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About The Plattsmouth daily herald. (Plattsmouth, Nebraska) 1883-19?? | View Entire Issue (April 19, 1888)
THE DAILY HERALD, PI.A ri.Viu j n, iiiCASKA, THURSDAY, APRIL 10. THE MILKY WAY. ITS ORICIN AS ACCOUNTED FOR IN VARIOUS LEGENDS. Iht Mory a T11M In iiseek I'abln Tlie Miraf of Straw .Si i on Tralillii Tli Itn)men'a i;-ll-r Meteorological I'he-lon-n I'ori :mt. The brilliant npjwarance nml prominent color of tho Milky Way have not failed to give rise to many curious names and to many legends as to its origin. According to the tireck fable, it was product-d ly the milk of Ib-m (Juno). Children born of Jupiter's illicit iinioiire Could only inherit divine honor if Buck led by this lawful hHu.-e of the Ki'cat Olym pian k. Hercules h;h iIjum introduced to tho goddess who Ijtc.-une; k iintscretl v hen she discovered thu tiillitiite infant that tdio threw him from her breast, and thu milk Hew across the bky, forming the galaxy. Ilyginus Kays thu Latin legend substituted Ops, 8jue of Saturn, for Juno, and the occasion was the' presenta tion of a Mono to her for the true child. A .Sicilian legend Hays the milk was from the Madonna's breast, lost while hhe searched for Je.-us. A curious class of legends accounts for the creation of the bright band of f.tars ncross the heaven. One of these, from Wnllaehin, rt-1 ite.i that Venus purloins! a Blie.-if of straw one n'ght from St. 1 'dor's IiiilN, and i.i her hasty 11 if.; lit toward hex coh-sti.il abode scattered it across the frky, wlicrn wait inv on cloudless nights. A Dalmatian tradition ascribes the loss of the straw to St. JVtor himself, and calls the galaxy "the Straw of St. 1'eJor." Ac cording to a Crotiau legend, it was caused ly a man who. having stolon a sheaf ol traw from his foster father, was hasten ing away with his burden, when tin; bun dle broke and the btruw scattered about. To rec.-dl for ever the theft, (Jod placed the M raw in thu heavens, where it still jrlittcrs. 'flu1 n.iiiie (jiven to the galaxy in Her via- ami Albania is "Godfather's Straw." Similar traditions must have given rise to names le-stowed upon it in other countries. It is known as the Strawy" in ISoznia: as tho "Straw Ioad"' in Sardinian, in Magyar, in Modern Hebrew, t'o'-tic and Klhiopian; as the Mlondof tho Straw" in Arab, llabyleand Fyno, and as the "Scattering of tho straw' ' i'i the Magyar dialect. An Ar menian rnvtt .Mat ion is "Su-alcr of Straw." and IVr-i in ti'lis are "1'ath of the Car-rk-rs of the "tit Straw" and "Way of Cur rying Chaff." The peculiar whiteness of tho Milky Way i 4 also evidently referred to in it it.i Trati -ylvania'i name of the"l'loury Way," and its We tphaiian titles, the "Jtoad to Mill" ami the "Sandy Path." There are other legends to account for its appear once. A Saxon tradition relates that tht. world t.Hk lire some ages ago and burned until it nus consumed. God gathered to gether the cinders and united them in furrow. They wont out little by little, leaving a whitish brilliancy, in the mids'i of which fctiil burn .some live coals. Aboui the entire heavens are dispersed othe:' burning I'liiU'M. Sometimes a spark shoots from a hidden bunch of them, be coming a Milling star. Hiisiiiin'ii r'iy tiii- galaxy is formed Rshcr a.t tie Jv Jong ago by a younc; woman, o tliat her p ironts might be ablii to Uud tlioti" way home. Another legend n--:g!is u iii:io!it origin to It. A young woman, angry with her ftimry mother ha-cau-e sho would giv her but a small m uit ity of a cert :i l red nti to eat, casl quitititi"s of it fruin her into ih-i ky, wne-re it became the stars anil tho Milky Wav. Like the rai:dow and other prominent celestial appearances the Milky Way h waneeted in popular tradition with meteorological phenomena. In West pl::il:a it is called the "Weather Stripe,'' -Weather Street" and "Weather Tree," tnd ii aJ-o given the name of "Wind Tree." A Welsh name for it was "Load vf the Wind," and in Pioardy It ii railed Foot of the Wind." Tahitians call tho bright band "Kiyin Cloud" and "Solid Cloud." Jt is "Hand of the Aurora" in M ivgar hinds, and the "Evening Kay" iu "Westphalia. In the latter country thd galaxy is said to be in the middle of tho world and the tun stops there regalarly at meridian. It is also believed to tun; wuh the sun, and hence first appear from the quarter in which the sun has Pct. Similar notions of the cosmograph icai importance of tho Milky Way prob ably gave it its Arab name "Mother of llciven." An old Arab poet alludes to it ns the "Mo: W of the Confused Stars." Anponrin- ov.ly" by night, prognostica tions drawn from tue lamb.o;;s way arc not fo numerous ns in tli? case ot the rainbow. Lsthonians jtv.lge by the more or less brilliant nppearaii'ju of the amount .f snow that will fall during tho coming winter. If by the end of September the northern end of the jralaxy is very brrll lant, suow will not full until Christmas i:' pnst: but if tha south end is more brill I-lit in npoearance. now will fall long be fore Christmas. If the whole band i Torv brluht, snow will fall before and lifter Christmas. Icelanders also prog liosi'catc the winter weather from the ap pi'.;rance of the Milky Way in autumn I:i our own country, many people believo that the edge of the Milky Way which is the brightest indicates the direction from v.h;c!i tho nppriathin5 storm will com. F. S. Hassett ia Globe-Democrat. ?si-;o!i l'nnuin: in Atrica. The c'.iiv ken for. tliers are first plucked at nine n. old, and look only lit to hi made into i.r. ; i;: b:-.;-I;os. Inthctecoml year they ar-i a like the cstricT. fi?:it!iers cf cou;:.iic:vo, but titiil nud nar row, nul it is net till the third year tha; tli3y have attained their full width and softness. Duriug the first two years tho ir.al an 1 female birds are alike; but a" cac!i molting the msle becomes darker, nntil thtf plumage is t;ll Mack, except tho wings and tail, which uro httt-. Iu eacli wir.g there arc twenty-four long feathers. During the breeding season the bill of th; jnr.le bird, the large icales on the for irt of the leg, and sometimes the skin o' l he head ari l neck, assume a deep ros co'or. After a good rain ostriches legii: to make nests. At this time tho male la conics savnira and their lo-.r.n:3g is heart'. In ail dir-ctions. Tir bad inflates ifci nccli like a cobra, and pivos throe deep roars, tLc two first short avA staccato, ihe third prolonged. Saturd.iy Hovijir. Or'.sln or m VUviio. "It Is d!fil-MiIt to account for tho or.'gist a groat m.nr rh rases in current u.-e," renrirkc i Mcsw.Uigea, "or even to seo their relevancy. 'Yc.V lvp'.isil Suild'g. "Now there's that expression, 'on its last L'-g?,' ni'.ai:ifg somoihii-.g rd.v::it- to cn.L Iu anprc; ripfoueiS is v.-ry t'.onbt fal. For Instanc?, a k:mgiro ii neaily r.l -r!- 3 oa iis 1-i-t lor:, but wLtro ca:i you flu I a inorostriiug cxaniido cf vitality?" -Pittsburg Cliroaiclo. MEN AND WOMEN. Vh.-t tli N pajx-m HT Concerning I'rople AVhoni ICTcrjhody Known. Einjirf-ss Victoria, cf Gerrnanr, w liter nlly Burroundod by detectives. Mine. Chiistino NiUson nays that noth ing will induce her to return to the stage. Mm. Martha Patterson, Andrew John son's daughter, h:w never wen the Whito House sinrn sho left it, the day after Gen. Grant's inauguration. Tli Ioston Hcr:M thinks that the Rev. K. P. JtiK and Mark Twain are tho only A meiioan authors who make 20, 000 a year apiece by th ir jens. Ono of tho most enterprising of tho newspajx'ra of lhienos Ayrew is eilitcl by Win.slow, tin fugitive iJoston forger. Since ho I; --;i 1 1 a citizen of tho Argent ine llepuLlie ho is said to have auiusMsl a fortune of $.-,00,000. The oldo.it man in Germany, and prolmbly in the world, is nunn-d Wapni an !:. He1 lives in tho village of Iluttn, near (ines-n, in the province of IW-on. lie wus ioru iu 1T1. He is thereforo 121 years old, and still shows no feign of being in any hurry to die. Mr. Vanderbilt is going to form a Kreat collection of articles of brie a brae. Ho has secured the services of an experi eiu fd iialructor to aid him in judging what to purchase', and it is said that he ha already expended upward of $300, OOo on his new collection. Anna Katharine Given, tho author of the celebrated novel, "The Iicavonworth Case," is living in a bright and com fort able home in Buffalo, where she is engaged in writing a now detective story. Her famous Ixiok litis now reached a cir culation of 200,000 copies r.nd still linds a ready tale. Gen. Wallace's methods of writing aro dilt'eront from thoso of most authors. "Iton-Hur" was first written on a slate, then on soft paper with a lead jonoiI. The final copy was made on large un ruled paper, in violet ink, and written in a cop; or lato hand that was as easy to read as print. When tho weather per mits. Gen. Wallace writes out of doors under the big trees that surround his house. Mrs. G rover Cleveland once he Id tho post of editor. It was on her letuin voyage to this country from Europe. A periodical was started for tho entertain ment of the ship's passengers, not in print, but in manuscript, and the edi torial chair was filled by Mrs. Cleveland, to whom all articles were sent. The paper was bom iu midocean, and buried before touching shoio. Ilerr Von Bulow waj conducting a concert rehearsal the other day, and some of the ladies (jot to whispering about their dresses, dressmakers, etc., probably. Presently the maestro turned ujxjii them, held the offenders for a moment with hi.? glittering eyeglass, and thundered im pressively: "Ladies, this is not a ques tion of saving The caj itol, but cf re Leiirsing." And there was a great calm. Gordon Tayloi- Hughes, of Ohio, 17 year of age, son of the Anu-i ic.n com-nl :it Birmingham, En-dan. I, alter four dayd e.f sovero cometitive examination in a cl:ii of fifly-tvo, has boon awarded a Caiulr!i1g6Cfhoi.ir.-hip, valued at f2.000, ono of the greatest j-vizes in English school life. The competition was open Iq loys under 19 of all nations. This is the f ri t instance of an Auierican winning r.n Enjjhbli scholarship. M. Joseph, Mr. W. K. Vanderhilt's $10,000 chef, or 'gastronomical direc tor," ns ho prefers to be called, is cn ad vocate of small dinners well cooked. Ho does not believe in a man gorging him self with a lot of made dishes, but thinks that he should satisfy himself with tha good things the market affords, prepared by an intelligent cook. Bui the question arises, mu-t one pay !?10,000 a year, with a house to live in thrown in, for the ser vices of tii intelligent cook? Queen Victoria" letters to Gor don, just published in England, are cii riouf., because they show that her majesty is not abovo using italics in a dairymaid fashion, and that the adheres to the practice of the- early part of the century, and places capitoU at the Leg inning of important words. That tho should an !. :L;e their publication is a. little strange, bit ij ono of tho most womanly things s'..o has d:iiie in h.er long reign. Sho is leterniincd to understood, whether it is politic or not. Shu ay make Mr. Gladstone even less her friend than be U now, t tit her people shall know that she wi-died to send aid to her soldier in his extremity, and eo sho says "Publish." The Latest Thin; In Veil. The newest thing iu yeil? is a strip of fiue wire gauze. It is as delicate as ths dainty silk affairs which women persist in pulling down over their roses, and much less injuicys to the eyes than the dotted or figured net so cum men upon the street. In apjw. ranee it does net JifTer at all from the ordinary veil, ex cept perhaps it may be thought Jess flex ible. Tho wire gauze vc-il is r.ot in the market, but women have brought a few from England, where they are Uginning fo bo Uoed, chieliy because they aiv better re?; i raters than silk, which persists in choking one's breath and plastering itst-If down upon the face if the air is ever so iiujo d;V?iJ; A veil of silver thread is very ornamental. -Cev York Cor. Kansas City Journal. A King ia a Cupboard. 0I1 Mother Hubbard, or somebody els?, recently went to ft cupboard in the royal palace at Madrid aud found tho ; future Ling cf Spain. Little Alphon-:o had been left in charge of his bisters, who i deserted him after a time. The royal j l-aby thereupon crawled in a cuplxxird, ' the cloor of which was afterward closed : by some one who did not know that t! , child was inside. Nurses, grooms, but j lets, pages, scullions, soldiers, relatives, j back stair potentates and fremt hall j flunkies, grandees, dons and doorkeepers ' soarche-d the palace for his majesty. At Put ho was found, and the throbbing ; nerves c a great jeople were stilled by a j sensation of joy. New York World. j i Half mourning is now vigorously con- j ' demned to eastern society. The idea that a widow buud say at the end of a ' year that she now mounis only htdf as much as formerly was always a matter i I of ridicule. Detroit Free Press. BRIGANDS OF CUBA. COLD BANDITS THAT INFEST THE QUEEN OF THE ANTILLES. A M ranCe ftte of Tliins Within a Xnjr' Journey of the United State Half Wild JVaaaut and Town Hough Taking to Urijainliige. Tales of brigandage in Cuba during the past few years have reached New York from time to time, but the true situation is imt known save to those who live on the island itself, and it has become so familiar to these im to have little novelty. It Is largely the result of thu present nliaosl bankrupt condition of the once proud and wealthy Que'cn of tho Antilles. Poverty is now almost universal save among the planters and merchants in the cities, and, unable to obtain a livelihood save by the precarious and scarcely remunerative oc cupations of cock fighting , and lottery ticket selling, which appear to the tourist to be the main occupations of the Cubans, many of the half wild peasants of the in terior and roughs of the towns have taken to brigandage. They are most numerous in the central part of the island, between Matanzas on the north and Cienfuegos on the south, making their lairs in the woods and hills of the center of the island and operating on the roads every place where there is any chance of wealthy persons passing. The eastern end of the Island has been singularly free from bandits, and travel through it3 still virgin forests and lofty volcanic mountains is comparatively safe. The Guardia Civile, as the Spanish soldiery is called, make periodical incur sions from Matanzas and other citie3 against the bandits, but as a rulo these raids have little result. It is more than hinted that there is an understanding be tween the soldiers and the bandits. The Spanish government is always behind hand in its payment of its Cuban soldiers' wages, and there is a geueral impression that the soldiers make up for deferred or unpaid wages by a share in the ransom paid by some wealthy planter for his re lease from captivity. Not that the Guardia Civile are always unfaithful! A HKE.YUED HAN1MT CHIEF. "Matagas," said our informant, "is now the bandit chief most feared. lie is a mulatto and rules his followers abso lutely. He changes his location con stantly and has been rather quiet of late, but we may hear of him at any time. He has placed a price of !?r0,0U0 on the per sons f)f the Messrs. Stewart, who own tho well known sugar plantation, 'La Caro lina,' near this city, and these gentlemen have been obliged to use much caution iu guing to and from their plantation on their vUIts to the city." "Till us about Seuor Casanova," we asked. "Weil, Senor Casanova was driving through the back country ono afternoon in a volante, over a rough and lonely road, when the bandits suddenly appeared from the chapparal. They surrounded' the volante so quickly that he could do nothing but surrender (it once. They ordered him to mount a mule, and at hi:i protestations ttiat he win sulToring from a bladder complaint and that it would kill him to ride they only laughed. They carried him e!I to a little hut in the mou-i-tnin and kept him there a week. The old gentleman, fiom the complaint ub;)Vt; described, could only subsist on milk, and as the band-its could not furnish this he nearly died before he was ransomed." "How did they ransom him?" "The bandits had a note conveyed secretly to iih friends tlemanding 8,000 for his ransom within a week. This his friends raised and sent by a trusted messenger to a place agreed upon. Senor GasanoTa was produced, the money paid over and tho bandit who received ft disappeared as suddenly as if the earth had swallowed him, Casanova says that ho was not treated badly during his short captivity, but imagine his state of mind and suspense during the days he wa3 a captive!" "Has no concerted action been taken to apprehend these bandits throughout the Hand?" "No. It is a sort of local option w ith different places whether they can tlrive them away or not. We're all growing so poor, however, that unless your good and great Uncle Sam will pity and annex us the bandits will soon suppress themselves for want of prey. READ THEM A LECTCIJE. "One place, however, has rid" itself of the pest, 'and hi this way. You know if is very rarely that a Cuban becomes a'u officer in the Spanish army. The position is not considered worthy of ambition by a Cuban, and will not be as long as the two peoples dislike each other as they elo now. lJut in this place a son of a well known Cuban fctinily "..as, an officer in the Guard i Civile. He pursued and caught a body of bandits, Cubans like himself. Then he read them a lecture in this wise: " 4You know me and 5011 know I under stand your position. I sympathize with your poverty and know the wretched gov ernment lias made your calling possible, but I to not sympathize with your law; lessncss. I'll release you now only on your solemn oath that you'll leave this district at once. If I hear of any of you here again I'll show you no mercy.' He meant what he said, and that district was troubled no more.;' "How are these bandits armed?1' "Very pooi'ly as a rule, They have old fashioned muskets and now r.nd then ft Title. It Is not their weapons, but their familiarity with the country and its hid ing places and the fact that they have relatives and friends and sympathizers in most of the villages, and even in the cities, that make them at all formidable w ith the wretched soldiery we have. A squail pf United States pavalry could probably rid tho island of them' in two months' time." "Does not their presence make it unsafe for Americans to visit Cuba?" "Not in the least. These bandits do not interfere with the railroad trains, on which a squad of soldiers always travel, more as a matter of form than anything else, and the bandits are not to be feared on the "beaten lines cf travel. Besides, they do not lie in wait for a tourist. They generally learn or know all about their man, his wealth aud whether Lis friends will or will i:ot be likely to ransom him, before they prepare to capture him. They would not be likely to attack a traveler simply on the chance of securing a roll of bills and a watch. They have also, straug-3 to say, a high regard for Ameri cans. Like all Cubans, they look to the United States ns a possible protector and ruler some day, and, perhaps, too, they've heard of six shooters and Yankee pluck. An American consular agent was caught by bandits some time ago, and as soon as he announced his position they released him immediately and apologized for what they said was a mistake." Cuba Cor. New York World. A Itc-rolitl -1 In Clock Making. A patent for a new clock, or chronom eter, has just boon granted that is at tracting considerable attention here. It is the inventiciiof two Maryland uen, M'ho claim it can bo made to run, if necessary, for ye-ars after once wound up. Other special feature's of this time piece aro that it is alolutely noiseless when in ojioration, and docs away en tirely with the pendulum and balance wheel now used in clocks and watches. The running gear, including Uth the Btnking aud time mechanism, consists of but six whe'els and it requires but ono spring to propel both of these attachments. Vy the use of a patent self winding spring, connected to two of the wheels, the in ventors utilize the power waited by fric tien in other timepieces, thus enabling the clock to run a much greater length of time with tho same motive piwcr, or by once winding it up. The inventors threaten to work a revolution iu clock making, by the introduction of apeifeet timepiece, which, they say, because ef its simplicity, can bo manufacturer! at much less cost than many excellent low priceel timepieces manufactured in this country to-day. Washington Critic. An Invention Worth millions. It is wonderful how the discovery of what is considered a trifling matter will bring wealth to tho inventor. Take, for illustration, the perforated substance used for l)ottoniing chairs and tor other pur poses. Its inventor is now a millionaire and is realizing a princely revenue from it yearly. George Ycr-fron. the ?-- ' I refer to, was a poor Yunkco caueseater in Vermont. He first distinguished him self by inventing a machine for weaving cane, but he made no money out of it, as some ono stole hLs idea and had the process patented. After a number of ye-ars' experimenting Yeaton at last hit upon this invention, which consists of a number of thin layers of boards of differ ent elegrces of hardness, glued together to give pliability. Yeaton went through a nunik'r of bitterly contested lawsuits !efore he got his invention patented. Ho was wiso in not paying others to manu facture his device. He formed a com pany, and to-day he has a plant valued at 000,000. Kansas City Star. The Triumph of I5ral:ni;;h. Mr. lk-adlnugh'a parliamentary oaths Liil ha3 the advantage of being extremely short. It consists of only two clauses; tho debatable part of it, indeed, of only one. It enacts that every person, upon objecting to being cworn, shall be jKr mitted to make his solemn affirmation instead of taking an oath in all places where r.n oath is or shall bo requireel by law. Tho affirmation is to be of the same force and effect as tho oath, and tho pen alties for a fal.30 allim.ation shall be the penalties of perjury. Thus, in form, tho provision is almost identical with tho cct for enabling Quak ers to affirm; it emly extends that ability to all persons, whether Ijelonging to one religious denomination or not. Jt applies to jurors and wiliiesses, and also to ail other persona who may be i.ow called 011 to ta'je an oath; to thoso who have to take the. oath ef allegiance, anel even, we t.uppcf.0, to the sovereign himself. Lou don Times. ! ston' e. i;n.t Gorilla. Boston has received from Africa tha larget gorilla ever landed in this conn try. Ilis name is Jack, and ho is tiv: fi?ot n height when standing erect, and measures seven feet from the end of orif ontslrctchoel hand to the other, lie Weighs abemt 123 pounds, and exhibits enormous strength, coaipareel with which that of man seems like a child's. He arrived in a largo box made of planking two anil a half inches thick, and when lieing removed from the ship lie tore largo splinters from the hard weiod planks with as much e-ase as a child would break a twig. The hair, which is very coarse, and tiom two to touc inches in length, is of a greenish' gray "color, and on tho back, legs and arms inclines to a black. IIi3 shoulders are immense. The ex pression pf his, face, which is black, is t cow ling. The eyes are small, sunken in tho head, and the lips large and thin. Boston Courier. Old Commottcrp Venderhilt's Cook. One of the Vanderbilts is said to have imported, with due regard to the con tract labor law, a chef, to whom he is to pay 10,000 a year, more or less. Hu grandfather didn't pay 10,000 a year, either more or less, to iiis cook. A well known physician called on the commodore one tlay soma 3-ears beforo hLs death, and found him at breakfast. His family was out of town. The visit was ended and the physician rose to go. "How do you get along with your family away?" he asked the maker of the millions. 'Oh, well enough," replied the com ruodore. "I've got an old woman who keeps house for me; I give her 1 every morning and that lasts ns very well through tho da v." New York Sun. The "Sweating Kyslein." It is reported that workers in certain trades in London have been reduced to a condition of slavery by the "sweating syiteni." Not only elothe sweaters ex act long hours and pay small wages, but tho work is elone under conditions d.icli are said to be filthy andinsanitary in the highest degree. The strongest man or woman is worn out in the course of eight cr nine years, and the vacancies thus created in the ranks of British workers are filled by foreign immigrants. The subject has been brought to the attention of parliament. Public Opinion. Ilusiau Monrnlu: Costumes. They certainly do not do things by halves in imperial Russia. "When the court goe-s into mourning the material which tho ladies have to wear is black Caiinel. unrelieved by any ornamenta, oven of jet. Black flannel may be a treasonable stuff for a Russian March, but it is nut beautiful. Still it has the merit of making the St. Petersburg court ladies mourn in good earnest. London Globe. A Xcw EnjjaijeiacTit Hinsr. The new engagement ring in vogue in Paris is a revival cf the old Normandy betrothal ring in the shape of two hearts. A rich variation is to have one heart a ruby set with diamonds and tho other a diamond set willi rubies.- Chicago Her&U. The Plattsmouth Herald Ts enjoying a Boom in both, it 3 DAILY A TO WEEKLY EDITIONS. The Will le ono during which the ftihjeets of national interest and importance- will be strongly agitated smd the t lection of a President will take place. '1 lie people of Cass County who woukl like te learn of Political, Commercial and Social Transactions of this year and would keep, apace with the times should SUBSO RIBBi -FOK Daily or Ifeekiy Herald Now while we have the subject before the people we will venture to fpeak ot our is imp Which is lirst-class In all respects and from which our job printers are turning out much satisfactory work. PLATTSMOUTH, Year 1888 KITH Kit TIIK NEBRASKA.