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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Exeter Times, 1892-3-17, Page 7ismswesisamtaseeaseeramemereaememeemeee- QUEER F.AOTS ABOUT RATS. their 3Voiailerfutt Tails—Their Eiate ,Bust:• went as to Ivory—ltO S with Trumpets. rat's tail is a. wonderful thing. Tho eat naturalist, Cuvier, slays that there are ore muscles in this curious appendage than to be found ill that part of the human natomy which is most admired for its in- enious structure- namely, tate hand. To ie rat, in fact, its tail serves as a sort of and, by means of which, the animal is eu- bled to crawl along narrow ledges, using it balance with or gain a hold. It is pre - ensile, like the tails of some monkeys: By eans of it the little beast can jump up eights otherwise inaccessible, employing it a projectile spring. It has often 'been said that the glove- akers' of Paris make use in their trade of ie skins of rats that are caught in the sew- rs, but this has been denied. Certainly he material would not be strong enough uceessfully to counterfeit the kid, unless it o for thumb part only, which is general - thinner and different kind of leather ae rest. estion gg has been made that a trade might be opened with the Chinese for the kins of the rata.xtich they eat. A thrifty Welshman at one time exhibited mself publicly in England attired in a cos- ume composed from top to toe of rat skins, pith he had spent three years and a half collecting. The dress was made entirely himself. It consisted of hat, neckerchief, waistcoat, trousers, tippet, gaiters, d shoes. The number errata required to. inplete the suit was 570. Most curious of he garmeuts was the tippet, composed en- irely of rat tails. At ono time a batch of several thoukand at skins was imported from France into nglancl for manufacturing purposes, but hey were found too small and too fine an oxturo to he useful. Dr. Buoltland says that many of the ole• pants' tusks brought to London for the use f workers in ivory are observed to have heir surfaces grooved into small furrows of nequal depth, as though out out by a very harp -edged instrument. This is done by ats, which are fond of the gelatine or ani - el glue in the substance. The ivory cutter elects for his purposes by preference those asks which have been gnawed in this way, emus() they are the ones which contain the ost gelatine and are therefore the best in atonal. C'uriousl, ;'+nough the trade, while giving is much recognition to the rats' work, Lee et recognized him as the author of it, the omnion belief in the business being that he ivory has been thus gnawed by alligators. ow it is imagined that alligators get a hence to chew elephants' tusks is a prob- em. Rats are remarkably intelligent animals, a may bo perceived from the difficulty that a experienced in catching them. They can taught inany tricks. Among other things is possible to make them learn how to jump through tojhl tl t ouglt a hoop, to drag a ttle cart in harness, and to carry sticks or oney. Rats R have never found f:i:vor as a delicacy r the tablein s . Europetor in this country, tit in many lands they are relished as an uto of diet. The negrot o slaves in Jamaica, d to regard rl the o as a dainty, ty, their asters not providing thein with any other eat. Their method of cooking the tooth - ,ma rodents was to impale ea eh a one on ig wooden skewer, after cleaning the ani - 1 and cutting off the tail, turning it brisk - round. over the.rue until the hair rna s all rned off: Then it was scraped until it s free from fur, and finally the end of the ewer was stuck into the ground, inclined and the lire until it was toasted dry and p, thus being shade ready for the meal. Rats may commotij be seen for sale in xnarlteta of any t,) hese town, split and seed under a heavyweight, so as to look nowhat like dried fish. In this shape the -tailed Oriental buys them, soaks them water, anti then belle, roasts, or fries ill. Vhen the French zouares were first in rico a now sort of rat trade its appearance e. It was called the " trumpet rat," ring a long proboscis. The sale of a cimen by one of the soldiers to an enthu- stic naturalist gave rise to an action at Said the plaintiff in court : This'Zouave has cheated me out of 100 nes. He knows that.1 am much interest - in natural sciences. 1 have collections Fossils, of shells, of rare animals, of curl - plants. One day he called upon tie and d : Sir, I have a kind of animal which never been mentioned by any naturalist. s a trumpet rat, and has a trunk like an pliant's. It is alive and well ; if you wish see it yea have only to conte to my se." 'I was very anxious to behold this strange mal. We arrived at his house, and he wed me in a cage an enormous rat, very ly and in good condition, which really on its nose a slender exeorescence more an inch in length. The execreseenee covered with hair like the body of the nal, with vertebrae in it, and (a most ex- rdivary thing) larger at the su minit at the base—the contrary to what it t to be in the usual course of things. onvince myself that it was not a :lupe mystification I stuck a pin into the et. The animal cried out, and a drop out) carne from the prick. The oxperi- was conclnsi){e. It was really a pet, forming part of the rat. was amazed. I asked this man if ho 1 sell his rat. He said yes, and I paid nes for it. My friends and servants dmircal it, and I was enchanted. My as a milia, some one said to me that ht to pronuro a female. I asked the cavo if he could procure me a female and hesaiid he had two. I saw them and bought one of them 50 francs. Some months .after the femalehad young. I looked at them and they had not-rnmpots. 1 said to myself,' "they will sprout." I waited ono month, two months, six months. Every day I look - ad at the noses of the rats, but the trumpets doves appeared. '‘, to a house where I go frequently I made the acquaintance of an officer who had -tiering a long time in Afrioa. I told him about my trumpet rats, ane he laughed as though his. sides would split. When ho was galmkgain he.told me that the trumpet was ;not a,?freak of nature, but an invention due to the leisure moments of.the' zouaves. This ;is ho* they make them :- . " V,ou tali.e two rats and fasten their paws to a board, the nose of one close to the tail of the other.' 'Then with A,penknife or a elancet you metro an incision into the nose of Otho rat which is hindermost and graft the tail of the first into the nose; you tie firmly the nuzzle to the tail and you leave the two rats in this position for forty-eight hours. At the end of that time the union has taken place and the rats are grown together; then you out off the tail of"the rat which is in: the front to the required length and let. them go, but still keep the other fastened to the board, with his (read loose, and give hint something to eat.' `At the • end of a ortnight the. wound is perfectly healed, and the eye of the curious investigator !would not see 1 trace of the grafting. This is the way the zouavea make rats with 1 trumpets." . , e On the r of he defendant pat t d hdant it was urged that he had certainly made up the rat as stated, but he affirmed that he had not. sold them to the plaintiff as having been "born " with trntnpets. Verdict for the zouave, Rats cause great annoyance on board of ships, Dr. Dane said that if asked what, after darkness, cold, and scurvy, were the three besetting curses of his arctic sojourn, he woad say rats; rats, rats, Nevertheless. when in distress for other food, he was very glad to eat the pests. He writes ; "Through the long winter nights flans used to beguile his lonely hours by shooting rats with bow and arrow. The repugnance of my associates to share with me this table luxury gave me frequent advantage of fresh meat soup, which contributed no doubb to my comparative immunity from scurvy." Again ho writes : "Our diet will bo only a stock of ineatbiscuit, to which I shall. add for myself a few rats chopped up and frozen into tallow balls." Bookkeeping for Farmers. it a farmer wishes to keep books only suf- ficient to show winch way he is annually drifting, he can do it with very little book- keeping, Just let hint keep track of what he owes and what others owe him. At- the opening of the year let him take an,,aaven- tory of his possessions. Place these items of property with amount of cash on hand and and all sums due him on one side of the page, and place all he owes on the other side. Strike a balance, and the difference will'show how much he is worth. Let him do exactly the same thing at the close of the year. Then a comparison of the two balance items will show now much he has lost or gained. The yearly balance -sheet alone will give thee much information, audits annual story in of the greatest importance to -.those con- cerned ; yet it can not answer'the question "Does farthing pay 't" with any satisfac- tory degree of accuracy. For instauce, a man may run a business which does not fairly pay, and yet through great economy, over-exertion, and various sacrifices crowd himself a little ahead every year. On the other hand it very frequently occurs that the one witha well -paying business, through extravagant expenditures, outside losses, accidents, moth sickness in family, or an innumerable variety of causes is compelled to close the year poorer than he began it Lt seems to tnt that this is an importautfact for that farmer to bear in mild - How he stay come out at, the close of the year is no fair indication bow mach the fariu has done for him as compared with what he has done for it, and that is the gist of the query in hand, In order to determine just ltow well the farm pays one must keep a book of purely farm accounts. It may bo done in a single book for that matter, butit must contain all the purchases and allthesales, whether cash or credit. Begin with the debtor page and write the present value of farm, stock, hay, grain, implements, etc. Aste year ad- vances place all the farm expenditures on this page. On the credit a e placeall the 1 incomes from the farts during the year. At the close of the year take an during inventory and Y place, on the credit page the newly estimated value of farm, stock, implements, etc. Now the difference between the sums of these debit and credo columna will give a fall and strictly reliable result showing the profit or loss for the year. Here will be a result for 'hicl the farm or management i �v r # itsg tent oust stand responsible. It is an excellent plan to keep an account of household and miscellaneous expendi- tures, but I would keep such account in a separate book—on different pages—and not mix them with the farm uccounts. They can then toll their story, annually, or as often as you consult them, and their..pre- sence iu the book will add Inuuh to its value, Mr. Dunham says that the glass of beer and other foolish expenditures must go on the book, and I heartily agree with him. Only I do protest against their being placed among the farm items, there to cancel their cost value of pure, clean, God-given pro- ducts from nature's bosom. Let tate beer bill have its own column, by all means, and write the figures plain and clean. It alone might solve the problem for au occasional farmer and show wherein his farming ap- parently fails t,i pay. The Necessity of Obedience- " When we refuse to obey a command we refuse to do what the Lord himself com- mands. We are to act rightly because Jesus commands us, and we love tb do his plea- sure; there can. -he no friendship without this. Oh for grace to serve the Lord with gladness. To olose this first,'point, it ap- pears that our Lord would have us obey him out of a friendly spirit. Obedience to Christ as if we were forced to doit under pains and penalties would be of no worth as a proof of friendship ; every one can see that. Ile speaks not of slaves, but of friends; he would not have us perform duties from fear of punishment or love of reward ; that which he tau accept of his friends must be the fruit of love. His will must be our law because his person is our delight. ;some professors need to be whipped to their du- ties ; they must hear stirring sermons, and attend exciting meetizigs, and live nudes pressure ; but those who are Christ's friends need ne spur but love. ' The love of Christ constra•ineth us.' When duty becomes de- light and precepts aro as sweet as promises, then are we Christ's friends, and -got till then."—[Rey. Charles ,Spurgeon. Spends One day in Bed. A famous English beauty, Lady London- derry, has a peculiar and successfully system "for keeping her youthful freshness. Al- though she is perfectly well site lies in bed one day in ten, sleeping in the morning of this day of rest until she wakens naturally. After a hot bath and a light breakfast she goes back to bed and rests quietly in a dark- ened room until 6 o'clock, when she dresses in a peignoir, dines in her room, and sits about idly nail 10 o'cibck, when she goes o bed .again. No social event is considered £ .mth oient importance to cause the lady to iVe up this periodical retirement from the urry and excitement of modern living. Equine Affeotion. A story of a remarkable instance of equine friendship comes from Portland.. One of a pair of horses belonging to the horse -railroad company was sold, where- upon his mate, a blind horse, refused to be comforted and so pined away that the general manager went to the new owner of the other steed and asked for a loan of the animal for a visitto the stable. As soon as this horse was put in his old stall the blind horse showed signs of great delight and at once began to recover his .appetite and his health. The owner of the other horse, see- ing the love of the blind one for his friend, bought him, too, and now drives down town with. a span. OSINESE PU,NTS.MENT8. The UrUnlu►al tiet', Lttt o Favor and Itis 'trail 1. Hot polatg•od. According to Chinese •Tapers, the' exeoty tionet s sword has been busy intFlowery Kingdom lately in order to frighten. world be conspirators fhom engaging in the rebel- lion which has broken out against the reign - nig dynasty. A recent issue of the Ostasia- tisaher Lloyd oontains a vivid description of the manner of administering Chinese jus- tice iu the eases of political criminals. Before the end of the present uprising Many men, in all probability, will suffer death at the hands of the State, for daring to oppose the government of his Imperial Majesty. " When a person," says the newspaper, "is taken prisoner, charged with treason or rebellious conduct, he is b•iund in chains and placed in. what is called a prisoner's cage—'Tsch'in lung.—and carried to the office of the nearest district judge. During the transport his tortures depend in great part upon the will of theguards, as they may remove the chains, give him good and wholesome food, and allow him to sit down or lie down in his cage. In case the prison- er be disobedient, or if Itis crime be thought especially heinous, both hands and Ie'et are loaded with chains, and he is allowed only sufficient food to keep him alive for future torments. '' 1t is seldom that any ono who appears in a criminal court in suoh a cage is allowed to go fret, although he is always treated in a fashion that inspires him with hope, As soon as ho enters the gates of the court- house the guards deliver him to the assist- ants of the judge before whom he is to be tried. They take him from the cage and conduct him to au inner hall containing a table, upon which are tempting viands and intoxicating drinks. The assistants invite hint to eat, drink, and be merry, and com- mand the waiters to do his every bidding. The invitation is accompanied by tiro gate- keeper's congratrdations upon the man's safe arrival at his destination, as well as EXPRESSIONS OF REGARD for his welfare. if the prisoner has hotoe of future freedom he often eats a hearty meal, but if he has no such outlook he usually begs permission to rest awhile. After &few hours he is againapproached byonooftheas- sistants who received him upon his arrival. The assistant's lieutenants again place chains upon the prisoner and take him be- fore the judge. " In time of peace no sentence of death can be oxeeutod without three trials or judicial examinations. The first is held be- fore the distriet judge, the second before the erefect, and the third before the pro- vincial judge or the Governor of the pro- vince to which the criminal belongs. As soon as the sentence of death has boon pro- nounced for the third time by the third and last judge the crimminal is incarcerated and chained by the feet to the finer of the prison. Thus he remains to the day of his execution. " The number of days, weeks, or months which intervene between the sentence and its executione ends upon the season. Ac- cording to Chinese law criminals in time of peace can bo executed only during the third month of t If a man is sentenced to autumn. death in September he must ust be beheaded before Nov; 30 ; if in November, the execu- tion is immediate, but if the seutonce is made in December ho remains in prison un- til the following autumn. In the days of rebellion or sedition, as at present, this law is inactive, tive andthe oto man can be dis- posedc doomed posed of at once. "\Vhen the day of execution arrives the judge visits the prisoner and orders his chains removed. An elaborate dinner is spread for him and he is invited to all that he wishes. This 'execution meal' has vari- ous sign fications. It is intended to prove that the headsman is not unfriendly to the criminal, and is only the tool of the supreme power. It is also looked upon as a viaticum to facilitate the entrance of the spirit to the invisible world; the LACI WORDS OF TUE MADMAN' to the criminal being : 'Eat until thou art satisfied, that thou mayst appear in hades as a shade well nourished." The Chinese also believe that the meal prevents the re- appearance of the dead in this world as a hungry spirit. "After the meal the hands of the criminal are fastened behind his back. Fastened tohis back is also a light pole, eight or ten feet long, bearing a small white flag with the name of the doomed man and his crime in blas'.: or red colors. The end of the flag falls upon the criminal's head. Thus cap- arisoned he is led or carried in a basket to theplace of execution, a large open field be- yond the city walla, and as near the north gate as possible. " As soon as the procession with the pris- oner arrives at its dostinaticn the criminal is taken to the center of the field. Guards and assistants surround him and co-,timand hitt to fall upon his knees. The headsman approaches the doomed man from behind, removes the flag, and strikes the fatal blow which severs the head from the body. The officers then disperse. " In cases where the beheades' man has committed no crime against the State his relatives can claim the body. As a rule, a shoemaker is present to sew the head to the body, and to prepare it for burial by the kinsmen. But this favor is never ac- corded to political criminals. The bodies of suvlt men are thrown into a hole, or open grave, whore they become the prey of birds and beasts. The beads are placed in bas- kets, and later spiked upon long poles. In that coudition they are planted at the west or north gate of the city, to serve as warn- ings to all men who think of rebelling against the mild rule of the ' Son of Heaven."' Value of a Woman's Tears... There is no subject oti which so much that is sentimental, brutal, unkind, tender, sarcastic, and appreciative as a woman's tears has been written. Adjectives the most various have been used to express the qualities of tears. slArhey have been called hot," " cold," " languid," " briny," „ ""round,",c ,' " " «gushfna, «�� glittering," dull, silent, wearied, wanton, and I know not what else. They are waves of emotion, and as a general expression they are said to spring always from the heart— en expression singularly trut hful, for no one ever wept from the head; that is, no one ever reasoned himself or herself into tears except through an appeal back to emotion. Tho poets have dealt with. what may be considered from their point of view, chemis- try of tears. They have written about "salt tears," " crystal tears," "poisonous tears," "honeyed tears," and the like. They are to some extent correct in their poetic guesses. Tears are saline, for they carry a trace of the chloride of sodium' or common salt, which exists in the blood ; they may, be poisonous, for in persons under the influence of a solhable poison, like a salt of antimony, they may convey an infinitesimal part of such poisonous material; they may be honeyed, for in diabetes the tears do .sometimes become saccharine, like the other fluid secretions. y asesseguinurseiniass- But this sort of thing is exceptional. In a general way, roars are made u of pure water holding a trace of saline matter and nothing more; the glands which secrete them are tiros, purest wells of pure water in the body. Tears are the result of' a• nervous storm in the central nervous system, under which there is such a change inthe vascular terminals of the tear secreting glands that the excretion of water from the glands is profuse. Some excretion is always in progress, in order that the surface of the eye may be lavedand cleared of foreign matters which may come in contact with it, but the controlling center is at a distance. As the muscular power that extends or flexes a finger is at a distance from the part moved, so the excitement to tears is from an irritation in a distant nervous center, and is removed when the nervous center is either soothed or exhausted. The persona who weep say that tears afford relief. Noth. ing is more perfectly true, nothing more clear, when the facts aro understood. The relief comes not frons the mere escape of tears, which is only a synipton, but from the cessation of the storm in the nervous chain. If the storm be calmed by soothing meas• tires, as when we soothe a child that is weeping from fear, annoyance, or injury, we quiet the nervous centers, upon which the effect ceases. In children the soothing method succeeds, and sometimes it succeeds in adults, although in adults the cessation of tears is more commonly due to actual ex- haustion following a period of nervous ae. tivity. But after absorbing all this varied and: abstruse information the only thing an average woman thinks &boat her tears is that they are a greater relief than a cup of tea, and chattiest potent argument she owl employ. A Dialogue in February. "Good -morrow little maiden, The day is bright," said he ; "Good -morrow, little gentleman, The -mouth is cold," said she. " Wiil you come and !march for posies Beneath tho snow ?" said he ; " I'd rather wait till May time. When snow i, gono," said s11o. "But all the lads and lasses Can And the rose," said he ; "Some other shyor blossom. Wore best for you and me." "Will you not 00100 to gook it. Shtca spring is nigh 1' said ho; "I think, 111 lot you bring mo What you can find," said she. "There is aentle mesconger, St. Valentine,"'said he "I'll send him with tate blossoms, If you will smi'e on me. "Tho saint of all true lovers, You'll welcome him,"said he: “Perchance he'll cheat the winter, And bring the spring," said she. —(Louise Chandler Moulton. Hunting a Olorioal Forcer. Thomas Williamson,' who is wanted in Canada for forgery and who has been ' ar- rested several times and released on vari- ous legal quibbles, has been located at Reno, Nev. Detective Rogers of the Canadian Secret Police has gone there to arrest nim. Several years ago, while preaching at Elmi- ra, Ont., Williamson also acted as cathier of the onlybank in the place. Hespeculated lostMho money of depositors, and finally, ac- cu muiatiin w 103,ODUby forgery, e rY , led to the 'United States in Octabor, I810. He was traced and arrested near Virginia City, Nev., but crawled out through a hole in the extradition at and paper titp gotaway. Other ar- 1 rests in California and a\"'ovada proved quite as unsuccessfttL Once when a Sherrill' cap- tured the spiritual financier at a ranch in Nevada, the prisoner excused himself to chanty° his clothes, jumped out of a window and took to the woods. Detective Rogers carried extradition paper with him and hopes to get Williamson across the line into Canada, When Baby was sick, wo weber Castoria. When she was a Child, she cried for Castoria. When she became buss, sbe clung to Castoria. When she had Children, she gavethem Castorio, OON8UMPTWN1 I bays a positive remedy for the above disease; by its use thousands of cases of the worst kind and of long standing have been cured.. Indeed so strong 1s my faith In its efficaoy, that I will send TWO BOTTLES FREE, with a VALUABLE TREATISE on thle disease to any sufferer who will send mo their EXPRESS and P.O. address, ' T, A. SLOCUM, M. C., 186 / DELAIDE ST., WEST, TORONTO, ONT. -ixETER LumBER The undersigned wishes to inform th3 Pablic in general LAtxt 11 keeps constantly in stock all 'binds of ' BUILDING MATERIAL Dreg ed. o " 1723.dree ed„ PINE AND HEMLOCK LUMBER, SHINGLES A,,SPECIALTY 00,000 XX and XXX Pine and Cedar Shingles now in'. stook. A call solicited and satisfaction gum:anted, OR"DIONEY REFUNDED. CURED IN 20 MINUTES o f Alpha Wafers Purely Vegetable, Perfectly Harmless and Pleasant to Take. li?orSale by all Druggists. PRICE 20 Cts QgC . AO"t s \$(2. 0 til � ♦ 0� �Q�5�1• cpi ��ro1L e t:oz O� X10 �C� e,� 4Sa , t SkS° o O � � 't�10 .te,r0� . 5 `S��• s'�a ' �' ��S �~ oma' •S 4o� ."1qi1� Osie et tav $t' Purchasers should look to the Label on the Boxes and Pots. If the address is not 688, OXFORD 8T,, LONDON, they are sptizcae. Aan,NOT aBur ative Medi eine. gThey aro 1t snoop Bumuno Toslo and.`:... nv aTntieTon, as'the) Supply in &condensed Yore the substances actually needed to on lch the stood, curial, 11 diseases corning from Poon and tVAT .nr 2iLo oD, or from VITLtTi:D Buggers lo the Boon, and also invigorate ane Boum vita the Bnoon and SYSTEM, When br'Olten down by overwork, mental worry.disoase excesses luta ineisere- tions. They have a SPECIFIC Aczxo?I on the SEXUAL Srsrr•.at of both Dien and women, rostoring LUST VIGOR. and correcting in. Iialir•:OULARSTIEa anti SUPPRESSIONS. EVERY MAD Mioiludsbtsinontalfac his physical powers llaggiug,sliouid tmkt) tuese Pitts. They wDl restore his lost energies, both physical and mental. ICIAE'1� Ei!4tft[tAlb4�! should take them. Its ns. li'iiNBRtlo$R3 T1 it cure all anli- p1'ossioua Dud hrravuiar'tios, Which inevitably entail sickutas when ne lcctea. Ysta0 1!i 911 Fat; EN should take those Pmzs. 9 �9 G19�1 �8 tle Thoy wtlI euro the re- sults of youthful ba_d habits, and strengthen the system. �Q��f►py'1 �1F9 shenld tele them. fl9 H5 dl fF9.�_ Tlxoaa Puts will make thorn regular. For sale by all druggists, or win be sent upon receipt of price(5C :. i•er to•t'. n.• ail'razing TSE Jt. 112.L.7..L4.:..s' . x;P. t' BY USING Dr. Morse's Indian Root Pills .;� THEY are the Remedy that the bounteous hand of nature has provided for all diseases arising from IMPURE BLOOD . 4,,.. orse's aro a sure cure for illi.;. ES ESii. ILE41'DA('5IE. 1\D1GEt TION, 3.311'scsa COOMMA.1.1'T, DI:SPELT. PsisSIL. Eta. Etc. FOR SALE BY ALL DEALERS W. D. CDMSTDCK, e555enPILLE, ©NT. M8RRISWW;I, N.?, DR. T. c'J 'USE IT. FOR Difficulty of Breathing. Tightness of the Chest. Wasting away of i 1esh. Throat Troubles, Consumption. Bronchitis, Wea,h Lungs, Asthma, Coughs. Catarrh, Colds. 9 s Oxygenized Emulsion of Pure • .0. • For TASTELESS Sale by all Dru S • •c. • gists LABORATORY, TORONTO; TO; , 1