Remarkable Oddities and Averages From Far North to South
A stream of curiosities covers encounters with alligators terrifying geese on a Texas pond, coyotes infected with mange as stock protection, a Swede boy choking on a hatchling turtle, and tall tales of hunters who claim vast game trophies. Stories stretch from San Blas customs to aging couples celebrating long marriages.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Jon Vorus
Lumpkin
Tia
Bob
Mr. Camero
Texas
Campbell
Skowhegan
Squirrel
San Blas
Old men in Indian jails spark moral debate
A London Daily News item notes the high proportion of elderly prisoners in Indian jails, citing 17 life prisoners in Mooltan with a combined age over 1,100. It attributes this to family practices of offering the least useful member to justice and argues jails provide comfortable conditions for the aged while the young suffer. It recalls a case where a frail paralyzed man was falsely confessed as the killer.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Punjab
Mooltan
Inspector- General of
London Daily News
Trained Machinists Show Precision in Tiny Measurements
Ambrose Webster of Waltham demonstrates expert machinist skill by judging minute variations with calipers and fingers. He notes that thousandths of an inch guide hydraulic press pressure and tool fit, with paper thickness and ball-sphere tests illustrating extreme sensitivity in precision work.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Ambrose Webster
Waltham
Electrical detective helps convict through chair wired for sound
A courtroom trick used an electrician to wire a chair with carbon plates and a hidden telephonic system. The prisoner’s involuntary hand pressure on the arms created signals read by a closet receiver. Signals guided prosecutors to key points and prompt confession.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Chicago Tribune
Burial Customs Through History and Regions
Describes historic funeral practices from Europe. Interment in a sitting posture to save cost. Swedish coffins with hour glass shapes for unmarried women. Yorkshire cakes sent to mourners. Wales east wind linked to burial orientation. Scotland windows left open or covered with white sheets. Salt on corpses and Henry I salted burial noted.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Ben Jonson
Westminster
Sweden
Gabriel
Yorkshire
British
Wales
Scotland
Henry I
England
Reading
Babyland Ride Sparks Cheer in Dolly’s Bright Spin
A playful scene named for Young Pops features a baby riding in a chaise with Ned as the jig sings of bumps and spins. The cheerful moment centers on a baby grinning at a lively outing with his mother guiding the ride.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Baby
Ned
Dolly
Mamma
Man-Faced Crab of Japan Astonishes World
A tiny Japanese crustacean about an inch long features a headlike face resembling a Chinese laborer with defined eyes nose and mouth. It bears two leg-like appendages from its head and forked beardlike feelers from its chin, giving it a humanlike visage in inland seas.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Japan
The Proud Cow and the See-Saw Revenge
A boastful cow on a meadow overreacts to a rude sheep. She plans to topple the sheep by using a loose plank on a bridge but is outdone when a larger boy places a smaller child on the other end, turning the trick on her.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
New York World
Domestic and wild cats and big cats in nature lore
The article explains tiger leopard panther jaguar puma and other cats. It notes tigers can be tamed, leopards climb trees, jaguars hunt monkeys and fish, and pumas fear natives. It mentions the escot as a tiger cat native to Mexico and Peru and compares domestic cats to wild cats with scent interest and mouse hunting skill.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Africa
India
Indian Islands
Java
America
Mexico
Peru
New Orleans Picayune
Engineering plan to tunnel north of Wrights station
A fragmentary early report describes a Pacific Company rail tunnel project near Wrights station. It details a northward tunnel, a stone arch through a canyon, and an artificial waterfall as water flows over the arch during high creek stages.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
San Francisco Examiner
Peaches Named as Tonic in Old Ledger Notes
A Philadelphia Ledger excerpt touts peaches as a tonic combining food and drink benefits. It claims peaches aid digestion, blood health, and complexion, suggesting eating fresh and with cream or sugar. The passage also mentions mixing peaches with melons and berries for a varied effect on appearance and vigor.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Philadelphia Ledger
Curious Hypothesis on Sunlight From Sooty Clouds
A historical letter discusses a radical view by Sir Robert and Dr Stoney that sun radiation may come from vast hazy gas clouds. The argument likens solar light to electric arc phenomena and candle flames, suggesting a common carbon-based substance in the clouds that power light.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Ot” Johnstone Stoney
F. KR
Robert Do Ee
Stoney
New York
Forests and hail storms sweep timber belts across states
A fragmented notice describes hail storms affecting forested regions in Michigan Wisconsin Georgia and other timber belts. The text hints at increasing frequency and regional impact but details are unclear due to garbled OCR.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Michigan
Wisconsin
Georgia
Iowan
Kansas
Missouri
New York
Distress Hits Switzerland and England Amid Scarce Supplies
The text notes widespread hardship in Switzerland and England with limited American relief and scarce land resources. It portrays a war era hardship scene and mentions the land of Tell in a historical lamp.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Witzerland
Tell
Also Mentioned on This Page
Wor
Walla Walla
Snake River
Sandusky River
Upper
Sandusky
Rockies
Ohio
Colonel Crawford
Eva Lixpsay
Ohio Falls
Ind
John Bahler
Battle Creek
Mich
Lindsay
Babbler
Rremarp Honasoyx, LL. D
American Society of Psychical Research
Ansel Bourne
Greene
Norristown
A. J. Brown
London
Poodookota
Travancore
Sanderson
Calcutta
Bartollah
Sampson Barker
Ozark
White River
Vincent and
Joan Hate
Ashland
Jons Lennert
Milford, Me
THE
Young Pops
Barry
Pacific
Wright
Saaced
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!