Rensselaer Journal, Volume 11, Number 28, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 19 December 1901 — Page 2

THE HOLY NIGHT

One star burned low within the darkened east. And from a stable door an answering light Crept faintly forth, where through full hours of night A woman watched. The sounds of day had ceased. And save the gentle tread of restless beast There dwelt a hush profound. The mother’s sight— Co holden by her Babe took no affright When shadows of the beams, that caught the least Of light, seemed shapened to a lengthening cross; Che only saw a crown made by a fleeqe Of golden hair. Naught presaged pain or loss— To her. the pivot of the swinging sphere I-ay sheltered in her arms so warm and near; A mother’s heart proclaimed Him “Prince of Peace!” —Edna A. Foster.

The tramp's Christmas

Ie was such an unkempt, sad looking creature when he presented himself at the back door that Christmas morning asking for something to eat that Mary was more than half inclined to disobey the rule of the Tracy household, which stood good «t all seasons of the year as well as at Yuletide, and refuse his request. Before she could do so, however, Mrs. Tracy herself came Into the kitchen, and, with scant show of hospitality, Mary allowed the tramp to -enter. She had always secretly grumbled because Mrs. Tracy would allow no one to be turned away hungry, and today. there was no excuse, for the famly had Just finished breakfast and there was plenty of food left to give the man a substantial meal. ■"Coin’ to come and rob the house to-night, like’s not,” was Mary’s inward comment as she put the coffee pot on the stove, and she watched the man narrowly to see If he were making a mental plan of the house, but tier suspected burglar did not once look up from the floor as he sat nervously twirling his hat. "He’s young and able to work,” Mary soliloquized, as she bustled to And fro putting eatables on one end «f the kitchen table. “Might be tol--erable good lookin’, too, If he was chaved and dressed up—and—washed.” "There!” she snapped, setting a cup of coffee down on the table with as much force as she could without spilling Its contents. "Your vitual’s set.” The man, scarcely raising hts eyes, •dropped his hat and hitched his chair near the table. Just aB he eagerly clutched the cup of fragrant coffee, a door opened, a pair of merry blue eyes peered into the kitchen and a shrill little voice piped out, "Hello, man, merry Christmas'” The “man” started, shifted uneasily In his chair, but made no reply. Undaunted by his chilling reception, the door was burst open, and a goldentaired little boy burst Into the room. ’With the unquestioning confidence ot ' ■childhood, he walked up to tb» Atranger and said gravely, "I B ald merry Christmas.” "Run into the other room, Donald,” Mrxy put Id hastily. The man shot a half-defiant glance «t her, but did not look at the child. "I don’t want to.” the little fellow replied. “He’s company, and mamma Mid I could ’tain him. I brlnged the new Mother Doose book dat I dot from Santa Claus to show he,” and, pushing a chair close to the table, from if be mounted the end of the table •west, rosy cherub observing some

look wonderingly at his strange little companion, and then gave his full attention to the meal. “Don’t you want to talk?" Donald demanded. “I’m not fit—that is, ’er, I don’t know how to talk to such a little kid,” the man answered. “All right, I guess you want to eat,” the child observed, graciously. “I guess I’ll read to you,” opening the book he was holding in his arms. “You know Mother Goose, don’t yoit?” The man shook his head, but something like a smile flitted across his sullen features. “Well, I’ll show you the pictures and read you ’bout ’em. This one,” and Donald slid along the table as near to the man as the dishes would allow, “this one is about ‘Blue Boy.’ I’ll read ’bout him,” and, in a chanting, high-pitched voice, he repeated the rhyme of “Little Boy Blue.” “Did you ever sleep under i haymow?” he asked, suddenly, at the conclusion of his recitation. The man frowned slightly at the childish query, bit his lip and nodded his head.

"Was It nice?” went on his interrogator. “Did your mamma let you?” The man’s lower lip was pressed cruelly by his teeth at this question, but a surly shake of his head was his only reply. “Oh, was you naughty and runned away?” the boy asked, slowly. Had Mary been an observing girl, she would have seen, under the scrubby beard and grime on the haggard face, a dull red flush spread to the roots of his shaggy, neglected hair. "Didn't your mamma come to look for you?” continued the little tormentor. “She didn’t know where I was,” the tramp answered, In a strange, muffled voice. .. "Then you hided from her!” exclaimed the child, with blue eyqes wide open. The man was looking out of the window now, forgetful of his good breakfast. “I was naughty once and runned away,” Donald prattled on, "and when my mamma found me she was just awful glad, but she cried, too—wasn’t that funny? And she said mothers was always glad when they got their boys back, even when they was big and runned awful far off, 'strayed into the paths’—l forget Just what that part was, but she said I must always come back to her —an’—an’—l don’t

“A DOOR OPENED.”

’member any more, but I guess if you’d go back to your mamma she'd forget the naughty and be glad. Do you think she’d cry?’’ The man cast one fierce look over his shabby person. "Cry!” he exclaimed, bitterly. “Oh ” he drew his breath hard between his teeth as the sight of the baby face choked back the oath that nearly escaped him. “Isn’t you goin’ to eat any more?’* chirped the little fellow, with awakened hospitality, noticing that his guest, sitting with his head on his hand, seemed to have lost his appetite. The child’s voice roused him from his thoughts, and, seeing that Mary had paused in her work and was watching him curiously, he asked humbly, "Can I have some coffee?” Meanwhile Donald was turning the pages of his book. "Here’s a funny picture,” he announced, pointing.-with his fat little finger, "but it’s ’bout a dreadful naughty boy. I’ll read ’bout

Wn* and, In a very solemn and taspreasive tone, he repeated the tale at “Tom, Tom, the Piper’s Son." "It’s dreadful bad to steal, yea know," he commented, gravely. “My mamma says so, and, of course, she knows—mammas know most everything, don’t they? Once—what do you think?—l stole! I didn't steal a pig like Tom, but I stole some little cakes, and my mamma talked to me a lo.ng time, and she told me bo many things so I’d grow to be a good man.. Did your mamma want you to be a gopd man, too?” The man choked on a hasty cup of cptfee, but made no reply. Donald did not seem to. expect one, but chatted on. “I was ’fraid my mamma did not love me any more when I stole those cakes, ’.cause she looked so sorry, but." with a happy little laugh, “seemed like she loved me more’n ever after. But I don’t want to see her look sorry like that again. Did you ever make your mamma look sorry—out of her eyes, you know?" # A smothered groan from the stranger and, with a child’s intuition of “something wrong," Donald sought to cheer and console, and said, reassuringly, ‘‘Well, you Just go an’ tell her you’re sorry an’ see if she don’t be glad and love you. I most know she will.” The man had ceased eating and sat motionless with his head bowed on his breast until Mary approached and curtly asked if he were “done eatin’.’’ “Yes,” he answered absently, and, looking wistfully at the' child, he reached for his hat. “Is you goin’ to see your mamma?” questioned Dopald, eagerly. “Yes, my little man,” came the answer, in a clear, ringing voice that made Mary jump and drop a basin. “That’s Just where I am going. But first, tell me your name.” "I’m little Donald Robert Tracy, and my papa’s big Donald Robert!” "Good-by, v little preacher. You’re the best one I‘ve ever heard,” and Just brushing the golden head with his lips, the tramp passed out of the door and went down the street, hot with the slouching, hang-dog air with which he had approached the house, but with head erect and shoulders squared, he swung along with long, easy strides. “Of all the ungrateful wretches!” exclaimed Mary, angrily, to Mrs. Tracy, who had slipped in through the half-open door. "He never even said ‘thank you.”’ Her mistress did not seem to hear, but, with shining eyes, gathered her little son up in her arms, and, as she pressed him closely to her, she whispered brokenly, “And a little child shall lead them." • • * • • A year passed, and little Donald’s “ ’talning” the tramp was forgotten

“YOU KNOW MOTHER GOOSE, DON’T YOU?”

by all save Mrs. Tracy. She often wondered what fruit the good seed sown by the Innocent child last Christmas morning had borne. That he had been God’s chosen instrument for working out some great end, her gentle heart never doubted. It was, therefore, a great pleasure and satisfaction to her to receive a long letter from the “man.” It was written from his home in a far eastern city, and told, in. a simple, straight forward manner, the story of his downfall and how, moved by Donald’s childish prattle, he had worked his way back home, resolved to begin life anew; how kind friends hafl helped him and encouraged him, and how he was doing well at his old trade of bookbinding. “I was going from bad to worse," the letter ran, “and nothing is easier for a young fellow to do, and the road down to being a ‘common tramp’ Is a short one when one lets started. When I came to your house that Christmas morning I was bitter, hard and desperate. No one living could have touched my heart as did that little blue-eyed boy. His little sermon, with its text taken from ‘Mother Goose, snatched this poor brand from the burning. Tell the little chap that I found m»y mamma, and she was glad as he said.” Accompanying the letter was a package of Christmas gifts, addressed to Donald. Among other things it contained a book—a copy of "Mother Goose” exactly like the one from which he had “read” to the man'to “ ’tain him,” exquisitely bound Jn white vellum. On the cover in gold letters was Donald’s name, and below it, “From his grateful Blue Boy. Christmas —189 —.”

Jn England children hang their stockings at the foot of their beds. In America the whole family suspend their stockings from the mantelpiece ol the sitting room, to save Santa Claus the trouble of ascending the stairs and entering each room to distribute hli wares.

A MODERN MIRACLE IN MULTIPLE TELEGRAPHY

Along one of the ordinary post and telegraph lines between Paris and Bordeaux some extraordinary telegraphing has Just been accomplished. While the regular operators were sending and receiving back and forth their usual messages experimenting men of science had tapped the line, attached new instruments to it and were engaged in sending back and forth other messages of which the regular operators could not possibly have taken cognizance even had they been aware of their existence. The regular operators of the government service were using in one case a Morse duplex appa'ratus, which permits the (reversible) transmission of two simultaneous messages, and in the other a Baudot apparatus with four keyboards, which permits the sending of four messages in one direction. Bimply connecting their new apparatus with the'same wires, the experimenters succeeded in sending and receiving, simultaneously and In each direction, twelve other messages, making in all twenty-four simultaneous messages plus the two messages of the Morse duplex or the four messages of the Baudot apparatus. This was accomplished not only as a scientific novelty, but practically and continuously for hours at a time, in a test to establish the commercial usefulness of the invention. Tn this way it was demonstrated that the entire first page of a great newspaper, containing almost 9,000 words, can be sent from

PROF. MERCADIER

Paris to Bordeaux along a single wire in one hour by means of the new invention simply, or by means of the new invention and a Baudot four-key-board apparatus working simultaneously in little more than a half hour, during which half hour the Bordeaux authorities may transmit to Paris by means of the new invention a text equivalent'to a halt, page of the same newsaper, always along the same solitary single circuit. Or should this seem less remarkable to Americans, habituated to the Wheatstone automatic device, than to Parisians, it may -be stated that 1,300 seperate and unprepared telegrams of twenty words each may be sent in a single hour over the single circuit by means of this wonderful invention. The inventor of the new system is Professor E. Mercadler, u .4l r ector of studies of the famous nique, the occupant of an impoHant chair in the Ecole Superieure des hMU tes et Telegraphes and chevalier of tW Legion of Honor. The actual transmitting device, as Professor Mercadler- showed and described it, consists essentially of what he has named electrodiapason inductophones, of which bfit three are shown in the. accompanying figure (Diagram No. 1). In place of three, the reader must suppose twelve, for the sending of the twelve simultaneous messages mentioned at the outset of the article. A diapason is a tuning fork, i. e., a forked piece of metal of such size and thickness that it vibrates invariably on a certain single tone. An electrodiapason Is one electrically maintained in a continuous vibratory movement, in the present case by means of an electro-magnet ("B,” Fig.

2) placed between the two forks, communicating on the one side with the pole of a small battery and on the other Bide with the tuning fork and with a steel stylus of necessary length fixed to one of the branches In front of a platinum plate communicating with the other pole of the battery. It it sufficient to put in contact the two poles for the electricity to act on the branches of the tuning fork (diapason), breaking the contact, which reestablishes itself when the branches return toward their primitive position, and so on continuously. A second stylus, or transmission stylus, is fixed to the second branch by a screw insulated from the tuning fork by a block of Ivory. This is put in communication by an insulated alluminum wire with the pole of another battery, or battery of transmission, of which the other pole is connected with a platinum plate by the Intermediary of qne of .the wires of an induction transformer. During the movement of the tuning fork (maintained as described), each time that the transmission stylus touches the connection with the battery the battery sends a current through the wire of the transformer. This wire is, then, traversed each second by a number of currents equal to the number of vibrations of the tuning fork. The result is an equal number of induction currents or vibrations in the wire No. 2 of the transformer, identical with those In the direct wire, from which the word

induetophone is given to the instrumonU. Now, at each end of the line (or disposed at different points along the line if desired) there are twelve of these electrically vibrating tuning forks (electrodiapasons), each tuned to |a note of the chromatic scale for an octave—do. re, mi, fa, sol, la, si—and the intervening half tones. The tuning fork No. 1, for example, is constructed so as to vibrate on the note of "si 3” and makes 480 vibrations per second. The tuning fork Not 2 is (say) tuned to "do 4” and makes 512 vibrations in the same time—and so on, from tuning fork to tuning fork, up to "la sharp 4,” which makes about 900 Vigrations a second. The actual apparatus is composed of a cylindrical box surrounded by a glass cover and containing an energetic magnet Whose c.ore is wound as in an ordinary telephone, but whose telephonic membrane (which is a metallic disk about two millimetres in thickness), instead of being fastened around Us circumference Is simply

posed, at three non-vibrating points on its surface, on metal stems fixed to rollers on a radius of a circular platform which supports them. Now, the diameter of each membrane.depends on the half-tone of its first harmonic—si 3 (480 vibrations per second), do 3 (512 Vibrations), do sharp 3 (543), and so on, from half-tone, to la sharp 4 (900 about), inclusively. Beach one of the membranes (thin metallic disks) is thus tuned exactly with one of the transmitting electro-diapasons (tuning forks) at the other end of the line.

Public Spirit in Japan.

The modern, Japan which the Marquis Ito’s policy has brought forth was made possible by the religious devotion of nobles and coolies to the emperor, which made the imperial wishes law; by the Intense patriotism and the official integrity of the retainers of the Dlamyos, who have become the officers of the army and navy and members of the civil service, writes Frederick Palmer in Scribner’s. As an Occidental, I should place integrity as the first cause. When you have official servants so proud that even the postman will not accept a-Christmas gift, a statesman knows that, whatever the errors of construction may be, the timbers are sound. As long as men become policemen on less than a coolie’s pay for the honor of serving the government it will never lack for first-class ability to fill its offices. Japan may

well reverence her old military aristocracy, with its false punctilios.

Biggest Rench in Texas.

The “X. I. T.” in the Pan Handle is the greatest ranch in Texas, embracing half a dozen counties and containing nearly 3,000,000 acres. The ranch Is divided into seven sections, each managed by a foreman, and each connected with the headquarters by mteans of telephones. The whole is run with the system and dispatch which characterizes all great industries. On this ranch now run considerably more than 100,000 head of cattle, and an idea of the size may be gained from the fact’that the pasture fence extends 210 miles In one direction and twenty-five In another, making a total of 6,000 square miles. Prom time to time sipall parcels of the land have been sold, and meanwhile valuations have appreciated from fifty cents an aor« to sou? times that amount— Detroit Free Press*

ST. PAUL ROAD GETS BIG ENGINES.

Largest Ones Ever Built to Be Used 'in Fast Passenger Runs. . . . i . «- Larger Trains and Quick Schedules Are Expected to Be the Ultimate Result. Several of what are claimed to be the largest locomotives ever constructed were received, by the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul road yesterday. In these days of large engines each fresh consignment received by s railroad during the past year or two has had the distinction of being the largest. While these monster locomotives have in a way eeased to excite surprise, those Just' received by the St. iPaul road are remarkable in their dimensions. For example, the diameter of the driving wheels is eighty-four and one-fourth inches, or one-fourth of an inch over seven feet. ‘ Following is a technical description of the new giants: Diameter of driving wheels, 84% inches. Diameter of compound cylinders, 25 and 15 Inches. Stroke of cylinders, 28 inches. Total length of engine, 68 feet 11 Inches. Steam capacity of boiler, 200 pounds. Fire bCX, 8 feet 8 inches by 5 feet 5 inches.. Number of flues in boiler, 360. Hefttlng surface, 3,215 square feet. Capacity of tender, 18,000 pounds of coal and 7,000 gallons of water. Thinks Past? Time Passible. General Passenger Agent Mili.er of tho St Paul is enthusiastic over the new engines, alleging that they will tend to revolutionize schedules arid T power. He says they will be capable of hauling fourteen or fifteen heavily loaded coaches or sleepers sixty miles an hour. Grades will be little or no obstruction to the leviathans. The locomotives will Be put In service on the limited trains between Chicago and Milwaukee and between Chicago and Omaha.

TALKS ON ADVERTISING.

The best way to advertise is Just to advertise. Get at it with a view to having the people know what you most desire to sell, and Incidentally letting them know that the specified items do not represent your full stock. Say interesting things about interesting goods and have the goods to talk. Men talk of the secret of successful advertising, but it is all very plain. The essentials are to offer what people want, at fair prices, and to offer it in a way that will make readers know they want it. The art in writing an advertisement is to speak as the interested and well-informed merchant would speak to a prospective customer. The mere appearance of a business man’s name and address in every issue of a leading newspaper will do work to increase his trade. Every business man,however, is able to give facts about his establishment which will encourage people to deal with him. To state such facts clearly In a newspaper is the principal secret of successful advertising. The Idea that It takes a number of impressions to make the average advertisement effective is not new. Forty years ago an English advertiser said to the publisher of the Cornhill Magazine: “We don’t consider that an advertisement seen for the first time by a reader is wortM*much. The second time it counts for something. The third time the reader’s attention is arrested; the fourth time he reads It through and thinks about it; the fifth makes a purchaser of him. It takes time to soak in.”

FLORIDA SPECIAL

Vl» Biff Foor Route Chicago to Jacksonville and St. Augustine. Effective Jan. 6. 1902, the “Big Four” will operate through Pullman sleepers from Chicago and Indianapolis to Jacksonville and St Augustine, via Cincinnati, Queen & Crescent, Sou. R'y, Plant System and Fla. East Coast Ry., leaving Chicago at 1 p. m., daily, except Sunday. Dining and observation cars. For full information address J. C. Tucker, Gen. Nor. Agt. 234 Clark street, Chicago; Warren J. Lynch, G. P. & T. A., or W. P. Deppe, A. G. P. ft T. A., Cincinnati, O.

THE HANDSOMEST CALENDAR

of the season {ln ten colors) six beautiful heads (on six sheets, 10x12 Inches), reproductions of paintings by Moran, issued by General Passenger Department, Chicago, Milwaukee & St Paul Railway, will be sent on receipt of twenty-five cents. Address p. a Miller, General Passenger Agent Chicago. The second of the aeries of historical programmes announced in the Chicago orchestra’s prospectus for the season on the part of local musical folk will be presented at this week’s concerts, to be given on Friday afternoon and Saturday evening at the Auditorium and at the usual hours, under the direction of Theodore Thomas. In these programmes, of which there are to be six in all, Mr. Thomas proposes to show the progress which has been made during the last 300 years In the way of orchestral composition—its development from its jnost primitive state up to the full flower of nineteenth century perfection. "Lives of the Etunted" is the title of a bool* by Ernest Seton-Thompson, the first writer who has ever adequately interpreted the nature of brutes, especially those to whom man appears as a beast of prey. Seton-Thompson never .falls to enlist our sympathies with the conquered beasts. The illustrations are harmonious and always suggestive of thought and feeling. * *