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About Dakota County herald. (Dakota City, Neb.) 1891-1965 | View Entire Issue (April 9, 1914)
DAKOTA COUNTY HERALD; DAKOTA CITY, NEBRASKA. RESULTSJNJLUNulS DOZEN COUNTIES ADDED TO THE THIRTY WHICH DAR SALOONS. I MANY WOMEN AT THE POLLS Female Contingent Makes an Active But Futile Fight In Chicago In an Effort to Defeat "Bathhouse" John Coughlln -Miss Vlttum Loses. Western Xtiupvptr L'nlon News Settle? Chicago Illinois women swarmed to the polls In nearly 300 townships and as a result twelve counties hnve been added to the thirty which now bar saloons. The country districts saw the great est gains In anti-saloon territory, but twelve of the largor wet cities swtched to the dry column, two that were drj remulned anti-saloon tcrrl'.ory and eight remained wet. Of the larger cities, the following, which were wet, voted dry: Bloomlng ton, Decatur, Belvldere, Canton, Free port, Galeeburg, Jollet, Monmouth Kewanee, Lockport, Elgin and East Galenn. Hockford and Gulvn prevl ously wore dry. The following cities remained wet: Springfield, Qulncy, West Oalenu, Hock Island, Dixon, Aurora, Wauke gnn, Alton and Mollne. In addition to the thirty counties In which no liquor can be sold the follow ing comities joined the antl'saloon column: Boone, Drown, Christian, De Kalb, Dewitt, Shelby, Fulton, Henry, Jersey, Knox, Livingstone, Macon. Mc Lean, Stevenson, Warren and Winne bago. Conservative estimates- based on actual reports from townships were that more than 1,000 saloons had been voted out of oxlstonce. TO STAND BY ORDER. Bar Against Spaniards Will Net Bo Lifted. Juarez, Mex. Despite expressions of Washington's unofllclal dlBplcnsuro at the expulsion of tho Spanish colony from Torreon, the purpose of the rob el leaders In this regard 1b unshaken. It was learned from nn authorita tive source that Gen. Carranza and Gen. Villa aro In thorough accord on the subject, and that the Spanish sub jects throughout tho republic, aB fast us olher states may fall into constitu tionalist bands, will be treated exact ly as at Torreon and Chihuahua. High School Students Strike. Clinton, la. High school Btudcnts hero went on strike because the school board did not reappoint Miss Ardella Hillings as principal. .Miss Hillings In duced the students to return to their classes temporarily, but an organiza tion was formed as a mass mooting of students at noon and a protest to the school boai'd was framed. Tho students marched out In accordauco with pre-arraigcd plans. Hyde Trial Postponed. Kansas City, Mo.Tho fourth trial of Dr. Clarke Hydo, charged with tho murder of Col. Thomas S. Swopc, was postponed Indonnltely.Kyhen called i c tho criminal cour here. Tho attor neys agreed to await the decision or tho statu supremo court on tho uppeal of taxpayers seeking to restrain the county 'court from UBing county fundH to pay the expenses of the trial. Favor Cummins BUI. Washington. The CummliiB bill to make common enrriovs liable for full value of shipments was favorably re ported from the senate Interstate com merce committee with amendments to require full damages for live stock nnd wuklng certain excoptions whero the nature of the shlpunicnts is concealed. Freezes to Death In Tropics. New York. The steamer El Cor dobes arrived from Uuenos Ayrcs nnd Montevideo with a story of death on board in tho tropin, mid strangolv enough ,luo to cold. Tho victim wai J. G. Brockhill, engineer In charge of the big refrigerators whore tho vessel carried 2;500 tons of frozen beof, Supposed Corpse Gets Up. Hartford, Conn. Half an hour after Ills companions hadcarrlcd him to a morgue as dead after lie had touched u wire carrying 2,300 volts of electrlci ,ty, Carl Lundell suddenly sat up, rub bed his eyes, got down from tho slab and hurried out of tho place. Two Bank Robbers Killed. Vancouver, n. C Two bandits were killed and two others put to Hl'jM when thoy attempted to hold up 'the Union Bank of Cuuada at New Ilazb ton. Crawford Is Elected. Belfast, Irolmirf.Col. 8harmnn Crawford was returned, unopposed, to parliament as unionist member for East Belfast to fill tho vacanoy In the house of commons by tho death March 25 ot James Mr.MordiH. Papal Delegate to Australia. Rome. The pope has created an apostolic delegation In Australia and appointed at dolrsate tho Itov. Mpr. Bcnaveiitnre Oriom, now auditor of tne apoatolle delegation In the United States. Millionaire Ends Life. Kcrt William, Out. Arthur A. Vlck ers, a millionaire real estate broker, killed himself at his homo hero wkh n shot gun. Vlckers, who was man led recently, waa 41 years old. $20,000 Fire at Saskatoon. Saskatoon, SaM;.- The Carnes build ing, occupied by overtl retail men chants, was destroyed ly fire. Tho loss is estimated at 250,000. The Canadian Bank of Commerce waa threatened. Making Tomorrow's World By WALTER WILLIAMS, LL.D. (Dtan eftl School tjeurnaltwi ctf Unttenttv af AtiuourO HAS ENGLAND Delhi. India. British rule in In dia is suffering tho ovil results of Its own virtues. It has taught Indi ans to stand alone and bo mo of them, superficially edu cated usually, wish to try tho experiment with out assistance. In dian unrest and its attendant trag edies aro virtue's own reward. Tho citizen of the Uni ted States, look ing at tho work ing out of tho co lonial problem by old hands at the business, Bees constantly In tho back ground the Philippine Islands, with amateurs molding tho schomo of things. But the Philippine problem is "another story," to quoto Kipling, tho masterful poet-Journalist, who camo out of India, trailing Jingoism. Let's stick to tho Indian text. Beginning as a purelj commercial enterprise, with no othejf object than to make money for Hfltlsh tradors, often nioro aggreaslvo than scrupu lous, tho government of India by tho British has as its chief concern the making of men. That's a big Job any whero, but it Is particularly largo when the territory Is n continent, ad Is India, and not a single country, and tho Inhabitants aro one-fifth of tho en tire human race. The problem Is not lessoned by tho ignornnco, poverty'nnd superstition of the allon and dlvcrso peoples who constitute tho Inhabitants. The good fruits of British rule aro many, but thoy cannot bo seen from tho car window nor their importanco gauged by tho tourist flitting from hotel to curio shop. Not Governed by Bayonets. British rule In India Is not milltnry rulo. Bayonets may establish, but thoy cannot maintain government. British rulo In India is government by tho civil dower. Less than 75,000 whlto soldiers aro stationed In this empire of more than 300,000,000 peo ple. The United States have a largor standing army for less than one-third that number of inhabitants throe times tho soldiery for tho American republic as compared with the Indian empire. True, military rulo was un- :5gpr mm m7gF&&S23 ml ffw ' I Hindus Bathing duly exalted at the time of the contro versy between Lord Curzon, tho vice roy, and Lord Kitchener, tho commander-in-chief, when tho latter asked of England and was glvou a "free hand" In administration. Tho "froo hand," when Inquired Into, Is usually found to mean a complete abandon ment ot all checks and safeguards which long, experionco has devised. When theso aro Bot asldo at the be hest or in behalf of the exceptional man, trouble follows. And so It was In India. It Is sham Imperialism, not a real one, that puts tho army and navy ahead of Justice and liberty, ot civil rule. 200,000,000 Dependent on Agriculture. India Ib not governed by bayonets, neither Is It an empire ot camps and cities. Tho city Is ot secondary Im portance In this land. We hear more ot Calcutta arid Bombay nnd Madras and tho now-old capital of Delhi, but the real Indian Is a villager. In nil India there are only 27 cities with a population exceeding 100,000, and only five whofio Inhabitants exceed a quar tor ot a million. There are more than 200,000,000 people In India directly de pendentnot merely indirectly upon agriculture. Tho Indian farmer "the ryot at tho plow" la tho dominant figure In any picture of Indian llfo which bus true perspective. Tho land problem Is at the very heart of things. Tho final test of British rulo Is how It has helpcl the dweller on tho land. ' Taxation Equitably Adjusted. Judged by this test, tho measure ot tuccess Is not small. Tho land tax has been changed Into an approxima tion of fairness and reasonable justice, FAILED IN INDIA? left unasscsscd or uncollected alto gether In times of famlno, from which, by falluro of tho monsoon, tho wind bringing rain, certain Indian provinces ofton suffer. When tho British came tho tax-gatherer was king, all south ern India was In his merciless grip, and In northern India the farm la borer, though ho made a fortress of his village and followed the plow sword In hand, was the constnnt vic tim of spoliation. The first attempts at land revenue adjustment which tho British mado wcro disastrous failures. Gradually, however, schemes of taxa tion have been evolved and problems of land ownership have been settled that nre placing rural India, ns far as these quoEtlons aro concerned, in the same condition as the countries of Europo whero such questions havo been more equitably and longer set tled. Close akin to tho problem of the taxation of land is the question of rural credits. The British found thos Indian peasant In the hands of tho usurious money-lender. Tho grip of this creature, who has all countries for his own, has not been entirely shaken 'off. It has been loosened, however. The establishment of co- operative credit societies has done much for tho rural laborer. Tho ob jection that Indians lack the necessary spirit of co-operation has been shown to bo without foundation. In seven years 3,450 societies have been estab lished, with a membership ot 226,958 persons and with a working calptal ot $3,430,000, of which the state contrib uted only $230,000, the rest being fur nished by the people tliomsolves. The Famine Evil Minimized. India has always been subject, In pnrt, to famines, which Is tho eaBtorn word for partial or total'crop failure. These famines dro caused by what an old writer quaintly called "the intern perateness of the weather." British rulo has not been able to cure this "intempernteness" although it lias been frequently blamed for Its exist ence but it has devised a plan which mitigates to a considerable extent the evils arising from it. Under this plan not only aro taxes remitted, but finan cial aid Is extended In the famine dis tricts. "Nothing redounds more to tho credit of the government of India," said Lovatt Fraser, for years the edi tor ot the greatest newspaper in tho East, the Times of India, "than the success with which thoy havo gradu ally ovolvod a system of dealing with tho conditions caused by scarcity, a syBtem admirable In conception, al- In the Ganges. most automatic In Its oporntlon, and unfailing In Its efficiency." Fumlno iu India Is now a misnomer. As well might one descrlbo as famine In tho United States tho conditions caused by thq drought In cortaln districts in 1913. Irrigation Largely Developed. Perhaps tho monumental work of the British In India in dealing with ag riculture bus boon its. development ot Irrigation. Irrigation enterprises, built or foBtered by the state, have lessened famine areaB, decreased tho death rato, added to the tillable terri tory and reduced human suffering to a largo degree. Two classes of Irriga tion works exist, worka constructed or maintained by the state and works constructed or maintained by commu nities or individuals. Millions ot acres of waste land havo been reclaimed. In a single district, where ten years ago 200,000 Indians existed in u Btuto ot semi-starvation, ona million live comfortably today. Tho Irrigation system or inula is oy tar tho largest In tho world and 1b constantly being added to. Improved sanitation and the rigid enforcement of health regulations havo confined tho plague to a small area where It has not wholly extin guished it. Difficult has been the in culcation ot sanitary Ideals in commu nities whero the Inhabitants "prefer death to worry," as tho phraso ot a mnharajah has It Caste prejudices, religious opposition, Indifference havo mado this, as other tasks ot tho Brit ish administrator, ono far from easy I That it Iiub been so well performed, In tho faco of difficulty, Is creditable In tho extreme Good Government Established. It is Impossible, within tfco limits of tills artlclo, even to sketch all tho achievements or tho failures of Brit ish rulo In India. Ono can do llttlo more than suggest how, In tho far East, a great nation, destined to play a largo part in tomorrow's world, as part of tho mighty British empire or alono, Is being made. Probably tho greatest contribution to India by tho British has been tho establishment of civil rulo that means absoluto Justice between man and man. There nro ex ceptions, of course, lamentable and numerous, but on the whole tho Brit ish administrator has brot,ht equality before tho law, Inflexible enough stern Justice, and unswerving honesty tq a land where boforo ho eamo might nlono mado right and the biggest brlbo won every case. This rosult has been brought about, in large measure, by" men of the Indian civil service, work ing almost alono, In otscuro villages. In ono district with 4 territory the size of Franco and population of 700,000 Indians, ono vhlto man, Hu bert Calvert, brother of Dr. Sidney Calvert .of tho University of Missouri, Is administrator. ThU Is but a single example. Tho BrltlsL havo done their good work In India not by forco of numbers nor by rul ot bayonet any moro than by the m,slc of tho kettle drum. Schools In Reasji of Majority. In the work donv In education tho British In India have made many mis takes. Some of thnso mistakes havo been rectified by a. newer educational policy. Others wlh bo rectified. Tho Immense difficulties in education, in a land where prlmtry education Is not wanted by tho mai.dcs and higher edu cation of a superficial kind Is often sought merely as a means to escapo hard work, havo preventod progress that would otherwise be possible. Re ligious antagonisms, of an intensity which tho western mind can scarcely comprehend, havo compelled tho gov ernment to make its education exclu sively secular. Even moral training, without which any system ot educa tion Is lame, is hardly permitted. When all this and much else has been written in criticism, the large fact remains that British education is transforming India. Primary educa tion Is not everywhere free nor Is it compulsory. The fees, howover, are so small as to be no bar and schools aro In reach of a majority of the en tire population. Colleges, technical schools and universities are doing better work than under tho old meth ods. Tho new generation of educated Indians will be moro efficient, more thoroughly prepared for serious la bor, and no less keen of Intellect nnd clever of speech than the older gen eration. It was one of tho older gen eration, who had learned only words at law school, who in pleading a case In a Calcutta court said of the oppos ing nttornoy: "The misty arguments of my learned friend will not hold water. At least they will not hold good water. Ho cannot be allowed to ratso a castlo In tho air by beating upon a bush." Natives Represented In Government. Indian representation in the legis lative councils and municipal govern ments has been gradually Increased. It Is now sufficiently largo to permit every section of the dlverso and dis cordant population to have a voice. This Indian volco does not, as yet, di rectly dctermino tho policies of gov ernment, but it is freo to discuss these policies, to question them nnd to bring them to tho bar of public opinion. In consequence, British rulo has become moro responsive to native sentiment, Tho British government, always an arbiter and promoter of peace between warring factions, has, by the new lib eral policy of larger native represen tation in official place, become also In somo measure an interpreter of tho native opinion and an administrator of its desire. This Is not self-govern, mont, of course indeed, it Is a long distance from It but It Is a step In that direction. Because ot this for ward step and from. the ranks of tho educated but unemployed natlvo? has como much of the turbulence among the native population which seems nt times to threaten British supromncy in India. Imbued with lib eralism in the universities nnd with no other serious work that appealed to them, glvon representation in nil branches of government, tho natives or rather, a few of tho moro advanced aro leaders in a movement of "India for tho Indians." That British rulo Is seriously threatened by this unrest, widespread though It may be, Is doubt ful. That British rule will change, is changing, to moot tho awakening spirit of democracy In tho empire of India, Is certain. Some Surface Evils. Tho evils of British rulo are on tho surface: exploitation, absentee gov ernment, tho hill station whero offi cialdom retires from contact with the people, a press law which Surendra nath Banerjee, "the uncrowned king of Bongal," says Is possible only be causo of tho good character of the administrators; too much whisky -and-soda and too little helpful, personal Intercourse with the natives; a certain imperlousness which apparently looks down on all things non-British. It is chnslng flyspecks to discuss these and other smaller evils. The American looks with disapproval, but he remem bers his own treatment ot the negro in the South and the false impressions given of that treatment in Undo Tom's Cabin and other works of fic tion, and ho forbears crltlcUm. With all Its defects and its evils, of maladministration, ot greed and Jin goism, the work ot the British in In dia to quoto a sentence from Lord Curzon, ablest of modern viceroys, "la righteous and will ondure." The' un rest, annoying, even agonizing at times, Is but the "growing pains" which preBage a freer, greater India In tomorrow's world. (Copyrislit. 19H, by Joieph D. riowles.) Sho Heard of Them. Father Your teacher tells me you were very bad again today in your spelling lesson, Ethel. Ethel Well. I don't like to study spelling, papa. "But you must learn to spoil, dear." "I don't havo to, papa, If I cau be a stenographer and tpowrltor when I crow up," M 1S1 Side Show Sidelights Diverting Chronicles of Circus Life By FRANCIS tegfii;g: (Copyright bjr THE LIONE88 8KIRT DANCE AND THE INCONSIDERATE PYTHON. Tho conventional skirt dance has long ceased to bo a novelty on tho vaudovlllo Btnge, but as It is per formed by "La Belle Sellca" In tho arena at the nmusoment park It holds tho Interest of that most exacting audience a crowd of Coney Island pleasure seekers. t Is not becnuso 8ellca is pre-eminent among dancers, but on account of tho unusual and dangerous Btnge setting; for sho per forms In tho large exhibition cage, surrounded by a half dozen llonesnes, each animal seated on a separate pedestal. Any one of the huge beasts could crush tho dancer with a single blow of a massive paw, and tho great jaws which snap viciously at her tiny- feet as Bho kicks them before their faces are sufficiently powerful to crush tho Bhin-bone of nn ox. Sho is apparently without fear of them, for sho dances gracefully from one to tho other, flicking them across their faces -with tho light switch which sho carries for her only protec tion, nud kicking over their heads and into their very mouths, always miss ing the answering snap of tho jaws by tho fraction of an Inch, and ac knowledging it with a smile as she whirls away to rodent tho perform ance before another pedestal. The lionesses see the performance many times In the course of a season, but they never lose interest in it and they do not remove their eyes from Sellca from the time she enters tho cago until she drives them out before hor. So long as she is on her feet and agile enough to escape the swift stroke of a paw or the snapping jaws, she is safe; for a lioness would not jump at her from a pedestal; but there Is always the chance ot a slip or a false stop and then ! ! ! It happened once, and caused a suspension of Solica's performance for two months during the last big exposition, for Grace, tho largest lioness, was on her before she could recover herself; nnd it required the efforts of tho animal man and all of his assistants to beat back the beasts SHE IS APPARENTLY WITHOUT FEAR OF THEM. who wore maddened by the sight and smell of blood and to rescue the unconscious woman from tho cage. They have never forgotten that mo ment ot rebellion which was so near ly successful, and thoy are ever watch ful for another opportunity to avenge the many cuts of the training whip which they received in the course of their schooling. But Sellca Is also watchful, and although Grace had lat terly done nothing particularly out of tho way, the wonderful sixth senso which experienced trainers always ac quire warned hor that tho auimal should bo regarded with suspicion. Tho beast had become nervous; a llt tlo more sullen than usual when or dered to leave her den for the exhibi tion cage, and a trifle slow and re bellious when told to Jump up on her allotted pedestal. Constant association with the wild animals begets carelessness, but Se llca, with the scars of Grace's sharp claws still visible on hor back and shoulders, was quick to notice tho change and especially careful, boforo opening the door from the den to the runway, to look through tho observa tion holo and make sure that the lioness was not crouched for a spring. Grace had been particularly sullen In the afternoon nnd sho was growl ing ominously when Sellca went to get her for tho evening performance, but when the woman saw tho three little furry balls which were huddled In a corner of the den she understood and forgave nil. The cubs were no lnrger than St. Bernard puppies, but Grace apparently considered them worth fighting for; and Sellca's dance was given that night with only five lionesses in the cage, and tho pro prietor told the stranger tho reason for the ampty pedestal. "Walt until after the performance and I will take them out of the cage and show them to you," he said; and tho stranger, remembering a tradi tion to the effect that robbing a lion ess of her cubs Is a dangerous feat, looked forward with a great deal of Interest to the after-piece. "'e can't trust tho renrlng of tho cubs to Grace," said the proprietor. as he stood In front of her cage after tho nudlence had been dismissed. "The close promlxlty of tho other animals in the arena and the curiosity of the thousands of people who come hero ovory day would make her so crazy that she would destroy thorn, so I must get them n foster mother. I have sent to New York for a bitch with pups, and In a couple of days 1 will show you a happy family." Tho cubs were In tho center of tho cage and Grace stood over them, snarling ' METCALFE W. G. Chapman) and looking with blazing oyes at tho group In front of it; but Sellca's voice from tho runway and n rattling of tho door at tho back distracted her at tention, and as sho sprang at tho door tho proprietor darted a hand be tween tho bars and seized ono of the cubs, drawing It safely out n half sec ond before tho enraged mother land ed against tho bars with a force which mado them rattle. Tho poor beast was almost frantic, but tho Bamo maneuver was twico re peated, and in spito of her fierce at tacks on doors nnd bars tho proprie tor, who had acquired through his llfottme association with tho great cats as much of their quickness of movement as It is given to mere man to lenrn, removed the three cubs without receiving a scratch. Poor helpless llttlo creatures they were, and It was difficult to realize that they would soon grow Into beasts as powerful as tho ferocious Balti more, the terror of trainers, who was answering Grace's lamentations with roars which fairly shook tho building, from his cago on tho other side of the arena. "That animal was bred in captivity, born and raised in our menagerie in England," said tho proprietor after he had placed the cubs in charge of one of the keepers. "I supposo that's what makes him such a bad beggar to handle. Glvo mo tho Jungle-bred Hon to train, evory time, for after tho man-handling and discomfort of his capture and transportation to the coast by natives, he appreciates tho care and humanity of n civilized trainer. These cubs which are raised in captivity are always played with and teased by the employes and visi tors, and their first knowledge of their strength comes to fliem acci dentally when they hurt a man with out meaning to do It; but they soon learn to connect causo and effect, nnd then It is time to watch out for 'em. A jungle-bred lion is pretty much cock o' tho walk until ho is snared or trapped, and in his first ex perience with men he Is vanquished nnd realizes how useless Is his great strength against the nets and ropes which entangle him. Tho cub born in captivity is familiar with men from the first, nnd plays with them like a kitten until ono day he Is out of sorts or is accidentally hurt in a frolic and tho swift cut of his razor-lllje claws makes his playmato or tormentor drop him and leavo him In peace. That makes it hard for tho trainer when he takes him in hand, for al though the cub may be subdued, he remembers that he was onco victor ious nnd watches his chance. Jack Bonavlta, the greatest trainer who ever went Into a lion's cage, would have two good arms today If Balti more had been born In the Nubian desert instead ot in Manchester." "I remember once," ho said, as he wiped tho froth from his mustache, "when a guy named Merrltt and my self were running a snako show In New York that wo couldn't pay the rent because tho papers wouldn't give us any publicity, although we had the finest collection of wrigglers that was ever gotten together. We were run ning it on the dead level, nary a fake about it, and Merrltt's lecture was highly instructive nnd Interesting and more than half true; but We Baw that wo couldn't win out at the game un less we crooked It. Wo were run ning so far behind that the only thing which saved us from a dispossess was tho fact that they couldn't get a con stable who would carry tho snakes out to the sidewalk; but Merrltt was a resourceful cuss and I felt confident that he would figure out somo scheme to win out. "'Jim says he, 'it's necessary for. us to give 'em a sensation. We've tried to run this gamo as a purely moral and Instructive entertainment, but we need the money and I reckon wo've got to spring a cold deck on 'cm. I guess you've got to stand for being attacked by an uritamable, man eating python.' "'You can count me out on that,' says I. 'Every gazabo In the city would size me up as a victim of the demon rum.' Merrltt looked discour aged for a minute, but his face sud denly lighted up and I knew ho had found a way. "'Jim,' says he, 'if wo only take half of our usual allowance ot fire water tonight we will havo enough cash to buy some paint. Now there's that big whlto python; tho only speci men ever captured, tho "pythonatus fluidum lactalls glganticus," ' says he. That was ono trouble with Merrltt; he'd get bo stuck on tho language which ho manufactured that he couldn't leave it out, even in our business consultations, and It used up a lot ot tlmo. 'That python Is the straight goods,' Bays ho, 'but h5 doesn't catch their eyes, so I'll paint t,ho blame snake red, whlto and bluo nnd christen him tho "annconduo flagclum amerlcanlbus 0 plurlbus unum," and glvo tho high br.6ws some thing to work on says he. 'That'll work up tho snnkologlsts nnd sot 'em writing in tho papers to provo that there isn't any Buch thing; but wo'vo got tho answer to that, for wo can show 'om ono at twenty-flvo cento per. "I nover could stand for" flim-flamming tho generous public, but my mcnl ticket was punched so futt of holes that it looked like a porous plaster, and I consented. Merrltt spent most of tho night decorating that python, and in tho morning it looked llko tho ponnant of a man-o-war. I had to sit up and watch him, for ho had tho artistic temperament, and ho was bo carried away by his enthusiasm that if I hadn't restrain ed him ho would havo put on tho coat-of-arras of the United States, eagle, motto and all. "'Now,' saya he, when he had fin ished and stopped back to admire his work, 'if that blamo snake's own mother would know him if Bho mot him on the street, I'm a Dutchman. If this don't make 'em sit. up and tako notice, then I'll go to night school to learn tho show business.'" "How did tho scheme work?" asked tho proprietor, as tho press agent paused to mako the grand hailing sign of distress to tho waiter. "Work I" he answered. "How does a fako always work in Now York? The python was so stuck on its now colors that it nearly broke Its neck turning around to admire itself and everything went lovely. Of courso, there was tho usual howl from tho snnkeologlsts who know it all, and 'Old Subscriber,' 'Citizen,' 'Pro Bono Pub lico and the rest of tho bunch wroto columns, denouncing us as frauds. "You know how those things work: everybody puts up an argument and then it's up to the fellow who is mak ing the bluff to back It up with an of fer to donato a sum of money to somo charitable Institution if ho can't de liver tho goods. Wo were well ahead of tho gamo as a result of tho adver tising and had about two thousand to tho good and Merrltt got awful cheB ty. He had lied about that snako bo much that ho believed in it himself and it mado me a llttlo nervous ono night when he offered to donato two thousand dollars to the 'Homo for Decrepit Side Show Fakers' if any ono could produce another specimen like this one, short of the head waters of the Amazon. I vnsn't scared so much by that as by what I feared ho might say, for I knew they couldn't get another if they raked tho universe with a fine-toothed comb, and suro enough, ho was carried away by his. enthusiasm and offered to bet our en tire bank roll that the snako was a genuine 'American flag,' such as had never been exhibited in any country. "It was just our luck that there wa3 a half-loaitei Mn-horn gambler In the tttihience that n'igirt; one of lfoe Tdnd that wears a yellow diamond nnd a checked suit with a whlto stovo-plpo hat; and tho only part of tho speech that he understood was that somebody wanted to mako a bet. That raised his sporting blood, and he climbed up to tho platform and pulled out a roll of yellow boys that would 'choke a dog and peeled off twenty centuries. "T don't know much about Snakes which bromide won't mako chaso themselves back to the woods, says ho as ho plunked 'em down on tho table. 'I ain't got your gift of gab, but money talks and I've got this pile to say that you can't tell the truth to savo your neck. Just stack up your pile alongside of that and then trot out your snakeleL.' I was feeling pretty sore on Merrltt for making such a bluff, but, of course, wo had to make good and between us wo covered tho bet. We bad glass cages full of snakes all around the platform, but 'Old Glory' was In a big chest, covered with gilt figures and brass chains and fastened with a padlock. Merrltt was mad clear through at having his veracity questioned, but he looked pretty confident as ho stuck the key in tho lock. '"It's a shame to take-tho money,' says he, as he eyed the gambler, 'but there's an old saying about tho men tal capacity of a man that Is speedily separated from his bank roll, and I reckon you were away from homo tho last tlmo tho fool killer called.' The gambler Just smiled and kept his eye on the stakes. "'Now,' says he, turning to tho au dience, 'if you'll kindly give me your attention I'll show you one of tho most marvelous mysteries of nature. It was procured by one of our special agents at tho head waters of tho Amazon at tremendous expense. It is a unique representative of tho rep tilian family and tho sight of it should arouse pride in the hearts of all patri otic Americans; for as he unwinds his sinuous coils you will observe that while his head and neck aro blue, tho body, down to the tip of the tall, is marked with thirteen alternato stripes 'of red and white, giving this marveloua creature tho appearance of being wrapped in that glorious em blem of liberty which waves over tho land of the brave and the home of the free.' Merrltt stops then, throwing out his chest and sticking his hand into the bosom of his coat to wait for tho customary applause from the gallery to subside; but in stead of the usual glad hands ho was greeted with a roar of laughter and cat-calls and when he turned to look at the snake box, there was 'Old Glory crawling out, looking ashamed of himself, for he waa as white as tho day he was born." "What happened?" asked the pro prietor as tho press agent slghed7 "Well, Merrltt always had presence of mind, and as the sport gathered up our hard earned sheckels he grab bed me by tho arm and hurried mo from tho building. Ho knew that a Bowery audience waa apt to follow cat-calls with antique eggs and vege tables of last season's vintage, and five minutes later we were trying to drown our sorrow. "'Jim,' says Merrltt, 'I made a big mistake, for I should have tattooed him. Ills beauty was only skin deep and tho blamo snake shed his skin." 4 X 1