Rensselaer Republican, Volume 15, Number 13, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 December 1882 — Prayer Rugs. [ARTICLE]

Prayer Rugs.

Electric lights have been largely introduced in the Government establishments of Japan. The City Architect reports 2,000 bouses inside the corporation limits of the City of Mexico as being built or undergoing repairs. Several parties are speaking of constructing a large American hotel. An Oregon boy, who had no string to his kite, went into a drug store and bought a penny’s worth of licorice. While the druggist was serving him, he tied an end of the string from the druggist’s ball of string to his dog’s tail, and then, kicking the dog, drove him out of the shop. After the dog had unreeled all that the boy thought he needed, he cut the string, took his licorice and walked out of the apothecary’s shop without that person’s even suspecting the trick. The papers credit to the present Marquis of Queensbury the rules of the prize ring which bear his name. The author of those rules has been dead many years. The present Marquis, who made a feol of himself recently, in an English theater, is a man under 40 years of age, a brother of Lady Flor ence Dixie, the well-known English traveler. Like his grandfather, he is regarded as “a hard* character,” though his father, coming between the two, was a man of exemplary life. The election of Thomas P. Ochiltree to Congress, from Texas, has been looked upon in the light of a joke by many who know him. But he seems to have taken a practical way to inform himself as to his duties when his term of office begins. He has started on a tour of his district to learn the wants of his constituents and what legislation will conduce to their prosperity. This does not indicate that the commercial interests of Galveston, which is included in the district, will suffer, as the supporters of Mr. Ochiltree’s opponents are loudly claiming. —New York Tribune.

London contains 4,788,657 inhabitants, a population nearly equal to that of the whole State of New York. Last year 26,170 houses, covering a length of 80 miles, were built in that city. This vast human hive extends, from its center to its circumference, about 15 miles, that is, its diameter averages about 30 miles. Out of this vast multitude last year, 23 children and 150 adults totally disappeared, leaving no trace. Fiftyfour bodies were found which could not be identified. What a world of crime and misery is involved in this vast aggregation of human beings known as the City of London. An establishment has been opened in London c died “the Health Home,” by a Dr. Quentin, who proposes to cure al diseases by a dietary system. The pa tient is handed by a servant in black and gold a card specially prepared, on which he will find his soup, if soup is allowed; his fish, if it is permitted; hi joint, if it suits his condition, and so on, to the coffee. There also he will find inscribed the mineral water suitable to the state of his liver, with directions respecting the dessert, which will consist of a digestive pill or two, a pepsin sandwich, or some equally attractive novelty. Specialties in medicine have their special temptations. A New York lady was troubled Avifcli granulated eyelids, a very slight matter, easily cured by any physician with one or two applications of a wash. But she consulted a distinguished oculist, who excited her hopes and fears and kept her dancing attendance at his office for an entire year. For her many daily visits to his office she Avas charged $lO each, which made a very handsome addition to the M. D.’s yearly income. At last she met a friend who had had a similar experience, and, following his advice, went to another physician, by whom her trifling trouble was promptly remedied. A long and active agitation of the question of the Bible in the public schools, in Canada, has culminated in a formal demand upon the Dominion Government by those who favor Christian exercises for the pupils. They state their ultimatum as follows: “That the Bible be used not as a reading book, but devotionally, in connection Avith the prescribed prayer, at the opening of the school each morning, and that

both teachers and pupils read together the selection prescribed for each particular school day throughout the year. We do not ask that the Bible be used as a text book in the public schools. We do not ask that the teachers be required to give expositions or explanations of the meaning of the passages of scripture.” The Wayland Liquor law, passed by the last Connecticut Legislature, requires that all access to a saloon from a dwelling in the same building shall be closed, but it does not demand that the doors leading into other parts of the building not used for dwelling purposes shall be closed. The object is to stop illegal selling on Sunday by means of private entrances. An examination of the premises of applicants for license will be made by the prosecuting agent without cost to them, and upon-matters being arranged to the agent’s satisfaction he gives a note to the County Com missioners. The seal he has adopted is effectual and ingenious, and yet very simple. He takes a slip of stout paper about an inch in length, bearing his signature, tacks it on the door-casing, and closes the door; the paper is then lapped over on the inside of the door, and a long screw driven obliquely through into the casing; this is covered with sealing wax and stamped with a seal about the size of a 25-cent piece, a regular Chi« nese puzzle. If the door is opened, not only is the seal destroyed, but the paper is broken ajul detection is sure. By the law any person opening the door renders himself liable to have his license revoked, and thereby loje his business. About fifty doors have been thus sealed so far, and '.here are nearly twice as many yet to look after.

According to Gen. Walker, Philadelphia is making herself ridiculous by protesting against the accuracy of her manufacturing interests on the basis of the returns of 1870. Philadelphia, it appears, is in the same position concerning this census that St. Louis was in concerning the census of her population. By stuffing the returns of 1870 with about 70,000 bogus names collected from ancient directories and hotel registers, St. Louis had her population returned by the Census Bureau at a little more than 312,000, which put her ahead of Chicago by about 14,000. In 1880 the census enumerators reported her population to be 334,000, showing an increase over the previous census of only 22,000. Immediately St. Louis set up a great howl, and charged the census takers with gross errors. Gen. Walker thereupon produced proofs of the frauds of 1870, and sliOAved to St. Louis that at that time she had about 240,000 inhabitants, ins' ead of the 312,000 reported, an I that her growth, which appeared insignificant owing to these frauds, really amounted to about 90,000. A subsequent census practically demonstrated the correctness of the Government census takers. Gen. Walker charges that Philadelphia has been equally tricky in her manufacturing statistics. The census of he manufacturing statistics was taken in 1870 by a local statistician named Blodgett, who, it is said, stuffed his returns to make the city rank higher as a manufacturing center than the real condition of her industries warranted. The figures of 1880 do not show the expected increase, and, like St. Louis, she has to pay the penalty of the fraud.

Strange are the vagaries of fashion. Among the latest of its freaks is said to he the introduction of “prayer rugs,” to be used by the fashionable ladies. They have come from the misty East, along with Japanese attar of roses, and other delectable things, and the aroma of “Araby the blest” is supposed to cling to them, even when they are bought from an Irish Turk on Broadway. They are described as being similar to those used by the Mohammedans, are usually about three by four feet in size, and can be distinguished by the design, which alVays represents some large figure at one end, and is pointed at the other. Places are indicated for the hand and knees. Devout women procure the real things from an importer, and, without facing Mecca, bumping their head on the floor or removing their shoes and| stockings, like the sons of the Prophet, still actually do use them to kneel on while praying. They ard said to be a great comfort. “How lovely the fields and woods are in their autumnal tints,” said Miss Fitzjoy. “Yes,” chimed in Farmer Robinson ; “but they aren’t so lovely as they was when things were growing and making money for me.” This practical view of things was entirely new to Miss Fitzjoy. ’ The pecan crop is one of the heaviest known in Northwestern Texas.