1880-01-16; Clare County Press

              Clare
VOLUME II.
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CLARE, MICHIG^M
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;" JANUARY 16, 1880.
NUMBER 37,
The  Clare   County  Press.
issued eveity friday at
Clare, Clare County, Mich.,
—by— •
ALVARO F. GOODENOUGH,
Advertising; Rates.
The following Tabic of Advertising Rate* has
been carefully arranged according to a plan based
on space keqi'iked and time continued. Special
care is taken tc set up and arrange advertisements
in a systematic manner, thus making them more
attractive than whenjunthled together.
TAI11.B Of ADVERTISING   RATIIS,	
t wk
i inch $i.ao
c in       i.su
3 in      2.00
4 in      2.50
\: coi 3.00
>i col   6.00
1   col 10.00
Bi'mnfss C.vkds, 3 lines $5 pc/ year; each additional line, JSi.
Legal Noticcs—Rates prescribed by law,?
Lucal Notices—iocts, per line each insertion.
All Advertising payable quarterly in Advance,
2 wk
4 wk
2 mos
3 mos
6 mos
1.50
2.50
3.5*>
4.50
6.50
2.25
3.75
5.25
7.00
1.000
3.00
5.00
7.00
9.00
13.00
3-75
6.25
S-75
11.25
16.00
4.50
7.50
10.50
13.50
19.50
9.00
14.00
20,00
25.00
35.oo
15.00
20.00
39.00
35.00
50,00
10.00
15.00
20.00
35.00
30.00
50,00
80.00
BUSINESS CABDS,
E. D. WHEATOX. C. "SV. PEItltY
WHEATON & PERRY,
LAWYERS,
CLARE,       -       -       MICH.
AU burinsss intrusted with them will veceiv
prompt attention. Cr'.Iections made and Real Ee
tatebi tight and sold, UlVioe Maynard Block,Main St
WM. II. ELDEN, Jeweler and
dealer in Wall Paper, Books and Stationery, Sewing Machine Fixtures, etc., Clark.
G' EO. "W. JEFFERIES, Judge op
I'lumATr. and JfMii,:i;i»t' thu Peace, Clare.
Special attention given to making collections.   Of-
~cc explain Street.
and
Q.EO. J. CUMMINS,
. Attorney-at-Law and Solicitor,
Gourt House Building, Farwell, Mich.
r\ C. CASTERLIN,
Attorney-ahd-Counselor-at-Law, ar
vC3unsolor & Solicitor in Chancery,
Court House Building, Farwell, Mich.
HC. DODGE, Justice of the
• Peace and Notauv Ptblic, Vbknon, has
'GOOD Fakmixg Laxds i^or Sale
.Cheap.   Titles Perfect,
Terms Easy.
c iL jC. Dodge, Frwell, Mich.
Bf. SUTHERLAND,
&£'.•■' *.
Sary-Public <& Insurance Agt.
ON XSH»M.O*VE;d REAL ESTATE
Court House Building, Farw-ell.
-W S. COOLEY,
DEALER IN
HEARTSEASE,
BY L. C. cmEEKE.
0£ all tlio bonny buds that blow,
ln bright or cloudy weather,
Ol all the ilowers that come and go,
Tho wholo twelve months together,
Tho littlo purple pansy brings
ThoughtH of tho sweetest, saddest things.
I had a littln lover once;
Sho used to givo me posies;
Hor eyes were hlue as hyacinths,
And lips as red as roses.
Everybody used to praise
Hor handsome looks and winsome ways.
Tho other boys that went to school
Would make such silly speeches,
Because I took her every day
The biggest plums ond peaches,
And always at the door would wait
To carry homo her books and slate.
Tliey couldn't seo tilth pout and iling «
The mighty fascination
About that little snub-nosed thing
To win such admiration—
As if there weren't a dozen cirls
With nicer eyes and longer curls.
Ono Uilnp they knew us well as
For I never eould seo clearly
Why more than Marian or May
I should be loved so dearly.
I asked her vftiy was all of this;
Sho only answered with a kiss.
Until I teased her tell tao why—
I wished to know the reason—
When from a llower-bed close hy,
Whero the pausies were in season,
She picked and gavo a flower to me
With sweet but simple gravity.
" Tho pardeu is in bloom," s-ho said,
" With lilies pale and slender,
With roses and verbenas red
And fuchsias'purple splendor;
But over ond abovo the rest
This*litte heartsease suits me best."
"Am I your little Heartsease, then?"
I asked, with blushing pleasure.
Sho answered yes aud yes again,
Heartsease and dearest treasure,
That round tho world or all the sea
Held nothing halt so dear as me.
I listened with a protid delight—
Too rare for words to capture—
Not even dreamed such sudden blight
Would come to chill my rapture;
I could not foresee tile tender bloom
Of pansies round a little tomb.
Life holds some stern experience
Which most of us discover,
But I'vo had other losses since
I lost my little lovor;
But tlio little purplo pansy brings
Thoughts of tho sweetest, saddest things.
Oasis, Iowa.	
A NIGHT QF HORROR.
BY UUX VOMICA.
Harness, "Whip.*?, Robes, & Blankets.
Th" '.ct a«.s..rtmcnt of Trunks and Traveling
b.i^*. jr. t wn, and prices the lowest.
THE REST OF MATERIAL fSED.
All w; rk   warranted.   RepairirR done   pr< raptly
1 will >.ell ■ iii-apcr than ean Le i» light else-
wherj in isi;;in„w Valley."
JJUBEX ?^HTH,
A'OTAIiV PUBLIC.
Real Estate and Insurance Agent.
MARK, MICH.
Particular attention p;.M to 1 '.kins hind, estimat
ing pine timber, adj-.i^titi^ trcsjmasses and paying
taxes ft-r non residents.
Manhattan Fire Insurance Company of New York
Str.-ng i.nd s.ound, with lew rates.
TVT TX. JEFFERIES,
DEALER IN
FRESH & SALT MEAT,
Fresh and Cured Fish,
Fine Groceries and General
'- .- Farm Produce. •• *      '
     i
Cheapest T E A in Tdwn ! |
Cash paid for hides. j
MAIN STREET, CLARE. |
HOTELS, LIVERIES, &c.        j
mw"'fubnituiii;7'NEWLY i
lit fitted, yew Proprietor.
ST. JAMES HOTEL,
V. K. BROWX, Prop,,
MOUNT PLEASANT,   MICH.
First Class Accommodations.   I'ronC Sample Rooms
ior Agents. Good Barn.
'Twos midnight. The moon had. veiled
its face from the world below. The
stars, man's best friends, whose eyes al- J
ways twinkle at liis miptake^auif
with tears at hjs piisforturf^T""
•would seem, to countenance by t.
light the dark scene about to be enacted. The calm that precedes a storm
had settled upon all nature. The scene
changes. The dark, threatening clouds,
so long confined, were filling the air
with muttered warnings. Sharp flashes
of lightning occasionally piercing the
gloom made the darkness still more intense. The deep-rooted pines, that had
for years withstood the onslaught of
winter storms and laughed defiance at
the mad lashing of summer gales, were
to-night helpless in the hand of the elements, and, stripped of their branches,
.<*;, ££*£'"
house in that way. These are the JRSjw
of men who are very bravo in tlifeVj^*?1?
time, but when the day puts its Jfiuti*'
cap on, and the black curtain of '.^fwrt,
is drawn over the world, thoy seoiji'li*^
lose their grip; thoir backbone loseii^at;
stiffness, and, in -walking homq lafcpj.it'
night, they imagine every tree's a rttf>4
and that every post wears pants,      ■V*'h
Have you been awakened froiqj 0$
sound sleep at about 2 o'clock in, tl
morning and fancied you heard tf nftJ _
in the adjoining room? You heard the
clock tick ominously, and then one. of
those long, cold, slimy shivers woald
start at your heels and feel its vay
swiftly the whole length of your back,
and, before you had time to cravl
under the bed, another ono would start
at the same place aDd travel in tijiti.'
samo direction. Oh! how you -wished
it was morning, and then, when daylight
fairly came, you remember how you
told your friends how somebody wari
prowling around your house the night
bofore, and how you laid for them, and
yon just wished they'd come again,
you'd fix 'urn.
it was undor circumstances similar
to these that Mr. Graham was awakened
this dark, stormy night by his wife, who
whispered in his ear:
"James, James! wake up 1 I tell you.
There's some one in tho houso."
But James, though ho hoard the disturbance,
Lay quiet ana still as a mouse.
Being urged by his wife, at last he aroso,
The picture of woo and despair,
Whilo standing erect from that manly brow
Was each individual hair.
Thero he stood helpless and trembling.
Not daring to stir from the bed.
While the fear tliat fastened his feet to tho ilooi
Was shakins the teeth ia his head.
A loud crash was heard down stairs,
then all was quiet. At the earnest so
licitation of his wife Mr. Graham had
dragged himself from the bed, but his
feet refused to move, his handsclntched
the bed-clothes convulsively, his eyes
started from their sockets, and with a
shudder ho sank back helpless npon
the bed, a used-up community. Again
his wife urged him. to take the light,,
proceed down stairs and determine the;
cause of the disturbance. Caritingf a,
reproachful look upon her h&foi^l,*
"Wife, do you want me murder*
Who would protect you^f, I »h#al(l,
taken away? I .will" neVerlcipye
when thore is anydan^et
lay quietly in "bWi
i the upper part of the waters
ake into a light  mist, which
ay into the air.   The change
■ to mist takes place so quick-
rgo masses of salt aro left in
jfstals,   which   cake   together,
> slightly over the water, and
^a roof eight or nine inches
I strong that beasts of burden
* it in safety, drawing their
j3j*tiind them.
,,is this sqjlt roof good to skate
"Sat is the question; but what's
iter?—St. Mcholas.
c Death ol' a Tiger Tamer.
* 'ty three months have elapsed
JriMfTita horrible fate of Karoly, tho
ipd wild-beast tamer, during one
Sensational performances with a
■i'kpa constrictor, by which he was
\«& to death while enveloped in its
*We   ndw  learn  that  another
tnjif!(£ji$y of this character has just been
enihjto at Berlin?  William Rice, the
'SSCjifer "King,"    a brother-in-law  of
Hige&fceck, who is well known through-
,b»t 'Europe as the impresario of Nubian
caipwans aud Zulu "troupes," opened
a* ^oolpgico-anthropological museum"
a'V^Ckjs ago in the Thiergarten, just
o'uijs'tfif, of the Brandenbnrger Thor.
"Thft-^museuni," as its title denotes,
confined a collection of rare animals
and. »• Variety of more or less savage
m'^iftud women, who had been trained
bjjv'lUctj to go through elaborate per-
fo|«MUic£s with disciplined carnivora.
A»oug others was an extraordinarily
hapilsoine negress, who was announced
.fcoi»W«ar in a "thrillingscene of action"
i with fliQe full-grown  Bengal  tigers.
'* i Ogfv-llio   opening   night,   the   " muse-
CLERKS OP THE WEATHER.
urn" "being crowded with an eagerly
erpjfc&nt audience, tho curtain roso
upOJi a huge cage, into which Rice pro-
ce^jjea to lead the tigers, preparatory
tof ,"*3Jlaok Helen's" performance.
SctKcgly had he made his obeisance to
the^blio than ono of the ferocious
anfen^ls sprang upon him, struck him
6^ta|f"iight oheek with his left fore
pi*^ Ind fastened with his tremendous
MHifjsiupon the muscles Of his left arm.
OiK^ol-ithe attendants, also an English-
Jpshod 1,0 his assistance, armed
4fr heavy iron bar, and beat the
'.Rice walked steadily off the
ellin a swoon as soon as he
house to-night,
spunk enough to
they moaned and sighed at the destruc- j door;     the
tion that had come upon them.   Each ' the     light,
successive, flash of light coming from
the great beyond revealed a large white
house, standing silent and alone.
The storm without increased in violence.     Within   the   mansion   silence
; reigned as deep and undisturbed   as
i that which inhabits the grave.   Those
within lay quietly sleeping, unmindful
; of danger, and enjoying that sweet re-
I pose that   accompanies   a   conscience
void of offense.   There were two per-
ra Mate; jp»
what's going on in this
and, if you ain't got
go, I'll go alono."
"Well, wife, if yon will go, I'll go
■with you; you just take the light and
go ahead, and I'll keep right behind
you with this pitcher of water, and if I
see anybody I'll let fly at them."
So the solemn procession started.
Mrs. Graham held the light high above
her head, and tiptoeing along behind
came her brave husband. Cautiously
descending the stairs thc procession
wended its way to the dining-room.
Mrs. Graham bravely threw open the
A Very Pccullnr Institution.
As the weather subject is cne in
which nearly everybody takes an interest, a brief sketch regarding "Old Indicator," his subordinates and clerks, may
prove interesting to the readers of The
Ledger. It is now generally well
known that the mythical "clerk of the
weather" of earlier times has become a
modern reality. His diurnal prognostics are published at large, with varying
degrees of success and failure. A few
lines in the daily papers give, as the
result of the Bureau's deductions, a
forecast of the approaching stormy or
mild weather, and a vast number of
people, no doubt, read them with more
or Jess interest, but few imagine the
great cost to tho people of the maintenance of the Weather Bureau, as at present conducted—being a military system
entirely at variance with, and unnecessary to, the proper study and practical
utility of the science of meteorology—a
veritable hybrid. I will here mention,
briefly, the inwardness of this institution:
Within a stone's throw of the War
Department at Washington may be
seen a building with its roof decorated
with what appear to be large-sized toys,
called weather vanes, anemometer attachments, rain-gauges, etc., few of
which aro practically of any use, several
of them only furnishing meteorological
information. In this building the* so-
called Chief Signal Officer has his
headquarters, but who, while receiving
the credit therefor, has little to do with
the manufacture of weather reports and
the compilation of meteorological data,
these duties being performed by some
dozen or more military understrappers
and about 100 clerks, all of_ whom, with
one exception—that of chief clerk, receiving a salary of $2,000 per year—are
regularly enlisted for a term of five
years. These men—or slaves—are under the strictest military discipline, and
for very slight offenses are sent, as punishment, to a military fort, known as
Fort Whipple, where they are made to
do duty as soldiers. This fortification
is situated near Arlington Heights, on
the Yirginia side of the Potomac river,
about three miles distant from the Signal Office above mentioned, where men
who have enlisted into the signal corps
are initiated ancl, regaled with a taste of
,the wing,   j Profs. Von
ilievEmperpr'x' body aur-
*,  *      „   771*,       i     . V        ^.   i /u.G juijmilieu ajiii.jieK'u^u iyxiiii tb Lua.«3 ui
••summoned', ancf dressed] 8olvea for fivo years to militar^ rale,
torn     won'e     ipnnnna H /s        - - ..".....-- •* J
wero
the unfortunate man's wounds. He
was removed to Langenbeck's private
infirmary, where he received the personal and unremitting attention of
Germany's first living surgeon; but the
shock to his system was so terrible that j ^mmissioned offi^r can assume,
at last he died m great agony.   The
draught extinguished
and Graham, thinking the burglars were upon him,
threw the water and pitcher with ali
his might and started for the stairs on
a dead run, leaving his wife to follow
as best she could. The pitcher, of
course, came down; but, fortunately, it
did not come in contact with theperson
of Mrs. Graham. Bnt the water—true
to the law of gravitation—also came
down, and, unfortunately for Mrs.
Graham—as   she was attired   in   her
in great agony,
immediate cause of liis death is officially stated to be blood poisoning.
"Black Helen," whose real name is
Helen Johnson, a native of New Jersey, was also bitten by a lion during
the performance that took place on the
evening after Rice's mishap, and lies
in a precarious condition. The Berfin
police authorities have closed the "museum," and prohibited any further exhibitions of wild-beast taming within
the precincts of the German capital.—
London Telegraph.
sons in the house—the one, a man be-! evening costume—itstruck her squarely
| they lose their individuality, and
soon realize that they are no longer free
men. They are " put through a course
of sprouts" with all the rigor ancl authority a self-important and petty
*    " Woe
to him if the young man who enters
here has been pampered and fostered
and attended by loving hearts and willing hands in a refined and luxurious
home, where every little wish was anticipated and his hands allowed to
grow white and delicate, who, perchance, the late hard times have driven
to toil. He will find no kindness here,
except among chose who may bo like
himself. Ho is at once put into a
species of uniform that hangs bag-like
about his person, and all the accou ferments of war soon dangle about him.
He with others is made to scrub and
sweep out the quarters, clean spittoons,
bring water, split wood, build fires, attend daily drill, guard-mount, stand
guard and recite meteorological lessons
for diversion; and, should he rebel
the   performance   of   any   of
JJ*ARWELL BILLIARE HALL,
FARWELL, MICH.
FINEST~CIGARS,
Pure if ines, Liquors, Ales, Beer, Porter, Cider, Etc.
These desiring a pure article are invited to oall.
HENRY   NEWTON. *
GUMMERS & NEWTON,
Proprietors ofthe
FARWELL   LIVERY.
HORSES & CARRIAGES
TO  LET.    ■
Parties conveyed everywhere in this
section and vicinity.
>CG7~Terms reasonable.
J?AGLE HOTEL,
Coral, Montcalm Co., Mich.,
A. FRED GOODENOUGH, Prop,
A. Temperance House.
This is a new house, neatly furnished, convenient
to the trains, with good accommodations at rcason-
»ble prices,
GOOD UVERY ATTACMJSJO.
loved by his friends ancl respected by
his enemies; times without number
had ho placed the cup of cold water to
his neighbor's lips, and many a poor
woman, applying a fresh faggot to the
dying embers, had, with uplifted eyes
and clasped hands, prayed God to bless
him as the friend of the widow and the
fatherless.
Although he had yet scarcely reached
the top of the hill of years, Mr. Graham
had a well-established reputation for
honesty and business integrity, and a
record of wliich any man might be
proud.
Now, as our minister used to say, "I
have dashed the picture upon the canvas;" I have told you all the good
things I could about Mr. Graham, ancl
now I must say, with all his virtues, he
had his failings.
In conversation with a friend a few
days before the event about to be recorded, concerning a recent burglary,
ho said: "I do not wish to take human
life, but, let any man enter my house in
the dead of night, with the purpose and
intent of robbery, and I would shoot
him on the spot. As I said before, I do
not want my hands stained with human
blood, but I have a wife and a home to
protect, and that I will do, even at the
sacrifice of my own life. I seriously
hope, for the sake of my wife, that
nothing of the kind will happen at our
house, as sho is naturally nervous and
excitable, and I fear the shock would
be too much for her."
Perhaps, reader, in your experience
with men, you may have met with such
a character as Mr. Graham. There
were quite a number ol them around
the last time I looked. Men, you know,
who, when their neighbor comes down
in the morning and relates his experience with a burglar the night previous,
how he heard him at the blinds, and,
looking out, saw him stealing along the
side of the house, throw their
hands into their pockets, and, after
stamping around the room several
times, ask him why he didn't go right
out and grab him, remarking they'd Hke
to see fome burglar fooling around their
on  the head, and leisurely   ran  the
whole length of her body.   After groping her way back up  the stairs and
striking a light, she looked around for
her husband, but he was nowhere to
be seen.   After calling him loudly several times, he at last lifted the bedclothes from his head and asked his
wife, in  piteous   tones, if   it   wasn't
] pretty near morning.
i     Upon investigation, noxt morning, it
] was found that one of the shutters had
I become detached from   the   buildiDg,
I and the wind, blowing strongly in the
i right direction, had forced it against
I the window, breaking several of the
glasses.' This was the crash that was
i h*ard.
;     The papers, next evening, contained
j this account of the night's proceedings:
DAItING ATTEMPT AT EOBBEIiS I
The following account or tlio attempted
burglary at the reaidonee of our respected
townsmen and follow-citizeu, Mr. Graham, will
bo read wilii interest by all who havo the honor
of his acquaintance. Wo got Hub account from
I Mr. Graham himself, whom we havo .io doubt
| could truthfully magnify the facts here record-
i ed, wero it not for his modesty and his wish to
■give to tho matter no undue publicity. At
about 1!J o'clock last night, ho was awakonod
by boaring a disturbance in the room. directly'J
underneath tbe ono in which he was sleeping.
Slipping quietly from the bed, so as not to
arouse bis wife, wbo is yery nervous and excitable, he took bis revolver and started down
stairs. The t'uieves must havo heard him coming, for they wore jUBt departing through the
front door aB he cime in sight. He fired three
shots at them, and he is confident ho must have
hit ono of thom, as thero wero sovoral drops of
blood on tho stops next morning. Nothing of
value has beon missed. Mr. Graham is entitled to a groat deal of credit for tho prompt
manner in which ho acted on thia occasion, and
we will say we think if we had in our town a
few moro mon of pluck, such aa Mr. Graham,
we would have fewer midnight prowlers;
Por the first time in a good while,
Mr. Graham neglected that night to take
the evening paper home to his wife.
Kalamazoo, Mich.
A Lake Roofed with Salt.
No, it isn't frozen salt; and it isn't
under the ground. It is in summer
time, and open to the sky. And this is
the explanation:
In Siberia, where this wonder is to
be found, the summer heat is intense,
Casualties in Battle.
The battle of Torgau, fought by
Prederick the Great in 1760, is well
known to have been one of the most
murderously contested actions which
has ever taken place, but until lately no ' against
trustworthy enumeration has ever been , these, the guard-house awaits him for
given of the killed, wounded and miss-, confinement until he is ready to sub
ing on either side. In the last number
of tho Mllilar Wochenblalt, the organ
of the German general staff, carefully-
prepared tables are published of the
losses suffered by the several Prussian
regiments of cavalry and battalions of
infantry engaged, and from these it appears that tho fifty-nine battalions
which took part in tho action, and
which numbered altogether 26,000 officers and men, lost a total of 15,650 officers ancl men, or about 60 per cent, of
their aggregate effective. Iu the thirty-
nine battalions which fought under the
personal direction and immediate orders
of the King, tlie proportion of losses
j was even greater, so that, after the action, the five battalions of grenadiers
had to be formed into one battalion, the
remnants of six battalions of two other
regiments being also temporarily organized into one battalion. Of the
26,000 infantry soldiers who went into
action, 3,350 were killed, 7,956 were
wounded, and 3,130 were reported as
missiiig. As a contrast to this terrible
proportion of killed, wounded and
missing, it may bo mentioned that the
loss at Gravelotte was only one-eleventh
of the whole number of troops engaged
on both sides, at Worth and Mars-la-
Tour one-sixth, at Spicheren one-eighth,
at Koniggratz one-fifteenth only, and at
Magenta and Solferino one-eleventh.
The Doctor's 31an.
The late Dr. R. was one who could
seldom resist telling a good story, even
when it turned the laugh against himself. On one occasion a man-servant,
whom he haci recently engaged, astonished him by appearing to wait at break
fast with a swollen face and a pair of
unmistakably black eyes. "Why,
John," said he, " you seem to have been
fighting?" " Yes, master, I have," was
the reply, " And who may your opponent have been ?" " Why, sir, Dr. M.'s
man," naming arival Esoulapius. "And
what did you fall out about?" " Why,
sir, he said as you wasn't fit to clean
his master's shoes." VAnd what did
yon say ?»   » Well, sir, 1 said you was I"
mit— all this for the purpose of battling
with the elements 1   When he is considered properly drilled in the use of
the implements of war, and has sufficiently gaped and yawned over Loomis'
and other treatises on meteorology, he
! is  ready to be sent to some branch
j signal station, of which there are some
eighty or ninety scattered at various
points throughout the country.
j     The annual appropriation   for  this
peculiar service is $350,000, with occa-
I sionally an extra 850,000 for the in-
I crease ancl better efficiency of the ser-
I vice,  which latter result is never attained, and thus a few pet officers grow
fat at the public expense.
It would certainly seem that all this
pomp anil military embellishment is
decidedly superfluous to a proper maintenance and extension of the system of
weather observations and reports,
which duties could more fitly and in
better taste and policy be conferred
upon some one of the eminent
professors who thoroughly understand
the business, and whose ideas have
been borrowed by the man who has
managed, without any claim to great
knowledge cf any kind, to foist himself into the position to gratify a
hankering after military title and the
means of being regarded as a great
man. Were a professor of the sciences
in'this position he would get along
very well without all this bombast, and
save to the country many thousands of
dollars by his less pretentious and
more economic conduct of this branch
of public service. Instead of malting
men submit to the indignities at present practiced and having them undergo
a preparatory course at a military fort
at the Government's expense, his selections of assistants would be from
among those already qualified by their
knowledge of scientific matters,
and instead of a force of
400—the present standard—would
no doubt obtain better and more extensive results with one-fourth that
number of savants, for be it understood
that a very large number of the present
weather clerks are mere dolts, and thoir
weather reading not to be relied upon,
as they take no interest in the work
beyond tho drawing of their monthly
salary. At an exact moment of time,
thrice each day—morning, noon and
night—the men at the branch stations
are supposed to take accurate readings .
of tho barometer, thermometer, anemometer, etc., and telegraph their observations t» the central office at Washington for deduction, but the writer of
this article has heard of frequent cases of
" cooking" of old readings, on the
part of the assistants, to save themselves time and trouble. A sense of
bondage on the part of the privates
serving at these stations makes them
for the most part indifferent to their
duties, which they perform mechanically, having no love for atmospherical
studies.
This, we can well suppose, would be
materially different under civil management, with somo good professor at its
head, instead of a man whose highest
ambition is to be a General of the regular army.
The results of some ten years' trial
under military regime do not justify
the Signal Officer's frequent assertions
in his annual reports that no other plan
would do. Certain it is that a Bix
months' residence in a military fort,
doing military duty, cannot benefit the
men intended for scientific service.
The service has been extended, but the
weather predictions of to-day are not
more accurate than when in its incipi-
ency.
We will admit that the weather indications serve a good end—occasionally
staying a vessel from probable destruction, and telling when and when
not to carry a sunshade or umbrella, to
doff or don an overcoat—but it is not
necessary to detail officers from their
legitimate sphere and enlist soldiers to
do this vi et arinis.
BrcEPHAxtrs.
CHICAtiO, 111.
Railroad Accidents.
In his recently-published " Notes on
Eailroad Accidents," Mr. Charles Pran-
cis Adams, Jr., shows that the percentage of loss of life and of personal injuries on railroads is exceedingly small
when compared -with the amount of
travel, and that the risks of'railroad
.travel are much less than they are popu-   ■ A . '     /
to prove that if "is actualTf safer Tora "~*~""
man or his f ami .y to travel by rail than
to stay at home, thus corroborating the
saying attributed to John Bright, that
the safest place in which a man could
put himself was inside a first-class railroad carriage of a train in full motion.
During the eight years from 1870 to
1878 the whole number of lives lost in
operating the entire railroad system in
Massachusetts was 1,165, or an average
of 146 a year, whilo in Boston the recorded deaths from accidental causes
during the ten year6 from 1868 to 1878
was 2,587, or an annual average of 259.
These results show that in the city of
Boston alone the yearly number of
deaths caused by accidents was 80 per
cent. greateT than the number reported
on all the railroads of the State. This
comparison is not peculiar to Massachusetts, but may be taken as approximately accurate for other places. Indeed,
statistics were published years ago in
Prance showing that people were less
safe at home than while traveling
on the railroads. Another fact whicn
will serve to reassure the timid is,
that of the whole number of persons accidentally killed or injured on
railroads, but a small proportion are
passengers. Many of those who lose
their lives or are personally injured are
employes who are constantly exposed to
risk by virtue of their employment, and
whose familiarity with danger leads
them to be careless, and even foolhardy
oftentimes. But, as Mr. Adams shows,
the greatest and most regular cause of
death and injury in the operation of
railroads is the reckless habit of walking
on the track, which is common -with too
many people, and especially with thoso
who are more or less drunk. More
than one-third of all the railroad casualties reported in Massachusetts are classified under the head of accidents to
trespassers—that is, accidents to men,
women and children, especially the latter, illegally lying, walking or playing
on the tracks, or riding on the cars.
Mr. Adams says that the best remedy
for this dangerous practice is the system of broken-stone ballast, covering
the entire surface of the road-bed.
This has been adopted by the Pennsylvania railroad with the most satisfactory
results, though the company had other
objects in view than the discomfort of
pedestrians. The sharp and uneven
edges of the broken stone form a surface which the most inveterate railroad
tramp will shun. The adoption of this
system by other corporations would
not only give their lines the best roadbed yet devised, but would be a means
of materially decreasing the percentage
of accidental deaths and injuries.
Belfast, Me., can boast of a boy of 9
who a year or two ago pushed a little
girl into a bonfire and caused her death.
Subsequently he caused the death of his
own father by the simple process of
tying a string across a path, over which
the old gentleman heavily fell. He
died. This precocious child would
make an excellent playmate for Jesse
Pitc ersy.
Lbadville is called a young town
because its inhabitants are mostly
miners.
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