ThankftglTlng.
Many of our readers—and they need
not he very old—can recollect when
Thanksgiving dny was nn exclusively
New England holiday, and in which the
others of the older States did not par
ticipate. As New Englanders migrated
westward, and helped to found new
States, they carried with them their
usage of annually observing a day of
thanksgiving, it is thus that the custom
lias spread to other States, until now,
having been confirmed by the action of
recent presidents, Thanksgiving lias be
come no longer a part ial, hut a national
holiday. It is well that this, originally
a farmer's holiday, has a general otiserv
anee. It is most fitting that the farmers
of this broad land should, on one day in
the year, gather in their scattered child
ren, and in one of the holiest of temples
—home—give thanks for that upon
which the prosperity of the nation rests
—the abundant harvest. It is pleasant
to think upon Thanksgiving day in its
higher aspects, hut not the less so in
its associations and its minor influences.
Being emphatically a home holiday, it
more 11ian all others affects the homes
ol the hind, not less the homes in towns
and cities than homes upon farms, and
long before the day is at hand the
thought that" Thanksgiving is coming"
controls the movements in households
every where. The home that is not upon
the farm is none the less to observe the
day; it, too, is to have its " feast of fat
things," and the city housekeeper looks
to her sister in the eountrv for a fatted
turkey " wherewith to make merry.".
A large share ot the demand for the tur
key. the bird that has become so isen
tiai to the thanksgiving feast, is sup
plied by those farmers whose floclcs
number hundreds; but aside from these,
the turkey plays an important part on
many small farms, and the bird, besides
"furnishing forth" the material for
many a home feast, is in itself a cause
for grateful thanks. Many a mother, to
help the family purse; many adauehter,
in pride nt being indeisuident of her
father's hard earnings, to meet her per- '
sonal wants, looks to her flock of tur
keys; and ns Thanksgiving draws nigii,
she counts and feeds her flock with
pleasant anticipation of the day in which
the hopes of many days will he eonsum- j
mated. Blessed be the observance which
touches so nearly so many human hearts.
Blessed he the day which brings joy to -
so many homes—which, to the wanderer,
wherever lie may he, turns his thoughts
towards home. And when has the !
American farmer had greater occasion
on Thanksgiving day than now to sav •
"Oh! give thanks unto the I->rd, for lie
is good and his mercy endureth for
ever.—Amtrioan AgrictUttirid.
Where Corn is King.
Corn is king in Kansas, so far as
space is concerned. They plant it by
square miles, one might fairly infer, the
fields are so incredibly far-reaching;
and if it did not grow very much of its :
own accord it could not grow at all. as
the sheer abundance of it forbids any
thing like thorough cultivation. They
aim to plow it twice, though sometimes '
once lias to suffice, and where it lias
been sod planted it is left untouched till i
it ripens; and yet it thrives in n way,
that makes folly of ail rule and precedent, ;
the stalks attain a size and height which
give them a resemblance to young for-;
ests of hickory, and the men with plows \
look lost among them ; and as f<ir the j
ultimate yield in ears and bushels, is it
not proclaimed everywhere in those !
graphic and seductive land advertise
mcnts which tell how Kansas was ten
years ago the t wenty-fourtli State in the 1
production of corn, and is now sur- I
passed bv only three of all the thirty- |
eight? The small cost and labor of till-j
ing is doubtless the chief inciting ca v |
of tli*s extensive recourse to a crop, i
which, however bounteous it may be.
offers but slender profit unless fed to i
livestock: hut I suspect that it is a |
crop that also has special favor witli
the frontier people—perhaps without
their exactly realizing the preference—
because of the resolute, imperious, army- j
with-hanners method it lias of possessing
and holding the country. For corn is
by nature aggressive and detivniined.
The smaller grains feel their way tim
idly in a primitive soil, and the alsirigi
naf verdure disputes every Inch of pro
gress with them. But where this auto
crat of the cereals tak< root it scorns
rivalry, and its sway is complete and en
during. And so these leagues upon
leagues of Kansas corn, seen in the sum
mer and in their glory of si Iked and tas
seled and sunlit strength, convey a sig
nally striking impression. They do not
merely cling to ho earth, but they seize
it and make it their own; you know
that those dense and advancing ranks
can never be stayed, never turned hacg ;
and somehow the vast expanse of un
oonquered prairie yet spread out before
them and all about them—ten acres to
each one acre of tlieirs—seems overawed I
and contraetd by their masterful in
fluence. It is Birnam wood come to
Punsinnne.— Srrihm. r.
(• rowth of the States.
Some new and important figures, pre- j
senting the comparative growth of
the great geological divisions of the i
United States, are given in an article by
Robert P. Porter, of Chicago, in the
Princeton Review. The writer shows
that the growth in population of the
Western States in nineteen years (since
I"60) lias been 7.903,633: that of the
Southern States 4.686.984: that of the
Eastern States, 3,80H,706; tlie increase in
the Western Stab* being nearly H 000.000,
or equal to the aggregate increase of the
Eastern and Southern States in the same
period. According to Mr. Porter's fig
ures, the number of persons employed in
manufacturing in the Eastern Slates in
l"50 was 696.661 ; in 1860, 000.107; in
!H70,1,873,H0H ; at the present time, 1,734.•
*63. In the Western States, 5H,017 in
1H50; 113.045 in I860; 300,631 in l"7o,
and W0t, 513 at the present time. In the
Southern States. 109.866 in L"50; 131.1179
in I"60; 1 "6.470 in IH7O, and 35H.3H9 at
the present time.
The local debts ol these States in 1870
were: Eastern States #278,535,"96; West
ern States. #04,337,648: Southern States,
#03,730,130. The local debts at the pres
rut time, according to Mr. Porter's es
timate,nre : Eastern 5tate5.#540.155,048;
Western Stall's, #146.033,037; Southern
Stab's, #:83.3W3 183. If the State debts
are added the three sections owe as fol
lows: Eastern States,population 14,300,.
000. total debt, #038,233,316; Western
States,population,#l4,6oo,ooo,total debt,
9173.835.V10; Southern States.population
14,395,000, total debt, #365,987,964. The
article carefully discusses the relative
progress of each section of the country,
and points out in an entertaining man
ner the strength and weakness of each
geological division of the United States;
declaring that only by such a view of our
wants can we gain common sense, com
mon aims, and a deeper faith In the fu
ture of the republic.
rnbnl and Its People.
The diversified crowds ol people that
surge through the streets ef Cahul agree
in n way. At night, when the narrow
bazaars are aglow witli the reflected
light of oil in little metal wick-lamps,
ignited cotton floating in earthenware
saucers, or the wood-fires of the cooks,
the Fcrghnnce tins no objection to sit
side l>y side witli the Bokiinriun on the
low, open veranda of tlie cook's short;
anil on the same platform, witli the
seething flesh-pot in the center, contain
ing little lumps of meat skewered upon
a stick, representatives of twenty differ
ent Mohammedan nationalities are con
tent to sit toget her upon terms of equality,
and afterward to exchange the hookah
and tlie national love-song, ami the
romance of chivalry and theft.
I.ike other (Oriental towns, Cahul is
filthy. Sanitation is not even a dream
witli the inhabitants. There are four
principal roads, which arc from thirty
to forty feet broad, and these are con
sidered the handsomest streets. One is
the (Jreat Bazaar, or Charcutta, com
posed of one-story mud houses, which
nave verandas, slightly elevated above
open gutters, opening full upon tin
itreels. These verandas become shops
in the daytime and arestorcd witli speci
mensof all the furs, silks, and wool and
hair cloths that Central Asia produces.
In the evening three or four cronies sit
on a mat in almost every shop, set a
lamp in their midst, fold their feet, put
on their skull-caps, and smoke and tell
stories till midnight. Another grcst
bazaar, leading from tlie Western (late
to the Bala Itissar is monopolized by
cooks and butchers. Heads and car
eases are suspended there in plenty, hut
no trace of the unclean animal, the
pig, is discernible. It is in this bazaar,
by oil-light, that some of the most
picturesque - looking ruffians in the
world may be seen. Observe this
one. A man over six feet high;
his head conical-shaped ; the jet
black hair close cut, almost to tlie bone;
his face long, sallow, anil fringed witli
grizzly black whiskers, which meet Ih'-
neatli in one long matted beard; the eye
small, black and keen; the nose arched
and thin; tlie mouth cruel and com
pressed ; tlie chest and arms to tlie
elbows bare; tlie body enveloped in a
tattered blue shirt reaching beneath the
knees; hare, scarred legs; the leet tread
ing on grass sandals, which are held on
by the toes. That is u Cahul beggar, and
a most arrant villain he is, for, beneath
his rags, he conceals a knife, like the
rest of his amiable countrymen, nnd will
use it with tlie rage of a wolf if he is
tempted. The cooks are glad enough to
toss a kabob or two to gentlemen of this
class.
The other two roads have no particu
lar characteristics. except that they ar
a great deal broader than bv far thee
larger portion of Cabul. Off these
four principal roads numerous dark and
filthy lanm, twisting for a quarter of a !
mile at a time, and not more than three 1
feet broad, shoot at frequent intervals, j
The flat-roofed houses in them are made '
of mud, thickly mixed with straw, and I
tlie apartments are dark square holes, !
much worse than tlie much-decried
shanties of the (lalway peasants. Men.
women and children sleep together, and '
never change their garments till these 1
dropoff. Frequently cattle and fowl
are to he found crowded into these
apartments, together with tlie human l
inmate*. Such places arc dangerous to '
nil strangers. Not even an unusual
parish dog could stray into'one of them,
for lie would lie worried by a hundred i
jealous, big-honed, hungry i-urs. In the j
inst British attack on Cahul. Afghans
who preferred "dying like poisoned rats j
in a hole,"jTtrontd to their tortuous
street* and .ani*. and many a good life
was lost in hunting them out. ton- I
tlon Slun<lard.
An Arizona Pirtnre.
An Arizona correspondent gives this ;
vivid pen picture of a brilliant si-ene '
witnessed in that Territory—an almost j
cloudless thunder-storm: Well, here
we are, in tlie midst of almost n cloud
less thunder-storm. One who has never 1
been in the mountain vallcvs in tlie 1
heated season can hardly realize how it ;
can lighten, thunder and rain suddenly !
with little or no preparation; yet a little !
ugly cloud comes from somewhere 1
almost in a minute, and it is big with
tempest. I do think this country is |
capable of more lightning and thunder
to tlie minute than any other place in j
which I have ever been. That little j
cloud has spread out to bou at j
tlie size of two big carpets, but it i
is a full-grown thunder-storm. It is
about 3 p. m., thermometer 105, with
the sun shining brightly: hut, in about
ten yards further, it will sink behind that '
point of tlie mountain. What a magnifi
cent hath thi* is! These drops are not j
falling so thickly as I have seen them, i
hut they will average just about as large
where they touch you as your thumb
nail. What a picture, if this trembling '
beauty, in the little space intervening, j
and the side of that mountain, drifting !
off into that ravinp up toward the sun. j
could he carried to the canvas I Is it i
possible that there are nothing hut
drops of water fulling through a trem
bling sheen of golden light? A shower
of diamonds ould not glisten more.
Angels could not toss brighter
jewels from their eahinits. I i
know that those are only stinted, murky
green shrulis clinging to that desolate
hillside; hut they are tlie tinted back
ground of a picture no artist-hand dare
f.rofanc. How it trembles, while name
ess hues are drifting, changing ere you
have had time to think how beautiful.
And this mm pan ion picture, brimful of
wordless beauty. Why is the human
easel so tame? That is tlie same old
mountain which I descended not thirty
minutes since—an old. rusty, rocky dome
hut that shadow of Nepiune was not
UIPTP then, with that girdle of rainbow
about his loins. If raindrops are
brighter, here rninhows are more r< al
'solid beauties. It cannot he a shadow
only. R.-e! it ieans up against that
old giant, cactus, and its disntnl
ribs glow with shadings I dare not try
to name. Now it trembles on tlie
prickly branch nl that juniper till ail
its berries are changing crystals. That
bolt of electric fire which just spent its
furv on that old crag, and sent those
bit# of stone down the hilt, bss started
an owl from his hole in the rocks, and
Ids somber wings are less profane wliils
bathed in hues like those. Even his
dismal " twoo-hoo". is modified as it
comes to tis through such a sheen. That
frightened deer fiaa Just sprung Into
place where all this rafntow hangs upon
his horns. Never was a dear little deer
wrapped in such a garb before. But let
me shut my eyes before this picture
fades, and thank the Maker for this
little patch of storm.
As too long ret rement weakens the
mind, so too much company dissipates
It
A Stilt Rare.
I remember particularly a certain stilt
race, one of the oddest races that I ever
Hiiw. Six men and four women were
" entered," as the horsey men would
say. At Areachon the women share the
exercises of the men. There were then
on tliebeach of Evrac ten tcbnnkas. In
the patois of tlie Landes, which one
might be tempted to confound with the
Japanese or < hinese idioms, a tehankas
| is a person tmfUiited on stilts, and so
I tchanker means to mount upon stilts.
These ten tehankas had all the same
traditional costume, without distinction
of sex; that is to say. a beret on the
head, a mantle of wool over the shoul
ders, a buttoned doublet, bare feet, and
the log* enveloped in a eamano or fleece,
lixed by red garters. Their stilts raised
them five or six feet from the ground.
A pole served them as a third point of
support. Seen from a distance, they
looked like gigantic grasshoppers. The
tchanka, however, is seen to perfection
on the bare land, motionless and fixed
like a solitary triangle of sunse!, or else
wlien lie leans against a pine tree,
silently kuitting stockings and guarding
a black and lean flock. Stem and mute
in the midst of a crowd, w'jlcli was
examining them with curiosity, their
thoughts were concentrated solely on
the gain that they were about todisputc.
The prize was not much. The victor
won twenty francs (four dollars). Rut
twenty francs in tlie eyes of the tchanka
represents a fortune. Soon, at a signal
given by the president of the fete, they
all ten spread over the beach, iiowiing
and yelling. If it had not been for their
immense strides, which pass imagina
tion, you might have thought you were
present at an Arabian fantasia. Their
evolutions were the same, accomplished
with the same rapidity, in conditions
which touched upon tlie impossible, and
on ground where the stilt sunk in a foot
at each step. Their mantle* streaming
in the wind, like those of Arabian cava
liers, they ran and pivoted round as
deftly as if they had been on foot. The
women were by no means inferior to the
men; one of them, in fact, eainc in **■<-
ond, and they were only to he distin
guished by their more piercing cries.
This race was followed by some private
exercises performed by tlie tehankas, in
order to provoke the generosity of tlie
spectators. They jumped, they sat down
and rose: up again, ami they picked up as
they ran pieces of money that were
thrown to tliein. This spectacle was
not tlie least extraordinary. Rouncing
forward at full speed, tlie man was sud
denly seen to stop, thestilts bent, fell as
it were to pieces, then something was
seen moving between three pieces of
wood, like the body of a spider on its
long letpi. The whole performance was
done with lightning rapidity, the stilts
rose again and the man appeared on top
of them and resumed his course, —from
the French of Charles Monte let.
Fires In Constantinople,
The season of fires has begun, writes
a Constantinople correspondent of the
Philadelphia Itlrgraph. As soon a
eolii weather sets in, and, notwithstond
iniy the blazing afternoons, sunset
brings chilly breezes to us, then inevita
bly, in one quarter or another, a confla
gration is sure to break out every night.
Kit her earlessness or faulty construction
of grates ana lighting apparatus is the
cause. The first warning we have is
from tlie " or night watch
man. Making his round, lie instantiy
pounds on the pavement witli a heavy
iron shod staff, its ringing noise being
easily heard two or three block*. The
word is passe*' from tlie watch towers
to tlie fiekiljees of the locality of a lire,
a certain nunilx-rnf guns Iwing fired also
for each quarter, viz.. seen when the
binze is in Stnmboul. four for f'ern, etc.
The wntchman in a full, loud voire calls
out the name of the ouartcr where the
fire is raging, and. if in his quarter,
thumps violently on tlie doors of tlie
adjoining houses, and with good reason,
for before people in the vicinity arc
fully aanke the flames are on them.
Tlie rapidity with which too or 500
dwellings are swept away cannot be
conceived by any one who lias not ac
tually seen what rickety, sun-dried
wooden houses they are. A Hungarian
gentleman. Count Szeehery, of much ex
p*rionce, has organized a lire brigade,
which does wonders, when one consid
ers that their only way to fight the
flames is with little hand pumps. The
streets are too narrow and winding to
permit steam pumps to circulate. There
are also the famous " toolunibadjein,"
or volunteer firemen, whose main object
seems to. he fun and plunder. Their
reputation is such that of them and tlie
fire the latter is tlie least dreaded of the
two. Tlie Szeehery brigade is confined,
unfortunately, to a few quarters. Sev
eral of the embassies have a private
force of their own.
Infallible (.'are for Rnsincs* Interrup
tion*.
A merchant doing business near tlie
foot ol Jefferson avenue mod to spend
about half his time in explaining to
callers why he could not sign petitions,
lend small sums, buy hooks or 'nvoat in
moonshine enterprises, but that time
has passel, and it now takes him only
two minuU-s to get rid of tlie most per
sistent ease. Tlie other day a man
called to sell him a map of Michigan.
He hail scarcely made known his errand
when the merchant put on his hat and
said;
"Come, and I'll see about It."
He led tlie way to a boiler shop two
blocks distant, wherein a hundred ham
mers were pounding at Iron, and walk
ing to tlie centre of tlie stiop and into
the midst of the deafening racket he
turned to the agent and kindly shouted:
" Now. then. If you know of any
special reason why I should purchase a
map ol Michigan please state them at
length."
The man with the maps went right
out without attempting to stAte "reason
the one " and the merchant tranquilly
returned to his desk to await the next.
—Detroit Free IYCM.
Tlie expression is often heard, by
people who understand very little about
it. that "we all eat too much." This is
very rarely the ease. It should ml her
be expressed, "we <at too much of one
thing, or of the same kind of fo<xl, be
cause cooks and housewives are so very
ignorant." It Is perfectly impossible
for a human being to exert hit best fac
ulties If under frl. 'I here never was a
strong man with a strong brain who
oould keep up the physical and mental
drain without an ample supply o| food.
When people, th*n, do not teed well,
there is something wrong with their
beads or their stomachs
The Forger and the Lawyer.
"One of the most expert forgers that
ever appeared in this country," said a
well-known detective to a New York
reporter, " was caught in Massachusetts
lately, convicted, and sentenced to ten
years' imprisonment. He had not been
in prison more than three months,when,
to tlie astonishment of tlie jailer, a par
don came for him, in due form, all
signed by the governor, and properly
countersigned. There was nothing to
he done but liberate the prisoner, and
he walked out. Rut he had not been
gone long before the jailer discovered
that the prisoner had managed, through
his friends to get a blank pardon from
the governor's office, and had filled it
out himself, and cleverly forged the sig
natures, and hod then passed it out to
his friends again, to be mailed to the
jailer in proper shape. The clever
forger had not got far enough away to
escape, and he was arrested and sent
hark to prison. He employed a young
New York lawyer, whose name is fa
miliar through the fame of his father,
and told him the story. 'They have
no right to lock you up again,'said the
lawyer, 'having once liberated you,
without legally proving that the pardon
is a forgery. 1 can get you oui, hut it
will cost you ♦1,500. '(Jo ahead,'said
the forger. The lawyer went ahead,
gained his case, and lilx-ratcd tlie
prisoner. 'I am going out West imme
diately,' said the forger, is soon as he
was free. 'My father, who is a wealthy
man, owns a thousand-dollar farm in
Kansas, and he has just sent me this
letter, tagging me to come home and
lead an honest life, and telling me o,
draw on liim for $2,000t0 nay my bills.
lam his only son. and I have almost
broken his heart; hut this life is coming
to an end; I shall settle down on my
father's farm and lie an honest man,' and
he showed the letter, a pathetic produc
tion from an afflicted parent. ' I shall
need $ 1,000 of the money to pay some
little bills,' continued the forger, 'and
here is a draft I have made on my father
for the $2,000. If y,u will give men
check for SI,OOO, I will give you the
draft, and will send you the other SSOO
as soon I get home.'
"The lawyer rend the lettercarefnlly,
drew a cheek for $ 1.1 00 and handed it
to his client, and received the draft for
$2,000. Als>ut ten days after the droit
was depositee] in a bonk for collection,
it came back with the message that Re
man on whom it was drawn had been
dead for eigi t years, and wasn't worth
a tent when he tva; alive."
The Conductor and the Dog.
A few weeks ago Mr. William R.
Palmer, treasurer of the Union Square
th'-ater company, was presented by one
of his many friends with a small full
blooded Knglisli hull-dog with a pug
nose ami short tail. It was one of tie
lx-*t natun-d dog* in the world, but his
aristrocratie pug nose and protruding
teeth were against him. <)n- day last
week Mr. Palmer, in company with a
friend and the dog. Uxtk the train at
•Jersey City for Philadelphia. The two
gentlemen occupied one seat, while the
bull-pup appropriated tliopposite one,
the bark of which had been revetued.
The gentlemanly conductor nun* to this
seat in turn, and asked, casually:
"Whose dog is that?" Mr. Palmer
looked up with the same gentlemanly
indifference anil said. "He ta-long* to
me," " Well," said the conductor, "he
will have to he taken into the baggage
ear." "All right," replied Mr. Palmer,
nnd tlie conductor passed on. An hour
later he came round a rain and seeing
the dog still occupying the same seat,
with the same ugly composure, and tlie
two gentlemen busiiy engaged in con
versation, tlie condtietor said somewhat
testily, " I told you that that dog would
have to be taken into tlie baggage ear."
Mr. Palmer looked up with some sur
prise and said, "Very well, take him
there." Tlie conductor advanced and
so did the dog toward Tlie end of the
seat. The pug opened wider a nat
urally ingenuous i-ountenance and the
conductor reiterated to Mr. Palmer, re
spectfully this time, "It isrcaily against
tlie ru.es of the company, sir. and the
dog must he taken out of this ear." The
heated discussion fietween the two gen
tlemen was again interrupted, and Mr.
Palmer turned toward tlie conductor:
"Why. haven't you taken him away
yet?" Ttien the conductor pna*-d quickly
down tlie aisle, and meeting the brake
man at the door, nonchalantly jerked
ids thumb over his shoulder and said :
"Tom, iust take the dog up there into
the baggage ear. will you?' The door
slammed, the gentlemanly conductor
passed on through the train, and tlie
tirnkeman advanced toward the dog.
Rut the Knglish pug rocked his head on
one side, opened his mouth and looked
cross-eyed nt the advancing official in
suefi away that lie never paused, hut
walked straight on through tlie ear. Mr.
Palmer's pug occupied the seat all tlie
way to Philadelphia. Philadelphia
Home Things That are Hard to Find.
A man who will refrain from calling
his friend's speech a " happy effort."
A woman who rememl>em last Sun
day's text, but is unable to speak under
standingly of tlie trimmings on the
bonnet of tlie lady in tlie pew next in
front.
An editor who never feels p'eascd to
nave his good tilings credited, or mail
when they are stolen.
A pencil tiiat is always in the first
pocket you put your hand into.
A man who lias been a foof some time
during his life and knows enough to
keep tin- knowledge of it to himself.
A married man whodoes not think all
the girls envy his wife the prize she has
•aptured.
A married woman who never said.
" No wonder the girls don't get married
nowadays; they are altogether different
from what they were when I was a
girl."
An unmarried woman who never had
an offer
A man who never intimated that tlie
economies oftlic universe were subject to
his movements hy saying. " I knew if I
took an umbrella It wouldn't rain," or
some similar assinlne remark.
A pocket-knife that is never In " them
other pants.
A mother who never said she " would
rather do it myself' wnen she should
have taught lu-r child to do that thing.
A child who would not rather eat
between meals than at meals .
A person (age or sex immaterial) who
docs not experience a flush of pride upon
heing thought what he Is not and may
never hope to He.
A singer who never complains of a
cold when asked to sing.
A woman who, when caught in her
second best dress, will make no apology
for Iter dreadful appearance .—Cotton
II raid.
The Abase or Chloral.
The persons who become habitunted
to chloral hydrate are of two or three
classes, as a rule. Some have originally
taken the narcotic to relieve pain, using
it in the earliest application of it for a
true medical and legitimate object, prob
ably under medical direction. Finding
that it gave relief and repose, they have
continued the use of it. and at last have
got so abnormally under its influence
that they cannot get to sleep if they fail
to resort to it. A second class of per
sons who take to chloral are alcoholic
inebriates who have arrived at that state
ofalcolism when sleep is always dis
turbed, and often nearly imoossible.
These persons at first wake many times
in the night witli coldness of the lower
limbs, cold sweatings, stortings and
restless dreaming*. In a little time
they become nervous about submitting
themselves to sleep, and before long
habituate themselves to watchfulness
and restlessness, until a confirmed in
somnia is the result. Worn out with
sleeplessness, and failing to find any re
lief that |i* satisfactory or safe in their
falsef,riend alcohol, they turn tocbloral,
anc'.jf n it find for u season the oblivion
wlifch, they desire, and which they call
rest. It is a kind ol rest, and is, no
doubt better than no rest at all; hut it
leads to the unhealthy states that we
are now conversant with, and it rather
promotes than destroys the craving for
alcohol. In short, the man who takes
to chloral after alcohol enlists two
cravings for a single craving, and is
double-shotted in the worst sense. A
third class of men who become habit
uated to the use of chloral arc men of
extremely nervous nnd excitable tem
perment, who by nature, and often by
the labors in which they are occupied,
become bad sleepers. A little thing in
the course of their daily routine op
presses them. What to other men is
pnssing annoyance, thrown off with the
next step, is to these men a worry and
anxiety of hours. They are over-sus
ceptible of what is said of them and o
their work, however good the work may
Ix-. They are too elated when praised,
and to depressed when not praised, or
dispraised. They fail to play character
parts on the stage of this world, and as
they lie down to rest they take all their
car*-* and anxieties into bed witli them,
in tlie liveliest state of perturbation.
Unable in this condition to sleep, and
not knowing a more natural remi-dy,
they resort to the use of such an instru
ment as chloral hydrate. They begin
with a moderate dose; increase the dose:
as occasion sec-ins to demand, and at
last, in what they consider a safe and
moderate system of employing it. they
depend on the narcotic for their falsified
repose.— I'r. Richardson in Contempo
rary Review.
A Ragpicker Princess,
Th ft most curious "city" of Paris is
on the Avenue de la Kcvolte, at tic
upper end <J the passage Xriboulet.
The passage ends in vacant lots, where:
in summer our carjxt* are whipped.
The right side belong* to a woman
named kouc-ault, who built and manag*-*
the "city;" it is a long alievway, ta>r
dered with a sort of sheds. Each lodg
ing on tlie ground floor, or first story, to
which access is had hy an outside'gal
iery, is a species of little ceil, roon- or
less broken down and dirty. The only
furniture is a mattress thrown on the
floor or a toppling iron taxlxlcad. A
square window, eighteen inches across,
lights these places. Ixi Ftmtns Calotte
is tlie title by which the proprietress is
known. She reigns supreme over a
wretched js*ople-- rngpick'-ra. workmen
without work, declatus of every kind—
to the number of too. This woman,
who is very rich, and goes about in her
phaeton drawn by a pn-tty pony, is dis
guised as a man; she may Iw fifty; her
gray hair is cut short, like that of nun;
she is clad in pantaloons—hence the
name—a vest, blue blouse and laced
gaiter*. This costume she ha* worn
for the last twenty years, assuming, as
well, the hearing and energetic gestures
of tlie stronger sex. !a Fttnnu Calotte
is by no means dull; in her springtime
she must have with intelli
gent men. She declare* she knew
Hums* the elder well. She chats very
agreeably and skims literature with a
light touch. Tlie day I had the honor
to visit her she had two friends at break-.
fast As I entered they had just taken
coffee, and these ladies were smoking
cigar*ties, pouring out from time to
time a swallow ol cognac. Jj\ Fein trie
Calotte leaned hack' in her chair, her
tag* crowed, and puffed the *tn*>ke from
her cigarette in dainty ring*. At the
moment tlie three companion* were en
gaged in a dispute. Kmile Zola was tlie
sulyeet. la Femme Calotie was of tlie
opinion Uiat " L'Asaommoir," which
claimed to he the romance id the people,
was a picture of hut one phase of
I'arisinn wretchedness, and if Zola had
applied to her lie could have learned
much more as to popular depravity.
This conversation was interrupted frotn
time to time by tlie entry of some poor
fellow who presented himself at the
cash-window to pay an installment of
his rent—five cents or ten cents—all
of which la Fmtmt '"WoUc buried in her
breeches pocket.
Conducted hy this lady in person
whom her tenant* salute as a sovereign,
we make the round of the "city."
K. very where the same spectacle of heart
rending povery; entire families in
dwellings where a single person could
hardly find room. In one of these holes
a woman with a new born child lay on
a straw pallet, while the oldest girl of
twelve was cooking on a little furnace,
and the odor of the charcoal tilingnd
with the pestilential emanations from
the rubbish which the husband had
brought In and wa* raking over.
Young hoys, who Lad been hunting
rag*, ured out, were sleeping at the foot
of the bed, by the side of the mot Iter
and ha he. Poverty descends In these
families with the calling. Some here
are ltoneat fathers, who for twenty
year* have lived in the " city," worked
like dog* paid their rent regularly, and
have never Ix-en able to lay up a sou for
the morrow. Oilier* are worthless
scamps, spend each day's wages at the
ruin simp and live on a morsel of bread
so long as they get as much brandy as
possible. Children horn in these
"cities" are raised in the midst
ol the most degrading sights
Modesty is an unheard word; sliaine
an unknown feeling. Old men pass hy
with hacks bowed, whose life has been
passed in this filth, buried under their
load of refuse, covered with vermin.
Ilj-re are born little hafngs who will die
without having caught a glimpse, even
for an instant, of tlie joys of life.—Airis
Figaro
Women owe a groat deal to tlie press
We mean now, more particularly, the
pinting press. If It was not for it where
in creation would they get their hustle*
and circulars. I whri •Statesman.
Curlon* KrefU of Altitude la Lmd*
Till*.
A letter from I>e&J ville, Col., the great
mining town, says: I mw but very few
cases of intoxication in the streets,
though the tiiroe hundred saloons in the
cit/held out their best inducements. I
was surprised at thin, as one of the not*- '
ble effects of the great altitude of the
place (10,300 feet above the level of ths
(tea) U that all fermented liquors intoxi
cate more quickly than a lower elevation.
I'he boiling point, owing to the decrease
of atmospheric pressure is much lower
than at Chicago, and the alcohol is
sooner vaporised and taken into
the circulation, producing intoxication
quicker. 4
The boiling point of water here in
about 1!H) d<-grces, instead of 212 de
grees, the effect of which in boiling J
beans, eggs, potatoes, etc., is that it re
quires a long while to cook then in an
open vessel, and it is necessary to keep
the vessel well covered, or the water
will vaporize and escape before being
raised to the requisite degree for cook
ing. At this elevation much air is re
quired to fill and satisfy ike lungs, and
breathing must lie quicker in order to
properly oxygenize the blood. It is
said, too, that after one has been here
some time, the coloring matter of tbo
blood Is*-omen darker. lieing changed
from the peroxide to the sesquioxide of
iron. With a person suffering under
any difficulty or disease of the heart, lit*
effect of any long continued exertion in
to cause a dangerous degree of palpita
tion, and even with persona entirely *
well, the pulse runs extremely high.
There arc other and notable facts con
cerned with this altitude. There are
few birds seen here—perhaps for the
reason that flying is difficult in the light <
air. The common house-fly, the sum
mer pest of our eastern housekeepers, is
unknown here. There are some of tlt*
out-door blue-bottle varietv here, but
they seem languid and tired. It is said
also that cats cannot live here. This is
probably owing to their delicate organ
ization lieing unable to resist the rigor
of the night air. So the " voice* of tba
night" are not heard in this locality,
and the bootjacks are reserved for their
natural uses.
Another result of the lightness of the
air is that, having so little density, it is
easy heated by artificial means" Our
nights arc universally co^d—so cold that
it is uncomfortable to sit without afire:
but a few pine chips or small sticks will
warm an apartment very quickly. At
the same time the sun's rays do not seem
to have the heating power that they do
in the lower elevation. This seems to
oonfinn the theory that there is no sub
stantial caloric in the rays of the sun,
but beat is tbe result of chemical action,
generated by the direct rays with ths
clement of the atmosphere—the direct
ness of the rav and the density of the
atmosphere. While standing high upon
these mountains, even at a distance from
any snowdrifts and wheretheairis still,
the summer sun has ordy sufficient power
to make the air refreshing and pleasant,
whi'c you on the plains arc sweltering
under a torrid heat. In the shade of a
rock or two it is alwavs cool enough.
The effect of the altitude is the same
as that experienced by halloniet*. who in
ascending from tii surface of the earth,
even on the hottest days, soon find it
necessary to don tlieir overcoats and
warmest clothing. In the night here a
good supply of blanket* is always neces
sary, and nearly every morning heavy
frost* are found, and sometimes thick
scales of ice are formed. The crest* of
some of the mountains and many of ths
deep ravines upon their sides are still
full of mass's of snow so con pact that
one can walk over tbem without sink
ing. A day or two ago. In visiting a
mine close to the summit of Mount
Hross, I was compelled to cross s field of
snow, hanging over the edge, which
must have been a mile in length and
probably in places twenty feet in depth.
Kidnapers in !*few York.
The prompt arrest and punishment of
the woman Lizzie Newman, while en
gaged in abducting the little daughter of
Mrs. Cavanagb. revives public interest
in the erime of kidnaping children,
which it was hoped was effectually sup
pressed by the action of humane socie
ties in conjunction with the officers of
the law. In n great city like New York
few persons are a ware to what an extent
the helpless, the unfortunate and the un
sophisticated of both sexes, annually
fail victims to the wlies of hearties* and
designing women and men. Sympathy
flows out most nsturally toward ths
children. Nearly five years ago a num
ber of philanthropic gentlemen in this
city organized the Society of Prevention
of t'ruelty to Children, and a review of
the work of the society since it* forma
tion will disclose most interesting details
In this connection.
In the course ola siagls year there
are ordinarily over 2.000 caw-a of lost
children reported to the police. Most
of those are recovered and returned to
their parent* with hut little de
lay, but in numerous esses the little
ones sre lost absolutely, and their fath
er* and mothers mourn them as dead.
In point of fact they are not dead, how
ever, but (ail victims to tbe charity of
the public, or worse still become the
slaves of inhuman taskmastsrs The
number of rases in vestlg .ted by the so -
clety since it* organization is 4.058. and
may be classified aa follows.
cases of gross ill-treatment arising from
the drunkenness or depravity o? par- •
enta; secondly, where children of ten
der years are compelled to appear in
theatrical and gymnastic performances:
thirdly, oases where children are sold
into slavery for the purnaae of begging
for the benefit of their owners; ana
lastly cases where the children of
weal! y parents are kidnaped for ths
{turpi • eof extorting money aa the pos
ition of tbe ir rctur n. The first clans is
by fa the most numerous, mod scarcely
a day passes that such eases are not
hrough up for the adjudication of Uie
courts; Uie recitals of cruelty and nryp
lect arc so constantly repeated that they
appear to be regarded as a matter o
course and attract hut little attention.
Of the last clans of cases the most no- 4
torioiu that has occurred in this ooun- '
try is the celebrated case of Charley
lions, of Philadelphia, the detail* ol
which are familiar to most readers.—
Nam Fork f*nr.
I love to hcai Ml lU...tiling of ths
steam power press better than the rattle
and roar of artillery. It is silently
attacking and vanquishing the Mala
koffsof vice and Kedans of evil: and its
parallels and approaches cannot be resist
ed. I like the click of typo in the com
posing stick better than tk* olick of the
musket in the hands of the soldier. It
bears a leaden messenger of deadlier
power, of suhlimer hirer, and of a surer
aim. which will hit its murk, though it
is distant n thousand year*.— Aw. I>r.
CAagta