The Abbeville press and banner. (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, August 01, 1888, Image 6
IF THEY KNEW.
If only my mother knew
How ray heart is hurt within me,
She would take my face in her tender hands
And smooth ray cheek, as she used to do
In the days that seem so long ago.
When childish tears were quick to flow:
Bhe would smooth my face with her tender
hands
If she felt the grief within me.
If only my lover knew
Vi IlUC SUl^lUg, pw.-a.vMi-? wv..v-,
He would hold me close to his sturdy breast,
As once he held me tho long hours through;
When we had not learned to live apart,
But leaned for love on each other's heart;
He would hold me clos9 to his heaving breast
If he guessed my passionate sorrow.
But it pierces me like a knife
To think that they do not know it;
To think they can look in my pleading eyes,
Yet never question my hidden life;
Can touch my lips in the same old place,
Yet never look for the soul in my face.
Oh, the tears are bitter that fill my eyes
To know that they do not know it.
?London Athenaeum.
OLD CRUNCHER'S NIECE.
Chven* Stanley, huddled in the corner
of a third-class carriage, was going from
Man hester to Chatburn, where a place
in a lawyer's office awaited him. The
prospect was not cheerful, but it was the
only means Owen had of earning his
bread since the unlucky misunderstanding
with Uncle Kaymond. Also, if
Uncle Raymond would never see the
rights of that miserable affair, the work
at Chatburn would be a stepping stone
to a better place.
As he walked aimlessly down the
treet, after he reached Chatburn, he
1 read the name, "Cruncher, Attorney,"
beside a dingy office door, with "Clerk
Wanted' chalked underneath. He presented
himself before Mr. Cruncher, and,
??
?iv.ci a su.iqj ^luda-ijueauuuuig, ?ua cu*
gaged to till the p' "1 vacant in the
o.t.ce.
The following Sunday the young man
had an opportunity of seeing the whole
Cruncher household in church. When
the service was over, Mr. Cruncher
stalked grimly forth, followed by the
silent members of his family, each and
all evidently in great awe of him.
"Louise Lee, hold Tommy's right
hand tight. You stupidly let him trip
on the' step last Sunday!" said Mrs.
Cruncher in petulant tones, with a look
to match, to her uiece as they passed
Owen.
It was consolation to have learned her
name. Louise Lee?it was a pretty I
name, and suited her. Was her life \
made unhappy by that solemn brute of
an old mau? Owen loDged for money
and power and influence, and all the
good things of this life, to take her away
lrom her present bondage and give her
a home tit for a princess. But none of
<hese blessings came to him, and he had
to content himself as best he m:ght with
eaing Louise once a week in church.
One morning Owen lost his way hopeJessly
in the labyriuths of the hymn
book. As he was struggling to recover
himself a pretty hand in a shabby glove
?Louise's hand?held toward him a
book with the place marked by a scrap
of paper. Owen was uncomfortably
conscious of blushing as he accepted the
offered civility; but it was more than
charming to be noticed, even in the most
commoDplace way, by her.
The bit of paper between the pages
was folded in two. He idly pressed it
apart with his thumb, and to his astonishment
read these words, evidently written
* in furtive haste: ''Look, to-morrow, in
my uncle's hat lining when he comes to
the office."
This appeared,- indeed, like the be- J
ginniDg of a most interesting adventure, |
and the overture made by a girl, whom j
he feared ignored his very existence! |
How he sat qu'etly through the sermon, !
and passed the rest of the day and night
until old Cruncher appeared at his usual
post next morning, Oweu never knew.
When he saw his patron deeply absorbed
in a pile of letters, Owen, like a coat and
umbrella thief, stole out into the passage
where such at tides were deposited, aud
possessed himself of the old gentleman's
sedate looking bat.
. There, as he expected, he found
towed away in the lining a tiny little j
note. "With trembling fingers the now
hopeful lover laid smooth the compli- j
cated folds of the paper and read:
Please do not think me forward or presuming
in making the following request:
I am in great trouble. To-morrow evening
at ? I shall not be missed i'or half an hour.
"Will you meet mo at the end of the lane
leading past our house?where the wood
beginsL. L.
The following evening Owen was at
the place of reude/.vous fully haif an
hour too soon. As he was beginning
to despair of Louise's coming she appeared,
breathless and greatly agitated.
"What must you think of me," shu
began, "making an appointment with
you, almost a stranger, at dusk, in this
theatrical manner. I have a st.ong
motive in this case, ccrtaiuly," con-1
tinucd Louisi*. "I wish to ask your i
advice on a matter of the utm?st importance
to me. I have studied your face as
much as I dared in church"?Owen's
heart gave a bound of delight. Then |
he had looked at and thought about j
him!?"and I think I can trust you, and !
coll you my friend. I have no other."
i-he looked so lovely with the tears in !
her eyes as she said this that Owen longed !
to take her in his arms and kiss her, in- j
*tead of declaring himself her devoted
servant in plain words.
"Let us eit down on this fallen tree
and I will begin ray story at the beginning.
You men of the law are im
patient of unnecessary preamble,"
Louise went on, with a bright sm le for
a moment dispelling the irelancholy
clouding her face. "J.ast Feb.uaiy,now
nearly four months ago, I was traveling
alone from here to Clover Hill on an
errand for my aunt. My companions in j
the compartment were a very pretty old j
lady, an ordinary looking gentleman of!
about 45, and a younger man, not at all
ordinary looking. lie h id large black
eyes, with a wild look in them, a .d his
dre^s and manners were quite different
from those of the people I was
accustomed to seeing. lie silt opposite
me and soon after the train started be-1
gan staring at me in a most aunoying
way."
"The impertinent rascal! IIow I wi-h
I h id been there to punch his hsud 1"
exclaimed Owen with warmth.
"He perhaps did nothing to merit
quite such severe punishment, but he
was certainly then, and has been since,
indirectly the cause of a great deal of
misery to me. He amused himself for
some time with casting what I supposed
were admiring glances at me, pressing
his hands to his heart and sighing profoundly.
Then suddenly, to my utter
amazement, he threw himself on his
knees before me, declared in very bad
English that he loved me to distraction,
and, most startling of all, tore off his
very handsome watch and chain and
fluns: them into my lap."
"The man was mad, of course."
"Yes, we learned of this for a fact
- ' ** '? *+ * V,V" -: v ' *'
afterward. I looked at our traveling
companion?the middle-aged man already
mentioned?in helpless fright.
He started up, and, with what I then
thought admirable presence of mind,
exclaimed, augrily: "How dare you insult
my wife, sirr"
"This strong language had the desired
effect, and the man seemed to shrink
into himself, and became as quiet as a
lamb. I suppose believing me to be the
wife of somebody else shattered his
hopes."
Here again the rare, sweet smile lent a
new charm to Louise's face.
"Try as I might," she continued, "I
could not prevail upon hiui to take back
his watch,and at the next station the gentleman
who called me his wife gave my
admirer, with h's watch, into the hands
of a policeman as mad. That was the last
we ever saw of him, but we heard later
that he was a Poleaud incurably insane.
The old lady in the coupe with us looked
inquiringly at my rescuer, who laughed
and murmured something I did not
understand. I thanked him as I descended
at my destination, never dreaming
that he was to cross my path again.
Some weeks ago, one afternoon, my
uncle called me from mending Tommy's
stockings, and told me a friend wished
to see me in the drawing room. I, who
had no friends, was much surprised. Noi
did this surprise le?scn when I was presented
to the man who had silenced the
crazy Polethat day in the tiain. His name
! was Mitchell, and he turned out to be
I an old friend of my uncle's. 'Hich as
Cro-sus and a bachelor,' my uncle said to
; me, with a knowing wink when our visitor
had departed.
"I took a great dislike to Mr. Mitchell:
in manner and appearance he was most
repu jnant to me. liut I thought very
j little about him one way or another?
why should I interest myself in a man
| older than my father??until, a week
' later, Uncle Thomas informed me that
Mr. Mit hell wished to marry me."
"Preposterous," exclaimed Owen.
"I don't often laugh in the presence
of Uncle Thomas, but when he told me
this I laughed heartily. This made my
uncle very angry. "Why should I make
rramo nf fiiA r?HV>r nf a mm <?f whom 1
might be proud? I, who might be in
the workhouse if it were not for the
charity of my relations."
"The brute 1"
"If I was so silly as not to know on
which side my bread was buttered?it
was often difficult to tell?he would turn
me out of doors, and that perhaps would
bring me to my senses. But why need I
tell you the particulars of this and many
another painful scene? I wa9 silent and
undecided for a while, and at last found
courage to tell Mr. Mitchcll that I could
not marry him.
"He listened with a disagreeable smile,
and replied: 'My young lady will not
tind refusal 60 eisy as she thinks.' "
"Owing to the rusty conduct on the
part of your amiable uncle," interpolated
Owen.
"I believe J this was his meaning until
the next day. Then my aunt informed
me calmly that I was already married to
Mr. Mitchell."
"Is that good lady sub ect to such fits
of mental aberration ?"
"I stared at her in amazement when
she pro.eeded to explain to me that, according
to Scotch law, if a man in the
presence u a. wnucss any a a nuuinu 10
his wife, and she does not deny it, it becomes
a legal marriage. There was a
witness in the train that day?the old
lady I mentioned?Mr. Mitchell is
Scotch, and was determined to have his
rights.
"I could not believe aunt was in earnest,
but it seems she was, and what is
worse, they all beset me every hour in
the day with speeches to the effect that
it is of -no use to try and escape my destiny;
Mr. Mitchell has the law on his
side, and the sooner, for appearance
sake, I consented to another marriage
ceremony in church, the better.
"I have asked you to meet me hero
this evening, Mr. Stanley, to tell me
truly if there is any ground for their
saying I am Mr. Mitchell's wife."
"It is the most preposterous, cowardly
lie I ever heard of!" exclaimed Owen,
quite boiling over with indignation. "In
some parts of Scotland, long ago, some
such rubbish as they tell you might be
true; but we are not in Scotland. To
have this rich man's money in the family,
your reprobate of an uncle is trying to
play upon your innocent ignorance,
knowing or believing you had no one to
enlighten you. He ought to be exposed
and prosecuted for his villainy."
"Oh, I'm so glad and thankful you assure
me that this dreadful man has no
power over me!" said Louise, with a profound
sigh of relief.
"Vou poor little friendless thing!'' As
if of its own accord Owen's arm encircled
the girl's wa:st, and he tenderly
and re/erently kissed her unresisting
lips.
"And now I must fly back to the
house. Dear me! the half hour is long
past."
"For heaven's sake, don't let them
persuade you to commit any rash folly.
Trust in me," said Owen, taking another
kiss in farewell.
Arriving at his lodging, he found two
letters awaiting him; one from Travers,
a special chum in the old luxurious days,
and the other?he could hardly believe
his eye3?from Uncle Raymond.
He dashed into the perusal of this last
at once, and discovered that, after a year
and a month, his former friend and benefactor,
his father's only brother, was on
the track of the fellow who had committed
a certain forgery?a crime of
which Morris Raymond, in hot, sudd'.-n
anger, had accused his nephew. Strong
circumstantial e idenre against Owen
was not wanting, and thu3, suffering
1 for the misdeed of another, he was
l thrust out for a rough struggle against
the woild.
Now, through the merest chance, the
real culprit had been discovered, and
fVio lotfor in Owi>n'a t.rpmlilinjr hand
contained ample apology for past in justice,
and an earnestly expressed de ire
th::t old relations be renewed.
"As you arc reinstated with the old
boy"?an extract from Traver's letter?
I "I suppose we shall soon have you
' among us again. I hope it will not
| break your heart to hear that Nellie
Welland has given you the slip. When
she heard of your misfortune she transferred
her affections to Mortimer."
"I think I have found some one whe
will console me for the fickle Nellie,'
said Owin to himself. ". id ever t
stroke of :'o tune coms> at a luckier mo
ment:"
Old Cruncher's hat played the role ol
post box on several occasions after this;
there were other tete a tctes upon the
mossy log, aud here Owen told I.ouisc
the old, old story?told and listened tc
with tender, sweet delight. I'ncle Raymond's
letter emboldened Owen tc
prompt measures in depriving Mr.
Mitchell of his so-called bride and Mr.
Cruncher of his niece.
Violent opposition, rage, bitter re
proaches of ingratitude, a battle of angrj
words, waxed fast and furious, but lov<
gained the victory.?Frank Leslie's.
A rich Philadelphia woman, noted foi
ber wealth and eccentricity, wears i
j striking ring on one of her thumbs.
. *" . . . "
. v .. ., .
m
BUDGET OF FUN.
HUMOROUS SKETCHES PROM
VARIOUS SOURCES.
Afterward?Love's Youn<j DreamSome
Robustness Left?Everything
Else Settled?Changi
ins: the Subject, Etc.
"Never," he vowed it, "while life may last
Can I love a-;ain. I will die unwed."
"And J, too, dear, since our dream is past
I will live single," she sobbing said.
A storm of farewells?of wild good-bys?
He rushed from the spot, like an outcast
soul.
She hid in a pillow her streaming eyes,
; And wept with anguish beyond control.
Just five years afterward, they two met
At a vender's stand, in a noisy street;
He saw the smile he could ne'er forget,
And she the eyes that were more than
sweet.
"0 Kate," "O
"I stopped," he said, just to get a toy
For my little girl." "I wanteda book,"
j She softly said, "for my little boy.''
1 | ?Madeline S. Bridges.
1 I JLiovo's * oung uream.
"Birdie," whispered a happy young
; Chicago lover, "now that we are engaged
I | you mustn't call me Mr. Porcine any
; ; more."
II "Ah no darling," responded the girl,
1 with a sigh and a snuggle, "you must
1 always call me 'Birdie' and I will always
" call you 'Butch.'"?Neio York Sun.
Some Robustness Left.
' Bobby (whose grandpa is sleeping on
the louuge and snoring as grandpas can
snore)?"Ma,is gr.indpa so very feeble?"
Mother?"Yes, dear."'
; Bobby?"Well, you wouldn't think so
1 to hear him, would you, Ma?"?Epoch.
Everything Else Settled.
! "So you have my daughter's permis\
sion to ask me for her hand, have you,
young man?"
"I?I am happy to say, sir, that I
' have," replied the poor, but worthy j
1 youth.
1 "And I suppose,"said the banker,after J
a pause, "you have also asked her to name
the day. About what time, sir, do you
I expect to break into my family?"?Chi|
cago Tribune.
Changing the Subject.
Knoblcy?"I saw you on Fourteenth
| 3treet a few minutes ago, Miss Ethel."
i She?"Oh, did you;"
j Knobley?"Yes; you were going into a
i hair-store."
She?"Ah, yes; I was executing a lit-1
tie commission for a friend. Beautiful
weather we are having, Mr. Knobley."
And she beckoned haughtily to her
coachman.?Life.
A Superfluous Caution.
"Now, Bobby," said hi3 mother, "Mr.
Oldboy is to take dinner with us to-night; j
he is very bald, and you must not say j
anything about his hair."
Bobby promised, and while dinner
was progressing said to his mother, in !
an audible whisper:
"Ma, you told me not to say anything j
about Mr. Oldboy's hair. Why, he j
hasn't got any."?New York Dispatch. j
Not Afraid of Rain.
The old gentleman was restless. It'
was getting late, and he wanted to close j
the house. Strolling to the window, he
looked out and said:
"The clouds seem to be banking in
i the west; we are likely to have a snarp 1
j shower soon."
"Yes, sir," replied young Mr. Din|
widdie from the sofa, "I anticipated a j
| storm and brought an umbrella. "We
| need rain badly, Mr. Hendricks. Er?
| you were saying, Miss Clara?"?Life.
A Slight Chang in Phraseology.
"Did I tell you that Maud was learn-1
ing the violin?" said a young lady on
whom Tom Sellers wa3 calling.
I "No, you did not."
"Yes, she is practicing now. Do you
i not hear those strains of music floating |
' down from up stairs?"
"Those strains of music?"
I "Yes."
"I think I hear the sounds you refer
to, but don't they strike you as severe
strains on the violin?"- Merchant Traveler.
A Frugal Lover.
Frugal young man (to object of his
I affections)?"Darling, your father being
a minister, perhaps we'd better ask him
I to perform the ceremony for us. He
j would do it as reas?in fact, I presume
{ he would think it an insuit if I should
I olfer him anything?er?
j Object of his affections?"I don't
I know. I have often heard papa say that
] he could always tell by the size of the
I fee what kind of an estimate the bride1
groom put upon the bride.
Frugal young man (uneasily)?"H'm!
! iMoney couldn't express it in my case,
] darliner. All the wealth of the world
fin it! Milt. T'vf> <rnt. a sprnnrt
j cousiD, a justice of tlie peace, that wili
: marry us for $2.? Chicago Tribune.
A Pair of German Lovers.
At the end of the sccond week, says a
1 Berlin letter in the Chicago Tribune, the
! lover came in one morning and pre!
sented himself before the young lady,
.! who was in the room, and asked for a
' few moments' private conversation. I
i stepped out to give him the floor, and
1 this is what she afterward related tran91
pired: The young man advanced toward
| his beloved and handed her a note, in
I which were written a few lines from her
[ mother, saying the bearer was about to
i propose in good form, and for her to accept.
h:m. As she finished reading, an
: agitated voice in the vicinity of the door
I was heard, for tho young man was ex,
j ceedingly nervous on this occasion:
i| ".Most gracious and respected fraulien, 1
I have the honor to o:rer you my heart
[ i (and he clapped his hand over that or.
I ganj and hand in hoiy marriage." Here
i! emotion checked him, but not the young
; I lady, who was twenty-n'ne years old.
i j "Most esteemed Herr von H." she said,
i i 4,I thank you for a proposal which I do
; myself the honor to a-cept." Ilerr von
j H. bowed, kissed the young lady's hand
i' and retired, and ihe latter came out and
1 j threw herself on my neck, exclaiming,
i; "I am engaged," in a voice which
i 1 1:~ 3 Cl At rtf lno'4- )
> })i;urm~ llllpiic I, :it ian, au itisv.
j W ell, they were married, but first mum[
ma gave several parties in their honor,
j and there we saw them sitting side by
; side on the sofa getting ai'ijaainted.
> He Deplored Haste.
"There it is again," said a dignified,
* well dressed man a9 he came up to a
crowd which had gathered arotmd another
man who had just been rescued from
beneath a truck driver's team on lower
liroadway; "the old story once more?a
r man nearly sacrifices his life ."imply to
' gain a few seconds of time. The jush
and hurry here in Now York is actually
astonishing, sir," and the dignified man
r looked around with an expressloa of
a sadness blended with wonder.
"You arc not a New Yorker, then?"
1 : j ;.;c r>.
said a maa who wa9 on his: way to his
office in Wall street.
"Oh, yes, sir," returned the dignified
! party, "yes, I live here ia New i'ork,
but I always deprecate this spirit of
hurry, this rush, this intense
strain under which we labor,"
and his face assumed a pained,
thoughtful expression. "Now, here's this
man, perhaps mortally wounded, when
if he had waited another moment
he could have crossed the street in safety.
It is this hurry, this rush," went on
the dignified man, "this haste, this unnatural?oh,
great Scott!" he groaned,
"there gees my car?but I'll catch it or
bust!" and he shot in front of a furniture
van, gallo; ed around a junk cart,
stepped on a newsboy, dodged the pole
of an ice wagon, and at last got hold of
the rear platform of the disappearing
car and wa3 pulled iu over the back
dashboard by the conductor the way a
man hauls in a seine full of fish, and got
his coat turned wrong side out, and his
hat battered and one thumb partially
smashed. ''Why," he said, "I wouldn't
have misled this car for $10," and he
looked back complacently at another of
the same line coining not a*half a block
behind.?New Y<.rk Tribune.
How a Pi? Caused the War of 1812.
It all happened in this wise: Two
citizens of Providence, U. I., fell into
? mnof nnooomlT rlupufloinn An ftr>r?niinf:
of the lawless trespassings of a pig
owned by one of them. The aggrieved
party possessed a very fine garden, in
which it was his custom to spend his
hours of leisure, weeding, grafting, and
transplanting the flowers and vegetables
in which he delighted. But often, as he
entered his garden in the evening, his
ears would be saluted with a grunt and
a rustle, nnd the fat form of his ne:ghbor's
pig might be seen making a hasty
flight from the garden in which it had
been placidly rooting all day.
In high dudgeou the gardener sought
his neighbor and complained of the pig's
frequent visits, declaring that a little
time spent in repairing the pig-sty would
restrain the animal's roving propensities.
But to this the owner of the pig re|
sponded that if his neighbor would keep
j his rickety fences in proper repair, the
| pig might take its daily airing without
temptations, and the garden would not
be endangered.
Repeated misdeeds on the part of the
pig fanned the smoldering fires of dissension
into the flames of open hostility.
At last the crisis came. The owner of
the garden, rising unusually early one
j morning, discovered the pig contentedly
muneh'ng the last of a fine bed of
tulip-bulbs. Fiesh and blood could
stand it no longer. Seiziner a nitchfork
which lay near at hand, the outraged
! gardener plunged its sharp tines into
the hapless pig, and bore the body, thu9
fatally impaled, to the sty, where it met
the gaze of its owner an hour or two
later. Thereafter it was war to the
knife between the two neighbors.
Now, what had all this to do with the
war of 1812? The answer is simple.
The two neighbors belonged to the
political party known as the Federalists.
Through all the outrages that Great
Britain indicted upon the United States,
while seamen were being impressed,
American vessels stopped on the high
seas, and while every possible indignity
was being committed against the flag of
the United States, the Federalists remained
friendly to Great Britain, and
contested everv proposition for the
declaration of war.
But the Democratic party was eager
for war, and as British oppression be
?i i_i ~ it. xi
came mure nuuettrauie iuo tmcugm ui
the Democrats increased. It so happened
that the election district in which
the two neighbors lived had been about
equally divided between Democrats and
Federalists, but the latter party had always
succeeded in carrying the election.
But in 1811 the owner of the garden was
a candidate for the legislature on the
Federalist ticket. His neighbor had always
voted that ticket; but now, with
his mind filled with the bitter recollection
of the death of his pig, he cast his
ballot for the Democrat. When the hallo's
were counted the Democrat was
found to be elected by a majority of
one.
When the newly elcctcd legislator took
his seat, his first duty was to vote for a
United States Senator. He cast his vote
for the candidate of the Democrats, who
was also elected by a majority of one.
When this Senator took his place in the
United States Senate he found the question
of war with Great Britain pending,
and after a long and bitter discussion it
came to a vote. The Democrats voted
for war, and the Federalists against it.
A a r? rnanlf nf fV?n trevf inrr nror U'Oa
1LO lb VI iUV 1 VWlUg, it W4 M v?w v?v
clared?again by a majority of one vote.
?St. Nicholas.
An Elaborate Entertainment
"When Queen Elizabeth of England
paid her second visit to the Earl of Lei- 1
cester in 157.% a temporary bridge of
seventy feet in length and twenty feet
wide was thrown across a valley to the
great gate of the castle, and on each
side stood columns hung with the offerings
of seven of the deities to her Majesty.
Sylvanus offered two cages of
wild fowls, Pomona two large sil' er
bowls tilled with apples, pears, oranges,
lemons, pomegranates; Cere* presented
two filver bowls containing barley,
wheat, and oats; Bacchus gave "two
silver lyvery pots" filled with wine, and
grapes in clusters ?both white and red
?as his offering. Neptune presented a |
large plate strewed with fresh grass, and
containing various sorts of sea fish.
Mars offered the habiliments of war.aud
Ph ibus gave musical instruments of various
descriptions. During the seventeen
days of the Queen's stay at Kenil- i
worth, to prove the Earl's hospitality I
"the clok bell sang out a note while her j
highness woz thear; the clok stood also j
still with all; the hands stood firm and j
fast, always pointing at two o'clok,' i
which was "the banquet hour. It is im-, I
possible to describe all the festivities, .
but it may be added that the quantity of j
beer drunk amounted to 320 hogsheads.
Bluestone as a Disln"octant.
I have como in the course of some experiments,
says a writer to the New York i
Tribune, to regard sulphate of copper? I
otherwise known as bluestone?as a more J
effectual disinfectant and germicide than ;
sulphate of iion by more than ten to one. |
It stems to me that for disinfecting!
sinks, drains, etc., one ounce of blue-:
stone will do as much as a pound of cop-:
pcras, while the stnins of the latter are 1
almo3t entirely wanting in the former.
In fact, bluestone seems to approach in
power as a gentle germicide and disinfectant
that dangerous and corrosive poison,the
bichloride of mercury, otherwise
corrosive sublimate, while possessing no
more poi3onus properties than copperas.
The popular fear of the salts of copper,
a9 seen in the green of copper and brass
utensils, has little or no good reason tc
be; a truth demonstrated by a commission
appointed by the French Governwhich
reported pickles and other preserved
vegetables might be "coppered"
within ccrtaiu limits without makiug
them unwholesome.
SWEET SINGERS.
THE ART OF TRAINING BIRDS
TO TALK AND SINGDifferent
Varieties of Canaries?
Artificially Coloring Their Plumage?An
Interesting Chat
With a Bird Fancier.
In a small building not far from Pennsylvania
avenue, says a Washington ii'ar
reporter, lives a bird fancier surrounded
by scores of his pets. Ranged on either
side of a long room are cages filled with
almost every species of song and talking
birds.
"Are canaries as popular as ever?'' the
reporter recently asked him.
'I hardly think so," was the answer;
"for the last year or so the canary has
been slighted, and people are looking
for something in the way of a songster
to take its place."
"Are the canaries that are shipped to
this country trapped in their native
land?" asked the reporter.
Ltr\i. j ..i.i.
"VJll, uu; uu uuuul uiuu v pcufiic luiua.
so, but the domesticated canary is vastiy
superior to those found in a wild state.
In some parts of Germany people make
canary raising a specialty, and their
superiority over the wild birds i3 solely
due to the watchful study which has
been given them."
"How are birds traiued?" asked the
reporter.
"Well, perseverance and kind treatment
go a long way toward its accomp- '
lishment. Some people hold that by
starving a bird you can reduce it to subjection
and make it eat from your hand.
To a certain extent this is so, but the results
thus attained are not good, and the
bird will forget the severe lesson you
have taught it after it has plenty to eat j
again. A httle hemp seed poked ;
through the wires of the cage several
times!* day will soon be eagerly sought
for, and in a few days by holding your
hand in the cage you will find that your
previous lessons have been of great benefit
to the "bird, for it will hop on your '
finger and take the seed without any j
fright whatever."
"How many varieties of canaries are '
there?" asked the reporter.
"There's the St. Au Ireasberg, taking
its name from a small village on the
summit of the Harz Mountains, the
I Belgian or long breed canary, coming.
! nrinmn&llv from Antwem. Ghent and
r?""i"??/ k i
Brussels. The latter is of a most
peculiar shape, and its body, when at
rest, should conform to a right angle?
a line drawn from the crown of the head
to the tip of the shoulders should form ,
one side, and a line from the tip of the |
shoulders to the tip of the taU should 1
form the other side o! the angle. Then 1
there's the English canary, embracing j
the Norwich or deep gold canary, the
London fancy, the gold and silver |
lizards, the Scotch fancy, the Yorkshire,
the Manchester or Lancashire, and these !
different classes are subdivided by cross-;
breeding, making other varieties of !
lesser fame.
"The French canary is another species, I
but that variety is merely an extract of ,
the Belgian bird. Cayenne-fed canaries,
while not in themselves a distinct species >
! of canary, are the latest fruits of scien- |
tific research and deserve to be classified. |
In the early stage of the growth of (
feathers the canary is fed with Cayenne '
pepper mixed with its regular food. In
the little quills supposed to be young j
' ? ? ? l--- ^ iama ?nnl 1 rr f uKoa in
leatMtJTS, UUt nuigu aiC icuilj tuuug <u
which the blood circulates, the coloring
matter for the feathers is made. Food
especially prepared is uow for sale, and
auy one can,* by taking their -bird in
proper season, make it a beautiful orange
color. i
"Do you know how the food is made?" ,
asked the scribe, interrupting h:m.
"Yes. Take the best quality of
Cayenne pepper, a heaping spoonful, and
add one finely grated hard boiled egg
and an equal quantity of grated- bread. !
Mix the whole thoroughly together and
sprinkle with pulverized sugar. Com- ,
mencc feeding the bird when it is seven
or eight weeks old, and after a period of
two weeks feeding the orange color will
be surely set.
"There is a variety of canary known
a3 the American," the fancier said, "but i
its origin is like that of a common j
chii ken. The only thiDg I know of in
its favor is that it is a hardy bird."
"Is there any truth in the statement [
that canaries can be taught to pipe a
tunc?" ventured the reporter.
"Canaries may be taught to whistle a
tune if when young it is taken away j
| from other birds and the tune played or j
I whistled to it several times a day. ,
I V?ni-Q Kaon VnAwn tn talk* linf.
\?/ttUUiiG? xxt*?v> wvvu ?mw < M sucli
birds are very rare.
"There is one other kind of bird I ,
want to tell you about," said the bird j
man. "While not strictly speaking a '
canary, it is closely allied to it. It is J
the Mule bird, being the offspring of a
canary and almost any other small seed- j
feeding bird. It is usually of a very ;
brilliant color, a fine songster, and very :
hardy."
The bird fancier invited the reporter ,
to converse with his great talking bird. !
| It was found in a large cage in one J
corner of the room, and when the re- j
! porter approached it exclaimed in a very :
| distinct voice, "Call the dog." The!
mino (for such is its species) is a native {
, of the East Indie?, and was obtained di- |
: rect from an importer in New York. It j
I is possessed of a glo3sy black plumage, |
I shading into several other colors. The ,
wings have a bar of white, formed by a j
' series of tipped feathers, and back of
the eyes are two bright yellow flaps.
The beak is of deep orange and the f^et !
are yellow.
"This bird," said the fancier, "13 one
of the best specimens I have ever seen.
He says more than any other bird of its j
kind, and whistles a perfect tune. It h
valued at $200. The mine differs from
the parrot, inasmuch as it will reply
when spoken to."
- ,-One must be careful to see that the
cage in which a bird is confined is suited j
toits habits and disposition," said the!
fancier. "Sometimes a bird will appear !
very restless, tiying to the top and cran- |
ing its neck backward. That is a sure
sign that it is discontented, and if not 1
removed to a larger cage immediately
will soon stop singing. The small birds
eat all day long, and a canister of seed
must be kept in the caqe all the time,
although it is of the highest importance
that the seed be changed every day.
This is also the case with the water. 1
Give a bird a bath whenever you think !
it wants one. You can tell the time if j
you watch its antics about the water
can."
Sneezing: Matches.
A novelty in the way of competitive
amusement has recently been introduced
at Berlin, in the shape of sneezing
matches. Every persou joining in a
match must sneeze in genuine fashion?
no sneeze to count unless the jaws are
opened to the extent of at lea3t one inch
and a quarter ana close with a baug
when it is over. The person who
sneezes the greatest number of times in
the course of three hours wins a prize,
consisting of a cheese and a diploma of
| honor.
^ ^ .-I--.,-.' : . '? i ' \
A Hero and a Poem.
Under this headline the Atlanta Constitution,
replying to a correspondent's
request to publish the poem on "A
British Soldier in China," with the circumstance
of its or' ^in, says :
The poem alluded to is by Sir Francis
Hastings Doyle. The circumstance giving
rise to it was about as follows: During
the war between Great Britain and
China, in 1857-58, one day a young fellow
named Moyse, a private of the
"Kentish Buffs," having lagged behind
on the march with some Sikh soldiers,'
was taken prisoner by the enemy. The
fellows had been drinking, which was
the cause of their detention, as they
were hauging around the grog-train in
the hope of getting more liquor. But
this rough, drinking young Englishman
had the soul of a hero. The Chinese'
officials demanded the kotow of the captives;
that is, the ceremony of kneeling
and knocking the head upon the ground.
This the Indian soldiers willingly did,
and thus saved their live3, but the Englishman
regarding the fact as a degradation,
positively refused in spite of all
threats, and was finally beaten to death
and his body was thrown to the jackals.
The circumstance acquired peculiar interest
from the fact that the questions of
receiving the English and American embassies
at that time hinged upon the
question whether the envoys could be allowed
to appronch the sovereign without
performing the kotow. The Chinese regard
this obeisance a? due to all the
goda, to the emperor, who is the son of
heaven and the messenger of the gods,
ana in a less degree to the officials who
represent the emperor. The extreme
oboisance, indeed, required by the emperor
and heaven,is kneeling and knocking
the head thrice, then standing upright
and again kneeling, this to be
performed three times. This obeisance
had been performed by the Dutch embassadors
and an envoy from Russia,
and the English and American embassadors
were the first who had dared to refuse
to accede to the ceremony.
As the poem to which our query .refer*
is a fine one, and comparatively little
known, we quote it as follows:
' List night, among his fellow roughs,
He jested, qua ffed and swore, ,*'
A drunken private of the Buffs,
Who never looked before:
To-day, beneath the foreman's frown.
He stands in Elgin's place,
Ambassador from Britain's crown,
And type of all her race.
Poor, reckless, rude, low-born, untaught,
Bewildered and alone,
A heart with English instinct fraught,
He yet can call his own.
Ay! tear his body limb from limb!
Bring cord, or ax, or flame! ' *
He onlv knows that not through him
Shall England come to shameFair
Kentish hop-fields round him seemed
Like dreams to come and go;
Brieht leazue3 of cherry blossom gleamed,
One sheet of living snow;
The smoke above his father's door
In gray soft eddyings hung?
Must ne then watch it rise no more,
Doomed by himself, so young?
Yes! honor calls; with strength like steal
He put the vision by.
Let dusky Indians whine and kneel I
An English lad must die.
And thus with eyes that would not shrink,
"With knee to man unbent.
Unfaltering on it3 dreadful brink
To his red grave he went
Vain mightiest fleets of iron framed,
Vain those all-shattering guns,
Unless proud England keep untamed
The strong heart of her sons!
So let his name through Europe ring I
A man of mean estate,
Who died as firm as Sparta's king,
Because his soul was great."
A Kentucky Horror.
Near Gainsville, in Kentucky, there
lives a man whose life has, indeed, been
a most unusual one. He was born an imbecile,
aud as he grew older and stronger
he became violent and had to be confined.
His name is Mark Griffin, aud at
the age of fifteen years he was placed in
a nniiin hnilt in the corner of the vard
where his parents lived. The cabin was
built especially for his occupancy, and
he was placed in it and kept in confinement,
never permitted to leave the
house. It is said that he would allow
nobody,, not even the members of the
family, to come near him except his
sister, who would bring him his meals
and sweep up the room. When she was
in the room he would jump into the bed
and sit down and watch her until she
had left. He is sixty-five years old and
his hair is as white as snow. He has
never been outside the house since he
was put iuto it but once, and that was
when it was torn down to be rebuilt.
He has been In the house, which has no
window in it, with the daor barred, for
fifty years, aud has never had communication
with any human being except
some of the members of the family,
who take his meals and arrange his
bed. There are several of the family
who go into the room now with safety,
but the si?ht of a stranger tills him with
horror ana causes ms wnu nature 10 assert
itself, and ho raves and gives vent
to the most unearthly screams and hideous
noises. They never go into the
house, because he would attack them
seriously the moment they crossed the
threshold. The family are compelled to
remove his bed from the room every day,
as he would tear it into shreds. They
can leave nothing in the room with him,
for it would be destroyed. He cannot
be induced for a moment to leave his
cabin, and if the door were left standing
open he would not come out. He has,
indeed, seen an unusual life, and at the
same time a most unfortunate one.?
Graphic.
OH Rockets for Stormy Seas.
Oil on the waves of a stormy sea has
long been considered an elective agency
in quieting their anger. It has now be- 1
oome a scientific method through the in- !
genuity of Wilhelm Meissel, second olli- j
cer of the steamship Werrn.
Mr. Meissel 6aid recently to a New
York Sun reporter that the German Life
Saving Society had made experiments j
with the oil rockets in order to learn ,
whether they could be introduced into !
their life saving stations. The experi- j
ments were made with small rockets, j
which smoothed not only the sea, but '
the breakers also. The first experiments j
were made in Dccemuer last at usuana,
on the island of Norderney, and under
tlie supervision of Captain Ffeifer, inspector
of the society, were highly successful.
Similar experiments were made on
January 27 last at the mouth of the Elbe
oil the Scharhoern Reef. Several rocke
s were thrown at a fresh n.nth northwest
wind. They exploded inside and
outside the breakers, and acted successfully.
The rockets, which Mr. Meissel says
are easy to handle, are brought to the
shore at the nearest point to thewreckel
ship, and when the life-saving boat is
ready to leave, the rockets are thrown at
different elevations from the shore toward
the wreck. The oil fields made by
the explosions of the rockets enable the
life saving boat to master the breakers
with ease.
Experiment has shown that a drop of
oil covei'S a sqware metre of water, and
so it is not difficult to conceive how large
an area may be covered by the oil contained
in one of these rockets.
CtiBIOCS FACTS. :
A hand (horse measure) is four inches. A-,
It is said that Turkish women who
wish to be plump eat roses with butter.
Othman I. founded the Turkish empire,
and was its first emperor, A. D.
1289.
As early as 325 the council of Nic?
ordered the foundation of hospitals in
the principal towns.
Hosea H. Lincoln, a school teacher of
Boston, has been ordained a minister
the age of sixty-seven.
William WilsoD, of Pittsburg, Penn., } '
thirty years old, is to marry a widow
thirty-two years older.
Wagons bearing immense advertising
i signs are permitted to follow Chicago
funeral processions through the streets.
The Inspectors of Butcheries in Parif
report that the consumption of horse- ,
flesh has increased to an extraordinary
extent.
The Alaska mosquito bites only in cold ; '
weather, aud can be found thickest
where the snow has drifted five or six
feet high.
The one-story frame cabin in which
Andrew Johnson served his apprenticeship
as a tailor is still standing at Co- ~
lumbia, Tenn. . .
The art of making glass bottles and
drinking glasses was known to the Bo- . ;
mans before the year 79. Bottles were 7;'J
made in England about 1558.
Minstrels were protected by a charter
of Edward IV., but by a statute of Elizabeth
they were made punishable among s
rogues and vagabonds and sturdy beggars.
Bread was known in the patriarchal
^ges, and the baking of it became a *
profession at Borne 170 B. C. Bread
was made with yeast by English bakers
in 1634.
The crown of King Alfred the Great,
had two little bells attached, according
to an ancient chronicle dating A. D.
872. It is said to have been long pre* . %
served at Westminister, and, may have
been that described in the Parliamentary
inventory taken in 1649.
The novelty of pink pond lillies give* '3
way juit now to surprise over the blue . Tv
ones, the color range of which lies between
thit of a fringed gentian and a
forget-me-not. The manufacture of
these pond-lily tints remains as yet a
profound professional secret ?
A new fire escape in England is a sort
of a chair that slides down ropes, and
the host of a, house possessing it often
entertains his guests by permitting
them to take a ride. At the Italian eXysr' r
hibition in London it is expected tor
prove a great rival to the switchback
railway.
The oldest newspaper in the whole
wide world is the king Paw, or Capital
Sheet, published in Pekin. It first ap-'
3 i t-v n<< 1 i.
; peareu a. u. uii, uut uuuiu uuw umj ?b ip*
irregular intervals. Since the year 1351,
however, it has been published weekly
and of uniform size. Now it appears in
three editions dailv.?Call.
In the Royal Library at Windsor,
England, there is to be seen a work of
great magnificence, a copy of the
"PsaUerieum," from the press of Faust
and Schoeffer, printed in 1457. It is the
earliest book known with a date and ii
superbly bound in garter blue velvet,
and on the sides of its covers are the
royal crown and cypher in solid gold,
with embossed gold cornices and loops.
Some years ago Franklin Mailer, of rr
i Sugar Creek Township, in Pennsylvania,
j agreed to take care of an old couple, hii
i neighbors, with the understanding that *
at their death he should inherit a farm
of eighty-six acres owned by them. Aftei
their death, which occurred five yeari
later, Miller discovered oil on the farm
and has already received $25,00;) in K
royalties from it.
It is said that the oldest man living
| anywhere is James James, a colored man~ $
I of Santa Rosa, Mexico, who was born "i
I near Dorchester, S. C., in 1752. He wai
with his master in the Revolutionary /%
war, wa3 forty years when Washington
was elected President, went to Texal
when 101 years old, moved into Mexico
! live years later, and now, at the ripe
j age of 136, lives in a little hut, to which
he is confined by rheumatism, and ia
supported by contributions from the
citizens of Santa Rosa.
Scenes In a Sub-Treasury.
The New York Sub-Treasury contains
I at present more than $150,000,000, and
i this sum, large as it may appear, is only . ,
part of the national cash account. Calling
at one of the offices, a Mail and E&
| j/rcss reporter saw a man offering some of
; the old postal currency for redemption.
! This currency was issued during the war,
and a3 the latter closed twenty-three
; years ago it was to be supposed it was all
redeemed. The clerk, however, informed
him that small amounts were constantly
| brought in, but he added that "$15,000,*
0)0 are still out." Most of this, no
doubt, got worn out or destroyed, and
I /Mir crnvammonf. ia a lllWB (fftiner.
. Lliua a- o- O
1 The change of cents for larger currency
j is conducted at the same desk, and while
I standing there he saw a man bring a bag
! which contained ten small bag3. Ha ;
said that each of the latter contained $5
j in cents. The man took his $50 in curi
rency, and in a few moments another man
pcame up and said: "I want $25 in cents."
j He handed over his currency, and aa be
departed he said that they wero wanted
' by a bank. This exchange is constantly
going on, averaging $5000 a day. Tha
banks, for instance, never receive any
cents or indeed any other small coin from v
j depositors. They are, however, con;
stantly paying it out as required by . -.i
checks, and consequently they send for
it to the Sub-Treasury, wlvch is supplied
by the railroads and saloons. The Broad- /
way Kailroad and the Third avenue road ' *
each averages a surplus of cents and
other small coin of $500 a day, and then
exchange it in the above mentioned manner.
.
Feasting on Elephants' Feet j
Sneaking of elephant's foot takes us '
naturally to the Katiirs, where this dish f
is the crownin<? triumph of their bill of /
faro. 2s ight is the time'generally selected ^
by the Kaffir for the enjoyment of this
prime luxury. Other portions of the
elephant arc eaten with great gusto, but J
the feet are esteemed the delicacies of 1
the feast. A hole is dug in the ground J
and a fire made on the bottom. It is al- J
lowed to burn down to a heap of coals, f\
which are scraped out by the cooks, f I
When the oven iias beeu freed from em- -1
hers, the foot is rolled into it and covered 9
with twigs and green leaves. After this I
the hot embers are replaced and a roar- A
ing fiie started over the heap In this j
manner the foot is baked, and when the IJ
fire has burned low the contents of the 11
oven are lifted out by several men, and J
the feast open?. Travelers who have / ?.
feasted with the Kaffirs on occasions of I
this kind have paidglowing compliments
to their cookery. The natives are said I
to love elephant foot next to the marrow J
taken from the leg bones of the giraffe I
or eland, but the preparation of this r-i
food docs not afford the enjoymeut / |
which is associated with tho d!sh we I I
have describe!? PMladelvhia Timet, j I
..... 1