Trembling pillar at Rheims puzzles archies and bells
In Rheims a trembling pillar near a bell tower reacts only to a single bell. When this bell rings or is touched the top sways about seven inches while the base remains fixed. In 1775 a water-filled device was placed opposite the pillar and the bell’s fifth stroke dislodged two guides. Other bells produce no effect.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Rheims
Uliielr
St Niclien
Burtt Guth Pillies
Harper'’s Weekly
Quoit Tales of Marshall and a Farm Boy Scholar
The article recalls a Kentucky statesman famed for self schooling after hardship, detailing how an elder brother was kept at school while the younger endured work. It also recounts Uncle Rastus and a humorous bull horn-cut tale, plus a long anecdote about Justice Marshall in quoit matches, refereeing, and rival debates with Parson Blair and Mr. Wickham, highlighting his skill and stubborn wit.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Rom Corwin
Kentucky
Ordfer
Matthias
Thomas
Joe
Rastus
Philadelphia Telegraph
Quoits
Nolso
Justice Marshall
Richmond
Marshall
Bieides
Maretill
United States
Etria
Mr. Blair
Blair
Wickham
Aaron Burr
Markshall
Prolonged Dinners and Delayed Proposals in Old Journals
A column contrasts Chinese state dinners lasting 20 to 30 hours and months of feasting with envoys and 140 courses. It also tells a Scotsman’s telegraphed marriage proposal joke about waiting for an answer, noting the night rates lass as ideal.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
China
Chicago Tribune
Old Bridal Pairs Push Limits of Age at Marriage
A Wolborough wedding of a 75 year old bride and 70 year old groom ignites debate on the oldest marrying ages. Greenwich parish records note 1685 marriage of John Cooper aged 108 to Margaret Thomas aged 80, followed by Cooper’s death in 1686. Greenwich also cites William Keith Ball born 1788 who wed in 1870.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Wolborough
Greenwich
John Cooper
Margaret Thomas
Ould Cooper
William Keith Ball
London Chronicle
Quaker Prison Visit Noted by Evelyn in 1656
John Evelyn records in his diary a July 8 1656 visit to Quaker prisoners in Ipswich. He describes a new fanatic group with defiance toward magistrates and men, noting one man fasting twenty days and another perishing after attempting to fast longer.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
England
John Evelyn
Ipswich
Two Anglers Fall Aboard in Dry Humor Exchange
In a quiet boating tale two keen fishermen nap in a boat and drift into a nap. One slips overboard and sinks briefly. As he resurfaces the other asks where he has been. His reply is a dry witticism about checking the bait.
Remarkable Feat and Witty Fragments in The Scrap Book
A collage of humorous vignettes and tall tales from various sources. Henry Dixey boasts of training by eating thirty chickens in thirty days while the castle in the air motif meditates on lofty goals. A royal Canadian powwow joke and aWillpower anecdote close with a prosy professor and a witty retort about language barriers.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Henry
Dixey
Hruidway
Scott
Daudet Advises Spelling Sappho With Two Ps
Alphonse Daudet faced a publishers’ rejection of his novel Sappho after American firm sent advance sheets. He consulted friends who noted English uses double p while French uses one. Daudet replied Spell It with two P s, stunning editors with his witty clarification.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Alphonse Daudet
Sappho
M. Daudet
Daudet
The Last Straw of Circle Bar Bill Meekness Trial
A frontier tale recalls Circle Bar Bill converting cowpunchers through patience and faith. A belligerent audience hurls produce at him until a wild turkey egg strikes his face, provoking an intermission as he vows to endure a violent prank. The piece blends humor with rugged, old West depicts.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Circle Bar Bill
Hodge City
Circle Har Bhi
Bill
Ike
Feller
Philadelphia
Saturday Evening Post
A. G. Petissier
An Old Suffrage Meeting Joke From The Gallery
Professor Bliss Perry related a suffrage gathering tale where after routine business a motion aimed to place a woman on the local school board faced a silence. A caller in the gallery then asked how the speaker achieved a smooth effect over the hips, provoking quiet then laughter.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Bliss Perry
Also Mentioned on This Page
Hart Schaffner
Marx
Hart Schaffner & Marx Clothes
J. A. Ray
Arthur Olson
Ober
Rase
Thompson’s Hardware
Envilla Stock Farm
Cogswell, N.D
Floyd P. Wagaman
Duke of York
British Columbia
James B. Reynolds
the Treasury
Root
Mr. Reynolds
Paris
Indge
Bilg
Ana Achoss
Tie Yun
Lord Avebury
Monsieur
Madame
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!