TOL. LIII.
THE MIRROR OF LIFE.
Let us look in the glue for a moment,
Let u brush off the miat from the face—
The mirror of life that is brokeu
When Death in our ear knells the token
To crumble in apace.
We mnat fall whether praying or pining.
Whether fearing or mocking the blow,
Brash the mtat from the mirror, then trem
* A**" 118,
•The ffave is rid pi abe %r dissembling—
There vaua Una lies low. v c
The eyes, as they gaze to earth's glory,
Peer into that mirror of
Where tie slain of our years hee all gory*,
Bent over by grim shadows hoary
Recording each stain.
Not a blot nor a blemish escapes them.
The ains of the lone and the crowd, \
The crime where we pandered or paltered,
The dark things that lips never faltered
There cry out aloud. , ,
They are there, and no tern peats can hide
them;
They glow with accusing and shame,
Tho' the years be all dead, they are living, j
'Mtd the silence they cry for forgiving
With direful acc.aun.
On t'-s wreck-p'aak of life is there pardon
When joy is worn hollow in sin? . . i
When the heart sees no 1 gbt in the sparkle.
Nor gloom where the drowsy waves darkle
O'er foeman and kin?
Then brush the world's mist from the mirror
While life in oar bosom is sweat.
And turn, wiih a love of the purest,
O'er pathways tbe fairest and sorest.
The trace of our feat.
Aunt Maggie's Story.
Yes; what your grandfather came to tell f
me, lassie, was that Paul Cardell was dead.
He was just 85. He'd lost sight and hear
ing both, they say, and was glad to go. it's
not so hail with me; but I wouldn't mind
going too. It stirred my memory to hear
of Paul's death. I've loved a many in my
life, but never any one as I did him. Ah !
I'm not ashamed of it, lassie, if i am an old
maid. He was lust lovely.
We met often, and for a wldle I thought
he liked me pretty well Hut soon I began
to think 1 was mistaken. It makes a girl
tremble to think that she may show a man
who does not love her that she likes him
over well. All that she can do is to wait.
Ah! lassie, many a time the waiting is a
weary thing, and the right one doesn't
come, and the wrong one does, and even
the wrong one seems better than none at
all. I don't blame women for things that
seem wrong often; they haven't much
chance to do right. It seems to me that
Paul was my right one; but he didn't court
me, and I could not court him. And James
Reeder, being a man, could do as he chose,
and did. He loved me, and I loved Paul
Cardell. God help us all. I think if we
women had no hearts the world would he a
merrier place, lassie.
I put James Reeder off a while, and just
kept my eye on Paul. 1 did not love him,
and I did love Paul. "Why couldn't I love
the man that loved me ?
Then said Ito myself, "Be a sensible
woman. It's bettei to marry a man who is
fond of you, if he doesn't seem perfection,
than to waste your youth and your strength
and your hope pining for one you are noth
ing to. ' It's prettier in a poem to do the last,
but I wasn't so very young or so very beau
tiful that the whole world wanted me. I
guessed what life would be when I was a
lonely old maid, handed about like a bad 1
penny from Cousin Jack's to Uncle Ben's,
and from Sister Hannah's to Sister Jane's.
Not much wanted anywhere. Better try
to make a man who loved me happy, and
so learn to love him. They say "Jove
comes with the children"—some who have
tried it. ~ x
I thought it all over before 1 went to bed
one night, and I made up ray mind that
James Reeder should have a "yes" when
he asked for it. Thsn I cried—oh ! how I
cried, lassie. "Oh, must I give you up,
Paul f" said I; "and oh, must I give you
up ?** and I knew I'd never had him to give
up or to keep.
The girls envied me my handsome, dash
ing beau. But often, walking with him,
or ndiug with him, I'd pass Paul Cardell in
his Shabby coat, and say to myself, "Oh,
to be a man—just to be a man, and go a
courting whom I chsose, instead of taking
what comes, as though matrimony were
like the 'grab bag' at a church fair." I
didn't want money, nor such beauty as
James Reeder bad so much of. I wanted
—well, lassie, I wanted Paul, and no one
else ; though why be was perfection to me,
heaven only knows, Ido not, and never
will.
What seemed a great deal to me isn't
much to tell. There were picnic parties
where I met Paul, but where he let James
carry me off when he pleased, and never
tried to step between us.
At last Kitty Walsingham married, and
they gave her a great wedding party. They
were rich, and did it in fine style. They
had a fine house and fine furniture, and
silver aud china, such as no one else had
thereabout. And it was an all-day party.
The wedding first, then breakfast and din
ner, and a dance and supper, of course. I
was a bridesmaid, and Paul stood up with
me. After that, you know, it was his
place to be my beau all day. I thought of
that and more. A word from him and I'd
give James Reeder the mitten. A word—
a look even.
When F walked into church on his arm I
kept thinking how it would seem to be the
bride. I looked prettier than she—l know
I did. I was dark, and white became me.
. I had roees in my hair and pearls in my
ears. I did look pretty, lassie. You're not
ao pretty, vain as you are. It's Ml gone at
eighty—all gone—all gone ! What do we
live to be ejglity for ? Lord forgive me—
and Paul.
Do you love any man,- - lassie f Just
think, then, how that man looks to you.
ou can't see his faults, or they grow to be
beauties. Don't they say Love is blind ? I
think he has sharper eyes than any one else,
and finds out charms no other can. Oh,
my beautiful Paul And brother Dick told
me last night how very plain he was ; and
there 1 sat with my blood boiling—yes,
boiling, lassie. My beautiful Paul plain !
my exquisite, graceful, sweet-faced Paul
plain! And I rocked and fidgeted. And
says Dick, "You are nervous to-night.
Maggie. I hope you ain't a getting the
rheumatism And was I not old fool
enough to tell him I was angry, and why ?
You didn't look away to laugh, lassie ?
Nay, was it to cry I No need of that
either. Cry for the young that have it all
to live through. lam eighty.
Sometimes he looked at me that morning
as if lie liked me. He told me how my
dress became me. Any man may do that,
but it made me happy. I had not heen so
happy for months.
After we came kome from church then*
was the Ureukiast—aud he beside urn all
the while—hud then .we all went into the
garden. We s*| unduT iparl
froTtf fife Mt, nflfl aff'df A suffice*! he looked
me straight in the eyes. "Miss Maggie,"
he said, "do you think ?'7 Hut in-fore
1 kn|W what he wanted to know if I
thought, some one came ail m a hurry up
tho path and stopped beside me. It was
Janaee Reeder.
"Here you are," said he, "Paul Carded,
Mrs. Waisingham wants you to drive
Grandma Thompson over home. She isn't
over well, and wants U> go. I'll take can
al Bliss Maggie meauwhile."
Paul got up. He gave me a look I
couldn't understand, and after he had gone
a dozen steps he came back and offen d me
Uiahand. "Good-bye, Miss Maggie," he
said, and I heard his breath come short and
last; ♦•Good-bye," and away he went.
And I and James Reeder were left alone.
It happened exactly as T knew it would,
lit- asked me to be his wife before we had
beentogethor half an 'hour, -.amid said
•"Yes."" *♦ <"-'U •- ..M
Uh; now don't, lassie. It's all against
the wonurn in this world. It always will
be. Let the strong-minded bodies do what
they may. You can't alter the hearts we
are born with. We aro bought and eold a
good deal as Turkish girls are, . after all.
There is a kind of cold, pretty doll that is
happy enough, but women who have hearts
suffer—suffer at eighteen and eighty. Don't
I know. I've been both.
And now I said to myself: "I will be
content. I've made my own choice." 1
knew 1 hadn't all the while. "1 am to
marry the richest man I know, aud one
they ail call handsome. Madly in love
with me too. What more do I want ?"
It wouldn't do. 1 hid the fox in my
bosom, but it gnawed me al! the while.
"The sooner it Is over the better," I said ;
.and as if that was the way to have it over,
I let James coax me to set the day very
soon—six weeks from that of our engage
ment.
There was a busy time at our house, you
may guess. All my things to make in a
hurry. I couldn't sit down to sew. I was
like one wild. In a sort of fever all the
time. They teased me. "In love," they
said. So I was, lassie, but not with James
Reeder. So one day mother said to me :
"You are the only idle one, Maggie, run
over to Mrs Walsingham's and borrow the
patt'ern of Kitty's traveling basque. It will
just fit you, and I want yours to be like it."
I went, of course, and got the pattern of
Mrs. Waisingham. She was a merry soul,
and she would tease me. No one knew
why I blushed so. It wasn't for the reason
they thought. We stood talking, and she
a teasing, until ail of a sudden she said :
"And James isn't jealous any more, I
hope?"
"Jealous! "' said I.
"Oh, he was wild the day our Kitty was
married," said she, "wild with jealousy of
Paul Cardell. He told me all aliout it,
'They are paired off together,' said he, 'and
with a girl it is the first who asks her. Paul
is as mucli in love as I, and you have lost
her to me.' So Granny and 1 set our wits
to work to help him.- And we sent for
Pau\ as you know, and gave*' Jem his
chance. Now say thank vou,' Maggie, as
he did."
But I couldn't. I took the pattern, and
rau away. I ran until 1 came to the bridge,
and then I stopped, looking down into the
water. "No, no," I kept saying to my
self, "no, no; he never cared anything
about me. I gave him chance enough to
speak, and he did not." And while I said
it I heard a step upon the bridge. 1 looked
around—it was Paul Cardell. I couldn't
move. I stood still and he came up to me.
I had not seen him before since Kitty's
wedding party, when he came to say
"good-bye."
He held out bis hand. "How do you do,
Miss Maggie ?" said he.
1 didn't speak—l only bowed.
"You are to be married very soon, I
hear," he said.
"They say so," I answered.
"I hope you may i)e very happy," he
said. "James Reeder is a splendid fellow,
and as rich as he is handsome. " And he
caught his breath in a little sigh. "God
bless you, Maggie."
He had never called me Maggie before.
He had never looked as he did then
i tried to thank him, but I didn't know
what I said. Suddenly be took both my
hands.
"I'd like you to know it. I was very
fond of you, Maggie. I—l loved you, my
dear. If James hadn't called me when he
did that day, I should have told you so,
and had my 'No,' from you. I always felt
afraid you liked James best. No wonder.
It's better for you—altogether better. Only,
quite as a past thing, I'm glad you know
how I loved you. Better than my life,
Maggie. I'm not going to pine to death,
or make an idiot of myself. I shall marry.
Lucy Swallow has promised to lie my wife.
She would not care for such love as I have
not now to give : and she's very good, and
pretty, and she shall be happy. God bless
you, aud good-bye."
He took my hand and put it to his lips
and went.
Only for what he had said to Lucy Swal
low, I'd have called him back. But if
they were to be married, better let matters
stand as they were. I held myself up by
the bridge rail until he was out of sight;
then I dropped, like one dead.
I did not marry on the day set for me,
for I was ill of a fever then and not ex
pected to live ; and afterward 1 knew my
heart too well. I could not forgive James
for cutting short the words that would have
made Paul and me happy for life, and I
told him plainly that I never could love
him.
But Paul and Lucy Swallow married,
and she lived thirty years with him—thirty
long years ' What a happy woman to live
thirty years with Paul Cardell 1
I never married—never, as you know.
And James Reeder never did, either.
When he was sixty he told brother Dick
there never had been but one woman in the
world for him, and that was Maggie. Poor
Jem ! He cried when 1 told him he must
go. And he was very handsome, so they
said—a very fine man, but I can't remem
ber much about his looks.
And, you see, I never forgot Paul. I
could draw his picture now. I know the
touch of his hand, and the perfume of lus
MHXHEIM, PA., THURSDAY, AUGUST 14, 1879.
breath, and the tone of his voice by heart,
lie was very happy with Lucy Swallow,
they say. 1 haven't bee)). Hut it was bet
ter than marrying any one else, after all.
A wasted life anil a wasted heart, but noth
ng worse. Goo 1 night, lassie.
Tit HIP Oitrtdini.
These strange birds stalked at, the
head of the procession of domestic ani
mals and appeared to be on most ex
cellent terms with all of them. Occas
ionally one would deviate to the right
or left of the track to peck a mouthful
of grass, but as soon as the drover
would leave the roa I and shout at It, It
would immediately fall into its proper
place and march forward with the ut
most demure gravity, as if to be guilty
of an Infringement of rules vvas-ihe last
thing it would think of. Ostriches al
ways have au intensely stupid look, but
they Hre not nearly snch fools as the
uninitiated would take them for; and
although the most timid creatures on
the earth when in a state of nature, in
captivity or when domesticated, they
are bold and dangerous, more especially
the males. Horse or rider indiscrimi
nately they will attack, walking up to
the object of their, Indignation with a
quiet, measured stride, never evincing
lor a moment the slightest evidence of
hostility—in facr, looking such fools
that no one would imagine them capa
ble of inimical ideas —when, with a
quick movement, done witli great
strength and velocity, they raise their
foot and strike forward, the edges of
the toes being so sharp that they will
cut your clothes the whole length of the
stroke. As they are too valuable to be
knocked on tbe head, perhaps you turn
to run from tliem, but their speed is
such that an attempt thus to elude them
is useless. The only plan then to be
pursued is to throw your self down and
lie still on your face or baek. They
cannot kick you in these positions, but
they will jumpon you and trample all
over you. While this operation is going
on you may give vent to your feelings
and satisfy your self-esteem by bestow
ing upon them a few reminders that
two can play the same game.
Flower* as Food.
The number of dowers that are used
as food is small; among these we may
mention the artichoke, the undeveloped
flower heads of which furnish a much
prized dish. A thistle similar to the
artichoke, occurs abundantly in Pales
tine, and its undeveloped flower heads
are brought to the markets of Jerusalem
under the name of cirdi, and are much
sought after as a vegetable. In many
parts of India the flowers of a sapota
ceoustree form a really important arti
cle of food. The blossoms are very
numerous and succulent, and are eaten
ratw. They are also sun dried and sold
in the bazars. A single tree affords
from 200 ts 400 pounds of the flowers.
The flowers of another species are em
ployed in a similar manner by the na
tives of Mysore and Malabar; they are
either dried and roasted and then eaten,
or bruised and boiled to a jelly and
made into sm ill balls to be traded lor
other food. The unopened flower buds
of the caper bush, a creeping plant
of Southern Europe, when pickled in
yinegar constitute the condiment
known as capers. It was known
to the ancient Greeks,and the renowned
Phryne, at the first period of her resi
deuce in Athens, was a dealer in capers.
Long pepper, which in chemical com
positions and qualities resembles black
pepper, and is used for the same pur
poses, consists of the immature spikes
of flowers gathered an 1 dried in the SHn.
A Miraculous Ecape at Niagara Fall*.
A gentleman ami his wife arrived at
Niagara Falls, on the lrttli of July. They
were on their way from New London,
Conn., to their home in Minnesota, and de
viated a little from their direct route in or
der to visit the great falls. Arriving so late
they concluded thai they would not go to a
hotel, and waited in the Erie depot until
after 4 o'clock, when they started down
town to see the sights. They strayed first
down to the bank of the river just below
Wikmer's mill. Here the gentleman at
tempted to bathe his face, when he sudden
ly became dizzy and fell helplessly into the
boiling rapids. Tlve screams of his wife
attracted the attention of William Dinan,
who was watering his horses near by. Dinan
tied his horses to a tree and rushed after the
woman, who was running toward the Cata
ract House. Dinan says that he could just
distinguish the form of the man in the
rapids, and he told the terrified woman that
it was of no use to attempt the rescue, that
he would certainly go over the falls. The
woman ran through the gate leading to the
little park between the Cataract House and
the old River Hotel, and hurried down the
bank to the raceway l>elow. Dinan fol
lowed a moment later, and his astonish
ment can hardly be imagined when he saw
the dripping stranger sitting on the steps in
the embrace of his weeping wife. Alter
falling into the water the gentleman said
that he hardly realized where he was for a
moment, lie could not swim, but he
struggled as best he could to reach the
shore. As good luck would have it the
drowning man was hurled against the bulk
head of the pier enclosing the raceway back
of the Cataract House, and was carried in
to the quiet water, where he managed to
secure a hold on the masonry, and climbed
out upon terra firma. The man's escape
from death was little less than miraculous.
He hardly realized at first the magnitude
of the danger he had escaped. He had not
seen the falls, and he asked Mr. Dinan
whether he would have been killed to a
certainty if he had been carried over the
cataract.
—The failures of farmers are becom
ing alarmingly frequent in England.
In 1870 they numbersd 220; in 1875,
254; in 1876, 480; in 1877, 577; in 1878,
815; and in the lirst half of 1879, no
fewer than 614.
(lunging * Hummock.
Swinging in a hammock Is the very
luxury of repose, it is restful, just to
think of it; and to pass by a clump ot
shade trees, or a vine curtained veran
da, and watch the lzy swing of one of
these aerial couches without envy is au
example of virtue that is not oiten
vouchsafed to one with genarous cipac-
Ity for resting. The general idea Is
that hammocks are only for the wealthy,
the "stylish," or professional time
killers. It is a great mistake. Every
well-to-do-farmer—every owner ot a
oozy village home—every member of a
stay-at-home club who commands a
spot big enough to swing one—should
have a hammock. A very good one
may be bought for $1.50 to $4, or as
much higher as you choose to go. It
should be hung wnere there is a good
afternoon shade, and, If intended in
part for children's use, so low that
small children can get into It by
the aid of & box or low stool, aud over
soft ground, so that the numerous tum
bles that are probable will be harmless.
If no other place is available, it may be
hung between the pillars of a shady
veranda, a place well-enough for the
older people who use Is, but undesira
ble for children, on aogpunt of the lack
of a soft turl, as well m for the noise
which accompanies fts use by the
youngsters. When children only are
to ue the hammock the manner of
hanging is not impoftant, but if pro
vided for the use of grown persons it
should then be so suspended that tiie
head will always be considerably higher
than tiie feet, and much of the comfort
of one who uses it depends upon a
proper observance of ilie fact. If you
hsvq no more suitable place, suspend it
from tbe columns or a veraiuia. i'he
hook which supports* the head end
should be six and a quarter feet from
the floor, and thAt for the foot end three
aud three quarters feet, and these pro
portions should be observed wherever
it may be hung, to secure the most de
sirable curve for the ease of the occu
pant. Another point to be observed;
the head end should be fastened to the
hook by a rope less than a foot long
just enough to properly Attach It, while
at the foot is a rope four aud one-hair
feet long. This gives (he greatest free
dom for swinging the lower part of the
body, while the head ftiovus but little.
This is a point which cannot be ob
served in a hammock for children, who
think more of it as a swing than as a
place for com;'ortahlnViftwe. When
trees serve for supports, ample provis
ion should be made to prevent injury
to the bark, by means of stout canvas or
heavy bagging between the ropes to
which it is suspended and the bark.
If the hanging be so arranged that the
hammock can be taken in during long
storms it will last much longer.
"Gin In Mine."
"Well, it's purty hot," answered a
lake captain in one of the ferry dock
saloons, "but it isn't nothing to the
summer of 183 G. We had it at least
twenty degrees hotter than this right
along for six weeks. I was running
the Mary Jane between Chicago and
Buffalo then, and I've seen the ther
mometer s'and at 130 degrees in the
middle of Lake Huron."
"That was awful," sighed one of the
sitters.
"Well, it was fairish, but we didn't
call it hot till we got into the St. Clair
river, and the mercury ran up to 150
degrees wheu hanging against the wa
ter-butt. Tbe boys used up 728 palm
leaf fans on one trip that year. On
one of our trips dowu we "were becalm
ed for three days on Lake Huron. We
got it there and no mistake."
"Purty hot, eh ?"
"Well, I'm an old man, and I don't
rare to go to lying at this day, bnt I'll
tell yon a few solemn facts. Eveiy
sail on that schooner smoked and
smouldered till they fell to pieces on
deek and left us under bare poles! Yes,
sir, we hadn't a rag aloft as big
as your hand. That was just at
sunrise in the morning, and within an
hour we had to wet down decks to pre
vent them from burning. I went
down stairs to consult the thermometer
and it lay on the lloor, all melted into
a chunk of glass and tin! Then I be
gan to realize how hot it was, and I got
frightened."
"What could you do?"
"Well, not much. We had begun to
rig lines over the lee side, so that ail
could take to the water, when the top
sail yard came down and killed the
cook. The links in the chain had melt
ed right out! 1 never knew a case like
It since, but then the weather has cool
ed oft'greatly siuce 1836."
"And about the cook?"
"Nothing about him. When we
picked the body up to heave it over
board it had spread out into a mass
about four feet square, and we had to
use shovels before we got through. He
was a good young man and a perfect
gentleman, and his mother never
blamed me in the least for scoop-shov
elling his remains over the rail. We
tin ally rigged our lines and got over
board."
"And it was much cooler?"
"Ah ! young man, how little you re_
porters know of the great lakes spread
out before you on the maps! Cooler!
Why, the minute we struck the water
we began squirming like so many eels.
The lake was red hot. The water
would have cooked an egg in four min
utes. I was blistered from head to
heel in no time. Some day I will take
off my coat and vest and show you my
back. The flesh was actually cooked to
a depth of two Inches, and for over two
years tho dogs used to scent cooked
meat, when I walked out, and follow me
by dozens. Five surgeons fainted away
in a heap at the sight of my left shoul
der, and the only man 1 could get to
dress my back was a butcher under
sentence of death."
"it must have been terrible. How
did you come out of the calm V"
"Well, while i wus squirming in the
water a white squall struck the schoon
er aud dowd she went. It was all over
in a minute, and air and water were
hotter than ever. I struck out for the
Canada shore, over a hundred miles
away, knowing that it was sink or
swim, but in half an hour 1 was safe."
"Picked up?"
"Well, no," replied the captain, as
he scratched his leg, "I struck au Ice
berg and climbed up Into a cave near
the top! 1 tell you it was a grateful
change to me, and that's one rcusou i
cannot see a hunk of ice and a lemon
without feeling grateful to the man
who invented both—with a very little
gin in mine, if you please."
Firat Guard Duty.
The first tour of guard duty at West
Point was perfoamed by tbe late Major
General T. W. Sherman, on one of the
most terrible nights 1 ever witnessed.
A storm of wind aud rain arose soon af
ter nightfall and raged duriug tiie
greater part of the night with unabated
lury, while frequent flashes of light
ning disclosed lite old forts and other
picturesque surroundings of the point
only to render it more appalling. Add
to this frequent peals ot thunder echo
ing among the surrounding peaks as if
the world was coming to au end, and
you can form some idea of the scene
that comes up so vividly to my mem
ory after the lapse of nearly half a cen
tury. In the midst of this terrible war
of ilie elements it occurred to three ot
our cadets—one of them, perhaps, the
corporal of the guard—that this would
be a favorable time to test the metal el
the young "pleb" from Newport. I
I shall never forget Sherman's appear
ance as he entered our the next
morning, his gun cut and scarred in
various places, his clothes wet and
dripping and covered with mud.
Whithorn (also from Newport) and
myself eagerly inquired for the cause
of his plight, and were informed that
there were three men or devils—lie did
not know nor care which—Wad ap
proached liis post iu the midst of the
storm, covered with "white sheets,"
and endeavored to pass without giving
the countersign. One of them, armed
with a musket and a fixed bayonet, at
tempted to force his way; "but," said
lie, 1 stood my ground, and would have
run him through, but for his superior
skill in using the weapon." As soon as
the young trio found that young Sher
man meant business , they disappeared
under the cover of the darkness, leav
ing him master of the situation, and I
doubt not. have kept their defeat to
this day a profound secret. The inci
dent, however, is too good to be lost,
and 1 now put it on record because 1
am probably the only living man,Whit
horn having died early, that knows
anything about it; and also because it
gave unmistakable promise of the
brilliant career now a part of our na
tional history.
A Rule of HoapitaUty.
True hospitality is a thing that
touches the heart and never goes be
yond the circle of generous impulses.
Entertainment with the truly hospita
ble man means more than the feeding
of the body; it means an interchange
of soul gifts. Still It should have its
laws, as all things good must have laws
to govern them.
The obligation to be hospitable is a
saered one, emphasized by every moral
code known to the world and a prac
tical outcome of the second great com
mandment.
There should never be a guest in the
house whose presence requires any cVn
siderable change in the domestic econo
my.
However much the circumstances of
business or mutual interests may de
mand in entertaining a stranger, he
should never be taken into the family
circle unless he is known to be wholly
worthy a place in that sanctum sanc
torum of social life; but when once a
man i admitted to the home fireside he
should be treated as it the place had
been his always.
The fact of an invitation gives neith
er host or guest right to be master of
the other's time, and does not require
even a temporary sacrifice of one's en
tire individuality or pursuits.
A man should never be so much him
self as when he entertains a friend.
To stay at a friend's house beyond
the period for which one is invited Is to
perpetrate a social robbery.
To abide uninvited in a friend's home
is as much a dismeanor as borrowing
his coat without his permission. It is
debasing the coin of friendship to mere
dross when a man attempts to make it
pay his hotel bills.
oe u *"* g ion Hn( j interests in life gives to
noLhera social right to the other's bed
and board. A traveling minister has no
more right to go uninvited to a fellow
preacher's house than a traveling shop
keeper or shoemaker has to go uninvit
ed to the house of his fellow craftsman.
Men are ordained to the ministry as
preachers, teachers and pastors, and
i.ot as private hotel keepers.
She'* All Right.
M. C. Shakespeare, a farmer, resid
ing in the northwestern part-.of Texas,
aud possibly a distant relative ot the
renowned bard of that uume, called on
the Rev. J. H. Richey, at two o'clock,
and said:
"Parson, do you know all the ladies
in WacoV"
"No," replied Mr. Richey, "I don't
know half of them."
"Do you know a widow lady named
Mrs. Ward, who is employed it the
family of Dr. McGregor?"
"I have not," said Mr. Richey, "the
honor of her acquaintance; but why do
you ask ?"
"Well," said Mr. Shakespeare, "1
don't know her either; never saw her
iu my life, but thinking as maybe you
knew all about her 1 thought I'd come
and ask you. I'm thiuking about
marrying her."
"I should think," remarked Mr.
Richey, "that vou would refer the mat
ter to the young lady herself."
"1 will, so 1 will," said Mr. Shake
speare, "but not until I have first seen
Dr. McGregor," and, so saying, lie
turned and walked away.
About three-quarters of an hour later
in the day Mr. Shakespeare again stood
in the preser.ee of Mr. Riehey.
"I've seen Dr. McGregor," said he,
"and he says be lias known the lady
for sixteen years, and she's all right."
Then exacting from Mr.Richey A prom
ise that be would wait in the office "a
little while," Mr. S. walked off, saying
be would "call on the lady."
And he did. "It's all right,parson,"
said he, on walking into Mr. Richey's
office, less than an hour afterward.
"I've seen the lady, and she says it's
all right. Quick as 1 can get a pair of
licenses I want you to go up aud tie
tiie knot."
At twenty minutes past four o'clock
M. C. Shakespeare was married to Mrs.
Nancy Ward, Rev. J. H. Richey offici
ating, and the newiy wedded pair left
at once for their rural home. Mr.
Shakespeare has a good farm and is
well able to make his wife comfortable.
Mrs. Shakespeare is a good houskeeper
aud is otherwise well qualified to make
a good wife. Two hours and twenty
minutes, dating from the moment the
would-be bridegroom's first inquiries
were made, is the precise time occupied
in the accomplishment of this alliance.
A Prehistoric F<
There remains to this day the ruins
of an ancient fortification*aboui four
teen miles from Tyrone, near Moshan
non CFeek, Ceu're County, Pa. The en
tire site covers about two acres of
ground, a portion of the outer walls,
however, beiug entirely demolished.
What seems now to have been the inte
rior of the vast masonry consists of a
series of parapets, and faces of the em
brasures running at various angles.
Tiie front of tbe parapets, and faces of
tbe embrasures, are still covered with
some kind of durable plaster or cement.
Tills cement facing is of a red color,
about half an inch thick, and bard, al
most as flint. Where it is broken the
rock has crumbled away to the depth
of several inches, and the tap of the
rocks is also worn .away by time and
the action of the elements, leaving the
edges of the cement project like flanges
set perpendicular to the plane of the
rock. The age of this old fortress is
beyond all possibility of computation.
The composition of the cement is not
known, bnt the building material te
longs to that class of rocks known
among geologists as Mahouiug sand
stone. This formation, when found in
plac3, caps the Clear field and Ceutre
County region. At the time of its de
posit no human being existed on the
face of the earth, nor until long periods
thereafter. Large trees now stand on
tiie old masonry, aud these are but the
successors of other generations of trees
that decayed many ceuturies ago.
A Bit Alligator Story.
Mr. \V. W. Ocain, living in the
neighborhood of Huntsville, six
nules northeast of Lake City, Fla., has
been troubled for years by the depre
dations ot a large alligator. His track
as he made his way through the fields
has been often seen, and the frequent
disappearance of hogs occasioned this
gentleman to make otters for h.s teeth.
With the hope of destroying this pest,
he put out bait and poison several
weeks ago. The bait was taken but
still the alligator took in additional
shotes. A large hook was obtained and
baited, but bait and hook were taken,
the latter by gnawing the rope which
held it. Things were becoming des
perate, and the recent dry weather fa
vored Mr. Ocain Recently the
alligator was trailed to his hole, and
finding it muddy, it was concluded
that he had just sought retreat. A ne
gro was sent in, but was immediately
seized by the leg, and with difficulty
was rescued badly bitten. However,
the party succeeded in killing the alli
gator, which measured ten and a half
feet. He was skinned and opened,and
in him was found the hook, a large pig,
and several other things. Having been
fed so well it was thought a good time
to try alligator steak, but this was pre
vented by the suggestion that the meat
might be poisoned. A dog, however,
was permitted to eat his fill,and,strange
to relate, in a short time was dead.
—There are 6,503,600 Jews In the
world, according to iheJevcish Messengers
computation.
BR I EPS.
—Nashville boasts of $300,000 worth
of improvements In six months.
—The dividends paid in Boston in
August aggregated $2,633,00*.
—The soil on which timber Is grown
increases or deteriorates Its value.
—ln Cambria ceunty, Pa., butter
sells at eight cents per pound.
—Senator Wade Hampton's leg still
gives him a great deal ol trouble.
—London has a police force of 10,474
men, costing $6,250,000 to maintain It.
—A new dlreectory of Minneapolis,
Minnesota,indicates that the population
of the city is about 52,000.
—The pensions granted last year,
from the English Civil List, amounted
to SI2OO.
—Mr. Tennyson has been requested
to write the inaugural ode (or the Aus
tralian International Exhibition.
—The cotton mills of Columbus, Ga.,
consume annually 18,256 bales of the
staple.
—ln a Bombay cotton factory a man
receives $8 a month, a woman $4, and a
child $2.50.
—Since the Crimean war England
has ret 1 need her national debt from
£900,000,000 to £712,000,000.
—Nearly 300 miles of railroad have
been built in California so far this
year.
—Split timber is more durable and
stronger than that which is hewn,
from t..e continuity of the fibres.
—Red ink is a solution of alum, col
ored with Brazil wood, or an ammoni
cal solution of cochineal.
—The Pullman palace cars have been
introduced on the Italian routes run
ning from Brindisi and Bologna.
—The crop of pineapples this season
is estimated at double that of former
years.
—Ground has been broken, for the
monument to General Wayne, to be
erected at Erie, Pa.
—The Rigged School Union ef Lon
don expends about $133,009 a year in
efforts to elevate the lowest and poor
est classes.
—Meissonier will soon finish a por
trait oj' the late Louis Napoleon, begun
in 1870, but delayed by the war and the
exile.
—Mrs, Mary Howitt has received
from the English Government a pen
sion of SSOO, iu consideration or' her lit
erary services.
—The Pennsylvania Railroad Comp
any have ordered the building of eight
hundred freight cars and twenty pas
senger cars at the Altoona shops.
—The President begins work shortly
after 9 o'clock in the morning. His
son, Webb, sits on his left hand and his
stenographer behind his chair.
—ln a thunderstorm In Appenzil,
Switzerland, a tew davs ago, a farmer
and ten of his cows, one of whlcn be
was milking, were killed by lightning.
—The SSOO won by Courtney the oth
er day at Silver Lake has been presen
ted by him to the widow of a man who
lost liis life while In the sculler's em
ploy.
—Chief Justice Chase's grave at Oak
Hid, near Washington, is marked aim
ply by a block of gray granite, bearing
only the record of his birth and death
following his name.
—The apple croD In Kent county,
Md., promises to be much larger than
usual, and it is expected that fifteen dis
tilleries, producing 8,000 galloas of ap
ple brandy, will be put in operation.
—At a general Conference of the Af
rican Methodist churches of New Eng
land, recently held at New Bedford, re
ports showed a membership of 1,317.
Tne denomination has twelve Sunday
schools, containing 555 scholars.
—For the six months ending June
3 )th, 1879, there were thirty failures in
Boston, with liabilities of $2,594,000,
while for the same time last year the l- ®
were 175 failures, with liabilities of $6,-
536,523.
—The famous solid silver vase, two
and-a-half feet high, and elaborately
fabricated, presented by the Whigs to
Henry Clay, in 1844, is offered for sale
at Boston, by the great man's grand
son.
—During the first six months of 1879,
52,394 cases of champagne were impor
ted, an increase of 11,105 cases as com
pared with the same months of 187b;
736,020 gallons and 45,708 cases of
French still wines were imported, an
increase of 264,560 gallons.
—Dean Stanley has granted a site for
a memorial of the late Prince Louis
Napoleon in Westminster Abbey. Itis
in a recess in Henry Vli's Chapei, near
the spot where Cromwell's remains lay
rill they were disturbed at the Restor
ation.
A woman working for a farmer
near Detroit was fatally poisoned, re
cently, by washing a pair of overalls,
which he had worn while putting Paris
green on bis potatoes. The woman had
a cut or two on her hands, into which
the poison penetrated.
—The English Wesleyan Association
of Local Preachers, organized in 1849,
has paid to the "sick, th-j aged, and for
death," among its own members, over
$275,000. There is a proposal to estab
lish fraternal intercourse with the Me
thodist Local Preachers' Association in
this country.
—lt has be r n determined by theScbool
Board of Richmond, Va., that all lady
teachers in the public school ol that
city who shall marry during their
t c rms of service shall thereafter be in
eligible to the position of teacher, and
their places shall be supplied by the
Superintendent of Schools.
—New England has over 230 farmers
clubs, with 72,000 active members, and
library books to the number of 21,000.
In the United States there are nearly
2,000 agricultural societies, with 68,000
volumes in fheir libraries, and with ac
cess to 360 different agricultural publi
cations, all exerting a direct influence
on the intelligence and futn re prospects
of the tillers of the soil.
—The Employes of the Pennsylvan
ia Railroad Ferry Company, in Jersey
City, have organized a tire department.
The department is divided into twelve
stations, connected by signals with the
managers room In the depot. The or
ganization is composed of twenty-four
men, who are divided into two watches,
one watch being in the daytime and
the other at night.
NO. 32.