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. ? ? 1 ' ?. - . MM?1 ABBEVILLE PRESS AND BANNER"! BY HUGH WILSON AND H. T. WARDLAW. ABBEVILLE, S. C.. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 1883. NO. 32. VOLUME XXVII. | BMMBMWWMWWCWBBMMM?aMMWBMWMBWWMWMM? ? Childhood's Yalloy. It was a quiet valley, Set far from human ills, A sunny, sloping valley, Begirt with green, greeu hills. The wliite clouds softly knitted Gray shadows in the grass; The sea-birds poised and flitted As they were loath to i>uss. A clear stream thrid the bridges, Blue, lazy smoke upcnrled; Beyond its purple ridges Lay the unquiet world. Under tho ivied rafters Low crooned the sun-drowsed dove; While vontliful. hreezv laughters Moved on the slopes above. Where 'mid the flower-pied spaces We children made bright quest; Sure as we ran quick races The far seen flower was best. Tims while the sua uplifted And flashed adown the stream, The white clouds drifted, drifted, In deep, untroubled dream. Fair shines that sunny valley, Set far from human ills; Our childhood's simple valley Begirt with green, green hills. Nor all the world's mad riot Winch we have known since then, Hath touched this valley's quiet Deep in or.r heart's own ken. ?Good Words. BELLA'S GHOST. "Aunt Abigail, who lives in that great stone house on the hill, which looks for all the world like the old castle one reads about in stories?" Grace and Bella Brenton were spending tlu> ciiimnor with thfir anflt. Miss Abigail JJrenton, whom they had not seen since they were little girls. They hail just returned from a tour of inspection through the quaint oldfashioned but beautiful village where she lived. "Xo one now," replied Aunt Abigail, "it is shut up and has been for the last eight years. There is a strange history connected with it. It is darkened by the shadow of an awful tragedy." " What is it, tell us about it, please," cried Grace and Bella in the same breath, with eyes full of expectant wonder, girl-like, always on the qui ! vivc for anything romantic. Miss Urenton miiled at the impatient curiosity of her nieces, but obediently commenced her story. "You know," she said, "the house belonged for years to the Carmichaels, and when old Mr. Carmichael died his heirs sold the place to a Mr. Livingstone, who brought his young bride tlier to spend the summer. " .She was a lovely person, a small, delicately-formed girl, with the daintiest hands and feet, violet eyes and hair of the sunniest gold. "It was easily seen that he adored her and they were so taken up with each other that they went very little into society, but where they did go she X ,.\.l I was a great "iaronie, mic uau a huh simple, unaffected ways, no pride about her, although it is said she was an # arl's daughter. " One evening the village was thrown into the wildest excitement. " Mrs. Livingstone had been murdered while sitting with her husband on the balcony of their house. They were sitting there in the twilight, his arm placed affectionately on her shoulder, her fond happy eyes smiling up into his. "Suddenly, without a moment's warning, a bullet whizzed through the air, pierced the young wife's heart, and she fell back in her husband's ! arms dead. " The affair was shrouded in the i greatest mystery. "Who could have! had the heart to murder her, so young, i so innocent, so good. " Large rewards were offered for the j cimtnrp of the assassin, and skilled de- i r ? ' tectives employed in the search, without avail. "At last a party of men hunting in the woods near by the house found the lifeless body of a man whom Mr. Livingstone recognized as a discarded suitor of his dead wife. "From the appearance of the body when found it was evident that he had committed suicide, and it was at once surmised that in all probability he was the murderer of Mrs. Livingstone. "As soon jus the mystery was solved, Mr. Livingstone went abroad, and the house has been deserted ever since. People say it is haunted, but of course that is all talk, but if such things were nossibl"" Miss lirenton said in con elusion, "I should think that the spirit of that unhappy man would be compelled to forever linger around the scene of his crime, as an awful punishment." The girls had listened with breathless attention. "Poor Mr. Livingstone," said Grace, pityingly. "I wonder if he will ever marry again?" queried Bella. After that the house became an object of great interest to them. They never omitted to pass by it in their walks and to ponder over the sad ending of the owner's brief married life. To Bella particularly it seemed to have a peculiar fascination. There was a spice of daring in her disposition, and one day she conceived an} idea of going over the grounds. " It will be easy to get in, Grace," she said t<> her sister. " We can climb this tree, get on to the fence and jump down." "Oh! I don't want to," answered Grace, "besides," trying to think of some plausible excuse, "besides it is nearly tea-time and Aunt Abigail will be waiting for us." ; "Nearly tea-time!" echoed Bella, 'why it is not 4 o'clock yet, oh, come do, it will be a lovely adventure." While she was speaking she caught hold of a drooping branch of a tree and swung herself on to the stone wall. After a great deal of persuasion Grace was induced to follow, and together they sprang lightly down on to the ground below. They found themselves ir. a perfect tangle of shrubbery, which they tried to penetrate to the serious injury of the delicate lace-edged ruffles of their white mull dresses, and to the great disgust of Grace, who had no penchant for " lovely adventures" at tended with so much trouble. At last Grace gave a loud shriek .of terror which was echoed by Bella. At the foot of one of the hushes in front of them they had caught sight of a striped snake, and when was a woman ever so brave as not to be afraid of a snake? They rushed wildly through the bushes, unheeding how the thorns tore th^ir hands, and never stopped* until they reached the broad graveled walk that led up to the house, to which they were glad to confine their footsteps. "When they reached the wide stone steps of the mansion they paused for a " liil'H tlinn !it. thfir tenipr itv, they ascended thein and stood on the balcony where Alice. Livingstone met her sad fate. JJelow them lay the long-neglected grounds, beautiful in their desolation; bits of woodland which it had been the whim of the Carmichaels to leave in their natural state gave them a picturesque aspect; among the grand old trees gleamed rare statues and ivytwined fountains; luxuriant bushes of crimson, yellow and snow-white roses brightened the lawn and flung their fragrance out upon the summer air. Over all brooded a strange, deep silt nee that cast a gloom over the sensitive spirit of Grace, and she began to feel nervous and anxious to return l.ome Not so with Bella: she discovered a broken pane in one of the long windows that ouened out on to the bal cony, and carried away by the spirit of adventure slipped her hand through it, pushed hack the bolt, and with a little cry of triumph, raised the s;ish. " Now .let's explore the house," she proposed. "Not for the wealth of worlds would I enter that house," said Grace, decidedly; then in a hushed voice she whispered. "remember what Aunt Abigail said about it being haunted." "Nonsense," replied Bella; "there are no ghosts in this world, and if I there were. I am not afraid of them. If you wili not come I am going alone." "Please don't," pleaded Grace, but Bella had disappeared, and in a few moments she heard her voice raised in a piercing scream of terror. All l'ears forgotten, she too climbed through the open window and found herself in a largt; room in the center of which on the velvet carpet lay brave Bella, white and senseless, and a tall, stately man bending over her with an expression of the utmost perplexity and surprise upon his handsome face. The ghost of the murderer was the thought that flashed through Grace's mind, but it would never do to desert Bella now, so with ashen cheeks and trembling in everynerve she advanced near, and with clasped hands began iniploringlv : "Oh ! Mr. Ghost?" " But I am not a ghost," interrupted the gentleman, half smiling at her ludicrous expression of mingled terror and courage, "and that young lady," pointing to Bella, " was she too laboring under the same impression?" He knelt down by her side and began chaling her cold hands in a vigorous way that soon had the desired effect. She opened her dark eyes and fixed them on her sister's anxious face. Half raising herself from the lloor, she said, shudderingly: "Oh ! Grace, J saw the ghost," tlipn catching sight of the tall form on the other side, she drew back with a violent start and seemed threatened with another fainting. " Young ladies," said the supposed ghost. " I do not know to what I aim indebted for the pleasure of this visit, but I ;issure you that I am no inhabtant of the spirit world. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Mr. Livingstone. I returned unexpectedly and quietly yesterday with one servant, and I suppose few in the village are aware ot my arrival I suppose you have heard the story of my wife's V" hp continued, and an ex pression of deepest sadness coming into his eyes. " It was a great task for me to come here where eveiything reminds me so forcibly of her, but imperative business rendered my visit unavoidable " Completely reassured, the girls told him of their desire to see the place and Bella's undignilied method of gaining admittance. " They said the house was haunted, but I was not afraid," exclaimed Bella, i proudly. . "Xo, evidently not," replied Mr. 1 Livingstone, smiling, as he thought of I the sudden apparition of a fair young < girl, with lloating, dusky tresses, and j robed in white, gazing at him for a ; moment with lovely startled eyes, then j with a cry of terror falling at his feet, lie politely offered to conduct them ' rvv/?r tlnlKC lint tllPV flpf'1 in f'l 1 !t<? it was getting lute; so he escorted j tlie 111 as far as the massive iron gate, ! which he summoned the servant to < unbar for them. On their way home : Grace and Bella agreed that Mr. Liv- ] ingstone was the grandest and most ! handsome man they had ever met. i The next day that gentleman, by some ; means or other, found his way to the ] little white cottage, ostensibly to return a parasol and handkerchief for- : gotten the day before, but from the ' admiring way in which his eyes rested i on Bella's piquant face, and the readi- < ness with which he accepted the in- i vitation "to call again," one might | very reasonably have supposed that ] there was another motive. The ac- ' quaintance, so unceremoniously com- ' menced, soon ripened into friendship, : and at last Mr. Livingstone's visits at i the cottage were looked forward to < with certainty at least twice a week. ] His partiality for Bella was very ( evident. ( At first Grace was always included ' in the invitations for carriage rides and ] moonlight walks, but she soon saw ] that a third party was decidedly in the ^ way, and so discreetly remained at : home. One bright afternoon Mr. Liv- ' ingstone came in and inviteu the young J ladies and Miss Brenton over to see his home, in which he had been making ! great alterations. > " You will not have to scale the ' fence or climb througli windows today," he said, laughingly, to Bella. 1 When he had shown them every- ! thing of interest, the grand parlors { with their rich velvet carpet, gold em- 1 broidered hangings, antique furniture, 1 rare old paintings and costly bric-a- ' brae, the library with massive oak panelings and a cabinet of curiosities 1 picked up in his travels, the conserva- 1 tory with its gorgeous tropical plants, lie led them into a lovely little tea : room, furnished in blue and gold, which opened from the drawing-room, ' and directed the housekeeper to tring them refreshments, while he went out to give orders to the coachman. Servants are proverbial for gossiping and Mrs. Smith was no exception to | the general rule. Encouraged by Bella's sweet smile and gracious manner, she began a conversation while engaged in laying the cloth on the small table. "I think Mr. Livingstone intends getting married again," she began. "Is that so?" said Bella, quietly, with a faint blush. "Yes," she continued, "to a beautiful young lady whom lie met in Europe. lie corresponds with her. That is her picture in the library.' Bella had noticed the picture because it was the only portrait there; a picture oT a woman wit h a bewitching face shaded by waves of dark brown hair, and lighted by tender, smiling eyes. And that was his intended? A swift, sharp pang of jealousy thrilled through Bella's heart, draining i all the warm color from her face, ami she turned abruptly away to end the conversation. (Jrace and Miss Brenton were looking at a statuette and did not hear Mrs. Smith's words, but when they turned and-saw Hella's white face they both ran to hi'r side, alarmed. " Why, Bella!" <!race cried, " what is the matter with you? Are you sick?" u X',. '? o..;.l frvlrwr ct.lilo. J?.IW, "J1"* | "the room is a little close?that is all." That night, in the seclusun of her own room, the door safely locked against intruders, JJella threw herself upon the bed in a perfect agony of wounded pride and affection. "So he never cared for ine at all,' she thought, hitter, blinding tears tilling her eyes; "all his tender, flattering attentions meant nothing, he lias only?and oh ! how the thoughts sent the hot blushes Hying to her face? he has only been trying to amuse himself at mv expense, but he shall j never know I care," she said, with all i a woman's pride. " I Avill be cold and I indifferent to him, will never see him,! i if 1 can help it, and lie shall never; even guess the reason." She kept her word and for a weeksucceeded in avoiding him entirely. "When he called she was always out, had a " headache," or was very husily engaged, to the great wonderment of Grace and Miss lirenton, to whose inquiries concerning her strange behavior she vouchsafed no answer. At last, one day Mr. Livingstone saw the .front door of the cottage ( && : ... open, and with the right of* a privileged visiter, entered without ringing. He found Delia sitting i>n the sola in the parlor trying to read. She blushed deeply as she saw him, but managed to say "(iood-al'ternoon, Mr. Livingstone," in a very formal manner. He returned her cold greeting with a reproachful look, and as she was about to leave the room murmuring something about "calling Cirace," he caught her hand and gently but lirmly detained her. "I did not come to see (iraee," he said, gravely, " I came to set; you. I want to know why you have so persistently avoided me lately? IIow have I been so unfortunate as to offend you V " "I?1 heard you were going to bo married and?" She paused in confusion. This was what she had not meant to tell him? + cnorni rvf l?i?r (1knlpf)GlirO "So 1 am," lie said, his face brightening, " if the one I love will have me! Will you, Bella, for you an; she? I have loved you ever since the day 1 first saw you. "Will you come to gladden my heart and home, so long lonely V " From her heart the shadows of doubt and distrust were fast being swept away before the glad, bright flood of joy his fond words brought her, but she would be certain. " But whose picture is that in your library," she said, drawing away from him, and her face darkening even then at the remembrance of it, " the picture of that lovely woman in white?" " That is the picture of mv sister Edith, who is now in Europe," he replied, wondering at the question. Then a sudden thought struck him, "why Bella you never thought that?" " Xo, I did not," she interrupted, while on her face there dawned " the light that never was on sea or land," the light of love. ""Will you forgive my past unkindness," she murmured, lifting her tender, radiant eyes to his, that told him the story of her heart's love. With a thrilling cry of " my own, my darling," lie clasped her in his strong , arms, sealing her forgiveness with warm, fond kisses on her ruby lip. So Mr. Livingstone did " marry again," the old stone house was no | longer desolate, and " Jlella's Ghost" became her own special property forever. Curiosities of the Ocean. Very many of our young friends , have not seen an ocean, or have much , idea iiow large it is, though their , school maps show that the two largest, : the Pacific and tlie Atlantic, cover al- ( most half of the globe. Think of a ^ steamer going from Xew York to Liv- , erpool, where the Atlantic is com para- . tively narrow. Some steamships sail j faster than many railroad trains ordi- . narilv run. One going all the while J sixteen miles an hour or a mile in . three and three-quarter minutes, re- { quires more than nine days and nights , going across. Most think of the hot- j torn of the sea as* a broad, llat, sandy j lied, but it is about as uneven as a ] country covered with mountains, and x at least some portions of it abound in ( animal life. The sun's light does not | rr/\ V'iirir I'ur ilnwn lint nlJ till" (lecill-r I : 5" ,v'.' *"* - l - J parts art* always sis dark as midnight. ( The fish which lives three-quarters of , it mile below the surface have no eyes, , us they would he useless. The United ' States fish commission has, during j eleven years past, made some 2,000 ( soundings and dredgings on the At- r lantie coast, between Labrador and New Jersey, of which Professor Verrill, of Yale college, has conducted ibout 500. His accounts of these experiments are full of interest. i Sometimes the dredges bring up l stones weighing 500 to 1,000 pounds, ; which have been dropped by melting icebergs floating down from the north. Off the coast, from Cape Cod and l southward, the sea lays like a plain, i gently inclining downward, out to c from seventy to 120 miles, where the t water is 500 to GOO feet in depth. ; flien the bottom drops down like the ^ side of a steep mountain, and the water ] is 5,000 to 0,000 feet deep. The top ; Df this ocean mountain, or higher ( plain, is covered all over with fishes, i I'rabs, shrimps, etc., so thickly that a i j ?. l 1 1.1 4Ka 1 livers mum cuum iiiinu? muni tuu ^ bottom without grasping some of l them. Sharks and dolphins are there in countless thousands. The trawls let down to drag the bottom bring up ] <o many of these living creatuns as t?? show that the ocean bed there is car- J [>eted with them. If a ship sinks, these animals con- 11 mine every part of it except the met- ^ ;ils, and these soon rust away. Every lx>ne of man and lisli is eaten, and the wood is destroyed l v the borers. The A only thing made by man which Professor Verrill found was a child's rubber iloll. The fish either respected this, or could not crush or digest it?probably ^ the Latter. The deep water is very cold,so ^ that lisli found at the surface far north live in these lower layers or strata of cold water. The cod lisli takes a whole j oyster in his mouth, crushes the shell with his strong teeth, swallows the inside and spits out the shell. Some- ] times the dredge shows great mounds of these shells. The lish commission has dredged up about 800 different species of iish and erustacie (shcll-lish, i crabs, etc.), of which not half had ever before been seen by naturalists.? , American Ayrivullnrist. A Joke on a Candidate. , "When Colonel Singleton was candidate l'or Congress from one of the hill J districts of Arkansaw, lit* had a rich experience, lie soon became the butt of his opponents' jokes, am! as there were ten aspirants for the position, his life was an exaggerated burden. Once when the candidates, 1 on horseback, were going to meet an ! appointment of oratorical contest, Sin- j gleton fell behind, determining no longer to submit to their raillery. The j party passed out of sight, leaving tin; ; disconsolate candidate to his own re- ' (lections. A slight rain had fallen, and when the party crossed a broad, shallow creek, one young fellow conceived the idea of ;i joke. "Suppose," said j he, " that we take off our coats and wait until Singleton comes in sight, when we will put them on, giving to him the impression that the creek is deep. We'll not say anything to him, and he will think that we want him to plunge into the water." The idea was acted on. rrctty soon Singleton came along. "That's all right," he yelled when lie saw the mvn hurriedly putting on their coats. "1 understand you. Want me to get wet, eh V" lie dismounted, and although the day was fearfully cold he took off his clothes, mounted and carefully guiding the horse, he entered the stream. The water was not more than six inches'deep. and when he perceived the cruel joke he stood up in the stirrups and began to fume, when his clothes fell into the water and began to lloat away. In at M*UlplIIl?r 1(9 H'ilUI (Mil mill n^uui them, lit- fell mid his lior.sc staggering, stc]?i?<*(l on liiin. JI is rage was terrific, and when he arrayed himself in his garments, he borrowed a gun at a neighboring house and chased his political opponents liftc<'n miles, totally forgetting his appointment to speak.? A ikausato Traveler. The editor of the Journal of Science records that a young man of his acquaintance has been in some danger from the sting of a bee. Altogether the symptoms were such as to excite no little alarm. The roof of the mouth j swelled, the oesophagus was for a ! time completely closed, and breathing | became exceedingly difficult. ... r. ' : : t A- 1 rsviri-.,JL .1 i * 1 ; FOK THE; FARM AND HOUSEHOLD. T-'iiciuicM to Yomiu Trren In Winter. Field mice may ruin a whole orchard in a single winter by gnawing the tender bark from the trunks of the fruit and other trees. The greatest destruction is done while the earth is covered with a heavy fall of snow. At this time the mice burrow from tree to tree, and forage at their free will, under cover of the snow. So soon as the storm is over the snow should be tramped down around each tree, to shut oil' tin* mice. Rabbits may be l ii.vf H.n frm.u 1 iv ?ni/'!irin<r the IUT" V n liark with blood or rubbing the trunks with refuse meat. lloino-lWndc Suncr-Phoupbmc. The Maine Fanner says: Mr. A. C. Emery purchased 100 pounds of ground bone, placed it in a half hogshead tub and applied forty pounds of sulphuric acid, adding water as desired. In live days' time the whole mass was reduced to a consistency of thick jelly. Water was then added and 300 pounds of plaster used as a dryer, the. whole being worked and shoveled over until it could be readily handled. The phosphate so made was applied to one acre of corn and one of potatoes, both being manured sufficiently, and a small quantity was left, which was applied to his wheat field and a plat of grass ground, just to see what it would do. The result of this manure in the two latter instances was most marked, while the corn was heavy?the growth being dark-colored and stout and the potatoes good. The entire cost of the phosphate was $7.50, and Mr. Emery thinks it the best expenditure in the way of pur chased manures no ever inane. Storing I'otatoon. There are three methods of storing in general use, each of which has its merits and its champions. These are storing in barrels, bins, heaps or pits. The same general principles underlie these several methods, viz.: Protection against frosts and temperature, freedom from moisture and avoidance of heating caused by storing too deep. The advantages claimed for storing in barrels are that the roots are easily handled, do not suffer from abrasion, can be easily examined, and if disease appears it can be readily checked and removed. The chief objection to this method is the time and expense involved when the crop is a large one. Bins are coming largely into use, especially in localities near large cities, for the potatoes can at any time be readily readied and prepared for market. .V cool, dry, well ventilated cellar, with the light excluded, is an admirable place in which to store potatoes. The argument in favor of storing potatoes under ground is that there is little, if any, loss by evaporation. Objections to tlie i)lan are the-labor involved in opening :he banks when the roots are required md the risk involved from the exseines of t<?o elose or insufficient covering. When pits are employed it is mportant that arrangements be made 'or ventilation. "When stored in cellars, >arns or roothouses it is a safe plan lot to fill the bins with roots to a lepth exceeding three or four feet. It ias .been claimed that lime sprinkled n barrels or bins at that rate, say of >ne pound to each barrel, tends to present decay by acting as an absorbent tnd neutralizing the earthy odors. The importance of excluding light "rom potatoes and keeping them as :ool as possible without freezing canlot be over estimated.?Farmer and Manufacturer. The Cost of Href. Mr. John 1). (Jillet, of Illinois, the veil-known cattle breeder and feeder, ias prepared a statement of the averige cost of bringing a steer up to the iges ol' twelve months, two years ind three years and the profit to the eeder at these several ages. Of course tmust be remembered that the system >f feeding practiced by Mr. Gillett is he one generally pursued in Illinois, md varies from the usual practice imong Xew York, Ohio or Xew Eng itnu nrutiH'is ; uut mrs iuug i-ajjcucukc ind great success make his statements >f value to all interested in cattle feedng. Ilis figures are as follows : cost ok steer twelve months old. ,'aluo of calf lit birth ? 3 00 Expenses of dam of calf chargeable to calf for one year as follows: Eight per cent, interest on $"?0, value of cow 4 00 veep of yearling and feed of cow 12 months 12 2.1 nsurance on cow 100 <isk on failure of cow to breed 1 7f? ..oss of calves by death, etc 1 00 \o corn fed lip to 12 months. I'alue of pasture and keep up to 12 months (5 00 Total *20 00 Yeight of calf at 12 months, 700 pounds, worth, at 5 cents 35 00 Profit at 12 months of age G 00 osr raoii twelve to twentt-foub months of age. 'alue of steer at 12 months of age....S3f? 00 ,'alue of stock corn from 12 to 24 months of age, 110 bushels of corn at 34 cents 38 fiO Pasture 12 to 24 months 3 00 interest and risk 2 80 Total $87 30 L<ess fiOO pounds pork made on droppings of steer from 12 to 24 mouths age, at 5 cents 2.-JOO Net cost 12 to 24 months $53 iVeight of steer at 21 months, 1,000 pounds; value of steer at 24 montMft at t>}-2 cents 104 00 L rolit at lit mouths ot aj?o j.u /u ;OST I'UOM TWKLVK TO TWKNTVTOUB MONTHS OF AC1K. ^';<luo of steer at 24 months aye $104 00 i'alue of stock coin consumed in entire year, 12f> bushels, nt U"i cents.... 43 7.r> Pasture, May 1 to Nov 1 4 00 [ntc rost and risk L'l to :5t> months of ago 8 .'52 Total *1C007 Less .'00 pounds pork at 5 cents, made on droppings of steer L'500 Cost at !5G months ape $i:V? 07 kVeijjht at :U5 months age, L',209 pounds, at 7 cents 1"4 00 Profit at !!'i months aye 18 Jt5 From this statement it appears that the net profit of the lirst year's feeding is only sf,, while the second year it is The third year, however, only ?18.9.', is gained hy feeding. These ligures exhibit how much is gained hy early maturity :1 the value of improved sto? u i i tir.j farmer. It is a well-known fact that a good grade Shorthorn or Hereford steer will he 4'tillt* .?. <iri/l riun fli/? 1 11 j i \ u.> Jiimj ?ii?vi n'l iiii> I'liaiivi at two years of ago as an ordinary native steer at three years, and that tiie food consumed by each annually will vary hut little. Kverv farmer, therefore, who is feeding native stock for the butcher is wasting a year's time and feed.?American ('it/ticafur. A Vein on ."Hon! Fnrin*. Very many communities know the excitement produced by the rumor, even, that somebody in the vicinity lias found indications of the presence of gold in the soil. I'ntold millions have been expended in searching for the precious metal in localities where a bit of useless iron pyrites (sulphide of ! iron) lias been mistaken for gold, j which it resembles in color. Our oh- J scrvation indicates that there is, on at least foiir-lifths of the farms of this country, an overlooked golden vein, of metal likely to lie found outside of few special geological formations. The following experiment, tried on any farm or garden, will explain what we are aiming at. Take a quart of fair quality yard manure and pour upon it a pint of water. After standing a week or two drain oft" hiilf a pint of the liquid. Now prepare two corn hills a few feet apart on any ground, even rich prairie soil. For one hill make a hole three or four inches deep and pour into it the half-pint of liquid, adding a trifle of line earth and plant the corn. Plant the second hill without this preparation. The result will bo, almost always, that in the first hill the rootlets and subsequent roots will grow down whore the liquid has soaked, much more quickly, grow stronger, spread wider, and send out far more numerous feeding fibers than will be found in the second hill. The young corn plants (and the same with | other plants) will, like well fed young animals, develop much earlier and take far bettor advantage of the growing season. In short, whatever the soil, this hill will on the average ripen earlier, produce more stalks and twenty to fifty per cent?often a hundred per cent.?more sound kernels than the other hill. And, by the way, there is in the quart of fertilizer enough material left for a similar effect upon three or four other corn hills. Now, visit the farm yards of the country generally, and in nine-tenths of them there will be found, on one side or another, quarts, gallons, barrelfuls, of this golden liquid leaching away and wasting?often scores and hundreds of barrels of it during a year. Yet, at trifling cost, perhaps only an earth bank on the lower side of the yard, all this wastage may be saved and turned to account. The streams, rich in stimulating plant food, now lost from the yards of the four and one-third million farms of our country, may, with very little care and trouble, be retained in the rotting organic matter and transferred to corn hills and to the roots of other crops. Ileal gold will be found in the increased crops and obtained at far less cost and labor than is expended by the great mass ofgold miners. Proper attention to so simple a matter in the farms of the country, taken together, would add more dollars to the wealth of the country every year than is now dug out of all the gold mines between the Atlantic and Pacific. During this leisure month let every one look over his own premises, and see what he is wasting in this direction and where he can save and profit. ItrclDOM. Cracker Pudding.?Pour one quart boiling water over six soft crackers; let stand until very soft; add three or four eggs, one cup raisins, one-fourth spoon salt, sweeten, flavor or spice, bake. Very nice. Celery Soup?Boil a small cup of rice in three pints of milk until it will pass through a sieve. Grate the white part of three heads of celery on a bread grater; add this to the milk after it lias been strained ; put to it a quart of strong veal stock ; let it boil till the celery is very tender. Season with salt and cayenne pepper and serve. Lemon Ciieese Cakes.?Put half pound butter into a basin and beat it up until it is a cream, add the yolks of two eggs, the rind of two lemons grated, the juice of one and a tablespoonful of castor sugar. Mix these thoroughly. Line a dish or patty pans with puff paste and pour in the mixture and bake in a moderately quick oven. Italian Fried Liver.?Ilave the liver cut in slices a quarter of an inch thick; put on a frypan with a little butter and fry the liver one minute on each side, or just long enough to glaze it so as to retain the juices; then take a can of tomatoes, and when it has come to a boil put on the meat with the tomatoes and boil twenty minutes. Serve hot either alone or with ma- aroni. Substitute for Butter.?A lady who is a famous housekeeper recommends an economical plan for making cakes without butter, which may be ol' use to our readers who have a dread of " margarine." Take a piece of fat pork, melt it down and strain it through a piece of coarse thin muslin. Set it aside until it is cold. It is then white and lirm and may be used like butter in any kind of cake. In pound cake she assures us it is delicious. Household Hint*. Warm soapsuds will keep the bugs off of house-plants and make them grow very fast. To remove finger-marks,putty stains etc., from glass, put a little soda in the water with which you wash it. To keep linen from turning yellow, iMif if nii'nv nillirli ilrt? nftjir Wncllincf jl.lU ?l??V ?1?V. ? and bleaching well and rinsing in blue water. Some kinds of stains may be removed from silk by the application of essence of lemon, one part; spirits of turpentine, five parts. Mix and apply to spot by means of a linen rag. Lemons can lie kept in good condition for a long time by putting them in a tight cask and covering with water. They must be kept in a cool place, and the water should be changed every other day. To remove clinkers from stoves, place a few oyster shells in the grate while the lire is burning and the (.-linkers will at once become loose and may lie readily removed without injuring the lining. Tcherniclicvski. For fifteen years Tcherniclicvski, the author of the celebrated novel, " What to Do," and one of the most remarkable of Russian socialistic writers, has been interred in a little town of Siberia. A Russian review published in Geneva contains an interesting communication relative to the illustrious victim of proscription, for whose liberation liberal Russia lias so long pleaded in vain. Thi.iurl. tlw> I!im(<i:in nsitririt. TpIut niclievski is not dead, as lias been more than unci; reported, lie is dead to society. lie still lives in the remotest portion ol' Siberia, that icy country which has witnessed the death of so many illustrious condemned. Tcherniehevski is interred at Kolinisk; lie is alone, separated by the gigantic barriers of snow and ice of Yakoutsk from everybody that can understand him. The little town to which he is consigned counts but a few hundred inhabitants; the literary society of the vicinity is composed of two or three olliciids. as more are no avauawe loiigmgsm the place, the exile lives in a single room in the guard-house, where he can lie most conveniently subjected to a very rigorous surveillance. During the day he is allowed to walk the streets, but must present himself every evening before his guardians. The labors of science which might distract and occupy his mind are al-. most impossible, lor he has no books ; lift is forbidden to read newspapers or literary publications. One day he tried to send an article to a Russian journal, but the governor confiscated the package. Tcliernichovskl, nevertheless, writes occasionally, but tears up and burns all his productions. Then! is something mysterious about this method of procedure. The poor exile has a little garden which he cultivates himself; he gives it much attention and carefully watches the growth of His plants; he has drained the soil of his garden, which is marshy. He lives by the products which lie raises and eats only vegetables ; he lives so plainly that in i the entire year he does not expend the sum of one hundred and twenty rubles allowed by the Russian government; his savings are deposited with the police commissioner. The health of the exile is bad ; he I lias grown old and bent. In the little town where lie is interred the people revere him and consider him as a saint I ?not, of course, because of his literary genius or scientific knowledge, of which these poor people have probably I never heard ; but the wisdom, good' ness and charity of this man, whose life is absolutely pure and who bears his burden with such touching resignation, inspire in all a sentiment of the ' profoundest pity.?Libertyy LADIES' DEPARTMENT. Ncwm and Notes for Women. Twenty thousand messages are transmitted daily by telephone in Cincinnati, affording occupation to several hundred young ladies. Queen Victoria is fond of "Welsh woolens in plain and neutral tints, and in tiny checks of rich dark red and brown. Her favorite is black and dark green. Queen Olga, of Greece, carries with j her on her travels a lap dog of that rare breed so often represented by Sir Peter Lely in his pictures of the ladies I of the court of Charles II. Mrs. I)c Long, wife of the unfortunate commander of the Jeannette, has made satin tobacco pouches and given them to Ninderman and Noros, who last saw her husband alive. There are more than thirty women in the ranks of female correspondents at Washington, and gome of them write most interesting letters and have influence which Mrs. Ann Royal, the mother of them all, never dreamed of. Kentucky is indulging in quilting bees and cat shaking. After the quilting a cat is put upon the quilt. The young folks take hold of the corners and toss the animal till it jumps off upon one of the young ladies, who is then crowned queen of the bee. A novel bridal trip lias been made by ;i Texan and his wife. W. J. McLane, the owner of a $100,000 farm in Couclio county-, made the trip from his home to San Antonia, a distance of 150 miles, with his bride, in a wagon. After a short stay in the city they proceeded on their way to the coast. Mr. McLane is over fifty years old and his wife is about thirty-five. There was a time when buttons were used by the gross as trimmings. They were sewed on anything and I evervwhere. down the middle and up the sides, on cither "front" of a jacket and thickly bestrewing the sleeves. Clever, indeed, was that girl eonsidered who arranged her buttons in vandykes round her dress, and her skill was well advertised by the terrific noise made in church by her very original trimming. It never occurred to any one that buttons should have some plausible excuse for being in any given place. In peppering them all over a costume the pepperer should have been equally liberal with small tabs and buttonholes. Then the buttons could at least have pretended to be useful.?London Daily News. Fnnliion Notes. Very wide linen collars are in vogue again. Pearls and imitation pearl beads are fashionable. Kid bonnets are the odd and rather pretty fancy of the passing moment. Shoes and stockings, when not black, should match the general color of the toilet. The loose gathered or plaited English frock remains the favorite for girls under ten years of age. Deep capes of fur, resembling too closely those of coachmen, are much in favor with young ladies. Scarlet and green and green and pink in subdued tones are fashionable combinations in velvet and satin in the fornyition of rich dinner toilets. Slender bracelets set with gems are more and more fashionable, the gold in some instances being merely a wire which serves to hold the jewel. I Kilted Scotch and ftther plaid skirts with plain jersey of one solid color, :md scarf drapery covering the joining of bodice and skirt, are still the most fashionable, serviceable..and becoming school dresses for girls in their tee^. J'lush and French felt hats are | shown with melon brims and melon crowns. The latest oddity is a hut with a low crown and a very narrow brim, these shapes resembling the metal headpieces worn by Cromwell's men. Novelties in hats are of leather m the natural color. Some are in combinations of felt and leather, the brim being of the felt bound with leather stitched on under gold braid, which ;dso covers the stitching in the leather c rown. Leather lace is something new in trimmings. Figures of leather cut out and applkjued on to any desirable fabric are also popular, Kussia colored leather, very line ;md cut in open patterns, is much in demand for dress trimmings. Sabrinawork is a variety of applique work and is very fashionable. It consists in cutting out either from colored velvets, velveteen, satin, silk, cloth, serge or washing materials, whole or single petals of dowers, leaves, or conventionalized flower patterns, and aflixing those pieces on to colored cloth or white linen backgrounds, with wide-apart buttonhole stitches; while such parts of the design as are to small to he cut out are worked with chain or crewel stitch upon the material used as a background. Sebastian Cabot. T. W. Iligginson, writing in Ifurper's Magazine, says : Sebastian Cabot ww r.ortiiinlv iii one sense the dis- I eoverer of A ni or lea ; it was ho who lirst made sure that it was a wholly new and unknown continent. In Ids early voyages he had no doubt that he had visited India, but after his voyage of 141)8 he expressed openly Ids disappointment that a " New Found I Land" of most inhospitable aspect lay as a barrier between Europe anil the desired Asia. As the (Jerman writer, J)r. A slier, has well said, "Cabot's displeasure involves the scientific discovery of a new world." In his charts North America stands as a separate and continuous continent, though doubtless long after his time the separate islands were delineated, as of old, bv others, and all were still supposed ' to be outlying parts of Asia. In this, as in other respects, Cabot was better appreciated lifty years later than in his own day. I lis truthful accounts for the time discouraged further enterprise in that tit* -- rni 4-X...4. 1- *> rCCUOJl. " .1. IH'V Lililt M l'l\ nuiirn, nam Peter Martyr, " must not go to tlie frozen North." And alter one or two ineffectual undertakings lie found no encouragement to repent liis voyages totlie North American coast, but was sought for both bv Spain and Kngland to conduct other enterprises, lie was employed in organizing expeditions to the lirazils, or to the north polo by way of Russia, but the continent he had discovered was left unexplored, lie was esteemed as a skillful mariner and one who had held high ollieial station; he died dreaming of a new and infallible mode of discovering the longtitude which he thought had been revealed to him from heaven, and which he must not disclose. The date of his death, like that of his birth, is unknown, and his burial-place is forgotten. But fifty years later, when Englishmen turned again for a differI ont object toward the American con tinent, they remembered his early achievements, and based on tlivm a (Jaim of ownership by rij^lit of discover}'. Even then they were so little appreciated that Lord Bacon, writing his "Reign of Henry VII.," gives but three or four sentences to the explorations which perhaps exceed in real importance all else that happened under that reign. A recent return shows that the rates of mortality .at different ages in the British army are lower than among civilians until the soldier attains thirtylive years, after which the military death-rate rises rapidly. Under twenty the average death rate of troops on home service is half that of civilians. ENGINEERING A CANVASS. Simon Ciuiicron'n Account of How LIncoln'i Sccoml Nomination YVitx HrotiKht About. President Lincoln's fear that Ben 'Wade, Chase, Seward and the other Republican leaders were organizing a movement to defeat his renomination is familiar history. Mr. Cameron was just home from Europe in the midst of the intrigue which so disturbed the President. lie called General Cameron to his side and recounted his fears that the Republican leaders who were plotting against him would defeat him for a second term. "It can't be done," was the emphatic reply of Mr. Cameron when Mr. Lincoln had told his story. "The sentiment of this country i.s overwhelmingly for you and it must find expression before the convention meets." " How can it be done ?" was the swift question of Mr. Lincoln. " Easy enough," said General Cameron. " I remember during General Jackson's first term, while I was building the Lake Pontchartrain canal into New Orleans, I was called home by Mr. Eaton, secretary of war, to assist in the campaign for the re-election of Jackson. You will remember that Jackson had pledged himself not to run a second time, rsd the first point t'*> gained was to decide what means shonld be taken to remove this obstacle. We had a consultation, and it was suggested that some State legislature should start with a petition asking Jackson to become a candidate for reelection. This could be followed by Others until all the Democratic States, through their representatives, had spoken in his behalf. His great popularity made this an easy task. The legislature of Pennsylvania readily signed the request asked and the other States followed in quick succession. He could not, of course, decline such a call, and he was re-elected. The people naturally supposed it was a spontaneous uprising in his behalf, whereas it was a carefully prepared plan to arouse and direct public sentiment. This can be done in your case, and we will begin in Pennsylvania as we did for General Jackson." " Do you think it can be done, general?" said Mr. Lincoln. " Of course," was the reply. " I will show you how easily." And the two then parted, with Mr. Lincoln verv much pleased with the abiding aith of his new ally. Mr. Cameron returned to Pittsburg, and in a clay or two sent Mr. Lincoln the petition of the Pennsylvania legislature, asking him to lie a candidate for re-election and pledging him the vote of the State. Very soon after State after State followed this lead in rapid succession, and each additional recruit gave Lincoln great pleasure. It was not long afterward before General Cameron called at the "White House on a reception day. Taking his place in the line, he was pushing his way slowly to the place where the executive was receiving his guests. The 1 latter saw Mr. Cameron some distance 1 away in thc.columru Holding up his great hand encased in a cheap cotton 1 glove, he indicated witli three long fingers the success of their scheme and ! shouted: "Simon! "We've got 'em! 1 Three more States in to-day." The crowd looked at the President ir\ <cf/vTi!oVii>ionf lmf. thpv lift.lo fcnpAV I *11 UOVUl1|i.,...,V.?, """ liow the receipt of the news from these 1 three States had relieved the niind of , Mr. Lincoln. Another phase of this presidential contest of 1804, which is just now interesting and exceedingly apropos, follows the story of how he was to be chosen for a second term. After he was satisfied that his nomination was a certainty, he was very anxious concerning the man who was to have the second place on the ticket. After looking the country over he decided that ho would like to have Ben Butler on the ticket with him as the President. lie sent for General Cam- ! eron and asked him to be his 1 envoy in carrying his desire ' to General Butler, who was " then in command near Fort Monroe. Mr. Cameron accepted the mission, and he, with Henry Wilson, of Massa- | chusetts, went down in a government ^ vessel to inform (leneral Butler of Mr. , Lincoln's wishes. The meeting with * General Butler, Mr. Cameron said, was j exceedingly pleasant, but when Mr. , Lincoln's desire was made known to j him his reply was: "I would not ac- } cept a place on a presidential ticket j with any man, although I appreciate . the crmpliment the President has done ' me in making the request." But for ' this positive declination of General c Bufc'.er there is no doubt lie would have ' been Vice-President and succeeded to j the presidency instead of Andrew , Johnson.?Detroit Post. j SCIENTIFIC NOTES. J MM. Piette and Krizik, at an agri- ! cultural gathering at Lundenburg, in ' Germany, drove an ordinary threshing t machine by electricity, attaining a j speed of 1,700 turns a minute, and illuminating at the same time the yard j in which the machines were exhibited. i Trees with cut tops, say Magerstein ( and Bilek, produce a larger quantity 5 of reserve matter than if they were ] left alone, and clipping of the roots ( has a like result. Healthy fruit trees ( should have their roots cut, but not ? their tops ; but in the case of stone- j " " ' i I i nut irees me iups majr uu ju uum ( with the advantageous effect of eon- . ducing to their general development. J Among the latest novelties in clocks < is one kept in motion by the force of ] a current of air. This curious clock , is at a railway station in Brussels, j The weight is kept wound up by the | action of a fan placed in a chimney. , As soon as it approaches the extreme j height of its course it actuates a bieak , which stops the fan. A simple pawl | protects it from the effect of an acci ] dental downward draft. It is not \ necessary that the air in the chimney j should be heated. Says the Popular Science Monthly: \ Dr. J'heno called attention in ine ; American association to some hitherto unnoticed affinities between ancient i customs in America anil other conti- ; nents. He mentioned customs which j have been shown to have existed in ] the great river valleys of our countries 1 or have been revealed in the mounds, j that had parallels in various European ahd Asiatic countries. Among them ; were those indicated by the occurrence 1 of figures of serpents, alligators or ; mythical dragons, and the human form, ' tin: characteristic features of which > were curiously persistent in each case. < Some of the shapes of the semi-bar- 1 baric age of Mexico corresponded with j forms in Devonshire and South Wales. In the vicinity of some such ligures of ( this charater in the west and east of the south of England were enormous \ intaglio representations of the human | form corresponding to the i?t;ujlio forms at Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Drawing attention to several other apparent correspondences, the speaker said tira/t they were the result or a practice arm ; culture transmitted with concurrent customs by way of the Pacific from one continent to another. , Velvet work upon embossed velvet is easy and effective. It consists in outlining with gold thread the em- ; bossed (lowers and arabesques and lilling in the center of such parts with satin stitch worked in colored liloselles. | To work?select a deep and rich-toned piece of embossed velvet and couch along every outline of the embossing two threads of Japanese gold thread, then take two shades of green liloselle and vein the leaves of the design with crewel-stitch and a pale shade of lil- I oselle of the same color as the velvet, and till in the centers of any (lowers or | geometrical figures with long satin i I stitches. I Mexico and the Mexicans. The dress of a Mexican cabalero is peculiar. lie wears a broad-brimmed felt bat, stiff brim and low crown. The brim is wide enough to turn the rain from his shoulders. It also shields the owner from the sun's rays. I believe I have never seen a Mexican, outside the large cities, carry an umbrella. The hat is very costly, and contains a band of silver, and the edge of the brim is ornamented with silver fringe, sometimes beads of the same metaL me rose oi ins uress win Keeping with his hat. lie wears a close fitting doublet?never a coat?and pantaloons which end in his boots ; for no one ever sees the length. He wears a pair of fine leather boots, which hide a great portion of his pants. Immense spurs grace the heels of his boots. A saber hangs at his side, and when mounted he is armed with other ordinance. Frequently his pants are adorned with a row of buttons or beads, which run downward, and which produce a jingling noise when in motion. The cavalier wears his hat on the back of his head; hence when you meet him he presents the entire circumference of his sombrero. He eschews collars and cuffs, and seldom displays a laundried shirt. He is' polite, spends most ?f his time on horseback, and is silent always in respect to his mode of obtaining subsistence. He gambles, smokes and drinks sparingly. His horse is a mustang, his saddle and bridle and equipments are his fortune; and they are stylish, mounted with silver and ornamented with much taste and at considerable cost. rPKo fwlvnnt i\f -friroirmorQ int.n ico lias effected a gradual change in some respects, especially in dress, and this is especially noticeable only among the better class. Ladies have taken to wearing hats instead of the reboso. They have begun to some extent to wear hose and to paint a little and use cosmetics. The men are far in advance of the females in respect to innovation in dress. They wear the American suit out and out, and have drifted into the liabit of carrying watches and smoking cigars. But they never carry an umbrella, chew tobacco or marry without the means to maintain a wife. It may be proper here to state that Mexicans are very careful of their health. They fear fevers and protracted sickness. To avoid additional cold they frequently dispense with tiie usual ablutions for several months at a time. Traveling from the capital to Vera Cruz in the diligence they never think of washing hands or face on the trip for fear, as they say, of taking colcf Nothing could induce a Mexican to eat fruit in the evening ; and he refuses, unless compelled by fear of death, to take medicine of any kind. Fevers are usually fatal among these people. They seem to dread the appearance of this disease as the precursor of death, and it is not an unnnnnniin nppurrpnfA t.f) SPfi JV TObllst Mexican, when fairly attacked with it, to abandon all hope. Irf that case he wraps his blanket around him, flings himself upon the floor of his hut, and in the course of a few days dies. Consumptives goto Tanacan, west of Vera Cruz, to prove the efficacy of the ?rape grown there, and said to possess marvelous curative qualities. There are times when the natives indulge in drink to some extent, but lrunkenness in that country ^ rare. Often on market days many of them ivill invest a tlaco (cent) in the rum 3f the country?made of sugar-cane? ind go home somewhat intoxicated, out it is seldom one sees a man devoted ,o rum by reason of his appetite for strong drink. And liquor is very cheap ;here too?the aguardiente selling for ifty cents per gallon. And yet they lrink largely of wine, especially claret it meals, but never to excess, except J- i. 1 rare instances,uouijueks nucic ire drank by the score and hundred. ?St. Louis Illustrated Magazine. The Fly Inspector. An i ncident in the school-if of a :eacher, as related by herself, illus;rates our point. She had charge of a school in a country town early in her ;areer, and among her scholars was a )oy abo'it fourteen years old, who cared /cry little about study and showed no ntere.st apparently in anything conlected with the school. Day after day le failed in his lessons, and detentions ifter school hours and notes to his widowed mother had no effect. One lay the teacher had sent liim to his >eat, after a vain effort to get from him i correct answer to questions in gramliar, and feeling somewha': settled, she matched his conduct. Having taken lis seat lie pushed the book impatiently iside, and espying a fly, caught it with i dextrous sweep of the hand and then jetook himself to a close inspection of :he insect. For fifteen minutes or more .ho boy was thus occupied, heedless of surroundings, and the expression of lis face told the teacher that it was nore than idle curiosity that possessed lis mind. A thought struck her, ,vZ<ich she put into practice at the first )p portunity that day. "Buys," said she, "what can you teJl me about ' I'll- - 1- ?! ?1. i. lies?" ami calling several 01 me origin?st by name she .asked them if they ,'ould tell Iier something of a fly's conititution and habits. They had very ittle to say about the insect. They )ften caught one, but only for sport, md did not think it worth while to study so common an insect. Finally >lie asked the dunce, who had silently, >ut with kindling eyes, listened to what his schoolmates hesitatingly said, lie burst out with a description of the lead, eyes, wings and feet of the little creature, so full and enthusiastic that ;he teacher was astonished and the whole school struck with wonder, lie ;old how it walked and how it ate, and many things which were entirely new to his teaclier. So that when he had Inished she said: "Thank you! You Itave give us a real lecture in natural listory, and you have learned it all yourself." After the school closed that afternoon she had a long talk with the boy ind found that he was fond of going into the woods and meadows and collecting insects and watching birds, but that his mother thought ho was wasting his time. The teacher, however, wisely encouraged him in this pursuit, ind asked him to bring beetles ami butterflies and caterpillars to school, and tell what he knew about tnem. Tlie hoy was delighted by this unexpected turn of affairs, and in a few Jays the listless dunce was the marked boy of that school. Books on natural liistory were procured for him, and a world of wonders opened to his appreciative eyes. He read and studied und examined ; he soon understood the necessity of knowing something of mathematics, geography and grammar for the successful carrying out of his favorite study, and he made rapid progress in his classes. In short, twenty years later he was eminent as ii naturalist, and owed his success, as he never hesitated to acknowledge, to the discerning teacher.?Phrcnolotjirvl Journal. Great Sens. The largest inland sea is the Caspian lying between Europe and Asia. Its greatest length is 7(50 miles, its greatest breadth 270 miles, and its 'area 180,000 square miles. Great Salt Lake, in Utah, which may properly be termed an inland sea, is about ninety miles long, anil has a varying breadth of from twenty to thirty-live miles. Its surface is 4,200 feet above the level of the sea, whereas the Caspian sea is eightv-feet below the ocean level. " Money makes the mare go." Yes but late suppers make the uightinar, come. dfi - ' w,,. .. ... A PLACE CURIOUS TO BEHOLD. Odd Sight* and Sclcncc In an Oregon Town ?Salmon Fixhiag and FUfaermen. A writer in the Atlantic Monthly describing what lie saw in some 'Chance Days in Oregon," says: Three days and two nights?from Thursday morning till Saturday after| noon?between San Francisco and the mouth of the Columbia, and then we had to lie at Astoria the greater part of Sunday night before the tide would let us go on up the river. It was not waste time, however. Astoria is a place curious to behold. Seen from the water, it seems a tidy little white town nestled on the shore, .and well topped off by wooded hills. Landing, one finds that it must be ranked as amphibious, being literally half on land and half on water. From Astoria proper, the old Astoria, which Mr. Astor founded, and Washington Irving described, up to the new town, or unner Astoria, is a mile and a half. two-thirds bridges and piers. Long wooden wharves, more streets than wharves, resting on hundreds of piles, are built out to deep water. They fairly fringe the shore; and the street nearest the water is little more than a succession of bridges from wharf to wharf. Frequently bays and inlets make up, leaving unsightly muddy wastes when the tide goes out. To see family washing hung out on lines over these tidal Hats, and the family infants drawing their go-carts in the mud below, was a droll sight. At least every other building on these strange wharf streets is a salmon cannery, and * acres of the wharf surfaces were covered with salmon nets spread out to dry. The streets were crowded with wild-looking men, sailor-like, and yet not sailor-like, all wearing india rubber boots reaching far above the knee, with queer wing-like flaps projecting all around at top. These were the fiahers of salmon, two thousand of them, Russhins, Finns, Germans, Italians?"every kind on the earth," jan '% old' restaurant keeper said in speaking; of them; "every kind on the earth, they pour in here, f)r four months, . "V from May to September. * They're a . ^ wild set; clear out with the salmon, . 'n* don't mind any more'n the fish do ; ^ what they leave behind 'em." All day long they kill time in the ^3 saloons. The nights they spend on the water, flinging and trolling and drawing in their nets, which often burst * with the weight of the captured sal- \ mon. It is a strange life, and one surp to foster a man's worst traits rather than his best ones. The fishermen who ; 1 have homes and families, and are loyal , J to them, industrious and thrifty, are f. the exception. The site of Mr. Astor's original fort is now the terraced yard of a spruce new house on the corner of one of the - ^ pleasantest streets in the old town. These streets are little more than narrow terraces, rising one above the other on jutting and jagged levels of , the river bank. They command supei&_^^ off-looks across and up and down the majestic river, which is here far more a bay than a river. The Astoria peo- .3 pie must be strangely indifferent to Ji these views, for the majority or the yj ?| finest houses face away from the water, V'-'ijjjj looking straight into the rough wooded hillside. Uncouth and quaint yehicles are perpetually plying between the old and <>. the new towns; they jolt along-fast v. ^ over the narrow wooden roads, and ^3$ the foot passengers, who have no other place to walk, are perpetually scrambling from under the horses' heels. It "S is a unique highway; pebbly beaches, marshes and salt ponds, alder-grown cliffs, hemlock and spruce copses on jits . inland side; on the water side, bust- v ling wharves, canneries, fishermen's boarding houses, great spaces filled in with bare piles waiting to be floored: r at every turn shore and sea seem to ' -g change sides, and clumps of brakes, fresh-hewn stumps, maple and madrone trees, shift places with canneries and wharves; the sea swashes under the planks of the road at one minute, and the next is an eighth of a mile ' , : away, at the end of a close-built lane. Even in the thickest settled business ^ part of the town, blocks of water alternate with blocks of brick and stone. The statistics of the salmon-canning business almost pass belief. In 1881 six hundred thousand cans of canned salmon were shipped from * Astoria. We ourselves saw seventyfive hundred cases put on board one steamer. There were forty-eight pound cans in each case; it took five 1 hours' steady work, of forty 'long shoremen, to load them. These 'longshoremen are another shifting and turbulent element in the population of ,t the river towns. They work day and ;; night, get big wages, go from place to place, and spend money recklessly; a sort of commercial Bohemian, difficult to handle and often dangerous. At the time we S&w them they .were on beer wages. The foaming beer casks stood at fhort intervals along the 7 wharf?a pitcher, pail and mug at i each cask. The scene was a lively one: four cases loaded at a time on each truck, run swiftly to the wharf edge, and slid down the hold; trucks rattling, turning sharp corners; men laughing, wheeling to right and left of each other, tossing off mugs of beer, wiping their mouths with their hands, and flinging the drops in the air with jests?one half forgave them for N>?" tnVinrr nnrt wacres in the l)eer. it made - -* V,I"4"D I ~ C7 - w it so much merrier. - '*-*) The Mate of the " Mark Twain." In a humorous paper on Mississippi River travel, in the Century, entitled ' The Trip of the Mark Twain," a typical character of river life is allowed to speak for himself'as follows : The first mate of the vessel, he of the fur cap, was a character. It was appropriate to find him in the Mark Twain. He was bald and looked very old, but declared he was thirty. " Ef you had been through what I hev, my travelin' stranger, quoth he, " you too would look like an example of the longest kind of long-gevity. My name figures prominently in history. I've been published in four hundred and thirty-nine newspapers and one almanac. I've_.be<5n blown up by steamboats in twenty-two States and several territories. \On most occasions everybody onNxJboard perished except myself. of my skull is layin' round loose all up and down this river, and numerous of Its tributarrys. Awful? Yes. Once I was aboard the Obiona. I knew we were goin' to bust that arternoon, for it w.is about bustin' time with me, and bust we did. "When I come down I ! couldn't find nothin'. Everything had bio wed to dust, or gone so fur that nothin' was within visible distance, But, bless you !?that's nothin'. Minor catasterfies? Oh, yes. Once we smashed a wheel against a snag. Of ' course when we progressed we went round and round, ;ind so went round and round all the way down to Xew Orleans, describin' circles the whole time. We all ?ot urful headaches owin' to the centripetal tendency of the nerinherv." A Reno, (New) Chinaman, while fishing in the Truckee river recently, caught something that astonishes all who sees it. The something has wings, fins and legs, and flies, swims or walks with equal facility. The wings are like those of a tlying-Gsh, otherwise it resembles a lizard, except that the head is more pointed. T'ncle Sam has 4,008,741 farms under his jurisdiction, with 130,972,673 farm animals, of which 10,357,981 are j horses, 12,443,952 are milch cows and 23,337,756 cattle. ?