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BOW LIKE A THEATER
hHE SENATE CHAMBER RE
MODELED AND IMPROVED
iHow the Antiquated Old Legislative
Hall Has Peen Modernized Gallery
Made Like a Balcony Ventilation
Chairs for Senators and Spectators
Many Electric Lights
Washington correspondence
I Hid1
III1
f I HE work of renew
A 1
SSiSSsI
4 iL llli If
ing the historic old
Senate chamber
which has been in
progress is now
complete and the
accompanying pic
tures show the new
galleries and the pe
culiar type of venti
lating chairs with
which they are fur
nished The large
picture gives a good
idea of the improved
appearance which
lYgthe hall presents
IP What was one of
11 U the most primitive
and antiquated legislative chambers in
the civilized world has been changed into
perhaps the most modern one equipped
with a multitude of devices and conve
niences that are not only fully abreast of
the day but considerably in advance of
it Aged and white haired Senators like
the venerable Morrill of Vermont who
iias occupied a seat in the chamber for
thirty years may be led to wonder some
what when they first see its newly ac
quired splendors And the younger and
more festive Senators whose eyes so
often revert to the galleries to catch the
smiles and glances of their fair occupants
will see the spectators not crowded in
old painted wooden benches as of yore
but seated luxuriously in rising tiers of
opera chairs richly cushioned and up
holstered in dark red leather and con
structed after a unique design
They will see the walls renewed and
fresh everybody will be more comfortable
Illuminated brilliantly with beautiful
clusters of incandescent electric lights
above the tinted class ceilings and not
vonly in the galleries but on tlie Senate
nWr everybody will be more comfortable
by reason of the many novel improve
ments in the reconstruction heating and
ventilation of the restored chamber The
temperature in summer will be kept cool
and equable by means of a cold storage
system and at all times and seasons the
personal comfort and welfare of the Sen
ators will be promoted by the best mod
ern agencies that money can buy And
thus greater inducements and incentives
than ever are present to prompt aspiring
statesmen to attempt to break into the
United States Senate
The Chamber Dismantled
The entire floor and all the brick walls
and piers beneath it were taken out to
be replaced by a new iron floor topped
by a wooden one of cherry The honie
ly old fashioned galleries were utterly
demolished and are now superseded by
handsome balconies like those of our best
up-to-date theaters The seating capaci
ty of the old galleries accommodated lf00
people but the arrangement of the
benches always resulted in jamming and
disorderly crowding on great field days
There are only 700 chairs in the new gal
leries each one a sort of reserved seat and
when they have all been filled the limit
of capacity cannot be stretched and thus
overcrowding will be avoided
These gallery chairs are remarkable
from the fact that they are supplied with
mk ilk
Ml- - V I
XEAV VEXTII ATIXG CHAIR
an original ventilating device Each
chair has two mahogany legs or supports
and under these forming a part of the
legs is an apparatus for diffusing an
equable current of fresh air of the right
temperature in and around the clothing
and body of the occupant The air is to
be supplied continuously from shafts un
derneath the floor and will be sifted
evenly from apertures in the supports so
that there will be no drafts The cost of
these ventilated chairs was 3G00 or
514 apiece The Senators mahogany
desks down on the Senate floor are also
fitted with similar ventilators
Plan for Ventilation
The ventilation scheme is elaborate and
ingenious The need of improved venti
hation In the Senate does not strike the
average visitor in the galleries as urgent
butwevcr since one lordly and reverend
Senator a few years ago removed one of
his summer shoes to ease a lacerated toe
and placed the wounded foot on a col
leagues desk there has been a deal of
joking in the Senate on the subject of
ventilation and there are officials in the
Senate who remark that the present ven
tilation project is the sequel of thatjocu
lar and good natured agitation
First a cold storage plant costing 15
000 was established in the terrace at the
west front of the Capitol It is operated
by the usual ammonia process and in
cludes a refrigerating machine a tank
an insulator and an engine Exceedingly
cold brine is supplied to the air in the
system of air ducts reaching from the ter
race to the distributing shafts This ab
stracts the humidity from the air and
reduces its temperature and can be con
trolled so that the requisite supply of
cool air can be given to the Senate even
in the most torrid Washington summer
weather Associated with this cold stor
age plant are fresh air and steam heat
ing systems The steam heating plant
in the Senate basement furnishes this
steam heated air to automatic fans at a
definite temperature The old fans and
steam engines have been removed and
newer and more efficient fans substituted
driven by electric motors directly connect
ed with the shaft fans
Where They Get Air
The pure outside air supplied to the
steam heating coils is brought from the
stone tower at the northwest section of
the Capitol grounds and after being
properly warmed is diffused through the
heating shafts The temperature is reg
ulated by a special automatic device If
the temperature in the Senate should
change one degree either too warm or too
cool the device shuts off the hot air sup
ply in a measure if too warm and allows
the cold air to mix with it until the de
sired temperature is restored If too
cool the supply of cold air is restricted
in a similar way
The air supply whether heated for win
ter or artificially cooled for summer is
forced from the various plants with an
even pressure through the air shafts un
der the air tight flooring of the Senate
and galleries through the desk and chair
legs and through the diffusing boxes
The pressure is controlled by regulators
under each chair desk and box The
foul or consumed air escapes through
jiiliUlli ill iMMiyiwyfe
fsP8ilMyi8 1 J
J
THE SENATE CHAMBER
pecially designed apertures in the ceil
ings and is drawn thence to the outside
by a special fan placed on the roof of the
connecting corridor joining the Senate
wing to the old central building
The paneling of the gallery walls has
been renewed and painted in lighter and
more modern designs and the lower walls
of the chamber have been restored and
colored in light pearl with gold damask
panels The press gallery has likewise
been restored in an improved form and
ventilating chairs supplant those of the
abandoned pattern
Incandescent Iiiuhts
The substitution of incandescent elec
tric lights above the glass ceilings is a
great improvement over the old gas
lamps In former times unless carefully
watched the gas lights at the ceiling
would raise the temperature of the cham
ber as much as 10 degrees in the course
of half an hour and oftentimes the sud
den heat would shatter the glass and
endanger the devoted lives of Senators
below Finally 150 arc lights have been
distributed and erected throughout the
Capitol grounds and the use of gas has
been discontinued in the grounds as well
as in the Capitol itself
The expert who overhauled the old ven
tilating system of the Senate and Capitol
generally and upon whose recommenda
tion the present improvements were
made was constraiacd to say in his offi
cial report regarding the condition of the
historic old edifice I have found it
impossible to approach the study without
such a sense of admiration for those
whose names are inseparably associated
with this work as to tempt me to suggest
as little disturbance of the existing condi
tions as shall be consistent with the at
tainment of desired results and on the
ther hand I have been influenced by a
reeling of reverence for the noble build
ing and its great uses which impels me
to a recommendation of nothing short of
the most complete and effective equip
ment possible
The cost of this renewal of the Senate
chamber has been 35000 for which an
appropriation was made at the last ses
sion of Congress on the sundry civil bill
and the cost of the extension of the elec
tric light system to the Capitol grounds
was within the 45000 granted for that
purpose at the same -time
Viewing all these modern attractions
and comparing them with the old condi
tion of things in the Senate former fre
quenters of that habitat of the most
distinguished legislative body on earth
may well be justified in giving utterance
to that delicious Southern colloquialism
Where am I at
William P Hazen chief of the secret
service treasury department in his an
nual report shows the total number of
arrests made during the last fiscal year
to have been 7S0 Of the whole number
of persons arrested 175 were convicted
and sentenced 144 pleaded guilty and
were sentenced The remainder are
either awaiting trial or sentence or not
tried
The Board of Election Commissioners
finished the recount of votes in the For
tieth Councilor District of Massachu
setts and Isaac D Allen the colored Re
publican candidate was declared elected
over John H Sullivan Dem who now
represents the district
The Ozark Implement Company has as
signed at Springfield Mo with liabili
ties of 18QQQ Tlie -assets will payout
CUBANS WHIP THE ENEMY
Battle of Importance Takes Place In
Pinar del Rio
The Cuban insurgents have won one of
the most important battles fought on the
island during the progress of the war
The battle was in Pinar del Rio but no
details are given Cubans are rejoicing
as this is the first real battle since Wey
ler took the field A later private
v
CAPTAIN GEITEBAI WETLER
patch was received in New York City
from Madrid to the effect that Gen Wey
ley had resigned as captain general of the
Spanish army in Cuba and that Gen
Prando had been named by the Govern
ment as his successor Gen Luque has
been wounded it is reported
The insurgents are said to have four
teen factories in operation between Soros
and Cabanas in Pinar del Rio Neverthe
less reports are received of a scarcity of
food and clothing The constant fight
ing has frightened the cattle and they
have hidden in the mountains where it is
difficult to secure them for food
The police by forming an ambush suc
ceeded in surprising a party on the Ave
nue Infante on the outskirts of Havana
who were preparing to join the insur
gents Two of the party were killed but
SPANISH FORTIFICATION IN CUBA
two succeeded in escaping A policeman
was wounded in the melee Capt Neila
of the garison of Cascorro who was re
lieved during a siege by the assistance
of Gen Castellanos has arrived at Puerto
Principe where he was tendered a recep
tion characterized by the greatest en
thusiasm Crowns were bestowed upon
the men of the garrison and a banquet
was tendered them
KING OSCAR II
Monarch Who May Appoint a De
ciding Arbitrator
King Oscar II of Sweden and Norway
who in case of emergency may appoint
the deciding arbitrator in the Venezue
lan boundary dispute is a good friend of
the United States and the cause of the
little South American State it is believed
will be fairly considered by the man he
KING OSCAR II
selects if it should be found necessary
for the king to act The Scandinavian
monarch will not be the fifth arbitrator
as was erroneously stated by the press
dispatches Royalty never sits with sub
jects yet the indirect connection which
Oscar II may have with the Venezue
lan affair gives him importance in the
eyes of Americans The King is a very
democratic ruler He goes about among
his people freely and without reserve
He gives them to understand that he is a
Scandinavian first and a monarch after
ward His reign has covered a period of
constant and unruffled prosperity His
interest has been unflagging in the agri
cultural mining and industrial affairs of
his kingdom and no person however
humble in his domains who has shown
aptitude or merit has been unrewarded
He is very erudite History the classics
art literature and science are affected
by him and he is without doubt the most
cultured monarch in all Europe Person
ally King Oscar is a most affable polish
ed man He devotes his leisure time to
association with savants artists and au
thors and in these conversations the
widest liberty is given and royalty forgot
ten Physically he is a powerful man
6 feet 3 inches high and of rather attrac
tive appearance Scandinavians in Amer
ica are now making up a present to send
him on his sixty fifth birthday early in
January
Notes of Current Events
The wife of a Burlington roadmaster
Patrick ODonnell wns shot and instant
ly killed by her 16-year-old son at Lin
coln Neb The shooting was accidental
Guy Hutsonpiller vas murdered in his
room at the Windsor Hotel at Omaha by
George Elliott The latter used a coup
ling pin and beat his victims skull to a
pulp Both men with a party of ten went
to Omaha from Moberly Mo where
Buffalo Bills - show disbanded for tiie
season they having ben employedas
rQTigli riders
a
THOSE OTHER PEOPLE
had quarreled I dont
WE what about neither
quite knew I think One of
those unexplained quarrels when we
thought mean things of each other
without any cause and then justified
the others condemnation by moaner
actions We were polite to stupidity
and our conversation was interlarded
with the poorest satire in which we
exulted as displaying the sharpness of
our wit and the indifference f our feel
ings We ruthlessly staged and won
dered every time at the others cruelty
with a renewed sense of surprise
whilst pondering on a return thrust
likely to prove more hurtful Every
day we seemed to be growing farther
from the possibility of a reconciliation
till at last we became quite friendly in
our enmity We ceased to be personal
and only discussed outside matters
Our hearts had solidly frozen we who
had loved each other so much there
was no longer warmti enough even for
satire We ate our meals silently to
gether in the great hall of ihe queer old
Inn of Montenero which was built high
up on the rocks abovi the swift river
coiling about their base 2u0 feet below
an impregnable stronghold in tlie old
times of the border wars and now but
a hostelry for uuvehnS crossing the
wild forest lands that stretched for
miles to the horizon I had come to
meet the Count my father on his way
south but he had been detained and
Ugo had declared he would not lave
me in the desolate old castle till a safer
protector than 1113 female attendant
should arrive I acquiesced how will
ingly then when my heart beat at the
sound of his footsteps and the gloomy
halls seemed so mysteriously delight
ful whilst he was there Things had
indeed changed Now I protested im
patiently at the -waiting Would not
my father soon arive Yet surely I
dreaded his advent which would mean
our parting without ever a reconcilia
tion
He offered to ride to his encounter I
murmured He might if he wished
and turned away with my heart sink
ing into my toes He did not go how
ever and in this I found further cause
for a display of ill humor He success
fully retaliated till I despised him with
all my soul and wondered how I ever
could have thought him aught but a
bear
One day as I strode angrily along
the corridor I encountered one of the
guests I had not before noticed though
later I remembered that she had been
about the inn for some days She was
a little person not so much in height
she might have been as tall as myself
as in general effect she looked little
and had the meanest countenance I had
ever beheld I took such a sudden dis
like to the creature that I involuntarily
drew my skirts aside as she passed
Later on in the day we both observed
her at a table in the company of a man
He was taller than she yet had the
same appearance of puny meanness
An impotent pugnacity marked the
whole of his irascible physiagnomy the
features of which were white and form
less The two openly wrangled during
the whole course of the meal so that we
could not help laughing at the ridicu
lousness of their behavier They
bandied words on every conceivable
subject Pray dont eat your soup as
if you were fond of it said she I
hate to see people eat their soup in that
way You hate every one but your
self said he Perhaps I do when
every one has diminished to a you she
replied
How brutal they are murmured
Ugo
I laughed Well we were well bred in
our quarrels at any rate Whatever
we thought we took care to conceal in
elaborate politeness worthy certainly
of better feelings I think he under
stood what was passing through my
mind for he flushed a little angrily
Surely I did not mean to compare our
selves to these low creatures whose de
formed bodies seemed the index to their
crooked souls Whether I did or not I
succeeded in hiding further expression
of my thoughts
During the following days we became
better friends the discussion of these
oddities made us forget something of
our own rancor We were pleased to
condemn them and philosophize on the
usefulness of such beings on earth their
hideousness and evident discontent
with life Whenever we came across
them our loathing increased It hap
pened one afternoon as we were seated
on the parapet of the tower overlooking
the dense stretch of wooded country
to westward and the silver serpent
river whose color deepened with the
Betting of the sun till the whole be
came a winding liniof molten crimson
at our feet that a strange emotion
caused by the wondrous scene stirred
1
us both Wo turned to look at one an
other when the sight of their vile fig
ures intercepted our glances and- their
querulous voices echoed in the great
silence petty stupid mean
I wonder that they can even thinlrof
such things I said a little hotly
whereat an odd look crept into Ugos
eyes which made me feel suddenly in
dignant No doubt he was comparing
me to them How small of him to db
that How I disliked the way he dan
gled his feet against the parapet his
sword between his knees I rose up
and went in He couldl listen and- en
joy the company of those horrible peo
ple if he liked since he could not see
any difference between them and me
I went disconsolately to my room and
watched from my window and the
tears crept into my eyes as 1 thought
that surely Ugo and I would never be
the same to one another again Whilst
I sat and dreamily pondered the idea
entered my head that this strange pair
had come between us that they had
cast the evil eye on us the evil eye I
shudder as a sense of the reality of the
superstition assailed me I recollect
ed that they had appeared at the inn on
the day of our quarrel For seven days
Ugo and I had been as strangers to one
another aud they they would sever us
for all time I leaned out of my win
dow gazing down on the parapet be
neath me on which Ugo still sat The
horrible woman was looking at him
even as I was and the man mumbling
to himself I could have laughed out
loud from very rage for Ugo seemed to
be mesmerized to tlie spot bathed in
the crimson light from the setting sun
with a look in his eyes that was not
his a look of one enthralled by evil
Far below the river seemed a way of
lVTnnrl infl tHo ondJ
immutable The idea of blood entered
my soul and witn ira terriDie tnougnc
I shivered and closed the casement
then hastened away to escape from the
grewsome notion that seemed to pursue
me and take possession of my will
I had done it The awful idea had
returned to me
In the late evening I stole through
the dark corridor to her room and all
the way I laughed to myself for the
strange madness so possessed me that
I had neither fear nor horror Then I
crept away down the stairs aud out
into the open by the flowing river
There as the cool air fanned my fever
ish face I thought r had done right
she was an evil horrible thing who
would harm us But Ugo What will
he think Still I said aloud I am glad
I am glad
Why are you glad
I turned round with a little cry as
Ugo came out of the darkness and
joined me
I could not rest he went on quite
naturally so I came out here I did
not expect to find you he continued
with no warmth in his tone adding
Those people got on my mind I felt
an irresistible desire to go and smother
that brute kill him I wish I had
but somehow I hadnt the courage
Ugo
What is it he said
I have done it
What
I have killed her
You are mad
I have killed her I repeated
He remained silent pale to the lips
then said hurriedly No ono can pos
sibly know you did it
No unless
Unless
He he should divine
But he must die too He sprang
away from my side bittern by my mad
ness Dont you see hesaid looking
oddly such people must not exist
they are horrible venomous worms
they axe not human they have the evil
eye they poison the earth
I followed slowly possessed bV a
strange calm Of course it was quite
right The world must be rid of such
extraneous beings We cleansed our
houses of all vile arccumuiations we
swept our sxreets and burned every
useless thing killed nauseous insects
a- treacherous animals exterminating
I all that was loathsome Why did wo
stop at htrman vermin and not purify
the woitd too of such defilement
xnen suddenly r stoou sail uga a A
few yards before me was rooted to the
ground and she I had failed -then
My stabs meant nothing She could
not be killed Ugo too had failed
The blood in my veins turned cold with
horror and like him I could not sjove
from wheye I stood
At last he came up to me as one in
a dreatft and said We caanot kill
them Look They are wme evil
spirs Little one he murmured
tenderly eome away corae away from
Uevei it te a poisonous piase They may
live forever but they shall not separata
us We were In their thralldom Wag
it n dream Ugos arms were round
me I love you 1 love you he said
I have been afraid to tell you and
they they came between us but we dc
not care do we You were so brave
braver than I for you did not hesitate
but it was no use we could not kill
them
Our arms were tightly entwined
nothing in the world could come be
tween us now Those grewsome people
were but pigmies What cared wc
And we turned with a laugh towards
them Then we saw what whs indeed
stranger than anything that had yet
happened at the old castle for there
under our very eyes they changed and
she became even as I was tall and fair
and he as Ugo brave and beautiful till
at last ft seemed that they were we and
we were they then as the pale moon
gleamed from out the clouds and threw
a flood of light across our path we
found that we were alone
It is not true I murmured I may
have been like that but not you lie
colored to hi3 eyebrows The portrait
of me was doubtless excellent said
lie the other of course was a pre
posterous calumny
But I dont think either of us cared
very much for me knew that as long
as our hearts beat near one anothers
tliose other people could not find a way
to come between us And in very
truth they were seen no more at Moi
teuero Westminster Budget
SHEEPSHEARING
Ecpertness of Professional Slicarer
in Mew South Yalc3
Ibst of our readers would probably
think that to shear say twenty or
thirty sheep would be as much 1 as the
most skillful and industrious shearer
could do in a- long days work They
may then says Chambers Journal
be interested to know what vastly
greater numbers are expected to pass
through the deft hands of a capable
craftsman in the pastoral regions of
the great sheep keeping colony of New
South Wales Our notes have been
collected on the spot
The number of sheep a man- can
shear in a day of eight and a half hours
is governed by several circumstances
over and above- the shearers expert-
ness depending mainly on the class- of
sheep and the nature of the country
over which the sheep have pastured-
Of all the breeds of sheep merimos
are the most difficult to shear In
the first place they are very throaty
that is the skin covering the neck
lies in large loose folds so that manip
ulation with the shears is at best tedi
ous and troublesome Then again
they possess what is technically known
as the- points of the breed they are
wooled to the tip of the nose and down
the legs to the hoofs it is these- so
called points that take up time
Sheep grazing over pastures where
burs grass seeds twigs etc are nu
merous or over coarse sandy
1 HrvT pra i liwHwln
ilMw 1 wmimmtmm pi h
of foreign matter that blunt the shears
during the piocess of shearing It will
at once be seen that this especially applies-
to short legged sheep heavily
fleeced as the merinos are to the extremities-
of their limbs The time
taken up sharpening his shears is a
serious consideration to the shearer
Bad or careless in- order
to give the sheep the appearance of
being properly shorn may either
shingle or feather the fleeces they
cutoff By shingling Is meant mak
ing a second cut over the same- part
of the body of the sheep the first sev
ering the staple toward the center
and the second close to the skin yet
the whole fleece holds together and
the- damage may not be detected till
closely examined On the contrary
feathering is plainly- seen as sooni
as tlie fleece is shaken out here the
clip has been uneven leaving patches
of longer wool to be severed by a sec
ond cut This leaves a quantity
short wool in the inside the fleece
which readily separates when the
fleece is unrolled Shingling is the
worst fault as it quite ruins the sta
ple for combing purposes
In- the mountain districts- west of
the taole land the average- number of
sheep a fairly good man- will shear in-
a- day of eight and a half hours varies
from seventy to 120 On the northern
plains near the Queensland border the
average is 120 to 170 and rt is on rec
ord that the champion shearer of
Queensland clipped 32T sheep in nine
hours Such a man in- the language
of the seed is- termed a ringer
In the central plains on the LachJan
River the average i eighty to 220
With machines the numbers are of
course considerably- more The men
I are paid fl per 100 sheep and out of
this they isave to provide rations
shears sharpeningrstones oil eba
A eat- Sxvindlrng Trick
The latest swindling game was prac
ticed successfully the other day at
Benton Pa rUwo men who appear
ed to te strong silver and gpld advo
cates were int the- central depot and
became involved in a heated discus
sion The gold man offered to bet a
gold double- eagfe that if he hammered
the coin inSoa shapeless mass it would
still be wwth 20 He -was ostensibly
taken up by the silver- advocate but
waen it- came to selliag the lump to
Jeweler Roth the store was closed
moc FTfPT frv n stmnir sound mnnov
advocate who stood by and who had
implicit faith in the- value of gold gave
the raan 20 for the battered coin The
two enthusiasts disappeared shortly
after and then It was discovered that
the metal left by them was spurious
A Terrible Warning
A Bangor Me man was struct and
killed by lightning while he was hug r
glng his best girl
In the eyes of a young woman a man
cannot exaggerate te importance j
his 4Q a month posltfeB