Decatur Democrat, Volume 40, Number 6, Decatur, Adams County, 24 April 1896 — Page 8

4* ———— ©he democrat DECATUR, IND. M. BLACKBURN, . . . Pctmuto. Tlw New York Interviewers agrew' that Sarah Bernhardt is still “about thirty.’’ The Valkyrie is said to be for sale. Anybody want a yacht which can’t sail unless she has the whole course? Despite the fact that half of the Central American town of Colon has been destroyed by Are its name will not be •'hanged to Semicolon. ■ A Boston contemporary affirms that l man is not necessarily weak intellectually because he is unable to tie a necktie gracefully. Can this be true? Spain finds ft would stand without European assistance in the event of American intervention in Cuba. This is the only thing it has learned in some ►enturlee. One of the items of keeping up Blenheim palace is $4,000 a year for putty. The young Duke may have made a mistake after all In marrying a girl with only $5,000,000. Murderer Holmes told Hall Caine, *1 the novelist, that he had read a number of his books. Still, we don't think that Mr? Caine’s books are wholly responsible for Holmes' crimes. Oom Paul Krueger announces that he will be unable to accept Secretary Chamberlain’s kind invitation to go to London for a visit. The old man Is a pretty smooth Boer. A cablegram announces that the British forces on their march up the Nile have taken Akesheh. Never heard of the place before, but it evidently is a town which isn’t to be sneezed at. *r ! A Cleveland scientist has succeeded In photographing an editor's ribs. It has been reported that he had aiso photographed the editor’s stomach; but of course, there is nothing In that. The reason the Prince of Wales has declared himself in favor of peace is' doubtless because he does not want to discourage Queen Victoria In her willingness eventually to rest there. Perrine's new comet has been slandered. It isn't a bob-tailed affair; on the contrary, it has a tail 10,000,000 miles long. If there is any doubt about that you can measure the tail yourself. The Duke of Marlborough’s English solicitor, in an interview, says that he “sincerely hopes the American people will not regard his distinguished client in the light of a fortune hunter.” Oh, dear, no; the idea! This war sears may pass by, but it would .ba well for the European powers i to reflect that thay need not expect always to get off so easily. Some time they will play with a war rumor a little too carelessly and there will be trouble. ____________ The cable brings the Interesting information that a French scientist has Invented an instrument which be calls a “glassary,” for measuring the tongues of bees. We are glad somebodv has found time enough to attend to this highly important matter. Os all the English colonists on American soil the English sparrow is easily the most impudent, overbearing, and disagreeable. It has few if any redeeming traits. It drive® away better birds, it has no moral character, and it can’t sing. It is the Russian thistle of the feathered tribe. Drive it out. The dynamite shells experimented with for naval defense at San Fran- ' deco are found to be entirely effective within a distance of three miles. This destructive agent is as yet an unknown quantity In warfare, but there is an Increasing dread of it among the Spanish troops in Cuba. The British people consume every fear $150,000,000 worth more of gralu than they produce, and in view of possible war complications it is proposed to keep not less than one year’s supply of cereals on hand. When the Briton can sing that he has the men, the ships, the money and the corn, he may be considered in good shape for all contingencies. The Lieutenant Governor of Call- ,, fornla recently died, and there is no provision In the constitution or laws of the State for filling the vacancy. Accordingly, the Governor has appointed a man to the place under his general authority to fill vacancies, and this un- . usual proceeding on his part will probably be allowed to stand because there Is no legal way to undo. It., The story of European rule in America has been mainly ond of oppression { and bloodshed. England treats Canada with moderation because the United States taught her a lesson. But Cuba is still in the toils, and the tyranny of foreign government is working her ruin. The Monroe doctrine means that there has already been too much of this curse laid upon the people <the new world. The bill introduced In the Ohio Legislature by Senator Garfield to prevent the corrupt use of money in elections, primary as well as regular, is now a law. Candidates are limited to an expenditure, for" personal expenses

' only, of not more than S2OO, and of • SIOO if but 5,000 votes are concerned ’ The law will nt least enable candidate! to gracefully Ignore some of the do mauds made upon them. It is said that only three hot ds ol ( fur seals are left in the world, ant that these are threatened with earl; extinction. One statement about out Alaska seals Is that they consume every day 50,000,000 pounds of Ash mostly codfish. But there is no scare ity of fish, and no good reason why the seal should not be intelligently pro tected. When the last of any trib< of animals disappears that Is the lasi of it as far ns this planet <s concerned, ’ and mankind should not strike the flna blow without comprehending Its tuS meaning. Mr. Andrew Carnegie has written i letter to the Ixmdon Times in favor oi arbitration of the boundary dispute with a fixed price upon such territory as has been settled by the Britisl should their title be found defective This will not do. If the English hav< settled upon territory that does no belong to their nation all they have t< do Is to get out of it or take out natu ralizatlon papers and become Venezue lan citizens. They have no right to t mile of Venezuelan soil. It is a ques tion even whether under the Monro< doctrine fairly interpreted Venezuelt has the right to sell her American ter ritory to a foreign monarchical natioi under the pressure of bribery or bull dozing. It would be a violation o' the spirit If not of the letter of tha doctrine at least that America was fc Americans. The Supreme Court of Illinois hai affirmed the conviction of Frank R and Charles J. Meadowcroft, of Chi cago, for illegal banking and has de cider in favor of the constitutionality of the law under which they wer< sentenced to oue year’s imprisonment A different decision would have ere ated surprise. The law was framed to correct a recognized and a growlnj evil. The Meadowcroft case was Iti first test. They had a fair trial, wen defended by the best lawyers money could hire, and were found guilty. They sought to escape the penalty foi their crime through legal technicalities. That they have not succeeded is matter for congratulation to every man ■ and woman who has a dollar on deposit in a bank in this State. The crltnn for which the Meadowcrofts must suffer punishment was neither mono not less than embezzlement. The funds they squandered were trust funds. Reckless of the consequences to themselves or their clients, with the daring of confirmed gamblers, they plunged deeper and deeper into the vortex ot speculation until It overwhelmed them. They knew the law, but if there had been no such law they knew it wai a crime, morally, to speculate with the money of others which, if lost, they could not repay. The case is particularly striking because of the character of the men. Neither was an adventurer nor a hardened criminal, Both were young, the bearers of ai honored name, and favored by fortune with good birth and breeding, and high social connections. They inherited ample means for the enjoyment of life. With this they were not content. One step in the wrong direction led to another, and at the end of the path stands an open prison door. Tc the lowest classes imprisonment Is not a great hardship. The ordinary thief loses little else than his liberty when he dons the stripes. He neither knowt nor cares for the respect of his fellowmen. It Is different with those like the Meadowcrofts, who have always thought the penitentiaries as being intended for another race of beings than themselves. The mantle of disgrace will be worn by them with keen suffering. It is difficult to avoid sympathizing with these two young men, and they are to be pitied sincerely. The way of the transgressor is hard, but it is the one they chose voluntarily, and their punishment will be a wholesome warning to others. For Gold. A new amalgam has been discovered wbdch is a wonderful substitute foi gold. It consists of ninety-four parts of copper to elx parts of antimony. The copper Is melted, and the antimony Is then added. Once the two metals are sufficiently fused together, a little magnesium and carbonate of lime are added to increase the density of tlie material. The product can be drawn, wrought, and soldered just Like go-id which it almost exactly resembles on being polished. Even when exposed to the action of ammonlacal salts or nitrous vapours it preserves its color, The cost of making it is about 1 shil ling a pound avoirdupois. Byron’s Pun. Byron was as fond of puns as Macaulay. In one of the poet’s letters sold in London the other day occurs this passage: “I am living alone in the Fran clscan monastery with one friar (a Capuchin, of course) and one, frier (a, bandy-legged Turkish cook).” This let-, ter sold for SOO. It is Interesting to note that there ai;e many signs pointin; to a Byron revival in the near future. Two Choice Volumes. “Her father is not what you woulu call a well-read man,”’ said one foreign gentleman to another. “No. His library consists of only two books. But they suffice.” “What are they?” “Bank-book and check book.”—Wash* Ington Star. ” — . Big Pane. What Is claimed to be the largest single pane of glass in the country wai received at Hartford, Conn., from Bel glum recently. It is 12% feet high, 15y feet wide, %-lnch thick and weighs l.bOj pounds.

FARM MID GARDEN NOTES. HUMS OF TIMELY INTEREST TO THE FARMERS, A Broken Horn—Cure for the Stretches—' Disease In Fowls—Brains, the Farm er's Remedy. A BROKEN HORN. When cows are at play, they frequently break off the horns: that is, the outer shell of them, leaving the inner core, which will bleed, and is very tender. There is nothing serious about this, and if the bleeding core is wrapped in a tarry bandage, it will heal in a few days, and soon become covered with new horn. It will never regain its shape, but will always be deformed.— New York Times. CURE FOR THE “STRETCHES.” “When a sheep has the ‘stretches,” writes D. H. Thing, “pour down its throat a pint bottle full of a decoction of thorough wort (Eupatorium perfoliatum). made as strong as possible by steeping until as black as ink. Do this the first time the sheep begins to stretch, ami it has never failed to cure, I in my forty years’ experience. Gather and dry the herb, so as to have it on hand for the purpose.”—American Agriculturist. DISEASE IN FOWLS. Fowls are subject to a disease known as anthrax, the results of which is to produce boils or purulent swellings on various parts of the body. Sometimes the combs turn black and at other times bluish, both showing that the blood is darker tuan usual, whence the name of the disease, which means ’-black. It is contagious, and generally fatal, so that it is not worth the trouble and time to try to save them, but it is best to kill the diseased ones and purify the house by burning sulphur in it and limewashing it, by which the others may be saved. It is well, too, to give the other fowls each a teaspoonful of solution of hyposulphate of soda in water as strong as it can be made—a saturated solution, as it is termed—once a day’, and mix a little of it in some soft food. It is encouraged by giving too much grain food, and no fresh green food, such as chopped cabbage, which is a natural substitute for the grass ole tained in the summer. BRAINS, THE FARMER’S REMEDY. Slipshpd farming will never again pay in this country, if it ever did. It was not much trouble to farm fifty years ago. Anybody who could hold a plow or a cradle or a scythe, and knew enough to sow and plant and reap at the proper season, could farm. All there was to do was to plant corn and sow wheat and oats and grass seed,harvest and market them. The animals that were bred did nqt amount to much anyhow. In the East the local butcher would come around and buy the calves, apd as a cow was a cow it did not make any difference how long she lived. The business was dead easy, as far as management went. It was then all work and no management, but now the jpanagement. is the principal things. The farmer must think, and think hard. He finds it necessary to diversify his crops, more than ever, and lie is often at a loss to decide in which direction to do it. He has the brains to compete with both on and off the farm. Bogus butters, cotton-seel oil lard, and adulerations of every one of his product! that can be adulterated are placed side by side with his productions in the market; and it is of no use for him to grumble about it. While he is grumbling, tile other fellow gets the money, He must, not grumble, but think, and plan. He must recognize the fact that agricultural pursuits, like other lines of .business, have their complications, and that tithing on earth but the exercise of the gray matter in his head will unravel them.—Farmer’s Voice. HEED POTATOES. „ The best way to cut seed potatoes ia a problem upon which no two farmer* agree, and concerning which numberless experiments have been tried by farmers generally, as well as by experiment stations. Results at all the stations have been carefully studied by F. Duggar, who concludes (Farmers’ Bulletin No. 3b, United States Department of Agriculture,) that it Is more “Important to cut the tuber into compact pieces of nearly uniform size than to shap the pieces so as to have a definite number of eyes on each set. No piece should lie entirely devoid of eyes, and the majority of the seed pieces should be large enough to support at least two eyes, and better three of more.” The yield from planting the seed or bud end is larger than from the stem or butt end of the tuber, the eyes on, the seed end being first to germinate, and hence of especial importance when an early crop is desired. The total crop Increases with every increase In the size of seed pieces from the single eye to the whole potato; this increase occurs both in the large and in the small potatoes, but chiefly in the latter. The net yield of salable potatoes increases with every increase in the size of seed piece from one eye to the half potato. “The half potato affords a larger net salable crop than the whole potato, on account of the excessive amount of seed required in planting entire tubers. Taking the average of many experiments, it was found that for every 100 bushels of net salable crop grown from single eyes, there were 114 bushels from two-eye pieces, 131 bushels from quarters, and 139 bushels from halves

but only 129 bushels from planting wh>le potatoes. These results favor < the use of halves as seed pieces, If seed ■ potitoes and crops are assumed to be of qual value per bushel; but, when , seel potatoes command a very high price per bushel, quarters may be used to idvantage. It is better to place in one hill one large piece than several W small ones of the same aggregate we ght. Small potatoes can sometime* be used for seed with profit, in which cas’ they should be planted whole. “[.ending growers are careful to select for seed medium to large tubers of good shape, and their example should be followed.” SWARMING OF BEES. While dividing has taken the place of swarming to a very great extent, swarming is preferable in many instances. says A. H. Duff. A good swarm of l>ees, for real business, cannot lie substituted by any division. A natural . swarm for the nrst twenty days will store double the amount of honey, and hi many cases five pounds to one, that anv division of equal strength will do. ; It will take a division all of twenty I days to catch up to a natural swarm ' in condition for storing honey. It I makes some difference where the division is located after the colony is divided; If it is set in the same apiary, all the old bees, or the working force, will return to the old location, and no work of any consequence will be done for ten days or more. If the same division is taken one or more miles away, then but little if any of the working force returns; hence they are in much better condition for business, but will not even then equal a natural swarm. When honey is the sole object, I have , always obtained the best results by allowing my best colonies to cast a swarm, if reasonably strong. It is true we cannot count largely on swarms if we hive them in empty hives; but, to ; receive the best results, we must use I either empty combs or foundation in- ; stead. The swarming limit should extend to first swarms only, as there can be no advantage in after -swarming. I Second swarms often do well, but it . weakens the parent stock to such an ex- ■ tent that it is not profitable. In hiving I swarms, be certain that you have the : queen of the hive. If you have ; not discovered the queen in hiving, see that all the bees are in the hive. A small cluster of bees left on the outside , may contain the queen, and if so, they ; are liable to swarm off again, and may leave you for good. After hiving, give them an abundance of ventilation, either by enlarging the entrance, or shading the hive from the hot rays of the sun, or both, and especially if the swarms are large. In swarming, bees till themselves with honey to the utmost limit; hence more ventilation is ' required than at any other time. It is j always an advantage to give the swarm a frame of a brood from some other colony to commence housekeeping on. Never allow a swarm of bees to remain long after settling, but hive them as soon as possible. Swarms often return to their hive after issuing. This is evidence that the queen has not taken wing with them, and she may be found crawling about the hive, having bad wings and being unable to fly. A CROP EVERY SIX WEEKS. j What kind of a crop? Why a crop of lettuce; and a valuable one, too. I assure you. When 1 was in Columbus, in January, I went over to "the State University. Os course, I gravitated at once toward a large greenhouse, 100 feet long or more. The center bed, perhaps eight feet wide, contained a crop of Grand Rapids lettuce almost ready to cut and it was one of the most beautiful sights I think 1 ever saw. Professor Hunt seconded my exclama- 1 tion that there was hardly a plant in the hands of the florist that made a more etriking and beautiful display than a full crop of Grand Rapids let- I tuce when it is just in its prime.* The | seed is sown in flats and the plants are | transplanted once into the flats before going Into the large beds, a sufficient : number of plants being kept constant- , ly on hand to till up the large beds Just i as soon as the cutting is made. In this ‘ way they average a crop from the beds ■ once every six weeks. I cannot give I you the figures just now; but at this i date, March 10, we are sold out on let- j tuce, and are paying a neighboring ; gardener fifteen cents per pound for what we sell. It would be a poor crop ; indeed that did not average half a | pound to the plant, and the plants i stand seven inches apart all over the bed. Os course, you have got t attend to things, and know your business, to harvest a crop every six weeks; but anyone who is really anxious, and has average skill, can learn the trade if he sticks to It. After I was made happy by seeing how successfully they managed the lettuce greenhouse I’rofessor Hunt took us over to the creamery—l guess that is what they call it—and showed us how they teach Ohio boys to make butter by the use of all modern inventions and appliances. Everything was as neat and tidy, and bright and clean, as the appliances in the office of a city merchant; and the students were using all the modern inventions in the line of electricity, chemistry, etc., taking the subject in a scientific way, from the proper caring for and feeding the cow until the gilt-edged butter, cream or cheese is ready for a class of customers who are ready and willing to pay for the finest food product that skill and science can bring out. I hope our experiment, colleges will teach the boys, above all things, to be honest, and to stand out against fraud, trickery and deceit wherever found. FARM AND GARDEN NOTES. A good plant takes no more room than a poor one? H-vethe good one

Ewoe with poor teeth need especial care if atfch ewes are kept at all. They cannot eat hard grain. It does not cost much to buy a half dozen sheep, and that sized flock would be better than none on a poor farm. A good general rule In sheep husbandry Is that t|ie sheep must lie petted. It Is a timid animal and cannot be klckei' and ought not to lx» sworn at. Economy and the ability to perform hard work are needful for the average farmer, but to know what and how to do it are equally important to be successful. Did you ever consider the matter and count up how much you lose annually by not securing the very best seed oats and corn? Now is the time to have it under advertisement. Don’t be afraid to report your successes or failures. What has benetltted you will help others, and your stumbling blocks pointed out will enable others to steer clear of them. Is your horse well shod, and does his harness tit him? If not, put on a pah of boots one size too large or small, and ; let down one suspender, and find out • for yourself how he feels, says a horse- . man. Sheep will both feed and clothe a man, which Is more than can be said of other farm animals. Many level-head-ed farmers still believe in the poor, despised sheep, despite the low prices of recent years. Bitrn manures are generally more Economically used when applied to farm ; crops tlfan when applied to orchards, says an exchange, yet they can be used with good results, particularly when re- ; juvenating old orchards. Vegetables, such as cabbage, turnips, ! beets, onions and potatoes are relished, and will amply pay for the extra trouble you may be put to in procuring them. In fact It is barely possible to make a success of winter egg produci tion without something of this kind, i If the udder is hard and hot, after lambing, it should be fomented by frequently and continuously applying to It ia cloth dipped in hot water. Repeated washings witli cold water produce the : same effect, but more slowly, and with ■ a greater tendency to dry up the milk. ' If the lamb is dead, and there are in- | durated tumors in the udder, apply • iodine ointment. THE OLYMPIAN GAMES. They Were Part and Parcel ot the Life of the Ancient GreeL. These closing ten years of the nineteenth century may be called the period of international games. If the Greek ! gymnastic festival of April, 189 G, slgi nitied no more than a series of games i offering the hospitality of the country, lover which the, glamour of a glorious past lingers like a rich sunset, it would be a notable event. But It is more than this—far more. The enterprise revives the memory and spirit of an institution which shed a peculiar luster on the history of classic Greece. It entered into the life of the ancient Greek to an extent which vtte of to-day can scarcely realize. It was associated with his religion, Jiis civic pride, his ideals of art, and his highest patriotism. This institution was the Olympia festival, celeI brated every four years at Olympia, on 1 the river Alpheus, near the boarders of : Elis and Pisa, and so kept up for more than a thousand years. Then? were other national games of a similar sort—such as the Isthmain games; but those, though highly regarded, were of far less dignity and interest. When one speaks, then, of the Olympic games there arises in the mind a picture of those vast gatherings where all Greece, though at the very ■ time divided by civil wars, remembered for a brief period that its borders bounded one people—n people of one blood, one glory, and one destiny. The hold of the Olympic festival on the | ancient Hellenic world is seen in the I fact that from 770 B. *O., time was ! measured by “Olympiads,” or the four year intervals between the games. i The remote origin of this festival is i hidden in myths, as is the case with' so j..many customs of the classic ages. In i general, all these legends ascribe the ; games to the demi-god Hercules as I founder. Sufficient time had passed | for the early form of this festival to I have gone into decay, before it was rei vived and had a historic beginning. This occurred under the patronage of ' Iphitus, king of Elis, and Lycurgus,the [celebrated lawgiver of the Spartan ! commonwealth. It is fixed at or about 884 B. C. This revival soon lighted a living spark which fired Greek blood everywhere, and in less than half a century the festival became national In character. , Only contestants of pure Hellenic blood were allowed to enter their names. As time rolled bn, and the Greeks (who were, you know, great sailors and merchants) pushed their maritime enterprises, and established colonies througlmut the whole length and breadth, of the Mediterranean, children of the greater Greece, everywhere from the distant borders of Persia to where the city of Marseilles now stands, Assembled to struggle for the prize wreath. The interest of the Greek race in these games became a passion. To win a victory in any ot the contests reflected as much glory on the athlete and on his community as it he had been the successful general in a great battle. His name was added to the brazen tablets recording the celebrities and benefactors of his native town. If he died on this field of honor, —as was oftefl the case, even in the flush of victory,—he became almost an* Idol in the public esteem, and his family was ennobled and enriched by public decree. The cost of a West Point outfit complete Is about $9

A Rattler Poaaa «• • Maamarlat Being hypnotized by a snake seems to be a little out of the ordinary run of hypnotic Influence, but a story cwnes to The Philadelphia Press from Florida of a rattlesnake which at least possessed this power in one nstanee. The incident occurred in a small village of Florida recently. A young girl named Pauline Browne, while gathering wild flowers in a dense wood, grew tired and sat down to rest before a cluster of large, white flowers. While gazing steadPy at the flowers, a benumbing influence seemed to attack her. The flowers flashed all colors and from the midst of them shot a tongue of flume. She was terrified, but was unable to move or cry out. While in this hypnotized condition the report of a gun startled her, the trance and she fainteu away. Her brother, alarmed at her long ab sence from home, had come in search of her, and approaching from behind, saw the head of a rattlesnake darting to and fro above the cluster of flowerp. He shot the head off with his gun and found that the rattler was n monster in size, being seven feet long and eighteen Inches In circumference at the largest pgrt of its body. It had sixteen rattles and a button. The People of Dade. Fierce as they are in war, the people of Dads are when at peace the gentlest of creatures, extremely devoted to their children and living a home life absolutely unknown among the Arabs. Juet as in apparance, so in moral character, do they excel, and the vices so common among the Moors are unknown in the homes of the Berbers. They seem to possess none of that uncontrollable passion that is so large a feature in the Arab character, and Its place is taken by affection and sincerity. No doubt to a great extent the moral character of the Berbers is due To the fact that their women are allowed entire liberty, do not veil their faces, and mix on almost all occasions witli the men. One of the first things that struck me on my arrival at Dads was the good-humored and innocent chaff that passed between the men and the girls of the tribe, even in the streets of the ksar, and still more when they brought us our food to the minza.li on the housetop. The women are distinctly pretty, [with fair skins and clear complexions; but they detract much from their appearance by the strange manner in which they adorn their features with henna and kohl, the formeb a red dys and the latter antimony. The Cap of the Sphinx. Tn a letter from Cairo to the European edition of The Herald it was stated:. “Colonel G. E. Raum has continued making excavations at the Sphinx and has come upon a most interesting find. In the head of the Sphinx there is a hole drilled to the depth of seven feet, and it has bseh pretty generally agreed that this hole was connected with a cap which must have crowned the head of the Sphinx, but which cap has been missing from lime immemorial. Many excavations have been pteviously undertaken, but it has been left for the ex-colonel of engineers from San Francisco to find the cap. Thlf was come upon at a depth of fourteen or fifteen feet only below the surface. It measures four feet three Inches in extreme breadth, and is marked with the three lotus columns, underneath which Is the serpent. The cap was found in the Temple of the Sphinx, between the forepaws, and is painted red.” Much interest s attached to the unearthing of this ]>ortion of the Sphinx, as it has been missing for centuries,”— Washington Star. Appreciation. At Sedan, General Sheridan, as the military commissioner from the United States, was present on the summit of the little hill where King Williayi. Bismarck, Moltke and a group of notable officers were watching for the end. Moltke was standing by a large telescope mounted on a tripod. Spread upoff the ground at his feet lay maps of the region round about, which at moments he studied attentively. It was Sheridan-quick of eye and judgment —who first perceived with whom the victory rested. When that final charge (of the French) failed, the German ring closed as with a snap; and Sheridan, as he shuts his binocular, broke the strained silence with the exclamation: “It is all over with the French now!” At the words Moltke left his telescope, stalked aside to where Sheridan sat, and silently shook hands with the American soldier, who had felt the pulse of many battles. Measuring Rivers With a Hat. You will be surprised, no doubt, when we tell you that a man may measure the width of a river or of any other stream by means of the brim of hie hat, provided the ground on his side of the stream extends back level for some distance. Here is the way it is done: The man stands facing the river and pulls down his hat brim until the edge of it is on an exact line with the edge of the bank on the opposite side of the stream. Then, putting his hand under bis chin to steady it, so as to keep his head In the same position, he turns ■lowly around and notes whehre the edge of his hat brim cuts the ground on his own side of the river. The measure of the distance on the level ground will be the .width of the river.—San Francisco Chronicle. Mexico expects to adopt the metric system of weights and measures this year. On January Ist, 1896, the armies ot the world contained 4,209.000 men