-
SED TO PON
Government Is Stirred by the
Titanic Disaster.
SAFEGUARDS NOT ADEQUATE
Conformity to American Regulations
Probably Will Be Insisted on Here
after' All Washington Mourns
Death of Major Butt.
By GEORGE CLINTON.
Washington. Tho disaster to the
great Titanic haB Bttrrod tho officials
In Washington to action along a doz
en different lines. It Is expected that
supervising Inspectors of steamships
hereafter will pay less attention to
regulations of safety laid down by for
olgn governments nnd will moro rigid
ly enforce the American regulations.
Moreover, whllo tho Titanic struck an
Iceberg, It Is probablo that hero will
be still more careful search made of
the seas to find derelict vessels which
nro a menaco to navigation.
Ab things stand now, the United
States government allows foreign ves
sels to come Into the porta of this
country provided their safeguards,
such as lifeboats and other things, ap
proach In numbers those demanded by
tho laws of this country. It Is always
taken for granted that tho English
government, for Instance has tho wel
fare of Its marine service at heart and
that therefore Its regulations can be
regarded by this country as safe. Gov
ernment officials here believe that tho
English board of trado which regu
lates such manors thought thnt in tho
TItanIo It had a boat which wus un
slnkablo and that therefore It would
bo all right not to Insist that there
should bo enough life boats to provide
for all the passengers.
Congress has been very much stir
red up over tho matter or lifeboats
and other appliances by tho disaster
to tho great steamship. Tho adminis
tration has felt a personal sense of
loss because of tho death of Major
Archibald W. nutt, tho White House
aid, and this has added to its desire
naturally that In tho future lives
should be better safeguarded The
secretary of commerce and labor, Mr
Nagel, also has taken tho matter up
with his subordinates, and unquestion
ably representations will bo made to
tho foreign officials who govern such
matters that hereafter the regulations
of tho United States must be lived up
to in every port.
Many Derelicts Afloat.
So far as tho matter of derelicts is
concerned. It Is known that nearly -100
of thom are floating about the seas In
various parts of the world, each one
being n monaco to navigation. Floats
are out all the time soking derelicts
for tho pnrposo of destroying them,
but it seems that as fast as one is de
stroyed another takes its place, for
vessels are always being deserted nt
sea by their crews when it seems
that sinking is imminent. It is said
that thero never is much of an in
crease In the number of derelicts, but
It stays about the same year in and
year out.
The derelict Is still as much of a
menace to navigation as tho Iceberg,
nnd more of one because it Is apt to
get in the way of ships at every sea
son of tho year, whllo the icebergs ar
a danger ordinarily only for about
six weeks. Tho usual time of tho
icebergs' mennco Is In Juno, but this
year they broke looso from their
"moorings" much earlier than usual
and appeared southeast of Cape Race
utterly unexpectedly.
Why Icebergs Appeared Early.
It would seem that in tese days of
highly developed meteorological knowl
edge tho presence of floating ico In
tho path of ocean steamships at an
earlier dato than usual ought to havo
been forecast. Tho reason for their
appearanco early perhaps by some un
thinking persons was taken In advance
as a reason why they Bhould appear
lato. The winter which has Just
passed waB an extraordinary severe
ono and It lasted a long time. The
moro fact that thero was a cold win
ter would make it appear that ice
bergs would stay fast until later In
tho season than usual, and so they did
In tho far north where they are us
ually formed.
Tho trouble lay in tho fact that tho
severity of tho winter cnuscd the
bergs to form much further south
than usual and so It was that when
tho first warm days of spring came
tho southern Icebergs broko loose nnd
floated out Into the opon long before
those which had formed In the usual
placo wore melted from thoir fasten
IngB. Major Butt Sincerely Mourned.
No ono not a resident of tho capital
probably can appreciate tho deep
.onso of sorrow folt hero when
.ows camo that MaJ. Archibald
W. Butt, tho president's personal aid,
was among tho passengers lost on the
Titanic. President Taft had Just seat
ed himself In a box at tho theater
when tho news came that his nld prob
ably was among those who went down
U'lth the ship. Ho Instantly left tho
theater, wont to tho White House and
telographed steamship officials In Now
York for information nsklng that ho
bo Informed hourly day and night as
long ua thero was tho slightest hopo
for the major's safety. Tho employes
of tho White Houso woro In a nervous
condition which unfitted them for
work during tho days of uncertainty
concerning "Archie's" fato.
Thero was not a newspaper man In
Washington who did not llko nnd ad
mire this mnjor of Iho quartermaster's
department. The correspondents felt
a porsoiial affection for "Atvhle," a
thoy all called him, Ignoring his rank
for Butt was ono of tho gonial, sym
pathetic men who Invito liking, closo
comradeship and wholesome respect
At ono tlmo ho was n nowspapor cop
respondent In tho capital. This was
prior to tho days of the Spanish war.
When wnr camo ho received n com
mission nnd went to tho front and aft
erward wns given a commissioned
rank in tho qunrtormastor's depart
ment. Ills birthplace was Georgia.
Thero nro hundreds of stories told
of Archibald W. Butt during his stny
In Washington. President Roosevelt
choso him for a personal nld, and It
wns oxpected that whon President
Taft camo In some other officer would
succeod him, but Mr. Tnft knew tho
captain nnd asked him to act in the
samo capacity during tho present ad
ministration. Butt wns n part of
Washington official and social life, for
years, and ho horo every burden well
nnd conducted himself with lnflnito
tact and judgment.
Did Trying Work Well.
Ono of the major's duties was to In
troduce at tho great public anil semi
public receptions nnd nt tho dinners
and banquets given to nnd by tho
president tho guests who filed by to
shako tho hand of the chief executive.
It may scorn that this would bo no
particularly arduous Job, but it is one
of tho most trying things which a
president's aid has to do.
As tho guests appioach the presi
dent tho ono who ia nearest whispers
his name to the Introducing ofllcer.
Nnmes, as everybody knows, arc tho
hardest things in tho world to catch
properly, and then thero are men con
ceited enough to suppoBo that their
face.? ought to bo known and that
therefore only perfunctory mention of
tho namo H necessary Major Butt
almost Invariably caught the muttered
namo correctly and transmitted it Just
as correctly to the president. There
never was any troublo with tho ma
jor's enunclntion. Tho most peculiar
foregn nnmes were spoken fluently
and clearly, and this thing In itself
made Major Butt Invaluable, because
If the president had made a mistake
himself in addressing a hanshakor tho
guest, as Is always tho case, would
have felt hurt and humiliated.
Tho kindness of Archibald Butt
was shown In n thousand ways. Thero
Is a great army and navy reception
given at the White House every year.
The persons eligible for Invitation nro
officers of tho army, navy and marine
corps, both active and retired, nnd all
tho National Guard of the District of
Columbia. Tho army and navy lists
carry tho names of all the officers
who have a right to bo Invited, but
Archio Butt wns not satisfied with
these lists. Ho knew that living Jn
Washington, were men who had served
their country in army and navy as
officers, but who either had resigned
from the service or had been muster
ed out at tho close of hostilities. Ho
took it into his hands to look up as
many of these officers as he could and
to gratify them with tho president's
approval, of course, with Invitations
to the army and navy reception.
Still Suspicious About Alaska.
Congress has before It a bill
to grant home rule to Alaska. It
seems to be entirely probable that
It will pass tho house. It mnkes pro
visions lor an Alaska legislature, each
member of which will bo paid ?1!0 a
day. This seems to be a good sum
of money for tho dally service of a
legislator when the ordinary pay of
llko officials of tho various states Is
considered, but things are high In
Alaska and travel Is oxpenslvo and
moreover, If it is not wicked to sug
gest It, It may be that when a man Is
well paid he Is above yielding to bo
settlng temptations.
Alaska has not had much done for It
at this session of congress, notwith
standing the fact that there has been
so much suggested In tho way of leg
islation. Just what Is to bo dono In
tho matter or subsidizing a govern
ment railroad in Alaska does not yet
nppear. Thero are still nil kinds of
conflicting interests at work (in tho
matter of tho northwestern territory.
Suspicion is still rife and if one makes
a move another man says that ho is
headed straight to the road of graft
and tho man accused retorts In kind.
Alaska Is still "tho Land of Sus
picion." Wants Three Cent Piece Coined.
Representative R. J. Bulkley of
Ohio, a member of the house commit
tee on banking and currency, has In
troduced a bill to authorize tho coin
age of a three cent piece. Men whose
memories cast a shadow twenty years
long remombor tho old threo cent
piece mado out of nickel. It resem
bled the silver dime so much that Ig
norant persons constantly were cheat
ed out of seven cents when It was
given to them In change by unscrup
ulous persons. It wns the fact that
tho three cent piece wns so much llko
tho silver dltno In general appearance
thnt led to tho discontinuance of Its
coinage.
Mr. Bulkley intends that nobody
shall lie deceived by tho threo cent
piece If his bill authorizing Us coin
age becomes a law Ho has inserted
in his measure n provision that tho
coin shall bo perforated in tho cen
ter, the operation making it look llko
a Chinese piece and obviating any pos.
slblllty thnt It can be tnken for a
Bllver dime. If tho threo cent pleco
is to bo coined it will be mado of
75 per cent copper and 25 per cent
nickel.
Defined.
"You don't know the difference be
tween un apiary und nn aviary."
"Indeed I do, then!"
"What Is It?" A
"An nplary Is whore they keep apes
and an avlury Is whoro thoy keep airships."
CornerA
oyv? aivTJTrti4--v9s
kjP 11I1iJ1l
SWIMMING DEVICE IS NOVEL
Fins Attached to the Heels of Wearer
Arc Manipulated by Cords
Assists the Novice.
A novel swimming apparatus has
(becn Invented by two California men.
It may be used to assist a novtco or nn
export may rig himself up In it to
achieve great speed or covor greater
distances than ho can do unaided. A
'Jacket mado of somo buoyant element,
probably with snips of cork In It, tins
Fins for the Swimmers.
two wings, or tins, attached to tho
back, over the shoulder blades, whcie
wings usually sprout. These tins havo
a swivel motion nnd nro operated by
cords attached near their tips - and
running down through eyelets in tho
suit to anklets, or heel tastenlngs.
There aro springs nt tho Bwtvollng
connections of tho tins which keep
Ihose objects normally raised nbovo
itho body, but whon tho swimmer kicks
hls feet backward ho draws them
,down nnd they act ob propeller blades,
pending him through tho water with
Jmuch greater velocity than ho could
obtain with his firms and legs alone.
CAGES FOR SINGING INSECTS
Tiny Houses, Constructed In Japan,
for Little Bugs That Have Ten
dency Toward Music.
In Japan people keep singing Insects
In cages, as we do canary blrdB, nnd
havo them hanging nbout tho house.
Thoy are supposed to bring good luck.
!ln Tokyo and other cities somo of tho
shops aro devoted entirely to tho snlo
.of these bugs and their cages. The
nractice is beginning to show signs of
'becoming a fad in this country. It Is
.doubtful, however, If tho American
will take tho samo Interest In such
dlmlnutivo pots as does tho Jnpaneso.
Then, too, tho vnrloty of singing ln
isects In this country Is not so pleas
ing ns It Is large. Tho most widely
.known member of this family Is tho
mosquito, who Is never llkoly to be
como popular as a household pet, and
Cage for Singing Bugs.
even a cage as small ns that shown
In tho Illustration would bo too roomy
for him. A kind of cricket Is the in
sect most often domesticnted in
Japnn.
STREET GAMES FOR CHILDREN
Something New Is Being Played by
Little Girls of Great City of Lon
donBall Is Used.
Tho children of the street are ultra
conservative in their gameB. After
countless years London Bridge contin
ues to fall upon my fair lady; tho crop
of oats, peas, bcuiiH and barley grows
as bountifully as ever.
This season hns brought a new game
which Is played by little girls In every
part of town, nnnouncos tho New York
Sun. A rubber ball is bounced on the
pavement and caught to tho accompan
iment of intricate hops nnd skips. In
Us simplest form tho gnmo is to
bounce tho ball on ench flagstone and
jump to the next without touching tho
crnck.
Among tho older children a form Is
used of turning completely around
after the ball Is dropped, clapping
hnnds nnd balancing on ono foot. In
counting a progressive system Is em
ployed Similar to that In jacks; on the
first stono each motion is gono through
onco, on the second stono twice, etc.,
and tho player Is out as soon as sho
missos a count in any of the movements.
i
EASY TO KEEP A LOG BOOK
Apparently as Complicated as Double
Entry Bookkeeping, But Little
Study Solves Problem.
How mnny Inndsmcn know how a
log hook Is written up? It seems Just
as complicated as doublo entry book
keeping when ono docs not know, but
after a Httlo careful attention and
Btudy it's as easy to keep a log book
us to cat hot gingerbread. Thero is a
list of letters nrraugod and they look
llko so much Greek to tho uneducated.
Tho letter b, for Instance,1 stands for
bluo sky, whother thero bo clenr or
hazy atmo8phore; o Indicates cloudjf
or dctachod opening clouds, d denotes
drizzling rain, n smnll f fog, a capital
F thick fog, g gloomy, dark weather;,
h hall, 1 lightning and m misty or hazy
so as to Interfero with tho view.
Tho letter o represents overcast, or
whon tho wholo sky Is covered with
one Impenetrable cloud. Passing show
crs are noted by the letter p, and q In
dicates the weather to bo squally. Con
tinuous inln is Indlcnted by an r. snow
by an s. and thunder by a t
A ugly, threatening appearanco In
tho weather cnlls for tho letter u, and
visibility of distant objects, whether
the sky bo cloudy or not. Is lepre-
acnted by tho letter v. A small w Is
wet dow. A full point or dot under
any lutter denotes an oxtiaordlnary
degree.
As an example of how tho letters
aro used take q p d 1 t. This reads
very hard squallB and showers of driz
zle accompanied by lightning with
very heavy thunder. Numerals de
note the forco of tho wind.
A cipher Indicates calm. 1 light air,
2 light breezo, " gentlo breczo. 1 mod
erate breeze, C fresli breeze, 0 strong
breezo. 7 small galo, 8 fresh gale, 9
strong gale, 10 wholo gale, 11 storm
and 12 hurricane. This system of ab
brolation Is generally adhered to on
all merchant vessels.
DO TRICKS WITH AEROPLANE
Two Swedish Acrobats Include Somer
saulting Machine In Their Stage
Equipment How Worked.
In order to glvo n modern touch
to acrobatic tricks of a kind that havo
been famlllnr to theater-goers for,
years, two Swedish acrobats Includo n
somersaulting neroplano In their
iW&ih
X!?!"
TV -...
Somersaulting Aeroplane.
stage equipment, Bnys tho Popular
Mechanics. At ono end of a girder
pivoted to a standnrd about 12 feet
high, is a miniature aeroplnno so con
structed ns to bo able to turn somer
saults. Tho 3-foot propeller of tho
machine, driven by a flvo horsepower
two-cylinder engino, sends tho aero
plane nround on tho end of tho girder,
tho other end of which is provided
with a counterpoise. Tho ncrobati
works tho elevating piano with his
feet nnd operates tho rudder with his
right hnnd, making tho mnchlno turn
somersaults.
LESSON IN NATURAL HISTORY
Peculiar Traits of Fly, Hen, Cats,
Dogs, Mouse, Snake and Goldfish
How They Act
A fly on a window pane will crawl
to tho top, fly back to tho bottom and.
crawl up again. This order Is seldom,
reversed. -
Hens scratch for food with tho sun
behind thom, the reason being that tho
rays reflect on tho minute pnrtlclca.
A blind hen will pick grain and not
miss a kernel.
Cuts seldom lie with their feet to
tho flro. Usually thoy lie on tho loft
side. Dogs lie with their fore paws to
tho flro.
A mouse will Ignoro a food supply
sufficient for a meal and run great
risks to nibble at a whoIoBnlo supply.
It will hldo nt tho source of food sup
ply and not depart therofrom until
,actually disturbed. It isn't truo that
a mouse runs to a holo at the first
alarm.
Kind a harmless little snnko tho
length of a lend pencil and provido
a box for It In tho house, visit It dally,
and at tho end of three months It will
crnwl to you for food.
Goldtlsh usually swim around a
globe to the right. They can bo
taught to take a fly on of tho hand In
six weeks' time. Tho presence of
other fluh in tho gloho is generally
Ignored by goldfish. Drop a pleco of
chip on tho surfaco of tho water and
It will frighten a flsh
He Was "Most Uncomf'ble."
Tho following Incident, told by a
teacher, Is quite true: "My nttentlon
was called to a weo small boy, whose
shrill voice piped out above the rest.
At first I wns Inclined to reprove him
for disturbing me, but on looking nt
tho tiny fnco I saw tho child was
really In troublo. I called him to me,
and asked him what was tho mattor.
At first ho would not tell mo, but
flnnlly ho said: "Please, ma'am, I
can't sit down. This morning I got
my trousers on wrong sldo afo.-y?, and
I'm most uncomf'ble. I wunt vo go
home'
m
-.
FRUIT DEALERS RECOGNIZE
BUSINESS VALUE OF SPRAYING
Thoroughness and Timeliness aro Two Moat Important
Points Careful Study of Xnsccts or Fungi to Dcul
With Should ho Mado Beforo Selecting
Mlxturo to Bo Used.
Orchard Sprayed Several
(By O. II. ALFORD.)
Every ownor of fruit trees should
plan to glvo them somo attention In
tho way of spraying. Thoro Is noth
ing thnt will pay bo well If Intelligent
ly dono. Tho very onomlos that prey
on tho fruit trees provo a blessing to
tho farmer wjho sprays, as their rav
ages on unprotected orchards onablo
llilm to renllze- prices for hta perfect
fruit undreamed of beforo their ap
pearanco. Not only does spraying protect tho
crop, but It makes packing nnd soiling
ensler. Fruit buyers and denlors now
recognizo tho business value of spray
ing nnd do not caro to buy or handio
fruit that has not been thoroughly
Bpraycd.
Tho principles of spraying aro fow
nnd Blmplo, nnd tho work is not com
plex, but very easy If dono with a
power sprayer. Spraying Is not an
'expense as Is genornlly supposed. It
not only pays for itself but yields a
luindsomo profit besides.
. Orchards aro not alone benefited by
spraying. Vineyards, truck gardens,
and, in fact, nearly all commercial
(crops return proportionately ns great
llvldonds for monoy Invosted In spray
ing ns do orchards.
Beforo starting to spray, a enreful
(Study should bo mado of tho Insects
or fungi you havo to deal with, In or
der to determlno tho bcBt mlxturo aB
Swell ns tho best tlmo to aprny.
Tho man who would bo successful
In spraying must learn to know tho
infects nnd diseases by their appear
anco und their work so as to apply
'tho right treatment nt tho proper tlmo.
Thoro nro threo general kinds of
onemlos to combat lnsectB which
gnaw or eat into tho plant; insects
which suck tho plant juices, nnd fungi
diseases. Insects that gnaw or eat
tho plant nro killed with poison Bprny
such as arsenic, hellebore, etc. Tho
cntlro plant or treo Is covered with
tho spray, so that tho Insects will
havo to eat tho poison.
Insects that Buck nro moro difficult
to dlsposo of. Tho method usually
A Well Kept Orchard.
adopted is to drench them with an
.emulsion, and one of tbo scalo washes.
A coating of ono of theso mixtures Is
sprayed on them, and kills thom by
Kinotherlng, as thoy breatho through
.littlo spiracles along tho Bides of their
liodles.
Tho fungus growths nro parasitic,
consisting of plnntB or growths of low
form, which llvo on other living plants,
and kill tho vegetation they attack by
lllllng up their porca or rosplratory
organs. They sprend by small dust
llko Ladles cnlletl spores, which cor
respond to tho need In higher forms
of plant life. Theso spores nro born
on the surface and produced la great
nuiuberB. Each ono Is cupublo of
Btartlng n now fungiiB growth. Thoy
aro carried from ono plant to another
by moans of tho wind, water, and In
sects. Chemicals which stop thoir
growth aro used to combat fungus
diseases.
Tho most cffectlvo spraying Is pre
ventive Bpraylng. If tho foliage and
fruit bo thoroughly couted with poison
or fungicide beforo tho first chowlng
Insect, or tho Ilrst fungus sporo lights
upon them, tho Insect will bo destroy
ed nt Its Ilrst meal, nnd tho first fun
gus Infection wlil bo prevented. When
Insects or fungus diseases havo bo
somo plentiful, both aro moro dilllcult
uMirfj ' , - 5 Sit ""?
Times Each Year.
to control. Sprny to cont, tho fol
lngo, twlga, or fruit with poison or
fuuglcldo Just beforo nn attack by
chowlng lnsectB or fungus 1b oxpoctod
Thoroughness nnd timeliness aro
tho two most lmportnnt polntB In suc
cessful Rprnylng. Remember, It costs
Just ns much to do a poor Job of spray
ing ns It does to do n thorough ono,
and tho results aro usually wldoly dif
ferent Do not spray whon trees nro In full
bloom, as it will reduce tho crop, and'
kill tho bees, which aro vnluablo
friends of tho fruit grower.
Do not aprny immediately after ni
rain.
It 1b better to spray on a still day,
or, If thero 1b a wind, to Bprny only
on tho windward sldo of tho trees,,
Bpraylng tho other sldo on tho first'
still day, or when tho wind chnngos.
Wooden tubs, barrels, or oarthenj
jars should bo used when proparlngj
tho mixtures which contain copper,
sulphate, corroslvo Bubllmato, or nr-j
senato of lead. -
Carefully label all substances used'
in making spraying mixtures, and'
keep them somo placo whero thoy can-!
not bo used by mistake.
Arsenical sprays should not bo np
piled to fruits, etc., within two wookBi
of tho tlmo they nro to bo used as
food.
When through using, tho spray
pump should bo cleaned by forcing,
wntor through it.
Keep all spraying apparatus In ro
pair, so that tho work will not bo do-,
layod at tho critical tlmo.
Don't eprny immediately after Q
Bhowor, or heavy dow.
Do not Bpray Indiscriminately, but"
Btudy tho pests you havo to combat,,
and adopt tho most offoctlvo moans oV
destroying them.
CHEAP RATION
FOR THE HORSE
Cora-Alfalfa. Feed Found to Be
as Good so Onto and Leas
Exponalve in a
Kan bud Teat.
In the big experiment with govern
ment horses at Fort Riley Just com
pleted by tho Kansas Agricultural col-v
lego it was found that other feeds
may bo substituted entirely for oats,
in a ration for work horses with aB
good results and much cheaper. Tho,
results of this test, in which 937J
horses wcro used, waB mado public
for tho first tlmo at tho state Insti
tute. Fifteen rations wore fed to ns many
lots of horseB and every meal for
every ono of those 937 horses was
weighed and mixed in tho proper pro
portions. Military discipline helped!
to mnko tho experiment a Buccesn
Soldiers at Fort RIloy, whero the feed-,
lng waB done, woro under orders to)
do tho work with tho utmost caro. Ev
ery horse waB weighed beforo and,
nfter tho test. Tho averago weight or
tho horses used was 1,150 pounds.'
They wcro artillery horses doing aa
much work as horses on the farm.
To And, If possible, a grain or mix
ture of grains that would take tho
place of oats as a horue feed and givo
as good results, but bo moro econom
ical, was one object of tho test. An
other reason for tho experiment was
to find tho vnluo of various hays for
horse-feeding purposes. Still another
was to determine tho effect of grains
on the heulth of tho animals used. Ail
theso questions were answered.
Oats, onco and for nil, was proved a
better feed for work horses than corn,
though moro expensive. Seventy-six
horses fed oatB gained 1C poundB an1
averago gain whllo tho same number
of horses eating corn lost 29 pounds
nplcco in tho samo time. But corn,
when fed with tho proper amount or
alfalfa with tho right quality, gavo as
good results aB oats und was 50 per
cent, chiupcr. Alfalfa hay, properly
fed, was found to bo u moro vuluablo
roughage than either timothy or pral
ilo hay, und It cheapens the cost of
tho daily ration from 25 to 40 per cent.
The ration six pnrtB of corn, four of'
oats, four of bran, nnd timothy hay
probably Is tho best that can bo fed a
work horse, though not tho cheapest.)
Horses fed an oat ration did not show
any more spirit than those that ato
corn, which disproves an old theory,"