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About The North Platte semi-weekly tribune. (North Platte, Neb.) 1895-1922 | View Entire Issue (July 10, 1914)
THE SEMt.WEEKLV TRIBUNE. NORTH PLATTE, NEBRASKA. JLfiL JLU J3, 4?y Imtoft MM . O TRACE In natural objects a re semblance, oitliar structural or pictorial, to other objects with which thov havo lio real connec tion Is a dlvortlng pastlmo. Moro over, though at first thought It may scorn soniowhat puerile, It can In fact be turned to good ac count bb a means of stimulating tho Imagination, and Inducing tlio mind to embark upon n course of, truly scientific Investigation which rnnV lnnil in Imtinrtnnt rllarntnrlna. This applies In particular to tho training of tha youthful student All thoso who have gulnod expo rlcnco as teachera will rendlly admit tho Initial dif ficulty which exists In arousing tho intelligent In terest of a class In study. In other words, some thing Is needed to set tho machinery of tho mind l'i motion. For example, a flower or an Insect, as euch, may fall to ovoko tho desired response Hut it wo can point out somo curious or grotesque llko iiflss which It bears to a familiar creature or thing, vib nro ablo from this starting point to lead on by carefully planned stages to such great questions ns stucturo, natural nfllnlty, nnd adaptation to envi ronment. When naturo Is In ono of her Imltatlvo moods, tho products of her workshop frequently bear all tho car.marks of a dollborato fako. Occasionally thoy ncotx to havo been conceived nnd executed in a split of sportlvenefls. As nn indication of this mord, tho remarkablo Talra crab of Japan, which has lately attracted tho nttontlon of science, stands forth as ti conspicuous example In Jnpnneso tradition there Is a story to tho ef fect that many years ago a great navnl battlo wts fought in the Sea of Japan between a forco of pi rates nnd Japanese, resulting in the total destruc tion of tho plrato fleet. Tho story continues that elnco that day all of tho crabs of n certain species found on that part of tho coast havo homo on their Imcks tho foco of u Jnpaneso wnrrior. An examination of ono of theso crabs rovoals at a glnnco tho somowhat startling visage. The human-like faco Is not only thero, and typically orien tal in nppoaranco at that, but actually resembt'.a. tho fnco of a drowned man, with open mouth and greatly swollen fea tures. Whether tho Japanoso Idea that tho Tnlrn crab offers good evldenco of tho transmigration of tho souls of dead bodies Into tho bodies of lower nnimals bo accepted or not, tho phenomenon described Is certainly very Interesting. An other qurlous thing about this crnb is tho fact that it Is oqulpped on Itn back with four short supplementary IcgB, which nro 'shown in tho accompanying rilio togrnph nt tho corners of tho mouth of the wj, so mat ir nccldont ally turned upsido-down, 5n1.tsnobrs.noarr;,,;oSo)ar,, t th,al fftsh,on ns an cqulnmonf in P advantages of such those ioTvo tnrnadly',bfl appreciated by of other nnoi. WLtnc3acd ""J awkward efforts SlnSof hMCB . rnba' turtl8' nnrt varl0U3 lying SnSbjS " ,,rP01 th,nSC,VC8 whoB Another remarkablo example of typical racial STwh Bchf"nd !", th nr,,0no of aflnback J1?' w l10 wa,8 Pckl UP on a Norway beach of owoLt,,0,HntUra f n Scandinavian face, ?,n i caHt0'l ,th rm,n,11 cheek hones, flat nose bridge small upper lip and receding Jnw. In Kcneral npnearanco, however, tho face Is more SSn.MW mnBk Umn t,mt of a UvlnB Person. That this was not n freak formation1 Is proved by nn examination of tho car-bones of other flnbnck whales nt tho Smithsonian Institution In Wash ington, nil of which havo substantially tho snmo xorm. In tho plant kingdom nature's imitations are equally nstonlshlng and much more numerous thnn in either tho nnlmal or vegetable kingdoms. Thpro nro several species of orchids, for Instnnco, fconrlng popular names which suggest tho likeness of tho flower to somo mombor of tho animal Iclngdojn, among them being tho man orchid, tho Ijoo orchid, tho spider orchid, tho lizard orchid, and tho holy ghost orchid. While It 1b truo that soma of tho supposed likenesses nro moro or less Imaginative, othorn nro wonderfully distinct and will bear close scrutiny. This is particularly truo of tho holy ghost orchid, which contains within ich of Its blossoms a pigeon with half pprend wings, it is necessary to view tho blossom from quarely in front, ns In tho case of tho lower ulossom shown In the accompanying photograph, to get tho full effect of tho resemblance When viewed from this position, tho bird Is so perfect that U lookH as if ready to tako flight Tho plant, which is n natlvo of tho Isthmus of Pnnumn. is very rnro, there being pcrhnpB not moro than linlf a dozen specimens In tho United StntoB, In cluding two in tho groonhouses of tho Whlto IIouso nt Washington. It grows sturdily, but, In ordor to thrive, has to bo kept In a hothouso with tho temperaturo of a Turkish bath. In all of tho instances roforroiT to above the resemblance Is mainly duo to tho Up or labellum of tho bloom. Now orchids rank admittedly among tho most highly specialized flowers, whllo their extraordinary modifications aro tho roBult largoly if not entirely of Insect Interference Jinny of theso flowers depend entirely upon tho tIrUs of insects for pollination, nnd without tho aid of theso winged emissaries of Cupid thoy nro ju!te uunblo to get seod. Tho lnbellutn Is tho 1 recognized nllghtlng platform upon which tho In Beet stands whllo It probes tho rccesBOB of tho lower In Bcnrch of nectar; and as orchids nro co closely associated with insects, wo must ns nunio that tho special shnpo of tho labellum In each instnnco 1b moro or loss definitely relnted to tho convenience of tho guests that aro specially catered for by tho flower in question. In certnln Instances this Is actually known to be tho case. Throughout tho great orchid family tho lnbellutn exhibits nn almost ondless variety of configura tion, and wo nro Justified In tho assumption that each form is exactly adapted to attract, or up tiuld, a particular kind of Insect. cLwuLcl..nI duim'c nnnn urn V --fepm iimiu uuuu luuii aM& X .yJA, M ' k By GEORGE MUNSON. M4' ' i" irtitfnr j&z - CfalB IMlZCfffiZAJfJ met; QFJL Most young peoplo nro familiar with tho canary-bird flower or common canary creeper, and hero again wo find that tho unusual form of the blosBora Is due to Insect visits. Tho blooms of this group of plants seem especially designed to meot tho needs of long-tongued moths, which seldom or never settle on tho 'flower, but hover In front of it, lightly poised on their rapidly moving wings. Whllo In this position tho tonguo Is unrolled and thrust fnr back Into tho "spur" of tho flower whoro tho nectar Is stored. Meun while, -tho head o.- body of tho moth comes Into contact with tho pistil or stamens, nnd pollen is dopositcd or removed, ns tho enso may bo. A very curious plant, which has been famous slnco, ancient times, Is the "Scythian Inmb" othorwlso known ns tho "vegotnblo lamb," or by tho Chlneso ns tho "goldon-hnlred dog." It looks remarknbly llko an animal, nnd in early days was popularly supposed to comblno In some mys terious way tho attributes of animal and plant. Tho belief was that it sprang from n seed and turnod on its root until It devoured nil green food within reach, whereupon It perished of starva tion. As n mntter or fact. It Is merely tho root stock of n plant, which, donsely covered with soft, golden-brown hairs, suggests a likeness to n quadruped. A otrango plant found in Now Zonland Is known as tho "vegetable sheep" becnuso of Its wool-llko foliage In -fact, tho vegotablo kingdom offers nn almost endless vnrlcly of curious Imita tions. Tho seed-pods of tho common gnrden snapdragon look oxnetly llko small human heads arranged on tho stalks like "polos of skulls," such as nro sot up In certain countries whoro hcnd-huntlng is n populur amusement. Theso show not merely tho bend nnd face, bit dried portions of tho scnlp, eyelids and lips. Their color Is llko that of mummied heads. Tho Insect world Is full of mlmlcryi Rutter flies that imitate dead leaves aro familiar, and the samo may bo said of tho "walking stick." which bears so closo a likeness to a twig that, though common enough In the woods, it Is rarely detected or captured. Tho "measuring worm" assumes the nttltudo of a twig, and remains motionlesg for hours together. Moths, to pro tect themselves against enemies, mimic wasps, and other insects adopt the aspect of tho spider. Native to Africa is a remarkable Insect, n spe cies of Spalgls, the chrysalis of which looks llko the head of n chimpanzee. Even the hair and the pupils 'of tho eyes nro shown. Rut more won derful jot Is the chrysalis of n butterfly, Fenlscea. uhlch Is a likeness, seemingly a mask, of the Roman king. Tarquln. TELLS OF DROWNING ELEPHANTS "Did you ovor henr tho terrorized trumpeting of a hord of drowning elophnnts?" asked W J. Williams of I'oru, Ind., at tlo Wlllnrd, "If you never heard tho piteous erica, of dying beasts. you have oscapod ono of tho most heartrending experiences that ovor comes to civilized mnn. I wns In Peru during tho flood of 1913. when tho Wabash river roao to unknown heights, causing tremendous destruction of property. Peru 1b tho winter hondqunrtors of tho Wallaco and Hngen bnck clrcuB, nnd whon It wns found that tho water wnB coming higher thnn had over beon known boforo, tho fourteen elephants In tho cir cus wore unchained and let go to tako enro of themselves. Throo of them managed to reach n smnll mound whero thoy stood In tho water with their trunkB elevated till tho end of tho Hood, but tho other cloven woro drowned. "With tho water rushing through tho streets, and tho peoplo of tho city marooned In tho second-stories of tho hoiiBPs, tho elephants swam around for houro, trumpeting In torror nnd stick ing their trunks Into tho open windows of tho houses )n their efforts to find some spot of safe ty. They cried llko chlldron nnd one could al most understand thulr language ns thoy pleaded for tho help which could not bo given them, for not ono of them could bo taken In through a door or window out of tho flood They acted moio like humnn beings thnn beasts, and it was almost as pitiful to see them go down under tho muddy waters, ono by one. ns It was to sco a human being wnshed from a roof. "I slnll never forget their dying cries ns they sought tho safety which could not bo found In tint flat country, whero tho whole surfneo of the onrth was submerged. "Hack In tho big circus menagerie, however there was oven a more tragic scone Whon the' water camo up Into tho cages of tho animals thoy all bccnnio frantic from fonr. "Lion and tigers roared and dashed them boUos against tho bars of their cages till it was feared thoy would oscapo .md swim to places ol human rofugo. whero they would destroy many "Iron bars wero bent by tho beasts In their fury and as tho water roso higher their terror and tholr strength Increased. Whon It wna seen that nothing could bo done and that lives of per sons In tho city wero being endangered, tho manager of tho menagerie went from cage to cage with n rlflo and shot ono nfter another of tho monnrchs of tho Junglo till nil wero dead It cost the circus n fortune, but many human lives woro saved." Phlneas Kelly wns accustomed to seo "n look in th old woman's eye' an ho phrased It, whon ho camo homo to Jtla tea after eight hours of peaceful employment as a bricklayer. Years of practlso had enabled him to interpret it accurately. It meant, "Ho low, Phlneas, for thlngg havo been nt sixes and soven3 all day." On such occaslonn Phlneas, good, honest man that ho wns, would slip out quietly after tea to tho corner snloon, whero ho would sit tnlking pol itlcjf nnd domestics with his cronies over a glass or two, till the tlmo camo to retire homo, strictly sober, nnd pre pared to find that tho odd and oven numorals hnd straightened themselves out during hie absence On this occasion thero was an alto gether different look in Mary's eye "What is It, woman?" ho exclaimed, sensing that something qulto different from nnything in his cxperlonco had happened. 'Spoal: out, Mary, girl! Is it tho measles? If Tim's got thlm I'll whalo tho llfo out of him!" "No, it isn't!" snapped his better half. "Uncle Jim's dead and has left mo all his money. Tho lawyer thinks it will come to five 'thousand dollars.." Whllo Phlneas sat, exhausted from omotion, In his chair, Mary read him tho letter from Ireland. "What'll I do wid it?" ejaculated her husband. "You'ro going to bo a contractor, Phlneas, as you havo always wanted to be," answered Mary. "And at tho end' of tho month wo leave" Phiuens uttered various exclama tions, but ho was as straw in his wife's hands. Deforo ho went to bed It was understood that ho ana Mr. Ilogan, with whom tho subject had been broached at times of day-dreaming, should go into tho contracting busi ness. Hogan had saved a tidy sum, and with this legacy their dreams could bo realized. During tho twenty eight days remnlnlng beforo Juno Phlneas was to continuo laying bricks. Tho days that followed woro not of unalloyed bliss. Phlneas wanted to re main in tho little flat, oven If he was to bo a contractor. But Mary had tho "social boo" and sho dldnot fail to im-I-ress it upon her husband that, for Tim's sake, they must move to a lo- lirzii& Jaa:-- . "PhlneasI Wc Haven't Got Any Money at All." callty moro suited to their new sta tion in life. And, ns tho days went by, and tho whole neighborhood assumed a moro cordial friendship than evor boforo, Phlneas found that ho was no longer free of Ilafferty's saloon. "Wo can't afford to bo too friendly with that sort, Phlneas," explained his wife. "Flaherty and I1I3 wlfo aro good enough people, but Just common claj'." "Wo'vo shook dlco together each Saturday night In years." pleaded Phlneas. "And what about that Sun day picnic with them and tho IIooll gans?" "Thero won't bo any picnic," assev erated Mary Irritably. Nevertheless Phlneas did manago to meet his old friends by various sub terfuges, and ho carefully explained tho situation to them. "Tho best woman In tho world, Mlko," ho told Flaherty. "But jou know how It is with women, Mlko. Tho monoy's sort or turned her head." 'That's all right, Phln," responded Mlko Flaherty. "This one's, on me" To tho neighbors, indeed, It seomed n natural thing that Mrs. Kelly should want to riso In tho world; and If thero was a llttlo envious gossiping, tho sight of tho good woman, as sho wont down tho street rosplondent in her now gowns (purchased with tho last of their saved nonoy) turnod envy to admiration. Meanwhile Ilogan nnd Kelly had r.r ranged their partneishlp. Thero was u flno opening in tho town, and Hogan was to put In a couulo of thousand, supplementing his smaller contribution with his political "pull." Tho now apartment wns lcaspd and tho Kollys woro preparing to leave. Mrs. Kolly only required a' week to pack, being a mothodlcal woman. But ns tho week progressed that look camo Into her oyo moro and moro frequent ly, till Phlnons, having no refugo now, ta which to lly, was driven to bay. "What is it, Mary?" he asked ono evening, when his wife had been more than usually morose. He half expected tho tartest of re joinders; but, to his astonishment, hln wifo burst into tears nnd lnid her head upon his shoulder. And Phlneas found himself caressing Lor ns ho had not dono slnco Tim was a baby. "Phlneas," sho wept, "I feel so mean and hateful, tho way I've treated tho Flahertj-B and tho Hooligans, after tho friends wo'vo been. It's for tho boy'a sako, Phlneas, dear, isn't it?" "Suro, that's' all right," nnswered hor husband. "Thoy understand," "Do you think thoy think 1 think thoy nron't good enough for us?" in quired his wlfo, raising her faco, wet with tears. "I guess they think they'd do as much if thoy wero In vour nlnr.n. Marj," ho answered. "For half a pin," said Mary, "I'd stay right on hero for old times' sako, and and invito tho Hooligans and Flu hertys to tho picnic after all. Rut -" sho sIghcd"It'B for Tim's sako, isn't it?" "Sure," answered hor husband, bravely, though he, too, was thinking or his old friends nnd thoso merry ovq. nlngs at Ilafferty's. But three days remained when tho post brought a letter from tho lawyers in Ireland. Phlneas brought it duti fully to his wife Sho opened i. nnd gavo a scream. "Phlneas! Wo haven't got any mon ey at all!" sho gasped. Phlneas Kolly, with a mixed feeling of Joy and sadness, took up the mlB slvo and spelled It out: "Wo beg to Inform you," ho read, "that nn error was made In etatlng that tho estato of your lato uncle, Mr. James Smylle, was likely to bo proved at five thousand dollars. Tho total amount of tho estate is soventeen thousand, all of which goes to you un der tho will, and" "Soventeen thousand!" crlod Mary Kelly, springing from her chair and grasping tho letter from her husband's hand. "Phlneas! It's true! Listen! 'And a check for this amount will be forwarded in a fow days to you." Suddenly tho excited woman began to execute a pas seul before her hus band's eyes. "Mary!" ho exclaimed, "you'll be too tired to pack if you " "But we're not moving, Phineao! Wo're going to stay right on here." "But wo'vo got seventeen thousand, woman!" ho cried. "That's why, Phlneas," she an swered. "With five thousand we could never bo sure that the neighbors really looked up to us, but with seventeen thousand wo know. Wo can afford to now. See?" Phlneas' saw. Ho saw a wolcomo corner in Rafferty's and tho familiar faces of his old friends smiling out of a cloud of tobacco smoke And tho kiss ho gavo Mary drove away the "look" forever. (Copyright, 1911, by W. O. Chapman.) REAL INVENTOR OF SEXTANT Thomas Godfrey of Philadelphia la tho Man to Whom the HonorProp- erly Belongs. Ono of the earliest of Americas "self-made" men was Thomas God frey, who invented tho sextant. God frey, born in 1704, was a humble gla zier, but a man of intellectual force John Hadley also invented a sex tant, evidently carrying out a .sug gestion of Newton which was found in Sir Isaac's original draft among Hadlcy's papers after his deaths Godfrey antedated Hadley by about ono year, but for a long time hia claims wero not recognized, and Had ley received all the credit. How the humble glazier received his first inspiration to design tho instru ment of so great use to mariners ia an interesting story. One day, whllo replacing a pane of glass in a window of a houso on tho north sldo of Arch street, in Philadel phia, opposite a pump, a girl, after illling her pall, placed it upon tho sidewalk. Godfrey, on turning toward It, saw tho sun reflected from tho window on which ho had been at work into tho bucket of water, and hi3 philo sophic mind feeizlng- upon tho Incident was thus led to combine tho plan of an instrument by which ho could draw tho sun down to tho horizon by a contrlvanco incomparably superior to any that had over beforo been used for tho purpose of ascertaining angu lar measurements. Test of Character. But responsibility is tho great character-developer, and vory few of us really know what wo can do until wa nro put to the test. Tho market ia long on men who can tako orders, but short on thoso who can Intelligently Issuo them. Responsibility requires a ecrtaln umount of initiative; tho willingness to net when occasion de mands nnd tho courago to fall un der honest effort nnd tako the conse quences. Of courso you may fall; but you can't tell whether you will succeed until you try; nnd having tried to tho utmost of your ability and' failed, is hotter than never to havo tried at nil. Bettor becauso in every loss thero is tho compensation of experi ence, whllo moro Inaction moans men tal and phyblcnl stagnation, tho dam nnd slro of annihilation. Lesllo's. The Best Kind. "Tho poor widow, who lost her only support in hor husband, has received a largo number of notos of sympathy from her friends." "How many of thorn wore bank notes?" A I I t