Harrison press-journal. (Harrison, Nebraska) 1899-1905, August 21, 1902, Image 4

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    Ballaine's Bank
mm TTTTfri
THKUE wan a crowd blocking the
pavement aud f a r. i n with evl
'Jetit interest at one of the great !
plat giass windows' of 'ihe UVtiiTmrd !
"N'ation.'il Bank. At a distance it looked i
Jike : "run," hut a closer view showed ;
the entrance of the hunk unobstructed, j
A notice, written in a hold hand, and
hung inside the window, was the ob
Ject of the crowd's curiosity. It read:
At the opening of this hank to-day
Mr. T. Fillmore Hallaine's halance was
iillT hi, m."
For two weeks a similar notice had
appeared regularly i-jain the window
of the bank. It began on a Monday
morning, and the few that glanced at
ft learned that T. Fillmore Ballaine
had tt&) 2. Id. therein. Who Mr. T.
Fillmore Ballaine was no one seemed
to know, and why the bank should
make public a matter usually retarded
is a business secret none could guess.
Jut everyone who read It puzzled over
t and looked up at the Dotice the next
Jme they passed the Lombard Na
tional Bank.
On Tuesday the notice read YJ.
Id., and on Wednesday it read ixTtj
9s. 51. In the morning, but was re
placed at tlie hour of closing by a new
notice, which read 7J0 l!s. 3d. By
Thursday the affair was in the papers,
and on Friday the daily balance was
the topic of the town. All day long
on Saturday a crowd stood at the bit;
window and discussed Mr. Ballaine'!"
balance of ll,'S 7s. M., and passed
comments thereon.
At the hour of closing a new notice
proclaimed that Mr. Ballaine had
had 1.41)1 15s. lid. therein, and some
wag In the crowd gravely pawed, hih
bat, saying: "Let" make it even
money:" On Monday morning Mr. Bal
laine was surprised to find that some
one had left a deposit of one penny
or him. and that his balance stood at
n even f !..,.
During the "second week Mr. Bal
aine's bank balance climbed more
4lowIy; but every Increase was hailed
with delight by the crowd in front of
the window, who knew neither Mr.
Ballaine nor the secret of his peculiar
advertisement, yet who thoroughly eu
Joyed both. 1
-Not till Wednesday pf the second
week did the notice in the window
credit Ballaine with il.tino. Then a
man In the crowd offered to bet a hun
dred that !t would touch 2.xio by Satan-day.
For a moment the crowd
thought he must be Ballaine, and
rS'iyed him unmercifully; but some one
.recognized him as a city sporting man,
.nd his bet was not taken.
Thursday was the' tenth of the
jnonth, and Mr. Ballaine evidently paid
Jt. few hula, for on Friday the balance
In the window went down to 1.4;.
where it hung till the close of business
of Saturday. Then the clerk put up a
newnoti-e. and the eager crowd cheer
ed when It rd'-2.a 10 4d. t
On Monday morning a portly man.
roddy of face, grizzled and grumbling,
pushed into the crowd and read the
notice. With a grunt of disgust he en
tered the bank. The cashier recog
nized him as one of his heaviest de
positors, and greeted him pleasantly.
"Good morning. Mr. Penny."
"Good morning. I beard alsnit your
remarkable window and came to have
a look. Striken me as being ridiculous.
I dou't see how you can allow it," said
Mr. Penny, removing his silk hat and
.wiping a moist brow.
".Mr. Ballaine obtained permission
from the manager," replied the cash
ier, smiling.
"He did, eh? Who la thin man Bal
lalner A young solicitor. Very bright fel
low, quite original In his method. Thla I
plan wan his own. He brought enough
Influence to bear through his friends to
obtain the necessary permission from
the powers that be. It has proved a
remarkable attraction to the public."
"Friend, eh? Who were they?
The cashier enumerated some of the
most prominent of the younger bul
etw men of the city.
"All right," Interrupted tlie capitalist
with the air of a man who had heard
displeasing new. "When the young
man comes In tell him he wlna." Then
he left the hank.
The cashier smiled, for he knew
what Ballaine'- "winning" meant, and
he reported the conversation to the
manager.
But the crowd outside knew nothing
f this, and only gaped a usual at the
alga. That day It dropped to l,srjO
a. ad., and remained there for ten
4ay. when It jumped to 10.400 11.
M. That night the evening paper
claimed the sale of Mr. Penny's fa
a riverside mansion for a fabulous
mm, and conveyed tlie Interesting In
formation : ,
"The deal waa consummated by Mr.
T. Fillmore Ballaine, a solicitor In Ea
M Chambers, whoa rommlaelon on
fAW deal alone la 8,40."
Kett day many people looked np at
Che btf window f fbe Lombard Na
tBaaat, bat there waa no trace of Mr.
frjavee baa a sign .wlcb read:
"Aaaay OOee. Vahaea Paid for Gold
IHat and Mae-gets"
Cart tfM psfeMe had beroaoe curioo
'.-, Z Oa MVipapiii wart worried Into
, T t aCarU at riving the
t u tj-r--at, however, aa tfr.
I tZ 7 ! taw
're rra t ta er3aV
f""n
Balance
-HhiH-ltdJ
ed for a time; but when certain so
siety leaders began giving recherche
5 o'clock dinners' for Mis Penny the
"SiicieTjr tiifi on the r I'-jrily Record added
suspicion to scculatioii aud arrived
safely at the facts.
The story ns told in the Record was
widely read.
It related the coming of Mr. Ballaine
to town here he opened, an office as a
solicitor and proceeded to get himself
known. W'thout waiting for business
to 4-oiue to him he went aliout making
business and with tlie small capital
given him by his father on which to
Is-gin life he Iwwght aiuf sold and at
the same time made friends and
studied men and things.
Then he met the charming Miss Pen
ny, only child of Penny the promoter.
Penny the owner of shares and finan
cial Interests galore, a man of quick
temper, who took delight in a business
encounter with a strong mind. With
Mis Penny the young solicitor pros
pers!; but with Mr, Penny the sign
never seemed to be right.
In the quiet of his office the young
solicitor planned assaults on the fath
er, having already won the daughter's
blushing permission to do so. He knew
that the battle must !' a commercial
one, but as the weapons were all on his
adversary's .side he figured that be
must capture Mr. Penny with Sir.
Penny's own ammunition. That took
nerve, but nerve waa nothing to young
Ballaine.
The scene letween Mr. Penny and
the young Ballaine, when the latter
asked for Miss Penny, was one of the
most delightful conflicts of the form
er's business career. Mr. Penny heaped
up conditions which he felt sure the
young man could not satisfy, and as
Ballaine met them- one by one the
elder man warmed to the -contest He
rather enjoyed being lssted in the pre
liminaries, as he felt sure of the main
issue.
Character? Tlie young man named
the lwst men In town as his associates.
Family? The Ballaines were known In
Yorkshire before Pennys were coined.
Prospects? The young man had bis
profession, some real estate, mining
stock enough to mi per a hoarding
house, three thousand In the bank, and
a nerve that was worth fifteen pence to
the shilling. Ont of the question? Not
at all; the girl loved him. and he was
merely calling on her father to arrange
matters.
"No young man can marry my
daughter till he has fKUXiO of bis own
in the lumk."
"That's easy. What will you take
for your building lends Mr. Perry?'
Mr. Penny's soul expanded in an
ecstasy as he named the prb-e.
"I told you net to joke" said the
young man, severely. "1 want a thirty
day option on that proerty. Name a
reasonable cash price."
Mr. Penny knew that the r'reat Kast
ern wanted tin" laud, but would not
buy liecause someone, who held a bit
between the penny acres and the rail
way company's proposed station at
liativille. would not sell.
But Penny did not know that the
young man facing him had secured an
option on the much-discussed strip.
The option had cost him dear, but it
was the key to the whole battlefield.
So Mr. Penny, thinking to tantalize the
young man, named a very reasonable
figure.
"I'll take an option at that price for
ten days." said Ballaine.
"I want 2.K for the option," re
plied Mr. Penny "I'll give you a month
to get that sum. When you bring the
Cash I'll give yo-l the option."
"That is fair," said Ballaine, rising to
leave the room.
"Keep me posted," shouted Mr. Pen
ny a the younger man disappeared
through the door.
"I will" shouted the retreating voice
pleasantly. And then Mr. Penny heard
a ringing laugh come back through the
long hall for the lover had been struck
with a sudden Inspiration.
That week Ballaine gathered a dozen
yoUDg men personal friends, leaders In
the city' commercial life, at a dinner.
At the proper moment he told them his
plan, and they helped him to win the
manager of the Ixmlaird National to
his aid. A telegram to-the ('reat East
ern headquarter, offering the Penny
lands under Ballaine' promised option,
and the heretofore unpurchasable strip
with It. brought a prompt acceptance;
and for two weeks the young man sold
hi pnsperty ri.rht and left to secure the
required 2.000 while the notice In the
window kept Mr. Penny and half the
town also, posted as to hi uccea.
lie could have borrowed that
amount hut he had a large game on
foot that spurred him to win on hi
own merits. HI office bee me crowded
with men who desired to buy or sell
some Mt of real property, and do It
quickly.
Men who wanted a certain hit of
property wrote Ballaine confidential
letter to boy the coveted corner for
them. By prompt buying and selling
HallaJne took commiaalooa from both
Idea, and the balance on the window
rilmbed. When It reached the 2,000
mark Mr. Penay capitulated. The word
which be left at the b-tnk that Monday
morning brought Ballaine promptly to
bla o6Ve. The yoang man caartad a
alraed chark far 24)00.
"1 sis-art was roar Hseefc," aaM the
aaaa. "I pm U taka that
trT antf ( vtzUm.-
till my coromlsflon for selling your
laud to the Oreat Eaatern hus been
paid to me."
"Do you want to rulti me?" demand
ed Mr. Penny In well-assumed alarm..
"A moment ago," said Ballaine, "yon
declared that I could not sell Now
you are afraid I can. Your change of
sentiment is a compliment, sir." And
the young man laiwed.
"After that option ha expired,' said
Mr. Penny, "you can frame it and
hang it in your office. Keep your
clteck. You will ne"d it."
. lialiaine raced back to bis btlice, and
then, with the option and certain ab
stract:! atit! title, went to the general
manaifer of the company he had been
In treaty with to report progress. The
manager, when lie saw the paiierg in
all their delightful completion, pounded
on the table and callel Ballaine a
brick. The business settled, the young
man returned with vouchee and docu
ments proving preliminary settlement,
and planted the papers down for Mr.
Penny's inspection.
The old gentleman was much sur
prised, but he signed his deeds anJ ac
cepted his price without a murmur.
"M'.ss Penny's dower." said the Rec
ord, In conclusion, "Is said on good au
thority to be n quarter of a million.
That means that the Ballaine Bank
balance will shortly take another
jump."
But the public never again saw that
balance on the window.' New York
News. " .....
Ke Life and the Hage.
"No man will lw n sailor." said Dr.
Johnson, "who has contrivance enough
to get himself Into jail." l)r. Johnson
was, however, a landsman, while many
of the following expressions are the
opinions of seafaring people. "He who
trusts himself on the sea is' either a
rool or he Is poor or he wauts to die.
Pi . '.1i ! .. T. - j u .u-
umisiii is no sironger mm uir
following saying, by the maritime
Dutchmen; "Better on the heath with
an old cart than at sea with a new
ship." "Better walk poor than to sail
rich." says the Spaniard and in the
same spirit his Italian nelghlor re
sponds "Praise the sea, but stay on
shore." Another maritime nation, the
Danish, gives u this strong opinion:
"One penny Is better on land than ten
at sea." German woodsmen say: "The
sea has no branches (to cling to), there
fore it is better to stay on shore," ami
the French rustics agree with them:
"Admire tlie sea as much as you will,
but don't stir from the cowsheds."
The Arab fears the sen as much to
day as lie did In the fifteenth century,
when he thought the hand of Satan
would arise from the "sea of darkness"
to seize his frail bark- "It I better."
he says, "to hear the belching of the
camel than the prayers of the fish,"
and he further outlines the dangerous
nature, of the element when he says:
"The sea has a tender stomach, but a
head hard as wood." A facetious
work a century old has It thus: "The
ship is a fool, for It. moves continual
ly; the sailor Is a fool, for he changes
his mind with every breefce; the water
is a fool, for It Is never still: the wind
is a fool, for It blows without ceasing.
I.et us make an end at once of naviga
tion." t'nique Type Haa Vanished.
"What has become of the man who
usi to visit his neiglilKir In the even
ing aud spend the' time -'reading hi
nelirhlmr's newspaper?" asked one who
travels in the interior of the country.
"1 suppiwe he was never known In the
city, but he was much in evidence in
the smaller towns a long time ago.
"I think he has criHhfd from the
face of the earth. I used to see him,
and heard of him often.
"He usually made a call accompanied
by his wife. If he had one. It was
when the newspaper had a place on
the table alongside the family Bible.
"Tlie visitor, having made the usual
remark ataiut the weather, adjusted
his spectacle, picked up the newspa
per nod drew nigh to the shaded lamp.
Judging from his manner and the time
he devoted to it. nothing ccaied his
notice, ami judging from his face, ev
ery tiling was alike to him.
"He was oHIvIour to the conversa
tion of others. When he had finished
he last column of the last page of the
sneer tie iosse.1 u aside, arm when one
of the family circle aikcd hlrn what
was the news, he always said there
was none, and. loklng at the clock on
the mantel, remarked that it was iater
than be thought and took bis depart
ure. "I hare an Idea that he would not be
tolerated now, but when he was on
earth nobody was annoyed by lilm."
Chicago Inter Ocean.
Infrequeat Birthdays.
The tnemliers of the Berlin Society
of l4ap Year Children to which none
are admissible unless born on Feb. 254
will ke-p their common birthday In
great style In V-A. They have had no
opiortunly for eight years, and In Hl
the extra February day, according io
the rule of the reformed calendar, was
omitted. Herr Monteur, the president
of the society, Is to-day a septuagenar
ian, but In the seventy year of hi life
he ha only had neventeen birthdays.
He hope to celebrate hi eighteenth
birthday and serenty-aeconil year of bis
life In the midst of hi colleague on
Feb. 2. 1I04.
Veaarta In NlaohleC
Vesuvius has taken to emitting vapor
artirated with hydrochloric geld,
which, falling a rain, ha done grave
damage to vegetation.
It la believed that rubber la deal lord
to herotM a moat Important source of
wealth t Pen.
raxhan jreoaf ajea can gttie 4tmm4
la tstn xxi
One man and a deadly torja-do fioat
1 ig a!'Ut iM'iicath the surface of the
ater. The torpedo charged so that ft
ill blow a great warship to destruc
; on: the man provided with means by
bieb to discharge Uii dangerous
icapon In a way to do the most harm.
.Mich Is the latest of all torpedo boats
; one-mini alTalr, not larger than a
large tish. and yet as effective in Its
purposes. If the theory of its Inventor
is corrci t, as one of the Holland sub
marine boats.
The man who has perfected this of
fenslve and invisible destroyer is
niomas .1. Moriarity. for many years
.tUi mechanical expert In the employ
of the I' ulte'd Slates Government at
the torpedo station at Newport.
Mr. Moriarity was long ago Impress
ed with the idea thal lhe only way by
which to make the action of the tor
pedo actually certain was to put an ck-IM-ricnced
opera tor .Inside It; for, while
Its automatic machinery operates with
almost human Intelligence, there is no
certainly that it will on long ranges
do exactly what Is required of It. From
the Idea of putting a man inside it to
that of placing a man outside it, the
transition was easy; and It then be
came a problem to give him a safe
shelter, means of. locomotion, of sub
merging and of discharging the projec
tile. To accomplish these essentials he has
devised a cigar-shaped boat of bronze
plates, about ten feet long, three feet
deep and five fet wide. Beneath this
Is uM'iidcd the Whitehead torpedo in
a frame, -and It is proi"lled by com
pressed air when the ojierator lias ap
proached near the mark.
WONDERFUL IRON ELEPHANT.
Designed for Great Ki position by a
., ' Chicago Man.
Mr. Joseph Husak, of Chicago, Is pre
pared to out -Ferris Ferris at the St.
IxhiIs exposition, or at any other exjio
sitlon'ivhlch may come.along and make
room for bis "iron elephant," V feet
long and 2.i0 feet in height or for his
"Jonah's whale." 50 feet long and ill
In girth in -irojiortlon.
The "Iron elej'hant", Is the chief fea
ture and creatmu of Mr. Husak' In
ventive faculty, and; he pnrjioses to
adapt the metal beast to more uses
than the Indian lieaat I cajiable of In
the flesh. The'liody of the animal Is to
be four stories in height the floors to
lie reached by elevators running in the
legs of the creature. The first floor i
to be used and rented for small show
rooms; .the second loor for a cafe and
restaurant and furnish entrance to the
MM. Ht'SAK S IRON KI.I I'II V"T.
elephant's trunk, which Is to lie i-ou-htructed
to iull the ear up and down
and at the same time swing. The third
floor will be used for all ort of
amusements, and serve a an entrance
to the "chute of chute" and to Ihe
small Ferris wheel In each car of tin
elephant The fourth floor can lie used
for a theater or music hall, placing tie1
stage In the head of the beast On tojt
of the creature will lie a roof garden
or an observatory. The eyes will le
two gigantic searchlight, and the t'
might be used by some Inventor to
show a new Are escape. All signals
may lie trumpeted from till structure,
and electric power will be used to run
the different devices.
Mr. Hussk's whale will he In irosir
t'ons to simulate the real thing. Kven
the Interior of Ihe animal will lie cou
tureted according to economy af na
ure. only that entrance to the Inside
'.hrugh the moutl will be through an
ipllfled Jaw. Windows will tie pro
rlded. and the whale, swimming In a
ircular tank, will be operated by elec.
'rlclty, rising and sinking at the slight
at wish of the operator.
TABITHA SANBORN'S RIDE.
ba Realljr CmiMa't Boar to Waste
Tlaa from Mar Work.
Some of the feala which oar fore
n tot hers performed quite aa a matter
of cou rat when domestic e-mrfeaelea
tteciirred ware aacfc aa would tag the
ajmlgnwra aa4 eaajaga af the hardletK
Atgiillllll (J I i
Ir1: e e r or cob 0 o ir-NfL I
When In the lioat the 'ojierator lie
on a cradle astride of Its sujiport. Pad
ded jinuijrs on the cradle curve over his
shoulders and hold him In place, provid
ing also a purchase for his arms when
operating the lever In front of him
He wears a waistcoat made of two
thicknesses of airtight material, to
which is attached a small tnotilh tube
by which it is inflated. It serves as a
pudding for the body while the oj.er
ator is In the boat and nm a life
preserver In an emergency.
Air Ik admitted through the rear mast
and circulates throughout the boat
This air tube Is. however, automatical
ly closed When the boat Is beneath the
surface of the water, and the conning
tower is comjiletely covered by means
of a hydrostatic piston. oen to the
water at the bottom of the Isiat the
jiressure of the water at the. Increased
depth forcing up the piston. .hlch ac
tuates a lever to force a valve over the
alr-tulM' opening, thus jireventlng the
entry of water through it.
The same motion of the ls(on ojer
ates levers connected to a valve in the
compressed air tank in the IsMtom of
ihe boat, opening It and thus allowing
a tine stream of air to Issue therefrom
Into the boat, and supjilylng the ojier
ator with fresh air. As the boat again
reaches the surface tlie jiressure on the
hydrostatic piston Is released liecause
there Is less depth of water and the air
tube Is again ojs-ned and the air taok
valve closed.
The lorjM'do Is fired by oomiroed
air, but on leaving Its casing the jiro
pelllng mechanism of tlie jirojectile is
set In motion, and II starts off under
its own power for the mark.
athletic maidens of our own day. Hau
nb Sanlsirn Phllbrook. In a recent
article on old time Sanborntoii, relates
how an ancestress of hers sujqilied a
deficiency In her weaving siinratus. '
She found unexpectedly that her
work required the use of x certain reed
ami harness which could le obtained
only at a place five miles distant,
reached by a road leading over a num
ber of teei and dangerous hills.
She was alone in Jhe house. with her
baby and another young child, whom
she could lint leave to go on an er
rand. Nevi-nhelcM,. I,e eoiild no! en
dure the ie i,f wasting lime in wait
ing for that, reed and harness when if
she only had them sbe could make ic
good progress with her web. Jler bus
band on mil the "smartest 4 year-old
colt in town." and this lively animal,
nothing daunted, she mounted with her
baby In lief nn, taking the other
child on a jrillloii U-bln.l ,er.
"Soon after her arrival." write her
great-granddaughter, "there were signs
f a coming temst. and she had to
hasleu. '1 he reed an, harness, at least
four f-et long, were Is.imd In the colt;
and she turned toward home.
"My Great gn at uncle ( ate said that
when he j.e, his bouse she was go-j
inz like the wind, the sky was black
with the coming storm, and the thun-i
der and jighiifing were terrible. As
eoou as j cleared off he saddled his
horse and fr.o.-d, ex(ectlng,' he said,
to find 7 I ibis and the children dead
!n -h- r-ad. Hut 1 went rlean over
all the Way. amthere she was, getting
uji.er nd irta.it! ii g, ae lively as a
cricket r " ' . '
.She w not erVii wet; f,)r the smart
4-year-old. urged to the utmost, had,
succeeded, in spite of 1,1. .pjeer and
cumbrous load, in racing the shower
and Is ating It. Kuji,er over. Mrs. San
Isirn, with a tranquil mind and the
juojier Imj.leinenls. was able to resume
her unir.!crrtited weaving.
Mriiig Ihe KnU Together.
A certain colonel soinew here In th
South (no matter wlierei B ,,,,
nalill or telling yarns and irri.ii- .
aggeraiing. He had a negro servant
corrooorsteij everything his mas
ter told. One day tlie eoiniiel .......
gentlemen to dinner, and they were en
Joying some fine veniW xt-rj much,
i lie ciMoiii-i said:
"Yes, 1 went hunting the other day
and saw a fine buck. I took a good
sight at lil mi and shot him through tlie
head, and the bullet went through hi
hind leg."
The gentlemen ln,kod at each M,e
a Utile mystified. The negro scratched
his head and at last said:
"Ye. Indeed, gem men; Just a massa
raised the gun to shoot de buck he
ralsv hi hind lea and scratch hi ...
and the bullet went through the head
urn ngni inrough de hind leg." The
gentlemen looked more satisfied,
Arter the guest had gone the negro
said to hi master:
"f lorry mighty, massa ne ttr...
tell one of dom yarn do get the end
cloater togedder. I had hard work te
make both eada meet."
A man Isn't really great until th
newspaper begin to print joke he has
originated, which are aa dreary that
couldn't draw a uukfh fraaj a asaa wltt
moaay m ua aackM,
. ..a r.praii4
Consul Tyler Kays lmanl for Wfcoe
la Kemarhanic
im.Hcma will be amused to leara
that the bicycle fever afit'ie "bicycle
face" have taken iosseslou of the peo-
nle of that oldest and most neerepn
empire of the effete Orient -IVr1a-
-nd that the subject or tne jsuai ua
zne quite "fluffy" "iw-n the sunjec
lobn Tvler.'the American elinatil at Te
heran, says )n a Jirief letter:;
boiit seventeen years ago. a Mr.
Stevens, an American traveler, on hl
bicycle tour around the world, stayed
. . . -r . 1 . r - ., Tkdl II- a ill.
some moninsai n-m-inx. .
first eihlbfTlon of this mode of travel
ing witnessed in Persia, and It cansej
1 good deal of curiosity and amueiuent
among the people. His lute majesty
N'aser dldin Sliah, and til court ex
amined the bicycle In the palace, and
were much Interested In Mr. Stevens
riding jierforninnee and his account of
his travels. Since that time other per
sons have visited Teheran on similar
upeditlotis, and private Individual,,
resilient In the city, have imjiorted ma
chines for rhelr oivn n, so at the
present, time tlie bicycle has become
one of the n-cogtlized method of'Soeo-
moJion."
In other words, the Persians hate
the bicycle fever, and have It bad. Im
agine a devout Persian going to lb
mosque on Friday on his wheel, and.
meeting his neighbor, Hal!-! Ben All,
coiiijiaritig notes with him ou the mer
its of. their respective wheel. Also
imagine the rage of !!an, when som
rascally Inlldel dog of a gaiour spritt-'
kle broken glass along the roadway,
thus causing a puncture to hi '.Ire.
Again think of Ytisouf Ben Adliem.
"whose name led all the rest." swear
ing by the beard of the projiliet that
his sprocket and ball Iwiirlngs were
out of older, or of the lady Schehere-
zade. the Satisfaction of the Soul, start
ing ont on her bike In search of orig
inal matter with which to conclude her
loni-vv Inded narrative.
Continuing, Mr. Tyler says: "The
conservatism of habit I much stron
ger In Kasteni than In Western lands,
and In this country the bicycle haa
been looked upon as something mean
and contemjiilble. but utility and eim-
oniy are now questions of more press
ing lniKti.itiee than formerly, and pre
judice has glv en jilace to .a more liber
al and enlightened opinion: and thosf
who jirevloiisly ojijiosed tlie Introduc
tion of the bicycle have eomo to ap
jms iaie Its .value as a jiubstMute fol
the more expensive horse."
Mr. Tyler concludes bis letter to the
State Department by lvliug Ameri
cans iiiBi, of an new markets for bi
cycles, Persia head the list. .
Gas was first Wl f a street lllti
mlnant In Baltimore, gas lamps being
introduced In that eify Jn ihe year
1S1H.
The lantern of the t.undy Island
lighthouse Is .Vll fee! nltore high water,
and can be seen thirty-one miles. The
Cape Clear light Is 4.V) feet als.ve the
sea. ' ' ..-
The lati-st astronomical jthotograph,
jircjinred by the Joint exertions of tlx
observatories of I-oinluii. Berlin and
Paris, shows sixty-eight millions of
stars.
Ill the Jaiiaiiese mutch factories thf
Isixes and latsds are iniiile by little
girls, w ho are womlrously ib-iteroiis in
the work. These little exjicrt get from
one halfjs-ntiy to two eine halfpenny
for twelve hours' work.
. A transatlantic steamer, carrying
what Is called "a full mall." usually
takes two hundred thousand leltera
and three hundred sucks of iiewspajs-rf
fur London, to say nothing" of the live
hundred and odd sacks for oilier jilace.
In the public mcIiooIm In Japan the
Knglish language Is required to be
taught by law. The Japanese youlli In
the open ioiis and commercial cltlea
rf hH engcr to learn F.nglsli a Jiass
("t j to- Wealth, position and emiloy
Inerit. - ' . ,
Malwatchln. on the border of It ua-
sla. Is Ihe only city In the world -ie
libil by men only. The Chinese women
are not only forbidden to Ve in this
territory, hut even to pass ihe great
wall of Kalkan and enter Into Mongo
lia, All the Chinese of (his border city
are exclusively trader.
The library of Congress ranks sixth
among the libraries of the world In It
present contents. France has the larg
est. Knglaud next, then conies Itusela,
and Germany follow with her libra
ries In Munich, Berlin and Strasbiirg.
(he last mimed holding almost equal
rank with our In Washington.
There were B.or.7 miles of rullwayi
built In this country In the paat year.
Texas has a long lead. having built
.'K'l mll-, Oklahoma coining next with
t'.'H miles, and New Mexico third with
I", miles. The young Southwest Is de
veloping wonderfully. Five Kustern
Stales r'iort no new mileage, while
Nebraska alone, among Western State,
has not Increased her railway lines.
Hnaplclous Hoblito.
Kind Gentleman Can you Npu j0Qt
is me?
Hobble Yesslr.
Kind Gentleman-I,et m ,er yon.
Bobble (shylyt-Naw, lr; you're 1st
iryln' to find out how old I am.-Ohlo
Stale Journal.
The world Is Improving. There ara
sore sudden deaths every year, anal
fawer rases of long suffering.
KverrofM aaaXkui! tttl
BlCYf LE FEVER in rc:i.
1
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