. Af,
THE'tPITTSBUHGi
mMtBmmwmmtl
a- rtjjwt
?Two nutmegs.
J nice or choice lemons.
Jne quart brandy.
qnart ciaer.
: dry Darts with salt that Is. meat, suet
spices. Then pat in applet, then fruit
) liauors. then sacrar. Make two. and if
possible, six weeks before using.
.Hi. n. m i niiRn.
Irs. Jnstice Field was a Maryland girl.
and she gives a recipe that speaks of the old
flays of hospitality, it is eggnogg, or me
t'ereetinc cud." and in Maryland and Vir-
r'giuia houses is sent around Christmas morn-
"-lir every room peiore ivmuaui. oik
? writes it ior me.
MAEXLAXD EGGNOGG.
2 . One gallon of milk; one dozen eggs. Divide
ktbe yolks from the whites, and neat them. Ada
15 tablespoonfuls of sngar, one grated nutmeg,
one pint of brandy, one pint of Jamaica mm.
Beat the yolks and sugar until light, add the
'brandy and rum. stirring constantly, last of
. - all pat in one gallon of milk or cream and coyer
, wun tne oeaten wnite 01 tne eggs.
Mrs. Fjeld also giyes the method of pre
paring a" turkey for a Christmas feast.
Tbeurir.ey should Tie cooped np and fed well
sojrfe time before Christmas. Three days De-
fore it is slaughtered it should hare an English
walnut forced down the throat threo times a
day and a glass or sherry wine once a day. The
meat will be delicionsly tender and haye a
nutty flavor. Sue Visgixia Field.
In connection with this I give yon the
recipe for Begent's punch, which Mrs. Sen
ator Kenna uses at her receptions. It is
taken by .her from Maiion Harland's cook
book, but Mrs. Kenna uses it, and she
writes that it is delicious.
One pound loaf sugar or rock candy.
One large cup strong black tea (made).
vTnree wineglasses of brandy.
Three wineglasses of rum.
One bottle imported champagne.
Twooranges, juice only.
Three lemons.
One large lump of ice. Anxtk B. KEyA.
'Tell your reaaers," said a man, a gen tie
man of the old school and skilled in bev
erages as in cookery, "Tell your readers
that better punch was never brewed."
The wife of Congressman Burrows gives us
a recipe for plum nodding, and Mrs. Sena
tor Hawley tells how to make it. First the
recipe. It is as follows:
Ten eggs, S loaves of stale bread grated. 1(
pounds of beef, chopped One, 1 cup sngar, 1
glass of brandy, 1 nutmeg, 1 pound of raisins, 1
pound of currants, K pound of citron, all
chopped.
Beat the eggs, then add the sugar, grated nut
meg and brandy. Beat all till very light. II ix
the grated bread with the suet and fruit, and
put in the eggs, etc Boil three to four hours.
MES. J. C BUBBOWS.
THE ENGLISH OF IT.
Now the English of it in a charming note
from Mrs. Hawley. She writes:
I had a plum pndding made last Christmas
and followed my mother's recipe exactly, bat
someway it did not taste like the English plum
pudding. This, I think, was the reason. In
EngUnd the last Sunday in Trinity is "Stir-up
Sunday," and every one in the family from the
grandmother to the 2-year-old stirs the pud
ding. Phipps has a picture showing this cus
tom, where a little baby is beld up by its grand
mother who holds the ladle in its hand and
guides it while it stirs. Each one as he stirs
puts in a new shilling or sixpence for the cook,
and the mistress of the house drops in a ring
and a thimble. The one who gets the ring in
her piece Christmas Bay will be married within
a year, bnt the one to whom the thimble falls
will be a spinster all her life. The pudding is
toiled the Monday after "Stir-up Sunday," but
It is not touched until Christmas Bay. Then
comes the poetical part of it. The butler
brings the pudding in on a great platter and it
Is surrounded by delicate green flames, made
by burning the brandy which has been poured
over it. JNow comes the test of the server. If
there are a score at the table, each one must
receive a piece that is still surrounded by
flames. It has to be speedy work, and when ac
complished is a beautiful sight to see at every
plate a spiral flame, and in the platter flames
surrounding the bit of holly with which it is
decorated. These things are the making of
JSnglish plum pudding. Edith Hawxey.
. - Here is a. delicate morsel from Maine. It
is Mrs. Senator Frye's recipe for spiced
gingerbread:
Three eggs.
One cup of molasses.
One cup of sour milk.
One cup of chopped raisins.
One teaspoon ful of soda, heaping.
Two cups of flour.
Spice to taste. Caroline F. Fete.
Mrs. Hoger Q. Mills' barbacued mutton
has gained more rotes for Corsican's states
man thanhis free trade speeches. It is always
prepared by Mrs. Mills' own hands and the
Texan who eats it never swerves from his
allegiance. Mrs. Mills has written it out
with her own hand. It is as follows:
Take a nice tender fore quarter, or only the
ribs of lamb or mutton. Cut it across three or
four times to break the bones so as to carve
easily. Fat it in a flat stove pan, or better on a
broiler in front of the fire. Let it boil slowly.
Tike a pint of vinegar, add to it two table
spoonsful of red pepper (pods cut up fine, much
the best), teaSDOonfal black pepper, salt to
taste and two tablespoonsful of butter. Keep
this hot. Make a sponge of a piece of soft cloth
and all the time the meat is cooking mop it
with the dressing. When ready, pour on the
rest of the dressing and serve tot.
Mbs. R. Q. Mills.
SEJ-ATOBCULLOM'S CHEISTMAS DEfNEB
25" early all Senators will " :t their Christ
mas dinners at the capital, and to give an
idea of their likes, I send you a sample
menu. It is that of the Christmas dinner of
Mrs. Senator Cullom has decided upon:
Kaw oysters.
Clear soup.
Fish and cucunrbers.
Sweetbreads and peas.
Boast turkey. Mashed potatoes.
Baked sweet potatoes, corn, celery.
Olives, cranberry jelly.
Timbale de macaroni.
Game and salad.
"Mince pie.
Ice cream, cake.
Fruit, bonbons.
Coffee.
Mrs. Senator Cullom is an expert in
candy making, as well as a maker ot won
derful pies. Her chocolate creams always
form a part of her Christmas cooking, and
they will probably be made by thousands of
your readers after her recipe is read. She
has written it out carefully and warrants it
' good, it is as lollows:
Orate a package ot sweetened chocolate.
Add two tablespoonfuls of water and set the
bowl in a tin of water on the stove to melt.
While melting roll some of the. cream into
balls, dip these one at a time in the chocolate,
lifting out with a fork. Pnt nn a buttered dish
to harden. Use any kind of flavoring desired
in cream. J ulia Cdllosi.
A dish from Kentucky is recommended to
me by Mrs. Senator 'Blackburn. It is
Swedish Timballs and I give the recipe as
Mrs. Blackburn has written it out for me:
One pint of flour, one half pint of sweet milk,
three eggs, two tablespoons! ul of salad oil.scant
teaspoon of salt.
Stir the flour and milk to a perfectly smooth
batter, add oil and salt. Then the eggs whipped
very light. If too thick add more milk until
right consistency.
Chicken Filling for Patties One pint of
cream,onetablespoonfalofflonr,one pint cooked
chicken, cut in small bits, iouij tablespoonfuls
of chopped mushrooms, salt and pepper, put
one nan oi tne cream on to troll, mis the otlier.
nan witn tne nonr, stir into tne boiling cream,
when this has boiled uponceaddchicken,musb
rooms and seasoning.
IHEBESE G. BLACKBTJBN.
FI cannot refrain from adding Jessie Mil
ler's recipe for Christmas candy. Jessie is
the 14-year-old daughter ol the Attorney
General and ir-especia!ly proud ot the
candy because the President has eaten if
and the boys at school where her brother is
say it is the best they have tasted. No one
will be able to make it, as'Miss Jessie says
most of it is "in her head." This is the
way she tells it: .
' A cup of brown sngar, a cap of black molas
ses and a big piece of batter.
JJon't use confectioner's sugar or it won't be
sticky enongh and will taste just like the kind
you buy. "Try it by blowing through a curled
broom splint and by tasting.
','It is two kinds ot candy. If you poll it, it's
taffy. If you don't, it's batter scotch.
4 Miss Geundy, Jb,
A Valid Excuse.
Journal of Education. ,
The following is an exact copy of a note
of excuse recently received by a teacher in
a city school :
MrssT. Please excuse Louis for being ab-
stand because be whence with me to the ball
a Monday night and I cep him home from
school that he could rest himself.
Mes. A .
Perpetual Perplexities.
Somervflle Journal.l
There are two things in this world about
which the average woman seems to be
' eternally in doubt. One is whether her hat
Sjson straight, and tne otner Is just now J
,imnca "her husband loves her.
TIE EAETECHANfiES.
Pro..Pryor Explains the Eeasons
of Agassiz for
EEJECTIKG DARWIN'S THEORY.
Unlimited
Time s Xecessary
Evolution.
Factor in
THE PRECESSION OP THE IQUIOTXE8
rwnnrar ros ran dispatch.!
FEW years ago the
scientific world was
startled at the appear
ance of a work, pur
porting to give the
origin of man by
derivation on the
principal of develop
ment The theory was
received with open
arms, by those who
favored, but with
loathing and con
tempt by those who
rejected it. There seemed to be no neutral
ground. Scarcely any could be found, who
had not made ,up their minds and were just
as ready to express a decided opinion of
their views, whether for or against the
theory. Scientific men went over to
Mr. Darwin's views bodily. But few
escaped the contagion. There was one, how-
L Autumnal equinox. September ZL
2. Solstice, June 21: summer In aphelion:
IKS)1
Wmm
This diagram shows the present condition of the earth and the position of the earth's
axis to prodnce winter in perihelion and summer in aphelion.
ever, the foremost and grandest of his age,
and, without doubt, the profoundest scientist
this country ever produced, who, to the day
of his death, rejected the fundamental doc
trines of the Darwinian theory. That was
our distinguished countryman, Prof. Agas
siz. To this day the world does not know
the pressure which was brought to bear by
the friends of the development theory upon
Mr. Agassiz to induce him to acknowledge
and accept the doctrine of the descent of
man by derivation; but steadily to his last
breath be protested. And but few outside
the special friends of the great scientist
know the weighty reasons which he had for
rejecting a doctrine that had gained such
ready credence with so large and respecta
ble a class of persons as the believers in that
theory are. That they were weighty will be
clearly shown in the sequel, and to a mind
like that which the great philosopher had
were insuperable.
A QUESTION OP TIME.
The main factor in the Darwinian theory,
and that upon which it is alone defensible,
is time. "With time liberally allowed, there
Is no step, say its followers, from the lowest
monad to the highest type of being, which
may not be accounted for. Such changes as
the theory contemplates must have reanired,
not 6,000 years nor 10,000 vears, but almost
unlimited duration to produce. Prom tne
very nature of animal progression the pro- J
L Vernal equinox, March 22. I
2. Solstice, December 21; winter in aphelion.
Condition of the earth 12,800 years hence,
produce summer in perihelion and winter in
ncess of development must be slow. To de
rive tbe bigbest from the lowest type ot
evolution, supposing that to be the order of
nature, including all the changes and de
lays to perfect each type in its order, before
an advance could be made to the next
higher, would require millions of years to
complete. But, as already said, without
this concession as tn tlrni thp tripnrv must
I" fail; and if the time be granted, then the
theory is in conflict with a cardinal prin
ciple or terrestrial physics. And now tor
tbe proof.
Oar globe, say geologists, started on its
mission as. a mass ot nebulae, and has
steadily advanced from that gaseous condi
tion to one of solid matter, by the operation
oi tbe physical forces, solely; that in "pass
ing from the one state to the other, it became
molten and remained in that condition until
all the heat was radiated off into space, and
a shell formed on the outside, which has
gradually increased, as some suppose, to
about 60 miles; that while the earth was
cooling off, and this shell-forming, it shrunk
some 200 miles, producing all the variety
and inequality in the configuration of its
.surface; that in the elevation of the plateau's
and mountain systems ot the earth, a sur
plus of matter was projected into the
equatorial regions, which produces changes
of a secular character in the annual motion
of the earth.
PBECESSION OF THE EQUINOXES.
Disturbances in the equinoxes first called
the attention of astronomers to this fact; but
not until the time ot Newton was the dis- '
turbing cause unearthed. Sir Isaac New
ton showed that there was an annnal ad
vancement of the equinoxes equal to 60.1
seconds of a degree, la the earth's orbit; and
that it depended upon this excess of matter
about the earth's equator. This change is
known among astronomers, as the precession
of the equinoxes.
.now to nnaerstana tnis precession, we
have to conceive a point in the earth's orbit
where the earth was, when the equinoxes be-
gan for any cue year; then the equinoxes for
the following year willnotbeginatthis point,
but will be deferred until the earth advances
60.1 seconds of space or 21,000 miles farther
forward. The same will occur the following
year and for all subsequent years, until the
equinoxes will have completed the entire
circuit oi the heavens. This will require a
period of about 25,800 years, when the equi
noxes will be restored, and a similar series
of changes commence to move. But what
we are most interested in, are the effects
upon the earth, as the result of this move
ment. It will be remembered that the annual
motion of the earth, or its motion around
the sun, takes place in an oblong or ellip
tical orbit, and that there are two points fa
the orbit unequally distant from the sun,
the one, the perihelion, being about 3,000,
000 miles nearer the sun than the other, the
aphelion.
Bow. if this difference in the distance of
thtse two points was double what it is the
globe would Be unsuited to life such as now
exists upon it, because the climatic condi
tions resulting therefrom would be so in
tensified in their extremes as to utterly de
stroy all forms of organic life. We know
by experience that if the summers were a
few degrees hotter and the winters a few de
grees colder how animal life would sutler
and existence be jeopardized thereby, and
such extremes wbuld follow any increase in
the eccentricity of
THE EARTH'S DEBIT.
Now at the end of 12,000 years, precession
will produce the same changes in the sea
sons of the earth, as an increase in eccen
tricity, whicb, as already said, "would
extinguish all forms of life. To make this
fact intelligible to those unacquainted with
the science of astronomy, I shall endeavor
to be as explicit as the circumstances of the
case will allow. It is conceded, tbat there
are some points sufficiently recondite, tore
quire an effort of thought, to grasp. It is
3. Solstice, December 22; winter in perihelion.
4. Vernal equinox, March 22.
known to all acquainted with geography,
that the earth revolves about the sun, with
the north pole pointing in the direction of
the north star, that is, that the axis of the
earth leans oyer from the perpendicular
23U degrees and maintains this position in
all parts of the orbit.
This statement requires some limitation.
Astronomers and geographers uniformly
teach, that the pole pointe toward the pole
star, and that the axis of the earth, is
parallel to itself, in all parts of the orbit.
This is not strictly true since precession
causes the axis to be constantly deviating
from this parallelism. During the 25,800
years, the north pole sweeps round through
47 degrees of space, by a motion similar to
that of "the hands of a clock and not per
saltum. Hence, while such statement is
true enough temporally, is not true for
secular periods.
Prom this statement, it will readily be
seen that for one-half the year the north
pole points toward the sun, and for the
other half points awav from it. During our
summer in the Northern Hemisphere the
pole points in the direction of the sun, and
away from it in the winter. But we are
now haying our winters while near peri
helion, or nearest point to the sun, and our
summers while away at the other end of the
earth's orbit. Now reverse, these conditions,
or conceive them to be reversed, as they
will be in 12,000 years by precession, and
3. Autumnal equinox, September 2L
4. Solstice, Jane 21; summer in perihelion.
showing the position of the earth's axis to
aphelion.
then will follow the great extremes before
referred to.
CHANGING SEASONS.
In the year A. D. 1200 our winters began
in perihelion. Then, of course, they were
of the mildest type. Since that time, how
ever, precession has carried the earth for
ward, so that the winter now begins at a
point 16,000,000 miles farther forward in the
direction of the aphelion, and, of course, as
we are approaching tbe aphelion, every
winter must intensify, as the result, in a
very small degree, but will not be appre
ciable to our sensations until after the lapse
of ages. In 6,400 years the seasons will be
advanced three months. Winter will begin
September 21; spring, December 22; sum
mer, March 21; autumn, June 21. At the
end of 12,800 years the seasons will be re
versed. The summer will be in December
and winter in June. Autumn will be in
March and spring in September. The north
pole of the earth will point toward
the sun in perihelion and from the sun in
aphelion. The summers will occur while
the earth is at the perihelion, or near
est point to the sun, and will
be a many degrees hotter than now,
while the winters will occur at the
aphelion, or farthest point lrom tbe sun,
and will be so intense that a solid ice-cap
from the North in the form of vast glaciers,
thousands of feet thick, will creep down
perhaps as far as the southern boundaries of
Pennsylvania, and in Europe and Asia, to
the north boundary of France and China,
destroying all life in its advance. This, I
repeal is no fancy sketch.- Geology points
out indelible evidences of those periods
which have taken place in times past, en
graven upon the solid rocks of the globe,
such periods being known as the glacier
periods. It was during the last of those
periods that the mammoth mastodon and
many other abnormal types of animated ex
istences, wnicn innabited tne primeval
earth and whose remains are now fonnd in
a fossil state, were destroyed.
J
The existence 'of 'these facta in science,
and their periodical effect in destreyiag all
life on the globe every 25,000 years, a period
vastly too short to satisfy the claims of the
development theory, were the weighty rea-.
sons assigned oy a recent autnor ior me re
jection of the, development theory by JProf,
Agassiz. ' Pbof. J. M. Pbyoe.
ST0EY OF A WELSH GIAflT.
He Threw a Han nnd Hit Donkey Over a
Hlsb Htone Wall.
Sir Nicholas Kemeys, Bart., of Cefn
Mably, was accounted one of the strongest
men of his day, and a tradition of him, cor
roborative of his great strength, still exists
in Glamorganshire. The story runs, that
one summer evening as Sir Nicholas was
walking in the Deer Park at Cefn Mably
with some guests, an athletic man leading
an ass, upon which was his wallet, ap
proached, and. respectfully 'saluting the
company, said be humbly supposed that tbe J
huge gentleman be nan tne honor ot ad
dressing was tbe strong Sir Nicholas
Keiners. The stranger, being answered in
the affirmative, declared himself a noted
Cornish wrestler who had never been
thrown, nnd that having heard from a
'Welshman, whom he had met at Bristol, of
the great bodily strength of Sir Nicholas,
had made this journey to see His Honor,
adding that, if it were not asking too great
a favor, he trusted Sir Nicholas would con
descend to 'try a fall' with him; The baro
net, smiling, assented, but advised tbe Cor-
nishman first to go to the buttery and get
refreshment. ,
Tbe Cornisbman declined with many
thanks, saying he was quite fresh; so they
fell to wrestling, and in a moment the
Cornisbman was thrown upon his back.
The baronet, assisting him to rise, asked
him if he was now satisfied of his strength.
The reply was, 'Not unless you throw me
over the park walll' The tale continues to
say that this request was readily complied
with, when tbe nnsatisnea wrestler en
treated tbat Sir Nicholas would throw his
ass after him over the wall, which was ac
cordingly donel ,
A place is still shown in the ancient park
wall as the scene of the exploit. A fine
picture now at Cefn Mably, in the posses
sion of Colonel Kemeys-Tynte, represents
Sir Nicholas as of great stature and appar
ent gigantic strength. He was 'subsequently
killed at Chepstow Castle, in defending it
against the troops of Cromwell, having
slain many of the enemy with his own
hand in the sortie in which he fell.
A D0Q HIKES A CAB.
The Clever Hose of a Pet to Get Carried
Home.
Someone, writing to an English paper,
tells this story of a clever dog: "You know
how much I rush about in hansom cabs,"
said the narrator, "and Scoti, my collie
dog, always goes with me. "We travel many
miles in a week together in this way, but
on one occasion I was walking and missed
him. Search was in vain. The crowd
was great;- traffic drowned the sound
of my whistle, and, after waiting a while
and looking elsewhere, I returned to my
suburban home without my companion, sor
rowful, yet hoping that he might find his
way back. In abont two hours after my ar
rival a hansom cab drove up to the doorjand
oat jumped Scoti. The cabman rang for his
fare, and, thinking he had somehow cap
tured the runaway, I inquired how and
where he found him.
"Oh, sir," said the cabby, "I didn't hail
him at all; he hailed me. I was standing
close by St. James' Church, a looking out
for a.fare, when in jumps the dog. 'Like
his impudence,'says I. So I shouts through
the window, but he wouldn't stir. So I gets
down and tries to pull him out, and shows
him my whip, but he sits still and barks, as
much as to say, 'Goon, old man!" As I
seizes him by tbe collar I read his name
and address. 'Alt right, my fine gentle
man,' says I, 'I'll drive you whe,re you're
wanted, 1 dare say. bo i. shu's the door,
and my gentleman settles himself with his
head just a looking out, and I drives on till
I stops at this here gate, when ont jumps
my passenger, a-clearing the door, and
walks in as calm as though he'd been a
reg'lar fare." - .
THE INFLUENZA LPIDEMIC.
A Medical Journal Thinks This Country
( Will Not Suffer Greatly.
Tho Medical Record, in speaking about
the epidemic influenza, says that this djs
ease travels rapidly, and has been known to
make all Europe sneeze within six weeks.
It nsed to be thought that this disease moved
in cycles of 100 years. Although such an
idea has long been abandoned, it is a curi
ous fact that the influenza prevailed in
America 100 years ago, and Dr. John War
ren, in a letter to Dr. Lettsom, says that
"oar beloved President is now recovering
from a severe and dangerous attack."
In 1830 an epidemic started in China. It
reached Russia in Januarj, 1831, and by
May it had spread to "Western Europe, but
it only reached this country in January,
1832, and then prevailed but slightly. A
severer epidemic started in Bussia in De
cember, 1836, and rapidly spread over Eu
rope, but America was not affected. About
ten years ago an epidemic prevailed in the
United States. North America, however,
does not seem to be very favorable to the de
velopment of epidemic influenza in its' worst
forms, and it is not likely that we shall haye
a severe visitation.
The disease is not dangerous, except some
times to children or the aged. It is believed
to be due to some micro-organism that floats
in the air and infects the human system, bnt
is generally killed in so doing, for the dis
ease is very slightly, if at all, contagious.
HUNTING A LOST GOLD MINE.,
A Party of Ad venturers Iiooklng- for the Lost
Adams Placer Bed.
Old man Adams, of the "Lost Adams"
gold diggings, with a party of adventurers
from Cali:ornia, who have a physician
with them to look after the old " man's
health, arrived at Navajo Springs, on the
Atlantic and Pacific road, a few days
ago, and after a night's rest left for a
hunt for the diggings. Mr. Adams is
now under the impression that the lost
mines are about 120 miles south of Gallup,
and the Californians are accompanying him
with a view of ascertaining the truthfulness
of his story. He claims to have encountered
near the Arizona-New Mexico line placer
beds of fabulous worth 20 years ago, but
was prevented from working them because
of the hostile Apaches that have operated
through that region until five years ago.
No lessthana dozen large parties have at va
rious times been out in search of these gold
fields, but without result.
At the Backed Canvas Club.
De Paint I should think Aus der Brash
would get cold sitting in that draught.
Von Klay There's no draught there, old
man. He's trained his whiskers that way
to show hii saloa decoration. Fuek, c
fJfaS1- 5"5a .w i T y
rULE-TIDE CUSTOMS.
Carious Superstitions Connected With
Jho Savior's Mthflay.
SEEKING OMENS OP GOOD OR ILL.
How Single Maidens Determine Their Matri
monial Fate,
TAB LUCK OP A CHEISTMAB BIRTHDAY
IWK1TT&N TOR THE SISFATCS.1
During the Christmas holidays, includ
ing the period from Christmas to January
6 (twelfth day), more than at any other
time of the year, the civilized world is de
voted to pleasure and enjoyment. Many of
the old customs so dear to our forefathers
are disappearing, the ynle log is replaced by
natural gas, the Christmas carol gives way
to the oratorio, and the time-honored cus
tom of bestowing presents is often limited to
gifts to the children and servants. Super
stitious observances during this period,
however, hold their sway still over
the minds of many. There is no
time maoro propitious for deter
mining, by some hocus-pocus, the suc
cess of enterprises during the coming year,
the welfare of the' observer in life, or for
prognosticating the weather, the crops, etc
Ceremonies for this purpose are observed by
the superstitious all over Europe and
America, and some of them are interesting
and curious. The wishbone of the Christ
mas fowl is broken with greater confidence
than that of any less distinguished bird.
Country girls still put it over the door, be
lieving that the first man who enters, or one
of similar name, will be the future lord of
their household. In Germany, the first
piece of yarn spun by the spinster on. that I
aay, sireicueu auoye me door replaces the
wishbone.
Girls have many ways of divining their
fate in marriage upon this day, or during
the 12 following ones. In some instances,
these ceremonies for this purpose are very
peculiar. In one part of Germany young
maidens go after Mark on Christmas Eve to
the sheepfold and clutch blindly among the
flock. If they are so lucky as to grasp a
ram's fleece they think thev will have a
husband the coming year. In another part
they sit up from 11 to 12 the same night and
listen to the boiling water in the "coppirs."
If it makes a rumbling noise the future
spouse will be a blacksmith, and other
sounds guide the knowing as to tbe
calling of the expected husband.
If the crack ot a whip is heard,
he will be a wagoner; if a
pipe, a shepherd. Others rush out of doors
and call on the recreant swain, while many
go to the cross-roads and call out the names
of several, confident that the proper, one
will respond. Danish girls do not take so
much trouble, for thev only find it neces
sary to go to a well at 12 o'clock and peer
into it with a light in hand. If a man's
shadow appears at the bottom, the lucky
maiden will be a wife before the year is out.
In Saxony unmarried women assemble on
Christmas eyeand pour melted lead into
water. This will, it is claimed, assume the
shape of the tools used by the future spouse.
UNPLEASANTLY PEOPHETIC.
Some think that they have only to grope
backward out oi the open door, when they
will grasp in the hand a bunch of hair like
that of the unlucky man destined to be bald
if the habit is continued after marriage.
Others knock at the door of the henhouse at
12 o'clock. If the rooster cackles she will
surely get a husband; it the hen, she will re
main single that year at any rate. She may
divine whether he will be a well-made man
by going to the wood pile the same night
and drawing ont at random a stick of wood.
It it is crooked she will marry a cripple; if
straight, a "proper man." In other German
countries, the methods of divination nsed
at Halloween in our own land are ncr.
formeil at Christmas. 'Two empty nut shells
having in each a tiny wax' taper to repre
sent the maid and her sweetheart are set
afloat in a tub of water. If they go out or
sink together the owner is good, but that
lover has no chance if one is extinguished
or sinks before the other.
Bread is also used. Three farthings worth
of white bread is divided into three parts,
one cut off in each of, three streets, and in
the last street the sweetheart will appear.
Onions are made nse of in a test which
takes longer time than any of these. Four
of these succulent vegetables are placed,
one in each corner of the room,nd each
named after a sweetheart. They are allowed
to lie there until the twelfth day, and then
examined to .see if they have sprouted. If
one has germinated, the swain for whom it
was named will be the future husband, and
the wedding will take place that year.
Next to this important affair of marriage,
German maids of all work are concerned in
knowing whether they will keep their place
or not. To ascertain this, it is only neces
sary to turn the back to the open door on
Christmas Eve, and fling the shoe toward it
over the head. If the too points is from the
door, the place will be open for the servant
during the year, but a short stay awaits her
whose shoe points out More vital qaestious
than these are also asked at this period of
the year. On Christmas Eve, if youeave
a little heap of salt on tbe table, you will be
able to divine whether you will live tbe
year out or not. If the salt evaporates be
fore morning it is a bad sign, but if it is
still there, you will flourish the coming
year.
In Denmark, it is said tbat if you grasp
a handful of mould from the ruins and find
anything living in it you will not die that
year.
An old fourteenth century author says
the length of life was then foretold by going
on , Christmas Day to the woodpile and
drawing out a stick of wood. The longer it
was the longer you would live.
OMENS IN TIES AND 'WATEE.
It was thought important to keep the
lights and fires going on Christmas Eve in
many countries. In Germany, if you let
the lights eo out, some one in the house will
die tbat year. It was a so said that if a
hoop came off a cask on Christmas it was a
token of the same import. Not only
is the fire carefully preserved in France,
bnt there are also certain ways
only of bnilding at, A huge
bush called "Christmas branch is placed in
the fireplace, and sticks ot wood are put in
of great length, and allowed to burn at one
end. In Germany, a piece of the yule log
is preserved until the next year, when it is
used in kindling the fire afresh. It glow
ing embers are found on the hearth on
Christmas morning, you wilLwant for noth
ing that year. "Some," says an old author,
"take a vessel full of water, and dip it out
with a small spoon info another vessel.
They do this several times, and if they find
-more water than at first, they reckon it an
omen of good during tbe coming year; out
if less, fortunes will decrease."
A curious Danish belief is that br peeping
in the church windows on Christmas Eve,
you may tell if any of the audience will die
that year, by noting if any of tbeir shadows
appear headless. So in Germany, when the
lights are brought in on that evening, note
if anyone's shadow is without a head; he is
certain to die that year. If it has half a head,
the owner will live until the second year.
Many prognostications are made in En
gland and also in this country, concerning
the coming year, its prosperity, weather,
&&, depending upon the day on "which
Christmas falls. Sunday, Monday, Tues
day and Saturday are usually reckoned ill
omened days, while it Is lucky to have
Christmas fall on Wednesday, Thursday or
Friday.
"If Christmas day onFrlday be.
The first of winter hard shall be;
With frost, and snow, and with great flood.
Bat tbe end thereof It shall be good.
Again, the summer shall be good also."
A curious German superstition is that if
anyone succeedsin stealing on thatday with
out detection he will be able to steal with
impunity all that year, and that hay stolen
then and fed to the cattle will make them
tame.
i"" vcr ;ar " . -"r
There are certain things t be .avoided ,
that; day and certain other ones to be per
formed. In Germany it is said if yon will go
to the cross-roads on Christmas night yon
will hear what is going to occar during the
coming year.
xonr best sattie will die if yon eat meat
at this time, according to German peasants.
If, however, you will eat a raw 'egg on
Christmas, yon will grow strong and hearty.
Ton must not thresh your corn during the
holidays, or It will spoil. Swedes will not
go fishing on Christmas, but set their nets
for Inck on Christmas bight. Fruit should
not be picked then, or it will spoil, and it is
said in Germany that if you carry a distaff
iu tne orcnara u urine me is uays, tne trees
will not bear fruit. He that walks in the
winter corn on Christmas Eve will hear all
that happens in the village tbat year. This
appears to be a propitious evening-for the
gossips. A very curious way of making the
grass grow is prescrioea in uermany. xou
have only to thresh the lawn or yard with a
flail, barefooted amd in yonr snirt. Some
say that you must put a stone at every tree,
then, and it will bear better.
There are many superstitions connected
with animals and Christmas. An old four
teenth century documentsays that yon must
taEfc your horse into the river on Christmas
morning, and make him walk against the
current. Then you must throw an apple
into the stream above, and if it hits him, he
will be strong the coming year.
FARMYAED SUPERSTITIONS.
Ta" Germany it is said that as often as the
cock crows on Christmas Eve,so many quar
ters will corn be worth. The, cock is closely
connected with Christmas, Shakespeare
says: (Hamlet.)
"Some say, tbat ever 'gainst that season comes
Wherein our Savior's birth Is celebrated.
The bird ot dawn singeth all night long.
And then, they say. So spirit dare stir abroad."
Spirits were thought unusually active at
tnis time. Another popular superstition,
current throughout Europe, was that the
cattle would kneel in their stalls at mid
night on Christmas Eve, or tbat they would
rise and bow. In Germany it is said tbat
you must not watch them, or you would be
struck blind or marked for death. This in
sured against any denial of the assertion
made concerning the conduct ot the inmates
of the stalls. In France, not only cattle,
but asses also, speak and complain or praise
their treatment. This lasts from midnight
to-dawn, but ends Booner if their keeper, is
guilty of mortal sin.
This superstition is still prevalent in parts
of Pennsylvania among the German de
scendants, and also in the North Carolina
mountains, where, however, it is not on
Christmas Eve, but on the eve of the old
Christmas (January 6). An old woman told
me that she had seen them, and that they
kept up "Jest the masterin' meanin'."
In Denmark it is said that the cattle will
not thirst it anything that goes round is set
going iromuhnstmastoJHew xear's. French
herdsmen say that cattle must not be sent to
pasture on Christmas Day, or they will
fight and wound each other.
A singular notion prevails in one German
province that if master or servant enters the
stable on Christmas morning with his boots
newly blackened the cattle will not thrive
thereafter. It is unlucky in England to
bring shoes or leather articles into the house
at this time.
If the dog howls on Christmas Eve it will
will go mad during tbe coming year.
Popular proverbs and sayings show the
reliance placed upon the prognostications
furnished by Christmas weather. These are
prevalent everywhere and are believed by
many here. These notions are somewhat
conflicting, so that a choice may be made to
suit the circumstances. A German adage
is "Bright Christmas, dark barns; dark
Christmas, light barns," and another saying
is "The shepherd would rather see his wile
enter the stable on Christmas Day than the
sun."
Christmas wet gives empty granary and bar
rel. If windy on Christmas Day trees will bring
forth much fruit.
Wet and soft weathsr on this day is gen
erally unpropitious, as witness the well
known sayings:
A green Christmas, a full graveyard.
Green Christmas makes a white Easter.
A warm Christmas, a coIdEaster.
1 Other sayings not so well known illustrate
this point farther:
Cfaristmas'on the balcony
Easter near tbe firebrands.
At Christmas tbe gnats.
At Easter the icebergs.
So far as the sun shines on Christmas Day,
So far will the snow blow in May.
A WHITE CHBIST2IAS.
The contrary is true of a cold day, and snow
is particularly welcome on Christmas Day.
A white Christmas, a lean graveyard.
Christmas in snow, Easter in mud.
"If it snows on Christmas night, we ex
pect a good hop crop next year, says the
English farmer.
If at Christmas ice hangs on the willow,
clover may be cut at Easter.
It is said in Kansas that if theie is thun
der during Christmas week there will be
much snow dnring the winter.
Alight Christmas, a heavy sheaf.
If the sun shines through the apple trees
on Christmas Day, say our farmers, there will
be an abundant crop the following year.
There aie numerous predictions concern
ing the Iuck ot those born on Christmas
Day- it depends somewhat on the day of
tne weeK. An oiu Denei was that those
born on this day when it fell on Sunday
would live to be great lords; on Monday,
wonld be strong and keen; on Tuesday,
strong and covetous; on Wednesday, wise,
gay, doughty and crafty; on Thursday, wise
of speech and reasonable; on Friday, long
lived; on Saturday, Christmas children will
live bnt half a year.
In one part of England those born on
Christmas are able to see spirits.' In Ger
many, it is restricted to those born during
the Christmas sermon.
Deaths are ominous in one part of En
gland when occurring on Christ's natal day,
and it is thought that many will happen
during the year in the parish.
Some curious ideas have prevailed con
cerning clothing made from thread or yarn
sunn at this time. In Germany it is said
that no vermin will annoy you if you wear
clothing any part of which is made from
thread spun on Christmas Eve. In En
gland, notwithstanding the assertion that
such clothing would never be moth eaten,
no one would wear it, for 'he was likely to
be eaten up by wolves. Tarn spun at this
time was reputed in Germany as very
efficacious in reducing sprains or similar
injuries.
The "shirt of safety" is to be spun by a
pure and chaste maiden on Christmas Day,
long enough to cover half the wearer's body
from the neck down. Two heads are to be
sewed on the breasts. It will protect against
lead or steel as well as mailed armor, and
there is beside luck in wearing it.
These are but a few of the many curions
notions prevalent concerning Christmas, but
they are typical, and serve to illustrate the
value placed upon any task commenced or
performed at this time aqd the belief in the
predictions formulated at this period of the
year. F. S. Bassett.
A Proposed Chance at Base.
Mrs. Wheatley Eben, I wish you'd take
Jimmy out in the woodshed. You're get
tin'' all the bric-a-brao jest a-eovered with
.-w
Slllv
Tsjdnat, -PttCfo.v. ' K . ,
ap$s-
IKLMft-'-THE' POOR
Obtaining Faid3 From the Sale of
NoB-Iatoxicatiiig Drinks.
BELLES POSING AS BAB MAIDS.
The Drawing Power of Mrs. Aster's Wealth7
Of Diamonds.
A IITTLB EPISODE IN A STEEET CAE
ICOBnX&FONDEXCX OT THE PISrATCn.1
NettToek, December 21.
HBJSTMAS puts
'charity into the minds
and hearts of our
fashionable women,
and their goodness in
the matter isn't a
proper subject for
levity: yet one cannot
'visit any of the nu
merous fairs in prog
gress this week and
they are in great vari
ety, from the exten
sive enterprise of a rich congregation to the
smallest venture by juvenile philan
thropists without finding something
to laugh at. When the modish
belle turns herself into a worker
for the poor she tries hard to be captivating,
and in most cases she succeeds. This win
ter she is striving hard to impart positive
novelty to her efforts, and many are her new
inventions in palmistry which depend for
success upon her own soft hands rather than
those of her patrons, in wares the attractions
of which lie rather in the seller than in the
sold article, and in variations ot the familiar
devices for diverting money from the purses
of the rich to the uses of the poor.
The big parlors of one Fifth avenue dwell
ing are given np for tbe whole week to a
fair under the auspices of several matrons
high in society, and some of their daughters
are agreeably exploited fn the worthy work.
One girl has achieved distinction by doing
duty as a barmaid of tbe typical London
sort. She is
A DAINTILY PBETTT CBEATUBE,
and so runs no risk of coarseness in her
mimicry. She is dressed plainly in black,
too, and her manners are engagingly
vivacious. She stands behind a beer pump,
such as I am told is used in barrooms; bnt
it is surely handsome enough, with its
polished mahogany and its plated trim
mings, to be considered ornamental any
where. It has three levers with pretty
handles, and, ordinarily, I believe, the
action of each serves to start a particular
stream of ale, old, new or middling. Bnt
at the fair the apparatus yields nothing
alcoholic, the three beverages being butter
milk, lemonade and mineral water. These
fluids flow concurrently withthe sparkling
small talk of the amateur barmaid, and I
am sure that no genuine female servitor
behind a bar ever mdnced halt tbe amount
of custom that this dear little philanthropist
does with her innocuous drinks.
"What shall it be?" she inquired of a
fellow who was occupying too much of her
time at too little cost.
"Well, I will take a glass or the mineral
water," and as he quaffed the saline draught
he eyed the barmaid roguishly.
"How do you find it?" she asked as he set
down the emply glass.
"Quite intoxicating," he replied with a
meaning that was meant to mash.
He still posed in front of the pump, but
it was not long before she decided that it
was time for him to spend another dime.
"I will test the butter milk," he said, re
sponding to her hint.
A PBOHIMTION POUSSE CAPE.
The milk with its cream gone was less ac
ceptable to his palate than the mineral
water had been, but he swallowed it under
the blandishingly encouraging eyes of tbe
barmaid. Then -she gave him three min
utes of her grace and piquancy in conversa
tion before inferentially demanding a third
coin.
"A glass of lemonade this time, if you
please," he said.
The girl rounded her eyes at him for an
instant before working the third pump
handle, bnt it was not for her to hinder the
influx of charity money by deterring him in
his expenditure. So he -drank the lemonade.
"How do you like that?" she inquired.
"Well, the three drinks mnst constitute a
curious pousse cafe." he replied.- "with the
mineral water at the bottom, the buttermilk
next above and the lemonade to top with."
"But don't you think that you've made a
mistake in the constrnction? When they
fill a glass with French cordials to make a
pqusse cafe, don't they have to very cart
fully grade them as to specific gravity
pouring the heaviest in first, and then the
lighter and lighter ones until the thinnest
stratum is at the top of tbe glass? Now, it
seems to me tbat you should have drank: the
buttermilk first, then the lemonade and then
the mineral water. If you don't be gentle
in yonr motions you will be sure to mix that
pousse cafe."
"Well, I will come around in an hour
and let yon know," he remarked, as he re
luctantly gave place to other customers.
But before the hour was up three bever
ages had amalgamated to his discomfiture,
and he had gone home in a cab, hugging
his stomach and holding his chin and
knees close together.
MBS. ASTOB'S DIAMONDS.
It is probable that Mrs. William Astor,
the leader of New York society, has more
diamonds than any other lady in America,
and, as the best taste ordains that an endless
array of jewels shall be worn at the opera,
she adorns herself without stint, and fairly
blazes a defiance at the electric globes around
the roof of the Opera House. It is a fact
that women have been known to attend tbe
German opera for the sole purpose of seeing
Mrs. Astor in all the' glory of her decora
tions, and there is no doubt that she is as
great a drawing card for certain society
ladies a3 Lehmann, the handsome soprano
singer is. As Mrs. Astor wears a different
arrangement ot jewels on each opera night,
she provides an inspiriting variety of
pictures.
AJhugeVof diamondsrunningfromthebust
down over tbe front of her corsage, so that
the apex ended at the point of the dress
waist, was an ornament that was greatly ap
preciated oae night last week. With this
was a firmament pf diamond stars that en
circled the top of the corsage and ran over
the shoulders on the narrow straps. The os
trich tip of varied stones worn in the hair
was also warmly admired by Mrs. Astor's
friends, as well as by the jewelers that were
present: The fact is the lady was laden with
fully a hundred thousand dollars' worth of
precious stones.
AN IMITATION GEBMAN
is worth a description. Of all the musical
experts that throng New York at present
D'Albert, the newly Imported pianist, is far
tbe most eccentric in appearance, and tbe
women are wild over him. A more intensely
German figure was never seen. He looks
like a comic picture from the Fliegende
Blatter. And the remarkable point in this
is he is not German but Scotch. Men wbo
desire to be mistaken for Englishmen are
plentiful, and occasionally the spurious
Frenchman is met with in New York so
ciety. But the Geynan counterfeit is a
rarity.
D'Albert is a phenomenon in his mimetic
as well as his musical ability. There is no
full blooded Wagnerian on our shores at
this moment that begins to exhibit the pro
verbial German characteristics of appear
ance and manner that are prominent in this
yonng artist. His hair is long and straight,
and is cutoff sqnare around the back of the
neck. His slim and diminutive body is
laced tightly in a long brown frockcoat that
buttons high on the throat, and has skirts
that flare out like those worn by tbe fnnny
men in the variety shows. His trousers are
like a saussage skin, and. his tiny shoes
an sappueii wim mga, nt-cu. -oe
T-ra-rf3wrjffrt5,iai?j9"t!pT
4&b r "
i?l I
refuses to talk in anything bntwOer
man, going so far even, an towpre
tend that he cannot understand the
language of his own country. He is bright
and pleasant while in the society of .Ger
man musicians, but he is sullen and nnap
preciative when he is made the object of ad
miration at the hands of English-speaking
people. He plainly holds the musical tasta
of America and England in contempt, 'and
his chief regret is that he cannot claim' the
land of Wagner and Liszt for his ownf He
makes amends to himself for being bomia
England by arraying and conducting him
self like the noblest German of them alL "
AN EMBAEKASSED GIBL.
All but one seat in a Fifth avenue stage
was occupied when a fresh-faced youngfgirl
got in and settled sweetly into tba vacant
space. 8he found the pocket in her very
stylish skirt after an assiduous searchfof,
some moments, and then, in the inevitable
manner of her sex, produced a 25-cent piece.
No woman, let it be said, was ever known
to possess the requisite. 5-cent piece 'in 'an
omnibus. They carry quarters fer the tola
purpose of permitting young gentlemen to
get change for them. This partic
ular maiden chanced to be sitting
opposite an exquisite yonth wbo , cuts
ajbrilliant figure in the selectest circles of
society here, and it was natural tbat- he
should be the one who responded to the '"coy
glance of her eyes and relieved her of Her
awkward coin. With all the grace for
which he is remarkable he passed the money
np to the driver, and, after waiting the usual'
time, received the envelope in return. A
is the custom in these cases, he tore open the
envelope and handed the change to the right
ful owner. Bnt then, instead of placing tbe
nickel in the fare box, he quietly pnt it in
his own pocket, and resumed his seat.
Of course no one said a word, not even
the fair maid herself. But every one in the
stage detected the action, and wondered at
such a good looking younegentleman being
guilty of such an insignificant theft. Pres
ently the driver discovered that a fare was
missing from the box. He immediately be
gan ringing his bell at a terrific rate, and
the occupants of the stage smiled in embar
rassment at one another. The pretty girl
looked out of the window and stole pained
and horrified glances at the criminal, who
sat opposite.
MAKING EESTITUTION.
Suddenly he realized what he had done.
Drops of cold perspiration started from his
brow and he grew pale from mortification.
Every sonl in the stage, including that innocent-eyed
girl, believed he was nothing
less than an elegant burglar. One sharp
featured woman remarked to her equally
sharp-featured friend in a whisper loud
enongh for everybody to hear.
"He's a thief, Maria."
The yonng man looked quickly np at the
speaker. Then, drawing a (2-biIl-from a
large roll that he took from his waistcoat
pocket he passed it up to the driver. An
envelope came back. Opening it he se
lected a 5 cent piece from the handful of
command dropped it into the box. Then
turning to the sharp-faced woman who had
called him a thief he said:
"Madam. I think I was absent minded
enough a moment ago to put into my pocket
the bill you gave me to pay your fare from.
I beg your pardon, and here is yonr change,
complete, I assure you, though coming a
little late in the day."
With these wordsheletthemoney fall into
the astonished woman's lap and hastily
left the stage. He had fully vindicated
himself, and the sweet maid who bad been
the innocent cause of the entire situation
watched him ont of sight with admiring
eves Claba Belle,
TE1LINQ STRANGERS AGES.
Knt a Difficult as it Seems After Ton
Know How.
Panxsntswney Spirit.
"Give me a list of the names of the men
in any city or town in this country, and
without ever having seen or heard of them,
I will tell you half their ages," said a
prominent citizen yesterday.
"How can you do that?" asked an in
credulous bystander.
"Simply by the initials of their names.
In the first place you mnst remember that
about half of the male population of this
country have been named after Presidents of
toe united states or canaiazu:for Jresi-
dent, andall ,you haye to do istoknowv
when these Presidental candidates'were at
the zenith of their popularity. Of course
exceptions must be made of George Wash
ington and Andrew Jackson, for people
have not quit naming their boys after these
illustrious men to this day."
"For instance, here is the name of W. H.
Johnson William Henry Harrison was
elected President in 1836. consequently Mr.
Johnson is about 63 years old. Here is W.
Scott Smith Winfield Scott ran for Presi
dent in 1852. Smith is' therefore about 37
years old. The next name on the list is A.
L. North Abraham Lincoln was elected
President in 1860. Mr. North is therefore
about 28 years of age. Now take the next
M. F. Smatbers. Millard Filmore was a
candidate or President in 1856. M. F.
Smathers is therefore, in all probability,
about 33 years old. And so on. By study
ing the Christian names of men yon can
figure out the ages of many of them very
closely."
BOXED SENATOR GOEMAS'S EAES.
When tbe Veteran Doorkeeper, Captain Bas
sett. Did the Cnffllna;.
Washington Poit.1
"Do you remember Senator Gorman as a
page in the Senate," asked a Post reporter
of Captain Bassett, who for half a century
has been familiar to visitors at the Capitol,
having had supervision over the pages for
the Senate for nearly tbat length ot time.
"Bemember him." answered the captain
with something of a sparkle in bis eye..
I've boxed his ears many a time. He was
one of the bad boys. I remember that Sen
ator Beck had young Gorman before him
one day giving him a lecture about some
thing. He called me over to him and said,
See here, Bassett, I have just been telling
Gorman that if he doesn't behave himself
first-class after this, I'll have to get you to
box his ears.' When a page yonng Gor
man was up to all sorts of pranks that the
imagination could contrive. He was very
energetic and never seemed too tired, bow
ever long the session may have been strung
out. to enter into mischief of some kind."
CONSUMPTION,
IN its first stages, can "be successfully
checked by the prompt use of Ayer
Cherry Pectoral. Even in the later
periods of that disease, the cough is
wonderfully relieved by this medicine.
"I have usedAyert Cherry Pectoral
-with tbe best effect in my practice.
This -wonderful preparation once saved
my life. I had a constant cough, night
sweats, -was greatly reduced Li flesh,
and given up by my physician. One
bottle and a half of the Pectoral cured
.me-" A. J. Eidson, M. D., Middleton,
Tennessee.
" Several years ago I was severely ilL
The doctors said I -was in consumption,
nnd that they could do nothing for me,
but advised me, as a last resort, to try
Ayer"s Cherry Pectoral. After taking
this medicine two or three months I
-was cured, and my health remains good
to the present day." James Birchard,
Darien, Conn.
" Several years ago, on a passage homo
from California, by water, I contracted
so severe a cold that for some days X
was confined to my state-room, and a
physician on board considered my Ufa
In danger. Happening to have a bottle
of Ayer's Cherry Pectoral, I used it
freely, and my lungs were soon restored
to a healthy condition. Since then I
have Invariably recommended this prep
aration." J.B. Chandler, Junction, Va-
Ayer's Cherry Pectoral,
TBrrAKIDBT
-Dr. J. C. Ayer & Co., Lowelf, Mas
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