Willi
HENRY A. PARSONS, Jr., Editor and Publisher. NIL DESPEItANDTJM. Two Dollars per Annum.
VOL- YI. RIDGWAY, ELK COUNTY, PA., THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 1876, 0 30-
Too Late.
Too late, too late, thy beaming smile rests on
me,
Warm sighs and loving whispers come too
late)
Long sinoe has died that true and loving pas
sion, Which, while it lived, met bnt thy soorn or
hate.
It might have been had bnt thy love awakened
Before my ruined life no power could save ;
Bnt now, alas t thy warm and tender glanoes
Fall on my heart like sunlight on a grave.
One thing I fain would know. Throngh
death's dark portal,
Where goes the soul on its mysteiious flight ?
Whore goes the flame in darkness when ex
tinguished ?
Where is the wind that blew but yesternight t
MR. GRUMBLE'S CURE.
A Lesson for Husbands.
Tho old story the coffee cold, the
fire nearly out, and the room full of
stifling smoke."
Mr. Grumble drew his oliair up to the
breakfast table aa he spoke, with the
face of a martyr.
" The coffee is only just made, dear,"
said Mrs. Grumble, a pretty, timid look
ing woman, with soft blue eyes and
l.rown braids; "and I don't realiy think
the room is very cold. As for the smeke,
I am sorry, but the man promised me to
have the chimney seen to yesterday."
" Of course he did; nobody ever keeps
promises to us," groaned Mr. Grumble.
" If it had been Smith, now, the clini
ney would have been seen to long ago.
Do give m a piece of steak that is at
least warmed through; we're not canni
bals that I know of, to eat our meat raw.
But that's always the way we never had
a cook that understood how to broil a
steak."
" But, my dear" said Mrs. Grum
ble. ' Don't tell me," interrupted Mr.
Grumble. " I know just how things
ought to bo done. The paper hasn't
come yet, I suppose? No, of course
not. I really wish somebody would en
li hten mo as to why my paper is always
h iir an Hour inter than anybody a else s,
If tht baby dou't leave off crying, I
s'ifill vrt iinly go crazy."
" Its teeth trouble it," sighed Mrs.
G.-nmble, leaving tho breakfast table to
vulk up and down tho room with her
fivttnl little charge.
"Oh, nonsense!" said Mr. Grumble,
sli only, oltarciiifir nfc a slice of toast with
fork; "you coddle it too much, that's
au."
Alrn. Grumble thought of the general
commotion iuto which, the house had
bfeu thrown, about a month previously,
win n Mr. Grumble had had the tooth
ache. But. she only nestled the baby's
velvet Heart nsainst iier shoulder, and
said nothing woman's way of dispos
ing ot a great many little martyrdoms.
" Now, then, where's my hat ?" de
manded Mr. Grumble, rising aud look
ing around. "Very singular thit that
hat is never iu its place."
"It is just where you hnng it your
self, pnpa, in the hall, said little Harry,
from behind his spelling book.
" Children shouldn't talk so much,"
said Mr. Grumble, tartly. " Mv dear.
that rent in the lining of my coat isn't
mended yet ; why did yon not see to it?"
" 1-intended to do so. said the wife.
apologetically, " but you know we had
company Inst night, and the baby slept
so badly that I rose rather later than
usual this morning, bnt
"Always some excuse," interrupted
her liege lord. " I really don't under
stand the reason that nothing is ever
done in time in this house.
He gave tho front door rather an em
phatic slam as he went out, and little
Mrs. Grumble, instead of rebelling
against her husband's iron rule, just sat
down to cry.
Mr. Grivrble wasn't by any means
bad husband. He really loved his wife.
and believed himself to be a pattern of
conjugal amiability ; only he had. some
how or other, fallen into tho unconscious
habit of fault finding ; and, like many
another individual, whenever he couldn't
think of anything else to do, he grum
bled.
Crying again, Bessie I" exclaimed
her brothpr, coming in an hour or two
later. "Now, that a too bad! I sup
posa Henry has been treating yon to
another domestic growl f I've a great
mind to tell Mm how uncomfortable you
are martn by Ins little eccentricities.
Shall I, Bessie ?"
" No, no ; I wouldn't have you breathe
a syllable to him for tho world!" eagerly
exclaimed Mrs. Grumble, hurriedly dry
ing her tears. " Henry don't mean to
annoy me. lie has the kindest heart in
the world, and I know he loves me I"
" I dare say he does," said young Mr,
Carlton; "but why is he fritting and
fault finding hour after hour, aud day
after day I Upon my word, Bessie. I
think it's an oversight in our laws that
there ia not one to puuish married men
who scold I
"Dou't talk so, Tom," said Mrs
Grumble, earnestly. "Henry isn't at
all to blame, only baby is very trouble.
some, and I had au indifferent night's
rest, and
"Oh, yes I understand," signifl
cantly smiling. "My dear, little, for
giving Bessie, you onght to be made a
martyr of." He Bat a moment or two
in deep thought, then, suddenly start
ing up, exclaimed : "I must be gone,
or I shall be too late at the station to
meet Uncle Tompkins. Did I mention
to you, by the way, that Uncle Tomp
kins was coming to visit you!"
" Uncle Tompkins I I didn't know
we had an Uncle Tompkins, Tom."
"Didn't you, dear? Well, please to
prepare your best bedroom for company
the old gentleman is rather particular
grumbles a good deal, in fact: bnt
you are used to that eort of
Hilt. TOm. I don't. nnifj nna..
1 1
1 1 detain me now. Kaua t
ice him. Good-live!1
nt the doer had closed bb.
hind Tom, Bessie put her baby in the
oradlo, and claspei her hands to her
aching head. What was Tom thinking
of I How oonld she exist without that
growler domiciled for nobody knew how
long at her hearthstone? But perhaps
they might neutralize one another, like
two powerful poisons. There was a
spice of comfort in that reflection, at
least; and Bessie Grumble wiped her
eyes, and almost smiled.
hat was Mr. Grumble s surprise, on
coming horse that evening, fully primed
for a domestic tirade, on iho subject of
a button which had drifted down from
his shirt front during the day, to find
his especial easy chair, and corner of the
fire, occupied by an asthmatic old man,
whose head and face were enveloped in
a silk handkerchief, aud whose feet were
in a tub of hot water. lie stopped
short, iu amazement aud horror.
" This is Uncle Tompkins, Henry,
said Mrs. Grumble, who was busy warm
ing a basin of gruel over the tiro; and
the old gentleman extended one finger
without turning his heart, saying, in a
cracked voice : " I wish, nephew, you
would shut that door. Nobody ever
thinks of shutting a door in this house I
What's that noise up stairs ? I beg,
ni ce, that your baby won't cry tho
whole time thut I am here. Is tea ready ?
If so, I will take a cup j -.ist here by the
fire."
" What docs this mean, my dear,"
ejaculated Mr. Grumble, in a hurried
whisper; and his wife, whose arm he had
caught on the way to tho kitchen for
more hot water for Uncle Tompkins, re
plied, in tho same tone: "(Jul you
musn't mind my uncle, dear; he don't
mean anything, only he's old and
whimsical."
" But a man has no business to
make everybody else uncomfortable in
this sort of way," muttered Mr. Grum
ble. Tea was brought in at this moment a
little smoky, it must bo confessed, and
the toast considerably charred; but, just
as Mr. Grumble was opening his mouth
to comment upon these facts, Uncle
Tompkins forestalled him by exclaim
ing : " What etuff this tea is t One
wonld sjpposo it was mauo of cab
bage leaves. The toast, too, is as black
as a cinder. Isn't there a slice of stale
bread in tho house ? I'm a dyspeptic.
aud have to be very careful as to what I
ear-
Mr. Grumblo silently devoured his
meal, secretly wondering how long Un
cle Tompkins meant to stay. No sooner
.vas the table cleared than the irrascible
old gentleman began again: "Grum
ble," said he, " I wish you'd stop that
creaking of your choir, my nerves are
so weak; and if you could keep your
children up si airs, that racket wouldn't
disturb me quite so much. I really
don't know how I'm going to stand that
baby a noise.
"1 do not think it is a very noisy
baby, said Mr. Grumble, meekly,
" It's teeth lire very painful just at pres
ent." Mrfi. Grumble, who was stirring the
lire, in acoordanco with her uncle's petu
lant request, said nothing, but smiled
quietly to hear her husband trying to
extenuate the baby's sins.
" Well," remarked Uncle Tompkius,
" all babies nre noisy. And, by the
way, Grumble, I wish you would oil
t he hinges of that squeaking door; aud
I don't like the smell of that geranium
iu the window. nallo I you haven't
any top button on your shirt front 1 I
hope my niece isn't a careless wife."
" Not at all sir," said Mr. Grumble,
nervously; " but the caro of her child
aud housekeeping duties absorb a great
deal of her time. The instant she finds
leisure she wili look to my clothes."
" I dou't see how a woman cau spend
her whole time keeping house and luok-i-)g
ufier a pack of children," observed
Uucle Tompkins, inciodulounly.
About ten o'clock the old gentleman
was ushered to the spare room, accom
panied by a procession of medicine vials,
tubs of hot water, woolen dressing
gowns, aud heated blankets for his feet ;
and his absence occasioned very general
relief.
"What an insufferable old egotist
that is !" exclaimed Mr. Grurablw, throw
ing himself, with a sigh of satisfaction,
into his favorite seat ouee more. " My
dear Bessie, how could you endure his
eternal fault finding ?"
"I am accustomed to that, Henry ; it
is the lesson th-it most women are
obliged to learn," replied Mrs. Grum
blo. with a plight sigh.
Her huibaud pricked up his ears a
little uneasily. "Accustomed to it?"
What did she mean ? It was not possi
ble it could not be possible that he
was like thut odious old Uucle Tomp
kins. And yet he wished Bessie had not
spoken iu that way. Somehow it made
him feel excessively uncomfortable.
Day after day passed away, Uucle
Tompkins growing more and more in
tolerable the whole time, while Mr.
Giurobla improved the occasion by
making a sort of mental looking glass
of that worthy old gentleman.
" Upon my word," said he to him
self, " I must have been a perfect nui
sarce all these years. Why didn't
somebody tell me of it ?"
At length Uncle Tompkins went away,
flannel gowns, medicine bottles and all,
and on tho evening of the same day Tom
uariton arrived, from a temporary ub
seiice, nobody knew where.
" So uncle has been visiting yout" he
said, gayly, to Mr. Grumble.
" Yes," eaid the latter, with a alight
grimace.
" What sort of a looking man is he I"
Mr. Grumble was silent a moment.
" Do you know," he exclaimed, burst
ing into a perplexed laugh, "I couldn't
describe a single feature of his face. He
was always enveloped, like an Egyptian
mummy, in a pilk handkerchief, some
thing like that one you have in your
haud. With my permission he shall
nover Bet foot in this house again."
"No 1" said Tom, archly.
"The most intolerble fault finder I
ever met with," said Mr. Grumble; "ab
solutely the most disagreeable man who
ever cumbered the earth. I don't see
how it is possible to take exceptions to
everything as he did."
"That's not an uncommon failing, I
believe," observed Tom, demurely smil
ing. "Very likely," eaid his brother-in-emphatically;
"but his visit has
productive of at least one good ef
fect it has completely cured me of any
tendency I might have had that way. I,
lor one, mean to leave off grumbling.
"I'm happy to hear it, nephew Grum
ble," exclaimed a cracked voice.
The victimized man started up in dis
may, scarcely believing the testimony of
his senses, as Tom twisted the silk hand
kerchief skillfully round his head, and
bent himself nearly double with an anth
matio sound between a groan and a
grunt.
" Wiry, you don't mean to say that
you are Uncle Tompkins!" exclaimed
Mr. Grumble.
"Pardon me, Henry," said Tom,
smiling, "but I saw that you had un
consciously become an habitual grum
bler, and I judged that the best antidote
was a faithful representation of your
own failings. Was I right f"
His brother-in-law was half inclined to
be angry, but thought better of it.
"Shake hands, Tom," said he.
" You're an irreverent young scamp, bnt
I forgive you. At all events, the cure is
complete."
And so Bessie found it.
Tho Railroad Guide.
One foreuoorj, says the Detroit Free
Prci8, u young man, whose business it
was to sell railroad guides to any one
who would buy, found a clothing dealer
stliug iu an arm chair in front
of hi door, nnd after a kindly salute
the agent handed out one of his guides
and s u'd :
" This is the handiest littlo book in
the world. It coutains the name, time
table, and route of every railroad in this
con ti try."
"I ueffcrpuysuo such kind of pooks,"
replied the dealer, as he glanced through
it.
"But you want that pamphlet, my
dear sir. You look like a man who
travels aronud considerably, and no
traveler can get along without one of '
thee guides."
' I don't care to guide, no railroad,"
said tho dealer, shaking his head, and
turniug away.
" Hold on, now just look through it
once. Suj poso for instance, that you
want to go to New Orleans ?"
". I shall neffer go there so long as I
am bom."
" Well, suppose you want to go to
Omaha?"
".Don I don't go."
" What do you do when you want to
go to Chicago?" asked tho persistent
agent.
" I sthays at homo."
"Well, suppose you had to go;
wouldn't you have to look at a railroad
timetable then ?"
'No, F.ir. I should go down py der
depot, get on der train, puy some apples
off dor poj , aud I sbnuM stop otT in
Chicago bko some grease !"
The ngeut had no further arguments
to advauee.
Long Sacks.
Long sacks of cloth, according to a
fashion journal, are in the graceful'
Frerch shape, single breasted, with
partly fitted backs. Thoy do not differ
matciially'from those of last winter, ex
cept iu their added length and in tho
preference for those that are straight
around instead of having long fronts
with short backs. Thirty inches, it is
said, will bo the average length of sacks
for ladies of medium height. Garments
of 1 it winter will be lengthened by
adding a border of fur or ether trirn
niintf. Some very elegant sacks have
tho long mantilla fronts, but these are
cut square instead of rounded or pointed
as they wero lat year. Tho most
uniquely shaped pockets and the inevi
table long bows of ribbon ornament
tbeso fronts. The back has English
side forms with a bow at the end of tho
seams. Serge cloths of very large di
agonal figures are used for these sacks.
TLe V of braid or of silk is tho trim
ming for tho back. The fronts of some
havo a dart, while others are loose.
Eight or ten rows of soutache braid of
thick, heavy quality form very neat bor
ders for such sacks. The simplest
styles of braiding are preferred for these
cloaks, while most uniquo and intricate
patterns are used in rich Bilk garments.
Tho buttons are of shell or of wood
fastened on strongly with ryes. Both
very large and quite small buttons are
ui d.
For old ladies are long comfortable
clouks of cloth, partly iu sack and partly
in dolman ehupe. They have long dol
man sleeves hanging almost to tho bot
tom of the cloak, and inner sleeves that
are eloso fitting.
Would Not Change.
A New Hampshire boy, now a resi
dei t of Wisconsin, was a fine scholar, a
graduate ot uartmoutn fjoiiege, ana a
law student. Just previous to his ad-mi-sion
to the bar he took a severe cold,
which rendered him very deaf, and no
medical skill was able to restore Lis
hearing. This affliction compelled him
to give up his chosen profession, aud he
went Wei-t very much broken down in
spirits. For ten years he has been
furming, cultivating about two hundred
acres of prairie, and, as he expressed it,
making a good living and salting down
something every year. And he de
clared that v, knowing what he now
knows, he was to begin his active life
over again, he would do just as he was
oompelled to do ten years ago ; that is,
he would throw aside his .profession and
settle down on a farm. Said he:
" There isn't much glory on a farm, but
yon get a good sure living. You are
your master ; you can't starve nor be
turned out of business ; and as for as the
woj k ia concerned, in these days of horse
power a man needn't kill himself farm
ing my more than at any o her business.
It's brail s that win on a farm as well as
everywhere else, and the smart man is
going to ride while the stupid one goes
afoot, in the cornfield as well as in the
bar or pulpit. I should like to have
my hearing again, but I wouldn't leave
my farm if I had it. "
The new Territory of Pembina, which
is to be taken from Dakota, covers 72,
930 square miles on the northern boun
dary of the United States. There are
within its limits 2,000 miles of naviga
ble waters. Bismarok will probably be
thecapital.
The Troy Hysteria Case.
The Troy Timet sayfl : Many con
flicting statements have been made re
lative to the condition of the two girls
residing iu Cohoos, who were mentioned
as suffering from a singular physical dis
ability. The exact facts are that the
girls are afflicted with a mild form of
hysteria. Their names are Lizzie Lis
corbo and Mary Michel, both about
eighteen years of age. The latter has
been married about eight months. Both
were seized at the same time with con
vulsions, accompanied by rigidity of all
tho muscles, which laste 1 nearly forty
eight hours. During that time they
were perfectly insensible of feeling, as
pins were used and their bodies were
pinched. The paroxysm was followed
by an ecstatic condition. Their eyes
were open, the lips slightly parted with
a happy smile, as though some su
preme joy hold their senses. The hands
were raised with the palms upward.
This condition lasted an hour or more,
and the girls recovered and arose from
the bed and ato a hearty meal. Two
hours afterward they were both seized
in the same manner as the first. The
paroxysms this time were not so violent,
and were followed in twelve hours by
tho same condition of ecstasy. For three
weeks about two hours of the twenty
four each day they havo been similarly
affected. Both were in full health,
sleep, eat and converse naturally when
not uuder the influence of the singular
spell. Miss Liscorbo's parent, with
whom the girls reside, . seem very re
ticent and profess now to believe that
they are bewitched. When first taken,
it was given out that an overdose of
ljudanum was the cause. Mrs. Michel's
husband says a "bad man" spoke in
sulting and blasphemous words to them,
which frightened them. A reporter, in
company with a physician, visited the
girls, and after a thorough examination
! by the doctor, both girls being in par
oxysms at the time, he prououueed it a
form of hysteria, produced by mental
distmbauces, with which the story of
iuieijel that tiie girls wern frightened by
a " bad man " seems to assimilate. The
rigidity of the muscles in Miss liiscorbo
was so fixed that her body could bo
raised horizontally by lifting at her head
and feet, and all vhe while her features
expressed a serene mental condition and
her pulse was at the ordinary healthful
beat. The parents are anxiously await
ing tho arrival from Canada of au uncle
who has acquired celebrity, they say, in
exorcising bad spirits. When the girls
are free from the malady they seem to
bo almost unconscious of what has oc
cuired, suffer no pain fiom the reaction
of tho muscles, and have a dim recollec
tion of having had a good time and
speak pleasantly of it. The presence of
sympathetic neighbors pleases them and
liasliun the ic-luiu of tho COmatOBO BllltU.
A Cunning Expedient.
There is a fable among the Hindoos
that a thief having been detected and
condemned to die, happily hit upon an
expedient v. hich gave him hope for life.
He sent for his jailer and told him that
ho had a secret of great importance
which he desired to impart to the king,
and when that had been done ho would
bo prepared to die. Upon receiving this
piece of intelligence tho king at onco
ord red tho culprit to be conducted to
his presence. The thief replied that he
know tho recrct of causing trees to grow
which would bear fruit of pure gold.
Tho experiment might be asily tried,
and his mnjwly would not lose tho op
portunity ; so, accompanied by his
courtiers and his chief priest, ho
went with tho thief to a ppot selected
near tho city wall, whore the latter per
formed a series of solemu incantations.
This done, the condemued man pro
ducod a piece of gold and declared that
if it should be planted it would produce
a tree, every branch of which would
bear gold.
"But," he added, "this must be put
into the ground by a hand that has never
been stained by a dishonest act. My
hand is not clean, therefore I pass it to
your maiesty.
. The king took the piece of gold, but
hesitated, f inally he said : " I remem
ber in lay younger days that I have
filched money from my father's treasury
which was not mine, l have repented
of the sin, but yet I can hardly say my
hand is clean. I pass it therefore to my
prime minister.
The latter, after a brief consultation.
answered : " It were a pity to break tho
charm through a possible bluuder. I
receive taxes from the people, and as I
am exposed to many temptations how
can I bo sure that I have been perfectly
honest? I must give it to the governor
of our citadel."
" No, no," cried the governor, draw
ing back. " Remember that I have the
serving out of pay and provision to the
soldiers. Let the high priest plant it."
And the high priest said : " You for
get ; I have the collecting of tithes and
the disbursements for sacrifice. "
At length the thief exclaimed : " Tour
majesty, I think it would be better for
society that all five of us should be
hanged, since it appears that not an
honest man can be found among us."
In spite of the lamentable exposure,
the king laughed, and so pleased was he
with the thief's cunning expedient that
he granted him a pardon.
His Prescription,
Ia one of the small mining camps in
the b ack Hills lay a big Cornishman
stricLea with fever. His wife, being
unskilled iu remedies, hunted for a doo
tor, failing, however, after a long and
patient search, to discover anything
better than a veteriuary Burgeon.
"What would you do, doctor," she
cried, " if your own hnsband was deliii
ous with fever ?" ' Madame," said he,
" I know no more thau you. I can only
cure horses and other brutes." " Well,
doctor," she replied. " my husband's as
strong as a horse. What would you do
for a horse f and io! Heaven's sake tell
me quick." " Madam, I thould open
his mouth, pull his tongue out on one
side to prevent his biting me, and give
him this fever powder, paper, string
and all. ' Blinded with tears of gratitude-,
the poor woman paid for the fever
powder and depaited. History Bays
that the mau got well, but he has a hole
in his tongue, and his wifa has only
three fingers on one hand.
Cottage Gardening.
Mr. Gladstone recently addressed the
villagers of Hawarden, England, where
he has lived for many years, on the
benefits of cottage gardenirg. He said :
The trouble in that the circle of topics
opened up by a flower show is not a very
large one, but at the same time it is one
which anybody may be well contented to
treat. There is not a better nor a more
wholesome and salutary village institu
tion in the whole round that can be
named than a flower show; that ia to
say, than a society of which a flower
show is the annual celebration. In the
first place, it is one of those independ
ent institutions which teach the people
to exert themselves, and you may de
pend upon it that man is not a passive
and mechanical being.
You don't train man aa a plant; he is
a moral agent, and if any good is to bo
done to him or to any woman or child
and I am delighted to Bee how many
young boys and girls have como for
ward to obtain honorable marks of rec
ognition on 1 his occasion if any effec
tual good is to bo done to them it must
bo done by teaching and encouroging
them and helping them help themselves.
All the people who pretend to take your
own concerns out of your own hands
aud to do everything for yon, I won't
say they are imposters; I won't even
say they are quacks; but I do say they
are mistaken people The only sound,
healthy description of countenancing
and assisting these institutions is that
which teaches independence end self
exertion. There ia no better kind of exertion
than this. It is good for your health
and good for your independence, be
cause, though a garden is not a very
large thing in the life of a cottager, it
is a very considerable element of inde
pendence, as well as of comfort, pleas
ure and satisf iction, when well mauaged
and of proper size. It makes a sensi
ble addition to his means of living; and,
for my part, I sometimes hope that you,
rnauy of you, may live to see the day
whi n there will be no such thing in this
country as a cottage without a garden.
The Two Sisters.
There wero two little sisters at the
houso whom nobody could seo without
loving, for they were, always so happy
together. They had the same books
and the same playthings, but never a
quarrel sprung up between thorn; no
cross words, no pouts, no slaps, no run
ning away iu a pet On the green be
fore tho door, trundling hoop, playing
with Rover, helping mother, they ere
always the same sweet tempered little
girls.
" You novcr seem to quarrel," I said
to them, one clay; "how is it you are
always so happy toeether ?"
They looked up, and the eldest an
swered : " I 'spose 'lis 'cause Addio lets
me and I let Addle,
I thought a moment. "Ah, that is
it," I said; "she lets you, and you let
her ; that's it."
Did you ever think what an apple of
discord "not letting" is among chil
dren? Even now, while I have been
writing, a great crying was heard under
the window. I looked out. "Gerty,
what is the matter ?" " Mary won't let
me have her ball, bellows Gerty.
"Well, Gerty wouldn't lend me her
pencil in school," cried Mary, "and I
dou't want she should have my ball
Flo, fie ! is that the way sisters should
treat each other?" "She shan't have
my pencil," muttered Gerty; sho'll only
lose iu." " And you'll only lose my
ball, retorted Mary,
" and 1 shan't let
you have it.
The "not iettiug " principle is dtwn
right disobligingness, aud a disobliging
spirit begets a good deal of quarreling.
These little girls, Addie and her sis
ter, have got the true secret of good
manuers. Addio lota Rose, aud Roso
lets Addio. They aro yielding, kind,
unselfish, ulways ready to oblige each
other; neither wishes to have her own
way at the expense of the other.
Habitual Criminals.
A writer in a New York paper has
been collecting statistics concerning the
pickpocket's profession Whole fami
lies ure sometimes educated to the busi
ness, the littlo ones bt ing systematical
ly and thoror.ghly eJucated by their
parents iu the differout branches of
stealing. They begin with the simple
picking of the pocket of some unwary
person, and finally become able to com
mit the most daring burglary. Not in
frequently tho habituil criminal life
so blunts the moral fe liDgs, that the
youth who begins as a newsboy or boot-
bia-'lc, and del try abstracts the change
from his customer's pocket, develops
into the hardened man, who pauses at
nothing in the mitillment of his de
sires, aud unhesitatingly lakes the life
of a fellow being, if by so doing ho
thinks his evil deeds will be more cer
tain to escape detection. The case of
John Dohm, tho Noe murderer, is an
instauco of this. He was a man com
paratively young, was brought up as a
thief, was the habitual a-sociate of
thieves and abandoned Women, and
never had any refiuing or moral influ
ences thrown about him,
Attempt to Escape from Jail.
A novel attempt to escape from Lud
low street jail, New York city, was made
by one Webster, who is confined there
on a warrant of arrest against him npon
an execution for $1,500. Webster has
been oonned in the jail for some time.
and was the boon companiou of another
imprisoned debtor named Billsley. The
wife of the latter visited the jail quite
often, and she is charged with furnish
ing Webster with the disguise iu which
he hoped to make his escape. .Late one
afternoon Webster approached the
prison gate to pa-s out, dressed in the
complete attire of a woman, not except
ing chignon and curls, lewelry, etc,
striped stockings and high bulmoral
shoes, a thick veil concealing the face,
The gate keeper requested the veil to
bo drawn up, which was done without
hesitation, and in answer to the ques
tion as to where he had been answered
to see Mr. Billsley. The gate keeper
said be looked very much like the pris
oner Webster, which was denied. The
keeper refused to allow him to pass out,
aud finding himself detected, Webster
ran back to his room, where the clothes
were afterward found.
The Bank of France.
Opening on the Rne de la Verilliers,
and surrounded by the Rues Radziwill,
Balif, Croixdes-Petits-Champe, the Bank
of France has oocupied, ever since 1811,
the ancient hotel of the Count of
Toulouse. Its general aspeot is that of
a prison for good society. It shows
many prospects of iron railings and iron
doors, the latter being abundantly
garnished with bolts and bars. Its
height and solid walls would defjr any
attempt to scale them, and every issue
of the building is made for a defense
which coald only be vanquished by a
regular siege provided with the engines
of war. Within the place is as active aa
an ant's nest.
Every psssagn and staircase of tho
building is crowded during all the busi
ness hours of the day, and an incoming
multitude elbow an outgoing host in
each direction. None bat people in a
hurry are to be seen there J so at every
door and landing place are posted UBhers
ready to reply immediately to those ask
ing the way to different points in the
labyrinth. Yet the edifice is daily grow
ing lareer. and the palace which sufficed
for the want? of legitimate princes is too
small for this temple of trade. Nowhere
are so many varieties of people to be
met as within the precincts ot tins uni
versal assembly house. Every class of
society is represented there, from the
capitalist who comes to receive the divi
dend on his shares, to the womman who
ha to pay an acceptance for a few francs
which he has given for his tools.
The first impression made on a
stranger by the Bank of France is one
which inspires good will lor au estaD
lishinent which, having only in view
the public interest, impartially trios to
be useful to every section of the com
munity. It was in 1HUU, the twenty-iourm
Pluviose, year VIII, that certain banker
formed themselves into a company
which became the Bank of Fiance. Tho
principal of them were Perregaux, Le
Couteulx, Cantel u, Mallett, the elder,
Ilecamier, and Robillan.l, a tobacco
manufacturer. Tho commercial gentle
men speedily agreed upon tho statutes
of a financial institution, which was to
h-ivo a capital of 30,000,000 francs, or
5-0,000,000, divided iuto 30,000 nomina
tive shares.
The bnsiness of tho company was re
stricted to discounting, collactiug bills,
reciiviug deposits and consignments,
keeping current accouuts, and issuing
dralts at sight to bearer ; all other trade
but thpt in gold and silver was forbid
den. In the primitive statutes of the
bauli may sua be ooservon, in a rutu
nv.'utai v state indeed, but very clearly,
the system which has secured to it au
ulmost uninterrupted career ot pros
jiority to this lny. On the twenty
eighth of Nivose, or as early as the
'ishtcenth of January, 1800, a consular
decree deposited a largo amount of gov
ernment money w;th tho new banu, and
on the twenty-fourth Germinal, year A. I,
or fourteenth of April, 180d, it was
definitely organized by law, under tho
.stvlo and titlo of tho uauK ot .t rance,
its capital being raised at tho same time
to forty-nvo million francs, or nine mil
lion dollars.
Keeping Engagements.
Miss Marie Poirsou, of Paris, has
just dono a very pretty thing. Sho had
buen betroihed to Iho young Count do
Foisant beforo tho war, in which, while
r-erving in the artillery, he had tho mis
fortune to lose both his legs. After that
i 'ut:U cannon shot at sedan, the count
must have thought the chance of his
love keening her word with him was
but t-mall; but she has just done so. The
marriage has taken place. During tho
ludiunmutiuy a precisely similar mis-
fottiine befell au officer, who obtained
tho Victoria Cross at tho price of the
loss of his ower limbs; and in this in-
s.'auco al-.o the girl who had promised
her lovo to him did not withdraw it.
Such loyalty can by no means be reck
oned upon in the cither sex ; and often
an attack of smallpox or other illness is
m fatal to a niau's lidolity as to his love's
good looLs. The late Duke of Welling
ton took a very characteristic middle
conrso under circumstances of this
k nd. lie was not sentimental nor
chivalric, but he had a strong sense of
duty. When the womau to whom he
was engnfirert wrote to say: " My beauty
is gone," ho replied, from Spain: "1
am sorry for it; but I will marry you
h till if you think proper to hold mo to
my bargain." And she did think
proper. It is scarcely necessary to say
that the marriage did not prove a happy
one.
Putting Them on a Level.
A correspondent writing from Long
Branch declares that the bathing suit is
not a thing of beauty, aud that it does
metamorphose people in the oddest
way. One looks around and sees a tall
form of dignified aspect, and a noble
gray haired head, but cannot recognize
the person, more especially as the indi
vidual is jumping un a little girl to es
eaoo a monster wa re fhat has come roll
ing iu. Suddenly by some flash of jer-
ception one discovers thut it is a pro
fessor of Columbia law school, who
evidently finds the rollers much less re
spectful thau his students. The ac
knowledged belles of the hops, the beau
ties of the ballroom, smile at you a
charming recognition, and you stare
stupidly at them, wondering who they
can be. Iho water, iu lact, is a great
oblitcrator of distinction, and mingles
beauties and plain girls, nameless jour
nalists and politiod dignitaries in one
common horde of blue flannel and straw
hats.
Iu Paris, night watches of factories
aud warehouses containing highly com
bustible material are supplied, for
safety, with a peculiar lantern. A piece
of phosphorus about the size of a pea is
introduced into a glass flask, which is
then one-third filled with boiling olive
oil, and closed air tight with a cork.
When light is desired the cork is simply
removed for an instant to admit the air,
and a clear light, is emitted from the
empty space in the flask. The intensity
oi me n gut wnen it uiminisnes may De
renewed by admitting air again. A
lantern thus prepared, it is said, may be
used continually for about six mouths
without the least trouble.
A Tarody.
Where the Moosetookmagnntio
Pours its waters in the Bkuntio,
Met along the forestside
Hiram Hoover, Bnldah Hyde.
She a maiden fair and dapper,
He a red haired, stalwart trapper,
Hunting beaver, mirk and skunk
Ia the woodlands of Bqneduuk,
Bhe, Pawtucket's pensive daughter,
Walked beside the Bknntic water,
Gathering in her apron wot
Bnakeroot, mint and bouncing bet
" Why," he murmured, loth to leave her,
Gathering yarbs for chills and fever,
When a lovyer, bold and true,
Only waits to gather you?"
Items of Interest.
A man of littlewisdom isasage among
fools.
Just the place for drummers The
town of Fife.
A cheerful disposition is the sunshine
of the soul.
Making sugar out of melons is a new
California industry.
A Philadelphia paper says the Cen
tennial will close $3,000,000 in debt.
A prudent man," says a witty
Frenchman, " is like a pm ; his head
prevents him going too far."
Mrs. Robert C. Mason, of Uilbert-
ville, has presented her husband with a
third pair of twins 1" She is a brick
Mason. Desnitn the time, the official returns
show a decrease of pauperism in Eng
land and Wales the preEent year, as com
pared with 1875.
Horses employed in haying on the
marshes near Hustisford, Jis., wear
wooden shoes made of plank six by
eight inches screwed to the hoof.
Tfc was Georce D. Prentice who de
clined to discuss tha question of woman
suffrage because he had considered
woman, from the creation, as a Bute
issue.
An old bachelor having been laughed
at by a party of pretty girls, told them :
. tr .. "...it ,inta I" ffn ninv
1UU ill tJ EtUJMll J"Ulwrn 4 J
be small potatoes," said one of them
" but we are sweet ones 1"
A waiter advertises in Chicago foreni-
ployment, giving as a recommendation
his ability to " fold napkins iu threo
hundred different woys, in the perfect
image of every kind of bird.
Thomas Hassett, one of the escaped
Fenian prisoners, says that he once bo-
fore tried to escape, and, though his
original imprisonment was for life, the
Australian judge sentenced him to tnree
years additional.
A Boston newspaper osserts thut a
Western manufacturer sent a pair of
lady's slippers to the Centennial without
desicnatina: their use, and they were at
once assigned a prominent placo among
boats and nautical niiairs.
A man paid 81,000 for Washington's
state coach to exhibit outside the Cen
tennial grounds; he put up a building,
and offered a sight of it at ten cents a
head. At the end of three weeks he
had not taken in a single dime.
What i3 tho chief uso of bread ?"
asked au examiner at a recent school ex
hibition. "The chief uso of bread,"
answered the urchin, apparently as
tonished at the simplicity of the inquiry,
' is to spread butter and jam on.
The policy of the South, says the
Memphis Ava'anche, ia to stick to hog
and hominy. In live years, under this
measure of industrial reform, it will be
able to pay its debts and be the richest
section of ' the Union, or the world.
The new United States postal law
allows a person to write his cr her name
on a newspaper wrapper, and also the
word " from," to let tho party receiving
it know who it is from, without violating
the law. It allows tho sender to write
on a package tho number aud kind of
articles it contains.
At a recent funeral in Chicopee, Mass.,
the earth on one side of tho grave being
sandy, caved, aud one of tho pall bear
ers having hold of one end of a lower
ing strap, slid into the grave. Tho
coffin fell on him, head downward, and
some time was required to disentangle
the living from the dead.
A statement of the number of cattlo
destroyed in the Madras Presidency by
tigers and cheetahs during the three
months ending the thirty first of March
last shows that 452 hirses, 629 cows,
204 calves, 124 bullocks, 125 sheep, 189
goats, seven horses or ponies, eight
asses, eighty-nine dogs and twelvo pigs
were killed during that period.
An attorney named Else, rather di
minutive in stature, and not particularly
respectable iu his character, once met
jejjyiit Sir," said he, " I hear you
have called me a pettifocgingscouudrel.
Have yon done bo, sir?" "Sir," Eaid
Jekyll, with a look of contempt, "I
never said you were a pettifogger, or a
scoundrel; but I said you were little
Else.' "
Near a bridere on the Seine a corpse
was found in the water and brought en
shore. It wus iu a dreadful state of de
composition. A lady aud gentleman
passing turned aside to loon at it, ami
the lady recoiled in horror. " Oh, how
frightful 1 What can have made the poor
man kill himself?" "Doubtless dis
tress and misery, replied the husband.
"Ah, most likely," responded the wne,
very simply. "He certainly does not
look well offl"
Rapid Growth of Forest Trees.
A correspondent of the Boston Culti
vator gives his experience in the growth
of forest trees : Norway spruce ana
Scotch larch were planted, and in nine
years the spruce trees were fifteen feet
high, with twelve feet epread of top. In
fourteen years the larch were thirty
feet high, with a spread of twenty feet,
and a circumference of four feet at tho
baso. One larch was forty feet high in
seventeen years. Silver maple planted
iu 1864 are now thirty five feet high,
and seven to ten inches in diameter at
the base. Elms planted in 1856 now
range from thirty to forty feet high,
and are fifteen inohea in diameter.