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. LQ &M •vx n WW % -x-%) Oo A<di\ K\. c > r'^ES wmm^ or d innnee-been use of a- elause-pormIt-tiu the owner of but one, two or three cow ILLINOIS STATE NEWS CHANGES OF A YEAR. THE FARM AND HOME OCCURRENCES DURING PAST WEEK. FARMERS HAVE CAUSE CONGRATULATION. FOR A Retrospective View Shows that the Country Has Much to Be Thankful For--Nation IS Now in a Prosperous Condition. Prices All Advancing.' Special Washington correspondence: The farmers of the United* States surely find their holiday season a ve,ry satisfactory one. The contrast in their conditions at tlia present time with those which existed under the free trade which the Republican party has Just eliminated from the statute boojes is very great, and every farmer will doubtless appreciate it. They have contributed very largely to the expor- tations .of the year just closed, which are shown by recent figures of the Treasury. Department as greater than .in any preceding year in the history of the count ry. Of course the products of agriculture form a: very large per­ centage, of pur exports. Products of agriculture form over (55;. per cent, of the exportstions of the year 1897, as they djd in 18UC.. In the month of Oc­ tober they formed 75 per cent: of the total export at ions, \yhon we take this into consideration, and then learn that the exports; of the United States for the year just ending will be more.than a billion dollars, it will be seen that a large amount of money lias llown into the pockets of the farmers. A study of the details of the prices received by farmers for the articles which they are now soiling as compar­ ed with recent conditions will be inter- real friend of the farmer, and instituted a number of schemes which have work­ ed out to their advantage and which are now recognized as permanent in­ stitutions of the country, but the work­ ings of his department were largely ex­ perimental, and' it remained for his suc­ cessor to reap the benefit of his work. But President Cleveland's Secretary of Agriculture. Mr. Morton, failed to im­ prove his opportunities and seems to have been about the last man who should have occupied this important position. But Farmer Wilson imme­ diately upon his-appointment pulled off his coat and has had it off ever since. The department has undergone a tran­ sition, and more has been done in the genuine interest of the farmer of the United States than was ever dreamed of, before. The hew Secretary has pur­ sued a vigorous policy in regard to the distribution of seeds which will be of some definite value to the farmer: he has encouraged in every particular the beet sugar industry, lie lias placed the department at the service of the dairy interests in bringing their products to the attention pf foreign markets, and with no little success he is making in­ vestigation in regard to foreign mar­ kets for American cat tie. horses arid other farm animals; he is,sending' all over the' world for rU-jw-seeds.'"which will be of value toi this country, and. in fact, is doing everything which energy and ingenuity .can conceive and which thorough organization and . system in his department can foster to materially advance the welfare, and business in­ terests of the farmers of the United States. It is predicted by the friends of this department that before Presi­ dent McKinlcy's four years of admin­ istration have passed, (here will be no branch of ine Government more in flu. MATTERS OF INTEREST TO FARM­ ER AND HOUSEWIFE. flow to Set and Cultivate a Hedge Fence--Butter Should Be Shipped,in Good Condition-- Keeping Squirrels from Corn Cribs. UNCLE SAM'S ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. To Make Hedge Fences. I have on my farm 134 rods of osage orange hedge. Up to the end of the fourth year, at which time It was a good fence, it cost me $1 per rod. Some farmers consider a hedge a nuisance, but if given the proper attention this is not so. The chiel^ aim in making a hedge fence is to hare it tight near^the bottom. To accomplish this set the plants five inches apart. The secret in getting a good fence is to get a good start of plants at the first setting. The soil should bo rich or heavily < ma­ nured. Cultivate the saine as corn. It is a difficult task to keep a hedge within a prescribed limit. Start it three feet high and six'inches thick, then trim closely e.acu time. In spite of careful wor.k-the width will increase so that a ^periodical- reduction by cut­ ting off some of the old wood is neces­ sary every few years. Two trimmings a season are usually sufficient except during a wet summer, Avheii growth is 'rapid. Cut when the' shoots are yet tender, damp, rainy weather being preferable. One man can trim a mile a day if done at the proper time. A care­ less or lazy farmer should not think of growing a hedge, for he will not take care of it.--Orange Judd Farmer. seed, making about four quarts a (Jay per cow. Our ensilage is made from northern corn, which is cut five-eighths of an inch, and put in when the ears begin to glazfe. The corn being - matured makes up for the extra grain ration, and also makes it unnecessary to in­ crease the grain ration during the win­ ter months. Our price for the year for butter is 27% cents per pound, and the cream is 30 cents a quart. „We "raise, our cream witli a separator, which les­ sens the work in the house, and is far ahead of any other method of making butter. Our separator and churn are run by a tread power, which is Operat­ ed by a two-year-old bull who enjoys it very much. The power is located in the carriage house, with a fourteen- foot shafting running to the creamery. New England Farmer. u es t iug a t th i s c lose o f the year . S ince Augus t , p r ices o f whea t iu New York have hovered a long the do l la r l ine , somet imes a l i t t l e be low, f requen t ly a l i t t l e above , and the c l imax was reach­ ed the o ther day in Chicago when- the pr ice o f win te r whea t t ouched one do l ­ l a r and n ine cen t s . Cont ras t th i s condi ­ t ion wi th tha t o f a . shor t t ime ago . On . Ian . 2 , 1890 , the p r ice o f r ed win te r whea t No. 2 in ihe New York marke t was s ix ty -n ine cen t s . On Feb . 7 . 1895 , i t was f i f ty seven cen t s , on Oct . 4 . IS!*-} , i t was f i f ty - four cen t s and a f rac t ion . Ohio medium c lass wool , which in November so ld in the New York and Bos ton marke t s a t th i r ty cen t s , b rought on ly twenty cen t s in January of the p resen t year . Montana f ine medium wool ( scoured bas i s ) which in Novem­ ber b rought f i f ty - th ree cen t s pe r pound , Was wor th th i r ty - th ree cen t s a t the be­ g inn ing of Ihe year . Kentucky and In­ d iana unwashed , which in October and November b rought twenty- th ree cen t s a pound in the marke t s , was wor th bu t seven teen cen t s a t the beg inn ing of the year . Lard , which in Sep tember ranged as h igh a s f ive do l la r s and twen­ ty -seven cen t s , i s quo ted upon Feb . 11 , 1897 , a t th ree do l la r s and n ine ty- f ive cen t s . Mess pork , which i s quo ted as se l l ing in the New York marke t s a t wo do l la r s and seven ty- f ive cen t s in Sep tember , began the year a t e igh t do l ­ l a r s and twenty- f ive cen t s pe r ba r re l . I t ee f , which so ld in the New York mar ­ ke t s a t t en do l la r s and f i f ty cen t s pe r ba r re l in November of the p resen t year , i s quo ted a t e igh t do l la r s and f i f ty cen t s in the same marke t s in Ju ly las t . In many, other things farm prices steadily advanced, and farmers have reason to congratulate themselves upon their improved conditions. A recent statement by Bradst root's. in which it compares prices of nearly 100 different articles with former rates, shows an advance in November in corn, oats, po­ tatoes, milk, beans, peas, hemp, bar­ reled beef, mutton, sheep, hops, eggs and wool, while other articles of farm produce retained the advanced position which they had gained earlier iu the year. That all these things have had their effect upon the farmer and made his year a prosperous one is evidenced by reports coming from every part of the country showing enormous reduction in mortgage indebtedness. Thousands upon thousands of mortgages, hundreds of thousands, in fact, are being paid off with the resul^of a year's prosperi­ ty under protection and sound money, and hundreds of thousands of homes will this year have for this reason as well as . for many others a" merrier Christmas and happier New Year than they had known during the period of free trade and its accompanying trou­ bles. • Not only in the matter of increased earnings-do the farmers find their con­ dition improved, but coupled with this has come a reduction in prices of many articles which they must buy. Brad- street's statement referred to above shows a reduction in November in the prices of coffee, cotton sheetings, tin, print cloths, iron and steel, coal and coke and many other articles for which the farmer's money must go. The farmers of the country have rea­ son to congratulate themselves also up­ on the, change which has taken place in the management of their own Depart­ ment of Agriculture since- a year ago. Uncle Jerry Rusk, President Harri­ son's Secretary of Agriculture, was a en t ia l and none so popula r th roughout Ihe count ry as the Depar tment o f Agr i ­ cu l tu re . A . I? . CARSON. Ship Butter in Good Condition. I believe, says a correspondent of the Creamery Journal, that butter can and ought to be made so it could not be substituted. It is an article that has been in use a good many years and will remain a necessity and command a good price if properly made. Now, let every one who is interested in the dairy busiuess stop so much kicking and put his shoulder to the wheel of progress in the manufacture of pure creamery but ter. Let every owner of a cow who sends milk to a factory do his utmost to help his butter maker. The butter maker should attend to his work care­ fully and see that there is nothing left undone in making and preparing his butter for the market, and I think it would give better prices, make it more pleasant to do business, make better times and better people. The American Practice. What is specifically true of iron and ste<d is true of the whole fabric of American industry. "American furnace practice" Involves precisely the same ' principle as that illustrated in Ameri- :> can railroad ptact ice. of operating loco-'. motives and cars of double the capacity G of those of England! which is now be­ ing extended to double the capacity again. It Is the same "American prac­ tice" that obtains in every industrial^' operation, and it has its foundation inst that older American practice which gave to the laborer double the amount j of wages paid in Europe and stiinulat ed him to turn out double the amount of product. It is a practice that has grown tip under the system of protec­ tion that made it possible, and while it may appear that, in the iron and steel industries, "protection does not protect," it is obvious that so far from deserving the appellation of "shackles of protection," that policy constantly encourages the American workman and engineer to press forward to great­ er achievements.--Pittsburg Dispatch. Squirrels in Corn Cribs. Wherever squirrels are prevalent, care should be taken to prevent them from getting at the seed corn. It is not a good plan to hang the seed corn in the crib, as the open, slatted sides to allow ventilation the squirrel can easily enter, aiid his agility makes it impossible keep seed corn from him, no matter how carefully it is braided and hun where neither rats nor mice can get at it. The squirrel does not care for the bulk of corn in the crib, lie is very dainty in his food, and is sure to take that which is liung up, and carefully dried for seed. The provoking part of it is that he destroys far more corn than he eats. He cares only for the chit or germ, leaving all the rest as only fit for hog feed.--Exchange. PHILADELPHIA BANK FAlCS. The Shropshire Ram. The Wisconsin station found tliat by using a selected, well-bred Shropshire ram with ordinary ewes excellent re­ sults could be obtained. Tlife lambs were dropped in March, and' in April were given oats, bran and corn meal. In July ground peas were given in place of corn meal and in September the quantity of peas Was doubled until October; when oilmeal was added. The roughage was clover bay all summer, a little green" clover and some. rape. The result was that yearling lambs (over one year) weighed 220 pounds live weight and lambs dropped last March weighed. 120 pounds in November. It is possible that if the ewe lambs are retained and mated with a pure-bred Shropshire ram better results can be obtained next vear. Chestnut Street National in the Hand* of a Receiver. One of the greatest financial sensations of the year was sprung in Philadelphia Thursday morning when tha Chestnut Street National Bank, of which William M. Singerly, proprietor of the Philadel- pnia Record, is president, closed its doora. Business was also suspended by the Chestnut Street Trust and Saving Fund Company, which was allied with the bank and occupied the same building. Rumors of the bank's shaky condition have been in circulation for a month. Dur­ ing that period the most herculean efforts have been made by President- Singerly end his friends to save the institution from bankruptcy, but they were futile. National Bank Examiner William M. Hardt is in charge of the bank and State Commissioner of Banking Kilkeson is iu charge of the trust company. The one explanation for the failure, which Mr. Singerly himself affirms, is made by no less an authority than Comp- ° troller Eckels. The closing of the bank is primarily due, to shrinkage in.value'of bonds and notes of the Singerly "Pulp and Paper Mills located at. Elkton* Md.' Thei liabilities will exceed $3,000,000, but un­ til the bank examiner makes his report the actual value of the assets-will not be made public. The last official statement of the bank .placed the resources of the bank at $3i868.07Q,58 and of the trust company at' $1,858,'659.38. Both institu­ tions occupy the same building and are under the same management. , . . . .. Bankiug Karth Around Trees. As It is often -done, the banking of soil around trees in fall to prevent mice from barking them does more harm than good. If any sod, weeds or other rubbish are included in banking up the tree, the object is not only defeated* but the liability to injury is increased. Tlie purpose should be to oblige the mice to climb up above the snow line and expose themselves to their enemies while gnawing the tree. This they will rarely do. for much of this work is done at night when their natural enemy, the owl, is most watchful. But if the mice find vacant spaces around the tree, as they surely can if sod or rubbish are used, they can work under this pro­ tection with greater safety than if the tree were not banked at all. Still it is better to bank young apple trees, at least as high as the snow line usually conies. The warmth from the tree makes a vacant space in the snow all around it, and it is under this protection that most of tlie destructive work is done. About the Hog:. Must our breed of hogs be abandon- of her history, iiaving no record o the early pupils we take this inethot of discovering their whereabouts; wish to hear personally from everj Todd student to whom this may come but we will also be glad to hear from anj others who can assist us in this matter Kiudlv send us the names and addresses Spontaneous Combustion. The fact that fire sometimes arises from the heat generated by fermenta­ tion was illustrated in a big malt house in Syracuse, N. Y., lately. The ware­ house held 1,800 bushels of barley ready for malting. It was unfortunate­ ly damp enough to begin fermentation. In so large a mass, this soon started smoke from the windows of tlie ware­ house. The fire department was called out, but as no flame was visible it did not know where to apply water without danger of causing the tlames to burst forth and destroy the woodwork. The building was very old and inflammable. At last the grain was let out of the room in which it was piled, and by be- ktg shoveled around so that It could not set fire to anything, all further dan­ ger was avoided. There are often cases where hay is blackened by being fermented too much. Clover hay is most apt to suffer in this way because it has so much nitrogen that it heats very rapidly. Usually, however, there is so much carbonic acid gas evolved by fermentation that it suppresses of all former Todd Students that youlbj may know , and if possible date of atf ame and the pile of fermenting rnate- A Reliable Barometer. Bank clearings are an absolutely re­ liable baromoter of general business conditions. That a -steady and perma­ nent increase in bank clearings from week to week means a positive com­ mercial and industrial revival is as certain as the law of gravitation. That a commercial and industrial revival means more employment for the wage earners, and hence increased purchas­ ing power for the laboring classes, is equally certain.' The bank clearings of Chicago for the month of November tell a tale of good times that must completely confound the most resourceful and tactful of the calamity wailers. There is no argu­ ment that can be advanced by the apostles of discontent that will prevail against figures which show actual bus­ iness transactions. The bank clearings of Chicago for November reached the enormous aggregate of $458,000,000, ... ,. „ , n,. ' j , t|,^«\n..'T^ptIlating flues that opened out tendance. We want the names of de ceased students as well. Trusting that this cause will enlist tb ei in ....... vu'udua \iiU farmers are using boars of the Tarn- worth breed, which produce more lean meat than fat, and the bacon from the hogs so produced brings from 15 to 17 cents per pound in England, while that from the United States, abounding iu fat, brings from (> to 8 cents per pound. The celebrated Smithville hams, from Isle of Wight Counfy, Virginia, which have-held their reputation in market for half a century, are from the "razor- back" breed, and the Irish breakfast bacon is from hogs of the Tamwortli and active Irish breeds. Barn Ventilation. An ingenious way of securing ven­ tilation on a long barn with two cupo­ las was as follows: There were large windows in the cupola, and a stick ran across from one window to the other that was six inches longer than the cupola was wide. This stick fastened on to these windows. Now, when the south wind was blowing hard it shut the south window and fastened out the one on the north side, and when the north wind was blowing hard it shut the north window and pushed open the window oh the south side six inches, and in that way formed a cer­ tain amount of ventilation in the top of the barn. From the stables there rial merely smoulders. which is a gain of $100,700,000 over corresponding month of last year. This remarkable gain is the highest ona8t record since the good times of 1890-93. jn The figures of the politicians some­ times lie; bank figures do not.--Chi­ cago Times-Herald. on They're N t So Warm. An investigation of the subject shows that the thirteen countries which made formal protests against certain, features of the tariff law of 1S97, in the two months in which the details of our exports can be obtained, have purchased $131,446,503 in value of our products and merchandise, against only $107,077,590 in the corre­ sponding months, of last year under the Wilson law.--York (Pa.) Dispatch. It Pleases Americans. It ought to be a matter of gratifica­ tion to all Americans to know that the United States is pursuing an industrial policy which is calculated to cause alarm among the manufacturing na­ tions of Europe.--Cleveland Leader. Should Receive Attention. Truly the matter of promoting Amer­ ican shipping, even by not being above imitating the methods England has em­ ployed, is a fitting one to command at­ tention at the coming session of Con- gtess.--Pittsburg Commercial-Gazette. and sage. ' Put the herbs in a kettle a pour a quirt of boiling water on tin- Boil a few minutes then stop up snout and place a c lo th over the j opening in such a way that it can ! brought up over the patient's face }j the fumes inhaled as hot as possij W h e n n o t i n u s e i t s h o u l d s i m m e r i n j sick room, as it will make the atm phere moist and grateful to the e lungs of the patient. In connection chest and soles of the feet should robbed with sweet oil and turpen Impaired, especially in winter-made stock. To do this the winter stable must- be kept, not like the ill-smelling place that it often is, but a clean, sweet, airy apartment. After you have once got it set in order it takes but a nominal amount of labor to keep it so," and you have as a reward healthy cows, clean, pure milk and more of it than though no especial attention were paid to this. Of course, the more mod­ ern your stable, the easier it is kept clean and sweet.--Ohio Farmer. Burning; Potato Tops. Much of tlie difficulty from rot in the potato crop comes from the general neg­ lect to destroy the potato tops so soon as the crop is harvested. Potato rot is a fungous disease which fastens first upon the leaves and stems of the pota­ toes, and is thence washed into the soil by rains. It causes rot-when it reaches the tuber. It is known that the germs of the disease adhere to potato stems and leaves until they are destroyed, and this can only be surejy done by burning them. Yet we have known farmers to carry potato tops to the barnyard to be used as bedding, and composted with the excrement these dropped. No better means for propa­ gating potato rot could be devised than this, unless it be feeding rotting pota­ toes to stock and leaving the uneaten portions to be trodden into the manure pile.--Exchange. Good Horses. Good horses are essential to prosper­ ity in any country, and American farm­ ers are every year now losing the best markets of the world by not breeding high-class draft and coach horses to supply tlie city and export markets. Most of these markets wait five or ten years for farmers to breed up and ma­ ture good horses. Those who get tlie good mares will be first to get into mar­ ket with good horses, and those Who have to grade up will find it a long way off. There are but few good mares left and still less stallions, not enough to supply the demand when breeding be­ gins.--Western Agriculturist. Churning with Ball Power. In winter we l'^ed thirty pounds of ensilage and ten to twelve pounds of j hay, and a grain ration, consisting of ; two-thirds bran and one-third cotton- i Smokehouses, The best smoke houses are made of brick with a cement or brick floor. A house six by seven feet is large enough for most farmers. Seven feet is about the right height. If the door is made of wood, it should be lined with metal. The inside should be provided with hooks on which to hang the hams or other meat. For providing the smoke, corn cobs make a good filel.--Massa­ chusetts Ploughman. .The Cabbage Stem Rot. sTliis disease has been fully deter­ mined by Dr. Edwin F. Smith, of the Agricultural Department at Washing­ ton, to be caused by bacteria. The dis- .ease can be induced in healthy plants by inoculating them with the germs. There is no remedy for plants so dis­ eased, but the disease only appears When cabbages have been planted two or more years in succession on the same land: By planting, therefore, on new land. ou. where some other crop 4ias been raised the previous year, the dis- not prevail.--Tick's Monthly; TERROR AT A BIG FIRE. Explosion "Follows a Blaze in a Chica- gb Basement-Many Hurt. Ten minutes after an alarm of fire had been given at the Tosetti restaurant, 104 and 106 Madison street, Chicago, Thurs­ day afternoon, a terrific explosion occur­ red beneath the sidewalk in front of the burning building. Structures were shaken for a block around and windows were shattered as by an explosion of dynamite. Scores of men and women were hurled to the ground, and a dozen or more were in­ jured by flying glass. Firemen were scorched in a whirlwind of flame, and tossed in the air like so many leaves in a windstorm, and several policemen were stricken to the earth as if with a club. Wild excitement prevailed for several minutes, and when the ambulances and doctors had finished their work of mercy the list of injured was found to number1 nearly thirty. A drop of blazing oil from an overheat­ ed basement engine is said to have caused the fire which threatened with destruction the entire south side of Madison street, between Clark and Dearborn streets. This started a blaze that could not be con­ trolled and culminated in the explosion of a drum of ammonia under the sidewalk, the explosive ignition of a natural gas main nnd the destruction of the building. The loss exceeds $200,000. SPA'IN SEES A CHANCE, May Ask America to ftepress Active Cnban Societies. Following upon the almost universal ex­ pressions of disapprobation shown by the American press at large at the savage methods of warfare used by Gen. Gomez in the matter of the assassination of Lieut. Col. Ruiz, a Madrid correspondent says he lias the best authority for stating that the Spanish Government thinks the moment propitious for approaching thaf of Washington and asking the latter to use all means possible to repress revolu­ tionary societies in the United States which are giving active assistance to Go­ mez's force. All the Spanish Government asks is the application of the rule laid down by Pres­ ident Grant as the duty of one friendly nation toward another. If that is applied the Government considers the termination of the revolution will occur within a short time. The indignation was twice as great when the news reached Madrid that Ruiz was not even permitted a soldier's death,, but was hanged. BIG FIRE AT CLEVELAND. Loss to Business Firms Placed at Near« ly a Million Dollars. Fire broke out in the business center of Cleveland, O., at 5 o'clock Thursday af­ ternoon, and, fanned by a high northwest wind, destroyed property worth nearly $1,(MX).000. The Power block on Frank­ fort street, owned by J. B. Perkins, six stories high and made of brick, was con­ sumed above the second story and tae rear of the brick Wilshire block, six sto­ ries high, owned also by Mr. Perkins, and fronting on Superior street, was burned. The fire started by the explosion of a large can of benzine in the lithographing establishment of Johns & Co., in the Pow­ er block. Windows were blown out and several employes escaped with difficulty by the fire escapes and a bridge leading to the Wilshire block. Aldermanic Salaries. Chicago aldermen should be willing to pay the public for the privilege of holding their jobs.--Buffalo Express. Prosperity has struck Chicago and wages are going up to beat the band. The Chicago aldermen last night raised their own salaries from $3 a week to $1,500 a year.--Toledo Bee. The modest advance from $3 a week to $1,500 a year each voted themselves by the Chicago aldermen must not be under­ stood as in the nature of a limit to the aldermanic income.--Cincinnati Commer­ cial-Tribune. The gang of genteel highwaymen in the Chicago City Council have beaten all rec­ ords for immaculate gall. It is doubtful, however, if even Chicago public sentiment will countenance such unexampled rob­ bery.--Minneapolis Tribune. The Chicago aldermen have fixed their salaries at $1.500--a figure scarcely high enough t® insure honest work. It is pos­ sible, however, that the very highest pay would not serve to keep born boodlers from boodling.--St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Perhaps its worst feature is that it gives example and encouragement to councilmen in other cities, some of whom would not have thought of such a device for personal emolument, while others would not have been brave enough to adopt it had it not been for the action of their Chicago compeers.--Philadelphia Ledger. Chicago's aldermen have shown that they possess a proper amount of self-es­ teem by raising their salaries from $3 per evening to §1,500 per year, and this, too, without the excuse of domiciliary visits, lately so fashionable in CleTeland's conu- cilmauic circles.--Cleveland Plain Dealer. The present Council of Chicago, which is probably as unfit and little trusted as any other body in the country of like na­ ture, has just suspended its own rules to raise the pay of its members 900 per .cent. Probably few of the taxpayers of Chi­ cago would object if there were any rea­ son to believe that tb© change would im­ prove the character of the CounciL-- Cleveland leader. Miner's Narrow Escape from Death-- Creston Farmer Mnrdered in a Hog Pen-Fatal Fight at Alton--Young Boy Killed by Electric Cars. Dodges a Terrible Death. William Lattmann, a coal miner em­ ployed at Hortman's mine, Belleville, looktd death in the face one day recently, but rapid thinking and action and super­ human strength permitted him to dodge the grim destroyer. Lattmann-was work­ ing about the top of, the shaft, which is 300 feet deep. He lost his balance and plunged into the pit head first. His shoul­ der struck against the side wall and bounced him against the wire cable hang­ ing in the middle of the shaft. His, cal­ loused hands closed around the wire, and ' although the contact burned great fur­ rows in his palms, he tightened his grip and stopped within a few fee| of the top. Bracing his feet in the braces set in the side wall, he waited until his brain had ceased to whirl, and then, shouted lustily for help. His companions who had seen him dive into the pit. aiid were picturing him a crushed and lifeless bit- of humanity at the bottom of the 'shaft, responded quickly. i . V • ' '"Farmer Is Murdered. Fred Talsted, a young farmer >35.years old, residing two miles souJA1; o.'jTreyton, was murdered by Ed. Brown, a hirt/.-iflan formerly in his employ, with whom he had had trouble and discharged. Talsted was alone on the place when the murder oc­ curred. When his hired man returned from a church service he found the body in a hog pen, cold and rigid, he evidently having been dead'several hours. Dozens of hogs were rooting about the bleeding corpse. Brown went to Rochelle after shooting his former employer and gave himself up. He was hurried to Oregon and placed in the county jail. Brown claims he shot him in self-defense. Fatal Fight in Upper Alton. In Upper Alton, George McClayton mor­ tally wounded Jeff Parks by shooting. Two years ago Clayton was sojourning in California with his wife and the couple fell in with Parks, who finally, persuaded the woman to leave her husband and de­ part with him. The other day Parks and his wife came to Upper Alton to eat din­ ner with the woman's father. In the evening they decided to so to McClayton and ask for some goods belonging to the woman. When the men met a fight en­ sued. McClayton surrendered to the po­ lice, but was released on his own recog­ nizance. Mother's Prophecy Fulfilled. At Mascoutah, George Henry Washing­ ton, 71 years of age, the accredited leader of colored society in St. Clair County, was married to Maggie Wade, 22 years old. At a picnic sixteen years ago the present bride, then a child, with her mother and father, was thrown into the water by the capsizing of a boat. Henry Washington, one of the managers of the picnic, jump­ ed into the lake nt tlie risk of his own life and saved the three. In her feeling of gratitude Mrs. Wade half jokingly told him that some day he should wed the daughter. Gains Entrance to Peoria. The St. Louis, Peoria and Northern has r»igned a lease whereby it secures entrance to Peoria over the terminal of the Peoria and Union. The lease is for a year only, by which time the company expects to have its line completed into the city. The track is now laid nearly to Pekin, ten miles distant. The company will cross the Illinois river either at Peoria or Wes­ ley City. Boy Killed by Electric Cars. Harry Brown, 15 years old, an errand boy for Dunwell <fc Ford, printers and engravers at 171 Wabash avenue, Chi­ cago, was crushed to death in a collision between electric cars at North State and Indiana streets. The cars were derailed anu partially wrecked. Jacksonville Wants No Park. A special election was held at Jackson­ ville to vote on the question of levying a 30-cent tax on the $100 for purchasing and keeping a public park. The measure was defeated by a vote of 1,105 to 002. James Brown Captured. James Brown was captured by the Quincy police and taken to Kansas City, where he will be tried for the murder of Henry 1'rater in that city in April, 1890. Brief State Happenings, At Shclbyville, George Elben cut his throat and died. At Carlyle, Mrs. Hugh Essington died suddenly of paralysis, aged (52. -- At Alton, Tone.v Wbite was a fatally wounded by Tony Tremble. Katherine Bolitz was strangled to death in her bed at her residence in South Chi­ cago. Alfred Sawyer, aged 80, one of the old­ est Masons in the State, died at his home in Sycamore. Dr. A. F. Sherrill, for four years pas­ tor of the Central Congregational Church of Galesburg, the leading church of" the denomination in that part of the State, has resigned. Miss Charlotte Crane, leading woman in the traveling company playing at Charleston, S. C., in "A Stranger in New York," was requested by the chaperons of a military ball to leave the floor and the house. Her escort, Mr. Peterson, a cadet, had no recourse but to take the hu­ miliated girl away. Miss Crane is Miss Bose of Springfield off the stage. Her father is one Of the leading physicians of Springfield. Peterson invited Miss Crane to accompany him to the ball, fvhicli is the most important social function of the year. Jealousy of Miss Crane's good looks and becoming dress is said to have been at the bottom of the trouble. - Issrtc MeHenry Lowe died at his home in Decatur. He served as member of Company C in the Twenty-third Ohio Volunteers, "McKinlcy's regiment." Virgil Manis, a young man from Moody- ville, Tenn., who was visiting in Ewing, shot himself through the heart. No cause I." is known. He leaves arwid U»- and two children. W. Berry Ervin was acquitted of the r§ . charge of receiving, as assistant cashier f of tlie (Jefunet Globe Savings Bank of Chicago, deposits wl'en the institution was insolvent. The young man had been on trial for four days. After lingering for a month with a frac­ tured hip, William Besley, an aged and honored citizen of Waukegan, widely known as a maltster, is dead. He was in w his ninetieth year. Field Columbian Museum of Chicago ,\ is, possessor of, the herbarium of the late Prof. Bebb of Rock ford I It is considered c ' the finest private collection of botanical specimens in the United States, and was bought for $5,000. H. S. Reardon has resigned as superin­ tendent of the Chicago, Peoria and St. Louis Railroad and will be succeeded by | I. C. Millard, .who will also continue to act as superintendent of the St. Louis, Chicago und St. Paul Railroad. James Gary, aged 91, an early settler,' is dead, near Centerville. Warren County is lit^fally Bwarming with rabbits. Drives are in fashion. Waukegan County -Supervisors offer a bounty of 4 cents a head on crows. At Harmon, Benjamin Brooks was kicked by a horse and instantly killed. William H. Pinkerton has been appoint­ ed a fourth-class postmaster at Swan- wick. Gov. Tanner has inspected the insane asylum buildings at Peoria. The'site was found untenable and will have to be va­ cated. A joint conference of miners and opera­ tors in the C and A district will be held at Virden to arrange a wage schedule for the ensuing year. Work has been begun on the Illinois building at the trans-Mississippi exposi­ tion. This building will occupy a space of 136 by 105 feet. •1 Hubert, the 2-year-old ^on of W. F. Jenks of Charleston, ran against a hot smoothing iron in the hand of a servant girl and put out an eye. In Chicago, Frankie Ulsemer, 4 years old, while playing set fire to the clothing of her sister Mary, 6 years old. Mary died from the; burns received. John Hogan, an inmate of the Dunning institution, committed suicide in the bath room of his ward by cutting his throat with the ragged edge of a dustpan. *• The Moline' Furniture Company lias! confessed judgment for $10,748.10; Other liabilities bring the total up to nearly $18,- 000. The assets are about $20,000. Mrs. John R. Whiteley of. Chesterfield and Norton Hodgson' of Plainview claim to be heirs of the big Hodgson fortune in England, which amounts to $05,000,000. rhilip Bernhard, a well-known resident of Elgin, who came to Chicago from Dils- berg, Baden, in 1852, and two years later removed to Elgin, is dead, aged 08 years. John T. Corbott and Hank Stadler. as the Aurora boiler works and as individ­ uals, made an assignment in favor of S. E. Shepardson. The liabilities are esti­ mated at $40,(XX). The grocery store of Whitmore, Leffel- man & Heiman at Mendota was closed by the sheriff. The firm's liabilities will amount to over $4,000, and the assets are comparatively small. Attorney General Akin has filed a bill in chancery in the Sangamon County Court, asking that a receiver be appointed for the Illinois Protective, Loan and Building Association. In Chicago, the new £30,000 building of the Woodlawn Sixth United Presbyte­ rian Church was dedicated. The new structure occupies the site where the so­ ciety first worshiped in a tent in 1S95. National banks of Chicago have peti­ tioned the Superior Court for an injunc­ tion restraining the South Town collector and county treasurer from collecting cer­ tain taxes against several of these insti­ tutions. Richard D. Lee of Benson was fright­ ened to death. While his daughter was fixing the lamp it broke, scattering the oil over the floor and setting it on tire. Mr. Lee was so startled that he fainted and died in a short time. James Murray, an attorney of Boone, Iowa, came to Chicago and made himself known to his brothers. John and Law­ rence. And there was much rejoicing, for James had been mourned as dead twenty-three years. Trustees of Knox College, Galesburg, at a meeting in the Union League Club, Chicago, elected .the following members of the board: Rev. J. L. Withrow, D. D„ Robert T. Lincoln and James H. Eckels of Chicago and F. C. Rice of Galesburg. Mr. and Mrs. W. A. Dickerson, well- known residents of Rockford, who were married there tiftv years ago, and lived in the same house ever siiuy, celebrated their golden wedding and were tendered a reception at the Second Congregational Church. Organic heart disease was found by a Chicago coroner's jury to have caused Washington Hesing's death. Mr. Hes- ing's physician was censured by the coro­ ner for "issuing a death certificate when totally ignorant of the cause of death." The undertaker was also censured for embalming the body before the inquest was held. There has been another suicide at the Dunning insane asylum. Henrietta Pope was the victim. She got to the medicine closet, secured a bottle of carbolic acid and swallowed the contents, dying almost immediately. As soon as he heard of it President Ilealy ordered the suspension of the two attendants of the ward, Ellen O'Connor and Mary Shea. There is trouble between the Aurora city authorities and the milk dealers for non-compliance with an ordinance requir­ ing them to pay a license fee of $5. Thc> milkmen have formed an alliance, offec- sive and defensive, and are fighting tL-;. to sell milk without paying the license. A strange man has been frequently seen on the streets of Belleville during recent nights, whose actions appear to in­ dicate that he is insane. The unknown is armed with a long-bladed knife and has several times pursued belated youngsters. The other evening little Peter Buhr was pursued for several blocks, the stranger repeatedly striking at him with the mur­ derous looking knife. The lad finally es­ caped, but he had a close call. The police believe that they Lave a dangerous luna­ tic to deal with. At Robinson, at a depth of twenty-sev­ en feet, while blasting rock in a well, a brazen image was found. The image rep­ resents an angel bearing in one hand the bowl\of what is supposed to have been a candlestick. In the other hand is a lamb. The image was undoubtedly imbedded in the rock. In the same vicinity there have been a number of instances of finding pieces of petrified wood. The supposition is that centuries ago the old valley of the Wabash river was inhabited by an artis­ tic and intelligent race of people, long preceding the American Indian. Horace S. Berry, an old settler and re­ tired business man of Waukegan, died, aged 81 years. He went to Waukegan in 1845, where he had since lived, except for a few years spent in California. For thir­ ty years he conducted a flour mill in Wau­ kegan. John Moore died while riding in his buggy from Dundee to his home near Gil­ bert's. When found his head was down between the thills and the wheel and his face was much disfigured. He had fallen forward into that p< it ion and his horse had neither stopped nor run away. Moore was a wealthy farmer. The auditor of public accounts states that since Feb. 3, 1889, there has been paid into the State treasury of Illinois by the United • States Government the sum of $853,902 for the Soldiers and Sail­ ors' Home of Illinois, the last payment being made Nov. 8, 1897. , The petition of the Chicago College of Law for a modification of rule 39 regard­ ing qualifications of applicants for admis­ sion to the bar was overruled by the Su­ preme Court. This ruling of the court af­ fects hundreds of young men who have re­ cently applied for admission or who are now in the law schools. Under the rule as adopted a three-year course of study is obligatory. .