TIMELY TOPICS. A telephone has been placed in the • Congregational church, at Mansfield, (>., the wires lending to the houses of several aged and invalid persons. It sur mounts a floral decoration on the table in front of the open platform, where it is hardly seen, 'the speaker pays no at tention whatever to It. yet every word uttered In the auditorium Is easily heard in the rooms of the dwellings which the wires reach. The first message from tlie minister was from Scripture: "The word is nigh unto thee;" "His word runneth very swiftly." ■ According to the lluilway W'orhl, near ly 100,000 persons are employed on the railroads in the United States, and five times that many depend upon the roads for rapport, it is also estimated that between f300,000,000 and $100,000,000 ore annually paid to employees, and to persons who furnish the companies with supplies of various kinds. This vast business has sprung up in the lifetime of one generation, and its growth is still rapid. What another quarter of a cen tury will develop in this field would doubtless seem fabulous could it now he foretold. When the Zulus rushed in on the small British detachment of Col. Wood, and while there was yet an open road in tine direction, Col. Weatherly, an Eng lish cavalry officer, clapped his son. a hoy of thirteen —who was with him, on horseback—kissed him, and told him to fiy for life. The lad jumped from tho saddle, striking the horse a lash which sent it galloping off, and said: " Father. I'll die with you." The father handed his revolver to the child just as tin- Zulus reached, over British bodies, tin spot where they stood. Weatherly slew five Zulus before he fell, hut the son was silled at once. There have been some singular cir cumstances in which the eruptions of Mount Etna have differed from others. One occurred in when, after tin throwing of lava had ceased, in a certain area the trees, vines and even grass were struck dead .-is if by lightning, with no visible cause. Another was the burial of a glacier under the lava, which Lycll states remained for thirty years umnelt ed, a gigantic ice-house for the Catan ians. Much of the ruin caused by tin eruption of this volcano in 175.1 resulted from the sudden melting of the snows above the Val del Bovc and the pre cipitation of a flood ol water two miles in width. The amount of water passing over Niagara Falls has been estimated at 100,000,000 tons per hour, ami it* perpen dicular descent may Is- taken at 150 feet, without considering the rapids, which represent a further fall of 150 feet. Tin force represented by the principal fall alone amounts t<> lfl.HOo.Ooohorse-power an amount which if it had to be produced by steam would McwlUts an expendi ture of not less than 260.000,000 tons of can I per nnnum. taking tin- consumption of coal at four pound* per horse-power per hour. In other words, all tho coal raised throughout tin* world would barely suffice to produce the amount of power that annually runs to waste at this wonderful fall. The Srimtifir Amrrienn asserts "that the common fault in lightning rods is that they are not sufficiently connected with the ground. They are gem-rally stuck down two or thri-e feet into dry earth ; but such an arrangement is worse than useless; it is almost like placing the bottoms of the rods in a gloss bottle. In all ciuk-s the bottoms of the rod* un derground should be connected with iron or water pipes, if they exist; or in lieu thcr<-of, the rod* shnufd be extended a long distance underground, or should connect with a mass of old iron, or iron ore, or charcoal, or coal dust ol any kind, laid in a trench. No lightning-rod can Is- regarded as a safe conductor unless its lower extremity is carried deep into the ground, and there put in good con nection with a large surface of conduct ing material." Apropos to the intcr-oeeanic canal across the isthmus of I)ari<-n, a corres- V (indent in Buffalo write* to the New 'nrk t/mjAif, suggesting the construc tion of an enormous railway across the isthinu*. constructed and equipped to carry ships of any tonnage. He would have the track at each end of the route run down into water deep enough to support a properly built dock, so that a vessel coufd sail into a basin surround ing this approach to tin- track, and then be docked and drawn across tho i*thmu* on wheclg. The writer <!*•* not profess any engineering skill, and modestly ad mits that there may Is- difficulties in the way of his scheme which lie does not see. If so. others will probably see them. He thinks such a road might he huilt for one-tenth of $900,000,000, the estimated cost of the proposed canal. The police statisties of large cities are often more impressive than a long and rhetorical sermon could IK-. Take those of Chicago, for example. The annual arrests number aliout 10,000, one-half for drunkenness, and of the total, fi.OOO are women, V< ithout going into elabo rate comparisons of figures, it may lie af firmed that Chicago is not greatly worse than other large cities; it may not be as hod as some others. At the best we ob tain a glimpse of an incalculable amount of crime nnd misery ; and when we remember that the influ ence of evil examples spreads like-a con tagious disease, the subject is seen to lie one of terrible moment. Mere preach ing to those whose surroundings alone render virtue almost impossible on tin one hand, and mere attention to physical wants on the other, will not meet the exigencies of the case. Nothing will effect an immediate or general cure, hut there should be a union of all the methods which common sense and un common charity can devise. At Emperor William's golden wed ding in Berlin, " a profound sensation was caused by the cold, not to say slight ing. reception given to Prince Bismarck by the F.mpn-ss Augusta. The emperor had greeted him with the greatest frank ness, evidently wishing to show to those around him the confluence and regard which he entertained for his elder ad viser. But the empress, on the other hand, seemed as if she wished to show her dislike of the prince hy not only an swering Ids obeisance In a very slighting fashion, but hy not even extending her hand to him. as she did immediately afterward, with gracious mien, o the veteran Yon Moftkn. The incident is causing much talk in Berlin, where it is known, however, that the empress has long entertained a most bitter dislike to the chancellor. But this is the first time that she has evinced her anger toward the emperor's favorite in such a decided and striking manner." So says tho New York lh rulil'.i correspondent, who was an eye-witness of this little by-play dur ing tin l regular performance. McCarthy, tho rcccntly-rapturod ehiel of the Uni/.u/i tribe, a tributary ot the great (Iwazi people, was a draper's clerk in Linteriek in the year of the Fenian rising, lie hail a relative, a constable of police, who warned him that his name was on the Castle books, and that if he wanted to preserve his liberty he had better leave the country. McCarthy tb d to the South African diamond Holds, where he prospered, making two profit able investments in London. He also contributed some readable sketches of the diamond Holds to the I/indon (llobc. Somehow or other lie nicked up with the natives, and being ol ahold, adven turous disposition, and already reduced to a half savage state by bis occupation, he ended by joining the Unizuzis. When the chief of that tribe died, McCarthy was elected to the position, which he secured by killing, in single combat, half a dozen pretenders, lie made an effort to intro duce Christianity, but failed. He has a white wife, daughterof a rich lloer, who eloped with him some time ago. Tho lady's father would be glad to receive his son-in-law, but the Irish Katlir re fused o desert his adopted people. Strange mischances with fatal results are daily happening ben and there. A Boston butcher ran against a knife that lay on a block, severed an artery, and tiled to death. A Denver woman caught her foot in a railroad frog, and could not get loose before a train ran over her. A Vermont fanner sneezed with a straw in his mouth, drew it into his lungs, and died choking. A horse kicked a Michi gan hoy into a deep well, where lie was drowned. The shoe tlew off the foot of a kicking mule, in Nashville, and frac tured the skull of a baby. Ati Oregon girl swallowed her engagement ring, and lived only a week afterward. While standing on his head, on the top of a high fence post, an lowa I toy lost his balance, fell into a tub of hot water, and was fatally scalded. A stone, thrown by a playfellow, broke a glass from which a St. Isiuis boy was drinking, driving some of the pieces down his throat, and he died a few days afterward in great agony. looking up to watch the (light of an arrow, a Nashville wo man did not see it descending directly over her head, and the sharp metal point penetrated her brain through one of her gyos, killing her instantly. Murders That Bo Mot Out. A New York paper says: The sac red ness with which our civilization has in vested human life finds expression in the common assertion that "Murder will out;"and possibly in the large minority of cases the perpetrators of murder are discovered and punished. Yet it is cer tain that in respect to a considerable minority of the total number of murders committed the guilty escape detection. Bodies arc daily and weekly discovered in the rivers. They may represent deaths by accident, by suicide, or by murder; hut there is no way of ascertaining with accuracy how many are attributable to either cause. In some cases the waters may cast up the body when it is yet in condition to show marks of violence, if any there be upon it; hut if it has passed a certain stage of decomposition this is not possible. Thus it d'-jwnd* upon the mere accident of the action of the tides whether it enn hi* known that a murder lias lieen committed; and wlien this is —lSrfaillßll it may well happen that tie knowledge gives not tho slightest clew to tlie perpetrators of the crime. The truth is, that not the murder itie-ll hut the social position of the victim largely de termines the chances of discovery. If a couple of drunken and degraded men, the offscourings of society, quarrel in their drunkenness and oh'* pushes Bo other into the river: or if a man of the same class Is- found dead, with Ids skull fractured, in some wretched cellar, the chances arc that the person at whose hands the deceased came to his death will not he discovered. Here is a mur der, hut society cares little about it !**- guise the murdered was at ls-st useless to it. and possibly preyed upon it. So eicty is rather the Is-tti-r for his taking off. and those who are responsible for it are too brutalized to feel much compunc tion nlsnit the matter. If they arc dis cover'd it is mainly hy chance i in in stances rather than by the vigorous ac tion of society through it nstftutcd authorities. But let the murdered person he of good standing in society, or let there le circumstances about tin-affair concentrating the public attention upon the crime, then it is that the community is startled with the consciousness tliat a murder has Ixs-n committed, and all its resource* for the detection and punidi mcnt of crime are exhausted to bring the guilty to justice. If these arc hatTlwf, which is hut rarely, the rases passes into police history as " another undiscovered murder," often quoti-d and long remem bered, while it is morally certain that not a month, and perhaps not a week, passes in this city hut some wretched creature meets death at the hands of per son* who remain unknown and almost unsought. Appearance of a Tornado. Various descriptions were given of the "features" of the storm. One of the most graphic was furnished by Mrs. (Jaylord. who saw what wi-tnsy call the "onset," from one of the mil] buildings on the river. The cloud seemed, said Mrs. (iaylord. as if huilt up of successive layers of ashy smoke. It came on with a roar that could he compared to nothing save that of an immense mass of tower ing flame, yet without any of the crack ling sound usually associated witli Hrc. In the brief moments of its passage it brought with it a darkness like that of late twilight. In its circle It was resist less. A farmer was coming toward the mill; the wagon was torn to pieces, hut the horses were unharmed. Not far from the mill is or was the iron bridge across the Blue, huilt some years ago at a cost of f'JO.OOO. This was torn ilown Icy- what Is known as tho " first" storm. The superstructure was torn from the pins and thrown yard* away, a mass of twisted iron and broken timbers. Mr. Robert Patterson, who preserved his coolness fas all his neighbor* say) throughout the storm, and rendered valuable assistance, advnnccd the opinion that this " pillar of cloud " was hollow, and drew up everything movable into Its center, fts movement was de scribed as eccentric, zigzagging in its onward course, and Intending up and down just as every soldier as seen a solid shot richoehet. In this connection your reporter may state that lie repeat edly heard of wells that suddenly became dry during the passage of the storm.— AUhimyn (Kan.) Champion. A NAVAL BATTLE. |)ra|r mte Con flirt llrfwrrn I'rriavlnn IronrltlM Miitt Chilian VrsrUA I till* Inn Vraarl Hunk RIIIIR rninlnn Iroii- CIAII Wrrrkrd. Official report* iirnl correspondence have I rccci vcd from hiulque, IVru, of the battles between the Peruvian ves sels lluasear find Indenrndencia and the <Thilin.il ships Esmeralda and (lovadonga. The lluasear nrrived off the hay of Iquique and, discovering the Esmeralda tind ('ovatlonga in the harbor, ordered the Indepenoencda, aeeotnpanying her, to guard the entrance of the hay, whiiu the Ilunscnr ailviuieed against the Es meralda. This vessel was lying fur in short!, and protected by a line of torpe does. When the lluasear trot in posi tion she bud the enemy between her own fire and that of the field artillery on shore, which, however, did little dam age. Eight 300-pound shells w. re dis cbareed by the iiuuscar against the Es meralda, one fallinir in her engine-room and killintt all the machinists and fire men. The Esmeralda was fought very bravely by her copimander, I)on Arturo I'rats, a son of the recent Cabinet Min ister ot Chili. Capt. (iraii, seeing that his artillery practice was bad, owing to the heavy MM, determined to go to close quarters. The first two attempts at sinking the Esmeralda by ramming proved ineffectual, as she turned, and the monitor's ram passed glancing!)- along her side; but lie third effort sank her. striking her fair amidships, and causing immediate submersion. At the moment <>f this third shock. <'apt. Grau also discharged his two turret guns at the Esmeralda, shattering her terribly. The erew of the Esmeralda threw them selves into the water, with the excep tion of Captain I'rats, who called Upon his men to follow him in hoarding the ram. lie, however, was accompanied by only half a dozen of bis men and liis second lieutenant, all of whom, inclini ng Prats, were killed on the deck of the lluasear. The Esmeralda, out of a crew of nearly VMo. bad only forty odd saved by the boats of the Ifuasear. The lat ter lost her signal officer, and had two or three men slightly ipjurcd. No dam age was done to her by the artillery tire of the Chilian. The Esmeralda was a species of storeship for the Chilian squadron, and had on board a large quantity of provisions, ammunition and money, which, of course, was all lost, as she sank in deep water. The light lasted from eight A. M. to twelve M Meanwhile the Covadonga, hugging the coast, being a small vessel, drawing but little water, was followed at a distance by the ironclad frigate In dependeneia, exchanging a brisk fire from their heavy (runs. This was con tinued until lsith vessels were some fn miles tot lie southward of Iquiquc. Then Captain More, commanding the Inde pendeneia, determined to range along side of theCovadonga, and to adopt the same plan of ramming, which at that moment, nearly, was is-ing successfully tried by the lluasear. Advancing rap idly aga'nst the Chilian, receiving a heavy fire from her battery and from the riflemen and mitrailleuses in her tops, ('apt. More brought bis ship lose along side, so that the yards were almost in terlace!. Just at this moment, as the Independeneia was preparing to give the roup dt igrace to her antagonist, she struck heavily an a sunken rock, turnroi upon her side and in an instant it was apparent thatNhe was lost. The Cova donga let flv her last broadside, which was gallantly'returned by the starboard lattery of the Independeneia, the men standing knee deep in the water t at was pouring in through the groat hole made in her bottom. Tin- commander of the Covadonga Capt Condell, of Scotch descent, ojs-ned asliarp fire'from ills t(i|s on tliesailorsof the Indepcndfll cia, who lt<i tlirown tiicinselves into the water and were striking out for the shore. After thisthc Covadonga, badly damaged hy the fire of the Innependen eia. steamed away at tlie ict speed she could toward the south. The lluasear shortly afterward gave chase, hut the Covaifonga had a grssl start, and tie chase was abandoned. Boats were sent from tiie lluasear. and nearly all of the crew of the independeneia placed in safety on Nnrd. < apt. More gaveorders to set fire to the magazine, but as the water had penetrates) to that point it was impossible to reach it. and it was decided t<> fire the ship after spiking the guns. This was immediately done. The l>s on lsard the Independeneia was eighteen men killed and wounded, principally by the fire of the riflemen and Catling guns of the Covadonga. Lieut. GuillcrmoGarciay <}arcla. of the well-known family of that name, is among the killed. While replacing the Independeneia's flag, which had been shot awav, lie was struck by a hall from a mitrailleuse and killed instantly. The enemy's loss cannot lie stated, but must have been severe, as their men. on a lower vessel than the Independeneia, were more exposed. The disaster to the Peruvians is certainly great. The loss of the Independeneia will cripple them severely. The Covadonga was run ashore and destroyed in Antofagasta. possibly from damages received in the fight with the Independeneia. M Harsaparilla." Yesterday afternoon a red-faced young man lielonging Co an excursion party called into a Woodward avenue drug store and softly asked the soda fountain Itoy if he was out of any particular kind of syrup. The boy made an inrestiga tion and replied: " We an- out of sarsapnrilla. hut—" "That's all right—all right—you wait a minute." interrupted the young man, and away he went. The hoy took the empty reservoir from the fountain and replaced it, and in about two minutes the voting man re turned in company with Ids girl nnd four other people, evidently all friends. Walking up to the fountain lie said: " I'm going to take sarsapnrilla in mine, for the doctors all recoromem} It. and if lie hasn't any sarsaparllla I won't take nothing. What do you say?" "Oh, weql take the same," they re plied. The young man began to smile and Ids left eye began to draw ilown. but what was ids horror to see the imy draw off six glasses In succession and push them to the front, whore they were eap'rly drained of their contents! lie tried to give the boy a look of mingled hate and murderous intent, hut the lad was too busy to see it. He felt in all his pockets, brought up watch-keys, pennies and peanuts, rind finally laid down twenty-seven cents and wliiapcred to the boy: "That takes my pile, and if I ever ratch you outside of town I'll lick you to death!"— lklroil Free I Vet*. Twenty-seven daughters eheer the family of a Cleveland (N. C.) man. Life In Ludlow Ntreet Jail. 1 >ur ing tlio Investigat lon of the charge* of mismamigement made against tlie sheriff of New York hy the Bar Associa tion of that city, interesting testimony was given concerning the manner in which affairs were conducted nt Ludlow Street Jail. Air. J. Edward Ireland, re cently released from that institution, said that he was forty years of age nnd lived at Broadway and i'wentioth street. He was arrested and taken to Ludlow Street Jay under a process issued by tlie sin-riff of the county of New York on August 30, M7H. and lil rated on May 13, |H7<. He described tin-construction of tlie jail, and said that on the lower floor wen two rooms which ranted to wealthy pris oners at #35 and #t(l a week, ruid another and handsomer room which brought #7.0 a week. Tlie witness bad paid at first $7.50 and afterward #l5 a week for Ids board in the jail. As a boarder lie was far lictter treated than tiie non-paying prisoners. Each of tlie latter bad in bis cell an iron bedstead, a straw mattress and pillow, n coarse army blanket and an iron slop-pail—nothing else; no sleets or pillow-cases. These prisoners wen- lock"l up at live o'clock in the evening and allowed to come out of their cells nt six in the morning. Their cells were, for tin- most part, ti It hy. nnd one of them, lielonging to nn old man of the name of Frost, was so dirty that it made tli** witness si'-k to go near it. Tie- paying prisoners, on tlie contrary, were treated " like■gentlemen." They went to the dining-room for tli*ir meals, and were waited upon by a col ored att'-ndant known as Man- Antony. I li'-y bad clean sh'-ets and pillow-cases upon tb' ir beds, and were permitted to remain in the yard until t n and a half o cljs k at night, besides being allowed various other privileges. Mr. Kitzsim inons w nt around tin-jail every wis-k to collect the Isiard bills, and gem-rally tli'-te was no delay in the payment. After a time the witness ceased to 1m- a paying inmate, and at once extierieneed n change of treatment. His sheets and idllow-cas'-s were removed, lie was locked up at five and a ha If o'clock in the eve ning, and the quality of the foes! furnished was widely different from what it had been. His friends, too, were rarely permitted to see him. ami once, because a lady and gentleuian who called upon him entered his ei-li. tlie kroner lock'-d him up from one and a half o'clock iti tin- afternoon until wv-n o'clock the following morning, and de prived him of bis supjx-r. The hill-of-fare f< <r non-paying prison ers. as in- describes) it, was not succulent or delicate tin Monday, for breakfast, they got dry bread, which was often sour, and a concoction which was called coffee. Every morning. Sunday in elil'i'd. tin- same breakfast was served. On Monday, for dinner, they got what was facetiously lormra an Irish stew, consisting of onions, a little neat and bread, a.l being served in a tin pail, without knife, fork, sjioon. pepper or salt, (in Tuesday, for dinner, a plenti ful supply of Ix-an*. so strong and pun gent that they made th< prisoners h k, was 1 aslled out. On \\ edmwlav tie- Irisli stew was s( rvsi again; on fiiurs day and Sunday corned I*-- f and i>otat<M-s ronstitutisl tin- banquet; on Friday ruid on Saturday the stew once mora. For "tipper, throughout the week, a pint of had tea and a piece of tiard broad were served. All tiie meal* W p- earri'sl around in a tin bucket and ladled out in the cells. \N ben the witness first lieeame an Inmate of tiie prison the floor of his cell and his IMSI were eoverrol with a coating of tilth half an ineJi thick. He was un able to remove it himself, ami he had to pay to iiave it tak'-n away. Tbep- wen- thp-c or four female prison ers in tlie jail, who sro-msl to ix- all hoarders. They had free access to ail parts of the prison nnd associated famil iarly with the m'-n. He once saw one of them having her supper served in a male pri-oncr's eel]. t'n tlie gp.und floor was a eel) called the " liar roil," where liquor was sold. The witness had iMiuglit very hail iager liror there at flft<s-n <ants a iMittlc, nml scenes of drunkenness and dcliauehery fr< q*< nt ly t(M>k |ilac< tlicn>. Ilannted bj ller Victim. < Xficer H< rri' k. of tlie T> nth precinct, ••arly on Sunday morning nrrastod a woman for heingdrunk nt Eidridge and Hester streets. At tlie stntinn-houM SN gave the name of Margnp-t Myers, of No. 8 Ludlow stps-t. Slie refused to go to court at eight o'clock when tlie other prisoners were arraigned, nml was left locked up to get thoroughly SOIM r. About one o'clock in the nftermsin tlie doorman passing the prison heard groans, and going to the roll of tlie woman louniT lu-r hanging to tlie door. She had torn her apron into strips, and had tirol one end to tiie roll door and the other alsiut Iter neck, endeavoring to strangle herself. She was cut down, and promised not to mnkc any furth'T attempts on her life. Three hours later she was again found hanging to the ibx>r. mariy dead. She was again cut down, and an officer was stationed in h<r roll. She raved wildly, in her ravings she asked her fuardian to "take McChcsney away." t was then that she was recognize! as " Mag Welsh," the woman who killed Officer McChcsney, of tin- Eighth pra cinct. on tlie night of October I 1. IW7. McChcsney found tlie woman dnink, clinging to a lamp post nt Mercer and Canal streets. As she refused to go home, the officer arrestrol her. and a scuffle took place, during which she drew a pocket knife, which she had concealed in lor hair, and stnblied the officer in the nis k. completely severing the jugu lar vein. The wotuided man hied to death before a hospital could lie reached. Tlie woman was tried, convicted ami sentenced to the State prison for life, hut obtained a new trial and was finally con victed and sentenced to one year's im prisonment. Site was pardoned before tier time expired. Six weeks ago she married a tailor named Myers and tried to settle down, hut her old habits had too strong a hold on her. Sh was taken before Justice Hixby at the Essex Market court nnd sent to the island for three months.—AVic York Commercial Advertiser _______ llow the Mints are Cleaned. An nnnual cleaning up iscarrhri on|at all the Unit'-d States mints at the end of tlie fiscal year. 1 >uring tlie progress of tills specie* of house cleaning all mint ing operations cease, and a tborough overhauling is made. No house in the cleanest city of Holland rroeive* the minute cleaning which Is rigorously ap plied to every spot in tlie mints. The furnace* are torn down, the chimneys carefully swept, and tlie bricks taken down one hy one and dusted. Tlie same painstaking labor i* applied to tlie roof* and wall*, and tlie dust thus collected is ground, and generally yields a rich re turn of minute particle* of gold. Ttii* process is necessary in order to complete tlie yearly accounts. AN EXTRAORDINARY C'AHK, A llor'i StraiiKt Malady and arlune (urt, The Chicago 7'cla/raph say*: Probably the most wonderful phenomenon that bus ever come under the observation of the medical fraternity of this city devel oped itself at the Montcalm House, on Erie street, in the person of a boy named Herbert <l. Hchwart/.. Herbert is a boy of German parentage, t bough born near the town of Buckingham, in Tama county, lowa. The Schwartz, family consist of five persons,° Mr. Carl Schwartz, the father, being a man of some fifty years of age. There are four children,* two girls and two boys. Her bert being the oldest child. Mrs. Schwartz lias been dead several year*. Schwartz senior is a farnii r, and well to-do, owning a fine prairie farm of ino acres in Tarna county. Herbert lias for a number of years assisted at the farm work, and was, until recently, a stout, healthy and intelligent boy. _ Last April Herls*rt and bis broiler Fritz were playing together in the farm's bum, having turned the hoi-<-n in after a day's plowing. At supper that evening young Schwartz complained of a queer feeling in his chest, and coughed con siderable. Thinking that the boy hud caught cold, but little attention was paid to the matter, and for the two or three -in 111 ding days, though the cough con tinued and he complained of an oppres sive fc/Jing in the left chest,Jiis father used tiie simple country remedies for ordinary cold. These seemed to have a beneficial effect, lor the cough left hilll, t bough Jp still complained of tiie singu lar and unaccustomed feeling in the chest. In the latter part of April Herls-rtV appetite deserted Idtn, and he eotn llieneed to lose flesh to SUcil an extent that from a stout, healthy farm lad lie dwindled down to nothing more than a living skeleton. Various remedies were tried, and local medical advice taken. The physicians called were of the opinion that hasty consumption had set in. and but little bo|e - were ottered of his recovery. In the latter part of last month another singular feature added itself to the ulllieted youth's distress. The pain in his chest la-came more in tcn-M . and added to it tip-re was now an irritat i rig, tickling sensation in the throat, as though some foreign matter had lodged there that demanded a removal. This induced a continuous cough, until, at last, the sufferer hied hardly a mo ment's release from the attack. Every one connected with the Isiy gave him up. and bis family already feft that tip- doom of a sprody demise was inevitable. With a last grasp at hone Mr. Schwa-tz brought hi son to this city and summoned the skill of Drx. t'linre-s A.Andrews and Ernest Solo mon to arrest, if possible. the tell destroy er. At first Ixitb 1 r. Andrews and J>r. Solomon agreed that it was a cam- of hast) consumption, and extended no IPM" to the distracted parent. But Friday morning. while Herbert was un dergoing one of ins worst paroxysms of roughing, a light, or an intuition sud den;) forced itself upon I r. Solomon. Be.jip -ting the lioy's father to assist him. lie suspended the patient by the heel* near a window, witli a strong light tlirown down Ids throat. Without whispering bis suspicions or mentions lie- doctor, with the aid of instruments, made an examination of tiie throat. so far as the eye could penetrate; and his inv< station was reward's* iiy a won derful <ii overy. A foreign !x>dv was discovered'partially implanted in the mucous up nibrane of tiie windpipe. Hnviiig firmly seized ujs.n it with ids instrtin,' nt. d- -pitc tin struggle# of tip patient. !>r. Solomon dppvr forth a ger minated kernel of wlp-at, with a growing stalk seven and one-uuarter inches long. Tip t,ck wa of a brownish-rod color, whil' tlie tendrils of the germinated kern' 1 were massed in elottedblood. A violent hemorrhage ensued, that required much trouble to check, but young Schwartz, though very weak. is now much Is tter, and bids fair to rapidly re cover. The only explanation of this most singular in> Idem is that Herbert swallowed a grain of wheat while plav. ing in tlie barn with ids brother, and that tiie kernal. instead of taking the natural ciuuinel. MHM lii left lung and there remained and sprouted. It i certainly one of tlie most extraordinary eases on re<s>rd. Ir. Solomon lias pri ser vi-d tlie wheat in a vial, where hun dreds of the curious viewed it in la i office. A Sea Serpent a Thirk as a Mast, Captain Davison, master of the Mitsu Bisht steamship Kiu-biu Maru, gives the following relatingof wliat passed before his eyes on liis voyage from Uiu Kill to Kolie. The statement is duly signed by himself and countersigned by Mr. John McKeclinie, tlie elder officer, and its authenticity appears to he beyond Question; At 11.15 A. M.. Cape Satano, distant about nine miles, the chiefoffieei and myself observed a whale jump cleat out of the sea, about a auartcr of a mil# away. Shortly after it leaped out again, when I saw there was something at tached to it. Clot glasses, and on the next li-ap distinctly saw something hold ing on to tli# belly of the whale. Tlie latter gave one more spring clear of tlie water, and myself and the chief offieer then obscrvi-d what appeared to be a large creature of the snake species rear itself about thirty feet out of tlie water. It appeared to be about the thickness of a junk's mast, and after standing for about ten seconds in an erect position, it descended into tlie wster, tlie upper end going first. Willi my glasses I made out tlie color of,the beast to resemble 'hat of a pilot fish.— Tbkio (Japan) Timet. A Brave Little Hlrl. Mr. 11. F. Gaulding has a little daugh ter eleven years old to whose nerve and courage he is indebted for the life of his three-year-old boy. The boy was play ing by Uie cistern in Mr. Gauiding's yard. There was a plank off. and through this aperture the little tellow fell. He • aught a plank, however, in falling, and held for some time M-fore he was dis roverixl. Hut his hold weakened, and with a splash he fell into tlie cistern. His sister saw and appreciated the situ ation. Most girls would have screamed and run off in quest of help. Not so with this little girl. The screams and struggles for life of her baby brother gave her the strength and courage of a man. She saw a ladder, and, with all her might, she dragged it to and placed it into the cistern, and then went down into the water, reached out and caught her brother just in time to save him from a watery grave. By thia time help ar rived and both were landed safely from their perilous position. All honor to this little heroin*!— Bainbrutpe ((H.) Democrat. The Amethyst. The amethyst is a variety of the vitre ous portion of the quartz family. It is of a fine ridel color, passing from white to a <lwp purple, sometimes in the same specimen. The deep purple colors) spec- Imeos are frequently failed oriental, even hy mime jewejer* and lapidaries, al though the oriental amethyst la an en tirely different atone, a* wi) lie seen by the (U-m rlption of theorienta! gem which ia given below. The color of the ame thyst ia by some supposed to he derived from a trace of oxide of inagaii'-xc. loiter analyse* however have dim-overed also silica, iron and mala. The amethyst i- found in India, Oylon, Brazil, Persia, Siberia, Hungary, Saxony, Spain, etc. A line vein in aaid to exUt near Kerry, in Ireland. In Oberstein it 1* found in a trap rock, in geodes of agate. Tle-ae geodes are sometime* n* much a> two feet iii diameter, liollow and filled with y-tallized amethyst of a fine color. Similar grade- are also said to exist in India. 1 bis variety of quartz, in com mon witfi some other of the vitreous ID' ruber* of the family, possess a pecu liar, minute, wrinkl'if or wavy fracture on the fresh broken surface, pm-mbling the impression of th< tliurnb on a waxy sulwtanre. sir I lav id Brewster hii kinds of quartz having this pecu liarity as amethyst without regard to their color. 'I hi- ym i- found in pieces of eonsidenthle size, and. from it- beau tiful color and play, i- mil'b umii in jew ry. Many years ago amethyst* w r<- of con-iderahie value, ranking next to the sapphire, l,ut immense •lUiintiti'* having is-en m*nt to Kurope from Brazil, they became comparatively common and gradually depreciated in value. Latterly, bow vr. the taste for llicni lias revived, and at present tlcy arc gaining ground in pulilic estimation. On a> ■ ount of the cheaper cost of cut ting amethysts in Germany, marly all are now cut there. This stone appeara t<i grcat'-t advantage wh'H set with diamonds or pearls. Hy candle-light it los. s a part of its beauty, being apt to appear of a blockish liue. The name am< tbv-t i- from the Greek—a negative and inebriate—in allusion to the super stition that this stone bad the power of dissipating drunkenne-s. Pliny says that the g'-m wji* so -aih-d from the fact of its approaching re ar tie color of wine, but not quite reaching it. In the middle age- it wa- lielicved to di-pe] sleep, *liar|ien the intclh> t, and to ia an anti dob against poison. In lU2 an ame thyst wa worth a* much as a diamond. The Oriental amethyst i- a ruby or sap phire po--ising an amethyst color; it may be distinguished from the ordinary amethyst bv its superior brilliancy and play, as well as by its hardness, etc. It is a gein of rare oa um-nif, and even j< w< I'ts frequently confound it witli the ordinary amethyst. There are some few specimens in the gr<m vault* of Hre*- den. Then* are also in the Vatican om or two engraved intaglio- of this stone of very early date. Many sapphire*, however, have an amethystine tint, which oecotne* very apparent by candle iigbl. IkiroU fYti I'rtxn. A Hagpipe a a Detective, For nearly two years past a young man wearing the garb of a Highlander piper lias Ix-en wandering about in the c<ial region* of Pennsylvania, playing hi* pi|K*s in tlie street, attending picnics and dances, apparently depending upon hi* instrument to make him a living. A short time rin'-e lie wa* playing in a mining village on the outskirts'of Scran ton, la. A crowd had gathered around liim. among tleui a mine laborer named Braidy. Suddenly the piper ceased the music, and stepping from the crowd h ined Braidy by tlie shoulder and an nounced tliat the laborer was his prisoner. At the same time be pro duced papers which he said were his authority for making the arrest. Braidy m, ined entirely- overwhelmed t>y the ar rest. anil made no opposition to tlie authorities when it was revealed that tlie piper was a detective. For two years he had \mi-n on the track of his prisoner, who Is charged with having murdered a wealthy man named Findlay in Soitland in January. 1*77. Braidy was in the -mploy of "Findlay. Early one mornir . tiie latter was found dead by the ro.ni-idi. his skull crushed with a cTuh. Braidy had been discharged the moiuing brforp for drunkenn*-**. He had been heard to make a threat that he would get even with Findlay. He was nowhere to he found, hut was traced to Glasgow, where it was believed lie hail taken a vessel for America. William Male, d'l'- tire, was employed by tlie relatives of the murdered man to corns to this country and search for Braid v. who. it wa thought, would bring up in the Pennsylvania coal regiona. where he had friends working. One of Braidy's peculiarities w.as ins lore for the hag pipe, so tlie ildeetive. being a piper, aoopbsi tlie disguise of a Scotch piper, played about in the coal towns in the hope of someday attracting tlie attention of the man he was seeking, lie being sure from information he hail received that Braidy really was somewhere in the coal regions. Tlie ruse suceeedcd after two years of patient trial. Male is now on liis way to Scotland with the alleged murderer. Can Cat* Kea*on|T Baron Von GMcbcu, a German diplo matist. used to tell a story of a favorite cat as a prof that the "feline race can think and draw pnuiical conclusions. Tlie cat was very tond of looking in mir rors hung against the walls, and would gnaw at the frame*, as if longing to know what wa* inside. She had. how ever. never seen the back side of a mir ror. One day the haron placed a cheval glass in the middle of the room, and the cat instantly took in the novelty of the situation. Placing herself in front, and seeing a second cat, she ticgan to run round the mirror in search of her companion. After ninning round one way several time*, she lx ran to run the other, until fully satisfied that there was no cat he side herself outside of the glass. But where was the second cat? She sat down in front of the glass to meditate on the problem. Evidently Inside, as she had often betorc imagined. Suddenly a new thought occurred to her. Rising deliberately, she put her paws on the glaas in hunt and then behind, walked round to the other side, and measured the thickness in the same way. Then she tat down again to think. There might be a cavity inside, hut It wa* not large enough to hold a cat. She seemed to come to the deliticrate con clusion tlut there was a mystery here, hut no eat, and it wasn't worth while to bother about it. From that time the haron said she lost all curiosity about looking-glasses. • Railways are aristocratic. They teach every man to know his own station and to atop thera.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers