XT
mm
i
Two Dollars per Annum.
HENRY A. PARSONS, Jr., Editor and Publisher.
NIL DESPEItANDTJM.
:yOL. VII.
. Tho Highway Cow,
BI EtJOENE J. HAYEK.
The hae of her hide was a dusky brown,
Her body wag loan and hor neck was slim
One horn turned np and Uie other down,
She wai of keen vision and long of limb (
With a Itoman none and a Bhort atump tail,
And her riba like the Uiwr ut a honie-mado
pail.- .
Many a mark did hor o'd body bear,
She had boon a target for all thing known
On many a scar the dusky hair
Would grow no more whore it bad onoo
grown $
Many a passionate, parting shot
Had left upon her a lasting spot.
Many and many a well-aimed stone,
. ?iaiy a brickbat of goodly size,
And many a cudgel, swiftly thrown,
Had brought tho tears to hor bovine eyes,
Or had bounded off her bony back
With a noise like the sound of a riflo crack.
Many a day had she passed in a pound,
Tor helping herself to hor neighbor's corn ;
Many cowardly cur and hound
Had been transfixed ou her crumpled horn
Many a txaiot and old tin pail
Had tho farmer boys tied to her time-worn tail.
Old Deacon Gray was a pious man,
Though somet'mes tempted to be profane,
When many a woary mile he ran
To drive her out of his growing grain ;
Sharps were the pranks she used to play
To get her fill and get away.
Wig knew when tho deacon went to town,
She nioly watched him as he went by j
He never passed her without a frown
And an evil gleam in each angry eye ;
He would crack his whip in an angry way
And drive along in his " one-borBe shay." -
Even at his homestead she loved to call,
lifting his bars with her crumpled horn ;
Nimbly Bcaling his garden wall,
Helping herself to his standing corn ;
Eating his cabbages, one by one,
Hurrying homo when her work wa done.
Often tho doacon homeward camo,
Humming a hymn, from the house of prayer,
His hopeful heart in a tranquil frame,
His soul as calm as the evening air,
His head as smooth as a well-worn plow,
To find in his garden that highway cow.
His human passions wero quick toriee,
And striding forth with a savago cry,
AVit'.i fury blazing from both eyes,
As lightnings fl.tih in a summer sky
Redder and redder his face would grow,
A id aftor the creature ho would go.
Over t'ue garden, round and round,
Croaking his pear and apple trees ;
Tramping his melons into the ground,
Overturning his hiveB of bees j
Leaving him angry and badly stung,
Wishing the old cow's neck was wrung.
The mosses grew on th.i giirdon wall,
The years vci t by with their work and ph.y ;
The boys of the village pew strong and tall,
A'ld tho gray-haired farmers passed away,
One by one, as the red leaves fall,
But the highway cow outlived them ail.
All earthly creatures must have their day,
And me must have their months and yoars ;
Home in dying will long delay.
There is a climax to all careers,
And tho highway cow at last was slain
In running a race with a railroad train.
All into pieces at onco she went,
Just like the savings banks when they fall j
Out of the world she was swiftly sent,
Littlo was left but her old stump tail.
The farmers' cornfields and gardens now
Aro haunted no more by the highway cow.
HIDING FOR LIFE.
Iu the nntumn of the year 1866, busi
ness necessitated my leaving Hong-Kong,
where I hail for some years resided, and
proceeding to Swatow. one of the ports
upon the east coast of China open for
foreign tralKo, I arranged my affairs at
that plnce sooner than I expected, and as
no steamer bound for the south was in
the harbor, or expected for some days, I
determined to prooeed in the Heather
Boll, a bark-rigged nailing vessel of about
three hundred tons register.
I was well acquainted with Ler captain,
but what perhaps chiefly induced me to
tnko passage in his vessel was the faot of
Jiis daughter being aboard, Lottie Moore
was a golden-haired, blue-eyed darling,
upon whose fair head some seventeen
Bummers had smiled. Upon her mother's
demise, 6he had quitted her home in Eng
land to accompany her bereaved father
in his wanderings from clime to clime.
The Heather Bell Bailed from Swatow
just as day broke. On the evening of the
next day, a little before ten o'clock, I
was sitting with Miss Moore in the saloon,
admiring some water-color sketches that
young lady had executed, when the chief
mate entered.
" There's a large junk coming right
toward us, sir. By the number of sweeps
she pulls, I reckon she carries a consid
erable crew," he said.
I knew what he meant, and so did the
skipper, just as well as if he had spoken
all that was passing in his mind; more
over, I Appreciated his motive for reti
cence, for if he hod said plainly that he
feared she was a pirate, it would have
alarmed the fair girl, who, thoughtless
of danger near, was chatting so vivacious
ly with me.
Captain Moore ran upon deck; and
when I heard him shortly afterward tell
life mate to call all hands, I also proceed
ed to the poop, and found him gazing
.intently through a pnir of binocular
iglasses at a Chinese craft hit was od-
vWicing, with furled sails, in the dead
t. being propelled by an array of oars
tliuTWluej nd glittered in the phos
phorescent water.
" He's a'n ugly customer, and no mis
take. We pha'n't have much of a show if
he attacks ii, but I will let him see that
we are on tiie alert. Perhaps we can
manage to 'intimidate him, "he said, as
be stooped down and commenced casting
adrift the lashings of a small cast-iron
four-pounder that was only useful as a
signal gun.
Directly this unformidable cannon was
loaded with blank cartridge and dis
charged, the junk altered her course,
and passed under our stern a considera
ble distance away. Captain Moore,
when he noticed this movement, was in-
olimxl t think that ehe was a mere trad
ing junk.
At midnight I retired to my berth, and
had just Bank in tho wwt embrace of
sleep, when I Wn8 startled to wakeful
ness by the boom of a heavy gun, whilo
the crash of fulling spars, mingling with
its echoing thunder, told me plainly thnt
our vessel was attacked, and tlint the
first shot had taken terrible bffect upon
her.
t grasped my revolver, and rushed
through the snloon toward the companion-way,
only halting for an instant near
the mizzen-mnst to glean a cutlass from
the rack which Bttrtoundcd it, ero I as
cended to the deck. The scene that met
my ryes on gaining it Ixiiues oil lies
cnption. Tangled wiyltigu, rent Bails
and riven spars lay in confused heaps
around, nud from under the chaotic rti in
issued deep groans of ngot.y ftvun the
wounded and dyie while myriads of
torches aboard a huge junk that had
ranged. alongside, shed acros's the sea a
weird, yellow glare, revealing only too
piainiy uie dread eiiects of wnntou car
nage. As the junk ran Under our hows, a
multitude of fierce demobs-, tjowdt-r-
grimed find insatiable in UiW Just for
blood, clnmbeml fc) (Vur deck, and
pressed their Way aft. The fallen spars
and multifarious impediments effectually
prevented any one passing fcl'o'iig the
port side, so I'aptam Moore, three sea
men mid myself, the only survivors.
rushed into the alley-woy to starboard of
me iteck-iiouse, anil there stood resolute
ly at bay.
Our murderous antagonists possessed
no fire-arms, but each one carried a short.
ponderous native Bword, called a pa
keem ; these, however Were of but little
avail agaiunt the Winged messengers of
deatu our trusty revolvers sent into the
midst of the advancing horde, until it
became apparent to them and to us that
our ammunition wn3 giving out.
" Find Lottie, Mr. Carter. We have
no chance; but, for heaven's sake save
her from those merciless wretches. I
have my death wound now," cried the
skipper.
I sprang down the cabin stair-way,
and found the fair girl kneeling at the
table imploring succor from on high.
Her face was ghastly pale, and a tremor
visibly convulsed her frame when she
saw my blood-stained brow.
" Are they subdued ? Where is my
father ?" sho cried, as she sprang to her
feet.
I caught her in my srms, and bore her
bodily on deck. It had been my inten
tion to place her in the captain's gig,
that hung in the quarterdovits, and
lower it into the sea; but hardly had we
emerged from the companion hatch,
when above the clash of steel, and the
groans of the wounded, I heard ring out
from three hundred throats, a word of
dreadful import " Shing!" (Victory!1)
and knew that my brave comrades had
been beaten down that the pirates
held undisputed possession of the vessel.
While in Swatow the ship's jolly boat,
or dingy, had been injured; and, since
our departure, the carpenter had been
employed repairing her bottom, as she
lay inverted on the poop. I knew that
I should not have time to lower the gig
when I heard the war-cry change to a
note of triumph; and I instinctively felt
that our only chauco of escaping death
!ny in concealing ourselves beneath the
little dingy, as the cabin and hold would
be thoroughly searched for plunder.
" Crawl under, quickly. I will follow
you," I whispered in the ear of the ter
rified girl, as I raised the stern of the
light craft.
As if mechanically, she obeyed me;
then, with much difficulty, I managed
to creep under myself; and scarcely
had I lowered our frail tenement to the
deck ere it was surrouuded by a horde
of miscreants, who were yociferating
loudly.
Even at this hour, I shudder when I
remember the agony of suspense I en
dured duriug the ransacking of the
vessel.
At length it became obvious that the
pirates had accomplished their work of
plunder, for I heard one direct his satel
lites to set fire to the ship, and hurry
baok to their own vessel.
Soon the sound of plashing oars told
me that the piratical ornft was speeding
away from the hapless vessel she had
destroyed; so T cautiously uplifted the
dingy and crept from beneath her. A
bright, glowing flame, shooting skyward
from the fore-hatch, plainly indicated
how well the marauder chief's mandate
had been obeyed, and told me in words
of fire that I must immediately bear
Lottie from the Heather Bell and trust
to a less greedy element for safety. I
quickly lowered the gig, but ehe sank on
touching the water; the pirates had
staved in her bottom: The increasing
roar of the grasping flames, that twined
like glittering serpents np the shronds
and masts, inspired me with extra
energy. I uplifted the dingy, and, when
Lottie crawled from beneath it, with ker
assistance bore it to tho tuff ail.
" We have no time to lower it; we
must 1 lunch it bodily," I said, catching
my darling in my arms. " Be not afraid,
dear love," I cried, then sprang with
her into the seething sea.
We sank deep beneath the briny flood,
but I struck vigorously upward, and
soon gaiued the surface. Then, drawing
the lovely girl's head upon my shoulder,
I swam rapidly toward the drifting din
gy. It was on its keel and floating buoy
antly; so I clambered in, drew Lottie
after me, and then sank weak and pros
trate from over-exhaustion, in the stern
sheets. My fair companion raised my
head, and gently tended me until I re
coveied my faculties recovered them
just in time to see the pretty Heather
Bell sink, a holocaust, to her grave in
the coral depths.
Soon after, a vessel, which proved to
be the Lily, rescued us from our peril
ous position and carried us in safety to
Hong Kong, iu which city, twelve
months subsequently, I led to the hyme
nial altar the dear, brave girl who had
shared my peril on that eventful night.
Immediate surroundings go far in
forming individual character. Washing
ton Irving thought it was an advantage
to one to live and grow up by the side of
a beautiful river, or near a lofty moun
tain, as the frequent sight of them would
awaken thoughts and feelings of beauty
and grandness, and thus make good im
pressions on the mind.
MDGWAY, ELK
Who Says Girls Can't Cook t
Iteury Algernon Sidney called upon a
couple of young lady friends in Easton a
few afternoons since, and found them in
entire possession of the house. Father
and mother had gone to the farm in the
country, and the wi'S had gohe with
another hlou up the Delaware to look for
trailing arbutus with which to trim the
hop-hole.
Those three young 'people enjoyed
themselves that afternoon to a degree
that was positively alarming to the
neighbors, But nhutl the . best of fun,
like many other Mhrifo is liable to break
in two in t tt!dule, and right in the
rnh'ei of (heir jolity, Maud suddenly
whispered to Annie : , .,
" Oh I what in tlje wHrfd M we do
about Ally's trapper V You see, his name
!l Algernon, but they call him "Ally"
for sweet.
"Never mind, Mandy, dear, we'll fix
that. If we can't do any better we can
cook dome ham aud egg, nnyhow,"
Tim result was that Henry Algernon
was let Into the secret that the cook was
ftway, and the girls didn't know enough
about coriking to disgust a cannibal, but
wt?rrj 'going to try for his sake, and he ac
companied them down to the kitchen.
With a herculean effoH ha sawed off a
couple nf ltte3 of ham about as thick os
a board, aud left tho rind on them, tell
ing the girls his mother always did that
to keep them in shape the ham not
the girls.
Maud, withont the slightest hesita
tion, took down the teapot, measured
out a teacupful of green and a teacnpful
of block ten, Which she put in together,
and as the aettle was boiling she half
filled the pot with water ftnd set it on
the back port of the stove to draw.
Annie went in the cellar and came back
with an air of confidence, two pounds of
butter, a dozen eggs and a pitcher of
milk. She laid them down and said, in
quiringly :
"Maud, when cook makes ham with
cream gravy, did you evor notice whether
she puts iu the .butter ahd flour or the
sugar and milk first?"
" Oh ! no, Annie, you mix tho flour
and milk aud sugar and then put the
butter in the pau."
"How much butter?"
"Oh I I don't know; 'bout half a
pound, I guess.''
Annie cut off a chunk of butter about
the sizo of a colt's hind foot aud put it
in a pan that was already hot on the
lire, and while it was melting beautifully
she proceeded to mix up the other
things, which in a moment she poured
in liberally and conscientiously. The
pan hesitated a moment, as though it
had been astonished at something, and
then commenced to foam away in fine
style. While the girls wiped the per
spiration off their faces, Henry Algernon,
sitting on the edge of tho kitchen table,
said : '
" Now, girls, why don't you flop in
your ham 1"
"Oh! sure enoughl" and each girl
grasping a slice of ham, dropped it
gracefully in the seething pan, the con
tents of which of course sloshed over
like a Fourth of July orator, and there
went up a smoke in that kitchen along
side of which the smoke of Sodom and
Gomorrah was ten-for-a-cent cigarette,
and if it had not been that the tea kettle
boiled over just then and put out the
conflagration there might have been
trouble.
When Henry Algernon, Maud and
Annie ventured in from the shelter of
the grape arbor and looked upon the
wreck they all mildly sighed.
"Oh! pshaw!" observed Annie, "I
don't care, so I don't. I can't cook any
how." J
"Never mind, Annie!" replied Maud
consolingly, "go down in the cellar
and get some bread and I'll cook some
eggs. Ally, how do you like your
eggs?"
"Well," remarked Algernon, with the
air of an epicure that had graduated iu a
four dollar boarding-house, " I'm not at
all particular; but if I have a preference
at all it is for broiled."
Maud looked at him wildly for a
second; but she was not going to bo put
down by any young man who wore a
mole with two hairs in for a mustache,
and she got down the broiler and set it
over the coals to get warm. Then she
broke six eggs into a dish, and finding
the broiler was so hot she couldnt lift it,
deliberately trailed tho eggs across it.
The natural consequence was another
Sodom and Gomorrah, and another re
treat to the grape arbor, while the tea
pot having boiled itself dry in a second
attempt to come to the rescue, cracked
open, let the damp tea out on the stove,
aud added a separate and distinct per
fume to the scene that .was rather
pleasant.
Both girls showed stromr symptoms
of washing their aprons in their eyes,
wuen Algernon came gallantly to the
rescue, saying :
" Here, girls, let's call this a conun
drum and give it up, aud go to some
place where we can buy ice cream and
eike and strawberries without the
trouble of cooking them."
And those two girls grabbed the
smoking ham off the fire, as one man,
ruised up their voices and said :
" Amen." Eastern Free Press.
Courting by Telegraph.
One of the passengers on the Dakota,
says an Oregon paper, was Mr. Hill
Harmon, aud accompanying him a wife.
Mr. Harmon, shortly after the death of
his first wife, informed his family of his
determination to marry again, and that
at tho earliest possible moment. Know
ing of a lady in Maine (whom, however,
he hod never seen) who possessed all the
qualities his heart desired, he at onoe
opened correspondency with her by
telegraph, which, after several messages,
resulted in an engagement and the nam
ing of the day for their inarriage. Pack
ing his valise, Mr. Harmon started,
using the telegraph in the dispatch of
amatory messages all the way. They
were married, and now they are at their
Steilacoom home he, after an absence
of thirty-three days. In that time he
traveled 9,900 miles, met his present
wife for the first time, and married her,
and has been to New York, Boston,
Chicago, St. Louis, Detroit, Buffalo,
Montreal, Quebec, Toronto and San
Francisco, at each of which places they
made short stays. She is a fine-looking,
sensible woman, who will make him a
good wife.
COUNTY, THURSDAY; JULY 20,
RVT HUNTING SXAKES.
A New Kind of Vermin Exlermlnnior nt
Work.
Some months ago ft tcutlerhrtu ffohi
DnmphriR pflid H tisit to a friend of his
in the township of - ljeTrlyi Crtriada a
Mr, Henry remaiuod with liim for"
several days. During his visit the Dum
phries gentleman complained that his
house was literally infested with rats and
mice. He had tried every device to get
rid of thfmj and ,nU Hn.I failpdi, Jfflr.
Heuryj wilo id il iligfeluons as he is fond
of sport, declared that he could battle the
rots out of his friend's cellar in no time,
to tine his ovu hprhsM(Vt; Next day the
two drove to the gentiemon's house iii
Dumphries. Mr. nenry took with him
a common quarter gross match box
pierced with a few holes, which he care
fully placed under the seat of the buggy.
The Dumphries gentleman, feeling that
his friend wo? going to give him a snr
prises probably with Borne itnprotehient
bn tho fcrretj askeil ho questions, the
better to, enjojr the surprise when it did
come. Arriving at, the house they had
djnnler, rtiid itter the ladifis had retired
Mr. Henry lilacoit the box ou the table
and removed the lid. In an instant from
the box leapal a full-grown garter-snake,
measuring three feet nud a half in length.
The reptile, which was highly excited with
the heat, reaied itself almost on the ex
tremity of its fail and glided about the table
with remarkable rapidity, licking its
ghastly jaws with its forked and nimble
tongue. The Dumphrieo gentleman
shrank back iilto the corllef almost petri
fied with httrror. Mr. Henry showed
how silly this was by taking the snake
upon his arm and handling it much like a
hack driver would handle his whip-lash.
Finally his fears were overcome, and
when he had composed himself he led
his friend into the cellar where the snake
was set at liberty. The reptile immedi
ately darted for 'the wall, and the next
moment discovered a hole( into which it
glided with the greatest ease. An inter
esting terrier stood at their heels, and
both gentlemen held club , which were
tramps just about then. The snake had
not disappeird over a minute before half
a dozen rats bounded out of tho hole and
met a terrible fate at the hands of their
enemies outside. But the snake was not
satisfied; it discovered every rat hole iu
the cellar, and glided in and out among
the rocks where even a rat could not have
gone. It was finally taken up and placed
in a box after twenty rats and almost as
many mice hnd been killed. The snake
belongs to a black garter family, which
are in reality the best friend the farmer
has. They. live exclusively on the field
mice, worms, flies and other vermin, and
if they occasionally glide across the path
of a human being their lives should be
preserved, as their good qualities counter
balance these defects. The one posses
sed by Mr. Henry was caught by him last
summer in a pea-field, and since he has
had it no rats are to be seen or heard of
in the neighborhood of his house.
Flutes.
Athena3U8, in tho "Diepnosophists,"
refers to the flute made of the leg bone
of the kid as an invention of the (Gre
cian) Thebans, and states that tho flute
elephantine (ivory) was first bored among
the Phoenicians. Flutes among the
classic Greeks were also made of asses'
bones, which are said to be remarkably
solid. They are supposed to have a full
ness of tone highly suggestive of the in
flated style of their original proprietor.
Dr. Schliemann, in his excavations at
Hissorlik, discovered a beautifully-ornamented
flute of bone. The flutes of the
Araucauians were made of the arm and
leg bones of prisoners offered in sacri
fice. The Caribs used human bones, but
now use the bones of the jaguar. Their
flute has three holes, and, iike the Gui
ana flute of bamboo, is blown by the
breath directed against the edge of the
orifice. A Guiana flute in the National
Museum at Washington is made of the
thigh bone of a jaguar. The TJaupe In
dians of Brazil use fifes and flutes of
reed and of deer's bones. Wallace also
noticed a whistle made of a deer's skull.
The Brazilian flageolets are of bone; an
average one has two bones, twelve inches
long and three-eighths inch bore, united
by twine neat'y wound and worked. On
the back of the lower part are finger
holes. The whistle is formed of a cone
of resinous cement beneath the mouth
orifice, the ridge of cement rising to the
center of the tube. The Kafir whistles
are of bone or ivory, and are blown into
in the manner of blowing a key, while
holding the instrument against tne lower
lip. The flute of the Maories is made
from a human thigh bone, that of a slain
enemy being preferred. Two ancient
Peruviau pipes of bone had five finger
holes each, and one of human bone had
four finger-holes.
The Child and the Painted Window,
In a summer-house belonging to an
old inn on the Rhine, there is a large
window, whose panes of colored glass
often attract the attention of any traveler
who enters the little sitting-room.
Children more especially love to gaze
upon the noble river and the surround
ing landscape under th different in
fluences of a green, blue, red or yellow
medium, and clap their tiny hands to see
the vineyards or beautiful ruins so
changed. A boy once lingered near this
favorite window, and detained by all the
arts in his power the old man that ac
companied him. Now, it was the fiery
red which pleased the child most now
the golden tinge made everything appear
like enchanted ground, and sometimes
again the green had more softness where
upon to rest his eyes. His companion,
after reflecting some time, said, as he
gazed on his eager looks and changing
fancies: " Thou puttest me in mind of
the life of man, which in its passing
stages resembles nothing more than this
window. At first, during infancy, he
chooses the plain gloss, that shows him
nature's real brightness, but roon what
charms him at first becomes insipid. He
then seeks in gaudy red, something more
beautiful relapses again into son arreen.
until he settles into the gold, dazzling
yellow, which gives a false value to
every object. The last age will be th
gloomy blue, in which there seems an
everlasting storm coming over the face
of nature. He would faiu seek another
color, but some rude hand shuts the
blind, and pushes him awmy.
THE FORK.
lis Advent Into Hood HnrlrtT-lKC of Our
Ferrfnllirr.
We often laugh at tho Chinese and
tlfeir chopsticks, or small, thin sticks of
wood or ivory with which the cnt, and
fancy they must make tery dirty ttork at
thei meam, yet tney are cieaniy nnu
civilized compared with the habits of Our
ancestors some 300 years ago, Then
forks Were unknown; e. man had his'
own knife, and at dinner Seized ne i
with his hand, and cut off what lie wftnttn;
the iIibu won then t?ssd on to the next,
who did the Bame. The knifo then rut
up the portions into small pieces, which
were put into tne mourn by ine nngi is
fcf the hnd titioccupied by tho knife. Iu
many parts of Spaiu.aiprbefetfdrinkjng
glasses, epoons Mid forks are rareues;
and in taverns in many coniltrietv
ticularly in some towns in France, knives
are not placed on the table, because it is
expected that each person has one of his
own-a custom which the French seem
to have i'etdiueit froirt the old Gauls.
But, as no other ptraoh. wLU ahy ltihger
ent. without forks; iahcllords are obliged
td furnish these, together with plates and
spooii!1. None of the eoytireigns of ,Eng:
hme had forks till the reign of Henry"
the Eighth ; all, high and low, used their
fingers. Hence, in the royal household,
there was a dignity called the ewer, who,
with o set of subordinates, attended at
the meals with basin, water, and towels.
The office of ewary survived after forks
came partially into fashion. About the
first royal personage in England who is
known 'to have had a fork was Queen
Elisabeth; but, although several were
presented to her; it remains doubtful
whether she used them on ordinary occasions,--
Forks were employed only by the
higher classes at the middle of the sev
enteenth century. About the period of
the Revolution, '1688, few English noble
men had more than a dozen forks of sil
ver, along with a few of iron or steel.
At length, for general use, steel forks
became ou article of manufacture at
Sheffield; at first they had but two
prongs, and it was only in later times
that tho three-pronged kind were made.
As late as the early part of the eighteenth
century table-forks and, we may add,
knives were kept on so small a scale by
the country inns in Scotlaud (and per
haps in some parts of England) that it
was customary for gentlemen traveling
to cany with them a portable knife atld
fork iu a shagreen case. The general in
troduction of silver forks into Great
Britain is quite recent; it can be dated
no further back than the termination of
the French war in 1814.
Keeping Step.
There is one thing, writes a corre
spondent, which has been upon my mind
for so long a time aud has impressed me
with so much force that I have come to
believe it to be my duty to offer a few
words in regard to it. I refer to the
praetico of " keeping step " upon tho
sidewalks. Now, unquestionably, it is
a pleasnut sight to see a company of six
or eight young men, of equal size, walk
ing along the street, two abreast, and
keeping perfect step. It is not only
pleasant to the sight, but the regular
and harmonious sound upon the pave
ment is " music to the listening ear." So
far I do not object. Tho practice is un
doubtedly entertaining to those who are
pleased to indulge in it, and, perhaps, so
far it may be commendable. But look
for a moment to what extremes this prac
tice has been carried. Elegaut young
men and self-appointed dictators of fash
ion have come to consider it almost a
criminal offense aud certainly an unpar
donable breach of etiquette not to pre
serve the most accurate uniformity of
motion with 'those with whom they are
walking along the street. What ridicu
lous and laughable spectacles result from
a conformity to this supposed rule !
I cannot conceive of a more ludicrous
spectacle than the sight of a tall, slim
man with pedal extremities equal to the
sum of the square of tho other two sides,
catching and gasping and tripping in the
vaiu endeavor to adjust his disappor
tioned limbs so as to keep perfect step
with the delicate young lady at his side.
This practice may be, and undoubtedly
is, a great source of fun to tho ladies,
but it is the most complete agony to the
young men. Walking any great distance
witn a young lady, in the heat of sum
mer, and especially on tho streets where
a grand display of etiquette seems indis.
penBible, is an experience that but very
few young men are willing to undergo.
It seems to me that a radical change
ought to be wrought in this direction,
and who is to take the lead in this re
form t Certainly not those simple, but
otherwise very proper young men, who
believe that refinement and gentility con
sists in mechanical adjustments of the
body not to these, to be sure, but to
those whom refinement is a natural and
inherent quality, is reserved the honor.
I am in hopes that these few unpreten
tious lines may have the effect of work
iug a reform in this particular.
The Solau Goose.
Mr. Frank Buckland has been experi
menting upon the anatomical construc
tion of the gannet, and says it possesses
in its body the most perfect aeronautic
machinery that can be conceived. There
is a communication between tho lungs,
the feathers, aud the hollow bones of
the birds, by means of which it is able
to inflate itself like a balloon. The
gannet on which Mr. Buckland experi
mented measured nine inches across the
chest, but when inflated it measured
fourteen inches. By suddenly press
ing the inflated body, the dead bird
immediately gave out the loud call of
the bird when alive, the sound being
produced by means of the air passing
through the voice box at the bottom of
the windpipe. The gannet can in
stantaneously extrude all this air from
its lungs, bones, and feathers ; and
this enables it to drop down from a
height upon its prey in the sea with
amazing rapidity. Some years ago one
of these birds was flying over Penzance
in Cornwall, when seeing some pil
chards lying on a fir plank, in a plaoe
for curing those fish, it darted itself
down with so much violence as to stick
its bill quite through an inch and a
quarter plank, and kill itself on the
spot. The bones of the bird's neck are
of amazing strength, and as hard as
an iron rod. The head is joined to the
atlas by a beautiful bail-and-sock.et
joint
W7.
Hindoo Juggler".
L-'gotdemain has been practiced from
a very early period, aud to this day India
and 'Japan seem to excel all other
countries. We have our prestidigita
teurs, and s mo of them, by means of
elaborate apparatus and an ingenious
way of diverting the niidience and their
attention, manage to produce striking
effects : but in genuine legerdemain,
that skillful manipulation that deceives
you as you watch, our performers fail to
approach their Asiatic rivals. Many of
our tricks are indeed but cojiiCS frcm tho
tricks of the East.
The trick of the Brahmin seated in the
air, now oftefl exhibited, vas first per
formed in 1828 by ii Ittahmin named
Sheshah, The man really sat on U ot?l
ring, supported by slight but strong
bors, affix1' to the bamboo near which he
seo?d to bo Bitoperj'M n the air.
The Hindoos pre so litiie niid "upple
that they seem to be serpents rather
than men. Swallowing the sword is a
common trick; others walk on thin linen
cloth, held in the hands of four persons,
and they neither ruffle ltfnor tear it from
the hMi'ds t)t the holders,
Another jugglef tk n heavy stone,
hud; tying a rope sround the Middle,
madb fntit around his neck. Two men
stood beside liitf; holding their arms
joined behind. With apparent slight
exertion he threw the stone up into1 Jrt
air in a curve, lo that it alighted on the
arm of one man ; then, with a jerk, he
shifted it to the arm of tho other man ;
thou he threw it up ogaiu and received
it on the back of his own neck, and final
ly swung it entirely around his head.
The conjurors of Jehangii'e, In W15,
were desired to produce upon the spo,
nd from seed, ten mulberry trees. They
immediately planted ten seeds, which iu
a few minutes produced as many trees,
each, as it grew into the sif, spreading
forth its branches and yielding excellent
fruit. Iu like manner, apple, fig, almond,
walnut aud mango-trees wero produced,
all yielding fruit, which Jehangiro as
sures ii b was of the finest quality.
But tliii was not all. "Before tho
trees were removed," srtys the imperial
author, "there appeared among the
foliage birds of surprising beauty in
color aud shape and melody of song
as the world never saw before. At the
close of the operation the foliage, os in
autumn, was seen to put on its varied
tints, and the trees gradually disappeared
into the earth from which they had been
made to spring."
Major Price stated, many years ago,
that he had himself witnessed similar feuts
iu India, but that a sheet was employed
to cover the process. "I have, how
ever," he adds, "no conception of the
means by which they were accomplished,
nuless the jugglers had the trees about
them in every stage, from the seedling to
tho fruit."
The tricks of the fakirs, or religious
mendiennts, of that country are very re
markable. One of these fellows boasted
that ho would appaer at Amadabaut, a
town about two hundred miles from
Snrat, within fifteen days after being
buried ten feet deep at the latter place.
The governor of Surat resolved to test
the fellow'n powers, and had a grave dug,
in which the fakir placed himself, stipu
lating that a layer of reeds should be in
terposed between his body aud the
superincumbent earth, with a space of
two feet between his body and the reeds.
This was done, and the grave was then
filled up, and a guard of soldiers placed
at the spot to prevent trickery.
A large tree stood ten or twelve yards
from the grave and beneath its shade
several fakirs were grouped around a
large earthen jar, which was filled with
water. The officer of the guard, sus
pecting that some trick was to be played,
ordered tho jar to be moved, and, on this
being done by the soldiers, after some
opposition on the part of the dirty fel
lows assembled round it, a shaft was
discovered, with a subterranean gallery
from its bottom to within two feet of the
grave. The impostor was thereupon
made to ascend, aud a riot ensued, in
which he and several other persons were
slain.
Words of Wisdom.
Love those who advise but not those
who praise you.
The excesses of our youth are drafts
upon our old age, payable with interest,
about thirty years ai'tey dato.
It is better to sow a good heart with
kindness than a field with corn, for the
heart's harvest is perpetual.
Vanity is our dearest weakness, in
more senses than one : a man will sacri
fice everything, and starve out all the
other inclinations, to keep alive that
one.
The highest point outward things can
bring us to Is the contentment of the
mind, with which no estate can be poor,
without which all estates will be miser
able. Most persons are particularly suite-
fill against those foibles in others which
they themselves have. They remind us
of a monkey scratching aud grinning at
the mimic monkey in the glass.
Accustom yourself to think vigorous
ly. Mental capital, like pecuniary, to
be worth anything, must be well invest
ed must be rightly adjusted aud appli
ed, aud to this end careful, deep and in
tense thought is necessary if great re
sults are looked for. There is no such
thing as standing still in this world.
Change is the eternal law of nature.
It is in the minute circumstances of a
man's conduct that wo are to inquire for
his real character. In these he is under
the influence of hia-imturnl disposition,
and acts from himself ; while in his
more open and important actions he may
be drawn by public opinion, and mauy
other external motives, from that bias
whicii his disposition would have taken.
Happiness is the perpetual possession
ol beings well deceived, for it is mum
fest what mighty advantages fiction has
over truth ; and the reason is at our
elbow, because imagination can build
nobler scenes and produce more .wonder'
ful revolutions than fortune or nature
can be at the expense to furnish.
With a clear sky, a bright sun, and a
gentle breeze, you can have friends in
plenty ; but let fortune frown and the
firmament be overcast, and then your
friends will prove like the strings of a
lute, of which you will tighten before
you will find one that will bear the
stxepci and keep the pitch,
NO. 23.
Sweet to tlio Sweet.
Mv Flora la the sweetest girl !
Ono would half think she fed on Howcm,
Did one not know she put away
Much solid food at ynlgar houra.
Ilcr lipa are red, and pink her chcoka i
Her sweet yonng figure's nicely rouuded.
Did yon but see hor at her lnnch,
By Jovo, I think you'd be astounded !
Stay, stay 'tis moan those littlo things'
Thim puhlioly to be reporting j
There la o much in Flora swoot,
It ought and does take aomo Bnpportnig.
Items or Interest.
. What doc every one thirst after ? A
red-herring.
When ought moriuem to havo fruit at
sea 7-Whcn they stem the currents.
Modern marriage, says n contempor
ary, begins with a court and ends with a
pourt.
The Bashi-Bozonks ride with such
short stirrups they can wipe their noses
on their knees without bending over.
Four hundred and one thousand men
died or were killed in the Crimea during
the war which was named from that
place.
Over 2,000 miles of railroad, at a cost
of about 815,000,0000, have been com
pleted in the United States in the year
just elapsed.
The coal fields of the world, it is said,
will be exhausted in about two thousand
years. Prudent people will lay in their
supply at once.
Earthquakes or volcanic eruptions oc
cur on an overage nearly three times a
week, in greater or less intensity, in Borne
parts ot the globe.
As Geiicttil Tcherthcmoslemshcadoff
was leaving tiX the wars, his sweetheart
remarked to him, ui tears: "Though I
no more behold thee, Jt is thy name a
spell,"
How doth the sweet potato bug,
Unruffled and serene,
Smile as he nips the tender plant,
Aud leaves the Paris green 1
Vi-nm tho Into nf t.hn first discovery of
gold in California down to tho close of
the year 1875, the total amount of golit
and silver produced in the United States
... oafnllMWH- Onhl. 332. 700. 000: sil
ver, 8201,450,000 ; total value, $1,594,-
150,000.
Nevada sheriffs have exciting experi-
ounaa Da illnotrfttpfl VlV Sheriff HlllR. HO
rode two hundred miles in three days in
a chase alter norse inieves, overioon.
them as they were encamped, and cap
tured ono after a fight in which seventeen
pistol shots were nreo.
John Shannon, in Coleman, Ky., was
separating some cattle from the rest of
the herd. A rope had been thrown over
a powerful bull, and he was fastened to
a tree. The rope broke, and the bull
made for Shannon, caught him on his
horns and tossed him in the air. As he
came down the maddened beast caught
him acain and threw him up, this tinio
killing him.
Learning a Trade In Old Age.
A Washington correspondent says: A
gentleman who is fifty years of age, and
who for over twenty-nve years nos nciu
a clerkship in the War department, was
recently discharged. Ho had a lorge
family, and became nearly crazy. Know
ing nothing whatever of the world, and
being almost too old to do anything,
having given his best days to the govern
ment as a clerk, he wandered about tho
streets in search of some kind of employ
ment. He was unable to find any until,
seeing ou advertisement in a newspaper
stating that some printer needed an ap
prentice, he applied for the posititiou,
and strauge as it may seem, his services
were accepted ; aud now if any one takes
the trouble to visit a certain printing
office of this city he will find an appren
tice nlty years ol age learning ms irauo,
receiving for his wages about 83 per
week. The old mon soys he will get
through his time in three years, and that
then, having a trade, he will be what ho
has never been independent. He thinks
his 3 per weelt, judiciously expended,
will go a long way in the purchase of
bread and milk, and lie lias oireauy ue
gun to sympathize with the thousands of
poor creatures who are caged up in the
departments, who are the most forlorn
lookiug objects when they get discharged,
A Colorado Railroad.
The Colorado Central Narrow Gauge
Railroad runs through Clear Creek
canon. The granite cliffs descend a
thousand feet to the river, without any
bank. The railway is channeled irnni
the hillside. The twistings and turnings
of the canon are interminable and innu
merable. In graceful.curves or in bold,
rounded sweep the stream and the rail
road pursue their parallel course the
raiiway seldom crossing the river. The
grade is about 150 feet to the mile, and
the dash of the water is a sight to Bee.
A correspondent of the Boston Adver
tiser says: " The trip was so exciting
that we grasped our seats and hardly
talked. Two of the party rode on the
cowcatcher. They report it as the grand
est ride of their lives. The granite cliffs
were as wonderful, and even- more so,
than the river. Of gray and red granite,
streaked all hues by the action of the
scarcely concealed ores, with their forma
tions exposed as if cut across by the
knife of giants seamed, twisted, gnarled
presenting sometimes smooth and at
others the most grotesque faces, they
were a constant study. What kept mil
lions of loose stone from dropping upon
the track no one could understand. They
looked like demons with their heads
downward, ready to pounce upon us."
Fish In an Artesian Well.
An artesian well in Ventura county,
Col., spouts np fish. In a meeting of the
San Francisco Academy of Sciences,
speuimens of the fish, supposed to be
trout, were presented. The well was
bored in 1871, and every year since baa
thrown out immense quantities of fresh
ly spawned fish in April and May. The
well is capped, having three two-inch
apertures, from one of which people were
in the habit of filling barrels with water
for household tiseu. Iu that way the fish
were discovered. The cap was removed
and fish were ejected in large numbers.
In a bucketfid one-fourth of the weight
of the contents was fish. The fish are ot
various sizes, the largest about an inch
in length. The nearest stream where fish
are found is twenty-five miles away.