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

DEAD MEN'S SECTIOST. BY J. PERCY BARNTTZ. (Copyright, 1901, by Dally Story Pub. Co.) Section Four was the longest Bection -•n the Third Division of the C. and J. Railroad. It was so long and BO many fatalities had occurred on that stretch -of road, that the management decided to call it the Middle Division, think­ ing thereby to escape the odious name of "Dead Men's Section," which it was called by railroad men the country over. But call it what they would, the management could not free that par­ ticular portion of their line from the gruesome appellation. The sections on the C. and J. are not eight or ten-mile stretches of track, as is the case on Eastern lines, but instead a hundred and fifty-mile stretch is the usual section on this important link in the "Great Trans- Continental Route," and which tra­ verses the Lone Star State from the Red River to the Rio Grande. Henry Fortune was made division superintendent at Folger, the terminus of Soction Three, and the headquar­ ters for the new Middle Division, And he said always, that it was anything but good fortune when he was pro­ moted to that position, for until his appointment at Folger he had never known that1 the cup of life could be so full of trouble. Freight brakemen only--with few exceptions--were the ones whom Death seemed to single out as his victims. And the majority of those who were killed met their deaths by falling be tiea&h the cars while the trains were running eastward between Gregson's and Warm Springs. Because of the "hoodoo," which rail road men said was on "Dead Men's Section," it was almost impossible to secure reputable employes for the freight service of the operating de­ partment of the Middle Division. As a consequence the personnel of the freight trainmen on that division was composed literally of the scum of the earth. And, therefore, It is not to be wondered at that Uve life of Henry Fortune, superintendent, was not a "happy one. The difficulties he experi­ enced in handling the polygenous freight crews were legion; but they •were as nothing compared to the de pressing fact that in spite of all pre -cautions Death held the Middle Divl- , aion in a firmer grasp than ever. Although the Middle Division passed through a land of weary desolation, which, with its flint-like soil; it8 boundless, unbroken monotony of plains, was enough in itself to depress the spirits of almost any man, yet the superintendent never for a moment supposed that any of his men com­ mitted suicide. There were but few men in his em­ ploy that did not use liquor. But liquor could hardly be held account able for the strange fatalities on "Daad f, Men's Section." Other trainmen em­ ployed on the division besides freight brakemen drank Just as hard, and yet there were no more accidents among them than usually occur on the ordi­ nary railroad. One night in early January the "Mexican Flyer" was wrecked between Warm Springs and Gregson's. The superintendent accompanied the wrecking train to the scene of the dis­ aster. It was a wretched night A heavy storm of sleet and rain beat down with chilling force on that bar­ ren waste of land, and Henry Fortune made It his first duty to see that the passengers were taken to Gregson's and there made as comfortable as possible in the miserable adobe building bearing the name of "The Ranger's Rest." The proprietor of this squalid hos­ telry of the Texas plains was a singu­ lar Individual. He was a tall, lank sinister-looking half-breed, whose beady eyes seemed to glow with malignant passion. A semi-mute, he was unable to articulate intelligibly but could understand perfectly all that was said to him. There was something about the man that fascinated Henry Fortune, as he watched his shifty, cat like movements, while dispensing the vile, yellow-looking whisky over his bar to the motley crowd of cowboys gathered in the foul-smelling, earth- floored barroom. Why it was the su perlnteiident could never tell, but in tuitively the conviction was suddenly forced upon him, that in some way this evidently treacherous man was connected with the mystery of "Dead Men's Section." This opinion, once formed, grew stronger in the mind of the superin­ tendent as time passed, and when the front o' the train, when all at once everything seemed to shine like gold. Then it changed to white, and felt that I must run--run as fast as could. Felt frightened like. And then I couldn't help myself anymore, and ran till I fell from the train." But Heijry Fortune was obdurate in his belief that the sinister-looking mute was to blame for the mortality among his brakemen, despite the fact that he had not one scintilla of proof to that effect, and employed a private detective agency in Chicago to work on the case. The detective sent by the agency to the Middle Division assumed the role of a freight brakeman. For two weeks he reported "no progress," and then one night he, too, fell a victim to the "Dead Men's Section," much to the "Dummy Carlos." some weeks after the wreck of the "Mexican Flyer," a brakeman tumbled between the cars of his train a few miles east of Gregson's, and by good luck was but slightly hurt, he set about to Investigate the accident, on the assumption that "Dummy Carlos," the proprietor of "The Ranger's Rest," was at the bottom of it The Injured man was taken to the hospital at Templeton, where'he was Interviewed by Henry Fortune. "Yes, Mr. Fortune," said the brake- man, "1 did have a drink at Carlos place just before we pulled out o ' Oregson'9--the whole crew had drink, for that matter. But I don't think it was the whisky that affected B14--leastways It never did other times It was just like this, near as I din remember. I was walking along tte top o* a lot o' box ears towards Admits Prejudice. I sat gazing wonderingly at some­ thing resting in what seemed to be so much hot water, which enveloped it in steam. It was piping hot--I might say Scotch piping hot, for, though the pipes were wanting, there was the bag. It was very wet, of a peculiar livid tint, tight, and--to be frank-- about the most unappetizing-looking thing I ever saw in my life, says J. M. Fenn In Chambers' Journal. All this I saw at a glance while our host looked down "at the haggis, and then suddenly put down the spoon. I fancy I glanced at the door In expectancy that it would open again to admit piper who would start drone and chanter, and ceremoniously march, playing, around the table, while the guests were served.. But no; all was silence, for Mr. David Chambers had only exchanged the spoon for a knife, with which he seemed to slay the object in the dish. One thrust and there was a transformation scene. The hot water had disappeared, and a rich, steaming, dark compound was ready for the spoon which transferred it to the plates. I can recall the scene vividly, and the stern resolution with which the dainty was eaten, and I scornfully repudiate any attempt to ridicule the dish haggis; but, at the same time, perhaps from. narrow- minded English prejudice, I will say that if I were going to entertain a royal stranger I would, rather than the Scotch dainty, put before him the national English roast beef. However, the guests of the haggis luncheon were unanimously of the opinion that the whisky was sublime. ILLINOIS ITEMS "I couldn't help myself, and ran." disgust, mortification and disappoint­ ment of Henry Fortune. When the detective agency was In­ formed of the death of their operative, and learned that he had met the pe­ culiar and mysterious fate of so many brakemen, they became more deter­ mined than ever to sift the occurrence to the bottom, and sent several of their best men to the section of the country between Gregson's and Warm Springs. In the latter part of February a man claiming to be a buyer of cattle •for a Chicago packing house, put up at "The Ranger's Rest," and, on the pretext of awaiting the arrival of Im­ portant letters remained for several dayB at the little hotel. He saw Jthat whenever a crew of freight trainmen patronized the bar, Carlos would in­ variably place two bottles of liquor upon the counter, pushing a square bottle in front of where one or more brakemen stood. One day when the opportunity of­ fered, the pseudo-stockman filled sev eral flasks from the bottles of liquor standing on the shelves beneath the bar. These were sent to Chicago for analysis, and a few weeks later "Dum­ my Carlos" was awaiting trial in the jail at Templeton on a charge of poi­ soning, and the mystery of "Dead Men's Section" had been solved. A curious story was brought out at the trial of the vindictive ha.'f-breed; a story too long to here tell in detail, but which was substantially as fol­ lows: The analysis of the liquor in the several flasks showed vhat it was all of the same cheap brand of whisky, but the contents pf one flask was found to have been heavily steeped with, the woplly loco weed, commonly called crazy weed, a plant native to the Great Plains region,and which causes much damage to the stock of ranch­ men. The action of this poison on man in small doses is to cause a short period of hallucination or mania, ac­ companied by defective eyesight, dur­ ing which the affected person is seiz­ ed with an irresistible desire to run. It was the administration of this de­ coction to the brakemen of the Mid­ dle Division that had caused them to run along the cars of their train and, being unable to see wherfe they were stepping, invariably fall to their deaths. Carlos admitted the fact that eigat years back, when the C. and J. was first built through that region, he was beating his way on a freight traiih from Gregson's to Warm Springs, when he was discovered by two brake- men who threw him from the train. Until that time he had been possessed of his full powers of speech, but he was so severely injured about the head that the portion of the brain controll­ ing the vocal cords became in time af­ fected, and he finally lost the power to articulate plainly. The Indian in his nature became aroused, and after he opened "The Ranger's Rest" near the railway station at Gregson's, he determined to become revenged on all freight brakemen running eastward from that point. His devilish, savage cunning led him to use the loco weed as the best means to secure that re­ venge, as he was familiar with its ef­ fect upon the cattle and horses which roamed the plains of Texas. He was declared insane by the Jury which tried him, and he was sent to the state asylulm for Insane criminals for life. A PAINTED DINNER. Very Pretty Affair Devised by an Orig­ inal Woman. Apropos of dinners, a woman, noted for her originality and the courage of her convictions, gave what she called a pointed dinner the other day. She dubbed it a painted dinner because the color scheme was so vivid and intense, like the hues of the painted lady but­ terfly. The table center was Parisian --bizarre in the extreme--square / of thick white silk crossed by woven lines of turquoise satin toward the middle, and broad bars of black splashed with silken flower peta,)§, mauve, red, and tawny yellow. A great silver bowl, raised on a stand of finely carved ebony, held a mass of zinnias of every shade possible of that gay flower, toned by trails of maidenhair. Maidenhair was laid here and there upon the table. Candle shades, like the silk center, hailed from Paris. On each of these, in a framed medallion, was painted a dainty dancing lady, and each, when lighted, changed from an etching to a brightly colored vignette by Bome trick of the shademakers. ^The menu, too, were painted tn trails autumn leaves and the fruit, piled in high silver dishes, was decorated with tinted Vir­ ginia creeper. Each Venetian glass fln- ger-bowl held a leaf of scented verbena and one biossom of blood^red canna. The silk doilies were painted like the candle shades, while the bonbons, specially made, were packed in silver baskets and repeated half the color of the table.--New York Commercial Ad­ vertiser. FlthM That BaUd Neat*. A gentleman living on the shores of Lake Sunapee, in New Hampshire, has discovered a species of fish that display great skill as architects and builders. "My fish had selected a quiet cove within a few feet of the shore and quite near a row of cottages," he says. "Presumably they were less in fear of man than of the finny tribe. Their nests were circular in form and about the size of a bushel basket They were hollowed out in the center like a saucer, and were kept in perfeet shape and beautifully clean by a swift, fanlike motion of the tail fin of the fish, held in a perpendicular position. "The bottom of the lake being of a dark color and these nests made of white sand, you could easily see what a neat housekeeper this little fish was. Each nest had its owner, who fought for her 'hearth and home,' with great valor, chasing off every intruder and seldom- being vanquished in the fray." It takes a great man to escape un­ deserved glory. Cure for a Stoop. A surgeon was consulted by a gen­ tleman, who is now one of our first tragedians, as to the best mode of cor­ recting a stoop which he had acquired. The surgeon told him that neither stays nor straps would do him" any es­ sential good, and that the only method of succeeding was to recollect to keep his shoulders back by a voluntary ef­ fort But the tragedian replied that this he could not do, as mind was otherwise occupied. The surgeon then told him he could give him no further assistance. Shortly after this conversation the actor ordered his tailor to make him a coat of the finest kerseymere, so as to fit him very tightly, when his shoulders were thrown back. When­ ever his shoulders fell forward he was minded by a pinch under the arms, that his coat cost him six guineas, and that it was made of very fragile ma­ terials; being thus forced, for the sake of his fine coat, to keep his shoulders back, he soon cured himself of the stoop. The surgeon was much obliged to him for the hint and afterward, when consulted whether young ladies should wear shoulder straps, permitted them, on condition that they were made of fine muslin, or valuable silk, for tear­ ing which there should be a forfeit.-- Brande's Journal. Italian Brigand DIM Hard. Bufolino and his brother, two noto­ rious thieves and murderers, the ter­ ror Of the country round Palermo, had long eluded all the efforts of the police for their capture, but were found at last on a dark, tempestuous night hid­ ing in the deserted lodge of a baronial! estate. They fled in different direc­ tions on the approach of the carbi­ niers, and the brother succeeded in es­ caping, but Bufolino showed light and Parthlan-llke, ran and fired on his pursuers. The chase over hill and dale was long and arduous, shots being ex­ changed whenever the lightning glare afforded a chance of taking aim. At last the brigand did not return the fire of the carbiniers, who, cautiously ap­ proaching, found him dead, riddled with bullets. Of the six pursuers four were slightly wounded. Capturing John Bull's Trade. While our own exports to Canada have In the ten-year period Increased nearly 150 per cent, those of the United Kingdom to British North America show a slight decrease; while our e: ports to British Africa have increased over 400 per cent, those of the United Kingdom have increased but about 40 per cent; while <*£.* exports to Aus­ tralia have incrt**oed more than 125 per cent, those of the United Kingdom have slightly decreased, and while our own exports to Japan have increased 475 per cent, those of the United King* dom hare increased but about 100 pel cent.--0. P. Austin in December Na­ tional. Landscape gardening and fioricultur« in connection with rural homes is to be taught at the State Normal Univer­ sity. New ideas in floral adornment for the home and the school will be instilled into the minds of the pupils, together with an elementary knowl­ edge of plant life and soil influences. A practical demonstration is to be made of the sci nee of propagation and horticulture under the direction of the State Board of Education. President Felniiley has been one of the enthu­ siastic promoters of the new depart­ ment He argues that the noticeable dearth of flowers and decorative plants about the country houses of Illinois is not necessarily on account of the lack of instinctive fondness for flowers, but because of the lack^of knowledge concerning them. It is the purpose to instruct the students who are fitting themselves for rural teach­ ing to care for school gardens, so that they in turn may Instruct the children in a simple manner and without the aid of appliances other than can be cheaply secured. In brief, "art" farm­ ing will be given a new departure and scientific tilling of the soil will have a floral feature^j&hlch has hitherto been neglected. It is unofficially announced that im­ provements aggregating over $100,000 are contemplated for the Joliet Wire mills, a subsidiary concern of the Ufiited "States Steel company, during the\comin^ year. The trust is going to plit itself in first-class shape to meet the threatened competition from the Colorado Fuel and Iron company. The Joliet Wire mills, it is said, will be made the finest in the country. Al­ ready $30,000 has been spent on the Rockdale plant, a new galvanizing de­ partment having recently been erected. Seventeen clubs from seven cities are members of the Central Illinois Bowling association, which held a tournament in Peoria and was perma­ nently organized at a meeting held there. Arfhur Bauer of Peoria was elected prescient, with A. T. Marsh of Springfield as secretary. It was de­ termined to hold two tournaments a year, and the next one will be held at Lincoln about April 15. The cities comprising the league are Peoria, nine clubs; Lincoln, three; "Decatur, two; Springfield, Mount Pulaski and Fair- bury, one each. GaleSburg, Pekin and Washington have signified their inten­ tion of Joining. | Illinois subscriptions to the McKln- ley monument fund amount to $20,- 919. \ T£e attendance at the meeting of the Modern Language association of Amer­ ica, which held its sessions at the Uni­ versity of Illinois, was largely in­ creased by delegations from western Universities. An interesting wedding at Alton was that of William Hancock of Little Rock, Ark., and Miss Julia Weigler, youngest daughter of Hon. George h. Weigler, which took place at the^ home of the father of the bride, 600 East Second street. The fact that the marriage was to^take place had been kept a close secret, even in the family circle, and there were few of the rela­ tives outside of the immediate family circle who knew that the engagement of the couple existed. On the wedding day Miss Weigler entertained the rela­ tives of the family at dinner, and after dinner it was announced to the family party that a marriage ceremony woul^l take place as an event of interest at the Christmas celebration. Rev. Theo­ dore Oberhellman, of the Evangelical church, was present, and at 3 o'clock the wedding ceremony was performed. Mr. Hancock is connected with the Oklahoma, Choctaw and Gulf railroad, and it Btationed at Little Rock. His bride is a member of one of the oldest and most prominent families in Alton, her father having been prominent in Democrp"c politics many years in Alton and Madison county. Through a misunderstanding or ov­ ersight on the part of the capital stock committee of the state board of equali­ sation, the Capital Electric company of Springfield entirely escaped the pay­ ment of a capital stock assessment. The company scheduled a capital stock of $30,000 and a local assessment on tangible property of $15,000. This $15,- 000 was taken by the capital stock committee to be the assessed, or one- fifth, value, making the full value $75,000, which would have been in ex­ cess of the stock value. As a matter of fact, however, the $15,000 local as­ sessment was the "full value" of tangible property, as fixed by the local assessor. There was a material raise on the assessment by the equalization board of the gas company, the Spring­ field Electric Light and Power com­ pany and the street railway company. The "full value" of the capital stock and franchises of the railway company is fixed at $350,775, an increase of 950,000. Henry Straehmeyer, aged 32, ended a long spree at Qulncy by hanging himself. He left a wife and six chil­ dren. Police at Kensington Station, Chica­ go, puzzled over the body of a man who may be a murder victim. Throat cut and marks of identification re­ moved. Twenty-ninth Infantry at Fort Sher­ idan expects orders soon to go to the Philippines. All prepared for moving. Burglars at the home of a victim in Evanston prepared coffee and partook of luncheon. Chicago sufferers from offensive odors see hope of relief in appellate court decision in rendering plant case. Five hundred Chicago school teach­ ers left Thursday morning for Spring- ^fleld to attend the meeting of the state association. Superintendent Cooley will probably be elected president William Zappann, for a number of years an engrossing clerk in the Illi­ nois legislature, died in Evansville, Ind., Wednesday night, aged sixty. He was a close aavisor of the late Gover­ nor Tanner. He was a prominent Ma- MB. „ After a few months of figuring upon the great mass of statistics submitted to it and discussion concerning the law governing Its duties, the state board of equalization Monday closed up Its work. The result of its labors is an in­ crease of something like $187,000,000 in the net assessment against the prop­ erty in the state as compared with the net. assessment made a year ago. Of this $164,329,429 is the increase on per­ sonal property, lands, and- town and city lots, these items being included in the report made to the state board by the committee on general equalization. The net assessment on railroads shows an increase of over the net assessment last year, which shows that the board valued the railroad property $42,000,000 higher than it did last year. The work of figuring up the assessment on capital stock has not been completed, but in round numbers the increase on the net assessment of last year will be $15,000,000. The bulk of the increase in the assessment on personal property, lands, and town and city lots is in Cook County, and for the most part the increase is the result of the work of the local assessors. In making the equalization the board made no changes in personal property at all. and the changes on lands and lots were inconsequential when taken as a whole. Among the more notable increases in capital stock assessments were the following: The Chicago ele­ vated railroads were raised on their net assessment from $1,100,187 to $6,- 153,760; the Chicago and Alton got a raise of $2,751,825. The Union Stock- Yards went up just $3,000,000. The fol­ lowing per cents on lands were added to the local assessments: Alexandef, 6; Bond, 35; Brown, II; Bureau, 2; Clark, 15; Clinton, 9; Cumberland, 17; De Kalb, 2; Dewitt. 4; Douglas. 3; Fayette 19; Franklin, 22; Gallatin, 11; Hamilton, 48; Hardin, 40; Henry, 2; Jackson, 34; Jersey. 20; Johnson, 19; Kane, 5; Kankakee, 18; Lake, 17; Lo­ gan. 5; Macoupin. 8; Madison, 3; Ma­ rion, 4; Mercer, 3; Perry. 3; Pope, 28; Pulaski, 3; Putnam, 9; Randolph, 8; Saline, 6; Sangamon, 5; Shelby, 10; St. Clair. 7; Stephenson. 5; Washing ton. 15; Wayne. 34; White, .8; White­ side, 4; Williamson, 24. Reductions were made in the remaining counties in the following per cents: Boone. 5 Cass, 5; Champaign, 15; Clay. 5; Coles 2,' Crawford. S; Du rage. 10; Ed?;. 2; Ford, 4; Fulton, 4; Grundy, 8; Iro­ quois, 20; Jasper, 4; Jefferson, 3; Jo Daviess, 9; Kendall, 5; La Salle, 4; Lee. 11; Livingston, 7; Macf^n, 9;< Mason, 7; -Massac, 30; McHenry.'S; McLean, 5 Menard, 2; Monroe, 2; Piatt, 12; Pike, 7; Scott, 5, Stark, 11; Tazewell, 2; Wa­ bash, 3: Winnebago, 6; Woodford, 6. The assessment was unchanged in the following: Adams,41 Calhoun. Carroll. Christian, Cook, Edgar, Effingham, Greene, Hancock, Henderson, Knox, I^awrence, Marshall, McDonough, Montgomery, Morgan, Moultrie, Ogle, Peoria, Richland, Rock Island, Schuy­ ler, Union, Vermilion. Warren and Will. Mr. and Mrs. E. ft. Math^s Celebrated their golden wedding at Princeton Christmas. They were married in that city and make "laim of not having lost by death any Cllildi^n, grandchil­ dren or great-grandchildren. They en­ tertained three hundred guests. Word reached Carbondale of the killing in Chicago by officers of Harry Kelley, formerly of Carbondale. Kel- ley, it will be remembered, was arrest­ ed in Carbondale and had in his pos­ session several hundrecWdollars' worth of goods that were afterward identi­ fied as having been stolen at Martin, Tenn, Wickliffe, Ky., and Schell City, Mo. The operations of the gang of which he was the chief distributor had extended over several years, and many thousand dollars' worth of stol­ en property had been sold. When ar­ rested in Carbondale two sheriffs-- Watwood of Kentucky and Coleman of Tennessee--\vere there wanting him, but through a mistake he escaped. He was considered one of the most suc­ cessful burglars in this section, and his death at Chicago at the hands of officers who were trying to make his arrest removes one of the most dan­ gerous men of southern Illinoi^ Mr. C. R. Davis of Farina has suc­ ceeded Mr. W. W. Sims as publisher of the Pinckneyville Advocate, pub­ lished in Pinckneyville. Mr. Davis has been editor of the Farina News for twenty years and was postmaster at Farina for four years. Two Kentucky couples arrived at Cairo to celebrate Christmas by being married. The first couple were Alex­ ander J. Burke and Miss Lelia D. Moore, both of Bardwell. They were married at the Halliday hotel by the Rev. W. Sanford Gee, of the Cairo Baptist church. A number of their friends accompanied them. The other couple were John Haydoh of Kirbyton and Miss Bertha Robertson of Milburn. Professor A. E. Jack of Lake Forest university read a paper on "Notes on English Elegalc Poetry, with a Bibli­ ography." Two hundred leading Democrats, at a meeting called by the committee­ men at Robinson, indorsed Congress­ man Crowley for re-election and in structed the executive committee to call a mass convention at any time suitable to the representative. Charles Harris, eighteen years old, accidentally shot and seriously wound­ ed John Turner's little girl at Eldo­ rado. Mrs. John Reger, wife of a farmer in Marion county* Missouri, about twenty miles from Quincy, 111., com­ mitted suicide In a horrible manner. While the children were away she sat­ urated the carpet in the sitting-room with kerosene. After she had ignited the oil she cut her throat from ear to ear with a razor and iniew ueise.i on the flames. The cremated remains were found by her husband on his re­ turn from the field. F. ft. Tracey of Kankakee elected president of Illinois Teachers' associa­ tion. Architects and builders pronounce the past year one of the most active in building lines in the history of Springfield. Many business buildings and fine residences have been erected. Among the finest of the residences is that of Col. Henry Davis, costing about $30,000. The Chicago aud Alton rail­ road has expended abou*. $40,000 on a new freight house. The year has wit­ nessed the completion or the work of remodeling of the county courthouse at a cost of $150,000, and the recon­ struction of the Lincoln monument at a cost of $100,000. It has also witnessed the awarding of the contract for the construction of a new armory and ar­ senal opposite the state house at a cost of $150,000. This work will be completed during the coming year. Charles Harris, 18 years aid, near El Dorado accidentally shot And dan­ gerously wounded John Turwr's little girl Christmas evening. Turjer and Harris are near neighbors, llvl lg about two miles north of the city. The marriage of Gustav Rixman to Miss Emilie Becker occurred at the Becker home on North Kankaskia street, Nashville, Christmas night, the ReVi Mr. Leesman, pastor of the Ger­ man Evangelical church, officiating. The bride is the daughter of Will ISM Becker, a prominent shoe merchant of that city. The groom is a prominent merchant of Irvington. 111. The wed­ ding march was executed by Miss Um- beck, and an orchestra rendered music after the wedding ceremony. The newly-married couple left for St. Louis for a visit in that city. Burton E. Gridley and Miss Laverne Gatton, well known in social circles, were married Christmas evening at the home of the bride's parents in Vir­ ginia, 111., Rev. J. C. Ventress, pastor of the Christian church, officiating. Charles Fairchlld, a prominent farm­ er and stock raiser living near Roches­ ter, shot and fatally wounded George Hayes, a negro, who is employed by Alvey Miller, another stock raiser in Rochester. The affray occurred in Daniel Raymond's saloon. In Spring­ field. Hayes declared that some one in the saloon had lied to him. Fair- child was playing cards at the time, but waited until the close of the game, when he took exceptions to the re­ marks. He asked Hayes if he had said he was a liar, and the negro re­ plied that he bad not. Fearing that there was going to be trouble, Ray­ mond took hold of Hayes, it is alleged, to put him out of the saloon, when Fairchild deliberately drew his re­ volver and fired three shots at Hayes, two of which took effect in his body. James A. Todd, manager' of the Towle Manufacturing company, silver­ smiths, at 149-153 State sftreet, Chica­ go, was found dead In tlfc lavatory of the store. He had locked himself In the lavatory after having drawn a tube from a gaa Jet through the keyhole. Mr. Todd was 52 years old, and went to ChlcajJp several years ago from Walcott. He lived in the suburb of Lagrange. xHis business associates say he had nov domestic nor business troubles; that it was worry and over­ work that caused him to commit sui­ cide. The Alton Railway, Gas and Electric company has purchased from the Mis­ sissippi Valley Railway company the last of the property owned by the lat­ ter company, and the promise that the Mississippi Valley company would build an electric railway between Al­ ton and East St. Louis will never be fulfilled. The Mississippi Valley com­ pany obtained a franchise through Madison county four years ago to build an electric line from EaBt St. Louis to Alton and knother line from East St. Louis to Edwardsville via Colllnsvllle. The latter franchise was sold to the Mississippi Valley Transit company, and that electric line was built. The line to Alton was never financed, and the franchise, obtained by great labor and expense, was for­ feited by expiration before the work was started. While the company was planning tq build its line, poles were set in the ?tr6&ts of Upper Alton to hold the franchise, the ordinance granting which fixed a definite time within which work must be started. The Alton company will use the poles and whatever claim the Mississippi Valley company may have had to a franchise since September 1 in Upper Alton and Alton will be held by the Alton, Railway Gas and Electric com­ pany. The Mississippi Valley company at one time threatened tt> become a formidable rival of the Alton street railway company, and was also in­ tended to take up a field in interurban railways in Madison county which the Alton company planned to occupy. It is probable that Charles Laux will again assume the management of the St. Nicholas Hotel at Decatur, which is temporarily closed. The house had not missed service a meal for forty years until Tuesday. First National Bank at Chicago to build a sixteen-story structure on its present site and property adjoining it It will be the largest ofllce building in the west and will cost $3,000,000. Otto Young to erect sixteen-story structure at 145 to 153 State street and a mod­ ern building planned for northeast ow­ ner of State and Monroe. President of Wheaton College, in an address before the Illinois State Teachers' association, declared even a governor may lack character. Jenkin Lloyd Jones said state is not doing its duty to children John F. Kellar, aged 80, and Mrs. Sarah Canfleld. aged 63. were to have been married at Pana. but when they appeared before the minister they de­ cided they were too old to wed. Mr. Kellar made the bride-elect a present of $1,600 in cash and they parted at the altar, the best of friends. Mr. Kel­ lar Is one of the wealthiest residents of Holland township. Mrs. Canfleld Is ^ widow, a very estimable woman. They have been much attached to each other, but consider they will be better friends it they remain singU- Mrs. Elizabeth Cady Stanton has , been writing on the subject of how to grow old easily, happily and gracefully. <9 She is now in her eighty-fifth year and ' she says life to her is as sweet as ever. She has no pains or aches, no regrets or forebodings for herself; all her sor­ rows are for the troubles of others. "I attribute my vigorous old age In part to advantageous circumstances," she says, "in part to a happy, hopeful temperament, a keen sense of humor, sympathies for all my fellow beings and a deep interest in all the vital questions of the hour. "One must have an earnest purpose in life beyond personal ambition and family aggrandizement. Self-centered characters do not possess the necessary elements of a high development* If one would have a happy old age the first condition is a sound body; to that end exercise, diet, dress, sanitary condi­ tions are all important. "My philosophy is to live in Uie pres­ ent. Regrets for the past are vain; the page is turned; there is no remedy for what is done. As to the future, anxi­ eties are equally vain; we do not know what one day will bring forth; what we hope or fear may never oc­ cur; the present is all that Is ourfc"'-- New York Sun. QUENTIN ROOSEVELT Queniln is the only member of the President's family who can boast at the capital as a birthplace. He wa« born just prior to the Spanish-Amer- ican war at 1735 N street, while his father was organizing the Rftugh Rid­ ers. He does not think much of Wash­ ington as a place of residence. Tha \S White House In his estimatluu is + poor substitute for the home at Oy»-, ter Bay. He does not relish belhg con­ fined to a small part of the Mansion, but would like to roam at will through­ out the building and investigate tha progress of public business from time to time. The other day he desired to walk through the flower-beds on stilta. His father told him that the gardener objected. The youngster answered: "I don't see what good it does for you to be President. There are so many things we can't do here. I wish I W9M home again." ' ^ THE SUGOLSSFUL EYE There are two classes of human eyes, says Professor J. M. Simon, the em­ inent occulist. First, the cold and in­ different eye, which falls upon yon with the same Interest that it wouM fall upon some large building or any* thing else. Then there is the warm, flattering eye that indicates human In­ terest. The gray is the strong one. I have observed in the majority of cases 01 people who have risen to eminence that the eye has been gray, although I am inclined to believe that the gray eye is weaker than any other. A gray eye can charm, and in every instant* I give a man with that color of eyo more consideration than if his eyes are of another color. Liked the Frock. An English soldier's wife once took her little girl to see her father, who was on sentry duty. The soldier, who was in a Scottish regiment, wore tho orthodox tartan and kilt. The little girl, not having seen her father before in such a garb, could not understand it, and looking up at her mother, ex­ claimed: "Mother, when father haa found the man who stole his tronsem may I have that little frock?" Volumes In the Uritlah MUMS. The number of volumes in the Brit* lsh museum library, according to a re­ cent counting, is now over 2,000,00ft. There are more than 16,000 volumea of London newspapers, about 47,0^0 volumes of provincial newspaper*, counting Welsh as well as English, 10»- 000 volumes of Scottish papers, aai 9,000 from Ireland. Hallway at Damu«u. The first section of the Demaacaa* Mecca railway has been formally In--- augurated with religious ceremonial calculated to appeal to the Mosleai sentiment by which the funds hav* been obtained. There were sacrifice* of numerous oxen, of which the fleih was afterward distributed to the poor* England Imports Her Food. That English agriculture as a food- produclcg agency is now almost %. thing of the past appears from the fact that of the 32.000.000 quarters of wheat consumed annually in thft British Ifelee, no lees than 14.000,00A Quarters come from abroad, for which, DMrtyc £40,000,000 ts paM. m