"F: - Ml - W ;' : " : I. ! - I - : - . : ;-' ( ' ": . - - $ . :.m -; :. - i I . . ' v- ! .. . . . , fi ;.' ? ; . ' - l 1 . ' - . ; i - - .1 i. '11 1 ,t. j 4-t ' .!! ."5. Hi ' 5 l) j m1 E I- i ?. Li - in 1 t-t -s IT: - -f Si 1 ii -ii "il u - s- !:! .1 Si: r-T -r-r-i jGREENSBpHO, S.C.. JANUARY 6. 1S85 THfc GOVERNMENT PRINTING i" -I ii if OFFICE. ij iTlie Gotemnietit Printing Office ii ashinirton, has grown .from a ; s i , - sssbbbbbssssss poorly equipped printiug ofiQco nn til, under ta present able and sue! 'sslul "management, , it is reco nized as the largest printiug . cstai)lisliment in the vorld. It is a . stupendously vast concern. The present, public printer , has thor oughly niastered its miuutest Je . tail, and , conducts it ou strictly . .'i -, j ' j - . 'business principles. lie is an ex j per ie need! manager and a practical printer, having worked his way; up jifrpiDrjude'iP iu a country printing ofliee. : lluriug his three yertrs in i ciiiitbency as Public Printer he has ' established a thorough business system in every division of the I great establishment; refilled it to a; largo ! degree with modem and i labor saying machinery and appli ances, arid that. too. without asking Oongres$ for aliy extra appropna j tion of j money and without j any iff deficiency bills jjand has brought the unfinished work of the office jwhich had accumulated for years ' as jwell as current business, up to & point nearer completion than ever before attained. -This splen tlid record is a part of the estab ljiisnmeut we se out to jlescribe. bat is. caiieu tue "Uocument koi)m" is 300 feet long with a gen eral width of CO feet, giving an : area of 21,C0O square feet, j j The Btands for compositors are arranged ou' the north and south sides of the room, tho iraposi'ig stones, galley racks aiid cabinets, with the many other, annurtenauces : which are necessary iu a large office, occupy ing the.ceutre of room. One: hun dred and eighty compositors, about j i it ' jtho average number employed; can ;be accommodated here, iu addition td the J makers up, floor-hands aud l laborers. There arc now in con istant Use 27j double stands; 1,030 I pairs of cases, 19 imposing stones, S G ! proof pressed, one Washington ! wress. 210 chases of all sizesi more vIthan lC0j00 pouuds of typo of the -, 1 standard sizes, besides about 115 ), fonts iot different styles usea lor : tit mires a iu ueauiuirs aim u . ... , i cabinets for extra type and cases. An iuitueuso amouut of tyie is con 1 stantly kept standing iu this di vi Jsiou of the office. Piles of page, j tied up and kept iu place by pieces ; of heavy wrapping paper, can be ; seen Ion every available resting i placej! j ' ""j ! The document room comes under the immediate supervision of the foreman 0f Printing, Capt. Henry T. Brian, who with his capable corps ot assistants, . Messrs. J. M. A. Sittswood. D. V. Beach, anl ! J. Ml Maloney, i carry on the im "mense business of this department iu a I thoroughly efficient and eco i nomical manner. j From the office of thei Chief Clerk the manuscript of each job i siMit tn the foreman accraiauied by jackets" bearing the number ! I.?t 1- A I. 1. aim line oi iao wwk, msciuci 4nv?necessarv instructions. ! These jackets arev vouchers upon; which the work is executed aud are sup posed to follow the jobs" through whatever divisions of the office the character of the work requires them i to go. Endorsements are made upon lade them . by the i several foremen as to date of receipt and delivery of work, thus insuring ex jpeifftioiraW locating at a glance anl unusual delay. Upon the re ceipt of the manuscript of. a job. thd foreman places it in the hands of j the copy editors, who, after numberiu g the sheets in order, mark the different styles of type in which t is to be set, indicating also, in tl e case of Ji book,; the size of jthe vo ume in which the work . J . ' . i is to appear. , i ' "The cony is then trausferretl to the! Assistant Foreman, who has iniHiediate chargeof the mechani cal! brancli of the work, and by him parcelled out in takes to the compositors, j - . At Hit present time there are einVdoved in 'this -room about 173 compositors, C makers up, 7 floor hands, bipprentices and 14 labor er$. ivmong the '"type stickers" are seVen h 1 ly compositors, .who are I"""" - ' expenen; ed hands,-tliorouguiy skilled in the trade and j have no difficult in getting Up their aver aee" and! arqnitting themselves in a Very creditable manner..; The job room is an important feature of the public printing, and from comparative insignificance in the earlier history of the Printing Office it ,lias grown in size and use fulness until it probably excewls iuj its equipment and capacity any job printing office in thecountry. jit fHicn pies part of the new fire proof wing erected1 iu 1879, aud is 8G feet 6 inches long by 53 feet 8 inches wide, with a ceiling 13 feet high. . . " , j . In 18G0 the only work done there for the government was for the use of 'the y immediate, dennrtmont. there in Washington; The work tor the dhTerent branches of the departments located outside f of. Washington was done in private offices throughout the country. Now the work performed here is in part, as follows : .,The; coraposi tion on blank books, the ; blank forms, comprising bonds, contracts, pay roils, vouchers, schedules, cir culars, letter-heads envelops, specifications, and, in fact, all spe ciesof job printing (excepting that executed at the branch offices" at the , Treasury, Interior and Navy Department) for all the depart ments in Washington, the-Smith sonian Institution, aud jail j the blanks, blank books, etc, used by diplomatic and consular officers of the United States,' wherever locat ed. The completed volumes of the Medical and Surgical History of the Rebellion and the Atlautic and Pacific Coast Pilot, which arc models of correctnessand typo graphical excellence, were done here, and were published at a great saving to the Government f The inventory of the job room, taken at the time of its transfer by private parties to the Government, shows that the material then on hand consisted of about 200j-fonts of type, 224 cases, 80 chases of all sizes, 4 imposing stones and 25 composing sticks. In 1881 'an in ventory disclosed the following equipment: 448 fonts of type, 781 cases, about 1,200 chases of all sizes, 14 imposing stones, 240 com posing sticks, Washington baud press, used only for taking proofs, and 1 Degener press for small hur ried work. Since the accession of Mr. Kounds to the position ot Pub lic Printer, many additions to the stock have been ! made to meet the growing needs of this room. There are on band, ready for press at any time, without1 com po sition, about 20,000 electrotype and stereotyie plates of such forms as are rarely if ever changed. They "are so arranged that any! desired plate can be readily found.' ; There are at present employed in this room 52 journeymen prin ters, 6 apprentices, 1 bookkeeper, 2 laborers, 1 messenger and 2 copy holders. Many 'Of the j printers have been employed since the or ganization of the office as a Gov eminent institution, and as a whole the work done here will compare' favorably with that doue in any office in the country. ' J j The Specification Room occu pies the entire fourth story and is 60 by 100 feet. Under the assist ant foreman in charge are two pre parers of copy, an efficient corps of proof-readers, revisers, copy holders, makers up, compositors and laborers, to the number, all told, of 125. j " ; A history of the Siecification Room would necessarily involve, iu part, a history of American patents. So closely are the two allied that an intelligent person caunot speak of one without think ing of the other The never sleep ing genius of American! inventors not " only made- the , printing of specifications of patents a possioil ity, but a necessity. ; Heretofore in the early history of American pat ent laws, one transcrip of the specification of any patent or dis covery was deemed sufficient for all concerned From the year 1790 up to 1840, probably! not more than 3,000 original patents and patents fr additional improvements had been issued by the Government to inventors. Since 1840scieuce has i - ' -i 1 made such gigantic strides in the field of discovery, has so enlarged the scope for the genius of patents, the patent laws have been so fre quently amended and liberalized, the rapid growth oMhe couutry necessitating j new j appliances to new and ever-changing conditions of man, that Upwards of three hun dred thousand letters patent for inventions or j discoveries, fif;een thousand design patents, ten thou sand re-issued letters patent, and eleven thousand trade-marks have beeu issued to inventors. With 8o'icitors of patents in every con siderahle town iu the United States, the frequency with which they have to make reference to former disco v cries upon a case in hand, interfer ences, or infringements, the clerical force required to furnish transcripts for the courts and utberersons, it became evident, for the dispatch of business, that the specifications of patents and designs must be print ed. So, in 1866, V. contract was awarded to Philip &' Solomons for printing twent copies of each case, -which continued two years. , It was thought,' for economy, the work id-' , . could be executed at the Govern-,, ment Printing Office cheaer 'than by contract. So, in 1868, the Gov ernment assnmed the priuting ot the specifications with a force, all told.j of twenty -five employees. The number of specincations issued eachlweek averaged about two bun dred : and fifty, of twenty copiepT each. . i . t ! kIn January, 1872, the, first num ber of the 'Official Gazette of the United States Patent Office,w was issned. ..I , - 4 '. In July, 1872, the immber of copies of each secification was in . creased from twenty to two b ou dred aud filty copies, and the libra ry edition of "Specifications and Drawings' wa. commenctnl, which contains all the, specifications of patents aud drawings issued by the Pateut Office for one mouth, to getber with complete "Alphabeti cal Lists of Pateutees and 'Inveu tious,,, a volume containing 2,092 pages, which has now increased iu size to 3,536 pages per month -t-a work of nearly twice the magni tude of Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, j ( Several thousand specifications of old patents, some of which' were uever printed, and some of which printed copies have been exhausted, are printed or reprinted every year in addition to the above. j .There are also printed in this room 'Quarterly Lists of Patentees and Inventions," ot about 200 pages, and an Annual Index" or the same of about 700 pages'. ' j About two hundred .. pages of claims are reset iu larger type for the use of the photolithographer, who reduces them in size and prints them by his process, with the drawiugs, each week. t' j r j , I The amount of composition done in this room exceeds that jot any other room under the charge of the Public Printer, except one, (the Document Room,) and . probably exceeds that accomplished by any priuting house in the United States1. No pains is spared to make the work perfect in all its parts, the proof being read three times by copy before the matter is! sent to press. -- . ! ' . " f -: ; To accomplish this immense work, 12,000 Jibs. Loug I Primer, 10,000 lbs. Nonpareil, 1,000 lbs. English. 500 lbs. Brevier,! and ten or twelve large fonts of small job type arc required.' About 130 bases, 116 pairs cases, 600 brass galleys, 150 composing sticks, Bey hundred pounds metal furniture, and 300 wooden side sticks. ! These remarks might be extended to considerable length. I 1 The stereotyping and electrotyp ing foundry occupies a room 50 by 50 leet on the same floor with and immediately adjoining the job room, and is under the superinten dence of Mr. Alex Elliott, who is the "father" of this branch of the "plant." The average number of hands employed throughout the year is about eighty. j The machiuery consists! of 3 Eter eofype. mold presses, 2 stereotype aud 1 electrotype furnaces, 2 circii lar saws, 2 hand shaving machines, 2 steam planing machines, 1 hand machine for thicknessing blocking wood, 1 jig saw and lril 1 squar ing up and" trimming machine 1 plate-beveliug machiue,l hydran lie and 2 toggle jointed electrotyi mold presses, 1 black leading ma chine, 2 dynamo electric machines, 1 brass rule sawing machine, . and furnaces for casting le.ids, slugs, etc. ; .;- j "L.'.';" The average amount of work ex ecuted per day is equivalent to about 300 octavo pages, in addi tion to which the foundry casts all the leads and metal furniture used in the different departments of this Printing Office." The amount of metal used in the various f.rms will aggregate not less than 200, 000 Kunds per annum, j , The bindery occupies a floor 8 pace equal to one acre. It is nn der theimmeliate superintendence of the Foreman of Binding, Mr. J. H. Roberts, with Messrs. J. W. White, 'John- A. I Perkins, P J. Bryne, ami W. J. Kingsbnryas assistant foremen. ' All documents for the use of Oimress, he Library of Congress, the several Departments, and! the various courts, are bound, and all blank books of eveiy description, for the use of all the different branches of the Government,! are made iu this, the largest bindery in the world. ' j - The press room of. this vast es tablishmentis on the first floor and is 60 by 300 feet, and has about 60 power presses with f a i capacity of I, 000,000 impressions per day.j On eutering, j a , great noise and din greets one, which at , first make him feel uncomfortable, but booh the ear becomes accustomed to the sound of the machinery, and on GREEXSBORQ, N. C, TUESDAY, JANUARY ii- i mii MHMMMMBMMH investigjktiow finds this part of the building' verylnteresting. Since the appointment of the present Public Printer many improvement have been made, improved and fast presses have replaced the old slow machinery, and the sanitary condi tion is better than it has been since tneTexisteucel5f tbej estab i lishmeutr It is a very difficult mat ' ter to keep auy press room clean, but this one is "a model of neatness. The folding room is ttief largest in the building, ,400 arsons being employed there. s The folding of sheets, maps or illustrations, the pasting, gathering, etc , are all sep arate and distinct ! operations, re quiring special, care aud patience, and iu some cases great labor. A great deal of its folding if done by machinery. In this room; oue cau form some idea of the vast amouut of work doue i by the Government Printing Office. -- P 'j There aro about one hundred hands employed on the Congressional Re cord. : This force varies' during the sessions of Congress, and, with the exception of its foreman and laborer, is dismissed at thp close of each sessiou. j . h The piece department luf the of fice forms part of the "Docameut Room," (already mentioned,) in which are employed some eighty compositors, engaged principally on work for the .Supreme Court and the Court of Claims.! i' i J This department originated: with the present Public Printer' Mr. Sterling P Rounds, and has saved the Government from $25,000 to $50,000 annually. It was one of the first acts of his administration, which has been throughout the u.ost successful in the history of the Government Printiug j Office. CLEVELAND AND CIVIL SERVICE V , !:.'! i; REFORM. . ...j .. .'; A letter was addressed to President-elect Cleveland on December 20. by George W. Curtis, president of the Civil Service Reform League, and signed numerously j by other members of that organization re questing Mr. Cleveland to be guid ed by the principles of civil service reform in j the selection of public servants in his comiug administra tion. The following able aud vig orous answer is published: Albany NVY.,Dec. 25. To Htm. j George' Wilfiam Curtis, President,' &C. . ! f Deab Sir: Tour communication, dated December 20, addressed to me ou behalf of the National Civil Service Reform League, has been received! ': ; ;" j That a practical reform in the civil service is demauded is abun dautly established by the fact that a statute referred to in ! your com munication to secure such a result has been passed in Congress with the assent of both political parties, and by the further fact that a sen timent , is : generally,: prevalent among patriotic people calling for the fair anil honest enforcement of the law which has been thus en acted. I regard myself pledged to t his, because my conception of true Democratic faith and public duty requires . that this and all other statutes should be in good faith and without evasion enrorced, and be cause iu many utterances made prior to my election as President, approved by the party to which I belong, and which I have no dis position to" disregard, I have in effect promised the people that this should be done , ' I am not unmindful of the fact to which you r?fer, thatmauy of our citizens fear that the recent party change in the national Executive may demonstrate, that the abuses which have grown up in the civil service are ineradicable. I know that they are deeply rooted aud that the spoils system' has- been supposed to be intimately related to success in the maintenance of party organization, aud I am not sure that all those who profess to be the friends of this reform will stand firmly among its advocates when they find it obstrncti lg their way to patronage and place. But fullj appreciating the trust com mitted to my charge.no such consid eration shall cause a relax-on my part of an earnest effort to enforce this law. ' 1 v There is a class of Government positions which are not within the letter of the civiL service statute, but which are so disconnected with the policy of an administration, that the removal therefrom ot pre sent incumbents, in; my opinion, should not be in ado duriug the terms for which they were appoint ed, solely on pmisau grouuds aud for the purpose of puttiug in their places those who were iu political accord with the appointing power. But many now holding such po sitions have forfeited all just claim to I retention, because they have used their places for party purposes in disregard of their duty to the people, and because, insread of teiiig decent publk servants, they have proved themselves offensive partisans aud unscrupulous inani pulators pf local party manage ment. " I j ' -1 - , , The lessons of the past should be unlearned, and such officials, as well as their successors, should be taught that efficiency, fitness and devotion to public duty are the conditions of their continuance iu public place, and that the quiet and unobtrusive exercise of indi vidnal KlitIcal rights is the reason able measure of their party service. If I were addressing none but party friends I should deem it en tirely, proper to remind them that though- the coming administration is to be Democratic, a due regard for the people's interest doe not permit faithful party work to be a! ways rewarded by apMiiitmentto office, and to nay to them that while Democrats may expect all proper considerations, selections for office not embraced within thf civil service i rules will be based upon sufficient inquiry as to fitness, instituted by those charged with that duty, rather than persistent importunity or self solicited recom mendations ou behalf of candidate- for appointmeut. i Yours, very truly, : ; Grover Cleveland. . The Opeulug or the Year! It is odd that Time, the one thing that would seem immutable as the fact that there is a suu iu the heav ens, old Chrouos, whom we iaucy fashioued of stone from . everlast ing, has, ever siuce men have been humming aud buzziugabout, seem ed, ou the surface of things, to en dure nothing but change. This is Ks;bly because time is one of the mysteries that men can not pene trate; they can uot quite reduce it to im lowest terms, aiid they are uever satisfied with the incapacity of the Vay thev have treated it; finite things finding t. hard to for mulate infinite thiugs a dissatis faction of which even the recent chauge! iu standard time offers it self iu evidence. ' Thus the year 'seems to have be gun and ended ueariy all round the calendar, February having once sto d at the end of the year, when Nuraa had the business in hand, as various days of March have stod at thej beginning, and as the days of a number of mouths have been scattered about in order that Au gustus Caesar might have as many days in his mouth of August as Julius Caesar had in his month of July.) ' ' ; ' ' Although' it is-more than a huu dred and thirty years ago that the change was made from the Julian to the Gregorian style, it will be a matter of surprise to many readers to kuow that the Old Style, so call-, ed, not only still holds in Russia, between all of whose dates and our own there is now a difference of twelve days, but that, in poiut of solid fact that id, so far as finan cial fact is concerned it still holds iu England.- Although an act of Parliament i loug since made the change legal ami compulsory, the legal and the ecclesiastical year be ginning on the 25th of March be fore that act, yet the accounts of i he British Treasury still run iu the Old Style, j Nobody iu England, it will be remembered, ever expects Christmas dividends to be paid till Twelfth-day, or the Miisummer ones till the 5th of July, aiid Lady day: being that with which the an nual reckonings of the Budget be gin and eud, aud on which .the British laborer ou laud lets out his services fof the j'ear not the 1st of January, but Lady-day, which mow is reckoned ou the 25th of March, the former New Year's Day, Old Style, but which financially is still held to be the 5th day of April, as it used' to Ins before- New Style came in ; and it is from the 5th of April, and not the other date, that reckonings "of t le British Treasury are madeJ thus adhering to Old Style... :-.! ! The French, at the time of their great Revolution, meaning appar ently to carry the revolution into all things,! divided their year into aew segments and sections, and our first month became a part of Nivose and a part of Pluviose, Snowy aiid Raiuy, not even the Freuch Revolution, which brought such chauge into the world, being able to aljter the characteristics of time by whatever name one chose to call its divisions. This same Nivose and Pluviose period was long known of the Dutch as Chilly Month, in translation, known of the old Scandinavian as the mouth of fhe fighting god Thor, and of the Anglo Saxon as Wolf Month the latter, perhaps, because it was the devouring wolf raged . abroad most cruelly for prey, perhaps because not eeuj wolves are fiercer, bun grier, and more devouring than the bitter cold of the month which made thd sad-hearted distich: "The blackest month in U the year 1 Is the blck month of Jniveer." It is well, in view of the sharp character of the month, enforciug a erpctuai fight with its rigors, that it should have been named for old Janus, the god of battles, whose temple, closed in peace and oen in war, never shut its doors but once in al! the days of fche Roman Re public. jAnd another aptness in its naming appears, in view'again of its standing at the opening gate of the year, that it should have its appellation from 'this same ancient deify, wfio was alsa the guardian aud god!of all gates. Was not old Janus, too, the jauitor of heaven itself f (And is it not a possibility that we all cherish in our inmost hearts only letting none suspect our brief fol.y (brief, since we too soon find out the delusion) that this year just opened may prove a heaven to us, if no otner ever nas doue so t The two faced god it is thatopefled the gate to us, for he smiled on ns with the ace of hope,; and tn miner a backward glance by and by,! we see him frowning with1 the face of despair, i In all these changes that nave been rung upon the calendar of course fre have no assurance tha things are going to remain as tbey are, especially arbitrary things thai are not enforced by nature, and that we! shall ha ve no more changes. So long a wo have the precession of the equinoxes, men will be tint eriiie with? the properties ot-old Chronos. But whenever any other changes are made, we wouder if it will occur to the changers max there is some Doetry. if not some reason, in beginning the year when nil the sweet forces of nature begin to assert themselves too, when all 6, 1885. ri; things begin to bud and buigeon, the sap runs, up the stem to burst in leaf and bloom, vitality sweeps along' the currents of the blood, ferror arid purpose swell the heart, and tbe very earth itself seems freshly made, rather than at a seal son when all nature lies cold and dead in its frozen shroud. Change is uot dear to the feminine heart, which feels safety,: only in prece dent ; aud we make haste to re-assure our readers that, pleasant as they might find this Change when once used to it, it is the most uu likely thing iu the world to take placev-jrhatever other change come may, because there is nothing in the idea to recommeud itself to those Dryasdusts who attend to such matters, and who, ignorant of the existence of ooetry, or of the poetry of facts living iu the midst of poetry, but stone blind to it,: would care nothing at all about the pretty coiucideuce of opening year aud opening bud if it hindered them1 in disposing of some odd quarter of an hour that has been bothering almauac makers ever; since; time begau for them, proved to them, iudeed, mauvais quart d'keure. and has a very; Gen. Grant's Trestles. ! I Philadelphia Times. General W. T. ShermanJ George vv. unihls, and A. J. Drelel, who are among the most intimate and de voted of General Grant's personal frieuds, met in Philadelphia last week ' and discussed plans for re leivirig Gen. Grant from bis i presf eut financial troubles. While in New York Gen. Sherman learned that! au inventory had been taken of Gener.il Grauts real estate and lersoual possessions, under a judg! ment entered against him Jin favor of William H. Vanderbilt for$lG0,j 000,:the greater part of which was loaned him . by Mr. Vanderbilt in the Effort to save the firm jof Grant & Ward from failure. After con sulting General Grant's friends in New York, General Sherman came to Philadelphia and arranged a 'meeting' with Messrs. Drexel aud Childs. ' j . Y ! ... During the consultation they merely discussel the general situa tiofi, without adopting auy specific phyi of relief. Mr. Childs and Mr. Diyxel, however, heartily! approved of General Sherman's course iu be haf of his. old friend and fellow )lU:er. . ..j v i: t "j!. The exer,iitins issued jm favor of Mr. Vanderbilt cover Gei'l. Grant's two fat ins, one near St. Louis and the other near Chicago, jhis Wash j ingtoti house, and the Philadelphia h(iise, at TwentitthJjiiid Chestnut streets, which, was presented to him by . the citizens of Philadelphia. St an after tde close of the war. The inventory also includes (the many valuable presents !anjl trophies p esented to the ex-President dur ii g his tour around the world after his leaving the presidency. The catalogue enumerates costly weap ons and 8niirenir8, rare articles ot decoration and brio a brae, tokens of the esteem of trieu s at noma potentates ajntl the respect of abroad. The swords aiid medals awarded Ii i in by Congress, his relics of the war. his pictures and lirary, and even the cards engraved by Congress in recogiiition" tf his services, are included iu the list of articles covered oy the) judgments.,' "the possibility ot his friend losing! all these invaluable trophies so im ressed General. Sherman that he sailed upon General Grant while in STew York early in the week, and ;hen started immediately. upon his ;rrand of relief.' As Mrs. Grant has united her resources with those of her husband, and surrendered her life interest iu his property, the assets mentioned are ample to cov er the amount ot the judgments in full. The tarms alone are valued at SGo,0(l) and $25,000, respective! iy. ! : :-. J. General Sherman and Mr. ChihU expressed themselves! as being en tirly satisfied with Mij Vauderbilt's action in the matter. ""I Ii j Mr. Vanderbilt expressed his en tire sympathy with the movement, and immediat fy offered to throw off $00,000 of "the entire amount which is about $100,000 witlijiri terest, provided the remaining $100,000 were . paid. Mr.' Field saitl that he had uot realized the true suite of affairs until General Sherman communicated with hiuli, hut he proposed to take the Uiatter in hand himself aiid expected no difficulty iu ' raising the money. Upon his departure trom .Philadel phia General Sherman expects j to isi", Washington, where he will probabl3 coiitinne the eflf rts be gun in New York and in this! city. Trust God and Talk Cheerfully. "Merrv Christmas" said I Mr. Talmage to nis congregation! last Sunday. "For fourteen Christm is es I have spoken1 to you of the spir itual benefits of the birth of Christ. To day I speak of the temporal beh- efits of the Saviours Oirtn. there is no nation that has so many hap nv homes as America. I Yet there, are many to day without work, with OUb lOOU ctlHl niiuuiiv ouciii There must be something wrong, as t hundreds of thousands of people this is a hungry, shiveriug Christ mas. The trouble is that our coun try is suffering from too much pol itics Eloqu.'Ut campaign orators have said that the fate of the na tion depended on the success jof their; party, when tbe fact is, jit does iioc make two cents' difference to me or you who is President for the next four years. I enjoin two things upon you: First, helpful ness to the helpless, and, second, cheerful talk. If we want to pros trate business, talk in a dolorous tone aud keep on talking. What are you complaining about f ' The loudest cries about hard times are not hard. I waut to join a conspi racy made up of business men, editors and preachers who shall u.rroA tn trust in God and talk cneenuujr. ; . f i i t., 1 ! ' Hit: i - 1 i J Guarding the Electoral Returns. ? , jThe way the returns pf the elec toral rotes of the States, as they are delivered to aiting JVice Preai dent E Imunl8, are held prepara tory tu the final declaration ot the two Houses of Congress, differs from that of 1876 as widely as the circumstances of that fyear differ from those of the . present. Now they are placed iu the safe! with no extraordinary precautions, tor there is no necessity for theuu The re turns of 187G, as they were deliver ed to acting Vice President Ferry, were put under extra locks aud guards, day and night. ; During the period 'of suspense, down to tbe action of the Electoral Commission, the great vigilance was observed. Threats from different quarters, as well as the excited state of the thecountry, led to extraordinary precaution-. One - hundred extra policemen were sworn in and plac ed on guard night and day. Tbe number was occasionally increased. ThU was done once in consequence of reports of plans maturing iu Bal ' timore to make a descent on the Capitol to sieze the returns. ; They were in a safe in a room at the Seuate end of the Capitol. At all hours that room was closely guard ed. ' I ; : ' I Unknown to any one but the Sergeant at-Arms of the Senate, at nights a man locked bituselt in that room, and remained without a light and in silence till morning, One night he carelessly drew a match to light a cigar. Though it was for au instaut only, the light was seen and the alarm raised that all was not right! in tbatroom. The door was shaken and a call made, but the man, inside remained si lent, t reparations were made to force the door, and the Sergeat at Arms was sent for. After hearing the report of the officer of the night, he fouud a way to dela; forcing operations till moruing, when the guard Were relieved and the man inside came forth to j confess bis carelessness and receive a proper reprimand. The sudden light was a mystery to the guard as long as they were ou' duty j ! When thej Seuate -went to the House to meet in joint session to count the votes, the lox contain ing the returns was placed in the possession of a chosen man,' who was strongly1 flanked on the way by the guards, but with fas little dis play, as possible, while the joint meetings wefe being held. Guards were posted In the galleries, ou the floor especially iu the vicinity of the Speakerjs desk, where the box was and throughout the Capitol building, and iu the approaches. This was kept up with military precision throughout the suspense down to March 5. I Meanwhile precautions on a larg er scale weii? taken by men higher in office. A military force was con centrated iu! and about Washing a a a s i - ton. unu neid in reatiiuess tor an pinergeuey-f-that of inaugurating bayonets, if at that time Uayes, . protected by necessary.') A Cabinet official said, recently: "The preparations for a great j emergency were more extensive than any fecord shows; The country was nearer its greatest crisis thanwas known except to a few. J ; j hootin at a Target tor a Bride. ""Jehial Clancy is superintendent of the Clarion Company's lumber mills, near Csalton, Pa. Since July last jWilliam Nicholson and William Brant, two "young lumber men from the Maine lumber re gions, have been working at. the mills. Clancy has a nineteen-year old daughter? with fhom the two young men fell in love. Each one wuuted to 'marry the: gill, but their frienilly relations were not disturb ed by that; fact. Mfss Clancy has been bomb from school in Kew York Stati' a few weeks only. She seemed pleased with! the attentions of the two;frieud8. 1 On Thursday of ?eek lefore last there was! a shootiilg match near the Clarion Mills. Young Brant audNichoIsou attended.' During the day Brant promised to Nchol sou that they shoot ja match at 300 yards, best three in! five, tbe loser to retire irom iiiriuer aiiempis u. win Miss Clancy's hand in favor of - - L . rni 1 i a. a. m. . n f t " a. a tne winner, xue men suot iweuij times each, he shooting resulting in a tie each tune. Ou the twenty first round Nieholseu missed, and Brant won the match. The two mends then went to Clancy's and and told the young lady what they had douej and the f result. Braut proposed marriage to her. S'e re plied that! she felt pleased with his offer, but'as she was eugaged to Ihj married to a young man in Waver ley, N. Yi, she could not accept it. Brant was so chagrined at this iu formation that he left the neigh borhood at once, saying that he in tended u return Ut Maine. Nichol son remained at work In tbe mill. The day before Christmas Miss Clancy went away, ostensibly to spend the day with a young lady friend in a neighbonug village. On Christmas Day Nicholson also went away. No oue1 connected bis ab sence with that of jthe , girl, but on Saturday they returned home to gether jThey had heen married on Christmas. Nicholson had con tin ned to press his suit after Brant went away, iu spite of the girl's declaration that she was " already ensraced to be married. She final ly consented to marry him, but her . . a . a S S father insisted tnat sue Keen ner engagement with I the Waverley young man, aud she then agreed to elope with Nicholson. ' One county in Australia has this vear taid the! bounty on 25, 810 dozen of captured sparrow eggs; , David Dobbs. Will's P. O.. Ala , says: My grand-daughter had suffered witn a sore upon ner leg, of six j mouth's standing, which riiiil n ii irk I v to! Kamou's Nerve and Bone Oil, aud is permanently enrtHl lT its use. For sale by Rob'U G. Glenn. fJ?TO. n. ItrSSET, TAllfr A Proprietor.: Ksit H1.50 Per Year, in Advanri . - - f. s -A Gloomy iletrospect. j . s ""UlerakL j , lj!: As the year, draws to its close everybody is loking back over its gloomy; record and hoping that 1835 will prove of a different char acter. It must be confessed, bo'w ever, that the prospect is not less dismal than the retrospect. The year about closing has brought lit tle cheer to financial or mercantile interests.; , ': , v 'z-. I : , i ;;' Those who twelve months ago refused to say that the outlook was attractive were classed as croakers. Those who predicted reduced earnv iugs for the railroads, the shutting down of manufacturing establish meats, stagnation ia general busi uess, cessation of dividends land de faults oh iutcrest were denounced by Watt treet operators as living bears n and Vwreckers. But facts are stubborn things and the record of 1884 stands out in bold relief a startliug array of failures, defaults, defalcations aud receiverships. Its close fiiids depression in business circles, decreased railroad earn iugs, and abnormally low prices for agricultural products and for iron, wuicb, next to agriculture, is the most faithful index to the general . couditiou of trade. j I ! ! . More than- forty railroads have passed into the hands of receivers duriug the'year, iuclndlng"8uch im i port ant roads as the W est Shore , the Heading and tho Wabash,"tind others are resorting to desperate expedients to prevent default, In tue nope tnat some improvement may occur iu the situation which . will enable them to pull through. The condition of trade is indicated. iu the fact that 11,000 failures have occurred duTing the twelve months, i as agaiust 4,ikKI in i5U, and the liabilities amouut to $210,000,000, as agaiust $37,120,000 in the year uamed. - ..,- .. J." :'.-!. m , . . f ; -.4;: :f; Ilorrois of the Flame. . ; j . Rainwater & Kern's big grain elevator at Dallas, Texas, was burn ed last week and three lives were . lost iu th. flames, immediately af ter the fire started it was reported that two men were iu tbe building, ' and immediately afterward a hat was thrown from a window, in the ' top story. This was conclusive-' proof that there was at least ; one man in tLe building and; that ; he . asked tor assistance. The excite- ment accordingly became intense. Mr. David Kai u water, wtro, had . been cou fined at his home through 1 illness, was quickly ou the ground iu spite of his condition aud offered i $2,000" reward for the rescue of each of the men supposed to be in the building lie explained, the manner in which the elevator" was built, and said that if the fire cut off egress by the stairs there i was-; no way of escape. The windows! the! floor were tonrteen teet irom and could not be reached without a ladder from, the iuside- Nothing, however, could be doue! to rescue the men. y- : ' --'.- ' - When- the fire had about , halt consumed tiie building 1 the! floor fell and the grain commenced pour ing through the doors The charr ed remains of a man camo with it. The body was quickly- taken up. riaced on a blanket and takiu to the morjruei Soon an- then boily came through the same dOor, but it was quickly covered by the grain and the tottering second story, pre vented itsfremoval. The body re moved wa charred beyotid all re cognition.? -J-!" teet to the knees. and the bauds to the elbows were burned off and .there was not a vestige of skn by i which to tel whether the rantr had been- whiti or black. .. ; !'!.!. ''-- -r- n Married on iclidule Time, n Au Americus (Ga.) special sa.vs: The unexpected marriage of Miss Georgia Laramore, of this ctti, to Mr Ward Holt, conductor on! thf Southwestern road, has create quite a sensation. Mr. Holt, being aware that Miss .Laramore. Was to marry a prominent Macon merchant in a lay or two, steped over to the hotel veranda, where she , wa. standing with a letter in her hand, and congratulateit her!.1 Holding up the letter, she said: r -1 f "Do vou see tuisi it is a re quest for a postponement, which have cranted." ' "WhyF replied the conductor, P . ' ' ; ' .. ! ' . - w h ose train was now i ready to leave, 4tI would not have! agreed to that. Do not i postpone a wedding. If he is not ready, I am, and you know I love you. Will yoii marry me?" i '"" - ;" -!.'i i -:. ; ;4v . She dropped her head, dropped her eyes, and next moment the answer was olain. The conductor delaved his -train for five minutei, procured his license from a magis trate who was within call, jand in less time than it . takes to tell it the two were made one Then the conductorkissing hi wife, pulled out with , the train, having first telegraphed to Macon, for . a con-, doctor to meet him midway. , The relief arrived at the place de signated. Mr. Holt returned rto his bride, while her letterj pt post ponement to her jilted lover, by the kindneft of the postmaster,- was withdrawn from the mail. A Horrible Hallucination. Near Chehalis, Wyomingloii the line of the Northern Pacific rail road, last week, Wm: Pearson,1 a welHodo farmer, who is ia strong believer in spiritualism, imagined that he received an orde from a higher power ; to kill his infant child. This he did with a hammer. When he had finished he .showed what he had done to his wife,, who is also a spiritualist. ; ,H?then said that if she would cut her throat he would do the same... Both' were found Uextiday halt frozen i with ! their throats cut but not yet deiad.j Pearson had revived sufficiently to! state what is above related, but hej and his wilo will probably die. ; ! 4 . -. ', - ; . 4- ':""-! ',!'. i " A writer in the Texas Couriai of Medici e say s that any th i n g w h ich wm cause a man to sneeze win curt ! him of hicconch. i it t i t ii i i J J- 1r

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