Poet Burroughs Seeks Government Post in Absurd Interview
A whimsical scene shows John Burroughs applying for a government job via poetry and naturalist credentials. The comptroller and staff doubt the approach yet hire him as treasury set to work, noting no prior appointment was based on such references.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Huck McCuloch
Jax Bee
Perham
Wnigoe
Comptroller
John Burroughs
Treasury
Emmons
North
Pase
Theo
North Pinkot
Nort
Linton
J.D. Newcomes OG
Armstrong & Cameron Attorneys
Marte Ace
North Dakets
Jonah’s Gate and Block Island Whaling Tale
A vivid Block Island relic describes the Jonah’s gate formed from whale jawbones left by whalers 100 feet long. The gate, once a farm entrance, sparked superstition and distrust, then faded from use after locals avoided it. A New York observer praises practical church doors signage for clarity.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Jonah Gate
Block Island
Payze
Polar Circle
Levisthan
Whelebost
Paynes
Jonsah's Gate
New York
Backwoods Hunter Fights Bug on Eyebrow
An old backwoodsman famed by Abraham Lincoln fires at a tree believing a wilde hat is near. His wife inspects him and reveals the target is merely a bug on his eyebrow, ending the chase with a chuckle from the Housekeeper.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Abraham Lincoln
Larry
Joshua
What He Left Behind Prompts Streetside Theories
A prominent citizen’s death sparks a street debate on his fortune with estimates ranging from £10000 to $25000. A notorious politician muses that after his death people will wonder what he owed, echoing the living curiosity about debts.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Saturday Evening Post
Coffee quarrel sparks a playful breakfast chat
Mr. Skillings jokes about being a grumpy early riser if coffee is cold. His wife responds with a witty retort that she would heat it up for him, turning the moment into a lighthearted domestic exchange.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Mr. Skillings
Mrs. Skillings
Healthy suburb myth questioned by buyer and agent
A prospective buyer confronts a real estate agent in a Cleveland Plain Dealer piece, challenging assurances of health and affordability in a suburb. The buyer cites a citizen’s death by starvation, to which the agent blames a doctor. The exchange exposes conflicting claims about the area's safety and welfare.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Cleveland Plain Dealer
Do You Mind If I Smoke Asks a Fair Companion
A pale young man and his fair companion exchange a brief, hesitant conversation in a conservatory. After minutes of silence he retrieves a cigarette case and asks Miss Smilax for permission to smoke, she replies with a teasing yet polite remark about illness.
Maybe He Meant Well Phrases on Foreground Photo Advice
A witty remark in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer suggests caution in portrait photography. The exchange notes keeping feet out of the foreground as a humorous guideline. The quip hints at social awkwardness and evolving communication.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Camera Prizes and Notable Photo Negatives
A survey of valuable photographs shows negatives commanding high prices. A Vanderbilt engagement photo snapped by chance sold for over a thousand dollars. After Jamaica's quake an American firm and a writer bought and sold negatives for several thousand dollars.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
New York
Sit. Bartholomew's
Vanderbults
Vanderbilt
Gladys Vanderbilt
Count Szechenyi
Jamaica
Munsey's Magazine
The Connection: Corson Remarks On Philologists
A Cornell instructor recalls Professor Corson’s dismissal of modern serendipitous philology. He cites Corson’s quip that linking a Celtic word to fish scales and shingles is as probable as that analogy. A motherly quip about scales on a fish is shared via a child’s innocent explanation.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Corson
Cornel
Cornell
New York Tribune
Calmed Her Fears in a Paris Story of Mme Victor Hugo
A Paris contemporary recalls Mme Victor Hugo and her three children. A dish of apricots is raided. The mother warns that a swallowed stone could make one ill or die. The youngest child Adele proudly says she has saved all the stones.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Paris
Mme
Victor Hugo
Mme. Hugo
Adele
Just a Human Being
A juror hears Zeke defend the alleged theft of Colonel Todd hens with a claim that his act was human impulse. He argues the Colonel kept the chickens in a lawful henhouse and ignored the padlock, concluding he is merely a human being.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Zeke
Colonel Todd
Todd
St. Paul
Her Interpretation Reveals His Hidden Message
A fragment from the Post quotes a dialogue where one character hints at willingness to die for another, then clarifies the sentiment as readiness to eat the other’s cooking whenever invited. The exchange is playful with a sharp twist.
Winged Thieves At Gezira Tea Tables In Cairo
Cairo correspondent reports at Gezira Sporting Club kites sweep tea tables, stealing bread, butter and cake as crowds watch. Crow and kite behavior terrifies new arrivals, including brief disruption during princess tea. On golf greens, kites disrupt play and boost ball vendor profits.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Gezira
Cairo
Sporting Club
Egypt
Cairo Cor
Pall Mall Gazette
Directions to Servants and a Cold Conundrum
A passage from Swift’s Directions to Servants advises managers to stage a servant’s check to extract tips, while another scene shows a doctor inspecting Miss Cambridge for a severe cold. The dialogue contrasts social instruction with medical examination and a joking risk about wearing spectacles outdoors.
Heiress and Physician Duel Over Farming Fate
A young heiress declares she is a farmer yet laments losing most crops. Her table companion, a rising physician, counters that in his case all he loses, he plants. The playful exchange highlights differences in their farming misadventures.
Stranger asks about young artist in New York sketch
A passerby at a cottage admires a pencil sketch and learns the artist is a son who has been a magazine illustrator in New York for ten years. The woman says he is Frat and deserves encouragement. The scene ends with the stranger seeking the boy.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
New York
Cleveland Plain Dealer
Bartlett’s Failed Fourth of July Oration Ends Career
The report recalls Thomas Bartlett Jr of Vermont failing to win acclaim after a riotous Dartmouth crowd disrupted his July fourth speech. His grandiloquent style and a harsh remonstrance letter led to sharp ridicule that followed him to Congress. A mock remark by Mr Polk of Tennessee triggered laughter and ended his career as a national orator.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Thomas Bartlett, Jr
Vermont
Congress
St. Johnsbury
Dartmouth
Bartlett
Mr. Polk
Tennessee
When Pope Chides Princes in London Memoir
Edward Walford recounts Frederick Prince of Wales visiting Alexander Pope at his villa in Greater London. Pope compliments the prince yet quips that love for princes may clash with dislike for kings as princes can become kings. The prince retorts with a sharp jab about hinges and a lion before its claws.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Edward Walford
Greater London
Frederick
Prince of Wales
Alexander Pope
Pope
Mr Pope
Tony Weller's Advice and Towome Exchange
Tony Weller asks Towome if she is widowed. OL replies with a flushed joke about the year being up and needing time to get ready. Inside, Weller reflects that he now understands what the elder meant.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Montviona
Old Weller
Also Mentioned on This Page
Jonah
New York Son
Dean Swift
Miss Cambridge
Record Office
C. M. Dahl
First Bank of
Linton, North Dakota
W. E. Petrie
H. A. Armstrong
W. O. Irwin, E. A. Crain
G. A. Herolz
Galloway and
Aberdeen
Angus Bulls
C. Johnson
Tony Weller
North Dakota
P. Muenz
A.D. Iil
Biock Hague
Emmons County
Said
Black Bee
Nott
County of
Bay
Towit
T Emmons County
Lynn & Coventry
North Dakot
Berreth
Harbara Berreth
Hraus Tires
State of Nor
Komtal, Anlyoo & Coventry
Mortgaces
North Lakota
Bronsons
Sinkie
Jane
Tueare
St! John
Bistuar
Kasvper Noppa
Strasburg
Homestead
Townsby
G. B. Carley
Ut ‘ County Court
Linton Norte
Vth
Ferdinand Hettrier Miristur
Johannes Holzer
Strasbars
Joseph Schwailiz
Strasmars
Max Heltrich
Kon
Steven
Hazelton
Desir
L. du Heaume
Experien
Francis Jaszkowias
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!