NIL DESPERANDUM.
Two Dollars per Annum.
VOL. III.
MDGAVAY, ELK COUNTY, PA., THUltSDAY, JANUARY 8, 1874.
NO. 45.
HENRY A. PARSONS, Jr., Editor and Publisher.
A Little Girl that Sold Matches.
The painful scene I have here en
deavored to portray, says a writer in
New York Graphic, is founded upon
an occurrence that recently came to the
notice of one of the teachers employed
by the Children's Aid Society, and is
no whit more distressing than other
scenes that are enacted nightly in this
metropolis. ' If I might hope to interest
one single reader to the extent of in
ducing even the smallest contribution
towards the noble charity conducted by
that society I should feel that I had ac
complished something in the cause of
humanity.
Oli, I hope she aint been drinkin'
Yes'm, every match is Bold ;
But I ain't got all the money
Three cents, mammy's, all I stoled.
Course I knowed you'd lick me for it.
Lemme tell y' how it come
Then perhaps you'll whip me easy,
'Less you've been a-driukin' rum.
I was dreadful tired walkin'
Keenied as like as not I'd drop ;
Bo I stopped to rest a minute,
Eight afore a baker's shop.
Suthiu' gripped me in the stummick
At the sight o' things to eat j
Cause I hadn't struck it lucky
Findin' scraps along the street.
No ! not yet just wait a minute
Till I tell y', thnn you may.
tUneo you gave mo that portater
1 ain't had a liito to-day ;
And them crullers looked so temptin',
I got crying where I stood
Never tasted nothin' like 'cm,
Tint I knowed they must be good.
Thou I seed two girls a-comin'
Thoy was just about my size
Pressed fo nice and warm and handsome
With such pnrty-lookiu' eyes ;
Watched 'em walk right in so careless,
Like it wa'n't no harm to do :
When I see 'cm buyiu' crullers
I went in and bought some, too.
Got three cents' worth come out tremblin',
Kind o' scared at what I'd done s
And a loafm' boy that seen mo
Snatched 'em out my hand and run.
Theu I sot down on the curbstone,
Feelin' weak and sort o' sick,
Till a ploeeeman come an' tolo me
Get up now, and travel quick !
Lick mo now ; but you must give me
Just one little bite to eat !
J can't ttantl it 'thout no isupper
Xo ! no ! no ! Don't tie my feet !
Oli, that great big stick '11 kill me !
Mammy, I'll be good I'll try !
Well, then, kill me please to kill me !
Oh ! riease, please to let me die !
WHEN' I WAS DKOWXEI).
For the third time I had called on
Laura Mansfield, and for the third time
the servant had met me with, "Miss
Mansfield is not at home to Mr. Talbot,"
and I had turned away from the door.
What this all meant I was at a loss to
conjecture. When I heard it the first
time I was puzzled and amazed ; the
next time pained ; but now I was mad
dened, and felt that it had beenintended
as an insult.
"Not at home to Mr. Talbot!"
riparit message from tho woman who
hpA promised to be my wife, was it not ?
Why, 1 was but a week ago that she
had placed her face to mine, and con
fessed she was very happy because I
loved her; and now she was " not at
home !"
I-had known Laura Mansfield for
many years before I asked her to be my
wife. So far as the world judges, I was
her equal in family and in wealth, as
well as in intellectuality. I say " so
far as the world judges," because I do
not judge men and women as the world
of fashion does. That man would be a
very shallow one, in my opinion, who
could think of measuring his love
against aught but the woman's love for
him.
I Joved Laura and loved her truly.
I was no weak, puling boy, full of crude
fancies of love, but an earnest man,
who knew, why he loved and trusted.
She was a woman, guided by her reason
and her love ; not a giddy, capricious
girl. But we differed in that I was
somewhat sluggish in thought and de
cision, while she was impetuous in her
decisions.
I tried to recall every word and look
of our last evening together, but could
remember nothing that would give me
a clue to her present action, and for the
hundredth time in the last few davs
, v as forced to give it up.
" JYot at home to me ! ery well. I
ould not trouble her to send the nies-
age again. T lie world would waff on
much as it had done, and men's lives
wre made of tougher material than to
be withered by a woman's frown. While
these thoughts were running through
my i.iind I had walked on and on, pay
ing bnt little heed to my steps until I
had passed the village, followed the
lane leading to the river, and stopped
only when I reached its bank.
I was aroused from my reverie by the
sound of the busy hammers of the
bridge builders, and I threw myself un
der a tree and watched them hew and
match the timbers and planks, and then
raise them to their places. The hum
of the workmen's voices had a ciieery
sound in it, and at last led me to go out
rfmong them.
I picked my way among the timbers
carefully, and was almost at the end of
the completed part, when I fancied I
heard my name spaken by some one on
shore. 'I turned, without thinking of
where I was, missed my step upon the
plank, had time to call for help, and the
next instant was under the water.
It seemed an age to me before I arose
again. Down, down, down I went in
the greenish water, and then, without
any apparent cause, I began to rise.
The water hurt my eyes, and there was
a roaring noise in my ears as if a thous
and eannon were thundering in discord
upon every side of me. But my think
ing faculties were unclouded, and my
mind was busy turning over and recal
ling all that I had read or heard of what
mea should do who were in danger of
drowning. I wondered if the workmen
would be ready with assistance for me
when I reached the surface, and I re
membered I would have but three
chances for my life. Then I was above
the water.
No one was near to help me. I called
out with all my strength for help, and
struck out with my hands and feet as I
had seen swimmers do ; but it was an
of no avail J I sank again.
Oh I the horrid, horrible noises with
in my head ! They were growing loud
er and louder. I cursed my foolish fan
cies, that had prevented me learning to
swim when 1 was a boy. And why were
not the men doing something for me ?
They had but to throw out a board or a
rope and I would be saved. They must
have seen and heard me fall. Will they
bo ready now ? O God I have mercy
and send me help I
There is a man with a rope I Ah 1 It
fell short ! The fool I why is he so
slow ? Help ! help I He , O God 1
the word is finished tinder the water,
and I have choked myself with what I
swallowed. This terrible, terrible roar
ing noise ! Mv head will split asunder I
I have one more chance. If but a hand
was near me ; if but some one would
save me ! I cannot die I I cannot die
I am not ready ; it cannot be 1 There
is light again. Father in heaven, help,
oh I help me I
There comes a boat 1 Hurry, oh I
hurry I How slow they come I O hea
ven ! one minute more, but one short
minute ! Help ! help ! Oh 1 tho clum
sy fool ! He has lost his oar, and I am
lelt to drown !
I won't go down ! I will not die I
Oh, this cursed, yielding water ! These
garments of lead I I won't go down !
Ha 1 I am rising ! No, I cannot fepl
myself move. But the infernal roar in
my head has increased and maddens
me. There are ten thousand shrieking
devils within my ears. They yell like
tortured souls in hell ! Louder it grows!
Louder ! ! Louder ! ! !
Why, what is this ! Music ! Yes,
sweetest, dreamiest music comes steal
ing upon my senses and drives awny
the hordes of Satan. Tis sweeter, this,
than life. Am I in heaven ? No water
covers me ; no dread or fear rests upon
my spirit ; I am content ; my soul is
full of peace and rest. This must be
heaven, but I am all alone.
I must have iloated in tho invisible
ether, for here I sae another world.
There are hills and mountains, trees
and flowers, and there are men and
women walking to and fro. How like
the place where first I lived I Why, it
is the self-same place ! I seem t) re
member that little boy who runs about
the street. Ah, I thought so ! He is
myself. Follow him ! See him pinch
the Initio boy, push over the little girl
at the corner, worry the old blind sol
dier ! Yen, I did all that ! They were
funny then, but they seem fearfully
eruefnow. 1 vl.:: I lnd never been so
had.,,-
Follow him still. He drinks and
swears and gambles. Follow him !
stop him ! Oh, if I had never done
these things ! But ho goes on to worse
yet. His life is all bad. It was my
life, my own evil life. If I but had it
to live again !
But his heart is not all bad. See him
kneel beside that maiden and swear to
live a better life ! Love has touched
his heart, and love is but another name
for God. lie strives hard to conquer
himself; he is succeeding slowly. There
he sits beside the womau he loves. Yes,
it is Laura and myself. My face is
trustful and happy, but Laura's is
somewhat suspicions. I hear our
words, and I am living over again my
last night with her. There, a letter
drops on the floor, but I do not think it
is mine, and I turn to go with " good
night " on my lips. Before I close the
door I turn around, and there is a bit
ter, ' Bcomfnl smile upon her face.
What could that letter have been? It
was not mine. Hold ! It must have
been the one I lost and had forgotten
until now. I saw it fall, but thought it
dropped from Laura's baud. I ought
to have remembered it before. It was
from my old friend Jessie King, and I
thought I had put it on my fable.
That must have been the letter Laura
found ; yes, and it accounts for her sub
sequent behavior. The letter was but
aline: "Dear Frank, I will wait for
vou at H , Saturday." Laura must
Lave supposed Jessie was a lover, while
she iu. . reall married to my Cousin
John. '
"Saturday?" When will Saturday
come, I wonder ? ' She will not find me
there. And Laura? ,She will learn,
some day, that Jessie was but my friend.
How remorseful she will be ! And
mother, poor old mother I what will she
do when they tell her I am never coming
I to her again ?
au J me, me, you were pleasant and
bright, but if this is death, give me
what I have. I hear the heavenly
musio once more, and my spirit turns to
it. How sweet ; how enchantingly
sweet ! 'Tis full of rest and perfect
peace. A delicious languor creeps up
on my soul, envelops me, wooes me to
sleep.
Oh, horrors ! What was that ? There
it is again. Can I be in hell ? Millions
of devils are torturing me. They are
creeping into my lungs, my heart, my
brain ! Now they pierce my every
nerve ! O God J have pity. They come
in myriads 1 They pour hot lead in my
veins, they dance upon me, and their
feet are full of hot irons that pierce me
through and through. Have pity,
Lord, have pity I Oh ! they grow more
cruel ! Let me out of this ! Away
from me I By Heaven, I will meet the
very prince of dovils hand to hand I I
will not be here, bound and tortured.
Unhand me !
I mado a glorious fight. I I open?d
my eyes.
I was not in hell, though the torments
were real. I was lying on the bank of
the river, and men were rubbing me,
forcing air into my lungs, and doing all
they could do to call me back to life.
One of them saw my eyelids open.
" Hurrah I he's all right," he shouted ;
aud in a short time I was at home with
loving friends ministering to me.
Mother I" I cried.
" Yes."
" Send word to Laura and tell her
who Jessie is."
" Jessie who ?"
" Jessie King."
" I will ; but keep quiet now.
I closed my eyes, aud when next I
opened them Laura was sitting beside
me. She kissed me, saying :
"Can you forgive me, Frank ?
Yes, I could forgive her love.
" How did yon know I was jealous
of some Jessie ?" she asked.
"I saw it all," I answered, " when I
was drowned."
Snakes In Sonth America.
There are a good many venomous
snakes in Central America and the West
India Islands. The rattlesnake abounds
in Demerara, and I believe the bush
master ; the tigerillo in Santa Martha.
This is a venomous little beast that
kills in a couple of hours. I recollect
walking one evening with a shipmate
along one of the acacia-shaded lanes
outside the city of Santa Martha, when
one of these snakes coiled round his
leg. He fortunately had a whip in his
hand, with which he struck and killed
it. The rat-tail snake, so called because
its tail is prolonged and finished like
that of the rat is a vicious animal, the
poison being very active.
The history of the rat-tail snake in
Martinique is rather peculiar. It flour
ished there to such an extent that of
late years every cane-piece that was cut
was accountable for at Jeast one death
by snake-bite. It was originally im
ported to destroy rats its favorite prey
which infeste'd and destroyed the
Biigar-caue. W ithin the last tew years
the people of Martinique have adopted
another member of the snake brother
hood a non-poisonous but very vo
racious species. The carpet-snake is a
black snake with a white belly, and he
appears to have conceived the most in
satiable enmity against the rat-tail
snake. A sight of one throws him into
a state of semi-insanity, and if you find
a gorged carpet-snake, his meal is sure
to be a rat-tail snake a few inches longer
than himself. The most marvelous
thing is that the rat-tail appears to be
come quite paralyzed, aud his poison,
if used, has no etlect on the other snake.
On one occasion I saw a carpet-snake
thrown alive into a bottle of white rum.
As he struggled in death, a curious phe
nomenon arose ; he appeared to grow
longer, commencing at his head, the
growing half being of a different color.
At last, when the struggles, gyrations,
and twistings ceased, it was touud that
he had disgorged the whole of a rat-tail
snake, except the head ; he died with
that in his jaws. Tho rat-tail is fast
disappearing before the carpet-snake in
Martinique, but it still remains in suffi
cient numbers in both that island and
St. Lucia to render it necessary for the
pedestrian to be careful where he puts
his foot. Death generally follows in
an hour if the uncovered flesh is bitten.
The choice between being squeezed
to death or poisoned is generally open
to the traveler in tropical America, some
of the constrictor snakes being of
enormous size and strength. Picking
your steps through a swampy bit, and
finding the log you are about to step
upon is an enormous boa constrictor ;
or haviug undressed in a shady nook to
revel in a mountain stream, the ther
mometer at a hundred in the Bhade, to
find yourself pursued by a little water
snake (they are always ready to fight),
with death for a dozen strong men in
his fangs ; or, instead of a mellow
gnava, you put your hand on a tree
snake are some of the pleasing adven
tures (to read about) which wanderers
under the sun meet with.
Felix Grundy M'Connell.
Among the many odd characters who
came to the Twenty-eighth Congress,
says a writer in Harper's Magazine,
was i elix urundy JM Conuell, ot Mis
sissippi, lie was a man of humble
origin, and by trade a harness-maker.
He had a reputation at home for a kind
of rough and ready extemporaneous
speaking, which sailors call slack-jaw,
and was said to have uncommon power
among the people. But he was so far
gone in the lowest kind of dissipation
when he was elected to Congress that
he soon became a mere drunken buffoon.
He was a man of Cm appearance and
commanding presence when sober, and
with the generous forbearance which
generally characterizes the House of
Representatives, his irregularities were
regarded with much sympathy and
commiseration. Congress has always
been remarkable for this trait in its
character. During Jackson's first term
there came to Washington, from South
Carolina, a mnn ot brilliant parts and
finished education, who brought with
him a high reputation acquired at the
bar. JUucli was expected trom him,
and on several occasions he addressed
the House with great pertinence aDd
force. But havniK no domestio ties.
and released from the social censorship
that had a restraining influence upon
him at home, he was unable to resist
the temptations to which men bo placed
are always exposed at Washington, aud
before the end of his term he had sunk
down to the level of the lowest de-
bauchee. He was popular with his
people, but his dissipations and his
utter neglect of his public duties were
too flagrant to be overlooked, and it
was determined to supercede him by a
more respectable man. in order to
gather sufficient evidence of his irregu
larities to insure his rejection by his
constituents, a committee was sent to
Washingt-jn for that purpose ; but al
though his intempeiate habits and utter
disregard of the decencies of life were
notorious in Washington, known to
hackmen, other citizens', and members
of Congress alike, the committee was
unable to procure the necessary proof
thereof, and he was re-elected to the
next Congress.
Poor M'Connell 1 he came to a tragi
cal end during the recess. His disso
lute habits left him in a necessitous
condition, and he had not the means of
returning to his family. After a pro
tracted debauch, terminating in a fit of
delirium tremens, he shot himself
through the head, and died in the prime
of life.
A Titusville paper says: "A man
called at one of our shoe stores and
vainly essayed to get on either number
11, 12, and 13 shoes. The storekeeper
then suggested that he should put on
a thiner pair of stockings and try on the
box."
Clothing for Cold Weather.
The usual dress is sufficient in quan
tity, and often good in quality, bnt it is
very badly distributed. There is too
much about the trunk, and too little
about the lower extremities, if one
quarter of the heavy woolen overcoat or
shawl were were taken from the trunk,
and wrapped about the legs, it would
prove a great gain. When we men ride
in the cars or in tho sleigh, where do
we suffer 1 About the legs and feet.
When women suffer from the cold,
where is it ? It is about the legs and
feet!
The legs and feet are down near the
floor, where the cold current moves.
The air is so cold near the floor that all
prudent mothers say, "Don't lie there,
Peter ; get up ; .Terusha Ann, play on
the sofa, you will taka your death cold
lying there on the floor." And they
are quite right. If the room be well
ventilated, the air down near the floor
is very much colder than it is up about
ourheads. And itisinthat cold stratum
of air that our feet and legs are con
stantly. Besides this, the feet and legs, on ac
count of their being so far away, and on
account of their size, with the air all
about them, are disposed to be top cold,
even without being in a colder atmos
phere. Under all these circumstances, men
wear one thickness of wool and cotton,
and one thickness of black broadcloth
about his legs, and three or four times
as much about their chests ; and now
they often add an immense pad called a
" Uhest Protector. And women in
dulge in a full greater contrast.
Without discussing tins blunder fur
ther, I will give you a little practical
advice, which my observations and ex
perience during more than thirty years
fully endorse.
During tlre-datnp aud cold season,
the legs should be encased in very thick
thick woolen drawers, the feet in thick
woolen stockings (which must be
changed every day), and the shoe soles
must be as broad as the feet when fully
spread, so that the blood shall have free
passage. If the feet are squeezed iu
the least, the circulation is cheeked,
and coldness is inevitable. The free
circulation cannot be secured by a loose
upper with a narrow sole. If, when the
foot stands naked on sheet of paper,
it measures three aud a half inches, the
sole must measure three and a half.
I will suppose you have done all this
faithfully, and yet your feet and legs
are cold." Now add more woolen, or if
you are to travel much in the cars, or
in a sleigh, procure a pair of chamois
skin or wash leather 'drawers, which I
have found to be most satisfactory.
I have known a number of ladies af
flicted with hot and actiing head, and
other evidence of congestion about the
upper parts, who we're com pletely re
lieved by a pair of chamois skin draw
ers and broad soled shoes. Three
ladies in every four suffer from some
congestion in the upper part of the
body. It is felt in a fulnes3 of the
head, in sore throat, in palpitation ot
the heart, torpid liver, and in many
other ways. It is well known that a hot
foot bath will relieve for the time being
any and all of these difficulties. The
bath draws the blood into the legs and
feet, relieving the congestion above.
What the hot foot bath does for an
hour, the broad soled shoes, with thick
woolen stockings and a pair of flannel
drawers, with a pair of wash leather
drawers added, will do permanently.
Of course I am speaking of cold wea
ther. No one hesitates to multiply the
clothing about the trunk. Why hesi
tate to increase the clothing about the
legs? As' a preventive of many common
affections about the chest, throat and
head, including nasil catarrh, I know
nothing so effective as the dress of the
lower extremities which I am advoca
ting. The bath is a good thing, exercise is
a good thing, friction is a good thing,
but, after all, our main dependence in
this climate must ever be, during the
cold season, warm clothing. Already
we overdo this about our trunks, but
not one person in ten wears clothing
enough about their legs and feet. Dio
Lewis.
'ew York Harbor.
The
harbor defenses of New York,
says a local paper, awaken special inter
est at a time when a war with a foreign
country has been the possible result of
difficulties. The narrow neck ot .Long
Island Sound is commanded Ivy Fort
Schuyler, at Throgg's Neck, on the op
posite side by the tort atwillett s Point,
Both of these are well adapted for the
heaviest guns. Fort Columbus keeps
guard on Governor's Island. On the
Long Island shore, near the Narrows,
stands Fort Hamilton, with its batter
ies, where repairs and improvements
have been going on all through the past
season. Just opposite, covering the
hill on Stateu Island, and surrounded
by an imposing array of earthworks and
defenses, is Fort Tompkins. The guns
in use are the heaviest ordnance in
the service, and the works are believed
to protect thoroughly the entrance of
the harbor. Plans have been made for
a casemated battery for heavyordnance
on the site of Fort Lafayette, which,
being so near the channel of the JSar
rows, would be a serious bar to the pas
sage of any hostile fleet! The batteries
at Sandy Hook command the anchorage
ground in the lower bay ; and, though
not fitted for Jieavy work, as the chan
nel runs near them, they would prevent
an enemy's fleet from lying inside, and
thus sailing up the JNurrows,
A California farmer, being ereatlvan
noyed by the myriads of squirrels which
infest his premises, recently pulverized
an ounca of strychnine and boiled it in
one-third of a pint of vinegar, thus
thoroughly dissolving the poison. Then
he added six quarts of water, and this
mixture he invited the squirrels to
drink. They appear to nave besieged
an old rusty nuik-pan in whioh the de
coction was exposed. There were eight
een dead the first day, within a radius
of nve rods, twelve the second day.
thirty-two the next day, and hope of
lurcner extermination nad not vanished
Two children sent out after the cows
at Coon Creek, Wis., were lately eaten
up oy bears.
Polish Convicts In Siberia.
A St. Petersburg letter to the London
Standard, contains the following :
" Tho convicts in Siberia are divided
into two categories, those condemned
to hard labor, and those who are
sent as settlers, and with very few ex
ceptions, the exiled Poles now belong
to the latter division, in consequence ot
the frequent occasions on which their
punishnieut has been mitigated within
the last ton years. As settlers, they are
free to do as they like, so long as they
remain within the limits of the locality
to which they are assigned. It is now
proposed that those among them whose
conduct has been satisfactory should be
allowed to go back to their native coun
try, provided they can return at their
own expense, and are able to find the
means of subsistence at home. There
is one other condition namely, that
the head of the administration of their
native district should not object to their
return. The Poles in exile are very
different from their countrymen at
home. Once in Siberia, those who are
not kept at hard labor soon become
useful members of society. Political
agitators forget their dreams of personal
ambition and their plans for making
people happy by pntting them through
a course of constant agitation. They
have to work, and they do it. Their
labor is well paid, and if they do not
live comfortably as honest workmen, it
is their own fault. The long journey
is always a pinful trial to them, and
when they reach their place of destina
Hon they find labor of any kind a relief,
Some of them, it is true, continue their
old habits of intrigue for a time, aud
try to work out the political and social
problems which they consider it their
mission to solve ; but in a very Bhort
time they become convinced of the
utter inutility of such a course, and set
tle down into good subjects. Those
who have any skill get on very well. As
artisans they are preferred, for they al
ways show superior knowledge and
taste, and ' Polish work ' in Siberia
means superior workmanship, seeing
this, those who do not know any trade
soon learn one. We have heard of
Pole who could do nothing ; but as he
must either be content with the misera
ble pittanco allowed by Government of
two pence a day, or turn his hand to
some usetul occupation, he tried ooot-
making. but that did not succeed : then
he turned his attention to sausages, and
made them so well that he sold as many
as he could manufacture. At Irkutsk
the best shops are kept by the Poles,
There are undoub tedly many who can
not become sausage-mnkers or shop
keepers, but for those who would more
willingly work with their heads than
their hands there are careers open. En
gineers and doctors find ready employ
meut, and indeed Polish medical men
have a high reputation in Siberia.
Authorships in any shape is, of course,
out of the question. The only remain
ing career, that of teaching, is accord
ing to the law strictly forbidden ; but,
notwithstanding the prohibition, it is
well known that educated Poles are en
gaged as teachers in the families of
some of the most important functiona
ries in bibena, and they are never
known to abuse the confidence reposed
in them.
The Pilot Fish.
Sharks, says a writer, appear to have
keen noses ; a piece ot meat overboard
in a sharky place is never left long un
touched. They smell or detect in some
way and as I should imagine they are
not very nice in their palate, the proba
bility is in favor of the nose being the
organ oi discovery auyiiiing oujecuon
T 1.1 1 ' A
able, no matter how deftly concealed
It is often admiringly stated as a fact
that sharks are preceded by a little fish
to act as pilot to the animal's prey. No
doubt there is a considerable amouii
of sagacity displayed by this pilot-fish
they are not, however, the disinterested
creatures our authors would have us
believe.
The fact is, the pilot-fish is nothing
more than a parasite of the shark. He
is a scaleless fish, from one to three feet
in length, and is provided with a pow
ertul sucker on the top of Ins head
whilst his under jaw projects consider
ably beyond the upper, lie gives one
the idea of an eel with his head put on
upside down ; but the use of such
formation is evident : he attaches him
self to the Bhark at the angle or open
ing of the jaw by his sucker, and with
his projecting shovel under-lip catches
the morsels which drop from his mas
ter's mouth as he chews. Thus it hap
pens that, there being only two con
veuient points of attachment on the
shark's head, he is seldom accompanied
by more than two fish. As to these fish
themselves, their power of suction is so
great that a moderate-sized one will
draw blood through a man's skin if al
lowed to attach itself. Eel-like, they
remain active for a long time out of
their native element, and can be made
to adhere to any object for many nun
utes. The writer on one occasion tried
the strength of one of them, about
eighteen inches long, by allowing it to
attach itselt to a gun-case, with
double-barreled gun and paraphenalia
within. Lifting the fish by the tail, it
raised the gun and case easily, and
afterwards bore the addition of several
heavy books without giving way. The
appearance of the sucker is somewhat
like a gridiron.
Wild Horses of the West.
Large numbers of wild horses aboun
on tho prairies between the Arkansas
and Smoky Hill rivers. They are of all
sizes and colors, and are the wildest of
all wild animals. They usually roam m
bands of from bix to twenty, and will
run at sight of a man two miles away,
A great many domestio horses as well
as mules, which have strayed away from
their owners, have taken up with the
wild ones. After running with them
for awhile they become as wild as their
untamed companions. Various meth
ods have been adopted to capture these
aboriginal horses, but they have gener
ally proved fruitless. A scrubby colt
or a broken down inulo is as a general
thing the only reward for all the time,
labor, and expense in such visionary
schemes.
The King of Dahomey has joined the
Asliaatees against JSngland,
Curious Custom Among tlio Kabyles.
There is a very curious custom pre
valent among the Kabyles called the
anaya, which they all equally respect.
The anaya is botfi a passport and a safe
conduct, with this difference, that in
stead of its being delivered by the legal
authority of any constituted power,
every Kabyle has the right to give it.
Not only is the foreigner or stranger
who traveles in Kabylia under
the protection of the anaya, free from
violence during his journey, but he is
also temporarily able to brave the ven
geance of his enemies or the penalty
due for an anterior crime. The Kabyles
rarely confer it on people who are un
known to them ; they only give it once
to a fugitive ; they regard it as worth
less if it has been sold, and any one
who obtains it by stratagem incurs the
penalty ot death, in order to prevent;
fraud the anava is usually made known
by an ostensible sign. The person who
confers it delivers at the same time, and
as an extra guarantee, an object well
nown to belong to him, such as a gun
or a stick. Sometimes he sends one of
is servants, or even accompanies his
protege himself. The value of the
anaya is in proportion to the quality of
the person who gives it. (Joining irom
a Kabyle of an inferior position, it will
be respected in his village and m tne
immediate neighborhood ; but it it is
given by a man who is esteemed in au
adjoining tribe, it will be renewed by a
friend, who will substitute his own lor
and so on until the traveler reaches
the end of his journey. If it is given
by a Marabout, its value is unlimited.
W hile a Kabyle chiet can only give nis
protection within the circle of his own
government, tho safe-conduct of a Mar
about reaches even to places where his
name is unknown. Whoever is the bear
er of it can travel all through Kabylia
without fear of molestation, whatever
may be the number ot his enemies or
the nature of their grievances against
him. He will only nave to present
himself to the Marabouts of the differ
ent tribes, and each will hasten to do
honor to the anaya of the preceding
Marabout, aud replace it by his own. A
Kabyle has nothing so much at heart as
the inviolability of his anaya. In giving
it he engages not only his own personal
honor but also that of his relatives, his
friends, his village, and. in tact, the
tribe to which he belongs. A man who
would not be able to find a friend to aid
him in avenging himself for a personal
insult, could cause the entire population
ot his village to rise if it were a ques
tion of his anaya being disrespected, it
is extremely rare that that ever hap
pens, but tradition has, nevertheless,
preserved to posterity a memorable ex
ample of it. As the story runs, a friend
of a Zouaoui presented himself one day
at his house and asked for the anaya.
In the master's absence, the wife, who
was rather embarrassed, gave the fugi
tive a dog which was well known in that
part of the country. Shortly after he
had left, tho dog, covered with blood,
returned alone. The inhabitants of the
village assembled, and, following the
traces of the animal, discovered tne
traveler's body. They declared war to
the tribe upon whose territory the crime
had been committed, a great deal ot
blood was shed, and the village which
was compromised in the quarrel bears
even to this day the name of Dacher-et-el-Kelba,
" The village of the dog."
The Gentleman 8 Mayazinc.
The Adirondack Wilderness.
Some time ago two gentlemen were
passing a littlo clearing in the Adiron-
.lack wilderness, in Aortheru Aew
York, in which a man was endeavoring
to raise a little corn, which was strug
gling up amid the rocks. " Toor man,"
they said, " he is to be pitied ; what a
hard life he has of it. The man over
heard them, and looking up, leaning
his face on his hoe handle, said:
"Don't pity me ; I ain't so poor as you
think I am ; I own but five acres ; pity
my neighbor over there he owns live
hundred." Mr. Headley, who was one
of the first to explore this region, says
that this is a fair illustration of the
value of the land for cultivation.
Following the Backett Iliver down for
a hundred miles, and you find only two
of the four or five new clearings are in
tended to be turned into farms. The
rest are for the hunter and tourist.
Striking back from the great water
courses, you have at one extremity
Brown's tract, once laid out for a large
settlement, now little more than a clear
ing ; and in the center, the Adiroudack
Iron Works, where were forges, shops,
warehouses, a store, church, school
house, and some fourteen dwelling
houses, all occupied ; now all are silent
and deserted, save one building, in
which dwells a Scotch family. They
have lived alone for tho last fifteen
years. A deserted village, it is slowly
falling into ruins in this far solitude.
In the last thirty or forty years more
land has gone back to its original state
of wildness than has been reclaimed by
the hand of civilization. Certainly a
park is not needed to protect such, a
country from the axe of the pioneer.
The only thing that directly or in
directly can effect the destruction of
these forests is the Adirondack Bail
road. It goes through the heart of the
wilderness, and it has a grant of land
from the State a mile in width on each
Bide, making a belt two miles wide.
This, of course, in time will be swept
of trees. Iudirectly it will have a still
more disastrous effect on the forest, for
it will lay open to the market the vast
mineral wealth of this region, the extent
of which is not known, nor will be till
it becomes more accessible. There is
literally an iron dam across the Adiron
dack Biver here. Now let these mines
be worked, and the hard-wood timber
that forms so large a part of the forest.
and is now useless, will be used for
charcoal for the manufacture of iron.
One evening a tender swain said to
his "sweetness," " Some of these fall
ing stars seem to leave behind them a
bright path, as if they were celestial
messengers flying earthward, the dust
of heaven falling from their feet, and
making a track of light behind." To
which the maid replied : " They allers
make me think about the circus man
that b wallowed fire.
Items of Interest.
TIia Pmne.h Assembly has passed the
bill increasing President MacMahon's
salary.
Au English wag says that machin
ery wheels are so modest that they gen
erally travel in cog."
Gordon, the convicted Tnornaise
murderer, says now that he wouia
rather be hanged than imprisoned
for life.
Porannd w ith small capital are ad
vised to take a three-acre sand patch in
Virginia and raise $5,000 worth of pea
nuts on it.
Wlinnninff- couch is afflicting the
adults in Trinity County, Cal., to an
annoying extent, and the children are
laughing at them.
rirw Newton Booth received sixty
votes in the California Legislature, and
was elected to the United States senate
for the full term.
Three men were lost in the woods
near Chebovgan, Michigan, recently,
and subsisted for an entire week on
basswood sprouts.
The Massachusetts Commissioners
offer prizes of $1,500, $1,000, and $500
for the best for a State Prison to "ac
commodate" 1,000 prisoners.
A postmaster sent to an inquirer a
letter which reads: " I Received your
Lines & To the Best of My Noleg thair
Has Never Bin eney such Letter com to
this offes."
Mr. II. J. Dunlap, an Illinois farmer,
has warmed his house and done all his
cooking for two years by natural gas
which he discovered on his farm in bor
ing a well for water.
The Massachusetts Dental Society has
adopted the following resolution: Re
solved, That in the opinion of the Mas
achusetts Dental Society, the use of
chloroform is not advisable.
Have the courage to cut the most
agreeable acquaintance you have when
vou are convinced he lacks principle.
'" A friend should bear with a friend's
infirmities." but not his vices.
A wooden railroad is suggested to
connect Cliutou, Iowa, with the coal
mines at Knoxville. It is to bo con
structed of wood entirely, even to
wooden rails aud wooden car wheels.
A family ot six persons in Fort
Wayne, Intl., has been reduced within
a short time to a single member by a
mvsterious disease, which is supposed
to have been caused by using impure
water.
The editor of a Colorado paper was
asked by a stranger " if it were possible
that that little town kept up four news
papers," and the reply was : "Mo; it
takes four newspapers to keep up the
town."
Two Kentucky clergymen have been
experimenting "to see how cheaply a
man can support his family. One re
ports that ho does it at $1 a head per
week, and the other claims to have
given "good, plain food" for ninety
cents each member per week..
The West don't seem to be a better
place for workingmen than the East. A
Denver editor says that a wagonful of
coal stood for twenty minutes in front
of his office, and he had not less than
twenty applications to unload it from
men anxious to earn half a dollar.
A shoal of herring, so vast and dense
as to be almost a compact mass, recent
ly swam into the harbor at Waterford,
Ireland, and the fishermen caught them
by the netfull. The total catch was
immense, cart loads being taken into
the country, and ship loads in barrels,
sent to England.
A lad in Worcester, Mass., has been
fined S5 and costs, amounting to S11.50,
for stealing a sopy of a newspaper irom
thedoor of a subscriber. In passing
sentence the Judge said it was not the
mere market value of the goods stolen
that called for severe punishment, but
the great annoyance attending such pet
ty piltenng.
Mrs. Workman, the wile of a liaptist
preacher, charged with the murder,
some time since, of a lady of whom she
was jealous, was acquitted, after a trial
lasting several davs. The parties live
in Eureka, 111. Mrs. Workman is said
to have believed the woman wn was
murdered to have been intimate with
her husband.
Liguine is a chemical substance
which is found in old rags and otner
unattractive articles, trom which tempt
ing syrups for the table are extracted.
Sulphurio acid is tho dnneerous ele
nient in these seductive articles, and no
person with a proper regard for his in
testines can abide it. But what can be
done in these days of adulteration to
correct these evils ? Everybody can
not go about with chemicals iu his
pockets to test such deleterious sub
stances. As for the coiicoctors of can
tankerous syrups, let no mercy be shown
them.
A Friend In Need.
" Confidence." says the proverb, " is
a plant of slow growth." It is, per
haps, best not to grow it all in the Aus
tralian bush, judging irom tne ioiiow
incident related by a Melbourne paper.
A certain person was traveling through
a lonely district, when he heard a great
outcry. Thinking bushrangers were at
work, lie fired off a pistol t intimidate
them, and presently the noise ceased
and a scampering was heard, un com
ing to the open ground, the traveler
discovered a man tied to a tree. " Oh,
sir," cried the victim, I am so glad you
have come. I have been attacked by
ruffians, and they were robbing me
when they heard your pistol." "And
couldn't you get loose, my friend?"
asked the traveler. " No ; they tied
me so very tightly." "And did they
rob you of everything ?" " No, only of
my watch. They had not time to search
for my money, which I placed in my
left boot." 'How fortunate," obseived
the traveler; "was the sum consider
able? " Over a thousand, thank heaven,"
said the poor man, " Are you sure they
are gone?" asked the other. "Oh,
certain." The new comer looked around
and around, and seeing the coast clear,
said coolly, " Well, as they're gone, I
think I'll finish the job myself." And
he proceeded to rob the unfortunate
victim,