La Grange Journal. (La Grange, Tex.), Vol. 30, No. 6, Ed. 1 Thursday, February 11, 1909 Page: 1 of 8
This newspaper is part of the collection entitled: Fayette County Area Newspaper Collection and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the Fayette Public Library, Museum and Archives.
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Opposite Masonic Building. Published Every Thursday and Entered at the Postoffice as Second-Class Matter.
By B. F. Harigel.
Democratic in Principle, And a Worker For LaGrange and Fayette County.
Volume 30.
LaGrange, Fayette County, Texas, Thursday, Feb. II, 1909.
1.50 Per Year.
Number 6.
What a pity that the French
have made Noumea prison of this
beautiful island. I visited the
prison—the “City and Camp of
tears,” as it might better be called,
but I believe that a description of
what I saw en route would be as
much, if not more interesting than
a description of the prison itself,
for it will give an insight into the
native life. Passing amid tropical
verdure we stop for a while to rest
beside a shady stream, and far be-
low we see Bourail, the great penal
town of lhe northern part of the
island. We pass between coffee
gardens of many acres and reach a
river, which has been a veritable
Styx to many a poor devil who has
come here to serve out a life time
of penance for a few minutes of
crime.
An Algerian Arab, in flowing,
dirty white robes, and turban, acts
as Charon, and we wonder what
crime caused him to be transported
so far from his native land. As
we approach the prison we come
first to the great buildings of the
gendarmerie, and just beyond them
are the womens’ prison and the
hospital, all enclosed by great,
ugly walls of concrete. We reach
the hotel and after being cared for
by the polite host and hostess we
take a walk out in town, prelimi-
nary to interviewing the coman-
dante of the prison, for we must
have a pass to get inside the prison.
A band of native Caledonians
comes trooping into town from
some distant camp, and thinking
. it a good opportunity to make an
ethnological study T engage one of
them in conversation. He says
his name is Pererous, so called be-
cause he wears a red head-dress
and there is a bird with a red head
that is caUed pererous. He is a
a stalwart fellow, naked with the
exception of a sulu wound around The Journal extends to Editor
his loins and hanging down almost John H. Brooks and wife of the
to his knees. His head is bound
with a piece of turkey red cloth,
but the crown unprotected with
the exception of a shock of kinky
hair which is of itself ample pro-
tection against the rays of the sun.
His eyes are dark brown, skin a
copper color, almost bronze in hue,
nose flat and well developed, and
lips thick. The features are dis-
tinctly African. To complete his
distinguished appearance he has
dark, crispy whiskers and a large
hole in his right ear, regarded as a
special mark of distinction.
While talking to him a lot of na-
tive women, or poppinoes, came
jogging down the road. In the
distance they looked like a file of
ostriches, for at every stop, bent
over as they are with heavy bun-
dles of bark, palm leaf baskets and
fruit which they carry for their
lord and masters, their comical
waistbands of flax, old rags or ban-
ana leaves, delicately fringed and
whipped by the wind, jolt upward
and jostle partly like the tail of an
ostrich when the bird starts to run.
One of the women held an alpaca
umbrelty, while another carried an
entire palm leaf with jffhich she
was fanning herself, and the third
carried a jews harp strung around
her neck, an instrument of music
which they greatly appreciate.
One of the women had an espe-
cially bright colored sulu around
her* loins and when I offered to buy
it she had no hesitancy in accept-
ing the offer, but to my surprise
she stepped behind a bush, took it
off, put on another and came forth
smiling with the one I desired in
her hand. She evidently had plenty
of girdles in reserve for just such
emergencies. These women have
great love for personal adornment
and tattoo themselves is curious de-
signs. Devices are tattooed down
their legs and across their cheeks.
Some would have been good look-
ing if they had not disfigured them-
selves with a surplus of tattoo
marks. In their bundles they car-
ried all sorts of odds and ends such
as are usually found in one of our
school boy’s pockets.
All these natives are governed
by a little chief who acknowledges
obsience to the great Nibrororo
king of the tribe of Ni, to which
they all belong. Tl\g total num-
ber of natives in New Caledonia is
about thirty thousand, and mental-
ly and physically they are about
half way between the natives of
the island of Tahiti and the Aus-
tralian black. '
I had spent much time in watch-
ing these natives but finallly reach-
ed the house of the comandante of
the prison and secured the permit,
and within an hour I had passed
from the free men and free open
into the dismal corriders of the
prisont interviewing life—men and
handling their heavy chains, which
I shall tell about in my next letter.
Clarence E. Edwords.
Noumea, New Caledonia, Aug. 21.
Weimar Mercury, its sincerest sym-
pathy in the loss of their eldest
son, Kyle Brooks. The young man
was truly ,a son of his father, gen-
teel and above all, considerate of
others. He had just reached that
age where the father could turn
over the management of his paper
to one whom he loved, when strick-
en with typhoid fever, and after
seven weeks, finally yielded to the
summons from above. May his
rest be peaceful, and may his be-
reaved parents find consolation in
the thought that the good shepherd
only asked for another to his Ce-
lestial flock.
It seems that the anti-pass law
will remain as it was, in spite of
the great determination of some to
induce the Legislature to pass some
of the amendments. The State Vol-
unteer Firemen’s Association is de-
cidedly interested.
Remember, February 23d, “All
Fools’ Night!” The Civic Club
will give a dahce on that night at
the Casino hall. Admission, gen-
tlemen, 50c, ladies, 25c. Caps and
noses will be furnished free. ,
Council Minutes.
The following extracts from the
minutes of the January and Febru-
ary meeting, are handed to us for
publication:
JANUARY 6, 1909.
Report of the city treasurer for
the quarter ending December 31st,
1908, showed the following differ-
ent funds: Waterworks bond sink-
ing fund, $6,213.02; bridge bond
sinking fund $577.72; general fund
$359-53: street and bridge fund;
$1.19, total $7,151.46.
The park committee was author-
ized to have all the necessary work
done to put the city park in good
condition.
The committee selected to pur-
chase fire hose, reported that 500
feet of 3-ply hose had been pur-
chased from the Gutta Percha and
Rubber Manufacturing Company of
New York.
The proposition of H. F. Lange
to furnish concrete pipe for the cul-
vert at the corner next to Joseph
Koss’ resdience, at a cost of $66.00
was accepted.
The following appointments were
made by the mayor for the current
year:
City physician, Dr. J. F. Beck-
meyer; board of health, 1st ward,
F. Presun; 2nd ward, Jos. Koss;
3d ward, Frand Janda; 4th ward,
Albert Meyer.
Board of Examiners—J. Meyen-
enberg, Alex E. von Rosenberg and
Jake Alexander.
Board of Equalization—John B.
Holloway, Geo. E. Lenert and H.
C. Schuhmacher.
January 13, 1909.
It was carried that each aider-
man receive $3 for each regular,
and $1 for each special meeting.
It was carried that all commit-
tees having work assigned to them
be paid 25c per hour for work done
and all claims be presented in writ-
ing to the council.
The report of the committe on
claims and accounts reported as fol-
lows:
To the Mayor and City Council: •
Gentlemen:—We do hereby beg
leave to- report to your honorable
body as follows:
That the claim of Dr. Beekmeyer
as city health officer, for the sum
of $140, was filed by this commit-
tee, with the commissioners’ court
of Fayette county, Texas.
That, when said claim was call-
ed, the committee, together with
the -mayor, argued the matter of
said claim and also the claim of J.
Meyenberg for $2.75, with the com-
missioners, but could do nothing in
the matter.
The only step the county would
take in the matter of quarantine acr
count was to pay for three fumiga-
tions, or $15, leaving amount due
Dr. Beekmeyer of $125.
The claim of J. Meyenberg wns
rejected. After consulting with the
attorney general, the committee ad-
vises that both of these amounts be
paid out of the funds of the city
used for general purposes, Vind that
in the future all quarantine matters
be reported direct to the county
judge for adjustment; no liability to
be incurred by the city through any
of its officers. In other words, no
quarantine to be maintained at the
expense of the city as heretofore.
L. V. Vanek, Ch’m,
John P. Ehlinger,
J. M. Byrnes.
The committee on claims and ac-
counts reported having examined
the books of J. H. Killough, les
see of the water plant and that they
found the following due the city:
Total rate per month for 1908,
$475.13, less contract rate per month
$404.91, $70.22. •
This shows a total increase for
the year-1908 of $842.64, of which
the city, according to its contract,
is entitled to one-third, or the sum
of $80.88, which sum,* added to the
regular rental for 1909, makes a to-
tal of $993.38 due by J. H. Kil-
lough, lessee, and which amount
has been paid to the treasurer.
The sum of one hundred dollars
was appropriated to the cemetery
association, and a like amount to
’the fire department.
FEBRUARY 3, 1907.
The city marshal reported taxes
collected as follows: Poll, $237;
occupation, $15.00; advalorem,
$4997.90 and school $3498.14.
A committee was appointed to
ascertain where gravel could be
purchased and at what price.
A crossing, similar to that placed
at the Koss corner will be built at
the G. A. Heilig corner.
The thrilling incident of the res-
cue of more than one thousand per-
sons from the steamer Republic
through the agency of wireless te-
legraphy has inspired Congress to
take action with regard to the pro-
per equipping of Till the passenger
carrying steamers with the appara-
tus. Had the Florida also been so
equipped the accident by which the
Republic was sent to the bottom
would not have occurred for the
two vessels would have been able
to exchange signals in the fog. It
appears that the French Assembly
has already taken up the subject,
and is probable that England will
follow with laws requiring vessels
to carry the wireless equipment.
Its cost is slight, ranging from three
hundred to one thousand dollars,
and its maintenance is not exorbi-
tant, and it is proposed by the com-
mittee on Merchant Marine to urge
that all ocean steamers carrying
more than fifty passengers shall car-
ry the apparatus.
The indications at present are
that the Submissionists are truly
defeated. The issue will probably
hang fire for several weeks, and
then all will be quiet again. They
have lost another votes and out of
the former three votes necessary,
there seems to be no earthly chance
to win them over. From this it
can safely be concluded that the is-
sue will be a dead one. However,
even dead things sometimes crawl.
PLAY BALL.
HalletUville Herald.
It is apparent that some members
of the present legislature will at-
tempt to pass a law prohibiting Sun-
day base ball, Sunday sports and
Sunday labor of whatever kind.
The Herald hopes the measure will
be defeated. To our mind baseball
is the only remaining sport into
which the spirit of graft has not en-
tered. It is a clean, manly, health-
ful sport—uplilting morally, and
safe mentally. It is a game in
which the ultra rich cannot buy
the plaudits of the exultant fan—
Unless he be able to deliver the
goods. In other words he must
“play ball” and he must play it
decently and correctly or retire from
the game.
We can not see wherein Sunday
base ball violates a single law of
either God or man. In all this fa-
natical agitation of Sunday closing
and the stopping of Sunday labor
we have yet to hear of a charge be-
ing brought against the street rail-
way magantes. Yet the employes
of these corporations are worked on
an average of fourteen hours on
Sundays and /are miserably paid.
Why have not these self appointed
guardians of the public’s pleasure
made an effort to suppress that la-
bor ? The answer is obvious. »
If such a law is passed profession-
al base ball will be a thing of the
past, in so far as Texas is concern-
ed. Were it not for the Sunday
games the different clubs ^ould
not be able to exist. These games
interfere with no one who is not in-
terested. They keep nobody from
the churches for the simple reason
that the hours do not conflict. No-
thing is said or done that would
consign a single player or specta-
tor to everlasting punishment.
If these things are to be sup-
pressed let us get together and stop
them all—stop the street cars, close
up the livery stables and drive peo-
ple in the straight and narrow path
with a cow-hide whip and hypo-
critical, though pious prayers.
The mask ball at the Bluff Sat-
urday night was one of the most
successful of its nature to be given
by that association. "The number
of maskers was not large, but the
attendance otherwise, taxed the ca-
pacity of the hall. The good time
that everybody had, will always be
a pleasant reminder to all who
were present.
Rev. R. Heise on. Tuesday after-
noon united in marriage, at the
Lutheran church, Peter Juracek
and Miss Louise von Rosenberg.
The ceremony was witnessed by the
relatives and a few friends. The
Journal congratulates.
Show bills which are pasted up-
on the different stands in the city,
are protected by law, and the fre-
quent practice of some of the boys
in this city will cause a bit of an-
noyance that is not desirable. Par-
ents who know that their boys are
in the habit of doing this bit of
mischief will do the opera house
people a favor if they can induce
the youngsters to desist. If such
is not done, and the boys are caught
in the act, the proper application
of the law will be the result. In
addition to the tearing off of the
bills before the show materializes,
the paper is thrown upon the streets,
in some instances frightening hors-
es, and also endangering property.
By all means see to it that the
practice is abated.
Last Thursday evening the
Woodmen Lodge of this city initi-
ated three new candidates into the
mysteries of Woodcraft, and the
latter showed their appreciation by
tendering a supper to the members.
Our informant says that the occa-
sion was a pleasurable one, which
is attested to by the fact that every-
one present, is anxious for a simi-
lar event
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La Grange Journal. (La Grange, Tex.), Vol. 30, No. 6, Ed. 1 Thursday, February 11, 1909, newspaper, February 11, 1909; La Grange, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1004547/m1/1/?q=%22~1%22~1: accessed August 15, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Fayette Public Library, Museum and Archives.