HENRY A. PARSONS, Jr., Editor and Publisher.
NIL DESPEIIANDUM.
Two Dollars per Annum.
VOL. III.
IIIDGWAY, ELK COUNTY, PA., THURSDAY, JTOE 12, 187&
NO. 15.
it
Improvisations,
llcnrt in my bosom beating
Fierce, as a power at bay!
Ever thy roto repealing
Louder, and then retreating, '
Who shall thy being sn ay ? "
Over my will and under,
Equally king Itnd ulavo,
Hoinetimen I hoar theo thunder,
Sometimes falter and blundor
Clopo to tho waiting gravo !
Oft, in tho beautiful Benson,
liostloss thou art, and wild ;
Oft, with never a reason,
Turnout and docst mo treason,
Treating the man aa a child !
Cold, whon passion 1h burning,
Quick, whon I 1 flh for rest,
Kindlor of perinhod yourning,
Curb and govci-uioul "P'M'iiing,
Thou ait W Vroact 1
llaynvd Taylor.
A RACE FOR LIFE,
'j Sir, you're nu nss !'
" Sir, I'm not. I camo hero to sue
.'.oni a""S"ter's hand, ana"
Ami you expect me to give mv
Jjftertoninnu who, whatever may
1 c l is other qualities, 1ms not a copper
mU'o world to bless himself with !"
ir . ifJlTi1 h"Te no money nt Present,
sir ; but I have hopes"
i A P,rctc!y thin to beSiu housekeep
ing on I Supposing you were married
;,. , ,1 u Iou W18U t0 live or die
" Live, Sir, of course I"
f i V vt of C0U1'80 ? To live you want
ii you want food, you want
muury; ana as you have no monev,
you would, get no food; and no food
means starvation ! Do you see that,
"Yes, Sir; but "
I mi . . .
- - " t-'ui in iiiu case.
tsow take a bit ,advice from me, Mor
timer as one of. "your father's oldest
menus, uo and earn n living ; and
w nen you can show mo that you can
""I'l"1" .i"Y daughter if I give her to
vo i mind you, Bmll be ready t
talk to you. Oood-morniug. Bah !"
anil the tc'-.'. v lmt
tlemau stumped out of tho room, lenv-
111 n r.. 1 l - . . . . .
"n .iic npccciiiess sitting on tlio edge
. ot a chair with my hat in nivhand. All
my hopes hud been ruthlessly dashed
in i in- fjrounu. i una expected to argue
the point with Mr. Clavering, as Bessie,
ins iiangnter, had assiued me that it
would be all right if I only put the
matter properly before him. We had
mutually agreed that he would he sure
io gue ins consent, ami had laid no end
of plans for the
tiling but the question of money had
limni 'l. ...... ...l i i ....
--.... ..vnnunii(ijr considered. Xhe
nbrunt manner in whinli t.bia l.n.i n.-,.,.
been brought up disconcerted me.not a
iin-iis, una j. ieic tne room not quite so
certain that T 1il n.t. t,mi.i i.
..vv .nv.i.uiv Willi
generally good-natured but otherwise
i...i:..i.i i .1. i . .
iiiK iiiiiuc quiuirupeu to wnicu Mr. Ula
vering had likened me in the course of
win conversation.
At the door I met Bessie, with an ex-
iunHiun or mingled anxiety and cunosi
ty on her countenance.
"Well, Jack, what did papa say?"
" That I was an ass, Bessie !''
Oh, I hope you did not quarrel. I
was afraid there was something wrong,
as I heard him ordering deviled kidneys
for lunch, and he never does that with
out he's in a passion."
" Bessie, the old gentleman asked me
iiuw we were going to live.
" Well rliil vnn lint toll l,;,i, ,, lit
' 1 . . . . . , - I . ' . 1 1. 1 1 II J J II 111 II 111-
tle eottnee. with n minlnn iii W.v,t n.,,1
o i - r.""1 . viii , tin ii
a piggery, and a kitchen-garden, and a
l....l 1.1 1 1:1.1.1- 1. 1 ..
iuiv i-iiuiiMi-, mm u nnio uairy, ana
."Ye.yes; but that's not what he
meantf. He wanted to know where the
money was to come Irom to pay for all
this."
"Why, you were to provide the
money, of course, Iou were to earn
it."
" Certainly ; but your father wanted
1.. 1 i . m "
iu Allow now.
" How? Well, you would there now.
you ought to know best, surely. Don't
you ?"
" No, I don't, Bessie, and I think we
ought to have thought of this before."
" Jack, I don't wonder papa got into
11 passion witu you, you re so stupid.
I havo a great mind to get angry with
jou myseii,
"But, sweetheart, don't you really
think we ought to have considered lion
we were going to buy what we wanted?"
"TMlllt Wn VHI1V iMitiinaoa i.nt wii'im.
-- ui.l uuambDii, liny 1111111; ,
and, Jack, if you look at me like that
T'll 1 . it
x ii uui your ears.
"No, you won't! -I think you're all
in a very bad temper this morning."
" Do you ? Now I tell yon wliat it is,
Mr. Jack. Till you find out how we're
going to get the money to live on I
won't have anything more to say or do
with you at all. Don't come near me
now. I don't love you a bit ; I never
shall, and I never did! And, Jack,
when you've found out how, you'll come
and tell me first, won't you?" And
away dashed Bessie, leaving me at the
garden gate, to which we had walked
during our conversation.
It was a lovely spring morning. All
nature seemed iu ecstasy at the pros
pect of approaching summer. I alone
was sad. I could not help feeling that
I had made a mistake, and that f must
have lowered myself considerably in
the estimation of old Mr. Clavering by
appearing so thoughtless and incon
siderate. True, I was but nineteen,
and having lost my father early, had
been brought up and educated by my
mother alone, and so perhaps had rath
er less knowledge of the world than I
should have acquired had I been sent
to a public school or to the university.
My position was by 110 means a bad one.
Tho only son of a distinguished mili
tary oflieer, who was not wealthy, but
had left what little he had to his widow
during her lifetime. I might be said
to have possessed a good education,
and what was perhaps better, fair pros
pects. I had been invited by old Mr.
Clavering, who was an old military com
rade of my father's, to spend a month
with Lira at his residence at Morecombe
Bay During my stay I had learned
first to like and then to love his daugh
ter Bessie, and whon my visit approach
ed its termination had not only declared
my love, but had asKed permission to
marry, with what result is known.
Having been always tolerably Weil sup
plied with money, 'I had never yet been
brought face to face with that great
educator of humanity the necessity of
earning one's bread and was, there
fore, rather ignorant of some of the
principal duties of life than unmindful
of them. The bluff common-sense of
Bessie's father had compelled me to
consider matters from a practical point
of view, and I was now perhaps more
angry with myself than with any one
else. I walked on, but finally resolved
to return to the cottage and Boddle
Moro for a ride. Moro had been luv
father's charger, and had been left me,
with particular instructions na to his
care.' He was a Splendid horse, of jet
black colo; ftmj enormous strength. By
JL'inness of my host I had been al
lowed to bring him with me, and many
a pleasant rido had I had on his back
with Bessie Clavering.
As I re-entered the pleasant garden
attached to the cottage I Btrove in vain
to catch a glimpse of Bessie, and reach
ed the stable without having met any
body but the old gardener, who saluteil
with the usual "How 'ee do, Sur ?" I
was noon by tho side of Moro, who gave
a neigh of delight as I entered. It did
not take mo long to put on his saddle,
and as I left the yard I learned from the
old groom that Miss Clavering had rid
den out alone about a quarter of an hour
before me. I was certainly much cha
grined at this, and made several mental
resolves to be fully revenged as soon as
I could get a convenient opportunity.
I turned down a lane that led to the
bridle-path along the top of the cliffs,
and letting the reins fall over Moro's
neck, abandoned myself to building
castles in the nir, in the erection of
which Bessie took a very prominent
part. The spot was admirably adapted
to meditation. To my left a small wood,
through the breaks in which glimpses
of the rising upland were caught every
now and then, straight ahead a broad
expanse of purple heather, and to my
right the rugged steep cliffs, at the foot
of which lay a vast tract of sand, as the
sen, owing to the flat shore, retires a
distance of nenrly four miles ; far away
in the distance the bright dancing
waters, with a sail or two in sight, and
over the whole a glorious expanse of
blue, across which the light morning nir
blew a few white scudding clouds.
Some three and a half miles from the
shoro there extended right along the
coast a low sand-bank, which was at
once a source of pleasure and danger to
the inhabitants and the fishermen. When
the tide flowed the sea beat against the
bank for some time, till at last, with an
angry roar, it surmounted the obstacle
and came tearing down the incline like
a very avalanche. Many accidents re
sulting in loss of life had taken place,
owing to tho ignorance or carelessness
of tourists and others, who, lulled into
a state of fancied security by the dis
tance of the sea, and unaware of the
peculiarities of the place, would wander
about on the sauds till overtaken by the
tide, when they were placed, as it were
in an iustant, beyond human assistance,
and were invariably lost. Danger sig
nals and notices had been put up in
every prominent position by the au
thorities, who were accustomed also at
the turning of the tide to fire a sigual
gun ; but, with all that, the sands were
so tempting, and the very breeze that
wafted across them so delicious, that a
day seldom passed without some party
or other generally mounted, venturing
uiion them.
As I looked down I could see nothing
but a solitary speck in the distance,
which I soon after made out, through a
little pocket-glass I always carried, to
be a person on horseback cantering
along. I paid no particular attention
at the time, and continued my way,
gathering up the reins as Moro broke
into a gentle trot. I was now on tho
very edge of the cliffs, where a single
false step would at onoe have precipi
tated me on to the sands below, and
consequently, although Moro was won
derfully sure-footed and well acquainted
with the path, I moved along with con
siderable caution! Tho beauty of the
scene and the exercise soon dispelled
the gloominess that had oppressed me,
aud as my blood began to circulate
more quickly my spirits rose, and I
commenced to sing right merrily. The
path now took a sudden turn by a deep
gorge, and as I did not wish to go round
it, a distance of nearly a mile, I re
solved to put Moro across it ; so, patting
him gently on the neck, for I never
touched him with spur or whip, I called
to him ; the noble old horse understood
me at once, and increased his speed.
On we wont, the pace getting faster aud
faster, till, at the gorge, Moro rose with
a splendid bound, aud alighted safely
on the other side, I now got a full
view of the sands again, and found that
I was considerably nearer the person on
horseback below in fact, that we had
been moving toward one another. At
that moment Moro suddenly stopped,
and tossing 111s iiead in the air, gave a
loud neigh. Somewhat astonished at
this proceeding, Hooked more carefully,
and perceived by the flutter of the
dress that the person on horseback was
a lady. I became more interested, and
taking out my glass, discovered that it
was uo other than Bessie, who had been
cantering along ou the sands 011 a mare
that her father had lately bought her.
Moro had no doubt recognized his stable
companion. I debated with myself
whether I should return, and, by taking
a short-cut, meet her on the way home,
in order to upbraid her with her mis
conduct in going out alone. While I
was cogitating, Moro uttered a snort of
alarm. I looked, and beheld a sight
that for the moment took away my
breath. From some cause or other
Bessie's horse appeared to have taken
fright and become unmanageable ; all
at once it tore away like the wind in
the direction of the sea. At the same
moment I herad the distant boom of the
signal-gun ' which announced that the
tide was just about to turn.
The full horror of the situation now
flashed across me : unless the more
could be stopped in time, my love would
be overtaken by the sea, and lost before
my very eyes. A eold chill took pos
session of me, and for a moment I sat
motionless. Bessie's figure was already
becoming smaller as she was borne rap
idly onward. " Wow or never. Moro !
I said, as I rose in the stirrups ; and
the gallant old horse seemed to under-'
stand me, for he impatiently pawed the
air with his fore-feet. Tho next thing
was how to get upon tho sands. " The
gorge I oh, the gorge I" I touched
Moro, and in a few seconds Wo had
reached it. It wan a frightful declivity,
and tho descent seemed impossible ( yet
it was my only chance, nnil I deter
mined to make the attempt. Carefully,
and with the greatest caution. I guided
Moro, and after a few moments of agon
ized suspense gained the sauds. I knew
I had only o'.ie course before me to
pursua the mare, and then attempt to
luce the tide. " Moro !" I shouted ;
"Moro I we ride to save my love!"
Moro shook himself as if he knew what
a tremendous effort was demanded of
him, and settled down to his work. By
this time Bessie was quite half tho dis
tance toward tho sea. Would I reoch
her in time ? In order to lighten the
weight, I threw away my overcoat, my
hat, coat, and waistcoat ; I called upon
Moro ; he ccetned to fly. We were
gaining upon the mare evidently, but
still the awful question rose to my lips,
Would it be in time ? I could already
hear the roar and surge of the waters,
and the rising wind warned me that the
tide would that morning probably ex
ceed its usual height. My blood was
thoroughly up. I determined either to
save my love or to perish with her. We
were now but half a mile apart. I
shouted until I was hoarse, but all to
no effect, for the wind was dead in our
faces. Moro seemed to participate in
my excitement, and strained every
nerve to overtake the mare. We were
not more than two hundred yards dis
tant from the sand-bank, against which
the waves were dashing with unwonted
force. Another second and the mare
would have passed the bank, be over
whelmed by the raging waters, and all
would be lost. I screamed in my agony.
I thought I heard a low wail iu re
sponse. I shut my eyes, as I could not bear to
look, but opened them again immediate
ly, as Moro gave a whinnv of pleasure.
" Ah ! what is that ?" The mare had
stumbled and thrown Bessie, and then
plunged wildly, in her terror and fury,
into the waves. In an instant I was
alongside my love, had dismounted,
and was kneeling by her. " Bessie !
Bessie ! oh, my darling, are yon dead ?
Oh, speak to me ! speak to me !" After
a few moments, which seemed to me an
ago of torture, she opened her eyes,
and said, faintly, "Jack, my best be
loved, save yourself; the tide will be
over the bank in a second or two. Give
my love to dear papn." Then, exhaust
ed, she fell back in a dead faint. I tore
my hair in despair; I raved like a 'mad
man. What could I do ? At last I be
came calmer, for a desperate resolve had
taken possession of me. Moro should
have a double burden, and we would
try and outstrip the tide e would
with death ! I soon placed my darling
across the saddle, and leaped up be
hind her just as the first spray came
dashing over the bank. I knew not au
instant was to be lost. We started for
the shore. I patted Moro. I said to
him, " Moro, you bore my father
through the ranks of death at Balakla
va. Oh, save his son !" To add to my
agony, I now perceived that a storm was
impending. The sky was overcast ;
heavy drops of rain began to fall; and
every now and then a lurid flash lit up
the darkling air. We were now but two
miles from the shore, aud if I could
only reach the gorge iu time, I knew
we were saved. I called agaiu on Moro.
The noble horse for the first time utter
ed signs of distress.
A new terror now seized me would
Moro's strength last? I turned and
looked, and through tho blinding rain
saw, to my horror, that the sea was al
ready breaking over the bank. It would
be upon us almost directly. I urged
Moro on afresh, but the poor animal
appeared unable to increase his speed.
Boom! boom! "Ah! what is that?
Thank God, we have been observed,
and they are hastening to our help !"
The signal-gun! "Moro, my Moro,
but a few seconds longer a few seconds
longer!" We tore along. Bessie still
lay insensible in my arms. The cliff's
now rose frowning before us. Another
hundred yards aud we are saved. "On
Moro, on ! I hear the roar of the de
scending tide." Once more I turned,
and as the lightning flashed, saw the
waters raging and surging almost at the
horse's heels. At that moment Moro
staggered. The sea was upon us and
over us. I heard a ringing in my ears.
I gave one last, one agonized shriek,
and remembered no more.
I awoke and found myself in a warm
bed, surrounded by compassionate
faces. Mr. Clavering came forward.
"You must not excite yourself, my
boy," he said. "Bessie is well."
"And Moro?" I asked.
"Is well too," he said.
Do you want to know whether I mar
ried Bessie? If you do, go to More
combe Bay, ask for the' Hawthornes,
and maybe you'll see an old black mili
tary charger, almost blind, with two or
thre curly-headed little urchins on his
back, all laughing and clapping their
hands as he carries them daintily up
and down the path.
Kansas Murdering.
The Bender family, of Kansas, have
discovered perhaps the most merciful
system of murder, and, if we must have
murders, let us by all means have a
system which we have not yet seen
noticed. It is this: The cabin was
arranged as a place of entertainment
for travelers. A sheet was hung across
it, dividing it into two compartments.
When a single traveler arrived, he was
seated at a table so that the outline of
his form was defined upon the sheet,
and in case he leaned back, his head
pressed against this elastic as well as
transparent bulkhead. The male fiend,
stationed on the outer side of the sheet,
watched for the pressure of the victim's
head against it, and, striking a stun
ning blow with a hammer on the back
of the skull, slipped the spring of the
trap doof, thus dumping the body into
the cellar, where his wife, knife in
hand, stood ready to end the work.
Ever since a Green Bay man hung
himself ou a certain plum tree, the
blossoms have been as red as fire and
each plum as white as a sheet. Bo ?
Earnings of llie American People.
In your paper lately, says a corre
spondent writing to a New York journal,
was a paragraph headed, " Average
Earnings iu tho United States," in
whidh there Was tliis statement :
It appears from the last census returns
of the wealth, the population and earn
ings of the United States, " that the
average annual earnings of tho whole
American peoilo do not exceed $800 a
year each.
The population of the United States
in June, 1870, was 38,555,983, and an
average of earnings of $800 to each
person would make the sum of $30,814,
78(5,400. The total value of the whole
real and personal property of the coun
try was estimated in 1870, according to
the true value in the census, at $30,008,
518,507 ; less by $770,207,803 than the
" annual earnings of the whole Ameri
can people" at $800 each. Tho mere
statement of this carries along with it
the evidence of its error. The average
earnings of the whole American people
ut $125 each, gives to each family of
five persons the sum of $C25. This
estimate is too high. The census report
of 1870 estimates the valuo of all farm
productions, including betterments and
additions to stock, ut $'2,417,538,053 ;
and the value of all our manufactured
product for 1870 at $4,232,325,412,mak
ing a total gross value of our agricul
tural and manufactured product for
that vear of $0,079,804,100. Mr. David
A. W ells, in his report as Special Com
missioner, in 1809, estimated the values
created by the leading industries of the
country at $1,223,000,000. The agri
cultural industry he estimated at $3,
282,950,000. In the supplement to the annual re
port of the Special Commissioner, pre
pared by Mr. Wells, in which tho cost
of labor and subsistence is given iu the
several States in almost every employ
ment, the average weekly earnings of
operatives in cotton mills in the United
States in 1809 was $5.50, gold. This
would make the earnings of each opera
tive for the year, in currency, $357.01.
In the Sourthern States, the average
daily wages paid for farm and other
labor was $1.23, without board, for ex
perienced hands in summer.
Mr. Wells estimates the average earn
ings of 4,705,000 common laborers,
domestic servants, and of all distribu
tors, at $1340 per annum to each person.
He also estimates the average earnings
of all the agriculturists and persons
engaged in the railway service and
fisheries, and in cotton, woolen, and
leather manufacture, and iu the pro
duction of pig and bar iron, at $1.55
each per annum. This is a fraction
over $1.50 a day for 300 days in the
year.
Hero in our goodly land labor is bet
ter paid, better fed, better clothed,
better Housed, uua biitfi i'ovision
made for education, than in any other
land ; but you will see that it is a great
error to put the average earnings of the
whole population at $800 a year, as this
would give $1,000 to each family.
Cause of Senator Sumner's Divorce.
Mrs. Hooper, snys the Minneapolis
Tribune, was a young widow, and young
widows always have an aversion to be
coming old widows ; while they are as
much in demand as second-hand flat
irons. Moreover, Charles Sumner had
attained fame ; he was tho best consti
tutional lawyer in America, and had the
best knowledge of foreign affairs ; he
was the pet of the old Bay State, and
was one of those happy beings who live
to enjoy the sweet rewards of martyr
dom. So the rich, accomplished, and
popular young widow went to keep
nouse and darn stocitings lor the un
social, crusty, conceited old orator
She didn't do it worth a ceut. We are
uwaro that some matters are private.
and domestic secrets ought to be re
spected by a gossiping press. But
there are none m this case. Neither
party has affected the slightest conceal
ment of the situation. So it is proper
to say that neither of them ever saw a
happy or even a moderately comfortable
day dating from the wedding to tho di
vorce, ten years after tho ill-assorted
marriage, it was Milton and Mary
Powell over again. Like the fair
daughter of the Cavaliers, Mrs. Hooper
Sumner was social aud hospitable :
Sumner was aristocratic, arrogant, and
domineering. His way was the only
way ; except one, indeed the way where
divorces lie. Ho haughtily declined to
meet her guests, and refused to be intro
duced to her acquaintances. She went
home to live with Mr. Somuel Hooper,
in Boston, and a divorce followed.
TaH'JIeu and Women.
Ah a pnnrttlir linnnmoa cnttl.iil nn.l
peeially in cities where largo numbers
of human beings are crowded into n
comparatively small place, men degen
erate in neignt, ana tne women are not
only proverbially shorter than in the
country, but they are less muscular.
As there are thought to be exceptions
to all rules, there are both tall gentle
men and ladies in old cities. A ma
jority of them, however, if traced to
their birth-place, will bo found to linve.
come from the country. Kentucky and
Tennessee produce the tallest men in
this country. A young boy taken from
this city, whose parents are below the
llKlltll lmirrlit. ami l'Aai'ml in nitl.nM ,.t
ri - i""1! mi ii . . 1 1. n v 1 111
those States, would probably quite
over-xop any 01 uis iamiiy. j.ne nia-
foritlla uhmm.l 111 1ia mniiio nvt.l . 1
of those splendid regions for develop
ing ma uones.
To Avoid Thinking.
Susan Eberhart, the woman who was
executed at Preston, Georgia, lately,
while in prison whiled away the solitary
hours by making friends of the rats
that had access to her cell. A man
called to see her a few days before her
execution, and after some conversation
told her that he had understood that
she had some pet rats. She tapped on
the floor, when out of their holes came
the rats, until no less than fourteen of
them had answered the call. They
climbed upon her hip, and up her shoul
ders, and crawled about over her head.
suffering her to caress aud handle them
as she pleased, and not one of them
manifested the smallest symptom of
alarm. This story is told by the Au
gusta uonatuutionaim.
A Year Without a Summer.
Almost every one has heard tell of the
terrible dark yeor in the earlier part of
the present century which old New
England farmers refer to as "eighteen
hnndi'ed and starved to death. A con
tributor gives the following informa
tion :
While every one is speaking of the
present season as being remarkable in
its characteristics, I have gathered for
your readers some reliable facts of tho
year 1810, known as the " year without
a summer." Few persons now living
can recollect it ; but it was the coldest
ever known throughout Jmrope and
America. The following is a brief ab
stract of the weather during the year:
January was mild, bo much so as to
render fires almost needless in parlors.
December previous was very cold.
rebruary was not very cold; with
the exceptions of a few days it was mild,
like its predecessor.
March was cold and boisterous dur
ing the first part of it ; the remainder
was mild. A great freshet on the Ohio
and Kentucky rivers caused great loss
of property.
April began warm, nut grew colder
as tlie mouth advanced, and ended in
snow or ice, with a temperature more
like winter than spring.
May was more remarkable for frowns
than smiles, liuds and llowers were
frozen, ice formed half an inch thick,
coru was Killed, and the fields were
again and again planted until deemed
too late.
June was tne coldest ever Known 111
this latitude. Frost, ice and snow were
common. Almost every green thing
was Killed, irmit was nearly ail do'
stroyed. Snow fell to the depth of ten
inches in Vermont, seven in Maine, and
three in Central New York and Mas
sachusetts. Considerable damage was
done at New Orleans in consequence of
the rapid rise 111 the river ; the sub
urbs were covered with water, and the
roads were ouu- passable in boats.
July was accompanied by frost and
ice. On the 5th ico was formed of the
thickness of common window glass
throughout New England, New York,
and some parts of Pennsylvania. Indi
an corn was nearly all destroyed ; some
favorably situated fields escaped. This
was true of some of the hill farms of
Massachusetts.
August was moro cheerless, if possi
bio, than tho summer months already
passed. lee was formed half an inch
thick. Indian corn was so frozen that
the greater part was cut down and dried
for fodder. Almost every green thing
was destroyed both 111 this country and
Europe. Papers received from England
stated that it would be remembered by
the present generation that the year
1810 was a year in which there was no
summer. Very little corn ripened in
Aew liiigland and the Middle States.
Xiiiiiielo oi.iliirl tltniriaplvfiQ from H
corn produced in 1815 for the seeds of
the spring of 1817. It sold at from $4
to 85 per bushel.
September furnished about two weeks
ot the mildest weather ot the season.
Soon alter tiie middle it became very
cold and Irosty, and icelormed a quarter
ot an inch thick.
October produced more than its share
of cold weather, Irost and ice particu
larly.
jNovernuer was eoia ana muster
ing. Enough snow fell to make good
sleighing.
December was quite mild and com
fortablo.
The abovo is a brief summary of "the
cold summer of 1810," as it was called
in order to distinguish it from the cold
season. The winter was mild. Frost
and ice were common in every month of
the year. Very little vegetation ma
tured in the Eastern and Middle States.
The sun's rays seemed to be destitute
of heat through the summer ; all nature
seemed to bo clad iu a sable hue, and
men exhibited 110 little anxiety concern
ing tho future of this life.
The average wholesale prico of flour
during that year iu the Philadelphia
market was thirteen dollars per barrel.
The average price qf wheat in England
was ninety-seven shillings per quarter.
Funitrrn' Cabinet, Amherst, Kcw
Hampshire,
Cure of Stammering.
Very gratifying results have been
obtained by Mr Chervin, a physician of
Lyons, in treating the vicious habit of
stammering. A commission appointed
to investigate the working of Dr. Cher
vin's system, put under his treatment
eight patients, varying in age from ten
to twenty-nine years, all of whom stam
mered in their speech to a most painful
degree. Some of the patients had been
stammerers from early infancy, while
others owed the habit to nervous shock.
Iu ten days after they were first placed
under the care of M. Chervin they were
all able to speak without stammering,
and at the end of the three weeks were
discharged perfectly cured. The mode
of treatment is as follows : The patient
is taught, by means of a large number
of exercises, to pronounce with distinct
ness vowels, consonants, syllables and
sentences. Great attention is paid to
the regulating of the act of inspiration.
A slow but normal inspiration is taken
at certain intervals, and this is succeed
ed by nn even, continuous and loud ex
piration, during which pronunciation is
effected. Twenty days are devoted to
the treatment, the time being divided
into three periods ; one of silence, to
break up the old habit ; one in which
the patient is taught to speak slowly
and deliberately ; and a third, wherein
he acquires the practice of speaking
fluently, .and without clipping his
words.
TuEAsrRE Trove. Alexander von
Humboldt, it is well-known, died in a
state bordering on poverty. His finan
cial 'embarrassments were caused by
his loss, in 1813, of tho sum of $9,000
or $10,000 in gold, which the King of
Prussia had presented to him. At the
time, it was believed that the money
had been stolen from the great savant ;
but the police were unable to find any
clue to its disappearance. Strange to
say, a short time since, the gentleman
now living in the house, formerly oc
cupied by Mr. Humboldt, found the
money in a small box among some old
rubbish in the cellar. How it got there
puzzles Humboldt's intimate acquain
tances exceedingly.
The Cats of Great Men.
How Much tlicy Think of their Tnhby
cm
One man in Fultou Market, says the
New York Sun, has under his super
vision the well-being of 3,000 cats. His
name is Dr. Moffet, and his ostensible
business is selling cats' meat. Hislittle
stall in the tipper end of the market is
heavily laden with viands that cats find
palatable, viz.: liver strips ana nneiy
chopped ox hearts. The doctor's fame
has traveled everywhere, aud scarce a
moment elapses in the course of the
day that does not bring in troops of
fresh purchasers. His customers ate
mainly persons of wealth. The doctor
tells his .own story thus : I started in
this business when I was 5 years old ;
I'm now 05, and during my experience
I havo attended to the wants of nearly
every cat, of respectable breeding, to
bo sure, that lias ever seen daylight in
New York City. My associations with
these Cats When they've been taken
sick, for instance, have led me kind of
into society, and I supposo that I am
just as welcome a visitor in Commodore
anderbilt s house as any other sport
ing gentleman.
COMMODORE VANDERBILT's CAT..
The cats that he owns I've brought
up from tho very bottle, and when I go
to seb them, which I do, if they get
sick, it's just as much as I can do to get
out of the house, with the way they go
on, howling and screeching lor mo to
stay with them. "
There is Jim, Buckey, Tom, and
Lullie just four. I remember, though,
when he kept nine altogether, but Tom,
which is the biggest one of the lot, aud
as cross as a scorched hornet when he
gets his hair up, drove the other ones
awhy, and by George, if they didn't all
trot down to me about two months ago,
and I had the greatest trouble to get rid
of them. The ones that remained,
however, got along peaceably enough
and tho Commodore is so devotedly at'
tached to them that my kindness to
them and tho skilliul maimer 111 which
I treat them when they are sick, have
won lor me his unbounded confidence,
jay oocld's cat.
There is Jay Gould, who never can
cat his breakfast without he has High-
backed Bimmer on his lap. High
backed Bimmer is the name I gave to
tho ugliest cat I ever saw. He came to
me about eight years ago.and I couldn't
get rid ot him at all.. 1 used to throw
him out of the house in the morning
when I'd get up, aud do you know that
the sneaking wretch waited for me at
the corner, and without paying the
slightest attention to the shower of
stones that I kept flying at him all the
time, he followed me to my stall, and
hung around here all day. In the even
ing Mr. Gould came along, aud noticing
the cat, he took a fancy to it, and offer
ed 111C 10 fill it. X llti-11 ot iutovoutu.l
in the creature and began to praise
him. I told Mr. Gould that he (tho
cat) was one of the two that had come
all tho way from Asia Minor, and was
worth a great deal of money on account
of its sagacity. He then offered me
$25, and afraid that he wouldn't go any
higher, I took the money and got rid of
the nuisance.
This cat hits been sick five times, and
I've always been sent for to doctor him
up. I guess I've made $300 on that
eat, and I wouldn't take $50 and have
him in my house.
AUGUSTUS SCIIELIi's CAT.
Augustus Schell has a cat that he
thinks more of than his own child, and
it seems to mo that the uglier it gets,
the more he lavishes good things upon
it. It's a big black she cat, and has
a short stump of a tail. It's 110 mouser,
but the fondest creature for sleep I
ever heard of. The old gentleman
takes it to bed with him, and actually
has a little night cap made for it, which
he puts ou and takes off himself. It
has one good point, however it never
yells at night. When Mr. Schell goes
to market, he always takes his cat with
him.
Let Them Grow.
Let children grow. Give them time
for slow aud natural development.
Give them freedom and liberty iu things
not positively and permanently hurtful.
What matter if all their daily behavior
is not quite pleasant or perfect, if they
show improvement and progress 1 bow
good seed, anxious parent, cultivate
with care, but wait paticnti jor har
vest if you wish good fruit. Suppose a
child does not sit as straight as a ram
rod at table ; suppose a cup or tumbler
does slip through its little fingers, tho
food below deluged, the goblet smashed,
and the table-cloth ruined do not look
cross, and break out with reproof of
what was unintended as if it were a
willful wrong. Did you never let a
glass slip through your fingers ? In
stead of sending the child away in au
ger, or with threatening words, why
not be as generous as to a guest, to
whom you would kindly say, " It is of
no consequence." It is generally wise
to take little notice of mishaps or bad
behavior at the time, and even to divert
attention from thenix at the instant.
Afterward, at some appropriate time,
draw the child's attention to the im
propriety, fault, or lack of suitable care,
and point out kindly the remedy.
Preparing for Summer,
nong-Kong must be a perfect para
dise for ladies who effect elaborate
costumes in summer, as the following
account by an American lady now re
siclinc there will show. She snva
" Finding I must prepare for the not
season, when every man, woman and
child wears white, I sent for a Chinese
tailor. He came, a horried specimen
of an old opium-eater, bringing along
his sewing-machine, and pluuted hini-
selt, cross-legged, 111 my sewing-room.
He fitted me, and made lovely dresses
of their grass linen and muslin, all for
two dollars and fifty cents per weeK 111
gold. The lovely dresses he turned
out were fluted, tucked and flounced.
and tited elegantly. The two skirts and
waists could be done in exquisite style
for two cents a piece, regardless of
number of flounces or tucks price the
same as it perfectly plain and my
dresses only cost six cents for the ' get
ting up,' which in America would cost
at least five dollars.
Fncts anil Fancies.
111 nt Milwbukee has a
capacity to roll 40,000 tons of rails per
. . 1. (Q,1 flint, hia
sign, "Taken irom me, diivh.v. -
epitaph.
Almost every young lady now-a-uu
seems to be given to building castles 111
the (lair.
Men and women differ. You may,
perhaps, convince a man, but you must
persuade a wemnu.
The S'lmh of Tersia's expenses during
his present European tour are rated at
5,0011,000 sterling.
An low clergyman who had a dona
tion party lately has beans enough to
last linn tliirty-seven yeiim.
" Mamma, can't wo have anything we
want ?" " Yes, my dears ; out e cuiu-
ful and not want anything you cau u
have."
An impoverished lop wears n ten
cent silver Piece on Ins shirt uosom,
and calls it his dime and pin, which it
certainly is. . .
The largest stationary engine 111 too
wnvld i stated by a correspondent to bo
at Scrantoii, Penn., in 0110 of the iron
works there.'
It is said in Madrid that the Govern
ment of Spain will purpose to havo tho
President of tho Republic elected by a
plobiseitum.
The number of Postal cards required
in tho U. S., already reaches 22,000,000,
and the demand is at the rate of over a
million a day.
The secret of making Russia sheet
iron has been heretofore sought after 111
vain, but a Pittsburgh firm now chum
they have accomplished it.
Tho Vice Regents of the Mount Ver
non Association havo elected Mme.
Berghuiaiis, of Philadelphia, Regent, 111
place of Miss Cunningham, who has
resigned. .
" I'm not in mourning, said a young
lady frankly to a lady querist, " but as
tho widows are getting all the offers
now-a-days, we poor girls havo to resort
to artifice."
Illinois has one hundred and two
counties, and at least one railroad 111
every county except seven. At tho
present time roads are projected which
will penetrate these.
Retaliatory measures are demanded by
tho militia iit Barcelona, Spain, for tho
butchery of voluuteers by the Carlists.
Forty of the latter are missing, and
twenty arc known to have been killed.
The proprietor of a gun-store, which
was gutted by a mob in New Orleans,
sued the city, claiming $30,000 dama
ges. Judge 'Durrell decided that the
city had 110 police under its control at
the time, and was, therefore, not re
sponsible. " Uet out of my way! nat are you
good lor f" aula o old man to a
bright-eyed little boy that happeiieu t
stand in his way. " Well, said tno
little fellow, as he stepped one side, "I
believe they make men out of such
things as we ore."
" You ought to let me pass here free
of charge, considering the benevolent
nature of my profession," said a physi
cian to a toil-gate keeper. " Not so,"
the reply, "you send too many
dead heads through here now. iho
doctor didn't stop to argue the point,
but paid hib toll and passed on.
A father recently found his littlo
girl's chubby little hands lull of tho
blossoms of a beautiful rose tree, on
which he had bestowed great care.
" My dear," said he, " did I not tell
you not to plUCK OHO OI inese iicrn
without leave V" " Yes, papa," said tho
child, " but all these had leaves."
Tho Washington Star says with refer
ence to the account of the Arctic adven
ture: "Tho suspected poisoning of
Capt. Hall recalls a prediction made be
fore the sailing of the exhibition by a
person in this city well acquainted with
its personnel, that Capt. Hall would
never return alive, but would fall a
victim to the envy of some ol the party.
The gold yield of California 111 18j:i
was $99,804,753, that being the Highest
amount ever attained. For the same
year tho wine product was nothing, and
the wheat crop by no means large. Last
year the gold yield was $19,049,
098, while the wine manufactured
amounted to 4,000,000 gallons, and tho
wheat product last year ran up to $25,
000,000. In order to exclude negroes irom tncir
exhibitions, the showmen of Vicksburg
have hit upon the expedient of issuing
cards of invitation soliciting the com
pany of the holder thereof to tho enter-
ainment, speciiying me uiuuuit m ma
eut. and informing him that in order
to meet the necessary expenses he is
expected to pay whatever the price of a
ticket would usually be.
An incident in tho life of a Danbury
farmer is thus recorded. His wife was
taken very ill, and ho was called away
on urgent busiuess. During his absence
she died aud was buried, and the news
was delicately conveyed to him by a boy
who met linn ut the gate, iiie uoy
said: "Mr. , your ole woman is
dead and buried ; and we have got in
the spring oats." "Great God!" said
tho shocked man ; "and the oats in ?"
The man who never owed moro than
five cents, and that only once, has just
died in Virginia at the age of seventy
nine years. It was in his earlv man
hood that ho unwillingly contracted
the debt of five cents, it being the bal
ance on a bill of goods pnrchased, und
he was wont to boast all his life after
ward that he could not sleep that night
because of it, aud got up early the next
morning, went to his creditor, and paid
him.
A Funny Justice. At Troy there is
a police justice who, when people are
brought before him for inebriety, in
sists, before he will entertain any pro
position for clemency, that they shall
take the pledge. Then he lets them off,
or sends them to prison, as seems meet
unto him. If they will not take the
pledge for one year, the Judge asks
them to try for six months, and some
times sends them down for three
months in order that they may
strengthen their resolution by the per
fect impossibility of breaking it, at
least for 90 days. Borne of them seem
to think that they are sold.