The Beaufort tribune and Port Royal commercial. [volume] (Beaufort, S.C.) 1877-1879, June 07, 1877, Image 1
THI
YOL. Y. NO. 2<
The Wife
She who sleeps upon my heart
Was the first to win it;
She who dreams upon my breast
Ever reigns within it
She who kisses oft my lips,
Wakes their warmest blessing ; %
She who rests within my arms
Feels the closest pressing.
^ViftoA oV*oil onmft
UlUW U3V3 uiau buvov cuiwt w*4*vj
Days that may be drearyOther
hours shall greet us yet,
Hours that may be weary ;
Still this heart shall be thy throne,
This breast shall be thy pillow;
Still these lips shall meet thy own,
As billow meeteth billow.
Sleep, then, on mine happy heart,
Since thy love has won it?
Dream then, on my loyal breast,
None but thou has done it;
And when age our bloom shall change,
With its wintry weather
May we in the self same grave
Sleep and dream together.
OLD MONEYBAGS' WILL.
A Nurse's Story.
It is about ten years ago, wnen i iouowea
my calling in Willenhall and Walsall, I was
sent for somewhat hastily to attend an old fellow?I
cannot call him a gentleman, though he
was rich enough?who lived in a solitary square
house away from the high road, and was supposed
to be dying.
I had often seen old Weston, or "old
Moneybags," as he was called, walking about
and talking to the locksmiths and nailmakers,
men and women both ; and it was from one of
the latter Amazons, whose head I was plastering
up after a free fight with a rival of the
hammer, that I had heard what little I knew of
him.
" Theer goes owd Moneybags after his rents.
They say he's a mint of money in th' bank, an'
lotso' houses; an' it'll a' fa' "to his gran'chUd,
? a lad no bigger nor eawr Sam. ''
She then went on to tell me that Jim Weston
had invented a new kind of lock, and, taking
out a patent for his invention, had thereby
amassed a fortune, and it would all fall to a
boy who had put other folk's noses out;
though to be sure, who had a better right than
his own grandchild ? Jim Weston had turned
his back upon his daughter for marrying
John Dudley, a Walsall spurmaker, without a
penny, just as her father was beginning to make
nis way in the world, and thought his money
and her pretty face together migut procure her
a gentleman for her husband.
He set his face against the young couple, and
never relented till after she" was a widow, or
quite forgave her until he round mue jun
sobbing beside bis dead mother's coffin, in &
miserable garret, in a grimy neighborhood.
Then he buried her grandly, and put a fine
monument over her?a sort of broken pillar?
taking the boy home to liis house, and engaging
masters to give him a good education, of
which he had felt the want.
There were two people, however, who did
not take kindly to the arrangement, and these
were Keturah and Job Bromley, his elder
sister's son and daughter, who had done their
best to wriggle into his good graces; and
though he had shown no other marks of favor
than getting the latter into an attorney's office
(hq was articled on a -?60 stamp) and putting
Keturah into a small shop in Walsall, these two
looked upon themselves as the rightful heirs to
their rich uncle's property, real and personal,
and, as it was more than suspected, had kept
open the breach between the father and daughter
to make assurance doubly sure.
He had keen eyes, this old Moneybags?eyes
that seemed to search one through. I know I
used to think so when after a time he began to
stop me and ask me how my parents were getting
on; and many a time- -for he was not a
bad sort, you must know?he has slipped a
couple of half crowns, or even half a sovereign,
into my hand, and told me those were the pills
heperscribedjrhen he took to the healing art.
Then he would chuckle, and ask his grandson
how he would like to be a doctor of the same
sort when he grew a man, and prescribe silver
pills and golden ointment; and when the boy
laughed at the conceit he would press the small j
hand, and go on his way rejoicing.
" If I were to fall sick, Msry " (nobody called ,
mo 'Mrs. Marbury' near Willenhall, "would
you mind coming to nurse me, and see I was
not choked off before mv time for the sake of
my moneybags?" he asked me one of these
times.
Of course I said I should be glad to do my
best on such an occasion, but I hoped there
would be no need of me yet awhile.
That was in March, and sure enough tne
last week in MajR James Dudley came running
to my poor lodgings, white faced and breathless.
Mr. Weston had fallen in a fit; would I
go back with h?m ?
I hold it the duty of a nurse to keep herself i
in readiness night or day ; so no more time waR
lost than would cairy us over the mile or 60 of
dusty road. A few hawthorns scented the air
as we approached the house; and a doctor's
brougham from Walsall stood at the gate.
We found the whole house in confusion, and \
the old man lying on a sofa, breathing heavily, |
and speechless ; the doctor feeling his pulse.
Before Dr. Hill went away Mr. Weston had
recovered so far as to juRtify removal to
his own bed and undressing, though he still re^
mained in a critical state.
This bed was a heavy and peculiar piece of
furniture, evidently built to fit into a recess in
the wall of the room opposite to the windows.
The door opened on to a square landing, and
was one of five, two rooms being on each side,
the fifth door opening to a sort of dressingroom,
which had a second door opening to the
chamber.
The next day he was better; and it was
quite touching to see how he stroked the head
of his attentive grandson, and called him a
"good boy,'' and bade him take care to become a <
good man also.
Th3t night brought into the house his two
other relatives, lugubrious in their emotional
manifestations.
Having once got foothold in their uncle's
house, they never left it Keturah, the most
obsequious and attentivo of nieces, took the
household reins in her hands at once, and
had it been politic would, I think, have got rid
of me.
Job, though long out of his articles, was still
a clerk, and tied to the solicitor's office ; but he
obtained irequeni leave 01 aosence, ana gave
liia dear good uncle the full benefit of it, not
much to the sick man's solace.
Gradually I perceived they endeavored to
warp the invalid's mind against the grandson,
and not finding that avail, kept the boy out of
the room, saying grandfather wished it; telling
the old man the youth was playing, or riding,
or reading?anything but caring for a loving
relative near death.
At last I became s^jsible that the old man
was sinking fast, and daily grew more submissive
to nis nephew aud niece, who were
urging upon him the necessity of making his
wiS. His speech was imperfect, but at last he
seemed to yield, and from my room, where
they thought me asleep, I overheard them suggests
a form of will, aud saw him nod assent.
This puzzled me, for the terms were all in
favor of the orphan grandchild.
During that very dav I was startled on entering
the room to find the feeble old man out of
the bed, and making superhuman efforts to
pull it from the recess. I thought his braiu
was touched, for his kceu eyes looked into
mine, and I heard him say : "Will, will." I
got him back into bed. and tried to soothe him.
Keturah came up, and he was still moaning :
"Will, will."
"Dear uncle, Job #111 have it ready this
evening." said she, with affected tenderness ;
but he looked from her to me, and still said:
"Will."
It was plain James Weston would not be old
Moneybags much longer, and Dr. Hill bade us
prepare for the final change.
Job Bromley had prepared. That evening I
bad gone down Kairs to get my supper, leaving
3 BE
r
Ketiirah in the room, when the lawyer's clerk
came home with a seedy looking companion.
The two went up into the sick chamber, and
something impelled me to follow. My list slippers
were noiseless; I crept into the little
dressing-room, the door of which was ajar. I
saw a parchment produced, and a pen, and the
old man raised to sign. I thought also I heard
a distinct "No, no," and then he fell back?
dead.
"It's no use, Job ; he's gone, and his moneybags
with him ; you've left it too late?just
like you," cried Keturah, in a temper.
There was a blue-bottle fly buzzing in the
window- it was in the middle of August.
"Stop," said the stranger, "let me catch
tnat Diue-ooitie, ana aner some uougmg uc
caught it, and for what do you suppose ? He
| put the fly in the mouth of the dead man, and
j held it shut, saving as be did so: "Now put
; the pen in his hand and guide it, and we can
swear he signed it while there was life in him."
I shrank with horror as I saw this villainy
perpetrated, and the other man's signature
, affixed, whilst the fly released went buzzing
over the room, and then bells rang, and a great
wail went through the house ; but the young
one who fled to me for comfort, and sobbed
upon my shoulder, was the only true mourner.
The funeral came and the* will was read.
James Dudley had not been wholly excluded;
they had been too cunning for that; but the
will set forth that his motner had offended in
I her marriage, and that he, James Weston, had
taken au oath to disinherit her offspring. The
testator, however, left a charge upon his heirs
*knd executors, his beloved nephew and niece,
to educate his grandson James, and article
him to a solicitor, as he himself had been articled,
with a small sum for maintenance till
the youth was twenty-one, when he was to have
?50, and no more.
I told Dr. Hill that I was sure the pen was
put in a dead man's hand, but he said it was
preposterous, and bade me hold my tongue. I
was dismissed, and being myself afraid of any
publicity of my own name, I weakly let the
matter drop, 'stifling conscience with the
thought that it was no business of mine.
Then my own cares drove all others out of
my mind. I came to London, where I soon got
a gOixl connection, and I began to save money.
At last it came to my ears that the Bromlevs
were purse-proud and arrogant, and bad ncff
even fulfilled the provisions of the sham will
for poor James Dudley. My conscience stung
me ; I felt as if I had been a partner in the
fraud to rob the orphan of his patrimony, and i
I went to a magistrate for advice. I
favp me ft. hearinEr. and then referred me j
to a respectable solicitor, who took the matter
in hand.
To make a long 6tory short, James Dudley
was looked up, criminal proceedings were
threatened against the Bromleys, a search-warrant
obtained, and in the recess behind the bed
another will was found, properly drawn up and
attested, in which old Aloneybags left to his
nephew only the money he had already defrauded
him of?as witness several forged
checks inclosed with the will. Of course the
latter will wo'ild have set this aside, had it been
genuine. That it was not was proved by the j
abrupt flight of the Bromleys, and the confes- i
sion of their fellow conspirator, who was
brought to book.
A Rich Man and Wife at School.
A lady engaged in teaching the rudimental
branches to wealthy people of
neglected education in New York has
been giving some of her experience in a
series of articles in the New York Telegram.
Among others taught by her j
were a wealthy couple, of whom the
writer says :
But of all the cases of neglected education
which were brought witlr'n the
range of my personal experience, perhaps
the most interesting to me, and the
most touching, was that of a nice and
matronly woman who appeared at my
rooms one day literally blazing with diamonds,
with a fifty dollar bonnet on her
head, and a twenty hundred dollar i
camel's hair shawl on her ample shoulders.
Though thus overloaded with
ornament the woman was not really vulgar,
and after she had talked with me a
while I really liked h*r. She made a
confidant of me at once ; she told me
her simple history and her 6trange position.
Fourteen years ago she had
been a chambermaid and her husband
had been a private coachman,
both in the service of the same,
family ; they had married, and her husband
had taken to his old trade of car- j
penter, and from a carpenter he became
a builder, and from a builder a millionaire.
He was now the fortunate owner of
one of the finest houses on avenue,
in New York, and his sons and daughters
were being educated at the best
schools in the country. But up to this
date he had enjoyed no spare time to acquire
any knowledge save what was absolutely
necessary to his business, while
his wife had remained as ignorant as at'
first. Now the loving and worthy couple
began without any false pride to procure
it. Without further ado, without the
slightest pretense at reserve or mystery,
the worthy couple invited me to call
that very evening. There I met in a
private parlor two people waiting for
me, and only two?the wealthy builder
and his wife. I found him as .frank and
as hearty as I had found her, and before
that evening closed I had given my
joint pupils their first lesson. They
were docile as babes, and there was
something dramatic in the contrast between
wealth and their ignorance, and
something pathetic in the humility with
which those successful worldings received
instruction. They studied as
though they were in a country schoolhouse
under the eye of a village pedagogue.
I taught them English grammar
principally. I also corrected uieir pronunciation,
and, I trust, improved their
spelling and their penmanship. Above
1 all, I flatter myself that I won their
friendship, for I found them friends
worth having.
A Deaf Elder's Mistake.
Some times a laugh will occur in the
serious minded congregation of a Connecticut
church, as on a recent Sunday.
The clergyman desired to call the attention
of the congregation to the fact that,
it being the last Sunday of the moath,
he would administer the rite of baptism
to children. Previous to his having entered
the pulpit he had received from
one of the elders, who was quite deaf, a
notice to the effect that as the children
would be present that afternoon, and he i
had the new Sunday school song books
ready for distribution, he would have
them there to sell to all wiio desired
them. After the service the clergyman
begun the notice of the baptismal ser- j
vice, thus: "All of those having children
and desiring to have them baptized,
will bring them this afternoon." At
this point the deaf elder, hearing the
mention of children, supposed it was
something in reference to his books, and
rising, said: "All of those having
none, and desiring them, will be supplied
by me for the sum of twenty-five
cents each."
Two Brooklyn thieves stole a bottle
of cologne. l*he officers soon hod a
j scent of them, of course.
uAUj
AND PORT
BEAUFORT, 5
A DETROIT ROMANCE.
The Young Lady Who Found it Difficult to
Choose Between Two Lovers and Lost
Both.
^ '?--L ?
A marriage in j^erroit was rcwuuj
broken off in the following mysterious
manner : The parties are a bookkeeper
in a large wholesale house, a clerk or
salesman with a firm a few doors away,
a young lady of more than ordinary attractions
and her parents. The two
men were persistent and determined
rivals for the hand of the young lady,
and her parents were inclined to favor
the suit of the bookkeeper, who is about
thirty years of age, tolerably good looking,
in receipt of a snug salary and with
money in the bank. His rival was a
young man of twenty-four, quite handsome
and stylish, but drawing a small
salary and without a penny to his name.
The young lady was unable for a long
time to choose between the two, and
every day increased her bewilderment
and uncertainty. The bookkeeper would
spend the evening with her at the opera
house, and she would seek her pillow
with a feeling of tender partiality for the
man of columns and figures. But next
afternoon she would go out buggy riding
with the clerk, and his youth,;good
looks and winning ways would turn the
scale temporarily in liis favor. Both
had proposed and both had received
evasive and noncommittal answers. Latterly,
however, the bookkeeper seemed
to gain in advantage, and becoming
more assiduous in his attentions to the
cirl and her r>arents, again urged his
O A suit
and vras accepted. The clerk first
learned of liis defeat from the lips of the
object of his affections, but did not seem
to be cast down by the unwelcome intelligence.
He replied mysteriously, in
the following words: " What you have
told me shows me conclusively that I
have failed to gain your heart, and without
that I should never seek to marry
you, and I now renounce all claim and
pretensions to your hand. I have done
my best and failed. I wish you to understand
that what I am about to tell
you is not instigated by spite, revenge
or jealousy, but solely by regard for
your happiness and future welfare. You
can never marry Mr. ! I will prevent
that; and I thank God it is in my
power to prevent such a marriage."
When he had delivered this extraordi
nary speech ho took his hat and prepared
to leave, but the girl, her curiosity
and interest roused to the highest
pitch, pressed for an explanation, even
holding him by the coat to prevent him
from going. But he was immovable.
"I am simply doing justice to all, and
particularly to you, by preventing this
marriage," he said. " Bv revealing the
means of prevention of which I am possessed
I should be doing an injustice to
my fortunate rival, ami I am too proud
t^profit by his downfall. He is the last
man in the world I would seek to injure.
But I am determined he shall not injure
you by marrying you." Then he took
his leave, and next day he went to the
store in which his favored rival was at
work. The two adjourned to a quiet
corner in the store, from which the voice
of the bookkeeper was shortly heard in
excited and angry tones. The voice of
the clerk was low, cool and calm all
through the interview. The other clerks
saw papers and copies of old newspapers
pass between the two, and finally
put away in the pocket of the clerk.
After a brief space the bookkeeper's
voice sank to a whisper, and a listener
got the impression that lie could discern
the accents of entreaty. After about an
hour's conversation the two separated,
the clerk going out and the bookkeeper,
with a pallid countenance, returning to
his desk. It was observed that he did
very little work with his pen during the
remainder of the day, and finally left
the store in the middle of the afternoon
?? a r?lAft r?f illness. The vouner ladv
v" " f""" %/ ~o 1
received a note next day from him, announcing
in guarded but delicate terms
that the engagement -was broken, and
that he would never call at the house or
seek her company again. A passage in
the letter read: "To marry you would
be the sun of my earthly happiness, but
a cause, with which you are entirely unconnected
and which I cannot reveal,
makes such an event impossible." By
this stroke the lady loses both of her
lorers and is entirely in the dark concerning
the cause. Any shrewd reader,
however, can make a good, general guess
at the heart of the mystery.?Detroit
News.
How the Russians are Armed.
A Paris correspondent says the Russian
infantry have two kinds of muskets,
some corps having the Berdan rifle,
others the Kruka musket. Each man is
supposed to go in+o action with sixty
rounds of ammunition. It has been recently
ordered that a cart, with reserve
ammunition, should follow every battalion
into the field. A cart carrying a
few entrenching tools is attached to each
company. The armament of the cavalry
is peculiar to Russia. In every corps,
witfrthe exception of the dragoons, the
first rank are armed with lances and revolvers
; the second rank have Neither
lance nor revolver, but a Berdan rifle.
The dragoons alone have the Kruka musket.
The Cossacks are armed with lance,
saber and musket. The men armed with
rifles have twenty rounds of ball cartridge
; those armed with revolvers only
eighteen rounds. The troops are cool,
steady and obedient, and are good
marksmen, but rather loose and careless
in their drill, except the artillery, the
horses of which are good and the movements
rapid, though good gunners are
scarce.
Wonderful Jugglery.
Japanese jugglers do some wonderful
things. They will take an ordinary
pegtop and set it spinning in the air,
then catch it in the hand and transfer it
to the keen edge of a sword blade, mak
ing it traverse from hilt to point, and
back again by inclining the weapon, the
top spinning all the while. Another feat
is performed as follows : They set a top
spinning in the air, and then throw the
end of the string toward it, causing it to
wind itself with the string, the other end
being retained in the hand, so that the
top returns to the one hand properly
wound, and ready to spin again.
" Is that clock right over there ?" ask
ed a visitor. " Right over there ?" said
the boy, 1 'Tain't nowhere elea,"
FOR1
ROYAL C<
f. C., THUKSDAY,
An Imperial Joke.
It is well known tliat the Emperor
Joseph II., of Austria, disliked parade
and ostentation and indulged his taste 1
for simple and private habits. One day,
when riding out in a small caleche,
which he drove himself, and attended
only by one servant, he was overtaken
by' heavy rain and returned toward
Vienna. He was yet at some distance
when a person on foot, who was also going
in that direction, hearing the noise,
turned and made a sign to the driver to
stop.
The emperor stopped his horse.
'' tt* K r\ trno n
sir," saia iue imvcici, wuv nao u
sergeant, " if it be not too great a liberty,
I should be glad of a lift; you have
room enough and I should save my uniform,
which I put on new this morning."
" Let us save the uniform, my brave I
fellow,"said Joseph. "Place yourself
here. "Where do you come from just
now ?"
" Ah, ah ! where do I come from ? I
come from the house of a gamekeeper,
one of my friends, who has just given
me a famous breakfast."
" What had you, then
" Guess." J
"Nay! how can I guess? Beef ?
soup ? I
"Well done; yes, soup, and better
than that."
" Some saurkraut ?" j
The sergeant chuckled, and repeated ;
" Better than that."
"A breast of veal, then ?"
" No, better than that."
" Well, then," said the facetious sovereign,
" I can guess no longer, I must
give it up."
"Why, then, a pheasant, my worthy ;
a pheasant killed on the preserve of
his majesty. What do you think of
that, eh ?" cried the sergeant, slapping
his unknown companion on the shoulder.
"Ah, indeed!" replied he, "killed
on the emperor's preserve ! It must
have been all the better for that, I'll an
swer for it."
As they approached the city and the
rain continued to fall Joseph asked him
where he wished to be set down.
The sergeant made his excuses.
"No, no," said Joseph. "Your
street ?" and at length the sergeant informed
his majesty where he lodged and
begged to know to whom he was indebted
for so many civilities.
"Itis now your turn," said Joseph ;
"guess."
" A military man?I daresay a lieutenant
?"
" Better than that," said the monarch.
" A captain, then ?"
" Better than that."
"A colonel ?"
" Better than that."
He began to open his eyes.
" A general, than ?"
" Perhaps better still."
"What, the dickeus?" said the poor
sergeant, shrinking into a corner of the
oaleche. " Can you be a field marshal ?"
He feigned a grave voice and said :
"Something better still."
" Ach ! it is the emperor."
" Himself," said Joseph, unbuttoning
his plain coat and showing his decorations.
The poor fellow in an agony entreated
the emperor to let him alight.
"No, no; not yet," said Joseph.
"After having eaten my pheasant you
would be too lucky if you got rid of me
so easily; I shall certainly see you to
your quarters."
And thus continuing to amuse himself
he drove him to them, after promising
to forgive the sergeant for having made
a poaching meal at the imperial expense.
Tinlfaii f'nmi fobs for Dinner.
An amusing story is told, of which it
is averred that no less au important personage
than the late George Peabodv,
the celebrated American banker, was the
hero. It appears that Mr. Peabody,
while in England, had invited three
Englishmen to meet two Americans at
dinner, and on this occasion, having received
as a gift ten ears of green corn,
determined to renew the recollections of
his youth, astonish his English and
please his American guests by having it
served up in the well-known American
style.
Accordingly, at a proper time, plates
of butter and salt were placed before
each guest, and the banker, with something
of an air of mystery, announced
that he was now about to treat his
guests to a well-known and delicious
American dish of food, cooked in the ,
American manner. It would be no
novelty to his American guests, but the
Englishmen must watch how it was disposed
of by them, and follow their example
and manner of disposing of it.
Then, at a signal, enter a stately butler
bearing a large covered dish, which he
deposited solemnly before Mr. Peabody.
In a moment more, in obedience to the
banker's nod, he whisked off the cover,
and there, before the astonished guests,
was displayed a pile of ten boiled corn
cobs!
The banker gazed for an instant in
li<-M-rnr nnr) dismav. and then found
voice to demand an explanation, which
was finally reached when the cook was
summoued?a fellow who had never be-1
fore seen an ear of Jndian corp in his life
?who replied that he had followed his
master's directions to "strip off all the
outside before boiling," which he had
done most faithfully, not only husks, as
was intended, but kernels also, so that
the banker had only what is in America
the mute evidence of the feast to indi-1
cate what were his good intentions to
his guests.?Curtis Guild in Abroad
Again.
Reducing His Rent.
In passing over the New York Central
and Hudson River railroad a few days
ago, a correspondent learned this fact,
creditable in the highest degree to Mr.
William H. Vandcrbilt, president of the
company. At one of the eating-houses
owned by the company the lessee was
paying $6,000 a year rent. Mr. Vanderbilt
said to him: " If you will give up
J'our bar, cease the sale of intoxicating
iquor, I will reduce the rent to $1,500."
The lessee at once accepted the liberal
offer of Mr. Yanderbilt. This act of the
president of this great line of travel and
traffic is evidence of the faith that he has
in sober conductors and engineers, and
that he is disposed not to put temptation
in their wav. This is a contribution
by Mr. Yanderbilt of $4,500 a year to
tfie cause of sobriety, v |
T T
OMMEROIAL.
JUNE 7, 1877.
A Remarkable Kingfisher. 1
The Illustrated News, of Adelaide,
Australia, gives the following particulars
of this interesting bird : " The laughing
jackass is almost too well known to need
descripti on. From his peculiar scream- J
ing laugh, not unlike the bray of a J
donkey, he lias obtained the name of the ,
laughing jackass.' He is eighteen .
" 1 t ?11 3 I
inches long, with a poweriui dui, uuu .
j feeds indiscriminately on any animal of ^
suitable size. His appearance and ex- ^
traordinary note are familiar to the in- ,
habitants of every country village.
Indeed, he frequently extends his researches
into the neighborhood of towns, ^
occasionally taking up his abode for life (
in some healthy suburb, and punctually 1
entertaining the inhabitants thereof, J
morning and evening, with a succession 1
1 of those singular sounds which have '
I rendered his name famous. Although a 1
j kingfisher, he never procures his food
from the water, after the orthodox <
fashion of kingfishers, but has more the <
habits of a bird of prey. Sitting motion- i
less among the lower branches of some 1
1 tall gura tree unnoticed, and apparently i
! half asleep, he waits, like Micawber, for J
A? -? ci? J j?1? _:iv_ .
somettrug to turn up. ouuucuy, nnu|
out noise, he drops off his bough and i
flies direct to a certain spot, whence he i
soon returns, bearing in his leak a
lizard, a small snake, or perhaps a rat.
His acuteness of sight is extraordinary.
From his elevated post he seems to miss (
nothing, and discerns his prey in swamps
and crevices of rocks at a distance that ,
is perfectly astounding. The laughing (
jackass has the advantage of being able ,
to live on almost anything that presents .
itself; hence he is always in good condi- ,
tion, and apparently in good humor. {
He seems, indeed,?to pass his life in self- ,
congratulations; and when four or five j
meet and unite their voices, and they
invariably do, morning and evening, the
noise would, suggest the idea that a party (
of demons had broken loose and were
rejoicing over some piece of successful j
mischief. But in spite of his careless, I
happy life, the laughing jackass has his J
peculiar duty, and he performs it con- 1
scientiously. Snake killing is his spe- 1
cialty : lizards, frogs, beetles, small 1
birds, rats, etc., are his usual food. In
fact, nothing comes amiss to him; let a
snake appeal* upon the scene, and the j
laughing jackass recognizes his quarry
Korw ViPHitfttinc. he makes
?L XI V T V* Q|
straight for it, his agitation being observable
by the quivering crest feathers. 1
With some caution, he swoops back- 1
wards and forwards, seeking an oppor- 1
tunity to seize the reptile. The snake, 1
with head erect, ready to strike, keeps '
on the alert. The excitement continues 1
for some time till the bird finally settles
down, close by, on the ground. But all
his stolid heavy appearance is gone.
His wings and tail quiver with agitation <
and eagerness. Fullv alive to the dangerous
character of his opponent, he i
keeps at a safe distance. Flitting round,
his head just out of reach, he continues
to annoy it, till becoming exhausted, the
snake affords him the opportunity lie is
seeking. With the rapidity of lightning
the bird descends upon his prey, then ,
rises in the air, bearing with him the
captured snake, neatly held just behind
the head, in such a position as to render
I Tiisinf? until he
1w f .. ?c
has attained a considerable height, he ,
directs his flight to a more open part of ,
the country, then suddenly backing in
the air, he drops the reptile, following
it down and reaching the ground almost
at the same time. Stunned and bruised,
the unfortunate snake is in no condition
to renew the contest, and is very soon '
dispatched and eaten by its victorious
enemy."
The Tortoise as a Weather Prophet.
The tortoise is a safe weather prophet. 1
M. Bouchard, in a paper read before the 1
French Academy of Science at its recent 1
session, described the precautions taken
by tortoises against cold weather. Their 1
instinct tells them in the milder seasons '
when the thermometer is likely to fall to '
freezing point; and, toward the end of 1
autumn, warns them also of the approach J
of winter. In both cases they take pre- 1
cautions to screen themselves from cold, 1
and by carefully observing them M. 1
Bouchard has for years been enabled to J'
regulate his hothouse. At the end of ;
autumn, when the winter threatens to be 1
severe, tortoises creep deep into the ]
earth, so as to conceal themselves com- I
pletely from view. If, on the contrary, (
the winter promises to be mild, they 1
scarcely go down an inch or two, just 1
enough to protect the openings of their :
shells. Once when the thermometer |
^ U ^a nottt fKa ana
biouu ht illlj x' I ^ lie Drt TT VUV/ IVi iviuvw
creep into the ground, and that very
night the glass fell to twenty-eight F.
Another time, the mercury being at 110
F. in the sun, one of the tortoises hid
himself. On the following morning there :
was hoar frost. I
Gen. Sherman on Neutrality.
The St. Louis Republican says that i
not long since a resident of that city, j
who was a major in the army during the i
war, wrote to the Turkish minister, Ar- <
istarchi Bey, offering his services in the |
war with Russia, and referring to Gen. ]
Sherman for testimony as to his qualities, j
should a recommendation be required. \
He also wrote to Gen. Sherman at Wash- j
ington, stating the case, asking- the gen- ]
eral to reply as he might deem just to j
any inquiries made of him. The St. ]
Louis gentleman received from Gen.
Sherman the following:
Headquarters Army of the United ) ,
States, > ,
Washington, D. C., May 4th, 1877. )
Rear Sir:?Yours of May 1st is re- 1
ceived. It will not do for any person in ^
the service of the United States to ad- *
vise anybody to enter the service of a !
nation at war. We must be neutral.
rp .ml 1 tt ' ??anv f '
JL I III J j JUU1 11 IVUUy
W. T. Sherman, General.
A Guide to Beauty.
"The most perfect human beauty/'
says Flaxmnn, "is that most free fjom
I deformity either of body or mind, and
may be therefore defined?' the most
perfect soul in the most perfect body.' "
The body must be animated by a soul in
which benevolence, temperance, fortitude
aud all other moral virtues preside,
unclouded by vice. Nothing more destroys
the very traces of beauty than
brutal ferocitv, revenge, hypocrisy or
p.ny oihef of the malignant paseionsi
RIBT
$2.00 per
FARM, GARDEN AND HOUSEHOLD.
In the Household.
Vienna Coffee.?Leach the coffee,
allowing to each person a tablespoonful
)f ground coffee, and one extra for the
jot; then to one quart of cream, put into
i pitcher and set in boiling water, allow
;he white of one egg beaten to a froth;
;hen add three tablespoonfuls of cold
m'llr irt fliA floret and mix it well, then
remove the cream when hot from the
ire, and add the egg, stirring it briskly
tor a few seconds; then serve.
Neuralgia in the Head.?Have a
lannel cap made to fasten .under the
jhin; wear three nights; let three nights
pass; then put on again if necessary.
For neuralgia in the eyebrows, bind a
drip of flannel around the head; rub the
teeth with equal parts of salt and alum,
pulverized, on a soft, wee bit of linen.
Sauce fob Steaks and Stews.?For
me quart, cut into dice, one carrot, two
mions, one head of celery, and two turnips;
fry lightly in a small quantity of
butter; stir, to prevent burning; add
sufficient of brown sauce to make the
required quantity; boil slowly until the
vegetables are done; put in a pinch of
sugar, a little pepper and salt, and it is
St to serve.
Cleaning Black Lace.?Wash it in
jkimmed milk ; do not rub, but constantly
squeeze it softly. When it seems
dean, take it out and put it into a little
sleanjmilk, also skimmed, give it another
squeeze, and lay it out directly on sheets
of stout paper; touch it every here and
there with the Angers to draw out the
scollops and edges, lay the sheets of
paper over the lace, and a heavy weight
over all till dry. If loid on any thing
soft, the moisture is absorbed, and the
lace will not be so new looking.
Fish Cakes.?Take one pint bowlful
of salt codfish picked up very fine, and
two pint bowlfuls of whole raw peeled
pototoes; put together into cold water,
and boil until the potatoes are thoroughly
cooked. Remove from the fire and
drain off all the water; mash with a potato
masher; add a piece of butter the
Bize of an egg, two well beaten eggs ;
pepper and salt to taste. Mix well, and
fry in hot lard, butter or drippings. Do
not freshen the fish before boiling.
These cakes meet with much favor when
ever made.
Cold Water Sponge Cake.?Three
eggs, beat ten minutes; one and one-half
cupfuls of sugar, beat five minutes; one
cupful of flour, one spoonful of cream of
tartar, beat one minute; one half cupful
of cold water, one half spoonful of saleratus,
one cupful of flour, a little salt,
beat one minute.
Graham Bread.?To make Graham
bread, to each quart of flour take a heaped
teaspoonful of saleratus, adding salt
and a little molasses or sugar, with a
sufficient quantity of sour milk to make
the dough. We consider it very much
better to steam an hour or two, and then
put it in the pven to brown over.
Meat Balls.?Chop the meat fine, as
for sausages, then miT a small quantity
of crumbs of bread and a seasoning of
mcce, pepper, cloves and salt, all well
pounded; mix these with an egg, and
make the mass into balls the size of a
goose egg. Roll them in bread crumbs
and egg, and fry them a light brown ;
dish them up with a gravy, flavored
with walnut catsup.
Rhnbarb.
That there is a great demand for
rhubarb is very apparent from the immense
quantity which during the winter
and spring months finds its way into all
our large markets. Yet, strange to say,
this plant does not usually get that
space and attention in the garden which
it deserves. It is often put in some out-'
of-the-way corner, and consequently
does not grow well. Rhubarb is very
easily cultivated, and the produce will,
in a good deep rich 6oil and under liberal
treatment, be very considerable. It
can be propagated either by seed or by
division of'the roots. When the former
method is selected, sow in the spring, in
a seed bed, in drills one. foot apart.
Cultivate well during the season, and in
the autumn or following spring the roots
3hould be transplanted in good rich soil,
from three to four feet apart. It will be
fit for use about the third spring from
sowing. The most expeditious mode to
procure a supply is to plant roots already
grown, which will come into use immediately.
The smaller growing varieties
9hould be planted in rows of from two
to three feet apart, and the larger growing
sorts in rows from three to four feet
apart. Farmers can, at a light expense,
having plenty of fermenting material,
have this valuable vegetable fit for use
two months before it is ready for pulling
in the open ground, by forcing it. No
vegetable is more easily forced than
rhubarb. It can be forced in the open
ground by putting old tubs, boxes or
pots over "the crowns, and surrounding
them with fermenting, material; or the
roots may be taken up and planted close
together on a bed of fermenting materials
in any out-buildings, or under a temporary
structure which any handy man
with a few stack bars ana a few spare
boards can soon contrive. Boots that
have been forced should be divided and
planted in properly prepared ground;
in this way a young flourishing plantation
is regularly kept up. Among the
popular varieties is the Victoria, which
is large and fine for cooking ; also the
Linnaeus, large, tender and very fine.
Flower Bed*.
To cultivate flowering plants to the
best advantage requires as much care in
the selection and preparation of the soil
is any other crop. No one would expect
to grow a crop of cabbages in soil
jverrun by the roots of trees and shaded
xmtinually by their dense ^foliage; yet
how often do we observe flowers placed
in just such circumstances producing a
few meager flowers, and dying just as
soon as there comes a hot, sunny day.
Most flowerincr plants blossom on the
point of branches, and, therefore, to
procure a continuance of flowers there
should be a continued and vigorous
growth. Select an open exposure where
he sun will have free access to, the
slants, dig the ground very deep, and
Iress heavily with thoroughly decomposed
manure, so that the roots may
lave some supporting resort when the
mrface moisture fails. A small circular
>r oval bed ten or twelve feet in dfaine;er,
properly prepared and planted with
lower* pots, will produce a eentin
JNE
Annm Single Copy 5 Cents.
ued mass of flowers even in the direst
summers. In arranging the plants there
is much room for taste, and very striking
combinations may be secured.
Items of Interest.
Temper is a good thing. Keep it.
An n;i riiHr man r<?<vmtlv diedof love.
but it was love for whisky.
General Sevenyearitch would be the
man to bring the Russians up to the
scratch.
Among the late important State events
in Europe are the deaths of Bismarck's
dog and the sultan's cat
Wliv should doctors be less liable* to
be sick on the ocean ? Because they are
more used to see sickness.
Certain ladies in Rhode Island are
taking steps to establish a home for prisoners
whose terms have expired.
The supply train of the Russian invading
army consists of 14,600 wagons and a
large number of locomotives and railroad
cars.
A prominent citizen in Alameda, Cal.,
while leading a fractious cow by a rope
recently, had his thumb pulled off at the
first joint.
The Chinese women don't chew gum in
public, but it is fashionable for them to
eat pieces of dry codfish. Women must
keep her jaws at work.
As neutrals, we can't, it is true, extend
to either Russia or Turkey our
hand. But either one of them can have
all they want of our arms.
The Boston Commercial Bulletin suggests
that Crazy Horse, when inveigled
into the garments of civilization, have
his name changed to Clothes Horse.
At a late marriage the bride walked
over a mat. stretched from the door to
the altar railing, fashioned 01 evergreens,
and filled in by lilies, roses and violets.
There are several ways of killing
grasshoppers, but none more reliable
than that of tying their tails together
and permitting them to jump themselves
in two.
The sour oranges of Florida, fruit
which grows indigenously and most
abundantly in that strange peninsula,
have at last'been utilized in tne manufacture
of marmalade.
" Biddy," inquired a country gentleman
of his servant girl, " is there much
water in the cistern?" "It is full on
the bottom, sir, but there's none at all
on the top," was the reply.
The Great Eastern, the enormous
vessel that has thus far proved an unprofitable
curiosity, is to be trans-.
formed into a huge floating refrigerator,
and used in the conveyance of American
meat to England.
An thonv Allison, a Confederate soldier,
who lost track of his family during the
war while he was confined in a Northern
prison, and has been looking for them
ever since, found them the other day at
Rising Fawn, Tenn.
Two San Francisco doctors recently
called in to attend a conference oyer a
man supposed to be in the last extremity,
violently quarreled and finally caned
each other. The patient laughed, perspiration
was induced, and he recovered.
She and he had been married two
months, and she was sewing, while he
was hanging his legs over the side of the
chair. Then said she: "I'm sewing;
you go out and take in a nip and I'll take
in another tuck." For a while it was
nip and tuck.
Some cows have a singular antipathy
to woman. A Connecticut dairy maid
recently attempted to milk an Alderney;
there was a sudden movement, then a
' - M * * 3
viblent tumult, then a cusneveiea ana
' fugitive female, and the cow has been
coughing up bits of ribbon and whalebone
ever since.
During a performance of "Othello"
at the Prince of Wales Theater, Birmingham,
England, reccntlv, in the lost
act, when Othello, in wild despair, is in
the act of taking his wife's life, an old
lady in the pit, carried away by her emotions,
broke the stillness and force of the
tragic scene by making a dash toward
the stage, exclaiming: "Ob, you
wretch I"
A Well Posted Lad.
History never jumps over Detroit
There are too many old battle grounds
around here for the historian to get past
without at least a few paragraphs.
The fight at Blooay Bun has been
widely read of, and strangers often ask
to have the locality pointed out One
day a man, who dropped off a street car
at the Jefferson avenue bridge to look
around and let memory cany him back
to Indian days, felt anxious to know how
the fight came to be called Bloody Run.
By-and-bye a boy came slamming along
and the stranger beckoned to him and
asked:
"Sonny, is this Bloody Bun ?"
"You are'bloody right it is," was the
rejoinder.
" Right around here is where the
British troops were, is it ?"
"Yes, sir; and down in the gully there
were the bloody Ifijuns."
"And they fought?"
' 'Bloody sure. They didn't come here
to play, you bet!"
"Was there much loss?"
"A bloody big one."
"Can you tell me," continued the
stranger, looking around, "why they
call it Bloody Bun ?"
"Voa air? 'cos when them soldiers
found there were ten Injuns to one white
man, they iun so bloody fast that you
can find old boot heels around here
yet."?Detroit Free Frets,
The Wrong Kind of Oil.
An Auburn, Me., lady recently invited
a select company to take tea, and " laid
herself out on a cake for their entertainment.
But after one taste each guest
declined to indulge fnrther, and when _
the la-ly herself tasted the cake she was
surprised to find it unpalatable. The
articles entering into the composition of
the cake were examined in turn and
found all right, the stove was taken dovn
and found in perfect order, and the matter
seemed likely to remain enshrouded
in complete mystery, when a dose of cil
of lemon given to her sick son during
the night revealed the fact that her sewing
machine oil had been mistakenly put
in the lemon oil bottle and mixed carefully
into the cake,