Newspapers / The Weekly Raleigh Register … / Feb. 4, 1885, edition 1 / Page 1
Part of The Weekly Raleigh Register (Raleigh, 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
i tltY . f. .b f 11 ft t r 1 -' 1 - -"" .. ifi'.mff :.ii-.vi a - - . - - .- . fc.fVl' .911 MiilUfMB. ti v si v ;?HJf'?Hi l;r ...;. ;jf j -.! ru,T'53I vjiT i -ti tic ;. i-nnn'rt.!; By X HALS. ' 1 1 , ' t - ' A I, Fayettevffle 'fctl Second, Floor Fisher Building. ratss'of xjMCMPnoi ,! ' One copy one yew, mailed post-paid ...... .$3 00 One copy six month, mailed post-paid . , . . 1 00 No name entered without payment, and o paper sent after expiration of time paid for. J AdverttsemenUwOl be inserted for One IX JIar per square tone men) lor tbe first And Fifty Centa for each subsequent publication.; , tM Contracts fo advertising for any upace or ttaev: may be made at the egflce of th , . ,,, ti RALEIGH KEOISreit, ' VOL. I. RALEIGH, N. C, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUA11Y 4, 1885. ' "VT yjfj Second Floor of Fisher Building, Fayette-iUe ... H J Ttta I Street, nextlo Market House. T.t,l A. ,. II III I (. a iMis. 7 . KB 'WW' SATISFIES AT ItABT. Charleston New aad Coarfor. They sent him round the circle fair, ' To bow before the prettiest there ; Tin bound to say the choice he made creditable taste displayed ; " Although I can't say what it meant Tbe little maid looked ill-content His task was then anew begun To kneel before the wittiest one. Once more the little maid sought he, And went him down upon his knee. She bent her eyee upon the floor I think she thought the game a bore. He circled then his sweet behest To kiss the one he loved the best ; For all she frowned, for all she chid, lie kissed that little maid, he did, And then though-why I cant decide The little maid looked satisfied. THE NORTHERN CIRCUIT. Warren's " Experiences of a Barrister." About the. commencement of the present century there stood, near the centre of a rather extensive hamlet, not many miles distant from a northern seaport town, a large substantially-built, but somewhat st railing building, known as Craig Farm i popularly Crook Farm) House. The farm consisted of about one hundred acres of tolerable arable and meadow land ; and at the time I have indicated, belonged to a farmer of the name of Armstrong. He hud purchased it about three years previ ously, at a sale held in pursuance of a de cree of the High Court of Chancery, for the purpose oi liquidating certain costs incurred in the suit of Craig vertut Craisr. which the said high court had nursed "so !.n'' and successfully, as to enable the solicitor to the victorious claimant to in carcerate his triumphant client for several years in the Fleet, in "satisfaction" of the charges of victory remaining due after the proceeds of the sale (of Craig Farm had been deducted from the cross total. Far mer Armstrong was married but childless; his dame, like himself, was a native of Devonshire. They bore the character of a plodding, taciturn, moroee-mannered couple; seldom leaving the farm except to attend market, and rarely seen at church or chapel, they naturally enough became objects of suspicion and dislike to the prying, gossipping villagers, to whom mystery or reserve of any kind was of course exceedingly annoying and un pleasant. Soon after Armstrong was settled in bis new purchase, . another stranger arrived and took up his abode in the best apart ments of tbe house. Tbe new-comer, a man of about fifty years of age, and evi dently, irom nis areas ana gait, a sea faring person, was as reserved and unsocial as his landlord. His name, or at least that which he chose to be known by, was Wilson, tie nad one child, a daughter, about thirteen years of age, whom he placed at a boarding-school, in the adja cent town. He seldom saw her; the in ' tercourse between the father and the daughter being principally carried on through Mary Strugnell, a widow of about thirty years of age, and a native of the place. She was engaged' as a servant to Mr. Wilson, and seldom left Craig Farm except on Sunday afternoons, when, if the weather was at all favorable, she paid visit to an aunt living in the town, there saw Miss Wilson,, and returned home usu ally at half-past ten o'clock later rather than earlier. Armstrong was occasionally absent trom nis home lor several days to gether, on business, it was rumored, for Wilson; and onvthe Sunday in the first week of January 1803, both he and his wife had been away for upwards of a week, and were not yet returned. About a quarter past ten o'clock on that evening the early-retiring inhabitants of the hamlet were aroused from their slum' hers by a loud, continuous knocking at the frontdoor of Armstrong's house; louder ana louder, more ana more vehement ana impatient, resounded the blows upon the stillness of the aifirht. till the soundest sleepers were awakened. Windows were hastily thrcrwn open, and presently numer ous footsteps approached the scene of growing hubbubt The unwonted noise was caused, it was found, by Farmer Arm strong, who, accompanied by his wife, was' thundering vehemently upon the door with a heavy blackthorn stick. Still nw answer was obtained. Mrs. Strugnell, it-was sup . posed, had - not returned from town ; but where was Mr. Wilson, who was almost always at home, both day and night? Presently a lad called out that a white sheet or cloth of some sort was hanging out of one of the back windows. This announcement, confirming lhev vague ap prehensions which had begun to germi nate in the wise heads of -the villagers, disposed, them to adopt a more effectual mode of obtaining admission than knock ing seemed likely to prove. Johnson, the constable of the parish, a man of great shrewdness, at -once proposed to break in the door. Armstrong, who, as well as his wife, was deadly pale, and trembling vio lently, either with cold or agitation, hesi tatingly consented, and crowbars being speeany procured, an entrance was forced, nsd in rushed a score of excited men. Armstrong's wife, it was afterwards re membered, caught hold of her husband's arm in a hurried, frightened manner, whis pered hastily in his ear, and then both fol lowed into the house. ''Now,. farmer," cried Johnson, as soon as he had procured a light, "lead the way up stairs. Armstrong, who atroeared to have some what recovered from nis panic, darted at once up the staircase, followed by the whole body of rustics. On reaching the I mding-place, he knocked at Mr. Wilson's ed room door. No answer was returned Armstrong seemed to hesitate, but the constable at once lifted the latch; they ntered, and then a melancholy spectacle presented itself. Wi Uon, completely dressed, lay extended on the floor a lifeless corpse. He had been stabbed in two places in the breast with some sharp-pointed instrument. Life was quite extinct. The window was open On further inspection, several bundles containing many of Wilson's valuables in jewelry and plate, together with clothes, uiris siik nanaicercnieis. were louna, The wardrobe and a secretary-bureau had wen forced open. The assassins had, it seemed, been disturbed, and had hurried off by the window without their plunder. A hat was also picked up in the room, a shiny, black hat, much too small for the deceased. The constable snatched it up, and attempted to clap it on Armstrong's head, but it was not nearly large enough. This, together with the bundles, dissipated a suspicion which had been growing in Johnson's mind, and he roughly exclaimed, "you need not look so scared, farmer; it's not you: that's quite clear." To this remark neither Armstrong nor his wife answered a syllable, but continued to gaze at the corpse, the bundles and the broken locks, in bewildered brror and aa- tonishjnent Presently some one asked if nyhody had seen Mrs. Strugnell T The Question roused A mutmnir Bnt Yia aid, ,4She is not come home. Her door is locked." "How do you know that?" cried the constable turning sharply round, and look ing keenly in his face. "How do you know that?" "Because because," stammered Arm strong, "because she always locks it when she goes out." " Which is her room?" "The next to this." Thev hastened out. and fmmA th nf door was fast Are you there. Mrs. Strnimellt" ahont- ed Johnson. There was no reply. "She is never home till half-nast ten o'clock on Sunday evenings," remarked Armstrong in a calmer voice. lhe key is in the lock on the inside " cried a young man who had been striving to peep through the key-hole. Armstrong, it was afterwards sworn, started as if he had been shot ; and his wife again clutched his arm with the same ner vous, frenzied grip as before. Mrs. Strugnell, are you there?" once more shouted the constable. He was answered by a low moan. In an instant the frail door was burst in, and Mrs. Strug nell was soon pulled out, apparently more dead than alive, from underneath the bed stead, where she, in speechless consterna tion, lay partially concealed. Placing her in ar chair, thev soon succeeded mnch re easily, indeed, than they anticipated in restoring her to consciousness. Nervously she srlanced round the circle of eager faces that environed her, till her eyes fell upon Armstrong and his wife, when she gave a loud shriek, and mutter ing, "They, they are the murderers!" swooned, or appeared to do so. acrain. in stantly. l he accused persons, in stnte of their frenzied protestations of innocence, were instantly seized anddtaken off to a place of security; Mrs. Strugneliwas conveyed to a neighbor's close by; the house was care fully secured and the agitated and wonder ing villagers departed to their several homes, but not, I fancy, to sleep any more ior mat nignt. The deposition made by Mrs. Srnienell at the inquest on the body was in substance louows: "On the afternoon in Question she had. in accordance with her usual custom, pro ceeded to town, sue called on her aunt. took tea with her, and afterwards went to tbe Independent Chapel. After service she called to see Miss Wilson, but was in formed that, in consequence of a severe cold, the young lady was gone to bed She then immediately proceeded home wards, and consequently arrived at Craig Farm more than an hour before her usual time. She let herself in with her latch key, and proceeded to her bedroom. There was no light in Mr. Wilson's chamber, but she could hear him moving about in it, She was just about to go down stairs, hav ing put away her Sunday bonnet and shawl, when she heard a noise, as of per sons entering by the back way, and walk ing gently across the kitchen floor. Alarmed as to who it could be. Mr. and Mrs. Armstrong not being expected home j for several days, she gently closed her j door and locked it. A few minutes after she heard stealthy steps ascending the creaking stairs, and presently her door was tried and a voice in a low hurried , whisper said, "Mary, are you there?" She ! was positive it was Mr. Armstrong's voice, . but was too terrified to answer. Then Mrs. Armstrong she was sure it was she said also in a whisper, and as if address ing her husband, "She is never back at this hour." A minute or. so after there was a tap at Mr. Wilson's door. She could not catch what answer was made; but by Armstrong's reply she gathered that Mr. Wilson had lain down and did not wish to be disturbed. He was often in the habit of lying down with his clothes on. Armstrong said, "I will not disturb you, sir; I will only just put this parcel on the table.- There is no lock to Mr. Wilson's door. Armstrong stepped into the room and almost immediately she heard a sound as of a violent blow, followed by a deep grdan, and then all was still. She was paralyzed with horror and affright. After the lapse of a few seconds a voice Mrs. Armstrong's undoubtedly asked in a tremulous tone if "all was over?" Her husband answered "Yes; but where be the keys of the writing-desk kept?" "In the little table drawer," was the reply. Armstrong then came out of the bedroom and both went into Mr. Wilson's sitting apartment. They soon returned, and crept stealthily along the passage to their own bedroom on the same floor. They then went down stairs to the kitchen. One of them tbe woman, she had no doubt went out the back way, and heavy foot steps again ascended the stairs. Almost dead with fright, she then crawled under the bedstead, and remembered no more till she found herself surrounded by the villagers. In confirmation of this statement a large clasp-knife beloncrinfr to Armstrong, and with which it was evident the murder had beenperpetrated, was found in one corner of Wilson's bedroom ; and a mortgage deed for one thousand pounds on Craig Farm, the property of Wilson, and which Strugnell swore was always kept in the writing-desk in the front room, was dis covered in a cheat in the prisoner's sleep ing apartment, together with nearly one hundred and fifty pounds in gold, silver and county bank notes, although it was known that Armstrong had but a fortnight before declined a very advantageous oner of some cows he was desirous of purchas ing under the plea of being short of cash. Worse, perhaps, than alL a key -of then back door was found in his pocket, which not only confirmed Strugnell's evidence, "bat clearly demonstrated that the knock ing at the door for admittance, which bad roused and alarmed the hamlet, was a pure subterfuge. The conclusion, therefore, almost universally arrived at throughout the neighborhood was, that Armstrong and his wife were the guilty parties; and that the bundles, the broken locks, the sheet hanging out of the window, the shiny, black hat, were, like the knocking, mere cunning devices to mislead inquiry. The case excited great interest in the county, and I esteemed myself profession ally fortunate in being selected to hold the brief for the prosecution. I baa satisnea myself, by a perusal of the depositions, that there was no doubt of the prisoner's guilt, and 1 determined that no effort on my part should be spared to insure the ac- compusnment or the ends of justice. drew the indictment myself: and, in my opening address to the jury, dwelt with all the force and eloquence of which I was master, upon the heinous nature of the crime, and the conclusiveness of the evi' dence by which it had been brought home to the prisoners. I may here, by way of parenthesis, mention that I resorted to a plan in my address to the jury which I have seldom known to fail. It consisted in fixing my eyes and addressing my lan- age to each juror one after the other, this way each considers the address to be an appeal to his individual intelligence, ana responds ton by falling into the views of the barrister. On this occasion the jury easily fell into the trap. I could see that I had got them into the humor of putting confidence in the evidence I had to produce. The trial proceeded. The cause of death was scientifically stated by two medical men. ' Next followed the evidence as to the finding of the knife in the bedroom of the deceased; the discovery of the mort gage deed, and the large sum of money, in the prisoners' sleeping apartment; the finding the key of tbe back door in tne male prisoner's pocket ; and his demeanor and expressions on tbe night of the jerpe tration of the crime. In his cross-examination of the constable, several facts per fectly new to me were elicited by; the very aoie counsel for the prisoners, i neir attorney had judiciously maintained the strictest secrecy as to the nature of the defence, so that it now took me completely by surprise. The constable, in reply to questions by counsel, stated that the pock ets of the deceased were empty ; that not only bis purse, but a gold watch, chain, and seals, which he usually wore, had van ished, and no trace of them had as yet been discovered. Many other things were also missing. A young man by the name of Pearce, apparently a sailor, had been seen in the village once or twice in the company of Mary Strugnell; but he did not notice what sort of hat he generally wore ; he had not seen' Pearce since the night the crime was committed; had not sought for him. Mary Strugnell was the next witness. She repeated her previous evidence with frecimon and apparent sincerity, and then abandoned her with a mixed feeling of anxiety and curiosity, to the counsel for the defence. A subtle and able cross-examination of more than two hours' dura tion followed ; and at its conclusion, I felt that the case for the prosecution was so damaged that a verdict of condemnation was, or ought to be, out of the question The salient points dwelt unon and varied in every possible way in this long sifting were these: "What was the reason she did not re turn in the evening in question to her aunt's to supper as usual f "She did not know except that she wished to get home." "Did she keep company with a man of the name of Pearce ?" "She had-walked out with him once or twice." "When was the last time?" 'She did not remember." "Did Pearce walk with her home on the night of the murder?" "No." "Not part of the way?" ."Yes; part of the way." "Did Pearce sometimes wear a black shiny hatP , "No yes; she did not remember." "Where was Pearce now?" "She didnt know." "Had he disappeared since that Sunday evening?" "She didn't know." "Had she seen him since?" "No." "Had Mr. Wilson ever threatened to discharge her for insolence to Mrs. Arm strong!" "Yes ; but she knew he was not in earn est" "Was not tbe clasp-knife that had been found always left in tbe kitchen for cuu nary purposes?" No not always; generally but not tkU time that Armstrong went away, she was sure." "Mary Strugnell, you be a false-sworn woman before God and man 1" interrupted the male prisoner with great violence of manner. The outoreaK oi tne ' prisoner was checked and rebuked by the judge, and the cross-examination soon afterwards closed. Had the counsel been allowed to follow up his advantage by an address to the jury he would, 1 doubt not, spite of their prejudices against the prisoners, have obtained an acquittal ; but as it was, after a neutral sort of charge from the judge, by no means the ablest that then adorned the bench, the jurors, having deliberated for something more than half an hour, returned into court with a. verdict of "guilty" against both prisoners, accompa nying it, however, with a strong recom mendation to mercy I "Mercy I" said the judge. "What for? On what ground f The jurors stared at each other and at the judge: they had no reason to give 1 The fact was, their conviction of the pris oners' guilt had been very much shaken by the cross-examination of the chief witness for the prosecution, and this recommends' tion was a compromise which conscience made with doubt. I have known many such instances. The usual ridiculous formality of asking the wretched convicts what they had to urge why sentence should not be passed upon them was gone through; the judge, with unmoved feelings, put on the fatal cap; and then a new and startling light burst upon tbe mysterious, bewildering at fair. Stop, my lord 1 " exclaimed Armstrong, with rough vehemence.' " Hear me speak 1 I'll tell ye all about it ; I will indeed, my lord. Quiet, Martha, I tell ye. It's 1, my lord, that's guilty, not the woman God bles&ye, my lord, not the wife; donT hurt the wife, and I'se tell ye all about it. alone- am guilty; not, the Lord be praised, of murder, but of robbery 1 " ' John I John i " soooea tne wile, cling ing passionately to her husband, '' let us die togetJierS " - "Quiet, Martha, 1 tell ye I Yes, my Lord, I'se tell ye all about it. I was gone away, wife and L for more nor a week, to receive money for Mr. Wilson, on account of smuggled goods that money, my lord as was found in the chest. When we came home on that dreadful Sunday night, my lord, we went in the back way ; and hear ing a noise, I went up stairs and found poor Wilson stone dead on the floor. I were dreadful skeared, and let drop the candle. I called to wife and told her of it. She screamed out, and amaist fainted away. And then, my lord, all at once the devil shot into my head to keep the money I had brought; and knowing as the keys of the desk where the mortgage writ ing was kept was in the bedroom, I crept back, as that false-hearted woman said, fot the keys, and took the deed ; and then persuaded wife, who had been trembling in the kitchen all the while, that we had better go out quiet again, as there was no body in the house but us I had tried that woman's door and we might perhaps be taken for the murderers. And so we did ; and that's the downright, honest truth, my lord. I'm rightly served; but God bless you, doant hurt the woman my wife, my lord, these thirty years. Five-and-twenty years ago come May, which I shall never see, we buried our two chil dren. Had they lived I might have been a better man ; but the place they left empty was soon filled up by love of cursed lucre, and thai has brought me here. I deserve it; but oh, mercy, my lord! mercy, good gentlemen!" turning from the stony fea tures of the judge to the jury, as if they could help him "not for me, but the wife. She be as innocent of this as f Dew born babe. It's I ! 1 1 scoundrel that I be, that has brought thee, Martha, to this shameful pass 1 " The rugged man snatched his life-companion to his breast with pas-i sionate emotion, and tears of remorse and agony streamed down his rough cheeks. I was deeply affected, and felt that the man had uttered the whole truth. It was evidently one of those cases in which a person liable to suspicion damages his own cause by resorting to a trick. . No doubt, by his act of theft, Armstrong had been driven to an expedient which would not have been adopted by a person perfectly innocent. And thus, from one thing to another, the charge of murder had been fixed upon him and his hapless wife. When his confession had been uttered, I felt a species of self-accusation in having contributed to his destruction, and gladly would I have undone the whole day's pro ceedings. The judge, on the contrary, was quite unaisturoea. viewing me na- rangue of Armstrong as a mere tissue of falsehood, he coolly pronounced sentence of death on the prisoners. They were to be hanged on Monday. This was Friday. "A bad jobl" whispered the counsel for the defence as he passed me. "That witness of yours, the woman Strugnell, is the real culprit" 1 tasted no dinner that day : I was sick at heart ; for I felt as if the blood of two fellow-creatures was on my hands. In the eveningl sallied forth to tbe judge's lodg ings. He listened to all I had to say. but was quite imperturbable. The obstinate old man was satisfied that the sentence was as it should be. I returned to my inn in a fever of despair. Without the ap proval of the judge, I knew that an ap plication to the Secretary of State was fu tile. There was not even time to send to London, unless the judge had granted a respite. All Saturday and Sunday I was in mis ery, l denounced capital punishment as a gross iniquity a national sin and dis grace; my feelings of course being influ enced somewhat by a recollection of that unhappy affair of Harvey, noticed in my previous paper. I half resolved to give up the bar, and rather go and sweep the streets for a livelihood, than run the risk of getting poor people hanged who did not deserve it - On Monday morning I was pacing up and down my breakfast-room in the next assize town, in a state of great excitement, when a chaise-and-four drove rapidly up to the hotel, and out turn bled Johnson, the constable. His tale was soon told. On the previous evening the landlady of the Black Swan, a roadside public-house about four miles distant from the scene of the murder, reading the name of Pearce in the report of the trial in the Sunday county paper, sent for Johnson to state that that person had on the fatal evening called and left a portmanteau in her charge, promis ing to call for it in an hour, but had never been there since. On opening the port manteau, Wilson's watch, chains and.seals, and other property, were discovered in it, and Johnson bad, as soon as it was possi ble set off in search of me. Instantly, for there was not a moment to spare, I, in company with Armstrong's counsel, sought me juuge, sou wun some dimcuity ob tained from him a formal order to the sheriff to suspend the execution till further orders. Off I and the constable started, and happily arrived in time to stay the execution, and deprive the already assem bled mob of the brutal exhibition they so ; l a r . , . t annuuBij awuicu. yja inquiring lor Ala ry Strugnell, we found, that she had ab sconded on the evening of the trial. All search for her proved vain. Five months had passed a way: the fate of Armstrong and his wife was still unde cided, when a message was brought to my chambers in tne lempie from a woman said to be dying in St. Bartholmew's Hos pital. It was Mary Strugnell, who, when in a state of intoxication, had fallen down in front of a carriage, as she was crossing near mo loom am, ana naa Doth her legs broken. She was dying miserably and had sent for me to make a full confession relative to Wilson's murder. Armstrong's account was perfectly correct. The deed was committed by Pearce, and they were packing up their plunder when they were startled by the unexpected return of the Armstrongs. Pearce, snatching up a bun dle and portmanteau, escaped by the win dow ; she had not nerve enough to attempt it. and crawled back to her bed-room, where she, watching the doings of the far mer through the chinks of the partition which separated her room from the pas sage, concocted the story which convicted the prisoners. Pearce, thinking himself pursued, too heavily encumbered for rapid flight, left the portmanteau as described, intending to call for it in the morning, if his fears proved groundless. He, how ever, had not the courage to risk calling again, and made the best of his way to London. He was now in Newgate under sentence of death for a burglary, accom panied by personal violence to the inmates of. the dwelling he and his gang had en tered and robbed. I took care to have the deposition of the dying wretch put into proper form; and the result was, after a great deal of petitioning and worrying of authorities, a full pardon for both Arm strong and his wife. They sold Craig Farm and removed to some other part of the country, where, I never troubled my self to inquire. Deeply grateful was I to be able at last to wash my hands of an affair which had cost me so much anxiety and vexation ; albeit the lesson it afforded me of not coming hastily to conclusions, even when the truth seems, as it were, upon the surface of the matter, has not been, I trust, without its uses. Texas Love-making. A young lady living in Dallas, Texas, dismissed the young man to whom she was engaged because he drank. Afew days after she had told him she would never speak to him again, a little negro boy brought a note from the wretched young man, whom we shall call George. The note read: "Faithless, yet still beloved Fanny: My sufferings are more than I can bear. I cannot live without your love. I have, therefore, just taken poison 'the effects of which I am already beginning to feel. When you read these lines I will already have joined the great silent majority. I will be a corpse. See that I am decently buried, and shea a silent tear over my tomb in re membrance of the happy days gone by. Your dead George." When the young lady had finished reading the note she ask ed the little negro who brought it what he was waiting for. "De gemman tole me ter wait for an answer." THE WOUXD'S FAIR. Am4 Hrth CaroUaaHi Part of It. fNew Orleans Times-Democrat. The large exhibit from North Carolina is now folly installed and is arranged in a most systematic manner. The exhibit is so arranged as to show in regular sequence alt the products of the State, from the minerals of the mountains to the fisheries of the sea.' 1 Beginning an examination at the headquarters, the first section reached is that of the mineral display. The min eral collection is arranged in three sides of a hollow square. On the outer side are the milling. ores in large blocks, including the ores of copper, iron and zinc. The free milling and sulphide ores cover two tables, and cemprise specimens from about 800 mines. On another table are specimens of free milling slate, yielding gold, while near by is a pile of gold ore in metamorphosed slate, the gold being entirely invisible while the specimen is dry, but on applies tion of moisture the golden specks gleam out, showing a very rich vein. The mine from which these specimens were brought has twenty crushers at work continually and turns out about $400 a day. Speci mens of the tin ore of the State and the phosphates cover companion pyramids. The building stones of North Carolina are well represented by specimens both uncut and polished; the sandstones, marbles and granites ar very nne specimens, a sioue, known as. leopard stone, white, thickly speckled with black, presents a very pecu liar appearance. t In the centre of the mineral display rises a graceful pavilion sheathed with glittering plates of mica, a mineral in the production of which North Carolina stands pre-eminent. : The pavilion is filled with glass showcases, in which are exhibited gold nuggets and precious stones of every hue, cut and uncut One nugget, valued at $1,000, weighs four pounds and a half, and is nearly pure gold. The stones are of every conceivable variety, diamonds, imeraldV garnets, Hiddenite, rubies and other stones of less value. The collection, which, from. its size and value, merits special notice, ; is exhibited by Mr. Hid den, a gentleman whose skill has discov ered the existence of these gems in North Carolina, and from whose name the new precious stone Hiddenite derives its name. In cases ranged without the pavilion are handsome cabinet specimens of the valuable minerals. Beyond the mineral section is the agri cultural display. The centre of this dis play is filled Jy a very graceful pavilion covered with the cereals and decorated with cottons The agricultural display comprises cotton and wool, with the goods manufactured therefrom, grasses, grains and fruits. - Silk worms and cocoons fill a large case. The wine and tobacco exhib its are large and the specimens shown are of excellent quality. Some of the tobacco shown was bought at auction in Richmond for $20 a pound. A very large pyramid is covered with a number of jars filled with specimens of the North Carolina medici nal plants, an exhibit which has gained medals at two'previous expositions. The whole process of utilizing the resi nous sap of the pine tree is shown by specimens of the spouts used in tapping. the resin, the turpentine, the still for dis-. tilling the turpentine, and other articles of a kindred nature. Through the exhibit of medicinal plants and the herbarium the agricultural section gradually leads to the forestry exhibit This includes very hand some specimens of dressed woods and huge pieces of natural timber. The small hexagonal : pavilion, made of natural woods, is a true work of art and well re pays careful investigation. A huge hollow shell of a poplar tree forms a cosy office of respectable proportions, and shows the size which this species of tree sometimes at- tains. -lijti.i, -,. j. Having . passed through the mountain and valley districts the sea is next reached. The exhibit of the fisheries of North Car olina is the largest and the best arranged of any exhibit of that character in the build ing, except the exhibit of the United States fisheries, commission. The speci mens are arranged on screens, with photo graphs of scenes along shore, and other views pertinent to the industry. Samples of all classes of nets and other appliances for taking the finny prey are also shown. This exhibit also boasts a pavilion, which is a handsome Structure, draped with nets and surmounted by a miniature lighthouse. Perhaps die most commendable point in respect to this 'exhibit is the systematic and lavish use of labels, which not only fully explain the exhibit, but which sup ply valuable information respecting the extent of the industry in North Carolina. A notice Of the exhibit cannot be more fitly concluded than by quoting one label, "Income from .north Carolina fisheries a million dollars per annum." Tfce Sehl System. ' fCol. Cameron. The subject of education will receive much attention, I think, not only in in creased provisions for existing systems, but in regard to all the adjuncts which make education of practical use and value. Mr. Jones, of Buncombe, introduced a bill a few davs ago. involving an increase in the tax for school purposes, the object of which is to keep all the schools open for a period of five months in the year. When the State reaches the point of giving its children instruction for six months in the year, I think it will have gone quite far enough. Not only is that time as much as many parents can afford to deprive themselves of the services of their chil dren, but it is better for the children themselves, nine-tenths of whom will not engage in professional or mercantile pur suits, that they should combine with school training that practical education they can only obtain at home. Ten months at school would unfit them for. the practical duties of almost all vocations. Wilmington's Death Boll. . Wilmington Star. Last year .was a very sickly year for Wilmington, nd the mortality was very excessive. .The total of deaths was ozo. In 1883 the deaths numbered 361, an in crease of 199. : The deaths in 1884 were: whites 154, colored 872. ; Upon a basis of 20,000 this is e death rat of 26.3 in the 1,000 inhabitants. The death rate among whites (8,000) was 19.3 1 among negroes (12,000) 8l.ft In,tweaty years Wilmington has had no Such experience. In 1883 the death rate for whites. was about 15 in the 1.000, and the total was IS ia the 1,000. There ought not to, exist lanyllocal : cause for such unwonted sickness a existed last year. In October there were. 70 deaths. Two or three years ago the total of deaths for one year was but 280, we tnma: it was. A deserter from Fort Lowell. Arizona, told the court-martial that "he had rather be a coward all his life than - a corpse 15 minutes." 1 SHILOH. Dentil of Albert Sidney Johnston. The Century Magazine.J Gen. Johnston was with Statham'B brigade, confronting Hurlburt's left, which was behind the crest of a hill, with a de pression filled with chaparral in its front. The Confederates held the parallel ridge in easy musket range; and "as heavy fire as I ever saw during the war," says Gov. Harris, "was kept up on both sides for an hour or more." It was necessary to cross the valley raked by this deadly ambuscade and assail the opposite ridge in order to drive the enemy from his stronghold. When Gen. Johnston came up and saw the situation he said to his staff: "They are offering stubborn resistance here. I shall have to put the bayonet to them." It was the crisis of the conflict. The Fed eral key was in his front. If his assault were successful their left would be com pletely turned and the victory won. determined to charge. He sent Gov. ris, of his staff, to lead a Tennessee ment. and. after a brief conference He Breckinridge, whom he loved and ad mired, that officer, followed by his staff, appealed to the soldiers. As he encour aged them with his fine voice and manly bearing, Gen. Johnston rode out in front and slowly down the line. His hat was off. His 8 word rested in its scabbard. In his right hand he held a little tin cup, the memorial of an incident that had occurred earlier in the day. Passing through a captured camp, he had taken this toy, say ing: "Let this be my share of the spoils to-day." It was this plaything which, holding it between two fingers, he em ployed more effectively in his natural and simple gesticulation than most men could have used a sword. His presence was full of inspiration. He sat his thoroughbred bay, Fire-eater, with easy command. His voice was persuasive, encouraging, and compelling. His words were few; he said: "Menl they are stubborn; we must use the bayonet." When he reached the cen tre of the line he turned. "I will lead you !" he cried, and moved toward the en emy. The line was already thrilling and trembling with that irresistible ardor which in battle decides the day With a mighty shout the line moved forward at a charge. A sheet of flame andji mighty roar burst from the Federal stronghold. The Confederate line withered ; but there was not an instant's pause. The crest was gained. The enemy were in flight. Gen. Johnston had passed through the ordeal seemingly unhurt. His horse was shot in four places; his clothes were pierced by missiles ; his boot-sole was cut and torn by a Minie, but if he himself had received any severe wound, lie did not know it. At this moment Gov. Harris rode up from the right. After a few words Gen. Johnston sent him with an order to Col. Btatham. which having delivered he speedilv returned. In the meantime, knots and groups of Federal soldiers kept up a desultory fire as they retreated upon their supports, and their last line, now yielding, delivered volley after volley as they sullenly retired. By the chance of war. a Minie ball from one of these did its fatal work. As he sat there, after his wound. Capt. Wickham says that, Col. O'Hara. of nis staff, rode up, and Geri. Johnston said to him, "We must go to the left where the firing is heaviest," and then: gave him an order, which O'Hara rode off to obey. Gov. Harris returned, and, finding him very pale, asked him, "General, are you wounded?" . He an swered, in a very deliberate and emphatic tone. "Yes. and. I fear, seriously." These were his last words. Harris and Wick ham led his horse back under coyer of the hill, and lifted him from it They searched at random for the wound, which had cut an artery in his leg, the blood flowing into his boot. Whe his brother-in-law, Pres ton, lifted his head and addressed him with nassionate grief he smiled faintly, but uttered no word. His life rapidly ebbed away, and in a few moments he was dead. His wound was not necessa- rilv fatal. Gen. Johnston's own knowl edge of military surgery was adequate for its control by an extemponzea tourniquet,, had he been aware or regardful of its na ture. Dr. D. W. Yandell, his surgeon, had attended his person during the most of the morning ; but hnding a large nunv ber of wounded men. including many Fed erals, at one point, Gen. Johnston ordered Yandell to stop there, estabiisn a nospitai. and give them his services. He said to Yandell: "These men were our enemies a moment ago: thev are prisoners now, Take care of them." Yandell remonstrated against leaving him, but he was peremp torv. Had Yandell remained with him, he would Aave had little dimcuity With the woundj. ON AFRIC'S BURNING SANDS. HIetnodlata Seek the Negro at Home. fNew York Sun.1 Bishop William Taylor s missionary par ty of Methodists, numbering over fifty men. women and children, will start to- dav for the field of work it has chosen in Central Africa. This party is the largest band of missionary workers that has ever gone to Africa, and it is entering with great apparent cheerfulness and confidence upon a journey that the best explorers could not undertake without a vivid sense of its difficulties and perils. The clergymen, farmers and artisans who with their wives and little ones com pose this missionary band, hope to pene trate a part of Africa that the bravest ex plorers would not tread without extreme caution. According to Bishop ' Taylor's nlan. thev expect to plunge into the Afri can jungle, ford many bridgeless creeks and rivers, pass through tribes that rare hardly known by name, until they finally reach a country bOO miles trom tne west coast and 300 miles south of the Congo, which only two whito men have visited, One of these white men lived to get back and tell what he saw. Lieutenant Wissman brought home won derful stories about the great plain that Bishoo Taylor hopes to reach. If his re port is accurate, it is the most densely peopled part of the continent, and its friendly tribes, living in a fairly salubrious .. . . , ii . i 1 1 . j ; climate, ana more mgniy s&uieu ,m agn culture and iron, working than most Afri can peoples, are well worth seeking out by the teacher and trader. Yery little, how ever, is yet known of this country or its no nu lace. It is a serious Question if this missionary band will not invite disaster if it neraixts'in its nresent nuruose of push ing on at once into the depths of Africa with its burden of women and youths and children in arms. , : , Tarred With Suae Stick. While so much is said about the hunger and thirst for office of the" Democratic party it may not be improper to say that President Arthur has, within afew weeks,' had 700 applications for "a single life office I now vacant, ana to . wmcn itepupiicans think they have a peculiar claim. FRAUDS IN FEBTTLIZKHS. A Soutb Carolina IKanaifcetBrer Talks I Charleston News and Courier. - Columbia, January 27. "If you want to do a good thing for the farmers and earn the gratitude of honest dealers," said a fertilizer manufacturer to me the other day, -"write up the loose method of procuring the analysis of fertilizers in Georgia." ' Tell me about it, " said I. " Well, I will ; but please remember that I attack no special person and am trying to injure no one's business. I only want to see a different system of sampling fer tilizers inaugurated in Georgia for the pro tection of reputable dealers. "And while I have the names here I don't want you to publish them. The Wetts and Courier can give the cause of honesty a big lift by simply drawing attention to the general facts." "Now," resumed the manufacturer, drawing out of! his pocket two well-worn bulletins containing the analyses of all fertilizers sold; last year in Georgia and North Carolina, "see here. Look at this North Caroling analysis. You see it is of a standard and well known fertilizer. Its commercial value is put down at $27.47 a ton. JNow look at the Georgia analysis; it shows a vaiuerc-f $33.88 a ton. Here is another brand $27.46 in North Carolina and $31.65 in Georgia. Here is still an other $24.27 in North Carolina and $29.81 in Georgia. There is, you see, a difference of from $4 to $6 a ton between the anal yses of Georgia and North Carolina, and in a large number Of cases the Georgia analyses are higher in the same propor tion. They ought to be a Little higher be cause there is a difference in the valua tion of the materials in Georgia and North Carolina of fifty or sixty cents a ton, and a further difference is the analyses dis tinct methods being used of a dollar or a dollar and a half more. But why should there be a difference of $5 or $6 in various brands? Well, I'll tell you. In North. Carolina the South Carolina method of sampling ia followed. The agents of the department of agriculture go , about quietly and draw their samples in the most obscure places, so that they are sure to hit on the ordinary quality of the fertil izers sold in the State. None of the man ufacturers know where or when they are going to take samples, and they risk a great deal if they send any faulty goods into the State. But in Georgia it is differ ent The theory is, the same but it is not properly followed. When a manufacturer wants to cheat the department and the farmers he ships into the State at the very opening of the season a cargo of high grade goods better than be usually makes and then notifies the department that the - lot is in such a place ready for sam pling. The agent samples it and tbe an alysis is made from this sample, which in fact does not truly represent tbe class 01 goods shipped into the. State later in the season. "Do you know this to be so?" "Yes, I do. Some of the manufactur ers and agents have themselves admitted it to me. I know members of the church and Sunday-school teachers who appear to consider it a perfectly legitimate trick, ex cusable because others do it. Some or those who practice it, I believe, send in their later shipments goods which come up to the standard required by the depart ments of agriculture, out below the stand ard of their first shipments. Yet, while such a practice exists, you can see that there is nothing to prevent a manufacturer who has had an early shipment analyzed from sending into the State afterwards goods much below the department's stand ard." "But isn't that a very risky business?" "Not as much so as you would think. There may be several samples of the same goods drawn at different times during the season, but the first to be analyzed is the deceptive one, and in all probability the only one which can be analyzed, because with 336 brands to be inspected there is no time for duplicate analysis to be made. Some of these parties call for early analy ses by the State chemist, and before the season is over have these official statements showing a high gjrade of goods placed in the hands of their agents throughout the State, and the poorest kind of goods can be sold under them." 'This interferes with legitimate busi ness, doesn't ltl" Certainly. A man may have good average fertilizers honestly sampled and analyzed, but when he tries to sell them be is sometimes confronted with the high er analyses of inferior goods, procured in the way I told you just now. The farm ers look carefully to the official analyses and are guided by them in their purchases. iou see tne injustice oi incnerj iu tuio matter, both to the farmers and, to honest dealers. Why, 1 have known parties to offer fertilizers for sale at retail for prices which, if the analysis was correct, they could not be bought at in two thousand ton lots in Hew York or Baltimore." "How is it in South Carolina? " "Well, here you have the North Caro lina plan, which is the only one which can work well. You have the fertilizers sam pled in places where inspectors are least expected. Yet I think I see evidences of attempts to ronow tne ueorgia pian Dy early shipments of deceptive goods.' - But this cannot succeed to a large extent" ' ' What do you think is the - remedy for this Georgia trouble ?" "To adopt the north uaroima ana South Carolina plan, and to have samples taken of the same goods through the sea son and in various places, and have these analyzed." . s. o. o. , XMe That War. Arkansaw Traveler. New Yorker to friend "I lieve the DaUv Olne Pot will dottt be- run much longer." Friend" Whyr - " Well, the proprietors have just refused one hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars for it All great dailies in New York die that way, you know." Worth -Looking At. ... JBrunswfck, Ga Breeze. ..'. -Miss Julia-Futch glided around the ball like a sunbeam playing upon the crests of the sparkling waves. Mrs. Mclver is quite at home on the , rollers, ana , states as smoothly as the swan glides over the pas sive waters. Miss,.' Mary Stacy , flitted around the hall like a light-winged -dove on some heavenly mission. . Poarls. f Anna Katharine Green.1 . The wave that floods the trembling shore, And desolates tbs strand, . ' In ebbing leaves, 'mid froth and wreck, . , A shell upon the sand. ? -c 5j-i . ;--V i - ' : go troubles oft o'erwhelm the soul, , , . , , , And shake the constant mind, That la retreating leave a pearl: n r ni Of memory behind. POKER IN THE COXJNTR Takes Jack lt Tw Deeea. iNewYork 8un.l Olkan, January 21. A craze for draw poker has gradually developed itself in the towns along this division ' of the JNew . York, Lake Erie and Western Railroad. , It has affected, rich and poor, young and old. Time-honored and semi-wicked eu chre and dignified! and eminently respect able whist are now seldom heard of' in lively social gatherings hereabouts. : The fashionable card party now involves an., ante of five cents and a limit of twenty five. Society ladies can talk by the hour about the game, for its mysteries are to them as an open book. ., , Two well-known young .ladies, of this,, village-sfirst family ones at that hap pened to meet in the boss dry goods store of the place the other day. One of them was making a purchase which only the day befdre she had said she didnt think she could afford to make. She' was ques tioned by her fair companion as to why she had changed! her mind. What fol lowed is on the word of the store owner "Jack called last night," said the lady who had changed her mind, "and by ana by other company came in; and after awhile somebody suggested a little game, and we made up a board ante five, ten to come in, and twenty-five limit We played, till ten, and I was ten cents out, and I felt juat awful. Some one said Play One jack po? for a half sand quit Everybody ' agreed. There were five .dollars in the -pot before any onp opened.. Jack opened for a half, the mean thing, and all I had to draw to was a monkey flush. Wasn't that awful? Well, everybody came in, and I made up my mind I wasn't going to be scared, and soI chipped along. . Jack . took only two cards. All the rest took' three. I threw mine all away and took fivei Wasn't I horrible? Jack bet a half. Everybody else si him. I looked at my hand and. raised his beta half more,. There , were eight dollars in the pot. Jack says, What! on a five-card draw T I said 'Yes.' Then he saw me ind raised another half.' All the rest dropped out, the mean things. I took another peek at my hand and raised Mr. Jack another, half. 'See here, Jenny,' he said, 'if it was any one else I'd think they were giving'me a bluff, but I guess you've got the beating of me, and so I won't inyest any inoxe .Take the pot v I opened on three fees,' said Jack, showing 'em down, and 1 drew in the money... Wasn't it sweet iri Jack tb think I wouldn't bluff him?" ' ! ' "Perfectly sweet ! " exclaimed . the. fair -companion. "What did you hold I" "I only had one little pair of deuces, Allie," said the innocent manipulator of the jack pot. "IWasn't it just too lovily 1 for anything? So I thought I'4 come over and buy the goods to-day. Isn't it a bar gain?" . ;r Unfortunately, however, the game Is hot confined to the innocents of the drawing room, and more than once the law has been forced to step in, and, interfere with the recreation as enjoyed by others. , Last . Sunday the Chief of Police of this place arrested seven boys who were placing poker in. a saloon. They were ill; mem- bers of leading if amilies, and . were fined ' $5 each in the Piolice Court on Monday. , A well-known raalroad man lost all of his last month's salary in a'Hornellsvflle saloon ' playing poker, and his wife forced the proprietor of the place, to refund the en tire amount $lf0 which be did-to es cape legal process. There are poker club rooms in every place between here and Port Jervis. and: in some of the places two -or. three different establishments.:; Port Jervis has turned out a number of profes sional pokerplayers, who visit other places . and make ft extremely 'pleasant for-''the boys. There are several railroad engineers who have a wide reputation for their skill in playing driaw and one of them scooped . in $300 on one band in a poker room in Twenty-second treet, 'New York;' "a few nights ago.' Goshen and Mid-dletown have some really eminent, poker-players, and . the quiet little village of Hopesdale, Pa., , has a club whose membership comprises a, gentleman or two of whom many 'visiting, , sports have lively recollections. ' Elm ira : and Bingham toa hare many poker playt rs but they are "slow and old fogyish com- , pared with the snappy and nervy lover1 of the game in the small towns.' r" ' " ' BUchlcan Gardening-. Fifteen years'ago Eehdert De Brazen; a Hollander, was! a poor- gardener, near Kalamazoo, Mich., trying to make a liviag off of some marshy, land he had purcb&Sr, , ed. After other things had failed lie ex-, perimented with celery; and is now1 a rich man. What was a dozen years ago swamp ; is to-day a vastcelery. field, beside which a hundred acrel&t iis-.b.u(.a garden. r The shipping season begins in July, increases until; the holidays, then : gradwallji de creases until the crop U disposed, of in the spring. Fifty tons daily are now being , sent out, and the crop Of 1884 will reach 5,000 tons. Twenty thousand stalks are raised upon an acre. It is said thai 2,000 persons in that locality, are engaged, in fes industry. ' ; . , (i , Question Aptly Aaawered. ,.,, ' .. Out in 'Xenisj, Ohio, there' is a ' bright ' lawyer. There; is a score of them in fact, ' but this bright particular legal star is i Henry Warrington.. I ;call ,him Henry,,,,. Warrington because tha t j not Ms ' name, His real name appears onvthe playbill' of "Youth." well, the wecona ; Advent ; came to Xenia bae time and the prettolier did a power pf street , preaching.., One,,, day Lawyer Warrington atopped to listen . to him just at a time when he Was wanted in court, and a bailiff came to the window ' to call hra. The preacher Was just stme k ing; " And who will he damned Who , will life damned?"- Jto'ared out thesten-, torian tones of L the bailiff over Ithc way : "Henry Warrington ! Henry TYarrvngtort r And Henry only said he . would bey i if - he i ! was. Only hekdidn't say it just that way. , , Kepi His Wr. ' ' Arkansaw Traveler. I Yes. that's all vert true, ' said a man in reply to a f fiend who. bad spoken well of an acquaintance,., " but Jaoksop. is so; , deucedly stingy." , , , ,., "But his other good qualities more than cover this social defect It cannot be, denied thai he is honestf and "that be keepehia word.-" ,-;-, fi.- i .-it mm-. ,1, . " Oh. .yes, he keeps his word-. He keeps every tiling, iiunta wo . uyuuic, i stingy to give nis worq." ' . Once in a while amateur artists, venture,,., upon very delicate ground. A jady ,not ,f far Irom ew, lorx, wno is ciever wun the brash, not long ago painted a tapestry of vTannhauser -aad iYenna.? .yf WelV'my i ' dear,! she said to ajfemals.friendj'-w. , do you like if? 36 you think X have got , Venus venusy euuagui - tthjl, a uul v know what yon tMnkof-wurse,"waa the 11 reply, "but she were any more nusy" r r iL n -i : wiu seventy juu cuuiua uuw i.
The Weekly Raleigh Register (Raleigh, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Feb. 4, 1885, edition 1
1
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75