Democratic Sentinel, Volume 20, Number 51, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 25 December 1896 — BIKES FOR SOLDIERS. [ARTICLE]

BIKES FOR SOLDIERS.

TROOP OF 1,000 TO BE EQUIPPED WITH WHEELS. Regular Army Men to Be Drilled on Bicycles and Assigned to Duties Re* quiring Rapid Transportation—Ohio Farmer Commits a Murderous Act. So'diers to Ride. With the approval of Congress, 1,000 soldiers will be equipped with bicycle outfits before long. A bill has been prepared for presentation to Congress authorizing the purchase of a sufficient number of bicycles to provide each foot and military station with ten machines. The soldiers who show the best skill in the use of the wheel will be drilled upon the machines and assigned to duties requiring rapid transportation. At many of the posts bicycles are now in use, but they are either owned by the officers or hired from agents Gen. Miles is an enthusiast on the subject. He has signified his willingness to allow a troop of United States cavalry to attend the bicycle carnival to be held in Madison Square Garden, in New York, and show what they can do in the way of a drill. BANK OF SPAIN EMBARRASSED. Floating the New Loan Has Placed It in an Awkward Position. The part played by the Bank of Spain in floating the new loan destined to provide resources for the continuance of the war in Cuba has placed that institution in a very awkward position. For, in ad* dition to the immense sums which it has furnished to the government itself, it has advanced one way and another nearly $40,000,000 to people who subscribed for the loan. The bank may therefore be «aid to have found the major portion of the money subscribed. Besides this, the bank is a creditor to the government under various heads to the extent of more than $250,000,000. Inasmuch as the capital fully paid up of Ihe bank, together with the reserve fund, only amounts to $30,000,000, it will readily be seen that the strain to which this, the leading financial institution in Spain, is being subjected is tremendous, and cannot be continued much longer before disaster ensues. SHOT WIFE AND STEPSON. A Jealous Ohio Farmer Commits a Murderous Deed. James Preston, aged 40, shot his wife, Amanda, aged 37, and the latter’s son, William Bryant, aged 1!), at the residence of Mrs. Preston in Cincinnati. Preston is a farmer near New Richmond, Ohio. His wife left him some time ago and went to Cincinnati, taking quarters with her son and making a living dressmaking. Preston followed his wife and tried to effect a reconciliation. He called at the house and a quarrel followed, during which he began tiring. When the neighbors came in they found the three on the floor wounded and bleeding. Preston had evidently first shot his wife, then his stepson and then himself. It is evident that Preston was actuated by motives of jealousy, as he had in his possession a letter written to his wife by another man.

MURDERED BY ROBBERS. Wealthy Missourian Slain by Desperadoes After His Money. Alfred Wilson, aged 70, one of the best-known residents of Andrew County, Missouri, was murdered the other night by robbers at his home, one mile northeast of Avenue City. Wilson was a bachelor and was rich. Some time ago he became so embittered against banks that he drew out all his deposits and was supposed to have concealed the money about his home. A bloody footprint on a newspaper in the room is the only clew the officers have. It is not known whether any valuables were secured by the robbers. Go Down in the Wreck. Four more Chicago failures were recorded Tuesday as a result of the suspension of the National Bank of Illinois. The American Brewing Company, the George A. Weiss Malting and Elevator Company and George A. Weiss made assignments in the County Court. George A. Weiss is president of both corporations. and their business is closely connected. Weiss is a son-in-law of George Schneider, president of the National Bank of Illinois, and in the schedule of accounts made by the clearing house .is shown to owe the bank $500,000. Fraud la Attested. Warrants for the arrest’of E. 8. Dreyer and Robert Berger, members of the firm of E. S. Dreyer & Co., mortgage bankers, who closed their doors at Chicago Monday morning, were issued Tuesday afternoon on the sworn information of Frank Kennedy, who charged the bankers with receiving deposits when they ■new the concern was insolvent. Murder at a Dance. At Thermopolis, Fremont County. Wyo., B. F. Hanson, deputy sheriff, owner of the town site and a wealthy man, gave a dance to which Thomas Bird, a wealthy cattleman and rival magnate, came uninvited. Bird was promptly shot twice and killed by Hanson. The shooting was the result of a trivial quarrel.

i Southern Pacific Hold*Up. West-bound passenger train No. 20, on the Southern Pacific Railway, was held up by three masked men and three money packages stolen from the express ear at midnight Sunday night, near Comstock, 208 miles west of San Antonio, Texas. Mob Rale in Kentucky. A part of the mob that hanged Jim Stone at Mayfield, Ky., went on the rampage again the following night. One hundred shots were fired into the residence of Tom Chambers, colored, and the house, was afterward set on fire and burned, destroying three other buildings. From Far California. The signatures of over fifty prominent residents of Ukiah, Cal., have been secured as members of a military organization to be known as the Cuban Volunteers of California. ••Jimtown’’ la Visited by Fire, The old mining town of Jamestown, famous in California literature as “Jimtown, ” was almost destroyed by fire Thursday. “Jimtown” was the supply station for an important group of mines. One thousand people are homeless. The town possessed no fire department. Fpatn Hard Pressed. The Spanish Government has decided to send 15,000 soldiers to re-enforce the troops now in the Philippine Islands. ’ The cabinet council decided to purchase the English transport steamer, Prince of ■Wales, in order to expedite the transportation of troops to Manilla.

BRITISH IBLB SHAKEN. Two Violent Shocks of Earthquake Thursday Morning. Great Britain has been in the throes of a genuine and unprecedented sensation. An earthquake, the most violent ever experienced in that country, has shaken every shire from Durham to Surrey and from London to the Welsh coast. The subterraneous disturbance was first noticed about 5:30 o’clock Thursday morning and lasted from four to thirty seconds. At many points two distinct shocks were experienced. The most severe shocks were felt at Cheltenham, Ledbury and Dean Forest. The earthshaking was accompanied by a loud, rushing sound. Buildings were violently shaken, furniture was shifted, doors were thrown open and pictures and other ornaments were upset. The inhabitants were panic-stricken and fled from their houses. The earthquake also visited Birmingham and various other points in Shropshire, and was violent in Worcester and the country surrounding that city. Houses rocked and furniture was overturned. The shocks were followed by a tremor of the earth and were accompanied by a rumbling sound. The greatest alarm prevailed everywhere. Chimneys were overthrown and windows, etc., were smashed. At Hereford one woman died of fright. BOOTH-TUCKER’S SCHEME. To Colonize Ex-Convicts on Small Farms Near New York. The international meeting of the Salvation army at Carnegie Hall, New York, was attended by many dignitaries of the army, including Commander and Mrs. Booth-Tucker, Chief Secretary Higgins, Commissioner Higgins and Brigadiers Richard Holz, William Halpin, William J. Cozens, George French and Lieutenant Colonel Perry, all of whom occupied seats on the platform. After the preliminary exercises there was a processional entry of foreign delegates, about thirty-five in number, dressed in the costumes of their respective countries. Some were natives, but more were American workers in these foreign fields. When the cheering acompanying their entrance had subsided Commander Booth-Tucker advanced to the front and proceeded to unfold a plan that would cost $20,000 to put in operation. The scheme is to buy forty acres of land in the vicinity of New York and divide it up with colonies of from three to five acres each. Then ho would rescue men from the penal institutions and place them on these little farms. He favored the establishment of a potato patch like Governor Pingree’s, a woodyard where the boys could saw wood and an interstate labor exchange.

INSOLVENCY ALLEGED. Trouble for the Pacific Loan and Homestead Association. Charges of mismanagement and insolvency overhang the Pacific Loan and Homestead Association, whose officers are prominent in Chicago, and which has hitherto been regarded as one of the reliable institutions of its kind in the city. Applications for withdrawals have been refused by the association, and the delay has led four of the stockholders to apply to the Superior Court for a receiver. The petition charges that the funds of the association have been squandered and its affairs mismanaged. Hundreds of shareholders in the institution are of the middle classes, whose stock represents their entire savings. The association was organized and incorporated in June, 1888, with a capital stock of $25,000,000, divided into shares of SIOO each. The officers of the concern are: Daniel 11. Kochersperger, County Treasurer, President; James H. Gilbert. ex-Sheriff, Vice President; DeWitt C. Butts, Secretary; Howard H. Hitchcock, Treasurer. In the complainants' bill, it is estimated that the liabilities of the association exceeds its assets by SIOO,OOO.

ANXIOUS ABOUT TARIFF. Business Men Attend Committee’s Hearings in Washington. Washington dispatch: The hearings to be given by the Ways and Means Committee on the tariff question promise to attract an even greater number of business men to Washington than usually gather during a revision of the tariff. The committee is already overwhelmed by applications from representatives of the various interests who are anxious to present arguments for increasing the rates. The Democratic members of the t!ommittee intend to marshal witnesses in rebuttal to advocate the continuance of the Wilson bill. They desire to have their side of the case included in the printed record of the hearings. It will be practically impossible for the committee to hear all the applicants who want to present arguments in the limited time assigned to the subject. The committee expects that those who appear will have their arguments prepared in writing to be placed on file and printed. Vessels Remain in Port. The storm along the Atlantic coast, which set in Tuesday afternoon, continued for nearly twenty hours. Sandy Hook reported the wind blowing from the north-northeast at the rate of forty miles an hour and very thick off shore. Telegraphic reports from Long Branch and Asbury Park say th.lt from those points nothing has been seen of the schooner Grace K. Green, which was abandoned after the rescue of her crew by the Old Dominion steamer Yorktown. The thick atmosphere caused by the snowstorm interferes very materially with the river and harbor navigation. In New York City considerable interruption of street traffic resulted from the storm. Elevated railroad trains ran on time, but the cable and other surface lines of street railways were working under difficulties. The wind was fierce and cutting, the snow striking the face with a stinging force. Reports from Connecticut and Massachusetts and from the interior of New York State show the storm is of wide range, the snowfall being from three to eight inches and the temperature well down toward the zero mark. At Philadelphia the wind blew a gale, and railroad and streetcar traffic suffered considerably. One of the most violent northeast gales for years prevailed along the Connecticut shore of Long Island Sound. Driving snow rendered navigation practically impossible.

Hessian Fly in Winter Wheat. The farmers in the great wheat-grow-ing section of Southern Illinois are worried at the unfavorable appearance of the growing wheat crop. During the past two weeks the plant has turned yellow and shriveled up flat on the ground. The plant above the surface la undoubtedly dead, but there is a diversity of opinion as to the condition of the roots. In Ohio the Hessian fly is doing serious damage, especially in the southern and central counties. Can’t Steal Electricity. Electricity cannot be stolen tn Germany, according to a decision of Jhe Superior Court. A man who had tapped the current of an electric company to run his own motors was acquitted on the ground that only a material moveable object can can be,stolen, and the judgment has just been affirmed on appeal. Two Hanged, One Shot. The mob that belleaguered the Russellville, Ky., jail all Thursday night early Friday morning took Arch, Dink and Bill Proctor out of their mils, hanged two of

them and shot the other to death. Arch killed two men, Doc and Aaron Crofton, of Adairville, Nov. 24, 1895, and the brothers were accessories. All have had three trials. The Anob went to the jail at 2 o’clock in the morning, and after battering down the front door and forcing the jailer to give up the keys went to the cells for the Proctors. The oldest. Will Proctor, cursed the mob and was shot in his cell. The other two were taken out and hanged. The mob numbered about one hundred, and did the work quietly and with dispatch. Bill Proctor had been tried three times for murder.

SENATORS FEEL PUGNACIOUS. Action in Committee Looking Toward Cnban Recognition. The Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, which is usually a very dignified and deliberate body, turned a double somersault Friday on the Cuban ques; tion, and against the protest of the Secretary of State, who argued with them for an hour and a half, unanimously recommended to the favorable consideration of the Senate a joint resolution as follows: “Resolved, That the independence orCuba be, and the same is, acknowledged by the United States of America. Section 2. That the United States will use its friendly offices with the government of Spain to bring to a close the war between Spain and Cuba.” It was not believed in public circles that President Cleveland would sanction the declaration, or that the House would support it. Should it becqme official, it is believed war with Spain would surely follow. But the Spanish minister did not look upon the matter seriously, though the friends of Cuba were extravagantly delighted.

LAND PROMISED RECRUITS. Cuban Juhta Holds Out a Reward to American Citizens Who Enlist. The Cuban junta has a representative in Port Angeles, Wash., who has succeeded in recruiting eighty-five young men for the Cuban army. They are prepared to leave for the East on receiving transportation, which has been promised by the junta. It is authoritatively stated that they will be joined by several otfier companies forming on the sound. The plan is for them to go to St. Louis, where they will be supplied with arms and six months’ provisions. Their destination from that point is kept secret, but they are promised safe transportation to Cuba. In the event of the success of the insurgents, those who enlisted are to receive a tract of land, the amount of which is to depend upon its value, but to be not less than eighty acres. This land is to be supplied by the confiscation of Spanish plantations. Agricultural implements are also promised for working the land. Fire in a Playhouse. The Casina Skating-Rink and Summer Theater, a magnificent pleasure resort in Schenley Park, Pittsburg, was destroyed by fire. The loss will approximate $500,000, on which the insurance is slight. The fire was caused by the explosion of an ammonia cylinder in the iceskatingplant. Almost immediately the entire building was a seething mass of flames, and in less than three hours the beautiful structure was in ashes. The noxious vapors which filled the interior prevented the firemen from entering the Casino. The Casino cost $300,000 nnd itj equipment more than SIOO,OOO. The ice-skating plant, which 'was the first thing reached by the flames, alone cost $30,000. In the rear of the second floor was stored the fine and costly scenery used in the summer theater, and this was also devoured. It cost $40,000. Manager James Conant said the loss would exceed $500,000. The building was insured for $75,000, and there was a small insurance on the contents. A number of persons were slightly injured, but none seriously

Farmer Is Killed by Hie Wife. The other night while looking out of a window at his home August Bierman, a farmer, near Lawrence, Kan., was shot in the back by his wife and instantly killed. The woman then turned the revolver on herself and tried to commit suicide. Mrs. Bierman said she did not love her husband and that she had no regrets for what she had done. Prohibition a Dead-Letter. The Kansas Attorney General, in his biennfcl report, says the State prohibitory law has not been enforced under his administration nor under that of any of his predecessors, notwithstanding their reports to the contrary. He asserts that the law cannot be rigidly enforced unless local public sentiment is in favor of its enforcement. No Bounty for Nebraska Sujrar, The Nebraska Supreme Court has decided that the payment by State Auditor Moore of $46,000 in warrants for sugar bounty to the Oxnard Company is illegal. Ask Congress to Interfere A petition to Congress to put an end to the revolution in Cuba was signed by all the Aidermen of New York City and a copy forwarded to Washington. Japan Plague-Stricken. Small-pox is raging with exceptional severity in the principal seaport towns of Japan. At Kobe 200 cases and several deaths were reported.