HENRY A. PARSONS, Jr., Editoh and Pcblishkii. ELK C 0 UN T Y THE REPUBLICAN PARTY. Two Dollars pee Anstjm. VOL. I. RIDGWAY, PA., THURSDAY, MARCH 16, 1871. NO. 3. (TUB three: little chair. They 'sat alone by the bright wood Are, The gray-haired datne and aged sire, Dreaming of days gone by ; The tear-drops fell on each wrinkled cheek. They both had thoughts they could not speak, Ana encn neart nttcred a sign For their sad and tearful eyes descried Three little chairs placed side by side Against the sitllnir-rooin wall : Old-fashioned enough as there they stood, Their seats of flag and their frames of wood, With their backs so high and tall. Then the sire shook bis silvery head, And with trembling voice he gently said: "Mother, these empty chairs 1 They bring ns such sad thoughts to-night, We'll put them forever out of sight, In the small, dark room np stairs 1" Bat she answered: " Father, no, not yet, For I look at them, and I forget That the children are away ; The boys come back, and our Mary, too, With her apron on, of checkered blue. And Bit here every day. Johnny comes bark from the billows deep, Willie wakes from his battle-Held sleep, To say good night to me; Mary's a wile and mother no more, But a tired child whose playtime is o'er, And comes to rest at my knee. 80 let them stand there, though empty now, And every time when alone we bow At the Father's throne to pray, We'll ask to meet the children above, In our Saviour's home of rest and love, Where no child gocta away." GRAY SKIES : Anil How to Brighten Turin. Seated together in a pleasant pirlor, in the appointments of which everything betokened oomfurt, not unmingled with elegance, were two ladies. The younger, -who had not reached the meridian of life, bore in her rounded form, anil clas sically regular features, evidences of great youthful beauty, hallowed, rather than dimmed, by the ten years that bad passed since she was a bride, .But upon those fair features there rested a shadow, indefinable, yet plainly there ; the bright eye bad a tinge ot melancholy mingling with its most cheerful glance, and the finely-chiseled mouth, beautiful in its repose, looked as if it had forgotten how to smile. Yet very fair appeared Lucy Selwyn to the eye of her more advanced companion, as they sat in that pleasant parlor on the bright May morning 1 Mrs. Brown was possibly twenty years older than her friend, but with one of those bright cheery faces, that the hand of age never robs of the light of a youth ful spirit. Wrinkles there were, if you should search for them crows'-feet about the eyes, and deeper Hues grooved in the broad forehead, but the cheerful light that danced upon the whble coun tenance so veiled them in beauty, that few ever noted the footprints which the years had left in passing. At the faet of Mrs. Selwyn wag a pa per ; she had been reading aloud from it one of those fugitive pieces which come, with their glimpses of domestic life, like golden lessons to the heart. The piece was headed " The Rift in the Cloud,'.' and as she finished it, she had allowed the paper to drop carelessly from her hands, exclaiming, " Never were written truer words than are those !" '. There wag a tinge of bitterness in the expression of these words that caused .Mrs. Brown to look up from the work on whioh she was engaged, when, in re- ' look ot inquiry, Mrs. Sel- isre to you to listen , Mrs. Brown, Iks fade C X I 1 robeu move beneath t heart the sunlight is " Open your heart to cy," said Mrs. Brown, in a to deepest affection " I am an old w dow, and have, in my day, experience aany changing skies the sunbright, tbe stormy, yes, and the cold, dull gray, as well and my experience may be able to suggest a way of scattering the mists that bide the sunbeams from your heart." " Well," replied Lucy, taking up the paper which had fallen at her feet, tr a little sketch portrays lust what 1 have felt the unappreciated . wite my husband never . rd I am made to feel deficient in almost commenda- of them covet it ; for myself, but covS. V?eed, . I no longer expeot h "Lucy," said her voice, " excuse me if I tell you fault is your own. If you can bear be truly dealt with, I will show you whence the gray mists come, and a way 4o disperse them too." " The fault is mine ! rod this from you, Mrs. Brown ! But go on ; I will listen dutifully." 'No, Lucy, I had better be silent than have you listen in such a spirit ; you have long proved my love, and should know that I would not be un kind, and yet the only way to help you is one that may give you pain.".- M Forgive my pettishness, ray dear friend. I do know that your heart is kindness itself, but I ant so wearied with blame that my spirit rises against it, however kindly meant." "I have noticed it, Lucy; you love your husband so well that you wish him to be blind to every defect ; yon cannot 1 won of oOw jse bear the expression of dissatisfaction. but would delight in the approbation of one so dear to you. I bis I know, but your husband does not, for your conduct to him is the reverse of what you expect from him." " No, Mrs. Brown, you do me wrong I" " Do you ever praise your .husband 'f " "Praise him I No; he. does not want my praise. ... " Do you never censure him ?" , . " I do find fault, sometimes, but how can I help it, when he is so unreasonable as he often is r . " You, then, withhold praise, and be stow censure upon your husband ; these things ot which you complain in him make, you say; your home-skies gray have you never thought that "the effect might be the same on htm 7" Receiving no reply, Mrs. Brown con tinued : "During the month I have now been under your roof, I have seldom seen you hasten to meet your husband on his return, as if his coming brought a pleasure with it; I have noticed that sometimes the first words he has heard from the lips of his wife, after a whole day of absence, have been fretful com plainings. The children have been un ruly, or the servants have been impu dent your spirit nag been chafed by these irritations, and he has been greeted by s recital of your perplexities, on reaching the home to which he had lumen lor a respite irom anxiety. " You are severe, Mrs. Brown I" " You may deem me so, but I have not yet done, sometimes, when Selwyn has entered the house with a smile on his face, and evident cheerfulness in his heart, I have seen his manner, in a few minutes, undergo a complete transform ation ; from the sunlight he has passed into tbe gray shadow. I can only sur mise the reason, yet I think my suppo sition is correct." " Will you favor me with it i" was the somewhat cold reply of Mrs. Selwyn, as her triend hesitatingly paused. " I will but, Lucy, I do it only in the hope of removing its cause, and of re storing to you the light which you say has fled from your home; do not think me unkind, tor only my love for vou could induce me to assume so unwel come a task. Now hear me. When Mr. Selwyn enters his home, only to find upon your face the expression of a sober seriousness, amounting almost to sad ness ; when his cheerful words are an swered in a tone that speaks a dissatis fied heart, his own feelings, however buoyant and hopeful, sink under the in fluence of that mental gloom. As sensi tive as yourself, he feels the absence of sympathy, and your manner, more than your words, leads to tbe fear that you are too much engrossed by considerations of a selfish nature, to be able to sympa thize with him. " Mrs. Brown," said her hearer, rising from her Beat, " I could have borne such language from few others. If you are correct, I am childish to expect my hus band's praise 1" Here, overcome by the feelings which had been so unsparingly probed, Mrs. Bolwyn burst into tears, and in the passionate gush of emotion, was about to leave the room, when Mrs. Brown gently, but firmly restrained her. " Sit down, my dear Lucy, sit down, or all I have said will harm, rather than benefit you. You do indeed deserve praise, but not for the things I have named ; your domestic duties are nobly performed ; your house is a pattern ot neatness ; your diligenoe, your regard for your husband's interests, your care fulness of his comfort, so far as the ma terial appointments of his house are concerned, are worthy of all commenda tion. "But, if so, why do 1 never hear it from Aw lips I" " Because you discourage its express ion ; if the words were springing to his lips, one glance at the martyr-like ex pression your features sometimes wear would chill them there. The truth is, Lucy, if your husband had no heart, he would praise you ; he has a heart, and therefore does not." " You speak in enigmas, Mrs Gray !" "You treat him as if you thought that big well-kept home ought to satisfy all his wishes ; he fuels that he should receive more than this !" "What more V " Love the love of his own wifd !" "Why, Mrs. Brown, do you suppose he doubts that '(" " What reason has he to believe that be retains it ? Once he could read your affections in every act; it spoke from your eyes, and was manifested in a thousand little nameless attentions, which, though insignificant in them selves, win their way to tbe heart ; he 'mew that you loved him then I " tie has no right to doubt it now I , " I ask, again, what ground has he for bblieving it except that you are his wife ' What you do for him may be the mere performance of duty ; the peculiar of hoes of love you have long since ceased to tender, and he has ceased to expect them ; it would be a surprise to him to be met by you as you used to meet him ere he became your husband." This was a new phise of the subject to Mrs. Selwyn; a faint light began to dawn upon her, a dim suspicion that her friend might, at least in part, be right ; but how could the help it '( how could she express what she did not feel? This thought, flashing across her mind, startled her. Had she, indeed, ceased to love her husband t No ! Why, then, did she not feel tbe game warm impulse as of old t She began to be perplexed and alarmed! Then her thoughts re verted to the change in Mr. Selwyn ; he was no longer what e had been so solicitous for her comfort, so tender ot her feelings, so deferential to her wishes and there was a flush upon her cheek as she replied " The change, Mrs. Brown, has not been all upon one side." " No," replied her friend, and were I speaking to your husband, I should re mind him of that ; and yet, to you I must say, tbat had you, previous to the time you won his heart, worn the'aspeot whioh - is sow usual - with you, . Mr, Selwyn would never have sought you us a wife 1" " And had he been then as he now is, X would never have accepted him as a husband," retorted Lucy, with spirit "The fault," said Mrs. Brown, "is mutual; it has had its origin in the too common conviction tbat, atter mar riagd, thoBe attentions whici are the inOBt expressive tokens of love are unheeded ; and by a fatal mistake, the qualities that have awakened and lostered anecuon cease to be exhibited, and the love which was born of them begins to languish ; the heart feels a want that is not met ; pride restrains the tongue from speaking . . h I 1 . r . 1 1. . 1 or SUOu leeungt, qui. tney are e&uiuium in the manner ; it is not long ere the coolness or petulance of one is reflected in the carriage of the other ; and thus step by step, a change proceeds, tbe re sults of which are fatal to all happiness. With you, Lucy, the change has not ad vanced so far, but it has progressed till the sunlight of your skies has faded into gray let it proceed, and I can pre dict for yon gloom that will Bh allow your whole lite 1 Stop," said she, as Mrs. Selwyn was about to interrupt her, " hear mn through, and then act ag you please. If you really wish for the sun light which brightened your early wed ded life, you may have it again 1 Meet your husband, as of old, with a smile ; let him see that his presence is a pleasure to you ; make his home the brightest place he finds ; let those attentions, which once were so freely rendered, take the place of querulous complainings in short, let tbe effluence of a loving heart fill your home with its brightness and its beauty, and you will not wait long ere the gray will brighten into golden light !" " It would be in vain, Mrs. Brown," said Lucy, sadly ; " I believe that with tbe inconsistency natural to man, Mr. Selwyn has ceased to value that which he posseses the very attentions that were once a pleasure, would now be wearisome to him." " Lucy," replied her friend in an earn est tone, " I speak confidently, for my words are the result of experience. I bad not been many years a wife before I passed into the shadow that is now enveloping your home; I have felt all that you describe, and reasoned just as you now do, and only for what appear ed a chance event, but in which I now see the band of a merciful God, I should have wrecked my earthly happiness. With me, tbe chauge had proceeded so far, that I had ceased to hope for any alteration, when one evening, in com pany with my husband, I attended a wedding-party ot two dear young friends. They had just returned from their bridal tour, aud never was hap piness written in brighter characters than upon those young faces I I stood there, sad in heart, for I remembered when I was gay as that fair young bride as full of hope and joy ; and as I stood a little apart Irom tbe company, 1 found myself wondering whether she would ever feel as I then felt I The white-haired clergyman who a month before had married them, was present. At a latter period of the evening he stood near me, in conversation with the bride ; a single sentence that he addressed to her fell upon my ears it was this: 1 Be care ful very careful never allow the mere duties of the wife to chill, or to conceal tbe love of the bride.' I thought little of it at the moment, but the words came to me again, as I was busy in my own home; I found myself wondering why he should have spoken these words, and what it was he meant by them ; and as I pondered on them, there came to my heart such a revelation of my own de ficiencies as startled me ! All that I have said to you, and far more, I thought of myself. I saw that I had been self ish and exacting, and that, while rend ering the mere duties of a wife, I was expecting, in return, the expression of feelings which my own demeanor had chilled. I then resolved tbat it should be different; that I would again be to iuy husband all that I once had been. Pride said ' No, rather suffer on, than court the affections ot your own hus band 1 but reason, duty, and more than all, my own yearning heart, soft ened by the new light which had dawn ed upon it, said, ' Yes.' I resolved, and in tbe resolve of tbat hour the gray skies already began to brighten, and I felt sure that the sunlight would come I You, who have been within my home, know how completely I have succeeded." " Can this, indeed, be so 1" exclaimed Lucy, in astonishment ; " I had supposed that yours was a home upon which no shadow bad ever fallen ! O, how I have wished that mine resembled it. " You can make it so ; only be what you ones was the same to your hus band as before you called him yours and you will find in bis heart a depth of love and tenderness tbat will astonish you." Here tbe conversation was interrupt ed, nor was it resumed until the follow ing day, when Mrs. Brown, having com pleted her visit to her friend, left for her own happy home. Then a single al lusion to the conversation of the previ ous day was all she ventured, but as she pressed a parting kiss upon the brow of her friend, she whispered" Try it, Lucy, you will, I know, but do not stop half-way !" A year had elapsed ere the next visit of Mrs. Brown to the Selwyng was made. It was evening when the carnage that conveyed her drove up to the door. lilad hearts and cbeertul voices wel comed her. A merry group of child ren was gathered around the centre- table, which was strewn with games and paintings. Mr. Belwyn held in his hand a volume which he had just been read ing aloud to the little party. The work basket of Mrs. Selwyn, at the side of her cushioned chair, showed how her fingers had been engaged; and over all. especially upon the faces of the parents, there was an expression 01 such cheer fulness, that Mrs. Brown felt assured her prescription of the year before had been tried, and not without success. As Mrs. Belwyn was assisting to dis robe her friend of her outer garments, Mrs. Brown ventured a single question : "Lucy, dearest, are tbe skies still gray ?" " O, no I it is all sunlight now I" And those white arms were wound. around the form of her friend, and a shower of kisses poured upon the hps which had taught her the secret of transforming gray to gold 1 SKETCHES BT A COSMOPOLITAN. Artatocracv Bt a Discount. One of the prominent features of the market are the market produce wagons that come in nightly from Long Island, Jersey, and Westchester, laden with the ohoicest vegetables, which, as is well known, are grown to the greatest per fection in those celebrated gardening regiofis f asparagus, radishes, cauliflower, pie-plant, celery, kale, cucumbers, peas, etc, together with the finest specimens of small fruits: currants, gooseberries, cherries, plums, pears, eto. ; all for the deleotation of the favored residents of the Empire City ; and it is certainly as tonishing to see the immense quantity of fruits and vegetables required daily to satisfy the rapacious maw of the insa tiate monster. Although this particular style of farming has its fluctuations, yet in the main it is highly remunerative, most of those engaged therein tor any considerable time becoming wealthy and prosperous. Tbey exhibit much taste in the style of their wagons and teams, the wagons, many of them, being built in the neatest manner ; platform springs, iron axles, and the bodies, which are generally double decked, and have tre mendous capacity for stowage, are got ten up and finish td in a very superior manner. Early in the evening they be gin to arrive, rolling smoothly down tbe various streets, and ranging them selves side by side, close together, with the back end toward the curb, the horses being unhitched, and their heads turned toward tbe wagon, where they are fur nished with hay. During the spring, summer, and au tumn, all the streets in the vicinity ot the market are thus lined on either side, leaving only an open space in the centre for travel. They occupy West, Wash ington, and Greenwich streets from Cortland to Canal, and are found in every cross street, so that when in the morning other vehicles begin to pour in to take part in the business of the day, the streets are entirely obstructed for hours. A TERFECT BLOCKADE. Drivers are sitting on their boxes, or standing on their trucks, looking at each other and swearing all the oaths known to the language, besides forcing heavy contributions Irom other idioms with which tbey are most familiar. " Why don't you move on there ?" fa cetiously inquires the specimen New Yorker from his perch upon the top ot a hotel coach, where he has been broil ing for the last hour without moving an inch ahead. You glance at the speaker, and you see a representative man of bis class, puffing away at a cigar as he stretches lazily out on his box, said ci gar being held at an angle of forty-five degrees, or rather more. With the great est coolness aud sang froid he merely propounds the question to create a sen sation. The Dutch grocer just ahead looks round with supreme disgust (which is all lost on the imperturbable Jehu), and exclaims contemptuously, " Donder mit blixen, what for shall I trive to? You pe von great tthackass. Oh, rutin Cot, mein Cot, I pe gone dead mit de heat. I shall pe sun shtroke mit mine head." "Arrah, be jabers," shouts the irre pressible Celt on the truck ahead, " hould aisy, me lad ; ye's can take no harrum with so much lager under yer jacket; it's only risin' up, it is, inter yer hat. Wait till we have Misther U Don ovan in the Board of Aldthermen, and then, honey, we'll have an ordinance passed for your own special conva nience." "Sucre," mutters the French baker from his neat cart labelled " Hot Rolls," for which his customers are likely to wait in vain for that morning's break fast. Down the Btreet the drivers are still more demonstrative. Several have left their teams and are having a social game of fisticuff, the indulgence in which pastime, by the by, seems necessary to the existence of your regular New York carman. The horses, meantime, are run ning into and smashing up matters gen erally, in emulation of their masters' ex ample. Presently, however, a movement is apparent down tbe street, the surging mass gives way, the blockade is raised, tbe impatient drivers urge their horses to the right hand bide of the street, and soon two living streams are flowing, one on either side, one on their way np town, the other down. We look for the magician who has so soon and with such comparative ease brought order out of chaos, and we readily recognize the neat blue uniform, brass buttous and badge of office belonging to a member of the Metropolitan police force, who, grim and mud bespattered, passes hastily through the crowd, ordering each team into position by a mere wave of the hand, and in a tew moments alter be ap pears upon the scene, everything moves along with as much regularity as is con sistent with human life in general, and city life in particular. ant 1 am digressing again. The farm ers do not drive in over night with any expectation of selling their load before morning as a general thing. They soon retire to the various lodging houses in tbe vicinity, leaving their property iu care of a Bet of special watchmen, who, for a nightly fee, guarantee its safety until morning. One Nichols, from Northport, Long Island, had charge of a section in our immediate neighborhood. A bluff- old fisherman was this same Nichols, who had resided in such close proximity to the Nutmeg State that he Lad adopted all the peculiar pronuncia tion and nasal twang that characterizes the universal Yankee nation. When he first came among us his style was so "outre," and his drawling, sententious speeches so provocative of laughter, that he was unmercifully quizzed, all of which he took with the greatest good nature ; but he proved to have such a vein of humor, and withal such a kindly heart, added to a great fund of anec dote, which he dispensed in his inimita ble manner, tbat he was soon unani mously voted a " brick," and received into the brotherhood as a valuable acquisition. As I neared Nichols's post ono night, I saw him dodging about under tbe wagons in a high state of excitement. ' What's np, Niohols?" said I. " Hush !" Baid he ; " come and look at this tarnal critter a stealin' of old Schnei der's hoss." I crept carefully to his side, and true enough, there was a man stripping off the harness, whioh he took great pains to lay up on the wagon. Said Nichols quietly, changing his quid to the other cheek, " There's Butbin ourious about that 'ere team. He can't coax one of them nr hosses to leave t'other." And so it came to pass that as we looked we saw the matter clearly de monstrated. And surely that was a comical horse thief. Atter laying off the harness, which occupied about half an hour, he began to examine the fine points of the animal. He looked in his mouth, rubbed down his legs, lifted up his feet to examine his shoes ; then step ping back a few paces, he apparently wished to take in all the good points at once. Said Nichols in a whisper, " I reckon he'll find considerable many good points about that 'ere hoss, 'specially 'bout the ribs." It was perhaps as worthless an animal as could be found in the Btreet. At last, apparently satisfied as to its intrinsic value, our hero essayed to mount ; he made desperate efforts to get astride the beast by grasping the mane, and throwing himself in various atti tudes, but all in vain ; finally clamber ing upon a wagon he gave a heavy lurch, and with one tremendous effort he was on, and over, and there he lay sprawling, muttering curses not loud but deep. Soon, however, his attention wag attracted by a loud guffaw from Nichols, who could contain himself no longer. " I Bay, stranger, you're the darnedest critter to overreach I've met with Bince I've been in York. I'll bet high there's nothing in Welch's circus ken tech a candle to your performance." Meantime we were walking up to our man, who sat on the ground where he hud fallen. He was a very gentlemanly appearing fellow, young and handsome ; and I thought I saw beneath his over coat a glimpse of an undress navy uni form. As to his nationality we were not long in doubt, as he addressed Nichols : "'Off are you, governor ' hand 'ow's the missus, hand the little kids hat ome'f" " No triflin'," said Nichols ; " when I get really riled, I haint the pleasantest chap to deal with. What on airth was you tryin' for to do with this hoss '" " Hi don't call that hanimal an 'orse, but han bass. Blast my buttons, but he'g halmost broke my' harm, and smashed my figure-'ead. Hi don't want to go aloft again in that crazy 'ulk." Nichols eyed him with a quizzical ex pression for a moment, and then broke out: " Waal, stranger, you're the darnedest, oncommonest specimen of a horse-thief that it's been my fortune to set eyes on lately. Mebbe you would be kind enough to tell us what you was goin' to do with this 'ere animal, ef you could hev stayed on hig back '" " Honly a bit of a lark. Hi come ho ver with the lads to 'ave a jolly go of it; hevery one got drunk but me, and some where they lost me ; thought I'd make a night of it ; concluded to take a ride ; deuced hextensive stud this chap has ; who can hit be ' Most hextraordinary cohincidence that I should 'ave met you just as I was about to ride." Looking towards the old market, that loomed up in the darkness, he remarked : " Devilish shabby 'ouse this chap has that howns so many 'orses." Nichols heard him out and then ex claimed : " Who in thunder are you, and what's all this yer blowin' about ' Come along with me, and we'll see about this bit of a lark as you call it. Oh, come along ; it's no use a-drawin' back ; when I once get my grapplin' irons fast suthin's got to come ;" at the same time Bhowing his badge of a special officer, without which he would have no authority to make an arrest. With your true Briton's respect for law, our man at onoe altered his tone. " My dear sir, you don't happrehend that I wanted to steal the hanimal 'i No, no ; 'twas honly han hunfortunate hincideut." " Rayther vnortnit, I take it ; jest you come on, and yeou can see how we look on sech things." Our friend was getting pretty well so bered by this time, and evidently took in tbe situation. Said he : "I belong to the Navy, second lieu tenant, H. B. M. Macedon.' " I reckon you belong to me jest now," said Nichols, who was somewhat puz zled ; " what on airth was you doin' here, anyhow r" " Oh, bless your 'eart, the governor took it in 'is 'ead that I was a-sowing too many wild boats on the other side tbe Hatlantic, and sent me over for my 'ealth. I beg pardon, sir. I hexpect I hacted foolish, but I am no thief." Say ing which he displayed his uniform. At my suggestion, Nichols was about to dismiss him, when, in an evil mo ment, old Schneider made his appear ance, accompanied by Mike Doole, an Irish carrier well known on the Btreet. The Dutchman was in a high state ot excitement as soon as he understood the matter. " Mein Got in himmel," said he to the Englishman, "you shall pe prought mit de benidentiary for die, you tundther wedder Shonny Pull." " Ocb, thin, watchman dear, ye'll sure ly be afther takin' the miserable thafe to the station, an' hould him- till Judge Brannan sits." . - - - Said Nichols, " I rayther think I'll let him go, and ef I do it's my affair." Mike was disappointed; the national prejudice was strong. The -Dutchman was furious. " Och, thin, begorra," says Mike, " it's compoundin' a felony they are ; if ye'll take my advice, (Schneider, ye 11 jist ar rest the pair of 'em." H Who is this fellow ?" said our officer, with some hauteur. Mike was at once full of fight. " Och, thin, be the howly poker, I'll mash the head of ye, ye bloody thavin blagguard; the like of ye'll not be tramplin on us here ; hooray for ould Ireland, Erin go Bragh." The upshot of tbe matter was that Mike raised such a hubbub among the Irish in the street that we were obliged to take our man to the station, where he proved to Captain Halpin's satisfaction that he wag not only second lieutenant of IL B. M. " Macedon," but that he was son of Sir John Esthaven, conse quently an aristocrat, and, like Ciesar's wife, " above suspicion." L. R. T. Sensible Views abuut Marriage. Tbe Chicago Times thus condenses its report of a sermon delivered in that city by Rev. Robert Collyer, on the Bubject of " Marriage." He said : It was wrong to call marriage a lot tery. He would believe that of most any occupation, but nothing was surer than tbat a good man or woman could find a good woman or man. God would help those who help themselves. It was a lottery to those who determined it should be a speculation. God did not leave the glory and joy of lite to mere chance. Every man was sure of a good wife if he would give diligence to make his calling and election Bure. Very little money was needful if they had some other things that it could never buy. Be would not cry money down, and had lit tle respect for those ministers who did so, for they took all the salary they could fut, and would break tender ties for " a ivine call" that they could not resist. " Love of money" was the root of all evil. An old farmer told him that it would be well to marry a woman who had money if be could love her ; but that it should not be one of the considerations. It was not true that when poverty came in at the door love jumped out of the window passion might, fancy might, but love would not, and never did. That Cupid that sprang out of the Window came from Venus, the old heathen goddess. The angel of God would watch over true love in the cottage and aid the man who tried to make $10 go as far as $20 ought to, and make a crust taste better than a pound-cake. He wanted a frankness to exist be tween the parties before they came to him. There was a sort of semi-deception practiced by lovers on each other. They seldom appear as they really are. Country marriages were apt to turn out better than those of the city, as the par ties knew eac'i other in all their peculi arities. But in Chicago all was chang ed. He then briefly described a court ship, showing that it was a game of cards ; both were anxious not to reveal their hands ; both intended to cheat, and when they got married they both found it out. Tbe deceptions were spec ified and denounced, lor young men and women should come to a simple under standing, for it would cost something to show the temper after marriage, while it would cost but little if shown before marriage. A winning face and pleasing form counted more with most young peo ple than the sweetest graces of the soul, and it often turned out that a great mis take had been made; though beauty might often accompany great goodness. Some of the worst cases that had come under his observation were where the man had married for beauty and the wo man because he was six feet one, had black whiskers, etc. Marriage was a religious duty, though not commanded it was rather a divine fact; and he liked the Quakers who Baid, when about to be married, " We have been moved to do this by tbe Holy Spirit." Men and women were often brought together by something that they could not account for. He related the story of a single man who on the Pacific, saw a face and discovered that it was his wife, and he married her seven years afterward in Philadelphia, and there was never a happier couple in the world ; and that woman told him that she had seen her husband at the same time, and said to herself, " That is the homeliest face I ever saw." All true marriages were made in Heaven, but there must be a conviction that they are made above, and not by the mother or father, etc., on earth. He gave it as his opinion tbat the greater portion of the human beings who become husband and wife find themselves rightly married. Tbey sel dom married the ideal, and there were often times when they could not see alike, and there would be trials of faith in each other, and sometimes a doubt, and no man had a right to get married without expecting such things. Mar ried life had more burdens and also more happiness. The sweetest wife in this world has said things to her husband that she would not allow anybody else to say, and the best husband sometimes might sav things that if anvbodv else had said he would leap at him like a leopard. Among the ousts to pay were patience, forbearance, mutual giving and taking, no treasuring up of sharp words. and the sun should never be allowed to rise on the wrath. Singular Medical Facts. To show how little lung a person mav live on, Dr. Nicholson says : " I know a young man enjoying good health, and is comparatively strong, who has not more than two-thirds of a lung. . He lost his left lung from the effects of a gunshot wound received at the battle of Shiloh. The ball entered the shoulder blade and lodged in the top of the lung. Dr, Guild, of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, an emi nent surgeon, attended him two or three months at the outset. He finally came under my care. I had charge of him several months until he was well. He lost all his left lung, and maybe a little more tha'n the lower lobe of tbe right lung. No mortal ever came near dying surely than he. From a skeleton he picked up flesh, commenced the business of a merchant, got' married, and has had some children.. - A widower in Twrro." Tf .iiita. Tnrifnnk. offers to marry any young, amiable, beautiful, and accomplished girl who will take care of his house, keep his chil- uren ciean, ana let mm aione. MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS. ! A clarionet, cornet and flute have been introduced into the choir' of the Congre gational church at Waupun, Wisconsin. To cure sore throat, take the whites of two eggs and beat them in with twO spoonfuls "of white sugar; grate in a little nutmeg, and then add a pint of lukewarm water; stir well and drink often. Repeat the prescription, if neces sary, and it will cure the most obstinate cases of hoarseness in a short time. Bees are exceedingly susceptible of at- mospherio changes ; even the passage of a heavy cloud over . the sun will drive them home; and if an easterly wind prevail, however fine the weather may otherwise be, they have a sort of rheu- matio abhorrence of its influences, and abide at home. The cause would seem to be the deficiency of electricity in the r. . . . At New Bedford there are now lying thirty-five vessels whose legitimate ob ject is the pursuit and capture of whales, and which now should be preparing to set Bail for adventure. Nevertheless, tbey are all in .the most dreamy state of inanition. There is a large stock of oil on hand, the price of.it islow, and there fore merchants will not fit out the ves sels or hire men. - . . Rev. Dr. Deems, in the course of his remarks at the funeral of Alice Cary, said : " Men loved Alice Cary, and women loved her. When a man loves woman. it is of nature ; when a woman loves a woman, it is of grace of the grace that woman makes by her loveliness ; and it is one of the finest things that can be gaid of Alice Cary, that she had such troops of friends of her own sex." It is Btated that during the siege of Paris the method of making bread out of the raw wheat was carried out with suc cess. Under the usual system, it is averred, 100 pounds of wheat yield 80 pounds ot nour, from which Hi pounds of bread are made. Under the new plan of using the unground wheat, 143 pounds of bread, it is estimated, can be made out of 1U0 pounds 01 wheat. Some men find life unendurable if they cannot lay wagers. At Bingham ton a favorite mode of winning "the drinks " is for a sharper to bet with a yokel tbat he can stand an egg on end " right out on the floor," and the yokel can t break it with a half-bushel mea sure. The bet is taken and the fiend in human shape puts the egg precisely in the corner, and if you wish to know how it is yourself, you would do well to try tbe experiment. A young man in Oswego, who started to attend a masauerade party on Thurs day, attired and accoutred as he supposed satan usually is, unhappily entered the wrong house, to the consteration of the inmates. The old gentleman, father of the family, especially, was greatly alarmed, and with a wild shriek," Maria, save the children I" he made his exit through the rear door, closely followed by Maria and all their little ones. The new German empire, with Alsace and Lorraine, will contain 40,148,209 inhabitants, and France, without ,hese provinces, will have 36,428,543 inhabi tants. United Germany will be the sec ond nation in Europe in point of popu lation, Kussia alone leading it. The larger part of Kussia, however, is in habited by a half-civilized people, and it may be fairly stated that Germany, numerically speaking, is at the head of civilized nations. The census of 1880 will advance the United States to that position. The Indianapolis Sentinel tells a good gtory of a railroad conductor who resides in that city. In hig absence his wife presented him with a fine boy. Some of his wife's friends, who are of a wag gish turn of mind, suggested that they borrow two other bibies in the neigh borhood, and present the three young sters to their happy father on his re turn. The plan was carried out, and. upon the arrival of the train in the evening, the young husband, who had heard that all was well ; hurried home ; after fondly kissing his wife, he asked to see the little stranger. Imagine his surprise on beholding three babies when tbe coverlet was turned down. After gizing at them in profound astonish ment for several minutes, he turned to his wife, and coolly asked, " Did any get away '(" Criticism in the newspapers of the West is peculiar. An Illinois paper thus touches upon a member of the Legisla ture : " Mr. Acker, the eminent horn- swaggler, thrilled the House on Satur day with one of his most majestio ef forts, a short-horn reporter describes the scene as indescribable. Ladiej on tbe back seats were obliged to climb up to the back of the chairs to esoape the torrents of eloquence and things. The speaker was so charged with the elec tricity of eloquence that his sharply pointed spike tail coat frequently stood at an angle of sixty degrees and trem bled like an aspen. The orator most of the time resembled an irresponsible vio tim in galvanio slippers. He roared, and plunged, and squealed like three hundred pounds of petticoats on her first pair of skates." Out in Chester county, N. C, lately, a clock peddler was tramping along, hot, dusty, and tired, when he came to a meeting-houBe wherein sundry Friends were engaged In silent devotion.- The peripatetic tradesman thought he would walk in and rest. . He took a seat upon a bench, doffed his hat, and placed his clocks upon the floor. . There was a painful stillness in the meeting-house, whioh was broken by one of the clocks, which commenced striking furiously. The peddler was ' in' an 'agony, but be hoped every .minute, tha. clnf.k would stop. Instead of that it struck just four hundred and thirty times by the aeiual count 'of every friend in the meeting, for the best disciplined of them couldn t help numbering the strokes." Then up rose Joiie ' of 'the Friends, at the mt of the four -hundred and thirtieth stroke, and said Y - Friend, "asTt ia'so'very Tate, perhaps thee had better proceed on thy journey, or thee will not reach thy des tination unless thee is as as energetic aa tby vehement time-piece."