smithclay/nortonstories huggingface dataset:
Year: 1873

About a week ago a widow woman
named Gathner, living in the Sixth Ward,
met male acquaintance on Gratiot street
and complained to him that she was out
of flour and wood, and almost dis
couraged. He told her she ought to mar
ry again, and she said she couldn't find a
husband "I'll sell you at auction" he
continued, "and We'll put in a proviso
that the highest bidder shall court you for
week in order that you may know him"
The woman laughingly consented, and
the man mounted box and began crying
out. A crowd assembled and he stated
the facts in the case, saying that he had
known her for years; knew her to be in
dustrious and of good character and then
he opened the sale. Bidding was lively,
and everybody in great humor In the
crowd was an old bachelor named Peter
D. Joslyn, boarding on Maple street, and
he was the only one took the joke as a
real fact. He jumped the bidding from
43 cents 10 S5, and then raised it to $S.
The auctioner cried "last call" on that
figure, and the widow was knocked
down" Joslyn handed her the money,
agreed to the proviso, and then treated the
whole crowd, none of whom had a thought
that marriage would take place. One
did, however, take place yesterday morn
ing, after the terms of the proviso had
been faithfully carried out. And while it
is quite certain that Joslyn has found a
good helpmeet the bridegroom's friends
say that he is sober, steady, good-tempered,
and well off.-Detr0at Free Press.
Year: 1873

WHO that regularly reads the newspa-
pers says Philadelphia journal, has not
been struck with those many-named col
umns into which the news of all the world
is compressed? Variously styled in various
newspapers, they aim to grasp and fOcalize
the news of everything and everybody,
everywhere, and to present it in as small
and telling space as possible. They
carry the reader in breath from Indus to
the Pole, and hurry him along from SEN
tence to sentence, to conduct him in
trice to antipodes Of thought. The reader
never thinks, as his eyes take their rapid
Journey down the columns, of the care,
the pains, the taste, the skill, the patience
necessary to reduce those items to attract
i've shape. The scissors and the paste do
great deal Of the work, it is true, but
the brain helps more than it is given
credit for. Fancy and imagination and
judgment have to play their part The
scissors dart instinctively at "goed"
item, and the brains step in and decide
whether it's publication would be judi
cious. Is the item old? Has it ever APP
peared before? Is it nice and fresh and
crisp and sparkling? What position shall
it hold with regard to the other items?
Has another on the same subject been al
ready clipped out? Might not the phrase
ology be changed, so as to bestow point
and pith? Could piquant joke be tag
ged on? Again, when the selection is
done, and the items-personal, miscel-
laneous, religious, theatrical and what not
are all arranged in order, will they
make glittering and systematic whole,
over which the eye will delight to rove,
like bird from flower to flower. All
these things have to be considered in at
tending to the "item" department of a
newspaper The tastes of every possible
reader must be anticipated. Since it takes
all sorts of people to make world-a
truism of profounder meaning than is
generally appreciated-it takes all sorts
of items to make wspaper.-DGily
Graphic
Year: 1873

1t is precisely in proportion that the
local press is independent and influential
and our citizens are fully informed that
the Republican party has been sustained,
and therefore to strike at the country
press would be in the nature of removal
of one of its main pillars.


The village paper has converted thous-
ands of youths into readers, writers and
thinkers, who would have been utterly
Indifferent to literature if they had not
chance to appear In print upon some To-
cal subject in their boyhocd or girlhood
years. A town without paper is non
entity; it is sleepy hollow without a
poet to usher it into fame. As soon as a
village becomes ambitious to attract it,
share of emigration, and to secure to its
citizens their share of political influence,
a paper becomes necessity, and good
paper has frequently brought insignif-
cant villages to the attention of the en-
tire country.


Strangers always judge the enterprise
and business prospects of Village by the
character of its papers. If its advertise.
ments consists chiefly of patent medicine
and other foreign advertisements, and



mortgage and chancery sales, it is notice
of "hands off," but il its columns are
we'll filled with interesting reading, local
items, have live home advertisements, the
verdict is at once, this must be live
place, just the home for an enterprising
and educated man.


One of the chief means to secure i'm
migration to new places is the sending OF
the village paper to acquaintances and
friends in the East. If the most enter
prising citizens of our Western villages
were to subscribe for several hundred
copies to be sent to former friends they
would secure a steady flow of most val
liable immigration.


It is true the reasons we have given
why the country press should be literally
supported, are only such as have occurred
to US all, and have probably been stated
in better form hitherto, but when this
great and benefcent interest is threatened
with adverse legislation, it is necessary
tonrestate the case.
Year: 1873

A Virginia paper reports that during
the exhibition Of travelling menagerie
aud circus in town of that State, where
there was, at the time, some religious
convocation in session, the painted jester
of the equestrian ring illustrated his
own serious capacity and greatly affected
an audience, in which many church
members were present, by delivering
the following homily: 3


My Friends: We have taken in six
hundred dollars here to-day; more money,
l venture to say, than any minister of
the gospel in this community would re-
ceiye for whole years services. A
large portion of this money was given by
church members, and a large portion of
this audience is made up of members OF
the church. And yet, when your preach.
er asks you to aid in supporting the
gospel, you are too poor to give anything.
Yet you come here and pay dollars to
hear me talk nonsense | am a fool be-
cause am paid for it: | make my living
by it. You profess to be wise, and yet
you support me in my folly. But per-
haps you say you did not come to see
the circus, but animals. If you come
simply to see the animals, why did you
not simply look at them and leave?
Now, is this not a pretty place for Chris
tians to be in? Do you not feel ashamed
of yourselves? You ought to blush in
such place as this.


The sensation following speech ike
this, in such place, from such speak
er, may be imagined. The local clergy
availed themselves of the spirit thus pro-
duced and a religious revival was at
tempted.
Year: 1873

Hard times may be blessing in dis
guise. Some men will only learn in the
school Of adversely. When men are
pinched, the great law of necessity comes
to their relief and makes it easy to prac-
tice economy and to save. Money is made
BY saving and not by extravaganza OF
living. The loss of credit and resources
restrains from speculation and debt, and
greatly stimulates mankind to exertion.
There are few men among us that re-
member the hard times that followed
the war Of 1872, and many more that
remember the hard times that were
brought about by the speculations OF 1889.
In both cases it took the country ten
years to recover from them. 1t did not
take so long to recover from the revulsion
of 1857, because the country had grown
and was full of wealth, and that revulsion
was caused by the destruction of conf.
dence, and not by loss of wealth. 1t was
not bank paper that produced it, but over.
trading and speculation, and hence it only
affected those in debt, and deprecated
securities and property for time, which
soon came back to their real value. 1t
is so now; the country is full Of real
wealth, and we have nothing to fear but
the loss of confidence" by overtrading
and debt. If we go too fast and get
set back for time, it may induce econ
omy, stimulate TO greater exertion, and
so be blessing in disguise. Most people,
however, dislike the medicine, and we
confess it is unpleasant to take, and pos
sibly little fasting and abstinence for
a season may save us from the necessity.
Year: 1873

For some time past, it has been the
custom of certain gentlemen selected te
defend parties charged with murder te
bring into court the wife and children oI
the accused, with the hope..that the des


pair of the wife and the childish and un.
conscious prattle of the children might
touch the stony hearts of the jury and
soften the inexorable emblem Of Justice
on the bench. This black-robed, black
yelled figure has been familiar In all
murder trials. We have seen it time
and time again. She remains there from
the first day, silent, bowed down, sorrow
full. Who can resist her To look at
her the jury is apt to forget all sorrow
but hers, aud endeavors only to assuage
her too apparent agony. We have seen
many juries enter into the jury box reso-
lutte to render their verdict by the law
and the evidence. We have rarely seen
one, under such circumstances, that has
not taken the black.robed, black vailed,
bowed down figure as an element In their
iud sment, and, thereby, softened into
weakness Now, this is all wrong. We
do not say that this sorrowful woman is
humbug. The wife Of man whose
lawless passions have led him to murder,
deserves pity what is more, she needs
it, poor woman. But there is another
side to the picture "a side. by the way,
clearly enough shown by the District
Attorney the short time ago in the
Nixon trial. The prisoners wife had
children-one, indeed, of the latter, a
girl, being continually with her father
was there to melt, er cathedra, the court
and the jurors. On the last day the
District Attorney turned the tables. He
introduced the widow-not the widow
that was to be-but the actual widow,
Mrs. Pleifer. Certainly, she had the
first right to be in court of justice.
Mrs. Pfeifer divided the attention of the
jury with Mrs. Nixon; and, as her grief
was at least as great as the latter's and
her wrong was far greater, she moved
the sympathies of that body. We believe
that the Nixon jury were right We
hold both women to be unhappy. But
we look at the great principle of the law
that the guilty man shall suffer for his
crime. Hereafter, ifthe play ofsympathy
is to be presented, let all the characters
be introduced two widows and the
two sets of children ~ y Neacs.
Year: 1873

DR.. T. sent by mail, bottle Of HON.
eopathic pellets to patient, with the
usual direction to the postmaster, '1f
not taken return in ten days." printed
on the corner of the envelope. He was
not little surprised to receive on the
eleventh day, the half empty bottle, with
a note from the patient, saying that he
had returned them as requested, although
they bad done him great deal of good,
and be should have been glad to have
taken them little longer.
Year: 1873

Stealing the gosple" is now defined
to be going regularly to church with
out paying for the privilege. But to the
poor the gosple is preached freely, and
they only can be said to steal it who are
able to pay for it and do not.
Year: 1873

SINGULAR ATTEMPT Al mOhDEh ON LIE EAoi oiDE


THE AssAIIANT SHOOTS HIMSELF.


AS Joseph Schneider was sleeping soundly in


room of a boarding house at No. 80 Avenue A, at 1880
a. M, yesterday lie was awakened by feeling sharp
edged weapon glide swiftly his face, and became
aware that some one standing beside his bed. The
unknown assaian drew back his rs II to strike an
other blow with the weapon he had already used when
Schneider threw up both arms to protect his head The
weapon descended Its blade cutting deep cash In the
back Of bis hands Schneider instantly eaped out of the
bed and avoiding another blow aimed at his head fed
from the and along hallway leading to the room
Of fellow boarder Jacob Witzig AS he trying TO
opon Wzlgs door, which was locked, he heard pistol


fred in his room. He thought that tho shot was aimed
ut him and in terror shouted "Murder." The cry
awakened others the house. who from their beds
ana hurried into the Railways At this moment another
pistol shot heard in schneders room, and some
thing fell heavily the floor Several occupants OF the
house at once the street. and by their cries Of
terror the spot Patrolmen Reilly and Qugey
OF the Seventeenth Precinct Police. The officers entered
the house aud went 70 the room where tue
attempt murder had taken place. On the moor they
found sn insensibe man, who was apparently dylhg
from wound In the center or his Ioreneaa WI wdere D
doubtless bullet had entered from revolver found on
the floor byihis side Schneider was brought into the
room and to his horror Instantly recognized In the
wounded his roommate George Lahr, age 40, a


schneider then told the officers that he could not ac,
count for the attack Lahr upon himself The wounded


man he had been good friends and had never quar-
relied. The only explanation that ne cOud give OF the
strange affair was that Lahr temporarily insane.


He had been out Of employment for the two months pre-
vous and had lately become very despondent because
OF his failure to get work. 1t accordingly inferred
that his despondency might have led TO osanity. On
the floor OF the there was also found saber pay
onet covered with blood, which was evidently the
weapon Labr used his attack Schneider. The oo-
cnpnts OF the house confirmed Schneiders statements
In respect 20 the friendship between hlm and Lahr


The wounded men were taken TO Bellevue Hospital,
where IL was found that Schneider wounded slightly
on the hands aud chin. Lahr paray 5ed from the
wound In head and the surgeons declared that no
could mol recover.
Year: 1873




Commissioner Van Mort, accompanied by
number OF interested in the laying out
Of the East Side Boulevard visited yesterday the entire
region included in the Legislative act laying out the
boulevard in order decide upon the best to be
followed. Among those present were Assembyman
Crary ex Judge Welsh, and Messrs. MCGOWAN. Boyd
Hnderbrand, Wheeler, and Dodge After riding over
the whole ground from Elghty-sixth 10 One-hundred
andsxteenth-st it was unanimously agreed that the
contemplated boulevard should not be laid out for the
purpose OF pleasure drive alone, but that 1t
should follow such would make
the avenue commercial highway, afording
the quickest means Of east side transit between
Yorkylle and Harlem and that to this end 1t should
follow in measure the OF the wide avenues al
ready laid out Commissioner Van Mort stated that his
views were similar and that he felt that an additional
benefit would result from such course as only little
private property would have 10 be purchased and the
expense OF LAYING out the Boulevard would thus De
materially reduced 1t agreed that the lower p0r
ton OF the Boulevard should take such course as would
make direct communication between the point where
Avenue terminates at the river In the Vicinity OF
and the point where Avenue resumes
its course at seeond,st, the lntermed
ate space consisting at present OF low marsh, when
runs back First and SecOndaves. The course OF the
Boulevard that neghborhood would thus be- semi cir
cnar and follow directly the water 'front.' IL was agreed
tnat this course should be followed far should be
deemed practicable by the engineers OF tn Department
OF Public Works who, 1t stated by Mr. Van Mort, Will
Immediately begin the preliminary surveys.
Year: 1873




One of the most alarming cases OF
somnambulism with which we are familiar
is that of the prize package boy who op-
crates on the Norristown railroad, in
Philadelphia. By some extraordinary
combination Of circumstances, this child
of sin was induced to go to church few
Sundays ago, and while listening to the
sermon he fell asleep in the back pew
where he sat. There lad been Sunday
School meeting there before church, and
all the Bibles and missionary newspa-
pers were piled up in that particular
pew. Suddenly this remorseless young
orphan picked up bundle of the papers
in his sleep and began to walk up the
aisle, throwing one into each pew as he
went along. When he got under the lee
of the pulpit he stopped and waited two
or three minutes. The minister looked
cross-eyed at him and glared at him
through his spectacles, but the young
brigaIld was unconscious. Then he glided
down the aisle and amazed the congre-
gatioA BY ypMpyiRg the papers from each
pew. When be reaehed the rear he
seized an armful Of Bibles and rambled
up the aisle again, tossing them at the
occupants of the pews.


Resting again under the pulpit, and
wholly indifferent 10 the circumstance
that the clergyman's eyes again were
out of their natural straight position,
and were making his spectacles look
like double-barrelled locomotive head
light, the infant brigand pranced down
the aisle the seaand time, yelling Here's
yer prize packages only ten oentsi each
one contains a prize worth from ten
cents to ten dollarsl" and grabbing for
the bible as he proceeded The min
lister waved his hand at one of the
deacons; the deacon and the sexton
charged on that boy, and the organlst
tells us the three scudded down that
thoroughfare at the rate OF fifteen knots
an holr, while the sexton shock the boy
up and the DEACON boxed his ears, and
wished it was not wicked to swear.
Then they took him up into the steeple
and killed him. We are not certain
that they killed him, but we think they
did, of course for that is the only way
in which he could be kept quiet. We
would have butchered him long ago If
we could only have got him alone in a
steeple aomewhere,
Year: 1873

Not long ago died the Colonel Russell
known in the Southwest as Owl hus-
sell" who was once Henry Clay pri-
yate secretary. He was man OF IN
tense egotism, whose chief object in life
was to be admired and notorious.
Years and years ago, while in the Mis-
souri, Legislature he got the sobriqnet
which olung to him all the rest Of his
life. and actually carried him out Of his
political career. Il was during a NO
lent debate in which be had shown ab-
surd pomposity that one Of his political
cozlrsdes rose and quietly told a little


story. He said that one night Russell,
while travelling through the woods lost
his way, and being a stranger in that
part Of the country, became rather ner-
y0us. While in this sorry plight be
suddenly heard voice not far
away, calling out Who, who, who
are you2" The answer vas loud and
Year: 1873

AZ A man may borrow money, steal
from widow, discount his own whisky
bill, nip prayer book from dying
hoathen, and still have some chance Of
pardon, but when he swindles a printer
out Of his bill, we think the devil has
such a firm grip on the seat Of his pan
falcons that repentance and forgiveness
are utterly out Of the question
Year: 1873

AL hCt COuOSihiuS OS""o'


Be it enacted by the Senate and house Of
,>aentatives of the State Of South Caro-
lima now met and sitting in General Assem-
blv and by tie authority of the same:


SECTION l. That the General Assembly
,ball lew at each regular session thereof,
an annual special tax, 20 be known and de-
signated as the school tax, on all taxable
property throughout the State, for the sup
mort and maintenance Of free common
schools, which tax shall be collected at the
same time. and in the same manner, and by
the same agents as the general State tax
and which tax shall be paid into the treasury
of the State.


Sec 2. That it be declared misdemeanor
on the part Of the State treasurer to apply
or appropriate any funds or moneys derived
FROM. or collected, or received on account OF,
said school tax, for any purpose or purposes
whatsoever, except that of free common
schools: and, on conviction thereof, he shall
nav fine of not less than Ave thousand dol
lars, (S5.OOO,) the same to be used for
school purposes. and shall be imprisoned at
the discretion of the court


Sec 3. That the State treasurer snail 1ur-
nish to the State superintendent of educa-
tion, annually, on or before the first Tuesday
of March Of each year, except the present
wear, which shall he the first day of April, a
certified statement showing the amount OF
moneys collected or received by him on az
count of said school tax.


Sec 4 That it shall be the duty Of the
State superintendent of education to appor-
tion, as the law specifies, the free common
school funds of the State among the several
counties thereof.


Sec. 5. That it shall be the duty Of each
county school commissioner to apportion, ac-
cording TO law, the free common school funds
of his county among the several school dis.
tricts thereof: Provided, That any school
district believing itself wronged by such ap
portionment may appeal to the State superin
tendent of education whose decision shal
be final


Sec. 6. That it shall be the duty of each
eounty treasurer to report monthly, on thu
18th day of each month, to the county schoo
commissioner of his county, the amount u
collections and disbursements made by hin
for the month on account of poll tax and al
other school funds; and it shall be misde
meanor on the part Of my county treasure
TO neglect, fail or refuse to make such re
port; and, on conviction thereof, he shal
pay . 6us 6 MT less than Eve 6aRdyv8 dva
Year: 1873

PROFESSOR AGAssIZ ON THE NEGRO
While Darwin can ''evolve" the whole
animal kingdom, man included, from single
low form Of life, Agassiz considers it neces-
sary to assume separate creations for the
different races Of men; but we cannot see
that either has yet made out his case.
Agassiz calls the Darwinian theory ga miro
of assertion;" what would Darwin say of the
following, which the Scientific Press, of San
Francisco, quotes from recent lecture by
Agassiz


Il have pointed out over hundred
specific differences between the bonal and
nervous systems Of the white man and the
negro. Indeed. their frames are alike in no
particular, There is no bone in the negro's
body which is relatively of the same shape.
size, articulation, or chemically Of the
composition as that of the white man. The
ncgro's bones contain far greater proportion
of calcareous salts than those of the white
man. Even the negro's blood is chemically
very different fluid from that which courses
in the veins of the white man. The whole
physical organization of the negro differs
quite as much from the white mans, as it
does from that of the champanzee-that is,
in his bones, muscles, nerves, and fibres.
the champanzee has not much farther to pro-
gress to become a white man. This fact
science inexorably demonstrates.


Climate has no more to do with the diff
ference between the white man and the negro
than it has with that between the negro and
the champanzee, or it has between the horse
and the ass, or the eagle and the owl. Each
is distinct and separate creation. The
negro and the white man were created as
specifically different as the owl and the eagle.
They were designed to fill different places in
the syatem of nature. The negro is no more
a negro by accident or misfortune than the
owl is the kind of bird he is by accident or
misfortune The negro is no more the white
mans brother than the owl is the sister Of
the eagle, or the ass the brother ofthe horse.
How stupendous, and yet how simple, is the
doctrine that the Almighty maker of the
universe has created different species oimen,
Just as He has different species of the lower
animals, to fill diffcnt places and Offices in
the grand machinery of nature