Discovery of African diamond era stirs legend of Star of South Africa
The tale recounts 1867 John O Reilly finding a pebble in Boer Van Nickerck’s farm believed to be a diamond. After verifying the gem’s value in Cape Town, O Reilly shared profits and later relation to the Star of South Africa, a stone bought by a witch doctor for 500 sheep and horses before selling for $56,000.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
John O'Reilly
van Nickerck
O'Reilly
Cape Town
Colesbury
O’reilly
Nickerck
South Africa
Westminster Hall the oldest edifice in London and historic landmark
Westminster Hall near the Tower and Westminster Abbey is described as the most historic London edifice with over 800 years of history. It notes Richard II rebuilding it in 1397, the famous oak roof, trials of Charles I and others, Hastings, Cromwell, and its use for early parliaments and law courts through 1882.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Westminster Hall
Tower
Westminster Abbey
London
House of Commons
Richard II
Charles I
Earl of Stratford
Edward
Duke of Somerset
Duke of Northumberland
Duke of Norfolk
Warren Hastings
Cromwell
Great Preacher's Humor Beecher Letter Funeral Note
A humorous exchange recalls Henry Ward Beecher responding to a dead letter notice. The Brooklyn postmaster reported the letter returned from the dead letter office and Beecher replied with mock gravitas, asking about the date, cause of death, and funeral arrangements, joking about cremation and other letters being sick.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Henry Ward Beecher
Brooklyn
Colonel McLeer
Trade Signs Disappearing In Electric Display Era
The article notes the shift to flashing electric signs replacing classic storefront markers. Wooden Indians once guarding tobacconists, boot repair signs, barber poles, blacksmith anvils, and horses’ heads over livery stables are fading into memory as advertising advances replace old symbols.
Farm River Drain Uncovers Huge Oil Field
A farmer long troubled by a scum on a creek bed across a farm discovers after his death that the underlying waterway yields petroleum. An oil prospector learns the scum hides mineral oil, transforming the estate into a major oil field through the creek outlet.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
America
Impulse and Human Reason
A Detroit man contemplates inviting a freezing collie into his home but chooses to close the door. He later regrets the impulse, grows ill with pneumonia after prolonged porch exposure, and concludes that reasoned choice often clashes with impulses, unlike those who act in accord with rational conduct.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Detroit
Detroit News
Practical Lesson Turns Boy’s Math Night into Real Trade
A father put his ten year old son in charge of a home attic grocery to teach arithmetic. The boy buys, sells, keeps stock and ledger, profits saved for spending money. The method improved his school marks and interest in arithmetic.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Parents’ Magazine
Construction of Coral Reefs Depth and Growth Patterns
Coral reefs form within depths between twenty and thirty fathoms in waters not dropping below 8 degrees Fahrenheit. They occur in the Pacific Indian oceans and near the West Indies, thriving where volcanic upheavals are minimal. The living coral foundation often lies below, while upper reef surfaces rise as older bases subside, with polyps expanding outward to widen the reef.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Pacific
Indian
West Indies
No title available in passage
The excerpt discusses balance between spiritual and physical attributes and criticizes extreme utilitarianism. It argues luxuries appeal to aesthetics and that ignoring them would hinder industry and leave society close to primitive levels. It is attributed to an exchange standpoint.
World's Highest Village Karzak in Kashmir
A writer in L'Astronomie highlights Karzak, a tiny Kashmir village claimed as the highest on earth. Located at 32 58 0.90 N and 78 18 13.95 E, it sits about 4 556 meters 14 946 feet high, with a couple of stone houses and a sparse populace.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
L’astronomie
Kashmir
Karzak
Greenwich
Amal
Dream psychology explains why daily sorrows fade in sleep
A study of dream psychology notes that major daily sorrows rarely enter dreams as emotions. Dreams arise from preceding daytime thoughts and experiences, acting as a safety valve to release pent up thoughts and emotions. The idea aligns with mystics who deem dreaming of beauty a favorable omen, signaling peace and success.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Goethe
Radiates Too Much Cheer In Morning
A neighbor complains that a cheerful man in the next room sings and whistles at dawn. The writer notes cheerfulness can uplift others but asks if too much morning brightness is disruptive and suggests a later start might help.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Mr. Goslington
Cigar Sign Evolution Tied to Raleigh Legend and Red Man
The article traces the origin of the cigar store Indian to Sir Walter Raleigh and English settlers. It notes seventeenth century visitors learned tobacco from Native Americans and used the Red Man figure as a symbol of the industry, linking modern electric signs to this history.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Walter Raleigh
South
New World
Raleigh
England
Gold Reef Secrets From Ancient Sea Sands
Geologic force lifted a Great Barrier reef era sands into quartzite rock rich in gold. The vast, ancient deposits in Australia and the Rand mines are cited as the world’s greatest producers, with modern science lowering extraction costs to about six dollars per ton.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Great Barrier Reef
Australia
Rand
How Huntington Worked
Edwin L. Sabin notes Collis Potter Huntington as gifted and tenacious, a consummate manipulator of affairs. His motto “I do not work hard, I work easy” sums up his approach to business and human dealings.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Edwin L. Sabin
Pacific Railway
Collis Potter Huntington
Also Mentioned on This Page
Sea
Progress
Argus
Man
Cigar Store
Huntington
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