Shark Killer at St Thomas Aids Rescue on Shipwreck
A German letter describes using dynamite and electric current to kill sharks near St Thomas leading to a dramatic rescue saga. The tale recounts a 1846 Nantucket Sound wreck where improvised gear and a breeches buoy saved eight crewmen after a heavy sea incident.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
St. Thomas
West Indies
East Indies
Boston
Nantucket Sound
Old Man Shoal
Tom Never
Sixteenth Century Pirates and the Drake Era
John C. Fitzpatrick recounts how Dutch and French ocean raiders disrupted Azorean plate fleets from 1588 with escorts and sacked Cartagena in 1533. He chronicles Sir Francis Drake’s Caribbean predations, the sinking and burning of galleons, the Spanish losses nearing two million, and legends like the Revenge and Captain Whiddon’s battles.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Azores
Spain
New World
Cartagena
Francis Drake
Caribbean
San Felipe
South Seas
el Draque
Drake
Straits of Magellan
South America
Whiddon
John C. Fitzpatrick
Scribner's
A Whale Man's Invention in Rescue Stories
In Olde Massachusetts by Charles Burr Todd presents a daring rescue tale of a fire ship Earl of Eglinton sailing from Liverpool in December 1545. The narrative highlights ingenuity and bravery in maritime peril.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Charles Burr Todd
Massachusetts
Earl of Eglinton
Liverpool
Curious Maritime Coincidence in 1774 Salem Episode
Ralph D. Paine recounts an Essex Institute tale of mutiny aboard the Amity. Captain Inger Soll rescues the master and mate, later Duncanson’s Amity sails to Salem, Derby’s crew captures the mutineers, and the Amity is restored to its captain in a dramatic harbor at Salem. This tale appears in The Outing Magazine.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Ralph D. Paine
Essex Institute
Salem
Elias Hasket Derby
West Indies
Ingersoll
Amity
Duncanson
The
Atlantic
Mr. Derby
Ralph D. Paisie
Outing Magazine
Florida shark story near Garden Key ends with skiff split
A tarpon was chased by a shark near Garden Key. In a large leap the shark struck a skiff with two fishermen who were busy with a net. The skiff split, the men tangled in the net, and the shark bit the side of one fisherman.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Garden Key
Shark Mistook Man for Tarpon in Punta Gorda Waters
The Punta Gorda Herald reports a man named Larkin was nearly cut in two by a shark that chased him. Authorities believe the shark mistook his body for the tarpon it hunted, noting sharks in those waters rarely attack humans.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Larkin
Punta Gorda
Misfired Ideas and Odd Facts from a University Correspondent
A collection of whimsical notes on physics and natural phenomena. Air weighs about fifteen pounds per square inch in a barometer, a barometer hole could fling mercury thirty feet high, hydrogen is colorless and insolvent, and the earth’s rapid spin causes dew formation.
Reverend Hall Helps Drunk Man In Moonlit Gutter
The Philadelphia North American recounts how the Rev Dr John Hall encountered a drunk man in a gutter after a Sunday meeting. The minister lifted the man and confirmed his Presbyterian faith. The exchange highlights humble pastoral aid from a church leader.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
John Hall
Hall
Jedge Praises Lifelong Spin on Married State
An old man jokes about marriage in a Tennessee and Alabama past, noting past wives tried to rule him. He claims he never tried marriage in Georgia and jokes about finding a wife willing to rise early for a living. The quip appears in the Atlanta Constitution.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Jedge
Darkey
Tennessee
Alabama
Georgy
Atlanta Constitution
Miner Seeks Poem for Late Governor at Argus
A lanky mine worker asks the Melbourne Argus to publish a memorial verse for his late overseer. Clerk offers In Memoriam notices sixpence an inch. The miner protests that his guv'nor stood over six feet.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Argus
Melbourne Argus
Chesterton critique of modern speech reporting methods
Chesterton argues that modern reporting of speeches by outlets like the Daily Mail is neither leaving speech intact nor faithfully reporting meaning. He claims current methods mislead readers and distort intent.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Daily Mail
G. K. Chesterton
Illustrated London News
Stipulation in a Humorous Irish Servant Tale
A Germantown woman questions a fresh from the other side Irish girl about her cooking skills. The girl replies shyly that she thinks so if helped, in a humorous Harper's Weekly vignette.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Nora
Harper’s Weekly
Strange Result in Grimsby Attack Mentioned by Punch
The Edinburgh Evening Dispatch reports an attack on a rabbi at Grimsby with unconfirmed details noting a rabbi or rabbit conflation. It adds a Punch quip about the reverend being treated at home and a separate scoreline: Motherwell two goals Third Lanark one.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Edinburgh Evening Dispatch
Grimsby
Motherwell
Third Lanark
The Proper Way to Eat an Orange
In a humorous quip Uncle Charles answers a friend asking for the proper method. He declares the proper way is to eat it in a bathtub, delivering a witty regional aside.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Charles
King Edward visits Hall Barn Bucks for a day of shooting
The King and Lord Burnham spent a holiday outing at Hall Barn, a Queen Anne style house in Bucks famed for its historic associations. The building features a Turkish bath, a circa Cromwell napkin incident, and links to Waller Burke Milton and Paradise Regained.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Hall Barn
King Edward
Bucks
Lord Burnham
Waller
Edmund Burke
Burke
House of Commons
Oliver Cromwell
Wallet
Charles I
Milton
A Nature Study on a Pearl Mother and Her Career
Ramsey Benson in Puck notes a mollusk behaving unusually busy and self aware. The mother of pearl, he says, imagines a purpose beyond her role as mother and pursues a career, prompting bemused commentary from a nearby observer.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Ramsey Benson
Puck
The Kiss in Japan Inspires Mixed Reactions
A Japanese college student recalls the kiss as a modern Western change in aristocratic circles. She notes initial shock, then acceptance among maidens who once fainted, and admits personal fondness for the intimate embrace.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Paris
Japan
Los Angeles Times
Chinese Dinner Gong Gains Popularity With Clear Tones
The Chinese dinner gong features three distinct pitches produced by tuned pipes. Struck with a mallet, the instrument offers a pleasant, harmonious sound that attracts growing interest among listeners and collectors.
Interview on Hell by Doctor Newman Smyth
A San Francisco Argonaut piece quotes the New Haven preacher as saying hell is where the Sunday edition of a newspaper should be published and circulated, offering a terse humorous take in response to a newspaper interview request.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Newman Smyth
New Haven
Hell
Doctor Smyth
The
San Francisco Argonaut
Correct use of till and its in English
The Chicago News notes common errors with till and its. It warns against using an apostrophe before till and explains possessives theirs its. It flags it's as a contraction of it is, not a possessive form.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Chicago News
Deaf Telegraph Operator of Portland Reads Messages by Touch
Peter A. Foley, a deaf telegraph operator from Portland, is renowned for reading the instrument by touch and sight. Since becoming deaf eight years ago he has developed a sixth sense, using his fingertips on the sounder to accurately receive continental messages with remarkable skill.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Peter A. ‘Foley
Portland
Foley
Kennebec Journal
Deaf Passenger Disturbs Early Train Plans At New England Inn
A bell-boy at a small New England hotel reports an extremely deaf guest in Number Forty One who cannot hear warnings to wake for an 7 o'clock train. The bell-boy complains he has knocked three times while other guests on the floor shouted for attention.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
New England
Piercing a Nickel with a Needle Trick
A clever trick explains how to pierce a nickel by threading a fine needle through a cork and snapping the needle, then placing the coin on blocks and striking with a hammer. The cork supports the needle, forcing a straight pass and letting the hard needle pierce bronze or silver coins.
Remarkable Yet Tiny Birds Impress Easy Information Club
A member notes birds' intelligence despite small size after a talk on Our Home Birds. The exchange highlights cuckoos as clever wooden birds in cuckoo tools, with assent from a friend.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Easy Information Club
Murderous Coat Displayed in Down Town Shoe Store
The Kansas City Star reports a bizarre garment shown in a downtown shoe company window titled A Murderous Coat. It is made from the breasts of 365 loons, each about four inches square with a white center. The piece count indicates years of hunting to assemble the collection.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Kansas City Star
Rheumatism and Meat Eating Theory In Food Debate
A number of medical authorities argue rheumatism clusters around flesh eating. The claim notes rheumatism rises in the South and diminishes in tropical regions where vegetable diets prevail, as reported by Green's Fruit Grower.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Tropics
Green
Stages of Reform Sayings from Mayor Johnson
Quote attributed to Mayor Tom Johnson of Cleveland outlines three stages of reform. It notes initial ridicule followed by religious objection and eventual acceptance as longstanding belief. This compact aphorism reflects civic reform attitudes and public opinion shifts.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Tom Johnson
Cleveland
Sun Dial Idea From A Water Tumbler
The writer suggests making a sun dial from a plain water tumbler. Close the top with a round wooden disk and insert a darning needle at the center to act as the gnomon for sun time-telling.
Also Mentioned on This Page
Florida
Presbyterian
Philadelphia North American