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* * f y -4- TRI-WEEKLY EDITION. WINNSBORO. S. U. SEPTEMBER 22. 1883. ESTABLISHED 1848 THE VERDICT —or— THE PEOPLE BUY THE BEST! The Um of Vlswora. Mb. J. O. Boao—Dear sir: I bougut toe nrst Darla Machine sold by yon over flve yeara ago for my wife, who haa given it a long and fair trial. I am well pleaaed with It. It never Rives any rouble, and is as good as when first bought. J. W. BOUCK. Wlnnsboro, S. C., April 1683. Mr. Boao: Ion wish to know what I have to say in regard to the Davis Machine bought of yon three ears ago. I feel i can’t say too much in its favor, made about 180,00 within five months, at times running it so fast that the needle would get per fectly hot from friction. I feel confidenl 1 could not have done the same work with as mucn ease aad ao well with any other machine. No time lost l in adjusting attachments. The lightest running machine I have ever treadled. Brother James and Williams’ families are as much pleased with their Davis Machines bought of you. I want no better machine. As I said before, I don’t think too much can be said for the Davis Machine. Respectfully, ELLBN bTBVENSON, Fairfield County, April, 1883. Mr. Boao : My machine gives me pertect satis faction. I find no fault with it. The attachments are so simple, i wish for no better than the Davis Vertical Feed. Respectfully. Mrs. R. Milling. Fairfield county, Apn', 1883. MR. Boao: I bougn: a Davis vertical Feed sw.ng Machine from yon four years ago. I am slighted with It. It never has giveu me any rouble, and has never been the least out of order. It Is as good as when I first bought i.. I can cheerfully recommend It. * Respectfully, Mr*. M. J. Kikei.and. Montlcello, April 30,1883. This is to certify that I have been using a Davis Vertical Feed Sewing Machine for over t w > ve irs, purchased of Mr. J. O. Boag. 1 haven’t found 11 possessed of any fault—all the attachments are so simple. It never refuse h to work, and is certainly the lightest running in the market. I consider it a first class machine. Very respectfully, Minnii M. Willingham. Oakland, Fairfield county, S. C. Mr Boag : i am wen pleased m every particui with the Davis Machine oought of you. I think a first-class machine in every respect. You knew you sold several machines of tUe same make to different members of our families, all of whom, as far as I know, are well pleaaed with them. Respectfully, Mrs. M. H. Mobley. Fairfield county, April, 1883. Thislstocerutv we nave nan in constant use the Davis Machine bought of you about three years ago. As we take in work, and have made the K lee of it several times over, we don’t want aay tier machine. It Is always ready to do any kind of work we nave to do. No puckering or skipping stitches. We can only say we are well pleased and wish no better machine, l ATBERINK Wrui AND SISTER. April as, 1888. I have no fault to find with my machine, and don’t want any better. I have made the price of It severa times by taking In sewing. It Is al ways ready to do Its work. I tpink It a first-class ma chine. I feel I can't say too much for the Dj.vis Vertical Feed Machine. Mbs. Thomas Smith. Fairfield county, April, 1883. Mb. J.O. Boag—Dear Sir: H gives me much pleasure to testify to the merits of the Davis Ver tical Feed Sewing Machine. The machine I got of you about five years ago. has been almost In con stant use ever since that lime. I cannot see that it Is worn any, and has not cost me one cent for repairs since we have had Ik Am well pleased and don’t wish lor any better. Yours tru'y, lost. Crawford, Uranlte Quarry, near Wlnnsboro S. C. We have osed the Davis Vertical Feed Sewing Machine for the last five years. We would not have any other make at anr price. The machine has given ns unbounded satisfaction. Very respectfully, ’ Mrs. W. K. Turner and Daughters Fairfield county, & C., Jan. 27,1883. Having bought a Davis Vertical Feed Sewing Machine from Mr. J. O. Boag some three years ago, and It having given me perfect satisfaction In everv respect as a family machine, both for hea- y and light sewing, and never needed the least re- patr in any way, I can cheerfully recommend it to any one as a first-class machine in every particu lar, and think It second to none. It is one of the simplest machines made; my children use It wltu all ease. The attachments are more easily ad justed and It does s greater range of work by means of its Vertical Feed than any other ma chine I have ever seen or need. Mbs. Thomas Owings. Wlnnsboro, Fairfield county, H. C. God might have bade the earth bring forth Enough for great and small. The oak-tree and the cedar-tree, Without a flower at all. We might have had enough, enough For every want of ours, For luxury, medicine, and toll, And yet have bad no flowers. The ore within the mountiib mine Requireth none to grow; Nor doth It need the lotus-flower To make the river Sow. The clouds might give abundant rain. The nlgiuly dews might fall, And the herb that keepeth life In man, Might yet have drunk them all. And wherefore, wherefore were they made. All dyed with ralobow-llght, All fashioned with snpremest grace, Upspringlng day and night;— Springing In valleys green and low, And on the mountains high, And In the silent wilderness, Where no man passes by i Oar ontward life requires them not— Then wheref ire had they btrih I— To minister delight to man, To beautify the sarth; To comfort man—to whisper hope. Where’er his faith Is dim. For who so careth for the flowers, Will much more care for him I LIGHT AT LAST. We have had one of the Davis Machines about four years and have always found It ready to do all kinds of work we have had occasion to do. Can’t see that the machine is worn any, and worka as welt as when new. Mbs. W. J. Crawford, Jackson’s Creek. Fairfield countv. 8. C. My wife is highly pleased with the Davis Ma chine bought of you. She would not take double what sae gave for It. The machine has not Men oat of order since she had It, and she can do an; king of work on It. F Very Respectfully, JaS. F. Free. Montlcello, Fairfield county, S. C. The Davis Sewing Machine Is slmplv a treas ure Mrs. J. A goodwtn. Ridgeway, N. C., Jan. 10, 1883. J.O Boag, Esq., Agent—Dear Sir: My wife has oeen using a Davis Sewing Machine constant ly for the past four years, and U has never needed aay repairs an i works jnst as well as when flr«t bought She says It will do a greater range of practical work end do it easier and better tbau any machine she nas ever used. We cheerfully recommend It as a No. 1 family machine, Your trtuy, Jab. q. Davis. Wlnnsboro, S. C., Jan. 3,188?. Mb. Boas : I have always found my Davis Ma chine ready do all kinds of to work I have had oc casion to do. I cannot see that the machine la worn a panicle and it works as wed as when new. Respectfudy, Mas. H. C. Gooding. Wlnnsboro, S. C., April, 1883, Mb. Boag: My wife has been constantly using the Davis Machine bought of you about nve year, aoo. I have never regretted buying it, as it is always ready lor any .Ind of ta.^uy sewing, either aeavy or light. It la never out of fix or needing repairs. Very reaped Tuliy, A. \\. Ladd Fairfield, sk C. March, is*. Editha Vane had known for a long while there was something out of the usual order in the lives the two broth ers, Adrian and Vivian Long, led at Laurel Cottage, the pretty country dace they had purchased one year be- 'ore. The young men went abroad freely, welcome visitors at every fireside in ;he neighborhood, but no one had ever )een known to cross the threshold of their own door. The few persistent persons who made nheir way to the cottage uninvited—as some did—were invariably met by the grum old housekeeper with the infor mation that her young masters were out for the day, or some message to the same purport, and she would stand patiently in the open door until such visitors had gone down the walk and disappeared. Of course curiosity was excited, and had not the young men conducted themselves with strict pro priety abroad, most damaging suspi- cions wouid have prevailed. “The Longs are certainly hiding some secret,” their numerous friends said; “but they are such exemplary gentlemen it must be a harmless one.” Accident furnished Editha Vane with an inkling of the truth. She was riding out one morning when her horse took fright at some trifle, just as she was passing the cottage, and threw her within a rod of the gate. The young girl was stunned for a moment or two, and when she recovered a little, Adrian and Vivian were both bending over her with pale anxious faces. Are you hurt, Miss Vane?” they in quired in one breath. She made an effort to sit up. “No. I feel giddy and coufused— —that isall.” Even as she spoke everything again grew dark before her eyes. Vivian’s voice seemed to come from a remote distance, as he said hastily to his brother. “The poor girl has fainted We must take her in, and call rs. Garth.” Would it be quite safe?” remon strated Adrian. We must run the risk. It would be inhuman to do otherwise.” Like one in a helpless dream, Editha felt herself lifted up, and born along the walk to the house. The strong arms that held her were Adrian’s however, and for one instant their pressure was almost suffocating ere he placed her in the easy-clULr which Vivian wheeled quickly to the open window. Now tell Mrs. Garth to come with restoratives,” he cried. When the girl’s mind cleared, they were ail three beside her. She said little at first, but sat gazing curiously about the apartment. It was a pleasant room, elegantly furnished, filled with such pretty trifles as only a woman’s deft fingers can arrange, and yet, as Editha glanced furtively at the somewhat awkwal'd hard-featured house-keeper, she felt intuitively that Mrs. Garth could have had nothing to do with this adorning. “Who then?” She bad just asked herself the mental question when footsteps were heard over-head, and there came a sound as of some one beating againt a closed door. The brothers exchanged glances, and Adrian turned hastily to leave the room. At the same instant Editha heard a woman’s voice crying—“Let me out. How dare you lock me in here? 1 will not submit to it.” Adrian sprang up the stairs, scaling two at a time. A key clicked in its lock, and his musical tones reached the listening ears below, breathing words of gentle remonstrance. “He quiet, Florine. Do not excite yourself so. It is best you should remain in your chamber for awhile.” “Humph! You are planning some mischief. Otherwise you would never dream of locking me in like some un ruly child. I intend to find out what it is.” The woman’s wild laugh seemed to pierce Editha’s ear. There came the sound of a brief struggle—then ail was still. when Editha ventured to look at Vivian at length he was pale as death, and trembling in every limb. “What is the meaning of all this?’ she demanded. “1 cannot tell you, I dare not,” he answered with a groan. “Try to forget that you have seeu or heard anything unusual here.” "But who is that woman?” “A poor half-crazed creature my brother and I have taken in out of pity.” “Pray, Miss Vane, do not speak of her presence here to any one outside of the house.” Editha’s up curled scorn fully. “Fear nothing,” she said. “Your secret is safe with me, Mr. Long.” A few minutes later Adrian reap peared, Editha had never seen him look so white and troubled. “Are you better, be inquired anx iously. “My own horse is at the door. I will drive you home at once, If you feel equal to the exertion.” How anxious he seemed to be rid of her! Editha rose, her pulses thrilling with pain. This was the man to whom her heart’s best love had suffered to go out —a poor wretch whose life held some shameful or dangerous secret. Ah, how very foolish indeed she had been. Both were silent during the brief home-wardjdrive, but Adrian, as he set her down at her own door, suddenly caught her hand, looking imploringly into the old half-averted face with his grave earnest eyes. “You are angry with me, Miss Vane, ” he said hesitatingly. “You think per haps I have no right to keep a secret from the world?” “No,” she replied, in a haughty tone; “I have no interest whatever in your affairs.” His face twitched, he took a moment to recover himself. “Once I thought differently,” he breathed. “I fancied you were learn ing to love me as devotedly as I love you.” Editha could endure it no more. This declaration was so different from the one she had often pictured to her self. Snatching her hand from his clasp, sue entered the house and ran upstairs to her own loom, almost hys terical with excitement. “How dare he speak of love while that woman remains an inmate of ‘his house!” she exclaimed, beginning to sob piteously. “I almost hate him for it.” The next day Editha was sitting alone in the cosy parlor, when the door bell rang, and a visitor was ushered in —Vivian Long. He came hastily tor- ward, his face wearing so strange an expression the girl was instantly struck by it. “I have passed such a wretched night!” he cried abruptly, before she could speak “I never closed my eyes. I feared that the events of .yes terday might cause you to distrust and dislike me, and that is more than I could tamely endure.” He seemed to struggle with himself a moment then resumed—“I came to extort a promise from you, Editha. Do not refuse, un less you would drive me to despair.” “A promise?” she asked faintly. “What is it?” “You must have known for a long time how I was learning to think of you. 1 want you to swear to remain faithful to me for one year, let what will happen during the meantime.” He was looking straight into her eyes. Editha gave a frightened start. She had never thought of him save as a friend. Some impulse it was impossi ble to control led her to say abruptly— ' Tell me who is the woman now stop ping at Laurel Cottage. What relation does she bear to your brother Adrian? Is she his—his Her voice broke and died away. The scowl that had wrimtled Vivian’s brow when she first began to speak, faded quickly, and his whole face brighteued. “What?” he cried eagerly. “Adrian’s wife?” the words, spoken with a tremendous effort, were scarcely audible. She stood with clasped hands, her pulses beating high. “Yes, the woman is my brother’s wife,” Vivian replied in a husky voice. “You know so much already I shall keep nothing back.” “Three years ago he was deluded into marrying hor, and before the honeymoon had waned she was a rav ing maniac. Insanity had been in the family from which she sprang for seve ral generations. Adrian knew nothing of this until it was too late. The poor thing has been more rational since we brought her to Laurel Cottage, oue year ago. Pride alone led us to con ceal her existence from our triends. We intended no wrong by it.” Wiping the cold drops of moisture from his •forehead, he said imploringly —“Now for the promise I came to ex tort; it will Ije a great comfort to me, Editha. Surely you cannot refuse.” She hesitated. Her cheeks burned like fire- Why should she not consent, and thus show Adrian how she despised his treachery in daring to speak of love to her while he had a wife living. Give me twenty-four hours for reflection,” she said finally, after a bitter struggle. Vivian begged with stange veue- mence for an immediate promise, but as she remained firm, at last he went reluctantly away. Editha spent a wretched night. It seemed dreadful that all her bright hopes should be blighted and her life broken before the happy years of girl hood had passed. The next morning she was wandering listlessly about the grounds when the garden gate clanged, and a woman came hurriedly towards her—a pallid young thing, with sunken eyes and hollow cheeks who must once have been very beautiful. “Are you Miss Vane?” she asked, almost in a whisper, pausing with clasped hands. Editha recognized the voice instantly. It was that of the strange woman at Laurel Cottage. •“I wish to make a request,” the in truder went on hurriedly, looking at Editha as though the latter held her life in her keeping. “I am a poor un fortunate soul who has known nothiug save trouble. Some folks say I am no? altogether right here. ’’ And she passed both hands slowly across uer forehead. “You seem to be good and kind, miss. The doctors tell me I have only a few weeks to live, and surely you will not begrudge me what little bappiuess 1 can find in Mat brief time.” “What do you mean?” Editha in quired, with a perplexed 'air. “Of course I will do anything you wish. Don’t be afraid to speak.” The woman breatned a long shudder ing sigh. “I thought you would under stand at once. My husband loves you, and can think of no one else. Ah! it is dreadful. When I am dead, of course you will marry him if you wish. But oh, for pity sake, let me nave him all to myself while I lire.” Editha was horrified, and leaned half-fainting against the rustic bench beside her. “You are laboring under some delusion,” she said. “Adrian Long is nothing to me. Tne one wish of my heart is that I may never see him again. Until this moment I have been In doubt as to the course I ought to pursue, but now my mind is made up. To prove to you my sincerity I haVe decided to marry his brother Vivian.” “Vivian,” gasped the woman. Why, it is he I mean; he is my husband.” Editha sat down, shocked and stunned by the revelation. All at ouce, in her deep bewilderment, she was conscious that pome one had knelc before her, and clasped her passive liand. It was Adrian Long. He had followed Florine, and came up unob served, just ih time to hear all that was said. ^ “What a singu&r mistake,” he breathed.* “Was itTtre delusive belief that this poor creature was my wife that made you so cold aud hard to me, Editha? Something in your face leads me to hope, in spite of your bitter words. May I?” Her bead fell upon his shoulder. She understood all at ouce. It was now clear as daylight why Vivian wished to extort thar promise from her. Before the year went by, his wife would be dead, his freedom restored. “How blind I have been,” she cried aloud. It no longer mattered however. Strong loving arms were round her, and she knew the end would be happi ness and peace. 5P Latter-Writing In Different Countries. Turning to Mr. Fawcett’s English report for the year .ending March last, we find the usual narrative of steady development. The circulation of let ters has increased at about the same ratio as the population; that of postal- cards, as was the case last year also, rather more rapidly. The total num her of letters delivered during the year exceeded 1,280,000,000, while the num ber of postal-cards was 144,000,000. It is interesting, as bearing upon the state of education of the country and the efficiency of the postal service, to com pare the number of letters per head of the population now sent through the post on the one hand with the number sent in former years; and. on the other with that circulating in foreign coun tries. In 1839, the year before the in troduction of the penny post, 3 letters were sent per head. In the following year the number more than doubled; in 1873 it had risen to 29, and it now* stands at 86. Comparing the different divisions of the United Kingdom, Eng land is far in adwtuce, the average number being there 41, jn Scotland 31, and in Ireland 17»* in Germany,' on the other hand, where the postal sys tem is in many respects superior to our own, and where education is generally considered to be more widely diffused, but where the population is thinly scat tered our extensive districts, the aver age number of letters per head is, ac cording to the best returns available, only 13 while in France the number is 15. When we turn to telegrams we do not find the same evidence that the present system reaches the mass of people. The number of messages sent is only 32,000,000, and the increase was a little more than a third of that of the previous year. The proportion of telegrams to letters is not stated in the present report, but last year it was put at 1 to 44, whue in the case of France it was 1 to 29; in Belgium, 1 to 24; in Holland, 1 to 22; and in Switzerland, 1 to 23. Bearing in mind the much lar ger correspondence of this country, as indicated by the figures we have just now quoted, the small ilse of the tele graph here, as compared with the Continental countries, shows that the serv ice is of a far less popular charac ter. It is to be hoped that the promised reduction of the minimum charge to 6d., to which Mr. Fawcett alludes, will redress this auomaly in the pjstal sys tem. Traveling In a Dream. Dog aad Snake. “The water moccasin is dead,” said Lucien Alexander, the well-known druggist and snake fancier in Detroit. “It died, and I wouldn’t have taken the whole Tenth ward with the school trusteeship thrown in for it.” “What killed it?” asked the repor ter, to whom Lucien was pouring out his grief. “He was scalded to death. I had the moccasin and a water dog in the same jar together, but somehow or other they couldn’t get along with each other. They were continually fighting over the food I gave them, and yesterday they, concluded to settle their diffuroacaa for ever. They sparred around in the water for awhile, neither one seeming to have the advantage, but- finally the water dog executed a flank movement on the moccasin and swallowed about three inches of his tail and body. In stead of the moccasin trying to free himself he laid perfectly quiet and com menced pumping himself full of wind like a bellows. As he swelled up the water dog backed off but it was too late. It was like pull mg a boot off a swollen foot. The moccasin kept on pumping and the water dog continued to expand. As he spread out you could hear his ribs crack, and I expected every moment to see him fly into a thousand pieces, but suddenly the swel ling ceased, for the moccasin had gone the full length of his expansive powers, and he commenced to contract. Re- d.uced to his ordinary size the water- dog lost no time in slipping off, but he w as so weak from the terrible strain he had received that for a moment or two Jie was powerless. The moccksin took advantage of this, and, turning on the dog, swallowed him whole. Tueu fol- low’ed one of the most remarkable oc currences ever witnessed. The dog, evidently scared almost to death, be gan galloping back aud forth the full length of the moccasin. By the wav ing ridges on the snake every move ment of the dog could be told. Back and forth he weut until the friction in side of the snake must Have beeu ter rible, for the water began to get warm from the heat of the moccasin’s body. Every time the dog would gallop to ward the head of the snake the snake would close its mouth, causing the dog to turn aud run away. This perform ance was kept up for fully au hour, dur ing which time the water grew boiling hot, aud the whole skin peeled off the snake. Then the flesh got soft, and the first thiag I knew he went all to pieces like a chunk of soft soap in a wash basin. The dog soon shook off the remnants of the snake which ad hered to him, but he, like the mocca sin, was scalded to death also. Y on can see that grease on the top of that that jar of water? Well, that’s all that W'as left of my moccasin aud water-dog. Tn« lulanoy of Navigation. A remarkable dream was told us by a former well-known citizen now de ceased. We met him on a Sunday morning standing on a bridge gazing down into the water apparently lost in thought. We approached, aud putting a hand on his shoulder, remarked: “A penny for your thoughts.” He looked up aud answered, “Do you think our spirit can leave the body and travel about the country seeing strange things and places as they actually exist?” I answered no. He then went on and narrated the following remarkable dream: “I had been thinking during the day about going over to Rodman Furnace, bo that night I dreamed 1 started to go over, taking a near cut through a gap in the mountain over a road and through a pait of the couuty 1 had uever traveled or seen before. In my dream 1 passed over the breast of the reservoir, traveled along the foot of the mountain up to the old Kephart pottery, took a driuk out of the spring at the end of tiie old log house, was set upou by a spotted dog, but went safely ou, struck the gap in the mountain, traveled the path to the top and seeing an old coal heartn stepped on to it to take a v'ew of the valley below. A big stump stood on the opposite side of the coal hearth, aud near the stump were eleven wild turkeys scratching among the leaves. Tne turkeys took night and soon were gdue; I woke up aud found my journey was but a dream. Throe days later 1 concluded to make the trip, and remembering the dream i concluded to follow the same road, but imagine my surprise when I found everything just as i had seen it in my dream and lire road as familiar as it could be had I been over it before. The same old log house aud spring, the same spotted dog disputed my' passage, and ou reaching tne summit of the mountain the same old coal hearth, tire same old stump, and eleven wild turkeys started up aud flew away. From that on to Rodman all the way was strange, no single object that I had ever seen before.” From this the dreamer had deduced the theory that the spirits actually leave the body to travel/ftroend at night seeing things and plicee as they actually are. The infancy of the ait of naval archi tecture, is enveloped in obscurity. It is quite certain, however, that the first vessels in use were not large, for the largest vessel of the Grecian fleet at tire siege of Troy, B. C. 1184, carried only 12U men. The sails of these ves sels were of a small dimensions, and auxiliary to the oars, which were the chief propelliug power. There appears to have been little need for war vessels at that period, as tue fashion of fight ing at sea had not yet come in. It was not until some 500 years later that ves sels were built with a view to marine warfare. By this time the oars had increased in number and were arranged in banks one above the other in the central part of the ships, the fighting men occupying platforms at the bow and s*ern. Tuese vessels were called galleys. About 470 B. C. the Athen ian commauder-in-chief caused these platforms to be connected, thus form ing a deck wuich served the double duty of protecting the oarsmen and providing room for a greater number of soldiers. Still, the sails were very small aud were only of use in a fair wind. There is no ground for main taining, says the writer, that the art of navigation was entirely unknown to the inhabitants of the world before the flood. There is no circumstance men tioned to indicate that the ark was the first of its kind. It would, therefore, be fruitleas to eudeavor to invesagate tne first inven tor of marine architecture, aud it seems reasonaole to suppose that the idea of ships origiuated in toe minis of men at the same time in a variety of places. The nations which appear to be joint claimants for the invention of ships are the Egyptians and Puoeniciaus. Ac cording to Grecian fables, Fyrrhou dis covered the art of bending planks by tire for the purpose of ship-building. The beak-head, tue rudder aud the aufchor are all claimed as the devices of Egyptians. Crete claims the invention of masts and cross-yards; Tueseus, leaf us aud Dadalus the application of sails, wude to a Syrian is ascribed the honor of devising vessels of traffic. Isis, Queen of Egypt, about the year of the wond 223U, is accredited with first having taught the use of sails. So great was her fame in the world of in ventions that the Emperor Julian caused medals to be struck, whereon she is represented as a ship. Jason is shown to have built tne first long ship. Tue ships used prior to this w jre round. Tue Argonautic expedition—which was Uie first mercantile voyage of wuicii we have any account—rook place about 1263 B. (J. It was then that tuis ship ot Jason’s was employed. Copper and brass were substituted for non used for fastenings aoout the time of Nero. Tne first sails were probably made of tue skins of aminais, a material still in use in some countries for tire same pur pose. In this connection the writer calls attention to the strong resemb lance between the nautical movements of uncivilized people now and those of remote antiquity. According to some accounts sea navigation was first under taken by the iuhaoitants of tue island of Crete. Usous, a Phoenician, is re presented as the first person who ven tured to sea in a canoe hollowed out from Ore trunk of a tree. A variety of small boats were soon invented to suit the needs of different nations. The East Indians constructed boats of bam boo or canes. Another kind of boat made with hides, with a light frame work of reed and a keel of bamboo, was found among the ancient Britons. Tl^y were verv like the skin skiffs now use by the Kamchatkans. The Egy] tians made use of boats made of pap; rus. The shell of the land tortoise wi even made to do duty as boats. Men tion of tins fact is made by Pliny. Boats were also made of baked clay by a people of Egypt. B iats made of birch bark, probably similar to tbe canoes of American Indians, were used by a people of India. Alexander the Great crossed the River Oxus with his jurmy, 330 B. O., on floats or rafts, which were sup ported by skins made buoyant by infla tion or from being stuffed with straw and hay. Semiramis built a fleet of two thousand boats on the coasts of Cyprus, and had them transported on carriages and the backs of camels to the Ijkfcver Indus, where they fought aud defeated the fleet of Staunobatus, King of Indus, which consisted of four tiiousaud boats made of cane. Daring the Punic war a Roman army was transported to Sicily ^.upon vessels moved by wheels worked by oxen. Everything tends to show that then- boats were small. They were capable of being hauled on shore, aud fleets of them were built iu au incredibly short time. Still, the fact remaiiH that the Greeks, Carthaginians aud Romans conveyed immense armies from one country to another by sea, aud that great uumbers of elephants were taken in the same way by tue Carthaginians into Sicily and Spain, and, during Han nibal’s campaign, into Italy. It is dif ficult to see how small craft could have transported such cumbrous creatures. But, leaving the question of utility aside, the fleets of the ancients must have presented a Bight fair to look upou with their carved, gilded aud gayly de corated extremities, vari-colored rigg ing formed of painted roues, sails ttasii- iug purple, crimson or flame color, aud embroidered with the name of the Em peror iu gold or silver; gilded oars, and the whole structure surmounted by bright streamers. Crime ■ BevUlted. rumloe Stonn. “The pumice-stone trade of Phila delphia is not so extensive in the mat ter of dollars and cents, but it is au interesting aud suggestive trade, when you come to think of it. Pumice- stone, though one of the curious pro ductions of nature, doesn’t rank with the precious stones, or it wouldn’t be so cheap.” “What is pumice stone, and what does it come from?” the reporter asked. “Well, you might say it is the slop ping over of a volcano after it has cooled off. It is porous, and so light that you may have seen pieces of it floating in water. All tliat we get here comes from Italy. One of the chief places there in which it is gathered and shipped is the Lsland of Lipari. It is one of the Eolian islands, and was the scene of a volcanic upheaval, nobody knows how many centuries ago. I believe that Lipari yields wines and fruits, much more pleasant and profit able that this Dead sea sort of fruit we are talking about.” “How much of the stone do we im port?” “Only a trifle over eleven hundred dollars’ worth last year,” was the re ply; “yet it is an article that enters into many industries. It is very useful in the marble business, and is a good deal in use throughout the city now in cleaning up white marble fronts, the silica of which it is so largely composed making it very effective. In the pol ishing room of all marble establish ments it is also invaluable, In giving the surface the desired smoothness, which fits it for the rubbing by harder stones, felting, etc. Then it is used in various arts in shining up metals, dressing skins, etc. It is often made use of in a pulverized form. One of the domestic ways in which it is some times utilized is in the cleaning of table knives; so-you see that, although only a cinder, it comes handy to thousands of people in their daily work, and we could better dispense with some other articles that we get from Italy than we could with this oue.” Ifano; Ornament*. A cunuing device is a toy wheelbar row entirely covered with lichen, “tip- tilted” at any desired angle, and full to overflowing with autumn spoils. Even a well-worn leather shoe, the big ger the better, may with a little con triving borrow a grace never before its own, and become, if not “a joy forever,” why certainly a thing of beauty. If it l ices in front, mend every rent eyelet sufficiently well to allow the introduc tion of red cord or narrow, gay-colored ribbon. Next place a well-mended sock inside tbe shoe and pour into that either sand or sawdust; until the whole foot is nearly filled, then stop. This will keep the shoe in shape, and yet leave the ankle free for whatever is to stand in it. Lace up tightly, aud paste lichen all over (excepting of course the sole), being careful to close the spaces near the ribbon, and jet allow tbe bright co lor to show. Add to the ankle top a frill of moss plumelets or tiny fern fronds. Fill up wich crystallized gras ses or sea-ferns, and behold a picture, not down on any catalogue, it is true, yet* with a rustic, trainpy look about it “for a’ that. ” A stemless goblet filled with water aud field-dowers slipped into the shoe-leg, toe wayside bouquet pro jecting just enough, forms another and a different feature. The little barrow may also hold a glass of daisies anti rod and white clover, or asters and goldeu- rod as each cometb in its season. In boring an artesian well in the Santa Clara Valley, California, the stamp ol a redwood tree was met at a distance of 281 feet from the ground sur face. Tne point where the tree wan. strue i is 84 feet above tide water, from which it ie diet nit eight miles, and the depth st wiuoh the wood **s reached is much greater than that of t&a water in the bay, Setastopol la in ruins, but here and there houses of a better description are cropping up. There is a new Admiral ty and a large new church, the latter on the top of the ridge near the old uined Church of St. Peter and Paul, t is built of Inkerman stone, and, with ' e new Church of Vladimar aud the great memorial edifice to the memory of those who fell in the siege, situated ou- the north side of the harbor, form three very conspicuous white objects, seeu from the deck of the ship as one ap proaches Sebastopol. There is a good fish market at daybreak each day, and the city has three good hotels. The newest, or Grand Hotel, is very com fortable. There are plenty of horses for riding and carriages for hire, so oue disposed to revisit me fields of his early battles can easily do so, aud without either much trouble or expense. The trenches are easily^discerned by those who have any knowledge of them. Bits of sole leather, heels of boots, buttons, the tin inside of pouches, are about in all directious, and innumerable pieces of broke.i bottles. The monuments, from long exposure to the weather, are in many cases illegible. Tne sites of camps are now great meadows with fair crops. The windmill has its roof decayed and gone. Gar roads are our greatest aud grandest monuments. There they are, uuusud ami useless, as the Tartars never travel ou macadauuz- roads if they can go on grass. The bat tle-field of Inkerman is now a forest of stunted trees. Not even the road up tu the Redoubt is passable for a carriage. The two-gim battery cauuot be seeu until you are iu it. The Plains of bala clava are now under cultivation, aud are covered with enormous fields of corn, vineyards, and orchards. Tue town has some pleasant new houses, recently built, and a good hotel. It is recreation ground for those who like to get away from the dust and dirt of Sebastopol. There lias been a good deal of property recovered from the wrecks in the harbor—money, wine, beer, etc —and hopes are enteri lined that some of the T6J,U00 in gold known to be iu tbe Captain’s cabin of the Piiuce may yet be recovered. I visited Alma then; it lies infsolitary grandeur. The cattle and sheep avoid the deadly slopes. Tbe few’ tombs covering the re mains of compatriots are ruinous aud neglected. The monument over the of ficers of the 23d is falling to pieces. This is to be lamented, as it is a beauti ful memorial of white marble, aud con spicuous for many miles as you approach the liattery where so many fell to rise no more. The field of battle is not more than fifteen miles from the north side of Sebastopol, and the road, though hilly in places, can easily be got over m two hours with three horses abrea t; cost, 12 roubles, or 12 shillings. Al Yalta there is a splendid hotel now — 250 beds, and faro reasonable. Tuere are also two other hotels. The Edin burgh is a very large oue, Plenty of horses and carriages can be hired for tours to any part of the peninsula. A tourist would do well to take a gun of some kind, as there are plenty of speci mens of birds of all kinds to be shot. A large deer of Persian origin is wild about the Tchatyr Dagh. One can till a basket of trout in the upper waters of the Alma, Katchka, aud Belbeck. A Sword-naiilnf CrulM. Governor Bums and a large party of distinguished men went out sword-fish ing in Captain Dodge’s schooner from Providence. Captain Dodge who will trust no other man to perform v'aeduty, sat holding in constant readiness a long harpoon having a wooden handle, so ar ranged as to separate, when the fish is struck, from the barb, perhaps six in ches in length, which is attached to a rope held on board the vessel. A man stood at the masthead watching the sur face of the ocean around. A swordfish usually swims with his dorsal flu and one of the flukes of his tail out of water, differing in this respect from the shov el-nose shark, which only shows the fin on his back. About noon the cry was heard, “A sharkl” “A shark!” and right ahead cauld be seen a fin just pro jecting from the waves. Thinking that a shark would be bettor tbau uo fish the captain ordered the helmsmamto put him in a position to throw the harpoou. As the schooner approached the fish be gan to sink slowly and had dropped some eight feet below the surface, when Mr. Dodge threw the iron and came on board. The fish at one disappeared, but no one knew whether he was ser iously hurt or comparatively unharmed. One of the men got into the boat, which was promptly lowered, taking some 30u feet of line, attached at one end to the vessel and at the other to au empty cask headed tightly. The helm of the schooner was at once put dowu, and as fast as the wind would take her she was taken from such dan gerous proximity with the fish, which Captain Dodge then declared was a sword-fish. The fish, when struck, us ually makes a terrific rush aud then dives as deep as he cam If he-is ser iously wouuded he may sometimes be pulled in in a few minutes and the fin ishing blow given by lancing him. But this fish was not seriously wounded, as eight feet of water had deadened some- wtiat the force with which the harpoon was thrown. For about au hour oc curred a struggle of mind and matter, of science with brute force, far surpass ing all the stratagem of trout fishing, and even approaching tiie high skill of taking a bass. The fish would dive, but the cask filled with air wouid soon discourage such a course, and the sub merged cask would again reappear floating like a cork upon the waves. Then the line would be pulled in by tbe man in the boat when the maddened fish would again go down. At last he was brought a’ongside, and by a skillful blow the dangerous work of lancing was performtX Very sel dom does it happen that a sword-fish must be handled so gingerly as this, and the sport was not free from danger. The prize weighed 300 pounds as it was pulled in an<£ 215 pounds when dressed. —The prince of Wales delights 1% ! ■ ■ iSfeji I , ’V '■ 4» ' V -V k‘; - k£»S§[, .1 •X,- r r 'V