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ABBEVILLE PRESS & BANNER. I BY HUGH WILSON. ABBEVILLE, S. C;, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 28, 1877. YOLUME XXIV.-NO. 42. A Fragment. Long years agone, in childhood's dawn, I heard a mystic lay ; Still o'er my soul its billows roll As if it were to-day. A phantom fleet, its weird notes bent > 1 A fairy minlstresv ; With rhythmic swell they rose and fell In wondrous melody. , Yet if, to hear, I bent my ear No more those weird notes beat; But faint and far, in muffled car, They died in echoes sweet. Now evermore?I walk 4he slioro And listen?all in vain : For evermore, ah ! nevermore, I hear that mystic strain! j OUR TREASURE. Our girl Mary had been engaged j hastily, but wo never regretted that! haste. Never had we been so respectfully served, nor so thoroughly well .sitis- 1 tied as now. Every one told us that we had a "treasure," and her very manner of opening the door to a visitor was be- j witching ; while grocers' young men and j the milk man and butcher seemed to | linger entranced when they came to de- j liver their wares. Mary took their com-1 pliments calmly, and had a ready smile . for them all, without departing from the . quiet dignity of her ways, and we felt no ! shadow of coming evil, until matters be- : gan to look serious with the one-armed l postman. xnis same postman ana delivered our : letters regularly for tho last two years, ; always in tlie same business like way, j never lingering for a moment, never by i any possibility smiling or exchanging a word with either of us, and yet we look- | ec]^ upon him quite in the light of a : 1 friend, and speculated ^bout his history, : r,s lonely women will about those with j: .whom they come in contact. He had ; been in tlie army and had lost an arm ; t 1 tliis was all w^ knew about lum, except j1 that he was evidenly a German, and 1 quite good looking?not to say scholarly 1 in his aspect. 1 "Were you aware," asked Brnnhilda j1 one morning, " that Miss Murphy speaks 11 German ?'\ "Speaks" German!" I repeated, in 1 amazement. "And pray how did you (! find it out ?" - M "By healing her address the postman ! ] in that tongue," was the reply. "I shall nip this in tho bud," said I, j' severely. But presently better thoughts j< came to me. I remembered my own i1 youth, and I remembered Cranford. !' where Miss Mattie, after the death of an I ' ol 1 lover, softens to Martha and allows j 1 "followers." A week or two passed, and I was at- j1 tending to my preserves one day in the 1 kitchen?it was a pleasure to do any- j thing in Mary's kitchcn, everything looked bo immaculately clcan, almost |( poetical, I thought?and I approached j1 the subject uppermost in my niiiid by ; f KftTinrr pftv^ln^lr ! ^-'V * J I ? "So, Mary, you know German, it |1 seems. How does that happen ? * Mary's pretty face was overspread by ' a rosy cloud as she replied, in n low ' tone: "I picked it up myself. I had ' some Gennan lx>oks once." Then she sat down and cried, very ' much to my bewilderment ; and present- * ]y she exclaimed: "I should like to 1 tell you something, Miss Darlingford; 1 I r<hall leel better when you know all." 1 " I hope," said I, with a vague expec- ( tation of dreadful developments, " that < ' all' is not very bad, Mary ?" Tlie flush deepened on the pretty face, 1 but for answer she took from her bosom a black ribbon to which was fastened a j plain gold ring. I dropped mv preserves j in amazement; the girl looked so ' young. "You nre a widow, then?" said I, with a feeling of tender pity. " Poor ,' child!" ! " I don't know whether I am or not," j was the reply, with a fresh burst of ' tears, " aikl that is what troubles me 1 so." I turned to my preserves again, with a 1 smile, as I thought of the good looking : German postman. ( "Miss Darliugford," continued the i1 girl, more composedly, " I want to tell j1 vou everything, and I am so/ry now that j( I dMn't do this at lirst. lint I felt that 1 it would be against me, and I hud to get a place. I have a boy six years old "? 1 " In the name of wonder," I exclaimed, " how old are yon yourself ?" "Iain twenty-five," she said, a little proudly; "and Mr. Blumenthal promises to take care of Willie; he wants me to let him pay his board now." Here I sat down hard in a chair to col- 1 lect myself. People have other things J besides greatness thrust, upon them; and j ' I saw that I was destined to prove a most unwilling benefactress to the one-armed Jf postman. Why is it, I thought, bitterly, j1 that if one ever does happen upon that j 1 rari avis, a model servant,- all the pow- ' i ers of darkness seem leagued together to ( spirit her away ? ' : < "Where is your child?" I asked, with j 1 a strong effort. " I have put him to board a little way 1 out of town," replied the girl, sadly. " He is with a fri&ud of mine, who takes ic good care -pf him; and I always go to ( see him on my afternoons out; but I do { miwa him so !" ] And here she broke down aga'n. "But what does it all mean?" I con- ' tinned, for my sympathies wore getting j ' dreadfully worked upon. _ "Why nre ' ' you not living with your husband, if he is alive ? or why do you not know it if he is dead? Just toll me the whole story, Mary, from beginning to end." At this point Brunliilda, who always scents a romance from alar, appeared upon the scene, and gracefully established herself upon the kitchen dresser. 'Seven years ago, said Mary, wnen , I married William Murphy, I thought < there was 110 one liko him in the world; | and I should think bo yet if ho hadn't # nearly worried the life out of mo. But I shall always believe that his mother was to blame for it all. She was that jealous of Will that it sometimes seemed . as if she would like to scratch my eyes out. We lived with the old people for a year or two; but after little Willie was born I had no pence at all for his grand- i mother, who insisted on having her way with him, and I naturally thought that I had a right to mine. i "The old-people had money, and! Hved very comfortably, and Will and his father carried on a coal yard together; but Will fell into bad company, and took to drinking, and his father and mother i were so bitter toward him, it drove him j to desDeration. You see. tliev were neo pie who had always been respected, and they, couldn't bear the disgrace; and | many's the night I've sat up watching for I Will, so that they shouldn't know when he came in. I taught myself Gjurman, ! by way of amusement, on thoseTonely ! evenings. Some one gave the books to i Will, and I had always been fond of stud at Bchool. " After awhile we left the old peopl< and moved into two rooms of onr owi and I worked hard at sewing and kni ting and anything I could get to suppo: lis. Will did not improve, though 1 was never unkind to me; and 0110 mon ing a boy brought me a crumpled nol from my husband tolling mo that he liti gono to California, anil tiiat 110 worn never come back unless be came a sobe man, and with money to support me an our boy. His father had been hard< with him than ever, and he said he wf sick of it all; and as he was of no use I us, lie would not stay to be a disgraci I have never heard from him since. " Will's mother came to me and sai .that she should look upon the boy t hers now, and we must go homo wit her at once. But I put hei^pfF, to gain little time; for 1 was young, you sec, an ignorant, nnd I was afraid that she ha tlio power to make lie go; and when b)j left me, I just packed my clothes an Willie's, and went off to the depot, an came to L . I had this friend livin near here?we used to go to school tc gethcr? and she got me a place in store. But I couldn't pay my board an Willie's and clothe us both out of thai and finally I concluded to leave the bo with Ellen, and get a place at service. "And now I don't know whether Wi is living or dead; but I can't help thin! ing that if he was living he would hav written to me and sent me some monej for he always loved me." It struck Mary's audience that he ha a very stfange way of showing liis lovt but then they were old maids, and coul not expect to understand such matters. Mary presently produced a photo graph, which was just the opposite o what we expected; for her Sweet Williar was a fine, manly-looking young fellow and Ave felt drawn to him at once. Bu then we felt drawn to the postman tot) and it was absolutely essential to th latter's happiness that number on should have departed from this terres trial scene. Until there was sufficien evidence of this, however, there was rea son to fear an Enoch Arden denouement md we assured Mary that it was posi tively wrong for her to give Mr. Bin menthal any encouragement. It was probably owing to this disin terested advice that wo were honored lr \ regular call from our hitherto tacitun friend. We were nearly as much snr prised to hear him speak as though w< liad known him to be dumb; and wher lie propounded the somewhat startlin; question "if I did not tiiinK tue mai ivho had married Mary ought to be dew by this one time," it did appear ni hough?if the person in question had i lue regard for the fitness of tilings?Ik svould be; but the point ftt issue wai lot so much whether ho ought to be a: ivhethei* ho was. Mr. Blumenthal, however, simply in ended to express his firmly groundec >piuion that William Murphy was dead uul that his widow would show lira ?ood sense by abandoning her presen losition of maid-of-all-work, and becom ug Mrs. Blumenthal without delay. I seemed impossible to convince him thai California was not out of the world, anc :hat travelers did occasionally returi from that bourne. His own "views of tin region was evidently embodied in the be lief that people who went there becaust they could not live here, ended by givinj up the attempt at living altogether. H< ivas certainly very much in love; and i ivould be an excellent match for Mary 3ven if he had not the regulation amoun jf limbs and belongings. Brunliilda was quite carried awaj- lr the postman's eloquence and good looks "I believe he isright," said she, when Ik had gone; " it is not at all probable tha Murphy is living, or he would certain 1' liave written to his wife." Adding, wit] tier usual happy disregard of logic " i.,-1 t?.? 1,Voc TI..IVV ? 1IJ nrith tliis uncertainty about a man who ifter all, isn't worth it ?" I began to entertain a private opinio! that Herr Blumcnthal kept back our let tors from mail to mail for the pleasure o bringing them singly, and having a mo incut's confab with Man- several time in the course of the day; for she had de ulined receiving visits from him unti she could be assured that her husbam was really dead. Poor girl! she wa certainly very much to be pitied; and i seemed quite inexcusable in Willian Murphy to give her so little satisfactioi either in living or dying. But one morning something happened Mary received a letter from her mother in-law, that came through her frieni Ellen, in which she was sternly sum moned to attend her husband's funeral OV ? lmcr.i'fnl or,. LJ.^ uau kUCU Ui itTti. XU <V XIVP|/lVUij (Wiv the remains, by his own dying request [iad been sent on from San Francisco t< be laid in the family burying ground. The poor little widow was nearly be side herself at this news; and it was ai nuch as we could do to get'her and tin soy oft' properly. She promised faith :ully to return to us?nothing, she de :lared, would induce her to remain witl >ld Mrs. Murphy; but it was with lieav^ iearts that we saw her depart. I am sorry to say that our Teutonii jostman, instead of sharing his inamor ita's sorrow, was evidently in a state o lonfused bliss?not much to be wonder }d at, perhaps, in the existing state o: ;hings ; but somewhat inconvenient ii ts results, as we were constantly favorec ivith letters never intended for us, whil* mr rightful correspondence wanderec slsewhere. We took a genuine interest however, in this strange love affair, evci while selfishly congratulating ourselvei that the inevitable catastrophe of losinj Mary would not occur for some month yet. Alas ! it was nearer than vre dreamed On the third day, instead of Mary, as w had expected, tiiere came a letter ; an* the letter began with the astounding an nouueement that our cidevant hand maiden was so happy that she scarcel; knew how to write to us ! People have different ideas of lmppi ness ; but it really seemed to us that slight degree of unhappiness would hav been more becoming in Mrs. Murph; in?fc tlifm. We went on with the letter in a soi of blank amazement, and read that, o the writer's arrival at the Murphy mail sion, the first person she encountere was the deceased himself. As may 1> conjectured, ho had never been dead n all, although ho had been very ill wit fever in a hospital, and fancying himsc! dying, he had made the requost to hav his remains sent on to his parents. Th occupant of the next cot had died, an the two became somewhat mixed up i the minds of the officials?hence the mit take, which, although inconvenient, wn cheerfully borne A>ith for the sake c seeing the lost son walk in alive and well Clothed in his right mind, too ; for h had long ago deplored Lis evil ways, an his industry and self-denial had accumn lated a nice little sum for the purchase < a cozy home nest. Thither wife and cliil ly wore to be taken at once ; and Mary wrote | joyfully that she never knew how much ! e, she loved Will until slio saw him stand- j a; ing before her at his father's door, when 1 t- she had supposed him to be dead, rt Not a word of poor Carl Blumentlial, j le except to say that Will was so good, he l- did not blame lier or Mr. B. in the least, j to and would certainly shake hands with id the latter should ho chance to meet him j Id ?only, lie was very glad that he got >r home when he did. id We rejoiced, of course, in Mary's joy ;1 )r but, if the truth must be told, we were j us very sorry for ourselves ; and as to poor , /% I TVT'm *1^1 ol lm wob cr?nr/?nlv t.n Via 1 AJ 1ULJL. jnumv;iituui) iiv hhu ?Jvt%4WY v\? I 2. thought of at nil?his future stretched : before us such a pray, dismal blank, j d We broke our dreadful news to him in ; is fragments, giving him a morsel at a time h as we thought him able to swallow it. a After a long period of silence, the ded sorted German shook his head sorrowd fully, nnd said: " That one little e woman she have a dreadful smile " (poor I d fellow, he meant "irresistible "), "and d she speak German like to break my i g heart. She should not ought to with | )- her husband not dead." a Evidently he could not. divest himself ! d of the idea that Mary was in somo way j t; to blame for Mr. Murphy's unexpected y appearance. Brunhilda actually cried for sympathy, | 11 and took a melancholy pleasure in running to the door for our letters. But e Btich is the ingratitude of human nature, ', that she was probably compared, some what to her disadvantage, with tiie lost d one. ;; About six months elasped, when we L1 one day encountered our blighted friend with a fair haired little woman clinging to his arm and looking very happy. She f was evidently Gorman, and as evidently a his wife ; and he subsequently informed us that, she was an old sweetheart who t had followed him from home. She had ; arrived just at the right time, to act as a e poultice for tho wounds inflicted by e " that one little woman" with the " dreadful smile." t This arrangement naturolly "made . things comfortable all around," with the exception, perhaps, of two lone women . who had lost a treasure that could not . be replaced. Fashion Xotos. f x Net mittens are revived. Tillenl is a leading color. I Foulards arc fashionable. lr Full dress demands the bonnet. White chip is declining in favor. Demi-saison styles arc coming in. Bonnet trimmings arc not elaborate. Yellow and tilleul arc leading colors. Mittens are all at once very fashionable. The old Tuscan straw braids are revived. Opon, lacp-like straws are coming in vogue. Leghorn straw bonnets are most ; sought for. Mandarin is one of the new shades of . yellow. Rough straw twists are preferred for round hats. Moonlight blue is the popular shade of this color. Shawls of every kind will be much j worn this spring. Yellow Italian straws arc the first choice in bonnets. Some mittens are of white, others of , black or colored lace. Persian khenna is an instantaneous, v inodorous hair dj e. The newest bonnet ribbons are woven ? with plush cffccts. Tilleiil, or linden green, is a pnle tint! ^ of yellowish green. : All sliatles of gray are seen in the tie | I beiges and vigognes. , The fashionable color, tillenl, is very ; trying to the complexion. II All oriental fabrics are very fashion- | i able at the moment in Paris. Vesnve is the newest shade of red. It | s is a brilliant flume color. - Straight curtain bunds are seen on 1 most of the Leghorn bonnets. 1 Square crowns for bonnets are more 8 called for than pointed ones. ' Shot camel's hair goods are made with j 1 smooth surfaces this season. Round hats are worn only for shopping, ] traveling and demi-toilet. The dry goods counters are gay and j i bright with new tlrePB laorics. Some of the percales have light gray, drab, tilleul and white grounds. ^ a 3 Excitement in Nova Scotin. The question of precedence having j, arisen between certain queen's counsel, ! 8 an affidavit was read in the supreme ! , 3 court of Nova Scotia, setting forth that the seal attached to the commission of j queen's counsel appointed by tbe local j 1 government, was not the great seal of the , ? province, but the old seal which was or- j dered to be returned by the imperial , 3 government in 1869. The premier of \ " the local 'government admitted the gov- , ernment had been using the old seal. ' " The court expressed astonisliment at \ 1 such contempt for her majesty's author- j j j ized and expressed opinion, and said that.; 1 all acts requiring the great seal done j ? since 1869 were totally void. 1 1 This state of affairs leaves Nova Scotia , ? to-day without a parliament and without 1 a government, with all grants of mar- ] * | riisge licenses, consequently marriages, ' ! and all commissions since 1869 totally I void. Tho greatest excitement prevails in consequence. The chief justice, after * intimating that it would require im- . ? perial legislation to rectify the matter, adjourned tho court for ten days for a fall inquiry. A Itasli J?et. i- A Rochester man, according to the a Sunday Herald of that city, hot iive o dollars the other day that he could put a y billiard ball in his mouth. If he had been a newspaper man no one would t have taKen the bet, but being another n kind of hairpin, the Y was planked. 1- Sure enough, the feat was accomplished, , d but tiie performer could not get the ball e out. Physicians were sent for. The 11 it most attractive ladies in town were put, h vis-a-vis with the victim, but they [f couldn't attract worth a cent. Sam Hil- j e dreth. who has the reputation of drawine e the biggest bull ever held in Rochester, d was called in ; he couldn't conduct satis-; ti factorily. Finally the doctors tried s- again. One got a loadstone, another a took a cue-rions instrument and caromed if on the two tonsils ; he then made a cush[. ion shot on the larnyx, and tried to e pocket the ball in the brouchiais. After il some skillful play; with several scratches,' i- lie nursed the ball out. That whale of >f prophetic billiard spheres, now Swallows , d codfish rotundities. i A MEMORABLE VOYAGE. A True Story of Gmnbcttn'n Trip in the BaU : loou from Bclcnffucrcd Paria. The following,says Figaro, is an absolutcly true account of that famous voyage in a balloon by 'which M. Gambetta ! escaped from beleaguered Paris. The i details have hitherto been but imperfect- ' ly known to the public. Wc are fortu- I imtnlv pnnlilpil fr> rrivA f.llflm n? t.liAV 1 came, lately, from M. Gambetta's own lips?not, indeed, in our bearing, but in that of several persons who merit our entiro confidence. M. Gambetta was dining tho other day with a lady holding a high position in Parisian society. After dinner the illustrious dictator, in compliance with a very general request, turned round in his chair, and related some passages of his curious and eventful life. Of course he soon had to say something about the siege of Paris. He talked of his dream of a prolonged resistance, and went on to show how he came to make up his mind to leave the city by balloon. At length all was ready ior ms nigttt tnrougn uie air; 110 oougm furs, took with him the in separable Spuller, jumped into the car and confided Cresnr and his fortunes to the care of the aeronaut. The latter, as we shall presently see, was bo sensible of the honor that on the strength of it he treated himself to a remarkably good dinner as a preparation for the journey. And now we had better let the hero of i the adventure relate it in his own -words, I which, as we ma}- again assure our readers, have been exactly reproduced in the ; following account: "When we started," he said, in his! purest Gascon accent, " I had a terrible I attack of bronchitis. Everybody was j saying : ' If you go you are a dead man.' | The savants especially assured mo that j the temperature would be ice cold, j Luckily, I had my furs?those furs that; people liavo said so much about since : then?and off we went. Once fairly I clear of the earth I found it so hot that j I was glad to throw off all my wrappers, j So much for the savants. That's why i I never cared to learn anything. Science ' ?pooh ! In five or six hours the bal- j loon stopped. I shook the aeronaut, \ who had fallen asleep. ' Where are we ?' j 'Over the Oise,' lie replied, 'just on the boundar of the department of the Som- j me and Oiso.' 'Are you sure?' ' Oh, | monsieui, I know the country as well as ! I know v.y own pocket.' And in fact, after loolnnc ut my map, and then at the j landscape, I found we were above the j Oise, or, at least, above a river. It was j the Oise or something else?let it be the ; Oise. The point was to know whether I we were still over the Prussian lines or ! among our own people. Well, just then, j directly under the car, I saw a building, j a sort of farm, with a large square court- ; yard in which a number of men were I lying down witu tiicir piled arms in weir nydst. ' Who arc they ?' ' Oil ! monsieur,' says lie, 'for certain they arc Gardes Mobiles; we are in the French lines.' 'The devil we are,'said I; 'bnt1 are you sure of it??because, for iny J part, you know I cannot recognize the j uniforms.' ' Perfectly snre.' 'Down! we go then,' and down we went, till wo j Averc not more than seven or eight bun- | dred metres from the earth, when we | heard a German challenge, 'Wer da?' and saw a mighty bustle in Ihe court- j yard?the men jumped up, seizing their j arms and beginning to shoot at the balloon. And the aeronaut had slipped the ! grappler! He was drunk. I had just time to whip out my knife, cut the cord j and pitch him to the bottom of the car? i with a threat that, if he stirred, I'd i throw him over. Then wo began to { mount again, but slowly enough, as it seemed to me, for we could hear the music of the bullets, though at that distance they could not have done us much harm. I verily believe that if we had leaned over we might have caught them 1 in our hands. In fact, I know we could, for I afterward made the experiment at Tours, by setting some chasseurs to fire on a captive balloon lixed lull Iu had 110 appreciable effect. After awhile the balloon stopped, then begun to deccinl once more, with the Prussians still watching its motions. " We were again near the river, eo we had no better alternative than to drop into the water or into the arms of the enemy. I scribbled a dispatch to let my colleagues know how we stood, and sent it off by a pigeon, but the bird came back to the car?110 doubt having lo3t its way. We wore still dropping down, so at last there Beemed to be but one hope ?the Oise. As to our getting over the river to the French side before -ne fell, i it was not to be thought of ; there was uot an inch of air. All this while Spuller had been smoking his cigar like a philosopher. At last lie said, with a i: smile: 'The Oise, the Oise; that's all very well for you; you know how to swim, but I may as well tell you I don't.' < Stuff l' T onitl 'T'll look after von.' 1 KSVtt** . _ %J Still we shot down, when 011 ft sudden? . puff; there was a breath of air, but 3uch a Blight oue that I made a joke -of it, and told Spuller it was only the imoke of his cigar. The gods had come ' fco our aid. The balloon passed the river, 1 md made straight for the top of an oak. 1 JTou've no idea how uncomfortable it is ' to come down on the top of an oak?lit- ' tie branches without end, and all that. However, we landed, and were?saved." The Lady of the House?"Very good; but you must have had just a little , icare. j. Gambetta?"Oh, madame, not the L least in the world." How to Succeed. 1j If your seat is hard to sit upon, stand j up. If a rock rises up before you, roll j it away or climb over it. If you want!, money, earn it. It takes longer to skin i nn elephant than a mouse, but the skin j j is worth something. If you want confi- ' i donee, prove yourself worthy of it. Do 1 not be content with doing what another i has don- ?surpass it. Deserve success, i, ,.,,,1 U ? III rn,? 1? -?-na ,.n( tu.i<n ;. a man. Tlio sun does not rise like a rocket, or go down like a bullet fired from n gun; slowly nnd surely it makes its rouud, and never tires. It is :is casy to be a leader as a wljeel horse. If the { job be long, the pay" will be greater; if' ; the task be hard, tho more competent you must l>o to do it. . \ Tull Down, Etc. I ] Tho Cincinnati Enquirer prints the 1 following bit of history in answer to tho ] inquiry of a subscriber: The expression: i "Pull down your vest," was first hoard i iu thiB country in 1763. A New Eng- < land deacon named Spilkins had a veil : which was too short for him. When in i n heated debate or controversy his vest : would work up under his chin. Peoplr 11 who were listening to his discourse woula ! i interrupt liira, and tell him to pull doWn ' i his gnrment, and in this way the expres-: sion came into use a? a means of checking bores. I' Chinese Coolies in Cul>n. The London Saturday Review, commenting upon the report of a special commission appointed to investigate the condition of Chinese coolies in Cnba, says : Olie sentence in the commissioners' report supplies a terrible intimation : " Of the more than 110,000 Chinese who sailed for Cuba, upward of 10,000 died during the voyages." With a few exceptions the concurrent testimony of the witnesses bears evidence to an amount of suffering endured on the passage which almost surpasses belief. The wrotclicd crcatures were confine 1 in the holds ; were beaten without mercy, in some cases even unto death ; were supplied with bad food and insufficient water; were shut up in bamboo cages, or chained to irou posts; some were "kicked to death by the sailors," and "others on the point of death, but not dead, were thrown overboard." No wonder, then, that numbers sought relief in suicide. One witness says: "twenty men" (his.fellow passengers) " cast themselves overboard " eight jumped overboard," states another; and opium lent its aid to rid some of the sufferers of their misery. "On arrival, wliat happens to the coolie?" nsks the Chinese government. "On landing," replies Hsich-Sliuaiigchin, " four or five foreigners on horsei i_ ,1 *i.i, l.: ? imen., uriiiL'u witu wuijjb, iuu no nivu u herd of cattle to the barracoons to be sold." These men were then taken to the market, and were compelled to submit to treatment which to Chinamen, wli^se sense of decency is keen, was peculiarly abhorrent. They were obliged to remove their clothing, so that their persons might be examined and their prices fixed. "This covered ns with shame," say fifty-two petitioners. After the evidence brought forward as to the way in which the coolies are treated during the various stages of their immigration until they reach the sugar or other plantations of the island, the question '' Do employers treat coolies kindly ?" sounds lik$ a mockery ; but it might at least havo been supposed that selfinterest would have induced the masters to keep the coclies in good bodily health. Even tliis motive, however, seems to have been insufficient to work any good for the immigrants. They are underfed, overworked and treated with great barbarity. Maize and bananas form the staple food allotted to them. Many stated that, contrary to the regulations which limit the hours of labor to twelve out of the twenty-four, they were made to work from four in the morning until midnight. Sunday brought them no relief, and rny attempt to rest was punished by merciless flogging. Abundant evidence is furnished that the murder of coolies was not at all infrequent, and .cases of suicide by hanging, by jumping into sugar caldrons and by taking opium, were of common occurrence. These statements appear so incredible that wo naturally turn for their confirmation or refutation to the statistics finished by the commissioners, and from these we learn that out of 114:, 081 coolies who landed in Cuba during the twenty years ending 1873, 53,502 died in the island. These figures speak for'themselves. And it cannot bo said that infirmities arising from old age had anything to do with this high rate of mortality ; for, according to the commissioners, fl>n tvnrn nil vmimr mon The fact, therefore remains that during the twenty years nlxjve named, nearly fifty per centum of tho young ftnd naturally vigorous Chinamen who landed in Cuba succumbed to the effects of the cruel treatment to which they were subjected. Tiic Romance of Figures. If one cent was set out at compound interest in the year 1 at four per cent., tho first of January, 18(50, it would amount to one quintillion 201,558 quadrillions 332,000 trillions *of dollars. If we were to take this sum as a capital and use its yearly interest (four percent.) then the income tax wo would have to pay at the rate of one per cent, would be 480 quadrillions 583,320 trillions of dollars. If wo paid the tax collector this sum in silver he would need 3,006,345,000,000,000,000 wagons for its transportation. Provided the whole of the earth's surface, both land and water, were peopled as closely as possible we should have but the two-millionth nart of the drivers required, nnd the line of wagons would have the length of eight trillions 442,000 billions of miles. The speed of light is iy2,C90 miles per second, and it would take 759,600 years to reach the collector, beginning at the farthest wagon on bfth sides, stationed himself in the center of the line. Again a robbery could be committed on the liindermost wagon which would not bo discovered till the 24,780th generation of tax collectors. If, on the contrary, instead of using the interest on the capital (the bulk of which, by-tlie-bye, would bo equal in gold to 44 globes) this capital were distributed among the people of the earth, each one of its 1,000,000,000 of inhabitants would receive about 1,200 trillions of dollars to live on, and could every second use $2,000,000 for 38,096,300 years without reaching the bottom of his purse. A Miser's Fate. When the government desired to borrow a large Bum of money from the immensely wealthy miser, Foscue, he refused the loan on the plea of poverty. Fearing, however, that some of his j neighbors, among whom he was very unpopular, would report his immense wealth to the government., he applied his ingenuity to discover some effectual way [)f hilling his gold, should they institute i search to ascertain the truth or false- 1 liood of h:s plea. With great care and secrecy lie dug a deep cave in his cellar; ; to this receptacle for his treasure he de- i icended by a ladder, and to the trap loor he attached a spring lock, s-< that :m shutting it would fasten of itself. By-aud-byo the miser disappeared; in-, ipiiries were made; the house searched;. woods explored, and the ponds were :lragged, but no Foscue could they find; and gossips began to conclude that the miser had fled with his gold to some part where, unknown, he could be free from the hands of the government. Some time passed on; the house in which lie liad lived waB sold, and workmen were busily engaged in its repair. In the 1 progress of their work they met with the j 1 e j.1 1. ? ...-.11? ;i'?Or OI II1B B'.'UIUl; UVYf, (> ll?U IUU AVJ ill the lock outside. They drew back tho i lIoo:-, and descended with alight. The (in t object upon which the lump reflected was the ghastly body of Foscue, the miner, and scattered about him were heavy bags of gold and ponderous chests f untold treasure; a candlestick lay beside him on the floor. The worshiper of mammon had gone into his cave to pay j liis devoirs to his golden god, and be- ! came a sacrifice to his devotion. FARM, GARDEN AND HOUSEHOLD, tl n llintM nbont Work. ^ Keep a Note Book.? Perhaps there ** is no business in which there ftre always so many beginners, as farming, anil these, whether new at the business or nn old hand at it, should make a practice of noting things as they occur to him, or r< as they happen; and a note book is handy y to have in one's pocket. ^ Now things are continually coming tl into notice. Now it is a new fodder n ; plant, some new variety of wheat or tl j corn, a new cross of some domestic ani- A ' mal, or a new tool. It is well to try any N I .promising novelty in a small way, at g< I first, to test its value. If successful, it I is afterwards easy to add to the stock. ft Drains.?There is no better time " than the present to dig drains. The P1 January thaw, which was very general, P has filled the low ground with water, ** and flowing water is the best possible leveling instrument. The narrower the ei drain is made, so that a man can work easily in it, the cheaper may the work ei be done. When water is flowing in the ^ drain, lay the tiles from the head down- e' wards. There is no danger then of obstructions entering them. 71 The cost of draining can hardly ever ' be lesa than it now is. Labor is very ^ low, and those who have improvements sf to make, and have the money, or see ^ their way clearly to repay it, if borrow- g, ed, could liavo no better opportunity ,' than the present. Standing Water.?A very important ai work is to let off any water that accumu- m latcs upon the surface. This requires tr constant attention, and the use of the tl hoe or a shovel. Whether there is a crop n, in the ground or not, it is equally neces- p sary to do this thoroughly, else the soil 8l is soaked and dries very slowly. The (]( amount lost through water remaining aj upon fields, would each year buy for tl every farmer who permits it, a good pa- ^ per and more books than he could well j, study in a year. tc Barnyards, especially, should be freed P from water; the wash from the roofs F should be carried off before it has soaked w through the manure and dissolved out P all the valuable parts of it. P Live Stock.?When the coat is shedding, the use of the card, or a smooth curry comb, should not be neglected. There is then an irritation of the skin, B( which is allayed by Vrushing or carding; w besides, the loose hair is removed and 0] \ does not rub otl 011 to the clothes. A q tcaspoonful of sulphur daily, to every ^ animal, for a week or two, would be n| helpful. c|. Vermin.?As the warm weather conies f\ on, lice and ticks becomo active, and n< annoy the animals greatly. A mixture In of equal parte of lard and kerosene oil, w put. on tlio back and brisket of cows, u calves and sheep, will have a good effect. Spring Wheat.?In the districts m where this crop succeeds, that is, north fr of a line drawn from Boston, to the hj south shore of Lake Erie, and thence to ti central Illinois, it is the first crop sown. P1 Shallow plowing, with thorough harrow- P ing, leaving whatever small, clods may lc remain after the harrowing, upon the T surface, is the best preparation. Where vi some stimulating fertilizer is needed, P use 150 pounds of superphosphate of ?| lime, or JOG pounds of guano, per acre, ci ] ?AaricuKurint. ? ti JJomcHtle I?vl|>?. a j Lemon Cheesecakes.?Take half a ; In pound of butter, 011c pound of loaf sugar, j c< six eggs, the rind of two lemons nnd i it juice of three ; put all into a small lined [ ti saucepan. Iteep stirring the mixture st over the firo till all is dissolved and it begins to thicken ; then put it into small aj ! jars, and keep in a dry place. When si , made into cheesecakes, line some patty ti pans with good puff paste, rather more j hi than half fill them with the mixture, and j T bake for about a quarter of an hour in a J ir brisk oven. is Queen of Puddings.?Soak a pint of \ ?< bread crumbs in boiling milk, and the j |r yolks of four eggs, well beaten, and j ^ sticnr to taste. Bake in a pie dish ; when ^ j coid, spread jam over the top, and over j w j that the whites of four eggs, beaten to a | Vl : stiff froth, witli four teaspoonfuls of (1 white sugar; put into the oven, and bake Zl a very light browu. Flavor with essence 1 of vanilla or lemon. j Potatoes a la Maitee d'Hotel.? i Slice cold boiled potatoes a quarter of nn B inch thick, and put into a saucepan wit-li d { four or five tablespoonfuls of milk, two | st ; or three of butter, pepper, salt and some d j chopped parsley ; heat quickly, stirring n I all the time, until ready to boil, then lc j stir in the juice of half a lemon. This A I last ingredient entitles the dish to a for- i b I eign title. Pour into a deep dish and 1 la j serve very hot. j If Iced Apples.?Pare and core one dozen , ^ i large apples ; fill with sugar, mixed with 1 " ! O li+Urt Knffai* on/1 rtiimomnn nr mif.mPff ! ?] j bake till nearly done. Cool, nud, if j ^ ; possible without breaking, put the ap- : " pies on another dish. If not possible, ; r< I pour off the juice; have some icing pre- i r( j pared ; lay it on the top ami aides, and I b set into the oven a few minutes to brown | i slightly. Serve with cream. j j* Cheese Omelette.?Grate some rich | , ; old cheese, and, having mixed the ome- i : lette as usual, stir in the cheese with a : swift turn or two of the wrist, and at! I the same time some chopped parsley and | thyme. If it is beaten a long time the j ! cheese will separate the milk from the J . eggs. Cook at once. ^ Hon- to Save Mnnnrc. I {] If a farmer were to have the best fa- j cc cilitics for saving liis manure, with the ; m least possible loss of ammonia, I would j re eny, let him have a manure cellar under j liis cattle stalls, into which their dung is daily thrown; and the lloor of ihe stall | so constructed to allow nil the urine of j j, the stock to run down and he mixed with ' , it. This cellar would have to he under a |. bnru lmilt on a aide hill, so sis to admit . of backing in a wagon.to cnriy the con- : ^ tentu to the fields. A pump would be ! necessary near by, with h$se to saturate rr the manure occasionally to hasten decomposition. Horse manure, especially, j . would be liable to serious injiu*y if not !U kept wet. * j ., The next best plan to keep manure is , . under a shed, piled up compactly with j'1 tlie top of the heap a little concave, so as j , to hold water, and allow it to run down | m, ami dampen the wholo heap. Water is ;, highly necessary in the decomposition of | manure heaps. An excavation in the ; ? middle of the barnyard, six or eight feet i , square, and of the Bamo depth, in which ! V" a pump is placed, to carry through hose j or troughs the liquid manure of the yard 11, to the heap under tho shed, would ue a good thing. A platform could be made over tne wen Jioie, w consist* 01 bihih iwu i inches wiclf, and just fnr enough apart to dc allow the . liquids of the yard to run " through it; or the shed manure may be ; uj wot once in two weeks from a pump uot I mi far away; or the water from tho roof of j wt a ae barn and shed may be so conducted pon the manure as to require no other etting; but the conductors should bo , mde to be removed when the heap is j ret enough. The Indian Tribes of Maine. j The Augusta (Mc.) Journal says: The jmnants of two Indian tribes continue 1 10 wards of the State?the Penobscot,,1 ad Passamaquoddy. The past year lere has been expended for the first- i amed tribe 83,437.01. The census of ; le tribe shows the number to be 44$. ; t the annual election, held the first of ovember, Tomer Attian was elected . overnor: Saul Neptune, lieutenant- , rrwrnor; and Sabattis Dana, delegate to ! le legislature. A larger vote was cast lan at previous elections, many particiating in the election who have in former ' ears refrained from voting, and the inications are that a much pleasanter state ! f political feeling prevails than for sev- ral years past. There has been less deiand for labor, and consequently a low: rate of wages has prevailed among the ' ibo for the past year. Sales of baskets, 1 ic., at summer resorts have been less in 1 nantity and in price than in any preious seasons. No prevalent diseases ] five raged among the tribe during the j ?ar, and their condition socially, morally i id physically have remained about the ] tme. The expenditures the past year ir the Passamoquoddy tribe were 84,- , )5.08* Game lirv? become scarce, and ( lit very few can gain their livelihood by \ unting. Tribe numbers 508?260 males ( id 2-18 females. As soecified in a Ireatv I mde with the different sections of the ibe, dated February 28tli, 1852, upon ie death of John Francis (then goveror of that portion of the tribe living at leasant Point) a vote of the whole tribe ion Id be taken, and the majority should scide whether to elect another governor | ; Pleasant Point or "to bo content with 1 ie ono living on the Indian township. J he office having become vacant by the ' eath of John Francis, the tribe decided 1 > elect another governor at Pleasant oint, and have made choice of Selmore I rands. They have also, in accordance I ith the provisions of the treaty, chosen ! oter Selmore lieutenant-governor at j Icasnnt Point. i A Great Copper Lode. i Next to the Calumet conglomerate " ands the Pewabic lode as a yielder of j )pper. The noticeable mines operating ; i this deposit to any extent now are the [uincy and Franklin. , The progress of ie former has been marked by a series 1 : prosperous years, and in 1876 its pro- < net was the largest ever obtained in any ] velve months before. The Quincy is 1 3w the deepest mine worked on the < ke, and its lode at the lowest point rought is as rich as it ever was in its i pper levels. i The Franklin, notwithstanding the < une was Diuuy cnsnDieu two years ago i orn the treatment it received at tho anils of the tributers, who for some me had operated it, afforded more copDr in 1876 then it ever did before. Comarntively speaking, this mine is hlialiw, and it 1ms a good stretch of lode, he success of tho industry since its reivftl shows that the portion of the ewabic deposit it is -working is capable F being mined profitably under juilious management. Barring unforseen jcidents and drawbacks, the coming velvfl months tho Franklin will do betjr than it did in 1870, and with the irgo amount of virgin ground there is jonomically available for years?the line, as long as it is kept on tho light ack, is a permanency?one of the )lid industries of tho district. Tho company, owing to the tattered j :id torn condition tho underground and j irface of tho mine were left in by the I ibuters, has been obliged to expend | LX~J?t3 nuuio Ui Jliuucj 111 ivjuuxxo, VIA.. I lie working plant above and below is t first-cln^o shape The Franklin mill i now one of tho best on the lake. With S jpper at anything like a fair figure durig the next year, the results of the mine 11877 will no doubt meet the approbaon of its stockholders, as well as those ho have a heart hi the progressive de- j flopment of the mining interest of this istrict.?Portage Lake Mining Ga' \ rttc. I A New Hair Restorer. The British consul at Nicolaieff, South iussia, reports to the foreign office the iscovery of a new hair restorer. He | iys : In the summer my attention was j rawn to several cases of sudden baldess of bullocks, cows and oxen and the j >ss of tailc and manes among horses. I . former servant of mine, prematurely I aid, whose duty it was to trini my imps, had a habit of wiping his petrolum-besmeared hands in the scanty >cks which remained to him, and after iree months' of lamp trimming experiace his dirty habit procured for him a tuch finer head of black glossy hair mil he ever possessed before in his ^collection. I subsequently tried the ;medy 011 two retriever spaniels that ad become suddenly bald, with won- j erful success. My experience induced j j le to suggest it to the owner of several! f lack cattJo and horses affected as above I f ated, and while it stayed the spread of j ie disease among animals in the some ' leds and stables, it effected a quick and i j ulical cure on the animals attacked, j, he petroleum should be of the most: , (fined American qualities, rubbed in I gorously and quickly with tho palm of 1 ie hand, and applied at intervals of tree days, six or seven times in all, ex- j ? sjjt in tho case of horses' tails and ones, when more applications may be i 1 iquisito. j p Found Ids Boy. Not long after the stealing of Charley ; n oss, a little son of Henry Dochmueler, (j St. Lonis, was 'stolen. The father j >] ul but little property, a>id was tumble | c pay the expenses of an extensivo j v arch; bnt lie shrewdly hit upon a plan . | r?accomplishing the object effectually. ! i, e road tho ncwspajiers carefully, and . Ijenever he saw an account of the find- j g of a supposed Charley Roes he sent learn if the boy was not his lost one. 1 k length, two years after the kidnap np;, lie saw an account of a stray boy Illinois, and, on going there, he found , y lint he had been so long in search of. "* lie child's hair had been dyed, and he id changed much through sickuess and ^ (privation, but there was no doubt as n llie identity. ' He liad boen stolen by 8 indering beggars, who had made his j etty face profitable in exciting pym-' . ithy. Tlie father is now prosecuting j1 e supposed kidnappers. ? ! h His Pleasures.?"My son," jaid a h iting mother to her eight-year-old, u wliat pleasure do you fcol like giving s> during the Lenten season ?" " Well, d a, I guess I'll stay away from school," si is the reply. _ j It Items of Interest. Inquiring Reader?Wc know of no patron saint of the dance, without it is 3aint Vitus. Why is blind-man's-buff like sympathy ? Because it's a fellow feeling for a fellow creature. A politician in. Washington has become cross-eyed trying to keep his eye on the main ohaflce. Is not prayer a study of truth, a sally Df tho soul into the unfonnd infinite? No man ever prayed heartily without learning something. A Kentucky editor remarks that ninetynine out of a hundred people make a * ^ 1 1 xl |. ? ArnJa Bjreai raisiaiio wxjou iuej tuu uu ? a tail, in throwing away the wrong end. Governor Newbold, of Iowa, delivered the best inaugural address ever listened to from a governor. After taking tho aath of office he said: " I'll do the best [can.': " Grandma, why- don't you keep a serrant any longer ?" " Well, you see, my 3hild, I am getting old now, and can't take care of one as I used to, you know." In the economy of nature nothing is lost. The inside of an orange may refresh one man, while the outside of the same fruit may serve to break anotner man's leg. It is an old practice in Cambridgeshire, England, villages to sprinkle with 3haff the doorstep of a house'belonging to a man suspected of beating his wife, :haff being the result of thrashing. " What do you get from iodine ?" askjd tho medical professor. " We get?a?h?usually get idiotic acid," yawned the jtudent. " Have you been taking some ?" quietly asked the professor. There are in Connecticut, New Jersey md New York, hat manufactories which, if run at their full capacity, conld easily make ia two months all tho soft hats the jountry would demand in Ihe next six months. " Why, my dear fellow," whispered a Wend, "I did not know you were so badly maltreated in the affair." "Nor [ neither," sobbed tho victim, "till I lieard my lawyer a tellin' the jury all ibout it!" The latest use to which paper is put is that of a protector of ship's bottoms. Experiments show that when a cement 5f waterproof paper is employed, it is ihe best and cheapest material for protecting iron. The Japanese toilet mirror allows a ivoman to see all sides of her head at >nce; but what is needed in this country .8 a mirror which "will deceive her into blinking that a last year's bonnet is one )f the latest style. Dr. Brown-Sequard nays that coughing nay be prevented by pressing on tho lervcs of tho lips in the neighborhood >f the nose, by pressing in the neighborlood of the ear, and by pressing very lard on the top of tho mouth. Brown, meeting Jones, his friend, and seeing him look very miserable, said: Hullo, old man! Why, you'vo a face ust fit for a funeral!" " So I ought to mve," replied Jones, "considering I'vo ust had an execution in my house." A New Bedford justice of the peace recently married a couple in what is snpiosed to bo the quickest time on record. " Did you como to be married ?" he ask;d. "Yes." "Go out, you are married," and they went out wonderingly. When you try to carry home a heavy irticlo, you should take .every advantage )f it. Some men who can carry a jug of ivhisky home when it is kept in the jug, require the aid of two policemen when hey attempt to carry it homo inside em. The oldest duke in Great Britain is :he Duke of Portland, aged seventyseven; the youngest, the Duke of Montrose, aged twenty-live. The oldest marpiis is the Marquis of Donegal!, aged ?ighty; the youngest, the Marquis of Samdeu, aged five. David Dudley Field doesn't like tobacco. Entering a committee room tho Dtlier day he found a reporter smoking. " Yonng man," said he, "throw away - - ^ J T?.l that cigar; smoke is offensive to me. ? u just as soon a man would spit in my :aco as to smoke where.! am." ? '' What a horrid young one," eaiil a lady in a low tone to her companion, at ;he baby show. Then approaching the ;hild the same young Ja ly exclaimed in :he presence of the mother : " Oh, the jweet darling!?prettiest one we've seen jret!?the little precious darliug !'* Out West no man's ambition has been :'ully satisfied until he has been mistaken >n the train for a commercial traveler. Then the radiance that streams from a :ontented soul illumines his grateful, lappy faCv', and as he looks around it teems to him that all the bright world ,akes its sunlight through blue glass. About six months ago a young man in Sock Island voluntarily escorted an old ady home from a church sociable. Last veek she kindly died and left him J4,000. And now the old women of Sock Island are fairly besieged with )eaux, and the prettiest girl in town has o walk homo alone every time if there is in old woman in the congregation. In order to check the patronage of )pium dens by whites of both sexes, tno joard of supervisors of San Francisco lave passed a law imposing a fine of riot ess than 850, nor more than 8500, upon my keeper who permits a, white person o'smoke in his place, declaring it a riminal act for a white person to bo ound in ft den, and imposing a fine of lot less than 850 therefore. A pleasant instance of true generosity ind its reward, occured at a suburban own recently. A woman who supported wo children by liajrd work was asked by i fellow worker in the mill to aid in mnkng up a pur so for a poor woman. Chough having only sixty cents left to arfy herself and children through tlio veek, she gave twenty-five ccnts, and a ittlo later the person relumed and told icr that nho was the ono for whom llio inrtse wos intended, and handed her 8-5. Don't Lose a Minute. Keep busy. The man -who has nothng to do is the most miserable of beings, f you lmvc 110 regular work, do chores, 8 fanners do when it rains too hard to rork in the field. In occupation we for;et our troubles, and get respite from arrow. Tho man whose mind and hands re busy finds no time to weep and wail, f work is slack, spend the time in rciullg. No man ever knew too much. The .ardest students in the world are the old icn who know the most. If you lack ookfl, there >. .e free and very cheap liraries, at least in cities, at your comiand. The man who does not acquire Dim* item of useful information between livhrenlc ami heiltime must mourfnlly iiv, with t.liti Roman emperor; " I have JSt 11 llilj'. "