Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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TV \ , ' J53 ' ' ' ??????????? ???-??- - : ?' v: - . % THE ABBEVILLE PRESS & BANNER j # ; . ' . . i. .ff A / \ BY HUGH WILSON. ABBEVILLE, S. C., WEDNESDAY, OCTOBEK 18, 1876. VOLUME XXIY.-NO. 28. ~ Miss Flipp at the Centennial. Oh, Mi-is Fiipp, of New York oity, lately went to see the show That's held in Philadelphia this season, as yon know; And the things that damsel saw and heard, the things she learnecf and felt, Would fill an anohorite with joy, or heart of Nero molt. 1 heard her tell her dearest friend about it all one day, And I bog to tell the s-tory in her own sweet girlish way. "I saw, oh, Rosy! lute of things. The trip was, oh! so fir.o? I wore my corn polouaise with white embroidered vine. The loveliest machinery, so graud, yon know; and then 'Twas fun to see them working it?those lovely, dirty men. My cavalier went wild with rage because I watched them so : These nobby fellows always are so jealous, dear, yon know. The fine art gallery, they say, is nice as it can be; Bat really there was Bnoh a crowd I didn't try to see. In the Japanese department I bought me such a fan !? I wonder how they ever learned to make things in Japan. And, oh ! the way I rushed around, on foot, dear, and on chairs, Was fearful, for in such a place 'moBt everybody stares. I didn't mind, because it's only every hundred j fears Centennials oome, and no one cares how just j one girl appears (So uncle said). But one can't help one's feel- j ings, after all, i2m?va? on/1 nnn'o waeu uue 10?L1JUI o U1 uuiyoj luu U puffs get squeezed bo small. But it really is, when all is done, a satisfaction, dear, To have been at the Centennial, and not seem green and qneer. And then the sliku and flowers, and lovely lace?oh, my! They make you wild, because, you see, they're awful hard to bay. To see thenl does expand the mind, and give you new ideas: I'm going to oopy me a dress that's shown by Madame Speere ; I'm going to get a bonnet, too, made jast like one I saw? A perfect darling ! just a mass of roses, lace and straw. I saw a real live Turk one day (bat didn't like to look), Ali dreaded in sword and trowsers, like a picture in a book. You needn't go abroad, they say, for all the world is there ; And really I do fee] as if I'd been 'most everywhere. There's everything, on earth to see?such jewelry and lace ! I moat bay the Centennial is just the sweetest place. I Kent to the Troi* Freres, and had, oh ! anoh a heavenly time With Mr. F. and Harry B., wbo really tarns oat prime. Bach lovely cream! although they charge ontra.<oonely, they say? Which doesn't matter much to girls, as we don't have to pay. Oh, mercy on ns ! I must go. But I'm glad I've seen the bhow, And told you all aboit it, aud the things you ought to know." ?Bazar. MUCH ADO ABOUr NOTHING.) BY T. 8. ARTHUR. "Did you see that ?" said Mrs. Jones to her friend Mrs, Lyon, with whom she was walking. "See what?" "Why, tuat Mrs. Todddidn't speak to me." " No. I thought she spoke to you as well oh to mo." "Indeed, then, she didn't." " Are jon sure?" "Sure? Can I believe my own eyes? She'nodded and spoke to you; but she didn't as much as look at me.". " What in the world can bo the reason, Mr<? .fones?" " Dear knows!" " You certainly must be mistaken. Mrs. Todd would not refuse to speak to one of her old friends in the street." " Hamph ! I don't know. She's rather queer sometimes. She's taken a miff at something, I suppose, and means to cut my acquaintance. But 1 shall not distress myself about it. She isn't all the world." " II we you done anything likely to offend her?" asked Mrs. Lyon. "Me?" returned her companion; "no, not that I am aware of. But certain people are always on the look out for something or other wrong, and Mrs. Todd is just one of that kind." T ?,*U/\n/YV>f or* \fro Tatioc " J. nr*n vuvu^iiu Au.to. . "S'io is, then. I know her very well." "JL'in sorry,"said Mr--. Lyon,evincing a go<;d deal of concern. " Hadn't you better go to her in a plain, straight-forward way, and ask the reason of her conduct J This would make all be clear in a moment." " G i to her, Mrs. Lyon!" exclaimed Mrs. .Tones, with ill-concealed indignation. "No, indeed?that I will not. Do you think I would demean myself so much ?" " I am not so sure that by s? doing you wouid demean yourself as yon ifoy. There is, clearly, some mistake, and Buch a course would correct all fulse impressions. Buh it was only a suggestion, thrown out for jour consideration." "Oh, no, Mrs. Lvon I" replied Mrs. * " '* '1 Jones, witii wurmcn. i?u uovt-r tum me criuging to people, and beggiug to know why t hey sre pleased to cnt my acquaintance. I feel qnite as good as anybody, and consider myself of as much consequence as the proudest and best. Mrs. Todd needn't think I care for her acquaintance. I never valued it a pin." Notwithstanding Mrs. Jones' perfect indifference toward Mrs. Todd, she continued o talk about her pretty much after .this fashion, growing more excited all the while, during the next half hour, at the clo::e of which time the ladies parted company. When Mrs. Jones met her hnRtand at the dinner table, she related wfir had happened during the mornin^k Mr. Jones was disposed to treat tl^^Ltter lightly, but his wife soon that the thing was no joke. Sf} What can be Mrs. Todd'i^^on for such conduct?" he asked, with a serious air. * * I can't tell for my life/' " She must have heard some false report about you." " It's as likely as not. But what can it b?>. ?" " Something serious to cause her to take so decided a stand as she seems to have done." Mr. Jones looked grave and spoke in a grave tone of voioe. This made matters worse. Mrs. Jones' first idea was that Mrs. Tod < had heard something that she might have said about hrtr; and that wounded pride had eau^d her to <1$ as she had done. But her husband's remark suggested other thoughts. It was possible that reports wer^in circulation calculated to injure her social standing, and Mrs. Todd's oonduct toward her was not the result of any private pique. "It was oertainly strange and unaccountable," she said, in replj to her husband's last remark, speaking in a thoughtful tone. "Would it not be the fairest and best ] way for you to go and ask for an explanation ?" "No, I can't do that," replied Mrs. Jones, quickly. "Iam willing to bear i undeserved contempt, and unjust consuite, but I will never humble myself to any one." j For the rest of the day, Mrs. Jones' i thoughts all flowed in one ohannel. A i nunarea reasons ior Mrs. loaa s strange , conduct were imagined, but none seem- i ed long satisfactory. At last she remembered having spoken pretty freely i about the lady, to a certain individual i who was not remarkable for his discre- ] tion. " That's it!" she said, rising from her 1 chair, and walking nervously across the : floor of her chamber, backward and for- 1 ward, for two or three times, while a burning glow suffused her cheek. "Isn't it too bad that words, spoken in i confidence, should have been repeated! I don't wonder she is offended !" ] The idea was retained for a time, and ] then abandoned for some other that i seemed more plausible. For the next < two weeks Mrs. Jones was very unhap- < py. She did not meet Mrs. Todd during that period, but she saw a number qf j her friends, to whom either she or Mrs. Lyon had communicated the fact al- , ready stated. All declared the conduct , of Mrs. Todd to be unaccountable; but , several, among themselves, had shrewd , suspicions of the real cause. Converse- . tious on the subject, like the following, j were held: "I can tell you what I think about it, , Mrs. S. You know Mrs. Jones is pretty ( free with her tongue f" j "Yes." * j "You've heard her talk about Mrs. Todd?" ] " I don't remember, now." < "I have, often. She doesn't spare* j her sometimes. You know, yourself, ( that Mrs. Todd has queer ways of her own." , " She is not perfect, certainly." j " Not by a great deal; and Mrs. Jones ( 'has not hesitated to say so. There is ( not the least doubt in my mind that ( Mrs. Todd has heard something." ] " Perhaps so. But she is very foolish . I a.I ?? I/O burwu uuj JUUUIV^O kjl AH. "So I think. But you know she is touchy." . In some instances, the conversation , assumed a grave form: I " Do you know what has struck me in this matter of Mrs. Jones and Mrs. , Todd?" says one scandal loving personage to another, whose taste ran parallel ) with her own. " No. What is it ?" eagerly asks the auditor. " 1 will tell you. But you mustn't , speak of it for your life.". "Never fear me." j The communication is made in a deep , whisper. { " Bless me !" exclaims the recipient { of tho secret. " It surely cannot be < so!" " Tbeie is not the least doubt of it. I ( had it from a source that cannot be ] doubted." ' ( " How in the world did you hear it ?" ( "In a way not dreamed of by Mrs. Jones." t "No doubt Mrs. Todd has heard the s same." s "Not the least in the world. But c don't you thirk her to blame in refusing > to keep Mrs. Jones' company, or eventu ' speak to her ?" c " Certainly I do. It happened a long i time ago, and no doubt poor Mrs. Jones has sxiffered enough on account of it. f Indeed, I don't think she ought to be i blamed in the matter at all. It was her misfortune, not her fault." ] "So I think, In fact, I believe Bhe i is just as worthy of respect and kiud ness as Mrs. Todd." [ "No doubt of it in the world ; and from me she shall always receive it." ( 41 And fronj me also." f In this*way the circle spread, so that ( before two weeks had elapsed there were , no less than twenty different notions ( held about Mrs. Todd's behavior to Mrs. Jones. Some talked very seriously , about cutting the acquaintance of Mrs. < Jones also, while others took her aide , and threatened to givo up the aoquaint auc* of Mrs. Todd. Thus matters stood, whon a mutual , friend, who wished to do honor to some , visitors from a neighboring city, seDt out invitations for a party. Before j these invitations were dispatched, it was . seriously debated whether it wonld do to invi e both IVXrs. Jones and Mrs. Todd, considering how matters stood ; between them. The decision was in ] favor of letting them take care of their own difficulties. "If I thought Mrs. Todd would be there I am sure 1 wouldn't go," said Mrs. Jones, on roceiving her card of invitation. " I hardly think that would be acting wisely," replied her husband. "You | are not conscious of. having wronged Mrs. Todd. Why, then, should you j shuu her * , " But it isso unpleasantto meet a per son with whom you have been bo long ( a timate, who refuses to speak to you." " No doubt it is. Still we ought not , to go out of our way to shun that per- j son. Let us, while wo d? not attempt t.n intprfprn with tho liberties of others. , be free ourselves. Were I in your place, , I would riot move an inch to keep out of , her way." "I have not your firmness. I wish I had. It was only yesterday that I ( crossed the street to keep from meeting her face to faco." " You were wrong." " I can't help it. It is my weakness. 1 Three times already have I put myself about to avoid her; and if I could frame ' any good cxcune for staying away from 1 this party I certainly should do so. I would give anything for a good eick 1 headache on Tuesday next 1" " I am really ashamed of n>u, Ellen I I thought you more of a woman," said Mr. Jones. The night of the party at leDgth came round. During the whole day preceding it, Mrs. Jones could think of nothing But the unpleasant feeliDg3 she would have upon meeting with Mrs. Todd, and her " heart was in her mouth" all the time. She wished a dozen times that it would rain. But her ^ wishes availed nothing. Not a cloud to be seen in t^e clear blue firmament from monuzig until evening. ' ** Oh, if I only had Bome goou excuse for staying at home 1" she said, over and over again, but no goocL-excuse offered. Mr. Jones saw that his wife was in a ( ery unhappy state of mind, and tried his best to cheer her, but with little gopd effect. ' " It is uo use to talk to me, I can't help it," she replied to his remonstrance, in a husky voice. "I am neither a , stock nor a stone." " There's Mrs. Jones,"said one friend J to another, on seeing the lady they named enter Mrs. 's well filled parlors. "Where is Mrs. Todd?" asked the i lady addressed. i "Sure enough I where is she?" re- ; plied the other. " Oh, there she is in : the other room. I wonder why it is that i she does not speak to Mrs. Jones." i "No one knows." < "It's very strange." "IH tell you what I've heard." "What? "That she's jealous of Mrs. Jones.** " Ridiculous I" "Isn't it?" " I don't believe a word of it." "Nor I. I only told you what I had heard." "There must be some other reason." "And doubtless is." Meantime Mrs. Jones found a scat in a-corner, where sho ensconced herself, with the determination of keeping her place during the evening, that she might avoid the unpleasantness of coming in contact with Mrs. Todd. All this, of course, was very weak in Mrs. Jones ; b?t she had no independent strength of character, it must be owned. " Poor Mrs. Jones ! How cut down she looks," remarked a lady who knew all about the trouble that existed. " I really feel sorry for her." " She takes it a great deal too much to heart," was the reply. "Mrs. Todd might refuse to bpeak to me a dozen times if she liked, I wouldn't break my heart. But where is she ?" " In the other room, as gay and lively is ever I saw her. See, there she is I" " Yes, I see her. Hark ! You .can bear her laugh to here. I must oonfess I don't like it. I don't believe she has any heart. She must know that Mrs. Jones is hurt at what she has Jone." " Of course she does, and her manner is meant to insult her. Seeing the disturbed and depressed state of Mrs. Jones' mind, two or three af her friends held a consultation on the subject, and finally agreed that they would ask Mrs. Todd, who seemed purposely to avoid Mrs. Jones, why she icted toward her as she did. But before they oould find an opportunity of Joing so, a messenger came to say that ane of Mrs. Todd's children had been taken suddenly ill. The lady withdrew immediately. Mrs. Jones breathed more freely on learning that Mrs. Todd had gone home. - -.i 1 # 1 _1 soon alter sue emergea irom uer piucu in the corner, and mingled with the lompany duriDg the rest of the evening. On the following morning, three lalies, personal friends of Mrs. Todd, met by appointment, and entered into grave jonsultation. They had undertaken to (ind ont the cause of offense that hadocjurred of so serious a character as to lead Mrs. Todd to adopt so rigid a jourse toward Mrs. Jones, and if possible to reconcile matters. " The sickness of her child will be a good excuse for us to call upon her," jaid one. "If he is better, we can introduce the matter judiciously." "I wonder how she will tat a it?" juggested another. " Kindly, I hope," remarked the ;hird. " Suppose she does not ?" " We have done our duty. " True. And that consciousness jught to be enough for us." " She is a very proud woman, and my 'ear is that, haviug taken an open and lecided stand, she will yield to neither irgument nor persuasion. Last night ihe over-acted her part. While she oarepully avoided coming in contact with VIrs. Jones, she was often near her, and )n such occasions talked and laughed ouder than at any other time. I thought, n* im'/in tViot ihoro -wna nnmfit.hi'njr )f malico exhibited in her conduct." To this one of the three assented. But he other thought differently. After lome other discussion, and an ineffectual ittempt to decide which of them should >p?n the matter to Mrs. Todd, the ladies allied forth on their errand of peace. They found Mrs. Todd at home, who revived them in her usual agreeable nanner. "How is your little boy?" was the irst question, after the first salutations ,vore ove r. "Much better thau he was laat ni^ht, t thank you. Indeed, he is quite as well is usual." " What was the matter with him, Mrs. rodd ?" " It hard to tell. I found him with i high iV.ver when I got home. But it mbaided in the course of an hour. ChilIren often have such attacks. They rill be finite sick one hour, and apparently well the next" ? - - a 1- 1 AL-1 *1 "l am very giaa lu.^r.r muii iu ia \ lotliing serious," said ones of the ladies 14 I was afraid it might have been croup jr somethiDg as bad.'.' Thero was a pause, 44 It seeme.d a little unfortunate," renarked one of the visitor-", 44 for it deprived you of an overling's enjoyment." 44 Yes, it does appear so, but no donbt it is all right. 1 suppose you had a very pleasant time?" 44 Ob, yes. Delightful I" 44 I hadn't seen half my friends when [ was summoned away. Was Mrs. Williams there?" 44 Oh, yes.' 44 And Mrs. Gray?" 44 Yes." 44 And Mrs. Elder?" 44 Yes." 441 didn't see either of them." 44 Not 8 word about Mrs. Jones," thought tin ladies. A light running convention, something after tbis style, was kept up, with occasional pauses, for half an hour, when one of the visitors determined to come to the point <?** __ n..M ? u? i" iULIM. XUUU-~*il*UC*Ul I DUO ccuvi xxi one of the pauses that always take place in uninteresting conversation. The lady's tone of voice had so changed from what it was a few moments before, that Mrs. Todd looked up it her with surprise. No less changed was the lady's conntenauco. Mrs. Todd was mystified. But she was not long in doubt. " A-liem! Mrs. Todd, we have come to?to?as friends?mutual?friends?to oak you "? The lady's voice broke down; but two or three " a-hems I" partially restored it, and she went on : " To ask why yon refused to?to? speak to Mrs. Jones?" " Why I refused to speak to Mrs. Jones?'' said Mrs. Todd, her cheek flushing. " Yes. Mrs. Jonee is very much hurt about it, and says she cannot imagine the reason. It has made her very unhappy. As mutual friends, we have tnougnt 1C our auiy w try aua rwuouuiie matters. It is on this errand that we have called this morning. Mrs. Jones says she met yon for the last time abont two weeks ago, and that yon refused to speak to her. May we ask the reason ?" "Yon may, certainly," was calmly replied. Expectation was now on tiptoe. "What, then, was the reason ?" "I did not see her." "Why? Didn't you refuse to speak to her?" "Neverin my life. I esteem Mrs. Jone3 too highly. If I passed her, as pou say, without speaking, it was bosause I did not see her." In less than half an honr Mrs. Todd I was at the house of Mrs. Jones. What passed between the ladies need not be told. The Utmost of Science.?A Paris scene: There's a crowd on the street around a man who has fallen in an apoplectic fit. The doctor arrives. All make way for him. He feels the sufferer's pulse, places his ear to his heart, and says that the man is dead. " Ah !" exclaims a bystander ; "if the doctor had only arrived sooner." The man of scienoe smiles, and replies: " He is dead 1 I, myself, could have done nothing more!" THE PRAIRIE BUFFALO. The Gradual Extinction ( an Animal that Once Roamed the Continent. A paragraph in the St. Paul Pioneer Press and. Tribune announces the fact that a firm in that city have in store something like 12,000 buffalo robes, which were preparing for the markets of the United States. The traffic in.buffalo robes formerly passed through St. Paul in Knit fn P.hiAoopn "Motp Vnrlr ftnrl nfchpr Eastern cities, where they were overhauled and prepared for market. Major F. H. Eastman is the collector of robes for the St. Paul house, and he secures his collections personally from the original sources of supply, the principal one being Fort Benton. From this point the robes are shipped by boat to Bismarck and thence to St. Paul and from St. Paul to Chicago and New York. The buffalo ranges are becoming annually more circumscribed, and their ultimate exhaustion is merely a question of time. Formerly the bison roamed all over the North American continent; while now, according to Major Eastman, this ani. aJ can only be found in affont three localities. One herd ranges along the headwaters of the Arkansas and Platte rivers; a smaller one browses among the Big Horn mountains and the valleys and plains in that region, while the great mass make their home north of the Missouri and spread themselves to the Saskatchewan and westward to the Rocky mountains. -Formerly, too, it was supposed that the bnffalo Bpent the winter on the plains of Texas and the southwest, but latterly the buffalo have changed their habits, and the immense herds north of the Missouri stay there all the year round. There seems to be no difficulty in securing forage in the north during the winter, for buffalo killejl in January are as fat as at any other season, while the meat is much better in winter than in summer. The buffalo, with their feet and horns, scrape the snow from the prairies and eat the dried grass with a relish. Major Eastman says that domestio cattle in Montana r Iso rnn wild, and live through the winter unprotected and nncared for, and in the spring are found in comparatively good condition. The theory of those most familiar with tbe subject is that the buffalo and iL. t.j: 111 i. IUt) JLUU1HU WJUi poriou lAJ^DVUOl. J.UUU5U the Indian is in constant pnrsnit of this noble game, the buffalo never avoids his savage persecutor. On the contrary, the Indian will establish his camping ground and then actually drive the buffalo to within a short distance of his wigwam before he kills him, thus avoiding any extended transportation of the raw hides to the place where they are dressed by the squaws. Now, on the other hand, the buffalo, like the Indian, seems to have an instinctive aversion to the white man, and when the immigrant wagon and the railroad car shall people the West and Northwest, the buffalo will seek new and more inaccessible fields; and, finally, when he is surrounded on all sides, he will lie down and die, and we'll have no more buffalo robes. Men now living will remember when the Pacific slope was one vast buffalo range, while to-day there is scarcely a buffalo to be seen west of the Rocky mnnntains. But it is admitted that it may be a long while before the last buffalo shall pass in his robe, for a vast rui g? of country sprer^s out between the Missouri river and me aasKawjuewau, wjuu-.h i? uuukiuui feeding ground for the buffalo, and there is no perceptible diminution of the prodigious hord that roams over this space. There are collected annually at Fort Benton alone ahout 120,000 robes, nearly all of which are taken from the great northern herd, and yet the Indians and traders hud no greater difficulty now in getting them from their original owners thau they did years ago. Diseases of the Ear in Schools. The paper of Dr. C. J. Blake, read before the American Social Science Association, on the method by which teachers should ascertain defects of hearing in their pupils, calls attention to tho importance of recognizing the existence ) j- class'among school children for .vi-om special provision in the way of education must bo made. This wos shown by the fact that out of 8,715 cases of ear disease, accompanied by impairment of hearing, 2,175, or twentytive per cent., wero children under fourteen years of age, these statistics being taken from children in public schools; also that in about twelve per cent, there was an existing aural disease air enable to treatment. In the opinion of the writer the seriousness of the condition of schools in this respect was not great enough to justify the resort to an additional "department to the schools. The instruction of partially deaf children in a school set apart for them was objectionable and unnecessary for a number of reasons, but if they be retained in tho schools with other children, it became necessary to rate them according to degree of individual disability, in order that proper allowance might be made for their defective hearing. To this end a careful examination should be made in each case, to determine the degree of deafness as tested by the distance at which the voice of the teacher can be heard in ordinary conversational tone, and again by the pronunciation of consonant tones. These tests oould be i made by the teacher, and the following directions for making them were given: Thg teacher should always occupy, in t^^ng the different cases, the same position, preferably the rostrnm or seat usually occupied by him in school hours. He should speak in the same tone of voice used in the schoolroom exercises. The child to be tested should be placed in front of the teacher and at the extreme limit of the furthest liue of seats, and gradually advanced toward ?the teacher at certain intervals, the testa being repeated until a point is reached at whioh the child can hear distinctly. This point should determine the place the child should occupy in the schoolroom. The ears should be tested separately, the ear to be tested being turned toward the teacher, while the other is artificially closed. The child should bo required to repeat distinctly the words as he hears them. The paper strongly n reOOIHHlCUUB tiie tciaunoiim'iibui a uieuical supervisor of schools; the post to be occupied by a competent physician who had made the matter of school hygiene a study, and his whole time to be devoted to the duties of his position. His Mark. At a most exclusive ball at the seaside, a young druggist's clerk approaches one of the fairest and most aristocratic of the ladies and humbly rolicts the favor of a quadrille. The lady inspects him critically from his tie to his boots, and taking her card, says: "I never, monsieur, dance with people whose namee are not preceded by a de. What name shall I inscribe? Monsieur ?" " M. Peroxide de Manganese, mademoiselle." Doctors Must Cease To Differ.? Among the desirable things considered in the recent international medical c< ingress at Philadelphia was the suggestion, urged by Dr. S^guin, that measures be taken to establish uniformity in " the means of practice, of observation and of records in physic"?matters in which the most perplexing diversity now prorail*. ? RATS ABOARD THE ASHLEY. An Occasion Fraught with Interest for Two Scotch Terrlrr? and their Owner. In 1856, on board the steamer Ashley, says a correspondent, we were so overrun with rats that we were in danger of having the whole freight list to pay for. Our cargo oonsisted almost entirely of bacon and flour, and they had perforated this in every direction. As a last experiment to get rid of them we had the entire load carried ashore, and then commenced a grand rat hunt. The animals all took to the hold, and among her innumerable salt boxes and under the dunnages found shelter, so that but few oould be dislodged and killed. It was in this emergency that the genius of the chief engineer shone forth with dazzling brilliancy. " Let's," said he, " turn steam into the hold and run 'em out." This being agreed upon, while he was raising steam in the boiler the rest of us -went around stopping up their places of egress, and stopped them all except one hole whioh came through the deck a few feet from the ice ohest. The ice UilUOII WHO a A ? T VX AUU VA vuw V/1V4 rodents, for in it was kept the delicacies of the table. Pies, froit and choice cakes were always there. 1 suppose the rats looked on this place as a sort of free Saratoga. At all events they would put in a few hours of every night there, and this might represent their seasons. The ioe chest was about eighteen feet square, with the opening at the top?that is our opening; they had their9 through the back, close down to the deck. This we also left open, and this arrangement left the rats only one hiding place on the main deck. Steam being ready, and a cock opened to admit it into the hold, I took my station where I could see the " varmints " as they defiled from their untenable cover to one they thought more promising?and it was a study for a sawmill man. As the steam filled the Hold, they commenoed their line of march ; first came a venerable looking old ohap, one on whose head the frosts of many winteis had settled. He passed along with a measured gait, slowly moving his head from side to side, as though he said : " Boys, I'm afraid you've got us this time," and be seemed to be astonished that no missiles were hurled after him, but was allowed to enter the ice chest unharmed. During his march another?not a sister?kept his head out the deck hole, watched his progress, and when he saw him safely housed, out he came, too, and made the march unmolested. This seemed all they waited for; they then poured out in one unbroken stream, and they were all there? Tho wife whose babe first smiled that day; The fair, blonde bride of yester eve ; The aged sire; the matron gray, and all thd young bucks just kept coming until I thought they had somo way of getting from the ice chest to the hold again and were keeping up an unbroken circle. But at length there happened breaks in the procession, then these breaks became more frequent and of greater duration, and, after a while, they came in single individuals and in more of a hurry, for the hold was getting hot, and later they came slower and * ? * ? il. _ i i. iiad less nair on mem, ana me jiusi 0110 looked sick, didn't sfiem to caro whether ho got anywhere or not, find as ho passed me he ca8t a look of scorn and sadness, as if to say: "You fellows think you'ro smart; you onght to be ashamed,'' and, to tell the truth, I was. I felt the same impulse to save its life that actuated Pocahontas on an historical occasion, and, from an association of ideas, I named this rat John Smith. And now they were all in the chest and tho hole plugged. Wo called a council of war as to tho best way to fin ish them. The engineer wanted to carry ont designs and tnm the steam on them and cook them alive, but the " old man" wanted "some fun." He had a couple of imported Scotch terriers, full blood and long hair, and here was just such a chance to try their mettle as he long had yearned for. So he raised the lid on top, dropped them in, and closed the door with the remark* " Go for 'em, boys." Then he took out his watch. They must have went " for 'em," for the sounds that followed were a mixture of yelps, howls, and tiny squeaks, mingled with a rattling, surging sound, as though the life within was combined and trying to knock out first one end of the chest and then the other. The "old man " would sing out at intervals: "Go for 'em, boys!" Then ho would wink at us, shut one eye, double himself up, and raise his right leg as though he was in an ecstaoy of enjoyment. At length all inside became quiet, and he looked at his watch again. " Sixteen and a half minutes," said he. "Now, men, let us turn the chest over and count the rats, for I think them pups have knocked tho spots off of our former records." We turned it over, the lid flew open, and a \Jhole floor of rats came pouring out like bees from an upturned hive. We had to clear the track until they all escaped, and when we looked in the box those dogs were in more pieces than ever dogs, not made into sausages, were before. They looked as though they had been dead a month, and only one solitary rat kept them company?and it was John Smith. A New Peril. At London, Mr. J. Morton, the aeronaut, accompanied by Mr. Tanner, made a most successful ascent, and soon attained an altitude of 8,000 feet, at which height they passed over the east of London into Kent, crossing the Thames no less than three times. Upon arriving near Eltham they descended in a large meadow, and were just in the act of letting off the gas when a tremendous bellowing was heard, and, on lookingjin the direction whence the sound proceeded, a large bull was seen rushing wildly toward them. Mr. Tanner, fully recognizing the danger oi the situation, with great presence of mind immediately seized the two remaining bags of ballast, and threw them bodily out of the car. Tho balloon rose, but only just in time to escape the horns of the infuriated animal, who, upon seeing the balloon suspended over liira, turned his attention to tho bags of sand, the contents of whioh he soon scattered in all directions. In his attack his horns came in contact with the grapnel rope, and the jerk releasing the grapnel, set the balloon free, but, at the same time, throw Mr. Morton, who was attending to the rope, out of the car. Fortunately, he succeeded in clutching the hetting, and, with Mr. Tanner's assistance, was hauled into tho balloon before it had ascendeu many hundred feet. Tho aeronauts sailed away about a mile, when they found a pafe haven. A Professional Opinion. A witness for the prosecution in a murder case was thus questioned by his uonor: "You say you saw tne man snot at and killed ?" " Yes, sir." " You said, I think, that the charge struck the deceased, on his body, between the diaphragm and the duodenum ?" Witness?" No, sir, I didn't say no such thing. I said he was shot between the hogpen and the woodhouM." THE MINNESOTA BRIGANDS. The Story ot the Whole Affair with an Butern Tribute to Weatern Conrme. It is a remarkable piece of brigandage, reddened by the murder of a very heroic young cashier and followed by an extraordinary man hunt on the part of an enraged population, about the progress of which we have been publishing detailed accounts. It was about two o'clock in the afternoon of Sept. 7th that the party of eight brigands?stalwart, handsome, finely dressed, and mounted nn splendid steeds?made their appearance in the Minnesota village of Northfield. Two or three of them, dismounting on the outskirts of the town, sauntered about the prinoipal street for a little while, to "take the lay of the i i 99 11. J. TTT _ - i rnu? 2?. xana, as raey say out jluo inhabitants of the quiet village were at* tending to their ordinary affairs, while now and then some individual who noticed the strangers passed a remark about their attractive appearance. In a few minutes the entire gang of brigands rushed through the village at full gallop, brandishing their weapons, yelling and oursing, and firing their revolvers in all directions. They at least startled the place which they had expeoted to strike with terror. They hauled up near the bank, which three of them entered armed to the teeth, while the other five rode about in front of it to prevent any interference with the operations of those who had been detailed to the immediate work of plunder. Bushing into the bank, the three brigands sprung upon the counter, at which three clerks were engaged, covered them with their revolvers, warned them to keep quiet under penalty of death, and then ordered the cashier, t i -i i - i t n _ a neywooa, ciose to wiiubo ueua outs ui them held a long, narrow barreled pistol, to open the bank safe. Not a few instances have occurred, within recent years, in which bank cashiers, under circumstances more or less similar to these, have opened the safe, permitted it to be plundered, and thus by cowardly means preserved their lives. But Heywood was made of stern, manly stuff. He first told them he could not open it; then made a desperate attempt to secure one of the brigands in the vault which he had entered; then finding himself overcome, offered defiance and resolutely refused to prove false to his trust by acceding to their demands. They did not wish to kill him till he let them into the safe, which they oould not open, but knooKed nun down, drew a Dig knife across his throat, dragged hica across the floor to the safe, which they again ordered him to open; but again refusing, a shot was fired at him as the last effort of intimidation. By this time the plunderers were getting alarmed by the knowledge that the citizens had been aroused, and hearing from their confederates outside, " The game is up," they gave it up in desperation, but not till one of them, turning round at the door, took deliberate aim and fired the shot which killed the heroio cashier. One of the other clerks had been wounded in trying to escape, but the third one got away in safety. The outside brigands had not had everything their own way while this tragedy within the bank was going on. The citizens hastily getting hold of such weapons as were ready to their hands, hnH nnflnAri firfl nnon thorn in a desnltorv T ?? y wuy, had killed two of them, wounded one, and killed the horse of another. It was then that warning was given to the plunderers in the bank, who thereupon rushed out, joined their three living confederates, including the wounded one, and made oft at full gallop, talked in their scheme and diminished by onequarter of their number. Then began the hot pursuit of the fugitive brigands, in which at the outset four hundred people, armed with rifles, shotguns, pistols and knives, took part, which was confusedly prosecuted for ten days, and was still in progress at the hour of our latest advices from St. Paul. On the evening of the day of their depredations, a party of fourteen of the mounted pursuers overtook them, but the six brigands turned upon their adversaries, showing fight, put them to flight, and then made off to the dense woods themselves. On the same evoning another party of pursuers, numbering forty, got within an hour's chase of thorn, but the swift hoist a of the brigands carried them beyond danger. The half dozen fugitives divided into two parties, three brigands in each party. One of these parties has never been traced ; but the other, in the course of the first night, took refuge in a dense forest, full of heavy thickets, swamps, and hiding places. Through this they have been hunted, day and night, by bodies of pursuers, that have risen to nearly a thousand in number, and have been joined by police and militia. The pursuit has been close and intense. Sometimes they have been on the heels -* i-i- u ?l VI mt) Ufjyauun, wuu, uuncvci, LLOVO uiways been able to elude them by audacity or skill, unless indeed some of the suspicious persons already under arrest form part of the gang. The full details of this romarkable hunt have shown it to be .one of the most excitable incidents in the history of Western brigandage. Heywood, the gallant cashier of the Northfleld bank, who proved faithful unto death, should be kept in memory in some worthy way, so that his action shall be held up as an example to others, who.may fill plaoes of trust in times of danger.?New York Sun. Making Young Horses Out of Old Ones. A very interesting case, illustrating to what extent the dumb animals are tortured to gratify the avarice of unfeeling speculators, and showing a new system of swindling the government/ was tried in St. Louis recently. Some time ago Mr. Jos. Wolfort, a horse trader, was arrested on the charge of cruelty to animals. He was oharged with " bishoping " horses, which was described as being a prooess of filing the teeth of old horses down, to make them look young and the animal marketable. The horse is tied securely in his stall in such a way that it cannot move its head, a gag of wood or iron is then placed in his mouth and a " twitch " placed on its nose. A man with a large rasp or file then files the teeth to the necessary size, and then bores cavities in them, which are colored black with nitrate of silver or caustic, so that the teeth look natural. The name " bishoping" is derived from Bishop, the man who is said to have invented the cruel practice. The pain to the horse, in many cases, is said to be excruciating, and cases are cited where the* hflvn died under the treatment. Revenue Receipts, The receipts from internal revenue for the United States for the months of July and August, 1876, are nearly $714,000 greater than those of the same months last yoar. Commissioner Raum considers this an evidence of the revival of trade throughout the country, and believes, from the outlook as shown by the collections in various districts, that tho receipts for the present fiscal year will amount to nearly 810,000,000 more than tho amount estimated. A large number of distilleries which had been stopped for some time have resumed operations, and at one in Baltimore Gen. Raum waa told that the orders for whisky were 600 barrels in excess of their supply. ^?:? ? - --- - ?? The Yellow Fever. The Savannah N&03 describes the appearance of the city, where the yellow fever is raging, as desolate indeed. All who could get away have left the city, the streets are deserted, and the general gloom is only relieved by the lights which here and there gleam from the ohamber windows of the sick. At seven o'olock the thoroughfares present the appearance of midnight; nothing but the slow tramp of the policeman on his beat, or an occasional hurrying footstep, as .Bome one seeks relief for the sick, disturbs the solemn stillness that reigns throughout the length and breadth of the town. The benevolent association is working night and day, but its means are almost gone and it has been foroed to appeal for contributions from abroad. The president of the Savannah Chris tian Association nas aiso maae an appeal i to kindred associations throughout the | oountry. " Everything which sustains life," says the address, " or can promote the comfort of the suffering, snoh as money, food, nourishment and care, is needed to relieve the pressing wants of our suffering poor. There are fully two months, long, dreary months, viewed from our standpoint, through which we will have to combat the fell destroyer. We feel assured we will not appeal in vain, and in proportion as the Lord has prospered and blessed your communities so do unto us in our hour of sore distress. The Southern express company, the railroads, and, we trust, steamers coming into Savannah will transport all articles for relief free of cost. We pray you take prompt action in this matter and forward to the Savannah Christian Association or toG. N. Saussy, president, such supplies and contributions as you can collect, and add your prayers to your charities in behalf nf a RnfFflrina nfionlfi. Monev. DOultrv. eggs, meal, flour and each articles as are the necessaries of life will be gratefully received and distributed^here they are most needed." The disease, so far as reported, has not made its appearance in any of the cities or towns contiguous to Savannah. Charleston, Augusta, Atlanta and other communities have been liberal in forwarding supplies to the stricken people of Savannah. Unpleasant Arrivals. Smyrna was thrown into a state of excitement not long since by the arrival in the town of about seven hundred volunteers, chosen from the Zeybees of Anatolia, on their way to the seat of war. As they marched through the town they were followed by a large mob of their co-religionists, who enlivened the spectacle by drawing their knives and play' ? * -* a.1 -i. i.U~ ^.'U? IHLiy pOKMg mem uu mo .iiuo uj. tuijr '* giaours " they happened to meet, at the same time uttering the most horrible threats and occasionally knocking some of them on the head with their yataghans. One elderly Armenian gentleman was severely wounded in the arm by two blows from a yataghan, and a respectable Greek merchant was carried home in a very precarious state with a frightful cut on his head. On passing by a crockery shop several of the volunteers and their friends entered the establishment and smashed all the ware they could lay hold of. The proprietor and his shopmen while the work of destruction was going on prudently retired into a loft, where they remained in seclusion until the visitors had taken IVtai* JflnoTtnro Tn thft rfinka nf tliA volunteers were recognized "many noted brigands," aud but for the fact that in the bazars all the shops were closed there can be little doubt that there would have been a general plunder. On their arrival at the barracks, the volunteers were told to deliver up their weapons, which they at first refused to do, saying " they would rather lose their heads." They were,however, at last persuaded to give up their yataghans and pistols, and by latest accounts they had Dot actually killed anybody, but the prospect of the arrival of 1,500 more volunteers in the town was not looked upon as pleasant. Eccentricities of the Buffalo. The winter of 1871-72 was unusually an/? f.Vm I BOVOIO 1U cuixaiiixwi AUO^/VUVUJ MUU. wuv smaller streams to the north were all frozen solid, and the buffalo were forced to the rivers for water. The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe railroad was then in process of construction, and nowhere could the peculiarity of the buffalo be better studied than from its trains. If a herd was on the north side of the track J it would stand stupidly gazing and without symptom of alarm though the locomotive passed within one hundred yards. If on the south side of the traok, even though at a distance of one or two \ miles from it, the passage of a train set the whole herd in the wildest commo- 1 Hon. Ak itflfnll sneed and utterlv re- ; gardless of consequences, it would make for the track on its line of retreat. If the train happened not to be in its path ' it crossed the track, and stopped, satis- ; fled. If the train was in the way each individual buffalo went at it with the ! desperation of despair, plunging against or between locomotive and car, just as" 1 the blind madness chanced to take ; them. Numbers were killed, but num- j bers still pressed on to stop and stare as 1 soon as the obstacle was passed. After ' having trains ditched twice in one week, conductors learned to have a very decided re?pect for the idiosyncracies of the buffalo, and when there was a possibility of striking a herd " on the j rampage" for the north side of the j track, the train was slowed up and some- j times stopped entirely. I ] The Insane. 1 The Mentor is a little paper edited and printed by the patients of the Alabama insane hospital at Tuscaloosa. < Most of the artioles relate to the treatment of the insane. One article, enti- , tied "Insane Responsibility," contains , this passage: " It would benefit all insane persons, even the inmates of hospi- i tals, to know th&t they are amenable to , the laws of the land. Many a time we ] have heard inmates say:' If I cut, burn, or kill, nothing can be done- to me. , They say I am insane. That gives me a ( loophole for escape, let me do what I may.'" Mention is made in one number , of the paper that the superintendent not long siuce called a jury of the patients , to decide whether one of their number was a thoroughly sane person or not. All but one agreed that he was. The dissentient Baw or.e evidence of insanity ?the subject of inquiry was a believer in spiritualism. So it seems that the standard of sanity in hospitals is more exacting than outside of them. A Substitute for Gunpowder. A substitute for gunpowder has been invented in England, in the shape of paper impregnated with a chemical combination of chlorate of potash, nitrate of potash, prussiato of potash, and chromate of potash, coupled with a little powdered charcoal and tinder. The paper is rolled around these latter in the desired sizes for cartridges. Tho advantages offered aro that no dauger of explosion exists except from actual contact with fire; the iuterior of the arm is not soiled, less smoke and less rebound are made than with gunpowder, and less damage takes place from humidity. Very satisfactory trials have been made of tne new material. THE HABYEST FESTIVALS. How the German* About New York Celebrate the Event of a Bountiful Harvest. Every year -when the harvest is in the German people about Now Ycrk hold a harvest gathering on Union Hill, New Jersey. At these gatherings the festivals of the Fatherland are indulged in. At the festival this year the chief event of the day was a rural wedding in Plattdeutsch country style, the bridegroom being Alfred Dehmoke, a newsdealer of Hoboken, and Minnie Konig, a blooming maid, born in Philadelphia, but for some time residing on her father's farm in Jersey. Three gaily decorated wagons, containing the bridal party, and a set of household furniture, made the circuit of the grounds, preceded by a band of music and a messenger on horseback, dressed in a velvet coat with silver buttons, velvet knee breeches, top boots, and a stiff hat ornamented with ribbons and gold lace. This messenger was the " wedding inviter," and, as in the old oountry, summoned the cruests. His horse was deco rated with ribbons, and the two made a gay spectacle. In the bridal party were the parents of the groom and bride, the groomsmen, Oapt. Avery and Mr. Dnerkopf, and twelve bridesmaids, with oaps of gold cloth and velvet bodices in the North German country fashion. The bride was similarly attired. The bridegroom was dressed as a German farmer, in velvet coat and breeches and a threecornered hat deoorated with flowers and ribbons. The Rev. Dr. F. L Schneider, of the Lutheran churoh, a resident of New York, was the officiating clergyman. The nuptial tie was adjusted in front of the North German farm house, a red, high-roofed structure built in exact imitation of the German article. A real wedding oeremony was performed in the same house at the festival last year, and a bouncing boy lives to-day to serve as a reminder of it. The bridal oouple stood on a platform before the honse. A table set with flowers, and bearing two candlesticks, which could not be lighted on account of the wind, stood Deside tnem. The clergyman preaohed a short sermon, the bridal pair answered questions ffbout the same as thoee in vogue here, and they were pronounced man and wife. The twelve bridesmaids kissed the bride, and friends and relatives proffered their congratulations. After singing by the Lyra Singing Society of Hoboken and the Jersey Schuetzen Liedertafel the party entered the farmhouse, and a banquet, dancing, singing, and music followed. The president of the Plattdeutsch Association gave the bridal couple fifty dollars, Capt. Avery gave a complete kitchen outfit, and a clock was presented by some other friend/ Numerous minor gifts were reoeived. The interior of the farmhouse was one of the most interesting spectacles on the grounds. The main room was the spacious kitchen, with its big briok oven, over which the huge chimney hung like a porch to receive the smoke. Overhead was a partial ceiling of wood, between which and the rafters was a store of hay. At one side, separated from the room only by a paling, were -A-11- I TTamc BUtllB lur buo juuioc auu uun? jiaoiuo i and sausages hung from the beams, and brightly scoured pewter dishes adorned the walls. The kitchen opened into two rooms, in one of which was a huge, oldfashioned peat stove, that was imported from Germany. The festival lasted four d&vs. There was a real christening in the farmhouse. On the harvest day last year fifty thousand persons were on the grounds. The attendance was folly as large this year. The whole country around was filled with gayly decorated wagons and teams, emblematical of the bountiful harvest. The Age of a Tree. The American Journal of Science and Arts says: Every one knows that very young trees in a nursery are apt to come rather earlier into leaf than full grown trees of the species. But this is explained by the nearness to the ground and consequent higher temperature. The comparison should be made between the oldest available trees and other well developed trees of moderate age. M. Alph. De Candolle caused observations In in f.wn nlrl Ui UUXQ gyillVA WV lssj UiikMV jlla vnv vm botanio gardens, namely, those of Paris and of Pisa ; and tbe results were negative?in the Paris cases no difference ; in the Pisa cases, an old gingko and an old walnat tree leafed earlier than young trees of the species, while the old tree of horse chestnut, sophora, linden, and pawlovmia were later than the young trees. A very full series of oases, of different species, would be eeded for the elimination of individual peculiarities, often great in this respect. But M. De Candolle is able to refer to better data, viz.: to the case in which the date of coming into leaf of a horse chestnut tree has been carefully recorded for sixty-eight years and another for fifty-seven years, both at Geneva. Of course any differences due to age would be small in comparison with those due to climate, yet they might be expected to be sensible in the krog series of years, if age really made any difference. But the figures do not bring to view any tendency to either earlier or later leafing with the advance of years. The Fall Term. The publio schools opened for the wn'nfflu ouflflAn or?/3 atraiTr Lcall auu TTU1UU1 ounovu) ?uu VUJUU in Detroit felt happy for an hour or two, if not longer. A boy going down Second street from the Cass school at noon met a boy going np from the Porker street school, and the Cass boy called Dut: " Hain't sohool bully thoi gh i" " Yon bet I" was the prompt reply. " How's your teaoher?" " Nicest person you ever saw. I snapped six paper wads this forenoon ind never got licked once 1" " Just lite mine," called the other. " When she saw me sticking a pin into i boy she smiled and smiled, and I believe she's got a heart like an angel." Those lads may meet a wee* later, and when they compare notes the first one will remark: " I'm licked regularly three times a day, and for nothing at all." " Soam I," will be the mournful echo of the other. Printing Office Secrete. A properly conducted printing office 19 eta uiucii u Dcwoii ouuiouy an 10 u mt\eonic lodge. The printers are not under an oath of secrecy, but always feel themselves as truly in honor bound to keep secrets as though they had been put through triple oaths. An employee in a printing office who willingly disregards this rule in regard to printing office secrets would not only be scorned by his brethren of the craft, but would lose hip position in the office at :>ace. We make this statement because it sometimes happens that a coin in - inication appears j in a newspaper under a a assumed signa-1 ture which excites comment, and various parties try to find out who is the author. ! Let all be saved the trouble of question- j ing tho employees or attachees of tho printing office. They are " know nothings" on such points as these. On such matters they "have eyes and ears, but no mouth," and if they fail to observe this rule, let them be put down as dishonored members.?Exchange. Items of Interest. " Excuse me, sir," was the remark of a burglar caught opening a safe. Figaro says: Distrust fair complexioned women with wide mouths. ' A San Francisco man died of heart disease at the wedding of his daughter. There is a law in Wisconsin that when a man dies without heirs his property goes to the State school fund. Speaking of a politician, an exchange says that his mouth was put on warm and all ran over the lower part of his face before it set. Fifteen million nine hundred thousand hectolitres of barley (420,046,200 gallons) are oonsumed annually in Germany for beer brewing. An epitaph in the old churohyard at Bedlington, reads: Poems and epitaphs ire bat staff ; Here lies Bobert Barass, that's enough. The farmer should sow his P's, keep his XJ's warm, hive his B's, kill off the J's, remember what he O's, take care of the V's, pay all he O's, teach his wife not to T's and take his E's. . . Paris, it seems, has steam street cars that don't frighten the horses, seat forty persons, run ten miles an hour, can be stopped' within five feet by a brake, turn sharp corners, and cost but $4 a day day for fuel and attendance. Three men belonging to Terringtou, in Norfolk, England, seized a little boy, took off his boots, tied his hands and feet together, and flung him into a wasp's nest. The little fellow was frightfully stung, and his assailants were only fined. Lillie White, who had been reported as attempting to commit suicide, has a card fa the Virginia City Chronicle, saying: "While fully realizing the vanities of this world, I am in no hurry for another, as it might be a case of getting out of the fryingpan into the fire." An Arkansas man thoughtlessly set some spring guns in his poultry yard, and the next morning in the rising sun he rubbed his spectacles and stared in speechless amazement at eighteen candidates sitting on the front fence picking bird shot out of their thirty-six legs. > " Coachman," said an outside passenger to one who was driving at a furious rate over one of the most mountainous roads in the north of Scotland, " have you no consideration for our lives and limbs ?" " What are. your lives and limbs to mo ?" was the reply. *1 I'm behind time!" A crazy man was tied fast in a wagon for transportation to Blountville, Ky. He yelled so loudly that the frightened horses ran away, throwing out the two keepers and breaking an arm of each. Then the lunatio seized the reins, conI trolled the horses, drove alone to the asylum, ana aeuverea mmsen up. A London woman with a babe in her I arms provoked her husband so much that he shied a knife at her. It killed the baby, entering two inches deep into the head. The jury acquitted the father by render eg a verdict of " Accidental death," and severely repremanded the mother for having aggravated her husband. A boy said to his mother the other morning: " Ma, I had the beautifnlest dream last niaht you ever saw. I dreamt that I wouldn't go to school, and that you went out into the yard and cut a good long switch ; but just as you were going to give me an awful Sreesin' the world came to an end! Didn't I get off easy, though." A northern Iowa farmer offered a tramp his daughter and half his farm for three days' work in the harvest field. The tramp wavered a little at first, but .1 -i - -i?" -e i-i-- -r-v men mo color OI mo gin a vy ca imm u suit, and be thought the farm laid a little too low, so he declined the proposition, stole a hamo strap and went on his worklesa way. * The number of entries in the dog show at the Centennial is as follows : American, 681; Canadian, 15 ; English and Irish exhibitors, 26 ; making a total of I 722. The large majority of these are imported, or domestio English and Irish setters bred out of celebrated kennels, Gordon setters, and pointers over -and under fifty pounds' weight. It was evening. Three of them were killing a cat. One of them held a lantern, another held the cat, and the third jammed the pistol into the cat's ear and fired, shooting the man in the hand who held the cat, and the one with the lantern was wounded in the arm. The cat left when it saw how matters stood, and that ill-feeling was engendered. Carrier pigeons have been put to an ingenious use by a physician on the Isle of Wight. After visiting his patients in each village, the doctor writes out his prescriptions, affixes one to the leg of a pigeon, and sends the bird bome. Thus the prescriptions are made up at once, and the medicines are dispatched speedily to those living at a distance. " And I further agree that I will resign my position and withdraw from said schools whenever requested by said board of education or the superintendent of said schools, and will ask for no reason why such.request was made." Srioh an surraament is sitrned bv every teacher in the publio schools of" Cairo", I1L, the idea being to help discipline. During recent improvements of a jail at New Haven, Conn., there was found between the rear walls of two tiers of cells a wire, firmly secured, one hundred and fifty feet long. Attached to it was a pan, which was evidently used for carrying articles from cell to cell, or else aa a kind of gong to convey warnings of the approach of the jailer or his assist, ants. John Anderson, the first man who as! cended the p.reat South Dome in the I Yosemite valley, California, lives alone in a small honse near the saddle of the dome. He is hard at work constructing a staircase of a thousand steps up the dome. He hopes to have an elevator running in time, and is also working on a model of a steam car that shall carry passengers up the almost perpendicular walls. "I always did love to gaze on the children in their sports," said Potter, * as he pensively contemplated a crowd of urchins; "I am carried back to"? Just then the baseball came over his way and tried to get into Jiis vest pocket and doubled him up. When his breath came back he shouted: "You young ragamuffin, you, if I catch you playing ball on the street again I'll get the police after you. "' Patient to his doctor?" And it is rea'.ly true that I shall recover ?" " Infallibly," answers tlio man of medicine, taking from his pocket a paper fn!l of figures. " Here, l>ok at the statistics of your case; you will fiud that one per cent, o? those attacked by your malady aro cured." ""Well,", says the sick man, in an uneatisiled manner. " Well, you aro the hundredth person with this disease that I have had under my care, and the first ninety-nino aro all dead. | An old gentleman wont out to shoot | partridges, acoompanie i by his son. | The gnu was charged half-way np to the | muzzle, and when at last the old gentleman started some birds, he took a rest ! nud blazed away, expecting to m*o some ' /all, of course ; but not so did it happen, for tho gun reooiled with t>r> much force as to "kick" him ov. r. The old man got up, and while nibbing the sparks out of his ey?>s, inquired of his son : " Dick, did I point tbn rit-ht oud of the gun to the bird* ?" ??Mi