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1 SAVED BY A DREAM.
A THRICE REPEATED WARNING THAT
WAS LUCKILY HEEDED.
How Two Men Nut-rowly Kucnpml
iiutloii In \Vontorn Ontario Inn Tlio
Itcullty WIIN H 1'orfcut Koproiluutloii of
the Vision of tlio Uriiln.
Misa Mnliol Wilougltby , writing In
the Toronto Uiobe , rolatou thin Ktrauyu
etory :
"Many y..nrs ago my grcat-unolo , u
magistrate of Niagara district , lintl oc
casion , as ho ot'tou had , to inako a jour
ney ou hornobaok through tiomo of tliu
inoro unsettled parts of western On
tario. As those were tlio pioneer day" ,
many parts of Ontario now thickly net
tled and prosperous communities weio
almost unbroken stretches of forest , in
tersected by roads , pussahlo only by
equestrians. The only places of public
accommodation were small taverns or
inns to be found at intervals of many
miles along those trails or roads. My
uuclo and his father-in-law who
- - , ac
companied him , carried largo sums of
money with which to buy grain and
cattle from the settlors.
"Ouo afternoon , toward nightfall , as
they wore Hearing the small inn where
they intended stopping for the night ,
they heard the sound of horses' hoofs
close bohmd thorn , and , turning in his
saddle , 1113 * uuclo saw that the strangers
approaching him were a dark visaged
pair of men whom ho had noticed at
the dinner table with him at the last
hostelry. They , however , saluted my
uncle and Mr. L , his father-in-law , in
a very civil manner and returned the
compliments of the hour.
"Tho party soon reached the inn ,
and , to uncle's surprise , the two stran
gers trotted on past the only resting place
there was for miles. But ho concluded
that they were hunters or settlars liv
ing farther on , and so for the time
thought no more of it.
"Our two grain dealers took their
supper and shortly afterward retired
comfortably for the night. Not long
after going to bed Mr. H. , feeling thirs
ty , rose and went down to the barroom
for a drink of water. ( No laughter here.
He was a local preacher and stanch ad
herent to the Methodist church. )
"On entering the bar lie was greatly
surprised to see stretched out on the
wooden benches the guests of the din
ner table and traveling companions of
the early evening. However , he trou
bled very little about the matter , as ho
thought that they had been overtaken
by night and turned back. On return
ing to the bedroom he found my uncle
dozing , and so made no mention of tbe
uncanny pair in the barroom , and in a
few minutes fell asleep also.
"After a short sleep uuclo awoke and
almost started out of bed , having had a
most vivid and frightful dream' , in
which he saw one of those men advanc
ing toward him with a dark lantern
turned upon his face and a drawn knife
in his hand. But , finding the room per
fectly quiet , uncle persuaded himself
that his dream was the result of some
slight apprehension he had had concern
ing the two men , and so fell asleep
again , but only to have the horrible vi-1
siou repeated.
"He began to feel that the dream , so
vivid and persistent , might have the
nature of a presentiment , so put his
hand under the pillow to see that his
pistols which he carried were safe. I
But as everything continued perfectly
still he allowed himself to fall into a
light doze , which was again interrupt
ed by the same dream , like a midnight
specter.
"Now thoroughly alarmed and feel
ing that his dream was sent as a warn
ing , ho roused the old gentleman by his
side and told him of it. Mr. H. then
told him of the men in the barroom.
This increasing their apprehension , the
two men decided to watch by turns , Mr.
H. taking the first watch. Not five min
utes had elapsed before a footstep just
outside their door caught the ear of
both men.
"In a moment the door opened very
softly , and a man stealthily entered and
crept toward the bed , while the two in
the bed prepared for immediate defense
when the villain had come close enough
to bo seen distinctly , kept ; perfectly
quiet. When within about two yards of
the bed , the intending assassin , by the
manipulation of his lantern , which un
til this time had remained perfectly
dark , threw a clear light over the sup
posed sleepers and revealed to them the
reality of the vision the same man ,
knife and lantern , with his murderous
intention hideously written on his fixed
countenance.
"One glance at his intended victims
and his expression changed to amaze
ment and fear and he stood like one
paralyzed as ho met my uncle's steady
and white face , who , with pistol pre
sented , waited but another move on the
part of the villain to kill him on the
spot. But the man didn't move. All
was perfectly still , except for a smoth
ered prayer from the old gentleman.
Uncle was the first to speak , demand
ing what he wanted. No reply was
given. Uncle then , threateningly ad
vancing his piece , ordered him to leave
the room at once on pain of death. In
obedience to this the robber , without
turning his face or changing his atti
tude in any way. backed as steadily
from the room as he had entered it and
was seen no more. "
All Dear to Him.
Wife The doctor orders me to the
mineral baths at Carlsbad , and you re
fuse me the means to go. That shows
how little you value me.
Husband On the contrary , I do not
wish to lose a pound of you. JFliegende
Blatter.
Strange as it may seem , the origin of
the miter is to be found in Acts ii , S ,
"And there appeared unto them cloven
tongues like as of fire , and it sat upon
each of them. " The miter is supposed
tolie a representation of these cloven
tongues.
A FEARLESS COMICT.
STEADMAN'S DARING ESCAPE FROM
SAN QUENTIN PRISON.
Ono of the Mont Itninnrltubln CHKCH of
Tnll Itrciildntr on Huron ! Acoom | llftho < l
by ft rVut Which AlinciRt llordnruil on
the MlruoulouH.
It IH ono thing to catch u thief and it
is another thing to hold him. During u
meeting of the ohiefHof police of all the
larger uiticn of the United Status and
Canada , which occurred at Milwaukee ,
there were rominiHconcoH of remarkable
captures and of OHcapey which bordered
ologoly upon the miraculoiiH.
"The most remarkable cncape from
prison that I can recall , " miid William
A. Pinkerton , "was that of Frank
Steadnmn from the San Quentin primm.
But I'll not toll you about it , for hero
is John Glass , who caught Steadnmn
and sent him back to San Quuntin. "
Chief Glass pinched the brown im
perial on his under lip reflectively for
a moment before ho responded to tiiD
looks of inquiry bent upon him by UIOHO
not familiar with the story.
"Tho escape to which you refer , Pinkerton -
kerton , was made after I sent Steadman
to San Quoiitin and not before. I was
not the fortunate ono to got him after
that last wonderful break. And to toll
the truth , I have never taken to myself
much credit for taking him tlio time I
did , for it was to a considerable degree
a matter of good fortune. Yon see , wo
were just at that time keeping our ees
open for a bank robber by the uamo of
Barnes , who had gone into one of the
banks out thoro. covered the one man
who happiMH'il ro be alone in the place
at the time. looked him up in the vault ,
and then coolJy walked out of the bank
and out of sight with all the funds he
could get his hands on.
"Ouo day a man answering closely
the description wo had of Barnes step
ped off the train at Los Angeles. Wo
took him in tow at once , but found
we did not have the bird wo were after.
However , wo managed to hold him
long enough to find out that ho was
Frank Steadman , who had become no
torious even at that time as a successful
jail breaker. Ho had four or five escapes
from prison in southern Indiana credit
ed to him , had got away from Joliet
and had still seven years to do at the
Illinois prison ; had also been at Sau
Quentin , and had escaped from there
with five years unfinished.
"Steadmau was a machinist by pro
fession , and a burglar by inclination.
When ho was sent back to San Queutin
to finish his time , ho was put to work
with other convicts in the engine room.
j
It .was here that an idea came into his
brain that for absolute daring and fear
lessness was typical of the man. Ho had
noticed that every evening at the time
the men working in the engine room
were lined up to bo inarched away , the
machinery was stopped at exactly the
same moment. Ho had observed aswell
that a window leading to an adja'ceut
roof was not far from the top of the big
driving belt of the engine. From that
roof it was possible to reach the outer
wall of the prison. Beyond the wall
was freedom. Ho had escaped so many
times that his mind i everted again and
again to the window high up ou the
wall of the engine room. Apparently it
was beyond all possibility of being
reached. No ladder was to be obtained.
Had such a thing been even standing
in place against the wall , to break
from the line and scale it with catlike
dexterity , although the work of but a
few seconds , ho well knew would be
futile , possibly fatal. Bullets travel
faster than legs , and the guards were
not bad shots. But desperate deeds de
mand desperate means. Some minds
may work -with an ingenuity born of
despair , but Steadmun's was of a differ
ent caliber. His plans were the out
growth of steadfast optimism.
"One day there came to him as if by
inspiration the thought that the big belt
might bo the means of carrying him to
his goal. Ho found that it was impossi
ble to count the revolutions of the driv
ing wheel , but there were lacings in
the broad belt , which ho was able to
distinguish as a sort of blur as it passed
a given point. For days and days ho
counted , and in his cell at night ho
spent his time in calculations. Hb dis
covered the exact number of revolutions
the wheel mr.do per minute. He learned
also by constant observation just how
many times the belt went round after
the engine was shut down.
"Ouo evening , when the line had
been formed as usual at the close of the
day's work and as the big wheel began
to lose its momentum , suddenly a con
vict sprang from the line , leaped to the
belt , with outstretched arms grappling
both edges of the broad leather. Ho had
calculated well the strength that would
be required , for the terrific wrench did
not loosen his grasp. Outward and up
ward ho swung until , ho reached the
topmost point of the circumference. The
nicety of his calculation had reaped its
reward. The belt stopped. He leaped to
his feet , sprang through the window
and was gone before convicts or guards
had recovered from , their astonishment.
He caught up a guard's coat and hat ,
dropped from the wall and got away in
the dusk of tho-evening. I am inclined
to believe that as a mathematical propo
sition that was about as perfect a piece
of work as any man ever accomplished. "
"And did ho get away without re
capture ? " some ono asked.
"No , I am almost sorry to say , he did
not , " answered the Los Angeles chief ,
"for that ought by rights to be the de
nouement of such a story , which com
bines so much of daring and cleverness.
Steadmanwas taken * again in a short
time and put to work at his old job.
There are bars over that high window
above the big drive belt now. Not long
after this Steadman cut and nearly kill
ed ono of the other convicts and is now
serving out sui additional sentence for
attempted inrder : at the Folsom prison ,
which is situ.ited some 28 miles from
Sacramento. " Chicago Inter Ocean.
HE IS A RAT DEIYER.
LUMINOUS PAINT SUCCEEDS WHERE
BELLS , TAR AND TRAPS FAILED.
A. Mnn Who Mnkm flood Money Clearing
Wuritlioimm anil Otlinr Concern * Around
Now York of TrouhlcKomu JloilonU Be
gun tlio IJUHlnrM In Stockholm.
HnibtueH of Kiversidu drive , between
Seventy-fifth and Eightieth ntrcets , on
very fiunuy dityH liuvo noticed u middle
aged nmu currying a cane , which ap-
pcurn to bo about three feet long by ono
foot deep and two feet wide. It IB ap
parently u black leather caho with an
ordinary grip handle to the upper part ,
and tlio man , neeking HOIIIO unfrequent
ed piece of wall , generally 0110 of the
onibriUv.re.M , jilaccH IMH ciso on the wall ,
fiinokcHhi8i > iround loiters around , look
ing at the over changing river and its
traffic. If others coino around , ho moveu
on , Itit if not ho may ntiy there from
two to three hours in the full sun. Ho
is n rat catcher , or rather a rat driver.
Ho works only in largo warehouses and
ilooH not touch the smaller dwelling
houses or flatH except in rare CHECH.
Ho is u Scandinavian whom nothing
will warm to converKation but his native -
tivo tongue. His case is wood on the
back , cuds and bottom and wire on tbo
front and'top. There are neat spring
shades which roll down over front and
top. In this cage are eight or ten largo
rats. If any ono comes near , down go
the shades , but as long as the coast is
clear tbo shades are up and the rats are
running around basking in the sunlight.
If ho takes you into his confidence , ho
will tell you that it is with these rats
ho clears buildings. The other day ho
said :
"When I was living in Stockholm ,
the largo granaries were full of rats ,
and a reward was offered to clear them ,
Many tried. Traps were set by the
hundred.
"Ouo man built a room as large as an
ordinary parlor , cased it with tin and
fed the rats with oatmeal scented with
oil of aniseed , gradually laying trains
of this feed to the room until he had all
the rats ou a string. Then he fitted an
automatic drop to the entrance , and
when his rats were feeding he caged
them all , several hundred. The first
man who did this went into the room
with dogs to kill them and was nearly
eaten himself , like that farmer out west-
I n few weeks ago. The second man
! starved and. then poisoned his , but in a
j week there were just as many rats as
t ever. The supply was inexhaustible
! from the rivers and quays. Poisoning
j was no good because of the terrific
! smell , and so I took the matter in hand.
"I thought it over and finally set a
trap and caught some rats. Then I tied
a piece of wire round' their necks , to
which I Eluug a little tinkling brass
bell , and then I let the bell ringers
loose in the building they had been
caught in. They knew the runs and
went to join their friends and relatives ,
who of course ran from the bells. The ;
more they ran the more ran the bell
carriers , until the building was 'hoo
doo' in rat language and not a rat
would enter.
"If I could have lured hack my bell
carriers , all would have been well ; but ,
familiarity breeding contempt , the rats
grev : accustomed to them , and in a few
mouths were back again , and as build
ing after building had been cleared by
this trick there was not a rat in the city
who did not know of the bells. Then I
tried tarring some rats with strong
smelling coal tar , which rats canugt
bear and will avoid if possible , and this
answered for awhile , but a fire occurred ,
and a rat , tar coated , ran out of the
blazing building with his fur ablaze
and , going into another building not in
danger , set it on fire wood gets very
dry in those old buildings over there
and so an ordinance was passed prohib
iting the use of tar.
"I had made money , and I came to
this country. I did well for some years ,
but in the depression my capital ran
short and I failed ; so then I took to
clearing business places of rats again
and am doing quite well. The first
thing is to learn the lay of the building
where the rats come from. If a grain
elevator is near , clear the elevator and
trap those in the other places. Rats very
seldom run around more than one build
ing , except as an overflow. Then , hav
ing determined that point , try the tar ,
then the bell , and after that these fel
lows in the cage. They are coated with
luminous paint , and being exposed to
the sunlight hero can bo taken to a
building tonight , loosed and will fly
through the runs , spreading fear wher
ever they go and creating a stampede.
If you have ever seen luminous paint
effects , you can readily understand it.
The great beauty of this plan is that the
rats do not live more than 24 to 48
hours after a coating with this paint , so
the novelty never wears off. It is a prep
aration of lime , which I discovered for
myself , and has to bo newly made and
mixed like n varnish. This closes the
pores of the skin , and after chasing
around to catch up with the flying rela
tives the rut is in a sweat , and that fin
ishes him , and they never get used to it.
Will n rat sweat ? Well , you cage a rat ,
and then let a terrier roll the cage
around for a few minutes , and you will
see a rat as damp as if dipped into a
pail of water. I get as high as ? 20 a
month for keeping some places in this
city clear of rats , and I work several
other cities as well. The only thing I am
afraid of is the society ( Prevention of
Cruelty to Animals ) , bufc I have nearly
made enough to stnrfc in my own busi
ness again , and then I will cease rat
driving. Sell my business ? No , I may
want again in this city of ups and
downs. " New York Sun.
Chicago Modesty.
"Did she have a church wedding ? "
"No. There's no foolish desire for
ostentation about her. Why , every time
she's been divorced the case has always
been heard in the judge's little side
room. " Cleveland Plain Dealer.
, M , KIMELL ,
fVlcCCOK , NEB.
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