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Cotton in Central 1fhe ambition of Russia to raise all tli U needa seems to be on the way toward fulfillment Thomas Smith, Unuod States consul at Moscow, im­ ports that 433,500,000 pounds of cotton wws shipped into European Ruepla tron central Asia last year by wif ft* Caspain Sea. The total production tf central Asia Is now 800,000,400 founds. This is not a large quantity •f cotton when compared With tho nearly €,000,000,000 pounds which has %een raised In one y&w 1A the United States, or with the 3,300,000,000 pounds •sported by this country last year. Bui the size of the Russian crop Is signifi­ cant because of the rapid increase It •tunps over previous years. Russia Is raising at least tea times as much cob- ton as it did a decade ago. Chinese Bride Carrier. Bsrfaaps the queerest trade amoolg the Chinese of San Francisco is that of fertile carrier. There are three women Hollowing this occupation in China­ town and making a comfortable, if spasmodic, income. The excuse for this trade is thJL Chinese custom of making the bride an Idler on her wedding day, forbid- ding her either to walk or stand, and requiring her to be carried from her husehold to that of her husband by gome one of her own sex. It would perhapB be permitted that the bride's mother or some of her female rela­ tions should perform this delicate at tentlon, but of late this Is considered mot at all "swell" among upper-class Chinese and their imitators. The real, CARRYING A BRIDE, fashionable tiding to do and the lucky •Be as well is to have a regular pro­ fessional with a reputation for luck and a correct and inside knowledge of the ceremonies to be observed. And When a Chinese family wishes to put on a little extra f'dog" over the mar- tlage of a daughter, all three of China­ town's professionals are hired. « Jrao/or "Deboe*<e Victor*!** After a long and stubborn fight Sen- rr 'Deboe of Kentucky has succeeded ousting Mrs. Gertrude Saunders from the postmastership of Newcastle, Ky., and the $60 a month hereafter Will go to an Incumbent who can vote and work for the party. Mrs. Saun- «ars is a widow with ten children de­ pendent upon her for support She was plucky and fought hard for the take of her little ones, but Senator Deboe, with the help of the organlsa- pf Kentucky, has triumphed^ at •, A youthful Tr \ Franolsco L. Alcantara, a graduate f the United States Military Academy, ^?-r:-"^shas been elected president of the state of Aragua, Venezuela. Young Alcantara'* father was president of Aragua some years ago, and later was president of the re­ public. Francisco waB graduated from "West Point four years ago. He was a special cadet, ad Bitted by President Cleveland on re­ quest of President Andueza Palacio The young man's political advance­ ment has been rapid and well, and al­ though he is only 27 years old he has been elected to the presidency of one Of the most important states of Veno- auela. He is the youngest man occu­ pying so high an office. Great Decade for Mexico. , The census figures of our neighbor to the north recall those of our neigh­ bor to the south, and with them a dec­ ade's developments than which there Is nothing more curiously Interesting and remarkable in recent history. Canada's population increased by only i.7 per cent In the last ten years; Mex- teo'B incressed by 7.43 per cent in the last five years. Canada's total Is ap­ proximately 5,300,000 Mexico's is 13,- 870,545. Numbers alone give the south­ ern country a power to command rec­ ognition, but they are not its greatest claim to respect. Though all other Spanish-American countries still seem to be desperately engaged in proving that the Spanish Indian blood mtfcm pe6ple unfit for political and industrial progress, Mexico gives proof, seeming­ ly incontestable, that tibia Is not so.-- N. Y. Times. i The kitchen of the Shah of Persia la the most valuable in the world. Even tne cooking pots are lined with gold and the plates and dishes used at the royal table are of solid gold, in- crusted with fredous stones. > " W »;* * S& * Si! m t! |||," !!!!/,' i f J i A. Of the Iowa Reptffcttoaaa for gfiternor, is in many waya man. The story followiafc by one who was on the s^sene, shows another side of the Cummins family, says the Chicago Tribune: 1 was in Des Ifblnea In the winter of 1804 when Cummins was a candi­ date tol the United States Senate, to succeed that gritty old veteran in pol­ itics, John Henry Gear. There were six candidates, as I -emember. Gear, )f course, was the lion. Then there •vaa another who md a Big railroad n f i u e n c e . T h e n here was a plucky fighter, an editor >rom Sioux City. Another candidate hailed from Coun­ cil Bluffs. He was the plain people's icandidate, as he called himself. He used to help the farmers cut their hay, and so on. Then there waa \i man from the enter of the state. He had long hair and was an impres­ sive sort of fellow. The other man waa bummi n s. Tall, Irather, swarthy, perfectly possessed when others were on the rampage, he was the one man whom foxy old Gear really feared. 1 In Gear'B room one night with his manager, young Blythe, a shrewd rail­ road lawyer. He had all the pins in their proper places and told old Jobs Henry Gear to go to bed, 'Have you seen Cummins to­ night?' asked the senator. The lawyer said he had not, but that Cummins' headquarters were dark and nobody was about 'Then I stay up,' said the wily old politician. 'I don't go to bed until i know where Cummins is.' His manager laughed and said he knew Cummins was at home--Cum­ mins lives in Des Moines--and in bed. This did not satisfy John Henry Gear. 'He can plot as much mischief there, or more,' retorted Gear, 'than anywhere else. Do you know Mrs. Cummins?' The old man's manager said he knew her in a casual way. 'I know her the other way,' said the old senator. 'She's the smartest woman in Iowa. I wish there was some way to get C u m m i n s a w a y from home.' I "This compliment for Mrs. Cummins, from a man like John Gear, meant a good deal. The old man, however, went to bed. The next day he sum­ moned his manager aad said: " 'What did I tell you? Do you know what Cummins and his wife did last night? See here. Here's an invita­ tion from Mrs. Cummins to me, to dine at her home this evening with the other candi­ dates! That's Mrs. Cummms' work.' "Young J. W. Blythe asked If that wasn't all right " 'Nothing gives me greater pleas- use/ said the lynx-eyed senator, 'than to be Mrs. Cummins' guest ordinarily. I honor her. But this finesse on her part is not according to the old way of political battling in this state. It's a sort of lace-handkerchief, kid-glove way of getting the enemy into a cor­ ner and smothering him with per­ fume.' " 'But you are going?' asked Blythe. "'Going? What else can I do? There's where she unarms me.' "The dinner was a pretty one, I was told. Mrs. Cummins went to the spread on the arm of the old senator. The other candidates Here in their places. Not a word of politics was uttered. A few games, some music, and it was all oyer. "John Henry Gear won in the caucus and was elected, of course, on Joint ballot. All the candidates spoke after the caucus, but the cleverest speech was that made by Cummins. And while he was talking old man Gear, radiant and bubbling, was as­ suring Mrs. Cummins of his admira­ tion for her husband, and promised, so I was told, that when he finished the term for which he had just been nominated he would get out of the way for Cummins. But he didn't. In 1000 old John Henry capered as gayiy into the field as a spring colt and won. If Cummins lives he will reach the senate. He is, in his peculiar way, one of the smoothest poliUciaMj^th# country." The rebuke administered to Rear Admiral Rohley D. Evans by the Navy Department because of his attack up­ on ex-Secretary Chandler is direct and sharp, but if the admiral is wise he will accept it in silence and be thank­ ful that his Indiscretion brought no worse punishment He should be glad that Mr. Chandler is an ex-senator and not an active member of congress, otherwise the matter undoubtedly would have been made, the subject of a congressional inquiry. The be thing Admiral Evans can do Is to re­ solve to criticise no prominent man While still living, especially if he be of Mr. Chandler's temperament This reprimand ought to hare a salutary effect in checking the kind of offense ef which Admiral Evans was guilty. He coed the pages of his book to air his grudge of sixteen years' standing against the man who was Secretary of the Navy at th^ time of Bvans' remov­ al fcpm the lighthouse board. There n too much publlo criticism by Acers of late. The Navy Department has formally notified the admiral that'when he at­ tacked the former head of the navy he "abandoned the courtesy that should always characterize an officer of the navy." This judgment will be confirmed by the great majority of American citizens. The only solace Admiral -Bvans is likely to get out of the episode is in the form of larger sales for his book. Many people will want to read the volume that could call down upon ita .author suoh a stinging rebuke.--Chicago Tribune. v.'--' > V mm mim m < - « . > . a ; mmm ©lea** It Charged with Ab*tn«tia( Stat* Papers from His Department at Springfield. * % B A R A D # ® * . B f l f e L S Y t £ * ' A x * * < The Censorin South A.frica. mc-- 7 * 1 Modeler of TtWIard Statue. The statue of Frances E. Willard to * be presented by the State of Illinois to the National Capi­ tol at Washington will be modeled by Helen F. Mears of Oshkosh, Wis., the state board of com­ missioners being unanimously in her favor. For. two years Miss Mears Studied with Aug- \r , -tistus St Gaudens. and has been his assistant In serious work in his New York and Paris stu­ dios. Minister Wu Ting Fang's son Chou Chou attends the Washington High school and while there dresses after the American fashion, tucking his pig- tall under his coat. He is reported to be a very bright pupil. New South Wales has 15,000 miles of wire netting as a fence protection xahMts.." • V- ' . i f ' * i H < ' V* . * $ <s^ V -v , t' V A. - ' i ,# fgk l f v ' WUmeb'T £me'*%^ ^i%:; +6* <fc/4 a /!N»4 ^ <•> • '/*id <*%££i, O f . 1 ^ A facsimile of the first page of a let­ ter from London Daily Mail war cor­ respondent after it had passed through the censor's hands. The Daily Mail declares the blacking-out process adopted by the censor would not be tolerated even In Russia, where abso­ lutism holds full sway. Woman and the Mjttchen. Mme. Schmahl, editor of the Avant Courier, goes even further than Mme. Sarah Grand In her advocacy of wom­ an's enfranchisement Mme. 8chmahl would apply the ax to the underpin­ nings of our domestic institutions. "The kitchen must go," says she, "be­ fore women meet the responsibilities of the twentieth century and specialise their work according to their tastes." That is. If women are to have free scope for their Intellectual develop* ment during the present century, they must abandon the cooking stove and the pantry, the refrigerator and the china closet, the kneading board, the rolling-pin and the broom, and devote themselves exclusively to what Mme. Schmahl regards as the higher pur­ suits. How are they to do this if they pect to have husbands, children and the happiness for which the soul of every good woman yearns In these days? Can they abandon the kitchen and still preserve domestic peace? Or, to put it in a broader way, will It be possible for the woman of the twen­ tieth century to eliminate the kitchen from her home life? 'X./.: £.11. B. Vha Clear* Act--tad* Former Insurance Commissioner J. R. B. Van Cleave was arrested at his home in Springfield on a state warrant sworn out by H. H. Klayer charging him with abstracting from the Insur­ ance department state papers. Van Cleave gave bond in the sum at $100 for his appearance before Justice Con­ nolly in Springfield next Wednesday af­ ternoon. Klayer was formerly an em­ ploye of the Aetna Fire Insurance com­ pany at Cincinnati, but for some rea­ son left the company. Since then he has devoted his time to hunting up violations of the insurance laws of Il­ linois alleged to have been committed by the Aetna. One of his first efforts was to unearth violations of the laws In relation to taxes and agents' certifi­ cates. Experts examined the Aetna's books and reported that it owed the State $20,000. The Aetna paid this money, admitting all but $8,000, which was protested and which the company decided to sue for. Van Cleave, knowing that he had this suit to de­ fend, says that he ordered one of the clerks in the department to get to­ gether all the papers relating to the Aetna and deposit them in the safety vaults of the Marine bank. This was done. After using them he says he gave instructions that they ail be taken oack to the department When he arrived home he found a constable with the warrant BiacHbum'* "Bride to B*, The positive announcement of ator Joseph C. 8. Blackburn's ing marriage to Minfc Mary M, burn, widow of his kinsman. Judge H. H. Blackburn of West Virginia, has aroused Washington sotgety tetim its summer siesta. This sn|S#WWiMltt was announced January 8 aai met with vigorous protest ~ prospective bride and groom. The.' ding was originally set for an date in March and was to hasto When the great chemist, Chevrcnl, whose statue was recently unveiled in France, attained his 100th birthday he was entertained at a public dinner 'at which his son, 67 years old, was present. The old man made a speech, and in relating an anecdote made a Blight slip, which his son corrected. Old Chevreul turned around quickly and said in a sharp tone: "Hush, youngster, when I am talking," and the "youngster" held his tongue. ̂ Honored by the Sultan of Sulu. M Miss Marie Sweet of Denver is prob­ ably the only Caucasian woman in the world who has received a present of pearls from the sultan of Sulu. Gen­ eral Owen J. Sweet, her father, is gov­ ernor of the Sulu archipelago, over which Hadji Mohammed the native ruler. All the pearls found in the waters of the Sulus' sea are the prop­ erty of the crqpfn. The sultan, who sent the peagis to Miss Sweet, as a mark of holir to her father, dis­ patched with%liem a letter written in Sanskrit on phrchment rolled, after the manner of tfit>. ancient papyrus and sealed with the royal seal. This was the first letter ever written by the sultan to a woman, as the ladies of his country are not communicated with by means of writing. Miss Sweet added the pearls to an already large and fine collection, sent her at vari­ ous times by her father. P. Cuneo, editor of the Wyandot Re­ publican, Upper Sandusky, 0., has left for Turin, Italy, to assume the duties of consul for the United States govern­ ment, to which position he was recent­ ly appointed by President McKinley. Mr. Cuneo is said to be the only Italian in this country who is the publisher of an English newspaper. He was born in Naples, and has not seen his native land since he left it fifty-two years ago. Henry H. Rogers has presented to the Unitarian Society of Fairhaven, Mass., a church, parish house and par­ sonage as a memorial to his mother, Mary Rogers. The cornerstone of the church was laid on last Monday after­ noon. The group of buildings will be one of the most beautiful of the kind in the country. Mme. SidKy Bey. Mme. Sidky Bey, wife of the second sscretary of the Turkish legation at Washington, is an Armenian woman, large, handsome, and masterful in presence. Her name was placed upon the diplomatic list last winter. She is supposed to be the only Christian woman in this country married to a Mohammedan. Her mother is with her in Washington. They entertain in a quiet way, and their, dinners are much enjoyed on account of the Orien­ tal customs adhered to at the legation. ' r'nt' <i • ' : f- ?*i „><? » •.* • , *11 ' ? r ' * MISS MARSB SWEET. cThe Santiago Battle Chart. Mr. Park Benjamin, the naval ex­ pert writer, while disclaiming any dis­ position to argue the Schley contro­ versy and any intention" to prejudice the case, has nevertheless attributed some Important testimony by printing in the current number of the Inde­ pendent the chart showing the posi­ tion of the ships at Santiago at seven different times, prepared by the navi­ gating officers of the fleet at Admiral Sampson's request The ships are in­ dicated in this chart by letter^ and their corresponding positions at each given time by numbers affixed to these letters. By following this chart--the official one, not the one in Maclay's unhistorical history, which he has pur­ posely confused by removing the num­ bers, thus removing all idea of time intervals--it is easy for any one to see the Brooklyn, instead of keeping out of the way, hung as closely to the Vls- caya as it could get, and always at a distance less than a mile and a half, and always nearer than any other ship, As to the famous "loop," It shows that "the Brooklyn turned about to get the ship around as quickly as possible." : Murat was noted among his con­ temporaries for his splendid uniforms. He was so bedizened with gold, orders and jewels that the English ambassa­ dor to Naples compared him to a mountebank. Political "Parlies xf-r. Group*, Either Maximo Gomez or Estrada Pal ma has been considered likely to b« the first head of the Cuban govern­ ment now forming. Mr. Palma has written a letter practically declining to be a candidate under present condi­ tions. His reasons may be summar­ ized by saying that he finds in Cuban politics too much following of leaders and too little devotion to principle^ too much egotism and too little party discipline, too many "parties" and too little "platform." "It Is to be supposed," he says, "that the President will have a plan of gov­ ernment needing the support of the chambers. What if these are composed of as many factions as there are polit­ ical groups? It is to be supposed that opinions in the congress will be even more opposed than in the parties, as the questions to be settled, such as trade relation with the United States, payment of the army, are likely to cause keen differences." XUm Ravtawa Stat* Troaf. .. } Governor's day at Camp Lincoln, bpringneid, drew a targe crowd to the review and evening paraue* The re­ view took place at 5 o'clock. Gov­ ernor Yates arrived at the camp gate a few minutes before that time, and passed into the Unes as the cannon ooomed the usual salute of seventeen guns to the Commander-in-chief. The Governor's dinner to the officers of the two commands was served at general headquarters, commencing at 6:30 o'clock. The ladies of the Governor's party and also the ladles In camp with the Fourth Regiment and Eighth Batf talion were guests at the dinner. rsm The University of teach ship build|n%!: Michigan Is to Typhoid io Ohieaft* -7 Typhoid fever is epidemic "tni Nineteenth ward, Chicago, according to the Ward Improvement society, and the authority of Dr. N. S. Davis is given for the statement that the prev aience of the disease is due to the filth In the streets and the alleys. "There is undoubtedly much typhoid lever in the Nineteenth ward," Secretary Pritchard said, "but It does not require a doctor to tell that such fever is not due to dirty streets and alleys, but to substances taken internally. The wa­ ter supply in this ward should be In­ vestigated as well as the milk and food." , Brief Strike In a Brewery. Bnrsnfm Pete Chez, a nonunion brew­ er, was allowed to go io work by the foreman twenty-five union brewers quit work at Hebel's brewery In Peru. The action of the union men was a great surprise to the officials of the company, who demanded an immedi­ ate investigation. When the cause of the difficulty was learned Chez was dismissed without further notice. The onion men then returned to work and Chez lej^^ j^lfce swearing ven­ geance. " New fiiinola Corporalionl*.' The secretary of state has licensed the following corporations: Sims, Wil­ son 4k Sims company, Chicago; capi­ tal" stock, $15,000; incorporators, George R. Sims, Albert B. Wilson, and Robert H. Sims. Llbertyville Foundry and Machine company, Libertyville; capital stock, $50,000; incorporators, Loren Busbee, William Laycock, and Robert J. Proctor. Diamond Meter company, Peoria; capital stock in­ creased from $30,000 to $100,000. \ Arehdeaoon Da Bowat Accept* Call. . The Yen. F. A. De Rosset, arch­ deacon of Cairo, Episcopal church, and rector of the Church of the Redeemer, Cairo, has notified the vestry of St. Paul's Pro-Cathedral, Springfield, of Ms acceptance of the unanimous call extended him to be rector of St. Paul's to succeed the Right Rev. Frederick W. Taylor, who was on Aug. 8 con­ secrated bishop coadjutor of Quincy. Archdeacon De Rosset will sssume his jpr^cl^rge Sept 1. .A Doherty OoWt Ordan Coal KInas In the suits of Lionel against the Big Muddy Coal and Wash­ ing company, De Soto, Jackson coun­ ty, Judge Humphrey, In the United States Circuit Court at Springfield, en­ tered a decree of foreclosure and or­ dered the sale of the mines and other property of the defendant, by Walter W. Alien, master In chancery. Peorte Millionaire Dying. Charles C. Clark, the millionaire, ex- mayor of Peoria, and head of the great distilling house of Clark Bros, it Co., is dying at his home in Peoria of loco­ motor ataxia. Clark was elected may­ or of Peoria In 18904": 5 v j- • . - ^ Club Picnic Near H' The first annual reunion and picnic Of the Yates Veterans' 1860-1890 Club was held at Illinois Park, near Rock- ford. Judge Joel M. Longenecker oi Chloftgn was the principal speaker. "Y.'.O Poisoned by a Chicken Baaa, , . Mrs. Wale McCormick, aged 7$, died at Quincy under peculiar circum­ stances. At a recent dinner she pricked one of her fingers with a small ohiekea bone and blood poisoning ensued. Previous to that she oeptional health. J', ̂ Elevator Burns at Deer Abel, Brooks & Co.'s new elevator at Deer Creek was destroyed by fire, to­ gether with 5,000 bushels of oats. IMS Is ever $10,000; insurance partial. • -'j MRS. BLACKBURN, a sequence to the return of the doubtable Kentuckian to the For some private reasons the nuptials were postponed. Mrs. Mary E. Blackburn is a mean- ber of one of the prominent families of Washington. Mrs. Blackburn's Mends believe that her nuptials will be strict­ ly private after the order of the fam­ ous Dewey-Hazen alliance, with no previous announcement or invllntlfWl to friends. Mrs. Blackburn will ha- tte latest addition to the senatorial bride* Mrs. Hansbrough held this distinction for three seasons until last winter, when Mrs. Sullivan, wife of the tor from Mississippi, usurped hear of honor. Mrs. Blackburn has been S widow for more than three yearn Shortly after her husband's death she was appointed to a clerkship in the quartermaster geenral's office oi the war department which she held until last week. Although she has BMW been prominently identified with aost* ety she is a woman of fine prose-- and gracious manners and will un­ doubtedly add luster to the history ef the Blackburn family In Washington The late Mrs. J. C. S. Blackburn fit many years shared with Mrs. Carlisle the distinction of being the most cessful hostess of the blue grass in official life. Her three beautifal daughters made their debut here and were stars in the social firmament 7*o Meet Slos*on. Louis Barutel, the French bUUaXt expert, who came to America three months ago with Jacob Schaefer oa his return from Europe, has bee* matched to play George F. Slosson ill New York at a date yet to be agiesi. upon. A deposit of $500 has been with a billiard firm to bind the which will be for $1,000 a side, at < een-inch balk line. Mr. Barutel Is a native of Toulouse, France, and has been playing billiards professionally for fifteen years. He has met all tibi well known experts except Slosson. Ha LOUIS BARUTEL. has traveled extensively, giving tuitions and playing matches In Berlin, Buda-Pesth, Rome, Carlsbad* St. Petersburg, Brazil, Portugal, Chile, and Mexico, as well as in the leading academies of France and America. Baptists of Maiden, Mass., are inter* ested in a suit for back salary which has been filed in the courts of Middle sex county by the Rev. James R. Ran­ dolph against the trustees of St Luke's Baptist church. Mr. Randolph that he entered into a contract with the defendant trustees of the church on May 10, 1896, agreeing to serve as pastor of the church at a salary of $50 '•V a month. He claims there is now duo , him the sum of $1*051.44, back salary, f and he sues the trustees to recover it. W: Jacob Pelrce, a Grand Army veteran, who died a few days ago in Denver, Colo., was known in Ohio In the years preceding the civil war as a director of the "underground railway," and through him many a slave was helped to freedom beyond the Canadian fron­ tier. His principal work during the war was as wardmaster of all the union hospitals in Nashville, Tenn. In the line of his duty it fell to his lot to dose the eyes of more than 1.000 boys In blue. iS: • SI® Miss Mary Holbrook, a member of a well-known family of Holbrook, Mass^, has established a fund of $5,000. the income from which is to help main­ tain public worship in the Winthrop Congregational Church of that town. It is also given to perpetuate Miss Hoi- brook's annual gift, as she has been accustomed to give yearly to the church an amount about equal to tha income from $5,000. About 2.000 persons and 9M are employed in the sponge of Florida. The profits last iwHmatfd at $850,000. -• ii j&i