The Fairfield news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1881-1900, March 27, 1883, Image 1
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TRI-WEEKLY EDITION.
WINNSBORO. S. U. MARCH 27, 1883.
ESTABLISHED 1848
A. Close-Fisted KconomUt,
The farmer eat in Uig easy ona® ;
lietweeu the Are and the lamplight’s glare
His face was rnddy and full and fair;
HU three small boy a in the chimney nook
Conned the lines of a picture bo >k;
HU wife, the pride of hU home and heart,
Baked tne biscuit and made the tart,
Laid the table and drew the tea,
oeftiy, swlfty, silently;
Tired and wearv, weak and faint,
she bore her trials without complaint,
I. kc many another household saint—
content all selOsh blue above
I a the patient mlnUtry of love.
At last betWeen the clouds of smoke
That wreaihed his lips the farmer spoke:
“There’s taxes to raise and Int’rest to pav.
And if there should ootne a rainy day • • » »
’Twould be mighty handy, I’m bound to say.
T have Hometfitng put by. For folk* most die;
An’ there s funeral b Us, and grave-stones to buy-
Knough to swamp a man, puny nigh;
H slaes, there’s Edward an’ Dick an’ Joe
To be provided for when we go;
so, It I were you. I’ll toll you what |’d dn;
I’d be savin’ of wood as eve’’ I cOuM—'
Extra Ares don’t do any good;
I’d be savin’ of soap, and savin’ of lie.
And run up some caudles once In a while,
I’d rather be sparin’ ef coffee ana tea,
for sugar is high.
An’ all to buv.
And cider is good enough drink for me:
I’d be kind o’careftu about my clothes
And look out sharp how the money goes—
Gewgaws Is useless, nater knows,
Extra trimmin’
’8 the bane of women.
I d sell the best ot my chsese an’ honey.
An’eggs u as good, nigh ’bout, as money;
An’ as tu the carpet you wanted new—
1 guess we can make the old one da;
And as for the washer an' sewln machine,
Them smooth tou^ued agents, so pesky mean,
You’d better git rid of ’em slick an’ clean.
What do they know ’bout women’s work?
Do ’hey calkilate women was made to shirk?
Dick and Edward and ittle Jcel
bat in the corner In a row; ,
They saw their patient mother go
On ceaseless errand) to and fro;
They saw that her form was bent and thin,
Her temples gray, her cheeks sunk in;
They saw the quiver of lip and chin—
And then, wltn a wrath be coala not smother,
Outspoke the youngest, frailest brother:
“Yon talk of savin’ wood and lie
An’ tea and’ sugar all the while,
But you never talk of savin’ mother!'’
|
The Carthage of To-day.
No one would think of going to Tunis
without visiting its ancient neighbor Car
thage—mighty Carthage, once mistress of
the seas; and rival of Rom” m the domina
tion of the world; now but a heap of
ruins. It was a drive of a few hours over
a sparsely inhabited country, end we were
well satisfied to qpcept the proffered com
panionship of an elderly French gentle
man and his daughter, who, like ourselves
were pilgrims and strangers. For the
gentleman was courteous and agreeable—
as most French gentlemen are—and well
informed, and the daughter was young
and pretty and vivacious. “Safety lies
in numbers," he had said, half apologetic
ally, after making the proposition as we
sat at breakfast that morning; “and like
wise, in this,’ 1 and be drew cautiously
from his pocket a silvermounted revolver,
accompanying the act with sundry hints
and nods and low-Voiced allusions to the
insecurity of the country, and the necessi
ty of being veil armed. Americus pro
duced its fellow, and America made up
the complement with an oid flintlock pistol
that we bad picked up somewhere in Al
geria for us antiquity and rare workman
ship. To be sure, it wasn't loaded, and
ptoh&bly wouldn't have gone oft if it had
been; but that was all the better for her.
Then we sallied proudly off, confident ot
being able to vanquish any troop of marau
ding and murderous, Arabs that fortune
might send in our way. In parenthesis 1
may add that our doughty valor met with
no foeman worthy of its powder. The
roads were bad, as one never finds in ^Alge
ria, but they lay through a wonderously
fertile country of olive orchards and lux
uriant fields of wheat and barley and flax,
and were bordered with flowers of myriad
hues—the delicate, star-shaped -asphodel,
the crimson anemdne, ground lilac and
purple clover, and a thousand ethers. The
most exciting incident of the trip was Ihe
stopping at a well-kept cafe where they
kept genuine lemonade; and the only
Arabs we encountered were ihe small boys
that followed us pertinaciously among the
ruined temples of Carthage with old coins
and hits of porphyry to selL Mr. Fisk,
the U. S. Consul-General, jnay have not
been so far wrong when be had said the
day before: “Why, I would far rather
trust myself in the city 1 or precincts of
Tunis alter nightfall than in some of the
districts of Detroit 1 know of. Pagan and
.Cnrisiian, Roman, Vandal, Byzantine,
Arab and Turk have successively contri
buted te despoil ,th s once mighty city of
her proud monuments and blot out her
ancient glory from the memory of man.
History assumes that Carthage was set
tled by a band of Plceuiciau navigators
some 3.000 years ago, more or less. My
thology goes more into the detail of ro
mance and tells how the beautiful princess
Dido, of Tyre, fled from the wrath of her
brother Pygmalion after he had slain her
husband, taking with her 80 devoted fol
lowers ; how the stopped at the island of
Cyprus aid earned off 80 maidens to icr-
msh them with wives; How she landed ou
the north coast of Africa, entered Into a
treaty with the natives, and bought f. om
them as much land as could be inclosed
within a bull's hide ; and how she then
cut the hide into the thinnest of strips, and
so inclosed a space of 22 stadia, on which
she built her city and called it fiyrsa, or
Bull’s Hide, which afterward became
Carthage. A few vestiges remain of Queen
Dido’s Palace, which occupied a lofty
i eminence overlooking the sea, whence she
j watched the departure of tineas and his
[Trojans as ,she stubbed herself upon the
[funeral pyre she had erected to the mem
lory of her husband. The site of the state-
| ly palace is occupied now by a little chapel
erected by the French to the memor? of
Duis JX., who died thereabouts when on
iis last crusading expedition against the
'aracen. The enclosure in ' hich the
apel stands is encircled with walls into
nich have Been built numerous fragments
i sculpture aud Roman inscriptions found
[the vicinity, and a museum m the same
closure contains a good maay aacient
ics in the form of rings, necklaces,
?es, coins, and the like. Just below
chapel -are a few stonee which mark
site of the temple ot. .dSaculapius,
eh was the scene'in the third Punic
;of the heroic conduct of the -wife ot
drnbal who, when her poltroon bus
* deaerted bis post and surrendered to
[Romans, set Are to the temple where
were besieged, and with her children
its little band ot defenders, perished
flames. Where stood the amphi-
fre, stained with the blood of Christian
-it was there ibat 8L Perpotua
companions were thrown to wild
-there is only an elliptical cxcava-
and no relict remain to tell that
ge was onoe the great stronghold of
Christianity, in northern Africa, and boast
ed of the proudest name: in the Christian
church. In fact, the only remnant of past
ages that remains in any degree cf preser
vation are the immense vaulted Roman or
Runic cisterns. The beautiful pillars of
marble and porphyry, and the massive
stones of the furum and theatre, and the
temples of Apollo, Diana, Minerva and
other pagan deities have been carried off
to build Tunis and other cities, or to en
rich foreign museums; and nothing now
remains of Carthage but excavations and
shapeless massed of masonry and heaps of
debris of broken bits of marble and pot
tery. The European nation that gets pos
session of the regency of Tunis will find a
rich boon. The country is luxuriantly
fertile throughout, and those who have
traveled over it affirm that in the hands of
an industrious and euterpnsing people It
would become one of the most beautiful
countries in the whole world, and of the
greatest agricultural richness. It has a
sea coast of nearly 500 miles, with an
area of 70.000 square miles and a popula
tion of 2,000 000. Tha country is inhab
ited for from 100 to 250 miles from the
sea, generally by a peaceable and indus
trious people; the interior is well watered,
and it ppssesses a good many large and
important towns.
The regency is an hereditary beylik and,
though nominally under the suzerainty of
the Porte, is governed absolutely, by the
bey. It has no constitution or legal code.
The Koran answers tor both. In all im
portant matters justice is administered by
the bey in person. The business is con
ducted in the simplest manner. Com
plainant and defendant present themselves,
each relates his case, and the bey adjudi
cates thereon. Sentence is immediate. In
the case of debt it is imprisonment; foi
criminal offenses the castinado or the axe,
according to the degree of the crime. It
is said that such implicit confidence is
placed in the judgmeut and Integrity of
the bey that it never eaters into the head
of an Aral) that he has been unjustly con
victed. An example of the style of ad
ministering justice mav be furnished in a
recent case. An Arab had assassinated
his father-in-law. The fact was well sus
tained, and he did not himself deny it.
He was taken before the bey, who alone
has the right to pronounce sentence of
death. The facts were briefly stated.
The accused said not a word in defense or
extenuation of the deed. A simple gesture
of the hano by tha bey, which signified
“Go,” and the case was disposed of. The
instrument of punishment stood ready, and
the condemned walked to the block and
the sentence was executed without a word
or motion of resistance. The hearing,
condemnation, and execution lasted just
twenty minutes. Of course 1 this summary
style of meting out justice applies only to
the subjects of the bey. Foreigners are
judged by their eonani* nr n-mUHM-magis
tratee, and the usual E iropean formalties
of trial are maintained. It may be a
question, however, whether the Arabic
method does not attain the ends of justice
q-iite as surely as the European.
Preparing to Math.
Street Oar Etiquette.
Second Hand Furniture.
The best furniture is not by any
means always the dearest at the outset,
for piuchasers must always pay the
increased price for the latest fashion
and for ornamentation as well as (some
times even more tharl for real excellence
of workmanship, which is the only
expenditure that can be defended on
economical gronnds. There is a striking
resemblance of the cost of following the
fashion in the prices given for old for-
uiture. A few years ago, within the
memory of most of ns, old oak chairs
aud chests could be picked up for the
worth of the wood they were made oL
At the time every one who had money
to spend, spent it on gilt and ormolu
and gaudy damask, and since the old
furniture is well made,it was very cheap.
But now a rage has risen for old oak
Fancy prices are asked, and given for
things that twenty years ago went for
an old song, and only the wealthy can
now afford to sit on the chairs that onr
grandmothers relegated to the back par
lor. Second-hand furnitnre is often pre
ferable to new. The warps and started
joints are plainly visible if bad wood has
been some time in use; no more warp
ing will take place and the price, in
compaiison with that of new, is often
much less than the amount of wear and
tear would indicate.
There are circumstances that give to
old furniture a distinct excellence,quite
apart from the existence of a fashion
of buying it. It was made by hand,
generally the same man worked on each
piece throughout, acquiring « special
interest in every department and think
ing no trouble too great to make it
more perfect, it was sold eftenest in
the immediate neighborhood, perhaps
to a friend of the maker, and wc may
well believe that In this case special
pains would be taken to produce the
best possible value for the money.
These old chests were bought as a mar
riage portion, filled with the clothes of
the bride, and they were handed down
from mother to daughter as good ns
when they were new. We have changed
all that. Not only would daughters
scout the idea of beginning housekeep
ing with their mother’s furniture, but
they expect to purchase several new sets
of turniture during their own lives. We
do not even wish onr furniture to last
too long. It has almost as little indi
viduality to the purchaser as the maker.
Mach of onr modern machinery, is cat
by machinery. One makes legs and a
second backs, while a third glues them
together for a chair and passes it on to
a fourth, who staffs the seat. Often it
passes through eight or ten hands be
fore it is ready for sale. The result is
a good many ehairs, all about equally
good, but none very good. It is scarce-
possible to feel deep interest in the
tenth part of a dozen chairs, except in
so far as they are a means of subsistence
and jet thia wholesale manufacture
lowers prices, so that manufacturers oi
a smaller scale are almost driven off o
the field.
There was to be a i^rand Ball, and a
gilt-edged barber parlor was crowded, and
the reporter was compelled to wait his
turn. As be perched himself in s conven
ient seat, one ot our Best Young Men had
just comfortably bestowed himself in one
of those luxurious racks on which the
skinning operation is conducted, and the
reporter naturally bent his lalchion glance
upon bun. The inundation of soap and
the slow movement of the glancing blade
were both old songs to the man of news,
who was bearded like the pard, and the
tiny fountains of blood which appeared
occasionally were equally old and familiar
sights. Then came a deluge of water and
a brisk friction with a towel, and the face
of the Best Young Man shone out shiny,
clear and red:
And now comes the operation which
caused the regards of the reporter to be
fixed with fearful inteutness. The artist
produced a bottle containing a milky li
quid, and with his soft palm distributed
n smoothly over the shining face, giving
it a soft, pearly glow, whitening as the
liquid dried. Ibis was rubbed in and
toned down by a gentle application
of a second find, the aromatic Oder of
which proclaimed it bay rum. A soft
towel dried it off again and the barber,
seizing a box of prepared chalk, coated
the face until it wore the smooth white
ness of alabaster and resembled a newly
kalsomined ceiling. The ghastly effect of
this was removed by a gentle rubbing with
the eperator’s soft hand. The result of
the treatment thus far left the face with
an enameled look, and the owner had, un
der the gaslight, a creamy complexion
nuchas Wheeling smoke never permits;
and here the reporter expected the opera
tion to cease. But no ; going to his dres
ser, the barber produced a comb and a
stick of pomade ; the former was inserted
under the pale moustache and the latter
softly dabbed over it, giving to it a warm
color of deep brown. A little touch of
cologne dissipated the odor of the cosmetic
and more evenly distributed it over the
moustache. A soft brushing and a little
waxing completed the decoration of the
mouthpiece.
What next? Those pale eyebrows did
not correspond and must be made to do so.
A email tooth brush, dipped iuto brilliant-
me, darkened with blacR pomade, was
deftly passed over the brows, which were
then oologned and neatly crushed, giving
the owner a wonderfully improved look.
Then came the eye lashes. Very import
ant features are they and great care was
bestov.ed upon them. The pomade pencu
was again brought into requisition and a
hue delicate line was drawn ou each lower
lid, just away from the lash. Then the
lashes were touched up with the pencil
and .the subject oneoedlfipair of eyee that
seemed twice as large and dark as before,
while the penciled brows gaYe character as
well as beauty to Ms altered visage. Was
this all? Ihe barber opened another draw
er, took out a bottle and dampened his
finger with us contents. The finger was
then passed over his subject’s lips and
presto! they lost their paleness and wore
a rich ruby redness that Hebe might have
envied. The finger again sought the
bottle and then caressed bis cheek, and lot
on their pale ramparts health set her rosy
banneia.
“Yes, I’m very, very beautiful ?” this
Grosvenor seemed to murmur to himself,
as he threw an approving glance into the
mirror and then vacated the chair.
“Do you go through that often ?” asked
the reporter, as he took the emp y chair.
“O, yes, sir,” replied the tonsonal art
ist, “especially on party nights. Have it
done, sir ?’’
“How much ?’’ “Twenty-five cents.’’
“Gimme a ten cent shave.”
.Y. Daubree advanced the opinion that
earthquakes have probably their maximum
rate of occurrence at the new and full
moon and their minimum at the the inter
mediate quarters ot the lunation.
The number of farms in the United
States has increased fifty-one per cent, in
the past ten years.
An old man, poorly dressed, entered a
horfe car and locked around him for a
seat, it was an hour when many persons
were returning from their work down
town, and the car was filled with the usual
assortment ot passengers. None of them
seemed to see the old man, who appeared
to be feeble, greatly fatigued, aud in fear
ot being thrown down by the motion of
the car. Pretty soon a woman who had
been lookiag oyer a written paper, appar
ently a bill for goods bought, raised her
eyes and saw the old man. With hardly
a moment’s uesitation she arose, touched
him on the arm, and aghP: “Take this
seat sir.”
The old iran accepted the seat, thanked
her and seemed very grateful. No one in
the car appeared to notice the woman’s
act. The men who bad seats allowed her
to stand.
“Did you see that ?" we asked the con
ductor.
“The woman give the old man her seat?
That’s common enough now—a good deal
more’n it used to be. I guess the older a
people grows the more respect they have
for oid age. I mean the older a country
is. China is the oldest of all of ’em, they
say, and there’s no place where old men
and women are treated so well a* among
the Chinese. IPs a part of their religion.
What you don’t see very often,” the con
ductor went on, after stopping his car to
take up a fat women with a market bas
ket, “is one women give her seat to ano
ther woman. When that happens you
can put it in the papers. It ain’t very
common to see a woman move closer to
another passenger in order to make room
for another woman to sit down, or to see
her take her child in her lap, or even take
a bundle from the seat at her side, till the
conducter comes along and asks her to do
so, and then she generally looks at him as
though she had been grossly insulted, and
at the other woman as though she had been
the willing cause of the insult. Until the
conducter stirs her up, she is to all ap
pearance unconscious that anybody is
standing up. and she looks straight past
the standing woman, and seems to be tak
ing a languid interest m the fronts of the
buildings she sees through the windows In
the other side of the car."
“Do women remember to thank men
oftener then they used to for seats given
to them?”.
“I’ve been on this road a good many
years,” the conductor replied somewhat
earnestly, “and I never aaw many women
take a seat from a man without expressing
their thanks in some way. A woman
don’t get up ou the seat and have the oar
stopped, and-call in the conductor-and
driver to hear her make a jpeech of grati
tude to the noble being who has sacrificed
so much for her conveu)e : /'e. And she
don't ovKtouDbie nim and tell him he has
done a big thing, and that if he ever hap
pens to be going past her residence he
must come m and be introduced to her
husband and stay to dinner. But she
usually savs, ’Thank you' she inclines her
head in acknowledgment ot his politeness,
which is quite as much as he deserves.
The men who are always saying that they
have spent the best part of their lives giv
ing seats to women m street cars, and
have never been thanked, are the ones who
never see a woman standing until they are
within one block of the corner where
they're going to get out, ana then they
yield up their seats with a great show of
gallantry. They wouldn’t be satisfied if
every woman who took their 1 seats after
they were through with them should for
ward to their residences rolls of engrossed
and illuminated parchments setting forth
their deep obligations. ’’
A *100.000 Picture.
The Violin Ct»«e Racket.
What the Telescope Did for Astronomy.
Tne foundations ot physical astronomy
were laid in the invention of the telescope.
Every one has heard of the emotion which
filled Europe at the announcement of the
discoverv ot an instrument which had the
power of making distant objects appear as
if they were near. It was at that time
that Galileo, having only learned that
such an instrument existed, discovered its
arrangement, constructed one, turned it
toward the sky, and, with this aid, fertil
ized by his genius, made a series of magis
terial discoveries. Tnese discoveries be
longed pre-eminently to physical astrono
my, and from ita first courses. If we ex
cept the sun and moon, which have a very
sensible diameter, aud admit of some ob
servations. without the aid ot the telescope,
all the stars appear to the eye only as
brilliant points, and admit of oo studies
except of their motions. Tnerefore, an
astronomy wiinout the telescope would
never have permitted us otherwise than
as a matter of probability to consider the
planets as like the earth in form, constitu
tion and office. But when it was seen
that these brilliant and almost blazing
points were resolved under the telescope
into well-defined disks, showing indica
lions of continents, clouds and atmos
pheres; when satellites were perceived
around these globes playing the same part
to them as the mom plays to the earth-
then probabilities gave place to a clear
certainty. Telescopes, then, are the in
struments by means of which the eonstitu-
tion of the solar system has been definitely
unveiled and the earth has tieen assigned
its part and its rank in the system ot the
planets. The discovery of the spots on
the sun and of its rotation completed the
conception of the solar system and pre
pared for the theory of Its lormatton.
Here is marked a well-determined phase
in the history ot human ideas respecti’qg
the universe, and it is characterised by the
great name of Galileo.
Was it possible at once to go beyond
this? Was it possible to question the stars
in their turn, and inquire if. like the sun,
they had a sensible disk, spots, a rotation,
and planets revolving around them; was
it possible, in short, to extend to the stel
lar universe Hie notions we had already
acquired concerning the solar system?
The methods in use did not permit this.
A traveling theater manager in a
small town ont West was ta! ing tickets
at the door, when a man appeared with
a violin ease in his hand, and said he
belonged to the orchestra. He was
passed in. Another chap appeared with
a fiddle-box and went into the honse.
At brief intervals fiddler after fiddler
appeared and entered, The manager
became suspicions. He took a look in
side. There was not a soul in the or
chestra except an oid pianist; bnt he
saw the last fiddler passing a violin-case
out at a window, opening on an alley,
to some new candidate for admission.
As many of the bogus violinists as could
be picked ont were boonoed. Another
fine-looking man approached, with a
richly-dressed woman, for whom he
bought a ticket. In nbont an half an
hoar he returned with three tunhrelias
under his arm. “Is the show over?” he
inquired. “No.” “How long?” “Two
hours.” “Indeed! Well, I’ye come to
take my wife home You’ve no objec
tion to my stepping inside nntil the
performance concludes?” “Yon' can’t
go in,” said the manager. “Whv not?
I’m waiting for my wife.’, “Can’t help
that. Yon must buy a ticket.” “It is
outrageous that I cannot stand inside
to wait for mj wife.” “You can’t work
that umbrella racket with me.” said
the manager. “Yon just wait till I
ever let my wife go to see your darned
old show again.” With this crushing
retort on his lips the man departed with
his umbrellas. The moon shone bright
ly ail the time.
The Habit of Fainting.
Permanent Black Ink.—Vanadium
Ink is really the only permanent black ink
known. The basis of this wri ing fluid is
rare, and what little there is in the stores
of supplies of chemical materials is very
costly. Ho sever, there has of late been a
quantity of it discovered in Ceylon, ahd it
is probable that it will be found worth
working for the money which it is certain
bring, both here aud abroad.
A correspondent irom Rome says, as I
entered the door I saw a crowd of people
gathered around a railing on the opposite
side of the room, gazing silently and in
tently straight at the wall before them.
Then 1 knew that the Madonna was there.
With a feeling of mysterious awe akin to
that which one feels when going to look
on the face of the dead, I approached and
looked on the great picture. It is painted
on a panel perfectly circular in form and
about the size of an ordinary barrel head,
and is set in a massive,elaborately wrought
gilt frame five or aix inches wide. a
. The Madonna is represented as standing
thoush only a half length is shown m the
picture. She wears a robe of grayish-blue
material gathered loosely across the bosom
and fa ling in ample folds over the left
shoulder. Her hair is combed smoothly
down over the temples and back from the
face, and is mostly covered by a veil of a
green color, worked in silver threads, and
falling with the hair in graceful waves be
hind the shoulders.
As to the face, 1 almost hesitate to
speak of it; tor no words can convey any
adequate idea of its divine beauty. And
yet if I had never heard of it, I don’t think
1 would have seen anything extrardinary
in it, because 1 would only have given it
a casual glance, and one marked peculi
arity of the picture is that you can’t see it
at a glance. It does not at once rivet the
attention and impress you deeply as most
great masterpieces do. To appreciate it
at all at Us true worth, it is absolutely
necessary to study it long and earnestly.
Hut after looking at it awhile its trans
cendent beauty beeau to dawn upon me,
and the longer I eased the more and more
beautitul it became, but gradually, very
gradually, like the slow coming of perfect
day from the first faint streaks of light in
the east. Before 1 left 1 was completely
under the influence of its magic power,
and I felt to my inmost soul that it was
the finest work of art that I had ever look
ed upon. 1 studied it for an hour or more
and while I was standing there a number
of persons, men and women, came up
quietly and looked at it, making various
comments with bated breath and then
passing on, most of them evidentlv dis
appointed, though only a few so in express
terms. 1 think none of them saw its full
beauty.
The bead is nobly shaped and gracefully
poised and the brow is smooth aud serene.
Tne face is oval m form, with delicate,
clear-cut features lit up by a soft, radiant
light. The eyes are cast down aud the
orbs are only partially visible from under
the drooping lids. The most expressive
single feature is perhaps the mouth, the
under lip of which is slightly drawn in
one side. The predominant expression ot
the whole is that of deep, rapturous, but
— — 4 « ** jvyjf y MSAAS^tViA W 1VX1 a
modest but inapproachable reserve that
gives to the lace its peculiar character of
noble dignity. Still I don’t think it is a
highly idealized face. 1 think 1 have now
and then seen on the female countenance
m real life evanescent jexpressious just as
lovely.
Italian Murderers In Frlson.
A Bank of England Story.
Tliere is not so much fainting in
public as there was thirty years ago.
Sound health, which necessarily se-
enres the firm nerves and muscles, is
the sorest preventive of faintness. An
exchange remarks that the majority of
vigorous men go through all kinds of
Hevere and painful experience without
fainting, while delicate men and women
swoon at trifles. American women,
who used to faint continually — in
crowds at bad news, at scenes of dis
tress—now faint comparatively seldom;
and the fact is ascribed to their re
linquishment for the most part, of the
habit of lauing, to their increased ex
ercise in the open air, and their better
physical conditions. Not one Ameri
can faints to-day, where, thirty years
ago, twenty-flve women fainted and the
diminution of the disorder, always the
result of direct causes, is an unmis
takable evidence, wmoh other things
corroborate, of the marked ameliora
tion of tne health of the highly organ
ized, extremely sensible, bat flexible
and eadoring women of oar complex
nee.
A lew weeks ago au Italian newspaper
published au account of a visit psid by
one of its correspondents to the convict
prison ot Porto Ferraio, in the Island of
Elba, where Fass&nante, who tried to
murder King Humbert in 1878, is confined-
Passanante’s life was spared but the exis
tence he leads is no better than living
death. He is secured to the wall of an
almost dark cell by a chain five feet in
length which is riveted to an iron ring
around his ankle, and which does not al
low him to take more than one step in
any direction. During the first two years
of his imprisonment the wretched man lay
all day upon his mattress since then he
has been released once a day for half an
hoar to walk about his cell, but he never
goes into the o]>en air. He is watched
night and daj by three wardens, who sur
vey his movements through a peep-hole
in the door, but who are forbidden to
speak to him or to answer his quesuons.
He has become imbecile, in contiguous
cells are two other atrocious murderers—
Risignol, a Frenchman, who committed
fifteen murders at Tunn, by waylaying
people at night, stabbing them, and throw
ing them into the River Po, after rifling
their clothes, and Cipriani la Gala, torm-
erly the chief of a gang of brigands. Ros-
ignoi, who is described as a colossus, was
first sentenced to death, but Victor Eman
uel commuted the sentence, and. the mur
derer showed his sense of this favor by
killing the two carabineers who were
conveying hiiu to Porte Ferraio, after
which he nearly made his escape. He has
been seven years in what is called stretta
custodia; but Cipriano la Gala, his neigh
bor, who is dreaded by all in the prison,
from the Governor downward, as a most
dangerous scoundrel, who would stir up a
revolt of all the convicts in the prison if he
were let out his cell, has been living since
1862 chained in a sort of stone box, where
there is not enough light to read by. All
these gloomy details, when they were
published, produced considerable excite
ment in Italy, and it was asked in many
quarters whether there had been any real
mercy in sparing the lives of Paasanante,
Hossigtol and Cipriano la Gaia. The se
verity with which these men are being
treated is exceptional; but that there
should be any need for such severity ap
pears to show that it would have been
kinder to the men to have put them out of
their misery long ago.
imnob Wlue.
The first person I met on entering the
Bank of England was a venerable porter
in a quaint uniform, which dates back I
think a hundred years or more; it left a
green-and-buff impression on me, but I
cannot accurately describe its details.
The porter led me to a room where the
executive officer of the bank was to be
found This officer, Mr. Gray, is entitled
“Chief Accountant,” and his position cor
responds very much to that of cashier of
one of our banks. Mr. Gray, who sat at
his desk surrounded by a corps of busy
Marks, and who is a gentleman of the
most eourteoue and unassuming manners,
gave me a cordial welcome, and under his
guidance I visited every department of
the bank and had everything which 1 did
not understand explained to me. The
capital ot the bank is fourteen and one-
bail millions sterling; its circulation m the
hands of the public about twenty-flve mil
lions sterling; its deposits, on no portion
of which is interest paid, average in these
days about thirty-two milkoos sterling.
With its customers it has two kinds of
SMouat, deposit and discount. 1 was
told that in order to get a discount at this
bank it was absolutely necessary to have
a deposit account, but it can hardly be
possible that a banking institution with
such an enormous working capital, amount
ing te nearly $290,000,000, is ever obliged
to bny paper in the open market in order
to keep up loans. The bank discounts no
bill having over three months to run; the
smallest city bill which it discounts is one
hundred pounds; smallest country bill,
twenty pounds. It circulates no smaller
note than five pounds, but this seems to
be the only limit to denominations; m a
frame in the building is a cancelled note
of the Bank of England lor a million
pounds sterling, and, if 1 remember
rightly, the banker poet Rogers had hang
ing in his library a cancelled note of the
same institution for BtO.OOO.
I have heard that a note tor £10,000
once had a singular history. It was paid
out to one of the directors of the bank
who soon after lost it under such circum
stances that he was satisfied, and sue
eeeded in satisfying the bank; that it had
fallen into the fireplace and been de
stroyed. He was given a new note, for
which he returned a proper receipt and
guarantee. Many years after the original
note was presented for payment; the bank
endeavored to disown it, but could not,
for it was genuine and in the hands of an
incoeent person, and the bank had to pay
it. It was ascertained that, instead of
being burned, it had been carried up the
afaimney by a draught, and had found a
safe lodgment in some cranny in tiie flue.
Here it had remained until alterations in
the house necessitated ♦»**> removal of the
Chimney; then' it was discovered by a
workman, who regarded it as a legitimate
find, and who presented it for payment.
Right here I may as well relate another
siory of the bank, ot which there are
many, both in print and as legends, hut of
whieb I will let these two serve as speci
mens. A sewer workman, while poking
around under ground, found that by rais-
inc a flagstone he could penetrate into the
bullion room ot the bank. Amazed at
the discovery, he pondered over it and
finally concluded that he would utilize it
to his pecuniary benefit without btealing.
he therefore wrote to the directors asking
what reward he would receive if he should
meet them at any appointed hour ot the
night in the bullion room ami thus reveal
to them a mode of ingress of which they
were entirely ignorant. Tney named a
sum which would make him independent
for life, and to their overwhelming sur
prise he kept bis promise by popping up
through the sewer, for which he received
ten thousand pounds or so. This is sup
posed to have happened long ago.
TanderbUfs Christmas Gift.
Turcoman Horsemanship.
The French vintage of 1882 was 70,
000,000 gallons less than that of 1881,
and 860,000,000 gallons less than the
average vintage of the lust ten years.
The Minister of Agricultare, however,
finds consolation in the foot that the
districts invaded by the phylloxera show
a marked improvement, and that the
decline is most conspicuous in those dis-
trots which were visited by hoavy rains
at a critical period. At the same time
there can be no doubt that the aitnation
of the wine-growers is Franco is a seri
ous one; for : whereas, up to the year
1877 the imports averaged only 18,600,
000 gallons, while the exports averaged
80,000,000 gallons; the imports for the
last few years have actually reached an
average of 160.000,000 gallons, wnfle
the exports have declined 10,60,000,000
gallons.
A Turcoman dismounted from his horse,
a white one. Animals of this kind are
rarely seen in the district, an evil repute
attaching to bun. The hpiseman wanted
a drink of water, and incautiously let go
the bridle. The steed forthwith started
incontinently to gallop across the plain.
A runaway horse is a serious nuisance in
a country like this, and everyone feels it
to be his duty to aid the master of the fu
gitive beast in recovering his property.
The whole of us, 60 in number, strove to
head off the truant. For a couple of miles
we rode in a straight line, but the runaway
unencumbered by weight, and having a
good lead, gave us a long chase. I was
completely tired of the matter ; and be
sides knowing tbat we had a long journey
before us, I did not care to blow my horse
further, so I drew up on a slightly rising
ground, and watched the hunt. From
what 1 saw of the remainder of it, I am-cf
opinion tbat Turcomen horsemen would
scarcely do well “acroas country,” for
though they will hang alongside their bore
scs, stand in one stirrup, and sling them
selves under the belly at full gallop, they
do not care for leaping. I saw many a
one come to gnef at the broad irrigation
trenches. The country is so flat that the
burses are never taught to jump.
A Wanliluffton letter.
While Mr. Vanderbilt was passing
through the Park, in New York, a amaii
boy attempted to cross the rood in treat
of the flying horses. The boy in his
attempt to avoid the hones fell over in
the road, but was not hart, Mr. Van
derbilt was frightened. He felt so glad
when he saw the lad safe and sound
that he who had jnst been preparing to
rush on, in the hope that be had not
been recognized, pulled up and beckon
ed the boy to him:
“Here, Johnny,” he said, here’s a
dollar. Don’t yon try to cross the road
that way.”
“Why, sir, I was running for a doctor.
Father told me to hnrrj up, ’cause he
had to go ont and motiier’s all alone*”
“Why does your father go out on
Christmas Day? To the nun-shop, I
suppose?” said Mr. Vanderbilt frowning.
“No, sir. Father works on the rad-
road, and if* he misses a day he gets
docked.”
“Even Christmas?”
•“Yes sir, Mr. Vanderbilt don’t let up
no nobody ’cause its Christinas.”
“He works for Vanderbilt, does he?”
“That he does, and more's the bad
luck of it, as he says.”
“Why?”
“Well, you see, mother’s sick, and
father has been staying up nights with
her, and then he’d take a nap, and twice
he got late to the switch and got fined a
quarter each time.”
“How much does he get a day?”
“One dollar, sir.”
“Seventy-five cents a day? Good
God! and a sick wife at that,” thought
Mr. Vanderbilt, and his heart misgave
him. Was this right, after all? “And
what sort of aChriatmas dinner will yon
have to-day?” he asked.
“We don’t get none. Father ain’t at
home and mother’s sick. The money’s
got to go for to buy medicine, you see
sir.”
This is hard and no mistake,
“Will you take me to your house?”
asked Mr. Vanderbilt.
"Yes sir; it’s right here, sir,” said the
boy.
It was a picture of detolatibn, bat
cleanly; no carpet, bnt a good substan
tial cottage, a small sprig of firs, a wom
an sitting in an easy chair, thin, pale
bat cheerful When Mr. Vanderbilt
entered, the woman exclaimed:
“Why, your not the doctor, sir?”
“No, my good woman, bat I came
from him; be is very busy. Now, what
is the matter with yon?”
“Weakness, eir.”
“What from?”
"Well, air, I hate to eay, but I think
its from want of food.”
“I thought so,’’and Mr. Vanderbilt
turned around and pat a $60 bill in an
envelope and also his card.
* In half an boor open this and send
it aronnd to the store. Yon will find a
prescription that will do yon good.
There is also a card in here. Bend year
boy to that address to-morrow, and I’ll
give him something, too. You shan’t
starve any more ”
Before the sick woman oould say any
thing he was out and off, but as he rode
back to' his palace his face looked the
picture of good pature. He smiled and
laughed to himself so that people tamed
around and exclaimed: “What can be
the matter with WilUam H.?” When
anybody looked at him he did not pale,
aud the rattle of his wheels over the
hard road made rythmic music to the
joyous beating of his heart. It was ihe
merriest Christmas day Mr. Vanderbilt
lias spent this many a jear.
KAMI of Snnaluno.
An autograph letter of (Washington,
owned by Mrs. Lucy Woods, of Staun
ton, Va., has jnst been made public.
It was written to the citizens of Shep-
herdstown, October, 12, 1796, in re
sponse to a formal address tendered by
them to the first President on his an
nouncement of his determination to
retire to private life, and runs in part
as follows:—Tliat beneficent Providence
which hitherto has preserved n8|in peace
and increased our prosperity will not, I
trust, withdraw its protecting hand,
wnile we on onr part endeavor to ment
a continuance of its favors. Equally
persuaded am I that no inconvenience
will result from my retreat to the walks
of private life. The good sense of my
countrymen will always discern and
can never be at a loss to choose a fit
character to administer the exeentive
government of these United States, I
it has been my good fortnm through
the oonrse of my civil and military
employments to have [met the approba
tion of my countrymen, my wishes wilt
be consummated afid I shell have found
the only reward I ever had in view.”
From an acorn weighing a few grains,
a tree will grow for 100 years or more,
not only throwing off many pounds of
leaves every year, bnt itself weighing
many tons. If an orange twig is pat
in a large box of earth, and that earth
is weighed when the twig becomes a
tree, bearing luscious froit, there will
be nearly the same amount of earth.
From careful experiments made my
different scientific men it is ascertained
tnat a very large part of the growth of
a tree is derived from the sna, from the
air and from water, and a very little
from the earth ; and notably all vege
tation becomes sickly unless it is freely
txposed to sunshine. Wood and coal
are condensed sunshine, which contains
three important elements equally essen
tial to both vegetation and animal life—
magnesia, lime and iron. It is the iron
in tne blood which gives one the dora-
bility necessary to bodily vigor, while
magnesia is important to all of ths tis
sues. Thus it is that the more persons
are ont of doors, the more healthy and
vigorous they are, and the longer they
will live. Every human being ought
to have an hepr or two of it, and in the
early forenoon in summer.
la Excellent Hamer.
Early in the year 1835 an amusing col
loquy took place m the senate between
Henry Clay and James Buchanan. The
latter, when a young man, belonged to the
Federal party. He was defending him
self against the charge of disloyalty during
the war of 1812. To prove his loyalty,
bo stated that he entered a company of
volunteers at the time the British attacked
Baltimore, or at the time of the battle of
North Point, anfi marched to Baltimore.
“True,” he said, “he was not in any en
gagement, as the British had retreated be
fore he had got there. Mr. Clay—“You
marched to Baltimore, though?" Mr.
Buchanan—“Yea ’ Mr. Clay—“Armed
and equipped?” Mr. Buchanan—“Yes,”
Mr. Ciay—“Will ihe Senator from Penn
sylvania be good enough to inform us
whether the British retreated in conse
quence of his valiantly marching to the
relief of Baltimore, or whether he marched
to the relief of Baltimore in consequence
of the British having already retreated ?’’
This colloquy, with its unlooked for en
ding, was greatly enjoyed by the Senate
and galleries, and put both in excellent
humor.
Ston» Cbsam.—One quart of mil*,
half box of gelatine, sugar to tafta. Mix
well and pat on to bod, then add the
well-beaten yolks of three eggs, and
stir until it thickens. When done, fla
vor to taste with vanilla, and put it into
moulds.
4