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The Commoner.
FEBRUARY 13, 1903 J
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apterlsHrWImbs dianlaved In this "beautiful
Incident tliat cemented the -friendship beJweefT
the "old-time" rnegroes andwhiCea of the ;south.
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TT IS' BELIEVED BY MANY j?iRSQNS- THATJ
X eiectriciiy win raite mo inuuu ui owaui u.
the operation of railroads at an early day and in
this connection a dispatch to tUoChicrfgo Inter
Ocean under' date of Now Yorlt- January 31 is
interesting. In this dispatch it is said: "From
New York to Chicago in ten hours, is the aim of
the builders of a wonderful electric car, planned,
to run 150 miles an hour by the third-rail sys
tem. The fifst of the huge motors-are-now be
, ing installed in Elizabeth into cars that will give
Chicago and Aurora, 111., the fastest suburban ser
vice in the world. It Is predicted thatthe time
is now close at hand when the twenty-hour flyer
to Chicago will be considered commonplace be
side these new space-destroying cars. Mr. Zim
merman, who is "now In Elizabeth in the interests
of the Aurora, Elgin & Chicago railroad, thinks
the motive power of one of the big trunk lines
will be changed within a short time. A test of
the cars will bo made on a strip of track near
Elizabeth. The mayor and other public officials
will be asked to ride, and, according to the agree
ment with the Chicago company, the cars must
show an ability to go 150 miles an hour."
THE PARIS -MATIN HAS MADE SOME IN
vestigations relating to the number of sui
cides in European armies. These investigations
show that suicide is on a decline in all -tho armies
except that of Russia where 13 out of every 100,
000 commit suicide with unfailing regularity ev
ery year. While it is true that the proportion of
suicides in other great military countries is high
er than that of Russia, there is shown a tendency
to decrease. In France, the rato is 18 per 100,000;
in Italy, 34; in Germany, 3G; in Austria, 45. The
largest number of suicides was in the foreign le
gion branch of the French army. There the rato
was 99 to every 100,000. The Matin points out
that suicide is more frequent among cavalry than .
in the infantry.
ANEW "GREAT SEAL" IS BEING. MADE FOR
the. "United States government at -a cost-of
r $1,-250, to replace one made in 1885. A writer in
the New York Times says that the seal now in iisa
has during the past seventeen years done more
work than the previous "great seal" in the forty
four years in which it did duty. The first "great
seal" of the United States was made in 1782 in
Philadelphia, from a design carefully . worked
out under the direction of Benjamin Franklin,
John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, and it was
used until 1841. The "great seal" that is now be-
r ing cut, will, be the fourth made, its" three pre
decessors having done duty for a total of 120
years.
a? &
ALFRED NOBEL, A SWEDISH MILLION
aire and philanthropist, provided what is
laiown as- the Nobel prizes to be -given at the end
of each year to those who accomplished the
most important results during the preceding
twelve months in the line of science, literature,
and international peace. Nobel set aside $8,-
400,000 as a permanent fund for this purpose. The
awards are made by three colleges in Stockholm,
Sweden. The prize winners for last year have
been announced as follows: Dr. H. A. Lorentz
and Dr. P. Zeoman, of Holland, for discoveries
made in connection with the use of the spectro
scope; Dr. Emil Fischer, of Berlin, for discover
ing the effects of uric acid on the human sys
tem, and Major Ronald Ross, of Liverpool, Eng
land, for discovering that the mosquito is., an ac
tive agent in the spreading of malaria; Prof.
Theodor Mommsen, of Germany, for his writings
on Roman history and Latin inscriptions, and
Prof. Frederich do Martens, of Russia, for his
work on several arbitration tribunals.
EL MO.CHO IS A SOUTH AMERICAN REVO
lutionist who is now resting on his arms in
Caracas under-a pledge made to Minister Bowon
that he would not engage in or encourage revolu
tion against the Venezuelan government so long
as his country was assailed from without It is
written that El Mocho has a very high opinion
of the United States. Years ago he was engaged
in a law suit against an American. This suit was
tried in an American court and El Mocho was im
pressed with the justice of Americans when he
was surprised by winning the case. Since then ho
h"as never Jostrn opportunity to show his admlra-
on-ior too 'great repuunc. ' i
HE FRAUDS COMMITTED IN CUBA BY
representatives of the United States govern
ment are recalled by a decision made in the
United States court at Baltimoro on January 31.
A suit had been brought against a guarantee com-
-, pany that had been surety for Charles F. "W.
Sjeeley. It will bo remembered that Neeley was
connected with the Cuban postal service. Neeley
was in arrears for several thousand dollars. The
court held that because the government of Cuba
. had released Neeley as well as all others from
civil liability, the United States government had
no right in Its own, court to impeach the decree
and sue Neeley's yondsmcn.
A BILL HAS BEEN INTRODUCED IN THE
Massachusetts legislature pr6viding for the
erection of a statue to John Hancock, the Ameri
can patriot. The champions of this measure claim
that Hancock's memory has been neglected and
they propose that a marble statue of Hancock bo
placed in the vacant niclie at the left hand of the
statue of George Washington in Doric Hall at
the Massachusetts state house.
AN INTERESTING STORY RELATING TO
the sale of the sideboard presented to Mrs.
Hayes when she was mistress of the White house
is related by the Washington correspondent of
the New York Tribune. The story follows: Laden
with wine glasses, decanters, siphons and even
beer steins, a sideboard of remarkable associa
tions now graces a saloon in the capital city.
This sideboard wag originally presented to Mrs.
Hayes when her husband was president in recog
nition of her refusal to allow liquors on the ta
ble at the White house. It was the gift of num
erous young women of Cincinnati, among whom
were Mrs. Bellamy Storor, wife of the ambassa
dor to Austria, and Mrs. Taft, wife of the civil
governor of the Philippines. The sideboard shared
the fate of many another piece of White house
furniture at the general clearing out auction last
week. 'It was knocked" down to its present owner
for $85, and transferred from the executive halls
to a saloon, where Jl has become not merely an
. "article of use, but'has furnished to iconoclasts the
subject for many a bibulous jest No sooner did
it beco'me known Uiat the .historic, bit .of furni
turoA was being thus desecrated than John R, Mc
Lean offered $850, ten times the price it .had been
bought at, for the old sideboard. The new owner,
realizing the advertising value of the sideboard
declined. Then Colonel Webb Hayes, anxious to
rescue the prized possession of his .mother from
vandals, attempted to purchase it, but he was
informed lhat the price placed on jt was $3,Q00.
., So, surrounded by bacchanalian, insignia, ii an at
mosphere heavy with the fumes of alcohol, the
.old sideboard, the, gift of tho Cincinnati belles,
" tho most cnerished 'possession of the white rib
, bon mistress pf, the. White house, -stands whilo
. ribald jests are abrqad at the sad descent from its
. former high estate.
AN INTERESTING SALE OF RELICS OF THE
old Newgate prison toolc placeat London
on February '4. An Associated press cablegram
referring to this sale, says: There was some
competition "for tho old oak, the hangman's key
and the cupboard mentioned in "Barnaby
Rudge," which brought $02.50. The old death
, bell fetched $500. The staff on which the black
flag was hoisted went for $60 and copper wash
bowls were sold for $5 each, the plaster heads of
prisoners who were executed were .knocked down
at $25 and 'the main entrance door, which was
broken down by the Cordon rioters, brought $150.
WHILE MANY OF THE NORTHERN PA
pers have had much to say concerning tho
employment of child labor in the southern fac
tories, it is interesting to observe that the New
York Tribune has made an Investigation relating
to child labor in New York city, Tho Tribune
therefore concludes that "we need to turn our at
tention homeward." The Tribune has discovered
that 1G.00O children under .fourteen years of ago
are employed In New York city and that it is
claimed by workers among the poor that more
child labor exists in Gotham than fn air tho stateg
of the south combined. Tho Tribune well says
that "this is a remarkable revelation."
A RUMMAGE SALE TO DISPOSE OF Dis
carded fixtures and furniture" in the White
house was i. recently held in aruauction room in
the national capital. "In a dispatch to- the New
"prg World describing this sale,. It Ji fsnid:'
Former. Governor Lowndes, of Maryland, was tho
most distinguished purchaser. Ho secured for
$15 a splendid loungo, upholstered - in jeather,
which formorly stood in tho privato office, of tho
president A local saloonkeeper bought the White
house refrigerator for $7. A great bookcaso was
lenockod down for $1.50. Two dark oak arm
qhairs brought $85, and everything else in ma
hogany and oak brought good prices from tho
second-hand dealers present. President Gar
field's billiard tablo was sold for $105 and tho
cues wero auctioned separately. One of them' had
the initials "C. A. A., Jr." scratched in tho
mother-of-pearl ornamentation, and doubtless was
tho favorite of President Arthur's son. The old
colonial mantel pieco which formerly adorned tho
stato dining-room is now the property of, second
hand dealers. Tho great mirrors of tlio East
Room and tho other stato parlors wero also sold.
These handsome glasses brought only small sums.
Tho beautiful cha'ndclier of tho Bluo Room was
withdrawn from salo and will occupy a place of
honor in one of tho committee rooms at tho capl
tol. It originally cost $8,000 and was composed
of 4,400 prisms of cut glass and a bronze framework-
delicately chased anjl with ten fine minia
tures in the circular baso.
NEWSPAPER READERS HAVE RECENTLY
heard much of Mascagnl and his troubles.
Mascagnl is an Italian composer. He arrived in
New York October 4 and at that moment his
troubles began and they have multiplied ever
since. A writor in the Chicago Trlbuno has com
piled a list of Mascagni's troubles: Mascagnl
lands in New York on October 4 and finds that
the Now York musicians arc up In arms against
him. Efforts are made to have his orchestra de
tained at Ellis island under tho contract labor law.
Mascagnl refunds $8,000 received in advance sales
for "Iris" because the rohearsals wero not satis
factory. He becomes alarmed at threatening let
ters and refuses to go on with a performance of
"Cavalleria Rusticana." He offends some fellow
countrymen by keeping them waiting five hours
at a banquet He stops a train between New York
and Albany because it wa, going too rapidly. His
musicians .strike for back salaries and his per
formances become uncertain. Ho is arrested in
Boston on November 3 in a civil suit brought by
his managers for alleged breach of contract Ho
"cables to the Italian premier for protection',- is Ar
rested again. Abandons the western tour, but
finds a now managor. Returns to Now York, but
has to cut short- a concert and escape to Ho
boken to avoid process servers. He engages two
armed guards in Buffalo, fearing violence Tour
temporarily abandoned again In Syracuse be
cause .of failuro to pay musicians. He discharges
some of -his musicians and partly reorganizes tho
company. He Is sued by Joseph' Smith, Mme.
Duso's manager, for money duo for services,; "Ho
is informed by Premier Zanardelli that Italy can
not afford him protection if ho violates laws. Ho
reaches Chicago and Is received by largo au
diences. The baggage of his company Is at
tached at the railroad station to satisfy a debt
alleged to be due to a press agent. Baggage again
seized. to satisfy a claim made by a transporta
tion company. Mascagnl becomes ill of ton
silitis 'and nervous prostration and keeps to hi8
room at the Auditorium Annex. He sends hia
company home. He is arrested and acquitted on
tho criminal charge of embezzlement made by his
manager. He receives a new proposition .from his
old managers.
THE ANTI-KISSING BILL INTRODUCED IN
the legislature of Virginia recently has .been
taken seriously in England and tho London
Chronicle referring to that measure says: "Tho
proposed American statute for tho abolition oil
kissing and a fine of $5 for each Indulgence in
unhygienic osculation is not new. Tho old Puri
tan bluo laws of Massachusetts forbade the ex
change of kisses in public as a breach of good be
havior. This law has never been repealed, and
not very long ago there was much amusement,
and some indignation, in Boston, at the arrest of a
prominent citizen for kissing his wife In tho
street Milan has a similar ordinance against
kisses or other amatory demonstration in public
places. It dates from the time of -the Sforzas,
and only a short time ago a pair of perfectly re
spectable lovers were- hauled before a magistrate
for kissing each other in tho park. He ruled that
though a kiss under such circumstances was not
Immoral, it was inconsistent with tho decorum
of civilization, and inflicted a fine of 12s. A sim
ilar, law imposed in England on bank holidays
.would mako the income tax a superfluity If tha
fines were paid!"
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