Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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BY E. B. MURRAY & CO. ANDERSON, S. C., THURSDAY MORNING, MARCH 13, 1884. VOLUME XIX.-NO. 3? BILL AKT'S LETTER. !!<? Talki <>* ti>? Tim? V/hi n lila Futlior nM Postmaster und lie wu? Mull Hider. . 1 tlnnta CbnstUuthn. Two cents-only two cents. When I look at ?K postage stamp it carries me away bark. Huck to the time when my father was postmaster and I wa? his clerk, and had to make up the maila in a coun try town. Tho difference between now nml then shows the world's progresa in a privilege and a pleasure that is hardly excelled in any other branch of improve ment. Wo couldent bear to be set back agnin in that lino to thc old ways that mir lathers thought were pretty good. There were no stamps and no envelopes, and no mucilage. The paper was folded up like a thumb-paper, and one aide slipped in the other and sealed with a wrapper. Tho little school boys, you know, bad to use thumb papers "in their spelling hooks to keep thom clean where I ls esr dirty thumbs kept thc pages open. (?iris did?nt have to u*c them, for they w, re nicer and kept their hands clean, nml didcot wear out the leaves by the friction of iItt ir linger.-?. Boys are rough Illings anyhow, and 1 don't seo what a nico, ?weet, clean, pretty girl wants with one of 'em. (?irls they say are made of sugar and spice and nil that's nice, but boys are made of ?napa and snails aud pupp}' dog tails. Josephus says,.that when the queen pf Sheba was testing Solomon's w isdom, she had fifty boys and tiffy K,r'fl ;1" dressed alike in girls' clothes and seated around a big room, aud asked tue king to pick out the noys from (lie girls, and bc called for a basin ol water aud had it carried around to each one and told them to wash their hands. The girls all rolled up their sleeves a little bit, but the boys just slosh ci their hands in any way and got water all over their aprons, aud so the king spotted every mother's son of 'em. The postage used to be regulated by the distance that Uncle Sam carried the letters. It was 12A cents anywhere in the State, and 18J cents to Charleston, and 2? cents to New York. It was never prepaid. A man could nfllict another with n pistareen letter that wasent worth five ctnts. A pistareen, you know, was lSij cents-that is a seven pence and a thrip. We had no dimes or half dimes. The dollar was cut up into eights instead of tenths. When a countryman called for letters and got one ho would look at it some time and turn it o\3r and medT tate before he paid for it, and very often they would say, "where did thia letter come from." Well, I would sny for in stance, "it come from Dahlonega-don't you seo Dahlonega written up on the cor ner?" Then ho would jay, "well, I reckon it's from Dick, my brother Dick, ile H up there digging gold. Don't you reckon it's from Dick?" "I reckon it is," said 1. "Why don't you open it and see?" "No, I'll wait until I get home. They'll all want to see it." When he got homo that letter would be au c-vent in the fami ly, and perhaps it would take them half an bou lo wade through it and make out its contents. Nine out of ten of those couutry letters began, "I take in y pen in hand to let you know Iba! I am weil, and hope these few lines will find you enjoy ing the same blessing." My father kept store and his country customers used to ask him to write their letters for them, and he always sent them to me, und most of then? told mo to begin their letters that way. There was not more than one in five that could write, but they were good, clever, honest people, and paid the ir debts, but they hardly ever psid up in full at tho eud of tho year, and so they gave their uotes for the balance aud made their mark. My father used to say that he had known case9 where a man swore o(F his written signature, but he never knew o man to deny bis mark. Dur big Northern mail used to come in a stage from Madison twice a week, and 1 used to think the sound of the stage horses, as the stage carno over the hill, was one of thu sublimest things in tho world, and I thought that if I ever got to he n man I would bc a stage driver if I Could, Well, I come pretty near it, for my lather had hired a man to ride the mail to lt os wei I and back twice a week, and the man got sick aud so my fnther put me on a dromedary of a borso and the muil in some saddle-bags behind me, nnd 1 had to make the 48 miles in a day and kept il up all winter. . liked to have froze severnl times, and hud to be lifted oft* thc home when I got home nnd it nearly broke my mother's heart, but I was getting a dollar a trip and it was my money, and so I wouldeut back out. The old Winnen on the road used to crowd me with their little commissions and get me to bring them a little pepper, or copperas, or bluing, or pins and nee dies, or get me to take ulong some socks and ?ell them, and so I made fr icu-JU and acquaintances all the way. Thc drat trip 1 made nn old woman hailed me and said, "Are you a mail hoy?" *'Wb/, yes., mara," said I, "you did ont think I was a female boy, did you ?" I thought that was mighty smart, but it wasent very civil und it made her so mad she never told uoe what she wanted, and as ?ho turned her back on roe I Lear-J her say, "I'll bet he is a little stuck up town boy." My father was postmaster for nearly I thirty years. Jt didn't pay mote than about $200 a year, but it trade his store I more of a public place, lie didn't kuow that anybody else hankered alter it or was trying to gel it, but ali of a suddon he got b|s orders to turn over the office to another man, an old Une whig and a competitor in business, lt mortified him very much and made us all mad, for there was no fault found with hil management, and he never took much interest in poli tics but voted for the man ho liked the be-tt whether he was a whig or a demo ctat. When he found out that Alek Stephens had it done he wasent a Ste phens onan any more, and I grew up with an idea that Mr. Stepheus was a political fraud. I dideni understand the science of politics as well as I do now. I told Mr. Stepbons about it one night at Milledgeville when we were ali in a good humor and were miking about the old times of whigs and democrats, and he smiled and said, "yes, we had to do those things and sometimes they were very disagreeable." I will never forget that night'* talk. It waa during the sealion of the first legislature after the war. Jim Waddell took me to Mr. Stephens' room to henr bim talk, and there was Mr. Jenkins and Tom Hardemao and Benning Moore and Beverly Thornton and Pete Stroller aud Dr. Ridley and some others, and everybody waa in a good hun.or, and Mr. Stephens waa reclining on hi? bed and told anecdote after anec dote about the old whigs and bow be met tue democrats on the stamp and what they said ?nd what be said ?nd how he most always got, the advantage mid ear ned tho crowd with him. I was very J&ucli fascinated; with.'hia conversation, hut couldent help being reminded of a circurDitaDcrj that transpired some years before in the town or Calhoun. The whigs of Gordon county had sent for Mr. Stephens to como .tip sind' make a speech ?nd rally th? boy? for the next election. ?or Gordon waa pretty equally balanced between whigs and d?mocratie,arid1, the ."higa-ranteda big revival. So Alek ac cepted, aud when the day came the crowd WM tremendous. The democrats had tried to get Dowell Cobb aud Herschel Johnson and Absolom Chappel and oth ers to como un, but thay all had other fish to fry, and so little Alele had it all his own way. Well, uot exactly either, for there was a feller there by the name of Russell, an eccentric, smart, cheeky, random sort of a man who bad a wonder- I ful gift of language and who, like Fran cis Train, dident care much what he ?aid, ; and wa? no respecter of persons. Hus Bell swoie by all the gods that if nobody '? cite would reply to Stephens he would. '? and he would skin him alive, and let him ! i ride home in bis bones. "Conding him," j he said, "let him stay in his own district ! j and shinny on his own fide." , Mr. Stephens made a line speech, and i the crowd cheered and shnutct tumultu ously as he arraigned the democracy and held them up to ridicule, and when he got through th? whigs were moro than satisfied, and Air. Stephens was satisfied, too-he came down from the stand and was receiving the congratulations ! of his friends, when suddenly Russell mounted the rostrum mid, rapping ur, the plank in front of him, screamed out in an unearthly yell : "Fellow citizens !" Everybody knew him, and everybody wanted to hear him, and hushed into silence. After a sentence or two Mr. Stephens was attracted to bim, and with curious and astonished interest, inquired, "Who is that man ?" After Russell had paid an eloquent tribute to the glorious old democratic party, and giving it credit for every good thing that bad been done since the fall of Adam, he then turned t?? Mr. Stephens and, with withering bcoru, said : "And what have you and your party been doing and trying to do? -what made you vote away the public lands so that yankees and furreners could get 'cm and our peoplecouldent? What made you vote for a high tariff on sugar and coffee and raise the price so that our poor people couldent buy it?" Mr. Stephens rose up excited and irritated and stretching out his long arm to tho audience, screamed out: "I never did it, my fellow-citizens-1 deny the fact and call upon the gentleman for his proof." With thc utmost self-possession, Russell said, "You do-you call for the proof. Sir, if I was to go two miles from home to make a speech I would carry my proof with me. I wouldent be vain enough to go without it ; but, sir, I ara at home these people know me-they ruined me and when I assert a thing they believo it. You are the mao to bring the proof." Tho crowd shouter! and laughed as tumultuously as they had done for Mr. Stephens, and he sat down disgusted. Russell continued : "And what was your motive when you were a member of the legislature in voting for a law that pro hibited a man from voting unless he was worth $500 ? Answer me that while you are here face to face with these humble citizens of Gordon county." At thiB Mr. Stephens rose again furious with indig nation and screamed : "It is false, sir-it is false; I deny the fact." "You do," said Russell, scornfully ; "I supposed you would-you deny the fact. That is just what you have been doing for twenty years-going about over the country denying facts." And the crowd weut wild with merriment, for even the whigs couldent help joining in the fun. Mr. Stephens turned to his companions and said with a tone of despair, "Let us go to the hotel" and, they weat. I thought of all this while Mr. Ste phens was telling UH of his triumphs over verter?n foes, and so when he came tn a pause I timidly S3id : "Mr, Stephens, did you ever encounter a man by the name of Russell up at Calhoun?" With a merry glisten of bis wonderful eyes be strengthened up and said : "I did, I did, yes, I did. I will never forget that man. He got me completely. If I had known him I would not have said a word in reply, but I dident know him. He cured me of one expression. I fre quently ii a ed to emphasize my denial of lies and slander, and that was to say "I douy the fact." "I had never thought of it's grammatical absurdity, but that man Russell taught me and I quit it. I think he had the most wonderful flow of lan guage and lies of any man I ever met." Mr. Stephens then made a pretty fair recital ot bia rencounter and bis "utter defeat" as he expressed it, all of which we enjoyed. Where are they now? Old father time hos cut idl down but three, Hardeman aud Thornton.and myself are here, bnt all tho rest of that bright, intelligent crew are gone. It looks like most everybody is dead. If they are not they will be before long, and another set will be in their placea and have their jokes and flash their wit and merriment all the same. BILL A RP. The Season for Compost. Composts for cotton and corn should now be put up as Boon as 'possible. Judging from many inquiries sent us it in inferred that the value of thedigestion or cooking which occurs in a ec OJ post heap is not fuiiy appreciated. Some seem to think that if the several ingre dients are simply mixed together at the time they are put in the soil that will answer every purpose. This is a mistake. Take cotton seed for instance. A plant could get nothing from them until they are dead, and the rotting which follows denth has broken up the vegetable celia and changed its nitrogenous compoune'e into ammonia or nitric add, and un pris oned its ohosphoric acid, potash and other mineral contents. These valuable substances are found almost exclusively in the kernel, and this is enclosed in the bull, which ia a very hard, woody sub stance that rots very slowly. We have had occasion recently to observe that j cotton seed bolls, scattered freely upon the soil, even after a lapse of twolve months, had produced no appreciable in fluence upon the grass and weeds grow ing upon it. And what is true of cot ton seed is also true of the undigested portions of the food which constitute a large part of the animal excrement, and almost the whole of the litter mixed with it. Now when cotton seed and ma I nure are pat in a compost heap, beat ia developed, and heat makes the rotting proceed quite rapidly ; materials which ff scattered in thin layer*, or in a small bulk, cr which, if buried in small quar ries in the cold soil, would take momba to, rot, would, in a properly arranged compost heap, rot quite as much tn a few weeks. The chemicals which are mixed with them facilitate also the breaking np of the vegeUble fibres and cells and hasten the various chemical reactions wbich eventuate in supplying plant food in the best poseible shape or condition for a crop. But bren in a compost heap which ba? been pot up two or tbreO i months the changea alluded to are not completed ; enough plant food baa been prepared, however, to supply n ?Wi J}' Ita early stage* t the procesa continoett more slowly fir tho soil supplies its later, demand. U perfectly ^gveen, tinrotted &n i? Putin the drill jgpUn?ug time, and the spring h eoH^e rotting mar go on too*!owly t*?*WT ..*2liff needed and the c?w?.Wj?J? ,0 conM* quenco.-S??therH CuUttxm. FOLLIES AND FOIBLES OF WOMEN. As Itel*ted by one of Thom, but She Saya At thc anual meeting of thc National Woman Suffrage Association of Massa chusetts in Boston recently, Miss Nancy Willara Covell, sneaking on "The Ilea Bon Why," ?aid that she had been called upon to fill the unwelcome part of lelLng som* of the follies and foibles of women. After making some sharp an J facetious comments on the self-assumed greatness of man and his oppression of woman, Miss COTCII Bpoke of the marked differ ence in compensation paid women for rendering the same service as men, aud contended that the fact that woman was paid less wan due to her lack of tho pow er of the ballot, which was claimed to be worth fifty cents a day to any laboring man. Speaking of the different voca tiona of lifo, she contended that, because woman had never opposed man in enter ing her sphere, in becoming cooks, milli ners and dressmakers, she bad outdone bim in fairness. In speaking of the condition of women of to-day, she said all that girls arc taught is to be pretty and hide their faults and read love stories and crochet and make sponge cake, until some one asks them to marry. So the poor creature through fear they will mies their chances and fail to'marry, begin very early to pinch themselves in some places and pad themselves in other?. Sometimes they wear clothing enough to founder a ship, and again it is pronounced "lovely" to appear without any to speak of. With the injunction ringing in their cara, "whatever you do, "ne pretty," giris paint their lips und crock their eyebrows, and take opium to make their eyes soft and arsenic to make their complexions clear. It was an unfortunate day when Paul or somebody else said that "tho joy of woman was her hair. What nameless and untold fortunes has this appendage of the human body not been subjected to? It has been filled with "rats ' and "mice" heroically pulled out by the roots to make the forehead high, glued to the forehead with extract of quinco seed, and again brought over tho eves in tangled anare.:!. It has been curled with over-hot irons, and then allowed to float free far down tbs back ; it bas been puffed and friezed and powdered and curled and greased and banged, dono up high or low, made longer or shorter, or dyed black or blonde, in strict accordance with the caprice of the fickle goddess of fashion. Does the Grecian bend require them to look like a dejected monkey, straightway they become limp in body, and chatter that they do not do it bo cause it is fashion-it is perfectly natural for them. To-day they drag innumerablo yards of dry goods through the streets, and to-morrow they appear in tie-backs so close tbnt it is at the risk of their lives that they attempt to board a railroad train. Now ibo head iu surmounted by j a bonnet the size of a postage stamp, and then by one larger than an umbrella. Sometimes women are supposed to have hips, and then everybody, no matter bow Blender, grows broader that a donkey with paniere. Then hips are abolished and no trace of them can be discovered. If snakes and bugs become fashionable as ornamenta, the Baaken and bugs be come "perfectly lo rely," and the verv girl who shrieked et the sight of a spi der, simpern, "they are jutt too lovely become fashionable, ene bas only to wait a little, and every woman becomes a walking rainbow, .' ns cardinal is the rage, and then old gold ; now mitts, and then twelve-button gloves ; now plat ings, and then ruffles : now hems and then facings ; now waists are long and the ribs are laced down until they adhero to the liver, and then waists get shorter, and an opportunity is given to breathe. In short, woman's enslavement by fash ion has resolved life for ber into an eternal game of "wigwag," and until she escapes this bondage there is no mental life for her. All this, the speaker con tended, is the outgrowth of the oppres sion of man in not giving woman an op portunity to develop herself mentally and in not giving her a social position equal to his own. Stay in the Sooth. In view of the present development of the South, and the rapid strides of pro gress that' are being made 'throughout that section, it would hardly seem neces sary to say to Southern people that their own country offers-to-day a better chance for success in life than any other country in the world, and of the truth of this we feel fully assured. The world bas never, we believe, witnessed a more marvelously rapid progress, not simply in one branch of business, but in every material inter est, than has been made by the Southern States during the last five years. Of course there are some sections cut off from communication with tba rest of the world by lack of transportation facilities that have not yet. felt the thrill of the new l.tb that stirs the revived and reju venated New South ; but the time ia hastening on when even these placsa will hear "the whirl of wheels that M eave tho web of towns." With all its advantages for agriculture in all its varied branches, for manufac turing of every kind, for mining for precious metals, as well as for the more valuable baser ones,-coal, iron, dec, for lumbering, and, in fact, for almost every honest occupation to which the hand and mind of man and women can be devoted, the South possesses a wealth of opportunities that are unrivalled. This fact is being appreciated by the people of other sections, already we see that thousands from the North, and the West/and millions ?ud even hundreds of millions of dollars are pouring into the Southern States. The mighty march of progiess has, however, but just begun, and. the next five years will witness far more rapid development than has been Seen in the past. With these facts being pressed upon them, it seems strange that many South ern people, especially young men. ignor ing the opportunities for success already around them, think that it is only by going to some new and unimproved coon try that they can be prosperous. A Srester mistake could hardly be made, md those who now leave the South will find io alter years that others bave come io and reaped the harvest. that they might have gathered. The young men i of the South are coming into manhood at o meat propitious time, and with un surpassed advantages they ought to take an active part in the.industriel revolu tion now in progress, and share in the benefits that assuredly will come to all who engage In this -.work. While we most cordially welcome all who wish to leave other sections to better their con ditions in the sunny South, we desire to see the Southern people themselves, as a whole, and not simply a few here: and there, leaving the past to take caro of itself, dercte thomjelvw to tho rebuild ing of their wasted fortunes andi country. - An evil bought in the heart of a man who has a heart Is about as'trbuble eomo as a wasp in the ear. the Men ar? HeapoDtlble. When iridescent beads WOMEN'S COMPLEXIONS. Tue Importuned of Freut) Air, Cold Water and Good Ventilation. ''What ft beautiful complexion !" "Yes, nnd what's more, il'? all her owrj 1" The words were passed by a well known physician and a Time? reporter as they sat in'tbo former's ollice. Tho sub ject of their criticism was a lady who had just left. "Is it so rare nowadays for ladies to use their own completion* ?" asked the reporter. "Doctors hear and know a great many things under tlie seal of confidence which they dare not reveal, but if you had been into aH many ladies' bedrooms as I have, and seen a woman who imag ined she was sick, looking old and hag- : ? gard, 'because only the doctor is going lo Bee me,' and who in company bas a complexion which Cleopatra might have envied-only the modern Cleopatra b.uys ber complexion in a bottle, $1 apiece or six for $5-vou wouldn't need to ask that question." "How can a woman have a good, com- : plexion ?" "Easy enough. Let her get three things aud she will huve the desiderata. ', They are fresh air, water and good ven tilation. Sound* old fashioned, doesn't it?" I "A trifle jaded." "Hut true, nevertheless. Indore I go uny further I want to sny this : No wo- j man whoso health is bad need expect to ? have a pretty complexion. The two ? things den t assimilate any more than j disease and pure blood do, and, in fact, the complexion reflects toan experienced ? eye tbat exact condition of the blood j Culning beneath it. But if a womau's eallh is ?,ood, so in the samo way will be her complexion -provided she treats herself with a little common sense and shows a slight knowledge of sanitation. But abe doesn't ; not if Bbc can bein it. You are not married ? All right ; I am going to give you some valuable bints. You take the average young girl-the girl who would give almost anything to nave a complexion like Mrs. Langtry'?. The dear little buudle of silks and laces hates cold water, and keen, cold water with a holy horror. She bas a vague suspicion that colds and cold water oro closely associated, and to prevent the ono sbunB the other. Now I nato say it, but it is fact that nine times out of ten your desi Claribel, that you lingered ao fond ly over in the conserva' ory nt Mrs. Jones' last dance, is actually dirty. Don't look shocked, because with dirt, like every thing else, there are different degrees. Claribel, when she leaves her couch of a morniig, puta on several garments before che As of letting water touch her skin ; then she rubs a rag over her face, lightly touches her neck, and her ablu tions are finished. Now, if the dear child would heed tho advice of a man who bas given the subject of hygiene some consideration, GOB would wash in thin fashion : On getting out of bed lot her put on her stockingo and slippers, and divesting herself of lier nigbt-gowu, bathe herself-and by bathing I don't mean looking at tbe water, but putting it on without stint. "So much for water. Now for venti lation. She thinks a little air would prove fatal ; hence she almost hermeti cally seal? ber room and Bleeps in vitia ted air. The windows of every sleeping chamber should be opened an inch or two from the bottom, not the top ; and it is well established that nobody ever caught cold from sleeping in a room wilh the wiudow open, provided there is no direct draught. "The last ingredient in this prescrip tion ?B exercise. American girls stay in the house day in and day out. They never walk unless obliged to. If they were to take a 'constitutional' every day their doctors' bills would be less and their bodily comforts much increased. Exercise I hold to be as necessary as food."-Detroit 'i?met. Bown Pretty Girl Served a Drummer. Talk about pretty girls-but she was a wild flower and no tn ?stake ! She got ou the train to go over to Meridian from Vicksburg, and she was all alone. There was a sort of sidelong movement among five or six men. but a drummer for a Philadelphia saddlery house got first He grabbed up bis grip and walked square up to her seat and look possession of half of it without asking a question, and in ten minutes be seemed to be per fectly at home. 8be answered his ques tions briefly, and he had the hardest kind of work to keep up conversation, and as the train approached Jackson she sud denly said : ? "I want to telegraph papa from here. Will you help me?" "Oh 1 certainly. I have a blank in my pocket. Write your telegram and I will run into the office with it." We missed bim when the train started, but by and by he was found in the smok ing-car. bis.hat crushed down and his nerve ali on edge. When asked what had happened, be drew forth the tele gram which the girl had requested him to band in. It read : "Bring your shotgun with you to pop over a drummer woo has dreadfully an noyed me. Shoot to kill I" "To think," be gasped, "that one so fair could be so murderous ? Why, I am all in a sweat I want some of you to stand by me I" We got bis grip from the seat, traded bats and coats with him, and the wey be slid from the depot when the train reach ed Meridian caused a hotel porter to ob serve : "Well, now, bul that white face be longs to an invalid and them leg., to a deer I What sort of a coon can he be?" -Detroit Free Frat. "Let Me Do lt Mother." A young man had declared love to a lady and asked her to be his wife. She hesitated, and he ai io wed ber her own time to consider the matter. One even ing soon afterward she had occasion to visit an aged relative who resided in tho family of wbioh the young man waa a member. As she approaohed the door a sudden impulse caused her to pause. He might be at home, she thought, and she might encounter bim. And seeing ber .there, he would probably imagine I she called on purpose to see bim. While ?he stood upon the doorstep meditating, she heard tho oven-doc- of theoookstove open, then -the-rustle of paper, as * if it were tb Io wo upon the table; then a firm, light step and tho voice of her admirer saying in ? gentle ray, "Let me do it, mother." Then she knocked, and was admitted just in time, to see the young mao taking some pies from tb? oven.. This little circumstance plr'od the yoong lady in concluding what answer to make , to the all-itnportaut question ; f d tn married life she finds the young r.an ao excellent husband and father.- 1 Vi renal ogical Journal,. .' V;~ ; '.. ? > u .<, .', . . ~ When a bachelor says ho is single ' from choice, St matta him road to ask him why tho girl, made choice of some other follow. Tho Pursuit of Wcnlth. Worldliness is bemoaned as Ibo great cancer of the churches of Christ. Ono of Its most prevalent forms is the pur suit of wealth, and this in view of the gratifications which it furnishes to those who possess it. It is easy to rail against it, but if "the love of money is the root of all evil,'' nevertheless it cannot he j again said thal in many ways its posses sion contributes to comfort, l! may bo said that it cannot bribe away sickness or death, but it can procure things which greatly alleviate suffering, ann a man who knows his loved ones aro tolerably sure of being comfortably provided for may he cased of painful anxieties. Much that is said in depreciation of wealth is sheer nonsense and. it goes without saying, is utterly destil?te of scriptural ?auction. N'everthless, roan> Christian people aro appraising wealth too highly and making gold their confidence to an extent which is perilous to their best interesta, lt. ?B still (rue. "They that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into mnoy foolish and hurl hil lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition." Our theology may lead us to believe that no true believer will be drowned in per dition, but no one can live long without seeing how often those Christians who, to use tho new version, are "minded" to be rich, are ensnared and show them selves victims of many foolish and hurt ful desires. They certainly cannot escape oua?li?errjent. Will? no disposition to depreciate the value of wraith, it is well to remind Christian people of its uncertainty. Much of it must necessarily be entrusted to other*, and, so long as human nature remains what it is. there will be misap propriations, defalcations, and losing in vestments. Tho most careful men aro sometimes mistaken in their investments and "riches take to themselves wings and 1 fly away." Money ennnot give character. "A good .' .mo ia rather to be chosen than great riches." It has been truly said, "A man may be n grandee on the ex change and a pauper in God's universe.'' Tho time comes when character will be tho one thing which will appear impor tant. I Happiness is not certainly associated i with worldly possessions. The inner history of many a rich mau is ono of constant worry. The Saviour's teaching 1 is still true, "A man's life conslsteth not < in the abundance of the things which ho Eo-sosseth." Inward thought and feeling ? ave far moro to do with our happiness 1 than outward circumstances. 1 The notion that weah h is asure means 1 of happiness, though a nu..iifest fallacy, I is one that multitudes persistently cherish. Somo one hos said that "few thoughtful men would undergo the en- . tire stewardship of a large estate on a positive bargain that they Bhould receivo < no more for taking care of- it than ordi- 1 narpv falls into the lap of the owner." 1 And our rich men are candid enough to 1 acknowlodgo that all they receive beyond 1 their daily wants, for the burdens im posed by wealth with its attendant disad- < vantages and anxieties, make large pus- . sessions a doubtful good. This fact 1 should convince us that tho Bcrainb'.e after wealth is due to a wrong estimate >f its worth, and ia adapted to restrain men 1 in ita too eager pursuit. 1 And let none forget the responsibilities '. of wealth "Unto whomsoever much ia ivcD, of him shall he much required." 1 n a world in which lhere ia so much I suffering, which wealth might mitigate, 1 and so many millions perishing for lack < of knowledge, it is fearful to contemplate I the position of those professing to be fol- 1 lowers of Christ, who, not only mako no < sacrifices, but give not even of their ' abundance to servo the bodies and souls I of men. "Riches profit not in the day f of wrath," and mnny profeasors have I reason to fear that their wealth will not - profit them in the day of ?mal account. Baptist Weekly. 1 A Belled Buzzard. TAYLOB8VILLB, GA., March 5.-The belled buzzard, whose flight over the Western counties of Georgia hos aroused so much superstitious fear among igno rant whites and blacks, passed over a field to-day where three men were plow ing. One of them, a negro, quit work at once, and said thc bird was warning the people of another cyclone, in which hun dreds of people would bo killed. The story of this celebrated hird ia an inter esting one. Nearly two years ago it was a pet in the farm-yard of n farmer named Freeman, in Paulding County. One of bis children one day attached a sheep bell to the bird's foot, and the tinkling sound of tho bell scared it so that it im mediately flew away. The first night out it alighted on the roof of a negro cabin in Heard County. One of the inmates went but to ascertain tho cause of the bell-ringing, and immediately the buz zard rose from ita perch and fl cw away. The night w?s clear and cold, and aa the inmates rushed out and beheld the nroat black object >od heard the tinkling of the bell hundreds of feet in the air, great fear seized them, and they all took to their knees under an impression that the end of the world was approaching. Ever since the bird has pursued its migrations through the State, arousing the fears of the superstitious, who regard its visits as an omen of evil. The negroes and many whites, too, along the track of tho late storm insist that they heard the fateful bell about an hour before the terrible wrath of wind had cc?ie upon them. In 1817 a buzzard was similarly belled in Putnam County, and up until 1850, when bis presence was Iaat reported in Greene County, he was vouched for as having visited points os far We. ; as Me ridian,'Miss., and in several Northern counties of Tennessee.-Cbr. Courier Journal. Some Large Hogs. The New York San publishes an ac count of a lot of hogs that were exposed for sale in that city which probably ex ceeded in size any precious record. Their weights ranged from 866 to 1,098 pounds, dressed. Twenty of them weighed 19,648 poi- ads, an average of 982 pounds. The breed is known as Ked and White Jersey. They were raised near Burling ton, N. J. lo giving an account of them, the merchant said: "They were raised by Mr. John Carter. He has some more like them, only one is larger. They ureas down about.fifteen per cent. Those nogs I had a better house to live in than a third of the people of.the city have. Each hog bad a separate stall, that was kept clean and sweet by constant attention and un limited fresh bedding. They were cared for just aa fast horses are. They were fed on mail.and milk. Asa lot they sure the heaviest ever brought to New York, or ever raieed for that matter. The largest one,bf the. lot ia the largest bog on record except ono not slaughtered ?ti? i'Did : it pay?7' "Yes and no. ho gratification of beating the record ia always worth the expense. Bat lighter hogs yield more morey on the invest* ment." How to Teach Reading. Ilending??? a'most important branch of education, but,'in many instances, is one which i? sadly neglected. To my mind a good reader, ono who ?ways his audi ence with every word lie utters, i? as great a? a Goo musician, and to MK Char lotte Cushman is as famous to day aa ever was Jenny Lind or Adelina Patti'. L'util within a comparatively few years there wa? no great deal of attention |>aid to reading. If a child happened to be naturally n good reader, well ! If not, bc would take his reader and drawl out the word?, sometimes spelling them nH be went along, and generally pitching bis voice on the most excruciating key, would manage to pull through his lesson, or else he would mumble through it, or gallop through it-at any rate, he would I get through it and that is about al!. Now, however, thanks to the educa tiona! wave which has swept over our country, il is very difTereet, and reading in most, indeed, may say all of our schools, is n matter of prime importance. The first thing Ibo pupil should do i? to understand, and as far ns may be to enter into what he is going tc read, and then to talk it, rather than read it in other w rds, to read iu such a manner that a person not seeing him, will not know whether ho is reading or convers ing. To enable the pupil to do this, I think it i? an excellent plan for the teacher toread over thc lesson to tho child, to throw into it al! tho feeling and express ion which the selection reo u i rcs, and of which he is capable, ann to explain w hatever ss likely io puzzle or confuse the childish mind. Some persons may say, then, "their reading will be only imitation ;" but I say, what are children but creature? of imitation? and besides, if their understanding and feeling is fully aroused it will not be imitation, but almost unconsciously they will lose their own identity, and will read as they feel and as they understand. In reading make tho child stand, holding the book iu the left hand, with the right band down at tho side. Ho must be careful as to pronuncia tion, enunciation, emphasis, and express ion. Never overlook an error; ii he makes n mistake compel him to read the sentence over and over again, and if he is still wrong, the teacher Bhould either rend it for him properly, or cause one of the pupil? to do so, though sometimes it does very well to have some ene read it exactly as he has ?one and let him hear Tor himself how badly it sounds. A plan (which I have found a good one, but to which I have heard objections m?de) is Lo causo pupil:, ui criticise each other. I think tl.ii; causes them to pay strict at tention and mako them much more care ful, for all childron like to correct, and none of them like to be corrected by each other. Abovo all, never let them read in a singsong tone, nor slur over and blend their words, but seo that they pronounce each word distinctly and properly. Do not let ihem read with too little force, as tome (girls especially) are prone todo. Il is true thai a voice, which is gentle, joft and low, is, in tbs language of Shakespeare, "au excellent thing in women," but in reading it in often an af fectation, and we generally find that the very girls who adopt this style of reading have powerful lungw, and eau use them (on the play ground) so as to he heard at \ distance of half a mile (more or leus). To sum it all up, mako the children read understandingly and with feeling: train Iheir understanding, train their hearts und train their voices, for even a tone conveys a great deal. Make them kuow that good reading can alwayB he made available, amply compensating one for .he expenditure both of time nud patience, ind that it is an accomplishment of the liigbeBt order, Becond to none, of the greatest importance to people of all pro fessions, and to women as well as to mon. -North Carolina Teacher. Why I go to Church on Rainy Sundays. I attend Church on rainy Sundays bo saute 1. Uod has bleased the Lord'u day and ml lowed it, making no exceptions for rainy Sundays. 2. I expect my minuter to be there. I mould be surprised if he was to stay at borne for the weather. 3. If his hands fall through weeknesa, [ shall have great reasor. to blame myself, unless I sustain him by my prayers and my presence. 4. By staying away I may lose the prayers which bring God's blessing, and tho sermon that would have done me Treat good. 0. My presence is more needful on Sundays when there are few, than on those days when the church k crowded. 6. Whatever ?tatton I bold in the Church, ru> example must influence others. If I stay aw*y, rv h y may not they? 7. Ou any important business rainy weather does not keep me at home ; and Church attendance ia, in God's sight, vary Important. 8. Among the crowds of pleasure seekers, I see that no weather keeps the delicate female from the ball, the party, or the concert. 9. Among other blessings, such weath er will show me on what foundation my faith is built. It will provo how much I lore Christ. True love rarely fails to meet an appointment, 10. Those who stay from. Church be cause it ?B too warm or too cold, or too rainy, frequently absent themselves on fair Sundays. 11. Though my excuses satisfy myself, they still must undergo God's scrutiny ; and they must be well grounded to bear that. (St. Luke xiv. 18.) 12. There is a special promise, that where two or three meet together in God's name, he will be in the midst of them. 13. An avoidable absence from the Church is an infallible evidence of spir itual decay. Disciples first follow Christ at a distance, and then, like Peter, do not know him. 14. My faith is to be shown by my self-denying Christian life, and not by the rise or rall of the thermometer. 15. Such yielding to surmountable difficulties prepares for yielding to those merely Imaginary, until thousands never enter a church, and yet think they have good reason for such neglect. IC. By a. suitable arrangement on Saturday, I shall be able to attend Church without exhaustion ; other wine, my lalo work on Saturday night must tend to unfit me for the Sunday enjoyment of Christian privileges. 17. I know not how many more Sun days God may give maj ana it would be a poor preparation for my first Sunday in beaven to have alighted toy last Son* day on earth.-Frances Ridley Uavergal, - Nothing le gained by finding a pian out. That la ir you want to' collect a bill. - lt ia only in Europe that .young men can know what they aro doing in the vcaly period at which they select ? mate. It ia tba custom in ahme parta of Greece for a girl to wear, generally op her bead, all the morey the poeeesacs, ad that any young man desiring to marry her may know how much her dowry ii. A Bathing Fond, At tho bathing place in Salt Lake, City, steps lead clown from tho pier lo tho water, hut woo to tho hold and uu wary diver who ventures to take a head er. He will thiuk he hns struck a paving stone nud swallowed a combined sulphur and salt raine, for in his astonishment at the concussion he will bo pu tty sure tn open bis mouth. Tho density of the water is so great that to dive into it is simply impossible. Tho greater tho force with which ono strikes it, the great er the rebound. There is some danger, too, of slipping into the water face down ward, and not being able to turn over, even where the depth is not greater than two or three feet, for tho resistance of tho water is so powerful that only a very strong person can force a foot through it to the ground. During one of my visits I saw n Indy just about to step into thc water miss her footing and fall face forward. She struggled violently for Bcveral seconds, but ber friends, who wore unacquainted with the peculiar properties of the Salt Lako water, did not suppose she was in peril. An alarm was, however, raised from the pier, and she was lifted to her feet. But for this timely help she would certainly have been drowned in less than two feet of water. It seems al mo-it im possible that any liquid can be so in tensely salt as this. Tho swallowing of a very small quantity produces violent vomiting, tho action of tho salt being aggravated by several other alkalies held in solution. Tl; proportion of salt alone is over twen ; per ccnt.--nomov.-hat greater than that f tho Dead Sea-and, even in tho roug^ way of making salt common in thin region, namely, flooding meadows and awaiting the results of evaporation, n gallon or salt is obtained for evory five gallons of water. To those who cannot swim, and who hqyo been duly warned of the dangers to be avoided, bathing in Salt Lake is particularly delightful. As ono lies upon the water a sense of lightness seemB to [lervade the frame. One appears to be ?alf floating, half flying, for only a very small portion of the body will sink into the water, and only the exercise of great muscular strength can keep the limbs upon the surface of the water. The ex hilaration produced by this novel feeling of lightness is very remarkable, lt seems to give the limos absolute rest as they float in the air, upheld by no con scious volition or expenditure of physi cal force. But to the swimmer tho ba thing is by no means BO enjoyable. The resistance of the water is so great that to force n way through it requires great effort. I saw a strong swimmer, who had gone out about 100 yards from thc end of the pier, obliged to call for a boat, as he was too exhausted to make bis way back. On coming out it is necessary to apongo tho body with fresh water, as the salt forms a complete scale armor. One man of our party, who forgot to uso fresh water on his head, speedily had his black bair cbanged to a very light gray. Salt Lake is about 100 miles Tong and ita greatest width is 00 miles. The aver age depth is 40 feet and soundings bavo nowhere reached beyond 90 feet. The bottom is a hard white sand, with a very gradually shelving shore, and BO far as IB known no form of animal or vegetable life exists in tho water, which ?B wonder fully clear, the white sand being easily visible where the depth is over twenty feet. A Woman Deserter Asks a Pension? A singular story bangs from two bills offered ia the House by Representative Cutcheon, of Michigan. Ono provides for tho removal ot tho charge of deser tion from the record of Franklin Thomp son, of such and such a Michigan regi ment, and the other grants a pension to Sarah Emma E. Seelye, alias Franklin Thompson, of the samo regiment. At the outbreak of the war Miss Seelye, as she saw regiment after regiment hurry ing Southward, had ? growing desire to go to the front herself. 8he wanted to go as a nurse, but, after thinking it over, came to the conclusion that it would be better to put on a man's uniform and to go to the war as a private in a Detroit regiment. So she did. She came with the regiment to Washington. She went into camp with it. Sue went to Bull Hun with it, carrying her musket and hs/ accoutrements like a man. After the battle of Bull Run she found herself separated from- her regiment, between the Federal and the Confederate lines. Through the night she trudged toward Wosbingston, where she arrived 24 hours behind her command. Reunited to her fleeing friends,' she' went with them to Fredericksburg, and afterward through the Peninsular campaign. Everywhere she marched and fought and lived like a man. It began to tell upon ber health, however, so she bad herself transferred to one of the Western armies. Here, after a time, she became a mail-carrier, first for the regiment, then for the brigade, and then for the division. Whi'e per forming these duties she fell ill, and was orderen to the hospital. There she felt sure her sex would be discovered. Ac cordingly, abe determined not to go to the hospital. The only way out was to desert; so she deserted. Afterward, in her own clothes and under her own name, she returned to the army as a nurse and cared for ber late comrades to the end of the war. Now she ls married and lives in Iowa. Of course, the charge of desertion still stands against ber. Soe wants it removed; and then she wants a pension for physical disabilities which she says sue acquired in the army. Washinqion Leiter. Only "Colton Raisers.'' Tho following from the Pioneer Pren of St. Paul's, Minn., is just as applicable hete in onr latitude, if we substitute "Cotton-Raisers" for "Wheat-Raisers:" "A farmer came into Mr. Fink's store to-day' to seule for a load of wheatland made a number of purchases, and among them were several pounds of ordinary butter and three or four dozen packed eggs. 1 enquired if tb'.s sort of thing was a cc mmon practice of the farmers in the vicinity." "Farmers I" replied the merchant con tempuously, "why .we haven't got twenty real farmers in this county. They are all nothing but wheat-raisers, and that is a long way (rom being a farmer. A large number, of farmers in Dakota, who own whole quarter Motions'of land, eeldom have a drop .of milk In the houoo, and the buttcr tbey eat la bought nt tho near est store. They don't even keep a pig, or try'lo raiM vegetables enough to pro vide for;Winter." This ia one of tbe oviU of depending too much upon the.staple Of a country ; abd ita,effect la Deon wherever there ls opt, graat staple,.Uko. cotton or -wheat, overshadowing' all other thiugs. . This .??pie culture interferes with real, farm ing. It tends to ds-arf or .oxcludo all thoae home comforts which have a charm to farm.life, vie., abundance Of food for maa aud beast, tocata, pcaUry, eggs, milk, bhUsarj vegetables. ;frulta and pbaaaot surroundings. Il io col tho whole of Ufo 1 to make money. Thc Last Way. ? - SUD I |Eacb man han bia last day. To each a BUD rises of which lie never aces the set tin}:, or ri sun sets of which lie never nee? the rising. liosy dawns wilP'ascond, hours crowned with light go trending gayly over the earth ; but not for him. Fast locked up in his narrow coller, luid away deeply in ibo bowels of tho earth, he lies in still' unconsciousness of tho long procession.above.him of days'andjsea?ons and age*. Families have their last day. House holds part nover to meet again. Ancient lines dating hack beyond tho Conquest, at last como to nu end. Tho ancestral mansion is vacant, the title is extinct, the estates revert to the State. In almost every community "lhere is one alone, ho bath neither child ?or brother," and bia last day will be tho la*t of his name and race. Stales niuo have their last day. ?Whoro are the thrones of Carthago and Tyro, of Assyria and ?Egypt, of Macedon and Rome? All gono, Uko extinct individ uals and families. After defying the trickle and tho Hood, the rust and the battle of centuries, they at last gavejway. One sun arose on them still breathing, tho next found them only mutter of history. In thc interval they had passed from something to nothing. And other States occupied their places ; nota few of whom, in their turn, have expired and boen laid away in the cemeteries of his tory. Also, the world will have its Issi day. Wo have the best authority for saying thnt the time wi'l come when the human race will disappear ina body,from the earth, and the planet itself and all things therein he burned up. Also tho best of authority for speaking of that timo os a . day, and as tho last day. Tho Book hos spoken-not merely the analogies. "After - its wordB they Bpenk not again, and its F peech drops upon them." Exactly when this greatest of last days . will come wo; are not (informed. Tho month, the year, tho century, the millen nium even, in which it will occur, is net foretold.' So little hint is given of its exact locality In history that its actual advent will take the world nt largo thor oughly hy surprise. Liko the springing of a snare or the coming of a thief will it be. Up rolU that last sun from tho East as brightly and steadily as usual. Men hie them to their business, their pleasures, without a thought of change * * * * In a word, all the world, like the sun, is moving along the beaten high way of the ages without a thought of its coming to an abrupt end a few steps far- . ther on. As it was in tho days before the flood, when men "wore eating und drinking, marrying and giving in mar riage, until the day that Noan entered into tho ark, and knew not until the flood came and took them all away, "so shall tho coming of tho son of mau be.-Du. E. F. Bunn, in Ecce Terra. Jesting With Children. It has been said by some kind of a cynic that bachelors' wives and old maids' children are always pinks of per fection, lt is true that most children are not agreeable. The poor little things do require nurses who aro their keepers, and thus protect grown folks, in a meas ure, from infantile depredations. In rainy weather children are inflictions grevious to be borne in most cases. But I took my non in hand tc sound a note of warning tn mothers and nurses ou the subject of jesting before children and telling them little untru Grand mother read aloud from a newspaper this morning n story of a joke that carne near proving the causo of serious injury to a baby. A little sister of tho baby asked her mother what they should do to mako it stop crying. Her mother said thought lessly, "I guess we will havotosewits mouth up. A few days afterward the lady was out of the room and she left tho baby alone with ita little sister. When - she returned the little girl bad been try ing to sew up the baby's mouth with a big darning needle to make it stop cry ing. Who wits to blamer Tho mother "did not think." I have often heard similar joking re plies made to questions of little one.-. There is uevor any escuse for . telling a child an untruth. Ono little girl, being convinced that Saint Nicholas war. a myth, sadly inquired of her mother whether thc ru were really angela and a Christ or bad she been just making be lieve about them, too," Children should be treated justly and as reasonable crea tures from infancy. No mother can ufiord to lose the respect and confidence of her children. But I must stop before some matron reminds mo of my immenso and valua ble store of experience in the. matter. Besides "preachera" are not Invited to a seat in this social circle even when in womanly shape, wherefore I will dis creetly subside into a signature.-Cor. Atlanta Constitution. The Vaina of Cotton Seed FertiHssr-. In order to find the value of anything we must refer it to some unit of value or measure it by some other standard. It is best for us to use as a standard acme . of our own homespun productions, and it is but fair that we should price them at the sam* rate we are called on to pay. when we purchase them in our commer cial markets. And the manufacturera and Bellera can not object to. our using . their own wholesale and retail prices on . . them; and rating our compounds made at home by their standards. First, cotton seed-formerly a wanto and at present a residue from our cotton crop. They, contain ammonia in the kernels and potash mostly in the hulls and let us see what is their .value, taking the commercial vallie of pure ammonia at 20 cents per pound, and of potash at 8 cents : The seed contains 3} per cent'am monia, 70 ponnds per ton at 20 cents....;.$14 00 The seed contains 90-100 of 1 per cent, potash, 19 pounds per ton, 8 cents..:. 1 52 . $15 52 And we have the commercial value of one ton or 66} bushels of cotton seed at . fifteen 62 100 dollars, or about 22fc cents Eer hindu 1. In the oil contained in the ern cl s there ls not a single cenia worth of fertilising material, and lt would be well if our /armera were sp circumstanced as to hove this extracted as allowing tho one-third value of oil ns tho cost of ex tracting; the farmer could realise 6 to 10 conn on the thirds.- thus making his . cotton seed worth, to him 30 cents or over per bushel, or making the seed worth one-fourth tho amount tho lint brings, and quite as much or moro than the far mer's profit made on the lint. In the courso of timo milla for extracting the 011 will doubtless bo no located as to ena ble o?r farmers to utilizo and get the fall .raine of this valuable product-Chr. Pic?c?s Sentinel. j - A wag, seeing a door n oar ly off its hinges,in which condition it bau been some tim?, observed that. when i? bad fallen and killed some one it would prob ?bl? be hung.