Wart advice and reading habits from a club discussion
A club debate quips that warts vanish when forgotten, while suggesting study plans for astronomy political economy and literature. It champions carrying portable classics from Shakespeare to Browning and Burroughs to replace the newspaper in daily reading.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Shakespeare
Bacon
Tennyson
Browning
Faust
Matthew Arnold
Emerson
John Burroughs
Nature
Delighting in Odd Taste Phrases from London Telegraph
A London Telegraph excerpt shows a gentleman lampooning fashionable praise by calling things awfully jolly deliciously sad horribly entertaining and divinely rancid. He jokes that the phrase di vinily rancid came from effort to keep up with peers while serving exquisitely tough beef.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
London Telegraph
The Man Faced Crab of Japan
A singular creature from Japan small body under an inch long bears a head with a human like face. Two leglike appendages emerge from the top of its head while two short feelers extend from the chin giving a beardlike appearance. The man faced crabs swarm in inland seas of Japan.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Japan
Cody
Devoted Weasel Mother Bosses Burdened Young
A weasel carried a baby in its mouth while seeking a new home after a field nest was plowed. The animal was smoked from a tree hole and attacked by a terrier, which killed the mother. The observer noted the mother’s care for her young despite human hostility.
The Adornment of an Arab Girl in Southern Arabia
Description from Southern Arabia notes Arab girls before veiling are dyed with turmeric giving yellow skin. Black antimony eye lines, red nose color, green cheek spots create a grotesque overall appearance as observed by Mr. and Mrs. T Bent.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Arabia
Mrs. T. Bent
Cologne Cathedral’s Unknown Architect Reveals Hidden Lineage
The Cologne Cathedral, lauded as the world’s most beautiful, embodies centuries of design from numerous architects. Its long construction history led to a layered lineage, where many hands shaped its iconic towers and interiors, blurring individual authorship.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Cologne Cathedral
Ivory Nut Used For Art Work In European Goods
A Chambers Journal description notes the vegetable ivory nut from a dwarf palm and a seed with albuminous content. European turners shape the material into spindles small boxes and decorative items which may be colored with sulfuric acid.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Chambers’ Journal
Pledges Against Profanity Use Cards in Switzerland and Italy
In Switzerland and Italy, individuals carry small pledge cards against swearing. They are seated when they hear profanity and pay a tiny self imposed fine to charity.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Switzerland
Italy
A Gentle Rebuke That Saved a Clerk’s Duty
An English visitor in California notes employers’ kindness to workers. He recalls a clerk named John who often forgot tasks but always drew his salary on the first of each month, a reminder that improved his performance and loyalty.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
California
John
Antiquity and Evolution of the Water Pump
The water pump originated as a Grecian invention from the era of Ptolemy and Energetes, with the name tracing to the Creek word pempo meaning to send. Hero of Alexandria provides the earliest pump description, while pumping spread in Germany only after the 1500s. The 17th century saw rotating pumps and plunger piston designs, including Morland and De la Hire contributions.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Philadelphos
Energetes
Hero of Alexandria
Germany
Morland
de la Hire
Humorous Anecdotes From Caulfield to Temple Bar
Grose recalls Caulfield greeting Mr. Thomas Sandby and asking if it was Sandby or his brother. An English shopkeeper praises fabric durability with a witty line about a dress and petticoats. An Irishman’s rope joke completes the collection of quips.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Grose
Caulfield
Thomas Sandby
Sandby
Edgeworth
Temple Bar
Keeping Butter Long in Brined Rolls
A method to preserve sweet butter for weeks by rolling in strong cheesecloth or muslin, then brining. Soak with a hot brine containing saltpeter and sugar, added at a ratio of one teaspoon saltpeter and one tablespoon sugar per four quarts, and cool before pouring over the butter.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Bradfield
How to Varnish Bronze With Silver and Copper Nitrates
To make a brilliant black varnish for bronze prepare a bath of equal parts nitrate of silver and nitrate of copper. Dip the articles to be treated into the liquid and keep them immersed for a time. Withdraw and heat over an alcohol lamp flame until the black patina color forms.
Breakfast Table Exchange Over Forgiveness
A man returns late and faces a stern breakfast remark. He asks for a genial smile and a pleasant word, wishing for kindness as he seeks forgiveness from his partner. The brief scene reveals strain and longing for simple reassurance.
Best Husbands in Europe Quote Sparks Letter Debate
A London Mail quip from an Englishman living in Italy claims Italians are the best husbands in Europe if they have good wives, a remark tied to his daughter's marriage to an Italian officer. The comment highlights cross cultural views on marriage and national stereotypes.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Europe
Italy
London Mail
Principle, not self interest, guides safe leadership
A maxim on leadership urges following a map of principle aimed at the common good rather than acting from selfish motives. It stresses that public guidance should prioritize collective welfare over personal gain.
DeWitts Witch Salve Credited for Healing Sores
An Indiana man claims DeWitt's Witch Hazel Salve cured six year running sores on both legs after doctors failed. An advertisement also promotes Banker's Accident Insurance as reliable with agents listed. A lost black cane with greyhound head is sought between college and town.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
James White
Bryantsville
Ind
DeWitt
DeWitt’s
Loughran & Bauer
H. J. Howard
Buttonholes Sold Here Rebel Storefront Scheme
A New York Tribune report finds a lower east side operation offering buttonholes for gain. A woman explains they sew buttonholes for working girls who cannot afford machines, charging per hole based on fabric quality and desired finish.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Tribune
New York Tribune
The Boy and the Nine-Pence Trick
A beggar boy asks for sixpence and explains how turning it into ninepence works. The trick uses a three penny loaf bought with the sixpence to yield three pence for the baker, three pence for the boy, and the loaf as the ninth penny, illustrating a playful arithmetic misdirection.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Pearson’s Weekly
The Laughter of Savages and European Influence
The piece argues that savage tribes display vigorous mirth rather than despair, citing Darwin and travelers. Tasmanians, as noted by Ling Roth, laugh loudly with head gestures and foot taps, while modern influence allegedly shifts men toward a weaker “mission giggle.”
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Darwin
Ling Roth
Central Africa
International Monthly
Odd Wasp Nest Found In Gloucester Workshop Lock
A Cassell’s Magazine correspondent reports a curious wasp feat in Gloucester England. Wasps entered a workshop door lock and the owner removed the lock to investigate. He found a mud nest containing many dead wasps, with the lock in near daily use suggesting a troubled home.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Cassell
Gloucester
England
Also Mentioned on This Page
Banker’s Accident Insurance Co
F. L. Merepits
Iowa
F. L. Merepiru
B. Cowdrey
Des Moines
Chase & West
A. H. Weber
Rector
L. M. Bosworth
Story County Abstract Books
Nevada
Bower & Longsdorff
Main Street
AmEs, Iowa
Meredith
Miller’s Grocery Store
Ames
Littuce Bros
Real Estate and Insurance
Minnesota
South Dakota
Boswediu
Chicago & North Western
Railway
Chicago Express
Atlan
É. Overland Limited
Siouxity & Omaha
Chicago
Overland Limited
Pacifica
Colorado Special
Carroll
Sioux C & Omaha
Dakota Express
DM St. P
Chicago & Carroll Pas
Dakota & Des M
Des M. Accomodation
Omaha
Des M Pass
Mail Express
Des M. Pass
St P
Sioux City
Rogers
Lowa
Union National Bank
W. M. Greeley
Henry Wilson
Gro. H. Truipen
Ase
Doe
Bankers’ National Bank
National City Bank
New York
Valley National Bank
Frank Morris
Wight
Wbo. A
Underwood
West Mais St. South Side
Mutual Pious
Meat Market
J. A. Campbell
Hemstreet & Campbell
Real Estate & Insurance
Real Sannin
South Side Main Street
Town
Homeseekers
Iowa Central Railway
Iowa Central
Batty
Marshalltown
Nebraska
Richmond
M. D
Richmond & Hutchison
Physicians and Surgeons
Rhad
Read’s Market
C. Brownlie
D. D
Fiusmi & Brownlie
Pen Tissts
P. O
This is just the beginning! Our collection holds over 300 years of history, including rare newspapers, obituaries, marriage records, birth records, and so much more—most of which you won’t find anywhere else!