v
.-7
VOL IX
LEXINGTON; N. C; APRIL 23, ISM.
110 49-
1 COVERED WITH AESI02.
An Ingenious Method of Proteot-
, . tag ft Oow. ,
h Amtmml Waa Upue Ixllsm Bal-
.- , lU u4 Bar Onn Clathaa B
, la Complete (Mt
! '.. . of Mail. . . . ' '' ; '
A lata copy of the Buffalo Gap (3. D.)
M irror give an account of an ingenious
Invention of citizen of that place,
lllookitt Ferguson. We learn from the
Mirror' excellent account that Mr.
Ferguson la ft blacksmith, having
shop In Choyennd avenue, and living
with hia wife and family in the sub
urbs. He haa long been known to his
fellow-townsmen as ft most ingenious
man and. has been responsible for sev
eral inventions of more or less merit.
among them being a safoty log-catch
on mine-hoisting apparatus. We elaii
. no expert knowledge' on mme-hoisting
machinery, says the New York Trib
une, but we should ear that ft dog-
catch most be ft very important thing
- about the mouth of the . shaft, and it
- cau not be pleasant to have dogs con-
fitiinf.lv turn itlinir down on the miners.
, ,.: But Mr. Ferguson's present invention
is something aa far removed from nun
ing aa possible. He has lived o the
frontier (though born in Connecticut)'
' and been through, several Indian dla
. turbanees. In these he haa always lost
more or less stock, for, though never
s bock-raiser, he as been in the habit of
keeping a oow and sometimes ft calf or
two. These the Indians have invarla-
v bly swooped down upon and killed.
. Uuffalo uop is situated only ft lewtnaes
west of the Bad lands, and when- the
late trouble began it instantly occurred
; to Mr. Ferguson that It probably meant
. the loss of another cow, as he owned
. one of these useful and. nutritious ani
, mats. The thought was depressing,
- and he began to east about for some
. plan to prevent the coming sacrifice, if
: possible. While turning . the matter
1 over in his mind Mr. Ferguson hap-
pened to glance in an illustrated copy
" of "Lion yuixoie.". ne nau carueijr
opened the volume when the idea came
to him: Why not construct ft bullet-
proof armor forhia eowT' To think is
- to act with Blookltt Ferguson, and in
' side of thirty minutes he had the par
- tlent beast in hia shop and was busy
' -' hammering- out thin plates for her
back. . - t-!-V"';.",
Mr. Ferguson is ft rapid workman,
and at the end of a week's time he .had
the eow clad fat complete mall. Her
.;. hndv was covered with lance plates, and
- her neck, head and legs with smaller
ones, all carefully articulated so that
v she could, walk, lie dovrav and indeed
'"ease. In the helmet noies were, ox
eourRe, left for eyes and month, though
' those were no larger than were abso
' lutoly necessary, and had she been as
' " bibulously inclined as the knighta of
llrank&ome ball she would have "drunk
'!. - the red wine through , the helmet
' barred." Unlike the ghost of Hamlet's
father she wore her beaver down. . Her
' horns Mr. Ferguson had tipped with
sharp steel points, thus rendering her
v armed as well aa protected. Mr. Fer
guson had considerable difficulty In de
. ieinr anltahle covering for her tail.
pita were found out of the question.
Final I v. however, he hit on the plan of
' winding her toil with wire, like ft gar
den hose, and he fonnd that It worked
admirably, . interfering but little with
- its flexibility and affording reasonable
protection. The complete armor weighed
about three hundred pounds.- When
every tiling was finished the cow was
. led out to the Ferguson homestead and
: allowed to (craze about in the nelghbor-
' hood on the dry prairie grass, there be-
w hut little sniW.? Bhe soon Became
A accustomed to the coat qf mall and paid
: no attention to it. Twice- ft day ahe
would aa into Buffalo Gap to drink at
the town pump, and it was an Interest
ing sight to see her come stalking down
the center of the main street clanking
W armor and occasionally switching
; " the steel-covered sides with her garden-
hnae tail. The other town cows gave
her ft wide berth after having once felt
tir reinforced horns. And the most
, it thM whnle affair is
UIIIHn mum w-
l 1 1 i . . A . 1
; that the armor was Drougnt wi kiubi
' test several times and was not found
wsntlng. She had it on but two days
when Big Snort and some twenty boa
tiles bore down on her and began firing
' It Isestimated thutthey wasted onehun
.; dred and fifty rounds of cartridge ot
'' her. She scarcely movedduring the bom
bardment, but stood and contentedly
' chewed her cud and occasionally
switched her, as it were, insulated tail.
The Indians finally retired disgusted.
- .Several other attempts were made on
her, all equally unsuccessful She was
.the only cow In the neighborhood that
was not killed. Since peace has been
declared Mr. Ferguson has removed the
armor and laid it away for the next put
break.
BANQUETING THE DEAD. v.
Ifav Baddhlsta la Japaa EatarUta Del.
gataa rrpas tha Spirit Land.
Not long ago a number of elderly and
much-traveled gentlemen were grouped
in a semi-circle around a big fire-place of
a down-town hotel, swapping yarns and
telling experiences. Among them ws
Dr. ti. U. Cotton Salter, who lor many
years was United States Consul in Japan,
and afterward entered tne Chinese uov-
emmeBt service. When Dr. Baiter's
turn came to produce an original story
founded on personal experience, says
the San Francisco Chronicle, he told tne
following tale: ;,-.. .' '
"The many stories published during
the last months about Indian ghost
dances and the Messiah erase remind
me of one of the most remarkable Inci
dents I have ever witnessed during my
kmc aaiaartn the orient, ibaA I am sure
there are but few Americana or Euro
peans who have had the opportunity to
see' the sight of which I am going to
tell. v . V:-. ,. ' ,;'
"The native religion of the Japanese
la, as yoa know, Buddhism, and there is
no creed which is so full of superstition
as this. Some of the ancient beliefs of
the Buddhists are calculated to frighten
the faithful and vividly portray the hor
rible punishment that awaits the sinful
man after he closes hia earthly career,
while others, with charming simplicity,
show that the greatest aim of the Hindu
religion la the release from . exist
ence, x The doctrine . of the trans
migration '. of souls : and a . hope
for ft better -? fate In - ft' future
life are the principal foundations upon
which Buddhism rests. Nagasaki,
where I resided for many years, was
famed for the splendid festivals in honor
of Buddha, or Gautama, the founder of
the religion. ' Owing to the work of
missionaries and the consequent Bpread
of Christianity in Japan, man? of these
religious fetes are no longer publicly
observed, and the one of which I am
about to speak had Its last grand cele
bration in 188S, just before I left Noga-
DIAMOND DEUMMEEa
Traveling Salesmen Who darry
. Fortune on Their Persona. ..
FacA Caaearalat'TTaelaaa Btoaa OUsas
la Coavanattoa with aa Base- '
' an Saalar-Babita of the
Tha Cnamaloyad In Australia.
"The Btrects of Melbourne and Syd
oey," snys a gentleman from Australia,
"swariu with the unemployed. They
are not vi. ions or lazy on the con
trarv are. many of them, intelligent to
adrgree. It is common to find among
this army of unemployed graduates
of r'nglish univers, , i s young men of
culture, whose families stand high in
social circles at home. These young men
r l,irel in Australia l v ti.e roinantio
! arm that seems to envelop new conn.
i ... .. ot. a distance, and they c -t to
r. ue a competence In a vciy I f
t,. '.. ey go there, live lo, a V.U- -
y IiihU, and only learn theii
mi . ,, v a every ahlllinir is pono.
1,1 k l the services ol l,f
ht. v . henlthy ni'-n f"' 1
k n" 1 i I. Hie ranches ore
ilvsK.il, ,i leviHU-loucedhclp
1 CO!
t- '
a v
It Is called the Matsidre, and was
held during the lact week in August or
the first week in September, continuing
four days. These days were set aside
for the reception of the spirits of the
dead, who, according to a legendary be
lief, return once every year to their
old homes. For many weeks previous
to the festival preparations had been in
progress. The houses of the believers
had all been carefully swept, cleaned
and polished, and the home altars,
which are to be found in every native
house, had been redecorated and re
furnished. The Interior of all the
buildings had been profusely adorned
with flowers, the streets had been re
paired and the whole city was In holi
day attire. .,V. -.-:;.:'-v,.,;.
"On the morning ot tne nm aay xne
dead were received -with much cere
mony In the graveyard,, which ia In
beautiful grove. Each mound was pro
fusely decorated with lighted lanterns
and garlands of many-colored paper
elobes hung from tree to tree. , On the
top of every grave food of the daintiest
kind was spread. On mate spread
about each grave sat all the living de
scendants of the person who had been
buried in that particular spot Hot
single tomb was neglected. If in the
course of years the family of any one of
the silent sleepers had completely
died out his , grave had been em
bellished and supplied by strangers.
The spirits -were supposed to .arrive !
and depart by water from tne sea, ana
for four nights and days the living' com
muned with their dead and were with
them in spirit. The souls of the de
parted were supposed to hover around
the tombs , like substantial, visible
beings, and they . were treated with
every attention due to sacred and dis
tinguished visitors from the other world.
"The night of the second day was de
voted to ft grand terpsichorean enter
tainment, or spirit dance, and the grave
yard was transformed for once into a
ball-room, where ghostly dancers were
supposed to hold revelry. .The scenes
made ft strong and everlasting impres
sion on me. The night was perfect, the
moon was at its full and the air was
fragrant with the perfumes of thou
sands of flowers. Myriads of lights
were flickering on the hill-sides which
surrounded the city, and the colored
lanterns swayed gently to and fro, keep
ing time to the ehimea of tha silvery
bells in the temple tower, which ' fur
nished the musie for the mystic enter
tainment. Around an artificial lake in
the center of the gravey ard the people
knelt in silent devotion, worshiping on
the shrine of Buddha,, whose emblem,
the Jotus flower, rose from the middle
of the lake. r -
"On the last night on the night of
nights, as it was called a grand proces
sion finished the festival. The people
marched in parade to escort their spirit
visitors to the water front, where they
were to depart. Boatmen carried on
their shoulders, a gigantic craft built of
wood and straw, in which thedead were
supposed to be seated, and which was to
convey them back to spirit-land and to
Ohato, the great father beyond the sea.
This boat, which Is called Fukuy, Was a
master-piece of Japanese carpentry. . It
was ninety feet long, and hod a state
ly mast, with a hope sail, which bore in
native characters the Inscription: ;'Nal
duianiawidi,' a word which ia symbolic
of tiautama'S greatness.
"This bout, artistically and richly
decorated, was launched with much cer
emony after the hist spirithad been em
braced and, figuratively aeaking, had
tuhen his seal on board. It was pushed
out into the sea, and, drifting away, was
linitlly carried out of s'f.;!)t by the tide,
And so ended the last festival of Mat
hi ; i ever held publicly in Nagasaki, and
the most splendid religions celebration
I ever wi; nessed."
M l .at."
A youn
l.own oa Cata.
win ian of Athena, Oft., d
hc Instantly of any
is t o r-Nim where she
"Ton might be anrprised," said'
prominent Broadway dealer in precious
stones to ft New York World man, "U
should tell you that rubies are bow ia
greater demand than diamonds.' ' ' "
Why, that seems almost ucrediDie,"
remarked the reporter.
"Indeed it does," continued tne mer
chant, "but nevertheless it Is true. Ru
bies ore becoming very scare, aa the
mines are about worked out. Only
few days ago a friend of mine sold a
rubv welirlung little over a carat for
two thousand dollars. The sale took
place in Chicago, and I knew both of
the men in the transaction.
"The market for diamonds just bow
is inactive. Since the first of the year,
however, there has been an advance of
at least twenty-five per cent. On this
account you will find that small dealers
will not invest in them to any extent
for fear the price will fall again."
"Where do most of the diamonds come
fromr . '.: ';-
From a mine in South Africa, owned
by the Ilothchilds-De Boer syndicate. It
Is the only field , being wornea fti
present, and they are doing their best
. "Are diamonds lust as popular aa
ever?" '
"Not by any means. At present there
is a groat craze 'for . colored stones..
Brown, blue, block, green and canary
are the .favorites, but those with the
bluish - tinge' command the. highest
prices. Moonstones have sprung into
popularity within the past few months,
and nearly every dealer in the city naa
at present a good stock of them on
hand, .mounted , in studs, rings, buttons
and . necklaces, 'i: If properly set they
make a most beautiful necklace, and ai-
t.hmirrt, thnv urn not hearlv as valuable.
I think they are every bit as handsome
as Deorls. The moonstone has also be
come a very fashionable stone for gen
tlemen s wear. , . ';. " '. , ;
"Is there much of ft demand for opals
asked a reporter." i i I :rt.
"Well, once in awhile some one wm
drop in and ask to see some, but I sever
keep them. 1 wouldn't give mem aaie
room. . I am not a very: superstitious
man, and. don't believe any of the old
traditions, but once I was foolish enough
to buy a box of twenty opals because I
thnmrht I was ircttlnf them cheap. I
hadn't hod them in the safe two days
before mv place burned down. I saved
the safe, however, and started business
In Brooklyn. In one week's time I was
again burned out Other bad things
followed. ' and one day it occurred: to
me that all my illvluck had been.
brought on by the presence of opals in
mv store. 1 had no sooner thought OX
It than I told the whole lot for less than
thev cost me, and have had good luck
ever since. I wouldn't even take an
opal ring to repair it, and I know doz
ens of lewelers who believe as I do."
i "What stones do you sell the most of?"
i ''Diamonds every time. More of them
are imported here than of any - other
stones. About one million dollars' worth
are brought over here every year, and
the majority of these Btones go direct
to Maiden lane and John street dealers.
Thev ore then sent to all parts of the
country by special salesmen. . This is a
line of business that a man taites up at
a very early age and remains in for the
rest of his hie.'. ,
"Does one man carry many?"
"That's according to his ability and
trustworthiness. The stock of a sales
man generally runs from seventy-nve
thousand to one hundred and twenty-five
thousand dollars' worth of diamonds,
which they carry about their persons,
never in a case or traveling nag;. '
"Most of the salesmen carry these
towels in vests mode of leather, and
cure lv bound Dy straps to meir uouwa.
This vest has a sot of deep pocket with
flaps which can bo snapped shut. As a
rule the salesman ninut be a "good
athlete. They go heavily armed, and
when they see any suspicious charac
ters they quietly Blip out of the way. ,
"Upon reaching a noun tne nrst wing
they do is to deposit the stones in the
snf e. . Then an cosy breath ia . taken,
probably for the- first time in twenty-
four or forty-eight hours. ;. Borne ot the
more timid salesmen, or the beginners,
will not leave their hotel after dark
for fear they may be followed by
cmo'i, who, not knowing they have got
rid ot their diamonds, might do them
bodily injury.
: ' "The life of traveling diamond sales
men ia not by any means pleasant.
They never make chance acquaint
ances,'- tor W they did so they might
meet the same man on a series of trips
foryeors afterwords, and upon becom
ing Ultimate the fellow could easily get
away with the vcstful of diamonds
"When the opportunity offered. Many a
crook would have the patience to wait
for four or five years and then think
himself fully repaid if he could got
away with a good load of diamonds, for
they eorac nearer to being money than
any other articles of value. Another
thing of interest about the diamond
salesmen is that they . never drink or
gamble. The flriit time they are found
Indulging In either vice their occupation
is gone forever."
"Do they have to furnish any thing?"
; "None ot oil. There are very few
men who could furnish a security equal
to tho amount of diamonds they carry,
and the only men employed in this
business or those whom their em
ployers would trust with their lives.
You must take into eons!,lerit ' : m t'ltit
when a man starts onion the r.unl wiili
a vest ful of ijininonils ho takes 1,'s 1
in liis lian.ls, for ho is liublo tJ la I
t.iclieil almost any minute."
A QUEEN'S JEWELS.
tkm Thaaaaa4 fiaim taaas M
la aa Kaatara CM
A verr curious action has just been
recorded In the court of the recorder of
Rangoon. The plaintiff was one of tha
wives of Mindoon Min, King of Bur
mah, The haw's father and predecessor,
and is known aa the limban wueen, ana
she claimed as sole heiress of her
daughter, the Sawlin Princess, to be
entitled to ft large amount of jewelry
deposited with the defeadanta la 1878
voder, unusual circumstances. The
Princess, it seems, says the Chicago
Hews, was a great favorite with her
father, King Mindoon Min, who made
her large and frequent presents oi
gems and jewelry of all kinds. . In 1878
Mindoon lam wasonthepotMoxaeaui,
and it was known that confusion in tha
palace would follow oA that event. It
was apparently foreseen mat nis suc
cessor Thebaw, would as, in fact, ha
did murder most of his re la tires at
once. and. while tha King lay dying
special measure for guarding the pal
ace were taken. The umna yneen
and her daughter, tha Sawlin Princess,
dreading what the near future had in
store for them, concerted measures to
vet tha jewels of the latter out of the
palace tow place of safety wnera tney
would be scoesslble in case ot need
later on. For this purpose they toek
into. their confidence -certain bazaar
dealers, who had access to the ladies'
quf.rters to sell their wares, and by
their aid succeeded in getting out all the
jewels, packed to look like sweetmeats.
Thc,se dealers and one Ago Khqrasanl,
a Mahommedan merchant, were tha de
fendants. They absolutely denied any
depos't of the kind, , but the recorder
found against them on the facts and de
cided that about three thousand precious
stc.es, which were specified by weight
and value in a list made at the time in
tho palace and retained ever since by
the Queen, had, in fact, been placed in
their charge immediately prior to Min.
doon Min's death, and in anticipation of
that event The Princess died a few
months after. . The Queen, her mother,
remained in prison until the British
troops occupied Mandalay in 1885, when
(die was, of course, released. . All this
time she heard- nothing ot the jewels,
for she had no opportunity of' doing so,
and . obviously did not desire to have
them returned. The dealers with whom
they were deposited left Mandalay soon
after Thtfoaw began to reign) but on
her. release the Queen inquired after
them, and l found them in Rangoon,
when, as Already stated, she waa met
by a blank denial that such jewels had
ever been deposited with them. But
here the judge found against them,
largely on the evidence that nine years
ago, and three years after the deposit,,
one of the defendants had in his pos
session ft large ruby cut in the shape of
a Wild duck, which was described in the
Queen's list as having been handed over
to the defendants in the sweetmeat
boxes in 1878. A decree of restitution
was therefore made against all the de
fendants except one, in regard to whom
the action was held barred by the
statute of limitation. : ' Subsequent to
her release from imprisonment the
Queen waa prevented from suing for
five 'years in consequence of her pov
erty. ,..-. . . -- ..
A PEEHISTOBIC MONARCH Chinese court etiquette.
Valuable ArchaxriotrloaJ DlaooTory
to Ariaoaa, v.
Tha Caitoaa Contents mt aa AanUat fcesah
. ffkoah Waa Paw ana by Warh-
aaa to liiawaHu for
burs BaUdlag.
, i--
WOULD ANIMALS SMOKE?
Experiments Indicating- That They Weald
If Feasible, I
'' In the Berlin Zoological Gardens Prof.
Paul Meyerhelm, painter of animal life,
has been trying the effects of the fra
grant weed on various denizens of the
gardens, with results which are as novel
as they are undoubtedly amusing.
Chief . among the subject oi jus
experiments, says tha London Tele
graph, was the brown bear.' Ha declare
that the , "common brown bears" are
genuine enthusiasts for tobacco. "When
I pnff my cigar smoke Into their cage,"
he remarks, "they rush to the front
rubbing their nose and back, against
the bars through which tha smoke has
penetrated." The professor, with some
temerity, once experimented on the lion.
The creature was asleep, and this was
the moment selected for puffing a vol
ume of tobacco amok in his face. 'Did
be at once wake up with a savage growl,
lash I s tall, and springing at the bars,
shake the massive iron? Not at ' all.
Be awoke and "stood on hi legs,"
which seems a natural enoflgh attitude
to adopt, and "sneexed powerfully."
Then he quietly lay down on his side
and "elevated his nose, as if asking for
a second dose."( It may be news to
soma naturalists to hear that goat,
stags, and llama all devour tobacco
and cigar with remarkable satisfaction,
tt is certainly somewhat of a waste of
the material to let a prime Havana bo
"bolted" in one gulp oy an anieiopei
but the professor waa actuated by a
praiseworthy desire todlscover scientific
facts, and also oy ft wisn k get on pwi
terms with creatures whom it wa4 his
business to sketchy ' "I made ft personal
friend," ha writes, "of an exceedingly
malicious guanaeo, or wild llama, by
simply feeding him , again and again
with tobacco." ' " : '-' " - '.'-' r,;
ObaervaUo Parties. ,
"Observation parties" are the latest
thing in oolety. An observation party
affords a great deal of amusement, and
In addition display the fact that tew
persons are good observers or have good
memories. The members of the observ
ation party are asked by the host to ob
serve the furnishings of the dinner
table, for instance. , Then they are
given five minutes to write down a list
of the article that are on the table.
H e person whose memory is best and
v.lo can write down, within the pre-
serilied time five nmmtes, say the
largest number of articles on the table
Is awarded some sort of a prize,
riara tha ri" at r'notjr-ls.
It is not impossible to fad ladies of
wot more than flf'y yearn old who I t
t . ir rwmos s? t .
While removina- the earth for the
foundation of a new hotel to be erected
at Crittenden, ArU, the digger discov
ered what seem to be the tomb ot a
king, though ot what people it would
doubtless puzzle an antiquarian to aay.
The workmen had penetrated at some
eight feet below the surface of the
grouni what they took to be stone of a
aorftr friable Bator, out wniea was evr
dentlv maaonrv of very superior work
manship when they reached the tomb
Itself. This waa composed of large
square blocks of stone, which was iden
tified a red or rose granite, and ce
mented together with such skill as to
at first cause the whole, measuring
twelve by fifteen feet, to appear a a
olid mas. The opening of this, while
very difficult, as the use of powder was
prohibited by the archsologista placed
In charge of the exhumation by the au
thorities, was accomplished by night,
when the interest and curiosity of the
party was so great that the work was
continued by lamplight till dawn. .
The tomb when opened, says the Phil
adelphia Times, waa found to contain
a gigantic image of a man lying at full
length and made of clay mixed with a
sort of preparation which give it a
bright blue color and a alight elasticity,
the whole appearing to have been sub
jected to great heat. Tha image repre
sents the naked figure, except for a very
tight girdle about the waist, a pair of
close-fitting sandals and a crown on the
head shaped very much like a bishop's
miter, but topped with the head ot ft
hawk or eagle. The features are rough
ly molded, are of an Imperious east, and
of a man in middle age, with ft promi
nent nose ana a very wide mouth, but
with cheekbones so low an to preclude
all idea that the original could have
been an Indian. The hands, which are
as small as a woman's, and bear on the
backs the head of the bird,' a on the
crown, are crossed on the. breast and
hold an image about three Inches long,
of ft squatting figure, probably that of a
god. The feet are also crossed, the
right presenting the peculiarity of pos
sessing a sixth toe, which the sandal is
cut to bring into prominence, as if the
owner had prided himself on it The
hair of the image is dressed in thick
curls on both sides of the head, reach
ing to the shoulders, and brought down
to the brows over the forehead. .' -:', ;
Careful examination of this clay fig
ure revealed that it was merely the
elaborate coffin of the real body and
could be opened from the back. This
was done with all possible care so aa
not to disturb the remains wlthin,"bnt a
few handful of dust, dark brown and
almost impalpable powder, is all that
was left of thebdfiy. The crown, jw
ever, together with the girdle, the im
age of the god, and a large battle-axe
with a blade of sharp glass or obsidian,
and a handful of petrified wood were
found in the coffin. . - ;'::!
The crown is of thick red gold, carved
with minute but well executed draw
ings, representing battle scenes, tri
umphal marches, and other picture the
meaning of which is somewhat misty,
but in all the principal figure is that of
a man with six toes on his right toot.
The workmanship of the whole, crown
is very fine, and the bird's head ion the
top is a masterpiece worthy of Cellini.
It holds in ats mouth a magnincent
Cholckuites, or green diamond, valued
by the Aztecs, which shows soma at
tempt at lapidiflcation, ;f-.yA . ,: ?':
t The girdle found is composed of plates
of gold arranged like scales and very
thin, so aa to .give with every movement
of the wearer's body. . On each of these
plate, which is in shape a half ellipse,
isengraved afigure or hierogiypmcs,oon-
favalca sTIalatTS Ba Itaaalva Hara
. altar h "Tha ftaa af Baavaa."
Beoent dispatches from Peking stated
that a great change had occurred in dip
lomatic relations betweea tha Chinese
Government and the foreign Minister
accredited to the Imperial Court It ia
known, aay the New York Tribune,
that, barring a few exceptions, these
diplomat were never admitted into the
presence of the Emperor, and that they
had to transact business with the Tsung
Li Yemen, or Foreign Affair Bureau.
The young' Sovereign, of China pub
lished on December 13, 1890, a decree,
m which he says, among other thing
highly complimentary ; lor the diplo
matic corns at Peking: : ; '
, "If is nearly two year alnce we bar
taken in hand fJVTeln of government;
and our duty is to receive the envoy of
all friendly countries. . We. decree,
therefore, that a reception in honor of
the foreign Ministers and Charge d Af
faires shall take place during the period
of the first moon of next year, and the
CONDITION OF THE CLOPS.
THE PROSPECT FOR WHEAT fEEMS
j UNUSUALLY GOOD. ' .
ttaaj ara ailHy taaara. hat
All Mm Oae Caaailloaa ThOaai
1 1 Ira Slaeh attar Thaa .
CaaaL : J ... ;" ,
Washin8TO,' April 20. The April
returns to the Department of Agri
culture make the condition of whiter
wheat 9G.9 and of rye 95.4. The season
tor feeding was favorable over the
whole winter wheat area ; the soil was
generally easily worked ; the seed bed
prepared with nnusual care, and the
owing followed by gentle rains, suffi
cient to properly pack tha earth aad
Insure prompt and perfect germina
tion.. On portion of the Atlantic and
ttulf eoast the time of seeding; was
somewhat prolonged by occasional
raina, bat the delay was not erion
Tsung LI Yamen wilt get in due time
th ration, bn the succeed inir dar ad d,Ired ajrea wa planted and
1 . . . - . .il I . . . . m
a banquet will be offered, to the dipio- I kwu grvwui aoquueu oy me auveut vi
matic body in the palace of the Tsung
Li Yamen. That ceremony shall be re
peated every year at the same epoch.
These arrangements show that we en
tertain the most sincere desire to main
tain : and strengthen continually our
good relation with friendly countries,
Let this be respected I -. . ;
In launching forth his decree, the
young Emperor Sieh-Tu-Yea implicitly
abolished the humiliating ceremony ot
the Kaou-Taou, which was required
formerly of any foreigner admitted into
the Imperial presence. Haws aware
that the foreign Ministers of this time
would not submit to such a ceremony.
The Kaou-Taou consisted in -making,
not only before the. Emperor himself,
but even before a yellow draped manikin
representing him, the three kneeling
down and the nine "proeternatlons '
prescribed by Chinese etiquette. In
1805, Count Golofkine, the Russian Min
ister appointed to the Court of Peking,
was requested to do the Kaou-Taou be-.
fore a yellow puppet supposed to repre
sent the "Son of Heaven.", He indig
nantly declined to submit to that humil
iation or to cross the Chinese frontier,
In 1793, Lord McCartney, the .British
Minister, also refused to perform the
Kaou-Taou, and consented only to put
one knee down, as he would have done
before his sovereign in London. He was
finally received by the Kmperor Kien-
Loung; but the "Council of Bites"
blamed the latter; and the augurs pre
dicted all sorts of evils as about to fall
upon China, whose ruler had forgotten
for once the ' time-honored customs.
Still, almost one century later, in 1878,
the foreign Ministers were received in
a body by the Chinese sovereign, whose
Empire was passing then through a
aeries of calamities. The Imperial de
cree announcing that annual receptions
will be given to the foreign Ministers
amounts to a revolution in the govern
mental customs of the Middle Kingdom.
SKUNK FARMING.
winter.
Suitable weather and Mil condition
enabled the farmer of the Ohio valley
State to pnt In the full breadth under
entirely favorable circumstances, and
proper combination of sunshine and
molstnre, which oon tinned until eold.
weather, sent the planting into winter .
quarters with ft sturdy growth and .
good color. ' ......
A 8BA80NABLK FALL. ' V
In portion of Kansas and Nebraska
the prolonged drouth of last summer
extended into the period of seeding, in- .
terfering somewhat and rendering ger- -
mination slow, but the seasonable
weather during the late fall and early
winter Wa sufficient to offset the dis
advantage of the late start. '...'",
The entire season waa favorable In
California, while in Oregon the dry
seed bed received moisture in time to ;
secure a good though late growth. The '
weather was generally mild oyer the
whole area, and while the snowfall was -
comparatively light, It earn when most
needed,- protecting the plant during .
the coldest weather. .
i.), - FAVORED SRCTION8. '
The Ohio valley and trans-Miss iasip-
pi States were especially favored, the
growth in many section continuing
throughout the winter with sufficient
covering when needed and an entire
absence of damage from freezing and
heaving. Brown and, bare spot are .
seldom met with, the growth and color
being remarkably uniform. ; '
Tha Hessian fly, which wa feared In
December in the central West, is yet in
abeyance, but the presence of the pest
I noted in many localities and serious
Injury might follow should the early
prove favorable to it develop
ment "
SBHBRAL AVBRA9K8.
The general average for condition I
A Hehlgaa Kaa Oattla RU ay Bread- I
In tha "!-'- far Thalr ror.
' A few year ago Abram Freeland, the I
A mm.11 am .Hia fcnm I
. . in,wrvthat of raising I highest reported for April since
skunk for the fur he could get off 188a, and the individual State average
them. He started, says the Chicago I are remarkable for their uniformity.
Mail, with a single pair, and his origi
nality; haa brought him profit f and
notoriety. The skunks Increased rap
idly, and the first year Abram cleared
about sixty per cent on his investment
The second year showed a profit of
nearly two hundred per cent, aad he
It 1 sixteen point higher than last
year, and three above the returns for
1889, , - .
The high April condition doe not
Insure a large yield but It Indicate a
strength and vitality which would en-
expects the third year, now that he lias j able the plant to withstand more than
about fourteen hundred polecat in. his
inolosure, will yield him a profit of fully
six hundred per oent . Abram is a very
patient and kindly man and has trained
the older polecat so they will answer
to their names When he calls. He robs
ordinary vicissitudes of the season. The
nearest approach to the present eondl
tion during recent year was In 1884,
when the largest crop ever known waa
harvested, but the similar high eondi-
the skunks, when a few days old, to a
veying, however, no hint of their mean-1 surgical operation that robs them of
the business of it terror by submitting I Hon In 1888 was followed by crop of
little more than, average proportions.
tag in their form. The image of what
is, presumably, ft god is made of clay
combined with the preparation spoken
of before, and also burnt till thorough
ly hardened. It represents a male be
ing seated upon a pedestal in a squat
tlmr Dosture, it eye squinting, and
their weapon of defense and' makes
them a harmless aad odorless as pup
pies. He is a kindly man and kill
them by chloroform. It is the Only
farm of it kind known and attracts
The average of condition in the
principal State are: New York 9?,
Pennsylvania 97, Tennessee 98, Ken
tucky 97, Ohio 98, Michigan 93, Indiana
99, Illinois 97, Missouri 96, Kansas 9,
great deal of attention among the resi-1 California 99 and Oregon 97.
dent of Southern Michigan. A he ha
grinning In hideous mirth, while both o monopoly of the trade in skunk skins
hands are placed over the ear, a if to) he will grow rich If the present : tariff
shut out sound. ; ; . t : ; ' I holds out long enough. ., (, .,; I .?
A peculiar thing about thl image is Pimm ta Aaatndl. - f
that iU hair U represented as hanging Aooount8of the locust plague In Au
downlUbackinone long plait Uke a t-.,,, .tul most disuiaTexceDt in
. . OOKDiriOK OF LTVK STOCK. ,
The return make the percentages
of losses among farm animals during
the past year of 1.7 ; cattle, 8 ; sheep,
4, and swine, 8.4. ' Hone receive bet
ter care than any other class of stock,
Chinaman's. The figure is hoUow but AdeUide where the have been nd annual losses vary but Utile
contained only half a dozen small black
pebbles, highly polished, and a some
what larger stone of a dull gray hue.
The coffin and these relics are now on
exhibition, and are to be donated to the
State Museum of History and Archaeol
ogy at Tucson. No clue of any value
as to what race the remains are to be
ascribed can be found, but tt ia proba
ble that it was one antedating the Azt
lan and even the mound-builders,' and
superior to both in knowledge of ma
sonry, sculpture and the working oi
metaL , -' ;" '' ' , . j '. ,
' ':'.','.'.' - A Hew TrU. - '
Pick-pocket are now trying a new
dodge in Paris: it takes two or three to
"work" it Otto jostles against the in
tended victim and contrives to drop a
lighted cigar lu his overcoat pocket A
few minutes later a couple of strangers
hurry up to him, exclaiming: "Mon
sieur, your overcoat is on fire;" and,
with 1 the ) utmost - politeness they
squeeze and compress the burning
cloth, profiting, it is needless to say, by
the opportunity to relieve the pocjtet
of whatever of value it may contain. ,
y f
In fleptemlier, 1HH5, John D. Ttarnes,
oolojHHt of (' ntrul I'ark .Museum,
New York City, canriht the largii.t
lobhter known in toe (one of natural
good enough to drown themselves in
myriads. The sea-shore of Adelaide at
last reports was lined with the drowned
locusts.' At Mlnyip, however, thej ar
rival of an immense column from the
north was seriously alarming the in
habitants. The atmosphere presented
the appearance of a snow-storm; j the
roads and fences were eovered to a
depth of three inches or four inches
with a solid mass of locusts. The gar
dens were quickly denuded of vegeta
tion and all herbage was fast disappear
ing before the pest The caterpillar
plague i also causing the Australian
colonists serious anxiety. Failures
among agriculturalists is attributed to
these pests; and no wonder, when as
much aa six hundred pounds sterling is
said to be the loss of one farmer alone
through the destruction ot bis barley
crop by the coterpillar. J ;
The EiigcBiiit Ring;. "
The girl with a nn on her 'first
finger is not to be found any more, u lie
enjrntfeinentring is worn on cipher tl-e
middle or fourth finger, but liev-T i
the first, aays the.lcweler i' 1 .-v' .v, . I
ft recent weddii"? in .'ew 't
removed her r .t c'.ne i, 1 ! i
was f Viced on Ic-r 1 t 1 ... ', i
Of ! e, left. 'Ie 1 1 f r
is i' '! 1. now n. '
The percentage of the loss of ca,i!e is
sightly hie-her than wa r"o' .l H
lboS and l6o, the scarcity of l.i
Ing the figure in portions of 1 s
and Kebraska. The losses of t i
bave been smaller tiian v-f c i n -count
of bn,ter cse and t. ,
while less disease tiiM tz-ti, I in to
ported among swine, thou n t, e l a
heavy loss ia the regions ol hyst ji a
crop failures. .
The Baeor ot Death.
PW YORK, . April 23. TVe t 1
nnmberof deaths in t' Is ' j ! ' '
week ending at noon to i1 y v 1
as ";aiiiBt 1,1 3 for t'
week. E'r'.'y-t'-iee of t
to broue.' ' i, as r
wek, .-d Z . 'j to i
224. TLe t ' 1 j
twenty-fonr 1 "
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