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), 8 B D TRI-WEEKLY EDITIO0WINSO "WHAT MIGHT BE DONE.." 'Wabt might be done if mea were wise! What glorious deeds, my suff'ring brother, Would they unite - In love and- right, "e d cease their scorn of one another. All slav'ry. warfare, lies and wsongs, All;vice and~crue.might-die together, And fruit and corn To each,man born, Be free as warmth in summer weather. The meanest wretch that ever trod, The deepestsunk in guilt and sorrows, - . Might stand erect - In self-respect, - ' And share the teenfing world- to-morrow. What might be done? This might be don!, And snore than this my suff'ring brothe: ; More than the tongue E'er said or sung, It men were -wise and loved each other. Charles Macki .: . - eTdi1R. T'S only Bessie Raven," said Mrs. L:ddington to- her iec, Mrs. En -iel, a blootigo 'ity niatron, who had brought her two boys to the coun try for the sufmier. "I wouldn't let Hal and' Felix assaeiate with her on aDy account, if I were you. There's nc good in any of thse-Ravens-a vile, low set." Mrs. Enfield -looked pityingly at the in-faced, b.are-e~gged 1IttIe gypsy, ho had slunk around the back door, a basket of late luscious blackberries on her a-m, and the dep flush that betokened how- plainly' she had over heard Mrs. Liddington's careless .1 ds, still dyeing.her cheks. VMly, Bessle Retai!" How often she.had heard -that- pEkase. How bit ter a meaning did it convey to her ears. * * . * * *. * * "There are- no trout there! You might throw a. bait and wait a year, and you wouldn't get a bite"' A was a deep, sli:tary ravine, where, i$fattitudes of iWtense eagerness, Hal En eld and his brother Felix ware holding their fishing rods,.awaiting the expeeted bite, while Bessie Raven's brGwn face and big, black eyes looked out at them from a~natural oval frame of bushes and vines, as she held her basket in one hand and her tattered un. bonnet in the'other. Hal Enfield, a self-sufficient .little aristocrat, by nature as well as by Au cation, drew himself haughtily p. "I don't know that we asked any in formation from you," said he, haugh tily. "Have the goodness to be about r y'ur business. "I ;won't' retorted' Bessle Raven, an~ _Do _ ISsl'n. her da anceh:right here as you ha r "Very well," said Hal, rising gathering together his tackle. '"I'l go, hen. Come, Felix." But Felix, the younger brother, had no idea.Qf leaving his cool, shady nook,. for a ivim of Hal's. - Hal stalked away in high dudgeon. Fel.irremined behind to cultivate the aYqiaintance of Bessie Raven. "If thee are iiffi-otit hise,' said' h' composedly eyeing the . brown gypsy face among the liai's, "vado they "I'll show you," said Bessie, with alacrity. "Just ag piece -further on.: There's -lots of .'es-only .everybody *don't know it. Comie on'" - *And the two children spent a long - summer's morning together un'dhrthe' Until just as Feli Enfii'tt'wMrn~ n lg to go home, half'aap'preh~ensvethat he had missed the farmhouse dinner, he did not perceive that the little gold *cross be wore attached to-his watch chain was gone. ;... *"Oh!" cried be, "'ra is my-" He stopped abrup4f. 'For in ths very moment in -which 'ha spoke, he- per ceived half-hidden in the folds of the ..bosom of Bessie's tattered dress, the ~gleam of some golden ornament. Iin vluntarily he caught at it-it was his own. * "You little thief!" cried he, "you must have stolen it:". Bessle stood sullen and silent. her eyes cast down, her bare' feet impa tiently patting the velv,ety grass below. *She could not deny ita'she scorned'any' attempt to justify herself: "Bessie," said the boy slowly, "what made you do it? Don't you know that It is wrong to steal?".. "Wrong!" cried out Bessie, passion ately. "Why is it wrong? You are rich and I'm poor: You've got every thing, and I've got. nothing! Why shouldn't- I help myself when I've got the chance?" Felix Enfield loohed at her. Verily there was more in'+her creed. than he had realized. ' 'll tell you why, Bessie," said he. "At least, I'll tellPyou what I think about it." So, inl his boyish~'way, he unfolded the phdlosophy of Ipeum and tuum. Bessie Raven listened in surprise. * She had never been reasoned with be fore. No one had ever' taken the trou ble to explain matters and things bi general to her. "Oh, Felix:" she- cried out, witli a great sob in her. tilroat, "I see It all now. But no one ev,gr told me before. And father was lost at sea, and mother had us little ones to take care of, and somehow everyone's hand was against us. and we had to fight our way along, so I got somehow not to care about anything." . "Don't cry. Bessie&- soothed the lad. "Don't fret, that's angdod girJ! Here take the gold.cross afd'keep'it. I don't care much for it." . . So they parted. At~'ome Felix'fouiid that his father had come to take th2em up into the mountains for a few weeks, -before they returned to their city honie -and so he never got the chance to tell Bessie Raven good-by. Tgn years afterward: Three and - twenty is a dangerous age for fAta-. tions, by' Felix Enficd had never been seriously ;:nitten until that time when he crossec .\he Atlantic in the steamei Will o' the 'isp, and fell in love with the captain':. Spanish-eyed daughter. "If you dont marry me," said Felix, with comical earnestness, "I'll throw myself into the sea." "There's not much danger of that-, said Miss Richfield, quietly. "But I am in earnest!" protested Fe li. "So am I," said the damsel with the blue-black eyes. "Don't you love me?" pleaded Felix. "I don't dislike you," demurely an swered Miss Richfield. "Then I shall hope," declared Felix. "Hope is a commodity that is free to all," said the young lady. But at the voyage's end Mr. Enfield was deeper in love than ever. "Look here, Miss Richfield," said he; "if you don't say you'll have me I won't leave the steamer's deck: I'll go back and forth perpetually between New York and Southampton." . . "I don't .think papa would care for so permanent a passenger," said Miss Richfield, with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes. "But, really, do you know. Miss Rich field, I believe you are engaged al ready." She colored a little. "Why?" she asked. "Ab! you think I have no eyes. You think I haven't perceived that you al ways wear a black velvet ribbon around your neck-a black velvet rib' bon, from which is suspended some trinket of gold, hidden in the lace frills of your collar. Is it a gaugey' "Yes.". Miss Richfield calmly answer ed, "it is a gauge of true love. If I ever am married-" "If," almost scornfully ejaculated the lover. "Well, when I am married," Miss Richfield corrected herself, "it will only be to the gentleman who gave me this." "Then I may consider myself reject ed?" slowly spoke Felix, with a face of the bitterest chagrin. "Not quite," said the dark-eyed dam sel softly, as she drew the golden talis man from her throat and held it to ward him. "Don't you remember who gave me this?" He uttered an exsetion of rec ognition. "It is the gold cross I gave years ago to Bessie Raven!" cried he. "Yes," she said, quietly, "and I am Bessie Raven." "You?" "Yes: -My mother died shortly after you. gare me.this. My uncle, who had ust ',eturned from the West, adopted us aIl. Two of my si'ters are in board gDgeheOol.Mfb2roter js92-b081l ted in a-German university. 'and I am my uncle's adopted - daughter, i da -y by his name." "But, Besst_Jyou said you waul2 marry the one who bve' you that!" cried out Enfield. " So I will," confessed Bessie, laugh ing and blushing, "if he is still infatu ated enough to persist in wanting inc." They were married within a month regular true-love match-and old Mrs. iddigton finds herself grand-aunt-in law to "only Bessie Raven!" "And really, says she, complacently, I don't -think Felix could have made better match!"-New York News. .BOUGHT HIMSELF TWICE. strange History of a slave Revealed in a Law Court. The will of Nathan Spring,field, when ntrial'in the Supreme Court, brought o light incidents in a career that was emarkable. Nathan Springfield was born in Virginia, In 1812, a slave. On Dec. 16, 1896, when nearly eighty-Sve ,ears of age, he died, leaving property valued at between S30,000 and $40,000. In his youth Nathan acquired the trade of a blacksmith. He was owned y a Methodist minister. After attain Lng his majority Nathan bargained with his master to buy his own free om for $800. The pledge 'wvas given, nd the youth went to work with a will. The young slave accumulated the um and gave it to his master as a ran som for his freedom. The clergyman -took the money. but railed to keep his agreement. Nathan remained a slave. Dater his master sold him to a wealthy planter. Still nourishing a desire to be liberated, than raade a bargain with his se md master. this time of'ering $400 as a ansom. Consent was giv'en, and the -oung man, after much ilbor, procured he money. But he was again de-stined o disappointment. The seconfi master also kept both money and slave. Easperated by this treatment, Nathan discarded arbitration and re solved to gain his freedom by flight. At the age of thirty-five an opp,ortunity was afforded, and he made his esc-ape, oming to Boston. He left a wife be hind him, but the wife of the secon.l :aster, knowing of the previotus nego tiations, induced her husband to re lease the lonely wife, who soon aftet rejoined her husband in Boston. Nathan worked at blacksmith:!ng in and about Boston for a time, and la.ter started peddling straw. He was indIus rious and saving, his business gr'ew 'apidly and within a comp-aratively short -time he was the p'rprietor of a large -and profitable hay. grain, straw ind coal business. At his (lentil he 6wneCd ~real estate in the West End, Cambridge and other places, and had large deposits in various Bosron banks. -Boston Journal. .a -Abolish Marriagre. A'- band of 25 men and women in Boston have organized a club to abol ish marriage, and point to Shelley, George Sand and others as the'ir apos Ottornan Empire's Origin. The great Ottoman empire. which at one ime threatened the civilized world, sprang from a hand of 400 wandering Tu.immanl families. FiELDS OF ADVENTURE THRILLING INCIDENTS AND DAR!NG DEEDS ON LAND AND SEA. A Dan;e:-us Moment-low a Fore an Saved Many P'ople Prozin Destruc tion Lv a Dynamite Bomb-The Patriot i:m of a Dying Fireman on the Maine. r During the building of the bridge over the Willamette River atPortland, Oregon, an incident occurred that must have made at least a local hero of the foreman in charge. In a mo meat of general panic he kept cool, and by an admirable display of nerve, saved many lives and many thousand dollars' worth of property. The cir cumstances are thus related by a Companion correspondent:. The water at the point where the large pier for the pivot spin was to be placed was eighty feet deep. A pile foundation was put in to--carry the caissons. The piles were over one hundred feet long, and were driven from twenty to thirty feet into the ground under the river with a steam pile driver worked on a barge. The piles numbered more than three hun dred, and formed an almost solid square. Then it was found that some of them were superfluous, and were in the way :of others. It was ne cessary to *-move them. This was done by sending down a diver, who drove a spike ring in the pile to be removed, passed a light rope through it, and returned to the surface with the roped ends. A dyna mite bomb was then attached to one end of the rope, and with the fuse lighted, it was dropped into the water. The foreman who had received the other end of the rope from the diver, then drew in the line until the bomb reached the ring at the base of the pile, where it was, held until it was blown to atoms. On the occasion now referred to, the foreman, standing on the barge, drew in the rope as usual, but by some ac cident the spike was pulled out, and the spectators were horrified and ter ror stricken to see the foreman hold ing the spike. bomb and all, in his hands, with the smoking fuse burning almost into the cap. "Run for your live's, boys!" the foreman shouted; and the twenty-five men on the barge waited forno second invitation. At first the foreman tried to throw the whole bundle into the river, but the rop* being tangled about him, he was unable to do so. He then coolly but quickly tore the bomb, composed of twelve sticks of giant powder, to pieces, and drew the cap from the stick in which it was set and dropped itinto thee* ,r.So sh was the time tha water. Had he he' - a monent, -the de . t nave cost not only his own life, but the lives of many of the work men, and a heavy property loss of machinery and materials. The diver had perhaps the worst scare. There he sat on the side of the barge, loaded not only with his heavy diving suit, but with fifty pounds of extra weight at his waist to sink him when he went below. The i,oor fellow did not know what to do. He feared to jump back into the water as, if the bomb should be thrown there, the concussion would certainly kill him. Finally he made up his mind to run with the rest, anLd notwithstanding his heavy load, ho is said to have kept up with the pro cession. It was a close call for many people. The wharf at the end of the barge was lined with spectators, and on the wharf was a small building containing one hundred and fifty pounds of dynamite, which in all probability would have exploded from the concussion had the bomb been fired above the water. One in-eident raised a laugh, even in so critical a moment. One of the superintendents of the work, when he saw the danger, quite "lost his head." He was on the wharf, and ran about wringing his hands and crying, "Where shall I goi? Oh, where shall I go?" And the place where he finally crouched was directly behind the warehouse containing one hundred and fifty pounds of dynamite--un quesionblythe most dangerous spot ecolhave chosen. Maine Fireman's Patriotic Heroism. No incident connected with the loss. of the Maine and her gallant crew ex ceeds in tragic pathos the fate of Mike Malone, second-class fireman. It is vouched for by three officers, all of whom were eyewitnesses. Malone was the finest specimen of physical manhood on board the ship. Six feet in height, broad-shouldered and deep-chested, a giant in strength and a child in gentleness, he was the idol of his shipmates and enjoyed the respect of all his superiors. The fireman was sleeping in the berth deck. The explosion hurled him up from below, a frightfully maugl-ed mass of humanity. One arm had been torn from its socket,s both legs vembrok4n and his throat had been torn open. He staggered to the rail and~ clutched hold of one of three sailors who -had escaped with less serious sijuries. They were shouting for help in terror stricken tones. . Dying as he was, the big 'fireman begged them to desist. "Don't let these Spaniards heara squeal," he gasped. "Let us die like men." The spectacle of this Spartan stand ing aid that terrible wreck .was in spiring. B.is comrades were instantly shamed into silence. Poor Malone's agony became so great that he begged the sailors to kill him. "Knock me inthe head," he cried. "For the love of God put me out of my misery. Don't let me linger like this. b ys. It is only a question of a few minutes. lill me, omehndy, for God's sake; but dont let the Spaniards know I we ened." A boat n. 't out from shore was be iig rpiaIy 'owed toward the wrecked batleihip. It came alongside as Ma' lone made is pitiable plea that he b4 killed. TL se in the boat scrambled aboard the hattered-deck of the Maine, with the as istance of the sailors who were not b. dly hurt. The dying man was lowere dgwn. His tremendous strength d vitality still sustained him aild th relief that he begged for would not me. Ag-in he implored them in th name of humanity to end his sufferin us, and then, finding no response, e leaned backward and t:rew hims If into the waters- of the harbor. e sank at once. Brave Han. Two ri. rs in a western city a few years a;o .erformed a feat that for daring an teadiness of nerve equals anything record. Some repairt were nec ary at the top of a very high chur steeple, one of the slender steeples t taper to a point 200 feet or so abo e the ground. There was no v'ay t reach the spot from the inside, an the riggers got a number 'i light la ders and lashed them one". above the ther, to the outside of. the steeple, n any to the top. The top most ladd r, however, was not high enough t enable them to reach the spot who the repairing was to be done, and, as the part of the steeple was too s ,all to permit them to lash a ladder to it conveniently, they adopted plan that it makes one' hudder't think aboat,~says the Phila delphia T es. One o them carrying a pot of melted so der, climbed from one ladder to anothe 'until he had reached the last one, nd then, bracing himself, he raised an extra ladder that the! other rig er had brought up in his hand and eaned it against the steeple.1 Then the man below grasped this ladder a d held it steady while the 1 man abo climbed it to the point where his work was to be done. He be n the work at once, but suddenly by an unaccountable ac= cident, h' jostled the solder pot and the fiery tuff ran out and fell over the hands of - he man who was holding.the ladder.I Bnt th brave fellow did not move. With a i esence of mind and-a eourage of mind t iat deserves a monument of brass or arble, he maintained a firm hold of he ladder until his com-. uld come down from his: perilous erch. Courageous rndus. - In som ' things the natives .of. Be gland char are wonderfully ous, and he bravest deed n was performed'n m, domestica rva ts. ~ne mor T seated in . e ferands of my bungalow a mad - ' kal - rushed through- the grounds nd went under a raised goi down, w ch was close to the bunga= low. I eft the veranda for my gun, and on y return I discovered two of my servants armed with hog spears creeping under the godown until they came wi in striking distance -of .the jackal, wen they~ quickly transfixed him with? their spears. The offer of a blank chbeck on the Bank of England would nd t have indnced me to act in the way tlat these brave fellows did. An old mithar (sweeper), a* man of the lowe ~t caste in my servive, who was neagy bent double with age; was the smartest hand at killing a veno mnous su -e that I ever knew. The old fellow uj a to sit up at night in the fowl ho e for the purpose of destroy ing the e bras that came after the eggs; and one -iorning before dawn I stepped into the veranda of my bungalow in time to 4e him pulling a karait out. of a hol4with one hand,which graspe'd the rept3le's tail, while in the other hand wal held a stick, which promptly descend~ on the karait's head s soo2f as it apr bared in view. It was all done very nes Iy and smartly, and as quiet ly as~ il ec old man had been crush ing abegle.-Genti.eman's Magazine. xciig Adventure With a Panther. Mr. Wilfrid H.- -Luck (Assistant Superi.nliendent of Police), fourth son of Mrs. Luck of Hartlip, Sittingbourne, while out shooting with two friends on Januiary 9th, in the jungle, near Dhulia, y Bombay Presidency, was terribly mauled by a panther. He had won.nded a panther, which, how ever, charged up the tree from which Mr. L4o had fired. Mr. Luck hit the beajt over the head with the butt of his ride, and kicked it in the jaw,I but it was of no avail; he was dragged out of the tree ad the two fell over and orvr together a distance of fifteen feet. Fortunately, at this moment, when a* ost all hope h'ad died away, Mr. J4ys, hearing a shout, came down f m his tree and rain to the aid of his ckompanion. The panther, ris iag fro)a the senseless body of Mr. Luck, - "harged Mr. Keys, who met' the belt on the barrels of.his rifle,. killingt on the spot, and tRussdi the life of his companion'. Mr. Luck1 writes: "Fortunately, the,. panther. was an old onie and his teeth much worn. We must have fallen together,' and I on top, as I was not much hurt, although falling fifteen feet. I have a doze:1 holes in one leg (from his teeth), two in the other, and two in the left arm, in addition to both legs bein.; dreadfully mauled. I hope to be al]>ut in a few weeks." Mr. Luck jrother of one of the survivors of the Benin massacre.-Westminster Gazette. Th-e steam craft of the 'United States last 's arried six hundired and fifty millio ~ assengers, with a loss of forty-six passengers and one hundred and thirty-seven men belonging to the crews. - Dr. B3aketel says that sweet-pea flowers, in a room will dfrive out and1 keep) out fies. This is said to be an old reiwey, but it is well to try it. OUR BOYS AND GIRLS THIS IS THEIR DEPARTMENT OF THE PAPER. Quaint Sayings and Cute Doings of the Little Folks Everywhere, Gathered and Printed Here for All Other Lit tie Ones to Read. His Sixth Birthday. He has given up his cradle and his little worsted ball. He has hidden all his dolls behind the door; He must have a rocking horse, And a hardwood top, of course, lor he isn't mamma's baby any more! He has cut off all his curls, they are only fit for girls, And has left them in a heap upon the floor; - For he's six years old to-day, And he's gla'd to hear them say That he isn't mamma's baby any more! He has pockets in his trousers, like his - elder brother Jim, Though he thinks he should have had them long before, Has new shoes laced to the top .'Tis a puzzle where they stop; And he isn't mamma's baby any more! He has heard his parents sigh, and has greatly wondered why They are sorry when he has such bliss in store; For he's now their darling boy, And will be their pride and joy, Though he cannot be their baby any more! -Youth's Companion. Why Do Your Skates S?ip? Why do your skates slip on ice? Glass is just as smooth, but you couldn't pos sibly skate on it. If you doubt it, try your skates on a piece of glass and see whether or not they will slip. The rpason why ice is slippery and glass is not is very simple. Ice always melts a little under pressure and fric tion. When the steel of the skate touches it a little water is formed, and. this acts as oil between the skate and the ice, and the skater slips merriiy along. The expression in regard ..to glare ice, "It's as slippery as if it had~ been greased," is not far wrong. On glass this liquid lubricator Is lacking,' and the friction between the skate -and the glass renders slipping impossible. Put two pieces of glass together, with a few' drops of water between them, ow a y y w sup a e over the other. Magic Links. surprising trick in paper-cut be accomplished by taking a w strip of paper, two inches, 'and -twisting No. L. - twice, bringing the ends together and pasting securely. Previous to this draw a line down the center of the strip defining, as the picture shows, a dark and light strip. When the strip No. 2. Is twisted twice and pasted correctly you will have figure like number 2. Then take your scissors, insert them in the line between the dark and light halves of the strip and cut a.long the . No. 3. line. When you have cut clear around the. strip will fa.ll into two pieces and make the joined links as shown In No. 3. To see the -principle of the trick will require some puzzling. Caught by a Button. Recently a small boy who'wore a coat with brass buttons went down to the pond with 'his older sister and her cousin, who were going to skate. 'he small boy felt very much injured because he could not skate, too, so he lay down fiat on his face, on the ice, and began to cry. His sister hastened to him, and tried to make him stand, but he refused to do so, beIng of an ob-. stnate disposition. Finding that her entreaties were of no avail, she left aim for a moment. and when she returned he was trying to get up, but could not. One of his brass buttons was frozen in the ice! A crowd of curious skaters collected round thc small boy, whose position .was now .pitiable indeed. "Unfasten his cdat,2''s;aid one, 'and take it off." "That's. sensible!" said another; "don't o -see 'it's buttonedy' "Well, let's give him . pull and see if it won't come out." But it was no use. The button was so warm when the boy lay down that it had melted a deep hole, and it had frozen again all around -it; and thanks to a careful mother, the button was sewed so firnily "that it would not pull off. "We'll. have .to rip it up the back,' said his cousin. - -- "No; not that," said the sister, "can't some one get a pick, or a hatchet?" Some one said he would try, ant skated off. Me-anwhile the salt tears from the small boy's eyes were making inroads on the ice under his face. He.,felt very damp and uncomfortable. and wished, very heartily, that he had not been so naughty. His sister was afraid that he would catch pneumonia, or at least & heavy cold. "Oh. say.'' said the cousin after they had hvalted a short time, "why won't a c..ite do for a pick?" So saying he took off one of his, and tried to pick at the button by pushing back the child's fat little body. At last he succeeded in chopping the ice away so that the button was freed and the small boy was able to stand once more. He now recognizes the advantages of an erect posture. Children's Sayings. "Tommy," said his mamma one day, "slip upstairs quietly and see if papa is asleep." Tommy soon returned and said: "Yes, mamma, he's all asleep but his nose." Flossie, aged 4, heard her mamma say that the new cook spoke broken Eng lish, and running to her father she ex claimed: "Oh, papa, ze cookie is a broked Englishman an' she tant talk plain." Little Mamie had often watched her father shave himself, and one day when a man came to whitewash the fence, after a few minutes' silent con templation, she asked: "Mister man. is you doin' to shave ze whiskers off zat fence?" Little 4-year-old Willie was visiting his grandparents in the country. One morning he heard a mule braying for the first time and running into the house he exclaimed: "On, gran'ma, one of zem horsies has dot ze hoopen tough." "Clara," said the mother of a little 5-year-old miss, who was, entertaining a couple of neighboring girls of her own age, "why don't you play some thing instead of sitting still and look ing miserable?" "Why, 'mamma, we is playin'," was the reply; "we's playin' that we's grown-up womens." Little Harry had a picture book of animals and his father sometimes de scroed the traits and. peculiarities of those represented. One day in de scribing a hare, among other things he said the hare had no tail to speak of. Next day. he asked: "Harry, what did I tell you about the hare yesterday?" "Oh," replied Harry, "you said he had iastail, but it wasn't to be talked about." UNINTENTIONAL KINDNESS. Waiter's Seemingly Terrible Blunder -' Pleased a Young Lady. There is a certain young man who Is iust at present, rumina.ing over the :truism that,.y9u can never tell about ;% 6omen. v.e came to New York a few years ago from a Western city more noted for its piety than anything else, and has of late been living at an up town htel. Oddly enough, the earty piety .instilled in him was not lasting; he has slippcd from grace at divers times, and in -a certain- way cultivated taste for the_cup that cheers. There 'red at his hIi tly,a ltle nsisted of told gentiem'na his wiie and 'their daughter. The old man: was friend of the young man's, father, and the young man had a slight ac quaintance with both father and daughter. The elderly man asked the younger one to dine with him in the evening, and the invitation was accept ed. When the dinner hour rolled around the little party strolled into the dining room. They found the room filled to overflowing, and it was impossible to get four seats together. After some de lay it was arranged that the elderly couple should s1.t at one table and the young man and the daughter sat at an other. This man had acquired a habit of prefacing a dinner with a cocktail in a teacup. He knew wrell the feeling of his host on the subject, but he want ed the cocktail badly. He knew the waiter also and calling him over toid him quietly to bring a cocktail in a tea cup. Shortly he returned with a tea cup, and the young man alone knew it contained a cheering mixture of whisky and bitters. The w'aiter was in his day and gen eration a wise man. He had seen this. particular man drink in the house ur der all conditions, but never by steallh. He set his 'gigantic brain to work, and he evolved the idea that secrecy was for the benefit of the girl, and so he set the cup down directly in front of her antd smiled with a self-satisfied smirk at the man. The man glowered and choked, but could say nothing. The girl looked suspiciously at the cup. and then picked it up and smelled It. Then a great light came into her face and she fairly beamed. She raised the cup to her lips and pausing, smiled across at the young man, and said,softly: "It was so kind of you! Just what I wanted. No one but you would hay.e thought of it. Positively, you are a genius," and while the mellow liquid flowed down the girl's throat the man sat and blinked and blinked. Now he thinks the younger generation of that village is not so bad after all, and he is. talking of making a long-postponed vis it to his home.--New York Tribune. Freezing Water in a Kite. A Yankee farmer in Brazil who longed for ice water has utilized a kite for the purpose of obtaining ice. He flils a tin can with 'nater and sends it to the height of three miles, where it is promptly frozen. After a sufficient in-1 terval the kite is rapidly hauled in and the cake of ice secured. The inventor is so pleased with his toy that it is said he now proposes to send up a kite one hundred and fifty feet long by a steel wire caDle. Under the kite will beI suspended a pully, over whieh runs an endless chain bearing cans attached to hooks. The cans will be filled with water and the speed of the belt upon which they will be regulated so that the topmost cans will be converted into ice sufficiently hard to withstand the down ward journey. Declined with Thanks. MIr. Oldboy-Miiss Younger-Clara from our first meeting I have loved you.I 3ay I hope that you 'will return my love? 31iss Younger-Cer'tainly, 3Mr. Old Iboy; i il retun it with pleasure; I have-1 AGRICULTURAL TOPICS - Sulphur For Potato Scab. After preparing my potato seed for planting last season I sprinkled the greater part of it with sulphur so that each piece was thoroughly coated. The remainder I planted in the same I field and gave all like culture. When digging time came those treated with sulphur were almost free from scab or other disease, while the untreated seed produced tubers almostworthlesa because of scab.-S. F. Deane, of Ne braska, in Orange Judd Farmer. Burr Knapp's Farm Furrows. Cow managers are more scarce that congressmen. Butter the plain bread of farm life with fruits, flowers and simple lux uries. If most farmers were skilled the un skilled would starve. Convenience 'oils the machinery of farm life. Don't think that all the best chances are for the other. fellow or on the other side of the earth. While you wonder what to- do next stir the soil.-American Agrieulturist" Nilk Fever in Cows. It is very important as the cow. approaches farrowing time that the cow should be given laxative food so as to keep her digestion good, and yet not such as will unduly stimulate the milk glands. There is a great difference in cows in this respect. Some will, as it is said, "sping bag" two or three weeks before the clf comes. Such cows will require to-be milked twice a day from the time the, milk begins to come. The milk wil not be usable at this time, either fof food or butter making, but 'it may be fed to hogs, taking -care not give"it to any that are with pig, as it may - cause them to lose their litter If there are young growing. pigs l will be excellent for them.- The greatest care should .be taen to ex extract all milk from th'ud er. Par tial milking at 'this eriod allows' the milk to become clotted in the udder, and this makes it liard, and ali the worse because this increases the fever and is usually the cause of it... If these directions are followed there will be no danger-of 'aked bag of mlk fever, which is, e?ink; its usual se quence.. Should -liere be any -fever; causing 'the cow to become constipate a few ears of corn fed whole .willset the bowels-right again. and insure an easy delivery of the calf.-American Cultivator. Qrowing Early Ehubarb. Rhubarb, or, as. it is: more omnt } e ed, "pie plant," asVeras' fec rIt is-m'ate oi = r a osnow-'is"df t spig.. It .need uotbe done: "e rierf than this,though the practice f =some is to put the barrel over the pie plait in the fall, and fill it with manure,and bank manure around the barrel so as to -keep the soil from freezing. In truth, the more the ground freezes over and around the pie plant the bet ter it will be for its spring 'growth. The freezing makes the soil mellow and open to the air, and the soil" warms up much more quickly. As for the loss of the manure leaching, it is not likely that this amounts to muoh,~ as the manure being inside and out side the barrel is much more likely to freeze through than to ferment. If the manure is composted and a little of the best-rotted parts ard.dissolved' - in water, and this applied inside the barrel, the forcing of the rhubarb will be much greater. The sun shining in to the barrel all day will warm up the soil much more than a little manure could do. At night the barrel should be covered with boards to retain part of the heat deposited by the sun's rays during the day. The Lawix and Its Care. If one would have a fine lawn, the first essential is a good foundation. If it is not necessary to take out trees, stmps, or large stones, great care should be taken to fill the holes prop erly. The earth around the holes is firm and solid, and the new soil that is put in must be beaten down and made even by filling in and pouring on water until it settles to a level sur face. Even then the spots will need watching, as it is scarcely possible to pack the ground so securely that it will not sink with the action of the elements and time. Keep at hand a pile of fine earth to even up 'hollows and fill in the washouts, that almost always make themselves manifest in the spring. If the sod is not satis factory, put on ~a light harrow-one with fine, not very long, iron teeth. Selet a horse with big, fiat feet and no shoes; if you pave one, as he will not sink into the ground like one with small, well-shod feet. Thun this har-. row over the ground until' the surface of the soil is well scratched up; then with wood-toothed rakes clean the ground thoroughly of grass, stones, sticks and tussocks. When the next rainstorm comes have everything ready and sow the seed quickly. Lawn grass mixture comes ready pre pared; or one may use two bushels of Kentucky blue grass seed;two bushels of red-top and one 'pick of white lover. Sometimes rye grass seed 1s put into this mixture, but not neces sarily. Whether the soil is rolled be fore the top-dressing of -manure or patent fertilizer is put on depends - very much upon the convenience-of ' - the owner of the lawn. It certainly must be rolled thoroughly afterward. -New York Ledger. A, Work or N~ecessity. Robinsn-"Do you open that bur glar-proof compartment every day?".. Tompkins-" Yes." Robinson-"To see di -all your so-:. curities are safe?" Tompkins-No; so that I won't forget the combination.'-Prcha