.THE PEETSBURG- DISPTCH. SUNDIy, f 'JANUARY 24-1892
it
JLUSTRISSIMO SIGNOR BEBE.
"WEITTES FOE THE DISPATCH
BY FRANCES HODGSON BURNETT,
Author of "Little Lord Fauntlcroy," Etc
I
-
O begin -with I never
tf.vr him. At least I
never saw anything of
Ilia but some photo
graphs. And yet in
all my gallery of chil
dren who have made
stories there is no
little figure more dis
tinct to me or more
full of intensejuvenile
character than that of
Illustrissimo Signor
Bebe. I called him
this because he was
such an all-powerful i
and distinguished ;
mandates, Czars are considered autocratic,
Kings and Princes are regarded as having
power, but for an omnipotent uncombatable
potentate commend me to a beautiful, relative-worshiped
baby who understands his
privileges and is not avere to using them.
Illustrissimo Signer Bebe was not in the
least averse and had fully appreciated his
position from the first.
In the first place he wsi a marvelous
beautv, in the second he had a will of iron
braced with steel, in the third he had a beau
tiful and brilliant mother who adored him,
and a father who adored her, and in the
fourth he had taken prompt and decided
possession of his entire family and their re
socrces from his first hour.
He had two brothers who were unusually
fine and clever, but Siraor Bebe considered
them merely as adjuncts which at times
might be made useful. Thev were compara-
little perscn and be- B oe maue useiui. aay weie compara-
t, t i tivelv grown ur, and thev had merely tho
cause being an Italan,-,;,. which 'could rain them
if he had been grown
instead of S years old, his letters would
e been addressed according to polito
om, Illustrissimo Signor, eta
lis real came was Luigi Roberto, but no
ever called him so. He, was always
rssscd and spoken of as Bebe, and so
r hearing innumerable and delightful
nes of him in which he always figured
the most magnificent autocrat and in
.ably managed to have his own way I
into the habit of speaking of him as
lustri'simo Signor Bebe."
here is a little room in my house in Lon-
vhich has flowery walls snd hangings,
ier lounging ch-ir-s, and fanciful light
of furniture. One of these bits of
liture is a fantastic little double-shelved
e with a chair equally light and fan
ic attached. I do not know whv the ,
ir is part of the tabic, rs it is placed
ways, and nobody could sit in it and
te on the table, and, in fact, the table is
made to write on at alL It is too light
email. It is made only to hold books or
ing ornaments, and this table is dedi
d to lllubtrusimo Signor Bebe.
i the first place there is a photograph
c a small easel. It is the picture of a
.t beautiful little boy of about 4 years,
tie seems to be far from pleaB'dwith the
umstances with which he finds himself
oand-d. In fact he looks distinctly
ting, but as charming as a disgusted and
much-photographed baby can1&
be truth was, I believe, that being an
at professional beauty, he had been
fgraphed to the verge of distraction
:l.c iimit of endurance, and finally had
cW his b'g sailor hat, clasped his" arms
r the beck of his chair, and rested bis
-"aden head upon them, lookicj: out nn
hts eye-lashes, and pouting at all the
i his mamma, the pnntograpber
om he regarded as a troublesome idiot),
little bird who would not fly out of the
era when he waited for him, and his
ana's friend and his own adorer and
e, the youns ladv who had used all sorts
evices to make him sit up and look good
pered.
did not feel good tempered; he was an
rtd and bored person, and he did not
..J to look r.5 it he was pleased when
was really bored to death with the im
lines of these people. So he put his
j oa his arm and dangled his legs. And
photographer hurriedlv took the pret-,
picture Illustrissimo Singor Bebe had
iTid.. Nching could have been prct-
the tuubnng mass of Ions curls fall-
rver his shoulder and shading his
id cheek, his rebellions little face, his
np. mutinous lc;s, which looked as if
were ready to kick, his protestinc
eyes, and the indignant pose of the
s, and the sailor hat, scornfully held
e not only a photograph but a picture
"n told its own story,
-houldhate quite adored it even if I
i nt heard all the stones about Illustris-
!?" lor Bebe, and kept pace with his
rd. cs it were, durinc the whole Fioren-
' inter. Hut knowing his little pecu-
aca, IdelLrhted in it and laughed al
t everv time I saw it.
e decoration which stands near it is in
wn way equally interesting and charac
tia It is a letter boldly framed, and
;h has an easel also. It is not a very
iettcr, nor a very big one, but the
i wiving js not in the least cramped.
as b-pn allowed nlentv of space and
superblr a pare and a half. It one
- inclined to entizise, one might say
it was Itrgeand sprawling, and that
lines iiad a tenden-v to emulste the ex
le cf the il.m'rious writer and go where
plead. But who would have the
icitv and bad taste to criticise the very
literary ctTor: of Illustrissimo Signor
e. At the same time it seems a pitv
it should be copied in mere common
y-dav printing, instead of in the fear-
and voluminous caligraphv of the
ior. It readt:
admiration and prizes at school. They had
short Jiair ana wore ordinary clothes, and
when they spoke only commanded ordinary
attention.' They Were not attired in bil
lows of lace tinder mantles of crimson plush;
passers-by did not exclaim at the mere sight
of their beauty; the moment they deigned
to express an opinion or to make a little
dramatic gesture, they did not find them
selves attended by an enraptured and
ecstatic audience.
"IS est a crooner cet enfant," people ex
claimed. "Joli comme un petit Amour
avec ses longues bouches blondes ct ses
grands yeux ncirs." (lie is pretty enough
to eat, or to crunch between one's teeth
like a "bonbon." To translate more ex
actly: That child. He is as pretty as a
little love, with his long blonde curls and
his big eyes.')
Signor Bebe heard a great deal of French
spoken and spoke a little himself, but it
must.be confessed a verv little. But this
fact did not prejudice him when he desired
to be sufficiently sweeping in his remarks to
his poor, long-suffering, much-trampled-on
German nurse.
"I6peak only Italian, French and 'En
glish," he said. "No German. I hate Ger
man. It is ugly and stupid The Ger
mans," with a scathine glance at poor
Margarethe, "are all stupid and uglr, too."
ilanrarcthe knows nothing but German,
and did not in the least understand Italian.
It was said to be rather a touching specta
cle to see ner calmly beaming and delighted
countenance whoa the Illustrissimo 'chivied'
her in his mellifluous Tuscan, calling
her "brutta, imbecille. stunida, Ted-
escacia," while she broadly smiled,
imagining occfid'ngly, it was said, that
he was lavishing endearments updri
her. She was a good, stupid soul, and was
always resdv to " be his slave. It was she
who dressed him laboriously, inserting one
kicking, dancing foot into his sock, and
then heavily and seriously giving chase all
over the house, while he ran from one room
to another until she caught him and bore
him back to his bedroom to put on the
other. She ran miles during the perform
ance of his toilet, and in warm weather
ended it mopping her brows and exhausted,
but still mildly beaming, sit was she who
was called upon to be horse and to be en
thusiastically and realisticallv beaten by
the Illustrissimo when he had placed tho
chair3 in a row to make a cnacn and plav
emenman niniseu. it was sne who must be
drilled and march with an umbrella or poker
over her shoulder, while the illustrious Gen-
Asd in the distance there approaches a
tall old soldier, with a martial tread and.
sword and spurs, and a fine gray mustache-
binlere."
And the Illustrissimo catches sight of him
and shrieks aloud with rapture.
"The Generale," he sas. "Come quick,
oome; run fast after me. I am going to ask
him."
He flies, and his "bouclesblondes" stream
after him like a yellow silk banner, big
shining sword dances, and the Generate
sees him and smiles, as people always do
when they see SlgnorTBebe.
And I imagine how the Generale looked
and how his smile grew as the little figure
drew up before him and bestowed npon him
a most military salute.
"Generale," says the Illustrissimoboldly,
'1 told my mamma I would ask you. Do
you ever wear petticoats and long curls?"
"PetticoatsI Curls! my dearl" ex
claimed the old officer.
!'I knew you did not: T have told my
mamma. How can a soldier wear, curls and
petticoats. How could he fight and use his
sword. I am a soldier. I am going to be a
Generale like you. And a pretty Generale
I should be with curls and frocks. My
mamma must take them ofE You do not
wear them, do yon?"
"No," safd the Generale, bending over
him. smiling. "I do not."
"Then I must not No Generale does.
Ton never wore them, did you?"
"Well," admits the Generale smiling
more than ever. "I think perhaps I did
when I was as roune as you."
"I am 6," cried the Hlustrissimo.grandly.
"Sixl"
"When you are 16," said the Generale
patting his small hand he had taken, and
nodding his head consolingly. "Your curls
will be cut off and your will not wear sot
tan it"
I can imagine the consternation of poor
Margarethe when she reached the field of
action and her tremulous "Scusi scusi, Sig
nor Generale," as she dragged her ges
ticulating, expostulating charge away.
it was alter we nad iett juorence tnat
the great decision was made that the Illus
trissimo Signor must go to school. It
must have been a decision arrived at with
no small misgivings and with no trivial
discussion in family conclave. It was not
an insignificant "matter and there was
always one serious point to be considered.
His papa and mamma, his grand-mothers
and godmothers, might decide that he
should go but what if his decision did not
accord with theirs? "What if Illustrissimo
Bebedecidednothe would not? I can imagine
how careftilly the subject was broached,
how diplomatically it was dealt with, and
OUR BOYS AND GIRLS.
HUNTING THE ANTELOPE.
j l 1
Mm
ra Lulsa, i 'vojliobenoe scrlvomeslto
posso. Torna prestoe ti mando un Imcio
tionatissimo. Luioi Bobebto.
English it would be:
cab Louise I wish thee vorr well (an
ian phrase w'ucn really sigiiifias I lovo
in the same sense that friends and Par
ana cbildieii t-av it to each other) and 1
o as ell cs I possibly can. Como back
i and I send tucc at cry affectionate kiss.
LOUIS llOBECT.
was the very first letter of his life,
ten after the wonderful events of his
minths at school, where, alter infinite
miiacy, he bad finally been induced to
un "himself to be escorted, with the full
-rstanding that it was the beginning of
i reparation ior entering the Italian
r, ot which he naa early announced bis
ution of becoming a general,
had been composed bv himself with
v intellectual throes and had been for
ied promptly to the young ladv who
been the friend of his uneducated in
v. and who had delightedly told me the
ps which had made him so distinct and
inc a little prrtnage to me.
he wat only 4 years old when I first
voi him, and he was alreadv quite a
ran, it may be argued that lie had
'n his carter of arms comparativelv
v in life.
neter knew exactly when he became a
ior "r when hcbcRan to demand uni
is ?id carry sunrds and gnns.and object
ueutiv wth fire to the wearing of Ion"
cud petticoats, as unbecoming an
rand etntleman, but nearlv ail the
dotes I heard of him had for their point
! stich pre'ext or demand as these
ts surroundings were not ordinary ones.
rjorn to the infant purple as it
. x.mjtrors are supposed "to issue
eral Bebe rated her tigprously for the lack
of promptness and soldierlv crace in her
maneuvers.
It has never ccenrred to the Illustrissimo
that the whole world, and the fullness
thereof were not created solely that he
might dispose of them lor his own amuse
ment I do not think he ever asked for
anything. Everything was given to him
before he had time to ask. Apparently
people fat up at niebt to invent things to
give him. Superb playthings were lav
ished on him on eicrr side. Wonderful
uniforms, sworlsncd runs and lances r
made for him and tent by doting cod-parents
and insatiate adorers m various cities. He
was an officer of infar.trv. of cavalrr. of en
gineers; Iip wis a barragliee with broad low
hat and floating plumes: be was a cuiras
sier, a Uhlan, and, I believe, even a papal
guard; everything military and bloodthirsty
and brilliant in accoutrements was Illustris
simo Signor Bebe. When a military idea
occurred tohim he simply ordered his
nearest relatives to assist him to carry it
out.
"To-day I saw an offioer's funeral," he
would perhaps announce in the middle of
din jer. "There were soldiers marching and
there were drums. They went like this:
'Buom, bu'ora, buom!' " thumping solemnly
on the table with the largest spoon he couli
appropriate "There were flags and guns.
Tfte soldiers marched like this," scrambling
down from his chair to illustrate with
funeral dramatic action. "Papa, Godfredo,
Oscarino come and march. And we will
have an officer's funeral. Papa carry the
fire screen for a funeral banner, Godfredo
carry the poker and Oscarino the tongs. I
will be the music buom, buom, buom.
That's the drum. Ira lira la. That's tho
musics."
And it was absolutely necessary that be
should be followed solemnly round the table
in funeral pomp, while the soup got cold.
"At least show respect," he would say
furiously to the brother who dared to giggle.
"It is a Generale." I do not know what
would hnve happened if this family had re
fused to form the procession and had firmly
continued eating their soup. I used to feel
curious to know. But I never heard of
such iconoclastic steps being taken.
But notwithstanding the procession, the
uniforms, and weapons, he felt there were
serious obstacles in the way ot his military
career.
"Soldiers," he said, "do not wear lontr
curls and petticoats. I have never seen
one. What would they do on the field of
battle! You," sternly "to his mamma, "have
never seen a Generale in a frock and sash
with curls."
"Well, no," his mamma was obliged to
admit, reluctantly.
"The Generale who rides by with the sol
diers in the morning has no curls," he elab
orated. "And he docs not wear petticoats.
I have noticed. "
"But perhaps he did when he was your
age," said his mother.
"I do not believe it I shall salute him
and ask him the next time I see him on the
Lung Arno." And-he walked up and down
the salon gesticulating dramatically. "Bel
soldalo! che porta le sottane jfriccioli"
(pretty soldiers who wear petticoats and
cuns;. -aia si biznorel quando vedo H
Generale glielo voglio proprio domandare
( Yes, sirs, when I see the General I will in
deed ask him)."
what a specious military air all scholastio
training was given. I should have wished
to have been present on these occasions
also, but this too was a joyful experience
denied me. I only heard that somehow
militarv training skillfully interwoven with
the alphabet and "pot hooks and hangers"
and never being allowed to disconnect
themselves in the Illustrissimo's mind,
finally prevailed. There was a delightful
legend that he required his mamma to go to
school with bim, and that this verv charm
ing and veracious young person dutifully
accompanied him daily to tlie seat of learn
ing and learned the alphabet alio but this
seems really too delicious to b? true, so I
have always preferred to beliere it, without
inquiring into it too cioseiy.
At any rate I know that at this time tha
despised sottani were finally cast aside with
other unmilitary trivialities, the boucles
blondes were cropped off, end armed to the
teeth Illustrissimo Signor Bebe went to
school. He never went without a sword,
Sometimes he took also a gun, and as many
stilettos as could be stuck in his belt It
appears that he rega'rded the field of letters
as a field of battle only to be entered in full
panoply.
"Where is my sword?" he used to say at
9 o'clock as other children say "Where is
mvspelling book?"
We used to be entertained from time to
time with animated descriptions of his edu
cational progress. This, it appeared, was
magnificent
"You will be charmed to hear," his
mamma wrote to his "Oara Luisa," "that
Bebe brings home always des diplomes de
sagesse." (Diplomas for good behavior.)
"It is rather a mystery, but it is no less
true that he gains them."
We were charmed and. also rather sur
prised. For myself, reflecting upon past
anecdotes, I was a little inclined to think
that in the case ot the Illustrissimo the pen
might not be mightier than the sword. I
suggested to "Cara Luisa" that perhaps the
sword induced the pen to inscribe these
noteworthy certificates.
"Bebe gets always his diplomes de sa
gesse," wrote another friend of his family."
"We don't quite understand why as he
stays at home from school whenever lie is
inclined to which is generally."
It was at this time that the wonderful
autograph letter was written, which stands
framed on a little table. I was thinking
then of returning to" revisit Florence, and
"Uara Luisa spoke ot this in answering the
letter and said that she would take to the
Illustrissimo a veritable sailor costume of
"un vero Capitano Inglesc." From this mo
ment until we readied Florence every vis
itor who entered the house was greeted at
the door with the ecstatic and excited pro
clamation that "La Luisa La Luisa "
was coming back and was bringing him the
costume of a real "Capitano Inglese." "La
Luisa" took it collar and anchors and
cords and whistle, gold banded cap and cut
lass nnd all. Among all his other uniforms
he had never posessed this one. When she
w? nt to call she asked the servant politely
for Sicnor Jioberto, and she was sitting
alone in the salon when he entered.
He had grown and lost his plumpness, he
wore a little co.it, and his curls were crop
ped close to his head and his hair was no
longer golden. But he was still as ever
Illustrissimo Signor Bebe. He approached
her holding out his hand to shake hands in
the proper English style, in deference to
her foreign sojourns.
"High do you do?" he remarked trium
phantly. "High do you do, La Luisa? Do
you sp'ik English? I spik English." And
having exhausted his vocabularv he poured
forth a volley of his native Italian, the
point of which was of course his desire to
put on immediately the costume of the real
English Captain. His mamma thought she
had taught him to say "How do yon do"
but the tact that it became "High do you
do" when he reached the salon was of small
moment He felt himself perfectlv at ease
iu ills uuarauicr ui linguist.
Theodore Boosevelt Iclls-of Their Habits i
Different Methods for Different HJiids
Cariosity of Prons-oclc A. Band. In a
Fanio A Mad Race.
twmrriK ion THRDisrATcn.
HE chase of different
kinds of game animals
of the West calls for
widely different capaci
ties in the hunter him
self. The man who hunts
the big horn or mount
ain sheep must, above
all things, be a good
climber, stout in wind
and limbs, able to stand
fatigue and hardship.
The same qualities in a
somewhat less degree
are needed in the pursuit of the black-tail
deer. On the other hand, the hunter of the
white-tailed deer needs especially to show
stealth and caution and to possess the
capacity to hit a snap shot, rnnning, at close
quarters. The man who hunts tho grizzly
in thick timber has to display a-good deal of
nerve and coolness.
In shooting antelope, however, the one
quality of more use than all others is skill
in handling the long-range rifle. Antelope
are hunted in two ways; the first being with
greyhounds on horseback, the second, with
the rifle. Now, in most game shooting, the
shots are usually obtained at under a
hundred yards.
Blast Know-How to Shoot
The shot at a white-tail is apt to be a
running one nt less than that distance. The
black-tail and big-horn are usually killed at
or eight antelope drawn up and looking at
me. They were then within a half mile to
one side of me. Being so far ofl, I made no
effort to go after them, but jogged along on
the trail I was following. For some rea
son, however, thev evidently thought I was
trying to head them off, and, after a few
seconds hesitation, they made a dash ob
liquely to my line of travel. As soon as I
saw what they were doing I put spurs to my
horse and ran him as hard as I could along
the trail.
A Kace That Ended lucidly.
When the antelopes saw my horse run
ning, they straightened out and went faster
than before, but made no effort to alter
their course -or turn back, although they
had the whole prairie behind them. By
desperate running I succeeded in reaching
the point where their line of flight crossed
the trail almost at the -very moment that
they did, and, leaping off my well-trained
old hunting horse, T shot the master buck,
a fine fellow with big horns, through the
shoulders.
Usually, however, I have obtained my
game while riding among the outlying cow
camps, and happening by chance npon
bands; or else by making a regular hunt
with the'ranch wagon on prairies where the
antelope abound, and killing the sharp
eyed, pretty creatures bv fair stalking and
long-range snooting. sometimes X have
had to crawl for half a mile, taking advan
tage of every sage bush and big tuft of
grass before I could get within range, and
even so I should hesitate to tell about the
number of my misses.
The most exciting method of killing the
antelope, however, is with the aid of grey
hounds. Nothing can exceed the sport of
such a desperate race over the plains, the
wiry cow-ponies making their best speed
under whip and spur, with far ahead the
fleet greyhounds, closing in on a prey
scarcely less fleet than themselves. Th
antelope is the swiftest runner on the
plains, though there is great variation
it
. 'a i
LsFjiAsi
LTJBIHG WIB ANTELOPES W1TH1K BA2TQB.
from 60 to 150 yards. The prong-buck, or
prong-horn antelope, must usually be shot
at greater distances. In no other kinds of
game shooting are so many shots expended
for every animal killed as in antelopo
hunting. In all its habits the prog-horn is
the reverse of the white-tsil deer. The
white-tail deer relies mainly upou its nose,
Us sight being only ordinarily good. The
prong-buck on the contrary trusts chiefly
to its great bulging eyes, situated right at
the base.of .the horns;, like a pair of twin
telescopes. A white-tailed spends the day
in the thickest and most secluded cover
and only ventures out at night The prong
buck never goes to cover at all if it can be
possibly avoided and is quite as lively dur
ing the day as at night The white tail is
always seeking to avoid observation. It
tries to escape danger by not being seen,
trusting by choice always to its power of
hiding and skulking. The antelope, on the
other hand, never tries to escape observa
tion at all, but trusts purely to its own
watchfulness. It does not care a rap whether
or not it is seen itself, so long as it can seo
its foes. The antelope is the beast of the
prairie and the wide rolling plains. It can
travel very fast for long distances, so it is
often found many miles away from water,
on sun-baked stretches of ground where the
cactus and sagebrush and occasional patches
of coarse grass ioira the only vegetation.
Bard to Stalk the Antelope.
In consequence of the flat, open nature of
its haunts, it is a peculiarly difficult animal
to stalk and as a rule it is "only by chance it
can be approached closely. On the other
hand, it will olten stand still within range
for a very Ion shot and allow several
rounds of cartridges to be fired, which
among them in this respect; there are many
which can be fairly run down on a good
horse, while there are others which the
swiftest deg alive cannot overtake unaided.
Theodore Roosevelt.
"And how about the diplomes do saposn.
Bebe?" asked his visitor. "How do yon
get them when they tell me that you stay
at home so olten, and scarcely go to school
sweeping gesture of tri-
He made a fine
urn ph.
"Yes," he said. "You see! There are
some of those others who go every day and
do not get any. And I I who stay at
home so many days can still get one every
time."
This, it was suggested later by a subtle
mind, was perhaps an excellent reason the
sole occasions when the recipient was
"sage" being when he was absent from the
sceneof his scholastic triumphs. When we
wer in Home a few weeks later "La Luisa"
received a photograph. It represented a
small Italian face, apparently seated on the
shore of the boundless ocean, and looking
most nautically into the "offing" (whatso
ever "offing" may be).
Its place is on the table near the framed
letter, and under it is written:
"Illustrissimo Signor Bebe, qui regarde
son navire."
PAKis,'December, 1891.
A Good Shot
Ia Grippe.
No healthy person need fear any danger
ous consequences from an attack of la
grippe if properly treated. It is much the
same as a severe cold and requires precisely
the same treatment Remain quietly at
home and take Chamberlain's Cough Rem
edy as directed for a severe cold 'and a
prompt and complete recoverv is snre to
follow. This remedy also counteracts any
tendency of la grippe to result in pneumo
nia. Among the many thousands who have
used it during the epidemics of the past two
years we have yet to learr of a single case
that has not recovered or that has resulted
in pneumonia. 25 aad 50-cent bottles for
tale by druggists- ttsu
probablv only kick up the dust near by. It
is always tempting tho hunter to take a long
shot at it, and it is for this reason that' so
rnanv cartridges are fired for every head of
antelope bagged.
One or the features ot prong-buck charac
ter is extreme curiosity, even wheu fright
ened or surprised, so great is its curiosity
that in places where it is not much hunted",
it is olten possible to allure it toward the
hunter by lying down and waving a red flag
on the end of a stick. When the antelope
sees such a performance going on, it runs
away a short distance, then goes slower,
halts, runs to and fro, stamping the ground
and snorting, and by degrees, in a succes
sion of short runs, approaches to within
range-of the recumbent hunter. Under fits
ofpanioand terror, the " prong-buck will
act without the least regard for its own
safety and may plunge right into th,e dan
ger it is seeking to avoid. Antelope follow
one another like sheep and if an animal gets
started in one direction the others follow it
in a mad race and, by thus accompanying
it, urge it forward along the path of de
struction. How tho Antolopo Behaves.
Once I remember trying to creep up on a
band of twenty-five or thirty antelope when
I finally had to content -myself with a shot
from a distance of over four hundred yards.
J stood behind a hill as I shot and leaped
out on the brink to see the result of my
markmanship. My bullet merely knocked
up the dust to one side of the master buck
of tho band. Away went the antelope in a
compact body but when they had run a
hundred yards or so they suddenly halted
arid came up info line like so many cavalry,
the browu and white facings on their necks
and heads giving them the appearance of be
ing uniformed. In another minute they
tore directly for the hill on which I was
standing, and going straight to its base,,
separated into two bands which, passing on
either side of me within seventv-five yards,
gave me- an opportunity to kill one and
wound another, which I eventually got.
Again 1 remember once while riding
across the open prairie seeing a body of six
STICK A LA CEEOLS,
Pretty Francolio Uses Plenty of Common
Bern nnd Get Good Results.
IWKtrVlN FOE THE PISrATCn.t
In wrlUn-of a ereole cook's method -one
'finds there Is, seemingly, no method. Fran
coise can never tell "how much" she uses of
anything. It is a literal truth that she buys
10 cents worth of meat without knowing its
weight, she shreds vegetables and sprinkles
salt and pepper and spices with a truly
sublime ignorance of the quantity, and to
the uninitiated the success of her plats,
thus apparently put together with no unl
dcrstanding of approximate relation, is
majestical. By observation you will dis
cover that in reality she is guided by com
mon tense, which teaches that the more
pungent the flavor the less in needed.
unercDythe ordinary method a duck
makes but a small dish she serves it with a
mould of rice, some peas and a salnde, as an
all-sufficient dinner for a small family In
the practice of economy Francoise 'pur
chases a large duck; she knows she can
make it tender. First she dips it in boiling
water that it may be feathered easier; she
cleans and wipes it dry inside and out with
a soft cloth. The heart, the gizzard and the
liver are chopped fine with three or four
"', wmi a laDiespoontul of fresh, sweet
butter added and seasoned with salt nnd a
bit of red pepper pod, finely minced. With
this Francoise stuffs the b:rd, packs in the
pope's nose and cuts off the neck, sewinun
the aperture. - v
Then she makes a bouquet garni of a
sprig oi tnyme, some parsley, a couple of
bay laurel leaves and a fe".- clove?, tied
with a thread; this she ties to the breast,
then rolls the bird in a clean, wet towel
and wraps a cord aronnd and around; then
she puts it in boiling, salted water,
covers well, and cooks it one half hour.
The last thing she does is to remove the
cloth, take away- the bouquet and serve the
bird on a hot dish with garnish of sliced
lemon.
A duck cooked in this wavVefains all its
juices and is as different to" the dry, taste
less object it presents when roasted as can
be imagined. The acid of lemon brines nut
the savor of fish and game better than any
thing else that can be used as garnish.
Francoise makes many sauces for her
duck, but a simple one, "easily prepared, is
made by using equal quantities of butter,
currant jellv and Madeira, or port wine.
First melt the butter, - add the jelly and,
when melted, the wine: bring to the boiling
point and- serve with the duck. Green
peas and celery should accompany it also.
Emma J. McLagait.
BRICKS' OP SNOW AND ICE.
The Clever Architects or the Polar Be
flons The Quslity pf Crystal Beqoired
Hours One Can Bee Throueh Letter
br lieutenant Schwatka.
rWBITTXIf I0B TUX DIsrjtTCH.1
fctis Eskimo among
whom my travels were
cast had two distinct
ive methods of living
in their two seasons of
winter and summer,
the former being in
egg-shaped houses of
snow, and the latter in
tents made of skins.
They lived on raw frozen meat in a tempera
ture where it would be agony to any one
else not to have meals steaming hot; they
lived in houses of ice and snow, the last
thing one associates with warmth; and so
on through all the social economy, leading
a perfect life of popular paradoxes.
They are more than satisfied with their
cold country and its low temperature as is
plainly shown in their preference for the
winter life over that of summer, although
their struggle for existence is much harder
then. A few premonitory frosts commence
in the arctic fall or early winter, generally
followed bv a blustering northern storm of
snow and sleet, and then with a sharp snap
the thermometer sinks to the minus twen
ties and thirties and the arctic winter is
upon them "for keeps too."
Mast Wait for Good Building; Material.
Thissudden onslaught of the winter does
not drive them at once to their peculiar
snow houses, erlad as thev would be to aviH
themselves of such abodes, for the first
snows of the fall are not of the right texture
for this' arctic architecture. The, general
impression of the arctic snows is that they
are of unfathomable and tremendous" depth,
and that beyond this they -differ but little
from the puny falls of snow we have among
us, especially the norther-most States.
Both these ideas are errors. I seriously
doubt if the annual fall of snow on our conti
nent north of the arctic circle will average
as deep as that which falls in the countries
south -of that .line, and probably a good
long ways south at that, while the
greatest difference between the snow we
throw at some other boy and that thrown
by an Eskimo at a refractory dog is in the
consistency of the two. The snow of the
midwinter arctic is no more like that we
generally see than a brick is like a handful
of clay, or ice is like water, though both
are the same substances. The peculiar hard
consistency of the arctic snow is due,
according to Eskimo authority, to two
reasons the packing power of the polar
gales, and the action of the extremely low
temperatures of that region. At least both
of these conditions will have to be fulfilled
before these arctic architects will use the
fall snows for building, or to put it plainer,
fully 40 degrees below zero must have been
reached, and a number of fierce gales must
have packed down the autum snow before it
is of the proper consistency to be cut into
the curious blocks of huge bricks of which
they make their "igloos."
Ilonse That Ton Can See Through.
Their skin tents are altogether too cold to
live comfortably in long before they build
their snow houses, and the arctic carpenter
is driven to another curious material for
building to keep out the bitter cold, and
that is the pure ice from the many fresh
water lakes with which their country
abounds. When the ice is about half a foot
thick they cut out slabs about the size of a
house door, put them upright on their ends,
joining them edge to edge, and making a
circular little pen, and over this for a roof
in? rery much In "elbow room." Never
theless, these Eskimo seem to be perfectly
happy with what room they have, and won
der now in the world any person could wish
for more. A small igloo of snow is often
built in front of the entrance door, and is
called a storm igloo, and this protects the
door from the cold, biting winds. This snow
is far, from being airtight, even in the solid
loess oi wnich the house is duui. xt ui
admit air quite as readily as white lamp
sugar will in the mouth of a boy; and every
small urchin in the country knows how
easily this can be done.
How the Igloo Is Ventilated.
This slow permeation of the atmosphere
through their porous walls is the main
source of the ventilation in these snow-huts,
a source of air which is quite ample during
most of the time. Certainly they are not
like the almost hermetically sealed abodes
that most people suppose. The only means
of heating them is with the little stove
lamp, over which the food is cooked and the
skin's dried. Should the heat from the little
stove lamp make it too warm inside, that
is, raise the temperature above freezing, the
ijeat ascends as usual to the top and cuts its
way through the loose snow that chinks the
highest blocks, and plenty of cold air pours
in as a result When the occupants have
had enough of this the holes are stopped up
with fresh snow taken from the floor, and
as it is in a temperature far below freezing
it adhers to the melting snow at once, and
forms an icy mortar for the latter.
At nighttime, when the little lamp goes
out and it grows much colder in the igloos,
all these" water-soaked snow blocks
become converted, into ice, and the
repeated freezings and thawings soon
convert the whole top of the snow
house into a translucent mass of ice, which
becomes uncomfortably chilly at night, ice
being a good conductor of cold, while snow
is not. As a rule, the ever-moving Eskimo
does not reside long in the same igloo, not
over a month or six weeks, unless he is
where he can "bank" his dwelling so deep
that the snow cannot be converted into ice.
v A Family Group of Igloos.
The more permanent snow houses are
often arranged in groups of two, three or
even four houses, facing a common central
one devoid of the snow bed, but having the
common door or passage way, through
which all must come and go. These group
ings mean that the occupants are all closely
related. Whenever any meeting of unusual
importance is held in the village one of
these large central houses is generally
used as giving admittance to the greatest
number. Here they hold their singings and
exhibitions of medicine men and their more
important feasts.
These central igloos seem quite spacious
Inside, for instead of communicating by the
low doors, they are connected by high
groined arches, so that a person can pass
freely from one to another without even
stooping. An Eskimo never starts out on
his travels without a snow-shovel and snow
knife, aad they are usually about an hour
in making an igloo, and about another hour
t Walter Damfofch Essays the Kole of
Author for a Short Time.
IASTEK OF A BATON.
HIS KOTIONS OK OKCHESTRAS,
This Country la Too Young let to Supply
All His Musicians.
MISTZRT OP THE LEADER'S SCORE
IW1U1TZ.1 TOU TOE PISPATC3.1
BOPEBLY speaking',
an orchestra is a body of
musicians composed ox
men who play upoa
stringed instruments,
such as violins, cellos,
violas, double basses,
etc., combined with
wind instruments of
brass and reeds, the last
named variety compris
ing all the wood-wind
instruments. In a grand
orchestra the number will vary from 40 up
to 100, or more. In large musical festivals
200 or 300 performers have been employed.
In Chicago, at the coming World's Fair,
there will doubtless be occasions where sev
eral hundred will be employed in the or
chestra. At the present time there are only threo
permanent orchestras in the United- States
the new orchestra in Chicago, which Mr.
The Home cf Ice.
in cutting through the thick ice on some
lake near by for water, and unloading the
sledges and preparing supper. In short,
about two hours after stopping on a journey
we could depend on being as comfortable in
our homes of snow as though we had never
moved. Frederick Schwatka.
Inside the JTovte of Snow.
UTILIZIKG THE KfflFE-BOX.
The Old-fashioned Convenience Oat In the
Role of a Note Paper Holder.
I WBITTZ Jf FOK THE DISPATCH, t
The quaint old mahogany knife-box has
been put to a new use in these days of in
genuity and double utility. Instead of
holding knives it holds note paper. It is
exactly the shape best suited to such a
thing, growing taller -as it does, toward the
back. The best way to prepare one of these
old boxes for its new use is to have thin
partitionsof board fitted in at proper inter
vals, making places for writing paper nnd
envelopes of various sizes, just as the racks
bought at the statiopers are arranged.
The knife-box is superior to the stationery
rack in that it has a cover, securdly pro
tecting the contents. It may also be con
sidered superior in that it has been per
verted fromats original use and made into
something for which it was never intended.
Ingenious women are often particularly
fond of this class of articles.
Helen Watxebsoit.
they lash the summer skin tent. These
houses are as transparent as glass, and when
finished one can look through and see what
his or her neighbor is about without the
trouble of t getting down on his hands and
knees and crawling in the low entrance to
find out.
The house of ice, while warmer than a
skin tent, will not compare with one of
snow for comfort, and as soon as this ma
terial is of proper texture an "igloo," or
snow house, is constructed. If you take an
egg and cut it in two in the middle and put
the two shells rims down, you have a good
miniature representation of a couple of
Eskimo snow homes. The fuller shell will
represent an igloo during the coldest
weather, when the snow is frozen hard, and
it can be flat on top without danger of
falling in. The pointed shell will repre
sent an igloo built in tho early fall or late
Bpring.
Flans of the Arctic Architect.
Mutiny.
Very refraotory and mutinous are some
stomachs. Discipline and good order maybe
Serfeotly restoied with Hostetter's btomacli
Itters, most reliable, nnd thorough of
tonics. Shun local bitters and unmedicated
stimulants. Abelpful appetizer and fortifier
or the nerves is the Bitters, highly effica
cious too In malaria, la prlppe, constipation,
llv,er nnd kidney complaints. It counter
acts rheumatism. A wineglassrul at bed
time promotes sleep.
The boreal builder, with himself as a cen
ter, and his extended arm and hand grasp
ing the snow-knife, draws a circle oa the
snow of a diameter of from 8 to 12 feet, ac
cording to the intended number of the occu
pants of the house. This circle indicates
where the base course of snow blocks is to
rest as soon as they arc cut from some
neighboring snow drift. These snow blocks
are about the size of a large pillow, but, of
course, squared, and weigh about 12 to 15
.pounds. They are never laid flat-wise, as
generally surmised, out are placed on their
edges, the thickness of the igloo being the
thickness of the snow-blocks, six to eight
inches. Another popular error regarding
the igloo is that the snow-blocks are laid in
courses, as we construct brickwork, when in
reality there is but one course winding in a
spiral, from the top to the bottom of the
structure. The blocxs ascend the spiral
from the base, where they are rectangular
to the top, where they become trapezoidal,
the top side getting less and less until it
disappears at the summit of the dome,
where the blocks are triangular.
The snow blocks, which are upright at
the base, lean more and more as the ton of
the house is reached until the last one, the
key-block, if so we can call it, is perfectly
horizontal and firmly wedges in and binds
the whole, which has become a dome-like
structure, well imitated in the miniature
half eggshell placed on its rim.
A Bodstead Made of Snow.
Inside the. snow workman makes a plat
form of snow, 15 to 30 inches high, from theM
gronnn, wnicn lanes up iuny inree-iourms
of the interior of the nouse, and this is the
bedstead, so to speak, and on this rude bed
are spread the soft, warm reindeer skins
that form the bedding. On the south side
of the igloo a hole is cut which answers the
purpose of a door, and anyone wanting ad
mission roust get down on his hands and
knees and crawl in. To prevent the snow
from the top of the doorway brushing off
and falling down the neck and back, each,
Eskimo puts his skin hood, which is at
tached to his reindeer coat, over his headi
belore entering, and just as soon as bis
shoulders are well in the house he shoves
his legs back and begins to straighten up, so
as to prevent running his nose into the snow
of whichhis bed is made.
Vnrt will ca livtlila tliat 4",a islnA ! 1aV
v.. ..... ..- -v . - .-. w .s y .. -j
THE TIOLEJ FOE OIBIS.
Xothlng Affords So Grand a Chance to DIs-
ply Beauty and TJent.
t rwniTTEsroB Tin: DISPATCH.!
The girl violinist has come to remain.
And people should be glad of it. "What is
prettier than some sweet miss gracefully
holding the bow between her dainty fingers,
her violin supported under her soft white
chin.hcr head piquantlytilted to one side,her
little foot peeping out from beneath her
simple gown, her shapelv arm displaying
all its curves and graces as her bow
ripples or sighs over the respon
sive strings? And then and then
wheu she draws forth from her instrument
tones that inspire, elevate, soothe and cheer
us 2S no other tones can; when she reveals
to us the delicate emotional forces of her
woman nature, we feel at once the fitness,
and wonder why it took all these years to
find it out Not only is the violin the in
strument for the portrayal of human feel
ing, but it is an instrument especially re
quiring grace, tenderness, a sensitively
strnng organizatian. an artistic temperment
and a latent emotional fire all attributes
belonging in a marked degree to woman.
Thornrh Pittsburg is behind other cities
in its number of girl violinists, the number
is Tapidly increasing. Viewed from the
more practical standpoint, that of bread
winning, the field is not overcrowded, and
the qualified violin teacher or violin soloist
finds the demand for her services
yearly increasing. She has not yet
come to tho fore in ensemble
playing, though in large cities are lady
Suartets, trios, etc., ladies playing in or
ireoting Sunday school or other local or
chestras; and to place the lady violinist on
a still higher footing, a grand symphony
orchestra, to be composed entirely of Amer
ican women, is at present under considera
tion. Some New York managers are re
sponsible for this project, and it is de
signed to make it an orchestra which will
be able to stand on its own merit musically.
The intention is to begin with a tour of the
United States.
In London the Countess of Eadnor person
ally conducts a string orchestra composed of
fifty young ladies, among them being the
daughters of the most aristocratic houses in
England, many of them carrying the title of
"Honorable."" This orchestra was organized
years ago and has sustained a proficiency
rarely equaled in the profession.
But violin playing is so difficult, some
girl will sav. Perhaps Rolling off a log
would be difficult if you haven't -the talent
for it. When just starting out in my career
as a fiddler at the Oberlin Conservatory
years ago, I had the pleasnre nf a chat with
that well-known artist, Camilla Urso, then
on a concert tour. She was the first lady
violinist worthy of the name that I had
heard, and how her playing did enrapture
mel i inquired oi ner ii violin piayinz was
not verv difficult. She replied in her broken
way, which I shall never forget: "Shust
you practice 25 hours a day for 26 years
you learn. I have practiced my whole life,
and have yet much to accomplish." Years
after when", studying in a German conserva
tory,! had practiced a certain concertofor two
months without conquering it, my teacher
reassured me by telling me that he had
worked just "in jahr" on one the well-
known concerto of Mendelssohn.
But, looking into other branches, is not
the piano fully as exacting? With a mu
sical ear and musical talent one is quite as
simple as the other, only to 'a person pos
sessing these requirements the violiu pre
sents a far wider neld. Without a musical
hSt V
PPjT
Walter DamrateK
Theodore Thomas left New York to con
duct; the Boston Symphony, of which Mr.
Arthur Nikisch is the leader, and the New
York Symphony Orchestra, of which I hav
the honor to be the conductor. A perma
nent orchestra is one which is always play
ing under the same conductor, who is en
gaged by the year. To support such aa
orchestra entails great loss in the first year,
as the number of people who have a taste
for good music is; at first, small, and can
only be gradually increased. A fund,there
fore, is usually raised which shall cover any
deficiency which may arise the first year.
Composition of His Orcbestr3.
A permanent orchestra should consist of
about 65 instruments. There are 67 em
ployed in the New York Symphony Orches
tra, and they nre divided as follows: Twelvo
first violins, 12 second violins, 6 violins, S
violincellos, 6 double basses. 3 flutes, 3 clar
ionettes, 2 oboes, i horns, 2 bassoons, 3 cor
nets, 1 tuba, 3 trombones, J harp, 1 bass
drum, 1 small drum, with the extras, tha
cymbals, etc., and 1 tympany or kettle
drum.
The most important member of the or
chestra itself is called "the concert mas
ter." He sits in the first chair on the left
hand of the conductor. He is not only tha
leading violinist, but the other musicians
tune their instruments from him. Soma
young reader may inquire, "Why do tha
musicians always tune their instruments on
the stage; why don't thev tune them behind '
the scenes?" The answer is that if thev
tuned their instruments beforehand tha
temperature of the theater or concert room
might be different, and consequently the in
struments would not be in tune when tha
mnsicians reached the stage.
The violin is justly considered the king of
instruments. Above all other instruments,
it reqnires the greatest amount ot practice
tokeep one, as the saying is, "in proper
trim." When a permanent orchestra is not
booked to appear in any other town tha
members rehearse every day at the musio
hall, when they travel their rehearsals ara
not so frequent, because the programme is '
often the same for several towns in succession.
Discipline Is Strict Nowadays.
In an orchestra, more, perhaps, than any
where else in the world, each man attends
strictly to hi! own business. Each musician
has simply his own instrumental part in
iront of him. When he is not playing ha
may have to count the time during a rest,
but he is obliged to resume his playing at
the proper time. An amusing story is told
of a German, an old and experienced mu
sician, who played the bass drum in an
orchestra. He had thoroughly mastered
what is called the "time" of" a certain com
position. He knew that ha had 307 i bars
to couri before he would have to resume
playing; so one evening, feeling very hun-
Allfgro coa trio. iJ toar
J- T T
Ftatl
Roi
ClariarUiinB. FagWtl.
ConriiaE.
Tronte Ja C.
Timpani id
CO.
' Tiolino I.
VjolinoO.
Tiola.
Vialoac''?.
Cantaiuss,
Leader's Score of a Beethoven Sonata.
i ".' 0; j . ,
lb j-'
- I - f
ear, to the young ladv who thinks longingly,
of the violi'n.I say d"on'l. If you have musio
in your sonl, cultivate the bow, being care
ful, however, pot to spell it beau. Even
if ypil haven't the time, papacity or desire
to become a great artist, at least it will be
a source of much pleasure to yourself and
friends. Ltjcile ELDBiDOE-SnAyEa.
gry, he did not hesitate to quietly leave the
orchestra, counting the time as he went (1,
2, 3, 4, etc. J, procured a sandwich, and re
turned in time to resume his playing in tha
right place.
If this incident occurred it must have
been many vears ago, for the discipline
maintained in modern orchestras, I need
scarcely say, would not make such an
episode possible.
A few word? about the conductor. He
has before him the whole score, the part
each instrument is to play, the name of tha
instruments being on the left hand side of
the sheet, running from top to bottom, and
the musio being written from left to right.
Theconductor makes various motions to the
orchestra, gestures, eta, which, in a certain
way, are characteristic For instance, as ha
glances at his score when he sees that a cer
tain instrument has got to begin playing ho
naturally turns toward that instrument, and
by a slight bow or nod to the player indi
cates that it is time for him to begin.
When he wants the band to play softly ho
will raise his hand. The loud and stirring
kind of music will be accompanied with
more vigorous gestures, and so on, each -musical
conductor having his own peculiar
methods and mannerisms.
WALTEB DAKUOSCJfc
k
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