TILE OMAHA DAILY IJISK : W ISDN ICSDA V , DErEMHEU 27 , 18M ! > . 1 MERRY CHRISTMAS ON THE RAIL. ยง HY IIKKHLKT K. IIAMULIN. O ( Copyright , 1STO , by Herbert B. Hamblln. ) , The train waw reported half an hour late. I Wo clCBcd the cab windows and dropped the curtain. Harry put the blower on n quarter of a turn , to carry off the gas ; we lit our pipes , cocked our heels on the boiler butt and listened In comfort to the howling blast without. As I Hat and puffed on my fragrant old brlcrwood , my gaze became riveted on the only thing visible , the steam gauge , like n spectral face suspended in the center of the uniform blackness. The soothing hum of the blower , the warmth nnd sciiBo of cozlncss , combined with the hypnotic effect of my fixed gaze , set me to dreaming. Tomorrow would bo Christmas , and mother was with us. It was her Ilrat visit alnco my marriage. Katie , her poor little heart a-lluttcr at the prospect of a vlolt from that dreaded Inspector general , her mother-in- law , had slaved herself nearly to death. Three-year-old Bob had nearly wrecked his mother's wonderful patience by his per sistent efforts to render her labor futile , and I had "Jiggered" on the runs for a month , to ranko sure of being homo on this , the greatest Christmas that ever was. For a wonder , I had not figured In vain. Every thing had como out exactly as 1 had hoped it would. 1 would get home early enough for Christmas dinner , nnd lalo enough to preclude the probability of being sent out ngnln before the next day. A curling wreath of blue smoke floating ncrofls thu face of the gunge arrested the Hellish courHo of my thoughts nnd directed thorn to the boy on the other side of the cab. Harry Mcrvln had been on the road only n couple of months , mcst of which time ho Imd been firing for me. Ho WHS bright , pleasant and willing. It now occurred to me that I rather liked him , but that I knew ab- Holutcly nothing nbout him. It wasn't so very mnny years ago that I was a strange boy on the ame road my.self ; nnd this was Christmas ove. I made a pretense of get ting a light for my pipe at the gauge lamp , nnd leaned across the holler. "Whore arc you going to spend Christmas. Hnrry ? " I shouted above the noise of the gale and the slatting of the curtain. The lire glowedbrightly In the bowl ef his plpis once , twice , before he answered. Ho leaned against the boiler on his side so that I could barely discern his features In th dim light , and replied cheerfully : "Oh , in the board'n' house , I guess. Where else ? They're a-goln' to have roast turkey nn' cranberry sauce nu' plum pud- din' , I bear. " ' I soon knew his story n stepmother three months rifter his"own mother's death , and , I-'menta'lly added , a red-headed stepson. He had picked up n general Idea of llrlng whllo beating his way on here from Wisconsin , and happening to arrive ( rl our roundhouse just as u man was urgently needed , he caught on. "They're callin' us , " ho concluded , and giving the bcllropo a Jerk , he stepped down to hook up hl3 lire. When -I got coupled up and ho stepped up In the cab again , I said : "Wo expect to' have n little time up to our hoiiso tomorrow , Harry , and I should like to have you come up and take din ner with ua. " "ThanU you , Alec , " he replied ; "I will. " There wao an Inch of snow on the rails when I got my orders to "run ns an extra , keeping out of the way of all regular trains. " But Davis , the conductor , said ho had a nice , light-running train , cars all loaded with whisk brooms , mid straw hats. 1 was glad enough to hear It , for there were 175 miles of iron , slippery with the falling snow , between old IS's pilot and home. If I nvorngud the maximum of freight train speed (20 ( miles per hour ) 1 would arrive homo by ! ) o'clock in the morning ; but It was a bad night. 1 would never bo able to keep them going at that gait , EO I promised myself not to kick If 1 got homo by noon ; a very liberal allowance. It was a hard pull out of Tabor's Junc tion. When the yardmastcr happened to bo . 'feeling Just right ho would let ono of the 'switch engines get In behind a train and 'give ' her a shove for halt or three-quarters ; of n mile. But Davis was no crony of his , BO wo didn't gel It. It was a fearful night. The gale howled and the snow drove horizontally like a sand Wast. The wind was on the fireman's side. Which made it possible for me to look out. 'iJut all I could see waa an Impenternblo white screen , made visible In ono small spot by the headlight. I had been casing the throttle when she slipped for I would need all the sand 1 had before I got liomt , until she nearly stalled. That wouldn't do , so I gave her a bare taste and leaned out to hear the gratifying crunch of it under the wheels. Harry gripped my shoulder and shouted : "Merry Christmas ! " I wished him thu etamo and many of 'em , and noticed that It was Just 12 by the engine clock. She hadn't slipped slnco I gave her the sand , but was pulling along with suspicious freedom ; for wo were not up the gradii yet. I told the brakeman to go back on top of the train and see If the caboose was coming. He went off growling , but he > ycnt , which was the main thing. From the back of the tender ho gave mo what 1 expected nnd dreaded a signal that the train had broken In two. I whistled the Hug back to protect tlm rear and kept on , I took'the cars I had to the next siding , four mtleH away. 1 had two moro cars than the siding would hold. I backed them all In hard against the stop block. Then I cut the two head cars off , pulled them out on the switch and backed down the main track with them until the engine was b - hlnd the two hcud care in the siding. I had the brakeman cut thrsp two off and I "slotted" them out on tbo main track nheail of the engine , and ran alien 1 until thu two cars behind the engine were over the switch. I backcd > them In on the aiding , leaving the other \v \ > o out ou the main line. Thim I came back with the engine and went back nftor the rest of the train , I had n four-mile back-up In the teeth of the blizzard. 1 couldn't see a thing and never know whcro 1 waa , I didn't dare go fast , for I expected every nilnuto to hit thu train , and I couldn't force myself to go slow enough to s * > > p without punching a hole In a newspaper. Snow and coal dust swirled up under the foot of the curtnln , blinding ua , nnd the holler might have been nn Ico-cream freezer for all of its effect on the temperature. I tried to Invent a suit- nblo reward for the yardmaster at Tnbor'ti for not giving me a shove , only to remem ber that engineers seldom have a cliunuu to get square. The crow had tied a red lamp to Iho hrakcrod of the hcud car and gone back to the caboose. Ixmg before I got hack tbo lamp wtm transformed Into a mlnlaturo Ice berg , but I didn't happen to hit hard enough to smash anything. Wo found the draw- Jiead of the other car hanging to this cue by the link nnd pin Wo got It up In thn tender , after a while , and coupled it. J called the Hag , nnd Davis , nearly frozen , cllmbrd aboard. Ho said there wn no Hug out , the tall lights being In plain sight from the yard , and ho commenced to criticise my solution of the recent dllllculty , Baying I plnuld have backed the whole train down Into the yard , anil demanded the eervkes of u pushnr. There may ho a time for all tHiipt ) . but that didn't seem to mo to bo ihc time Jo listen to switch ehauty rallrpad- i * BU 1 shut him off uud drove him bak to his doghouse By ( tie lluie tb y got the draw-head back Into He place In the car and wo got away from the siding , wo had been four hours coming a little over four mlles , a magnificent beginning , truly. "Our turkcy'll bo cold , Alec , " Harry re marked , Jokingly , after we had started again. "Froze , " I replied slowly. 1 couldn't get then ! going over twelve miles nn hour , and from that wo ran down to about the speed of a slow walk. She didn't steam very freely , which was to bo expected. Thc weather would have chilled a boiler Jacketed with a foot of asbestos. She kept calling for moro water , so I wan not surprised when , whllo oiling , I discovered her flues to bo leaking badly. After that I never passed a water plug ; and the plump vision of my Christmas turkey faded In Inteneo ggomotrlcal ratio to my progrosa. Daylight showed us a white Christmas with a vengeance. The storm was still raging with undlmlnlahcd fury , the nand- llko snow continuing Its endless horizontal drive. Seventeen would he due In half an hour. There wasn't time to get to the next siding ahead of her , but there was a crossover switch a. mlle ahead , where I decided to back over , and let her pasa. My Hag the head brakeman had gone Back to thp ca boose ; a trip over the lop of that train that I would not have taken for a controlling Interest In the road. I commenced whist ling for the switch as noon aH I got to It. Ten minutes after seventeen was due , Davis emerged from the whirling snow , seeking Information. His faculties seemed to have become benumbed ; I had to go Into all the details before ho could understand that I wanted to carry the brakenmn out ahead to protect UK when crossed over. I carried the man out half a mile , gave him a bucket of lire and told him to burn fencn rails or anything ho could gel hold of to keep himself warm , but under no clr eumstancei Jesert his post until called Ii. After a lot moro whistling , fuming and fussing , I got the train backed over , wo closed the cab tight , and ate our lunches. While gnawing at the kiln-dried boardlng- house sandwiches nnd laughing at Harry's nonsense about "white or dark meat , " seventeen came puffing along , almost noise lessly , like n polar bear towing a string of icebercs. I had lost nearly a gauge of water through the leaky Hues whllo laying there. A broomstick Inspection showed less than six Inches in the tank , nnd the nearest water plug was live miles away. Again I worked the whistle cord. After awhile Davis came ahead. He was muftled up In all the old rags the caboose lockers could furnish , and was a perambulating mountain of snow nnd Ice. He was mad , at last ; as mad as I had been all night. "Oosh almighty ! " ho roared , so loud that I hoard him above the nolso of the gale ; "couldn't the fireman get down an' open the switch 'thout cnllln' a man all the way up from the hind end ? Mebbo you think It's fun to waller 'round in this snow. " I told him to cut the engine off and hold everything on tbo eastbound track till I got back from Selden water plug. As we pulled over the switch Harry shouted : "Hey , Davis ! " Davis looked up , squinting comically Into the teeth of the storm. Hnrry threw him a kiss and yelled : "Turkey ! " The conductor's reply was Inaudible , but wo know what It was the mtet common oxpresolon In railroad use. When wo got back from the water plug 21 ( the mall ) was waiting. We followed her , getting good wheeling until she got so far ahead that the snow drifted in behind her again. Wo loaded the tender at Bolton coal platform , piling big lumps that couldn't blow uway nn top. My watch dropped out of my pocket onto the shovel. I threw it Into the tender , and Harry tossed a heavy lump on top of It. After wo had found It and stepped back on the engine , he naked looking at the. clock : "Is that all 'tis. 10:15 : ? " I looked at my watch : 11:37. : Wo had left the curtnln up , while coaling , and the englno clock , less than two feet nbovo the boiler , hud frozen up and stopped. During the next hour we nearly stalled In big drifts twice. This set mo to thinking about'train 19 ; she must be nearly due. 1 looked nt my watch , 11:37. : It hadn't turned a wheel slnco that lump of coal hit It , and now I had no time on the fnclne. Seeing mo looking nt my watch , Harry asked mo if It was broken. I told him it was. "That's nothing , " said he , "BO'S the record. " I tried to grin , but Just then she plunged into a cut , at the foot of a slight grade , that was filled twenty feet deep with the beautiful. 1 had no longer any need to worry about following trains. I was anchored good and solid. I had a full tank of coal ; we wouldn't freeze , and there- was water enough for a long siege only for those leaky Hues. Engineers , when snowbound , must keep tholr engine alive , that trains may proceed immediately the road is opened , other wise expensive delays will occur from thawIng - Ing out , watering and firing up dead engines In most Inconvenient places. My great problem was how to get water into the boiler. The pumps worked only when the otiglno ran. I gave her steam. If the wheels would slip on the rails and turn , I could pump that way. She might have been a solid , jolntlees casting , for all the effect the steam had on her. Some thing had to be done and quickly , for the water was leaking out of her every minute , and I bad only two gauges In her when I stopped. We got the spare scoop shovel and sunk u shaft through the- snow on the left side of her. Then we cleared thu enow uway from under her nnd all about the wheels and marhlner ) It had drifted a natural arch ou-r her by this time , no that It was quite warm down there , Harry brought down the hammer , some wrenches and the torch nnd reported barely ono gauge of water In the boiler. It was time. Indeed , to hurry. U was an awkward place to work , and the smoke from the torch nearly destroyed Its usefulness. I took down the side rods , that I might have but ono pair of wheels to turn. 1 thereby reduced the nmount of friction to bo overcome by the use of steam , which was water , the article I was Interested In economizing. I pounded my thumb , nnd cut off n Joint of my left forefinger ns the last end of the last rod unexpectedly slipped clear. Harry chewed mo n tobacco poultice nnd tied It on with n pleco of rag torn from his Jumper. Wo left the rods In the snow , gave the rails and tires a good oiling nnd hurried up Into the cab. There was n flutter of water In the bottom gauge-cock , ? < > I slipped nnd pumped her until she threw water out of the stack. The water was squirting out of four leaky flues Inn way that would soon set us to shoveling snow Into the tank. In Bplto of my sore linger , Its clumsy dressing nnd dull tools , 1 made flvo taper llue plugs out of n ! pleco of coal board. Harry covered the fire with the flno coal and tmow , and put on the blower to carry oft the smoke nnd gns. I threw the coal boards In on the banked fire and crawled In with my plugs nnd a ham mer. I had forgotten that it was hot nnywherc , but the experience I went through In that hot firebox , perched over n miniature vol cano , surrounded by boiling water , nnd , in nplto of the blower , Inhaling smoke and mil- phurous fumes would have been Invaluable to Dante when seeking local color. 1 drove the dry plugs tightly ; they absorbed moisture nnd swelled until they were the tightest flues In her. "Twns n good Job , nnd well done. The perspiration congenial on my face the Instant 1 stuck It out the firebox door , nnd. before my feet were out , there were Icicles on my whiskers. It was getting Into in the aflerncon and 1 was never HO hungry In my life before. Hnrry nsked me If there was "any cold tapioca puddln' in the cupboard ? " 1 told him there must bo grub In the caboose , or some of them would have como ahead long ago to see If wo had nny. He volunteered to go back. U was a risky Job. climbing over the tops of those cars In that weather. If anything happened he would be a-guncr , with nobody near to help , and u tcmppra- came In and Indorse 1 the hearty welcome wp had already received from the women folks. HP told us the well we fell Into wn * forty feet deep and. had been abandoned when he was a boy. because thp water "got Mp'lled somehow. " As none but hla own folks pver went there nnd nobody had ever fallen Into It before he hadn't bothered to eovpr It up. We knew now that the nva- lancho that enabled us to get out of was not the first that had fallen Into It , nnd we thanked our lucky starn that we didn't start the day beforo. Mrs. Uelknnp and Susie soaked out my wounded finger and dressed It with some of the soothing salve , hoiue- mntlo for father when he cut his foot with the ax. The warmth , light nnd comfort ot the cozy parlor , not to mention the congenial com pany , contrasted so strongly with the bitter gale and the dirty , cheerless cab that wo found It Impossible to combat HIP urgent invitation of our kind friends to remain with them. That night wo slept on feathers , between blankets , nnd ns I drowsed off 1 remember Harry droning a lot of rapturous twaddle In my ear nbout sweet Suslo Belknap. In the morning thu storm had moderated souiowhat and I began to worry nbout the engine. Should anything happen to her in my nbspnco the cold , fishy eye of the master mechanic would fall to discern extenuating circumstanced. Wo each took on nnother big tank of home-made sausage and pan cakes and felt lit for the deed of our lives. Dear , motherly Mrs. Belknap would have loaded up with provisions , but I decline 1 everything but n pleco of boiled salt pork , a loaf of bread nud n package of coffee and sugar. 1 had to speak twice a little sharply the last time to Harry , who was bidding Susl ? good-bye In the kitchen. 1 thought 1 heard a suspicious smack , but I won't swear to that ; still , those rod-headed fellows hang him , he came awny and forgot the coffee ! Mr. Uelknap told us n better rend than the wny we came , so we got back without much trouble. The curtain had caught llro from the furnace doer nnd broken every pane of glass In the cab , rendering It uninhabit able. The clock had thawed out , run seven minutes and frozen up again. But there was both lire and water In her so I didn't much care. I pumped her full ngnln , and. though the weather was moderating rapidly , as the cab \\as untenable we ad journed to the snow help under her. Wo " " 'HEY , DAVIS" ! " turo that meant almost Instant death to the partially disabled. I sat and dozed , miserably , In the cor ner of the cab. As I repeatedly lost con- sciousnesH , my feet would slip off tbo boiler butt , the heel of the left , co-mlng down with a painful bang upon the Instep of the right. This occurred at stated Inter vals , like pile driving. Tiring of the monotony ony , I sought to chance my position , and became aware of an animated snowball , vainly striving to enter the gangway. I 1 pulled him alranrd , and when sullidenlly thawed , ho reported the caboose deserted , and not a trace of anything edible In It. He had seen nothing of train 111 and ho said that all the engines on the road , coupled I together , would not bo able to collide with I our hind wid. This merry Christmas to which I had eo long looked forward was about over. It soon became dark. Wo shoveled coal against I the curtain , to keep the cold air out , caulked I our window sash with waste , I pumped her j full again , and wo shivered and dozed and j starved through the longest night 1 ever knew. The reappearance of the cab windows noti fied mo of the approaching dawn. What a dismal Bight ! Our usually ne-at cab waa thickly begrinicn with coal dust. Kvery bolthcad and bit of iron In tbo cab itself , as well as the windows , was disguised by the dollcato tracery of that master silversmith , Jack Frost. To the artistic aense of the 1 well-fed and comfortably clad , It would have j been beautiful ; to my dulled mind , It was ' emblematic only of the biting cold that raged | without. Harry , tied In a hard knot , was . snoring soundly in his corner. I had him ; spread the flro and I pumped her full again. I Wo must bavo food at any cost , I know I of but ono house In that locality an or- | dlnary story-and-a-half farmuoune on a cross road , about halt a mlle from where wo lay. It was Invisible through the storm , but we know Us approximate direction. Wo left everything In the best order possible , and started ; the wind at our backs , Harry In the lead. j j ' I shall never forget that trip , floundering ] aimlessly through the drifts like a pair ot I j blind mice , If I llvo to bo 100. Three mln- I | I utes after leaving the engine wo could not i ! I have found our wny back to It , no matter j I what the necessity. Harry being younger I and lighter than I , I had all I could do to | keep him In sight. We full into an aband- I oncd well. Fortunately It wan already I I ' nearly full of unow , so , barring a few bruises , wo received no Injuries. Wo would surely have died hero , for the well was smoothly I lined with brick , and we were too deep In ' r ! It to get out , had not the overhanging creat I i of thu drift fallen from topheavlness , buryIng - j I Ing us , at the same time It rained our level , HUfllclcntly to enable uo to crawl out. I Shortly after this , that providence which bo often Intervenes on behalf of the helple s , , led us stumbling and half frozen to the , 1 I back door of the house. 1 I Farmer Delknap bad rasayod a trip to the I barn to look after his stock and Ilia K : od i ! lady had lain down for her regular after- dinner nap , ItMvIng the elcarlns up to her I buxom daughter. Susie. The old lady had ' | j just dozed oiT on Iho Bluing-room lounge I when , like Incarnate spirits of the storm , ' we two derelicts fell Into the entry. The j last of our strength left us there and It was | merely two heaps of rags , Ice and snow that confronted the frightened women when they opened the Inner door. Sulo waa the ! i first to Identify us as human beings , and to- j gether they dragged us Inside. I The next thing I saw was brawn-oyed ! Susie bustling about the table , where Harry was manfully attacking a stack of buck wheat cakre , which Mrs. Delknap as straining every nerve to keep replenished. I waa soon seated opposite Harry. Sutsln double-banked her mother at the grUldlo and we sent the level of Hie b.nkwhrat flour barrel do n u- > though tkt u it nu Iu4 fallen of i' The . ' , cui fan. .t i-iio\ol no I Ueanc'1 up a bit and tao old gentleman munclved our pork and bread in comfort down there , Harryv calling out that ho had found the wishbone. The storm was about over ; I had kept my engine alive , my stomach was comfortably Illled and my mind /was easy. I lit my pipe and was dozing off to the endless hum of Harry's eulogies of Susie Helknap , when I was rudely recalled to railroad realities by the voice of Davis , shouting. The sr.ow- plow with a gang of shovelers was half way through the cut and Davis , cbuckful of busi ness , was calling me to get ready. "Whero the deuce have you been all sum mer ? " I asked petulantly. For ho had all the appearance of a'man who had been com fortably housed and fed ; was shaved , oven. "U'hy , my mother-in-law's ; jest back o' them trees. " "Well , it's a wonder you wouldn't ask us over ; how'd you s'pcsu we was goln' to stan' it ? " "I expected you over every minute ; an' when ye didn't como I thought mebbe you'd ruther stay by the engine. Ono o' tbo boys was over her ylsterday to see if yo wanted anything , an' he said there warn't nobody here. Whero'd yo go ? " "Down to Dellcnap's. " "Ilelknapa ? Gosh ! Wha'd ye go way down I hero fur ? Why , It's four times as fur as 'tis up to mother's. " " 0 , Is it ? Well , I'm mighty glad 1'vo found that out , anyway ! " They dug uu out and I slammed It to old IS for dear life. I knew passenger train 19 was somewhere behind me , and I wanted to get by the only switch there was be tween me and homo without sidetracking for her. I got by It all right and whllo bucking a little pile of snow that had fallen on the track since the plow passed shu came up and coupled to our caboose , We went In this rest of the way flying. Tbo sun came out and made a fairyland of the heavily enow-covered landscape and tempered the frosty air that came through the broken windows. It was thirty hours after Christmas dinner time when we stepped elf her at the ash track , but I told Harry to como on up to the house and we'd pick the bones , anyway. When we turned the corner there was the house all lit up and , as we stamped thai snow elf our feet In Hie entry , the cllnlng- room door lied open and mother and Katie who had become as thick as thieves and little Deb , shouted a chorus of "Merry Christmas" at UH. The table , wJioso snowy linen contrasted sadly with our begrimed ovcrclothes , was pulled out full length In tbo mlddlo of the lloor. In Its center , his drumsticks held defiantly aloft , lay the great brown turkey , with not a brack In Its glossy skin. It was supported on onu ldo by a massive dome of mashed potatoes , whose generous white expanse was mottled here and there by little dabs of delicious golden butter. Del icate , feathery fronds of celery nodded jovially to the fat glass dish of cranberry sauce , whllo delicious odors of coffee and plum puddln' were wafted through the open door from the kitchen. What n Bight for tired a d nungry railroaders readers ! "We waited for ye , pa ! wo waited for ye ! " shouted boisterous Deb ; and so they had. Katie had worn a path through the snow to the switch tower and had timed our arrival homo to the minute. I noticed after that , during the wintr , Harry had a way of hanging out of the gangway as wo approached Uelknap'e , so GRAIN-Q ! GRfiiN-Q ! Remember that name when you want n. delicious , appetizing , iiourLililnc fo./cl drink to take the place of coffee Sold by all gro- cora and liked by all whj have urst-d It. Qraln-O Is made of pure grain it aids rtl- pu.sUun and airenethi-R * the norvc * n Ii lot a stimulant , but u health bulkier and the children us wcl. as the n.4lth t-tn drl ill It with great benelt POP'S ' ubr nl "i as much as coffee ir.c and 2.c per pack uee. Aak your ( jrocer for drain-0. I tnadp II my business to Wow n crossing signal thfro. And as I peered slyly from under thp peak of my cap I would sco n girlish flguro wnvc a white , cloth from tl\o \ l)9rl < piazza. Harry was promoted the fol- lowltiK spring nnil the next Christmas Katie nnd 1 nnd Bob stretched out our tow undrr the hospitable mahogany of Mr. and Mrs. Ilnrry Mcrvln. Yes , ns 1 look back al It now , I think , take- It nil In nil , It was the very merriest Christ mas I ever spent , nnd 1 know Sue and Harry do. AJI.WMTIO.V I'OIl Till ] UUUItS. nnniiKli In .stock to I.nil Through TenYearVttr. . Most of the ninmiinltlon used by thp lloers , says the Louden Mall , Is of Gorman manu facture. A comparatively pmall quantity was mnilo In Knglaml , and an equally email pro portion was manufactured at the Transvaal government works near 1'rptorla , A vnst amount rf mystery nnd secrecy surrounded the government powder factory , ns It was railed , ami no one was allowed to visit It. or even to npproarh within half a mlle of the Inclosed buildings without an extra spe cial permit. The factory was entirely run by Hermans , nnd , curiously enough , thebe.ul thereof was a Mr. Krugcr. who was always careful to assort that ho was no relation whatsoever to the president. The works were near Daspoort , nbout four nlles out- sldo of Pretoria , nnd In the Immediate neigh borhood of the cemeiit works , where so-called Transvaal Portland cement was badly made. The powder factory Is most Jealously guarded from Intruders , nnd oven the Ital ians from the dynamlto factory not many miles awny know nothing of Its Internal economy. It Is thought questionable by watiy whether any actual manufacture takes place hero , or whether , an ? Is the case of the dy namite works ( "MnatschaplJ veer Outploft- baren Stoltcn" In the "Tnal" ) , the Imported Ingredients nro Just put up In cartridges on the spot , so as to appear to carry out the requirements of the exclusive concession. The ammunition Is takes ) nwny at dead of night on mule wagons to one or other of the forts around Pretoria , nnd n portion Is often sent over to the Johannesburg fort , but not by rail , as the Jolting might bo dangerous In the cane of the carelessly put together ex plosive. The mule wagous travel the forty- two miles In the night , nnd unload at the Johannesburg fort or. Hospital hill , in the early morning. An escort of artillery rides with the wagons nnd reports the duo deliv ery of the ammunition. In the case of foreign Imported ammu nition , Lec-Metford , Mauser and heavy gun shells , It comes by German , French or Dutch steamer to Dolagoa bay and Is there unshipped , stored for n longer or shorter period In the wretcned I In shanties on the wharf which do duty for bonded ware houses and then , when all 'the extraordinary Portuguese formalities are complete. It Is forwarded by train by way of KomntI Pooit to Pretoria , where It Is taken , again at th dead of night , from the railway station to one of the forts or to the government mag azine out on the veldt beyond the rac- courso. Now and again , ns Indeed happened Just before the present war broke out , the Portuguese officials at Louronzo Maiquoi ( lelagoa bay ) for some reasons best known to themselves refuse to pass the ammuni tion nnd then there Is an angry and hotted exchange of letters In a queer mixture of Portuguese , Dutch nnd English , and after a long delay the goods may arrive at their des tination or they may not. In at least ono Instance an amusing con tretemps occurred. A large lot of ammu nition , some 1,200 boxes , went astray at the port nnd could not bo found. The port authorities were sure that they had 1 > een landed , but the railway officials could not account for them In any way. At last , after the lapse of many months , It turned out that by some unaccountable error the whole lot had been reshlppcd to Delra and had got through to Bulawayo and was comfortably reposing in the magazines of the Chartered company of British South Africa. The Boers Indignantly claimed their ammunition. Mr. Rhodes' officials said : "Very well , como and fetch it ; but as we happen to want some of this par ticular brand ourselves you had better lot us pay you for It and say no moro on the subject. " This actually happened , but It was never found out whether the mistake occurred on purpose or by accident. On the whole , It has been found that the French ammunition la more reliable than that made in Germany , and there has also been less palm oil , less bribery and corrup tion In Its purchase , shipment and deliv ery. In the case of one particular lot of German cartridges it was reckoned that the original cost was quadrupled by the time they readied Pretoria , owing to the number of hands through which they passed and the number of officials who had to bo "insulted" before they were passed. Not only that , but when these cartrldqcs were unpacked nnd distributed among tbo farmers It was found that they were faulty nnd dangerous , so that the whole transaction \\as eminently unsatisfactory from every point of view. These were Mauser cartridges. The quantity of ammunition stored In the Transvaal Is absolutely colossal and would KUfllco for a ten-years' war , even at the present rate of usage. TAKES A HIGH PLACE Stands Well in the Esti mation of the People. Attention Is Naturally Excited When Anything Is Prulsce by People When We Know. A thing that ntanda high In the estimation of the public , and which la especially ri-com- i mended by Omaha people , naturally exclteo 1 our attention more than If our own poopla did not praise the article. Such a thing li I going on right here la this city every day , people are praising Morrow's Kld-no-oWn becaueo they cure. There la no deception , I no humbug , they do positively cure , and wo { f urn lah the evidence , Mr. II. L. Small of 1810 Ohio street , Bays : "I have suffered from kidney trouble for the past ten years , I had been so badly aflllcted lately that I could not do any kind of work. I hcul a dull heavy pain across the small of my back almost constantly. The pain extended from the region of my kidneys to my shoulders. I wae nubject to spells of ; dizziness and urinary disturbances of an ! alarming nature. I could not sleep well ' on account of nervounne.is. Learning about Morrow's Kld-ne-olds I decided to try them. I took them according to directions and was greatly relieved In a very nhort tlm ? . I continued to take them and they I have completely cured me of all my former i troubles. " I Morrow's KId-no-olds nro not pins , but Yellow Tablets and sell at fifty cents a box at all druggists and hy the Myers-Dillon Drug Co. Mailed on receipt of price. Manufacturf ] by John Marrow & Co. , Cbomlstg , Spring * CeM , Ohio. 'M Of'M f IODIDE OF IRON forAN'l2MIAl > > OORW > .S < jr > lir 111.001) . CONSTI1ITIONAI. AKNHbS SCKORILA. . lite. None-genuineunler-ingni..l Ili.AM.Aftt > AI.I. DKIM.C.IST * E. FOUQCKA & CO. , N. V. Ajts. : for b. S. WRITE FOR THE BEE ON THE To begin the new year , 1900. THE BEE announces a number of great special articles , fully illustrated. Each of them is written by a man celebrated the world over , each discusses a topic of universal in terest , each reviews in some degree the progress of the century now closing. W. T. STEAD , For Editor of the "Knglish Review of Reviews , " January 7th ON " the Veil. " "Breaking Through . Ilr liiiiliiir with ii lirlpf rrvlctv of the pruuri'nn of the couiilrr In no I CHIT , .Mr. SU'iut Icmln lliMvuril ( liroiich the innrvHft of ( hv nmtrr- Inl n orlil , tclrnriiphy. < el < M > hon < - , \-ltii } , Hitrlrlret rONropr mill Iroto.ifi U'li'irrnphy , to thr lionlorlniiil Jiint hj on l to the pomil- Mtltli-M of lliiillKht trnimfrrt'iiff or li-li-inh > , the 11 Irplrnn IrleK- raphy of ( liollKht. He | irtnenlM the ulioli1 Mihjeet of imjchlo re- nniri'li n * It ii | > | trai" * uf the enit of the eentiiry lit the elenrent nnd iniiMt eoiivlnrlnir milliner. In till * artlele the writer ulno given the cxnet iiiethodn of uumintiiilentliiK' ' > telepathy , o tlint niironc mnjr prnetlce It. W. T. STEAD , Editor of the "Ktijlish Review of Reviews" For ON January 14th "True Bncidents of Thought Transference/ ' Till * IN mi n mi * ui a I HprlpN of Intter-ilny Khont Ntnrlen , Klvliiir n p.luiitlflc iieeoiint of miiiiy notfihlo liiNtniiceN of telepathy , of limit niihoitImeiit. anil of iipparltlciiiN , Nome of Mlileh enme miller the Trrltcr'H ieri < oni ! ohservat loll. The nrtlele ul < > treiitn fully of nic-lIioilM of medium ivrltlniv. HENRY M. STANLEY , The World's Greatest Explorer , For ON January 21st "The Unexplored Regions of the World. " In thin ntory of the iinilliieovercil the ivorlil'i RrniiteNt explar v dcHcrlhcN Home of the tiiNkn which the KeoKrnpher of the 20th ccn- tiirjiiniNt noire. He telln with trraiihlu Intereitt of the hniiRcr * t the iintloiiN for Africa , how ilccnile liy ileeaile , the IDiitrllnh , the ( lermaiiN , the French , have heeii crowding ileeper ami deeper lnt the JmiKle and yet leavIiiK vant areun nlmnnt nntoiiclied. Hla no- count of Hie commercial nnd Nclentltlc poNNlhllltlcN of uiidliicoverrd South America , AuHlrnlln , Slherla , In of a Ulnd to ( Ire the Imagina tion of the yoiiiiwrcr ( ceiieratloii which inunt nolve thenc problem * . The nrtlele will lie very fnlly UliiNtrnted with mup nnd with th Intent portrait of the author. Dr. CYRUS EDSON , , Famous Chief of New York Health Department , For ON January 28th "Medicine in the Closing Year of the Nineteenth Century. " A rnild and faneliiatlnur nnrvey of the recent nntonlnhlnnr no > ronuiIlHliiiientN In mcillcliic and niircery , with an Invnliiiilile nnni- miirv of the very latehl iiielhodn of treatment of noiiic of the more Important dlNciiNCN. "Can typhoid fever he cured f" "AVlint are the oliHMccM of recovery III pneumonia f" "Ducn I'liNlenr'n Inoculation real1 cure ralilenf" Ther > e iiic Mon nnd many oilier * equally 1m- liortmit and liitereNtlnur lire nil aimwcred hy one of the urentent of American iinthorltleN In medicine and In the IlKht uf the world' * latest knowledge. Dr. FREDERICK A. COOK For Famous Antarctic Explorer , February 4th ON "Walking to the Pole. " Dr. Cool.lielleveH that the pole will llnally hi ! renelicd hy M Hturilr parly of AmerlcaiiM on foot ) he ulvrN In thin article III * rcr.Niiii for thin helleft telln what eijiilpmeiit IN neeennary and hinr IOIIK a time will lie neeenNiiry to eomplefe the expedition. The nr- tlule In , In Nhort , n elear and concise prcNeutatliin of the very Infect cnncIuxioliK of cilllorcr * on the lirolilcm of the poleN , It will be rlehly Illnxtraleil with pletnreM ( alien hy llr. Cook In ( lit- Ice reuloui PROF. N. S. SHALER , For I'amotis ( luolojjist t > f Harvard , February llth ON "The Earth's Deepest Depths. " /1lil nrtlele iirninlieN to he of much more Minn ordinary Intrrrd. Immediately following Prof. Shaler's article , there will be articles by SIR NOR/HAN / LOCKYER , England's greatest astronomer ; by PROF. JOHN DEWAR , the famous Chemist , who was the first to liquefy hydrogen ; and by several other men equal ly celebrated.