:rff' â- :v « .tkW rv -«* â- - 33 Firefly of Caribbean Is Lamp to Natives â€" Beebe Tries One Too Military Training Good For Men and Beast "Mr, Peeney," Whether on One's Shoes, in a Bottle, or Fly- Insi Freely About, Gleams in Tropical Forests With His Amazing Hecidlights Four hundred years ago, when Co- ling wood and veeetable matter and Iambus landed on the beautiful la- 1 *«â- « perfectly harmless. lands of the Caribbean, ha found the palm-thatched huts o the Carlb In- dians lighted at night by the tropical Natives Are Fond of Them. When the natives wUh to catrh them they wait until it la dark. Then llghtlnK the end of a stick they go firefly whlcte the Indians confined In out of doors and ware It above their eleverty wrought cages ^ palm fibre. | bead. In a few momenta dozens of To-day the gentle Carlb Indian la i beetles, attracted by the unusual . , . , , .u 1 . I > ! light, will be flying around the stick. Bone. hut travelers In the Interior of,_?.^' _,. .^ '^^^ ^^_^„ ,^„,_ ,„_ When caught they show their ills- pleasure by "clicking" loudly and vigorously. The natives have the greatest affection for the beautiful In- sects and no child or grown-up would dream of harming one. The firefly's light Is one of the se- crets natural scientists are trying to solve. Man can fly; tunnel through mountains and under rivers; he can i send his voice thousands of miles without the aid of wires; he can pro- duce light by candle, oil, gas and electricity, but he cannot do what this little beetle does â€" produce phosphor- escent light without heat! A Wild Beast Drive With Africa Ablaze the Islands will find the "peeney" or cucujos, SM the natives call the fire- fly, lighting the huts of an alien race. To a northerner the tropical firefly or big elater beetle la a never-ending source of delight and Interest. It Is difllc 'It to Imagine anything lovelier than '.he pageant of dancing, flashing, falry-llke Ughla presented by native North American llghtulngbugs oiKi warm summer evenings, but beautiful and unforgettable as this is, it cannot I be compared in brilliance to that of i the tropical firefly. The northern fire- fly might be said to be nature's can- 1 die; the-tropical firefly her Incandes-i cent lamp. Looking down upon a val- 1 ley filled with countless numbers of ^ those (lanriag flrefilee Is like looking â- upon the starry heavens Inverted â€" a i scene never to be forgotten. ! The luminosity of our North Amert- 1 can firefly codes from three segments ! y^^^ ^gt^j t^rob of tomtoms sounded of the abdomen and i»> only visible ^n night through the Mashakulumbiwe when the little beetle raises Its wings. ; vniagg, and in the morning the natives It la this raising and lowering of the ! ,ett for the wildest, bloodiest, most wings that causes the Intermittent • dangerous spectacle in Africaâ€" the flash. The elater beetle of the West annual game drive. The hunters took Indies and tropical South American is their positions. Presently billowing four or five times the size of the north- ; ^ouds of dense smoke rose from ern lighlningbug and Its chief light Is ; tha grass for several miles around given out by two eye-like spots on the ' tongues of red. leaping flame played thorax. There is also atether area of, underneath. The valley of the hunt lUuminatfon on the abdomen but this â- ^^s on Are from the river to the cannot be seen e.xcept when the in- ^jg^ of the encircling bush. A vicious sect Is on wing. crackle and snap drifted down the Two Headlights. wind as the tlnder-dry grass, lighted _ ... ^^ .... .by the natives to drive the game to- TJnl.ke the mtermittent gleam of : ^^^^ ^^^ j^„„^^„ „^^^j g^^ ^^^ ^ the nortnern flrefly these two thoracic ^^^^j ^^^^ ^^.^^ ^^^ watchers, lights glow steadily and continuously, ^^„^^,^^^ j^„3^_ ^^,^, ^^.j^j, ^^^,^ and In a nark room their resmblance „ „ , _„ »„ ,,im _u .„.. - __i~ i . ,., , . , , ,,. , X - , spears to kill whatever animals ea- to the elect-lc headlight of s tiny, toy. „_ j ,u „i,.«_tt „i,i k u i i, „ j ,.,... ° ,, , ' caped the pitfalls whiv'h had been dug. autoraobil* IS both startling and amus- c,„„ji„„ „ „„,„„, ,„j,k i,,„ „•« . ,.,.,,. „ ._ ., ,, I Standing, expectant, with his rifle Ing. William Beebe, the natural st,',,..„K. ,„ ,,,. ,,,.,. „,„ ,.., „ „, . „ , , J. , , . . ., clutched in his hand, was W vuant tells of finding one that carried the 11- r>,„i„ tT,.;,i i _,», „, u.. i„ < ,i,„, „ „ .1 Davis Hubbard, whose business Is that luslou so far as actually to show a „, ^..._i„ , ...n i .„â- ^ > _> J . ,,., . .. „. â- . . ..of capturing wild animals for zoos and red tatllight! To awaken in the mid- ,i_ ...„„„ rr.vi„ ,i,i • „ „,i,i u i,„ .,..,., , ,. . circuses. This drive, irom which he 410 of th night and discover one of ^^ ^ ^^ ^^tain some specimens, he these living, toy motor-cars gliding describes for us In The Elks Maga- swiftly and surely across the celling, _«_„. Its headlights lighting up the jjelUngJ ' ... ,1 I pictured in my mind the happen- â- •linim* imniii* iiiiiiiii • iiiiiui • iiiiiiii • iiiiiiu •iiiiiiiim> iiiiiiii • miiiii».»i»iii«iiiiiiiiiaiHftm i •umiii* iiiiii •:! MOUNTS JUMP AS ONE The winning pair in the half-section jumping competition at the Imber Court Horse Show. tor an inch or more arouud It, something one must experience to ap- , predate, particularly if one has not ?* P"*"*' le'-^^^e- and wiidebeeste ante- Ings In the grass lu front of us. Herds bad the pleasure of making "Mr. Pee- lope would be moving slowly ahead of ney.s acquaintance before. The first '*>« advancing fire. Buffaloes ousted Impulse Is lo pinch one's self to be Z"""" ^'^^''" '='"'""«â- '""•^''y wallows «ure one Isn't dreamlns. *""''' ^^ ^^''^nly setting to their feet Whileouly these two thoracic lights"" ^''^ **'«"â- resting-places. There are visible when the beetle la at rest, """"^ ^« '^''™« »"'^ sitatunga, jack- the light is strong enough to read by., *^^- •^J'"*^- »'"*' P^'laps. a roan Several oeelles placed under a glass ! »"*«'°P« ^ undoubtedly somewhere be- Is quite frequently the onlv light used ! ^"^^^"^ "* ''°'^ ^« """^ "^«'"* ""« ''""' by the poorer natives and Dr. Beebe """^ leopards slinking along, avoiding the buffaloes, angry at being disturbed at such a time of day. As yet the animals would not be afraid. They are used to fire, (jften feeding close in. tells o using them In this way place of his electric flash. On one occasion when he was "night-stalking" with his Indian guide ^ ^, . .. ^ , .. ,. ho caught one of the big beetles and bohlnd It to get the salt residue from put it in a glass vial Inside his trous- er pocket. Glancing down a few mo- ments later he discovered that his trousor leg was brightly Illuminated. ^ ,, •> , ,. . ^ He realized that this would betray '«"•'"'''â- • *" *''"*,'''* """^'^ "' 'â- ^^ «^"'"°'^ the ashes of the burnt grass. Every year all Africa burns. Seven mouths of bone-dry weather mean but one thing â€" flre. During August and Sep- htm to the wild folk he had come out to study, but the beetle was a partlcu- goes up In smoke. The sun was well up. Its hot rays larly flue specimen which he wanted Ijurnt comfortingly Into my back. The to keep, .so feeling around in his roar »"<' crackle of the fire were with- pocket he found a thick piece of paper '» a mile of us. Acrid smoke swirled tn which he careully wrapped the ("^er our heads Through it and above rial and replaced it in his pocket. But "• hovered aud flew thousands of birds the beetle refused to "hide its light." »' all sizes intent oa catching the lu- ll continued to shine uudimmed »e*^'^ driven from cover by the heat through paper and khaki and Dr. °^ ^^^ ^^e. Suddenly a puku antelope Beebe was forced, most reluctantly, to appeared for a moment through the give the marvellous Insect Its "free- B^ass. The advance guard of animals dom. But Dr. Beebe relates an even more tl""ough the air above the astouit^hlng experience he had with Vie elaters. Two of the luminous beetles were chloroformed and placed was close. Three spears flashed grass. There was a startled bleat. Then silence. First blood had beeu drawn. The smoke grew denser and hotter In an lii.soct box. Several evenings l"'^*^ ""oar of the fire increased iu vol- later the naturalist opened the box "'"'^- '^ tensene;is gripped the wait- to put in more insects aud was •mazed to find the little "lanterns" of the dead elaters still glowing al Ing line ot spearmen. My hands were wet with excitement, and I breathed In choking gasps. Suddenly yells and most as brilliantly as when they were "houts broke forth from the natives â- live, "lighting up all the other In- t"ll«'wlng the Hue of fire. They were had fallen to the deadly throwing spears. Here were puku bulls and zebra mares, farther on a iwo-thou- sand-pound buffalo, then a lechiwe and a wiidebeeste, enough meat and skins for every family. A few young ani- mals had been caught alive. Those | were taken to the village with the; bodies of the lions, leopards. Jackals j and smaller cats whose skins could be used as skirts for the women, or to make bags and pouches for the men. This yearly Mashakulumbiwe drive Is held to secure meat and skins. On a smaller scale the same thing takes place in many parts of Africa all dur- ing .luly, .\ugust and September. This drive was of more than ordin- ary interest to me a.s ihe pitfalls jlo not have to be used to kill. The animals trapped in them can be taken out alive very easily with the help : of a few natives, and the use of a shovel and some rope. The Vbottomed pitfall Is a deadly I affair. The apex of the V is about four Inches wide, the width of a na- i five hoe An antelope, buffalo, or zebra falling through the covering jams its legs one behind the other. No matter ho wit struggles it cannot t work loose. Dirt loosened from tlie long the animal Is standing in a pit, sides falls down into the V, aud before its weight resting on Its chest aud belly, with Its legs firmly held In ai mass of soft compact dirt. I Three methods of catching animals, pitfalls, nooses and nets, are used by i the natives. They are so affective that white men have adopted them and use them almost exactly In the I native manner. But there are other ' methods besides these three, the writer explains; Some animals, such a.s the elephant and rhinoceros, can only be caught as calves. To capture a rhino we hunt until we llnd a cow with a calf suf- ficiently small for us to handle. Wo , shoot the cow and then take after the calf on the flat of our feet. .-^ calf elephant or rhino will not leave Its mother's body. We chase it back and forth and all around until someoue gets hold of an car. a leg or a tail and tangles himself up with It. "This Is the most dangerous form of captur- ing. Trying to lay hands on a buffalo calf or a young elephant Is risky, to say the least. An elephant four feet high can break trees six Inches in diameter as If they were matches. They can run faster than any horse. 'â- But every now and then we do cap- ture them, although someone nearly always pays the price in broken ribs, ' a gored shoulder, or even by being killed. The big oats, such as lions and leop- ards, we catch in heavy box traps made either of logs or of iron bars and heavy beams. We snare birds when they come to drluk. and on every possible occasion chase game with dogs A Rood pack of dogs will tree a leopard in short order or run a warthog down a hole within a mile. The natives on their daily rounds of in.-^pection are constantly on the lookout for tortoises, turtles, young birds or baby antelope. With their dogs they often chase small cats into holes or tree young baboons or monkeys. AU the animals, birds and snakes caught are brought into one central camp, where they are tamed and studied. In addition to the specimens captured by members of the camp, occasionally animals are bought from oiher white men. and there hardly passes a day during which village natives do not bring in animals and birds for sale. Often Mr. Hubbard and his family made friends with their captives. For example; "Skillum." a fuligrown leopard, was a great pet. He would lie for hours stretched in the sun on top of his shelter and keep watch over the camp. Whenever either my wife or myself appeared he would "umph" and '"yeo" an dcall until we came over toward him. As soon as he saw that we were really coming he would bound down from his perch and stand strain- ing on his chaiu, his back arched and his tall thrashing, watting for us. He knew that he must always back up to us. We had taught him that, as a leopard's paws and claws are too po- tentially dangerous to risk even in pl.iy. Grabbing hold of his tail, we would rub his chin, scratch his ears and tickle his tummy. "Skillum" talked and fsninted aud strained In an ecstasy of pleasure. He was like an enormous tabby cat. "Skillum" was so tame that some- times we would lake him tor a walk on the end of a leash. Three or four times his collar or wire broke and he got loose Then his one idea was to enter either the kitchen or the dinlugroom. As we had two young children, these escapades of his used to worry us. but "Skillum" never gave the slightest indicntions of vicious tenden<'ies. .\fter supper, my wife and 1, ac- companied by Sandy, our tireat Dane watch-dog, wuold make the rounds of the cages to see that all the doors were shut, and that all our adopted children were comfortable for the night. "Skillum" had lo have his good-night word and rub. and then we too went to bed, turning over the re- sponsibility for the safety of the camp to Sandy. NATURE'S TEACHING Man has by no means reached the ultimate goal towanl which he Is tra- velling, and the growing children are the ones who must take the forward steps, as they come to manhood, if we have tried to make them into a pat- tern of our.selve8. progress is Impos- sible, and Nature's aim by so much defeated. Let them drink In all that is pure and sweet, don't stuff platitudes, sen- tlmcntalism or dogma down their throats, and whatever you do, don't frighten them either of dark corners in the house or of a dark corner in life! Let nature teach Ihpm the lessons of good aud proper living, put th.-ni In touch with the best conti-acts you know, let them absorb truth and bi'aiity <>nd humun brolherhood as the plant does sunshiue and dew, and UiosH > hi'.iin'ii will i;row lo be Ih" best men and women. â€" Luther Burbank iu The Harvest of the Years. Colonial Status I Round Table (Londou): Colonial status Is an Indifferent training for participation In the world's affairs. The Americans found It so after their revolution; the Domlniims are finding It so now. They are only gradually awakening to the fact that new privi- leges entail new responslblllfles, und that political isolation and immunity can be attained only by a Chinese policy ot commercial abnegation which they are not prepared to adopt and their neighbors can hardly be expect- ; ed to suffer. Cobbett's Plain English First among Cobh^tt's virtues 1 place h!s Rnxlish 8tf:«. I cannot imnrfn« nny English pr»»9e more suifc able to b" given ns a pattern and model tf> tli<» ordinary raaa nnd wo- man. If Knsland ever becoine» a civillzrd country, nit!»ty per cent, ot the popu'afi'ui will write like Willl.im Cobbett. His Ens'.ish is pinin, ab- sohiielv unaffeoted. v'gonins and sup- ple, lieauflful. He knows instlncflvo- !y n.'" <i<:ly exactly what ^e wants to say, but also the words which will most naturally nnd harmonlwisly ex- press h-9 meaning. ... In each caso the "n't" Is so perfect and so natural, Cobbett'8 style Is extraonllnsry Bng* Ush. There are. of course, far great* er Engl'sh prose- writers than he la, but no one, I believe, has ever writ- ten sentencfMv which are more perfect- ly In keeping with the peculiar genlua of the English language. (It Is ho- cause this faculty Is natural and uq- cousclous in him that I say that In aa English Utopia we onllnary persona would all write like Cobbett.) When you read a paragraph of Cobbett, all you can say Is; "Well, that simply la English"; you cannot say the same oC Sir Tbomas Browne or of Milton or of many fess Latinized prose-wrltera. Cobbett seems to me to get Into his sentences something of the atmos- here of the English country and thai English climate as well as of the Entf4 lish language and the Bnfllsh cUar^ acter. This is true ot all his writings.' . . . b :t It Is what gives a peculiar! quality and charm to his de.scrltlooai ot English country and so to his Ruralj Rides. What could bo simpler or ap- parently more eas:' to write than tha following passages, yet how many peo- ple could ride out on a January morn- ing from Kensington and return wltlli this in their note-books* , . . "Even in winter the coppices ar« beautiful to the eye. while they com- fort . . . with the idea of shelter and warmth. In spring they change their hue from day to day during two whole months, which is about the lime from the first appearance of the delicate leaves of the birch to the full expan- sion of those of the ash; and oven before the leaves come at all to Intei*- cept the view, what ... la so delight- ful to behold as the bed of a coppice bespangled with primroses and blue- bells? The opening of the birch leaves Is the signal for the pheasant to begin to crow, for the blackbird to whistle, and the thrush to sing; and just when the oak-buds t>e«in to look reddish, and not a day bef.ire, the whole tribe of finches burst forth In sougs from every bough, while the lark, imitating them all. carries the joyous sounds to the sky."â€" Leonard Woolf In "Essays on Literature. His- tory. Politics. Etc." _ _> gee:. BUT I D HATE TO BE A LITTUE SAWCO- OFF RUMT L.IKE YOU, MR BUO I OH. ITS NOT SO SAD. MR GR.^fSO- VfKCOY l-OfiGUEGS I DONT HAVE TO SPEND AVEARS s^LARY on A PAIR OF PMiTSi y^~-- In a certain foreign state the rail- way system Is Inclined to be rather lajihazard. Recently a cow strayed on the line and was killed by a pass- ing train. .-Vn action followed, and ..le driver of the train was asked to give evidence ot what happened. "Well," lie began, "It weren't my fault at all, 'cog It the train had bin ruunin* ter proper time; If the brakes worked properly; if the whistle had blowed a.s it should, all of which tilings didn't happen â€" the cow wouldn't have been injured at all >when she was killed." Giant Motor Ship to Cross Deserts sects In the box" white light." with a "ghostly Lighting Tropical Forests, almost on us. Running animals ap- peared as if by magic. Through the I swirls of smoke I caught glimpses of \ puku dashiug madly toward the line In tropical South America travelers of bush to abruptly disappear from Who are forced to pass through the siRht as their feet went through the forests at nighi.. It Is said, attach the treacherous covering on the pitfalls. fireflies to their boots to light the A bellowing, grunting herd of buffa- path tor hem, avoiding In this way the loes galloped past and I fired at one. danger of stepping on snakes; and certain birds fasten them to the clay of which their nests are built, utiliz- ing their Ught, perhaps, to frighten away predatory animals. But per- Spears flashed iu the suulight for a moment, then disappeared In the grass, the long shafts quivering from the force with which they were thrown. Behind us, frantic yells ro.se haps the strangest use to which the In a crescendo ot exiitement. The beautiful Insects were ever put was booming, throaty roar of au angry at a fancy dress ball given some years Hon told the cause Bedlam broke loose. Shrieks, yells, curses, the roar ot the Are, and th<ji gruuts and squeals ot the trapped and speared animals swelled into a deafening pandemoni- um. Naked natives tore whooping along the line ot pits waving blood- stained spears and knives. It was like a scene from the Inferno. Just in front of the pits the Are re&ched a cleared space. The flames died down, and gradually the smoke and dust claared away. The drive was over. Nearly every pit had claimed Us TictiiB. Scsttered tn front and behind lax tha kodlei of thoit »"«"â€">? which ago In Jamaica, when the Governor's wife appeared in the darkened ball room with hundreds of the beetles Kleamtng brightly under the gossamer like tulle ot her evening gown . Skill- ful tacking ot the tulla held them gently In place and as toon a^s the Ughta were turned on the beetles were liberated quite tiuharmed. By day the beetle looks like the ordinary beetles ot the northern hem- isphere. It measures from 1>4 to 1V4 laches iu length, and is Inky-black In color. Both the niala and female baetles ar« luminous as ar« also their •ggs «ad larraa. T>>«f U?« oa dacay- A BR0AD8IDK Luxurious Four-Decked Catf Will Take Passengers Over Sands Paris. - .\ giant automobile resents bllug ail ocean vessel on wheels haa been designed for desert travel by a Llerman euglnoer. H. K. Schuettiir. The "super-vehicle" Is said lo ba about l'.!5 feet Iouk. 25 feel wide, and â- 15 feet high. Us wheels win bo 40 feet In diameter and It will ho able to carry ir)0 passengers and 200 tons ot luerchandlse. [ The desert-vessel will be propelled I by a Diesel engine of taO horsepower and a second engine will he on hand tor emergency. The niachluo. It Is claimed, will be able to climb ;W per cent, grades. Its speed is estimated at 2.5 kilometers per hour. , The four decks will provide cab- iu.s, proineiiades, sitting and reaAlug looms, baggage and store rooms and :i "cooling n-Mnn." whi'r'> a low !era- porature will be artificially niali»> taittcd. The designers of the road vtisscl, it Is explained, wished tr» invent a vrthiclo which would be ablo to carry .1 hl.nh tonnage rn deserts where other itv.-ans of transportation Involve uit wi'.rrnnted expense. -- - * â€" The Pitila did not win the Uolted- States-Spalii race tor Class B ysohts, but she bettered the record m.-vle by the I'lnta which was In Christopher Columbus' fleet. "Another need of the tInK's," saya the Indlannpnlls News, "is a fiirnaca that will reinovo Its own ashes and cari-y them out." That may I. i so la Indianapolis, but up hero the cry la tor a lawninower tlisl will shove it ••it rcu-^ tiia front yard.