Newspapers / The Blue Ridge Blade … / Sept. 27, 1879, edition 1 / Page 1
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1 1 1 tT TT"" -i : ' THE BLUE RIDGE ABE.' 3T VOL. IV NO. 32. THE CLOUD. The cloniLUy.low in the heavens, . : Such a little cloud it seemed ; . JiiMt lightly touching the sea's broad breast, 'Where the rose-light lingered across the west, soft and gray as innocent rest, "7 While the gold athwart it gleamed. 1 It looked such a harmless cloudlet, Seen over the sleeping wave, Yet the keen-eyed mariner shook his head, An slowly it crept o'er the dusky red. -,' Bee the rocket lines are clear,1 he said, And his lips set stern and grave. Ami long e're the eve was midnight, : That cloud was lowering black, 1) mining the flash on the furious spray, As the breakers crashed in the northern bay; Wind howling on th. ir track. So, n life's radiant morning, -i i May a tiny cre or cross , ' Just trouble the pifuxful coa-r.t; '.ovc j Am if the strength of its sway to prove, A if to whisper 'My surface may inovo. But my roots can laugh at loss." jit ma; seem ouch a little jarring, 4 j Only experience sighs, For with time's sal learning to sharpen the ! .'lance, He beea the " rift in the lute" advance," Knows how fate may seize upon Circumstance To sever the closest ties. Ah me, in tho fiercest tempest, The life-boat its work may do ; ' 13 it what can courage or skill avail When the heart lies wrecked by passion's gale, When change or death have furled the sail, I Wi en treason has bribed the crew ? Then watch, oh, hope and gladness, Watch for the rising cloud, Sun it away, frank warmth of youth, Blow it away bright breeze of truth, For oh, there is neither mercy nor truth, S'iouid it once your heaven enshroud. The Willow Switch. About forty years ago a large part of Cen tral New York, that is now fast liecominga garden, was almost a new country, and people talked of "moving West" when they emigrated from the banks of the Hudson to thorn; of the Genesee. Still one of the ciliesohthe line of the Erie Canal was wen then a town of some importance and lwiasted much of what then amounted to wealth and even aristocracy. 1? Ot this later class had been the family of Judge Morton, but sundry unlucky speculations had made it impossible for him to retain his accustomed position among his old neighbors, and he was about , to seek a new field in one of the younger settlements. Everything had long been prepared, the wagons were laden, the adieus for the most part hod been said again and again, and a part of the cavalcade was fairly under way. 'Hie heavier goods, indeed, had been started two. or three days before. The ladies of the party as well as the gentlemen had de ckled to attempt the journey on horseback, well aware that the condition of the roads, even though spring was now well advanced, could not be depended upon. Apart from the rest, mounted on a stout and quiet looking pony, sat a young lady of -some eighteen summers, in whose rsy clreks and bright, black eyes the excite ment of the occasion seemed almost to have--overcome its sober suggestions. Still, some thing like a shade was on her face as she leaned forward in her saddle and conversed in low tones with a gentleman whose arm was thrown carelessly over the neck of her pony. "'Never mind me, Charlie; why it isn't . three days' riding at the very worst, and that won't-hurt me."; !"Iut' me, Susie ! I am ordered off for a Jong cruise, and I cannot tell when I -shall see you again." "But you will come back ?" " Yes but when ? And will you "Willi what, Charlie?", "Wait a moment, Susie !" And the young man, who was in the un dress uniform of a naval officer, sprang off . tn- the side of tne road, where some willow trees were growing in untrimmed luxuri ance, (latching hold of one of the grace fully liending boughs he cut therefrom a long and pliant slip, with which he re turned, stripping off the leaves as he came. :"There, Susie, that will answer for a riding whip, but do not wear it out on your poiiy, even if the roads are bad." . ""Why not, Charlie?" ' Vlk'cause at the end of my cruise I shall come back to claim it. Will you keep it for me ?" A very soft light stole into the black eyes ; hut she said in a low voice, "Yes, Charlie, I will keep it. But are you sure you will come to claim it ?" "If I live, Susie." "Ah 1 then it is good-by, sure enough, now, for father is Calling me. Uood-by, Charlie!", ' .There was a most passionate earnestness in the young officer's reply, and he stood gazing after the pony and his mistress 'long after they were hidden by a turn of the road. We cannot follow him, however, by land or sea, for our business is with the willow switch. Iif Susie's pony suffered on the road it . was not from any excessive application of Charlie's queer memento, and on the third day about u(x)n Judge Morton rode up to the. side ofNjiis daughter and announced that they were close at their journey's end. They were nearly at a fork of the poad at the foot of a gently sloping hill, and just where the two ways met a little spring bub bled up and wandered off into an adjoining meadow. There were more signs of- im provement than Susie had expected, but enough of wilderness remained to add to the! rural beauty of the spot. ' 'Our new home," sakl the Judge "will lie u the top of this knoll when it is built, and our present quarters such as they are, will be a little further on." A sudden thought secnied to have en- . leant the brain of Susie, blather, wont willows grow from slips?" I I es, uiy uear , mat s the usual way of ', !,.,g 5 , oul- ! "'And thpv want u-iiw .I.,' t . this one fresh enough to grow?" t -vn I. uk- t . its "1 should say it was. " .Well, then, may be we can have some ' thing growing here to remind us of our old home. in an instant Susie was down from her pony, and the willow switch was' carefully planted, just aliove the little spring. It would have all the water it wanted, at all events. And then Susie and her father rode.on to their new home ; but there was a warm flutter at the young girls heart and a f blush on her cheek, as she wondered. "Will 1 . ' I '''''"''''m blush on her cheek, as she wondered, it ever grow?" The new settlement was a good one for uieouage, ana Susie s willow prospered famously. Even the rude farmer boys had learned how it came there, and noncm it religiousiy, while a littte paling kept off other intruders. Susie's heart throbbed nign with hope and faith, at times, as she noted the wonderful vitality and prosperity of her leafy favorite. It grew as if it had a ouiy to perform and was determined to do it well. And the little spring bubbled up mule urismy irom under it, and seemed to murmur sottiy "lie wiil come! He will comer dim, one year and another and another went oy and Charles did not come, and let ters were terribly uncertain and far between. All around the world he had been sent, and Susie's heart at times grew sick and weary in spite of the willow, . am she had other suitors, for her beauty t-gntv, yr.ud mer father was getting along well in the world once more. Truth to tell. Snuifi im.rl something not at all oi Mother Eve in her, and adverse to admiration. was So it happened that one day in June of iue lounn year oi the residence of the iHortons in their new home, just' as the sun wua seiting, ousie lound herself taking of,.-,!! 1 .1. i , , ... o.u,. aiuujr lue suaaea roadside accompa nied by the handsomest and most favored oi ner numerous train of worshippers. i ney aid not seem to be in a talkin" numor, but walked slowly along until they came to the forks of the road and paused a iiiumem uy tne side ot the spring. Here. ai iasi, tne young man seemed to have found his tongue and he pleaded eloquently miu passionately ior the the' half-reluctant nana which he had seized in both his own. Still Susie was silent, and it may be that the bubbhLg spring and the sighing willow were talking to her ; but just then they ucaiu me souna oi norses hoofs coming at a quick pace up the road, and in a moment more a rider drew his rein beside them and asked politely if he could be directed to the residence of Judge Mort6n The young man naa dropped Susie's hand, and, half vexed at the interruption, was proceeding to give the desired information, but his words were not listened to. The horseman was leaning forward is4iis sauuie, and naa nxed a gaze of earnest penetration on the face of Susie Morton, on which the blushes had given wav to a deadly pallor. "Susie, I have come ! The willow" The light came back to Susie's eyes in an instant, and with a long sigh of relief, she pointed Jo the little branches which swept uer snouidcr, and answered, "Here it is, Charlie; it has been growing ever since you went away." . . Susie's other companion was not obtuse enough to linger longer in the shade of such a tree as that, and before she returned to the house Charlie had reclaimed his gift. The song of the spring only changed enough to sound like "He has come he has come ?" Thirty ears went by, and the Morton willow kept on growing ujity jl became a well-known landmark, towering high in air above the little spring at the forks of the road But thirty ypars work changes in other things besides trees, and a slip from the willow had been dissevered to grow above a little mound in the village grave yard, f6r the Judge slept, like a" true American, not with his fathers. Every thing else had undergone changes, if not always" Smprovement, and last came the fearful changes of the war of 18lil. It was not many days after the Gettys burg fight and a matronly lady in deep mourning, supported by a fair young girl similarly clad, walked slowly and feebly down the sloping road to the spring. "If there is a bough within reach, dear, I would rather gather it myself, and then if I can find where they have laid him I will go and plant it with my own hands." One long, sweeping branch of the willow tree seemed as she approached it almost to be held out to her with a sympathizing pur pose, and with a pale face and quivering lips she was proceeding to sever the slip she wanted, unmindful of the rattle of coming carriage w4heels. : As for her girlish com panion, she had sunk down upon the grass and covered her face with her hands. The good lady's trembling fingers almost re fused to perform their duty and the car Mage drew within a few paces of her just as she had severed the slender rod. "Well, mother, I hope that you are not cutting that for me," said a cheery but somewhat feeble voice from the carriage. The young girl sprang to her feet, but only just in time to save hennolherfrofii falling, though she did not quite faint, and re covered quickly. "Oh, Charlie, my boy! my boy!" "Here I am, mother htirt, sure enough but in no need of a willow yet ; am I. "Not by any means,'' said a hale and hearty old gentleman, in a naval undress, who now sprang out of the carriage ; "and they've given us both a furlough, though mine is a short one. This willow was always a good omen." And again the spring seemed to bubble up softly, "He has come! he has come!" . And the old lady, and the young lady, too, sobbed and laughed, and kissed the returned warriors, till the good mother, with the bit of willow still in her hand, knelt down in the shade of the memorial tree, to pour out her thankfulness to Him who had made her prosperity to grow with its growth, from the day when she sprang, from her weary pony to plant it. Traveling Stones. Many of our readers have doubtless heard of the famous travelling stones of Australia. Similar curiosities have recently been found in Nevada, which are described as almost perfectly rund, the majority of them as large as a walnut, and of an irony nature. When distributed about upon the floor, ta ble, or other level surface within two or three feet of each other, they immediately begin traveling toward a common centre, and there huddled up in a bunch like a lot of eggs in a nest. A single stone, removed being released at once started off, with wonderful and somewhat comical celerity, t join hs fellows : taken away four or five . . , ... ieei. it remained motionless, i ifv am found in a region that is comparatively level, and is nothing but bare rock. Scat tered over . this barren region are little ba sins, from a few feet to a rod or two in di ameter, and it is in the bottom of these that the rolling stones are' found. They are from the . size of a pea to five or six incites in diameter. The cause of these stones rolling together is doubtless to be found in the material of which they are composed, w hich appears to be lodestoue or magnetic iron ore. MORG ANTON, . Answers Gerald." You grieve that yriur pas sions are so strong, do you? Allrig&t ; mix in a little of j-our morals, which are weak enough to thin them down. "Little Buttercup" writes "How can I mend a crystal goblet that has got a hole puiiched through its side ?" You can't re pair it permanently, but if you stick your thumb in the hole when you are using the goblet, it will answer for all practical pur poses. S ' ' "Mary Ann" says she is "a-wearv," and complains that "woman's work gix-s on forever." So it does, and we are n-lad of it. But that doesn't affect you. Bless your soul, you don-'t go on forever ; you don't have all the work to do, not even while you live. Man's work goes on forever too, we hope, but that doesn't fret us a, particle. We are not going to stay here and do it all. lless you, no ; we are not going to do our own any lotiger than we have to. Brace up, Mary Ann, and don't you fret about the work that "goes on forever. You're not going on with your work more than forty or ntty years longer. Marv Ann. and .Inn't you forget it. Mrs. Blodsoe" wants to know "wbmt, is the quickest way to make ice cream with out a freezer?" Buy it in one of those little paste-board boxes thev sell at the ire cream factories. Gentle Annie" is in a desnondi this week. She begins her sad plaint by asking, "Will they forget us when we are gone?" You may bet your sweet life, gentle Annie they will. They will forget vuiiiiuciciy iiiey won t even ue posi tive where we have gone. Marguerite" asks if "a woman should marry a man whom she respects and es teems, but does not love, for his money ?" Ob, T l 7 wuvvij HJlClli. l ou should not marrv him for his unless you can't absolutely get it any other way. But if you do really "respect" the man, you might love his money, and then you would have all the ingredients, for a happy match, anyhow. Wre wouldn't ad vise you to marry a man for his monev alone, nor, on the other hand, Marguerite, would we advise you to marrv a man merely for the sake of his poverty ; there is neither merit nor novelty in that. But you should marry hi.a, even though he is rieli as Croisus, because by the way, Mar guerite, you didn't say that this rich man nad asked you or wanted you to marry him ? How is that, bv the wav ? Baby Mine" says "she is iust crvine- her eyes out because she is not nrettv. and she feels lonely and nobody loves her. and she longs for some sympathetic heart that can feel for her troubles and drop words, of sympathy like healing balm into her lovelv life, and -" "Baby Mine," hush it right up ; not another line of it ; not a whisper. Y'ou scare us to death and we haven't a line of sympathy for you. We arc a mar ried man, with a boy old enougli, or at least smart enough, to go to college : we are the busy head of a nleasant. hannv coyed off into any sympathetic streaks, not oy an the lonely women in America. Dry it up, and the next time you write to this department, tcjl us how to make water crimps that will last all night and won't straighten out in one hot afternoon. 'Lonely," are you ? Then why don't you go to the sociable, where you will meet so many other lonely people that you will feel happy? "Lonely ?" Great guns, and a new circus billed on the fence every week t Old-Tiine Banking. The old Farmers and Mechanics' bank was established in Detroit in 1889. In S45. owing to some disastrous operations in Ohio, it was temporarily badly crippled. and to tide overhe crisis the directors lent their best energies. The bank had a large volume of notes outstanding, all redeem able in coin on presentation, and it was apprehended that the moment the condition of the institution became known a run would ensue which would compel the clos ing of their doors. Now-a-days a -bank officer would throw up the sponge under such circumstances, and suspend payment like a little man, but then bankers were both bold and fertile of expedient. The coin had run very low and there was no time to be lost. The services of a friend of the institution were secured, and he was privately sent to a large creditor (Lyell, the subsequently defaulting banker, by the way,) to wliiOtn the critical state of the bank was whispered, and the wisdom, of some measuiWfor self protection suggest ed. Lyell snapped at the bait, and, upon a hint from the officious visitor, rushed around to the nearest court and got out an injunction forbidjling the bank to pay out any more coin pending the order of the coUrt. This effectually saved the concern, for when note holders subsequently pre sented the bank's paper for redemption they were politely met with the reply: "We should be very happy to oblige you, sir, but unfortunately we are for a fewldays tied up by a process of the Wayne circuit court. We hope the injunction will soon be dissolved. It was late in the afternoon when the in junction was served, and the stock of coin had some hours previous dwindled to $.jo. The cashier meantime was on nettles. If that injunction did not come quickly the concern was ruined. At every opening of the door the poor man trembled in his shoes, lest the newcomer should be a note holder in quest of coin. One more de mand would close the concern forever. Slowly the clock ticked ff the minutes, full thirty of which must yet elapse before the hour of closing. Would the injunction never come ! At last the door opened and a nervous, bustling man hurried up to the counter. The cashier saw at a glance it was all up with him, but while there was life tlrere was still hope he thought. "Here, Mr. Cashier, I've gt $500 of your notes I want coin for." . The cashier endeavored to preserve a placid exterior while he deliberately be thought himself how he might delay a re fusal of payment for a little while, until, perchance an officer would come in with the hoped for injunction. " So you want gold coin for your bills, do you ? " suavely remarked the cashier, glancing t hrough the open window into the all too quiet street. Why, yes; I hve in Dexter, and I want to catch the four oelock train ; so please hurry up the specie." "All right! What's the news in Dex ter ? How do the crops look ? How's my old friend ? . Is he living there still t And, by tke way, what in the world can you do with specie in that little country N. C, SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 1879. town that Farmers won't accomplish?" and Mechanics' bills "Oil, never mind. Giie me my money so that I can catch the train. The fact is, there is a little flurry out there about the safety of your bank and i want to make sure of my money." 1 "Ha! ha! ha!" laullld the cashier; " afraid of our bank, are they ? Well,' they must be getting pretty fastidious when the conservative old Fanners' and Mechanics' won't suit them. Why, my dear sir " . "Never mind the pedigree of your bank but give me my money or I shall miss nw train." , "Certainly, my dear sir."' (Another glance through the window, but still no sheriff in sight.) Aside: "What shall I do ? " "There I've got only ten minutes to catch my train. If you will assure mp upon honor that itis all .Vhtaud that the bank is not going tMfei?i3M -won't-vaiti now; out it you are going to shut up I want my money. Come now, how is it, old fellow ? " ' " Really, sir," replied the polite cashier, "you place me in a very delicate position. If I tell you the bank is safe, and anything happens hereafter, you will blame me ; on the other hand, if I tell you it is shaky, I shall be unfaithful to my employers, and shall very justly be discharged. I prefer not to make any statement, but simply to count out to you l.OOU half dollars." (Half dollars were the principal coinage in cucuiauuu ai mat time.; Turning, screw driver in hand, to a strong wooden box, apparently tightly screwed together, such as silver coin was usually packed in in those days, but which me casmer Knew very well to be absolutely empty, he wiped off his brow and set him self to work as if to an herculean task. The man glanced at the clock, and then at the iron bound coin box, then mentally calculated the weight of a thousand half dollars, then burst out with: "Never mind; I see that you have got the coin, and I'll be d d if I'm going to pack a thousand half dollars all the way to Dex ter to-night. Never mind, Mr. Cashier, I won't trouble you," and out of the bank he darted. The injunction was served soon after and the danger passed. But the old Far mers and Mechanics' still kept up the habit of being short of coin, and did so till the last, when nearly twenty years later what was -left of it was consolidated with a pri vate bank, and became the now prosperous American National bank of Detroit. The worthy cashier still lives in Detroit, and finds a bonanza of enjoyment in recounting the amusing incidents of old-time finan ciering. We bentleinen in Black. Timely wit can do easily a great many very hard things. It can even disarm a haggling debtor. A Northumberland Bishop returned home after a long absence in London. A chinmey-sweTier had been at La-ork clouiirur ilm. fU-innJLV a of the Lirf!. mansion and its connecuoJS, and had just completed his work as the' gentleman met him in the drive-way. "Mercy on us !" cried the Bishop, as he came face to face with the apparent imp of darkness for the fellow had just come from the last chimney, and was a literal mass of soot from head to foot. ' 'Who and what art thou ?" "I, your Grace, am your most humble and devoted servant and helper the cleaner and amender of your chimneys. " "Ohol Y'ou have been 'sweeping the chimneys ?" ' "I have, your Grace r and you may now build your fires with solid assurance of peace and comfort." "I am glad of that. And now, I sup pose, you would like for me to pay you ?" "From yourself, my lord, either the pay, or an order on your treasurer." "I'll pay you. How much will it be?" "Indeed, sir, it was a pretty job; take 'em big and little, there were six-and-twenty chimneys; and I should surely have a shilling apiece, but we'll call it four-and-twenly shillings." "Four-and-twenty shillings!" cried the Bishop. "And how long have you been at it ?" "Yesterday and to-day, your Grace." "Well, I declare, you manage to earn a great deal of money iu a very short space of time. " "Ah, your Grace," retorted the sweep, with a comical shrug and leer, at the same time giving a sweeping indication of his finger toward the prelate's glossy habili ments of matchless broadcloth, "we that wear the black cloth must needs get good pay for our work." The Bishop laughed heartily at the humor of the retort, and paid the four-and-twenty shillings willingly. The Look Branch Pier, The pier is one of the boldest bits of en gineering ever attempted. It has been talked of for years and laughed at by many, who said that the lrst winter gale would knock it all to picis. But laughter never kills anything, and the structure, though not yet quite completed, is an ac knowledged success. True, it has not en countered winter storms, nor have any ice bergs floated against it, nor wrecked vessels been blown upon it. The weather since its opening' for traffic has been for the most part placid, and the boats have generally been able to land without much difficulty. Considerable trouble in regard to this was feared The nier is now atiout f'.OO feet ' long, and will be, when completed, about j 1,000. It extends from the bluff into the I sea, directly in front of the Ocean hotel. It is supported by about 140 iron piles, each one of which is a tube, forced far down into the sand and clay which form the bottom of the ocean. These tubes are firmly braced together by iron girders, and the structure thus combines an immense amount of strength with elasticity enough to resist the force of the waves. Even when the sea is as rouh as it has been at any time since the pier has been erected, no motion is perceptible to one who stands on the Boor or deck. In appearance the thing is so light an airy as to suggest the poesibil- J liy Ul no whir n " "J -HI 1U Ul i such a calamity vanishes at once from the i . . t Ita 1. ,i! . . Oil", ,Tt U U '1 A 11 f , . f i mind of the passenger who sets foot on j deck or stairway. At the present ocean end of the pier the depth of water is about twenty -six feet. Ihus can be accommodated. the biggest boats Judge James T. Leonard, of' Clear field. Pa., has given $19,300 to the pub lic school fund of .that borough, the amount due him on money advanced by him for the erection and furnishing of a graded school building. The Sea Cow. Recently ther arrived at the New Yofk Aquarium a mobster manatee or sea cow from Indian river, Manatee county, Fla. This strange amphibious beast was brought by steamship from Florida, packed in a large box, fifteen or sixteen feet in length by five feet in width and three in depth. It was oeaeo in algae. ; fucus natans nd ntw I aquatic Dlauts. and iu mmrdinm. pers, who had brought it from Florida, said that it had eaten ;nothiug since it was taken from Indian rive-, and that the only jcare that it required on the passage and joui ney was a plentiful sdpply of water run through the holes of the box in which it was trans ported. When the box was ripped off, and the end of; the same removed, the monstrous heastj thirteen feet in length, and "weighings alxnit three thousand pounds" (Mr. Heiche saidj was slowly launched in the shallow water of the great tank, There it jlay, a long, black mass, neither a fish nor an animal, shaped some thing like a seal, but bearing as much re semblance as to a hipopotamus. It lay prone on the bottini of the tank while the water poured in and the keepers natted its black hide and threw water over it and cleared its flattened anterior, fin-like arms of seaweed, and raised up its calf-like mouth and nostrils and eyes. It has no legs or pi s erior limbs, only a broad flat tened, horizontal; caudal expansion at the posterioi end of its body. Its thick, black ; skm is sparsely scattered over with bristly, coarse, oiacK nair$. "What are you going ! to d it with?" I asked Mr. Keiche. j "Tlle leaves of tie drascena and of pond ! lilies," was the reply. "VVe will get the j drascena from Florida, the pond lily roots ; ana Plants irom the great northern lakes. We have already telegraphed for them. "Will you keep'it in fresh or salt water?" "That is croton running into the tank, but it likes brakish water the best." "Is its flesh fit for food?;'' "They say its excel lent, and sells for fifty cents a pound in Cuba, and as high as a dollar a pound in some localities, as 'the Catholic Church per mits the use of the same on some fast days, ecclesiastical dogma having declared tins creature, along with whales and other ce taceans, to be fisli, not flesh." "How did "you gei this one ?" "Of native Floridans, who have had it; for a pet four years." "How old is this specimen supposed to be." "About fifty years old, and it has not yet gained its full size, though it is the largest one I ever saw in captivity. It will be twenty feet long ifj it lives long enough to get its full size. " j While we were (alking about the Mana tee, and watching t raise its nostrils above the water at intervals tf about five minutes for air, it suddenly became active, and j lashed itself around furiously for a few se conds. . ihe keepers tumped out of the tank in double-quick time, but no one was hurt, and after that exhibition of its activity the sea cow (or sea bull this one is, as it is a male), relapsed into its dormant condition and did not stir its Itail or arms again during the next thirty minutes thai I stayed watch feqg i. jDuiuii; iiji"iuie iflook i.j uira ki ndled air four times, and slowly winked its eyes about as often;. It's the queerest beast I have yet seen in ihe aquarium. Summer Breakfasts. Beefsteak, or ham and eggs, short bis cuit, fried potatoes; and such articles, with coffee, are not the dishes to sit lightly on a man's stomach and give him comfort through the day, jand yet they are what most people fill up !with constantly. Now, undoubtedly, it is bot good in hot weather to overload the stoiraach by partaking of a heavy meal. And: yet we doubt the pro priety of discarding meats and living exclu sively or principally on oatmeal, cracked wheat, etc. 1 n hot: weather there is a great wastage ofour bodies going on ; and food should be taken, although in moderation, in the highest degree nutritious and calculated to keep our bodies in their full normal con dition. We regahl beefsteak or a nice mutton chop, accompanied with few cu cumbers or spring j onions as a salad, and eaten with properly-cooked potatoes, as an admirable Summer breakfast. Such nutri tious food serves j to fortify the system against the insidious effects of the" heat which comes to us during the Summer's day. There is another excellent breakfast, easily got up, which we wish was more common. We allude to Graham bread and butter and a slice of rich cheese, accompanied with a cup of good coffee. To get up such a breakfast will give the housekeeper but lit tle trouble. This is also a good fortifying meal against the heat of the day which lies before us. ' Cheese forms an admirable substitute for meat,; but it should be always eaten in the forepart not in the latter part of the day. So, also, to those who are en tirely healthy, hard-boiled eggs with Graham bread and jjutter, makes an admir able substitute for meats. An important item about Summer breakfasts is to change often. The same I writer, from whom we have quoted above, also says: "More wholesome dishes for breakfast, however, an rapidly coming j into use. Within the last five years the consumption of oatmeal and cracked wheat has increased wonde'r- ; fully. Cooked as mush, 'or as rice, they make I a diet that not only satisfies the appetite, ; but sustains the physieal and metal energies longer tnan almost any other fixxl. At first they will seem a little insipid, and one I will think he ought to have something a little more substantial ; cbut gradually he fl ! navor ai will recognize and appreciate their delicate id relish them highly. They are eaten lioth hot and cold." Cotton Fiber. The cotton fiber ig a hollow, elongated cylinder, the walls of which are of the purest and thinnest cellulose, filled with a more or jess glutinous, sap or protopalasm, which in the state pf maturation becomes dense by the dissipation of the volatile parts, causing the filament to assume a spi ral convolution. During ' the process of ripening the fiber collapses, presenting- the appearance of a flat, ribbon with thickened margins. In proportion to the abundance of twist in the fiber, so its strength und pliabilitv, two of the chief values lor , turing purples. The glutinous composition gives what is called the 'body to the cotton, which is more copious in rich cotton that is grown on rich land, which aoccounU for the supe riority in strength cif such cotton over that grown on poorsoiLi The direction of the twist in the fiber is variable; and not al ways complete, there being quarter, half, three-quarter, full turns. The numbers of sinuations to an inch differs according to the nature of the cotton, but seldom exceeding 150; nor are they uniform throughout the fiher. The largest number of twists to the inch that ever came under my observation was ICO, iucluding half turns. I am inclined to the opinion that the firmness and softness of cotton are dependent greatly upon relative humidity of the atmosphere. The fineness of the liters averages not far from 1,90 diame ters to the ineh. Iue cuemicai analysis or the seed and I Hber dem0DStnit existence of potash, lime and magnesia as the principal consti tuents in various combinations. The most satisfactory analysis which I have seen "" me asu oi tne seea, sixty per cent, pnospuate of lime, thirty per cent phosphate of potash and ten per cent, of other substances. For the ash of the fiber, imny-tnree and one-third rxr cent, nhos phate of potash, sixteen and two-thirds per cent- phosphate of lime, twelvtf and one half per cent, phosphoric acid, and thirty seven and one half per cent, magnesia and otter elements. A balcvof lint cotton of 400 pounds, thoroughly incinerated, would .yieiu iour pounds oi ash, half of which is made up of phosphates of potash and lime, 1 Me seed from which this line is taken. some 800 pounds, reduced to an ash, would yield about fifty pounds, over half of which is composed of phosphates of lime and pot- asn, uie nme preponderating. These cons tituents, as found in the seed, are wholly, or nearly so, from the hull, the kernel fur nishing but little. It is well known that the natural color is white, reddish or yellow; but the compo sition of these colors has never been satis factorily explained, any more than that it is thought they are allied with 'some pectine ana resinous substances which can be re moved by treatment with diluted solut ions For the most favorable results the plant requires a umtorm temperature, a singular aajustment ot heat and moisture, a peculiar equiiuinum in the climatic relation between the mountains and the sea. abundant ram during the planting season, frequent and gentle showers while flowering and fruit ing, and a rainless period at maturation and gathering. It is one of the least exhaustive of any known crop plants, that is, if the stalk and the seed are retained to the soil and nothing but the lint taken from it. It is said that an average crop of wheat (ten bushels) takes from an acre of land about thirty-two pounds of vegetable such as pot ash, lime, magnesia aud nitrogen ; while of these elements the cotton plant removes in lint only two aud three-quarter pounds per acre, presuming 450 pounds of seed cotton to the acre. The Squeaky Door. Some thirty years ago, in a small town in Ohio, had grown up a nice congregation of Methodists, who had built themselves a nice church edifice, which had, unfortu nately, a very squeaky door. The new minister that the Conference had sent them, was annoyed by the habit some of the mem bers had of coming late, but what particu larly troubled him was that, as soon as the squeaky door opened, all the congregation would twist their nei.ks round to see who It was mm -nnn in 'i.- lii m mm, mind that he would correct these bad hab its ; so the next Sunday morning he fiankly told them that between those who came late, and those who turned round to see who had come in, he could not get ou with liis sermon, and that if they would only remain quiet every time he door opened, he would announce to them who it was that had come in. Squeak went the door, "Sister Fd wards, " he announced, in a distinct, clear voice. Poor Sister Edwards took her seat, not knowing why her name had been called out, and fancying, not without good reason, that every one was laughing at her. Squeak again "Brother Brooks," in the same clear voice. He, too, looked as if something was going on that he could not get the hang of. ' He could not imagine why his name should be called out, and everyone in the church sit motionless as statues, excepting Sister Edwards, and she gave him, as she turned, such a look of anxiety, that he suspected, although he could 'not for a moment believe it, that they were on trial for having lieen seen at the public" park, conversing a few days lie fore. Squeak again. The minister looked -hesitated looked again, and finally said, "Small man, with white hat, crape on it ; has a cane in his hand. I don't know him; so all may turn round and look at him to see if they doi" Round went every head for it was a relief, as they had sat so long gazing at the minister, when nearly all ex claimed, . "Why, it's Brother Brick." It is needless to say, the bad habits were corrected from that time. Horrors of Silver Speculation. Mr. Ichabod resides in the wild sub urbs of a part of the city where don keys occasionally "roam and howl." Mr. Ichabod is quite a joker in his way. He has living with him a neice, lately arrived from a part of the Atlantic States where such an animal as a jack ass is hardly seen twice m a lifetime. A night or two since this young lady had retired to her sleeping apartment after having duly and dutifully kissed her relatives good night, but hardly been absent three minutes before she rushed back into the parlor with ashen cheeks and widely distended eyes. "Oh, uncie!" cried she, "did you hear him ? Some one in the street ut enng such fearful cries ! He must le iu horrible agony. There he goes again ! Why, unele, some one is surely being murdered !" Uncle Ichabod now heard the long drawn, wheezy bray of an old asth matic jackass, and smiling reassuringly upon the startled and excited girl, soothingly said : "Calm yourself, my dear, it is not so bad as you think. He will soon get over it." "Why, uncle, who is it, and what is the matter of him !" "Why my dear child, how excited you'are! It is nothing nothing ! It Is only poor neighbor Jones acroga the way. He'll soon calm down." "Calm down ! But, uncle, why does he take on so?" "Well, he is of a sensitive, nervous coustitution, and he has probably just heard of the $3 assessment on the Sierra Nevada." It is nroDoscd to number the houses in Atlantic City, N. J. WHOLE NUMKE1U88. BRIEFS. Over twenty families named Nich ols reside near each other in the lower portion of Carolina county, Md. The original autograph will or George Frederic Handel was lately sold by auction iu London for 53. Crop returns from Kentucky show an extraordinary yield of wheat, but the corn and tobacco crops are looking badly, It is tstimated that the present year's wheat crop will put into the pockets of the farmers or Indiana at least $35,000,000. A Uuited States Signal Service Sta tion is being established on the summit of Sugar Loal Mountain, twelve miles from Frederick, Md. The debt of California In four years has been reduced $350 214, and is now less than $3,rft,000,XhU4here Is 11, 498,450 in the Treasury. The total valuation! of 111 Massa chusetts cities and townsis $159,000,000, t50. Last year it was $161, 118,1 80. Boston is not included in this report. The French Comedy Company in England, while playing in ah eating piece, demanded real food and drink, which cost the management $20 a night. The Hagcrstown (Md.) Glob says that an empioye of the Antietam paper mills while sorting a lot of old paper recently, found a copy of the laws of England published In 1C62. Wib. R, Taylor, of New Gloucester, Maine, Is 85 years old.and is said to be the oldest harness maker in the State. He has worked In one shoD In New Gloucester for 57 years. An equestrian statue of the Prince ot Wales was unveiled at Bombay. India. on the (ith of June. It is a gift to the city by Sir Albert Lasaoon, and com memorates the visit of the Prince lit 1875-. Arthur Reese, a Clearfield (Pa.) farmer hung himself in his barn re cently. On a shingle near by he had written his will, and charged his wife with being the cause of the trouble tlrat led to the suicide. The sale of c'izar stamDS in the col lection district of Schuylkill, Berks, Le banon and Lehigh counties, Pa, during the present fiscal year, It is estimated, will amount to about $300,000, or nearly $1000 a day. -s The extent and destruction of the famine in India may be iudired from the statement of the Bombay Gazette that ihe city of Serinogur. the caDltal of Caseniere, which contained 300,000 Inhabitants has now only 30,000. Down to the close of 1878 the Uui ted States had produced a total of2.145.- 595, net ton of Bessemer Steel xails. In 18G3, when the States first imported Bessemer steel rails from this cour-try, they paid us at the rate of $160 per ton. The late Rohrf. Aro-cln nfnl,! Trm, n ev.,-wirVT)T-!nnc -nftfj--ntnert rrr theComstock, has left lO.ooo to the cltv of San Francisco to build a fountain. He has ordered the foundation to be made of refuse quartz from each of the Comstock mines. More than half the glass used In the United Spates is produced at Pitts burg, where over 5,000 hands are em ployed in making it; 12,110 tons of soda ash were used in the business last year, aud the value of the glassware amoun ted to nearly $7,000,000. The Pacific ocean covers 80,000,000 of square miles ; the Atlantic 25,000,000 ; the Indian ocean, 14,000,000; the South ern, to thirty degress, is 25,000,000; the Northern ocean, 5,000,000; the Black S'ja, 170,000; the Baltic, 175,000; and the North Sea, 1G0.000. Asa Otis, of New London, Conn., left In his will $5000 to an old negro servant, Preston Hamilton, who has expended part of the sura in the pur chase of a lot near the Otis residence, which he turned into a park and pre- sented to the city. j Mrs. Maria ltice. of Saucon town shjp, Lehigh county, Pa., has attained the ripe old age of 107 years. She Is quite aetlve, and when in Bethlehem a few days since, the band serenaded her, which she acknowledged In a few re marks. ' , A Russian physician, M. Malarev sky, struck by the prevalence of 'shortsightedness among literary men, proposes that books should be printed in white ink on black paper, and he has made experiments with fifty persons which tend to confirm his view. Mrs. Simmons, a resident of Miners y'nle, Pa., went into the woods recently to pick berries, and not returning at night, her husband and some friends went to look for her. She was found hanging by the skirts, head downward, in a deep pit, in which she had survived six long hours. The Pennsylvania Railroad Com pany are building at Altoona several hundred box cars, which they propose to run on their fast express trains. Tne axles, journals, etc., are to be sufficient ly heavy to make it perfectly safe to run the cars at high speed when carry ing 40,000 pounds. Prince Albert Victor and George Fraderick of Wales, on July 24th, bade farewell to the Brittania,at Dartmouth, where they have been educated during the past two years. They have both passed first-class in seamanship andcon duct, thereby gaining six months' time, which will entitle them shortly to be come midshipmen. During the past few days several large engineering firms in America have communicated to the Secretary of the Bradford Brancn Amalgamated Society of Engineers, offering employ ment to as many men as will go to America. The wages offered are much higher than is the case In England. Between two and three hundred me chanics have signified their intention of accepting the oiler. The following taxpayers at New port, K. I., pay taxes on the amount annexed to their ntne: Alexander Agassiz, $25,700; J an Jacob Astor, : $126,000; John C. Brown (estate), $822,-' 000 ; Charlotte Cushman (estate), $25, 400; David King (estate) $548,000; George Bancroft, $36,600; August BeW " mont, $107,200; Pierre Lorillard, $133, 800; A. A- Low, $63,500; Edwin D. Morgan, $49,500; Levi P. Morton, $73, 800; Fairman Rogers, $68,300; Char lea C. Van Zandt, $26,800; George P. Wet more, $581,400, The eitate of Mr. Brown pays the largest taxes of any single estate in the city.
The Blue Ridge Blade (Morganton, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Sept. 27, 1879, edition 1
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