Dakota County Heralfi
DAKOTA CITY, Mill,
hn M. Rsam, lubllhj
Some m9 ftrrve ior fame and oth
ers are satisfied with notoriety.
1 There it always a chance that unde
sirable children will outgrow It.
bThe spring of 1910 will long be re
embered for the stability of Its back
me. Chicago teleplif-e girls must be
over five feet hi ph. Don't talk back
to a Chicago telephone girl.
A day's outing In an airship In Ger
tnany Is going to be reasonably cheap.
BtUl, the trip will come high.
One Frenchman recently klllod an
other In a duel, which shows that the
unexpected sometimes happens.
About all that Is necessary to start
a new religious sect Is to predict the
nd of the world and take up a collec
tion. When the pocket wireless really
comes Into use a man no longer will
be able to forget to mall his wife's
letter.
Messages from Africa are to the ef
fect that Colonel Roosevelt Is as hard
as nails. This explains why the tsetse
fly was stung.
What is sometimes paraded as a
heart-warming International romance
Knerally proves to be nothing more
an a sordid commercial affair.
If It is necessary to photograph an
turfy dog the blow Is appreciably
lessened by grouping the brute cJose
to his beautiful young mistress.
A New York man who waa run down
jhr a baby carriage is suffering from a
Woken shoulder. New York men
Should never go on the street without
their nursemaids.
Weston, the pedestrian, walked Into
A banquet somewhere in the East and
,wts laid up for a day. More men eat
themselves to death than walk' them
selves to death, that's sure.
Count Komura says that a war be
tween this country and Japan is In
conceivable. Little does he realise
the strength of the imaginations of
some of our after-dinner speakers.
A North Carolina historian has dug
tip records to prove that Patrick Hen
ry waa born in his State. Next thing
on the program will be the introduc
tion of testimony to prove that Pat
rick was a victim of the hookworm.
Capt AmundBen says that his next
polar venture contemplates that he
and his companions be Imprisoned In
the tee for seven years. Still, with a
oheas board along, this should not
prove such a very long time. It would
enable the contestants to finish the
fame, and quarrel about how It should
have been played.
Representatives of the government
of Australia are in this country with a
Tlew to studying the West Point Mili
tary Academy, having in mind the cre
ation of a similar institution at home.
The famous training Bchool tor gen
erals stands high In the estimation of
the world, and even the occasional an
tics of the hazers are not sufficient to
lessen the admiration in which It Is
held.
Pocahontas Is the latest candidate
for admission to the Hall of Fame con
nected with the University of New
Tork. A petition signed by several
Indians has been presented to the
electors who decide the matter, re
questing that for the sake of the prop
er understanding of the nature of
American Indians this honor be done
to an Indian woman. The chancellor
of the university thinks she Is ellglDle.
The only other women thus far hon
ored In the women's hall are Mary
Lyon, Emma Wlllard and Maria Mitch
11, all teachers.
Death by violence, death by cold,
death by starvation these are the nor
mat endings ot the stately and beauti
ful creatures of the wilderness. The
sentimentalists who prattle about the
peaceful life of nature do not realize
ft utter mercllesrness; although all
they would have to do would be to
look at the birds in the winter woods,
or even at the insects on a cold morn
ing or a cold evening, writes Theodore
Roosevelt In Scrlbner's. Life is hard
and cruel for all the lower creatures
and for man also In what the sent!
mentallsts call. a "state of nature."
The savage of to-day shows us what
the fancied age of gold of our ances
tors was really like; It was an age
when hunger, cold, violence and iron
cruelty were the ordinary accompanl
tnents of life. If Matthew Arnold
when he expressed' the wish to know
the thoughts of earth's "vigorous,
primitive" tribes of the past, had real
ly desired an answer to his question, I
he would have done well to visit tl,
homes of the existing representatives
of his "vigorous, primitive" ancestors,
and to watch them feasting on blood
and gut; while as for the "pellucid
and pure" feelings of his imaginary
primitive maiden, they were those of
any meek, cowlike creature who ac
cepted marriage by purchase or of
eonvenlence, as a matter of course.
If there Is one art that should not
be cried down, scorned silently, hunted
r pursued, even In these hurried days
Of practical things, It is the leisurely
art of letter-wrl'.Ing, the ''gentlest art,"
as it bus been fitly called. Without
the ability to linger plcasuntly along
the byways of life, to gossip by posr
without unseemly haste, letter-writing
becomes merely correspondence, a for
mal thing of businesslike proclivities,
a brief cold evidencing of necessity a
curt acknowledgment that questions
asked must ba answered, and nnswer
d In the quickest potsiblo mnnner, a
manner that covers a niggardly space
of paper. Not that questions should
remain unanswered, not Information
JWft ter blind fate to disclose. On
ran readily understand the domestic
exasperation chronicled by the wife
of the stately rector In "Cranford;"
"Hebrew verses sent me by my hon
ored husband. I thowt to have had a
letter about killing the pig. but mimt
wait" This is the remedy. Regard
a letter as a pleasure; write to fewer
friends, and write In a way worthy
of their friendship. "Embroider your
themes!" Even practical, ponderous
Dr. Johnson begged Mrs. Thrale to
continue her piquant bantering, her
making pleasantly much of the small
things of life. Such were the letters
of the Imaginative Madame de Bevlg
ne, of frankly gossiping Walpole, of
quaint Lamb, of gentle Fanny Burney,
and such are the letters which will, for
all time, remain the world's models. It
Is a gift bestowed directly upon a few
chosen mortalB only. But It ran be
cultivated by desire and time and pa
tient care, and lucky Is the woman
numbering among her friends one who
possesses the enviable art of "writing
endlessly upon nothing."
Aitkma.
Among all physical ills asthma Is
perhaps the most Irritating. It is hard
to endure, and terrible to observe. Itt
victims die a thousand deaths as far
as suffering is concerned, and yet are
denied the dignity of having a fatal
disease, for it is one of the heartless
axioms of experience that the asth-
matio sufferer is quite as likely to die
of old age as of his disease, it has
been said that asthma is not a disease,
but a state of body, and if its victims
are able to extract any comfort from
the knowledge that It Is nervous In
Its origin, they are entitled to that
alleviation.
Anyone looking on for the first time
at a well pronounced asthmatic seiz
ure is convinced that he Is watching
a death scene, and no wonder, so ter
rlfying are the symptoms. The patient
fights plteously for breath, sometimes
crouching for hours In one position,
pallid, bathed In perspiration, and ap
parently In the final stages of suffoca
tion; but curiously enough, with an
the distress, the patient does not seem
to feel any real alarm as to the out
come. The attack may pass off either rap
Idly or gradually, in many cases leav
ing no apparent after effect except a
sens of great fatigue.
Asthma being a disease with a nerv
ous origin, it follows that there are as
many theories about it and remedies for
it as there are sufferers from it. With
some persons the attacks are apparent
ly a certain outcome of eating a cer
tain kind of food, or breathing a cer
tain kind ot air, or reaching a certain
day and month of the year. Many asth
matic claim the power of cheating
their enemy up to a certain point by
moving to some other locality when
the traglo date draws near the oath
matlcs living In the valley may pass
in transit their fellow sufferer who
habitually live on the hills.
Those who trace their attacks to di
gestive disturbances learn to avoid the
starchy foods, or the fat foods, or
whatever food It Is that .upsets them.
Borne cannot live near a stable; oth
ers cannot be near a cretaln shrub or
flower. Indeed, the specialties of these
unfortunate people are without num
ber.
The asthmatic, however, has two
great sources of comfort. One la the
reasonable hope of reaching a good
old age; the other Is the fact that
great help Is to be found for him In a
strictly hygienic mode of llvlnc. The
better air he breathes, both day i
night, the simpler his diet and tu
more wisely ordered his exercise, the
fewer will be the number ot his at
tacks. Youth's Companion.
LITTLE TIN SOLDIERS.
Hoot Scrap Tin from Seattle Is Vtll
laed la Germany.
The shipment from Seattle to Ham
burg of a cargo ot 120,000 bales of
scrap tin from the Puget Sound can
nerlos furnishes an example ot indus
trial thrift in the utilization of mill
and factory waste in which Germany
remains pre-eminent. This once-rejected
refuse will return in due time
in the form of little tin soldiers for
the delectation of the nation's "Little
Boy Blues." To Germany also go bales
of discarded American stockings for
remanufacture into cloth.
We have ourselves made great prog
ress In the conservation of waste since
the first experiments with cottonseed,
the New York World says. A cow's
hoof Is now a source of income to the
packer, and in the by-products of the
oil as well as of other Industries lies
a considerable margin of profit. There
is no dross or rubbish In the modern
world; even the street refuse of the
city has Its potential value.
The Intelligence displayed In the
.nmerclul utilization of waste and
the conservation of such minor sources
ot wealth makes nil the more Inexcus
able the long delay in conserving the
nation's natural resources. In this
also we have a lesson to learn from
Cermany.
Mure of lllmaelf.
"I'll give you a position as clerk to
start with," said the merchant, "and
pay you what you are worth. Is that
satisfactory?"
"Oh, perfectly," replied the college
graduate. "But er do you think the
firm can afford It?" Llpplncott's.
Mlatuken.
"I.lttle boy, haven t I seen you in
uy Blblo class?"
"Not unless I walks in me sleep,
lady."
Ill Measure.
"Softlelgh Is a man who thoroughly
believes lu himself?"
"Gullible ass!" Boston Transcript.
How proud army officers are! 11
they could, they would crow ss muck
as rooster.
Old Favorites
Utile Melt of Nurrn icon sett Oar.
Oh. well do I remember
My boyhood's h;ippy hours,
The cottnire nnd the Harden
Where bloomed the fnlrcst flowers
The bright nnd sparkling waters
O'er which we used to Bull,
With hearts go gay, for miles away,
Before the gentle gale.
Chorus
Toll, toll the bell,.
At early dawn of day,
For lovely little Nell,
Ho quickly paused away;
Toll, toll the bell,
8o sud and mournfully.
For bright-eyed, laughing little Nell
Of Narragansett Hay.
Oh, I had a dear companion,
But she Is not with me now;
The lily of the valley
Is waving o'er her brow,
And I am sad and lonely,
Weeping oil the day.
For bright-eyed, laughing little Nell,
Of Narrugnnsctt Bay.
Oh, I loved the little beauty,
And my boat was all my pride;
And with Nell close beside me.
What Joy the foam to ride;
She would laugh In tones so merry
To see the waves go by.
As wildly blew the stormy wind,
Or murky was the sky.
Though lightning flashed around us.
And all waa dark and drear,
We loved the brave old ocean, ,
And never dreamed of fear;
The hours bounded onward,
The boat dashed through the spray.
With bright-eyed, laughing little Neil.
Of Narragansett Bay.
But one day from us she wandered,
And was eoon within the boat;
The cord was quickly loosened
As out the tide did float;
The little bark flew lightly
And swept before the wind.
Till land and home and friends bo deaf
Were many miles behind.
Next day her form all lifeless
Was washed upon the beach;
I stood and gazed upon It,
Bereft of sense and speech;
'TIs yearB since lius we parted.
But still I weep to-day.
For bright-eyed, laughing little Nell,
Of Narragunsett Hay.
HOW ENGLAND GOT IN DEBT.
Waa the Outcome of 22 Years'
Struarale With France.
Toe Lloyd-George program of pub
lic-finance, whose promulgation a year
ago precipitated the most remarkable
fiscal controversy in the history ot
modern England, was the logical out
come of a situation which has long
been in process of development. Speak
ing broadly, says Frederic Austin Ogg
in the American Review of Reviews,
it was during England's twenty-two-year
contest with republican France
and with Napoleon that the nation waB
started upon the career of indebted
ness, public expenditure and augment
ed taxation which has led straight to
the fiscal complications ot the present
day.
The struggle with the French was
easily the coBtlleBt of all modern wars.
Upon It Great Britain expended the
sum of 831,500,000 ($4,157,000,000)
very much more than the aggregate
outlay of the nation upon all other
wars In which It has had a part since
the times of Oliver Cromwell The
consequence was threefold. In the
first place the national debt, which in
1792 stood at 237,000.000, was aug
mented by upward of 622,000,000. In
the second place there was a great
leap upward on the part of the ordi
nary recurring expenditures. After
1815 the army and navy called for an
outlay of from three to four times the
amounts allocated to these services in
Pitt'B frugal budget prior to the war;
while the annual Interest charge upon
the debt had come to be no less than
32,000,000, or upward of twice the
total public expenditure for all pur
poses In 1792. A third consequence of
the war outlay was the piling up of
taxation beyond all precedent, so that
l yield of 19,260,000 In 1792 had been
raised by 1815 to 74,500.000. And al
though after the restoration of peace
there waa some remission of taxation,
10 that by 1818 the yield had been re
duced to 59,500,000, far the larger
part of the burden Imposed by the
posts of the French wars has been car
ried by the taxpayer of the realm
from that day to this. But for interest
charges imposed by Camperdown and
Trafalgar and Waterloo, Mr. Lloyd
Qeorge would have had ample means
a year ago for the paying of pensions
to the aged and the building of new
Dreadnoughts without the necessity of
tddltlonal taxation at all.
Old Man llnre.
John Hare, the eminent English
ictor-munager, Bald that the most de
lightful compliment he ever received
was from Mr. Gladstone. It was a
louble-ended compliment. Whichever
way you took it it was satisfactory.
Mr. Hare earned fame playing old
men's parts, his character as Mr. Gold
by in "A Pair of Spectacles" being a
good example. Added to this was a
horror of having his picture taken.
Mr. Gladstone had never Been a pic
ture of the actor, but he knew him
well behind the scenes as well as be
fore the footlights. The premier's fa
vorite play was "A Pair of Spectacles,"
nd he always went behind tho sceues
to chut a while with the actor. The
really old man and the made-up old
man would sit there and talk In tho
most delightful way for an hour after
the show.
One day the Earl of Rosebery had
Mr. Gladstone to dinner, and he also
Invited his friend John Hare. The
lctor came In smonth-gliuved, looking
ibout thirty-five. He was presented to
Mr. Gladstone, and tlie prime minister
shook his burnt most cordially and
laid:
"My dear sir, I am very, very glad
to meet you. I know your father very,
very well. Splendid actor! Fine old
man!"
It took the whole evening for the
tarl and Mr. Hare to convince him
that the son was really the father.
It the weather Is bad for the crops,
m an optimist and so to a baseball
pun.
fOWN HAS JOHNSONS NTTMBftHKD
I
no Man? that a etv Method 1
r-rarr for Men! Iflratlon.
Instead of It being used as a slang
expression here, this little town and
the community round about Is afflicted
with "too much Johnson," a Newman
Grove (Neb.) correspondent of the
Sioux City Journal sajs. Eric John
son, cashier of the Newman Grove
State bank. Is the man here who is
the authority for declaring that there
Is "too much JohDson."
"I believe there are more Johnsons
to the square Inch In and around this
town than anywhere else In the world,
figuring on the same area. I have
counted them up and find that, taking
this town as a center, there are 958
Johnsons within a radius of twelve
miles, and of these 629 have the Chris
tian name John.
"A check drawn on the local bank
will not be paid If It is simply signed
'John Johnson,' no matter what the
standing of- the Johnson may be.
Neither will the indorsement 'John
Johnson' be accepted at the bank or
any of the stores. There are so many
of them that we have to adopt another
metliod."
Here Is the method as explained by
('ashler Johnson, though not one of
the, Johns:
The bank and the stores have decid
ed that while the 629 John Johnsons
who do business here are entitled to
credit, there must be some way of
Identifying them and not making
charges against one particular one,
when trTe charge may lack several
hundred points of being correct. The
merchants and banker have agreed
that one John Johnson shall be "John
Johnson No. 1," tfie next, "John John
son No. 2." and so on until all of the
629 have been given and have accepted
their nnmbers.j
The John Johnsons take to the Idea
kindly and like It so well that they are
notifying their friends, requesting that
when they write letters to them they
address them by number as well as by
name. In this way they figure that If
a letter received at the office Intended
for John Johnson No. 629 Is delivered
to and received by John Johnson No.
2.'l, it will be an easy matter to find out
who is to blame for the error.
SH0ET METER SERMONS.
Fight the good fight of faith; there
is nothing like it. Rev. C. F. Aked,
Baptist, New York City.
Absolute religion Is as indestructible
as man as Indestructible as God.
Rev. C. S. S. Dutton, Unitarian, Brook
lyn. The battlefield Is hard, but it Is the
only place where heroes are made.1
Rev. G. L. Cady, Congregatlonalist,
Dorchester.
A guilty conscience makes cowards
of us all, but a clenn conscience makes
heroes of men. Rev. W. P. Hlnes, Bap
tist, Lexington.
Ignorance is the mother of all prej
udice, and it Is because we do not
know each other that we hate one an
other. Rev. T. Schanfarber, Method
ist, Chicago.
No victory Is real which Is self-cen
tered, which humiliates others, which
brings suffering to others or loss of
self-respect to self. Rev. Harris G.
Hale, Congregatlonalist, Brookllne,
Mass.
A radical change In human thinking
has taken place within the last quarter
of a century, discrediting the material
istic philosophy once so prominent.
Rev. E. L Llndh", Congregatlonalist,
Providence.
The two words which have most
moved humanity are "Church and
Home," the first representing our rela
tionship with God, the other tho sym
bol of heaven upon earth Rev. D.
Sage, Anglican, Dubuque.
We are beginning to plan for the
conservation of our national resources.
Let us conserve our most, precious na
tional resources, the life and joy and
privilege of childhood. Rev. S. S.
Wise, Hebrew, New York City.
The laws of the State are applica
tions of the law of God or of the law
of nature, which Is divine, and no hu
man law is Just that does not rest on
these solid foundations. Rev. J. L,
Belford, Roman Catholic, Brooklyn.
The great reason that we are not all
given plenty Is that there Is not enough
for all to havo plenty, and that soon
we should have to begin agaift at the
very foot of the Industrial ladder.
Rev. II. N. Brown, Unitarian. Boston.
We honor the heroic souls who have
become saviors; the men and women
who have lived worthily and served
nobly; those who have followed the
Master In the way of the cross. Rev.
Stntom, Presbyterian, Coeur d'Alene,
Idaho.
A true leader Is a man of Ideas, a
man who advocates a certain line of
action, and he works through the press
and public speech that the people may
be convinced of the wisdom of his
course. Rev. Dr. Mason, Unitarian,
Pittsburg.
The church net 3s the association If
It would reach the whole man and
every kind of a man. The association
demonstrates that with all the diversi
ty of work we can attain unity of life.
Rev. V. R. Day, Conpxegatlonallst,
Los Angeles.
IIIiriili llurretl.
"Shucks, what does the census
amount to?"
"What's the trouble, Uncle Peleg?"
"All that durned enumerator wanted
was a lot of fibers. Wouldn't pay no
attention to the details of my rheuma
tism or my fust marriage." Louisville;
Courier-Journal.
The Play.
It Is remarkable how virtuous and
generously disposed every one Is at a
play. We uniformly applaud what Is
wrong when it costs us nothing but
the sentiment. Hazllit.
The Alternative.
"Let's go to the theater."
"I've nothing to wear."
"Then we'll go to the opera." Lip
plncott's. Every man should at least be truth
ful enough to admit that at times at
U liar.
8$ -l&--.. if
Opinions
WHY PRANCE IS
ARIS Is the Mecca
TT I come from all parts of the world to enjoy
jg I life In the great metropolis; and the year
ly ni 1 1 uiii hub Buuiie uiuoi; n (j y i uai
mates $600,0(10,0(10. Along with this item
the enrninRs of French capitalists on their
Invest tnents lu the securities and prop
erties of other countries amount to fully $250,000,000
yearly. On the other side of the account Is an adverse
balance of trade which In 1907 amounted to $120,000,
000. Deduct this outgo from her Income ot $S50,000,
000, and it leaves Prance with $730,000,000 to the good.
Instead of getting nn Income of $600,000,000 from for
eign tourists, the United States pays out at least $150,
000,000 for the expenses of American tourists abroad.
Again, Instead of drawing $250,000,000 yearly from
foreign Investments, this country pays out $300,000,000
to foreign investors in our securities nnd properties. A
third factor is the army of aliens who flock here from
all parts of the world to hoard up money, which they
take back to their own countries; this drain costs us
$300,000,000 more. Add $100,000,000 more which we pay
for ocean freights in foreign vessels, and the yearly out
go is $850,000,000. Deduct our yearly income of $500,
000,000 for favorable trade balance, and it leaves a year
ly deficit of $350,000,000. Moody's Magazine.
CRIMINALS MADE BY
T IS entirely possible that human law, since
Its invention in the dawn ot civilization,
has made more criminals than original sin,
heredity or environment. Like all human
institutions, it is born In lmperfectness
fexj ana progresses slowly to
long and weary cycles
ilization. Within historic times criminal law bos
changed its spirit from brute revenge nnd sordid com
pensation to that of deterrence nnd prevention, with
some dim notion of reform of the criminal. But it is
still crusted and barnacled, especially in respect of of
fenses against property, with the gross brutalities and
blind prejudgments of its barbaric origin. These are
the agencies by which law makes criminals, begetting
progeny only to devour them like the earlier god of a
primitive race.
We do not realize how many of these savageries sur
vive in modern law, how many human personalities are
sacrificed to some trivial fetich of property, until a flash
of romantic Interest like that In John Carter reveals
the possibilities of outrage and injustice under the law
of burglary we have inherited from British feudalism.
The whole viewpoint of criminal law Is slowly chang
ing, though the fossils by whom it la made Jn legisla
tures and administered In the courts are naturally the
last to realise it. Traditional law looked only at the
particular offense charged or proved, measuring out pun
ishment for it by ancient standards without regard to
the human nature and capacities of the criminal.
The law of the future will look first of all at these.
I LEGAL INFORMATION
The applicant for citizenship In the
case of In re Knight, 171 Federal Re
porter, 299, was born upon a schooner
flying the British flag, in the Yellow
Bea, off the coast of China. His father
wds of English birth and parentage;
his mother was half Chinese and half
Japanese, having been married to ap
plicant's father In Shanghai under
British colors. Applicant was 43 years
old, Intelligent, of good character, and
had served since 1882 in the United
States navy, and had won a medal for
service on the flagship Olympia In the
battle of Manila bay. The naturaliza
tion statute applies to aliens, either
white or of African nativity or de
scent. A person half white and half
some other race belongs to neither of
those races, but Is literally a half
breed. This holding would appear to
exclude mulattoes. The application
was refused by tho Federal District
Court.
A woman of culture and refinement
having contracted anesthetic leprosy
while engaged In missionary work in
Brazil, was ordered removed by the
city board of health to the city's pest
house, a structure of four small rooms,
used theretofore for the Isolation of
negroes with smallpox, and situated
within 100 yards of the city garbage
heap. A distinguished specialist had
pronounced the Infection not con
taglqus, and no evidence of contagion
had appeared, although complainant
had mingled freely with other people.
In Kirk v. Wyman, 65 Southeastern
Reporter, 387, complainant Insisted
that her condition did not Justify her
Immediate removal to the pesthouse
until suitable accommodations were
provided for her, and applied for an
injunction to restrain the action of the
board. The South Carolina Supreme
Court, believing that the official action
of the board was bo arbitrary and that
there was no adequate relief in a suit
for damages, maintained the injunc
tion. The case of United States Telephone
Co. v. Central Union Telephone Co.,
171 Federal Reporter, 130, Is a valuable
and Interesting contribution to the law
governing the rights of telephone com
panies as public service corporations.
The complainant company made con
tracts with several local companies, by
which it waa agreed that they should
give long-distance connections to com
plainants and permit no connection
with any other company for a period
of 99 years. Complainants alleged that
breach of these agreements was In
duced by the unlawful acts of defend
ant, and prayed an injunction restrain
ing further interference with their
contract rights. The United States
Circuit Court draws a distinction be
tween the telephone business and the
sleeping car business, In which it was
held in Chicago, St. L. 1 N. O, R. Co.
T. Pullman Co.. 139 U. 8. 79, 11 Sup.
Ct. 490, 35 L Ed. 97. that a contract
for exclusive rights for the terra of
fifteen years to furnish sleeping cars
to a railroad company was not Invalid.
It Is possible for all travelers to ob
tain like accommodations on sleeping
cars, notwithstanding they may all be
furnished by single company; but
of Great Papers on Important
MaV Q-OM
RICn. '
of foreigners. They
THE LAW.
perfection through
of advancing civ
IRON
where there are different telephone
companies, each having its own list
of subscribers, It Is impossible to give
them like service unless each company
be "allowed the right of connection
with the local exchanges. This being
the case, the contract In question
would necessarily prevent local com
panies from carrying out to the full
extent their duties as public service
corporations. The agreements were
held invalid and Injunction denied.
ENGLISH BANK NOTES.
Carious Indorsements S. S Notes Are
the Loweit Aon Issued.
The custom of indorsing English
bank notes, even when they pass in
some trivial purchase Is a surprise to
most Americans who go abroad for the
first time. It is an old custom and
one which has led to many curious
Inscriptions on the notes.
A debtor In prison wrote on the
back of a 10 note "The first debt I
have honestly paid for a year," while
a prodigal son turned the tables
against himself when he wrote on a
20 note "The last of thousands left
by my father, who slaved to earn
them."
In 1759 the Bank of England began to
issue 10 notes as well as 20, till then
exclusively used. It was not till thirty
years after that 5 notes were brought
out, and in 1797 there were 1 and
2 notes, but they ceased ' in 1821,
owing to the Immense amount of
forgery they led to, says the Queen.
Hundreds if not thousands were
hanged for counterfeiting notes for
such small sums.
A curious bunk note designed by
Hone has prison chains across one
end, Is signed by Jack Ketch, a row
of malefactors hanging with ropes
around their necks appears on the face
and a series ot criminals' heads on
the other side, together with the words
"Until the resumption of rash pay
ments or the abolition of the punish
ment by death." The "" which in
the corner usually preceded the
amount and value of the note was
formed of rope.
From April 6, 1829, the 5 note has
been the lowest procurable from the
Bank of England. Of late the desira
bility of once more issuing the 1 note
has been discussed.
In 1827 a 1,000 note was the high
est, but 50,000 notes have been Issued,
and there is a story of a certain trades
man keeping such a one by him as a
curiosity, while a gentleman framed
one, which his' executors promptly
cashed at his death. There Is a fam
ily tradition about the visit of a cer
tain church functionary at a house
when Borne disputed point had to be
settled by reference to the Bible, and
the one belonging to the . deceased
mother was brought down from a
shelf, dusty and unused, but within
was found a note for 40,000.
The Bank of England note of to-day
has taken some time and many inven
tions to bring It to Its present condi
tion. The numbering machine was
first employed In 1809, steel-plate en
graving was supplanted by the sidero
graphlo machine, and that by electro
type surface printing. The great aim
Is to prevent forgery, the paper em
ployed being unique and the water
mark and private marks are all in fa
vor of the banker.
A man Is never quite so philosophi
cal as when he is being pinched.
P
MM
IE
tit
Subjects.
secluding for life the habitual and Incurable criminal
whenever caught, for a small offense or none at all, .
but giving the perpetrator of whatever offense the full
advantage of whatever latent capacities for reform his
nature may contain. That law will gradually extinguish
old criminals without making new ones. Minneapolis
Tribune.
PEAB.Y WON'T PRODUCE THE PROOFS.
EARY'S refusal to submit his proofs to
Congress or to scientific bodies other than
the National Geographic Society ought to
dispose of the bill to retire him with In
creased rank and pay. The excuse of con
tracts with publishers is not sufficient.
Peary might submit his proofs without
their being used to the detriment of himself or pub
lishers, and he might fortify his position by submitting
them to the University of Copenhagen and geographic
societies of Europe. But he evidently doesn't chooBe to
do so, and he is giving rise to doubts of the success of
his expedition.
Peary entirely overlooks his obligations to the United
States government. He has devoted the best of thir
teen years to polar expeditions, and all the while he
has been drawing a salary as commander in the naval
service. In other words, he has been given almost con
tinuous leave of absence for thirteen years for prose
cuting bis personal plans and has drawn pay from the
United States for so doing. Though far from the re
tiring age, he wants to retire with the rank ot Rear
Admiral of the first class and draw still higher pay
for life, so that he may proceed to cash in at high rates
the results of his work on Uncle Sam's time. Houston
(Tex.) Post.
DEPOSITS IN CANADA.
T IS now known positively that Iron ores
abound in practically every province of
Canada. Only eight iron mines are in op
eration, and only one of these is producing
as much as 100,000 tons of ore in a year,
tt is true; but active preparations are be
ing made In the eastern provinces for ex
ploiting the recently proved deposits of ore on a large
scale. At present tho chief Canadian blast furnaces
draw most of their ore from Belle Isle, in Conception
bay, near St. Johns, Newfoundland. Newfoundland is
very rich in Iron ores, and nearly 1,000,000 tons are
raised annually, most of which Is usedln Canada. But
enormous and rich reserves of hematite ore have been
found In New Brunswick, within easy distance of large
coal fields. Deposits of huge quantity and high quality
have also been proved in Ontario, Quebec and Nova Sco
tia In the east, and In Vancouver and British Columbia
in the west. Recent investigations conducted by the
department of mines, coupled with private prospecting.
Inspire the hope that Canada is as rich In Iron and steel
making materials as the United States. Cassler's Magazine.
NEW FLORA FOR AN ISLAND.
Start of Vegetation on a Lava Red
Duration of Life of .Seed.
In 1883 the island of Krakatoa, in
the . Sunday strait, was covered to a
depth of thirty-two yards with Java by
a tremendous volcano outburst. An in
teresting botanical problem was sug
gested, the London Globe says. Here
was an area of new rock absolutely
devoid of plant life. How would It be
reconquered and repeopled by the vege
table world? So at the suggestion of
Treub the Island has been kept under
observation since 1886.
In that year U was found that those
simplest of all plants, the so-called
blue-green alga?, had formed thin, black
films over the surface. In this a num
ber of ferns' and a few flowering plan's
had established themselves. By 1S97
the island waa covered with a charac
teristic shore vegetation, including a
species of lpomea. Ferns predomi
nated and there were very few shrubs
and no trees. The latest expedition
reports 137 species of plants belonging
to all the principal groups. Ferns are
no longer dominant and the forests are
rapidly increasing.
In a recent Issue of the "Proceed
ings of the Royal Society," J. White
gives the results of some interesting
experiments on the ferments and latent
life of resting seeds. That the sub
stance of germinating seeds undergoes
a process of fermentation by which It
is rendered suitable for the nourish
ment of the embryo 13 well known.
This 13 illustrated by the change of the
starch of the barley seed into sugar
during the process of malting. It Is
not, however, known whether germina
tion can take place In the absence of a
ferment. Mr. White, however, finds
that the ferments in the seeds may
retain their activity long after the
power of germination has been lost.
The ferment in a seed may retain its
power for twenty years or more.
The seeds specially studied by Mr.
White were wheat, barley and other
cereals. He finds that the duration of
the power of germination varies much.
In rye it is about five years, but in
wheat from eleven to sixteen. No seeds
which had lost their power of germi
nating could be induced to grow by
adding a ferment. And if this was
added to one germinating feebly, the
growth was retarded.
If further proof were wanted that
the Btorles of wheat germinating after
lyng for thousands of years in Egyp
tian tombs have no foundation in fact,
it Is supplied by Mr. White's deter
mination that the life of a wheat seed
Is only from eleven to sixteen years.
,
To the Critic Higher tp.
i Here may tie small excuse for It,
You m.iy have little use for it.
And curl your Buper-story Up In su
percilious way;
You may regard tt banefully.
Anil pass It up disdainfully,
But when It gets the money wotinej
have you to say?
Chicago Tribune.
Toixay-Tarv jr.
'it's a funny thing."
"What Is."
"I live on the ninth floor and the
Janitor lives In the basement, yet he
Is Immeasurably' above me." Bir
mlngbain Age-Herald.
In buying a gentle horse, always re
member that a gentle horse is a lary
horse.