American Fire Fighters"" .
Are the Best m the World
, - . PlUlifi v- Hubert,, Jr. .,'.-.- V
isfacf ion that lie Eritls, in the rtrbre important cities, the adaptation
of our ideas for fighting fire. Our steam lire-engines, our brass
.poles that bring men down from the upper stories of their station-houses,
our hinged collars that snap around the horses
necks4 atfi tQuch, a,re everywhere.. At every important interna
tional exhibition o recent fcrXf ginning even with that of
Paris in 1SG7, American fie-eivguies and ladder-trucks have
taken prizes. At the Paris Exposition of two rears ago an,
American fire-team from Kansas City, fourteen men under Chief George &
Hale, carried off all the most important honors at the International Fire Ccj.
- grosser which ;-v?eje.y(2?rjented. ATOertci-.i-Jimee.'oriugai, iiouaua, isorway,-
Belgium, Switzerland, Denmark, Italy, Germany, luruey, ungiana, beotianu,
.Wales, Ireland, New Zealand, Isdia, Austria, Mexico and Teru. Nearly S000
.firemen took part in the competitions. The first contest was made with steam
fire-engines, on the banks of the Seine. About 100 engines competed.
The test-, was. made from cold water in the boiler.'. The average
time for foreign 'engines in getting a ' stream ;from the hose was from eight
.to twelve "minutes. Their streams, reached about half way across the river,
in five minutes and thirty seconds the American engine threw a stream that
wet people on the-opposite bank a distance of 310 feet.. .The size of the
.6tream was nearly, double that thrown by the other .engines. From "Fivc
Flghting To-day and To-morrow," in Scribner's." '
JZ7
IP I
S P: U
Tell Women. the Truth.
By Helen Oldfield. .
RINCIPALLY the cause of "what is called woman'i unreason
ableness is the direct result of her not being told the truth.
Half the .time a woman does not knew how she stands to face
a problem, .because she cannot get a' man to tell her the simple
facts in thicase..6 lie will say all sorts of soothing things to
her and mislead her with rosy hopes, and Ire will try to make
up -by the fervor of his compliments for the. .lies he is telling
her, attdso-she goes blundering along, making all sorts of mis'
takes -th&t -she might have been saved from ifranybody had
Lad the courage to tell her-the truth. , f
A curious example of'this once came under my own observation. Awnim
died, leaving his widow without any means of support. HU friends, in the Jnost
delicate way In the ivortd provided for her, and began exerting themselves to
get some occupation fpr. her by which she could support herself. Place after
place was offered,- but she scornfully rejected every one.'
"Did you' ever hear of anything so "unreasonable in your life," cried the
men to each'-'other, "not a penny in the world, actually living 'on charity, and
.W"a'i do a thing!"; Finally in a gust of passion one of the men blutted ouVto
thwoman the naked truth that her husband had died absolutely, bankrupt,
abd'hat his friends had been providing for her. The woman was aghast. She
had never an idea of the real state of affairs, and the minute she knew' the truth
Bhea'ecepted the situation with a courage, a philosophy and' a determination
to inake the best of it that fairly astonished every one.
So far as business women are concerned, the chief enemy to their progress
is man's fear of telling them the truth. A man who has a clerk who "falls into
careless ways, or has some annoying fault, will talk to him plalnly-ahd give
him .a chance to correct It before he dismisses him; but he will riot" give a girl
the same chance. He won't tell her the truth about her faulty , He wlil make
n excuse about business being bad. and then turn her off .iAther than speak
the truth to her. How rdany times has that happened in our 'big cities! Girls
know. ' '.
t Another thing and; I don't know a more pathetic thingis that the whole
-world seems banded together to deceive women about the raj .facts. of working
life.
Now there's .plenty of work In the world for every industrious and intelli
gent girl, but it's nothing short of a crime to make her believe that there is
any get-rich-quick way to fortune; and I never reajl any of tlrese romances
about pi&ufesque mode's'of getting, living that fails tp-alifouse in me a righteous
contempt for the authors of such stories. '
mil
ushaby.!ij-bab!esM pov tie da is clos-
AJ.1 .the- tirfd, little mrcLs are :'uvbwsing in
-' the nof; - '.'. ,i'f-i
'0t'Jit'Qifth''rfel!(? tHc mftfe''afia reposing,
'Jt 'AdSsj4nuk$.Vydu.myUtti.oiie(;7 upon your
:' ltia-Miua'a .urea!.. .! r. r ; -.v
SM-e-e-p, skjjgiiils, eni4c4t.fue?p
Claribel an Muriel, Polly, aaia Bo-peep.
our
Mysticism, is Increasing '
in This Practical Age
' " 'By Ralph M. McKenzie.
HE hunger displayed by all classes ct- people for literature
' of a mystical or esoteric character is beyond the belief of
any one not connected with the sale of. books or period
icals, or .not in touch with the work of public libraries
throughout the,, country. This includes 'fortune-telling by
"cards', palmistry, astrology, the phenomena of hypnotism,
suggestive' therapeutics, spiritism, mind reading, faith cure,
theosophy and '.everything connected with the divining of
the future or the mystical or occult" In mind, matter or
religion. . . - " '. .
Many periodicals treating of these .various, subjects are published now
Sn many languages, and "the "circulations of some of them have increased
wonderfully. A -curious' phase' of the subject is. the fact that particular ar
ticles in these periodicals attract wide attention, and are often quoted and
discussed in coteries which are not usually supposed to be interested in:
matters beyond the dqifiain "of the five senses. Some of these magazines
In the Library of Congress are kept under lock, and -key, and .only given
ouV fo'r'reading ' to known persons upon card, because the temptation-to
cut or mutilate certain 'select portions of the text seems to :be tod great, tor
those of less than ordinary will power.
: Of course there; is. much of this literature of .distinct value, especially
euch agTelates to psychology In any direct or Indirect way. A great deal
Of It Is ethical, and la of no value as moral instruction or teaching. ' A great
deal of It Is obsjtmre,- and some of it Is" 'almost as unflatisfactpryto 'the.-. In-;
telUgent reader aa a. chapter of Paracelsus' or any .of the old, alchemists or
searchers after the, elixir of life and the philosopher's stone. . Even the
many Tolumes SeVoted to palmistry may. be,said to have a ralson d'etre out
side of thelr'more or less fabled value "as a means of divining the "future.
They "serve4, perhaps; k vlraw the attention :of people to 'their-hands and
to secure for then be1er . care and more cleanliness. - j ..."'
The cause which more than all else has led to a great revival of Interest
In this class of literature Is, of course, the wonderful spread in the belief1
In spiritism .and- the .consequent deduction that the spirits must needs
know something of the future of mortals and can be depended upon .in
some vague way to communicate this knowledge'- to the material world.
home look 4o the, clairvoyant as the most reliable source of this supposed.
spirit knowledge of tlie -individual's future; others depend upon the reader
of cards', --the reader' of palms, or- the .reader of the stars. But it can all
be reduced to the one cause the yearning of man, for immortality and dor
knowledge of the future years of ''his present "state. New York News.
Kecrnltina; Men For the Navy.
In order to asisi the recruiting
of men for tho navy; tjip affy Drpart
ment has prepared Targe lithograph
posters for display in all the principal
cities and towns in the country. The
navy is in great need of able-bodied
seamen and Is using extra exertions
, 4 n r A it . Ua.vi i i f'h ,m f . 1 . T , . n-I.
post-ers are the most elaborate bids
for men the navy has ever made. They
are highly decorated and picture life
on a man-of-war in the most alluring
Colors. The centerpiece is a picture
of the battleship Kearsarge, with a,
happy, contented-looking jackie'' of
heroic ' dmeiisons ( as a companion
p'e;ce. 'These ' 'pirtutes are highly col
ored and can scarcely fail to attract
attention. The text gives practical."
information regarding ratings and pay,
and shows the advantage of naval ser
vice. To make tho words more im
pressive, they arc printed in red with .
a profusion of capital letters. Chjer;
150.000 of these posters, which are of
immenso size, have been distributed
among recruiting centers. Washing
ton Star.
Ilultliy..nTy dearies ftpw .the-dew is fall;
)er; . oa.; th . meau-y ieveping shadows
Ci "tHe' edge of- sliini-berland' hear' y
"Gom't'. lfty littfe f'lB.fiy, it's time 'to go to
-teep-."-- ' . - -,
S-l-d-f p, sleep, sink,' sink to sleep:
Claribel and Muriel v Polly and Bo-peepA
Youth's Companion.
Tow. t IVIuke FlrplJa.loons.
Have, you ev.er . studied the resem
blance -of soap bubbles to balloons?
Do you know that if anything be
placed -in tho atmosphere which is
lighter than the.:-atmo&phr"-it ; will
ascend? In this we have, the 'whole
theory of balloons a'nd!btlloonihg. The
air has weight, and being a fluid per
mits objects to move about" in it, so -it
follows that if we Can find anything
IBghter than the air it -will ascend in
it. Several gases exist' "AVhlch are
lighter than air. These may be used
for balloons by confining -them in a
bag. ; V.-
The simplest form of a balloon Is" a
soap bubble. Why does Jt . ascend?
Not because the air from tho limgs Is
lighter than the atmospherei'it Is really
heavier,, but .because It . is Warmer
ind -for- thnt reason It isipractieally
'lighter. As soon as the air inside cools
the soap bubble descends, and you
:will find the warm bubble Is larger
than the cool .bubble. Therefore, if
you can get hot air In a bag you can
make a balloon that will ascend. Bal
loons may be made of any size, but
small ones ate the most satisfactory.
Three sheets of inanila or tissue paper
pasted end to end, then cut into shape
and joined, make a balloon quite large
enough to manage." ;v:
A peeled orange or lemon will give
you a good idea of the general shape
of the gussets of a balloon. .The nar
rower you'eut the gussets the neater
:will be the balloon, but wide gussets
loon while filling It. - Stiffen tne mouth
of the balloon with a circle of stiff
wire, stTeiigtHeJiingit for ad"i"pth of
three inches "wrth ihflslin" gashed and
pasted on the-paver and fastened to the
.wire ring. Make the mouth eighteen
Inches in diameter (about 3 1-7 times
of a diameter makes "a circle). Make a
'car of wire or cardboard 'of any "shape
desired. Fig. F Is" a sample of-one.
Place .in it a tin pan to-'-hqldtlje heat
ing apparatus. Heat tit :.phyjby . soak
ing a sponge'with alcohol ahd'etlng
it on fire, or by usitaliow'adil lamp'
wick, which .gives the. most .brilliant
flame. The ho.t air generated will
cause the balloon to fill and rise.
Washington Star. ' '
The Knofln the Handkerchief.
The task -is to fold a 'handkerchief
lengthwise; to take, hold of both end.s
with-two, hands and to make a knot
In the handkerchief without letting go
r-" . .. (
the ends. This is done with the knowl
edge of a trick. :
We prace the handkerchief before us,
fold our arms a la Napoleon and take
one end of the handkerchief with the
left .hand, which is now, to the right,
and the other end with the right hand,
now to th left. JJy unfolding .the,
arms we make a. knot in the'handker
chlef and the trick is done. New York
Trihune. ' ' .
' A Trick With a Piece or Cord.
Take a piece of cord about two
yards long, hold the two ends with
the thumb and index finger of the right
hand and form the figure shown on the
left side of the illustration on the table.
The task Is to pull the cord- off the
table while another person is trying
to prevent it by placing the. Index
finger on any spot inside fhe figure
formed by the cord. You may be cer-
fJDUSEHOLD
answer very well and save labor. The
more nearly globular you can get the
balloon the more perfectly it will work.
Paste the three sheets of paper thus
(Fig. A) and add a small piece (a) to
one end. Use thin paste or gum water,
applying it with a camcl'-s hair brush
and lapping the paper half an inch;
dry the work as you go along with a
warm flat iron, using a thickness of
flannel between the paper and iron.''
Divide Fig. A into four sections, with
pencil marks, and cut off b and c.
(Fig. B). Fold the paper double, when
cutting out gussets, to insure sym
metry. The mouth of the. -balloon
must be broad (Fig. C) so the ; flame
. . . : 1 O
' (. . . . .
' 3 C v'
J c ;:
tain that any one will select the part
of the loop marked with O. When we
now pull .the two ends of the cord it
will slide-past the finger that is trying
tbpreyent it.
"Iiefus start over again. We lay the
cord again and declare that if the
partner places the index finger on the
same spot of the figure the finger will
be caught and-the cord will not be re
moved.' The partner places the finger
on B, we pull, and the cord is actually
held fast.
Solution: The partner has not noticed
that we have changed the loops of the
cord. By comparing the two figures
in ottr illustration you will notice the
.change. In the figure on the left the
right end of the cord forms first the
loop a, while In the figure on the right
It forms first the loop behind it,' so
that in this case the loop a belongs ttp;
the left end of the cord. '
i
" llnw to Drink Milk.
Whcrrbhe heeaWtevivtag stttc-alant
after exhaustion, nothing ,ca-ii;iH'ai the
effects-. ofi-.Uo.tr; milk siiipe-d-jalowly.
Some people .-say, they ca-at digest
milk, and these are the people who
drink it,-, down quickly, so that the
digestive acids, in playing round it,
form large curds, which give trouble
before they can be absorbed. The
right way is to sip the-.injlk in small
t' mounts, so that "each mouthful, as it
escends into the stomach, is surror.ml-edy-the
gastric fluid, and when the
wpqle glassful; is down the effect is
that -of a spongy mass of curds, i'-i
and ' out of which the keen gastric
juices course, speedily doing their
work of turning rttyj.eurd into peptones
fhat the tissues'can take up. ti
The Vte of lemon.
If more- peopT,e' realized tho many
ncoc'ta wTiJpWTenfons rnav bo nut this
irnit' would always be found i:i the
Veil regulated household. Here are
some of its good qualities: Lemon
juice removes stains from one's hands.
Lemon juice and"Xva-ter make a mouth
wash, useful for preventing-tartar and
sweetening the breath, but the mixtrra
must net be too strong, or the cnanel
of the teeth will in time suffer. Lemon
julcq will often, when everything else
fails, allay the irritation caused by the
Ibites of gnats or flies, and a teaspoon-
ful of it,- in a cup of cafe nolr, will
usually relieve a. bilious. headache, lhe
Jujce of a lemon, taken inhot water
on awakening la the morning, is a
liver, corrector and a flesh reducer.
"Lemon - juice arid salt '.will 4 remove
rijst stains from linen without injury
to1 the. fabric if you wet the stains
with the iriixture several times while
it ii bleaching ia sunshine. Two or
tlre applications may bo necessary
If tho sjtaia is an old one Brooklyn
Eagle.
How "Uncle Sain" Got HiftNanae.
The nickname "Uncle Sam," as ap
plied to the United States Government,
..sald.o have.'origihrited ..s follows:
.Samuel Wilson," !(C9mmohly called "Un
cle Sam," was a Government inspector
of beef .ahtt'pork'at-Troy, .N.-Y-.i about
1S12. A 'contractor, Elbert Anderson,
purchased a quantity of provisions, and
the barrels w'e marked "E A.," Anderson's-
InUils, and "U, '$." tov. United
States. The" latter- initiajs wprC not fa
iniMar to 'Wilson's workmen, who in
quired what they meant; A facetious
fellow answered:, "I don't know, unless
thoy i'-man. 'UneleSa'ni.' " A vast
nnujunt.of property a-L'.tcr,ward, passed
-throHgh' Wilson's harulg marked in the
sdrfie'manner, and be has bten joked
upon the extcpt 'of his possessions. The
J, jpkcsprepd through 'fQl tliVUlepart-
meo:ts.or .tne .uovprnra-en a,uci before
tang. the United States was. pppularly
referred to as "Uncle Sam." -.'-
will not strjke. against the papef, as j
it' would if 'the n6ck wtfe; narrower.
(Fig. D.) . l .;.' '
Paste teseiher .the ides and gussets
-near' neck and? -.crown first; then caver
the crown with a -piece of soft white
paper a foot In diameter pasting in
the centre a loop of muslin, thus (Fig. Lots of men are honest because they
E), to be used to lift and hold the tsal- J are afraid to take a chance.
Bnckirheat Cakei.
To make buckwheat griddle cakes,
mix- together four cupfuls of buck
wheat flour with one scant cupful
of cornmeal and an even tablespoonful
of salt. Sift these ingredients to
gether. To moisten them use five cup
fuls of lifrjewarm water and two cup
fuls of milk. The milk, is used to give
the rich Krown color preferred by most
people. ...-.To. accomplish this many
housewives ;Use all water and add two
tablespotfnfuis of molasses. The milk,
however, makes the cakes more deli
cate. , Dissolve a 'compressed yeast
cake nV a half cupful of lukewarm
water; add' It to the other liquid. Then
add. the liquid gradually,, to the dry
ingredients, beating ha'rd meanwhile.
Pour the batter into a pail that comes
fcr the purpose, and let it rise over
night. In the morning, just before
baking the cakes, stir a' level teaspoou
ful of soda into a quarter of a -cupful
of lukewarm water and beat it into
-the batter until it foams. Then fry a
test cakD on a hot griddle, and if it is
too thick, add more water or milk to
the batter. At least a pint of the bat
ter should be left for the next baking,
to use in place cf the yeast. To renew
tho batter, add the ingredients in the
same proportion as the Crst ti.uc.
PAR
A hot solution 'cf salt and' vinegar
will bfighteh copper and' tin ware.
When color in a fabric has bcea ac
cidently destroyed by acid, .anmor.la
nay be applied to restore it.
' A pleasant hbuseh'old deodorizer is
made .: by pouring, cpirKs ofV lavender
over lumps cf bicarbonate of am
lncnia. Mildews cn linen may bo removed
with sof t.sqap .and ca,lk, rubbed over
the discolored place beTore It "goes into
thdi,,w,a'8htu-!,a,',-:4 :
String" c'bearis;' coei?cP'with French
Cressiufr: . sprinkled;! vwl'ip t chives aud
seasoned .with .salt ,ar:d .pepper, make
an .-excellent salad.
A pinch of salt will' make 'the white
of an egg beat quicker, and a pinch of
borax in cooked.starch -will mako the
clothes sUfljcx a,idj. whiter. . .. . .
When .a,...athtub beconjej shabby
sandpaper 'i't'and'give it a coat of or
dinary wtatf'paiht, to be followed by
one or tvfa'.coais of. batUcnaenf 1."
Stains on brass .will soon disappear
If i-uhbed wiVh a b'utjnnp dipped in
salt. When clean, wa'sh in'hot water,
dry with a cloth and polish with a
wash leather. -
Aluminum pans are excellent in
every way and no trouble to keep clean
if .rinsed out directly they are done
with. " They should' hot 'ha washed
with soda, as it is destructive to the
brilliant po'nsb.v- -.
Jewelry can be cleaned by washing
In soapsuds in which a few drops of
s'trU0t'ammon5a aro stirred,' shaking
off the water and laying in a box of
dry sawdust. This method leaves no
.marks or scratches, ... ... ... ,