ESTABLISHED 1800.
Volume LXXXVII.
DISAPPOINTMENT.
A raindrop fell on a shoreward wave:
It laughed as it dimpled amid the spray;
The kindred bosom but formed a grave
To hide that ralndrop forever away.
A violet sprang in the stars of a night,
It boasted an azure cheek in the dew,
it knew not what would come with the light;
For the morning broke with a heaven of blue.
A brooklet fell from a mountain cave, -
And murmured a song to the brake gover'd
- ' shore— ‘
It joined the great river with turbulent wave
And the song of that brooklet was heard no
more.
Oh! I sighed with the wind when it crept by- the
door—
With the mild summer winds. and counted
them cares;
Ohlthc winds have grown wild and murmur no
more
And the long ago sighs have turned into tears.
—Hubert T. Houston in The Earth.
THE ‘MAN AND THE- AX.
On one of the last evenings of the year just
clmed M. Antoine Redoux, one of the most
justly esteemed citizens of Paris and ex-
mayor of one of the towns of central France,
found himself in Baker street. London. Fifty
of age, fat and jovial, carrying his
heart in his hand—but practical enough in
busine- affairs—this worthy head of a family
and true social example did not escape. more
than others from certain imaginary illusions,
when he was alone and vis-a-vis with the
inner man, that sometimes frequent the brain
of the steadiest business man. According to
alienists these brains—outside of businm
matters—belong to a mysterious world, whose
creations are often fantastic. If, then, it
happened that M. Redoux, when in the sedu-
sion of his ofilce, let his mind go astray with
some of those strange and troubled fancies, of
which he never spoke a word, the mania he
allowed himself to pet, be it larky or melan-
choly, very soon became despotic and
tenadous to the point of clamor-
ing for realization. Master of him-
self, however, he could dissipate the mania
with a profound sigh, when the least incident
of real life come with its ahocktoawaken
him from these morb'xl attacks,- which had
never proven very serious. But‘ for a long
time this circumspect man had been onhis‘
guard against this: 'weaknem, and had.been
obliged to govern himself according tothe
regulations of the strictest regimeto evade
exciting emotions that might put him astride
hishobby horse. Above all, he drank very
littlel On this particular evening. M-‘Rc-
doux, having well dined—without his usual
prudence—at the house of a merchant," with
whom, along with the dessert, he had cor.-
cluded a most advantageous aflair, the object
of his journey to London, did not perceive
that the insidious fumes of port, sherry, ale
and champagne had altered a trifle the sus-
ceptibility of his lucidity. He was returning
to his hotel at an early» hour, when he no-
ticed that a heavy fog, mixed with a driz-
zling rain, was falling. ~
He sought refuge under a doorway, which
happenedto be the entrance of the famous
Tnssaud museum. To avoid a cold, and to
find a comfortable shelter, as well as to kill
time while satisfying curiosity, the ex-mayox
of oneof the towns of central France threw
away his cigar and ascended the stairs lead-
ing to the wax salons. 0n the threshold of
that long hall where stood. in improbable im.
mobility, this strange gallery of personages,
diversified in costumes and most of them
wearing crowns, all like ponderous fashion
plates of centuries past, M. Redoux felt a
thrill passthrough, him. An object caught
his vision. Though quite in the back it
seemed to dominate the entire hall from the
platform of the “chamber of horrors.” It
was the old instrument which, according to
sufficiently serious documents, had been used
inFrance for the execution of King Louis
XVI. At this sight. and informed by
the programme of the true origin of
V the apparatus, the excellent citizen,
always liberal in his political opinions, and,
thanks to the profitable day just ended, felt
himself disposed with generosity toward the
king martyr. Setting aside all opinions and
ready to blame any excesses, he felt his heart
growing tender toward the august victim,
whose memory this grave specimen of histori.
cal tools had evoked. Honest and intelligent,
the temperament impresionable, where the
emotions magnified quickly, M. Redoux
scarcely honored with a brief look the crowd
of wax figures resplendent in-gold, silk, pur-
ple and pearls. Moved by the stronger im-
pression of that guillotine and thinking of the
great drama past, he chose the neighborhood
of the platform .where stood" an approximate
likeness of Shakespeare and sat himself to
meditate. Genial naturesbecome expansive
under any kindof emotion. The ex-mayor
of the central town of France noticed a vis-
itor sitting near him—French, no doubt, if he
was to judge by appearances—who, like him-
self, had fallen intoabrown study. He turned
toward him, and to feel his ground let drop
afew remarks as to “the impression almost
sad that this sinister machine caused, inde-
pendent of one‘s political beliefs.”
But gazing more closely at his neighbor, the
excellent M. Redoux stopped short, rather
vexed. for he had discovered that for some
two minutes he had been addressing one of
those shamvlsitors- that the administration
places on the benches destined for living ones.
At this moment a loud voice warned the
visitors that the hour for closing had come.
The chandeliers were rapidly extinguished,
and the last of the curious. as though loath to
leave, threw a summary look on the fantas-
tic'surroundings as if wanting to preserve a
souvenir of the general aspect.
M. Redoux’s unrequited expansion and the
morbid excitement of his first impression-
suficiently unhedthy—had transformed his
feelings into a mania of unaccustomed in-
tensity. It was more—it wasadark hobby
that shook its bells until the sound had pen-
etrated the inmost recesses of his brain. The
idea of resistance forsook him.
“Ah;” thought he, “to experience—without
danger—those terrible sensations, so terrible,
that must have assailed the good King Louis
XVI before this fatal plank! To be in imag-
ination the king himself I To hear the rolling
, of thedrun: and to listen to thelsstcom-
farting we of. the Abbe Edgeworth de St.
Firmoutl And to speak out one’s treasures
cf moral generosity! And to indulge in the
luxury of pitying (very sincerely, all political
opinions apart) this worthy father of a fam-
ily; thisman toogood, too generous indeed,
toofuliof allthosequalitissthat” " ‘* ‘I
M. Redoux recognized as a partof hisown
nature.” “What glorious minutes to pass!
What sw'e'et tears to shed!" But to accom—
plish this he must be alone before the guillo-
tine, wherejn secret, without being seen, he
could give himself up with full liberty to the
enjoyment of that flattering and moving
soliloquy. But how to doitI
Such was the strange 'msnia disturbing the
brain of the honorable M. Redoux, already a
little excited by the wines of France and
Spain. He looked attentively at the two
posts of the scaflold,thetopof which was
covered on this particular evening with a
green baize hood, which concealed from view
thewfstal knife—a precaution, no doubt,to
prevent a shock to persons of an over-sensi.
five nature. This time the mania insisted -
‘ ' CH. .
. “Bravo! 1 have itl” be murmured. I have
my matches. A single gas jet will light the
tragic scene. Then a call, and the door will
be opened. I willexplsin that I fell asleep
and give the boys half guinea. It is quite
worth it?” ‘ ‘ ‘
The room was . already in shadows. A
workman’s lantern .on the platform burned-
dimly. iTh’e tinsel, the crystals and silks
threw .a shining note in the dullness. Pres-
ently he heard footsteps; it was one of the
porters coming toward him in the Shakes-
peare alley. Giving a look at his neighbor,
M. Redoux took suddenly an immobile pose.
The gesture he chose was that of one offering
apinch of snufi. His broad brimmed hat,
his ruddy hands, his sleek face and half
closed eyes, the plaits in his long overcoat;
all his person, still and breathless, seemed to
add one more to the sham visitors, so much so
that in the almost total obscurity the porter,
in paming M. Redoux, thought no doubt that
it was a new acquisition of which the admin-
istration had not warned him, gave him a
few light strokes with a feather duster and
passed on. The next moment the doors were
closed. M. Redoux, triumphant, could at
last realize one of his funcim, alone in the
blue darkness of the wax parlor. Groping
his way on tiptoe, passing those vague kings
and queens, he reached the platform and
slowly ascended the steps leading to the lugu—
brious machine. The collar in wood was vis-
a-vis the entrance of the hull. Redoux closed
his eyes in order torecall more vividly the
and scene, and large tears were not slow to
trickle down his cheeks. 'He thought of the
tears of old Malesherbes, charged with the de-
fense of his king before the national conven-
tion—tears that were his only defense.
“Unfortunate monarch!” sobbcd Redoux.
“How well I understand what you have suf-
fered! But from your infancy you were led
astray! You were the victim of a necessity
, of the times! I pity you from the bottom of
my heart! As fathers of families, we under-
standeachother. Your crime was tohave
beenakiug; mine to have been a mayor!”
And the too‘sensitive manufacturer, a. little
haggard, added in broken awents, and with
a gesture as if offering support to some one: .
“Courage, your majesty? Remember that i
an ODE-flail” - .
Then looking at the plank he touched ifs
spring.
“To think that he was stretched there,”
said the excellent man. “Yes, We were very
nearly of the same figure, so it appears, and .
he must have had the same embonpoint as I.
Pretty solid work this guillotine, and well-
put together. Oh, what were, what'must
have been, that is to say, his supreme
thoughts when once stretched on this plank!
In three seconds he must have reflected on
centuries! "Let us see. The executioner Is
not here. “Thy should I not stretch my-
self there—just a little—to know, to experi-
ence morally”—
After this mental invitation the worthy M.
Redoux took a resigned expression, quasi-
sublime. inclined forward, slowly at first,
then little by little, stretched himself on the
movable plank, so successfully indeed that
he could with ease contemplate the two half
moons of the gaping collar.
“There. Let us stop here and meditate.
What agony he must have felt?" -
And he wiped his eyes with his handker-
chief. Redouxtoinstall himself more com-
fortably made a light movement of the body
which pushed the sliding plank even with
the collar piece. This chance movement en-
couraged the ex-mayor to make the illusion
more perfect, and he leaned his neck onrthe
half moon.
“Ah, poor king! I understand and I
lament," murmured good M. Redoux, “and
itis a consolation to know that once here
suffering is not of long duration.”
As he made It movement toraise himself
he heard by his right car a light, dry crack.
Crrrickl Itwas the other half moon, shaken
by the agitation of M. Redoux, slipping
in its place and imprisoning the head of
the manufacturer. The honorable M. Re-
doux was uncomfortable under this sensa-
tion, and twisted himself right and left.
But in vain; he was caught in theltrap, and
how was he to find the secret to liberate him-
self.
A singular thing: The little incident had
sobered him. Then without transition his
face became the color of plaster, and his
blood ran through his arteries with terrible
rapidity. His eyes rolledss if under the
action of vertigo, his body became like ice
and his teeth chattered. In the midst of his
hallucination agleam of light assured him
that there was no danger, since there was no
executioner. But it had just struck him that
seven feet above him hung that fatal knife,
a hundred ipounds in weight, that the wood
was worm eaten, the springs worn, and that
by moving his body be exposed himself to
the danger of touching the button that would
cause the knife to descend. Then his head
would r0].l at the feet of these wax phantoms
who now seemed to him a terrible audience,
for the reflection of the lantern on all those
figures gave vitality to the, impossibility.
They were looking at him; this crowd with
glazed eyes seemed to wait. .
“Help!” hegasped, but he did not dare to
say it again'for'l’ear the vibrations might
push the button. And this fixed idea wrink-
led his livid brow, drew his generous jaws,
and caused his craniumtotingle. Inthe black ,
silence and before the hideous absurdity of
such a death his hair and heard beganto
whiten gradually. Minutes aged him like
years. At the sudden cracking of the timber
he fainted. Two hours after, when he had
recovered himself, the cold appreciation of
his situation caused him to enjoy a. new kind
of torture. till the grating of a mouse gnaw-
ing the wood caused him to faint again. On
Opening his eyes he found himself, half
dressed, in one of the armchair-s of the mu-
seum, surrounded by porters and workmen,
who were rubbing him with hot rags and
making him take stimulants. '
“Chi" he muttered, with a haggard look
at the guillotine. “What a dream! What a
night under that terrible knife!” Then, in a
few words, he told the story. “But, sir," re-
plied onc of the porters, the same one that
had dusted him the evening before, “you
alarmed yourself without reason.”
“Without reason?" painfully articulated
Redoux, his throat still store.
“Yes; the collar piece has no springs, and
it was the joints that made the noise that
frightened you. And as to the knife”—
Here the porter mounted the steps of the
platform and raised from its perch the green
baize hood; it was empty.
“Two days ago it was taken to be repaired.”
At these words M. Redoux stood on his legs
and shook himself as if to test their solidity.
Then catching a glimpse of himself in one of
the mirrors he saw that he had aged ten years
He gave in silence—this time with sincere
tears—three guineas to his liberators. That
done, he took his ‘ hat and left the museum.
Once in the street he directed his steps toward
hishotel, took his valise and departed that
evening for Paris. His first care was to have
hishair and beard carefully dyed before go-
ing home, where he never spoke a word of his
adventure.
But in the high position which he couples
in one of the houses he will not allow himself
even in fancy tosympathizs with the opposiio
party. He is not likely to forget that lament-
able night, and if one of the honorable memo
hers declared that princes are notto be pitied,
whatever befall them, M. Redoux ' would
fine and change the conversation—E. B.
AN EM BARRASSED ENGLISH MAN.
He Complains of Persecution—Mistaken
for an Anglomaninc Yankee.
“I am subject to one form of persecution in
this countryf’ said an Englisman to me the
other day, “which I find quite intolerable,
though I can’t in the least blame my persecu-
tors. You know I speak quite like an Eng-
lishman, naturally, and conduct. myself quite
like one, as a matter of course. Really, inas»
much as I’ve been on this side only a month,
you see, and am going 'home in another
month. it would hardly be worth my while to
attempt to masterthe accent and manners of
the country, don’t you know.
“Now, I’m not in the least unwilling to be
taken for an Englishman; that I am proud of,
infact. But Phanot taken for an English-
man, and there’s the disagreeable feature of
the thing. I’m constantly taken, don’t you
see, for an Anglomaniac Yankee. a beastly
cad whose native country isn’t good enough
for him, and who caricatures us~in a wild at:
tempt to imitate us. To be taken for an
Irish dynamiter or ' a Russian Nihilist would
be a comparative compliment.
“The other day I called on a friend in the
city to whom I had a letter. and as he wasn’t
in I fell into-a little parley with. the young
men in the outer omce about his ‘retu'ru and
the like. Then I sat down in the inner ofiice
to wait a bit for him. , Presently I heard,
over the half partition, oille the young men "
say softly to his companion, with an’imita-
tion of my accent:
“ ‘Bah Jove! not,bad,_don’t youknowl Is
it natural or ’acuu'iredl’
“ ‘Painfully ncquiahed, deah boy—painfully
acquiahed,’ said the other.in the same tone.
“ ‘Cahn’t be done in a day, dosh boy,’ he
went on. ‘There‘s Beverley Cndley, don‘t
you know, who comes in here sometimes to
boah the governor; took him one and twenty
mouths—yam, three and twenty months-to
acquiah his accent. This hasn’t been carried
to the supehb perfection that Cadley’s has;
not at all, my boy; but he’ll mobster it in a.
yeah or two, don’t you know, with perse-
verance.’ ' ‘ -
“All this with “indescribable clipping o
consonants and vowels made with the teeth—
really very clever, you know. Then I heard
a maddening chuckle from the two. This is
very much the sort of treatment that I get
everywhere. Sometimes men look as if they
. were really going to kick me, until they learn
that I’m really an Englishman, and then
they’re the best and most cordial fellows in
the world. Really, it's very natural to treat
me so, but it’s deucedly unpleasant to be
made odious in ”a strange land byaset of code,
don’t you know.”-—Bostou«Post.
Copyright in Clippings.
An important case in regard to the right of
newspapers and journals inserting, without
permission. clippings from other papers has
recently been decided in England. The pro
prietor of The Builder newspaper applied for
an injunction against The Brick, Tile, and
Builders’ Gazette to-restrain the latter p'a‘per
copying articles, aways, notes and other
matter. Mr. Justice Stirling, on the submisi ,
sion of the defendants that the motion should '
be treated as the trial of the; oction, gave
judgment, granting a perpetual injunction in
terms of the writ and a reference as to dams:
. As affecting paste and scissors editing,
and the wholesale unacknowledged s'tealage
of items that has hitherto gone on‘ unchecked,
this is perhaps one of the most important
actions in connection with literary copyright
yet decided—The Journalist.
There is a reason for employing French on
the modern bill of fare which {is quite prac-
tical. It is that there are many culinary
processes and arrangements and combinations
of food for which no English definitions can
be found. The French, having for many gen-
erations pursued the art and science of cook-
cry with ardor and succem,‘ have, as is always
the case in such undertakings. gz'adually
evolved a terminology of the kitchen. This
has no analogies in English, because the Eng-
lish, though possessing ‘ always a robust
dietary, and though in their former colonies
developing a refinement beyond , the tutelary
skill, have never attained the complexity and
nicety of discrimination and combination de—
veloped in France. From these facts it re-
‘ sults that unless many'Frenchdishes are
describedin French words they can not be
described at allJ—The Argonaut.
. . ' m ~
Written jbr thc Glzx'rru.
NEURASTHEN IE.
I'll! MALADY OF THE AXIX. CENTDIY.
Mxonstur, the French philosopher, says
in his works, there are several centuries
characterized by certain diseases, as the
XIII. by leprosy, and thcensuiug century
by thedcvastations of pestilence. If that
assertion is true, the XIX.century may be
called the “Century of Neurastheuie," be-
cause ueurasthenie, or nervousness, is the
disease characterizing It. . .
In fact it is very tempting to call the
.XIX. the nor-mu century. At the present
‘ time when steam power is governing the
whole world, when everything is done
with the greatest haste, the,“humau cn-
,giuc." also, especially its motor, the
nerves, is overtaxed. The combat for ex.
isteuce, although carried on in a higher
degree of perfection than in the past, is
more energies], in all its details Ingaging
excessively all forces of human organism,
and straining especially the faculties of
thinking and feeling, conceiving, inquir-
ing and considering; briefiy, exhausting
all capabilities of the nerves. Is-it,thcre-
fore, astonishing that the "human engine"
is worn out so quickly, and that the energy
of the nervous system is exhausted so
easily ?
The demands of the schools, increasing
from year to year and claiming, as it were,
every inch of the physical and intellectual
strength of the child. do not- always regard
Therefore the surprising results of the
schools are followed by the shadow of
great debilitation of the nerves. ~a fact
which is very deplorable. Youth is fol-
lowed by years of labor, when the profes-
sion of the man, and the competition in
gaining a livelihood and fortune, straiutbe
nerves as well; as the social life with its
chase afterrefined cnjoymeuts, leads to
an extreme irritability and fatigue of the
whole nervous organism. '
The modern education of girls also,
overburdeuiug their mind with the un-
necessary study of science, and neglecting
too much It eir physical development,
elects the nerves. Of course, when hese
girls, by and by, become wives and
mothers, such a successive overactiou of
the nerves must show its consequences-
a new generation with inherited and in-
nate nervousness.
But what is nervousness or neuras-
theuie?
Nervousness is] called that abnormal
condition of the nervous system which is
characterized essentially by an exalted
irritability and a depressed energy of the
nerves. It is not our purpose 1.. give a
description of the subtle and distributed
system of the nerves; neither a detailed
account of the brain and spinal cord func-
tions; nor will we describe in what man-
ner the activity of consciousness, thought,
feeling and will is established; neither
will we explain the voluntary and involun-
taryactions; neither the functions of or-
ganic or vegetative life; and the only fact
we will mention is that these actions re-
sult from the excitability of the nerves.
shown by irritations and impressions, viz:
stimulations applied at the" centres or
origins of the nervous system, or sensa-
tions perceived through external objects
at the distributed extremities of .the mind
and sensitive nerves. It is clear that if
the nerves are to be excited by these irri-
tations in a normal manner and suitable
to their functions. the nutrition of the
tissue or substance of them must be a
a regular one; otherwise their endowment
will suffer damage. If the nerves are
supported insumciently their normal irri-
-tability will increase, as the first conse-
quence which will he: usually observed;
if the support of them is continuously in.
sufficient, the irritability or nervous force,
as-it is also called, will be depressed and,
under circumstances, even interrupted
and paralyzed.
There are several causes by which the
process of nourishing the nerves may be
dlminuted; several of which we will here
enumerate, namely, the impoverished con-
dition of the blood. the derangement of
the digestive functions in consequence of
disease, excessive functional activity
of the nerves, frequent irritations
with no rest necessary, to repair the
waste of nervous activity; in 'short,’
every unsuitable manner of living. There-
fore you will find nervousness a companion
of levers and chronic diseases, and attack-
ing both sexes, though more frequently
the tender sex in consequence of the more
tender constitution. You also will observe
that ueurasthenie is found more frequent-
ly in the large cities. and in the higher
classes of society, because the nerves of
the laborers and farmers—luckily for
them—do notvplay a predominating role
in their occupations.
Neurasthenie—attacking mankind even
many thousand years ago, although not so
frequently as at the present day—is shown
by various signs and symptoms, depend-
ing upon the only fact that: the nervous
system has been excited, quickly and in a
high degree.by a Series of little irritations,
which, seemingly inconsiderable, debili-
tate so much its powor of resistance, that
nervous energy must be fatigued or even
exhausted and wasted. It is evident-that
the nervous system debilitated by such
attacks will be unable to endure any attack
of illness, and hence nervousness will be-
come the origin of the numerous varieties
of nervous and mental diseases.
Nervous persons are known already by
their appearance and. conduct. The ex-
sited irritability and sensibility always
shown by them; the physical and intcl-
lectuai restlessness characterizing these
persons; the vicissitude of feeling and
willing, are symptoms of nervousness not
to be doubted. Such persons are unable
to remain for any length of time quietly
in one place; they like a change in their
occupations and recreations; they get cx-
cited and become angry through little
provocation,
emotion; they are ill-humored, and, as
the poet says, “They shout for joy and
are precipitated to the-depths of grief in
one minute."
The high irritability appears in the var-
ious branches of the nerves. Nervous
- persons complain ‘of vehement head.
ache, dullness, pains in the eyes, specks
before them, dizziness, noises in the ears,
strange smellings, piercing pains in the
back, limbsumuscles and bones. Through
medical examination, however, you will
not find any organic... disorder .by: which,
explicable. .On1that account the com-
panions of these persons do seldom sym.
pathize with them, and' often the phy-
sicians, too, will not listen to such comé
plaints. Not being understood these
complainers arc pitied at first, by and by
they will tire their companious’and at last
become an object of mockery; a fact
which is very unrighteous, because ner-
vous people do not "imagine" the dis-
agreeable and painful sensations ;, they
really do feel them. In consequence of
the heightened irritation of the brain and
all the nerves-,—foliowing, as it is said, the
neurastheuieéLnervous sufferers are often
taken with feelings of anguish and fear of
impending danger, and such sensations
and. seize the whole mind, so that it oft-
times will be very diflcult to discern,
whether insanity has not already taken
pulsessiou of the mind. .
the delicate organism of thejuvenile body..
regretting quickly theis
as it were, the “storm of pain” might be .
appear at the slightestoccasions, increase
An Enterprising Republican Journal, especiallydevoted to Local News and Interests.
,NORWALK, CONN, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2, 1887.
A characteristic form of such anguish.
lug feelings, shown by nervous people is,
for instance, the inability to cross over a
large square or open lot. Feeling very
wall by' walking many miles. or even
climbinghigh mountains, the deplorable
ones will, even by glancing at u square,
be attacked by palpitatlon and dizziness,
the perspiration will start out on their
foreheads, their hands and feet will trem-
- ble; their eyesight will be blurred; strange
noises are heard, and, like being fixed to
the ground. they are nearly unable to go
On ; instead of crossing over they will
prefer to go around in order to reach their
destination. Having, however, succeeded
in overcoming their fear and, trving to go
on, they certainly will turn back when
half way; and then no persuasion will
start them to try it again. If such people,
afiected, as it were, by “fear of square."
are accompanied by anyone, may it be
even a child, through whom they might
support themselves, they will succeed in
their undertaking. Somltlmes the au-
guishing sensations may be gone when
support on a one or umbrella is afforded,
or being guided, as it were, by a carriage
passing over a square. Other nervous
pelsons are taken by a similar feeling on
entering crowded rooms; they are unable
to go to the theatre, concert and church;
and, trving it, they will be instantly seized
by depression, get dizzy, and even faint.
The same sudden and impressive feelings
will be perceived by nervous persons
when alone in a room, or in a room whose
windows and doors are closed, or cross-
ing over a bridge, or riding in the railroad.
cars, or on a boat.
The great influence caused by general
nervousness‘upon the digestive organs—
stomach and Intestines—is seen by an
essentially perturbed activity of the or-
gans, which are so important for the main-
tenance of the body. The normal feelings
of hunger and replctiou me diminished;
the gastric secretion is arrested or generally
accelerated, and the act of digestion allied
with some kind of pleasure is accompanied
by a great deal of uneasiness. Just this
derangement of the gastric organs, how-
ever, is of great importance, because the
nutrition of the whole organismwill sufier
damage, and be unable to prevent the
increasing of the nervousness.
This short and summary explanation
will show you that nervousness appeals
accompanied by various symptoms. lluI
because ueurasthenie, as it is found by
experience, is the origin and fertile ground
of'mvere nervousdiseases, the first symp-
toms of an increased irritability, of weak-
ness and diminuted resistibility of the
nerves, must be noted and suppressed.
To effect this the whole physical organ-
ism must be suitably strengthened, by
which the nutrition of the nervous sys-
tem will also be improved; the mind must
be. as it were, psychically influenced and
the energy of the will heightened. The
main thing in order to cure neurssthenie
—-oftcn dificult to acquire-—is the remov-
ing of the causes which have produced
and advanced the disease. The patient,
therefore, should be withdrawn, if it is
possible, from all business and cares
and be brought into an agreeable and
peaceful partof the country, where the
organic life will be regenerated and stim-
ulated, and where the nervous activity is
lessened. Every occasion of straining,
incitation and irritation of the nerves is to
be carefully avoided; every kind of men-
tal and physical work, every amusement
is only allowed in an appropriate manner,
in order that the nervous force migut be
preserved and and restored.
If nervousness is a hereditaly gift the
education from the earliest youth must be
particularly careful, having especially in
view the strengthening and enforcing of
the nervous sensitiveness. Although be-
ing treated with the utmostcare for their
physical prosperity, the children are not
to be euervated and spoiled; .lhey should
be admonished to master their will and
dispositions. Their mind, as well as their
body must have a strong and regular
education; a sufficient strengthening and
exercise without excessive exertion.
Having grown up to young people, they
must beware of intemperance in the use
of intoxicating drinks; they must avoid
all kinds of excesses and net overwork
their mind. A sufficient part of the day
ought to be devoted to an appropriate
and physical emotion and gymnastic
exercises, and the night to a sufilclently
long sleep. Many students, afiected with
innate nervousness, have ruined their
nervous system not so much by day studies
as by night debaucheries and ramblings.
It is, furthermore, of great importance
for such people to be cautious in choosing
a profession. If nervousness of a high
degree is found in a family, if suspicious
symptoms of this diseased constitution
are observed, young people are to ' take a
profession granting but little incitement
to ambition and emotion, and allowing a
more contemplative manner of living, like
some of the mechanical trades or agricul-
ture. Girls with inherited nervous con.
stitutions must be prevented from reading
bad literature, and to associate with com-
panions of an unbalanced mind, lest their
phautasy may assume a predominating
role, creating ideas which will not be
realized inthe married life.
To cure nervousness by medical treat-
ment mainly such methods will be em-
ployed as strengthen the organism, and
by which, with regard to the patient's
constitution, besides corroborative reme-
dies applied internally, cool and cold
ablutions of the body, sea and mineral
baths. a suitable manner of living, and a
sojourn to a healthful and pleasant part
of the country are to be recommended.
Patients suffering a higher degree of
nervousness should be taken into a medi-
cal or climatic cure institution, where
removed from all disparaging influence,
they, "will be treated and cared for in a
fitting way.
As a strengthening nourishment is of
the greatest importance a proper method
of nutrition will often be employed. First
recommended by Weir-Mitchel, an Ameri-
can physician, as a remedy for curing
severe forms of nervousness and approved
by' eminent authorities. thirso called
“feeding cure” aims to regenerate within a
few weeks the whole PPTSICPI; condition
of the patient, all tissues 6! the body as
well as those of the.ner_ves. ~ Bloodand.
fit ' will be. édnjiléssehu , centered Thy. is
daily @951 .ayslgmuic'
large-”hand "graduullrlu
greatly augmented. Of course it is neces-
sary to remove . the patient from his every
day habits, and even take him, if circum-
stances reQuire, to a cure institution so
that his mind may be enabled to enjoy a
full rest, 'while the physical motion is
only efiected by the so called kneading
manipulation. It is astonishing what a
' quantity of food the patient csuconsume
by such a feeding cure, and ofttimes the
successful results of recovering from ner-
vous disease are very surprising. We
will, however, add that the lessened nerve
nutrition may also be strengthened with-
out employing sucha feeding diet, even
by a nutritive and easily digestible food.
Strong, fermented wines and beers are
often of great importance in this cure,
but nervous persons must be cautioned
against the intempcrate use of narcotic
and alcoholic drinks, because they natur-
ally he come to like wines and liquors as
seen}! .014.
, , ‘lied‘fihfitit‘y‘
of food, and Ihe’weight'oflthe patient.
stimulants, and opium as an agreeable
sedative. Wine and opium should be
taken, cautiously and rarely. only for
medicinal purposes. Nervous people get
too easily accustomed to take alcoholic
drinks in order to stimulate the nerves to
increased action, and then they stimulate,
stimulate and stimulate until they are a
fit subject of alcoholism.‘ Or, in order to
assuage their pains, they use opium,hypc-
dermicai injections' of morphine, till the
disease is followedby morphinism. The
use of other stimulants. as coffee, tea and
tobacco, although these are able to ani-
mate for a while the weakened and dis-
turbed nerves, will also be followed by an
increase of nermus disease. ..
As the psychical influence of the phy-
sician will also be of great importance in
the cure of uervbus patients he must
teach them to strengthen their mind, will
and nerves. regain eelf confidence, and
follow an appropriate and so called psy-
chical diet. ’
All educated persons. therefore, should,
by their own example and as far as in
them lies, prevent the spreading of acr-
vousuess ; they should check the advance-
ment of a disease which, from day to day
and as the leaven in bread. threatens to
permeate the whole generation. Every
one should assist to light the evils ener-
vating our generation, the wild chase
after riches, the re ,ess‘EEOrts of obtain-
ing more and more; the .intemperance of
sensual pleasures, ind the perpetual haste
after money, distinction and power. He
should insist that the laws of morality are
followed, and thatieveryonc _will under-
stand that there aré uoblcr pleasures-to be
strived after than only material ones, and
that happiness in ; an agreeable family
life is the noblest work we can acquire.
" 'v Du. (loans.
Norwalk, Conn., 188?.
——<-o
OVER THE RIO .GRANDE.
The 011! Adobe Town of Paso Del Norte.
Scones Along the Railroad.
Crossing the iron bridge over the Rio
Grande the first place is Peso Del Norte,a
Mexican town of about 6,000 inhabitants. It
is an old adobe town, embowered in trees and
vines. As we passed rapidly through its
dusty streets and glided by its gay houses
surrounded by high adobe walls, beautqu
gardens, rich with flowers and trees of mag-
nificent foliage, were to be seen on either
side. Here and there a picturesque group of
natives, clad in cotton shirts and pants. their
heads shaded by straw sombreros of huge di-
-mensions, were at Work in the fields or idling
beneath the shade of magnificent trees.
Again they were to be seen tramping behind
the patient burro, or riding that useful ani-
mal through the dusty streets. It is a comi-
cal sight to see a little, dusky, long cared ani-
mal carrying a native whose feet are hanging
within a. foot or so of mother earth; or pack-
ing a load of wood or hay so large that one
can only see a head decorated with a pair of
long ears, four feet in rapid motion and a
tail wagging as if it expressed naught but-
pleusure and contentment. .
Inthe doors and windows now-and then
we caught- a glimpse of u senorita, who
favored us with a glance from a pair of
sparkling eyes. Little bare legged urchins
seemed to be plentiful, and as they run out.
. in the dust to view the train or stood clinging
timidly to their mother’s skirts we could not
help wondering what their ideas of the iron
horse were and what changes American capi-
tal and energywould make in their land ere
they passed the line that divides childhood
and manhood. Paso Del Norte lies L's: a
beautiful valley and the surrounding mount-
ains standing with the shadows of the setting
sunupon them, enhanced the scene by their
picturesqueness. In a few moments we or-
rived at the Mexican Central station, a fine
adobe structure with an open court, in the
center of which were magnificent tropical
plants and flowers. 'There are ample veran-
das on all sides, on which open offices, waiting
rooms and a restaurant After partaking of
agood-supperwe attended to our baggage.
The custom officers examined it and placed a
card on every article; which permitted it to
enter the republic. They were very com-te-
ons and by no means prying in their examin-
ation.
Leaving PasoDel Norte we pas through the
country south, along valleys surrounded by
low mountain ranges and through the rich
of San Juan, Ilnriualca and Sauz.
Eachlittle station pours forth in crowd of
dusky inhabitants, and although we hear
the click of the telegraph and see the well
known sign of Wells-Fargo, we look in vain
for the enterprising American. Vendors of
fruit, candies, milk, chocolate and bread cry
their goods upon each side of us wherever we
made astoppage. The country is a pastoral
one on an enormous scale. Many thousands
of cattle are grazing near the track and their
trailsrun in all directions. As there are no
fences we often hear the sharp toot of the
whistle, and as we crane our necks out of the
window we see cattle and other animals
scamperlng away from the train. Night ap-
proaching wewithdrew from the windows,
and after whiling aways few hours card
playing, singing, etc., we retired to our com-
fortable berths—Cor. San Francisco Chroni-
cle.
The Society Man of Today.
The evolution in the society man is, per
haps. more pronounced than in either the
sporting or Wall street type. European
travel and experience in various quarters
acrossthe water are responsible, in a large
measure, for the changes which have taken
place in men of leisure and those who devote
nearly all of their time to social matters.
The old type was giddy, talkative and more
or less edeminate. He was a lady killer,
mssbér andaswell, danced m often as the
opportunity offered, and affected a spirited
manner and great animation in telling small
talk and gossip. He was not a being who
commanded admiration from men of sense
and importance, but be pleased the ladies,
and that was considered quite enough.
He isdignified in manner, quiet. monstrous-
ly exclusive, and he afiecta a single club where
he knows outsiders cannot intrude upon him.
He drives heavy horses to ponderous English
carts, seldom attends the theatres and does
the opera only on important nights.
As a role he does not dance unless the 00
caslon is one of great importance. His hair
is clipped short, partedcarelessly, and there
is about his whole attire and manner on air
of ease and negligence which is so finely as-
sumed ’that it seems thoroughly natural.
From the artful and animated creature of a
few years ago the society man has grown
into the most simple and unostentatious of
New Yorkers. To men whom he behaves to
be below him in the social scale he is an abso.
lute mob, in the sense that he will have abso-
lutely nothing‘to dowith them and refuses
to recognize them under any circumstances,
even though unavoidably subjected to an in-
troduction. To those in his own set he is
thoroughly natural, unafiected and enter-
taining. There are, very few such men in
town—perhaps not over 200 at the outside—
but they are invited, everywhere, and the
more important of them have it in their
power-to make or mar the success of any on
tortainment to which they are invited, or
make the reputation of a beautiful woman
by a single word—Blakely Hall.
Burmah's Forests of Teak. "
In acquiring Burmah, England has possesn
sion of. vast forests of teak, which, never plen-
tiful in India, was becoming comparatively
veryxareg, Of all the woods grown in the
east thisisthe mostvaluabla .It is neither
too heavy nor too hard; it does not warp or
split under exposure to heat or dampness; -it
contains an mantis! oil which prevents it rot-_
--ting under wet conditions, and at the same
.. time acts as a preservative toiron and repels
the destructive white ants; it is, witb'ala
;h'andsOmewood, of several varieties of color
'a'ndgrain, and takes a good polisheChicago
Times. ' '
Actresses and Their Jewels.
It is strange that schemes have not learned
to appreciate the risk of carrying their jewels
with them on their prefessional tours. Another
use of robbery of a distinguished artist’s
diamondsand pearls has been reported. In
olden times. brass mounted bits of colored
glassanswered every purpose on the stage.
But those were the days when salaries were
more equitably apportioned than is now the
rule at the theatre, and the idea of giving
90 per cent. of the receipts to a star or
leader of a company had not been conceived.
—Boston Transcript ”
_ Salvationists in Ceylon.
Miss Anna Ballard, wall known among
journalists in New York city as the only
female member of the Press club, writes from
Colombo. Ceylon, that the Salvation Army
has attacked the island, but that the soldiers
are. regarded there with little favor. The
natives haven’t the least idea What they are
up to, and think that their peculiar antics and
golngsonare only amusing illustrations of
th peculiarities of theEnglish pecple.-—The
Argonaut. ,
MARK
Pill?“ TH TE
Wm v...
8ch
is a pearly white,
semi-transparent
fiuid having a re-
. ; that will penetrat';
a the skin wrrnou
‘ “" INJURY.
Before-Using. .
Beautlfies the Complexnon,
Indicates ll 8 ts Freckl Tan Moth
Patches, ml... #or'lns, lmpur tics u’m no.
coloration of every kind. either within on:
the skin. it renders the skin pure. clear, hen
th-
ful an '5 I . creatln a com lexion which is
neithsr‘anififlncisl.nuor tempgrlf! bug. at once boun-
can and rum out In Its beauty. it Isawon-
usrfull! gating]; for chafed or rough skin on
infants.
IT
(AI-oatInstamly) Sunburn. Prickly lie-t. chap-
ped, Rough or Cknf'ed Skill in fact its results
. upon all diseases of the skin are wonderful.
It Never Fails.
Price 750. per Bottle
Use Also
PEARL'S
km the skin so
soft and white.
Ask Your ‘ W
W For It! After sing.
ml" WHITE fll'finllt CD“ PROPSqIEW "Ann". 4
M. soEWAB.
OPTICIAN and OCULIST;
WILL BE AT NORWALK.
At Nor/wall: Hofwl.
Having qualified myself by years of hard study
in the best institutions in Europe, and having had a
practical experience of twenty-five years in thi
country, I am enabled at first sight to adapt lense
mostapproprlate to restore the vision to Its origins
vi rand care all the various diseases of the eye
I ave therefore combined my practice of an
Ocnllst with that of an Optician, and am now en-
abled to furnished all kinds of lenses and styles of
Spectacles and Eyc.Glasses~ which airs made to
order under my own supervision, to suit my cus-
omers’ visionary ailments.
Consultation Free.
References—Geo. G. Bishop. Charles Olmstead
ex-Deputy sherill‘ Charles Adams. Mr. Clarence
Nash with. J. F. Bennel. Gen. D. N. Couch, Mrs.
W. K. James. Dr. E. C. Clarke.
phosphates
the wheat F0 U L 0,8 I (Soda
berry. Abreakfastcookediuzess Iron, l’ot-
, thani lleiu music. More ash)
nours ng than a band retained.
THE NEW p
oI-sleak. It will give the
. YOU CAN
h . happiness.
‘5 WHEAT
GERMI
CEREAL.
Germ and
Gluten of
All the
arm
Fry your Oysters in It.
Make your Gems and Pud-
dings with It. Cook Ir. as
you would Oatmeal. It Is
life giving, brain feeding.
Easily
M EA L a digested.
The Bestin the World.
Sperry &Barnes’
Hams,
Shoulders,
Breakfast
Bacon,
—-AND———-
Sausage
ARE GUARANTEED ’
THE BEST
IN
THE MARKET
Our KETTLE LARD is strictly Pure
and Free from all Adulteration.
Look Carefully for the Brand.
We manufacture all goods bearing our brand at
our packing house in New Haven. “'38
Sperry l Barnes, Iiew Haven, Conn.
Rich '
in
Nutrition.
Au
appetite
inducer.
GROCEB.
Very Pal-
stable.
Geo. S. Gregory.
Livery. Boarding, Sale,
Feed and Exchange
Stables.
Adl-W’n‘“"" mum ‘
- HER"
No. 14 Knight 5 1..
(.u rear of Horse Car Depot),
NIIIIWALK, CONN.
Carriages furnished 1]! hours. (.ourteou
tteutlon and gentlemanly drivers. ly
Lessons IN FRENCH,
MISS BAIRII’S INSTITUTE.
Prof. LuLmiIIc.
Widelyknown as the director of the French Depart-
ment of the Summer School of Languages at
Chatauqua. will come twice a week to Miss Baird’s
Institute Io give Lessonsln French. A limited
nnmbel of pupils outside of the school will be
admitted to these classes.
For circulars and other information apply to
MISS N. F. BAlRD.
Seven YearsExpenence n U. 5. Patent Omce.
Geo. R. ByingtOn,
SOLICITOR OF
PAT EN T S.
Fireman’s Insurance Building,
warez-Innovate. u“. c.
Extenslon Cases before Commons :1 Specially
Joseph B. Ells.
—DEALEB IN—
FURNITURE,
UPHOLSTERED AND FOLDING CHAIRS,
WIRE BEDS, “Trusses, &c., ac,
OPPOSITE HORSE RAILWAY DEPOT,
NORWALK. CONS . “46
For Sale.
NE Pair “Acme" Club Skates for Ice skating.
Will be sold very cheap. But little used.
Will at number seven shoe.
Also one pair Elegant Nickel-Plated Club Roller
Skates. Used but twice. will lit a seven shoe.
m9 ”Apply at Gaznrrn Orrlcs.
February 23 and 21, 1887,.
OF YOUR.
- J. G. Gregory 85 Go.
Desire to state that in addition to a full line of
Drugs, Proprietary Medicines and Drugglsts’
Sundries they are prepared to receive
orders for
Silk, Cotton or Linen
ELASTIC HOSE
For varicose or enlarged veins. Wei-ranted to
fit, and at reduced rates.
They also desire to state that they have accepted
the agency of the New York Vaccine 00., and will
keep a supply of
PURE BUVINE VACCINE VIRUS
Constantly on hand.
They have In stock Electric Batteries, which
will he sold at close figures. They carry also a full
assortment of Keystone Writing Paper Packets.
Huss Bros.,
Restaurant, Cafe and Smnlingllomn,
Grand Central Station,
42!) Stuart AND 4’”! AVENUE, N aw Yonx
Entrance from waiting room, New York. New
Haven and Hartford railroad. tfss
Ila ch, Baile' I100
MANUFACTURERS AND DEALERS 'IN
LUMBER, TIMBER,
Shingles, La. th,
Doors, Sash,
Blinds .llIoulding‘,
Window Frames,
Piclcets, J's.
Veneered Hard Wood Work.
Hard Wood ceiling and Flaming.
South. Norwnlk, Conn.
The Best and Most Desir-
able Assortment ever shown
in N orwaIk of
Hot Air Furnaces,
Steam Heaters.
Cooking Stoves, -
Laundry Stoves,
Cooking Ranges,
Double Hatters,
Parlor Stoves,
Hall Stoves,
Dining Room StOves,
Store Stoves, I
Ofi‘icc Stoves,
Shop Stoves,
And everything appertain-
ing to cooking and heat-
ing at the
Lowest Possible Price for Cash.
E. K. Lockwood ‘8; (lo.
Building Lots
FOR SALE
On Wilton Avenue
Apply ‘0
B. J. STURGES. or 0. E. WILSON,
I GAZETTE BUILDING dtf
For Sale.
DOUBLE BARRELLED RIFLE madeby John
Blissett, London. Will be‘sold cheap to
cash Enquire at this omce.
For Sale Cheap.
Ten Horse Power Boiler and six Horse Power
Engine for sale very cheap. Enquire at: hi,
Gszs'rrr. OFFICE. "43
For Sale Cheap.
11.1. be sold at a Bargain, if applied for soo
asmall, neat Cottage, of sixr come, in
neignborhood, and three minutes’ walk of the
hindge. Apply at GAZETTE OFFICE .
Factory to Let.
A24 Dozen Hat Factory, with 25 Horse Power
Boiler, will be let on reasonable terms. Can
be used and is suitable for other purposes.
Apply or address.
Earns or J osnrn Snsrnsnn,
Norwalk, Conn.
Notice to Builders.
HIST-QUALITY BUILDING STONE for sale
cheap. App” to
Is VALVES K. SELLECK,
P. 0. Box 23. Norwalk.
use
Eligible Business Parlor For
Rent. '
THE Largest and Most Eligible Front Room on
first floor of Gazmn Building, suitable for
almost any trade or business
Money to Loan.
Enquire of O. E. WILSONJIO. a Gazelle Bulld-
ng. Norwalk. Conn. tfls
' For Sale Cheap. '
Large Sized Hot Air Furnace. used but little,
will be sold at less than half its cost- If up
piled for at once. Enquire at Gszs'rru Orrlcu.
ZETTE. ‘
TWO DOLLARS A YEAR.
POWDER
Absolutely Pure.
This Powder never varies. A marvel of pure
strength and wholesomeness. More economic
than the ordinary kinds, and cancel be sold In com-
petition with the multitude of low test, short
weight, allum or phosphate powders.
ROYAL BAKING i'ownsn 1.0.,100 Wall St., N. Y.
R. B. CRAUFURD,
INVESTMENT SECURITIES, REAL
ESTATE AND INSURANCE,
31 DIAIN STREET, - - NOR‘IVIALK.
GEO. W ARI) BELLECK,
HARDENBROOK’S sLocK. WALL STREET,
FAMILY GROCERIES,
J. BELDEN HURT. BUTT.
Attorney and Cnnuselu at Law,
Room No. 4, Up Stairs.
GAZETTE BUILDING, NORWALK, CONN.
JAMES T. RUSSELL,
Attorney and Counselor at Law
a Gazette Building,
NORWALK, . CONN.
ALEX. S. GIBSON,
Organist of 1st Congregational Church, Waterbury,
Teacher of
Pianoforte, Organ and Musical
Composition,
Lock Box 39 P. 0., NORWALK, CONN.
PENSIONS
——:AND:—-
Government Claims.
My sole business. Thousands have Rights
Neg.ected. Address, free of charge, or visit,
GEN. W. E. NOBLE,
91 Stratford Avenue, Bridgeport, Conn
O. E. WILSON,
General Insurance In Real Estate Agent
Money to Loan.
Room No. 3 Gazette Building.Norwalk. Conn.
TNA INSURANCE 00., of HARTFORD.
Incorporated 1812. Charter Perpetual.
CAPITAL AND ASSETS, $8,902,272.04.
Insures against loss and damage by Fire. on
terms adopted to the hazard and consistent with
the laws of compensation. COWLES & MERRILL,
Sole Agents for N orwalk and vicinity.
THE
Norwalk Fire Insurance Co.
Has now completed Its
18th SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS YEAR
And has not ontstamllng a dollar of unpaid losses
or claims for losses. No sound company insures
for less.
W. C. Smssr, Pres. s. E. OLMS'I'EAD, Treaa,
Geo. R. Cowms Secretary.
L. E. QUINT;ARD,
Successor to W. E. quxnno,
UNDERTAKER 8:, EMBALMER,
OPPOSITE HORSE RAILROAD DEPOT.
Resxdence 143 Main Street. Telephone communi-
cation with office and residence,
W. H. MEEK Eli,
Plumbing, Steam and Gas Fitting,
SOUTH N ORWALK. CONN.
Sanitary Pinmlnng, and Ventilation, and Low
Pressure Steam Heating, 3. Specialty.
PLUMBERS’ SUPPLIES.
Pipe and Fitting for Water, Steam and Gas.
Agent for the Florida Low Pressure Boiler.
Facilities f0 Cutting and Threading all Sizes of
Pipe. 50“
PETER L. GUIG UE,
FLORIST INITIS+ YMIN,
UNION AVENUE,
North of Norwalk Cemetery,
NORWAEE, - - CORN.
Dealer In In Green House and Hot House and
Bedding and Vegetable Plants, Fruit and Ornamen
ta] Trees Shrubbery, Vines. Cut Flowers alway
on hand and all sorts of designs in Flowers arranged
to order. . 41y:
Grading and Re-filling Cemetery Plots
promptly attended to.
FOR SALE.
A STYLISH
VICTORIA,
Newly Trimmed and Painted.
. A Fine Family Carriage.
Will be sold at a very low price.
HENRY TILLY,
CARRIAGE MAKER,
SOUTH NOR WALK.
GENERAL MARKET.
Meat, Fish, Vegetables, &c.
LOCKWOOD & ANDREWS.
MAIN STREET.
All kinds of the bestvqualities of Meats, Fish,
Clams, Vegetables, etc., are kept constantly on
hand. and will be sold by us as low as can be pro-
cured at auy’market in Norwalk. We intend to
prove to ‘our customers that we deserve their
patronage by fair and generous dealing.
ly40 LOCKWOOD & ANDREWS.
R e m e m b e r I
The Best Meats in Norwalk
-—-ARE SOLD AT—
WESON'S MARKET, ON THE BRIDGE,
—AND FOR THE——
Lowest Prices for Cash.
PLATES 0F BEEF 5 cents r lb' CORNED
BEEF, from 5 to 10 cents per 11;: I will not be
nndersold for the Best QuaJties of Meat. Poultry
Drawn to Order. 1y1
James E. Wiwson.
27 Wall Street.
tile at Geo. 1’.
THIS PAPER Rowan. & 00's
Newspa er Advertisin Bureau prm
Street).vgherendvcr- 8 (ll! 8 e
gcontructsma
.. m... .. .. 3;!le VOIIII.
mw be found on
Number 9.
' LIBRARIAN' SPOFFORD.
PROBABLY THE MOST RAPID READER
IN THIS COUNTRY.
Reading a Daily Newspaper—Picking Out
the Meat of n Book—A Time Wasting
Habit—Arrangement of Books in the
Library.
Mr. Spofford, the librarian of cougrem, is
probably the most rapid reader in this coun-
try. The other day a. reporter sought some
information of him. Simultaneously, within
a space of five minutes, he conversed with
the reporter, “read” through completely a
twelve page New York paper, dictated a let-
ter to a stenographer and gave directions to
two assistants. He commenced all at the
same time and finished them together. A re- ,
mark, a sentence dictated aside, a. direction,
a sentence dictated, a remark and so on, ap-
parently without an effort, and all the time
his eyes were running over the paper almost
as fast as he could turn from page to page.
(11:11]: reporter asked him afterwards how be
“Oh, it comes natural for me to give my
attention to two or three things together that
way. I do it by a sort of intuition without
thinking of it.”
PICKING our THE HEAT.
“But how do you read so rapidly?”
“I acquire the subject matter," said Mr.
Spofi‘ord. “I pick out the meat—the pith. I
pay no attention to the verbiage. 1 scarcely
see the words and never note the form of son-
tences I have learned, by long practice and
having a natural tendency for it, to get. the
information without the rhetoric. - In this
way the thought is got at a. glance. It is not
the words you want. When your time is all
too short for your work you can’t afford to
waste it on words. In reading there is so
much that is of no use to you—a worthless lot
of verbiage. By practice you can avoid all
this. Nearly all books or papers are taken up
mostly with rhetoric, and have the fact and
substance stored away in a very small space,
if you only know how to find it. I seldom
spend more than half an hour and never
more than an hour and a. half in reading—or
reconnoisance of the largest volume. For in—
stance, I take this,” and he took a volume
from the shelf. “No." looking at the title,
“this is hardly the proper book to illustrate it
with. This is Carlyle; he has to be read;
every word. He is one of the few authors
who cannot be lead as I have described. You
must read every word, and well it pays you.
for the time. But it is_ only such a. rugged
and extraordinarv writer that it is necessary
to read that way. All those thousands of
books with smooth, easy running sentences,
they are all alike, and you don’t want to
waste time on the language—you want to
seize on to the soul and devour it in an instant.
Like this, now," and he reached another book
(not Carlyle), and went down the pages one
after another, as an expert accountant would
go down a column of figures. “Nothing there
I want, nor there, nor there. " Then occasion-
ally striking something to the point and get-
ting the thought in an instant. He went over
probably fifteen or twenty pages in this way
in a length of time hardly worth reckoning,
and without even making a. break in the cou-
versation.
“Many people.” Mr. Spoiford went on,
“have the time wasting habit of pronouncing
every word in their mind and noticing every
pause and punctuation as they go along as if
reading aloud. All these words and sen-
tences, with the capitalization and punctua-
tion—the commas. the colons, the semicolons,
the periods and paragraphs, are only the signs
to be followed, but not to be recorded in the
mind. Many readers, perhaps most readers,
chuck their heads up with commas and colons
instead of thoughts."
ARRANGEMENT or m Booxs.
“It is said," suggested the reporter, “that
you know every book in the library?”
“In a general way. I know where to find
every book, its size and general appearance,
and its subject matter. I could not tell you
the contents of the books, but merely what
they are about. There are some 600,000
volumes, arranged in forty-four subdivisions,
which are again subdivided. I have the
library arranged according to what I con-
ceived to be the common sense plan. The
books are arranged alpbebetically by subject,
the fiction only by authors. You are now in
the alcove containing biographies of English;
men. The alcoves are arranged alphabetic-
ally by subjects, and the books within ar-
ranged in their alphabetical order. For in-
stance, take Cromwell; all the biographies of
Cromwell are together, and next is another
“C” progressively. Suppose some one wants
a certain work on finance. I know it is in
that alcove up there. I know what book it is
by association, and just where it is. But
that alcove is overflowed, and the books are
all piled up on the floor and along there in
front. Suppose they ask for a book of com-
paratively recent date. I know it is not on
the shelves, because they were filled long be
fore its publication. So it must be in that
pile somewhere. I know the size of the book,
and its appearance; I can recognize it, for it
passed through my hands to get into the
library. For the past twenty years every
book that has come into the library has gone
through my hands, and I rememberit. In a
general way I know its size and appearance,
and about what is in it. Any one of them
you mention I will remember it and what it
is like. It is all a working of the mind by
association.”
“How about finding quotations?” asked the
reporter. -
“Well, if a member wants to use a quota-
tion that is not in ‘familiar quotations’ and
is from a. poet who has no concordance—
Byron and Burns, for instance, have no .on-
cordnuce—and he wants to know the exact
words and where it comes from, he will
_ probably come to me. He will likely remem-
ber in a general way what it is—a few of the
words—or what it is about and the meter.
I may be able to tell by its sound who its an-
thor is, and I can form an idea. anyhow as to
the period it belongs to. Then I discard all
poems of an earlier or a. later period, then I
discard all authors I knew could not have
written it, and then I discard again all poems
of a different metre and all upon subjects
wherein the quotation could not occur. In
this way I borrow my field of research, and
then I generally have little difficulty in find-
ing what I want.
“It is the same principle throughout—dis-
card all that you don’t want.”—Wnshington
Star Interview.
Triumphs of “)Iodcrn Journalism."
The extraordinary disproportion constantly
existing between the importance of a topic
and the space devowd to it must strike every
newspaper reader of ordinary intelligence. It
is not so much that graver subjects are alto-
gether neglected, as that frivolous, stupid or
objectional themes are thrust into absurd
prominence by the side of afi'airs of weighti‘
est moment. ' This deplorable tendency is ob-
servable even insuch expensive luxuries as
cable dispatches-not the sham messages
manifestly concocted in this city, but those
which bear internal evidence of genuinencss
and which cost money.
A cable dispatch in a New York newspaper
often reads like a. page from a. London society
journal—the emptiest and most contemptible
of periodical publications. In the treatment
of domestic news the same want of propor-
tion, the same downward tendency is ob-
servable. The space occupied by trivialities
and indecencissis preposterous. Whole col-
umns are devoted to the vulgar horrors of
the police court, the sayings and doings of
prize fighters, the junketiugs of the lowest
order of politicians, the drunken frolics of
some worthless broker, the adventures of a
miserable variety actrem, the elopement of a
stableman, dog fights, cock fights and every
other kind of low vice and profiigacy. And
day by day the offense grows ranker. Only
a short time ago no newspaper \with, the
slightest pretense to respectability would
have dared to print a line of the impurity
with which, in these later days, whole pages
are defiled. The editors have even crossed
the sea in search of abominations greater
than any yet exposed In our own courts of
justice, and have published the details here,
poisoning the moral atmosphere of the whole
country.—New York Critic.
Metal Covers for Books.
Yet another application has been found for
metal, which is now being substituted for
cardboard in bookbinding. This novelty is
known as the “British Pellisfort” binding, and
it consists in the use of thin sheet metal for
covers. The metal is specially prepared, mid
the cover may be bent and straightened again
withOut perceptible damage. It may, in
fact. be safely subjected to such treatment as
would destroy ordinary covers. The metal
is, of course, covered with the leather usually
employed in bookbinding. and the finished
book presents no difference in appearance ex-
cept in the greater thinness of the cover.
—Frank Leslie’s. -
Ella Wheeler Wilcox says she can see more
light than darkness in the world. So can the
rest of us. But we can’t put it in shape to
get any money for it. as Elia can—Puck.
A western New York lady complains to an.
editor that though she likes the general fea-
turesof his paper, it has not enough deaths.
The ladies should now begin to erect men n-
meuts to distinguished women. Why should
our cities houorfiouly bronze men?
Norwalk Chronicler