Rensselaer Republican, Volume 16, Number 41, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 19 June 1884 — A Successful Operation. [ARTICLE]

A Successful Operation.

At the recent sale of Lord Faunouth’s stud twenty-sour 1 horses brought 36,400 guineas. One favorite of turfmen sold for 4,000 guineas, a 3-year-old for 3,600 and a 2-year-old for 2,200. Rats are multiplying in Australia about as fast as rabbits. The climate is favorable to their living out of doors. They are beginning to be very destructive to crops. The field rats often invade houses if a door happens to be left open. Sometimes the members of a family and visitors are obliged to arm themselves and drive the rats out of the house. One of the only two remaining Roman milestones in Great Britain is in Cannon street, London, the other being in Chesterholm, in Northumberland. There is Roman work about the Tower of London. Until quite recently an old Roman turret was standing within a 'hundred yards of Ludgate Hill Station, and in Cripplegate may yet be seen a splendid specimen of the original Ro- . man wall.

From a French state -paper, lately brought to light, it appears that in 1770 the following Parliamentary decree was solemnly passed and duly registered under King Louis XV.: “Whosoever, by means of red or white paint, perfumes, essences, artificial teeth, false hair, cotton wool, iron corsets, hoops, shoes with high heels, or false hips shall seek to' entice into the bands of marriage any male subject of his Majesty, shall be prosecuted for witchcraft and declared incapable of marriage.” Most bells were originally feminine, now the two or three that are called by Christian names in England are masculine. The most celebrated Great Tom, at Oxford, was originally named Mary Tresham, the Vice Vice-Chancellor of the period writes: “Oh, beautiful Mary, how musically she sounds.” She has done lit’tle to belie this reputation since she became Tom. Once only, in the year of 1800, Tom got into disgrace by a series of incontinent strikings which greatly alarmed the undergraduates, who were divided in opinion as to “whether there was an earthquake, the Dean was dead or. the college on fire. ’’

A very pretty custom, which has since been followed, was introduced at a fashionable wedding recently at the Savoy Chapel Royal, London. ( The choir formed a procession down the aisle to meet the bride and then walked back before her to their places in the church chanting a bridal hymn. A moral support is thus given to a faltering girl who has usually to walk up the aisle the observed of all observers, and overhearing, perhaps, remarks on the redness of her nose or some defect in her dress not reassuring. After the ceremony the choir again formed in procession and walked before the bride and groom down the aisle to the entrance gate. Tattersall, the famous London horseman, deplores what he considers the deterioration of English breeding mares, through sale of the best to foreign breeders. He is credited with saying: “The question is how and where to find the raw material for breeding, especially the short-legged roomy mares. For the last quarter of a century, and most .likely for much more, our breeders have been selling the geese which laid the golden eggs and the intelligent foreigner has been buying them up. He will take none but the sound, well-made, short-legged active mares, and has left us nothing but the residuum, the result being that we have a short crop and many weeds.” Mr. Tattersall is not the only Englishman who looks at the matter in this light. It was believed a few days ago that the world was wearying of international and local industrial exhibitions; but the tendency to hold them seems to be as strong as ever, especially in our own country, where several exhibitions, both of an industrial and scientific character, will be held this year, notably the great “World’s Exposition” at New Orleans, held in commemoration of the first shipment of cotton from this country to England. Next year a great American Exhibition will be opened at London, devoted almost exclusively to American mechanical and agricultural productions, and at Ant. werp will be opened an international exhibition under the patronage of that enterprising monarch, King Leopold of Belgium. The international exposition still remains a most effective method of giving to the nations a knowledge of their common progress in the useful and ornamental arts, and one promotive of international trade. It may be mentioned that California will have a “World’s Fair” either next year or in 18S6? Boston Post: A bit of sharp practice

worthy of a politician happened in Boston recently. It appears that an organization was about holding its annual meeting for the election of officers. There was no opposition to ’ the candidates mentioned and it was pretty well understood who the officers would be. A gentleman who was mentioned for a miner office had the ballots printed on which his name appeared, and on the evening of the election was present with the bunch of ballots in hie hands. An enemy by some means had secured a single ballot and had had others printed exactly like the regulars, with the exception that the former gentleman’s name was left off and another submitted. A wicked emissary appeared at the hall on the evening of election with a suspicious looking bundle, and approaching the gehtleman with the straight ballots asked if he might see them. The request was granted, and unwittingly the whole package of ballots Was passed over, and before it was passed back the package of crooked ballots had been substituted. The gentleman then stood up and peddled the crooked ballots, and very nicely succeeded in lifting himself—out of office. His face was a study vyhen he discovered the sharp little trick which had been played upon him.

Before the Criminal Court at Mannheim, Germany, a terrible case was lately tried. An aged day>-laborer, Stumps, by name, got out of work on account of poor health, and became in course of time-a confirmed invalid. His wife, who is 62 years old, at first helped bravely by taking in washing, but after awhile she took to drinking, and lost customer after customer. How hard it went -with the old couple may be judged from the fact that all they had to live on was the pay Stumps received for watching a store two or three times a week over night, getting about seven and a half cents each time His wife was no comfort to him, and frequently said to others she would be glad if the old man would die. On the last day of February their rent became due. The municipality refused assistance, because it was feared the old woman would spend the money for whisky, and a son of Stumps who formerly had done a little toward supporting the old people was in hard straits himself. However, the landlord was kind enough to permit the poor people to stay. On March 4, Mrs. Stumps appeared at the police station and reported that her husband had cut his throat. When closely questioned she told the following story: On the evening of March 3, she and her husband had talked for sT'long time about their hardships until she had fallen to sleep. About midnight her husband had risen again and had gone into an adjoining garret. He staid away so long that she followed him and found him standing in the garret, his throat bared and an open 1 razor in his hand. He had asked her to cut his throat. At first she had refused to do it, but at last she had consented and slashed him across the throat. He had fallen to the floor and she liad left the room thinking that he would bleed to death. Returning after about fifteen minutes she had found him still alive and even strong enough to walk her assistance. She had wiped off the blood from him, placed a piece of cloth over the wound and put him to bed. The next day he had indicated to her by signs —he had not been able to articulate a sound—that he wanted her to cut off his head entirely. She had then led him back to the garret, cut him a second time, and killed him. The court became satisfied that the woman’s story was true. The circumstance that none of the neighbors heard any struggle and the fact that there were two blood puddles, one fresher than the other, in the garret, and no trace of blood in the bed seemed to confirm what the woman said, and spoke against the theory that Stumps had been killed against his wilt The woman was sentenced to five years in the penitentiary.

“That is probably the most successful operation ever performed 1 ” remarked one physician to another. “It is, indeed,” was the enthusiastic reply. “I should say that the tumor weighs not less than eighty pounds.” “At least that. I have made arrangements to have it carefully preserved, and it cannot but prove of .great benefit to the art of surgery.” - * “Undoubtedly. You must allow me to congratulate you, doctor, on your success in this matter. You have reflected great credit on the profession. Well, I must leave you at this corner. G ood-day; I suppose I will see you at the funeral.”— Philadelphia Call. “ ■ _ i-. Chickens are now batched out by the aid of electricity. The nest or basket is filled with fine hay, upon which the eggs are laid. The coves is a thick layer of soft down attached to a round box containing coils of wire*, These are heated by an electric current, whose temperature is regulated by a thermometer placed on the covey. When the heat becomes too great the rise of the mercury cuts the coils out of ■Circuit and allows them to cool; All the attention^required is to sprinkle and turn the eggs ©nee each day. The defects of the understanding, like those of the face, grow worse as we growold.— UoehcjoueaulL