smithclay/nortonstories huggingface dataset:
Year: 1874

For some time past thousands of per-
sons have been attracted to Willkesbarre,
Pa, by the unusual spectacle of a burn
ing coal-mine. The mine in question is
about mile from the city, and the scene
about the air-shaft, at the bottom of
which was placed the engine that set fire
to the coal, is one of utter desolation, the
earth for eight or ten acres in area hav--
ing sunk from 10 to - feet and cracked
open in many places, from which col
umns of smoke, steam and suffocating gas
are constantly issuing. The trees and
grass are all withered and scorched, the
earth having been nearly red-hot during
its fiercest burning. The place looks like
the crater of an extinct volcano, from
whose ragged edge immense cracks radiate
for several hundred feet in every direc-
ton, while strata of the hardest rock are
snapped off as if they were only pie-crust.
As the fire below burns away the support,
the surface continues to fall, and visitors
who venture near the crater and crevices
carry their lives in their hands, though
no life has yet been lost. About 40 rods
from the burning shaft is one that the
fire has not reached, and from the bottom
of this visitors are treated to vivid re-
presentation of the lake of fire and brim-
stone, for here are whole acres of glowing
coal. The supposed roar of the fire sounds
like distant waterfall. No smoke or
flame arises from this mass, except a
lambent blue blaze, that leaps up at fitful
intervals and dies out as soon as formed.
A large force of laborers has been EN-
ployed for weeks dumping earth into
those fissures through which the fire is
supplied with air, many thousand wheel
barrow-loads having been used for this
purpose, and on the north side of the
mine cars are loaded at the place of ex'
cavation, run on trestling to an opening
where it is dumped down a shute, and
then taken on other cars to where high
embankment is building to stop the fire
in that direction. As soon as the access
of air is completely stopped, the fire viii


gradually go out, and work will be re


sumed at the neighboring shafts.
Year: 1874

I stand in a darkened room before a
little casket that holds the silent form
of my frst-born. My arm is around the
wife and mother who weeps over the
lost treasure, and can not, till tears have
their way, be comforted. l had not
thought that my child would die-that
mn child could die. knew that other
children had died, but felt safe. We
laid the little fellow close to his grand
father; we strewed his grave with
flowers, and returned to our saddened
home with hearts united in sorrow as
they had never united in joy, and with
sympathies forever opened toward all
who are called to kindred grief. l
wonder where he is to-day, in what ma
ture of angelhood he stands, how he will
look when 1 meet him, how he will
make himself known to me, who has
been his teacher! He was like me !;
will his grandfather know him? l never
can cease thinking of him as cared for
and led by the same hand to which my
own youthful fingers clung, and as hear
ing from the fond lips of my own father
the story of my fathers eventful life. l
feel how wonderful has been the minis
try of my children, how much more
have learned from them than they have
learned from mellow by holding my
own strong life in sweet subordination
to their helplessness they have taught
me patience, selfsacrifice, selfcOntrol,
truthfulness, faith, simplicity and
purity.


All! this taking to ones arms little
group of souls, fresh from the hand OF
God, and living with them in loving
companionship through all eirstainles'
years, is, or ought to be, like living IN
heaven, for of such is the heavenly
kingdom. To one of these am / more in
debted than the boy who went away
from me before the world had touched
him With a stain. The key that shut
him in the tomb was the only key that
could unlock my heart, and let in
among its sympathies the world of sor
rowing men and women who mourn be
cause their little ones are not.


The little graves, alas, how many they
are! The mourners above them, how
vast the multitude! Brothers, sisters,
am one with you. / press your hands,
weep with you. trust with you. / be
long to you. Those waxen, folded hands
that still breast, so often pressed warn
to our own, those sleep-bound eyes which
have been so full of love and life, tina
sweet, unmoving, alabaster face-ah W,
have all looked on them, as they hav
made us one, and made us better. Their
is no fountain which the angel of heal
ing troubles with his restless and life
giving wings so constantly as the foun
tain Of tears, and only those too lame ant
bruised to bathe with the blessed in
fluence.-Dr. j. q. Holland.
Year: 1874

Strength of character consists of two
things; power of will and power of self
restraint. 1t requires two things, there
fore, for its existence; strong feelings and
a strong command over them. Now, we
all very often mistake strong feelings for
strong character. A man who bears all
before him, before whose wild burst of
fury the children Of the household quake,
because he has his own way in all things,
we call him n strong man, The truth Is,
he is weak man; IL is his passions that
are strong; he, mastered by them, is
weak.


You must measure the strength of q
man by the power of the feelings he sub
dues, not by the power of those that sub.
due him. And hence, composure is often
the highest resdlt of strength. Did We
ever see man receive fragrant injury,
and then reply calmly? That man i,
morally strong. Or did we ever see q
man in anguish stand as if carved out o.
solid rock, mastering himself? Or one
bearing a hopeless daily trial remain
silent, and never tell the world what
cankered his home peace? That II
strength. He who, with strong passions
remains chaste; he who, with indignation
within him, can be provoked and yet re
strain himself and forgive, those ar'
strong men, the moral heroes,
Year: 1874

A day or two ago gentleman riding
into this city came up with darkey on
the road, who proposed swapping horses
with him. The darkey's offer was one
not to be "sneezed at" and each horse,
in something less than directly" had
a new owner. On reaching the city, the
white man and the darkey parted COM
pany, and while riding about the city the
white man was approached by Deputy
Sheriff. who informed him that the horse
he was on belonged to Mr.. Turner,
near Dallas; that it had been stolen from
Mr.. r., and that the fact that he was on
a stolen horse furnished not the weakest
ground in the world for spotting him as
the thief. Protestations ofinnocence and
a circumstantial account of how he came
to be in possession of the horse were of
no avail. The "niggcr in the wood-pile,"
or the niger who had made the trade,
wasn't around, and the niggers sins of
commission fell upon the individual
present. So he went to Jail, and there
stayed all night. The next morning, on
being taken from the Jail to the Court
house for trial, who should he see but the
darkey he made the trade with, walking
along the street, leading the horse he had
traded for the one that had got him in
his "pickle." OF course, he at once
called the officers attention to the dar-
key, who, noticing that he was detected,
dropped the reins of the horse he was
leading, and st,rted gaily for the other
side of the river. A six-shooter quickly
covering him and demand to surrender
or ego up the spout" caused him to re-
turn humbly to his pursuer, who, on OBJ
tanning satisfactory evidence that it was
really the darkey and not the white man
who stole the horse, turned the latter
loose, and holds on to the former.-Ddt
las Teras) Herald.
Year: 1874

Printing book in China is done as
follows: Two pages are written by one
trained to the business, on sheet of thin
paper, divided into columns by black
lines, and in the space between the two
pages are written the title of the work
and the number of the chapter and page;
when the sheet has been printed it is
folded down through this space, so as to
bring the title, ETC., partly on each page.
The sheet, when ready for printing, is
pasted face downward on a smooth block
of wood, made usually from the pear or
plum tree. As soon as it is dry, the pa-
per is rubbed off with great care, leaving
behind an inverted impression of the
characters. Another workman now cuts
away the blank space by means of
sharp graver, and the block, with the
characters in high relief, passes to the
printer, who performs his work by hand.
The two points that he has to be most
careful about are, to ink the characters
equally with his brush and to avoid tear
ING the paper when taking the impression.
From good wooden block some fifteen
thousand copies may be printed, and
when the characters have been sharpened
up little, it is possible to obtain eight
or ten Thousand more impressions.
Year: 1874

Beyond question, we abuse our toes.
They are intended in the first place to
give fexibility to the foot, and help us
in our walking; but the modern custom
of cramping them up in tight shoes
makes them almost as immovable as If
they grew together. So the help they
give is not so much after all. And as for
putting them to any other use, we never
think Of it. We cramp and torture them
out of all likeness to their original state.
Who, for instance, could imagine that the
second toe was intended to be longer than
the first And yet in a perfectly formed
foot it always is, though we are obliged
to go to statues and paintings to find out
And who, putting foot and a narrow.
toed shoe side by side, would ever sus-
pect that they were intended for each
other? The fact is our toes are our most
abused members, and 80 we don't gel
half the good from them that we might
The Chinese and the japanese and Be
douin Arabs, it is said, from continual
practice, use their toes almost as we'll NJ
their hands. Arabs braid ropes with
their fingers and toes working in concert
Why, then, should we dispense with The
use of these natural aidsY
Year: 1874

The people who have reared large
families of children without any boys
and girls among them are unfortunate.
There are such people. A child with
out any childhood is a miserable little
animal, and the poorest compliment that
can be paid to boy-if it is true one
is that he is ga little man." have
read somewhere-perhaps it isa mistake
that fig makes its appearance upon
the tree fig, suffering no progressive
changes except to grow bigger. Once a
fig, always fig. do not think we want
any more human figs. First the baby,
then the breezy boy, then the boots, then
the bother, then the young man, then
the hope of the homestead-that is the
goodyold- order of development.
Not having the delight of sitting under
my Gown vine and fig tree" perhaps my
knowledge of figs is imperfect, but yet |
insist upon the boy. We do not want
him wise and profound and owl-like and
right-angle triangled. What becomes OF
the precocious children seven or eight
years older at their heads than they are
at their heels7 Once in hundred times
do they turn into anything at all-say
into men? Call the roll and see.
Year: 1874

Bayard Taylor writes to the New York
Tribune from Iceland "The common
people-if one has a right to use the word
common in referring to such people
are still something of puzzle to me.
Except among our Indian tribes, never
saw such stoical, Indifferent faces. They
watch us with curiosity which is in
tense, but never obtrusive, yet when / at
tempt to make nearer acquaintance
through the medium of Danish they are
shy and shrinking to such an extent that
they do not attempt to conceal it. The
average stature is short, not above five
feet six inches, complexion of coarse
ruddy brown, hair generally blonde and
straight, eyes blue or gray, body broad
short and compact, with short, sturdy
limbs, large hands and feet--in fact .
general aspect of rough vigor. and also o
something mole than that. What thi
something may be it will be my task t.
discover when we 90 into the interior o
the island"
Year: 1874

There is in the neighborhood of
Ridgewood an old gentleman who was
once Nimrod among the hunters. He
could shoot out a squirrels eye from the
top of the tallest hickory, nine shots
out Of ten. Indeed there was no limit
to his skill. He has been renewing the
sports of his youth for the past few
weeks, but as squirrels were scarce, and
his eyesite was dim, his game bag was
not well filled on his return home. He
has mischievous rascal of grandson,
who would ever play pranks on him, and
as he was wandering through the woods
day before yesterday, the youngster got
into the path before him and perched a
stuffed squirrel on the limb of tree,
tying it fast. AS the old man came
near, the youngster showed himself and
called attention to the squirrel. Phe old
man looked. "Sure enough there is a
squirrel" he remarked. " BE still; I'll
fetch him." And taking careful aim he
pulled the trigger. When the smoke
blew away there sat the squirrel with
his tail over his back, not in the least
disturbed. The old man loaded his gun
with great care and blazed away again.
The squirrel stood this fire with as much
equanimity as the first, only his tail
seemed to be broken and had fallen over
hisside. The old man was nonplused.
He did net, however, see his grandson,
who was rolling in cOnvulsiOns of laugh
ter behind a convenient log. He had
become warmed up to the sport and
thought of nothing else but fetching
that squirrel. The third shot cut the
cord that bound the squirrel to the tree
and he fell, not with the usual heavy
thud so well known to sportsmen, but
bouncing several feet into the air. This
aroused the old mans suspicious, and
going up to it, he found the true nature
of the sell. His change of position
brought him in full view of his affection
ate grandson, who was tearing up the
ground in his effort to laugh without
making a noise. A realizing sense of the
situation crept over the mind of the
venerable man. He cast his eyes on the
ground; they fell on piece of shingle,
which he picked up, and approaching
the cOnvulsed boy unawares, he affec-
tiOnately famed him couple of times
on the seat of his breaches. This brought
the youngster to perpendicular, and he
took to his heels, thereby escaping more
loving demonstrations. The old gentle
man could not help relishing the joke,
and tells the circumstances with greater
good will than one would suppose. The
boy is Just ten years old, and his grand
father declares that at some time he will
be President of the United States. He
now has most unbounded faith in the
abilities of that boy.
Year: 1874

THERE is n place in New Hampshire
where they never have any old maids.
When girl reaches twenty-nine, and is
still on the ladder of expectation, the
young fellows club together and draw
lots for her. Those who escape pay a
bonus TO the one who gets her,
Year: 1874

TO THE EDITOR OF THE HERALD:-


l have read communications in your paper of
Mr.. Sardine and Mr.. Crane. I am an actor, and
as such regret that any one in my profession
should take advantage of Mr.. Beecher's temporary
humiliation to revenge, in words, the wrong done
the late George Holland. Mr.. Holland needed no
defence. The voice of the whole country, stimu-
lated by Its noble press, did ample justice to the
occasion, and made it serve as lesson for all
time. / only hasten into print to reserve for my
procession the good opinion OF Mr.. Beecher. We
will not, in any case. make him the victim Of the
prosecutions we have occasionally received from
an overzealous and mistaken clergy. Their errors
have come from their secluslon and general igno-
rance or their subject. The increasing culture and
morale or The members OF the stage are daily re-
ceiving the recognition Of the intelligent anu re-
gious classes througnout the world We should
refrain from throwing mud at Henry Ward
Beecher for his greatness, fearlessness and iber-
ality in the past. Better for us had the entire
ministry fallen than him. sincerely hope he may
come out of the fire unhurt and pure, and that
husband ana wife may again unite in love on the
basis that these seemingly strong suspicious were
the mistaken visions OF a highly poetic yet over


wrought and sensitive temperament. Very truly
yours, GEOkGE NJ. Y. :
Year: 1874




Should Henry ward Beecner be at last hurled
from the exalted pinnacle of fame, what true
American heart could afford to exultf or what
stern morallst religiOnst possessing the spirit
OF the amor pdtr'iB could much OF Americas
slender stock of great men actually annihiiated
without feeling that the integrity OF his rigid prin-
clples had been indicated at a fearful cost


Henry Ward Beecher is truly great man-not
as the pastor OF Plymouth church alOne his great
ness Is not bounded by Brooklyns limits, New York
city, New York State or the United States. Borne
by the breeze and flashed on the wires NORTH
south, east and west to earth's remOtest corners,
have gone for a quarter of century the
almost oracuar thoughts oil his eloquent and ap-
parently neXhaustiOle mind. Millions have read
them and cherished them as aphorisms from
which TO derive guidance and courage in ltIe's
great struggles. His name, fruitful theme with
his cOuntrymen is never mentioned, even by
those who differ with him, Without an instructive
feeling of pride, reluctant concession to his
greatness which they


Cannot all conceal


And yet his name, SO illustriOus, so closely and
honorably identified with every vital event, evory
epocn in our history for years-thls name Which,
linked unto greatness, promises rich need OF
lame to the future blographer, IS In imminent dan
ger OF being stricken from Americas roll OF great
men. We Cannot afford 1t. 1t matters not that
this creed that sect may Indignantly arraign
him, or that u local committee may deprive him or
the means. through the Church, or increased local
usefulness because born in the flesh he may have
stopped from mis- high intellectual estate and sat
at the table OF those passions which are the lndis-
walked tins earth but One to whom trail 1esh was
but as a garment which might be put OIL or ON AT
VIM. And without passing upon the charges
against Mr.. Beecher, we do not claim Tor him the
attributes OF that precious and exalted One. What
IS alleged may be true; n SO, It is but the cover;
antAve cannot AFFORD to lose the book because the
cover Is stained. COSMOPOLlTAN
A Country Subscriber Reviews Mrs.
Year: 1874

The American Bible Society are making arrange.
ments to place copies of the Scriptures In railroad
trains and stations In large portion OF the
country, and to this end ass the cooperation OF
all State and local Bible societies. The plan OF
furnishing hotels with copies Of the Bible gratis IL
is reported has worked remarkably well and there
are lew large hotels IN majority OF the States OF
the Union which have not been provided for In
this respect Railroad travellers alone can tell
how irksome travel Is without entertaining liter.
rature, and the American Bible Society go on the
principle that the best and most wholesome read.
ing Is TO be found in the pages OF their CHIEF pub.


ication, and their Efforts to supply the travelling
millions with copies free to peruse on their
journey will doubtless be heartily seconded by
large proportion of the Protestant public
Year: 1874

bereaved by the loss OF near and dear ones lost
their all IN the deluge OF sunday night, and had
naught or little left to survive on themselves. and
they mad double loss to mourn-tnat oil relations
dead and the loss Of their property. which was
swept away. Nearly all OF the corpses were taken
from the undertaking establishments TO some
churcn, or directly TO the cemeteries where the
remains were to be deposited. .
Year: 1874

The women of New Orleans are probably
the most superb looking i'm America. They
are brunettes, the most and best of them.
with an elegance of carriage and figure, a
contour of feature and pose of manner that
are matchless. They say that the peasantry
in certain districts of Spain carry yet in their
faces the grandeur of the faded Castilian
noblesse. These New Orleans beauties,
lifted tenderly down a dozen generations of
close blood, are more queenly than the por-
traits OF their French mothers that have hung
for centuries in their parlors. Some OF them
are like chiselled, pencilled figures out of
marble, with the soft dash of Guido's brush
or of Petrarch's song In their faces, and the
ripe Southern blood flushing up to their
temples under the pure surface of their veins.
The exquisitness OF their style takes your
breath with an exclamation of admiration,
and sigh of relief as you pass. Their ma
tive city and State are the horizon of society
and of the world to these superb creatures
they are reared under the solemn shadow of
Catholicism; they are local in their attach
ments as Venetians; their culture is narrow,
but they gather in their loins the gate OF
expresses, and in their eyes that glance
filled with the wisdom, the cunning, the re-
finement, the magic of womanhood.
Year: 1874

When Tennessee husband will horse
whip his wife for washing potatoes in his
Sunday plug hat, it is time to inquire
whether this generation of men isn't
getting to be confounded high-toned for
the age of the country.
Year: 1874

pursuit of hunting and trapping. Such
is the true history of the famous Jesse
Bells bear encounter, with its fight of
unparalleled ferocity, its long journey,
wonderful for the endurance of the suf-
ferer and the attendants, and its remark
able elimination to the complete recov-
cry OF the injured.
Year: 1874

uCIlcc vi NIL JOull 1illl, VII
street, Philadelphia, the Rocor1 says, was
the scene of an occurrence one day last
week, which was much ore exciting than
pleasant, and which might have resulted
in very serious consequences. The gen
tlenln in question was the owner OF IL
Splitter dog, which was the special pet of
his little daughter. The animal was no
ticed by the servants on this morning to be
frothing ut the mouth, and otherwise act
ing in II strange manner, but nothing was
said about it at the time. In the afternoon
lady called. and was shown into the
parlor to wait until the lady of the house
came down. While sitting there, she was
startled by crash, and the dog, which
had been in the yard, leaped into the
parlor. having bounded through the back
window, shivering thick pane OF glass
in its passage. lie dashed past the vis-
tor and into the hall. The lady, with
great presence of mind ran to the door
ind screamed up stairs that something was
the matter with the dog, and her friend
and one of the servants who were at the
head of the stairs. had just time to get
back into an upper room and close the
door as the dog, in his "eyeless rage
dashed against it. The lady down stairs
also closed the parlor door, and the cook
in the dining-ro0m locked herself in that
apartment, while the maddened animal,
having the run of the halls and stairways,
dashed up and down in the most terrible
manner, throwing himself against the
doors with force that threatened their
fastenings. This continued for some
time. there being no one in the house but
the four beleaguered females, until the
lady in the parloc sacrificed dignity to Sc
cure safety, and made her escape through
the parl0r window. Assistance was final.
ly obtained in the shape of Al policeman,
who entered the house, also through
the window, and the dog, which at this
time had gone into IN open room, had the
door closed upon him and his fate was
sealed. A rope with IL slip-noose was pro-
cured, the door partially opened, and the
loop, after some manGuvering, was sue
cessfully thrown round his neck. He was
then dragged into position that enabled
policeman, with IL few wcll-directed
blows Of Il billy, to settle his dogship, and
the scattered and frightened inmates of
the house were enabled to come forth
and once more move about in safety.
Whether the animal was really rabid, or
only suffering from a fit ola more harm
less nature, will never be known.