1
fir .P.R r-
Hi
I
HENRY A. PARSONS, ' Jr., Editor and Publisher.
NlH, DEPERANDTJM.
Two Dollars per Annum.
VOL. IX.
Z, EIDGWAT, ELK COUNTY PA., THURSDAY, MAY 15, 1870.
NO. 13.
I llll 111
: -. , . i . . . . J i-
I'
Farm Songs,
i.
Oh list to the Bong ot the farmer
As he plys the faithlul fluil, 1
. Vow b hum of song, then a strain bright and
glnd
When the sultry nir grows warmer.
In'citics we fly o'er the sturdy steel rail,
Great ocean's outdone by the mart and
the sail
' But onr songs and our measures
Are not half the treasures
That the farmer doth sing when' his heart
would grow sad.
Gently as sweetly, the ballad so Irce
Steals o'er the meadow to gladden the lea
' For the milk maiden's ecstasies seek the wide
sen,
' " Doth my loved one waloh and drenm but ol
me ?"
Yes, maiden more lair
Than your song on the air,
Your sailor so proud in his dreams doth behold
Your song at the door, and your hair bright as
gold,
And sadly lie wakes -for he's still far from thee
But whnt is the song ol the housewife so gnr
As she sits and she knits when the day wears
away?
In lutiu-o's bright cloud
She sceth no shroud,
But riches and power and wisdom combined
Awaits her true sons, O how light is her mind 7
For Science waits Will !
And Latin seeks Phil J
So light is her heart as she loncs tor that day
Albert K. Wheeler, in Albany .Irgut.
MAXWELL'S IDEA.
The village of Weston consists of one
main street, where stand the churches,
the town hull, postollice, and sundry
feeble-minded stores. There are noble
. elms, a wide road, and a few pretty
houses. The better class of dwelling
are 011 the hillside beyond the railroad,
or to the north, on the meadows. By
day a sleepy place; at night every house
is tilled Willi city people sound asleep.
The people live here, but their hearts
are in the town. Every boy looks for
ward to the time when he shall join tin
pilgrims to the city nnd a store. To pi
into an olliee or store in Boston is tin
only thin; -for a young man to do. lit
must have business in town or los.
caste.
Tom Mavwell had the misfortune to
be born in Weston, and early imbibed it
peculiar notions concerning life and tin
tiling to do. For instance, no young
gentleman must work witli his hands:
ho must not fro into a retail store; hi
must dress well, lie able to take part in
the Lyceum debates, and he must not on
any account stay in the village during
the day. Unless he could do all this, hi
had lietter remove to New York or
Chicago, and dwell among the enlight
ened in outer darkness.
Tom had secured a place as accountant
in a wholesale grocery house, and was
considered a lucky fellow. He had a
small property of' his own, and lie had
fallen in love. The Object had even said
she would some day wear his name. She
wore his diamond ring already.
Suddenly Tom Maxwell appeared at
the village station at eleven o'clock in
the morning, and in nn hour it was
known of all Women that the wholesale
grocery concern had failed. The Object
knew i'; first, and straightway all knew
it.
Of course the engagement would come
to an immediate end. There was not the
least fuss about it. Weston prides itself
on its dignified serenity under trials. It
stopped, and that was the end of it.
The next day Tom had a diamond ring
on storage at his rooms.
Thereupon the young man sat down to
consider the situation, lie was now
twenty-two, had a good general educa
tion, anil didn't know anything very
well. His hands .were soft; lie knew
how to dance: he could sing tolerably
and paint a little; he couid not dig,
neither could he steal. Ho was, in fact,
a f;iir sample, of the AVeston young gen
tleman. He also considered the situation from
a lover's jxiint of view. Here we have
no right to intrude, and we must learn
his thoughts from his actions.
For several days he wandered around
in the open air, casting about to see
what he might do, but really curing his
heart wound in silent contemplation of
nature. Herein was he doubly wise. In
a moment of inspiration he thought of
emigrating to New York. Other fellows
had gone there, and had made money;
why not he? He even investigated tfie
expense of the journey; but Something
stood iu the way. lie loved the Object
still.
One day be happened to pass through
the main street at high noon. There
was not a soul to be seen in all the
drowsy place. Some stray hens gathered
round the overflowing water-trough be
fore the chief store, and a solitary cow
cropped the grass along the sidewalk.
He was a trine hungry, and went up the
decayed and broken steps of the store to
purchase a lunch. The door was locked,
end he peered in at the dirty windows.
Was it here the housekeepers of Weston
bought their sugars and molasses, their
teas nnd spices? He felt glad he had not
known it before. What a horrible
place! Hark, dingy, confused with half
opened boxes ami barrels, a broken scale
oil the counter, rows of fly-specked bot
tles on the shelves, confusion and dis
order everywhere.
Just then a man in shirtsleeves nnd
frowzy hair appeared nnd opened the
door. Tom asked for bread nnd cheese.
He paid for something, took it away in a
newspaper, and charitably bestowed the
whole of it upon the ancient hens in the
Street.
It. was a good investment. With the
purchase he gained an idea. Ideas are
money to the wise, nnd Tom Maxwell
was wise above his generation. He
looked up nnd down the sleepy street,
and contemplated the three establish
mcnts that supported the village needs:
one variety place, where nails, needles
and dried fish found a home; one
butcher's shflp a horrid den, full of
unspeakable abominations; and the dis
mal grocery.
.. . The iuea grew upon him rapidly. lie
considered it two days, and then re-
' solved to try it. Little did ho imagine
' the immense social changes his decision
would involve. IIoV could he foresee
the slights, the sneers and insulting con
descension that would be bestoweaupon
him? He saw nothing, not even the
outcome of his love experience that
would spring from his new idea.
The following week the village car
penter, received nn order to turn the
lower story of the old Allen mansion
into something new what, he could not
exactly comprehend, mere were to he
two immense windows, with a wide
door opening into a parlor. Behind this
were to be two large rooms, and in front
there was to be a wide piazza, with
ample canopy ana broad steps, nnd with
spaces for flower borders on either side.
The news spread quickly through the
village. Everybody knew that Tom
Maxwell had embarked in some insane
scheme, nnd was tearing the Allen man.
sion to pieces. -Poor boy! his sad love
experience had injured his mind. He
wns throwing his money away. His
friends should interfere nnd save him
from ruin. At night the returning nier-
cliants paused uelore the dismantled
mansion, and wondered what new folly
had broken loose in the town. ' 1
Maxwell heard of these things, nnd
the next morning a high -board fence
shut the work from view. This only
excited the greater curiosity. Every
female tongue wagged fast over Tom's
consummate folly. What did he intend
to do? Was it a house, theatre, shop or
studio?
Weeks passed. There was much ham
mering behind the high fence. Then
eaine the shent painters; and lastly one
night two huge wagons unloaded sundry
boxes nnd barrels at the door. The
same evening every family in the village,
and in all the villages round about, re
ceived a polite invitation to inspect, on
the following night, the new establish
ment. The next afternoon at half past six
the carpenters pulled down t lie high
fence, and displayed well, it could not
be called anything. Nothing like it had
ever been seen in thp world at least so
they said ; but then AVeston sight never
extends beyond Boston.
There was in front a neat garden with
a graveled walk. At one side the road
passed close to the steps, so that carriages
came directly to the piazza. Two im
mense plate-glass windows and a double
door filled the entire front of the lower
part of the building. Over the door wns
a simple sign, or card: "Thomas Max
well." Through the windows could be
.xeen tables spread with white covers, and
laid with dishes of the mostdclieateclried
fruit, golden butter, bread, cake, every
thing that could delight the heart of the
housekeeper. The door opened upon a
parlor, carpetedjj;and furnished with
numerous chairs and small tables. Near
ly every table had some choice display
"fillings desirable in a gastronomic sense.
A tea-urn graced one corner, and beside
it stood a coffee-urn, while on the table
before it were cups, sugar and spoons.
Two door at the back led to large rooms
onipletely filled with tables loaded with
foreign and domestic groceries. No
counters, no shelves, not a thing tosug
gest a store. English neatness, Parisian
elegance in nrrangenieut, American con
venience everywhere.
A pretty girl (from Boston) sat by the
door to receive the guests. Two stout
young fellows (from Maine) were read v
in the rear room, and Maxwell himself
sat by the tea-urn. By seven o'clock
they began to come. At eight o'clock
there were twenty carriages at the door.
At half-past eight there were more than
a hundred, and the place was packed.
The whole affair was a surprise. AA'es
ton did not know what to do, whether
to applaud or laugh or cry. It was not
a lunch, for not a thing was offered; it
was not a parts, for there were neither
cards nor dancing; nor a reception, for
nobody received. Maxwell welcomed
everybody politely, and bade them ex
amine freely.
They did. They did more: they com
mented with most refreshing freedom.
Some said it was a joke; nay, it is an
occasion for grave remonstrance. The
poor young man had lost his mind. A
few older heads said it might be a good
speculation, but not one said a single
word of approval, or even encourage
ment. At ten o'clock Tom Maxwell closed up
the place and went home. He could not
exactly describe it, but he felt it an in
definable something, a shadow, as it he
had passed under a cloud. The next day
it was clear enough. He had stepped
into a social cold bath.
In ruder civilizations peoples showed
their disapproval by uictly burning off
the offending party, or they tore down
his house or exiled him, or, in the
modern English fashion, they broke his
windows. Nothing of this happened to
Maxwell. None the less sharp and
effectual were the arms used against the
social offender.
They spoke to him when they must,
but No need to describe it in detail.
He had totally lost position. Days and
nights passed. There was a reception on
AValnut street; he was not invited.
There was a German on the hill; he re
ceived no card. At church they nodded
distantly; no more. He sat in his pew,
pale, with eompressedlips, and an un
spoken prayer on his tongue. The
preacher said, " Forgive your enemies,"
and he resolved he would.
Hay by day it grew worse. Acquaint
ances became strangers ; friends became
acquaintances. The Object passed him
in the way as one would a total stranger,
lie had become what? In the bitter
ness of his heart he cried out that all
men were cruel, all women selfish and
hard of heart. He bit His lips to repress
the minded tears and mortification.
AVhat had he done? AVas he not a man
doing a man's work?
AVork! Ah! that was the thing. He
would work, and forget these creatures.
The first day the store was open the
entire sales amounted to one dollar and
a half. A carriage from Foltham had
stopped at the door. Two ladies had
entered the store strangers and ladies.
They were lost in admiration. It is a
better Regent street, an improved Broad
way, a very Palais Royal. They emptied
their pocketbooks on the counter Such
excellent goods, and reasonable prices !
They would call again and bring all their
friends.
Not a single resident of the village en
tered the place all day. The following
day was Saturday. It mined hard, ana
in the afternoon three people came in
for sundry goods. One lady made out
quite an order, and asked that it be put
on the books. Maxwell respectfully de
clined. His dealings were for cash alone.
The lady otherwise person gave him
a withering look, and declared she had
never been so insulted in her life, and
marclied out. leaving the eoods behind
lier. The others paid cash, and went
away more than pleased at the prices
..,.1.,..! Tl... I... ,1 , . nKt.iniul cui.h
prices before.
Ths next day fourteen carriages came
I from Poltham. Two came from Roburn
I dale, and one from Newville. The cash
business done amounted to $275.50 tor
the week. The next week it doubled.
1 he week nfter it doubled again. The
fourth week Mnxwell hnd to consider
the purchase of a new team to deliver
the goods .
Six months passed, nnd the business
of the store exceeded the business of nil
the other stores combined. One of them
had fniledt nnd the other hnd actually
been scrubbed and painted. Such is the
force of example. And still the wonder
grew. AVeston lias a thrifty mind. It
can see a cent in a bargain with IIol-
landish clearness. The Maxwell system
was accepted fully. It was delightful
to visit a drawing-room, to have a pret
ty girl make a cup of tea for you. Ay,
twenty cups it you wished ; and having
tasted, you could buy with knowledge.
Did you wish olives, figs, sugars, cheese,
or bread? Sit down and try them.
This is so much, that so much. These
are the samples. Eat, test, pondpr, and
select. You cannot Bee the goods ; food
in the mass is essentially vulgar. Select
and pay . The goods will be delivered
according to sample No one was ever
permitted to pass beyond the parlor.
Within the interior rooms the packers
filled the orders with neatness, dispatch
and silence.
Did the purchnser wish flour? The
pretty jjirl brought a tray full of sam
ples, with plates and water. One could
make a dough, and even try it in a gas
oven, if desired. Oil was shown burn
ing in lamps; this light is bo much a
gallon, that so much, and so on from
lamp to lamp.
The store was a reception-room, shop
ping a social tea-tasting, with a gentle
man to preside. Maxwell took the or
ders, welcomed the arriving guests, took
the cash, and bade good-speed to part
ing friends. They came as buyers, and
departed feeling themselves guests.
At home, everything turned out ex
actly nccording to snmple, in more than
liberal measure, nnd in the most ex
quisite order, the very team being care
fully covered with white cloths. No un
couth youth begged for orders at the
door; no collector rang a dunning bell.
The heathen builds a temple to his
gods in princely splendor, and it is said
he pays for the work thereon. The
Christian's church is often in debt. So
it was at AA'eston. The First Church was
about to be closed on account of the un
paid interest on its debt. It was a mat
ter of great grief to the handful of peo
ple who attended there, and they met at
the church in solemn and unhappy mood
one stormy Saturday night to deliberate
over the impossible. In the midst of the
dismal proceedings a small girl timidly
opened the door and looked in. She hail
a letter for the clerk of the society. Some
body took it, nnd she disappeared. The.
clerk opened the letter, nnd there fell out
n piece of paper, crisp nnd rustling. The
clerk glanced at the note, and, picking
up the paper,, thrust it quickly into his
pocket. Curiosity was aroused, and
some one asked wliat it meant. A cheek.
Oh, marvelous! A check for the overdue
interest $493.03. Whose cheek? The
clei;k sail) tlic jnntrex jyas q .ljc ennti-
iii mnii. aiiu niei-uug iiluivc up mjujiui
mood. The church was safe for the
present. That night the clerk's wife
knew it. On the Sabbath everybody
knew it. The check was signed "Thomas
Maxwell."
Did it make any difference? Not at all.
lie was still "the groeervman." Beings
of a fine mold could receive his gift, but
could not receive him. They even re
sented it as a piece of presumption, lie
had only half of a hired pew in the back
row, were he sat every Sunday with the
sexton's daughters. They did send a
vote of thanks, but it came by mail. Not
a soul spoke to him about it save the old
minister. Some said it was a bid for
trade.
Shortly after this the fire-engine house
took fire, in derision, and ingloriously
burned down. The next morning the
village carpenter was hard nt work haul
ing lumber to the ruins. The lire com
pany, a volunteer association, composed
chiefly of working-men and young me
chanics, said, " AA'herefore do ye this?"
And straightway he said, in the language
of the period, "Maxwell gim me the
order, cash on the nail." Thereupon
they went with one accord to the grocery
store nnd gave three cheers for the pro
prietor. Persons of fine mold said,
"Another bid for trade." Maxwell
heard thereof, and thought it over.
Every man of the fire company was
already a customer. Moreover, nine
tenths of his trade came from other
towns and villages.
Time went on, and the new idea in the
grocery line flourished mightily. It was
the wonder of the trade, anil dealers
came from afar to see how the thing was
done. Sensible fathers from the city
'came with requests that their sons be
taught the new business. It was a new
business, for the grocery-man ol the
period knew none of these tilings. Peo
ple patronized him because they must
Jl'hey came to Maxwell's because it was
a pleasure. They fame, and saw, and
bought much, for the business was
founded on a recognized law of human
nature.
Meanwhile the Object lived on and on,
apparently indifferent, but really keenly
alive to all. She attended parties and re
ceptions, and heard people speak of Max
well only in slight and contempt, and
she heard i'. all in cowardly silence.
At last her eyes were opened. She
was put on some charity committee in
the church to visit the poor, and, to the
surprise of all, she really did so, which
was unusual for a committee-woman.
Everywhere before her had gone another.
He had thought his ways unkno wn, but
the widow and fatherless were garrulous
in his praise. She came back awiserand
hnnnier woman.
That night there was a reception at one
of the most fashionable houses. The
nnvlor was full when she entered, and
she made her way slowly to the side of
the hostess. Just as she stood ny me
hostess, at the head of the room, a young
male person, in the wholesale millinery
line, remarked that some person's doings
wn niiitfi on a level with Maxwell's.
" AVI 1 at do mean by that?" said aclear
soprano beside him.
A midden bush fell on the room.
" I mean that a man who would do
that is not fit to enter society. He is us
as low down as Maxwell the grocery
man, and fcueh cattle."
Thereupon there was a general laugh
through the room. AVhy the people
should laugh was not clear. It pro
duced, however, a surprising mm.
"Mr. Maxwell is a gentleman whom
you can well afford to pattern.
At once there was another laugh, but
1 .. ,1 ; IV,. win f t 'V
111 I ' i ' v - . -
flunk VOU. miSS. .1 Iicvi-i vuuuurr
such creatures." -.
i rw wwei-ln vou if you did. Mr
Maxwell is a Christian gentleman and a
,.nwii,i iiuid the interest on the
churoh debt; who rebuilt the engice-
hoUse; whogavo the new books to the
library; who helped the widow Valen
tine; who helped the Frost family in
their distress; who saved the .Claries
from positivo starvation; who hnsbeen
a friend to to the helpless; who laid out
the lit tle park nt the corner"
" AVho keeps a grocery store," put in
the mnle person.
At this some laughed, but there wns
a well-defined murmur of dissent, and
the laugh died away.
' AA'ho taught you to keep a store hon
estly ; who has borne slights and insults
because he chose to do a man's work in
the world ; who"
She was only a woman. She did not
finish the sentence, for she actually
fainted away, nnd would have fallen
had not the male person caught her.
Never had there been a greater sensation
in AArcston. The ladies gathered near,
with salts and words of sympathy. The
men stood npnrt in silence, for they were
nsliamed.
A very small female person, who had
been known to cast greedy eyes in a cer
tain direction, said spitefully, "Oh yes;
it's well enough now he is rich."
The Object revived just in time to hear
this, and said to the small creature, "I
have been a fool like the rest."
Here wns a tine state of affairs. Max
well rich, nnd publicly defended by one
of the most fashionable girls in the town.
He must be cultivated. Within a week
he received a dozen invitations to teas,
dances, kettledrums nnd receptions. lie
smiled to himself at each, nnd refused
them nil with thanks.
The news of the Object's bold defence
came to him quickly. AVns she the Ob
ject still? Of that there was no doubt.
Did she enre for him? It might be, anil
yet what could ho do? He canvassed
the whole ground, nnd wisely resolved
to do nothing.
Events gallop 111 these dnvs. There
came one to the village who seemed a
man of the world. He asked for Max
well's store, and was shown the parlors
on Alain street, lie stood before the
place and gazed and gazed. Then he
went iu. nnd asked permission to sit,
a while and observe 1 1. e trade. He sat
there three hours. Then, in a lull in the
business, he . rose and said to Maxwell,
oung man, this will not do.. 1 011 are
hiding your ideas under a bushel. Come
out into the world where you will be
recognized. I'm not a man of words,
but if half a million will help you to
open a dozen stores of this kind in Chi
cago, Milwaukee, Columbus, Louisville,
Omaha, San Francisco, or where else
you wish, I'm your man. AVill you go?"
les, sir. If everything is correct.
" Everything is correct. There are my
card references. I'll call to-morrow with
my lawyer and the papers."
Thereupon he presented his card, and
withdrew. The next day the store had
changed hands, for there were parties
already waiting to buy it. The evening
train that connects with the AVestern ex
press stopped at the little station and
took up a young lady and gentleman.
The few people who stood near smiled
in that friendly way bestowed on people
about to be married, and llien they wevo
gone. The train pulled slowly out of the
town, and a young lady, fair to see, lean
ed out of the window and said :
" Cood-by, little village. I love you,
because you are nn excellent place to
cmigiate from." Then she turned to her
companion and said, " I am glad, Tom,
we are going out into the great world."
" So nm 1. for it is God's world wher
ever we go."
The new man ran the store just six
months, and failed. He was only a
groeeryman, with a grocery man's nar
row views. His failure was perfectly
logical. Harper's Jfazar.
Meteoric Dust.
A writer in the 'London Tunis Ims
been investigating the amount of matter
added to the earth iy the meteors which
are constantly fal ling upon it. The total
downfall, he sins, would not at its
present rate, or eton at the present rate
increased a thousandfold, cause the
earth's crust to grov appreciably in the
lapse 01 ages uwiersiaiuung ly ages
thousands of years. It has been shown
by Professor Alexander Herschel that
the average weigkt of shooting stars
visible to the eyei must be estimated
rather by grains thn by ounces, and the
telescopic shooting-stars which form
nine-tenths of the total, according to
Professor Newtoi.'s (of New Haven)
estimate, are, of course, far smaller,
lint assigning even to each meteor a
weight of one pound nn utter v mad-
missable estimate let Us consider at
what rate the earth s crust would crow.
The earth has a surface of 200.000,000
squaie miles, and about 400,000,000
meteors felt upon it per annum. That
gives two meteors, or two pounds weight
01 matter, aoueu 10 eacn square nine m
a year. There are more than 3,000,000
square yards in a mile, so that 1,500,000
years would be required at the present,
rate of meteo'rie downfall to add one
pound of meteoric matter to each square
yard of the earth's surface. Such added
matter, uniformly spread over the sur
face, would be utterly inappreciable so
lar as tno tmcKness 01 tne earth's crust
is concerned. In a thousand millions
of years, nt that rate, which far exceeds
tne real rate, tne crust ot the earth
would not be increased in thickness by
a sinitle foot. The excess of increase in
the Northern hemisphere would not be
one foot in a billion ot years.
Novel Use of a Locomotive.
Every day proves the truth of the old
adage; "Necessity is the mother of in
vention." Our attention has just been
called to a new way of utilizing tho
power of a locomotive. Some years ago
Porter, Bell & Co,, of Pittsburg, sent
one of their small locomotives to the
famous Dutch Flat in California. It
was used for hauling logs from a timber
tract to the saw mill. But as much o
the timber was in a deep canyon and the
mill was on the hill top, the ingenious
owner desired to make it do another
kind of duty as well as its own. They
arranged an incline tra.'k placing a car
on it. to which they lash the timber,
and by a wire rope draw it to the top.
The rope passes over a drum at the top
of the hill and the power is supplied by
the little locomotive. The modus oper
audi -is toiun the engine on to a side
track alongside the drum on to friction
wheels, through which the power is
communicated, and her like a dog in a
churn wheel or a horse in a tread mill,
the engine revolves its drivers without
the engine advancing and lifts its load
600 feet in height in 1,800 feet of track,
the engine thus becoming practically a
stationary engine. Iron Aye.
"Greatly t his credit "
posit, A bank dc
AVeb Engineering.
On going round the garden this morn
inn, snvs a writer in Land and Water.
I perceived what seemed a small piece of
cneeso nppnremiy iioaiing in me an
straight before me. On coming up to
it, 1 found that it was suspended from a
spider's web, which was spun right
across the path. One's first hasty thought
was that this spider had found a piece
of cheese below, and, takingafancy to it,
was then drawing it up into its web to
eat it. Further exninination, however,
showed that the substance was not
cheese, but a small pebble much resem
bling that edible, evidently taken from
the gravel walk beneath. There wns
nothing for the spider to nttach his web
to on the walk, so he had selected n
suitable stone to balance his web, which,
indeed, it did ndmirably, the web being
attached to trees on either side of the
walk, nnd weighted belowl)y the stone,
so ns to be in nearly a perpendicular
position. The stone was connected with
the web by a threefold cord, the strands
of which were attached to different parts
of the stone. 1 visited the web two or
three hours after the spider had finished
it, and found that his ingenuity h:fd
heen rewarded, as the web contained,
besides a largo fly, off which he was
dining, more small flies than I haveever
before seen in a web. Neither myself,
nor those of my friends to whom I
showed the web, have ever seen anything
of the kind before. Perhaps your readers
will be interested in such nn example
of high instinct in a spider, and those
who are more versed in natural history
than myself may be nblo to remember
other examples of the same kind. That
the stability of the web depended upon
the weight of the stone was shown when
1 put my hand under the latter. The
result was that as I raised my hand the
iower part of the web gradually col
lapsed, but when the stone was suffered
again to fall gently the web resumed its
proper shape. The web wns about five
leet from the ground .
Spider engineering is a most interest
ins subject, nnd one that I have snent
hours in studying. I have worked out
most of the problems in connection with
it, but the weight dodge I have not as
yet been able to explain.' Some spiders
will use ties; but others, of exactly the
same species, will use a weight although
the .circumstances under which both
built nunarentlv are similar. But bow
does the spider raise the weight? This
I could never explain to my satisfaction,
ns some of the weights are so large that
it is scarcely possible they could lift them
y a "dead lilt." tiesides, they will
put on one, two or more weights in a
few hours before wind, to fix their
structures. The industry nnd ingenuity
or the spider passes belief to all those
who have seen them at work, but no
more profitable day can be spent by .n
young engineer than a day after a storm
m a path through the gorse wntehinir
ipidcr reeon struct i 11 2 its web. This is
the legitimate wnv of seeina the work
done, but there are other dodges, such
as breaking down the web, nnd watching
the poor insects reconstruct them.
A Small Buy on Cats.
Cats are about the most interestinL'e.st
nuiuial there is. You can have more
fun with a eat in half nn hour, if vou
have a good tree handy and an enterpris
ing dog, than you can wi'.h a whole
traveling menagerie. Cats nnd fire
ackers are mortal enemies Yuu tie a
bunch to a cat's tail and set 'em off. and
they will go down the street like a firry
comet. N. B., wire is better than string
to fasten them on with as sirinflr is
iable to burn off. It isn very pleasant
pastime to see two cats light. Their
tails may be tied firmly together, and for
fear they might tear un thinss in the Har
den it is a good plan to hang them across
a clothes-line. They can be heard miles.
1 hnu1 often seen them. Some folks re
gnrdThis sport as cruel, we call such
folks chicken livered. Did you ever see
a shaved cat.J ihev are verv singular
eat tires it may be done with a razor
if you know where your father keens
his'n. You tie up the cniiia in ..ij
nnttuiw while you are doing it. Some
fnlks don t think K lmrdly pays and I
shall never be guilty of doing it though
J do think a rattier is rather mean who
whales his boy all over when his finger
is cut half oJVand his face scratched all
over nil ready. Kittens nre very
pretty. There nre more than forty of
them 111 the water under the mi 11 bridge.
They nearly all of thein have stones tied
to their necks. It is a very unfeeling
thing to drown a kitten. They are in
nercent harmless creatures. Cats are
great singers. The Chinese eat cats.
A7hat can you expect of the heathen ?
Some people hang dead cats as May
baskets it is only a joke but the folks
that get 'em never seem to appreciate it.
There is a great many other things about
cats but I think I have given you a
plenty of ideas already, so will close.
StMOX Sl.Ol'E.
Courageous Captain Lnee.
tall, gray-haired man with clear
A
blue
eyes, gray mustache ana sparse
whiskers under his chin, was the
fc'i'ny
first witness called in a will case in New
York. It was Captain James C. Luce of
the steamship Arctic, which was run
into and sunk on the 24th of September,
1851. The Arctic had 233 passengers.
and there were 150 in the crew. Only
ninety-seven persons were saved and not
one woman. A part of the crew behaved
very badly. They filled the boats and
when they were about to abandon the
sinking sliip a place in one of the boats
was ottered to Captain L,uec, who stood
with his little boy by his side where ho
had been using his utmost exeritons to
rule ins crew. He spurned the otter, and
when those in the boat offered to take
his son, he rejected that offer also with
indignation. He went down with his
shin hand and hand with his son. They
were drawn down nbout thirty feet into
the vertex. Then they rose to the sur
face. A moment afterward a part of a
paddle box floated up to them. Its mo
mentum was so great that it killed the
boy. The father climbed upon it with
nine others. He and George Allen and a
German were on it from AA ednesday, the
day of the accident, until Saturday after
noonT Only four of the ten outlived the
first night aiter the. accident. On the
morning of the day on which the captain
was saved there was a heavy tog. bud
denly it parted and formed a great arch
beneath which was clear air. Under
this arch was the Cambria of Quebec
She picked up Captain Luce and his two
fellow sunerers.
A Manchester (England) paper men
tions the case of a man eighty years old
who is now 'cutting his second set of
teeth. They are uniform and Vegular,
top ana 00110m 01 me mouui,
TIMELY TOriUS.
Making waistcoats at fourteen cents
each, cheviot shirts nt four cents apiece,
heavy overalls at fifty cents per dozen
and woolen trousers at ten cents a pair
are some facts gleaned. by a society of
ladies who are investigating the condi
tion of the sewing women of Cleveland,
Ohio.
Although the existence of petroleum
in several of the provinces of Japan is
said to have been known for 1.5200 years,
the Japanese did not know how to relino
it till about six years ngo. Now, how
ever, refining establishments are spring
ing up rapidly, and its manufacture is
becoming nn important industry.
Taking the entire length of the New
York Elevated railroad, on both the east
nnd west side lines, and multiplying it
by the number of trains run during the
twenty-four hours, and again by the
number of loconitives and cars, it is
found that the distance traveled in one
day is 30,352 miles, or nearly one and a
half times around the world ; the pro
portion of miles traveled on the west
side, ns compared with the east side,
being about one to seven.
" You attempted to take the life of the
king; the king gives you iife," were the
words of the Italian nttorney-general,
who communicated to the assassin Pas
sannnte in prison King Humbert's com
mutation of his sentence of death to
imprisonment, for life. Passananto is
said to have displayed considerable emo
tion and expressed his deep gratitude.
He will finish his existence with hard
work in irons. The kind's popularity
has been increased by this net. Mon
archs, as a rule, dislike to sign thedeath
warrants of their would-be assassins.
Drunkenness in Sweden and Norway
is cured in the following manner: The
drunkard is put in prison, and his only
nourishment is bread soaked in wine.
During the first day the prisoner receives
the bread nnd wine with much pleasure.
On the second day the food is not so nc-
eptable. After that he takes his food
with great repugnance. In general, eight
or ten days of tliis treatment suffices to
produce such n disgust of liquor that the
unhappy man is compelled to absolute
abstinence. After leaving prison his
drunkenness is radically cured, with an
occasional exception, and the odor ot
liquor produces an invincible repulsion.
The venerable Peter Cooper has n
device for propelling the cars of the ele
vated railroads In Is ew Y ork by means
of an endless wire or chain, and he has
written a letter to show how simple,
bean, noiseless and uafe his system
would be. He offers to turn over the
invention to the east side road lor 100,
000 in their stock, to be immediately
made over to the trustees of tho Cooper
Union as a fund for its support, and
thinks it would be no niorethan fair that
they should take it at those figures, inas-
iiueh as the institute has sullered a great
loiil from the nroxiniitv of the road.
which has interfered witli the students
and cut down the income from the room
111 the building that are rented.
The great tunnel under the Detroit river
will be completed within two years, and
will cost about 1,500,000. Mr. Tilling-
liast. the president of the Canada South
ern Railway Company, says that the lo-
ation chosen lor tins great undertaking
s the only one when' the tunnel can
be made through the rock, as it comes
within twenty-two feet of the surface of
tlm water at the points selected. At De
troit the rock is nearly one hundred feet
below the surface. Amherst burg is
fourteen miles below that city. The
proposed location of the tunnel 'will ac-
ommodale traffic Irom both the North
west nnd the Southwest. I he tunnel
will be built under the supervision of
E. C. Cheseborough, of Chicago, who
has had experience in the construction
of both road nnd river tunnels.
Hereafter let nothing be said disre-
SpCCUUiiy 01 lilt: muic. r ..
mprisoned 111 the mine ill n l.Kesimrre,
'a., who were rescued in a lair conui
ion. after being entombed tor over five
days by the fallen roof, owe their lives to
a member ot this inucli-aDUscii species,
for they killed him and foi four days
lived upon nun. Jiad tins mine ueen as
positive in his character as mules are re
puted to be, ho might have refused to
die, in which case carving him might
have proved a dangerous operation.
All's well that ends well, and that must
have been an exciting moment when the
seven men v ho had been iu such immi
nent danger of death were liberated 111
the presence of eight thousand persons,
having been shut out from the blessed
sunlight since the previous Tuesday
morning.
A cotton mill'is to be established in
China. Tho prime mover in the enter
prise is said to be a Chinaman, it is
stated that 50,000 taels have been nl-
readypaid down as bargain mouey to
.1.. it. .' 1 i .1. 1 1 .1
me 111111 which lias secuicu iiiu cwiium-i.
The contract is sai't to be 255,000 taels
for everything delivered iu Shanghai.
The mill is to be erected in Shanghai,
and is to contain 800 looms. It is un
derstood that China cotton will be used,
and as this is a short staple, it may be
assumed tliat only coarse calico wi.l be
turned out, as the staple is unsuitable
for the manufacture ot fine goods. Jt
lias been estimated by the promotors
that 6,000 bales per year, calculating the
1 .1- A: -i. . jjv i.
naie as containing nuv piwtd, win
turned out. This is enuivalent to a pro'
duction of seven and a half pieces per
fooni per week.
Repartee iu Rhyme.
The following anecdote on three noted
North Carolinians Hillman, Dews and
hwain the two former brilhaut lawyers
and the latter a learned lawyer and a
scholar, and from 1832 to 1835 governor
of the State, and afterward president of
Chapel Hill University is nearly out of
Unto. At a term ot tno huprcmu couii
the crentleman handed Mr. James Dodge,
then clerk of the court, the following
epitaph:
" Here lies Jumeg Dodge, who dodged all good
And never dodged an evil,
And utter dodging all he oould,
He could not dodge the devil!"
To this Mr. Dodge returned the follow
ing sharp impromptu reply :
" Here lies a Hillman and a Swain,
Their lot let uo man choose;
They lived in sin end died in puin,
And the devil Rot his dues! (Dews)"
Wilmington (JV. C.) Sun,
Some of these base ball professionals
aro very poor "sticks." Only this
morning we saw one who could hardly
. . 1. iT. 1 . . r T.
caicu ma uieuu. xjum.ii.
ITEMS OF INTEREST.
Lead ville, Colorado, is 10,400 feet above
the sea.
At Marseilles, France, diphtheria ex
sts in fowls.
Bridal tours will be short this year if
he " old man " is.
St. Louis claims to be the mule me
tropolis of the world.
Diil you ever see a pretty milkmaid in
a quan dary? Lukens.
A New York dealer in birds imported
last year 100,000 canaries.
AVater, when it becomes steam, is ex
panded 1,700 times its original bulk.
The length of a lady's train should
never be under a foot. Boston I'ost.
The elephnnt is nfrnid of baggage
smashers; lie never checks his trunk.
Silting Bull's favorite hair remedy is
warranted to bring the hair out by the
roots.
It is between the nges of twenty-five
nnd thirty years that most people be
come insane.
The military chest captured nt Isan
dula (Zululand) by the Zulus contained
. 100,000 in gold.
" You are beneath my notice," ns the
balloonist said to the receding crowd 01
gaping citizens. N. Y. News.
By diligent observation, Sidney Bux
ton has decided that dogs nnd horses arc
the only animals sensitive to ridicule.
Tobacco is largely cultivated in Bus--sin,
nnd the seed used on the plantations
is from the United States and from Tur
key. Bismarck reads every word of ndviee
to him in the Americnn newspapers, and
he does just as each newspaper think
best.
Celluloid can be made to closely imi
tate ivory, and is making great inroads
in the business of the ivory manufac
turers. Putnam's winged atom is the smallest
of all known insects. Its body is only
1-12,000 of nn inch in length, nnd the
antenna; only 1-20,000.
According to Professor Trowbridge's
calculation, a man witli nn average step
liftB his own weight a foot from the
ground in every twenty-three feet he
travels.
It is a curious fuel that although rice
is the principal food of the Arabs, not one
grain of it is grown in their country
It is procured by them either from India
or Italy.
The San Francisco Chronicle reports a
shower of several thousand herrings near
11 cemetery in that city. They were not
pickled, and there is not salt enough in
the stei'y to save it.
' oh, iiKii'leii sweet, with dolieute led,
'flipping tin) lair llelds over,
AVlmt do yon seek hy the gurgling creek
And amid tho dewy clover?"
"Why, Mister," she said, " yon don't know
beaux !
I'm yutheriii' yiiller dock lor green."
Cincinnati Star.
" You make me think," John AVilliam
said, dropping upon the sofa beside the
prettiest girl on North hill, last Sunday
evening, "of a bank whereon the wild
thyme grows." "Do I ? " she murmured.
" It is so nice, but that is pa's step in the
hall and unlis you can dropout of the
front window before 1 get through speak
ing, you'll have a little wild time with
him, my own, for he loves you not."
But John AVilliam didn't quite make it
and now you can make him grow wild
time and time again by simply asking
him what makes him go lame when he
walks. He knows, but he won't tell.
UnrliiiiloH Ilawkeyc.
Hardly any better retort is on record
than one made to Professor Bonamy
Price, of Oxford University on his late
visit to this country. He was not re
markable for his geniality, and at a din
ner party, at which popular ideas of
heaven happened to be under discus
ion, he turned to Dr. H. AV. Bellows
and said : " AVc would like to have your
opinion of heaven. Dr. Bellows, as that
of one who stands outside the pale of
plied':" " My Idea of heaven'is'that of a
great dinner party where we can have
everything we want without money nnd
ithout Price." All but onejoined in
the laugh. Imlejiendcnt.
"Something to Praise."
The recent accident in one of the
AVilkesbarre coal mines, nnd the fortu
nate final delivery of all the imprisoned
men, renders a timely word in reference
to the subject o mutual lieipiuiness, as
practiced there in cases of fatal casual
. .1 , i,,,i
ties, tor 11 long time nun-en, unm
within two or three years past when
death to the miner has resulted from ac
cident in the mines, it seems to have
been the custom among them to throw
nn nil work until after the funeral and
then devote a day's labor to the widow
and orphans of tho deceased. For this
practice a prominent oniccr oi one 01 inc
companies has succeeded in substituting
tho following: AVhcn a fatal accident
occurs the operatives continue 11s usual
until the day of the funeral, when they
taken half' holiday, attend the burial
and contribute fifty cents per nan and
twenty-live cents per boy to the widows
find orphans,, the company agreeing
to double the amount, whatever it may
be. This plan has thus far worked ex
cellently in the cases which have come
under notice.
A custom so sensible and humane can
not be other than beneficial in every way
to employers and employed ; nnd for the
same reason that the Graphic finds it
necessary to oppose and denounce cor
porations in a these respects in which
they arc grasping ana oppressive, 11 lanes
pleasure in commending them for every
act of consideration and justice they ex
hibit to their employes nnd customers.
New York Graphic,
A Cautious AVoiiiiui.
little woman, with considerable
anxiety in her face, was searching the
Central Market yesterday for flowers and
seeds, and one of the seed sellers explain
ed to her:
" Here arc some of the nicest climber j
you ever saw. it you take them they
will cover your house and make it look
almost like Paradise."
"They will, eh?" absently replied
the woman.
"Yes, they will. You don't know
how they will improve the looks of your
house."
" But I won't take any. Just as soon
so, they made the old house look any bet
ter the landlord would come around and
raise the rent on us. I guess I won't buy
anything but sunflower seeds and a stalk
or two of catnip." Detroit it Press.