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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 13, 1902)
THE OMAHA DAILY BEE: SATURDAY, SEPTEMHEU 13, 1902. By the Hand of a Child By ANNA S. RICHARDSON. (Copyright. 1S01. by Anna 8. Richardson.) She stood, la tbe doorway of the ranch house, watching the dally uplifting of cloud from the mountains, which, like an ! impenetrable barrier, encircled the valley. At the foot of the mesa the rsahlng Rio Orando cut lie gulfward way. From a dis tant arroya. where vivid but acentlesa flowera reared their head! to the perpetual kisses of the clear Colorado sunshine, came the passionate pean of a meadow lark. ' Tho band of the woman rested tremu lously on her husband's shoulder and she drew a long, quivering breath. "Tour letters never did justice to 'it all, Charley never. It la beautiful, beau tiful. We shall be happy here, very happy, dearest." And ahe meant It. Every word came straight from her heart. How could the understand them? How could she know, la this hour of home coming, that there would be a day when those majestic peaks would bo to her circle of Implacable Jailers? Or that she would close her win dows to the monotonous rush of the river cutting its way through the mountains to tho life for which she hungered? The first year waa not so bard. Then her husband bought the stock and with the cat tle came the cowboys. Her untrained shoulders bent beneath this new burden. In their rough, chlvalr'.c fashion the men adored her, but they also ate. At first oho rose sbudderlngly each morning to the unvarying taak. Then she became numb to It. More and more she withdrew Into herself. There was nothing else. Vaguely and not rebelllously she realized that the volatile temperament of her husband was yielding to tho more debasing Influences of the wild, free life. She seemed powerless to hold him In check. What could she do when the ranch work pressed upon her until It seemed to touch her very soul? To bs sure, he praised her cooking and vowed that no woman In all Saguache enuntv could heat her In making baking powder biscuits. He always kissed her. too, when, stalwart and noisy and with clanking spurs, he csme In from the range. But there were dreary nights when he never came farther than Saguache, the county seat, and on these nights she lay breathlessly listening for the hoofbeats and heard only tho eerie lamentation of the coyote. But. above It all. the mean surroundings, the Interminable drudgery, the selfish neg lect of the man who wooed her from a life of comparative ease and refinement, rose that passionate longing for music. This woman who knew the score of every opera, who had heard every noted singer of her day. would have cried with Joy at the sight of a street piano or a negro ban'olst. Once when he had made a fortunate spec ulation In stock ahe suggested a piano, but he quoted freight rates across the range. And that night be rode Into Saguache, and was gone three dsys. When ho returned the cowboys winked at each other a&d turned bis Jaded horse Into the corral all but one man. He sighed. Perhaps he thought of the woman who for three long nights had been listening tor the hoofbeats that did not come. The nest mall brought from an eastern friend a musical Journal, but the woman never cut the leaves. Again ahe was afraid, and she laid the paper, with a gesture of despair, on tho glowing coals. Oay snatches of light opera and piquant college songs no longer fell from her Hps- Her guitar loaned In an out-of-the-way corner, its strings ; broken -. r- ' Perhaps this was the reason that, when tho child came, bis eyes were filled with a trange wkttfulness. At the ago when other . children placidly tuck their fingers, gurg ling and cooing, he lay with tiny flats tightly clenched, staring yearningly at the loving face bent over him whenever the mother could steal from her work. She was bending over him thus one after noon when froT a ahed near the corral came a sound that, to the woman, waa a message from Paradise. In flutelike tones someone was whistling the prison song from "H Trovatore." The womap. straightened up, her eyes wide open In happy wonder. Bhe covered the baby, then stole from the door. With noiseless tread she crept round the house, nearer and nearer to the rough shed. A young fellow with a careless, happy face was polishing his gaudy riding equip ment. His hat, pulled over his eyes, pre vented his seeing the approaching figure. On her face was a look, half rapture, half agony. What If one of the notes should ring falsa and tho beautiful cadence be 'marred? Bhe recalled having had the same feeling one night at the opera when ahe thought of the possibility of the tenor's faltering. But, no, the clear notes swept on to the triumphant end. and ahe breathed deep sigh of relief. hi bridle fell clattering from the man's grasp to the floor. Before him stood h o employers wue, wuu nviu uuu uui stretched. "Thank you. oh, thank you!" . Ho was a newcomer and knew nothing ot his employer or ot the tatter's family. A college man, with a fair athletic reputation and a much wider reputation among women ho was Just at present stopping without the pale ot elvlllsatlon until bis father should bo la tbe mood to sacrifice the fatted calf. .... -w i- .. loosing imu mo iitr. cat" uy- lifted to hlai be realised that this woman naa come irom nis own worm. do um clasped the outstretched bands and thanked .. .... .k. m. in tv. a - dlataat corral. m , . . . . , . For. while the other men smoked end awapped yarns In tbe twilight hour, he swung In the hammock near the kitchen oor ana whistled tne music sna lovea, ana tho work moved tbe faster for tbe Inspire- tlon. But ha did not understand her. Ha did not know that this woman was ldealls- Ing his music, not himself. And one day she bent over the baby and whispered, while aa unnatural light shoos In her eyes: "Baby, dear, there's almost 1100 now la the old shell box. Just a few more dol lars and we csa cross the mountains, you and L Baby, do you understand? There are ergsos beyond tboae mountains, organs that souad 'Ilka the Great Amen.' And we will stay until wo hear them all the organs, tho singers, tbo vlollna and 'cellos. Tpu sever heard a 'cello, dearest, but It's such weaderful music and seems to go to the very foots of your soul. It will be over ao much better than the boy's whistling that you like to hear." And the child, as If It understood, nestled eloser and sloser to her breast. Her huabaad had gone to Saguache again tor euppliea. The two days necessary for tht trip had rolled lato four and then Into six. When at Isst he drove, with rollick , log tWf sed whoop, into tbe corral tbe aaaa who whistled said unprintable things under his breath. Thea with arma folded a the rough rail, ho watched tho ua toady figure lurch toward the houss and a Smile that was aot good to sea passad ' ever his face. That night as she washed tho supper d tehee her huabaad apraag up trom tho sofa, aear tho great fireplace, and crtsd: 'Tell that fellow to stop his Infernal whistling or I'll break his' But something la hla wife's face mads hint stop. Ho settled dully back to his dosing, ... hi aa - la imos iae rsnge to find the cowboys who had pro ceded him grouped about the door all but the man who .whistled. In their silent, awkward pose something suggested death or worse. They stood aside while he entered the house and closed the door be hind him. On the table lay a note which none of them bad dared to touch. Then, with unseeing eyes, they looked at each other, waiting for the outburst that never came. The only sound In the room waa tbe gurgle-gurgle of the liquor aa, with unsteady hand, he tilted the flask. Juat across the range, on the X V ranch, the man who whistled might have been found, had the husband sought to satisfy his honor. He whistled no longer and hard-eyed surprise and disappoint ment were stamped on his fsce. The wife with the child had turned to the east. But the husband never crossed the range. He waa too near the end, even for that. Davis, the musical critic, sat in the gallery of St. Agnes church, watching with cold, cynical eyes the influt of the fashion able congregation. Millionaires, their wives and their daughters, the latter gorgeous in Easter raiment, filled the pews below him. To his right lay the great white and gold altar, guarded by clergy and servers in flowing vestments of lace, On his left rose the organ loft, where the finest singers of the metropolis sat wait ing to chant the Eaater music at exorbi tant salaries. Davis stole an Impatient look at his watch. He cared for neither fashionable throngs nor floral decoratlona. He had come only to hear the mysterious con tralto, whom Gale, the choir director, bad discovered in some obscure inland town. Davis was always skeptical when it came to new stars in the musical world, par- I tlcularly those who rose suddenly, appar- ently from nowhere, and he was curious to learn whether this was a meteor or a clanet. When thou tookest upon thee to deliver mm. With the first rich note a atrange peace seemed to settle upon the congregation. Davis smiled. It was better be bad aarea to nope. Then he leaned forward to catch a better view of the contralto. The coior ten nia race. He gasped and his pen- en dropped to the Door with a metallic click. Tbe woman on bis right frowned "Pn h'm- t Thou dldsthumble thyself to be born of A sheet of paper followed the pencil and Davis clone to the brass renin, hi ears atralned to catch evt rv exaulsltelv shaded tone. Tbe tenor was singing now When thou hadst overcome the sharpness I of death. l" "I aeam: IjIRO WDIH Irons those words struck into the soul of r" -" ifc . w . v . ... ..uu.r iiai up i no in- umpoam reirain inou aiust upeii me nlnaaum t heaven to all believers. Higher and higher rose tbe mighty wave of song till It seemed to sweep through the vaulted ceiling, but Davis, with hands tightly clenched, saw only tbe contralto. who, with head uplifted, poured forth ber soul In melody. Again thi clerrv Intoned and the choir chanted, the neonle knelt In nraver and the nreacher deeded. Bnt Davia neither saw nor heard. Sentences, Are laden and relentless, were forming in his mind. The art of the critic was lost in tbe Dassion of tho man. And on tho morrow hi oaner ahould bave a story of which this self- satisfied congregation little dreamed. Yet be waa thinking not of the sensational coup In store for bis chief, but only of tbe ter rlble Journey ho had once made toward tbe setting sun. Again he aaw the gaunt form of his elder brother, tbe protector and idol of his boyhood, stretched upon the wretched bed. Then he looked once more at the woman In the choir left, whoae gift of song was luring those around him to a sense of besvenly peace.. His arms were folded across his chest, bis fingers dig- glng into tho cloth of his coat. He is risen. He Is not here! Why bad such a gift been granted to a woman who, under cover of night, could steal from her husband's homo and love? Why had the features of a madonna and the voice of an angel been bestowed on one whose feet were of clay? A thousand devils lashed him on. He must get to bis rooms and pen the fierce words. Tes, he should) cast the first stone at tbU Mag dalen with tbe saintly face. There would bo a new contralto In the choir of St. Agnes next Sunday. "The sharpness of death!" Yes, yes, she should feel It. Torn by tbe bitter memory of that scene In the far u t riavta ritri not m n n . . .- , . . "su steal from the ranks or tbe chorua. massed behind the soloist. A little child. crave in scariei cap ana jacaet. crept closer sna closer to tne singer, bilently. breath- . , . leaaly, he slipped forwsrd. even as on that other day hla mother had crept round the '""" J"'- pelllng melody. But the hands of tbe boy I were not outstretched, and ln his tightly ! ! clasped fingers lay an Earner Illy, cruahed . and broken. ; The child stood at the woman's side. Davis started and the color rushed Into bis face. The blood bounded trom his head . ........ ; wun a miguiy turou. ror tne iaro upimea to meet tbe glorious harmony of aound was me race or nis oroiner in miniature, uui the soul behind tbe quivering lips and the ... .v ... I uiuiai rj wa iui buui ui toe wuuau. ine last aweet. comforting note died away Into Intense silence, and a great sigh rose from , : the listening people. And the child still gled into his mother's face with the en- raptured faith of Innocent childhood. This mute adoration of motherhood swept j through the aoul of Davis like a cleansing flre. His tace softened, and when tbe peo ple rose for tbe blessing ot the alma his j tyn rested tenderly on the face of the boy Tbs last singer had departed when Davia sought tho choir loft. Tho director turned to look for his hat and Davis eroaaed quickly to the braas railing where mother and child bad knelt together. He picked up a brulaed lily and gently laid tt away la his csrd case. Thea facing the musician he said quietly "Fins music you gsvs us this morning. Mr. Gale. By the way, your contralto Is wonder. I must congratulate you on your latest atscovery. And down in the street, through tho flood of spring sunshine, mother and child, with nan as sympatneticany clasped. walHedl.Kn.it i inform mn ntim.n ih.i i h. homeward. Tbe boy was saying: "And once, mother dear, I thought wasn't you singing, but an angel." U Losj Caala Philosophy. Chicago Journal: Wisdom didn't die wld Solomon, patience wld Job nor meekness wld Moses. Corns ter think er It, Solo mon wusn't es wlss es what hs 'lowed he wus; Moses wus fur turn meek, en Job wus do blgges' growler la do country. I don't spend any time at all In growlln' at do weather. Wen It's cold I thank Ood ir ort-ti i got any, u as aim ier woea, tt I hain't Den Wen de summer is hot enough ter make folks think er de here- utr B, " mes turn irveiia -o oat paimrtto tans is rnesp. no matter woetner am world is roua nai. oe sum ea total er as wnoie ouainosa w n r mm a ."'a mam or it. ea oe ver bes' thing we kin do Is ter plant shade trees fer summer en strong shelters fer winter. THE HORSE DII IT. Hove at Yoowar Mlaaourlaa Got Hlo Af. polatsneat to Wfil Tolat. One of the recent graduates of West Point tells this story In the New York Sun: ' "I fell In with an old army officer after the exercises. He looked me over and asked me a good many questions. Among others he asked how I came to be ap pointed, and I told him that it came about In the usual way. " "A recommendation does not necessarily mean merit' he safd. "I assented to this. " 'I do not think that passing an ex amination always means merit,' he added aa a crusher. "I said I supposed not. 1 had resolved that I would not violate any of the rules by getting Into an argument with an old regular, now on the retired list. " 'I knew a young man who got here,' he continued, 'Just after the civil war, be cause he was mentioned by the command ing officer in an engagement, for bravery, and the youngster never Intended to be brave he did It because he did not know what he was doing, or because he could not help It He is dead now, and I do not mind telling you about it. " 'He was at headquarters In the Army of the Potomac, and, as he was a good sort of fellow, he got In with a general of one of the divisions who lived pretty high. He and the young man went on a bat on one occasion. Not to speak disre spectfully of the dead, the young man got as drunk as a sailor on shore leave. " 'While he was in that condition the division got orders to go to the' front and this young fool was put In the saddle and told to go In the other direction. But the engagement came on quickly and the horse on which he eat, being like Job's charger. smelled the battle and turning, dashed Into the thick of the fight. " 'The young fool who rode him had Just enough sense to hung on and the horse plunged and neighed Into the fray. It was miracle that horse and rider came out of It alive. " 'The commander of the division wit nessed what I related, and in his report to Grant he made special mention of the daring of the fellow. The reault waa that the fellow was appointed a cadet. He was a graduate. I believe, of the Missouri unl- veralty before he went into the army, so he waa able to pass here, ' 'But what I want to imnresn imon von young man, Is this. If this fellow had not been drunk he would have kept his horse from Delng B0 reckle. And ln that CB89 he mlht nt bave been mentioned for bravery and consequently he would not nave been appointed a cadet. "'He was a ,-iod fellow peace to his soul but he oved his education by tho government to his horse." " 'And to getting drunk.' I added We i.' Hu rt the old mri.l.r what Lincoln said when somebody told him uram got drunk. "And with that ho turned away, evidently satisfied with his lecture." On I heir Vacantia Judgs: "Where did you spend the sum nier?" asked the front row chorus girl. toured Switzerland In an auto," said the ,lu,B K'rl w,th the saucy kick. "I took the waters at Ax-les-Balnes." said the girl with the diamond bnckles on her llpPer" ' 1 aummered at Newport." said the dreamy blonde In the pink slippers, 1 "ua" fcnskespeare while in the White mountains," said the auburn-haired one who lea 109 arena maicnes, "' worried ltl m? modiate in dear PaV ree" Burgled the girl who never could catoh atep, "And what did ycu do this summer?" they all asked of the first chorus girl. "I?" she murmured. "Oh, I wsshed dishes, too." FaralatBted Nature. Baltimore American: "Strange," mused the man with the thoughtful brow, "strange that a fellow cannot remember a single on) I of those old tables of drachms and scruples and pennyweights, and bow to extract the cube root, and all those things he used to get up and recite so glibly at school." "Tea." assented tbe man with the Incan descent whiskers. "Tea. It is a wise pro vision of nature that a man always forgets what he is never going to have any need of." Stories of There u nn man of mv acoualntance." said a Washington newspaper correspond- . ii....in. in k. at i.iii ninhe. I . . . . . . K iiaiih r ttim. i-ta u.n iTrif McM1,,an ..Dy wh088 death t wou(1 jye .- . .,. n-onai loaa than by .... - ,.. M .,,,.. , ,,., ftcr.ualntance wltB pUDUo t can recall 1 1LUUAIUIHULC HIIU IfUWIIU luou, ... . . . . .h. , Mn.iA.r mnP . D.t. Urn than hla 8tart,ng ln ln bumble ctrcumstancee. be accumulated great .,,,, .,, tirnr,.hi,, , iin.ooo.ooo. an, althougn , knew nlm trom boyhood. I Mver kMW of Mm lnjurtng any man. He -aa lare-hearted and iudlcloualy generous, u wai nu habit when peraons approached hlm ror m various enterprises to take . h. tn rnn.iriee the matter, end - . . 7 . on their return It was 'yes- or no,- more frequently yes than no. He showed ma ODa time a Hat of at leaat 150 young mea in Detroit whom he had atarted In life by . : . advancing irom si.uuu to siu.uuu. rew oi them ever nald him back, cerbaos. but he I - . - - - uaeii to sav 'What do I care? I have 110.- s OOO.OOO, and If only one out of ten young men wnom I started in me provta wormy I consider myself repaid.' McMillan bouud who as $250,000. Senator McMillan appreciated hl.i ability, and every once in awhile when be had a mortgage or debt which It waa soma trouble to collect and which he thought might not be paid, he turned It over to this young man on a 60 per cent commlsslsn. Senator McMillan had tbe finest aet ot offices I ever was In. Everythtn a I comfortable almost to tbe point Frequently the senator would com ofl!ce i the morning and tapping bell on his deak would summon half a dozen or so of his young men to bis office. 'I am engaged to take a large block ot atock li such and such a company.' he would say. Tbe stock 1. now selling at .bout par snd I to specially recommend tnia stock to any you young men, but If you should happen I to have a few hundred dollars In bank - consider u a tairiy good investment, it I bow selling about par, but if yeu gentlemen I would like sny of It I could let you have I some shares at SO or 65.' I' poo this of course I every young man who was present would buitle around to eollect all the money be wmiu i.j u u.uu. a auu imr.i n iu im stock which the aenator recommended, Nothing would be beard further from him bdoui tne stoca. say, tor a penoa oi six monins or a year, wnen no wouia again tap or I toe lime urn ana. summoning the dots. l aouia sat: some time aao I aaviaea vou l yousg men. ii you aa aay money, to inveai Anv youna man who entered Senator ... v. .v v. . ..- .,i ..... k. ninru nd dlsnlaved ahllitv wn . . , , time wnen ne cumnea tne same niu, or it s omces ana aispiayea BDiiity waa ilv.. .ni continued to rtva awav . . to succeed. I know a young man "'": T; M. d..th: h- murh. no might have happened wnen , was p.ay ng entered there twenty-five years ago " J. L.A . 7,i . olr wul nlm- " ne D,a not cnua an ordinary clerk and who 1. now worth -"-" ,' " a .VV..v.n. . for. m De wou,1 proDaDly ,1,ve "a ne,rl' IVTTir nnn AT n rPTDiriTV i LMllfc rlLLU Uf LLLtlKlllll I ' Value and Work of Cable gad Land Lines Encircling the Glebe. MARKED INCREASE IN TROLLEY ACCIDENT Problem of freveatloa Dlariuffl by Ealaeere Fire Losses Traeed to Eleetrle Carr eat Other Notes. A recent monthly bulletin Issued by the treasury bureau of statistic furnishes de tailed Information about the submarine and land telegraph systems of the world. It shows that the submarine lines number 1,750. Their aggregate length Is nearly 200,000 miles, their total cost Is estimated at $275,000,000 and the number of messages annually transmitted over them is more than 6,000,000. All the grand divisions of the esrth are now connected by their wires. Adding to the submarine lines the land telegraph systems by which they are con nected and through which they bring inter ior points of the various continents Into Instantaneous communication, the total length of telegraph lines of the world is 1.180,000 miles, the length of their single wires or conductors 3,800,000 miles and the total number of messages annually sen: over them about too. 000,000, or an aver age of more than 1,000,000 each day. Every body of water lying between the inhabited ports of the earth, with the single exception of the Pacific ocean, has been crossed and recrossrd by submarine tele graph lines. Even that vast expanse of water has been Invaded along Its margin, submarine wires stretching along Its west ern borders from Siberia to Australia, while Ita eastern borders are skirted with lines which stretch along the western coasts of the two Americas. Electrical Ritanrant. This has been called the age of electricity, and electricity has certainly proved the key to many a modern problem, says the Brook lyn Eagle. Whether or not It will eventually serve as a solution to the time-honored servant girl question, which has brought many an admirable housekeeper's gray hairs In sorrow to the grave, remains to be seen The Idea of harnessing tbe lightning for do mestic service seems about as incongru ously impossible as the proverbial haroeaa- ing cf Pegaaus to a plow. But there ha been at least a step taken In that direction In the opening at Niagara Falls of a restau rant in which electricity supplies the "ser vice." Everything in this magical restaurant. In fact every thing ln the whole building. Is produced by electric currents, generated by the liver's power. Tho building Is occupied by a natural food company. The restaurant was Installed at the cost of about $50,000 for the benefit of Its employes and of visitors to the falls. Far below through a canal water Is switched ln from the river which generates the power that runs the entire es tablishmentthe hug's Ferris wheel ovens ln which the food product Is baked, the great elevatora on which they are carried from floor to floor and flnalty landed In the ship ping department, where, they are loaded on electric motors and sent to the train. The entire restaurant Is run by one young man at a switchboard. .Thera are BOO tables and 600 cars, and it is not at all unusual that 100 of them are In motion at once. But tbe young man has little, to do . with them once they are started. He presses the but ton, they do tho rest. There is probably no railroad In . the country, that baa a more elaborate syetem of blocker If by any acci dent a car abould become" disabled or leave tho raila, the next approaching car short circuits the current In that block and brings all tbe little vehicles within the danger line to a stop. They remain stationary until the "wreckers" can arrive to repair the dam age. By means of a mechanical arrange ment on the bottom of every car each throws Its own switch. Aa It leaves for the kitchen It throws the rails so as to leave the track clear and returnlg opens them again and thus makes Its own siding without any as sistance from the switchboard. Trolley Car Fatalities. Trolley car wrecks and accidents of vari ous kinds are becoming every-day affairs. Probably only those who have kept tab, says the Chicago Tribune, are aware of the fact that these car3 are now close com petitors with steam trains ln the number McMillan in stick in the so and so company, that I thought It was a safe Investment. Tou got tha mtrt-v ( 5 tt la now Bellina at 197. and . . . . f o ti v rr vmi vnnnv men nivfl anv hlock io aell I would be glad to take It at that figure, Rut I think verv likely It will go to 250.' Twenty-five years ago Senator McMillan 4 wvu.-UT ;o .j .. . ... ' ., ki, i,rr,thr wini.m McMillan, who was then keeping a small hardware store selling principally otoves. William,' said k. ...,. -...liin, la no business for you. Ycu can't make anything In this trade. Now, I have decided to eatabllah a hr.nch nf mv car oomnanv at St. Louis, and i want you to go there as my superintend- wtlllam McMillan died the early part .... v I...- f him I ' lu" - never heard of him; yet Secretary of the In- urtcr Mr. Hitchcock, who is from St. Louis. tcid me that William McMillan waa a highly .,, ,,,. , ,K- , at t.,.1. 'vvy-- "rive yeara before hla death Mr. McMU- ... ......j .....in.n., . ... HQ BLBi ICU IU JBlouill..ll ' ' " " " J ti. .n, . . i, Him Wis U v V . I1V wtaufcw V w s i v a aanas ,ii -nd .lloerintend the distribution dur- ,ng n,a metlme. He provided hla son, who f. EuroM. and his arandchlld with all "Senator McMillan, being chairman of the Dlatrict of Columbia committee ot the senate, considered It waa not proper for him to Invest In dlatrict real eststs, which might advance in value by reason of im- 'How much is this worth?' 'Well, senator.' she replied. 'I think It Is worth $55,000. ' 'Here Is your check, madam,' he replied. "The wealth accumulated by tbe late aeDator waa made tof the h.rdeat klna of honelt work, but after he arted u .eemed of .i have en very fortunate.' he said to me. luit after congress adjourned. 'I seem to I instinctively know whether an Investment is . I0lng to turn out well or not. People COme to me with propositions wanting me to loveat $10,000. $50,000 or $100,000. I look at ote and say. yea. this will do. I will go j0to tba. I look at another and say, no. j don't want any of that. The one I go mu turns out a auccess snd I make BO, 100 or $00 per cent on my money. Something u wrong with the one I don't go Into sad n faiu. but I don t lose saythlng. It yery simple.' tune estimated at 19,000,000. mAvAmnta mmltk tv thn ffovernment. and ... a- there i . ... ; dttlons of the times is illustrated well by of luiurv conMuent" the only p ec. of preparty he alfference between the metho,g of the into his . . . . . , , " . father and the- son. loung McMillan into nis H nicked this house out in Washington . L, a llttla . - - - steams to tue wnsrt in nia Deautiiui yacni a liiiis mDA went to the owner. Mrs. Gait, and aald: . . . . . '. . father over aaain Ha looka lust u hla 'Tn.i ..n no mk.n .n.m McMillan was my age. hs worked at his Occidents as well as in tbe number of killed nd injured by accidents. At the outset, when little attempt was made to compete In transportation with tho steam roads and the distances traversed were short, accidents were comparatively few and It was rare that anyone waa killed or Injured. This, however, has completely changed. Now there Is scarcely a day with out its aevere accident and tbe list ot killed and Injured Is Increasing largely. Since January 1, 1902, tbe record shows that 217 persons have been killed and 772 severely injured by trolley car accidents or by being run over by the trolley cars. Most of tbe accidents have occurred in New York and New England, where trolley lines are most numerous. In these sec tions there Is sesreely a country road without its trolley track. The cars now run long distances and make connections like the steam cars. So heavy has the bus iness become that trolley cars sre now often made ss long and aa heavy as the steam cars and the rails are of the same weight as those on tbe eteam roads, though the roadbeds are not so secure or as well ballasted. Indeed, there Is comparatively little difference now In the weight of roll ing stock, though there Is much difference In the strength. The two systems now are so nearly related In the methods of oper ation it is remarksble that legislation has failed to require the tame safeguards on trolley lines which It demands on the steam lines. The former are rapidly becoming even more meanaclng to life and limb than the steam trains, as Is shown by the figures, which are rather below than above the true total. The time has now come when city and state government should bring the trolley system up with a round turn and apply the same provisions for safety to It which the steam system has to adopt. It should look more rigidly not only into matters of speed and strength, but into the qualifications ot men employed. Safeguards A fa last Accident. An electrical engineer who has had oc casion to watch the working ot trolley and elevated railway cars, speaking concerning aome of the accidents which have recently occurred, said that some of these, espe cially the wrecking of runaway surface cars, were entirely Independent of the form of motive power. It is not quite fair to hold electricity responsible for a broken brake chain, for Instance. Many attempts have been made to perfect an electric brake Devices of the latter character are not un common, but they are not altogether satis factory. One which is In service over In New Jersey operates only while the car Is moving. The current from the overhead wire having been shut off by the motorman, and the electric brake having been brought Into play, the electricity necessary to make It adhere to the wheels is developed by tbe mechaniam under the car. For the time being the motor Is converted Into a dynamo, and the dynamo Is driven by the rotation of the car wheels. The Instant the car stops, of course, the supply of current from this source stops and the brake loses ita grip. If the car Is on a bit of level track It will remain stationary, but on a grade the elec tric brake will not keep It still. All origi nal momentum having been checked, tho car would alternately start ahead and stop through a resumption of activity In the brake. This alernatlon continued until the foot of the hilt was reached. The electric brake la not a useful resource In emergen cies and la usually supplemented by an or dinary hand brake. The chief reliance when a sudden stop is necessary is a reversal of the motor that drives the car. The motor man first shuts off his power In the usual way, moves a separate lever on the "con troller" box before him and then turns on bis current again. He la inatructed to em ploy this plan at critical moments, but be is also familiar with the order to be careful about applying power too suddenly, lest he thereby overheat and ruin ' his motors. Hence he may be too cautious In reversing. Again, the success of that practice is de pendent on retaining connections with the overhead wire. If the trolley Is thrown off, reversing is without effect. If the brake falls, too, the car becomes a hopeless vic tim of the law of gravitation. Electrical Fire Loitri, A very suggestive report on the coun try's electrical fire loss, issued by the ex perts ln charge of the electrical work of the National Board ot Fire Underwriters, shows bow imperfectly tbe hazard is ap preciated at centers ot population where great insurable values are stored. Most of the fires repeat the lessons of previous disasters due to imperfect wiring, and sug gest the need of careful Installation at hotels and dwelling, where human llT - Characteristics of the Late Senator from Michigan. office from 7 o'clock ln the morning until 6 o'clock In the evening. Before he left Washington for the last time he raid to . .t m A . r r, an T h.,a uiv. kui uun u-m j . . o r.. - ' " settled my family In life. I have placed all the burdens of my buainesa carea on my son. William. I am now wortn liu. 000.000. and I propose for the remainder of ... my life to bo free from buainesa cares. Two weeks later be waa dead. On that "me occasion oe toia mo taat io.i great recreation. 'I consider that golf Is the greatest thing ln the world for me,' he ald. 'It? has undoubtedly prolonged my life and yet it was golf that killed him. I asked him about the course over the links at hl" summer home. He said: 'It la a ry good course and not especially hard. .w., .i. i. i hin anrn. f ""-i"- " -" -"--" ,he Payers complain that they get out of urc",a wuru ,u" u""u have never found any difficulty In that re- spect.' Yet ln leas than a fortnight the senator climbed that aelt-same bill and died. He did not know he bad heart dis ease, and no ons expected It, but tbe extra exertion of climbing tho bill developed It and he went off like a shot. Tbe same thing might bave happened at any other "As I said, when Senator McMillan started In life he worked from 7 o'clock In the morning until 6 o'clock ln tbe evening. He waa founding a great bualneas. His son William baa succeeded him. He is con tinuing a great bualneas. The changed con At 2 o'clock in the afternoon his business is out of tbe wsy, his yacht is announced a ad be steams off to his summer home to 7,;,;; ".. and only th. arge .tte4"omo be plsy golf or indulge in other recreations, by well paid and competent subordinates, It la a forcible example of tbe trend of concentration in bualneas. "The governor of Michigan la In a pe euliar poaltlon. He, wanta lo be senator but, ot course, cannot appoint himself, and ih. .iii.ii .hihu. him bin. dldats for the aenate while he is governor As governor, be might land the aenator- ship, but be cannot take it and if be should resign the governorship hs would lose the Influence which he otherwise might Is exert to Isnd the aenatorsblp. I hope young McMillan will be SDDointed. for he la hla - i.ik.. . hi. ... . ., same mold." BnlJ reacaea oll 0mce at v.w or iu o ciock. are Imperilled. Several distressing acel- denta to workmen employed In equipment work ahow what slight regard Is still felt for heavily charged wires whero the ex- I posure Is a source of constant danger. One I case Is cited where a wire which had been I thrown over an electric light wire carry ing $.000 volta had Its end tied around a tree ln a private yard, thus effecting con tact with a cable used for a swing. The owner of the premises In attempting to remove the wire grasped the swing cable and was Instantly killed. Another In- stsnce Is reported where a wlreman fell from a pole as the result of shock from a 1,000-volt alternating circuit and was se- verelv lnlured. Moet of the losses were due to very common causes, the chief cases of the grounding of circuits being (1) where fixture wires grounded on gaa nin! 121 where feeder wires grounded under sidewalks: (3) where service switches rounded on outside walla: and (1) from contact of wtrea with awnlnga and metal work on bulldincs. These defects deserve careful study by property owners In any wav concerned with the proper control of the electrical haiard. The destruction of one house nearlr resulted from the over- heating of an electric flatlron. The ap pliance was hung upon tbe wall when not in use. While In that position a child turned the switch so that the current waa turned into tho Iron. After a time the heat became ao intense that it communi cated through the plastering to tbe lath and studding, w hich . were finally ignited. Tbe smoke waa discovered by a servant on tbe third floor In time to avert aerlous loss. A $35,000 loss occurred during a thunderstorm when lightning temporarily disabled service wires furnishing current to a supply store. One of tbe employes going to tbe second floor to show some merchandise, turned tho key of a lamp at tached to an extension cord. As it did not work he carelessly dropped tbe lamp on top of some clothing. When the current was turned on a fire was started In the stock with very disastrous results. Six "pole and tree" fires are reported. In one case a limb of a tree, after being burned off by contact with a primary wire, fell and crossed the primary with tho secondary circuits, senuing niga poieuimi currrui i i i.ouu vuus into triree uweiuogs, iu wtu ui which fires were started. Many fires and burnouts due to crosses between telephone and high-tension wires are noted. Of these crosses, eleven were found on lighting and four on trolley wires. Seven fires are attributed to the overheating ot resistance colls and heating devices; one being caused by an electric smoothing iron, another starting from a heater, a third from a droplight left on a wooden seat and four from resistance colls ln rheostats. Two tires are reported duo to the burnout of motors, one from an electric fan, and two from incandescent arc lamps. Carreat Motes. Thomas A. Kdlson Is building a special electric car, fitted with nis new storage OHlieriP!", io ce unea in int. ow-ninu rou- ability run In October under the auspices of the Automobile Club of America. The Journey will be to Boston and return. It tlon. " The two electric light companies control- Ing the business In Now York City have nnnuorrg a reaurnon oi o wr rem in raio. Priren will h is rents iVr kilowatt hour for tho firrt two hour of !. intHl of W cents, as now, and a somewhat smaller relative reduction is made ln the lower rates charged where the current Is used for longer periods man i wo nours. ine smaii consumers gain more from tne' reduction than the large, Wood is made fireproof by the Nodcn and Bretonneau process, aa used at Paris, by niacins it in a bath of magnesium sulphate. lj.aH Alrrtrndea are used, the one beltic aeparated from the other by a sailcloth dia phragm. A direct current or nu vous is then sent through the wood, with the re sult that the sup Is extracted and Is re placed by a non-inflammable salt. The phe nomenon is thus explained: (1) Part of the iilttViutA fllla tin thn crIIm hv plnctro-cnml- larfty. (2 There W an osmotic exchange be sap. Aseptic action. The process has been applied with success to paving blocks. The tween tne BUipnate ana me sails or tne treatment lasts tor toriy-eigni nuura, imh timber being turned over after twenty-four hours. The rate of energy la about half an electric horse-power at twenty to thirty VOil" PtIr.C'!biC "J-iU .,..k Tho Western I nlon Telegraph company has a larae number of men at work build- Ing new lines and making new connections .lo Jtll P'".c" ."'V "'ft" Ice on which is now operated by the Postal Telegraph Company. Borne difficulty Is being experienced by the Western Union Telegraph company In re-establishing Its abandoned turnpike lines, especially in l'ennHVivama. anu it is reoonea tnnt tne company has not yet been able to find a place on which to land Its Delaware river cables on the New Jersey side that Is not owned by the Pennsylvania Ballroad com- pany. The company expects, however, by becember 1 to be able to handle over new iMtWlS? By that date the Postal Telegraph com- pany will be In possession of all the offices and lines along the Pennsylvania railroad. . A MAGNIFICENT BRIBE. Story ot How Gaanbetta Sparaed Tea Mlllloa Fraaoa. In General do Qalllfret's continuation of hla memoirs ln the Journal des Debata. re- norts tbe London Telecraoh. wo are brouaht on to the year 18S0, when tbe writer was commanding the Ninth army corps at Tours. When ho . went to Paris on official bust- neea be sometimes looked Oambetta up. Hs found with him M. R. (probably Ranc), the atanchest ot all bis friends and a man of great intelligence and courage, who re garaeq tne general as a ureaatui soiaier, dui ... . t . . .... won his esteem, nevertheless. Ons dry the card of a retired staff colonel was brought . . , ... ..., The visitor, after remarking that bo had beard that General de Oalllffet was on Inti mate terms with Gambetta, spoks to him of a wonderful enterprise for the rapid trans port on a railroad which waa to bo con strueted of warships from tho ocean to tho Mediterranean. This would mean tho sup pression of Gibraltar. He was to bo one of tbe directors and most of tbs cspltal would be found In tbe United States. All that was now wanted waa to obtain the concession from tbe French government, and if General de Galllffet would only favor Mm with a letter' ot Introduction to Gambetta the matter would be practically aettled. Tbe general asked him to return later In tbo day, and In tbe meantime ho Invited General Arnaudeau, who commanded on. of his divisions, to meet him. After tbo seo- ond Interview tbe two generals talked th. question over together, Arnaudeau saying thst It was Impossible to Judge, but that hs could not condemn tbe scheme, so that even Ing the colonel started for Parts with tbo letter to Gambetta. Three days afterward he returned, Baying that hs had been very well received. Gam betta bad told him that hs was studying tbo plan .for connecting tbe two seas by meana of a canal and that he would think of his project. Leas than three weeks afterward the colonel returned to General de Galllffet In quest of another letter. Don't you think," be inquired, "that I should do well to brosch with Oambetta the question of bis benefice?" "Take good care not to do that. M. Oambetta does not work ln tbe pot de vln line," General de Galllffet answered sharply, but a few daya later ho received a registered letter from M. Arnault de I'Arlege, relating that tho colonel bad returned to Gambetta and had left a check, which was enclosed, on his table. Gambetta's flrst Impulse was to bsvs him arrested, but then people would hsvs said that he was giving himself a fine ad vertisement. So, would tbs genersl kindly return tbe check, with a bint that the colonel was never- to go near Gambetta again. General de Galllffet hurried to Par la with the check ln hla pocket and went to his lawyer and friend, M. Prevost, whom be asked to ascertain wbsther this was a genu- Ine affair. It was, as It turned out, for tbe bank, a great one, replied that It waa prepared to pay this check for 10,000,000 francs. The genersl returned to Tours and In the presence of two of his chief officers he wrote a line to the colonel expressing his opinion of him ln very plain language and enclosing the check In the envelope, which waa duly sealed and then registered at the postofflce by the two witnesses. The colonel never tbanked or saw him again WORDS COMK IIY Art IDKVT ttrlata of Maar Kaarcsslvc Ternia In r i iturran: it uai to oe "Hurray; - ami he fry la ss old aa England. It Is tho name cry ot the old Norse vlklnga as they ,wPt down to burn and murder among tne peaceful British, relates the rhlladel Pn'a inquirer. "Tur ale! was their war ry. wmco means i nor am: an appeal ,or De,'P ' Tnor. tne god of battles. "' all humbug!" Perhaps It Is. Hum- bu the Irish "ulm bog," pronounced humbug, meaning hogus money. King James II coined worthless money from his mint at Dublin, his twenty-shilling piece being worth twopence. The people called It "ulm bog." It was a Roman gentleman of 2,000 years ago who first aeked "whero the shoe pinches." He had Just divorced hla wife and his friends wanted to know what waa the matter with the woman. They declared he was good and pretty. "Now." said the husband taking oft his shoe, "Isn't that a nice shoe? It'a a good shoe, eh? A pretty shoe, eb? A new shoe, eh? And none ot you can tell where it pinches me." 'Before you can aay Jack Robinson" arose from the behavior of one John Rob inson. He was a fool. Ho was In such a hurry when be railed on his friends thst he would be off before he had well knocked at the door. "There they go. helter-skelter!" That phrase was coined at the defeat of the Spanish Armada. The great fleet of the Spanish Invasion was driven by storm and stress of tbe English attack north to the Helder river and south to tho Skelder river tne Scheldt. p0 T0J j,now wnr a hare l called "puss?" This Is not a riddle, but. Just an example of how words get twisted. The ancient Latin word for a hare was "lepus." Tho Norman knights who came over with William the Conqueror pronounced the word "le puss." The puss remains today. "Go to Halifax!" That town was a place of .peCai t.rror for roguet bcause of tn, flrst ruj6' gum,,,,,,. nvented there by Mannaye for chopping off felons' beads Halifax law was that the criminal "should b condemned first and Inquired upon ,f,er. Coventry had a queer law In old times, by which none but freemen of the city could practice a trade there. Stran- gers were starved out. Hence the phrsse r shutting a man out of human com- pany "sent to Coventry." "Spick and .nn,, romna from lh "rIV." mA ,. ,pan.. come8 ."" spikes and span- ners tne Tiooks and stretchers for stretching cloth new from the loom. TO dun a man for debt comes from the memory of Joe Dun, bailiff of Lincoln, who was so keen a collector that his narao v.. become a nrnvarh n" oecome a proverh. News Is a queer word tho Initials of north, east, west, south, which appeared ,K. .-u., , ' , ' , . ' on tho earliest Journals as a sign that In- i lurwauuu was io do naa nere irom the four quarters of tho world. The sign waa NEWS and gave us our word, "news." PEACH 8TOJIE9 FOlt Ft EL. Have Bees TJtlllaed In Baltimore as a flabstltaio for Coal. The great strike and the Increased cost of coal Incident thereto has directed much at tention to other materials for fuol, and a Baltimore man says a goof substitute for the black diamond Is dried peach stones. The . ohleptlon to their use la the ararcllv oniy ODection io tneir uss is me scarcity, which dependa entirely on tho aire of thn peach crop. Frank Hall, tho Baltlmorean referred to, says his family had used peach . ' . . . stones as fuel for years until about three 1 of , four year ago, since which time tho supply has appeared td have decreased. "Wo used to g'et the dried peach stones from a Mr. Noel, who got them from the , i,i t,-,..-. "Jlnercnt packing houses and dried them on bis place," said Mr. Hall yesterday. "I tvin. ... sn - ,. u. , " , J, 'o eontainlng about forty-five bushels. The fuel was Used ln the kitchen and gave good rp.uif The atones will mnlta a onlcV hnt- "8U,l, l ne stones will make a quick, hot fire and one that will last. One and a half " """ - to be careful not to fill tbe stove too full 0r there will likely be an explosion olmllar to a gasoline explosion. Tbs proper way to keep tbo Are going Is to put In a shovel ful at a time. "Peach stones thrown Into a damp cellar," said Mr. Hall, "are said to have a peculiar I ffect on a person. After tho stones are In the cellar for some time gases arise, and lne umee win go to one s head and give the &nle ect H t: distilled product ot tne P,acn Ba Den imbibed. What la Necessary. Chicago Post: "Tou never can make that kind of dog fashionable." said tho expert. Why not? asked the novice in canine affairs. ...i , 1 . . . 1 . 1 - - riKCH.ua. reuueu mr riorri. am icn i .mM . . , h H-1...- .tunld enoua-li to be utterly worthless or ugly enough to be interesting." The man, it may be said, had made a i siuav or tne oeta or lasnion. cuna. FOLD. Blindfold woman and. ahe loses all confi dence) la herself. Her step is slow, hesitating and uncertain. Her hands are raised to ward the Im aginary blows which threaten her. When a alek woman seeks tht means of health she is often ,' like a .woman blindfold. She has no confidence. She cannot tell what her effort will lead to. She turns now to this side and then to tbe other in uncer tainty and doubt. The sick woman who uses Dr. Pierce's Favorite Prescription may do so with absolute confidence. It invites open eyed investigation. There need be no beat tat ion in following tbe hundreds of thousands of women who have found a perfect cure for womanly ills in tbe use of this medicine. " Favorita Prescription " cures irregu larity and dries weakening drains. It heals inflammation and ulceration and cures female weakness. With a heart full of gratitude to you for send ing out vvrr In laud tour woaderful medicine I aead thea few liars, hoping that aural poor suf trrtag wonta will try Dr. Pierce's medicine wriue Mrs. Cora L. Root, of Craxoapfing Pur act, Waahingtoa Co.. Maryland. 1 had suf fered arvcrly rtom famalr weakness asd had to be io bed a great deal of to time. Itad head ache, backache, sad pais ia left sMewhen lying own. I cammcaced taking lit. Pierce's Favor ite Preecriptloa, and had uot takea two bottles wbeo I was ablt to be around again aod do my work with but Utile paio. Cau oow eat any talsg end It never hurts me aay more. Have tekto seven bottle of Dr. Iteroe's favorite pre acrtptlon. ana one of hie 'Compound Ustract oi Amart-Wred and several vials of bla ' Pleaaanl Pellcta.' reeling better every day. My bvia baad says I look better every day." Dr. Pierce's Pleasant Pellet cure bil iousness and sick headache. CP"