OUR. GIRLS
THB DOLLS AT 8CHOOL.
' The fadUty of dolla vm silently
contemplating their young mistress at
her nursery tea when If las Vraachon.
the ParlkM besoty. began ratline her
?yes It) tb* Young-Brsve-of-tbe-Ws
baab, as. the Indian doll waa called.
The Youaff Bra re returned, theflances
with Intweat and Miss Fan ebon whis
pered:
"Do yon kuow, I think she acoma dis
conaolate to-night!"
t When tbe dolla said "she.** they al
ways meant Mary Marcella. their little
mistress) so the Young-Bra ve-of-the
Wabash looked over at Mary Marcella
w and granted as Intelligibly aa a bra re
might do.
"An affair of the heart?" questioned
the sentimental Gorman gentleman
doll, who retilned In aa attitude ?f
careless o*ae on the hearth rag.
"He. he. he." laughed the Dlnali
doll, whose duty It was to alt beside
the infant In long clothes. V
Just than fctafcella flnlshad her' ten
and caro^-orer to where the'dolls Were
gathered. " I suppose I moat begin
packing-you away," she said, lookiug
sadly at the dolla, "for to-morrow will
be the Utst day." She picked up Miss
Fanchoti tenderly, and two large,
round tears rolled down her cheeks.
"Yea," ahe continued, "I must pack
you away forever, for I am going to
boarding school, and one is not sup
posed to take dolla to boarding acbool."
v The speechleas sgony with which the
dolls suffered at the revelation will per
haps never be understood. Dinah fell
out of her chair in a faint, the infant
uttered a shriek, and Fanchou forgot
for once to roll lier eyes and shut them
Instead, j
Rut the India rubber doll took no'
part in their demonstrations, for he
had rolled into the passage on an ex
ploring expedition and was just in the
I path of Marceila's papa and bis guests
when they passed on their way to the
laboratory, -where Marceila's pupa
worked ont all manner of wonderfnl
(hlngs, which were so far abcad of the
I limes that he forgot all about the pres
ent. Although he stumbled over the
rubber doll, he would have passed It by
had it not squeaked loudly and houneed
very high when the professor took his
foot away.
Even a professor cannot help being a
trifle disturbed at such a demonstra
tion. \
"This mast be one of Marceila's
r dolls," he said, as he picked the rubl>er
doll up. and the remark seemed to re
call something to his mind, for he
added rather abruptly to the younger
professor who was with him:
"My little daughter, you know, she's
going nway ta boarding school in a <iav
or two. I'll leave this in the nursery."
He was so much aroused by the rubber
. doll, which Continued to squeak, even
' after It had been picked up. that be ac
tually noticed, while he was handing
the doll to Mary Marcella, that she
had been crying.
"Why, what Is the matter?" he
asked, and he looked in a puzzled way
at the large packing case and the dolls
on the hearth rug. "Are you packing
your dolls to take to boarding school?"
I "No," said Marcella, bravely; "they
are not going. C5reat-Aunt Caroline
says that one is not expected to tuke
dolls to a boarding school. They make
one's room so disorderly."
"But, perhaps," suggested Marceila's
*papn, who was about as clever about
dolls as about anything else when he
was once aroused to a sense of their
paramount Importance. "boarding
schools have changed since Aunt Caro
llne's day. I am quite certain the one
which you are going to will not object
to dolls."
And when, a few days later. Marcella
and her belongings were received nt
the boarding school, her papa was par
ticularly anxious about a peculiar look
ing hamper and an even more peculiar
looking frnrne box, out of which there
emerged tho entire family of dolls and
n most commodius doll mansion, which
exactly fltted into a corner of Mary
Marceila's small dormitory division,
and in which, at her papa's request, a
particularly elegant apartment was re
served for the rubber doll.?Blrmlng
I hat* Age-Herald.
WREN DISCIPLINE.
TTidden in the i;rnss, I tried to aolto
the secret of the father's petutnnt ac
tions. JCacli time hie patient mother
retvrned ho grew more restless and
violent in his language. Soon I snw his
wife whirl Jgy<>u?ly by with an uu
uf*i:a1?3r large white grub?surely a
prize for nuy bird. But, alas! for all
her process, her spouse darted at her
aw if In madness, while she, troubling
iii terror, retreated down the limb ami
through the bushes. For a few r.io
inen'iH it seemed as if the wren house
hold was to be wreeked. I was tempt
ed to take the mother's part against
such cruel treatment as she quivered
through the fern on fluttering wing
toward me. font nt that moment, rt* !f
thorough);/ subdued, she yielded up the
bug to tMo father. This was the bone
of contention. A domestic battle had
been foitght and he had won. The
scolding censed. Both seemed satis
fled. Minting to the tree top, the lit
tle mother poured forth such a flood of
sweet sopg as rarely strikes human
ear. Froln that moment she seemed a
different wren, released from all care
and worff. Her entire time wit* spent
in senrcU.for bugs. Each return was
heralded l>y a high-sounding trill from
the tree mp, and her husband whirled
oat of tke tangled vines to take tlic
morsel site carried.
* Bnt wliot of his actions? lie hnd
either gone cra*y or he was a most
?elfish little tyrant, for I10 flow about
the alder it limp, calling now In a softer
tone to hla children within, and finally
?watlowcQ (fro grub himself. Two or
tbree times he did this, until I was so
disiu?ted I could hardly endure him.
IX he were hungry, why could he not
skirmish for his own bug*?
While 1 was chiding him for his In
famous action, the mother appeared
with a,large moth, which he readily
took. Among the alder limbs the
father flew, and finally up to the nest
hole, out of wblch was Issuing such
a scries of hungrjr screams as no par
ent with the least bit of devotion could
resist. Hardly <*p?W I ,bellqre my <
eyes, tor the little' Knave Just Arent t?
the door, where each hungry nestling
could get a good view of the morsel,
then, as If scolding the little ones for
being so noisy and hungry, he bopped
back down the tree into the bushes.
This wns Indeed cause for a fnmlly
revolt. The brown nestling nearest the
door grew ho bold with hunger that be
forgot his fear and plunged headlong
down, catching In tbe branches below
where the father perched. And the
precocious youngster got the large
moth M a reward Tor his bravery.
Not'till then It dawn upon me
that there was a reason for the father's
queer actions. The wrenlcts were old
enoufjb to leave the nest. Outside in
the warm sunshine they could be fed
more easily and they would grow moro
rapidly, and they could be taught the
ways of woodcraft. In half an hour,
one after another, the little wrens had
been persuaded, even compelled, to
leavflthe narrow confines of tbe nest
and launch out into the big world.
Witt a task the father bad brought
upon himself. Surely the old woman
In the shoe never had a more trying
time. Tbe fretful father darted away
to pusish one of tbe wrenlets for not
remaining quiet; he scurried here to
scold another for wandering too far,
or wblrled away to wblp a third for
not keeping low in the underbrush,
away from the hawk's watchful eyes.
?From William I<ovell Finley's "Rear
ing a Wren Family," in St. Nicholas.
THE OBSTINATE FLAME.
Of course you know what a "b!ower**
is. The meaning that we have in mind
Is not to be found in the dictionary,
but you are doubtless familiar with
the term boaster, which is the same
thing,
Tbe ntpt tlflge you encounter him tell
him tliat you fllon't believe he can blow
oat 4k can die placed only a foot from
his experienced mouth without any
other obstacle than his own breath be
tween them. .
It ne accepts the challenge, seat him
comfortably at the table, place tbe
lighted candle in front of bim, and put*
tlug to his lips a large tin funnel, with
the centre of its Jaio^th (Opposite
near the flame, nutl tell liiiu to l?low
through thnt.
lie may blow until he becomes black
In the face without extinguishing the
candle. The harder be blows the more
It doesn't go out.
After lie haw given It up Ray, "It Is
easy encug'j when you know how," put
the funnel to ynur ilps and blow out
the candle. IIow? Simply by bring
ing the rim instead of tho centre nc*r
the flame.
When you blow through a funnel
your breath spread* and follows the
conical surface, leaving a region of
dead calm in the centre. Your friend
blew all around the flame without
touching it, but you extinguish it with
a puff.
There; rre a good many queer things
about air currents thnt would never
have been thought of if they had not
bean found out by experience. This is
our tt tin in. . 7
CENTRAL AMERICAN STAMPS.
The stamps-of Gentral American re
publics have always been favorites
with young collectors. The bright col
ors a qui newly engraved specimens have
made the pages of nlhums appear
very attractive. The sets of stamps
Issued by some of these countries have
been quite numerous, so that there
has been little difficulty in securing
a representative collection' of the vari
ous issues. Such countries as Salva
dor have furnished also a large num
ber of provisional stamps made by tho
use of different surchages. The regu
lar Issues have been printed in many
instances In the UHlted States, while
the provisionals bare been manufac
tured ^n a printing press In the coun
try wtere the stamps have been Issued,
tt tliM happens that some of lhc<-e
stamp! are not filscevered by those
makiffe notes of new Issues for the
stamptoapcrs, and they, therefor*', may
not b% found listed in the catalogues.
Collectors who have opportunities to
nrctbrilarge numbers of Central Amer
ican sAmps are fortunate, as they fre
quently succeed*in finding new and
scarce varieties.?From the St. Nicho
las Stamp Page.
Am*rl?*n
Wages In the United States on the
average are more than twlco those in
Belgium, three times those of Den
mark, ^France, Germany, Italy and
ttpaiu, and one and one-half those la
EuglaLd and Scotland.
THB P&AMR DB7IUS THE IltiOWER,
ill; ^ ;FQpLED AGAIN.
I bought ion? patent leather afrof.
(It really anake* me tired)?
I t. Mly won tkn three week* and
The patent has expired.
THE LES8ER EVIL.
Joe?"Do yon like picnics no w?lir
John?44No, bnt If 1 don't go I'll have
to take care of the baby while my wlfo
goes."?Cincinnati Commercial Tri
bune.
JUST BEFORE THE BATTLE.
"This brand lan't fit for a doc to eat."
growled the husband.
( *tVW well, my dear,** replied hla
Wire; ?'don't eat It, then."?Chicago
Newa.
' MASCULINE SYMPATHY.
Office Boy?"I've got th* toothache."
Bookkeeper?"Pooh! I've got rheu
matism in both knees, a stiff neck and
a headache."?Cincinnati Commercial
Tribune.
WHERE?
Native?"Yes, It's a little warm here
to-day. but the air is magnificent."
Visitor?"Yes, it's fine. Do I hsve
to pay anything extra for it?"?Chi
cago Tribune.
THE TACTFUL BARBER.
"Do you shave yourself, sir?*'
"None of your business."
"I was only going to say, sir. that
It's done as well as any professional
could do It."
That netted hint an extra tip.?Cleve
land Plain Dealer.
NEED SCRAPING. v
Cockney?"Thank the Lord, there Is
?ne thing we've not got In England."
New Yorker?"Say. what's that?"
Cockney?"Skyscrapers."
New Yorker?"Well you want 'em;
your akies are so bad they need scrap
ing."?Harper's Weekly.
AS IT USUALLY HAPPENS.
Barnes?"They say that Widow
Oueeds' busband wasn't much of *
man."
Howes?"No, I don't think he was;
but he'll get a splendid character from
Mrs. Oueeds when she marries his sue.
cessor."?Boston Transcript. a
ALL OUT.
' "I am strongly Inclined to think that
your husband lias appendicitis." said
the physician.
* "That's Just like him," answered Mrs.
Cumrox. "lie always waits till any
thing lias pretty nearly gone out of
style before he decides to get It."?
Washington Star.
HE KNEW.. '
t t)Ick?'"No, you're not a true friend?
or you wouldn't nsk me to lend you
money, when you know that I haven't
any myself."
Slli-k?"But you forget that the only
friends who are willing to lend money
are the one.s who haven't got it to
lend."?Detroit Free Press.
A GOOD HINT.
lie?"I came noar proposing to you
the other niplit."
Klio?"I'm Rind you didn't. I'd miss
your visits over so much."?Comic Cuts.
POSITIVE PROOF.
"Yes," said the young man, "the girl
I nm engaged to is an angel."
"Ob, sure," sneered the scanty haired
man who bad been up agai*.ist the ma
trimonial gam? for many years.
"That's what they nil ?ay."
"But she is, all right," continued the
smitten youth. "Even mother says sho
Is too good for me."?Chicago Mews.
HOW TIIEY LOVE ONE ANOTHER.
First Loving Friend?"CJood even
ing, dear. Why, you're sparkling all
over."
Second Loving Friend?"Yes, dear,
these are my family diamonds."
First Loving Friend (sweetly)?
"Really, dear. How nice! But I didn't
know that your ancestor wns *
glazier."?Ally Sioper.
' A DREAM OF BLISS. '
"So you are looking forward to a
good time till!, summer?"
?Yes, sir," answered Mr. Cumrxr.
'Oolng out of town?"
'No. l'iu going to send mother aad
the girls out of town. Then I'm going
to sit in my shirt sleeves, amoke my
pipe In the parlor, and hire a steam
piano to play all tho ragtime I want,"?
Washington Star.
W*r on the t-lnrn Ham1k?rcfif?f.
Professor Calmette, of tue Pasteur
Institute of Pnrls, Is tnakiug war on
linen handkerchiefs, which hi consid
ers a great source of lnfectlou. He
*uggc*tK the use of specially construct
ed wnllets for Japanese paper hand
kerchiefs, with separate divisions for
the new and the usM ones. The latter
are to be burned.?Philadelphia Re
cord.
The .Tapsnexe word of parting id not
"So long" or "See you later." but
"Jtoyeuutf'?'"if It mutt bo so*"
FARM TOPICS.
KAFFIR CORN.
Kaffir com b?Mts> to the sorghum
family, and Its Md Is excellent for
poultry. In tbls section it is not ss
profitable as corn, bat has the advan
tage of withstanding a dry spell that
would be verf severe pa corn. It re
quires good cultivation, bat is a fairly
sore crop.
WHITE CLOVER.
White ciover is a hardy plant, and
If seeded on bare plates in the pas
tare, or wherever there Is a vacancy.
It will soon germinate and secure a
good hold. It msy be qolte late, and
.will make considerable growth if win
ter does not sppear too soon. White
4over Is one of the best for sheep,
and it is subject to fewer insects at
tache than red clover.
DRY DUST BATH.
During the summer season the best
mode of providing a dost bath is to
dig out a space in the poultry yards
three feet square and about six or
eight inches deep. When the dirt is
dry sift it back into the place from
which it was taken, and when so do
ing, sprinkle a little carbolic acid to
give it the characteristic odor. After
each rain, stir the dirt and make it
fine, but it aeed not Again be sifted.
The hens wflT resort to It snd rid
themselves of lice. If the poultry
house is kept clean, snd a dust bath
la provided, the hois can keep their
bodies free from lice with its use.
BREAKING COLTS.
To hslter break and gentle a wild
horse or colt, place a six ring halter
on same, with a good stout rope,
three-quarters or one-eighth around
the animal's body, in a sllpnoose; let
the rope come up between the fore
legs and through the halter ring, but
do not tie in ring; then tie to a good
solid post, ordinary length. If the
horse is vicious, whip him with an old
coat or a sack all over, but do not
hurt him. I can take the wildest
tR?rse and in one hour's time lead him
behind a wagon. That is the way I
break Montana broncos and I never
failed with one yet.?H. A. Briggs, In
The Epitouiist.
ROADSIDE WEEDS.
The great hotbed of weeds in a com
munity is the roadside. The number
of weeds grown along the roads, and
which *are permitted to scatter their
seeds far and wide, is enormous. The
duty of destroying these weeds seems
to be that of the farmer, but he will
not work on the outside of his fence
as long as he is busy on the other
side, and he, therefore, spends more
time destroying weeds on his farm
during the growing season than would
be necessary if he kept down the
weeds along the road. But such work
will be useless unless all farmers are
interested, us a single thriftless indi
vidual may undo the efforts of many.
It IS a lit subject for discussion in
fnrmers' meetings, niul State laws
should make roadside weed-killing
compulsory.
BACON HOG IS DEMAND.
The bacon hog is now attracting a
lot of Interest. This class of porcine
has captured the public taste and left
the heavy fat hog in the lurch. The
packing houses demand a good bacon
hog and will pay well for it.
The bacon type of hogs has often
been misconstrued, and in many
cases Ridiculed, says Southwestern
Stockman, but this is done more be
cause of lack of knowledge of the real
bacon type than anything else. This
type does not demand a thin hog, as
is often thought, but a hog witn a
thick covering of lirui flesh. It is,
of course, highly Important that this
flesh be lean, and this will follow if
the true bacon breeds are-raised. The
bacon hog must possess extreme
length aud depth. He must be smooth
and evenly fleshed from the shoulders
to the hips, presenting a neat and
trim appearance. While to a large
number of people these hogs are
strangers, it would be well for every
farmer to watch their progress, as
they are becoming more numerous
every year.
FARM NOTES.
The best eggs are the result of a
meat diet
Avoid drafts upon the fowls os far
ax possible.
lTae plenty of whitewash, adding a
little carbolic acid.
Regular attention to all live stock
18 very important.
No animal is profitable at a stand
still. Keep all growing.
Fowls having a free run find their
own feather making food.
The pig's first year is his time of
greatest liability to cholera.
A good laying hen will often lay
her weight In eggs In six weeks.
Even when the fowls have an un
limited range It Is a good plan to feed
them every evening.
One of the first things to learn about
poultry is that they must be kept clean
and freo from vermin.
Garget most often sets In after
calving, and this is nearly always due
to a failure to get the udder dry.
Attempting to manage a farm with
out system In every part la sure to re
sult In more or less of a failure.
Keep the sheep's fleeee clean ant
fffce from burs If you wish to get th*
top price of the market for tho wool.
It is generally conceded at the
stockyards that tho marketing of
clipped lambs does not pay, as the
packers' dock Is more than tho wool
Is worth.
To Explor* In Anatrallt.
The Australia* Government has or
ganlxed an expedition under Captain
Barclay to explore the region compris
ing GO,000 square miles, between Byre
Lake and the western boundary of
Queensland. It Is a desert of the worst
type, which has cost the Uvea of sev
era! asftorsra.
apuomrui, NATURAL BRIDCE.
it TIum
till ? Utah Oi?H
Hero, acros* n canyon in<?*orint
three bunlrwl aud thirty-five feet
?even inches trout wall to wall, na
ture kai thrown a splendid arch of
aoUA sandstone, ilxtjr feet thick in the
central part and forty feet wide, leaf
lug underneath It a clear opening 357
feat In perpendicular height. The lat
eral walla of the arch rise perpendicu
larly nearly to the top of the bridge,
when they flare suddenly outward,
giving the effect of an Immense coping
or cornice overhanging the main struc
ture fifteen or twenty feet on each side
and extending with the greatest regu
larity and aymmetry the whole length
of Hi* bridge. A large rounded butte
at the edge of the canyon wall seems
p?tiy to obstruct the approach to the
bridge at one end.
Here again the curving walls of the
canyon and the lmpoaaibillty of brlng
lng the whole ef the great atructure
late' the narrow field of the camera,
except from distant points of view,
render the photographs unsatisfactory.
But the lightness and grace of the arch
is brought out by the partial view
which Lqng obtained by climbing far
up the canyon wall and at some risk
crawling out on an overhanging shelf.
The majestic proportions of this
bridge, however, may be partly real
ised by a few comparisons. Thus its
height is more than twice and its spaa
more than three times as great as those
of the famous natural bridge of Vir
ginia. Its buttresses are 118 feet fur
ther apart than those of the celebrated
masonry arch in the District of Colum
bia, known as Cabin John Bridge, a
few miles from Washington city,
which has the greatest span of any
masonry bridge on this continent. This
bridge would overspan the Capitol at
Washington and clear the top of the
dome by fifty-one feet. And if the
loftiest tree in the Calaveras Grove of
giant sequoia in California stood in the
bottom of the canyon its topmost bough
would lack thirty-two feet of reaching
the under side of the arch.
This bridge is of white or very light
sandstone, and, as in the case of the
Caroline, filaments of green and or
ange-tinted lichens run here and there
over the mighty buttresses and along
the sheltered crevices under the lofty
cornice, giving warmth and color to
the wonderful picture.?From W. W.
Dyar's "The Colossal Bridges of Utah."
In the Century.
WORDS OP WISDOM.
Evil is not eliminated by a synonym.
New light does not mean a new kuu.
Only the truthful can kuow the truth.
Religion is more than a law; it la a
life.
Divine fear delivers from all other
fear.
The lowly in heart are lifted in
honor.
The world is a fearfully noisy place
to the man who is waiting for a chance
to blow his own horn.
If we expect to appropriate the
"whatsoever" of his promises, we
must try to comply with the "whatso
ever" of his commands.?Samuel B.
Randall.
There are some persons whom to
meet always gives one a greater cour
age and hope, as If there were more no
bleness and high purpose in the world
than one thinks.?C. L. Brace.
Seeds of the Yellow Water I.lly m KoaiI.
Some of the Indian tribes of the I'lil
ted States still cling to their primitive
forms of food. A notable Instance of
this Is the continued use of wokas l?y
the Klamath Indians. This tribe occu
pies the Klamath reservation, which is
a part of the territory originally occu
pied by them before the arrival of tlie
white men, and lies in the southern
part of Oregon. The land has but a
small annual rainfall, but, on account
of Its situation at the foot of the east
ern slope of the Cascade .Mountains, it
Is well watered with streams and con
tains two considerable bodies of water.
One of these, Klamath Marsh. Is par
ticularly rich in plants, and conse
quently In animal life. Occupying
about 10,000 acres of this marslj there
hi a solid growth of the large yellow
water Illy, Nymphaea |H)lysepala. In
the old times the seeds of this plant
were collected by the Indians, and, un
der the name of wokas, furnished their
principal grain supply, filling the place
of the corn used by some oilier tribes.
To-day these seeds are still collected
and regarded by the Klamath Iudiaus
as n delicacy. The lily seeds are har
vested in August; the wokas gatherer
uses a dugout canoe, and poling herself
around among the dense growth of
stems and leaves, picks ofT the full
grown seed pods.
Adventures of ? lOOOr. Note.
A lady passing down the Ituc Riche
lieu had the misfortune to lose a pock
etbook containing among other valu
ables a lOOOf. note. The pockethook
was picked up by a chalnucnder
named Renaud, who lives at Mon
treux. He placed It very carefully In
his pocket and proceeded home. It is
not often that u chalrinender luis occa
sion to change a note for that amount,
and Renaud, recognizing the impossi
bility of turning it Into gold without
detection, agreed with a friend to do
the business for the consideration ot
lOOf. This friend, Luclen Matbern,
also a chalrinender, was In turn filled
with apprehension. The difficulty was
solved by the aid of a horticulturist
named Slmonnet, who kindly consent
ed to buy himself a horse for 3<)0f. and
return the change. Renaud thus be
came richer by itoof. All might then
have gone well If. two days later. It
had not been discovered that the horse
had been stolen from a dealer at
Moaux. This led to the arrest of the
trio, and later In the day the police put
their hands on tljo horse thieves.?
Paris Messenger. ' '
Matrimonial Reform la Affchnalatm.
It Is stated by a correspondent from
Pesliawur that the Amir has ordered
that the people of his Statu should have
no more than four wives, and this Is
to be strictly carried out by the Afghan
Kardnrs. It Is stated that the Amir
himself has divorced his additional
wives, and that under this order Far
dar Abdul Kudus lvhan has divorced
eight and Mir At* Ulla Khau thirty
VtTMr?Labor* Tribune.
I MARKETING SMALL FRUITS.
These fruits are seldom seen in our j
?markets, except in the quart straw*
berry basket, shipped in the thirty-two
quart crate. The red raspberry is in
?owe cases noM lis the large pint
basket, in which it keeps in a good
condition longer than in the quart
basket, yet the latter la almost uni
versally used In New England. The |
currant In some markets is sold in the
ten or twelve-pound "diamond" market
basket and is then sold by the pound,
but the quart basket In thirty-two
quart crates is much the more satis
factory.
*^Armr
ABOUT FRUIT TREES.
The presence of borers in fruit trees
Is always a source of great annoyance.
An old farmer rubs hard soap into ]
every place In the tree that seems
wounded by them. His grandfather
always did it before him and he claims
that it is an effectual remedy. Strong
iy* made of potaRh and swabbed on,
in the proportion of one pound to ?
gallon of water, is also very beneflciaL
This same old farmer prunes the de
cayed limbs of bis apple trees, and
ruba the trunks with a hard brush,
then paints them with a mixture of
soft soap and sulphur, Ave gallons of
soap to one of sulphur. He also strews
lime under the trees and around tho
trunks. This destroys the worms and
improves the quality of the fruit and
grass, and will prevent the trees from
decaying. He has always been suc
cessful In the cultivation of the pear
trees. To prevent the disease csllet
fire-blight, which in summer causes
the leaves on the extremities of the
branches for two or more feet to ap
pear as if scorched, he cuts off a foot
or more from the diseased part and
immediately burns it. If this is faith
fully practiced the evil Is arrested.
When plum trees become affected by
the disease called the "black gum,**
which is caused by an Insect, if the
diseased part be immediately cut off
and burned, the tree may be preserved.
?Helen M. Richardson, In The Epito
mist.
PACKAGE FOR APPLES.
The relative advantages of barrels
and boxes as packages for fruit were
given a thorough discussion at the re
cent meeting of the Western Horticul
tural Society. The advantages of the
boxes are chiefly, that they can be
made and obtained more easily and
cheaply, and that fancy fruit generally
sells for a higber price In them, as
it can be packed solid, in nice even
rows, like oranges; also the export
trade is accustomed to this kind of
package and It sells more readily and
for a higher price abroad.
The principal disadvantage Is that It
requires an expert packer to put In
fruit in this way. It is also true that
there Is practically no opportunity to
work In uneven or poor fruit in a box.
It depends on the . point of view
whether this is to be classed as an ad
| vantage or a disadvantage.
I As to barrels, they are increasingly
. expensive and ditlicult to get, and It
requires skilled labor to make them.
I Their principal advantage seems to be
that it dot-s not require skilled labor
I to till them, and that they are easier
' to move because they can be rolled.
' There seems to be a good deal of
conservative clinging to an old fash
ioned custom in this respect, despite
the fact tliat barrels tend to bruise
and injure fruit. West of the Rocky
Mountains, however, barrels are no
longer used, partly because they can
not be easily obtaiuiMl and partly be
cause only the choicest fruit is shipped,
and boxes are preferable for this grade.
?Prairie Farmer.
BORDEAUX MIXTURE.
Where a large orchard Is to be
sprayed the mixture should be made
up in large quantities, so that there
will bo no delay at spraying time. It
Is somewhat diflicult to estimate the
amount of material needed on a cer
tain number of trees, but a safe basis
qf calculation for trees of moderate I
size is fifty gallons of mixture to fifty
trees, or one gallon to each tree, writes i
I'rofessor E. E. Little, in Wallace's
Farmer. After an approximate amount
required has been determined upon,
the mixture should be prepared. A
quantity of fifty gallons Is most easily
made up, as a common barrel will hold
this amount.
Prepare a stock solution of Bordeaux,
the common mixture, by placing fifty
pounds of copper sulphate in a gunny
stick and suspending It In a barrel hold
lug fifty gallons of water. Cold water
will dissolve It providing the lumps
have been crushed; if not, it will be
necessary to use b*t water. The fifty
pounds of lime should be carefully
slacked in a large box, and when it has
assumed a creamy condition place it.in
a barrel holding fifty gallous, and stir
thoroughly. Now you have a stock so
lution of Bordeaux mixture. When
ready to use, stir the contents of both
barrels. Take five gallons of lime
water and place It in the spray barrel;
odd twenty-five gallons of water, then
add five gallons of copper sulphate so
lution, filling the barrel with water.
Stir thoroughly and apply. For spray
ing plums and cherries this should
be diluted more, using only four gal
lons of each mixture. Never mix the
copper sulphate and lime mixture to
gethMr, but put each in the spray bar
rel separately and dilute with water.
Tnrtory Workers' Children In Prance.
The French Academic de Medicine
discussed recently the rights of chil
dren and their working mothers
against those of the employers. Near
ly one half of the children who die un
der the age of one year are victims of
diseases of the digestive tract, the
great cause of which is artificial feed
ing. It should be made possible, there
fore, for working mothers to nurse
their children.
In Italy, a speaker declared, a law
required a nursery in every factory
employing us many as fifty workers;
and he urged that a similar law be en*
acted in France. The Academic de
Medicine approved Ms suggestions and
?cut them to the MUUster of the In
terior,
POPULAR
SCIENCE
The windmill lias boon put to work
lu Germany driving dynamos.
Argon, the recently discovered ele
ment of air. Is, as was expected from
Its existence lu the chromosphere, very
light and apparently monatlmic.
A Swiss scientist has made a discov
ery of prehistoric remains In the Jura
Mountains which is so Important that
extensive excavations are being made.
For several years a record has been
kept of the wear of locomotive wheels
i on the Danish State railways. The sin
gle drivers are found to wear better
than four coupled, the latter better
than six coupled, and in all cases wear
la increased by lllmsiness of road.
A remarkable luminous meteor trail
seen at Madrid has been reported by.
J. A. Peres. It continued visible from
about 10 p. m. until midnight, and the
shape gradually changing from an al
I most closed curve with a loop in It to
an enlarged loop with a very faint de
tached portion of the primary curve.
A local study of rural depopulation
near Paris has been made by Dr. A.
F. Plicque. lie finds that the causes
Include sanitary ignorance loading to
high infant mortality, migration of
young people to towns, effects of con
scription and alcoholism. His sug
gested remedy?one tbat promises suc
cess In Belgium?Is improved primary
and technical education, with special
efforts to cultivate a love for farm life.
Old age is an Infectious disease,
which we may expect soon to be treat
ed by a preventive scrum, prolonging
life. Such was the view expressed in
the late Paris lecture of Dr. Menchnl
koff. Senility, he explained, is pro
duced by certain physiological states,
which cause the "macrophages," which
are a beneficent species of microbes,
to Increase too rapidly, when they be
come Injurious. These parasites flour
ish in the large Intestine, which is pos
sessed by muinnials. but is almost lack
ing In birds. The result was Illus
trated by the doctor's own dog and
parrot, the former being decrepit st
eighteen, while the latter was hale
and lively at seventy. While the se
rum is being awaited, we are advised
to eat curdled milk. *
?SENSATION" IN VILLA ART.
Wonderful Kfleet Gained by m Ca(?d
Mountain Torrent.
Just across the lake, in the deep
shade of the wooded cliffs beneath the
Pizzo dl Torno, lies unotlicr villa still
more steeped In the Italian garden
magic. This is the Villa Pliniana,
built in 1070 by the Couut Anguissola,
of Piacenza, and now the properly of
the Trotti family, of Milun. The place
?takes its name from an Intermittent
spring in the court, which is supposed
to be the one described by Pliny In one
of his letters, and it is further cele
brated as being the coolcst villa on
Como. It lies on a small bay on the
east side of the lake, and faces duo
north, so that, while the vlllss of Cer
nobhio are bathed in sunlight a deep
green shade envelops it. The house
stands on a narrow ledge, its founda
tions projecting Into the lake, and its
back built ag;iinst the almost vertical
wooded cliff which protects it from the
southern sun. Down this cliff pours
a foaming mountain torrent from the
Val dl Calore, just beneath the peak of
Torno, and this torrent the architect of
the Villa Pliniana has captured in its
descent to the lake and cnrrled through
the central apartment of the villa.
The effect produced is unlike any
thing else, even In the wonderland of
Italian gardens. The two wings of the
house, a plain and somewhat melan
choly looking structure, arc joined by
nn open arcaded room, syrninst tlio
back wall of which the torrent pours
down, over stone work tremulous with
moss and ferns, gushing out again be
ncuth the balustrade of the loggia,
where It makes a great semicircle of
glittering whiteness in the dnrk green
waters of the lake. Tlio old bouse is
saturn ted with the freshness mul
drenched with the Hying spray of the
cagcd torrent. The hare vaulted rooms
reverberate with it, the stone floors
are green with its dampness, the air
quivers with its cool incessant rush.
The contrast of this dusky dripping
loggia, on its perpetually shaded bay,
with the bla/.lng, blue waters of t'.ie
lake and their sun-steeped western
shores. Is one of the most wonderful
cffect3 in sonsatlou that the Italian
villa art has ever devised.
The architect, not satlsfled with di
verting a part of the torrent to cool
bis house, has led the rest In a full
tlown the clll immediately adjoining
the villa, and has designed winding
paths through the woods frrni wlilrli
one may look dewn o:i the bright rush
of the waters. On the other side of tlio
house lies a long baluslraf.ed tcvrace,
between the lake and the hnngiag
woods, and here, o;i the only bit of
open and level ground near the house,
are the old formal gardens, now much
neglected, but still full of a melan
choly charm.?Froiu Edith Wharton's
"Lombard Villas," in the Century.
All !<??(!
"Tlio newspaper which circulates
among the people, all the people, is tlio
medium in which 1 advertise my most
czpcm ivc carpets and rugs," said a
high class dealer, "ltlch people do not
have papers of their own, but read the
most enterprising. Some of the people
who buy costly goods make you won
der where they get the monew to do
It Anyhow, they do not read the mag
azines, but do read the newspapers.
In short, everybody rends the newspa
pers."?Phi la del ph I a Hecord.
A Itoyal Athlete.
King Carlos of Portugal has the rep
utation of being a great athlete. IKs
skill at tenuis was recently demon
strated when ho defeated Lieutenant
K. W. Mclntyre, of the battleship Io
wa, during the visit of the United
States North Atlantic fleet. The King
ulso gave an exhibition of his ability
as a pistol shot for the entertainment
of his American visitors, who wfrc as
tonished with his accuracy of Are.