THE PINEHURST OUTLOOK.
some new gospel. The larger and smaller
points of theology they are very fond of
hearing discussed. I heard an aged
preacher struggle with the doctrine of
foreordination and actually end his ser
mon with the declaration that he did not
understand it. The chief matter in con
tention in one settlement where I hap
pened to spend some time was concern
ing baptism, whether the head should be
dipped up stream or across the current.
I must not forget to mention the "Fire
Woman," known all over that country.
For eight years she had ridden horseback
continually over the country without
relief from burning. She fancied herself
on lire, and kept her mouth always full
of water. Her husband told me that he
had seen light and smoke come from her
body and that it felt hot. This is only
one of many strange, fantastic and more
often superstitious notions current among
the people. And it is just these notions,
much outgrown in most parts of our land
that makes West Carolina an interesting
country to visit and study. Here one will
find fragments of most ancient wisdom and
beliefs handed down from generation to
generation and American men and women
of the most primitive and original type
to be found anywhere except in the
remote corners of Europe. Bemember 1
am not speaking of Asheville or other
popular resorts. 1 am speaking of the
interior portions of that country, por
tions seldom visited by Northerners. It
is best known by circuit riders, pros-1
pectors for minerals and lumber, and the
moonshine whiskey detectives. For the
illicit still is common enough. I did
want much to visit one but you take your
life in your baud when you venture into
its neighborhood. However I saw the
moonshiner himself, and heard him talk
talk which would have been precious
to an anarchist. And I had offered me
one day some "," which I innocently
thought the man meant as an invitation
to buy some lumber. It is almost impos
sible for the farmers to turn their corn
as corn into cash and one does not won
der at their trying the next way.
A most interesting country, as I have
said to visit and observe, but not to stay,
not to live in. For winter living there
is no place in the State equal to Fine
hurst taken all in all, its conveniences,
its opportunities for amusement, its good
company, good, pleasant, warm houses
and good fare. Finehurst makes its guests
feel at home at once. One other attraction
it has for the winter resident, scarcely
to be found elsewhere in the southland,
good walking in the village itself and its
environs. I have seen the mud of many
states, but none so deep, so impassable
as that ot Western North Carolina. If
those in other parts of the State are
called "Tar Heels," in that they should
be called "mud heels." So we are well
content to live in Finehurst without
mountains or sea. The sand is beach
enough, and the beautiful skies high
enough for our admiration and reverence.
lie will, as in the past, be assisted by
many of the guests and villagers who
take pride in the high class of entertain
ment which have become a feature of the
social life of Finehurst.
31 r. St. ('lair has opened a vocal studio
where our villagers may have then
voices thoroughly trained and prepared
for church, concert, oratorio or opera by
the celebrated F. Lamport! system. The
greatest attention will be paid to breath
control, placing and production of voice,
register, force, intensity of expression,
etc. Mr. St. Clair will arrange for a
farce or light comedy weekly or as often
as the visitors may desire and an opera
will be given by the vocal students as
opportunity presents; also part singing,
quartets, glees and trios will form parts
of the program and such days as may be
unlit for outdoor exercise may be passed
with much of both pleasure and profit to
the visitors.
Mr. St. Clair was a pupil of the elder
Lamport i for seven years and sang in
grand opera at La Scala, Milan, and all
through Europe, England, Australia,
Cape Town and Cairo. lie came to this
country with Madame Fatti, having sung
for six seasons in her company and was
a member of the. old Abby & Grow and
Doyle & Carte companies, lie is also a
noted choir master and teacher in New
York.
whU'h sue ordered of us after December
12th to go by freight and after the 19th
to go by express.
We book orders now and shall Ml tiiem
in strict rotation.
A case 30 x!8 x 9 inches costs 75 cents ;
three cases for two dollars, delivered
free at Finehurst freight or express
station.
Respectfully,
Finehurst Nurseries,
Otto Katzenstein, Manager.
Mr. Homes.
The many friends of Mr. William
Holmes are congratulating him on his
appointment to the position of resident
superintendent. Mr. Holmes came here
from Boston early this season to accept
a position in the General Office. When
Mr. Benbow resigned the position was
offered to Mr. Holmes whose capabilities
had thus early been recognized. He has
had a business training of many years,
having conducted a large business in his
home city, being one of the firm of Fiske,
Holmes & Co., he holds a high rank
among the business men both as a busi
ness man and a gentleman. Strangers
coining in contact with Mr. Holmes for
the first time cannot fail to be drawn to
him by his uniformly, kind and courte
ous manner. He will, we know, make a
success in his new position for he has
just the qualities which are needed in
this most responsible position, a high
conception of the courtesy due those
with whom he comes in contact, yet
with the firmness necessary to direct
and control the extensive interests of the
owner of a town like Finehurst.
The Season's Entertainments.
Mr. Alfred D. St. Clair of New York,
the talented musician whose efforts con
tributed so largely to the success of the
many entertainments held in the village
the past two seasons, returned to Fine
hurst last Saturday.
Arrangements have been made whereby
Mr. St. Clair will have full charge of all
entertainments in the hall this season.
No Need to Worry What to Send Your
Friends for Christmas.
We should suggest a case with really
choice Holly, Mistletoe and Fine would
be just the thing to gladden the hearts of
the folks at home.
Probably you know that it is our busi
ness to pack just such stuff and incident
ally we know just how to pack all you
will have to do therefore is to tell us
how many cases you want and to which
addresses you wish them shipped, and
then you may be sure that they get there
in time.
One thing more! Christmas still comes
on December 25th, and Ave are about a
thousand miles or so from New England
while our cases will not be the only
goods shipped about Christmas. We
cannot guarantee, therefore, to have
delivered in New England, any cases
Ways of the Ostrich.
The Phoenix herd of ostriches inhabits
an alfalfa pasture of forty acres, three
miles north of the city. The herd is
second in size in America, numbering 175
birds, the largest herd being at Fuller
ton, Cal.. and numbering 300 birds.
The first birds brought from South
Africa to America for breeding purposes
came to California in 1882. In 1888 four
teen chicks from this herd were brought
to Phoenix for exhibition, an were bought
by Josiali Harhert, who proposed to
breed them. The purchase was made
during the summer and Mr. Harbert put
the young birds in coops, carefully cov
ered the coops with cloths to keep out
the sun, and drove out to his home in
Alhambra. All the birds but two were
smothered to death during the trip. It
being impossible to distinguish between
the sexes in young ostriches, and fearing
lie had no male bird, Mr. Harbert pur
chased one of the male birds brought
from Africa. The 175 birds constituting
the present herd are his decendants. He
has been honorably retired, and with
the dignity befitting his patriarchal posi
tion he knocks the stuffing out of every
thing that comes within his reach. It
was not long ago that he engaged Mr.
Fickrell, President of the Arizona Ostrich
Company, in an impromptu "scrap," and
while Mr. Fickrell is a husky old bird
himself and was armed with a wooden
pitchfork, old "Oom Paul" hit him one
welt and knocked him out for several
days.
The ostrich is a monogamist. At least
he has but one wife at a time. The
match-making is arranged by the human
keeper, who puts each pair of birds in a
separate corral. Mr. Ostrich is likely to
consider the question of marriage for
some days after he is introduced to his
partner, and much thought on the ques
tion colors his shins and beak a bright
red. When he finally determines that a
family should be reared, he digs a nest
in the ground. He then drives his mate
up to the nest and calls her attention to
it by giving her a kick. If she is dull of
comprehension, and she usually is, he
continues to kick her and scold her, and
his voice much resembles the roar of the
lion. He is often compelled to go to the
extreme of kicking her over the 8-foot
fence forming the corral.
She finally, however, sees her duty
and begins to lay eggs which average
three pounds in weight. The first two
or three eggs are not fertile and will not
hatch. This fact, curiously enough, is
known to the mother and she lays them
outside the nest. But in this there is a
wonderful provision of nature. On the
African desert the nesting of the wild
birds is done in the hills or mountains,
far from the water and the haunts of
beasts or men. But while the nest may
be many miles from water, the first re
quirement of the chick when he comes
from the shell is water or its equivalent
in liquid food. Hence the necessity of
the two or three sterile eggs, which the
mother breaks after her brood is born,
and on which the chicks live until they
are strong enough to travel.
Left to her own judgement the hen
lays perhaps ten eggs, at the rate of one
in twro days, and when the nest looks
comfortably full, the incubation beging.
Hut the artifice of man deceives her.
The keeper systematically takes the eggs
from the nest, and as long as her work
seems to be unfinished the hen continues
to produce eggs. By this system two
hens on the Phoenix farm last year pro
duced fifty eggs each. She cannot be
deceived, however, as to the sterile eggs.
If they are put in the nest she will con
tinue to pull them out, and will finally
quit laying and abandon the nest.
About fifteen eggs constitute a "set
ting," and the period of incubation is
forty-two days. The male bird does the
greater share of this labor. He takes
charge of the nest at 5 o'clock in the
evening and remains with it until 0
o'clock in the morning, when the female
takes charge. At noon he relieves her
for an hour, while she lunches, and she
then keeps house until 5 o'clock.
One of the most interesting character
istics of the ostrich is the manner in
which he takes what may be called his
"constitutional." Every morning at sun
rise the herd of young males engages in
a foot race, which concludes in a combi
nation cake walk and reel. In single file
they will race around the pasture at a
two-minute gait, until throughly limbered
up, and then suddenly forming in a
group go through gyrations Unit suggest
the waltz, the Virginia reel, the cake
walk and the "happy jag." It is a gro
tesque performance, but there is a sing
ular grace in the birds' play, and when
they are in full plumage, with their great
wings spread, the sight is beautiful.
Arizona Graphic.
Harry Vardon's Plans.
harry Vardon, one the world's great
est golfers, has almost decided to take
up his abode in the United States and
become an American citizen. Vardon
will probably tour the pacific coast this
winter. While in Boston the other day
he expressed a desire to meet Willie
Smith and David Bell in California.
After Vardon's return to the East he
will appear in matches in the spring and
then leave for England, to close up his
affairs preparatory to coining to this
country for a permanent stay. His
reported decision to foreswear allegiance
to the crown is not surprising when his
record in this country is remembered.
His tour of the Florida resorts last win
ter, his marvelous match playing in the
East, winding up with his victory in the
open championship of the United States,
forms a record of which he is justly
proud. He has been defeated but twice,
both times by Bernard Nicholls of Boston.
Vardon has recognized that there is
money for him in golf in this country,
and that there will be a substantial busi
ness here for years to come, lie expects
to settle down in Chicago, but intends to
spend the winter at Finehurst, N. C,
which is much frequented by the smart
set in winter. Boston Post.
The Outlook 50 cents for 6 months.