M
THE PENALTY
Nebbcr was no use o gtttin bumptious
auyhow
Mockin bird hi- sot IiismiT ter ingin on
le bough
An evy time a yuilmh bird would try tor
otalit a cbune
He take it up an carry it an scourage
im right soon
He put on lots ob airs be did de envy ob
de throng
A -sin gin
An a wingin
An a mockin all day long
An many a bird dat humbly crop along a
lower limb
Would stop awhile ter listen an ter wish
dat he wus him
Dey worried bout de human folks dat
praised im up so high
But dem birds got mo contented when a
week or so went by
Dar is pity foh de mockin bird dat caused
sech jealous rage
Case dey cotched im
An dey fotched im
An deyve got Mm in a cage
STORY OF A SOL
DIERS DOUBLE
About thirty days before Grant broke
through Lees Hue at Petersburg and
the beginning of the end came a por
tion of my regiment captured seven
Confederates and brought them into
camp My own company was a part
of the Federal force but as I -was on
detached duty that week I was not
Avith them The first I knew of the
capture was when I heard the story
that I had deserted to the Confederates
and been recaptured and would be shot
I visited company headquarters to as
certain what the talk meant and there
met with a strange reception I was
there wearing a blue uniform and yet
I was in the guardhouse half a mile
away wearing the butternut 1 had
been on duty at division headquarters
and yet I had been captured on the
advance lines I was at once placed
under arrest and it was an hour or
more before the mystery was solved
Then it was found that one of the Con
federate prisoners was my double As
the case excited a good deal of com
ment at the time I will give you the
full particulars My double was a
member of an Alabama regiment
When placed side by side we were
twin brothers Each of us was 20 years
b - - -
g
Lit
A COLONEL QUESTIONED ME AS TO MY
NAME ETC
old each five feet live inches high
each weighed loT pounds Our eyes
and hair were of the same color Even
our voices were the same except that
he spoke with more of a drawl The
name of the young man was John
Wakefield and Ave were born a thou
sand miles apart and were in no way
related We were as much astonished
as the o filters and surgeons who were
called in to gaze at us No twin broth
ers ever bore a closer resemblance and
they declared that even our gait was
the same
- 1 had not yet recovered from my as
tonishment when the suggestion was
made that 1 go into the Confederate
camp as a spy on the strength of the
wonderful resemblance 1 was given
three days in which to pump Wake
field He did not know my object or I
should credit him with having told me
less although he was tired of the war
and rather glad he had been captured
I first got his family history complete
Then the town from which he hailed
the names of many people and the sit
uation of streets and public buildings
Then the names of the officers and
comrades and incidents of campaign
ing Having nothing else to do and
my aim being to acquire information 1
got from him almost every incident of
his life in those three days and nights
As my life would depend upon my be
ing thoroughly posted we canvassed
the most trivial incidents of his life at
home and as a soldier He was a ready
talker and had a good memory and of
course these things helped me wonder
fully When I was quite ready I took
his suit of clothes complete and he
was given another Then I was taken
down to the front and made a bolt for
It In other words one of the Confed
erate prisoners escaped and dashed
across the space which separated the
opposing lines Not half a dozen men
were let into the secret and as I ran I
was fired upon by half the regiment
They had promised me differently
and 1 still cherish a bitter feeling
against the officer who had charge of
the affair and obliged me to run such a
risk The bullets whizzed overhead
and tore up the earth at my feet and
it was uothing short of a miracle that
I escaped being hit I ran at full speed
straight for the Confederate lines and
on dashing over the breastwork I
found myself in the midst of a Louis
iana brigade of infantry A colonel
quostiHicd mo as to my name regi
ment when raptured etc and I an
swered o promptly that I supposed ev
erytbmr was all right It wasnt
how r ruleral iies Had played
th i dim on- nl Confederate wit
had Wi n - - 1 was sent to
AOi
the headquarters of Cen Mahone who
was subsequently celebrated in Vir
ginia and national politics lie asked
me the same questions which the col
onel had put to me and many others in
addition I saw that he Avas suspi
cious and braving all at one stroke I
requested that my captain be sent for
The Alabama regiment to which 1 was
supposed to belong was stationed two
miles away and it was about 9 oclock
before the captain arrived Previous
to his appearance I had been asked his
name which I gave correctly and had
also described his person When he
reached headquarters I was sent for
and as I stood before him and two or
AVIXSIOAV UQLDIY PROCLAIMED THAT I
AVAS TOT JOIIX WAKEFIELD
three headquarters officers Gen Ma
hone asked
Capt Thorn this man claims to be
long to your company Is he a mem
ber or not
Yes sir AA as the prompt reply
Whats his name
John Wakefield sir
When Avas he captured
Four days ago along Avith several
men
Are you positive that this is your
man
Certainly sir I knew him before
he enlisted and he has been in my
company for a year
That settled it We were dismissed
and I folloAved Capt Thorn to the regi
ment On the way I related the par
ticulars of my capture and escape and
he seemed considerably puzzled that
Gen Mahone should have been so sus
picious of me There Avere about forty
men in Company D They all gathered
around me as I appeared and gave me
welcome and a young man named
David Ganny wTho had been Wake
fields tent mate put his arms around
me and shed tears In his gladness over
my return I had learned my part so
thoroughly that I was at home from
the first Next day I met every mem
ber of the company officers included
and where I used names I made no
mistake I fell into the routine with
the rest and after three days the curi
osity of all had been satisfied
You may say that it was a wonder
ful thing that I could thus pass my
self off and escape all suspicion but I
am only telling you what Avas known
to Gen Grant himself My orders
ATere to ascertain Lees strength on a
line about four miles long Hoav I
was to accomplish this after entering
the Confederate lines was left for me
to decide Wakefield told me that he
had a cousin in the Seventh Virginia
a young soldier named John Winslow
He had visited him Avhenever oppor
tunity offered and this Avas a good ex
cuse for me to get out of camp I got
permission from my captain to go and
in hunting up the Seventh Virginia I
took care to miss it and cover the
Avhole front and haA e a look at guns
and fortifications I found WinslOAv at
last but his greeting was far from
cordial The two had evidently quar
reled about something on Avhich I Avas
not posted lie Avas so sulky and un
friendly that I Avas about to cut my
visit short when he gave me a search
ing look and exclaimed
Why you are not John Wakefield
at all
Then who am I I asked Avith a
laugh
I dont know but you are certainly
not my cousin John You look like
him but you are not he
It Avas queer that he alone should
have suspected me but something in
my speech Avalk or look Avarned him
that I Avas a counterfeit I laughed at
him in a good natured way hoped I
Avould find him in a better humor when
I called again and started for my reg
iment but I had not gone a quarter of
XO SIR ID HAVE IITXG YOU BY THE
XI CK
a mile when I was overtaken put un
der arrest and an hour later was once
more in the presence of Gen Mahone
I am sure that the General had doubted
me from the first Indeed after the
war he told me as much and added
that he was not quite satisfied even
Avhen my captain so thoroughly iden
tified me I was followed to his tent
by Winslow who boldly proclaimed
that I was not John Wakefield Then
all the officers and half a dozen men of
the company including my tentmate
were sent for and the General heartily
entered upon the vork of irappiug me
My life was the stake bring played
wopawgw n ijjrJKWSry
for and though I was terribly aosiow
a- o the outcome as you may bdiete
I brieve 1 displayed all the coolness
and nerve which my best friend could
have hoped for Every officer and
every man promptly identified me as
John Wakefield but to offset this Wins
low said that his cousin had a scar on
the neck Avhicli could not be found on
me 1 denied the scar and then my
captain was requested to ask me cer
tain questions which the General sug
gested or wrote out In reply I gave
the Christian name of father mother
and sister as Avell as a number of
uncles aunts and cousins I gave the
names of many streets in Montgom
ery Ala the names of many families
the situation of the State House Ex
change Hotel police station etc I
told the part taken by my regiment in
various battles and skirmishes and re
lated a funny incident connected Avith
my enlistment which Capt Thorn
clearly remembered
I had pumped John Wakefield so
thoroughly and so plainly remembered
everything that I believe I passed the
examination fully as well as or better
than he could Gen Mahone had only
one peg to hang a rope on after put
ting me through my paces for a full
tAvo hours My tentmate Avas sure I
Avas John Wakefield and yet I Avas a
bit strange since my return to the com
pany I did not use tobacco any longer
and he had not heard me SAvear though
I had been addicted to both vices be
fore my capture I claimed that I had
resolved to let tobacco alone as it AA as
affecting my health and I had quit
swearing in gratitude over my escape
The General Avas satisfied and yet un
satisfied He acknowledged that my
officers and comrades ought to knoAV
me after being together for a year but
added that there was no great hurry
to dispose of the case and sent me to
the guard house
At the end of tAvo days I was escort
ed back to his headquarters and he
played his last card In his tent was a
soldier dressed in Federal uniform
whom I took to be a deserter There
were also tAvo men dressed as civilians
but I believe they were Confederate
soldiers temporarily disguised Tho
General had two letters and a telegram
before him and as I stood at attention
he looked up and said
Well my Yankee lad you are pret
ty sharp and have stuck by your story
but you might as well make a clean
breast of it now You see this deserter
from your lines these citizens from
Montgomery these written proofs that
you are not John Wakefield
What do you want me to be 1
asked
I wrant your right name and th
story of hoAV you got into our lines
You are a spy and hanging is the pen
alty but owing to your youth we may
decide to treat you as a prisoner of
Avar
I declared that I Aas John Wake
field asked him to remember that all
my comrades had fully identified me
and expressed my Avillingness to face
any new proofs he might have to the
contrary He leaned back in his chair
and looked me straight in the eyes for
a moment and I knew he was a beaten
man He did not call up the men nor
read the letters as they had been pre
pared for the occasion and could not
have helped him out After what
seemed fully ten minutes he quietly
said
Well perhaps a mistake has been
made You can return to your regi
ment
My tAvo arraignments before Gen
Mahone made me an object of curios
ity and gossip in my company and
Avhen I returned it Avas to find all the
men anxious to quiz me and two or
three of them seemingly suspicious
The Captain called me into his tent and
questioned and cross questioned me
until he declared that nobody but a
fool could lun e taken me for anyone
else I put the men off by pretending
to be angry and three nights later as
Ave held a breastAvork at the front I
slipped away in the darkness and re
entered the Federal lines Acting on
the information I brought Grant was
hammering aAvay on that portion of the
Confederate line at daybreak Ten
years after the war as I smoked the
pipe of peace Avith Gen Mahone at a
hotel in Richmond I put the inquiry
General suppose you had secured
proofs that I was not John Wakefield
Avhat Avould have happened
Cant you guess he replied
Would you have had me shot
No sir Id have hung you by the
neck and made a good job of it C B
Lewis in St Louis Republic
Trinitys Clock on a Spree
Old Trinitys clock which is usually
a trustworthy timepiece went wrong
on Friday and for two days its antics
made the Wall street men rub their
eyes and try to recall where they had
been the night before The hands
seemed to have fired of their hum
drum round and got frisky On Sat
urday morning they jumped from xl
oclock to 1115 in less than a second
and then they swung to 1145 where
they paused for a moment Then they
adA anced until they pointed to 12
oclock The subsequent proceedings
attracted general attention down town
and when the hands pointed to 1130
and the clock struck 3 there was ap
propriate language used Trinitys
clock is one of the most conspicuous
things in the lower part of the city and
its accuracy is seldom questioned-
NeAV York Sun
Content with What He Had
Brother said the minister you
should try to be content with what you
have
I am said the brother who had
been grumbling It is what I aint
got that I am dissatisfied about Cin
cinnati Enquirer
A man will always give up the rock
ing chair to his wife but he demand
that she give the neAVspaper
RIVALS BLONDIN
Warner theTijrht Rope Artist Per
forms DaHn r Feuts in -pain
The plain of Bogota is sixty miles
long from north to south and thirty
miles from eist to west The River
Funga formed by numerous mountain
streams Avhich take their rise one hun
dred miles north of the city traverses
the plain in a soutlrwesterly direction
to Tequeudama Avhere through a gap
not over thirty six feet in width it
leaps over a rocky dge upward of GOO
feet high forming one of the most
magnificent cataracts on the globe and
thence rushes down to join the Mag
dalena The height of this precipice is
CKOSSIXG THE TEQUENDAMA CATARACT
so great that the nhabitants of Bogota
Avere terrified by the daring and auda
cious act of the Canadian equilibrist
Mr Warner Avho crossed the abyss of
the Tequendama In Imitation of the act
of Blondin at Niagara This feat is
shown in the accompanying cuts
Avhich are reproductions of photo
graphs taken on the spot by A Esperm
of the city of Bogota Spain says the
Scientific American
From the remotest antiquity there
have always been equilibrists many of
whom were extraordinary daring and
skillful and have astounded the spec
tators by their daring deeds of prowess
History tells us that in 13S5 upon the
entrance of Isabel of Bavaria into
Paris a Genoese allowed himself to
slide singing from the top of the tow
ers oi Notre Dame to Pont de Change
over AAThich the Queen passed and en
tered through an opening in the blue
taffeta sown with golden fleur de lis
with Avhich the bridge was covered
After having placed a crown on young
Isabels head the equilibrist continued
his aerial journey AVhen it was nearly
night the Genoese ascended to the
towers carrying a lighted torch in each
hand Avhich must have caused a singu
lar appearance from a distance and
doubtless gave rise to more than one
story of fantastic apparitions
If history has preserved for us
through five centuries the traditions of
this descent from the towers of Notre
Dame to the Pont de Change as a mar
velous feat Avhat can Ave say of Blon
din and his imitators especially War
ner who has dared not only on a wire
to cross the cataract of Niagara but
has just performed the wonderful feat
of crossing the terrible abyss of Te
quendama on a rope The crossing of
Niagara gave Blondin a universal repu
tation he being the first to try this dar
ing act but if considered conscientious
ly that is nothing compared with the
crossing of Tequendama for the condi
tions of the two cataracts are quite
different
At Niagara an acrobat who became
dizzy and lost his equilibrium would
fall into Avaters that are perfectly tran
quil and very deep circumstances
which taken in connection with the fact
that the fall would not be more than
about one hundred feet would give the
equilibrist the assurance of salvation
for he would not encounter rocks and
if he knew something of swimming he
a A A IP
1 A JIS
rmtto
WW
60J FEET ABOVE THE GHOfXP
would rise to the surface and swim to
one of the banks or to a boat Avhich
would pick him up and land him safe
ly At Tequendama all the conditions
of the abyss are against the equilibrist
who in case he experiences the slight
est dizziness and falls would be very
certain of breaking his neck for he
Avould fall into a raging torrent from
the terrible height of 470 feet What
Avould be the size of the largest frag
ment of the acrobat that could be
picked up at the bottom of such an
abyss
C nter Extracted Irom Gold Pieces
One of the most puzzled men in town
is a Montgomery street restaurant
keeper who rereit y tock in a 20 gold
r
piece which filled all the ordinary r
J quirements of genuineness so far os a
I superficial test could reveal the true
I facts But a few days ago a banker
j stepped into his place and saw the 20
piece Avhich the restaurant man had
received only a short time before The
banker had a queer look in his eyes as
he took the coin and rapped it sharply
with his knife and the restaurant
keeper had a stranger expression as he
saw his supposed 20 piece break into
tAvo pieces
How is this he demanded
The banker answered It is the
same old game I had one of these
piece myself and since then I have
tested gold pieces of the 20 denomi
nation very carefully If that had been
genuine my test would not have brok
en it
Then the restaurant keeper and the
banker carefully examined it together
The outside of the gold piece was all
right seemingly when the dissevered
parts were placed together The mill
ing seemed to be up to the standard
The Aveight Avas correct
But the inside of the piece was hair
filled with a composition Avhich Avas
not the customary gold and alloy Still
closer examination re ealed that the
gold had been saAved through Avitli ex
quisite care and skill just inside of the
milling Then the milling had been
removed and from the interior of the
piece some of the gold had been ex
tracted and the baser composition Avas
made to take the place of the more
precious metal Then with equal
deftness and skill the milling had been
replaced and soldered in some way and
the trick Avas done San Francisco
Call
Have Birds Reasoning Powers
Some very Interesting observations
relating to the surgical treatments of
wounds by birds Avere recently brought
by M Fatio before the Physical Socie
ty of Geneva He quotes the case of
the snipe wliich he often observed en
gaging in repairing damages
With its beak and feathers it makes
a very creditable dressing applying
plasters to bleeding wrounds and even
securing a broken limb by means of a
stout ligature On one occasion he
killed a snipe which had on its chest a
Large dressing composed of down taken
from other parts of the body and se
curely fixed to the wound by the coag
ulated blood Twice he has brought
home snipe with interwoven feathers
strapped on to the site of fracture of
of one or the other limb The most
interesting example was that of a
snipe both of whose legs he had un
fortunately broken by a misdirected
shot He recovered the bird only the
day following and he then found that
the poor thing had contrived to apply
dressings and a sort of splint to both
limbs
In a case reported by M Magnin a
snipe that Avas observed to fly away
with a broken leg was subsequently
found to have forced the fragments
Into a parallel position the upper frag
ment reaching to the knee and secured
them there by means of a strong band
of feathers and moss intermingled
The observers were particularly struck
by the application of a ligature of a
kind of flat leafed grass wound round
the limb in a spiral form and securely
fixed by means of a sort of glue
Wolves Increasing- in Number
The gray wolf the bane of cattleman
and flockmaster appears to multiply
and flourish In defiance of the efforts of
the hunter and the price set upon his
head Advices from all sections of the
range country report that gray AA olves
are as numerous and destructive as
ever Range riders are witnesses to
the fact that the fattest and strongest
steers are frequently OAercome by these
ferocious beasts while the Aveak and
infirm surrender to their attacks almost
without a struggle The live stock loss
of Montana from this source cannot be
calculated but from the nature of the
case it must be tremendous Profes
sional hunters state that the gray wolf
is an exceptionally difficult animal to
circumvent his cunning is remarkable
and his suspicious nature causes him
to avoid any locality which his keen
senses notify him has been invaded by
his human enemy He is not a gregari
ous animal preparing to roam in small
bunches Avhich prevents such a whole
sale killing as could be accomplished
if a large band should fall Avithln the
power of the hunter He avoids poison
ed baits and dead carcasses he Is es
sentially a beast of prey preferring
fresh meat all the time and Avhen the
pangs of hunger are felt he starts out
to find something Avith Aarm blood in
it
For these reasons Avolf hunting is an
extremely slow and precarious occupa
tion trapping chasing and shooting
are practically the only methods that
produce results and attractive induce
ments are necessary to encourage
hunters to engage in that Avork as a
means of livelihood Benton River
Mont Press
The Hat
A hat has been designed which it is
churned Avill remedy many of the most
serious objections made to it in its
present shape The chief Idem in this
new hat is to prevent pressure on the
arteries passing to the scalp and the
veins passing therefrom by the appli
cation of pads to the leather of the hat
in certain positions On the band In
side are fixed three pads in front one
central and two lateral between these
there is an interval on each side in
which the frontal artery and supra
orbital nerve rest passing backward
the next interval forms a Large space
for any variations of the temporal ar
tery and its two branches and the
next in tenia 1 is for the occipital ar
tery
Onyx in Kentucky
Onyx in large qi amity and it is said
of good quality has been fouud in Hart
County Kenttirky
QUEE7 HOUSES
They Were Bnilt to Gratify Hobble
of Their Owners Xjf
In an obscure thoroughfare of Paris
there is an old dilapidated building
Avhich has a curious history Nearly
300 years ago in the reign of Louis
XIV its owner Comte de Boutteville
conceived the extraordinary idea of
making it a rendezvous for duelists
and at one period all the aristocratic
quarrels of the day Avere disposed of
AVithin its precincts
An engagement to fight a duel Avas a
sure passport to the Comtes favor and
hospitality He spared neither pains
nor expense in arranging his household
to anticipate the Avants of his curious
guests and a table was laid every
morning in one of the rooms of the
mansion at which the principals and
their supporters breakfasted before
proceeding to business with weapons
supplied frequently from the Comtes
armory
A German doctor living in Japan set
himself to construct a perfect sanitary
dwelling house at Yokohama in 1S91
The walls consist of two layers of
rough plate glass about half an inch
thick separated by a space of four
inches filled Avith a strong solution of
salts of soda or alum to moderate and
diffuse the sunlight The foundations
are constructed Avith a special view of
minimizing the danger from earth
quakes so common in Japan
The main feature of the house is thac
there are no openings or cracks of aay
kind to admit air moisture insects
dust or microbes Fresh air and ven
tilation are supplied by means of pipes
and girds in the floors and before en
tering the rooms the air is filtered by
passing through cages filled with cot
ton wool It is then made to strike a
large pane of glass coated Avith glycer
ine Avhich in the opinion of the doctor
makes it as pure as an antiseptic
dressing The impure germs introduced
by the inmates are it is claimed doom
ed to rapid extinction in rooms bathed
in sunlight and without a dark corner
A Slight Mistake
It was the first poem the young lady
had been brave enough to offer to the
paper and she brought It in person She
took it into the business office by mis
take
The young lady handed her poem to
the advertising manager and he count
ed the Avords in it tapping his pencil
upon each one as he read it It ran
this way
As the sun sank to rest that evening
All my hopes turned to ashes and dust
The future will bring me but grieving
For him who has broken his trust
And the day that has goue shall be ever
The last that I ever will know
Of joy of loving forever
And the future be clouded with woe
Thats a dandy said the advertis
ing manager and it ought to get him
back sure Lets see sixty two Avords
thatll be 175 for one insertion Will
that be enough
Why said the young lady I hadnt
thought of fixing a price WhateveY
you think is right Avill do Do you
think it is Avorth it
Oh yes miss Its a low rate Well
run It right next to reading matter Its
a catchy idea running it in Aerse Youd
better add your address so the party
that finds him can bring him round t6
you Quite a pet with you AA asnt he
Sir said the young lady
Excuse me I supposed he was
What color was he
I supposed editors Avere gentlemen
said the young lady excuse me for
the mistake I made and she went out
In a rage
Whew said the advertising man
ager as he scratched his head and read
the poem again By jingo this Is
headed The Last Day and I thought
it was The Lost Dog Guess Ill let
the fellows upstairs pass on it It
might be a poem instead of a
Avant ad Detroit Free Press
A Vegetable Sea iiope
The largest plant in the world is be
lieved to be a gigantic seaAAeed the
nereocytis which frequently grows to
a height of more than 000 feet The
stem of the plant is as strong as an or
dinary rope and large quantities of It
are dried and used as rope by the In
habitants of the South Sea islands
where the curious vegetable ropes are
found This seaweed usually grows at
a depth of from 200 to 300 feet As
soon as the plant takes root a pear
shaped balloon is formed AAhlch grows
with the stem toward the surface of
the water This balloon frequently has
a diameter of six feet or more It has
of course an upward tendency and
therefore keeps the stem growing until
it floats on top of the water This enor
mous weed grows in such quantities
that large meadoA like islands are
formed which frequently Impede navi
gation The ropes made from these
stems are used for building purposes
and the balloons when dried make
very serviceable Aessels
An Expressive Phrase
Miss Bellefield It is my opinion that
Mabel intends to marry Fred Gaswell
Miss Bloomfield What are Freds
Intentions
I dont know but they dont count
What makes you think that Mabel
has designs on him
I asked her opinion of him the other
day and she replied Hell do to tie
to Pittsburg Chronicle Telegraph
Not So Deep
A country minister talking to an
old lady about his son who had emi
grated was very pathetic over the dan
gers of the deep
Hoot minister quoth Janet ye
needna haver sae muckle aboot it Itll
nae be sae awfu deep Its been an
unco dry year Tid Bits
If the devil nunishps thf
harmless liar what will he do to the j
ucuuai uu uuvuruses io extract teeto
without pain
