Democratic Sentinel, Volume 15, Number 2, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 30 January 1891 — HOW TO CARRY A CANE [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

HOW TO CARRY A CANE

THERE ARE GOOD STYLES AND BAD STYLES. Both Are Doncrlbod Beau fruranwl’i Graceful Way ami the Gay Collet* Boy’s Grip—The Unde's Grotesque FashionHow a Sensible Man Does It. When Richard Mansfield, as Beau Brummel, start* out for his walk down the Mall, his attire is not complete until Mortimer hands him his cane. That is the finishing touch to the famous fop's toilet, and undoubtedly much of his preeminence in matters of dress and outward appearance was due to the elegance with which he manipulated it. It is undoubtedly true that very few men know how to carry a cane properly. In the hands of most this accessory to civilization is a torturesome instrument, daugerous alike to him who carries it and the public at large How many men who carry canes drop them at inopportune moments and lose their temper because ®f the difficulties they have to overcome to regain possession of them? How many awkward men trip over their canes? How many jab the points into the bodies and faces of long-sulfering fellow citizens? But observe Brummel’s style. His cane is not like that of to-day, but more like the staff of the drum-major. It is very tall, heavy, and hard to handle. He extends his arm gracefully and deliberately, and lets the point strike the ground firmly, but not violently. His grip Is perhaps quarter-way from the top. As he moves forward he lifts his cane with as deliberate action as before, draws it toward his chest, allowing it to approach to within about six inches of the same, and then repeats his first motions. If

Beau were alive to-day, undoubtedly he would handle the present cane in the same graceful style. There are many ways of carrying the cane at present. Of these the one which is least offensive is that wjjjich may be termed the college way. The college man grips the handle of his cane between his thumb and forefinger, and in walking produces a sort of pendulum movement with a stop at every swing, where the point of the cane strikes the pavement. If this style is properly executed, it looks manly and is injurious to no one. The dude has lately discovered something new. It is the most extravagant fashion that he has yet attempted to introduce. To carry out his programme, it is almost imperative that the beginner should first practice some kind of exercise with his right arm and shoulder to produce a laxity of movement not natural to the average man. If he does not follow this advice, and still attempts to imitate the

dude, he Is very liable to be laid up with a dislocated shoulder. A lesson would consist in practicing movements with the arm which would enable him to hold it out from the body at an elevation which would bring the elbow only about six inches below the lower extremity of his ear. Holding the upper part of his arm rigidly in that position, he must turn the forearm upward slightly, extend the fingers of his hand, as though they were talons of an eagle, grasp a large, thick, and heavy cane one-third way from the head, and then

to move it backward ajjJ forward the regular and deliberate motion of the piston-rod on the locomotive erginc. The roqjilt will be an ©utward and inward movement of the ahoulder-b'adc, which will probabiy result, after a few weeks’ p actiee, in its jlaiocation To make this style of carthe cane especially effective, it is

requisite that the experimenter shall have on one of the large box overcoats, with abundant looseness in the back, so that every movement of the cane will result in the production of at least four creases or folds in this part of the garment. It is: really a study to watch the dude In his new venture. The most surprising part of it is the fcujt that he should hare sufficient brains to accom-

plish all the details with such nicety aa he usually does. A style of carrying a cane which is affected by some men—is to catch it near the point with the handle turned upward, and then to swing it slightly backward and forward. It requires a man of more than average presence, with a tall and commanding figure, to do this well. The small man should never attempt it. The athlete has a habit of grasping his cane somewhat as if it were a club, which it usually is, with the point down, and the elbow of the arm that carries it almost at right angles with the body. As he walks he moves the cane slightly and gives the impression that he is prepared to use it in some emergency. The sensible man always carries his cane with the point downward and forward. That makes mistakes or accidents impossible. Usually he grasps the cane by the handle, swinging it backward and forward and allowing the point to strike the pavement. In this way he obtains from the cane what it undoubtedly was originated for—support. The awkward man should nevei be allowed to carry a cane. WAGON SEASICKNESS. A Curious Indian Vehicle That Beats a Fifth Avenue ’Bus for Jolting. The “tonga” is the prevailing style of cart used over the road from Simla to Kalka, India. The road is very hard to travel, having an ascent of nearly 5,000 feet in the fifty-eight miles of distance between the cities. It has two wheels, is drawn by>two

horses, and can carry four persons. The harnessing of the horses is one of the most unique features. They carry padded saddles and across these rests an iron bar. The pole of the cart rests on this, bemg fastened by clumsy iron bolts. The whole arrangement is clumsy, bukit is claimed to be well adapted to banging over the rocky roads. There is a constant whizzing around gorges and cutting the edges of precipices. A modern wagon would be entirely unserviceable, as the roads in India have a peculiar jolting effect on wagons which our bolted and iron conveyances could not withstand. The fun an experienced Indian traveler will get out of a ride in a tonga is something remarkable. An ordinary being would be so shaken up he couldn’t digest anything for a week, but one of the Indian travelers will eujoy the jumping about of the curious little wagon as a sailor enjoys the heaving of his ship.

Kansas Plitlosophy. Deceit, will wear a man out quicker than devotion to a disagreeable duty. Were two people ever in love with each other after they were thoroughly acquainted ? A pretty face may make a man fall in love, but it takes more than that to keep him there. A man can lift a heavier burden than a woman, but a woman can carry a heavy burden longer. Nothing is impossible in this world except for a boy to be as great as his mother thinks he will be. There is one time that a hunter always tells the truth; when he tells how manv bears some other man killed. When the heart overbalances the head you have a fool; when the head overbalances the heart you have a villain. . You would think there is a premium offered for fools; there are so many who lose no opportunity for being foolish. Every man is a hero until he meets his opportunity; before you have found pen and ink, your mind is full of things to write about. Watch the little things. A man has been known to pass every rock in the road in safety, and at last break his neck by stumbling over a stone—Atchison Globe i. It Was. Safe. Grocer—Well, my little boy, what will you have ? “Fifteen jeents’ worth of molasses.” Grocer (as he hands the pitcher over the counter) —Where is your money? “In the pitcher; I put it there so as to be sure not to lose it. ” Musk, derived from two little sacs on the belly of the musk deer, is regarded at a most important remedy for nervous troubles. It would be more used were it not so costly.

"WIZARD” EDISON OUTDONE. The Gramophone Eclipses the Phonograph la tile Becoming of sounds. An interesting exhibition was made recently at the rooms of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers in New York. It consisted of the gramophone, an instrument for reproducing all kinds of sounds at a distance in their original loudness and quality. The inventor is Emil Berliner. The gramophone uttered through its mouth-

piece, in toneß loud enough to be heard in all parts of the room, songs, piano music, cornet solos, clarionet solos, band mnsic and organ music reproduced from phonograph disks. The degree of clearness varied and, while the instrument was never quite true to the original, it came startlingly near sometimes. This was especially true of the higher notes of a woman’s voice singing “In Old Madrid.” A baritone voice issuing from the metal disk sang a sea song, which a piano on the platform near the instrument accompanied, and the effect was startling. The illustrations show the principle of the new machine. Instead of a cylinder on which the speech is recorded, as in the phonograph, a disk of zinc is used for receiving the impressions. This disk is covered with a thiu film of wax, and the recording stvlus cuts through it to the zinc plate. The lines made by it are afterward eaten out in the zinc by acid. The disk is mounted on a vertical spindle within an etching trough which revolves with it. The mouth tube, the diaphragm, and the recording stylus are mounted on a carriage moved toward the center of the disk by a screw taking its motion from the spindle. The disk is revolved rapidly by a wheel which is turned by a hand crank. As the record disk revolves, sounds which

enter the mouthpiece are transmitted to the diaphragm. Its vibrations are transmitted to the stylus, and as the disk revolves the stylus records in the wax wavy lines which represents the sounds uttered in the mouthpiece. As the carriage itself is slowly moved toward the center of the disk the impressions on the wax forma spiral lice. When the record is finished the disk is flooded with acid from the bottle at one side of the machine. The acid remains on the plate long enough to cut well into the zinc. The reproducing apparatus is an entirely separate machine. To it the disk, after all the wax on its face has been removed, is transferred. As in the recording instrument, the plate is mounted upon a spindle upon which it revolves. The diaphragm carries a stylus as well which follows the spiral groove in the zinc disk, and produces in the diaphragm vibrations which correspond to those which the dia-

phragm of the recording machine received. The great trumpet, at the smaller end of which the diaphragm and reproducing stylus are carried, sends out a remarkable volume of sound. The curious wavy lines which the stylus produces on the plate are shown in the diagram, giving a magnified record of the vowels. Copies of these engraved sounds can readily be made from the original metal disk. A Sensible Boy. An old fa’riner whose son, having gone to a show, was much larcerated in consequence of having “fooled around” the lion’s cage, in speaking of the affair, said: “You see, Luge he thought that the lion was asleep an’ ’gunter tickle his foot. The lion wa’n’t asleep.” “The lion tore off your sen’s arm, I believe.” “Yes, his left arm. Oh, Lige he is putty sensible, an’ es thar’s got to be any chawin’ alius hands out his left arm. Jes’ think of it, will you? Es it had a-been his right arm it woulder sp’led him for life. W’y, when it come to tyin’ fodder he wouldenter been wuth a cuss. Oh, that boy has got sense.”— Arkansaw Traveler. Bis Disease. Mrs. Newbride—O, Doctor, tell me what is the matter with my husband?” Dr. Sensible—Um, er, he is suffering with a severe but only temporary paralysis of the muscles, induced by an exaggerated internal application of alcoholic stimulants! Mrs. Newbride—And the horrid cabdriver who brought him home* said he was drunk! \ Ordinary potato-bugs, dried and powdered, are used for raising blisters.

PISHINQ THROUGH THE ICE. A Kind of Angling That Is Common In tlio North. A writer in the Chicago Times describes fishing through the ice: The best way to get the necessary minnows or shiners for bait is to find, if possible, a place where sewage or drainage runs into the river, or lake. At these places the water is generally open far enough to put in a drop net, and there is always a sufficient quantity of feed to keep the small fry on hand. If these places are not near by it is a good plan to break the ice a day or two before, if possible, and bait it by throwing in the entrails of fish or chickens, or, in fact, anything that is savory and strong. “Tip-ups” are the next item,.and these are generaUy made by entting a. number of four-legged twigs, which are familiar to every one but an entire stranger to ice-fishing. For the benefit of such strangers it may be well to describe a “tip-up,” and also the way to make it. Dry sticks are more generally used because they are easily found, but I prefer to use green-wood twigs fresh cut, beoause they are more tough and less liable to break short off on one or more of the legs. Select

a small, light branch and cut it off where the main stem sends out three or four branches; cut the main stem about eight inches below the branches, and then cut the branches to form three or four legs capable of supporting the main stem in an upright position. If cut green the legs may be readily trained in any desired position. For my own part I generally use wire “tie-ups,” which are 'made by taking alxmt six foot of common galvanized wire, and, with a pair of pliers, or monkey-wrench, bending it into shape on the model of the cut twig. On the upright piece, in addition to the indicating flag, I place a piece of stout, coiled spring wire, to the free end of which is attached a small bell. These cost little, can be made easily, and. where a large number of “tip-ups” are worked at once, single-handed or short-handed, the advantage i gained is incalculable.

Having reached the fishing-grounds: with lines, hooks, bait, and “tip-ups," the next thing is to cut the holes through the ice. This is usually done with an ax, and is often a more delicate proceeding than is generally supposed. For example, the man who understands his work will chip away very gently instead of trying to cut a hole with a few vigorous strokes. The reasons for delicate chipping are manifold. It is not so likely to frighten the fish as more vigorous chopping would be; it does not crack the ice in all directions, rendering it liable to give xvay at soma unexpected moment, and it does not drive the cut ice under the floe, bu*r leaves it just where it can readily be fished out. Then the hole, being clear of loose ice, will remain open a much longer time. When the holes are cut a plummet should be dropped to get the depth of water, and the hook, after being baited, should be lowered to within a. foot or so of the bottom. 3£ish under the ice always swim low to' get as much warmth as possible. The line isthen brought up to the edge of the hole and over it and is then fastened to the front leg of the “tip-up,” which 'is laid flat on the ice, about four feet from the hole, with the three legs toward the hole and the piece bearing theflag pointing away from it. When a fish is hooked the pull upon the line will give a sharp jerk to the “tip-up” and draw it onto the three legs, while the little red flag, which is usually fastened to the top point, shows whichhook the fish has taken. And here comes in the value of theI bell system previously described. If there are. say, fifty lines out, with flag: signals alone, the eye must be kept on them all without intermission, but a. bell immediately gives notice that afish is hooked and attracts attention in the direction of the sound, while the flag shows the identical line at a. glance. Excusable Awkwardness, Guest — OvlcSiH Geewhitiker! You’vespilled some soup down my neck! Waiter— I’s orful sorry, "sah; but you see, sah, I’s so in doubt if you is gwino to gub me a tip er net, it makes munervous.

BEAU BRUMMEL.

THE COLLEGE WAV.

THE DUDE.

ANOTHER style.

THE TONGA.

THE LINES OF THE VOWELS.

THE RECORDER.

THE REPRODUCER.

NOS. 1 AND 3, TIP-UPS SET. NO. 2, A BITE.

A BITE.