Jasper County Democrat, Volume 13, Number 69, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 December 1910 — For the Children [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

For the Children

A Hippo Very Patiently and Quietly Waiting For His Dinner.

Above is the portrait of the largest hippopotamus in the New York zoo. He is hungry and waiting for the attendant to bring his dinner along. You can see by his open smile that he is able to take a pretty large mouthful. In captivity the hippopotamus is fed grass and hay, bread, carrots and various other vegetables. When the keeper feeds bread the hippo simply opens his mouth and lets the man pitch the loaves into his cavernous maw. In their native habitat, Africa, hippos are sometimes found as much as fourteen feet long and nearly five feet high, but they usually are much smaller. They delight in water, living in lakes and rivers and feeding on water plants and the herbage growing near the water. They are good swimmers and divers and can remain under water eight or ten minutes. A Roland For an Oliver. “A Roland for an Oliver” is an expression that dates from the time of Charlemagne. Roland was his nephew and, like the great Charles, was eight feet high. Oliver, a celebrated knight of the same period, was quite a match for him, and they agreed to test their respective strength and skill in a combat on an island in the Rhine. The contest lasted five days without the slightest advantage to either. If Roland got in a well directed blow his opponent gave him quite as good a one in return, or if Oliver performed a feat of extraordinary skill Roland was sure to match it with a movement quite as adroit. It was a remarkable and altogether unsettled combat, and it gave rise to the saying “a Roland for an Oliver” when a person who has attacked another receives a blow or a retort fully equal to what he has given. Whatever it may be that is received, a return in kind is often called ‘‘a Roland for an Oliver.” Elephants Good Workers. Elephants are used in every department of sawmills in Burma. In the work of piling logs they show great intelligence. One elephant will drag a log out of the water to the saw bench and place it with his tusks on the table, while his mate waits at the other end, ready, as soon as the buzzing circular saw has converted the round tree into a four sided log, to lift it off the bench, place it on the ground and drag it out to the storage yard, where be puts it carefully into position, placing one log exactly on top of the other, piephants can pile logs as high as their foreheads. When the squared logs are wanted for shipment the elephant picks out the required number and. drags them down to the waterside. If it is necessary be enters the river and holds the logs in positron while they are being bound together by the raftsmen.

Portrait—A Game. In the game called portrait one person leaves the room while the others choose the name of some one they all know. The person on re-entering the room has to guess the name selected by asking questions, which must be answered only by “Yes” or “No.” For instance, “Is it a man?” “No.” “Is it a woman?” “Yes.” “Is she married?” i “No.” “Is she tall?” “Has she fair hair?” “jA&e her eyes blue?” “Is she in this room?” and so on till the portrait is recognized. Sometimes the company choose theone who went outside to be the portrait, which naturally makes the guessing rather more difficult. V What Feet Are These? There’s a foot that’s played all over our land. There’s a foot that is often seen in the sand. ■ - 1 There’s a foot that crosses many a stream Anda foot we sometimes ctrtue in' a dream. There's a foot that marches in rain or shine And a foot that has measured many a line. There’s a foot which makes for our feet a rest And a foot which is heard from east to west. Answers.—Football, footprint, footbridge, footboard, foot soldier, footrule, footstool, footstep. Conundrums. What is a soldier’s definition of a “kiss?” A report at headquarters. Why is a crow like a lawyer? He likes to have his caws (cause) heard. Which is the hardest of all soaps? Cast steel (castile). Why does a duck go under water? For divers reasons. What killed Julius Caesar? Roman punches. 1 When will there be only twenty-five letters in the alphabet? When U and I are one. ‘ j ,

How He Did IL A lawyer once asked a man who had at various times sat on several juries: ‘‘Who influenced you most—the lawyers, the witnesses or the judge?” He expected to get some useful and interesting information from so experienced a juryman. This was the man’s reply: “I’ll tell yer. sir. ’ow I makes up my mind. I’m a plain man and a reasonin’ man. and 1 ain’t influenced by anythin’ the lawyers say—no, nor by what the judge says. I just looks at the man in the dock and 1 says. Ts he ain’t done nothin', why he’s there? And I brings ’em all in guilty.”—Short Stories.

Subject to Fluctuation. Country Editor like to mention it, Mr. Hoekorn. but there is a small balance due on your last year’s subscription. Old Subscriber—You git out! I sent you four bushels o’ pertaters in full. Country Editor—Not quite in full, sir. Between the time of mailing your bill and receiving your subscription potatoes dropped 10 cents a bushel.—lllustrated Sunday Magazine. ' Bright Outlook. “De you—er -do you think. Miss Dobbleigh. (that you will be—er—engaged next Thursday evening?” asked Tompy very bashfully. “Well, really. Mr. Tompy,” replied Etfiel. “1 don't know, but if you can get up spunk enough between now and then to-do-your share I think there’s a fair prospect that I shall be.” And Tompy did. —Pittsburg Post. Tha Flatterer. They were discussing ages with a commendable degree of frankness. “Well, now that you have brought the subject up, Miss Dobbson.” said little Fribley, "how old are you?” “Oh, I am as old as I look!” smiled Miss Dobbson. “Really!” said Fribley. “I am astonished. You really don’t look it, you know.”—Harper’s Weekly. Force of Habit. “Poor Ferguson! I hear he broke his neck last night.” “The deuce he did! How did it happen?” “He tried to jump on the last aeroplane for home after it had started and missed it by three inches.”—Chicago Record-Herald. What’s Needed. Patient Doc, I’m afraid there’s something the matter with my brain, and- I want you to make a thorough examination. Physician—Sure! Bring it with you the next time you call and I’ll look it over. —Cleveland Leader.