The Pickens sentinel. (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, December 02, 1880, Image 1
DEVOTED TO POLITICS, MORALITY, EDUCATION AND TO TWE GENERAL INTEREST 0F THE 00UNTRY.
By D. F. BRADLEY & 00. PICKENS, S. C., THURSDAY, DECEMBER 2, 1880. VOL. X.-N , 11.
TDE MNsICAL BOY.
BY JAMES T. FIELDr
I
It is a ruthless, toothless wiglr.
Who d welts beside a wall,
And spends his time in singing songs
As loud as he can bawl,
And casting stones at passengers
Who may neglect to call.
Tho knave deals out inflated corn
A nd other luff y things,
Guin-balls, and niscellancous pie.
And doughnuts shaped like rings;
The pea-nut branch he also plies,
As all day long he sings.
o urchin rude, of manners crude,
Of unangelic voice,
Pray tell me true, young rufflan, do,
If thus you live from choice,
Or if in your unhallowed way
Ytu really don'I rejoice.
Your wares are insalubrious,
Your carols are the same,
Your bold career is fraught with fear,
Your traffic one of shame
A dark, mysterious, dreadful trade,
A deed without a name.
Boy, cease your harmful, dreary notes,
And fing your goods away;
Go get you to New Zealand, or
Some cove in Baffin's Bay -
Expenses out (but no return
Myself will gladly pay.
The rogue looks up with knowing leer,
And bids me not repine,
Then aims a nissile at TUy head,
With phrase that's not divine,
.And croaks a still more dismal song
The words. alas! are mmirm
PASSION IN TATTERS.
"She has got a face like one of her
own rosebuds," said Mr. Vitzlan.
"I've heard of her more than once,"
returned Frank Calverly. "'The pretty
flower girl,' the people call her, don't
they? Old Frixham has doubled his
custom since she came there."
"And the best of it all," added Fitza
Ian, with a laugh, "is that she is quite
unconscious of her own attractions--a
little country lassie, who thinks only of
her own business, and never dreams that
she herself is the sweetest flower of all
the assortment."
"Let's go in. and buy a Marechal Niel
bud and two or three sweet verbena
leaves," said Calverly. "I should like
to see this modern Flora of yours."
Dorothy Ponfield stood behind the
counter of the florist's store, sorting over
a pile of fragrant blossoms which lay on
a tray of damp, green moss. Trails of
smilax wove their green garlands up to
the ceiling;' heaps of gold and rose
petaled buds lay in the window; tufts of
purple heliotrope perfumed the air, and
white carnations lay like hillocks of snow
against the panes of the show-window,
while spikes of perfumed hyacinths and
cape-jessamine flung their subtle scenta
upon the air.
And Dolly herself, with her round,
dimpled face, pink cheeks, and soft,
brown eyes, exactly the shade of the
rippled hair, which was brushed simply
back from the broad, low brow, was a
fitting accessory to the scene.
She looked up as the two gentlemen
entered and a soft, crimson shadow over
spread her face for a second.
" Have you got one of my favorite
button-hole bouquets made up, Miss
Penfleld ?" Fitzalan asked, with a careless
bow and smile.
"I know," said Dolly, softly. "A
rosebud and a sprig of heath, and two or
three myrtle leaves; that is What you
like. No; I have none made ip, just at
p resent; but I can tie one up in about
half a minute, Mr. Fitzalan."
"One for me, too, if you please," said
Calverly, touching his hat.
"Just the same?"
Dolly lifted her long eyelashes, which
were hik'e fringes of brown silk, and gave
him a shy glance.
"A little different, please. Consult
your own taste, Miss Penfield."
" I like, the double blue violets," said
Dolly, gently, "with geranium leaves."
" Then they shall be my favorite flow
ers also," said CJalverly, gallantly.
The gentlemen had hardly taken their
- leave, when old Frixham, the florist,
bustled in, with round, red face, shining
bald head, and an air of business all over
him.
" Isn't it time you had the theater boni
quoe ready?" said he, looking critically
around, and moving a glass of freshly
cut callas out of the level sunset beams
which at that moment fell, like a sheen
of gjolden laces, athwart the deep bow
"I shall have them ready directly,"
said Dolly, starting from her reverie,
" the flowers are all sorted out."
"We have too many carnations on
hand," said the florist fretfully; "and
those gaudy cape bells are so much dead
oss. Let the man from the greenhouses
know, please, there's a demand for half
open rosebuds and forced lilies-of-the
valle." said Dolly, dreamily, " I wil
tell him--when he comes."
The closed country wagon with its
freight of fragrant leaves and deliously
scented flowers, came early in the morn
ing, long before the fat florist was out of
bed, and while the silence almost of an
--enchanted land lay upon Upper Broad
way.
But Dolly Penfield was there freshen
ing up the stock of the day before with
wet moss and cool wffter, and clipping
the stems of the rosebuds.
" No more carnations, John," she said
briskly " nor amaryllis flowers, and we
want fenty of camellias and geraniums,
and t ose bright flowers."
"I thought, perhaps," said honest
John Deadwood, who measured six feet
in his stockings, and had the face of an
Samiable glani, "you might want to go
back with me to-dy Dolly. Your aunt
has come on from Kana, and there is
going to be a dance out in the old barn,
with plenty of candles and evergreen
boughs. And mother said she would be
proud to welcome you to the old farm
hansa Tin1m onr oleandr~a tree is
kept carefully at the south window,
and-"
"Dear me !" carelessly interrupted
Dolly; "why don't they put it in the
greenhouse?"
"Because, Dolly," said the young
man, reddening, "it reminds us of you.
And the meadow-lark in the cage sings
beautifully; ad old red brindlo has a
spotted eaf."
" Has she?" questioned dolly indiffer
ently.
John Deadwood looked hard at her.
" Dolly," said he, "you don't care
about the old home any longer I"
" Yes, I do," said Dolly, rousing her
self, " but- -"
She paused suddenly, the rosy color
rushed in a carmine tide to her cheek. an
involuntary smile dimpling the corners
of her fresh lips as she glanced through
the smilax trails in the window.
John Deadwood, following in the di
rection of her eyes, glanced, too, just
in time to see a tall gentleman lift his
hat and bow as lie went jauntily past.
"Is that it," said John, bitterly.
"Is what?" petulantly retorted Dolly.
"I'm sure I don't know why we are
standing here waiting for and I with
twenty-eight bouquets to make up by
2 o'clock. That's all, John, I think.
Don't forget the lilies of the valley."
"But you haven't answered me, Dol.
ly. o
"Answered you whast?"
"About the dance in the old barn, and
coming back with me when the wagon
returns at 5 o'clock."
"It is quite out of the question," said
Dolly, listlessly.
"htbolly!"
"Well."
"You promised me years ago-"
"Nonsense," said Dolly, flinging the
azaleas and pinks around in fragrant
confusion. "I was only a child then.''
"But you've no right to go back on
your word, Dolly, child or no child."
"I never promised, John."
"But you let me believe that one day
you would be my wife. And I've lived
on the thought of it, -Dolly, ever since.
And if this city situation of yours should
break up my life's hope-"
"Don't hope anything about me,
John!" brusquely interrupted the girl.
"Here comes a customer. Please, John,
don't stand there any longer looking like
a ghost!"
And honest, heart-broken John turned
and went with heavy heart out to 'where
the wagon stood, and old Roan was wait
ing With down-drooping head and half
closed eyes.
"It does seem to me," he muttered be
tween his teeth, "that there is nothing
left to live for any longer."
Dolly looked half remorsefully after
him.
"I've almost a mind to call him back,"
said she to herself as she picked out a
bunch of white violets for the newcomer.
I do like John Deadwood; hut I think he
has no business to consider himself en
gaged to me, just because of that boy
and-girl nonsense. One's ideas change
as one gets on in life."
And Dolly's check was like the reflec
tion of the pink azaleas as she thought of
Mr. Fitzalan and the turquoise ring that
he had given her as a troth plight.
And Mr. Frixham came in presently.
"I've a note from the Sedgewicks, on
Fifth avenue," said he hurriedly. They
always order their flowers trom Servosa,
but Servoss has disappointed them. They
want the house decorated for a party to
night-there's not a minute to lose. I've
telegraphed to Bolton's for one hundred
yards .of smnilax and running fern and
one hundred poinsettas; and I think we
can manage the rest ourselves. You had1
better go at once, Miss Penfield, and
plan the decorations-you've a pretty.
taste of your own-and I'll send up the'
flowers with Hodges to help you."
And Dolly went, her mind still on the
turquoise ring, with a band of virgin
gold and its radiant blue stone.
The Sedgewick mansion was a brown
stone palace, with plate glass casements,
and a vestibule paved with black and
orange marble.
Mrs. Sedgewick, a stately lady, in ai
Watteau wrapper and blonde cap, re
ceived Dolly in the great drawing room.
" Oh!" said she, lifting her eye-glasses.
"you're from the florist's, are you s
Well, I know nothing about these thlings
-I only want the rooms to look elegant.
Tell your husband to spare no expense."~
"Mr. Frixham is not my husband,"
said Dolly.
"Your father, then."
"But he isn't my father," insisted
Dolly, half laughiing. Hie's no relation
at all. I will tell him, however."
"Exactly," said Mrs. Sodgewick. "I
particularly desire plenty of white roses,
as I am told they are customary at thiE
sort of affair. It's an engagement party.'
"Indeed!" said Dolly, trying to look
interested.
"Between my daughter Clara and Mr.
Alfred Fitzalan," said Mrs. Sedgewick,
with conscious complacency.
Dolly said nothing, but the room, with
its fluted cornices and lofty ceilings,
seemed to swim around her like the
waves of the sea. And as she went out,
with Mrs. Sedgewick still chatting about
white rose-buds and begonia-leaves, she
passed the half open door of a room, all
hung with blue velvet, where a yellow
tressed beauty sat smiling on a loM
divan, with Fitsalan bending tenderly
above her.
"He has only been amusing himself
with me," said Dolly to herseff.
There was a sharp aohe at her heart
but after all, it was only the sting oJ
wounded pride. Thank heaven-oh,
thank heaven, it was nothing worse than
that!i
Honest John Deadwood was driving
old Roan steadily and solemnly along
past the patch of woods, where the vel
vet-mossed bowlders lay like dormant
beasts of prey in the snrine, twiliahit
when a gy shadow glided out of the
other shad ows, and stood at his side.
"John!" she whispered.
"Dolly I it's never you ?"
"Yes, John," said the girl, gently but
steadily. "I'm going back home with
you."
"God bless you, Dolly," said the young
man, fervently.
"For good and all, John, if you'll take
me," said Dolly, slowly. "I've had
quite enough of city life; and I'll help
you with the green houses, and I'll try
and be a good little housekeeper at home.
Shall I, John ?"
John put his arm around her and hug
ged her up to his side.
"Darling !" said he, huskily "it's
most too good news to be true; but, if
my word is worth anything, you shall
never regret your decision of this day."
So the pretty flower girl vanished out
of the bower of smilax and rosebuds.
The Sedgewick mansion wasn't decorated
at all, and Mr. Frixham had lost his new
customer. And the turquoise ring came
back to Mr. Fritzalan in a blank en
velope.
Household Perils.
Under this head the Boston Journal of
Chenistr.q/ names several dangerous sub
stances which find their way into house
holds. There are two or three volatile
liquids used in families which aro par
ticularly dangerous, and must be em
Iloyed, if at all, with special care. Ben
zine, ether and strong ammonia consti
tute this class 9f agents. The two first
named liquids are employed in cleans
ing gloves and other wearing apparel, and
in removing oil stains from carpets, cur
tains, &c. The liquids are highly vola
tile, and flash into vapor as soon as the
cork of the vial containing them is re
moved. Their vapors are very combust
ible and will inflame at long distances
from ignited candles or gas flames, and
consequently they should iover be used
in the evening, when the house is lighted.
Explosions of a very dangerous nature
will occur if the vapor of these liquids is
permitted to escape into the room in con
siderable quantity. In view of the great
hazard of handling these liquids cautious
housekeepers will not allow them to be
brought into their dwellings, and this
course is commendable. As regards am
monia, or water of ammonia, it is a very
powerful agent, especially the stronget
kinds sold by druggists. An accidenr
in its use has recently come under our
notice in which a young ladylost her life
from taking a few drops through mis
take. Breathing the gas under certain
circumstances causes serious harm to
the lungs and membranes of the mouth
and nose. It is an agent much used at
the present time for cleansing purposes,
and it is unobjectionable if proper care
is used in its employment. The vials
holding it should be kept apart from
others containing medicines, &c., and
rubber stoppers to the vials should be
used. Oxalic acid is considerably em
ployed in families for cleaning brass and
copper utensils. This substance is highly
poisonous, and must be kept and used
with great caution. In crystalline struc
ture it closely resembles sulphate of
magnesia or t~psom salts, and, there
fore, frequent mistakes are made and
lives lost. Every agent which goes into
families among inexperienced persons
should be kept in a safe place, labeled
properly and used with care.
Carolina's Sweet Sixteen.
A curious petition was that addressed
in 1733 to the Governor of South Caro
lina by sixteen maidens of Charleston. It
ran thuns:
"The humble petition of all the maids
whose names are underwritten. Where
as, we, the humble petitioners, are at
present in a very melancholy disposition
of mind, considering how all the bache
lors are blindly capltivated by widows, and
our own youthful charms are thereby
neglected; in consequence of this, our
request is that Your Excellency will for
the future order that no widlow presume
to marry anyj young man till the maids
are provided for; or else to pay each of
them a fine for satisfaction for invading
our lberties and likewise a fine to b~e lev
icd on all such bachelors as shall be mar
ried to widows. The groat disadvantage
it is to us maids is that the widows, by
their forward carriage, do snap up the
young men, and have the vanity to think
their merit beyond ours, which is a great
imposition on us, who ought to have the
preference. This is humbly recont
mended to Your Excellency's considera
tion, and hope you will permit no further
insults. And we poor maids in duty
bound will ever pray."
The forlorn sixteen would have very
much a pproved the edict of the Portu
guese King, which forbade widows more
than fifty years old from remarrying, on
the ground that experience taught that
widows of that age commonly weddell
young men of no property, who dissi
pated the fortunes such marriages
broughit them, to the prejudice of chik
dren and other relatives,
Ultimately.
A gentleman who has a bill against Gil
hooly has been bothering that distin
guished Galvestonian for weeks for a set
tlement. The other day he called on him
and said: "Now, Mr. Gilhooly, I want
you to tell me when you will pay that
bill."
"Didn't I tell you I was going to pay
it ultimately ?"
"Yes, but I want you to set some day,
so I can make my calculations."
"I'll pay it ultimately."
"Can't you be more definite ? WThen
will you pay it ultimately ?"
"Well, I will pay it very ultimately.
Now, I hope you are satisfied."-Galvee
(on Newe.
SOUTHERN NEWS,
Four counties in Georgia, two of which
are in Alex. H. Stephen's district, did
not cast a vote for Gar field.
The assessed value of taxable property
in Georgia has increased $14,000,000
during the past year.
Weaver carried Walker county, Texas,
by a majority of sixteen over Hancock
and Garfield combined.
The cupola of- the court-house at
Clarksville, Tenn., is surmounted by a
brazein eagle measuring twelve feet from
tip to tip.
A building erected at Lexington, Ga.,
for a dancing hall when that town was
in the zenith of its glory is now used as
a stable.
The Appeal says that the all night
houses, where men can be around, drink
and quarrel, are the cause of nearly all
the rows that occur in Memphis.
The City Council of Fort Smith, Ark.,
has passed an ordnance prohibiting the
carrying of pistols in the city limits in
nay other way except in the hand.
The city board of health of Vicksburg
has petitioned the National Board of
Health to have a sanitary survey made
of the city and its surroundings.
Nearly one hundred more mai-ring
licenses have been issu ed to colored cou
pies in Mecklenburg county, N. C., this
year than to whites.
The new Mississippi code fixes the
fee of a Coroner for holding an inquest
at $5 instead of $10, the former figure.
and same of thec Coroners are resigning
in consequence.
A proposition is about to be submitted
to the Little Rock City Council for the
construction of new water-works. A
number of prominent citizens have a
new organization in contemplation.
Cotton seed was first planted in the
United States, in 1621 in Virginia as an
experiment. It was first planted in
Georgia and the Carolinas in 1773-'74,
and in Louisiana in 1742.
A water-wheel put up for a flouring
mill at Augusta, Ga., weighs 6,000
pounds and is to furnish 135-horse
power. It was nnufactured in Chat
tanooga.
At a fashionable masquerade party at
Vicksburg, two ladies who attracted
mIuch attention and admiration during
the evening were found to be young men
when the unmasking took place.
The finest dress ever seen in Atlanta
was worn at the inaugural ball by Miss
Lelia Austell, of that city. It cost
$2,000, and wvas trimmed with lace pur
chased by her in Paris, at $200 per yard.
A boy in San Antonio, Texas, while
standing in front of his father's house
eating a peice of bread, was suddenly
attacked by an electric flame, which is
sup~posedI t)> have come from a lightning
rodI near by and w~as badly burned.
Geni. Phinney, at the Georgia Mining
Company, has thoroughly tested the
Robertson process for reducing ores,
and the tests show a yield of $8 to $15
per ton from ore that yielded only $1.50
per toni. Works will soon be erected at
Gineimsville.
The cotton crop of Texas was closed
by a killing frost. The total will amount
to 1,250,000 b)ales and $60,000,000. The
Chbicago~ Texarkana Mexican Central
cotton factory, with a capital of $200,000,
was stalrtedl here to-day. Forty thous
and dollars was subscribed in D~allas.
The new statutes of Mississippi pro
vidle that in cases where persons are doing
b~usiness as agents, or in their own
name, with the good1s andl capital of
other people, the principal's nam'i must
be conspicuously di-played at the place
of business, or the goods shall be liable
for the debts of the person conducting
the b)usiness.
D~uring the last three years nearly
400 people from North Georgia have
been converted to Mormonism, andl emi
gratedl to Almiaso, Col. The people of
the colony oppose polygamy and there
is only one p)olygamist among them.
The colony is still growving, a party of
fifty being ready at present to start from
Virginia to join it.
A man by the name of Albert Green,
while walking with a young lady on
Sunday, ein Clehurne county, Texas,
was approached by Ellen Powell, whom
he hadl ruined. At night, Green and a
companion blacked the~mselves, forced
an entrance into the woman's house and
struck her brutally, then dragged her
out of the house. She held a pistol in
her hand that wouldn't stand cocked and
shot him dead.
A cave in East Tennessee is two miles
in length and has openings at both ends.
The owner of the ground around each
entrance charge for admission, and acted
as g uide for visitors. Their rivalry led
to serious fights in the cave, for each
held the other to be a trespasser. Then
one of the contestants hit upon a novel
aid effective means of ruining the
other's business. He sunk a shaft so as to
adniiit a large stream into the cave about
the center, and as there was as incline in
a favorable direction, the water poured
out at the enemy's portal, while his own
was unobstructed. The matter is to be
made the subject of a lawsuit.
A Good Horse.
"I can't explain what a real good horse
is," said one of the best natured dealers
in the street. " They are as different as
men; in buying a horse you must look
first to his head and eyes for signs of
intelligence, temper, courage, and hon
esty. Unless a horse has brains you
can't teach him anything any more than
you can teach a half-witted child. See
that tall bay there, a fine-looking animal,
about fifteen hands high. You can't
teach that horse anything. Why ? Well,
I'll show you a dikerence in heads; but
have a care of his heels. Look at the
beast's head-that rounding nose, that
tapering forehead, that broad, full place
below the eyes. You can't trust him.
Kick? Well, I guess so! Put him in a
ten acre lot, where he has plenty of wing,
and he'll kick the horn off the moon."
The world's treatment of man and
beast has the tendency to enlarge and
intensify bad qualities, if they predomin
ate. This good-natured phrenologist
could not refrain from slapping in the
face the horse whcse character had been
so cruelly delineated, while he had but
the gentlest treatnent fT'r a slick-limbed
sorrel that prieked her ears forward and
looked intelligent enough to understand
all that was being said.
"That's an awful good mare," he
added. " She's as true as the sun. You
can see breadth and fullness between the
ears and eyes. You can't hire that mare
to act mean or hurt anybody. The eye
should be full, and hazel is a good color.
I like a small, thin ear, and want a horse
to throw his ears well forward. Look
out for the brute that wants to listen to
all the conversation going on behind
him. The horse that turns back his ears
till they almost meet at the points, take
my word for it, is sure to do something
wrong. See that straight, elegant face.
A horse with a dishing face is cowardly,
and a cowardly brute is always vicious.
Then I like a square muzzle, with large
nostrils to let plenty of air to the lungs.
For the underside of a head a good horse
should be well cut under the jowl, with
jaw-bones broad and wide apart under
the throttle.
"So much for the head," he" contin
ued. " The next thing to consihfer is the
build of the animal. Never buy a long
legged stilty horse. Let him have a
short, straight b~ack and a straight rump
and you've got a gentleman's horse. The
withers should be0 high and the shoul
ders well set back and broad, but don't
get them too deep in the chest. The fore
legs should be short. Give me a pretty,
straight hind-log, with the hock low
down, short p~astern joints, and a round
mulish joot. There are all kinds of
horses, but the animal that has those
points is almost sure to be slightly grace
ful, good-natured and serviceable. As
to color, tastes differ. Bays, brown~a and
chesnuts are the best. Rloans are very
fashionable at p resent. A great many
grays and sorrelsa are brought here for
shipment to Mexico and Cuba. They do
wvell in a hot climate, under a tropical
sun, for the same reason that you find
light-colored clothing most serviceable
in summer. That circus horse behind
you is what many people call a calico
horse; now, I call him a genuine piebald.
It's a freak of nature and may happen
anywhere. "-S'cribner's Monthly.
"First Efforts."
I long for some patent method for con
vincing every man, woman and child,
who is poor, unhappy, or wants pin.
money, that they cannot rush into litera
ture pell-mell, and make money at will.
Above all, I should like a legal penalty
imposed upon every one who sendls a
"first effort" to me. It is an equal
"effort" and by no means my "first"
for me to read their poetry, and for them
to write it. I am fast becoming a
misanthrope from the amount of trash,
garnished with neither sense, grammar,
rhyme, nor metre, that my fellowv crea
tures perp~etrate with a view of fame and
fortune. Will anyone ever convince this
crowd of imbeciles that to wiite oven
decently demands previous cultivation,
information, and common sense; or that
real genius is like any other diamond,
and needs careful cultivating and polish
ing? I suppose not!-A tlantic Magaz ine.
Pat's Speech.
Pat-"Och, Bridget, did yo niver
hear uv my great spache afore the Hi
bernian Society ?" Bridget-'"No, Pat,
how should I? for sure I was not on the
groumnd." Pat,-"Well, Bridget, ye see
Iwas called upon by the Hibernian So
ciety for a spachie; and, be jabbers, I
rose with the enthusiastic cheers of thou
sands, 'with me heart overflowing with
gratitude, andl me eyes filled with tears,
and divil a word did I spake."
Tax~ reason why the poeta always
speak of October as " sober" is because
sober is the only word they can find to
rhyme with October.
FACTS FOR THE CURIOUS.
IT is reported tha t 320,000 holes were
bored in the execution of St. Gothard
tunnel, 980,000 pounds of dynamite con
sumed, and 1,650,000 drills worn out.
As 81 WILLIAM THOMPsON has shown,
the sun, if it were comsposd of solid
coal and produced its light by combus
tion, would burn out in less than 6,000
years.
TAcIs. -Two hundred and fifty differ
ent kinds of tacks are manufactured
from brass, copper, zinc, iron and steel.
The material from which tacks are made
is first cut into lo g strips as wide as
the required length of the tack. It is
then put into a machine which cuts it
into tacks or nails, as the case may be,
as quickly and as easily as a boy would
munch a stick of candy.
Tam Cunard line has lost two vessels
in thirty-seven years, but has never lost
a life nor a letter. The Colombia, 0110
of their first vessels, went ashore be
tween Halifax and Boston. The passen
gers and cargo were landed in safety,
but the vessel could not be got off. The
Tripoli went ashore near Tuskar,
off the coast of Ireland, about six years
ago. The passengers and cargo wero
landed safely, but the vessel was broken
up.
" TRATn catching," says the Hour,
"is the cause of more ill health than
is generally supposed. Those who ' bolt'
their breakfasts, in order to be in time
for the morning train, know that such a
courso leads to dyspepsia, with its at
tendant ills, and the violent exertion
which is made by those who just 'save
their distance' produces an excitement
of the heart and blood vessels which, if
freguently repeated, is likely to end in
serious organic disease."
1LECTRICITY is used in Paris to con
trol vicious horses. A conducting wire
runs from an electro-magnet in the seat
of the wagon through the reins to tho
horse's bits. By turning the crank of
the magnet a current of electricity is in
duced and sent to the animal's mouth.
No violent shock is given in benumb or
greatly alarm the hore, but the slight
pric e culiar to electrical
3,Sabdues him.
tiaring or
ex ingenious
ted by Prof.
Dreulau since 1865,
amis rare
or with those subject to
S T always the result of
liby the eye during study
ath. Myopia, as it is called,
is se11 fuand among pupils of villago
schools, and its frequency increases in
proportion to the demand made upon
the eye in higher schools andin colleges.
A better construction of school desks,
an improved typography of text-books,
and a sufficient lighting of class-rooms,
are the remedies proposed to abate this
malady.
Saturn's Rings.
Wo had a view of Saturn a few evenings
since through the fine telescope in Mr.
Seagrave's private observatory, that will
long be remembered for its exceeding
beauty. TIhe night is rarely favorable
for star-gazing, tile definition perfect and
tihe atmosphere serene. The picture is
one of surpassing loveliness, the most
sub~erb telescopic scene in the heavens.
Tile orb is resplendent in coloring, bluish
at the poles, pale yellow elsewhere,
crossed by two creamy central belts, and
flecked with spots that suggest light
scudding clouds. There is no appear
anice of a flattened disc, but the rounded
outlines of a sphero, seeming about the
size of the full moon, stand out in bold
relief against the azure blackness of tihe
sky. Around this softly glowing center
extend the wondrous rings, opening wide
thleir encircling arms and cradling the
planet in their protecting embrace. Every
detail of tile complex ring system is
sharply defined and vividly painted on
the celestial canvas. The outer and the
inner rings, tile dusky ring, the space
between the1 outer antil inner rings and
even the division in the outer ring are
plainly visible, while six of the eight
moons dot the dark sky with points of
golden glow. Tile six moons we see
one of them is larger than Mercury
circle around their primary withlin an
extreme span of four million miles. The
beautiful rings lie within the path of the
nearest moon and span a space of about
one hundred and seventy-six thlousandl
miles. The narrow dark space between the
inner and outer rings, is seventeen hun
dired miles broad, and the dusky or third
ring extends nine thousanfd miles within
tile inner or second ring.-Providence
Journal. ________
A AINoUL~ARI phenomenom has been
comnmenlted on by tile French scientific
p~apers. At Bonneville and other p laces
a slight shower of yellow rain fell. M.
do Can dolle, to whom were handed sheets
of paper stained by tile rain, has pro
nounced the coloring matter to be of an
organic naj esstAig of Vegetable
de brise a 0uld- be obured
the a ' h~oier
sesemulatno utL
Johnny .
" You must toeUg
children who a W st fine
" I don't, not t t dog-goned bit."
"Wily don't you e vy them, Johnny?"
" Because they have to wear cleat.
clothes, and they can't wade about in
the mud and they have to say please to