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SILVER By MYRA E . IE Burgomaster's wife sat at her window darning one OT 0 of her husband's socks. From time to time she put down her work, and then resumed her mending with a heavy sigh. It was so terribly quiet outside that it seemed as if the entire town was wrapped in slun:ber from which n6thing would ever rouse it. But sud denly a flower seller commenced call irg out. "Real roses for sale. real roses for sale"' The Burgonaster's wife was so pleased with this noise that she lean'ed out of the viniow to have a look at the man. and she was glad to ascertain that, although he was a good distance 1in the street. he seemed to be gr.zually working his way in the direction of her home. The Burgoinaster slouched into the room: he was wearing large carpet slippers that tried to fall off with every step he took. so he could not raise his feet properly from the ground. He had a long pipe in his mouth at which he slowly puffed, and he seemed to be very stout and contented'- as stout and contented as a miller's cat, for instance. He approached his wife and patted her heavily on the shoulder. "Come. c6me, Martha," he said gruffiy. "You look sad again. What is amiss now? Anything wrong with the dinner?" "Oh. William," sighed his wife, "have you forgotten that if we had not lost our little ones they would have been six years old t6-day?" "Nay," sa'd the Burgomaster, sol emnly scratching his head: "I remem ber well enough. The way they disap peared with their nurse that summer's afternoon has always puzzled me. Not a sign. not a trace of them did we dis cover after they started for that ill fated walk. But perhaps what hap pened was all for the best." "All for the best. For shame. Wil liam!" cried Martha, indignantly. "What mean you by thus speaking of your own flesh and blood? For shame:" "I dread to think what their food. let alone their schooling, would have cost me. he replied. "And then Gret chen. their nurse. too. What an ap petite she had! Her keep would have ruined me entirely!" 'Silence!" screamed his wife: "you have always been close-fisted with your money, but I won't listen to your grumbles any more." and she burst into such ar. angry storm of weeping that her' husband's mean heart was touched. '"Do not cry so. my dear." he ob jected. slowly. "See, to show you I do not fear to spend my hard earned< gold. I will buy you a pot of these flowers the man in the street is sell-( The Bur-gomaster's wife glanced out of the window once more, and when she saw the rose bushes the man of fered for sale she longed to possess< one., but her husband grumbled at the exorbitant price when he heard it. 'I can't give that for ai little rose plant." he protested: "it may die." -"William." pleaded his wife, "you -promised to buy me one. I must have it." "Nice little rose trees." urged the man, edging near the window. "Pink and white buds in the 'same pot." - Then he lowered his voice and whis Dered to M1artha: "Lady, don't refuse them. These are wonderful flowers, charged with mar'ie. You could never guess what they ; p resent." "Aren't th-ey roses?" she questioned *in some surprise. "In truth they are now." he said. "But they will not alw~ays remain so. Lady, don't turn your back on your future happiness. Take this one pot. You will never regret it." "I will give you one s.ver piece for them." said the Burgomaster. walking away to fill his pipe. "Take my offer or begone." But the man still lingered to dispute the price, until he finally consented t'-j accept the silver piece the Burgomasterj offered him, augmented by a pair of his wife's gold earrings as payment. As he handed the pot up to the win dow he whispered to M1artha. "These are your children. You did well not to refuse them. My7 master, who is a magician. char-med thenm away five y-ears ago: but now lie watnts money. * so they must be sold. I cannot tell what strange shape he caused thei nurse to wear, but these pink and ] white rosebuds are your lost babes, I can swear. Tend them carefully. good mother', but do not divulge the secret I have told vou. otheiise my maister will winp mue for not asking ai greater sum for themn. But the B-urgomaster-'s wife held his haiET t~giaJy as she took the pot fr-om hinm. "T'1ei: mc what I must do to r-emove the sia! ovetr them," she entrea ted. "See. l-:re : another silver piece for' The magician's ser-vant popped the money in his wallet and then he shook his head laughingly. "A\sk the rai~n drops." lhe retrorted as he wvent aw'ay: "ask the rain dirops.' For several days the Purgomaster's wvife lende~d her- rosebuds w!th gr-eat care'. She was convinced they must be her' b'as: childr'en .laborinag uinder' a terr ibi* etahanatmett for every- morn nug all :tu ven ing, when she wa tei-edl them. he :v~r' Little r-osehuds won'id h eud forw.a rd anil ho' iheir soft ne tais ainst hecr cheek as though theyv wn.1 :o kiss her, and once she felt EAR ROPK X [AMILTON. and she desired to place her little rosebuds out in the rain. as she thought it might freshen them up. As she carried the plant into the garden, she remembered what the ma- k gician's servant told her, so she de'cided to ask the aid of the rain drops in re gaining her children. I tising her eyes to the gray-looking sky, she said to the water as it splashed upon her face: "Little rain drops. tell me what I must do to win my children again?" fc Suddenly she heard a shrill voice te call out: "Sprinkle then with a silver tear drop from the moon:" but when te Martha looked in the direction of the sound she could see nothing. "Where are you?" she called sof*ly. al "7here are you?" lit One large drop had fallen upon her SI cotton glove, and when she asked this st question she saw it move a little. But in the reply came so faintly that she had ti to raise her hand to hear it at all. sN "I am here on your glove," said the c little voice. "in a minute I shall have oI completely soaked in, and then I shall ul not be able to speak again. But attend to my last words. Fetch the moon's e( tear drop." si All that evening the Burgomaster's dI wife wondered how she could send to the moon. At first she thought of a h< balloon, but she knew it could never U travel so far, and she was sure also h( that her husband could not afford to m buy her one, even if she begged him to cIo so. She crept into the garden. for im ler husba:2d was dozing in his chair F ind his snores disturbed her. so she ki sat down under a large tree to listen ai :o a nightingale singing in its branches. ind tried to make plans for this tre- C mendous journey. yC Suddenly the nightingale stcpped its So ,ong and flew on to her :ap. "What ll s the use of me singing to you." it ob- dc jected fretfully, "if you don't listen?" of "I am very sorry." said the Burgo- 0 aster's wife penitently. "but I am sh zo worried that I came here to think of h( i way out of my difficulties. Will you of ing again, and then I really will Yc isten?" .vc But the nightingale shook nis little B tray head. "Certainly not." it said. yc inughtily: "I never waste my music n people who want to think. You had t )etter tell me your trouble." it -went n. patronizingly: "I am exceedingly lever, and no doubt I shall be able o help you." it So the Burgomaster's wife told the bi ightingal-e how much she wished to th >btain the silver tear from the moon.,f md she also explained her reason for If lesiring it. "I understand perfectly." said the h ~onceited little bird, nodding its head en houghtfully for a few seconds. "It s a good thing you asked my advice, 'or I see directly what you must do." of "Howv clever you are:"' said Martha, ch ~nviously. "What must I doy' I 'You must send for itt" declared the f uightingale, solemnly. The Burgomaster's wife was so an- at n-y that she wanted to shake the bird. 'Of course, I know that." she said, w 'rossly. ' "'I knew that ever so long igo. But how am I to send for it, no ily?" "You need not call me names," re- be orted the bird. "because you are too se tout to fly to the moon yourself. ~Vell, I will tell you what I will do. ~ou are always so good to us in the vinter that, as a great favor, I will go , o the moon for you. I will start to- '; tight and be back before the 6 -wn. Jet me a yellow king cup from the fi >rook and tie it around my neck, and st *hen I will set off." / in In great delight Martha hurried to retch the king cup, and in a fewv min ites the nightingale was equipped for ts journey. PC "Little bird, how can I thank youy' m 3ried the Burgomaster's wife, sobbing hi~ Irom pure joy as she watched the se little thing preparing to leave. tr "Go to bed," it replied; "I will 'tap TI it your window when I return and give a y-ou the silver drop. Farewell:" cc Away flew the little bird, and. after ea watching it soar out of sight, Martha in 'etired to bed, though she did not sleep. T: She lay awake for the bird's little to beak to come tap-tap on the window ce pane. Suddenly she thought she heard tl Et. She sat up in bed and listened in- sa tently. Something was certainly rap- gi ping on the glass, but it was much too ~ soon for the nightingale to be hack. bt The Burgomtaster's wife slipped out of h: bed and opened the casement. and m then., to her horror, she realized that gi heri little gray messenger had arrived al hiome, but it had not brought the drop. st "I am very sorry," explained the bird. .m wheicn he saw her pale face in the moon- g liaiht. "I started off to the moon, but 1t: when I discovered what a long dis- z tance it was, I felt I could not go, especially as I want to sing to-night to apair of young lovers in the grove. They always admire my voice so mueh, y and I really can't be bothered to flya so far. You must not expect it." "You are a selfish little bird," ci'ied ~ theC poor, disappointed woman, as she h took the king cup away fronm hint. "I have a great mind to wring your I neck." i Blm' the nightingale flew off wit 'out IT w:.inig for her to put her threat into a nel'tion, andl it niever' looked Ibac~k. ail- i tho'ugh it knew Martha laid hIM' h:id bt on the window sill and was weepings Suddenaly the Uurigomtastr's wife 0 heard another voice addressing her'. 01 "Whym~ are vou cry"ni?" said the iittle' voice: "cant I help you':" When Ma rtha~ looked up sh6 was very', itt(l muc suris5d4 1o see that it was 11 alit tho b1am spe:'kimr 1o her., as be sait'R '"I don't iknow,'' she~ said sadly: "I l the bat. "I wish yu wuld let me y. Won't you tell nie what it is" "-My two litil children are uinder a agician's spell. and it eii only lbe imoved by spriikling thiii with the Iver tear drop froli the moon." ex :Inied Martha. "I (anniot Ily up ere. and the nightinale refused to for me. so what am I to do?" "I will go.** announlcd the. bat. prou . "if you will .rrant me one favcr hen I return." "Ind'((ed. I vill." cried the Burgo a;steI's vife. gratefully. "Will you promise to spare a1 wee >rtion of the tear drop for ine?" lie -gged. " iin not a hat. really: I i a mortal like yourself, though I yre been under this chami five ycaus w." "Of course. I will promise," said artha. gratefully. "*See. here is the ng cup all ready. "May I tie it round aur neek? And then you shall start." "I have not a mioment to lnse." said e bat. nervously. "I must return hile it is still dark. otherwis.- I sllli blind and unable to tind this will' Sagaiii. Fare well. Do not fret. r I shall bring back the moon's silver ar. I know." All through the night the Burgomas 's wife waited at the window for the tle bat to return. but there was no -n of it in the sky: and :t last. with aching heart. she was forced to be ve that she had again been deceived. ic watched the first streak of dawn read over the sky. she heard a cock the yard crowing vigorously, while e birds in the adjacent trees an vered it cheerily: and then she pro eded to dress herself, for she was liged to work hard, even if she was ihappy. As she returned from milking the ws she was surprised to see a girl e did not know walking over the wy grass toward her. Who can this be?" said Martha to rself, but when she approached arer the stranger she threw down r milkpail and rushed forward to eet her. "Why, Gretchen," she cried in amaze ent, "where have you conic from? r five years I have searched for you, owing you were under an'evil spell. d now I find you in my own field.'' I come from the moon." answered etchen merrily: "I was the little bat u sent last night. The distance was tremendous that I knew it would be ht before I returned to your win w. so I sprinkled myself with a little the silvcr tear when I reached the rtl. so I might resume my original ane and need not delay further. See, re is the king cup with the remiains the drop in it. Let us go. and release ur children. which I am sure ar'e in ur possession disguised as rosr'buds. it before we go I have a favor to ask u." 'What is it?" asked the Burgomas s wife, impatiently. for she wis atting to get to her little ones. 'May I be your children's nurse once an?" pleaded the girl. "Even when e magician turned them into rose ds I did not desert them. I followed ?m here. aind I vow I will guard them >m all dangers if you will only give Sanother chance.'' Of coum'se. I will. d'ear Gretchen," ed the Burgomaster's wife. throwinig r arms around the girl's neck a-nd ibracing her warmly: "and now come th me and remov'e the charm." irectly they emptied the contents the king cup on the rosebuds. the ihren sprang from the pot and stood their mother's side in their natura:l rm; and I am sure you can imagine t rejoicing there was ini the house their re-turn. ven the Burgomaster was pleased en he saw how pretty his little SOnl d daughter had gr'own, and he did t grumble ait the extra expense tl ey mld mean to him, but went out and uwiht them some toys instead.-C as ll's Magazine. The Close of a Hot Day. t last the glaring sun descends. then sudden breeze flutters the foliage, ht straws of dust begin to dance circles, first a few steps, then a re measure. The fairy fiddles are 11 with dread. The valley darkens awful silence and clouds roll to ther on the rushing wind. Trees d and shiver and turn out the dite inings of their foliage, dogs and ultry crawl into shelter, and wise et shut doers and windows, for htning rides on the draught and is re to touch more than one of those ses or houses with its fiery sword. te roar and flash are such as England ver sees. A Niagara of rain, wel me though terrible, bathes the dry rt, and soon the world, cooled .id istened, sparkles in the setting sun. ien people in light vehicles drive out taste the air', my young friends mec on horseback, and while we sit i e darkness sipping iced lemonade or' erbert the multitudinous voices of the ass and leaves again rehearse their mhony. From the distant r~ond oms the heavy fr'og note, from over nging branches trills the contented discoverable tree-frog. Th e my riad sshoppers tune up their wiry legs a fiddle with fresh enthusiasm. The nging swarm of mosquitoes sing ound a little lamp in the hall. Fire es ticker every ,vhere. We listen to em and are idle.-LippintCs' Maga A Voice From the Dead. A haggage-man ont the Hannibal di sion of the Burl'ingtoni wias hauling corpse into his car, and imagine his clings when he heard a strange. un tural voice coming fronm the oblong >x. saying: "Let inc out of here." len lie recovered from his first fright ran for his coniduetor, who arriv' d .st in time to hear the uncanny sound. hie whole train crew was called and brave engineer i'vstigzted. Sitting >ar the coftin was a sniali square >x. Listening. the engine:rm heard a -rcing, and a .rain thle voice "Let e out of here." T1he smaller box wats ened and a little green parrot popped it.-Kansas City Journal. Kepinng In Touch With One's Self. I~s good to hiave noney and thinPgs tt mioney will buy, htu it's good, t, i check up once in a while anid aKe sure' you haven't lost the thines it mioney2 won't buy. W'h'n af ws t what lhe set out for in tis od lhe should go off in to the w. los n a fewv weeks now and then to makeC ir lhe's stlld t :o-an. and not a pung t. a a frock ('0;t a nd a wad of SOUTH ERN TOPICS OF '! TEREST TO THE PL ANT4 Alfalfa aa a Pastnre Crop. Alfalfa may be pastured by all classes )f live stock, but it is not good prac ice to pasture the plant too closely. for Its nature of growth is different from he grasses, as it grows from terminal tnd lateral buds and not by increase In the length of stem and blades as with the grasses. This is a very )Im >rtanit difference and explains why the close grazing proves injurious. It ;hould never be grazed when the round is frozen or wet, for the tread Ing of the crowns will certainly result In their destruction under these condi ions and then the compacting of the oil is a serious objection in itself. It 4hould not be grazed closely at any time, for the gnawing down of the rowns will often result in their de ;iruction. Where alfalfa is pastured it should be run over with a mower to ven up the growth and preserve a aniform condition in thc meadow. Al ernating pasturing with hay making is lot seriously objectionable. but alfalfa Is so valuable for hay. soiling and reen feed that it is doubtful if it will often be well to pasture it in the Eastern States. where the diffliculty of stablishin.: it is very considerable. There is onother objection to the pas turing of alfalfa found in the fact that it is very apt to make stock bloat. If te weather is warm and wet and the growth rapid. the danger of bloat is increased thereby; hence. additional recautions are necessary under these circumstances. Stock should never be turned on alfalfa when they are hun ry. They should first be given a full feed and the dew allowed to evap orate from the fields befo:e they are turned on. Under these conditions they are not likely to be injured unless they are allowed to graze on mature or over-succulent alfalfa or that which has been frosted. It is a mistake to turn stock on young alfalfa. The plants should be budding and getting ready o bloom before grazing commences. If animals are put on alfalfa when their hmnger is satiated they will not eat too mucl of it and so are not likely to suffer from bloat. 'Once they are oil they should not be taken off until they are taken off permanently. Should bloat occur it may be cured in one of several ways. From a pint to a quart of linsEed oil with a teaspoonful or more of turpentine will generally re lieve the trouble. The dose should be in proportion to the size and age of the animal. In extreme cases the trochar must be used. It is a preferable knife. though some skill is required in using either one to make the insertion at the right place. Alfalfa is particularly valuable as a pasture for sheep. They seem to do re markably well on it and are not as subject to diseases of various kinds as here they graze more closely to the round and thus come in contact with the various pests to which they are subject and with which the ground may be infected. This is a matter of mportance. In some sections of the West alfalfa is often sown with grass. partima:iy Br-omus inermis, for pas ure purposes. This is not advisable in the East. because it is dlifficult enough to keep the grass out of an alfalfa meadow, whether of a desirable or un eirable variety. Spring lami.s may be grazed on alfalfa to the greatest advantage, and if a good pasture were available on every farm in Virginia it would add immensely to the profits f the sheep growers and enable them to raise larger. thriftier and better lambs at a much lower cost and with greter safety. The attempt to make "hot-house" lambs on rich concentrated foods is attended with many cases of acute indigestion, and there is often a great loss to the feeder and grower even under the most careful system of management. With alfalfa pastures this could be largely obviated, and the ewes and lanmbs maintained at less expense, for it would not be necessary to feed more than one-half the amount of grain usually fed. The alfalfa would come on so early in many places in Virginia that it would Insure ideal pasture for lambs and ewes at the right season of the year. enabling the feeders to turn their lambs off earlier at heavier weights than they secure at present. As a pasture for swine, alfalfa is un excelled. Young pigs do finely on it. because it is a protein food and well suited to their needs. The sweet, ten der herbage is much relished, and if given a small amount of grain, they will gm-ow very fast. In many sections of the West they are grown with prac tically no grain at all, though, of course. they are not made fat by this treatment. Alfalfa will carry a sur prising amount of pork per acre, it being claimed from investigation at the Kansas station that as much as 1000 pounds may he made during a single season and from ten to twenty fair sized hogs carried on anm acre of land. For horses, there is notLing better ttan alfalfa pasture. though great care should be taken in getting them accus tomed to it, as they are more subiect to Jets and Flashes. The abiding place of a mn's honc S in his pocketbook; a woman's in he A man has to be awful'.y fond of voman to want her to sit in his lap i. hot day. There is a lot of responsibility in aking your farrily think what a li )f it you have in your family. Generaly a man ca-n grumble aboln ts eing too hot whtn he isn't gruta ing about its being toocod Girls with pretty faces seldom thin~ i is wrth while to act pretty. A nmfe is always willing to love ler hus. d1 w-ill honor eand chey Any n: ean make~ a raio ii tIe ;cz is h .3 ol ani umbll)aL. Irany < . nmU'yo statcnsman landLs yartaiers. 31o3: spinster car -~sr- h 4RM '- TYO TES. R, STOCKMAN AND TRUCA GROWER. bloat on it than some other classes of stoek. It is particularly valuable to those who are engaged in the raising of olts. as it furnishes a palatable muscle and bone-buildingr food of great value to rapidly growing animals. Alfalfa gives exeellent satisfaction when used as a soiling crop. and as it comes on early in the spring, it can often be used in this way to great ad vantage. The first crop is more diffli cult to make into hay than any of the others. Silage has often been made from alfalfa. but corn and sorghui are preferable for a nulwr of reasons. Generally speaking alfalt should be made into hay in the East or used as a soiling erop.-Knoxville Journal and Tribune. Soil Tnoculation For Alfalfac While many of the principles connect ed with soil inocuation are not well understood. it is generally rognized as ntcessary to add cultures of desira ble bacteria to soils where they do not already exist. This may be accom p)lished in one or two years: either by nicans of artificial cultures or by the use of soil from fields where alfalfa :as bieen grown suecessfully. Probably the miethod of soil inoculation is the most certain. In fact, it has been tried with uniformly good results. It is very important to make certain that tile plants. growing in the soil to be used are well supplied with nodules. Alfalfa does not produce nodules as freely as cowpeas and soy beans, and it will be impossible to discover the nodules by pulling up the roots. To see them it is necessary to take a shovel or spade and dig deeply into the soil, lifting the roots gently and separating the eartli therefrom. The nodules will appcar as little whitish, rounded balls on the feeding roots and occasionally on the main tap root. Make certain that the nodules are present in the soil to be used as the medium of inocula tion and your chances of success with alfalfa will be greatly increased. One to two hundred pounds of soil to the acre will be sufficient to secure inocula tion. Mix with the seed or scatter broadeast over the land and work in with the harrow or sow through the fertilizer attachment of any ordinary grain drill. Inoculation is 'always best accomplished before seeding, and larg er amounts of earth will render inoc ulation more certain. It is often very difficult and expensive to obtain earth because of the scarcity of alfalfa fields and the objection on the part of farm ers to digging up the soil. Most per sons who hhave it for sale ask $1 a hundred pounds for it and the freight in addition makes it a considerable item. In sections of tile country whlere al falfa hlas not been cultivated patches of sweet clover (MIelilotus alba) or burr lover (MIedicags MIaculata) may be found. Investigations made at the Il linois and North Carolina stations in dicate that the bacteria which live in association with these plants are simi lar or identical with those found in the nodules on the roots of alfalfa, and that soils taken from fields where eith er one of these clovers has been suc essfully grown will inoculate land in tended for alfalfa. In many places burr clover is grown with profit as a winter pasture, and if alfalfa is sown on :>is land the following year it sold~t be well supplied with the nec essary bacteria. Sweet clover might be sown on land where difficulty. has been experienced in getting alfalfa, for owing to its hardihood, it would often succeed where alfalfa would fail, and thus pave the way for the successful inoculation of the latter crop. One se rious objection to sweet clover is the fact that it seeds very freely, and un less carefully (lipped so as to prevent seeding it may become a weed pest. As it is a biennial it can be destroyed by vigorous clipping for two years.-Pro fessor Soule. Proper Direction of Corn Rows, An important matter that has never been settled is whether corn rows should run north and south or east and west. Some contend that north and south rows give the stalks more sun shine; that run the other way the whole field is more or less shaded ex cept the most southerly rows. Others contend that the rows running east and west give the rowvs the needed protection against hot winds and burn ing sunshine. Perhaps it would be bet ter to disregard the cardinal points and plant as indicated by tire "lay of the lanid."' unless the land is quite flhrt. There is more in the cultivation than in the direction in whlich the rows are laid off.-Farm and Ranch. 'Plant Raspberry Plants in the Fall. The principal advantage in setting raspberry planis inl theC fall is that they are ill their lahce ready to grow as soon as the scason opens. Raspberry plants start to grow early inl the spring and it is aun item to hlave them it their place when tihe season opens.-South rn1 F-ruit Grower. Pointed Paragraphs. Our cat carries a night key in his Trying to get rich is terribly expen yve on what you had before you tried. A woman wears a veil for the way de looks in it first, and second because .t saves her complexion. it's queer how many way-s of ending :e there are when the:-e is only one . ay of beginning it. An old b'.'helor says that bossing s not a wonmans pr-ovince. No mar -ied man would dlare say such a A vnoman likes to have a man tell r that he thinks iver Seet at least wo e::es samiler that tr 1:::::. ticy naur th.n he did T:he noblest zission in the world i !THE PROBLEM OF S FACTS WHICH DISCREDIT A WHO PRETEND TO FORETE IAm HE infinite desirability of T foreknowing the seasons 0 0 for the benefit of husband T men is at once the oppor "I tunity of charlatans and -the justification of national weather services. It avails little to decry the methods of impostors or to brand them as fakirs; the court of final resort must always be a comparison of results, and such comparison every one can now make for himself. Weather maps showing the actual conditions on every day are now published by practically every civilized nation, and are accessi ble to all. and all that is needed to cure the most implcit belief in almanae predictions is an honest comparison of these predictions for a single season with the actual oecrrnces as shown by these maps. Conspieuous instances of failure, such as those of the artlii cial rain makers, who a decade ago were given the fullest opportunity to test and exploit their theories, or the colorless results of the extensive cam paign of bombardment as a protection against hai!, which has been condue:ed for several years in Southern Europe, do not convin-c the credueous. They do serve. hove':er, to illustrate the "confusion of toingues" among the pro phets of these larzr days, who bom bard the skies to precipitate storms and bombard the clouds to dissipate talem. Government meteorologists are not alone in the denunciation of the fallacies, absurdities and pernicious ef forts of so-called long-range forecasts. Professor Young, probably the fore most American astronomer, speaking of lunar influences, points out that the frequency of the moon's changes is so great that it is always easy to find in stances by which to verify a belief that changes of the moon control conditions on the earth. A change of the moon necessarily occurs about once a week. All changes qf the weather must, there 'fore, occur within three and three fourth.s days of a change of the moon, and one-half of all changes ought to oc cur within forty-six hours of a change in the moon. even if there were no cas ual connection whatever. Now, it re quires only a very slight predisposition in favor of a belief in the effectiveness of the moon's changes to make one for get a'few of the changes that occur too far from the propr time. Coincidence enough can easily be found to justify pre-existent belief. Unquestionably there is a general de sire for an extension of the range of forecasts to cover the .,ear future, and, if possible, the coming season. If some explorer in meteorology and astronomy should discover some fundamental law, .itherto unknown, whereby he could accurately calculate the time of arri val, the force and pathway of storms for weeks and months in advance, and could warn the people of future floods or droughts in defined localities, he would at once take rank as the great est scientist of the world. And then if he would reveal the secret of his dis covery ~ar the benetit of future gener ations, he would be honored as the greatest of philanthropists as well as the wisest of mankind. But, alas, up to date this man has not arrived. Some ot the ablest scientists of this conntry and Europe have devoted much time and labor to the study of this problem. They have consulted weather records of all countries. tak ing notes of the dates of heavy storms~ and making comparison with the posi' tion of the moon and planets, to deter mine if there is any discoveraole con nection between the movement 01 those minor bodies and the sweep oi storm eddies in the earth's atmosphere. The consensus of opinion has been that there is no foundation of fact or phi losophy for that system of long-rangt forecasts. So thus far there has beet entire failure to establish a scien tific and practical basis for any kinc of trustworthy predictions as to the oc currence of storms, floods or droughts in specified localities and at certair dates in future months or seasons Though such foreknowledge is very desirable, yet at the present stage a: human progress it is beyond the possi bility of realization. In this field a: scientific research the wisest student have been most deeply sensible of th limitations of human knowledge, br charlatans and pretenders claim to holh a key to mysteries in earth and thi heavens that are hidden to the balance of mankind. Quackery in meteorology es well as in medicine, is indicated b: the extravagant pretentions of its p:'ac titijoners. Modern astrologers, following closel: the lines of their ancient prototypes give the sun a minor or passive role while the moon and planets form ai all-star aggregation in the ever-shift ing scenes of the -carth's drama. T< each planet is assigned some spcC?ait: act on the stage, each producing a dii ferent type of weather, and when th three act in conjunction the comnple: results are startling. IReally, it is ditlicult to trcat such ht dirous matter with becoming di-znit: and seriousness. A certain almanac description of "Ea ch planet's peculia phenomena" is atbsolutely irresistibl as a mirth provoker to any reader wh possses a sense of the ridiculous an somfe elementary knowledge of meteoi oogy and astronomy. One is impresse by .the evident earnestness of thle at tior, andI yet it seems that he must b too diligent to believe in his absurdi fantastie theories. They are no mot belevable than the myths and 'gend of tile anelents. It is inconei~vabi that a learned astronomer and :n:et: clogist actually believe:3 that the su First New Hampshire Apples. The first apple trees thats were grafted in Dover, N. H., were il orchards on Dover Neck; the wor] was done in 1741 by Major Samue Hale, who was then a school teachen The major graduated from Harvari College in 1740 and went there ti teach in the fall of that year; the foi lowing~ winter he cut scions fror choice fruit trees in Boston and in th spring grafted them into trees. The impure thought is easily ci-ushe< Ihefore it is spoken, but who 'can cur. t contwginn aiterwards? - EASONAL FORECASTS STROLOGERS AND PROPHETS I THE WEATHER. -: - is paSive except when it is "per turbed" by some planet's equinom: that mists and vapors are injected and in fused into the sun by Mercurys per turbation. and then thrown out by so lar energy to form nists and sleet on the earth. and that during the so-called *Jupiter period" the carrying capacity of the earth's atmosphere becomes dis ordered and weakened. so that it can not transport and diffuse humidity, thereby causing consuming droughts in places and destructive cloudbursts in other localities. One who actually be lieves that kind of absurdity is really beyond the reach of influence by evi dence and argument. The bare state nit of such propositions is a sufficient refutation. Students in the primary class in me tcorology learn that the ever-changing phenomena of the weather are all ref erable to the action of the sun upon the earth and its itmosphere. vapors and gases; that the constantly radiated energy of the sun supports heat, light and electric force in the solar system. The planets possess no form of inde pendent energy whereby they may "perturb" the sun and increase its po teney. The libraries of the United States Weather Bureau contain the substance and much of the detail of all that is known of weather wisdom. ancient and modern. and the scientists of this bu reau certainly are familiar with the es sence of this knowledge. Those who are in a postion to know are well aware that ex ery possible effort is be ing made to extend our knowledge of the laws that control weather condi tions, and meanwhil!e to give to those who are vitally concerned the most ti-ustworthy information obtainable. It is a matter of common experience that the notable success of some commer cial article of merit is sure to fiood the market with spurious goods of the same class, which unscrupulous vend ors spread before tha indiscriminating public. The rapid strides of the Uni ted States Weather Bureau in recent years toward popular favor through the widespread dissemination of the forecasts - a service made possible larger by the phenoisenal spread of the telephone and the development of the rural delivery service-has appar ently given a new impetus to unsci entific. not to say unscrupulous, fore casts, based upon some theory of cy cles or of planetary control. And the Chief of the Weather Bureau is be lieved to be not only justified, but morally enjoined to counteract as far as possible the mischievous effects of the work of astrologers, who pretend to foretell the character of coming seasons or the progress of stonms and ordinary weather conditions for a month or a year in advance, and whose unfounded and nreliable forecasts are too often given undue circulation by the less careful publishers.. The problem of seasonal forecasts is. receiving at the bands of the ablest and most painstaking students of both continents a comprehensive considera tion that is certain to be fruitful and far-reaching in its ultimate results. So important and so pressing is the wo:-t and so promising is the field that the Chief of the Weathe Bureau is buiding and equipping a large observa tory, wherein the best talent available will soon be employed to study the in tricate and profound-problems of the atmosphere, whose asolution promises improvement over present methods and results in forecasting and may lead in time to seasonal predictions on a truly scientific basis. Why Women Work. There is always a good deal of talk as to why sone women prefer to earn their own living rather than marry. The wherefore might be discussed till all of the disputants reached the chlor oform age and not get all the right answers; but one reason of it is that some married women have a habit of talking. And in these iittle monologues about their husbands they sometimes turn the limelight on a few hard facts. One of them is that there are some men-very often gooa men, too-who provide their wives with enough to eat and wear, but never allow them the handling of a single cent of money. tOne man, for Instance, gives his wife $5 for shoes, but insists upon going with her to she that she spends all of it for that and doesn't buy a pair at a bargain and save a little for a matinee . that' she couldn't see if she didn't scheme for the price of the ticket.-IDe .troit Free Press. 'Twere Better so. - Stewart Edward White, the author, lost some money recently through the - failure of a trust company. >In Santa Barbara one day he was in 'trodueed to an interesting young man - from New York. ' "What does that young man do?' CMr. White asked on the stranger's de parture. " He is attached to the Commercial Bank," was the reply. s Ah," said Mr. White, "so they at tach t'hem now, do they? It's nut a bad idea."-Cincinnati Inquirer. - I A Worthy Charity. -A certain English actor. whose debts 1 had made. him an object of interest -to various bailiffs, met a friend e one day who ashdv him if he could - spare ten shillings toward a fund with e which to bury a bailiff who had just s died. e "By all means." replied the actor: -- "here's twenty shilings-bury two." Sarper'sWeekly. NOT HER VOCATION. "During my six weeks' absence," said the proprietor of a rental agency, "I left my wife in charge of the of fice, and she didn't rent a single - house in all that time." I"Well, that jibes well with the eter nal fitness of things," rejoined his friend, the attorney. "A woman is naurll a housekeeper, not a house renter."-Detroit Tribune. In recent years several wealthy.) Prsees have married European' Iwves.