SONG OFTHE SKATES,
Hear the singing of the sikatos!
Gieaming skates!
What a racket, rich and rollicking, the
rhythmic sound creates !
How they clink, clink, clink, .
Like the clanging of the “chink”
Which the miser loves to handle as he pours
it in his crates!
How they jingle, jingle, jingle,
On the glassy ice at night,
IVhile the youth and maidens mingle
With their shouts cf wild delight,
As they go
To and fro,
Gliding here, dashing there,
Rosy cheeks, flying bair,
Sturdy lads, and lassies fair |
#Ho! Away with melancholy!
Let us frolic and be jolly
On the ice.
Though old fogies think it's folly,
Yet it's nice.
T.ct us skate, skate, skate,
Till our hearts become elato
"With the merriment aud jollity that such a
pleasure brings,
eld Time with mirthful twinkles
flies with laugter-lnden wings.
How each skater navigates,
Radintes and gyrates,
As his speed accelerates,
And he circumbulates
«On the smeoth and shiny surface with his
scintillating skates!
While
TROUBLE ABOARD,
Some vars ago 1 ran an old schooner
out of Mobile, She was a small craft
not more than 100 tons burden—and
had originally come from some northern
port. I called her the Eutaw, and I
made many profitable runs along the
coast of the gulf, and two or three
times I doubled the capes of Florida.
While we lay at Mobile taking in a
load for New Orleans, two of the most
desperate villains in Alabama were ap-
prehended. Their names were AdolphLe-
roy and Matt Vickers,and they had com-
mitted a good many robberies and more
than one murder in the country between
the two big rivers, They were lodged
in the jail at Mobile, and as soon as
they were thrissecure the evidence came
in against them fast and strong, the
number of burglaries and highway rob-
beries they had committed was also
beyond compute, and at least five mur.
ders were fastened upon them. But
one morning it was found that the pris-
oners had escaped, and those who had
been so free to testify against them
turned pale when they received the in-
formation, and turned away in mortal
terror. A reward of $4000 was
ifered for their recapture, or $2,000
for one of them. Dut they were not
to be found. Noone had seen them,
and no traces of them could be discov-
ered.
On the second day after the escape of
these rascals I was ready to sail, and
got under way about 3 o'clock in the
afternoon. My erew consisted of only
myself and my two sons, Stephen and
John. Stephen was 20 years old and
Jack 18, and they were both of them
stout, rugged boys. Our runs were so
short that I found this to ba craw
enough, though, very frequently I took
one or two more hands. But on this
occasion we had promise of a quick,
fair passage, and we three concluded to
run her through. We had a fair wind
for a start, and ran down the bay at a
good rate, opening the passages between
the Dauphin.and Mobile Point a little
after 6. We were just passing the
light house, and I had the helm, when
1 sung out to the boys to stand by the
sheets, Stephen went to the main
sheet, but I didn’t see Jack, 1 waited
a few minutes, and thon sang out again,
Presently the boy came up from the
forepeak, but instead of going to the
sheet he came aft, and I was just going
to tell him to go back to the fore sheet
when I discovered that he looked real
kind o’ startled and fearful.
“What is it?” says I, forgetting the
sheets; for I knew that when one of
my boys showed a quivering lip there
was something more than ordinary to
pay.
He put his fingers to his lips and told
me to speak low. ‘‘Feor,”’ said he
“‘swwve’ve got passengers aboard.’
“Ha-—runaway negroes!’ said L
‘Not quite sosimple,’’ returned Jack,
with a dubious shake of thehead “We
have got two villains aboard.”
“What two?”
“Leroy and Vickers!”
“Get out!” said I, thinking he musi
be joking.
“Father,” said he—gnd when he
spoke “father” in that way I knew
there was nothing but sober serious-
ness in what was to come after it—*I
tell you they’re aboard this schooner!
“They’te in the hold, chock for’rd; and,
‘what's more, they mean to come out
when we get well out-side! I've heard it
alin
I steered straight out and listened to
Jack, for I knew it must be as he said.
We had no forecastle parted off from
the hold, as all of us that ever wanled
passage had plenty of room in the
cabin; but we had a forepeak parted
off chock in between the bows, where
we stowed all rigging and tar buckets
.and such kind of stuff, While we were
running dowu, Jack had gone into this
place to pick out some rope yarn, and
as he found an easy seat wpon an old
sail, he sat down there, with his back
against the bulkhead, and began to
inlay a piece of rope for the yarns.
not been at work a great while
efore he heard a noise among the
boxes in the hold, and after listening a
few minutes he knew that somebody
was in there. Ile knew it could not be
- either I or Stephen for he had heard us
both on deck; 80 hs thought it must be
a» negro. Presently he heard a voice
¥
”
and then an answer, There were two
of them—and they were white men,
too. Jack sat as still as a mouse, with
his ear_to the thin bulkhead, and he
could hear nearly all that was said. He
soon discovered that they were the two
vilalns who had escaped from the
jockup in Mobile, and that they meant
to kilt us and throw us overboard as
soon as we got outside and then maxe
a run across the gulf to Cuba.
As soon as I heard Jack's story 1
knew it was all just so, for he could
repeat the very words they had spoken.
They had crawled into the hold two
nights before, nnd as we had commenced
to fill up forward before that, they had
not been disturbed. They had weapons
with them, and had managed to get
some bread and water. And they had
kept the run of the time pretty well,
for Jack heard them tell over how long
it would be before night would set in,
and they had it to a very few minutes,
They knew we should be outside by
dark, and then they meant to come on
deck. 1 asked Jack if he was sure
they hadn't heard him in the forepeak.
“They couldn't,” he said, “for I
never made a bib of noise after I Knew
they were there. They had been fur-
ther aft when I went down, and were
crawling back to their old nest when I
heargl em, No, they don’t suspect that
they're discovered.”
When I first began to reflect on this
I must confess that I was more than
bothered. I was startled and fearful.
I thought what notorious, bloodthirsty
villains they were, and with what per-
fect readiness they would cut our
throats and toss us overboard.
“Stephen,” said I as I saw how
thoughtful he was, ‘‘what do you think
of it?”
“Why, said he, raising his head and
speaking as coolly as though he had been
talking about ordinary business. *‘‘I
think we’ll pocket that $4,000!"
“Eh? said 1.
“We've got 'em hard and fast,” he
added, “and we can lay low and take
em. There ain't but one way for ‘em
to get out of the hold while the hatches
are on, and that’s through the forepeak;
and I suppose they've already got a
passage marked out through the bulk-
head. The boards are thin, and they
can easily get one or two of ‘em out
of the way. I rather calculate they'll
find something falling about the time
they show themselves on the deck.”
As soon as Stephen began to speak I
saw how simple and practical our ad-
vantage was; and when Isaw that Jack
was cool and confident, I had no more
fears; but set about the work of prepa-
ration at once, I knew that the cargo
was so stowed that the willians could
not reach the cabin bulkhead, and I
also knew that thev coula not force the
hatches, Of course they could reach
the deck in the easiest way possible,
and that would be as my bo y had said.
It was now past sundown, and we had
left the Dauphin on our quarter, and
by dark would be well outside, The
wind was from the northwest, so we
had it on our beam, and needed to pay
but little attention to the sails
The little hatch or scuttleway to the
farepeak was just abaft the heel of the
bowsprit, aud as it had been left open
all day, we left it open now. We had
pistols a board~good ones—as we al-
ways carried about the docks; and one
of our first movements was to see that
these were carefully loaded, for we
might have to use them in a case of an
emergency, Then we arranged that
Stephen and I should conceal ourselves
behind the bits by the bowsprit, and
that upon a given signal, Jack should
leave the helin and conceal himself
abaft the foremast, ready to render
such assistance as might be necessary.
As soon as the night had fairly shat
in Stephen and I crept noiselessly for-
ward and took our stations by the bitts,
It was not very dark, for there were no
clouds in the heavens, and the stars
shone bright and clear; still it was
dark enough for our purpose. We had
not lain there 15 minutes when I heard
a sound from below and I whispered to
Stephen and asked him if he had heard
it.
“Yes,” he sald. “They are moving
a board away from the bulkhead.”
I could hear them very plainly, and
as soon as I was satisfied that they
were coming I threw a small stone
upon the deck. This was the sign
agreed upon with Jack and he immedi-
ately came forward and took up his
station directly abaft the foremast. He
had lashed the tiller so that all “was
safe for the time on that seore.
Presently 1 heard the tread of the
villains among the rubbish in the fore.
peak, and directly afterward I saw a
human head slowly rise above the opens
ing of the little hatehway. It re
mained in sight a moment and then
disappeared, I asked Stephen if Le
saw it.
“Yes,” sald be, “and they'll both be
up presently.
“Your hand is steady?’ 1 asked,
“As steady as ever a dead calm was,
and as stout as a hurricane,” he re-
reappeared, and this time a
came slowly, and stepped upon the
deck not four feet from where I
head soon
concealed, and in a few seconds after-
ward his companion followed hun,
“Hist!” said the one who had come
up first, as the other reached his side.
“They are aft, Shall we use our knives
first, or get some clubs?”
“Get clubs,” was the response, ‘and
use the knives if we need them."
“All right. We'll find handspikes
somewhere, We shall take em by sur-
prise and finish ’em before"
I don’t know what more the fellow
might have said* for at that moment
he began to look around, as though
hunting for a hamdspike, and I was
fearful that he might discover me in
my hiding place, so I passed the word
to Stephen, apd we leaped to our feet.
My man heurd the movement behind
him, but before he could turn my hand-
spike was upon his head, and he stag-
gered against the weather-rail close by
the cat-head. 1 saw that he was
stunned, and I leaped after him. He
warded off my next blow with his right
arm, but it cost him dear, for “it broke
the bone short off above the elbow.
The knife which he had drawn fell to
the deck, and before he could recover
himself I succeeded in knecking him
down
Stephen’s tirst blow had been more
effective that mine, for his man
beneath it, and was securely bound be
fore he could give any signs of return-
ing consciousness,
to my assistance, and was ready with
arm; but he saw how matters were
going, 80 he reserved his fire, knowing
that I wished to take the fellows alive
if possible. We bound his legs to-
gether, but when I found how badly
his right arm was broken 1 left that one
to hang, and lashed the left arm to the
body.
As soon as this was accomplished we
put the schooner about and made back
toward the bay, for I was determined
to land the rascals in Mobile as quickly
as possible. We moved them aft upon
the quarter deck, and when they came
to their senses and realized what had
happened they raved in all sorts of
shapes. They swore that no jail or
prison could hold them-—that they
should surely get away again, and thal
their first work should be (0 send me
and my two boys out of the world; but
if we would let them go, they would be
more considerate and would not harm
us, They kept up this strain until
thoy found it would not work, and
then they assured us that that they had
untold sums of money concealed in
various places, and if we would let
them go they would make us rich.
jut they succeeded no better than
before, and then they went into the
bloody threats again. This they kept
ing no attention to them, and then the
proved to be Matt Vickers, seemed to
discover that his arm wanted caring for
rain. But I could give him little help.
I fixed a cushion for his arm to rest
upon, and thus he had to remain and
make the best of it. He begged me to
let him up, but there was so much ugli-
ness in his tone that I wouldn't trust
him,
We dropped anchor close to the
city about 11 o'clock at night, and
Jack pulled ashore in the boat and
brought officers aboard, into whose
hands we resigned our prisoners, Matt
Vickers had his arm set by an experi-
enced surgeon, but not long afterwards
he got his neck broken by the hangman,
and in this latter catastrophe Adolph
Leroy kept him company.
The reward of $4,000 was cheerfully
paid over to us, so that our little bit of
trouble and excitement turned out well
for both ourselves and the community
at large.
SRE
Habits of the Aye Aye.
This curious lemurine animal, which
is confined to certain districts of Mada-
gascar, has received its name from the
Malagassy expression of surprise,
“Hay! flay!” The name should be.
written Haibay, as each syllable coms
mences with an aspirate. Native re.
ports are contradictory as to its habits
in a wild state, but Rev. G. A. Shaw
has sent to the Zoological Society of
London some notes on one in confime-
ment, It eats bananas and the small
fruits of several native sifrubs, and fan.
cies rice boiled in milk and sweetened
with sugar, but will not touch meat,
larvee, moths, beetles or eggs. It does
not hold its food in its hands, as some
lemurs do, but uses them to held it
upon the floor cf the cage. After it
has eaten it invariably draws each of
its long claws through its mouth, as
though, in its natural state, these had
taken a chief part in procuring the
food. It is not so easily tamed as sone
writers have sald, since Mr. Shaw's ex.
perience was that his example was
“ yery savage, and when attacking
strikes with its hands; with
but a slow movement. As might be
imagined in a nocturnal animal, its
movements in the day are slow and
uncertain, and it may be sald to be
inoffensive then.” A number of super-
nected with it.
qe
JewrLny may be nicely cleansed
SADIE a LO et
ig of chamois, 1 is
ry this too often with gold watches,
¥
. nmner and Gresley.
Charles Sumner, many years before
he was known in Politics, sought the
acquaintance of Ilorace Greeley in New
York. He found the journalist mach
engaged, and was invited by him to
come to his house the next morning and
take breakfast, Mr. Summer was not
an early riser, and he liked a good
breakfast when he did get up. He ia-
ner anticipated one in this case. - Atl
the early hour named by Mr. Greeley
he left the Astor House, took a stage,
and rode several miles up Broadway,
and after much difficulty found the resi-
dence of his new friend at an old-
fashioned farm-house, situated in the
middle of an orchard between Broad-
way and the river, where he was hospit-
ably received by the occupants. After
considerable conversation with Mr,
Greeley the latter remarked to his wife,
who had come into the room, that Mr.
Sumner would probably like something
to eat. She expressed a doubt whether
there was anything in the house, at
which Sumner, who was really hungry
after his leng ride, was somewhat-—well,
surprised, to say the least, **Why,
mother,” said Greeley to his wife, ‘you
must have some milk, some bread and
| milk in the house” She thought that
it might be so, and soon appeared with
a mug, two bowls and some crackers,
which she placed on a bare pine table,
and the two incipient philanthropists
Any body
| ate their breakfast in peace.
in these things can appreciate the situa-
tion. No doubt it was the first and last
time he ever did justice to bread and
milk. The friend to whom Sumner re-
lated this incident had a feeling, which
time rather strengthened, that the older
philosopher was practising & grim joke
on the gay and somewhat festive young
man from Boston. Sumner, however,
never could appreciate a joke, and con-
sidered the transaction a real one so far
as good faith was concerned, although
he related it with considerable glee.
{ Perhaps he bad in his heart something
i of the feeling of Thackeray, who once
said to a friend in Boston, **1 often wish
I knew whether Becky Sharp was really
guilty when found by ber husband with
the Marquis of Steyne under such re-
markable circumstances,’
EE — =, SD
Vienna Tragedies.
! News from Vienna in relation to
| burning girls to death fixes the crimes
| in one, Hugo Schenk, who is an Ameri-
{ can citizen. It is asserted that in 1865
| where he spent several years. Schenk
| has so far confessed only to the murders
| of the servant girls, but he and his
{brother and an accomplice named
| Sehlossarek have murdered at least
{ twenty persons, He excuses himself
i by saying that he narcotized his victims
and that they died without pain. Schenk
behaves in a most cynical manner, He
| plays chess in his cell and writes poetry
of a sentimental tone. There were
| frightful scenes at the police
The relations of the murdered girls
i came to identify the things found with
| their missing relatives, Schenk has a
wife in Bohemia, She expresses herself
to an interviewer in most tender terms
concerning him, She said :(—"If
Sehenk wants me I will go immediately
to Vienna to afford him consolation.
I have spent with him many happy
hours that will never be forgotten.”
Frau Schenk is a governess in a wealthy
family.
Schenk partly confessed his crimes,
but denied some of the charges. The
locksmith in whose house he was ar-
rested was also taken into custody. It
is said that four families have for many
years lived solely upon the savings of
murdered servant girls, and it is thought
likely Schenk’s victims will be found to
exceed half a dozen, He confessed to
one crime which none suspected, dnd
also to having murdered an aunt and
niece of the name of Timal., He did
not show much courage while being
examined and fainted several’ times,
Schlossarek, the locksmith, seems a
more determined character; but his
wife, who was ignorant of his primes,
was difficult to deal with. In her des.
pair she seemed ready to kill her baby
for being a murderer's child. It is de.
clared that a band of at least sixteen
persons all lived in one house in the
remote suburb of Rudolphsheim, near
Vienna, and planned these murders.
Hugo Schenk was the member intrusted
with the work of enticing the girls
away and murdering them with Schios-
sarek’s aid.
The first of the cases in which Schenk
is suspected dates back to August, 1878,
and the last is supposed to have oe-
curred in August last, The earliest
victim was Theresa Kettarl, thirty.
seven years of age, from Munich, who
was as cook in the household
of an official of the Ministry of Finance,
The police was informed that she had
been seen at six P, M., on the 4th of
August preceding, in the company of a
man apparently abodt thirty-five years
old, who on the day before had been
about with her. The stranger
was waiting for the missing woman
near a house, She came out, and they
walked about till nine P. M., when the
woman, who is represented by all as of
highly character, returned
matrimonial advertisement, On August
4 she sald she was going to make an ex-
cursion to the mountains, but that she
would return before her master did,
On the day named she carried a lady's
enamelled watch, with chain, several
rings and bracelets and a savings bank
book for 1,177 florins, It was then as-
certained that on August G—that Is,
two days after her departure—~the took
the money taken out. The woman had
taken with her her dog in a basket.
On August 10 this * basket *’ was found
in a carriage of the Vienna Paris ex-
press train, The basket was empty,
but the dog's straw-colored hairs in it
were enough to identify it.
On the 20 of December the police
received information that Katarina
Timal, from Bohemia, forty-seven years
of age, and her niece, Josephine Timal,
thirty-three years old, a chambermaid
out ef service, living In a suburb of
Vienna, had left with a certain Hugo
Schenk, pretending to be a railway
engineer, for Cracow, and had not been
heard of since by their relatives, This
| Information was lodged by the three
| sisters of Josephine, the niece, The
| Director of Police, being informed by
telegraph of the occurrence, at once re-
| membered that case of Ketter], in
{ which the circumstances were similar. |
{ It wasshown that Josephine Timal was |
|in service, with another girl named
{ Maria Grausam, in the establishment
of an old lady in April, 1883, They
| were both well-behaved, diligent girls, |
‘and had, the first 7560 florins and the
other 500 florins in the savings bank. |
| They thought of marrying, and, like
| Ketter], each of them advertised for a |
| busband. Two days afterward Joseph- |
| ine Timal received a letter asking for |
| an interview, The writer came to the j
|house and introduced himself as an |
| engineer out of work. He spoke, how- i
| ever, of a rich aunt, and seems to have |
| gained over the girl very quickly, for |
| after the first interview she told her
{ friend that she vas very happy and |
{ hoped to make a good marriage. After |
{ a further courtship Josephine told Maria |
{that Schenk insisted on her leaving |
| service, as he could not marry a do- |
| mestic servant, Josephine left her
It struck the
| friend Maria as strange that the bride-
| groom did not come to fetch his bride,
| commissionaire, that he was walling |
| for ber in the square before the Votive |
| Church, |
Nothing has since been heard of |
| Josephine, But in a short time Schenk |
| presented himself at the house of one
He per- |
| suaded the aunt, who had 1,100 fiorins |
Vienna with her on the 4th of June, |
and the money was all withdrawn from |
the bank soon afterward. The aunt
has not been seen since her departure, |
24
On the information being laid, re- |
searches were made, and it was stated |
that the money had been taken oul by
that the pretended engineer had used,
in his correspondence with Josephine,
a man who passed for his servant, but |
who was really his brother, Karl Schenk, |
a railway servant, employed on the |
Western Railway, and the father of
four children. This trace was followed
up, and it was discovered that Hugo
Schenk had first gone to Prague and
then to Linz, where he bad been staying
since the 1st of November. The inquiry
was pursued with great caution. The
Director of Police went to Linz; but
Schenk, it was found, had left for
Vienna.
A Robbers Roost.
A robber’s roost was discovered by
Mr. and Mrs. James Guthrie, of Denver,
recently, in a gulch near Webster, Col-
orado. Returning from a visit to their
daughter, whose home is at Grant Sta-
tion, they lost their way. They travel-
Jed until nightfall before they found a
cabin. In it was a rude table, some
chairs, a large open stove, and a good
supply of fuel, and on a shelf were six
loaded revolvers, several cartridge belts
filled with ammunition, aud three pairs
of spurs. Mr Guthne stabled his hor-
ses in the dark, and re-entered the cabin
and fastened the heavy door with a huge
bolt that fitted into slots in the logs. At
about midnight Mr, and Mrs, Guthrie
were awakened by sounds outside. A
man said:—*I wonder who is thers!
Shall we force the door?” The answer
was: —**Tain’t no use; that door will
stand as long as the cabin itself.” Then
the voices faded away. Mr. Guthrie
lay until long after daybreak ere he
ventured out. Theu, on going to har-
ness his horses by daylight, he found in
the barn six mail bags that had been
opened, and other evidences of highway-
French . yapepsin.
Dinners are always welcome, and
they have become the only form of en-
tertainment which is universally popu-
lar and sure to “draw.” There was a
time when dinners were only given to
attract amiable, powerful old fogies,
when no hostess in her senses would
have thought of wasting the best crus
of Bordeaux and Burgundy on young
gentlemen whose mustaches had not yet
sprouted, Even ladies on the right side
of thirty used to think that a dinner
was a rather coarse and tedious inflic-
tion, only to be endured onee in a while;
but now, to the great delight of the
Faculty of Medicine, whose members
make rare incomes out of the public
mania for indigestion, every man who
can afford to live in £0 .« apartments
sets up a man cook to tamper with his
friends’ stomachs, You cannot make
the acquaintance of a Pansian without
his bidding you to dinner, and at his ta
ble he introduces you to others who
wark you down speedily as a victim for
the rmoysterious concoctions of their
chefs, All this high feeding would re-
quire a good deal of exercise to keep its
effects in check; but Parisians are not
addicted to any form of exercise except
lounging. Ladies drive out to the
Bois in the afternoon when the weather
is fine, and men stroll up and down the
Avenue des Champs Elysees to see them
pass, Very few men ride; some go and
practice with the foils occasionally at a
fencing-school; but even this is too
much of an effort for the Parisian in
ter in the Champs Elysees, generally
visits, In this matter, again, customs
have curiously altered of late years,
for inexorable etiquette used to compel
gentlemen who called ceremoniously
upon ladies to put on dress clothes, and
after this pious practice had fallen into
abeyance frock coats and gray panta-
loons were long regarded as indispensa-
cutaway coats and dogskin gloves, which
may or may not smell of tobacco, ac-
cording to the wearer's taste. Every-
body smokes; there are many ladies of
position who plead guilty to a half a
dozen, daily cigarettes, and al S01
to the drawing-room the afternoon call-
pleases. Should he prefer tea and cakes,
there thoy are. Tea is now understood
in Paris, and is no longer served up in
weak, straw-colored infusions, but in
honest brews of refreshing strength.
Many Frenchmen, however, cling tothe
of
brandy or rum is needed to bring out
mn is A 5S
The Disappearing Bang.
The decadence of the bang 18 an-
nounced. A matter of such importance
cannot be ignored. In all ages the
dressing of the hair has occupied the
feminine mind to a very large extent,
Eve, in
the Garden of Eden at the dawning of
world, curled around her rosy
fingers the silken ringlets that fell upon
her pearly shoulders when she observed
the approach of Adam through the
trees, Even St. Paul, in his powerful
epistles, draws atlention to the fact
that hair is the adornment of a woman,
and a charm that she should glory in.
Tarquin became enamored of Lucrece
when she saw her shimmering tresses
kissing her blushing cheeks, as she bent
over her spinning wheel. Napoleon be-
came infatuated when his eyes ‘rested
upon the raven coils of Josephine. In
view of the potent charms attached to
“Only a Woman's Hair,” the general
public will be interested in learning that
bangs are disappearing from the Tore-
heads of the fair leaders of fashion. A
few years ago a young lady without
bangs would have been as obsolete as a
S-cent postage stamp. Now ome who
wears bangs is looked at askance, as
mnch so as if she appeared in a dashing
jockey costume. The bang is out of
date. It bas served its purpose, and
must go. The new styles are the Sara-
toga wave and the Grecian coll. The
Saratoga wave isa revival in a modified
form of the custom which prevailed
twenty-five years ago, when ladies were
wont to part their hair in the middie
and bring it down in two semi-circles
from the centre of the forehead, cover-
very charming effect, and makes a
pretty woman perfectly irresistible
when she turns her back,