Opinions of Great Papers on important Subjects.
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The Hired Men.
| T is important that the hired man on the farm
should be sociable and "chipper. " That lesson
( protrudes from nearly every page of the Inter-
> sting government bulletin on "Wages of Farm
Labor in the United States. " The relations
of the hired man and his employer are per
sonal and sentimental , and democratic to a de
gree found In few other occupations. If the farm hand
has a likely tongue and a cheerful manner , the employer
may do any number of things for him that will not figure-
in the contract He will let him cut firewood from the
wood lot , raise as many hens and pigs as he chooses on the
farmer's land , graze a cow or two , have a horse and buggy
whenever he wants to drive into the village , and if he Is
married , occupy a house and garden patch , rent free. It
pays to be agreeable on the farm.
And it pays every farmer to have as diversified crops
as possible , particularly if he is hiring help. The one-crop
farmer , be his product corn or cotton , crowds into about
four months all the work of the year. If he uses his
acres at other seasons for dairying or lumbering , he could
profitably employ a good part of his own surplus time
and energy and those of his sous if he has any , or of his
hired man if he has engaged one. As the government bul
letin intimates , the season of idleness on the farm , when
there is none or little employment of labor , as contrasted
to steady employment in a factory , constitutes "the great
est difficulty In procuring help for the farm. " The hired
man's wages are highest in the States where the farms are
well wooded , lowest in the treeless prairie States. The
farmers of the country earn a pretty penny every year
over $100,000,000 from the product of their wood lots ; the
annual value of sawlogs cut for the lumber business ex
pressly is only $50,000,000 more than the farmer receives as
a side Issue from his winter's work with the ax and saw.
New York Mail and Express.
Why Forests Are Useful.
BT us take two hillsides of identical slope and
exposure , one being forested , the other cleared.
The rain falls on the canopy of trees In the
one Instance and drips softly from leaves and
branches and trickles down the trunks. The
[ soil beneath is soft and loose ( even in winter It
does not freeze hard ) , a composition of disinte
grated rock , decaying leaves and twigs and even logs ,
nud all tied together by a dense mass of roots and rootlets.
The rain comes upon this forest soil so softly through the
trees that the ground is not compacted and hardened or
gullied as it would be if the rain fell directly on the soil.
The loose and spongy earth takes up the water as fasi
as it falls , and that which is not seized by the roots for the
nourishment of the trees is carried away into underground
basins , from which it slowly percolates and eventually
conies out upon the surface again as springs. So slowly
'does this filtering go on , the spongy soil holding the water
back , that the springs are given a constant and almost ,
steady supply. Even drought will actually dry up but
few such. Snows also melt more slowly in the forest , there
by preventing disastrous spring freshets.
In the other case , that of the treeless slope , the rain
falls directly on the bare ground and pounds It hard and
impervious. The water for the most part runs off. super-
licially as from a roof. Not enough water sinks Into the
ground to help feed constant springs. The surface run-off
of a hard rain on a bare hillside is moreover conducive to
gullying and washing of a most destructive nature , and
the waters being poured immediately into the stream beds
cause freshets. The freshet waters quickly rush by , wreak
ing havoc with fields , bridges , mills and the next week
the streams are nearly run dry. Boston Transcript
Economic Independence.
T is probable that $100 per capita is a moderate
estimate of the value of the food annually con
sumed by the people of the United States. In
other words , the grocery and provision bill of
this country approximates $8,000,000,000 a year.
| The impossibility of ascertaining with accuracy
the money value of these sources of table sup
ply in which no commercial transaction is involved the
farmer's kitchen garden ; the fish and the game of those
who eat what they catch and shoot ; and the beef , mutton
THE LAZIEST PEOPLE
Koreans 3Iake Tlieir Women Beasts of
Knrderi S = oul a Filthy C ity.
Broadly speaking , it is hardly an ex
aggeration to say that the Koreans
are the laziest people on earth. All
day long they lay about the streets
smoking their gigantic pipes ( a native
pipe is a six-foot length of bamboo
with a metal bowl , and is carried
tucked into the neckband and down
the trouser leg ) . All work , of very
nearly every land , is done by the wo
men , who occupy , perhaps , the most
degraded position held by the sex of
any nation. The unfortunate female
population is collectively a beast of
burden , and denied even the most ele
mentary recognition as human beings.
A Korean girl has no name ; she is
merely known as "Daughter of "
During the first moon of each new
year the Cho-senese throw off their
inordinate laziness and allow their
naturally quarrelsome proclivities full
play. This is the period permitted by
law when anyone and everyone may
fight in the public streets , or any
where they choose , with impunity.
And full advantage of the license is
taken ! Now are family disputes ,
which have been seething for a whole
twelvemonth , settled in the most prim
itive fashion , and often half the town
is drawn into the brawl. The creditor ,
catching his debtor abroad , may
thump and pound him to his heart's
content , and no one may Interfere.
For fourteeen days a veritable pande
monium reigns , and as a method of
"clearing the air" It Is certainly not
without Interest for the spectator.
. Seoul , the capital , on the Hang-Kang
river , is an untidy , ill-built city , sur
rounded by twenty-foot walls. The
curfew system , common to feudal
England , still prevails as In most
Korean towns. A great bell Is rung at
eunset and the gates are immediately
closed , not to be reopened until the
and pork killed and eaten by those who raise the animah
leaves any statement of the cost of feeding the nation a
matter rather of estimate than of known amount
Some idea of our absolute economic independence , sc
far as food products are concerned , Is obtained by a reall
zatlon of the fact that about 97.5 per cent of the $8,000.-
000,000 grocery and provision bill Is supplied from domes
tic sources. If the remaining 2.5 per cent obtained bj
importation , be analyzed , it is seen that a half dozen
Items , such as coffee , tea , cocoa , sugar , spices and tropical
fruits , represent more than three-quarters of the foreign
supply. The importation of articles which might be 01
even could be raised In this country is probably less than
one-half of one per cent of the total value of our annual
food consumption.
Not only does our actual domestic supply of aliinentarj
substances exceed In Its percentage that of any other natior
or people rightly claiming to be civilized , but there is th <
further fact that in point of variety our menu is almosi
unlimited. The question of cookery Is a side issue depend
ing on Individual t'iste. But the fact remains that w
have the food in limitless quantity and infinite variety ,
the product of American farms , gardens , fields , orchards
forests , rivers , lakes and oceans.
In addition to this generous supply of our domestic
needs , we sold to other countries , last year , about $900 ,
000,000 worth of surplus crop. It may be remarked that w
also have a few acres of land not yet under cultivation.
New York Sun.
Your Shore of the Public Debt.
OUR father can remember when a 7 per it-n
government bond served as a sort of intcresl
standard. Of course , it was a gilt-edged securi
ty , but 7 per cent for money was considered
about the proper figure. That was not verj
long ago. It was In a day when the public debt
of the nation , measured by the resources of tht
people , was a heavy burden. Now we have 2 per cen (
bonds. In fact , more than half of our bonds are 2 pel
cent securities. In the face of a thousand alluring Invest
meuts , Including farm mortgages and municipal bonds , tht
government can have all the money it wants at 2 per cent
Your share of the Interest on the public debt is 34 centi
annually. Your share of the Interest-bearing debt Is $ jJ. .
We piled up millions of liabilities during the Spanish
war , and yet the total of the public debt Is less than tin
capital of the Steel Corporation ; less than the total amounj
of life insurance credited to at least two concerns. Th
interest-bearing debt on Dec. 31 , 1903 , was $901,747,220 ,
Eleven dollars per head. In Great Britain the debt is $73
per capita , and in Holland it is $90. France has a national
debt so great that each inhabitant owes $150. The raj
of sunlight there Is the fact that France has borrowed fronj
the people , and there is no danger of foreign creditors fore
closing a mortgage on that country. Argentina owes $125
per capita , and Australasia $203.
We talk much of our natural resources , our loyal people
and our new navy. Don't forget that one of our greatest
items of strength in foreign lands is our financial stand-
ing. The nation with unlimited credit , with a big treasur
chest , is in a position to command and direct and Influ
ence. Financially , the United States has no competitors.
St. Louis Chronicle
Too Many Railroad Accidents.
ITI-IIN a month 125 people have been killed bj
railroad accidents in the Eastern and Middle
States , and more were Injured It may be ar
gued that this is hardly more than a normal
amount of destruction in so large a populace
jas ours , but there is no normal rate of violent
lent death. If accidents continue in the same
proportion , it will mean that whole regiments of our citi
zens will be exterminated by trains in the course of this
year , and that is entirely too many. Our authorities are
always lenient toward the people who are primarily re
sponsible for these slaughters , because presidents , super
intendents and directors are not personally cognizant of
defects which caused the slaughters ; but if we were to
acquire a habit of holding the officers of railroads to an
account , they in turn would exact more faithful and ade
quate service of their employes , and there would be a les
sening In the number of accidents as a result Brooklyn
Eagle.
following sunrise. No lights may then
be carried in the streets , and no one
may go out of the city , with one
rather startling exception. All funer
als , by immemorial custom , tike place
only at night , and for this purpose
there is a special exit called "The Gate
of the Dead. " Between the hours of
sunset and dawn , no male is allowed
to be abroad in the streets ; these
hours are sacred to the women , and
constitute their only privilege. They
usually employ the time in paying vis
its. Up to a few years ago , any mas
culine philander found out after
dark was beheaded , but since the Eu
ropeans have introduced their own
customs , the entire system is in danger
of revolution.
Seoul is one of the filthiest and
worst-kept towns to be found in all
the east The idea of drainage has
not yet entered the official mind ,
and that pestilence has not made there
its abiding home is proof of a benefi
cent Providence. During the writer's
sojourn some years ago , It was not
an unusual occurrence for the agile
leopard ( Korea's most common "wild
fowl" ) , to scale one of the walls , and
entering the 'nearest house , carry elf
a child in the darkness. To-day ,
however , they have changed all that ;
but Seoul's greatest need , from a
western point of view , is still a de
cent hotel. The native dwelling-
house is an impossibility to all but a
salamander. The flooring , in most
cases , is composed of neatly-jointed
flat stones , over which mats are laid.
Underneath is a hollow space , in
which firewood is laid in bundles and
lighted. The paper doors are then
slid into their grooves , excluding all
air , and soon you find yourself in a
Turkish bath. The average new
comer only tries it once.
A new baby looks like a lobster.
This will make mothers mad , but'it la
true. We have a right to say so , hav
ing once been new , and a baby.
RANK POISON IN THE BODY.
Generated in the System It Frequent
ly Causes Disease and Death.
The body Is a factory of poisons.
If these poisons , which are constantly
being produced in large quantities iq
the body , are imperfectly removed or
are produced in too great quantity aa
the result of overfeeding , the fluids
which surround'the brain cells and alj
the living tissues are contaminated
with poisonous substances which as
phyxiate and paralyze the cells and so
interfere with their activity. This fact
explains , in part at least , the st'ipidity
which is a common after-dinner ex
perience with many persons.
When food is retained in the stomach
beyond the normal time , either because
of its indigestibility , the taking of too
large a quantity of it or a crippled
state of the stomach , these changes
are certain to take place. This fact
explains a very large share of the
myriad symptoms which afflict the
chronic dyspeptic. The giddiness , the
tingling sensations , the confusion of
thought and even partial insensibility ,
which are not infrequently observed a
few hours after meals in chronic dys
peptics , are due to this cause. Here is
the explanation of the irascibility , the
despondency , the pessimism , the inde
cision and various other forms of
mental perversity and even moral de
pravity which are not infrequently as
sociated with certain forms of gastro
intestinal disturbances. London Fam
ily Doctor.
Thawing out an Oil Pipe Liine.
An eight-inch oil pipe line from the
Bakersfield region to San Francisco haste
to be heated at intervals so that the
oil will flow.
When a number of poor cooks get
together , what a lot of blame you will'
hear given the flour !
A man naturally believes in the sur
vival of the fittest as long as he lives.
KOREA PM "FT. "
Farm hands in Norway receive $40
to $80 a year.
In New York city schools 1,000 chil
dren have trachoma.
Trust company deposits now amount
to over $1,500,000,000. This is an in
crease of $1,000,000,000 in the last five
years.
Chemulpo , the port of Seoul , the cap
ital of Korea , looks out over a vast
shallow bay , where the tide rises thir
ty feet.
Hetty Green sometimes rides in a
$12,800 automobile , but it is owned by
her son , Edward H. R. Green , of the
Texas Midland Railroad.
Since the campaign entered upon by
the health authorities against the
hordes of rats at the London docks ,
255,372 have been destroyed.
The whistling by switch engines
which -work all night In the railway
yards in and near cities is permitted
In no country other than America.
One hundred and sixty dollars was
paid recently for the pen used by the
Emperors of Prussia , Austria and Rus
sia in signing the holy alliance treaty.
James Stillman , president of the Na
tional City Bank , of New York , com
monly called the Standard Oil Bank ,
Is a director of fifty-two corporations.
A German physician recommends
soap as a cure for sleeplessness. The
soap lather must be allowed to dry on
the skin before the patient goes to
bed.
bed.Lord
Lord Kelvin's estimate of the age of
the -world is : "Not so great as 40-
000,000 years ; possibly as little as 20-
300,000 years ; probably 30,000,000
years. "
If the deposits now In the savings
banks of this country -were divided
per capita , every man , "woman and
zhild would receive $417.21. The total
sum is $2,935,204,845.
There were 144 German domestic
servants last year who were awarded
: he servants' golden cross for having
ived forty years with one family. Only
) ue was found in Berlin.
As a protection against consumption ,
t is proposed to inoculate every calf
u Germany with speciallly prepared
: uberculosis bacilli , on the plan of vac-
? inatiou , in order that the animal may
lot contract tuberculosis later.
Chuang Kuei Tl , the leader of the
juurd of the court at Pekin , has stated
hat his trops are unable to sh c be
cause they have never been supplied
, vith ammunition , and so are quite uu-
iccustoined to the sound of the rifle.
Nine-tenths of the external trade of
he Bahamas , which amounted to $1-
575,000 last year , is with the United
States. The principal exports of the
slands are pineapples and sponges ,
iiid the imports flour and earthen and
glassware.
The school savings bank system is
low in practice in 797 schools in eigh-
y-five cities of twenty-one States. The
mpils have saved over $2,000,000 , of
vhich $1,500,000 has been withdra-wu.
Che exact balance due depositors Jan.
. was $521,900.83.
Since Alaska passed into the hands
if the United States the Government
las received $9,095,822 through its va-
ious departments there. The expenses
if administration have been $8,690,780 ,
o that the Government has made a
trofit from its investment.
The Dogs' Protective League has ar-
anged with veterinary surgeons
hroughout England to set aside a. cer-
ain hour in each week when poor per-
ons may present their dogs for advice
.nd treatment. The league also trains
turses for attendance on dogs.
The Canadian Pacific Railway offi-
ials have announced that the company
las been condemned by a British judge
n Hong-Kong to pay the Chinese Gov-
rrnment 96,000 for running down a
Chinese gunboat with one of Its steam-
ihips , the Empress of Japan.
In a German factory , which employs
,107 men , making agricultural imple-
nents and traction engines , 25 per cent
ret 71 to 95 cents a day , 59 per cent get
15 cents to $1.31 , and 16 per cent get
Lbove $1.31. This does not include
, oys or apprentices , and is for a nine-
ind-a-half-hour day.
BELIEVE IN MANY OMENS.
of West Indiana Gives the
Planters Decided Advantaze- .
The French Islands have two super-
ititions which are not to be found in
i > me others of the West Indies. These
ire a belief in some sort of werewolf
r vampire , which lives on the blood of
ivayfarers , upon "whom It leaps when
: hey are abroad In the night time , or
> f sleepers -whom it finds in lonely
mt& ; and , second , & belief lawhat is
known in the British Islands as the
"rolling calf , " a monster -with blazing
eyes , which prowls at night , clanking
a chain suspended from its neck , and
at whose touch men die. The follow
ing description is given of the typical
obeah man :
"There is something so indescribably
sinister about an obeah man's appear
ance that he can always be picked out
by one who has had much to do Avith
his class. Dirty , ragged , unkempt , de
formed , there is yet about him an air
of cunning authority. His small ,
piercing eyes peer viciouslj * at the wit
nesses arrayed against him in court ,
for all the world like those of a cor
nered rat. Black men may be seen to
turn as gray as ashes under the terror
of that baleful gaze , and often it is
only -with difficulty that incriminating
evidence can be dragged out of them.
The wizard's awesome presence , how
ever , does not appall an unsentimental
British judge. He orders him "twelve ,
months' hard" and a sound flogging.
Frequently the obeah man appeals
against this sentence to the higher
court , and in Jamaica it is not ai all
unusual for him to get off on some
technical point , owing to the defective
drafting of the law. Of course , he
tells the ignorant negroes that he pro
cured freedom by his magical powers
and thus their superstition Is strength
ened.
British law punishes obeah with
flogging and imprisonment. Neverthe
less obeah is practiced by the -white
planters almost as a matter of neces
sity in order to frighten the negroes
and prevent them from appropriating
the produce of the plantations.
You may -walk through your friend's
banana plantation and notice a skull
stuck on a top of a stick , a small bottle
full of dead cockroaches tied to a
branch , or a miniature black coffin
placed on a little mound. "Hello , old
man ! " you say , "working obeah eh ?
I'll come and see you flogged at the
jail" He tries to laugh it off shame
facedly , saying there is really no other
way to make "those Avretched natives"
keep their hands off the crops. That
is true. It is needless , however to go
to the trouble of placing these things
about your plantation. If some night
prowler has stolen your bananas all
you need do Is to say next morning in
the hearing of the natives : "It's all
right , I don't care. I've got the foot
print. " You will see them whisper
among themselves in an awestricken
way and presently one -will come up to
you , nearly weeping with terror , and
confess himself the thief. The super
stition is that if you dig out the earth
upon which the robber has impressed
bis foot and throw it into the fire he
will waste away and die unless he
? ives himself up and takes his punish
ment. New York Commercial Adver
tiser.
American Made Dolls.
There is a big factory in the United
States now , in New Jersey , -which
makes dolls , very perfect and durable
anes , of sheet steeL They are light
ind strong , so strong they cannot be
jroken even if stepped on. Their smile
Is the kind -which will not come off ,
! or their complexion Is of baked enam-
jl , not to be rubbed or scraped away ,
mys Good Housekeeping. They are
jtartlingly lifelike , these babies from
NTew Jersey , for they have ball and
socket joints , even for their ankles , and
strike all sorts of chjldish attitudes ,
rhe hands can be fitted -with gloves ,
ind the eyes are removable , to accom
modate little girls -who have decided
preferences as to brown eyes or blue.
Fhe hair can be removed for a shampoo
pee or a change of complexion. They
Evill ta.lk even , if one cares to pay for
i phonograph attachment. Altogether ,
Lhis pioneer American doll Is charae-
: eristically smart and good-looking.
The Care of Umbrellas.
More umbrellas are spoiled through
careless treatment than wear out from
ictual hard work. One great mistake
: hat many people make is to leave an
ambrella standing on its point to dry
ifter it has been used in the rain. This
s most harmful , as all the water
.rickles down and settles in the folds
it the narrow end of the silk , and this
lot only causes the silk to rot , but the
; vire frame to grow rusty. The right
to treat a wet umbrella when
t Into the house Is to open it
vide and -wipe it as dry as possible ,
Jien half close it and leave it standing
) n its handle to drain. Wet umbrellas
mould never be put near a fire ; this
ilso Is likely to cause the silk to split
Chose a Suitable Text.
"Dr. Thirdly is certainly an up-to-
late clergyman , " said Fosdick.
"So ? " said Keedick. ,
"Yes , sir. One of his parishioners
Evas killed by the explosion of his
lutomoblle and the doctorvtook for the
; ext of his funeral sermon the biblical
iccount of Elijah going to heaven in.
i chariot of fire. " Smart Set
FITZ TO HIS SORROW.
Unexpected Deznonatratlc
of 111 * llittinsr Power.
Bob Pitzslnnnons gave an
ed demonstration of his physical
.the other day in a downtown sporting
goods house. The big fighter drops Into
this establishment frequently and edi
fies the clerks and whatever customers
may be about by his skill at drumming
the punching bag. He rarely fails to
perform his old trick of knocking tha
bag lose from its bearings , and on thW
occasion , after a hard blow had tora
the bag loose from the string that held
It , one of the otiicers of the concern
who Avas loklng on and who knows
Fitz well , remarked to the pugilist :
"Oh , I don't think much of that
stunt , Fitz ; that piece of rope was an
old one and it wouldn't take much of
a blow to break It It toot you soma
time to get that bag loose , and my
opinion Is you are getting to be a back
number. If you couldn't land on Cor-
bett any harder than that he'd trim
you In jig time. "
Fitz didn't say anything in regard
to the guying , but the mention of Cor-
bett's name made his face take on
more determined expression.
"Then , " said the business man la
telling of the incident "I got a brand.
new piece of stout sash cord , nearly
thick enough to lift a horse and rigged
up the punching bag -with this cord.
'Now , ' I said to Fitz , 'there is som © .
thing yon could not knock loose In a
hundred years. ' Fitz lammed away a <
the bag viciously for a while , but didn't
knock it loose. I stood there guying
him some more , telling him how hc' < J
gone back and nil that , and then 1
walked away about twenty feet
"I turned around to see how Fits
was getting along , and as I did so 1
saw his arm shoot threugh the air s
fast it was only a blur in the air , and
the next thing I knew the bag waa
shooting through space like a bullet
"It was coming straight for me , too ,
and at such speed that I didn't hav
time to dodge it It cleared an inter
vening show case , and the next Instaut
I was wondering whether I was In thq
ring or In the hospital. The flying balj
caught me squarely over the eye , and I
surely thought I would have to tak <
the count The blow dazed me for a
moment and nearly put me out
"I guess Iwas the one that was l
Ing guyed all the time , but In any
event between the kick of a mule and
a , man who can drive a punching bat
twenty feet through the air and hart
enough to almost knock you down , th
mule for mine. I don't think Fitz 1 *
quite a candidate yet for the home foi
superannuated old men. " New Tort
Sun.
Trees in Ohino.
Tree planting in North era China li
being strenuously enjoined by the an
thorities , not only as a productive 1
dustry for the people , but alike as a
means of strengthening the river era *
bankments against floods and of check
ing drought Of late years trees nan
been cut down wholesale for agriculi
tural purposes , while the peasants d4
not take the trouble to plant fresh
ones , because the soil is so loose thai -
they must dig down very deep for a
satisfactory foothold. So vast tractt -
of fertile land are left barren , whih
in the northern provinces especially
the influx of sand carried by higft
winds from the Mongolian desexl
threatens to fill up the unoccupied
ground.
So in the important Province of Chill ,
which contains the capital , Peking
is a government proclamation notify
Ing the "eight directions for tree plan
tation" most minute instructions aj
to the kind of trees required , tin
depth they should be planted and thf
fertilizers to be used and the "tes
benefits to be derived from the same ; ' '
such , among others , as the sale of tln >
ber and fruit , the beneficial influenet
of trees in attracting rain , preservinf
the just equilibrium ofwind Influence
and purifying the atmosphere , whili
"travelers and families will find shadt
and rest under the branches. " a poetb
truth for conclusion. Golden Penny.
New Type ol" Engine.
From Germany comes news of i
locomotive worked by steam and ye *
Independent of fire of its own. Ti *
engine has just been completed at thi
Hohenzollern works at Dusseldorf an <
is of a type designed for shunting b ]
explosive factories. Instead of carry
ing fire in its own boiler it is filial
with steam from stationary boilers ,
and when so charged is capable of sen
eral hours' work. The first warming
up occupies half an hour , and subsa
quent recharging can be done In I
quarter of an hour. The apparatus i |
so simple that an unskilled workmaj
Is able to look after it The absence oi
fire in a place where dynamite or gun
powder is being handled is the reasoj
for the invention of this type of en
sine.
Equal to the Kmercency.
The old sexton approached the pul
pit
"Parson , " he exclaimed in a hears
whisper , "the church is on fire ! "
"All right , John , don't get excited , '
rejoined the good man as he stoppet
abruptly in the middle of his sermon
"You pass down one aisle while I g *
down the other and we'll quietly wakt
up the congregation "
Ansvrered.
"When does a girl reach the * maa
riageable age ? "
"When her father's purse has reach ,
ed the marriageable size. " Detaroi
Free Press.
When a leap-year girl proposes it' |
up to the young man to lose his seit
possession.
Never crack a joke on delicat
Around.
