Ligonier Banner., Volume 35, Number 45, Ligonier, Noble County, 7 February 1901 — Page 6

- THE SQUIRREL. - Watch the cunning little rasecal, As he springs from bough to bough 4©Of the shellbark on-:the hillside, With its leaves all scattered now— Save thg few whose satin yellow 5 Flaunts ‘the brisk November gale ; . And conceals the frisky fellow c - With the wealth of tousy tail i Note his bright eye’s saucy glitter As he scales the highest limb;,/ #Catch the rascal’s scolding twifeer, . And it’s all you'll catch of him; For he’s near his cozy chamiér . + In the hollow chestnut pough, And he’s out of sigw danger w..e-In his nut-stored gtiarters now. Yet turmayour ‘E;ck a minute And you'll see him, like as nof, ° “Tail a-blow, himself hid in it, In quite another spot,. = Snugly perched asleep or dozing On a 2 mossy lower limb, ©Or is the rascal posing " For a photograph of him? Then a streak of gray ascending Like an arrow from a bow, To the topmost branches bending : Like a spirit see him go. : “Through space he springs as sprighfly : As a feather on the breeze, And strikes the ground as lightly; Then is gone among the trees. : —Charles H. Doing, in Washington Star. o

An Adventure in Algeria By Wm. Murray Graydon.

ARL HAMRACH spread the atlas K wide open on his desk. \Here you are,” he said. “The valley from which you shall take the first rich pickings/ 'if all goes well. 'Hitherto it has been regarded as-inaccessible; no human hand or foot dared to tempt its perils until’ last month, when Baron Kirsh, the intrepid sportsman—" | “f know him by repute.” interrupted Matthew Quin, who had just returned from New Guinea. “And he—" | ““He was looking for big game, and emerged in the valley, and was there} for a few hours. He tells me that the place abounds with wonderful birds.! panthers, boar, smaller animals and‘ perhps a lion or two that have wandered down from the Atlas.” *lt sounds all right,” said Quin. “What we want is a concession, and I think I can get it from the present governor of Milianah, Gen. Changarnier.” : A fortnight later Quin was beneath sunny Algerian skies. He stood one morning by the battlemented wall that surrounds Milianah, looking down into a dizzy gulf. Behind him the little valley town, its white walls contrasting vividly with the green gardens. To drink the native wine and to#moke the sweet native tobacco, to chat with French soldiers and fezzed Arabs —that was all Quin had to do at present. For he waited the return of Gen. Changarnier from Oran, and meanwhile he passed as a simple English tourist, on pleasure and sightseeing ‘bent, : Another person, who had come there before Quin, shared that part of the parapet. He stood about =2O yards dAway—a lean, wiry man. with a.ragged black beard, with yellow skin drawn tightly over high cheekbones. He was reading a letter, which he presently tore to fragments and dropped into the gulf below him. - The shower of paper fluttered down like snowflakes, spreading wider and wider apart. One bit, as chance would have it, was snatched by a puff of wind and sucked for many yards along the face of the cliff, until finally it Janded on top of the parapet, in front of Quin’s very eyes. He stared - incredulously at the stamped design—a purple giraffe — which the three-cornered fragment bore. His face darkened with sudden anxiety and suspicion. He gazed at the bits of paper floating below him, and then glanced quickly round in ' time to see the stranger disappear from the wall. | | “Sylva’s figure!” he muttered. “If ke is really here I shall need to be cunning and vigilant.” | The discovery threatened ' serious complications. The purple giraffe was the trade-mark of a rival firm of wild animal dealers—Moss & Crawley. of Liverpoot, and Antonio Silva was their agent. He was a Portuguese, an unecrupulous and treacherous fellow. and more than once in the past he had matched craft for craft with Quin, who usually came off best, and had thus incurred the other’s biter hatred. Quin sought long and vainly for the man who had destroyed the letter on the parapet. Night had fallen when he started back, and as he was picking his way across the dark sok, or marketplace, to take the steep road to Milianah, a cloak was thrown over his head from behind and tightened about his neck so that he could make no outCry. : - He was dragged a short distance to a tent of gunny-bags. where his limbs were tied with cords and a gag was thrust between his teeth. Then, the cloak -having been removed from his ‘head, he found himself in the presence <f four greasy, sinister-faced Arabs of the lowest class, who proceeded to rob Lim of everything on his person, in<'uding Baron Kirsh’s chart. Three of the ruffians presently went away. leaving the fourth to keep guard over the Pprisoner, L ; Why he was detained, now ‘that his pockets had been rifled, was more than Quin could fathom. And then of a sudden the startling truth burst upon him. : g : “This is Antonio Silva’s work,” he told himself. “He is lodging at St. Marquerite'’s, and he hired the Arabs to do his bidding—to steal the chart and put me out of the way. Without doubt they are taking me into the interior. to €ell me as a slave to ‘some sheik. Heaven help me to eseape from their clutches.” 5 ~ Hours passed anmd the sun was high when the little party halted. The captive’s limbs were unbound, and he was relieved of the painful gag. The hood <f the burnoose was lifted, and he saw that he was in a wild place of rocks and bushes. - He was glad to get a bandful of dates and a draught of brackish _W_i_igt;ir from a goatskin. ~ Meanwhile the Arabs, who aiso partook of food, slightly/ relaxed their i@gigt}ianee \&‘ie - mule, i‘»fi!fi"ffifl“’ng‘ by dnches as it cropped fhe herbage, mm«ww% ER g g e shouts. . Aruin foliowad With alirill shotas, |

as he clung with both hands to tha maddened creature’s neck. -He wasg borne thus for a hundred yards or more, the clamor growing fainter and fainter behind him, and then a sudden swerve threw him off. He landed on a grassy slope, rolled over and over, and dropped into an empty space. Far, far down he shot, before he ‘crashed int®6 dense foliage and /rought up in the forks of two limbg” He clungthere for a time, dizzy and bruised. ~ Convinced that he had nothing further to fear from his abductors, and that they believed him to be lying dead and mangled at the very bottom of the abyss, Quin now climbed to the narrow ledge on which the tree grew. " Except for a few bruises and scratches, he was unhurt. For 60 or 70 feet above him the cliff towered sheer and smooth, and a dense forest lay 200 or 300 feet below him. A moment’s reflection, and the sound of foaming waters, opened Quin’s eyes to the truth.

“By Jove, here's a queer coincidence!” he exclaimed. “I've tumbled over into the baron’s valley, but what am I going to do? I can’t scale the cliff, that’s certain. I must get to the bottom somehow, and try to find the inner mouth of that cave.”

. He clung like a cat to the rocky wall, adva\icing.inch by inch, foot by foot, his body at times swaying out over the dizzy chasm, It was an hour before he drew near the end. Then the shelf widened, and-as he pushed on rapidly, with a light and grateful heart, he came to a triangular black hole in the cliff. A peep inside chilled his blood, for he met the gaze of two fiery eyes and heard the muffled snarl of a wild beast, : !

As he looked back a great tawny creature — a magnificent Algerian panther—svriggled- out of the hole. An angry, rasping scream broke the silence, and ere the echo died away Quin had taken to his heels. The forest was dense and dark, primeval in fact, but he tore a passage through the luxuriant .undergrowth as if it were bracken., The roar of the stream was audible and he headed in that direction,

Of a sudden, emerging on a little open glade, a fresh peril tonfronted him. From the opposite thicket rose a grizzly old wild boar, with yellow tusks and foam-flecked jaws. Quin dodged behind a tree on the left and the mnext instant the pursuing panther bounded into the clearing. At once, oblivious tn the presence of the man, the two savage creatures engaged in desperate combat. 3 It was a brief combat. The panther, pierced and ripped in ‘a dozen places, bleeding profusely from its wounds, relaxed its struggles. It tried to escape, but a vicious thrust tore its throat and neck open, and its life ebbed swiftly as it.-lay squirming on the erushed grass. The boar then swung round alertly, sniffed the air and gazed with pricked-up ears, not at Quin, but in the direction of the stream. It was about to charge when a rifle cracked sharply from the thicket. A second shot followed the first, and over went the boar, kicking in its death struggles, : ' A man stepped into view, holding his weapon in one hand, and the hidden watcher behind the tree recognized Antonia Silva. The Portuguese, it seemed, had lost no time in proving the accuracy of his ill-gotten chart. | At sight of his treacherous betrayer; whose guilt was no Jlonger in doubt, Quin's wrath was uncontrolable. \ “You traitor!” he cried. With that he leaped across the glade, through the still drifting wreaths of powder-smoke, and so sudden was the attack that he easily wrested the rifle from the Portuguese. The latter evaded a swinging blow, and then, having no other weapons, he turned and fled for his life, with Quin in hot pursnit. @ e

The chase led to the middle of the valley, where it turned along the high, ragged bank of the stream which was a swift torrent racing among submerged rocks. The end was sudden and uneX‘ected. Silva tripped and fell heavily; his arms dangling on the edge of the stream, and as Quin came up with him both were precipitated into the water by a part of the 'overhanging bank giving way. Clinging to each other, they were swept off by the furious current and borne towards the subterranean channel. : Before they could realize their peril they were sucked into the cavernous hole, and dragged on at dizzy speed through the fearful darkness. A rounded bowlder just beneath the surface forced them apart. A foam: ing wa‘ve_subme_,rged Quin, and as he rose he heard a wild, despairing cry Then, as he struck out with arms ane legs, he grasped a pinnacle of rock and clung to it for a short time, while he gained breath and strength. When he could hold fast no longer he trusted himself to the stream, and after ' several anxious minutes he floated out from ' heneath the great mountain. into the fresh air and sunshine. He swam clgar of the dangerous reefs, and at length, little the worse' for the struggle, he was thrown ashore by a circling eddy of smooth water. s * There was no sign of the Portuguese, and it was uncertain whether he had perished or escaped. A half hour’s search, aided by what he could remember of the chart, revealed tg Quin the mouth of the secret cavepassage. Then he set out for Milianah and late in the afternoon he entered the town, |, i Gen. Changarnier readily granted to Quin the exclusive privilege—for the space ofisix months—of trapping wild animals in the now accessible valley, and by the expiration of that time a large number of valuable ‘beasts, birds and reptiles had. been shipped to England.—Boston Globe.

Faith But Not Practice, ; Emperor Francis Joseph of Austria believes in air: ships, but _the anarchists in his realm, says the Chieago Times-Herald, are mourning because his belief has not yet become strong enough to bring him to the experimenting stage. : : . And High-Priced Ones, : ~_Pafti's castle in Wales has been bought by Sir George Newnes. He probably expects, says the Kansas City Times, to find it full of tunes.

Picturesqueness of the New Theater Garments This Season Has Brought Out Many Charming _ Affairs Both in Gowns and Wraps

Theater Gotvns and Wraps That Are Fashionable D‘URING the sfay*™of Bernhardt, when the famous French actress and “L’Aiglon” were the fads of the hour, theater parties, and,. of courSe, theater wraps, were the vogue in the world of fashion. Many aeharming' garment was constructed especially for this event, and the modistes reaped a harvest from the fashionable women who made special preparations for the coming and stay of Bernhardt. It may be too late in the season for other women to copy.the fashions of New York in this line, as the days of Lent are drawing near, when such frivolous things as the theater must be forgotteg for a time, and our thoughts turned churchward, but it would be a shame to let the opportunity pass without giving a glimpse of the sumptuousness of the costumes which greeted the tragic French actress, The noticeable feature of these theater \garments were the gold and silver trimmings. They were upon everything, and to such an extent that ene was aunclined to say there was an abundance of it. It was worked into the hats, gowns, new sleeves, opera coats and capes, with charming combinations of colors. All had new ideas in which figured the gold and silver trimmings. One startling, yet pretty. gown was of golden. yellow silk, with a black point d’'esprit overdress. This having an applique of jet with a large scroll design, revealing the golden silk, and

. ER S . e . éggz e S ;"’5:."":13-*.??"":;-'}’.% g SN M 4B R ok & I i Ay sYI % L N Rad B o '*"lééfgffi?ifi?ff§E_:-;Ej.3;?§§;§_s;£;3§:§sss3s§s§;§s‘ el e R »‘-‘i;i* ) | BSR AREE: 1 sDo 218 B 8 o cnenaiane eUG S e e W PN S e 4 La R ol P L el OF YELLOW SILK WITH POINT DE ESPRIT. outlined with gold threads. A lowpointed decollete, with folds of white chiffon fastened with wee gold buckles. A gold girdle at the waist line. Long sleeves, with deep-pointed cuff of golden silk threaded with black and gold’threads. : Another of the striking gowns worn during the Bernhardt season was made of white cloth and with small tucks over the hips. and cut in deep vandykes at the bottom, falling over a circular flounce. The flounce had five rows of black silk braid with gold threads run through it. There was a new arrangement of little stitched tabs of the cloth that fastened the gown down the front, each having a gold button at either end. A tucked yoke and stock of white chiffon. with revers of real guipure. A pointed bolero fastened with. the stitched tabs. The sleeves were plain to just below the elbow, with puff of silk, and deep cuff of white and golden panne. One of the picturesque evening coats was of pale blue cloth as a background for a design of gracefully-curved leaves and drooping berries appliqued in white panne, and all edged with a fine silken cord interwoven with threads of gold. The coat was finished at the extreme end with dark mink-tail fur. The high, rolling collar was lined with shirred and gathered blue chiffon, also the lower part of the sleeves that were turned back in a rolling cuff.

Charming Flower Costumes Jor Fancy Dress Balls ONE method of entertaining of which that part of society that regulates our styles never seems to tire is the fancy dress ball. New York has seen several of these affairs this winter, and each of them has produced some charming and novel costumes. Flower designs have been unusually popular this winter, and some hostesses have sent out invitations to “floral balls,” and so in a way regulating the costumes instead of leaving them entirely to the fancy of the .wearer. At one of these a success was scored by the costufne of a white lily. There was a skirt of pure white satin cut in lily-leaf shapes falling on a soft tulle foundation skirt; the green “cup” of the flower was in the proper tone, and Wwas arranged partly falling in points over the skirt and partly turned back on the lower portion of the bodice of soft tulle. The headdress is always a very important feature of a flower design; it must reproduce the flower as closely as possible to be becoming to the face—the lily-kleaves in soft white ‘silk, the cup in green silk, and a bit of stem, forming a sort of aigrette, made this wearer’s cap very effective: . t A eornflower aesign that attracted considerable attention was less ingenious, inasmuch as the actual flowers were worn as. asflounce; onya corn-flower-blue silk crepe 'skirt; the bodice was shaped like the flower, with ‘chenille ends set round the bérthe to form the shredded tips that distinguish the flower; here again the cap, shaped liké a half-opened blossom, was an important feature. = 4 A fuchsia in mauve tulle underskirt ‘with overskirt cut to resemble-the pet-

- . * .als in fuchsia-red velvet, and the bodice cleverly made in green tulle to represent the cup of the flower, was aco omme s 0 N o *{ = = SR R R LS N e % J B i e A I SRR e A M N e T R s o TR L SRR, T e 1.,« B o SO S e 7 FELRERREEY ee S RN Y oo &TR o o e s SR S T R T Py B o )%é ;:Q:':,;f;a::f g Q’bi ‘\;‘.‘ ?;\ s “"&‘? oTI HER Q:: %“@,‘le-‘&‘, f& R -f{ 31 ‘3...( :’5 R EEE X o 2 “L? \f’ fi % ' .1’ f"":’*/gc‘x b AR T, ’s‘ S 8 SRR R AR LI Y "-"‘23 T RERRRE "s&R’| e G SR RN T o P ; e L R~ s f i J/" SRRt St ) £ By X U E TP e B e kS RS RNRE RS WS ;:»i;;s«fv*f"--.,:); AT R . o N EreE VRGN . RN R BPg il p (e g 3 P e ok ¥, Fe 030 M :@Egig'f«l};_ el S 5 3 OO L Sty 2 A N PR A N o S B ROESOTORE L SRR oo s SRR CABy Y . A e \ SiaEE T RWL i e (RS ey S R SO i.‘:s‘e%;f;;féi-:?5?35:;:;..5.';3.;;:. IR KRRRR R o 28 7 R B e : 3 o Myw - A HANDSOME THEATRE WRAP. companied by a cap like an-inverted fuchsia, with the mauve heart just peeping out. This was very effective; so was the lily of the valley in the proper shade of green chiffon, the bells forming a fringe round the skirt and finishing the berthe. : e @ The Sash as an Adjunct to the Evening Dress HE sash as a feature of evening dress is assuming considerable importance as the season draws near a close. They are of the most beautifully designed brocades and are worn. with tulle and muslin gowns, giving to them both color and importance. Sometimes the ends are worn down the left side of the front, but most often by young women at the back. 5

A white tulle flecked all over with gold sequins, mace very full over white glace silk, with a froth of flouncings round the feet, had a sash of yellow brocade, caught close against the hip at the left side by a pearl ornament; the tulle bodice was covered with a network of pefixsls, and had a twist for the bertha, and also shoulder straps of brocade. In some cases the flowers of a broeade are cut away here and there, and the space left filled in with a motif of lace; gold lace was so used in an orchid purple brocade, the ground of, which was corded silk and the flowers velvet—the occasional alternation of the gold lace in the or-chid-shaped spaces where the velvet had been cut away gave lightness,

.. s . o geeß L s T el L Ry AR ‘“‘Gf” g “%S W S s R .!7 ¥ SRR T DR s N T el 18R By X iy A 1 R ) ? Pot SR *”?955?‘- ¥ 5 e i SRR ol o 8 | ;::f & &%& 3 ;’94}95 5o .t;,s\ W i SRR L el /| ?&3 Ny 2f 15 R e A OF WHITE CLOTH WITH BLACK AND GOLD BRAID. / However, such refinements of finery are useless and wasteful, for the brocades are beautiful enough to be left alone by the couturiere. SARAH DAVIDSON. THIS COUNTRY’S ARID AREA. It Is Larger Than the Domain of Some of the Nations of the Earth, The arid region of this country is larger than the entire area of some of the nations of the earth, says a writer in the Saturday Evening Post. It includés portions of Montana, Wyoming, Colorade, Utah, Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico, and smaller portions of No&h and ' South Dakota, Nevada, Kansas, Texas, hundreds of thousands of acres in California, two-thirds of *Oregon, omne-third of Washington, and almost all of Idaho — altogether a total of over 1,000,000 square ntiles, enough, in fact, to accommodate one-half the people of the United States when the land is made productive. All this arid land needs is irrigation. Already a large part of it has been converted to fertility by the artificial supply of water. (Gradually and strongly the experts of the government have urged upon congress a policy of assistance which will convert many of these acres into fertile fields. In this way the suggestion has come that to the river and harbor bill there shall be added a provision for storage reservoirs in the far west. If it should be done land that is now of no practical value would be worth $lO or $2O an acre, and thus it happens that far western inflgences are openly in favor of the proposition. Something like F 5,000,000 is the first suggestion in the way of the new departure. - =

BLIZZARD RAGES.

Worst Storm of the Winter Causes Great Inconvenience in Several States,

Chicago, Feb. 4—Chicago struggled in the grhsp of an old-time snowstorm Sunday and Sunday night. Over ten inches of snow fell. Two deaths and a store of accidents are chargeable to the furiousness of the storm. Everywhere life and limb was in danger out of doors. There was much delay for the various railroad and traction companies, especially on electric lines in the.suburbs. , Milwaukee, ,Fe}z. 4.—A blizzard from the northeast has been raging in this city all day. Street cars had a hard time and only a few cars are running on each line. The lines were kept open only by the constant running’ of the ‘sweepers. The snow is drifting badly and the steam railroads were hampered somewhat, also. Detroit, Mich.,, Feb. 4.—From all towns in southern Michigan reports are coming in of the worst snowstorm of the season. About eight inches of snow on the level is the record, but the snowfall has been accompanied by a severe northeast wind, which has piled drifts two and three feet deep in country roads and along railroad_ tracks. It is a wet snow and on this account travel is blocked. Trains into Détroit are from one to three hours late. 'ln this city the streets are piled full and it is only by extraordinary effort that the street cars are kept running. Des Moines, la., Feb. 4—The snowstorm. that struck Des Moines about midnight Saturday covered the entire state and is the most severe of the winter. A strong northwest wind has been blowing, and has piled the snow in drifts from one to two feet deep. ]filailway trains through the state have been delayed considerably and street car traffic was practically blocked for a time. )

Atchison, Kan., Feb. 4.—The worst snowstorm for several years prevailed in northern Kansas and southern Nebraska Saturday night and Sunday. Three hundred miles of the central branch of the Missouri Pacific, traversing northern Kansas, are tied up, and not a train eame in off the road Sunday. Passenger trains are snowbound at Cawker City, Greenleaf and Whiting, and several freights are stuck in the snow at different points. Snow plows are working westward from Atchison and eastward from Downs. All trains into Atchison are delayed. Atchison street car lines are tied up. Snow drifts six feet deep are reported in many places along the central branch. From various towns in mnorthern Kansas and southern Nebraska the snow is reported from one to 18 inche’s deep on the level.

MRS. NATION IN DANGER.

Disclosure of an Alleged Plot te Tar and Feather the Fa- 5 7 mous Woman,

Kansas City, Mo., Feb. 4—A special to the Times from Topeka, Kan., says: Policeman Luster has reported to City Marshal Stahl a plot on the part of the liquor men to tar and feather Mrs. Carrie Nation, the joint smasher. Luster says that a negro tough whom he once befriended gave him the tip. Marsdal Stahl is making an investigation. The report has frightened Mrs. Nation and her sister crusaders, but they declare that they will continue the work of destroying “murder shops.”, A recruiting office for the Topeka brigade, Kansas division, Carrie Natiocn’s army, has been opened. About 300 ‘“‘soldiers” have signed the roll, mostly women. The programme of the defenders is to march down Kansas avenue at two p. m. to-day with drums beating and flags ' flying and hold prayer meetings in front of every joint. Mrs. Nation says that it was the intention of the home defenders to smash joints to-day, but this feature of the crusade may be postxpo'n-ed for a day to enable the secret service agents to inquire into the story that armed men are guarding the joints. Mrs. Nation says she doesn’t mind a shotgun, but she does not want to lead .other women to their death. _ ‘

Not a Candidate.

New York, Feb. 4—The announcement that Senator Hill is not a candidate for the presidential nomination of his party in 1904 is made by the Albany correspondent of Leslie’s Weekly in the current issue. He says he has the highest authority for the statement. Senator Hill, he says, is engrossed in his law practice. It has grown larger and more lucrative each year, and his absorption in professional duties gives him little time and less inclination to respoad to the growing call for him to actively assume the party’s leadership.

Captured by Boers. : London, Feb. 4.—The war office has received the following dispateh from Lord Kitchener, commander in chief in South Africa, dated Pretoria, February 2: “Our post at Medderfontein, on the Gatterrand, southwest of Krugersdorp, was attacked by a thousand Boers. The reliéf column sent out from Kruger rp failed to’ prevent the fall of the post. No de- f tails yet at hand, But officers and men captured at the post*are arriving at Vereeniging.” Loss, $lOO,OOO, St. Joseph, Mo., Feb. 4.—A fire originated in a mysterious manner in the trimming department of the Xrug! Packing company’s plant in this city Sunday night, and the plant suffered a® loss of $lOO,OOO before the flames could ! be checked. - S . : Family Poisoned. : , Pittsburgh, Pa., Feb. 4.—As a result of eating pork supposed to have been “doctored” with some sort of preservative, a whole family was poisoned Saturday evening. One member is dead and five others are seriously ill. s : Death of a Centenarian. : Springfield, T1l;, Feb. 4.—Mrs. Mary Luby, widow of Michael Luby and the | oldest living resident of Illinois, died | Saturday night at thé home of her daughter, Mrs. James Hawks, five miles s¢uthwest of this city, aged 103 years. 'She was born in County Tipperaty, Ireland, and came to this country in 1846. : e Strike Gas and Oil Well, - - Walla Walla, Wash., Feb. 4.—Natural gas and oil are reported to have been discovered in large quantities on the farm of M. E. Mitchell, south of this | Bg e s e

GREAT RAILROAD DEAL.

Vanderbilt Interests Purchase Southe ern Pacifie, Completing Trunk Line to the Orient,

New York, Feb. 2.—The syndicate compesed of William K. Vanderbilt, J. Pierpont Morgan, the Rockefellers, and E. H. Harriman, acting for the Union Pacific Railroad company, which it controls, has acquired a majority of the stock ‘of the Southern Pacific company, amounting, it is believed, to 1,200,000 shares, at an estimated cost of $70,000,000. This remarkable railroad deal perfects a continuous system under one control, extending from New York to San Francisco, down the western coast as far as Panama and out across the Pacific ‘to the orient by steamers. The total capitalization of the vast combination, with-other assets, amounts to nearly $700,000,000.

The tremendous import of the deal may be further indicated by the fact that Mr. Harriman is supremeyin Illinois Central, Chicago & Alton, and Kansas City Southern, in addition to which he is supposed to be in close harmony with the Goulds and the Rockefellers, whose roads in the southwest—namely: The Missouri Paeific, St. Louis Southwestern, Missouri. Kansas & Texas, and the Texas o Pacific, may consequently be expected shortly to join with those of Mr. Harriman’s in that territory. and thus vastly simplify the railroad ownership or management in an extensive part of the United States. .

STEVE BRODIE DEAD. Well-Known New York Character Passes Away at San Antonio, Tex., After Career Full of Adventure. San Antonio, Tex., Feb. I.—Bridge Jumper Steve Brodie died in the White house here Thursday night from consumption ,after a long illness. He expressed the wish that he wanted to be buried in New York. His body will probably be sent there. [Stephen Brodie was born on the Bowery in New York city three days after his father had been kiiled in a street brawl He became a newsboy while still of tender age, and between editions practiced jumping from ships and masts intoc New York barbor, earning pennies by his feats. In July, 1886, he had lost a fortune of over $6,700 on race tracks and in other betting games and was penniless. Then, with the consent of his wife, he jumped from the Brooklyn bridge into the East river, 142 feet below, earning a large purse and a reputation that brought him wealth. He became a bridge jumper, making one leap of 212 feet; politician, and later an actor in a play written for him called “On the Bowery.” He was known all over the country and always signed his name Steve Brodie, B. J. His home was in New York.]

SENDS MINUTE INSTRUCTIONS.

Administration Direcets Minister Conger as to What Terms of indemnity to Exact.

Washington, Jan. 31.—Being obliged by the attitude of the other powers interested, to continue at Peking the negotiatiobs’ looking to a settlement of the Chinese difficulties, in spite of a most discouraging outlook for a favorable conclusion there, the department of state has now sent by cable to Mr. Conger very precise and detailed instructions for his guidance in treating of the questions of indemnity. Realizing that it is easily possible to destroy the Chinese government and bring about the partition of the empire, which all powers express themselves as desirous of preventing. by an illjudged effort to force terms as to indemnity, the state department. it is believed, has adopted a lenient attitude and will lose no-opportunity to influence other powers accordingly.

VENEZUELA DEFIANT.

Government Shows a Decidedly Unfriendly Spirit Toward the United States.

Port of Spain, Trinidad, Fgb. 2.— The Venezuelan government continues to maintain a defiant attitude toward the United States. The report is now circulated that President Castro, having troops at his disposal in the eastern provinces, since his victory there over the insurgents, will gend a regiment to dispossess the Americans at Pitch Lake. The company will resist, but no doubt it will be ousted if the threatened attempt is made unless large reenforcements are received. Grave complications would inevitably ensue. Mr. Loomis, the United States minister, is trying to compose matters, but he is met in an unfriendly spirit by the government of Venezuela. )

Great Battle Reported. Bombay, Feb. 2.—Reports have arrived here of a sanguinary battle near Koweit, on the Persian gulf, between the sheilkhs of Koweit and Binrashid, who calls himself king of Arabia. Binrashid had 20,000 men, partially armed with rifles, while the sheikhs had 10,000, all mounted and carrying rifles. . Binrashid marched on Koweit, and the sheikhs advanced to meet him. The battle, which was fought by night, lasted from sunset to dawn. Binrashid charged repeatedly, but he was completely routed by the sheikhs, who captured a great quantity of booty. Army Bill Passed. - Washington, Feb. I.—After an eventful legislative experience, beginning with the present session of congress and covering about two months, the bill for the reorganization of the United States army on Thursday passed its last stage in congress. and now goes to the president for his signature. The final step was taken in the senate, where by a vote of 33 to 25 the confert ence report on the bill was agreed to. Inheritsnce Tax in Illinois, - - Springfieid, 111., Jan., 31.—State Treasurer Williamson has issued a statement of the receipts of his office during the past year under the operation of the inheritance tax law. The statement shows that during the year 1900 nearly $500.000 was paid the state treasury from this source. Seek to Conciliate Duteh, ~ Cape Town, Jan. 30.—R. Solomon, the attorney general of 'the late Schreiner ministry, has been appointved legal adviser to the Transvaal colony administration. His appointment is commended as demonstrating the desire of the imperial government to sonstlintgethe Doteb. ... o

BLOWN TO PIECES. Explosion of Nitroglycerin in Indie ana iiilln a Man and Team : ' of Horses, : ‘Muncie, Ind., Feb. 4.—The Indiana gas belt, with a circumference of 300 miles, was given a thorough ,shaking up at noon - Sunday with another nitroglycerin explosion on the Washington Painter farm, 15 miles west of Muncie, and only fragments of a team of horses and a man inf charge can be found. Percy Fort, of Knightstown, was hauling 700 quarts of nitroglycerin to the magazine of the Painter farm for use in the oil wells, and the explosion occurred while the man was unloading the stuff from the wagon. There were 50 quarts. in the magazine, and only two great holes in the ground show where thewagon and magazine stood, while fragments of the man’s clothes with bits of flesh and part of the horses hang in the tree tops for a quarter of a mile distant. A part of one arm is the largest piece of the man’s body found. Fortunately na one else was near, owing to the faect that it was Sunday. There is no one to tell how it -happened. The Alvy Painter home is 200 yards distant, and was badly wrecked, dishes. being broken with every window light. Seme stock ‘in' the barn yard was killed, but the family was at church. Otherhouseshad windowsbroken out, and in Alexandria, four miles distant, a plate glass window in an office was broken, also. many saléon windows were broken out in the town. The explosion was heard 25 miles distant, at Elwood. Y-

DEATH IN A FIRE. Milwankee Residence Bur;m‘and Five . Children Lose Their Lives - by Suffoeation, Milwaukee, Feb. 4.—Five children met :death by suffocating and one woman was fatally burned in a fire in the dwelling of Andrew Luebke Saturday night. - The Luebke cottage is in Bay View at the corner of Russell and Clement avenues. When the firemen responded to an alarm at ten o'clock Saturday mnight they found the house locked. They broke in the doors and quickly extinguished a small blaze in the kitchen. In the bedroom were found the dead bodies of the five children; who had evidently been suffocated by the smoke which filled the house.. Behind the stove in the kitchen lay the body of an old woman, yet alive, but unconscious and badly burned. She was taken to the emergency hospital and is not likely to recover. The children were twe boys and three girls, the oldest 12 vears, the youngest four. The parents were away from home and left the children in charge of Mrs. Baywater, the old woman found in the kitchen. The fire was evidently caused by an overturned lamp. SURPRISED BY INSURGENTS. Several American Soldiers Killed While Crossing River in Island of Cebu. ~Manila, Feb. 4.—Lieut. Hicken and a detachment of 30, company M, Fortyfourth regiment. while crossing a river Tuesday- night, were surprised by insurgents gathered at Fiesta San Lucia, island of Cebu. They were attacked in front and on both flanks by 10Q rifles. and more bolomen. - Five Americans were -killed, four were wounded and two are missing. The insurgent loss is believed to have been heavy.- Capt. Malley, with a detachment, reenforced Lieut. Hicken. They recovered some bodies, which were mutilated. . | Additional detachments were sent and -are endeavoring to surround the insurgents, ‘.

SUICIDE SUSPECTED.

Aged Lady and Her Invalid Somn Found Dead at Fos- ¢ toria, O.

Fostoria, 0., Feb. 4.—\lrs. Jacob Yochum, aged 50, and her son Wi.liam, aged 19, were found dead in their bedrooms by the police Sunday afternoon. They had been missing for three days and investigation led to their dead bodies being found with all evidence pointing to suicide by strychnine poisoning. The mother’s poverty and the fact that-the son was suffering from an incurakle disease is supposed to have made them despondent and led to seHdestruction. - .

Fire at Detroit. Detroit, Mich., Feb. 4.—Fire earely Saturday compleétely gutted the building at 46-50 Larned street, occupied by the Dreskell-Jupp Paper ccmpany, and before the firemen gained control of it .spread to the Free Press Printing company, which suffered a loss of $60,000. . The.total loss is about $200,600. ’ - = 28 -Bank Robbe = Gilman, 111., Feb. l4\‘}: Burglars wrecked the safe of B. H. Skeele, a banker at Thawville, a village near” here, at an early hour Saturday morning, secured $2.920 in cash and made their escape. Bloodhounds were put . on .the trail, -but the snow prevented their following the scent, : : " “Tornado in Texas, ? @Co-oper', Tex., Feb. 4—A tornado Saturday night did great damage in the western portion of Delta county. The home of James Mo#dy, at Honest, was wrecked and his 14-year-old daughter fatally injured. Tink Surrett waskilled and two daughters seriously injured at Rattan, where a number of houses were ' wrecked. “At Denton an oil mill was wrecked, but no one was hurt. : _ Army Bill Now a Law. S Washington, Feb. 4—The president signed the bill for the reorganization of the army at 12:40 p. m. Saturday. It is now a law: 'l .. fow oo SRR Output of Postage Stamps. '"’ Washington, Feb. 4—The output of United States pnstagestm?ysaf,‘MW bureau of engraving and pnntifigw&‘ ing January was the largest in the- - of the government, the total number being 504,676,615, of whieh 9,564,840 were put up in the ’~ k. . Many Injured in London. -= = . London, Feb. 4—The St. John's am- - bulauee aséociation sitended 1.8 pes | sons injured during the funeral crush Sfiim‘éi}fin m%f:??i ociati