THE AMERICAN.
4
I
SUICIDE AND CAUSES.
LOVE. HEREDITY AND POVERTY
CONTRIBUTE LARGELY.
MTCa lUreljr KU1 TbfaarlmtMf
DmUwUm la rrvqumt Only AiuuMg
CHIUaarf People Wbrr Nervous T
Iw la rroaoaared.
MB general opinion
of Intelligent peo
ple upon the much
dlacusged subject of
uleide Is ratber
weeping, says the
Washington Post
Ask the average
man why his neigh
bor destroyed hlra
self and. In all
probability, he will
tell you that everybody who commits
suicide Is insane. Now this is true
nly to the extent that the brain
tnat evolves the Impulse of subjective
destruction is not In a normal state,
and abnormal minds are, in a way, in
sane mlnda. But this last postulate
brings us around with a whirl to the
Important question, When Is the brain
la a normal state? Certainly not when
under the influence of excitement, of
anger, grief, or of any of the passions.
Therefore, as man Is not a vegetable,
but Uvea out a good part of his exist
ence under a certain amount of nervous
train, it becomes evident that the
tray matter in his head undergoes
constant fluctuation from so-called nor
mal to so-called abnormal conditions.
' Consequently it does not seem too
much to assert that the standard is an
aasumed one and that the man who
dies by his own hand may be not more
out of order mentally than the man
.-'tfho criticizes him, the only difference
lying in the faot that the former has
demonstrated his eccentricity and the
latter baa kept his to hlmeelf.
As civilization advances and the
nervous tension of the Individual wax
es higher, suicidal statistics show a
' steady increase. Savage races are
comparatively exempt from the tend
ency to self-destruction and the more
advanced the nation the more fatal be
comes the Impulse. However, this last
statement must be modified by such
considerations as population, national
prosperity and several other factors
that unite to render reliable statistics
on this subject very hard to obtain.
The suicidal ratio between the sexes
la estimated at a minimum 15 per cent
for women to 85 for men; maximum,
SO to 70.
The general causes of suicide are
the Impulsive passions love, Jealousy,
shame, religious or political fanati
cism. But in almost every case more
remote and disguised causes have been
at work, such as education, Imitation,
Influence of the physical and moral
environment, etc. The effect of these
is so Insidious that the suicide himself
is unconscious of their presence. Then,
again, there Is the man who Is Impelled
to self-destruction by heredity.
Taking the first In the list ot
causes love the percentage of self
inflicted deaths therefrom is not large
in either sex. Women suicide directly
from the influence of disappointed af
fection; but men often solace them
selves by "taking to drink," and it is
the effect of the alcohol that Impresses
the mind with the Impulse of subjeot
Ive destruction, like Byron's
"Lord Mont-Coffee-House, the Irish
peer.
Who killed himself for lore with
wine last year."
There have been, of course, a num
. ber of men driven to the rash act by
no other intoxicant Uian the original
one love; but they are In the minori
ty. Neither do all men under these
painful circumstances take to drink;
some because, like Mr. Swiveller, they
bad taken to that long before, and some
for better reasons. Mr. Swiveller took
to playing the flute; but all are not
eo desperate, and, as the range Is prac
tically unlimited, various are the con
solers "taken to."
The effect of imitation Is generally
underrated. A very remarkable sui
cide from this cause took place In Lon
don almost a century ago. Fashion
able society at the time professed great
admiration for Addison's "Cato." Upon
seeing a stage representation of this
piece a certain Mr. Budgell was so Im
pressed with the suicidal death of the
hero In the closing scene that upon
leaving the theater he went at once
to the Thames and, plunging therein,
put an end to his existence. When Ms
body was recovered this couplet was
found upon him:
"What Cato did
And Addison approved
Must needs be right."
A man predisposed by heredity to
self-destruction must find It almost im
possible to pass through the trials and,
above all, the weariness of this life of
ours without giving way to the natural
bent of his mind. Many Instances of
such deaths are on record. One Pari
sian suicide, by name Jules Delmas,
is a striking example. Both of Ms
parents had died by their own hand,
and, though happily married and pros
perous, the natural attitude of his mind
was so antagonistic to life that he was
incapable of maintaining existence.
One evening, as he was returning from
the opera with his wife, he seemed un
usually preoccupied. Arriving at the
corner of the square upon which hia
house stood, he turned to her and said:
"I have Just recollected an engagement
that I must fulfill. Where I am going
It is impossible that you should ac
company me, so return hone."
She heard no more from him until
the next day, when she was Informed
of his voluntary death and received Ms
last message.
"Forgive me, Margaret, I am going
to rejoin my parents."
VANITY.
Still Showa hj Waim.a Vfhmm ia Coavlet
iarb.
A writer In an English pa;r aavs
that our hapk'm country woman,
Mrs. May brick, set the fahion in Wo
king prison of wearing tho skirt long,
that is, with a train, as h1i wan wtar
ln such when she entered this prison.
The d reuses nerved out to tho eon
vii'ts are a constant t-ource of annoy
ance to them, and many an hour is
spent in touching up and altrin;f.
At Milbauk. another Fnlish prison,
some- years since, a femulo convict
wan discovered to bo in possession of
three tallow candles, which, if they
had not been missed would have been
utilized as pomade! reriodioally tha
hinges of the cell doors are oiled, anl,
stran-je as it may seem, convicts have
been detected wiping the oil and put
ting it on their hair.
One woman created quite a sensa
tion among the female convict! in
Woking prison by reason of tho
brilliancy of tho color of her chocks
and lips. Many of her follow prison
ers became most envious, and exer
cised every kind of blandishment in
order to induce tho fortunate one to
part with her secret but in vain.
At last, one day she became quite
friendly with a young convict to whom
she took a fancy, and during the ton
minutes' chat (female convicts are al
lowed to converse with each other for
this allotted time) she con Mod the
secret. It was soon all over the
prison, and very soon on most of the
cheeks of tho women could bo found
traces of color. Tho paint was ob
tained In the following ingenious man
ner: In the aprons that tho women
wero wearing thera was, running
through the pattern, a bright rod
stripe, and this was carefully drawn
out When unraveled and chowed in
tho mouth the color or dye was re
leased, and thus the paint was ob
tained which decorated their faces and
lips.
In the same prison a convict had
repeat-' fainting fits without any
cause discoverable by tho medical
officer. One day she was attacked in
chapel, and, upon her removal to the
infirmary, she was undressed, when to
their astonishment the authorities
found the fits produced from tight
lacinw, and from the effects produced
by the pieces of wood and wire which
the convict had managed to force into
her stays in order to make her waist
slender.
The prison authorities in their wis
dom have not deemed it necessary to
supply the female convicts with that
ever ready and indispensiblo article
so dear to the feminine gender the
hairpin but necessity, the mother of
invention, is ever at work, and the
convict will spend hours in tearing
out bits of wir3 from tho window
guard and afterward bending them
into the required shape.
Leaves from the bible are often torn
out to make tho old-fashioned
"cracker" curls, but this practice, if
found out, involves a very serum
punishment.
Even the "life" prisoners are not
exempt from this desire to make the
best possible appearance, and they
will schome, plot and plan for months
togethor In order to becomo possessed
of a pioco of broken window pane in
order to make a looking glass.
While out in the exercise yard a
convict will rapidly scan tho ground
in the hope of coming across a piece
of glass. Once possessed of it, she
will run the risk of solitary confine
ment on a bread-and-water diet in
order to got it into her cell. A pieee
of black cloth at the back of tho piece
of glass makes an excellent mirror.
Here it will be hidden in all conceiv
able places, and many a violent wo
man, ill-favored by nature, has been
known to become subdued after being
able to admira her features by means
of the mirror.
BaaeQt ot AiiTrttala.
Advertising has another use aside
from bringing in new business. It is
a mighty, potential factor which ena
bles a business to be held. It prevents
old customers from slipping away and
stirs up their determination to stick.
Some buyers like to change, and it is
to prevent this switching around that
printer's ink becomes so useful. Many
a financial advertiser ceases to adver
tise because "no returns can bo
traced." His extreme short sighted
ness prevents him from realizing that
in order to know just what benefit
tho advertising has been to him, it
would be necessary to know tho inner
thoughts of many people. The latter
are not disposed to be communicative
when it comes to giving reasons for
their action. Good, clean advertising
always has. always does and always
will pay. There is no doubt about it.
Because tho results cannot lo seen is
not positive demonstration that it has
been of no account. American In
vestments. Ity His Month.
A Philadelphian, who had traveled
extensively in Burmah, was telling an
English girl, on a accent voyage across
the Atlantic, some of tho remarkable
work which elephants aro taught to do
in that country, and, in order to create,
a good impression, he drew slightly on
his imagination. He told tho truth as
to how tho elephants toil all day pil
ing up teak wood at tho saw-muis, and
even lay tho logs on tho plane, "and,"
he continued, "there was ono old elo
phant, much wiser than tho others,
who, after he had laid down tho log,
got down on his knee and squinted to
soo if it was on straight." Tho girl .
siuueu in a uoruu son 01 way, aim
said: "Xow I am sure you are an
A merican. " Argonaut.
After the Funeral.
Mr. Rector So you think you know
too much about matrimony ever to try
it again?
Mr. Benedict, again a widower
Yes, sir; yes, sir! Here endeth the
second lesson.
POETIC LIFE IN JAPAN
DAINTY AND EXQUISITE LI1TLE
TOY DWELLINGS THERE.
Urrr fur Melghboni A Krai Arradla
Tha t'harm of the Uland Mljajlwa
A I'lara of Prrfrrt I'rara-Kalrj
Valt-ouii-a. 3
HERB Is an Iso
lated, aristocratic
quarter of the vil
lage In the ravine
behind the temple,
.nhat.lted by prle t
and superior folks
and the fair ravine
holds the MotuiJ
(or Maple Ieaf) te:
hou.ie most be
witching cluster of
Jo.i-uou.i.. .u .be most picturesque set
.ing ever found in Japan, says the Cen
tury. There is the usual large living
room or office of the landlord and o
general "food preparing" room for the
establishment opening on the roadway,
'tut within the gates one finds a deep,
zreea glen, an awful chasm some fif-
een feet deep and twice as wide, all
llled with delicate airy branches of
ut-leaf maples. A terrible torrent
iome two feet wide dashes madly down
he mountain side, spreads out into a
lake the size of a large dinuer-table
with a wootlrn sauce-boat moored at
one side. Each vantage spot on the
steep bank holds a one, two or three
roomed doll-house Ruch exquisite
little toy dwellings, with such fairy bal
conies, such spoiloss screens and soft
shln'n,? mats that oi.e hesitates to des
ecrate them with the clumsy, defiling
destructive appurtenances of the sim
plest foreign Lvlng; and as for himself
fitting into one of these midget man
sions It is Gulliver alive among the
Lilliputians. Our life in that glen of
maple !eaea was full of interest, from
the moment of slipping back th
screens in the morning with some anx
iety lest the niue of a glen and its
midget lake were not there or real
rolled up over night, and some other
charming Japanese drop curtain put in
its place to the last hanging of the
amados or wooden outer screens at
night. The deer were friends and
neighbors from the moment ot our ar
rival, coming to drink from the musical
fountain-Jet In our three-feet square
court of entrance and then to the edge
of our porch to bob their heads in well
mannered appeals for deer-cake. These
pretty beggars, with their lovely eyes,
their sharp muzzles and delicate feet,
seemed to know the value of their
charms, and having no fear of man,
had only to pose a few moments to
move the stoniest and most indolent
heart to wait on them. It was even
more Idyllic in the early morning to
find some antlered friend, or an equally
fearless doe and her tiny fawn, wait
ing by the lakeside to share our break
fast. After Mlyajlma one may well
boast ot having lived In Arcadia, and
each day, more idyllic than the other,
puts one in the better spirit of enjoying
the rare Japanese charm of it all.- The
peace of the island Is as perfect as its
piety and few sounds but the gentle
dashing stream and the flutter of
maple leaves disturbed our enchanted
little glen. One spoke softly, as befit
ted a place ot such perfect beauty.
Neighbors came to the doll-house
across the chasm, but only the rat-tat
of their pipes on the bamboo cups ot
the tobacco trays was evidence of their
presence there. In that simple, inti
mate life there v.as no mysteries, not
even of the menu. All the villager! who
passed might stop and watch our cook
make his highly colored curry for our
midday meal; and peddlers who came
to tempt the tea-house maids with gay
kimono patterns watched his strange
concoctions and sought pretexts to
watch our further play with the knife
and fork, as we sat at feast on our
little veranda over the lake. The small
boy of the tea house added the comic
element, and his morning pursuit of
our dinner chicken was always a fea
ture. He would chase the angry ben
around and around the lake, and when
it fled cackling up the bank, a swift
movement of his palm across the lake
would Sj.urt such showers of water
on the ruffled fowl as might soon empty
the whole vast deep and rob the ravins
of Its choicest landscape ornament.
When the tea-house staff had combined
against the hen, our major-domo would
bring the captive to us In his arms and
display the fine "stew chicken." There
was a solidity and an adamantine fiber
to the Mlyajlma fswls that resisted
ordinary cooking, and we commanded
one day that the bird should be divided
at every Joint, the body quartered, and
ail kept stewing of three hours during
which we expected to be gone on, an
excursion. Summoned to see if It was
all right, we found the pallid, uncook
ed chicken dismembered to the last.
Joint; but the whole puzzle had been
neatly put together again, and the bird
wound over and over with the closest
network or fine spool cotton a strange
travesty on that Gulliver to whom we
were alway3 comparing ourselves.
Swam Srven Mile.
Man has conquered the sweeping
flood of waters at the Golden Gate, the
entrance to San Francisco bay, Charles
Cavlll swam from shore to shore, seven
miles, accompanied by a fleet of sail
boats and many screaming steamers
and tugs. When his feet touched the
sand at Ft. Point and he stood up and
bowed to the multitude the occupants
of almost numberless rowboats added
their cheers to the toot of whistles and
clang of bells. Cavill is said to be the
first and only man who ever accom
plished the feat of swimming from
shore to shore where the bay and
ocean meet.
' The buiness of shipping moss for
packing nursery stock and plants is de
veloping quite sn industry at Vlcks
burg, Miss.
THE BURROS DIED.
Hat the rrflfcpevtor M he l'rwil the
Me.rri atr4 l Narrlva.
A man can "taud more har.Nhips
than a bir ro. That is the conclusion
thut Henry Frecmuu and Jacob (icnter
have reached, an I their etory bearing
on tho subject InJicutcs that the joinl
Is well Liken.
Kreeiuan anl Cei-ter are mltiliir
pro ije -tors wh Imliiu aw mora
tory. Thev arrived in San r'runciKCo
rxxvntly after a long and wiuding
scout for pivcious uu tals lu the moun
tains of Sun rcrutirdino and Inyo
counties. Mr. Frtv-nian vtiliintHrod
1h i information tliat he had passed
through an expericm-o which, in suf
fering, out lid anything thai ho could
exMct to lin.l in the Infernal regions
during twice tho length of time.
(Jester audi had bnn knocking
around the mountains an I canyons for
several wocks." said Mr. Freeman.
"We had four burros, two to ride an l
two to carry our pucks of tools and
provisions. Tho burros aro dead;
(Jester and I aro alive, but mighty
shaky. We had poor luck and struck
nothing with color in it for a long
time. Finally, wo decided to strike
out for a locality where few, if any.
white men ha I over gone liefore. Wo
crossed tho desert country south of
Death Valley alxmt I can't remem
ber dates, because I didn't know
Wednohiluy from Sunday.
"Well, then wo headed for tho
Funeral mountains, east of tho Ixirax
beds. There was wimo game to lw
had, and our supply of provisions held
out very well, but tho further east wo
went the H'arccr tho water became,
and what there was of it was rank
poison. In ona of tho gulches of tho
Funeral range we found a running
spring with water as clear as crystal.
(Jester ami I drank with great gulps,
and so did tho burros. This was
alxmt two hours leforo sunset on a
day thut was as hot as hades. Well,
sir, five minutes after wo drank thut
water my partner and I and tho bur
ros begun to suffer agonies worse than
death. My InsiJcs sue mod to he on
fire, and I felt as if some lusty fire
man wus dragging out my intestines
with a lire hook. It was nip and tuck
between (Jester and mo and tho burros
as to which could squirm and kick and
mako the most horrible noiso. lioforo
tho sun set two of the animals were
dead. The other two partially re
covered. "After a couple of days' rest hav
ing in the meantime discovered a
scant quantity of dirty.but less poison
ous water we sot to work again, and
very soon discovered so mo very rich
gold-bearing quartz. It carried free
gold, at least $.100 to tho ton, and we
drove stakes on tho claims. Hut wo
might as well have saved ourselves tho
trouble, localise, so far as I am con
cerned and I know (Jester is of tho
same mind I wouldn't go buck to thut
accursed region for a million. No, sir!
It's death, death everywhere. I'oisou
In tho water, burning death in tho
sunlight, annihilation in tho scorching
winds. There is no water with which
to work tho ore or quench the thirst of
man or beast. It would bo next to an
impos-ibility to cart the oro to a place
where life could bo sustained for any
length of timo. I am satisfied there
are thousands of great fortunes in
those hills and gulches, but it's my
opinion they will remain there a long
tim.'."
Mr. Freeman then gave a graphic
account of the retreat toward civiliza
tion and habit'iblo regions. For near
ly two days and nights he and (Jester
and the two burros had not one drop
of water. The men wero on the verge
of madness, because tho heat was in
tense. Tho mules tot tort) J and
groaned, and hung their tongues out
of the corners of their mouths.
When almost within sight of a little
mountain stream of pure water, not
far from the Santa Fe railroad, tho
burros lay down ani died, almost in
the same breath. Hut Freeman an I
Gester reached tho railroad, Hugged
a freight train, and left tho land of
horrors; with a pledge to each other
never to return. Freeman says ho
will seek a cooler climate and better
water in South Africa.
Not so Shy Arter All.
Postmaster White received a reg.
istered letter two or three weeks ao
for a Del mar man and the man tojk
the return receipt card out of tho of
fice and carried it home. The letter
not being called for, Postmaster White
saw the owner one day last week and
asked him why he didn't take it out of
the office. The man admitted that he
had the return receipt in his pocket,
but he said: "I notice that it is ono of
those things that you've got to sign,
and I don't propose to sign anything I
ain't suro about and have it turn up in
a note by and by.'1 Postmaster White
finally convinced the man that Undo
Sam would not tolerate any conlidenco
game in tho postoflico and the man
signed the receipt and took his letter,
lie opened it at once and it turned out
to contain $1.50 in money which tho
man luul sent to a swindling concern
in Ohio, and ho was informed that tho
postoflico department had intercepted
tho letter and saved his money and re
turned it. He wasn't quite so shy
after all. Wellsbo rough, Pa., Agitator.
T.i II Tree In the Korthwmt.
Professor F. G. Hummer, of Tacoma,
Wat-h, is authority for tho statement
that there are scores of trees in that
corner of tho United States that are
over COO feet high.
A Natural Mistake.
Train Roblier, in tho Pullman -Your
money or your life!
Sleepy Passenger, wrathfully Con
found you, porter! I'll call you when
I want you. Life.
No te.
Herdso Why didn't you defend
your wife's suit for divorce?
Saidso I havo known for years
that what she said was law. New
York World.
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