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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 14, 1887)
THE OMAHA DAILY BEE ; SUNDAY. AUGUST 14. 1887.-TWELYE PAGER f I1E FA1TB CURE DISCUSSED , Chapter II. , Relating to the Healing Miracles of the Gospel , * NUMEROUS OTHER MIRACLES Care * liy 81mm Medical Appliances Tiio Power of Papa Mental liiiprC8 lnns to float Disease. That I may not pain the feelings ct any reader says Francis Power Cobbo in his article m tlio Contemporary Hoviow on Faith Honling and Fear Killing I will not attempt to analyze from this point ol view the healing miracles of the gospoh ( notably the cures of epileptics and maniacs ) , but cite the observations upon them of the Hishop of London , than vrhloh in my humble judgment nothing can be moro just or philosophical. Here are his romarksTh his liatnpton Leclutes 'for 1884 : Take , nealn , our Lard's miracles of Heal ing. There Is no quccilon nt all that the power of the mind over the body Is exceed ingly great , and lias .nevur yet been thor oughly examined. Some have assigned to this cause the extraordinary cures that have been undeniably wroueht at the shrines , 01 on sight or touch of relics , of Itomaii Catholic Halnts. . . . It Is quite conceivable thai pinny of Ills miracles of healing may have been the result of this power of mind ovei tody which we are now considering. It IE posslbln that they may be due , not to an In terference with iho uniformity of Nature , but to a superiority In his mental power to the similar power possessed by other men , Men seem to possess this power both ovci their own bodies and ever the bodies ol others. In dllferent degrees , ( Tim delations of Itcllglou and Science , p. 190 , et & ( * ] . } Putting aside , however , the miracles ol the gospel us not desirabln subjects foi our argument , wn are clsowhcro supplied with abundance of others ; as , for exam ple , in the records of the miracles of St , Francis and numberless ether snlnts. ol Apollonlus of Tyana , of Valentino Groalrakcs , of Prince Ilohcnlohe , aud ol FntherMiithow. If such "miracles" then , bo explicable s results of strong inontul excitement the same in kind though greater in de gree than wo have all experienced , we are forbidden by the law of parsimony tc Book nn explanation ot them fartuoi away , in any material force or efllnence b. The second class of faith healing supports the 4amo conclusion with oven Rn-ator cogency. As I have already said , a healing force proceeding from a living Baint is just conceivable ; but one issuinp from holy water , oil , thorns , old bones , nails , hairs , and bits of wood , is hardly within rational acceptance. Especially when it is noted that fictitious rulicssucfi ( as tlio pieces of the "truo cross , " of which there nro said to be enough to build c Hhip ) are just as culcaclous as others , we cannot fail to sco that it Is through the believing mind of the patient that the healing is achieved. As ho approaches the holy shrine , to which ho has perhaps rumlo a long and toilsome pilgrimage the longer and moro toilsomn the bcttoi or is annointcdon his sick bedamid the tears and solemn prayers of Ills friends , the tide of religious emoliqn rises in the man's soul as in the presence of u living apostle. The third clasi ( c ) of faith healings , wrought by charms nnd amulets , com mon among uneducated people to this day in England , and everywhere implic itly believed among savages , are HO obvr ously cures wrought by mental stimulus alone ( whenever wrought at all ) , that it is needless to speak of thorn at any lengtl in this connection. The fourth class ( d ) of cures include ; those wroucht by men supposed to pos- FCSS natural healing powers. Hero we find ourselves in tlio midst of the mes meric and hypnotic controversies , intc which I confess myself unable to pene trate. OHO point connected with thorn Which supports tlio view that faith heal ings are purely subjective , is-that the phenomena produced when a powcrfu mesmerist makes passes ever his pation and scorns to lling the magnetic llult upon him , nro very nearly matched b > the phenomena produced by Braidlsn and hypnotism , where no mesmerist ii concerned. As I have said , I feel incom petent to deal with this matter. Thori nro many other cured , however , workoe by faith in men or women quite independently pondontly of cither mesmeric or religion : pretensions , o. g. , in the case of doctor of great reputation , whoso more prescnci in the sick room does more good thai their prescriptions. Lastly , wo reach the fifth ( o ) class o faith healings euros wrought by tman medical appliances supposed to posses natural healing powers. In this deport roout of the subject wo have certainly ovi donee galore of the power of purel mental Impressions to heal disease. It i impossible to catalogue tlio absurd am absolutely inert drugs and agencies whicl necessarily impotent on the body of tin patient have been powerful enough ii their influence on his mind to enable Ilia mind to euro his body. As Hunter remarked marked of ono of thorn ( a spider's wcl made Into pills ) , it is necessary that thoj bo administered "with the knowledge o the patient , else they hayo no od'ect a < - " it. " t _ It is i , _ then _ , ! _ _ his i. mental t.i impressioi * . of their potency wherein all their potenc' r resides. Dr. Carpenter admits that thcsl fr sham medicines produce their effect no only in maladies in which nervous disorders dors have a share , but also in some , sue ! as scurvy and gout , which "seem to dc pond on the existence of n definite per version in the condition of the blood.1 H quotes from Lind "On Scurvy , " a stor of the siege of Breda in 1035 , when th' garrison were in so deplorable a stat from scurvy that they were on the poin of capitulating when the prince of Urangi managed to semi three small phials con taining a decoction of clmmomilo am camphor to the doctors , who gave ou that four or five drops in a callon o water , was an infallible remedy fo scurvy. The "prince's romcdy"thorough ly checked the disoosc.and restored num bora who had been invalided. ( So "Mental Physiology , " p. CSS. ) Wo have now briolly surveyed the diJ foreut kinds of faith healings , from th noblest to the basest , and Having f outu reason to attribute the euro to an iufluonc exerted primarily on the mind of the pa tlont , wo are in a position to proceed t tbo main inquiry : What is the nature c that influence oil the mind which enable it to conquer the diseases of the body ? Wo must dismiss the idle notion whio ! seems so strangely to have contented th majority of writers and talkers on tin subject , that it is enough to name som ono faculty of the mind ns concerned I the case , an if by so doing wo explamc the modus operandi of the cure ; such , e a. , as hope , expectant attention , orimiif luatlon. Most absurd Is It to sneak of imaglun tion , as is constantly done oven b thoughtful medical writers.as if It were ( acuity which not only "images" i. c supplies unreal pictures in the mind bi : is HkewUf capaulo of projecting itsol into the material world as a foroo , lik electricity. Indolent and bafllcd ii qulrers scorn to think it convenient t refer in this way to imagination , bocaus it appears a sort of Puck or Ariel arnon our faculties , and loss amenable to la1 than memory or judgment , cither t which it would bo just as monstrous t cite as the proximate cause of the cut ol a disease. It is to throw psycholog into hotoh-pot to apply the name of tli Villon-creating faculty to somothln Which performs physical miracles. I eoune it la open to any ono to maintai in each given case that the original dii taso waa imaginary , and consequent ! hat the supposed euro was only the pa- lent's restoration to reason ; as when n man nwakea from a dream and says , "I maglncd I had lost my leg , nnd am glade o tind I have done nothing of the kind. " 3ut it is sheer nonsense to describe his awakening and coming back to his lenses as the result of Imagination. iVhen n disease has been accurately dine- nosed by n competent phvsician.nnd pro- lonnccd to bo serious , there is no room eft for Imagination to play in the euro. Che cure , ifwrought at all must bo ef fected by some real agent , such as wo assume the soul itself to bo ; for the moro ilcturing faculty which wo call imagina- lation can at the most have only sup plied some stimulus to the mind or soul , Hut if neither imagination nor , for slrui- ar reasons , hope nor attention can of themselves produce n bodily discase.what are wo to think of the entity , of which they are but faculties and phrases which must bo thu real agent an agent which , without recognizable machinery suddenly steps forth to assuage pain and to send a flood of fresh vitality through the dis eased tissues nnd palsied limbs of its own lloshly companion ? \ \ 1th all duo hesitation in treating such a matter I would say that the truth seems to mo to bo this : That part of us which wo call mind , soul , or spirit , and which in its ordinary relations with the body resembles a coupled dog , now pulling its companion its own way , now pulled by it in an opposite direction , is capable , under certain exceptional and yet obscure conditions , of entirely mastering its mate. It can render the body insensible to the pain of mutilation on thu battle- fiold.or of Hery dissolution nt tbo martyr's stake ; and it can effect , indopcndcntly of any extraneous agency , such a change in the processes of physical life the circu lation , the mnervntiou , we know not what as to banish disease and reinstate health. So far as we understand them at pres ent , the conditions under which this soul healing is accomplished seem always to bo these of excitement. They are not capable of being produced voluntarily nnd spontaneously by the subject , but must bo created by something outside of hlin olf. That something may bo and In the higher kinds ot soul healing 1 pro sit tuts always is an exalting idea pre sented to the mind cither by somn grand personality , or by a relic or token sug gestive of sacred or patriotic sentiments , and touching these cords which vibrato deepest in the human heart. The theory recently put forth by Messrs. Myers nnd Gurney , speaking of Braidisin that the state in which tlio inlnd is abnormally concentrated on a bodily condition is that wherein iu Influence is nt a maximum- is , in < my humble opinion , the very re verse of the truth. It is , I hold , precisely when the mind is most completely lifted nbovo the body aud its pahological conditions , that it can exert its supreme spiritual faculty of healing. Concentration of the mind on the body is the source , I conceive , always of disease , not of health , There are also , ns wo have noted , oilier and lower stimu lants of the excitement which may sulllco to produce healing results ; the most com monly effectual being tbo hope of recov ery through the use of some nostrum. The last and supreme problem regard ing soul healing , can wo fltfd out how to apply It ? is.of course , the real crux of all. Unfortunately the persons who are just iuw so busy in endeavoring to accom plish faith euros of the religious kind some of them very humble and obviously silly folksothers on a much higher social and intellectual level are all on the wiong tack ( if the views stated in this paper bo correct ) to discover u real method of faith haaling. They persist in looking "for the angel to stir the waters , " instead of seeking the natural fount of hope and courage and piety in each man's bosom. ' * Wo now reach the gravest side of this matter. If faith and piety and hope so uJo.rato nnd stimulate the soul as to en able it to dispel disease like Gabriel in Guido's picture striking down Lucifer , then , beyond all doubt , mistrust and pes simism nnd fear must correspondingly depress the soul and leave Lucifer mas ter of the situation. In this case also , it is literally true that "ho who will save his life shall lose it. " lie who values his life beyond the purposes for which life was given , will forfeit it by his sickly anxieties. As Mill found of happincss.so it holds good of health ; neither are to be attained by making it the chief object of mortal care. How then do wo now stand as regards fear killing , the antithesis of faith healing ? It scorns to mo that alongside of the gains which have ac crued to our generation from the pro gress of hygienic science wo have ac quired habits of mind which go far to counterbalance them. Proverbially , a bravo man dies but onco. a cow ard a thousand times ; and wo arc coming perilously near the verge of cow- * I am Informed that the "truo" fallh- heallng people do not allow the use ot any "means" whatever. If any reader desire to see the exceeding nonsense which can be written and printed on this subject , bo Is referred to a book which has passed through nine editions In America viz. , "Science and Health , with a Key to the Scriptures , " by Mrs. Eddy , president ot the Massachusetts Metaphysical college K vols. 8vo , Boston , lbS ) , The following are specimens of the counsels of Mrs. Eddy on "Jieallng the sick , " vol. 1. , p. 180 : "Aruuo thoie Is no disease. It Is but the evidence and object of the senses you have to destroy , not a reality..Say to the patient mentally , you are not sick , and hold your crouud with the skill of n lawyer. Arcuo down the witnesses against your plea , and you will destroy those witnesses , and the dis ease will dlsapuear. Holy not In the least ou the evidence ot the senses , but on the evi dences In metaphysical science of man's har mony and Immortality..Avoid talking dis ease to the sick. Make no unnecessary In quiries relative to their symptoms ; never . . . .clvd them names tor their diseases. . . . "If the cnso to be treated Is consumption , beiln your argument by taking up the load ing points..showing that It Is not Inher ited ; that itilliuumatlon , tubercles , hwuior- rhage , and decomposition are but thoughts , bcllets , mental Images before mortal minds , nut the Immortal mind. Hence they are not the truth of man , and should be treated as error put ont of mind , and then they will disappear fiom the body. . . . " And again , vol. l.p. 103 : "Conservation or Ulshonestyd ) In the theory or practice ol metaphysics applied to the treatment of dis ease would betray a gross Ignorance of the whole subject Disease can neither be treated nor healed metaphysically If drugs 01 external applications arc employed ; and. pe titioning a personal God to do your work , or enable you to do It , Is not metaphysics wherein truth works , nnd you undnrstand the divine principle of your demonstration. Animal magnetism , clairvoyance , medium- gulp , or mesmerism are antagonistic to this science. " Vol.1. , p. 343 : "Ualhlng and brushing , to correct thu secretions or remove unhealthy exhalations from the cuticle , receive a useful rebuke from Christian healing , that make : not clean the outside nf the platter. " Vol. 1. , p. 3 : "That mother Is not a meta physician , and her affections need better aid to Iholr duration , who says to her child , 'you look sick,1 or 'vou look tired. ' etc. , or who EOCS to her little one fallen on her nose on the carpet , and moaning more chlldlshlythar IUT child , sayn , 'Mamma known you are hurt1 Drug ! ) , cataplasms and whisky are shocking substitutes lor thn dlznlty and potency ol mind and the divlnn power to heal. Througli the byways of physiology and materlr mcdlca to lead man iuto temptation in even direction Is pitiful. " " 1'alsy la a belief that attacks mortal mind , aud this mind paralyzes the body tliroucl fear. Ossllicatlou or any abnormal contlitlot of the bones Is the action ot mortal mind a : directly as insanity. Bones have nn mon substance than thoughts , and are onlv wliai they are named by and appear to mortal mind What wo call matter was primitively error Ir. solution. " f ! ) P. SSI : "Called to the bed of death , wlmi remedy have wo In matter when all it ; remedies have failed ? Mind must be oui only resort at last There Is no death. Al Is mind. There Is no matter : 'He U no * do d , but sleepeth. ' " What the ' 'president" means by "met * phyMcs" In the e volumes can.only be known we should think , by tha fortunate student * o ; the Maasachu etts Metaphysical College , ardico. Forty years ago. Klngiloy tool up his parable , and preached well and wisely of religious obedience to the natu ral law. * of health. Dut had his noble life lasted till now , bis voice , 1 think , would bavo boon loudest in the denuncia tion of that hygololatry which threatens to become our only religion. Kingsley adjured Us to preserve ncalth that wo might the bolter serve God with vigorous brains and hands. Wo coddle ourselves , cbielly , it is to bo feared , for our own comfort , and ardently cherish this life , having no particular expectation of an other. While our fathers considered the most sublime line In French poetry to bo the profession of Joad , Jo cralns Dlcu , chcr Abnor , et n'al point d'autre cralnto : we have ceased to fear God , p.r.d learned to fear microbes , Two causes contribute to this change. One is the decline of faith ; tlio ether is that advancement of sclcnco which places us in the position of the poor Brahmin who was cruelly induced to look through a microscope and porcolvo nil the unsuspected monsters in a drop of the water ho was drinking. Whether the old belief in an over-ruling Providence was , or was not , well founded , its super ior suitability to produce conrago as con trasted with scientific physical determin ism , is obvious enough. Upon our gen eration it has como to lose m great de gree that Ahhangigkoitsgcfuhl which Schlelormachcr doomed the very founda tion of religion ; nnd with it the sense of being Safe In the hand of one disposing Power , As In the natal , in the mortal hour. No ono talks now of "every bullet hav ing its billet , " or thinks of life as an "ap pointed span. " The bullet proceeds by the laws of dynamics , and the length of life is dotormmod by these of biology. If wo desire that our days may bo long in the land , wo know that that end must besought sought exclusively by sanitary and hygienic precautions ; nnd that ( barring accidents ) it depends exclusively on how successfully wo "struggle for existence" whether our existence will bo extended for a longer or shorter period. No ono can doubt that this scientific view must prove In the long run moro conducive to caution than the motion of a providential span , or of fate , or n planet , or kismet' ; and accordingly wo practi cally find all around us evidences of re doubled care concerning the conditions of health. Of course in many directions this now caution is good and rational. Moro temperate diet , moro airy bed rooms , better drained houses , nnd moro effectual ablutions , are real im provements on the habits of'our ances tors , but the excess to which hygenic precautions - cautions are carried , the proportion which such cares now ocupy amid the serious interests of life , is becoming ab surd , nnd conducting us rapidly to a state of things wherein , if wo are not killed by tear , wo are paralyzed by it for all natural cnjoymont. The old healthful , buoyant spirit seems already fled from tbo ma jority of English comes. Aged people ( from this and. no doubt , ether concur rent causes ) seldom exhibit now that gen tle gaiety which so often brightened with hues of sunset the long , calm evening of n well-spent life , after the ' 'six days' work" was dono. The middle-aged are ono and all hag-ridden by anxiety ; and as to the young , if wo may trust the reports which roach us from thp great schools , a very marked change "has como ever them , curiously indicative of tlio sensitiveness of young'souls to the chill breath of tha Zeitgeist. The lads have grown colder and harder , and are interested in pecu niary profits rather than in nobler pro fessional ambitions. Nay ( wo have boon told ( it is a largo demand upon cred ulity ! ) that English schoolboys have al most ceased to bo reckless about bent aud cold , about paling indigestible things , about climbing trees aud precipices , about going on dcop water in nnseawor- tliy boats : in short , about all these pursuits which excited the perennial alarms of their fond mothers. Many boys arc to bo found , it is staled ( I write always under reservation ) , who may bo described as Molly-coddlcs.so cautious are _ they about their health and their limbs. Urchins in round jackets spcvik of the danger of checking porspiralion after cricket , and decline to partake of unripe apples nnd pastry on the never- boforo-heard-of ground of dyspepsia. Invited in the holidavs to the ecstatic "lark" of a long excursion on horseback , they have declined wilh reference to the playfulness of their pony's heels ; and have been seen lo shrink from n puppy's caressing tou < rue , murmuring the omin ous word "rabies. ' * In short , our girls , who tire jusl acquiring physical courage as a now virluo. are sometimes .braver than their brothers , who think it "good form" to profess disinclination to risk their valuable persons. It is not a small matter that this ebb should bo noticeable anywhere in tno tldo of English manly courago. On the contrary if it continue the results must bo deplorable. For our present purpose it is enough to point out thai all this new born caution about their health ( to which , perhaps , the very undesirable study of physiology by schoolboys has in some schools contributed ) will at the best cre ate u generation of hypochondriacs and valltudinarinns , not ot robust and stal wart Englishmen. The fears of whicli wo have boon spoak- ing.foslcrc'l by over-attention to the con ditions of health and longevity , may not literally kill anybody. It may bo carry ing the paradox too far to say wo shall die of them , or even that they may not bo successful in longthoningour calendar by n few davs. But the gain will bo nil if they render every ono of these davs piti ful and moan and mosquin. Life , to bo worth living , must bo concerned with nuito other things besides diseases , draughts and drains ; and wo want to live , not merely to postpone death and die by inches through half n century. The general pessimism which weighs on us all , the atra cura who has mounted behind every horseman and whom no amount of tobacco smoking seems to dis lodge , are lowering the vitality of our generation. Hope is the true elixir vita ) , nd instead of hoping all things with St. Paul , wo fear all things with Dr. Rich ardson. Ono of the grcutost artists of the day gave us two years ago possibly wlthoul precisely intending it a bitter satire on our ago. The radiant goddess , whom Collins described with T'oyes so fair , " trilling her "delighted measure , " Mr. Watts depicted as a blindfolded pa tient out of the Brompton hospital , bent iu a curve llko an ammonite rather than u vertebrate cronturo , ov"or a broken- stringed lyre. Such is the hope of the closing decades of thn Victorian oral [ Concluded n xt Soalp Grafts Wanted. Hartford Times : Several months ago Miss Emma Ncuman , of Bristol , had her scalp torn from her head by her hair catching in machinery in thn mill whore she was employed. Dr. J. Wilson of Bristol has been diligently engaged since in building up a now scalp by grafting on the head minute bits of skin taken from the arms of various persons. Prob ably ho has exhausted the lim of Miss Neuraan'd friends who were willing to contribute to her relief , for at this time ho calls for ousido aid in the followinc card : "Young persons , not ever thirty , who are willing to confer a favor on Miss Emma Nouman , will greatly oblige hoi tind her friends if they will allow seed : for grafting in the now scalp to bo taken from their arms. The family and friends have furnished material , and a good scalp U being made , but the lack of suf ficient material is now the greatest obsta cle iu successfully covering the entire head. The piece for grafting ia pinched Up and slipped off without pain or bad effect on tlio person. Thos who will aa- -aist the recovery of Miss Neuman raaj call on Dr. Wilson at his ofn.ce at 0:80 : a. m. or notify him , and arrangements will be made for tno convenience of parties. " ELECTRICITY IN HARNESS , Great Expectations Hoarding Electrical Invontions. THE TELEPHONE IN CHINA. MKhtlns ; Can \Vltb Klootrlolty-How Rods Bhonlrt bo Placed Magni tude of the TnlcgrapU Business Queer Kloctrlo Antics. The Telephone In Clilnn. Chicago Tribune : The syndicate or ganized by Wharton Barker nail SI Hung Chang for the introdclion of n tclophono system In China has a fine Hold before It. The tclophono is one of the simplest , handiest , and most useful of modern In ventions , and it has como into such gen * oral use the world ever , that it is only surprising the Chinese have delayed tak ing it up so long. So far as the Chinese are concerned the telephone must bo ranked as marking the introduction of anew now art , and not , as has been so strongly claimed in this country , "an improve ment in telegraphy. " The Chinese have never boon able to use the telegraph , owing to the existence of ever 4,000 characters in their alphabet. Even if a system of dots and dashes could be de vised to represent such an alphabet it would bo practically impossible to cm- ploy it in any commercial use of the telegraph. Of course no such difficulties attend the telephone , which will "talk" Chinese or any other tongue with us much accuracy as it doea English , quality of voice and onnunciatiou being equal. The telephone , therefore , offers the Chincso their lirst opportunity to se cure the speedy transmission of intelli gence between distant parts of the em pire. Whenever the Chinese huvo used the telegraph in other countries , as in sending messages to diplomatic agents and ministers , the dispatches had to bo sent in English and translated at both the sending and receiving stations. Odd as it may seem , there is a strong probability that the telephone * may re ceive great improvement m China. The purpose there is to use it not simply in side towns and cities but for long distance communication between remote points , and hence it is likely that the capacity of the instrument for such work will bo greatly improved. In this coun try the contract between the Western Union and the Hell company binds the latter not to compete " 'ith the telegrapher or give the public the advantages of long-distanco communication by tele phone. The Boll company is in fact bribed not to permit any considerable improvement of the telephone service. In China , on tlio contrary , every induce ment is held out to have the invention brought up to its full capacity. If the Chinese make any such general use of the telephone as is expected , marked im provements will doubtless follow , and by the time the Boll patent expires or is sot aside by the supreme court , the United States may adopt u system of communi cation as simple , rapid , cheap and satis factory as the telephone service of China. Underground Wires. Boston Commercial Bulletin : TJi6 placing of wires underground has been often advocated by the newspapers and would no doubt bo a popular movement with the great body of the citizens. The great woo of overhead wires is not only an eyesore but an iunumbranco and in jury to roofs and a menanco to the safety of property in preventing proper work by firemen in addition to being , unless properly issulated , dangerous to people who come in contact with thorn as well as liable to causeiircs. , , Poles in a public street are a nuisance , and only partially lessen the objections 0 overhead wires. It is merely iv question of years when the wires in all fjho great cities must to a great extent gounderground , and if no practical system pxisLs it must bo devised , for the popular sentiment on this matter is becoming strpngcr every day. The matter of underground wires has re ceived some attention in Boston from the various electric companies and from the city government'foe several years past , but has been given no sucn thorough at tention as in othqr American cities where commissions have .been appointed to in vestigate various } systems and make ar rangements for placing all wires under ground. Y , In Boston , about five or six years ago an attempt was made to run arc lights underground in front of the Providence railroad station.but it was not successful , owing to the disintegation of the insu lating material. For the past three or four years a system of underground wires has been in successful use for a short distance , in lighting the Park thea tre , the light being the Edison incandes cent. The only telegraph line under ground is a line from the \Vostorn \ Union headquarters on State street down through Adams square to the Eastern depot. It is not a good system , being merely iron pipes through which the or dinary cables are drawn. As the pipes have been down for a tow years the in sulating material has rotted , as no at tempt has been made to renew it. Last year marked the only attempt of any magrmudo to put wires underground. The Edison Electric Light company applied to the city government for permission to lay wires underground.and the New England Telephone and Tele graph company asked for the same privi leges , but on different streets , and this year they have asked for additional priv ileges , and each has now some miles of conduit underground , some of it in the principal streets , and propose to extend their systems further underground in the city proper. ' 1 he systems which these concerns have adopted have so far worked successfully , though they have not been in operation a suflioiont length of time to judge. The Edison system consists of an iron pipe of different diameters , according to the amount of wires to bo placed in them. The pipe is covered with an impervious asphalt preparation. It is about twenty- foot lengths , and the joints are boxed and rendered impervious by a coating at the joints. The wires are put inside the pipe in cables , each wire being insulated from the other by rubber insulating prep aration , and the cables are surrounded with an asphalt insulating compound. These pipes can bo tapped like water or eas pipes. The system in u o by the telephone company consists of crcsotcd hard pine boxes about fifteen inches square and about twenty feet long. Those boxes are subdivided by crcosoted wooden partitions into nine chambers. In each of those chambers is laid n lead pipe which contains n hundred or more wires , according to their izo , each wire being insulated by being wound with cotton thread soaicad with paraftino. The cro- osoled boxes are covered with tar paper and tar at the joints , over which strips of croosotcd plankslaro laid. Highta have also been granted to the American Conduit /company to lay its conduits , which consists of a conduit or pipe composed lot cement and sand , chemically treatotl to render it Impervious - ous to water. % ch conduit is divided Into chambers. The practical value of this system is yet to bo fully determined. From the testimony of noted electricians it appears that Incandescent electric light wires , telegraph wires and telephone wires can be laid underground without any danger to thp public , the only trou ble bolnir to get n perfect system of in sulation , though this can be arrived at. The current of the-above wires is not dnngeroua , but the very much stronger .current of the are light js very dangerous unless properly Insulated , and there nro great doubts among electricians of the success of any system of arc lights under ground , though it is claimed that they are successfully operated in Philadelphia. Oiitsidu of the arc light wires the main objection to placing wire * underground by the companies ii tbo question of ox- punso , but this will not count in the face of a strong public domnnd for it. w A Carbon Feeder l-'or Electric Iiletitn. Hartford ( Conn. ) Times : Mr. Julian Uonison , an employe of the Connecticut Electric company , of Now Haven , has made nn invention of special importance to electric light companies. It is an ap paratus to feed now carbons automati cally ns fait m the old ones burn out and nro exhausted. In plain words , it does away with the man and ladder now in use , whereby the carbons have to bo thrown to the street and fresh ones nut In , The carbon feeder or magazine will con tain seventeen carbons , ten upper nnd seven lower sticks. Under the Donison patent an electric light will burn steadily without watching for , say , ninety hours or moro on a stretch. The first public experiment will probably bo with a magazine , throwing six upper carbons calculated to burn for sixty hours. The magazine will revolve as fast as the lighted carbons brcomo exhausted and drop now ones into place in an instant. It is practically a self-feeder , nnd is cal culated to do away with the constant worry and fuss under the present system of adjusting carbons. Within n week erse so one of the Denison patent feeders will bo attached to an electric light in Now Haven. Queer blootrio Antics. Hartford ( Conn. ) Times : Over in Now Preston , in the Lltchtield county town of W ashlngton , the other clay , a light ning bolt struck E. J. Cable's house with some of the strangest results on record. The lightning rods wore evidently of no protection. As soon as the suioko cleaved away it was found that the north side of the house had been badly shattered , the clapboards blown oT ( and the windows and glass Hung out into the grass. Plas ter had boon torn off of every room as the lightning distributed itself along the beams in divers directions. Closed doors were wrenched off their hinges and hurled across the rooms , nnd every thing , as the urchins say , "knocked fourteen ways from Sunday. " Two pounds of blasting powder were exploded , but uflask * of rillo powder near by escaped. Ihosidoof a big bottle containing tur pentine was knocked out , but the fluid did not catcli tire. Seemingly the largest current ran easterly , shivering the sill of the house , dodged into the pantry , toro a big hole in the cupboard , setting it on lire , bored holes as large ns a man's thumb through two tin pails , shattered some dishes , skittered across the floor , splintered the woodwork , toro off the plaster , almost melted a hole through the cast iron sink and plunged into the water pipe , ruining it , stopping the flow of waters. Down collar.tho fluid ran along the chain of a stool trap which was set for rats and sprung the trap. Several holes were scorched in the flan nel case of a violoncello , and the instru ment was shattered. Several lumps nnd a clock were knocked oft" a mantel. The clock was destroyed with the hands pointing exactly nt 0:15. : which was the precise instant of the shock. Ono person who saw the flash said it was a fool wide , and another said it looked as red as fire. John Gunu , John Ludgato and Mr. Gahan ran ever from Hollo's marble shop , where they were at work , expecting to lind everybody dead , but were agreeably surprised to lind all ' the inmates lively an'd flinging water with great energy. The astonishing tiling is that no one was hurt or oven shocked ! Great Electrical Kxpootatlons. Electrical Hoviow : The public expect much of improvements in which electri city is employed. Millions may bo spent in digging u canal where the channel fills up from a slow movement of the soil ns fast as it is removed by the dredging machines ; failure after failure may bo re corded in the annals of mining develop ments until success scams to be the ex ception , but lot there bo a failure of an electrical piece of mechanism and every onowondrrs. In the early days of the djavolopomcnt of the systems of electric Ifghting. storngo , and transmission of power , there were few failures.and those were instructive. The lirst devices for automatically lighting nnd extinguishing gas wore somewhat crude. Now , however - over , with careful installation , faiuro is unknown ; yet ten years ago the great system of lighting by electricity had onlv been dreamed of. It required thirty years to perfect the system of telegraphy. The methods used in gas-making were not improved for a long period. And it is possibly that the old process would have boon in use for half a century longer if the competition of electric lighting had not necessitated improvements. So much lias boon accomplished that still moro is expected of our electricians , The inven tor or experimenter was once called a crank. Now largo sums of money are expended yearly in systematic experi menting , the highest skill , education and abiljty is employed and the professors in the universities and technical schools are retained as consulting electricians. Magnitude or tlto Tclocrnph Business. Now York Commercial Advertiser : No country in the world begins to approach the United States in the magnitude ot its telegraphic business. In 188(5 ( there wore 6(57,710 ( miles of wire in this country. Franco came next , with 203,470 mile's ; Germany third , 180,000 miles , and Great Britain fourth , with 158,5(58 ( miles. It is not only in 6xtont of plant that the United States takes iirst rank. Wo not only have wires , but wo use them. In 1880 the num ber of messages sent in this country was 7.2,000,000 , moro than double the number sent in Great Britainwhich came second , with 33,278,450 messages , Franco taking thoithird place , with 21),452,703 ) messages , and Germany fourth , with 18,740,855. There are also now in existence in the United States 123,21 ! ! miles of wires used by telephone companies , through which , in 1880. 812,005,710 messages were trans mitted. There is no data for compari son at hand , but a recent writer in the Nineteenth Century makes the statement that tlio.telophono is , practically spoak- intr , not in general use Great Britain , and that its bqneflts are not appreciated to any appreciable extent on the conti nent. Ij | htntnit-RoU. Engineering News : Prof. Michael Fara day says that the conductor should bo of half-inch copper rod , and should rise above the top of a chimney by a quantity equal lo the widtli of the chimney at the top. The lengths of rod should bo well joined metallically to each other , nnd this is perhaps best done by screwing the ends into a copper socket. The connec tion nt the bottom should bo good ; if there are any pump pipes at hand going into a well they should bo useful in that respect. As respects electrical conduc tion , no advantage is gained by expand ing the rod horizontally into n strap or tube surface does nothing ; the solid section is the essential element. There is no occasion of insulation of the con ductor for this reason. A Hash of light ning has an intensity that enables it to break through many hundred yards , per haps miles , of air , and therefore nn insu lation of 0 inches or 1 foot in length could have no power in preventing its lead to the brickwork , supposing that the conductor were not able to carry it away. Again 0 inchi's or 1 foot is so little that it is oquivnlcnt almost to nothing. A very fnblo electricity could break through that barrier , and a flash that could not break 5 or 10 feet could do no harm to the chimney. A very g'rett point is to nave no insulatpd masses of metal. If , therefore , hpops are put around the ohlmhov each should be connected metallically with the con ductor , otherwise a flash might atriko a hoop nl a corner on the opposite side on passing to the conductor , from the near * cst part of the hoop , there might bo an explosion , and the chimney Injured there or even broken through. Again , no rods or ties of metal shotilu bo wrought into the ohlmnoy parallel to its length , and thoroforc , to the conductor , and then to bo loft unconnected , with it. The rod may bo close along the brick or stone , It makes no difference. There will be no need of n rod on each side of the build ing , but lot the cast Iron hoop and others you speak of bo connected with the rod.lf there were rodn on every side of the chim ney. A three-fourth rod is no doubt bolter than a half inch , and , except for the expense , I llko it better. Buf n half inch has never yet failed. A rod at Coutt's brewery has been put up H inclips in diameter ; but they did not mind expense. The Nelson Column in London has a half-inch rod three fourths is bet ter. I do not know of any case of harm from hoop-iron inclosod in the building , but if not in connection with the conduc tor I should not like it ; oven then it might catino harm if the lightning took the end furthest from the conductor. Electric bprlncc. ST. Louis , July 12. To the Editor of the ( tlobo-Democrat : The peculiar freaks of lightnlmr are proverbial , and nt times Its wonderful power is manifested in dis astrous results , while on Other occasions it proves to bo benoficial. In this artiolo , with your kind permission , it is my plea sure to chronicle a benollctal freak. On May 20,1887 , near Lorcna , MoLon- nun county , Tex. , lightning Struck on a limestone.cropping on the prairie land owned by Mr. H. C. Williams , at a point about ono mile west of his residoneo. Several persons witnessed the electrical discharge , and they state the stroke was n very heavy one , as the appearance of the earth clearly demonstrates. The sur roundings looked ta though they had been blown up with dynamite , and pieces of rock were scattered around in every direction for a distance of seventy-five to 100 yards. Within 100 yards of where the spring lightning struck there is n periodi calwhich flows only in very wet weather , but which has boon dry for ever a voar. There nro several other springs with n half-milo that have all been dry for over n year. That part of the country has had a severe drought for the past two years and water is very scarce. Upon examination of the place where the discharge took place , it was noticed that a number of spnnirs had broken forth , discharging a stream of crystal purity in volume mtlliciont to till n four- inch pipo. This heavy flow continued for two weeks , but smco then the volume has slightly diminished. Mr. Williams states that these sprimrs will bo of untold value to him if they prove permanent , as ho will bo able to utili/o the water to irri gate land that will bo highly productive. The water discharged varies in tompora- true , some being delightfully cold. My theory ol the opening of those springs is that the discharge falling on the strati lied limestone forced its way through the stratified formations , which probably contained some moisture , and found a line of least rcsi Rinco ever which it passed to some subterranean cavern or reservoir , which it opened and permitted the confined waters to pass out. On the other hand it may have imply diverted a subterranean flow that supplied some other spring or springs , causing it to break forth at this point , and possibly stopping the flow of some other springs or greatly diminishing their volume. The Klontrlc Motor. Memphis Avalanche : Whirling along through the open country at the rate of forty or fifty miles an hour , comfortably seated by an open window in a well-ven tilated coach , the mind of the summer traveler is not likely to busy itself with speculations upon the development of the electric motor as if ho sat behind a pair of froth-covered animals tugging along with a street car load of passengers. Sympathy with the brutes is calculated to make a warm man warmer nnd a hot man hotter. Electricity would bo cleaner , cooler and cheaper , if anything is to bo argued from the successful trials lately made with improved motors in Philadelphia. Its use is not a now thing , but it has never yet been so successfully applied as to lead to its general adoption. It is still the exception rather than the rule. Montgomery , Ala. , has a line of street cars run by electricity , so has Kansas City , Mo. , nnd similar lines run out of Baltimore and Ilamdcn. Now York city is about to try the experiment on Fulton street and Philadelphia has a line fairly under way. The Philadelphia Press is inclined to the view that as soon as the single question of cost can bo over come , stored electricity as a motor is likely to displace both the use of horses and the cable system in that and other cities. Considerable progress has been made in the direction of electric street cars since the days of the Centennial , when a car was successfully run about the grounds. The objection to overhead wires common to all cities will bo a bar to the introduction of that crude method oxcoyt for suburban lines , and it is plain that the plan of sending the current along the rails will never bo popular un til horses ara shod with rubber instead of iron. A current in order to bo effec tive is strong enough to shock horses whoso feet touch the rails. If the plan of placing the conduit below the rails can bo brought to perfection , the prob lem will bo practically solved. Hero is a rich Held for the electrician. Electricity as n Street-Car Motor. Philadelphia correspondence Now York World : A satisfactory test of a surface car operated by electricity was made yesterday at the establishment of Whar ton & Co. , in the presence of a number of railway oflicials. The car was supplied by eighty-four storage batteries placed beneath the seats , which furnished elec tricity to a Sprague motor geared to the axle of the front wheels. The car was run about experimentally , after whii-li it was run out on the Union line nnd switched to the tracks of the Spruce and Pine streets line. A round trip was made , the curwhen the track was clear for any considerable distance , attaining a suood of eight miles an hour. At times the car was completely filled , and it was considered that a thoroughly practical test was given it. All the sharp curves were rounded satisfactorily. At tilt times the car was under absolute con trol. The man in ohargo can , by the de vice nt his hand , readily stop , start and back the oar as well as regulate its spued. An oluctrio boll is sounded as a warning signal. By moans of push-buttons thu conductor can signal the driver to stop or start. It is estimated that tbo cost of running the electric cars is from two- thirds lo throe-fourths the cost of horse power. A car of this kind is running rgularly in London and another in Ber lin. An Electric Until. Chicairo News : During a thunderstorm nt Hiuolton , Pa. , lightning struck a penknife - knife in the hands of High Sheriff Xlnnlt , who was bathing in a tub. When hn recovered - covered ho found nothing but small splinters of the tub ho had been bathing in , and the water it contained was equally distributed over the floor , as if domi with n mop in the hands of n scrub-woman. The metal m the knife w * molted. No other evidence that the lightning had en tered the room could bo found , Klootrlo Brevities. There is a scarcity of skilled labor in elecirieal establishments. Three largo Edison stations to supply porter am to bo erected in the upper part of New York city. A trial will soon , bo made in this city with electricity instreet , cars. Blocki of cheap bouses are being fitted up with the finest fleotrloal appliances , and clee trioal supply manufacturers are expand1 ing their plants dally. i , It Is stated In Newburg , N. Y. , that IB - * ? > a shipyard In that place there la bolna ; constructed the first vessel to bo pro * polled by electricity ever built in the United States. It is n yacht 87 foot long , 7 fcot wide and 5 feet deep. It Is to bo run by stored electricity , it is building for a Newark ( N. J. , ) electric company , nnd will run between this city and Now York. sj A dynamo of 22,000 pounds weight and 500 horse power , with an armnturo of forly-soton inches diameter , is at work nt Comlcf , Ala , , to separate aluminum from clay. American electrical supply houses are building up a largo trade in Australia. A company has boon organized with a cap * ital of 1300,000 to control the business. A French engineer soaks rags in petrol eum and Ignites thorn by electricity t fixed intervals when the men are out of thu mines to burn the tiro-damp. * Musical Dtangrconient. Arkansas Traveler : Congregational singing may carry the appearance of brotherly loyo nnd sisterly regard ( If there is such a thing ) , but it is sometimes far from entertaining to the person who takes no part in the performance. Re cently , at n very fashionable place of religious worship , where many untrained nnd unmusical voices run riot over per suasive tuncs.a man who know more about the grain market than of "buckwheat lifted up his presumed voice to assist in the presentation of n hymn of long and hallowed standing A modest but de termined-looking follow who stood lust A in front of him turned around , touched * the singer on the arm nnd said : "Do you live in this town ? " "Yes , " the singer replied , after allow ing his voice to fall to the floor. "Are you a member of this congrega tion1' ? x "I am , sir. " V "Is it not ono of the aims of this church to treat strangers with marked cour tesy ? " 'It is. " ' Well , then , will you plcaso do mo a favor ? " " If it is within - "Certainly , my-power. What can I do for you ? " "Hush. " "Hushl" the singer gasped. "That's what I said. " "is it possible , sir , that you don't want a man to sing ? " "Oh , I don't mind n man's singing ; don't care how much ho sings , but I don't want him to give himself up to such dis tressing noises ns you huvo been raak ing. " My gracious allvot has it como to such n pass that a man can't sing in his own church ? " "it has como to such a pass that you can't sing in any church. " "You arc insulting , sir. " "And yon are tormenting. " "If you don't like my singing " "I tell that I've you got no objection to anybody's singing. " "Well if don't like " , yon me , yon "Got no objections to you at all. " By this time the hymn was finished nnd the congregation sat down , but pretty soon another hymn was announced. Tlia annoying singer again lifted his voice. The man in front of him turned and touched him on the arm. "What do you want with mo , sir ? " "Want you to hush. " "I came here to sing and " "Why don't you sing then ? Don'l . object to your singing , understand , but " * * m to tell you the truth , your voice carries 1 mo back to a time when I was very un happy , u time when 1 raised hogs in the south , and , sir , since then , whenever 1 hear anything that sounds like " "I won't worship in the same house with you , sir , " said the singer. "I will leave this place. " "Thank you , " the stranger replied , and , smoothing out the unpleasant ex pression from his face , ho sat nimsell down and gave himself up to the enjoy < ment of the sermon. i V OMAHA MEDICAL & SURGICAL INSTITUTE. Cor. 13th St. and Capitol Atte. , OMAHA , NEB. j IXm THE TREATMl NT Of Att , CHRONIC SURGICAL DISEASES BRACES AND APPLIANCES FOR DEFORMITIES , TRUSSES , AND THE NEW VtmcooELt SUSPENSORY CUMP COMPRESS. Bt ! faeilillr * , ipliarMul Kni ] rni tllri for turfrnmrultrcitraeut of 01 fry form ol ilk-MMrvqulrlnfr Mmllenl or hnrgli-ftl ( rrftlment. 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