Judge — October 17, 1885 — page 12: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

An Essay on Mica. Mica is known as glimmer or muscovy glass. It is a substance of foliated texture, which is capable cf being divided into leav like a dining room table. The leaves have asensible elasticity and are so extremely thin as to be perfectly tr airent. ‘The color of mica is greenish, and somet is of every other known color. It is greasy to the touch, very like a large jou of salted hog. ‘It is soft and as easy to be scratched as a kitten’s back. When di- vided across the back it seems rather to tear than to break. In Liberia thin plates of mica are used for window glass. This is said to be a perfect safe-guard against small boys who throw stones. Mica is dug in large quanti- ties in Irkutsk and Ime Mica is not found in Elkhart or Iphspenit So plentiful is mica in Bengal that for a dol- lar a dozen panes, twelve by nine inches, may be purchased. In Cincinnati aw melon that will produce two dozen pains may be purchased for half-a-dollar. It is therefore cheaper to live in Cincinnati than Bengal. Ordinary objects can be seen through micaat the distance of thirty yards, Blind men and persons who are full of Ft. Wayne whiskey cannot see through it at thirty feet. As a substitute for glass, mica is like a well-developed tramp; having the incon- venience of becoming dirty, its transparency being destroyed by long exposure to air. -awdered mica is employed in Europe andon the clothing of American circus riders as spangles for the purpose of givi brilliancy. ‘To our knowles Mr. 1 son and Walt Whitman have of late y forgot to use powdered mica in decorating their poems. Hence the lack of brilliancy to the suid poems. It was formerly sold by stationers as sand for absorbing ink in writing, but since the introduction of spring pocts it is not used as sand, The best mica is of a pure, pearl color, | and when split into leaves presents a smooth su not unlike the floor of a skating rink Mica, like small-pox patients, is frequently annoyed with small scaly blisters which greatly depreciates its value. It is said that mica was first discovered by Mica-el Angelo, who w 30 the author of Mica-do, a once popular comic oper: WILL M. CLEM A New-Mismatician. T have always enjoyed talking abont mon- ey. The very word basa rich, respectable sound for me. Money rhymes with sunny, bonnie, funnie—well, yes, with funny, bat it doesn’t seem to jingle with funny men Rhymes, of course, must have their limits. T have had many arguments over the word money, for I somehow find that my ideas of | its use do not always jibe with ot ds that are intent students of the subject. 1 might mention scientific landladies without | land, reformed tailors, and shoemuakers with | financially far-fetched theories, but it is un- necessary. My business daily leads me to the bank that is, to say, I go there to study my theme; eavans repair to valuable libraries to pore over rich volumes of forgotten lore—or higher— and dare not go off with any of the books. | They leave with their heads enriched, and I do the same. ‘Thus I have grown familiar THE JUDGE. with the coins of the whole world, and their | lings. names and meaning are at my finger ends, though the coins themselves may not just be in their immediate vicinity. I find that the American eagle was so named because it generally flies high out of reach, and Ido not blame my country (and city) men for fighting for it, The dollar was so named because with it in one’s pocket he fi dollerable rich, and the nickle, be- cause many a nickle makes a mickle.” Mills were designed to relieve the awful idea of dollars on the tax list, a make you think how small it will be this year. In Austria the Austriches can get upon the Florin crow; with it they can go to see Florinel or travel to Floren Another of their coins they love to ducat with polite bows, but their Rix Thaler was formerly called Nix Thaler—a very popular expres sion among friends in certain questio import. in Egypt the principle coin is the Piaster —the first part of the name is synonymous, this is tas buckshish by the hung natives to ps the Mahbub is the very expressive coin which Tripoli mothers give to their boys when they want to go to the dance olight fantastic toe with the shoes G of salmost as hard for the people to reach a half-crown as it is a whole one, and it is observed by travellers there, that the ones who have the Guinea are apt to make the most noise with Their Pound is so called because the workingmen have to make a good many hard pounds to get it, When aman gets ‘a ha- penny it usually makes him nd their smaller coin, which is an 18 a far- thing. It will be by the most in- ader that when the use Ster- their buck board with, and | ‘The French possess a Franc, open-hearted currency, and while the people will scme- times sue for acent, they will often scent for usou. The people of Peru have not changed their religion much for they still worship In Japan when a fellow goes to a saloon he always takes the Chobang, and if he gets out of money and im liquor ke will hie cup to you and ask, ** Have you got 50 Sen?” n Russia the roubles give them a good many troubles, and what they do get is gen- erally considered as Czar’d money. In Hindoostan when a fellow accidentally finds a piece of money he jumps up fort feet and yells, * Rupee,” which is equiva | lent in oar coinage to our “ whooper” when we find one. Our aboriginal friends u nancial medium and hence i ion to please * shell out,” and bones ain animals constituted a man’s ; “Bone him for a stake,” or ‘stake him for a bone.” T would continue this valuable and richly jingling treatise but you see I have ron out of mone: ndered every coin I had on shells as a fi- e the modern this for your benefit. THEODWINKLE BROWN, | Editor of the Brown Paper. ‘This is to certify that the author is well versed—although he does not write puctry— in foreign money and it is nearly all t way. Andashe has spent almost every thing he had except. money in pursuit of this subject, he would like to make a cabi- net of rare coins from all parts of the world: (ull coins are rare to him) he feels that he would not feel below accepting specimens of any denomination, religious or otherwise, | A. W. BELLAW, 1 KITE THAT WON'T RISE. “ Faith, it would go illeyant, but for the tail.” comicbooks.com