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THE GREAT ROUND WORLD

AND WHAT IS GOING ON IN IT

    SUBSCRIPTION PRICE. APRIL 22, 1897  Vol. 1. NO. 24
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[Illustration: THE GREAT ROUND
WORLD
AND WHAT IS GOING ON IN IT.]

    VOL. 1   APRIL 22, 1897.   NO. 24

        *       *       *       *       *

The news from Cuba this week confirms the story of the capture of Gen.
Ruis Rivera.

It seems that the Spanish General, Velazco, was told by some of his scouts
that Rivera was encamped in the near neighborhood, and only had a force of
one hundred men with him.

Acting on this information, the Spaniards surrounded the camp and attacked
the Cubans, who fought bravely until they were finally overpowered.

General Rivera was severely wounded, and was therefore unable to make his
escape; the Spaniards captured him, just as his chief of staff was trying
to carry him away to a place of safety.

Both men were taken prisoner and conveyed to San Cristobal. They will be
tried by court-martial, and it is feared that the General will be shot as
a rebel. If Rivera is shot, it will create a great deal of indignation, as
it is the custom to exchange prisoners of war, and not to kill them.
General Weyler has, however, sent out a proclamation, that any man found
outside the Spanish limits without a proper pass shall be shot, and as
Rivera of course had no pass from the Spaniards, it is feared that Weyler
may take advantage of his proclamation to have the unfortunate General
shot.

The Cuban war, however, seems to be on such a strong footing that even the
loss of Ruis Rivera cannot seriously hurt the cause. Another General has
already been appointed in his place, and though his loss will cause much
sorrow, the affairs of the little island will not be interfered with.

It is said that Gen. Julio Sanguily, the Cuban who has just been released
from prison through the influence of our Government, will return to Cuba
and take command of the army lately commanded by Rivera.

A full account has reached us of the landing of the filibustering
expedition that left our shores on board the _Laurada_, and under the
charge of General Roloff.

It appears that the Cubans have done very clever work in this expedition,
both in getting the arms on board the _Laurada_, and in landing them when
they reached Cuba.

It was decided that the expedition should land at Banes, an important
seaport on the northwestern coast of Santiago de Cuba. A few days before
the ship was expected, the Cubans appeared in large numbers at Banes,
ready to attack the Spanish soldiers, who occupied a small fort there.

You will remember that Santiago de Cuba is the province which the Cubans
have under control, and which is really "Free Cuba."

The Cubans are so strong in this province, that the Spaniards remain in
such forts as they hold, and make very few attempts to interfere with the
insurgents.

At Banes, the insurgents appeared in such numbers that the soldiers did
not venture out of the fort, and left them to occupy the town in peace.

When the _Laurada_ appeared in sight, the commander of the Cuban forces
sent word to the fort that the _Laurada_ had some very heavy guns on
board, which would be turned on the fort the instant the Spanish made an
attempt to interfere with the unloading of the cargo. He added that the
_Laurada's_ guns would blow the whole fort to pieces in a very few
minutes.

The Spanish commander decided that he would take their word for it, and
not trouble the _Laurada_ to prove the truth of the statement. The vessel
steamed up to the wharf, and the expedition disembarked with ease and
comfort.

Report says that the Cubans and Spaniards were so friendly together, that
they even held a peaceful parley, in which the Spanish informed their new
friends that they were a little short of water at the fort, and the
obliging Cubans sent them up a fresh supply.

It is a great advance for the Cubans to have the free use of a port, where
they can safely receive their cargoes, and it shows very clearly that
success is indeed, coming to the Cuban arms.

Another filibustering expedition, supposed to be that taken by the
_Bermuda_, has landed in Pinar del Rio, near Mariel, and about fifty miles
from Havana.

This section of the country is, however, the stronghold of the Spaniards,
and so the insurgents did not have such an easy time in landing as they
did in Santiago.

The Spaniards had been warned of the arrival of the vessel, and allowed
the cargo and men to be landed without interference, but prepared an
ambush for the party, as it was making its way inland.

[Illustration: Gen. Ruis Rivera]

The Cubans fell into the trap set for them, and were beaten. The Spaniards
in their turn were making off with the booty, when a larger body of
insurgents arrived on the scene, fought the Spaniards, put them to flight,
and carried off the recaptured cargo to a place of safety.

The news from Havana is that Gomez has done exactly as it was said he
would: he has slipped past Weyler, and left him hunting for him in Santa
Clara. Weyler was sure of catching his enemy this time, for he had divided
his army into two columns, and thought that with them he had covered the
entire country. But Gomez was too smart for him. He slipped between the
two columns, at one time camping within three miles of Weyler; and is now
well on his way to join the Western army.

All classes in Havana are uneasy and dissatisfied, and the anger against
the Government and its manner of conducting the war is being expressed
more openly every day.

The soldiers are in such a state of anger that the officers no longer dare
trust them in the towns, for fear that they will mutiny.

The regular soldiers have received no pay for seven months, and are
rebellious on that account. The volunteers are furious, because the
weapons the Spanish Government gave them when they first enlisted, which
were rifles of the very finest kind, have been taken from them, and
replaced with old-fashioned weapons that have been in storage on the
island since the war ten years ago.

Their fine rifles have been taken from them since the rumors of the
Carlist uprising, and they are angry because they declare that the
Government is putting all the good weapons in the hands of the home
soldiers, so that when they are sent back to Spain they can carry them
along.

There is a report that the governments of Spain and Cuba are discussing a
plan for making peace.

It is impossible to say whether this is true or false, but it is a
splendid thing if true.

Our Government is to send a commissioner to Cuba, to make full inquiries
into the death of Dr. Ruiz.

This commissioner will probably be Judge Day, a well-known lawyer of
Canton, Ohio, and a personal friend of the President's.

The duties of the commissioner, besides making the most careful
investigation into the Ruiz case, will be to find out what the real state
of affairs in Cuba is at the present time. If his report is favorable to
Cuba, it may induce the President to help the Cubans.

Gen. Fitz-Hugh Lee, our Consul-General in Havana, has absolutely refused
to have anything to do with the Ruiz case. He declares that the
examination will not be a fair one, and that nothing will be gained by it.

       *       *       *       *       *

There is very little change in the situation in Crete.

The insurgents are fighting bravely, and the Powers, though doing their
best to prevent trouble, are in much the same position that they were a
week ago.

The real excitement of the week has been the landing from the British
warships of a troop of Highlanders. These soldiers, by their extraordinary
dress, caused a panic among the Turks, who, not knowing whether they were
friends or foes, mortals or bogies, proceeded to attack them.

The Turkish officers with great difficulty succeeded in quieting their men
and persuading them that the Highlanders were men and friends, but the
fame and the terror of them spread all over the island.

The insurgents heard that a new race of men had been landed by the allies,
and in their ignorance and superstition they fancied that some new and
terrible kind of creature had been sent against them.

There was a small panic among the Cretans for a few days, and it was not
until they had sent scouts to discover what kind of beings these were, and
the report had come back that these terrible Highlanders were but men
after all, that they had the courage to continue the fighting.

This is not the first time that the appearance of these men has struck
terror into the heart of an enemy, and in truth they are a very imposing
body of men, all of them over six feet in height. They walk with the
light, springing step that is peculiar to all Highlanders, and they hardly
seem to touch the ground as they march over it. They march to the music of
the bagpipes, which adds not a little to the awe which, they inspire. The
bagpipe is of all instruments the most uncanny and weird. When you see a
Highland regiment marching to the music of bagpipes, it seems to be the
only true music to which soldiers should march. Its wails and shrieks
sound like the groans of the dying, and the drone of the bass notes has a
fierce sound as it throbs and marks the tramp of the soldiers' feet, that
speaks of battle and conquests, and the advance of a victorious army.

These are not the only things which help to make foreigners believe the
Highlanders some uncommon kind of creature. In addition, the costume they
wear is so strange, that it is easy to understand how terrible they must
appear to foreign eyes.

They are dressed in the old Scotch fashion, with short stockings, bare
knees, and kilts (a short skirt which comes nearly to the knee). Over
their shoulders hangs the "plaidie," which is a long shawl. They wear a
tight coat, and in front of them hangs the sporran, a pocket made of white
fur. The crowning glory of the Highland regiment is the bonnet. This is a
hideous structure of brown beaver; it is over a foot in height, and from
the side hang three mournful black plumes. This curious dress makes the
men look about eight feet high, and as they are all strong,
broad-shouldered fellows, they seem like giants.

At the battle of the Alma, in the Crimean war, the Forty-Second
Highlanders turned the fate of the fight by their appearance.

They were ordered to attack a position held by the Russians, and when they
sprang forward to the charge, their kilts and plaids floating around them,
their bare knees glistening, and their huge bonnets and waving plumes
making them look so tall, the Russians were terror-stricken. Seeing their
white sporrans wave as they ran, the Russians mistook them for small
horses, and could not believe that these terrible-looking creatures were
but men running.

Crying out to each other that the Angels of Death on their snow-white
horses were riding them down, the Russians dropped their arms, and fled in
the greatest confusion.

Stories without number are told of the way Highlanders, left on the field
of battle, have frightened the enemy into letting them escape, and a piper
seems to need no protection but his pipes. In the Indian mutiny, one blast
of them was enough to scatter a score of natives.

[Illustration: Her Majesty's Scottish Highlanders.]

It is not to be wondered at that both Cretans and Turks were a little
alarmed at the sight of these brawny, petticoated soldiers.

The main part of the interest in Greek and Turkish affairs is centring
itself along the Greek frontier.

The Powers sent word to Greece, that unless the troops are recalled from
the frontier, they will blockade all her ports.

In the mean while, the Crown Prince has arrived at Larissa, and taken the
command of the troops in Thessaly. The Crown Princess is with him, to
organize a Red Cross Society, to give aid to the wounded in case war
breaks out. This good, kind woman has put aside all her own feelings, and
is working for the benefit of her husband's people.

The Greeks show no disposition to obey the demands of the Powers, and it
is said that Russia refused to join in blockading the Greek ports, because
she believed that it is no longer possible to keep peace between Greece
and Turkey.

The Greek army along the frontier is so large and powerful as to be beyond
the control of diplomacy. It is stated, on good authority, that if the
King of Greece were to listen to the Powers, and order the troops back
from Thessaly, the army would revolt, dethrone him, and carry on a war on
its own account.

So incensed are the people against the Turks, that nothing will satisfy
them but war, and the winning back of such of their provinces as are still
under Turkish control.

It is said that the Greeks are not attempting to make a strongly fortified
position for themselves on the frontier. They consider themselves an
invading army, and the moment war is declared, they intend to swarm over
the border, and, if possible, conquer the provinces that once were theirs.

       *       *       *       *       *

The inquiry into the Transvaal Raid is still going on.

Dr. Jameson has been called before the Committee, and appears to have told
all he knows of the matter.

His story makes things look very black indeed for Mr. Cecil Rhodes, the
Prime Minister of Cape Colony, and perhaps for the English Government
also, if the whisper is true that Mr. Rhodes and the Government perfectly
understood each other as regarded South African matters.

Dr. Jameson said that before the raid occurred, he had various talks with
Cecil Rhodes and John Hays Hammond, an American mining engineer, who lived
in the town of Johannesburg, and was one of the principal movers in the
plot.

They spoke about the troubles of the foreigners in the Transvaal. Mr.
Hammond declared that the Boers made life so difficult for foreigners that
unless some change was made, the people of Johannesburg would revolt.

Dr. Jameson went to Pretoria at Mr. Hammond's invitation, and saw for
himself the condition of things.

Plans were then made to overthrow the government, and to make a pretence
of finding out who the people would prefer to have for a President, by
taking a man-to-man vote of the whole population. The person chosen by
this vote was to be declared President.

Dr. Jameson was to bring his soldiers to Johannesburg, to keep order while
the vote of the people was being taken.

This plan, while it was fair enough in sound, was in fact an infamous
scheme to trick the Boers out of their rights.

The Uitlanders, as we told you before, far outnumber the Boers.

By taking a vote of the whole population, every Uitlander would have had a
vote; these foreigners would of course have voted for the person who would
let them have things their own way, and as they outnumbered the natives,
the poor Boers would have had their rights taken away from them by
foreigners, who, according to their laws, had no right to vote at all.

The scheme was as clever as it was infamous. To the world it would have
seemed fair enough, and only those familiar with South African politics
would have understood what a shameful trick it was.

There is small doubt that Mr. Hammond was as deep in this fraud as Cecil
Rhodes and Dr. Jameson. He may have hoped to win the presidency when Oom
Paul Krueger was put out of office, and very probably did not realize that
Mr. Rhodes and Jameson intended to annex the Transvaal to the English
Territory, after they had stolen it from the Boers.

It is, however, sure, from Dr. Jameson's own words, that the Raid was a
deliberate attempt on the part of these three men to rob the Boers of
their rights, and divide the spoil when the deed was done.

Both Cecil Rhodes and Dr. Jameson have been bold enough to state this,
cloaking their misdeed under a tale of gaining more lands for their
beloved sovereign, and both have had the courage to say that they only
made one mistake in the Transvaal matter, and that was to fail. Had they
been successful, they would have been forgiven.

The angry feeling between the Boers and the English is daily growing
stronger. It is feared that war cannot be prevented.

President Krueger is preparing for the worst by allying himself with the
Orange Free State, his neighbor on the east.

The treaty has just been made, and is waiting to be ratified by the
Congress of each country. It gives the citizens of both republics the
right of citizenship in either country, and binds each to fight for the
other in case of war.

Mr. Chamberlain, the English Colonial Secretary, is trying his best to
upset this treaty.

He declares that, according to an understanding made between England and
the Transvaal in 1884, the Boers have the right to govern their country as
they please, but they must not enter into any treaties or relations with
other countries, without the consent of England.

Mr. Chamberlain says that Her Majesty the Queen will insist upon the terms
of this treaty being obeyed.

Though England is taking such a very decided stand in the matter, she is
far from feeling at ease as to the result. It seems that Germany is taking
more interest in the affairs of South Africa than is pleasant to England.

It is feared that if war does break out in the Transvaal, Germany will
join with the Boers and the people of the Orange Free State in fighting
England.

Germany already owns a rich province in the neighborhood, and she has for
some time been sending arms and soldiers, able to teach the Boers the art
of war, across the continent, from her province on the West Coast, to the
Transvaal.

She has lately sent three thousand of her soldiers out to South Africa.

       *       *       *       *       *

While we are on the subject of Africa, we must speak of the expeditions
that are being sent out from France to Abyssinia, with the object of
making commercial treaties with King Menelik.

England is also sending out an envoy to the same country.

The reason for this sudden interest in Abyssinia comes from the great
victory won by the Abyssinians last year, a victory which brought them
into importance as a nation.

In 1896 the Italians, who have colonized a portion of Eastern Africa,
bordering on Abyssinia, invaded their neighbor's country, with the
intention of conquering it and adding it to their own.

The Abyssinians, a race of dark-skinned people whom we have been
accustomed to look upon as savages, met the Italians on the open field of
battle, and, without ambush or any of the usual savage methods of warfare,
defeated them, the Italians leaving twelve thousand killed on the field.

The civilized nations had hardly recovered from their surprise at this
defeat, when they were astounded afresh to find that the savage king
Menelik had no desire to overrun the Italian country and punish the
invaders for their attack, but having put them outside his borders, he
settled quietly down to enjoy the blessings of peace.

The eyes of the world were turned on Abyssinia and its wonderful king, and
the result has been that the various nations interested in Eastern Africa
have decided that the friendship of Menelik is well worth having, and they
are all hastening to make friends with this powerful king.

The French have been especially eager to make an alliance with him, before
any other nations could get ahead of them. Abyssinia is a country rich in
gold and ivory, and the friendship of Menelik is also valuable, because of
the trade that can be done with his country. One expedition has been sent
by the government to make the treaty, and at the same time another has
started under the command of Prince Henry of Orleans.

This last has no political work to do, but is going in the interest of
science and commerce. The Prince intends to explore the country, and find
out what its chief products are, and what part of its commerce will be of
value to his country.

He is writing most interesting accounts of his journey, which are being
published in the papers, and we shall probably hear much that is new and
interesting of this country.

In one of his letters he gave an amusing account of the astonishment of
the natives over a graphophone (a present for King Menelik).

He at first put in a cylinder on which was recorded a song, sung by a
great singer.

Strange to say, the natives received this with neither interest nor
astonishment; the single voice did not seem anything out of the way to
them. When, however, a cylinder with orchestral music, bugle calls, and a
stirring march was put in place, their delight and surprise knew no
bounds.

       *       *       *       *       *

The mention of this brings another wonderful invention to mind, the
animatograph, the machine which throws pictures on a sheet; the figures in
them move as though they are alive.

During the Queen's Jubilee, which will be celebrated in London this
spring, it has been arranged to have a number of animatograph pictures
taken of the procession and all the finest part of the ceremonies. These,
it is said, are to be kept in the library of the British Museum, to show
future generations what kind of people lived in the nineteenth century.

This should be a very interesting collection, and probably, if the idea is
successfully carried out, we shall have a set of these same pictures
brought to this country, and be able to see just how our English cousins
celebrated their great festival.

       *       *       *       *       *

The news of the floods continues to be very serious.

At New Orleans the Mississippi River has reached the danger level, and the
severe rain-storms which have visited the country during the past week
have made the people in the city very anxious.

Certain of the streets are already swamps, and the river has risen within
a foot and a half of the top of the levees.

The convicts have been sent out from the prisons to help pile the sacks of
earth on the levees, and companies of engineers are stationed at all the
weak spots along them, to guard against the banks giving way.

All along the river people are sending petitions to the various mayors
and governors, begging them to forbid the river steamers travelling during
the night, and to have them move as slowly as possible during the day. The
wash from the paddle-wheels after they pass has done a great deal of
damage, and in many places has helped to break the levees.

[Illustration: _The Mississippi flood. A Typical scene._]

In several of the river towns all business has been forbidden, and all the
men ordered to go to the levees and help to shore them up.

The slightest extra ripple of the waters at New Orleans brings them over
the banks and floods the streets, but the banks are still safe.

       *       *       *       *       *

England has just presented a very valuable manuscript to us, that has long
been kept in the Bishop of London's palace at Fulham.

This book is called the log of the _Mayflower_, and is an account of the
first voyage of the Pilgrim Fathers, and a history of the Plymouth
Plantation.

Several previous attempts have been made to get this manuscript from
England, but it has remained for Ambassador Bayard to secure the gift for
us.

The manuscript is supposed to have been written by Gov. William Bradford,
and if this is true, it can hardly be the log of the _Mayflower_, because
the log is usually kept by the captain.

Every ship that sails the sea keeps a log, or log-book, in which is
entered the progress the ship is making, and any facts of interest as they
occur. It is in reality the ship's diary, but it is called a log-book,
because its chief object is to record the speed of the vessel.

This speed is found by using an instrument called a log, which is attached
to a line, divided into equal spaces by knots. These are placed certain
distances apart, so many to a mile. The log is made in such a way that it
will remain almost stationary in the water when thrown overboard. The
line, wound upon a reel, is allowed to run out for a few seconds; the
number of knots that have been paid off the reel are counted, and in this
way the speed of the vessel is calculated.

The book in which the record is kept is called a "log"-book.

The book that England is giving to us is probably the diary of William
Bradford, which he kept while on board the _Mayflower_, and it is said to
record the account of the colony after the landing, and to contain many
interesting accounts of the treaties with the Indians.

It is to be kept in the Boston Public Library.

       *       *       *       *       *

The Tariff Bill has been hurried through the House of Representatives,
and, having passed that House, has now gone up to the Senate.

There seems to have been a good deal of haste in the manner this was done.

Talking over alterations was not allowed, and the bill was forced to a
vote, in spite of the fact that many of the Republicans were against it.

Several Congressmen said they would not have voted for it, unless quite
sure that it would be much altered by the Senate before it is allowed to
pass.

The Senate is still busy with the Arbitration Treaty.

Amendment after amendment has been made, until it is now a very different
paper from the one handed in by Mr. Olney. Many of the Senators are so
disgusted with all the talk and trouble over it, that they are inclined to
vote against it, and put an end to the whole affair.

       *        *        *        *        *

The Charter of the City of Greater New York has been prepared, and New
York City is now ready to begin its life as the second largest city in the
world, London being the largest.

Greater New York will take in the whole of Staten Island, Brooklyn, the
Lower Bay as far as Far Rockaway, the whole of Queens County Long Island,
then across the Sound to Pelham, and along the line of Westchester County,
taking in Woodlawn Cemetery, the town of Mt. Vernon, and on until it
reaches the Hudson River at Mount St. Vincent.

The new city will come into existence January 1, 1898.

The Charter for its government, which has been prepared, provides that
the entire city shall be governed by one mayor, who shall hold office for
four years.

The new city can build schoolhouses, public buildings, bridges, docks,
tunnels, construct parks, establish ferries, open streets, and make
railroads without going to the State Legislature in Albany for permission.

The number of square miles contained in the new city will be 360; the
greatest length will be 35 miles, measured from Mt. St. Vincent on the
Hudson to Tottenville on Staten Island.

It is expected that with the wonderful harbors and docks the new city will
possess, its future as a centre of commerce will be most prosperous.

The Mayor of this great city will be a very important person, and great
care must be taken in choosing the right man.

The election of the officers of Greater New York will take place next
November.

                                    GENIE H. ROSENFELD.




INVENTION AND DISCOVERY.


FISH-HOOK BOOK.--A book has been invented for carrying
fish-hooks, and it promises to be of great use to all those who find
pleasure in the gentle art of angling.

It is a book arranged somewhat like a wallet. At one end is a strong
leather pocket for flies, then stretched across it are four ledges. Each
ledge has a number of slits in it. At the end opposite the pocket is the
first ledge, and into the slits in this ledge the hooks are placed. The
short line attached to the hook is carried to the next ledge, and
carefully slipped into a slit opposite to the one which holds the hook.
The line is carried over another ledge to be finally anchored in the one
nearer the pocket. When the book is closed the ledges fit into each other,
and the fish-hooks are kept in place and therefore cannot get tangled.

The book is of a convenient size and is likely to find many admirers.

A patent was lately issued to a man who has invented a means of cutting
the pages of the magazines for us.

His idea is to bind a strong thread into every page that needs cutting,
and when we would cut the pages there is nothing to be done but to pull
the thread and this cuts the page.

The next thing to be invented should be a machine that reads the magazine
for us, and tells us what is in them.

The nearest approach we have made to this idea is in reading stories to
the phonograph, and having the instrument repeat them to us.

    G.H.R.




LETTERS FROM OUR YOUNG FRIENDS.


Another heavy mail this week. The Editor's friends are getting so numerous
that a strike of the postmen on the route may be expected.

    DEAR EDITOR:

    Three daily readers of THE GREAT ROUND WORLD wish to
    know if Queen Victoria is allowed to see the daily papers. We
    once heard or read somewhere that certain things are cut from
    the papers and handed to her on a beautiful silver tray--such
    articles as her advisors think it best for her to see; but she
    cannot read all the daily papers as common folks do. Will you
    kindly answer in next week's number of the Magazine, and oblige
    three constant and interested readers of the Magazine?

                                     JOHN ELIOT R.
                                     URSULA FRANCIS R.
                                     HELEN L.H.

PLAINFIELD, NEW JERSEY, March 31st, 1897.


MY DEAR YOUNG FRIENDS:

In reply to your letter asking how Queen Victoria gets her news, I must
tell you that she is perhaps the most advanced and progressive woman in
the world.

Though she is such an old lady, she keeps herself thoroughly posted about
everything that goes on in the world. There is no question as to what she
shall be allowed to read--she reads everything that is of interest to her;
but that she may not waste her precious time looking over worthless
articles, her secretaries are instructed to read the papers first every
morning, and see what is worthy the Queen's reading.

From long habit they know the subjects that are of interest to Her
Majesty, and these they carefully outline with a blue pencil.

It has always been the custom for one of the Princesses, the Queen's
daughters, to read these items to her.

No clippings are sent to the Queen; the papers are marked and sent to her
as they are.

Her Majesty really has a Great Round World made for herself every day, for
the secretaries are like your Editor--they do their best to call the
Sovereign's attention only to such matters as are really important and
true.

                                             EDITOR.




    _To Ernest K., Lakewood, N.J._


DEAR ERNEST:--We were very pleased to receive your letter, but we
will not publish it, because we think you could write us a much better
one, that would be well worth putting in our paper.

Won't you tell us something about golf, or what you see when you go out
riding? We think you could write a very interesting letter on either of
these subjects.

                                             EDITOR.


    _Sydney G., Baltimore, and A.V.N. Myers, Cornwall-on-Hudson:_


Thank you for your kind letter. We are glad you find THE GREAT ROUND
WORLD interesting.

                                                       EDITOR.


    DEAR MR. EDITOR:

    I have had only two of your papers. I like them very much. I am
    going to save them and have them bound. It is so muddy here, and
    it was muddier last week; the mud was half a foot deep. There is
    a man that runs a dray-wagon here, and he has two little mules.
    He whips them almost to death.

    A little while ago a poor dog went by with a tin can tied to his
    tail; the boys that did this filled it full of dirt, and the
    poor dog was half scared to death.

    Perhaps I ought not to be so familiar, as this is the first
    letter I have written to you.

    Our neighbors are nice people. They have a little pug dog. There
    was a black cat in the yard, and the dog ran after it. It seemed
    as if the cat was crazy. It dragged its hind legs behind it, and
    pulled them with its front legs, and crawled under the barn
    before the dog got to it.

    I guess I will close now.

                        Your loving friend,

                                            GRAY F.
    WAYNE, NEBR., March, 1897.



MY DEAR GRAY:

We enjoyed your letter very much; it is very bright and interesting.

When we read it we said, Master Gray has gone off with his pen and paper
all by himself to write to us, and that pleased us very much, because we
want all our boys and girls to talk to us in their letters just as if they
were speaking to us.

You seem to be a friend of dumb animals. Read Little Friend's letter to
us, in No. 19, page 498. Would you not like to form a Band of Mercy to
help your animal friends? Think of that poor cat, who was probably
half-dead with fright, and the doggie with the can tied to his tail. Would
you not like to know just how to help these poor little kindly things, who
cannot help themselves?                    EDITOR.


    DEAR MR. EDITOR:

    I wish to tell Grace of some good books. Three of C.M. Yonge's
    books, "Dynevor Terrace," "The Daisy Chain," and its sequel,
    "The Trial," are stories of English boys and girls, much like
    "Little Women." Elizabeth Stuart Phelps' "Gypsy Breynton" series
    are good. The last of the series "Gypsy's Year at the Golden
    Crescent" is a boarding-school story. "The Five Little Peppers"
    series by Margaret Sidney are her best books. The five little
    Pepper boys and girls live in "the little brown house" with
    "Mamsy." Their father is dead, and they are very poor. They gain
    a rich friend, a very nice boy named Jasper, and all go to live
    in his father's house, "Mamsy" becoming the housekeeper. It is
    all written in a delightful and natural manner.

    Flora Shaw's three books, "Hector," "Phyllis Browne," and
    "Castle Blair," are also good. In the first, Hector, a little
    English boy, goes to France to live with his little country
    cousin Zélie. In the second a little Pole, Count Ladislas
    Starinski, comes to England to live with his English cousins.
    The last is the story of five Irish boys and girls, their big
    dog Royal, and their two cousins Frankie and a French girl
    Adrienne (whose name they could not pronounce, and so they
    called her Nessa, after one of their dogs which had died, and
    which they said looked like her).

    Elizabeth Champney's "Witch Winnie" series are very interesting.
    The first two, "Witch Winnie" and "Witch Winnie's Mystery," are
    boarding-school stories.

    Other good books are: "When I Was Your Age," by Laura Richards;
    "Two Girls," and "Girls Together," by Miss Blanchard; "Half a
    Dozen Girls," by Anna Chapin Ray; "Dr. Gilbert's Daughters," by
    Margaret Matthews; "Captain Polly," "Flying Hill Farm," and "The
    Mate of The Mary Ann," by Sophie Sweet; "Summer in a Canon," and
    "Polly Oliver's Problem," by Kate D. Wiggin; The "Katy Did"
    series, by Susan Coolidge; the Quinnebasset Series, by Sophie
    May, comprising "The Doctor's Daughter," "Asbury Twins," "Our
    Helen," "Janet," and "Quinnebasset Girls"; "The Jolly Good Time"
    books, by Mary P. Wells Smith; and all the books of Lucy C.
    Lillie, Nora Perry, Mrs. Mead, and Mrs. Molesworth.

    I have read and enjoyed all the above, and can recommend them to
    any one as delightful stories of boys and girls.

                                           EDITH.


MY DEAR EDITH:

We are glad to have your nice letter to publish, and will be pleased to
have you read for us.

    EDITOR.

    DEAR MR. EDITOR:

    Miss Bessy reads THE GREAT ROUND WORLD, and will you
    please send me a pattern of the kite of Lieutenant Wise?

                                        Yours truly,
                                           SYDNEY G.
    BALTIMORE, MD., March 26th, 1897.


MY DEAR SYDNEY G.:

"The American Boy's Book of Sport," published by Charles Scribner's Sons,
and mentioned in No. 21 of THE GREAT ROUND WORLD, will tell you
how to make kites of all kinds. We cannot promise that you will find
Lieutenant Wise's kite there, because we think he has kept the manner of
making his kite a secret, and will do so until he has quite finished his
experiments with it.

                                              THE EDITOR.


    DEAR MR. EDITOR:

    I take THE GREAT ROUND WORLD, and like it very much. In
    your last number you spoke of "Singing Mice." Can you tell me,
    where can they be got? If they can be bought, where and how
    much?

                                               Yours truly,
                                                    WILLIE T.H.


DEAR WILLIE:

Singing mice are very rare; but we have been to the store where we get our
lizards, and tadpoles, and goldfish, and the man who keeps it has promised
to see if he can hear of one. If he is fortunate enough to find such a
mouse he is to let us know, and if you send us your address we will tell
you how much he wants for it, and where you can see it.


                                                EDITOR.


    DEAR EDITOR:

    A number of us girls have formed a society named The Daffodil
    Reading Circle, of which I am the president. We meet at the
    different girls' houses every week. I subscribe for THE
    GREAT ROUND WORLD. It is one of the principal things we
    read, and we all enjoy it very much. We were very much
    interested in the article about the cuttlefish or octopus found
    on the coast of Florida, in Number 16. I am surprised to hear
    to-day that it has been examined by some scientific men, who say
    that it is not an octopus at all, but only the head of a
    deformed whale. I am very anxious to hear what the truth is
    about it.

                      Your interested reader,
                                        FLORENCE C.R.

    JERSEY CITY, N.J., March 20, 1897.


DEAR FLORENCE:

We have written to the Smithsonian Institution about the cuttlefish. The
reply has not reached us in time for this number, but next week we hope to
be able to tell you what the scientific men have decided about it. That
the monster found was the head of a whale was only the opinion of some of
the gentlemen who examined it. We believe that no absolute decision was
arrived at.

                                                  THE EDITOR.


We were very much pleased to get an account of a gold mine published in a
recent number, for we want our boys and girls to write letters describing
the different industries of the United States. A number of New York boys a
few days since went to Waterbury, Conn., and visited various factories; we
publish two of their letters, and hope that we may receive similar letters
from boys and girls in different parts of the country. In almost every
town there is something which can be written about.




OUR EXCURSION TO WATERBURY.


On Thursday last the three upper classes visited Waterbury, Conn., to
inspect some of the numerous industries for which the town is so famous,
and returned Friday night, filled with great thoughts of the wonders of
Yankee inventive genius.

While there we had the good fortune to be admitted to a pin-factory, an
iron-foundry, a watch-factory, and the most extensive brass-works in the
world.

I shall here limit myself to a brief description of the last.

Brass is made by melting together in large crucibles certain proportions
of copper and zinc. The heat applied must be considerable, for during the
fusion of the two metals a white flame from the zinc and a green one from
the copper flash from the mouth of the crucible. When properly mixed the
molten alloy is poured into rectangular or cylindrical moulds. After
cooling, the bars are driven between immense rollers, to be formed into
sheet-brass. This process is very much like rolling out dough for
pie-crust, and is repeated many times. But the great pressure to which the
sheets are subjected makes the alloy very brittle, so that it has to be
softened or "annealed," as it is called, by being heated red-hot in very
large ovens before each re-rolling. When the sheets have attained the
required thinness, they are cut into widths and lengths suitable for easy
handling, transportation, and manufacture.

We also saw sheets of copper and German silver made in a similar manner.
The latter is simply brass that has had some nickel added to it to make it
white like silver.

The cylindrical casts above mentioned are placed in machines that draw
them into wire or tubing. The process is a most interesting one, though
rather difficult to describe.

A large quantity of the products of these works is used directly in the
very town, in factories for making clocks, watches, pins, and other
articles.

It is interesting and curious to note how the manufacture of brass in this
country originally started.

During the war of 1812 many useful articles became scarce; among these
were buttons. A man named Benedict, who lived in Waterbury, began to make
them out of bone, and became very prosperous.

About 1830 "Dame Fashion" ordained that brass or gilt buttons should be
worn. At first Benedict imported brass from England, but as he could not
get it of the required thinness, he resolved to make it himself. As copper
was scarce, he travelled about the country, buying up old copper kettles
and other things made of copper, which he melted with zinc, and had the
resulting brass slabs rolled at a neighboring iron rolling-mill. In this
way the great brass industry of the United States started. Its product is
now valued at $60,000,000 a year.

                              H.H. ROGERS, JR.

    APRIL 6th, 1897.




PINS.


Among the factories of interest in and around Waterbury, Conn., is the
Clinton Pin Factory. This is one of the largest in America, and has
perhaps the most highly developed machinery in the world.

It is well to remember that the pin-machine is a purely American
invention, and its immense advantage can be fully appreciated if we recall
that it does the work that was required of eighteen distinct hands hardly
more than fifty years ago.

Pins are made of either brass or iron wire. Those made of the latter are
much cheaper, as the price of iron wire varies from three to five cents a
pound, while brass wire is usually worth fourteen.

The wire is fed to the machine from large reels. It is first cut into the
proper lengths by a small steel knife, so arranged that when the regular
length of wire is drawn, the knife descends and cuts it off. Next, each
small piece of wire, for we can hardly call it anything else yet, is
headed by a sharp rap from a small automatic hammer. Lastly, the blunt
ends are pointed by passing over a series of rapidly revolving
emery-wheels, and the pin falls, the essentially completed article, into a
large box, at the rate of three or four per second.

The pins are now placed in large vats, filled with soft soap and water, to
be freed from the dirt and grease gathered while passing through the
machine. After being thoroughly washed, they are put in the "hopper,"
mixed with bran or sawdust, to be dried. The hopper is shaken rapidly,
and the clean, dry pins fall out at one side, the sawdust at the other.

The tinning or "silvering" process is next in order. To accomplish this,
the pins are put into a vessel containing a solution of cream of tartar
and tin, and boiled for four or five hours. From this they come forth
bright and silvery-looking, to be dried again as before, previous to the
final operation of polishing.

The pins are now ready to be put on papers. The machine which does this is
perhaps one of the most ingenious ever constructed. Quantities of pins are
thrown from time to time into a rapidly vibrating hopper, which causes
them to pass, one by one, into a trough-like slide, that holds the pins by
the head; consequently the imperfect ones are automatically rejected. They
then slide along a groove to the main body of the machine, where they fall
into slits properly distanced, and are pressed into the paper in rows,
twelve in all, containing five hundred and sixteen pins.

Shield or safety-pins are made in about the same way, only there are
twelve instead of three different stages before the pin issues from the
machine absolutely complete. After this it has to be washed and tinned as
above described.

The factory has more than fifty machines, which operate themselves so
perfectly that they require the supervision of about ten men only.

It has been estimated that more than fifteen thousand gross of pins per
day, or five million gross per annum, are turned out by this one concern.

                                 GEORGE C. CANNON.

    March 29th, 1897.




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