The Abbeville press and banner. (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, February 22, 1882, Image 1
ABBEVILLE PRESS AND BANNER: 1
0
BY HUGH WILSON AND H. T. WARDLAW. ABBEVILLE, S. C.. WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 1882. NO. 38. VOLUME XXVI.
The Rock-Tomb of Hraiiore.
A drear and desolate shore!
Where no tree unfolds its leaves.
And never the sprir.? wind weave*
Green grass for the h niter's tiead;
A land forsaken and dead.
Where the ghostly icebergs go
And come with tho ebb and flow
Of the waters of Bradore !
A wanderer, from a land
By summer breezes fanned,
Looked around him, awed, subdued,
By dreadful solitude.
Hearing alone the cry
Of sea-birds clanging l>y,
Tho crash and grind of tho floe,
Wall of wind and wash of tide.
" Oh, wretched land !" he cried,
" Land of all lands tho worst,
God-forsaken and curst,
Thy gates of rock should show
The words "the Tuscan seer
Read in tho realm of woe:
' Hope entereth not here !' "
I.o ! at his feet thn^ stood
A block of smooth larch wood
B-Jside a rock-closed cave
By nature fashioned for a grave.
Safe from ;ho ravening bear
And fierce fowl of the air,
Wherein to rest was laid
A twenty summers' maid,
Whose blood had equal share
Of the lands of vine and enow,
Half French, half Eskimo,
In letters uneffaced,
Upon the block were traced
Ihe grief and hope of man,
And thus the legend ran:
"We loved her!
Words cannot tell how well 1
We loved her!
Goil loved her!
And cal'ed her home to pence aud rest.
We love her
The stranger paused and read
' Oh, winter land !" he said,
'Thy right to be I own;
God leaves thee not alone,
Aud if the fierce winds blow
Over thy wastes of rock and snow,
And at thy iron gates
The ghostly iceberg waits,
Thy homes and hearts are dear;
Thy sorrow o'er thy sacre l dust
Id sanctified by hope and trust;
God's love and man's are here.
Still wheresoe'er it goes
Love makes its atmosphere.
Its flowers of Paradise
Take root in the eternal ice,
And bloom through Polar snows!"
?J. G. Whit tier, in the Independent.
ST. VALENTINE'S DAY.
It was a clear, sunny morning this
fourteenth of February abont which I
write, and the postman of Longwood
looked for a busy day, for Longwood
was a cozy, old-fashioned town where
lovers still clang to time-honored customs,
and valentines had not become
miserable daubs or vile caricatures.
The morning sun was not very high
when Maggie Lay field, one of the acknowledged
belles of the town, eat
combine out the rippling waves of her
dark hair and building her air-castles.
It was i? double holiday for this pretty
girl; her birthday and St. Valentine's
day, and Maggie knew tbat on this
eighteenth birthday there was not likely
to be any lack of the tributes laid yearly
at her feet. She knew where two for
her wee brother and sister were securely
hidden and she was wondering what
Lizzie and Hattie, Willie and Laura
would receive from the postman, and
wnetner ner mysterious lover woo ior
five years had remembered her would
be forthcoming on this her eighteenth
birthday, She was still dressing when
her two elder sisters, bright, pretty girls
of nineteen and twenty, came in.
"Now, Maggie," said Lizzie, "I would
not for the world be suspected of I
hinting, but Hattie and I do hope you
will remember us when you receive
your yearly remittance.*'
" Perhaps it won't come," said Maggie.
- |
" Perhaps it will!" said Hattie. "Oh,
it is too delightfully mysterious! Do
you know, Maggie, I am furiously jealous,
and should bo worse if you were
not so generous."
' It seems so funny," chimed in Lizzie,
"aud if papa was not so willing for
you to accept it and mamma so smiling,
I should very much doubt of its pro- i
nrinf-v "
" The breakfast bell; and I am jast i
ready. Come, girls;" and off Maggie i
darted to answer the summons.
< Speculations were plenty as to the ;
number of valer tines expected and the !
senders thereof; but many allusions!
were made to Maggie's certainly com- j
ing, and various hints were thrown out
about wants and desires.
At last tho doable rap at the front j
door gave the signal, and as tho sound |
rang through the hall Dr. Layfield's j
eldest son, Albert, came down the:
t-taiis to breakfast. Every one of the !
children, except the wee baby, was in I
the hall; Lizzie and Hattie hidden by i
the door, Laura beside Betty, and j
Willie peeping behind her skirts. Mag- j
gie was kneeling to draw from under |
the stairmat the envelopes addressed j
to Louis and wee Amy, while even John, |
the doctor's erra ad-boy, made the boots !
an excuse to appear on the scene. The I
doctor looked up from his paper with j
an air of interest, and mamma left her j
second cap nntasted till the important i
letters were delivered.
"OnA fnr anrl nrm fnr ATofrnrm
that's all by the first post," said Hattie,
coming in, followed by all the others.1
"Yours always comes early, Maggie;
there it is."
Maggie broke the seal. For four j
vears before a cri^p bank note for five
hundred dollars had fallen from the en-1
velope. but this year there was, with j
the usual offering, a letter, andinsids
of that a smaller envelope addressed to
Dr. Layfield.
" A proposal, and here a note to a^k
papa's consent," cried Lizzie. " Too
bad, and you younger than Hattie
or 11"
Buf, looking at the face that was beut
over the sheet, she paused to ask, in a
quieter tone:
""What in it, Maggie, dear?'* And
Dr. Layfield, with t>. glance at his wife,
echoed the question.
"Read if-, and tell mo what he
means," said the young girl, handing
the doctor the Jotter, which ho read
carefuily.
"Come into tlio library with me,
dear, and I will tell you. No, none of
you," he added, waving his hand to the
others who crowded around him; "I
must fee Maggie alone."
The deep gravity of his manner, the
mysterious letter, tilled Maggie with a
vague dread, and she trembled violently
as she followed him. Even his kird
arm around her, his loving kiss on her
p face could not quiet her agitation,
while his face was so grave and his
k voice so sad.
8 "I cannot tell you why this letter
|j was written," said the doctor, gently,
g as he placed her in a comfortable chair.
K ,rmfil f nnsn mv own. and this he has
requested me not to do yet. Read his
letter to you again Maggie."
With a trembling voice the young
girl read:
" My own dear Maggie : At last,
after eighteen years' of cru'.l separation,
I am hoping to see the dear face whose
baby feature", pictured by my loving
heart, have been tho comfort of my
lonely exile. I am trembling with joy
at the thought that the eyes now scanj
ning these lines will rest lovingly on
my fnce, and the clear voice I have
heard in my dreams will fall in music
of affection upon my waking ears. I
am coming home?shall be with you on
the day you receive this, to clasp you
I in my arms, never again to let you go
fiom me. Go to Dr. Layfield, and ask
him to tell you the story of my life,
then read what I inclose to him, and
oh, my darling! my treasure! open
your heart to the weary wanderer who
looks to you as his haven of love, of
oy, after years of bitter exile. Listen
to my story, lovo me, and welcome me.
"Hebbhbt Arundel."
1 " Now, dear father, pray tell me what
! all this means."
"It means, Maggie, that yon are to
leave ns; but no, I will tell you the
story as ho requests : Years ago, when
these grav hairs were brown, and this
peaceful home a dream of a far off future,
Herbert Arundel and I were old
college friends. I would not pain yon
by a recital of our life, but it is necessary
to make you understand what
follows. We wero w hat indulgent parJ
ents called ' wild boys,' what sternest
truth-tollers call 'dissipated yonng
i men.' Young, and with ample meaus
at our command, we ran the career that
j borders closely on vice and crime. For
three years we continued this miserable
. course of folly, keeping our position
i partly by family influence and partly by
exerting our powers of intellect at in
I tervals to redeem past idleness or misi
spent time.
" The fourth year we really devoted
I to study, and passed creditably through
the necessary examination, but after
. leaving college old habits resumed their
1 sway. Plunging recklessly into the
amusements of the large city where we
i lived, we became involved in debt, and
! made our lives one long course of
fashionable extravagance and dissipaj
tion. To dress with taste, to be
! acknowledged leaders of fashion, to
j drive the fastest horses, give the best
i suppers and tlirt with the gayest belles,
J seemed the height of our miserable ami
bition, till we both became conscious
i of loving t uly and fervently. The
ladies whose fair faces became the light
i to show us the folly of oar lives were
i good, pure women; one the daughter of
1 a leading physician, the other the or|
phan niece of a wealthy banker.
"At first a false shame kept us both
silent: but in some moment of better
I feeling we both mutually promised to
: amend our lives, and try by steadiness
: and rectitude to become worthy of the
love we coveted. Frankly and without
| one reservation X laid my case before
Dr. Lee, the father cf my Amy, and he
; held out to me the helping hand I
sought. Making my reward depend ut|
terly upon m? own merit, he admitted
me among his students, and allowed
me to visit in his family, where for five
years my present wife waited for me to
prove my love.
'' Herbert was not so fortunate. His
addresses were treated with ecorn, but
he won the lady to consent to a clandestine
correspondence. Meantime he
obtained the situation of clerk in the
bank over which her uncle exercised :
some control as director. With a resolute
determination to win the esteem
he had periled by his former career he
kept his head clear and his hand busy
with his new duties, striving earnestly
to overcome the evil desires that still
clung to him.
"Three years after Herbert had en- i
tered the bank it was discovered that i
extensive frauds were being perpetrated
and large sums stolen irom the iastitu-1
tion. With bitter malice Mr. Wallace, |
the uncle of the woman whose love was ;
given to Herbert, fastened this crime j
upon him. He was followed and;
watched, and among his private papers j
were found letters and part of the!
stolen money, the letters containing j
proof that he had spent larger sums j
than bis salary would cover. He was ;
imprisoned, tried, found guilty, and |
sentenced to a long term of imprisonment.
Two weeks after his trial the |
prisoner escaped, ana no trace was ever ,
discovered of him, but the malice of \
Mr. Wallace was thwarted, for Margaret j
fled from home on the night when the :
prisoner escaped. They were married i
in New York, and sailed for California
the next day. :
" The doubt of Herbert's perfect in- j
nocence of the charges brought against
him never crossed mv mind?never for !
one instant dimmed Margaret's faith in
him, and she accompanied him as
cheerfully on his flight as if friends and
relatives had sanctioned her marriage
with the noblest of the land. Under an
assumed name Herbert again tried to
win a position, and aided by Margaret's !
possession of a large sum of money he !
started in business in San Francisco.
" Five years later, when my own mar- I
riage had been blessed by two crowing J
babies, Albert and Lizzie, and worldly |
prosperity was smiling upon me, I j
again saw Margaret Arundel. Herbert;
had lost everything by a destructive
fire, and this devoted wife bad come ;
home alone to beg for aid from her!
uncle, and to obtain from government'
her abused husband's pardon.
4 It was a wild evening in February \
when she came to my office, weary and
faint, to implore mo to help my old !
friend. She had seen her uncle, and
been crnelly taunted as a felon's wife, ;
and refnsed" the most trifling aid, and j
as the last words of her pitiful story ,
left her lips she fainted in my arms, j
That same night, or rather the next, i
eighteen years ago, you were born, and j
two hours later yonr mother died.
"I wrote to your father, inclosing :
such pecuniary aid as was within my j
reach, and promising to fill a father's
place to his child till ho could claim ,
her. Maggie, dear, yon can best judge !
if I have kept my word."
But Maggie's voice, broken by sobs,
had no word; only her clinging arms !
round his neck, her fuce lifted to his, j
told how truly she felt that he had in-I
deed fulfilled his task.
" For two years I heard nothing from
my old comrade; but then he wrote, j
He had again obtained a foothold
among the merchants, and was winning
his WAV tn affluence. but ho imnlored
me to keep his child, never to let the :
taint of the feloD's name rest on her 1
life. From that time he has sent me
yearly more than sufficient for yonr sup-1
poit, still imploring me to make no difference
between you aua my own chil- 1
dren. Wishing, however, that you .
should enjoy what was truly your own,
I proposed to him to inclose a portion
of your income to yourself, and have
contrived to drop it in the postoffice so
that yon receive it on St. Valentine's j
day. Your own generosity has still
! kept the balance even, for I am sure i
that but a sm'ill portion remains after
jour gifts to all have been selected.
"And now, my dear child, beforo we
; open this envelope, let mo say to you
that no father's love was ever stronger
. than mine for you. Your gentleness,
your frank, loving heart. yo".r obedienco
and intelligence have been to me
as great a joy as the gifts of my own
/iliiMi An onrl ilm Qontirafinn Trill lm uu
! painful as if Lizzie or Hattie were
I ubout to be taken from mo."
Quieting her own emotion, Maggie
watched the doe'or as he broko the seal
of his letter. Only a newspaper scrap
fell from it, but upon this was printed:
" The murderer of L? J? to-day m
open court confessed his crime, pleading
the heat of passion as his excuse.
; Following the long confession which we
give in another column, the prisoner
I made another one almost as important
! Twenty-three years ago he was clerk in
I a large banking house in B?, and in
i love with the niece of one of the directors,
Lemuel Wallace. Being favored
by this gentleman, now deceased, he
! was anxious to be rid of a rival, and
I with the aid and consent of Mr. Wal!
lace contrived to fix the crime of the
celebrated bank robbery of that year
upon him, secreting in his desk forged
letters and some of the missing money,
and swearing to acts and words of the
accused which would make his guilt
uppcux t'Uitaiu, k/uu ui uumuiiubiu^ ui
uttering which he was perfectly innocent.
Ho begged that, as somo atonement
for the crime he has just confessed,
Herbert Arundel's name may be
cleared before all the world, as he was
; innocent of the crime laid to his charge,
i During this recital ono of the jurymen,
! Henry Atherton, a merchant whose
! name is one of our most honored among
; merchants, was observed to bo violently
: agitated, and as the prisoner concluded,
: he rose from his seat and stood erect,
j facing him.
j " 'Look at me, John Davis,' he cried.
"'John Davis! that is my own
name,' said the prisoner, trembling in
every limb, but obeying the request.
" ' Lo 'k at me,' repeated Mr. Atherton,
4 and say if I am not the Herbert
Arundel whose good name you swore
away twenty-three years ago ?*
"The prisoner gave him a long,
, | searching gaze, and then trying in vain
j to speak he fainted to the floor.
, j " Mr. Atherton or Arnndel has beeu
I besieged by congratulating visitors,
| bat it is rumored that as soon as he can
I arrange his business and collect hie
j vast wealth, he will return to B?
It was in vain that Maggie tried to
speak in answer to the doctor's kind
words of encouragement and congratulation.
The old gentleman, himself
elated by this good news of his friead,
was almost vexed at the white face and
! quivering lip the young girl turned to
I him.
j " Maggie, think of it! After twenty!
three years of lonely exile he is coming
j home a free, clear man, to establish his
I innocence and claim his child. My
poor child ! all this agitation has been
j too much for you. Shall I leave you
j alone for an honr or two while I tell
j the others?"
"les, yes; let me think I It is all
| so very strange to me."
Strange indeed! to part from all
! these dear ones, whom she had always
I believed to bo her own relatives, and go
j away with a stranger who was really her
father 1 With yearning, pitying love
she longed for him, to repay the genernna
lnro fliaf l-inrl nforTrod nn Inner
w UVMl ? >- V* O
to give her a happy home, and yet she
shiank from this bitter parting before
her. Lizzie, Hattie and the children
had never seemed so dear, and Albert
?how could she leave Albert ? From
the time when he had shared his mar:
bles with her, and refrained from breaki
ing her doll, she had always been his
pet sister. Lizzie and Hattie were to|
gether constantly, and Albert became
I very fond of the baby whose brightest
i smile was for him, of the child whose
i first word was his name, of the young
j girl who turned to him ever for proI
tection and companionship.
Belle as she had been, she preferred
Brother Albert for an escort to any of
the adorers who always begged the
office, and while the two older girls
were always provided with "beaux,"
Maggie kept the place for Albert. And
he was not her brother! she had no
claim upon that tender love, so precious
to her! The strange father would carry
her awav frnm linmfi. sisters. father.
mother and brothers. Worn ont with
conflicting emotions, the young girl
carried her sorrow to the source from
whence she had always looked for snpport,
and kneeling down by the doc|
tor's chair she prayed fervently for
counsel in her new duties, strength for
I its trials, gratitude for its blessings ;
prayed for tue dear unknown father, for
tho tenderly loved home circle she
must leave, and as the whispered words
fell from her lips she felt the painful
agitation qqieted, and the troubled
throbbing of her heart growing calm
again.
She bad risen, and was standing by
the window waiting for the return of
the doctor, when the door opened and
a tall, handsome man, with iron-gray
hair, and a kindly look in his gray eyes,
came forward. It scarcely needed his
open arms and tender call of "Margaret,
my child 1" for Maggie to know
her father, and the tender clasp of his
ttiULic?, tuc iuviug nuiuo ao muuicu uuu
upon her, told her that he would keep
his word, "never again to let her go
from him.''
The whole morning passed, and the
long separated father and child held
uninterrupted converse, the one seeming
only too happy to poan again and
agaiu the features of his daughter, to
hear the music of her voice, to take into
his heart the timid but warm assurance
of her sympathy and comfort, whilo
shq, already opening her heart to take
in ihe patient, noble nature that was
leaning so trustingly on her love, was
happy too, as a woman always is when j
she is a comforter.
At last the dear mother of her childhood
came to break Maggie's long j
morning of loving intercourse with iier
father, and take her back again to the
home circle.
For some weeks Mr. Arundel was
content to stay at Longwood, and wean
his darling gradually from tlio dear ties
of her life, but the parting came at last,
and Maggie left her old homo to preruIa
nwr Iipv larcftlinnKft in "R?.
The petted darling of the wealthy
man, whose sole object in life was her
happiness, she had every comfort, every
luxury at her command; but money
could not fill the great house with the
music of home voices, conld not lessen
the painful homesickness of the loving
heart.
Her father never dreamed of this pain.
For him her face wore its gayest smiles,
her voice rang out its music in gayest
welcome, and while he was near her
the hours flew by in music, reading and
familiar conversation. She loved 'aim
truly, but she was learning in Bbcdnce
another lesson of love: she was learning
to recall a voice that had always been
tenderest for her, a brother who was
fast becoming remembered and loved
with a stronger affection than even a
sister gives. So, with threads of joy
and pain interwoven, a year glided by.
"Maggie, dear," said her father, as
lie sat playing with his coffee cnp,
" next Wednesday week is your birthday,
and we are to have a grand party.
Everybody is to come, and Miss Aruiidel
is to enter society. Now, I waut
you to write to Longwood and invite
them all here, as many as can come.
The doctor's family must come for a
long visit, and you must ask all your old
friends for the party. It is only four
hours' rido from here, and they can
stay all night. I may have been wrong
in not having them here before, but I
was jealous of the old affections. You
have not been unhappy?"
" Not for a moment! I have missed
them all, dear father, but I have never
doubted ycur love, never wished to
change my position. Yet if they could
come sometimes for a visit?"
" As often as you will. Have one or
the other always with yon, dear, if it
will mako tho hours when I am away
less tedious."
St. Valentine's day found the doctor,
his wife, Lizzie and Hattie, Maggie's
guests, while Albert was to come in the
eveniDg. Every preparation for the
great party was completed, and Mrs.
Lay fie Id bustled about full of tho importance
of mistress for tho nonce, and
chaperon for her dear adopted daughter,
Maggie.
Luce it: the afternoon Maggie received
!be only valentine offered her
that da<\ She was io her room, preparing
ior the evening, when the white
envelope was handed her, and she lot it
lie unopened whilo she finished dressing.
As the broke the seal, the mirror
l>eio?e which she stood threw back her
figure, in its glossy white silk, its
lleecy lace folds aud the pnre pearl
ornaments, her father's gift. The rich
dark lniir, braided low on the neck,
contrasted well with the pearls there
j resting, and the beautiful faee bore the
j test of full dress bravely. She looked
: very lovelv, and as she read the words
before her the deep flush that mounted
i to her cheek was not unbecoming.
Inclosed in folds of poft paper the
; letter contained a ring?a circlet of
j pearls with one bright diamond in the
I center. She took all in her hand and
i softly went, downstairs to her father's
! librarv. He was alone there, and
j greeted his darling with fondwordsand
| proud praises; but she put in his hand
j the letter and the ring.
He sighed as he read, but the blushI
ing face betore him gave added force to
; every word of this earnest petition:
j "Maggie, Maggie, I cannot live apart
! from you. Tho brother's love, for so
| many years part of ray very beiDg, was
j nothing to the earnest devotion I lay
! now at your feet. I love you fondly,
truly, as a man loves but once, and I
j implore you give me one word of hope
1 that you will return my love. ]f you
j can give me the precious boon I crave
let me see the inclosed rinc on vonr tin
' ger to-night, the sign of betrothal to
j one who will make your happiness the
| hope and study of his life.
" Albert."
Studying Maggie's face earnestly the
young girl's father read there her answer.
"He must come here, Maggie; I may
lake a son, but I cannot lose my daughter."
She clung to him, whispering:
\
i ! " Nothing shall part us, father."
Long he held her closely in his arms,
i then with a fervent kiss nnd a whis,
pered.blessing her father put Albert's
i ring upon her finger.
i ______
, - Matches, .Vice and Fire.
i Tho enormous amount of property
1 destroyed annually by the lire that
| often originates in a way that cannot be
i accounted for may well excite, says
j an exchange, an inquiry in reference to
! the most pvobable origin of these de
strnctive fires. The watchman may be
in the lower part of the house, and bej
fore he is aware of it the flames burst
j out in some upper room, and a general
I connagration iouows.
! Now tho public would be startled to
j hear it stated tha.' a mouse Betthemanuj
factoring establishment or store on fire ;
I yet this is, as we have good reason to
! believe, often the case.
It is now very common for clerks in
i storeB, and men and boys employed in
ordinary labor, to emoke cigars, and as
a matter of convenience they often
carry parlor matches in their pockets,
and it is quite likely that some may be
accidentally dropped on the floor or left
; standing where a mouse will find them,
j And just as certain as a mouse finds a 1
I parlor match, so sure will it set off the
j match by putting its sharp teeth into 1
; it. The parlor match contains a subj
stance for which the mouse has a
j fondness, and as soon as the teeth entor
i tho match it will ignite. If there i
j is* loose paper or other combustible !
material near the flame will soon i
spread. Let any one who wishes to
satisfy himself of this fact take a parlor
match and scratch it with a pin or
needle, or stick it quickly into the
match resembling as near as possible |
tho action of a mouse's teeth, and he
I will soon have a blaze. The common (
sulphur match will not be touched by
a mouse, neither will it ignite in a j
similar way. If insurance companies ,
would consider their interests they
wnnld mnl:n tlio nnn.TUA nf rmrlnr '
| matches a condition of insurance.
If they are in donbt on this subject 1
they can make an experiment on some !
outbuilding or shed where mice can 1
come, and scatter paper or rags over '
the floor, and leave a few parlor '
matches scattered or standing in a box, '
and they will soon witness a conflagra- 1
tion. Millions of dollars' worth of
I property have been destroyed in the <
way above referred to, and where ihe I
remedy is so eaty it should bo applied I
without delay. Let those who wish to i
protect their property demand of their i
employes that they shall not carry par- f
lor matches in their pockts, conse- 1
qnently none will be carelessly dropped ]
on the floor, and the danger from this
source will be avoided. j
! ! 1
Popular Weather Prophets. 1
The so-called " Bauern-regeln," as 1
rules for farmers, which occupy a !
prominent place in the indispensable
''Kalender" of every German and ]
Swiss household, havo not been abolished
by the process of meteorology
and the publication of official weather
forecasts. We find th?m printed as (
usnal in the countless German alma- '
nacs for 1882. Many of them are in 1
rhyme, too pithy to lend themselves '
easily to translation, and are doubtless 1
of considerable antiquity. They may 1
be roughly divided into two classes? (
those which imply a sort of juriedic- '
tion over a particular setison to a par- '
ticular saint, doubtless a survival
of paganism; and those which I
express the collective results of i
the actnal observance of the <
weather by those [who were dependent i
upon ,'ts influences, whose formulated <
experiences were handed on from i
generation to generation. " When it I
snows small and fine" (kleinund fein), f
says a peasant's rule of frequent oc- t
currence, " the cold will hold out a
long time; when it snows wool and f
feathers (largo and broad flakes) the j
cold will be slight and soon over." |
Again. " When you can make a snow- |
ball easily, the cold will be moderato." f
Again " Little snow, grea". water; j
great snow, little water." Observation j
has proved all these rules to be true. 5
Fine and small-flaked snow lies long on ]
the ground, while large and loose- j
flaked snow quickly thaws, and its fall (
is usually an indication of an approaching
thaw.
So, too, a "little tnow," small in
flake, lies long ou the ground, more is
added to it, and when the spring comes 1
there is a gieat mass of water; whereas '
great snow, big in flake, quickly disap- \
pears, instead of heaping up until the :
i definitive arrivul of spring." " A mild
! January brings a cold spring and a cold 1
; summer." " A snow year is a rich
! year," " As much mist and fog in 1
March, so much rain for o, hundred '
days after March," and similar rules, 1
printed year after year in almost every 1
" Kalender," are not the product of 1
guess or venturo, such as a Zadkiel may <
compile, but the results of actual observation.
The popular rnle that " Au- ]
tnmn without mist (nebelfrei) brings I
: winter without cold," seemes to have 1
\ been verified in the year 1881.?London I
I Glob*. <
'
<'?!,! /.ml 1
i iTUiuiiain uuu nuggcta* 1
] The first piece of gold found in Cali- <
| fornia was worth fifty cents, and the ]
j second 85. Sinco that time one nug- ?
pet has been found worth $43,000; two '
821,000; one, 810,000; two, 88,000; one, ]
86,500; four, 85.000; twelve worth 1
from 83,000 to 84,000, and eighteen 1
wortn from 81,000 to $2,000, have been
found and recorded in the history of the i
State. In addition to the above, num- :
berless nuggets worth from 8100 to $5(0 1
are mentioned in the^ annala of Califor- i
nia gold mining during the last thirty I
years. From the date of the discovery i
; of gold in California to the present (
! time the yield has been about $1,000,!
000,000; therefore it is very easy to s^e i
(the small figure that nuggets cut in the i
i gold yield. Big nuggets are very fine <
j things to show, but after all it is the ;
fine gold?the dnst?that shows :
up. Although ten years younger i
than California, and a producer
of a less precious metal, Nevada has (
yielded in good solid silver bars 8275,- <
000,000. The annual product of gold is
| now Jess than 81,000,000 throughout ;
| the world, and its foreign coinage has ]
j practically ceased. in the United i
| States the production of gold has of \
I late years practically diminished. Id i
1878 it was $47,000,0^0; in 1879 it was 1
S38:900,000, and in 1880 but 836,000,- ]
000. A large part of the coinage in cur ;
mints at present is of plate and of for- i
nirrn on/1 Trnrn onina HP!i nnrl \
accounts submitted to the director of ;
the mint show during the year dcpisits j
of gold of domestic production, $35,815,536.55,
of plate, jewelry and worn
coin, $1,784,207 90, and of foreign coin
and bullion $92,233,858, being a total '
of $130,883,1112.-15, an excess of $32,- i
000,000 over tho gold deposits of last '
year.?Territorial Enterprise. i
?
The Mexican's Sccret.
| Twenty years ago a prominent physii
cian was called to attend the deathbed
J of an old Mexican. Tho doctor re;
mained faithfully at his side until ho
drew his last breath, and just before he
died the old Mexican said: "Doctor,
may God reward you for your kindness
' to me. I havo no money to give you, i
' but I can tell you i secret, known to i
i me only, which may somo time prove
I valuable to you." In a faint voice be
! told how he became possessed of the
! knowledge of the locality of one of tho
lost mines in Mexico, which had not i
' been worked for more than a century,
j uuu no gttVO W1U pll YblUIttJl tutj jumps
i showing the situation, whish he had
been carrying about with him, being too
i poor himself to use the knowledge for
j his own advantage, but always hoping
| to find Bome one to buy his valuable
; secret. The physician thought little of
j the matter ut the time, or until many
years afterward. Within a year he has
been there with a partner and bought
the land where his maps takl the mine
would be found without disclosing why
he wanted that tract. The mine was
found, has been successfully worked
and has proved one of the richest mines
in Mexico.
THE FARM AND HOUSEHOLD.
Fat in anil Garden Nolo*.
Blood and r< fuse meat rubbed upon
the trunks of trees will beep away mice
and rabbits.
If any new varieties of seeds are tried
uso oniy a small quantity at first, until
you are sure that the soil and locality
are favorable.
Do not allow I he cattle to tramp over
the mowings when the ground is soft
enongh to retain the imprin; of their
hoofs wherever they go.
Carbolic acid is very useful as a preventive
of insect ravages. Radishes may
be protected from maggots and orchards
from borers by its use.
Sugar beets are the only saccharine
plants that permit of preservation without
appreciable loss of sugar. Hence
their importance for sugar manufacture.
Upon nearly every Canadian farm a
certain lot of land is devoted to roots
(sugar), beets, carrots, mangel-wurzel,
etc. These are as essential to cattle as
the potato is to man.
The dead bark from the trunks and
larger limbs of tree3 is best removed
during a thaw. A wasti of whale oil or
soft soap applied with a brash gives a
smooth, healthy appearance.
Never set a hen in a box above the
ground or floor of the chicken-house if
possible to do otherwise, as the eggs
dry too fast and lose their vitality.
Much better success may be expected if
the nests are made on the ground.
Strawberries are much more prolific
when four or five different varieties are
planted together, although each variety
may bo a perfect one, than if but one
perfect variety were planted alone.
The opinion Las generally prevailed
that a little bran mixed with meal would
produce mcro pork than clear meal,
but in some experiments lately tried it
was found that clear meal made more
pork than a mixture of bran and meal.
Keep all stables, pens and sheds in
perfect cleanliness. They should be
well ventilated and not too warm, which
is unhealthful. Filth is too often a
jause of disease. We seldom hear of
trouble from sickness where the stock
ire well fed and have clean skins, puro
air and dry beds.
The Flemish farmer scrupulously
jollects every atom of sewage from the
towns; he guards his manure like a
;reast re, puts a roof over it to prevent
rain and sunshine from spoiling it; he
ilso gathers mud from rivert and c jnals,
md excretions of animals along the
tiighwavs for conversion into phosphates.
The value of all manufactured fertilizers
depends upon their solubility,
md these manures should all?be appropriated
by the growing crops. To expect
any such fertilizing matter to remain
in the ground for another year is
;o presume that the fertilizers are not
properly manufactured. Bone dust,
kntttntror ttm 11 in fViA cnil cnmro 1
fears.
To keep machinery from rustiDg take
me-half onnce of camphor, dissolve in
me poand of melted lard; take off the
jcum and mix in as ranch fine black
lead as will give it an iroa color. Clean
;he machinery and smear with this mixture.
After twenty-fonr hours rub
;lean with a soft linen cloth. It will
keep clean for months under ordinary
jircumstf nces.
When com on the ear is fed to horses
;hey masticatoitmnch more Blowly than
f the corn was shelled. As a consejuencethatonthe
ear is better digested,
V ho:*se requires more time to eat corr
m tbo ear than if fed either meal or
shelled corn. If the horse cannot have
;ime to masticate a fall feed of uniheltad
corn, then it is best to feed
something else.
If possible have your fruit garden
jepatate from your vegetable garden. It
Is a poor plan to put blackberries, raspaerries,
etc., along fence rowrf, where
he fruit is sure to he poor in quantity
ind quality. There are too mauy large
'arm* lacking in fruit. So little soil is
required in the culture of vines and
small fruits?and they conduce so largey
to health, and consequently to happiness?that
no farmer should fail to
jultivate them.
RcctpcH.
Pudding Sauce.?For ft good or easily
made pudding sauce, take one tablejpoonfnl
of btitter, two tablespoorrfals
jf flour, two-tliirds of a cup of srgar.
Pour hot water over these, stir well and
boil until thick, flavor with lemon or
nutmeg and a teaspooonful of vinegar
Custard Pie.?Scald a pint of rich
milk ; pour :it on to two eggs beaten
with two tablespoonfuls white sugar
ind a little sal1;, till very light ; line a
plate with crruit and pour in i;he cus:ard.
Bake quickly, and if in danger
if scorching pnt a paper over the top.
Egg and Toast.?For this a perfectly
fresh egg is necessary; put a pan half
full of hot water on the stove, with a
Little salt in it, cover, and put back on
the stove till the white is firm. Take
rat of the pan with a skimmer, and
slide into a bowl of hot water while you
make and butter your toast. Tako up
ihe egg carefully on a perforated skimmer,
shake dry, trim off any ragged
jdges, and serve immediately on the
the toast. Sprinkle a little salt and
pepper on the egg. If this is well and
neatly done it is appetizing for a sick
person. j
Rice Cream.?To a pint of new milk
idd a quarter of a pound of ground
rice, a lump of butter the size of a
walnut, a little lemon peel and a table
spoonful of powdered sugar. Boil them
together for five minutes, then add half
in ounce of isinglass which has been
iissolved, and let the mixture cool
When cool add half a pint of good
cream whisked to a froth, mix all to- j
gether and set it for a time in a very
oool place or on ice. When used turn
it out of the basin into a dish and pour
fruit juice around it; or some stewed
applo or pear may be served with it.
Potatoes a la Pueckler ?Cook a
quart of small-sized potatoes, peel and
alico them. Pat them in a stewpan,
with two ounces of butter, a taltspoonful
of salt, half the quantity of white
pepper and a teaspoonful of chopped
onion. Let'"them simmer for fifteen
minutep, shaking the pan frequently to
prevent the contents from sticking,
lake a large bowl, rub the inside with
balf a clove of garlic, break irto it the
yolks of ^hiee eggs, beat them with a
teaspoonfnl of vinegar and pour over
the hot potatoes. Shake them over the
fire until properly mixed, and serve
immediately.
Faking in Japan.
Fishing in the rivers and streams of
the main island is not considered as a
n/vrr. Iir flift .TanariPRn Vmf. n.q n. mound
of livelihood, and therefore the "gentle
angler'' will not receivo much eiicoirngeirent
from the brotherhood in the
land of the rifling sun. Salmon trout,
trout and ai (a email but game fish) are
"educated" on some rivers to take the
fly. Tho Japs work with very small
Hie?, fine tackle, slight bamboo rods,
with which they are very successful.
Altogether, however, the game will be
found scarcely worth the candle on the
mainland, but capital sport with the
Balmon trout can be obtained in several
streams near Satsuporo, in Yezo, during
May and Jur.", with a genuine British
fly. The most important export from
Yezo in in dried salmon, which are
netted in incredible quantities in various
rivers of the northern part of the
island and in the southern Kuril^s; but
sport in these r vers among the dense
masses of fish is out of the question,
even if the proprietors of the fishings
would allow their fish to be poached.
The Japanese neaboard is everywhere
picturesque, and the seas abound with
fish, giving employment to the crews of
thousands of fishing boats. When tailing
along the coasts numbers of large black
whales and sharks, both large and
small, will be seeu, the latter being
caught by the .fishermen, as their tins
are counted a delicacy, and the skins
serve many uses. The hilts of all the
old swords are covered with white
shark's skill.?The London Field.
HEALTH HINTS.
To remove freckles take lemon juice,
one ounce; quarter of a dram of powdered
borax and one dram of sugar.
Mix them and let them stand till ready
for use, then rub it on the face occa- :
sionally. i
Never stand still in cold weather, 1
especially after having taken a slight 1
degree of exercise; and always avoid
standing upon the ice or snow or where
the person is exposed to n cold wind.? I
Dr. Footes Health Monthly. ]
The curative qnalities of common salt <
are not as freely impressed upon the 1
public mind as is expedient. Inflam- <
mation can be rapidly reduced by a t
solntion of salt, and for a weak or dis- \
eased membrane local applications of 1
salt rnil water net as majric. Incases \
of sore throat, sore eyes or catarrhal
affections, simple salt and water as a
garg',.e or douche, is a most efficacious t
application. Tho chief virtue of min- i
eral waters is salt, which forms a cju- t
stituent either in large or small propor- s
tions in all springs recommended for t
healing. The unmistakable benefits 1
derived from sea bathing and sea air t
proceed fivm that great strengthening I
medium?common salt. A goblet of c
well iced salt and water is not a dis- 1
agreeable beverage before breakfast,
and is highly beneficial as an aperient.
If "salt should lose its savor" a most 8
important lever of the pharmacopoeia r
would be destroyed. x
Concerning the treatment for diph )
theiia, the Food and Health says: j
To us it appears that fresh air is tho f
first necessity; \\e should allow a diph- I
Iherial patient to be near an open win- t
dow. Next, we should use hot malt g
vinegar for flannel wraps round the t
throat, gargles of the same dilated t
with water, and the most tonic dietpos- p
sible. Neither quinine nor mineral c
tonics, but hot, strong wines, yolks of t
eggs beaten up in strong beef tea ; t
warm baths made of chamomile flowers; I
feet placed in mustard and water, and t
flannel wraps soaked in hot vinegar I
around the stomach. The juice pressed t
from raw beef, heated in a farina boiler c
and given constantly, but, above all,
hot red wine. Inhalations of the fumes
of vinegar with open mouth and pencil- e
ings of the same within the month. The ^
nse of lemons is also to be recommend- \
ed. Diphtheria is a preventable disease, ^
and when we know more of the condi- 0
tions nnder which the health of human c
life can exist and are inclined to listen g
to it and act accordingly to it, we 2
shall have fewer epidemics such as \
those of diphtheria. c
]
A Country Girl's Koinance.
A lady correspondent at Center White *
Creek, Washington county, N. Y., sends 1
to the Troy Times the following ro- 1
mance of real life. It concerns a native ,(
of Washington oounty. She snys : \
Five years ago a poor and modest ^
country girl of twenty-one snmmers, *
following the path of duty, enlisted in T
the holy wars and tailed with a band of *
brothers to a far-off heathen shore, 8
leaving behind her two rejected and
likewise miserable lovers ; one a lad of
low condition, the other a regular patri- c
cian. But the heathen have souls to c
be saved, and for four years our self- 1
sacrificing htiroine followed the noble j e
^ ? * i nr I r
caning sue una cnosen. .E,uriy m iuay, i?_
1881, our fair toiler in the vineyard, | c
deeming that the heathens were eufll- a
ciently converted to admit of a visit to f
her native shore, resigned her charge i
for a period and sailed, via England, for 3
her own tome and harbor. An English i
noblemaE who chanced to he among I
the pasuengera became interested I
in the poor American, and ere 1
the good ship anchored at Liverpool a
had offered his hand, heart and fortune 1
and been accepted. At London the ^
lovers par ted, soon to meet again, to re- I
ceive a father's blessing and part no I
more. The bride of the future con- 1
tinued hei journey alone with her trous- n
6ean, and was soon welcomed in New ?
York by a host of admiring relatives and t
the forgotten lovers. Preparations ?
were commenced for the reception of t
the noble, and the dipappointed lovors 1
sighed for the things " which might
have been." But alas! the nobleman
met with a financial misfortune. Ten- ,*
derly did ho break the news to the dis- \
tant fair one, nobly releasing her from t
promises which might become irksome, j
The humble and faithful suitor (who ,
chanced to be nearest) soon became f
dearest, and the weary heart, taken on \
the rebound, surrendered gracefully, c
and Thursday evening last they wore \
united in the holy bonds of matrimony f
at the residence of the bride's parents. ]
The many invited guests tendered their \
congratulations lo the happy couple, t
who left on the evening train for tne ?
South, there to remain indefinitely.
t
In the New York Morgue. t
This was burial day at the morgue, 1
says a New York letter. A number of
the friendless dead were transferred to
potter's field, where they were interred.
There were no funeral ceremonies,
no procession of mourners. The
only witnesses of this last sad scene in
the sad drama of these unfortunate
lives were the men who had charge of
the removal of the bodies. A noticeable
fact about the charnel-house to-day
was an unusually large number of small
bcxes containing the remains of chil- 1
dren and new-boin babea. On the lid fc
ot foot of every coffin, written in pencil t
on the board in some cases and in others t
on Bmall square wbite cards, were any \
facts that were attainable relating to C
the deceased, such as the name, a
age, nationality and where tbe ^
remains came from. If any one is c
found dead in the street or in the river a
the body is immediately removed to I
the morgue, where a photograph of it ?
is taken and the remains are then kept t
for identification. If, however, after a 1
reasonable time no one galls to claim i
the body it is sent to the public bury- 1
ing grounds for interment. Mr. White, \
who has charco of the morane. and his i
assistants use every possible means in (
their power to find ont the friends of c
auy unknown person wbo is brought 1
there. The clothing is carefully ex- i
amined and shown to all visitors and t
questions are always readily answered. (
Persons dying in any of the hospitals, s
charitable institutions, prisons or police <
stations in this city or vicinity are also c
6ent to the morgue. It is is need like- 1
wise by undertake^ occasionally as s ]
storehouse for the bodies of persona i
whose friends are out of town or abroad t
and cannot reach the city immediately 1
to take charge of their fun'eials.
Labor in tlic 44 Black Lands" of Russia. *
A correspondent of the London rl imes, *
writing from the "black lands" of 1
Russia about the scarcity of labor in '
that jegiou, says that the laborer's or- I
dinary wngcs are from forty to fifty co- j jpecks
(twenty-five to thirty cents) daily; i'
but at harvest time, or when the field is jc
to be due for beet root, the landlord I *
finds it extremely difficult to procure f
laborers even at two or three rubles a 1
day, and ho declares tbat ho would J
rather pay that high wage to one effi- J
cient laborer than to four such lazy *
hounds as he can muster in the neigh- jc
borhood. Of the northern peasants, re- i *
ported to bo yearly flocking from their I
comparatively barren lands to these fer-1a
tile southern fields, hardly any make j *
their appearance, except carpenters and j
other mechanics, who, however useful r
in their several capacities, are of no r
avail whatever as field hands. The ?
distress f. r reapers and plowmen has 1
waxed so great that the government j
has had to come to the landowners' res- 1
cue by allowing the soldiers quartered "
in the garrisons to lend their hands at c
the rate of one ruble daily for each c
man, their employer having to feast and J
entertain ';ho officers into the bargain. f
But, although as man7 as 50,000 men
from tho ranks have thus been told "
- Ct x 1 1
DLL ill luu pruviuuo ui ruuuiitt uiuuc tu .
make themselves useful on a better
ground than the battlefield, the supply 1
of labor is sLill wofully inadequate to j
the demand. j
Oa the first day of January, 1801, the
initial day of the nineteenth century,
Ireland passed into incorporating union ]
with Great Britain. I ]
FACTS AND COMMENTS.
A schoolmaster in Southern Oregon
has resigned his place becanso two of
the directors would not sustain him in
his efforts to stop urchins from squirting
tobacco juice on the stove during
school hours. The trustees evidently
believed that school-boys have some
rights that a teacher must respect.
Honesty is almost always rewarded.
Dne Bennett, while parchasing a railroad
ticket in St. Louis, accidentally
dropped his overcoat on the floor and
walked awav without it. In the course
i>f a few minutes there was a vigorous
search for that overcoat, because it confined
84,650 sewed in the lining. A
Dootblack found it, and was rewarded
vith a silver half dollar with a hole in it.
The United States, according to a
able published by the department of
igrioulture, has one-fourth the horses,
>ne-tifth the cattle, bneninth the
iheep and almost one-half the swine in
he civilized world. Russia has more
lorses, apd that country and the Argenine
Republic more sheep than the
Jnited States ; but these are the only
lountries-whose number of live stock is
arger in any particular.
All of the good old storie3 about the
iccommodations offered by occomaodation
trains will be out of date
rhen a railroad which is to be built in
IVest Virginia shall have been competed.
Gratuitous right of way is sought
rom all the farmers whose fields are to
>e cut by the projected road, and in renrn
for the gift tho railroad company
;ivcs the pledge that at least one of its
rains each way shall stop every day on
he farm to take on or put off passengers
or freight, provided the persons
lesiring such accommodation will take
he trouble to flag the train or give noico
to the conductor. Industrious
lousewives may then stop a train when
hey wish to go to the nearest neigh>or's
to borrow a cnp of sour milk, and
here will be no excuse for the resources
if the region to remain undeveloped.
According to the British statistics the
inormons number of 2,039 shipwrecks
ook place throughout the world in
881, or on an average six a day. The
alue of tae property lost is estimated
,t 81,400,000,000. This was an increase
if 859 vessels over 1880 and of about
1500,000,000 in property. The loss of
ife also was very great, the figures
>eincr 4.134 DersoDs. which include offi
sere, seamen and passengers Great
3ritatn was, of course, the severest suferer,
more than 1,000 of her vessels
laving" been destroyed, nearly 200 of
vhich were steamers* The year 1881
ras one of the most tempestuous ever
jxperienced on the ocean, particularly
n European waters. There can be no
loubt that tbe adoption of an internaional
system of meteorological obser'ation
and reports would largely tend
o the saving of life and property at
ea.
True believers are greatly agitated
iver the expected coming of the Mehdi
ir Mohammedan Messiah. The prophet
limeelf foresaw this event, and proplielied
that he would be an Arab and a
lescendant of his own house. El Mehli
is expected to unite the faithful, retore
Islam, and rule over the Mobamnedans
throughout the world. Accordng
to a prophecy that has for several
'ears been circulated among the Moorsli
Mussulmans, he will make his ap
jearance on the first day of the month
tlohairam, in the year 1300 (November
ft i nno \ TT_ ?:n u
.2, icoz.j xie wiji uw ivuj jeuin ui
ige and of noble appearance, and one of
lis arms will be longer than the other.
religious devotee of great sanctity in
tforth Africa is already known as El
Hehdi (literally the tacher), and in
>ersonai appearance corresponds exictly
with the description in tbeprophicy.
He will probably attempt to play
he part of the Messiah, and, aided by
i fanatical following, may seriously
hreaten Enropean influence in India,
2?ypt and Algeria.
Mutilated silver coinage is being re
ected as current money all over the
United States, especially in the West
md East. Large quantities of it are
jeing sent to the United States t-reas*
irer at Washington and to the mint
it Philadelphia for redemption upon the
msis of the amount of bullion which it
iontains. Treasnrer Gilfillan has here;ofore
transmitted such mutilated silve
;o the superintendent of the mint at
Philadelphia for purchase as bullion,
)ut is now informed by that officer that
mder the rules governing the mint the
imallest purchase of silver coin or de
josited gold wnicn win ue received
here is ?100, and upon all 6nch remitances
there is a melting charge of one
lollar. Heretofore the superintendent
>f the mint has taken the remittances
lent from the treasurer's office, but as
he number of them is largely increasng
from all parts of the United States
he treasnrer is forced to declino taking
hem in the future, and all such remitances
to the treasurer for redemption
pill now be returned to the parties
sending.
United States Commercial Agent
.)ezeyk, of St. Gall, in an article on the
Swiss watch industry, reports that
he American watches fell behind at
be recent international exhibition of
vatchmakers' tools and maohines at
jhaux de Fonds. In a competive elimination,
Swiss, English and German
patches led those submitted by Ameri:an
makers. Six Swiss watches gained
m averngo of 472 out of a possible 500
joints, and six American watches au
iYcraw;e of 367. He says: "Thanks
o the perfection of their machinery the
imericans, in 187G, were powerful com>etitors
in the manufacture of watches,
>nt at the present t.me the Swiss have
jrotited by the lessons drawn from
American superiority, and have iutroluced
the machine where they fonud it
lould conveniently be done. The Swiss
lave, moreover, the advantago of three
mportant details over their com pet iors?in
artistic turn of hand, cultivat;d
through generations ; the tradition
tnd the business connections throu^h>ut
the whole world, and an untiring
liligence and desire for improvement."
Mr. Dezeyk adds that even tbo mo>t
perfect machine is only at be*t an
inxiliary for good band work, and
,he latter must alw.tys win in the
ong rub.
Three women in acertain NowHauip- j
ihire town form a trio not easy to paral- 1
el. One is an Amazon in strength and j
igility, and performs most marvelous j
eats of labor and endurance. Having j
mrchased at the village an outside
Iweliiug house door, one and onernli
iuchts thick, she phced it
)n her back and carried it in that
nanner to her home, u distance of
wo long miles. Yet she is slender
u form and agile and elastic
is a deer. She is often seen walking
he street engaged in knitting, her
ingers and fi et moving as if in vigor>us
competition with each other. When
i i
lot incumDerea, m pasaiuy iuauunum
he village, she frequently strikes iuto
, run, sometimes maintaining it up the
teepest hills aud for most of the disance.
Occabionally sho essays jouricys
of ten and fifteen miles on foot
ito the neighboring towns, if not at i
orresponding speed, yet at oncesurprisng
to people with ordinary powers of
ocomotion. The second woman has j
jeeu five times married?ones divorced
-and is so self-reliant, vigorous and
leterinined that at the funeral of one
if her husbands the clergyman renarked
that he had been a very dutiful
lelpmeet. The third is just passing
he honeymoon with her sixth husband
-having been divorced from the live
amented predecessors. Marvelous must
jo the forbearance of a woman toward
uankind, who, after such a round of
infaithful spouses, proves still vulnera)le,
and suffers herself to be captured
>y the blandishments of a sixth suitor.
More than thirty of the mining companies
in Colorado make total abstinence
a condition of employment.
WILD AJilMAL TAMERS.
Homethins About Mfiinecrle Animal* anc
How They Are Tamed.
Most youngsters who pay their waj
into a circns-teut know at sight everj
animal that is likely to be found there,
and as soon as they have nodded recognition
at him are sure to ask : " What
oan he do ?"
For this reason almost every dangerous
creature in the best recent collections
has been both wild and tame.
The lions, the tigers, the panthers, are
as large and t9rrible-lookinR as ever,
and it wjuld be just as dreadful a thing
if they should get loose among the
spectators. It is worth while, therefore.
to see them all nlavfnllv submis
Bive to a little man or woman with a
mere whip in hand.
A direct consequence of all this is
that the more a wild beast can be taught
the more be is worth, but there is no
telling how stupid some lions and other
savages are. The very best of them,
even after all kinds of good schooling,
retain a lurking disposition to make a
meal of their keeper or of anybody
else if a good opportunity is given for
it. " Taming " is a process which has
to be constantly renewed, for the tamest
tfger is a tiger still, and there has been
mo change in his born conviction that
all other living creatures are "game'
for him. The best lion and tiger
' kings" of to-day say that every time
they enter a cage containing these fierce
creatures they carry their lives in their
hands.
"Gentle ?" remarked one of these
venturesome folks the other day.
Those tigers of mine ? Why, do ybu
see that whip? I know as well as I
know anvthiner that if I drop that whip
when I am in that cage they'll be on
mo. Their idea of obedience is connected
with the whip, first; then with
my voice ; then with my face. Severity?
Cruelty? No use at all. I never
use cruelty in training them. Only
patbnce. When I take on a new cage
of beasts I work to get them used to
me; feeding them ; cleaning the cage;
talking to them; all that sort of thing,
before I go in among them. Then I
do that. It's a ticklish piece of business
going in the first time, and I pick
my chance for it when they're specially
peaceable. I go right in just as if it
were a matter of course, but I keep
my eyes about me. It's all humbug
that a man's eyo has any power over a
wild beast. Your eyes are to watch their
motions?that's all. They'll find out
quickly enough if you're getting carele99.
They're sure enough to be watch
ing you all the time. Are they intelligent?
Well, there's as much difference
among 'em as there is among men. I
can train a really intelligent lion, right
from the wild, in about four weeks so
that he will do all that the lion kings
make them do. A lioness always takes
a couple of weeks longer and so does a
leopard or a tiger. You can't get a hyena
well in hand inside of two months.
They're the meanest of bra tea. They
never understand anything but a club.
The easiest to train, because they know
the most, are pumas. I can teach a
puma all it needs to know in four weeks.
Affection? Teach those fellows to love
you? That's all nonsence. They'll
fawn and fawn on you, and you'll think
you've done it, maybe. Then jou go
into the cage if you want to without
you whip, or wlien they're in bad
temper, and find out for yourself what
they'll do. See that dent in the side
}f my head and those deep scars on my
arm! There are more down here"?
patting his leg. " Got 'em from the
best trained lions you ever saw. It's
awful sometimes to have one of those
fellows kind o' smell of you and yawn
and shut his jaws, say close to one of
^aur knees! See my wife tliere ?
fcl t'gthe ' Panther Queen,' ju6t as I'm
a Tiger King,' and that fellow yonder's
a ' Lion King.' IJer pets are
playing with her now, Dut they've
scratched her well, I tell you. There's
great odds among them, though, and
that young puma with her head
up to be kissed is what you might
call gentle. Only they're all treacherous.
Every lion king gets sick of it
after a while. I could name more than
a dozen of the best who have given it
np right in the prime of life. Once
tbey give it up nothing '11 tempt 'em
inside of a cage again. You 6ee every
now and then some other tamer gets
/ilnmn/^ n v> A Kiffnrt Q1 i
uuuij txaiTCU auu uxwuui x u- j ?v u??
been clawed or bitten more or leas
themselves. The strain on a man's
nerves is pretty sharp?sura death
around him all the while. And the pay
isn't anything like what it was."
It maj be true that the strictly predatory
animals of tho cat kicd are never
to be tmsted, bnt the now three-year'old
hippopotamus of the leading American
."show" seems to have formed a
genuine attachment for his keeper, a
yonng Italian. He is savage enough to
all other men, and when out of his den
for his very limited exercise it iB fun
for all but the person chascd to see
how clumsily, yet swiftly, he will make
a sudden " charge " after a luckless bystander.
After that he will crustily
and gruntingly obey his keeper, and
permit himself to be half enticed, half
shouldered into his den again. There
should be more room for brains and
consequently for affection in the splendid
front of a lion than between the
sullen eyes of even a very youthful
hippopotamus.
Tbe "keeper" question is one of prime
importance in collecting and managing
wild animals. * Trainers of the right
kind aru scarce, and although high pay
hardly can be afforded it will not do
to put rare and costly animals in tho
care of stupid or ignorant men. Such
qualities as courage, patience, gocd
temper and natural aptitude for the
occupation are also needful, and they
are not always to be had for the asking.
Unless the right men are secured, how
ever, the failure of the menagerie is
only a question of time. As for tho
"specimens" themselves, it is much
easier to obtain them than it once was,
Al.* fn/tilUtAa /a* frona.
UWillg IU LUtJ UCltCi IDUUUL-O iwi
porting them from the several "wildbeast
countries." Catching them in
their native wildernesses has been a
regular trade for ages.
The market price of a menagerie
animal of any kind varies, like
that of other merchandise, according to
the demand and supply. A writer
stated recently that zebras are sold at a
little over S2.000 a pair, gnus at about
8S00 a pair, while rhinoceroses cost
some SG.OUO per pa:r, and tigers about
$l,f>00 cacli. A short time ago, however,
and perhaps now, a vf-ry good
" uneducated" ifger could be bought in
London for from S500 to 8800. The
same beast, the moment he takes kindly
to learning and promises to be sparing
of bis ke-. pers, doubles and trebles in
value. There is no telliug what he
would bo worth should he show farther
signs of intellect or good morals, but he
is like a human being in this respect?
the more he knows the more it will pay
to give for him. The same rule applies
to the entire list, from elephauts to
monkeys, so that uo precise idea can be
given of the probable cost of a menagerie.?
S/. Nicholas.
The Gamp of Risrlits and Lefts.
John Debois took a great deal of
trouble to get a good pair of boots in
St. Louis for nothing, but ho achieved
success. He was a traveler ata.viug at
the Grand Central hotel. He went to
a store and ordered the finest pair that
conld be made. He was exact in hia
stipulations as to tho material and style,
and wished them sent to his room at a
certain time. Then he gave the samo
order in another store, except that the
delivery was to bo made half an hour
later. The boy who brought the first
pair was sent back to have the left boot
stretched, and the boy who carried the
second pair was sent back with the
right one. Debois then put on the remnants,
for which he had not paid, and
caught the next out-bound train.
The statistics of the Baptist churches
of Maine show the number of baptisms
for the rear to be 291, or leas than for
any jar since i?4y. wnen mere were
231, Five churches, numbering 84
members, have been dropped from the
list. There are 317 less members than
were reported last year.
Shops and Shopping in Mexico.
Shops and shopping, of the upper
1 aort, in Mexico follow French or European
traditions more than American.
r Fanciful titles over the dorrway are
r adopted instead of a firm name. A
drv goods store is "The Surprise,"
' "The Springtime," "The Explosion;"
; a jeweler's the " Pearl" or "Emerald;'
a shoe store, " The Azure Boot," and
" The Foot of Venus." The windows
ure tastefully draped and a large force
of clerks is seen shoulder to shoulder
within. These clerks are more demo
cratie in their manners than Americana
would venture to be. They shake
vnifh iVi VSAIW/VMA if fliAV tiAVA
uauuo vritu tucu (jauiuuo ji uuoj uavo
enjoyed a slight previous acquaintance
and inquire after the health of Miss
Lolita and Miss Soledad. There are
those of superior social position among
them, however?some who are met
with at the bulls of the Guatemala
minister, for instance. The explanation
may perhaps be found in the limit
ed.choice of occupations open, which
leaves to many who desire to work no
more important places.
Until of late it has not been etiquette
for ladies of standing to shop
except from their carriages?a considerable
part of the shopping, as for furniture
and other household goods, is still
conducted by the men of the family?
inst ft<i it was not Atinnetta for laaififl to
be seen walking in the streets. The
change in both these respects is ascribed
to the horse-cars. The point of
ceremony, it appears, was founded
somewhat upon the difficulty of getting
about. The American touch appears in
the streets with increasing frequency,
in signs of dealers in arms, sewing machines,
and other of our useful inven*
tions, and of tho insurance companies,
a novel idea, to which the Mexicans
seem to take with much readiness. The
principal shopping hours are from 4
to 6 o'clock in the afternoon. From
1 till 3, or even 4, little is
done. There is a general stoppage of
affairs for dinner. It is b't a short
time since that interesting person, the
commercial traveler, has been known in
the country. The profits of favorably
situated houses, in the absence of keen
competition, have been very large, and
methods of doing business in some ini
LUUUCa VUdCOpvUUUi^lJ 1WOO. AUO
Mexican merchant does not necessaiily
go into a fine calculation of the proportionate
value of each detail of a foreign
invoice, but ' lumps" the profit
he thinks he ought to receive on the
whole. Some articles, in consequence,
can be bought at less than their real
value, while others, in compensation,
are exorbitantly advanced.
It is the smaller trade, however, and
that most removed from metropolitan
influences, tliat'is the gayest and most
entertaining as a spectacle. How many
picturesque markot scenes does one
linger in I Each population has its
own market-day, not to interfere with
any other. The stone flags of the plaza
or the market-houses, whioh are plentiful
and well built, are hidden under a
complication of fruits, grains, cocoa
sacks and mats, striped blankets and
rebozos; sprawling brown limbs, em.
broidered bodices and kirtles, as if v
with an excessively thick, richly col
ored rug. A grade above this is the
? ?-_ ? x . 1 A|
| rariun, as at lueuia, u utuur ui euian
shops, ia which goods, sales-people and
customers are all to be pnt upon the canvas
with the most vivid hues. The
leading merceria (dry goods shop) of
the same important city of Puebla,
called "The City of Mexico," has a
facade antirely in glazed tiles upon an
unglazed ground of red, with allegorical
figures larger than life between the
pilasters as part of the pattern.?Harper's
Magazine.
Cloves.
Cloves grow on trees from twenty to
thirty feet high, having a handsome
pyramidal shape, with leaves that are
large, glossy and evergreen. It is a
native of Malccc3, but is now grown in
nearly all tLe spice islands of the Indian
ocean, the larger part of the crop
coming from Amboyna, in the island of
Teruate. Many years ago the JDutch
undertook to control the production of ,
this spice and to confine its growth to
this island; they, therefore, destroyed
the clove tree sin the other spice islands,
but the high prices which they demanded
gradually led to its cultivation
in territory outside of their jurisdiction,
and they afterward abandoned that
policy. Still, most of the cloves now
produced are grown in Datch territory,
and the high prices which have prevailed
during the last year or two have
been attributed partly to a failure in
il- X_ 1L -
the crop at rem ate ana paruy w we
Acheen war, which has considerably
interfered with the supply usually
derived from Sumatra. The cloves
of commerce are not, as many suppose,
the fruit of the clove tree, but are the / . fli
flower buds. The ripe fruit in shape /
resembles a small ciive; it is of a dark * 4
red color, with one or two cells containing
as many seeds, and it is also aromatic
to a certain extent, and sometimes
appears in commerce in a dried
atatn under the curioas name of
" mother of olives." It is not nearly
so pungent, however, as the flower
stems. Indeed, the whole tree?leaves,
bark and wood?seems to be impregnated
in come degree with the strong, distinctive
clove flavor; but the flower
buds are the principal commercial product
of the tree. When fliet gathered
they are of a reddish color, but in the
drying process, which is generally
partly done by wood fires and partly in
the sun, they tmn a deep brown color,
as they are when they reach us in
America. Although the tree grows
wild to some extent, it is regularly cultivated
in plantations, the plants being
some ten or fifteen feet apart and carefully
pruned and cared for.
How Webster Looked.
f "Hoviirtl W/iKofiiii mo a Knm VMM
l/nuigi if cuowk ?i??j uv*m *w j v?..ago
oil the eighteenth of January, 1782.
Nobody who onco saw him ever forgot
him. Of all Americana he was probably
the most imposing in his appearance.
Others have had a finer, loftier,
| more refined, more spiritual aspect, as
i there have been Americans of a far higher
essential "greatness. But there was a
ceitain grandeur in Webster's look
which was incomparable. Ilia Olytn- ~
piun presence gave un air of significance - ^.
and dignity to whatever he said. We
have heard him deliver the most astonishing
commonplace in 6nch a way that
j the audience seemed to be listening to a
i new revelation of great truths. He had
1 the instinct which as-sur d him that the
I prosperity of tho oration is in the eye
! und ear of the hearer. Of the singular
| charm of his private intercourse there
are pcores of published records. Bat
j the private circle ot' fiiends seemed to
j be always a little oppressed by the con,
sciousness of his greatness. His manj
ners were those of what is called the old
| school. His dress upon great occasions
I wasthat of the English whigs, blue and
bnff?a yellow waistooat and a blue
I dresscoat with brass buttons.?Harper's
| Weekly,
How a Prospector Lost His Lncre.
1 J. W. Patiick says this glorious
weather has occasioned him a loss of
j SSO.OOO, and this is the way he explains
i it: Last fall he discovered a new mining
district, in rmicrhVinrhnn/l nf hi? Rait
Park ranch. Ho had just time to
prospect enough to ascertain that the
lends are large and well defined, carrying
a high grade of ore, when the snow
came and causcd him to cease operations.
He then came to town, supposing
that the foot of man would not find ita
way through the deep snow into his
bonanza field, and until a few days ago
he rested in perfect security Then he
I learned that the snow had disappeared
i and that every lead in his new and
i supposedly rich district had been
| located by the persistent prospector!
I And this is why Mr. Patrick charges up
j to the weather clerk a loss of $50,000.
i Ho says it may reach a million.
j It is eaid that the only obstacle in the
j way of transporting live hogs from this
country to England is the difficulty of
feeding them on the passage. Why not
feed them from the trough of the sea? *
?SomerviUe Jownal.
?*?