a MIB NORFOLK NEWS : FRIDAY , FBHRITARY 5 , 1004.
Three Mysterious Calls at Mid
night Give Alarm.
ONE AFTEH ANOTHER THEY CAME
Out Not One of the Blue Coated Offi
cers Stopped to Tell Mrs. Charles
Durham What the Trouble Wan nnd
She Was Much Puzzled.
Of nil llio wlord nnd creeping HIMI-
nations which psychologists iittrlliiito
to the human inlnil under vnrloim ctr *
cutUHtanccs and conditions , perhaps
none could bo moro uncomfortable
and at the nntuo time moro tilled with
angry onrloHlty to know what wan the
matter than Mm. ClmrluH Durham of
South Norfolk who win all nlouo at
lior homo liuit Saturday night and
who suffered a thrill from 'throo dls-
tlnct vlslf * of pollcomon each tlmo
u different ono within the Hliort
Bpaco of half an hour. And the moot
exasperating part of It all wan that
lint ono of the lilno coated officers
who Htolo np to the door mysteriously ,
nipped and asked for her huHhand ,
told her what wan wanted. Kach ono
of the throe , linvliii ; learned that Mr.
Durham WH not at homo , wont away
In search of him.
It wan Just about midnight and the
dogs had stopped harking In the
neighborhood. The lights in all of
the cottages round about bud boon
darkened until morning and the
BtrootH wore empty and vacant and
noisy In their UmollnoHH , Charles
Durham , who workn during every
night at the NorthwoBtorn switching
yards , had left homo when the nix
o'clock whistles blow and would not
return until daylight. Mrs. Durham ,
tired from the work of the day , had
loon nloonlntr for Hovoral lionrs.
Of a anddon she was brought to her
nouses. There was a nolso at the
front door. Somcono had knocked.
The thud came again and oho asked
who was there.
"It's Livingstone , the policeman , "
ho said. "In Charllo there ? "
" " . Durham "ho'H
"No , replied Mrs. ,
nt work In the yards. Is there any
thing I can do for you ? "
"No , " came the words of the ofllcor.
"I only wanted to see him on private
business. " And ho turned from the
door and walked away.
Wondering what could be the
trouble and puv.xlod as to the Incom
plete reply which she had received ,
Mrs. Durham wan just dozing Into a
sound sloop again when she was
startled by another rapping at the
door.
"Who's there ? " she questioned.
" 1'llgor , the policeman from up
town , " was the answer. "Is Mr. Dur
ham hero ? "
"No. bo's working nt the yards , "
she said. "Is there anything I could
j' ' do for you ? "
"I guess not , " said Olllcer IMlgor ,
" "I merely wanted to see him a mo
I" inont on private business. " And hi
turned his dark lantern toward the
ll street and retreated from the yard.
Ton minutes passed. Quito worked
up over the peculiar coincident , nnd
not yet understanding what could bo
the trouble , the little woman was try
ing to think and to wonder when a
third tapping came upon the panel
of the door.
"Who's" there ? " she asked.
"It's Kane , the policeman , " w.is the !
I answer. "Is Charllo hero ? "
"Charlie Isn't homo. " she said.
"He's working at the yards. Is there
anything I could do for you ? "
"No. " replied the chief. "I just
wanted to see him a minute on pri
vate business. " And ho turned and
went away.
And thus It was , half distracted by
the three consecutive calls of officers
of the law within half an hour and
that at midnight , Mrs. Durham wor
ried through the rest of the night ,
until her husband came homo from
the switching yards and cleared up
the mystery.
During the night before , It seems ,
Mr. Durham had purchased a half
dozen spoons from a tramp who had
stolen the silverware In a grip from
the platform of the union station.
Having just heard that the follow
disposed of some of the wares and
that Durham had bought something
of the sort , and presuming that the
thief was still In the city , the three
policemen , ono after another , had
taken cabs and hurried to the homo
in the Iiopo of securing some clew
*
11 by which the tramp might bo appre
hended and landed In jail before ho
could get out of town on a freight
train.
It was too late , however , as the
selling had all taken place twenty-
four hours before and the thief was
by that tlmo many miles away from
Norfolk. Mr. Durham had bought the
spoons but ho didn't think it was
qulto fair to have the whole police
force after him Just because ho hap
pened to pay a dollar for some silver.
And his wlfo was glad that no moro
serious object had brought the officers
on their midnight mission.
WEDNESDAY WRINKLES.
O. K. Robinson was down from NIo-
'brnra.
Mrs. E. Jackson of Newman Grove
was a Norfolk visitor.
Mr. C. A. Case was a city visitor
yesterday from Plulnview.
Superintendent Williams of the gov
ernment building has gene east , for two
weeks. Ho will visit Washington ,
Now York , lloaton nnd Chicago.
Matt OlaBHon , jr. , of Madison trans
acted biiHlnoHH In Norfolk ,
Charles Marshall of Deadwood , S.
I ) . , was u visitor to Norfolk yesterday.
II. .1. White , postmaster at Ilasnott ,
and his daughter , wore In Norfolk to
day.
Mnt. S. ,1. Long of llawklngs , Win. ,
Is the guest of her brother , llov. W.
U. Peters.
A. M. Wilson , 9. L. Wilson and Mao
13. Wilson of Wayne were In Norfolk
yesterday.
Fred Homendcr , Prod Illedlngor and
F. M. Leach were a trio of Plalnvlow-
HOH In Norfolk.
Mrs. Moore wont to Crolghton nt
noon today. She will later uo to
Fairfax for a visit.
Mrs. O. 0. Itankln goes to Fremont
tomorrow to visit friends for u short
tlmo.
A. II. Winder , who ban jimt returned
from an extended business trip west ,
reports that business In that section
of the country Is excellent.
The Wlnsldo bowling team Is in the
city and a contest between the visit
ors and a Norfolk club will ho hold
at the Wilkinson alloys at 8 o'clock.
A very Important meeting of the
Eagles fraternity will ho hold at the
rooms tonight and every member of
the lodge Is earnestly requested to ho
present.
Company L Is talking over the ad
visability of giving an amateur theat
rical In the near future. An actor , for
merly with Sanford Dodge , Is in the
city to endeavor to Interest the com
puny In the plan , nnd If he succeeds
will train the amateurs In tholr parts.
The Ladles Aid society of the First
Congregational church will meet with
Mrs. Darius Mathowson Thursday af
ternoon , February . The ladles of
the congregation are cordially Invited
to attend the mooting.
Richard Wachtor and Miss Ll//lo
Nlmmer are to bo united In marrlago
tomorrow at 11 o'clock at the St. Paul
Lutheran church , llov. Philip Hooltzol
olllclatlng. After the ceremony the
happy event will bo celebrated at the
homo of the groom's parents , north
of the city.
Conductor Llnaborry of the Union
Pacific , running between this city and
Columbus , found In the walling room
of the depot at Madison , a check for
$22.50 , in favor of John K. Miller , The
check was drawn on the Citl/ons Na
tional bank of this city and the check
has been left there for Its owner.
The Norfolk Leap Year club has de
termined upon every Friday night for
meetings. The proceedings will bo
published each Saturday In The Nows.
Letters which have been received dur
ing the week will bo road and acted
upon at fiioso meetings. Also applica
tions for membership. Now and then ,
In case of emergencies , special meet
Ings will bo hold.
Owing to the lightness of the work
on the Northwestern hero the manage
ment has arranged for the transfer of
a number of englnemen to help out
In the rush Incident to the lumber
season nt Kaukauna , Wla. , until traf
fic again becomes heavy hero. Among
those who have gene or will go are
four engineers , 0. O. Huuldn , Ralph
Alien , Arthur Gray and Alfred Her-
ling , and four llremon. The transfer
Is preferable to a lay-off , naturally.
This battle between the north wind
and the south wind at this season of
the year is a weather feature that Is
not agreeable to the people and far
from being the best for the health.
Ono day the wind shoots up from the
south and the next day It has switched
to tl-o north , producing rapid changes
of temperature , frequently within the
twenty-four hours. In splto of this
tendency the temperature has preserved -
served Its equilibrium in this vicinity
very creditably. For three mornings
past the minimum has been one de
gree below zero , but the maximum
temperature has shown greater range.
COMING TO NORFOLK.
One Young Man nt West Point Has
Already Written to Club.
It Is reported that a number of the
young men of West Point are con
templating taking up their residence
In Norfolk In the near future and It
is quite probable that this city will
lose part of her population unless our
sweet maidens organize a like club to
retain the young men hero. Wnko up
girls ! Strike for your sweethearts and
future happiness. Cumlng County
Democrat ,
There Is some truth In the above
Item. Ono letter has already been re
ceived by the club from a West Point
man. Ills case will bo acted upon at
the next meeting of the club , which
takes place Friday night.
SALOON ROBBED.
Uncle Sam's Place at Meadow Grove
Entered by Burglars.
Somewhere between midnight and
the dawn of day , Thursday , some mis
creants tapped a pane of glass in the
roar of Uncle Sam's favorite head
quarters , gained entrance to the build
ing and proceeded to ransack things.
They found the outer door of the
safe unlocked nnd proceeded to break
the Inner door in a very bungling
manner which made it plainly evident
that they were not experts at the
work. However they obtained noth
ing as tn < our tender in charge had
taken the currency homo with him.
There is no other evidence of any
thing being disturbed. Meadow Grove
Press.
'
For the man Who Works
from sun to sun-
Uneeda
Biscuit
For the Woman Whose
Work is neVer done -
Uneeda
iscuit V' r M" * \ "
< : <
The clean , fresh , crisp food that is al *
ways good , and good for all. Good for
the worker because they are sustaining.
Good for the housewife because they
are convenient. Good for the children
The
Crackle because they are wholesome.
You Hear
Is the Sign
They arc Fresli
NATIONAL BISCUIT COMPANY
Young Men of Fender , Neb. ,
Write to Leap Year Club.
RUSH WITH THIS SECRET ORDER
A Letter Is Received From a Pair of
Young Men at Render , Neb. , Con
gratulating the members and OfferIng -
Ing Themselves as Candidates.
The rush Is on with the Norfolk
Leap Year club , which was recently
organized by a band of young women
whoso names arc not disclosed because -
cause of the secrecy which surrounds
their mysterious order. Outside of
their regular work , which has now
been In progress for several days ,
foreign correspondence has begun to
develop and before so very long they
may bo required to hire a secretary
by the leap year.
Two young men of Ponder , Neb. ,
are the first to register In for a share
of the attention which this organiza
tion has planned to bestow upon
young men In general. Noticing the
report that such a club had been or
ganized In Norfolk , and noting , also ,
Its purpose , these two fellows have
written a letter to the club congratu
lating them upon tholr pluck an.l of
fering themselves as candidates.
A copy of this letter , which was de
livered to the president of the club ,
has finally been secured for publica
tion. It was only upon the gravest
asssuranco that the names of no Nor
folk members would bo disclosed ,
that the letter was available at all.
The epistle follows :
"Ponder , Nob. , Jan. 27. Norfolk
Leap Year Club : Dearly Beloved :
Seeing an item in the paper tr. the
effect that the young ladles of Nor
folk have organized a leap year club ,
wo hasten to extend congratulations
and wish you success in every way.
The object of our writing Is to In
form yon of our admiration for your
pluck and modern method of secur
ing a helpmeet through life. Wo are
of the opinion that yon will bo suc
cessful In your excellent undertaking
and hereby hasten to submit our
names as candidates for matrimony.
Write nnd let us know how you are
prospering nn- ' what our prospects
are. Yours without a struggle ,
H. F. D. No. 1. James Keller.
Frank McGnlro. "
In replying to the ardent admirers
who Hvo near Ponder , the young la
dles made it qulto plain that the ob
ject of tholr organization was to secure -
cure to them for twelve short months
the right to choose their own mates ,
or to at least attempt to do so nnd
that because they had by this letter
tended to take away absolute inde
pendence In selection , the Ponder
gentlemen must bo rejected.
Two or three applications have also
been received by the club. All appli
cations must bo sent by mall.
IN MADISON COUNTY SCHOOLS
Association Will Hold Meetings This
Month at Battle Creek , Madison
and Newman Grove.
The regular annual meetings of the
Madison County School Board asso
ciation will bo hold at :
Battle Creek , Fob. 13.
Madison , Feb. 20.
Newman Grove. Feb. 27.
Prof. Davlsson , principal of the ag
ricultural college , will meet with the
boards at Battle Creek and speak on
"Agricultural Education. "
Prof. Smith of the agricultural col-
leeg will bo nt Madison and speak on
"Teaching Agriculture In the Common
Schools , " or on "Principles of Feed
ing , " or on "Improving Breeds of Live
Stock. "
D. P. Ashbnrn , the specialist in the
breeding and selection of seed corn ,
will speak on that subject at Newman
Grove.
A report of educational conditions
will be presented by the county su
perintendent , and questions of vital
hterest to the school officers will ho
discussed.
All farmers , whether members of
school boards or not. are invited to
attend these meetings. The addresses
of these agricultural specialists will
bo of benefit nnd Interest to all.
Teachers will do well to hear what
these men have to say on the matter
of teaching agriculture.
It is hoped to organize regular farm
ors' Institutes at those three points In
connection with the School Board asso
ciation , nnd thus got some of the ben
efit of the speakers annually sent out
by the state university.
School officers will please speak to
tholr neighbors about these meetings
and Invlto them to attend.
The motlngs will open at 1:30 :
o'clock.
LOST FINGER IN CIRCULAR SAW
A. M. Hall , An Old Man Who Was
Sawing Wood at the Buetow
Farm , Has Accident.
While sawing wood with a circular
saw at the farm of Herman Buotow ,
a few miles cast of the city , A. M.
Hall , an old man , got his linger into
'the whirling teeth nnd had it taken
off. The wound was dressed later by
a'surgeon.
One of the Members of Leap
Year Club Starts It.
HE IS A QUIET OLD BACHELOR
In a Brief But Nicely Written Letter
He Announced His Readiness to be
Propoced to , and the Two Pretty
Brunettes Drew Straws for Him.
Another letter written to the leap
year club which has been organized
in this city by a number of young la
dles for the purpose of mutual advan
tage in a matrimonial way , has just
been received from Sidney , Neb. , and
denotes that the project Is In a fair
way to meet with favor. It Is as fol
lows :
Sidney , Nob. , Feb. 1. Dear Ladles :
Send the address and picture of the
sweetest little brunette In the bunch
to a quiet young bachelor , and I can
promise you that you can soon get
rid of ono of your encumbrances if she
has grit enough to pop the question.
Earnestly yours , to command ,
A. W. Scott.
The young ladles of the club fool
highly ilattored with the complimen
tary tone of letters which they hove
received from various portions of the
state and are exceedingly gratified to
know that they will without a doubt
make a success of tholr organization.
In regard to the letter from Sidney ,
they have been a bit puzzled as to
just which ono of the two very pretty
little brunettes to propose.
At their regular meeting , which was
hold yesterday , the matter was quite
thoroughly discussed. It seems that
there are two exceptionally handsome
girls of the desired complexion and
both of about the same age. Both
were quite struck with the tone of the
letter which Mr. Scott had sent and
both , too , were charmed with the pen
manship nnd neatness of the epistle
from Sidney. The writing Is of the
vertical typo and Is , to bo sure , very
attractive.
"You can see nt a glance , " remarked
ono of the blondes , who had no chance
In this particular Instance , "that ho
Is a man of exceptional neatness and
the vertical style of penmanship Is
a good indication that he Is up-to-date.
It may bo a sign that ho has just como
out of the high school for the vertical
style Is getting to bo a great fad thoro.
If he's as young as all of that wo don't
want to oven think of considering
him. And still , a hey just getting out
of the high school wouldn't call a girl
a llttlo 'brunette , ' now would ho ? "
"I don't bellovo ho's a man of much
learning , " quoth another , who admit
ted afterward in a confidential mood
that she was just the least bit jealous.
"I really and truly don't think , girls ,
that ho has over seen the insldo of a
college campus for you can read every
word ho has written and that Isn't
consistent nowadays with education. "
"That ending that 'yours to command
mand/ looks good to me , " said a third
member of the organization. "How
few men there are who over turn out
to be anybody's to command. Maybe
though , and if ho does he's a
good follow to admit it because
of course , being absolutely Inde
pendent , wo are not obliged to
take him. And then he calls us
encumbrances. Now what do you
think of that ? And still I sort of like
the nerve of the follow for that. I
wonder If he'd be ono of these kind
of men who would remember things
that go wrong. Now I've a friend who
married a man ten years ago. Before
they were marired she lost a llttlo
stick pin of his ono day and would
you believe it , ho still brings that up
about twice a month and reminds her
of her carelessness. I couldn't take
any comfort with a man like that ,
could yon ? "
"Wo are getting away from the
question , " declared the president.
"Wo will now draw straws for Mr.
Scott.
"Groat Scott ! " cried the girl who
drew the long one. "It's up to mo. "
Funeral of Mrs. Philip Beck.
Battle Creek , Neb. , Feb. 3. Special
to The News : The funeral of Mrs.
Philip Beck was held from the Cath
olic church at this place yesterday af
ternoon at 3 o'clock , and was conduct
ed by Rov. Father Walsh of oNrfolk.
In spite of the cold weather the at
tendance was large. The deceased
came here with her family twenty-four
years ago , when the railroad was built ,
and lias lived hero almost continuously -
ly since. For a time Mr. and Mrs.
Beck made tholr homo with tholr son ,
William at Norfolk. The oldest son ,
Henry , who had been section foreman
west of Norfolk for many years , died
about two years ago In Iowa.
Besides the aged husband , three
sons , Philip of this place , John of
Washington and William of Norfolk ,
survive hor. Five daughters also
mourn the loss of a mother. They
arc : Mrs. N. M. Lund , Mrs. Thos.
Taylor , and Mrs. M. J. Hughes of this
place ; Mrs. W. G. Smith of Spokane ,
Wash. , and Mrs. Pcnnlwell of British
Columbia.
A sign was posted in the postoffico
last evening which read , "Tho mail
from the east is on tlmo. " Patrons
appreciated the humor.
