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lewis m. gkist, proprietor, j Jitbrptitbenf Jfamilp fttiispptr: Jor % ^rontottfiit of l|e |)<*lifital, Social, ^gricoliural anb Commercial Interests of t|>e Sontji. |terms--$2.50 a year, in advance. VOL. 27. YOEKVILLB, S. C., THUB.SID.A_Y, JUNE 9, 188i. NO. 23. m j^ttrrg lelkr. A TALE FOR TRUANT HUSBANDS. "Where are you going, George?" asked Mrs. Wilson, as her husband rose from the tea-table, and took his hat. "0?I'm going out," was the careless response. "But where?" asked his wife. "What odds does it make, Emma?" returned her husband. "I shall be back at my usual time." The young wife hesitated, and a quick flush overspread her face. She seemed to have made up her mind to speak plainly upon a subject which had lain uneasily upon her heart for some time, and she could not let the opportunity pass. It required an effort? but she persevered. "Let rae tell you what odds it makes to me," she said, in a kind but tremulous tone. "If I cannot have your company here at home, I should at least feel better if I knew where you were." "But you know that I am safe, Emma? and what more can you ask ?" "I do not know that you are safe, George. I know nothing about you when you are away." "Pooh ! pooh ! Would you have it that l am not capable of taking care of myself?" "You put a wrong construction upon my words, George. Love is always anxious when its dearest object is away. If I did not love you as I do, I might not be thus uneasy. When you are at your place of business, I never feel thus, because I know I can seek and find you at any moment; but when you are absent during these long even- j ings, I get to wondering where you are. Then I begin to feel lonesome ; and so one thought follows another, until I feel troubled and uneasy. Oh?if you would only stay * with me a portion of your evenings !" "Aha?I thought that was what you were aiming at/' said George, with a playful shake of the head. "You would have me here every evening." "Well?can you wonder at it?" returned Emma. "I used to be very happy when you caine to spend an evening with rae before we were married ; and I know I should be very happy in your society uow." "Ah," said George, with a smile, "those were business meetiugs. We were arranging tVion fi?r the future " these long evenings. They are the very seasons when I am at leisure to enjoy your companiouship, and when you would be at leisure to enjoy mine, if it is worth enjoying. They are the seasons when the happiest hours of home life might be passed. Come?will you not spend a few of your evenings with me ?" "You see enough of me as it is," said the husband, lightly. "Allow me to be the best judge of that, George. You would be very lonesome here, all alone." "Not if it was my place of business, as it is of yours," returned the young man. "You * are used to stayiug here. All wives belong , to home." "Just remember, my husband, that, previous to our marriage, I had pleasant socie.. ty all the time. Of course I remained at home much of ray time ; but I had a father and mother there, and I had brothers aud sisters there?aud our evenings were happily spent. Finally, I gave all up for you. I left the old home, and sought a home with my husband. And now, have I not a right to expect some of your companionship ? How would you like it to have me away every eveuing while you were obliged to remain here alone ?" "Why?I should like it well enough." "Ah?but you would not be willing to try it." "Yes, I would," said George, at a veuture. "Will you remain here every evening next week, and let me spend my time among my female friends?" "Certainly I will," he replied ; "and I assure you I shall not be so lonesome as you imagine." With this the husband went out, and was soon amoug his friends. He was a steady, industrious man, and loved his wife truly; hut like thousands of others, he had contracted a habit of spending his evenings abroad, | and thought it no harm. His only practical idea of home seemed to be, that it was a place which his wife took care of, and where he could eat, drink and sleep, as long as he could pay for it. Jn short, he treated it as a sort of ? private boarding-house, of which his wife was landlady ; aud if he paid all the bills he cou ' 1 -I -*-- -i smerea nis uuiy uunt*. ins ?nc u?u i?c(|iieiitly asked him to stay at home with her, hut she had never ventured upon any. argument before, and he had no conception of how much she missed him. She always seemed happy when he came home, and he supposed she could always be so. Monday evening came, and George Wilson remained true to his promise. His wife put on her bonnet and shawl, and he said he would remain and "keep house." "What will you do while I am gone?" Emma asked. "Oh! I shall read and sing, and enjoy myself generally." "Very well," said Emma. "I shall be back early." The wife went out and the husband was left alone. He had au interesting book, and he began to read it. He read till eight o'clock, and then he began to yawn, and look frequent ly at the clock. The book did not interest him as usual. Ever and anon he would come to a passage which he knew would please his wife, and instinctively he turned as though he would read it aloud to her; but there was no wife to hear it. At half-past eight he rose from his chair, and he began to pace the floor and whistle. Then he went and got his flute, and played several of his favorite airs. After this he got a chess-board, and played a game with an imaginary partner. Then he walked the floor, and whistled again. Finally, the clock struck nine, and his wife returned. "Well, George," said she, "I am back in good time. How have you enjoyed yourself?" "Capitally," returned the husband. "I had no idea it was so late. I hope you have enjoyed yourself." "0, splendidly !" said his wife. "I had no idea how much enjoyment there w^? away from home. Home is a dull place after all? isn't it?" "Why?no?I can't say that it is," returned George, carelessly. "In fact," he added, "I rather like it." "I am glad of that," retorted Emma, "for we shall both enjoy ourselves now. You shall have a nice comfortable week of it." George winced at this, but he kept his countenance, and determined to stand it out. Ou the next evening Emma prepared to go away again. "I shall be back in good time," said she. "Whereare you going?" her husband asked. "Oh! I can't tell exactly. I may go to several places." So George Wilson was left alone again, and he tried to amuse himself as before ; but he found it a difficult task. Ever and anon he would cast his eyes upon that vacant chair, and the thought would come: "How pleasant it would be if she were here !" The clock 6nally struck nine, and he began to listen for the steD of his wife. Half an hour more "And why not continue so to do, ray husband ? I am sure we could he as happy now as ever. If you will remember, one of our plans was to make a home." "And haveu't we got one, Emma?" "We have certainly a place in which to live," answered the wife, somewhat evasively. "And it is our home," pursued George. "And," he added, with a sort of confident flourish, "home is the wife's peculiar province.Site has charge of it, and all her work is there ; while the duties of the husband call .him to other scenes." "Well, I admit that, so far as certain duties are concerned," replied Emma. "But you must remember that we both need relaxation from labor; we need time for social and mental improvement and enjoyment; ?- ^??? * and what time nave we ior una oaw uu? evenings ? Why should not this be ray home of evening, as well as in daytime and in the night ?" "Well?isn't it ?" asked George. "How can it be if you are not here ? What makes a home for children, if it he not the abode of the parents ? What home can a husband have where there is no wife ? And ? what real comforts can a wife enjoy where there is no husband ? You do not consider Kftw l/inpsnnip T im all alone here during "George," she said, in surprise, "is that you ?" "It is," was the response. "And you do not pass your evenings at home?" "This is the first time I have been out, Emma, upon my word; and even now I have uot been absent from the house ten minutes. I merely came out to take the fresh air. But where are you going?" "I am going home, George. Will you go with me?" "Certainly," returned the husband. She took his arm, and they walked home in silence. When Emma had taken off her things, she sat dawn in her chair, and looked at the clock. You are come home early to-night," remarked George. The young wife looked up into her husband's face, and, with an expression half smiling and half tearful, she answered, "I will confess the truth, George ; I have given up the experiment. I managed to stand it last evening, but I could not bear it through tonight. When I thought of you here all alone, I wanted to be with you. It didn't seem right. I havn't enjoyed myself at all. I have no home but this." "Say you so?" cried George, moving his chair to his wife's side and takiug one of her hands. "Then let me make n.y confession. I have stood it not a whit better. When I left , the house this evening, I could bear it no loni ger. I found that this was no home for me, while my sweet wife was absent. I thought I I would walk down by Uncle John's and see i your face, if possible. I had gazed upon your ; empty chair till ray heart ached." He kiss| ed her as he spoke, and then added, while she : reclined her head upon his arm, "I have learned a very good lessou. Your presence i here is like a bursting forth of the sun after a ' storm ; and if you love me as I love you? : which, of course, I cannot doubt?my pres! ence may afford some sunlight for you. At j all events, our next experiment shall be to I to that effect. I will try and see how much | home comfort we can find while we are both j here to enjoy it." Jiirarua'was 100 nappy 10 express ner joy m i words; but she expressed it nevertheless, and in a mauuer, too, nut to be niistakeu. The next evening was spent at home by both husband and wife, and it was a season ! of much enjoyment;. In a short time George began to realize how much comfort was to be : found in a quiet and peaceful home; aud the longer he enjoyed this comfort, the more | plainly did he see and understand the simple truth, that it takes two to make a happy : home, and that if the wife is one party the j husband must be the other. { J ; fear The People's Temperance Reform Con; vention, recently iu session at Columbus, i Ohio, adopted resolutions favoring the amendment of the State Constitution so as to prohib1 it the manufacture and sale of intoxicating ! liquors, aud declaring that if the great political parties of the .State fail to nominate candidates favoring temperance, a convention i will be called to nominate a State temperance ticket. tHr The Illinois House of Representatives has passed a bill prohibiting all railroads in ! that State from changing their rates of freight without first giving sixty days' notice of the change, by posting the change livery station along the line, uuder heavy penalties. slipped by, and he became veijy nervous and uneasy. "I declare," he muttered to himself, after he had listened for some time in vain; "this is too bad. She ought not to stay so late !" But he happened so remember that he often remained away much later than that, so he concluded that he must make the best of it. At a quarter to ren Emma came home. "A little late, am I not ?" she said, looking up at the clock. " But I fell in with some old friends. How have you enjoyed yourself?" "First rate," returned George, bravely. "I think home is a capital place." "Especially when a man can have it all to himself," added the wife, with a sidelong glance at her husband. But he made no re plyOn the next evening Emma prepared to go out as before; but this time she kissed her husband ere she went, and seemed to hesitate. "Where do you think of going?" George asked, in an undertone. "I may drop in to see Uncle John," replied Emma. "Howeve . you won't be uneasy. You'll know I'm si fe." "Oh, certainly,' said her husband; but when left to his own reflection lie began to ponder seriously ? pon the subject thus pre sented for considera tion. He could not read? he could not play?nor enjoy himself in auy way, while that chair was empty. In short, he found that home had no real comfort without his wife. The one thing needed to make his home cheerful vras not present. "I declare," he said to himself, I did not think it would be so lonesome. And can it be that she feels as I do, when she is here all alone? It must be so," he pursued, thoughtfully. "It is just as she says. Before we were married slie was very happy in her childhood's home. Her parents loved her, and they did all they could to make her comfortable." After this he walked up and down the room several times, and thea stopped again, and communed with himself. "I can't stand this!" said he. "I should die in a week. If Emma were only here, I think I could amuse myself very well. How lonesome and dreary it is I And only eight o'clock! I declare?I've a miud to walk dowu as far as Uncle John's and see if she is there. It would be a relief if I only saw her. I won't go in. She shan't know yet that I hold out so faintly.'' George Wilson took another turn across the room, glanced once more at the clock, and then took his hat and went out. He locked the door after him, and then bent his steps towards Uncle John's. It was a beautiful, mooulight night, and the air was keen and bracing. He was walking along, with his eyes bent upon the pavement, when he heard a light step approaching him. He looked up, and?he could not be mistaken? saw his wife. His erst impulse was to avoid her, but she had recognized him. <fiish Culture. I From the Illustrated Scientific News for January, 1881. THE CARP AND ITS CULTURE. j In the accompanying engraving we reproI duqe a careful drawing of the mirror carp j (Coprinus carpio specularis,) so called on nc| count of the large scales which run along the j j sides of the body. This is one of the three ! races of carp recently introduced into this I country, the other two being the scale carp ' ^ tko rtno onhfolu /tnirnrofl BI1U LUC iCULUCl tai {J , nn, vuiuv.j vv>x.vU with scales, the other having few or none. Three years ago the national carp ponds were established at Washington, in the old swamp and canal near the monument, and many thousand young fish have since been distributed for stockiug suitable waters in Kansas, Nebraska, Missouri, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina,^ Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, Texas, Tennessee, Keu-1 tucky and New York. Persons desiring them for such purpose can be supplied on applica-! tion to Prof. S. F. Baird, U. S. Fish Cotnmis- j sioner, Washington, D. C. In a recent communication, Professor Baird j expresses great faith in the future of this new j fish. He is quite well satisfied that within I THE CARP.?Cyprim ten years it will constitute a very prominent \ portion of the animal food of the country.!, Although scarcely known in the United States, and but little more as an article of ex- j tended application in England and France, the carp is in Germany and Austria cultivated to the highest degree, so as to constitute a notable article of the market supply. The fish itself is probably of Asiatic origin, j and has been domesticated in China for thou- J sands of years. It has, however, been so ex- j tensively distributed in Europe as to have become, in a measure, a native fish, occurring in public waters as well as in private enclo- j sures. It is, Prof. Baird remarks, emphatic- j allv a farmer's fish; and may safely be | claimed to be, among fishes, what chickens are among birds, and pigs and ruminants are among animals. Its special merits lie in its sluggishness and the ease with which it is kept in very limited enclosures, it being a vegetable feeder, and its general inoflfensiveness. Trout and black bass require abundant water and a supply of animal food for their sustenance and growth ; the carp thrives in shallow ponds, and while not disdaining flies, mf Wf * f * % Fig. 1.?Plan c worms, larvae, etc., live on the succulent roots and leaves of aquatic plants, seeds as they ; fall into the water, and other similar substan-j ces, and may be fed very readily upon corn, grain, bread, root crops, raw or boiled, and, i indeed, any vegetable refuse. Their rate of growth, too, is something marvelous, and as observed so far in the specimens introduced in the United States, is even j more remarkable here than in Europe, j Among the original fish imported by the i Fish Commission from Europe, and which j are now only about three and a half years old, I are some from twenty-hve to thirty inches in 1 leugth, weighing from four to eight or nine , pounds. The carp thrives best iu artificial or natu- j al ponds with muddy bottoms, and such as abound in vegetation. In large ponds it may i not be necessary to furnish any special food, { but in restricted inclosures, as, for instance,1 those of a fraction of an acre, they may be fed with the refuse of the kitcheu garden, j leaves of cabbage, lettuce, leeks, etc., hom- j iny, or other substances. Graiu of any kind is generally boiled before being fed to the I | ?r - - -- \Ji< ,-t. r I y b - V \ :l r - H k 8 ' Fig. 2.?Plan of natural pond, showing < : fishes, but this is probably not absolutely I ! necessary. The refuse of malt from brewer- J j ies makes excellent food for them. The Washington ponds are arranged so j I that they can be drawn off at will, leaving all j I the fish collected in a small basin near the ! j outlet. This is fur convenience in assorting J the fish, and for selecting such as are needed j j for other purposes. It is a prime necessity that there be no predaceous fish in the same pond with carp. I Of course, the larger fish will be measurably secure against the attacks of carnivorous spe- j cies of about the same size, but the eggs and young will become a prey to the rapacity of such associates. As a general rule the; fish will thrive best when they are the sole! occupants of particular waters, although the | association of suckers and chubs would be; less objectionable than that of sunfish, perch, or black bass. The carp spawn in the spring, iu May aud i June, and, indeed, unfler some circumstances, throughout the entire Bummer. The Fish Commission have young fish that spawned from May to September. They are very prolific, yielding from 400,000 to 500,000 eggs, according to size. The eggs adhere tenaciously to whatever they touch, and for that reason it is very important that a new pond should be provided with floating weeds for such attachment. The eggs hatch out in a few days, and the young grow very rapidly. They feed voraciously upon the so-called frog spittle, the green alga scum so common in frog ponds. Consequently, such waters are especially adapted to carp.' Whenever the water becomes chilled down to perhaps 40?, and especially when frozen over at the top, the fish bury themselves in the mud, aggregating in lots of from fifty to one hundred, frequently with their tails projecting, and constituting what is called in Germany, kettles or roses. It is very important that they should not be disturbed under such circumstances. Of course, while hibernating in this way they are not feeding, although they are said not to lose appreciably in weight. In the more southern regions, where the waters do not freeze, they will probably feed throughout the year, and make more rapid growth. So far, Prof. Baird says, no waters have proved too warm for carp ; indeed, they are said to thrive especially well in reservoirs re w Carpio Bpecularis. ceiving the condensed waters of low-pressure steam engines, in Germany, of over 100? temperature. As regards the best plants for a carp pond, Prof. Baird mentions the ordinary pond weeds (Pontederia and Sagataria), splatter dock, or pond lily, and, indeed, any of the L-inrla ti a f- nrnra in tVlA Wnt.Ar. with leaVCS floating upon the surface, duckweed among the number. Those which produce seed, like the wild rice, are especially desirable, as the fish feed voraciously upon them. The great merit of the carp for cultivation, next to its excellent table quality, lies in its adaptation to shallow and warm ponds unsuited for ordinary fish. The country is full of such waters, now useless, which might be made exceedingly productive ; and there are thousands of swamps in every State, which might easily be floated and stocked at small cost in money or trouble. In Germany many villages maintain, at common cost, for the public benefit, carp ponds of a hundred acres. Mr. Rudolph Hessel, the curator of the government carp ponds at Baltimore, gives the following instructions: i'""1 #'\r >f natural pond. In establishing carp in natural ponds, it is necessary to ascertain the following points: 1st. Is there sufficient water for all purposes all the year round? 2nd. Are the ground, soil, aquatic plants and water favorable for culture? 3rd. It is important to examine the soil minutely in order to ascertain the vegetable and mineral qualities. If points 1 and 2 have been satisfactorily settled, the ground must be examined as to whether it will allow the collected water to penetrate, and whether the ground is sandy or loamy. Above all, measure the depth of the stratum and he assured that it is sufficiently impermeable to withstand the pressure of the water and to hinder its oozing through and so prevent the drying up of the pond. A rocky, gravelly ground is not appropriate for carp culture. Sandy ground, with a considerable mixture of loam, clay, and humus, J is of small use. I speak here .of large ponds of considerable extent. Small ponds, with a sandy bottom, may be improved by supplanting them with loam. Loam is a mixture of a I f||l||| fit's collector ditches, collectors, and kettle. small per cent, of sand and a larger quautity of clay. If such ground contains some marl, or, better, some element of humus, it is of the greatest advantage. Too much humus or dissolved peat is injurious. Water which runs through bog meadows, or oak woods, is not of much use, because it contains too much humic acid and tannin, which impart a mouldy flavor to the fish. The most favorable water is that which comes from rivers and brooks. Rain water, particularly during the winter, when frozen over, takes a mouldy taste, which is communicated to the fish, as does the water from bogs also. Spring water, direct from the ground, ought to be conducted for at least a few hundred yards through wide shallow ditches, in order to obtain more nourishing components from air as well as earth, and above all to be warmed by the action of the sun. Ponds must not be too deep, as the water will be too cold, and will harbor fewer in [ sects, larva?, and worms, which form part of the carp's food. A depth of 3 feet is suffi; cient for the centre of the pond. Toward | the outlet Bluice it may be from 6 to 8 feet, but, only for an area of from 200 to 1,000 square feet. In the depths of this "colleci tor," the fish seek their resting place for winter, as also in summer when the water becomes too warm. The outer part of the pond should not be deeper than 1 foot for a distance of 70 to 100 feet. Toward the center of the pond, a cavity is dug 2 feet deeper than the rest of th^pond. This also serves the fishes as a resting place in summer and winter. The cavity is called a <<1*" T? MA *Un /tn^ann/tA C r\nn r? f A &CU1U. J.1U1U tuc cutiautc Ul bUC |WIIU bU the other end, where the collector and the outer sluice are situated, two or three ditches 2 feet in depth and 4 feet in length, must be made; these ditches cut the deeper "kettles" transversely as far as the collector. These ditches are intended to carry all the fish into the collector when the pond is being drained. The collector is nothing but a place from 20 to 40 feet in length and breadth, near the outer sluice, and is one foot deeper than the rest of the bottom of the pond. This collector must be cleaned out every year, or the fish will become too much soiled by the mud. The in flow of water into a pond should never be direct, as, for instance, a brook falling into it, as this often cuuses the water to suddenly rise, carrying into the pond injurious fishes. The inlet Bluices from the stream must, of course, be of strong and practical construction, and they ought to be provided with gratings to prevent other fish from intruding. It will also be found very useful to construct a hatching place on some flat and sunny spot near the bank ; that is, a so-called cut in the land, measuring 40 to 100 feet in length, and from SO to 50 feet in breadth, and having a depth of from 18 to 5 inches. This cut should be planted with aquatic plants, and ought to be the only place where the carp can ascend from deep water in order to deposit their eggs conveniently on the plants and engage in the spawning process. As soon as this has taken place, the entrance to the cut is closed with a net, so that the eggs cannot be eaten by the fish. (See Fig. 1.) The carp also has the disposition to swim toward the inflowing water, by which means it is drawn away from its proper feeding rvl a ooj a mo tor qKaiiM Kp itltn I the pond sideways from the stream ; and if it should be a small brook only, it may be turned off entirely and carried alongside the pond, from which point the latter can be easily supplied with water. It is an indispensable condition for the culture in ponds, according to established rules, that they be so constructed as to allow of being thoroughly drained, so that the fishes may be taken out without any difficulty. On account of the required outlet sluices, etc., the fact must be kept in view, that newly constructed dams will sink ten per cent, after a lapse of time of little more than a year, unless it has been solidly made. The dam should be sodded. For the draining of the pond, at the "fishing out" season, it should have an outlet at the lower end, if no other advantageous arrangements can be made for the purpose. The use of woodwork for the channel should be avoided, its durability not being sufficient. The most desirable construction would be that the outlet consist either of masonry work or water pipes, which may be made either of clay or iron. This cbanuel or pipe must be made so that it can be closed tightly and opened readily if needed, and must be provided with two or three fold gratings to prevent the escape of the fishes upon the opening of the sluice. At the same time there should be an outlet channel, several feet in breadth, at the side of the pond to allow the water to run off. This must also be secured by grating, but should be kept open always, so that in case of continued rainy UKuther nr amtrtan and vinlpnt. nVinWPrS f?f rflin or thunderstorm, no overflowing of the banks or dams may be possible through the unexpected rising of the water in the pond. Explanation of Fig. 1.?A is the pond, B. is the cut or breeding pond. The dotted line contains the water, having a depth of only 5 inches ; B is the water of H feet in depth ; FF is the outer ditch to prevent an overflow of the pond ; G is the inlet sluice ; and E is the outlet sluice. In figure 2, P is a natural pond. Its extent is about 150 to 200 acres. It is formed by a dam, D, about seven to eight feet high, crossing a valley, and thus collecting the water of a run flowing there. Before D is a deepening, C, the collector. In the dam, D, there is an outlet leading to another deepening, the so-called outlet collector, OC. The purpose of this collector is to retain fish that may have passed through the outlet when opened. It is provided with a screen or netting, C D. Upon the bottom of the pond, P, is the collector ditch, which conducts the fish to C when the water is let out, and thus prevents them being caught in the mud. R is the run of water which, to prevent overflow, has to be conducted around the pond iu a separate ditch, leaving an inlet at J protected with screens. Mr. Eugene G. Blackford, of this city, one of the New York State Fish Commissioners, has just received from the United States Fish Commissioner one thousand German carp for gratillious distribution in New York State. These carp were brought from Germany three years ago, and placed in the national carp ponds at Washington, D. C. From them were raised last year 60,000 young fish, which were distributed throughout the United States. This year they have 5 _ 3 nnA AAA L!.L J _ ^ C proaucea ?JUU,UUV, wmcn are 1U pruuesa ui distribution. Some sent last year to the Brooklyn ponds have weighed two pounds and upward. This is*a remarkable growth, trout taking as long as four years to attain the same size. Of the one thousand in Mr. Blackford's possession, each applicant having a suitable poud is entitled to five pair, which I will be sent on receipt of a proper vessel for | transportation with expressage prepaid. To illustrate the rapid growth of these I fishes, a gentleman placed one dozen carp, ! measuring from 3 to 4 inches in length, in a j muddy poud on Orange Mountain, N. J., last July. In November following the pond was drawn off and the fishes were captured. They had attained the extraordinary growth of fifteen incites within four months. ft?* The present bull movement has stopped i the mouth of every prophet of evil among i those who write on financial subjects. Ev| erybody agrees that everything is going up | and never coming down, and day by day ev| erything does. Every reaction is quickly wiped out by a?flood of money from new buyers, with England, where an offer of money was made two weeks ago at 1* per cent, standing in the background ready to float every decline with enormous purchases. There is probably no time more dangerous in every era of prosperity than the period when the last panic is forgotten and present prosperity accepted as eternal, and that is the accepted belief now. A crash is distant, but a crash is certain. Meanwhile, the prudent will save and not spend, invest and not speculate. * ft?* At a combination stock sale at the Nashville fair grounds, twenty-one head of Jersey cattle brought $18,000. One hundred and twenty-three horses sold for 822,135, "Warrior," sired by Indian Chief, selling for $875. - % m ft?* A political orator, speaking of a certain General whom he admired, said he was always on the field of battle where the bullets were thickest. "Where was that ?" "In the ammunition wagon." fpSffUaueous lUnding. INDIAN WIVES. HOW THE ABORIGINE MAIDENS WED WHITE MEN?THE PRICE OF A GOOD WIFE. Among the Northwestern tribes of Indians, innocence is as marked among the girls as their color. The impression that the red maiden does not entertain a high stand* aid of morality is an error, for she is taught as other girls are, and grows up with welldeveloped ideas of the responsibilities of life and a firm resolution to discharge them. Educated in the faith that she was ordained to work, she trains herself to undergo hard labor, and at siiteen years of age is sturdy and 9troug, brave against fatigue and a perfect housewife. She may not possess New n/vtinna nf olnanlinMQ Kllf qIio tfllrpa ""B1""" , ~~ not a little pride in her personal appearance, and in the arrangement of her lodge she displays some crude ideas of taste and a certain amount of neatness. If she marry a white man, she makes a good wife as long as she lives with him. His home is her sole comfort and his comfort her ambition. She thinks of him and for him and makes it her study to please him and make him respect and love her. She recognizes in him ODe of a superior race, and by her dignity and devotion endears herself to him and struggles to make him happy. At the agencies of the. upper frontier, thousands of men are employed, and it is not an exaggeration to say that the majority of them have Indian wives and live happily. They are not sought after by the maidens, for the Indian girl's custom is to remain quiet until the marriage contract is made and the marriage portion paid over. The husband must have the dowry, with which he must invest his projected mother-in-law before the ceremony takes place. The process is a little out of the usual run, and a description may be of interest. . The aspiring bridegroom must be w?ll known in the tribe before he can hope to win a wife. Her people want to thoroughly understand him and know if he can support not only her, but also her relatives in the event of a pinch. He must be a kind-hearted man with a temper warranted to keep in any domestic climate, and he must have a good lodge and at least half a dozen horses. If he be, and have all these, he can a wooing go. Selecting the lady, he makes application to her mother, ami at a council the price is fixed upon. It thegirWbe especially pretty, her mother will demand a gun, two horses and a lot of provisions, blankets and cloth* A mi?m haIha/4 ?4- V*a mnot AirnifiK n guu jo vojucu at yu\j, auu aj? uiuov iuiuiuh material to bring the amount up to from $100 to $150. Then he tries to beat the dame down and if he. succeeds, be knows there is some reason for letting the girl go ; if not, he understands that he is making a good choice. The courtship is left entirely to the mother. She communicates the intelligence to the brideelect, who dutifully sets upon preparing the lodge for the nuptials. Kelatives and friends congregate, form a circle, pound a drum and have a feast, at the conclusion of which the man and girl stand up. A blanket is thrown over their heads, under which they exchange vows of fidelity, after which the mother blesses them, and the ceremony is complete. But it fares badly with a man who plentifully stocks bis wedding lodge. His wife will give away everything be gives her, and the stores intended to last a month will disappear' In'an hour. He, if he be called cautious, will give her barely enough to eat until he teaches her economy, a lesson once thoroughly learned she never forgets. For some little time after the wedding, the newly-made relatives hauDt the happy lodge, demanding that they be feasted and cared for. Woe unto him who accedes in the slightest. A firm refusal, well persevered in, is all that will save him a 1 \ fV\ /\f rrt 1 ClrtWfT llic V1 UilOCI J According to prairie law it is disreputable in a white man to abandon his dusky wife until she has grown too old to work for him. Then he may send her back to her tribe if he so elect. The obligation.upon the wife is different. She may not desert the husband for another white man ; but she may leave him for an Indian who wants to marry her, provided she have no children. If the equaw desires to abandon her husband, the Indian of her choice must pay back the price originally paid to her mother. He may abate no jot or tittle, and it is in such payment that the divorce is perfected. She then becomes a single woman, free to marry, but she cannot live in the vicinity occupied by her former husband. She must move away with her new venture. Such divorces are not infrequent. It is a difficult thing for the squaw to perfectly adapt herself to her white hus band. He may be of the kindest disposition ; but his ways are not her ways, and she struggles with all her strength to draw closer to him and try to make her existence a part of his. She cannot make him one of her kind, and she drifts away from him. The birth of children directs her thoughts into a new channel and lessens the chasm between them, but without them he has but little hope of keeping her to himself. Sooner or later she will find her affinity.?St. Louis Olobe. MORE CORRUPTION^ AT WASHINGTON. The investigation of the accounts and conduct of 0. L. Pitney, custodian of the Treasury Department, to which allusion has been made by our Washington correspondent, is developing ugly facts and involving persons who have held l^igh places. Pitney's business is to buy everything needed in the Treasury, including furniture, carpets, soap, etc. It is ascertained that he has, for six years, violated the law requiring him to purchase by contract from the lowest bidders. He has bought from friends and favorites without making any contracts, paying them whatever they charged. No system of books or vouchers has been kept. Everything has been run loosely and without any sort of Knainooa riil*>R Oiit.rnorenusl v exorbitant Drices have been charged, ranging from thirty to fifty per cent, higher than - the ruling market prices, and the difference between the market prices and those paid had been allowed Pitney by the partnership purchased from him in the way of goods for his own use. One cabinet maker named Frazer, who is regularly employed under Pitney, testifies that nearly all of his time, for several years, has been consumed in doing work for outside parties, instead of working for the government ; that he spent one month in working on a new house owned by a high government official; that he frequently went from one house to another of persons in government employ, some holding important places, doing whatever they wanted, and the money paid for his services was charged round to the different government bureaus. He swears that he made fifteen fac similes of the desk used by Jefferson when he wrote the Declaration of Independence, and which was presented to the goverraent a year or so ago; that each of these imitation desks cost $60, the material for which was paid for out of government money, and charged among the materials needed for government uses. These fifteeu desks were given out as presents by the authorities in the treasury to friends. The furniture belonging to the treasury has been loaned out on occasions of receptions at certain residences. The facts go to show that a regular ring, consisting of subordinate officials of the treasury, some of them holding responsible positions, existed and got benefits from the loose and reckless management. Beside Pitney and his bookkeeper and storekeeper and hostler, who has charge of ? the cabinet making department, one assistant-secretary and others, have derived more or less advantage from Pitney's method of doing government business. In a few instances contracts have been made, but not in the most important and expensive purchases. Pitney has built him a new residence. The result of the investigation will probably be a number of removals. Ex-Cabinet officers are mentioned in the testimony as having received the benefit of the government cabinet-makers in work at their private residences. The investigation will, it is stated, make more important developments/ The ring has been in operation for years, and now that the exposure has begun, profit can be traced to many persons. Two years ago Assistant Secretary Upton was informed of wrong doing and misapplication of public money by CusI todian Pitnev: but no steDS were taken to ward its correction. It is asserted to-night that Upton will soon be removed, and that the strong fight made to keep him in posi- ? tion was for the purpose of preventing the exposure which has now come. This investigation and that of the star route service are uot the onlyones to be made. .The present administration intends to search through all the departments of public service to learn bow the public business is being conducted, and whether any reckless, wasteful or wrong practices exist aoywhere. Wherever any wrong exisits, it is to be exposed, and wherever any public money is wasted, it is to be stopped.?Baltimore Sun. - ? tGF Ex-Senator Bruce, colored, of Mississippi, who was recently appointed Registrar of the Treasury, entered upon the discharge of his duties on Monday of last week. He was offered the position of third assistant post mester-general, but declined the offer for the'reason, he said, his people?the negroes?would not be satisfied with anything that was third assistant. This shows the calibre of Bruce, especially when it is stated that the officer in question controls all the finances, stamps, drafts, Ac., of the whole postofiice department, and is one of the most responsible offices in the government. The three assistants are so rated for convenience, one being equal in rank with the others. Bruce, in his present place as registrar of the treasury, has nothing in the world to do but sign bis name. So Soon as Bruce took charged of bis office, office seekers poured in immediately on him, and were loth to believe when he told them that he had no power to make appointments. He added, by the way, that he was very glad he had no such power. The salary of the registrar is $4,000 per annum. A Queer Way of Building Houses.? ^ There are in the world many queer ways of making houses, and one of the queerest is found in the city of Palembang, in Sumatra. The town extends for three or four miles on both sides of a rather wide river, and both shores are lined with houses. First comes a row built upon piles, which are driven into the bottom qf the river, and outside of that another row resting on great bamboo rafts, which are held by cables of rattan to the piles of the next houses. Of course these rafts rise and fall with the tide, and the doors opcu upon the water, so that they are reached by boats. The thresholds are more than a foot above water, and one steps directly from a boat into a house. One can buy anything there is for sale in this town without getting -out of- his boat. -The people are^ Malays, and it is said that they never build a house on dry land if they can find water to set it in, and never go anywhere on foot if they can reach the place in a boat. At a called meeting of the stockholders of the Richmond Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad, held in Richmond, Va., on Saturday last, Judge Robt. Ould tendered his resignation as jpresident of the company. Accompanying his letter of resignation was a communication to the stockholders setting forth at considerable length the Judge's reason for resigning, which in effect was that be could not honorably on his own part and in faith to existing contracts with connecting roads, carry out the policy of discrimination in favor of the Potomac Steamboat Company insisted upon by the Pennsylvania stockholders, who hold a controlling interest ,in this company. His resignation was accepted and Joseph Brinton, of Philadelphia, elected to succeed him. 4?- It is related of Col. Thomas Scott that once, about ten years ago, when making one of the swift trips which he was in the habit of making over the lines under his control, his train was stopped by the wreck of a freight train. There were a dozen heavily loaded box cars piled up on the road, and it would take a long time to get succor from the nearest accessible point and probably hours more to get the track cleared by mere force of labor. He surveyed the difficulty, made a rough calculation of the cost of a total destruction of the freight, and promptly made up his mind to burn the road clear. By the time the relief train came, the flames had done their work and nothing remained but to patch up a few injuries done to the track so as to enable him to pursue his way. A conference of the cotton seed oil manufacturers of the South was held in Cincinnati during the week, and various matters connected with the business discussed. The transactions in this business now reach over 610,000,000, and the capital invested in it is over 85,000,000. The business has been of rapid growth, and is assuming importance as another of the industries of the South. The cotton seed from the gin houses werei formerly used as manure, or left to rot in piles. Within the last ten years, however, their value as oil producers has led to the building of over fitly oil mills in the Southern States. * He Wants War.?Mabone has just said to Redfield : "Sometimes I have thought that a | foreign war just after the late war, would have i 1 j .1 / __ .l i t* n.n.,1,1 oeen a gOOU UlllJg iur IUU UUUUtljr. n nuuiu have brought the North and South together as nothing else could. Sometimes I think it would be a good thing now. Suppose we should take the part of these down-trodden Irishmen and declare war on England. I would engage to put into the field, i^ short notice, a corps of 30,000 of as good soldiers as the world has ever seen. Why, there would be hundreds of thousands of them, and we would clean the British off the continent, and we would unite the two sections." JS5" North Carolina's outlaw chief, Henry Berry Lowery, a man of many romances, recently was reported dead. The Robcsonian, published in that State, now says that Lowery is alive; that he left the mountains and North Carolina about the time of his reported death, being carried in a tool-chest through Charlotte and across the border. He went West, enlisted and is now leading the quiet life of a sergeant in the United States army. A Virginian mailed a postal card to Senator Vance, with the request, "Please send me your speech on that d?d dog, Mahone," and Mahone had the man arrested for sending "scru rrilous matter through the mails." The New York World thinks the poor fellow only stuttered with his pen. The age of giants has returned. Within six months seven giants, over eight feet in height, hav.e appeared in New York City., The latest addition was Henrik B sted, a Norwegian, who arrived Monday. He is eight feet tall and weighs 400 pounds.