Newspapers / The Chatham Record (Pittsboro, … / June 21, 1906, edition 1 / Page 1
Part of The Chatham Record (Pittsboro, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
etjc Chatham Becorb, H. A, LONDON, Editor and Froprietot, TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION, $ii5o Per Year. Strictly on Advance Stye Chatham Uccori. I RATES OF ADVERTISING, One square, on insert! m One r qaare, two insertloni One square, one month $1.00 1.60 2.60 3 For Larger Advertise ments Liberal Con tracts will be made. YOL. XXVIII. PJITSBORO, CHATHAM COUNTY, N. C THURSDAY. JUNE 21, 1906 no; 45. (for. wi y I All II (V II I I TOV OR THE EIRCH FOR THE BIQQEST , bianom m the world! r CHAPTER XIX. Continued. We could no longer near the rushing f the stream on the other side, only the dull roar of the water as it struck the bottom of the canon some thou sands of feet below. - Brace's voice was startlingly dis tinct when he spoke. "You tell me the thing is on the other fcide of the ropes, my gel," he said. , She answered yes, and we went slow ly forward and downward along the narrow and jagged ledge, our faces toward the glittering quartz, seeking intersiices and projections for hold to our hands. We were passing away from the fall, but at a certain point the natural path returned toward it in a zigzag along a lower projection. At the angle which offered a little wider standing space we stopped. - "This here hole was fust showed me by the Kid's mother," said Brace; -it had served her father for a cachette 5n quite the early days of this country's glory." f "A cachette," lie explained, "is a piace wnere you Keep things snug. A'niost every miner before the Vigil ance Committee nomenated me judge, had a cachette. This was mine, and onany a ounce I've brought down here; fur you see, barrin' accidents, it's won'erful safe. You will allow that no one could find his way down here in the dark." (I shuddered at the thought of any one attempting such a fearful venture). "And from here right up to the hole is a. fair straight line, to that no light could come down with out its bein' seen; but that ain't the only safeguard, as you shall see. Come sir." We made our way foot by foot along the narrow ledge for some distance, still descending. When Brace again halted the light of his torch revealed the yellow stream falling silently through space, a few feet before him. That sileut fall impressed me with a seue of the awful depth of the gulf Inside us. The ledge ended, abruptly where Brace stood; a recess in me wall al lowed ample standing room for us three. "The greaser never got no furder 'down than this; but it weren't, fur enough for me," said Brace. "I had ray idea of gettin' right down to the bot tom of this hole, where these waters must have carried tons of gold." "But the ledge ends here." "It do; bur," he added, lifting his torch, "it goes on again over there." The light fell on the jutting projec tion of quartz upon the opposite side of the chasm, distant at least twenty feet. . "But you cannot leap that." "Correct, and I ain't going to try." He laid upon his face, and stretched liis arm down the chasm; when he rose he had a cord in his hand. Pulling tbis in, he drew up two coils of stout rope. As he drew them in I saw that their other ends were attached to rocks upon the opposite ledge, one above the oth er, with about four feet between. "We must hitch 'em tight give us a hand, sir," he said. I helped him to make the ropes taut and fasten their loose ends upon the projecting crags that he had long em ployed for that purpose. "There, sir," . he said, taking his torch from Lola and holding it over the black gulf, "there's as pretty a bridge and handrail as the heart of man could reasonably desire." Fqr all that. I held my breath as I saw him step out on the Tower rope and make his way, holding by the upper one, across the black abyss. My turn came, and With the blood humming in my ears, I stepped out upon the rope. It swung to and fro in the middle, and I '" as seized with that irresistible sug gestion of self-destruction which af fects the imagination of most people Jn looking down from an extraordinary height. I-o!a began to cross before I was well cf? and when we stood all three in safety on the ledge a fervent "Thank Cod:"' lose from my heart. "Wal, we've got to git back agin," observed Brace, as if. my thankful ness were a little premature; "hows ver. 'taint bad to think of Providence .yhen you're in danger; now, my gel, it's for you to lead on." ' You can stay nere; you're too heavy for where I'm going," said she, taking the torch from his hand. With a swiftness that terrified me, slie went down the side of the preci pice, finding foothold where we, look 'S down from the projection, could none. '"They don't know danger kids t" said Brace, in a low. tone. End," he added, looking Into tl depths about him uneasily, "I wouldn't ind feeling the same myself. First time I ever felt skeery down this hole, nd I'm blamed if it sha'n't be the last. 1 oi gettiu' too old to enj'y risky work." I -ould not take my eyes from the 1 z'j! below, it passed in jerks from tvwi to point. At last it stopped, and, after a minute's pause, to my great Vflief. it bpgan to return. iai'.-fcer and quicker the light danced Co rr until i felt sick and giddy with ici the girl's safety; and then with one last bound, she stood upon our shelf of rock holding the Great Hesper in her hand. "Am I good?" she asked, earnestly, nestling up to my side. CHAPTER XX. "It's the very same," said Brace, tak ing the stone in his hand. "Do you take care of it," said I, "for I find enough to do to take care of my self." "Wal, I reckon it won't be long afore we're on the best side o' this hole," he replied, putting the stone in his pocket. He was certainly ill at ease and less confident than usual, for he took his torch and examined the fastenings of the ropes, and then from an adjacent cavity he brought out another coil of cord, in which cross pieces of stout hickory were knotted at intervals of a foot. He unfastened it and laid it loose upon the rock, with the looped end free. "The ropes has been years exposed to the damp and they're bound to go one day. Hef they should happen to go this day, this here knotted rope may come in partie'lar handy. You know how to use it, my gel. Here's for a start." With the torch in his hand he be gan the return along the rope. He, had got to the middle when he stopped. "What's that?" he asked, "sharply, holding the upper rope with one hand, while he raised the torch with the oth er, and peered cut into the darkness. It was fearful to see him standing there with the upheld torch over the awful chasm, the one luminous object in the blackness. "Did you near anything, pardner?" ."No." "Seemed to me I. heard a rifle cocked. Blamed old fool!" he muttured in self- Without"- TTOVIuent or other incident he reached the ledge, and with a grunt of content seated himself on a boulder, letting the torch drop by his side. There was a pool'of water there; with a hiss the light went out. The next instant there was a flash in the darkness beyond, followed by the sharp crack of a rifle shot. We could see nothing, but from the ledge opposite came a groan, and Brace called faintly: "I'm hit, pardner; look out for your self." The shot had been fired after the light was put out, leaving him in ob seurity. The faculty that had enabled the assassin to descend that terrible ledge in the dark had enabled him to mark down poor Brace when he was no longer visible to our eyes. This reflection struck me, as, torch in hand, I sprang upon the rope bridge to cross to my fallen partner. "Back, pardner, back," groaned Brace; "he's got the Hesper, and he'll have your life; back!" I raised my torch, and looking to ward the ledge, I saw a man kneeling over Brace. He raised his arm to silence Brace, and the light fell on the bright blade of the knife he held in his hand. I shouted. Turning, he saw me midway across the chasm, and sprang to his feet. Then I recognized him. It was Von Hoeck. It was he, but could I believe my senses? His eyes were not the same. At that distance his sightless eyes should have been hardly distinguish able from his cadaverous face, but now they shone out black and lustrous. Yei in that Instant, as he looked toward me they seemed to fade away in the light of my torch. And this was no decep tion of my sight. With a savage cry of rage he held up his arms to shield his eyes from the light, and grasping his knife, he made his way quickly toward the' rock to which the rope on which I stood .was attached. In a moment the whole mystery was revealed. He was a Nyctalops, and his eyes, blind in the light, were gifted with the extraordinary power of seeing in the dark a power by which was explained all that bad hitherto been inscrutable in the robbery of the Great Hesper and the attendant events ai Monken Abbey. With, a perception that he Intended to cut the rope which sustained me, I hastened to reach the ledge on which he stood. But my progress was neces sarily slow, for the lower cord, stretched. with the weight upon it formed a ' deep bend, and my damp boots slipped upon its wet surface. Which would.be cut first? If it were the upper one, i must trust to catching the lower as I fell. With this view, I kept myself as perpendicular as cir cumstances permitted, at the same time grasping the upper one with all my force, in case he cut the lower one. I was within a yard of the rock when I felt the rope under my foot jerk as Van Hoeck cut through the first strands; the next .instant it went al together, and I was left swinging by my hands to the upper rope over the chasnf j "Die, cursed dog, die'." shouted Van Hoeck, with the frantic excitement of a man achieving at last the object of his life, as he attacked the upper rope with his knife. "Die. and know that rut you ch risli iu ttis .world kIialJ .be mine wealth and the woman you love. Die!" And with that ho severed the last strand, and I swept down through space. Clinging with desperate energy to the rope in my hands, I swung, cramping myself together in antici pation of a violent shock .against; the side of the precipice. Happily, the rock above projected a little, m so Jbgt the blow was less severe than r ex- pected, I rebounded, and swung toa"nd fro like a pendulum in the pitchy dark ness. For, in order to get a firmer gya&P upon the. rope whey. I saw his inten tion of cutting it, t had dropped the', torch, which fell like the spark of a rocket into the; depths below. ..' ,' -fc What was I to, do?, . I dared not try to pull myself hand over baud iip the wet rope, for theslightesf relaxation of my hold might; allow, the rope j to elip, and I should be lost assuredly, r "Dear, are you there s still?."; Lola sailed from abo'vKi,iyJ ; '''' w4 !W - "Yes," I replied. VCT4 "Here is the rope-rwhen t call, .you can trust yourself to it." v t At the same time! felt the knot feu rope dangling against my shoulders. -.. ' "Now," she called. It was not an instant wo soon. I felt the wet rope slipping through my hands. Leaving go with one handI clutched out wildly for the knotted' rope, and by the happiest chance suc coeded in seizing it. . ' ; : I got a cross-piece between my feet, and I was comparatively safe, if Lola had strength to hold on for a few mo ments. But that I might not taxe her. too greatly; I still grasped the wetr- rope. . tin i . i i . oavea: 1 canea oux to ner. 4 "Not for long," shouted Van TToeck from the opposite side, and I heard the snap of the spring as he closed the breechloader, and then the '"click"' as he cocked the piece. '; . - - : Would he shoot me or the girl?! asked myself in that moment. 1 ' He fired, "and the ringing shot Was followed by a sharp cry of pain from above, and the crosspiece on which I stood gave a little jerk, but no more." She must have escaped, despite that cry, or she could not still have held on to the rope. But terrible as these thoughts that passed through my mind in those brief moments were, they were banished from my mind by a yet more terrific appeal to my senses. Following almost immediately upon the crack of the rifle and Lola's' cry. a mass of rock, probably disintegrated by the frost, and started from its place r by the reverberation of. the shot, slid down the face of the precipice, hurtled against a rock, and some moments after fell with a deep "pong" into the water below. But as this had been the keystone of the fabric that upheld the mighty weight of the enormous rock that covered the chasm, its fall was fol lowed by the crumbling away and pre cipitation of others at intervals rapidly decreasing, their fall eventually be coming a continued downpour, marked now and then by a louder crash as some larger block gave way. The roar of artillery, the peal of thunder, was not to be compared with the awful din as the great rock jerked downward as the quartz splintered and gave way under it, shattering and grinding the opposing rocks, and burst ing away huge fragments that struck from side to side as they hurtled down, tearing and splitting the very heart of the mountain, as it seemed. The fall was most violent at some distance away from us further down the ravine; only an occasional block, ground under the great mass as ii jerked down, was shattered to pieces, and fell in dust and rubble about .us. f But our turn was at hand ft' ' 4 It seemed to me as if the last day. had come, and the world were crumb ling to pieces.. To the terror of an earthquake was added the horror of impenetrable darkness and the con sciousness that the gigantic rock , that vaulted the abyss was slowly, jerking down upon us. I must have kept my' hold upon the rock by instinct; I had no consciousness of volition. ' , ' The awful eruption'had continued for some moments scarcely so long as one might take to read this descrip , tion with increasing in tensity, .when, suddenly, with an appaling crash, the great roof tilted up. I saw the earth slowly gape open above me, letting in the blinding sunlight; and then the upper lip of the jagged rock reaching its highest elevation shot ., sidelong away, making visible the long stvip of blue heaven betweea the towering peaks of the mountain. . One last "pong" as tjhe rock wedged itself afresh lower down the precipice, and then all was still. The sight of the blue sky, the sjnse of reJief, were too much for me. I trembled violently, and for a moment I thought I must relinquish my hold. But a piteous cry from Lola nerved me t fresh effort. I saw now the two cut ropes, and, ornsning on in ca r-' T "self up using the knotted rope as slightly as I could; and so presently I scrambled upon the ledge. Lola was upon the ground drawn against the rock round which she had passed the knotted cord. The ball had struck her and she had fallen, but the devoted girl had passeft the noose around her body,- and so saved my life for the second time. I knelt beside her, and raised her head. She opened her beautiful eyes and smiled as she took my hand. She could do no more. CHAPTER XXI. "I knowed it must go oCe day. How fares it, pardner?" called Brace from the opposito ledge. Looking across, I saw him silting on the bowlder binding his arm with his neckcloth. "Lola if? hit. The villian-has done his wqiV I said. - "He'll never do no more," Brace an swered, pointing up the ledge. Van Hoeck had tried to escape the way he came, after shooting Lola, and had got to some distance along tht ledge when the great rock opened and slid away. He stood on the narrow path now a, ghastly spectacle. A piece of quarts had struck him on the head; a thir stream of blood was trickling dpwi his cheek. In one hand he held the Great Hesper; in the other he graspec his rifle. " '. ' But he dared' not move from the position he had reached when the rooJ tilted up; for the light that burst in jjiad blinded him once more. - The sen sitive retina had closed over the pupils audi the t blank, . sightless: eyes stared wjldly around, incapable of seeing. -; It was possible for Brace to reach him by, going along the ledge." r -, . i J4 Will you save him?" I asked. j "Not I, pardner," ' he replied. . 'I leave5 him to rrovidence, be his end wiiat it Inay. ' The" shot he fired at my pootr youngster started ' the consarn, and brought-the whole thing down. "Tis God Almighty's judgment. Let ii te." . 4..'. i ... : , ' jYan Hoeck let. the rifle fail from his hand; how insignificant to us seemed flie sound' that came up from below; the weapon struck a rock, after the flighty discord that had thundered in Our ears, and yet to him how terribly ignificaujt! v ..x. ' ; We could see his hand quivering as ifelgroped ilong the edge of the wall. I IaAatn now he strained his eyes to se the.ledge by which he had followed fif Yet he could not stand forever fh)rfr- ''.; "" ' ; . ;-n fo'ifncTa' crevice for his fingers, and made, a .step forward; he ad- t?d flgKiu,- but the rock he put his too? on .was a piece or tne debris tnat 'had .fallen, from the ledge. It rolled iinier bl& yejgbt. He staggered, back, swicgiug, kisarnis in the ain, attempt to , get an equjlibriuin, thea.he -yshot forward and fell headlong down, dOAvn, down into the abyss. , i held my breath: it seemed minutes before that holIoAV "pong" reached our ears," telling us that Van Hoeck was gone forever, and the Great Hesper with him. " . . There was cord, and to spare, in the poils. Weighting one end with a stone, I threw an end across to Brace, and when the cut ropes were knotted and a bridge once more formed, he crossed, and knelt down by me over poor Lola. He examined her wound and shook his head in' silence; there was no hope. We made a mattress of the rugs on the smoothest part of the rock and at tempted to lift her upon it. But the movement gave her pain, and she mo tioned us to desist. Then pointing up ward, she made sigus for is to leave her. "Not while you are with us, my poor gel," said her father, with more ten derness than I had ever heard in his voice. AVe had the flask, and some food in a wallet. We ate when we were hun gry, seated beside Lola. Then exhausted with fatigue, and the terrible strain we had been sub jected to we unconsciously 1.11 asleep, with, our bjacks restin.j against the rock. The last thing of which I was conscious was the pressing of Lola's lips upon my hand. . Brace touched my arm. "Pardneiv" he said, in a tone of awe, "the Kid's gone." 4 I looked where I had seen her lying with her face to my hand. She was gone literally. There was a little stain of blood upon the rock a drop further on,f another close to the edge of the platform. She had kept her promise she had been good: and now the suf ferings of her short life were ended. "She knowed it was no.', good our waitin' poor,, little cuss." j ! ; I felt someihing in my hantt; opening -it,' Ii found ."a ring I had bought for JjoiaT She had slipped it there before she went. 7 : ' ' : . : J y ', . f ' Sht Edmund and Edith c&me to San Diego in June.v the loveliest season of that lovelyjand. The airjf rom the sea tempered, J:he sun'sheat. ; The planta tions were already burdened with fruit and everywhere there was a redolence of orange biossom-a very suggestive fragrance,,' liny dear fellow,"-said the baronet, '"pressing'tny hand.: . v- " ' Edithwas charmed with all she saw. "Is this my home?" she asked.- : ' I turned to Sir Edmund. 'Well,.we must go through the for mality .ot looking at ,the books, my dear,"; sayl he. .,s . . -- I had no hesitation in showing them, and when ho had seen the splendid re-, sul ts showed, he formally, sanctioned a renewal of our engagement; but we had not'waited for that consent to let our hearts join in unconstrained de light. V- Our second engagement was happily longer than the first, , but we were married the week after the vines were cleared, i ' - . ' . ... Brace was at our wedding" brea'kfast. When it was over, he took some Of the flowers from the table and disappeared for some days. I knew how he had spenf his brief holiday. If I had enter, tained any doubt, it would have been dispelled when, on his return, he took the old agreement from his pocket and pointed to the postscript: , "It is understood between the above partners that, in the event of a lucky find, the Kid shall not be forgotten." And, Indeed, in my wife I had found a dearer prize than any I had. dreamed of when I signed the compact. , . THE END. . . . The annual loss fiomthQ burning cf buildings in the United States is about $135,000,000, not including' cost cf in surance aiid the appliances for fire pro tection, " - Humor 0 o Oili Life's HiEhwny. Sons of rich men leave behind them. As they zinp past those who drive, Dust and odors to remind them That it's lucky they're alive. Chicago Becord-Herald. During Devotions. Stella "How do you know she is Id fashioned?" Belhi "She occupies the sermon in planning a gown instead of an auto."- New York Sun. , Eighteen Holes. ... v - First Microbe "Having a good time?" . ; "r 4 . . Second. Microbe "Yes; I found a perfectly splendid golf course in a Swiss cheese," New York Sun. ; " The Place For Hiin.' :' "Notwithstanding . what : you about i Kraftie," said Goodart, seems to be a loyal fellow. He say "he ap- pears to keep in with his friends." "He shoyhi be kept in with them," replied f.rabbe. "Most of his friends are in jail." Philadelphia Public Ledger. ' - - - Cynical Bachelor. : "I think," said the strong-minded female, ;;hat women siioi'.ld be per mitted to whistle, don't you?" "Certainly," replied the cynical bach elwr. "There is no earthly reason why women should be deuied the privilege accorded tj locomotives and tugboats." -Chicago N'tws. : Miij ail.: ;&ius is ; "That Bli the worst fool 1 ever saw. - " - 'You misjudged him. lie's not as much of a foal as he seems, , He has succeeded in tanking h's wife thiub his seuseiess performances are mani festations of the eccentricities of gen ius." Chicago E'eord-IIerald. In 1925. - The grand stand as well as the bleachers was tilled to overflowing and it was time there vras something doing. "How many of you are there on the grounds?" asked the umpire of a po liceman. "About 500," was the reply? "All right," said the umpire, ball!" "ria Destitute. sad," said "You look Mrs. Much wedd. -I feel sad," responded Mrs, Tenth- time. "Why so?" "You'd feel sad, too, if you didu'l know where your next husband was coming from." Louisville Courier Journal. Its Finish. Tess "Isn't yoar new gown finished yet?" Jess "Graciou! No. The dress maker's work on it wan only completet' last Saturday." Tess "But if the dressmaker's through what else?" Jess "O! all ray friends have to criti cise it yet." Philadelphia Press. In a Bad Way. "Yes, poor pap:.'s been shu: up in the house so long. The doctor says il he could only get out to take a little exercise he would be very much bet tor." . "Is he too weak to go out?" "0-h, no, but there're process servers all around the house, even down tc the back gate." Baltimore American. A Special Blake. "What's this peculiar instrument?" inquired the visitor. "That," replied the manufacturer, "is a table knife. We've just filled large order for a Chicago firm." ''But what's tue idea in the laised rim all around the blade?" "That's t-J keep peas and things from rolling oftVPhiladelphia Public Led- Point Jfofc "Well Taken. Mi's. Tenner Lee Ondego "I don'l see why they call it 'grand opera' when it's in English. It isn't grand opera when you can understand what the singers are saying VMrs, Seldom m-HoJme,- Why);rhl?s.s l't understand' tffein anj you, yoif -can better when they sing in English tbao when they sing in Italian," Chicagf Tribune. , ! - - Annoying ; Mr. GaMner-'Well, dear, how are the tomatoes. yott planted?"" Mrs. Gardner "Oh, John! I'm afraid we'll hav& to buy what we need this year." -Mr. Gardner "Why, how's that, ." Mrs. Gardner "I : recollefited to-day that when Il.-the ;plati ting I forgot to open the can's :"Puck tail j -Like; ."V "Pop!" "Yes, my son." "You know those little firecrackers that "make so much noise are called lady crackers?" "So I believe." , "Why do they call 'em lady crackers, pop:" "Because they make so much noise I supposeJvYonkers Statesman. An Abiding Faith. "I don't see why there should be any difficulty about settling these-life in surance complications." remarked the patient looking man. "The subject has commanded the at tention of some of bur most eminent men." , v ...... - "Yes. But tley ought to s md, for the agent who got me to take out my policy. There isn't anything that man couliln'v explain." Wai'Magtoir Star, ' SCIENCE ffi The Rev. Dr. P. S. Heuson says the country is going insane because it re fuses to take sufficient rest. An expert manicurist says vhat the manicure habit will cure children of the stubborn habit of biting their nails. . An eminent bacteriologist has a the ory that trypanosomes in fish are re sponsible for the sleeping sickness in Uganda. The highest recorded velocity o? un derground water is said to be 144 feet in twenty-four hours. The new record is for water flowing through gravel near Tucson, Arizona. The observa tions were made during the last Christ mas holidays by Mr. H. C. Wolff, of the Department of Metheinatics of tho University of Wisconsin. . In heated rooms we often perceive an unpleasant tickling odor, which ir ritates the mucous membrane, of the larynx and causes coughing. It comes from burnt and decomposed dust, from which ammonia and other hainful sub stances arise. This decomposition, which occurs only when the dust is damp, is most frequently .found with the usual iron stoves whose sides eas ily become red hot, in consequence of which the particles of dust todging on the stove burn and vitiate the air. But the hot air flues of furnaces -also i asily become "overheated, in consequence of which dust lodging barns and the pro ducts of the burning mingle iif the air. - At the summer solstice at Paris. France, the sun descends only eighteen degrees below the horizon, and twi light continues from the .setting of the sun in the northwest until its rising in the northeast. At midnight a lumin ous arc several degrees high can bs ob served in the North. This faint light was first photographed by Pouchtt and Quisset from the top of the Eiffel tow er, and it was conclusively proven to be from the sun. Photometric study Avas urged by the late M. Coruu. A special photometer has now been con structed by M. Touchct, and with this apparatus the varying intensities of the twilight arc will be accurately measured from the Eiffel tower obser vatory. The authorities of Birmingham Uni versity, England, hae recently opened on the university grounds an experi mental coal mine, occupying nearly a i acre of ground. The purpose is to give practical instruction to students in all the problems and operations of coal mining. They are exercised in under ground surveying, the conection of sur face with underground surveys, the testing of ventilation, the measurement of air volumes and velocities, the fric tion of ah; currents, the various meth ods of breaking coal, and the manage ment of different kinds of drills and cutting machines. The completion of this artificial mine has been awaited with interest, and it is expected to prove very valuable in teaching the science of mining. . ARBOREAL DENTISTRY. Cement Fillings Protect Giant Oaks From Ravages of Decay. Considerable interest, says the New Orleans, Times-Democrat, attaches to the cement filling in the trunks of the great oaks near St. Charles avenue, and many questions have been asked about this method of arresting the de cay of trees. " - Horticulturists have found that they have been able to prevent limbs from decaying by wrapping them in cloth. This helps to exclude tne dampness. Carrying their experiments one point further, it was found that cement would preserve the trunks of trees from rotting, just as a filling in a tooth prevents further decay. The" question arose last year as to what would be done to preserve the great oaks at Audubon park, which were losing their growth and verdure by reason of big holes in their trunks, and it was accordingly decided to fill the apertures with cement. Several cartloads of sand, mortar and brick were used in the operation, which has been attended with great success. Old oaks regained their strength, new branches began to grew, -and alto getheif they put on signs of renewed life. : The trt of "arboreal dentistry" has since then been perfected to such an extent that even a hew bark can be given to r. tre?. It is ' proposed ftt some future date to covei; the filling with a layer of ceinant the color of the oak's bark, which ?an be so worked as to resemble a nattiial covering, It is said that this Will preserve the tree even bettei thai! will ordinary cement; while f.t the same time it will Add td its beauty by hiding the mortar. The Finest Swords. 'V.-itlese sword.? are the finest," said a swordmaker. "They are finer than the blrdes of Ferrara, of Toledo or of Damascus; The blades of Fer rara, of Toledo and of fcamasdus inust bend fflto a perfect cU'cJe without breaking, and a jilTo & down being thrown itt th$ ah; ihejr tnust cut K In two with the clean stroke. ''But the Japanese blade must do ali that and mere. , The final 'est of a Japanese blade is it's suspessio ., edge upward, beneath a tree. It must hang beneath the tree for twenty-foe: hourf, and every Pghtest leaf that falls up on its edge must be severed neatly. One failure, and back to tho lori 5 goes Ue Japanese blade cgain,"r-Den- ver Times. . Indiana's steam railroads wer eessed -at $165,873,363 in 1905. as- i Helped by AntoUts. I NTEREST in good roads Is spread ing throughout the country to a greater extent than has ever been noticed, and a large part of this ac tivity is directly .due to the individual and committee efforts of automobilists. The Good lloads Committee of the American Automobilo Association is co-operating with local authorities in a number of States for tha purpose of improviug the more frequented sec tions of the highway. The recent run . made by Asa Goddard from Boston to New York was taken with the object of studying the roads at an unfavor- able period ,of the year when their bad spots would bo more apparent and it would be easier to suggest definite places for improvement. A detailed report on these conditions is being pre- . pared by Mr. Goddard, and the Ameri can Automobile Association will en deavor to get the clubs in Massachu setts and Connecticut to assist incar ryiug out the needed Improvements. , Asa Goddard is now engaged in the good roads movement in Ohio. He has"' accepted the appointment as assistant secretary to the Cleveland Automobile Club, the office being created chiefly for the purpose of bringing influence to bear throughout the State for better , highways. Mr. Goddard is one of the most practical and best posted men on automobile affairs in the country. He is a practical road builder, having had . charge of the construction of some of the best roads iu New England. For two yea.s he has been a director of the American Automobile Association, rep resenting the Worcester Automobile Club. The projected plans for the Gliddcn tour this -ear have directed closer at tention than ever before to the condi tion of roads in the West. Singular as it may seen, to those who know little of the true conditions, the roads in Canada above Detroit and Toledo are immeasurably superior to those in Michigan ani Ohio. In fact, better au tomobile travel will be found by way of Canada from Detroit to Buffalo than through our own country. It is almost impossible to travel from Detroit to To ledo by automobile, and it has lon been a standing joke among the mem bers of the Detroit Automobile Club that tl e only-safe way to take a motor car between the two cities is by boat. In view of the euormou3 output of automobiles frcim Michigan it is but natural that the good roads subject should be agitated there, and an amendment to the Constitution has re cently been 'fido'Iited by popular' vole aulhorizifc State aid to road building somewhat on. he priucipl'" that wa3 adopted in 'New Ycrk a year ago. The Jji ichigan Highway Commissioner and tjie autoists are now endeavoring to co operate with the proper officials in Ohio' toward the building of a firm, broad. high way from Detroi t to Toledo. -?fln Pennsylvania active steps have been taken to secure a proper automo bile route from Philadelphia to Pitts burg. The : Germantown Automobile Club has taken the initiative. A mac-' adamized road has just been author- ' ized at an expense of $00,000 from Bal timore to Washington. A bill to this effect has bee?, signed by the Governor. Plans are being made in rsew Hamp shire to improve the roads leading to the White Mountains. In New Jersey last year nearly sixty-eight miles of road were built at a cost of nearly $103,000. .Plans are being made for the improvement of several stretches of. road in the upper part of New York. Even in the Far West the good roads question is assuming greater Impor tance than in former years, California and Washington having taken steps to improve their State highways. New lork limes, v.,, v. - he Cumberland Fike. A bill for the restoration of the Na tional highway commonly known as the Cumberland Pike, passing through Maryland, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, was introduced into the House recently. The bill makes it pos sible for State authorities to borrow money for the purpose from the Gov ernment without interest, provided that not uore than 10,000 per mile is used in the improvement of the road. This movement if successful will be of interest and value to out citizens liv-. iug ih the sections through which this famous road passes. . -5.' '' ' : Alpine" Plants In America. The Alpine plants worth growing In America Hie chiefly hardy perennial herbs that niflko tufts or rosettes, or carpet the- ground with a continuous sheet of flowers. Examples are the funous gentians pinks n'fld primroses I? Switzerland. These plants are not ioufilie-d to the" European Alps, but . tome from ail high mountains and therefore, in horticultural literature, the word "alpine" has. become so gen- -eralized that it is no longer capitalized. Unfortunately some of the choicest alpines can be grown only in a special ' rockery, where they can have cool air, plenty of light, bnt without shade, with constant moisture but perfect drainage. ' Yet there are plenty that can be grown in the ordinary border which are able to withstand the a ter natc freezing and tbfwing of Americau inters. Garden Magazine. Consoling;. Even the hurricanes of life split the trees to WndUns d. and save A us lots U.C ,troume.-Auauia wuswm- tioxi.
The Chatham Record (Pittsboro, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
June 21, 1906, edition 1
1
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75