the United States and each of the States of Europe for the whole
period of our history, nor would the information repay the research.
The Whig Almanac for 1849 gives the following rates of foreign
postage prevailing at that time: Letters, per half ounce, to Bremen,
paid or unpaid, if mailed at New York, 24 cents; within 300 miles
of New York, 29 cents; over 300 miles, 34 cents. If to Prussia, 12
cents additional; to Hamburg, 6 cents additional; to Austria, 18
cents; Bavaria, 22 cents; Switzerland, 21 cents; Egypt, 37 cents—each
additional, per quarter-ounce letter. To Denmark, 22 cents; Sweden,
39 cents; St. Petersburg, Russia, 24 cents—each additional, per
half ounce. To British West India Islands, by British West India
mail steamers, 25 cents per half ounce; to Martinique, Havana,
Porto Rico, St. Thomas, or other islands not British, 50 cents; to
Chagres, Panama, Valparaiso, or any port on the Pacific coast, 75
cents. The same year the postal difficulties with Great Britain and
her colonies were adjusted by the adoption of a uniform rate of sea
and port postage not to exceed 24 cents, the inland rates (5 cents
to 10 cents here and 2 cents to 4 cents in Britain) being added. In
1860 the following foreign postal rates prevailed for one-half ounce;
to France and Algeria, by French mails, 30 cents; to the German
states, 30 cents; to Great Britain, 24 cents, except from Washington,
Oregon, and California, (29 cents); to Bremen, 10 cents; to Hamburg,
10 cents; to Frankfort or Wurtemburg, 22 cents; to Luxemburg, 25
cents; to Holland and the Netherlands, 42 cents; to Austria, 30
cents; to Russia, 29 cents; to Prussia, 30 cents; to the Papal States
and Tuscany, 35 cents; to Spain, 42 cents; to Portugal, 42 cents;
to Denmark, 35 cents; to Sweden, 42 cents; to Norway, 46 cents; to
the West India Islands, (not British) 34 cents for less than 2,500
miles, and 44 cents for more than 2,500 miles: to the British West
India Islands, 10 cents for 2,500 miles or less, and 20 cents for any
greater distance; to the two Sicilies, 30 cents; to Parma and Modena,
33 cents; to Lombardy, 33 cents; to the Sardinian States, 38 cents.
In 1865 the postage was about the same; but after the formation of
the postal union, in 1874, an uniform postage was adopted of 5 cents
on prepaid, and 10 cents on unpaid letters, weighing not more than
one-half ounce, between all members of the union; newspapers not
exceeding 4 ounces, 2 cents; books and all other printed matter and
patterns of merchandise, not exceeding 8¾ ounces, at the rate of 2
cents per 2 ounces; postal cards, 2 cents.
HIGH TARIFF AND CHEAP GOODS.
OSKALOOSA, Iowa.
In a recent political dispute the free-trader declared that the
consumer pays all the tariff. How can the protectionist answer this?
INQUIRER.
_Answer._—This question has been answered, substantially, several
times before, but the following extract from the speech made before
the Fair Trade Congress, Leamington, by Robert P. Porter, formerly
editor of Our Curiosity Shop, author of “The West in 1880,” and
member of the late United States Tariff Commission, is so much in
point that it is given here:
“In the cotton industry need I say that we have practically robbed
England of 50,000,000 of customers, increased the number employed in
our mills to 200,000 persons, and, in the last two decades, doubled
the value of the product. Imports of cotton goods have steadily
declined from 227,000,000 yards in 1860 to 23,000,000 yards in
1881, while exports reached the same year 150,000,000 yards. Has
the consumer been injured? No! With the exception of a few special
lines which we do not manufacture, cotton goods are as cheap, and
even cheaper, with us than in England. A more remarkable progress
has been made in the silk industry, which before the Morrill tariff
gave employment to 5,000 persons; in 1880 it employed over 30,000,
a six-fold increase. The importation of silk goods has remained
stationary since 1860 at about £6,000,000, the production of our own
mills increasing from £1,200,000 in 1860 to over £8,000,000 in 1880.
Yet the cost of the manufactured goods to the consumer, estimated on
a gold basis, has steadily declined at a much greater rate than the
cost of the raw material.”
Further on Mr. Potter says: “I have this year made a careful
comparison of the average earnings of labor in the important
branches of industry in Great Britain, Germany, France, Belgium, and
Holland, with the average earnings of the same class of workers in
the United States. In prosecuting this inquiry I have visited the
industrial centers of these countries, and am prepared to further
substantiate my conclusions with details if necessary. I find that
in the United States wages are from 60 to 150 per cent higher in the
various industrial pursuits than they are in the mentioned European
countries. At the same time the difference between the purchasing
power of a dollar in free trade and protection countries is absurdly
exaggerated by the Cobden Clubites. In Germany and France (under
protective tariffs), especially in the former country, the workmen
can live far cheaper than in England. The purchasing power of a
dollar, so far as the wants of the working man is concerned, when the
cost and quality of food is taken into consideration, is about the
same in the United States as in England, though wages are often 100
per cent higher in America.”
HALBIG, THE SCULPTOR.
CHICAGO, Ill.
Please give a sketch of John Halbig, the sculptor.
OTTO F. H. MASCH.
_Answer._—John Halbig was born in Bavaria in 1814, and educated at
the Munich Academy, where he is now professor of statuary. Since
1846 he has modeled more than 1,000 works, chiefly busts. The most
noted is the lions at the Gate of Victory, Munich. In 1873 the
King of Germany ordered him to make a colossal group representing
the crucifixion, to be placed on a lofty mountain peak overlooking
Oberammergau, the village where the “Passion Play” is so religiously
represented.
HELEN AND THE TROJAN WAR.
DANA, Ill.
1. Will Our Curiosity Shop tell me how to pronounce the name of
the President of France, and what his salary is? 2. Who was Helen?
I heard a gentleman say that, when looking at a certain lady, he
could easily believe in Helen’s smile and the siege of Troy. Please
tell me about her.
IGNORAMUS.
_Answer._—1. Gravy. His salary is 600,000 francs ($120,000), and
an additional 300,000 francs for household expenses. 2. Helen,
according to tradition, was the daughter of Zeus and Leda, the
wife of Tyndareus, King of Sparta, and was so extremely beautiful
that at the age of 10 she was stolen by two mighty Greeks, from
whom her brothers, Castor and Pollux, rescued her. Later Tyndareus
bound her suitors to the number of about thirty to save her, in
case of another abduction. She became the wife of Menelaus, King
of Lacedæmon, but, during his absence from home, Paris, a prince
from Troy, in Asia Minor, induced her to elope with him. Thereupon
Menelaus called upon the thirty to fulfill their oath, and with a
large army they sailed against Troy, laid siege to it, and were
victorious after ten years. There are conflicting stories of her fate.
WHEAT IN OHIO AND NEBRASKA.
TRIADELPHIA, Ohio.
Which years, the odd or even, have produced the most wheat in Ohio
for the last ten years? State same for Nebraska.
P. M. P.
_Answer._—The following table, compiled from the reports of the
Agricultural Department, Washington, gives the estimated wheat crops
of Ohio and Nebraska for the ten years closing with 1882, in bushels.
How much support these figures give to the notion that the even years
bear better crops than the odd ones, or vice versa, the reader can
estimate for himself:
Ohio Av. yield Nebraska Av. yield
Year. wheat crop. per acre. wheat crop. per acre.
1882 45,453,600 14,947,200
1881 38,520,000 13.3 13,840,000 7.1
1880 49,790,475 17.3 12,922,677 8.5
1879 36,591,750 19.3 13,043,590 11.3
1878 33,120,000 18.0 13,872,900 13.1
1877 26,000,000 15.0 5,640,000 15.0
1876 21,750,000 11.8 4,330,000 11.5
1875 17,500,000 9.5 3,400,000 9.8
1874 25,993,000 15.0 3,619,000 11.6
1873 18,567,000 12.0 3,584,000 15.5
Certainly, in the case of Ohio, the aggregate yield of even years
surpassed that of the odd years, and the same was true in all but one
pair of years for Nebraska. As regards the average yield per acre,
the even years were not so uniformly better than the odd ones, and
this is the only test measure. But the following table, from the same
source, showing the average yield of wheat per acre for the whole
United States, for the ten years from 1872 to 1881 inclusive, is
calculated to explode the notion that the oddness or evenness of the
year makes any difference:
Av. yield
Year. per acre.
1872 11.9
1873 12.7
1874 12.3
1875 11.0
1876 10.4
1877 13.9
1878 13.1
1879 13.8
1880 13.1
1881 10.1
One of the most interesting facts to note in the above table is the
rapid increase of wheat raising in Ohio, which is due in large degree
to the improved methods in farming—deep plowing, use of fertilizers,
tile drainage, and so forth. Another matter worthy of special notice
is the large increase of the Nebraska wheat crop, owing to the steady
extension of the cultivated area of that State. The falling off in
the average yield per acre points to the lesson that Nebraska must
learn from the example of Ohio—the necessity for improved cultivation
as the country grows older.
DEMOCRATIC PARTY.
HILLSBORO, Iowa.
When was the Democratic party first organized? How long did it ever
hold unbroken control of the government?
W. N. GALES.
_Answer._—The birth of the Democratic party, or “Jacksonian
Democracy,” as it used to be called, dates from the disruption of the
old Democratic-Republican party, consequent upon the election of John
Quincy Adams as President Soon after the Inauguration of Adams in
1825 the Adams and Clay factions of the Democratic-Republican party
separated from it. The Jackson and Calhoun factions rallied around
these men, and the Presidential election contest of 1828 was fought
on almost purely personal issues. Jackson was elected President
over Adams by 178 electoral votes to 83, although the popular vote
stood 647,231 for Jackson and 509,097 for Adams. At the same time
Calhoun was elected Vice President by 171 electoral votes to 83 for
Richard Rush, of Pennsylvania. Before the next Presidential canvass
Jackson and Calhoun had become inimical to each other; the “Jackson
men” carried the day, and, through the _first_ National Democratic
Convention—held in Baltimore in May, 1832—nominated Jackson for
re-election, and Van Buren in place of Calhoun for Vice President.
Dating from Jackson’s first term, the Democrats held unbroken control
of the Executive office until the end of Van Buren’s term, in all
twelve years, which is the longest period of consecutive Democratic
administration of our Federal Government. The next longest was from
March 4, 1853, to the bankruptcy of the National Treasury and the
civil war, reached before its close, eight years later.
FIRST WHITE CHILD BORN IN CHICAGO.
PEKIN, Ill.
I was born in Chicago, Oct. 1, 1827, and my elder brother tells
me there were but four houses there at that time, and two of them
belonged to Frenchmen. I claim the honor of being the first white
child born at that place. I am the son of Reuben and Hannah Reed.
LEVI REED.
_Answer._—The first white child born in Chicago was a girl, Ellen
Marion Kinzie, sister of the late Colonel John H. Kinzie. According
to the testimony of Mrs. Whistler, wife of Lieut. William Whistler,
this was in December, 1804. Mrs. Whistler was the mother of the first
white boy born in Chicago, Merriweather Lewis Whistler. He first
saluted the light in old Fort Dearborn in the autumn of 1805. He was
drowned at the age of 7, at Newport, Ky. Your brother is certainly
mistaken as to the number of houses in Chicago in 1827, for a series
of reminiscences dictated by the early pioneer, John H. Fonda, quoted
in Hurlburt’s “Chicago Antiquities,” says that when Fonda visited
Chicago in 1825, though it was then but an Indian agency and trading
post, the place contained “about fourteen houses.”
INSTITUTIONS FOR FEEBLE-MINDED CHILDREN.
EVANSTON, Ill.
What State provisions are there for the benefit of feeble-minded
persons? Give the number of the blind, deaf, and feeble-minded in
this State.
CATHARINE DONNOVAN.
_Answer._—According to the report of the Commissioner of Education,
the number of idiots and feeble-minded children in Illinois in
1889 was 4,170; of blind, 2,615; of deaf mutes, 2,202. The United
States makes no provision for these classes. That is left to State
legislation. State institutions for the feeble-minded are located
at Syracuse, N. Y.; Columbus, Ohio; Faribault, Minn.; Glenwood,
Iowa; Frankfort, Ky., and Lincoln, Ill. At Columbus, Syracuse, and
Faribault children are taught the elementary branches, and have
various occupations for physical exercise; at Glenwood much attention
is given to kindergarten training; at Frankfort, to physical
development. In our State institution the children are divided into
ten classes, the three highest being graded, and, in addition to the
common branches, they are taught vocal music and calisthenics:[;?]
also sewing, gardening, and other occupations.
ARTICHOKES.
JUNIATA, Neb.
Please state the value of artichokes as food for hogs. How should
they be raised?
JOHN COWAN.
_Answer._—At one time artichokes were supposed to be very watery and
injurious food for swine, but a careful analysis has proved that they
are not less nutritious than potatoes. In the Western States they
grow wild in great quantities, and the roots are greedily devoured
by the hogs. The Brazil variety should be extensively cultivated in
a well-drained soil, as it is hardy and easily raised. The American
Encyclopedia of Agriculture gives the following instructions for
cultivating them: “Furrow the ground four feet apart and plant the
tubers an inch below the surface and about ten inches apart, covering
about two inches. Keep free from weeds with the ordinary two-horse
corn-cultivator. Dig in the fall and leave the tubers to be rooted
out by the hogs in autumn, winter, and spring. They bear great heat
and drought, and are excellent food for horses, cows and sheep in
winter if used in connection with food and salt.
UNITED STATES MILITIA.
CHICAGO, Ill.
What is the total militia force of the United States, organized and
unorganized?
N. SNYDER.
_Answer._—The organized militia force of the United States, according
to the latest returns made to the Adjutant General of the United
States army, as given in the report of the Chief of Ordnance to the
Secretary of War, for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1880, was as
follows: Total non-commissioned officers, musicians, and privates,
117,037. Add 145 general officers, 921 general staff officers, 1,605
regimental field and staff officers, 8,869 company officers, and the
aggregate is 125,906. Of these, New York had the largest number,
20,280; Arkansas the next largest, 16,377, South Carolina the next,
11,805; Pennsylvania the next, 9,750; Ohio the next, 8,374, and
Illinois the next, 7,394. These figures are altered somewhat now, but
cannot be given accurately. The number of men subject to military
duty, but unorganized, on June 30, 1880, was 6,516,758.
MISSISSIPPI NAVIGATION.
DES MOINES, Iowa.
Give your Iowa readers a few facts as to the navigation of the
Mississippi River. About what proportion of the time is it closed
by ice or on account of low water?
_Answer._—Averaged for the nine years from 1865 to 1873, the depth
of water below St. Louis was eight feet or over for about one-half
the year, and less than four feet not quite three and one-half days a
year. The time that navigation was arrested by ice in the ten seasons
from 1870 to 1880 averaged thirty-five days a year; and the time
that barges could not be loaded to eight feet draft on account of
low water or ice, during the seven years ending with 1880, averaged
about one hundred and twenty-six days a year. In the canals around
the Mississippi rapids and between the Mississippi and the lakes,
navigation is suspended above five months each year. To appreciate
the significance of the above figures as to depth of water, it must
be borne in mind that, where the depth of water is eight feet and
over, grain is transported at less than half what it costs when the
depth is four feet. There are years when navigation below St. Louis
is not obstructed by ice all winter through; as for example, in the
winters of 1868-69, 1873-74, 1875-76, while in the rigorous winter of
1877-78 the river was closed at St. Louis seventy days. Between St.
Louis and Quincy navigation is obstructed by ice about four months
every year, and by low water about thirty-five days more, while
between Quincy and St. Paul navigation is practically closed about
half of every year either on account of ice or low water.
MILLAIS’ PICTURE OF THE HUGUENOT.
DENVER, Col.
Kindly inform us through Our Curiosity Shop what is the
significance of the handkerchief in Millais’ picture of “The
Huguenot.” I have gone to the limit of my resources and can find no
allusion whatever to any such badge.
F. G. WOODBRIDGE.
_Answer._—On the eve of the bloody massacre of French Protestants,
which commenced in Paris in the dead of night of Aug. 24, 1572, the
Duke of Guise, to prevent the assassination by mistake of any of his
own party, the Catholics, issued a secret order that every Catholic
bind a strip of white linen around his arm, as a badge to be known
by. This incident is vividly depicted in Millais’ celebrated painting
of “The Huguenot,” where the Catholic maiden, who is aware of this
secret order, seeks to save her bold Protestant or “Huguenot” lover
by pledging him to wear her handkerchief around his arm until they
meet again.
NORTH AMERICAN POULTRY ASSOCIATION.
FAIRFIELD, Iowa.
What is the object of the poultry association, formed in Ohio some
time ago? Is it merely for speculative purposes, or has it a public
mission to perform? Who are the officers and who can become members?
POULTRY RAISER.
_Answer._—Probably the organization referred to in the above question
is what calls itself the North American Poultry Association. Its
declared purpose is “to take united action in the extension of the
business of producing poultry and eggs for market, and for the
mutual protection and advancement of the interests of producers.”
This it proposes to do by showing people that “poultry-raising
is more profitable than any other branch of stock-raising;” by
keeping its members informed as to the best markets for poultry
and eggs at different seasons of the year; by uniting to get the
lowest shipping rates; by efforts to protect each other from
dishonest poultry dealers or commission men; by imparting to one
another useful information as to cures for diseases of fowls, and
improvements in feeding and taking care of them. Whether some of
the principal members are using this organization for selfish
purposes to any reprehensible degree, as has been charged by one or
more correspondents, we are not prepared to affirm or deny. Some
of them are engaged in raising and selling fancy fowls and eggs
at high prices, but as that is one of the declared objects of the
association, it may only prove that it is fulfilling its mission. Any
one in any part of the United States or Canada who wishes to become
a member is invited to send $2 to the Treasurer, with a request that
his name be presented to the association for admission to membership,
the money to be returned in case he is not elected. In the opinion of
some correspondents, the reason for demanding this prepayment is very
obscure. Hoping to obtain official enlightenment as to the character
of this association, THE INTER OCEAN addressed an inquiry to W. L.
Chamberlain, Secretary of the Ohio State Board of Agriculture, to
which he returned the following reply, which renders us unwilling to
publish the names and postoffice address of officers of the so-called
association:
“COLUMBUS, Ohio, Nov., 1883.—Dear Sir: Yours relative to American
Poultry Association, of——, Ohio, to hand. We have no official
knowledge of any such association, as no reports from it are made to
this department, as there are from all the other various agricultural
organizations of the State. Inquiry at the Secretary of State’s
office fails to reveal any incorporation of said association. Might
also add that we have no personal knowledge of the association in
question. Respectfully,
W. I. CHAMBERLAIN,
“Secretary Ohio State Board of Agriculture.”
LAKE TAHOE.
RICHMOND, Ind.
What are the dimensions of Lake Tahoe, why is it so admired, and
how near is it to the Central Pacific Railroad?
TRAVELER.
_Answer._—Lake Tahoe is a lovely sheet of water at the eastern base
of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, and fourteen miles southward from
Truckee, on the Central Pacific Railroad. It is about 6,250 feet
above the ocean, and is environed by scenery full of picturesque
loveliness. The length, according to the latest authorities, is
35 miles, its width about 15 miles, and its depth 1,500 feet. Its
waters are clear as crystal, cold as ice, and full of trout. Pleasure
steamers ply on it in summer. Its outlet is the Truckee River. The
surrounding scenery, the perfect transparency of its waters, the
fishing, and the delicious atmosphere render it a favorite summer
resort.
THE NATIONAL CAPITOL.
MONTICELLO, Ind.
When was the Capitol of the United States begun; when finished; and
what was its cost? Give its dimensions.
JAMES COBLE.
_Answer._—The southeast corner-stone of the Capitol was laid Sept.
18, 1793, “by Brother George Washington, assisted by the Worshipful
Masters and Free Masons of the surrounding cities, the military, and
a large number of people.” The north wing was ready for occupancy in
1800, the south wing in 1808; but both were partially destroyed by
the British in 1811. The foundation of the main building was laid in
1818 (March 24), the restoration of the wings having been commenced
three years earlier; and the whole was completed in 1827. July 4,
1851, the corner-stone of the south extension was laid by President
Fillmore, and this was finished in 1857. The north extension was
occupied by the Senate in 1859. The present dome, commenced in 1855,
was completed eight years later, and Dec. 12, 1863, the American flag
floated from its summit. Thus far the cost of the entire building
has been $13,000,000—main building, $3,000,000; dome, $1,000,000;
extensions, $8,000,000; miscellaneous items, $1,000,000. The length
of the entire building is 751 feet 4 inches; its greatest breadth,
324 feet; and it covers a little over 3½ acres. The distance from the
ground to the top of the dome is 307½ feet; the diameter of the dome,
135½ feet.
MONEY AND GOODS BY TELEGRAPH.
SPIRIT LAKE, Iowa.
What is the method of sending money by telegraph; and about what
does it cost? Is it true that telegraph companies will fill orders
for household supplies? If so, explain how it is done, and oblige
several
SUBSCRIBERS.
_Answer._—It is not telegraph companies, but express companies that
do such business. One of the leading express companies will send
money from any one of its important city or village agencies to
another at the following rates, in addition to the cost of telegraph
service: For sums of $100 or less, 1 per cent; for sums between $100
and $200, $1.25; between $200 and $300, $1.50; between $300 and $400,
$1.75; between $400 and $500, $2; for larger sums special rates, to
be learned only of agents. The same company will purchase goods for
family consumption, without extra charges; and will advance the money
for orders not exceeding $5 each, provided deposit is made with the
agent at the office from which order is sent. Similar accommodation
is provided for by other express companies.
ALCOHOL IN A BUSHEL OF GRAIN.
LAFAYETTE, Ill.
How much pure liquor can be made from a bushel of corn, rye, wheat,
or barley, as a general rule?
CHARLES OSENBAUGH.