Pi",
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WORTH MORE THAN OOLD.
Seafarers who can pick up a piece of
ambergris floating around loose need
lock no farther for fortune. That good
dame has hit him fairly in both pockets
and gone considerably out of her way
to do It.
Ambergris is a mysterious commo
dity. It is an accident in creation and
very rare.
It is also useful to man.
Altogether these give It a remarka
ble value.
It is worth more than gold, according
to weight something like 1350 per
pund.
Gold at $16 per ounce is worth $258
per pound, averdupols.
Frank Norris. in his novel, "Moran
r 'f f mFXady 1 Ity," av a ltPd -htmseH of
the romantic aspect of ambergris and
made It the feature of the book, so far
as treasure went and treasure played
an important part therein, as It in
dubitably must In every well regulated
r'"ry of adventure on sea or land.
Put such strokes of fortune do not
belong altogether to fiction.
A San Francisco bark, the Morgan,
has just come in with a lump of am
b"rgris worth $?1,000, which was picked
up qui accidentally one day as It
floated along on the surface of the
wan near the coast of Japan.
The finding of It hasn't caused any
t.iift'K death yet, nor is It at all likely
to, but It has made the finders marks
of distinction In the treasure world, and
Illustrated strikingly how fortune may
s' any moment alight upon a child of
ci-eumstance In dimensions hardly
larger than a flea bite nor prettier than
a splash of mud.
Ambergris, this precious substance
that outvalues gold and comes only
by the luckiest chance (generally to
those who are not looking for Iti, Is an
abnormal growth due to the stomach
trouble of an occasional sperm whale.
When a sperm whale hss Indigestion
or some such ailment, a strange growth
d'-velops In his Intestines.
It was Dr, Swedlaur, -In a eommunl
rMlon to t,he Koyal Society of London,
who first established correctly the ort
gn of the rare substance. He had dis
covered this ambergris frequently con
tained the mandibles or beaks of the
fjuld, on which sperm whal.-s ere
known to feed and this fact, taken In
conjunction with the finding of am
h'rgris In the intestines of that variety
cf whale only whs conclusive evidence
that It was a production of that crea
ture's, and not extraneous fungi.
It was only a small, dirty gray lump
'f fat In appearance, that the Morgan's
crew picked up. It weighed sixty-five
founds.
Ross Wllber and Moran, In Norris'
novel, found a larger chunk than that.
Put it wasn't floating on the surface
of the ocean.
They were becalmed In Magdalena
Vjy, off Lower California. Wilbur and
the royal sea maiden, Moran, had been
eerted by their Chinese, crew.
A Junk.mann"d by another gang of
coolies and commanded by a scoundrel
i f the same Ilk conies on the Bcene and
compels Wilbur to lend his schooner to
the oieratlon of handling a while
which the Junk men have found.
The whale Is hoisted alonslde the
schooner and emptied of Its olf and
blubber, which the captain divides into
four parts, keeping three fro his crew
nd giving on- to Wilbur and Moran.
Then the Junk sails away, leaving
Wilbur to cut the schooner loose from
the rlf'ed carcass as best he may.
In doing this he chops Into the mon
ger's back and lays bare a growth of
tmbt-rgrls.
He does not realize what It Is, hut
Moran does. A dainty perfume, pecu
liar to the strange secretion, r-vcals
the natre of it to her.
They drag the stuff aboard the
f. hooner and try to hide It from tbo
suspicious e;es of the coolie on the)
tunk, but the avaricious pirate com
manding them guesses what the white
folk have found anrt leads an anfetutt
en them, which ends In a transfer of
trie treasure to the Junk.
Another fight restores It to Wilhur.j
A final tragedy. In which Moran Is
killed, gives It back to the coolie cap
tain, who disappears with it in Pan
Francisco's Chinatown.
Such an occurrence in reBl life of the
feventeenth century might have given
rise to a belief that ambergris posses
sed an evil charm, making It dangerous ;
for people to handle.
That would hove added Just the pro
jier element of deviltry to It to make
it a subject for dark whisperings In
the chimney corner or halr-llftlng nur
sery rhymes for the terrified young.-n.
The ambergris fished out of the Japan
current by the Morgan will yield a
tidy little side sum f"r the crew Lit
of dessert, as It were.
The Morgan's specialty is whale oil.
.fmherurls does not figure In her cal
culations! and has never betor- in-n
known to obstruct her pathway In the
search for oil. ' I
Rlie cleared jxirt November 26. 189B, j
and Is still out. News of her eictranr-1
dinary find was brought In fcy another
vessel.
The Morgsn I now on her way to the
Okhotsk sea after more whales, tfhe
will reach Kim Francisco about the Mth
f,f October. Then the local druggists
will have the privilege of laying In
121,000 worth of new amlergrls, and the
crew will have that neatlsh amount
of coin to show for their five minutes
work in picking up the dirty gray
chunk In the Japan sea.
. m.l':l"".. :.i ; , ZrU beln '
no longer as popular as 01 ymf.
How many ladles know they are
wearing hnle dyspepsia on their ker
chiefs or occasionally drinking It for
the sake of a cunning little tipple?
Women's hands are growing larger,
flllfing. basekt boll, driving, rowing and
all the list of fashionable sports have
done their work in spreading the hand,
to say nothing of roughing and redd n
Ing II. I-alers say that they Import
far more gloves of a larger six for
women than formerly, and that they
Lave to get rid of their small gloves at
bargain sales, says the New York
Press The fashion of going without
gloves except in winter has made a
perceptible Inr ad upon the trade. In
the country and at the seashore gloves
are eschewed almost completely, and
even In town one frequently sees fash
Innsble women with ungloved hands.
An artist says that nol only the com
pletion and texture of the skin has
changed Wltn ine unrpiimr-m .......
let lea
men
SCIENCE NABS FROOS.',
Bullfrog farming Is becoming a rec
ognised'' IndtiHtrjr In Indiana. Within
the last few weeks the new branch of
culture has been established In Many
sections of the state of Indiana on
most extensive basis. Farmers have
found that while crops are finding low
and poor markets, the frog Is com
manding a ready market and brings
prices that cause the old farmer to
open bis eyes. "
" Frog farming Is being reduced ts a
scientific basis. The farmer have al
ready found that not every frog that
croaks during the hours of the night
has a commercial value. It ts only the
American bullfrog, whose croak comcn
at long-measured intervals and sounds
lifco a grand me-nl'ahoYe all of the
other croaklngs, that has a commercial
value. , .
, The new farmer has also acquired a
scientific knowledge on bagging! tils
crop. Any man who has attempted to
catch a frog knows that it is not the
easiest thing in the world. Sclance,
however, .has solved the, problem and
the farmer goes up and picks his frog
off his perch Just as though he was an
ear of corn on a stalk. ' ' 4
The growing demand in cities for
frog hams has created this Industry in
a inarvt'lously short time. In all first
class restaurants In cities frog hams
have become as fixed a delicacy for
the menu as any other of the food
stuffs. For a long time this demand was
filled by boys and young men, who
went out and gathered the frogs, toads
and everything they could get hold of.
Now there are many frog farms scat
tered over Indiana. Farmers have
found that their swamp lands, which
have been considered worthless, have
great value if they are sown In bull
frogs In the fall. Streams running
through their lands are even better
for the cultivation of the frog, and if
that stream has marshes on each side
and reeds and a mill dam and some
picturesque points It seems to have a
decided additional value.
Frogs of the best grade big Ameri
can bullfrogs now command all the
way from 60 cents to $1 dozen, ac
cording to the maret where they are
offered for sale. The frog farmer
should be able to catch all the way
from 100 to 200 a night, or 1,000 a week,
and pt them in the market. Ticre
are some Indiana farms turning out
such crops this year. This represents
a big amount of money. The farmer Is
at practically no epense after he gets
his farm well stocked.
The scientific method of bagging the
crop is the result of an Indiana man's
Ingenuity. He is Thomas Farrer of
Shelbyville, who perhaps knows more
on the subject of practical frogology
than does any'other man In the Missis
sippi valley. For some years Farter
was In the Habit of going to the wilds
of Arkansas annually on bunting and
fishing- expeditions. He discovered
while out at night carrying a -'biasing
pine knot that the frogs -woyld cease
croaking a the light paased. but would
not Jump into Uie water. The thought
occurred to him that perhaps they
were - charmed i or delighted with the
light,' as seals , are said to' be with
music. The thought Of trying to arb
one of the big frogs that abound .Tfl
that section was carried Into execution,
the result being that with the -aid of a
light he had no great trouble in pick
ing them uft. t He found , that the
brighter the light the easier his tiisk
was. and the more deeply hypnotized
whs the frog. ' V -
This began the evolution of the pres
ent calcium light effect which he gets
by taking ah ordinary new tin bucket,
shifting the handle to the side and
putting a lantern Inside of ii. The bot
tom and sides Bet as a reflector, and
with the shifted handle It Is easily car
ried and the light thrown full glare on
the frog. When it hits his eyes he Is
asleep and he knows nothing more un
til he Is safely Inside the nag
the hunter swings around his -'neck,
Mr. Fairer does not see a large enoun
demand ahead to warrant him In pat
enting the lamp und he tells how any
one can make It ffr comparatively
nothing. He says: "Make an ordinary
milk bucket, well polished on the In
side. Have a tinner cut, a hole in one
side large enough lo admit ft lamp with
a No. burner, or, better still, a lan
tern. Have a hole cutjn tbe top of the
pall for ventilation. Put an ordinary
reflector In the bottom of the bucket,
shift the handle to the side right over
the ventilator, so as to hold the lamp
upright, light the wick und pick your
frogs. ' ' !
Mfss Cora Van Norden, whose father
Is president of the National Hank of
North America, Is .working with the
Sanation Am, says th Chicago
Tribune. Her sinter. Miss Kmma Van
Norden, created a furor In society cir
cles four years ago by Joining the Sal
vation Army. At that time Miss Cora
Van Norden said she wouid nol think
of such a thing as following her sister's
exampir. - ihit Alr.its to htr "ister and
a growing realization of the good she
was doing have been too much for per
resolution. - ' . ' ,
Miss Cora Va Norden has b'gun to
follow her sister's exarhi.-. She Is
now editing the Young Holdler, a paper
published In the Interests of the army.
, "It is a delicate matter to talk of,"
said Colonel I-wls at the army head:
martcrs. "hut it is true. Miss Van Nor-
quarters, "hut it is true, miss van nu
!en ts editing the Young Soldier for
us "
Hut Miss Van Norden still clings to
the outer world. Not yet can she con
vince herself that she must give up nl
ail society gayety. Hhc still wears her
tailor-made gowns,. 1
A ring with a history has Just been
handed over to tbe Numlsmatlo Muse
um of Paris by a Polish , gentleman
who purchased for a small sum recent
ly in Warsaw, Shortly after he formed
the acquaintance of the lady, who was
afterward Marquise de Pompadour,
Umls'XIV presented her with an .in
taglio ring representing his own apothe
osis. It was pronounced at the time
(o be a" wonderful work of art, equal
ling anything of the sort produced In
ancient Greece or Rome. Hound., the
edge was an elaborate Inscription. One
flay Mbis. de Pompadour, to her dis
tress, lost this rUyr, which has now re
appeared after hearty a hundred and
(iv vpars- Mraxnnauun. t
SHORT STORIES:
' A STORY OF GRANT..'
Most stories and reminiscences
O -
fteneral uranl are of th military
political aort. f taje (ana a prr ,
iy one ld by Uil Attorney JW
era I Jgntfa N. shows a new side
of the great 1 ,i character. ,
"The presidetww8 passing through
the department of dead letters," said
MY. Tyner, "and Jokingly commented
on the unattractive appearance- of the
clerks, and quizzically Inquired If 1
could not raise the standard of female'
beauty. , . " ' .., ..
"Naturally I regarded the matter as
a Jest, and replied that l-Tculd be glad
to do co, and was open to suggestion.
"'Why, employ one handsome wom
an, and perhaps she will leavna'vthe
whole loaf," he answered, and 'when 1
assented he Inquired seriously:
" 'Would you give a pretty girt an
appointment fTl sent -t,?-r to your' ;
" "Of course I would,' X replied, never
dreaming, .however, that he was in
earnest. -- ;,-
"But the next day a lovely young
girl ram into my office with a note
from President Grant, simply asking
me to fulfill my promise, without re
ferring, however, to its character. I
questioned her closply and found her
as innocent and unsophisticated as she
was pretty. She waa a southerner-and
lived on a plantation all her life, but
wanted a government position, and,
being backed y the president, I ,set
her at work In the dead letter office.
' "While Grant waa on his trip around
the world 1 spent a -Couple of months
wih him in Paris, and one awning as
we Bat talking of the past I askeff him
if he remembered this) young lady.
"'Certainly I do, for 1 have good
cause to remember ber.'i
"I intimated . that f was satisfied
there must be a" story beck of bis ap
pointment and he was in one of his
rare reminiscent moods he related the
following extraordinary exerence:
'U was JttKt before the battle of the
Wilderness that I mounted my horse
and went for u ride. I was full of anx
iety, and irf my preoccupation went
outside of our lines and found to my
dismay that I waa being chased.
" 'My horse was a good one and I
rode hard until I came to a little half
concealed cabin, where 1 dismounted
and said to the man who came to the
door:
" ' "Are you a confederate or a union
man?"
''"I am a confederate," he an
swered proudly.
Well, sir, I am General Grant.
Can you hide me for a little while, as I
am being pursued?"
" ' "How do you know that I v.-on t
betray you?" he inquired curiously.
Because I can trust your face," I
replied, and without more ado he seized
my horse by the bridle and we went
into a deep ravine back of 'his home,
where a moment later he left me, after
bidding me to keep perfectly still.
" 'It waa a glorious moonlight night,
and I could see every object distinctly.
About 11 o'clock I heard the bushes
crackle, and for a moment my heart
leaped for fear as my host came cau
tlosly up behind me.
" ' "Have you betrayed me?" I In
quired sharply.
No, sir," he replied, almost harsh
ly; "the pursuing party has passed, the
coast Is clear and you can return to
your army," ' .
'' 'He put me on the light road, and
as I Jumped into the saddle I grasped
his hand and tried thank bim. 1
totd him , that if I could serve, him or
Klo tn lat'lrm kflOW. & .
t' never sw, him again, but the day
you spoke to me his datirnter came io
me with a letter from ber father, who
Is ' very poor, remlndlnK me of my
promise. And this,' concluded General
Grant, 'was the sole reason I wasted
to ratio tho standard of female beauty
In the dead letter office.' "
UNDER FIRK.
Frevlovs othe assault on. Manila,
the Astor batetry was stationed behind
an old ruined convert, which was sub
sequently used as an emergency hos
pital. At 8:06 o'clock General MacAr
Ihur arrived at this convent, having
traversed a narrow- mud road for a dis
tance of half a mile or more, while the
roud was swept by the lire Iroltr the
Spanish Infantry." Ih personally trans
mitter " orders to the battery com
mander, (General 'MacArthur stood by
the roadside In earnest conversation,
apparently oblivious to the fact that
tv,. huiiets were living all around him.
chipping the leaves from the trees and
;.ipa which lined
bo Bides of the road.- The general's
face was calm ana as -iruwiuii
presslon as though he a parsing the
time of day Instead Of ordering a bat
tery into action. -
"Captain March, do you understand
those orders'" said the general.
"I do, sir." ' ' '
"Well go ahead; but you must not
lose your guns' was the parting order
of General Ma'eArthur, as he turned
tnd mounted his little brown and white
pony and rode to the firing line a hun
dred yards ahead.- '
When the advance was made on the
right of the line the troops were com
pelled lo pass burning Hpsnlsh block
k..,,. n nnri the exolodln ammuni
tion was filling 0e air wit whistling
shells, which resembiea great, y w.
uiiig-swlz of a Mauses. As the troops
r...t.4 tho kom covered by the
ai-kt- thoaa whistling shells their
first impression was that a force of
the enemy must have been concealed
beyond the blockhouse, and it Is an
Siual fact that one company of ln
htry dropped Into the .ditch beside
the road and d tso volleys Into the
burning blockhouse. A rjrtwber ot
uirxt-rierH at each side of the road were
hugging tne injsheii--s closely a pos
...,,... ?llvine. n6 doubt, that they
were being fired upon by the Spanish
Infantry. It was at this stage that Gen
oral MaeArthur came up the road,
silting perfectly upright on bid mud
bespattered pony and seemingly un
mindful of the shells which filled the
air on all sides. Turning to the men
huddled by the roadside, he said,
"Come on. boys, they'll need you at the
front," and that was more than suffi
cient to start the- men past the burn-
i Thrnuirh the mud the little
pony floundered on, catching the head
of the column Just before reaching the
church at Kl raco.
When the Astor battery reached the
rrc-ssroads In front of Kl Paoo church
.. u Hr.t were fired from their 3-inch
guns, and then General MacArthur
-..h. ..t and ut on his horse In the
open roadway In front of the guns.
knrir.d feet ahead a breastwork
was Ihrow a across tbe mad, and on the
left side of the road a'blockhouse was
swarmlnff with tafejtry op the first
u,ai fliuir. ThrougTI the woods
on the rljrnt the sharpshooters In the
trees were pouring nijiiaiiii
chunks -of lead, which splashed the
mud al lardund and went rlchochetlng
through the Jungle to the left and rear.
The American Infantry had marched
..V .hT riht .nd left flanks and were
onamnced behind the church and
stone wail, against which the Mausers
were tattooing wirn ,a qiiiii
-mmm nurtna: all this time Gen. Mac
Bliminf iwsii-
ments of the troops toward the right
and left flank. Finally he moved to
ward the road leading westward in the
direction of the bay, and, as he did so,
two more 3-Inch shells flew down the
oad toward the fringe of flame which
arked the position of the Kpanlsh
easfworks. Again, riding In front ot
the guns, In a voice as calm as though
ordering a change of movement at an
exhibition, the general said:
"Cease firing, Captain; I am going to
storm these works:"
Turning and measuring the distance
with, his eye from his position to the
line ,; of treches ahead, he drew his
horse to the left of the road and in a
clear, firm tone said, "What officer will
lead a charge down this road :
It was to these words, spoken without
tremor, when the bullets fairly
dew by in clouds, that a response was
given by the Astor battery In a pistol
charge. When the general was ex
posed In the center of the crossroads
the men, forgetting discipline and their
own-da n ger, wcre-whouUng at -the gpn
eral, "Look out; you'll be killed!" "Get
off the horse!" and similar solicitous
expressions, all of which made as little
Impression upon the General as the
Spanish bullets which sung around
him like a thousand hornets and failed
the mark so bravely exposed to them.
There care be no doubt of his miracu
lous escape from seeming certain
death, as a hundred pair of eyes saw
him then and a number of time arter
ward seated on the back of that brown
and white pony, facing almost certain
death, with an expresbion as calm and
collected as though It was only a
sham battle with lots of noise and no
danger. An Astor .Battery Man, in the
New York Sun,
' MIGHT SMELL HIS BREATH.
"Jove, old man, I haven't seen you
for tore years. How are you, any
way?" usked Olipperdown when he
ran across Feathtrbee in the lobby of
the Russell house the other day, says
the Detroit Free Press.
"I'm not the man 1 was when we
were at college," was the reply, as the
hands clasped.
"He-en sick?"
"Nope."
"Were you in the army?"
"1 should say not."
"Business reverses?"
"Not one."
"Well, whats' the matter then?"
"Nothing much."
"Yes there Is. You look as though
some one had been telling you an old
story."
"Nothing of the kind."
"Oh, say,, speaking of stories. I've
got a new one. Brown's mother-in-law
' 1
"Stop right there!" exclaimed Feath
erbee with a haunted look In htseyes.
"Clipperdown, there was a time when
I looked upon mother-in-law Jokes as
canards, as delusions, as libels on a
worthy class of human beings, but I
don't any more."
"Why not."
"I've been married since I saw you
last."
"So, that's wat's the matter with
you. is it?"
"I'h huh!"
"Poor old chap
Come in and have
something." .
"Can't do It."
"Why not?"
"Bhe's visiting "us now, and. might
smell my breath. If she did she'd call
out the fire department and alienate
my wife's affections before night."
"It's awful, ain't It?"
"Awful."
And the hands were clasped again,
this time in sympathy,
, ; FOtTWD BY SAUL.
In IS64, says an exchange, a regi
ment' of confederates from Bouth Car
olina were marching- north to Join Lee.
While In North- Carolina they camped
one day" on two opposite hills, between
w hich a road ran It happened that
an -old Methodist fire.ac.her, a strong
unionist, lived In that. vicinity. Kajly
the next mornig the preacher mouVted
his mulo and trotted down the road,
meaning to pass through the camp to
show his contempt for the "rebels." lie
was a very old man, with a stern face
nnd long, 'white beard, which, taken
with his white hair, gave him an ap
pearance decidedly patrlarcbnl.
, "Hullo, fellows, here comes Father
Abraham!" called one soldier to a com
rade: on the opposite hill, as tne
man rode between them.
"Vo h isn't." shouted back
old
the
other; "he's Father Jacob."
The old parson stopied and shook
the finizer of scorn at the laughing sol
diers. "I am neither Father Abraham
nor l-atner jacoo. ne cueu. v e,i
of soldiers gathered about him.
"Well, who are you. then?" persisted
. .. . . i , , , i A I. nut
his tormentor. "It's no use ior you iu
deny you are out of the Old Testa
ment somewhere." -'
The old man rose In his stirrups and
waved his hand toward the amp in
comprehensive' contempt.
"Yes, I am out of the. Old Testa
ment, sure enough," he tftrei1- ."I'm
Soul, the son of Kish, looking for bis
father's asses, and I've found 'hem."
. A. RKCONDITB PKOHLRM.
The lawyer was sitting before his
desk with one foot on the armrest. A
bright appearing fellow entered the of
fice. -, f: - . ; - -
"What can I do fur you?" asked the
lawyer,, removing the rampant foot.
"I Just dropped in to get your idea
on a point of definition," began the
young man. "You see, it is to settle a
bet.'
Yes," contlT'iifd the lawyer; "go on."
WpII " continued the young man,
"when a fellow's wife leaves him, and
there Is no divorce he Is a grass-widower,
isn't he?"
"Yes; that's what he is generally
called.'' '
"Well, then, here's the point," added
the youth .emphasizing his words by
tapping the palm of his left hand with
the nrednger of his right.
"Dan Hopper's wife left him, and
there was no divorce. Does that make
him a grasshopper?"
He dodged Just In time to miss com
ing in contact, with the Ink well. .
, -
WHY 11B DMCLINED.
The Man with the Freckles on his
Nose glanced carelessly over the morn
ing paper which the Man with the
Barbed Wire Beard had thoughtfully
subscribed for.
"Will you-"
The landlady spoke his name with in
ftnlle'tweetness. for she fondly hoped
he would pay his board after supper.
V-have some oyster stew?"
Tha man with the Freckles on his
Nose tilted back his chair In defiance
of ths laws of etiquette and gravita
tion. " -,
"No, thank you"
A far-away lok came Into his eyes,
"I'Bi not thirsty."
It hi a matter of coajecture whether
V' was motlii or stage fright that
caused the Man with the Tellow
Whiskers to sneese so violently that
ha upset the gait cellar
APHASIA AFFLICTS THE CZAR
The czar of Russia is sufferlf from
aphasia. There Is not one chance In
a hundred that he can be cured.
Physicians have hitherto looked upon
aphasia as a mental malady. Incurable
save by a severe surgical operation,
and that is effective only In rare cases.
Aphasia is the Greek word for speech
lessness. Technically it is defined as the Im
pairment or abolition of the faculty of
using and understanding language
written or spoken independently of any
failure of the Intellectual process or
any disease or paralysis of the vocal
organs.
The trouble is all in the brain Itself.
Sometimes tbe aphasia is complete,
sometimes only partial. Physicians
group Us"dilYerefl-fcrrBB-under-different
heads.
Thus sensory aphasia Is the name
they give to its severer aspect, when
the patient can n either read nor speak
intelligently. He is then said to be
both word blind and'word dfaf. He Is
not deaf to sounds, he is not blind to
written characters, but he no longer
associates them with the idea that
underlies them. The casual observer
might Imagine that he was an idiot;
the doctor sees that he preserves his
Intelligence, reason and perceives sur
rounding objects, but is unable to com
municate with others; he can no longer
i-peak or understand the words address
ed to him; he cannot write or read;
sometimes even the language of ges
ture is lout to him.
When the patient Is merely word
blind hi scase is described as motor
aphasia. He picks up a book or news
paper, and it says nothing to him. He
hears, understands and speaks; he can
even write, but he cannot read. As a
rule his writing looks like it was dono
in the dark; guided by the muscle feel
ings of the hand alorie. He cannot
read what he has Just written, nor can
he write from copy. His own name,
that has been well impressed upon his
motor centers, he usually writes very
well, but he cannot read it. The dis
ease here, then, Is in the loss of the
memory for the visual word signs: the
patient la not blind, but word blind.
The exact converse of this condition
Is known as agraphia. Here the pa
tient can speak, can read manuscript or
print, but he cannot write. He takes
the pen In hand to write a word, knows
what he ought to write, how it would
look if written, but he cannot write
it. He has lost the memory of the
movements necessary to form the let
ters. The association between the
movements made in writing and the
word has been lost. He is not word
blind or word deaf, but the motor word
sense 1 defective,
The patient who is word deaf, or who,
in technical language, suffers from ver
bal aphasia, can read and write and
hear. He can even hear the sounds
of the human voice. But he attaches
no meaning to them. Inferring that he
is spoken to, he may attempt to an
swer, but will say something entirely
irrelevant. Gradually appreciating that
he is not speaking to the point, he may
with some Impatience ask why he can
not understand what you say.
.Ataxic aphasia is the term used to
denote the inability to express ideas in
spoken words. The loss here is the link
between the idea and the appropriate
movements of tongue, etc., necessary to
make the sounds of words. Often the
patient retains a few phrases used on
all occasions. The power of hearing
and understanding is letained, writing
and reading are Intact, and speaking
alone has dropped out.
The mildest of all forms of aphasia
Is a modification of the latter, and is
known as amnesic aphasia. Here the
patient is unable to recall the word he
wants, though able to speak it when
found.
That no man Is wholly sane is a say
ing so old as to be commonplace. In
the same way no man is without some
i touch of aphasia of the amnesic va
riety. You who r?au mum unve .,.crj
enced occasional difficulties. In bringing
to the surface a particular word at the
mnnient vou wished to use It. In vain
yfllJ summon u mmi lug vnmj v.e.-7p
your memory. You know that it is
!s()mPhow within the sphere of your con
-- 1. f ,1 .,,, ,. ,,,,nn ...
sciousness, by a daring metapnor you
cry impatiently that it is at the very
tip of your tongue, but you cannot,
memory cannot seize It nor ran tongue
utter it. You find yourself verbally in
solvent, not from want of assets, but
because the assets are not immediately
available.
Inasmuch as every other man suffers
at Intervals from the difficulty you
rightly consider yourself In a normal
condition. Let this difficulty, however,
be only slightly aggravated, and you
have the rudimentary form of disease
arising from an abnormal cerebral con
dition; In other words, you are suffering
from aphasia.
An eminent French jurist, on con
suiting hlB physician, exhibited the fol
lowing mental peculiarities: In the mid
dle of a conversation he would find
himself at a loss for the word he want
,i ,i ai ii,,,.. substituted a strange
one for it. On other occasions he would
jay (0 wlfe eGve m(M mynpar me!
you know;" and he would point to ins
head.
"Your hat?"
"Oh, yes; my umbrella."
Patients of this sort often exercise
great Ingenuity In avoiding during con
versation or writing the words they fail
to properly recall. By means of oddly
constructed sentences they often hide
this defect In speech from strange.
One man, who could never remember
the word "aunt." was in the habit of
denominating that lady "the nearest
relative by my mother's side."
Sometimes the word substituted is
neither of the anture of a synonym or
a periphrasis, but bears only an arbi
trary, and Bometlmes a whimsical, re
lation to that missing word. One old
man, who had forgotten the names of
his servants, was accustomed to call
his footman by the name of "Young
Water;" his butler, "Old WWaler;" his
medical attendant he knew by the not
very complimentary title of "Young-Knock-Hlm-Down."
People of rank
whose names he had forgotten were
styled such names as "the king.' "the
queen," "the grand vizier." Occasional
ly to mark more clearly the person to
whom he referred, he had recourse to
mimicking characteristic trails of man
ner, or showing off oddities of personal
appearance, such as describing with nil
arm the capacity of an abdomen.
On one occasion he put an almanai
into the hands of his medical attend
ant and asked what o'clock it was
meaning the day of the month.
A SMALL BOY'S AMBITION.
My brother Fred the nicest man, s
big an' straight an' till.
Why, he can do all kinds of things thai
I can't do at all!
An' you always him whlstlln' while
he's workin' round.
Sometimes he doubles up his arm, an'
says to me "now pound!"
An' when I pound him (awful hard) he
he only laughs at me,
When I am big that's Just the kind of
man I'm going to be.
i
Sometimes when I've been hammerin"
an' the nails won't go in straight.
My brother Fred he comes along, an'
says, "why, that's first-rate!"
An' then hetakes my hammer an' he
taps Just once or twice,
An' all those crooked bent up nails go
io as btiatght an' nice!
Ah, then he laughs and picks me up,
till I am taller an' he.
An' when I'm big that's just the kind
of man I'm going to be.
Sometimes when I'm a playin' round,
I break things an' feel bad;
But Frr-d he come a whistlin' long an'
says "don't look so sad."
Then off he goes an' pretty soon I hear
bim comin' back;
An' what I broke's all mended up so
ma can't find a crack!
I don't cry then, but laugh, an mmama
laughs, an' so does he.
An' when I'm big that's just the kind
of man I'm going to be.
Once I was sick a visltin', I guess 1
was most dead.
But my ma she knew what to do sh
sent for brother Fred.
An' Fred he picked me right straight
up an' carried me on home
So easy in his big strong arms. An'
wa'nt I glad to come!
An' I was thinkin' all along as he was
bringin' me,
WTien I am big Fred's Just the kind of
man I'm going to be.
QUAINT FEATURES OF LIFE. J
'-r
Frank Bemls, of Columbus, O., cap
not keep warm though he wears five
suits of underclothing the year round
and sleeps in an ulster and woolen
cap. He usually carries about forty
pounds of clothing, besides $30,000 in
life insurance, and sayB he can pass a
better medical examination than most
men. Physicians do not know what is
the matter with him.
Occasionally the . "patent insides"
play some curious pranks on the coun
try publishers. On the patent side of a
central Kansas paper lat It was stated
that "during the last ten days there
were four deaths from heat in Kansas
City, Kas., and two on the Missouri
side."
By sticking to it for nineteen years
George T. Gambrill, of Baltimore, ha
finally succeeded in collecting $456 from
the Baltimore & Ohio road, an over
charge on .wheat shipment in 188!.
The company ignored his claim at first,
and he finally begun to bombard the
officials with postal cards, which he
sent by the thousand. Then he took,
to writing dainty scented notes, and
that fetched the railroad company
which has just settled his claim.
Attacked by an angry ram, Peter
Conger, a farmer of Middleton, New
York, climbed a tree in his yard to
escape the animal. His wife hearing
his cries, unmindful of the risk, rushed
Into the yard. The ram prepared for
combat, but the plucky woman com
menced to hurl sand from a pile in the
yard at the ram so strongly, as she
dodged hither and thither, that tho
animal, blinded by the dirt, was finally
compelled to retreat and was driven
Into its enclosure, after which the far
mer climbed down from the tree.
The Philadelphia & Reading railroad
has four pensioners who have served
the company honorably and continu
ously for fifty or more years. Daniel
Burke of Phiiadeiphia. being the latest
one added to the list, after fifty-two
years' continuous service. He will re
ceive $:J0 a month from the company,
and his comrades have given him a
gold watch and a big, comfortable
chair, "in which to rest his weary
limbs for the remainder of his days."
He is 72 years of age.
In view of the purchase of the Danish
West Indies, the New York Press re
calls an insldent of twenty-odd years
ago that nearly caused serious inter
national complications. An American
marksman paying a visit to Charlotte
Amalla amused the governor by an ex
hibition of his skill with the rifle. Sit
ting on the veranda of the governor's
house, he said that he could sut with a
bullet the signal halyards on the flag
staff at the fort and lower the Danish
standard to the ground. As the lines
were almost invisible in the distance,
the governor was willing to bet that
he could not do It. The snot rang out
and the flag fell. Presently a horse
man dashed up, informing the gover
nor that someone had fired on the flag.
There was great excitement. The gov
ernor, none too popular, it seems, with,
the military, lulled his political future
by admitting that the afialr was a joko
in which he connived. Report being
sent to Copenhagen, highly colored, of
course, by the commandment, his ex
cellency was summarily removed.
A western packing company Is cir
culating the following trade circular In
i England: "To our friends across tha
! sea we send greeting. As the year
I roll by we are drawn nearer and nearer
together by Christian blood and money
ties, and may this ever be. We are)
I are located In a section that grows a
pig that, for leanness and quality
j comes nearer to your home-grown and)
, Canadian pigs than any that can be)
raised In any part of the states. Wo
' are now putting up a class of light
1 fancy English and Irish meats that,
, for delicacy of cure and extreme mild
ness cannot be furnished by any other
packing company In the great west.
Your wants can always be supplied by
our friends and sole agents, Messer
& May all your ways b
pleasantness and all yaur days be
peace. Yours Truly,
THE PACKING CO,"
A dainty belt buckle for sea h or
costume has a scroll of water - Miles,
with a dolphin In the centre, aad to
made of gold or oxidized silver."
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