Peg Leg Foils Texan's Attempt at Suicide

1920

Wooden Prop Sticks in River Bank and Stops His Plunge

Is Sued for Fish Slain in His Mad Scramble to Swim Out

SHIRO, Texas, Feb. 26. — John Relmer's peg leg not only prevented him from ending his life here, but landed him in jail on a charge of wanton destruction of private property. Relmer is 40 years old, and has been wearing a wooden leg of the peg variety for twenty-one years. Lately his physical disability has prevented him from earning a comfortable living on the farms or in this little town. He had had a hard winter of it and to add to his misfortunes he took the "flu."

Finally he decided he would end it all.

Relmer decided it would be easier to go via the water route. He knew of such a pleasant place where the blue waters were deep and the banks mossy and shady. It was in the field of J. G. Anderson, a prosperous farmer and fish breeder.

But here's the strange part of the story. When Relmer made up his mind, he at once hobbled over to the place he had selected to end it all. He wrote a little note and laid it on the bank, telling the people why he drowned himself. Then he leaped toward the still, blue water, peg leg and all. That blasted peg leg stuck in the bank of the stream and Relmer's troubles began to double!

Before he could wrench the peg out of the soft bank he had changed his mind about dying. He decided he would begin life anew, provided he could get out. He finally pulled the peg out of the mud, but found the bank so steep he could not climb it. There was nothing to do but swim across to the other side.

Here's more trouble, real trouble, was added to Relmer's burdens. With that peg leg as he swam across the stream he clubbed several of Mr. Anderson's fine fish to death. They were his breeding fish and he had paid a fancy price for them. When he found the dead fish with their head and bodies beaten up and the note Relmer left on the bank he discovered what killed his fish. Anderson had Relmer arrested.

"He should have more sense than to try to drown himself in my fish pond," said Anderson. "Even if he had succeeded it would have injured my fish. He should have tried a rope and a limb."

"I didn't intend to kill the fish," said Relmer, "but I'm glad I'm alive."

How Queer Fish Are Bred

1914

Curious Results Obtained by Chinese and Japanese in Selection and Crossing

The telescope fish, a monstrous variety of carp, is a creation of the Chinese and Japanese fish breeders, who are past masters in the art of deforming nature. It has an almost globular glistening body, gilded on the sides, double dorsal fins and a long tail of peculiar shape. Its eyes and their sockets are very prominent and resemble the object glasses of telescopes, whence the name telescope fish.

A carp possessing this abnormal feature was discovered in Japan in the sixteenth century, since which epoch the peculiar character has been perpetuated and combined with many variations in form and coloring, by careful selection and crossing.

The variety known as Yen-tan-yen or "veil tail" preserves the normal structure of the eye during life, but its delicate transparent tail attains an enormous size and falls in graceful folds, like a veil, producing effects that a "serpentine" dancer might envy, when a little flsh moves in the sunlight.

Other Japanese varieties of the telescope fish are the "sheep's nose," which owes its name to the convexity of its body; the "pig's snout," which has a head resembling those of Asiatic swine, and the "fan tail," which raises and spreads its tail in the manner of a fan-tail pigeon.

The Chinese breeders of telescope fish disdain these abnormalities of structure and devote their attention chiefly to coloring. By modifying the temperature of the water, and by impregnating it with lime and iron, they produce startling shades and markings.

Among the innumerable varieties thus obtained we may mention the "spotted," with a belly of silver, and sides and back marked with blue, yellow, black, rose and carmine dots; the crimson "ruby" and the "superb," with glittering scales, scarlet belly, and black or bright red markings on the back.

Iowa State Get Wild Boar for Breeding Purposes

Ames, Iowa, 1920

AMES GETS WILD BOAR FOR BREEDING PURPOSES

Ames, Jan. 1.—A wild boar from Africa has been received by the experiment station of Iowa State college for use in type test and other breeding work.

Kansas State Agricultural college received the boar from its original home and used him in a number of tests, and sent the boar to Ames as a gift.

All of the present day breeds have been developed from the suscrofa, the species to which this wild boar belongs, and the station hopes to do some interesting fundamental work with the animal. He has large tusks and his hair, gray in color, is very long. His ears are black and stand upright. Although he weighs only 150 pounds, he does not lack in fierceness.

--Waterloo Times-Tribune, Waterloo, Iowa, January 2, 1920, page 2.