Or ®rt fUmflrtat.
bbllefonte, pa.
Tho Largest,Chojot null Bout Paper
HUItLISHKH IN CKNTHR CO I'NT V.
III.ACK ON THK Till HO \KKM.
TIIK l-ROBABI.E KfITCT OF A VIOLATION or
tII E IN W RITTEN I.AM OF TIIF. RRI'IIUI*
Juilr* J of* Bill' k In North Ani<>ricnn Rulru.
Wlu-rc tho Chief Magistrate ia vest
ed, na oiira ia, with great power liable
to gross abuse, if there is no law or
practice which forbids him to be re
elected, he can remain in office for
life as easily as for a term, lie has
the appointment of all officers, the
making of all public contracts, and a
veto upon all legislation, besides the
command of the army nnd navy. By
an unscrupulous use of these means he
can coerce not only his horde of im
mediate dependents, but he can con
trol the corporations and become the
ma-ter of all the rings, put the busi
nesi of all classes under his feet, cor
nipt the venal, frighten the timid, and
cheek all ambitions hut his own. He
can force the elections of every State
he desires to carry bv the bayonets cf I
his army. If that fails, he can order
a false return, and pay for it out of
the public Treasury. The people
would soon perceive opposition to lie
useless and accept tbe situation ; elec
tions would be as mere a matter of
form as they were in Borne w hen siieli
Cen-uls as Nero nnd Domitian were
elected regularly every year under
the supervision of the pretorinn guards.
If these were no more than remote
possibilities prudence should guard us
against them. But they are near
probabilities ; the signs of the times
warn us that the peril to our institu
tions is imminent; the danger is al
ready on the wing. It is vain to re- !
mind us that the President swears to j
preserve, protect and defend the Con- i
stitution and see the laws faithfully j
executed. That is true; and it is also
true that, if there he no perjury in the
rase, the Constitution, laws and liher- !
ties of the country are safe. But the [
last twenty years have given us ample I
proof that an oath is not much re
straint upon a President who is incit
ed by ambition, rapacity or strong
party feeling to break it.
It is true that this presupposes a
p pie much degenerated and a mag
i-trate animated mainly by the vulgar
love of power for its own sake; but
exactly such a conjunction of things '
lias always been feared with good
reason, and hence comes tbe desire to
Iut every check on that tendency to
"strong government" which is now
manifesting itself in many quarters.
What is the remedy? How .-hall
we avert the dire calamities with
which we are threatened? The an
swer comes from the graves of our
fathers: By the frequent election of
new men. Other help or hope for the
-a! ation of free government there is
none under heaven.
If history does not teach this, we
have rend it all wrong. In the repub
lics of ancient ami modern times the
chief magistrate was entrusted with
onlv temporary power, and always
went out of office at the end of a short
period, fixed and prescribed by law or
custom. It was tbis, indeed, which ,
made the substantial distinction le
-tween them and the monarchies around
them. An unpunished transgression
of the customary limitation was uni
formly followed by destruction. Every
where nnd always it was tho (atal
svmptom of decay—the sure forerun
ner of ruin. When Cassar refused to
lay down his Consulship, as his pre
decessors had, at the end of a year, '
and was re-elected time after time
with the acquiescence of the Seuate
and the people, all that was real in
Human freedom ceased to exist. Two
republics in Fiance were brought to
an end in the same way. Napoleon
began by being Consul for a term, '
then was elected for life, and finally
became Enqieror, with the jmwer of
an absolute despot. The last Bona
parte was President for four years,
was re-elected for ten, ami ended, like
his uncle, in grasping the imperial
crown.
"May this be wa-bed in the Lethe
and forgotten ?" Khali these lessons
be lost? Shall the lamp which guided
our forefathers be extinguished ? Khali
the broad daylight of all huinau ex
jierience be closed up in a little dark
lantern mnuufurtured at Milwaukee?
I think this cannot be done; "the
eternal verities" arc against it. The
most powerful third-termer may as
well trv to blow out the sun, as be
would a tallow candle, with the breath
of his mouth.
A third term for Grant does not
mean a third term only, botany num
ler of terms that he chooses to de
mand. The imperial method of ear
rving all elections by corruption of
force, or of declaring them to be car
ried when they are not, is to be per
manently substituted for the system of
free, popular choice.
The figure of Grant standing with
the seal of primacy on the mountain
top and looking down on the inhabi
tants of the plain below, gives a meas
ure of the elevation which his syco
phants flatter him with the hope of
attaining. They urge the necessity of
a strong government almost in tbe
very words used by the adherents of
C'wsar nnd the two Napoleons. Htrong
government, in their sense, means
weak laws and a strong ruler; in
olhcr words, a substantial monarchy,
powerful iu its scorn of ull legal re
st ruiuts. '
HOW I.OXO WILL JI'STICK SLEEP!
From tho Altoou* Hint.
The ease of thnt brave, accomplish
ed and greatly wronged soldier, Gen
eral Fitz-Johu l'orter, still bungs fire
in Congress under the miserable ex
cuse that the passage of the bill long
since reported and which if passed
will in part make restitution for the
crime perpetrated agaiust him, will
provoke a political discussion. With
the Chronicle-Herald the Sun repents
the interrogation, "Are Democrats too
cowardly to be just?" If the Demo
cratic leaders have read history to any
purpose they know that there is noth
ing ii|M)ii which the people look with
more contempt than cowardice. Even
a venal parly has a better chance of
running the gauntlet of public opinion
than a cowardly party.
The course for the Democrats to
pursue is very plain. They must
promptly take up the report of the
committee and act on it. If the He
publicans insist upon lighting the war
all over —if they are determined to
ransack the prisons and tear open the
graves—let them do it nnd make out of
it what political capital they can. If
the Bepuhlieans resolve to he ghouls
the Democrats needn't be fools enough
to step into the pit which- their adver
saries dig.
There is nothing for Democrats to
fenr from Fitz John Porter's case or
any other reminiscence of the war so
long as they keep their heads and
bridle their tongues. We are not far
enough removed from the war anil
passions for any question connected
with that unhappy period to be freely
discussed iu Congrc.-s without the Be
puhlieans taking advantage of the oe-!
casion to "fire the northern heart." i
But the northern heart cannot lie'
fired by northern men alone. South- j
eru men must plav into the enemy's
hands and furnish him with material
to he contorted and howled over. Tliey ;
must do what Ben Hill did for Blaine
in the famous debate which so endear- j
ed Blaine to the stalwart wing of his
party.
It may be very cxns|N>rnting for j
southern men to hear themselves re
viled and branded as monsters of in- j
humanity where thev have equal right
to talk ; hut when Republican politi
cians want nothing better than indig
nant and, perha|>s, indiscreet, replies
to their charges, it is then thnt silence
becomes golden.
Fitz John Porter's case needs votes ;
more than talk. The man is the vic
tim of a wrong of long standing. The j
reeeiit military inquiry has removed
any doubt there might have la-en of
his innocence of the horrid charge ou
which he was tried and hurried to
conviction. The country demands j
justice for him —such justice as Con
gress alone cau dispense. Treatment
so foal cannot remain unntnned for
without disgracing the country which
inflicts it. Are the Democrats too j
cowardly to do justice ?
OKNKKAL lIANTOCK'M CANDIDACY.
From th* Washington I local A.
After this year it will no longer Im
possible for New York and the South
to elect a President. The census of
1880 will give the Northwestern States
a far greater proportion of fhe electo
ral vote than they now possess. The i
Democracy will therefore do wisely to '
cousider whether it can afford to ,
throw away any chance of electing a
President. Democrats who really be
lieve the success of their party to be
necessary to the welfare of the country
should lav aside all mere [K-rsotinl
preferences and prejudices and seek
the strongest possible qandidate. One
candidate alone appears to combine j
every element of strength, and that
candidate is General Hancock. A
hitter war on the financial question
has been for years going on within the j
party ranks. The contending factions j
arc still as wide apart as the poles,
and hopeless of agreeing. General
Hancock has been kept by his position 1
[entirely out of this embittered contro
versy. Any Demos-rat can vote for
him, while votes would he lost by the
! nomination of any man who has ever
taken n positive part in the financial
j discussion. It is essential to success
that the votes of Greenback Demo
; cruts should be secunsl without alien
ating those of a different sentiment.
Here is the first point of General
Hancock's supreme availability.
Then, the very composition of the
Democracy—consisting as it does so
; largely of men lately in insurrection —
requires that it should have for its
standard-bearer a Union soldier. The
chief reliance of the Bepuhlieans is in
appeals to the smouldering passions of
the great rebellion. The fires of civil
strife nre not extinct; and fatal is
ever the day when the Democracy
forgets their presence. His war rec
ord is the second great point of Gene
ral Hancock's availability.
Yet it would not he difficult to
find a more or less obscure candidate
who has been neutral in the still in
tense money conflict, and who fought
for the Union. These, though essen
tials, are only negative ones. Gene
ral Hancock has, besides these, posi
tive merits of a surpassing kind. He
is the most eminent of all those soldier
ly figures which now stand forth in
the ranks of the Constitutional De
mocracy. He has proved that he
possesses the ideas and habit of mind
of the statesman. His official writings
embody the soundest conceptions of
law, and show an intimate knowledge
of the principles which form the basis
of the civil linerticsof our race. Thus
General Huucock possesses in an
eminent degree the qualities which
will excite the enthusiasm so desirable
in u political campaign. Splendid us
a soldier; wise as a civilian ; his can
didacy would bring out upon the
stump a host of men who have uever
before taken an active part in our
politics. He has 110 following among
politicians, having maintained during
all the time his name has been before
the country as a candidate the digni
fied silence and abstention from in
trigue and personal effort which are
most befitting the character which
would adorn such an exalted posi
tion. Having never been a politician,
General Huucock is surrounded by
none of those political workers who
naturally gather around men who
Weotne prominent in political life.
The strength which the movement for
his nomination exhibits throughout
tho country is therefore a spontaneous
strength, which does not come frog)
organization and effort, hut which
springs directly from the popular
heart. It is this kind of strength that
is irresistible. Have the Democracy
the wisdom to see it and to seize their
golden opportunity ?
THK I'OETM AMI THE lIIKUN.
WHAT MISS SANBORN CHOSE Foil TUB SfttJFxT
OF lint VF.STFKDAV MORNING**
TALK TO I.ADIF.S.
Front lit# New York World.
Having found the parlor of Dr.
Crosby's Church too small for the ,
many ladies who attend her Thursday j
morning talks, Miss Kate Sanborn |
yesterday spoke from the little plat-1
form at the end of the chapel or lec- ;
ture-room belonging to the same •
church. Here, shut off from the J
sound of horse-ears and elevated j
trains, which on the occasion of her
first lectin* last week proved im|ierti
nently disagreeable, everybody who j
had the good fortune to Iw present
thoroughly enjoyed herself (for Miss'
Kan horn's large audience contained
only two males}. Miss Sanborn, who
is promptness itself, entered the lec- :
ture-room a moment or two before 11
o'clock and depositing on the desk he
fore her a large pile of manuscript, f
fraukly told her hearers that the sub
ject she had chosen to talk to them
about had run away with her. "It is j
so voluminous," said she, with a de
spairing sigh, "that, try as I will, prune
as I can, worry as I do, ! cannot get !
it into shape for a lecture. This. '
ladies (desperately), is not a lecture.
It's a ramble —let's call it n flight.
'Birds as Sung hv l'oets.' That is the
title I have given to it. It's a good
subject. I know it is. I'm in love
with it. But the difficulty is in par
ing it down into a round little lecture
of an hour's duration. It is a difficul
tv which, as I said liefore, i have not
surmounted. My sister savs it i too
'birdy.' Mv f-ar is that it will la
burdensome. Forgive me. I>et usj
fly into the clouds at once.
"Oo a train one sunnv morning in
June I saw a little bird llv by my win
dow anil on and up into tiie illimitable
blue. My first thought was of this
airy freedom and graceful flight n
contrasted with the crannied ear and I
snorting engine pulling along its load 1
of human luggage amid the heat and
dust. I sighed for wings, and then
eaine the thought, 'As you cannot ,
very well lie a bird' —which was quite
true —'why not look up the many !
beautiful jhings that poets have said ,
about them ? There you will find all
that you feel hut have not tMPuhility :
to express.' This has been my task.
Buskin will rertainly commend me
for it if nobody else does, for lie grurn- {
hies that 'no English gentleman in re
cent times has ever thought of birds |
except as flying targets or flavorous
dishes.'" Having made Aristophanes,
Chaucer, and Boccaccio responsible for
utterances concerning the winged sub
ject shp had chosen, Miss Sanborn said :
"The first English song about birds
that I have found is on the owl and
the nightingale, as to which had the
finer Voice, and bear the date 1278.
This is important, as it is about Eng
lish bird jNictrv that I am chiefly go
ing to talk. Which two birds do you
suppose are the most famous in Eng
lish verse? Does anybody know?"
Miss Sanborn paused for reply. "Come"
she continued, as nolnidy answered,
"as this cannot he u lecture let us
make it conversational.' Still uone of
the ladies spoke, though all of them
looked interested enough to do so had
thev dared. Miss Kauborn laughed.
"Well, pardon me," she said, "I can
not help taking a delicious and mali
cious delight in proviog my superior
knowledge on this subject, since I
have been two whole years digging at
it. The birds to which I refer are the
nightingale nnd the lark. There Are,
indeed, few poems of any length in
either of the languages of Europe iu
which allusion to one or other of these
birds has not place. The noblest poets
have been boon companions of these
birds, beneath skies saluted by the
lark, among grovoi haunted by the
nightingale. These little creatures
sang with Homer and Sappho among
the isles of Greece, for Virgil and
Horace on the plains of Italy; they
cheered Dante in his lifelong wander
ing exile and l'etrareh in his solitary
hermitage." Miss Sanborn then read
many extracts from poems of all agea
devoted to nightingales. As she is a
good reader, and had in the main se
lected poems which might reasonably
he supposed to be familiar, the quota-
lions were enjovuble. The. HUIIIC was
done for the lark, James Hogg's poem
ln-ginning "Bird of the Wilderness"
being read in whole, anil eliciting
much applause from the audience.
"The Robin Redbreast," continued
Miss Sanborn, turning to that inore
familiar bird, "bun often IK-CII desig
nated by the jwets an tbo 'friend of
man.' It ban been ntipponed to take i
puinn in covering dead people witb j
luon.n und leaven. Wordsworth uoticen
thin tradition, und in Merrick we find : !
"'Sweet Aumrj IliM h n j>ring's
Soil and mul-liku uiurmurings
Stent—and thun sltKqiing—thither fl.-w
A Kobin Hedhrimnt, who at view
Nut seeing her at all to stir,
Brought leaven and lIIOCH to cover her.
But while he peeking there did joy
About the ure.'i of either eye
The lid begun t" let out day.
At which jioor Kobin flew nway,
And seeing her not dead but all disleaved
I li-chirped for joy to tiud himself deceived.'
"Thin little bird, according to the
populur legend, wan comminnioned by I
the Deity to carry a drop of water to
the sou In of uubnptized infantn in bell, j
ami itu breast wan singed in piercing ;
the flumes." Mi* Sanborn then read
Whitticr'n verses on "The Kobin," i
founded on thin legend, thun which no i
poem of the morning called forth \
heartier applause from the audience of
ladies. "Jlut," she continued, "a
whole flock of birds, little and big, ,
with guy feathers and dull, with sweet 1
otcs and harsh, are singing around I
and pleading to be given places in tbis !
aviary which I have invited you to !
inspect. Ix-t us look at these birds as j
they fly by. First come those noted j
in mythology as .Juno's peacock, Miu- |
erva's owl, Jupiter's eagle ; then the
single birds made famous by a poem, !
as Auacreon's dove or Lesbia's spar
row, 'The Jackdaw of Kheims,' or
Cdia Thaxter's 'Sandpiper,' Willis's
belfry pigeon, Bryant's bobolink, or
Foe's grim bird on the bust of Pallas. j
Don't be nervous; I'm not -so raven
distracted as to attempt that ! Then
too, there are birds honored by the ;
poet which are held ill sjiecial revcr- j
enee. as the petrels, named from the
Disciple Peter, because they seem to :
walk on the water —although, by the J
way, Peter didn't .-com to walk the
water —and also railed Mother < arey's
chickens a <jueer corruption of
'Mater Cara'—sacred to the \ irgin and
thought to betckeu good luck to sail
ors." Of the solemn, stately stork
Miss Sanborn bad much that was ;
interesting to sav, and also read Bay- i
ard Taylor's lat |oeni, which wa, as j
will be reiiieml*icd, devoted to tld- 1
melancholy bird. Then she showed bv I
many apt quotations bow the bird# are
always at man's service to illustrate
habits, disjtosiUous, dress and the va
rious incidents and actions of social
life.
"]>o you remember," said the lec
turer in closing her chat, "those poems
of Luugfi llow, Hulleck and Mr*. Sig
ournev ou the blue bird, or Ixiwell's
lines:
" *TI' Mtt MM shifting Itia light |oil of
Fti'lu |*l to |r*t llr>D( lb* < h*e|e fetir*.
"Bryant, too, was a genuine lover of
nature and a keen olwerver of her
forms, but he was more remarkable
for accuracy than for insight. His
perception was les- sympathetic than
clear. Just compare l/well's poems,
'The Bolsdiuk' —
*• r.n r.f (he
Drunk with fh* Juj
"with Bryant's 'Robert o' Lincoln.'
Bryant describes the bird, bis plum
age, bis habits, his domestic and Inune
life, giving a charming imitation of
his note and a pretty picture of bis
existence. Isiwell attempts nothing
of tbis kind, but makes one feel the
thrilling glee, the heedlessness and
overflowing joy of the little songster."
Having tinished her talk Miss San
born invited Miss Thompson to read
Bryant's "Robert o' Lincoln" with
which request the young ladv com
plied, nnd, reading exceedingly well,
was compelled by the enthusiastic au
dience to read something more. Next
Thursday morning Miss Sanborn's
Iceture will he devoted to "Dora d'ls
tria; Her Life and Writings."
llow Bismarck Brinks llrandy.
From Ih* iVitlati'l Argm.
A prominent officer, who returned
from Europe recently, tells of an eve
ning he spent with Rismarck as fol
lows : "I thought that I had seen
hard drinkers, hut I found during
this evening with Bismarck that the
drinkiug men I had met were mere
tipplers in comparison with this great
mau. Bismarck had invited no guest
for that evening save myself. After
a few moments spent in pleasant chat,
Bismarck railed the servant and or
dered him to bring in brandy and
glasses. The glasses were of the
smallest size, the same size as the
glass we call a pony. 1 saw there was
no sugar or water brought, and when
Bismarck poured two glasses full of
the brandy, I saw it was white, so I
concluded it was a milder drink than
the French cognac and thought if he
could drink it clear I would not lie
outdone. I took a sip of it, and never
in my life did I experience such a
sensation. It was the most fiery stuff
I ever tasted. I gasped and strangled
a little, hut seeing Bismarck toss his
off as so much water, I made as little
fuss as possible. By slow, careful sips
I managed to drink the glassful, but
declined-to take any more. Well, I
stayed during the evening, probably
until 12 or 1 o'clock. Bismarck con
tinued tossing off the brandy, one
glass after another, and when I left
not a drop remained in the pint bottle,
which had been brought in full ut the
beginning of the evening. His capac
ity for drinking must be something
wonderful, for with the exception of
his face getting very red, no one would
have suspected that lie Imd been drink
ing at all. His conversation was clear
und his manner us quiet as at the be
ginning of the evening.
j
THK ARTIFICIALS.
Frin lII* IMiit:wlfl|ihia Tiruca
Mac fear's diamonds failed and now
Mammy's are said to he successful.!
They do not claim to be imitations of
the diamond, hut the real diamond
itself. They scratch sapphires, und •
when properly set on fire while rest
ing on a slip of platina they go off in a
whiff of blaze and smoke,'just as. do !
the diamonds from Brazil or South
Africa. The canny Scot claims to
have done in his laboratory exactly
what nature has done in hers. Hi- I
processes ure different and he produces
smooth diamonds instead of the rough
ones which are usually found in the
mines, llununy's diamonds will hear
cutting, after the manner of'diamonds
of the old-fashioned sort, aud for alii
practical purposes it would seem that
they answer as well as far as they go.
Many people suppose that, now that,
we are to have artificial diamonds, we |
will have them as big as turkey eggs ,
and as cheap as buttons. These peo
ple juui|> too hastily ut this conclusion.
Possibly diamonds may one of these
days hi- made as large as great pieces
of chalk and equally chimp. When
this eoiucs to pass the duz/.ling gems
will he so common that the public
generally will have to wear blue spec
tacles for the protection of eyesight.
As yet I'rofes-or Hannav's diamonds
are of infinitesimal size. If the prin
ciples on which he makes them are
correct, he w ill eventually make larger
stones. Meantime scientific men un
divided in opinion. An eminent Ital
ian chemist, who professes to know all
about diamonds, says that Hannav's
gems will provens delusive as Mac-
Tear's.
It i- probable that if artificial dia
monds shall be successfully made Jo-s
-will IK- ratlu-r of commercial value
than as ornamental gem-. The makers
will have much to contend with. The
laboratory of science is vastly differ
ent from that of nature. We mav
take a natural product apart and dis
cover each ouc of its several < b-mc-nts
with exactness, lsth a.* to character
aud proportions. Then we may take
the various substances in a- correct
proportion a- we can weigh and meas
ure them, ami try to put them togeth
er to counterfeit nature. The result
is generally to tench us that nature's
chemistry i* a different affair from
our-, and that there arc occult proces
ses which we have not mastered and
whose secrets we are not yet able to
fathom. It ha- |cen thus in the man
ufacture of artificial stone. Knowing
the component parts of stone, it seem
cd easy to take certain rocks apart
and put them together again. Within
the last quarter century many fortutn-s
have IK-CII s|K-nt in unsuccessful at
tempts to imitate nature in tlii- re
spect. Most of the results were like
Colonel Seller's eye-water. Tliey were
all that could In- desired except in the
lack of one ingredient. Some of the
counterfeit stone would crumble to
pieces in a few weeks. Some was
gtxul enough on the outside, hut inside
like mi much brown sugar. Some,
which managed to hold together toler
ably well, broke out in a sorry-looking
effioresceuee which spoiled its beauty.
It is not to IK- denied tbat various
respectable varieties of concrete have
been produced, some of which answer
weir for building purjmses. But renl
rock has not yet Ir-cii made, and pres
nt indications are that it will not be
for a while.
While we confess the incompleteness
of many of the attempted imitations of
nature's work, we must admit that in
some departments of this class of in
vention ingenuity lias been crowned
with triumph. Bald heads are orna
mented with flowing lock* which not
only simulate nature, hut sometimes
laugh nature to scorn. Toothless gums
are furnished with nerveless (Kircelaiiis
which neither ache nor decay, nud
which can lie sent to the factory for
painless repair, when repair is needed.
Hie world would be in darkness nt
the going down of the sun hut for the
success of tha makers of artificial
light. For generations the sperm
whale helped us out of our darkness.
When he liegan to fail us, we found
relief in the generous adipose of the
unctuous hog. When we grew tired
of turning swine into oil, carburetted
hydrogen eainc into fashion despite
the protests of even the scientific.
When gas companies taxed us too
heavily, we blazed defiance at them
with oil pumped from the bow les of
the earth. Now electricity threatens
to sweep gas, aud all the family of
illuminating oils, out of sight. Possi
bly some future inventor of artificial
substitutes for sunlight may knock
electricity, just as electricity threatens
to knock its predecessors.
The progress of ingenuity in prepar
ing artificials knows no bounds. Glass
eyes are sold by the thousand. They
wink and stare almost as nicely as the
eyes tbey intimate. Almost everybody
is getting to wear ceramic teeth. A
poor fellow who Inst his nose is getting
a new one built-up out of his thumb
aud finder. Millions of good people
wear wigs, and a California actress
has a thirtv-five-hundred-dollur wood
n leg, which runs, jumps, skips and
dance* MO that nobody can distinguish
it from the natural one. We welcome
the Heotch professor* and all other in
genious inventors to the largest vic
tory in the (liumond business. I'ossi
lilv we may yet have d<a nond globes
lor electric illuminator*. Night will
W turned into day, ami the sun may,
if he chooses,take a* long a holiday in
regard to our zone* as he dm* iii re
gard to the Arctic regions.
AJ.KXASDKIt AMI Ills I'FOI'I.F.
From t||H \V;ut|eni;ton
It may fairly be questioned if there
i* a more unhappy man on earth than
the ( zar of I'us.-in. The poorest
|sasant who eat* hi- hlaek bread in
|enee, and sleep* ou hi** pile of straw
without fear, ha* an enviable existence
compared with that of Alexander.
I'-veil the wretched exile in Siberia
baa PIIM-MHI the crisi* of hi* fate, has
rea*died the worst, ami hi* dreary days
are not haunted by the fear of instant
and horrible death. Almost any cer
tainty, however cruel, is better* than
the awful suspense in which this Km
iK-ror is compelled to endure life.
\ hen he eats, there is the fr-ar of
poison in his food to destroy his ap
petite. \\ heu he walks abroad, he is
not sure that a murderer is not point
ing it gun or pistol at him. Hand
, grenades are liable, at any moment, to
l*c burled into the royal carriage.
Dynamite mines blow trains and pal
aces into the air. aud all this to de
stroy bis single life.
Vet this man whose life is thus
haunted until every hour of existence
must seem like an eternity of torment,
is Alexander, the Liberator. When
lie came to the throne he introduced
some of the greatest reforms of the
age. The abolition of serfdom and
the institution of trial bv jury are
among the blessings which he gave to
his country. Hut instead of satisfying
hi- people and securing their support
and affection, lie has bail a more
troubled reign than he would have
bad in following flic example of tin*
lies | Ktts who preceded hint. He gave
a taste of blood to a pack of Jiuiigrv
wolfes when he decreed a portion of
the natural right* of mankind to the
long-oppressed lower cla— of bis em
pire.
Age.- of tyranny had so degraded
the lower classes that they were in
capable of appreciating the new re
form-. in trying to improve their
condition Alexander wa- compelled to
trespass on what the noble- regarded
as ilicir divine light--. Thus the
crown is left between the upper and
the nether millstones. The judges of
the courts sympathize with the Nihi
list-, and often acquit those who are
clearly proven guiltv of crimes again-t
the government. '1 he Nihilists appear
to have no definite |*diey except the
destruction ot itistituiLou-.
They hold that assassination ami all
other crimes are justifiable in their
warfare against monarchy.
According to our American id-a. it
is the right' of any jicople to decide
their own form of government ami
name their own mien*. Hut if Alex
ander's throne were overturned to-day,
ami a republic set up in its stead,
there would be another revolution in
three mouths. Hus-ia i- not prepared
for republican institutions. If Alex
ander were to adopt a constitution
similar to that of final Hritinn. there
is no reason to believe that his conces
sion would stay the tide of revolution.
Nihilism would not be placated with
anything short of democracy, and a
democratic government for such a
|>eoplc would mean anarchy.
We s*v nothing letter than a stormy
future before that unhappy country.
The abdication of Alexander, which i*
not unlikely to occur at any time, w ill
not bring peace ami order. It is not
agniusl him. but the system, that re
bellion is waged. Any other head of
the same system would be quite as of
fensive.
lie Turned the Table*.
FMa I>*rrt k tw>d4 in Ntn I rentier** Peat.
There is nothing like presence of
mind, after all. One dark, rainy
night la-t week old I)r. llotts, who
lives out on Van Ness avenue, was
trudging homeward when he discover
ed that he was Wing dogged by a
burly ruffian, evidently intent on rob-
Wry. They were in a lonely part of
the town, aud the mau was just at his
heels when the Doctor, buttoning up
his coat to his chin, suddeulv turned
back and said to hi* pursuer:
"I'lease, sir, give roe a dime to buy
! something to eat. I don't want to get
whisky, indeed I don't; haven,t had
anything to cat for two days."
" Great Scott! " exclaimed the foot
pad. repocketitig his slungshot with
profound disgust, " to thiuk here I've
bceu piping off a d n paii|ier for
over a mile." And ho walked off
cursing the infernal luck to blazes.
GBRSUL GRANT has an exalted
I opinion of Florida's capabilities, ami
: says the country is capable of supply
| ing all the orauges, lemons, pineapple*
and other semi-tropical fruits used iu
the United States, the one hundred
millions dollars of sugar now imported,
materials for rope, bagging, coarse
malting, etc.; any quantity of good
pine, spruce and live oak timber, rice,
etc. He thinksaihe State affords the
best opening in the world for roung
men of small means aud great indu*-
| try. '
A WISE MAN is known by the silence
1 he keeps.