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About The Loup City northwestern. (Loup City, Neb.) 189?-1917 | View Entire Issue (May 16, 1912)
bOO NG FOR '’PROUBIsB Being Some Real Stories from the of a Master Adventurer 6y Captain George 8* Boynton / / ^ cammictror rut *toc*Ar co. <RDfTOKl IWTt-rapta b U'fp B Besason. “ lea. atmllf Bwadswch in tbs mt ^SSS at tsmtsie afivoataaar a soure uf F«r 1 he fliwt t'm* M h'mielf. ta •ttwut •"bt by !a mt tlx anther • HSOnCHOtrr my We I have ansgbt tlnatm over the faca ml the world aad :•• water* am caea bare Uunied aad it for r >ld or struggled for fbme Whether through the ont nl a strain of buccaneer beid la anbiectiOB by geo ntluoi of placid propriety or -aa a result of seat# freak of pre the love at ad m. deep-planted aad iong is aa essential to my e* food Through it my life la activity aad my soul has la youth, whea I caa no Ha electrification death. I hope. avM cmm yuiefciy I base aar-red mM hold under eighteen flags, aad «e each I cave the beet that was In me. rmy aataral beat. It perhaps will by some people that 1 have gone mt written laws To each my answer [I have always bee* true to my own coa lave of adventure, free fro® any aad with the prospect of finan cial reward always anbordlnated. tins been the driving force ta all my encounters with good men ** 1 bad. with the latter clast much 1n the majority The name by which ! am known fa awe mt the contradictions of tar life Sava •mly far my father who sympathized with my ad rant ■cows disposition at the same time that be tried to rvrt It. I was at war with my 'am liy almost from the time I could talk When 1 (aft heme to become aa adventurer around the globe 1 booed my ran] aame and I do not propose to eacover It. here or hereafter. la the coarse of my activities ! have -.iced many aemev la many lands, but that of Born tea. which bad tma la the family for years, •tarit to am anttt I finally adopted it. prefix lad a George aad a B. which really stands Urn IVyataa I was boro May 1. 1143, no Fifth avenue. New Tark. net a long way north of Wash‘ng My father was a dis’inruished owned a lvrge estate oa I^ake . wbero moo: of my youthful sum «'<-r a that mttKM KTH esc a __3 tb* In of the family my dislike of their prosaic p iMUt'aM. my father solemnly declared hie tt-i—m— of aeadia* me To the (’sited Sls'c* Xml Academy. I waa delighted The ma ck lorry to prorore my apotatmeat had bees or* ia met loo aad I waa ready to take the etamiaarloo when the opening gun of the Ctrl! war IW tried at Mart Sumter. April 1?, 156!. I waa immediately seized with a wild desire «e he la the light My father would not con prat ieK.ua amount of my age hut promised that If I would watt a year, he would try to am a rammtsalfia My sympathies were wtth the South, hut It was store convenient to take the other aide, and at that moment I was at* particular shoot principle* The family »*» doly hocrUled oae evening when I went home aad told them I had enlisted The next day my father bought my discharge and bus ttad me eut ta Woodstock 111. where I was ptaced la charge of an uncle lie prevented my Joining an infantry regi : I got away wi'ti a a.airy reg'tnent ho later and was made one of i*s We wsgt to Cairo. Ill . and from •here hy tnatyort to Pin.-burg 1-ending where we arrived Just In time to take pan in the tents fnurtu oa April 6 and 7. IN! i was so In that saga g oru-; • I was discharged from the ho* pi Lai 1 the Tennessee mountains in a SKsrkan' to Intercept contra was hotag seat into the south from m Sana after my return to headquarters I con tracted a had case of malaria and was sent hasne. which meaat back to Woodstock, where 1 ted sloped with a bankers daughter just Wdore going to the front. I was disgusted •rath the war aad I expo-used byself so freely smd was so aalspuksa la my sympathy for the Meath that I sail myself unpopular n a very At may rate the people set their hearts on hinging me for be u "a - copperhead.** tad they might hare done ft If old man Well euro, the proprietor of the hotel at which my e-Me sad I were staying, had not helped me vO stead of n mob that raase after me. That experience intensified by dissatisfac tion with the whole business and I sen: in my rmsgastloa It was accepted, and alien I had thought H nil over I considered that I was tacky to have escaped a court martial i hod heard that Caries Manuel d» Ospedes waa (ameatinr a revolt its Cuba, which after ward waa known as the “Ten Years War." and t ad i-walesd the Idea of taking a hand in 1C I was wsadsrlag how I could get into with Ceepedee by Interest was by a smgiMt story of the new block vds man >v Writer It. There was so much money la Markade-rutusing that the owners •anted udl if -rd to lose her after she had la five minutes I derided to become a block te hoy the new and already . If she was to he had at any price I bought a letter of credit and tho neat drip tar Tlinniida On my ar rtval there I feuad that the Letter B had been •spected la for orreral days from her second trip sod that there was rotebnUe anxiety -shore her. t slat learned that her owner was tatedtag a second ship oa the same lines and tar the same trade A freoh cargo of ir.ua! tlmas of war waa awaiting the Wetter B. and a tel# waa ready to take to Kngiaad the cotlc-n I got acquainted with the agent for the “fr^. biorkade-runiutr, and offered to buy her and take the chance that she might never come 'n. He wanted me to wait until the arrival of her owner, Joseph Berry, who waa expected daily from England. After waiting several days I said to him one morning: "It looks as though your ship has been captured or sunk. Ill take a gambler’s cnanc* that she hasn't and will give you $50. 000 for her and $25,000 for the cargo that is waiting for her; you to take the cargo she brings In. I’ll give you three hours to think It over." It looked as though I was taking a long chance, but I had a "hunch’’ that she was all right, and I never have had a well-defined "hunch" steer me in anything but a safe course, wherefore I invariably heed them. At ihe expiration of the time limit there was not a sign of smoke in any direction and the agent accepted my proposition In half an hour I had a bill of sale for the ship and the ware house receipts for the cargo of war supplies. On the third day the letter B came tearing in. pursued at long range by the U. S. S. Po whatan which proceeded to stand guard over the harbor, keeping well off shore on account of the reefs and shoals that were under her lee The Letter B discharged a full cargo of cotton and was turned over to me. She was unloaded In twelve hours, and all of her cargo was safely stowed in another forty-eight hours. 1 took command of her. with John B. Will -sms. her old captain, as sailing master, and determined to put to sea at once. 1 knew the Powhatan would not be looking for us so soon, and planned to catch her off her guard. The Powhatan saw us sooner than I had expected, and started, but she was not quick enough She fired three or four shots at us, but they fell far short. At sunrise we had the ocean to ourselves. I started in at once to master practical navi gation. the theory of which I knew, and to familiarise myself with the handling of a ship. We arrived off Charleston late in the after noon and steamed up close Inshore until we could make out the smoke of the blockading fleet, which was standing well out. In a semi circle Then we dropped back a bit and an chored. All of the conditions shaped them selves to favor us. It was a murky night with a hard blow, which came up late in the after n.' n. and when we got under way at midnight a good bit of a sea was running. • ueiu crown 10 only aDOui half speed, but ready to do their best In a twinkling, we headed for the harbor, standing as close inshore as we dared gc. We passed so fiose to the blockading ship stationed at the lower end of the crescent that she could not have depressed ier guns enough to hit us even '■ we had been discovered in time. But she did not see us until we had passed her. Then she let go at us with her bow guns and, while they did no damage, we were at such close quarters that their flash gave the other ships a glimpse of us as we darted away. They immediately opened on us, but after the first minute or two it was a case of hap hazard shooting with all of them. The first shells exploded close around us, and some of 'he fragments came aboard, but no one was injured. When I saw where they were firing I threw my ship further over toward Sullivan’s Island, where she could go on account of her iight draft, and sailed .quietly along Into the harbor at reduced speed. At daylight we went up to the dock and were warmly welcomed. Before the second night was half over we had everything out of her and a full cargo of cotton aboard, and we steamed out at once. I knew the blockaders would not expect us for at least four days, and we surprised them just aa we bad surprised the Powhatan at Ber muda. It »as a thick night, and we sailed right through the fleet at half speed, but pre pared to break and run for it at the crack of a gun. Not a shot was fired or an extra light shown. As sooa as we were clear of the line we put on full speed, and three days fitter we were safe at Turk's Island, the most southerly and easterly of the Bahama Islands. I made two more trips to Charleston without any very exciting experiences, though we were fired on both times, and then sold the ship to an enterprising Englishman at Turk's Island. Having succeeded ^s a blockade-runner. I was ambitious to become a filibuster, which kindred vocation I thought offered even greater opportunities for advanture, and immediately after the sale of the Eetter B, In the latter part of 1S6I, I returned to New York. In the QAPT. Gra B BOYJiTO/i y hope that the Cespedes revolution in Cuba would have been sprung and a junta estab lished with which I could work. I found that the revolt was still hatching and that no New York agent had been appointed, so, for want of something better to do, I bought from Ben jamin Wood, editor of the New York News, the old Franklin avenue distillery in Brooklyn. This venture resulted in an open and final rupture with rov family. I had been in the distillery business only a few months, during which time the property had shown a large profit, when, while attend ing a performance at the old Grand Opera House. I met “Jim" Fisk, with whom I had become acquainted in my boyhood days, when he was running a gaudy peddler’s wagon out of Boston. Fisk asked what I was' doing that I looked so prosperous. I told him briefly and he said he wanted to buy a half interest in the distil lery and asked me to put a price on it. I told him I did not want a partner. He insisted and said he had influence at Washington— which he afterward proved—and that it would be valuable to us. “We will make a good team," he said. "Here.”—and he scribbled off a check for $100,000 and tossed it over to me—“now we are partners.” “Not much!" I said, as I tossed it back to him. “I am making too much money for you to get in at that price, even if I wanted you as a partner." “All right, then," he replied as he wrote out another check, for $150,000, and handed it'to me: "take that; I am in half with you now." Before I could enter another objection he stalked out of the room and I let it go at that, for I had a scheme in mind and figured that his influence, if it was as powerful as he claimed, would be useful. l nen rouowed a year or more or prosperity, flavored with complications with the govern ment. and we finally quit the business with a profit of about $350,000. Fisk and I continued in partnership and in the summer of 1866 we bought the fast and stanch little steamer Edgar Stuart, which had been a blockade-runner. We bought a cargo of arms and ammunition and were Just put ting it on board when the first Cuban junta came to New York and opened offices on New street. They sent for me and wanted to buy our cargo. The Spaniards were not so watchful then as later and the arms were delivered without much trouble at Cape Maysi. at the extreme eastern end of Cuba. The junta then engaged us to deliver several cargoes of arms to the rebels. I was always in command of these expeditions, with a sail ing master in charge of the ship, while Fisk stayed at home and attended to the Washing ton end of the business. Along about 1868. after It had run half Its length, the Ten Years War began to bog down. There was nothing else doing in this part of the world, so I decided to go to Europe, being attracted by the prospect of war between France and Germany. During the Cuban filibustering days I gained more notoriety than I desired, and as I did not wish to be known as a trouble-maker on the other side, where the laws against the carry ing of contraband were being rigidly enforced on account erf the recent Alabama affair, I lost my identity while crossing the Atlantic. When I reached London in the latter part of 1868 I was George MacFarlane. and in order that I might have an address and ostensible occupa tion I established the commercial house of George MacFarlane & Co., at 10 Corn Hill. ‘ My partner, who really was only a clerk, was a young Englishman named Cunningham, for whom 1 had been able to do a good turn while living in Chicago. I opened an account In the London & Westminster bank with an initial deposit of close to £75,000, which gave me a financial standing. Fate was kind to me in throwing In mv way the little steamer Leekwith. which 1 bought at a bargain. • Don Carlos, the Spanish Pretender, was Just then. In 186*. preparing to make hi* last fight for the long-coveted crown of Spain. Him chief agent had bought all of the arm* and ammuni tion he could pay for from Kynoch Sc Co., of Birmingham, and had contracted with Nlckell Sc Son for the^r delivery on tbe northern coast of Spain. They had lost one cargo through the watchfulness of a Spanish warship, and had nearly come to grief with another. The Pretender’s agent then proposed that Don Carlos pay for the arms when they were delivered, instead of at the factory, aa before. Old man Nlckell was considering this proposi tion when I met him. and he told me about it, after we had come to know and understand each other a bit, and it was agreed that Nlckell should buy tbe arms while I would furnish the ship and deliver them. It was stipulated that the first consignment should be delivered to Don Carlo* himself at his headquarters near BUbao. Only a small and light-draft ship could get up the river, and I did not care to try It with the Eeckwtth, so I chartered a smaller steamer which greatly resembled the Santa Marta, a Spanish coastwise ship. To avoid suspicion, the rifles and cartridges were shipped to Ant werp and I picked them up there. As soon as we were out of sight of land I repainted my ship and made some slight changes until she looked almost exactly like the Santa Marta. We got over the bar at Bilbao with very lit tie to spare under our keel and went on up the river to the appointed place. A band of Gyp sies—Gitanos—were camped close by. and in ten minutes they were all over tbe ship. Among them was a singularly beautiful girl to whom I was strangely drawn. She followed me around the ship, which did not annoy ms at all. and Insisted on telling my fortune. When I consented she told me, among a lot of other things, that I would be paid a large sum of money in the mountains and assassinated. The Carlist camp was located well up in tbe mountains, nearly twelve miles away. After a short wait I was ceremoniously ushered Into the august presence of the Pretender. He greeted me with frigid formality in contradic tion to the warm welcome I had expected, as due a savior of the Carlist cause, and his first words, spoken In fair English, were a curt statement that he hsd no money but would pay for my cargo through his l^ondon agent within two months. I pointed out to him. as discreetly as possi ble. what the result of such a course would be. Failure to keep the agreement made by your agent would destroy your excellent credit with all dealers in revolutionary supplies, and that, of course, is not to be thought of. On the other hand, by paying for this cargo you will establish your credit more firmly than ever. I know that your majesty is not only very hon est, but very wise.” This argument appeared to convince him and. with a smile as tbongh he had really been only joking, he summoned a venerable Jew. evidently his treasurer, who looked like the original of all pictures of Shylock. and ordered him to pay me £28.000. the amount called for by the manifest The Jew returned in a few minutes with the exact amount. With the transaction completed. Don Carlos dramatically waved me out. ine omcer who naa piloted us to the camp suggested that we could And our way back to the ship without any trouble, as the trail was clearly defined, and we sts.rted back alone Before we had gone twenty steps Brown, my sailing master, asked whether I had been paid In cash. I pointed to my bulging pockets and told him I undoubtedly had. He then con fessed that he thought we were "In for It” Six cavalrymen, he said, had started down the trail not long before I left Don Carlos’ tent and he believed they had been sent out to waylay, rob and probably murder us in the deep canyon into which the ravine from the camp turned. In a flash I recalled the prediction of the Gypsy girl. I laughed at myself for the spasm of something like fear that came into my mind yet I was undeniably nervous, for Brown was not a man to form foolish fancies or become unduly alarmed about anything. And none of us was armed. We had turned a corner that put us out of sight of the camp, when I saw a dark face peering at us through the underbrush that mat ted the trail on both sides. At the first glance the face looked like nothing but one of the troopers we had been talking about, but in an instant I recognised the Gitano girl who had told my fortune and begged me not to go intt the mountains. She beckoned to us and. with out saying a word, plunged off into treep woods Is which we. unguided wo-ld hty-e been hope lessly kKt it tea minutes. She led us over a hill and across a wide de pression and then over another much higher mountain. There was not so much as a sug gestion of a path and it was hard going, yet none of us complained. She brought us out to the trail at the point where we had made our first turn into the foothils. From there it was a straight road to the ship with no fear of am buscade or attack. The rest of the cargo was Jerked out with all speed and as soon as the last box was on the bank we got under way. Greatly to my surprise we were not even hailed by the fort at the mouth of the river, where I had looked for some serious business, and we continued happily on our way to London. The PrtOMfl' t Method Wa*ar waa 7 yaars old and be waa T"»* America peraeaiSed—a prodart at the New Tor* public school*. *"«hlax tarapwd fa la abaerratlon. and *• waa illamurertlncly up to date, act tadmuwm "y rtudet hla elder* pain *aa— of their own archaic meth od* Hla mother took him to a mot waa a reproduction at Piueidcnt Taft d(*af the MS that admitted Arlaooa M«e the Unlaw at State*. Yount America cave tee Chief at the people • ■ a swift. lmpersonal and soul-searching glance. “That isn't the way to write.” he said, concentrating his gaze on the Executive hand. “He’s using the fln ■ ger method. He doesn’t use the Pal mer method at all. The finger meth : od alone is no good. He'll have to j use the Palmer method or hell never learn to write." Lesson In Gunnery. For two solid hours the gunnery in structor endeavored to Instil some i faint idea of the subject down for dis russion. but his 6tock of patience was ebbing. ■•Now," be bellowed, “are there any of you budding Nelsons who don't know the difference between firing by electricity and firing by percussion?" One »t lontf still needed further In struction on that point, and he said BO. Then, like a clap of thunder, the in structor explained. “If you got struck dead by light ning that would be electricity, see? But if I came over to you and gave you a clout over your fat head. th*>.t my son. would be percussion, twig?” The other saw. and said so.—London Answers. Clever Elephant “That's a very knowing animal of yours," said a gentleman to the keeper of an elephant “Very," was the cold rejoinder. “He performs strange tricks and an tics, does he?” retorted the gentleman. “Surprisin’,” retorted the keeper. “We've taught him to put money in that box you see up there. Try him with half a dollar." The gentleman handed the elephant half a dollar and. sure enough, he took it in his trunk and placed it in the box high out of reach. “Well, that is very extraordinary, as tonishing. truly." said the green one. opening his eyea "Now let's see him take it out and hand It back." “We never taught him that trick." ; retorted the keeper, who then turned away to stir up the monkeys and punch the hyenas. If. from tlie starry heavens’ mystic height, VTCCCD stateliest orbs which now with pinions slow iiLuJCn a!! the hours their way pursue, till low B * Ithtn the west they drift down rrom our sight ■ And P*ar|y dawn o'ertakes thetr waning light — * 1,11 iff IN If these should ne’er return, the steady glow 11 1 Of countless fainter lights, full well I know. Would lend their soft effulgence to the night. So. if Earth's mightiest ones were swept away. If conqueror and conquest were forgot. And humble folk—accounted little worth— Alone were left, the burdens (as today) Would yet be borne: and loving hearts. I wot Would still find peace and gladness in the Earth Convalescents By Donald Allen (Copyright. 1912. by Associated Literary Press.) If anybody had suggested to Miss May Forbes, of Forbes Manor, that she wring the neck of the parrot she had bad for a pet for the last three yeans, she would hare given that per son a glance so awful that a con gestive chill must have followed. That parrot had a scream that could be heard half a mile away against the wind. She could say that Polly want ed a cracker. She could hang head downwards from her perch. When a stranger oalled. especially a subscrip tion book agent with a large family to support, she could inquire in ag gressive tones what In the devil he wanted. Ttmt parrot had a score or more of cute and cunning tricks, and there was a bit of sentiment connected with her besides. A sea captain had brought her back from a far-off land, presented her to Miss May with his love, and bad then sailed away again with a shipload of kerosene in blue painted barrels and had never been heard of since. Not a barrel had come ashore. Not one of the crew had turned up on South street to ex plain over his beer that the captain was or was not doing as well as could be expected under the circumstances. Miss Forbes was not one to crush out sentiment by wringing a parrot’s neck. One day. while hurrying home for fear Polly might be lonesome, the young lady stumbled over a barrel that some boy had left on the side walk. She was carried home and the doctor called. He could find no brok en bones, but after long and serious thought he decided that she had wrenched herself and must take the tenderest care of herself for many days to come. And now. while prop ^ » j 'of Could Watch the Bird by the Hour. ped up in an easy-chair and tired of reading, how the girl did bless the memory of the man that had given her the parrot! She could watch the bird's tricks and talk to her by the hour. About the time that barrel had brought about the wrench the Smythes had moved out from next door and the Isiingtons had moved in. Miss May had been told that there were a father and mother and son, the latter about 22 years old. He had been brought to the house in a can riage. A few days before, while try ing to beat the record of the high jump, he had twisted his ankle and would be disabled for weeks. One ac cident was a wrench and the otber a twist. Young Mr. Hugh Islington did not own a pet parrot. Had he been pre sented with one he would have brain ed her with an ax within the hour. His pet, outside of high jumping, was the violin. He could make one talk. He could also make people talk for three blocks around. Scarcely had he been carried into the house when that violin began to wail out its musical notes. It wailed high and it wailed low, and as Miss May Forbes' wrenched ears caught the sounds she started and exclaimed: “Gracious, mother, but what’s hap pening now!” J “Only the young man next door playing on the fiddle, dear." “Only playing on the fiddle! Only! Only! And I must be wrenched again —wrench upon wrench! Mother, waken up Polly!” Polly was given a poke and she opened her eyes and ears and scream ed out. She had a rival at last. The idea that something had come into the neighborhood to compete with her voice maddened her, and she set out to do justice to the occasion. “Great snakes, mother, hot what is that!" gasped young Islington as he ceased to draw the bow to turn pale. “It's nothing, dear—nothing tall," soothed the mother. “I think the folks next door have a parrot—just a parrot.” “Think! Think! Why, of course they have, and I am housed up here I *~ith this twist and may be for a month to come! By the high jumpers of Jericho, but I won't stand it!” “But, Hugh dear-" And he fiddled and fiddled and fid dled, and the parrot yelled and yelled and yelled, and the minister writing his next Sunday’s sermon In the house across the street mopped his brow and walked the floor and didn’t say anything—not alood. From the first wail of the violin and the first yell of the parrot It was rivalry. It was violin vs. parrot—par rot vs. violin. Oh, the sadness of it— for the neighbors! From morning till night, day after day! If the best Polly could do was i to yell out that she wanted a cracker, the best the fiddler could do was to play “Old Biack Joe” over and over ! again. The advantage rather rested with the violin. It didn’t have to sleep o’ nights, while Polly did. She did her very best to realize that honor was at stake, and that she must tri umph or perish, but two hours after lamplight would find her nodding and played out, while the violin was still wide awake at 11 p. m. “Mother, that wretch shall never conquer me—never!" Miss May would exclaim half a dozen times a day; and like an echo young Mr. Islington would call out: “I'll bring her to her knees, moth er—to her knees!” f or a long monrn tne Datue ragea. When a doctor who knows his busi ness catches a patient with a wrench or a twist he is not going to surren der his inestimable privilege a day short of four weeks. Even at the end of that time he is going to pay an extra visit—fee $2—to warn him not to try to climb a thorn tree without pulling on stove-pipe trousers. Bnt the day came when Miss May was permitted to walk out. Also Mr. Islington! There was a grove a quar ter of a mile away. Miss May natu rally headed for the grove. Mr. Isling ton naturally headed for the same place. Miss May naturally carried Polly along to reward her for her heroic ef forts to preserve the family honor, and Mr. Islington carried his violin along that he might once more hear the sweet strains of “Old Black Joe” in the sunshine. The girl reached the grove first and was softly meditating when a step aroused her. That young man! That violin! They stood be fore her. and as she shuddered the parrot screamed. “You—you—you!” gasped the “wrenehess." “The girl with the parrot!” exclaim ed the “twister.” Could aught save the day? Could anything avert the impending trag edy? Had it been two old men or two old women—good-bye! But it was a good-looking girl and a not at all bad-looking young fellow, and they had had a square fight and were a bit ashamed of their petulance, and after a gasp or two a bit of a smile came to their faces. Then the smilee broad ened. Then grins succeeded. Then Polly stood on her head and there were two hearty laughs and Mr. Islington said: “You are Miss Forbes, I believe, and I congratulate you on getting out again.” “And you are Mr. Islington, I be lieve, and I also congratulate you.” “I hope my violin was not disagree able to you.” “And I trust that Polly's chatter did not make you nervous.” He sat down beside her and he told her about that high jump, and she told him about the barrel, and it's on record at the county clerk's office that she even said that of all musical in struments she preferred the fiddle, and that he replied that no nightin gale was in it compared with a par rot. And they went home to tell their mothers a lot of good things about each other. COLOMBIA EMERALD IS BEST _ --— World’s Supply of Those Precious > Stones Now Comes from South American Republic. For its supply of the precious stone of beryl variety, known as the emer ald, the world relies upon the mines of the republic of Colombia. From these mines the most valuable single emerald of modern times was ob tained. now forming one of the gems of the collection of the duke of Devon shire. It Is a perfect hexagonal crys tal, weighing eight ounces and eigh teen pennyweights. Another fine speci men. in the Hope cabinet, weighs six ounces, while larger but less valuable are in various royal caskets. The true emeralds of the ancients ai* said to have been obtained from the workings of Mount Zabarah, In , Upper Egypt, although the reopening j of the mines in the nineteenth century j by Mehemet All did not prove com-; mercially profitable. In this district I was probably mined the Jewel adorn ‘jtvp the breastplate of Aaron, de- j scribed in Mosaic writings and form ing part, possibly, of the spoils car ried from Egypt by the departing Is raelites. The huge emerald used by Emperor Nero as a corrective for his poor vi sion; the engraved emeralds set in gold, presented by Ptolemy to Lucui lus on his landing at Alexandria; tne robes worn by Cleopatra and other famous beauties of the past, whose embroideries were Interspersed with emeralds, and the exquisitely graven seals of antique workmanship on view in mqseums and private collec tions all prove the esteem in which the emerald was held. Ornaments of emeralds have been unearthed In Theban tombs and excavated, from Pompeii and Herculaneum, and In all ages the atone has been classed among the rarest of gems. British Like Cuban Cigars. Cuba's best customer for cigars is Great Britain, which takes sixty mil lion every year.