Jasper County Democrat, Volume 1, Number 24, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 24 September 1898 — Page 2

RECOLLECTIONS. ffHlt-ht- I mi * e*ka yet— As eM boow, deep in roses .et: I mdl the fragrant mignonette. | Afiri among the leafy bowers, Her small hands full of bright-hued flowers — The rose-leave* fall In tinted showers Upon the tresses, waring free Abore her brow of ivory, Her face is very fair to see. She warbles sweetly on her way, Her silvery notes are clear and gay As skylarks’ joyous morning lay. Tie hut a mem'ry—long ago We laid her 'neath the winter snow, Where bending weeping willows grow. The 6ld house lies in ruin gray, Long faded are the blossoms gay, And I am far, so far away 1

A PIECE OF BREAD.

IN 1870 the young Duke de Hardimont was at Aix, taking the waters. He had finished his luncheon, when, throwing a careless glance over the paper, be read the news of the disaster of the French arms at Reichshoffen. He emptied his glass of chartreuse, threw his serviette on the restaurant table, sent word to his valet to pack up, •Ml having caught the express to Paris, rtubed off to the recruiting office, and enlisted in a regiment of the line. And this is why, in the early days of November, 1870, having re-entered Parle with his regiment, which was attached to the corps of General Vlnoy, Henri de Hardlmont, private In the Third Battalion of the second of the iin« 1 and a member of the Jockey Club, was on outpost duty with his company, before the redoubt of Houtes-Bruyeree, a hastily fortified position protected by the cannon of the fort of Blcetre. The place was forbidding, a road broken into muddy ruts aud planted with broomsticks, running through the polluted fields of the Paris outskirts; on the edge of this road a deserted little cabaret —a cabaret with trellised bowers where the soldiers had established their post. A few days before there had been some fighting there, and aeveral of the broomsticks by the roadside had been snapped In two, while tboee left still showed on their bark the white scars of the bullets. The asspect of the house itself made one shiver. The roof had been ripped open by s Shell ; the wine-stained walls seemed bespattered with blood. At’ the door of the cabaret the young duke was standing, his chassepot slung •cross him, his kepi p.ver his eyes, his nnmb hands In the pockets of his red trousers, shivering under his sheepskin. All at once he felt that he was bunfry. He knelt down and drew from his knapsack, which rested against the wall near by, a lump of regulation bread, which, having lost his knife, he bit into and began slowly to eat But after a few mouthfuls he had had enough; the bread was hard, and had a bitter taste. And to think there was no getting any fresh before to-morrow’s distribution, and then only at the good will of the commissary! Ah, well! there was a deal Just now that was pretty rough to bear, and, with a leap of memory, be recalled wbat in past days he bad been wont to term his hygienic luncheons, when, on the morrow, after • supper a trifle too exciting, he would sit flown near some window on the cround floor of the Case Anglais, and tare served to him the veriest trifle—- * cutlet, perhaps—and the waiter, knowing his, habits, would lay on the tablecloth, and carefully open a bottle of fine old leoville, which be then set down to repose in its wicker cradle. Deuce take it! those were good times all the same; he should never get used to this bread of poverty. And In a moment of Impatience the young man flung his lump of bread into the mud.

At that same moment a private was leaving the cabaret; he stooped, picked up the bread, and, going on a few steps, wiped it with his sleeve, and began to devour it ravenously. Henri de Hardlmont was already ashamed of his action, and was looking with pity on the poor wretch who gave proof of such a good appetite. He was a tall, gaunt fellow, ill made, with feverish eyes and a hospital beard, and so thin that his shoulder blades stuck out under the cloth of his worn greatcoat. “Art thou then so hungry, comrade?” he said, approaching the soldier. “As thou seest,” he answered with his mouth full. “Excuse me, then. If I had known that thou wouldst have cared for It I would not have thrown the bread away.” “It Is not the worse for that,” replied the soldier. “I am not so particular.” “No matter,” said the gentleman. "What I did was wrong, and I reproach myself for It, but I do not wish thee to carry away a bad opinion of me, and as I have some good old cognac in my can, we’ll have a drop together.” The man had finished eating. The duke and he took a mouthful each of the brandy; the acquaintance was ■tde. “And thou art called?” asked the private. “Hardlmont,” replied the duke, suppressing his title and prefix. , . . “A<rttt>ou?” 1 k Jean Victor. . . . I’ve only Jnst Joined the company. I came from the ambulance. ... I was wounded at Gbatillon. . . . Ah, one Is well off at the ambulance, and doesn’t the nurse gtve you good horse rfoup? ... But mine was only a scratch; the major signed my discharge, and, worse lack, sat I had to go to begin again to die as hanger. . . For, believe nje If you wfl, comrade, but, as I stand before yea, I have beeS hungry all my litt.”

The word was bonrlbls, ssld to s voluptuary who a moment before caught himself regretting the cuisine of the Case Anglais, and the Due de Hardlmont looked at his companion with an astonishment approaching terror. The soldier was smiling mournfully, letting his wolf-like teeth be seen, the teeth of the hungry, showing so white In his sickly face, and as If he was' aware that further confidence was expected from him. “Look here," he said, brusquely: “look here, let us walk a little up and down upon the road to warm our feet, and I will tell yon of things which most likely you have never heard of before. . . . I am called Jean Victor. Jean Victor quite short because I am a foundling, and my only happy recollection Is of the time pf my early childhood In the asylum. The Bheets of our little beds in the dormitory were white; we played under the big trees In a garden, and there was a good sister, quite young, as white as wax—she was going Into consumption—and I was her favorite, and often I chose to walk with her rather than to play with the other children, because she would draw me close to her skirt and put on my forehead her thin, hot hand. . . . But at twelve years, after making our first communion, nothing more than misery. The governors had apprenticed me to a mender of chairs In the Faubourg St. Jacques. It isn’t a trade, you know. You can’t get a living by It; to prove It, for the most part the master could only entice as apprentices the poor boys from the Asylum for the ‘Young Blind!’ And It was there that I first learned to suffer the pangs of hunger. The master and his wifetwo old Llmouslns who worried themselves to death—were terrible misers, and the bread which they cut into pieces for each meal, they kept for the rest of the time under lock and key. And every evening at supper you would see the mistress, with her old black cap, when she was serving the soup, heave a dismal sigh with each ladleful she took from the tureen. The other two apprentices, the 'Young Blind,’ were less unhappy; not that they got more than I did, but they were not able to see the look of reproach that that miserable woman gave as she handed me my plate. My misfortune was to have a good appetite, but I ask you was that my fault? I served “7 three years of apprenticeship In a constant state of hunger. . . . Threfl years! and you knew all about the trade in a month. But the governors can’t be expected to be up to everything; they have not an idea of the way In which the children are turned to account. . . . Ah, you were surprised to see me take a piece of bread out of the mud? It’s not the first time, not by many, that I have picked up crusts out of the dust heaps, and when they were too dry I used to soak them all night in my water jug. At last when my aprenticeship was finished, and I took to my trade, as I have said, you couldn’t earn by It enough to sustain a man. Oh, rtried many others. I had a good heart for work. I was a mason’s laborer, a porter, a floor polisher and a dozen others! Bah! to-day it was the work was wanting; another time I lost my place. . . . But all the same I never had enough to eat to satisfy Tonnerre! What fury I have felt in passing before baker’s shops! Happily for me at those times, I always remembered the good sister at the asylum, who s|o often Impressed on me to keep honest, and I would even believe that I could feel on my forehead the warmth of her little hand. ... At last, at eighteen, I enlisted. . . . You know as well as I do that the soldier has only Just enough, and now—lt’s almost enough to make one laugh—behold the siege and famine! You see now that I didn’t tell you lies when I said that I had always, always, been hungry.”

The young duke had a good heart, and, listening to this terrible lament, told him by a man like himself, by a solldler whose uniform made him his equal, he felt himself profoundly stirred. . “Jean Victor,” he said, "If we both survive this frightful war we Bhall see more of each other, and I hope I shall be of use to you. But Just now, as there Is no other baker at the outposts but the corporal of the commissariat, and as my ration of bread is twice too much for my small appetite—lt Is understood, Is It not?—we will share like good comrades.” A hearty shake of the hand was exchanged between the two men, and as night was falling, and they were being harassed by watches and alarms, they re-entered the cabaret, where a dozen soldiers lay sleeping upon the straw, and, throwing themselves down side by side, they sank into a heavy sleep. Toward midnight Jean Victor awoke; he was probably hungry. The wind had blown away the clouds, and a moonbeam, shlnlpg Into the room through the rent in the roof, lit up the charming, fair head of the young duke, sleeping rike an Endymlon. Still touched by the kindness of his comrade, Jean Victor was looking at him with naive admiration, when the sergeant of the platoon opened the door to call the five men who were to relieve the sentinels at the outposts. The duke was of the number, but when his name was called he did not awake. “Hardimont, get up," repeated the sergeant 1 “If you will be good enough to let me, sergeant” said Jean Victor, rising, ‘Til mount guard for him . . . he’s so fast asleep . . . and he’s my comrade.” l “As thou choosest” , And the five men gone, the snoring began again. But half an hour after the sound of firing, sharp and very near, broke, in upon the night In an instant they had all sprung to their feet; the men hastened from the cabaret and with finger on trigger, stole

•long stealthily looking along the road, which showed white in the moonlight. “But what o’clock Is It?" asked the duke. “I was to bare been on guard.” Some one answered him. “Jean Victor has gone In yonr place." At that moment a soldier came running along the road; “What’s happened?" they asked as he stopped breathless. “The Prussians are attacking . . . we must fall back on the redonbt" “And our comrades?” "They’re coming ... all bnt that poor Jean Victor.” “What?” cried the duke. “Hilled dead on the spot, with a bullet through his head ... he hadn’t time to say, ‘Ouf!’ ” • • • One night last winter, toward two o’clock In the morning, the Due de Hardlmont was leaving the club with bis neighbor, the Count de Saulnes; he had lost a few hundred lonto, and felt something of a headache. “If you don’t mind, Andre,” he said to bis companion, “we will walk home ... I want some fresh air.” "As yon like, ’cher ami,* although the pavement is horribly bad.” They sent away their broughams, turned up the collars of their fur coats and walked toward the Madeleine. Presently the duke sent rolling something which he had struck with the toe of his boot; it was a large crust of bread, all covered with mud. Then, to his amazement, M. de Saulnes saw the Due de Hardlmont pick up the lump of bread, carefully wipe It with his crest-embroidered handkerchief and place It on a bench of the boulevard under the light of a gas lamp, where It could well be seen. “But what on earth Is It you are doing?” said the count, bursting into a laugh. “Are yon mad?” j “It Is In memory of a poor man who died for me,” replied the duke, his voice slightly trembling. . . . “Don’t laugh, mon cher; you hurt me!”—From the French of Francois Coppee.

A NEW NARCOTIC.

t la Now Being Used in Mexican Insane Asylnms. A new narcotic Is being used In Mexican asylums for the insane., The principal of one of these institutions became much concerned at the large number of deaths among the Inmates, caused by congestion of the brain, following the excessive use of narcotics administered to the women to overcome the insomnia which Is the frequent accompaniment of insanity. He therefore requested Dr. Altimirano, principal of the National Medical Institute, to try to discover a narcotic which would produce all the good results without incurring any danger. Dr. Altimirano at once answered that he had already such a narcotic, ft consists of an extract prepared by secret process from the seeds of the white zapote. The dose for the insane is from 50 to 60 centigrams, administered all at once. In from half an hour to an hour the patient falls Into a quiet and refreshing sleep. When given to hysterical women this antidote has remarkably soothing effects. It is a specific for calming the nervous system during the periods of excitement which are frequent both In the case of hysterical and Insane women. For hysterical women the dose is 10 centigrams, mixed with 30 centigrams of bromide, potassium. or camphor, administered every half hour, until the hysterical symptoms are brought under thorough control.

Natural History

Within the antarctic circle there has never bech found a flowering plant. Scarlet flowers are said to stand drought better than any others. A horse will live twenty-five days without food, merely drinking water. The oyster Is one of the strongest of creatures and the force required to open it Is more than 1,300 times its own weight.

A horse will eat In a year nlnfe times his own weight, a cow nine times, an ox six times and a sheep six times. According to Nilsson, the zoologist, the weight of the Greenland whale Is 100 tons, or £24,000 pounds, or equal to that of eighty-five .elephants, dr 440 bears. An organist says that a cow mooes In a perfect fifth octave, of"-tenth; a dog barks in a fifth or fourth; a donkey brays in a perfect octave, and a horse neighs in a descent on the chromatic scale. Live bees are sometimes shipped on Ice, so as to keep them dormant during the Journey. This Is particularly the case with bumble bees which have been taken to New Zealand, where they are useful In fertilizing the red clover which has been introduced Into the colony.

Queer German Habit.

The men of Berlin have an old habit of brushing and combing their hair and whiskers In puhllc. In the restaurants and cases men pull out their implements and “spruce up" while waiting for their orders to be filled. They do not take the trouble to leave the table, either. /“By the way, did old Blggers tell you about my telling him some unpalatable truths?’ “He didn’t put it that way* He said you told him things that were pretty hard to swallow.”—lndianapolis Journal. It hr lucky for some people that aU collector* are not as troublesome with their bills as mosquitoes are.

PARTICIPANTS IN THE OMAHA MONETARY CONFERENCE.

ODD FELLOWS IN BOSTON.

Representative* to the Fovereign Grand Lodge Welcomed. An official welcome to the Sovereign Grand Lodge of Independent Order of Odd Fellows was given in the Y. M. C. A. Hall in Boston Monday. The members of the Sovereign Grand Lodge, 200 in number, and the women representing the Order of Rebebah were escorted to the hall by committees. J. W. Venable of Hopkinsville, Ky., grand chaplain of the Sovereign Grand Lodge, began the exercises with prayer. Charles N, Alexander of Boston, chairman of the executive committee of the grand lodge of Massachusetts, then announced Gen. F. B. Appleton of the Governor’s staff, who welcomed the grand lodge and members of the Rebekah branch in behalf of the State. Mayor Josiah Quincy spoke for the city of Boston. The other speakers included Charles Terrel, grand master, for the grand lodge of Mas-

THOMAS WILDEY. Founder of American Odd Fellowship.

sachusetts; Charles C. Fuller, grand patriarch, for the grand encampment; Gen. Edgar R. Emerson of the Pa triarchs Militant, and Mrs. Mary O. Nevins, representing the Rebekah branch of the order in Massachusetts. Grand Sire Fred Carleton of Austin, Texas, responded, and the exercises were at an end. The members of the Sovereign Grand Lodge then marched to Copley Hall, where their secret deliberations began. Grand Sire Carleton reported that a request had been received from Brother Bradley, who is with the United States army in Manila, for permission to establish the order in the Philippines. A request has also been received for the establishment of the order in the Argentine Republic from W. L. D. Mayor, United States consul in Buenos Ayres. Grand Secretary J. Frank Grant presented a voluminous report covering a vast amount of detail of interest solely to the memberspftheserder. The Odd Fellows sent a message to President McKinley bearing greetings to lim and to the soldiers and sailors of the army and navy, with congratulations upon Ihe glorious victory which their valor has irfiieved in the war with Spain, and to Ihe sick and wounded heartfelt sympathy, vith hope for their speedy recovery and restoration to home and family. The feature of Monday’s program was ; banquet in Music Hail, when Senator Henry Cabot Lodge, Mayor Josiak Quincy and Attorney General Knowlton were the speakers. The election was held Tuesday. Wednesday was practically a holiday in the city in honor of the great parade which took place that day;«

WILL DO NO SPEAKING.

President Decides Not to Talk for Campaign Daring His Trip. The President has decided against appeals which have been made to him to make political speeches in Ohio and Indiana or anywhere eke during the campaign. He gave Representatives Overstreet and Paris to understand that on his way to Omaha he would make stops at Indianapolis and Terre Haute, but not to make speeches. On his way back he may make two or three similar stops in Ohio, but on none of these occasions will there be political speech-making by the executive.

Turk Accuses Britain.

The Turkish Government sent a circular to the powers alleging that the British provoked the disorders at Candia, claiming that the present situation is due to the measures adopted by the powers in Crete, and protesting against the bombardment of Candia. The Porte announces its refusal to withdraw the Turkish troops from Crete, in spite of the decision of the admirals that such a step is absolutely necessary.

Chairman Bynum Resigns.

W. D. Bynum, chairman of the national Democratic party, tendered his resignation to the executive committee Wednesday, and George Foster Peabody of New York was elected as his successor. The resignation was a great surprise to the leaders of the gold Democratic party.

Trouble in China.

A revolution in central China seems unavoidable. The rebellion in Hainan and the province of Kwang-Si is being joined by thousands of the literati, who are bitterly opposed to the Mancha dynasty.

OUR LIST OF KILLED.

Thirty-three Officers and 231 Men Lost in War with Spain. The official records of the War Department, as far as completed, show that there were thirty-three officers and 231 enlisted men of the army, 264 in all. killed in battle during the war with Spaiu. These casualties include all the lives lost by the army in the battles in the Philippines as well as those in Cuba and Porto Rico. The percentage of officers killed is strikinly large, and is said to be unprecedented in the battles of the world. The contrast is especially striking in the case of the battle of Omduruian, where, although the loss of life was heavy, the list of killed included only one officer of the British army. The wounded, 1,430. The estimate of those killed by disease is placed at 1,300. Lives lost in navy and marine corps: Officers killed in battle, 1; men killed in battle, 13; ipen drowned, 1; men wounded, 38; total, 3.2G7.

TROOPS FOR GARRISON DUTY.

Kighty-five Thousand Volunteers and Regulars. It is said at a conference between the President. Acting Secretary Meiklejohn and Gen. Miles it was decided that the army of occupation of Porto Rico shall consist of 12,000 troops, Cuba 50,000, Philippines 20,000 and Hawaii 3,000. These four armies will be made up of both regulars and volunteers. The forces to be sent to Hawaii and Manila will consist almost entirely of infantry, while the armies for Cuba and Porto Rico will embrace cavalry, artillery, infantry, engineers and signal corps men.

BATTLESHIPS' LONG VOYAGE.

Oregon and lowa to Make an 18,000 Mile Trip. The Navy Department has ordered the battleship Oregon, Captain Albert 8. Barker, and the battleship lowa, Captain Silas Terry, from the Brooklyn navy yard, on their 18,000-mile voyage to Manila, by way of the Straits of Magellan and Honolulu. The armor clads will be accompanied by five colliers, two of which will accompany them all the way to Manila. They will make a short stay at Honolulu on their way to join Admiral Dewey's fleet. Their journey will require some three months’ time.

Shafter Before and After.

How the Santiago campaign affected the corpulent American commander.

WAR NEWS IN BRIEF.

Eighty-three Spaniards died on the way from Santiago to Santander, Spain. Admiral Schley will be restored to his old position as chairman of the lighthouse board. Eight regular army regiments now stationed at Montauk have been ordered to their former posts. Capt. Jewell of the cruiser Minneapolis has been presented with a handsome sword by the members of his crew. It is understood that Spain will ask the peace conference for the privilege of retaining a part of the Philippines. Contracts are to be given out by the Government for the construction of twen-ty-eight torpedo boats for the navy. Gen. Gomez, in a letter to Senor Palma, says that the Americans have been “cold and dry," but that they are the benefactors of Cuba. A delegation of prominent Philippine natives, appointed by Aguinaldo, is on its way to Washington to confer with President McKinley. 'Four of the old single-turreted monitors now at League Island navy yard, Philadelphia, are to be utilized as coast guards off shore at Porto Rican ports. Surgeon General tlfcernberg, who has been inspecting Camp Wikoff, says he has found the hospitals in excellent condition, and that the camp site is good. Troops will be held in readiness at Honolulu to go to Manila if necessary. Aguinaldo, the Philippine chief, is becoming restless, troublesome and even dangerous. Senor Silveia, now the leader of the largest section of the Conservative party of Spain, refuses to allow any member of his party to serve on the peace commission. In a speech at Minneapolis, Senator Da- . vis, a member of the peace commission, said: “This Government will secure from the situation whatever American courage, hone* and Talor have .gained.”

A LITTLE HEROINE.

A Pathetic Story of the Siege of So*ago***. 1 Baron Lejeune, wbo played a conspicuous part at the siege of Saragossa during the Peninsular war, narrates In his “Memolres” a singular story of that terrible time, a story that speaks equally well for the chivalry of the soldiers of France and for the courage of a Spanish girl. - - There had been fearful carnage within, the walls of the unfortunate city; even the convents and monasteries were reeking with evidences of warfare, and the Inhabitants of were In a desperate plight s ' A band of Polish soldiers, belonging to the French army, had been stationed on guard at a certain point with orders to Are upon any Spaniard who might pass them. Suddenly a girl of about fifteen years of age appeared among them. A cry of warning whs heard on * every side as she approached, but the child seemed not to hear. She only 'continued to utter one ceaseless and piercing wall, “Mia madre! mla mad re!” as she hurried from one group of dead and wounded Spaniards to .another.

It soon became evident that she was in search of the body of her mother, and the pale, agonized face of the child, whose filial love bad made her almost insensible 'to danger, touched the soldiers’ hearts with pity. A moment later adesprairing cry announcing that she had found that for which she had risked her life. The Polish guards watched her movements with something like awe as she stooped and tenderly wrapped the mutHated form of the dead woman in a cloak and began to drag It away. Suddenly the girl paused and seized a heavy cart- \ rldge-box that lay In her path, with an energy that seemed almost supernatural. Her frail, delicate form swayed and staggered beneath the weight of her burden, but she did not hesitate. A thrill of mingled horror and admiration filled the astonished watchers as they perceived that there, before their very faces, she was taking from them an instrument for future vengeance upon them. The inhabitants of the besieged city were almost destitute of ammunition, and the motherless daughter sought to put into the hands of her countrymen a means by which her wrongs might be in some degree avenged. But the strain was becoming almost more than she could bear; she stumbled, and a cry of terror broke from her lips. .The Polish soldiers glanced from one to another, and then, moved by a chivalrous Impulse, they lowered sabre and musket, and as with one accord a hundred voices called ont, “Do not be afraid, little one! We will not hurt you.” And the Spanish maiden passed with her gruesome burden between a double line of her country’s foes, who made a silent salute as she crossed their boundaries and returned to her desolate home.

Locusts in Algeria.

The visitation of Algeria by locusts last year was of an extraordinary character. From an official report It seems that Algeria was visited twice during the year, the first flight appearing in the winter as far north as the Mediterranean coast, and a second one, which was normal, in the spring and early summer. There Is no record of any flight such as the early one in the history of Algeria, and as they appeared so early It was hoped that the insects were sterile; but the females fcegan to lay In the usual way, only several months too soon. But In place of being hatched out in the ordinary period! they took more than twice as long, something wholly new and unexpected In the life history of locusts. The appearance of the Insect so far north as the Mediterranean In midwinter is believed to bo due to the drought which In the previous year devastated the southern districts and the Morocco Sahara.

There being no vegetation in the Sahara, the locusts were forced to leave the grounds where they spend the winter, and to hurry forward to places where food was obtainable. Up to this it was believed that the maximum period for the incubation of the eggs was forty-five days; but it has been shown now that It extends In some cases to seventy days, so that the period may vary, according to the time of the year, from fifteen days to seventy. Oran, the province adjoining Morocco, was the only one Invaded. The area ov£r which the eggs were laid is estimated at 424,500 acres, and 270,120 bushels of young locusts were destroyed. These are below the real figures, for in many fresh grounds no estimate was made of the area covered. The barriers, or lines of defense, made of the Cyprus apparatus, or of zinc, extended over 322 miles, While 27,113 ditches were dug at the foot of these to cyMch the young locusts.

Edith —There Is one thiug in particular that I like Mr. Tactin for. He Is so frank, you know. He always tells me of my faults without the least hesitation. That was the agreement I caused him to make. Bertha—And you mean to say that you do not angry with him? Edith—Never. Berthl—Tell me some of'the faults he has found In tou, Edith—Oh, he hasn’t f< tiud any When I ask him to name them he always says that I am faultless. Mrs. Newlywed—“ What’s the matter, dear? You haven’t touched my biscuits. Haven’t you an appetite?” Mr. Newlywed—“ Darling, It would be unbecoming a patriotic citizen at this time to eat such valuable ammunition.”— Judge. , There is a growing tendency to speak of a girl as having “caught” a ' young man she will marry as If she deliberately dug for bait and went after him.