The Handy Cyclopedia of Things Worth Knowing

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The largest free territorial government is the United States.

The Chaldeans were the first people who worked in metals.

Spectacles were invented by an Italian in the 13th century.

Soap was first manufactured in England in the 16th century.

Julius Caesar invaded Britain, 55 B. C.; assassinated, 44 B. C.

Medicine was introduced into Rome from Greece, 200 B. C.

First electric telegraph, Paddington to Brayton, England, 1835.

First photographs produced in England, 1802; perfected, 1841.

First life insurance, in London, 1772; in America, Philadelphia. 1812.

Slavery in the United States was begun at Jamestown, Va. in 1619.

The highest denomination of legal-tender notes in the United States is
$10,000.

Postage stamps first came into use in England in the year 1840; in the
United States, in 1847.

The highest range of mountains are the Himalayas, the mean elevation
being from 16,000 to 18,000 feet.

The term "Almighty Dollar" originated with Washington Irving, as a
satire on the American love for gain.

The largest inland sea is the Caspian, between Europe and Asia, being
700 miles long and 270 miles wide.

A span is ten and seven-eighths inches.

First watches made in Nuremberg, 1476.

Pianoforte invented in Italy about 1710.

The value of a ton of silver is $37,704.84.

French and Indian War in America, 1754.

A hurricane moves eighty miles per hour.

Coaches were first used in England in 1569.

The first horse railroad was built in 1826-7.

Electricity moves 288,000 miles per second.

Modern needles first came into use in 1545.

The average human life is thirty-three years.

French Revolution, 1789; Reign of Terror, 1793.

$1,000,000 gold coin weighs 3,685.8 lb. avoirdupois.

Mormons arrived at Salt Lake Valley, Utah, July 24, 1847.

The largest cavern in the world is the Mammoth Cave, Kentucky.

Experiments in electric lighting, by Thomas A. Edison, 1878-80.

Daguerre and Nieper invented the process of daguerreotype, 1839.

First American library founded at Harvard College, Cambridge, 1638.

First cotton raised in the United States was in Virginia, in 1621; first
exported, 1747.

First sugar-cane cultivated in the United States, near New Orleans,
1751; first sugar-mill, 1758.

First telegraph in operation in America was between Washington and
Baltimore, May 27, 1844.

The largest university is Oxford, in England. It consists of twenty-one
colleges and five halls.

The first illumination with gas was in Cornwall, Eng., 1792; in the
United States, at Boston, 1822.

Printing was known in China in the 6th century; introduced into England
about 1474; America, 1516.

The great wall of China, built 200 B. C. is 1,250 miles in length, 20
feet high, and 25 feet thick at the base.

Glass mirrors first made by Venetians in the 13th century. Polished
metal was used before that time.

Meerschaum means "froth of the sea." It is white and soft when dug from
the earth, but soon hardens.

In round numbers, the weight of $1,000,000 in standard gold coin is
1-3/4 tons; standard silver coin, 26-3/4 tons; subsidiary silver coin,
25 tons; minor coin, 5-cent nickel, 100 tons.

The highest monument in the world is the Washington monument, being 555
feet. The highest structure of any kind is the Eiffel Tower, Paris,
finished in 1889, and 989 feet high.

There has been no irregularity in the recurrence of leap year every four
years since 1800, except in 1900, which was a common year, although it
came fourth after the preceding leap year.

It is claimed that crows, eagles, ravens and swans live to be 100 years
old; herons, 59, parrots, 60; pelicans and geese, 50; skylarks, 30;
sparrow hawks, 40; peacocks, canaries and cranes, 24.

The greatest cataract in the world is Niagara, the height of the
American falls being 165 feet. The highest fall of water in the world is
that of the Yosemite in California, being 2,550 feet.

The most ancient catacombs are those of the Theban kings, begun 4,000
years ago. The catacombs of Rome contain the remains of about 6,000,000
human beings; those of Paris, 3,000,000.

The first English newspaper was the English Mercury, issued in the reign
of Queen Elizabeth, and was issued in the shape of a pamphlet. The
Gazette of Venice was the original model of the modern newspaper.

The Great Eastern, at one time the greatest steamer afloat, and twice as
long as any other vessel at the time of her launching, in 1858, was 692
feet in length and 118 feet in breadth. She was too large to be handled
profitably with the motive power then available, but proved
indispensable in the laying of the Atlantic cable. She was broken up and
sold as junk, although the Isherwood system, on which she was built, has
since been revived, and is now successfully employed in shipbuilding.

The seven sages flourished in Greece in the 6th century B. C. They were
renowned for their maxims of life, and as the authors of the mottoes
inscribed in the Delphian Temple. Their names are: Solon, Chilo,
Pittacus, Bias, Periander, Cleobolus, and Thales.

A "monkey wrench" is not so named because it is a handy thing to monkey
with, or for any kindred reason. "Monkey" is not its name at all, but
"Moncky." Charles Moncky, the inventor of it, sold his patent for
$2,000, and invested the money in a house in Williamsburgh, Kings
County, N. Y.

The "Seven Wonders of the World" are seven most remarkable objects of
the ancient world. They are: The Pyramids of Egypt, Pharos of
Alexandria, Walls and Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Temple of Diana at
Ephesus, the Statue of the Olympian Jupiter, Mausoleum of Artemisia, and
Colossus of Rhodes.

In 1775 there were only twenty-seven newspapers published in the United
States. Ten years later, in 1785, there were seven published in the
English language in Philadelphia alone, of which one was a daily. The
oldest newspaper published in Philadelphia at the time of the Federal
convention was the Pennsylvania Gazette, established by Samuel Keimer,
in 1728. The second newspaper in point of age was the Pennsylvania
Journal, established in 1742 by William Bradford, whose uncle, Andrew
Bradford, established the first newspaper in Pennsylvania, the American
Weekly Mercury, in 1719. Next in age, but the first in importance, was
the Pennsylvania Packet, established by John Dunlap, in 1771. In 1784 it
became a daily, being the first daily newspaper printed on this
continent.

"Liberty," Bartholdi's statue, presented to the United States by the
French people in 1885, is the largest statue ever built. Its conception
is due to the great French sculptor whose name it bears. It is said to
be a likeness of his mother. Eight years of time were consumed in the
construction of this gigantic brazen image. Its weight is 440,000
pounds, of which 146,000 pounds are copper, the remainder iron and
steel. The major part of the iron and steel was used in constructing the
skeleton frame work for the inside. The mammoth electric light held in
the hands of the giantess is 305 feet above tide-water. The height of
the figure is 152-1/2 feet; the pedestal 91 feet, and the foundation 52
feet and 10 inches. Forty persons can find standing-room within the
mighty head, which is 14-1/2 feet in diameter. A six-foot man standing
on the lower lip could hardly reach the eyes. The index finger is 8 feet
in length and the nose 3-3/4 feet. The Colossus of Rhodes was a pigmy
compared with this latter-day wonder.

The largest and grandest temple of worship in the world is St. Peter's
Cathedral at Rome. It stands on the site of Nero's circus, in the
northwest part of the city, and is built in form of a Latin cross. The
total length of the interior is 612-1/2 English feet; transept, 446-1/2
feet; height of nave, 152-1/2 feet; diameter of cupola, 193 feet; height
of dome from pavement to top of cross, 448 feet. The great bell alone,
without the hammer or clapper, weighs 18,600 pounds, or over 9-1/4 tons.
The foundation was laid in 1450 A. D. Forty-three Popes lived and died
during the time the work was in progress. It was dedicated in the year
1826, but not entirely finished until the year 1880. The cost, in round
numbers, is set down at $70,000,000.

The great pyramid of Cheops is the largest structure of any kind ever
erected by the hand of man. Its original dimensions at the base were 764
feet square, and its perpendicular height in the highest point 488 feet;
it covers four acres, one rood and twenty-two perches of ground and has
been estimated by an eminent English architect to have cost not less
than 30,000,000 pounds, which in United States currency would be about
$145,200,000. Internal evidence proves that the great pyramid was begun
about the year 2170 B. c., about the time of the birth of Abraham. It is
estimated that about 5,000,000 tons of hewn stone were used in its
construction, and the evidence points to the fact that these stones were
brought a distance of about 700 miles from quarries in Arabia.

The largest body of fresh water in the world is Lake Superior. It is 400
miles long and 180 miles wide; its circumference, including the winding
of its various bays, has been estimated at 1,800 miles. Its area in
square miles is 32,000, which is greater than the whole of New England,
leaving out Maine. The greatest depth of this inland sea is 200 fathoms,
or 1,200 feet. Its average depth is about 160 fathoms. It is 636 feet
above the sea level.

The corner stone of the Washington monument, the highest in the United
States, and until 1889 the highest structure in the world, was laid July
4, 1848. Robert E. Winthrop, then Speaker of the House, delivered the
oration. Work progressed steadily for about six years, until the funds
of the monumental society became exhausted. At that time the monument
was about 175 feet high. From 1854 until 1879 nothing to speak of was
done on the building. In the year last above named Congress voted an
appropriation of $200,000 to complete the work. From that time forward
work progressed at a rapid rate until December 6th, 1884, when the
aluminum apex was set at 555 feet 5-1/2 inches from the foundation and
the work declared finished. The foundation is 146-1/2 feet square;
number of stones used above the 130-foot level, 19,163; total weight
stone used in work, 81,120 tons.

The largest State in our grand republic is Texas, which contains 274,350
square miles, capable of sustaining 20,000,000 people, and then it would
not be more crowded than Scotland is at present. It has been estimated
that the entire population of the globe could be seated upon chairs
within the boundary of Texas and each have four feet of elbow room.

The Mississippi River, from the source of the Missouri to the Eads
jetties, is the longest river in the world. It is 4,300 miles in length
and drains an area of 1,726,000 square miles. The Amazon, which is
without doubt the widest river in the world, including the Beni, is
4,000 miles in length and drains 2,330,000 square miles of territory.

THE SINGLE TAX.

This idea was first formulated by Mr. Henry George in 1879, and has
grown steadily in favor. Single-tax men assert as a fundamental
principle that all men are equally entitled to the use of the earth;
therefore, no one should be allowed to hold valuable land without paying
to the community the value of the privilege. They hold that this is the
only rightful source of public revenue, and they would therefore abolish
all taxation--local, state and national--except a tax upon the rental
value of land exclusive of its improvements, the revenue thus raised to
be divided among local, state and general governments, as the revenue
from certain direct taxes is now divided between local and state
governments.

The single tax would not fall on all land, but only on valuable land,
and on that in proportion to its value. It would thus be a tax, not on
use or improvements, but on ownership of land, taking what would
otherwise go to the landlord as owner.

In accordance with the principle that all men are equally entitled to
the use of the earth, they would solve the transportation problem by
public ownership and control of all highways, including the roadbeds of
railroads, leaving their use equally free to all.

The single-tax system would, they claim, dispense with a horde of
tax-gatherers, simplify government, and greatly reduce its cost; give us
with all the world that absolute free trade which now exists between the
States of the Union: abolish all taxes on private issues of money; take
the weight of taxation from agricultural districts, where land has
little or no value apart from improvements, and put it upon valuable
land, such as city lots and mineral deposits. It would call upon men to
contribute for public expenses in proportion to the natural
opportunities they monopolize, and make it unprofitable for speculators
to hold land unused or only partly used, thus opening to labor unlimited
fields of employment, solving the labor problem and abolishing
involuntary poverty.

THE MYSTERIES OF HYPNOTISM.

A Compend of the General Claims Made by Professional Hypnotists.

Animal magnetism is the nerve-force of all human and animal bodies, and
is common to every person in a greater or less degree. It may be
transmitted from one person to another. The transmitting force is the
concentrated effort of will-power, which sends the magnetic current
through the nerves of the operator to the different parts of the body of
his subject. It may be transmitted by and through the eyes, as well as
the finger tips, and the application of the whole open hands, to
different regions of the body of the subject, as well as to the mind.
The effect of this force upon the subject will depend very much upon the
health, mental capacity and general character of the operator. Its
action in general should be soothing and quieting upon the nervous
system; stimulating to the circulation of the blood, the brain and other
vital organs of the body of the subject. It is the use and application
of this power or force that constitutes hypnotism.

Magnetism is a quality that inheres in every human being, and it may be
cultivated like any other physical or mental force of which men and
women are constituted. From the intelligent operator using it to
overcome disease, a patient experiences a soothing influence that causes
a relaxation of the muscles, followed by a pleasant, drowsy feeling
which soon terminates in refreshing sleep. On waking, the patient feels
rested; all his troubles have vanished from consciousness and he is as
if he had a new lease of life.

In the true hypnotic condition, when a patient voluntarily submits to
the operator, any attempt to make suggestions against the interests of
the patient can invariably be frustrated by the patient.
Self-preservation is the first law of nature, and some of the best known
operators who have recorded their experiments assert that suggestions
not in accord with the best interest of the patient could not be carried
out. No one was ever induced to commit any crime under hypnosis, that
could not have been induced to do the same thing much easier without
hypnosis.

The hypnotic state is a condition of mind that extends from a
comparatively wakeful state, with slight drowsiness, to complete
somnambulism, no two subjects, as a rule, ever presenting the same
characteristics.

The operator, to be successful, must have control of his own mind, be in
perfect health and have the ability to keep his mind concentrated upon
the object he desires to accomplish with his subject.

HOW TO CARE FOR A PIANO.
By William H. Damon

The most important thing in the preservation of a piano is to avoid
atmospheric changes and extremes and sudden changes of temperature.
Where the summer condition of the atmosphere is damp all precautions
possible should be taken to avoid an entirely dry condition in winter,
such as that given by steam or furnace heat. In all cases should the air
in the home contain moisture enough to permit a heavy frost on the
windows in zero weather. The absence of frost under such conditions is
positive proof of an entirely dry atmosphere, and this is a piano's most
dangerous enemy, causing the sounding board to crack, shrinking up the
bridges, and consequently putting the piano seriously out of tune, also
causing an undue dryness in all the action parts and often a loosening
of the glue joints, thus producing clicks and rattles. To obviate this
difficulty is by no means an easy task and will require considerable
attention. Permit all the fresh air possible during winter, being
careful to keep the piano out of cold drafts, as this will cause a
sudden contraction of the varnish and cause it to check or crack. Plants
in the room are desirable and vessels of water of any kind will be of
assistance. The most potent means of avoiding extreme dryness is to
place a single-loaf bread-pan half full of water in the lower part of
the piano, taking out the lower panel and placing it on either side of
the pedals inside. This should be refilled about once a month during
artificial heat, care being taken to remove the vessel as soon as the
heat is discontinued in the spring. In cases where stove heat is used
these precautions are not necessary.

The action of a piano, like any other delicate piece of machinery,
should be carefully examined, and, if necessary, adjusted each time it
is tuned. The hammers need occasional and careful attention to preserve
original tone quality and elasticity. Never allow the piano to be beaten
or played hard upon. This is ruinous to both the action and tuning. When
not in use the music rack and top should be closed to exclude dust. The
keyboard need never be closed, as the ivory needs both light and
ventilation and will eventually turn yellow unless left open.

The case demands careful treatment to preserve its beauty and polish,
Never use anything other than a soft piece of cotton cloth or cheese
cloth to dust it with. Never wipe it with a dry chamois skin or silk
cloth. Silk is not as soft as cotton and will scratch. A dry chamois
skin picks up the dust and grit and gradually scours off the fine
finish. In dusting never use a feather duster, nor rub the piano hard
with anything. The dust should be whipped off, and not rubbed into the
varnish. If the piano is dingy, smoky or dirty looking, it should be
washed carefully with lukewarm water with a little ammonia in it to
soften it. Never use soap. Use nothing but a small, soft sponge and a
chamois skin. Wipe over a small part at a time with the sponge,
following quickly with the wet chamois skin wrung out of the same water.
This will dry it immediately and leave it as beautiful and clean as new.
Never use patent polishes. If your piano needs polishing employ a
competent polisher to give it a hand-rubbing friction polish.

The highest mountain on the globe is not, as is generally supposed, Mt.
Everest, that honor belonging to a lofty peak named Mt. Hercules on the
Isle of Papua, New Guinea, discovered by Capt. Lawson in 1881, According
to Lawson, this monster is 32,763 feet in height, being 3,781 feet
higher than Mt. Everest, which is only 29,002 feet above the level of
the Indian Ocean.

[Transcriber's Note: The highest point in New Guinea is Puncak Jaya
(Mount Carstensz or the Carstensz Pyramid), at 16,023 feet.]

SALT-RISING BREAD.

The real formula for making salt-rising bread, as set down by the
daughter of Governor Stubbs, of Kansas, and by him communicated to
Theodore Roosevelt, is as follows, according to the "Saturday Evening
Post":

"On the night before you contemplate this masterpiece of baking take
half a cupful of corn meal and a pinch each of salt and sugar. Scald
this with new milk heated to the boiling point and mix to the thickness
of mush. This can be made in a cup. Wrap in a clean cloth and put in a
warm place overnight.

"In the morning, when all is ready, take a one-gallon stone jar and into
this put one scant cupful of new milk. Add a level teaspoonful of salt
and one of sugar. Scald this with three cupfuls of water heated to the
boiling point. Reduce to a temperature of one hundred and eight degrees
with cold water, using a milk thermometer to enable you to get exactly
the right temperature. Then add flour and mix to a good batter; after
the batter is made, mix in your starter that was made the night before.
Cover the stone jar with a plate and put the jar in a large kettle of
water and keep this water at a temperature of one hundred and eight
degrees until the sponge rises. It should rise at least an inch and a
half. When it has raised mix to a stiff dough, make into loaves and put
into pans. Do not let the heat get out of the dough while working.
Grease the loaves well on top and set your bread where it will be warm
and rise. After the loaves rise bake in a medium oven for one hour and
ten minutes. When you take the loaves from the oven wrap them in a
bread-cloth."

A CURE FOR LOVE.

Take twelve ounces of dislike, one pound of resolution, two grains of
common sense, two ounces of experience, a large sprig of time, and three
quarts of cooling water of consideration. Set them over a gentle fire of
love, sweeten it with sugar of forgetfulness, skim it with the spoon of
melancholy, put it in the bottom of your heart, cork it with the cork of
clean conscience. Let it remain and you will quickly find ease and be
restored to your senses again.

These things can be had of the apothecary at the house of Understanding
next door to Reason, on Prudent street.

DOING BUSINESS WITH A BANK

In opening your account with a bank it is proper that you should first
be introduced to the cashier, or some other official. If you are engaged
in business, that officer will inquire as to your particular business or
calling, your address, etc., and unless he is already satisfied on this
point, he may make inquiries as to your business standing. This being
satisfactory, he will hand you a passbook, and some deposit tickets,
whereupon you make your first deposit, entering the amount on the
ticket. You will then be asked to write your signature in a book
provided for that purpose, or upon a card to be filed away for
reference.

The Signature.

This signature should be just as you intend to use it in all your
dealings with the bank. If, for instance, your name is John Henry Smith,
you may write it J. H. Smith, J. Henry Smith. John H. Smith or John
Henry Smith, but whatever form you adopt should be used all the time.
Once having adopted the form, it should be maintained in exactly that
way. The only excuse for variation from your usual signature is when
presenting checks or other paper made payable to you. In that case,
supposing you had adopted the form J. Henry Smith for your regular
signature, and the check is made payable to John H. Smith, you should
first write on the back of that check "John H. Smith," and immediately
under this you should place your regular signature.

Depositing Money.

When making a deposit, always use the deposit ticket provided by the
bank, filling it out yourself in ink. From this ticket, which is first
checked up by the receiving teller, the amount of your deposit is placed
to your credit. Do not ask the teller to fill our your deposit ticket.
No doubt he would be glad to accommodate you, but to do so would violate
a rule which protects both the bank and the depositor, Deposit tickets
are preserved by the bank, and often serve to correct mistakes.

How to Avoid Mistakes.

Consider for a moment the vast aggregate of bank transactions, and you
will see that perfect system on the part of the banks and bank officials
is required to insure accuracy and avoid mistakes. Sometimes the
requirements of the banks may seem arbitrary and troublesome, but
reflection will show that they safeguard the depositor as well as the
bank. The simple rules here laid down will enable anyone who has
business with a bank to do so with the least trouble and with absolute
safety.

How to Make Out a Check.

Checks are the most satisfactory and most convenient method of paying a
debt or making any ordinary remittance. The stub of your check book will
furnish a permanent memorandum, and when the check is canceled and
returned to you by the bank, it is an indisputable evidence that the
debt has been paid, or that the remittance has been made. The making of
a check is a simple matter, but even the best business men make mistakes
sometimes which are as difficult to remedy as they are easy to avoid.
The hints here given and the facsimiles of checks printed in
illustration will repay careful study.

[Illustration: A Check Properly Drawn. The name and amount are against
the left side of their fields.]

The first facsimile shows a check properly made. It will be seen, in the
first place, that this check is written very plainly, and that there is
no room for the insertion of extra figures or words. The writing of the
amount commences as nearly as possible to the extreme left of the check.
The figures are written close together and there is no space between the
first figure and the dollar mark.

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