STRANGE STORIES FROM AMERICA.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXVII, Issue 72, 24 March 1906, Page 13

STRANGE STORIES FROM AMERICA.

CHICAGO'S CRIMINAL POPULATION.

The startling revelation that more than 1100 persons under indictment in the Criminal Court of Chicago are at iiherty, untried and unlikely to be tried for "months, even if they can be arrested, has been brought to Ught. Among the number are scores of professional criminal., many with police and penitentiary records in various parts of the country, who are preying on the pubirc. apparently without regard to the fact that they stand in the shadow ot the law." ; Twelve alleged gamblers, indicted nearly two year* ago. have never been arrested or brought to trial. The Sheriff reports that 507 fugitives cannot be found. Safe blowers of international reputation, oldtime burglars, horse thieves, highway robbers, and expert gaol breakers are found among the number. COMPETITION FOR A BATHTUB. Center, Nebraska, a town of 200 people, in Knox county, and the county seat of i that county, now boasts of a bathtub. It is the first bathtub In that town, and was installed a few days ago by a local barber. Rivalry existed between the men and women at first over the days upon which the women should be allowed to use the new tnb, but the matter has been settled peacefully, and the women are to bathe on Thursdays of each week. A local paper, the "Center Register," contained this Item a few days ago: "We are requested to announce to the ladles of Center that Thursday will be Indies' day at the new bathroom in Saunders' Hotel Annex. None but ladies will be allowed to bathe on that day, and they are Invited to take advantage of the new tub. Every courtesy will be shown natrons.'' DOG PARTS LOVERS. "Because his dog had gotten hold of his marriage license and chewed it ln such a manner that his fiancee refused to accept it. Jack Hopper, a young man, living ln Loe Angeles connty. about five miles from Los Angeles, California, returned a mutilated marriage license to the county clerk's office, explafning that he had no further use for it and desired that it be destroyed. The license was issued in Jnne, 1904. Hopper explained his painful experience as follows:

"We came here and got the license and a then went home and waited for the day r to get married. My dog happened to find £ the thing one day on the floor and he c chewed one comer of it, and then the girl f said she would not marry mc unless I got 1 a new license. 1 wonld not do that because the license hadn'r been harmed, so she said I needn't have her at all, and so it ended. But snee then the thing has been t a hoodoo nud 1 want it destroyed." r Clerk Shea assured him that the license v had expired thirty days after its issuance, c but upon the expression of continued mis- s giving on the part of the applicant, he lln- c ally tore up the license. . t ———- . NINE NEGROES BURNT TO DEATH. t NeWs fromi "Battf-nore states that a v small cabin was burnt on a Monday mornlug recentis. on the shore of Chesapeake t Bay. near Sparrow Point, and ninenn- t groea who were sleeping ln the cabin were burnt to death. The police arrested a negress named Webater, who owned the cnbin. She *R charged with burning the house iv order to destroy the occupants, who were witnesses ln a case of attempted murder, in which tho accused is the woman's lover, who is lv prison awaiting trial. The negro victims had been carousing, and were more or less intoxicated, and were unable to escape from the houje. which had been saturated with kerosene. The affair created a great stir amoung tht negroes, and but for the prompt action of the police in arresting the woman, sha would undoubtedly have been lynched. THE FIRST BILLIONAIRE. " Among the numerous' wealthy men in ' America, there is Just now a good deal > ot speculation as to who will eujoy tha uniqno distinction of becoming the first I billionaire. It is, of course, an amount of ' money that no man In the world's history i has yet possessed, but there are two. and perhaps three fortunes in the "___-i"ed States that may within a comparatively few years reach this uuprecedentedly great i gum. 1 Mr .'lohn D. Rocekfeller is most likely < to reach the billion record with a fortune, i as near as he can estimate it. of 330.000.- I !000dols (£110.000,000), the income from the: l many interests be possesses having amount- s ed last year to the huge figure of £10.400.----000, or ££200.000 per week: ! i Senator William A. Clark, from Montana. j i who resides in New York City, comes sec- j i ond in point of wealth. The copper mines j - he owns are alone estimated to be of the ; i value of £100,000.000. while he is also!) interested :n a largp number of other en- , terprises, the value of which is unknown. I < Third in point of fortune is placed the! , Astor estate, held principally by Messrs | | William Waldorf and John Jacob ■ Astor. I whose joint possessions are stated to be the ' value of £90,000,000, of which. Mr William j Waldorf Astor holds the greater part. The! above figures clearly indicate that the won- j , derful country of America is undoubtedly \ destined to give the world its first billion- j aire. i I I POSTING A LETTER IN A FIRE j ' ALARM BOX: The. inability of Wayne Soucier. a visitor j j to St. Louis from Stanton, Mo., to distin- '■■ guish between a pillar letter box and a ' tire alarm box led to his arrest on a charge | of turning on a false alarm of flre. Sou- \ cier was a guest at the Cherokee Hotel. 524 . ! Market-street, and .says the""Globe-Demo- I erat") one day he wrote a letter to his j i home folks. Later he visited a drug store I j at Sixth and Market streets and secured i I a stamp. While there he ask_»d a clerk | ! where he coudl find a letter box. The j clerk pointed across the street, i There were a letter box and a fire alarm j j box on the spot to which the clerk pointed. [ | Soucier came to the lire alarm box first, j | He read the sign, "Turn the crank to open ! door." and took it literally. Inside ho ! read, "'Pull down the uooli." This he also : complied with. Finding no slot for letters, > he turned around in amazement. He was i about to p'.ace the letter in the box, anyhow, when ,tho tire apparatus clattered up_tJH The fire laddies wanted to know where ; the blaze was. "I don't know of any fire," replied Soucier. "I was just about to mail a letter, but I can't find the goldarned place." The firemen promptly called a policeman, and the visitor from the countrywas escorted to the Chestnut-street substation and locked up. THE PRESIDENT'S COOK. j Think of the White House cook going on strike and giving up his job at a moment's j notice! That was what happened in Christ- i mas week. The President has the habit of Inviting friends off-hand to luncheon or dinner. Mrs Roosevelt, after many years' experience, cannot be surprised by the President, and she makes it a rule to provide every day for additional guests. Harry PJLacJcaey, i_» OTilta A. ata. ntAvruuii Mra*^

. ... .'---. ___ -__- - the cooks. The latsst one proved captious from the start, because luncheon in the White House is a moveable feast, and never Is served until .the President has

finished hie morning work. The cook wished to know every morning after breakfast how many persons would come to luncheon. That was impossible to- predict. So one morning, when 18 persons were to sit at the President's board, this free American citizen took off his cap and apron and departed. The President will have to mend his ways, unless lie wants his wife to do her own housework. However, the departure of the White House cook should end the foolish fears of some pessimists that an official aristocracy is growing up in Washington. When a handler of pots and psns scorns a President we're all still on an equality.—"New York Press." CALLED BACK FROM DEATH. An American doctor avers that hypnotism can prevent people from dying. Dr. John Quackenbos. Professor of Psychology at Columbia University and member of the London Society for Psychical Research, announced to a New York audience his discovery of the power of hypnotism (saya the "Tribune"). He says he saved the life of a lady dying from pneumonia last Jane. Her condition was an equivalent to a death sentence—a temperature of 107_deg. r pulse 160. respiration -60. Dr. Qnackenbos took oue ot the lady's hands, called her by name. and commanded her not to die. After working over her a few minutes, the patient's mental mist cleared away. She talked coherently, and finally recovered. Dr. Quackenboa declared that two other patients had been saved from death by the medical man shouting a command In the Car at the moment of dissolution.