TELE OMAHA DAILY BEE : SUNDAY , SEPTEMBER 12 , 18S6.-TWELVE PAGES. 11
APPEAL FOR PROHIBITION ,
The Aloeiel Habit a Tyrant Wbotc Power
Ends Only at tbe Grave.
Pnlitmtnrlnrilsni Denounced ni a
JJrutnincr for Tippling Shops
Tlic Kvll Indenting
Throughout tlic World.
FtJU Of viM In < > K fpl'mJier Forum.
Tbe pious belief that the cxucs. of every
social evil tends to insure its abolition ,
ecems almost to have been disproved by
the history of the alcohol habit. When
the yoke of despots had made ; deliver
ance more desirable than life itself ,
despotism had reached the term of its
power. Wher. the rule of priests had
made the hatred ol shams burn hotter
thnn the fire of iin stake , no Jesuitical
intrigues could prevent the triumph of
protcsuinl revoit. But though the etil
of intemperance has long been recog
nized as the blighting curse of modern
civilization , the sorcfclt need of relief
seems thus far to have revealed no
remedy.
After half a century of incessant labor ,
the champions of reform must admit the
humiliating truth that the poison-traflic
continues to increase in n rat'o ' exceed
irg that of pur rapidly increasing popu-
'
lit ion. In 'the United States the con
sumption of alcoholic liquors of all kinds
> has Increased 45 per cent in the past fif
tecnyea.'s. Ihe consumption of lager-
beer has nearly doubled in twelve years.
Since 18GG the capital invested in the
breweries of Oreat Britain and Germany
has increased at the average rate of 4J
per cnnt a year , or more than twice as
fust ns the general average of the "con
structive manufactures. ' In parts ol
Europe where the ebb of all other indus
tries has enforced a degree of frugality
unknown to the revival periods of me
diaeval asceticism , the liquor traffic still
swells the tide of revenue and of disease.
Kcmedy after remedy has been proposed ,
tested , and changed for another , doomed
to a similar failure.
And yet the general tendency ol those
changes reveals nn advance in the right
direction. Philosophers have long thought
it. probable that the historians of the
future will deal with the records of legis
lative reforms , rather than with the bul
letins of battles and bombardments , and
the value of such record * in characteriz-
inc Iho spirit of the ago is strikingly
illustrated by the chronicle of temper
ance legislation. The necessity of con
trolling the grosser excesses of intem
perance was always more or le--s
recognized , but until lately the
efforts to that put pose were directed
to the suppression of the symptoms
rather than to the removal of the cause.
There was a time when the belief in the
necessity of alcoholic stimulation would
have proved a wholly unassailable axiom ,
even if legislators could have been in
duced to waste their time on such trifles
as the preservation of health. It was the
age of anti-naturalism , when the inter
ests of mankind were systematically sac
rificed to the interests of a dogma. It
was the millenium of madness , when the
promotion of sanitary habits was thought
of far less importance than the enforce
ment of insane ceremonies , when the
images of miracle-mongers lodged in
gilded domes while the image of God
rotted in a hovel , when the slaves of the
church , slaughtered one another for the
golden streets of the New Jerusalem
while the streets of their own cities reeked
with- filth , \yhen men were tortured to
death for whispering a doubt against the
pretensions of their spiritual taskmasters
but were freely permitted to poison
themselves and their neighbors with
spirituous abominations , since "not that
which gocth into the mouth delllcth a
man. " In that golden age of anti-physi
cal doctrines , temperance had no chance
whatever. Cavaliers and commoners
vied iu "wassail. " nay , the moral exemp
lars of Christendomoutguzzled the thirst
iest laymen.
The monastery of Weltenburg on the
Danube operated the largest brewery ol
the German empire , ana thousands ol
prelates owned both breweries and vine
yards. Spiritual tyranny and spirituous
license went hand in hand. Yet , even
then , communities had to legislate against
the bestial abuse of that license ; and
there were voluntary friends of temper
ance , men of higher ideals , scholars
nnd philanthropists , who abhorred
drunken riots , though 'they loved
their wine , and who recom
mended a self denial which they found
oltcn more easy to preach than to prac
tice. Their motto was : ' 'Moderation.
Bo temperate in all things. Keen tbo
sale middle course , "
A dangerous fallacy lurks in those pre
cepts. It may be safe to compromise
confiicting duties , as charity and econ-
omy.patnoUsm and domestic obligations
but where is the golden mean of virtue
nnd vice ! How keep a safe middle course
on the slippery road to ruin ? After open-
tng the Hood-gates , not one man in a
ihousand can slay the progress of a be
setting vice , nnd of all besetting vices
the alcohol habit is the roost inevitably
progressive. An unnatural appetite has
no natural limits. For weeks , sometimes
for months , young topers have to strug-
do aga nit the protests of a better in
stinct , but the final surrender of that
monitor marks the incipience of a mor
bid craving , which every gratification
makes only more exorbitant. For
by aud by the jaded organism fails
to respond to the spur , the stimulant
pails , but the hankering for stimulation
continues , and the toper has to satisfy
his thirst either by increasing the quan
tum of his tipple or by resorting to
stronger jx > isnn. After kindling the
flames of alcoholism it is vain to urge
the advantages of a moderate conflagra
tion ; one might as well recommend a
moderate use of the privilege to ignite a
barrel of gunpowder. We cannot tolerate -
ate the usu ot intoxicants and hope to
prevent intoxication.
The lessons of experience , if not physiology
elegy , gradually taught the friends of
temperance to relinquish that hope. A
strong pitrty of the iteform league de
clared in favor of total abstinence from
alcoholic beverages , and devised plans
for the effective propoganda of their
tenets. They doubted the expediency
of coercion in "a matter of private
habits , " but shrank fiom no sacrifice in
braving the odium of personal intoler
ance , in advocating their principles in
public lectures , in printing and distrib-
iiiing millions of eloqueut pamphlets.
Their own habits were generally distin
guished by n otrict conformity to their
principles. They hoped to euro the alco
hol habit by illustiating iu theory anil
j > rictio the advantages of uncomprom-
isiig abstinence. Tlmr motto was "He-
pmliation. "
A food deal of learning has lately been
paraded in. demonstrating the letal ne
cessity of distinguishing between crimes
nnd vices , between direct and indirect
nlleiises : i < : ainst the statutes of the moral
code. But the recognized interests ol
public" welfare have always been pursued
across the boundariesof such distinctions ;
or. nioro properly speaking , the varying
detmiHons of good and evil have ever
biuMvl the prevailing theories as to the
proper sphere of legislation. When the
[ i'ti nuvl welfare of millions was supposed
to ti > pcud on their conformity to certain
ui } t"ri'iu dojnuas , and Uie degradation
of the body was thought to be rather con
ducive to spiritual advantages , it seemed
Dcrfectly logical to give a health-destroy-
ng habit free rein and curb the freedom
if conscience. These theories have since
l en p-patlv modified ; bat that modern
moralists hesitate to coerce mm Pell-
crs and hasten of to coerce camblers
nnd the vender * of unclean literature
means , after dl. nothing else "but that
they are still inclined to consider intem
perance , on the whole , a lesser evil than
a passion for gaming or lascivious novels.
Is that bias a relic of the times when the
temptations of the sexual instinct were
dreaded more than those of the poison-
vice * Judging from s-ecular standards
we .should bo inclined to think that _ alco
hoi is doing more mischief in a single
year than obscene literature has ever
done in a century. And while gamesters
may bo Indemnified by an occ.tsionnl
gain , there is nn doubt that the passion
of the toper involves an inevitable loss of
time , money , and reputation , as well as
of health. "And , unhappily , it involves
the loss of self-respect , ana thus destroys
the basis on which the ad
vocates , of appeals to the innrnl
instinct founds his plan of salvation.
The power of moral resSstcncc is weak
ened with every repetition ol the poison
dose , and we ruiirht as well besiege a
bed-ridden consumptive with apixsals to
resume his place at the head of an afflicted
family. Dr. Isaac J > > niitnir mention the
case of a young man of great promise
whom a clerical friend attempted to dis
suade from habits of imtempnrancc.
"Here me first a few words , " said the
young man. "and then you may proceed.
1 am sensible that an indulgence In this
habit will lead to loss of projverty , to
lossof reputation and domestic happiness _ ,
to premature death , and to the irretriev
able loss of my immortal soul : aud now
all this conviction resting firmly on my
mind and flashing over my conscience
like lightning , if I still continue to drink
do you suppose anything you can say
will deter me from the practice ! ' '
Taught by the logic of such exper
iences , the friends of reform have at last
recognized the truth that the "temperate
use of alcohol is but the first stare of a
progressive nnd shame-proof disease.and
that moderation and repudiation failing ,
we must adopt the motto of "Eradica
tion. " We must direct our blowsagainst
the roots of the uoas-tree ; and there is no
doubt that the sharpest , if not cheapest ,
tool would bo the general enforcement
of prohibition. The penalties of a severe
prescriptive law would sap the basis of
the poison-traffic by making its risks
outweigh its profits , especially the profits
of catering to an cver-decreasinc de
mand. For the very means used
to evade those risks would also
diminish the perils of tempta
tion to thousands of young
men of that class owing their ruin less to
innate depravity than to the evil influence
of an obtrusive example. The army of
topers would die out for the want of re
cruits wherever the causes of intemper
ance are limited to the temptation of the
rum shop , with its garish splendor and
its sham promise ot pleasures. But the
temptercomes in more subtle diwruises.
The elixirs of death are sold as panaceas.
"Brandy doctors , " as Benjamin Hush
used to call them , abuse the confidence
of their patients by inoculating them
with the seeds of u life-blighting vice
Thousands of topers' owe their fall to a
prescrsptSdn of "tonic bitters. " In many
of our smaller cities drug stores , rather
than coffee houses and beer gardens , are
the preuaratory schools of the ruin shop.
Dr. K. S. Davis , Px-President of the
American Medical Association , confesses
to having found "no case of disease , and
no emergency arising from accident ,
that could not be treated more success
fully without any form of fermented or
distilled liquors than with. " Dr. James
R. Nichols , editor of the Boston "Journal
of Ohemistryj" records his conviction
that "the banishment ot alcohol would
not deprive us of a single one of the in
dispensable agents which modern civil
ization demands. " "In no instance , ' ' he
adds , "of disease in any form , is it a
medicine which might not be dispensed
with and other agents substituted. "
Ten years ago the six hundred delegates
of tbe International Medical Con
gress , couVened at Philadelphia , were
induced to admit that "alcohol is not
shown to have a definite food value by
any of the usual methods of chemical
analysis or physiological investigation , "
and that "its use as u medicine is chiefly
that of a cardiac stimulant , and often ad
mits of substitution. " Then why , for
mankind's sake , not confine ourselves to
such substitutes * Have the ex
periments of Homowpathy not
abundantly proved that discuses
of sorts can be cured , not only as well ,
but more easily and more permanently ,
without the use of any drastic stimulants
whatever ? Is it not mere mockery to
prohibit tbe sale of small beer , and per
mit any enterprising distiller to deluge
the country with poison by selling his
brandy as a "digestive tonic , " and elude
the inconveniences of the Sunday law by
consigning his liquor to a drug-store ?
But while these treacherous fenders of
the alcohol habit are being assailed with
even more trenchant blows , temperance
people as a class seem to ignore an evil
in which history and moral philosophy
have unearthed the very tap root
of intemperance , viz : the life-
blighting tyranny of Sabbatarianism.
Savages and wanton country boys , now
aud then raajUoste a glass of fire-water
for the sheer inischiovious love 01 risky
experiments , but in our centers of civili
zation six out of ten topers use alcohol
for exactly the same purpose that the life-
weary toilers ot the cast use opium as
an anodyne to lighten the burden of
hopeless misery. In a primitive state of
socictj * nature herself provides abundant
opportunilies of recreation. Wealth re
stores those opportunities. Our privil
eged citixens can leave the city weeks to
propitiate nature by a pilgrimage to the
sanctuaries of the wilderness , and restore
their health by the care end out-door
sports of their nature-abiding ancestors ;
but those privileges are denied to
"
the very classes "moit sorely iu need
of tneir blessings , and by suppressing
all popular pastimes on the day when
a vast plurality of our workingmcn find
their only leisure for recreation , wo
force them to seek relief in the narcotics
of the rum shop and drown their misery
in the Lethe of intoxication. They drink
to get drunk ; they take refuge in the de
lirium of the poision fever as in n dream ,
to escape the soul sickening round
about of bix days of drudgery
followed by a seventh day of un
satisfied longings. Heat the furn.ice-
fires , shut and rivet the valves , ind pray
for the safety ot the boiler ; but do not
hope to prevent the explosions of vice
niter shutting the gates of mercy on the
panting toilers of a factory town , by
closing their libraries.closing their parks ,
preventing their escape by stopping ex
cursion boats and picnic trains , aud then
convening a prayer meeting to avert the
well-known consequences.
"Nature will have her revenue , and when
the most ordinary and harmless ii-crcations
are forbidden as sinful , is ant to seek compen
sation in indrlgeuoedlilch no uiondUt
would be willing to condone. The charge
brought against Uie Novatians iu the early
days of the church ran , wiUi equal plausibil
ity , be brought against the Puritans in our
own dnv. One vice , at all emits , which
Christians of every school , as well as non-
chrisUau moralists , are agreed in con
demning , la reputed to U ) a spec
ial opprobrium of . .And the
strictest observance of all those minute and
oppressive Sabbatarian regulations referred
t < > , lias been found compatible with consecrating
crating the day of rest to a quiet but unlim
ited assimilation ol Uie linufd which inebri ,
ats but does not cheer. " baturday Ileview ,
Julrl9.is > 75.p.75.
"Sir. " said Johnson , " 1 am a great friend
of public amusement , for they keep people
from vice. " BoawelL p. 171 ,
And there cannot be a shadow ot a
doubt that the enemies of public amuse
ments have for centuries promoted the
vice of the poison habit by making its
consequences a lesser cviL Thousands of
ruined wretches have been driven to the
rum-shop by the very men who are loud
est in denouncing the enormity of their
sin , and who would perpetuate that sin
to the end of time rather than open to
its victims a cate of escape by relaxing
the riror of their own views. "With our
pauper-graves full of suicides whom the
doctrine of anti-naturalism had robbed
of all the light that .shone on earth for
them , with our cities full of pale-faced
children , we may weil doubt our right to
pity the times whin prelates purchased
their luxuries at the expense of starving
villages.
After waging a fifty years'war as the
champions of salvation against the ene
mies of mankind , the evidence of ex
perience forces us to the bitter confes
sion that we have strengthened the hands
of those enemies. We must accuse our
selves ot having deserved failure , but the
candor , even of self reproach , is
better than self delusion , for if
we persist in shutting our eyes to
the significance of our mistake , our ad
versaries will not bo slow in taking ad
vantage of our blindness. In the name
of the trusting supporters who defray
the excuses of our campaigns and
have a right to vote a further waste of
their resources , let us be honest , let us
confess that wo cannot win the battle on
the present plan. I/ct us chance the
battle grounu to the open fields. let us
found temperance gardens with play
grounds , free music and hygienic res
taurants , let us have a free gymnasium
in every village and every chy park : lot
us devote nt least a portion of our leis
ure day to health-giving sports , and neu
tralize the allurements of the rum shop
by making harmless pleasures more at
tractive than the riots of vice.
THE NATION'S LIBRARY.
A Blfj Concern nnil AVlio Jlannjjcs H
Omniscient Sx > flord.
A Washington correspondent of the
Cincinnati Times-Star writes. One of the
busiest persons in \ \ nshington the o hot
summer days is Ainsworth H. Spoftbrd ,
the librarian of congress. While other
people arc disporting themselves by
mountain or seaside he is busy with his
plans for the new library building. And
whi'e ' other people -ire happy in their re
lief from work he is more happy in this
opportunity to devote himself to this
work. It has been the pet proK'ct of his
existence for manv years. There had
been bill after bill in congress for the
erection of a library building , and Mr.
Spofibrd has been waiting for these many
years to see the accomplishment of his
hones' . Now that the proposition has
actually become a fact and the land for
the site has been purchased , he cheerfully
relinquishes his summer vacation for the
work he has so long hoped to sec accom
plished.
Mr. Spoflbrd is a wonderful man. Talk
of walking encyclopedias , he is an en
cyclopedia of encyclopedias , ana a wale-
ing one. too. No matter what you want
toTcnow , if it is to be found out "in books ,
you have only to go to Mr. Spofibrd and
he will put you in a way to find it. He is
one of the busiest men in Washington ,
but never too busy to answer a question
relating to information to be had from
books. Approach him on any other sub
ject than the one connected "with his life
study , and his replies are brief , ofu > n in
monosyllables , showing that he takes no
interest in the subject Turn the conver
sation to books or a kindred topic , and
he is r.ll attention. He has studied the
library buildings of the world , and the
building which is to be constructed under
his supervision will be a model , so far as
it maywith the rather limited sum which
congress tardily and grudgingly gave for
the preservation of the splendidlibrary
which Mr. Spofibrd has had in keeping
and which has so largely accumulated in
the past twenty-two years.
The library of congress , to which Mr.
Spofibrd was appointed li brarisn by Presi
dent Lincoln in ] 8 ( > 3lhen consisted of per
haps 75,000 volumes. Now it contains 700.-
000 volumes of books and pamphlets. Then
its quarters were considered commodious
and capacious ; now they are crowded
with piles nnd boxes of books that can
not be used because there is not room
for their distribution , aud many dark
rooms in the basement of the capitol are
filled with volumes which cannot be
given accommodations in the library
itself. Then the salary of the librarian
and his assistants was $0,000 or § 7,0(10 ( a
year ; now their total salaries amount to
nearly $50,000 a year. Then the library
was surpassed uy many in different parts
of the world ; now there are but four in
the entire world which ouirank it. At
the rate of increase which has been tbe
rule for many years past , Mr. Spafford
will haye a round million of books and
pamphlets to store away in his new li
brary buildinc when it is completed The
rate of increase in the number of worKs
in the library in the past year has been
very rapid. By law every person who
copyrights a book must send two copies
to the library. Besides this congress gives
from $90,000 to ? 75,0K ( ) a year for the pur
chase of books for it. and under the care
ful management of Mr. Spoflbrdthisgives
a rapid increase in the number oT its
works. The library now is increasing at
the rate of nearly hfty thousand volumes
a year. The collection is a wonderful
one. It comprises books in ten different
languages , and on many important sub
jects it has a volume of every work pub
lished. Many of the works upon the
shelves are especially vnlnable for their
antiquity , while in all new publications ,
both in this country and elsewhere , it
keeps fully up to the times.
The library , while it is called the li
brary of congress , is really the library of
the people. Anybody who visits it may
examine at his leisure any of the works
upon its shelves , and , by depositing the
value of any book may taKeit to his home
and keep it for a considerable time. It
is the Mecca of the historian and careful
writer from all parts of the country. They
travel here to study the works of refer
ence npon its shelves , and any day yon
may see within its walls men and women
of letters studying the valuable records
which it contains.
The library was founded in 1802 with
some 3,000 volumes carefully selected in
London. John Randolph was one of its
earliest friends and supporters. Jeffer
son was also its friend , and when he
found it necessary to part with his fine
collection of boots they were promptly
purchased by congress and added to tbe
library. It is said that Jefferson shed
tears on parting with his library , which
was for that time a very hno one. Like
other features of tbe great government
it has had its reverses. It was destroyed
by fire when the British invaded Wash
ington in 1814. They took the books
from the library , which was then in the
capitol , as it is novr. and piled the.ro on
the lloor of the hall of representatives ,
set fire to them and then fired the great
building. Thirty-seven years later a fire
caused oy a defective flue destroyed hall
the library , which consisted of some sixty
thousand volumes.
The KariliquaUe Acquitted.
New York Sun : J. Farrington , a cigar
dealer of Manhattan avenue , Greenpomt ,
accused Hichard Jest yesterday of steal
ing two boxes of cigars.
'W hen did my cjient commit the al
leged theft I" asked Counselor Hoesch.
"has : Tuesday night. "
"Did you see him take the cigars * "
"No , but I saw the boxes move , and he
was behind them ; I found a box in his
pocket , "
"Tuesday night , " said the counselor ;
"that was the night of the earthquake.
Maybe tbe earthquake caused them to
move. Aud now , sir , " he continued ,
"can you swear that the quake did not
cause the boxes to move , and. sir "
"Twenty-nine days in jail for Jest , " in
terrupted Justice haeher.
COLONEL BILL'S ROMANCE ,
An Officer of the Mexican Wai and His
Pretty Wife-
IliiuiorsTli.it Disturbed the Commit
nUy In Wblcn He Lilvcd A
Triple Tragedy.
The talk about war with Mexico , writes
nn Atlanta Constitution correspondent ,
recalls n romantic tragedy which grew
out of our struggle with that country-
forty years ago.
When volunteers came marching homo
hundred ? of handsome fellows among
them brought Mexican wives with them.
Among the fortunate ones was Colonel
Bill. 1 never Rot nt the Mraight of it.
but it was * aid there was a mystery about
the colonel's marriage. Some of his sol
diers said that in one of his forays he bad
captured a , Mexican 'Ullage. He looted
the place , picked out the prettiest scno-
ita in it , the daughter of old Don Juan
Gomez , a wealthy Castiliau , and married
her by force of arms , as it were. There
was another story even worse than this.
It was that the dashing colonel bad car
ried oft' the beautiful wile of a Mexican
general , and despite her tears and pro
testations had made her submit to the
farce of a marriage ceremony performed
by an army chaplain.
These rumors , in various shapes , some
times modified and sometimes embell
ished , were whispered in the society cir
cles of the city of M for years after
the return of Colonel Bill. I heard some
thing of the storv when my boyish curi-
o-ity was excited by the somber gloom of
n lull , dark mansion in a quiet quarter of
the city. At the time I was not old
enough to understand the full import of
what I heard , but I understood enough to
make me shudder.
Colonel Hill was seldom seen on the
streets of M He passed much of his
time on his plantation , a few miles out ,
and during the winter ho spent weeks
and months in distant cities. At first it
was said that he took his wife with him
on his travels , but as the years rolled on
ho gradually began to neglect her ; and
he would leave her for six months at a
time shut up in the old mansion. The
mystery of the place took a strong hold
upon my youthful imagination , and I
never passed the house without scanning
it closely. But it was impossible to make
any discoveries. The house stood in the
center of spacious grounds , M > filled tip
with trees and tropical shrubbery and
flowers that it was difficult to see much
from the struct. In the rear was a gar
den surrounded by a hign brick wall
with grated openings , and through these
one could sue what was going on inside
of the inelosure.
One day in passing 1 heard voices. J
looked through an opening in the wall
and saw the most beaut iful woman that
my eyes had ever beheld. I knew at once
that it was the colonel's wife. She was a
young woman , tall and graceful , and her
dark lace was illuminated by a pair of
glorious eyes that seemed to be shining
through a rnist of tears. This real crea
tuns was not alone. She was accompa
nied by a young girl who appeared to be
her maid or companion. The two were
conversing in a foreign tongue , and I
could not "understand a word. The music
of their voiees impressed me , and I gazed
at them E-O steadily that their attention
was attracted. The lady of the mansion
looked at me with a sad smile , and made
some remarK to her companion. Then
they -walked over to the other side of the
garden , out of my sight.
Naturally I told what J had seen , and
people badgered me to death-with ques
tions. I was asked to describe the beau
tiful Mexican lady.
"Did she wear any diamonds ? " asked
an old gossip.
1 answered her that I thought i saw
diamonds glittering on her throat , in her
hair and on her hands.
"No doubt of it , " said my questioner ,
"but the poor thing has very few of them
left. "
"How is that * " I asked.
"Why , don't you know ? But of course
you don't. Well , when she first came
here she had a peck of diamonds. Even
on her morning wrappers every button
was n diamond. "
"And where are they now ? " I queried
in open-mouthed wonder.
"That horrid old Colonel Bill has taken
them. The colonel is n very bad man.
I can't tell a little boy like you how bad
he is. Now , the colonel is always need
ing money for gambling and racing and
'us ' otiier pleasures , and whenever he is
in a ticut place for a few hundreds he
ju t takes a handful of bis wife's diamonds
mends and that is the last of them. "
Such brutal meanness enraired mo not
a little , and I secretly icsolved when I
got big enough to giyo Colonel Bill a
genteel thralling.
Jn the course of time 1 caught more
than one glimpse of the colonel when he
was going to his plantation or returning.
He rode a fine horse , and generally
dashed along without looking either to
the right or to the left. Ho was a very
handsome man of about fifty , but his
face was stern and repellant. Selfish
ness , cruelty i'.nd even murder lurKisd in
that face. Although I had fully made up
my mind TO call Colonel Bill to a bloody
account sometime in the distant future ,
the sight of him was so hateful to me
that 1 made it a point to get out of the
way when I saw him coining. In the
meantime I mude inquiries about the
charming Mexican. People raved over
her beauty , but very few had ever seen
her. She had never gone into society ,
and hud never been at home to visitors.
From the servants little or nothing could
bo learned. They were afraid of their
master and devoted to their mistress
Still , it was generally agreed that Colonel
Bill wits horribly cold and cruel to his
wife. He was jealous , too , an absurd
thing , as the poor lady never went any
where. J was told that sohie two or three
years after the couple11 had settled in
M they were visited by old Don Juan
Uomez. The don did not have n bit of
nso for the wicked colour ) , and wanted
to kill him , but he yieldcfl to his daught
er's entreaties , and before he left shelled
out diamonds and doubloons in the most
bewildering profusion. Then he sadly
went back to his hacienda in Mexico ,
after exacting a promise Irom his son-in-
law to behave himself. Ho the story ran ,
and I could not learn how much of it WHS
true and how much faUq ;
One evening just after/lusk , I had oc
casion to pass the house.-in which I felt
such a deep interest. A line-looking man
evidently n foreigner , was on the oppo
site side of the street,1'looking ' at the
place. He called me over , and in very
good English , asked me who lived there.
I tola him , he thanked me and walked
off. I slackened my pace and kept the
stranger in view When he came to the
garden wall he paused and looked tip
nnd down the street. Seeing nobody , he
climbed over the projecting TJricks at the
corner , nnd vaulted over into the garden
like a cat. I was so duinfounded by the
proceeding that I struck for home and
by'a great effort kept my mouth shut.
The next morning the whole city rang
with the intelligence of a crime almost
without parallel or precedent. When I
heard the details I felt a sense ot guilty
responsibility. Colonel Bill , his wife and
and a gentleman had all been murdered
the night before. The servants could
throw no light upon the affair.
When they retired at a late hour they
left Colonel Bill , and his wife in the li
brary. In the morning the housemaid
entered the library ana found the three
d .aJ bodies. Each hnd been stabbed to
Uie he-art , and a bloody dagger was
found on the Door. In the colonel's hand
was a pistol , but it had not been dis
charged. The bodies of the colonel and
Ids wife lay clo c together on one side of
the room , while the stranger's was on
the otlu-r side.
Then I made a clean breaM of it all. I
had to attend the inquestand when 1 saw
the face of the dead stranger I recognized
the man who had questioned me the cwn-
inc before and jumped over the garden
wall The lawyers and the authorities
were greatly puzzled. There was not the
slightest clew to the strange man's iden
tity. Finally the theory was accepted
that he was either the former husband or
lover of the colonel's wite , and that he
had killed the two in a fit of jealous re
venge , nnd then committed suicide.
Spmo contended that Colonel Bill had
killed the wife and the man , and then
killed himself , but the undischarged pistol -
tel in his hand was against this thcoiy.
Efforts were mnde to trace old Don Jnan
Gomez , bu without result. It was be
lieved that ir ho could have been found ho
would have been able to explain some
things. As it was , the tragedy had to re
main a mystery. There were no further
developments , and other events drove
the matter from the public mind.
How A Pitcher's Arm Giro * Out.
Detroit Journal ; Lon I'witchcll , the
promising but crippled young pitcher
whom the Dotroits are holding in re
serve , was taken to Dr. George S. Hicli-
ards yesterday afternoon by President
Mar.-n , to learn what was the matter with
Twitchell's arm.
Twitchcll has a right arm that anv lady
might be proud to possess. It is fair and
c\cedingly shapely. Besides tho- beauty
that the young man keeps modestly
hidden in his coat sleeve there is ah
nbilmtauce of well developed muscle
which is perfect in appearance , but de
fective in one little particular spot.
There is an important muscle on the un
der side ol the arm , above the elbow ,
which should bo attached to that joint ,
but is not , and that's what's the matter
with Twitchcll ,
The muscle was detached , Tivitchell
says , in the game which he pitched for
Detroit a t Cincinnati early last spring.
"That is where 1 did it. " said he , "for af
ter I had pitched one of 1113' hardest and
best balls 1 felt something in my arm
give way. That has knocked me out for
the whole season. "
Twitchcll has been resting at Detroit
and hisOhio home ever since , exereKmg
a little daily and waiting for his arm to
get well , though he did not know until
yesterday just what was the matter with
it. Dr Hicbarde , besides being a promi
nent surgeon , is a gray-haired nnd bald-
headed base ball enthusiast , and an au
thority on pitchers and their troubles ,
and well up on ba = c ball generally. The
doctor advised Twitchcll to do nothing
for three or four weeks.
"Do not , " he said , lift even a pail of
water. That muscle is detached , and it
won't heal if you > e it. Every night
before you go to bed sprinkle it for nve
minutes with ice water and then rub it
thoroughly dry. Tnatwill do you more
good than a pailfull of prescriptions or
all the electricity there is in a dynamo.
You may be able to pitch again in three
or four weeks , and you may not , but cer
tain it is that if you continue to use that
arm you'll never be worth a base hit as a
pitcher. If yon had not used your arm
since it was hurt yon would have been all
right by this tune. "
Twitchell's arm does not trouble him
only when he pitches what he calls his
best and speediest ball. It is a sort of a
jump ball , and is very difficult to fol
low. He tnrows all other balls without
pain
Tlic EnrthqunKe in Georgia.
Atlanta Constitution : Une lady in
Jackson county threw open the Iront
door nnd fired a gun , and was walking
the floor with another gun in hand when
her husband came home. A gentleman
walked the floor with pistol in hand ,
looking for burglars.
It is reported in Griffin that a leading
counsellor iu the prohibition contest
rushed from his house into the middle of
tue roud in a single nethur garment and
ycljcd to his wife to come out , as the
whiskey men were blowing the house up
with dynamite.
The jury iu the Gilbert Davis case , in
Eastman , were in their room in the court
house , nnable to agree , and , it is said ,
there was no probability of theirarriving
at a verdict. After the earthquake was
over they agreed in about three minutes.
A rather strange incident occurred with
a colored woman in Barnesville. Anna
Anthony , who is in the employ of Mr. T.
C. Banks as n cook , was preparing to
milk the cow She had roped the cow
and the end of the rope which she held
had an iron ring tied to it. The ring
formed n , loop and caught on the wo
man's finger , as the cow. in frijrht , at
tempted to get away. The pulling by
the cow caused the thumb to be cut off.
or rather so near off that the thumb had
to bo amputated.
The earthquake came near breaking up
an inquest on Hutchinson's Island. Capt.
Dixon had crossed over to the island to
investigate the death ot Cyrus Campbell ,
on oid negro , who was found dead in a
cabin there at noon. The death was
sudden , and no one was present , so the
coroner concluded to summon a jury.
After swearing them they were nil told
to take seats in the cabin. David More ,
a d.irky , was the only witness. He be
gan givinc his evidence , and had gotten
about down to the time when Campbell
was last seen , when the cabin com
menced to rattle. "There she goes
again , " the witness said. His eyes grew
double the ordinrry size and he started
for the door , leaving his evidence half
finished. The juror nearest the door
waited about half a. second , and ho gave
a leap out. The other jurors gave one' '
glance at the corpse and they saw it
move. That was enough for them , and
they went out in a bunch , leaving the
coroner and the corpse to finish the in
quest.
rtilillc Office a Public Trust.
Chicago Tribune : "Do you believe a
public otllcd is a public trust ? " inquired a
seedy-looking man who went into 11
saloon on iho West Side and addressed
the barkeeper with proteutous solemnity
tlui other evening.
"J certainly do , " said the dispenser of
cocktails.
" 1 am glad to find you in accord with
the principles held by the official head of
the great political body to which 1 be-
Ions' , " rejoined the seedy party , approaching
preaching the bar. " 1 am one of the
Highway Commissioners of tne township
where I live , and nave hold the otliee for
eleven years. Being unexpectedly de
tained in the city this evening , and * find
ing myself short for ready cash , I have
been obllsed to fall back upon my long
official career as a basis for some trilling
business accommodations. Asypu have
just said , u public otiicor is entitled to
public trust , and 1 would therefore ask
for about three lingers of old rye on trust.
On my return " homo J will immediately
remit
The Highway Commissioner was fired
out of the saloon in less time than it takes
to empty n Uulgarian throne , and another
historic utterance ot the administration
had gone into innocuous desuetude.
Aerouauifc In the Water.
A large balloon , recently constructed
in the imperial technical manufactory at
St Petersburg for the purpose of con
ducting a series of experiments bearing
on the use of ballons for military objects ,
was dispatchixi from St Petersburg for
Cronstandt , The upper currents of air
were to strong to allow of the aeronauts
effecting a descent at Oioastadt and they
were carried on toward Oninienbaum.
but the wind rising they were swept out
to sea. and at last the balloon fell inlo
the yea nineteen miles from Cape Kara-
valdia , in the midst ot a violent storm of
wind and rain. The three occupants of
the car would certainly have been lost
had the accident not been sighted by an
English vessel The captain at once put
about and rescued them from their peril
ous position nnd took them safely to
Cornstadt.
A BOLD AMERICAN GIRL.
Stic Rnrlcqtir4 LNzt to HI * Knee ,
nnd llrcnk * the I'lnno Stool
nnd String * .
Boston Herald Lisr.t was a strange
compound of strength and weakness , but
his weaknesses harmed no one but him
self. An article on this subject , quoted
from a Paris Journal , may intercut your
readers , and give's one a very amusing
idea of Liszt's life in Home during the
pontificate of Pius IX. :
"Tho familiar card of the Princess X.
made one day a sudden sensation in
social circles. It ran thu - "Come and
take an ice with mo to-morrow evening ,
\ \ i shall hear Liszt. ' Liszt was the god
of the hour. Gossip was busy witlihls
friendship for Mme do W. It was said
that the lady had exacted from the
celebrated pianist the legitimate ratifi
cation of their atl'cction , that Liszt , quite
averse to mnrriam * , had interposed bet -
t ween his friend and himself tin- obstacle
of his sacred engagement to take holy
orders. All wondered at the sudden in
vestment of the ; artist with clerical vest
ments , and curiosity.not entirely divested
of malice , was excited. 'We shall hear
Liszt ! '
"Not one of the bidden guests failed to
accept the summons of the Princess X.
Old Roman patricians , tbo foreign
colony , English , Americans , the corps
diplomatique , officers of the pontificial
army , many prelates and even cardinal * ,
gathered in her salon , happy lor the
promised attraction.and promising them
selves the pleasure of hearing the illus
trious pianist and now abbe. Liszt ai > -
pearcd. The long black robe became his
tall , thin figure. Ho wore it without em
barrassment , with that weary and
haughty expression which never really
lolt him. He received with dignity the
homage of the lovely ladies , saluting
them majestically , scarcely deigning to
open his lips , : md producing upon the
spectators , especially the young and
timid , a feeling of awe. They found the
atmospturo of the room imbued with
his presence. Ihe more courageous
brought him champagne nnd lemon ice ,
but their hands trembled while doing it.
One whispered as if in church. One
feared to distnrb the repose of the lion.
The evening advanced , and still the mas
ter had not approached the grand Erard
which stood open for him. The Princess
X. at last decided to solicit him to play.
The guests breathlessly awaited the
hoped-for pleasure ; they placed thorn-
selves in the most favorable positions for
hearing. The discrete murmur of con
versation stopped altogether. It was an
hour of ectasy. But Liszt had nerve : he
refused to take his- place at the piano.
The princess insisted ; she reminded him
that he hnd played at theColouna palace.
> Vhv should he not play here ?
"Liszt , cold and immovable , answered
briefly , 'I will not play1 !
"Ihe Princess was desperate. Her
guess had been brought here by a false
liopp In the midst of the general silence
the colloquy became pain ui. A few
charitable souls came to the rescue ; a
prelate interfered. The master was ob
stinate. The prettiest women deluged
him with eloquent solicitations and sup
plicating looks. All efforts failed. The
great spirit remained cold , and he de
clined in a tone cutting and incisive. All
seductions were powerless to move him.
"In the midst ot the general dismay , a
young lady , excited and irritated like all
the rest , rose and addressed in these
terms the unfortunate mistress of the
house , who sat npon thorns : 'Dear
Princess , the master has refused us the
great happiness his presence made us
hope for. We cannot hear his divine
harmonies ! But , since our friends ex
pect music , I will , although very un
worthy , offer my modest assistance. 1
will jro to the piano. '
"The stupegction could not have been
greater if one had seen the cupola of St.
Peter's perform a fandango. The be
numbed audience watched curiously the
young woman. It was an American , very
gay. very daring , very w.tty , well-known
lor her eccentricities , but a woman of
mind and real talent , and so young and ,
pretty tiiat no one could find fault with
her. She gracefully ungloved her hands ,
while the princes- , murmured her aston
ished thanks , seized the arm of the first
cavalier who presented himsclt , and
went and seated herself on the piano
'stool. This scene attracted a wondering
attention. For a while everybody forgot
Liszt for the beautiful eyes of her who
took his place. With the precision of nn
artiste , but the mischief of a child , she
preluded brilliantly. But the piece ! Oh ,
the niece ! It was a parody extra noisy
of the most noisy composition of Liszt.
Ana what gave piquancy tothetlunjj was
that the executaiite imitated exactly the
method of the master. The notes vibra
ted more and more under her furious at
tacks ; they growled angrily ; the hands
ran as if they mad over the electrified
keys. Soon it w s not only the linger
but the list winch hammered the note , or
perhaps the arm , and even the elbow
struck the ivory in burlesque chords.
"The American lady was no longer
seated she played standing , her eyes
raised to heaven , the head turned up ,
rolling her glances , either swooning or
maddened , about the room , and shaking
herself like an evil spirit. Finally her
hair , shaken as if by u whirlwindescaped
fiom the comb and fell in a sheet about
her shoulders. She interrupled her phty ,
raising herself with a gesture toward her
forehead , exactly like the master , then
panting , exhausted , laid on with nil her
foice the last hoarse chods : and let her
self fall upon the piano stool , apparently
half fainting. The tabouret broke with
a groan , and at the same moment some
of the strings of the piano cracked under
this last pressure.
"Never shall 1 forget the effect of this
ioke , doubtful as it was OP Ihe whole.
The guests forgot all decorum , they
writhed with laughter , they held the.ir
sides , they wept. The thing wad so un
expected , she was so droll , that no one
could check the gayety of this immense
salon. The good princess could only
follow the tide. And the master. He
grew wan , green and red by turns , and
picked nervously nt the buttons of his
new caisock. He throw a wandering
glance upon the audience. No one dared
to fix his gaze upon him ; they were all
well bred , but they laughed aloud , ul-
though without malice or any intention
of being insulting or aggressive. Thus
the abbe was enabled to gain Lite door
and glidu out without being perceived.
The Jusson was severe , I admit , but it has
borne fruit. Since then one ha rarely
seen tint abbo Liszt protect himself too
much fiom hi > : tdmirur.i. A gracious nnd
welMimud prayer has rarely found him
deaf. "
_
So Klcph.-iiit iMnz Testor.
Chicago Tiibune. A nrin who earns his
living by traveling -.toU with a lung-
tester was in ludiuiiajmii.- other dty. :
He was approached by a tall , well-fod
personage , who liaiulud him > cents and
prepared to blow in Ins machine.
"Hold on hold on ; i minute ! " snid Uiu
street faker , excitedly , ns ho scanned his
customer a moment and jorkud the tube
out of his hand ; "ain't yon Dan Voor-
hces * "
"I am D. W. Yoorheea , " replied the
uill man in some surprise.
'TJmn you can't touch this machine.
I wouldn't have it burst for $59. Hwo is
your nickel. This ain't tie elephant lung-
tester"
And shouldering his machine the man
walked rapidly away , as if he had had a
narrow escape.
01110 SCOOPS THE COUNTRY ,
A lotmgstown News Hound Onlvriti i
Xing and Takes tie Pedro.
A Successful Trick on the Kmpcror
or Hrnzil , nnd tlio Subsequent ,
Interview A SIIAIISI | | Grand
Bounce from tlio Train.
Detroit Free PressIn newspaper re
porting the race is not always to the man
who draws a fat salary , or the battle to
him who travels with a stenographer.
These remarks do not constitute the in-
deduction of a sermon directed against
the sin of journalistic pride ; they simply
preface an anecdote , sad , dlmplo , and all
too true , which I bolioo has never yd
appeared in print.
It was ten years ago , more or less , that
his majesty Dom Pedro , emperor of Bra
zil , developed a desire to see the Ynnkco
elephant and set out , with all the dignity
and pomp befitting his royal Mation , to
make the grand tour of the United States.
He had carefully read tlie papers of the
land of the freedom , anil was doubly
armed airainM the dangers. No fellow
traveler on the cars could hope to cut a
rise from him , by dealing him four kings
and an ace in a friendly game of euchre ;
the man with an express package or a
lottery prize awaiting him , was as clay in
Pedro's hands , and if a parser on tlio
street chanced to find a glove with a
rinjrin it , Pedro gi-ntlj tapped his nosu
and remarked that hovns not in the
market for jewelry. One further anil
unjust prejudice had the emperor ; he
learned and shunned the innocent re
porter , with all the terror that marks
the bachelor's night from the mite so
ciety. Ho would not be interviewed and
so that settled it , and as he was sur
rounded by grooms of the bedchamber ,
royal rat catchers , nobles of the closet
and imperial body iruardstncn , six feet
by two iu size , with loaded muskets nnd
fixed bayonets , he WAS in a position to
bring the average newsgatherer to his
own view ot the case.
The bcU and sharpest New York ro-
l > orters were put on the assignment. They
secured places as waiters , but he had hu
own table servants , they "hired out" as
chambermaids , but the grooms of the im
perial bedchambers were not to be ousted
trom ofiicc , they engaged themselves as
cabmen , policemen , barkeepers nnd
threw themselves in the path of royalty
at every turn , but all in vaiu.
At last came the time when Pedro
pointed his royal nose toward the reced
ing star of empire and li-ft New York.
He journeyed by special train , accom
panied by his suite and watched over by
his faithful guards. Attached to the
ti am was a carload of gilt-edged corres
pondents , not one of wnora had ever been ,
within reach of the royal boot. The train
came west via the Erie and the Atlantic
< fc Great Western , now the New York ,
Pennsylvania < k Ohio roads , and near
Youngstown the emperor met his fate.
The city editor of the Youugstown
News was then a man named Fassett.
He had represented his paper at Colum
bus , and had hit so hard at certain
statesmen as to come within an ace of
losing the privileges of the chambers. Ho
had a scent for news that was something
wonderful ; a fecundity of production ap
palling ; and he wrote a hand of which ,
it is true , as wassaidot Horace Greeley's ,
that no editor or compositor could hamllo
it and be a Christian. I have edited col
umn after column of it. He dressed like
a reduced old clo'map , working off his
dead stock , and his hair and beard sug
gested a haystack as his habitual couch.
With it all , ho was a good reporter , a
good fellow , and every one , save the vic
tims of his terrible pen , thoroughly liked
him.
It chanced that Todd , the war governor
of Ohio and a citizen of Younirstown.
had been the representative of the United
States at the court of Dom Pedro , nnd
that the emperor held him in the highest
esteem. Now , Fassett happened to"
possess one of Todd's visiting cards , and ,
a brilliant idea striking him , be wrote his
name across the back , ran out to thu
junction and awaited the train. When
it came he mounted the platform of the
imperial car and endeavored to enter ,
but was halted by two crossed muskets.
Then he handed the card to one of the
soldiers , with Todd's name exposed.
After a short consultation in choice Ilia
Jant'iroesc the captain of the guard was
summoned , took the curd , disappeared ,
returned , the muskets were raised , and
Fassett was obsequiously ushered Into
the presence.
Dom Pedro was standing in the middle
of the car with a smile of welcome on
his face. As he saw his ccller it fuded
into a look of puz7led surprise.
"I thought it was Mr Todd , " he said.
"No , " said Fiissett ; "I am"
"A friend of his , no doubt : be seated. "
So the two sat siJe by side. The em-
pprior asked Fassett what tribe he be
longed to , and , finning he was not nn
Indian , the conversation turned to mat
ters Brazilian the resources , railroads ,
parties , religion and prospects of the
country the very pink of a perfect in
terview. So it went on for an hour , as
the tram sped toward Cleveland , and
might have continued to the journey's
end , hnd not the emperor fired a lot of
statistics at Fassett , which the latter waa
alr.-.id he should forget. Just then Dom
Pedro turned his buck for an instant ,
and , in an evil moment , Fassett tried to
take the figures down on his cufi' , and
was delected by a sudden movement ol
his companion The nnger of the em
peror was something terrible ,
'Are you a reporter * " ho asked sav
aircly
" \ es , your majesty , " was the qulct.un-
abashed answer. "My name is Hissctt.
I : ; m city editor of the Youngslown News.
Here is my business card. 1 intended to
tell you nt first , but you took the words
out of my mouth and I didn't like to con
tradict you. "
"Miguel , " shouted his majesty. " 'Stop-
pey. el iriineano et lirez ce traddetoro' ' "
It was done. Fus o5tvas dropped be
tween stations , but he eaujjht on to the
platform of the press car and there ho
was a lion. Joe Howard ofl'ered him ? ! X)0 )
.and Howard Carroll a staff position to
duplicate his matter hut he was ada
mant , nnd so the Youngslown Nt'iva
"oeo'iped" the country A lew yours hiier
the people of the Ma'ioimiir ' district uruso
in their might and made Fabictt a state
senator.
Pali. fill Incidents ut n Kmier/il ,
Pull Mail Cazette The following pro
ceedings : ir iillegud to have U ken pmcw
: tt the interment of u man mimed Yming ,
at Mhifter. ntar ItHimiratc. 'flic remains -
mains of thu deco.iscd wore conveyed to
Minster Wi-slejan chupol , whore part of
t he service was re d J'ho fuiu-ral then
protruded io the churchyard , \\hrro it
was found that the grave was too small ,
Th ; ravediggcr set to work to enlarge
it , and > ub a < ] iientlr the- coffin was lov-
tsrod , but jammed befom > t nw-licd the
bottom. Aiuithurmni * Hi MI oecuncd.
The coffin wns then tuj r sd up , and t'vont-
ually the gruvmliggur , in ranting nivuy
the sidt of thu truyi ! , f.inifc jntil < if
nontlicr collin , .sjiid to contain IM10 -
ui.'fms of the wife of the man bumg
bnrio > ( . The spade WHIU through Uio
wjilln and cut awny p. portion of tlio ! -
mains , which wns thrown at the fiwt of
Ihe mourners , a < ! : tultU > r of the docc-asi-d
boiw nninng them After come lirnu the
grave was s-ullieicntJy wilargud , and the
funeral proccodcd.
A prisoner in tluT'ElITon , Ohio , jail ,
charged with inur < Kir. spendshw Iriiij
counting the Jriler.-i , word.s. verse * : u d
nlmpUTfc in the Mile , llrviaiuis to ha\
made a complete count , and W ycri'/y
U2 it.