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THE NATIONAL BM OF MOT L. C. HA YRS, Tr csX F. G. TOED, Cashier. ? Capital, 8250,000. Undivided Prouts } $110,000. Facilities of oar magnificent New Yanlt [containing 410 Safety-Look Boxes. Differ ent Sizes are offered to our patrons and the public at 93.00 to 910.00.por annum. tai PLANTERS LOAN AND SAVINGS BANK. AUflUST.it, GA. Pays Ifitcrost on Deposit?. Accounts Solicited. L. C. H AYN*, President. W. 0. WABDLAW, Cashier. THOS. J. ADAMS PROPRIETOR. EDGEFIELD, S. C.. WEDNESDAY. MARCH 28, 1900. VOL LXV. NO. 13 AFTER TH - (After one or the lato battles In Matal, an < np among some rough bouldara upon a kopje old man appeared to bo walting for death, au It was ont in the ndn and the wind and the . groans \ -? , \- ; I tended the wounded, foe and friend: I thought with myself that tho very ?tones Of the grim veldt-side, lt they could, would bavo cried, "Doctor ! don't touch them; let death mako an end!" And presentir, propped by a boulder gray, A gray and"grizzled old Boer I ?saw; His whole right band bad been blown away; But, quiet and calm, ile was reading a psalm From a blood-stained book of the.ancient law. IS . "?lake baste and help me," the old psalm ran*, "Deliver me! haste to help me. Lord! Let those who seek my h rt to a mau Be patjto shame, *Tnat so Thy name Be great upon all who trust Thy word. .I Besieged by F ! Oil I Ci < -" 4 EXPERIENCE OF A WE WERE hunting for big game among the Black Hills, and one day, when there were signs in the nip of a coming snowstorm, I lefu camp on my own hook and wandered away for three or four milep. After an hour or two.as I stood fasting beside a tree, a deer broke coyer in front of rae a ucl only a pistol shut away. Jtrwas a fine buck, and he walke 1 into the open ns cool and unconcerned ns if hunter had never thirsted for his life. I ought to have dropped him dead at that dis tance, but ho fell ut my fire, to get up and limp away, aud, believing him to be wounded mortally, I followed at my best pace. * The ground was rough and covered with young eedarp, and, being a bit excited, I paid little heec'. to what was nuder foot Cf a sudden I found myself falling, and, as I weut down, I dropped my gun to clutch at the nearest brunches. I went down 12 or 15 feet over the edge of a ravine, struck on my feet, and then plunged forward and brought up on a ledge or shelf about four feet wide by ten feet loug. This shelf overhung a depth so black and dismal that I dared not wonder how fa'- down it was to the tiny stream flowing over the rocks at the bottom. The ravine was about 15 feet mide, and directly opposite me, in a mass of rocks, was an opening which I knew at first glance to be tue den of some wild animal. * T did not take note of these things at once, for in the fall I had broken two ribs and been badly bruised, and was almost unconscious for a quarter of au hour. When I rallied a bit I found a wall 15 or 20 feet high behind me^aud as for the ravine in front, I corffd not have crossed or descended into it even had I not been injured. I had just taken in the situation when the sky grew dark,the wind swept up the ravine with a long-drawn moan, and snowflakes whirled thickly around my head. I could not tell at first how badly I was hurt, as most of my body seemed to be asleep, and I naturally hesitated^,to lind ont, remembering that I was miles from camp and contd expect no help. I was lying quiet and hoping the pain soon would be come easier, when I got such a shock as nearly put my wits to sleep again. Directly in front of me, across the ravine, coming <>ut of his den with great dignity, appeared the largest panther I ever had seen. He stood snuffing the air and looking full at me, and when I realized how helpless I washings turned dark, nnd-I groaned in despair. It waa only a fair leap for the beast across the ravine, and I ex pected him to make it at once and at tack me;, but as the minutes passed away and he still hesitated I began to wonder over his action.-. He ?rnod to the left and trotted along>> over the ground a distance of about r? ' feet. Then hf?.wheeled and passed the iVn by ?*v>Tit.the same distance the other way. When he had gone over this beat two or three times I discovered what was the matter. As he came toward me I got a clear view, and saw that he was stone blind. There was a white film over each eye, and he eould not have so:n a tree in his path. A blind panther out for exercise blind death trotting along in front of me, so helpless that he could not have made his eyes keep him from starva tion. You have seen the panther con fined in a cage, his limbs stiffened, his teeth broken and his savage nature toned down bylong imprisonment and the sight of humanity until he scarce ly snarls at the cane thrust to stir him up. This ono, despite his misfortune, was lithe, supple, vigilant-a combi nation of strength and fierceness pos sessed only by the lion or the tiger. Disease or accident had blinded him, but he possessed every other power nature gives to the dreaded beast In stinct had taught to him the lay of the ground. He may have passed over it a thousand times. His move ments were as regular as the pendulum of a clock. Just so far down the ravine and return; just so far np the ravine and return. Jn going down he avoided a stunted cedar growing in a crevice in the rocks; in going up he avoided a bush which was in the di rect path. Grace, lifhenesss, strength, ferocity. The lower jaw was down, and I had a fine view of the fangs which could rend the hide of a horse. At every move the terrible claws clicked and grated-clawswhich would sink to the bono:of a man's leg and theu etrip the quivering flesh off in bloody fragments. There was a cu rious fascination in watching the beast as he took his promenade. I forgot 'my pains as I rejpiced^hrer his blind ness. Had ho been -possessed of his natural vision-could he have but seen ever so little-he would have sprung upon me, fastened those yellow fangs in my throat, and in 30 seconds all would'bave been over. But bo. was blind; and I hoped be could not dis cover my presence if I remained oniet. Of a sudden there was an alarm. The snow waa falling more thickly, but the beast was so near that I could E BATTLE. jld Boer was found ba lly wounded, propped i aide ; Iris rifle was laid idly by bini, and the d was quietly reading his Bible] "Poor am L Lord; Thou knowpst how poor; This hand shall never bold sickie again. Lord, succor me!" groaned the gray-beard Boer; '.Tarrynot! come To lake me home! Lord, haste Thee, and help me out of this pain!" And thcre? as he prayed in the rain and the wind. To the the gray old Boer from the Orange Free State Tho man who had fought for cattlo and kind With his sons, ana sons1 Sons less than theirguns To free bis land from the men of their hate There oame to his call the God of the psalm The Helpor of helpless after the fray, And his face grew pale with a wonderful calm, And the psalm-book dropped, And the blood-jet stopped, And the pain and the sorrow had passed away. -II. D. Rawnsley. F inyon's Ledge. | ~" 1 - fr DISABLED JIUXTEB. & catch his every movement. As ?the wind whirled up lue ravine it created an eddy, and from ono of the circles of thia eddy he got my scent. Stop ping midway in his promenade, he reared up and sniffed the air with sav age growls, aud my heart boat so hard that it seemed asu if hp^must surely hear it and follow tho sound un*ii his hot breath was on my fae Sniff snuff-growl! To the right, to the left straight ahead.' After a minute be lost the scent, nnd then he stood stock still and uttered continuous growls as he waited to catch it again. No, not like n statue. His long tail swept the ground in a half circle, and bis ears worked swiftly back and forth. Blind death waiting to rend and bite and tear and kill! After a minute he got the scent again. He reared up, whirled about three or four times as if on a pivot, and theu ho pointed full at me. A tape line 15 feet long would have covered the ground between us between where I lay helpless' and he half crouched for a spring. If the him could be torn from those sightless eyes, how they would glint and glitter and bla~e! There was something in the sound of his low growling which chilled my blood-a menace, a warn ing of what was toc?me, which forced me to shut my eyes and utter a last prayer. Why does he hesitate? What delays his spring? He waited so long that I argued it out that his blindness reasoned against his ferocity. He had been blind for a year or two per haps. He had never left the cave alune except to move np raid clown over that one rou!e, and be probably feared a full into the ravine it he ven tured a spring. Hut he finally made up his mind to try it if tho scent held. I could tell that by his continuous growls, by the ears laid fiat back on his bend, as you have seen in au angry cat; by tho click of bis claws on tho flinty rock as he sought, a foothold for ti spring. As he was or. tho point of taking the leap the capricious breeze played him a trick. He suddenly lost tho scent and walked slowly down tho shelf to pick ;t up again, perhaps rea soning that I nacl moved my position. Ten feet to the right he got it, and with a tierce snarl ho crouched aud mado the leap. Did the beast know tho lay of the ground before losiug bis eyesight, or was it the subtle instinct given to the feline tribe? It was a clear leap of 15 feet-maybe a foot or two more. Only at that spot could he strike the shelf on which I stood. H? rose in the air like a bird taking flight, de scribed a graceful half-curve in the air, and landed so lightly that I felt rather than Leard him. He was ten feet away from me, and he reared up and snuffed at tho air in every direc tion. Up to that instant my broken ribs ha'd given no pain. All of a sud den it seemed as if knives were cutting into the flesh, and I had to clenoh my hands and shut my teeth bard to pre vent a scream from passing my lips. But for the wiud and the snow the. | beast must have got my scent so close at hand. There was such a swirl that he was at fault, aud he did not walk along the ledge. On the contrary,after about two minutos, he leaped back across the ravine and disappeared into his den. Then, with : many a groan and half-suppressed ejaculation, ' I drew myself back until I rested against the cliff. I knew that my ribs were broken, and that unless dis covered by accident I could never leave that ledge alive. It certainly had set in for a snowstorm, and it took only a few moments almost to hide me from sight under the white mantle. This was my salvation again. As the pain made me half unconscious, a full grown female panther, followed by a cub which may have been a year old, scrambled down the rocks on the op posite side of the ravine to the den of the blind beast Some taint of my presence must have been in tiie air, even though so faint they could not locate me. They snarled in anger and sniffed at the ak, and it seemed to me as if both looked; /directly at me for several seconda If they did so I was so buried under the snow that they failed to make out what sort of an ob ject 1 was. They finally turned and disappeared in the cave, but were out of sight only a momeirt? When they reappeared tho blind panther was with them, and the three scrambled up the rocks and disappeared in the forest. There had been a killing somewhere, and they had come to conduct him to the feast. Perhaps they brought to him food now and then, but ho must have had to go with them for water. It mattered littlo to me whether the panthers went or remained. Had I been free from injury I believe I could have made my way up the cliff, though it was a dangerous climb, but with broken ribs. I could do nothing but wait. Would they set out in search when I did not return to camp at dark? Of what use, as the falling snow had blotted out my trail until the keenest bloodhound would have been baffled? It was 1 o'clock o! a Novemler day when I fell over the cliff. Had it been a cold day I should bave frozen to death on that exposed spot within an honr. Fortunately for me it was scarcely freezing weather, and the pain was so groat that I never minded the cold. I was waitiug for I know not what when the end of a strong bark rope with a noose in it suddenly was let down in front of my eyes. No one had come in search of me. Peter, our Indian guido, had discovered the pan ther den the day beforo.and bal come back on this day in hope of getting a shot. Indian like, he had taken a close survey of things v bile waiting, and aftor a time had discovered mo on the shelf below. Few men would have tried what he did. As soon as I had slipped the noose over my* 8honlders and drawn it tight he began pulling, and tbongH I weighed 15 pounds more than he did he finally succeeded in landing me on the edge of the cliff. The rough urage I re ceived made me faint away, and it was while I was unconscious i hat tho three panthers returned. As they scrambled down the rocks aud stood for a moment the Indian fired and killed the female. She dropped dead in her tracks, and he fired again and killed the cub. Then.something like a tragedy oc curred. The blind panther could have saved himself. In fact, he did dash into the ?ave, but, as if realizing that those h. upended on for food and drink wore dead, and that without them he must pe-ish, ho reappeared, sniffed at their bodies, and then, with a scream in which there was more la meut than auger, be leaped into the ravine and vanished into ibe darkness to be mashe 1 to a pu'p on the rocks below. FACTS ABOUT SARDINES. The Grrnter Tart of J lil? Country's Con Rump! ion Now Pnoti tl Hore. Formerly the sardines consumed in this country were all imported from France; now about three quarters of the sardines eaten iu the United States are put up here, the chief centre of the sardine industry in tho United States being the eastern coast of Maine, though so no sardines are now put np on tho coast of California The packing of sardines in this coun try wa" begtiu about thirty-five years ago. Thousand* of people now find employment in one pa:"t aud another of tho work iu catching fish,iu making cans, and in eau n in g n:ul packing aud marketing and so on. Sardines are put up iu greater vari ety than formerly, there being nowa days sardines packed in tomato sance, sardines in mustard, spiced sardinos, and so ou; bnt the great bulk of sar dines, both imported and d >mestir, are still put np iu oil. Sardines aro put up al*o in a greater variety of packages than formerly; there being for example various sizes and shapes . of oval tins, and some French sardines are imported in glass; but as the great bulk of all sardines are sill put up iu oil so the gro.it bulk of them are still put up in the familiar flat boxe*, the great majority of these being of the sizes known as halves and quar ters, aud far the greater number of theso being in quarters. Sardines are packed IOU tins in a case, and the consumption of mardine* iu this couu try is roughly estima!el at from a million and a half to two million cases annually. Like canned goodp of every descrip tion, sardines aro cheaper now than they formerly were, and American sardines are sold for less than the im porte!. American sardines aro now exported from this country to the West Indies aud to South America. -New York Sun. . QUAINT AND CURIOUS. A novel way of illuminating a rail way tunnel has been devised in Paris. Retie tors throw the light from many electric lamps 16 feet above the rails to the sid'?s of the tunnel, where it is again refected by burnished tin, a soft and agreeable light. The trains automatically tnru the current on and off in entering and lt nving the tunnel. One of the most remarkable lakes on the earth's sui fuco is situated nt Tar Point, ou tba Island of Trinidad, and bears tho suggestive uamo of Pitch lake. At first view tho surface of the "lake, which is not a luke," gives one tho impression that it is a large body of placid water, but a closer examina tion proves it to 1 e a vast plain cov ered with hard and hardening vjitch. Somo years ago the dwellers of Cape Cod saw a remarkable sight-a party of meu going fishin o-i horseback. A largo school of black fish had run in shore, and to catoh them the men mounted their horses, rode out into the shallow water and drove the de moralized tish up higher and higher until the beach was strewn with them. The fishermen made big profits on this catch. Professor Hutchinson, F. R. S., reports the caso of a lady who could not take tea because it made her feet icy cold and wet with perspiration. She thought that the soles were chiefly affected, and that the hands were also made cold, but not so markedly as the feet. Mr. Hutchinson had long been familiar with the fact that tea made the feet of some persons cold, but did Hot know that cold perspiration at tended it. He believed the coldness to be caused by contraction of the arteries, inasmuch as the feet shrank. In China tho natives train certain birds to catch fish for them. The bird? are taught to sit on tho edge of a boat, each bird having a ring about its neck, and when a school of tish are seen they are released and immediately begin to fish. Tho speed with which those birds move under water ?3 re markable, aud they destroy large numbers of fish. One of the mosl remarkable methods of fishing is seen in the Hawaiian Islands, where men go under water, not in hand, and, clinging to tho rocks, scoop up the fish. This requires much endurance. Some of these fishermen, it is said, remain under water a minute and s half at a time. A pair of gloves passes througl nearly " 200 hands from the women! that the skin leaves the drosser'f bonds till the time when the glovec are purchased. ... I THE NATIVE PK _ ^ BY ENSIGN C. L WHEN, under the'mosfc amus ingly opera-bouffe condjr>. tions ever experienced?ifc modern warfare, the Uni ted States steamship Charleston, on June 20, 1898, captured the beautiful but isolated and sleepy old Spauisb island oolony of Guam in tho westeru Pacific, the place was governed by a lieutenant-colonel of tho Spanish armyp, Don Juan Marina, supported by A staff of four army and one naval ofil cers, and a garrison of fifty-four A FAMILY GROUP j Spanish soldiers, with a native militia of fifty-four men, these latter being; armed with old Remington rifles, and organized as artillery crews for . four old brass field-gnus. Upox the departure of the Charleston the Spanish officers and soldiers were removed, and the island was left nom inally in charge cf its leading citizens and the nativo soldiery. Daring all this time the native troops have maintained their organization and discipline, keeping their clothes aud equipments clean and in order, posting their sentries, and carrying THE CHURCH AND BELFRY AT AGANA. ont their routine-all in a most praise worthy manner. They are a soldierly, intelligent body of men, and will un doubtedly bo a valuablo auxiliary to the new marine garrison that has ar rived on the United States steamship Yosemite. Their best sphere of use fulness would be as a police force and ns rural guards in the outlying vil lages, thus relieving tho marines of this isolated and monotonous duty. The natives of Guam are in pleasing contrast to the Filipinos. Though originally, in great part, from the same stock, they have inherited all of the virtues and few of the vices of these people. There is in the blood . of these people a considerable pro portion of Spanish, South Ameri can, and Americau stock, the last being due to the whaling-vessels that used to frequent the island in large numbers to obtain fresh watei and to recuperate their crews. It is not at all unusual to hear English spoken, even in the interior of the island, and, in fact, it is quite as common as Spanish. In personal ap pearance the natives resemble the Filipinos, though of a greater stature and more robust, while the hair is not so bristling and porcupine-like, and brown or oven blond hair is occa sional evidence of the mixture of races. The intelligence, as indicated by their faces, is much more marked than iu tho natives of the Philippines. The women, when young, have well r THE NATIVE TB I rounded fignros-hnd an excellent enr I riage, which rodeoms to a groat ex I tent their shortness of statnre and i consequent teudeucy to dumpiness. ? In my long walks about Agana I have I noticed many that wore very comely and some that were deoidedly pretty. As they age they do not become nn duly fat, or later on repulsively hag gard, as is the case with so many tropical natives. Their dress is neat and clean, and in their personal habit3 they are mod est and tidy. For the women the cos tume is a short chemise, or jacket, writh low neck and short sleeves. This ?a made of white material of varying degrees of fineness. For more cere monial occasions it is embroidered around the neck and upon the sleeves, and is sometimes bordered with lace. It fits closely to the stayloss figure. ? h ; -'''B Ti r ?fi1 1 :r>iP*41 '- i LT AG ANA, GUAM. Upon occasions of tho greatest im portance- au elaborate jacket of the beautiful and ..expensive juna cloth, with'flowing sleeves dud'wide collar, irWfi?irsSwSP 'this is worn a skirt of vari-colored calico or cotton stnff, generally of some i bright hue. The feet are usually bav?j, i small heelless slippers of colored leather being occasionally seen. The hair is drawn back from the forehead in a knot, aud hats are never worn. In church a white cloth is worn as a veil over tho head. The men dress simply and comfort- i ably, generally in suits of white drill- ! ing, such as are common all through 1 tho East. Tho Filipino custom of j wearing a white shirt with long and I flowing tail.4 is iii favor among tho I poorer natives. Ono of the first things evident tons ' is the decided antipathy of the natives 1 for the Filipinos. There are few of them upon the island, and theso are not at ' all regarded with favor. lu truth, 1 they seem to be quite as unruly here as they are in their home, and their 1 qualities make them about tho ouly ' disturbing elemeut iu this peaceful, 1 well-disposed people. The only pris- j oner in the jail of the place was au ugiy-lookiug Filipino, who had mur- 1 dered a German trader about a year ' ago, and was sentenced to a long ' term pf confinement. The population of Guam is about ' 7000, mostly of tho Malay type. Tho 1 principal town is Agana, with 5475 ' inhabitants. There aro several Span- 1 ish families worth from S20.000 to 1 $50,000. GOVERNOR'S HOUSE, AGANA. i-1 - j As to the mental and moral charaoter- < istics of our new citizens, all that we .know BO far is of a favorable nature. < They are cleanly, intelligent and j peaceable. The great majority of them can read aud write, aud overy village bas its school for instruction in the elementary branches. They are modest and very courteous in their I deportment, and invariably touch i their hats to us when we pass them, : and are most generous to visitors. Ofos OF QUASI._ The worst trait, however, of tho tizen of Guam is indolence. Nature so provident, and BO warm aud spiling here, that little effort is re quired to support life aud provide Bpstenancc for the family. To pay a native by the day or in advance is a Utal error indeed, for be will a ork nhtil he has aooumulated ? few dol lars, then bny his wife a new skirt, lay iu a supply of canned goods at the Btore, some tobacco and tuba (cocoa nut rum), and then retire to a life of affluent case for as many mouths as the mouey and supplies hold ont. Intoxication ie very rare. Men and women alike smoko cigars and pipes, and nearly every one has the unsight ly habit of chewing the betel-nut. The native cigar is an object of wonder to the new-comer. It is made from the whole leaf of theuative tobacco, which is of most excellent flavor, bnt very strong aud green, rolled into a cylin der about eight inches long, and wound about with, threads of libro to keep it from unwrapping. With the example of American en ergy aud indnstry; with advanced ed ucation, and with the influences of progress; with a strong and just gov ernment and purified religious exam ple and instruction-there opeus bo fore the inhabitant of Guam a most promising future; and before us,whose duty it is to plaut here a modol col ony, there lies a most interesting ex perience and labor, of the ultimate success of which there eau bs no pos sible doubt. Captain Eicbnrd P. Leary, of the United States Navy, the naval Gov ernor of the islaud, 'is a Baltimcrean aud a brother of Captain Peter Leary, Jr., of the Fourth United States Ar tillery, now at Fort Mc Henry. Cap tain Leary has had a long and honor able service in the navy. Several years ago the Legislature of Maryland presented him with a gold medal for his courageous service to tho Govern ment during tho Samoan dispute. At that time ha was in command of tho American man-of-war Adams. Cap Leary convoyed the New Orleans, purchased from Brazil, to this coun try. This ship was used during tho war with Spain as a patrol for the New England coast. Although he did not CAPTAIN RICHARD P. LEAKY, NAVAL GOVERNOR*"^? GUAM. rio ranch damage to the Spaniards, Captain Leary's vessel had tho dis tinction of being the last American boat to be fired upou. New?bi>3'.-i in New York City. There are now a number of New JTork newsboys who, instead of walk ing from point to point, station them selves ab some spot, and instead of walking about, hold that spot. A jood illustration ot this is seen in the Dity Hall park in the selling of after noon papers to people going home to Brooklyn over the bridge, or uptown in Manhattan or the Bronx by way of the elevated railroad from the City Hall station. Many of these boys iiave regular customers who buy from them regularly. Perhaps the latest development of specialization in selling newspapers in the street is at the doors of big whole sale houses down town. This is not new, but is doue more thau before. The boy takes his station outside the loor, and if he succeeds he comes to liave regular customers, who buy as diey leave ou their way home. The boy knows their paper and whips it :ut as they come along, and he may lo better concentrating his attention au this stream, so to speak, than he would fishing for a chance fish to be ;aken betweeu corners pre-empted by penders making it their business to stand day after day on tho same spot. Information Wanton1. A small boy living in Mt. Salem, Mich., was asking his father ques ions the other night. "Pa," ho said, "what is dehorn ing?" Father-"Why, it's cutting the. liorns off cattle." Boy (after reflecting)-"Pa, what is detailing?" Father (growing irritated)-"What in tho world are you asking so many ju estions for?" Boy-"Well, I saw in tho paper the athor day, where General Buller de tailed a whole squad of his men." Detroit Freo Press. Americans Live Well. An American spends on au average $>i) a year on food, a Frenchman $48, a German $45, a Spaniard $33, an Ital ian $24, and ? Bussian $40. The American eats 109 pounds of meat a year, the Frenchman eighty-seven pounds, the German sixty-four pounds, the Italian twenty-eight pounds and the Bussian fifty-one pounds. Of bread the American consumes 380 pounds, the Frenchman 510 pounds, the German 560 pounds, the Spaniard 180 pounds, the Italian 400 pounds and the Bussian G55 pounds. Playing With the Bov?. A small schoolboy who had been sent homo by his teacher because his sisters bad the measles was noticed by that teacher at tho next rocess playing with tho other childrou on tho school ground. . "Johnny, didn't I toll yon not to come to school while your sisters had tho measles?" 1 "Yes; but I am not going to school. I only came to play with the boys be fore it begins."-Commercial Tribune. The Worst or All. Willie-"Just see my new hobby automobile." Jack-"That's nothing! Look at this bladeless knife and triggerless rifle." Alice-"But yon should see my pointless story-book. What have you got, papa?" Papa-"A penniless puree."-Life. 1 COOD WATER FROM TREES. W^y Woodsmen In th? Soni h Al unja Curry un Auger In Their Kit. In many sections of the forest lands of the south during the dry seasons a. man may walk for miles without find ing a stream of water or a spring by which to quench his thirst. If, how ever, he ie au experienced hunter and woodsman, he will not have, to drink water from the stagnant pools in order to keep life in his body. Queer as it may ^eem, an experi enced mau can hunt for days through such dry tracts and yet experience no inconvenience on account of the lack of water. Nature has provided a means which is only known to the in itiated. Every old huntsman carries with him, when goiug on a long hunt, a small auger, by which he eau secure a refreshing drink and water to cook with at any moment A cottonwood tree or a willow is the well which the wily huntsman taps. He examines each tree until ho finds ono that has what a woodsman calls a "vein." It is simply an attenuated protuberance. By boring into this "vein" a stream of clear water will flow out. It is not sap, but clear,pure water. Tho huntsmen say that the water is better than the average to be had from the ordinary wella. There is no sweetish taste about it, but it ha" a strong flavor of sulphur, and is slightly carbnoated. The reason for this phenomenon cannot easily be explained, but that a supply of water can bo contained in a tree is not so surprising. The fact of its flowing is the wonderful feature, showing that it must be under pres sure, or, in other words, that there is more at the source of the supply. When it is considered that the trees furnish the water iu the dry season, and that the ground is literally baked, it is the more remarkable, especially when the roots of the trees do not ex tend to any great depth into the ground. Owjnr the fact that water can be obtained oy tapping cottonwood and willow trees, very peculiar testimony was recently heard in a case in the federal court here. About 20 years ago, at a certain point on the Missis sippi river, one of the islands which was formed by the channel forking and surrounding a large tract of land was deserted by the stream on tho Tennes see side. Years afterward this land was claimed by the man .0 owned property in Tennessee adjoining the former island. His claim was that the island had been washed away, and that the present land was formed by accretion. The former owner, to prove that the land had been washed away, sawed off the top of a cottonwood stump that was on the island and showed that it contained 56 circles, or rings, begin ning nt th? heart. His statement was that a ring was formed in the tree e*ery year, hence the tree was a sap ling 55years ago,and was cons?qnent ly growing there 36 years before the island became a part of Tennessee. In order to prove that a ring was formed every year he testified that while hunting, about 20 miles from that place in 1865, he had, tapped a cottonwood tree for water, aud had put a plug in the hole afterward to keep the water from wasting. His theory was that the tree in its growth would have covered up the plug and that the number of rings from this plug to the bark of the tree would be, in the year 180!', 34,showing that a ring had been formed for every one of the 34 years it had been imbedded in the wood. The tree was found and sawed up. The plug was discovered, and was dis tant from the outside of the tree ex actly 34 rings. Although such testimony would not be doubted by a woodsman, it was not received as evidence by the court Tho Strantro Thins;? We Hear. The car was very crowded. Just beside the woman sat a very pretty girl and hanging to n strap was a very nice young man, and since everything was in such close quarters, the wo man had no choico but to play the part of eavesdropper. And this is what she heard: "How ia ev? rything out in Becky Heights now?" asked the youug mau. "lt's so dull," auswered the young woman. "You've no idea how dull it is. I'\e been wantiug lo come into town to visit ?nsie, but they wou't let me." "Why not?" asked the man. "I don't know," she said. "Good ness knows they're anxious enough to get me married off. I should think they'd be only too glad to have me come." "Would you marry?" The young mau seemed partial to questions. "Would I marry?" she repeated. "Yes, indeed I vould." "But why don't you?" came an other question. "Because nobody asks me. I will marry just the first mau who wants me," she said innocently. "Well, will yon have me?" ho said. Silence for a moment, and con cealed anxiety on tho part of the lis tener. "Will you have me? I'll come out with the ring tonight," he said. "Do you know what my father and mother would say?" she said sud denly. "No, what?" " 'Praise God from whom all bless ings flow.' " Khaki for Uniform?. I think it was in the year 1885 that Lord Boberts, who had just taken over the office of commander-in-chief in India, took up the question of khaki in the same energetic manner in which he went iuto every military question. He was early convinced of the suita bility of this color for nniforms in the field, and he wont further-he issued an order to have the whole equipment of field and mountain batteries, in cluding even the wheels and guns themselves, painted khaki. This was a striking chango from the dark color they had previously been painted, aud which presented such a contrast to the usual surroundings of au Indian land scape. The rage for khaki at that time was no general that some wit proposed that all horses should be painted khaki before being sent on service. An excellent idea, bnt un fortunately unpractical till some one can manage to breed out a khaki horse. -Blackwood. A SONG OF A BUTTON. With fingers awkward and big (Long past the hour for bed), A. mere mon handles a needle keen Which lt's taken him hours to thread Work ! Work! Work! For work he is truly a glutton. 'T?3 his first attempt-yet he does nor shirk He is trying to sow on a button. With fingers weary and worn (The dawn is rising red). ? mere man toils in a piteous way, Still plying bis needle and thread Prick ! Prick! Prick! And he murmurs (I think) "Tut ! Tut !" on The needle invading his fingernails quick. As it comes with a jerk through the button. With fingers ragged and sore (The sun shines bright o'erhead), A mere man wearily puts away His troublesome needle and thread Stitoh! Stitch! Stitch! He has struggled with eyes hidf shut on, Cut bis spirits are yards above concert piton By Jove, he has sewn on a button ! -The Were Man, in Punch. HUMOROUS. Ida-She keeps her age well, doesn't she? May-Yes; she can't get rid of it. "What made yon so long getting ready?" "I had lost the combination and couldn't get my earmuffs on." "What are you going to call your new office building?" "I think ?1I call it the 'Serial,' on aocount of its continued stories." "How much is -no's new husband worth?" "Oh, I suppose she could realize $5000 on h;m if she could get him killed by the cars." "I say, Pat, what are you about? Sweeping out the room?" "No," un swered Pat; "I'm sweepiu' out the dirt, and lea vin' the room." "I would have you to know.feilow," ' said Charlie van Beet, "that I came down from the real Knickerbocker stock." "It's a terrible come-down," said the man. The feage spoke words of wisdom deep, And evory one seemed fast asleep. He chanced to make n slight mistake, And every one was wide uwuko. "I believe that Goodlnck has got an increase of salary. What was it for-extra work?" "Yes ! Ho always listens when the boss teils the smart things bis kid says." Gentleman (indignantly)-When I bought this dog you said he was splen did for rats. Why, he wouldn't touch them. Dog Dealer-Well, ain't that splendid for the rats? Bill-They say that looking too long at one object hurts the eyesight Jill-I guess that's right. ? know if you say, "Here'a looking at yon" too ' many times it seems to have a bad effect on the eyes. "It must have taken lots of nerve for him to laugh and joke with the doctors while they were taking his leg off at the knee. Didn't he seem excited?" "Well, I thonght he talked . in rather a disjointed manner." , "Awfully good joke on young Splints, isn't it?" "Didn't hear it" "He sized up a man for appendicitis, and favored him with a hasty operation. " "What's the joke? Man's dead?" "Man's dead all right enough, but that ain't the joke. They lound out at the autopsy that he was born with out any appendix." Wileri? Americans Are Tracking. "I have just returned from a live months' visit to Europe," contiuued Mr. Merrell, "aud while I was iu Germauy I had occasion to make a business trip to the little towu of Esseugen, iu one of the northern provinces. Essengen is a great centre for the manufacture of belladonna, and I went there to place a good-sized order, but neither at tho depot nor at the hotel could I ?ud a soul who spoke English. I was ordering din ner by signs and wondering whether I could lind my May about town, wheu a youug man walked in and in troduced himself as a representative of the drug house I wished to visit He spoke faultless English, and I saw at once that he was thoroughly fami liar with English trade methods. We soon came to an understanding, and I complimented him upon his commnud of the language. He said very mod estly that it was nothing; that he had spent four years in one of tho largest drug houses of London, four years with a similar establishment iu Paris and three years with auother at Borne -all 'preparing himself for the busi ness. ' In other words, he could con duct a commercial transaction with ease in English, French, Italian or' German. 1 looked at him in amaze ment, and he assured mc that there was nothing phenomenal about his accomplishments - that three lan-* guages were spoken by all well equipped clerks and four by many. I mention the incident to illustrate what manner of men are used by for eign nations to cater to their export trade. That is one of the reasons why we have had such small success iu gaining a foothold in the Latin American markets. We lack solicitors with education sufficiently cosmopoli tan to do busiuess with the people of those countries. When our young men work a couple of years in a com mercial establishment they expect to become junior partners."-New Or leans Times-Democrat. Can't Abbreviate 1900. "Had you thought of one thing?" said the correspondence clerk. "There's a whole lot of people, thou sands of them writing letters without printed or engraved letter heads, who abbreviate the year in the date line; writing, for instance, instead 1890, '99. Now what will they do with 1900? They certainly can't abbreviate that When we strike 1901 it will be all i ight again, then they can write Jau. 1, '01; but '00 wouldn't mean any thing, and there's nothing to do but to write the year out "This will be done throughout the year 1900 many millions of times; as a matter of sober fact the multi tudinous writing of these two ciphers will involve the loss iu the aggregate of much time, and the using up of thousands of pens and much ink. But it's an ill wind that blows nobody good. Tho writers' loss, here, is the iuk makers' and the pou manufac turers' gain; and for that matter it's just so with everything; things go on just about the same, whatever hap pens."-New York Sun. The largest sewing machine in the world is in operation in Leeds, Eng land. It weighs 6500 pounds, and sews cotton belting.