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About The North Platte semi-weekly tribune. (North Platte, Neb.) 1895-1922 | View Entire Issue (July 26, 1901)
-i vr its From tho window of tho chapel 6oftly Bounds an organ's note, Through tho peaceful Sabbath foam ing drifting sliredB of music float. And tho quiet and tho firelight and tho sweetly solomn tunca. Bear mo dreaming back to boyhood and its Sunday afternoons; When wo gathered In tho parlor, In tho parlor siltT and grand, "Whore tho haircloth chairs and sofas stood arrayed, a gloomy band, Where each qucor oil portrait watched us with a countenance of, wood, And tho shcllB upon the whatnot In a dustlcss splendor stood. Then tho quaint old parlor organ, with the quaver In its tongue. Seemed to tremble In Its fervor as tho sacred songs wcro sung, As wo sang tho homely anthem, sang tho glad revival hymns Of tho glory of tho story and tho light no sorrow dims. Whllo tho dusk grow even deeper and tho evening settled down, And tho lamp-lit windows twinkled In tho drowsy little town, Old and young wo sang tho chorus and tho echoes told It o'er In tho dear, familiar voices, hushed or scattered evermore. From the windows of tho chapel faint and low tho music dies, And tho picture In tho firelight fades before my tcar-dlmmed eyes, But my wistful fancy, Hstonlng, hears the night wind hum tho tunes That we sang there In tho parlor' on thoso Sunday afternoons. A Jest of Fate, BY MAUDI3 B. LEONARD. (Copyright, 1901, by Dally Story Pub. Co.) Tho man was In u brown study. Ap parently ho was engaged In a dlfll cult experiment In his laboratory for his hands moved automatically among tho chemicals. Liquids mot, min gled and were soparated deftly, but In reality ho was entirely Ignorant of what his sensitive fingers were doing, for his mind was busily ongaged oth erwise. Ho was a well-built man, and his profile spoko of strength, with its slightly aquiline nose, deepset eye, and closoly trimmed beard. That the mouth hidden by this sumo beard held doubtful curves and a curious droop was a fact naturally unknown to most persons. When Dr. Packard chose to address a meeting of scien tists his auditors always wcro aroused and listened. For he had a brain. Whether ho was troubled by a heart was something women liked to spec ulate about Thoso who had solved tho question discreetly hid their dearly bought knowledge, for women do not parade tholr hurts. In the face of this, it is somewhat rcmarkablo to understand that at tho moment when ho was so aimlessly puttering about In his mechanical work with lackluster, Introspectlvo eyes, Dr. Packard's brain was in re ality entirely occupied with a woman. Sho had como out of tho past so far back that tho halo of mystery was beginning to ndom hor memory, and necauso ho was a son of Adam Dr. Packard found this uniquely attrac tive. Sho needed some such softeulng The other held poison, nimbus, ho reflected, with a touch of sardonic humor, for she must bo forty years old It was over twenty years slnco he had left that miserable) small town in tho west when opportunity had stretched out n flngor to his rest less grasp. Tho tumultuous und fast following years had cluttered his mind, nnd It camo to him that this was tho first time ho had over so seriously and leisurely contemplated his act. He set down a siphon smartly and smashed It ns ho reflected what a fool ho had been. At nineteen ho had married Bessie Crowoll. She wan a waitress In tho railroad restaurant and alono In tho world. Sho had been pretty, of course, and sho was good. As to her spelling ho was not so sure. Carefully ho pieced out ills boyish recollection of her. Ho knew precise ly what hor typo would havo degen erated Into In tho tlmo which had passed. With tho uncompromisingly accurato knowledge of the maturo man ho could seo hor as she undoubtedly aan kjlai K vl .-en. I was after tho lnpso of twenty years. Sho was fat and woro broad, flat shoes with tho buttons oft. Hor gowns wero of tho drqary, nondescript wools stu pid women affect, and her wnlst went by courtesy. Her hair It hai been brown nnd roughly curly was thin ning and shiny nnd screwed into n tight knot. Hor complexion was coarse and oily, nnd sho was gross, stolid and entirely rcpellnnt to a man of fastidious tastes. Her mind Vad never risen nbovo the gossip of tho storo and corners. As this plcturo grow, so correspondingly faded tho Idea which as n Just man had attacked him, that he had dono wrong In run ning away from her. It wa3 with a sort of prldo ho recollected In all these years ho had never failed to send reg ular remittances back to her and tho child. Fof (hero had been ono, but It hnd not appealed to his restless youth and still slumbering emotions of fatherhood. His lawyer relieved him of tho dcltcato task of forwarding l. Sho had novcr heard such a laugh. tho allowance to Bessie, Mrs. Abbott Whon ho ran away ho had changed his name to Packard and sho had nev er traced him, though his Invaluable legal man had onco carelessly con veyed to him tho Impression that a vlndlctlvo and spasmodic search for her strangely missing husband was now and then mado by his client's ben eficiary, Mrs. Abbott. Packard had thanked his legal man gravely with out vouchsafing any information con corning tho recalcitrant husband to his expectant legal man, and had gono to his club to offer up thanks that his trnll was covered. Dr. Packard, tho scientist, tho fa vored, tho admired by tho lovely and gracious women of society and by men of affairs what had this man In common with tho hot-headed boy of a quarter of a century before, whoso nnmo was Abbott and who had been a fool? Sho could never find him. With a short sigh Dr. Packard set down tho retort ho hold and reached for tho glass of water ho had drawn somo momenta before Tho day was warm and ho was thirsty. Ho drank every drop beforo ho emerged from his mental wanderings and stood blinking ns ono whoso sloping eyes havo opened nuddonly on a glare of light. Then ho stumbled, sat down, and stared stupidly at tho empty glass. Two feet away from whero It had stood was nnother glass similar In shape, filled with a colorless liquid. Ono of thoso glasses had hold" water, tho other had been filled with a solu tion ho hnd mado of a peculiar, color less, tasteless poison. And ho had drunk one of them. Thero was a dampness on his foro hoad. If it was tho poison ho had swallowed ho was a dead man inside an hour. Then of a sudden ho squared his shoulders and laughed harshly with relief. Hastily he reached for tho other glass ho could test Its contents and tho suspenso would bo ovor. As ho grasped it his trembling hand shifted, tho glass slipped Into tho sink and tho contents disappeared down the drain. Tho man groaned. It had como on him so suddenly, ho had awakened to tho ovoryday world so abruptly ho had not had tlmo to get his balance. Ho was not In a normal condition to faco such a catastropho and ho sat clutch ing tho tablo edge with stnrtlng oyes and a ghastly face. Ho did not want to die ho would not! A blind panic had him fast as ho realized thero was no uso calling for help. No ono could save him. With nerves tingling ho sat waiting for tho first twlngo of pain, his imagination lending hideous uid to reality. In a few minutes everything would bo ended for him If It was tho poison ho had swallowed and some thing of his old, dominating will camo back as he rapidly adjusted his point of viow. Stubbornly hlH thoughts re turned to Bcsslo Abbott but not with contemplative Uesuro this tlmo. Sho loomed a solomn fact In tho llfo ho hnd suddonly become separated from nnd tho Idea of a full expiation seized him nnd was Insistent. With tho odd notion growing ho rose and wavorcd toward his desk in tho next room and wrote hurriedly. Thero was really no ono olso with so good a claim on his wealth and tho child, young man by this time ho still thought of him as an mien, disinterestedly might pos sibly niako somo uso of prosperity oven ns ho had dono. With livid faco ho glanced ovor tho unblottcd letter. "You could never havo found me living," It ran, "but It Is my whim you should profit by my death, It will give New York something to talk about and wonder over. I do not ob ject nddlng to tho gayety of natlonB for I know tho dovll of cnnul. Como to tho address at tho top of this sheet and tako possession. Everything Is yours. I must confess I rarely remem bered you till today when strangely enough you havo been much In my thoughts. They say tho mind of tho aged reverts to scenes of youth pos sibly, in my caso forty Is old. It Is evidently sufficient In fate's Judgment for In half an hour I shall bo dead. Qoodby." iriii 7 I Tho brutality of tho fow word? seemed to revive him and stop tho dull pricking that wns stealing over his body. Methodically ho calcd, ad dressed nnd stamped tho onvclopo, walked out and handed It to tho pont man who at thai moment was unlock ing the mailbox. Then ho camo back to tho laboratory and shut tho door behind him. Thero was no longer In his mind any doubt as to which of tho glasses ho had emptied for his hnnds wcro cold, ho trembled as with an aguo and numbness stolo over his brain. Ho could not think. Ho wan dered around tho room with protest ing despairing tread nnd when his knees gavo way beneath him ho fell gasping to tho floor and tho wavci swept over him. Hours Inter thoso working over Dr. Packard who had been found on tho floor of his laboratory wcro rowarded by tho flicker of his eyelids and pres ently ho spoko. It was tho usual lnano question of thoso coming out of tho depths. "You nro In your own room," brisk ly answered tho physician at his right, a perBonnl friend. Dr. Packard was trying to think ns tho wnves which had submerged him receded. "I waB poisoned," ho breathed In a puzzled way. Ills friend's faco broke Into tho humoring smllo given remarks mado by tho fccblo and Incompetent "Non sense," ho said soothingly, "you'vo been In tho most extonslvo nnd all pcrvadlng faint I over saw but you weren't poisoned, man what put that idea Into your head? You'ro dream ing! And what do yo.i mean by keel ing over in such a reprehensible way? You woro working too long without food and rest, that's what ailed you!" It was somo minutes later that Dr. Packard remembered tho lottor. Ho laughed onco, shortly, abruptly, beforo ho turned his fnco toward tho wall. But tho trained nurse at his stdo Jumped. Sho had novcr henrd qulto such a laugh In all her oxperlonco. And sho nover wanted to hear It again. Davis Too Much for tho Itnya. A gray-haired alumnus of Columbia, on from a western state for tho gradu ating exercises, chatted of tho dayJ when ho was at Columbia. "Thore was Prof. Davies," Bah) tho old col legian. "Wo follows used to like him as well aB It was posslblo for a col lege boy to like a professor of mathe matics, Ono winter, r recollect, tho members of my class, myself among tho rest, had found considerable amusement nnd relieved ourselves of class work by burning asafetlda, pep per and other unpleasant things In tho various class rooms. Wo tried tho trick with Professor Anthon, who taught Greek, and with Prof. Nalrno, who occupied tho chair of moral phil osophy. At last somo of tho bolder spirits suggested that wo transfer our attentions to Prof. Davlcs. Well, I romombcr that morning. It was bit ter cold, and all of the outlets of too room wero closed to keep tho warmth within. Wo wcro on hand enrly, and had several fat lumps of asafetlda smoking away when tho professor camo. Ho walked to tho dosk and laid his hat and coat on It. Then tho odor struck him. He hesitated a mo ment, nnd then wnlkcd slowly to tho door, locked It, and put tho key In his pocket 'Now, gentlemen, wo will en joy this together,' said ho, ns ho re turned to his seat. Then ho got back at us. Tho mathematics ho threw nt us would havo filled a sot of mathe matical books from tho primary arith metic to tho calculus. And nil the tlmo tho asnfetlda was smoking, for ho would not let us rcmovo It. When wo got out of that room nfter two hours wo wcro wiser and more discreet boys, nnd you can bet wo played no moro tricks on tho nuthor of Davies' Logondro." New York Times. Clnbt IIhto Their Advantage. I think It must bo owned that tho de partures from tho old order of homo llfo havo greatly ameliorated tho con dition of tho weak, tho timid, tho less self-assortlvo writes Bishop Potter In tho Woman's Companion. In any given homo clrclo It is not always tho clever est or tho strongest who claims and exerciscB the mastery. A shrinking and sonsitlvo nnturo will not light for Its prcccdonco in tho homo any moro than out of It A gontle, modest woman will often bo ovcrborno by hor loud, push ing and vulgnrly modern children. A man of refinement nnd real force will often let himself bo bullied by a brawl ing woman becauso his very naturo makes him "no brawler." Now, In tho old days, so far as social lntcrcoursu was concerned, It was largely a ques tion of tho homo or nothing. If thoro was no bright talk, no diverting rec reation, no songs nnd laughter there, thero was nono anywhere. Ilaforui That War ICxpmnl vr. About thrce-qunrtors of a rallrond's receipts como from tho freight depart ment. Tho passengor department sup piles nearly all tho rest, tho Income from mall, express and other privileges being comparatively smnll. Carrying passengers is a slmplo matter, or would bo, if stnto legislatures did not now and then tako a hand In prescribing added specifications for railroad pas senger service. In Ohio a law was pasBcd decreeing that tho height bo tweon tho platform and tho lowest steps of passenger coaches should not exceed 12 Inches. This coat tho rail roads nearly $100,000, nnd tho reform led to the abolition of a nuiubor of flag stops whero tho passengers had been qulAo willing to scramble up off the ballast Alnsleo's Mngazlno. Women buy things they do not want nt bargain crushes to prevent women who rony need tho articles from buy ing thpjjji r ts" nr IMAGINATION Cooled by tho gentle movement of big palm-lcaf fans, a party of friends eat on tho piazza, calmly talking of tho heat Presently ono of them said: "Supposo wo descrlbo In turn tho Bccno that our fancy pictures ns Illus trating our notion of oppressive heat What do wo think of? What tlmo? What place? What conditions?" Tho suggestion was rocolvcd with favor and hero nro somo of tho re sponses: "A now concroto sldownlk nt noon, with tho sun beating down on It, and your hce's sinking in nnd tho heat re flected In your faco, and tho air per vaded with tho Binell of tar." "Tho desert, with an exhausted cara van struggling to reach a mlrngo that hovers on tho horizon, but doomed to perish of thirst, ns perished tho man and tho camel whose bleached bones they are passing." "Wnshlng dishes In tho kitchen, with tho thormometer at 95 out of doors, nnd 100 nnd something within; with your hands so Eoapsudsy and grensy that you can't lift them to your fnco to wlpo away tho porsplrntlon, nnd with your wholo being bo tired nnd cross and mlsarablo that you would cry If you woro not ashamed to." "Tho deck of a becalmed yacht, with a glassy sen and a long slow roll and tho brasBwork so hot that It bums your hand; tho sun high, tho sky cloudless, tho sails hanging with not a breath to stir them; the victim pros trate and seasick, with no conscious ness in tho present except of heat Pocket Monkeys Tho latest fad In tho wny of pets is the pocket monkey. It 1b only about two years slnco tho llttlo fellow mado his first appearance In this country In his present cnpnclty, and ho might bo Bald to havo taken tho hearts of pet lovers by storm. Now his popularity has become so great that tho men who make a business of catering to tho whims of tho people who llko pets say that tho demand for tho pockot mon key Is flvo times ns grcnt as tho sup ply. Thoy predict a bright futuro for tho new favorite Just as soon as tho people down In Brazil can be mndo to understand what a good commercial artlclo they havo and thus bo Induced to mnko a regular business of captur ing these monkeys nnd shipping them up hero. Thb pocket monkey dwells so far In the Interior! of Brazil ns to bo almost out of tho reach of traders. Ho Is, perhaps, tho smallest member of tho monkey family known, being about flvo Inches long, but with a tall that 1b sometimes three times ns long ns his body. Ho belongs to tho mnrmot fnm lly of monkeys, and Is extremely neat In person and cleanly of habit If it wasn't for thoso characteristics, ho would not be holding the plnco ho does In tho hearts of thoso who havo in vested In him. In splto of nil our philosophy tho Invasion of tho blrthplnco of Chris tianity by modern devices and modes of llfo grates harshly on sonsitlvo minds. Names hallowed by rollglotiH associations seem out of plnco on rail way timetables or subscription lists of long-dlstanco telephones. Of course, all this Is Illogical, for wo need not expect any part of tho world to remain In Infancy, still prim itive habits aud modes of llfo aro so naturally blended with tho Biblical nnrratlvo that wo cannot entirely sup press a wish for their perpetuation. Hut modern Innovations aro strangers to sympathy. Tho railway from Joppa to Jerusalem, at first nn experiment, is now run on strictly business prin ciples, nnd branches aro under con struction to familiar places up and down tho Jordan. Trolley lines nro projected to connect Jerusalem with Ucthlohctn, Bethnny, tho Lnko of Gal ileo, Snmnrla, Jericho, Nazareth and other places, while In tho city Itself thero aro electric lights, telephones and other modern conveniences. In stead of tho workman longing his shadow, ho now consults a cheap Am erican watch for quitting tlmo, and all other modern supplies aro han dled by commission houses through out Pnlestlno and Syria. Moro than 1:00 phonographs wero recently Im ported, one-half going to Damascus and tho rest to Jerusalem and near by places. A commisblon honso nt neyrut has bought p. 350 windmill from an Illi nois firm, and thero la an important market for all kinds of Irrigation ma chinery. The all-conquering syndi cate Is In evidence, und tho onco fer tile valleys nro to bo reclaimed by Ir rigation on a Inrgo scale, nnd onco moro transformed Into a lnnd flowing with milk and honey. Many of tho rich foreigners making Investments aro Jews and leaders In tho "Ilnck to Jerusalem" movement. Tho flguratlvo prophecy of tho two women grinding nt a mill iu recalled by tho setting up of a 17-horsepower Chicago windmill In tho interior west of tho Jordan to run a largo grist mill. Bicycles aro common on the streets, nnd tho muni Modernised Valentine Warmest Condi tions Described as Amusement. and nausea and no expectation for the futuro hut of sunstroke" "Standing alono In tho mlddlo of a broad, hot field that Is flaming with scarlet lilies, with no uotso savo tho sound of tho grasshoppers and tho locusts." "Noon on n country road, which Ilea between treeless, barren fields, with no living thing In night but an ox team lurching slowly on Its way In n cloud of yollow duat" "A night In August, when coolnes3 has not como with darkness; when you cannot sleep nnd can hnrdly breathe nnd when It scents that morn ing would novcr como." They sny It Is not well to talk much of tho heat when wo nro feeling Its oppressive effects, snyH tho Philadel phia Times, but It may bo that tho drawing of such plcturcn us nro horo described might mnko in forgot pres ent discomfort by contrast with what tho conditions might ho. Chicago News Nil Mount Cmttuiin of Irrlnnil. A ccrtnln number of peasants In tho wilder nnd remoter districts of Ireland still wear something llko a national costume. About Lough Maflk plenty of tho lasses nro to bo seen In tho pic turesque red pottlconts that artists loved to bring Into tholr sketches of Irish life. A sprinkling of tho old high hnts mny bo seen; tho older fishermen aud others wear thorn, hut tho younger school shun uuch antiquated headgear, as tho English peasant of today docs tho smock frock. DImlnutlvo nnd Bngag Inn Little Pets from Brazil. "Wo can't get enough of them," said n man who mnkes a business of selling pots. 'T havo ono horo that I havo beon offered ?G0 for, but tho nv orago price la 2B. They nro tho finest llttlo ncrobats I'vo oyer scon. For in stance, hero's a cngo mado on purpose for a pocket monkey. You will notice thnt it resomblos a mlnlnturo gymna sium. Thero aro trapezes, horizontal bars nnd nil sorts of things of that kind. Now, If a pockot monkoy didn't find thorn In his homo ho would bo heart broken. Of courso thoy don't perform Junt whonovcr ono wants them to, but in tho morning, Just after they havo waked up, you will find them doing every conccivnhlo gymnas tic stunt, and If you don't laugh, you aro a porson with no sonso of humor." IlvunU In Itnutn. Tho dwellers In tho north of Europe hnvo always been remarkable for tholr uso of tho beard. This, of courso, Ib duo to tho cold tompornturo of thoso ro glons. At tho prcHont day Russia la probably tho country In which beards are most generally worn. Thoro tho peasants wear henrds to a man, whllo tho upper clnssoa, adopting tho Froncb fashion, usunlly nffect an Imperial or a short, clipped beard. cipality of Boyrut had ndded a f.1,300 steam roller to its public equipment. Tho Turkish government Iiiih glvon many Important commercial concos sIoiih to foreign natlonR, and tho Sul tan is watching tho modernizing pro cess with Interest Trado Is tho great ccmcntor of nntlons, and Is also tho great Iconoclast. No spot, howovor hallowed by tradition, Is sacred from Iln inroads. A profusion of ntodoru factory products thrtiBt Inconsldor ntoly beforo ovcry traveler widens tho gulf botweon tho scones of tho Bibli cal Htory and tho PaloBtlno of to-day. Tho Turkish government Iiuh shown its Kollcltudo for tho bollovers In tho Koran by providing for tho sinking ofa number of wolls ulong tho historic pilgrimage route to Mecca. Each of thoso wellH will bo Hiippllod with a windmill, thus lessening tho hardships of that Kolf-lmposcd Infliction. A IltMorlo I'uuoli Ilnwl. Quito poBslbly tho most revered plcco of silver plato In tho United States navy Is tho musslvo 18-pound sllvor punch-bowl of tho battleship Indlunu, which hoars tho honorable scars of an historic battle. During that famous blockadn and naval battlo Iiororo Santi ago do Cuba this rich piece of table waro was struck by a fragment of a mortar sholl fired from tho Socapa battery, and which burst In tho ward room passage of tho battleship. A flvo pound bit of tho shell struck tho InvI on ono of tho stoutest parts of tho body, Just whero tho seal of the stnto of Indiana forms tho central portion of a hoautlfnl decoration, Tho seal hi Mill thero; not as f.ho artist designed It, for It now forms a part of a largo, Irregular indentation, which, In tho estimation of tho olllcors and men of tho battleship, onhances tho valuo of tho bowl a thousand tlntoB over. Woman's Homo Companion. rinh-rnt of AnmrlrH. Tito vegetarian moveinont doos not appear to havo mado notoworthy In roads upon tho armies of tho riont raters. Nover was tho demnnd for flesh food so extensive.- USE MOUSE WHISKERS. Ilrur' Urehifiwa Atmnir Now TtiltiR Ucl nj Fit liarmen. Tho business dono in mouse whlsk ora Is considerable this year, for thoy nro used In tho making of tho won derful now fly for fishermen tho "now srny gnat." And thoy nro oxpcnBlvo ;icarly 2 ccuts per whisker. Trout rise very much better at mouso whisker files thnn at tho.samo "gnat" dressod iu jungle-cod; hackles, which look very much llko them. Tho trado of artificial fly making la Uio llghteat flhgcrcd buslncEO In tho world, nnd It Is not ono man or woman out of 11 Vu thousand who can learn to tto flits. Thwso tycrs nro rcmarkablo for thy beauty and delicacy of their hnnds, nm only tho cleverest of fingers cun deal with tho "niggling" work of knot ting lmlrs that can hardly bo seen. In making a fly tho earth has to bo ran sacked fnr precisely tho correct foath orB nnd hnirB, and ono hair wrong will mnko all tho difference. It takes an expert tycr only 15 minutes to turn nut n fly, which consists of n tiny hook, with wings of Egyptian dovu feathor, legs of fox hair, nnd a body of mouso fur, wound round with a thread of yellow Bilk. A carelessly mndo fly will havo neither legu nor "feelers," but tho true expert adds thn legs, and puts ou a pair of long "feel ers" of cat hair, whlto nt the Uph All these tiny details will bo exactly In their places, and to llncly tied lo tho hook thnt tho fly will tako half a dozen Htrong fish and bo nono tho worse. Honrs' oyobrows, being stiff, and exact ly tho right Bhndo, nvo used In n new ly invented fly that Is killing quanti ties of salmon tha year; and theno oyobrows como from tho Himalayan brown bear, nnd cost about tl.GO per But "" MUST DO THEin WORK WELL. Inoomnotent PfntlnU l.'nbl to InmRim for Tlicilr HniiBllnir. Tho courts aro taking cognizance of tho competency or Incompetency of professional men. A short tlmo ago n Now York tribunal hold that a phy sician was llablo for unskillful or neg ligent treatment nt a pntlent nnd now tho court of appeals of that state ban rondcrod a decision holding n car poratlon llablo for unskillful dental work. ThlscorporntlonncWirdlrtg to tho complaint, represented thnt It car ried on tho practice of dentistry In con nection with Its other departments. Tho plaintiff, n woman, having undor gono treatment, sued for nllcged ro BUltnnt Injury and received a verdict. Apparontly tho defence of tho corpora tion waB that tho dental buslncHs was not, In fact, carried on by It, but wau owned by tho dentist. But tho court hold that tho compauy having hold It self out as carrying on n dental de partment and tho plaintiff having been Ignorant of tho fact thu,t Uio company was not tho real owner of tho dental department, tho corporation wns estopped from making Buck a denial. For, under tho circumstances, tho court Bald that tho plaintiff had a Tight to rely not only on tho presumption that tho company would employ n skillful dontlst as Its Borvnnt, but also on Mm fact that If that servant, tho dontlitt. whether Bklllful or not, wiih guilty of any malpractice, Bho had a respou Blblo party to nnnwer therefor In dam ages. Chicago Chronicle , Tlio Cowhor Will (lonerou. Mllllonnlro McKlttrlck, who, ne nil California known, is iho king of Urn oil district, nnd fa reputed to own half of southern California, waB leaving his ranch to drlvo Into town tho othor dny, whon ho was accosted by ono of his cowpttnehora, who hnd boon on tho Job about a fortnight. "Say, bosB," snld tho cowboy, "can I draw ?10?" Mr. McKlttrlck was about to refer tbo man to tho foreman, but, being good natured, ho handed over tho gold ea gle. "Oh, I don't wnnt tho money," Bald tho cowboy; "I want you to got mo Bomo truck in town.. I want it dollar-'an-a-half pair o yallor shoes, thrco pairs o two-bit socks, a sack o' Durham, somo cigarette pnporH, n pair o' overalls, two Bitlts o undorclothcH, two Stanloy BhSrts, tho four-bit hind, an a two-bit silk hnndkcrchlnf." Charmed by tho gall of his employe, tho mllllonnlro took tha commission. Ho rotnrncd Into nt night loaded down llko Santa Claus, sought out tho enw punchor, delivered tho goodB, saying; "It cost only clght-flfty. Mores Mm dollar and a half left over." "Oh, that's all right," Bald tho gener ous cowboy, "keep tho change!" tiau Francisco Nows Letter. A I.uoUjr Arclitmit. Jerry Cooper considers hlmuolt ono of tilt luckiest men In England, ami not without reason. Ho used to ho a gymnastic Instructor In tho navy. Then ho wont Into tho merchant ma rine, and flvo years ago whllo on :t trading vctiHol off Newfoundland tho donkey onglnu on board blow up, kill ing four men and knocking Jurry Bpeechless and deaf. Yet a man ovum In this condition must live, und to gain a means of livelihood when hn returned to England ho gavo exhibi tions of conjuring and contortions. iA, week or two ngo ho had a had fall, which mado him unconscious, and upon regaining himself ho found that speech nnd hearing had como back to htm, And in nil Britain there's no ono happier than Jerry Cooper. Lumber rapacity of Oil I torn In. Timber experts toll us that Califor nia alono has a capacity of lumber is hor standing forests of over J 00,000,. 000,000 cubic feet. A drowning man will catch at n Btraw and no will a man who ir thirsty, '