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HENRY A. PARSONS, Jr., Editor and Publisher. Nit. ttESPfcftANjbtJM. " Two Dollars per Annum.
VOL. VIII. RIDGWAY, ELK COUNTY, PA., THUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 1878. KO. 24.
i
7
Kin? Cheese.
(A Story nf thi rarU Exhibition qf 1867.)
Wbre many cloud-wreathed mountain blanches
Etnlly in the bine sbyw,
And tonnes Its torrents and avalanches
Thundering from cliff and precipice,
There In the lovely land of the 8wlss
Tnd of lakes and of Icy aean.
Of chamois and chalets,
Au ) beautiful valleys,
Musical boxes, ratchea, and cheese.
Picturesque, with Ha landscapes preen and cool,
8leek cattle standing in shadow or pool,
And dairy-maid bearing pall and stool
That la the quaint little town of Nulla.
There, one day. iu the old town-hall,
Oatheredthe worthy burghera all,
Great and small,
Short and tall,
At the burgomaster's call.
The stout and fat, the lean and lame.
From house and shop, and dairy and pasture,
In queer old costumes, up they came,
Obedient to the burgomaster.
He made a speech " Fellow-citizens : There la
To be, as you know,
A wonderful show,
A Universal Fair, at Pans;
Where every country its product carries.
Whatever most beautiful, useful, or rare is,
To please and surprise,
Aud perhaps win a prize.
Now here Is the question
Which craven your counsel aud suggestion
With you it lies;
Bo, alter wise
And careful consideration of It,
Hay, what shall ce nond for our honor and f refit ?"
Home 'aid this thing, some stid that;
Then up rose a burgber, ruddy and IV,
Rounder aud redder than all the rest,
With a nose like a rose, aud an asthmatic chest;
And savs he, with a wheeze,
Like the buzzing ot bees:
" I propose, if you please.
That we send 'em a eheM.n
Then a lithe little man,
Took the floor, and began,
In a high, squeaky voice: " I approve of the plan;
But 1 wiab to amend
What proposed by my friend:
A MO cheese. I think, is the thing we should
seud."
Then up jumped a third,
To put lu a word,
And amend the amendment they bad just beard;
"A KOYAL IU Q CIICKUK ' wu the phrase he
preferred.
The question was moved,
lHbcUbsed aud approved,
And the vote wits uuaulmouH, that it behooved
Their auulfLit, vcuoruble corporation,
To send mcL a cheese an should honor the nation.
Boeiiiltd i he go.'crun convocation;
And ftH-rine deliberation,
The burgomaster made proclamation,
Inviting people of every station,
JEach accurdiug to his vocation,
With patriotic emulation,
To Jul u in a general jubilation,
Ami get up a cheese lor the grand cccaalon.
Then shortly begau the preparation.
One uioiuiiig was heard a rafghty clamoring,
With roimdbuf sawing and plauing aud hammer
ing. The prfi liters, forsaking their easels and pallets.
Came to luok ou. or aix-lnt in the labor;
The j-iiners were there )tb their chisels and maU
lets ;
Trade o all grades, every tnan with hie neigh
bor ;
The nn reenter, coopers.
And stout iron-hoopers,
Erecting a pretta fur tu thing to be done in,
A tub b k eLouifii to put tou after ton in,
And gutters fur rivers of liquid to run in.
March was the month the work was began in
If that oi-ultf t- 111 T thing hut fun In;
r ... Auiniied In April, and long before May
Everything was prepared for the curd and the
whey.
Then ti e belle were set ringing
The milking began ;
All ovr the land went the dairy-maids singing j
Boy and man,
Cart, pail, and can,
And peasant gli la. each in their nrettv dress.
jrruui uigunaj uu u-wj au rouna, ouue bring'
Morning and evening, the Dilk to tbe pre...
i-nen ii iook seveu iie uenas together to guess
l Jast bow mark rennt-t. uo more mid oo less.
'Should be added, to crudle and thicken tue meaa,
ho, having been properly warmed and atlrred,
The chrege was net ; and, now, at a word,
Tea strong men tell to cutting the enrd.
Home whey was reheated ;
Tbe cutting repeated ;
Kaeh part of ttie proems most carefully treated.
For fear they luight find, when the whole waa
co"pitiea.
Their plan had by come mischance been defeated,
Now the weavers come bringing tbe web they were
-J-.UUlUg,
A cloth for the euril, of tbe stoutest of linen.
The ten nien attar It,
Ana tumble and pack it
Within the vas' vat lu its dripping grav Juc.ket:
Ana me nress is Mt going with clatter and racket,
Andtbecurd, likft.ton:i crushed ilwug cresture,
iuo ureal screw uesceml. ( ttio lo'ic lever t'av.
ItMhfiu lis troubles
Tbe preSKtlie redoubles 1
Ic uiuttera and sputters,
Aud hisses and bubbles,
While down the deep gutters,
From every pore spirted, rush torrents of wbey.
The cheese waa pressed, and tnrned, and cured ;
And so was mnde, as I am assured,
The rich-ordered, great-girdled Emperor,
Of all cheese that ever were.
Then, everything ready, what should they have
ejse,
In starling His Majestyon his travels,
But a great precession up and down
Through the streets of the quaint old town f
Bo they made
A grand parade,
With marching train-band, guild, and trade:
The burgomeeter in robes arrayed,
tiol . chain, aud mace, and gay cockade,
Great keys carried, and flags displayed,
Pompous marshal and spruce y.nng aide.
Carnage and foot and cavalcade :
While big drums thundered and trumpets brayed,
auu an me Datum oi me caiuon pisyea ;
Tbe fountain sjiotited lemouade,
Children drank of the bright cascade;
Hpectatort i f every rank aud Krade,
The young and merry, the grave and staid,
Alike with cbeera the show surveyed,
From street and window and balustrade
Ladies iu J-wels and brocade.
Gray old grandaiu, and peasant maid
With cap, short skirt, and dangling braid ;
And youngsters shouted, aud horses neigbed,
And all tbe curs in concert bayed ;
Twas thus with pomp and masquerade,
On a broad triutupbal chariot laid,
Beueath canopy's moving shade.
By eight cream-colored steed, conveyed,
To the ringing of bell, and cannonade,
King Cheee his royal progress made.
So to tbe Faris Exposition,
Hi. Uajealy waut on bis famous mission.
At tbe great French Fair I
Everything under tbe son Is there.
Whatever is made by the band of man:
Bilks from China and Hludoatan,
Grotesque bronzes from Japan ;
Products of Iceland, Ireland, ticotland,
Lapland, Finland, I know not what land
North land, south land, cold land, hot land
From Liberia,
From Siberia
Eveay fabric and invention,
From every oountry you oan mention:
From Algeria and Sardinia ;
From Ohio and Virginia ;
Egypt, 8iam, Palestine ;
Lauds of the palm-tree, lands of tbe pin. ;
Lands of tobacco, cotton, aud rioe,
Of iron, of ivory, and of spice.
Of gold and sliver and diamond
From the farthest land, and the bind beyond.
And everybody is there to see:
From Mexico and Moxambioue;
Spaniard, Yankea, Heatben Chinee;
Modern Roman and modern Greek;
Frenchman and Prussian,
Turk and Russian,
Foe that have been, or foe. to be;
Through miles on miles
Of spacious aisles,
'Mid th. wealth of tbe world In gorgeous pile.
Loiter and flutter the endless files I
Encircled all day by a wondering throng
That gathers early and lingers long
Behold where glows. In his golden rind
Tbe marvel th. burgher, of Hub, designed I
There obattara the cheery bourgtoUU
Aud children are lifted high to see- '
And Will It go up In the sky to-night t"
fc Aska bttl. Win 'sells, la the arm. of her
mother
Bias over tbe bouses and give us light
Is this where it aew wheu it goes out of sight t "
For sb. taxes King Chetae for bis elder baothaf )
But now It Is night, and the crowds have departed
Tbe vast dim balls are still and deserter!
Only tbe ghoet-ltke watchmen go,
Through shimmer and shadow, to and fro ;
While the moon In the sky,
With Its bslf-ehut eye.
Peers smilingly In at bl rival below.
At this mysterlous'bonr. what la It
That comes to pay the Fair a visit f
Tbe gates are well barred,
With a faithful guard
Without and wl'hln; and yet tls eleat
Homebody or something Is entering here
There Is a Paris underground,
Where dwells another nation ;
Whet neither lawyer nor priest is found,
Nor money nor taxation;
And scarce a glimmer, and scarce a sound
Reaches those solitudes profound,
But silence and darkness close it round
A horrible habitation 1
Its streets are the sewers, where rata abonnd ;
Where awarms, unstlfled, unstarved, undrowned
Their ravenous population.
Undergonnd Parle has heard of the Fair;
And up from the river, from alley and square,
To tbe wonderful palace tbe rats repair;
And one old forager, grizaled end spare
Tbe wisest to plan and the boldest to dare,
To smell out a prise or to find out a snare
In some dark corner, beneath some stair
(I never learned bow, and 1 never knew where),
Has gnawed his way into tbe grand affair ;
First one rat, and then pair,
And now a doxen or more are there.
They caper and scamper, snd blink and stare,
While the drowsy watchman nods In his chair,
but little a hungry rat will oare
For the loveliest lacquered or Inlaid ware,
Jewels mot precious, or stuffs most rare ;
There's a marvelous smell of cheese In the air 1
They all make a rurh for tbe delicate fare ;
But tbe shrewd old fellow aqueaks out, " Beware I
Tis a prise indeed, but I say forbear 1
For cats may catch us and men may scare,
Aud a well-set trap is a rat's depair ;
But If we sre wise, and would have our share
with perfect i-sfety to hide and hair,
Now li.-ten, and we will our plans prepare."
The watchman ronses, the rats are gone ;
On a thousand windows gleams the dawn ;
Aud now once more
Through every door,
With bnstlo aud bustle, tbe great crowds pour ;
And nobody hears a soft little souud,
As of sawing or gnawing, somewhere underground.
At length, the judges, going tbelr round,
Awarding tbe prises, enter tbe hall,
Where, amid cheeses big and small,
Iteposee tbe sovereign of them all.
They put their tape rcund It, and tap It and bore it,
jtuu uuwiug ueiure it,
As if to adore it,
Like worshipers of the Bun, they stand
Hi ice in band,
Pleased aud bland,
While their bosoms glow and their hearts expand.
They smell aud tbey taBte ;
And, tbe rind replaced.
Tbo foremost, smacking. bis lips, says: "Men
aieurs i
Of all fine cheese at markit or fair
Holland or Rochefort, Stilton or Cheshire,
Neufcbatel, Milanese
There never was cheese,
I am free to declare,
That at all oonld compare
With this great Gruyere 1"
In short, so exceedingly well it pleases.
They award it a prize over all tbe cheeses.
Tbat prize is the pride of the whole Swim nation :
And the town of Nulle, in its exultation,
Without a dissenting voice, decrees
To the poor of Paris a gift of the cheese.
Psri, in grateful recognition
Of tbis munificence, seuds a commission
Four stalely officials, of high position
.tndtta SCSl' ofiefoSr.,hS ih'bltlon.
With speeches and touts, th (Swiss for tun.
The Pfec'hea they mvie, tbe toast, they drank ;
ttlght Normauity homes, strong and switt,
At the entrance wait
, luFortle golden freight;
And all the porters are there to lift.
Prepared lor a long and a strong embrace,
'l moving His Greatness a little space.
They strain at the signal, each man in bis place
' Heave, bo ! when lo 1 as light as a feather.
Down tumbles, down crumbles, the King of tbe
With seven men, all in a heap together 1
Up scramble the porters, with laughter and
sneezes ;
While sudden, mlphty Amazement seizes
The blgb officials, Until tLey find
A curious borc
Iu tbe platform floor.
And another to match at the nether rind
J ust one big rat-bole, and no more ;
By which, as it seemed, had ventured in
One rat at first, and a hundred had followed,
Aud feasted, and left to tbe vast chagrin
Of the worthy burxhers of Nulle as thin
And shabby a sbell as ever was hollowed ;
Now nothing but Just
A crushed-in crust,
A cart-load of scraps and a pungent dust !
Bo the newspapers say ; but though tbey csil
King Cheese a hoax, be wax bardly tbat.
And tbe poor he fed, as you see, after all ;
For who is so poor as a Paris rat ?
J. T. Troubridae, in St. Xiclwla.
An Ant Dalrj on a Virginia Creeper.
The large leaves have been converted
into dairy-farms by a colored family
named Formica, otherwise known as
black ants. The race to which this
family belongs have for years been no
torious as slave drivers and cruel task
masters. They are eztremelv warlike
ana go into Dattie witn regularly organ
ized battalions, making slaves of their
prisoners, who, yielding to the force of
circumstances, become faithful servants,
and procure all the food that is eaten by
their idle masters. The family living
unuer my veranua. aitnouKh tierce and
ueiermisea in tueir nature, nave ap
parently devoted themselves exclusively
a. a ; i . '
toauiry iarmiuK. cavinc numerous herds
of cattle cows aud calves that are
regularly milked by their owners, who
drink the milk for their food. One of
the larger leaves of the Virginia creeper
iorms a ncn meauow, wnere trom nfty
to seventy-five cows and calves can ras-
ture. These little domestics animals are
known as aphides, and it is certainlv an
extraordinary Bigut u Bee tue oiqck ant
to whom they seem to belong go through
au n.l l i 1 1 ii i , . i
mo ueiu nun uiun iuchc uuie cows.
He carries with him a long whip (anten
na), with which he strikes the little
docile animal on tbe back, when it im
mediately deposits the milk that its mas
ter eagerly drinks. When the pasture
gives out, the ant carries his herd to
another leaf or field ; and when the little
calves are old enough to be milked, he
i ; ii i , , ...
uegiiiB me education oy Diting tnem.
It is curious to see the owner defend
his flock from an intruder. Let another
black ant come into the field that is on
to the leaf and he attacks him with
great fury, driving him from the prem
ises at once. All this and more too, my
lens shows me of my neighbor's peculiar
habits. I find that if I ventnre
and arouse the suspicion of the dairy
man by plaoing my hand or finger near
his little farm, that I am warned by
a sharp bite to be more cireumsrteet in
my movements, and not to become too
familiar on a short acquaintance.
ju. jpowei, wno naa given a very close
study to the ants Of Switzflrlnnrl. r.
lates some very remarkable instances of
an intelligence iu these liitla eatnwa
which seems almost incredible, and in
fact it is almost impossible for any one
to comprehend the absolute mnntjtl
capacity of these tiay, and for the most
part industrious dwellers on the earth,
unless he Beeks through the medium of
hiB own observation a elnsr knnvinHo-A
of their habits andjmudes of life. Egbert
L. Viele, in Uarptr't Magazine.
What is the difference between a bare
figure and an anoint song 1 One is a
uoity, ana the tuer an old ditty.
THE EVE OF ST. JOHN.
It was a warm Jnne day. The sun
was already half-way down his western
slope, moving laaily, as if weary with
the long march of the summer solstice.
A eaufcV base veiled without obscuring
his brightness, and lent a dreamy charm
to the scene below. Soft rolling hills;
a stream winding between green willowy
shores; seen far away, a broad blue riv
er, and the spires and roofs of a town;
these were the outlines of the landscape,
In the cool piazza of the old white farm
house, her home for ha'.f a century, stood
my grandmother, a smile on her placid
face, and her mild eyes drinking in the
serene beantv of the scene. Aliceiand I
came flying down the hall staircase and
stood beside her.
"Oood-hy, grandmamma," cried my
Bister. "We are going to leave you for
a little while."
"Must yon go to-day, my dears 1 The
corses are away, aim it ia a long waia
to S . Why not .wait till to-mor
rowT"
"You forget," I said, "that Frank
comes to-morrow; and we shall be bo
busy with packing, and all the last
things. And it is only two miles to
town, after all.
"I suppose you must go, dear; but it
is a long walk for Alice in this hot sun,"
grandmamma added, glanaing from my
gray walking dress to my sister's cloudy
musnn ana Biippers,
"Oh, I am not going, grandma.
shall only walk with Charlotte down to
the thorn-trees to take that sketch I
have promised you so long. We shall
both be back early to spend a long eve-
.... -' 1 1- mi. r i-' n. . i i
iulk wiiii yuu. iiiiH is my uirmuigoi,
you know just think ! I am nineteen
and I want you to make a festival of
it."
"Be sure We will. And good-bv.now.
my children, for you have no time to
spare.
Alice and I walked slowly down the
green path which wound its way across
the news to the brook. Jti ollowing this
for some distance, we came to a rude
wooden bridge by which we gained the
other shore; and sotin a sharp bend in
the stream brought us to the thorn-trees
of which Alice had spoken. A miniature
promontory, covered with the softest
and most velvety turf, was washed on
two sides by the waters of the brook,
while the third was guarded by a semi'
circular line of gnarled and twisted
thorn-trees. A belt of similar trees
upon the opposite shore rendered the
seclusion of the place perfect. It was a
pot which Titania might have chosen
for her court, so still, so secret, and so
green. Through a partial opening in
the trees was visible a lovelv bit of
sceuerjr, a kth nf which Alice, who
draws with rare skill and fidelity, pro-
'wwu vm uixd ui my anumsA Kaatod
here on the warm grass, the stream mur
muring at her feet and the leaves flutter
ing over her, I left her to her pleasant
tusk; and regaining in a few moments
more the frequented path, took my way
by the long ye now nigh-road to the diS'
taut town.
Alice and I had been spending some
months with our grandmother, and were
to leave in a few days for our home in
fhuadelphia. unr own mother was
dead; and the warm-hearted, though
rather gay and fashionable step-mother
who had taken her place, did not come
80 near to our hearts as did the gentle
old lady at the farm. A part of every
year we spent with the latter, always
leaving her with regret. I should men
tion that my step-mother had a son, the
fruit of a former marriage, who had
been absent several years in India, and
at this time had just returned. As we
had no brother of our own, Frank Bald
win, who was a few years older than I,
had tilled nearly a brother's place to
Alice and myself. He was now to be
our escort home, as our father was pre
vented by some business from coming
for us himself.
This afternoon I had to make some
trifling purchases at the shops, and pay
a few parting visits of friendship or
ceremony. We had many pleasant friends
in S , and the farewell calk consum
ed so much time that nine o'clock was
ringing from all the steeples before I
was able to leave the town and turn my
steps toward home. But the way, though
lonely, was safe; and I enjoyed the quiet
walk in the evening air. It must have
been nearly ten o'clock when I reached
the gate which communicated with the
foot-path across the fields. Of course I
had no idea of meeting Alice at that
hour; for though she had promised to
wait for me. it was in the expectation
that my return would be much earlier.
Tet when I came to the turn of the path
leading to the thorn-treeta my steps half
involuntary took that direction.
Walking on slowly. I had reached the
brook, and was rounding the point
where, hours before, I had left my sis
ter, when I was startled by perceiving
what seemed in the uncertain starlight
to be her figure reclining on the grass
under tbe thorn-trees. Involuntarily I
paused, half in doubt, half in fear. At
that instant there came from far away in
the south the first low breath of the
night wind sighing across the fields and
stirring the stiff leaves of the old thorns
with a sound as oi innumerable airy
foototeps. With a sudden thrill, as if I
had been conscious of some invisible
presence, I called her name, but in a
low, frightened voice. There was no
answer; and springing lorward, x knelt
beside the figure of my sister, lying fast
asleep upon the grass. Her flushed
cheek rested on her ronnd white arm,
and a smile like that of dreaming infan
cy parted her beautiful lips. Lifting
her long hair, on which the night dew
glistened, I took her hand, exclaiming:
"Alice I Alioe Vane I what are yon
thinking of, asleep in this damp night
airf
Slowly she opened her large eyes and
gazed around with a bewildered expres
sion. " Dear Alioe, do rouse yourself," I
cried, "It is past ten o clock, and
grandma will be crazy."
She obeyed tne movement oi my nana,
sat np, and allowed me to wrap my
shawl about her. I gathered up her
scattered drawing materials, and again
begged her to rouse herself and go
home.
" Yes. we will go," she said; " but I
have been dreaming so long, I oan
scarcely find tbe boundary line between
my dreams and reality, "
" What were yon dreaming of?"
" Oh, so many things I I must have
been Bleeping a long time, for the last
I can remember the Sun was setting, and
1 thought yott wotold soon be here. I
waB awake then, I am sure of it. All at
onoe there came from far up the glen a
faint sweet strain of music Then I dis
tinguished voioes singing, and present
ly I was surrounded by a crowd of peo
ple thronging all about me. Their gar
ments brushed me, and their fingers
touched my hair, but they never seemed
to see me. Suddenly they Vanished,
one beautiful lady alone remaining. She
stood just there, behind that long
branch. She was all in green, and I
could scarcely distinguish her from the
trees. She spoke to me with a charm
ing smile, and then lifting her white
hand, wavel it slowly through the air.
I looked, and papa stood beside me. I
could not move or speak, but his dear
eyes looked into mine for a moment:
then the figure slowly faded, As 1
gazed, other figures came by, brighten
ing and fading before my eyes. I saw
yourself and Frank, mammt just as she
used t j look, and many more, alt famil
iar faces, all persons who have had some
part or influence in my life. Last of all
came one I did not know. I turned to
ask the lady who he was. She made no
answer, but smiled and held up a ring.
I thought I knew him for my future
husband, and turned to look at him
again. As I did so, I thought he bent
over and kissed me on the lips; then
slowly faded as the others had done.
The next I remember, you were calling
me. Now don't laugh, Charlotte," she
added, catching the expression of my
eyes.
" Indeed, love, I shouldn't think of
such a thing. I am too deeply impressed
by your doubtless prophetic vision."
" Now, Lottie!
"Well, dear, why not? Remember
this is the eve of St. John, and your
birthnight. Every one knows that chil
dren born on midsummer-eve are the
especial favorites of the fairy folk, and
subject to their influence oh that night.
It is plain enough that tbe lady in green
was your fairy godmother, and your
vision must be prophetic."
Alice laughed, but in a shy, absent
way, and her pretty blush was visible
oven in the starlight. In answer to my
railleries, she admitted that before fall
ing asleep she had been indulging in
fancies about fays and the like, natural
ly suggested by the place and time; but
as for the young man, she stoutly de
clared she had never seen, or imagined,
or previously even dreamed of, any one
in the least resembling him.
Alice was up early next morning, not
a whit the worse for her greenwood nap,
and very busy with her drawing. I
supposed she was flniehing the thorn-
jtrne sketch; but bPla to look over
ner shuuUoi nUen she baa Uot ttnrk
for an hour, I saw it was a portrait on
which she was engaged. It was the
likeness of a young man, apparently
twenty-eight or thirty years of age.
"Who is it, Alice dear?"
Alice laughed, but blushed a little.
"It is the face I sav in my dream last
night," said she.
"Is it possible?" i
"It is the best likeness I have ever
made. That Is, in every feature, the
face that was bending toward me when
your voice broke the spell of my
dream."
"Well, my love, yon have wonderfully
vivid dreams. We nsnst take care that
yon do not sleep under the starlight too
often."
Frank Bnldwin arrived that afternoon,
and we hastened our preparations for
departure. He kindly offered to assist
ux, and stood round, man fashion, in the
way, putting things in the wrong trunks,
and making confusion generally. We
were limited in trunk -vm, and Alice
declared it quite impossible to get in her
voluminous Bketching-books. They were
accordingly laid aside to be left till they
could be sent for, or until we should
make our regular visit next year.
Frank, roaming restlessly about, tired
of our inattention, spied the books, and
began to look them over. He was silent
for some time; but at length he looked
round with an exclamation o surprise.
" Edward Granger's portrait I Alice.
where did you ever see Ned Granger ?"
" I never saw him to my knowledge.
Pray who is hef"
" He is the friend of whose adventures
with me in India I have frequently writ
ten home. Is this your drawing ?"
"Uertainly."
" Is it meant for any one ?"
" It is a fancy merely."
" Well, it's a most surprising occi
dental resemblance, considering you
never saw Ned : and of course you never
oould, as he is at this moment on his
way home from India, where he has
lived for ten years since you were a
child in the nursery. By-the-way, I see
that the Mogul, in which Edward soiled,
has been spoken only a week out So
we may expect to see him very soon."
We hod been at home a week, when
one day, on returning from a drive, we
learned that Frank's friend Granger had
arrived. A &ood deal fatigued with
traveling by sea and land, he was still in
his room, but would join us at dinner.
There were to be other guests, and Alice
and I went up to dress. I do not know
that we "primped" more than usual
that day ; but I remember feeling quite
satisfied with my fresh summer toilet ;
and Alioe looked supremely lovely in the
pale green organdy, wbioh would have
been fatal to a complexion less dazzlingly
fair. " You look like the queen of the
fairies," I said, and I wondered why she
should blush so at the sisterly flattery.
The blush had not quite faded when
we entered the drawing-room, and Frank
brought forward his friend. Mr. Gran
ger was presented first to me, which
gave me an opportunity to quietly ob
serve him while he paid his compli
ments to my sister. I saw bis eye light
with a flash of admiration for her singu
lar beantv : bat this expression was suc
ceeded by one of perplexity, whioh did
not pass away for some time.
As I studied the face of the stranger,
I was instantly reminded of Alice's
drawing of what I called her "dream
lover " and I no longer wondered at
Frank's surprise on seeing it. It was
an astonishing resemblance. You oould
have sworn it was the same face. Not
only was every feature the same, even to
the out of the beard and the parting of
the huir, but the expression of the whole
was identical t the same sonl seemed
looking through the eyes. Whether
Alice noticed this or not, I could not
tell. She Was talking in a gay and ani
mated manner, and there was a soft light
in her eye and a flush of pleasure on her
lovely cheek which mode her even more
than usually charming.
I have no occasion to prolong this
story by making mysteries; so I may
as well say that the case of Mr. Granger
and my sister was one of love at first
sight. Their two souls melted into one
at their first meeting, and the affection
whioh then sprang into life seemed to
grow every day. There were no serious
obstacles to fret the current of their
loves; therefore its course ran smooth.
My father's only objections rested on
the fact that Alice was still so young
and their acquaintance so brief. Against
the match itself he had nothing to urge,
as the young man's family.character and
fortune were all he oould ask. So the
young people had it all their own way;
and the ever-beautiful drama, so old,
yet eternally so new, went on once more.
It was a fine morning in June, nearly
a year from the period When this vera
cious history commences. In the cheer
ful breakfast-room of my sister, Mrs.
Edward Granger, still lingered a party
of three, the young mistress of the
house, her husband and myself. I had
arrived the previous evening, and hav
ing been separated from Alice during
the six weeks which had elapsed since
her marriage, we had, of course, many
things to talk over. So, though the
morning was wearing away, we still sat
there, Mr. Granger considerately leav
ing us to ourselves while he read his
Eaper by the window. I had forgotten
is presence, till a sudden exclamation
from him drew my attention to his part
of the room.
I had come to Alice's from grand
mamma's, where I had been making a
visit, and bad brought with me among
my luggage the portfolios of sketches
and drawings which she had left behind
last year. They were lying on the ta
ble, and Edward, having finished his
paper, and getting no attention from us,
amused himself by examining them.
When we turned round, he was holding
in his hand the spirited sketch of his
own features which I so well remem
bered. "Why, Alice," he said, "where did
you get this ?"
"I made it, of course."
'But I never sat to you."
"No; I drew from memory."
"How came it among these things
that Charlotte brought from your grand
mother's ?"
- "I left it there last summer."
"What a little story-teller 1 At that
time you had never seen me."
"No, nor any picture of you; yet I
had drawn you. as von see.'.'
Will you please explain," said my
brother-in-law, throwing himself back
in whimsical perplexity.
Alice laughed. "You will not believe
me if I tell you," she said, seating her
self upon his knee.
"Well, love, tell me for all that"
Alice began the story gaily, but, as it
proceeded, her sportive tone became
serious, and her large violet eyes deep
ened with an expression of earnestness
and wonder. When she ceaaed, it was
with a cheek somewhat flushed, and a
sensitive quiver of the lips which she
could not quite control. Her husband
had listened at first with smiling inter
est; but this soon gave way to an omin
ous look of exaggerated gravity; and
when the story was fin:shed, he burst
into a peal of uncontrollable laughter.
He laughed until the tears came into his
eyes; and when we thonght he had done
he suddenly started off again, and
laughed till he was tired. Alice and I
joined in the mirth, but my sister not
very heartily.
"My dear little girl," cried Edward,
as soou as he oould speak, "do yon hope
to persuade me that you really dreamed
all that about the green lady f"
"But it is true, Edward."
Edward went off again.
"And you dare aver that you were
asleep. I am confident you peeped."
"You impertinent boy I Small advan
tage in peeping, when you were not
there."
"Do you presume to say you did not
know I was theie."
"What do you mean, Edward t"
"I mean that my recollection of that
kiss is as vivid as your own, only I do
not pretend to have been asleep."
" My dear Edward, at that time you
were on the Atlantio, a week's sail and
more from home. It was ten days after
the eve of St. John that you reached our
house, aud you had only arrived the day
before."
" My dear child, who told yon that T
had just arrived from India ?"
" No one, perhaps; but we supposed
so, of course."
" Nevertheless, on that night of the
23d of June I was near enough to get my
first kiss from your lips. It was a mercy
Lottie did not catch me, though. I had
just time to gain the shelter of the thorn
trees before she came round the point."
" Now, Edward," cried I, in amaze
ment, " explain your part in this mys
tery." "There is little mystery about my
part. It is true that when Frank Bald
win left Calcutta I was intending to come
home in the sailing vessel Mogul, which
belongs to our firm. But as I found it
would be necessary for me to go to
France any way, I took the steamer route
by the Isthmns of Suez, and was in Mar
seilles before the Mogul had passed the
Gape of Good Hope. I staid in Franco
several weeks, crossed over to England,
and took tbe steamer from Liverpool to
Quebec, arrived on the 20th of June. It
happens that one of our clerks in Cal
cutta, a faithful, excellent fellow, has a
mother and sisters living on a farm not
far from B , and I was the bearer of
letters and gifts from him to them. I
might have sent the things by express,
of course, but I thought the women
might like to see and talk with some one
who had come from Fred; so, having
plenty of time at my disposal, I conclud
ed to visit them myself. You see, no
one in New York knew of my arrival, or
expected me for a fortnight. I made a
detour and reached B on the after
noon of the 23d. I spent several hours
with Fred's family, telling them every
thing I could think of about him, and
praising him to their hearts' content
the good fellow deserves it &1L It was
quite late when I started to walk back to
the town. The evening was so fine that
I felt in no hutry to reach my hotel, and
I strolled along quite regardless of the
way. Perceiving a foot-path whioh
seemed to lead through some pleasant
fields to a brook, I left the main road to
explore it. Where I went I am sure I
cannot tell; perhaps yon, who know the
localities, can form a guess, I know
that I passed through a deep, lonely
glen from whioh the brook issued, and,
following the windings of the stream,
had just succeeded in making my way
through a dense thicket of old thorn
trees, when I was startled by the sight of
a female figure lying on the grass. I
drew near and found a young girl not
dead, but Bleeping sweetly. What
brought her there at such a time was a
mystery. The delicate texture of her
dress and the gleam of a heavy gold
bracelet on one of her round arms show
ed that sho was not probably under the
necessity of choosing such a bed-chamber.
If I had remembered what night
of the year it was the chosen hour of
the people in green I should probably
not have attributed to her a mortal char
acter at all, but. should have supposed
that she had merely arrived too soon at
the rendezvous, and was waiting for her
sisters to begin the greenwood revel.
Whether under such a supposition I
should have ventured to take the liberty
I did I dare not say; but, as it was, I
think my guilt had someextenuatingcir
cumstances . The dewy red lips through
which the sweet breath came so softly I
why, it was not in human nature to reeist
the temptation I Blushing to the soul
for the depravity of my race, I admit my
crime."
Your contrition is somewhat tardy.
sir," replied the blushing Alice, trying
hard to frown. " Pray, how long were
you there ?"
' ' It oould not have been more than five
minutes at most. I was revolving
the chanoes of getting another kiss with
out waking you, when I heard footsteps,
and had just time to gain the oover of
the trees before Charlotte appeared. I
hurried away across the fields, and
reached my hotel about midnight. Next
day I started for St. Louis, whence I had
just returned when I reached your
house."
" And did you then recognize Alice?"
"No. I remember that at first
sight her face seemed slightly familiar,
but the impression passed away. Until
to-day I never for an instant associated
her with the heroine of my almost for
gotten adventure. In that uncertain
mingling of twilight and starlight, fea
tures were not accurately distinguisha
ble. The only wonder is how she man
aged, undetected, to get so good a view
of mine."
"Now, Edward," cried Alice, in a
tone of real distress. " vousnrelv do not
believe
He stopped the reproach with a kiss.
"No, darling; of oourse I do not believe
anything of the kind. But Ohailotte,"
he added, "what a strange thing it is,
this bleuding of the events actually pass
ing around us with the fantastic images
of our dreams I What faoulty of the
miud is it which remains awake to take
cognizance of things outside the closed
eyelids ?"
" The prophetic faculty, it would seem
in this instance," I answered, with as
much gravity pb I could assume. " But
perhaps that is peculiar to the dreams
of midsummer-eve. "
Edward laughed, "It is an odd
thiug, anyway," said he.
I think it odd myself, but it is true.
Harper's Weekly,
The Scourge In the West.
One of the most interesting chapters
in the report of the commission on the
locust, appointed by Congress, is that
which treats of the permanent breeding
grounds of the locust. The area in
which the locust breeds each year, in
greater or less numbers, the commission
says, is approximately 800,000 square
square miles in extent. It is not to be
inferred that the locust breeds continu
ously over the whole of this area each
year, for it is to be understood that the
locust within its native permanent habi
tat is essentially migratory in its habits.
For a series of years it may deposit its
eggs in a given river valley, in some
park, or in some favorable area in some
of the plains lying about the mountains,
yet it may desert its customary breeding-grounds
for adjoining regions, or
oross a low range of mountains and
breed in n more distant valley. Even
in this area the true hatching-grounds
are for the most part confined to the
river bottoms or sunny slopes of up
lands, or to the subalpine grassy areas
among the mountains, rather than con
tinuously over the more elevated, dry,
bleak plains. The area in which the
locust breeds lies mainly between longi
tude 102 degrees, and 114 degrees West
of Greenwich, and latitude fifty-three
degrees and forty degrees north.
From this general breeding-ground
the locust is distributed in all direc
tions. The eastern limit of its range is
marked by the commission by the fol
lowing line: "From the southern end
of Lake Winnipeg, by way of Lake of
the Woods, to Pierce county, Wiscon
sin; thence directly south to Poweshiek
county, Iowa; then southwest to Worth
county, Missouri; then south through
Montgomery county, Arkansas, to Hous
ton, Texas, curving westward from this
point to Live Ouk county, Texas." In
Manitoba the eastern and also the north
ern limit corresponds very closely with
the timber line. The extreme western
limit of the distribution of these locusts
is the eastern flank of the Oscade Range
in Oregon and Washington Territory
and the Sierra Nevada mountains,
though in many parts of the oountry
they do not reach a point so far west
As to the southern limit, the commis
sion lacked data for determining this
line satisfactorily. All that its mem
bers are able to say in reference to it is
that the locusts have been known to
cross the Bio Grande at Eagle Pass, and
to penetrate a mile and a half into
Mexico; that they have been observed
iu Western Texas as far as the settle
ments have extended; that they have
penetrated New Mexico on the north
east as for as Las Vegas and Fort Union,
and have passed down in the mountain
region from Colorado to Taos, and possi
bly further south.
Items of Interest.
The end of man His feet
A lighthouse A slim audience.
The world uses 480,000 tons of coffee a
year.
You cannot set the river on fire with a
rowing match.
A flourishing man. The professor of
penmanship.
Women first appeared on the stage in
England in 1661.
The Block Hills region proper covers
6,000 square miles.
Always put up something for a rainy
day An umbrella, for instance.
The train is like the naughty boy, be
cause the switch changes its course.
A young fellow who was suddenly
jilted by his girl, Mary, observed that
she was sum-Mary.
What is the difference between a pro
vident widow and a wife who talks about
her " liege lord ?" One husbande her
means, and the other means her husband.
"Are the potato-bugs ripe yet?" ask
ed a would-be smart youth. "I guess
so," said his father; " at all events you
can spend the afternoon picking them,"
In the Mustagh range of the Himalay
as there are two adjoining glaciers hav
ing a united length of sixty miles. Near
these is a third glacier twenty-one miles
long, and from one to two miles broad.
The glaciers of the Alps are trifling in
comparison.
It is noticeable that the names of some
of the most celebrated men that ever
lived are mainly perpetuated by articles
in common use. Napoleon lives in English-speaking
countries in a kind of boot
christened alter him; so aoes Welling
ton, while Brougham has become em
balmed in a well known carriage. Lord
Derbv has transmitted his name and
fame to a fashionable hat. Biglan, the
unjustly abused leader of the British
forces in the Crimea, survives in a coat.
Gladstone is rendered memorable by a
cravat; Byron's immortality is assured
by a turn. over collar; jjouib aiv. is re
produced in furnituro, Louis XV. in a
woman's high heels.
A Venouions Water Insect.
The Norristown (Po.) Herald soys:
A curious little animal was recently
caught in a pond of water at Mr. Frank
Bamsey's, in Plymouth township, and
presented to Dr. O. S. Baker, of thie
borough, who placed it in his aqaorium.
It is about two inches long, and less than
an inch broad, with six crooked legs. Its
color is dark brown, and largo, promi
nent black eyes. The back is marked an
though undeveloped wings were hidden
beneath its hard outer coat. It swims
readily, bat generally Axes itself to a.
stone or some other object, to which it
ollugs nllli Its (iwu hinder pairs of legs,
holding its head downward and the fore
legs raised. It has a sting or lance like
a mosquito, whioh is only thrust out
when attacking its pror. .
After having been placed in the aqua- ...
rium it remained quiet for several days,
during which time it was not seen to eat
anything. On a recent Friday it made
au attempt upon a little terrapin, much
larger, however, than itoelf, which it
caught by the head with its forefeet,
running its lance into its neck. He soon
died, and his destroyer dragged him to a
brick in the center of the aquarium.
Then fixing itself on the brick in its
favorite attitude, it held the terrapin for
twenty-four hours, and seemed to be
sncking its blood. Hew much longer he
would have held him is uncertain, for
its prey was then taken away. When it
is remembered that the weight of the
terrapin was several times its own, the
strength of the insect may be imagined.
On the following Sunday it sprang
upon a water snake eleven inches long.
The battle was brief and exciting. The
insect pursued the former method of
attack. It mode a dive, caught him
sideways near the neck, twisted his head
around and thrust its lance into his
throat, quickly killing him. Then as
before, it sought a resting place, and
held its prey suspended until compelled
to give it up.
Since that time it has made no further
assaults. There are a number of gold
fish, frogs, tadpoles ond little fishes in
the aquarium, but it takes no notice ot
them. The name of the voracious ter
ror of the water has not been learned
definitely, but it is supposed to be a
mantis, a devouring insect which nearly
answers to the description, and which
has a habit of folding its five legs in an
attitude of prayer.
S umber Seven In the Bible.
On the seventh day God ended His
work.
On the seventh day Noah's ark touched
the ground.
In seven days a dove was sent.
Abraham pleaded seven times for
Sodom.
Jacob mourned seven days for Jo
seph. Jacob served seven years for Bachael.
Amd yet another seven years more.
Jacob was pursued a seven days' jour
ney by Laban.
A plenty of seven years and a famine
of seven years were foretold in Pharaoh's
dream by seven fat and seven lean
beasts, and seven ears of full and seven
ears of blasted corn.
On the seventh day of the seventh
month the children of Israel fasted seven
days in their tents.
Every seven days the land rested.
Every seventh year the law was read
to the people.
In the destruction of Jericho, seven
persons bore seven trumpets seven days;
on the seventh day they marched around
seven times, and at the end of the sev
enth round the walls f elL
Solomon was seven years building the
temple, and fasted seven days at its ded
ication, i
In the tabernacle were seven lamps.
The goluen candlestick had seven
branches.
Naaman washed seven times in the
river Jordan.
Job's friends sat with him seven days
and seven nights, and offered seven bul
locks and seven rams as an atonement.
In the Revelations we read of seven
churches, seven candlestieks.seven stars,
seven trumpets, seven plagues, seven
thunders, seven vials, seven angels and
seven-headed monster,
-t