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the cutter buck right i# two? lTCt? "ft** it to Men Kim?whew! HOWJSfC.) BH'rM donf k%Am Iw I've boon off dowr m a farm! Look bare, where I've burnt the, mmam More'n hell way up my arm! \ , . f I could had a teeny pig To bring home, but ma sail bo, It would net too awful big When it onct begun to grow. With a nit# t?f icet' When 1 want?, aW tfie dd_ I could ait on top an' ride! An' onct. air. the cutter stick Cut a rabbit right * He went "squeal quick? An' yoa ought Farmers have no groe'ry store, '? Bat they get their eggs in if ws. An' they don't need inilkiauj teg e < . They squeeze milk straigMToltm CW|! An' my uucle?Uncle Jed? Onct wheu I was standin' by "Open up your mouth!" he aaid? But he squirted in my eye! | j? ? I went round in overalls ? " An' had pie for br? akfas'?gee! An' IJ"an? the bell that calla > At the tslUe 'long with ua? Country girlf f POsed to Wtll, So ma didn't raise a fust. 1 washed nc.tr lhf<t>eek-et?ep pump in a ban in with fli3 rc*t. v An' nobody tried to jump On ua whe%are ap?a?iwil or mcasfd. Mh, she aaysMstl'ih a si sat 'Cause I got no black?oh, dear* I'm afraid I'll get all White ? 'Fore I go agnin next year. ?Edwin L. tSabin, in Lippincott'a. An r HARPER'S WILL OE HARPER wAs an old bachelor. He owned and worked a little farm and k^nt bouse for himself, and h? had little desire for the company of others. It was ?aid of him that be was never known to laugh and anything in the way of a joke, ^t^lm as he plodded his way to town or back home again, waa utterly thrown away. Of course every body held him up to qontetopt or ridl* cole. He had been living thus for ten yeara when one day in a hollow tree on hla own farm he found a great heap of mo^K JFkff w<u" W11 weight that he Md HMMw a neighbors horse and wagof to convey it to the bank in tha town. He tried to keep very secret about it, but the matter became the goealp of the couqty. Neither Joe nor the banker could tell what the sum Was, but the people who took a look at the hollow tree estimated it at $30, 000. Thos? who didn't take a look placed the ?re*;.af *75,000, and also added a Jot <f jewetfy to the find. It was passing strange what a change took place in public opinion. The old bachelor had oalleAe by the aeore.and each caller warmly congrat ulattMQw* fasten* ef being guyed by the passers-by as he worked In his tielda, men climbed the fences to shake band with hlin Md invite hiife to make investments In the yeapvpast even the homeliest old maids 0 <14tt>ired that they would drown ih^Bkeif^s sooner than marry such a^>k9*q(a man. Things were dlffereut now. At least half a dozen old maids and three or four widows began sending in custard pies and jellies and currant wine and giving their opinion .that Mr. Joseph Harper would show off *rtth the best of them if he only haffa wife to giv? him bints and suggestions. Joe did not come out of his shell vtry far, hut it waa after ward remembered by a good many that be had something like a twinkle in bia eye as lie sh<iek blinds with his numer ous well-wishers. Unknown to anyone but bis doctor. Joseph Tlurper had a weak heart, and one day lie overtaxed himself and died at liis owu door. So far as was known he bad m?t spent a dollar of his find, and as be had no rein lives, there was much curiosity as to whether he had made a will or not. and who would come in for ids money. A village law yer soon gratified curiosity as to a will. Oue bad been made only six months be fore the old bachelor's death. More tbun thai ft concerned a scoro of peo ple, each yuo of whom was uotifled to appear on the day of the funeral and hear the document read. The excitement was inteuse and more people turned out to pay a last tribute of rcs|*ect to Joseph Harper than bad ever followed another citizen of the county. While the house was crowded full after the burial, at least 200 people who could not get in stood about the yard ft> learn the contents of (be will. The first person mentioned lu the docu ment was an old maid. Before the nnd of the treasure she had been in the habit of mimicking the walk of the o'd bachelor and bud made a great bit. "Miss Lucy Arnold," read the docu ment, "Is to walk twice across the floor and Imitate my gait as closely as possible. She is then to be allowed to lake a double handful of coins out of the l?ox as a token of my esteem." It took I.ucy Ave minutes to work up hw nerve for the performance, but she tl an red that a double handful of coins would be at least and she .Went nhe.'M^ The next.legatee was William Jobu son, a farmer's son. who was required to laugh in a hearty manner for the privilege of taking one handful of coins. !(/? had always been asking old Joe wiy he didn't hittgh. It was a hard Job for liliu to get up a lmwhaw on this occasion, hut he flnall> accomplished it and made a mlirluy one-handed grab. Tiim the d<?; ;uiuMit mentioned Mrs. Scott, wife of l'eter Hcott, who was In the habit of puckering up her mouth a curious way and saying It was the *fl? f"1*, wlen he tried to whistle jgAwd T.mgtayie.'' Kite was to stand np and pticMr tier mouth for two min utes by the clock and was then to be rewarded^wlth a pint basin full of .!? off *bo?t It for awhile. btSTicrliiphaud braced her up, and sit# 4riiod her eftfns and got her mouth hack to Its usual shape again. Then came the turn of Miss flattie Davis, another old maid. The old bachelor was deaf In the left ear, and be bud a curious way of jerking up his spokeOt*. lilts T>avla waO, 1* ft^ l||blt of Imitating this morenwDt The will read that sbo was to itand op and then go through the {notion twenty time*. and she waa to bO Wwlbi with all the coins she could grab with both hands. But for her mother being present to tell her that two big handfuls of money would doubtless bring a suitor for bOv h?nd. Miss Hattle might not hare reaped un der the will. ? few months before discovering the treasure Joseph Harper had suffered for several weeks with rheumatism In tho htp and had been compelled to drag his right leg aa he walked. Young Aaron Greenwood, the smart Aleck of the neighborhood, had given Imitations of ttie liiap for the delectation of tho neighbors. The will read that he waa to limp ten rods and back after "the Harper style," and would then be al lowed to 01 one trousers' pocket with colds from the box. The young man ! went through the performance, but none of the spectators was convulsed with laughter. There were twenty-two legatees un der the will and twenty-one of them had to go through performances ? in order to ltdierlt. In each and every cane tbe bachelor got even and a little more, though lying in his grave. Tho twenty-second and last parson to be mentioned was the wife of a farmer living Ave miles away. It ap peared that she had once called'Joseph in as he was plodding by In a storm and had fed and warmed him. To her was left all his real and personal prop erty, amounting to a matter of $0000, and she was charged to congratulate all the others^on what they had re ceived. ?This charge was never fulfilled. Bhe had not yet risen to carry if out when the row began. Jofeeph Harper had found a box of coins In a hollow tree, but they were bogus quarters and halves and dollars and hidden away by some gang of counterfeiters years before. He had made use of the find to square up old scores. Of course the "legatees" were boiling over with Indignation, and of course the "outsiders" were tickled to death and the row did not cease until the doors were unhinged, windows smashed aud fences leveled. There are some still living whn speak of the dend man with a show of respect, bnt there are others who never hear his name mentioned without exclaiming: "What Joe Harper! Why, he was the meanest man who ever died In this whole State!**?Florida Agriculturist. OM "iMr - atm? had ? Tet8,0u Of It !a*?t tfrT&Z'L -teht be given fop the best, second best and so on, presentations of it. ' comes from Europe to inspect his newspaper plant in detail and careful I"?*::::?? ???isrs? ??Uj poecede lii? cosine but r<y?nii. Stowrhtol,y>P"n,er acud?<<M "l. rellowa bj appearing in a aeml-tim.v condition on the momentous day. The man was barely able to keep awake thJ fH"* *u" sufflrlon,1y alert to evade SASSX ,,rrt?Vn hOT; .ce.d?uuy ?issarMSTM? and his face was covered with i tiki/* b.ct.mndWptlnt during Inspection, bat leaned JZl Bennett'*** Wal> and return?t Mr. Bennett s gase pathetically Mr nett said nothing until the moment of ?Si. iS ??'"d the for szm SS2 ?.'ur,.?- 8h"kl?? ii. ? L. j 8,011 countenance of 1i>'n ?ubordlnate. he ejaculated- " .?* ' y?U W<l8h UP an* ko home ?.sr. b-ok ,-m?? .Tsar? CT-f ^.rT"' "" ,or"m"n '? -II ?? ?h. '.M Z'rr??M * wnge? $5 a yreok. blunt jronr" ih* t*,t ftho? w?ara rint ssSTSSSw proacliud ber. .1,0 poked J.er r'gh, f"S from beneath a? expand of s^,,fo<" it a always the case, und I dou't he. Here I ever knew It to fal" f,"e ii? manufacturer, evidently are Js'?' "Z uV 'n ,hp the rig" ISd.tw rkwl m 10"? <>?? ?!,! 1 #? W ?f *h0e* COroe to CJC !7<>K the left shoe on top, and it caused mi ?o much annoyance that I wrote to th! manufacturer, calling ul. Mention ? Jta matter ,0 .bat h'wJET2Z? ?gi,.;ba?de..; rT:z.b?Ls^t"o7, SLtfflsr.r-w f?S used more, and conacguently dcvelon. ??""f ?<? ? ureter eitent o* ?hf other hand, the left foot <? u* * dlffcri!,e rJK,,t ,n n,OMf Persons. Tho difference is ho slight that we seldom 'ore the ZrZ'ZZlTX reason. "?J? hoe Retailer. thl* who. NiT"r ?"'* ?* ?? nen horses were first t,uni, , . Of the road nx lie held the lln.< 53F.5F?3^? XLT: tbe tcrma "near hone" and "off hor"c' norscs bitched as a team. T. jh^ks Corr?c?," Tho Irench savant, M. Benard u S57--3 im th? ?win. ' Ramore the harness from tb? horses st noon when you desire to (We Item ? tell, free rest, and once daring the day at least, preferably at ai|^t a thorough carrying and grooming. This will enable them to secure the fall benaflt of the night's test, snd will aid mat*risll)? In .keeping them in good he*b and thrift. i V? AU tk? Uad. T?o milch Idle land is a loss, as it Is taxed by the 8tste and represents cap ital drawing no Interest. It Is better to Concentrate effort on small areas, but large farms should st least be made to produce sometimes to cover i the surface, to be plowed under, so as I to permit It to gain in fertility, which i is an additional value. Growing Tornlpi. Turnips will be found one of the most useful crops thnt can be grown, not only for the tnltle, but also for Flock, especially for ho^s that are in pens. They can bo produced at a small cost, and are amongst the most wholesome of stock foods. I>nte tur nips may be grown in the regular way, or the seed can be sown broadcast on a plot tliut is to be left over. TrinprnitnK an l Grains. Experiments show that rye and win ter wheat will Kcrminnte in a soil the temperature of which is thirty-two degrees; barley, oats, flax, peas snd cldver will sprout at thirty-five de crees; turnips the same, carrots at. thirty-eight, and beans at forty de grees. If these experiments have been carefully conducted they demonstrate that some plants will sprout even be low the freeslng point.. Core for Gape*. Take a knitting or darning needle, and dip it iu turpentine and drop one drop in the throat or windpipe, once or twice a day; and also put a few drops in the feed and keep the chicks in dry. clean coops and your gapes will be no more. Damp, wet coops are sure to give the young chickens the gap worms, but the turpentine will kill every worm and the chickens will sneeze them out.?J. N. Alford, in In diana Farmer. ^ '"?ll Sotdlof to Qrts?t Fields are frequently seeded to grass lu the fall. This is done without any crop, and in some cases is found to be more successful than spring seeding ?long with a crop of grain. This work should be done in August or early Sep tember on ground well prepared, that is made of hue tilth, smooth and well fertilised. Where this system works well there should he a good success with the crops of bay to follow, as tgey will have the entire benefit of the fertilizers applied. Sheep on the Fur in. The truth is that the presence of a flock of sheep on a farm that appears to be thrifty and liappy may always be. accepted as a certificate of the ability and good character of the far mer. not only as sach. bat as a man as Wall. This criterion has such a natural coincidence.that it strikes even the In experienced passer-by, as it did a well ; known missionary, a good man who did a vast amount of good in the early days ami wlm v.sed to say that when traveling on a mission he would al ways stop if possible with a farmer over night who had a well conditioned flock of sheep in his fields, because he would Hud a good-natured, kindly-dis posi Moned host.?American Sheep Breeder. A11 n I fit I'or Hoc*. A swine grower who has been frying j alfalfa pasture for his hogs says that reall.v they should not be pastured on I it Mil the third simson after sowing, as It requires three seasons lie says for j the plant to get well established, and j If the swine are turned onto it before, , It is likely to become seriously injured I The best results In pasturing swine on alfalfa come from the growing animals and when the alfalfa pasture is used for growing hogs. It is estimated that the grain ration may be cut one-half at least. There is the further advan tage in pasturing that the hogs do not require so much care as when in con , flncment or on a range of limited area I and this is quite an Item in the expense j of raising swine. Pool raitnrfi, But It is in the pastures that shrubs and bushes most abound. Especially - is this the case where only cattle are ? kept. When there were sheep on | nearly every farm there were not j nearly as many bushes as now, and for ! this purpose It might be found profit able If more sheep were kept. Unless a pasture Is overstocked, cattle will I?n.v little attention to the browsing of bushes. Where bushes abound to any extent they should be mown or c~t every summer, and August has been con sidered a good time for this klud of work. It is not to be expected that one cutting Is going to exterminate them, but it will give them a good set back. and if t?i<. practice Is continued .very year it will not be long before they will be practically destroyed. In pastures thickly sot with bushes An gor:i goats would often prove the best exterminator*. Tho Arirnntnc* of 0nlt. Tattle should be regularly supplied ?vltli a certain amount of salt. The addition of a pinch of salt is found to exercise a beneficial influence, not only upon the digestion of the food but upon the general health of the snlnials. ibis is specially so in the case of dairy cows whose milk yield is found to be very appreciably Influenced by the presence or absence of salt In the food given tfacm. In some experiments carried out a few years r.go ju Europe, It was found that the Addition or withholding of salt froin the food given to dairy cows mennt a considerable variation In the Quantity of milk produced by them. In ?se case of such animals, it Is thought tnar the salt not only exercises a bene fice effect upon the digestion of the food but also acts as some sort of a ?Miiinfant in tiio and thus tends to encourage a free* and fuller flow.?American Cultivator. Trait Onatoc 1Tw* Trm*. Profit in fruit crowing 'depends on, attention to the ?all?t details. The merchant who glvee attention to the smallest details of his business will. In most oases, succeed. The ifcanufme> tarer, if the pflco of his praktoeta Is low, will make a profit out of his waste materisl. if the farmer Is a fruit grower would give the same attention as the merchsnt or manufscturer, profit would be assured; but In most cases the tree Is planted, cattle are allowed to destroy, or no care or at tention is paid to It. If the tree comes into bearing. It Is not cultivsted. pruned, or In any wsy cared for. The result will be smsll, knotty, almost worthless fruit If profit in fruit gvowlng is to be secured, let it be given through culti vation, careful pruning, spray at the proper time; thoroughly examine your trees at least twice each year for bor ers.?8. A. Cutshalf, in the Ainerl-nn Cultivator. Many Canecritarj Frncfi. Old customs dlo hard, no matter how useless they may be. On farms where much stock Is to be raised fences are quite necessary, but on farms devoted to fruit growing, vegetable raising or grain production there can be littlo need for a large expenditure In the way of fences. I was brought up on a New England farm, and speak l'roiu experience when I declare that the existence of liieleM fences Is the cause of much waste of time and inbor in the performing of the farm work. Where stock ralalng is carried on on a considerable scale we must have fences, for the farm crops must be ro tated and the pasture must be include In the rotation. This is true of those farms where there la not a large per manent pasture. In the case of such a farm. It should be enough to fence the pasture or pastures thoroughly. Some would object that this would not allow the meadows to be pastured. Very well; the non-pasturing of the meadows would be a good thing for the meadows, and Just as good for the farm aulnmlstln the end, as they would have a larger supply of forage from those same meadows.? Writer, In the The Tribune Farmer. The BIm Asdalulu. , This Interesting bird is oue that is little known to the general run of poultry, although one of the oldest of our standard breeds, especially In this line in the Middle West, though it is fairly well known in the Hast, in Can ada and on the Pacific Coast. It is a very hundsome. stylish bird, gentle, hardy and a layer of wonderfully large eggs. A man in Nebraska claims he has a pull;* which laid 280 eggs in one year; another declares he exhibited eggs at a show in Colorado where the dozen of egga he showed weighed thirty-six ounces. We cannot vouch for these stories, yet we have no reason to doubt their truth. A man exhibited eggs one year at an egg-contest at Chi cago where a dozen weighed thirty-two ouncea In the presence of the show officers, and were so accredited. Out of the dozens there exhibited they easily took first prize over Minorcas. Hrahinas and what not. So much for the utility side of the question. Their cl#ef attraction from the point of view of beauty Is their color, which is a leaden blue?about the color of smoke from tobacco. However, simply blue color does not make an Andalu slan. You will often run across blue hens in a nondescript flock?but they are not Audaluslans. The true Anda luslan is distinguished by the lacings, which means that each feniLer baa a blue background, and on the edge of each feather there must be an edge of darker blue. Without this edging (lacing) the bird, however blue is ab solutely "no good."?Inland Poultry Journal. Milk Fever. The Department of Agriculture baa recently issued Circular No. 45, of tho Bureau of Animal Industry, entitled Milk Fever; Its Simple and Success ful Treatment." It gives a complete description of the astonishlnglv suc cessful results obtained in the' treat ment of tills heretofore extremely fatal malady by the Injection of fl|. tered atmospheric air into the udder Milk fever affects well nourished, heavy milking cows in all the large dairy districts of this country, and la characterized by the complete paral yala of the animal shortly after calv-t lng. Aa It attacks the best mllklngj cows it) the herd and at a time when! the inllk flow Is the heaviest, the dis ease la one which has caused very se-' vere losses In our dairy Industry, iti Is, therefore, of the greatest import^ ance that every milk producer nc quaint himself with the present ex-* timely successful treatment andi should provide himself with a suit-' able apparatus for injecting sterile a In through each tent until the udder Isj well distended. This nlr treatment Is' by far the most simple and praetl cable, aa well as the most efficacious: and harmless one ever used, and hnsi reduced the mortality from the dis ease to almoat nothing. It Is easy ofii manipulation, requires but little time,J and is readily accomplished by means' of the apparatus suggested by the< bureau. Up to within recent times* most stringent measures were resort ed to by every careful dairyman ttf prevent tbe disease In his herd. How ever. since the air treatment hr.s so greatly, reduced, and even ti> somo: enses obliterated, the mortality, pre vention Is no longer such an import ant problem, and therefore preventive measures, such as starving, blood letM ting, etc., which have a severe and: lasting effect upon the anlmala, should1 be abnndoned. The most recent pre ventive treatment suggested la In line with the favorable results obtained by the Injection of nlr Into the udder. It consists In allowing the suaceptlblo cow to retain In the udder for twen ty-four hours following calving all the mljk except the small quantity quired by the cnlf. The distention of the udder naturally follows aa In the olr treatment nnd acts as preventive 1 ??*????? milt tavmm FARM TOPICS. BREED, NOT FKKD. Farmers who believe that It Is ttw feed and not the breed which givn the result* ran soon satisfy theuisclvei by keeping two steers, one a pure-bred or grade Shorthorn, and the other i scrub, giving both the same tare as t? food and shelter, and using food liber ally. The well-bred animal will *ln crease almost twice as rapidly as tin other. The food Is certainly a verj Important factor, but the breed tuaif K" with the food If a profit on the foo4 is desired.. POISONED IIOCS. 1 had seven young hogs running a1 large and they got to eating cockle burs and six of tliem got enough t< poison them; five of them died befon 1 discovered what the trouble was but the sixth I saved by giving an an tldote of one pint of new milk to whlcfe was added one taldcspoonfrl of castoi oil. Treat must must l>e begun as s?>or its the hog is found to be sick, as tin poison acts very quick. One of mj hogs died wiihin two hours after show ing the first sign* of sickness.?It. A Runultt, In The Kpltomist. SEND THE BEST. If farmers will make it a rule to senJ only the best to market they will get more money for one-half of their crof when prices are low than for tin v little. When the markets are well supplied only the best will sell. No: only should the articles be selected but they should be uniform?of the same quality?at the bottom of flu basket as at the top. Instead of reduc ?Ing the prices of potatoes by sending the very small ones to market, keep those that are unsalable, feed them on the farm and they will then he more valuable. DRY FEEDING. Hundreds of young chicks are hatched every year that die before they are a month old. The most com mon cause of death Is bowel trouble. This is not always caused by the food. A chill will often cause digestive trou ble and death, but the most common cause is improper food, or food In ar improper condition. Nearly all writers on poultry now advocate dry feeding. This week we devote most of our space to this sub ject. Some writers rccommend it not only for chicks, but also for grown fowls. We have followed this method for years with unvarying success. We feed dry grain almost entirely. We give them table scraps. Including rem nants of cooked grits, etc., but this is cooked until solid and not sloppy. TO KEEP BUTTER FRESII. According to Thoruwell Haynes. United States Consul at Roueu, the French National Society of Agriculture has recently received from one of Us members an Interesting communication on the preservation of butter by fluor ide of sodium. Th$ writer says this substance is not hurtful unless admin istered in doses of some thirty grams (4fk': grains) a day for animals weigh ing 125 pounds. From one-quarter to one gram In a pulverulent state suffices for two |H>unds of butter, which it will preserve Indefinitely. It is stated that flic strength of the fluoride, so far as its effect upon the health is concerned, is diminished one-half by mixing. If. however, it retains its full strength. 110 inconvenience can result, as many physicians prescribe as much as forty centigrams (0.10 grains) every twenty four hours in order to regulate diges tion. It is further stated that the fluor ide can be used only in infinitesimal quantities, ns more than half a gram to a pound of butter renders it unpal atable. but that instead of making the butter Indigestible and less nutri tive, tin* fluoride, when used properly, is considered an aid to digestion. FARM NOTES. Medium sized sheep usually have the best and heaviest fleeces. Breed the horse first for strength and endurance and then style. The hest sheep Is the most profitable one under all circumstances. It pays to have horses perform work that are naturally good walkers. A horse with an unruly disposition in very many cases is of little or no ?ecount. A fast wnlk and prompt telling road gait are, to a great extent, matters of education. The pigs will do well In the apple orchards, especially if there are many sweet apples. Clover Is one of the best of green mnnurial crops, a great restorer of worn out lauds. Overloading the teams is a bad Idea. It will start horses to balking quicker than anything else. Colls require plenty of exercise In order to develop their lungs when they ?re growing rapidly. An egg broken In the feed of horses I* very beneficial to them lu clearing up the skin and hair. One acre of clover ami one acre of com are worth three acres of corn for making healthy porkers. Always try to stimulate the inllk ylledlng capabilities of the cows to Ike highest limit within reason. A small flock of slice;) well eared for is more profitable then a Inrgr; one allowed to pick its own rvis*p. Machinery of no kino <dir.i:l,1 he r! lowed to remain cxv?;fi."d to i';? weather any more than W< rort el H ,vr?. The port of Havre coi-'tJsts of an out er harbor fifty acres in extent; there are also ten docks, with a lialf-tlde ?SiVnd tcn lock8, hrT>n? a surface of 210 acres. There 10,500 yards of mays and 143 acres of land for the stowing of merchandiser largely cov ered with excellent sbefo. There are ?lx dry docks, three of ?ehlcb are ca Pablo of taking in all but tho Inrgest mall steamers.?London Engineer. MlMosri'a Vtlgh?rt pnk, Iron Mountain, the highest elevation In Missouri, is but 1800 lfcct above the level Qt the sea. ... ... *? **??? "li ibe last ten years the question of road improve* meut bas received a good deal of attention from the legislators in the Eastern oiuies, notably In Mns?aehusctts nnd New Jersey. Careful study of the road question In these States soon devol* oped the faet that the counties and towns were doing little and In many' eases nothing, and that th?? road* were5 gradually becoming worse instead of belter. In Massachusetts the idea was first conceived of having the State and civil subdivisions thereof co-op>r.;ti In the Improvement of the roads. A. State law embodying this principle was adopted In New Jersey about the same time as In Massachusetts. and for the last ten years remarkable progress has been made iu these two States. In deed. llie principle of State aid l.as he come so popular within the last few years that this same principle has be; u enacted into law in the Stales of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont. Rhode Island. Connecticut. New ^ ??; k. Delaware and Pennsylvania, and the idea Is being carefully considered by the legislatures of many of the South ern nnd Western States. Mr. M. O. Eldridge. Assistant Direc tor. Otlice of Public Koad Iiuiuirh of the United States Department of Ag riculture. recently made an inspce'ion trip through the States of Maine. Mas sachusetts. ltlit.rle Island. Connecilcut nnd New York. In an in Interview Mr. Eldridge had the following to say iu regard to the roml conditions in these States: "I am fully convinced from my re cent trip that the roads which have been built In the East through the aid of the States and under the direction of highway commissions are the best roads in the United States, and are equal, if not superior, to the best roads in the world. This is due to the fact that these roads have been built un der Intelligent supervision, by skillful ?workmen, out of the very best mate* rials, and with American road build ing machinery; whereas most of the roads that I have seen In the old coun try were built by hand, nnd have since been maintained in the same way. in spite of the long drought which prevailed throughout the New England States during the spring and summer the State roads were Arm and smooth, and although I personally In spected over 500 miles of improved roads, 1 did not see a single one which ^ had raveled or which had signs of wear from the recent dry weather. In tfe* southeastern part of Massachusetts and along Cape Cod Bay. and in the south ern part of Connecticut, the old roads were composed entirely of sand, but in spite of the dry weather, the State roads built on these sand foundations are remarkably hard and smooth." Mr. Eldridge was asked if he thought that the people of the Eastern States, who had already built some good roads, and who have organized to continue the work along the present lines, would be willing to accept assistance from the general Government in build ing roads as provided for in the ltrown low bill. "I believe." said Mr. Eldridge, "that the people of the Eastern States are so enthusiastic on the subject of good roads that they would be glad to ac cept the cooperation of the Govern ment. They have been buiiuing good roads for the past ten years, yet the work of completing the system has Just fairly started. Even if the pres ent plans and liberal appropriations are continued it will take many ycara to improve all the important highways in these States, and consequently the people are anxious to secure any addi tional aid possible. The State Lligh way Commissioners of Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York nnd New Jer sey expressed themselves as being in favor of national aid, and I believe that all the good roads p??ople in the Eastern States are iu favor of I?." ? Good Bonds Magazine. Lodm* by Had Ro?<U. As to losses by bad roads, the office lias learned, by consultation with many thousands of the most intelli gent farmers of the country, that the expense of moving farm products and| supplies averages, on all our country roads, twenty-five cents per ton per mile; whereas in the good road dis tricts of this and other countries the cost is only about one-third of this amount. This extra expense amounts iu the aggregate to more than the en tiro expenditures of the National Gov ernment, and taking into account all of the hauling done on the public roads, the loss is equal to one-fourth of the home value of all the farm pro ducts of the United States. Tiie in crease in cost of hnuiing actually done Is by no means the only loss resulting from bad roads. The loss of perish able products for want of access to market, the failure to reach market when prices are good, nnd the failure to cultivate products which would be marketable if markets were always accessible, add many millions to the actual tax of bad roads. Moreover, the enforced Idleness of millions of men nnd draft nuimais during large portions of the year is an Item not al ways taken Into account in estimating the cost of work actually done. The tux of bad roads will become constant ly harder to boar as the people of llio United Str.tea are brought Into keener ?competition with the cheap produc tions of other agricultural countries. The coiitlmvnis improvement In trans 'portlition facilities, both by rail and wator, is steadily opening our markets to countries where labor is cheaper and in many cases where roads nre better, and the agriculture of this country will not long stand a needless tax equal to one-fourth tho value of its products. 1'nnprrlBm. In Grent Britain the number of pnu pers in each 1<HH> of the population is twenty-six. in southwest Knghind it Is thirty-three. In soine American cit ies ten per cent, of the population re eeive charitable assistance, as, fur iu ?tance, Cleveland, Ohio. In the "Petrified Forvst** of Arizona' there is a natural bridge, acroas a i narrow canon, consisting of the petri fied, or agatised, trunk of a tree. Ill* feet in length. Keu level is a level only !n the ??i- 1 agination. For IdkIhiki1. >lie water la/ the Bay of Bengal in :**> feet higher than the surface of ti:e Indian Ocean, and along the Pacific coc.at of South America the aea is oft-n 200 feet higher tlian its lowest surface. The differences result from the attractive powers of great mountain ranges. The Cadis Chamber of Commerce reckons the total annual production of cork for the entire world at 81.'287, 700 pouuds. Of tills Portugal produces the largest amouul. In Its cork trees contributed :W,.Hf?.104 pounds.; Spain comes next, with a contribution' In the same year or '28.450.710 pounds. Algeria and the ofher minor eork pro ducing countries together contributed -0,C-1 ,1)40 pouuds. In Ccrmany, the home of iechnolog. leal instruction, tli. are seven special schools devoted to the sole purpose of training locksinitiis and hhuksinitbs. They are in the cities ??f ltnrgstadt, <;rosscnhnin, Fr:?ukcuhi -g. Meissen, Clauchaii, ltossw -in and Xi-tau. Only graduates of public sch io ?< are ndniir ted. The course iuslrii,?.;?.? In three of the schools last* three years; in three of the others it is sh< vter. Inuring the present summer the Ind ian meteorological observatory on Monte Itosa. at a height of 14,'JUO feet, will he put into pra<atical operation* An observer will live on the summit during the summer months. It Is hoped that the observations made there will prove oi snevial value in con nection with the international balloon ascents, which have now become a {regular means of exploring the upper air. Late reports concerning the expert fluent or preventing dust on the roads tof France by coating the surface with tar indicate that the results are sntls ,factory. After twelve months' trial in ihe Department of Seine-et-Marne, it pias been found that the dust and mud, formerly troublesome, hiive disap peared. and the cost of maintaining JMie roads has decreased. The mingling f?f the tar with the dirt forms a kind of elastic skin over the the roadway, which mil tiles the sound of footsteps und renders traction easier. THOSE AWFUL BLUES. Anatomical Can-.- of tli? tWIinc ?nd Ita KnVrt. .' The malady now known as "The Billies," but n hundred years ago as i The Spleen," has not, so far as we know, hitherto been examined from its {anatomical standpoint, But in a re cent medical book this has been done, jand Splanchnic Neurasthenia is tho impressive name conferred upon this (once fashionable trouble. '? The root of the evil. It seems, Is a laxity of the abdominis muscles, lend ing to congestion of the thus unsup ported abdominal veins. And the con Wquences of this again is the mental /date curiously associated by its name jWlth the color blue. But may not ihe mental state antedate. Instead of fob low upon, the physical condition, and [then be maintained and made wr>r .> J>.v the evil muscular laxity which it paused? We certainly think that to be the case, and appeal for continua tion of our view to the results of treat ment. For medicines notoriously do nothing jto cure, except when the patient sees ills doctor every day and so gets n fhtil.v dose of encouragement. And something more, for there is no doctor but will say that such patients cost Jils vitality more than ten with other maladies. w lie.carries them lo health. Foreign travel or any kind of wholesome Inter est in life also cures. In other words, ?It is a new mental vitality, whether stolen (from the doctor) rr acquirer, which cures. Muscular gymnastics, etc., also cure, I-ecuuse to do them the ml.nl has to rise to a bcncllcinl effort, of a positive will. In other words. "The BlueR" is a malady that no one need have, nor should tolerate. It is a i affront to t!ie divine in us, a severance of the mind from that centre of energy, peace and Joy. It is the first stage of death of the mind, and Its older name, "the vi. pors," Indicates what is going <vi. "*<taiid up to yourself and don't l.avo it." Is the essence of all the nicdlcal ndvico.?M. D., in Century Pa'ih, *""" A ?l?pH(n? Kite Duct. Kite flying is one of f!?o j:rer.t m lioial pastimes, ond a innii keeps it i p U* long an his lcgK will hold him. Very oddly, to the occidental person, the? .laps light their duel* with kites ass weapons. If a man gave the lie to a .ml her the latter will challenge t:? a 1 attle of kites. Each combatant will have his weapon adorned with armor ial bearings, or bis monogram gorge ously paint (Hi on It in bright colors. The strings are coated with finely pow dered glass or are made of wiry hemp, and (he battle consists of trying to cut your opponent's string so that Ills kite, no longer captive, soars aloft amid the s!i ?uts of the Kpcctator*. And the .lap Is keenly sensitive to ridicule. This is about as innocent a form of duelling a< tli? uilnd can conceive. Fciimlc Kitiimlliin In Tnilln. In India only about three por cent, of the girls attend public school, luitj the Government of India, In its edilea*i tlonal resolution, states that in tryinff to promote the rduentlon ol girl< a' far greater proporlionnl Impulse K iui-' parted to the educational and moral tone of the people than by the educa tion of the men. Where Tltcy (In. Nice has become the headquarter* of fugitive Parisian criminal* to such an extent that the French odiciais limit their work considerably facilitated. Whenever a man is wanted they, promptly hunt for him in that city, of ten with sueee**.