Mark Twain compared himself favorably to George Washington. He noted that he had a higher standard than the first President. George Washington could not tell a lie. Twain said that he could tell a lie but he wouldn't!

The minister was early for the service, but there was one person already there. She was sitting in the back pew, at the end of the pew, half asleep. He went over and teased her about getting her nap finished before he began to preach. "This is the only place I can get any rest," she said. At first he thought she meant she had...

In 1799, fifty years before the California gold rush, gold was discovered in North Carolina. At Stanfield in Cabbarus county a 12 year old boy found a nugget weighing 17 pounds. His father, John Reed, not knowing what it was, used it as a doorstop. In 1802 he took it to a market in Fayetteville. A jeweler recognized that the...

One of the most difficult and exciting highways in North America is in Glacier National Park in Alberta. Vehicles more than 21 feet long or more than 8 feet wide are prohibited. The narrow, winding highway climbs up, up, up to the Logan Pass. It is called "The Going-to-the-Sun Road." That's S-u-n. Change one letter and you...

If you visit the Four Corners where Arizona, Utah, New Mexico and Colorado meet, you can see the architectural remains of a mysterious people who lived there more than a thousand years ago. Little is known about them. They lived in the area for 700 years. Then, about 1300, they suddenly left. No one knows why. They may...

Crater Lake in Oregon is uniquely beautiful. Created by a volcanic eruption, the lake is crystal clear, and set in a goblet of mountains. The first Europeans to see it were two prospectors searching for food. After seeing the stunning lake they continued looking for food and came across some Native Americans. Though they lived...

The great heart of the Australian continent is a desert, hot and dry. It seldom rains at all. But when it does rain lakes form and small fish suddenly appear. It seems miraculous. Pelicans come in great numbers to feed on the vast schools of fish. Then the lakes dry up, and the pelicans leave. The fish die and nothing is left but...

Just inside the magnificent walled city of Dubrovnik, Croatia, stands the bell tower. It marks the beginning of the Stradun, the city's main street. Two iron figures strike the bell each hour. The bells ring twice every hour. The first time is on the hour. The second time is three minutes later. That's just in case you lost count the...

The largest group of native Americans east of the Mississippi is also the most mysterious. They are the Lumbee people of eastern North Carolina. Because they were able to quickly adapt to the white European culture they were neither exterminated nor exiled. They live among others as teachers lawyers, and farmers. They...