Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 35, Number 52, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 6 March 1903 — Letter to B. J. Gifford. [ARTICLE]

Letter to B. J. Gifford.

Congress did some especially good work xn the way of keeping up the increase of the navy. A bill passed earlier in the session provides for greatly increasing the number of men in the naval service, both of naval cadets and trained seamen. At the very end of the session, the bill for the additional war vessels was passed. It provides for three new battle ships of 16,000 tons each, and for two of 13 000 tons. These big fellows can, and no doubt will.be made the equal in all-around fighting strength of any vessel now afloat; but England is now Jbnildingaome. 18.000 tonners that, judging by their -iz-. will be somewhat more formidable. Excellent features of the bill authorizing these new ships, are those that provide that they may be built in the U. S. Davy yards if thought best, and that they must be in there is a combine among the private yards to hold up the prices too high.

Rensselaer, Jn<l. - . Dear Sir; You know your painter; we don’t; we only know painters in general, There are two sorts, as there are two sorts of everybody else. One] ■paints as well as he can; the other as poor as he can and get business. The one who paints as well as he can is all the time learning; the other one knows it all now. Josh Billings says, “It's better not to know too much than to know so ma by things that a' n't 50.”... There are lots o’ things in paint that “a’n’t so.” Lead and oil is one of ’em. « k. Devoe Ready Paint lasts twice as long; is better in every respect; is ready to dip the brush in; you 1 can depend on the colors; no mystery; no uncertainty; cost no more; cost less. We hope you employ Mr. OpenMind Painter, and not Mr. Know-it-all-now. Yours truly,

F. W. DEVOE & CO.