University of South Carolina Libraries
I Fl In the Wh. A Description of the Presider Capital as It Ap y | J HE White Houso has been | greatly changed within the ' paet few years, writes Frank 1 G. Carpenter in the Detroit i .Free .Fresp. ah Kinas oi improve- * ments have been made, und the white hair of John Qnincy Adams' ghost ( must rise in holy horror ae he looks at 1 the magnificent furnishings. Mrs. a President Harrison expended some- t thing like $52,000 r.n improvements, f and a number of changes have been ? made by Airs. Cleveland. The Harri- < sons spent a lot on the kitchen. When j c they came in the basement was full of I < rats. One kitchen floor had been laid . ^ on top of another, and they were all f rotten. Mrs. Harrison ordered the 11 wooden floors takeu out ana naa tae ? ground covered with concrete. Upon ( the top of this she put porcelain tiles . and walled all the rooms of the basement as high as one's shoulder with , the same material. The White House /' is now lighted with electric lights. J The chandeliers have electric globes f and the lights are kept burning in the basement and in most of the rooms of the building all night. I think it was Martin Van Buren ; BS^kwho was denounced nil over the coun- j Rri^Btrv for buviny a set of gold spoons j rtfcr the White House. The new china I jwhich has been recently bought is worth almost its weight in gold. I > know nothing about the late purchases of Mrs. Cleveland, but there is a new set of cut glass in the cupboards of the executive mansion which cost $1973, and I happen to know that Mrs. Harrison sent one order to Europe for twenty four dozen china plates and live dozen coffee cups of a special design. Congress allows cach President something like 310,000 a year and more to run the White House, and a large part of this goes into new furniture and dishes. The linen costs a small fortune. The table cloths are of the finest damask, and the napkins 6hine like ' / silk. New carpets are bought about every i six years, and though the ones which a I found on the different parlors are T good, Mrs. McKinley will probably c have a chance to select new ones. I a l\Al^atTn oVin will Aaro tn rpdPADf* T VIVU v um IV * U ouw >T?4i ww?v wv I ? ate the rooms. When the blue room ; I was last fitted up the artists received \ more than $5000 for the work. The c walls of the bine room are now padded r and draped with silk as fine as that c of the ball dresses of the ladies who t will come here to shake hands with \ President McKinley. The silk is of a the most delicate blue, and it ib interwoven with silver. It is the same c with the red room, which is also hung t with silk and whose furniture has been 1 designed and cushioned to' match. ? jg^Tlie carpets of all the ground floor t F parlors are fine. That on tne east t room is so soft that one's foot sinks p into it as if it were a bed of moss. It o takes almost 500 yards of carpet to u cover the floor, and the one now \ tacked down cost $950. It takes more than a thousand yards to carpet the t White House parlors and dining rooms, c and the carpets everyw* ere match the x furniture and hangings. r But let me tell you just hour the c White House looks in this year of our a Lord 1897. It is bigger than it seems, c for it covers the third of an acre. You 1 do not see the basement as you look t at it from the street, and the base- j t ment is almost a house in itself. Its I rooms are high, and, with its decent c improvements, it is now as dry as a c bone. The White House is some dis- \ tance back from the street. A big c park surrounds it, and going up to r the front door you walk about a drive ( which leads in the 'hape of a half r moon to Pennsylvania avenue. On v one tide of this drive there is a flag t pavement, and in coming into the c side of the yard nearest the Treasury C you walk half the length of the build- t ing before you reach the front porch. I As you do this you can look right! c down into the basement and see tho j s servants at work. The room below 13 you is devoted to the laundry, and ' \ you may see colored women here al- 11 most any day of the week rubbing a away at our President's shirts. Passing \ 1- i-t- - 1 I ? inese you reacu me mrge purie- e cochere. The columns whioh uphold i this are as big as the biggest oak tree, c and the stone platform within them is c so large that a regiment of soldiers t could bo stationed upon it and have i room to spare. You reach this plat- i v>^ C&s WFUTE HOUSE VESTIBULE, form by stone steps and stand at last i before the front door of the White : House. i The front door of the White House ! ! What stones it could tell of griff as ; i >yell as joy. Through that door Abru- j 1 ham Lincoln was brought uftcr he was I j shot by John Wilkes Booth. Step [ i with me to that side window and I will j < * show you an old rnau who was one of | : the White House messengers at the !' time, and who is still stationed at the j door. His name is Peudle. He told , me once how little Tad Lincoln came 11 running to him the morning after the j i fchooting and cried : i "They have killed my papa; thev have killed my pupa!" a. ite House. it's Mansion at the Nation' pears To-Day. He will tell you how bo picked ti Tad and tried to comfort him, at low he carried him upstairs to h oom and talked to him until i Iropped off to sleep. It was through that same door tbi Airfield was brought after he was sh< )j Guiteau. Ho had been but a fe veeks in the White House, and, tire ind worn out by fighting with the o ice-seekers and the Senate, was ju; ibout to go to Long Branca for a fe lays of much-needed rest. Ho cam >ut here and took the oarriage for tl lepot, not half a mile away, and wi vaiting for tbe train to start whan tl issaesiti's bullet brought him bad le was carried in through this doc ind lay here for weeks, racked wil jxcruciating pain. ffi i IE mil tndrl THE RED PAIILOR We passed policemen when we cam nto the yard. They patrol the streel ibout the White House night and daj Fhere are now more than a dozen o luty within the White House groundi >nd President McKinley will b ratched almost as carefully as an ;ing. There are guards within th restibule on the other side of th loor. There are guards in the bast nent, and the messengers who cor luct you from room to room, thoug hey look very harmless, have by Ion matching become expert detective; ,nd can tell a crank almost at a glance There are only four hours of th lay when strangers without urges msiness can be admitted to the Whit louse. This is from 10 a. m. till >. m. After this, if you call and rin he bell, you will see a guard's face ? he little round hole filled with plat ;lass in the mosaic window of th loor and a pair of sharp eyes will 03 imine you before the knob is turne ehich lets you in. If you are so fortnnate as to pas his inspection, you will see the dooi >pen inward and a moment later yo pill find yourself standing in whf night be called a very cave of Alac liowa hrton wriff.fi lili. V'/illUiUO UUTU VWVU <T??VWV bout the east room and the woudei >f the parlors of the White House ?he most beautiful part of the whol milding to my mind is this great vet ibule, with its frescoed ceiling, il >eautiful walls covercd with the cot tf arms of the United States, its floe if many colored tiles, and the jewele pall which separates it from tho corr lor opening into the blue room, tb ed room and the green room beyonc )ne of the great monarchs of Indi nade a throne of gold, tho back c vmuu watt sei/ wiiu jcwcid nu lvij he feathers and colors of the pe? lock's tail. The throne cost SoO, 100,000, and it is described as havin >een wonderfully beautiful. It wai lowever, not much larger than :hair. I visited the xoora where tood during my 6tav in Delhi som 'ears ago. Tho throne room was, venture, not as large as thi3 Whil louse vestibule, and here, instead ( l chair of jewels, there is a who! rail made of bits of glass and costl itone put together in the form of nagnilicent mosaic. It has cost nc ks many thousand dollars au the pet :ock throne cost millions, but whe he electric lights ehino behind it : f, I venture, far more beautiful. It i n this vestibule that the Marine Banc Oil "CAVE OF ALADDIN." dressed in their gorgeous red un forms, with their brazen instrumeu shining like so much gold, play at tl President's receptions, and over th mosaic tioor step the diplomats of n the Nations of the world, clad in the gold lace ; the gay uniformed oflice of our army and navy, and the poi dered and bejeweled throng whic makes up what is known as Washin ton society. You will go to tbe left through tli vestibule to reach the second floor the White House, where the oftic are, if you have busiuess with Pres dent McKinley, but if you wish to s Mrs. McKinley and are no fortuna as to be a friend of the family, y< will be taken tight across tbe vestibule, and a door in that wonderful wall will open for you and admit you '3 to the parlors of the White House. At the President's evening receptions the rooms to the left of the White House will be fitted up v h shelves, where p the hats and coats of the men can be id put away, while the wraps of the is ladies will be stored for the time in ie tho state dining room. It will be in tho blue room that it President McKinley will receive at it- such times. This has been the custom w from time immemorial, and it will not id be chauged. 1 doubt, however, whethf er Mrs. McKinley will be able to be ct- ?.It. u:_ OU_ : ?11 onrl 3W Willi LiilU. OUU ID iiut Ubilll OtLUU^ umi w she could not stand the wear and tear ie of an evening reception. It took all of ie Mrs. Cleveland's vitality to enable her is to carry out her part during her first ie years in the White House. I know of i. receptions at winch she shook hands >r with at lea9t 5000 people, and at h which it seemed to me she gave a smile to each one and no two alike. I OF THE WHITE HOUSE. e Mrs. Harrison tried to save herself by * * ? ? *> ?1 tn/1 ni f/\ ?** A /\ f 4 V A uB UUb EJUUlvllJK 11UUUO, uuuau ouuio \jl I/J. C r. receptions she carried a bouquet ia n order to show the people that she 3, could not do this. Some think that ?e it was the care, overwork and worry y of the White House that killed her, e and the same is said to have caused e the death of the first Mrs. Tyler and i- also of Mrs. Fillmore, although 6he t- survived, I believe, until a few weeka h after ehe left the White House, it g was in the blue room that Mrs. Cleve- [ 3, land was married, and here she bado J 5. . j * I . ARTHUR, THE WHITE flOCEE MESSENGER, l" goodby to her guests and took the carriage with the President to tho ? special car on the Baltimore and Ohio road, which was secretly waiting almost half a mile irom the station to take the White House bride and groom S to their honeymoon cottage at Deor 1 Park. :e m >f Chloroformed the Snake. Tho L. A. W. Bulletin prints a picy ture of a fourteen-foot snake and a leta ter from Fostoria, Ohio, written by ^ Andrew Emerino, President of the l' Fostoria Bicycle Club, telling how the n snake was captured and photographed. . "The snake was traced by wheelj9 men for seven miles," the letter says, "over hills, a river, the fair ground ? and a race track. It left a trail four inches wide in dusty places, and it was easily followed. When come up t vuifh Via wns nn tho ton bars of a fonce gate, stretched along it and hanging down like a clotheslino vrhere_ he wasn't resting on the bar. "The reptile was captured by soaking a sponge in ehlorotorm ind tying the sponge- on the end of a fish rod, The uponge wns held agiinst the snake's noie, and he soon grew drowsy. Then he was tied up in a bard knot and wound about with ropes. Thousands of persons saw the dnake in the city park at Fostoria, and he is now in the museum of the bicycle club. He measured fourteen feet nin.^ inches long." Load or Corn For a Pair of Shoes. Iowa is a good example with which to illustrate one of the conditions which have produced, or more accurately, perhaps, continued the hard times. Our Superintendent at Des Moines says that the Iowa farmer is hard up because he cannot get a fair price for his produce. "Why," said he, "the other day a farmer drove into town with a load of corn?about forty bushels?which he wished to sell and with the money buy supplies for himself and family. That load fetched ? just enough tor him to get a pair of j. shoes. Twelve cents a bushel was the ts best price he could find. Tho forty Je fmshels went for Si. 80.?New lork is Press. Wmtersrreen Oil. rs Distilling oil of wintergroen U w now carried on to a small extent in h northorn Maine, but recent newsg paper reports of its magnitude there are no doubt exaggerated. The bulk lis of all tho wintergreen oil coming on of tho market is still produced in Pennes sylvania, while practically all of the i- oil of birch, which is both cbemicailv ee and commercially the same thing, is te shipped *rom North Carolina.?New )u England Homestead, A BRONTOSAUR IN NEW YORK. How Ono Would Appear If Resurrected, Compared "XVith a House. The accompanying cut shows how a brontosaur, one of the gigantic lizarda of o former age, would appear in com" ' *- " er f THE BKON'TOSAUR. parison with the houses, if it could be resurrected and turned loo?e in a New York street. The monster is supposed to have srrown to the length of sixty feet. Its enormous body was supported by four massive legs, midway between head and tail. It was capabie of uplifting itself on its great haunches, so that its head towered above the average tree. It was a harmless monster, subsisting on ferns and aquatic plants, and despite its strength, incapable, from its unwieldiness, of efficient attack or defence. It was probably on its swimming capacity that it relied to escape from its many flesh-eating enemiea, for. pressing its forelegs closely to its sides, and using its powerful tail for - ' -At T _ A propulsion, it muai nave oeeii auio tu proceed through the water at a rate that almost defied puroui^ It seldom strayed far from the water in which could thus find safety from its foes,^ and, when on land, it probably made use of tits power to erect itself to itw great height to detect their approach. As shown in the cut, the Brontosanrus Excelsus looked perhaps a? a giraffe might appear if its neck, many times lengthened, were attached to the body of a Brobdignagian kangaroo, with a tremendous tail.?New York Sun. Jlovr lo Start a Balky Horse. A driver of a truck was in distress in front of the Judge Building yesterday afternoon because his horse balked crosswise of the fctreet, and caused not only a loss of his time, but blocked traffic. W. J. Arkell said to his brother Bartlelt, who satin the office: "I will bet 8100 to ten cents that 1 can go out and start that horse in two minutes." Bartlett took tho bet, the money was placed in Private Secretary W. J. Merrill's hands, and the two Arkells started for the street. W. J. Arkell picked up two handfuls of sand, and asked the driver to hold the horse'*i head still. Then he packed j I each of the horees nostrils full oi the aand, and almost instantly tne noree began to sneeze and start with a rush, to the great delight of tho driver, amid the shouts of tho bystanders. Mr. Arkell, the winner, says he doesn't read the London lancet for nothing. ?New York Sun. Jilonr to Find Out Her A&e. Girls of marriageable age do not like to tell how old they are, but you "o-ti fin 1 rrnfc hv following the sub joined instructions, the young lady doing the figuring. Tell her to put down the number of the month in which fihe was born, then multiply it by 2, then add 5, then multiply it by 50, then add it to her age; then subtract: 3(55, then add 115; then tell her to tell you tho amount she has left. The two figures to the right will tell you her age, and the remainder iho month of her birth. For esamplo, the amount is 822, who is twenty-twoyears old, and was born in the eighth month?august. A Mink Recovers His Pickerel. While Warren Eastabrook and [ I George Benson wero fishing through the ice in the river at Lansboro, Penn., they 6ftw a mink come up out of the water on the opposite aide of the stream. It had a big pickerel in ita mouth. When it drew itself out on the ehoro the fishermen began shooting at it. Thia frightened the mink, and it dropped the pickerel and disappeared. The fishermen got the fish. It was twenty inches long. While the fishermen, an hour later, were on shore, building a bonfire, the mink stole up, grabbed the pickerel aud sneaked off in triumph.?New York Press. raptured a IJald Fagle. C!n?l r-Tz-kl^htincAr <?. farmpr of Rush- I villo, Kan., carried to Atchison a bald eagle which ho had captured after a battle with it near Lake Contrary, whore he was hunting. He had left his horse, and when he returned to it found the eagle on the animal's back, lighting it. Whon he boat it off the bird attaoked him and tore his olotheu and face before he could shoot h:m.? New York Sun. A Cat Adopts Rabbits. A sailing vessel which arrived at New York from a foreign port recently had on board a strangely assorted family. A couple of cats and their kittens wore living on the best of terms with a pair of young rabbits. Th'3 mother cat had taken entire j a cat's strange family, charge of the rabbits an.l treated them with the same solicitous affection that her own offspring rooeived. 1 REALM OF STILE.' A ?lti> I.AsIIKW H1 DUKSSV WO>IKK. What Now York Society Women Wear?New Ideas in Bicycle Suits?Hints of Fashion for the Spring. (Special New York Letter.) FASHION is at its gayest and best just now, reminding one of nothing so much as its own (, lair rosebuds that follow in its train, and who, in tbe bewilderment of changing styles never look backward, but constantly anticipate more pleasure in the newer models that are to come. Simply as a harbinger of the vernal | season, a sort of foretaete, as it were, of springtime, the latest things in tailor-made gowns and coats are here shown, those sensible mediums between furs and lawns that the variable weather of early spring make a necessity to every wardrobe. The coat and akirt costume is as chic as possible, being made of a green novelty material that is sure to be a favorite for spring gowns. The skirt is, of course, plain, and the jaunty little jacket is exquisitely stitched and finished with an inlaid collar of very dark green velvet. What a variety of costumes one could have with such a suit for a foundation! ? '* _ -i-.i i- ? 11 ? :iu A a ? x1 irsi. me jhckbi uuuuuo whu ? nv, showing only the collar and neck-tie, and then, when it is left open, displaying a neat vest, one's appearaneo is entirely changed. A soft, chiffon 1'ront aud a ruche of chiffon sewn into the sleeves .would transform it into quite a dressy affair and, last bat not least, the skirt can be worn with any number of odd waists, both on the blouse and evening order. Although that despotic Dame wo call Fashion often requires our wearing garments that, to say the least, are not picturesque, still, we have much to thank her for in smiling upon the covert coat. There is a certaia smartness about such a jacket that in unde BICYCLE SUIT OF GREEN AND TAN MIXED MATERIAL. niable and oharminp, and its many devotees will, I know, rejoice that it is to be the favorite outer garment for spring. There is little change in the style except that the sleeves are smaller, as the cut shows, and the lining's are of dainty silk or satin, while the inlaid velvet collars match the shade of the tan cloth instead of being made of black or brown velvet as they were on our autumn coats. A very pretty fashion is the collarette for house or theatre wear, and no better style could be conceived than those maao line uilluuuuyu uuiciu One worn last week by a smart society girl is shown in one of the accompanying sketches. The wee, small jacket was made of guipure lace, jeweled with mock turquoises in a setting of gilt threads. Over each shoulder fell a series of riftttes fashioned of white gauze ribbon edged with turquoises and spotted with tiny dots of turquoise satin. The collar was made separately and was finished with a flounce of lace and an immense bow of gauze ribbon. COTiIjARETTE WORTi BY A SOCIETi* OHM.. These filmy ribbons are going to play an important pnrt in the trimming of summer frocks, ami it certainly must be confessod that nothing more appropriate could be chosen. They are obtainable) in dainty plaids and stripes and also with their surface strewn with delicate blossoms. The business woman will find such a garniture as the one 'sketched a real boon, I lor it can be worn over a plain blouse and will give one quite a festive appearance, at just a moment's notice. Bodices of silk or satin in extremely bright shades are much worn, and in I fact since New York women up their minds to keep their l^HinS while in a theatre, gowna and i^JEN Iowh ppflm to have crown briffhtez^Hg^ ?,-J, SrRINQ COVERT JACKET. more on the English style; some few women have appeared iu decolette bodices. In London, you know, all the women in the orchestra chairs, oj stalls, as our English cousins call this part of the bouse, are forced to wear fall evening dress and consequently no hats are seen, only dainty headdresses as Gotham women wear to the opera. These head adornments are now being made by our best milliners, and are a combination of velvet or ribbon am? flowers. They are modest as well ai becoming, and can be worn on the street or in the cars without making the wearer conspicuous. NEW SPRING COSTUME OF NOVELTY GOODS. One of the most interesting sight? these clays is in the gronp of brighteyed, healthy-looking girls, with skates over their arms, hurrying off tc the places where the ice is good. The jaunty caps, especially those with a tassel hanging down the back or over the left ear, add very much to their smart, bewitching appearance. A skating outfit, that was complete in every particular, won for its fair wearer many glances of envy from her own sex, but glances of downright admiration from skaters of the masculine persuasion. Her skirt of dark green corduroy wae edged with chinohilla, while her jacket of the same material was made od i the blouse order, being confined at the waist line with a belt of black satin ribbon. Below this belt extended o fluted piece of the corduroy edered with chinohilla. A band of this same dainty fur formed the collar and finished the cuffs, while a fancy corduroy muff also boasted a wealth of chinchilla edgings. 'The front of the jacket was filled in with pale blue chiffon, over" which extended cords arrangod in a military fashion. On her sannybrown curls was perched a tiny toque ot cnincnma trimmeu wnu ?u ai^mvig I of white and a large bnnch of violets. I Skating is not the only out-door I sport indulged in by this society girl, for her bicycle is used every day, even in the ooldest of weather, providing there is no snow. Her bicycle suit is made of green and tan mixed material, through which runs just a Suggestion of red threads. Bloomers of the aame material are worn over her warm woolen tights, and her Norfolk jacket is made sufficiently large for her to wear a snugly-fitting sweater beneath. The costumes illustrated herewith were made by The National Cloak Company, of New York. Most Wonderful of Coal Products. "Saccharin is one of the most wonderful of the coal tar products," observed a chemist, "and, though it is but little known now on account of its price, it is very likeiy to come into general use in time. It sweetness is similar to that of sugar, but is over three hundred times as intense. Thus a teaspoonful of saccharin will do as much as three pounds of sugar. Saccharin is at present used only as a dietary preparation in cases of diabetes and obesity, where sweets are desired, but sugar is forbidden. Sugar is very fattoning to some persons, and it has to be dispensed with entirely iu raduy cases, lu such cases saccharin is oi' great value. The commercial value of ii, however, Slti per pound, keep it out of very exensive use until some less expensive way may be discovered to manufacture it."?Wash* ington Star. Mpr Your Gifts. [f you have tho gift of seeing, ever look foL beauty; Noting faults in all your friends, is plainly not your duty. [f you have tho gift of hearing. list to what is meet; 3hut your ears to everything that is not good and 6weet. ' * [f you have the gift of talking, use but plea?* antwotds; Let your speech be glad and cherry as the songs of birds. ?Emma C. Dcwd, in Youth's Companion. ? | Tho Gingerbread Man. But Ave years old was little Nan When she fell in love with a gingerbread man. 3he said as she placed him beside her cup, "I love you enough to eat you up!" A.nd then the roguish little mis3 Devoured her sweetheart with aki88; "How nloe you are!" said little Nan? ind that was the end of the gingerbread man. ' 13 Tears passed, and the maid to womanhood grew, A.nd she had of suitors a dozen or'two; But sho found none as sweet as the gingerbread man, "For ho was a regular snap." sighed Nan. ?The Commonwealth. : 1 The Blossom of My Heart, Axuro eyes U-HYIUMO, Amber looks a-curl, Silver laugh a-tlnkle, Shining teeth o' pearl; When she la nigh I gaze and sigh I cannot flv The spot; Thero is no fairer blossom than. That sweet Forget-me-not. Poets sing of beryls, Gems of peerless hue; Could they meot the perils In her eyes of blue. Each oaptive wight To be her knight With wild delight Would plot; For she oan smile to witoh the world* * My sweot Forgot-me-not ~ ^ When the blossoms shimmer In the dawn o' May When her glee growa dimmer On our wedding day, A' f And in my pride . ' I lead my bride ' May joy betide Her lot; The blossom o' my heart for aye, My sweet Forget-me-not! ?Samuel M. Peck, in Boston Transcript. ; " H As to Friends and Kncmles. Preserve me from my friend, because I whisper in his ear The little seorets I'd not like a cruel world to hear; ' And if he at some loose-tonguad time glvee forth what I have said, The world will say he speaks the truth, and rjm sadiy wag its head. . i-mai But If my enemy should spread that self- - ; ; same truth, you see, The world would cry "V7e doubt it?ho's the /; fellow's enemy!" . ?John Kendrick Bangs.in Harper's Weekly. A Commonplace Letter. /'A It seemed ?o little, the thing you did? . - Just to take the pen in your hand, And send the warm heart's greeting, hid 'Neath the common two-cent stamp of the land. But over the mountains and over the plain, And away o'er the billowy prairies went The small, square letter, to soothe the pain Of one who was frettod with discontent Bhe was ill and tired; the long, hot day Had worn itself to the merest shred; The last of the light, as it ebbed away, Fell on her patient needle and thread. * ?' i A ohnHnm rvimn flrlnc? neross the SDace Where the fading sunlight filtered through;' There was just the gleam of a sweet young- ' 3 face, j> . ,,m And a voice said, "Here is a lottor for you." ' The quick tear3 blurred in a sudden mistj '< But she brushed them away, and then sh? \. smiled, And you should have seen how she kissed t and kissed The postmark's circlet, like a child. Why, the name brought back the long ago When she dressed in her best of afternoons. When she found it a pleasure to sit and sew,. And her seams were hemmed to tripping. tunes. . ,r.M Poverty, change, and the drudgery Of work that goes on without an end. Had fettered the heart that was light and free, .Via Till she'd almost forgotten she had a _ .4 friend. .. . Tho people at home so seldom write, Her youth aud its pleasures he all bohind; She was thinking bitterly but last night mU-J. 11Jo nnt- ?? minH " illUl UUl Uiai(jUV Id uuk v?Uiiuu? I Now, here Is your letter! The old htlla break Beyond these levels flat and green; She thrills to the thrash as his flute notes wake In the vesper hush of the woods serene; She sits again in the little churoh. And litts her voice In the choir onco morej Or stoops for a four-leaved clover to search $ In the grass that ripples up to the door. It wai very little it meant for you? An hour at best when the d?y was done; , : But the words you seat rang sweet and trae^ And they carried comfort and cheer to on* Who was needing to feel a clasping hand. ' And to hear the voicos she used to hear; Aud the little letter, the breadth of the land, Wastho carrier-dove that brought hom? near. ?Mrs. E. Sangster, in Christian Advocate. . ' The Balancing of Trees. A very interesting saggestion concerning the utility to a tree of the irregular arrangement of the branches is made by a correspondent of JNature. Watching a large plane tree during a gale, he observed that while one great limb swayed in one direction, another swayed the opposite way, and although all the branches were plunging and bending before the blast, they did no! move in unison, or all at once in the same direction. But for the peculiarity in the motion of the branohes, he thinks, the tree could not have escaped uprooting; and he suggests that this kind of balancing serves in general to protect large tree?, like oaks and beeches, which have their branches unsymmetrically placed, , l'rom being overturned by high winds. Fortune for #70. Several days ago the schooner Robert I. Carter struck on Aldan'a Rock, off the coast of Maine, and to all appearances was a total loss.Nautical experts agreed that she would leave her bones there and her owners stripped her and sold the hulk to Charles Bartlett, who bought it for 370 "on spec." Wind and tide floated the schooner off, and to the amazemeat of the salts she drifted up Portland Harbor. Bartlett had her towed in. She is worth ?45,000 and haa besides a cargo of 1200 tons of coal, most of which ia salable. ? Boitoft Transcript,