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Cambrai, France, boasts of a ser* rant “girl” who has been seventy-one years in one fami’y, and, although eighty-four years old, is still working faithfully. This establishes a new record. Although the cycle seems to be catching on in China it is only in and around the towns that riding is possible. From town to town and village, with one or two exceptions, there are nothing but mere cart tracks, unridable in most places. .. An Irishman was thrown out of restaurant in New York City by German waiter for creating a disturb eneo after being refused Spanish mackerel, and wan haled before an American magistrate, who fined him. Bather an interesting case this of in tornational complications. 'WHAT IS TROUBLE?” i In 1H79 Sir Henry Thompson said “The vegetable-eater pure and sinr |>le can extract from his food all th< principles necessary for the growth ant support of his body, as well as for thi production of heat and force.” Now In Writes in the Nineteenth Century tha' “few persons can sustain their healtl and a fair amount of strength on f strictly vegetable diet.” One day, foreseeing peril in The game my little man was playing Bo heedlessly, I cautioned him About the consequences, saying: ’ “You'll get In trouble, Paul; take care; I’m very much afraid that club’ll Swing back and hurt you. Turning then He naked me, “Papa, what is trouble?” Boroenow—peruaps you’ll understa nd— do unexpected was the query, That spite paternal wisdom, I Had no words ready (or my dearie. I halted; then bis mother called. Ami, whirling from me like a dancer, My little questioner made off And did not press me for an answer.* But after he had gone—oh, long After tbeecboesof the patter Of wee footfalls had died away I sat uml thought upon tne matter; I thought of Paul's three scanty years, I And of the world that stood before him AValtlng witlismiles and lashes to Give him Its welcome and to score him. name. prayer: lift That the daring of the great “Path iluder” has descended to his son Lieutenant John C. Fremont, of tin torpedo boat Porter, is shown by th< lieutenant’s bravery in making tin first landing on Cuban soil to obtaii information wanted by Rear Admira Hampson. Every admirer of the ole General who found (he paths to th« Pacific will be proud of the son, ob servos the Now York Herald. Chancellor Henry McCracken, o' the Oniversity of the City of New York, advocates in Now York Educa tion sociological field work us a de finite study for high schools. H< considers how only a tenth of the students of high schools over go tc college, and asks why cannot one afternoon a month be given toward the study of the “well-being of oui neighbors.” He would have the clase visit asylums, prisons and hospitah (classed under the “abnormal” of out neighbors), and a great mill or factory, a stock exchange, a church or mission foundation, and the places of amuse ment (classed under the '•‘uormal” conditions of our neighbors). ’Wisconsin has at this late day about Indians of me ordinary clothing of the white man. The Win- nebagos alone cling to the native mode of living, occupying their wigwams in even the coldest weather, One-hall of the members of the other tribes, the Milwaukee Sentinel says, speak enough English for the purpose of ordinary conversation, and more than one-half read the English language. They are fast learning to recognize the legality of nmtrimonal relations* Eighty-five per co il, of them are en. gaged in pursuits of civilized life; ten per cent, in landing,^fishing, and root '^atheiiug nmf the like; only five per cent, live exclusively on Government rations. Of th^ 1«00 Onoidas, the 1900 Mcnominees, and the 500 Stock- bridges and Muuscea all live on labor jn civilised pursuits. Many of the Oneidas compare favorably in thrift, cleanliness and rational life enjoyment with the whites in their vicinity. In the opinion of the Sentinel observer they arc fairly good material for citi’ zesshin. According to the Superintendent of the Boston public schools, the service rendered by about one-fourth of the teachers is inferior, in various degrees from that described ns “not quite good” down to “unsatisfactory.” This fourth he further sub-divides into three classes, one being the super annuated, who have done good work, bnt now lack in strength and efficien cy; another, those who arc yet young in years and in experience, but who promise good development, and the third those who have always been in ferior and of whom no improvement is expected. These latter have missed their vocation, the Superintendent says, and should seek some other oo- cupat on, but ho apparently has not the power to force them out. He hopes, however, to prevent any acces sion to their number through anew regulation which requires a teacher to pass satisfactorily through a proba tionary period of two years before be ing placed in the permanent service. As to the worn-out teachers, the Superintendent recommends, inas much as there is much opposition to a pension system, that they be retired on a moderate stipend for such ser vice as they may still be able to ren der, serving generally as supernumer aries. And tlirouKli my mluil tlmre mu a r- “Dfiir Goil, in Thy laud of Hereafter May he come once a^ain to me, Ills li n art unpurKod of Joyauil laughter, And as with manhood'* eyes he looks Upon the world that like ft bubble Floats out and leaves us, may be ask ^Thequestion, ’Father, what Is trouble?” —Chicago Record. ^JOIG^)!GI(')OIO(9IOIOK)K>:30IQIO(OiOIOIGI9ly^ A CONFESSION ()!”said she,hold ing out the inno cent-looking lit tle book with the (lowered cover. “You prom ised.” “I must have time to think it over,” i protested. “That would never do. The con fessions have to be quite impromptu.” “But suppose I can’t make up my mind?” “It would bo a reflection upon] the mind,” said she severely. I turned over the leaves doubtfully, and shook my head. “The questions are terribly searching. Why, I should have to confess enough to hang me!” “Why not—if you deserve hanging? I (dare say you "do, you know. ” I hadn’t looked at it like that. “Ye-es, but I’m not in a hurry.” “lam.” She opened the book and laid out the blotting pad. “Yon see, our confession is very important. I aven’t been able to get a really bad and depraved character previously.” I groaned. “To-morrow, perhaps ” “Now,” said she, firmly. “This is a J pen—you use a J. don't you?” She planted the writing iiiiit^r^ pen and stared blankly at tho ceiling. “What am I to do?” “First you write your name— here." She came and stood beside me, and pointed over my shoulder. So I subscribed myself hers to com mand. “Now, your age.” “What does that matter?” “It shows how much wisdom may Ue expected.” “Five,” I proposed promptly. “No, uo!” she cried, catching hold of my hand. “You mustn’t bo silly.” Of course, 1 didn’t mean to be, bnt I wai bound to pretend if it made her do that. “Thirty-one, then, if I must. It’s awfully old, isn’t it?” “No—o; not for a man. Now the date. That’s right.” “Hadn’t I better add my address— for birthday presents?” “Or bills? You don’t know who mialR see itj’ ”No; that’s the deuce of it. And the next?” “Now, you must answer the ques tions. What is the thought upper most in your mind?” . “If any?" “A mind,” said she positively, “is assumed. What is the thought upper most in it at the present moment. That is the question.” “Your pleasant company.” “Oh, whatever will people think?” “That I’ve got one answer right.” I leaned hack triumphantly in my chair. “But you shouldn’t. They might think you really ” “Meant it?”‘ “Of course not.” “But I do. Shall I add a sworn declaration?” She laughed and shook her head. “I won’t have perjury in my dear little book. Now you must be quite serious, please. This is a very im portant question. Is life worth liv ing? No? You are not to write till you have told me the answer.” “At the present moment—yes.” “You must answer generally—for always.” “In the present company—yes.” “You are not to mention mo. I won’t have it. ” She nodded her head decisively. "Then my inspiration’s gone.” I laid down the pen. “Please!” I took it up again. “If the liver works. Will that do?” “It isn’t original,” she objected. “Four people have written it already.” “I know,” said I, seizing the book and writing [rapidly, “It depends on the answer to another question, when I ask it.” “That’s altogether too vague.” “Shall I make it more explicit?” I looked right at her, and she went prettily pink. “There's uo room for any more,” said she hastily. “Now you over. Yon have a lot more question* to .answer.” Then I committed myself to the statements that my favorite author was Shakespeare (she wouldn’t hear of Kipling!), my favorite eomi>oaer, Wagner (which wasn’t true), my favorite drink, and various other im portant tacts. “That’s very nice,” she said ap provingly when I had recorded that my motto was “Pluck for hick”, and my favorite recreation reading ser mons. “Now for your esthetic testes. Yonr favorite colors?” Blue In eyes and brown ini lair; Whatever color ray lady w^ar! “Shall I add ‘groy at present?’ I in quired. Of course that was what she was wearing. “I don’t know what color your lady wears. I didn’t know you hud' 'a lady.’ " “There is one I should like to have.” “But that isn’t the question,” she said quickly. “But it’s going to he.” “Nevermind. Goon. Yo*r favor ite name?” “Edith, of course. That is h you know.” “You’re making game.” “Indeed, I’m not.” » “O, but you are! And you Now your favorite qualities in Seriously, mind! I really know.” “Yours,” 'I announced di She hastily removed the ink “I won’t have any more no: “You told me to put d< truth.” “I shall have to tear it all o “Well,” I sighed, “I’ll puebme- thing else, but it won’t be s4 ru ®* , ‘ She released tho ink. All, I w^te. “Your favorite proverb?” I “‘Faintheart never won fail idy.’ I’ll try not to be faint-hearted. ” “The addition was quite ujlpcea- snry,” she commented “Everyone knows you are dredpiilly forward!” “The next question is aposer,’* Ire- marked. “If not yourself, who wild you be?” U “Some great hero—or wr^^-ot painter?” she suggested, looking o»er my shoulder. Her hair just brislou me—and that made my mind fun. “I’m uot so ambitious as thaf* “Well, put down whatever yon trim, so long as it is something nice.” p “She—it—is very nice.” ‘But it mustn’t be anything si(Jj.” I’m afraid, perhaps, whal I Um! want “Want to be.” “To have.” “Oh, nol That’s not the queaticn at all. “But suppose that my ambition is to possess something—or somebo ” “That isn’t the point,” she inter rupted. “Do answer properly.” “I know. Whomever you liked best. You will make me smudge th« book,” I remonstrated, as she tempted to snatch it gntfully. "E”* ne failure? What am I to say to tl “Well—er—you don’t know.” “I might say I’ll try.” , “Ye—es—but ” “With some one’s assistance?” She blushed furiously. “Do you know, Edith, it’s a very difficult' qiestion to answer—alone?” She toyed with her haudkcrchief. “Perhaps you’d better skip it,” she advised. “I don’t want to skip it,” I an swered firmly, laying down tho pen. “What 1 want is some one to help me in answering it. Home one of whqm I am very, very fond.” I stood Up and took hold of ber hands. “Will you try, Edie—my dear?” The answer is going to be a very Wg “No,” for little Edie—my Edie—said “Yes.”—Black ami White. • Who Were These People? Professor Allesou, of the Berlin Geographical Society, thus describes a remarkable archeological find; “In Dawson Island, in the Pacific, he found a table-land three miles jin extent devoid of vegetation and cov ered by masses of wonderful mins in all stages of decay. Remains of build ings show them to have been well- formed structures, but of the crum bling walls only a few feet rernaia standing. In the far distance a hu*e pile crowed the extreme edge of the plateau. The natives took us to the side of tho mountain where the work shops of the long dead people were lo cated. The mountain, a hard volcanic rock, rose in a series of ledges of ton or fifteen yards each to the peak, sev eral thousand feet high. Upon each ledgo a number of gigantic stone, heads, some cut oil’ at the neck, others with tho bust shown, range ten to thirty feet high, and all hewn in tho solid volcanic rock. All of the faces boro a striking resemblance of expres sion. The most sinister head had a long protruding chin and expanded nostrils.” * leiaaaeieieiaefo^^ | GOOD ROADS NOTES. A Typical Casr. What is to be done under conditions j that obtain in many parts of the coun- j try? is the question raised by a mem ber of the League of American Wheel men. He says: “We have in this township assessed roughly at 8350,000 some sixty miles of road. We cannot spend $10,000, $1000 or even $500 per mile on these roads. There is not enough money in the township, all told, to do it, and the law Units the bonded indebted ness. To select a few miles of the principal highway is not just to the poor fellow who helps pay for it and must drive five or ten miles to reach it. “Much better work might be done than we are doing, but it remains that many miles must be attended to with few dollars. What most is need ed is careful consideration of existing conditions—how best to spend $1200 or $1500 on sixty miles of road, re serving $200 or $300 of that for the winter’s snows. Teach us serviceable lessons for communities of this sort, and do not expect asphalt, macadam or steel until the fellows from town help to bnild them (and they haven’t built their own yet). “No wonder the rustic kicks if the road is to cost more than the entire value of all the farms through which it passes. He appreciates good roads, but must remember his slim pocket- book. He laughs a little, too, at the big saving heavier loads would make for him. Nine out of ten of him at that time of year have little to do for self or team and are not crowded with what they have to market. He would rather make two trips than one, as he and the horses both need tho exer cise.” The tendency in such cases as this is to underestimate the beneficial ef fects of hard roads and to assume that they arc of value only during the win ter. They are of enormous value then, and of equally great value in summer and the busy seasons, when tho possi bility of hauling big loads is money in the pocket. In the past, the farmer has been left too much to his own resources in the care of the highways. Now, however, State aid is rapidly being acknowledged as the proper means of promoting the good work, and the States are slowly but surely falling into line iu adopting it. Until it is generally in force, there may be time for much good work to be done, and the first steps toward real improvement can be taken by se curing careful grading, thorough drain age aud the adoption of wide tires. In this connection the experiences of two southern counties is right to the point. In one, the loads average 2466 pounds and the tax is ten cents a hun dred. In the other the loads are but 800 pounds and the tax twenty cents a hundred. Improved methods reduced the road tax one-half, and greatly im mire.” How easy it would be ' for | them, and many other counties sim- iliary situated, to improve their high ways is plainly shown by the Suffeca Independent. There are sixty miles of rood, aftd an expenditure of $2500 per mile on them would create an indebtedness of $150,000. Suppose this amount was borrowed on bonds payable in from one to fifteen years at four per cent. By paying the annual interest and six per cent, on the principal, the whole amoant could be paid iu twelve year* and the roads kept in order, without a greater annual expenditure than the $16,000 now required for re pairing worthless roads. The assess ment of the county “is, in roundnam- bers, $20,000,000 of which $150,000 is three-quarters of one per cent Now, taking the average assessment of the taxpayer to be $1000, bis proportion of the entire debt would be $7.50, and hiq assessment for each year for this purpose would l>e seventy-five cents. Figured down this way, there seems nothing wanting to securing better highways bnt the will to make the start. the im- W0RDS OF WISDOM. Every noble work is at first impos* y sible. —Carlyle. What has been done can again.—Disraeli. Conduct is three-fourths of Matthew Arnold. Our only greatness pire.—Jeau Ingelow. No oue can disgrace selves.—J. G. Holland Self respect is the co: virtue.—John Hersch Success in most tW*g 8 it takev*® gUlH Ced is not in never ing how long Montesquieu. Our greatest gf 0I 7'VverV time we failing, but in ri8i n ? fail.—Confucius. In the lexicon there reserves for a bngbj _ B ulwQr. which fate' to lose its substance moment one Hawthorne. An Tnrompletc Estimate. In the following estimate of cost of laying stone roads some portant items have been omitted. The Indiana Farmer says that “the cost of broken stone for building roads is not so great as many suppose. It can be bought at the crushers for forty cents per solid yard, and the railroad will freight it forty miles or less, at about fifty cents per cubic yard, making a total of ninety cents; but suppose we call it $1. Then if the road-bed is nine feet wide and the stone is piled on a foot deep, a cnbic yard will cover three feet linear at a cost of $1, making one mile (1760 yards) cost as many dollars. Bnt as only about nine inches are necessary, one-fourth of this amount, or $440, should be deducted, making the ex act amount only $1320, which is cheap enough for a first-class road, the ma terial for which must be brought forty miles by rail.” Substantial roads can be built at a thickness of nine inches, but the stone used is by no means the only item of expense. The labor of hand ling, placing and rolling it must be considered and, more important still, careful grading and thorough drain age must be secured. Hard roads can be built much more cheaply than formerly, but a “first-class” one can not y»t be laid at such low figures. actual ly grapples wijji it. Character is power; it ma r,es friends; creates friends; draws patronage and support; and opens a sure and easy way to wealth, honor and happiness. —J. Hawes. There is a limit to the work that can be got out of a human body, or a human brain, and he is a wise man •who wastes no energy on pursuits for which he is not fitted.—Gladstone. When you get into a tight place, and everything goes against you, till it seems as if you could not hold on a min ute longer, never give up then, for that’s just the place and time that the tide’ll turn.- Harriet Beecher Stowe. Ijuignaaes of Manic. A French missionary played airs by Rossini to a Chinese mandarin, who, though n man of intelligence aud cul tivation, according to Oriental stand ards, shook his head disapprovingly. When pressed to give a reason for the depreciating gesture, he said: “It is sad(y devoid of meaning and expression, trates the so al.” yhile Chinese music peue- We smile to our ears i hineae music is the link ing together sounds, the terwauling. Professor dent, in hh Literature,’ there is a of harsh and unmelodious ningling of crash and ca- a superintendent and live mfen are kept at work on the roads. The work costs $55.17 a mile and though the roads are only plain “dirt,” they are kept in such good condition that three times as much can be hauled as on roads cared for in the old way. Here, surely, is a cheap and easy way to be gin.—L. A. W. Bulletin. Narrow VcrguH Wide Was<HI Tire®* Scientific experiments extending over two years have been made under the auspioes of the Studebaker Broth ers, the widely-known wagon builders, to determine the relative qualities of wide aud narrow-wheel tires. The The results arc too extensive to give in-full. Every kind of rood was used to test the question. It was found that on macadam roads the narrow tires were for inferior to the wide, and required, ; wjah. % icjlhrt in the rats and the wide tires on top, the narrow tires were far more efficient. This was also the case with wet mud. But as soon as the mud began to dry the wide tires showed a vast superior ity. In general, the only justification for narrow tires proved to be thor oughly bad roads.—Youth’s Com panion. at the absurdity, because Eccentricity In ntayclln*. The bicycle fad is assuming more eccentric forms abroad than in this country. In Switzerland a new style has#he rider sit inclined backwards, in about the same pi^ition as a person rowing on a sliding seat. An English novelty requires the owner to thrust his legs downward, so as to obtain the impetus of his weight. In Paris high wheels are in use, some six and seven feet high. Italy, always gallant, has a tricycle, where the lady occupies a front seat and steers, while the gem tlemau, on a seat behind her, does the propelliug. Germany has a mtffehine on which the user employs both arms aud legs in locomotion. The inven tor, who predicted that it would pass all other styles was grievously disap pointed when it proved very alow, turn New York Mail aud Express. laexpenulve Iloail Repair. A correspondent suggests that tho system of ccntimial supervision and repair of road-beds used by the rail ways would not be practicable ou the highways, because the railway section foremen depend for their positions on the thoroughness of their work, have only short distances to care for, aud can make themselves thoroughly fami liar with them, while highway com missioners frequently know aud care nothing about roads, and have long stretches with which they have little time or opportunity to become ac quainted. As long as prareat conditions ob tain, and highway commissioners arc chosen for political reasons, and de vote little time and attention to the roads, not much iu the way of im provement is to be expected. It is the system which must be changed, and it will be when the people realize the importance to the community of hav ing hard aud smooth roads' ou which to travel. It is not necessary to al ways build expensive roads costing, perhaps, from one to ten thousand dollars a mile, but present roads can be vastly bettered by giving them con staut care, together with proper grad ing and drainage. This work h vs been successfully undertaKon iu some quarters and good results obtained, as iu the case referred to lust week, iu which tho expense was so small that the road tax had been reduced, while the roads had been improved. As long as present methods prevail, “D” thinks that the farmers, and those living, off the main roads should be interested in some way in looking af ter J the roads that pass their’own doors, so that they would remove atones, fill up boles and see that all water ran off quickly, and suggested that they could pay a small part of their road tax in labor in this way, under the control of the road commis sioner. The old plan of “working” out road taxes has been a complete failure, but it does not necessarily fol low that something of this kind would not work in some districts, especially if the people first become in some measure convinced of the importance of the step. A Problem In Rond Improvement. The entrance to the beautiful val ley of the Ramapo is at Suffern, N. Y. The county in which the town lies has many natural advantages, but it unable to obtain benefit from them Avlo Bates uses this inci- 1‘Tnlks on the Study of to illustrate the fact that onventional language in sound as tl re is in words. Barbaric folk use a inguage of music which penetrates their souls, but which causes the i >rves of civilized people to tingle. On music seems as absurd to them as the -s to us. Neither under stands the nusical language of the other. The Japanese complain that our di vision of zfusic into regular bars has the effect of making it “chip-chop, chip-chop, chip-chop.” There is uo universal language in ward* or in art. The Greeks wl or wror in tl figures of Aztec deities. An Azteo who was moved by twisted deities clutching one another by their plumes would perhaps have stood without emotion before a Greek temple or a Greek statue. The Cruslide Against Ruts. Never allow pools of water to stand on a road. If a road is not properly drained it cannot long remain good. It requires longer time and more power to haul light loads over bad surfaces than to move twice as much on good roads. Anything that facilitates intercourse between people tends to civilize them. Nothing helps so much toward this end ns perfect highways. Two buildings were lately destroyed by fire in an outlying ward of Cleve land, Ohio, on account of the depth of the mml, which prevented the en gines from reaching them in time. Common roads may be vastly im proved by being properly crowned and thoroughly drained, and tho work of making and keeping them good wiU be simplified if the traffic on them is on wide tires. The Governor of Massachusetts has recommended a wide-tire law and the subject is being taken up seriously. Such a simple aud effective means of improving poor roads and maintaining good ones ought not to be neglected. Nature is not a road-builder—she never prepares artificial means of liv ing. But she furnishes ample ma terial for every need, and science long since learned to utilize what she offers to meet tho necessities of our com plex civilization. The farmers along a road in Central New York have donated twelve hun dred tons of stone, picked from around their farms, for road improvement purposes, aud a neighboring stone crusher has been rented to properly prepare tho material for use. The ever-increasing tendency to concentrate in big cities can be coun teracted by making country life at tractive. But country life cannot be permanently attractive to city residents unless good highways afford inter communication and easy transit. Novel Plea For a BUI. In the course of a speech in support of his “foxscalp” bill in the Kentucky Legislature Representative Hatfisld, of Pike County, said: “I ask for the passage of this bill in the interests of religion and morals. If you pay no bounty for fox scalps no one will kill the foxes; if no one will kill them they will kill the chickens, and whar you have no chickens you have no preachers, and whar yon have no because of the roads through which ' preachers you have no religion and no the people “still flounder in the ^ morula,” The Story the Cub Reporter Didn’t Get. One day a cub reporter was sent to cover a meeting of an East Side liter ary club, which was to debate about arbitration and its effect upon interna tional peace, but he came back to the office within an hoar looking disap pointed. “Where’s your story?” asked the city editor. “There wasn’t any story to write,” replied the new reporter, picking np a newspaper; “they couldn’t agree upon the wording of the subject, and they got to arguing and calling names, and finally the meeting broke up in a free fight; so I came back, sir.” The city editor came down from his desk and gazed pitifully upon the cub. “They were to have debated on peace,” he said, sorrowfully, “and the meeting broke up in a fight. And there was nothing to write! You may go.” That is a story they tell along tho Row, and it is an old one. From “The New Reporter.” Don’t. Don’t possess feet a size larger than the shoes you wear. Don’t lose the thread of your story when spinning a yarn. Don’t spend too much money in trying to get something for nothing. Don’t heap coals ol fire on an en emy’s head until you burn your fingers. Don’t think every woman who looks in a mirror is hopelessly lost in ad miration. Don’t imagine every man who fig ures on marrying an heiress is a born mathematician. Don’t add insult to injury by apolo gizing to a pretty girl after stealing a kiss from her. Don’t think a girl regrets the loss of her good name when it is replaced with that of a nice young man. Don’t get discouraged if you find yon are not a genius. A scientist says genius is a sort of epilepsy.—Chicago News. Berth* May Be Sold. The Supreme Court of Maryland has decided that the purchaser of a berth or a section of a sleeping car has the right to give another person Ihel use thereof if he leaves the car before it reaches the end of the trip for which the berth was bought. The Boston Transcript states the cose decided thus; A passenger secured a section, rode in it for part of the trip and then sold hi* section ticket to another passenger, he leaving the train. The second pur chaser was refused the use of the sec tion by the conductor of the car and was ejected, whereupon he brought 6uit,with the above result.