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Tho first domocratic convention to nominato
Olovoland eat two days; tho second renominated
him by resolution on the first day, and tho third t
aat for thrco days. Tho Chicago republican con
vention which nominated Lincoln over Seward in
18G0 sat for three days. Gonoral Grant was nomi
nated tho first time on tho second day, and re
nominated on tho first day. Tho convention which
nominated McKinloy in 1890 sat for threo days, as
did tho democratic convention which nominated
Bryan in the samo year. Four years later, both
conventions sat for three days, though the action
of boUi was a foregone conclusion when they
camo together. Tho delay in each was prolonged
ono day bocauso of tho vico presidential nomina
tion." MANY pathotic stories of tho "General Slocum"
disaster havo been written, but nono aro
moro touching than ono relating to tho unidenti
fied body of a little baby. Tho story is told by
the Now York World in this way: "A little child
is lying decked with flowers in tho vast temporary
piorguo on tho Twenty-sixth street pier. Sho
must havo been a winsome little creature in life,
not quito ono year old, blue eyed, pink cheeked,
With silken, fair, brown tresses. This littlo blos
som seemed sadly out of place in that great field
of doath. Around her lay tho adult dead from
tho Slocum, with burned and swollen features. Tho
child seemed to havo just fallen asleep. Her tiny
hands, no bigger than little roses, were folded upon
hor breast. Sho was still wearing the pretty
whito dress trimmed with lace in which her fond
mothor arrayed her for that fatal day's outing on
tho Sound. Surely hor mothor will come and get
her, It seems impossible that tho poor little cre
ature Can bo abandoned to a nameless grave. Or
perhaps her mothor and father and all who held
hor dear wero blotted from lifo in that awful fire.
All day long this lonesome little one held court
as if sho wero queen. Few of tho thousands of
men who slowly marched past could do moro than
glance at her. A policeman had to be stationed
bosldo tho littlo coffin to drive tho weeping women
forward and keep them from lingering there. Lato
in tho afternoon a wee girl brought in a bunch
of whito roses and sweet peas and jessamine buds
and laid tho flowers on the baby's breast. On a
card was written: 'With a mother's sympathy. "
A NEGRO named Jordan D. Scott recently died
at Richmond, Ind. A Richmond correspon
dent says that S:ott made tho rope with which
John Brown was hanged, adding: "Scott was
eighty-two years old. It was while in slavery near
Harper's Ferry, Va., that his master ordered him
to make tho rope to bo used in the execution.
Scott, with unwilling hands, constructed tho hang
man's nooso and witnessed the execution. Ho as
uorted that ho kissed Brown while he was on tho
way to tho scaffold."
THE killing of the governor of Finland took
place at a psychological moment in tho
opinion of a writer In tho New York Sun. This
writer says: "Tho blow was struck just as Rus
Bia's friends and enemies in Europe had about
xnado up their .minds that victory would remain
to tho end with tho Japanese. Tho opinion of tho
Austrian press on the act is romarkablo and typi
cal. Threo journals of Vienna, all favorable to
tho czar's government, agree in declaring it a case
Of killing, not murder. Says one: 'If tho czar
does not see after this patriotic act of a noblo
Finn that holy Russia is on tho wrong path, a
(series of defeats on tho battlefield will bring tho
lesson homo to him.' Another remarks: 'Gov
ernor Bobrikoff has fallen a victim to the patriotic
indignation of a people.' Tho last is no less em
phatic: 'It is not murdor; it 13 simply the re
moval of tho hangman of a whole nation.' "
AN OUTBREAK occurred at Swedish instiga
tion, at Helsingfors, and tho Sun writer
says: "It is said that the offices of tho governor
general were sacked and that a number of official
persons wero killed. Of course, tho authorities
are suppressing all information on the subject
.That Scandinavian sympathizers with Finland
wero active had been known at headquarters for
some time. Before tho death of Bobrikoff, a jour
nalist from St. Petersburg, who had been on a
tour of inquiry, roported as follows: 'I visited all
the towns along tho west coast of Finland and
called on tho best people. Everywhere I was
greeted with discouraging opinions. The people
loyal to Russia have a hard time. At Nikolaistad
Which may bo regarded as the' Swedish stronghold'
and at Ulcaborg tho anti-Russian movement is
The Commoner.
steadily growing. There may be heard such ex
pressions as 'guerilla warfare' 'complete defeat or
Russia by the Swedes' and 'assurances of Britisn
aid.' It is time for our statesmen to interfere.
Thoy aro deceived about pro-Swedish sympathy.
England is everywhere working against us. I
heard tho most gloomy and most discouraging
statements on all sides."
THIS writer says that of course England is
"not in tho game directly," and explains:
'"i'lie reference to her means simply that the
Finns, the Poles and other oppressed peoples
within tho ompiro aro relying on Great Britain, as,
an ally of Japan, to prevent tho intervention of
Germany or France for tho purpose of making a
diversion in favor of Russia. The defeat of Rus
sia by an Asiatic power, the despised Japanese,
would demonstrate that the bureaucratic system
had failed in every way. Success in tho field
would havo furnished some excuse for its exist
ence. Internal disturbances in the empire would
not injure tho chances of Finland and Poland and
the liberal party in Russia. Nothing is to be
hoped for from tho czar until his present advis
ers, and tho system that they represent, have been
completely discredited."
THERE is published in Paris a paper called
"The Cry" and tho Kansas City Journal
says that The Cry's editorials on American poli
tics probably convey as accurate a suggestion of
the subject as the paragraphs of journalistic, jok
ers this side of the Atlantic do to continental af
fairs of state. In a recent number of The Cry ap
peared thi3 luminous effusion: "Political issues of
real importance will, perhaps, be discussed in the
next presidential campaign in the United States.
But more momentous and conclusive considera
tions than questions of policy are now brought to
the front by friends of the rival candidates. Mr.
Roosevelt's opponents ignore as unworthy of se
rious comment, his imperialism and Caesarism
shown in the coal strike and in the pension order.
They criticise him severely, however, for playing
tennis, which they call a girl's game, and for
carrying a cane, which gives him a Frenchy air.
They point with pride to Judge Parker, who, as
a real farmer, has on his farm at Rosemount a
red bull that took first prize at tho last cattle
show. The bull's name is Peter. He is the father
of eight calves, and this prolific paternity has
made all the American farmers solid for Judge
Parker."
NEW YORK boasts of a modern Robinson Cru
soe. According to the New York correspon
dent for the Kansas City Journal this man has
lived at one of the largest hotels on Broadway for
more than eight years and the Journal correspon
dent says: "The clerks say that he has not a
friend or acquaintance in the world. He does not
even know the bell hops by name and he leaves a
sealed envelope for the maids and the boy on tho
mantelpiece every Monday. One is marked 'Boy'
and tho other 'Maid.' This is the way ho does
his tipping. He has patronized tho restaurant
in the hotel all the time, but he was never seen
to entertain a guest or to be entertained. He has
been approached a, thousand times by other guests,
but ho presents such a frozen front that not one
of them has been able to break through it. Ho
never says 'Good morning!' even to the clerks,
unless they bid him the luck of the day first, and
then he does it so grudgingly that tho old-timers
have long ceased to practice the amenity. At 7
o'clock every evening ho takes a place which has
been kept sacred for him in the dining room and
eats a steak and drinks a pint of wine. He has
coffee and a cigar and ho usually stays about two
hours. His tip to the dining room man is made
weekly and in a blank envelope laid on the ta
ble. He has never called up anyone on the tele
phone and has never answered a telephone."
THOSE who do not understand just how it
happened that Senator Fairbanks came to
be the republican nominee for vice president may
be enlightened by reading a statement made bv
Walter Weliman, the Washington correspondent
for the Chicago Record-Herald. Mr. Wollman at
tended tho national convention and this is what
he said about the Fairbanks boomr "Railrnn,?
influence was yesterday so conspicuous in support
of Fairbanks that many men who aro in position
to know what is going on behind tho scenes iS
national politics wondered if Fairbanks is tho L?
the railroads and financiers have picked to
for president in 1908. The final and annaLT,
decisive set for Fairbanks began yesterSa? m0rn-
VOIiUME 4, NUMBER 24.,'
ing when Governor Odell'of Now York ch
from advocacy of Cannon to open announcement
that the Empire State would throw its big block
of votes to tho Indiana senator. Governor Odell's
change of baso followed immediately the arrival
in Chicago of E. H. Harriman of tho Union Pa
cific and an interview between the governor and
the railroad magnate. Harriman, and not Odell
or Piatt, is said to be really in control of the
New York delegation on all matters save the
presidency. In an hour or two after New York's
flop it became known that Pennsylvania, Iowa,
Wisconsin and other states more or less under
railroad influence would follow New York's lead.
And thus tho nomination of Fairbanks appeared
t6 be assured before nightfall."
A DUBLIN veterinary surgeon, Allen by name,
has discovered an antidote for carbolic acid
poison. The London Daily News says: "Some
time ago his attention was drawn to two horses
which were evidently suffering from poisoning.
On examining one he noticed that the mucous
surface of tho mouth was blanched and that tho
animal was staggering. There was a general
twitching of the muscles, the eyes were staring and
the animal was rapidly assuming a comatose con
dition. Mr. Allen asked for some oil, linseed for
preference; if not, any kind of oil that was handy.
Some was brought, and about two wincglassfuls
administered to one of the animals, the effect be
ing, to. quote the words of Mr. Alien, miraculous.
For the first time ho then noticed that the 'oil'
which had been given to the horse was the ordi
nary turpentine of commerce. So satisfied was ho
with the result that he gave the second horse a
dose, although at that time tho animal was un
conscious. In about ton minutes it recovered, and
both horses wero at work the next day as if noth
ing had happened."
SOON after this, Mr. Allen was asked to look
at a blacksmith who had drunk a glass of
stout and had become very ill. In the forge the
veterinary surgeon found the blacksmith in a con
dition of coma, a strong smell of carbolic acid per
vading the premises. Ultimately he discovered
that the man had drunk out of the wrong vessel
and imbibed a solution of the acid instead of tho
stout. A doctor was at once sent for, but in the
meantime Mr. Allen administered a dose of tur
pentine that happened to bo on the premises, and
the maii not only quickly recovered, but resumed
his work within an nour. Turpentine as an anti
dote in similar cases had been previously un
known, and the representative of the Daily News
recently sought out an expert with a view of get
ting a medical opinion on a matter of so much
importance. "The symptoms in the case you men
tion," he said, "are distinctly those of carbolic
acid poisoning, and so successful does the treat
ment appear to have been that further experi
ments in the same direction .are well worth trying.
If subsequent experiment confirms the oil of
turpentine treatment, then on every packet or
bottle containing carbolic acid should be printed
this simple antidote.""
A HUNTER in South Africa' tells the following
story of an adventure with a buffalo: "I
was in the act of descending the bank when
Prinsloo, a Dutch hunter, who was lower down
the slope, saw the dark outline of the buffalo
standing at bay behind the screen of reeds. Next
instant, seeing it about to charge, he shouted,
'Daar koin hij ('There he comes'), and fired,
rather at random, I am afraid. Then, rushing down
the path by which he had advanced, he threw
himself headlong Into the reeds on the left. This
all happened in a few moments, but I had suffic
ient time to raise my rifle to my shoulder and fire
as the enraged bull rushed straight at mo through
the reeds with nose thrown forward and horns
back. As I fired I endeavored to jump aside to
escape the charge, but my feet got entangled in
the matted grass and I fell on my back, luckily,
however, retaining my hold on tho stock of my
rifle. My first shot seemed to check him for a
moment, but the next ho was rushing up the
slope at me. I shall never forget the look in his
fierce eyes. It was but a moment's work to draw
back the bolt of my Mauser and to close it again,
thus pushing another cartridge into the breech.
I had no time to raise the rifle to my shoulder.
There was barely time, just before he was in
striking distance, to pull the trigger with the
stock under my armpit, while I lay on my back
on the top of tho sloping ground. Without so
much as a groan, he fell in his tracks and rolled
over into tho muddy water, two yards below, with
a great splash, shot through the brain."
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