iiifi
HENRY A. PARSONS, Jr., Editor and Publisher. , ".V VV .'. , , , H NIL DESPEEANDUM. , w, " , , . Two Dollars, per Annum. ,
VOL. YI. RIDGTVVAY, ELK COUNTY, J. A., THURSDAY, JULY ' 27, 1876. NO. 23.
t Si
1 , PutlY
I . her U
I does,!
Childless.
My neighbor's hotwe ii not to high
Nor hair ro ulce as mine i
I often nee the blinds tjar.
And though the cu'UIti'b fine,
' It's only nmilin, atid tun utt ,
Are not. of stone at all
And yet I long for her cm-JI home
To give mine all In all.
Her 'vn is nevsr left to groT
The childien tread it down,
And when the father oomes at night,
I hear them olatter down
The gravel walk i and such a noise
Comes to my quiet ears,
As my sad heart's been waiting for
So many silent years.
Sometimes 1 peep to see them seize
Hi coat and hand and knees
All three so anxious to be first ;
And hear her call : " Don't tease
Tapa "the baby springs
And then the low brown door
Shnta ont their happiness, and I
Sit wishing as before
That my neighbor's little oottage
And the jewels of her crown
Had been my own ; my mansion
With its frontof granite brown,
It's damask, and its Honiton
It's lawn so green and bright
How gladly would I give them
For her motherhood to-night.
WHO WAS THE THIEF.
It wa9 not because Ilhoda Chauncey was
not exceedingly pretty that Mrs. Havers
objected to her mamnge with her son
Allen, nor because she was notau exceed
ingly nice aud accomplished person, and
all that a mother might winli her son's
wife to be, but simply becanse she was
what Mrs. Havers called a nobody, and
that family poteutate felt the necessity
of nlliaiico with somebody.
Ilhoda Cbauncry was eimr.lv the
friend and companion of Mrs. King ; an
adopted child, without any of the irivi
h'ges of adoption, iih you might s.ay
that is, comfortable in the present, aud
unpiovidud for in the future.
" J shall tell her plainly what sho may
expect if sho accepts yon," said Mr.
Havers to her sou one day. '" Your
father and I diard you on that day."
" Oh, pshaw! What nonsense 1"
" Nonsense or not, yon will find to
your cost, if yon try. We have reached
our position by bitter effort. We can
not give ov.r consent to being pulled
down from the height we havo struggled
ro hard to gain for the mere whim of
a love-siak boy. If I must have a rival
with ray son," cried Mrs. Havers, the
fire of her anger dryiu her sparkling
tears before thy fell, ' let it be some
body who will bring some sort of com
pensation with her. Khoda Channcey
a beauty, maybe ; I never saw Hny
beauty in her ; but a begger, certainly.
No. You sh-dl have the money to g
abroad and forget her ; yoa cannot have
it to marry her. Your father and I are
of one mind there. You have p'.rts.
Yon can do better, yon fool !"
That was the way in which Mrs.
Havers talked to her son Allen on occa
sion, when chance and courage served ;
nud that was the meaning of the more
stilted wny in which she talked to Mrf.
King at the dinner given by the latter
to young Governor Armisted, of
whom Mrs. navers had spoken to her
son, as the two ladies stood side by side
at the firo a few moments, after they
had left the table, while Rhoda sung and
yourjg Havers turned the music, and a
general hum of low voices filled the air
of the lovely room at any pause. " You
know, my dear Mrs. King," she said,
the color burning on her cheek as the
firelight burned upon the purplo luster
of her velvet robe, " that a young man
has heights to ascend, and mnt-t not
overweight himself. It is not what his
father hus made him, but what he makes
himself, that counts. If he has ambi
tions, he is foolish to marry at nil till he
can, as dealers say, command the mar
ket ; if he does a arry, he must marry
to help, not hinder. . To start on a race
handicapped," said Mrs. Havers, assur
ing herself with her white hand that her
splendid diamond stones were still in
their nest of lace on her breast, " that
explains the failure of so many careers
that looked so brilliant at the outset."
Wo should scarcely agree with you
here," said Mrs. King, smiling ; " we
think that a good wife is the best start
in life a young man can have."
But Mrs. Havers was already listen
ing to the remark of some other joining
the group. It was a few moments later
that she beckoned the passing Ilhoda to
her side on the deep lounge, where she
had ensconced herself luxuriously.
Never anybody was more aptly named
than this sweet girl, for she was always
blushing like a rose. But of conrso
Mrs. Havers could only think it the
guilty blush of the one who had en
trapped her bod, and could not look his
mother iu the eye. She was not the per-
to appreciate the lovely, lofty mno-
nce of that snowy brow, that violet
that dewy lip. Ilhoda came obedi-
, and sat by Mrs. Havers, doing
est, as any raemi-er of a family
to entertain a guest; and they
of one indifferent thing and an-
till, in a momeut of comparative
Alleu's laugh was heard ringing
nother part of the houso.
' PoVr boy 1" said Mrs. Havers, look
ing in his direction "poor boy I ion
can harTJy tell how a mother feels, Miss
Ilhoda," vnd she paused witu emotion,
" when I ear my by laugh so gayly,"
she said, and think of the sad way
lying boforl every aspiring youth ; i.nd
Allen is so imbitiousl"
"Sad, Mr Havers f"
"Ah, yesisad indeed, when, as a
rule, he mustVurrender either his am
bition or his lxappiness that is, sur
render what he calls happiness now. I
suppose Allen would regard it, as all
young men do, happiness now to marry
a penniless girl, if he Bhould think that
he loved her. Twenty years from now
he would find it the misfortune of his
life, of his whole life, and the one thing
that had rained his career. Do you un
derstand me, my dear Miss Ohaunoey I"
'Not at all," answered Ilhoda, calmly,
"I think if he loved a girl, however
penniless, he would be better to marry
her, and have her comfort on his way.
otheM
f (mm at
Mrs. Havers' face grow white, aud
then grow purplo, with her suppressed
vituperation. "But it would be an out
rage. I" she exclaimed, unable to keep
silence wholly. "It would be his death
blow, his ruin in more ways than one.
For if it were my son, I would never
forgive him. My doors should be shut
upon him. Do you hear, Miss Ohaun
oey ?"
Miss Ohauncey did not reply. Young
Governor ArroisW was stooping to
speak with her ju t then, and takipg his
arm, sh rather abruptly left Mrs.
Havers, and Mrs. Havers presently
rather abruptly left the house.
It was on the next morning that Mrs.
Havers appeared at Mrs. King's door,
and on meeting the lady of the house,
declared that she must excuse her for the
early intrusion, but she was really in
great distress, for she had lost last night
the central diamond from her brooch;
and she begged that the rooms might be
examined, to see if by any chance it had
been dropped there.
Of course the household was instantly
in commotion. Everybody remembered
that diamond yon were not likely to
forget it, once having seen it, especially
on Mrs. Havers' person a very uncom
mon stoue, worth, perhaps, a couple of
thousand dollars; everybody was upon
the search for it, in all disinterested
eagerness; aud in less than five minutes
Miss Cbauncey had espied it where it
had been flung by Mrs. Havers in the
sudden movements of her anger on the
night before, and had given it to Mrs.
King, who placed it in Mrs. Havers' de
lighted and grateful hand a plump,
fair hand it was, but it closed over that
stone, nevertheless, much as the crooked
talons of some old Hindostanee trader in
diamonds would have done.
"My dear madam," said the jeweler,
as Mrs. Ilavens took from her porte
monnuie, on entering his shop shortly
afterward, the little roll of silver paper
iu which she had wrapped tho loose
stone, and then passed it over to him,
" do you mean that you wish me to take
the diamond out of the brooch I told
you, ana Buostitute mis tor it i
"Jtis out already, and l wish you
to put it back again," said Mrs. Havers.
" 1 lost it, aud came directly here with
it when found."
"This?" said tbe jeweler, holding it
op contemptuously between his thumb
and finger. "You have made a curious
mistake, Mrs. Havers, permit me to
say."
' A mistake f I have brought you the
stone exactly as it was picked up."
" Indeed I Then some one has prac
ticed a great knavery upon you. This
is a very prettily cut piece of glass."
" Glass 1"
" May I ask where the rest of the pin
is!"
"It i at home," whispered Mrs.
Havers, with white lips.
" Let me drive home with you, Mrs.
Havers. I should like to look into this
matter a little. Some thief has your
diamond."
The color came back to Mrs. Havers'
lips; her eyes Hashed; her whole soul
lightened with a new idea. She directed
tho coachman to drive to the central
police station, aud from there she sent
an order to her husband to deliver her
diamonds to the detective, who was to
bring them to Mrs. King's. " Drive to
the Kings'!" she cried to tbe coachman;
and lost in triumphant thought, she did
not utier a word to the jeweler till they
arrived at the latter place. Then she
sprung from tho carriage. " Come !"
sLo said; and she was in Mrs. King's
drawing-room before the astonished
footman could read her card. She was
walking up aud down the floor in a kind
of glad fury when Mrs. King came in;
the k?s of that diamond was clear gain.
' You have a thief in your house, Mrs.
Kitigl" she cried. " Tha peibon who
gave me a bit of glass for my great dia
mond I"
" Mrs. Havers !"
"I repeat it, Mrs. King. Where is
Miss Cbauncey? I demand to see her !
My Allen and that girl, indeed 1" Her
euruged face glowed with a strange eud
den smile of exultation. "What an es
cape!" she cried. "To think of it a
thief!"
"Mrs. Havers I" cried Mrs. King
again ; "are you beside yourself? 1
will not listen to such language I '
"You will have listen to a great deal
more of it, Mrs. King. I have a detective
coming directly, who will speak to some
purpose, and with the music of hand
cuffs. Let me confront her first I" ex
churned Mrs. Havers, clasping her hands
as if she longed to lay them on the cul
prit. " Let me see this thief meet him 1 "
Aud she laughed a laugh of vindictive
malice. "What will Allen say when I
tell him?" ehe cried. "Why, if I had
known she was to have been bought off,
I would have paid her tho price of the
diamond, and welcome, and she would
have spared herself this disgrace. Buj
now I shall not rest till I see her head
shaved and her prison gown on. Of all
things, a thief the most loathly 1 pris
on worms themselves are not so foul to
me. Yes, Miss Khoda Chaunoey, you
will not soon again defy me when I tell
you my determination I Much comfort
cm his way would such as you be 1 I
wisdi Allen were here ; you would see
love turn into scorn on his fjee like a
transformation. If you robbed me be
fore you married my son, what in tho
world could I expect after?"
Bhe paused, because just then Ilhoda
ectert d tbe room, aud stood before her
white aud radiant, all Ler rosy blushes
gone, but her face shining in wrathful
tire. She had come down just as she
was, her splendid hair flowing loose over
her long white dressing gown like a veil
an apparition of magnificent beauty
and indignation.
Mrs. Havers looked her over from
head to foot with a horrid insolence, and
burst into a shocking Jangh. "It is
innooenoe itself I" she cried. " How
well dressed, how well posed, how well
acted ! Aha, miss, you will look just as
innocent in a blue jean prison gown,
wit'i your hair cropped I You marry my
boy, witii your ways ana wiiesi
" What is this, my dear ?" and Mr,
King came into the room, and a tall
form followed behind him that of young
Armisted.
" It is a crazy woman, William.
" Crazy !" oried Mrs. Havers. " That
girl may well wish I were 1 This is what
it is, Mr. King : I drop a diamond from
my pin in this room. A person anas it,
keeps it, gives me in its place a cun
ningly out bit of glass. What does such
a person deserve? Tho State prison.
And here oomes the officer to see that
she has her deserts."
It was the detective whom James won
deringly admitted, and who, murmuring
a swift apology to Mr. King, stepped to
Mrs. Havers side, and in a few words
gave her to understand that she was a
little premature, and had perhaps better
first go home.
" Premature I" cried she. " When I
lone a diamond, and that girl gives me a
bit of glass, it it premature for me to
say so I No ? Do your duty, officer,
and arrest the thief at once I Have you
been at my house ? Have you brought
me the pin ?"
"Yes, Mrs. Havers."
"You ought to, have, brought my
son."
"That is true."
"Let me have it I" she cried, step
ping forward imperiously and taking it.
"There I Doyouseo? That is tho vacant
place of the missing stono, and here is
the piece of glass. Will you let me
have it, Mr. Dimitry ? This is tho pin
you sold mo, is it fiot ? And this is the
glass she gave me."
" This is the setting of the pin," said
tho jeweler, gravely, " for there is your
own name upon it in my own marking j
but these are not tho stones I sold you.
They al?o are glass four pieces of
glass. The stone that yon lost lost
night was undoubtedly glass also, and
that is it. You were robbed, hot last
nigh', but long ago, Mrs. Havers."
"It is impossible 1" gasped Mrs.
Havers, her face darkening and darken
ing with her feeling. "I was robbed
last iiigbt, and I domand the arrest here
nud now. No paltering because it is iu
thin hou,se and in this company. Here
nnd now do your duty, or I will see to it
that you are removed from your post."
"You force me to bo very explicit,
Mrs. Havers, ' exclaimed the officer,
reddening. "And since you want an
arrest, you shall have it if you still say
so. Lust March, when you wore ill,
your pin was taken from your bouse to a
certain pawnbroker's, the stones were
removed nnd sold, the crystals w.-re put
in their place, the pin was taken back
and put in your jewel box by the only
person who knew whore its key was to
bo found. We have long been cognizant
of all the facts, nnd waiting on your
movements. Tho money was spent in
riotous living. The thief, Mrs. Havers,
was nobody that you suspect. I grieve
to sa-, it was your son."
My sou?" she shrieked.
"Your son. It remains with you to
say whether or not the arrest shall take
place."
"It is false I" she cried. "It is
fall o t it is false I I am in the midst of
a conspiracy I Take mo home, oh, take
me homo I Oh, Allen, Allen, Allen 1"
And as she cried the name her wonder
ful face seemed to grow older by years,
aud she (daggered and groped with out
stretched hands as she walked. But as
the jeweler handed her out, she turned
her head as if for somt malediction, and
the last thing she saw was Rhoda, her
face hidden in his breast, clasped in the
arms of young Armisted.
Asiatic Cholera.
Dr. Bonnafont, in a communication
upon the Asiatic cholera, read before
the Academy of Medicine of Paris,
enunciates the following general propo
sitions: First, this disease cannot orig
inate spontnneouMy in any other coun
try than India, but must reach other
regions by transportation or by germs of
tho disease, atmospheric currents, or
some other vehicle; second, all hygienic
methods to avert this plague must be in
itiated aud maintained in the country of
its origin; third, that it is not the dead
bodies of animals abandoned on the soil
by caravans of pilgrims nor the num
ber of human bodies thrown into tho
Ganges, that produce tho eruptions of
Asiatic cholera, as these practices have
prevailed for ages, while appearances of
epidemic or Asiatic cholera in Europe,
Africa aud America dates only from the
beginning of the present century;
fourth, other causes, therefore, must
exist for the frequent movements of this
disease, and it is in India that these are
to be investigated; fifth, secondary epi
demics may perhaps he developed in
points already infected; but with very
rare exceptions tbey never assume the
exact features of genuine cholera, and
they will generally fado out and disap
pear until re-enforced by a new eruption
from tho original starting point. There
fore the special points to be considered
aro questions why cholera has remained
for centuries in an epidemic and station
ary condition iu India, and why it has
recently emerged, though the atmos
pherio conditions aud the manners and
customs of the Hindoos and pilgrims
apparently remain unchanged.
A Live Gorilla.
A live gorilla has beeu brought to
London from Africa. This is the sec
ond specimen tha1, has reached that
country, the first dying a few months
after its arrival. A correspondent thus
speaks of it: I found the creature romp
ing and rolling in full liberty about the
private drawing-room, now looking out
of the window with all becoming gravi
ty aud sedateness as though interested,
but not disconcerted, Dy tne busy mul
titude and novelty without, then bound
ing rapidly along on knuckles and feet
to examine and poke fun at some new
comer; playfully mumbling at his
calves, pulling at his beard (a special
delight), clinging to his arms, examin
ing his bat (not at all to its improve
ment), curiously inquisitive as to his
umbrella, aud bo on with visitor after
visitor. If he becomes over-excited by
the fun, a gentle box on the ear would
briug him to order like a child, like a
child only to be on the romp again im
mediately. He points with the index
finger, claps with his hands, pouts out
his tongue, faeds on a mixed diet, de
cidedly prefers roast meats to boiled,
eats strawberries, as I saw, with delicate
appreciativeness, is exquisitely cleau
aud mannerly; The palms of his hands
and feet are beautifully plump, soft, and
black as jet He has been eight months
and a half, in the possession oi tne ex
pedition, has grown somo six inches in
that time, and is supposed to be between
two and three years old.
Custer and Kosser. !
Tho Alexandria Sentinel, in publish
ing some incidents in the life of Custer,
says: Grant's cavalry had been thor
oughly reorganized, . under Sheridan,
with such lieutenants as Custer, ' Tor
bert and Wilson. The Confederate
cavnlry, too, was in the flower of its
strength and confidence. Each was
feeling for the enemy's lines in the
dense forests of Spotsylvania, and fre
quently sudden encounters were the re
sult. In one of these a regiment of
Rosser's command became suddenly en
gflged with a portion of that of Custer,
at very close qnnrters, necessitating a
charge through a narrow open space, up
to tho edge of a wood in which Custer's
men were posted, and from which, being
partly protected by a fence, they deliv
ered a destructive fire, which, with their
visible knowledge of tbe enemy's supe
rior position and strength, made the
Virginians falter, Rosser, as was his
wont, dashed into the opon field to
rally them. Of commanding and strik
ing figure, ho did not dream that over
that line of foes, directing and con
trolling their fire, flashed an eye like
Mars to command, but impressive as a
womau's to tho 'claims of friendship,
and which, even in tbe moment of
bloody strife, recognized him as an old
friend of West Point, was beamingupon
him in kindness and love. There was
many a horseman who wondered that
day why tho enemy's fire so suddenly
ceased, when Rosser, recognizing the
uselessness of a further attack, withdrew
his men. But the next day, as they
kept moving by the flank, following the
Federal cavalry, and. the line of the
" swing," a fanner whose house they
passed handed a Confederate trooper a
note addressed to General T. L. Rosser,
which had been left with him by a Fed
oral officer. Tho note was delivered as
addressed, and read somewhat thus:
Dear : The name used was the
old familiar nicknamo of West Point, not
now remembered by this writer. You
expose yourself too much on the field,
old follow. I reoognized you yesterday,
aud with difficulty saved your life by
stopping my fire. Don't do so again,
but live to laugh over old times nl'terthe
war with your friend,
G. A. Custeh.
As Rosser rode along, at the head of
his column of bold riders in gray, his
dark face lighted-with a pleasant smile
as ho road the letter, and he broke into
a hearty laugh, remarking that "Fanny"
(tbe nickname giveu to Custer by his
comrades for tia fair complexion and
waving blonde lair) always was a good
fellow, but a Utile too fond of bragging.
An Experience with Fleas. .
A fair correspondent thus describes
her experience among the fleas in Cali
fornia : For the first few days after I
first landed in Santa Barbara I was sur
prised to see ladies with whom I was
conversing excuse themselves every few
moments to rush into an adjoining
room. I was all the time suffering
ngouies from the bites of myriads of
fleas, but I supposed the usages of po
lite society made it nccosrary for me to
present a smiling front to my callers in
other words, to grin and bear it until I
should be nlon . But I soon learned
that it was the custom, in this strange
town, immediately upon the first warn
ing bite, to retire pell-mell from the eye
of tho world, aud, eren in the midst of
a sentence, dispose of the flea before
finishing conversation. It is astonishing
what practice will enablo one to do in
the way of flea killing. Their bodies,
viewed through the microscope, are
wonderfully and fearfully made, covered
with plate-like armor, oue scale lapping
over tho other, and presenting burnish
ed and impervious covering; out of
their thorny helmet, their eyes gleam
roguishly, aud they are as cunning as
muy be. After becoming acquainted
through the aid of a glass, I felt some
compunctions of conscience ubout de
capitating the wonderful creature., aud
I compromised by stringing them on a
thread, after the manner of buttons on
a charm string. A fine cambrio needle
and silk thread huug by my bureau, and
at intervals of lrom ten to twenty min
utes a fresh flea was impaled on this
thread, until the number becoming con
siderable, I folt au interest in collecting
as large a number as possiblo, and I now
have a string several feet in length.
Why She Planted Roses.
A blacksmith had in his possession,
but under mortgage, a house and piece
of land. Like many others, he was at
one time fond of the social glass, but
was happily induced by a friend to join
the temperance society. About three
months after he observed his wife one
morning busily engaged in planting
rosebushes aud fruit trees. "Mary,"said
he, " I have owued this lot for five
jears, and yet I have never known you
to care to improve it iu this manner."
" Indeed," replied the smiling wife. " I
had no heart to do it until you gave up
drink. I bad often thought oi it rtefore,
but I was persuaded that should I do it
some stranger would pluck the roses
and eat the fruit. Now, with God's
blessings this cot will be ours, and we
aud our children may expect to enjoy
the produce. We shall pluck tho roses
aud eat the fruit." And they did. Their
cottage was knowu as the prettiest in
the neighborhood.
Wanted to Sign tbe Declaration.
A well dressed and respectablo look
ing man entered Independence HaJl
in Philadelphia, and made a determined
effort to enroll his name, that of B. M,
Sullivan, with the patriots aud the
founuers of the country on the original
Declaration of Independence. By force
he wai ejected from the room where this
sacred document is kept, and was no
more allowed to enter. Then he went
into Independence square aud scaled
up a lightning rod and reached the
roof of the sheriff's office. Infused
with patriotio feeling, he succeeded in
reaching the steeplo in some way aud
began to ring the new bell with vigor
nd violence. This led to his1 arrest,
and he spent the night iu a cell at the
central fa Cation. Sullivan resides in
New York, and he said he came over to
see th Centennial and to eiga the
J Declaration of Independence.
Fashion Soft s.
Beaded laies are seen .on important
dresseo.
Tbe success of the scarf as a wrapping
is assured.
Foulards and louisincs are muoh used
for children's dresses. ,
Tho increasing furor for red is especi
ally noticeable in Paris.
Gay Scotch tartans are seen in cos
tumes for seaside resorts.
' Misses prefer the jaunty and becom
ing toque for a summer hat.
Comparatively few overskirts aro seen
to the suits for little misses.
The fashion of fastening ladies' dresses
at the back is but little used.
' For home wear there are loose flow
ing morning or breakfast dresses.
-Velvet striped grenadines are at pres
ent in higher favor than the damassee.
' As the season advances, the tints iu
gloves become more and more delicate.
The popular braid for the "coaching
hat " is the rough aud ready American.
White linen lawn dresses are now
w rn iu the house by ladies in mourning.
1 Ruches of cream or white tulle are
still very fashionable, worn around the
throat.
Imported fcilk half handkerchiefs ate
taking the place of the black laue scarfs
formerly worn.
In place of ribbon bows lophophore
wings will by worn by thoss who can
afford them.
Recent importations in children's
clothing are in buff, navy blue and
brown glazed linen.
The newest linen collars are high at
the back, flaring in front, and have
wide round-cornered ends.
Canvass grenadies of silk in every
fashionable shade aro very generally
used for elegant summer dresses.
New models of bonnets have ribbon
strings forming a strap under tho chin,
and a bow with no ends at the side.
Corsages, cut heart-shape in the neck,
both back and front, are intended to
wear over a chemisette of white muslin
or nainsook.
Byculla cloth is a lacelike texture,
closely resembling plaiu Portuguese em
broidery. It comes iu white, und striped
in blue and bull.
The Baronness Rothschild lately ap
peared in a toilet of black and white
checked glace Bilk, with a lace mantilla
and a wreath of china-asters by way of
a bonnet.
A Charge Similar to Custer's.
A letter is published here in regard to
Gen. Custer from Gen. A. F. McRey
hulda, n captain of the Muiicau war und
a general commanding Michigan troops
iu the lato civil war. Tho letter is to
Gen. Rosser, and is as follows:
"Gon. Custer may have been too im
pulsive, but after all the great forte of
cavalry is reckless dash. Custer's only
fault, if fault it may be termed, cousists
in failure. If it had been a success, as
doubtless he had every reason to antici
pate, imperishable laurels would have
crowned his brow. His charge on the
Indians could not possibly have been
more reckless than the chargo made by
Kearney and myself at the gates of Mex
ico, where, with 100 dragoons, we
charged" 3,000 infantry and 1,000 caval
ry, covered by a battery, with Santa
Anna at their head, and drove them
into the city, with a loss of more than
our en'ire number. Our charge chanced
to be a success, the Mexicaus having
been demoralized, and on a retreat from
their terrible slaughter aud defeat at the
battle of Cherubusoo. For this charge
Kearney and myself each received tho
brevet ranK of major, whereas, n it naci
beeu a failure, and we escaped tho Mex
icans, wo would doubtless have been
court-martialed, and perhaps dismissed
the service, if nothing worse. Would
it nolrbe a grand opportunity for you to
rally around you a mounted force of
Minnesota men accustomed to tne horse
and the rifle, which you oould readily
do, and tender your services to the gov
ernment to avenge the death of the
brave boys of the Seventh cavalry who
fell so bravely on tne neid oi dutyr
Uon. Rosser. wno was formerly a uon
federate general, and afterward engineer
of the Northern Pacifio railroad, and
who was with Custer on his Yellowstone
expedition, replies as follows:
"I should like to be commissioned by
my country to avenge the death of my
gallant friend and old enemy, but to do
so I should like to go back to old Vir
ginia aud get my division, who once so
fiercely fought him, and who, like my
self, have learned to respect, honor aud
appreciate tha high soldierly qualities
and exalted manhood of Gen. Custer."
A Woman's Ingenuity.
A Dublin chambermaid is said to have
got twelve commercial travelers into
eleven bedrooms, and yet to have given
each a separate room. Here we have
eleven separate bedrooms :
1234567891011
"Now," says she, "if two of you
gentlemen will go into No. 1 bedroom
aud wait a few minutes I'll find a spare
room for you as soon as I have shown
the others to their rooms." Well, now,
having thus bestowed two gentlemen in
No. 1, she puts the third in No. 2, the
fourth in No. 3, the fifth iu No. 4, the
sixth in No. 5, the seventh in Not 6, the
eighth in No. 7, the ninth in No. 8, the
tenth in No. 9, tha eleventh in No. 10.
She then came back to No. 1, where you
will remember she left the twelfth gen
tleman alone with the first, and said
" I've accommodated all the rest and
have still a room to spare, so if one of
you will step into No. 11 you will find
ft empty." FThus the twelfth man got
in the saucepan somewhere, but we
leave the reader to determine exactly
whore the fallacy is, with just a warning
to think twice before declaring as to
which, if any, of the travelers was the
" odd man out.'
The medical examiner of a prominent
life insurance company says lie has to
turn away three-fourths of his applicants
who excel in athletic exercises, because
they have dangerously strained the or
gans of the heart.
Why Should Cinder bo Centred.
The more the evidence in relation to
the movement oi General Custer comes
to light the more we are convinced that
in all respects this gallant and gifted of
ficer did h'.s duty. It is clear tliat he
was sent off on an independent com
mand that his duty was to fight the In
dians. If he saw no evidence of their
presence he was to return to the point
of junction agreed upon with Terry. If
he did find the Indians it was his duty
to follow up the trail and attack them.
This is shown by the censure visited
upon Major Reno'by Gen. Terry for not
pursuing the trail which he found, and
which led to the sceno of the late mas
sacre. We see nothing either in tho or
ders of Terry to Custer, or in tbe corres
pondence which we have published di
rect from the expedition, and which re
flected the intentions and the opinions
of Custer and his command, to show
that it was tho purpose of Terry to sim
ply reconnoiter tho Indians. This is
what Reno did, and for doing this Terry
censured him. Custer was sent with
orders to fight, and theso orders ho
obeyed.
Let us suppose that Custer had dis
covered the trail, had advanced to where
he oould see the Indian village and had
returned to the rendezvous to wait for
Terry's infantry. What would have been
tho opinion of the army? Terry might
well have said: "You have done sim
ply what Reno has done. You tell mo
Indians are on the Rosebud, and that I
knew. You came back for infantry, and
you know that my infantry can never
come within fifty miles of the Indians."
General Sheridan himself would have
said the same, and, much as he loved
and honored Cus'er, would never have
allowed him to ride at tho head of an
other cavalry regiment. If Sheridan
had found this Indian trail, as Custer
did, he would have pursued it. He
would have ridden night aud dsy, as
Custer rode. If he had found the vil
lage he would have attacked it as Custer
did. He would have been justified i'.t
doing bo by every law of Indian warfar?
iVei; York Herald.
The Professional.
The Now York Herald says :
The
most debasino creature i3 tho
sioual -Irishmau and the professional
German, the professional Catholic aud
the professional Orangemen. By this
we mean a representative of that class,
who only prefers a certain faith nnd
avers a certain nationality lor political
ends. Whenever we henr a man asking
office because he is a German or a Cath
olic, or opposing tho election of some
other candidate because he is au Irish
man or an Orangemou, we feel that it is
an impertinence. Iu this country we
are all Americans. Let our race bo what
it may, let us worship God as we please,
we aro American in our citizeusmp uuu
only Americans. We do not elect men
to office because they are German or
Irish, but because they are honest, capa
ble men. This business, which comes
with every canvass, of scheming poli
ticians arranging to transfer tho Irish or
the German vote, is an offense to all
honest Germans or Irishmen. It sup
poses that thev are like cattle, to be
driven and bought aud sold, and not
conscientious, reflecting citizens. The
whole business is quackery. The Ger
man vote and Irish vote will go, like the
American vote, wherever the wisdom of
the voter wills it. Whoever claims to
deal with it ty wholesale, to deliver it
to one candidate or withdraw it from an
other, is an impostor. Let us therefore
hear no moro of the "irisn vote or
the "German vote."
Furnace foi Burning Hay, Straw, etc,
Thenecossity for somo practical device
whereby vegetable refuse of various
kinds, such as straw, hay, dry leaves,
sea weed, etc., may be conveniently
utilized as fuel in those regions wnere
coal is expensive and timber senrco, has
long been recoguized, nud several nt
tcniitsto solve the problem have been
made. The following w a description of
oue of the most piomising inventions
for this purpose. It consists of a box
of stove sheet iron in which is a heavy
press follower, which by a simple
mechanism can be moved up and down,
aud thus arranged to maintain a steady
pressure upon the hay, or similar mate
rial, placed in the fire-chamber. The
supply of fuel is regulated by a feeder,
aud a suitable attachment adjusts the
grate relatively to the follower, accord
ing to the quantity of material placed
betveen them. The inventor claims
that by this arrangement, the fuel being
uudor pressure, combustion cau go ou
only around the sides to which the heat
and air have access; the consumption of
fuel is, therefore, very slow, and can
readily be graduated to the draft sup
plied. One hundred pounds of hay or
straw, it is claimed, will be sufficient to
supply the stove during the coldest
weather, and ix or seven tons will suf
fice for an entire winter.
How Indians Carry News.
The St. Paul Pioneer says: During
tho war we used to hear a great deal of
the grapevine telegraph by which col
ored people of the South heard the news
in advance of everybody else, particu
larly of victories aud defeats; and the
Indians have some way of communica
tion that is equally difficult of explana
tion. On Wednesday, at midnight, we
had the first news by telegraph of Cus
ter's defeat, but we are informed on the
be3t authority that during that day sev
eral Indians, loafing about fur stores in
this city, made anxious inquiries if such
news had been reoeived, and voluntarily
"aie ue wu
?n4Uh ate,,?h, "i"
stated the substance of what came fit
fearing that exoited publio sentiment
would make of them au expiatory sacri
fice for the Custer disaster.
Why." said Mr. Dorkins to his wife,
"why, if ali the lotters of the alphabet
were to mu a race, and you should bet
on O and lose, would it be like the re
turn of your servant with Cavendish
tobacco when you bad sent for Lone
Jack?" "Bakes alive, I don't know."
" Because," said Mr. Dorkins, triumph
antly, " it would bo wrong tobacco."
Banjo Ben's Last Walk.
The St. Paul Pioneer says : The fol
lowingbrief paragraph appeared in these
oolumxs : - - - -
" Bnujo Bon announces that he will
walk tho tiller ropo of tho suspension
bridge at three o'olock this afternoon.'
Ben further intimates that he would like
to see a crowd present, so that the hat
may be profitably passed at the close of
the performance."
True to his promise, "Banjo Ben," as
he has been familiarly known at St.
Paul and Minneapolis, walked down to
the new suspension bridge towers a lit
tle beforo three o'clock, and viith a fool-
hardiness born of insanity or strong
drink, and with tho ngility of a cat,
clambered up to the working cable
stretohed over the east and west piers of
the uncompleted structure. This " ca
ble " is a bunch of wire not moro thau
one inch throush, over ore hundred feet
above tho ground, and stretching like a
thread between tho liver banks. Had
Ben's past career been of such a nature
as to create a presumption that ho was
iu earnest concerning his rope walking
venture, or had any CRtimate been pi iced
on the value of his life, it is probable
that the authorities would havo pro
vented the "exhibition." But Ben was
queer, and maty thoughtlessly gathered
at the suspension bridge at three o'clock,
the majority believing, after looking up
to the thread swinging et its dizzy
height, that Ben would back out.
But the venturesome or insane Ben,
wearing a pair of dirty white e.ottou
gloves and old rubber shoes, clambered
up to tho cable and promptly begun
crawling down the slender wire, hand
over hand, and with his rubbered feet
crossing it. Tbe crowd begun to sus
pect that a sickening sight was near
them, but they continued to gaze at the
dark objecthigh overhead. Ben crawled
down the slope for a distance of perhaps
fifty feet, when it became evident tho
cable was hurting his feet. As if to rest
them, he swung his feet from tho wire
nnd sustained the weight of his body
with his hands alone for several minutes,
and then begun to stvue-gle as if trying
to raise himself up to the wire again.
But his strength or courage had doserted
him, and, after a few more ineffectual
efforts to regain his position on tho ca
ble, his hands lost their cunning, and
tho crowd suddenly had its surfeit of
tragio horror.
Ben'B hold was broken, the cable gave
a perceptible bound upward, and a hu
man body shot down to tho earth with
the speed of n rocket, alighting with a
sickening "thud" on the sloping bank
of the river, about twenty feet from the
water. In the frightful descent the body
had partially turned, so that it fell sii'c
ways on the hard ground, and the
spne.tflfora rushed to ilio Msoioaoo o iU
mortally 'wounded street musician and
amateur rope walker.
Dr. Elliot was summoned, nnd found
Ben breathing when he came, but pro
nounced the injury fatal, and iu a few
minutes Banjo Ben had breathed his
last, some of thoso near him averring
that, iu his unconsoious state, he faintly
murmured the words ho had often spokeu
in his life : " Guilty, your honor."
Behold the King!
In the " Life of Dr. Norman Mac
leod," the following narrative occurs :
Tom Baird, tho carter, tho beadle of
my workingman's church, was as noble
a fellow ss ever l.ved God fearing,
true, unselfish. I shall never forget
what he said when I asked him to ctand
at tho door of tho workuigmau'a con
gregation, nnd when I thought he was
unable to do so iu his working clothes.
"If." said I, "you don't like to do
it, Tom ; if you are nshamed "
. . . .... , , - i i
Ashamed 1 no exciaimeu, as no
turned round upon me. "I'm innir
ashamed o' yer.sel', hir. Div ye think
that I believe, as ye ken I do, that Jtsus
Christ, who died fcr me, was stripped
o' his raiment on tho cross, and that I
Na, na, I'm prood to s'and at the
door."
Dear, good fellow I There he f-tood
for Beven winters, without a sixpence of
pay, all from love, though at my request
the working congregation gave him a
silver watch.
When he was dying from smallpox,
tho same unselfish nature appeared.
When asked if they would let mo know,
he replied :
" There's nae man leeviu' I like as I
do him. I know he would come. But
he should na come on account of his
wife aud bairns, and ye mauuna' tell
him r
I never saw him in his illness, never
hearing of his danger till it was too lute.
A Sad Story.
An unhappy mother was found by a
funeral party at Greenwood cemetery,
Brooklyn, lying with her four littlo chil
dren huddled about her, on tho grave of
her husband. They were all quiet y dy
ing thero of starvation amid the costly
monuments reared by civilized opulence.
The poor creatures had been turned out
of their apartments in New York, and they
found no room left for them any-where
among the living iu the metropolis of
the great ropublio. We chronicled but
the other day the appalling fact that in
London nearly fifty human beings annu
ally die of absoluto starvation, in epit-3
of all the miracles which steam and elec
tricity have wrought to better human
life since Wordsworth wrote his unfor
gettable lines:
" Homeless near a thousund home I stood,
And near a thousand tables pined aud want
ed food.''
This miserable story of the day in New
York, following upon half a dozen oth
ers of the same sort dnring the present
summer, is a terrible aud snrdonio com
mentary upon our own proud centennial
boasts of the superiority of our own so
cial aud politu-al systems to those of the
old world.
A Self-Married Couple Indicted.
Mr. Leo Hunter and Miss Mattie
Strickland, daughter of a former mem
ber of Congress from Michigan, have
been indicted by the grand jury of Da
kota county. The question will doubt
less bo determined whether their mutual
agreement, in tho presence of witnesses,
to live together as husband and wife, is
anything less than a convenient arrange
ment for adulterous intercourse.