear over into Kaintuck, and bill
iousness couldn't even come to the front
gate. 1t would make an aching tooth
more pleasant than ball room, and as
for corns it would fairly render 'em a
source of inspiration. Tight boots would
become. as sandals of spicewood, and a
pain in the chest would stand on its
head and howl for joy. In affairs of the
the heart it was surer than Cupid, and
one customer who had only invested two
dollars in it was now happily married to
widow with three children and twenty
thousand dollars. Thirty-five cents was
dirt cheap for the preparation.


The man had just got through with a
breach of promise suit, and didn't in
vest
Year: 1877

A woman who had suffered barbarous
beatings from her husband, went to
noted wise man of the village to inquire
how she might cure those paroxysms of
violence. The soothsayer heard her
complaint. and after pronouncing some
hard words and using various gesticula-
tions while he filled phial with a mys-
terious mixture, desired her, whenever
her husband was in passion, to take a
mouthful of the liquor, and keep it in
her mouth for five minutes.


The woman, quite overjoyed at so
simply remedy, strickly followed the
counsel which was given her and escaped
the usual chastisements.


The contents of the bottle being al
last expended, she returned to the wise
man, and anxiously begged to have q
fresh supply of the same liquid.


You foolish woman" said the sooth
sayer, there was nothing in the bottle
but brown sugar and water. When you
husband is in passion, hold you
tongue. and, my life for it, he will no
lay finger upon you.u