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-' - ? ABBEVILLE PRESS AND BANNER*] BY HUGH WILSON. ABBEVILLE, S. C.. WEDNESDAY, APRIL 23, 1884. NO. 43. VOLUME XXVIII. ||j ?. -Wk HEAR THE RAIN. Hear tho rain, winter rain: hear it dripping, sailly, sadly. Blinding rain, cruel rain; rushing, driving madly, madly. Dreary day and weary heart! Cease, oh raiu, and rest, oh pain! Clouds disperse, and griefs depart With tho rain. Weary heart and dreary day, And my love so far away. near me rain, summer rain; near it put.or lightly, lightly. Gentle rain,sparkling rain: gleaming,glistouing brightly, brightly. Tender heart and happy day! Shine, oh sun, till day is done; Clouds dissolve and melt aivaj 'Neath the sun. Happy day and tender heart, Mytovo and I shall never part. ?H. .4. Freeman. WE WERE SEVEN. BT MINNIE MAY LANCASTER. People don't mean harm, they only do it; and the way wo came to have a linger in Fate's pie was this: To begin with, there were seven of us ?seven demoralized young savages turned loose on a lonely farm, along with a stepmpthcr who dealt out justice very much as Mrs. Squecrs denlt out treacle, and a forlorn old father who dared not call his soul his own. lie was such a big, gi and fellow, such a gentleman, was my father, so genial, and accustomed to be the master in his own house (that other house where mamina lived and died) that 1 think it must have come "stone hard" to him in his old age to play second fiddle to our severely proper second ma. lie fell along wifli Richmond, and when ma had brought him captive in chains matrimonial to her country home?his being confiscated? and gathered up us children trom the poor relations and poorer scnoois wncre i mamma's death had drifted us, she just | emptied us out in her wilderness of pines ; and waste of sand, to scratch our way through childhood as best pleased Providence and our numerous selves. We ere gregarious little wretches, hunting together, climbing together, fishing and lighting together regardless ' fnx- sxy If Irvtlll lltl'flfl (T till' wharf after mud oysters, the rest of tin* i gang were expected to dive after mud ; oysters too. True, there were snags in j dangerous plenty that only showed their , black, shiny faces at low tide, but tilProvidence that goes about caring lor! fools and children, ordained that they ! should not interfere without- sport >o far i as to deprive us of our brains. If he' (meaning John again) climbed up tlr-1 brown ribs of the barn till he readied J the eaves and then flung himself madly j on the hayricks below, six interesting I young followers would swarm about the , tobacco plants curing under the eaves. I ready to sneeze themselves oil' the beams and down into the hollow he had made. One morning when old black Joe (no reference to tiic song and chorus) came into the barn and caught us?some panting ia our fragrant, yellow nests, one in mid-air curled up like a ball, and a file of five balancing on the rafters ready for a turn?how his old body quivered, and how his eyes suggested boiled eggs with +he sheik ntt :i? lip scratched under the m straw and fished up before our demorH alized eyes the farm hoe, the big rake M with its cruel teetli upward, aud two H 6cythes gloaming with wicked keenness! in the summer sun. 9 Ma was down with one of her aches , Bj and pains that day?poor dear! and papa having invited us to play away from the jBp house, it suddenly occurred to our am D bitious minds to go out boating in the scow. To be sure, th-re were "white; H ladies'' riding on the big blue waves out i H in the chanucl, but t>,ey might have been j H witches straddling their broomsticks for 1 all we thought or cared?for we were I H amphibious in those days, so far as fra- J ternizing with water - snakes, crabs, j D and long-tailed sea-nettles went. S or bobbing contentedly in the j H frothy surf, with the brown fin of a sliark ' H looming betore us between the risj aud j H fall of the waves. It was a ramshackle;.- | H| old boat, grimy with oyster shells, and ! H slimy with fish-bait and scales. There H were greenish crab claws plastered about j her sides and floating on her leaky bot torn, and the bailing-can, as a matter of j course, was nowhere to be s; en--neither N was her rudder, neither was her anchor, H neither were her oars! B Wedged in as uncomfortably as Cleo patra's crew in the picture, and unable. HE either to row or i>teer, we shoved her oil in the heavy surf, and being both j fools and chilurcn, *rusied to Providence j to keep us along il.e shore. The first M thing we did v.as to wobble, and as we I H rather like wobbling, a chorus went up j MM 4.** nffrtAl in i Aat'Afr?flll VOlU ! ItU iUUV VUCV. b 1.4 0^*V?4 J V..V. j Then we rocked?ihe cradle in the tree-1 top wasn't a circumstance to the way we i rocked after we !e.t oft wobbiing! Then I Ihe rain beat on in ii sudden gust. and the "white ladies" foamed over the side3 of the scow and into our laps with a rude familiarity* to which no genuine white lady should descend. After that the deluge! I think even Baby Dixie realized that water up to our knees meant sinking, and that sinking meant death-and so there was nothing to do but shriek for poor, dear daddy, with a childish faith that he could save us, and, l'uiiing him, to make up our seven small minds to sink the very best we knew how.and all go to heaven in a bunch. It was quite plain the crazy old tub kad made up its mind to go to the bottom, and the beautiful persistency with ! which she settled to her w<?rk would! have sent us down with sickening swift-! ness, only that Providence, remembering | us at the very last moment, rushed to i our rescue in the shape of Captain Dan! ( >i* * * * * To say we adored our next-door farmer : but shabbily expresses the devotion with ' which we assailed the preserver of our useless little lives. All along, we had known him simply as the man with a j beard, und bothered no more about him. ' but now! We beat up partridges from the russet i hedges, and while his gun was smoking. I hunted the stubble to bring them to him 1 warm and wet and dead. We let him ' j.i f | B UI(U the BCUICt Ul * i \ mn .urt ./UI.VM In the chuffv pines. and blistered ourulres in the corn-field lighting maraud P Ing crows. We even extended our love to the old mare that had conn* home from | Oj the war with him?all ribs and horsehair 1 |B ?and to the rusty little fishing-smack H that had helped to save our lives. KB He never made us feel. God bless him! m that we were not delightful to gaze upon. or that we might be less aggressive in the BBb way of teeth and nails and heels. There MS was always a bright sort of welcome in his brown, freckled face when we seven scamBH pered across fields or along roads to meet HR him. and his was always the first cheery H word, always, at least, until that tin|H lucky evening when we met him canterMB ing from the village with the alarming announcement that Cousin Till had HH come. IH Cousin Till meant ma's niece. She was one of those big. gorgeous-looking young women a body calls stunning bcma hind her back?a young woman with |K lots of bronze hair in a demoralized state of puff,bang and frizzle, with cheeks 9 like peach-blooms all pink and waxy,and BB lips as red and tempting as ma's bush of ^B scarlet sage. BB She was rich, too, in. a mild sort of B9H way, dressed in milk-white frocks and BH blue rihbons for breakfast, and had a beau, ma said.for every day in the week, BB For the rest, she owned a big farm ten Mm miles above us, vi?ited ma when there was nothine better coing on. and always went off in h huff. She treated us ^B rhildren fairly enough, considering, and ell we knew or cared about her was, that ^^9 she slept in mittens to keep her hands |Bh white, carried her trunk key with cxas* /-nffnn Iperaung consistency, hcvci buitu lum... on account of her complexion,and wished her name was Maud instead of Matilda * ?all we eared at least, until that unlucky eveniug when Captain Dan would budge no nearer than the garden?after which I am bound to own we hated her with a hatred loo genuine to put in print! Budge! he wouldn't even look toward the house?even when we clung to his saddle flaps and swarmed about his leg?, and tugged and coaxed and scolded, we couli git no better satisfaction than a pluvfui flju of his riding whip as he gave his hor;e the bridle and slowly rode away. That was the beginning of it. We rarely saw our preserver after that, and never once at the house?how we hated her for it. and how we wished to goodness she would have the sense to go! At last, when things had become so desperate that Captain Dan never even scudded by in his tishing smack, not turned his old mare's head into our road ?and Cousin Till kept on being sweet as peaches?we hold an indignation meeting on the back piazza and vented oui wrongs in speech. "Cut her throat and bury her in the pines." suggested John, our harmless I eldest, who was addicted to uncomfort I ably vivid dreams. "Wy tant wo put 'nrd trabs in her bed | and dwown her wif a rone!" lisped Aggie, our Borgia of six. "Better shave that head of hers!" advised Jim, who really gave brilliant promise of being a first-class villain?only he died, poor little lad. before he had time to work out his vocation. And to shave our Cousin Tilly we decided. We were very jubilant at the tea-table that night?so jubilant that ma moaned at us through her bedroom door, and papa and Cousin Till frowned us down from their end of the table?and when at last she had retired early by rcison of ma's headache, and papa had catechised us from "Who made you?'' down to "What became of Cain?'' we, too, filed up the crooked old stairway to the three .? 1 f A All ? (JUMI V lUt'IIO UIIUVIVJVI tw wiii 0 IT ( . We hud cast John for the barber iti our thrilling version of the "Rape of the Lock." but being overwhelmed with a conscience at the trying moment, Jim assumed the part at the usual live minutes' notice, and doubtless would have performed his role with perfect satisfaction but for a tableau uot down in the bill. The harvest moon was shining like a calcium as we crept stealthily ou our bare tip-toes to the door of my Cousin Till's chamber. There she lay fast asleep, like the princess in the fairy tale, and there were we face to face with?John was the first to spy it?a fluffy coil of reddish gold sprawled out on the dresser! When we carried Captain Dan the scandalous news I think he had a wild notion to box us for our pains. He laughed, too?laughed till the lishing was spoUCU, and mime us promise ucvui to raise our hands again to harm a hair of her head. Then papa, being in a proper mood, we lured him behind the grmary dour and confided in him as well?a confidence that led to the horrible discovery that Cousin Till and Captain Dun had been something more than friends. "Wasn't she to blame?" asked John, who had heard of such goings on as courting involves, and liked to air his knowledge. ' Well, yes, honey, I think there's no doubt about that; but young people i don't need to talk of such things, so run j and forget it." Xo>; talk, indeed! We talked of noth- i ing else; and if Captain Dan wanted Cousin Till, we made up our minds he was going to have her, false top-knot, big farm, and sulks, too, in the bargain! ! How we argued, how we planned, and how at last we made up our minds what to do and how to go about it. Our plot began with a message, w ouin Captain Dan meet papa that evening at sunset by the bend? of course he would, and for the rest of that day we confined our energies to stealing everything we could lay our hands on in the way of ropes and bridles and strings. That evening wh;-n the sun lay in golden splendor on the water, and the swamp-frogs were piping their dismal refrain, Cousin Till strailed oil to the beach, as usual, with a cloud of white wool over her bronze locks and a bluc-and-gold ''Burns'' in her hand. We took a notion to strail that way ourselves, only we made no such seductive picture with Billy's bridle between us. and the great thong of tinkling slelgh-bclls dragging along in the sand. We itrund our chance when she stooped to pick up a pinkish pebble, and before she could say Jack Robinson, old Billy's bridle was la*ooing her soft white throat, and John was strapping her arms to her sides with the string of noisy bells. 1 think she considered it fun of a rough sort at first, and humored our frolic so far as to let us shove her along to the Bend. She even laughed outgavly at Dixie's fierce efforts in the way of clutching and Aggie's vicious buttings from behind. But when she saw Caytain Dan wait i?if impatiently before us. nnd when he j saw her?and us?and when John hand- j esl over the bridle with the unnecessary assertion that "there she was, and no mistake!" and when they both flushed up iike honey-stickles, and she hung her , pretty head while he unwound her from i the musty ropes and still she did not move, and when at lust we left them there with the sun flooding them both with its dying blessing, hosv triumphantly we scampered down the beach to the chorus of " A cornstalk fiddle and a shoestring bow. If you catch a pretty girl don't you let her " go.-' A simple story; yes, so simple that except for Captain Dan himself I never should have remembered. For one thing it happened so loug ago. I never realized how lony, until I met him face to ' - - --J ? .1? ,i:.i UlCv\ aim lll'J JUJUI uvai v*na live AUVH me? So gray, so sorrowfully old?should a man look like that at forty? And when, at last, I beat it into his memory that 1 was one of the seven causes uf his marriage, and asked him how dared lie forget, he turned on me with a mo-t startling contempt for politeness, and with a sigh that was solemn even for a countryman lost in the noises of a town. "Forget! Well. I've been wishing every day for the last fifteen years that I had let the whole gang of you go to the bottom. Forget you? Nosuchluck!" it never occurred to me before, but now I come to think of it. Cousin Till wasn't exactly the sort of woman to make a successful home, and as for him ?if only he had not interfered, how much better off v e would'have been?at the bottom.? The <'onti?ent. Insomnia. Dr. F. L. Oswald says in the Popular I Science Monthly: The proxiin ite cause of sleeplessness is plethora of the cerebral bloo.l-vesscls, and a palliative cure can be elF'.-cted by anything that lessens the ' tendency of the circulation toward the i head. But a permanent cure may require , time and patience. By night-studies brain-workers sometimes contract chronic - ? i? - .1 insomnia in that worse iorm wuicn nuus : relief only in the stupor of a low fever, alternating with consecutive days of I nervous headaches. Reforming topers | often have to pass through the same , ordeal, before'the deranged nervous sys1 tem can be restored to its normal condition. Fresh air, especially of u low temj perature, pedestrian exercise, and an I aperient diet, are the best natural remeJ dies. Under no circumstances should sleeplessness be overcome by narcotics, j An opium torpor cannot fulfill the func, tions of refreshing sleep; we might as ; well benumb the patient by a whack on the skull. He Went In. They were standing at the front gate. ! "Won't you come in the parlor and sit . u little while, (Jeorgie, clearf" I "N-no, 1 guess not," replied George, hesitatingly. "I wish you would," the girl went on. i "It's awfully lonesome. .Mother has gone out and father is upstairs groaning with rheumatism m the legs."' "Both legs?" asked George. I "Yes, both Jegs." I "Then I'll come in u little while."? J I'hUudcfphia ('ail. j After a good constitution, as a requisite | to health, come good physical habits. : These require a good supply of nutritious , food, daily and regular exercise in the t open air, pure water to drink, pure and ' abundant air for the lungs, ei^ht hours of ! good sleep out of every twenty-four, cleanliness, regularity in nil habits and employments, wise, but not excessive recreation, last?but not least?useful, congenial occupation. SAVED OX THE GALLOWS. A GOOD MINISTER'S LONG FBATCE AGAINST TIME. Two IflcnS Narrow I^cnpo in tlie Days ivlicn Xlicft was a Capital Crime in Canada. Dr. .J. M. Clark. of Erie, Penn., told (i Philadelphia Timex correspondent an interesting and remarkable story, brought out by the death of Richard Carr. a Canadian octogenarian: "I had no idea that Carr was living on this side of the lake, or that he was living at all,'' said Dr. Clark. "Not having heard anything of liim for thirty years I supposed him long since dead. His arrest, conviction, sentence and escape are events closely connccfcd with my family and my childhood, my uncle, Rev. John Rycrson, being the clergymen who attended Carr to the scaffold and who prayed against tim'* for the purpose of cheatiug the hangman, lie succeeded, and this i* how it all happene l: I was a child at Vittoria, a Canadian village just across the lake, about fifty-live years ago. Who did Carr kill t No one. He was a quiet and inoffensive young man, and so was i Smith, condemned to die w ith mm. me affair formed the theme for many atrocious ballads by villainous village poets, just as the execution of the three Thayers in liuffalo did. I see by the papers that ! nowadays a cold-blooded murderer frequently escapes the attention of her most excellent majesty's hangman through some fine point of law; but in the good i old days no poor wretch, whose suffering family prompted him to steal sheep or oxen, escaped. They were swung off promptly if uot artistically. "One day, I remember well, the village was thrown into great excitement by the discovery of a crime for which the penalty was death. The whole village of n.>mnv sJnmr? nnn Viiul > 111i/l la ?ao ... ax. - ? stolen an ox. A diligent search resulted in the discovery of the hide, and suspicion fell on Carr, who was known to be poor, and in whose house the odor of cooked meat still hung. The village dogberry and shallow dignitaries, that were next to deities in my eyes then, succeeded in extorting a confession of guilt from Carr and another poor fellow named Smith. The culprits were brought to trial, and a jury of twelve fellow-men found no difticultv in consigning both to the scaffold, after the learned judge had expatiated for hours upon the enormity of the crime against God and man. "Sentence of death was passed upon Carr and Smith and they would probably I have been executed the next dov, but I ! ; sunnnse the sheriff thousrht it would be , i I V_. regarded as ungeutlemanly and unfriendly if he did not arrange the time so that his distant constituency could get in to ' j witness the sight. Travel was slow in j ; those days of no railroads. Among those who were horrilied and shocked at the ' approaching execution were my uncle, the spiritual adviser of the poor fellows, j and Dr. John Rolf, whose memory still clings to the village. The Rev. Jonn Rycrson was brother to Dr. Egerton Ry- ' 1 erson, D. D., superintendent of educa- I 1 tion in Ontario, who died two years ago, } 1 the houses of parliament adjourning to j 1 attend the funeral. j I "Dr. Rolf was more excited tban any j ' other of Smith and Carr's sympathizers, : 1 and he determined to ride to Toronto i ! and intercede with the governor, who, I think, was Sir John Col born. Before dc- 1 parting on his hazardous errand of mercy, I)r. Rolf was closeted with my uncle, ! Rev. John Ryerson. The latter subse- | 1 quently told me that he had agreed to i ; delay the hanging all he could by making j the closing prayer as long as his strength , 1 and power of utterance would permit, provided that Rolf had not returned, j ' Good Dr. Rolf calculated upon getting 1 1 back a few hours before tha time set for 1 the execution. He set out on the swiftest 1 horse to be had in the village, but the 1 people had little faith in his ability to 1 make the journey in time and less faith ' in the governor's inclination to interfere. 1 Thn rltiva tlpw on and the neonle flocked ! in from the surrounding country. Unclc John did all he could to comfort the doomed men and led them to a realization of a greater mercy than man's, but they refused to be comforted. The fatal morn came, but without any tidings of Dr. Rolf. The hour arrived and the men were led out to die. Private hanging had not come into fashion then. It was considered good and wholesome for the common people to witness the awful and just punishment of the horse, sheep or cattle stealer. The gallows was erected 1 out in the open and in full view of all. It was none of your patent, latest style instrument of death. No sand-bag or ; scientific tests were made to assure the quickest death possible, it was a rude structure, upon which the village carpenter may not have expended more than two hours' labor. "Smith and C'arr were placed in position. and when the hangman's little preliminaries were over the sheriff was < - .1 .t-i ?ii ! miormeu uuu an ??o it-mij mi Vinson's final blessing or prayer. Then Rev. Rycrson got down on his knees and be- 1 gau the longest and most remarkable prayer on record. His voice was low purposely, for he wished to husband his ' vocal strength. lie prayed for about i twenty minutes without creating remark, for long prayers were not so distasteful { then as now. But when he entered up- ' on the second half hour great restlessness 1 was manifested. The sun poured down i^Fon the uncovered heads and many did 1 St>t hesitate to say aloud that they were getting too much of a good thing. The 1 sheriff was impatient aud the hangman looked weary. The proceedings made him tired. Even the poor wretches wait- ! ing death showed signs of annoyance, for uncle had not told them of his compact with Dr. Rolf. The murmurs rose higher and higher, but uncle prayed on without ceasing An hour passed and he was still on his knees? There was now no relevancy in his appeal, lie merely uttered words and disconnected phrases to consume time. The muscles of his throat contracted, his tongue was dry and clove to his mouth and his voice was husky, but he prayed on, the words falling without meaning upon his hearers. "He told me later that he did not know what he was saying, and that the only real prayer uttered in all that time was a silent one and composed of four words: 'God hasten Rolf's footsteps.' When ever I sec the plav of 'Dainon and Pythias.' I am reminded of that fearful sccn<?,v continued Dr. Clark. "At the end of an hour there was quite an uproar. and the discontent had almost become a riot, when a voice cried: 'Here comes Dr. Rolf!' My unele did not hear or heed the new tumult that now arose, but prayed on, becoming weaker each minute. Soon the horseman approached near enough to be recognized, and the doctor dashed up to the very foot of the scaffold, scattering people right and left, lie was too weak to speak or move, but a man in the crowd snatched a document from his hand and mounting on the back of the horse, shouted: 'Reprieve! Reprieve!' It was so, and that is how Carr and Smith were saved." " Sartage." Finland, "the last born daughter of the sea," Dr. J. (!. Brown says, is the only country in Europe in which "ear tagc"?that is tlie practice 01 scrimp: nro to the trees in order to clear the ground ?is still carried on extensively. The clearing away of the woods is to prepare the earth for agriculture, but as much, or more, by the preparation of the soil for the cultivation of the seed contemplated, and this is the peculiarity of the usage. The trees growing on the spot selected are burned, and the s:-cd is then sown on the soil thus manured with the ashes of the trees. Should the ground thus cleared not be permanently retained under cultivation, it is likely to become covered again with a crop of M-lf-wm-n fi-oncnf liirrher iieminiarv value. SV..4 ...p.? , Methoil in everything is incalculably valuable. It promotes comfort. It saves a large expenditure of time. It avoids numberless inconveniences. It is of great moment in relation to mind and character; and it is essential to the despatch of all business; for that which is well arranged proceeds with ease and regularity. Cat breeding is being taken up actively in England, not only for the comfortable cloak linings its fur affords, but as an ar- . tide of food. ? ; The Mennonites in Nebraska dam the ravines for water. 1 : FARM, GARDEN AND HOUSEHOLD \ Destroying- Slnys. T2 Vick's Magazine has the following plan for catching slugs: Take some pieces of slate, or flat stones, or fiat pieces of tin, and lay them about iu the garden among A the plants, distributing them very liberally; just at sundown go out and place n teaspoonful of brand on each piece of slate or tin, and the slugs will soon be- til come aware of it, and begin to gather and is feed on it. In about two hours, when it fa< is dark, go out again with a lantern and th a pail containing salt and water, and nil pick up each piece on which the slugs are found feeding, and throw slugs and bran ti\ into the brine, where they instantly die. co It is well, also to go around in the morn- H< ing; and many slugs will be found hid- to ing under the pieces of slate, and can be wt destroyed in the brine. By following up da this method persistently for a few weeks ?r: the garden may be effectually rid of the innuisances. tli sic Varieties of Potatoes. pr A careful correspondent of the Country 1,11 Gentleman, experimenting with potatoes, l*1 gives the results with the various kinds, showing the number of bushels per acre, uc ho nnmhpr of rotten bushels and the m< number of sound bushels. The land was ^ rather poor potato ground, with hog j' manure : ;01 Yield Per Acre. Hot ten. Sound, be Variety. lituhel*. Husheli. Buxhelt. to Rural Blush 855 7)? 317'<f St. Patric c .. 250 52% 197}* ev Queen of the Valley.... 10'J 50)j 1121/, (:0 Red Rose 347 29 218 " cu North Star 103 .. l:i:t \\-( Chicago Market 2W .. 2.50 fn. Grange 2<t0 92'^ ,, Late Snowflake 1G"> 14>| 150^ t,v Late Beauty of Hebron 234 87 147 tal Advance 189 .. 189 hh Blue Belle 219 01 % 157?? Rocky Mountain Rose.. W2}f .. 192j^ Dunraore 2!9 21) 190 ou Exi'nus l.V"> 4 5)<f ]11'.< w Invincible 254 110 138 ~ ;m Early Electric 189 .. 189 tal Early Mayflower 19.) .. 199 , Boston Market 250.!:] .. ?~)0}-.j , r "White WhipjJo 210 " 48)? 104)^ Beauty of Hebron 283 .. 283 " V( Snowbank 39'^ .. 39}? in; Pride of America 251 .. 254 ,VJ Magnum Bonum 190 14*? 181] j' Brownell's Best 247 .. 247 Early Telephone 219]^ .. 239)<f *u Belle...? 230 130 . 100 ~ m< Rose's Seedling 234 IS 210 Wall's Orange 203 18 1>5 w ?? .n-i,? iu<i iS(j r>j Burbauk 201 U)4 241\yt 011 White Elephant 2C-5 51 214 pc Cooks Superb 21(9 09 230 th Late Kose 274 18 25 > th Defiance 208}^ 25ji 343J? ' Mountain Rose 98 .. 98 ; Matchless 250 Hi 237 '"1 Champion of America. 312 22 2S.0 \vl White Stur am 58 101 th Early Hose 219 .. 1 10 i.;r Silversk.n 190 80 219 V No. 4 237 13 224' da No. 7 297J^ 87 2103-< t\v James Vick 2(J8j| 43Jtf 22.5 y( Clark's No. 1 305 .. 305 tw Farts in AtiparngUN Cftlture. ]) The "Culture of Asparagus" was the ho subject for discussion at a late meeting av of the Massachusetts Horticultural so- by ciety. As the opinion expressed were atl mostly from well known and practical m: gardeners, they are here given in con- \\i Sensed form. Facts established by the let discussion were that an asparagus bed th may be made last twenty years, the th plants are never infested with insects, ev und the crop never fails. eri ti,? l?* ?:i ? /!??? X uu UC3L suit xi/i a^jjiua^u.i 19 u 9<j< =andy loam, free from stones. If the wi ground be lumpy or stony the j'oung an shoots will come up crooked. The land tei is prepared by plowing deeply and work- uii ing in a heavy dressing of manure, after which it is harrowed and thrown into Mi ridges about four feet apart, with a large wi plow going several times in the same fur- sel row. The furrow is then shoveled out T1 iind the plants set in about one foot gi ipart in the row, with i little line nia- loi nure around them in the bottom of the ha Turrow. The plan's should extend in in sue direction, otherwise the row will wj spread out and become irregular. Ls The third year from setting the plants de will bear cutting. The bed ouylit to be be manured every year; if this is done in the wi spring, the manure should be fine and es free from lumps; in the fall the lumps w! ire of no consequence. The manure is en spread and plowed in or worked in with alj i disk harrow. The land is worked again In: xfter cutting is over with harrow or plow th ind with cultivator as the growth ap- hi pears above ground. Old beds, unless si: especially well cared for, become un- th profitable after ten or twelve years' cut- pi ting. Sc Marshall P. Wilder thought it had been proven that an annual application th af manure is sufficient; he did not be- an lieve in the economy of expensive prep- ha uration of the bed. The great secret in ea applying manure, in his opinion, is to di iiave it well decomposed and put in near lo the surface, lie preferred, for his own he table, medium-sized stems, though there to is a saving of time in bunching the large qi 3tems. sh Mr. Ilartwell, of Lincoln, has been in on the habit of manuring his asparagus in nn the spring, because it is a convenient C, time. lie thought the small plants from chance seed in an asparagus bed as injurious as are so many weeds, and th.it the ripening seed is a drain upon the energy 01 tne plant. ne naa lounu no advantage in the use of salt. Mr. Hunt, ^ of Coucord, had used saltpetre waste from a powder factory with some benefit, and would use some good superphosphate, if manure was scarce, but ' did not think salt c: anv spccial benefit. " th Mr. Wilder said that the French pro- aa duced large white shoots of asparagus by piling manure on tne rows. J>ir. gi Philbrick told bow white asparagus may sb be grown by running a plow between the d< rows and throwing up ridges over them. As soon as the sprouts show they are f0 cut by thrust ins down a long knife.? New York World. . t0 k< Farui and Garden !Voto?. gc Keep a mixture of salt and wood ashes in your horse's manger. Good stockmen everywhere unite in saying it prevents k disease, and is in every way an excellent 0i tonic. fc Keal poor ground will not grow clover, th and a farmer is throwing away money a< to sow his seed upon it, until he has preceded the sowing with an application of manure. jj Sheep losing wool, says the American ? Agriculturist, may be relieved of the irri- ai tation by a mixture of equal parts of sul- li phur and cream of tartar, given in half ai ounce doses. Raw manure fresh from the stable is ii> ai jurious to young fruit trees. Use wood ai ashes as a fertilizer where they can be ob- pi tained in sufficient quantifies. Apply F bountifully as far as they go. F Pen your sheep at night on the poorest ^ knolls of your fields. Sow grass seed after them and you will very soon recognize the value of the meek and lowly sheep as a fertilizing machine. "y Should any vermin render the life of his calfship miserable, bear in a mind that a mixture of lard and sulphur rubbed aleng the back and sides will cause him n to look on the bright side of life. ? Keep the horse collars clean. Thedust I1 and dirt which adhere to collars when 1 they are wet with sweat works into lumps y and ridges, and sore shoulders are the result. If the collars become hard wash , . , ... n them clean, pounu tnem mm irpply oil. Be careful not to overfeed any of your farm animals. Founder is difficult to relieve, and an animal suffers from the effects of overfeeding for a long time after the temporary pain has been removed. It is much safer to let your . stock fast occasionally than to cram them at any time. Save a corner of the garden for a few j, aromatic herbs. They thrive nicely along n the sunny side of the garden fence, an I they will require a deep and fairly rich s soil. Thyme, summer savory and sage a arc great additions to many soups and <] stews, ('nt. them just before they bloom |; on a bright, sunny day. Tie them in i bunches and hang up to dry. d A writer in a scientific journal ridiculcs ; 1 the idea that apples sweat, and that they v must undergo a sweating process before ! they are out ia barrels in order to keep t well. He states that only injury come) i t from leaving apples in piles in an orchard, * and that the moisture found on them , s comes from the atmosphere.- lie recommends placing them in barrels as soon ai they are picked. t n II Ml ! ?If I ?HI? IIW1? I ? MB ROMANCE OF TIIE WEST. IE CONFIDENTIAL CLERK AND THE JUDGE'S DAUGHTER. Wan Who Waltcil SI* Year* for a XVifo ami then Scinrcrt Hi* Bride nml vi-3,000 01 Iter Father'* i:?tatc. Tho following story is a true one. It e names of the parties are not given it because thev object to publicity. The j its, however, are known not only to j e employers of the husband, but to a mber of friends. Nearly seven years ago Mr. , a nare of Chambersburg, 1'enn., was a j nfidcntial clerk for a New York house, j 3 fell in love with and became engaged : the daughter of a wealthy judge, who i is a resident of C'liamlicrsburg. The j y was set for the marriage, and nil the j rangements were made by the father- j law for a grand celebration such as lie | ought befitted the dignity of the occa- | >n. Shortly before the wedding the j ospective son-in-law was overtaken by | sfortune. lie had indorsed for a friend, i e friend failed to take tip his notes, and e young man lost what he had?a farm i ar Chainbersburg with considerable | jney, and also all the cash he had red up during his service in New York, ic moment that he learned of his mis- j rlune he went to the judge at Cham- j rslrnrg, told him wnat had happened i him, and said that while as anxious as I er to marry his daughter he could not nscnt in view of the change in his cir instances to huvc a grand ana cusuv | deling as had been previously arranged | r. He was anxious to marry her on j e day appointed, quietly and unosten- ! tiously, and then take her with him to are his fortunes. The judge, however, j nan of obstinacy, insisted on carrying i t the programme iii all its details. It i is his daughter who was to be married, ' d lie insisted that the ceremony should j ie place with all the pomp and" parade | which he thought 6he was deserving. ' r. declined, and left for New j >rk that night. Early the next mom- j S the young lady followed him. They j :re married in New York, lived together 1 r two or three days, and then she rerncd to her home, lie remaining at the ! itropolis. j Not long after the father-in-law died, j his will he disinherited his daughter, ,t perhaps in a moment of relenting, | rhaps with a malignant desire to try j eir patience, he inserted a proviso : at, if they should live apart for six j ars, never meeting, never correspond- i - i??? 1-nnn r?n f>r>tnm11nipivfion I L{, UHi.y , mtcvcr, at the end of that time, if j esc facts were proven to the satisfac- i tn of the trustees of the estate, the ( ujrhter might have a share. For nearly I o years the husband lived in New J )rlc. Then, his health failing, he went j Denver. After staving there about o years he came to Chicago, entered ! e employ of a large manufacturing use, whose big store is on Wabash cnuc, near Congress, and soon became, j virtue of his natural abilities and his tention to business, their confidential in. All this time he never saw his fe, never wrote to her, nor received :tcrs from her. It is possible, of course, at he might have heard indirectly rough his mother. But there is no idence of this, and the wife's broth3, who were steadily on the lookout to u that none of the conditions of the 11 were broken, were unable to find ything which could justify the trus?s in declaring that the ju '.rie's requirejnts had net been lived up to strictly. During the greater part of this time r. 's employers had no idea that ho is married. He kept hissecret to himIf religiously, and it only came out last lanksgiving day, when a dinner was veil by the head of the house to his iding men, and then, the six years ving expired, Mr. felt warranted stating to the head of the firm that he is married and had been for six years, ite last night the trustees of the estate cided that the terms of the will had eit complied with, and that Mrs. is entitled to her share of her father's tate, amounting to about $25,000?not !iat. is nowadays called a fortune, but ough to enable them to live in comfortile independence. Soon after that, all isiness matters having been ssttled up, e wife came to this city and met her isband, whom she had not seen for over c years. lie remains in the employ of e firm, and they arc both living haply together in pleasant quarters on the mill Side. The husband is a little exultant over is reward of his patience and endurce, just as Jacob felt joyous after he ;d served fourteen years and finally rned the hand of Rachel, and is not sinclined to tell the story of his early ve and the long separation. The wife, wever, is more sensitive; is unwilling have the story known among the aclaintances whom she has made since e came here, and it is, therefore, rather it of deference to her wishes that the imcs of the parties are not given.? hicago Tribune. SELECT SIFT1NGS. Total abstinence, even for boys, was thing unknown in England early in is century. Savon, the French word for soap, is cribed to Savona, the place at which it as first manufactured. Among the Goths, Iberians and Moors e licking of the thumb was regarded i a solemn pledge or promise. The pearls and emeralds worn by Calida's wife were worth $1.COO, 000, but ie was not usunlJy attenuea oy private itectives. It was formerly customary in England r the sick to wear n kerchief on the :ad, und a certain virtue was attached > the custom so that in Cheshire tying a jrcliief on the head and drinking a post was a remedy for everything. The Musurgia, printed in 1030, tells : a speaking-trumpet invented by ono acher, who read a litany from a convent 1 the top of a mountain standing at the iot of it two Italian miles ofT. This is te first telephone of which there is any :count. The earliest statute against the emloynient of playing cards bears date in ie reign of Henry VIII., and is entitled, An act for the maintenance of artillery? id the debarring ot uniawiui games. 1 fact, it is simply intended to encourago cherv. North America was called Mexicana in i English almanac published in 1747. id South America, Peruviana. The rovinces of Mexicana were New Spain, lorida, New Albany, New England, New ranca, or Canada. The islands wero 'ewfoundland and California. The Story of n Box. ''Do you see this box?" said a New ork pawn-broker to Joe Howard, tho hiladelphia Press correspondent. "Yes; what's in it?" "There's a storv about that box. Six lonths ago I was going out of tlie door, 'lien a very okl woman caught her foot 1 the matting and fell. That l>o\ dropped om her hand and a coflin wreath of reserved (lowers rolled down the steps, picked up the woman, the box and the reath, and read. See here; you car sad it for yourself \ HUSBAND, : Junk 1VJ3. IN GOD I TRUST. ; "My good woman," said I, "'what is liis for?" She made a short story <>f it. die had lost her husband,and her (laugher, a woman of thirty-six. was fast gong into consumption. Their sewing mehine had I teen taken away by the gent. They had sold everything, bedtead. table, chairs, stove, little by little, nd now on a rainy, chilly afternoon, in lesperation, the old woman took the ust, literally the hist thing she had in he world, the wreath that lay on her load husband's coffin, and by its pawn inped to raise a few shillings with vhich to get medicine for hrr daughter. >hc couldn't bear to sell it, so she tried o pawn it. Of course the clerks refused o ict her have anything on it, and she vns coinp oil distressed enough when lie tumbled and fell.'' frBut you?" "Well, I?oh, I gave her five dollars ind nearly scared her to death." NEWS AND NOTES FOR WOMEN. The downy marabout feathers arc in demand. A great many dressy toilets have their basques to lace instead of buttoned. Three great-great-grandchildren belong to Mrs. Sally Packard, of Plainficld,Massachusetts. Cotton satines in floral patterns have again appeared and are used with combination suits. Strings three-eighths of a yard wide are worn on the spring bonnets and tied un;ler the chin. Fashionable young ladies must have photographs of their pet cats to be up to the times nowadays. ?A*rf Krt nrlmUfnrl fn Or. >> UI1IU11 III UUW UC (IU^UbbV4 wv ford college and be allowed the same educational privileges as men. As a llounce trimming lnce is in special favor this season, silks of both light and dark shades are trimmed with it. For making jabots the Valenciennes lace is the prettiest. There is no lace that falls as soft and becoming as this. Gold and silver veil pins are something new for the ladies. They arc long and slender and some have precious stones in them. New fans are coming in smaller, and painted sprays of small flowers cover the entire fan, and some extend over the sticks. China crape is both embroidered and printed this summer, the embroidery being done in black, and the printing in gay colors. For both boys and girls black stockings ire worn and preferred, though plain solid colors to match the dress are still fashionable. Mrs. Parnell, the mother of Charles Parnell, the Irish home rule leader, frequently addresses public meetings, although in feeble health. Dog collars of black ribbon velvet, fastened by a diamond collar button, are very much used with square-necked dresses. They are very becoming. Madame Kowalewaki, a Russian lady, occupies the chair of mathematics in the Stockholm high school, un institution which is said to be taking a very high place. The daughter of the British minister at Washington is said to be a great beauty, with the sad, dark eyes of Spain, of which country her mother was a native. C'hantilly taffeta is the name of a new stuff which has a bright ground with lace-like figures embroidered upon it. [t is intended to simulate silk veiled with lace. A wealthy widow has completed and handed over to trustees, an admirably appointed home for aged gentlewomen, in Sacramento, Cal., which cost her *>100,000. if?Ml. T5!.l.?. ^irs. .Uill'illil lUUIVUI, llikbUU; fin examiner in chancery ana United States commissioner at Washington,.is said to be the lirst woman ever appointed I to that office. i Mixed materials are very common among the new goods. Some are woven in single thread stripes running lengthwise, and others have stripes runniflg across the piece. Lady Wolseley, formerly Miss Murj phy, of San Francisco, at the recent ; "peasant festival" in London, sold pop| corn and gave no change. Iler "peasant dress"' is said to have been the most | magnificent ever heard or dreamed of. I Irish poplin is likely to be once more fashionable in England, and her interest in its manufacture is again instanced by the action of Queen Victoria, who selected this material for the bridal dress ! of her granddaughter, the Princess Victoria of llcsse. The new walking jackets are very short, and seem longer in front than at the back because the puff set below thi waist, raises the back slightly. The collar is high and straight, the buttons small, the shoulder scams short, and the sleeves full at the top. The trimming is Dram, which may be arranged either in rows 01 in figures. i The arrangement of the coiffure makes or mars the face; therefore, to dress the hair becomingly is an important matter. Women with round faces and of medium j height in nine cases out of ten will tind that massing the hair high on the head ! adds apparent length to the facc and ! height to the figure. It also improves the general contour of the head. On the i other hand, a sharp, regular profile ha; i its attractiveness enhanced by a coi j twisted low on the neck. Occasionally : there is a woman possessed with a uat [urally well-shaped head and oval fact k with regular features who may brave an} i fashion without fear of depreciating hei loveliness,but rhese beauties are rare and every woman had bettor test the becom ingness of a new arrangement of coiffun in the privacy of her own boudoir before parading in puolic. On Sneezing. On the subject of sneezing regarded as an omen, there is much to be said. Speaking jroncrally, it may be regarded as of favorable augury. "Two or three | sneezes be wholesome," says an old author, and "lie that hath sneezed ; thrice turn him out of the hospital,' says the proverb. Of sneezing, how, ever, as of other good things, it is possible to have too much. Famianus Strada, the author of a grave historical work, has a learned digression on the subject of sneezing, and mentions one Peter Suburranus, who died of a fit ol it, expiring at the twenty-fourth sneeze. ! T., A men o-pnpr.-lllv SllOCZed I 111 *llioiunv, ? ^ # i twice, but since then the art of sneezing, like other arts, appears to havt I advanced, and a triple sneeze is now, w< j believe, considered the correct thing | The virtue of sneezing, however, de pends much upon circumstances of timi and place. Sneezing from norm to mid night is good,according to Aristotle, anc from night to noon the reverse, and w< 1 learn from another source that "it anj one sneeze for three nights in succes-ioi it may be taken as a sign that some on< will die in the house." or that somi ' other calamity will occur. According t< ' Lancaster folk lore a good deal depend: ' upon the day if the week in the matte ' of snceziug: ".Sneeze on a Monday, you sneeze for danger i Sneeze on a Tin-slay, you kiss a stranger; 1 Sneeze on a "Wednesday, you sneeze for i letter; ! Sneeze on a Thursday for something better Sneezo on a Friday, you'll sneeze for sorrow i Sneezo on a Saturday, your sweetheart to morrow; i Sneeze on a Sunday, your safety seek, j Tho devil will have you the rest of thi week!'1 ?Tinsley. Chimneys. j In the year 1200, chimneys wen i scarcely known in England. Unc o?I; j was allowed in a religious house, one ii i a manor house, and ouc in the great 1ml l of a castle or lord's house; but. in othe houses, the smoke found its way out a it could. The writers of the fourteentl i century seem to have considered them ai the newest invention of luxury. Ii llcnry VIII's reign, the university of Ox i ford had no lire allowed; for It is men tioned that, after the students hat supped, having no tire in winter, the; were obliged to take a good run for hal an hour to get heat in their feet befon they retired for the night. Ilolinshed in ti>r> reiim of Elizabeth, describes tin Ill ?. ~~0-- - rudeness of the preceding generation ii the arts of life. "There were."' says lie "very few chimneys; even in the capita to;vns, the fire was laid to the wall, aiu i the smoke issued out at the door roof or window. The houses wen wattled and plastered over with clay and all the furniture and utensils wen wood." In 1H39, a tax of two shilling: was laid on chimneys. The liability of the people of the Uni ted States for the public debt is $23.4i per capita ; at the end of the wa it was *?78.2-"? ; the interest liabilit is ninety-five cents as against $4.29 ii ! 18G5. * Out of "9,000,000 mechanics, S,000, 000 arc paupers in England and on th continent. The aggregate income of the Englis] ' trade unions is $1,(550,000; their re ] sourccs are $3,450,000. ! NEWS SUMMARY, j r Eastern and Middle State j A young man iti Now York has won a , novel wager by eating :i00 eggs in five days. % The giving way of nn ice jam on Kendus- I r 1 keag river, a short distance above Bangor, | Me., resulted in extensive damage. Two s mills and a bridge were destroyed, and about 1,500,000 feet of logs and 200,000 to 300,000 feet of manufacturered pine lumber were j taken by the flood and carried down toward ! the sea. i five nf Knw York's nianv towerine anart- | : ment houses?the St. Ueorge flatsV eight I I stories high, occupied by thirteen families of s means?caught fire in the cellar, and the c flames rushed with such rapidity through the 1 ! elevator and ventilating shafts that in a I short timo the immense structure was gutted, 1 only the walls remaining. Several persons r | were injured. The total loss is about $200,- l 000. t Dr. L. U. Beach, a prominent physician of Altoona, Penn., was received into the Lutheran church there, and the next day cut his J j wife's head off. He was generally thought to be insane. ' Thk Firbt National bank, of St. Albans, < Vt., closed its doors, being unable to meet its x i obligations. t The New York State senate passed the bill t prohibiting the manufacture and sale of oleo- c margarine and and butterine. t John Dillman was hanged at Easton, ( Penn., for the murder of his wife. j At the Pennsylvania Democratic State t convention in_Al!cntown._ Penn., General t IV, H. H. Davis, of L'oj'Jestown, wa; ! nominated for Congressman at largo, three presidential electors ct large were ! put in nomination, six delegates at i large to the national convention were elected, and district delegates and electors were j chosen. The platform adopted favors "a tariff for revenue limit. d t j the necessities of the government" and "the abolition of 1 the internal revenue sytt>m of tixes and such adjustment of the | existing tariff duties as will be consistent with these principles:" denounces "theelectoral fraud of 1870-7," opposes centralization, monopolies, subsidies, etc., and declares that ; " Samuel J. Randall is the choice of the Democracy of Pennsylvania as the candidate of their porty for President." A man suffering from trichinosis has been admitted to Bellevua hospital, New Yo/k,and his case is being watched by all the doctoi-s. A piece of muscular tissue about the size of a pea taken from his arm was found to be 1 swarming with trichina?. j The British schooner George Calhoun encoun ered a Gloucester, (Miss.)' schooner a"; i sea in a sink nr condition; and while trying to transfer the lattcr's crew of five fishermen (o the former vessel the boat was swamped. ' The five fisbenren and a sailor belonging to j the George Calhoun were drowned. Afterward the George Calhoun was wrecked, and ner remain mg crew 01 iwur uuu ?eie iolucu , by the schooner Zenobia and taken to Boston, j South and West. i An explosion of .a tug-boat's boiler on Lake ] Erie, opposite Vermillion, Ohio, resulted in the t death of three men and injuries to throe oth- 1 ers. ( j Mrs. Emily B. McLea.v, living near Dan- ( ville, Va., was bitten by a small dog about two j 1 months ago, and the other day she died in 1 great agony of hydrophobia. 1 Joseph Medill, of the Chicago Tribune, made an argument beforo tho Senate committee on postoffices and post roads in favor ( of the reduction of the present pound rates j of postage on newspapers issued from the ( office of publication. David Kellar, pilot of the steamer Sciota, i I which collided with the John Lomas at Mingo, j I Ohio, on the night of July 4, has been sentenced by the Federal court at Parkersburg, i W. Va., to two years' imprisonment and to i ! pay a fine of $500 for manslaughter. The col- 1 j lision resulted in the loss of seventy lives. i Cleveland's municipal election resulted ! in a Republican victory by about 3,000 nia j ? I jority. B. T. O. Ilt.'dbard, cashier of the First ' National bank of Monmouth, 111., lost $100,000 of the institution's funds by speculation, I . and compiled it to suspend. All amusements have been seriously affect- j ed in Cincinnati by the recent riots, strangers 1 keeping away from the city, and women be- 1 ing afraid to venture out at night. Reports from Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, > show the condition of the wheat, clover, tiino- < ; : thy anil apple crops to be favorable, and the 1 peach crop unfavorable. Thirty buildings, mostly frame structures ! occupied as stores and dwellings, were de 8troyed by fire at Hampton, Va.. resulting in a total estimated loss of $100,000. Several , persons were injured. This is the third time , I Hampton has been swept by the ilames. Eleven negroes were in a skiff 011 the river ' at Vicksburg, Miss., when their frail craft upset, and six of them were drowned. , A biaterial advance in prices for wkeit < i and pork has taken place in Chiccga 1 J James Fleetwood and his wife, an aged couple living near Raridan, 111., were found dead in th-.rir l>e.l with thair throats cut. The house had been ransacked. A hired man was arrested. Washington. , Dr. Collins, brother of Jerome Collins, i meteorologist of the Jeannette expedition, [ having charged that his brother had been ill i ! treated by Commander DeLong, an investil gation was begun before a sub-committee of the House couunittee on naval affairs. ' The House conunittee on judiciary adopted ' Representative Mavberry's adverse report on j the joint resolution proposing a constitutional | amendment to give women the right of suf, frage. Mr. Dorsheiiner was of opinion that it would be advisalile at some future time t give women the right to vote. : A majority of the House committee on ' public lands have adopted a report declaring r the uueamed {portion of the Northern Pa[ L'iflc land grant forfeited. Mr. Newcomb, naturalist of the Jeannette pxpedition, appeared before the House inves tigation committee and testified as to the ' trouble on the vessel during the ill-fated voyage. The sub-conmiittee of the House committee on the judiciary has agreed upon a joint resolution nroposinK a constitutional amendment relating to the currency. The proposed | amendment is as follows: " The legislative powers granted to Congress by the Constitu- | | tion shall not be construed to include the 1 j)ower to pass any law making anything but | gold and silver coin a tender in payment of | i debts except after a declaration of war, or in j ' case of rebellion or invasion, when the public safety may demand it." j Inspector "Woodward, of the postoffioe i department, appeared btfoie the House com- j ' inittee of investigation and explained the j 1 good results which had followed ti e star j I route prosecutions in a reform of the service. | s General Adam Badeav, who has been ' I United Stat?s consul general at Havana for J two yeais. h:is forwarded his resignation to i the state department at Washington. The Senate in executive session passe 1 the ! resolution authorizing the Presi lent to reo- j ! ognize the African International association i ! as the ruling power in tha Congo region. Foreign. j Kubar Pacha, the Egyptian prime minis ! ' ter, resigned his office on account of disagree- J ments with English officials, and also because I 1 of England's indefinite policy in regard to j ' Egypt. ? It is reported that there has been nn agrai rian rising at Uofa. Russia. Many conliicts j have taken place, in which several gendarme?! , were killed or wounded. * Premier Gladstone made a jtowerful j speech in the British house of commons in sup- ' i port of the franchise bill. He defended the r extension of the franchise in Ireland asanact of right and justice. Camuridce ea?ilv defeated Oxford in the ' annual eight-oared boat-race on tha Thames. < <= i ? j Since UK* t'siauiisiiiiinii, i>i mvav w-..v0^ races Oxford has won twenty-two times and , Cambridge eighteen times. , A KEVOI.T has broken out in Mexico, nil the merchants in the republic closing their stores ami protesting against the the enforcement of an obnoxious stamp act. President s (?oiizales insisted upon the collection of the tax at all hazards. A MoT against the employment of female lnlior hu.s occurred at Kidderminster. Eng- J land. \ Prince Hismari'K has withdrawn from the i1" Prussian ministry, hut will still keep a watclil ful eye over the airairs of imperial (Jennany. 1 A kirk at ( ru-gaii, a small place in Morar vio. destroyed lifty houses. One womanand two children were burned to death, j Great damage has been done by floods in Armenia. (Ink-half of M.nulalay. f h?- ?-nj?iti?I of Hur1 mah. a city of'.'(i.dlJO people, has been destroyed by tire. A I'ositivk proof of the connection existing 1 between the anarchists of Kuro|M> and their alleged confederates in the I'liited States is - saidto have been obtained oy mc owiss ' authorities. j ' ! cattain ScHOOXHOVEX, of the wrecked I i steamer Daniel Nteinmaun. made at Halifax 3 his formal statement of the terrible disaster, i lie said that he hail overrun his rcokoninx in ' the fay;, anil, till fatally too late, mistook Kami*i*o light. for that at another point. He ' thought if guns lmd been tired by tin- watch l j ashore lie might have liecu warned in time to , | escape the peril. j Fivk Freiieh missionaries and thirty catc- 1 j ehists have I wen mastered at Thanhoa, a | ^ j town in Tonquin. s (iknklial. Gordon shelled the rebel eam]> j near Khartoum and killed forty of the i ! enemy. In several engagements Iwtween ' General Gordon's troops and tin'Arabs the j latter were defeated. The rebels about Khar" : touni are estimated by Gordon to number J i ? iiiui 1 A. M. GiM.KsriE & Co., Loudon morV chants, linvo faile i fur -fl.'JVl.OOit. " Tiik Dutch authorities have blo.-kaded a i portion of tin- Achccn coxst (Sumatra). with I a view to exercising pressure upon t!io raj:i!i j of Tenoiu to font' liiui to ivio t-o ill mvw of' j the v.rnkwl Knglisli steamer Nisero, held e captive since lust Novcuib; r. Five nations-tin Italian, /mar'cm. Fre I-h, f eriU'in a til EugLsh?to ilomaml* It hi? ii ileinn ly from Hayt for ('annus sjs i taint d in tho rei ent rebellion. ? An expedition under General Aguero ha> nvaded Cuba. Adviccs from Havana say hat (ieneral Aguero in landing met with no j esis'auoe, and that many factions jo'ned him i \ th i march to the interior, swelling the party > JO/eral hundio 1 followers. They had sev- : ral encounters with troops, the result of vhieh was thct the troops were obliged to etic it. The government lias telegraphed to Spain requesting that additional troops be 2nt" ? summai{y of"c()sgri;ss. Scmlc. Mr. Morgan introduce*! a bill to establish a uireau of silk culture. Mr. Morgan also preented a p<t'tion from the State board of silk I ulture of California, asking Congress to estab- j is a bureau of silk culture The Senate j >assed the House bill, making it a felony for a >erson falsely and fraudulently to assume or , )retend to bo ail officer or employe of the Juited States government Discussion of ' he Blair educational bill was continued. Consideration of the Blair educational bill vas resumed. Mr Hoar's amendment was idopted providing that the amount to be distributed in the first year be S7,000,001), in the \ lecond year 810,(.0),000, anil in the third year j >15,000.00), and the appropriation to be then liminiuliprl nt. tho rat<> of ?2.000.003 vearlv mtil the expiration of the eighth year," when lie appropriation shall cease Another intendment offered by Mr. Hoar, that, 'qual opportunity of education be given o all children was adopted. Mr. Sherman iffered an amendment, which was adopted, >roviding that the money shall be used only j or common schools not sectarian in charac- i ?r. The bill was finally passed by thirty- I hree to eleven. It appropriates $ i < ,000,000 o lx> distributed among the States in proporion to their illiteracy, on the basis of the ensus of I860, the payments to extend over iiglit years. fhe bill for the relief of Generl TV. "W. Avrill was reported favorably....Bills were )assed authorizing the construction of two iridges over the Kio Grande river?The laval appropriation bill was considered and intended. Mr. Hill, from the committee on postoffices md post roads, repoi-ted favorably to the Senite an original bill to establish a postal telegraph system. Mr. Hill remarked that the romniittee were unanimous as to the first ten cctions of the bill, wliich relates to doing the vork by contracts with existing companies,but hat a minority of the committee were opxxsed to the sections relating to the construction of purchase of lines by the government ...Tho bill to promote Captain Thomas Or Jorbin, now on tne retired list of the navy. :o the rank of rear-admiral on the same list vas postponed indefinitely The naval appropriation bill was debated. Tne naval appropriation bill was further liscussed and amended....A bill was introluced to provide for the protection of railroad jinployes engaged in inter-state commerce ,...The committee oil foreign relations rororted a substitute for the bills to appoint a :o'.mnisKion to visit the South American counries, and to authorize tho President to invite Mexico and tho Central and South American :ountries to send delegates to a convention in Washington. The substitute, which was ri amed by Mr. Frelinghuysen, 'with the approval of the President, appropriates, ;hrough an amendment to the consular diplonatic bill, ?100,Of 0 to enable the President to compensate a commission to be appointed to examine and report upon the relations of the United States with tne countries in question, and upon the best modes of securing inLimale national and commercial relations,etc. IIouse? The agricultural appropriation bill, which impropriates ?4^1.510, being an increase of $4,950 over tlio bill of last year, and a reduction of $31,559from the estimates. Several lmendmento were adopted, among them one increasing by $2.5,000 tho appropriation for the distribution of seeds, plants, etc. Mr. Converse, of Ohio, secured the floor rod moved to suspend the rides and pass the r>ill restoring tho duty of 1876 on wool. After the thirtv-minute debate allowed by the rules the motion was lost by a vote of 119 yeas to 12# nays Mr. fc printer introduced i resolution looking to preventing the conflscation by the Italian government of the property of the American college in Rome .... A bill was introduced by Mr. Lovering granting a pension of $7 a month to all United States soldiers and sailors who served sixty Jays during the late war The House adopted a resolution declaring it unwise for the present Congress to abolish or reduce the tax on spirits distilled from grain. A bill was passed declaring that the supreme :onrt of every Territory snail consist of a L-hicf justice and three associate justices and r>rnvi(iinir that overv Territorv shall bo di rided into four judicial districts, and a district court shall be held in each by one of the justices of the supreme court A bill was passed requiring the governors of the Territories to be resident of the Territory to which he is appointed at least two years proceeding appointment. A bill was passed for the adoption of revised internal regulations for preventing collision at sea A resolution was introduced and referred, providing for an investigation of the present system of railroad transportation of live stock. Mr. Eaton reported a substitute for the Presidential electors bill, which was referred A bill was introduced by Mr. Bowen to provide for the protection of employes of railroad corporations engaged in inter-State commerce and in the transportation of freight by railway in the District of Columbia and the Territories of the United States. MUSICAL AND DRAMATIC Emii-ie Charlotte Langtry is the real name of the Jersey Lily. Mme. Bernhardt has learned to play the --- ?!?? ~a ? t o qftmranta " organ 111 view ui u sucuo m The Grau English opora company will bo reorganized to play a summer season in New Orleans. Mr. Stetson*, the manager, and Mr. Goodwin, the actor, have entered into copartnership for next season. Henry Irving, when at home, is said to while away the hours equally between angling for trout and studying Shakspeare. Mary Anderson will make a tour of Spain before returning to the Lyceum theatre, London, for a revival of '"Romeo and Juliet." The Eden Musee has been opened in New York. It is a permanent wax-figure show modelled after Madame Tussauds in London Louis James and Marie Wainwright go to London with Barrett as his chief support. Charles Hawthorne goes along as stage manager. Miss Van Zandt. the American prima donna, who has long been a favorite in Paris, has signed an engagement to sing in the opera comk|ue in Londou. Maud Banks, daughter of General N. P. Banks, is studying for the stage. She has appeared as a public reader on several occasions with considerable success. Herr Emil scariaj who is regarded by many as the greatest living bass singer, will make his first appearance in America at the next Philharmonic concert in New York. Toward the closo of the performance in the Metropolitan opera-house, New York, a few evenings ago, a gentleman arose in his seat, faced one of tne parterre boxes, and said: "Will the ladies and gentlemen in that * ' - * that OOX DO Klllll eiiuugu IU ntcp >,u.v., those who desire to hear the opera may do so.'" A storm of applause swept over the house, there was no further interruption of the performance, and when the curtain had fallen many persons waited to grasp the hand of the man who had spoken out. CHOP REPORTS. Latest Hct^rtiN to the Department of Agriculture. The April returns of the department of agriculture at Washington make the winter wheat area about 27,1.00,000 a .res. This is nearly the breadth sown of the previous crop, of which between five and six percent, was subsequently plowed up. leaving 2;, {00.000 acres to be harvested. Comparing with the i r.*a harvested, the present Lrcadth is an ,'n Tease of five ) er cent. The present area is grenter thin that of the census year bv more thiui 2.000.000 acres. The increase is about 1..">iii Ml io acres on the Pacific coast.ami nearly i.'U.OJi) acres in the Southern States. There is a small increase in the Middle States, and a sligl.t decrease ill the Ohio basin. The condition of wheat averages ninetylive. 100 ivprcsentinga full stand, unimpaired vitality and medium growth. In April. I vet. the average was eighty, and eighty-five in April. lssI. The April average of the'large < ro? of 1**2 was 101. The State averages are as fo'loAs: Connr client, 10 i; New York, 07; New . ers -y, : 1 e tnsylvax'a. !)! ; I ela \aro, Oii: Maryland, 1 ?2: \'i:vi'iii, 101: Nort i CarnMni i i->- So.th Carolina. tkorgia, I'l: A a'.ania, 8<; Mississippi, It.': Tovas. I'll; Ar I an?;is. M: T n uss.4o, 'J^Wes* Virgin!*, 1 Kint c:v.?s; OLi>. KS; Michigan. 1U: nullan i.illino's Missouri, Hi;Kansas, lol. ( a i:'< ruin. 1?' 1; Oregon, lit.'. In Michigan. New York and Connecticut the tielils were protected with snow on the 1st of April in some places a foot in depth. Subsequent condition will depend on the weather of April. No serious winter killing is reported except in Alabama. On low and wet areas some injury is r. ix>rfcd throughout the entire breadth. 'The superior condition of drilled wheat is attested almost without exception. The area in rye is nearly the same as last year, the average being ninety-nine per cent. Condition average, ninety-seven per cent. ODD SUICIDES, DavwS. Uawuns. of Philadelphia, kiHod himself by beating his head with a stone. Mivs m \ it y Thompson, of South Abingdon. Mass.. hung herself because she was suffering from neuralgia. Aktei: bequeathing herbody t<i th.-> doctors. Eliza Fitxpatrick, of Sandusky, cut her throat with a handsaw. Bk.vjamin Hickwat.ter, of Lancaster IVnn.. hnng him-self because he imagined lit had wronged the Mennonitc church, of which ho was a mcmUr. Havi.nu had |? lorri'nps for several years and lost considerable stock, James Vanvhv.of Atlanta, became discouraged und killed himself with a shotgun. Ai'tnii Imvinx married tlires husbands. Min. I>avid 1 ditcher, of Sullivan county, N\ V.. killed herself because, as she said, noue of them came up to her expectations. PROMINENT PEOPLE" JB Prince Bismarck has just celebrated hi '-WgEk sixty-ninth birthday. . * I Henry Irving, the English actor, is read ing proofs of a book of his on America. General B. F. Butler "Hifll deliver at oration Decoration Day at tne^few Yorl academy of music. fl President Porter, of Tale, objecrts to co 'JaM education because the system would divid? the time and perhaps the sensibilities and itt -yjB teivsts of the instructors. B His Imperial Highness Prince Ilaru, thi only surviving child of the Emperor of Japan ~ %M having almost reached the age of seven years is having a separate palace buiJt for his oo cupaney. Kaiser William, King George, of Greece . and King Christian, of Denmark, will meei -;?H this summer in Wiesbaden, where Kina'.-^V Ceorge will attend the baths, by advice of hfi Dr. J. H. Zukertort, who has gained thi title of the champion chess-player of thf Van world, now in this country, will visit th; principal cities in the United States and theo "'1 go to China. I John'Jay Cisco, who died in New York recently, began life a poor boy, became a tailor, entered the dry goods business and sub ' ~ sequently made largo sums of money as a '<? banker. lie was one among the many mil- ' lionaires of Manhattan island Secretary Lincoln resembles his father - v?| in personal appearance only from the eyes up. I He Ls not so tall or so gaunt in figure as his father, nor is the lower part of nis face so narrow; but the resemblance in the eyes and forehead is so marked tliat the Secretary sat for what Ls considered the best portrait ever > painted of his father. 1 Doctor Richard Jordan Gatlixo, the : inventor of the famous Gatling gun. is now 1 sixty-six years of age. He is a tali, broad . -aB shouldered, white-whiskered man, with a \J3Bk friendly face, bright blue eyes, and a pleasant rr&M voice. He has recently been making some ! great improvements in his gun. and has been . : m Washington explaining these improve- '."aM ..j? ?.? nt thn tviir rl??rifirtmi?nt. - i uicllu) cv bu<? vu4w1uw v* ? ... Tsao Jc, the Chinese minister at Washing- ton, was handed a bit of yellow paper the i"- .'488 other day. The printed slip seemea to be an ' $SM ; official document, and as the death of impe--gSM rial persons in China are announced on yel- _ J I low jiaper, Mr. Tsao jumped at the conclnsion that Mr. Arthur had died suddenly. -3 ! There was a good deal of excitement in ma . I dwelling until the arrival of "his interpreter | disclosed the fact that the yellow slip was a . ,J I Mrs. Meikleham, the only surviving . j grandchild of Thomas Jefferson, is a tall, ,'.3M ! well-formed woman, with an open face, rosy fj?SH cheeks and bright blue eyes, looking rather t| fifty than seventy years of age. Her face is I plump and almost free from wrinkles. Her forehead is broad and high, partaking some- ,^,38| what of the characteristics of her grand , - j father, and her brown hair, the same color as. -'i-v-SH : Jefferson's, as yet not greatly mixed with gray, is combed down behind her ears in the j good old style of the past. . kt arrmxr?t rnrrnaTT/nKr At Z1XJ.VJ.1XLXJ UUUUaxx^j.n ,;aj The Blair Bill ait It Paused the TTuited State* Scuate. The important points of the Blair Educv : i tional bill, as it passed the United States Sen| ate, and went before the House, are as fol? r^ That for eight years next after the passage * of this act there shall be annually appropri- u.-s&m ated from the money in the treasury the iol- Vvi&J lowing sums, to wit: The first year the sum of *7.000,000. the second year the sum of Jtfgagk of $10,000,000, the third year the sum of $15.- 1 000,000,the fourth year tne srnn of $ltt,000,0w, the fifth year the sum of $11,000,000, the gB| \ sixth year the sum of $9.0:0,000, the seventh year tne sum of $7.000,00J, the eighth year the sum of $5,000,000, which several sums . M ' shall bo expended to secure the benefits of common school education to all the children of the school age mentioned hereafter living .Js in the United States; that such money shall? . V annually be divided among and paid out in the j several States and Territories, in that pro I portion which the whole number of persons in each who, being of the age of ten years and Ifl over, cannot write, bears to the whole nam ber of such persons in the United States. m Such computations shall be made according : ria I to the census of 1880. ; No money shall be paid out under this act ]j 1 Ufnfa ni. Tnrritnrv that Khali not haVfl ' ) IW OUJ uuvw v? J - ^ I provided by law a system o? free common schools for all of its children of school age, a I without distinction of race or color, either in J | the raising or distribution of school revenue I or in the school facilities afforded; provided -vV$H that separate schools for white ana colored j children shall not be considered a violation ' J ! of this condition. I That the instruction in the common schools I whereon these moneys shall be expended shall II i include the art of reading, writing and speaks I ing the English language, arithmetic, graphy, history of the United States aria such ^ 1 other branches of useful knowledge as may be i taught under local laws. v;i8 The money appropriated and apportioned > J ! under the provisions of this act to tno use of any Territory shall be applied to the use of \ ' conlmon and industrial schools therein by the ! secretary of the interior. ' No greater part of the money appropriated ' C$2 under this act shall be paid out to any State ' ri' or Territory in any one year than the sum expended out of its own revenues in the pre- v? j ceaing year for the maintenance of common schooLs, not including the sums expended In | the erection of school buildings. A part of the money appropriated to each j* State or Territory, not exceeding one-tenth thereof, may yearly be applied to the edu- % $ ' cation of teacners ror the common schools therein. 'frf. i No part of the educational fund allotted to ' - . ;.?*] any State or Territory shall be used for the | erection of school houses or school buildings 't of any description, nor for rent of the same. . vjflj The moneys distributed under the provis- * ^ ions of this act shall be used only for common j schools sot sectarian in character. | . NEWSY QLEAMTOS. J| Last year the railroad track laid in the >j5 SouthernStates extended l,txw nines. j Eighteen* colored teachers are employed in the Nashville, Tenn., public schools. | A colored baby show show, containing 103 infants, has just been held in Chicago. ' 1 Missouri's real estate is valued at $592,- .-.^3 | 461),388; her personal property, $187,338,060. "f-fi Georgia is said to have more Mormon t within its boundaries than any otherSouthern "** "5*3 State. ; The New York street railways kept 12,555 horses last year at a cost of$2,71o,215, or j? j $107.38 each. The vital statistics of New Jersey for 18S3 show 9,l(jG marriages, 24,430 births and 23,- ^ I 310 deaths. I Over 150,000 plants will be set out in "Washington this spring, an increase of fifty per i cent, over last year. Two sacred birds known as the ibis, and -'f' worshiped by the Nubians, of Africa, were among the attractions at the bird show in Boston. jjjS&k Rear Admiral Baldwin* and 212 officers .' and sailors of the American squadron in European waters have started on a tour of 51 J Palestine. The exports of grain from India for 1883 complete were 34,050,940 bushels, against 24,- i* 239,789 in 18S2, an increase of 9,811,111 ?# bushels, or 40|.< per cent. Sk.vator Pexdleto.v, of Ohio, is tode v liver the oration at the Mecklenburg celebra- | lion in Charlotte. N. C., on Tuesday, May 20, I and Speaker Carlisle is to make a brief ad Pink dinners'' have now taken the place fl| of "blue teas" in New York fashionable circles. Everything in the room is pink, and the favors include a horn of plenty to which tasty pink streamers are attached General Clinton* B. Fisk, speaking at the dedication of the Park Avenue church, in Xi'\v York, said that the .Methocusls nave ?/,. ? 000 churches and are building 7,0^ a y&ir 1 right along. -n f Alfred Chadwick yoked his wife to a plow with a steer, for which Judge Jennison, of Detroit, gave her a divorce. He in- * . sisted that he only followed the general ? usage among the market gardeners of western Canada. Thk fact lias come to light in Jackson county, <!a.. that an innocent man was limited there four years ago. A terriblo crime hnd been committed, and on circumstantial evidence the wrong man was hurried to the gallows. J An Epigram. The late Doctor Edward La-ker was ' fowl of writing epigrams. Here is one written when a student: _ CHEAT AM) SMALL. An advocate of mighty size Was 'gainst a small one pitte 1, "Ho." ?ai i the large one, full of scorn, "You're for a j>o ket fitted." ? /, l ? tlio littlfi one reoliod. "Then would the new* l?e soread, More knowledge in y.>ur pocket's bid Thau's stored within your head ." The captain of a coal steamer which loaded at Cardiff, Wales, missed his dog, and sailed in grief without him. When, I thirty-one davs later, his cargo was discharged at Constantinople, the spaniel was found in a little cavity among the coal, where he had survived his long fast. Though too weak to stand, lie was restored in a few days by careful feeding up"" small quantities of bread Ml. ,,t crinrf intervals. and iniiiv, - The pleasurable part: An Austin man, who lias just got out a book of poems, met Gilhooly, and the following proceedings were had: "Did you read my new book?" "Oh, yes. I read it.'' ''How did you like it?"' "My dear sir, I assure i you that I laid it aside with a great de&A of pleasure."?Ttxai Siftinys. The best baud to hold in the game of life is that of your best girl.? Waterloo > Observer. ?