The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

K ^ -A", , '* ' " V* * * *>\ *> r»- • . ,J*r*U V, ! J5jp ^ *; 3 •••. ,* / •.. \ <i f;\J E 1| »'-V • >V ' ,. yC •«* -v'-u ; • ' - - ' ; . • * . t T f ' •* * S^*;' • %:' -lyipji^A.iBi^srATi! CWIIEF COMPILATION JdP NOIS NEWS!. * »LU- . jfiodse Initiation,May Result in Death iV_ ; ,-Par mer Murdered in His Bngtfy- »'•.'. . ̂ Decision 2>antec Against Insurance Com* Throws a Train Off the Track* ' Dr. William P. Sensibaugh, a dentist of fc * . ¥ort Byron, is in a serious condition as a result of pranks played tapon him while l»eing initiated in a fraternal insurance lodge in that village, puring the initia­ tory ceremonies he was blindfolded and given several slight shocks from a live wire. The bandage over his eyes having tlecome loosened, he sought to outwk those who were having fun at his expense by locating the wire and attempting to avoid f ft One of the initiating team, seeing the candidate was about to evade the wire, gave him a little shove, which unfortu­ nately proved sufficient to throw him off ids balance, and he fell hands down upon the battery itself, receiving a shock which tendered "him unconscious. After work­ ing over him for two hours and finally re­ viving him it was discovered that his right Arm hung limp and loose, and in this con­ dition it has remained ever since. Sev­ eral days later the doctor was stricken With an affection of the pneumogastric nerve. The other night he was in a seri­ ous condition and it became necessary to beat and chafe him and stand him on his . head to secure circulation and action of the heart and lungs until sf doctor arrived. Since then he has been kept up mainly . through electrical treatment. I - Killed as He Rode Along) ' .Gebrge S. Harrison, a prominent farm- 4* of Upper Alton, was murdered the oth­ er night. He drove to Bethalto to attend to some business. He left that place about (4 o'clock in the afternoon. Shortly after <J o'clock his horse and buggy came into .Upper Alton and Harrison was laying on the seat dead, .with two bullet holes in Ms forehead. His money, watch and oth­ er valuables were not disturbed, and it was evidently the work of an assassin. The reins were wound around the whip in the buggy socket when the horse brought the body home, t indicating that the dead man had stopped to talk when shot. The bullet entered from under the jaw, show- fag that the victim had thrown back his head in trying to avoid a missile. The further fact was ascertained that the as­ sassin led the horse carefully down the hill, just beyond the point where the shooting was done, to prevent the body from being thrown out in the roadway. Harrison was active in politics, and was fctiown to have made several political ene­ mies. His friends think the assassin will prove to be one of these enemies, if cap­ tured. He was 60 years of age and leaves * family of three grown daughters. Hounds are now following the murderer's trail. To Aid the State Children. The results of the conference of the Illinois State Board of Charities at Kan­ kakee were inade known when Dr. F. H. Wines said after the deliberations that he would ask on behalf of the State board that the Legislature extend the sphere of the Lincoln school for the feeble-minded By the establishment of an epileptic col­ ony and a State Board of Guardians to look after the dependent children after they had passed the probationary period In the State schools. The following offi- • cers were elected for the ensuing year: President. William A. Taleott. Rockford; r^gice-presidents, Judge O. N. Carter. Clii- Sgo: Mrs. H. Candee, Cairo; secretary, rs. H. P. Rainey, Carrollton: legislative fbmmittee, Dr. Jenkin Lloyd Jones, Chi­ cago; Dr. F. H. Wines, Springfield; B. M. Chipperfield, Lewiston; George Hobson, Danville. Wreck la Caused by a Cow. i An outgoing pasenger train on the Big ' S'our. leaving Alton at 6:55 p. m., struck ij cow at the Wood river bridge, near Al- < ton, and was precipitated into the river. Every one of the twelve passengers on hoard was hurt. Those considered seri- TSusly injured are: James Long, Alton, legs broken and shoulder dislocated; Miss EiOuise Hess, Pana, scalp wound and Spinal injury; George Dorsey, Gillespie, •boulder and arm broken; Mrs. Steve Dor- Sey, Gillespie, collar bone broken and r Scalp wound; Mrs. Budenbecker, Beth- alto. severe scalp wound; Emma and Ollie Clawson, Edwardsville, ribs broken and spinal injuries. Insurance Companies Beaten. At Ottawa, Judge Blanchard has de­ cided the Heenan test insurance case, in Which the point involved was whether or not store fixtures are a part of the build­ ing and therefore real estate, or purely personal property, in favor of the D. Hee­ nan Company, increasing the amount to he paid by the defendant Niagara com­ pany and its associates from $32,500 to $39,000. As this point has never been decided by the local courts, the case is now to go before the appellate court, and will go thence to the Supreme Court for final hearing. State Tax Kate Is Decided. The Governor and the Auditor of Pub­ lic Accounts at Springfield have computed the rate per cent to be levied "on the equal­ ized assessment of property for State pur­ poses for the year 181)8 as follows: For general State purposes. 42 cents on each $100; for school purposes, 14 cents on each $100, making an aggregate State tax rate of 56 cents on each $100. This is 10 cents less in the aggregate than last year. Brief State Happening* At Charleston, Carter Martin, who mur­ dered Albert Buser, was sentenced to be banged Dec. 16. Capt. James M. North, supervisor of Clintonia township, was found dead in . his grape arbor. Gov. Tanner has announced the appoint­ ments of Major John J. Funkhouser to succeed Lieut. Col. Swift of the Ninth Ninth regiment. Illinois vohrtiteers, pro­ moted. and James E. Hill of Lincoln to succeed Funghouser as major. Judge John Virgin; 60 years old. of Prentice, was found, dead in the toilet room of a Missourj Pacific train coming into St. Louis. He was discovered when the train was near Chamois, Mo., and heart failure is thought to have caused his . death. The State convention of Daughters of Itebekah elected ,the following officers: President. Mrs. Effie A. Glazier. Chicago; Tice-president, Mrs. Olive J. C. Black- man. Harrisburg; warden, Mrs. Ipva R. Withey, Springfield; secretary, Mrs. Lola L. Rickard, Olney; treasurer, Mrs. Carrie IS. Skaggs, Harrisburg. The Illinois Steel Company lias begun the manufacture of bridge and structural : :§teel work at its plant in South Chicago. "This company is now in the market as an active competitor of the Carnegie for con­ tracts for supplying those products, Stephen C. Spaulding of Villa Ridge, , formerly a leading jeweler of Janesville, Wis., shot himself on his daughter's grave in Oak Hill cemetery in that city. He jr Was visiting there and appeared cheerful. /, jHe left letters to"a brother, son and -sev- ^••tjpral friends, giving directions as to his funeral. He had abundant means and „|Was universally respected. No cause is fcnown for the deed. . He was about 75 »esra oUL , •• - , Early next qontii State Senator John Humphrey will be married to Miss Ids Stuart, who Uvea with her brother in Chi cago. The 14-year-old son of Ole Nelson, re­ siding ten miles.southeast of Vanddlia, committed suicide by hanging himself to a rafter in the barn. Gov. Tanner has appointed Lieut Col. Eben Swift of the Ninth Illinois volun­ teers to succeed Casimer Andel, resigned, as colonel of the Fourth Illinois, now a! Tampa, Fla. John Ruddell, a barber, committed sui­ cide by hanging himself in a stall undei the grand stand at the Valparaiso, Ind., fair grounds. He came from Chicago and was 45 years old. At 10 o'clock the other night work was begun to raise the Iron Cluff, which sunk in Lake Michigan off Chicago a week be­ fore. One hour later she was towed into the river, apparently in good shape, de­ spite her experience in the gale. Rev. Bishop John L. Spalding of Peoria, assisted by Fathers Heitman and Dreis of Peoria, Butterman of Metamora, Paul and Humphreys of Pekin. confirmed a class of fifty-one young people at the Ger­ man Catholic Church at Pekin. Mjss Lena Illg. teacher in the Salem Evangelical school at Quincy, has accept­ ed the position of governess of ex-Presi­ dent Cleveland's children and will assume her new duties Dee. 1. She is to teach the ex-President's children German. The Fox River Valley Medical Society held its sixty-seventh semi-annual meet­ ing in Aurora. Dr. C. L. Smith of Au­ rora was elected president, Dr. Bumsted of Dundee vice-president, and Dr. Rob- bins of Aurora secretary and treasurer. Maj. Gen. Thomas O. Osborn recently brought to Chicago a shield valued at thousands rif dollars which was presented to him in 1881 by the Argentine Republic in recognition of his part in adjusting the boundary line differences between that country and Chili. L. B. Copeland was elected president of the Western Society of the Army of the Potomac at its fourth annual meeting held at the Sherman House in Chicago. An address on "Imperialism in 1861 and 1898," by Col. Charles A. Clark of Cedai Rapids, was a feature of the evening. The Illinois Central passenger train due in Areola at 2:17 p. m., was whirling through the country one recent afternoon when an unknown man took deliberate aim and sent a bullet crashing through a coach window, narrowly missing two pas­ sengers and burying itself in the wood­ work of the car. The train was stopped and a search made for the man, but he could not be found. At the session of the Odd Fellows' grand lodge in Springfield the election of officers was completed as follows: Grand secretary, J. R. Miller. Springfield; grand treasurer, T. B. Needles, Nashville; grand representative. Cicero J. Lindley, Green­ ville. The salaries of the grand officers, with the exception of that of treasurer, which is nominal, were reduced one-third. The cut applies to per diem and mileage of delegates. A constitutional amendment was adopted limiting the amount that may be levied for orphans' and old folks' homes to 60 cents per capita. A levy to the limit will procure about $32,000. Charles Kimball, alias Gus Robert, sen tenced to the penitentiary for burglaries committed in Momence, and Leonard For- chester of Chicago, charged with horse stealing, broke out of the Kankakee Coun ty jail at Kankakee the other morning. The men forced the lock of their cell and dug through a twenty-four-inch wall un­ derneath a window of the main corridor Kimball was in solitary confinement, as he h^d made three previous efforts to es­ cape. Forchester slipped into Kimball's cell unobserved as the prisoners were be­ ing locked up. He deceived the jailer by a dummy left in his bed in the adjoining cell. The Chicago police department has ren­ dered a report on the number of bicycles stolen from Chicago owners during the wheeling season of 1898. Sergeant Palm­ er of the central station has general charge of the work of recovering purloin­ ed wheels and reports that 9i)0 bicycles have been taken from their rightful own­ ers since July 1. Hardly half this num­ ber has been recovered. Chicago bicycle thieves have become very expert. The stolen wheels are taken apart and then parts of the same kind of bicycles are put together so cunningly as entirely to de­ ceive the original owners. Tie reassem­ bled wheels are then easily sold. The grand encoinpinent of the State of Illinois I. O. O. F„ in. session at Spring­ field, elected and appointed the following officers: Grand patriarch, Robert A. Smith, Chicago; grand high priest, Chas. M. Lyttle, Decatur: grand senior warden, George A. Seeley. Prairie City; grand scribe, John C. Smith, Chicago; grand treasurer, John P. Foss, Chicago; grand junior warden. H. W. Pemberton. Gala- tia; representatives to foreign grand lodge, W. E. Carlin, Jerseyville, and J. D. Mur­ phy, Bushnell; grand sentinel, Chris Cross, Tuscola; grand outside sentinel, J. E. Morris. Chicago; grand marshal, Thos. Wood. Princeton. Terms of officers of subordinate encampments were fixed at six months instead of one year. W. S. McCaull, a Chicago lawyer, and his brother, S. J. McCaull of Joliet. have been ih Freeport looking up evidence with which the.vAope to make a showing at the January session of the board of pardons that will secure the release from the pen­ itentiary of Frank Harris, the forme* well-known ball player, who is serving a life sentence for the murder of Charles Bengel there May 19> 1895. The killing of Bengel by Harris,rwas the most sensation­ al crime that has ever been committed in that part of the^State. Harris claims to have done the deed because Bengel had traduced and vilely slandered his wife and himself. He pleaded insanity for his de­ fense, but was sentenced to be hanged. The grounds on which the pardon will be asked are that Harris was not properly defended' and that his crime was, in a measure, justifiable, the same on which Gov. Altgeld commuted the death pen­ alty. Ball players of the country have raised a fund to have the application made. Senator William E. Mason was invested with the order of Pythian Knighthood in Pythian Hall in the Masonic Temple at Chicago the other night. The investiture was conducted under a special dispensa­ tion by the grand chancellor, Arthur J. Comings of Rockford. Several Vessels have been boarded and robbed in the north branch of the Chicago river by a gang of pirates, ThPse rob­ beries have been reported to the police, but the darkness of the river and the ut­ ter lack of police protection upon its wat­ ers make the work of capturing the men almost impossible. A new bank, to be known as the Second National Bank of Alton, will be opened there about Jan. 1. The preliminary or­ ganization has been completed and the capital stock of $100,000 fully subscribed. The leading stockholders arc: Slaifleys of Carlyle and William Eliot Smith of Alton. The Canton House, one of the leading hotels in Canton, was destroyed by fire early on a recent morning. Many of the guests fled from the burning building in their night clothes, leaving their valuables behind. The loss is about $10,000, on which there was $3,500 insurance. A. E. Ralston was run over by a fire engine and received injuries which will probably re­ sult fatally. THE FABM AND H0HE MATTERS OF INTEREST TO FARM* ER AND HOUSEWIFE. Wheat I« Kins--How to Destroy Grain Weevil--Small farm* Are an Advan­ tage--Set Out Fruit Trees in the Spring. You may tell of your armored cruiseri, And your great ships of the line; And swift or slow may steamers go Across the billowy brine. Like thunder may the cannon boom To greet their flags unfurled, And for an hour they have the power To rule the frightened world.. From ocean to ocean shore "Lie lines of gleaming steel, And night and day, we hear alwajr The ring of rushing wheel; Though buffalo have left the plain, And Indian tents are furled. Nor steam nor hand at wealth's command Can rule the busy world. But where the hillsyle rises fair In terraces of green. And on the plain, where wind and rain Sweep fields of golden sheen, Where sturdy yellow stalks arise. With bannered heads unfurled, Here you may greet the great King Wheat, The ruler of the world." Oh, hills may shake and fates resound Beneath the flying car. And driven by steam and winds a^beaip Our ships ride fast and far; Cities may crumble 'neath the guns Which guard our flag unfurled; Yet all shall greet--at last--King Wheat, For hunger rules the world. --Youth's Companion. The Grain Weevil. While there are several species of grain wevils, the same remedy will do for all. As these insects penetrate all through the entire bulk of ferain, it is necessary to apply some substance that is equally penetrating in its nature. This is found in carbon bisulphide, which may be had at any drug store. The vapor of this substance is very poisonous, and will destroy all insect life with which it comes in contact This material is also very explosive when brought in contact with fire. Keeping these two points in mind, it may be handled with perfect safety. In applying the material it is well to keep in mind the fact that it very volatile, and quickly passes into vapor, which diffuses itself throughout the entire mass of grain, and as Ute vapor is heav­ ier than air it will have a tendency to settle. But in order to insure perfect results It is best to introduce the ma­ terial well down toward the middle of the mass of grain by means of a gas pipe with a screen over the lower end, which will prevent the grain filling the pipe, and through which the poison ^jpay be poured. The pipe is then with­ drawn. ^ One pound of the bisulphide is suf­ ficient for fifty bushels of grain. One application will be sufficient unless the grain is to be kept over winter, when a second application may be necessary. The material does no harm to the grain in any way, as the poisonous fumes all pass away as soon as brought in con­ tact with the air outside.--Indiana Ex­ periment Station. An Advantage in Small Farms. I have noticed that in the townships where the farms are small in area the people are happier and the children better bred. Smaller farms increase the density of the population. This gives them better schooi facilities. The children feel the encouragement of numbers and are excited to greater ef­ forts by the competition. Besides, their parents can afford to hire a better teacher and build for their use a better schoolhouse. Then, too, in a thickly settled region the roads are kept in bet­ ter condition, for the land is of greater value and stand taxing to Improve the highways. The people are brought close together and have more of social advantages. And social advantages are a great thing. Give a farmer's wife suitable company in the way of good neighbors and she will forget half* of her troubles in talking with her neigh­ bors. I believe there would be fewer disheartened women if they could have some chance to enjoy social life. I pity the women on the big farms, each a mile square, where the nearest neigh­ bor is a mile away, and perhaps incon- genial. When neighbors are so 'few and so far away one can not choose one's company as one would if the farms were smaller and neighbors plentiful. --Mrs. J. S., in Farmers' Review. When to Fet Ont Fruit Trees. All things considered, we believe one of the best plans of management with fruit trees is to purchase them in the fall in good season, heel them in care­ fully and then set them out in the spring. One of the principal objections to spring planting is that in a majority of cases the trees cannot be shipped from the nursery as early as is desir­ able for setting out. By securing them in the fall and heeling in, they are on hand ready for transplanting at the first opportunity. During the winter the ground may be plowed, and if neces­ sary manured, stakes may be set where the trees are to be planted, so that when the soil is in condition for work the planting may be pushed along as rapidly as possible. On the majority of farms work is always pressing in the spring, and it is an item to make all preparations possible in advance. Trees heeled in will be growing fibrous roots through the winter, and in this respect at least will be all the hotter for the work. In heeling in care should be taken to dig the trench wide enough to admit bf all the roots with­ out bending or twisting and deep enough so that when covered well the roots will be safe from freezing. Bet­ ter lay them in a slanting position rather than to stand them up straight. See that the soil is fined and worked in thoroughly among the roots. This is essential, as allowing the-roots to be­ come dry, Is certain death to the trees. Good drainage should be provided, as it is very detrimental to^the health of the trees to allow water to stand around the roots. The tree should be secured sufficient­ ly early so as to be heeled in properly before freezing weather sets in.--N. J. Shepherd, in Farmer's Voice. Wooden Plow*. One of the last of the wooden plows which preceded those with iron points is now exhibited with pardonable pride by a Veteran farmer In Ashby, Mass. It was made by a Frenchman, who was one of the earliest settlers of that town. The plow is in an excellent state of preservation, though it shows that it has done service in plowing. All the parts of this old plow are wood, and wooden pegs rather than iron bolts are used in joining them together. It is pretty evident that such a plow must be used carefully, and would be 111 adapted to any except level ground free froul stones. Even the iron-pointed plow has been superseded by steel, or at least iron with steel surfaces, so as to be harder and less liable to clog in damp soil. If this old plow Is preserv­ ed, It Is likely to prove a greater curi­ osity than it is now, as there are prob­ ably few of them remaining.--Ex­ change. * Harvesting Parsnips. The parsnip is usually grown on very rich ground, and when much manure has been used it often has a rank taste when gathered early. It is much bet­ ter to let the parsnips stay in the ground until the soil around it has frozen once or twice. It may be gath­ ered after the first thaw and housed, when It will be found that the rank flavor from the manure has passed away, and the parsnip will be . tender and sweet. Some people leave the parsnip in the ground all winter. It does not hurt It to freeze while In the ground, provided it Is thawed in con­ tact with the soil. The greater danger in leaving parsnips out all winter la that they will be forgotten in spring until the warm weather has started the shoots for seed bearing. Then the pars­ nip becomes poisonous. But if dug as soon in spring as the ground Is thawed, the parsnip will be better than if dug in the fall and wintered in a cellar.-- American Cultivator. GfiATIFYIM RESULTS IMPRESSIVE STATISTICS AS TO THE AMERICAN POLICY. For the First Nine Months of Cnrrent Tear Onr Exports Have Increased $100,000,000, While Onr Imports Show a Falling Off of f100,000,000. Peach Tree Borers. Dig away the earth around the peach trees to the depth of one foot and look carefully for borers. Then swab the trunk a foot below and above ground with thick whitewash, return­ ing the soil to the tree and banking up six inches or a foot above the level of the ground, leaving the tree In that con­ dition until next spring. As the moth lays her eggs near the level of the ground, she will begin where the earth is banked up, and when the embank­ ment is removed the work of destroy­ ing the borers will be easier. White­ wash may be beneficially used on all parts of the tree. Flies aa Chicken Food. The Mark Lane Express tells of a food company of London which is sell­ ing a new food product called preserved tropical flies. These flies are caught in the swamps and lakes of South Ameri­ can countries by spreading nets over the water during the night. The files are then dried, pressed and shipped to England to be sold as poultry food. The eggs of these flies, which are about the size of poppy seeds, are also col­ lected and sold as chicken food. It cer­ tainly is a remarkable state of affairs when English hens are fed upon flies taken from South America. Cider MakittK. For the economical manufacture, of cider a power press is essential. In various experimental trials with the best hand grinders and presses, only two gallons of cider \frere obtained per bushel of apples, while with a medium- sized grinder and press run by an eight- horse-power engine four gallons were obtained per bushel. With green ap­ ples at 8 cents per bushel cider made with hand grinders and presses costs 0 cents per gallon, while with the larger grinder and press it costs only 2.3 cents jper gallon.--Indiana Farmer. Feed Cora. It is a somewhat common practice to discard the tips and butts of the tars when shelling the seed for planting, but the practice is of doubtful benefit. A number of experiment stations in both the North and South have made repeated tests of the productiveness of seed from different parts of the ear, but these tests have shown no marked or constant differences in yield, even when the selections have been repeated through several generations. Protection works a double benefit and produces some surprising results. An increase of over $100,000,000 in exports and a decrease of over $100,000,000 in Imports Is the record of our foreign commerce for the nine months ending Sept. 30, 1898, compared with the cor­ responding nine mouths of the preced­ ing year. No corresponding period in any year of the country's history has shown such a record. No other coun­ try in the world has ever equaled this record. The total exports of the nine months ending Sept. 30, 1898, are practically twice as great as those of the corre­ sponding nine iponths of 1888, while the imports show a reduction of 12% per cent., as cotnpared with 1888, des­ pite the growth^ of our population in the meantime. The imports of mer chandise in the nine months Just ended are less than in any corresponding period since 1885, when the consuming capacity of the country was but little more than half wThat it now is. The gains in all classes of production have been enormous during the past decade. The exports of the product of the mines which for the nine months ending Sept. 30, J.898, are In round numbers $20,000,000, have increased more than 33 per cent, since 1888. Exports of the productions of the forests, which were $18,775,141 In the corresponding nine months of 1888, are in the nine months just ended $30,775,578. Agricultural products, which in nine months of 1888 were $304,717,362, are in the nine months just ended $571,2&4,955. Exports of domestic manufactures, which In the nine mouths of 1888 were but $99,842,972, are in the nine months of 189S $227,822,045. It thus appears that the manufacturers have in the period 1888-'98 enjoyed a larger growth in exports of their productions than any 6ther class of our great producers The great gain in the ratio of exports to imports that has taken place in the first three quarters of the current fiscal year under the operation of the Dingley tariff is apparent in the following table showing the total imports and total ex­ ports for nine months ending Sept 30 in each year from 1888 to 1898: Nine months of year ending Sep- Total tember 3£. imports. 188 8 $544,511,(534 1889 582.879,(>12 189 0 625,821,959. 189 1 627.145,819 1892 636,1<W».009 1893 625.331.972 185)4 503.589.571 1895 600,981.988 189 6 522,088,289 1887 588,743,315 1898 475,300,898 Total exports. $445,355,250 529.558,161 563.468.545 627,(570.414 653,83(5,620 587.040,111 562.278.557 54(5,424,359 650,95(5,354 732.508.865 *854,203,502 Remedy for Cabbage Worms. One of the cheapest, best and safest remedies suggested to prevent the rav­ ages of cabbage worms is to dissolve one ounce of kainlt in a pint of water and sprinkle over the plants. This is at the rate of one pound of kainlt to a gallon of water, and it is said to be a remedy for cabbage maggots, green fly and plant lice. Farm Notes. After the first frost cut down the tops of asparagus and burn them on the bed, after which spread manure, about 3 or 4 inches deep, on the bed and allow It to remain all winter. When foods are fed on the farm and sold in some other form the valuable elements of fertility are retained at home, and as long as this is done the farm may be cultivated to its highest limit of capacity, and becomes more valuable every year. A gill of crude carbolic acid (which lsi much cheaper than the refined article) made into an emulsion with half a pint of strong soapsuds and a quart of cold water then added, will be sufficient for moistening a bushel of sawdust, which may be sprinkled in the stalls as a dis­ infectant. Inexperienced persons who undertake the management of bees will find much to learn before they can succeed. The winter care is Important, for the bees must not be kept too warm, and if ex­ posed they may perish. A special house should be provided, which should be kept at a uniform temperature. Long articles have been written on the importance of feeding liberally, but farmers are progressive and are dis­ posed to go to extremes. It may be safely claimed that at the present day most farmers overfeed Instead of cur­ tailing the supply, which accounts largely for milk fever in cows, weak litters of pigs and diseases of the bow­ els. There is a right way to use blankets for horse#. If the stable Is warm the best covering for a horse is a sheet made of coarse unbleached muslin to protect from dust, but when standing outside, where there is no protection from winds, a horse, blanket should be used, removing it and substituting the sheet after the animal reaches th« stable. A Matter of Patriotism and Good Sense The United States stands sixteenth on the list of twenty-five wine produc­ ing countries, with a production of 30,- 303,470 gallons in 1897. This country will stand better than that Just as soon as the American people are cured of the delusion that the grade and value of a wine are determined by a foreign label. American wines, like many oth­ er articles oT domestic production, whlh are unfairly handicapped by pop­ ular ignorance of their true value, must fight their way to the front by sheer force of merit. They are d6lng this very rapidly, and the time is not far distant when a large proportion of the millions of dollars now sent abroad to pay for foreign wines will be kept at home, and when Americans will spend their money on American wines be­ cause they are the cheapest, the most wholesome, the purest, the most palat­ able, and in every way the best. Pa­ triotism and good sense are on the side of the American wine-growers. What Is Expected of Congress. The Republican party will undoubt­ edly be in control of the next Con­ gress, the sanguinary hopes of the Democrats to the contrary notwith­ standing, and upon the shoulders of its statesmen will fall the mantle of re­ sponsibility. The ability of the Repub­ licans . to satisfactorily decide great public questions has already been am­ ply attested, and the country will have no fear of the result in this case. Ship­ building and ocean commerce are more important at this time to national pros­ perity and independence than anything else we know of. Therefore the meas­ ure of protection which Congress will give with the object of promoting American ship-building interests and restoring the American merchant ma­ rine will be of such a character as to be entirely effective in its purpose and give the assurance of being maintained for a long period of years.--New Or­ leans Item. Sentiment vs. Common Sense. It is apparent that the United States Government can not afford for the sake of reciprocity with a lktle country like Canada to wreck a home industry which supports as many people as the entire population of Canada. There are about five- million people in those prov­ inces, and there are three million peo­ ple in the United States supported by the lumber industry, without including those which the shipment of the prod­ ucts and the working of the by-prod­ ucts employ. It costs $3 a thousand feet more in wages to produce lumber in this country than in Canada, and the present duty complained of by the Ca­ nadian dealers is but $2 a thousand. The present tariff has revived the American lumber trade and should not be disturbed for the sake of largely sentimental considerations in dealing with a foreign country.--Topeka Capi­ tal. A Noble Industry. Now the extension of our navigation laws to Hawaii, Porto Rico and other Islands will create a new and Increas­ ing demand. When American ships have the monopoly of American trfide with the islands they will pick up inci­ dentally a volume of other trade, and double activity in our ship yards will follow. It Is a good thing1 to see this noble Industry advance.--New York Commercial Advertiser; DEPEW BEATS A CARD SHARP. Walked Off with $500 of the Noted Tom McGarrahan's Money. No less a man than Chauncey Sf. De- pew fell into the hands of one of the most noted of the trans-Atlantic card sharps on a voyage which he made to England about seven years ago. Mr. Depew smiles beatifically even yet when he reflects upon how he won £100 from Tom McGarrahan, who died In affluence three years ago, after having "followed the steamers" for many years. McGarrahan was introduced to Mr. Depew by one of the latter's inti­ mate chums and fellow-voyagers. The latter, who was and still is one of the elderly wags of New York, knew all about McGarrahan, and so did a lot of other friends of Mr. Depew on board. These friends of the great Chauncey, who knew about McGarrahan and his record, got together and made a pool that tlfey would get the gambler and the great nominator together at a game of baccarat. Some of them bet that the thing couldn't be done, while others laid their money the opposite way. The gambler, McGarrahan, wasn't Informed of the scheme, but he was simply in­ troduced to Mr. Depew and given an opportunity to follow his natural bent. McGarrahan was a, polished, middle- aged Irishman, a University of Dublin honor man, as he took occasion to prove several times for the benefit of doubt­ ers, and he charmed the eloquent Chauncey by his wit and wealth of in­ formation in no time. McGarrahan did business with a number of gullibles during the first pfirt of the voyage, but he manifested no disposition to engage his new friend, Depew, in a game of cards, and the men who had bet that he would were worried. Oh the third day out, however, the gambler, finding business a bit dull, finally invited Mr. Depew to Join him in a little game of baccarat. Mr. Depew hesitated and consulted with his conscience for a mo­ ment, but the Irishman was persuas­ ive. "I have not hitherto played cards quite so publicly." said Mr. Depew, "but, as I don't suppose J, am any better than my neighbors--well, Just a hand or two." The two men sat dpwn at one of the tables, and all of Mr. Depew's friends who were "in" on the scheme gathered round to see how he made out. Mr. De­ pew won $500 from the Irish gambler within two hours. Then one of the stewards informed him that his ward, who was making the Voyage with him, was ill in her stateroom, and Mr. De­ pew hastily withdrew with his win­ nings and was in attendance upon the young woman for the remainder of the voyage. "Depew;," said one of bis friends, who had been in the scheme to get the ora­ tor at a card table with a professional gambler, "do you know who that man was from whom you won a nice little bundle of five-pound notes a few days ago?" "A Mr. McGarrahan--a very cleyer Irishman," was the reply. Mr. Depew was Informed who ^Mr. McGarrahan" was. "Bless my heart, is that so?®' exclaim­ ed the voluble Chatincey. "I'll devote the winnings to a fund for the purchase of poison for the hopelessly seasick." Washington Star. RECENT INVENTIONS. A new pad for surgical pusposes is formed of the pith of cornstalks, with the fibers removed, covered with loose­ ly woven absorbent fabric, the pith be­ ing made fine and acting as a cushion and absorbent. Medicine can be measured very hand­ ily by a new spoon which has no han­ dle and Is attached to the bottle by a wire bracket clamping the neck and provided with two rings in which the spoon is pivoted to retain its position when the bottle Is tilted. Snow drifts can be removed from rail­ road tracks by a new apparatus which has a metal wedge mounted on a car­ riage in front of the engine, to be hea«ed by oil burners and melt its way if it becomes stalled. In order to prevent the photograph­ ing of the written matter contained in a closed envelope by means of X rays the inside of the envelope is covered with a coating of metallic pigment or other suitable substance, which is opaque to th^ rays. , Wood pulp is used in the manufac­ ture of blocks for use in buddings, a mixture of the pulp and plaster being poured into molds to set, after which the edges are roughened to make the mortar adhere. This material can be nailed or cut with a saw. * An ingenious toy for children is form­ ed of a top >with a flat upper surface perforated at intervals around a spiral groove running from the center to the edg%with a vibrating reed to be held In the groove as the top revolves and play a tune on the perforations. pearance it Is like a long thermometer with a bulb of mercury at the bottom. The glass. tube Is about three-eighths of an inch In diameter, and secured to the frame by two bands through which It passes easily. The divisions of time are marked on each side of the tube. Inside the glass is a smaller tube shaped very much as an hourglass. Some mercury a^id a scrap of blotting paper, for the purpose of taking up any moisture that might gather in the tube, are placed at each end. The mercury in the top end of the tube Is placed op­ posite the mark of the proper time and falls to the bottom of the tube exactly as the time passes. When it has run out from the top the frame can be turned and the mercury set to time on the other side. Thus it registers the seconds and hours quite as accurately as any other timepiece--the drawback to such an airangement being, of course, the turning of the frame, a task as irksome as that of winding a clock. Turquoise Growing in Favor. The turquoise is becoming more pop­ ular than ever now that it Is found in quantities In America. The stones are being carved for ornaments* with de­ lightful results. With the addition of fine workmanship they can never be­ come common, the death blow to so mauy things which are inexpensive aa well as pretty. ' If a woman wears a black hat, she to dust it. * : ' Dividing the Burden. tn the States in which a system of State add has been inaugurated the ur­ ban resident bears his share of the ex­ pense of Improving and maintaining the highways instead of leaving them, as heretofore, to be cared for by the rural population, says the L. A. W. Bulletin. Under the old theory that the maintenance and care of the roads should depend wholly on the districts through which they passed great Injus­ tice was done many persons whose In­ terest in the roads was less than that of others who bore no expense. To re­ move this injustice and provide an equable system is the purpose of State aid. • Speaking on this subject recently. General Stone said that the farmers oC Maine own one-fifth of the property of the State, and that one-fifth of the property ha$ paid the entire expense of building and maintaining the roads of the State, which are just as neces­ sary to the people who live In towns and the people of other occupations than farming as they are to the farm­ er. Concerning New York, he said that there the farmers oWn only one-four­ teenth of the property of the State, and that every farmer has been making roads for thirteen other men to travel on, and he is getting tired of doing It. He is now about to stop It, and he finds the people of the cities and large towns, the manufacturing people and the commercial people, ready to bear ^ - their share of the expense of improv-, ing the country roads. The only draw- i ^ back is that the fa risers themselves 's have been afraid to let any change be . Wjl made in the road laws of the country, . 4 "IT forfhey have imagined that the people ^ of the cities deign to impose heavier ,f burdens on them instead of being ready ? ; ; to help them carry existing ones. , * By degrees all classes of the people " will begin to better understand eadt other on the subject and will get closer ^ ^ together. It was not strange at that country people should be suspi- * s "$ f cious of city people who took the trou­ ble to tell them how much they would be benefited by better roads It was • natural for them to think that such philanthropy was not wholly disinter-k ested. but as it becomes daily more evident that all classes, trades and oc- ; cupations will reap the advantages re­ sulting from Improving the highways, that the ultimate burden will not; te ,; Increased, and that all are ready to share it, the movement will acquire an *;-> impetus that will insure its future sue- CeBS*. • • " .'Old Soman BoadMT ^ ^ ^ An authority on road constftfctffth * says that the Romans made their main roads to last forever. They we+e com- . „ (% posed of 8iliclous and calcareous ma- . terials, and were far superior to tike", • highest type of modern work. The , - ' large roads, averaged four to four and1""4"^ three-quarters metres, the smaller ones . ( three to three and one-half metres. In' mountain regions the road was nar- -, rowed down to a single carriageway, " •'? one and three-quarters metres. The cridewalks were large near the dtjeaiJ-^^ but reduced to six-tenths of a metre In fjm the outer districts. They were bdllt « of cut stone, at least on the border. At every twelve paces mounting stones' were placed, and at every one thousand ̂ paces milestones. Some of the best "\v" roads were paved with marble. The-- jj|J minor or secondary roads were not so, carefully made, though of a solidity with which few modem roads caa com- 'Jib & • pare. A ditch was dug to the solid . earth, which was tamped, rolled or ' staked; then on a floor of sand ten or fifteen .centimetres thick a layer of ; mortar was spread. This formed the : basis of the four courses which consti- * tuted the road. The first was a coursej of several layers of flat stones, bouna^ by fcard cement or clay. This layer • was usually thirty centimetres thick, , and twice that in bad lands. On this ; came a concrete of pebbles, stones and.. broken bricks, strongly rammed with lron-sheathed rammers. The ordinary •; f thickness of this layer was twenty-five centimetres. In the absence of mortar, '*$-'• loam was used. Superimposed on this was a layer of thirty to fifty centi- metres of gravel or coarse sand care- ' Jfe f u l l y r o l l e d . T h e t o p l a y e r , o r c r u s t , W was convex, and ran to a thickness of v; "Is ^ twenty to thirty centimetres or more. .; ^ It was made differently, according to the materials at hand. It was either r paved with cut stone or laid with peb- , \ ble and granite or metaled. ; ̂ Growing Gold. It is generally supposed that fhe'tttig* gets which are found in the river grav­ els of Klondike and other auriferous re­ gions have been brought down by the rivers direct from the reefs In- which The Atmospheric Clock. The atmospheric clock--a sort of de­ vice that goes of ltself-^is not InaptlyJj^e gold originally lay. termed a perpetual hour glass. In aplT "Many practical miners and scientific men, however, have long been of opin­ ion that this cannot be the case, for no masses of gold of so large a size are ever found in the reefs themselves. They believe, on the other hand, that the nuggets have grown where they are now found, just as a crystal of salt will grow In strong brine; but with so insoluble a substance as gold it was difficult to understand bow such growth could take place. Experiments carried ! out in Australia have shown that de­ caying vegetable matter will cause the deposition of gold from solutions of gold salts, but these salts are not known to occur in reefs. The mystery is now solved. A Sla­ vonic chemist named Kxigmody, has just shown that gold itself oau exist in a soluble form. By acting on a slightly alkaline solution of a gold salt with formaldehyde and submitting the prod­ uct to dialysis he has succeeded In ob­ taining gold in a colloidal condition. 111 , which state it is soluble In water and may be precipitated by the addition of common salt. It is probable that some > of the gold in quartz reefs exists in this condition. It is washed out by the rain, carried away in solution by the rivers and deposited in the river gravels wher­ ever there is anything containing salt to cause its precipitation. In thecoma* of ages a large nugget may In this way be formed.--London Mall. - Bast1-ball whlah-*n I busiaesi