u
; I )
-!-
HENRY A. PARSONS, Jr., Editor and Publisher.
. NIL DESPEHANDUM.
Two Dollars per Annum.
.7 i A
- '. tin
y. Sir fft .
VOL. VI.
Grandmother Gray.
Faded and fair, In her old armchair,
Sunset gilding her thin white hair,
Silently knitting sits Grandmother Oray
While I on my elbows beeide ber lean,
And U 11 wtnit wonderful tilings I moan
To have, and to do. if I can. tome day (
Ton can talk eo to Grandmother Gray
She doesn't langh nor tend yon away.
I iee, as I look from the window seat,
A house there yonder, across the street,
With a fine Freneh roof and a frescoed hall,
The doep bay window are full of flowers (
j.ney ve a clock of bronze that ehimes the
hours,
And a fountain I hear it tinkle and fall
When the doors are open : " I mean," I eay.
To live in a house like that some day."
r Money will buy it," says Grandmother Gray,
here's a low baroncho, all green and gold.
And a pair of horses aa black as jet,
I've seen drive by and before I'm old
A turnout like that I hope to get.
How they prance and shine in their harness
Byt
What f nn 'twould be if they ran away I"
"Money will buy them," says Grandmother
Gray.
" To-morrow, I know, a great ship sails
Out of port, and across the sea ;
Oh ! to feel in my face the ocean gales
And the salt waves dancing under me!
In the old, far lands of legend and lay
I long to roam and I shall, some day."
' Money will do it," says Grandmother Gray.
"And when, like me, you are old," says she;
" And getting and going are done with, dear,
What then, do you think, will the one thing
be
You will winh and need, to content you
here ?"
" Oh, when in my chair I have to stay,
Love, you see, will content me," 1 say.
" That, money won't buy," says Grandmother
Gray.
"And, sure eronga, if there's nothing worth
AH your care, when the years are past,
But love in heaven, and love on earth,
Why not begin where you'll end at last ?
Begin to ly up treasure to-day,
Treasure that nothing ran take away,
B!esn the Lord 1" says Giandmotber Gray.
A BLIGHT IN SUMMER.
I was not the regular doctor, for the
practice at Burnley belonged to Fred,
uirnot, an oi.i hospital friend of mine,
who had taken to a simple countrv prac
tice, while I had been roaming about
the world as a surgeon in immigrant
snips, mm during tlie x ranoo-Oerman
wr. We had met after seven years,
whan I wanted a month's quiet in the
country, aud no Had ricked me to attend
to his practice, while he came np to
. towe to pass a degree, for he was a hard
studying, ambitious fellow.
A man at the door desired me to come
over and see his master, who was dyiDg
of front. This was the announcement
by the servant. Saving that I had been
consulted about a "terublo wbemtiu
pain " in the back of an old lady of
sevemy-nve, mis was my nrst call.
" Th re's Miss Kate a-watching for
us."
I could R69 the flutter of a white dreBB
by the gate as we drove on, but my at
tention was too much taken up bv the
prettiness of the place, and I was gaping
ii u j ii'iuui, tuiuKiug notning oi "Miss
Kate " and her cares, when the gig
Biuppecs, ana x jumpea aown.
" Here he is, uncle dear," she cried
" Time he was here," exclaimed some
one, with a savage roar.
After givirg various little orders
placed the tender leg in an easy posi
tion, tho patient breaking out into
furious exclamations the trhilo. Then,
by means of some hoops from a small
wooden tub, I made a small gypsy tent
over me nmo eo that tne coverings did
not touch, tne exquisitely tender skin.
and at the end of half an hour hal the
pleasure of hearing a sigh of satisfac
tion, of seeing a smile steal over the
face, which was now smooth and bedewed
with a gentle perspiration, and directly
after, in a drowsy voice, my patient
said :
Kitty, my darling, he's a trump.
lane mm into tne next room ana aoolo
gize to hira, and tell him I'm not always
bucd. a Deast.
He was half asleep already, while I
even in that short hour I bad fallen
into a dream, a dream of love ; I who
. had never loved before, nor thought of
it, dm as sickly boy and girl stuff, un
worthy oi Dusy men.
I cannot tell yon how that day passed.
only that Kato Austey had implored me
not to leave her uncle yet : and III
was her slave, and would have done her
bidding even to the death.
lie was soon better, but my visits to
the larm were more frequent tuan ever.
I went one day as usual, but instead of
Kate being at the window and running
out to meet me, the old gentleman stood
at the door, looking very angry, and
he at once caught hold of my coat and
dragged me into the kitchen.
" Is anything wrong ?" I said, trem
bling. " Yes, lots," said tho old man. "What
do yon come here for ?"
"For mercy's sake, don't keep it
back I" 1 said, for the room seemed to
swim round me. "Is Kate ill?"
" Yes I think she is," he said,
gruffly. " But, look here, young man,
what does this mean ?"
" Mean I" I said. " Oh, Mr. Brand,
if she is '11 let me see her at onoe 1"
" She don't look very bad," he said,
peering through the crack of the door
into the parlor, where I could see her
white dress ; " but I Bay, young man,
j ou'd better not come, any more. She's
growing dull, and I can't have my dar
ling made a fool of."
" Made a fool of I" I stammered.
"Yes," he said, gruffly; "what do
you come here for?"
I was silent for a minute, with a won
drous feeling stealing over me, as at
last my lips said I did not prompt
them " because I love her with all my
heart."
"And you have told her sot"
"Not a word, I said, slowly. My
band was being crushed as in a vise the
next minute.
" I'm not a gentleman, doctor, but I
know ono when I meet one. There, you
may go and talk to her, if it's as you say j
for if it's true you wouldn't make her
unhappy ; but, my lad, the man who
trifled with that girl's heart would be
the greatest scoundrel that ever ("tapped
on God's earth."
The whole of this part of my life is so
dreamy that it is all like some golden
vision. But I was at her chair, 1 know,
and that glorious evening I was content
to watch the soft, dreamy face beside
me as she eat there with hands folded in
her lap, watching the Bunset.
At last we rose and walked together
through the wood to stop at last beneath
an overshadowing tree, and there in
low, broken words I told her I loved
her, and in her sweet girlish simplicity
she laid her hands upon my shoulders,
looked up. in my face, and promised to
be my little wife.
I went home that night riding in a
wonderful triumphal chariot instead of
a gig, and, to my great surprise, on
reaching tho house there was Fred.
Garnet.
" Back alreudy f " I stammered.
"Already? Why, the month's up,"
he said, laughing. "You must have
had good sport wih your fishing, Mas
ter Max." 6
It came upon me like thupder, this
return, and I lay that night awake
happy, but miserable, for this meant
tlie end of my visit, and what was to
conio in the future ? I had not thought
I put it off for tho time, and havinc
obtained willing permission from Gar
net, i went ins rounds the next morn
ing, and of course found my way to the
num.
I fancy the servant looked at me in
rather a peculiar, constrained way as
she said that her master had gone to the
on-naud larm.
" And Miss Kate ?" I said.
" She's down in tHe wood, sir." said
the girl.
I waited to hear no more, but ran
along the garden, leaped the gate, and
crossing two fields, went through the
wimerness, ana over- tne stile into the
wood.
" My darling I" I kept reneatinir. as I
Lurried on, expecting to meet her at
every turn, and then I stopped short,
with a horrible pang seeming to catch
my heart, I was dizzy, faint, raging
with anger, and mad in turn; but that
all pasted t ff to leave a bitter, crushing
ense of m s y, as I held on by a young
sapling and peered at the scene before
me.
There stood, with her back to me,
Kte false, false Kate with the arm
of a tall, bandiome, military looking
nian encircling her uist, her head rest
ing on his shoulder, and even as I gazed,
he bent his head down and 6he raised
her arms her face her lips to meet Lin
kisses, as he folded her tightly to his
I saw no more, but stole blindlyaway,
went to tho stable, saddled and bridli d
the horse in a dreamy fashion, mounted
and rode back to Burnley, threw the
bridle to tho man, walked straight to
the station without seeing Fred. Gar
net, and went off to London.
Six months glided by, an t then I was
once more called npon to take charge of
.1 , .. i : .. t i .i , i
piuuiicu ui u lrieuti m ilia suuuros.
It was one dark night in winter that
was just going to bed, half wishing that
I isai had a call for I knew that 1
should only lio and toss about Rleep
loss when the surgery bell rung sharp
ly, and tho summons that I had wished
tor came.
It was a policeman with a hansom
cab, and his oilskins shone wet and viv
idly in the red light of tho lamp oyer
cue aoor.
"Axiden' case, sir," he said. " Dr.
Barker in the next street's got in, and,
sir, and he wants help."
I learned from him that a gentleman
bad been knocked down bv the very
same cab we were in, and trampled upon
by the horses before tho wheel went over
and broke his leg.
We were there in a few minutes, and
i was wiown into tne oacK parlor of a
comfortably furnished house, whore the
sufferer hal been laid upon a mattress.
A brief conversation with my col
league ensued, and he told me what ho
feared and how ho was situated, another
important call demanding his presence.
Tho result was that I agreed that we
would examine the patient, and then I
would stay till Dr. Barker's return.
A taint groan from the mattress sa
luted us aa we turned to our patieut.
acd as I held the lamp over his face, and
tuo light idll upon the fair hair and long
drooping mustache. I nearly dropped
it.
" Nemesis 1" I thought. Mine enemv
delivered into my hand. Kate's lover
lying bruised and broken crushed like
a reed at my feet. And now I need
not kill mm to be revenge j for all his
cruelty to me, but stand by supine, and
he would die.
For a few brief moments told me that
I possessed greater knowledge than my
colleagues, and that if I withheld mine,
nothing which Dr. Barker could do
would save the flume evennow trembling
in the socket of Ufa's lamp.
I lie scene in the wood noshed before
me ouce again as I stood there Kate a
sweet face upturned asking for this man's
kisses, and all so vivid that my brain
reeled and a mist floated before my
eyes.
"What do you think. Mr. Lawler f"
said a voice at my elbow, and I started
pack into tne present.
lhat hell be post saving in an
hour," I paid, quietly.
I fear bo." said Dr. Barker, shruz-
ging his shoulders.
" Unless "
Here I unfolded my plans, as I said
bitterly to myself : "And heap coals of
fire upon his head. Kate, take your
lover, and God forgive you."
"Excellent," exclaimed Dr. Barker,
who was a frank, gentlemanly fellow,
without professional jealousies; and in
an hoar's time we had done all that was
necessary, our patient was breathing
easily; Dr. Barker was shaking my hand.
ties saved, Mr. Lawler. You've
saved his life. Now I'll be off and get
baok in au hour's time. You've given
me the greatest lesson in-surgery I ever
had in my life."
And then 1 was alone, thinking bitter
ly of what I had done,
" Kate Kate darling I"
Those words feebly ottered brought
RIDGWAY, ELK COUNTY, PA., THURSDAY, NOVEMBER
me to myself, and I was the cold, hard
man once more as 1 roso, and taking the
lamp, bunt down over my patient, whose
eyes now opened and lie stared at me.
"Where's Kate!" he asked; "and
where what He stopped short,
" Hush I" I said, coldly; "you have
had au accident,
"Accident? Oh, yes, I remember.
was going to catch the night train for
Burnley, wben that confonnded cab"
" lou must not talk," I said, fighting
hard to contain myself. " You are
seriously hurt.
That lost was not professional, but
there was grim pleasure in giving him
some pain.
" That's bad, doctor," he whispered
ior a was going down to see my
J i: .1 t ..
uaruiig sue s very in.
" 111 I" I exclaimed, starting.
" Yes," he said, speaking with pain,
and I could not stop him now. " Con
sumption, they say, broken heart
.think. Some scoundrel"
-1 almost dropped the lamp as I caught
is hand and gripped it, and said ia a
hoarse, choking voice, for I was b truer
i: j. . i e i i , - i ,
liug HI BOO uie IUU iigut :
" What do you wish me to do "
xeiegrapn, at my expense, to my
uroiuer-in-iaw. lake it down, or you II
forget. From Christopher Austey to
John Brand, Greenmead, Burnley. Say
Kate is not to fidget. You know best. '
" les, yes, I stammered, my hands
trembling as I took out a pencil and pre-
renuea to write, miss iuite, men
1 faltered, " is
" My darliug child I" sobbed the poor
fellow. find Rlm'a I"
He was too weak, too faint to heed
me, and with a bitter groan I turned
away stunned mad aloiost at my fo ly,
For I saw it all now, poor, weak, pitiful,
jealous fool that I was. I had seen the
girl thnt I worshiped, petted and car
essed by her own father, ad, without
seeking or asking an explanation, I had
rushed away, leaving her to think me a
sooundrel nay, worse.
When I turned once more to tho mat
tress my patient had fallen asleep, and I
. 1 . I AT 1 4
oiouu rarru uiiUHing.
T t , -r . -
n a iew minutes i. nad mado my
pians ; men, watcu in nand, 1 impa-
iientiy waneu ior vr. jaaruer s return.
He w.w back to his time, aud iu a few
words l nad made my arrangements.
uoetor, i said, "you said you
were in my debt for this night's work."
" My dear Bir. I'll write von a check
for twenty guineas, with pleasure," he
repnea.
" i-ay me in mis way." l said: "Rea
that these patients whose names I have
written on this slip of paper are attend
ed to well for tho next two days, and
tell our friend here that his message has
neeu soen to.
He promised eagerly, and the next
minute I v. as in the street, running to
me nearest caD stand.
I .was just iu time to catch the early
morning train, and half mad, half joy
ous, I sat impatiently there till tho train
dropped me at Burnley, where the fly
slowly jolted me over to the Four-Mile
larm.
It was a bright, clear morning, and
the sun glanced from the river upon the
trees, but I could think of only one
thing as I kept urging the driver on
and he must have thought me mad as
leaped out and rushed into tho well
kuown parlor.
"Kate!" I cried, as half blind I ran
toward a pale face lying back in an easy
ciiair ty tne nre.
"You scoundrel I" was roared at the
Kame moment, and the sturdy farmer
had me pinned by the throat.
"Yes, all that," I said; "only hear
me.
iiis nanus uroppea as nate ottered a
low cry and fainted.
"Quick!" I said, "water and some
brandy."
With a low growl of rage my old pa
tient for gout obeyed me, and in a few
minutes her head rested on my arm.
" Have you come to say good-bye ?"
she said, feebly; aud there was such a
look of reproach iu that poor worn face,
that I only answered in a whisper:
"No, no to aBk you to give and
bless me with your love; to ask you to
forgive me for my cruel weakness, for I
must have been mad."
A deep groan made me turn my head
to see that tho farmer's head was down
upon his arms, and his broad shoulders
were heaving.
l ruougnr. you would never come
again," said Kate, feebly; " but I never
gave up hope."
A Troblem Solved,
A corespondent writes to the Phila
delphia Bulletin thus : A recent number
of a scieutifio journal, speaking of a re
lative proportion of the sexes in the
human race, declares that for every 150
men that como into the world 100 72-100
women are boru. I do not dispute
theso figures. I only ask for light. It
oppoare, aooording to this, that there
are some women who are only 72-100
port of a woman. What the remaining
28100 are I cannot lmagke. Now what
I know is tbi-j If a woman of this kind
marries a 100 man, and has a daughter,
will the daughter be an 84 100 woman or
a 96-100 woman ? And what will be the
exact relationship between such a daugh
ter and a 76-100 aunt and her 87-100
daughters, especially if the 87-100 girls
marry the brothers of the 96-100 girl
and so become not only her 98-100 first
cousins, but her 95 100 sisters-in-law.
the aforesaid 76100 aunt becoming also
the 89-100 mother-in-law of her 88-100
nephews, will the the . Let me see ;
where am I ? It is an awful subject to
tackle. Oh, yes 1 I say if the 76-100
aunt . But, no. The question
can't be solved ia any suoh way as this.
I give it up. The only way to get at it
will be to do the sum in algebra, some
how, making the daughter x. the aunt v.
the first cousin a, and the mother-in-law
Then, it eeems to me, if you multi
ply the aunt by the daughter and divide
the first cousin by the mother-in-law, in
some way or other, or extract the square
root of the cousins and subtract the
result from the aunt, keeping the daugh
ter as a common denominator, and at
the same time making a decimal fraction
of the mother-in-law, perhaps the result
mignt do satisfactory. Hut I am not
certain. I am poor at mathematics. I
wish the lightning calculator would get
at this, or that Prof. TyndaU would sub
ject it to chemical analysis.
Another Dynamite Plot
Passengers on a New York express
train that started from Philadelphia at
8:10 had a narrow escape. Among the
artioles of baggage checked for New
York was a Saratoga trunk. It was
placed in the upper tier of trunks in the
baggage car. When the train, which
was a heavy one, carrying Centennial
f assengers, had passed Metuohen, about
wenty'-six miles from Jersey City, the
baggage master heard a terriflo explo
sion. It hurled the trunks around, and
threw the men in the car on the floor.
Flames burst from the pile of baggage,
settiDg fire to tho baggage and car al
most instantaneously. The fire was
spreading rapidly, and the train was
stopped to extinguish the Are.
The remains of the trunk that had
caused the damage were collected. The
trunk was made of thin wood. The
parts of an intricate little machine were
found among the broken boards. A
small pistol, attached by wire to the
brass works of a clock, was so arranged
that when the hands reached the flgnre
twelve on the dial the pistol was dis
charged. The charge was fired into
some very inflammable substance, either
dynamite or pyroxohno, that was en
tirely consumed, and spread rapidly,
The damage will not exceed $500, but it
must havo been much more but for tho
fortunate placing of the trunk at the top
of the car. The infernal machine was
so shattered that its exact nature' raunot
be defined. It was collected and taken
to the Jersey City depot, where tho
train master took charge of it, pending
investigation that the railroad officials
are to make. i .. j
John Silpath. the baggage master.
says he thinks it proboble that the trunk
was either designed for the destruction
of tho railroad depot, or to destroy the
train. Conductor Stockton said that he
did not hoar the explosion, and did not
know why the tram stopped until the
brakemau told him that the baggage car
was on fire. He thought it was intended
to do some damage in New York, as it
was more probable that it was mado for
a specifio purpose than to kill passen
gers or employees on a train. He
thought it had probably been delayed.
The Quakers Diminishing.
The London Catholic Re.ainte.r kv
We are sorry to see that our old friends.
the Quakers, are sadly diminishing in
numbers. It is said that there are only
20.000 in England, the fourth part of
the number which flourished in this
country in the days of George Fox, their
founder. It seems that so soon as the
gentlemen abandoned the wide sweep of
their hats and the ladios the gaunt se
verity of their bonnets the popularity of
the sect gradually diminished, for thero
was little left of appeal to mere vanity.
These, good people, amiable -l jtjit.
have deserved u niche in the teinpii. ..J
heresies ; for beyond calling you
" Friend," and somewhat antiiinatiiig
the Queen's English, there was really
nothing that could be hazarded against
them. They were ritualists in dress and
ia speech, but certainly not so in doc
trine ; and perhaps they were the only
sect ia which the laymen and the lay
women wore a quusi-ecclesiastical garb.
It is an amusing and instructive little
fact that the object of their founder was
to originate a sect which was to be com
pletely without ceremonies aud forms ;
and yet that sect has stood out from all
others iu the one peculiarity of dress.
It is further curious that their religious
fanaticism took the form of extraordinary
gentleness ; so that the very expression
of the countenance of a Qaaker was
soothing as a still, shallow stream. They
canonized calm. Many of .their men
had olaims to intellect, such as Penn,
isarclay and Naylor, and some of their
women preached well, both in this coun
try and America. - However, the scot is
dried np, and, with the hats and the
bonnets and the aprons, their peculiar
ities of creed have vanished.
Do Rats lteasou ?
The Boston Courier says : A lady liv-
iug in this city relates that the house
occupied by herself and family became
so infested with rats that, in the failure
of all means, they were obliged to resort
to poison to exterminate them.
Phosphorous paste was used, spread
thickly over meat, which was tben placed
where the rats could readily get at it.
Pursuing this course for a long time,
they were surprised to find that, while
the meat regularly disappeared, tho rats
remained, their number apparently in
creasing instead of diminishing. One
day a man in charge of an adjoining
stable asked who was trying to poison
rats, and, being told, replied ':
" ihe rats are too smart for you.
Ho led the lady to the alley alone side
the house, where there was a hydrant.
the nozzle of which being broken off,
lert tne water constantly running. Under
the hydrant they saw several pieces of
meat, some partly covered, and the
others entirely destitute of any traces of
the phosphorous paste.
Alter watching some time, the lady
actually saw the rats not only eat tho
washed meat, but carry the coaled
Eieces carefully in their mouths from
er back door round into the alley, and
deposit them under the running stream
of the hydrant. Our correspondent says
the rats may not have known the charac
ter of the coating on their meat, but
their course argues a knowledge of the
properties of water, and a power of
adapting means to ends, akin to reason.
A Denial.
Celia Logan denies that New York
women are maoh given to opium, but
asserts that arsenio eating, for improve
ment oi complexion, is a common prac
tice. She says: "A few years ago cos
metics containing bismuth were in
general use, but were found to yellow
the skin until it became tawny and
created sores and pimples. The family
doctor prescribed arsenical blood puri
fiers. The patient was told to stop
using these when the eyelids became
puffy and she felt bloated; but it was
pleasant to taste, it rounded out the
form and beaatined the complexion.
Therefore the doses were inoreased in
stead of diminished; and so prevalent
now is arsenio eating that any one able
to recognise tne look it gives can pick
oat its viotims."
Captain Kidd. the Fit ate.
Lord Maoaulay's sketch of Captain
Kidd is so well known that he may be
dismissed in afew lines as a by no means
brilliant or successful brigand, although.
in posthntnous renown, second to none
of the craft. Ferhaps his advantage
over others in this respect is due to his
having been hanged instead of killed
in aonon, or cast away in remote tropi
cal seas. Kidd was an old privateer in
the West Indies, and, being known as a
brave seaman, was recommended by
Lord Bellamont, then governor of Bar
badoes, and several other persons, to
the home government as one admirably
fitted to command a king's ship cruising
against pirates, on account of his knowl
edge of those seas and practice in war
fare. The project met with no favor in
England, and would have fallen through
altogether had not Lord Bellamont and
his friends fitted oat the Adventure gal
ley at their own private charge, Kidd
was put in command, and furnished with
the king's commission, charging him to
hunt down pirates, all and sundry, espe
cially Thomas Tow and others speoifled
by name. He also held a commission of
reprisals, for it was then war time, em
powering him to take French merchant
ships, in case he should meet any. The
Adventure galley sailed from Plymouth
iu Mjj, 1696, carrying thirty guns and
eighty men, and, after scouring the
North an 1 South Atlantio, tried the In
dian ocean, picking up a French mer
chantman or two; but of pirates never a
one. At lost the patience of Kidd, who
appears to have meant well originally,
.wore out; his crew turned mutinous, and
he became, according to hia defense, a
pirate malgre lui. After a fairly lucky
cruise, he sailed for New York, thinking
his offense would be winked at, but was
immediately seized, with all his books
and papers, sent home for trial, and
hanged with six of his associates. His
career proved an exception to the rule
that it is well to set a thief to catch a
thief.
The Lost Whalers.
The New Bedford Mercury prints the
following as the opiniou of one of the
most experienced shipmasters of New
Bedford regarding the possible fate of
the abandoned ships and men : I have
read the reports (as far as published)
very carefully, and can see no reason for
alarm at all in regard to those men that
stuck by their ships. The ships were
abandoned only twenty miles from the
land, and were drifting slowly with the
pack ice to the southeast, nearing the
land every day. The heavy gales of
September always blow from the north
east to east northeast, and that is blow
ing on the land from four to six points
of the oompass. There is no doubt in
my mind that tho shins, or most, nf
them, will succeed in cettinc int
Umith'B bay. which is only forty or fifty
the fchores are lined with drift wood, and
seal, white bears, deer, and abundance
of sea fowl -are to be found. There, I
think, whales will be plenty up to about
the first of October. The natives are
kind and hospitable, and will help the
men all they can. There is abundance
of provisions on board of the abandoned
ships to last those men twelve months or
more. The only fear that I have for
those men is that they will eat their
usual food of bread, flour, salt provi
sions, etc., and bring on the scurvy.
Thoy will not suffer for food, clothing.
or lights and fires. Wood and water are
plenty. My opinion is that part of
thoso ships will be saved (if not this
year, the next), for they will be in that
part of the Arctic that is least disturbed
by Kales and currents. No doubt some
of the officers of the ships are among the
fifty brave men that stopped in the Arc
tic. hoping to bring their ships to port.
The Mercury says, however, that there
aro men of experience who differ ma
terially from these views,
Tlie Sugar Beet Industry.
Fremy and Dehorain have conducted
a series of experiments to test the rea
sous of the decrease of riohness of sugar
beets grown several years in succession
on the same soil. They find two chief
causes of the deterioration the bad
selections of stock or variety, and excess
of nitrogenous manures. They con
clude that argillaceous, siliceous, and
calcareous soils diner but little in their
effects upon tho sugar iu beets. A
6terile soil, with no other manure thau
phosphate of lime and nitrate of potash,
was able to produco normal roots weigh
ing 700-800 grams (1 1-2-1 8-4 pounds),
and containing a large amount of sugar
(sixteen per cent.). Exoess of nitrogen
ous manures injured the formation of
sugar.
; The outlook for the sugar beet indus
try iu this country seems to be quite
promising. It has already attained
great importance in California, is re
ported as successful ia Illinois, and is
engaging earnest attention in Maine.
The governor of the latter State devoted
considerable attention to the matter in
his last message to the Legislature, and
a company near Portland has already be
gun a thorough investigation of the
probabilities of a successful sugar beet
culture iu that State.
A Dentist's Dinner.
We have received a toothsome bill of
fare designed especially for the dentists,
and we hasten to publish it. Every one
of the craft will find it very filling for
the price:
SOUP.
Uumbo.
FISH..
' Make-'er-yi U "Wails.
ENIBEES.
The Probe, of course.
, BOAST.
Bear, with Grins.
VEGETABLES.
Boiled Roots achers of them.
POULTRY.
'Pull-its."
GAME.
H O wis, with India Rubber Filling, a la Bowery.
DES8EBT.
"I Boream" (and so would any body else).
WINES.
" A Full At " a bottle of Tuskany,
CI0AB8.
Btumps.
Oar correspondent adds that he
thought of this fnenu while under the
influence of laughing gas, and has re
membered it all with the exception of
something about " dumplings with mo
largess." As it stands it is good enough,
and can scarcely be improved.
9, 187G.
Tim First Oil Works.
The first flowing veil of oil ever
Ktruck was on the McElhonny or Funk
f irm, and was known as the Funk well.
Funk was a poor man when the well
was sunk. Oil was struck in Juna. 1861,
and commenced flowing, to the as
tonishment of all the oil borers in the
neighborhood, at the rate of 250 barrels
a day. Suoh a prodigious supply of
grease upset all calculations, but it was
confidently predicted that the flow
would soon cease. It was " Oil creek
humbug," and those who had no direct
interest in the prosperty of the well
looked day after day to see the stream
stop. But like the old woman who sat
down by the river side to let the water
run out, that she might cross dryshod,
they waited in vain. The oil continued
flowing, with littlo variation, for fifteen
months, and then stopped ; but not be
fore Fuuk had become a rioh man.
The well, however, had long before
ceased to be a wonder, being quite over
shadowed by newer sensations. On the
Tarr farm, the Phillips well burst forth
with a steady stream of 2,000 barrels
daily. Not to be overdone by the terri
tory down the creek, the McElhenny
farm produced another marvel. The
"Empire" well, close to the Funk,
suddenly spouted four thousand barrels
a day I The owners were bewildered.
It was decidedly too much of a good
thing. The trne value of petroleum
had not yet been discovered, and the
market for it was limited. Foreigners
would have nothing to do with the
greasy, combustible stuff. Our own
people were divided in opinion. Soc?e
thought it a dangerous thing, to be
handled at arm's-length, while others
set it down as a humbug, of which tho
community should keep as shy as possi
ble. The supply was already ia advance
of the demand, and the sudden addition
of four thousand barrels a day demor
alized the market. The price fell to
twenty cents a barrel, then to fifteen,
then to ten. Coopers would sell barrels
for cash only, and refused to take their
pay iu oil, or in drafts on oil shipments.
Finally it became impossible to obtain
barrels on any terms, for all the coopers
in the surrounding coantrv could not
make barrels as fast as tho Empire could
fill them. The owners were in despair
and tried to choke off their confounded
well, but it would not be choked off.
Then they built a dam around it, and
covered tho soil with grease bnt the oil
refused to be dammed, and rushed into
the stream, making Oil Creek literally
worthy its name. Finally means were
found for controlling the flow of the oil,
huge tanks were built, and the precious
fluid stored up. until barrels could be
obtained in sufficient quantities to hold
the daily yield of this tremendons foun
tain of petroleum. The "Empire"
flowed for - nearly a year, and then
dropped to a pumping wn --
about one hundred barrels a day.
V i "'" which was the
next great flowing well, was put down
ia the year 1862, It was sunk under
great diffioultios. J. W. Sherman, who
was the original owner, commenced
next above the McElhenny, with limit
ed means, his wife furnishing most of
the- money. Soon it became necessary
to procure an engine, and there was no
money to make the purchase; two men
who were iu possession of the desired
article were thereupon admitted to a
share for the engine. Soon after, when
the drill had almost penetrated the
" third sandstone," the funds were ex
hausted. A sixteenth interest was offer
ed for 8100, but no buyer could be
found. Ultimately it was sold for $60
and an old shot guu. A horse became
necessary duriug the work, aud a share
was bargained for the animal. At last,
when all the means that could be raised
by borrowing or selling were about ex
hausted, oil was struck, and flowed at
the rate of 1,500 barrels a day. The
flow continued at this rate for several
months, when it declined to 700 bar
rels. The well continued flowing for
twenty-three months, and then stopped,
but yielded thirty or forty barrels a
day by pumping. For the first year,
the proprietors made but little, owing to
the low price of oil, and the difficulty of
getting it to market, but during the
second 5 ear the market improved and
nn immense fortune was made.
A Successful Humbug.
A gentleman at Spa, a fashionable
watering place in Belgium, writing to
his sister in Paris, relates an amusing
feature of the place. There is the big
gest thing in the way of a traveling
charlatan dentist here now (September)
I ever saw. He comes into the town
every day at 3 p. M. and stays two hoars
on the " Place," selling his powders,
etc., aud bidding for work. He extracts
teeth for nothing, standing on his
chariot in the open street, and does it
wonderfully well, pulls them out with a
click aud says he don't hurt a bit, and
don't draw blood. How is that account
ed for ? He comes in with a brass baud
of eight men, all dressed in a splendid
Chinese costume, then comes his grand
car, he driving four horses, and two
grandly dressed . footmen alongside.
The oar or wagon is like a circus one
only grander, all gold and plute gloss.
His name ia " Ernaolt," and he comes
from Paris. He says he made 160,000
francs last year and built a house in
Paris. He is aa elderly man. Alto
gether it is tho biggest humbug of the
kiud ever known here. He sells a pack
age lot for two francs fifty centimes
(fifty oente), a box of powder, a bottle
of elixir, which is a wonderful styptic,
and toothache drops, and a book on the
teeth and other things.
If this man sold these things in a sen
sible manner for twenty-five sous, his
bottles and his boxes might go begging
for purchasers.
Below Bangor.
It is related that in a certain town in
the northern part of Maine the people
were holding a meeting, when the pas
tor remarked that if any present nad
relatives or friends in distant lands,
S ray era would be offered in their behalf,
o sooner was the sentence complete
thau a simple looking individual arose
and thus addressed the pastor: " I
would like you to pray for my brother.
He went away . two weeks ago, and I
haven't heard from him since. I don't
know just where he is, bat you need not
pray below Bangor." . . ; ; . . ,
NO. 38.
Items of Interest.
Not a drop of intoxicating liquor is
allowed in the Nevada mines, where a
nerions disaster might easily result from
drunkenness.
A Sacramento man, assailed with a
rawhide by a woman in the street, effec
tually bagged her by wrapping her head
and arms in her skirts.
The fishing season in Iceland was a
failure this year, and the people are
suffering from want. Eighteen hun
dred Icelanders immigrated recently to
Canada.
A man twenty-seven years old has
just been sent to the Massachusetts
State prison who has spent all but two
?ears and three days of his life in re
ormatory and charitable institutions.
The freshmen classes at varions
colleges stand as follows: Harvard,
246, Coruell, 180, Yale, 150, Amherst,
83, Williams, 68, Dartmouth, 60, Ober
lin, 62, Trinity, 85, Hamilton, 80,
Tofts, 26.
A man was playing dice in a saloon in
Knoxville, Cal., when the funeral pro
cession of his wife came by. He went
to the door, waved his hat, hurrahed,
and returned to his game. That night
he was almost killed by a mob.
The grandmother of tho Into Gen. Mc
Pherson, whose monument was unveiled
at Washington by the Society of the
Army of the Tennessee, was invited to
be present, at the ceremonies, but died
boforo the invitation reached its destina
tion. She was ninety-nine years of age.
The Pennsylvania Transportation Com
pany has contracted for three hundred
miles of four-inch pipe to carry oil from
the oil regions to the seaboard. This is
the most extensive order for pipe ever
given in this country, and probably the
greatest length of pipe ever included in
a single contract.
A druggist at Bradford in England
was discovered the other day by his
wife lying dead on his bedroom floor.
The body of his son, nged four years,
was found underneath the corpse. It is
believed that the man, seized by an
apopleotio fit, fell ou his son, who was
thus suffocated.
Mrs. Burnham, of Atlanta, visited the
Centennial Exhibition, and there met a
man who said that he was Col. Delong,
of Boston, and very wealthy. On the
second day of their acquaintance they
were married, And on the third day the
bride was looking for her husband and
$1,300 which had disappeared with him.
An old man who died in Maysville,
Ky., had 81,200 worth of United States
bonds in two mustard boxes, and buried
them in a pile of scrap wood iu his
shanty. The wood was sold to a rag
picker for seventy-five cents, and whilo
lie was gathering it together a bystand
fou5dthebo5d8:,a mnatord hoxe-
The German govnmment has been try
ing for nearly a year to ascertain the
exact number of people who inhabit the
empire. The returns shows that on the
first of December, 1875, the total popu
lation was 42,726.344, while in 1871 it
was 41,023,095. This shows an. increase
in four years of 1,703,749, or about an
average of one per cent, a year."
A variety show performer advertises
for a partner, and says " no Jonahs
need apply." The phrase illustrates one
of the peculiarities of the show busi
ness. A man who has been unlucky for
a long time is regarded with distrust,
no one will engage him for fear ho will
bring disaster, and he is called a Jonah,
tho idea being that ho will Pink any ship
that takes him aboard. Shown-.cn, gen
erally, are as superstitious as gamblers.
The humanitarians of London have
come to the conclusion that the Italian
juvenile beggar nuisanco is sustained
solely by the well meaning almsgiving
ot the kind hearted. In a late report of
the Italian ambassador, reference is
made to an Italian boy who some years
ago went to England with a performing
dog. Having gained a few pounds he
began business as an importer of chil
dren, and in a few years amassed 20,
000. Casting a Bronze Statue.
A correspondent who witnessed the
operation tells how bronze statues are
cast. He says: The casting of a largo
piece in bronze is a delicate operation,
requiring care and artistio skill. The
making of a plaster mold from tho origi
nal model, then a plaster figure from
that mold, and finally from the figure a
sectional mold into which to run the
metal, requires many weeks of skilled
labor. . The element of luck enters
largely into the culminating attempt to
cast, as flaws in the metal often cause
failures, imposing weeks of additional
labor. Consequently the workmen em
ployed were visibly auxious, and a knot
of spectators employed the entire after
noon in interestedly watching the pro
cess.
The large box, called a " flask," con
taining the mold, clamped firmly with
iron, was let down with a crane into a
cavity, and flowed over, so that only a
funnel protruded. This was close to a
great brick furnace, in which the bronze
was heating over a great roaring fire.
Tho metal, as it was slowly converted
into liquid, was closely observed by the
foreman. A glimpse through an aper
ture showed it boiling furiously like
water, and so hot that an iron bar stuck
into it became red almost instantly.
When the iron could be withdrawn with
out any bronze clinging to it, the com
pound was deemed ready. An immense
meta,1 bucket, attached to a powerful
crane, was swung under the end of a
spout, the furnace was tapped, and a
molten stream ran out. Sparks flew in
every direction, faces were shielded
hastily from the heat, and the dusty
Elaster images of Franklin, the Vander
ilt bas relief, and other relics of previ
ous jobs were made to glow. The bucket
was nearly filled, a turn of the crane
took it over the flask, and -the liquid
was, by tipping the backet, poured into
the mold, from which the suddenly
heated air rushed through vent pipes
with a noise like escaping steam. Some
of the bronze slopped over and set fire
to the wood, floor, and the water that
quenched the blaze made so much steam
that nothing-else could be seen ior five
minutes. The casting was perfect.