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. . . hn Mlli TilE WOULD.S
j . . BEST : WRITERS
ACCIDENTS ON THE RAIl.WAYS. !
Granting that there Is a greater
mileage of railroad In this country.
. the proportionate travel 15 probably
, greater In England than here. What ,
then'ls the explanation of the fewer
fatal accidents , or , rather , the almost
total lack of accidents In that country -
t try nR compared with the frightful
mortality on our American roads The
exact solution Is probably not easy ,
but the most natural explanation
that will come to the mind Is that the
British roads are bettor managed and
that they are held to a much stricter
accountability by the authorities. An
other reason also Is the total absence
of all grade crossings ' In England and
the universal employment of the boat
of safety devices and signals , the
block system being practically unl-
vorsal.-Now Orleans Picayune.
OUTWITTING THE SANDS.
-
In his article "From Coast to Coast .
in an Automobile , " In the May 'World's
Work , M. C. Krarup describes how
the motor car was gotten over e. sand
hill. The means devised for this emergency -
goncy consisted of two strips of can
vas , six feet wide and twenty.four feet
long. Where the sand 18 round.graln-
od , loose and dry the driving wheels
of a car can got no hold , but spin
around as In water or slimy mud. Our I
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strips of canvas , laid on the ground
for the wheels ' to run over , held the
sand together , and then the motor
power waa sufficient to drive UI'Ihoal ' \ .
In this manner the two strips , each
laid down three times , took U8 over
WadBworth hm , much to the astonishment -
mont of a number of citizens who had
assembled there with a team of horses
and stout tackle to help us.
t . ' . . , TO KILL - DANDEl.IONS.
I
In regard to the trouble owners of
lawns and grass plots have in keeping
them free from the pestiferous dande-
lion , a benevolent citizen who 'has experienced -
perienced lots of this trouble writes to i
the Oregonian to say that many people -
pIe bring more of this trouble on them-
salvos by trying to exterminate dande-
\ lions by cutting the plant off just be-
.
low the ground. A great deal of this
Is done early In the spring by people
'Collecting young dandelion plants for
"greens , " they being an excellent and
wholesome pot herb. This , It Is said ,
does not kill the plant , but causes
each root to throw out several shoots ,
and thus multiplies the number of
dandellons.
The correspondent mentioned writes
to impress his fellow sufferers that If
when they cut off the dandelion plant
below the ground they will drop a
pinch of salt or n teaspoonful of coal
all on the root left In the ground It
will effectually kill It. This may seem
a troublesome job , but to one who Is
sot on keeping his grass plot clear of
dandelions It will In the end save a
lot of trouble.-PorUand , Oregonian.
CURE FOR CONSUMPTION.
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Motorcar exercise will cure , conS -
I ' sumptlon , says Dr. Blanchet , of L'ons.
, Ho speaks from personal experience ,
having recovered his own health by
regularly covering about a hundred
miles a day In an open motor car.
He avers that by this remedy the
cough of tuberculous patients is gradually -
ual1y abolished , 01' greatly diminished ,
and healthy sleep and appetite pro
duced. It Is most essential that the
body should be duly protected from
cold. The elements of the cure are
the long stay In the open air and the I
Increased atmospheric pressure duo
to the rapid motion , which expands .
and strengthens the lungs.-LotHian
1atl.
CAN IIGOOD' MEN CORRUPT ?
I .
The case with which good men , and
men who are reckoned honorable In
respect of their private Jives , find ex.
cases faT doing wrong In their publIc
action has been a marvel to the ages.
It will continue a marvel for long
years to come. But it is not nearly so
marvelous as the perversity of human
nature that enables men to Imagine
they are moral and devoted patriots
and faithful Christians while they are
bending their talent and influence to
increase their riches by bribing legis-
lators to do for them what they would
never do except for a corrupt consid-
eration or through fear of a dominant
intluence.-Doston Herald.
LOSS FROM TYPHOID.
The Michigan physician who puts
the annual money loss to the United
States from typhoid fever , at 50,000-
000 is far from setting forth the full
truth. He reaches his estimate by
assuming $1,000 as the average value
of the lives sacrificed and he omits
all account or the money spent in the
care of nonfatal cases. The real value -
ue of the lives loat-so far as such
value can be expressed In money-
might more properly bo rated at $5"
000 , and at least $100 on the average
must be spent on victims who re-
COYer. On this calculation , assuming
that the Michigan physician Is correct
In his number of cases , the annual
loss to the country from typhoid Is
nearly $300OOOOOO.-Provldence Jour-
nal.
DIFFERENT MACHINE GUNS.
The first machine gun of any note
was the Gatling. The original Gatling
had ten barrels placed In a circle ,
with a breech mechanism so arranged
that by turning a. crank these barrels
were successively fired , the cartridges
being placed In a small hopper situated -
ated on the top of the gun.
The Hotchkiss was a similar gun ,
having a similar arrangement of bar.
rels , but a totally different mechan
ism. The Hotchldss system , however ,
was used for a larger type of ammu
nition than the Gatling. The French
mitrallleuse had thirty barrels. They
were all landed at the same time and
all fired slmultnneously. The recall
was 80 great that It had to be mount
ed In the same manner I1H a. fieldpiece.
on a heavy carriage , requiring six
horses. The apparatus was clumsy , .
difficult to operate , and had a com
paratively slow rate of fire.
The Nordenfeldt gun consists of a
series of barrels arranged side by
side , like organ pipes. The Norden :
feld gun generally has five barrels ,
and the mechanism Is worked by a
lever , the cartridges falling down
from a hopper on the top of the arm
Into position , where the mechanism
thrusts them into the barrel , fires
them and extracts the empty case.
This gun Is of great simplicity , and
for a time went Into extensive use . -
Harper'fI Weekly.
A FILIAL SON.
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M. Curie , the discoverer of radium ,
nol long ago declined the red ribbon.
This at first was taken as showing
extreme republicanism. He refused
because his father , a meritorIous doc.
tor , who has always practiced in the
poorest part of Paris , is still undoco
rated. M. Curie would be pleased and
proud to enter the Legion of Honor
after his father had become a mem-
b ( > t. . At the same time he docs not
see how with any fairness he could bc
decorated ! ! if his wife were nol similarly -
larly hOIlOt'ed.-raris Letter to London '
don Trutb.
Weeds
! . Man has almost always looked upon
. the weed as a mortal enemy at the
husbandman. Ha would deem himself
fortunate It he could carry on his til
lage with never a weed to contend
with. Yet the name "weed" Irs largely -
ly meaningless , for it Is merely a term
applied to the plants for which we have
at the present time no particular use.
Yet it may ba assumed that each
weed has In It some value to the hu-
man race that is yet to be discovored.
. . Many of the weeds that now encroach
on our cultivated domain will some
day be so chang by the hand of man
that they would not be recognized by
. U8 to-day. In some it will be the
blossom that will be enlarged and developed -
veloped , just as we have now developed -
oped the flower of the cabbage to the
cauUftower. In others the root will
be the part that will be developed , as
we have from their wild and insignifi-
cant forms developed beets , carrots
and turnips.
Thus as to the future of weeds and
we can safely predict what the out- -
come will be from our knowledge of
the history of the past. For we all
realize the fact that many of the
choooest things that come to our ta-
bles , whether in the form 01 food or
for ornament , were within the history -
tory of man , but weeds that were
thought below his notice. Asparagus
was a riparian plant growing in the
sandy margins of the rIvers or by the
seashore. Celery was a strong weed
with nothing to recommend It till
some man found how to make It grow
tender In the shade. Left to grow
naturally it is of little or no use to
man. The beach pea that rambled
along the sands and rocks of the Med
Iterranean shores became under cultivation - I
tivation the beautiful sweet pea of
our flower gardens and of which we
now have a thousand forms. How un-
like some of these are the forms out
of which they were developed ?
A few rears ago the country was
stirred by the advent of the Russian
thistle which threatened to put millions -
lions of acres of land -out of cultivation -
tlon in the Northwest. A panic seized
some of our most conservative agriculturists -
culturists and the legislatures , both
state and national , were appealed to
for immense sums of money to be
spent in checking the dreadful in-
vader. But the legislatures refused to
approprIate any considerable sums of
money and told the 'farmers ' they
would have to fight this new weed
pest in the best way they could.
But before long It was found that
this weed , growing best on alkali
lands , was greatly relished in a young
state by the farm stock , and that It
made good pasturage. We now never
hear anything about the Russian this-
tle except that here and there it is
being made up into hay.
But apart from this occasional ser-
vice to man there are other benefits
that come from weeds. They are the
first to take p08esslon of waste places
and plough up the ground with their
roots to make way for the coming
of grass. The dry soil , under the
fierce glare of the summer sun , loses
much of the humus it has in the exposed -
posed surface layers. This loss Is now
known to be Tery great , or would be
great did not the weeds take possession -
sion and cover the ground with their
enveloping tops. Under this shade the
ground keeps moist and the humus Is
conservoa. The work at the bacteria
goes on In this protected soil , and
It was long a&o demonstrated that nitrates -
trates were formed under the rbade
of these very plants that the farmer
considers his fces.
The writer once board Professor
Daney say that he had just bought a
200'acra farm that van \ covered with
weeds. The previous owner sold him
the farm at a low price because It was
so very weedy. The professor laughed 1
as he remarked that he preferred the
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weeds to nothing as it was merely a\ \
question of plowing them under whew '
he got ready to use the land. Mean. .
while they were improving the land t'r
for him. Weeds do not Impoverish
the land , as they fall down and decay t
on the very soil where they have been
growing. It is safe to say that the
t.
soil that will bear a good crop of
weeds will bear a good crop of so . .
other plant. " ' "
The thrifty farmer will have little' .
trouble with weeds , except when he
sows them in the crops of grain that
he is raising. The areas that are cuI.'f
tlvated by hand hoeing or by the plow
can be kept free easy enoug'b. The :
weed Is a friend that the farmer
would find It hard to get along with.
out. Farmer's Review.
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Improving Swine .
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The improvement of swine must ' t
come as it comes in all other breeds
of animals , both by selecting and ' . , 'f'
feeding. J , < 'eedlng is probably first aq i
no matter how well an animal may be t
selected If he Is not fed properly the I
things that have been gained by se "
lectlng wIII be Iost. What is the use
of a man trying to breed up a strong
boned animal It , after having selected
. one that shows. the proper conformation '
I tlen , he goes on feeding him nothing
but corn from plghood to maturity
It is evident that this kind of feeding
would be a permanent check on furth
er development along the line desired
And It this selection should be continued
tlnued for generations and the feed
remain bad , little or nothing could .
be gained. In the past much of the
work of improvement has been along
these lines and has therefore been
uphIII work. Some of our farmers
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have tried to sc.ct their breeding , '
C
swine year after year with the hope - " ' \ ' \
of getting an improvement in stamina , I
but have continued to feed material !
that went to destroy stamina , and they
have found It to be difficult to im
prove their animals In the least.
The first requisite therefore is to
begin a right system of feeding , one
that will develop a strong bone and
firm and abundant muscles. This can
be done by limiting the amount of
corn that is fed and Increasing the
amount of foods rich in protein. By
such a course not only will the mus
cular systems of the animals be improved .
proved but the breeding qualities will '
also be Improved , and the number of
pigs in each litter will be increased.
The opposite course of feeding leads
to degeneracy and I.
at
impairment . . . . . .
breeding qualities.
Then comes the selection each year
or each breeding season. With the
proper method of feeding selection
becomes a very effective method of
improving the animals. Within a few .
weeks after farrowing the pigs will
begin to show characteristics that
should be propagated. A taw wIII be
thriftier than the others. A few will
grow more rapidly than their fellows
and they will show better formation '
of body viewed tram the pork makers' I
. .
standpoint. These are the ones that
should he chosen for the future brced.J
ers , and should early be put in a lot
by themgelves ! and fed with the Idea
of making breeders of them. At the
time the others begin to receive corn
in quantities sufficient to make them
lay on fat , these should be receiving
only a little corn , just enough to .
ante the protein feeds they are ra- I
ceivlng. It is obvious that no pig
should bo selected for breeding that - - ' , _ V
. has been in anyway stunted in de-
. velopment. The pig that was not
able to take care of Itself in the general
oral scramble for Its mother's milk
; . has not enough stamina In it to make
a good breeder and it is not desirable
to transmit that lack of stamina to au
offspring.
. The common tobacco dips are very 4
.emcaclous as a dip for riddings hogs i
of lIce
.
