Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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' 1 ^ lewis m. gbist, Proprietor. | 3U fnbtprabtnf Jfamili! Hcfospaptr: Jfor fjl promotion of fjp political, jsorial, ||gritnlfnral anb Commtrrial Iitfmsfs of i&lfjj. jTERMS-42.50 AYEAR, IN ADVANCE. VOL. 33. YOEKVILLE, S. C.. WEDNESDAY. MAECH 1887. NO. 9. B , , ? J. Jwial Jfafg. SKOff Boom AT EAGLE'S BT BRET HARTR [Copyrighted by Houghton, Mifflin & Co., and published by arrangetuent with them.] CHAPTER VIII. Elate was stirring early, but not as early as her sister, who met her on the threshold of her room. Her face was quite pale, and she held a letter in her bond. "What docs this mean, Kate?" > "What is, the matter f asked Kate, her own color fading from her cheek. "They are gone?with their horses. Left before day, and loft this." She banded Kate an open letter. The girl took it hurriedly, and read: "When you get this we shall be no more; perhaps not even as much. Ned found the trail yesterday, and we are taking the first advantage of it before day. We dared not trust ourselves to ay 'Good-by!' last evening; we were too cowardly to face you this morning; we must go as we came, without warning, but not without regret Wo leave a package and a letter for your husband. It is not only our poor return for your gentleness and hospitality, but, since it was accidentally the means of giving us the pleasure of your society, we beg you to keep it in safety until his return. We kiss your mother's handa Ned wants to say something more, but time presses, and I only allow him to send his love to Minnie, and to tell her that he is trying to find the red snow. "George Lee." "But he is not fit to travel," said Mrs. Hale. "And the trail?it may not be passable." "It was passable the day before yesterday," said Kate drearily, "for I discovered it, and went as far as the buck-eyes." "Then it was you who told them about it," said Mrs. Hale reproachfully. "No," said Kate indignantly. "Of course I didn't" She stopped, and, reading the significance of her speech in the glistening eyes of her sister, she blushed. Josephine kissed her and said: "It teas treating us like children, Kate, but we must make them pay for it hereafter. Forthqt package and letter to John means something, and we shall probably see them before long. I wonder what the letter is about, and what is in the package?" "Probably one of Mr. Lee's jokes. He is quite capame 01 turning me wuoie uuug mw ridicule. I dare say ho considers his visit here a prolonged jest" "With his poor leg, Kate? Yqu are as unfair to him as you were to Falkner when they first came." Kate, however, kept her dark eyebrows knitted in a piquant frown. uTo think of his intimating what ho would allow Falkner to say! And yet you believe he has no evil influence over the young man." Mrs. Hale laughed. "Where are you going so fast, Kate?" she called, mischievously, as the young lady flounced out of the room. "Where? Why, to tidy John's room. He may be coming at any moment now. Or do you want to do it yourself ?" "No, no," returned Mrs. Hale, hurriedly, "you do it 111 look in a little later on." She turned away with a sigh. The sun was shining brilliantly outside. Through the half-open blinds its long shafts seemed to be searching the house for the lost guests, and making the hollow shell appear doubly empty. What a contrast to the dear dark days of mysterious seclusion and delicious security, lit by Lee's laughter and the sparkling hearth, which had passed so quickly! The forgotten outer world seemed to have returned to the house through those open windows and awakened its dwellers from a dream. The morning seemed interminable, and it was past noon, while they were deep in a sympathetic conference with Mrs. Scott, who had drawn a pathetic word picture of the two friends perishing in the snowdrift, without flannels, brandy, smelling salts or jelly, which they had forgotten, when they were startled by the loud barking of Spot on the lawn before the house. The women looked hurriedly at each other. "They have returned," said ilrs. Hale. Kate ran to the window. A horseman was approaching the house. A single glance showed her that it was neither Falkner, Lee nor Halo, but a stranger. "Perhaps he brings some news of them," said Mrs. Scott, quickly. So complete bad been their preoccupation with the loss of their guests that they could not yet conceive of anything that did not pertain to it. The stranger, who was at once ushered into the parlor, was evidently disconcerted by tho presence of the three women. "I reckoned to see John Halo yer," he began, awkwardly. A slight look of disappointment passed over their faces. "Ho has not yet returned," said Mrs. Hale briefly. "Sbo! I wa'-.ter know. He's bed time to do it, I reckon," said the stranger. "I suppose he hasn't been able to get over from the Summit," returned Mrs. Hale. "Tho trail is closed." "It ain't now, for I kom over it this moraIn' myself." "You didn't?meet?any one?" asked Mrs. Hale timidly, with a glance at the others. "No." A long silence ensued. The unfortunate visitor plainly perceived an evident abatement of interest in himself, yet he still struggled politely to say something. "Then I reckon you know what kept Halo away?" he said dubiously. "Ob, certainly?tho stage robbery." "I wish I'd known that," said the stranger reflectively, "for I ez good ez rode over jist to tell it to ye. Ye see John Hale, he sent a note to ye 'splainin' matters by a gentleman; but the road agents tackled that man, and left him for dead in the road." "Yes," said Mrs. Hale impatiently. "Luckily be didn't uie, out Kem to anu iniuiaged to crawl inter the bush, whar I found him when.I was lookin' for stock, and brought him to my house" "You found him? Your house?" interrupted Mrs. Hale. * "Inter my house," continued the man doggedly. "I'm Thompson of Thompson's Pass over yon: mebbeit ain't much of a house, but I brought him thar. Well, ez he couldn't find the note that Hale hod guv him, and like ez not the road agents had gone through him and got it, ez soon ez the weather let up I made a break over yer to tell ye." "You say Mr. Lee came to your house," repeated Mrs. Hale, "and is there now?" "Not much," said the man grimly; "and I never said Lee was thar. I mean that Bilson was shot by Lee and kem" "Certainly, Josephine!" said Kate, suddenly stepping between her sister ami Thompson, and turning upon her a white face and eyes of silencing significance; "certainly?don't you remember??that's the story we got from the Chinaman, you know, only muddled. Go on, sir," she continued, turning to Thompson calmly; "you say that the man who brought the note from my brother was shot by Lee?" "And another fellow they call Falkner. Yes, that's about the size of it." "Thank you; it's nearly the same story that we heard. But you have had a long ride, Mr. Thompson let nie offer you a glass of whisky in the dining room. This way, # please." The door closed upon them none too soon. For Mrs. Hale already felt the room whirling around her and sank back into her chair with an hysterical laugh. Old Mrs. Scott did not move from her seat, but, with her eyes fixed on the door, impatiently waited Kate's return. Neither spoke, but each felt that the young, untried girl was equal to tho emergency and would get at tho truth. The sound of Thompson's feet in the hall and the closing of the front door was followed by Kate's reappearance. Her face was still pale, but calm. "Well?" said the two women in a breath. "Well," returned Kate, slowly, "Mr. Lee and Mr. Falkner were undoubtedly the two men who took the paper from John's messenger and brought it here." "You ait) sure?" said Mrs. acocc. "There can be no mistake, mother." "Then," said Mrs. Scott, -with triumphant feminine logic, "I don't want anything more to satisfy me that they are perfectly innocent!" More convincing than the most perfect masculino deduction, this single expression of their common nature sent a thrill of sympathy and understanding through each. They cried for a few moments on each other's shoulders. *"To think," said Mrs. Scott, "what that poor boy must have suffered to have been obliged to do?that to?to?Bilson?isn't that the creature's name? I suppose we ought to send over there and inquire after him, with some chicken and jelly, Kate. It's only common humanity, and we must be just, my dear; for even if he shot Mr. Leo and provoked the poor boy to shoot him, ho may have thought it his duty. And, then, it will avert suspicions." "To think," murmured Mrs. Hale, "what they must have gone through while they were here?momentarily expecting John to i ,me, and yet keeping up such a light heart." "I believe, if they had stayed any longer, they would have told us everything," said Mrs. Scott Both the younger women were silent Kate was thinking of Falkner's significant speech as they neared the house on their last walk; Josephine was recalling the remorseful picture drawn by Lee, which she knew was his own portrait. Suddenly she started. "But John will be here soon; what are we to tell bim? And then that package and that letter." "Don't bo in a hurry to tell bim anything at present, my child," said Mrs. Scott gently. "It is unfortunate this Mr. Thompson called here, but we are not obliged to understand what he says now about John's message, or to connect our visitors with his story. I'm sure, Kate, I should have treated them exactly as we did if they had come without any message from Johu; sol do not know why we should lay any stress on that, or even speak of it. The simple fact is that we havo opened our house to two strangers iu distress. Your husband," continued Mr. Hale's mother-in-law, "docs not require to know more. As to the letter and package, we will keep that for further consideration. It cannot be of much importance or they would have spoken of it before; it is probably some trifling present as a return for your hospitality. I should use no Indecorous haste in having it opened." The two womeu kissed Mrs. Scott with a feeling of relief, and fell back into the monotony of their household duties. It is to be feared, however, that the absence of their outlawed guests was nearly as dangerous as the/r presence In the opportunity it afforded for uninterrupted ana imaginative renecuon. Both Kate and Josephine were at first shocked and wounded by the discovery of the real character of the two men with whom they had associated so familiarly, but it was no disparagement to their sense of propriety to say that the shock did not last long, and was accompanied with the fascination of danger. This was succeeded by a consciousness of the delicate flattery implied in their indirect influence over the men who had undoubtedly risked their lives for the sake of remaining with them. The best woman is not above being touched by the effect of her power over the worst man, and Kate at first allowed herself to think of Falkner in that light But if in her later reflections he suffered as a heroic experience to be forgotten, he gained something as an actual man to be re"membered. Now that the proposed rides from "his friend's house" were a part of the illusion, would he ever dare to visit them again? Would she dare to see him? She held her breath with a sudden pain of parting that was new to her; she tried to think of something else, to pick up the scattered threads of her life before that eventful day. But in vain; that one week had filled the placo with implacable memories, or more terrible, as it seemed to ner ana ner sister, tney utui uum lost their feeble, alien hold upon Eagle's Court in the sudden pi-csence of the l-eal genii of these solitudes, and henceforth they alone would be strangers there. They scarcely dared to confess it to each other, but this return to the dazzling sunlight und cloudless skies of the past appeared to them to be one unreal experience; they had never known the true wild flavor of their homo except in that week of delicious isolation. Without breathing it aloud, they longed for some vague denouement to this experience that should take them from Eagle's Court forever. It was noon tho next day when tho little household beheld the last shred of their illusion vanish like tho melting snow in tho strong supligkt of John Hale's return. He was accompanied by Col. Clinch und Rawlins, two strangers to the women. Was it fancy or tho avenging spirit of their absent companions? But he, too, looked a stranger, and as tho little cavalcade wound its way up the slope ho appeared to sit his liorso and wear his hat with a certain slouch and absence of his usual restraint that strangely shocked them. Even the old half-condescending, half-punctilious gallantry of his greeting of his wife and family was changed, as he introduced his companions with a mingling of familiarity and shyness that was new to him. Did Mrs. Hale regret it, or feel a sense of relief in the absence of his usuul seignorial formality? She only knew that she was grateful for tho presence of the strangers, which for the moment postponed a matrimonial confidence from which she shrunk. "Proud to know you," said Col. Clinch, with a sudden outbreak of the antique gallantry of some remote Huguenot ancestor. "My friend, Judge Hale, must lie a regular Roman citizen to leave such u family and such a house at the call of public duty. Eh, Rawlins r uProud to know you," said Col. Clinch. "You bet," said Itawlins, looking from Kate to her sister in undisguised admiration. "And I supiRise the duty could not have been a very pleasant one," said Mi's. Ilale, timidly, without looking at her husband. "Gad, madam, that's just it," said the gallant Colonel, seating himself with a comfortable air, and an ensy, though by no means disrespectful familiarity. "We went into this fight a little more than a week ago. The only scrimmage we've bad has been with the detectives that were on tho robbers' track. Ha! ha! The best people we've met have been the friends of the men wo were buntin', and we've generally como to tho conclusion to vote the other ticket! Ez Judge Hale and me agreed ez wo came along, the two men ez we'd most like to see just now and shake hands with are George Leo and Ned Falkner." "The two leaders of the party who robbed the coach," explained Mr. Hale, with a slight return of his usual precision of statement The three women looked at each other with a blaze 61 thanksgiving in their grateful eyes. Without comprehending all that Col. Clinch bad said, they understood enough to know .. . .. . - L_ ?r- r? mac cneir laio guesus hciu aaiu liuui iuo pursuit of that party, and that their own conduct was 6parod criticism. I hardly dare write it, but they instantly assumed the appearance of aggrieved martyrs, and felt as if they were! "Yes, ladles!" continued the colonel, in spired by the bright eyes fixed upon him. "We haven't taken the road ourselves yet, but ?pohn honor?we wouldn't mind doing it in a case like this." Then with the fluent but somewhat exaggerated phraseology of a man trained to "stump" speaking, he gave an account of the robbery and his own connection with it He spoke of the swindling and treachery which had undoubtedly provoked Falkuer to obtain restitution of his property by an overt act of violence under the leadership of Lee. He added that he had learned since at Wild Cat Station that Harkins had fled the country, that a suit had been commenced by the Excelsior Ditch company, aiid that all available property of Harkins had been seized by the sheriff. "Of course it can't be proved yet, but there's no doubt in my mind that Lee, who is an old friend of Ned Falkner's, got up that job to help him, and that Ned's off with the money by this time?and I'm right glad of it. I can't say ez we've done much toward it, except to keep tumbling in the way of that detective party of Stunner's, and so throw them off the trail?ha, ha! The judge here, I reckon, has had his share of fun, for while he was at Hennicker's trying to get some facts from Hennicker's pretty daughter, Stanner tried to get up some sort of vigilance /uMvimiffnn r\? ctocro nflCUPllffOl'S t.O hlim VViUUIiVWW Vli VUW "VMfjV down Hennicker's ranch out of spite, but the judge here stepped in and stopped that." "It was really a highhanded proceeding, Josephine, but I managed to check it," said Hale, meeting somewhat consciously the first direct look his wife had cast upon him, and falling back for support on his old manner. "In its way, I think it was worse than the robbery by Lee and Falkner, for it was done in the name of law and order; while, as far as I can judge from the facts, the affair that we were following up was simply a rude and irregular restitution of property that had been morally stolen." "I have no doubt you did quite right, though I don't understand it," said Mrs. Hale, languidly; "but I trust these gentlemen will stay to luncheon, and in the meantime excuse us for runnning away, as we are short of servants, and Manuel seems to have followed the example of the head of the house and left us, in pursuit of somebody or something." When the three women had gained the vantage ground of the drawing room, Kate said, earnestly, "As it's all right, hadn't we better tell bim now?" "Decidedly not, child," said Mrs. Scott, imperatively. "Do you suppose they are in a hurry to tell us their whole story? Who are those Ilennicker people? and they were there a week ago!" "And did you notice John's hat when he came in, and the vulgar familiarity of calling him 'judge? " said Mrs. Hale. "Well, certainly anything like the familiarity of this man Clinch I never saw," said Kate. ."Contrast his manner with Mr. Falkner's." At luncheon the three suffering martyrs finally succeeded in reducing Hale and his two friends to an attitude of vague apology. But their triumph was short lived. At the end of the meal they were startled by the trampling of hoofs without, followed by loud knocking. In another moment the door was opened and Mr. Stanner strode into the room. Ifale rose with a l*>ok of indignation. "I thought, as Mr. Stanner understood that I hart no desire for his company elsewhere, he would hardly venture to intrude upon me in my house, and certainly not after" "Ef you're alluding to the Vigilantes shakin' you and Zeenie up at Hennicker's, you can't make me responsible for that. I'm here now on business?you understand?reg'lar business. Ef you want to see the papers yer ken. I suppose you know whut a warrant is?" "I know what you arc," said Hale hotly, and if you don't leave my house" "Steady, boys," interrupted Stanner, as his five henchmen filed into the hall. "There's no backin' down here, Col. Clinch, unless you and Hale kalkilate to back down the state of Californy! The matter stands like this: There's a half breed Mexican, called Manuel, arrested over at the (Summit, who swears ho saw George Lee and Edward Falkner in this house the night after the robbery. He says that they were makin' themselves at home here, as if tbey were among friends, and considerin' the kind of help we've had from Mr. John Hale, it looks ez if it might )>e true." "It's an infamous lie!" said Hale. "It ma}' be true, John," said Mrs. Scott, suddenly stepping in front of her palecheeked daughter. "A wounded man was brought hero out of the storm by his friend, who claimed the shelter of your roof. As your mother I should have been unworthy to stay beneath it and have denied that shelter or withheld it until I knew his name and what he was. He stayed hero until ho could be removed. He left a letter ?or you. It will probably tell you if he was Hie man this person is seeking." "Thunk you, mother," said Hale, lifting her hand to his lips quietly; "and perhaps you will kindly tell these gentleman that, as your son does not care to know who or what the stranger was, there is no necessity for opening tho letter or keeping Mr. Stanner a moment longer." "But. you will oblige me, John, by opening it before these gentlemen," said Mi's. Hale, recovering her voict and color. "Please to follow me," sho said, preceding them to the stuircn.se. They entered Mr. Halo's room, now restored fo its original condition. On the table lay a letter ami a small package. The eyes of Mr Stanner. a little abashed Lv the utti tude of tho two women, fastened upon it and glistened. Josephine handed her husband the letter. He opened it in breathless silence and read: "John Hale: "We owe you no return for voluntarily making yourself a champion of justice and pursuing us, except it was to offer you a fair field anil no favor. We didn't get that much from you, but accident brought us into your house and into your family, where wo did get it and were fairly vanquished. To tho vie tors belong the spoils. We leave the package of greenbacks which we took from Col. Clinch in the Sierra coach, but which was first stolen by Harkinsfroin forty-four shareholders of the Excelsior Ditch. We have no right to say what you should do with it, but if you aren't tired of following the same line of justice that induced you to run after us you will try to restore it to its rightful owners. "We leave you another trifle as an evidence thut our intrusion into your affairs was not without some service to you, even if the service was as accidental as the intrusion. You will find a pair of boots in the corner of your closet. They were taken from the burglarious feet of Manuel, your peon, who, l)elieving the three ladies were alone and at his I - 1......... n., uluie) , riilltimi juui liuudu i*., iivvvm* plice ut 2 o'clock on tho morning of the 21st, anil was kicked out by "Your obedient servants, "Geoiu;e Lee & Edward Falkner." Rule's voice and color changed on reading this last paragraph. He turned quickly toward his wife; Kate flew to the closet, where the muffled boots of Manuel confronted them. "We never knew it. I always suspected something that night," said Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Scott in the same breath. "That's all very well and liko George Lee's high fojutin'," said Stunner, approaching tho table, "but as long ez tho greenbacks are here lie can make what capital ho likes outer Manuel. I'll trouble you to pass over that package." "Excuse me," said Hale, "but I believo this is the package taken from Col. Clinch. Is it not?" ho added, appealing to the colonel. "It is," said Clinch. "Then take it," said Hole, handing him the package. "The first restitution i3 to you, but I believe you will fulfill Leo's instructions as well as myself." "But," said Stunner, furiously interposing, i "I've a warrant to seize that wherever found, and I dare you tb disobey the law." "Mr. Stanner," said Clinch, slowly, "there are ladies present. If you insist upon having that package I must ask them to withdraw, and I'm afraid you'll find me better prepared to resist xi second robbery than I was the first. Your warrant, which was taken out by the express company, is supplanted by civil pro(vwliiif* taken the dav before yesterday against tbe property of the fugitive swindler Harkins! You should have consulted tbe sheriff before you came here." Stanner saw his mistake. But in the faces of his grinning followers he was obliged to keep up his bluster. "You shall hear from me again, sir," ho said, turning on his heel. "I beg your pardon," said Clinch grimly, "hut do I understand that at last I am to have the honor" "You shall hear from tho company's law- L yers, sir," said Stanner, turning red, and r noisily leaving the room. . s "And so. my dear ladies," said Col. Clinch, "you have spent a week with a highwayman. I say a highwayman, for it would be hard to call my young friend Falkner by that name for his first offense, committed under great provocation, and undoubtedly instigated by Lee, who was an old friend of his, and to whom ho came, no doubt, in desperation." Kate stole a triumphant glance at her sister, who dropped her lids over her glistening eyes. "And this Mr. .Lee," iue continued more gently." is he really a highwayman}" "Georgo Lee," said Clinch, settling himself back oratorically in his chair, "my dear young lady, is a highwayman, but not of the common sort He is a gentleman born, madam, comes from one of the oldest families of the eastern shore of Maryland. Ho never mixes himself up with anything but some of the biggest strikes, and he's an educated man. He is very popular with ladies and children; he was never known to do or say anything that could bring a blush to the cheek of beauty or a tear to the eye of innocence. I think I may say I'm sure you found him so." "I shall never believe him anything but a gentleman," said Mrs. Scott firmly. "If he has a defect it is perhaps a too reckless indulgence in draw poker," said the colonel musingly; "not unbecoming a gentleman, understand me, Mrs. Scott, but perhaps too reckless for his own good. George played a grand game, a glittering game, but pardon me if I say an 'uncertain' game. I'vo told him so; it's the only point on which we ever differed." "Then you know him?" said Mrs. Hale, lifting her soft eyes to the colonel. "I have that honor." . "Did his appearance, Josephine," broke in Hale, somewhat ostentatiously, "appear to ?er?er?correspond with these qualities? You know what I mean." "He certainly seemed very simple and natural," said Mrs. Hale, slightly drawing her pretty lips together. "He did not wear his trousers rolled up over his boots in the company of ladies, as yo"'re doing now, nor did lie make his first appearance in this house with such a hat as you wore this morning, or I should not havo admitted him." There were a few moments of embarrassing silence. 'Tin vmi intend tn crive that Dackacre to Mr. Falkner yourself, colonel?" asked Mrs. Scott. "I shall hand it over to the Excelsior company," said the colonel, "but 1 shall inform Ned of what I have done." "Then," said Mrs. Scott, "will you kindly take a message from us to him ?" "If you wish it" "Yoil will be doing wie a great favor, colonel," said Hale, politely. Whatever the message was, six months later it brought Edward Falkner, the reestablished suj?erintendent of the Excelsior Ditch, to Eagle's Court. As he and Kate stood again on the plateau, looking toward the distant slopes once more green with verdure, Falkner said: He and Kate stood again on the platean. "Everything hero loolcr as 't did the first day I saw it, except your sister." "The 11 ace docs not agree with her," said Kate hurriedly. "That is why my brother thinks of leaving it liefore the winter sets in." "It seems so sad," said Falkner, "for the last words poor George said to me, as he left t< join his cousin's corps at Richmond, were 'If I'm not killed, Ned, 1 hope some day t stand again beside Mrs. Hale at the windo in Eagle's Court, and watch you and Kate coming home!'" THE K.VD. Effect of Strikes.?The plain trutli is unwelcome often, but must be told. L.ibor unions and labor ag- , itations have brought suffering to many. They have taught men that labor is not honorable, nor a duty to society which must be faithfully performed in order to entitle one to a - ? fir hllf snare m ine ?ruwuig |nu^(icnvj, a cursed burden imposed upon the workers by the greed of capital, a task to be grudgingly performed and shirked if possible. They have led a great army of men, in various branches of industry, to rebel against the natural distribution of rewards for labor, and to try to grab for themselves larger rewards for less work, at the expense of other workers. This is the true nature of the struggle; labor does not tight capital, but a small fraction of labor fights and tries to get the better of all other labor. The trades-union carpenter wants more for buildinga house than other like work is worth, and so houses are made for the poor and rents higher than they should be. The trades union coal handler wants more for shoveling coal- than other men would be glad to get for that work, and so that coal is made more costly for all workmen than itshould be. Trouble, strike, discontent and thousands of unemployed workers are to be found wherever these associations prevail. Thrift, willing work, large production, rapid advance in wealth for all and especially in prosperity for laborers, are found wherever they do not exist.?New York Bulletin. One Law IIe Couldn't Override.?Matt Carpenter did not al- i ways tiear an adverse decision with i equanimity. One afternoon when the Supreme Court of Wisconsin had decided several cases against him, ] and as he thought against the law as 1 well, Carpenter was walking down j the hill in a particularly savage mood ' with Judge Luther Dixon, of the Su- i preme Court, when the latterslipped < on a rolling stone and fell heavily to i the ground. Carpenter walked on a step or two and then turned around < to watch the efforts of the wise man < to get on his feet. "I am glad, Lu- i ther," he finally said, "that there is 1 one law you can't override?the law 1 of gravitation."?JViifatlefp/iia Times. ' ( IHiscellaneons ?jte?ditt?j. THE WILD DOGS OF ATLANTA. ^Did you ever hear of the wild dogs of Atlanta? At one time the country wound here was almost at the mercy of $ose savage animals. Horses, elephants, abd camels, can he made to take an almost human interest in war, but dogs cinnotstaod the racket. The din of battte and the smell of villainous saltpetre breaks them up entirely. The dogs had a^hard time during the siege. There were thousands of them in those days and when the season of short rations set in tiiey were the first to feel it. In many instances they were abandoned by their refugeeing owners and had to literally forage for a living. The thunder of the big guns, the unearthly shriek 01 tnesnens, the noise of the falling buildings, the rattle of musketry, and the heavy tramp of marching soldiers, all struck terror to the canine-contingent. Toward the close pf the siege nearly every dog in the city wgS. half rabid or in the last stage of nervoui prostration.1 The wretched brutes sought shelter in houses and in bombproofs. Majestic mastiffs and surly bulldogs curled their tails between their legs and yelped mournfully at every unusual sound. Hundreds of the bolder ones made a frantic leap over the breastworks and ditches, and made their way through the lines of both armies, and never stopped until they reached the woods. These innocent victims of the ravages of war had a terrible experience during the rigorous winter of '64-'65. Their misery drove them to form strange partnerships, and it was a common sight to see them roving in bands of a dozen or more. The old saying, "Banish the dog from his kennel, and you have a wolf," was plainly illustrated in this case. "In the course of five or six months the country people for miles' around were spinning marvelous yarns about "them wild dogs from Atlanta." The dog belongs to the genus which produces the wolf, the jackal, and the fox. Tame dogs, of course, lose many of the characteristics of these animals ; but when persecution and misery cause them to relapse into a wild state, they take the appearance, the habits and the tastes of jackals. Such was notoriously the fact with the Atlanta dogs. They lost every trace of dome:*ticity. They grew to enormous size, with savage eyes and cruel-looking fangs. Occasionally a gang of these ferocious beasts would swoop down on a farm-yard, devouring pigs and chickens, and attacking tnen when they stood in their way. It took the livliest kind of shooting to drive them off. Sometimes they would surround a lonely cabin and wait for the inmates to come out. They even made raids into little villages, forcing the inhabitants to shut themselves up in their houses. The disappearance of many a negro in those perilous times was fully accounted for when his skeleton was found with every particle of flesh gnawed off and with the ground around showing evidences of a desperate struggle with these wild dogs for the possession of the ruins. Bloody encounters occurred among the ash-heaps and the piles of debris. Every cellar and hole in the ground held these ravenous brutes, and they leaped upon men, women and children without the slightest provocation. At that time it was dangerous to ride or drive out in the open country. On the main road between Atlanta and Becati>r,in broad daylight, the dogs were known to attack horses attached to buggies; forcing their drivers to open a hot fusilade upon them with their revolvers. After getting this taste of wild life, the Atlanta dogs went to the bad altogether. They never reformed. A relentless war_ , 11 jare was wageu upon uiem num oiu?c Mountain to Kennesaw, undone by one they bit the dust until they were all wiped out. The reader must not jump at the conclusion that this indiscriminateslaughter has caused any unusual scarcity of dogs in this region. Thanks to the universal weakness lor pets, weaie abundantly supplied with bench-legged hounds, terriers, pugs, Newfoundlanders, mastiffs and bull-dogs. FOOD FOR THOUGHT. Governor St. John, of Kansas, made a temperance address in Baltimore last week, which the Sun considered good enough to print. From it the following extracts are taken : St. John said: "This is a free country, and all have a right to belong to whatever church or party they want and whoever attempts to interfere with that freedom is an enemy of civil government. I trust no prohibitionist will become so narrow and soulless as to make faces at his neighbor because he differs in politics or religion. The fight must be won, not by abuse, but by appeals to the heart and reason. I will not even say an unkind word of a saloon-keeper. It is out of tn >Itnua a man fnr pmrmrinc* in n fnncc- ??# M./US.V .? ....... .... ? awful business. I am unable to see the difference between the saloon and the man who keeps it, between the saloon and the law whteh protects it, between the law and lite church deacon who votes for it. When they all come before the judgment, God will not take time to grant separate trials, but will deem all alike guilty. (Applause.) We are told that it can't'be helped, that we are in a miserable minority. I'm used to that, and I like it. (Laughter.) Ignorance and prejudice are hard to overcome, I speak from experience, for I have had both. (Laughter.) When Noah was floating around in the ark and looked out on the big majority in the water, none of those with him wanted to go over to the majority. (Laughter.) But many would have been glad to have gone over to the minority with Noah." (Laughter.) "There are 215,000 retail liquor saloons in the country, consuming nine hundred millions of the people's money yearly, and indirectly six hundred millions more for alms houses, jails, penitentiaries and lost time. Yet the politicians say the tariff is the great issue. The present protective system has ten times as much politics as it has protection in it. It gives ten dollars worth of protection to the capitalists to every dollar's worth it gives the labor of the country. (Applause.) We need protection to the home, and unless we give it, while the mercy of God endureth forever, His patience will cease, and this nation will see inscribed on the wall, "Weighed in the balance and found wanting." "For every dollar we expend to educate we contribute ?15 to the liquor traffic??15 to tear down and one dollar to build up. The United States is the boss saloon-keeper. It is the principal partner in every saloon to the extent of ?25 a year and !)0 cents n gallon, me government gives greater protection to the distillery than it does to any schoolhouse, home, mother or babe in arms." Mr. St. John then cited the case of the Chicago internal revenue collector posting a notice on a distillery during the riots last year, in which he said the government would protect the property. Near by was a new and tine church, whose minister asked the collector to extend the protection to the church, i which could be done with no additional trouble, but the collector replied that"tho government is not protecting churches. The government don't get ninety cents a gallon on every gallon of religion. If you will buy a still and go to making whisky in the church, we will protect your property. When the mob passes you can move your still into the cellar." "Nearly 2,000 years ago there was an election between Barrabus and Christ, and Christ didn't get a vote, not that he had no friends, but they didn't wan't to throw their votes away. A vote for principle in the sight of God is never thrown away. [Applause). Take the preachers and sa loon-keepers. One is a man of God, the other a man of beer. (Laughter.) They voted the same tickets once in the old parties, hut they can't do so now. The preacher wants a prohibition plank in the platform and says times have changed. The saloon-keeper objects and says the preacher has changed, and he has the logic of the argument, the minister has to get out of the old party and into the new one. There is nothing between the old parties now but the bitterness growing out of a struggle that ought to have been LmmIaiI Wn uoml fn /mill/1 txill uui iru lung n^v/i ?t c uouu iu wum kv*? 2 the difference between them by smelling ( their breath. (Laughter.) We can't tell ( any more. (Laughter.) Like Charley , who was so far in the catechism as 'origi- { nal sin,' and Tom, who was 'past redemp- ( tion,' the Democratic party is still in orig- } inal sin, while the Republican party is ] past redemption. (Laughter.) i "At the door of the Christian people \ rests the responsibility. As long as you | see the man of God and the man of beer ; voting the same ticket we will have this < on us. No wonder Ingersoll has his faith , shaken in Chistianity as he looks down the i line on election day. God help me to in- , ject some religion into politics. Show me | a man who is corrupt in politics and I , will show you ope who has no religion. ( If the Christian people were as united \ against the saloon as the saloon is against < Christianity, the saloon would not last 24 ] months." : Personalities.?Keep clear of per- j sonalities in general conversation. Talk , of things, objects, thoughts. The small- , est minds occupy themselves with per- | sonalities. Personalities must sometimes < be talked, because we have to learn and ( find out men's characteristics for legiti- j mate objects; but it is to be with confiden- i tial reasons. Do not heedlessly report ill , of others. There are times when we are j compelled to.say, "I do not think Boun- | cer a true and honest man;" but when j there is no need to express an opinion, ( 1*>4- t)/Minnnt? unmnrooi* oiliQtT o f kara I 1CI jJUWi -UWUcv n cij v/wuvio will take his measure, no doubt, and save you the trouble of analyzing him and instructing them. And as far as possible dwell on the good side of human beings. There are family boards where a constant process of depreciating, assigning motives and cutting up of character goes forward. They are not pleasant places. One who is healthy does not wish to dine at a dissecting table. There is evil enough in man, God knows; but it is not the mission of every young man or woman to detail and report it all. Keep the atmosphere as pure as possible, and fragrant with gentleness and cliarity.?John Hall, D. D. A Cubic Mile.?The solid earth occupies a space equal to 2,GC2 cubic miles. Few people have any conception of the immensity of the space in a single mile. Professor Bernstein, an eminent German savant, illustrates it in a striking way. Imagine, he says, a box one mile each way?long wide and deep?and let us try to fill it. We will take all the great cities of Europe. London, Paris, Berlin, Vienna, St. Petersburg, Constantinople and the rest; the bottom is scarcely covered. We take up everything else that human hands have built in Europe, Asia, Africa, America, Australia and all the ships floating on sea; throw it all in and the box is scarcely half full. Then we will j lay in the people of the globe. One row J will require 12,900, and 4,000 rows make < one layer of 48,000,000?just enough for North America. Put between each layer a bed of straw and leaves thirty feet thick (which will take all the straw and leaves in the world) we will proceed to pack in the balance of mankind?14,(WW,000,000 in ( all?in about thirty layers. The box is , only half full. Dump in all animal crea- ( tion, and there still will be a great amount of space left.?Penman's Art Journal. I , Atiquity op Gingerbread.?It will ' surprise houskeepers to learn that our . homely everyday luxury?gingerbread, > has been used since the fourteenth cen- s tury. It was made then and sold in } Paris?so Montell affirms in his "Histoirie des Franeais." It was then prepared with rye meal, made into a dough, and other t spices, with sugar or honey, were knead- ] ed into it. It was introduced into Eng- s gland by the court of Henry IV for their * festivals, and soon brought into general use. Since then it has retained its popularity and contributed much to the pleasures and enjoyments of young and old. { A srreat chantre. of course, was after a . while made in its composition, and par- j ticularly after it was introduced in this country. Iloney being more expensive than molasses, was less used, and the darker color hidden under some other ingredient or gilded. "To take the gift off the gingerbread," was a common proverb,and in the old country booths, glittering with their rude devices in gingerbread, are still seen in many country towns to this day. [ ?- ? i Graces or Old Age.?A face which s has for years been under the controlling " and shaping influence of good feeling and . noble thoughts, has obtained thereby a < beauty of the finest kind. Oliver Goldsmith must have thought something of * this sort when he pithily wrote, in his inimitable "Vicar of Wakefield," that j "handsome is that handsome does." So it comes about that the human countenance is as a magician's glass, in which is seen the very image of the actions emanating from the volitions of the mind and heart. It is, indeed, as Spenser appropri- r ately put the thought in his "Hymne in Honour of Beutie," when he says: For of the soulo the bodie forme doth take ; For soulo is forme, and doth the bodio make. ' And it is, indeed, as the poet Young i declared: * The body charms, because the soul is seen. Consequently beauty is not confined to J youthfulness; neither is it the exclusive 1 monopoly of those who are upon the hith- j er side of middle age. There is a slow, ' but steadily growing beauty which can. ? only come to maturity in old age.?Nao J York Home Journal. s Disadvantages of Flesh.?It is gen- j erally supposed that fat people have much 1 more blood than others. On the contra- ( ry, they have less. The blood they have, 1 moreover, is really poor, while the fat 1 fills the space wh'ch is required even for ( the circulation of that. The fat then have less vital energy than the thin, not possessing sufficient blood to bring every organ up to its full working power, and the $ fat hindering what blood there is from 2 flowing freely enough to the organ espe- i ciallyatthe moment of action requiring i it. Besides all this, the fat obstructs t the play of the lungs, so that sufficient J air cannot be inhaled to purify the blood ; s the natural and necessary combustion is i thus so interfered with that the functions r of the body are hindered. It follows that t too much exertion should always be c guarded against in the people of large . and fatty development and too much i should never be expected of them.?Bazar, t s Mux ix t^e Moon.?'The inhabitants i of the moon, if there are any, behold a s much larger and more luminous moon than the inhabitants of the earth do. \ It is thirteen times larger than ours, s therefore thirteen times more luminous. 11 It hangs in the firmament of the moon c I ittUkniif /iVtartrvn of cnrAlOO fnt* fhiu ornuf 1 V Witiivjuu V/iiau^u \jl cuuav,vj iui i.uig givuv * globe as it turns on its axis presents fc its oceans and continents in grand sue- t cession. In a word, in twenty-four hours c this great rotundity which we mortals tread turns its pictured countenance to a the moon, and grandly repays the lis- u tening or gazing lunarians by repeating it to them, with the best of its ability, the tl story of its birth. Whether there are in- 41 telligeuces in the moon whose capacities tl enable them to read the story is a ques- o tion for philosophers and astronomers to n sol vo.?7 inxton ('a/ti vat or. THE PARISIAN CATACOMBS. , A new form of amusement has brok m out in the regions of the best Paris an society. It consists of visits l( ;he catacombs and comprises a whol< iay and evening's entertainment rhe catacombs, in the course oftheii ixistence, have been the object o nuch curiosity and the Mecca o uany pilgrims, but of late years thej lave been pretty rigorously closet :o the public and entered only at th< ixpense of a great deal of red tap< ina caution. A few days ago, how iver, a dozen or more carriage: Irew up at the Barrier d'Enfer, th< nain entrance to the catacombs md a score or more of ladies, ac lompanied by a squad of clubmei ind artists, got out, armed with th< necessary permissions and all thing! used in an underground research rhese consisted of immense torchei borne by each member of the party Now, the catacombs of Paris are no catacombs atall in the ordinary sens< Df the term. They were not exeava ted by zealous Christians in the earl} century for a place to worship in am bestow the dead. They were dug by enterprising capitalists in search o ?ypsum, with which the Parisiai bills and soil abound. A hundrec pears ago the excavations were very *reat and extended under many o the principal streets and buildings A.t one time it became necessary t< prop up the streets from below t< prevent a general collapse of import \nt parts of the city. Eventually the aucient cemeteries of the city were abandoned, the remains takei jp and tumbled into the quarries ii beaps, the only discrimination showi being in keeping separate the re mains of different cemeteries. N< two graveyards were mixed up, bu the individual bones in each ceme :ery were thrown together promiscu Dusly. As years passed the quarriei oecame more una more useiui ub i lepository of human remains, an( some order wa9 shown in the inter inent. Throughout the long galleriei the skeletons are piled up regularly against the wall, the bones of armi ind legs forming the outside of th< piles, the other bones being throwi behind them, except the skulls these are arranged in horizonta rows at regular intervals, there beinj usually three rows of skulls alonj 2ach tier. At these interesting ant iheerful relics of the past the bev; of ladies and their fashionable es jorts gazed during several hour spent in traversing the undergroun* galleries. There are upwards o three millions of skeletons packet iway in the catacombs, and room fo a. great many more than that is left It is not probable that the ladie saw them all. They were led b; i real countess, and when the; smerged from the charnel place the; sought the nearest restaurant, wher they bewildered the proprietor witl the number and variety of thei orders, and astonished the neighbor hood by the richness and eleganc of their dresses. The evening's par of the entertainment was a dinne and talking-it-all-over time at th residence of the countess. We shal probably have more of these excur 3ions now that the example has bee; well set. CURIOUS CENTRAL AFRICAN PEOPLES The Rev. T. T. Comber, a Baptis missionary has given to the Roya Geographical Society an account of hi voyage, in company with the Rev George Grenfell and in the missions ry steamer Peace, up the Congo ti the Bangala, and up the Bochin hn the innetinn nf the Kwantro. Thi width of the river, from Stanley Poo to the Bochini, varies from twelvi hundred yards to two miles. It I swift and strong, and navigation ha :o be performed carefully, on accoun if up-cropping feldspathic rocks. Ai nteresting feature of the first day'i sail was the little clusters of huts 01 ;he sand-banks in twos, fours, am sixes, inhabited by Ba-Buma people who sold beer and caught fish. Th< people are ruled by a Queen, Ngi STkabe, whose husband, or "Princ< :onsort," Nchielo, "knows his place ind sits quietly by smoking his pip< neekly and philosophically, whil< lis wife rules." She is tall, brawny ind dignified, and about fifty year )ld, but "did not seem to think i leneath her to take her paddle, anc mtering into her little canoe wit! mother woman, to go herself to cu is a bunch of plantains." Her grea lesire was to possess a double-bar elled gun, and she was evidently ileased with a present of cloths, a bij lell, a soldier's great-coat and som< irass. The Ba-Buma were the bes specimens of the Africans encounter id on the journey. The women weai irass collars weighing from twenty ive to thirty pounds. The mos irimitive people seen by the travel ;rs were the Ikelemba, about th< jreat Ruki River, who go about witl low and arrow, or spears and shield ir a murderous sacrificial knife wearing hats made of monkey skins if which the head of the anima ;omes to the front of their heads while the tail hangs down behind rhey are cruel, ingeniously cruel ind indulge among other amuse neilts in chasing their human vie ,ims across the country as our hunt irs would chase a fox. Another ex ireise of their braves is inflicting 'death by the knife," in which th( ~c ?/X:..n4rv; leuu ui nit; villi in ja au uujuaiei hat, when it is cut off by a blow o i sickle-shaped knife, it is tossed bj he spring of sapling high into th< lir. In a strange contrast with thes< evolting practices was "a pretty lit le performance by children, lastinj several hours, and consisting, first, o . lever dancing, and then of a litth lit of operatic acting, after the styl< )f a Greek play, the chorus part o vhich was very prettily rendered bj i little girl from eight to twelve year: )ld."?Popular Scietice Monthly. ABOUT DRESS. There is probably no subject which so much engages the thoughts o foung women even ofChristian younj vomen as that of dress. If there i: vealth in the family there are con inually new clothes to be selected :f there is a scanty allowance, ther 10 much turning and returning are lecessary, that the planning and nanual labor required to make a asteful wardrobe keep the mattei onstantly in mind. This is wrong, and yet, as society s now constituted, it is impossible o avoid considerable care on this ..L! A 11 ^ tn 4- nirt nnn /J rv 5 a 4- r liUjeCl. -tt.il iiiui/ wc t?u uu jo ivj nake as little as possible of this aborbing concern. The first rule for both men and vomen to observe in arraying themelves is, as it goes without saying, leatness. The slightest sign of unleanliness about the person, untidy lair, hanging dress-braid, missing mttons, seams pinned together? hese are insulting to those in whose ompany they are displayed. Elaborate and expensive material nd trimmings should be sparingly sed for young girls. Youth is in tself so much of an ornament that he addition of rich dress is like gilding refined gold," or "painting he lily." The more simple and unbtrusive a young girl's dress, the lore becoming it is likely to be. It would seem very absurd to warn young men against the dangers of . tight dressing, either of their bodies . or extremities. No man worthy of ) the name would endure the slightest 3 compression from his clothes. Yet . young women not on?y render therar selves uncomfortable by snug, if not f tight, dressing of their bodies, feet, f hands and arras, but harm their j health and usefulness immeasurably I by so doing. 3 If possible, some loose garment 3 should be contrived to wear when at work. so that the muscles and hlnnd g vessels need suffer as little compres3 sion as possible. Neuralgia, dyspepsia, pneumonia, consumption, and all I kinds of weakness, especially those ! due to defective circulation, are often 3 traceable to close dressing. Other 3 minor evils frequently follow in theli train?such as a bad complexion, 3 pale lips, a red nose, falling nair anc decayed teeth. Especially must any t one who desires a quick and vigo B rous intellect take care to dress very . loosely. f The plain garb aud ugly garb o: 1 men requires comparatively little j thought from them, and Is well f adapted to all practical purposes. II j is necessary for women to use a great j deal of thought in order to make j their own costume either healthfu f or becoming. Yet, in the good prov# idence of God, the right settlement 3 of this matter in the mind of each 3 individual woman is undoubtedly oi . mortf cousequence to the future d& l velopment of our race than many oi . the great political questions now un 3 der discussion, important as the lafr 3 ter surely are.?Good Cheer. ! an ancient"custom. 3 Most people sneeze in the course o t their life-time, and even in thfr - country there are many communi ties among whom bystanders, upon 9 such an occasion, will exclaim; i "God bless you 1" This is designee 1 to avert the evil omem The super - stition was brought here from Eng g land and from most of the northeri j nations of Europe. Many of om 9 readers will recall what. Longfellow 3 wrote of the custom in Sweden i "You sneeze, and the peasants cry ; 4God bless you!' " A writer at th< 1 beginning of this centniy, remark * ing upon the customs of Italy, sayi y that when you sneeze, "even in tn< 1 theatres, men rise and wish yoi y 4Felitciia ." " The purport of this ii the same as the hearty Swedish am s English "God bless you!" 1 The origin of this custom in thi ii ainereni countries 01 JCiiirope wa i the same, just as its meaning is th< r same. It has been traced to tho? ;. visitations of fearful pestileno s known as the Black Death. Om v will read of it in England in tto y times of Edward III. In 1350 thl y plague swept over Sweden and Den e mark. Its ravages in those countrie h were so great that the disease gaine< r the name of the tiger death. Tb - earliest symptoms of an attack by a e dread a pest was a 'sneeze. Then t upon the pitying by-standers, wit r sorrowing glance, would turn to th e newly-marked victim and exclaim [1 "May God be with you!" If this account of the custom b n correct, it will be seen in what goo reason the usage originated, and wit what of all reason it is continued I . times when a sneeze, at the worst indicates but a trifling cold. Nevei 1 theless, it is a pleasant little custom s which does harm to nobody, and w have not so many acts of forma 1 courtesy that it is necessary to dia 0 pense with any of them.? Youth1 1 Companion. 1 For Parents.?The mistake o b many earnest reformers has been h s attempting to put the State in th s place of the parents?society in th t province of home. It has bee i thought more rational to limit liquo s selling than to train boys that the^ i would not want liquor?a better phi 1 losophy to curb the supply than ti , kill the demand. 3 For example, farm life has been ii i general left so rude and barren tba 3 the young have sought their voca , tion elsewhere, in the midst of temp 3 tations. Home life in towns ha 3 been too often conducted without re , erence to the innate and innocent d< s sire of young folks for recreation, an t the boys have drifted out upon th 1 streets and into taverns and bad com i panionship, when they might an! t should have been finding tneir en t joyment at home. Too busy father - too weary mothers, and too careles r sisters are the ruin of many a prom j ising lad. "You must not!" iron 3 the father, and "You ought not!' t from the mother, have been reliet - on to keep him from evil ways, whil< r he was left to himself for entertain - ment. And so, instead of playinj t with his sister or with his father a - home, the boy has played over i 3 mug of beer with some mates afte i the shop was shut up. , Most lads would prefer a cozy sit , ting-room at home, where they wen , at liberty to bring their companion 1 for innocent games or cheerful music , to a rendezvous in a tavern. Bu . with a home that is an comraant , and no concessions, all preaching ant - no pleasure, all duty and no fun?1 - dull, tread-mill, old folks sort o - place?it is a matter of deep regret - but not of wonderment that the boy j drift away from it. Keep hold o i yourchildrenifyou would save them 1 parents. And remember that th f real forces are those of love, express 7 ed not in care merely, but in sympa i thy, co-operation, participation ant j real companionship.?Divine Life. r Home Life in the Country.f Too many of our farmers' home 3 are merely so in name. They ar* 3 not homes?only places to stay. D< f not think we are insinuating tha t you must rush right off and spent i $1,000 in buying new furniture, car pets and an organ. Not at all. Om of the "homiest," places we ever sav was one that was entirely innocen i of any extravigance in that line f There a hundred dollars would havt r covered the cost of all the furniturt 3 in the house, but it was a place w< . always enjoyed visiting. Tne heat . of Tamily was always jolly and read> t to take a hand in the game, and hii > nine children always hearty and ful [ of fun, did not care to be out in th< l evenings. The girls did sewing anc knitting as they grew old enough and the boys were often found mak ir\rr crtmofKino* hut. nn ovaninv no OA '"6 OWIMVVHiMf, 7 V V r,JH > ed that one did not have something? s to read to the others?an anecdote o? > a story?something either to amusa . or instruct. But the main secret o? their happiness, if it was a secret? [ lay in the fact that worrying an(fl . fretting were banished. One growl? er, or fretter will spoil a whole fam? ily. Fathers, mothers, don't allov*? a fault finding spirit to spoil th<? pleasure of your family circle. Don? indulge in it yourselves. Have a? cozy and comfortable homes as yot? can afford, but don't mourn ove? what you have not. Rather rqjoic? in what you have and be thankful.-? National Stockman. jfi "What an inveterate talkefl Charley is!" remarks Brown; "? never saw his like." Fogg replies? "Nor I, either; 'pon my word, I be? lieve he would even talk to his wif? rather than keep his tongue still," ?