Paul Road's Pacific Coast Exten
sion Gives Entrance to Rich
i New Country.
WHERE THINGS HOVE QUICKLY.
Claims Being Bapidly Taken and
Towns Are Building Along Houte
Big Railroad Bridge.
so many years ago the western
iTlaud of Missouri , Iowa , Minnc-
' 3ota and 'Nebraska presented a ragged
fringe of newly mnde farms , tiirust
into what then seemed a boundless , in-
exh.-uistiblc expanse of unoccupied ,
Jlai-L soil prairie lands. Sons of the
arnM-rs of that linio , needing land , simply
plyi i : ovod out ten or t\vcuty miles upon
he r.-wly surveys I areas , choosing and
-iipying homestead claims , almost un-
iiis iirlied by competing land hunters.
DM ing the ' 80s , though. something
&ap ; . . iicd. A fierce "land-hunger" iv-
J > la < c I ( his creeping of settlement , this
Oorv.il expansion. The Dakota s in
iitile liiore thav hilf a dozen years saw
more than 300,000 entrymen settle with
in their borders , and 100,000 pioneers
feat In engineering throughout , Is nearing -
ing completion , according to informa-
lioii received from Mobridge , 6. D. ,
where the structure spans the Missouri
river. The bridge is one of the prin
cipal connecting links between the main
line of the St. Paul Road and the new
coast division. The town of Mobridge
is expected to be one of the most im
portant on the road. Its name is made
of the abbreviation "Mo , " meaning Mis
souri , and "bridge. "
TIiou. < ( itn ] .s o Tlonie.'slcud.'s Op n.
Nowhere in the United States under
like conditions , upon a like solid area
of plowable , black loam , in a like space
of time , will so vast a number of home-
seekers be accommodated , yet a corre
spondent , having finished a drive of
300 miles or more along the extension
between Marmarth , X. D. , on the Little
Missouri , and the Musselshell River ,
in the heart of northern Montana , says i
that there remain within five to twenty
miles of this new line to the Pacific
Coast thousands of homesteads well
worth while to look at , and which will
be occupied within the coming twelve-
mouth.
As a result of successful dry farming
during the past eighteen months , on
the. Beach flats just north of the exten
sion along the Montana-Dakota line ,
there is a bright town a side track a
year ago. To-day it boasts of improve
ments of ? 300CK0 for the past year ;
among these , a -barrel roller mill ,
four elevators , with a capacity of 100-
< HX bushels , three hardware and imple
ment stores. The last named s < > ld with
in the year leO wagons , (50 ( self-binders
and 100 mowers. Everywhere now men
are awakening to the fact that whore
sage brush two to three feet in height
f VA' sfff .f - , -r..5 ; : . . <
* ? ! ? . . .l
jfrf6& $ '
: % l § i iM
I UK ; RAILROAD CRin < ; iAT MOP.RIL > GLs. . D.
addi l to the population of their newly
chr. stoned towns and villages.
To the extension of the Chicago , Mil
waukee and St. Paul Railway's numer
ous feeders in these States , perhaps
sn v , than to any other factor , did this
: ueiu owe its existence. It drew
io i N prairie country not only farmers
but iiousnuds of men and women from
known occupation , drew them
and made possible their successful oc
cupation aud upbuilding of these vast
-coiiii'iunwealths as we see them to-day.
The record of the Chicago , Milwau
kee and St. Paul Railway , in building
its Pacific Coast extension , has never
been equaled in the matter of time by
any similar undertaking. Track has
been laid at the rate of fire miles per
lay. and trains over the new trans
continental line will soon be operated
from Chicago to Butte , Moat. , and to
Seattle and Tacoma. Wash. , in about
a ye.ir.
TIi" big bridg'4 of this Pacific Coast
extension , the construction of which
'has ' attracted attention as a remarkable
Hai iiiiics.s frniu Troubles.
licing human , happily or unhappily ,
tveannot deny the comfort to be
onr.u in , the reflection thnt misery
never lacks the company it lores. We
all nave our troubles , and some of us
derive much satisfaction from the con
templation of them. Indeed , there are
these who are happy only when
wretbed , but these we beliere to be as
few in number as they are disagreeable
In association. The vast majority of
humans arc normal and disposed , tteere-
ore , in conformity with cutural law ,
to smile when the skies are clear and
to grieve under the portent of clouds ;
&ence the ease with which worry takes
possession of the mind , colors the dis
position and makes a crii > ple of ffert
JTliat causes abound we kuo-rv and
must admit , as we do almost uncon
sciously the certainty of death , but
too little cognizance is tftkcn of the
aet that the effect of mere apprehen
sion , which is all that worry really i ? .
anay be subjected to simple mental
{ treatment and be overcome. Gaorge
Harvey , in North American Review.
Two Cltie.s.
The most northern town on the globe
2s probably riammerfe.st , latitude 70
Degrees 3D minutes 14 seconds , off the
northwest coast of Norway , a place of
some ' 1,000 inhabitants. In Kammcr-
fcst the sun stays for two mouths
-above the horizon. The southernmost
$ o\vu in the world is Punta Areaas , on
-the Strait of Magellan. Punta Arenas
is a place of some 10,000 population.
The n.-tby'x Fuuli.
Nursemaid I'm going to leave , mum.
filistress Why. what's the matter ?
JDon't you like the baby ? Nursemaid
i'es'm , but he is that afraid or a po
liceman that I can't get near one.
London Taller.
A Chuiicu to Get Ilich.
' A fortune awaits the tailor who can
( invent a secret pocket in u coat where
a man may carry his cigars without
pxposing them to the many friends who
themselves. Detroit Free Press.
grows , densely luxuriant , unirrigated ,
rye. speltz , and particularly wheat , will
grow , if the simple methods of cultiva
tion , now no longer experimental but
proven , are employed. These gray-
green sage brush uplands are to be the
grain fields ol' the near future.
Montana has an-abundance of coal ,
from lignite to the best steam fuel
known. It is doubtful whether a in-
other section of the United States is
more plentifully supplied with coal
whih can lie io easily developed and
utilized by the settler , as eastern Mon
tana. At the first crossing of the Yel
lowstone , there is. in plain view of the
approach , a black band along the bluff
to the north two or three miles in
length , ten to twenty feet thick , of j
solid lignite coal of the finest quality , j
Never again > TJ11 Uncle Sam offer such j
prineely domains for the entryman's j
choice. Throughout this entire coun- j
try the government surveys will soon !
be practically complete , and before the j
end of the year the claim shanty will j
be everywhere in evidence.
Uii.iver.siSj' of Piirt.N.
The doctor's degree in the University
of Paris is SD entitled as to designate
the faculty under which the work was
done , ns those who do literary work
would receive the degree doctor of let
ters , etc. To obtain the doctor's de- !
sree the candidate must possess the ]
lower degree of the corresponding di
vision of work , submit two theses on
different questions , reply to questions
or objections concerning them , pay a fee
of 340 francs and present 100 printed '
copies of one of hi.s theses to the uui- j
versity. The candidate for the degree '
doctor of letters must write one thesis '
in Latin , the other in French. If in '
the ecieatific department , the thesis' '
must be on some original iuvestiga- !
tion : if in theology , the examinations j
ire both oral and written. School Bui-
lelin.
SigrrcNif > iiM in a Xmue.
A Scotchman in search of Avork was
recently given employment as a labor
er at Cramp's shipyard , Philadelphia.
His first job was to carry several
heavy planks. After he had been at it
for about two hours he went to the
foreman and said :
"Did ah tell you ma name when I
started to workV"
-yes. " replied the foreman , "you
said it was Tomson. "
"Oh , then it's a' right. " said the
Scot , as he looked toward the pile of
planks he had yet to carry. "Ah was
.list a-wunnerin' if yeu tliocht ah
it was Samson. "
Worth
Franco has more than 300 daily
newt-papers.
Generally the right ear Is larger than
the left.
Hats are an alarming nuisance in
Englnnd.
For every ton of gold in circulation
there arc fifteen tons of silver.
' Germany sends iiCOO,000 : feathers
per year to England for millinery pur
poses.
Rise of Several Rivers Is Reported
to Be the Highest in Many
Years.
i
SUFFERERS FLEE TO THE HILLS.
Boat Invades Flooded Cornfield to
Save Farmers and Stock Sick
ness Follows Privation.
The flood throughput the Ohio val
ley , caused by heavy rains and melting
snows , is reported to be the highest
since 1S70. Lives have been lost ,
homes , bridges and fences swept away ,
and crops and roads ruined. Hun
dreds of families have been flood-
bound in the overflowed areas.
Tlio Monongahela , Allegheny , Ohio ,
Wabarh and smaller streams hsre all
contributed to the destruction which
has moved down the. Mississippi to
ward the Gulf of Mexico.
Pittsburg , perhaps , has been the
greatest sufferer from the flood which
has bvv-ii swooping down the Ohio val
ley. Any one acquainted with the lo
cation of the Smoky City knows why
Pittsburg is annually , and sometimes
several times a year , a victim of high
water. The Monongahola and Alle
gheny rivers , uniting to form the Ohio ,
each flows through a narrow ravine
and when the waters of the moun
tains'and highlands come down in un
usual quantities , owing to prolonged
thaws or persistent rains , the flood of
necessity must overflow the narrow
point between the ravines , thus inun
dating more or less of the city.
In the vicinity of the junction of the
Ohio and Wabash rivers flood suffer
ers abandoned their homes to the rag
ing waters and lied to the hills. Hero
they have been quartered in huts ,
sheds and deserted buildings and as a
result of the exposure and privation
pneumonia has become prevalent.
People along the lower Ohio River
have prepared for the siege in store
for them. Nearly a hundred families
on the Indiana side , opposite Union-
town. Oiin. ! were removed. The biz
Ohio River steamer City of Spottsrille
cut across a cornfield and brought out
several families , with 200 hogs , eighty
7'.itiles and fifty cattle. The rescued
Hood victims had spent two nights in
Terror and fought incessantly to keep
their stock from drowning. Residents
ct Shawneetown. 111. , are apprehensive ,
ns the levee has been weakened by the
excessive rain and the three floods of
' .ast joar. A constant watch is being
kept of weak places.
The Evansville and Terre Haute
Railway Company has been anxious
y-Vjoit the safety of its embankment
rfhlch parallels While River , and thou
sands of bags filled with sand have been
placed to strengthen it. This place is
now known as the "IHack Hole' ! be
cause of the dis.ipperrance of a train
some years ago. All efforts to fill this
hole have been futile.
As a result of the heavy snowstorm
throughout the Middle West , railway
traUic has been greatly impeded and
telegraph and telephone service crip
pled. Dispatches tell of several trains
being snow-bound for many hours. The
area of the storm is large , extending
from Texas xto the northern boundary
of the country , and east from Denver
to New York. In several sections the
snow is more than a foot deep on the
level. Stock is rejiorled suffering in
the Western States and the loss is ex
pected to be heavy. Drifts have made
travel over country roads in wagons
impossible in many places.
IflEMIGRAMTS SHOW DECREASE.
Greatest Falling Off in Percentage
Is Shown by Japanese.
At the Cabinet meeting Wednesday
Secretary Straus of the Department of
Commerce and Labor laid before the
President some significant figures as to
immigration and emigration. The fig
ures show that for January there was
a large decrease in Japanese arriving
in the UnKed States. The total arriv
als for both the mainland and Hawaii
were 071 , as compared with 5,000 for
January , 1007.
THE WEATHER THAT'S PROMISED AITD THE WEATHER WE GET ,
Fair and Mild. Cold \Yava. Warmer Weather.
m o l * &Si\ \
>
Bain and Warmer.
JACKIES AS TARGETS.
Remarkable Test to Be Made by
JTavy Department.
The Xavy Department has under con
sideration the most startling tests of
the penetrating power of shells , dan
ger to life , and the resisting power of
armor that ever has been tried in any
navy. The proposition is to have the
monitor Arkansas fire a 12-inch shell
weighing S50 pounds from a GO-ton gun
a distance of two miles and have it
strike the turret of a sister ship , the
Florida , which is being placed in read
iness for the trial.
The astounding part of the test is the
proposition to have in the turret of
the Florida at the time of the impact
the full turret complement of twelve
men. All paper figures , all statistics
so far as weight of metal thrown , heat
generated by impact , resisting power of
armor , and other details would indi
cate that the men in the turret would
come out unscathed except for the
shock. Of course , there is no record
in existence of a monitor , the turret
protected by an 11-inch armor belt , be
ing struck plump by 13-inch shells of
S50 pounds weight. All figures , are
purely theoretical.
The possibility of missing is indefi
nite ! v small. All shots are now fired
from a geometrical deduction and with
machine precision. The shell will
doubtless land just where aimed for ,
and then if the theory of the naval
experts holds good , it will be deflected
and the turret left uninjured.
Naval attaches from all parts of the
world are anxiously scrambling for an
opportunity to witness it , but the de
partment has declined all applications ;
in fact , it is said the test will be made
far out at sea , so that observations and
deduction by foreign powers cannot be
made. The chiefs in charge of the
work to be performed by these two
monitors have been instructed by tlw
P.onrd of Officers in charge of the ex
periment to ? ay nothing to the pre/ ? ,
and the result is to be kept solely for
the information of the United States
navy.
IS'o Denmiul for Jjocomotive * .
The Cookc and Rogers branches of the
American Locomotive Works at Paterson ,
N. J. . have recently laid oft several hun
dred more men , so that of the H.OOO or
dinarily employed at these plants , only
half are now working , and these are
mainly engaged in making repairs to old
locomotives. The reason given at both
shops is that no orders for ue\v locomo
tives are coming in. either from domestic
or foreign raihoads
" > ; ; f lrlP'ixfi1flM ; : ! f
[ ' fMSjj $ ijl lj ] Mfijpfti [ i
Sao\v and Colder.
Sentenced to Die for Surresider of
Port Arthur , but Imprisonment
Is Recommended.
HEED COWARD AND TRAITOR.
General Pock Reprimanded and
SniirnoS and Reiss Acquitted
After Trial.
At St. Petersburg Lieutenant General
Stoessel was condemned to death by a
military court for the surrender of
Port Arthur to the Japanese. General
Fock , who commanded the Fourth East
Siberian division of Port Arthur , was
ordered reprimanded for a disciplinary
offense which was not connected with
The surrender , and General Smirnoff ,
acting commander of the fortress , and
Major General Reiss. chief of staff to
General Stoessel. were acquitted of the
charges against them for lack of proof.
The court recommended that the death
sentence upon Lieutenant General
Stoessel be commuted to ten years' im
prisonment in a fortress and that he be
excluded from the service.
For his services in the campaign
against the Boxers in 1900 Stoessel was
made a lieutenant general and sta
tioned at Port Arthur , where he began
strengthening the works , little dream
ing at the time that he would be called
upon to defend the place against the as
saults of the Japanese. In February.
190-i , when the war broke out. Port
Arthur became the center of the con
flict. Cut oil" by land and sea. Stoessei
and his men held out for nearly two
years before lie was compelled to sur
render. At first he was given great
praise by the Russians. Emperor Nich
olas conferred upon him the title of
aid-de-camp to the Czar and the Ger
man Emperor gave him an order. Then
his critics became busy and a commis
sion appointed to investigate the sur
render recommended that Stoessel be
dismissed from the army and shot. His
trial followed. Ger-.cral Stoessel's sen
tence , which is "without the loss of
rights or honor , " is generally regarded
as intended to satisfy public opinion.
It is expected he will be pardoned after
a briM imprisonment.
Hot and Sultry.
WASEOHXTOirS HEIRS.
Discover/ Ohio Property Brings ;
5,000 of Them to Light.
Over . .Cti : heirs-at-huv of George
Washington , father of his country , yet
a childless man. have recently been
found in different parts of the United
States through the went discovery
that there is a large tract of land in
Ohio which hcions to the lirst Presi
dent of the United States , having been
deeded to him many years ago.
These heirs. through Lawrence
Washington , who has a position in the
Congressional Library at Washington , ,
are preparing to make a fight for tha
property. Should they succeed through
the courts , they will very probably
deed the land hark to the State oC
Ohio for : i big national park to be
knov.li as Washington Park.
Of all these . " > , < ! , , > heirs of the collat
eral branch of tlie family , the descend
ants of the four brothers and two sis
ters , there is one who has thf double
distinction of-heiijg a ricsccmluut of tb < ;
immortal G < ergo on both his father' *
and his motler"side. . This is door. , ' "
Steptoc Washington , a men-hunt ?
Philadelphia. On his mothers shit * ho
is descended ! from Colonal Samuel
Washington , the oldest of fJeorg 'S
brothers , ami on his father's side , he
Is a descendant of John Augustine the
FLOOD RAVAGES PITTSBURG AND HUNDREDS ARE MADE IIOI > IELESS BY SWELLING WATERS. I
This picture of the February flood , -which threw 20,000 people out of v/ork end rendered thousands homeless in Pittsburg alone , shows
the scene at tbe river's worst stage. On the right is the North Side B. < t 0. station. On the left is a coal tipple v/recked by ice and carried
down the middle of the stream. A wrecked houseboat is shown in the ice floe.
youngest of the Washington brothers.
He was born on the ancestral estate of
ITarewood. in Jefferson County , West
Virginia , the birthplace of his mother ,
which was built jointly by George and
Samuel Washington.
It was by act of Congress that tha
gift of the Ohio proi erty was made to
the first President of the United States.
Whether or not he accepted it , or. if
he did. to what use he put it. is not
known by th Philadelphia descend
ant : but he dors know that the estate
is very valuable now and would make
a magnificent site for a manmioti )
park.
nr l nj.-mi > loyc I.
At a meeting of fifty men mteroste * ! ii
charitable movemenTs of New York Citj
it was decided tent a $200.000 build
ing to be used as a home and workshop
for the worthy tmemployo * ] , who are will-
in ? tovork. . It will make no appeal
to the professional vagrant or tramp. Dr.
Harvey Furl'uy. on < - of the founders ,
says that rhrHty lodging houses are mncb
imposed upon by the drones of society.
The nc\v plan is expected to separate
these from the earnest unfortunates. It
is expected that the work w > Il make tin
charity self-sustaining. The statement
was made thr-t out of 097 men of the better -
ter class of unemployed SO were fouui
to be college graduates.