Nebraska Newspapers

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COLUMBUS, NEB., WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 1888.
WHOLE NO. 937.
VOL. XIX.-NO. 1.
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COLUMBUS
STATE BANK.
COLUMBUS, NEB.
Cash Capita!
$75,000.
DIRECTORS:
LEANDER GERRARD, PreB't.
GEO. W. HULST, Vice Pres't.
JULICS A. REED.
R. H. HENRY.
J. E. TASKER, Ca-,kior.
Baak or Oepoult, IMacoant
ud Exchange.
Cellectleaa Promptly .tiad
all PelatM.
! IatereMt oit Tlae epe-
Ita.
2T4
-OF-
COLUMBUS, NEB.
CAPITAL STOi:K,
$50,000,
OFFICERS:
C. H. SHELDON. Pre't.
W. A. MCALLISTER. Vie. Pres'.
ROHERT U1IL1G, Cashier,
DANIEL SCIIRAM, Aas't Cash.
DIRECTORS:
J. P. BECKER, 1L I. H. OEHLRICH,
JONAS WELCH. CARL RE1NKE,
II. M. W1NSLOW.
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dec'iWG
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COMMERCIAL
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fljPii33SSBaswiMSfc'i?.s
aCsa35IHJK?Ha?3JiM'vi
WESTERN COTTAGE OBC-AN
AT LA9T.
Ah, not the flm lore, deepest but the last.
(So? Whocaatellt)
The tides of Youth run fact run fast;
The buds upon the voun; trees shoot and swell.
Reckless of frosts. Well, well!
Let us not dwell, dear heart, on follies past.
t
For now, you know, the green and callow shoots
Of early Spring
Are dry and withered en the rery roots. I
1 hey were Love's first, faint, perfumed offering
Taking swift win;j.
Leaving a fragrant memory, but no fruits.
We v. ill not scak of them with smiling scorn.
They Jinve tnmle way
lVr t ..o i :ch bloom and fruitage later born
And loru of spirit not alone of clay,
Siskin our day
Glad with tho freshness of perpetual morn.
?
Eternal Dear let us baliave It so, "
Aud in our bliss "t :
Lt dull analysis and doubting go m '
Content so Ion:j a? In a rapturous kiss '
Lik, tiiis my sweet and this
Tho fulluoss of celestial joy we know.
Thomas II. Muzzcy in Frank Leslie's.
A FRONTIER BOHEMIAN.
The sun was setting on the Maverick
valley. As I walked to the door of the
ranch n few parthian arrows from his de
clining bow splintered themselves among
the ihi!ky tops of the live oaks. There
was a faint pink glow all around the hori
zon that on its western threshold lingered
in feathery flecks of crimson and gold.
The brief twilight of Texan latitudes was
already hastening through the thin files
of mesqnito that stood like straggling
pickets before the windows of the little
cabin. A silence was falling over the
hushed landscape "vast, measureless,
complete."
Certainly I had some excuse for the
sudden loneliness that fell upon me. It
was the first time in my border life that I
had been left upon the trackless prairie,
solitary and alone. The annual shearing
was just over. But an hour before our
entire "outfit" had departed for a general
merry making at a distant frontier town.
As I had volunteered in accepting the
position of cook during the past three
weeks, and for that period had labored to
fill a recurrent and appalling vacuum in
eighteen able bodied men, my efforts had
naturally been somewhat debilitating.
Amid that exuberance of society, in which
solitude seems a myth, I had declined
couviviality and elected repose. I was left
behind as custodian of tho ranch.
But as I stepped from the door for the
purpose of penning the buck herd, I was
beginning to regret my choice. I realized
that I a "tenderfoot," with only a three
mouths' residence in tho state was alone
upon uu area of 50,000 acres without let or
limit; that my nearest neighbor was Ave
miles away, over a chartless, emerald
sea. to be traversed only by aid of that
shifting guide, the sun; that my only
companions in this primitive wilderness
were thirty-five merino bucks of contem
plative anu exclusive tendencies; a shep
nerd dog, which was iminaturely effusive
and slobberingly demonstrative upon being
addressed as "L"ss Flo," and an ebony
cat that wore a mangy and somewhat dis
sipated exterior under the sobriquet of
"Miss Emma." A dearth of the consola
tions of female society apparently inspires
the native Texan to a courteous acknowl
edgment of the sex of domestic pets.
When, therefore, I hail driven the
horned contingent of my associates into
their rude brush pen, and had fastened
the hurdle gate, I stood leaning against it
and seriously regarding them. It did not
add to the cheerfulness of my surround
ings to notice that they bore an unmistak
able resemblance to a company of hook
nosed Jews; that their knees were sprung
with the rheumatism of age; that their
eyes were rheumy and inflamed, and that
they appeared to be unusually afflicted
that evening with snuffles and chronic ca
tarrh. Besides, they were so fresh from
the shears that the air of venerablenvis
dom which their faces arrogated seemed
to be caricatured by the rest of their
odies. They were so repulsive in ap
pearance that I at once dubbed the most
disreputable specimen "Fagin" a bap
tismal inspiration that eventually
achieved popularity. Then, with that
hypocrisy which characterizes man when
lonely, I began to patronize my much
abused dog, and even the feline antique;
for both hud nccompanied me in my pas
toral duties. After which I walked back
to the ranch. Here I encountered another
dubious object, that in my then dejected
condition struck me as almost ominous.
This was a pet lizard which, for the past
month, had inhabited the neighboring
kitchen a long, low structure with a can
vas roof and which was now perched
upon the doorstep. But "Tommy" was
ou tho present occasion very much out of
luck. Ho was not, under the most favor
able circumstances, a prepossessing ob
ject. He was brick red, covered with
polka dots of black, and had a diabolical
leer about the eye. "Tommy," however,
had now unaccountably lost his tail, and
was obviously so humiliated and dispir
ited that he unconsciously infected and
aggravated my own melancholy.
I opened the door of the kitchen, Into
which he immediately dived and hid his
diminished lizardship from view. Enter
ing the little cabin, and acting from a
feeling of generous hospitality that must
have struck both as phenomenal, I in
vited the companionship of "Miss Flo"
and "Miss Emma." Then I lighted the
lamp, and drawing the solitary chair of
the apartment to a convenient distance,
picked up a volume of "Macaulay's
Essays" (for we were fortunately blessed
with an abundance of literature), and dis
posed myself to read. I remember think
ing, as I settled myself into a comfortable
position, that I would make amends for
my enforced isolation by profound literary
culture, and rather pluming myself upon
how much benefit I should derive from
this prairie study. But I made singularly
little progress that evening. I found my
self entirely unable to concentrate my
attention. I was oppressed by an inde
finable feeling of dread that at last cul
minated In a nervous sensation of being
observed. I threw aside my book in dis
gust, and endeavored to account for it.
It was now pitch dark outside. I was
Bitting at a little desk that, from the pov
erty of our household furniture, was
obliged to perform manifold duties. To
night it was Eomewhat overburdened with
frontier bric-a-brac, conspicuous among
which was a large Colt's revolver and
cartridge belt. I perceived that, as I sat,
I was directly In line with the two win
dows of the ranch one on the south, the
other on the north side of the house.
Partly from a feeling of caution which
one acquires on the frontier, and partly
from this nervousness I could not explain,
I shifted my chair around against the
wall until I faced the southern window.
In effecting this change of position I suc
ceeded in treading on Miss Emma and dis
rommcxling Miss Flo, who, after looking
tit me in a grieved fashion, accommodated
herself to another quarter with the usual
canine philosophy and circumlocution.
As I tilted my chair against the door
and assumed an aggressive attitude to
ward the opposite window, I noticed a few
drops of water upon the panes, and was
then for the first time aware that it was
raining. A moment after a vivid flash of
lightning illuminated the darkness with
out, opening up phosphorescent vistas in
the mesquites with startling suddenness.
Brief as was the interval for observation,
it was sufficient to confirm my suspicions.
Amid the loud reverberations of the
thunder clap that followed, I was confi
dent that I had seen a man larking in the
scanty shrubbery outside.
I cannot describe how much I was'dls-
."..JTj ,.. ...- -1 - T - !-
yuuwricu ui iws mscuvcry. inig wuui
in a wild and lawless country, where a
man might be attacked and murdered
without n chance of succor. I was in a
lighted roour, whose unshuttered windows
stared into the black night bo glaringly,
that practically I was as defenseless to an
enemy hid in the darkness without, as if
shut in a glass case. As this thought
leaped to my brain, I suddenly extin
guished the light and groped for the re
volver and cartridge belt, resolving to
make as determined a stand as possible.
Securing both, I buckled on the belt and
backed against the door, In order to resist
any forcible entrance. In this defiant at
titude I waited, the storm continuing to
rage without.
A Texan thunder storm is at all times
awe inspiring. I do not think I ever lived
a more thrilling existence than during the
brief interval I crouched in the darkness
of that little cabin, which was incessantly
lighted by the blue flashes that seemed to
leap from window to window, and which
shook tremulously under the crash of the
shattering reports that followed one an
other in quick succession. My excitement
reached its height when, during one of
these sudden illuminations, I perceived
pressed against the pane and peering into
the room a wild, red face, with long gray
beard and disheveled hair streaming in the
wind. The apparition, seen by the lurid
light, was so malevolent that I think I
was only prevented from firing at it by tho
brief interval of the flash. When the
lightning gleamed again the face was
gone, nud I was certain now I could hear
some one grouping his way along the side
of the house, evidently supporting him
self in that way against the charging
gusts of wind and sharp fusillade of tho
driving rain. At the same time Miss Flo
became uneasy and barked loudly.
"Hulloa, hero!" shouted a gruff voice.
I hastily relighted the lamp and opened
the door in some trepidation.
There entered a tall figure, so gratuit
ously limp and bedrangled with rai as to
be almost grotesque; so worn with travel
and with such an utter weariness of life
In the eyes as to be really pathetic. Tho
clothes that he wore were torn and
abraded, exposing a sub-stratum of red
flannel at the knee, which gave him a
ludicrous suggestion of having worn him
self down to the quick from the excess of
his devotions. His shrunken pantaloons
encroached upon the calves of his legs, and,
as he was without 6tockings, this lack of
intimacy with his hob nailed shoes exposed
a pair of very gaunt and reluctant ankles.
His beard and hair were long, straggling
and unkempt, and were surmounted by
an extravagant slouch hat of the frontier
pattern. Running over tho scant details
of my former apparition, I mentally classi
fied him at once as a "border tramp."
But I was lonely that evening and dis
posed to be polite. I therefore offered
him the only chair in the room, stretched
myself upon the low bed and calmly
awaited developments.
"Good evening," he sold, in a rather
husky but pleasant voice, as ho lapsed into
the chair. Then he took off his broad hat
with a swirl of spattering rain drops,
wiped his forehead with a red bandana
handkerchief, ruminated a few minutes,
replaced his hat, and finally producing u
pipe and a plug of tobacco began slowly
cutting up and crumbling the latter the
usual frontier preliminaries to a smoke.
I watched his movements with absorb
ing interest. He reminded me bo forcibly
of pictures of the lamented John Brown,
that I was more than ever inclined to ac
cept the "singular conflicting conditions
of that martyr's soul and body," as ex
emplified in the popular song.
"When he had finally lighted his pipe and
emitted several curling rings of smoke,
this odd figure vouchsafed the information
that he had come across country in the
hope of assisting us in shearing. I in
formed him that we had just finished that
day for tho season. Ho seemed to ex
perience some regret at this, and for a
time smoked on in silence. At length, his
eyes happening to fall upon my relin
quished volume, he took it up, glanced
over it hastily, and laid' it down again.
"You have been reading Macaulay?"
he said. I assented in some surprise.
"Ah!" said my strange guest; "a won
derful man! a wonderful man, that same
Macaulay! What a genius, what a learn
ing, what a noble style he had, to be surer '
Then throwing his head back and nar
rowing his wild eyes, he suddenly broke
out:
" 'An acre in Middlesex is worth a prin
cipality in Utopia; the smallest actual
good is better than the most magnificent
promises of impossibilities; the wise man
of the Stoics would, no doubt, bo a grander
object than a steam engine. But there
are steam engines. And the wise man of
the Stoics is yet to be born. A philosophy
which should enable a man to feel per
fectly happy when in the agonies of pain
may be better than a philosophy that can
assuage pain. But wo know that there
are remedies that will assuage pain; and
we know that the ancient sages liked the
toothache as little as their neighbors.' "
I sat up in some amazement at this
effort at memory. For the past three
months, having associated with individ
uals whose vocabularies hardly ventured
beyond the possibilities of "right smart"
and "away over yonder," I was somewhat
Btartlcd, I admit.
"Are you a native of this state, sir?" I
asked, with great respect.
"No," replied he, turning full upon me
for an instant those singular eyes of his.
"I am, like yourself, a northerner."
"Let me offer you a better pipe," I said,
pointing out to him the case cont ning
my best meerschaum; "you will fin iome
excellent Cavendish in that jar."
He gave me a quick glance, as if appre
ciative of my hospitality, but declined,
saying that long habit had given him a
preference for the natural leaf.
"What is your college?" he suddenly
asked, as I was filling a pipe preparatory
to joining him.
"Yale," I answered, with the pardona
ble pride of all sons of that alma mater;
"and yoursr"
"I seldom mistake a collegian," re
marked my incongruous visitor; " 'In
fandum, Regina, jubes renovare dolorem.'
I hail from Dartmouth."
I had made the inquiry more from po
liteness than any other motive, and yet,
at the moment of my speaking, it dashed
across me that he must be college bred.
Now that I was assured of it, I felt a sin
cere regret in seeing one who had enjoyed
such advantages at such wretched odds
with fortune. He mtas have divined what
passed througn my mind, for he glanced
hurriedly and half sadly, as it seemed to
me over his forlorn garments, and then
raising his eyes to mine, and with a gleam
of humor lurking beneath his shaggy
brows, said:
"And pray, sir, how came a gentleman
of your education and intelligence down
in this God forsaken country?"
I smiled, and attributed my advent to
the adventurous spirit of the Nineteenth
century, for want of a better reason. He
took my answer in the spirit in which It
was given, and appeared in a sense to be
relieved by it, as if it established a bond
of union between us, it struck me. But
he resisted all inquiries of mine into his
antecedents or past history, meeting my
hints and questions with adroit evasion
and skillful changes of the subject.
And so, in the quiet night for the rain
had now ceased, and the moon, riding
high, silvered the wan landscape, and
fringed the dripping foliage with flashing
gems we drifted back to the topic with
which we began and talked of literary
themes. It has been my privilege to con
verse with not a few cultured and learned
men, and to enjoy the society of some of
the most brilliant of modern conversa
tionists; but, as I sat and listened that
evening to. the words that fell from the
lips of this frontier bphe.mian, it seemed
to me mat my acquaintance witn tne na
ture of true eloquence bad just begun. It
was "like reading Homer by flashes of
lightning." What a wealth of bold
imagery, of keen appreciation, of sug
gestive analogy, of marvelous insight was
there! And what a treasure house of
memory! And when -he finally lapsed
into monologue, and indulging in a rhap
sody upon the wonders of Milton, quoted
from "Paradise Lest" by paragraph and
page, I thought of Macaulay's boast that
if the great poet's immortal epic should
by any chance be lost to men, he might
hope to reproduce it; and my admiration
for the attainments of the man swept over
me in one vast wave of wonder. And
then, as I lay there, listening to his deep
voice, which had grown singularly rich
aud sonorous, as if In sympathy with the
dignity of those grand periods, pondering
what strange chance or force of circum
stance had compelled this incongruous
being to such surroundings, his form sud
denly dilated, his lips parted as if in
terror, his eyes became fixed on vacancy
and staring, and with a sudden spring to
his feet, ho stood erect and menacing.
"Avaunti" he cried, gazing with &
wild and frenzied stare into the empty ah.
"Avaunt! and quit ray sight: Begone, I
sayl Thlnk'st thou to dog my footsteps
always? To hound me to the day of my
death? Back! Baek! G-r-r-rhrl Take
your grip from off my neck ! Avaunt !' '
He dashed his hands to his throat,
clutching it wildly, and striding to the
door, flung it wide open, glaring long and
fiercely out into the quiet night with a
frenzied and hunted expression. Then he
came slowly back to the table, tottering
feebly and muttering incoherently, threw
himself into his chair, and, covering his
haggard face with both his trembling
hands, shuddered and gasped alternately.
Great beads of agony stood upon his
brow.
I was so startled by this sudden out
burst that I could only stare and sit
speechless. When he first rose I was
under the impression that it was to give
greater force to sonio terrific denuncia
tion. Not until he tore open the door
did I realize that it was the hallucina
tion of illness, and even then my con
sternation was so great as to deprive
me of all power to act or speak.
The paroxysm soon passed. Meanwhile,
I had poured some brandy into the cup of
my pocket flask and offered it to him. He
drank it with a feverish eagerness. By
degrees the stimulant seemed to overcome
his nervous apprehension. He sat for a
long time with listless, leaden eyes. Then
bo rose wearily and asked, in a humble,
deprecating fashion, if there were any
placo where he might sleep that night.
There was something so piteous, so un
utterably wretched in this appeal, coming
from one whose wonderful discourse had
so delighted me, that I was indescribably
touched. "Surely," said I to myself,
"such abilities as I have recognized this
night shall not be without shelter." I
instantly placed my bed at his disposal.
After much remonstrance and reluctance,
I, at last, got him to bed, and he laid
himself down with a long, low, agonizing
sigh the sigh of one to whom life is
weariness and existence a burden.
As I stepped to the table near which he
had been sitting, I observed a small tin
box, something like a tobacco box, lying
in his empty chair. I picked it up me
chanically. Such a singular odor rose
from this box that I was tempted to open
it almost unconsciously. It was half full
of a grayish brown drug. I examined it
curiously. Opium!
I glanced toward the bed. ne was
lying apparently iu a heavy sleep. I
closed the lid of the box and placed it
quietly beside him. Full of conjecture
for the past of the unfortunate being who
occupied my bed, I wrapped myself in my
blanket and lay down beneath the win
dow. There was no sound in the quiet
night save the occasional long howl of the
coyote from the hill. For a long time I
lay awake, pondering over tho singular
conversation of the evening and its start
ling denouement. I wondered if his
hallucination could be directly traced to
opium, and what strange misfortune could
have placed him under the thrall of the
deadly drug. And then my thoughts re
curred to his quotation from Macaulay,
"But we know that there are remedies
that will assuage pain." What was the
pain or what the sorrow?
Unconsciously in my long reverie I had
turned toward him. He was sleeping
peacefully in the wan light- The pale
moon, looking over the crest of a western
divide, stole through the files of sentinel
mesquites in a long pencil, and rested like
a ghostly arm upon his breast. I thought,
"The sister of Apollo has him in her
keeping," and I fell asleep. But in the
morning, the hands folded upon the breast
were pulseless and cold, the face was
waxen and still, and, hushed in the fear
ful calm of life's great mystery, the old
man eloquent was dead. Howard Seely
in The Argonaut.
The Boomerang's Curious Flight.
Some German scientists, seeking to dis
cover the secret of the boomerang's curi
ous flight, caused n party of Australian
natives to give an exhibition of boom
erang throwing at Munster. The instru
ments used were of two sizes, the larger
being a slender crescent about two feet
long, two and a quarter inches wide and a
quarter of an inch thick, made of an ex
traordinary heavy Australian Iron wood.
This boomerang was jerked up into tho
air about 100 yards, when it flew straight
away, then turned to the left and re
turned in a curved line back to the
thrower, whirling around constantly and
whizzing unpleasantly. One badly di
rected projectile foil through a spectator's
hat with a cut as clean as that of a razor.
A Weimar manufacturer, who has made
some 11.000 toy boomerangs, believes that
the mystery of shape lies in the sharper
curvature in the middle, with unequal
length of the two arms, which must be
made of equal weight by unequal thick
ness. The peculiarity of motion is due to
the difference in the length of the arms,
which diverges the curve of rotation from
the circular. New Orleans Picayune.
Testing Colored Candy.
To test candy with respect to poisonous
colors one needs a few ounces of alcohol,
about an ounce of bleaching powder in
solution (hypochloride of calcium), a little
white woolen yarn and a small bottle of
aqua ammonia. Sec first whether the
color can be dissolved out by alcohol. If
it can, immerse the woolen yarn in the
solution, and should the color adhere to
the yarn and dye it, the probabilities are
that it is a coal tar color; if a red, it may
contain arsenic. If the alcohol produces
no effect apply a drop of the bleaching
powder solution to the surface of the
sweetmeat. If the color fades out, it is
probably of vegetable origin and harm
less. New York Tribune.
A Questioa la Arithmetic
Laura So you are really engaged to
him, dear? Ho v. 40, you say, and you
are 20 just twice as old as you, love.
Dear me, when you aro 40 he will be 80!"
Clara Good gracious! I hadn't thought
of that Harper's Bazar.
Syrnp of Fign
Is Nature's owu true laxative. It is the
most easily taken, and the m6st effective
remedy known to Cleanse the System
when Bilious or Costive; to dispel Head
aches, Colds and Fevers; to cure Habit
ual Constipation, Indigestion, Files, etc.
Manufactured only by the California Fig
Syrup Company, San Francisco, Cal. For
sale only by Dowty & Beoher. 27-y
DESOLATION.
Alone I alt In gorgeous state,
And view my gathered treasures rare.
Which seem to mock my cruel fate
My lonely lot, so bleak and bare.
Within Is wealth and warmth and light.
Close curtained from the whistling wind.
That sweep aud swirls with reckless might.
Whose breath brings death to human kind,
But the cold wind of her deep scoru
lias blighted all my joy of life;
Within my soul no hope is bom
Ko rest or peace or savage strife.
And what care I for pride or fame.
Since lore from out my heart is driven?
All, all It but an empty name
Ashes the prize for which Pre striven.
Dead aahes from s deep despair,
A heart burned out by passion's fire
0 God: she was so false, so fair,
And blind was I with fond desire.
1 loved with love that ne'er grows old;
My worship followed where she led;
But weary of a tale oft told.
She left met and the world is dead.
Martha M. Boss In Times-Democrat.
MAKE ME A SONG.
Out of the silence make me a song.
Beautiful, sad and soft and low;
Let the loveliest music sound along
vrtp
And wing each note with wall of woe,
Dim and drear:
As hope's last tear u
Out of the silence make me a hymn
Whose sounds are shadows soft and dim.
Out of the stillness in your heart
A thousand songs are sleeping there
Make me but one, thou child of art.
The song of a hope in a last despair.
Dark and low,
A chant of woe; jE7
Out of tho stillness, tone by tone, "
Soft as a snow flake, wild as a moan. 3"
Out on the dark recesses flanh me a song,
Brightly dark and darkly bright; -
Let it sweep as a love star sweeps along
The mystical shadows of the night.
Sing it sweet.
Where nothing is drear, or dark, or dim.
And earth songs melt into heaven's hymn.
Father Ryaa.
SUPERSTITIONS OF ACTRESSES.
Sign of the Tom Cat The Hunchback.
Offenbach's Evil Eye.
It is singular, in fact, to note how
Parisian actresses are attracted as moths
round a flame that will singe them by
the belief in sigus and warnings and
omens. Mme. Favart, a societaire at the
Theatre Francaise, asserts that when a cat,
and especially a black torn cat, comes of
its own accord, with tail erect, purring
round the stage, it is a good sign. Theo,
who "sings so delightfully with her
shoulders," as the Nestors of theatrical
criticism aver, believes that it Is very un
lucky to catch sight of a hunchback and
not touch his hump. The pretty actress
will, in fact, go out of her way and dodge
one a mile to get a chance to do so, as if
by accident aud without being seen.
Croizette. who retired from the stage of
the Comedie Francaise on a pension and
married u rich banker, attributes her suc
cess iu life to the fact that one day she
picked up a horseshoe.
Some can tat rices are also highly super
stitious. Among those who belong more
or less to the Paris stage I may instance
Adelina Patti. Adelina Maria Clorinda
Patti and indeed the whole musical tribe
of the Strako!ch nud Patti brood
strongly believe in the jettatore, or "evil
eye." Patti will not sing where there is
a cross eyed conductor, just as the blonde
Sarah will not play by the side of an
actor whose organ of vision is askew; and,
as those who, like Patti. have been happy
and successful are more liable to this
fascination, the prima donna never fails
to wear a bracelet or necklace of precious
stones even shells and corals will do to
counteract the malignant influence which
darts from the eyeballs of certain envious
and angry persons. She asserts that
Offenbach, who possessed the evil eye,
brought ill luck with him wherever he
went; that he passed through the Rue
Lepeletier the night the old opera house
was destroyed by lire, when poor Emma
Livry was burned alive in the only ballet
Offenbach ever had represented at the
opera, and that Mme. Berthelier died
while playing in tho "Vie Parisienne,"
for which he wrote the score.
I have also been told that Paola Marie,
of the Opera Comique, and her sister
Galli Marie, both wear amulet rings to
avert the snake like fascination which is
currently attributed to Count Gabrielli,
the well known boulevarUer.
Zulma Bouffar once told me that she
never would think of washing her hands
as it often happens behind the scenes to
many of tho music hall singers in the
water used by another person, not that
she considered the act as so very unclean,
but rather because she knew that the
parties were bound to quarrel soon after,
unless one of the two spat in the basin I
And I may add parenthetically that I
once saw a dnncing girl, whose veracity
was questioned by another member of the
talent, suddenly draw back with some
show of indignation, spit on the ground,
stamp the boards with her foot, and raise
her right hand, saying, "I swear it!"
Paris Cor. Inter Ocean.
A QUEER INCENDIARY SCHEME.
lialng Mouse, a Piece of Cheese aad
Some Matches to Start s Fire.
"I have a plan that will help its out. It
Is a last resort, and desperate, I know, but
it Is safe."
The speaker was a well dressed, fine
looking man, apparently not older than
SO. His cold, gray eyes, aquiline and
rather prominent nose and heavy chin
were the unmistakable indices of a calcu
lating, bold and resolute character. He
spoke to a man of at least 60 years, neat
in appearance, but whose face betrayed
anxiety and discouragement.
The words were spoken in a down town
Broadway restaurant, near midnight, as
the men described took seaW at a table
toward the rear of the room, in front of a
mirror in which a reporter saw them.
The newspaper man had lunched and was
reading a novel. A partition concealed
him from the strangers' vision.
"Well, what is it?" asked the older man,
after drinks had been set before them.
"It is, as I said, a desperate scheme, but
it will put us ou our feet again. I do not
see any other way for us to avoid a failure
from which we cannot recover."
"What is the plan?"
"There is an insurance of $14,000 on
the stock and building."
The speaker paused, but his companion
did not speak. They eyed each other in
tently and the younger man continued in
a subdued voice:
"We have stood by each other in hard
times before this. You have paid for in
surance policies for many years. If the
store should happen to burn and there
were no evidences the fire was not acci
dental, we would not have much difficulty
in getting the $14,000, and we could start
out anew in splendid shape. But acci
dental fires do not come when they ought,
and"
"I will not consent to any such thing as
you are driving at"
'But think of it. You are on the verge
of ruin. Yon need not do a thing to incur
risk. Your part will be to keep silent,
and not to interfere. Intrust the business
wholly to me. On a certain night a small
box would be placed in the cellar among
the oils and paint stuffs, and where it
would not be seen. You might be out of
town. You would be summoned home to
find the store in ashes or badly damaged.
We could then meet our notes and have
fair sailing."
"If the attempt should be detected we
would be disgraced, even if we escaped
state firison.. I would rather assign than
try your scneme.
"Put confidence in me," persuasively
urged the younger man, "and you will be
in no peril and you will not regret your
trust."
"What would be in the box?"
"A mouse, a piece of cheese stuck
nearly full of matches, the heads appear
ing, and some oil soaked combustibles.
The mouse will not be able to gnaw out,
and, getting hungry, will attack the
cheese and ignite a match. The box will
quickly be on fire and the flames will
Bpread like a flash, and before tho burn
ing is discovered the box will have been
consumed. Then there will be no evi
dence. The Are would get such a start
the store would be very likely to go. It
would undoubtedly burn the night the
box was hidden."
"A novel Idea," said the older man,
evidently relenting, yet looking very
grave; "we'll think it over well before we
take such a step."
"It's perfectly safe, I tell you," rejoined
the schemer. "You stay in New York a
few days and 1st me go back and do
the job. Then you will be s&f c i .ess sus
picion. I would not have mentioned it to
you if I had not feared you might dis
cover the box and give the thing away."
After a few minutes of silence the men
drained their glasses and left tho place.
New York Press.
RUNNERS FOR STEAMSHIPS.
Cellaring People tor m SaaU ComsalMle.
How Passengers Are Picked.
Back and forth before the offices of the
big transatlantic steamship lines fronting
on Bowling green and In that vicinity
may, on almost any day, be observed cer
tain men pacing the pavements with a
hungry look in their eyes, eagerly scan
ning the face of every person who ap
proaches. If that person happens to in
spire in the minds of these watchers, from
the fact of his looking at the office signs,
from his appearance pronouncing him to
be a stranger, or from any other outward
indication, any remote hint that he might
be desirous of purchasing a passage across
the ocean, he is at once approached with
offers to assist him in his search. The
name of the port to which he wants to go
being elicited, the "runners" will at once
compete with each other for the honor of
introducing him to the agent from whom
he can obtain "the best and cheapest pas
sage." Tho man is at once dragged off,
perplexed, but somewhat tempted by tho
offer of a cheaper fare than that which he
had been led to expect, to the steamship
office where the "runner" who has him in
charge can obtain the largest commission
upon the purchase of his ticket.
"There isn't half as much money in
this business now that there was a few
years ago," said a veteran runner recently.
"We used to get 8 commission on each
ticket across. Now the rates are down to
almost nothing, and the companies will
ullow us only from $3 to $5. Then when
severul fellows get around a man, of
course the one who will offer the passen
ger the most reduction off his ticket gets
him, but that reduction, of course, has to
come out of our commission."
"Do you depend entirely upon chance
iu the passengers you catch?"
"Not altogether. Some of us who have
made a business of the thing have agents
of our own in other cities and out west,
who advise us when a party is coming to
New York to go across. Then we muke
it a point to meet the passengers and ar
range with them to buy their tickets."
"How do you tell by the look of a man
whether he may prove a customer?"
"It's easy enough," said the veteran,
"to spot a stranger, and easier still to tell
whether he is German, Swedish or Irish.
Then if you can speak to him in his own
language the probability is that yon are
all right. If not, it's easy enough to back
out. Sometimes I've spoken to a man
entirely on 'spec,' and struck a first class
passenger. Of course, the higher grade
passenger you get, the more commission
there is off his ticket for you."
A former runner, who is now engaged
in other business, was asked if the steam
ship companies gave special commissions
to favored men.
"Oh, no," said he, "any steamship com
pany will give you a commission if you
take them a passenger, it makes hardly
any difference who yon are. I sometimes
earn a few dollars that way yet, and fre
quently oblige a friend by obtaining a
ticket for him at the discount of my com
mission. Last summer when I made a
trip across myself, I got another friend to
buy my ticket and saved $3 on it."
Another ex-runner said that there were
very few men who made a permanent
business of picking up passengers now.
Like himself, a good many were on tho
lookout for commissions when travel was
brisk, as in the summer season, or when
they hadn't anything else to do. Bnt tho
commissions were small now, the com
petition was keen, and those who had
made a business of it had mostly suc
ceeded in establishing little offices of their
own. New York Commercial Advertiser.
A BICYCLIST IN BENARES.
Idols and Temples, Mosques end Bathing
Ghats Gods of the Heathen.
At length I reach Benares, wheeling
down the luxuriant Ganges valley. Of
all the cities of the east, Benares is per
haps the most interesting at the present
day to the European tourist. Its 1,400
shivalas, or idol temples, and 280 mosques;
its wonderful bathing ghats, swarming
with pilgrims washing away their sins,
the burning bodies, the sacred Ganges,
the hideous idols at every corner of the
Btreets and its strange idolatrous popula
tion, make up a scene that awakens one
to a keen appreciation of its novelty. One
realizes fully that here the idolatry, the
"bowing down before images" that in our
Sunday school days used to seem so unut
terably wicked and perverse, bo monstrous
and so far, far away, is a tangible fact.
To keep up their outward appearance ou
a par with tho holiness of their city, men
streak their faces and women mark the
the parting in their hair with red. Sacred
bulls are allowed to roam the streets at
will, and the chief business of a large pro
portion of the population seems to be the
keeping of religions observances and pay
ing devotion to the multitudinous Idols
scattered about the city.
Everywhere, in niches of the walls,
under trees, on pedestals at frequent cor
ners are idols, hideously ugly; red idols,
idols with silver faces and stone bodies,
fcomo with months from ear to ear, big
idols, little idols, the worst omnium gath
erum Imaginable. Sati, nothing visible
but her curious face, beams over a black
Mother Hubbard sort of a gown that con
ceals whatever she may possess In the
way of a body; Jagaddatri. the Mother of
the World, with four arms, seated on a
lion; Brahma, with five eyes and four
mouths curiously made to supply quad
ruple faces; Eamadeva, the handsome
little God of Love (the nindoo Cupid),
whom the cruel Siva once slew with a
beam from his third eye all these and
multitudinous others greet the curious
sightseer whichever way one turns. Han
uman, too, is not forgotten, the great
Monkey King who aided Rama in his ex
pedition to Ceylon; outside the city proper
is the monkey temple, where thousands of
the sacred anthropoids do congregate and
consider themselves at home.
Then there is the fakirs' temple, the
most beautifully carved shivala in Ben
ares; here priests distribute handful of
soaked gram to all mendicants who pre
sent themselves. The gram is supplied
by wealthy Hindoos, and both priests and
patrons consider it a great Bin to allow a
religious mendicant to go away from the
temple empty handed. Thomas Stevens
la Outing.
Aa Incident of the War.
There's no more earnest Democrat in
New York than Gen. Averill, the dashing
trooper who raided up tho valley with
Sheridan and endeared himself to two
generations of Virginians by the home
steads ho saved from the torch. As ho
swing3 down Broadway to his office on a
frosty morning, ho is a soldier every inch
of him, barring gray hairs. Gen. Averill
was introduced to a young man named
Rudd a day or two ago, and it reminded
him of a curious incident in his military
career. He was at West Point with a
Jack Rudd, who afterward became a
major in the Confederate army. On a raid
Into West Virginia some cavalrymen were
about to pillage a farm which proved to
be no other than Jack Rudd's. It was a
tight llttlo patch of arable land right
under the mountains. As soon as Averill
heard tho name of his old classmate ho
set a guard over the place, and not a straw
was touched.
That was in August, '63. Just a year
afterward, at a noted mountain pass called
Callahan's, just twelve miles from the
Whito Sulphur springs, a Confederate
prisoner to- brought i-tn Rep Arcrill's
headquarters, which wero in the ambu
lance, where ho slept and read dispatches.
Captor and captive looked long and hard
at each other, and knew each other onco
more as "Rudd" and "Averill." And.
afterward, when a friendly nip had thawed
oui twelve years of absence and Averill
had told Rudd how ho saved his farm
from being pillaged, Rudd exclaimed:
"M , man! why, I enmo within anaco
of shooting you dead! I was in nmbush
ou tlif nicuiitain side, and drew a bead on
the officer who rode Into my front gate, ar
I thought, to fire the house. I soon saw
his kindly intentions though, nnd am now
doubly thankful for what we both es
caped." New York Sun.
House Balldlng In Earthquake Countries.
In choosing a site for a house in an
earthquake country, find out by the ex
perience of others the localities which nro
least disturbed, and build there. Some
times these localities will bo upon hills,
and at other times in valleys and on the
plains. A wide open plain is less likely
to be disturbed than a position on a hill,
especially on the edge of a hill.
Avoid building on loose materials which
rest on hard strata beneath. Place
foundations on the hard rock and leavo n
pit or trench all round them up to the
surface of the ground.
If earthquakes in a region come always
from one direction, build the housoso that
tho blank walls are parallel to thi3 direc
tion, and so that the walls with many
openings in them as windows and doors
are at right angles to such direction.
Small structures enn be supported on
nests of spherical balls laid between two
flat iron plates. Such houses are much
less shaken than the ordinary kind. It Is
advisable that brick chimneys to wooden
houses should bo built so tiiat the chim
ney is not bound closely to the wooden
structure, but is detached from it in such
a way as to allow it to have itsown period
of vibration without interfering with that
of tho house. Edward S. Holden In Over
turn! Monthly.
The Demand for Rubbers.
There has been a wonderful increase of
late years in the demand for rubbers, and
they have almost supplanted the heavy
overshoe so popular a few seasons ago.
Lately the sules of rubbers have almost
doubled, and the demand has at times
been almost equal to tho supply. The
light rubber serves the purpose of warmth
and keeps the water out, and is, there
fore, of double advantage nnd safer than
the heavy overshoe, as one Is less liablo to
colds if by some mischance he ohould for
get to put them on. There is a peculiarity
about the styles worn. Elderly people
wish a heavy, full rubber, and want them
large, bo that they can easily be put on
and taken off. The middle aged person
wants a full rubber, but as light as possi
ble and a perfect fit. The young man or
miss wants a tip that Is a half rubber,
just covering tho heel and part of the toe,
exposing most of the shoe. They must fit
like a glove, too. To ono who has had ex
perience in this line of business it is cosy
to "size up" a customer, and one who un
derstands tho trade rarely loses mucli
time in selling a pair of rubbers. Dealer
in Globe-Democrat.
Tho Italian Way.
"As I sat by tho window the other
afternoon," said a sick man, "and looked
at tho pcoplo as they trudged along in the
elect and tnow, it occurred to me that a
sprained ankle, as well as the musquito,
had its uses. At all events, I experienced
a feeling of satisfaction that I, at least,
could sit comfortably at homo and hng
the fire. Suddenly I was startled by
hearing shrill voices speaking in a foreign
language, and glancing up saw two
Italians of the male sex hastening toward
each other. They met, embraced and
kissed each other on the lips with a smack
that sounded like a pistol Bhot. This is
the Italian way of doing after a Ions;
absence between friends, I learned, and it
may be all very nice In Italy, but my
feelings can be expressed just as well by
agoo:I, old fashioned Saxon hand shake."
Philadelphia Call.
The Brain of a Mnrdrrer.
A professional murderer was lately exe
cuted in Moravia, and his brain was dis
sected aud closely examined by Professor
Moriz Benedict. The convolutions of the
brain are, says the professor, closely re
sembling those found in beasts of prey
another proof of the theory that retro
gression Is as possible as progress with
mankind. Chicago News.
"Holy smoke!" exclaimed a deacon,
when his wife told him the Pilgrim church
was on fire. Paragraphex.
The First Syrnntcms
Of all Lung diseases are much the -amp
feveririhuess, losa of nppctit-, sor
throat, pains in :Ii rhe.it ami i,.s-k,
lirftiliiclio, ct:. In a few dny.-i you inay
be we'll, or, on t It- other liaii'l. ; on may
b down witii Pneiuuoni or gallnpin;:
CoiMimiptiou." Htm no risk, but Wj;in
immediately to take Ayer's Cherry
Pectoral.
Seeral e:tr ao, Jnruis niroimnl. of
Darien, Conn., wan sfevtre!y ii!. Tliu
doctors Maid be wit in Consumption,
and that thiy could do nothing for him.
but advised him, a lt re,ort, to try
Ayer's Cherry Pectoral. After Inking
this medicine, two or threo mouths, lie
was pronouueed a well man. JIi- health
remains good to the present day.
J. S. Bradley, Maiden. Mass., writes :
" Three winters ago I took a severe cold,
which rapidly developed into Bronchitis
and Consumption." I was so weak that
I could not sit up, was much eiiiiiriatod,
and coughed incessantly. I i-oiisutted
several doctors, but they wcrt power
less, and all agreed that I wan in Con
sumption. At last, a friend brought me
a bottle of Ayer's Cherry Pectoral.
From the first do":. I found reliof.
Two bottles cured me, and my health
has since been perfect."
Ayer's Cherry Pectoral,
VBJtfXtLZD B7
Dr. J. C. Ayer & Co., Lowell, Mass.
Sold by all Druggist. Pries 81 ; six bottl, i
THE FIRST
National Bank!
OT
COLU9IBUS. If
-HAS AN-
Authorized Capital of $250,000,
A Surplus Fund of - $20,000,
And the largest Paid la Cash Capital of
any bank in this part of the State.
EsT Deposits received and interest paid oa
time deposits.
SSDralts on the princ iral cities in tiis conn
try and Europe bought and sold.
jy Collections and all other business given
prompt and careful attention.
STOCXnOLSKBS.
A. ANDERSON, Pres't.
J. H. GALLEY. Vice Pres't.
O.T.ROEN. Cashier.
G. ANDERSON. P. ANDERSON.
JACOUGHEISEN, HENRY RAGATi
JOHN J. SULLIVAN. W. A. MCALLISTER.
Apr2S-'6tf
gusiness (fenrds.
W
j a. McAllister,
ATTORNEY A NOTARY PUBLIC.
Office np-Mairs in nenry's building, corner of
Olivo and 11th streets. anglO-JJiy
W.5
Jl. COKIVfCl.lUN,
LAW AND COLLECTION OFFICE.
Upstairs Ernst bniltling, 11th street.
OUbLsLIVAX Sc KKEDER,
ATTORNEYS AT LAW,
Office over First National Bank, Columbus,
Nebraska. 80-tf
c.
. EVAIVM, in. D.,
PHYSICIAN AND SURGEON.
S3yOffico and rooms, Gluck building, 11th
street. Telephone communication. 4-y
T HI. niCFARLAnD,
ATTORNEY f NOTARY PUBLIC.
S3f CMKce over First National Bank, Colum
bus, Nebraska.
COUNTY SURVEYOR.
ETTBrties desirinjt MmoyinK done can ad
uresa mo nt Columbus, Neb., or call at my offic
m Court House. 5niHbo-y
T J.t'RAMKK,
CO. SUFI'. PUBLIC SCHOOLS.
I will be in my offico in the Court House, the
third batnnlayof each month for the examina
tion of applicants for ttacbirs' certificates, and
for th transaction of other ecliool buuiness.
18jan58
WALGRAF BROS.,
DRAY and EXPRESSMEN.
Licht and heavy hauling. Goods handled
with care. Headquarters at J. P. Becker &. Co.'
oilice. Telephone. S3 and lit. 30marS7y
DR. J. CIIAK. Wlf.t.l.
(.Deiitscher Arzt.)
PHYSICIAN and SURGEON,
Columbus. Neb.
EYE DISEASES A SPECIALTY.
Office: Telephone:
Eleventh Street. Office No. W: Keidence No.B7.
KmarST
JOHN G. HIGGINS.
C. J. GAIiLOW,
Collection Attorney.
HIGGINS & GARLOW,
ATT0RiEYS-AT-LAV,
Specialty made of Collections by C. J. Gurlow.
34-m
R. C. BOYD.
SIANUFACTCBZn OF
Tin and Sheet-Iron Ware !
Job-Work, Hoofing and Gutter
ing a Specialty.
fcjfr""Shop on 13th street, Krause Bro.'s old
stand. S2.tf
GRASS SEEDS !
Clover, Timothy,
Red Top, Millet,
Hungarian and
Blue Grass Seed,
-AT-
HERHIH OEHLRICH t BRO'S.
feb'iiJm
rrnSA WONDERS exit in
Uthousands of forms, but are sur
II JKpee! b? the marvels of invention.
I TiioHe who are in need of profitablo
work that can done while living at home
ehonld at once send their address to Hallett k
Co., Portland, Maine, and receivo free, full in
formation how either sex, of all ages, can earn
from $5 to $25 per day and upwards wherever
they live. 1 ou are started free. Capital not re
quired. Some have made over 0 In a single
day at this work. All succeed. 87dec28y
$500 Reward !
Wo will pay the above reward for any case of
liver complaint, dyspepsia, sick headache, indi
gestion, constipation or costiveness we cannot
cure with West s Vegetable Liver Pills, when the
direction, aro strictly complied with. They are
purely vegetable, anii never fail to give satisfac
tion. Large boxes containing 30 sugar coated
pills, 2Tc. For sale by nil druggists. Beware of
counterfeits and immitntions. The genuine
manufactured only by JOHN C. WEST A CO.,
S6'J W. Madison St., Chicago, 111. dec7'87y
INVENTION
has revolutionized
the world during the
last half century.
Not least among the
wonders of inventive progress is a method am
system of work that can ie performed -all over
the country without separating the workers from
their homes. Pay liberal; any one can do the
work; either sex. young or old: no special ability
required. Capital not needed; you are started
free. Cut this out and return to us and we will
send you free, something of gTeat value and im
portance to you, that will start yon in business.
which wiUbring jou in more money right away.
man anrining eise in tne worm. ur
free. Address True & Co.. Augusta, Me.
dec23
IIeWpap1R;
A book of 100 nagea,
The best book for aa
RTO!HSredboaro?heS
Itcontnins) lists ot newsnaneis and estimate
of tbecewtof advertising. The advertiser who
wants to spend one dollar. Amis Jq ft the in-
. formation ho requires, while forbim who wtu
I Invest one hundred thousand dollars la ad-
1 vArtfafn". n srhemA Inrltantrd which Will
meet his every requirement, or can b surfs
to do to by $tigh t chances easily arrived at by eor'
respondenee. 149 editions have been Issued.
Sent, post-paid, to any address for 10 oents.
Mvan
write ic ,i.u. f. KuniuJi t
! NEWSPAPER ADVERTISING BUaXAtT.
aoanjutaguFrinUna-HoaseS.), NswTorJs.
Lvvw