er to ——
A SEA-SOUND.
Hush! Hush!
"Tis the voice of the sea to the land,
As it breaks on the desolate strand,
With a chime to the strenuous wave of
lite
That throbs in the quivering sand.
Hush! Hush !
Fach requiem tone as it dies,
With a sou! that is parting, sighs;
For the tide rolls back from the pulseless
elay
Asthe foam in the tempest flies.
Hush! Hush!
OQ throb of tho restless sea!
All hearts are attuned to thee—
All pulses beat with thine ebb and flow
To the rhyme ot eternity |
RH TIS
LOVE BEYOND PRICE:
The farm of the Willettes was a model
of neatness and thriftines. Never did
the neighbors find a broken fenoe-rail
or an untrimmed hedge, for in spite of
the poverty of its owner and the want
of help nothing was neglected. Farmer
Willette was wont to draw himself up
proudly and declare that although he
had but ome man, his son Tom, and
himself to run the farm, no one in
Hillside conld boast of a prettier place
or better-kept fowls and animals than
he.
In the old-fashioned farm-house his
daughter Jeanie made the domestic
wheel revolve smoothly, while his gen-
tle, delicate wife assisted in the lighter
duties, which Jeanie saw were even too
much tor her feebleness,
And so their lives ran on in one dull,
monotonous routine, until an event ooc-
curred which caused a sudden turn in
affairs,
Will Avery, the son of the richest
man in Hillside, came down from the
city, where he had been working, to his
former home ou a visit. He langhed at
Tom Willette for plodding along on a
stupid farm when he might make a for-
tune in the city. And Tom (foolish
boy that he was), ashamed to confide
his intentions to his father, and leave
home in an honest, straightforward
way, sneaked off in the dead of night,
leaving a note which Jeanie found
upon his pin-cushion, to tell his parents
that he was tired of hard, country work,
and Lad gone to the city to seek his for-
tune,
When the farmer heard of tne flight
of his son his wrath was fearful to be-
hold, and in the heat of his anger he
swore that Tom should never enter his
door again; and he forbade any mention
of his Loy's name by either wife or
daughter,
They obeyed him, and only when in
the solitude of her own room did Mrs.
Willette speak of her absent boy to the
sympathizing Jeanie,
Nine months passed weanly by, and
only once did they hear from Tom, who
sent a letter to his proud father t& crave
his forgiveness; but the father's anger
had not yet cooled, so he returned the
lotter, saying that he had no son, and
who once occupied that place in his
home and affections.
Poor man! He had placed all hopes
of future greatness in his only son, and
no wonder the hard-working [farmer
found it a difficult task to forgive Tom
for destroying his ambitious hopes, He
was not the man to complain to an-
other of his misfortunes, and as he
could not afford to hire another hand
on the farm, he worked harder than
ever,
His tall figure began to stoop, and
his iron-gray hair became snowy white.
He would go to the house at meal-time,
but was hurried and silent, then out
again he would go, having barely
tasted a morsel, and in answer to
Jeanie’s anxious Joook would say that
he had no time to eat; he had too much
to do,
That set Jeanie to thinking how she
could lighten his cares, and she finally
concluded to hurry over her own work
and then take Tem’s place upon the
farm as far as she was able; and it was
a comical sight to see the young gurl
with a torn straw hat, faded dress, and
with an old pair of ‘l'om’s stout boots
upon her feet, whip in hand behind the
plow, urging the old horses’ ou. But
Jeanie didn’t care, Father had more
time to rest, and she fancied he was
losing the hurried, care-worn look that
had settled upon hus face since Tom had
rn away.
As for Mrs. Willette, the anxiety and
care as to how they should manage
through the coming winter, and the
feverisit longing for her son, toid
greatly upon her already feeble frame,
and one day Jeame woke to the re-
lle that her mother was dangerously
ill,
“Father,” Jeanie said, stopping the
farmer as he was leaving the house--
*“father, 1 fear mother is sicker than we
know."
“What!” shouted the farmer, un-
needing Jeauie's motion to be quiet,
‘your mother mck? Why, you must be
crazy, girl! She told me this morning
that she wasn't agoin’ to get up till after
breakfast ‘eause she fell tired like; bunt
she isn’t much sick, I reckon, else she
would a told me;” and with a few more
words he hurried sway, while Jean ran
up to her mother’s room and bent over
the bed.
“Mother, dear,” she whispered, ten.
derly, “de you feel il? Can I do any-
thing for you?”
“They told me that my Tom had run
away, and it isn't true; I know it is
not,” muttered the uivalid, as she
tossed restiessly aboul, while every
how and then s mosa broke from her
PB.
Jean was very much frightened, for
she ould not wu how her
mother could pave forgotten that Tom
had run away so long ago.
“Mother,” she cried, laying her cool
though hard hand upon her mother’s
burning forehead, ‘don’t you know
me? It is Jean—your Jean, Ohl what
shall 1 do?” and with tears of help-
lessness in her eyes she prayed for
guidance, Almost immediately »
thought struck her,
Darting from the room and down the
stairs Jean entered the kitchen, and
sei the old dinner horn she blew it
r , then waited anxiously. Yes,
her father’s voice was hallooing to her,
Onoe more the hoarse tones of the horn
floated down to her father at work in
the pasture, and it was with a sense of
relief that she saw him striding rapidly
toward the house.
“What is it, Jean girl?" he asked,
panting for breath, as he neared the
house. In a few hrief words she had
told him all, and bidding her run back
to her mother, he hurried to the barn,
As Jeavie sat by the bedside of her
mother she heard the clatter of the
horse's feet. Running to the window,
she saw her father riding rapidly toward
the village. :
«Where is Ton? Why don't some-
body bring him from the fleld? I must
speak to him,” cried Mrs, Willette, ex-
citedly. “Is he dead? John, John, yon
must forgive him—our boy—our only
one-oh, John!”
Her last words would have melted
her husband's prond heart, couid he
have heard them; but he was far away,
seeking the village physician whom he
fortunately found just stepping into his
buggy to make a professional eall; but
Farmer Willotte's startled appearancy
and urgent entreaty eaused the doctor
to change his destination, and they
were soon driving toward the Willette
farm,
Jean hurried forward to meet the
doctor as he entered her mother’s room,
“Is she very ill, sir? Oh, tell me!”
she cried, grasping his arm ia her ex-
citement.
“Be calm,” Miss Jeanie, ho answered,
soothingly, “for I have only you to de-
pend upon as nurse, Yes, I fear that
Mrs. Willette's is a very sick woman,”
He once more bent over the invalid,
who, having swallowed a sootuing
potion, now lay quiet with closed eyes.
"Phe farmer had stood eagerly watch-
ing the doctor's face, as he spoke to
Jean, and he now stepped forward.
“I gay, doctor,” touching the
physician's arm and speaking iu an
awe-struck voice, *‘you don’t mean to
say that my wife is very sick do you?”
“1 am afraid so, Mr, Willette,” was
the reply as the Joctor rapidly wrote a
prescription and hauded it to Jean.
“Your wife was always a very delicate
woman, and she should have never
married a farmer—s'east of all a poor
one,” he sdded in a low voice, yet not
so low bat that the husband caught his
words,
“No one knows that beiter than I
do,” the farmer mentally said, while
aloud he asked:
“You will call again this evening,
sir?”
“Yes,” answered the other man as he
softly closed the bedroom door and
walked along the cold, carpetiess hall
followed by Mr, Willette; “yes, I will.
But Mr. Willette, te be frank with you,
your wife has some trouble om her
mind over which she is constantly wor-
rying; and, indeed, I believe that this
trouble has partly caused the illness;
and—" he stood still, and the better to
emphasize his words, helaid a hand on
the farmer's shoulder, *‘and uutil that
trouble is cleared away I can give yon
no hopes of her recovery. I did not tell
your daughter of this, because I wished
first to make it known to you.”
“Yon are quite sure of this, Dr. Bar-
low?" the farmer asked, in a forced
Yoice,
“I am sir. Mr. Willetle, your wife
was very fond of Tom, wasn't she?”
Dr. Bariow asked significantly; and
without waiting for an answer he
gprang into tho buggy and was soon
out of sight, leaying ihe farmer to
awake to the astonishing truth that his
wife's life was despaired of, chiefly be-
cause he refused to allow the boy
whom he had disowned to retarn to his
home and his affections,
Slowly he donned his hat and retars-
ed to his work, feeling weaker and more
unmanned than he had ever been be-
fore,
““Which means,” he said angrily, but
to himself, giving the old horse a sha
out with the weip, ““that I am to sen
for that boy. Pshaw! the doctor is a
fool; he don’t know what he is talking
sbout, Send for Tom, indeed | No; he
has made his bed, so let him lie,” Thus
for a time he dismissed the subject from
his mind,
That night Hannah Briggs came to
the farm-honse to attend to the house-
work, that Jeanie might give all her
time and thoughts to her mother,
O | how wearily the days and weeks
crept by with no change for the better
in the invalid whose never-ceasing cry
was for Tom, Then she would imagine
herself conversing with her husband,
“Oh, John I” she cried, pitecusly,
“yon don’t know; perhaps he was
tempted to go; forgive him for my sake
dear;” and yet for the sake of his stub-
born pride her husband turned a deaf
ear to her ery,
Then came a time, however, when it
was almost too late. Groupad about
her bed that night were Jean, the doo-
tor, and the farmer all waiting for eith-
er life or death, they knew not which,
Without, the night was most beauti-
ful, so calm and so solemn, The gen-
tle breeze moved lazily through the
leaves pon the tall trees near the farm-
house with a sound like the rustling of
angels’ wings, while near by lay = soul
battling with death,
As the watchers sat there in the dim
light the old clack in the hall below
struck twelve, A few minutes later and
the sound of hushed footsteps ascend.
the stairs and coming toward the
sick room, The door was pushed stead-
ily open and the figure of a young man
a) ed in the moonlight, Unmind-
ful of the other occupants of the room,
he moved toward the bed and bent over
the prostrate form.
“ er,” a voice sald low and bro-
“mother, speak to me; it is
Tom."
That simple word had av effect that
all the doctor's medical skill had failed
to compass, A smile, faint but almost
heavenly, curved the mother’s lips,
“My Tom-—John forgive him 1” The
weak relaxed its hold upon the
large brown one, and with a little sigh
Mrs. Willette fell into a refreshing
eyes the farmer kneeling
beside the with his face buried in
his hands, waile deep sobs shock his
heavy frame,
God's merey had overwhelmed him,
¥
and quiet footsteps he stole from the
room, snd after a fow moments’ hesita-
tion Tom followed him.
No one ever knew what passed in
that interview—no one but God and
the two men ooneerned in it, Suffice
it to say that Tom never retmmed to
the city, but worked humbly and
thankfully upon the Willette farm, for
Tom became more patient, more sub-
dued than it had ever seemed possible
for him to be, Aud gradually there
arose a better understanding be-
tween his father and himself, for in the
bitter lesson that they had learned they
found that above and beyond all else
there is to be desired that Jove that is
beyond all price,
A Queer ¥ish,
“If you want to see sport,” sald a
lover of animals, ‘‘watch that cat.”
The anima! had stationed herself in the
Library door, and was looking intently
in the room. In a few moments she
began to walk slowly toward a large
aquarium that stood in the window, and
with a hight leap mounted the marrow
edge, balancing herself over the water.
Next she leaned down, thrust her red
tongus into the miniature lake, and be-
gan lappiag the cooling water, Then
camé a rush, and a bright speckled object
darted. A eplash, a clicking, sucking
sound, and a wail ot feline anguish rose
on the sir, ‘There was a second of wayer-
ing, and a round bunch of hair fell into
the water with a sounding splash, sCrame
bled out again, and disappeared through
the door amid the laughter of the wil.
NeRsCH.
“That,” sald the host, “happens about
everv day. with only slight vanations.
You see, the fish, a sunfish, is perfeclly
tame~—trained, in fact, to rise to my
hand aod take its food from me by
leaping several inches out of the water.
Jeng continually teased the fish has ac-
quired an irntable aad attacks
everything that the walter.
Some time ago the cat discovered the
fish sand leaped upon the tank as you
have seen her do, putting ber head down
to tha water. The moment her whiskers
touched it the sunfish had her, and hung
on hike a good one. She started back
and fell to the floor, the fish dropping
back. The next day she again made the
attempt, and in balancing upon the side
of the narrow run her tail touched the
water, The fish seized it and in she
went, but she never seems to learn.
Just mow the fish mistook her fongue
for the meat [ feed it wth and mpped
it well. You know it 15 sometimes sald
that fish cannot see wha! is going on
out of water; this fellow 18 an exception,
however, Watch it now.”
The speaker tok s small plece of cloth
and held it over the tank and within
three feet of the walter. In a moment the
sharp-oyed and richly-bued fish was ot the
surface. ‘Ihe rag was then lowered and
the prisoner leaped clear of iis native sle-
ment in itz endeavors to reach it, The
experimentalist next placed his bands io
the water, and the fish darted at them and
passed through ns fingers, allowing steell
to be touched without the slightest sign of
fear,
“The sunfishes,” sald the fish trainer,
‘are, I think, the most intelligent of all
our fresh water fishes. [ tran them WW
perform extraordinary feats, such as jump-
ing over a hurdle on the surfsce of ibe
water, aud then over a series of them.
You often see fishes in nature doing the
same thing. [I have trained my sunfish so
that it rings a bell suspended over the
aquarium, but, like Barnum's clown ele.
phant, it rings it continually unless s sup-
ply of food 1s kept up. The sunfish has
its likes and dislikes, and it has two Past
friends 1n a pair of caifishes. Dome Lume
ago I troduced a number of gold fishes,
and all hut one were accepled in good
fellowship. Toward this one unfortunate,
that was one of the triple-tailed Japanese
fishes, the sunfish showed the greatest
aversion, spending the enlire time in chas-
ing it around tbe tank, biting it in the
most savage ianner, and, seemungly,
urging on the catfishes, who, though they
would not touch the other fishes, would
creep slyly up to the victim and, seiziog a
fin, ching to it with ferocity. 1 was
obliged to take the poor fish out and place
it mm an adjoining tank, where lhe very
sight of it still enraged the sunfish, and
yot, as 1 sud before, toward the Ameri-
cans 1t was perfectly friendly.
temper,
approaches
A Yoecial Lesson.
Young Spoonogle never knows when to
leave when he calis on s young lady; he
likes the sound of his own voice so well
that he talks on and on, while the poor
girl grows light-headed with the tax on her
strength, and wishes the mantel-piece of
Elijah would fall on the tiresome caller.
There is a young lady on lafayette ave-
nue who made up her mind to give Spoon-
ogle a lesson. Bo, on a Sunday night,
when he called, she was as cordial as
possible up to 11 o'clock. Then, having
had a four-volume history of Spoonogle's
life, with an extended accofint of his in-
fluence in politics and business, she be-
gan to get dizzy and have a ringing in
her ears. At that moment her young
brother rushed into the room and said
rultiodly, *Pa wants the morning papers,
“Look in the westibule, Wille," she
answered, gently. ‘‘1 think I Leard the
boy leaving them some hours ago.”
Spoonogle never took the hint, but
deawled on about the roller skating rink,
and what a figure he cut on skates
The next interruption was from the head
of the house, who entered briskly, rub-
bing his hands,
“Good morning, good morning,” he
said, cheerily. ‘Ha, Spoonogle, you're
out early. Well, ‘early bird,’ etc. It's
going to be a fine day, from present
»
le was dazed, but he concluded
the old man had been drinking, and sat
back with a ‘‘come ome, come all, this
rock shall fly from ita firm base as goon
as yours truly” air that was decided and
convincing. ‘
A half hour passed, and the mother
hurned fo.
“Dear me, I'm ate,’ she smd, as she
entered. “I smelied the coftes an bour
ago and koew breakfast was walling,
but—ohl Good morning, Mi. Spochogler '
Then the sweet youth the hint
and drawing himself together he got out
into the hall and © the front door
Just as the nired # bell and the
small boy yelled * # *wf the
banisters.
The Pead Lester OfMos,
During the last year the number of
pieces of mall matter that reached the
dead letter offics was nearly four and a
ball millions! The exact number was
4,440,622, This is about 14,600 for
every day, A dally record is kept, and
for the day before my wisit this showed
over 10,000. Of the yearly azgregate
glven 4,856,915 were letters, domestic
and foreign, and 6%,007 were parcels of
every description. Of the letters 3,246,
892 were “dead,” strictly spesking—
that le, they were uncalled for at the
offices where received, advertised accord
ing to law, snd duly forwarded here.
There were 78,865 returned from hotels,
transient guests having falled 1o leave
directions where letters should be tor.
warded; 18,507 bearing fictitious addresses;
135,500 returned from toreign countries,
ead 3,749 registerod letters. There were
475,045 letters not properly ‘‘desd,” but
ciassed as “‘uamailable,” as follows: For
non.payment of postage, 181,084; misdi-
rected, $24,429; contaimmg inclosures
promtited by law, 1.545; without any
aadress whatever, 11,979. ‘I'he number
received mailed in foreiga countries was
405,848, According to the terms of the
international postal treaties all these are
returned unopened to the countries in
which they were mailed, and these treated
ns dead letters, MKvery one of these four
and a half million pieces was carefully ex-
amined and disposed of, as wo shall learn,
this work keeping about two hundred per.
rons busy the entire year.
The gentleman who has been kindly
placed at our disposal, ‘‘lo show us
through,” announces his readiness, and we
start upon our tour. We enter a large
room in which are pearly a hundred clerks,
busy as bees. On every hand there are
mail-bags and great heaps of epistolary
corpses aud papers ready to meet their
fate.
*‘Here,” says the guide, as we approach
a long desk where half a dozen ladies,
with quick eyes asd mumble fogers, are
busily at work, *‘is where tbe deal letters
are received, from more han Hfty thous
and different post-offices in the United
States. You see they are all done up in
packages, the wrapper showing the nature
of their contents, and addressed to thus
office. About 14,000 letters are handled
at this table every day. Our force isin
adequate Wo do wr constantly 1olreasiug
work, and our ‘openers’ arc now (wo or
three weeks behind. In that large case
you sce yonder are over 300,000 letters
tied up in peckages of 100 each, wailing
to be opened.
“14 me open for you ene of those pack.
ages that have just come in this morning.
Here 18 8 large one from Chicago. That
will show you the different classes of
letters we have. These ladies look them
all over and sort them, and then they are
sent to other desks for examinstion. Now,
look at these letters. (he first we come
to, you see, has no stamp. We get about
600 of these every day. Birsage, n't it,
that so many people, through carciessness
or ignorance, mal! unstamped letters. That
letter 18s not ‘dead,’ and if legibly ad-
dressod we send a potice to the person to
whom it is directed informing him thet a
jetter for bum 1s held here for postage.
The chances are a hundred to one that he
will immediately send the required stamp,
and we stick it on hus letter and send it 0
him. If we get no reply to the notice
within due time (he letter is then trealed
as dead, opened and returned 10 the sender.
That 1s the way that class is disposed of.
“Now here 1s another kind. This one
is misdirected; it has the town and county
but no State. The postmaster could not
send it, and bad no alternative but to send
it 10 the dead letter office. We get mor
than 8 thousand a day thst come under
this bead. They embrace all sorts of
errors ia the address, as well as those that
are illegible, for you know some people bry
to write when they can't, and the result 18
nobody can read it. The department docs
not allow 50,000 postmasters to do the
guersing. If a letter is not properly and
legibly addressed 18 must be sent here, and
we have some experis whose sole busn-
ess it is to do the guessing. And they
are good guessers, 100. We will see
them directly.
“look st this one. It is properly
sealed and stamped, but the envelope is
blank, there isn't the scratch of a pen
upon it anywhere. Forty or fifty of
these oome here c¢mly. Of course such
mistakes are sttributed only to carcless-
nets or insavertence. And it is a singular
fact that sa much greater peroentsge of
these unaddressed letters, than of any
other class we get, have valuable inclos-
ures, such as money, checks and drafts;
they are largely business jetlers, showing
that they are maed from offices and
counting-rooms, the fatal omissions result -
ing from the hurry and confusion of bus-
iness. | But it seems queer thal there are
#0 many of them. We ean do nothing but
open and return them. Here are a num-
ber returned from hotels. We have no
possible means of knowing the permanent
address of these persons and we can only
treat them as dead.”
At this moment one of the clerks en-
gaged in opening letters at a table near by
calls to the gentleman who 18 entertaining
me. He goes to him, and immediately
beckons for me to follow.
“Now, what can be done In this case!”
he says. ‘Here is a letter, this instant
opened, and you see what it contains”
There is a clean, new twenty-dollar ll,
neatly folded, and wrapped in a plece of
perfectly blank brown paper-—not a mark
of pen or pencil to show from whom it
wes sent. The letter had been advertised
as unclaimed and was dead, and the exnm-
ination of ita contents made it more com-
pletely dead than before.
“We have nothing but the postmark,
and even that isalinost obliterated, but our
expert will take hold of it and do the best
he can with it. There's a pretty slim
chance in this, 1 guess Uncle Sam will
get that money. This reminds me of
something in my own experience, A few
years ago when I was opening letters 1
found one just like this, except that the
amount was $30, and on the paper wrap-
around it was written in pencil, ‘A
nd. Matthew, vi. 8." 1 looked that
up and found it to be: ‘But when thou
doest alms let not thy left hand know
what thy right band doeth.' The letter
was addressed to a woman, and as it was
clearly a case of charity I really felt bad
that we could not succeed in finding either
Germany,
will all be returned, unopened, to those
countries, Here are a couple of registered
jotters. They undoubtedly contain value,
But 1t often happens thst a man sends
woney or a draft, io either a registered or
nn ordinary letter, while traveling. He
dstes bis letter at the place where he hap-
pens to be. We can only send it to um
there, and of course it comes back Lo us
again. Postmasters everywhere are in.
structed 10 all cases of a returned money
letter to take every possible means to find
the sender, but when be fails he can only
send it here agmn., All such returned
letters arc held here for three months, and
it 18 the sole busivess of one clerk to ¢n-
deavor by correspondence or otherwise 10
find vither the sender or the person ad-
dressed. Often he succeeds, but if not,
the money is turned into the United States
Treasury. ‘The dais in qach case are care
fully recorded and the amounts are subject
to reclamation by the owmer on making
proof withun four years. At the expira-
tion of that time the money by law passes
absolutely to the government, and can
only be recovered by act of Congress.”
‘What per cent of the money 18 re-
turned or delivered to those eddresscd?”
“Ninety-seven per cent.—nearly all of
it. The number of letters opened last
year containing currency, checks, drafts
and negotisble paper was over 54,000.
The amount of actual cash taken from
ietters was nearly $59,000, and the value
of checks, etc., representing money, about
§1, 600.000,
“here is ope more class 1 want 10 men-
tion, and that 1s the letters sent out by or
addressed to the frauds and swinding
concerns that gull innocent people. Just
look at this printed list we have of over
400 of these concerns in all parts of the
country. This list is furnished to all post
masters, and they are directed to forward
straight to this office all letters addressed
tn them. These letters—and we gel Lhem
by the thousand-—are usually wrtleo io
response 10 sitracuve adverlisements or
circulars, in which they promise what they
never intend to fulll, A short time
there was a firm in
vertisod a Hible as a means of swindling
the people. At first nobody thougnt of its
being a fraud, and a greal many bil st it,
and they all got bitten, too! We ‘caught
on’ pretty soon and found that the concern
was raking in the money snd giving sbso-
jlutely nothing 1n return. We sent a noti-
fication right away to all postmasters, and,
would you believe it, we received in one
day 6.000 letters sddressed to ibem,
Nineteen-twentiethe of them contained
money, from 75 cents to $5 each. That
was the greslest lot of the kind we ever
had. There was not less than $7,000 or
§8.000 in those letters, all of which were
returned to the senders, with a circular in-
forming them that the concern Was a
fraud. You see the government takes s
good deal of pains to scoommodate the
people and protect them from Imposiers
and swindlers.”
ago
———
“A Man Overboard."
While the bark Gladstone was in lali-
tude 49 degrees south and longitude 90
degrees east, s seaman fell overboard
from the starboard gangway. The bark
was scudding along with as rough sea
snd moderate wind, but on the alsrm of
“man overboard” being mven, she was
rounded to, and the starboard life-boat
was lowered, manned by the chief officer
god four men. A search for the unfor-
tunate man was made, but owing to the
roughness of the sea he could not be dis-
covered; but the boat steered to the spot
where he was Ist seen. Here they found
him floating, but exhausted, clinging for
desr life to the legs and wiags of a huge
albatross. The third bad swooped down
on the man while the latter was struggling
with the waves and attempted to peck him
with its powerful beak, Twice the bird
attacked its prey unsuccessfully, being
beaten off by the desperate sailor, battling
with two enemics—the water and the alba.
tross—Dboth greedy and insatiable. For
the third time the huge white form of the
bird hovered over the seaman, preparstory
to & final swoop. The bard, eager for its
meal, fanned its victim with its wide-
spread wings.
Suddenly s thought occurred to him
that the huge form so close to hus face
might become his involuniary rescuer.
Quick as thought he reached up and
seized the bird, which be proceeded to
strangle with all his might. The huge
creature struggled with wings and paddies
to free itself. In the contest the sailor
was besten biack and blue and cruelly lac-
crated, but be held his own, snd slowly
the bird quiversd and died. ‘I'ne carcase
floated Lightly on the waves, ils feathers
forming a comfortable support for the ex-
hausted man, who had so narrowly escaped
a lingering death. But another danger
awaited him, He was not much of a
swimmer, acd the excitement of the extra-
ordinary conflict began to tell upon him.
fle was faint and grew giddy. Bat with
one arm around the albatross’ body under
the wing, and one hand clutching the
bird's feet, the smlor awaited bas chance of
rescue. Presently be heard his comrades
shout from the boat, and in a few minutes
more was safe on board the barque, though
a good deal shaken and exhausted.
—— A ———
Fishing With a Flock of Geese.
In Scotland they have a curious way
of fishing that takes the medal for the
ease and with which it is con.
ducted, o fisherman we will say is
after pike. Selecting a big gooss from
his barnyard, or balf a dozen geose, as
the case may be, he ties a baited hook
and line about five feet long to their
feet and on reaching the water turns
them in.
out, and the fisherman lights his pipe
sits down, In a few minutes a fish
sees the bait and seizes it, giving the
a good pull The bird starts for
at fall tilt,
the fix
sinve My Funeral Private,
“1 kpew I'd bring up here later or
sooner,” he said to the Captsin st the
Central station, Detroit, ss an cfficer
walked bam io.
He was mud from head to heel, he
limped oo his left jeg, and the ofier of a
cent wouid have set him to crying like a
lost child. .
“What's the mstiter with youl” asked
the Captain.
“Nothin’, only if you have got any
gnm-fsced desth around here you can
bring it om as soon as you pleasel I'm
broke up, cleaned out, and ready to be-
come a cherub.”
There was micpce as the blotter was
brought out amd a pen hunted up, and
when they asked hun bis name he walled
out.
“Put me down #5 Abraham Lyons, de-
ceased, for 1 don’t want Wo Live any longer,
I never expected to live to have a son like
Dame! go back on me this way.”
“What's the matter with Danlei?”
“Gentlemen,” he replied, as he lad a
hand ornamented with seven warls on the
desk, “I'm & widerer, and Daniel is my
only son. last night 1 was to have been
married to the cutest, chunkiest, sassicst
little widder in Wayne Connty., 1 was £0
happy that I'd have sold my last par of
socks to pay outlawed debits, 1 Kinder
trod areund on air, 1 grioned at every
body and everything. Hang me if 1
didn’t take off my hast three Limes Wa
cow and hoped her family was as well es
could be expected with the bottom
kuooked out of the milk pail searket!”
“Welll”
“Well. 1 sent Daniel over to see
whether | should wear 8 white vest or a
black one, and what did be do bul box his
poor old father up! Went right back on
his parent who had stood up for bim like a
wall behind a briar bush, Went
u We
“Howi™
“Married her.
Went and fell in love
mother and made her bis wife. Yes, my
own son Daniel did that—the very son
whom I've set up with in sickoess and
nursed through adversity. Whom can we
trust now? Whither are we
He was locked up to sober off and to
jet the layers of mud dry, sud whed
Damel came down mn the afternoon to
see him he retired 10 thepdarkest corner
of his cell and calied out:
“Go way, base offspring! A son who'll
sneak in on his father as you did can never
expect forgiveness. Have my fanersl
tnctly private, and you peedn’t mind
about a tombstone!’
msc —
Chinese Gamnmesters.
ifrimno?’
drifung?
While the community 18 beng agitated
aver the existence in the city of Chinese
opium joints, it may perbaps not be out
of place to pay some silention 10 another
vice which is exceedingly prevalent
among the almond-eyed Mongolians It
is well known that the mhabitants of the
territory included behind ““the great wall
of Chins” are inveterate gamblers.
Chinamen have the spint of speculalion
on the uncertain 0 a grester extent, per«
haps, than persons of any other nation-
ality. When they come to ls couniry
they bring their own customs and this
propensity for gambling is one which is
freely indulged in wherever a half & dozen
of them gather together.
In Philadelphia 8s mgn hanging oul
from & doorway bears the following in-
scription: “Hop Chong Long & Co.,
dealers in chinaware, snd all kmnds of
goods and curiosities. The best tea aud
coffee.” There 18 a large assortment of
the goods mentioned for sale in the
house, and sa thriving trade 1s done there
during the day.
Lake all busipess bouses, no goods are
sold there st night, but the house is not
closed, however, after the suspension of
legitimate busioess for the day. With
darkness comes a pumber of ihe proprie-
tor's countrymen, and a short time after
the plsce is transformed into a Chinese
gambling-bouse in full blast. It 18 kept
open sll night jong, and the hum of voices
in a low tone aod a strange tongue can be
hesrd by the passer-by st any hour.
No one but Chinumen are admitted iato
the place, but a reporter obtained an oppor
tunity lo penetrate ils secrecy recently,
and be succeeded 1n getting in for a very
In the back room on the first floor about
s dozen “pigtsl Johns” were seated
about a table. The game in which they
were i seemed 10 engross all their
attention, as for fully five minuws the
scribe watched them, and his presence was
not observed by the pisyers.
It was impossible, hewever, for the re-
porter to asoertain the nature of the game.
Cards, domunoes, dice, checkers, snd
small ivory and glass “chaps” were used
in the one game, the latler representing
the stakes. The cards were tossed about
to the differept players, the checkers dis
tnbuted, the die cast and the dominoes
turned up at random, but the conneetion
between them was impossible for a Cau-
caman mind to grasp. It was evident,
however, that there was & connection, and
that no one set of the implements used
constituted the entire game. Upon going
upstairs to the second story a similar sight
was found. Here there was a young and
pretty white girl, seated in & corner of the
room, and a gentlemaniy-looking Uhina-
man, who wore civilized attire and spoke
faultless Eoghsh, isformed the reporter
that the girl was his wife.
The game in the second story stopped
guests.
golian gamblers were still absorbed in the
mysteries of their pastime when the re-
porter departed at 3 o’elock in the morning.
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