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About The Loup City northwestern. (Loup City, Neb.) 189?-1917 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 6, 1917)
| T- he Protector of Finance | S Talcs oi Bcsilius Marvel, Guardian of Bank Treasure | § By WELDON J. COBB | | THE FOURTEENTH MAN I I' '.' as a bar** \.~t that the presi- • :.t f »‘ti- e lu.d gix. a me. A • -.s' !»rd r.nuioia! Institution Is r '1 -irons of doing business w.?h »* l». at l*-a«t iwroud the *n«r. <1*1“ - r-r basis. In the present tn- teg only a w.iuiun. but • ymug and pretty one. Add to this *.: • f.\ • that the lady in question was in distress that her ease pre •e" ang.e- *ugg» -'mg evasion and 1 e» x»tery. and jou will not won der . hr ex*-r> official <»f the bank from •: *■ - Seat down to the assistant c** -r nad *h>d at the task which 1 ■ as now obliged to shoulder. I** ';ie best you can to get our m • .* out of -hi» muddle." the presi dent tad told me tersely, handing me the f, .der which contained all the pa: r» in th* case from the day. four j ar* back, where Royal Luding U>i t« r of th*- Hoard of Trade, tad : : tu» initial deposit with our ban* n i -:.il hejond the recent date r Hi* sudden death The rec ord • ti* dealings with our icstitu •...: to the t;tue o( bis demise was c.*4- *a crystal. A child could have r» - . : -:.d- rstood. pretentious as to -i- - J* and importance as had be*some of his dealings. Direct and margin account* were cleanly *" ■ j t There was not a mar or b'*ua n th. ud.nlrable paying system of li jal Ludington When death t. »• d iV act. act. however, we held his : ie unsecured for f3?.9$Q. and we Held it still past due. uncollect at; -c our bewi.derment, in any R>ga- way 1 fate.Lamed m> self with all the dels—s of the case through a hurried glance oTer the contents of the folder, tidied cellar and coat with a twist of my hand and put on my best tank ing face to enter the private office of the dire, - j** room where 1 had been advised M.-- ilrace Ludington was awaiting attmtlon. 1 cam* about this she said in a tone child-like. confiJ.ng. slightly re proach: ul. all at once. The letter she band- i me notified Mr. Royal Lud ing that the overdue paper of her uvo. b.MMliy rr^twni luiiiirv.iw r erttl* i_. ct. m:n« r strictly referring to th~ tact that no attention had been pa:I ' previous notifications of the same fact 1 turned It over and over ta my hand, seeking to fin upon the man:, r I should assume in serving the be»t interests of the bank in d*a i with an emissary instead of the ct.ef ,»:ks now in interest in the case 1 see i -bserved, tr; ing to gain tin.- for ! an. not a ready diplomat. but did not Mrs Koyal Luding ton .• o.' xotner—" the fair head bowed —come herself?" A wave , : » r.guiar intensity crossed the face of the young giri Her Ups ptrte«; to s • ~k Then she subdued their - pr r- a They quivered Her eye* dropped, her cheeks grew the paler she mi ..u tot come, was spoken finally— sue will not come" Sun,. i observed. Mrs Royal La ..tig doe* not r p inhale the uls ll<4l For the present—yes " ‘ let m ham potat., is here that she w transfers of property within the past month representing over lIP.MiOO. Aside from that two notes nave passed ti.ro.gb the bank for I: • ••>.*0 wait h she has fit to pay prompt .> These notes wer- signed by your fa'fer. tot by your mother Why doe* .:. c.scrimmate unfairly against the bank in caring for your father s •hi!gat lift.*? 1 refer to the notes given by yc.r father to one Abel Vanda man n My message, is. she said evenly, coldly that there are circumstances encouraging our fervent hopes, the possible relief of the bank that you and ourselves must wait for—must." It was her last word With a mo '-ot of head and body that was all it ■hoaic be. with the air of an empress »h» went from the room, and I stood staring blankly after her. analyzing *»*-ry word she had said, weighing It. iiasecting it se.xed with a suddm in »; rate :i and carrying it forthwith to the pres >nt of the bank He was a a*an of lew words and 1 lent my e».? to his system It it simply—wait.' I said 1 • nigged his shoulders, knowing I tad done my full duty Vo pressure possible, then, you think'* Noa« at the present time There >* action possible, though" I said “Von mnm.nT’ Re slims Marvel " ‘"Get him ~ R ht« the bank—or any other bank -•aid «•' Re* l.u* Marvel." it signi fied the a hand* is meat of direction or opinion it meant unrestricted power awarded M -rv.-i great man that he •as—be the bra:a* mouthpiece and active director cf the great fcited Haai-fv |*rot. ctlve a»e.K:iation Mar vei aa* not a eoliectfer lor the banks Me »ar the la.*- resource, the final court of appeal tn a case when the layman in m> ugatory sc.eare came lace to face with a blank ball, .crew up hi* card*, anti left the game to an eapert. My friend listened patiently, but rather bored I fancied to my tame gory of what had seemtd quite sen sational at sny £r*t lmpetu. .. view of K. He made a brief nota- ..a now and tig.:. on a tab of pap r of the dry leta.1* 1 ffiw him of the l.udingtoa iRair ! had brought the folder with me. the d >*>t- r in which the credit aepartsi'nt wai sup? eed to store up everything concern.rg a client and seep it up to date. As 1 closed it he waked the question; "That Is all you have?” Eacept th- i; paper clippings re 'erring to the u? ilh cf Mr Lucing ua." 1 replied The newspaper- story was simple md p-sia it wan only because the ■ circumstances were out of the ordi nary and the decedent an apparently successful business man. that the pub lic prints had given any space to the death of the exchange trader. It was a chill March evening when he had been found dead, lying against a building There was no evidence whatever that he had been assailed. The contents of bis pockets were un disturbed. There were no marks of violence on his body. He carried no life insurance but an autopsy was held by the coroner. The inquest developed nothing new. According to two expert physicians Royal Luding ton had died from heart failure. He had been ailing and depressed for some time preceding his demise. There was not the slightest hint at suicide. The police, tracing the movements of the decedent previous to his death, t. stit-d at the inquest that Luding ton had been one of a small party of friends who had met at the home of Abel Vandamann. The latter was an at parently reputable business man of the city of some wealth and social .-innding. The occasion of the social function was the grouping up of a number of business men to whom V.i: uarnann w.sbed to present a stock selling *ch> me to float a copper mine in Northern Michigan. A pleasant evening had passed, a few cigars, not too much wine, and the guests had depart- d in pleasant humor and seemingly all in the best of health. Two of the guests bad walked some distance with Ludington, and had bade him good night about a square and a half from the spot where h.s body was later discovered. Mrs Ludington had testified that she knew her husband to have had business dealings for a long time pre vious to his death with Mr. Vanda mann The latter she understood had loaned her husband money. This was not a new phase of the character of Vandamann Hn business was that of a high interest rate note shaver, b nt he had been always shrewd :;-iugh to conceal his usurious trans ns und-r the gum - of expenses, commissions and the like. sms was me story told dv tne DltlHHf clippings I haLdtd to Resi l:us Marvel. Pasted to it was a briefer item dated two days later It had been preserved :n the foider be caus it n;- ntioned the namo of Royal Ludingtoa It covered a strange hap pen :.g On the evening of the funer al of the dead trader, a man had been d- t cted in leaving by the win dow route the room Ludingtcn for merly occupied at his home. A watch man had trapped him as the mid night marauder dropped to the ground. He was held until the police were summoned and was sent to the near e.--. ■ station Upon searching him nu'hii.g whatev- r was found up on him He seemed to be some home less •ramp, he had taken nothiug f* m tl. room he had entered, and • i, pi- s’ior.ed declared w ith a fool i-i grin that he had been looking for s ■••thing to eat. struck a sleeping i.au ber ustead of a pantry, and was i o hon st to steal anything more than a bite of food. The con'cmion of th- man was car ried out in the main by circumstances. The room he had entered had not b-ea at all disturbed Upon the bu reau lay the trader's purse with some money and papers in it. This had been opened, but nothing removed. A suit of clothes in a closet had been looked over, it seemed but not even the pockets had been searched. The marauder, giving the name of Edward Briggs, had been brought be f< re a police magistrate, charged with vagrar.cj and sent to the house of correction for sixty days. I noticed that my friend read and re-read the little clipping telling all this 1 noticed him mark on the pad the name— Edward Briggs.” I saw also that he copied the names of the two guests who had left the Vanda mann home with the trader the night of his death. Then he arose, and I could tell by the expression of his eye that he was ready for work. Further. I regarded him with the ad miration his ability always evoked ‘HUiU 1UJ dliuuugtl 1 could not guess how. I was sure that out of the bare skeleton fabric of an unpaid note at bank, a weeping girl and two ' newspaper clippings. Resilius Marvel had already discovered a diverging suggestive direct and important. Drop around in the morning." he said casually. "You were right to bring this case to my notice." I told the president of our bank this, later. In the light of past events in which Resilius Marvel had been concerned, that functionary smiled hopefuly as if he felt he had landed •he burden of a distributing circum stance on helpful and reliable shoul ders. 1 found Marvel pacing the floor ■f his office in a thoughtful way, his hands clasped behind him. when 1 alb d the next moi ling He drew watch and consulted it with a L ht gesture of impatience, as though I had kept him waiting. Two minutes," he announced, and 'hen you will come with me. There is . person to find, and no time to lose.” And the person?" I intimated. The fourteenth man." I stared helplessly at Marvel. He kept np his restless walk, puncturing :i''• •' ? with a sentence rapid and * ulightening. ’ Th* re . as nothing unusual nor ■ spicious as to the social function h.cb transpired at the Vandamann -om. . spoke Marvel There was no motive to it no plan or anticipation of ,ia>. Get that clear in your n.md in the first place. A strange thing occurred, however, just as the i g .-.-is "ere about io be seated at the table. R discovered that 1 there were just 13 persons present.” I began to receive a glimmer of where a “Fourteenth Man” might come in. “That arose which might readily arise where one man of a group is superstitious. Such a man was pres ent—he was the man who died, Royal Ludington. He was probably in a ! mood for weird forebodings. Vanda mann did not debate the point. He excused himself to his guests, put on his hat, went out into the street and apparently picked up the first man he met to break the hoodoo.” "And this man?" I asked. “Known to none of them, apparently j some city wreck on error s shore, a freakish contrast in his attire to the perfectly dressed guests, quietly took his place at the table, maintained the silence he was paid to maintain, ate like the hungry man he was. and then seemed to disappear, his paid mission executed.” "And you now seek to find this man?' “He must be found," declared Marvel positively. "Why?” "Because I am satisfied he can ex plain the mystery in this case.” "There is a mystery, then?” "A deep one. That matters not now. I wish to show you something. As a memento of the first meeting of the organizers of the Copper Queen Mining company, a flash photograph was taken. That the group." My friend drew from his pocket j a card four by eight inches and held 1 it before me. "That is Vandamann," he explained, indicating the broker, w horn I recog nized—“that Ludington," I knew him, too. “That,” and by some irony 6f fate the forlorn, frowsy figure at the far er.d of the table seemed to have been focussed more prominently than any of the others—“that is the Four teenth Man.” I studied the face with interest. Its owner was apparently one of the stray waifs of the city to be picked up any where in the crowded center within a five minutes’ walk. “Come with me,” directed Marvel. He hailed a taxicab as ws reached the street. It conveyed us to a nolice 1 -• _ . iiijir.n ward Briggs and practically accept parole conditions in behalf of the pris oner. “That establishes something more than a mere incidental connection be tween these two men, I fancy.” ob served Marvel as we went outside again. “And what of that—and wrhat next?" I inquired. “Well, when I locate our Four teenth Man it will be a forward step, of course," observed Marvel. “We go back to the Ludington end of the chain now, however. Do you think you know the daughter of the house well enough to venture a call upon her?" “For what purpose?” I inquired doubtingly. "To induce her to come to my of fice.” I ruminated. 1 considered the effort to move Miss Grace Ludington from her stated position hopeless, and my friend knew instantly that so I thought. He went on, however, re gardless of my opinion. "You will inform Miss Ludington that it is vital that I should see her —two to four today. She had better come alone. Tell her that it has noth ing to do with the money of the bank, that it is not a question of cash, but of—family honor.” T could not for the life of me imagine under what dark curtain Resi lius Marvel was gazing, but there was an indescribably lucid accuracy in the broad hint that he was about to strike a note with the young lady that would influence her more than promises or threats. He suggested explicity, be fore I left him, the course I was to pursue in dealing with Miss Luding ton. I went straightway to her home, lingered about its vi< inity while fram ing the manner of my approach, and accepted the opportunity offered as she appeared with seme letters in her hand to mail at the nearest letter box. “I am not here in behalf of the bank. Miss Ludington," I stated con cisely. "I come from a friend and a professional man who has been pur suing some investigation regarding the circumstances surrounding the death of vour father They are, he as • Pi. It... • SHE WOULD NOT COME'.' WAS SPOKEN FINALLY "SHE WILL NOT COME.” station in the residence portion of the city. I followed after my friend at his bidding as he went to the office of the captain. Marvel named a date—it was the day of the funeral of Royal Luding ton. He gave a name. It was Ed ward Briggs, the man arested at the Ludingtou home that same night. The official consulted the record book. He read its details ending with the sixty days' sentence of the prisoner. “Photographed?" inquired my friend. “So noted—No. 8796.” “That is all—thanks," nodded Mar vel, and within ten minutes we were at the identification bureau. "The Fourteenth Man—Edward Briggs," he observed, as No. 8796 was produced, and he held it beside the flashlight photograph of the Vanda mann function. There was no doubt as to the conclusion he had arrived at. The faces were identical. I was won dering what all this was going to lead to while the bureau official was ex plaining that although only a misde meanor had been charged against the prisoner, it had been thought best to take his picture for possible past and future reference. Marvel went over to a phone and called up the house of correction. I had done some brief calculating in my mind. Edward Briggs had yet ten days of his sentence to serve, so we were in time, if that meant anything, I decided. We were not in time, I knew instantly, as my friend hung up the receiver with the words. “Not there—pardoned out." Our next visit was to the mayor's office. Marvel knew all the ropes. There was no indecision or waste of time in his procedure. There was no reluctancy on the part of the mayor's secretary in giving him access to all the records of the office. I was close enough to the desk of the secretary to catch what was said. Edward Briggs bad been sent to the house of correction on the day he ap peared. in court. On the one ensuing, he was pardoned out on the recommen dation of Alderman Miles Ryner. Ah, here It was. observed the clerk—letter to the mayor from the councilman in question. Request that a pardon be granted as the criminal charge of housebreaking had not been piCssed; introduces Mr. Abel Vandamann, a valued constituent, who would vouch for the general good character of Ed ! sures me, of sufficient importance to require your attention. You have i heard of Itesilius Marvel?” "I have read about him," was the ! reply, shrinking and muffled. "If you knew Mr. Marvel as I knew ; him, you would trust to his earnest desire to be always helpful." I con tinued. “He seeks only to protect the family honor." “Stop." cried Miss Ludington sud denly, sharply interrupting me, throw- | i >ng aside her veil and presenting a 1 colorless, defiant face. “What do you know—what does he know?” "I—1, nothing,” I stammered, fairly ! abashed at the resolute challenge— | "he, everything, probably. From two , ‘ to four—you will see him?" I will see Mr. Marvel,” she said slowly, and passed on her way. "She was adamant to every attack I I made to win one intimation, the faintest clew as to what she and her mother are holding back." Resilius ! Marvel narrated to me the next morn- | ing. "This girl is spanning ten years of her life with the agony, the resolve i of one. She is under some terrific j stress, and there is some influence j that is holding these two women un- ! der a dreadful thrall/' "She would tell you nothing?” I ! asked. "Until the last, absolutely nothing, J except to beg that I would not disturb | a condition that only she and her j mother could remedy. She arose to leave. Suddenly she fixed her eyes upon me. I saw her studying me as if to search me through and through. I noted the flush of some impelling force in her face. 'Mr. Marvel,' she said, 'you claim a wish to be helpful to us, and 1 believe y<fo, but this is a case where help from your viewpoint, instead of assisting us, might precipi tate a direful catastrophe. But you are said to be a man who can find where others fail, who from the shadow can evolve a reality. You can do something for us, imperative, vital. If you can inform us what we cannot learn—the whereabouts of a certa.n : person—you will bring us nearer to the light for the end.’ ” “And the person?" I inquired. Resilius Marvel handed me a worn photograph. It was tLat of a woman loud of dress, bold of face, wicked of eye. She had a certain wild beauty, but her smile was that of one who lures only to destroy. On the reverse of the card were these words: "Al ways as now—Idalia." I wondered what was passing in the mind of my friend at this new element injected into the Ludington case. He did not see fit to enlighten me. He called for me at the bank the next day. “A witness is sometimes handy.” he observed, and as we went spinning along the boulevard south he briefly told of his success in locating this new woman in the case. “The name of the photographer was a guiding clew,” he advised me. “He did not know 'Idalia,’ but he knew a friend of hers, an actress. From this friend I learned the whereabouts of the original of the picture. She is the inmate of the reformatory, on a sen tence for robbery. We are going there.” A woman clad in light blue cotton uniform was called to us, after we had reached the place in question. She came into the room where we awaited her, her eyes roaming everywhere in an attempt to surmise the motive of* our visit. Promptly Marvel drew the photograph Miss Ludington had sup plied him from his pocket. “I have come to ask you a ques tion,” he said. "How long have you known the man to whom you gave this photograph?” In an instant the prison restraint, the forced reserve of discipline, all self control went to the winds. The wo man first attempted to wrest the pic ture from the hand that held it to- I wards her to tear it to atoms. Her eyes glared like a tiger's, her face became distorted, she raved, she trembled from head to fcot, she i poured out curses upon the man a memory of whom the photograph had evoked. "Listen," she cried.- "Mark me. I swear it!—the uay I am freed from here, be it when it may—I will kill him!" "Ybu are too late,” observed Marvel quietly. “1 am too late?” she repeated, skep tically. "Yes, he has been dead for weeks.” She laughed, this Idalia, this woman who made men shrink whom she did not cause to weep. “Y"ou came to draw me out, to de lude me,' she scoffed. "From him! I see through you. Dead? Do you ! think I do not keep track of him through my friends on the outside, to be ready to know when, and where. ! and hew I shall strike when the hour j comes? Go back and tell Abel Vanda mann that from me.” A low whistle, so low that it would ! have been difficult to trace its source, proceeded from the lips of Ifesilius j Marvel. He restored the photograph to his pocket. He made a motion to , the attendant that his mission was ac complished. He said to me: i ue case is complete. What he meant I groped vaguely in my mind to find out. He left me to I think out one fact; that the photo graph was the property of Abel Vandamann, not of dead Royal Lud ington. Then how had it come into j the possession of his daughter? The great man proved his last state- j ment to me the following evening. 1 was seated in the office of the United Bankers' Protective association when there came a commotion in its ante | room. Then a man was thrust into the private office by two officers in uniform. Marvel followed, and the one policeman retired at his words: "I will be responsible for this man. Now then, my friend, sit down and get your breath.” At a glance I knew the prisoner. It was Edward Briggs. He was frowsy, unkempt, savage looking, somewhat the worse for drink, and of lowering brow and set pugnacious lips. “What's all this?” he growled out. “You have been arrested for deadly assault upon one certain Vandamann,” observed Marvel. “It would have been more certain if I'd had the show," retorted the fel low. “Did you hurt him much?” “Worse luck, no. The next time!” —the man glared across his knotted list. “On top of your last exploit,” re marked Marvel, "it may be six months or a year this time. Unless you have left a case of mayhem behind you down at Vandamann's, I can promise you a chance to get out of this mix-up —on conditions." “What conditions?" muttered the fellow, an evil eye fixed on both of us—suspicious and leery. "As the Fourteenth Man—" “What's that!” ejaculated Briggs : with a start, and then he shrank back within himself, the barrier up, like a man in a trap. "As the Fourteenth Man. you of course knew Royal Ludington." "Suppose I did?” “What did you take to his house the day of his funeral?” Briggs bored into the questioner s face with his shrewd ferret eyes. He j shook his head. “This is some kind j of a frame-up." he declared. "I don't i say a word till I know what's doing." i After some persuasion the man told, j It amounted to this: Scoundrel-hearted Abel Vandamann had seen an oppor- I tunitv in the sudden death of one of ! his victims to press fictitious claims. ! He had utilized the Fourteenth Man in his plot. This had been to have Briggs visit the Ludington home | surreptitiously, place the photograph ! in a pocket of Ludington's coat, and in his desk a card bearing notations of various amounts. These, corres- | ponded in amounts to alleged notes of the decedent, were later presented to his widow for payment. The wily schemer had convinced Mrs. Ludington that he held notes— they were forgeries—to a large amount, given him by her husband. He had further persuaded her to be- : lieve that the borrowed money they j represented had been squandered in gambling and in financing the extrava- ‘ gant whims of the woman, Idalia. j The notations, the photograph, all 1 seemed to verify the foul misrepre sentations that brought sorrow and i dread to the wife and daughter of the dead trader. Mrs. Ludington was a proud woman. The fear of disgrace, publicity, had made her the: easy vic tim of the arch swindler, Abel Vanda mann. The demands of the broker were so extensive that his black-mailed victim found that after she had sacrificed her personal belongings to satisfy the notes, there would be no hope of liquidating the indebtedness at the bank. Resilius Marvel held a brief but productive interview with Abel Vanda mann the next day. Then he carried to the bank twelve forged notes for $50,000, and a like amount in cash al ready extorted from Mrs, Ludington on similar forgeries. The bank there fore. lost nothing, and the Ludingtons were restored to fortune and lifted from the shadow of a great grief. "There is such a thing as earthly retribution," observed Resilius Marvel to me one day. A column in a daily newspaper was the basis of the remark. It told of the murder in cold blood of Abe! Vandamann. A stiletto had dealt him his death wound, so it might have been a woman. But his strong box was rifled, so it might have been a man. The police never found out. for the woman, Idalia. and the Fourteenth Man had disappeared as completely as though the earth had opened and swal lowed them up. FIRST AID FOR FAINTERS Policemen of Washington Carry Tubes of Spirits of Ammonia to Revive Those Who Fall. Every member of the Washington police force carries when on duty in crowds a pill box full of tiny glass tubes of aromatic spirits of ammonia, according to the Popular Science Monthly. These are for reviving per sons who faint in the street. The tubes are about an inch long and slightly more than an eighth of an inch in diameter. Each has a wrap ping of absorbent cotton and over this a silk gauze covering. Slight pressure between the fingers is sufficient to break the tube. The ammonia is promptly absorbed hy the cotton about it. which also serves to prevent the sharp particles of glass from doing any harm. Held beneath the nose of the person who has fainted the fumes of the ammonia soon revive her. The tubes are stored in all the patrol boxes about the city and are carried in patrol wagons and police j ambulances. Now Make Dried Soup. One of the beneficial effects of the recent scare over a threatened short age of tin cans was an extended inves tigation into other possible methods of j preserving food. The canned soup manufacturers were among the most earnest seekers, for they were threat ened with having their tin supply cut otf at an early date. They have worked out a process for putting up a dried soup in powdered form in containers of heavy wax paper. Similar systems of drying and packing vegetables tire already in use in Europe, but the soup idea represents American enterprise. Apparently, it will not come on the market, because tin cans are going to he more plentiful than was anticipated. “Getting By the Editor." Getting by the editor is the most fascinating of indoor sports, says a writer in the Atlantic. When I was a journalist in the Freudian sense (that is. as an unfulfilled wish), my chum and I devised a way to get money for nil our articles. Each agreed when he sent out a “story" to bet the other the price of the “story” that it wouldn't be accepted. That little arrangement took the sting out of a rejection completely; and when you lost your pay, you had the glory of the acceptance. Why and how the scheme broke down. I shall not divulge. Preserving Worn Surfaces. There are sometimes places on the exterior of a house where the paint gets worn off and which cannot be re touched without making a “botch job” of it owing to the difficulty of mixing the new paint to match the adjoining color which has faded. To preserve the wood in such spots until the house can be repainted, apply two coots of linseed oil with a rag. This will im prove the appearance also. — Popular Science Monthly. Keep Cheerful. Be cheerful in the struggle to meas ure up your ideal. Fight your faults with sunshine. Self-improvement is the big business of life, it is true, but you will succeed all the better if you mix song and laughter with your ef forts. If you are really trying to be good, you are hound to be successful, and that is a reason for going at it with bright faces and light hearts.— Exchange. Game in Mexico. Mexico cannot be said to offer a field for hunters of big game, and the term, “a sportsman's paradise,” which is sometimes applied to it. is an exaggera tion. Among animals may be enumer ated the peccaries or jnvelines, deer, rabbits, hares. The reptiles include alligators, turtles and iguanas. Whales, seals and sea Uons are encountered on the Pacific coast.—New York Tele gram. No Need of Explanation. Mother had gone out for a few min utes. and when she returned a portion of the dinner was slightly burned. In dismay she said to her husband: “It is too bad it happened, but it will have to be served anyway. I'll explain to them and apologize.” Jennie overheard and remarked soothingly: “Don't feel bad about it, mother. You won't have to explain to them—they cau taste it'i burnt theirselves.” “ Could Do His Part. Frederick the Great heard of a Silesian clergyman who had a reputa tion of communicating with the spir its. | He sent for him and received him with the following question: “Can you call up ghosts?” “At your pleasure, your majesty.” replied the clergyman, “but they won't tome.” No Alleviation. "Miss Cackle says she is going to sing her swan song at this concert.” 'Humph: That won't make it any easier for this audience.” The Siberian railway is the longest in the world. Its total length is 4,7So miles. NOT ONE SLAM Part Played by One Yankee Woman in Revolution. Margaret Corbin Took Her Husband’! Place at the Guns in Battle of Fort Washington and Fell Wounded. Margaret Corbin, who was born Id Franklin county. Pennsylvania, No vember 12, 1751, was the only (laugh ter of Robert Cockran, who was killed by the Indians in 1756. Margaret’! mother, for whom the daughter was named, was taken into captivity at th$ same time. Margaret was now fiv« years old and escaped her parents fate because she and her brother were visiting an uncle, who raised Margaret. In 1772 Margaret married John Cor bin of Virginia. Corbin enlisted in the First company. Pennsylvania ur tillery. and his wife, having no chil dren. followed her husband to war, serving as a nurse and aid in camp life. When John Corbin was killed at the battle of Fort Washington, November 16. 1776. Margaret took his place at the gun. until struck down with threa gruposhot, which severed an arm and tore away part of her breast. Mary Pitcher's husband. Hays, wa? a gunner in the same regiment, and It is safe to assume that Margaret Cor bin's heroism at Fort Washington in spired Molly Pitcher's act at Mon month. At the surrender Margaret was en rolled as a member of the “Invalid Regiment.” Her wounds at Fori Washington were such That they wen ultimately the cause of her deuti in 1800. On account of her wounds the su preme council of Philadelphia on June 29. 1779. granted her $30 and recom mended her to the hoard of war for a regular pension. The resolution of congress, July 6, 1779. is on record in which honorable mention is made of the services of Margaret Corbin. “Resolved, That Margaret Corbin, wounded and disabled at the attack of Fort Washington, while she heroically tilled the post of her husband whq was killed by her side, serving a piece of artillery, do receive during her nat ural life or continuance of said disabil ity. one-half the monthly pay drawn by a soldier in service of these States; and that she now receive out of the public stores one suit of clothes or the value thereof in money.” Margaret Corbin was tile first wom an pensioned by our government for heroic deeds. Wanted to Cinch His Job. “I should like a day’s shore leave to attend to some personal business, if you please, sir,” said a junior lieuten ant, saluting, to Capt. James G. Bal linger of tile Naval Coast Defense re serve recently. “Your private worries are of miuot importance now, as you are in the navy—however, fill out an applica tion.” replied the captain. “I worked 17 years to get the job I now hold,” said the lieutenant. "It means a good deal to me. as I want to get tilings stnughtened out before go ing to sea. I would like to have the job again in case I come back after the war. as it is a fair one. If you say so. sir. I will withdraw the request.” lie was turning away when Captain Ballinger asked: “What's your name and job?” “William K. Vanderbilt, Jr., vice president of the New Y'ork Central railroad.” In due course of time his one day’s shore leave was granted. Lieutenant Vanderbilt having filled out the appli cation. Raise Turkeys on Ranches. Exclusive turkey ranches are found in the unsettled foothill regions of Cal ifornia and in parts of Arizona and other Western states, where a thou sand or more turkeys are raised each season. The establishments are located where the range is unlimited and the natural food of the turkey, such as grasshoppers and other insects, green vegetables and the seeds of various weeds and grasses, is abundant. Ad vantage also is taken on these ranches of the turkey's relish for acorns, and where these are plentiful but little grain need be used for fattening in the fall. The large flocks of turkeys are managed much like herds of sheep, be ing taken out to the range early in the morning and brought home to roost at night, says an exchange. They are herded during the day by men ei ther on foot or on horseback, and by dogs especially trained for the work. Levity. Levity is mentnl relaxation sanction ed by good judgment, but controlled by It. too. There Is certninly a flaw some where in the mental makeup of a man whose humor is habitually prurient, or who burlesques anything which many good, simple-minded, hut devout peo ple hold sacred. Habit Is the clothing of judgment—the fixedness of choice —and bad habits never associate with good judgment. A Christian gentleman may be a great fool, a dullard and an intellectual nonenlty. But his life, his habits and his actions are far bet ter evidences of level-headed judg ment than the brilliant and erratic courses of philosophers and epicureans whose wisdom lias turned to the very folly of iniquity.—Catholic Citizen. As to Proper Behavior. “Streets and sidewalks are public property. 1'itizens have the right to walk on them, whether they wear skirts, pantaloons or bathing suits, as ior.g as their behavior is proper. There is no ordinance specifying the amount of clothing a person shall wear in the street,” Is the wisdom quoted from the lips of Judge Howard Hayes when passing upon the arrest of a young woman who promenaded in her bath ing suit. We agree with the judge. The question is one of behavior. But it is fair to ass whether promenading >he streets without any clothing would 1 pr 1 behavior.—Chicago Post.
