Boot and shoemakers 194,079
Butchers 76,241
Cabinetmakers 50,654
Carpenters and joiners 373,143
Carriage and wagon makers 49,881
Cigarmakers 56,599
Cotton-mill operators 169,771
Engineers and firemen 79,625
Fishermen and oystermen 41,352
Glassworks operators 17,934
Gold and silver workers 28,405
Harness and saddle-makers 39,960
Iron and steel operatives 114,539
Leather-curriers, tanners, etc. 29,842
Lumbermen and raftsmen 30,651
Machinists 101,130
Manufacturers 44,019
Marble and stone cutters 32,842
Masons, brick and stone 102,473
Mill operatives, not specified 30,836
Millers 53,440
Milliners, dressmakers and seamstr’ses 285,401
Miners 234,228
Painters and varnishers 128,556
Paper-mill operatives 21,430
Plasterers 22,083
Plumbers and gas-fitters 19,383
Printers, lithographers, and stereo-typers 72,726
Saw and planing mill operatives 77,050
Ship carpenters, caulkers, riggers, and smiths 17,452
Silk mill operatives 18,071
Tailors and tailoresses 133,756
Tinners and tinware workers 42,818
Tobacco factory operatives 20,446
Wheelwrights 15,592
Woolen mill operatives 88,010
All others in mines and factories 754,888
—————————
Total 3,837,112
In Trade and Transportation—
Clerks in stores 353,444
Draymen, hackmen, and teamsters 177,586
Employes of railroads not clerks 236,058
Telegraph officials and employes 22,809
Sailors 60,070
Salesmen and saleswomen 72,279
Saloon-keepers and bar-tenders, besides
13,074 restaurant keepers 68,461
Traders in cigars and tobacco 11,866
Traders in clothing 10,073
Traders in coal and wood 10,871
Traders in drugs and medicines 27,704
Traders in dry goods, fancy goods, etc. 45,831
Traders in groceries 101,849
Traders in iron, tin, and copper wares 15,076
Traders in liquors and wines 13,500
Traders in live stock 12,596
Traders in lumber 11,263
Traders in produce and provisions 35,129
Traders in real estate 11,253
Traders in sewing machines 6,577
Traders and dealers not specified 112,842
Undertakers 5,113
All others 387,006
—————————
Total in trade and transportation 1,810,256
In Professional and Personal Services—
Barbers and laundresses 44,851
Clergymen 64,698
Dentists 12,314
Domestic servants 1,075,653
Employes of hotels and restaurants 77,413
Hostlers 31,697
Hotel keepers 32,453
Journalists 12,308
Laborers not specified 1,859,223
Launderers and laundresses 121,942
Lawyers 64,137
Musicians 30,477
Officials of Federal and State governments 57,081
Clerks of Federal and State governments 16,849
Employes 31,401
Physicians and surgeons 85,671
Soldiers of U. S. army and navy 24,161
Teachers and scientific persons 227,710
Other professions 2,204,199
—————————
Total in professions and transportation 4,074,238
The total number of persons in the United States reported as employed
in gainful occupations in 1880 was 17,392,099, out of a total
population of 50,155,783, being 34.68 per cent of the population
of all ages, and 47.31 per cent of the population over 10 years of
age. Of these 14,744,942 were males and 2,647,157 were females. Of
the males 825,187 were between 10 and 15 years of age, and of the
females, 293,169.
ISLANDS of THE UNITED STATES.
BRISTOL, Ill.
Please give the number and dimensions of the islands of the United
States, and state their condition as to soil, water, atmosphere,
vegetation, etc.; also, whether they are generally inhabited.
C. S. HOPPER.
_Answer._—This is a very interesting question, or series of
questions, but the full answer would fill a volume. The coast of the
State of Michigan alone is gemmed with no fewer than 179 islands
of all sizes, from Isle Royale, which forms an entire county of
more than fifty miles in length by ten in breadth, to islets of
less than an acre in surface. Their total area aggregates 404,730
acres. In “Rand & McNally’s Atlas of the World” all the islands of
noticeable magnitude are laid down, and by this authority it appears
that Maine has 40 such islands; Massachusetts, 39; Rhode Island, 24;
Connecticut, 9; New York, 22; New Jersey, 2; Delaware, 6; Maryland,
16; Virginia, 7; North Carolina, 10; South Carolina, 10; Georgia, 11;
Florida, 79; Alabama, 4; Mississippi, 7: Louisiana, 24; Texas, 8;
Ohio, 13; Michigan, 179; Wisconsin, 31, California, 14; Washington
Territory, 26. Alaska Territory embraces more than 200 islands, many
of which are of great value as fishing stations. There are hundreds
of petty islets not located except in the charts of the United States
Coast Survey. Many of them, like the islands in the Western rivers,
are not known by names but only by numbers. But a small number of the
more important islands in the above list are inhabited; less than
100 in all. The soil is of all varieties, from the fertile fields of
Port Royal, Hilton Head, and Edisto, South Carolina, the home of the
famous “sea island cotton,” and the rich dark loam of Long Island,
New York, to the bleak rocks and barren sands of Mt. Desert, and the
arid isles on the coast of California.
PRE-EMPTION CLAIM QUERIES.
ST. LAWRENCE, Dak.
1. What is necessary to constitute “continuous residence” on a
pre-emption claim? 2. What more does the law require of a single
man to “prove up” than of the head or a family?
SUBSCRIBER.
_Answer._—1. The courts have repeatedly decided that “the sufficiency
of residence and improvement is a question of fact to be decided
from the circumstances of each case.” In the case of _Copley_
versus _Rell_ it was ruled that “where, from the nature of the land
entered under the pre-emption law, it would appear that the claimant
has selected it for speculative purposes rather than for purposes
of improvement and cultivation, the evidences of good faith and
_occupation_ should be of the most satisfactory character.” And
again, in the case of _Porter_ versus _Johnson_, it was held that
what constitutes residence within the meaning of the law “is simply
a question of good faith, and each case must be considered upon its
own merits.” In the case of _Boyse_ versus _Goss_, it was held that
“the statute requires inhabitancy on the land pre-empted and this
means actual residence or a home.” In case of _Southern Pacific
Railroad_ versus _Newton_, it was held that “occupation and use of
land for purposes other than cultivation, etc., do not constitute a
pre-emption claim.” While the above rulings distinctly reveal the
intent of the government to exact all that is essential to actual
settlement and the maintenance of a home upon the land, there are
other rulings which indicate that the law will be construed liberally
so long as the above essentials are preserved. For example, it has
been decided that “a party while having an actual residence on his
claims, may work elsewhere for other people a few weeks at a time.”
Again, “where a party is very poor, a dug-out in the side of a hill
or a sod-house is a satisfactory residence, and four pre-emptors may
combine to erect and occupy a house on the corner common to their
claims, provided each pre-emptor resides in his own part of the
house. Should one of them be unmarried he may board in the family
of a married pre-emptor.” 2. The law makes no difference between
married and unmarried pre-emptors. In construing it, as regards what
constitutes residence, the last ruling above quoted indicates that
the government is disposed to make some allowance for the unfortunate
circumstances of a young man who has not found any girl willing to
share his dug-out sod-house or tepee and cook his corn-dodgers and
potatoes for the privileges of wifehood, including a dower interest
in the estate. Married and unmarried pre-emptors must each make a
final affidavit, declaring that they have complied with the law in
every particular, are not disqualified by owning 320 acres of land
elsewhere in any State or Territory of the United States, or by
other reasons specified, and must file pre-emptor’s proofs in the
form of sworn answers to questions furnished them on printed blanks,
which must be accompanied by sworn testimony of two witnesses, taken
separately, in the form of answers to questions stated in another
set of printed blanks prepared by the Commissioner of the General
Land Office, all designed to attest that the law as to continuous
residence, cultivation, etc., has been complied with in good faith.
A FATAL FEINT.
PRINCETON, Ill.
Who was the young man who when walking on the brink of Niagara
River, some years ago, in company with his intended bride and her
little sister, accidentally tossed the latter into the rapids, and
perished in the effort to save her? What was the child’s name, and
how did it all happen?
JAMES.
_Answer._—It is related of a Mr. Addington, a son of Judge Addington,
of Buffalo, that when standing on Luna Island, just above the Falls
of Niagara, with a Miss De Forrest and her little sister, he seized
the latter playfully, and, holding her over the brink, threatened
to toss her into the river. The child, in a spasm of terror, sprang
from his arms and fell into the edge of the fatal current. Instantly
young Addington bounded after her, succeeded in seizing her, and
caught a frail bush for support. Had this held they might both have
been saved, but it gave way, and man and child were carried over the
falls. The common traditions represent that Mr. Addington and Miss
De Forrest, who was a very lovely young lady, were engaged to be
married, and that in consequence of the terrible fate of her lover
and sister she became insane. This was in 1844, or thereabouts.
TARANTULAS.
KINGMAN, Kan.
To settle a dispute, please give a description of the tarantula,
and tell where it is found.
A READER.
_Answer._—There are several varieties of tarantulas. The one from
which they all take this name, the “lycosa tarantula,” is the
largest of European spiders, named from Taranto, Italy, where they
are very numerous. Its body is from one and a half to two inches
long, ashy brown above, thorax marked with gray and abdomen with
three-cornered spots and curved streaks bordered with white, with a
patch of saffron-color below all, crossed by a black band. It has
one spiracle, or breathing aperture, on each side, one pulmonary
sac, and eight eyes. It does not spin a web to snare its prey, but
captures it by running it down, and it lives in holes lined with a
silk-like substance. Its bite is no more severe than that of some
kinds of wasps, and is certainly not nearly so dangerous to life
as it is fabled to be. The notion that its bite produced a sort of
delirium and was curable only by dancing to lively music until the
sufferer fell from sheer exhaustion was a superstition. For a good
illustration of this ugly insect see the cut accompanying the word
“tarantula” in Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary.
There is a variety of tarantula in our Southern States, called
“lycosa Carolinensis” by naturalists, which is even larger than its
European namesake, being about two inches long, and having legs
spreading at least four inches. It has whitish legs, white sides,
whitish dots and lines on the belly, and is of a mouse color on top
and black or dark colored underneath. Like the Italian tarantula, it
spins no web, takes its prey by pursuit, and lives in holes lined
with a sort of silk. It is peculiar in carrying its young on its
back, and it seldom bites.
There are certain spiders of the genus mygale in the Southwestern
States, which are sometimes improperly called tarantulas.
PERRY’S VICTORY ON LAKE ERIE.
EVANSTON, Ill.
Can you give us the old American naval song of 1812, in which
perry, pear cider, is made to pun with the name of Perry, the hero
of Lake Erie.
A READER.
_Answer._—A correspondent, the Rev. W. P. Jones, of Mt. Morris, Ill.,
a boy at the time of that victory, recalls so much of the song as is
given below. It must be remembered that Captain Barclay commanded
the British squadron and General Proctor the British land forces in
Canada.
Bold Barclay one day
To Proctor did say,
“I’m tired of Jamaica and sherry;
Come, let us go down
To this new floating town,
And get some American Perry.”
Finding that the liquor flowed more freely than it was wanted, and
was too hot to suit his taste, he cries out, in the last stanza, in
his vain attempt to fly:
“Your liquor’s too hot;
Keep it still in the pot!
Oh, cork your American Perry!”
But there was no such thing as corking Perry until he had captured
the entire British squadron, consisting of two ships, two schooners,
a brig, and a sloop, with all on board, including forty-one killed
and ninety-four wounded.
THE TWO U. S. CONSTITUTIONS.
BELMONT, Iowa.
Please point out the difference between the first Constitution of
the United States, under which the Revolutionary war was fought,
and the present Constitution.
O. T. K.
_Answer._—The Articles of Confederation conferred upon Congress none
but delegated powers and recognized the absolute sovereignty of the
States. Aside from the right to make war and peace, regulate foreign
intercourse, receive and send embassadors, control the coinage of
money, and settle disputed boundaries, Congress had no power to act
without the consent of nine of the States, each casting one ballot.
It could not levy taxes, and before 1787 the war debt had destroyed
the financial reputation of the United States abroad. The States were
divided in their interests, and at the last Colonial Congress but
eight of the States sent delegates. Not the least of the weaknesses
of the confederation was the non-provision for a chief magistrate, or
for a national judiciary. To meet these needs it was found necessary
to frame a new constitution, systematically organizing a permanent
form of government. This document arranges the powers of government
under three heads—legislative, executive, and judicial—and places
the supreme power in the people of the whole country, instead of
vainly endeavoring to maintain a multitude of independent States. It
replaced a disjointed confederacy of jealous States with a Nation.
CHAPLAINS IN ARMY AND NAVY.
GIBSON, Ill.
How old must a man be to be ineligible to the office of chaplain in
the United States navy? How old to be ineligible to a chaplaincy in
the army? How many chaplaincies are there in the army and navy and
what is the rank and pay?
CONSTANT READER.
_Answer._—A chaplain in the navy cannot be less than 21 nor more
than 35 years of age at the time of his appointment. Limits of age
of new appointees in the army are not specified in the statute.
The President may retire a chaplain unconditionally after forty
years’ service, or after he is 62 years of age. The President is
authorized, by and with the consent of the Senate, to appoint thirty
post chaplains and a chaplain for each of the cavalry and two
infantry regiments of colored troops in the army, and not to exceed
twenty-four chaplains in the navy. The rank and pay of chaplains in
the navy are stated on page 88 of Curiosity Shop for 1882. Chaplains
in the army have the rank of captain of infantry, without command,
and are on the same footing with other officers of the army as
to terms of office, retirement, and pensions. The pay of an army
chaplain is $1,500 a year for the first five years’ service, $1,650
for the next five years, $1,800 for the next five, $1,950 for the
next five, and $2,100 after twenty years’ service. It should be borne
in mind that the duty of chaplains of colored troops and of post
chaplains includes instruction of the enlisted men in the common
English branches of education.
POSTAL-LAW QUERIES.
NEPONSET, Ill.
1. When were the salaries of postmasters changed from a percentage
on stamps sold to a percentage on stamps canceled? 2. What is the
postage on newspapers to Great Britain? 3. Can a supplement be sent
without extra charge?
SUBSCRIBER.
_Answer._—1. Under the postal law approved Jan. 23, 1874, the
compensation of postmasters of the first, second, and third classes
consisted of annual salaries, assigned in even hundreds of dollars,
to be ascertained and fixed by the Postmaster General from their
respective quarterly returns for four quarters immediately preceding
the adjustment or readjustment, by adding to the whole amount of
box rents, not exceeding $2,000 per annum, commissions, also not to
exceed $2,000 per annum, on the postal revenues of the office. All
postmasters whose salaries, computed by this law, did not amount to
$1,000, constituted a fourth class, whose compensation was the box
rents collected at their offices and commissions on other postal
revenues of their offices at the rate of 60 per cent on the first
$100 or less per quarter, 50 per cent on the next $300 or less,
and 40 per cent on the excess above $400 per quarter. To swell the
revenues of their offices, postmasters of the fourth-class, and some
of those of the third and second-classes, went into the large cities
and sold stamps to mercantile firms and other heavy dealers, in
some cases even sharing commissions with them. This abuse led to a
revision of the law in the act of June 17, 1878, so that commissions
should be allowed only “on stamps canceled as postages on matter
actually mailed” at the offices in question. 2. The postage on
newspapers to Great Britain and most of her colonies, the world over,
is 1 cent for every two ounces or fraction thereof. Better inquire
at postoffice for postal rates, or consult the United States Postal
Guide, which can be seen at every postoffice. 3. That depends on the
weight.
FARM AREAS AND VALUES.
ORD, Neb.
Oblige some of your readers by giving the cultivated area of the
United States; the number and value of farms, farm implements,
stock, etc. Also specify the States and Territories having over
500,000 acres each under cultivation.
HENRY P. MAIDEN.
_Answer._—The total number of improved acres in the United States,
according to the census of 1880, was 284,771,042, embraced in
4,008,907 farms. The value of farms, including lands, fences, and
buildings, was $10,197,096,776; value of live stock, $1,500,464,609;
cost of building and repairing fences, $77,763,473; cost of
fertilizers purchased, $28,586,397. Estimated value of all farm
productions (sold, consumed, or on hand), $2,213,402,564.
The following States and Territories had each more than 500,000 acres
under cultivation;
Alabama 6,375,706
Arkansas 3,595,603
California 10,669,698
Colorado 616,169
Connecticut 1,642,188
Dakota 1,150,413
Delaware 746,958
Florida 947,640
Georgia 8,204,720
Illinois 26,115,154
Indiana 13,933,738
Iowa 19,866,541
Kansas 10,739,566
Kentucky 10,731,683
Louisiana 2,739,972
Maine 3,484,908
Maryland 3,342,700
Mass’ch’setts 2,128,311
Michigan 8,296,862
Minnesota 7,246,693
Mississippi 5,216,937
Missouri 16,745,031
Nebraska 5,504,702
N. Hampshire 2,308,112
New Jersey 2,096,297
New York 17,717,862
N. Carolina 6,481,151
Ohio 18,081,091
Oregon 2,198,645
Pennsylvan’a 13,423,007
S. Carolina 4,132,000
Tennessee 8,496,556
Texas 12,650,314
Vermont 3,286,461
Virginia 8,510,113
W. Virginia 3,792,327
Wisconsin 9,162,528
Illinois leads the column with nearly double the cultivated area of
the Keystone State; Iowa comes next, and Ohio, New York, Missouri,
Indiana, Pennsylvania, and Texas, in the order here given, come
trudging after. The next census will make marked changes in the above
list.
THE GOOSE HANGS HIGH.
BLUFFDALE, Ill.—Some one asks in Our Curiosity Shop as to the origin
of the saying, “All things are lovely, and the goose hangs high.”
This is it: In the autumn, during the warm, hazy days of Indian
summer the wild geese fly very high, so high that they cannot be
seen, but their cry, which is a “haunk,” is plainly heard. Therefore
it was, and is, a saying in the West, “All things are lovely, and the
goose ‘haunks’ high,” a sure indication of continued fine weather. It
is not “the goose hangs high,” which is a corruption of language, and
is, moreover, nonsense.
S. G. R.
ARCTIC EXPLORATION.
SHERWOOD, Wis.
Mention all the attempts made to explore the arctic regions, and
tell where we can find a full account of these expeditions.
WILLIAM R. BISHOP.
_Answer._—No one work contains a full account of all the toils and
sufferings, the thrilling scenes and exciting experiences of arctic
exploration. The books and charts on this subject would make a
good-sized library. As respects the northeast passage, they include
narratives of the expeditions of Willoughby and Chancellor (English,
1553), Burroughs (English, 1556), Pet and Jackman (English, 1580),
William Barentz (Dutch, 1594-96), Henry Hudson (English, 1608, and
Dutch, 1609), Wood (Dutch, 1676). Behring (Russian, 1741), Shalaroff
(Russian), who with his crew perished of starvation, Wiggans
(English, 1784), Billings (Russian, 1787), and finally, Professor
Adolf Eric Nordenskjold (Swedish), who, after two other expeditions
(severally in 1875 and 1876), in 1878-9 succeeded in sailing from
the North Atlantic eastward, through the Arctic Ocean and Behring
Straits, into the Pacific, thus triumphantly completing the discovery
of the “northeast passage.”
The search for the “northwest passage” has engaged nearly two hundred
and fifty expeditions, of various nationalities. It would be useless
to enumerate them all. The first attempts were made by Sebastian
Cabot (English, 1498), and Martin Frobisher (English, 1576); Captain
John Davis, after whom Davis’ Strait is named (English, 1585-88);
Henry Hudson, after whom Hudson’s Bay is named (English, 1610);
Button (English, 1615), and Bylot and Baffin, after the latter of
whom Baffin’s Bay takes its name (English, 1615-16). Little more
in the way of discovery in this direction was realized, although
occasional attempts were made by Jens Munk, a Danish navigator, Fox,
James, and others, until 1818, when Ross and Parry, under direction
and support of the British Admiralty, entered upon a series of
expeditions extending over more than a decade, by which a large
addition was made to the knowledge of the geography of this region
as far west as long 110 deg west, in Melville Sound, and north to
latitude 82 deg. 45 min., and the magnetic pole was discovered.
Dease, Simpson, Dr. John Rae, and other explorers followed. Then
in 1845, came the memorable expedition of Sir John Franklin, whose
party perished to the last man, but not until they had left records,
since recovered, of discoveries showing that Sir John, had he been
spared to return, was prepared to claim the honor of discovering
the northwest passage. But as these records were not discovered by
McClintock’s expedition (English) until 1859, and McClure (English),
who went out via Behring’s Straits in search of Franklin in 1850,
returned in 1852, after having brought his ship to Melville Island
and his ship’s crew through from Behring’s Straits to Baffin’s Bay,
had already received the award for the discovery of this long-sought
passage. Besides the above, which are only the principal British
expeditions, there are the American ones, under Dr. De Haven, 1850;
Dr. Kane, 1853; Dr. Hayes, 1861; and Captain Hall, 1860, 1864, and
1870, full of interest, and resulting in important geographical and
scientific discoveries; the Austrian Arctic Expedition of 1872-74,
resulting in the discovery of Franz Joseph Land; the British
Expedition, under Captain Nares, 1875-76; the Jeannette Expedition of
1879-80, which resulted in the melancholy death of Captain De Long
and so many of his companions by starvation. Written and illustrated
accounts of nearly all the above explorations have been published,
and many of them can be found in the catalogues of the leading
American publishing houses.
THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE.
ZANESVILLE, Ohio.
When was the Declaration of Independence first proposed, and when
was it finally adopted? Give the hour in the day as nearly as you
can, the order of proceedings, and the scenes that followed.
GEORGE M. HOFFMAN.