(
fife
HENRY A. PARSONS, Jr., Editor and Publisher. NIL DESPERANDTJM. Two Dollars per Annum.
Y0L; Aq- KIDGAVAY, ELK COUNTY, PA., THURSDAY, AUGUST 31, 1876. NO. 28.
Tlirjr arc In Love Bless Them.
WriAT Hit BATS.
Star, let me lipnr yon flioutl
Why hang, ye leaven, bo wttll J
This Diglit the faltered out
A rosy lipped " I will."
The blood rushed through my brain
She turned her face to me j
Then kisses came like rain
Upon a parched lea.
Light streamed from pole to pole,
The air became pr rfumn,
And all my barren soul
Burst into green and bloom.
Oh, honr that bankrupts joy,
But perfect's nature's plan
Tint m ml was a boy
And now I am a man.
Star, Itt mo hf ar you shout I
Oh, leave, bang not so still !
VYitnl, call your musio out !
My love has said "I will."
WD4T SHE SAYS.
My hope has then come true-
Be loves me, so he said ;
How ftt my pulses flew
My chock, it burned, how red !
Some thingB I sermed to bear,
And some I seemed to see ;
Wa it through eye or tar
He told Ida hf art to me t
8n high ho seemed to stand.
My ho-c grew faint ui.d Uiw ;
His love came like a band
And drow me up to him.
Within me. all is light
How, hy, I cannot say;
For me, night iB not night,
And day is more than day '.
Ai.d thus my hopo comes true
Oil, hope, how faint and dim 1
And to what c.u I do
But lovo and live for him y
CUR CHINESE SERVANT.
les, we employ Chinese. And so do
many nt our friends and acquaintances
iv over sniiU wo forget tho first China
nun whom wo employed as a houi
servant, the excellent and r.rnt..l
Bridget who had lived with its so long
was to be married. She remained be
yond her lime that we might fill her
place, but e.:ich apirant to tho culinary
u'.Mimui rtc'-mt-it worse iirtn the preeod
nig, and finally we anked our Chinese
luuuitry man if he conld send us
" Chinii boy," u.'i thcyare called. Hid.
protested.
"Ouht I cuii 't beat to think of yo'a
havnig a Chinaman 1 They will stale
nil thiro is iu the home, and yo'a won't
jiu-jw wnerc it gi.es.
But we made due allowance for BkT
da h prejudices, engaged "a boy," and
lie ciime at the time appointed.
A newt, rather handsome fellow, he
was, and an ha disappated into bis
room, bundle m hand, wo wera con
,bci.ii!8(; a great drawing of tho spirit
toward him. In live minutes bo emercr
el, clad iu tho daintiest of white blouses
nud aprons, his pigtail girded around
his head as meaning business, and witn
tho q;iii te'; t step and mien ho sought us
ono iu me parlor, ana oirae and stood
before, us, bis head slightly bowed, his
hands folded, perfectly silent, awaiting
orders. Thero was a submissiveness in
his attitude, his expression, his whole
aspect, winoU suggested the Old Testa
vw,.. 4. 1 i l. .. i - .
nuu me --Aiaoian jights m
turn, uur lieart leaped up, as Words
nuiius iu a iaiui)ow. itere was a new
regime, mooed! How promising I How
UfllglUIUl I
tio went to work in a war which
snowed perfect acquaintance with his
duties, and wo mentally planned to
teach him ras he not a heathen ?). to
j-uuk.u muoii i mm, ana to Keep mm a
long time. It was nice to have f ucb. a
amtingue looking creature around, and
now iiemy no waited on door and table !
About the middlo of the afternoon, an
other Chinaman appeared on the scene,
and the two had ninth cackle together.
No. 1 showed No. 2 his kitchen, laua-
dry, and closet; and we concluded that
no was pleased with his conveniences,
and was receiving congratulations there
upon. By Ave o'clock he again ' time
and stood before us."
"My fliend heap good boy; he stay
you; 1 catnh-nia i We, San Flaucisco'
And China boy No. 1 summarily de
parted, leaving b bind iihn quite an in
ferior substitute. And with him went,
as we learned that evening, all the crack
ed wheat which wo chanced to have in
the flour closet.
Wonderfully keen, observant and
bright, in en hour the " China boy" will
take iu the situation of everything about
the house. Nor do they seem to notice
anything, which is the wonderful part of
it. Ihoso narrow little eyes, cut bias,
seem always either east down or looking
at vacancy, and yr-fc nothing escapes
their observation. Owing to this quick
ness, one does not dread changing them I
on the score of stupidity. But one does 1
dread it on tho score of obstitia-jy, for it
is next to impossible to make them do
anythiug otherwise than as they learned
from tho first person who tanolit them.
For instance, oDe of them would always
wet Ida pastry before baking it, and
bring it out shiny, like a German pret
zel. Remonstrances were in vain; "all
right," was the answer, but the pastry
wae always all wrong. We inferred that
he had been first taught how to make
pie crust in a German restaurant.
They resent nothing more thau being
accused of lying and stealing, and there
is nothing, apparently, which they think
smarter than to lie and to steal. No
matter how kind you may have beon, no
matter what obligations they may be
under; they seem to lack the moral sense
which recognizes ingratitude. The
Chinaman who takes care of our garden,
a great gambler, and, therefore, often
reduced to straits, will come to us when
hungry to be warmed and filled, and if
he geti opportunity will carry off, on
leaving the premises, a loaf of bread, a
roll of butter, or all the eggs in the hen
house. One soon learns to feel neither
surprise nor indignation at these little
occurrences, but to guard against them
as well as may be. j
But to return. Auotlit cf our ex
periments wa-5 Ghee. Chee was a capi
tal fellow, efficient, neat, mid a good
oook ; but possessing a temper which
flared tip on all occasions, with or with
out reason. Then he would bang, scold,
and mutter in Chinese, and, immediate
ly thereupon, came the announcement :
" Yon get nother boy; I go."
And go he would, houso full of com
pany, familr sick, or what not. JTi wa
such a good servant, otlierwi-o, that we
took him baelt three times, after which
we concluded that tho n,xt time he loft
he might stay away, The ocoasion soon
came, for tho cunning fellow had learned
that our threats of non payment of wages
were as empty air ; and, after thin, we
had no hold ou him. lie hung about
for some weeks, draping in occasion
ally or sending a representative Fpy to
see what his chances were, but Cliee's
day was over. A long suffering familv
had rebrlled nt last, and, in process of
time, ha became convinced of the fact,
and went into the laundry business.
It was comical to see his preparations
for leaving. He always got himself up
in his best suit, flowing sleeves, pigtail
ungirt and swinging about his heels, and
bat on his head; for tho Chinese don
the hat, instead of doffing it, as a token
of respect. Thus gorgeously arrayed,
he sought n out in whatever part of
the house, and hade us a c?romonious
farewell. And this seems to be their
rule iu leaving a plaoe, no matter what
the offense. There is none of the hard
feeling which so often makes it a matter
of dread to discharge) an Irish girl.
" You no likee me, I go ;" and thero is
tho whole of it. And they generally
loave everything in order behind them.
So far as we remember, we never
parted with but one China bov who
omitted a ceremonious and amiable
leave taking. And ho was quite exeusa
bio from the Chinese Spurt in stand
point. His feelings were injured, uud it
happened iu this wise. We had occa
sion to go ono day to his cabnoso, and
ru.nhed in upon a swarthy and unknown
Chinaman with pinto and knife before
Inm, deep in tho enjoyment of some
" Melicnn grub." Wo called upon he
Celi-stiul to stand forth he was a Chi
nese peddler and told our incumbent
in mild but positive termR to take his
" cousin " to tho kitchen for something
wherewith to refresh the inner (China)
man, and always to nsk us and we would
uo our endeavors to indorse his hos
pitality. But, at the same time, wo
straitly charged him never ..gain to hide
any one away in bis room, or to take
any one to board, without consulting us
as mistress of the premises. Mild
though we wero, tho mortification of be
ing detected vns too much for Sam. He
vcm a favorilo in the family, and had
oeen irearen witn contnience and rnado
a pet of. Iu tivoniiijuti s he came to the
parlor door uud anuouuncd: "Madam,
I go," and was cone before wo miil.i
reach tho kitchen, here we found dishes
standing and everything in disorder.
.Lut, as we said before, such a style of
iaving is quite exceptional; and, be
sides, we happened to havo pdd bis
wages to tho lull, only the day before,
Wo one noedexntct liermanenev wbn
employs Chincso servant. Thy are
alwayH anxious to go to a place, and ap
pnreutly always ready to leave it. Twen
ty-uvo cents is a sufficient inducement
eitncr way, and perhaps it is not strange.
For, having dared bo much in coming to
a foreign land for the sole purpose of
money getting, a spirit of unrest and of
greed takes possession of them. There
is always tho hopo of doing better, and,
therefore, they urn always readv to make
a change.
Of course there are exoeiitios tn tlm
rula; of course them aro ChiLauiou who
have lived in the sumo family for a
length of time. But it will 2cnerllv bn
found that tlu-fo have been i;oid extra-
ordkvuiiy.higu wages, cr in some other
w.iy Lavo h.n.d the inducement to roam
removed. As a rule, thev chauoe often.
He lived with me fifteen montim?
quite a long time for a China boy," said
a lady to us.
Wiifn tk -y dcsno to leave thero is ab-
HOiutely UothlUET which Kin bn rmiw nt.i.l
o to prevent it, no matter what tUo em
aniissmf nt, inconvenience, or trnnhln
of tl,e family, except monej. Therefore,
iiui co:uo 10 paH unit most nouse
epera make it a rule never to nav them
quits all their wages until ready to pRrt
w'th them. For, only thni can anything
Kej iitioo be extorted from our Celes
!1 furvitoiH. Ail are ear for money,
It tire grasping and vonnl; and this un-
1 johingly, as n matter of eourse, as the
g'lized law of their life. Aud for
Kill in a b;.rcain. thev out-Yankee us
nil. No one understands so well how to
ak a high price, to recede step by ttep,
ciihiut ami argue, aud lorl the pulse
t f the marke t, aud to dron iust in time
to secut'o me prize.
To digross a little for an illuslrition.
fcy tho family wash is to be consigned
to a laundry for a while. On inquiry,
umuiix iuiu a noi!?niior mow wbh i m
larger employs Hop Fong at six dollars
per month, von think to neiid for non
Fong. But your China boy by no means
jets kucu an opportunity co bv for brinc-
Qgeu tora to his "fliend," and pro
pose to go for Ah Sing, to which you
I'w.i i.itmveuiy consent..
So Ah Siuff makes his annenranne.
very polite aud smiling.
You cafchee wash ?"
"les; how miiL'h you nsk,
month?" '
' I catcb.ee him, then I sabe."
ono
Jutyonare too wise for suoh
rapg.-nient.
au ar-
"No; my wash no very big; one man,
( uo child, me; how muoh ytu ask?"
" Ah," watching your face very atten
tively. "I think alUame flee doltars
cue week."
"Three dollars ono week I Too
much I" and you look resolute. That
is twelve dollars one month I No. in
deed ! "
"Ah. I think
nine dollars one
mon ."
"No; I no pay nine
mouth. Too muchee."
dollars' one
"A h. Seven ilollars hap."
"No; I no pay seven dollars and a
hn'.f. Hop Fong will do it for six dol
lars one month. I give you six dollars,
no more. You no like it, I send for
Hop Fong."
Without a moment's hesitation, smil
ing, and with the utmost suavity, hav
ing perceived that you mean what yon
piy, ho tit once accepts aud clinch" the
arrangement.
" All light. I do all same Hop Foug.
Six dollar one mon'."
From one to half a dozon Chinamen
will loiter round a kitchen if they dure,
and one may feel certain that every
Chinese of them is hungry. To bo hun
gry seems, indeed, their normal condi
tion, for they live by scores in their
wash houses and other haunt, subsist
ing on the smallest modicum of food,
in order to save money. When they
drop into our kitchens to call on a com
rade, therefore, one may be certain that
those bright little sloping eyes are on
the alert for forage. We have happened
suddenly down stairs and found such a
visitor im the closet, his hand in the
sugar bowl. A neighbor met another
emerging from her pantry, eatiag pie.
When thus confronted, they laugh and
leave immediately, Not a word is said
iu r.clf-defense, and the housekeeper's
consolation is, that they do not dare to
take any but small quantities. But it
makes housekeepinp; with them not a
state of entire confidence. It is quite a
question whether or not to put things
uuder lock and key. If trusted, they
seem to put themselves somewhat upon
honor, not to allow, at nil events, any
largo amounts to be abstracted. This,
and the fact that no drudgery of locking
cm really prevent theft, determines
most housekeepers, we think, in favor
of open closets. Whether this ingrained
habit of pilfering is at onca eradicated
iu those who accept Christianity, wo do
not know ; but we have been told hy
returned missionaries that they hnve to
settle the same question, with about the
same solution.
e are of Ion reminded of the old ge
ography which used to telj us that the
Chinese aro a very vain people. They
vonio nero wnu a secret tauNe or suneri
onty to us all as barbarians, aid
a secret contempt for women in particu
lar ns inferior beings, which makes it
Lard for them to submit to the control
of tne mistrcFs of a family. Therefore
they becomo "uppish" quite as readily
A . . . i i .
- uiuer servants, company came nn
ezpeoledly to luuch, and Doo slammed
aud banged torth his vexatious in the
most approved Irish fashion
"Why you no tell me they como?"
Kniec'mg with cxtremo satisfaction
that we owed him a littlo money, we
sud :
" Doo! you too much talkee I Bo
good boy; gf-t lunch, heap good 1"
Joo subsided; his lunch was "heap
good, "and his manner heap sulky, like-
They readily learn to cool:, nnd some
of them excel in the art. Iu tho laun
dry ai'd ns waiters they aro nlso good.
Chamb-r work they do not take to, and
th
isrea iy to slight it ns other
At we have before intimated,
their value deneuds on the
servant,
much of
w:.y they y,ero tanght by whoever taught
tuera first.
There is one thing which probably
would never enter tho mind of Eastern
people, iu connection with Chiueoo ser
var.tF, but which is true everywhere in
California cinoug those who employ
them. No matter how good a Chinaman
may be, ladies never leave their chil
dren with them, specially little girls.
Ou llrst coming here, wo frequently
met a very lovely lady who always was
accompanied by two littlo girls, eight
and four years cf age. If hho wero out,
riding or walking, muki:;0- a call or
spending the day, the lit'.lo this were
always with her. We asked why sho
was always so encumbered ?
Oh 1 she has only a Chinnnm 11. nnd
she conld not leave 'her children with
him."
" But, why not J Is he not a convert
ed Chinaman?" for wo happened to
have hvurd that ho had joined tho
church.
"Yos; but sho does not like tn lenva
them; kIio always takos them with l.m-."
A lady was here from the country.
" Why so short a visit.?"
" Oh, we havo only a Chinaman, nml
my husband cannot leave the children.
you know, and I must go homo and ro
lieve him."
lias that excellent Chinaman loft.
you? '
Oh.no; wa have him yet; but we
l ever leave tho children (three gills
and a boy) ono singlo moment alono. If
my husband goes out to take a walk
while I aca gone, he has to take them
with him, so you cin see what bonduge
Im is iu durinor my absence." A'nrjft.
iif.r'a Monthly.
The Poor Infants.
Tho following report of tho sanita-v
foramitteo on tho prevailing disease of
infants contained such seasonable ad
vice that tho board cf health of New
lorn ordered !ZU,000 copies published
and distributed :
"JSover neglect looseners cf the
bowels in an infant. Consult the family
or dispensary physicians ttt once, nnd he
will give you rulea about what it should
take and how it should bo nursed. Keep
j our room as cool as possible, havo them
well ventilated, and do not allow any
bad smells to come from sinks, garbage
boxes, gutters, etc, about the house
where you live. See ti your own part
being right, aud complain to tho board
of health, if the neighbors' houses nre
offensive. When an infant is cross and
irritable in the hot weather, a trip on
tho water will do it a great deal of good,
and may prevent cholera infantum. Uo
not allow your children to eat unripe or
dried fruit. An infant under a year old
should not have any fruit except by a
physician's orders. In very hot weather
diimi your children in thin clothing, and
bathe them with cool water one, two, or
more times a day.
"Children under ten months to ayeardo
not need anything but the breast or good
milk. Cow's milk, when puro, is made
like mothers milk by adding one-third
water to two thirds milk and warming
to blood heat, and a little over ono aud
a quarter ounces of white minr m a
pint of the mixture : but in the rft a
good ileal of the milk has plenty of
water and too little cream. If von ?n
not nnrse the child, sea that the nursing
bottle tube and inouthDiece are bnf. in
clean water when not used. The addi
tion of a little soda will keep tbem from
turning sour. If the baby does not
thrive well on oow'i milk, consult a
physician."
THE OPIUM HABIT.
lrlar whlgh Tiirrnirm to Rrrome Na.
ilnnnl 1 flrrm ol ilnm on the Bjateuf
II. I ha llbll fa Acquired.
Mo-ph ne eating has increased with
wonderful rapidity, writes a druggist to
an exchange. Ounces nr sold now to
where graius were sold when I went into
the drug business. A great many per
sons use it habitually. . Especially
among what are termed the better
classes it is used to a feaiful extent.
Generally speaking, the habit is fimt
begun through the prescription of a
physician. The soothing, lulling effect
it has upon the physical pain first at
tracts the attention of the snfforer, and
when the pain reours, morphine is re
sorted to without the prescription or ad
vice of a physiciau. It grows upon
what it feeds, and the habit is soon
formed. Once fixed, it is impossible to
break it up, and tho poor victim drags
out a miserable existenco, alternating
between the pleasures of elysium when
under the influence of the customary
dose and the horrors of hades when de
prived of it. Sulphate of morphia is
the preparation generally used, though
some use green opinmaud others tinc
ture of opium or laudanum. Tho daily
quantity varies greatly. With some but
a small quantity only in necessary to get
up to the opium eater's heaven, while
orners taBe enough to kill a dozen peo
ple. The largest quantity I over know a
person to take at a dose was an ounce of
solid opium. A man came into my store
one day nnd purchased nn ounce of
green opium. I wrapped it iu a paper
mm ii pam iur ii aua started oat. iJe
fore he got fairly ontsido the door, ho
unwrapped it aud put itiuhis mouth.
I thought ho was trying to commit sui
cide, nnd I rnu out aud took him by the
throat and compelled him to disgorge.
As soou as he recovered sufficiently
from the effects of tue choking (aud I
did not handle him very gently) he
confessed that ho wai nn opium cater,
anil that an ounce was his regular daily
dosn. Further observation convinced
mo that ho was tolling the truth. Ve
wns a teamster, and had been wounded
in a seuffld with a comrade. His physi
ci.uis gave him opium to relieve tho
ptiin and kept, him under the influence
of it for some time. When his wound was
honied the habit was firmly fixed. He
could not sleep without it, and continued
to use it in increased quantities until
he had reached tho enormous dose of
one ounce per day.
Not long aftt rward I eaw him on an
txtreme-ly cold day without a coat. So
terriblo had been his appetite for opium
that ho had pawned his coat to got money
to buy opium. The rigors of a tempera
ture below zero were less painful than
o horrors of deprivation of bis ib-.ilv
dse. Ho realized his condition and de-
bired to bo cured, for in his case it was
a disease, nnd J hioeedod in getting
him into a hospital, and tho last I heard
oi mm ho was improving, with hopes of
recovery. The medicinal dope of mor
phia is from one-eighth toone-auarterof
u grain, and of opium from one to two
grains. At first it produces a sedative
effect, and dries up nil the secretions.
Alter taking it a little whilo it ceases to
affect tho bowels. A person in the habit
of using it, when deprived of it, be
comes nervous, restless and niinl.ln in
remaiu iu ono position any length of
time. If the deprivation is continued,
this extreme nervousness continues till
it amounts to delirium. I never saw
any one who took morphine or opium
for the tasto. It is always for the effect.
It soothes pain, and puts n persou in a
dreamy, comfortable state. When under
tho influence of the drug, they have no
desire for food, nnd if they work it is in
a mechanical sort of a way. Tho habit
robs them of all euergy'and ambition.
If they can only got their daily doae
they care for nothing else. It is really
more demoralizing than liquor in its
tff.jcfs. It Hunts tho moial sensibili
ties. A person usually honest nnd truth
ful iu other niattcr j will lie and steal to
get morphine. I never knew a mor
phine rater who got morphino on credit
to pay for it.
Hat Guano.
That a littlo creature, not very com
mon in the North, could congregate iu
sufficluut numbers to make extensivo
deposits of excrement, which have a
commercial value, seems alraott incredi
ble ; but iu numerous caves, from Vir
ginia to Texas, aro found deposits cf
thi't material, sometimes reaching 20 -Odd
tons iu extent, and yearly increasing.
During tho wur it was thought to ex
tract niter from it for powder making ;
but though tho maunfacturo was sonie
whut successful, the nitric acid wis
pro-en t in snoh small quantities as to
render it so expensive as to be aban
doned at the closo of the war. Th mn.
! tnrial has been ii'ed as a fertiliser tn o
slight extent, and h found to exert con
siderable influence on the crops treated.
Tho attention of Mr. MoMurtrie, chem
ist (o the department of. agriculture
having been called to the matter, analy
ses have been made of samples collect
ed. These are all of a similar light to
d.irk brown color, accordiug to the
raoistnre, except those containing much
insoluble matters, which resemble soil,
of which thej probably largely consist!
Tho physioal cundilion' wheu air-dried
is excellent, both for handling and ap
plication, b-ing fin-.ly paiverulent.
The aualysts fairly represent the aver
ago composition, which, according to the
valuations of Professor Goecsmuun, tho
Massachusetts Stats inspector of fer
tilisers, adopted by the department,
show diem to possess a value of from
J15 to $55 per ton for use as fertilizers.
The values compare favorably with those
of fish fertilizers, and evoa of tVemviau
guano. Microscopical examination
show.H the material to consist largely of
the hard parts of insects upon which tho
bats feed.
A Strange Fellow,
Some ono came to borrow the Lodja's
ass. "He isn't heie," was the reply.
At which moment tho ass brayod from
within.
"Oh, Allah I" exclaimed the appli
cant ; "you say he is not here, and
there he js, braying this moment I'"
" What I" replied the hodja, with in
dignution ; "you believe an ass rather
tttuu an old man like mo with a white
beard I What a a tranga fellow you are I "
Fa hlon Sole
The Saratoga trunk find- littlo favor
in England.
Petticoats are trimmed with Hamburg
embroideries'.
Poppies and grass are lavishly nsed on
pale blue Creole gauze. .
Dress baskets are becoming more and
more popular for traveling.
Grass linen is much used for the long,
slender bustles now iu vogue.
Ladies' dress imperials, made of solid
leather, head the list of ladies' trunks.
Imperials and dress baskets are taking
the place of the tall, narrow French
trunks.
Chamois and silver gray cuirasses are
embroidered in r filigree of gold, silver
or steel.
Tho " shirt " pattern, with its tucked
f rout, and yoke back, is popular for night
drosses.
For country use fans of ecru linen,
with a largo iuiti d in one corner, are
favorites.
Faus are worn smaller than last year,
ana are lastened to the waist with a nil
ver chatelaine.
Creole gauze, which is striped all over
with fine white satin Jines, is a popular
rarity oi gauze lor summer balls.
In hats, a largo pompon of foulard at
ouo pide is popular ; tho foulard should
mutch in oolor tho dress worn at the
time.
Ijouis ay I. hats, either of black or
white straw, have their brims turned uo
at tue bacu, with a tuit of feathers placed
entirely at the back.
White barege is used for quiot dinner
dresses, and white muslin for small even
ing parties ; white organdy muslin mixed
with tiiUetas is a favorite combination
For evening wear nre elegant fans
niudo of cocks' feathers, mounted on
tortoiso shell sticks, ostrich feathers of
natural color, aud peacock aud marabout
feathers.
Hats made of bofh coarse anil fancy
straw, with uigu pointed crowns, are
trimmed with u feather baud about the
crown uud a bouquet of contrasting
color on ouo side.
Costumes made with four tunics, each
ouo plaited nil over, arc fashionable.
The first tui.ic is six inches long, tho
second ten, tho third fourteen, and the
fourth twenty inches.
Louis XVI. costumes made of real In
dian foulard wash well aud do not crush
or crease. These oro fashioned into
long polonaises and worn over skirts
trimmed with phu tings; which have a
maize grouud striped with coral 'and
bows made up of hanging loops and
ends.
How to Cure a Had Memory,
Your memory is bad, perhaps; but I
eau toll you two secrets that will cure the
worst memory. Ono is to read a sub
ject whea strongly interested. The
other is, to not only read, but think.
When you have read a paragraph or a
page, stop, closo the book, and try to
remember the ideas on that page, and
not only recall them vaguely iu yonr
mind, but put them into words and
speck themout. Faithfully follow these
two rules, and you havo tho golden keys
of knowledge. Besidos inattentive
rer.ding, there are other things injurious
to memory. Ono is the habit of skim
ming over newspapers, items of news,
smart remarks, bits of information, po
litical reflections, fashion notes, all in a
confused jumble, never to be thought of
again, thus dilligontly cultivating a
hubit of careless reading hard to break.
Another is the reading of trashy novels.
Nothing is bo fatal to raiding with profit
as tho habit of running through story
after story, and forgetting then: ns soon
as read. I know a gray haired woman,
a lifelong lover of books, who sadly de
clares that her ruiud has been ruined by
such reading.
A help to memory is repetition.
Nothing is so certain to keep your
French fresh, nnd ready for use, as to
havo always on hand an interesting story
in that language, to take up for ten min
utes every day. In that case, yon will
not " forget your French " with tho
majority of your schoolmates. St.
Nicholas.
How Grapes are Pressed.
The most prjmitivo way of pressing
grapes for wine, it is hardly neoessary to
say, pays a Oalaxu writer, is bv treadiuir
a process which I saw both in France
nnd Palestine. In the latter ou Mount
Ziou iu Jerusalem tho grapes were
thrown into a wooden box about four
feet square and three deep ; the bare
legged Arabs, bracing themselves with
Iheir hands on each other's shoulders,
tramped the fruit by the hour, as the
juice issued from a hole in the bottom
of the box into a tub. A traveler stand
ing by thought tho process was indeli
cate, but be was informed that fermen
tation, like fire, is a purifier.
The primitive pressing which I saw
iu Frauce was done not far from Dijon,
and not a great distance from a region
where the most improved methods of
pressing are employed. It was nearly
equal in simplicity to that practiced ou
the hills of Judi-n. Iu Jerusalem the
Arabs tramped with their naked feet,
aud in the out-of-the-way place referred
to in France tho tramping was clone
uuder the sabot. Tho must (the crushed
mass of grapes) was thrown into a vat,
when eight or ten men jumped iu and
tramped about in it, using their hands
aa well as their feet to press out the
clumps which cling together. This was
done also with a view to warm the must
by the natural heat of their bodies, and
thus hasten fermentation. Their faces
were stained with the juice, and they
were gory to the shoulders.
Training Sheep Bogs.
The following is said to be a Texan
practice) for training sheep dogs; A pup
is taken from its mother before its eyes
are opened, and put to a ewe to suckle.
After a few times, the ewe becomes
reconciled to the pup, which follows
her like a lamb, grows up among, and
remains with the flock, aud no wolf,
man, or strange dog cau come near the
sheep: and the dog will bring the flock
to the fold regularly at half-past aeven
b'olook, if be ia habitually fed at that
hour.
OX THE PLAINS.
Hteck Taklnc the Plnee at tlie Buflnlo-."
Wratern Cattle Kins.
As the train glides on over the plains,
writes a Wostern correspondent of the
World, we see the ruins of the little
dugouts half house, half fort which
used to bo inhabited by the squads of
soldiers who guarded tne railway line.
Small herds of antelopes stand aud gaze
within rifle shot, or speed nimbly away.
The prairie dogs bark and skeet into
their holes like mad, to the delight of
tho children at the windows. Not a buf
falo is to be seen. The cruel fun of
shooting at and sometimes maiming
them from the car windows can no more
be enjoyed. They have been scared
and murdered away. Besides the
reckless slaughter by tourists and pleas
ure hunter , thousnnds of them have
been killed during the past two or three
winters for commercial purposes. Tho
hides were stripped off nnd sold, some
times for 81.50 each. Tho bones were
gathered in heaps near tho railway sta
tions and freighted eastward, to bo used
as fertilizers. It is estimated that iu one
winter ou the lines of the Union and
Kansas Pacific railroads over one hun
dred thousand heid wero killed.
The retreat of tho buffaloes is com
pensated by the advance of the rtock
Misers. As wo approach the Rocky
mountains the outposts of a hundred
herds of tame cattle aro visible on either
sido. The rich nutritious grasses with
which the plains aro covered aro here
found in all their excellence, and the
territory east of the Black Hills, north
to the North Platte river and south to
tho gulf of Mexico, now sustains mil
lions of cattlo aud sheep. All around
Cheyenne nud Denver are the rauckesof
stockmen men engaged iu growing cat
tle, sheep, horses aud mules for market.
No hay is cut for nny of these animals
except sheep nnd tho cattle kept for
winter use. Winter and summer tl-.ey
live ou the native grasses, although it is
sometimes hard for them to subsist
through the winter storms. Wero it
not for the fierce winds that then de
nude the summits of the ridges whilo
tiilirg the hollows between them with
snow, the wretched creatures would
perish from starvation. As it. is, thou
sands of them do annually starve ami
freeze at tho climaxes of tempests so
bitter that they have compelled even
the buffaloes to approach blockaded lo
comotives nt night and lean up against
' .1. i . .. .
bui-m iui wariutii una Hueirer.
The experience . of Mr. Iliff, the
"Cattlo King of tho Plains," whose
grimt ranch in northern Colorado in
cludes linndreds of squaro miles of bot
tom nnd upland ranges, is typical of the
whole. During the sevtra winter of
1871-72 there were deep snows that re
mained a long time, and tho storms were
b.cvssant. In tho midst of them Mr.
Iiiff visited his ranch and found his cat
tlo dying and scattered by thousands.
In- spite of all ho could do, less than
half of them were recovered, and those
1 u 1 strayed at springtimo into two dif-f-rent
States and four different Terri
tories. More than 820.000 were expend
ed in efforts to find them. At last, in
the spring of 1875, 5,000 undiscovered
head were charged to profit aud loos.
Could theso havo been solel the provious
fall they would have brought at least
?18 a Lead a total of $90,000.
Yet the cattle king, aud many cattle
priuces, besides him, make money from
cattlo raising on the plains, for they
lef.ru by experience, aud tho demand is
great enough to warrant all their risks.
Air. Hill has now moro than tweutv-six
thousand head of cattle, of nil aires.
t izes and conditions. Nearly five thou
sand calves were branded on his ranch
last year, and he sold nbout the same
number of four year-old steers and fat
cows. At the averace selliucr rrico of
S-S2 a bend, net, 4,000 bend brought him
3128,000. He employs from twelve to
thirty-live men to take care of his im
mense herds in summer. By the intro
duction of thoroughbred Durham bulls
tho herds are rapidly graded np, and ho
estimates th;3 increase, outside of pur
chases and sales, to bo nbout seventy per
e nt. per year. Besides thecattlo raised
ou his ranch he deals largely iu Texas
and Indian cattle, aud lust season adver
tised for 20,000 head of Texas cattle to
be dolivercd during the driving months
of 1876. If he does not obtaiu this
number from Texas he expects to sup
ply the deficiency with Oregon and
Montana cattle, which are beginning to
come East.
The Laramie plains, higher up, among
the mountains, aro a paradise for stock,
especially sheep, aud away over the
mountains toward the Pacific there are
stock ranches that throw even Iliff's in
tho shade. Iu the Humboldt valley,
some fivo hundred and fifty miles east
from San Francisco, one cattle firm have
20,000 acres fenced in. It is seven miles
across from their eastern to their west
ern fences. The fences, made of red
wood posts and Oregon boards, cost
about $900 a mile, and there are twenty
miles of them. The firm own 40,000
head of cattle, which aro mostly shipped
to Sau Francisco. The stock is all of
good quality, and some of the best
blooded animals in the country are an
nually purchased to improve the grades.
Tho suow hero seldom falls deep, does
not stay long, and the grass makes its
appearance early iu the spring.
Grass, though, does not seem essential
to the well being of some of the fattest
cattle on the continent. Further down
tho Humboldt valley, where nothing
else but sage brush, greasewood and
alkali dust is to be seen, tho Central Pa
cifio trains have to slacken speed to
avoid maiming heavy herds, for which
the greeu greasewood bush is alleged to
furnish abundant provender.
What to Bo.
Every little while we read of some one
who has stuck a rusty nail in bis foot or
some other part of his person, and lock
jaw has resulted therefrom. All such
wounds can be healed without any fatal
consequences following thorn. The
remedy is simple : It is only to smoke
6nch wound, or any wound or bruiBe
that is inflamed, with burning wool or
woolen cloth. Twenty minutes in the
smoke of wool will take the pain out of
I ha worst case of inflammation arising
from any wound we ever iaw.
It"nig of Interest.
Tup. hypocrito can be anything but an
honest man.
Tho English West Arrican squadron
hi blockaded the ports of the king of
Dahomey,
Question for debating sooieties
Which is the most dangerous, to hnve a
man shot at a ball, or a ball shot nt a
man ?
Tho emperor of China has forbidden
the immigration of his subjects to Span
ish colonies, beetm the coolies in Cuba
ere treated no better than slaves.
Connecticut produced 700 new inven
tions last year, or one to 7G4 inhabitants.
Massachusetts stood next in tho number
of patents. Arkansas is at tho foot of
the list.
A bcyin Tennessee committed suicide
tho o'Unr day because his mother sent
him to the woods for n hickory stick,
with which he wns to be punished for
"taking sugar out of the sugar bowl."
Some ono who has been searching in
colonial history aunounces thnt np to
the Revolution no American bad ever
exercised the office of general. The
highest rank ever permitted to a colonist
was colonel.
The heroic act of William Roberts, of
St. Louis, was to dive into a cittern
through a hole bo small that it scrnped
skin from his body, nud keep n boy
above water until tho woodwork could
be removed for their rescue.
A'owjears since, at the celebration
of au anniversary, a poor peddler who
was present, being called upon for a
toast, offered tho following: " Here is
health to poverty it sticks to a man
wheu all his friends forsake him."
Lieut. Rudio, whoso remarkable es
enpefrom tho Sioux has been described,
in said to bo the samo Itudio who, in
1858, participated with Orsini, Gomez,
nnd Peri in the attempt to kill Napoleon
III. by throwing hand bombshells in
his carriage in Paris.
Speaking of tho eastward flow of
Chinese immigrants the Philadelphia
Xorh American says: Remote as Phila
delphia is from San Francisco we have a
steadily increasing Chinese influx, nud
the element tnny now be fairly snid to be
permanently established here.
Colorado potato bugs have been
washed ashore ut Milestone and other
places in Connecticut in such numbers
of lato as to poison the air. The captain
of a New London vessel onys that they
came on board in such swarms whilo at
sea that thoy had to close the hatches.
Said I to little brother Howard:
" There I your toes nre out of your
stockings again; eroms to mo the y wear
out iu a hurry." Giving a comical leer,
ha said : " Do you know why stockings
wear out first at the toes j" " No."
" Because toes wiggle and heels don't."
Miss Collins, tho conductor of Boffin's
Bower, a Boston chavitablo institution,
soys that out of every hundred shop
pirls in that city, fifty live at homo and
the rest in boarding housc-s. She thinks
litco are 30,000 girls employed in Bos
ton shops in seventy different occupa
tions. " I'll bet a sheep," said old Meredith
to his better half, "that our boy Otho is
goiug crazy; fur bo's giinnin' at tho
plow, he's grinniu' at tho barn, and he's
grinnin' to himself wherever Lo goes."
"I'shawl old man," said bis wife, "you
don't know nothin'. Tho critier's got a
love letter 1"
Brougham, iu speaking of the salary
attached to tho rumored (ippointmcnt of
a new judgeship, said it was nil moon
shine. Lyudhurst, in his dry and wng
gii.h way, remarked : "It may bo so;
but I have a strong notion thot, moon
shine though it be, you would l'ko to
see tho first quaiter of it."
A quaint writer says : I havo 6f-en
womeu so delicnto that they wero afraid
to rido, for fear ol tho horse running
away ; ufruid to sail, for f ar tho boat
might bo npsct ; afraid to walk, for fear
they might fall ; but never saw oue
al'iaid to bo married, which is far more
riskf ul than all tho others put together.
"Thero is a boarding house,
Not far away,
Whore thoy have bam aud egs
Three times a day."
"Oh, how the boarders yell,
Whfln they hoar the dinner bell !
Oil, how tho egga do Buiel! !
Thrco times a day."
Professor Rhode gives no tho result of
bis experiments in feeding cows to as
certain tho proportion of food con
sumed to the milk produced as follows:
The Hollander eats fivo pounds of hay
for every quart of milk; tho Breitenber
ger, six and one-fourth pounds; the
Tondern, seven pounds, and tho Ayr
shire, nine pounds.
A lady of great beauty and attractive
ness, who was an nrdent odmirer of
Ireland, once crowned her praises of it
at a party, by saying : " I think I was
meant for an Irishwoman." " Cross the
chanuel, madam," remarked Samuel
Lover, the novelist, who happenod to be
present; "millions will tay you were
meant for an Irishman. "
A womau in Btrnctead, N. H., found
the egg of a night hawk tho other day.
Sho took it homo aud put it under an
inverted bowl in a cupboard near the
cooking stove. A few days after she
heard a noiso under the bowl, and found
that tho egg had hatched, nnd that she
had a lively young hawk. But the little
bird would not eat nnd soon died.
Salmon, which a few years ago sold in
the New York market at ono dollar a
pound, can be bought for eighteen cents.
This great reduction is due the fact
that, since the opening of now railroads,
enormous quantities cau be put, at a low
figure, in Eastern cities by refrigerator
t ars, which bring the fish directly from
their native rivers iu Maine and the
British provinces.
A carpenter, as a rule, is a plane mau,
doing hia work on the square. It
wouldn't augur well for him to chisel
folks a bit. Shaving adz nothing, but
rather de files his reputation. Scratch
awl round and hew can never draft a
plumb carpenter, who would not be
judged by his ax, although at times he
u the saw dust man yon ever aaw. Lika
a gambler, yon can tell a suooeMfol
pester by hia chips.