Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, September 24, 1890, Image 1
??YQR SEVILLE?EW?y BRER?^
lewis >i. grist, Proprietor, j gin Jiulcpendent ^tmtlti JfeuKiraper: .Jfor the promotion of tire ?olificat, Social, Agricultural and Commercial Jnferests of the .South. |TERMS'?$2.00 A YEAR IN ADVANCE.
VOL. 86. YOEKYILLE, S. C., WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 1890. NO. 39.
A MATRIMO
BY G. B. a
[Copyright, 1890, by American Press Association.)
CHAPTER I.
MAJ. BLACK MAKES A DISCOVERY.
"A man tcho'd rob my letter boxes'd lie
?? ~~ ~ about his own father."
Half way between Snow flake City and
Holbrook, in a spur of the Mogollon
mountains, lies the mining settlement of
Redrock Springs. Red rock makes no
pretensions to architectural beauty, but
it is on record that some of the richest
quartz has been dug out there that has
ever been known this side of the Juniper
mountains, which lie due west, probably
a good two hundred miles. The creek
itself is a small affair?a mere tributary
of the Little Colorado river, which flows
along the northeastern base of the Mogollon
mountains till it is lost in the vast
volume of the Colorado at the foot of the
great wooded range near Willow Spring.
Practically isolated from the rest of
mankind, Redrock has to fall back upon
its own recources for social and other
recreation after sunset ?the miner's hour
for throwing aside his tools and making
tracks for the cabin or the more congenial
hotel bar. There is no dusk to speak of.
At one moment you have the sun, shining
bright and warm, along the sides of
the valley; the next he has slidden over
the Mogollon range and out of sight,
and the denizens of Redrock know it is
time for supper.
The general rendezvous is the "parlors"
of Maj. Jonas Black's hotel?a
structure that combines peculiar natural
* Kf o-*
ouvaiiio^vo wiiu kuwc auviucu u? a&u
It stands sheer up against a limestone
cliff, which forms its northern wall; and
it has also a floor of the same cheap and
enduring material. On three sides it is
a frame structure, substantial enough to
defy alike the blasts of winter (sometimes
pretty severe at Bedrock) and the
W V
The two mile expanse of valley is a
veritable flower garden?an oasis amid
the white peaked hills, whose picturesque
silence has not yet been invaded by the
smoke and din of the locomotive, or by
anything noisier than the quartz mill and
the rattle of the teamsters, as they drive
their wiry little horses aloflg the single
path that leads from the settlement
proper to the Bhaggy Peak mine, which
lies further up the valley.
Supper was over, and the miners had
begun to gather at the major's. Here the
elite of the Springs held nightly symposium
and discussed the prospects of the
Peak and the latest news received by the
maiL There were two ameliorative influences
for which Bedrock might be
fairly said to hunger; Th* refining prosenoe
of a female cook at the major's
ranch to save them from the cruel mereies
of the coolie who now served in that
important capacity, and the advent of a
semi-weekly mail from Snowflake City
or Fort Defiance.
Jack Browning, one of the latest comers,
sat smoking with his chum, Fred
Lispenard, in a corner of the parlors,
wa^hlno' the nlavora at. tVio hvn taVilpa
" -O 1 J ? ~
who were somewhat boisterous in their
comments as the game proceeded. There
was no disorder, however. The major,
an easy going, somewhat corpulent man
of 50, with an eye that was at once serious
and full of jocose humor, was a capital
host, and knew just how far to let
the boys have their way. Presently he
came over to where Browning and his
friend sat, and, turning up a box on end,
squatted beside them.
"D'ye hear that yer old mate, Crenshaw,
left here this morning? No? Well,
he did; an' he cum pretty nigh not gittin'
away at all."
"How was that, major?" asked Browning,
suddenly wheeling about.
"I told ye, didn't I, that the boys here
wouldn't allow no foolin'. Well, yer see,
Crenshaw had bin takin' liberties with
other folks' fixin's an' he got notice ter
quit?an' he did. That's all."
"Was it the mail again, major?" put
In Lispenard.
"It wuz," solemnly averred the host.
"An' it wuz an aggervated case as required
pretty consider'ble stiff measures.
The boys?some on 'em, 8t least?reckoned
as how a short rope wouldn't a'
come amiss; but Jonas Black ain't a
goin' ter lead no lynchin' bees in this
creek, unless he can't help himself. Yer
see, Crenshaw had been mussin' and
fussin' 'roun' my mail boxes so long that
I begun ter be a bit suspicious; an' last
evenin'?maybe it were about 10?Cy
Whipple, the mine superintendent,
oaught him redhanded. Crenshaw was
smart 'nuff ter see he was in a box an'
he tried ter lafl it off; but it wouldn't go
down with Cy. When he come on that
cur with a envelup dated Boise City, or
lonahurioA ntnmiwH hp tnmvpH hp'H hoon
up to his tricks that we've been suspectin*
fer some time back. Crenshaw
never forgot you fer the turn you gave
him when you caught him here Sunday
mornin' two weeks ago, an' when he allowed
he was after a drink. I'm dead
positive he got some mail that time,
although I didn't hear no complaints in
partic'ler."
"He's just the sort of fellow to nurse
grudges and he's better away," interposed i
Lispenard.
"PBhaw!" observed Browning, careless- '
ly, tossing away the stump of his cigar.
"What if he did? I can't imagine how
he could use one's letters, aftor bolting
from the neighborhood with a vigilance
oeuimittee at his heels."
"Now, Browning, yer friend has about
hit Crenshaw's size jest right," said the
major, shrewdly. "A man who'd rob
my letter boxes 'd lie about his own
father, let alone about a chap who had
fminrt him ojj t-nn rtiri "Rut It'n Cfit
tin' late, an' if the boys don't objec', I
guess I'll call the game and get ter my
bunk."
A half hour later Redrock was asleep.
The thin wedge of the crescent moon
crept over the northern mountain and
looked across into the quiet valley, like
a sentinel in the sky.
CHAPTER U.
the mail brings startling news.
Something like three weeks had passed
and the departure of Crenshaw had been
almost forgotten, when, one afternoon,
the mail brought a letter addressed to
the "Chief of Police of Redrock Springs," j
a superscription which greatly puzzled
the major.
"Sim," he called to his bartender, to
whom he mainly confided his troubles,
"I don't half like the looks o' that letter. |
Seems I sort o* reckonise the handwrite,
Sim."
"Nothin' like findin' out when yer in
doubt," Baid Sim, laconically. "Ther's
no law agin' openin' it, I s'pose?"
"True enough, Sim; but ther' ain't no '
chief o' police here, an' I don't know as
1 have the right to open it."
"Stuff!" piped Sim. "Ain't yer the
magistrate and the jedge all in one?
When the boys hev a spat, don't they
come to you fer a settlement an' to decide
it? Who is the chief ef 'taint you,
I'd like ter know?"
PL BOOM.
ANSISOX.
The major drew a long breath. He
turned the letter over and over and then
herd it up to the light. His open features,
on which his 50 years had left hardly
the trace of a wrinkle, were all pulled
together in the mighty effort to penetrate
the mysterious envelope and gather
an inkling of its contents. He drew a
long breath, stroked his whiskers softly,
and laid the letter on the counter before
him.
"Sim, I've bin five years at Redrock,
an' no man ever said as Jonas Black
took liberties with what didn't belong to
him. But as there don't appear to be
nobody here what kin lay claim to this
letter, and seein' as how I'm postmaster
! and sort o' gin'ral survant to the town?
actin' like, ye know, Sim, till we get
kinder organized as it were?I feel as if
I mout venture"
Sim smiled and began to move toward
| the major, who had taken up the letter
| again. The latter weighed it gently
across his forefinger, and then, with a
sudden resolution, tore it open at one
end and let the inclosure drop on the
counter. He stared at it hard for a minute
while he wiped his spectacles.
' It's from 'Frisco, Sim, that's what it
is. I might a-knowed by the handwrite.
An its from a woman?a lady, I jedge,
by the style of penmanship," and he
took it up carefully, Sim meanwhile
scanning the paper over his shoulder.
"Snakes and b'arsl What can she
mean? Jest lis'en to what 6he says."
And the major began to read, slowly
and carefully, pondering every syllable.
This was the letter:
8,012 Kzarnev Street. I
Sax Francisco, June 11, 18?)
Dear Sir?I have just learned of the fate of
my unfortunate boy. John Browning, and write
to ask you to keep the body till his sisters arrive
at Rod rock. They will come by the cars to Trescott
and will reach the Springs by the stage on
Wednesday next.
Do this for the sake of his sorrow stricken
mother, Sopqroxia Browning.
When ho had read the letter through
the major laid it down again and glared
at Sim.
"What's it mean?" he almost gasped.
"Why, I saw young Jack and his mate
only last night. And slio talks about him
bein' dead, and all that. Sim, there's
trouble ahead."
"Somebody's been a-playin' it on the
old lady to pay off a grudge, 'pears to
me, major, suggested &im. ".anynow,
it can't do the young feller much hurt.
He's big enough to look out fer himself.
An' meantime the two gals is a-comin'
over. Well, it's goin' ter be interestin'."
tTwojadifia<biM."i Ubtrt "doufet" aT
-"Tio^ 'tney're high quality folks, fer that
Jackdoes hold himself up wonderful like,
and so does his mate, that Lispenard.
'Spose you send Bill over to the mine
and j'est tell Browning ter come across
here by noon."
The sun was lighting up both sides of
Shaggy Peak when Browning entered
the hotel. Without a word, the major
took the letter and handed it to him,
smoking vigorously while Browning perused
it Jack's brows knit and he shook
the paper as if trying by that act to get
at its secret.
"Well?" inquired the major.
"It's mother's writing," muttered
Browning, "but who in heaven's name
could have been so cruel as to impose
upon her with such a story? There's
6onie deviltry here. What does. it.ni?an2"
"It's mother's writing," muttered Browning.
"Mr. Browning," said the major impressively,
"when yer lady mother writ
that there letter she writ it after she
seen a rascaL Leastways so it would
seem. Ef Crenshaw were here now, or
knowed your folks in 'Frisco, it wouldn't
be hard to guess who lied to her and told
her you lied lifted yer last pick and
swung yer cradle."
That afternoon the news of the major's
remarkable letter spread all over the settlement.
Many were the surmises as to
the cause of the strange communication;
but all agreed that one good thing seemed
likely to come out of it at all events:
Redrock was to have two charming visitors.
And it would be strange indeed if
the settlement, which had never before
had such an experience, did not rise nobly
and gallantly to the occasion.
CHAPTER III.
TWO NOTABLE ARRIVALS.
During the week preceding the arrival
of the sisters the settlement was in a fever
of excitement. All the trouble
over the letter had been apparently lost
sight of in the pleasure of the anticipated
visit. The momentous event was discussed
everywhere. Jack found himself
compelled to answer endless inquiries
al>out the two young ladies?all of them
icnuing io snow less or me oruinary mquisitiveness
than of a burning desire to
individually and collectively testify to
Redrock's appreciation of the compliment.
Finally the excitement reached
a climax when the major one evening
stopped a game in the "parlors," right
in the middle, and, clearing his throat,
addressed Browning, who had just entered:
"Mister Browning and gentlemen," he
said, "it hez been taken as the sense of
the male poperlashun of this settlement,
as our numbers is shortly about to be increased
by the two elegant young ladies
who is now on their ways here, that we
should show our 'preciasliun of the event
by quittin' work at the mines for twentyfour
hours. All in favor o' that say
'aye.'"
A deep and sonorous "aye" came from
all sides of the room, and Jack's vigorous
exclamation of protest passed unheeded.
"The 'aves' hev it, yer see, Mr. Brown "ng,"
said the major, with a smile. "We
A-ant to do this thing up in our own way,
in a style to refleck credit on the settle
I went. Ami, moreover, we Hopes to have
j you and Mr. Lispenard with us to help
j us out."
There was nothing for it but to submit.
The next few days it seemed as
though the Springs had gone crazy.
Something deeply mysterious was going
on in the "parlors," to which only the
major, Sim and a "special committee"
were now admitted. It was clear that
something quite unusual was about to
happen.
At last the morning of stage day
dawned clear and cool on the little settlement.
Never were the skies bluer,
the air balmier or the valley more still.
It seemed as though a hush pervaded
the place. Little puffy wisps of cloud
that floated over the Mogollon mountains
cast slender, filmy shadows athwart
the valley, only to be chased away by
the swift sunshine. The stream, unvexed
by the miners, ran as clear as in
I the days before the white man sought
j out that lonely, auriferous spur of the
western hills in his hunt for gold. Jac*.
: and Lispenard were up betimes and noted
the unusual aspect of the place. It
was the strange calm only to be found
"Oh, Jack! And we all thought you was
deadf'
in a New England Sabbath transplanted
to the mining camp.
But it did not last long. Before 9
o'clock the whole of Redrock was astir.
The stage was due at 2. At the hotel the
hum of preparation was still in the air,
and the major wore a satisfied look as he
trod the piazza. The mine superintendent,
too, was early on the pcene. He
was a young Englishman?a globe trotter
once; but he had now settled down
to extract-the wealth that lay hidden in
these hills that overhung the Little Colorado
and its feeders. "Cy" Whipple had
been the major's lieutenant in the preparations
for the coming event. The greetings
he received from the men everywhere
showed how well they were satisfied
with their blonde bearded and
bronzed superintendent.
At noon precisely, according to the
major's old fashioned timepiece that
faced you as you entered the parlors,
there was a small cavalcade assembled
in front of the hotel. It was composed'
of the major, resplendent in a somewhat
faded suit of what might once have been
white duck, but which was white no longer;
Cy Whipple, Jem Gillip, the timekeeper
at the mine, and Jack and his
friend Lispenard. All were pretty well
mounted. At the major's cheery signal
they started off at a round pace for Pine
Spruce Pass, to meet the stage which
would come round by Chino. A half
hour's ride brought them in sight of the
stage.
"Now, boys," said the major, "let's
give 'em the proper s'loot. Draw up on
each side the road and don't let's block
up the drivin' path, like everlastin' stage
robbers."
Accordingly the five drew up and as the
stage approached Sile Bagley, the driver,
recognizing the portly form of the major,
pulled rein, just as the latter with a
courtly flourish took the middle of the
road.
"Hello, major," called Sile. "Anything
wrong down at the Springs?"
r;Ro, srieiThe&fl-ingg-ifoliift' a
holiday, and we thought as how w6hU
would come down and meet some strangers
you're bringin' here. Ther's two
young gentlemen here as would be
mighty pleased to see two ladles as was
a-comin' to Red rock about tin's time o'
year. Maybe ye might hev' them as
passengers, Sile?"
There was a flutter at the stage window,
and a feminine face peeped out.
Jack saw it and sprang forward in an instyit.
"Em and you, too, Millie! How is
mother?"
"Oh, Jack! And we all thought you
was dead! Jack! Dear Jack!"
And the door was opened and the fair
girl was clasped in her brother's strong
arras. Another, slenderer and taller,
followed. - _ ...
"Millie, dear (kiss), how is mother?
Tell me how you left her?"
"Why, Jack, we were told you had?
oh, it was terrible, Jack. And poor
mamma! She took on so about you,
to think you were dead, all alone here,
out in this dreadful place! Oh! how
glad she will be to find that it isn't true!"
"Of course it isn't, Millie," said her
brother. "But we'll talk about that
later. Mother was misled by some scamp
who wished to do me an injury and
didn't care how he did it; that's all.
Meanwhile let me introduce you to these
gentlemen. Here, you know Lispenard
already," as the latter came forward
and greeted the new arrivals warmly.
The others who had dismounted stood
by in a group a little way off, the major
with a red handkerchief to his eyes,and
evidently deeply affected by what he had
just witnessed. Introduced, seriatim,
they paid their several respects. Then
the ladies re-entered the stage, and the
cavalcade wheeled about in the direction
of the Springs.
"Well, I'm blowed," muttered Sile
Bagley, the driver, as he remounted his
box and gathered up the lines. "This is
a queer party as I've got aboard, just as
I suspicioned from the fust. Whatever
brought them gals out here beats me all
to pieces."
And he tried to engage the major in
conversation, but he might as well have
essayed to talk to his coach wheels. The
major had taken up his post, like a gallant
escort, at the off side of the stage,
and was fast breaking ground with Miss
Millie, the elder of the sisters. Jack and
Lisnenard were keeping up a brisk fire
on the opposite side with Em, who was
apparently rallying rapidly from her depression,
after discovering that her
brother was still in the flesh and not a
spook, haunting the shadowy passes of
these wild hills.
"Yes, Miss Millie; you 6ee the boys
took a holiday, as I said, and they kind
o' deputized us to conio down an' meet
ye an' break the news, gentle like. We
didn't want young ladies to pop in 'mong
us rough miners, who isn't accustomed
to wimmin' folks, seein' as how some on
us haven't seen the sign of a petticoat
in years, and as none was ever seen in
Redrock yet."
Miss Millie held up her hands with u
frightened little gesture.
"No women at all, major! Dear me!
Why you must be a lot of barbarians.
I'm afraid we will be troublesome intruders"
"Bless your heart, Miss Millie, if you
only knowed how the boys liev looked
forward to this day for nigh onto two
weeks, you wouldn't say so. They hev
jest laid out to do their very best, miss,
to please you and yer sister. And I,
beiu' as I'm their humble representertive,
can only say as I'm glad ye come, both of
ye."
A merry laugh?from the other side, at
some of Lispenard's sallies, told them
that the spirits of the party were rising.
Jim Gillip rode on ahead, to notify the
gathering at the hotel. Fifteen minutes
later the stage and its escort were seen
rounding the familiar curve on the rise,
west of Redrock. As they drew up in
front of the major's hostelry a ringing
cheer burst from the assembled miners,
which surprised the ladies. Silo made
his horses describe an extra half turn bofore
halting, appreciating tho fact that
some unusual display was in order. Cy
Whipple helped the sisters to alight, and
as they ascended the steps of the hotel
they were captured by the major, who,
taking a hand of each, led them gallantly
to the piazza. The poor girls?half
pleased, yet half afraid?were trembling
at tiie unwonted demonstration. There
was the whole settlement?two hundred
miners, at least?facing them; and, had
it not been for tho smiling assurances of
Jack and Lispenard, they would surely
have fainted.
"Ladies?and gentlemen," said the
major, after clearing his throat, "I have
the honor?and the pleasure?of welcoming
two distinguished guests to our rude
but humble home. Now boys (as an impending
cheer showed signs of interrupting
his remarks), will yer hear me first
and then shout all yer want afterwards?
Ladies, you are welcome, for yours is tho
first wimmin's faces as has ever bin seen
in this valley, as long as most on us has
bin here?exceptin' prob'ly some poor
Injun squaw, as kin never awake tho
admiration or respeck of men as has bin
used to tho society of ladies. Wo want
to make yer stay Here as pleasant as we
kin, and we're bound to do our best
towards ye both. Everything is free to
ye while yer here?understand that!
An' it don't matter whether ye stop a
week or a year, it'll be the same. You
confounded idiot! Ef yc don't handle
that more carefully I'll break every bone
in yer yellow hide!"
This emphatic digression was for the
benefit of the Celestial who, in helping
Sile Bagley to uustrap the girls' boxes
from the coach, happened to drop the
end of one of theiu on the ground. The
sisters looked in dismay in the direction
of the culprit and then turned to tho
major, who, observing their interest, explained:
"Ladies, them heathen need to be
looked after pretty sharp. They ain't
used exactly to perlite treatment, and I
ask yer pardin. Resumin', let me say
that since wo first came here to Redrock
circumstances beyond our control has
deprived us of feminine society. The
red man of the forest isn't fit company
for the white man, and is a poor apology
for society. All that Redrock needs,
with its rich placers and its fine alluvial
soil, its mountains and its quartz mill, is
mantnl inflnnnnAn rtf Inuflltr WAJYifln
UUO lUliWUUVU VI *V?VIJ ITVU4UUI
We misa her pretty face, her smiles, her
sweet voice to make music among them
hills over there, until we build fine residences
for 'em to sing in. An' now,
here's all the boys want to tell you themselves
jest how glad they are to see you
an' if you don't objec' while our Chinaman
is a-layin' out the table I'll interjuce
a few of them."
"My dear major," said Jack, "let me
say in behalf of my sisters that they are
greatly pleased with the very cordial
welcome you have given them. But
they are tired, no doubt, with their long
journey, and if you will kindly postpone
the introductions till they have a little
rest, they will then be glad to meet our
friends afterwards."
And as the sisters withdrew a sturdy
cheer broke out, in which the strong
note of the major could be distinctly
recognized.
They found "the parlors" a wonderful
apartment. It had been transformed
for their especial benefit, and all the care
and elaboration of the major and his
faithful lieutenant Sim had been expended
to make it comfortable and attractive.
Jack was obliged to confess that they
had succeeded amazingly.
During the afternoon both Lispenard
and Browning were besieged by at least
a dozen of Redrock's "leading citizens"
for introductions to the girls. It began
to be a bore, and although Jack smiled
as he referred to it, Lispenard took a
more serious view of the case.
"See," said he, "these fellows are actually
going to get up a serenade. The
settlement is wild. I'm afraid the girls
will be horribly worried before it's all
through."
That night before they slept the sisfciyrs
wrote to Mrs. Browning at San
all about their journey
and the wonderful receptioh'at Redrock.
and how gallant the major had been to
Millie and how impressively attentive
the young English superintendent was tc
Em. Indeed, they good humoredly hinted
that both gentlemen had been so cordial
that had it not been for the fact t hat
Redrock recognized no conventional
forms, and that its society was a little
chaotic, the writers would have been
justified in regarding their attentions
as too pointed. All this and much more
to the same pleasant and trivial effect
they wrote. And, woman like, they did
not omit to mention in a postscript that
Jack was alive and well.
When the widow received the letters a
week later she was indignant.
"How selfish!" she exclaimed. "To
think of nothing but flirtation, when
their poor brother might have been cold
in his grave. They must be brought
home at once. And as they seem to be
60 forgetful of their duty and the proprieties,
I think it best to go and fetch
them myself."
A few days after reaching this determination
Mrs. Browning went by rail
to Prescott, where she took the stage for
Redrock Springs.
CHAPTER IV.
Tin nnt nnlti hlnhhp.rp.fi. hp. hp.llmnp.tl.
? - ?- - "J J ? -? ?
The weeks slipped away at the
Springs. Em and Millie, under the
agreeable guidance of Cy Whipple, Lispenard
and Jack, had surveyed almost
the entire region, and seen all there was
to be seen on this side the Mogollons.
Mining was to them no longer a mystery,
and they showed a surprising interest
and aptitude in everything that related
to sluices, placers, pans, gravel, dredges
and all the other paraphernalia that compose
a miner's equipment. Cy was, of
course, an indispensable party in these
little excursions, and the girls saw much
of the tawny mustached Englishman.
The major, too, had his rig constantly
at their service, and allowed no one else
to hand the ladies in or help them out.
Still when young Whipple would come
around the major would obligingly
yield him a seat by either lady. It was
clear, thought Cy, that the gallant veteran,
while he might have been in a
frame of mind to lose his heart, was not
yet quite decided to which chamber it
ought to go, and was letting things take
their course.
One perfect afternoon in early July,
just after the midday meal which the
Springs had not yet begun to dignify
with the name of lunch, the stage was
seen wheeling around the curve, just
east of Chino Gap, and on the top of the
rise. Long before the dust covered and
thirsty driver had pulled up in front of
tho hotel piazza a considerable group of
miners had gathered. The major, as
usual, stepped forward and opened the
door of the coach, while Sile held a colloquy
from his box with the barkeeper.
"Only one passenger this trip, Sim,"
said lie. " iNotiier ladj*. l ten ye, iteilrock's
a-looking up. At this rate we'll
soon hear of you folks bein'incorporated
into a city and runnin' tho major for
guv'nor of the territory," ho added, with
a chuckle.
A pretty scream from the window of
"the parlors," a wild flutter of dresses
and a responsive screech from tho interior
of the stage interrupted Sile and
made everybody look. The major had
but half opened the door when tho occupant
of the coach flopped out and into
the arms of Millie. Em was panting
close behind.
"Oh, mamma! Goodness! Who over
thought of seeing you hero? However
did you come, and all alone, too!" cried
the girls together in a breath. "Jack!"
called Em, as that youth appeared on the
piazza, "here's mamma!"'
The widow Browning, who had been
hugging the girls for a minute, raised
her eyes. She reached forward without
speaking and gasped, as if about to faint.
Jack sprang to her and clasped her in his
strong arms.
"They said you were dead, my son.
It's you, Jack, isn't it? Thank God!
Thank God for his goodness! But oh,
Jack, it was cruel! How could they say
it?*'
And she sobbed quietly on her son's
shoulder, with her head modestly averted
from the crowded uiazza.
"Hush, mother;-calm yourself. I'm
all right, as you see, and so are the girls."
But the fountains of long repressed
grief, once opened, were not so readily
stemmed. Em and&Millie added their
tears to hers, and Jaclc found himself in
a somewhat embarrassing position. Here
he was, with three weeping women, sol>bing
as though their hearts would break,
and there was fully one-half the population
of the Springs gazing straight at
them wonderingly.
Suddenly he heard a loud and vehement
blubbering proceeding from the
other side of the stage coach.
"Major! Major!" he cried, with a
shrewd guess at the author of the sounds.
Tt woo irwlnprl t.lif* mninr whrwo snu
ceptibilities had again been deeply
touched by the sight of lovely woman in
tears. He edged around till he came
within handshaking distance, when,
grasping Jack by the arm?the latter
having now succeeded in disengaging
himself from his relatives?he blurted
out:
"Sorry, my boy: but I can't help it.
Never could a-bear seein' wimruin folks
in distress. Ah, Mr. Lispenanl, you
there, too? Well,'tian't for everything.
Jonas Black woui.^ drop ^ tear, but
nater .will hev its way once in a while,"
and the tender hearted major took another
look at the ladies as if to assure
himself that their grief was not yet
spent, and then started to blubber afresh.
He not only blubbered, he bellowed. His
grief was of the transcendent character
that asserted itself. It wasn't to bo gainsaid.
And all the while the voluminous
red handkerchief was sawing the air,
being waved with a gentle motion in the
left hand, while the right was firmly
pressed against the major's streaming
eyes.
Jack and his friend Lispenard looked
at each other in dismay. They led the
ladies gently and still sobbing to the
parlors; but the transit was fatal, for, to
their utter astonishment when the two
friends emerged a moment later, they
found the still weeping and apparently
disconsolate major surrounded by a score
or more miners who were softly howling
in sympathy. They had learned from a
lu'nf nocf Aiif Kr moini* in flia
TU^jUV UillV UUOU VUW UJ Ki?V AM Kliv
intervals of his vehement bursts of grief
that something had happened?they
couldn't exactly say what; but as it had
gone straight to the major's heart, and
as everybody at the Springs loved the
major and stood by him, they followed
his example.
It was a perfect canival of grief, and
Redrock indulged it to the full, just as it
might have injulged in the circus or any
other unwonted luxury. The miners
went sobbing in pairs and groups and
enjoyed the agony. Even the Chinese
cook went moaning about the kitchen,
wondering what had come over everybody
and what it was all about.
Long after the mother and daughters
had mastered their emotions and condescended
to talk rationally the settlement
kept it up. This episode of grief was a
"luxury" rare an(l unwonted to be
lightly turned asluu:*- I^drock sobbed
itself to sleep like an infant. 'Jiie fiaj?5t"T
who was one of the last to go to bed, declared
to Whipple that although he had
never cried since he was a boy he had
never enjoyed anything half so much in
his life.
"An1 I tell ye what it is, Cy, that
widow's a pretty sensible sort o' woman,
and whoever gets either o' the daughters
*11 have a perfeck lady fer a motherin-law."
The superintendent's heart gave a jump
and his blue eyes flashed at the major in
a way the latter might have resented
had it not been dark and the hour late.
After they parted Ofr pondered the major's
words. He could make nothing
out of them. It was absurd, he thought,
to imagine that the old prospector and
hotel keeper had ambitions in the direction
of Millio, whose dimpled, oval face
and bright, dancing eyes would ill assort
with his gray locks and increasing avoirdupois.
It was equally idiotic to believe
that he aspired to make an impression
with the tall and dignified Emmeline,
who had a distinguished air about her
that made him seem ridiculous by contrast.
Still, jealousy once aroused is hard to
stifle. To think over it is to strengthen
it. And so, while all else in Redrock
slopt as quietly as a babe at it mother's
breast, Cy Whipple alone lay awake
through the night watches, tossing on
his couch, uneasy and troubled by the
events of the previous evening, and quite
undecided as to the course he should
adopt on the morrow. That it devolved
upon him to do something, however, he
felt certain; and he resolved that he
would seize the first opportunity.
CHAPTER V.
REDROCK SPRINGS GETS A BOOM.
"It must rest with herself. Mother, what
do you say?"
The sun climbed over Shaggy Peak
and peeped down upon tear washed Redrock
next morning, flooding the "parlors"
and shedding a general air of sylvan
cheerfulness about the quiet neighborhood.
At the hotel folks were early
astir. Tho new arrival and her daughters
were served with a capital breakfast
in their rooms, thanks to tho forethought
of the hospitable major, and the widow
soon found herself surprised at the many
comforts and conveniences that were to
be found in such an out of the way place.
"My dears," she remarked to the girls,
"there are some advantages here after
all, although it is really a dreadful place
for two young women like yourselves to
be secluded in. Now, Millie, that my
head is a little better and I begin to feel
myself again, I would like to know who
it was that sent us that cruel letter saying
Jack had been killed. But here's
Jack himself. He may bo able to enlighten
me on a matter that you don't
seem to care to talk about."
"Why, mother," said Jack, entering
the room, "do you regret that I atu not
dead after all, then?"
' What a question!" and for a moment
the tears seemed to be ready to spring
afresh to the poor woman's eyes. "Jack,
you know I didn't mean any such tiling
as that. But it really was cruel. Here
is the letter. And when 1 expected to
hear all about a funeral Millie, like the
light headed creature she is, goes off tc
writing and chattering about men I never
heard of. I think I have a right to feel
aggrieved."
"But, mother dear, the girls were as
much surprised to find me alive and well
apparently as yourself. By the way, the
major is waiting to pay his respects. He
is a capital fellow the major, mother, and
I hope you will like him. lie has been
good to the girls; indeed, I don't know
what they would have done without
him."
"lie has Indeed, mamma," said Em.
"Maj. Black is"
"Emmeline!" interrupted tho widow,
severely. "I'm surprised to think that
you and your sister should fall so readily
into the rude manners of the people of
this place and talk about gentlemen
whom you cannot possibly know anything
of more than as casual acquaintances.
I myself will thank Maj. Black
for his fatherly care of you, for I'm sure
Jack here hasn't thought of such a thing."
Jack bit his lip.
"Very well, mother. Just as you
ple:ise. Only permit mo to suggest that
you should remember we are not in San
Francisco, and that society in a mining
camp is formed upon somewhat more
primitive lines than in cities. Don't expect
too much in the way of etiquette
and social distinctions, and you'll get
along hero famously."
"Indeed, I propose to take the girls
homo with me as soon as we can leave
this place," retorted the widow with
spirit. "Your acquaintances may be
very kind, but it is clearly no place for
them. What would the Cadwalladers
and the Florences say if they knew that
Millie and Em were boarding in a mining
camp, the ouly women in the place?"
"My dear mamma," said Jack, impressively,
"you will be careful, please, not
to give unnecessary pain to any one here,
fo?- T noenvn von tlioir do nnt rlpHPrvA if", fit
your hands, and it would ill repay all the
real kindnesses they have paid to my
sisters since they came hero. Besides,
they and you are the major's guests, and,
in a sense, the guests of the Springs.
Why, they actually celebrated the arrival
of Em and Millie by taking a holiday."
The widow looked pleased. It was
difficult to say whether vanity or gratitude
was uppermost, however.
"I confess the major is quite a presentable
sort of person," she said, presently.
"But lie is hardly the kind of
man I would care to have paying attentions
to either of my daughters. There
is too great a disparity"
"Oh, mamma!" cried Millie, placing
her hand to her mother's lips. "Why
do you talk of such tilings?"
"Ridiculous, mamma!" interposed Em,
with a furious blush which did not escape
Mrs.Browning's watchful eye.
Jack laughed heartily.
"Why, mother," he said, "the wind
doesn't set in that quarter, I hope. At
any rate, you will let the major speak
for himself, and if he needs and deserves
the maternal rebuke, go ahead and let
him have it."
"Don't talk nonsense, Jack," exclaimed
the widow severely. "You know it's all
your own fault that this thing has happened.
You would come out to this terrible
place, and I knew something would
come of it."
"Ana it Has, mother, xou see, were |
all here together now, and that's certainly
consoling. Now, if you have no objection,
I'll just step out and see who's
around."
Outside he met Whipple and the major.
To the latter Jack handed the letter his
mother had received, and which had
caused all the trouble. It was a note
written in a scrawling hand and Jonas
Black regarded it long and intently.
"Well, dog my cats!" he exclaimed.
"Ef I don't believe it's Crenshaw's handwrite.
I've seen it afore and it'd be jist
like the cur ter monkey with the mail
and then pay off the man as found him
out with a trick like that. It's Crenshaw,
I'll lay my oath, and ef he wuz
around here at this partic'lar minit I
wouldn't give an ounce of dust fer his
chances, ef the boys only knew about
this," and he held up the scrawl, his honest
eyes blazing with indignation.
"Well, major," said Jack philosophical^r"Vte
f>|inyi's over, and let it rest.
It was a mean trick, but as tlobt>a74L.
the worse for it we'll let it drop. I'll explain
it to mother for the credit of the
settlement, and see that the right man is
blamed. Now, let's see what the women
are doing in the parlors."
Both Whipple and the major had a
sober and serious air when, re-enforced
by Lispenard, the trio returned to the
hotel.
The ladies were found in capital humor.
Mrs. Browning had quite recovered
from the fatigue of the journey and
looked really becoming in a dark morn
ing dress. The major fancied he saw a
strong family resemblance between her
and Era, the taller of the sisters. Time
had certainly dealt very kindly with the
Widow Browning. When she turned
her dark gray eyes full upon him the
majm thought those orbs must be electric,
as they seemed to thrill him through
and through.
"The mornings are beautiful here,"
said the widow. "I adore scenery, and
the view from these windows is very
charming, major. Don't you think so?"
"It is, mum," he replied. Somehow
he felt that his gift of loquacity, which
had made him the most respected and
influential citizen of the Springs, had
deserted him at the very moment when
he most wished to be able to say something
interesting. "The mountains is
very fine; a'most as fine a view as that
back of Sacramento. But you ought ter
ride over to Chino Pass to get the full
benefit of the scenery."
"I should like very much to go there,"
she said; "but I'm afraid our stay here
will be too short to admit of much sight
seeing. I mean to take the girls back
with me as soon as possible."
"You ain't never goin' to leave us Jiko
that," spoke up Jonas, quickly. "Why,
it seems only a day or two sence the
young ladies there come here, an' it's
been the happiest time the Springs hez
seen since I knowed them, some live year
or more. The Springs is a likely place
an' risin'. It's goin' t?r be a big town
some o' these days. We are goin' ter
have a railroad, jest as soon us the Pass
is surveyed; and we're buildin' two new
quartz mills an' we'll have a branch of
the Prescott bank here by next fall."
"Indeed," said the widow with a show
of interest.
"Yes," continued the major, his eloquence
increasing with his favorite topic.
"A railroad an' a bank. Then, if we
only had ladies like you and your daughters
come over once in a while, we'd
soon ha'?e a dry goods emporyum, too."
Mrs. Browning laughed. It was a little
cheery laugh, and the major felt impelled
to join in it. It was evident, Jack
thought, that the two were becoming acquainted.
So there was little need to apprehend
the "maternal rebuke" in that
quarter, at least.
"Mr. Browning," said the major, catching
his eye, "your mother says as how
she intends to take the two young ladies
homo a'most right off. I've been a-tryin'
ter.persuade her to stop here awhile an'
git acquainted."
Jack smiled. "I imagine the girls will
like to bo consulted about it," he said
quietly. "They may want to stay a little,
mother, and you might talk it over
with them."
"Indeed," said the widow, promptly,
"I shall do no such thing. I have made
up my mind to take them home. They
mnef )>nvn lipon <lrV>nitfnllr in tlifl iv.iv.
major," she added, apologetically.
"Bless their hearts!" said the major,
rising. "In the way? In Jonas Black's
way, ye mean? Why, mum, if I had
tho choice I'd have 'em stay in the way
right along, an' yourself, too, beggin' ver
pardon for say in' it. Seems ter me that
the Springs would never bo itself again
after they left. There isn't a man in the
settlement as wouldn't work his thumb
nails off to please 'em, I do believe."
"You are very kind?all of you," said
the widow, including Whipple and Lispenurd
in her glance across the room;
"but I think it is perhaps better that
they should go back. You see our friends
expect us and"
"But, mamma," broke in Millie, "you
might wait a little"
"Yes," said Em. "You see, mamma,
wo want"
Tho widow looked puzzled. Here was
a mystery under her very eyes. Here
was somo secret, she felt certain. It
vexed her more than she cared to show
that her own children should oppose her
in this matter. Her pride came to the
rescue.
"Very well. We can do all the sight
seeing necessary between now and the
next stage day, I believe."
"Perhaps," 6aid Cy Whipple, rising,
and tugging at his long mustache vigorously,
"it would bo bettor to bo plain
and end all misunderstanding. The truth
is, Mrs. Browning, we have come to tho
conclusion that your daughter Millie's
presence hero is absolutely necessary to
tho successful development of the Shaggy
Peak mine, of which I am superin
fendent. 1 have spoken to the young
lady on the subject, and we have arranged,
provided you are entirely agreeable
and do not withhold your approval
of the plan, to enter into a permanent
partnership. In other words, madam, I
have asked your daughter to be my wife.
I am aware that the conventional methods
in such matters are somewhat different
from those that prevail here; but I
assure you that had it been possible I
would have spoken to you about it
sooner."
The widow was astounded. She sank
back in her chair and spoke not u word.
Lispenard, who had till now been sitting
quietly at some distance with Em, look
ing out of the window, next faced her.
"Well," he began, in his easy drawl,
"Cy has broken the ice and I might as
well plunge in, too. My dear Mrs.
Browning, I have been talking matters
over with Miss Emmeline, and we have
agreed that Redrock Springs is, as the
major puts it, a very likely place and fit
to live in. It hasn't any palatial residences
yet; but they'll come by and by.
Em thinks so well of the prospect here
that she has told me she is willing to try
it, and I think we can both make a success
in building up the future metropolis
of the little Colorado, if you will kindly
acquiesce. It's a great convenience having
you here, dear Mrs. Browning, as
otherwise Whipple and I would have had
to shut down the mine and come on to
San Francisco to obtain your consent and
blessing."
And the widow saw, as in a dream,
the two fair girls standing before her,
each holding the hand of her betrothed.
It flashed across her mind that it was all
horribly romantic and unwise. It was a
filial rebellion which she was powerless
to suppress, however; and as she realized
her own utter helplessness she found it
imnossible to restrain the tears that now
found free course down her cheeks. She
ro6e, but had to grasp her chair for support.
"Very well. I tee how it all is; I understand
it all now. My daughters, who
never once in their whole lives before
gave me a moment's pain, have taken
their own way, and I cannot prevent it,
if I would. I only wish you may be
happy together?all of rou. Had I known
you better I might say more. After it
is all over I can go back to my home in
San Francisco; but I will return alone.
I"
She would havo fallen had not the ma
jor, who had been an interested and not
wholly unaffected spectator of the scene,
caught her with his strong arm, and
gently placed her in a chair.
After a moment Mrs. Browning looked
up through her tears. Her hand
still rested in that of the major, who had
somehow forgotten to let it go. The
girls, neither of them dry eyed, but both
radiant, now that the ordeal was over,
stood beside her.
"Mr. Browning," said the major, in a
voice that sounded as husky as though it
came from the bottom of the Shaggy
Peak mine, "I think as how I might
make bold to ask yer permission to say
something personal to yer mother. Shisays
as she will return to her lonely home
_4%-^E^?co, leavin' her two daughterhereTanTl]iar?7^is^s
the7 may be
happy with their partners. ifc.-r
Browning, if yer mother?if she could
be happier at the Springs than all alon-.
at 'Frisco, an' if she would be willin' ter
try me as partner, Jonas Black would bs
the proudest man this side the Rockies,
an' that's sayin' a good deal. He would
take no odds of no man if he had such a
woman fer his wife. And, Mr. Browning,
if I might ask yer now ter put in i
word for me, an' not for me alone, but
for the sake of the young ladies there,
whom I love as though they were my
own children, although I never had none,
and for the sake of the Springs, too,
which would be delighted to have them
all stay right here among us. It'll be
like the old story Parson Gillette told us
about the town that woke up when the
princess came along; the Springs '11 take
on new life if they stay."
Jack's eyes were moist as lie answered
the major's touching appeal.
"It must rest with herself. Mother,
what do you say? Shall we still be together
and will you speak the word that
will make my friend happy?"
Something must have happened just
then, although what it was never became
quite clear to any one but the ma
jor himself. He rose with a proud smile
and, at the same moment, the widow,
all blushes, peeped from under her handkerchief.
Her daughters immediately
ran to her side.
"Now Redrock will have a boom and
the Shaggy Peak will yield big dividends,"
remarked Lispenard, dryly, a
few momenta later. "The annals of the
future metropolis of the Little Colorado
will begin on the day when Parson Gillette
comes from Prescott to officiate at
the triple wedding. There's only one regret,
Jack, and that is that you couldn't
be tied up at the same time."
"1 am in no hurry to lose my freedom
yet, Lispenard. Time enough. I dare
say it will come by and by. Strange that
my quarrel with Crenshaw should have
been the means of bringing all you folks
together! I wonder whether you would
ever have met if ho hadn't written that
lying letter."
The future of Redrock Springs and its
environs is assured. There has been an
unprecedented influx of new capital, and
the Shaggy Peak shares now stand high
on the list of quoted securities on the
San Francisco Stock Exchange. Already
two banks have established branches
at the Springs, and the route for a
railroad . through the range from Snowflake
City to Winslow on the northern
side of the Mogollon mountains has been
surveyed. Contractors are busy, and the
population of the settlement is increasing
at a rate that has long ago compelled the
stage company to make the old weekly
service a daily run. Sile Bagley is
amazed at the accuracy of his own
prophecy. Mrs. Browning?"Mrs. Maj.
Black" the miners now call her?is loud
in her praises of the Springs and talks of
inviting her friends, the Cadwalladers
and the Florences, to spend a few months
there next summer with herself and
daughters. The new hotel will soon be
nA?v*nlnfA/1 Tf will Kft fKn niHfln rtf f
^UUlJ^lCLCUi XV niit uvi Vitv ^4?uv V* Vt.v
Springs and the crowning realization of
tho major's brightest hopes of happiness
and prosperity.
THE END.
Colic Stones.?Travelers who
have penetrated into the easternmost
parts of southern Russia lind some
strange beliefs as to the power of fish
charms. Many fish found in those
countries have two small, hard,
round bones on the side of the head.
They are believed to have the power
when worn by the owner to prevent
colic, and they are termed colic
stones. The more wealthy of the
peasants have colic stones mounted
in gold, and they are worn upon the
neck as a valuable addition to a necklace.
The bones of the common bullhead
are much used among the Russian
peasants as a charm against fever.
Among European nations in the
middle ages doctors of medicine had
faith that two bones found in the
head of the tench have medicinal
virtues. The bones were applied to
the skin in cases of fever. The tench
is a European fish, and the United
States Fish commission are endeavoring
to introduce it to American waters.?[Jewelers'
Review.
Kindness Always Pays.?I say
kindness comes home to roost just as
certainly as curses. Most men pay
when they can, and if you help a
man in trouble you may he sure you
can call on him for a hundred cents ;:
on the dollar when the time comes
for you to be in trouble. I believe
I'd give more for an account against
a man who could not pay, but who
wishes to, than for one against a per- <
fectly solvent man who does not like <
to pay. i
I
^tisceUancmts
HENRY CLAY'S POKER PLAYING.
Wu-shiiiKton Correspondence Pittsburg Press.
"That is the very table at which
Henry Clay used to lose the greater
part of his congressional salary," said
an old Washington gambler. "The
game he used to play was one in
which the blind was ")0 cents and $1.00
to come in. There was no limit in
those days, as there generally is today.
A man could, however, demand
a sight for his money. Clay's
antagonist was generally a man named
Bright, and both preferred to
play a two-handed game. The cards
worn mif ntio rlnv onrl f'lnv trnt thn
first deal. He was a better card
shuffler than lives to-day. He could
hold his hands four feet apart and fly
the cards from one to the other without
a card falling. Generally he
dealt with one hand and without a
perceptible movement of the arm,
throwing each card to its proper
place with his long muscular fingers.
"Clay was a poor poker player,
however. He played for the excitement
and not for the gain, and as he
was careless about his bets he generally
came out a .loser. He almost
always straddled the blind, and whatever
hand he held would raise the
bet of his antagonist. He used to
bluff a great deal, and as this would
soon be found out, he would come
out a loser.
"For nearly two hours the night I
speak of Clay had been having his
own way with Bright. He held a
king full four times running, and
then had a jack full. Bright did his
best to catch Clay in a bluff, but it
was of no use. Clay had a hand that
could only be beaten by fours. The
play began at three ovclock, and by
half-past ten Bright had lost $1,500
and had borrowed $500 from John
Hancock. After that Clay's luck
vanished and by midnight he had
lost all his winnings ana $1,000 hesides?all
the cash he had with him.
"It was Saturday night, and Bright
proposed that they quit so that they
could go to church in the morning,
but Clay wouldn't have it. So he
borrowed $500 from Bright and the
game went on. The game was continued
and by daylight he owed
Bria-ht $1,500. He liquidated the
debt by giving Bright a'deed for 320
acres of Kentucky land and six
shares of stock in a Louisville bank.
"Clay went to church all the same
that morning. While he was talking
to the rector after it was over he
put his hand in his pocket and pulled
out a pack of cards along with
his handkerchief. They fluttered to
the ground, bnt Clay was not ashamed,
and replacing them, said they
must have been placed there as a
practical joke."
CONTINENTAL* MONEY.
The condition of American finance
in 1780 was simply horrible. The
"greenback" delusion possessed people's
minds even more strongly then
than in the days following our Civil
War. Pelatian Webster, the ablest
political economist in America at
that time, a thinker far in advance of
.his age, was almost alone in insistingapnYr
->iflxation. The popular
feeling was expresggfr-k^Lj*; delegate
in congress who asked, wmnIifti^3iS^I
able scorn, why he should vote tor
tax the people, when a Philadelphia
printing-press could turn out money
by the bushel. But indeed congress
naa no power to lay any tax, save
through requisitions upon the State
governments. There seemed to be
no alternative but to go on issuing
this money, which many people glorified
as the safest possible currency,
because "nobody could take it out of
the country." As Webster truly
said, the country had suffered more
from this cause than from the arms
of the enemy. At the end of the
year 1778, the paper dollar was
worth 10 cents in the Northern States
and 12 cents in the South. Early in
1780 its value had fallen to 2 cents,
and before the end of the year it took
ten paper dollars to make a cent. In
October, Indian corn sold wholesale
in Boston for $150 a bushel, butter
was $12 a pound, tea $90, sugar $10,
beef $8, coffee $12, and a barrel of
flour cost $1,570. Samuel Adams paid
$2,000 for a hat and a suit of clothes.
The money soon ceased to circulate,
debts could not be collected, and
there was a general prostration of
credit. To say that a thing was "not
worth a Continental" became the
strongest possible expression of contempt.
A barber in Philadelphia
papered his shop with bills, and a
dog was led up and down the streets,
smeared with tar, with this unhappy
money sticking all over him,?a sorry
substitute for the golden-fleeced
sheep of the old Norse legend. Save
for the scanty pitance of gold which
came in from the French Alliance,
from the little foreign commerce that
was left, and from trade wiih the
British army itself, the country was
without any circulating medium.
In making its requisitions upon the
States, congress resorted to a measure
which reminds one of the barbaric
ages of barter. Instead of asking
for money, it requested the States
to send in their "specific supplies" of
beef and pork, flour and rice, salt and
hay, tobacco and rum. The finances
of what was so soon to become the
richest of nations were thus managed
011 ine principle wnereuy Lilt mea^ie
salaries of country clergymen in New
England used to be eked out. It
might have been called a continental
system of "donation parties."?
[September Atlantic.
PILATE'S WIFE.
Our curiosity is greatly aroused regarding
Pilate's wife. We are told
nothing about her in Scripture except
what is mentioned in this one
incident. Tradition identifies her
as Claudia Procula, and it has been
conjectured that, bearing such a
name, she must have belonged to the
Claudian family?one of the most
famous families in Roman history,
whose founder, Appius Claudius, was
the maker of the great Appian Way,
and which gave no less than six emperors
of Rome, the emperor who
was sitting on the throne at the time
of our Lord being Tiberius Claudius.
Being thus of high station, it is possible
that it was through her influence
that her husband, Pontius Pilate
was made procurator of Judea; for
Pilate's own birth was comparatively
humble, seeing that the name Pilate
is derived from the cap which
was worn as a distinguished badge
by manumitted slaves, and the epithet
marks him out as a freedman,
or as descending from one. She accompanied
her husband to Palestine,
and it is a striking illustration of the
truthfulness of the Scripture narrative
that it was only during the reign
of Tiberius Claudius that the wife of
a Roman was allowed to accompany
her husband to the province which
he ruled. In early times a law was
expressly passed to prevent a magistrate
taking his wife with him to the
sphere of his jurisdiction, lest she
should meddle with his administration
or unduly influence his public
career. And this law was rigorously
carried out; but at the time of our
Lord it had fallen into neglect. Per- .
haps the wife of Pilate had received 1
a special permission to accompany 1
her husband on account of her connection
with the reigning family;
and, in any case, her presence in ]
Jerusalem at the time of our Lord's i
judgment indicates that the relation- ]
ship between herself and her hus- i
band must have been one of deep and .]
true affection. Pilate, if he had been ]
an indifferent husband-uiight have i
left his wife behind at Rome in con- i
formity with the law of the empire, 1
and his wife, if she had been less lov- \
ing and devoted, might have remain- ]
ed at Crcsarea, which was the fixed (
official residence of the Roman gov- i
ernor and the headquarters of the i
Roman army in Palestine, and not
have accompanied him, to which he
had to go on the annual feast of the
Passover, to preserve order among
the great crowds of pilgrims which at
that time filled the sacred city.?[The
Quiver.
SOURCES OF SPRINGS.
Springs originate in the highlands
and mountains. The rain falls upon
the mountain tops and then decends
to the valleys. A part washes over the <
surface, col lects in the ravines, and as
brooks or streams rushes down the
mountain, and in the valleys, coml\?nin/v
VU a mi trAM.i ttfui aVi nr\ MMtr
uiiiuig, iwiiii int; incm vvJIUJII
the water to the sea. A nart is reconverted
into vapor and floats away.
Another part is absorbed by the
rocks and ledges, or passes down
through the cracks or crevices, or between
the strata, emerging lower on
the mountain sides, in the valleys or
even out in the ocean.
The largest known springs are
those bursting up from the ocean
floor. Off the coast of Florida in the
Gulf of Mexico, a few miles from the
shore, a large spring of fresh water
rises to the surface, furnishing water
to fishermen and sailors, who dip it
up in the midst of the salt water of
the Gulf. A few miles from the eastern
shore of Florida, nearly opposite
Mantanzas, a large spring of fresh
water boils up in great abundance.
So large is this spring that Lieutenant
Maury took his little coast survey
steamer on top of "the boil," and
it was quickly swept to one side by
the boiling spring.
Some rocks are more porous than
others. Water will percolate through
these down to a stratum of slate or
other impervious rock, and the water
may now between these for many
miles?sometimes for scores of milestill
a crack or a fault is reached,
when it rises to the surface, forming
a spring. Thus springs in the valleys
may have tneir origin a long
distance away. They may even burst
out on top of a hill or mountain,
in a region where the strata have been
folded, the water rising nearly to the
height of the head fountain.
Mineral springs are produced by
the water percolating through rocks
containing minerals in such chemical
combinations that they can be
dissolved out and carried away.
Thus silica, sulphur, iron, lime, salt
and others are removed by the water,
giving rise to mineral springs
rendered famous for their power to
relieve or cure diseases. Other
springs, like many in the White
Mountains, are remarkably pure,
from the fact that the waters Derco
late through rocks from which scarcely
any mineral substances have been
dissolved.
In* Heligoland.?Crime there is
none, for no criminal could possibly
escape except with the connivance
of practically the whole population.
This difficulty of escape was amusingly
illustrated last year. Two
housebreakers from Hamburg came
across on a professional visit. They
had a highly successful evening's
work; every door stood open ; they
had only to watch when no one was
by, step boldly in, and carry away
what they cared for. They got altogether
a very handsome booty.
But they had forgotton one little deThere
was no steamer leaving
Heligofet^Lili? following day till two
o'clock in the^ftSCSP0"- .. ? , ,
Lonj*, long ere then
been discovered, the robo^^^S?"
in prison, and the stolen propStt^/**"
turned to its owners. When escaffL
is impossible villiany of any kind can
hardly flourish. So the Heligolanders
are honest whether they like it or
not, but long custom has made them
honest by choice as well as by force.
It is one of the rarest things for the
little Heligoland prison to nave any
inmates; when it has any they are
there for very trivial offences and occupy
themselves in singing (as Heligolanders
will always do when they
A AUAMAA\ AM/1 fwiAn/la afnn/1
get tiumiitcj) ciiiu men uiuuiu oiouu
outside and sing in unison to keep
them company.
A Heligolander if arrested will go
to the prison by himself, ring up tne
warder, and tell him he is in custody.
Altogether the island is in its way so
peculiar and unconventional that
this procedure is regared by any accidental
delinquent as only natural and
proper.
Earthquake Parties.?The credulity
of the human mind was prettily
illustrated by the world of fashion
in 17o0. A smart shock of earthquake
startled all England in February,
and was succeeded by a more
violent one in the following March.
The consternation was general, and
bishops and clergymen made the
event the subject of numerous sermons,
homilies and exhortations,
while it is on record that a country
quack reaped a golden harvest by
selling earthquake pills. Then arose
a crazy-minded life-guardsman, solemnly
predicting that a third and
specially fatal shock would occur on
April 5.
The polite world, as it is called,
took fright, and on the evening preceding
the fatal (Jay the roads out of
London, wrhich the earthquake was
to tumble into ruins, were thronged
with vehicles, though the newspapers
threatened to publish "an exact
list of all the nobility and gentry
who have left or shall leave this
place through fear of another earthquake."
The ladies wrapped themselves
in "earthquake gowns"-warm
gowns intended to be worn while
sitting out of doors all night. Not a
few persons spent the nignt in Hyde
Park, sitting in their coaches, and
playing cards by the light of wax
candles. "What will you think,"
tirmfrua 1-Tnr\ \\To 1 n/\lo "nf T o/^tr
w 11ivo xx\/iav.v ?t ui|^v7iv^ \ja
Catherine Pelham, and Lady Frances
Arundel, and Lord and Lady
Galway, who go this evening to an
inn ten miles out of town, where
they are to play brag till 4 o'clock in
the morning, and then come back, I
suppose, to look for the bones of their
husbands and families under the
rubbish ?"
A Bull With Two Mouths.?
A New York city butcher recently
came into possession of a remarkable
animal, being a full grown bull
with two distinct mouths. The
mouth proper of the animal is used
solely for eating, while the other organ
is used only for drinking. The
bull is about eighteen months old,
weighs 1,200 pounds, and is a dappled
gray in color, the animal; with
the exception of one shoulder and
the forelegs, being well formed. The
regular mouth is of normal size and
contains two full sets of teeth, but no
liquid ever passes between them.
The other mouth is about five inches
in diameter, at the end of a protuberance
three inches thick, and is situated
directly under the neck, about
half way between the head and
shoulders. There are neither eyes
nor ears in connection with this
mouth, but there are nostrils, through
which the animal breathes as well as
through his other nostrils, and a partial
set of teeth, although this mouth
is only used for drinking. The animal
also has double knee and hoof
joints. His disposition is said to be
quiet and gentle.?[Scientific Ameri
can.
BOB* The most careful experiments
have shown, says a medical authority,
that the human body is as completely
insensitive to magnetism and
is wholly unaffected by it as a
piece of rubber or wood. A person
may stand between the poles of the
strongest magnet, one of which
might hold up a ton of iron, without
:he slightest perceptible effects upon
the bodily functions being produced.
Hence, all so-called magnet appliances,
brushes or combs, disks, belts
ind magnets, have absolutely no cur- j
itive power whetevcr. jM