Evening Republican, Volume 19, Number 12, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 14 January 1915 — Page 3

A DOMESTIC TREASURE

By ISABELLA D. DAILEY.

Mrs. Lyman sat at the breakfast table in her 99-cent calico wrapper, which was clean bat unattractive, and limned rather wearily to her adored husband’s conversation. In her youth she had been called a beauty, but 12 years of unselfish pampering of hqr family, together with • constant struggle to “get ahead” upon a limited allowance, had merged her charms into workaday obscurity. She had become nothing more than a housekeeper who was “careful and troubled about many things.” Mr. Lyman did not suspect that he was not a model family man. He had 1 grown accustomed to seeing his wife work ■ from morning until night, keeping their home in immaculate order, making-dainty clothing for the children, and cooking meals to please his fastidious taste.” Oh this particular morning, he. was discussing pretty Mrs. Hickson, the wife of his new partner. s “She is really the most delightful woman I have met ip many-ft day,’ he said, with candid"enthusiasm. “She is so bright and up to date and younglooking; I was surprised to learn that she is the own mother of Hickson’s flf-teen-year-old daughter. I supposed she was a second wife." r “I heard Mrs. Hickson say she had always since her marriage, quietly remarked Mrs. Lyman. Of course she has lots of time to take pains with herself. I guess she doesn't do much but play bridge and flirt.” “That is very ungenerous, Bess, said Lyman reprovingly. “Mrs. Hickson is a lady of exquisite taste, and you should not be scandalized because she is not inclined to be a back number. I don’t wonder that Hickson isproud of her." “I don't think she is as pretty as mamma,” loyally declared little Bert Lyman, whose youthful mind grasped the Inference that his Idolized mother w&8 suffering from indirect criticism. •Mr.»Lyman laughed. “There was a time, son, when your mamma was a daisy in looks, but that was before she settled down and bad twoiexpenslve youngsters to take care of M “And a popular society man,” added Mrs. Lyman, with a shadowy smile. Lyman did not appear to oatch any sarcastic Intonation In his wifes mild observation. w - "Well, I must go downtown, he said, glancing at his watch. “A man can’t linger forever in the bosom of his family. By the way, Bess, I wish you would see that my evening clothes are all right. I*m going to an Elks’ reception tonight. There will be a dance afterward, and that calls for stiff togs.” "Are you going, mamma?” asked Vera, the small daughter of the house of Lyman. "No, dear, I hadn't thought of going anywhere.” Lyman looked up in careless woPder. “Go, of course, if you wißh, Bess. I didn’t think to ask you, because you nevej care for such afi fairs.”

Mrs. Lyman gave her customary answer to her husband’s Indifferent invitation. “I think I should prefer to stay with the children." She did not mention the fact that all her party gowns were several years behind the fashion. "I thought so," said Lyman, accompanying the remark with a light conjugal kiss. “Those muffins were tiptop, and the beefsteak broiled to the queen’s taste. Nobody can beat you, Bess, in the culinary department, even if you don’t Bhine in social functions.” After the children had departed for school, and the morning’s work had been done, with the inefficient aid of the diminutive colored maid-of-all-work, Mrs. Lyman went to her room. Seating herself before her dressingtable, shtf gazed critically at her reflection in the mirror. *‘l am altogether too domestic,” she commented audibly. “1 think I’ll fur- } bish up a little, even if we go without a new parlor carpet and lace curtains in the sitting room.” During the following week, Mrs. Lyman went oil several secret pilgrimages downtown, and heroically practiced mysterious exercises In the seclusion of fcer roqjn. When Mr. Lyman announced his intention of taking a trip to Chicago on business which might detain him a few days, he did not notice that his wife packed his suitcase with unusual cheerfulness nor did he think it strange that she made t him promise to Fire her when to expect him backChance sometimes assists plotters, and Mrs. Lyman's plans to amaze her liege lord were aided, beyond her expectations, by his accidentally, meeting. on his way home, a traveling man who was an old acquaintance. They crowded as many reminiscences and Jokes as possible into the two hogrs they spent together on the train, but stm their fund of anecdotes was not exhausted. “As you are going to make my town,” said Lyman, “why can't you put up at my house? I can premise you a good, dinner, and tonight I'll take you to the club, and show you a Jolly bunch of boys.”' “I wouldn't like to drop into ybur family circle inopportunely,” objected the friend politely, really yearning fbr a home’ tnesl; — •■ v: “Ob, that’s all right,” said Lyman reassuringly. “My wife Is the good sort, and BOM everybody welcome. She

ii ji -u' i -r - -IT jipn. v*/ j will treat youto cooking that will malt in your mouth, though she may re-_ ceive you in a calico dress, Just as she comes from a kitchen. Sometimes I wish she bad a little mere styles but she is a domestic treasure I'll bet Bhe can make a dollar go farther than any other woman of the present generation." T 'When the train pulled into the station, the two gentlemen hurried out a poo the long platform, chatting Jovially. Suddenly Lyman caught a glimps of a trim, graceful woman, in a modish tailor-made black suit, with her blonde hair fetehingiy marcelled beneath a heavily plumed hat. “There is a swell woman,” exclaimed Lyman. “I can’t fancy her, in a calico wrapper.” The lady under inspection turned her heed in a way that gave Lyman a full view of her face. Instantly his eyes bulged with astonishment. “She looks as Bess usejl to,” he mattered faintly. “It can’t be possible. It is, by Jove.” Mrs. Lyman’s perfect costume inspired her with self-confidence, and nothing could, have been prettier than her manner of greeting her puzzled spouse. “Why, Bess, I—l’m surprised,” he stammered, fairly limp from bewilderment. “You act as though you had encountered a ghost,” was the laughing retort. Lyman collected his wits sufficiently to introduce his friend, who pinched him on the -sly and whispered; “You’re a rare humbug. Home body! Calico, wrappers! Good Lord! Tell that to some other scout/’ Lyman had hardy recovered his composure when they reached home. Mrs. Lyman led the trio, and was cordial In seconding her husband’s hospitality,remarking Ingeniously: “I am afraid you will find things rather muddled. I have been out all the afternoon, and’left the children playingcircus.’’ Lyman scarcely recognized his home, in which disorder reigned for the first time, and he was almost speechless with mortification and disappointment when they sat down to a dinner of tough fried Bteak, lumpy mashed potatoes and soggy bread, supplemented by a thin lemon pie from & bakeshop. The mystified husband felt that he must be dreaming. Mrs. Lyman seemed sweetly unconcerned, and In no way disturbed by the unappetizin. repast, or by the blundering service of her awkward maid. had her conversation been so engaging. The visitor thought his host had developed into a bad practical joker, and wondered If he wonld he able to get a satisfactory lunch at the club. Lyman finally began to get angry. After the wretched meal was finished, but not eaten, he contrived to draw his wife aside, and whispered; •“What under heaven do you mean, Bess, ip getting up such a dinner —for company, too!” “I didn’t get the dinner,” said Bess innocently. “I ' should say not,” grumbled Lyman; “but why didn’t you?” “For two reasons/* replied Mrs. Lyman, not a whit abadhed. “I am tired of being merely a queen of the culinary art, and I am going to try to be as young and agreeable as Mrs. Hlckson. It would he great fun to be taken for your second wife. “I have decided that it doesn’t pay to spend so much of my allowance upon the table. It shows more in up-to-date clothes. “Hereaftef I shall be ready to attend parties with you. Of course, you will not mind a few extra bills. I know you must have often been ashamed of me—l have been such a frump—but it is never too late to mend.”

Found the Cause.

“Do you know.” said the dry goods drummer, "1 don’t blame the doctors a bit? I have my way of earning a living and they have theirs.” "But what about doctors?” was asked. “Oh, I was in a town in Indiana last week and one day I. felt shivers go up my back. I went to a doctor and he said I was in for the grip. Then hot flashes came and I went to another M. D. He said it was a case of typhoid and wanted me to go to the hospital at once. Felt a bit better, but went to a .third, and he said it might be a case of bubonic, plague or spinal meningitis. He was way off, howevefr “But did anything really all yon?” - “For sure.” "Then you got over it very speedily.” “I did. I brought my will power to bear, you see. Yes, something ailed me. I was in love with almighty good-looking girl and I found out that she was a grass widow and had nq chance to get a divorce under five years!”

London’s Wonder Street.

Fleet street was formerly the wonder place of London, where all that was novel, bizarre and marvelous was exhibited by enterprising showmen. Ben Jonson alludes to “a new notion of the. city of Nineveh, with Jonah and the whale, at Fleet bridge,” and at the Eagle and Child was exhibited s collection of freaks and monstrosities that set the whole town agape. In 1710, too, was advertised as on exhibition at Fleet bridge, “two strange, wonderful and remarkable monstrous creatures, an old she dromedary, seven feet high and ten feet long, lately arrived from Tartjfiy with bet young one, being tbe greatest wonder, rarity and novelty ever seen in the three kingdoms.” .

THE EVENING REPUBLICAN, RENSSELAER, IND.

IN THE HAND OF FATE

WASTE OF GOOD TIME TO PREMEDITATE FRIENDSHIP. **. * Best Plan lq.to Be • Friend and Thus One Will Attract Those Whose Helpfulness Will Be Natural and Beneficial. One of the things impossible to know in advance Is who Is going to be of advantage to you. Hence the most wanton waste of time and effort in the world is to cultivate people with a thought to personal advancement. The world Is much like a Ferris wheel—the bucket that Is up today Is down tomorrow, while the one that was near the ground at sunrise soars to the top at the day's decline. Nothing just now recalled is stationary—except the Sphinx, and that enigmatic lady has doubtless held her place by keeping her mouth shut and trying to propitiate no one. Friends are gifts of heaven bestowed for our Joy and mental refreshment. Men and women are so constituted that the more keenly they enjoy anything the more fervently they long, for some companionable person to share it with them. The most appetising meal eaten alone induees indigestion. The man walking beneath autumnal trees, inspired by their splendor of crimson and gold, sighs for companionship. A book becomes twice vivid and glowing when read aloud to a sympathetic listener. But people sought as associates in hours of leisure and pleasure must be really companionable or their absence is more to be desired than their company, and to wear one’s life out trying to be friends when Impulse is not in it is waste of good time. Do not endeavor to make friends’. Be one, and you will suddenly find yourself surrounded by many bound to you with invisible cords of kind feeling. If people seek only those to whom they are instinctively attracted, their mutual helpfulness will be natural as the response of the wireless receiver to the sympathetic seeking of its wireless affinity. It is not when people are trying the most, but when they are off guard that they are making the real impressions. The chance word may linger In the mind when the premeditated one has fallen unheeded. Possible benefits should be Indeed forgot when friendships are In process of making. The only benefit one has a right to expect of friends Is loyalty and good will. As for advantages, they crop up from such unlikely comers, such un-looked-for sources, and are often bestowed by such undreamed-of people that to endeavor to foresee the channels through which they will filter Into our lives is sheer impossibility. That we are benefited and blessed through outside human agencies Is true indeed; but that such benefits are attracted our way is chiefly because of what ye unconsciously are. instead of what we consciously endeavor to seem. And will our friends prove advantageous to us or not? We can only echo the Spanish question: “Qulen sabe?” We can only seek people because we love them and leave the rest to fate.—Baltimore Sun.

Monument Shone as Ghost.

“Ise seed dat ghost dar ev’ry night fob a week,” declared Henry W. Locksmith, a local colored man, as he stood with chattering teeth on North Hanover street, with his eyes riveted on" a white object In Pottstown cemetery. Henry was frightened sure, and Robert C. Hawk, a wellknown printer, to whom he had told his story, saw, too, the ghostly figure. Hawk, however, ridiculed the idea of such things, and the colored man became angry, but finally agreed to accompany him into the cemetery. The “ghost” never moved, and this caused Locksmith to tote along Very Slowly behind. Hawk braced him up with words of encouragement, and when they came close to the “thing in white” they found that it was a highly polished granite monument upon which the reflection from a distant arc electric light had played and made it seem pure white. —Pottatown (Pa.) Dispatch to the Philadelphia Record.

Hebrew Governor.

Idaho will have the distinction next year of being the only state in the Union to have a Hebrew governor. Moses Alexander, who won by an overwhelming plurality at the November election, was born of poor parents, Immigrated from Europe, and had scant schooling in childhood. As a boy he started to work his way up in the world, and despite his early handicaps, he has succeeded wonderfully. Twice chosen mayor of Boise, he enjoys the reputation of having given that city the best administration it ever had. Many Hebrews have attained positions of high honor in this land of opportunity, which they have filled with credit to themselves and to their race, bnt Mr. Moses Alexander, it is said, is the first one to be elected governor of an American state.

Distorted Vegetarianism.

“So long as you find the cost of living high,” said the friendly adviser, “why don’t you and yonr husband become vegetarians?” "What do you mean?” asked the worried-looking woman. “Why, eat onjy vegetable products." ■ -Couldn't ■ think of * it* F/hat Itn tryin’ to do now is to persuade John to take to -beefsteak and quit tryin’ t» live on liquor and tobaccoi.” ~

“DEVIL’ THUMBS” HIS CURSE

E*at Indian Praises Allah aa Burgeons Eliminate Cause of Hie Ostracism. Allah be praised! Gian Singh is without hie “devil thumbs,” extra ones that grew upon his hands. They were taken from him the other day by Allah, he says,’ but the surgeons in the receiving hospital say differently, and say it in a very technical and convincing way. From the time of hie youth in the -village Tuse, district of Ludhiana, Punjab, India, Gian. Singh has not found favor in the eyes of his relatives, iand always the little boys with whom he played reviled him by calling him “Devil Thumts.” It was a ma formation of the thumbs frdtn which ho suffered, not an uncommon thing In the United States, but a horrible visitation and curse In India. Never could he be a favored son of Allah. When he had a chance he came to America, but his friends took his companionship without grace, and when an affair of chance was undertaken by them recently, and they lost, they cursed Gian Singh roundly, and, by the custom of their race,, spat upon him. So great was Gian Singh’s distress that he came-to the receiving hospital, and asked if some deliverance could not be given him from the curse he bore. The surgeons remarked "easily.” The other day Gian Singh and his friend, Omar, came to the hospital. A moment for anesthesia, the quick and tense activity of the surgeons, and Gian Singh was being wheeled back to his bed in the ward. As he was trundled along, he awakened for an Instant Instantly he held his hands high, so he could look upon them. There was the thumb, one thumb on his right hand. His left was the same. With a sigh, he renewed his dreams in anesthesia, only to mutter, “Allah be praised!”—Los Angeles Times.

Acting and Singing.

Another question relative to studying a role is: “Is there any difference between studying characters for acting and for singing?” Here again I must quote myself. I need the music to inspire me. Many persons have told me that if I would leave the operatic stage for the drama I would be the greatest actress the world has ever seen. I don’t believe it. I dqn’t think all of this could be brought out of me Without the music, because it is the music which does bring it out. The .case of “Salome” is quite in point here. I went first to see it acted without any music, because I thought it would be interesting to act it, if I never sang it. It was just a commonplace drama, that’s all;'but when Strauss put the music to it it became strong, ttense, magnificent—in brief, a new thing! Nor was I the only one affected that way by the change. In Paris, where it was,created, everyone said, when Strauss had put music to the drama: “The hand has found its glove.”—Mary Garden in the American Magazine.

Wild Geese Delay Trains.

Wild geese congregating along tlie right of way of the Nevada, California and Eastern railroad running out of this city in the last week have interfered seriously with the operation of trains. So numerous are, the birds that several times it has been almost necessary to stop the trains that the birds might not be run Over. The engineer has hastened their flight by often blowing the whistle. When the great flocks of geese rise from the track the beating of their wings can be heard distinctly several miles away. The geese have been feeding in neighboring grain fields and along the marshes of Klamath lake. The lack of sand on the marshes, which the geese require as an aid to digestion, is reported to sportsmen to have driven them to the railroad, where sand is used as ballast. —Lakeview (Ore.) Dispatch to the Portland Oregonian.

Poor Chinese Business Rule.

It Is an ''established custom in China that a new company must pay dividends to its shareholders^ from the first year of Its existence, and this forms invariably a clause of the articles of association. Some concerns which fail to realize a profit have to contract a high interest loan in order to pay dividends in full. It is this practice that compels companies to contract loan after loan until they are plunged into a helpless state. Furthermore, when a new company is established, it is from the start tied down to a system of commission paying. In every purchase as well as in every sale of the company a commission goes with it. which is therefore counted into every payment and receipt, thus occas'c-ning the need of an unnecessarily large amount of capital.

Varying Gains In Weight.,

The average, gain in weight varies much with the season of the year. From December to May it Is fairly uniform, but low, ' being 225 to 250 grammes. It rises rapidly and steadily from May to September, daring which month it reaches the maximum of 880 grammes. It falls from October to December, which is the month showing the smallest., gain in weight. The average gain Tn weight in September is almost double that in December, aapd -there can ddeibt that gain in weight U, as a rule, accompanied with improvement in the patient's health.

Beautiful Argonne Region

THE Argonne region is a most important portion of the long line of conflict now raging all the way from the inundated territory between Dixmude and Nleuport on the North sea, down to the southeast at Muelhausen and Altklrch, near the Swiss frontier. The ▼alleys of the Aire extend longitudinally through the Argonne district, which is a fact of the utmost importance, as the region forms a natural bulwark for the protection of northeastern France. Many forests clothe the rocky Argonne plateau, which extends along the borders of Lorraine and Champagne, and forms part of the department of Ardennes. Strictly speaking, the Argonne region is about sixty-three miles in length and between nineteen and twenty miles wide. It stretches In a southeasterly direction between the Aisne and Meuse rivers, forming the connecting link between the plar teau of Haute Marne and Ardennes. Its average elevation is estimated to be about 1,150 feet. Among its numerous forests the beautiful forest of Argonne is especially well known. The region contains many steep and difficult defiles which materially increase their strategic importance.' These defiles lead from the baßins of the Meuse to that of the Seine, a district already famous from the Argonne campaign of -Dqmouriez in 1792. The Prussians under the duke of Brunswick were disastrously repulsed at Valmy, a little village 36 miles southeast of Heims. The battle of Valmy, fought September 20, 1792, is often * classed as one of the most decisive battles of the world. » Reims Great Commercial Center. While Reims is principally noted for its famous cathedral, it is also one -of the most important cities of France. It lies on the Vesle, in the department of the Marne, and was originally the Gallic town of Durocortorum, the chief city of Remi, from which Its

name is derived. It is one of the leading commercial cities of the republic, and the principal center of tlft manufacture and export of champagne. It is interesting to visit one of the “chateaux de commerce” in Reims, as the French style the caves or wine cellars in which the golden beverage is stored. They are chill and damp underground warehouses often seven-ty-five feet below the street. The long lines of eavernomf labyrinths are weird and gloomy In spite of their neatly kppt whitewashed walls and the scrupulous care bestowed upon every bottle of the precious liquid in the endless rows and rows of long dark vaults. Every.Blt of Good Ground Tilled. Before the war the Argonne region had the well cultivated look so typically French. Long lines of fruit trees bordered the well-tilled fleids each side of the beautifully kept roads, which are such a constant surprise and delight to American autoists. * In' Argonne almost every field has a history, and every acre shows the iutimate association of generations of thrifty French peasants with their native soIL Wherever it 4s possible to raise a crop, a crop is raised, and every particle of tillable ground is utilised. . * - . ... AH the. Itttte. French »Rd iages ieem akin. The reiktionshtp of one to the other is evident, exactly as in the great cities of France, Eyefi jn the metropolis of Reims there are

quaint bits of old France that arc delightfully reminiscent of medieval times, and seem a portion of some vanished village. Nancy a Fine City. Across the plateau of the Argonne to the southwest lies another charming city, Nancy, the capital of the department of the Meurtbe et Moselle. It is the seat of a bishop and was the former capital of Lorraine. It was once the residence of the dukes, of whom Stanislaus Leczynski, the ex-king of Poland, was the last. It is considered one of the most picturesque and best built cities of France, the surrounding vineyards adding greatly to the beauty of its situation. Since Strassburg was taken by Germany, Nancy has risen in importance, and now her academy is of high repute. Nancy’s EJcole Forestiere, or forest school, is the only nursery of the kind in all Europe. Until a few years ago the British government sent pupils regularly to this school of forestry, under the charge of an officer. Nancy boasts a fine hotel de ville, which was built in the seventeenth century, and it Is hoped this will escape the fate Qf Louvain. In the Grande rue is the Palais Ducal, Its handsome porch dates from the beginning of the sixteenth century. The building illustrates the best form of late Gothic in France. Within the ducal palace is another museum, the Musee Lorraine, but the larger part of the fine collection was burned by the Germans when they invaded Nancy in 1871. Other Famous Towns. Ecouen, beyond the forest of Montmorency, is noted for its splendid chateau, which was built in the sixteenth century, and Is typical of the period. It is now utilized by the French government as a school for the daughters of the members of the Legion of Honor of lower rank than those who are educated at St. Denis.

View or Nancy

St. Die, between the Vosges mountains and Nancy, was wiped out months ago. It was a picturesque town of about twenty thousand habitants. The pride of St Die was once the famous old monastery, said to have been built by St. Deodatus or Diedonne (God-given) in the sixth century. It in time became a famous collegiate establishment Bar-le-Duc JJes exactly south of the great forest of. Argonne, and it is also south of Verdun, which has already been the scene of repeated hostilities between the intrenched foes. Bar-Ie-Duc Is the ancient capital of the dukes of Bar, and before the • present war was estimated to have a population of over twenty thousand. It is beautifully situated on the heights of the Oraaim and is an odd and quaint little French town. The principal building Is its fourteenth century Church of St Pierre The portal, flanked by a tall tower, was not erected until the next century. But St Pierre's is most renowned for its sepulchral monument of Rene de Chalons, prince of Orange, who fell in the siege of St Dialer in. 1544.. The marble statue on the monument is the work of Ligier Richer of St. Mihiel, who was a pupil of Michael Angelo. 4-"- l ; -v St Mihiel is a little town whose name the present war has put upon the map- It has been of reup around the ancient abbey of SL Michael, which how is utilized Cor municipal offices.