TILE OMAHA DAILY JJEE : SATURDAY , JAHUA11Y 11 , 1800.
A SCIENTIFIC BALLOON.
1JV W. Ijt AL.D12N.
( CoujrlRht , ISM. tiy W. U AMcn. )
"You'ro nulto right , sir. " remarked the
colonel In reply to young Thompson's ques
tion , " 1 linvo teen In some pretty tight
places In the counts of my life. A man can't
fool along through fifty or sixty years of
active llfo without finding himself occa
sionally In middling tight places. Hut
wherever I am so long as I nm on solid
crouml I generally calculate to be able to
work myself out of almost any difficulty.
It's when you put mo aboard a ship or In n
balloon that I begin to los ? my grip. Speak
ing of balloons , I'll tell you right here , If
you don't mind , of n little adventure I had
the only time that I ever Was fool enough
to trust myself In a balloon.
"One day there cams to my house In Now
Bcrllnopollsvllle a fellow' with a letter of
Introduction from Sam Kendall , who used
to bo ringmaster of the 'Unlit Colutnblu'
circus at the tlmo when I was the manager
and proprietor of the concern. Sam was one
of the best of fellows and consequently any
friend of his wa welcome at my house.
which waanthe name of
Prof. Montgomery ,
Sam's friend , was a small , determined lookIng -
Ing chap thatat first sight I would liavn
taken for a lightweight fighting man , but , as
It appeared , ho was a balloonist , It's a
slt.gular thing that every man who goes up
In a balloon professionally calls himself a
professor , while a miner who goes down a
shaft professionally never thinks of giving
himself any such title. Sam's letter didn't
bay that Prof. Montgomery was a b-illoonlst
and so I supposed ho was a regular collcgo
ptofcssor who had caught the look of u
lighting man through teaching foot ball and
other athletic games to the students ; and
so , when ho accepted my Invitation to
dlnrer , I Just sent over for my old friend ,
Prof. Van Wagoner , the great electric sharp ,
to come and join us , thinking that the two
piofessors would be good company for one
another.
"Now It happened that Van Wagoner , who
was always Interested In everything that was
scientific and useless , was mightily Inter
ested In ballooning , and Instead of being dis
appointed when ho found' out that Mont-
gcineiy wag an Ignorant flup who couldn't
speak ten words of good grammar ho was
just delighted to find that the man was a
practical balloonist. Thfa two got to work
and talked balloon till you couldn't rust.
Van Wagener said tint It was his belief that
a balloon ptopcily constructed ought to bu
able to stay In the air for a month or a
year at a time , and when Montgomery said
that the thing wasn't possible Van Wagener
wanted him to explain why.
" 'It's plain enough , ' says the balloonist
' 'When the balloon rises and gets Into thinner
air , the gas expands and escapes through the
mouth of the bag. Even If It didn't escape
It would always leak o'lt through the silk or
cotton , or whatever stuff the bag Is made of.
That's the reason why you can't stay up
only a few hours. No man ain't never been
able to Invent a , balloon that won't loss gas ,
and nobody ever \ylll Invent one , for It can't
be done. '
" 'If I make a balloon that can't possibly
leak a alnglo cubic incli of gas , will you
make an ascension with me , and attend to
the practical management of the machine ? '
asked Van Wagener. \
" 'You can Just bet I will , ' says the other
chap. 'Why , man , there'd be an everlasting
fortune In sujh a balloon. But what's the
use of talking about It ? The thing can't ba
done , as , you'll 'find out when you set down
to Invent your gas-tight balloon. '
"Well , the upbhot of It was that Van
WageiW set to work and made a balloon
that eveji I culd se ? was going to meet
his requirement. The main balloon was a
big glqbq of aluminum , and on top of that
was a bag of thick rubber , connected with
the globe by nn uutonutic valve. The Idea
was tliat the glob ? would hold Just enough
gits to lloat the balloon nt a height of 200
fcot above the earth. Now , being at that
height , it the balloonist wanted to rise , all
he had .to do was to light a big spirit lamp
that Would heat the gas In the globe and
tnako It'expand. When It had expanded to a
certain "point , It would flow over Into the
rubber 'bag. and the lifting capacity of the
machine would be Increased about one-third.
Of course the balloon would rlsf. and when
the balloonist wrntcd to descend again , all
he would have to do , according to Van
Wagener , would be to put out his lamp and
let the globe cool off. It was a mighty In
genious contrivance , and Montgomery , who
began by having no ( tort of confidence In
Van Wagener , ended by thinking that per
haps ho had really Invented a balloon that
could be made to etay up forever.
"Nothing would satisfy Van Wagener but
that I should go along on the trial trip of
theballoon. . I wasn't In the least anxious
to do It , for solid ground was always good
enough for me. but Van Wagener , being an
old friend , and liable , like all scientific chaps ,
to get himself Into dlfllcultlcs when he didn't
have some practical man to look after him ,
I finally agreed to go. The ascension waste
to be made from my back yard , where wo
I'VE 'DROPPED MY PA LSD TRETII
OVEHBOAIin. "
would bo" out of sight of Mm. Van Wagenor
and the * general public. The machine was
cartEd over to my house after dailc , and the
next morning , when we were ready to start.
no oneliiew ( anything of our Intention except
my colored nun , and he knew haw to hold
his tongue.
"I was surprised to find that Van Wagener
lind calculated tlie-lldliig power of the balloon -
loon tx > closely--lint lie- Knew to an ounce'
Just what weight she must carry In order to
float , ns JIG nicaiit her to , a coupla of hun
dred feet above the eartlr , and etay right
there. Consequently all three of us had to bo
weighed , and W were a good two hours In
reducing the weight of things In our packets ,
or of Increasing , our weight with bits of
gravel until at lait , Van Wagenor was ratio
ned that the \\liolo weight of the machine ,
with us and cur Instruments and trapsIn It ,
would be- exactly what ha calculated that It
ought to ho. Then canto thefllllntc of the
glebe with pure hydio on made on the spot ,
and car.a'queiitty It \\ua G o'clock In the
afternoon before * everything was ready and
wo made our Btait , The balloon rose slow
nnil gently , and when It was up to about this
height of the steeple of the Unman Catholic
church It gradually -ated rlnlng and hung
there perfectly quiet. Therewasn't a breath
of air stirring , ro the thing had no sort of
drift , and promised to stay Juit where the
was until the wind should rice. The professor -
* fessor was mightily pleated , and to my mind
Montgomery ought to have bien satisfied
that the Invention war. all right , but he
scorned a little uneasy , so I asked him what
fault he huil to find with the billoon ,
" 'We're all right so fir , ' nays he , 'but the
difficulty U going to bo In keeping our
weight Jutt up to th etandard and no more.
I'll Uav more confidence In this yer thing
when the trial trip la over , and nobdy
i killed. There's one thing that I don't ex
actly see , and that I * how we arc- going to
descend. '
' "I dfcUre I forgot to provide for that , '
aiy Van Wagener. 'However , It will be
time enough to think of that when we get
through abcendlng. '
"Ho wai as dellxhUd as c child , and about
.capable of looklrs Jnto the future. With
tUt be llghti Ills iplrlt lamp , end presently
? $ & * _ , J
the balloon begins to rise , Just as he sold' It
would. .
" 'What do you say to that ? ' wya Van
Wagoner to Montgomery.
" 'That's all right,1 says Montgomery ; 'she'll
rlso fait enough , but she ain't going to rise
no more this afternoon , ' and ho blows out the
spirit lamp. \
"Van Wagoner was ptcily mod , and de
manded to know what Montgomery meant by
putting out the lamp.
" 'While that lamp Is burnlng she's using
up spirit , ain't she1 'he answered. 'Well ,
that ls decreasing the weight In this bal
loon , ain't It ? If you'll look over the ride
you'll see that we're rising at this minute ,
and there ain't no earthly way of pulling
up. '
"Van Wagener and I both looked over the
side , and we could sec that wo were about
twlco as high In thei air as we had been.
Just then the machine' tcok a fresh start ,
and we could feel her going up at a pretty
good pace.
" 'What'i ? the matter , now ? ' tays I.
" 'Matter enough,1 says Van Wagener , 'I've
dropped my false teeth overboard. '
" 'More weight gone , ' says Montgomery.
'Now we'll go up till the balloon busts. If
I'd known that you hail false teeth I'd never
have trusted myself hero with you. I might
have known 'that you would have besn
heaving 'cm overboard the first chance you
could get. I. never seea scientific man yet
that was fit to be trusted. '
" 'Do you really mean , ' said I , 'that this
balloon Is bound to keip on going up ? '
" 'Wo'vo only ono chance , ' says Mont
gomery. 'If there's a heavy fall of dew to
night It may weigh tu down enough to make
mlle high , and It drifted us westward to-
w/ird A Rood-sited lake.
" 'If wo can only stay up till we're over
I hat lake wo ithftll be all right , ' said Mont
gomery. 'Colonel , Ju t henvo overboard
everything there Is In this car. '
"With that he seized whatever he could
lay his hands on , and I did the game , and
for a mlnuto or two It Just rained Instruments
and things over that section of the coun
try.
" 'Off with your boots , coats , waistcoats ,
and hats , ' yells Montgomery. 'Professor , It
you've got any more portable teeth heave
'em over. Wo must get rid of every ounce
of weight If wo want to reach that lake , '
"Well , wo reduced our clothing down U > a
pretty low point , and Van Wagener went so
far as to throw over his glass eye , ho having
no more teeth ready for discharging. Then
we sat down and waited to see what the end
would be.
"Wo were perhaps n quarter of n mlle high
when wo came over the lake , and the momcnl
we got where the wattr looked as If It might
bo fairly deep Montgomery caught the pro
fessor In his arms and throw him over , with
out waiting to ask him If ho was ready to
go. Then Montgomery yelled to mo to Jump ,
and we all three left that balloon so suddenly
that we all struck the water nt pretty near
the same time.
"I went down to the bottom , which was ,
as I Judged , about fifty miles from the sur-
taci , though I afterward heard that the lake
was nowhere over forty tat deep. When 1
came up , Montgomery and the professor
were already swimming for land , and I fol
lowed their example. All the people In the
neighborhood had rejn lh balloon , and there
was already n crowd of men , women and
children on the fhore waiting for no to land
" 'This lo exceedingly awkward , ' says the
professor. 'I really can't face those poopl ?
with only ons eye and no teeth. Colonel
there's the balloon floating out there ; I think
we had bettsr swim back to her and wait
for an opportunity to land after dark. '
" 'I'm going ashore , ' said Montgomery , 'and
I'd go If I hadn't a limb left , and every fe-
\
CAUGHT THE PROFESSOR AND THREW HIM OVER.
up for the professor's teeth and the spirit
he's ben burning. It's our only chance. '
"I. knew' thin that I waa In a pretty tight
plac ? , and I'd have given considerable If I'd
never agreed to.gtf'-along with Van Wagener.
However , there'-vuis nothing to be done ex-
cspt to wait for-ctb 'dew , and 83 we all sat
down In the car'dBd-waited.
"Luckily there vas a heavy dew. Mont
gomery made us "lake" off our coata and hang
them -over the.side so that they cruld catch
all the dew there wits , and' about 8 o'clock
wo found , by throwing over a bit of tissue
paper that we were gradually sinking. We
kept on sinking most of the night , as I Judge ,
and when the morning came wo found we
were about G00f6ft above th earth , and that
we had drifted otit'fcf sight of New Berllnopc-
llsvllle.
"Van Wagenor rwaa In hlg i spirits , one
began wringing "cut his coat and putting It
en again. All of a sudden ho slngg out some
thing which I didn't quite underHand , not
being familiar with sclsntlflc terms , and nt
the same time the billoon began to mount up
again *
" 'What too that blasted scientific Idiot
dropped overboard now ? ' yells Montgomery.
" 'I happened to drop my purse out of my
cc-at pocket , ' says Van Wagener , 'but thai
Is no excuse for your objectionable language.
" 'I knew It , ' says Montgomery. 'Now wo
are done for ; the sun will bs out presently
and then the gas will expand. CoUnel , I'm
sorry you're In this scrape , but I'm glad
you're not a family man. '
"It did lock middling scary. We sailed
slowly upward till the pan had warmed up
the aluminum globe , ahd then we traveled
straight up at a pice 'that couldn't fall to
bring us up to 20,000 or 30,000 feet before
noon. Ther ? was only one way of making
the balloon descend , and that wau by letting
out the gas. There bolng , however , no escape -
capo valve , wo couldn't let out gap. , and It
didn't ssem as If thera was any possible way
for us to escape. I will say this for Mont
gomery and the professor , that they both
showed that they were bravo men. Mont
gomery cussed Van .Wagener , and tcUncs-
generally , but that was natural under the
Mlrcumstancea. Van Wagener tat quietly on
the bottom of the car watching
the barometer and making entries In
Til'j npt8bok , whlijh he said would beef
of Immense value to science In case they
should bo found. Neither cf the men flinched
a particle , though they knew that In nil
probability they would In course of tlmo
have a clean fall iof , say , 40,000 feet. Of
the two I was more sorry for Montgomery
than for the professor , for ho didn't have
the love of Eclenco to sustain him , which
tlic professor had.
"We went up nnd up. Ths gas expanded
with the heat of the 'sun and flowed over
Into tiio rubber bag , as Van Wagener haj
meant It should , and when this happened
wo about doubled our pace. We lost fight
of the earth by 9 o'clock In the morning
and by 11 o'clock the air hid grown so thin
that we began to have difficulty In breath-
Inc. Prof. Van Wagoner , whose lungs were
weak , suffered worse than the rest of us ,
but ho kept light on making his scientific
notes , and to all appearances was enjoying
himself as much as he had ever done In his
life. Montgomery Eat quiet , having grown
tired of cnsBln' the professor , and not hav
ing anything else to occupy his mind. I
turned around to look over the side when Uio
hilt o' my revolver , which was In my hip
pocket , caught in the wlqkerwork of the car
und gave me an Idea.
" 'Seo here , Montgomery , ' I said , 'I can
let the gas out of'this balloon , but we'll
have to take the rlstf of its escaping to
fast that wo shall land > lri almost as much
of a hurry as we will when the thing
bursts. '
" 'I'll take 4ho chances,1 says Montgomery ,
'If you let out the gas wo shall have a
chance , oven If It Is a slim one , but If you
don't let It out , wp'ro as dead as Julius
Caesar. ' ' ! & . < . * , .
" 'What do yoiLiiy professor ? ' I said ,
for I didn't want-toiiet rashly.
" 'Certainly ! ' says the professor. 'By all
means try your experiment , colonel , though
I should prefer that you wait till we
reach an elevation of 27,000 feet , which will
bo greater than anyone else has ever at
tained. '
" 'Wo are high enough , ' says' Montgomery.
'I ain't pining to get among the angola just
ftt. Terry flrmy U good enough for me. '
" 'All right , ' soys I , and I drew my re
volver and flnjil nt the aluminum globe. Of
course the bullet went through It as If It
was made of paper , making ono whole where
It went In anil another wjicre It came out.
This gave the gas the choice of two ways of
escaping , and U took them both ,
"In the course of the next five minutes
the balloon began to sink , and I had hopes
that wo might reach land safely , But Mont
gomery kne\v better1. The balloon kept sink
ing faster and faster , ia more and more gas
eicaped , and In a little while we- were drop
ping almost as fust as we would have done
had the .balloon bunt. The earth wasn't
long In coming In sight , and trees and fleldi
und houses seemeJ'tO be rushing up to meet
ui.
"There was * good breeze blowing when ,
we were , at Montgomery * ludfvd , bojt , f.
male boarding schol In Illinois was standing
on the shore. ' However , thj professor's general
oral appearance , was so ghastly that most o
the women and children didn't care to wa !
for us.
"We came quietly asher ? , and a farmei
rigged us out with dry clothes that fittec
about as badly as a French soldier's uniform
and then drove ug twenty-two miles to New
Berllnopollsvlllo.
"Tho professor seemed as happy. , as a
young man coming back from a picnic will
his bst girl. He kept on talking 'abau
the tremsndous success of his balloon' , am
what a fortune there would b In It whn
he should have Invented seme way of get
ting It down from the clouds at a reason
able pace. But Montgomery was mad al
the way through. He wouldn't opn his
mouth till we got tt > our door , and then he
turn d on the profesror and told him that
sconer than go up In a balloon that a scien
tific man had Invented he would tak and
fill hlj pcckete with dynamite and then get
a New York policeman to club him. Tlun
he said good night to mj and went off down
the straet , swearing to hlmsslf In a. way
that was really unfit for publication. I
never saw or heard of the man .fgaln.
"There was one thing I will -j y for Mont
gomery. When th3 ballocn began to sink ,
ho might havs thrown both tha professor and
ma overboard , and considerably lightened
the machine , for he was twice as strong as
I wau at the time , and the professor had too
much science In him to have any mu.'de.
A selfish man would hav : done this , and
that Montgomery didn't dc It was greatly to
his credit. Of course he threw the pro-
fc-isor Into the lake out of kindness , know
ing that Van Wagener wouldn't jump
promptly enough to save himself. WUl , as
I said , I've bsen In tight placss a good many
times , but 1 was worse scared In that bal
loon than I ever was before or i-lnce. "
Oh , If I only had her complexion ! Why ,
It Is easily obtained. Usa Pozzonl'a Com
plexion Powder.
FIlir.IIT IX HIGH I'l.ACKS.
The lllliiil IniiiiilNi- Jump IN Homc-
tliui-H Ili'j-oinl Control.
At a grsat height many persons would < no
more think of looking down upon the sur-
facs of the earth than they would of thrustIng -
Ing a hand Into a blazing lire. An Irresisti
ble Impulse comes over them to Jump , and
this Impulse IB stronger when the feet are
class to the edge of the roof of a high bulld-
Dr. Edward Lannlng , the American phy
sician who practiced lilt profession In Paris
for ten or eleven years , Bays ho has seen
rr.oro cases of "elevation fright" In the
French capital than ho has In any other city
he has ever been In.
"I do not know , " said he , "that It Is any
picullnrlty of the French character , but I
have frequently been called In cases where
death has resulted In a leap from a tall
building or tower not that I could do any
good , but simply to see whether I could de-
termine from previous family history
whether or not the victim was Insane or not ,
"About two ycaro ago I was visited by a
sailor , an Alsatian , who told me , he experi
enced the peculiar ecnsatlc'ii ' of terror when
at an elevation , and that he was unable to
take a berth on any vessel where his duties
would require him to go aloft further than
twelve or fifteen feet from the deck. He
consented to go with me to a tall building
and go on the roof , so I could observe hla
condition when he locked over the odg ?
Into space. I took two assistants with me
as a precaution. One of them brought a
tope At the collar's request. He eald he
would not dare venture to the edge of thereof
roof unless he bad one end of the rope
around his waist and felt that the other end
was securely held , I acceded to that and
told him to go as close to the edge as he
.ileassd ,
"We were very high up 125 feet , I should
say. The sailor walked cautiously toward
he eaves , and I walked alongside of him.
lie looked over and jumpnl back , and then
walked forward again. I observed that the
pupil of his eye had become dilated , and In
t few momenta the perspiration ran down
its face In streams. His pulse bounded and
ils muscles twitched. He stood quietly
without tugging at the rope , but told me that
f he did not know that he was being held
le certainly could not resist the desire to
eap out Into space.
"Ho got down on his hands and knees' and
rled to become accustomed to looking over
the roof's edge , but said he could.hqt. He'
wanted to draw himself forward and pltingf
over head first , I finally took him down- '
lairs , when he recovered his equanimity ,
lo came to tee me a year afterward am ]
raid that he had tried his best to cure him
self of what he considered a weakneus , but
vas unable to do BO. The man was perfectly
sane , and apparently cool and collected when
n terra flrma , but at seventy-five or a hun
dred fwt ho became an abject coward.
"About three months ago I wai not sur
prised when I received a letter from one of
my colleagues telling me that the toiler had
caet hlmielf from a balloon lu which be
ascended with an aeronaut near Dieppe , and
LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
Where Simplicity and Abbreviated Blooraora
Indolently Eoign ,
THE LORDS LOAF , WOMEN DO THE WORK
CtiMnntN nml Clinrnciorlndcn lit < ti
SI it in CMC * < Jlhitiific of UlRli nml Low
Life III UniiKUok Aiuerlcnii Ac
tivity nnil
The ancient kingdom ref Slam , even more
than Utirmsh , has been a favorite field for
the exaggerations of ancient geographers , and
tlia more reasonable , though perhapii loss ex
cusable , statements oft travelers In compara
tively recent times. "Met the > country anJ Its
people are sufllclently. . Interesting without the
assistance of fable , sayssa writer In Harper's
Weekly.
Situated as "they arc In a. tort of bonier-
land between the Indianond Chinese regions ,
bath people and country present some fea
tured that appear to belong to each race and
province. Originally , ilndccd , the people of
Slam had nothing off ths Mongolian about
them , being , In fact , a trace of nearly pure
Malay origin , with possibly a flight ad
mixture of that Oriental negro t > pc-
which has been termed : Papuan , or ,
perhaps moro properly , Australian. Al
though It has maintained Its Inde
pendence of Chinese domination , tt has re-
colvc.l a large- share of Chinese Immigration ,
and It Is probable that something like one-
half of Its people are now of more or less
pure Mongolian descent.
Its people ate almolt entirely agricultural
in their occupations , and , as a confluence ,
them are no large cities , Bangkok , the capi
tal , b3tng , Indeed , the only place In the k'ns-
dom with any pretensions to a largo city
population. The true Siamese is , as a rule , a
very easy-going and Uzy specimen of so
ciety , who looks to.tho women of his family
to do all that must b3 done In the way of
active work. Ills wants , Indeed , arc few , and
naturp Is kind. Food Is simple and easily
raited In Slam ; clothing In represented for
bath sexes by a simple cloth round the loins ;
and lodging Is provided by a thatched hut of
the simplest form and construction. In the
towns , and particularly the capital , a llttl ?
more clothing Is commonly worn , but even
there not very much.
All the pomp and splendor of a great In
dian prlnco surroun-ls the king of Slam and
his family , and tills , to a limited extsnt , Is
also true of the few grjat officers of the
klngJonii which Include the chief raprcsenta-
tlvea of the national Uuddhlst religion. Ont-
sldo this chirmed circle of luxury and
splendor there' Is almost literally nothing Ilk ?
real prosperity , or even comfort , to b- met
with. The general Impression given by trav
elers to the outside world ns to ths conditions
of life In Slam have been drawn almost ex
clusively from this , very small class , and con
sequently It is wholly mlt'leadlng. There la
thus little to be met with that Is archl-
tscturally expellent In the country. Ily far
the best specimen of palace * archi
tecture EO2ii by us , even at Ilang-
kok , was the summer palace at
Hang Pain , situated on the river Menam ,
at some little distance from the capital.
This , with Its grounds , forms really n
cl arming honi ? , such as no European sov
ereign wculd b Inclined to consider unsuit
able for 'his own us ? . The part of It Which
constitutes the Chinese palace Is an < x-ot
representation In miniature of the imperial
palace at Peking , and was' ' presented to
the .king of Slam by his Chin so subjects
scmo years "ago. Although professedly a
miniature , It is still by no means small ,
and Inbsauty of finish and ornament Is
In many rc. pects a very fine building. The
greunJs are laid out with ) all the skill and
tcste of which th bsst European landscaps
garden"rr are capable , anrf statues , grottos ,
and fountains of the finest Europeon de
signs are met wltlrrtt every turn. it -j
ThenSlamesel navyi as-'tti HisjmtlHmchov
In'the'Menam-river , prjsents an appearance
so formidable that It Is difficult toundbr -
str.nd how Its owners could so tamly have
allowed ono or two Fr'nch gunboato In the
river to overaWe the capital. The one which' '
w ? have termed the iKIng's yacht Is a fine
modern cruiser of thertbsst typ ? . of 4i > 00
Ions , and fully armed * lth first-class Arm
strong guns. It. Is ikept , as , In.lcexl , the
whole fleet seems to , ba. In first-rate 'ordir ' ,
but , so.far as app ars. Us only practical us ?
is that of curving thedroyal family for a
pleasure yacht. For this purpose it Is mag
nificently fitted with evtry luxury and splen
dor , an'l affords accommodations for the king
and perhaps a score of his wives , with the'.r
respective families , when they desire to go
on a pleasur : crulso.
The lanj forces otithe kingdom are not ,
It must bj confessed ) quite so Imposing to
the stranger's ey ? s ith > navy , although
It Is at Isast poslbloithat In cases , of emer
ge : cy they might prove not less efficient.
Ou- picture of foot soldiers rtady for parade
at ones suggests an approach to the Chines :
and ancient Japanese warlike accoutre
ments , and hirdly gives the impression of
anything very formldablt or up to date In-
their cnulpmenU The elephant corps also
Is probably more Imposing than formidable
to any external enemy at all likely to assail
the kingdom , yet It Is curious as an ex-
nmpi of the ancient use of the elrplmit In
war us a kind of compromise between a
fort and an. arsenal of spare'weapons.
Bangkok Itself u Lands In the position of an
eastern- ' and uncivilized edition of Venice.
It Is essentially a city of watcrr , with canals
Instead of streets and canoes and boatu sub
stituted fr carrlageo and wagons. For the
meat , part the capital of Slam Is built upon
the backo cf the M nam Ittelf , or upon a
network of channels cut Into the alluvial
flat through which It flows. The effect Is
decidedly pretty and romantic , but It has no
pretensions to being considered , like the
famous. qn-cn of the Adriatic , an Imposing
city. Th ? total absence of anything like
architectural beauty In the IIOUB.'S would , of
course , account for the difference , but even
If this were removed the circumstances cf
the far e-ao'.crn capital would effectually forbid
it. Tlin soil produces with anurlng rapidity
a growth of trea and tall shrub ? , which ,
while they add Immensely to the romantic
beauty of the place and conceal many of Its
more objectionable features , serves alto to
shut In each channel with a leafy screen and
IscUto It from the ono next It as effectually
ti the eye an ii'llen of distance. Thus the
Ftrntgr may , an Indeed wo did , paddle down
one street and up another for half a day ,
pasting through long vistsu of green trew
and shining water , bordered by the ehops ,
storei and dwellings of the capl'a' t'-e stores ,
by the way , arc nearly all kept by Chinese
and at the end of his Journey have no Idea
whether ho had seen half a dozen or half a
hundred of the canal streeta of Bangkok.
Everywhere the vlewa are the same , every
where the little mean thatched housed are
alike , except when a bigger one displays on
Its veranda the goods the owner deals In ;
everywhere the people aw equally unclothed
and undletlngulshable It Is strang-ly diffi
cult to toll a man from a woman In Slnm ,
and everywhere the general appearance , both
on lAful and water , Is one of unsanitary filth
such as can hardly bo met with even In one-
of the Mcrcil cltl R of India , and Imagination
can ncnrctly go beyond that point.
The river , Indeed , Is the only ailvAtlon of
Bangkok , and1 It lei no easy matter to under
stand how even the river avails to save the
city from tontlmml pestilence. It Is treated
by the people as a common scavenger , to
whose care too much cannot possibly bo
left. Its channels are tha receptacles for the
whole bt the filth nnd garbage of the city ,
and from the dead bodies of men nml animals
to the refuse , vegetables nnd dirty water
from the houses , everything Is thrown Into
and floats at leisure down the liquid streets ,
Jostled by boats , and also by the Inhabitants
men , women and children who swim from
place to place with the ease of ducks , and
also apparently with their Indifference to
unsavory sights nnd rmell ? . And yet , al
though cholera Is never absent from the
city , It does not sweep away the people with
a plague , This no doubt It OWES to the ever-
moving current of the river.
There Is a section of Bangkok which Is on
dry land , and extends beyond the region of
canals. It consists mainly of one long
street , which forms a port of grand parade ,
with houses and I'torcs en both Miles. It Is
here that modern Ideas have made an Inroad
en the eastern city which produces the1 ludi
crous effect of utter Incongruity ! It Is hero
that a syndicate mainly American has es
tablished n troiuway op5rot d by electricity ,
and has also Installed the electric tyttcm of
lighting for public use , Both projects have
met with remarkable succors nml popular
favor. Thus the small end of the wedge of
modern Ideas has been Introduced In Slam ,
and when the railroad now In course of con
struction to iconnect on one hand with Bur-
mnli and or ) the other with Tonquln , shall
have been completed , Ita \ at least possible ,
that n new era of substantial progrr3 may
dawn upon the land of the whlU elephant.
TUB THA.\S\fAAI. HAIDUIl.
AilvvitttiroiiH Curci-r of I'mil
I'rlNom-r.
Of nil the men who have gained fame In
Africa none Is more picturesque than Dr.
Jameson , administrator for the British South
Africa company In Mushonaland.
In the first place , It seems remarkable that
ho should have gone to South Africa at all.
Ho was born and bred In Scotland , of an an
clent Scottish family. His father was a
writer for the Signet. But those who knew
Dr. Jamepjn In his youth tsll t'trnnge sto
ries of hli dash , cleverness and adventures.
Ho was educated ns a physician. He had
had an admittedly distinguished medical
circer. and had tJken honors In arts w'hen
h : > sailed away to South Africa , settling In
Klmberiey. Ho speedily gained a large
practice and a commensurate income. He
was the leader In his profession. Ills fame
ns a medical mill alon ? Is very gleat.
That wonderful "uncrowned king of South
Africa , " Cecil Rhodes , saw the stuff of .which
Dr. Jameson was made , and olTi'rsd him the
opportunity of playing a part In thei opening
of a new country. He embraced It gladly.
The fat , luxurious and cunning Lobjngula.
king of the Matabel ? nation , bitterly opposed
granting the concession to the Chartered
company , and Its budding operations were in
danger of destruction. The first emissary
sent to him , Thompson , saw Lobengula kill
an Indium for advising the concession. The
emissary was glad to escape- with his life.
Dr. Jameson , alone and unarmed , then
started for Lobsngula's court. Few- dared
hope that he would return. None dared
dream that ho could succeed. The attempt
showed the mettle of the man. He boldly
sought the craftiest of tlu South African
kings , who rules 100,000 Zulu warriors.
The fame of Dr. Jameson's medical skill
stood him In good stead In his Journey to the
king , but menaced him with additional dan
ger after he arrived there. For the king
was suffering from a malady which his msd-
Iclne men could not check , nnd which threat
ened to kill hm | at any moment. If Dr.
Jameson failed to cure , he knew he would be
killed. But science conquered and Lobn-
? ula granted the concession and the permis
sion for the pioneer force to pass through
, , . ,
i Dr. Jamcs'on next explored and established
a new' 'route to the ocan , difficult enough ,
; nJ which gained him supreme command
of the South African company , but not to
bj compared with that , journey to the great
.chief Gungunyana through the worst coun
try In South Africa. It was a two months'
Journey , practically on foot , through a
marshy country , with compass alone to
guide. At the start all provisions were lost.
Jnireson pushed on. He and his small band
llveJ on frulta. It rained for eleven days.
Fourteen days , wtrc passed In the gloom of
n dense African Jungle. During the whole
Journey the only "KjRne" that was se3n was
a skunk. The three white men were
stricken with fever , yet they pushed on and
accomplished , the mission.
Since that "time the doctor has controlled
Mashonaland and he has risen puperlor to
every crisis. He had much trouble with
King Lobengula , Hoarred agalns.1 the
Finngo soldiers In 1893 with remarkable suc-
ces'3. The natives attackocl the Mashonas.
Dr. Jameson gave warning. lie was told
that Lobengula could not control his young
men.
"Take back those whom you can control
and I will deal with the others , " was Dr.
Jumesen/s / message.
He ordered an Invasion of Matabeleland
and It resulted In the downfall of the great
king. '
The boers are wonderful fighters. In the
last war with England , about fifteen years
ago , their markmanshlp was the talk of the
world. A party of beery scaled Maguba hill ,
occupied by Sir George Colley and 400 men.
They drove off the British In a nanlc. kllllnc
Sir George , six other officers and ninety
men , wounding and capturing many others.
The boer loss was ' one killed anil five
wounded. On another occasion sixty-three
boers killed 258 British soldiers with a loss
to themselves of only .five or six.
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Albert
For n sportsman who does so much In the
way of shooting , the prince of Wales has
enjoyed an Immunity from accident which
makes his recent mishap somewhat remark
able. This Is the first tlmo that the prlnco
has Buffered any Inconvenience cither from
any failure of skill on his own part or from
any other conditions from which accidents
with the gun arise. The prince was firing
almost directly overhead , and to do this with
a strong wind blowing Into one's face Is to
run considerable risk of receiving a few
grains of powder. The quickness with which
hot fomentations were applied checked the
Inflammation , and the 'prince was able to
come tp town after dinner by special.
Piles of people have piles , but Dewltt's
Witch Hazel Salve will cure them.
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