Sam Clemens Prank: The Whitewash Fence Trick
A reminiscence from Keene Abbott in Harper's Weekly recounts a Hannibal prank attributed to Sam Clemens. He and local boys whitewashed fences at night, then collected praise from neighbors who blamed the astonished owners for the sudden daubing, while Clemens kept hidden.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Hannibal
Issouri
Mark Twain
Samuel Clemens
John A. Fry
Sam Clemens
Shiftleas
Sam
Rae
Mr. Fry
Keene Abbott
Harper’s Weekly
Man Reputedly Guilty Despite Victim Alive in Court
Daniel O Connell once defended a man accused of murder at Clonmel. jurors, convinced by strong circumstantial evidence, returned a guilty verdict before the supposed murdered man appeared alive in court. The judge's question prompted the foreman to insist the prisoner is guilty for stealing his bag over three years ago.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Daniel O’connell
Clonmel
Washington suffragette humorously debates with visiting delegates
A Washington suffragette entertains delegates from distant cities. A South American asks why a plain woman in the red arm chair takes many airs. The reply notes she is a Daughter of the Revolution, and the visitor quips she is a daughter of seventeen of them.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Washington
South America
Bald In War. Gumboil Surname Origin and Power
The text explains that Gumboil as a surname signifies an early holder of great in state power. It derives from the Norse word bald meaning bold in war and not related to any bodily condition.
Fakes in Photography and Optical Distortion
The article explains perspective distortion from near objects and short focal lenses. It describes cabbage appearing huge beside a background family, a six inch fish magnified in a photo, and the swing back technique to create giants or dwarfs. It cautions lowering the lens for focus and ensuring good light to avoid movement blur.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Scientific American
Vision of Resolve and Humility in Collier's Weekly
An aphoristic credo from Collier's Weekly stresses enduring vision and personal worth in the face of youth’s folly adversity and misfortune. It asserts discipline, faith in the human spirit, and steady goodwill as paths to overcoming pain sin and malice.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Collier’s Weekly
Saddle horse adds amusement for couple in cafe exchange
In a Cleveland Plain Dealer note a man says his doctor urged riding, revealing he has taken up saddle horse with amusement. He notes his wife watches from a park bench, preferring to stay off the horse but enjoy the scene.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Cleveland Plain Dealer
Drill sergeant tests recruits with blank rifles at Will
In Milwaukee Wisconsin a drill sergeant leads a recruits squad through rifle handling. When blank cartridges are issued the orders go to load and stand ready. Private Lynn asks which one is Will causing a moment of confusion before the exercise proceeds.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Will
Lynn
Milwaukee
Wisconsin
Lacrosse Origins in Canada and its French Naming
The game lacrosse originated with Canada’s aboriginal peoples who played it for centuries in varied forms. French Canadians coined the name after comparing the curved netted stick to a bishop's crozier, according to New York Press.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Canada
New World
New York
Not a Contortionist from Harper's
A man complains of sharp pain in his left shoulder blade when bending forward and waving arms. The doctor jokes about contortion acts while the man asks how else to put on an overcoat.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Harper's Weekly
Kidnapped Countess Steals Her Own Rescue in Court Gossip
In Mme. de Miramion’s early history, Marie de Rubelle born 1629, widowed before 17, rejects a powerful abduction plot by Roger Count de Bussy Rabutin. Masked horsemen, a grand château reception, and a 33 hour fast fail to move her. The public sympathizes with the abductor despite the escape.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Mme. de Miramion
M. Aime Duroc
Marie de Rubelle
Roger
Count de Bussy-Rabutin
Poe
Eee
Zouns
The Number Fourteen in France
Article notes recurring use of the number fourteen in French history. It cites May 14 events: the 1554 street enlargement, the 1610 assassination, Louis XIII death in 1643, and Louis XIV’s ascent and death in 1643 and 1715, linking these to the fourteens motif.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
France
Louis XIII
Henri IV
Louis XIV
Beau Brummel in Bond Street Humorous Exchange
The Beau Brummel tale recalls a chance meeting in Bond Street with Lady Hester Stanhope. Brummel teases a famed perfume and is met by a quick rebuke from Lady Hester about lineage as a young colonel passes by.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Beau Brummel
Hester Stanhope
Bond Street
Brammel
Lady Hester
de Monvel
Beau Brammel
Unique Altenberg’s Border Village Al
Unique Altenberg sits where three nations meet and is governed by none. Residents cultivate land and mine calamine, speaking a mixed French German jargon as they live a tax free, militarily unpoliced existence.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Altenberg
Europe
Just the Same in Stray Stories
A brief excerpt from Lon Stray Stories contrasts Dunkey’s unchanged appearance with his unchanged foolish behavior. The narrator notes Dunkey’s lack of awareness about his persistent quirks as time passes.
The Telephone A Mystery Analysis and Awe
Herbert N. Casson explains in Mountain States Monitor that the telephone blends science and mystery. He notes every child can use it yet few truly understand its workings including Bell and Carty. The system is powered by the vocal cords and delicate mechanisms operated by breath.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
John J. Carty
Alexander Graham Bell
Emile Berliner
Herbert N. Casson
Mountain States Monitor
The Bogus Beggar
Paris literary figures staged fake beggar investigations among ragged men posing as alms seekers. They posed as members of a fraternity and charged fees while exposing frauds by counterfeit cripples and blind beggars. A Duc d Aumale encounter ended when a real impostor was exposed as a bogus literary man and expelled.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Paris
Duc d’Aumale
de Toe
Boiling as Capital Punishment in Early England
A Dallas News excerpt notes that an act of Parliament in 1531 allowed boiling to death for convicted poisoners, with about fifteen years of enforcement yielding three executions including a cook who poisoned parish funds and a maid who killed her mistress. A Dublin report from February 28 1709 cites twelve counterfeiters seized, tried, and boiled in oil four hours later, three of them women.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
England
Dublin
Dallas News
The Minister’s Parting Shot
A minister delivers a farewell sermon amid church troubles. A visitor praises the text as fitting. The deacon gruffly notes the minister becomes chaplain of the state penitentiary, adding a sharp ending to the tale.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
State Penitentiary
The Merit of Pauline
Pauline tells her parents about naughty classmates after two weeks at school. Her mother asks if the teacher spoke to Pauline, but the teacher spoke to the whole class except Pauline. The mother then orders the children to stay on task until Pauline is in order.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Pauline
Anewe
Also Mentioned on This Page
Clarence Butt
Newberg
Oregon
Bank of Newberg
DR. C. A. Eldriedge
First National Bank
DR. A. M. Davis
Ferguson's
J. C. Price
U. S. Natl
E. P. Dixon
John 8. Rankin
Physicians and Surgeons
U. S. National Bank
Littlefield & Borhig
First Net
L Benk
Thos. W. Hester
Dixon Building
Appointmer
F. H. Wilson
Edwards Bldg
Newberg, Ore
Mueller the Tailor
G. E. Stuart
A. E. Wilson
Optician
First St
FAKES
Dunkey
C.A. Morris
Jeweler
Newgerg Wood Yard
Dawson House
West Hamcock St
E. P. Hamilton
the Ice Man
J. L. van Blaricom
Iron Works
Blaine Sts
Nyone
Deseem
A. M. Dunlap
New
Bnos Elli Is
Business College
Egon
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