Evening Republican, Volume 18, Number 189, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 12 August 1914 — Page 2

THE BURGLAR’S TIP

By FLOYD F. LONERGAN.

William Dennison, in bathrobe and slippers, was sitting in his cosily furnished room, very intently conning over his favorite evening paper. Suddenly he saw an item that, bad he mentally classified it, he would have placed with “Business Opportunities.” Mr. Dennison was a burglar, but if he and BUI Sykes had met, Sykes would probably have tried to rob him. Dennison did not look like a burglar. Mild-mannered In appearance, unobtrusively dressed, he occupied a room in a modest-priced bachelor apartment house, and was one of the best tenants, prompt in paying his bills, and quiet in his habits. The article that had attracted his attention read as follows: “SHE ROBBED HERSELF. "Mrs. Jessie Corbett of No. 4099 West Eighty-seventh street, ‘heroine’ of the sensational burglary that created excitement a few days ago, has admitted to the police that she robbed herself. “With tears running down her cheeks, she told Detective Graney today that haying lost a large sum at bridge, she &as afraid to tell her husband, although honor compelled her to pay her gambling debts. “Accordingly, she pawned her jewelry and settled with her creditors. A few days later she was found in her apartments, bound and gagged. “It now develops that her maid, because of a handsome cash bonus, had agreed to be her accomplice, tied her with ropes, and then, returning from ‘market,’ had given the alarm that kept the entire detective force busy day and night This girl finally broke down, after a vigorous ‘third degree,’ and her admissions to Detective Graney, used with effect have drawn a confession from the ‘victim.’ “Contrary to what most husbands would have done, Mr. Corbett has for-, given his wife, and has even gone so far as to take her jewels out of pawn and return them to her. The collection of gems Is valued at $3,500; but, despite their value, the wife has always kept them in a bureau drawer, which has the flimsiest kind of a lock. Mr. and Mrs.' Corbett live alone in t their apartment, except for the maid, Mary Andrews.”

“Everybody should read the newspapers,” he said, addressing a watercolor on the opposite side of the roof. “They are worth their weight in gold to a business man.** Two days later when Mary Andrews returned to the Corbett apartment after a trip downtown, she saw something that serft her bounding to the telephone. “Police headquarters!” she cried. Then, after an interval: “Give me Inspector Reilly. . Oh, is that you, inspector? This is Mary Andrews. She has done It again.” “Who?” she repeated. “Why, Mrs. Corbett. Don’t you remember how she robbed herself? Well, she’s bound and gagged now, just as she was before. This time, however, I didn’t have a thing to do with it. I swear it. Your detectives scared me to death before, and I mean to be honest in the future. “No, I haven’t cut her loose, and I don’t mean to. Send your men around here. It’s none of my business, and I am sick of the. whole affair.” Half an hour later two disgusted detectives strolled into the Carlin flat. “I’ve been helpless this way for. nearly three hours,” she said, when finally revived. “And this girl would not do anything except glare at me. She has no heart. Mary, you are discharged.” Mrs. Corbett looked in vain for sympathy. “Why did you do it?” asked Garrity, the senior in point of service. “We have lots to do Without bothering about your foolish stunts. It is a shame to take up our time in this way.” “But I was actually robbed,” protested Mrs. Corbett, as she wept profusely. “Really—truly—honest.” “Well, what was it now?” questioned Garrity. “A book agent, like the last time?” “No, sir," said the woman. “He was the curate of St. Paul’s chapel. At least, he said he was.” “Did he want you to join the choir?’’ sarcastically queried the elder detective. •- “He had a letter of Introduction from Bishop Sigden,” was the frigid response. “The bishop and his nephew are great friends of my husband, although I have never met either of them. Mr. Sanders, that is the name the curate gave, wanted to arouse my interest in tenement-house reform.’’ “He —what?" gasped Garrity. “Of course, I told him that I was not one bit Interested, and then he requested permission to use the telephone. 1 * “Who did he call up?” "He rang up some butcher shop, and ordered a four-pound steak sent to his “What next?" “He remarked that as ft Was rainpobkpt, bound and gagged me, and left me as you found me. While I was helpless, he ransacked the bureau, and mv mnnSv aiid IWWBtTV”

“Just like the book agent who called on you the last time. Did he tell you it would be fine weather tomorrow?” • 2 "He certainly did,” eaid Mrs. Corbett, 'in surprise. “And added that Central park was beginning to look beautiful, and that he hoped to meet me on the Mall some pleasant afterboon. I did‘not say anything, because I was gagged.” “Well, I am not gagged!” shouted the enraged detective, “and I do not believe one word of your ridiculous yarn. No burglar would act the way you say this man did. Would he, Kelly?” Kelly, thus appealed to, Indicated that he agreed with his partner. “If you had any sense, you’d know that you couldn’t pull off a stunt like this twice in two weeks,” Garrity .continued, severely. “You had to steal the same old jewels in the same old way, and you thought you could cover it up with a brand-new story. Well, you cannot fool us. Go and see the pawnbrokers yourself. Good-day." And the two detectives stalked out of the hotrsK When Mr. Corbett came home, he also expressed his doubts. Being possessed of political influence, he was able to keep the story out of the newspapers. “Jessie,” he said to his weeping wife, “don’t do any foolish stunt like this again. When you want money, come to me. But if I were you, I should drop bridge. “Understand this, I cannot-and will not permit any more fobberles. They are too severe a strain, both mentally and financially. As a punishment, I will leave your jewelry in the pawn shop. Please, please drop romances, and be a sensible little girl.” And Mrs. Corbett, who by this time had almost wept herself into a belief that she was the culprit, promised to behave In the future. in a modest room In a bachelor« apartment house, William Dennison was smoking his after-dinner cigar. He limited himself to three a day. “A pretty good afternoon’s work,” he mused, “even though the jewelry was not valued as stated. Forty-five dollars in cash, and $1,600 dollars for the diamonds, will keep me in modest comfort for some time. “Poor little woman!” he continued “Still, I honestly believe she will learn that truthfulness always pays in the end. “Look at her position. Even should she meet me on the street, she dare not have me arrested, for nobody would believe her. Nobody would believe anything she mljit say on any subject. Well, in, time she may live down her bad reputation. I hope so.” He picked up a newspaper, paused a moment, then threw It down again. “No more business for several weeks,” he said. “I will now enjoy myself.” And he settled down on the couch for a comfortable “reading” evening. (Copyright.)

SUICIDE ADVISED BY DOCTOR

Extraordinary Letter Read at Trial of Paris Chemists for Illegal Sale of Narcotics. A curious letter from a physician was read in the Paris courts at the hearing of a case in which Pierre Juvin and Jean Juillard, chemists, were charged with the illegal sale of certain narcotics. The letter in question, which was signed by Doctor Gaudin, stated that the writer had treated Mme. DelvigneDambricourt, in an effort to cure her of the drug habit. After her use of morphine and cocaine had Seen completely stopped, Doctor Gaudin made out for her a prescription into the composition of which black drop (vinegar of opium) entered. The letter concluded with the following curious sentence: “This prescription should be renewed according to the needs of Mme. Delvigne-Dambricourt, and I advise her to continue with it, since she finds it suits her, or if not, to have recourse to absinthe or to suicide, which is, after all, the best way to escape from .all the manias and miseries of existence." It was this letter which Mr. Juvln advanced as his excuse for having supplied Mme. Delvigne-Dambricourt with black drops. The court, however, ordered both Messrs Juvln and Julb lard to' pay a fine of 500 francs each. —Paris Herald.

General Price No Strategist

They were talking about Gen. Sterling Price of Missouri, one of the best fighters on the southern side during the Civil war. “Complex tactical movements in practise did not stagger Price, but the simplest problem on paper was beyond his power. During the early days of. the Civil war Price visited General Beauregard, who was a graduate of West Point, civil engineer and an authority on military tactics and strategy. “At Corinth Beauregard had erected fortifications which he spoke of as ‘impregnable.* “He took General Price in a carriage to view them. Then he asked Price what he thought of the work. “'Well,' replied the Missouri man, ‘I ain’t never seen none like *er but onct before!’ " ‘They were pretty effective, weren’t theyF “‘Yep, fine! I done tuk her!”’— From Anecdotes of the Hour. “Bumper” comes from the toast, “Au bon pere,” used when England was a Catholic country in drinking to th* ———h—

THE EVENING REPUBLICAN, RENSSELAER, IND,

WEALTHY WIDOW MAY WED PRINCE

Mrs. Philip Van Volkenburgh, a beautiful young widow of New York, whose fortune amounts to about $10,000,000, is besieged by suitors In Europe, where she Is now sojourning. Chief among the aspirants for her hand are the duke of Oporto and Prince Wolff Metternich, and it is said she favors the Austrian prince, at whose castle in Hanover she is soon to be a guest.

DYNAMOMETER MEASURES SAVING GOOD. ROAD REPRESENTS OVER A BAD ONE

Department of Agriculture’s New Device Will Inform You Just How Hard Your Horse Has to Work—No Longer Necessary to Make Educated Guess of What Constitutes Easy Traveling.

Washington, D. C. —By means of a new device known as the dynamometer, the department of agriculture is now able to measure exactly the saving that a good road represents over a bad one. In the future it will be no longer necessary to make an educated guess at what constitutes easy traveling. With the dynamometer It is possible to ascertain with scientific accuracy the resistance offered by different kinds of road surfaces, grades, vehicles and tires. The dynamometer registers on a record, which is In appearance not unlike that of a self-registering thermometer, not only the pull necessary to draw the wagon but the distance traveled and the time consumed In the trip. All this is automatically recorded by a brass pencil point on a long roll of sensitized paper, which is arranged to unroll in such a fashion that -240 inches of record represent a mile of road travel. The movements of the pencil are governed by the amount of compression of two coll springs. For every 500 pounds of draft exerted on the tongue of the wagon the pencil makes a mark an Inch long. In addition to this dots appear on the surface of the paper at Intervals of 15 seconds. To take two concrete examples, Fig. 1 is the record of a stretch of average road 110 feet in length traveled by a wagon with tires 2% inches in width. This distance was traversed in 25 seconds with an average draft of 408 pounds. This means that it took 3 3-10 horse power to draw the wagon under these condition. Fig. 2 is the record made by the dynamometer in traveling 110 feet on a steep uphill heavy road with tires of the same width. The difference is startling. In this case it took 29 seconds to go the distance, but it required an average pull of 1,077 pounds instead of 408, or stated in terms of horse power 7 4-10 instead of 3 3-10. There is, of course, nothing new In the fact that it is easier to pull a heavy load over a level road than it is up a bad uphill one. It is well known, for example, that when it requires a draft of 100 pounds per toss to haul a load on a level stretch it takes approximately four tlmeis as much power to draw a load up a ten per cent grade (10 foot vertical in a hundred foot horizontal). On the other hand, for a

Figure One—110 Feet of Road.

short time any load that a horse can pull on a level can usually be drawn up a four or five per cent grade. Four per cent, therefore, is usually regarded as the maximum grade permissible in road building. Frequently, however, it would be advantageous to do away with such a grade altogether by means of a detour. In deciding when to do this the dynamometer is unquestionably of great service. The problem may be stated mathel 1 Illi ll* '

matically for example in this way. To lift a ton one foot high requires 2,000 pounds -of energy. If the road is of such a character that it offers a hundred pounds of tractive resistance per ton the same energy will roll the ton a horizontal distance pf 20 feet To save one foot of grade the road ipay therefore be lengthened 20 feet without increasing the amount of energy required. If the tractive resistance of the road is less than 100 pounds the distance it may economically be lengthened is, of course, lessened also, and vice versa. The dynamometer is the only way in which this tractive resistahce can be exactly measured, and thus it enables road engineers to do their work with absolute scientific accuracy. Interest in good roads has been increasing with extraordinary rapidity in the United States during the last few years and the expenditures for road Improvement have increased with it Thus in 1904 the total expenditure on all public roads in the United States was >79,771,417. By 1912 this had risen to 3164,232,365.

Motor Wagon Used by Government In Road Work.

That this vast sum should produce the best possible results is obviously of great importance. Hitherto it has been estimated that a large portion of it has gone to waste through ignorance of the right kind of road .to build in different localities or failure to maintain it properly,when built With the aid of the dynamometer all problems of resistance can be studied as a first step toward solving them. The question of durability, of course, it does not touch, but one machine cannot be expected to do In the future it is not altogether impossible that the records of the dynamometer may be translated for the benefit of all concerned into actual dollars and cents. Already there is an abundance of evidence in the possession of the department of agriculture to show the cash value to a community of roads that afe easy to travel on. In Xx>e county, Virginia, for example, a of 10 acres was offered for sale some-years 'ago at |l,Boo. In 1908 the road running to this farm was Improved and since then 33,000 has been refused for the same 100 acres. In Alabama the people of one county voted a 3250,000 bond issue tor road improvement Land at that time was worth from six to fifteen an acre; it is now selling for from fifteen to twenty-five dollars an acre. On the other hand there was a well authenticated story of a Tennessee farmer who was compelled

WARSHIPS ARE NOT USELESS

High Officer of French Navy Doesn’t Agree. That Submarines Have Rendered Vessels Useless. Paris. —The Petit Parlslen has asked a high officer of the French navy his opinion of the statements of Admiral Sir Percy Scott to the effect that submarines have'rendered useless ships that float on the surface and have not the faculty of submersion. After paying a high tribute to the British admiral and saying that 'Sir Percy’s opinion had to be taken into consideration, the officer declared that for the moment and for the immediate future he could not share Sir Percy’s views. The submarines at present in use had, he said, insufficient speed as compared with that of battleships. It would be impossible for submersibles to join big ships in the open sea. He admitted that the task of submarines would be easier in confined waters like the English channel, but their, role would be, an unprofitable one in the ocean or the Mediterranean. Moreover, there was as yet no means of communicating with the submarines when they were under water, nor could messages be received from them. The officer said: “We must try to Increase the epeed of submersibles,, but we must take care not to'regard our battleships as valueless On the contrary, we should go ahead with the construction-of large units.”

Find Ring Inside Snake.

Livingston, N. J. —Hunston Kent,! collie dog killed a garter snake, insldf of which was found a wedding rln( inscribed “From M. J. F. to M. M, June 17, 1899.”

to let a hundred barrels of potatoes rot in his cellar because of the road to market being Impassable in the winter time. That winter the price of potatoes rose to $1.40 a barrel. Poor roads were entirely responsible for the loss to this man. Instances of this sort could be multiplied without end. Like the dy-

Figure Two.

namometer they show that the movement for. good roads is not based on theory and sentiment but is as much a matter of cold business as the proper use of fertilizer or the proper food for live stock.

GETS A ‘CONSCIENCE’ DOLLAR

tvUnknown Party Makes Restitution for. Wrong Change After a Lapse of Twelve Years. Seattle.—One dollar In excess of the correct amount of change received by some person in Seattle more than 12 years ago at the box office of the Seattle theater has been returned in

A letter addressed to that playhouse. An unsigned note with the words “Wrong change received about 12 years ago” is the only clue to the identity of the persoh who returned the money. \ “There is a dollar waiting at the box office for the duplicates this handwriting,” Eric Mitchell said when he opened the letter. “I'm going to have this dollar bill framed and hang it in the lobby, together with the letter,’* he continued. "I cannot say that we . have any right to this dollar. J. P. Howe was lessee of this theater 12 years ago.**

STOPS FLIRTING BY WHISTLE

Jersey Town’s Counsel Objects to Engineers Sounding Love Notos to Wives and Harrison. N. J.—The town council has Instructed Peter Goodman, the. town-clerk, to request Lackawanna engineers passing through here to discontinue their whistle signal system to wives and sweethearts. Some of the engineers employ only a series of toots. Others use a dot and dash arrangement like the Morse telegraph code. When the whistles shriek the feminines concerned dash to windows and wave their replies. This performance in the daytime is annoying to many, since none of the trains in question stop hero, and here is no excuse tor ths whistling.

the ONLOOKER

HENRY HOWLAND

few

He is dreaming; Jet him dream! He supposes that the sun With a lesser warmth would gleam If today his work were done— If today his voice were stilled And in death’s embrace he lay, If his mission were fulfilled And his hands were lifeless clay. He supposes that all men Must have knowledge of his worth: Twill be hard, he fancies, when He is gone to run the eafth; Wheels will cease to turn, he thinks, And the flags will wave no more When within the grave he sinks And his. usefulness is o’er. When he sleeps within his tomb And the world, all darkened, grieves. Not another rose will bloom, So he foolishly believes. Why deprive him of his glee, Howe’er foolish he may- seem? Glory, after all, may be " ‘ . / Merely happy dreams we dream.

Why He Quit.

“Yes, I once edited a paper,” said the ragged man who was tickling the ends of his fingers on the stubbles that grew around his chin; “fact is, I not only edited it, but was publisher and business manager.” “What caused you to quit journalism?" “You see, I was doing business tn a strong prohibition town. One Sunday evening the most prominent minister In the place preached an eloquent ser- v mon, taking for his text, 'Bear and Forbear.’ I wrote a two-column report of it, but his text as it got into , the paper wps ‘Beer and for Beer.”’

Not Expecting Much.

“In case we separate, Mary, how much alimony do you think you ought, to have?" ’ “Alimony? Good gracious, you don’t suppose you could pay me alimony if you were alone in the world, do you? Why, it’s all we can do to make ends meet on your income, even when you have me to inspire and direct you.”

NOISY.

noisiest neighborhoods in the city. Banks —Why, lam surprised. Have they begun building factories aroundyou? Jordan—No, but a-newly married couple have moved in next door to us, and he has begun letting her buy his neckties. , ‘

Are You Needed?

Have you made yourself Important? Are you needed in your place? you complain that you are slighted; gloom has settled on your face; Younger_ men are passing onward to rewards you cannot claim, And you cry that luck betrays you, but is luck alone to blame? e Others blessed with little talent have been pushed ahead, you say; But their services are needed and they give the beat they may; Would the world care if tomorrow you sat on some distant star? ' * Have you ■ made yourself important—are you needed where you are? ?

Another Bump for Genius.

"Whatever 1 do,” said the gaunt amateur poet, “I do with my whole soul.” “Yes,” his wife replied, “ I know you do, dear, but it would be such a help if you’d give it up and do things with your hands.”

Had His Doubts.

“So your daughter intends to pursue her studies abroad?” “Yes,” replied the self-made man, “she pretends she does,-hut between me and you I don’t believe she stands the least show of overtakin* ’em.”

The Joke of It.

“t suppose beta, th. wit. » humorist is a continuous joke,” said Uded iumt. - u d If. « 1

Banks I like the part of town that you live in. It’s so nice and quiet out there. Jordan—Pardon me; you’re mistaken. That has got to be one of the