Life's Mirage.
Sad would the suit waves be
Aud oold the aiuging *ea,
And daik the gulfs that echo to tbo aoven
ttriuged lyre,
11' things were what they aeom,
If earth had no fair dream,
Ho mirage inmlu to tip the dull aou lino with
Are.
But on the shores of time,
Ileuiing tho breakers chime,
FUllng by day and night along our human
Mild,
The poet aits and sees,
Borne on tho morning breeze,
He phantom islands float a furlong from tho
land.
Content to know them there.
Hung in the shining air,
He trims no looliah suit to win the hopeless
coast.
His vision ia enough
To teed his aoul with love,
And he who graapa too much may even him
telf be lost. Kdmund Gout.
IF THEY HAD KNOWN.
"So you've come back again, Jerome?"
said old Mr. SewelL "Well, we heard
you was tbinkin' of returnin' to Elm
Mountain. Had pennies always come
back—ha' ha! ha! And you didn't
make such a big fortune as you calcu
lated. eh ?"
Jerome Clay leaned over the old zig
zag rail fence and rubbed his eyes-
Had time stood still all these years
while he had been in tho South? For
here w as Farmer Sew ell in t he same old
blue-checked overalls, with tho same
battered straw hat, the same wrinkles
between his brows, driving the same
old red cows home through the twilight
lane, where the scent of trampled
spearmint came up. and the melan
choly notes of a distant whip-poor-will
sounded faintly on the purple silence.
And yet—and yet it was twenty odd
years since he had left Elm Mountain,
with all his worldly goods balanced in
a bundle on his back. He had la-en a
dashing lad of twenty-ono then: there
were silver hairs in his black locks,
now. and he had left a dead past buried
under the sweet magnolia groves.
And here was Moses Sewell, just the
same JUS ever, only a triile yellower and
more dried up.
"Yes," Clay said, quietly, "I've come
back. And you are right when you
say fortunes don't grow on every
bush."
"Goin'to your uncle's house?" said
Mr. Sewell, leaning over the bars.
"He's dead and bttried, poor fellow.
Always hail a weak chest, you know, i
And the gals ain't no younger—the
three old maids we call 'etn—ha, ha,
ha'"
And again the old farmer chuckled
himself into a state of semi-suffocation.
"Come in and see us," said he. "My
daughter Aurilla she's come hack a
widow and does tailorin' and plain
sewin'. The old woman's stone deaf
but she's dreadful quick at catchtn' a
person's meaning!"
And ofT he trudged over the bruised
patches of sweet-smelling spearmint,
his broad figure vanishing into the
gloom like a shadow.
"Three old maids, eh?" repeated
Jerome Clay to himself. "Clara and
Bess and little Kate, the golden-haired
beauty, the soft-eyed poetess, the bright
little sprite who was a mixture of
I'ndine and Queen Mab. Then, surely.
Father Time h:is not stood still!"
The light was shining out, as of old,
from the red-curtained casement, the
great tire of logs was blazing on the
hearth, and the three cousins greeted
the returned wanderer with unaffected
warmth.
They were changed, of course.
What else could have been expected?
Tbe Beauty had grown sharp and
freckled, and her lovely hair had lost
its burnish, and she was not quite as
tidy as she used to be in tho old days
al>out her ribbons and frills. Soft
eyed Bessie's sweet voire had degener
ated into a whine; she had grown
round-shouldered and hst one of her
front teeth; and little Kate was a stout,
middle-aged woman, who reminded
one of I'ndine no more.
But they were his cousins still the
girls who had romped and flirted with
hitn In due arithmetical progression.
And there still existed a bond of stead
fast friendship, and he told thetn the
story of the southern wife who had
been buried for live years under the
magnolias, and they all sympathized,
and Beauty even cried a little.
"I have brought my three children
to the North," he said. "I left them in
New York, and if I can get somo gen
uine, whole-souled woman to take
charge of my home, I'm thinking of
settling here in Elm Mountain. Clara,
dear, you used to bo fond of mo in the
old times! What do yon say to tinder
taking this charge?"
The Beauty seemed to grow smaller,
■harper, more business-like, all in a
second. If Cousin Jerome had come
home a millionaire, she would have
jumped into his arms.
But Clara N'eely was not romanti
cally inclined. To ht*r, love in a cot
tage possessed no charms.
"I couldn't, Jerome," she answered
quickly. "I'm not very strong, and I
couldn't assume any responsibility of
this arduous nature, llesides, I'm not
fond of children. I'm greatly obliged
to you, I'm sure, but I'd rather not."
Jerome Clay bit his lip.
"(if course," ho said, "it Is for you
to decide. Hut If Hessie—"
The poetess shrugged her shoulders,
and laughed a light, shrill-sounding
cachlnnation.
"Cousin Jerome," said she, "it's just
as well to be frank about these matters.
I wouldn't marry a poor man—not if I
loved him like Homeo and Juliet. It's
bad enough to scrape along as we do
here, with only half what one requires
to live on decently. Hut to plunge
into poverty, with two or three children
belonging to another woman—no, I
thank you!"
For time, as may easily be perceived,
had eliminated a great deal of the
poetical element from Bessie Neely's
soul.
The quondam I 'ndine did not wait
for the question, as far as she was eon- j
cerned, but added, promptly, that she |
quite agreed with her sisters in all
these matters.
"It's such a pity you didn't stay here
where you were well off, Jerome," said
she, in the pitying, patronizing manner
which your genuine man most abhors.
"Dear pa, you know, always disaje
proved of your going South. And you '
might have got the situation of agent
to the White Castle place, at eight
hundred a year, and cottage found, if
you'd only been here on the spot. I'a
used to know the old agent, and could ,
have mmended you!"
Jerome smiled.
"White Castle?" said he. "That's
the big house on the hill, where we
children used to peep at the rosea and
white grapes through the glass sides of
the great green-house. A grand place,
as I remember it."
"And the position of agent is most
responsible and Idghly considered,''
broke in Hessie.
Jerome Clav went away, feeling
rather depressed.
It is not the lot of every man to be
thrice rejected in one evening.
"They think I am a failure in life,"
said he. half smiling, half sighing.
•'Well, perhaps they are not wrong.
People's ideas differ."
Aurilla Haven, the old farmer's
daughter, had been a wild hoyden of a ,
school girl when Jerome Clay went
South. She was a silent, pale woman
of three-and-thirty now, who did the
"tailoreas" work of the neighl>orhixsl.
and had hard work to get along.
Hut her dark-brown eyes lighted up
when Mr. Clay spoke ,f his far-off
home, an<l her cheek glowed scarlet
when Mr. Sew ell chuckled out:
"So the three old maids wouldn't ,
have nothing to say to you? Ha ha,
ha!"
"Do you blame them?" said Jerome.
"Well, no." confessed the old man.
"Gals naturally want to better them
selves nowadays. If you'd come back
with your pockets full of gold, they'd
sing a different song you'd see."
Aurilla looked pityingly at Jerome :
Clay. She, too, had found life a fail
ure, and in her quiet way did all that
she could to comfort the tall, quiet
man who hail hired the spare chamber
in her father's house for a few w-eks,
since his cousins hail altogether omit
ted to invite him to !• their guest at
the old place.
She was not pretty never hail been
—but she had a sweet, oval fare, with
dark-fringed eyes, and a mild, wistful
expression which Jerome Clay liked.
And one day she spoke out what
was in her heart.
"Mr. Clay," she said. "I can't help
thinking of those poor, little, mother
less children of yours. If you will
bring them here, I'll take rare of them
I always liked children, and it shall
cost you nothing. Father w ill let ine
have the big north bed-room for a
nursery, and their Imard won't signify.
They ran go to the public school, and
I'll make their clothes, if you'll buy
the material."
"Aurilla, you are a genuine woman,"
said Mr. Clav, earnestly. "Nonoof my
cousins have spoken to me like this."
"Perhaps— perhaps they didn't think
of it!" faltered Aurilla.
"Possibly," drily remarked Mr-
Clay. "But, Aurilla," gently detain
ing her hand, "is It of my children
only that you think? Have you no
tender, pitying feeling—the sweet sen
sation that is akin to love, yon know—
forme? Aurilla. will you become my
wife?"
And Aurilla did uot refuse!
"Now that you have promised to
marry me," said Jerome Clay, "I will
tell you all my plans, Aurilla. I have
bought a house here—"
"Here, Jerome?"
"Yes, here. Will you come with me
to look at It?"
"I will go wherever you wish,
•letonie," saiel the lirieliveli'ct in a sort
of innocent huwiiilerinent.
Mr. ('lav put tier into a little carriage
at tin; door, and drove ln-r lip the
inouiitain-siile, through the huge,
atone gateway <>f White- Castle-, to tin
velvet lawns in front <>f fin- colonnad
ed portico, w here statues of (Vre-s and
Proserpine stood in <lu//hng marble; on
e-itiie-r siele*, anil an antique sun-dial
marked tin; golden footsteps of tiio
God of day.
"It's a beautiful place!" saiel Aurilla,
looking admiringly around. "Hut why
are we stopping here, Jerome?"
"lie-cause, Aurilla," lie answered,
quietly, "it is our home."
"You mean to tell me, dear," cried
the delighted widow, "that you've
he-en fortunate-enough to re-e-e-ive; the
agency? I thought Mr. Wright—"
"Mr Wright is the agent still," said
Clay. "What I mean, is that I have
bought White Castle and its grounds.
This line old house is to he your home
henceforwaril, Aurilla."
"Hut, Jerome, I thought you wero a
poor man ?"
"Did i ever tell you so?" he laugh
ingly rotorteel. "Did 1 ever tell any
one so? If the gnoel people of Klin
Mountain chose to bediove me a pauper,
is it fair t<i holel 1110 responsible for
the-ir ra-h jonclusions? No, Aurilla!
In uione-y I am rich—rich beyond my
wilde st aspirations. Hut when first I
came to Elm Mountain, I believed my
self bankrupt, indeed, in the sweet
e-oin of love an<l human kiminess
.Sweetheart, it is not so with me now*.
It was your liaiui that unb cke-el the
gate of happiness to me! It shall l>e
your hand that is t<i reap tlie rich ro
ward."
ll<- bent and ki--.-d herforchwul ten
de-rly.
"Hut the cliihire-n ?" she cried.
"The e hileln a an- with their mater
nal aunt, at tin- Winil>--r hotel, in New
ork," he; an-w e-ri-el. "The boy is soon
to enter college-, the girl- are both en
gaged to In-married to southern gentle
men, and after a brii-f visit here, will
return to N> w < >rl< an* with tln-lr aunt.
>o, my darling, \oiir tend<-r solicituelo
was not required after all!"
Aurilla aigh<-d softly. She hrel
somehow lunged f. r the touch of little
chilelren's hanels in ii<-r own, the; sound
of small, shrill voices in her ear. But
she looked into .le-roine's loving eyes,
ami was satisiiexl. Heloved lie-r—was
not that enough?
Ami the three old maids are sharper,
inure- untidy and shrill-voiced than
e.-ve-r since-the-y have re Ui/ed the fatal
mistake- they made- in re-jecting the
overtures of their cousin Jerotne.
And a maneuvering, managing
creature is tlie tenderest ap|eeliation
tliey apply to Mrs. Jerome < lay.
things would have been so wi<l<-iy <1 if
ferent if they ha<l only known!—
ll'll'tt Ferris'. i,'r. -c.
Thnn ele r-Slorm-e.
The ten<b-ney of thunih-r-storms t-e
follow a comparatively narrow track is
one of the-ir most characteristic I-- it
urers. Every!**!}- who has lived in the
country knows how those storm giants
stalk across hills an'l valleys, pursuing
a c ourse tiiat can be tran-l almost as
easily as that <>f a tornaelo, drenching
the farms in the-ir path with rain and
shattering trees and hayricks with
lightning, and leaving adjoining farms
untouched. In any hroad rive-r valli'y
skirtesl bv hill range*, affording exten
sive views, the phenoim-noii of a pass
ing thunder-storm moving at right
angles to the oleserver's line of sight,
can lie frequently witnessed in tho
summer. It is like a distant view of a
battle, an<l when beholding it one can
hardly wonder that old Thomas Robin
son. in his "Short Treatise of Metenrol*
• eg)'," printe<l upward of two hunelred
years ago, deseriteed a thuneler-etorm
as an actual battle Ix-tween an army ol
lire- anil an army of wafer. A little ol
his curious description is worth quot
lng:
"The Battel r>y this time growing
very hot the Main Resiles engage, ane!
then nothing is to Ik- hcarel hut i<
Thundering Noise, with continua
l-dashes of Lightning, and elreaelful
Showers of Rain, falling down from the
broken Clouds. Anil some-tiiiu-s ran
elom shots flie aleout, kill iKith Men
anil Beasts,fire and throw down Houses,
split great Trees and Rocks, anil tear
the very Earth."
Although the rhances of any partic
ular man being killed by lightning are
very small, yet the actual number o
persona thus killed in a summer h
sometimes start ling!} large. Fortunate
ly, lightning can lie guarded against,
and those who do not expose them
selves out of doors during a thornier
storm are not in much danger. Is
large cities, too, with tho exception
perhaps, of the suhurlis, eiisastrous ae
cidenta from lightning are leas frequent
than in the country.— Tfrtn York Hun,
They are never alone that are ac
couipanied with nolile thoughts.
TOPICS OF THE DAY.
Official reports show that railroad
accidents are steadily incre-asing in
number ami fatality In the United
States.
British government figures estimate;
that onollfth of L'X. >o,ooo,ooo e-arnesl
by the British workingmen and women
yearly goes for beer ami liquor.
It Is said that the Bible re-vlse-rs flml
the "ravens" which fed Elijah were
gypsle-s, according to tho original, an<l
that the originally wonl useel was
"rovers."
Tho Georgia golel mining leelt ex
te-nels from Virginia to Alabama and
Florida, with an average; width of UK)
miles. Thousand* of men are engage-el
in working tin- mines. In one place
in Lumpkin* county tin-re- are 21 stamp
mills, each e-mploying from lo to
50 men. This statement of the extent
and value; of the; go!<l mines of Geor
gia will probalely surprise most North
ern people.
John Pearson, a trembling old man,
who ha.* been a resident of Fort
Smith, Ark., for forty-three- years,
claims to have- been the actual lnve-n
-tor of the; re-veelvcr patented by Colonel
Colt. lie- says that in 1 K.J4, while lo
wa* working in Baltimore with a gun
smith named Ilaxt -r, C !• <nel Colt hired
him to make expe-riments, which re
sulted in the- pe-rff-'tesl re-volve-r, with
six charge-* in the cylimler an<l e>n<-
barrel. I'e-arson never rex-ejved any
reward for his invention.
A little-tw e-1 ve--ye-ars-old girl in Knox
ville, lowa, was frightened to death
during the night by a severe thund '
storm. She t ail Im-.-h fjuite we-11 t.<•
day be-f-ere, hut awoke during the
storm and besought lu-r mother to take
her t - her 1-ed, " for she* w.t* afraid eef
tliuniier." Her supplications were un
he-e-desl. an I s <in the mother was
areeu.-i 'l by the child'.* elitfie-ult breath
ing. A|eproarhing th<- l>< I with a light
she funnel her dying, an-1 in a f-w
minutes she- hreatheel her last.
The Japane-se authoritie-s are al-out
to eie-ve te- ; ial attention to the raj a
bilitie-* and j-r *j><- Uof Jajean as a tea
producing country. In re-sponse to
numerous aj-j-h ations from tea culti
vstors. they have decided to invite
del-gate-* from the various tea growing
elistricts throughout the country, who
will meet at Kobe next October. The
Japan Moil adds that, if possible, tlie
authorities will take the opportunity
of holding at the same time- and j>lare
an exhibition of the different varieties
of Japanese tea. ami of objects con
nected with their production and prej
parntlon.
There i a man employed in the
Philadelphia gas-works whose fidelity
for almost half a century deserves re--
cognition. He is a hale old man of
eighty years, and Irs name i* Tim
othy Keating. Forty-seven years ago
he was brought fr->m Knglaml to teach
the manufa-ttire of gas in Philaelel
phia, and he ha* never once been al<sent
from his post in working hour* during
that long period of service. For twen
ty year* hi* duty has le-en to regulate
tho pressure of ga* according to the
varying demand eluring the hour* of
darkness and he goa to work every
evening at six o'clock.
The following is the estimated rail
way mileage of the world January 1,
1088:
JtfifM. JVifn
Puked States, - 11V000 AnetnJu . . 3,y<o
Btirope, • . 1H9.000 Afrins, ... 2.200
An .... S.OOO Mexkv>, • . 2,100
South A me- tics, 7.003 _____
Cor.s ... S 600 firs ml total, 253,000
These figures, says the Chicago liufl
fpay Ayr, arc not claimeel to lee exact.
It Is absolutely impossible to obtain
official returns for the same perioel
within a year or two after date, and
so it is neee**ary to use the latest
available statement. an<l Bdd the prole
able increase since that time.
Once in a while a dishonest man
Shows the sincerity of his reformation
in something more tangible than
words. In Quincy, 111., a few years
age I, a man occupying a position of
trr.st stole 110,000 and decamped to
Mexico. According to the popular be
lief, his ill-gotten wealth ought to
have brought nothing but disaster to
him; hot on the contrary, the inveat
ments that he made brought him a
handsome fortune. A# he now had
plenty of money, his conscience Im
pelled him to restore the money which
he had stolen. He did so; and having
a competence, will probably bo atrictly
honest in the future.
A club of four teen-years-old boys in
WebeSer parish. La, has been organ
ised to otgnpete with 000 another In
ho cultivation of one- aero of corn
each. The 1;kI who produces the lar
gest rroj) of corn on his aere is to
receive five t>iiMh<-lH of corn from <*ach
of tlie oilier ijiciiiln-: * of the club.
J'.ach selecta his own a'-ro anl manures
and cultivates it to suit himself. Sup
there are t werity me-iuhers of the
club; the lueky one will receive nine
ty-five; hushe-ls of corn, which will Ix;
a handsotne; pre-mium. Kve;ry member
will be; Ix-iu-lit <-<1 by the; increase-d
yiclel anel the; practical experience of
all See; u re-el by the; conte-st.
The; elaiige r of uncovering the head
at the; grave-on (tie oee-asion of a fu
m-ral, is causing e-onselerablediscussion
in the; pape-rs here and in Englan'l.
The Lomlon T<lnjraph says on this
Hubje-ct: "Many of tin; distinguished
and meere; elderly mourners at the in
te-rrne-nt of the Puke of York died
from hreinchitis within a few we eks of
the- reiyal obse-quie-s; the Marquis of
Loneloiielerry's funeral in Westminster
abbe;y in IHJJ was equally disastrous
to the age-1 eir <le-lie-.it among those
who gathe-re-el around his tomh; and
the- fune-ral in l'e*re La Chaise of
ttie c<*iehrateel French jurisc<<nsult M,
Robert <l<- St. Vine-e-nt is sa.d to have
elee-imatesd tlie senior ranks of the
I'aris tear, one of the victims being
Ilrillat Savarin, the author of the
'Physiologic du (lout.* "
Dr. Mary Howanl, an American
woman doctor, is creating quite- a stir
in social life- in China. .She att<-nd<-d
th<- moth< r of l'rinc<- Li Hung e'hang,
anil although she- diel not save- li-r Jife-,
-ti<- sh<<west so much -kill that sh<; was
<\iil<-1 in to tr- at tin- wife of tin- great
minister. From all parts of North
China letters from the wives of mar
elar.ns and high oill<-lals an- |x>urlng in
on he r, f-ntr<-ating In rto come-to them
i<r t-> "send other wise- women from
America" Fa-tern women of rank
eli<- with olescure eli-i-asi-s rather tlian
submit to i ; <r.it. in; j rf••rm-d by
surge n-. An American j-hysu ian
who sje-nt -nine- time in Turkey was
called in to j re-scrilie for tlie- wife- of
tin- N-y ill with typh"i<l fever. Tim
pate nt was wholly <. \ e-re-d with a
-lie-i-t in which one hole- was cut largo
enough for him to jitit his fingers in to
feel her pulse, and another through
which she thrust her tongue. I)r.
Howard has l*-n loaded not only with
fes-s by leer grat--ful patients, but jew
elry, furniture- and priceless curiosities
enough to stfeck a hric-a-brack ware
bouse. Go Ka-t, young women, go
East!
Chinese Thrift.
It seems that notwithstanding the
vigorous and compli<-ated anti Chinese
legislation in California, and the new
treaty forhiilding the emigration of
< hinese ialiorers to tliis country, the
Mongolians manage to prosper on the
Pa iflc coast lecyond all other races.
They have secured control of several
manufae turns and trade-*, ami no effort
ran avail to overthrow the monopoly.
It is said the |>ork trade is entirely in
their liamls, an<l every jeound of fresh
hog me-a! eaten in San Francisco pays
tribute to a Chinaman When they
comjx-tc for a trade they not only secure
It, but monopollre it. They enjoy a
monopoly of the < lotlinsw ashing imlus
try, and none can comjeete with them.
The_\ monopolize the business of mak
ing cigars, and in spite of their repeat
e<l pledges not to smoke Chinese male
cigars, the San Fram isco smokers
smoke nothing else, except a few Itn
ported bramls. They an- now grain al
ly securing the manufacture of boots
and shoes, brooms and underwear;
in<h*ed, it is asserted that one half of
the manufacturing business in the city
is performed by the hate-<l Mongolians
who, Kearney saiel, must go, but wlio
never went. Tlie t'hinese population
of California is not in- reasing. of course,
as the new treaty forbids them to
come, but those already the-n- are thriv
ing in spite of the opposition to them,
and will probably remain forever a part
of the population.
Not Always Fatal.
A clinical proof of the fact that a
few trirhinn can be swallowed with
out fatal result is related by XL lUth
ery in a French journal of medicine.
He found a man with numerous nod
ules (each about the sire of a pea) lev
rated about his waist One of these
nodules, when examined, was found to
contain a trichina- parasite, which hail
probably made its way from the stom
ach to the surface of the leody. When
but a few are taken at once, sometimes
they skirmish about the beedy till they
find a reeling place without causing
any great distress, hut when a large
number are swallowed at a meal they
pierce the tissues la many directions
and cause so much disturbance as to
kill the subject— Dr. FooU* Health
Monthly.
The I)u4e.
"Whet la the (lode, paj?" he Mid,
With we<it end Inquiring ejM|
And UJ the knowlftdgK-M—kiiix rneid
Her daddy tbua r< j boa:
A week rmutaciie, n urette,
A thirteeii-hutlnii teat,
A curled-rim hat—a minaret.— I
Two watch chain* across the breaat.
A fir of bags, a laay drawl,
A lack-a-daisy air,
For goarfp at the club r r ball
Some little "peat affair."
Two pointed alioea, two apindla ahanka,
Complete Uie nether charma,
And follow fitir in the tank*,
The two bow-legged anna. .
An empty head, a bajlloon'a aenae,
A j.'at.ng attitude;
*lJy Jotre'" ■ Kga/1!" "But aw!" "Itr.menM!"
All theae make up the dude.
I'htladtlfihia J'reu.
PUMJKST PARAGRAPHS.
The barber is a man of many
scrapes.
I f love is blind, the girls go to a
great deal of trouble in fixing up
their hair when they expect their
beaux.
Hens may be a little backward on
eggs; but they never fail to come to
the scratch where flower-beds are con- s
cerned.
The doctor who says it is unhealthy
to sleep in feather is mistaken; look
at the spring chicken and see how
tough he is.
A fond father boasted that his son
would make a great sculptor, because
he chisseled his playmates out of their
playthings.
A disappointed tradesman says he
wishes he was a rumor, because a
rumor soon g.uris currency, which he
is unable to do.
The <■ ndor of the Andes is said to
P.ill its j rey with its bill, and the higti
toned milliners are trying the same
game < n the married man.
I)r. Arnntage say-, "Man should
always be graceful." I>id the doctor
eve r have on a new suit and try to get i
out of the way of a watering-cart?
Guesa not
"Ve," she said to the gorgeous
youth who was her devoted slave, "I I
k-s j this gilded new five-cent piece in
my j ket, and I never see it without
thinking of you.
"Ik* t■ r," aske-1 Z. of a witty physi
cian, "why do you and your brethren
never go to funerals?" "Because
we should have the air of taking our
wTk home."
When you see a man sit down in a
barber's chair, pin the newspaper
around his neck and begin to read the _
towel, you may put him down as
absent-minded.
Origin of Thirteen at Table.
Says the Milwaukee Evening Wis.
mrutin: There seems to lie a universal
and widespread superstition against
thirteen persons sitting down at table
together. Indeed, so prevalent and
string is this feeling, tha' a hostess ar
ranging for guests is sure to provide
against the contingency and es< hew, if
possible, the fatal numlter. We have
known ladies to rise panic stricken
from a table where the number was
inadvertently discovered, and the omen
is popularly believed to denote either
trouble, sorrow <r death. Few, if any,
seem to know the origin of this strange
and mystic superstition, which date*
far back to the earliest ages of Christi
anity. When good King Arthur of
Britain, founded his famous round ta
ble. he secured the services of the <n
chanter. Merlin, to devise and arrange
the seats. This famous sorcerer ac
cordingly arranged among others thir
teen seat* to represent the Apostles,
twelve for the faithful adherents of
our Lord and the thirteenth for the
traitor Judas. The first were never
occupied save by knights distinguished
above all others for their valor and
prowess, and in the event of a death
occurring among them the seat re- A
mained vacant until a knight surpass-
ing in daring and heroic attainments his
predecessor should, lie deemed worthy
to fill the place If an unworthy or
effeminate knight laid claim to the
seat he was repelled by some secret or
hidden spell cast by the powerful ma
gician. The thirteenth seat was never
occupied save upon one ooca&ion. as it
is said, by a haughty and overhearing
.Saracen knight, who, placing himself %
in the fatal seat, was instantly reward
ed for liis presumption by the earth,
opening and swallowing him up. It ,
afterward bore the name of th* "pegp
ous seat," and among all the adventu
rous knights of King Arthdfo oourt
none were so foolhardy as to risk their
lives on the enchanted spot And n>w. I
after 1900 years, the spell of the'magi
cian Merlin still survives, and-in this
nineteenth century the thirteenth seat
at the table Is as greatly dreaded as in
the days of the knights of the famous
round table.