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About The Red Cloud chief. (Red Cloud, Webster Co., Neb.) 1873-1923 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 5, 1900)
u V. F i i M v i OLD ROY BEAN, JUSTICE PEACE He Is "the Law of Texas, West of the Pecos" For ninny years one of the stock stories of tho profcslonnl funny men of the country has been of thocoronur who held an Inquest ovar tho body of mnn found (lend, and In ono or whose pockets waH a pistol and In an other 50. Tlic story rclntes that tho coroner stop.iod tho Inquest at onco upon discovering tho pistol and cash and lined tho dead man $50 for enrylug n pistol without a permit, collecting his flno from tho cash pocket. noral solemnities wcro an affair of the past, tho klllor was honored with a request to appear at tho bar where liquids and Justice wero dispensed al ternately. Tho sago who was "the law of TexaH west of tho l'ocos" had evidently devoted somo sparo moment? to tho study of his first murder caso, for tho Judgment that waa rondorod and entered on the docket Is cortaln ly without a parallel, "I havo carefuly examined tho crlm- nn nccompllshod bartender had flllod n largo beor glass with puro alcohol and tlicn he reversed tho Terror as If ho had been handling a toy. "Now, look here, strangor," aald Mr. Ilean, In ten der but deceptive tones, "you have boon finding fault with tho quality of my whisky and you have aeon proper to satisfy your fastidious tasto, to order a peculiar drink which 1 havo takon tho troublo to prepare for you." Tho Terror turned his white face toward tho bar. and when he Haw a tarantula nml n vinegar roon floating about In a tumbler of alcohol ho uttered a. groan of distress and his knees began to tromblc, "Thero Is tho peculiar drink and the trimmings thnt you ordered, young mnn, and my name la Hoy Bonn," said tho old man, oh he pushed POUND OP COAL. mmmm m rn vr. lt . : - ; 'Jm1 m , .0 ra iwn I n " 'f j j y& i vnmri'n AWW TCMi LIT JNOOTI.N6 A ' D1UED LIZARD TEA Mnuii jvtw r M5i . ,Z fJCW,. X . , , J& ! I Y (L I I m f f ft ff fWL. N Kilt I v I rtfMlry i tiRmM mibM,tr. brcah. row (. , IV UMJMM UM'MWmMllA V T1M rB X.AW0r TBJWS WHiroi T3K "Pv Down In this part of Texas, writes a Fort Claik correspondent, Is tho man with whoso action this slmplo and In genuous talo orlglnntcd. Ho Is Hoy Bean, who for ton years In the young dnys of Texas was JiiBtlco of tho peace and coroner of tho town of Vinegar Itoon, being, as he expressed It, "tho law of Texas west of tho Pecos." Ho is still living at tho town of Langtry, on the Sunset rnllroad, 300 miles west of San Antonio. No man knows whence he came. Tho railroad build ers found him away out hero on tho great desert plaliiB, and when tho gam blers mid toughs and tenderfoot came along with tho drst trains and at onco proceeded to run tho country accord lug to their own notions, old Hoy Ilean declared himself a Justice of the pcuco and boldly announced "I am tho law of Texas west of tho Pecos." It Is highly probable that n few people who woro In favor of law anil order In vited the stranpo character to assume the Judicial position, nnd that on ac count of his desperate courage and fearloss Judicial demeanor ho after ward was appointed to All the olllco of Justice of tho peace. Early ono morning It was reported lu the town of Vinegar Iloon that a man had fallen from a bridge near tho place and thnt his dead body was ly lg on tho ground close to tho wator. Roy Benn, us Justice of tho peace and ex-oBldo coroner, ut onco summoned a Jury. There wnB no testimony to bo taken. Tho man wnu a stranger, and it wab not easy to determine tho cause of his death. Ho might havo fall en from tho bridge or ho might hnvo been murdered. Tho coroner searched the dead body, and when he found u pistol in one pocket and $50 In the other ho turned to tho Jury and In formed them that In this matter their eervlcoa wero of no value, since It would bo necessary for tho court to render a verdict without their aid. Tho court lined the dead man $50 for carrying a pistol and took possession of the money, since tho fees of tho coroner amounted to Just 50, nnd tho body was burled on tho lonely prairie at tho expense of tho county. Vinegar Roon was named aftor tho most poisonous little reptile that in fests tho western plain. It can sting a Gila monster to death In tho twlnk lllng of an oye, and then turn about and chase a rattlesnake from his don. Clialn-llghtnlng whisky Is no antidote for tho poison of the vinegar roon. Roy Bean named tho placo, and while acting Justlco of the peace he divided his tlmo between tho Judlclnl bench and n roomy saloon and gambling house, whore thero wero none to dis pute his authority, for ho was solo proprietor. Oni flno day n gambler, while In nn unusually hllnrlous mood, sent a pis tol ball crashing through tho brains of a Chinaman. When tho citizens of Vinegar Roon had ceased to celebrate the exit of the Celestial, and tho fu- Inal statutes of Texas," said Roy Bean, "and 1 And that thero Is plenty of law to punish ono white mnn for killing an other, but thero is no law to punish u citizen of Texas for Bhootlng a Chinaman." Roy Bean was not at all a bad mnn. He wns as bravo as a lion and liberal to a fault. Ho was tho right man In tho right plncc. From Snn Antonio to Los Angeles ho wns known aa tho tamer of tho long-haired Wild Bills and all other desperadoes. No task pleased him better thnn ono thnt af forded him un opportunity to make a swaggering, lxiastlng bully wilt and take a sent In the background. Ono day one of theso gentry from Arizona strolled Into his place bent on having somo recreation. "I hnvo been spending u fow weeks In San Antonio," he said, "and my shooting Irons wero getting rusty." After tulcltig n few drinks nt tho bar ho began to berate tho mild mid feeble qualities of tho liquids offered for sale in the Infant city. "Olvo mo a llttlo tnrnntuln Julco with a real Vinegar Roon floating urouud in it!" shouted this Arizona terror. "All right," calmly replied tho old man behind tho bar. "1 think we can accommodate you, but you will havo to wait a few inomentB." "Well, get up the beverage!" ronred tho terror, "and I'll amuse myself dur ing tho delay by dropping a fe,w bul lets mound promiscuously among tho lamps and bottles and slch things." "As you please," suavely replied the old man. "I like to see a strangor en Joy himself." Tho terror glanced at tho pollto bar keeper rather suspiciously, but ho never onco dreamed that ho was talk ing to old Roy Bom. Fairly choking with suppressed mer riment, old Roy went out on tho plains only a few steps from his saloon and after turning over two or three rocks ho got a big tarantula nnd n monster vinegar roon. Aftor mashing tho heads of tho poisonous roptlles, ho re turned to tho bar-room, unterlng the door Just as tho Terror with u wild Comancho yell begun to rain load among tho bottles nnd glasses. Aa tho pntrons of the house started through tho doors and windows In confusion, old Roy shouted, "Keep your seats, gcntlomen. This Infant cyclono will bo of short duration." The next In stant the Terror found himself stand ing on his head and his weapons wero falling upon tho floor. Mr. Bean hold tho nmnzed man In that position until tho trembling Terror towards tho bar. Tho amazed nnd thoroughly alarmed strangor found voice enough to beg for mercy. "Drink every drop of it or I will bronk your neck," said Judge Bean. Tho poor dovll gulped down the awful mixture, and wi(h a scream of terror sprang out Into tho street. He "hit tho earth a-runnlng," and ho never slackened his speed until tho town of Vinegar Roon was far bohlnd him. It Is supposed that tho man's stomach Instantly rejected tho fearful poison, for ho lived to tell of his ex perience In Vinegar Roon, though he said thero waB not gold enough In tho world to hlro him to revisit tho place. No Inwyer was allowed In thoso old days to question the Jurisdiction of tho court or tnko nn appeal to higher Judi cial authority. He lined a "pettyfog glng lawyer." ns he called the attor neys for oven hinting nt nn appeal. "I will havo you to understand, sir," roared tho enraged Justlco of tho big Judlclnl district, "that there is no ap peal from this coutt, I am tho law of Texas west' of the Pecos River. Let tho supremo court at Austin and your llttlo district court nt El Paso 'tend to their business nnd I will 'tend to mine." Felonies nnd even divorce cuses wero tried and tho decisions on forced, lu splto of tho angry protests of attorneys nnd tho frantic threats of litigants and prisoners. Divorces wero gi anted nnd thieves wero convicted and r-cntenred to tho penitentiary. Poace. provalled, and long before this strango character was rhe'eked In his wild career a child might havo carried a purso of gold through tho streets of Vinegar Roon nt midnight without fear of being molested. Wondcrfal rower Htorcd Up In Nature's Nnbtemincnn VticL. Let us take u pound of what wo will call average coal, containing, say, 10, 000 heat units. TIiIh would be aomo what smallor In slzo thnn a man's flat A pound of this coal It expended In mechanical work, would glvo ub 230 horso power. Imagine at tho tlmo of tho I'hnraoh's two long lines of men, extending over half a mile, all pulling stendlly, at tho command of tho task master, at a great rope, to raise somo huge obelisk, and as you sco them sweating, tugging and straining, think again of this small lump of coal In which naturo hns plnced an equal amount of power. In some countries men who have been specially trained as porters, to carry heavy loads on their backs, will, as n full day's work, carry a total of from 350 to COO pounds n distance of ono mile. And yet each has oxpended but one-third of tho power stored up In this pound of conl. An oxroptlonnlly strong man has been known to do one-hnlf horsepower of work as his mightiest effort, but In two and a half minutes, work at this rate exhausts his muscular force. Let us suppose 100 such men putting forth such extreme effort nt rope, or crank, or crowbar; as they fall back, red- faced and puffing, to catch their breaths, wo might Imagine this little black lump saying to them: "I can do ns much as your whole company, and then can stand it for fully two mluutes longer beforo I am exhaust ed!" Let us now turn to another portion of the humnn race. From the earliest times spinning hns been a much-prized accomplishment of the fair sex. We need look back only to our own grandmothers. Wo can pic ture them, from their own storlc3, told us when wo were children, ns rosy cheeked damsels sitting around the open llreplace and spinning from early candlelight till bedtime, let us say possibly two hours. Let us then con sider for a moment tho thousands of spindles rattling and whirling In a modern cotton factory, impelled by tho power locked up in conl. One pound of this coal carries the potential en ergy to do tho work of 3.000 such spinsters. In sawing wood, n man may work nt the rate of about sixty strokes ' a minute, nnd consider himself a "top- sawyer,' nnd his snw blade mny have progressed Ave feet a minute; but a circular saw, driven by machinery, may be put through seventy times ns much wood. And yet this ono little pound of coal contains power enough for 180 such saws. E. D. Meier, in Cassler's Magazine. A MEDICINAL DRINK MADE FOR CHINESE ONLY. Urardi Cut Open In China, Dried, nnd Pent to tho United Htnte to Mukn the Cup Tliut Che r Dried Lizard Dutiable. The devious wanderings of the ncuto Chlncso mind and the queer shape which Oriental logic takes were well Illustrated In a recent decision of' tho United Stntes general appraisers in New York. Tho question was whether dried lizards, from which tho Chinese make a. medicinal drink for thoni selves only, thank heaven come In tho sume tariff category as ftogs, whoso leg.? are eaten ns food. If the answer were yes tho stuff for the Chinese con coction, according to Chlneso logic, ought to come Into America nt a lower rate of duty. Tho Collector of Cus toms In Snn Francisco took the nega tive end of the nrgument, whoreupon n Chlnose (lrm of Importers appealed, with the result that the decision of tho collector wns nlllrmed. In China the lizards aro cut open, stretched on bamboo sticks and dried. In this condition they aro exportod to tho United States to make the cup that cheers and cures the Chinaman in this country. Tho appraiser in San Fran cisco returned the stuff ns a medicinal preparation not otherwise- provided for, and assessed It ut the rate of 25 per cent nd valorem. Then tho Im porters "kicked. They represented that tho merchandise Is not a prepared medicine, but Is merely dried lizard, and should be taxed at 10 por cont ad valorem as an unenumorated, unman ufactured article. Tho Chinese members of tho Import ing Arm delved deep Into the mystorles of the American tariff. They rested their clulm upon a Treasury decision In which tho goods In that caso wero frogs intended for food, though thero was no contention that they were for any other purpose, and tho solo ques tion wns whether they woro dutiable as prepared meats or as dead frogs. The statement of the lizard Importers showed that the lizards aro used only as medicines, being boiled In water, aa herbs and slmllnr articles aro pre pared. This concoction Is drunk to impart vigor nnd strength. Several years ago, however, the Treasury De partment waB called upon to decldo this 'same question, and It hold then that tho stuff was n medicinal prepara tion. Therefore, in accordance with this decision, tho Now York gonernl appraisers announced that the dried lizards aro dutiable as a medicinal preparation, as assessed. Cockronclir Duaert ulipor Omcrn. It Is a singular fact remnrked upon by tho Inhabitants of nowspaper of Aces that the cockroaches, once so nu merous In such places, have almost disappeared. Time wns when tho llttlo brown pests fairly overrun the homes of the press. Not only did they oxlst by thousands In the composing-rooms, but they also got down into the ed Itorlal quarters. Observing printers nay that tho disappearance of the cockroach began with tho Introduc tion of typsetting machines. This Is believed to bo true, for In the big city olllces they have become scarcer and scarcer ever Blnce about 188S. Now ono Is seldom seen there. Whether the Insect disapproved of the new In vention or whether there was some thing on the movable type which gavo him sustenance Is not known, but ho Is gone, and thurc aro few to regret his departure. Luxury is on enticing pleasure, a bastard In mirth, which hath honey In her mouth, gall In her heart, and a stlng In her tall. Quarle?. 1 1 t INSURANCE IN CHINA, American Companies Unable to Do Much Business There, AVWUWVWUWMWWWWWlrtAWWWWWWWVWWWWWSI' 5 lAMMI Clilueiie Muiwrnlltlon. When Oen. Grant was visiting China, Chester Holcombe, for many years secretary of tho American lega tion at Pokln, secured for him a priv ilege never beforo that tlmo accorded to a foreigner, the prlvllego of ad mission Into the sacred precincts of tho Templo of Hoavon In Pckln. Now, It Is contrary to the settled belief of the Chinese to admit a member of tho female box, young or old, ovon to tho templo ground, under any clrcum- ctances. It Is said that should a Chi nese gunrd venturo oven to carry a baby girl in his arms within the for bidden lines ho would probably bo punished with death. Not knowing of these restrictions, n number of ladles In Oen. Grant's party ventured to fol low him when ho visited the sacred edlflco, says losllo's Weekly. Realiz ing tho seriousness of this action, Mr. Holcombe afterward apologized to tho emperor's representative for tho con duct of his countrywomen, nnd was in formed thnt tho intrusion would bo overlooked, but must he kept as secret as possible, for should tho populace loarn of it an anti-foreign outbreak would ho likely to follow. They would not Torglve bucIi a pollution of their most sacred building. TEST IN PRONUNCIATION. Ilrlof Kxt-rclin That Will Tuialo Molt Expert Scholar. An exorclso In pronunciation was placed on the blackboard at a teachers' Institute, a prize being offered to any one: who could read and pronounce every word correctly. The book of fered ns a prize was not carried off, howevor, ns twelve was the lowest number of mistakes In the pronuncia tion mado. "A sacrilegious son of Belial, who suffered from bronchitis, having ex hausted his l.ances, in order to make good tho deficit resolved to ally himself to a comely, lenient nnd docile young lndy of tho Mnlay or Caucaslnn race. He accordingly purchased a cal liope and coral necklace of a chameleon hue, and securing a sulto of rooms at n principal hotel ho engaged tho head waiter as a coadjutor. He then dis patched a letter of tho most unexcep tional calligraphy extant, Inviting tho young lady to a matinee. She revolt ed ut tho Idea, refused to consider her self sacrlilcable to his desires, and sent a polite note of refusal, on receiv ing which he procured a carbine and bowlo knife, said that ho would not now forgo letters hymeneal with the queen, went to nn isolated spot, sever ed his Jugular vein and discharged tho contents of tho carbine Into his ab domen. The debris was removed uy the coroner." Field for AiiKirlraii. There is n great flold in Portugal for Amorlcnn enterprise, wrltps John N. Irwin. United States minister to that kingdom, in tho Septomber issue of Success. Our ninnufacturors really ought to "prospect" In thnt llttlo iknown country. In tho Arst placo, they aro mado most welcome. Tho king und tho queen, both young and (truly regal, speak English perfectly, und aro among our warmest admirers. iThoy reflect tho sentiment of their .people. In the second placo American foods aro needed, and the procwslvo part of tho population would welcotno them as u means of advancing tho country's prosperity. English-made machinery now used thero Is of tho old typo nnd not up to dato. In Lis bon the old style of transportation Is bolng chuuged to tho electric system. While English capital is conducting tho outorprlso, overy bit of material, from tho smallest bolt to tho modern cars, Is of American mako. Portugal sends us cork, and we send her potro leum and wheat, but In my opinion, tho balance of trade, now in our favor, could bo mutcriully lnci eased if our manufacturers wero to tako full ad vantage of their opportunities In tho llttlo kingdom. Miihitnimmliin Number 11)5,000,000. The number of Mohammndana In tho world is about 10(5,500,000. Of these, 18,000,000 aro under tho rule of the Turkish government, 23,000,000 nro rulod by other Mussulman sovereigns, 3(i,500,000 nro subject to African princes, 20,000,000 llvo In China, and 90,000,000 aro under Christian rulers. Of these last about 58,000,000 aro under British rule. Now Bleiloo First lu Hhrrp. Toduy the seat of the sheep-shearing industry of the Union hus Bhlfted from the middle west to tho plateau region between the Rockies and Sier ras. Ohio Is still doing very well in the buslneBB, with nearly 3,000,000 head, but she has dropped from Hrst to fourth In the list of mutton pro ducing states. Now Mexico is at tho head, with moro than 4,000,000; Mon tana has nearly ns many, whllo Wy oming leads Ohio by a few hundred thousand hend. Idaho closely follows Ohio In the rating. Oregon, California and Texas each has ubout 2,500,000 shcop. VrnnounoliiE tho HuanUli ".I," A friend of mine who happened to be In Us Vegas, N. M managed to make a blooming Idiot of himself nt tho dinner table at the hotel in the presenco of -several womon. Ho had boen down-town, and in pronouncing somo names had boon told thnt nil words beginning with "J" were pro ounccd ns beglnplng with "H," so when he had been invited to dine with a frlond and several women he took tho menu, and, in order to show his knowledge, he ordered In n tono of thunder: "Bring mo somo nowi ami Joljy. Denver Times. Tonr Itojr'a ItUe. Roprcsentativo Connoll, of Pennsyl vania, began llfo as a driver boy in n coal mine nt 75 cents a day. lie has Just entertained about fifty of his fol-low-mombers nt ono of the most elab orate dinners glvon in Washington this season. New York Tribune: A genoral war In China, no matter how largo the number of victims, would cost the life Insurance companies of tho world a great deal less than war in any other country of Importance. As a conse quence, Mongolian wives nnd children havo little chanco of receiving insur ance money should their bread winners be numbered among the unfortunate. The Chinese have never mado any great effort to Insure their lives, it Is true, but those who tried found it al most as dlfllcult as does tho American negro. It Is not the color that the in surance companies object to, nor do they consider either race especially prone to suicide, but there are natural objections to their being considered good rlsk3. There aro but threo American .llfo Insurance companies which have writ ten any business In all Asia. Ono of these has placed most of Its policies In India, another has made a special effort In China, but most of the poli cies nro written on the lives of white residents. The total number of poli cies written by American companies for nil Asia was only C.172. Insuring the holders to tho extent of 513,583,141, and on which they paid a total pre mium of S7S0.348. Statistics aro not given of the number of policies held In Chlnu, but tho percentage Is small nnd tho number of policies held by Chinese smaller still. Although China is prolific in clubs and secret soclotlcs, none of them havo life Insurance departments. Tho fraternal societies for tho purpose of assistance during sickness and insur ance against death Is unknown In tho empire. Tho societies aro mostly po litical and too much wrapped up in in trigues to bother with lnsurnnce mat ters. Some of tho societies mix in re ligion to tho extent of having n minia ture Joss house In connection with their meeting rooms, but do not depart further from the social or political idea which the society Is supporting. The members usually say long prayers be- for embarking on any now business en terprise, or taking a now move lu the tangled game of Chinese politics, nnd they never fall to present the club's particular god with a costly onering when any such undertaking is brought to a successful conclusion. Fow of the Chinese living In Amer ica have taken out insurance on their lives. Tho rich merchants who could afford it think they do not need to look out for posterity in any sucn rasnion, and, of course, tho poor Clilnoso can not tako out ondowment policies. It Is for tho benefit of tho pooror classes that a mutual Insurance society has recently been formed In San Francisco, It Is not well under wny as yet, and the Chinese of thl3 city do not seom to be acquainted with tho details of tho scheme. It is said to be modeled to a certain extent after a well-known in surance order. The first Chinese policy to be writ ton In this country wns Issued nbout ten years ago to a rich Mongolian mer ohnnt who lived In Montann. Tho company did not care to take tho risk, and so Informed tho hustling agent who had secured It. As soon ns the Chinese found that they did not con elder him desirable ho wanted an In surance policy worse than anything else on earth. Ho told tho agent that ho Just had to have It. After much correspondence tho company said It would writo tho policy foran extra premium, and nnmed a Asuro bo high that tho Chinese would not ljavo con sidered It for a moment under ordi nary circumstances! As it was, he ac- wus ceptod tho offer anu the policy made out. Nearly all of the Chinese ministers to tho United States during recent years, Including tho present Incum bent, Minister Wu, have taken out policies of ono kind or another. It Is a case of advertisement with the com pany more thnn anything else. Several of the Chlneso consuls have also In sured their lives. The other Chinese policies held in this country wcro taken out by thoroughly Americanized merchants. HEAT AND MOISTURE. Iiitcrciitlne Kxperlnionta Ilrrentlr Made tin Fabrics In Kngluud. At a recent meeting of tho Philo sophical society In Cambridge, Eng land, experiments upon tho rlBe of tem perature of fabrics when moistened wcro described by Dr. L. Cobbett. Dr. Cobbott showed that If expired alr is breathed through Boveral layers of dried Altered paper wrapped round the bulb of a thermometer a temperature of ten degrees oentlgrado or moro ubovo that of tho body may bo regis tered (Dr. Dudgeon's experiment), mid that If u roll of Hunnel thoroughly dried, bo warmed to nlncty-slx degrees contlgrade und put into saturated steam of 100 degrees centigrade tho temporaturo within the roll mny rlso thirty degrees contlgrndo or moro above that of tho steam (Dr. Parson's experiment.) Dr. Cobbett concluded that such substances when quite dry havo thu property of uniting with wa ter and of generating heat lu the proc ess, and this without becoming damp In tho ordinary sense of the word, and maintained that tho source of this heat Is not alone the latent heat of tho vapor condensed, because a rlso of temperature takes placo whon dried Alter paper Is wetted with water at tho same temperature, but he must Include nlso either tho latent heat of water converted Into the solid state as Sir W. Roberts has suggested In discuss ing Dr. Dudgeon's experiment or elao tho enorgy set free In a chomlcal com bination between the material and tho water. Naturo. Autoinohllo l'roprlled y Halt. A now automobile hus been Invented by a Russian named Hutnl Serky. Ho has discovered a now system of loco motion based on tho uso of a certain kind of suit, the composition of which Is, ns yet, his secret. Two pounds of thlB Bait placed In tho box of the au tomobile, nnd subjected to a certain heat, forms a gas which puts a cylin der In movement. The automobile that woro tried In Moacow produced tho best results. The omporor of Russia, who takes great lntorest in this Invention, Intends to send Serky to Purls to make known his secret. Tho Russian press Is of opinion that it will cnuso a great revolution in tho trade. Lisbon O Dia. y ( Tho Tnrl of Chlim. Tho "tael," which Is, strictly speak ing, n weight nnd not a coin, differs In various cities nnd provinces of Chlnu, the weight of sliver recognized ub a "tnol" being grenter at somo points than at others. By common consent, rather than from Ub Intrin sic value, tho Haikwan "tad" Is takon as tho standard, and while it varies in value at different times, It Is quoted Ml In n recent consular report at 72 cents -ln gold. A t vi &!-. ..