University of South Carolina Libraries
*\ ~ I . ; THE COAL MINER. PitIVATIOXS AXI>PLEASURES O* ANTHRACITE WORKERS. The Houses They Lire In?A MinorV Outfit?What they Earn?Preparing for a Blast?Miners' Amusements. Dotted along the hillsides and the val leys of the anthracite area of Pennsylvania, says a Scran ton letter to the Philadelphia Time#, are thousands of modest little homes, around whoso porches tlio roses an blooming and in whose adjacent gardens the traces of industry and good taste are visible in these golden days. Some of these dwellings are only a single story, but the majority of them are two stories high. They are cosy frame buildings, erected for accommodation rather than comfort, jet combining both, and around the doors of many of them and under the friendly shade of the fruit trees that throw their cool shadows across the walks are hoard the voices of children, whose merry prattle is fatal to anarchism and all other isms that aim at the destruction of love and home and hope and religion. Asa general thing, the miners have large families, and while their tables do not a boast of many of life's luxuries, they manage to get a moderate share of such substantial fare as pork and cabbage, potatoes and beefsteak, with an occasional pie. The majority of them now find it a difficult mutter to feed themselves and their families. It requires no small degree of tact, at the present rate of earning, to pay the mouthly store bills, to say nothing of clothing and the other necessities of life. And yet the output of coal is large. "When business is brisk seven or eight hours constitute a miner's working day, while the laborers work ten hours or more per day. On full time a miner earns from $2.50 to $2.75 a day, and ho is fortunate just now if his earnings average $1 .25 to-$1.50. Under favorable circumstances, and with pienty of work, a , laborer earns $1.75 a day generally, but he does not earn much more than 75 cents a day at present. The men employed on what is c alled "the day shift" g-nerally g? to at 7 o'clock in the morning, and those employed in the mines at night, or on the "night shift," begin their tasks at 5 o'clock in the afternoon. The food of the miner and his family generally consists of plain, substantial fare, meat of some kind being used invariably odco a day. Much of this meat is hnrnn nr "shoulder," which is b )ught because it is cheaper than "butchers'meat." This is the staple article of diet and it is supplemented by bread, potatoes, cabbage, when in season, aud a good deal of salt fish and cheese. These constitute the main articles of food on a miner's table, but when work is steadier and pay bettor the love of luxury extends to au occasional cake or p'.e. Some of the miners, although they are the exceptions to the general rule, arc so fortunately situated, as to be able to raise their own pork, and at their tables meat is not as scarce ae it is with those who depend for the necessaries and com forts of life on their slender u- earnings. Y* The miner's outfit requires in thj first \ place a coarse suit of clothing. If the A , working place is wet an oiled suit simil lar to that worn by sailors is essential* . wiuu a urotiu sou wester nat and heavy v hob-nailed boots. The hat is generally ( provided with a place for holding the \ lamp in front while tbe miner is at ( work. The miner also must have a drill \ ?generally six or seven feet long and i tipped with about six inches of steel. I Recent inventions have improved on this I primitive method of making room for \ the blast that brings down tho anthraS cite, and a patent augur does dutv in ? many places at present for the cumberj some drill uud is much handier. The 1 outfit of the miner includes an oil-can, a ( mining-lamp, wicks for the latter, a din> ner pail and a pail for coffee or water. | The blasting materials consist of powder \ served in twenty-five-pound kega or in I prepared cartridges. When the former I is used the miner makes up his own I charges and uses water-proof paper for I the purpose. The ready-made cartridges \are supplied in fire-proof cases. \ In preparing for a blast a steel needle Vabout five or six feet long is inserted in iiho charge, which is tamped close, aftter which the needlo i? withdrawn ond ft itraw or squib inserted in the bole thiVfl made for tbe purpose of iguiting j tbe ?xplosive. In gaseous mines toucbaquiti? are employed to fire tbe blast, as a flame Would be specially dangerous. All t besc fine points must be understood 1 ty the miner to carry on his work auccess fully; but, careful as he is, great accidents that startle the country and fill -wholo Ipommunities with woe sometimes occur. To this class of mining horrors belong jthc disasters at Avoodale, West f' ' Pittstoa and Nanticoke, all of comparatively r scent occurrence, and the Carbondale niine "cave-in" of nearly thirty years a(co. which is still remembered vividly ?>y some of the older miners of the Lac fc aye-ana Valley. A disaster that takes twlnty or forty precious'lives at a single s^oop is naturally remembered -with terrain but the miscellaneous deaths that areciused by fall of roof and explosions of\ fire damp in a single year are not less a] palling. The death list in the coal regidj s is terribly augmented every ,y' Wl ' year by the fatalities in the nines, and the loug array of widows and orphans who are thus suddenly deptived of the means of support ij something pitiful to con-1 template. j , Tho pleasures in the life of the minci | are of a primitive sort. Occasionally I , during the dramatic season he may wit j f nesa one of the many plays that travel or i hear comic opera, lie likes a good i ^ lecture or speech and has a good deal ol > respect for the man who cau talk common j c sense backed by conviction. As a general i thing the hard-working class of men J * ? , . .. - . . r iikc iraniuiess. lftey don't appreciate j ' duplicity or the political diplomacy that j r keeps the word of promise to the ear and E breaks it to the hope. In the picnic v season the miner, if he has the time, en- ^ I joys himself most, lie believes in simple pleasures and will take a glass of beei 0 occasionally unless he is a strict temper- ll ance man. There is not a great deal ol ' t drinking among the miners these times aud a gaod many of them are members c of various temperance organizations. v They keep a close watch on the progress n or public questions and the movemef.\? t of public, men and are careful readers c* t the newspapers. Many of the miners 5 along the Lackawanna Valley own the little homes they live in and if work was more abundant they would be iappy, aa they are a tliirfty, industrious class, and, while generous almost to a fault, arc not Uy any means extravagant. o Quicksilver. - c Quicksilver forms a part of a soft, red c rock called cinnabar, composed of mer- f cury and sulphur. The cinnabar ia 1 crushed and exposed to the heat, when the metal, in form of vapor, passes into . a vessel suitable for the purpose, where it is cooled. Then, being reduced to ita liquid state, it is pure and fit for use. j When men working in the mines heat s the rocks, the quicksilver will sometimes r roll out in drops as large as a pigeon'i a egg, and fall on the ground in a million sparkling globules. It is said to be very beautiful against the dark, red rock, glittering everywhere with this "living silver," while every crack and crevice ia also filled with it. Just as wood floats on water because it is lighter, so large stones thrown into a kettle of mercury would float on top, it is so much more heavy a substance than the stone. There are only four important localities where it is obtained?California, Peru, * Austria, and Almaden, in Spain. The nearest mines to us are those in California. The mines in Peru were discovered in a curious manner. Cinnabar, when ground >cry fine, makes a beautiful red paint. The Indians used this to or- 1 namcnt their bodies on great occasions- I This caused the country where they lived 6 to be examined, and the cinnabar was I found. The Romans used this paint I hundreds of years ago in decorating their 1 images. It is of great value now in our ! 1 times, and we call it vermillion. f This wonderful quicksilver is very use- e ful in separating metals from the rocks 1 to which they cling. The rocks are i crushed fine, sifted, and washed until c as much of the gold and silver is removed I as possible. Then it is placed in a bot- I tie with the quicksilver, which seems to * absorb it at once, separating it entirely I from every particle of sand or rock. If the metal to be cleansed is gold, you v will see a yellowish mass of a sort cf e paste or amalgam. This is heated, and t the mercury or quicksilver flies away, c leaving behind it pure gold. t Although mercury is so useful in many c ways, it is also a deadly poison, and its j vapor so dangerous that in the search for n it many persons have lost their lives. ? Not many years ago the mines of Aua- * tria took fire, and 1,300 workmen were t poisoned, many of them dying in con- s sequence; snd the water used to nnnnoh t the flames, pumped into a river near by, t caused all the fish in the river to die. * Have you ever seen mercury carried t about? It is put in sheepskin bags ana c cast iron bottles. It is so heavy that instead of an ordinary cork, an iron stopper is used?screwed in! Sometimes these bags do sad havoc. a& n in the case of a storage of several in the hold of a ship bringing it to this coun- j try. ?ome of the bags leaked. Everybody on board was poisoned. Every bit of metal was covered with a silver coating of quicksilver. ? , Don't Blind the Babies. Has it ever occurred to those who par- ( chase coaches for their babies, and who make it a point to select the brightest g colors they can find for the screen that is interposed between the eyes of the child and the sun, that they are liable to do irrepar- ( able injury to the vision of the little ones! 8 An infant generally lies on its back, its eyes, of course, upturned toward th? 1 bright covering above it, it* gaze being the more intense the brighter the cover ing and the more direct the rays of the i ]sun upon it. Nothing but injury can < iresult from such thoughtless exposure. An experienced nurse says thore canno' | be a doubt as to tho injurious effectB ol < tfhoso bright so-called shields upon th< \ tender eyes of children. Parents who j ;are wise will select the darker and densei ] shades, even though they may not bo a< [handsome or showy in their eyes as somi ^ of those which are more fashionable. , 4. " , "What is tho difference between a paper dollar and a dollar of silver? Nevcn 1 mined. 1 SADIES' COLUMN. flow i Oirl Got lli(l of Sn*tor?. A curious story comes from JIoscot.'t clcvcr and beautiful girl had au imnense fortune left her to be paid into ter hands on the occasion of her mariage. Ilor friend* tried to oblige her to narry a man whom she co Id not enlure, and f-he had no mouey to take herelf out of tin rcach of his attentions. >o she sent for an old beggar man, to rhom she had occasionaily given a few ents, and offered him three hundred oubles if he wouM stand up for the imn luge ucrcuiony witn xicraca scruigacvay leave the town and never let hor tear from him again till the news should ic sent of his death. He consented very heerfully and the marriage took place, 11 the beggars in Moscow coming to see he strange pair wedded. In a l'esv years, he girl who is only twenty-two years old iow, will doubtless be legally a widow, vitli the right to give lier hand to the obscure lover for whose sake she went hrough the extraordinary ceremony. In he meantime she is rich aud free from uitors.?Boston Rec.i'd A Bride's Gift Table. A Paris letter to London Truth says: feel disposed to pat on the back an Argentine nabob of Irish origin?Mr. rhomas St. George Armstrong?for the ipennc.ss of hand he showed on the occa- i I AH /\ P Ilia tv? n ( ? * o #viv In.it' **? 4-K V* " ivu vi uio iiiniiia^c tank ?tuft, uitu mo laughter of Vicomtc Faria. Consul Gen- | :rai of Portugal here. The Armstrong ortune was made in and around Buenoa lyres?a classic land of extractum carnis. >ro br:de of high standing had ever, >erhaps. a moro sumptuous display of lrcscnts from the bridegroom on her giftable than the lady whp is now Mrs. Vrm strong. What do you think of a tring of pearls which cost00,000 francs, md \va3 just long enough to go once iround a slender neck, of a diamond, ivipro, to which could bo attached a Irapery of filigree work, studded and ringci with brilliants; of solitaire earings large as hazel nuts, to which tassels n brilliants might be adapted, with, to natch them, a brooch of one immense >earl, encircled with brilliants, a bouquet >f roses in brilliants, a bunch of wheat ars idem, and a diamond surmounted vith a star? There were, besides, suta >f turquoise and of pink coral ornaments, >f sapphires and other rich rare gems. Ufhnnrrll fhn Vvrirl n io Pnrfnr?MnaA a j_,~ " ? on*. ias beauty enough of face and figure to )e a blonde Cuban. The South American Queen. I notice an interesting paragraph in an English journal which informs us that a jcilli firm lvu just complete! a hand ome sc:cw steam launch which had been milt lo the order of Mrs. Couseno, a :outh American lady, who is reported to >e the richcst woman in the world. The aunch, which is built of steel, is twenty ivefeet in length, and is to be employed is a tender to her large yacht. (The arge yacht is engaged at present in the mprctcnding but profitable trade of :arrying coals from Lota to Valparaiso.) t is elaborately fitted up in polished malogany, and is to be despatched forthwith by one of the mail steamers from Liverpool for conveyance to Chili. Reside being the richest lady in the vorld, she also enjoys the singular privilege of being Empress over a tract of teritory called Lota, which lies some two >r three hundred miles to the south oi he port. It may appear strange to speak >f an Empress in the heart of a free remblic, but nevertheless the fa^t esists, ^nd so absolute are Iler Majesty's powrs that there are few of her subjects vho would be resolute and courageous nough to claim the posscssioa of tlieii wn immortal souls, or who would no! >e prepared to deny that on the making if the place a special arrangement was nade with reference to coal deposits beween the Divinity and the reigning qon arch.?Valparaiso Letter. Fashion Notes. Old mauve holds its own as a fashion iblo color. Yellow suits are generally covered with >lack lace. The stylish boot of the season has tht oc and heel tip. i Watered silk and watered ribbon renain in favor. Amber shot with deep blue or ruby ii i favored combination. Gauze fans have eharming design} ligned by artists of note. The most fashionable hosiery has tin} mbroidered designs or clocks in thi lame or contrasting colors. Linen plush is a new material and used :or dressing gowns and trimming. II esembles its woollen prototype. Gloves of pean de Suede have the armi from the wrist upward of guipure laot corresponding in tint to the kid. A pointed puff, extending from th< top of the sleeve to the elbow, is made >f the lace or embroidery with which the dress is trimmed. This style o: trimming sleeves is only applicable t< rich dresses. Last year's leaf-shaped basques at tin backs of bodices of woolen material ar< itill in favor. When these are used tlx bodice ia trimmed with velvet or molri intique, and two points of this fall beloM the leaf points of the woolen material s5&!& SyteSflMEBtite &l k&f . ; - -'j A SOUTHERN EDEN. AN EXPIiORER'8 STORY OF THE ARGENTINE REPUBLIC. The Richest Country in the World? Falls that Equal Niagara?Beau* tiful Women and Progressive Men?Buenos Ayrea. 3Ir. W. 1'. Tisdcl, the noted African explorer, has just returned from a trip to the Argentine Republic. A writer for the Now York Mail and Express conversed with him about the magnificent El Dorado, ?3 be termed the Argentine Republic. "it is the Utopian country of the universe." he said. "In climate, resources, energy and future possibilities that country is the greatest on the face I of the earth. It fulfills in every way the dream of the poet, the reality of the liberty-loving and the wealth that first led the adventurous Spaniards to seek out aud conquer unknown worlds. The first impetus given to progress in the Republic was when President Sarmicnto inaugurated tho system"of public schools fifteen years ago. Since then an Eden of prosperity has followed." "How about the attempt to assassinate General Roea, the President, the other day?" "That was the act of an insane man. Even model republics are not free from cranks. President Roca is popular, and the country 1ms made great progress during his term, which expires on the 8tli of October. lie will then resume his position a=i General-in-Chief of the army. President Itoca will be succeeded by | juare'. seiman, who was elected by an overwhelming majority. A Presidential term is six years. There are two political parties?the Liberals and Conservatives. The former have won every election, and perhaps will continue to do so for many years. The constitution and laws are fashioned after those of the Unlt'd State*. Tha republic contains 4,000,000 people and an area of 1,900,000 squares miles. The seasons there are reversed. I left the last of May; it was very cold. Now it is dead winter there. 1 he climatc surpasses that of any country. It is life-giving and invigorating. Beef hung up in the open air never decajs, but dries to a state of preservation, and great quantities are shipped all over the world." * "Whut ki:.d of a debt does the model republic groan under?" "She smiles ur.der a foreign and domestic debt of $120,000,000. The revenues for 1830 were $.">0,000,000 arid the expenditures $30,000,000. The foreign commercc of 18S4 amounted to a grand total of ?lo0,000,000. Gold has recently been discovered in the Province of Patagonia. and an expedition has been fitted out under the direction of the wealthy capitalist. Senor Lezama whn Vuw o-rmn I thither to explore and report. Such, ! things constantly keep the country boom-ing and give capital a chance to invest. The republic owns the great Province of the Missiones, considered the richest in the world." "The falls of Ygazu, a few miles above ! the intersection of the rivers Ypazu and j the Parama, on the borders of the Missiones, are considered suporior in size, beauty and sublimity to the falls of Niagaia. They are much wider and have a fall of twenty feet greater than Niagara, The volume of water is not as great as the latter, but for picturesqueness they go far ahead of the world-famous falls." "How does Buenos Ayres compare with other cities?" "It is the New York of that continent. There is no city in the world to equal it in enterprise and wealth according to its size. It has a population of 450,000, and supports tweuty-eight daily newspapers. Everybody reads. The papers cost two ftnd R half rnnto T1^" ? M MWkft V.V/I4 1U i UU are printed in Spanish, but nearly every language is represented. Buenos Ayres has more miles of street railroads than any other city in the world. The houses are generally one-story high. Of late, however, bank and public buildings have been erected three and four stories high. The only building material is brick. Telephones are everywhere, and the city is lit up with electricity. There are twelve theatres as finely appointed in every way as'any in Europe or the United States. ''But the city is shut off from the world?" "No, only shut off from the United States. From thirty to sixty mail steamers arrive monthly and ride in one of the finest ports of entry in the world. One steamer departs monthly for the United States. There are several lines of steam ers carrying frozen cattlo to Europe. One beef extract Ompnny at Fray Bentos kill over 2,500 head of cattle per day. Emigration is pouring in from Italy, Spain, France, Greece and Ireland. The Americans do not come to any extent, although thay would be gladly welcomed. The new city of La Plata, capital of the Province of Buenos Ayres, twelve mile9 from the citv of Buenos Avres. is eon eidered the most wonderful place of its size that has ever been built. It contains 80,000 inhabitants. The city was constructed at a great expenso by Governot Recha, within a period of five years. The public buildings are comparable only to some of the finest in the United States. Electricity,telephones and all the modern improvements are in use. Millions upon $ ' iJL-.v r fwi vi i _ < .* _ ' fit .. millions have been spent in beautifying the city and erecting handsome buildings." 'Well, have they many women in the model city?" "Ah! yes, and the most beautiful that eyes ever gazed upon. Mr. Frank Vincent, author of the 'Land of the White Elephant,' came up with me. He declares that the Spanish women in tho?Argentine Republic are the most beautiful on the face of the globe." McClellan and BUrntide. Among the accounts- from various points of view of the Battle of Fredericksburg, in the Century, is one by ueneral D. JN. Uoucfy from which wo quote aa follows: "Toward evening, on the 8th of November, 1862, at Warrenton, McClellan rode up to Burnside's headquarters to say that he had been relieved of the command of the army. Burnside replied: " 'I am afraid it i? bad policy; very, very, very!' "Etwas just at dark. I had dismounted, and, standing there in the snow, was superintending the camp arrangements of my troops, when McClellan came up witb his staff, accompanied by General Burr; , side-. McClellan drew in his horse, and | the first thing he said was: " 'Couch, I am relieved from the comi mand of the army, and Burnside is my successor.' i "I stepped up to him and took hold of I his hand, and said: 'General McClellan, I I am sorry for it.' Then, going around I the head of the horse to Burnside, I said: 'General Burnside, I congratulate you.' "Burnside henrd what I said to General McClellan; he turned away his head, and made a broad gesture as he ex " 'Couch., don't say a word about it.' ''His manner indicated that he did not wish to talk about the change; that he thought it wasn't good policy to do so, nor the place to do it. He told me afterward that he did not like to take the command, but thnt he did so to keep it from going to somebody manifestly unfit for it. I .assumed that he meant I Hooker. Those of us who were well acquainted with Burnside knew that he was a brave, loyal maa, but we did not think 11 e had the military ability to command the Army of the Potomac. "McClellan took leave on the 10th. Fitz John Porter sent notes to the corps commanders, informing them that McClellan was going away, and suggesting ^.that we ride around with him. Such a scene as that leave-taking had nevei been known in our array. Men shed tears and there was great excitement among the troops. "I think the soldiers had an idea that McClellan would take care of them; wouldn't put them in places where they would be unnecessarily cut up; and if a general has the confidence of his men he is pretty strong. But officers and men were determined to serve Burnside loyally." Legitimate Newspapers. james f. uuernsey, editor 01 tne mfpxiblican, Rome, N". Y., truthfully says in the Journalist : The country is flooded with a class of | papers which reek with immorality? I sewers for the offal of the universe. Still, we hear very few complaints against them, and the man who kicks at his home paper after perusing it for several hours, remarking that "there is nothing in it," will sneak off to some secluded spot and devour with avidity the contents of so-called police journals, which make a specialty of chronicling divorce cases, elopements, family quarrels, and other events still lower in the catalogue Df shame. Do you ever hear them kicking acrainst such sheets? Oh. no! Thev O O ' * don't read them. But we started out to talk about legitimate newspapers. The fault-finding reader does not know?or at least he does not seem to know?that the editor is much the same as ordinary mortals. He has his share of trials and tribulations, and there are. times when the pen forgets its cunning and facility. At such times his journal may seem a trifle dull. Weeks pass without giving him an opportunity of chronicling some startling event or inditing an editorial on some mattor contiguous to his village or city. Wheri opportunities are offered and he publishes his views on important matters, his readers will pick them to pieces and tell how he could have builded better, while the chances are ten to one that they would never have thought of giving their ideas in the matter had not the editor drawn them out. But, did you ever hear an excuse offered for an editor? We never did. Experience is a good teacher. Let the greenhorn who thinks he can pick up the editorial quill and wield it in such a manner that it will bear articles pleasing to everyone on the list, and win him a world-wide reputation, straddle the tripod, dip the quill in Arnold's best and spread the fluid. James Hess, in the Herald of Healthy unices a good point in regard to men's a? rni? * a _ * ii _ _ . . j * veals. inc i rout, 01 iuc vest is maac 01 shick matoriul of several thicknesses, jomctimes oven padded, while the back ?where the lungs come nearest th6 surface?is made of some thin, flimsy maserial, like cambric. Ho thinks the thinbacked vest is responsible for many colds ind much sickness. /' - \ .<#v FACTS FOR THE CURIOUS. Ono-half of the children born into the' world die before they reach the age or fire years. Eighteen bumblebees, t wenty-two wasps or thirty-eight ordinary honey bees contain enough poison to kill an adult. To make nails was one of the sentences! imposed in Massachusetts a hundred years ago as a punishment for crime, and twelve nails a day was accepted as a day's work. i rr*u~ ?i 1. ? ' - x liu ijiauet mars nas more land than the earth and the latest theory is that! Mars is inhabited by a race of beings similar to our own, but longevity there is far less than here. The greatest fortress in the world, from ? strategical point of view, is the famous stronghold of Gibraltar. It occupies a rocky peninsula jutting out into the sea about thine miles long and three-quarters of a mile wide. 1 \ It was not until 1850 that the word "donkey" found its way into the dictionaries. It is a nickname for the ass and nothing more. Probably in the course of J time it will be superseded by the word "dude," which has about the same meaning. i Caesar is said to have had 320 pairs of gladiators at once In the arena, and to add to the scenic effect the bloody struggles were at night. Trajan surpassed all in forcing 10,000 unhappy prisoners and gladiators to contend for life in the Roman amphitheatre; the bloody and brutal sport lasted for 113 days. Tn 1 <11 It fS * * iuiu vrutci uur unm procured tno important privilege for the people of Virginia of holding landed property by a stable tenure. The farmers then did not possess the land they cultivated by a tenure of common socage, but enjoyed it as tenants at will of the crown. Now to every adventurer into the colony, and to his heirs, were granted fifty acres of land, ' and the same quantity for every person > imported by others. A good many people will be surprised to iearn that the biggest building in the United States will be the City Hall of 1 Philadelphia, now in process of construc1 tion. Between $11,000,000 and $12,1 000,000 have been expended upon it ' sinco 1872. It is estimated to covw 2,800 more square feet than the Capitol at Washington. The tower on the north Bide will be surmounted by a statue of , 1 Penn, and its extreme height when completed will be 535 feet. It haa now reached a height of 270 feet. Slavery in the ancient Roman world was in part sustained by a practice so re| voltinjr and inhuman as hnrrllv m V?a comprehensible to modern ideas?the systematic exposure and abandonment of the children of the poor and of femeal and defective children by the rich. There are innumerable allusions to this inhuman treatment throughout Latin literature. In two diffefent* comedies or dialogues the husband, on starting on a journey, is represented as ordering his wife, who is soon to give birth to a babe, to destroy it if it prove a girl; and the plot of one turns on the wife's foolish weakness in exposing rather than killing the female infant. , ^ The Manuscript Market. > Junius Henri Browne says in the Forum: Only those on the inside have any idea *of the excessive supply of manuscripts 'wherever they are paid for, the prioe mattering little. Such is the general I desire, indeed, to see one's self in print that periodicals which receive gratuitous contributions alone are always full to overflowing. There is not a magazine in the country but has enough accepted articles for the next two years, without ' - fXTU auy auumuus. ?? aicucvci a ucvv muuiuij makes its appearance, it is deluged witfr papers on every topic conceivable, soma of them almost inconceivable. Editors' are in constant terror of manuscripts, which descend on them like avalanches. [They are very wary and timid on the 'subject, and with reason. When anybody speaks of writing, they are visibly (discomfited. It is like talking of halters {in the house of the hanged. They do 'not like to say what they feel: ''Heaven ;arid earth I I am suffocating from a surplus of contributions ; he who sends janother is my bitter enemy!" lest they tfirmerht-. rndA Th?v aVirinlr frntn o J being polite for fear of opening fresh sluices. They often hesitate to say: ' We should like to see the article you mention, though we cannot promise to use it," which means nothing; Is but a ceurtcous phrase of emptiness. If they say so, they are afraid that the article will be offered and rejected, and that its writer will declare tUst he was urged to ^prepare it. Many editors put it bluntly: "We are overrun. We are* taking nothfrom outsiders. When we want anything spccial, we arrauge for it with one of our regular contributors." This may ! not be exactly true, but it is substantially . 2; so. And it is better to be discouraging than to excite a hone which cannot ba gratified. To be an editor is incon* venient; to be a writer of any kind, without other sonrce of income, is positively tragic. ' The oldest publishing house In' the >V'5i world is that of Orell, Fussli & Co., ij Zurich, Switzerland. The firm still pos- yy]' I sesses initial letters that were used is .v. I 1519.