"71 . i.
HENRY A. PARSONS, Jr., Editor and Publisher. NIL. DESPERANDUM. Twa Dollars per Annum.
VOL, IX. BIDGWAY, ELK COUNTY, FA., THURSDAY, FEBEUARY 5, 1880. NO-50-
Astray.
I traveled a forbidden roul,
Which first appeared so flowery lair
Tliat onward eagerly I strode
Till to my horror and despair
All buds and blossoms blooming there,
All tender boughs and twigs ol gi eea
Stood changed to burrs and nettles keen,
Whose angry points my garments tore,
And pricked my hands till they were sore.
Bewildered at the wondrous ohange,
That should have warned me from the place,
I kept my course with swifter paoe,
And saw a marvel still more strange;
For oruel flints sprang thro' the ground
To meet my leet at every bound, '
With gash on gush that made them bleed.
Then time it was that I should heed!
Just at the moment of my need,
A shining man stood at my side
Whose luster loll on all around,
And spread a glory iar and wide!
" And who art thou T" I trembling cried.
" Give ear," said ho, " to what I say ;
I am the guide ol all who stray,
To point them back to virtue's path,
The guurdinn ot thy erring way;
And, step by step in love, not wrath
Tiiese angry flints and briers I strew,
To warn thy leet from wandering so."
1 knelt and kissed the garment's hem,
And cried, " Oh, angel, sent from heaven!
Make sharper yet each thorny stem!
Increase the flints to seven times seven!
Fulfill thy purpose in my pain
1 will endure and not complain!"
He fled, and I, with deep remorse,
Turned back from my forbidden course
But, Oh, how many weary hours
1 travelvd o'er those blighted bowers,
KoblooHicd with all their lormer flowers.
Theodore Tiltoti.
JAKE MUGGINS' COURTSHIP.
"Whew, hut it's hot!" ejaculated
Jacob Muggins as he threw down the
turnip hoe and commenced mopping
his face with a huge bandana handker
chief, one sultry day in early autumn.
" I do wish this patch of turnips was
dug, and safely housed in the old gran
ary," he continued, gazing around upon
the immense piles .t green topped veg
etables, ' or else thnt the weather would
cool down so that a fellow could gut
something done in a day. Hero I ve
been '-nrd at work all day, and am not
half through willi my job yet; and
what's more, it will take me 'till plumb
noon to-morrow to finish if I keep on
this way." And with this muttered
soliloquy Jake resumed1 his hoe, com
menced digging vigorously that one
might suppose he stood in dread of be
ing culled a sluggard if lie failpd to per
form two day's work during one revo
lution of the diurnal axis.
The truth whs, however, he had al
ready accomplis-hed a good day's work,
although it was int more than three
o'clock in the afternoon, and the
shadows of the trees in the grove hard
by had not yd taken that long, peculiar
slant which marks the declination of
the sun to the western horizon.
Jacob Muggins was a tall, brawny
son of the soil, with hands and feet just
a little too large to be termed classic,
and a handsome, though sunburned
countenance which could assume a
very comical expression when its mas
ter willed. To-day he was arrayed in
a coarse homespun garb of pale, richly
colored blu, with rough cowhide
shoes and a broad palm-leaf hat, around
the crown of which was tied a bright
green ribbon tied there by two fairy
hands that Jake would have given
worlds to call his own.
How Jacob ever came to fall in love
with Jenny Weatherby, the wealthy
squire's pretty daughter, Jacob did not
know. But the thing had been done,
and although Jenny had done nothing
to discourage his Bhy approaches, he
had nver summoned sufficient resolu
tion to mvke a proposal for Iter hand.
On several occasions he had, as he
thought, scraped up his courage to the
sticking point,but, each time, upon being
ushered into the presence or the fair
charmer, his resolution cave way liter
ally, as he afterward" expressed it,
' eked out at his fingers ends," so that
he could only stammer a few common
place remarks concerning the weather
and crops.
Worse than all, a certain dashing
young cousin of the Weatherby's had
been down from the city the past few
weeks, and had been making himself
quite plentiful about the squire's, walk
ing, rowing and fishing with Jenny
almost every day, while he was com
pelled to be at work in the field. This
was gall and wormwood to poor Jacob,
not because he minded the work, but,
inasmuch as his rival was of clever ad
dress and polished manner, he stood in
great danger of being displaced in the
affection of Jenny, by the fascinating
allurements of the city fop, and in con
sideration of this impending calamity,
Jacob determined to press his suit upon
the very first opportunity.
Financially, Jaks was quite prepared
to enter into a state of matrimony.
His motto had always, been, "work
and win," and, in consequence of strictly
adhering to this rule of honesty, he had
by diligence and industry accumulated
the sum of five hundred dollars, earned
by teaching the village school winters
and working on the farm summers.
The possession of this sum very
naturally elevated him in the opinion of
the country folks, who looked upon
him as a capitalist, and of course he was
considered quite a catch by the match
making mammas of the district.
Already he had begun to look around
in search of a suitable investment for
his money, and he decided in favor of a
little white cottage Isituated in the val
ley, over whose low, thatched roof the
woodbine and morning glories grew in
profusion. This could be had for the five
hundred and the marriage portion which
Jenny would receive from her father,
would be sufficient to purchase a small
farm adjoining the cottage, which would
enable them to commence life in quite
comfortable circumstances.
But, as has been before stated, the
hicm, uuucdity witn Jacob was to con
quer his nntnwurH h
lie termed IipipH
wjs.nd-for promise; in consequence of
TT.iiwi lamug uo was piacea in quite a
quandary.
" Whew, but it's hot!" and again Jake
turew uown ins noe, and commenced
mopping his faee with the red handker
chief. 1 would five anything for & onnA
ol draught from the spring, and a
pocket full of the squire's best apples,"
lie soliloquized, glancing wistfully in
the direction of the orchard, bent down
with its load of ripe red and yellow fruit,
"and as the distance is not far, I be
lieve I'll run over for a few moments,
anyhow." And with this he started off,
and having allayed his thirst at the
spring which bubbled out below the or
chard, he mounted the fence and betook
himself of the favorite family tree, whose
huge gnarled trunk supported a leafy
caronet of interlacing limbs and
brandies, so dense as to preclude all
possibility of the sun's rays penetrat
ing through them.
Into this delightful shade Jake threw
himself, and for a moment forgot his
toils and troubles. The sky. was so
light, the grass so green, the luscious
fruit and gay flowers so fragrant that lie
could not help but feel their benignant
influence. The dull droaningof a beetle
and the hoarse cawing of some crows in
a distant cornfield, mingled with the
rippte of the water over the stones by the
roadside, lent enchantment to the scene;
and poor Jake could not help but think
how sweet life must be to those who
have nothing to do but while away their
time in pleasant places, in the shadow
of green trees and overhanging boughs.
Thus he mused, helping himself to the
fruit in the meantime, until, before he
was conscious of the fact, he had fallen
off into a light doze from which he was
suddenly awakened by hearing voices
approaching from the direction of the
house. In an instant he was on his feet,
and peering through between the trees
who should he see but Jenny and Mr.
Eldridge, the dandified city cousin,
leisurely approaching the tree under
which he stood.
.Here was a dilemma, indeed, to be
caught trespassing would be disgrace-
Lful in the extreme, and besides Jake
could not bear the thought of facing
his lady-love in his old. faded, home
spun frock, especially before the critical
eyes of Mr. Eldridge.
What was to be done P For a moment
a wild thought of flight took possession
of him, but he immediately realized
that should he adopt thai mode of escape
his discovery would be certain, inas
much as they were already nearly upon
him. Poor Jake was all in a tremble.
What could be done? If he could nly
find a sate place in which to hide until
they should pass by I He glanced
nround, nervously .but nothing presented
itself that could afford him a secreting
place. The voices approached nearer;
something must be done, quick! He
cast his eye ud into the tree, and won
dered if its thick branches and dense
foliage would not protect him from the
eyes of a casual observer. Yes, he would
try it at any rate; better avail himself
ol their proffered covert than be found
standing there like a trembling culprit.
And without taking a second thought
Jake scrambled up the tree, and stowed
himself away in the remotest part, amid
a thick cluster of green boughs.
A moment after he regretted the act,
for he realized that should hebn discov
ered in his present position, his situation
would be even more ridiculous than bo
fore. But it was now too late to indulge in
vain regrets or, rather, in any hope of
altering his situation, for Jenny nnd her
escort now advanced to the tree, and to
Jake's intense chagrin and mortification,
seated themselves directly under the
spot where he was concealed.
" A pretty pickle you're into. Jak e
Muggins." muttered Jacob, as with
flushed face lie viewed the couple be
low, and wondered if they couldn't
hear his heart beat ; for it was bounc
ing so convulsively that he was fearful
lest it should knock all the apples from
off the limb upon which he sat.
And then he thought what a beautv
Jenny was as she sat there with her
dark hair gathered into a graceful coil,
her sweet, expressive eves containing
such a depth of tenderness, and cheeks
like pink rose-buds, nnd wondered if it
were possible for such a fairy creature
to ever think of loving a great, ungainlv.
awkward chap like himself.
In the meantime Jenny and Mr. El
dridge were enjoying themselves be
neath, little dreaming of the close prox
imity ol a tnird party. Mr. Jfcldndge
had opened and commenced reading
from a small volume of Tennyson.
which Jacob recognized from the bind
ing.
After some time had been consumed
in this way the two proceeded to par
take oi ine iruit witn wnien tne ground
was strewn, conversing meanwhile and
amusing themselves by spelling out
i lie supposed name ot eacu one g lever
upon the seeds of the respective apples
of each.
By some strange perchance, Mr. El
dridge caused the seeds from Jenny's
apple to spell the name of Jacob Mug
gins himself, almost every time. This
seemed to afford the city cousin great
pleasure, for he laughed incessantlv.nnrl
asked Jenny if she ever hoped to be
nble to capture such a shy creature as
Jacob Muggins .
Although Mr. Judndge was vcrv
much amused over the coincidence of
the seeds, Jenny seemed to look upon
the matter quite seriously, and when her
cousin jokingly inquired if she did
really love this faint-hearted country
man, she replied with a defiant toss of
the head and a perceptible deepening of
the rose-tint on ner cheeks, that she
" liked him quite as well as any of her
other acquaintances!"
And poor Jake, who can describe his
feelings upon hearing this frank avowal?
For if his face had oeen red before, it
was now almost purple in hue, while
his heart beat ten times faster than be
fore. Yet he managed to hold on to his
seat, and watch the progress of events
down below, for Mr. Eldridge, who had
listened to Jenny's declaration quite
seriously, had seated himself by her
side, and was apparently about to pro
pose on the spot. But just at that mo
ment Bounce, the big watch-dog, came
running down from the house and with
hoarse growls commenced smelling sus
piciously around the base of the tree, all
the while casting furtive glances into
the branches where Jacob was seated in
mortal dread lest the dog should dis
close hi position to the couple be
low. The strange actions of the dog could
not help but attract the attention of
J'-nny and her cousin, who were at first
unable to assign any reason as to the
cause of it. Presently Mr. Eldridge
suggested that there was a squirrel in
the tree, and to investigate the matter
more closely he arose and peered up into
the dark foliage.
"I imagine that I see something
seated up there among the branches," he
at length replied, sht.ding his eyes with
his hand and gazing intently at the tree,
" but as to whether it is man or beast I
canaot say. However, just to satisfy
Bounce, I'll run up to the houie iad
bring the gun, and perhaps we may suc
ceed in having some sport with tho
creature, whatever it may be." And
with these words he started off in the
direction of the house, leaving Jenny to
her own reflections and Bounce to claw
away at the bottom of the trco.
And, new, what was Jacob to doP
Should he sit still and be shot like a
thief or a wild beast, or hould he take
advantage of his rival's absence, come
down like a man and confess his love
for Jenny on the spot. He must take
one of the two alternatives, and must
choose quick. For a moment he faltered,
not knowing what apology to make
for his awkward nosition: but he de
termined to do the best he could, and
quietly commenced the descent, think
ing it tetter at any time to face his
lady-love than a loaded rifle.
No sooner did the dog recognize in
Jacob an old friend and benefactor than
he relapsed intosilence and quickly per
mitted him to -land; and Jake did not
fail to notice that Jenny was much less
surprised at his sudden appearance than
he had expected she would be.
How he ever did it, Jacob could never
tell. But he went down on his knees
before Jenny, and in BUch language as
had never before been heard to flow
from his lips poured forth his love into
the willing ear of his adored, whilo
Bounce wagged his tail and looked on,
apparently well pleased with the turn
events had taken. And, although the
newly betrothed lovers remained in the
shade of the old apple tree until the sun
had sank to rest behind the western
horizon, yet Mr. Eldridge did not put
in an appearance with the gun an event
which Jacob had been momentarily ex
pecting. It was not until some time after the
marriage festivities had been celebrated
that Jenny disclosed to Jacob the artifice
that had been employed to bring about
a declaration of his love.
He then learned that the flirtation be
tween Jenny and Mr. Eldridge was all
a hoax, gotten up by the artful cousin
for the purpose of bringing the tardy
lover to a proposal. On the day in the
orchard they had seen him when he
first climbcdf into the tree, and were
aware of his presence all the time they
were seated beneath.
Eldridge's seeming intention of pro
posing for Jenny's hand, as well as the
device of going in search of the gun,
were only continuations of the conspir
acy against him.
Jacob's opinion of his wife's cousin
has now been vastly improved, and he
has quite forgiven the hard things which
he said in regard to him n that memo
rable day under the apple tree. Jacob
now looks upon him as his greatest
benefactor, who helped him to acquire
the most valuable treasure in his posses
sion. Quincy Modern Aryo.
American Cartridges.
Ku-sia was among the first to make
Use of the American metallic cartridges,
and she attempted in vain to imitate
them. Afier wasting 10,000,000 of cart
ridges made of inferior material, she
w svly concluded to buy here, as other
on ign nations have since done. Some
of the American cartridges sent to Rus
sia, were subjected to the unparalleled
test of a Ave weeks' soaking in the
waters of New York harbor, the vessel
carrying them having sunk off Staten
Island tin her way out. They were
lished up as good as new, and triumph
antly passing the ordeal of a new test
of their firing quality went on their
way again, and have no doubt long
smco added their quota to the list of
casualties. For good cartridges Ameri
can copper is needed, a fact which the
Europeans are beginning to learn.
Even so long ago as the days of tho
mound-builders it was discovered that
our Lae Superior region produced a
copper ore of uncommon purity. Ore
of equal purity is not, it would seem, to
be found elsewhere, and perhaps the
process of annealing is not so w. ll un
derstood abroad. At all events, the
brass made of the foreign copper,
abot nding in the sulphurets, lacks the
necessary strength and ductility, and
lor some reason the metallic cartridges
made abroad are liable to deteriorate in
quality. During her war with Turkey
Russia purchased large quantities ol
brass liere, one Connecticut firm alone
supplying $2,000,000 worth of sheet
brass. Other governments have, no
doubt, been purchasers. Ready-made
cartridges have also been sent abroad in
such quantities that a million has be
come the unit of calculation. Three
forms of cartridges are made the Uni
ted States government cartridge, the
Peabody-Martini cartridge, and the
largest, the Sharps or Remington spe
cial long-range cartridge. The govern
ment cartridge contains seventy grains
of powder and a hardened bullet, com
posed of one part of tin and sixteen
parts lead, weighing 405 grains. The
Peabody-Martini has eighty-five grains
of powder and a bullet of the same corn
p mition weighing 460 grains. The long
ra ge bullet has one part of tin to four
teen parts lead, and weighs 550 grains,
the charge of powder being
100 grains. The advantages of
the heavier cartridge are well shown
in the experiences of the Turkish
war, already referred to. Whatever
else they may lack, the Turks have cer
tainly shown superior intelligence in the
armament of their troops. Tho Eng
lish, who use the same gun, had, on a
smaller scale, an experience similar to
that of the Turks. The rifles used by
the rifle brigade in the campaign against
the Afghans were sighted tor 2,000 yards,
and at 2.100 yards were found effective.
The rifles with which our own army is
provided are sighted for 1,200 yarJs.
Some of the sights used by riflemen iv
lung-range shooting, as the Vernier
sight, combine a spirit-level and wind
gauge. The ordinary Vernier will reg
ister to the thousandth of an inch, and
Verniis have been made so as to regis
ter the twenty thousandth of an inch,
these finer sights being used to regulate
the ordinary sights. These very fine
tights are not adapted to military ser
vice, in which the rifle is subjected to a
very different usage from that prevail
ing at Creedmoor. where the long-range
rifleman is able to give his weapon all
the care that a musician would tak of
his precious Stiaaivarius violin or his
Tflurte bow. Col. W. G. Church, in
Scribner.
Since the Prince Imperial's death his
mother veils herself asmuch as possible
from the public gaze. When she goes
to church, she goes completely alone
and remains in the sacristy during the
service. .
In this moist and variable olimate colds are
the rule rather thm the exception. Dr. .bull's
Cough Syrup is just the remedy for every one
U tuk when suffering Irons a eough, eold or
any throat trouble.
TIMELY TOPICS.
An Ohio mining company has dis
charged forty employees because they
are single men. The alleged objection
to the unmarried is that they do not re
turn as much money to the corporation
store as married men. Whether this is
an argument in favor of getting married
does not appear, as the married em
ployees of the company struck on ac
count of the discharge of the bachelors.
Glass sleepers for street railways are
now under trial. They are made by the
Sicman's glass toughening process,
which differs somewhat from the well
known La Bastie oroccss. Under care
ful exDeriment thev have been found to
have very considerable strength, or, at
least, sufficient for light railways, bo
far they have been made of a rather
small pattern for longitudinal sleepers,
but there seems to he no reason why
they may not be made of the usual size
for heavy railway ties. The glass is of
the' cheapest quality. They may even
be made from lurnace siag, as cneap
bottles are already manufactured, and
once in the road-bed they would last
for centuries, a9 far as mere decay is
concerned.
The city of Tokio, capital of Japan-
has been burned down for the third
time in seven years, though, considering
that it is constructed of the lightest and
flimsiest material, it might just as well
been the seventh time in three years.
Although 15,000 houses were destroyed
the los? is not so severe as these numbers
would indicate, lor they are cheaply and
quickly built up again. In Japan a fire
is checked by pulling houses to pieces.
and the firemen instead ot pumping
water on the burning building, keep
soaking the men who are demolishing
the houses. Evidently, however, when
50,000 people are made homeless and 100
perish in the flames the blaze has got as
much beyond their control as the fa
mous one in Chicago.
The year 1880 will be memorable in
naval and commercial annals for the
promulgation of a new code of sea sig
nals and road rules. Great Britain
France, Germany, Russia, Austria, Italy,
the Netherlands, Sweden, Dcnmurk,
Belgium, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Chili
and the United States have agreed to
these rules, which include, besides sig
naling with colored lights, a set of blasts
from the steam whistle or fog-horn,
whose numbers and length of duration
talk plainly. For example, a steamer
sighting any vessel gives one short blast
to denote that she is keeping to star
board, two it she is keeping to port, nnd
three if she is going astern. Other
blasts have fixed meanings. The new
rules should help to diminish the num
ber ef disastrous collisions which have
been steadily increasing with the in
crease ot shipping.
A company has been formed in GIas-
gow, hcotland, says an exenange, to
operate in the forest lands of Oregon,
and Washington Territory, for the pur
pose of utilizing a process of clearing
forests hy steam, introduced into Scot
land a few years since. A traction en
gine of twelve-horse power is stationed
some distance from the wood, and a
wire chain is fastened to a tree. Steam
is then mit on. and the tree is pulled
forcibly out by the roots. Upvard of
!)00 trees per day of ten hours can be
.pu'led out by this process. The com
pany will begin operations with fifty
en2ines.whie.il are now being manufac
tured for them, to be located and worked
in different sections of the country.
and it is calculated that in the course of
a few years the whole northwest of the
United States will beeleared and opened
up for settlement.
Au amusing application of the won
ders of thf; telephone as an assistant de
tective ot crime reaches the ban Uiego
(California) Union, from Julian. Several
horses were stolen in that neighborhood,
nnd suspicion fell upon a certain Indian
as the thief. Some one having intro
duced a telephone there, it occurred to
the owner of the stolen horses to get the
Indian to step in and hear the " Great
Spirit " talk. The Indian took one of
the cuds and was thrilled with astonish
ment at being apparently so near the
Great Keeper of the happy hunting
ground. Alter some little time spent in
wonderment, the Indian was Bolemnly
commanded by the Great Spirit to
"give up the stolen horses!" Dropping
the cup us if he had been shot, the
Indian immediately confessed to having
stolen the horses, and tremblingly prom
ised, if his life was spared, to restore the
"cabailos" at once, and he did so.
Origin of Bank Notes.
Not only did the Chinese possess
coins at a very early period, but they
were also the inventors of bank notes.
Some writers regard bank notes as hav
ing originated about ill is. (.'., in the
reign of the Emperor Ou-ti. At this time
the court was in want of money, and to
raise it Klaproth tells us that the prime
minister bit upon the following device:
When any princes or courtiers entered
the imperial presence, it was custom
ary to cover the face with a piece of
skin. It was first decreed then that
for this purpose the skin of certain white
deer kept in one of the royal parks
should alone be permitted, and then
these pieces of skin were sold for a high
price. But although they appear to
have passed from one noble to anothei.
they do not seem ever to have entered
into general circulation. It was there
fore very different from the Russian
skin money . In this case the notes were
"used instead of the skins from which
they were cut, the skins themselves be
ing too bulky and heavy to be constantly
carried backward and forward. Only
a little piece was cut off to, figure as a
token of possession of the whole skin.
The ownership was proved when the
piece fitted in the hole." True bank
notes are said to have been invented
about 800 A D.. in the reign of llian
tsoung, of the dynasty of Thang, and
were feyUien, or flying money. It is
curious, however, though not surpris
ing, to find that the temptation to over
issue led to the same results in China as
in the West. The value of the notes
fell, until at length it took 11.000 niic
or 3,000, to buy a cake of rice, and the
use of notes appears to have been aban
doned. Subsequently the issue was ie-
vived, and Tchangyang (Woo 1)00 A. I).
seems to have been the first private per
son who issued notes. Somewhat later.
under the Emperor Tching-tooung (097-
Wii), this invention was largely ex
tended. Sixteen of the richest turns
united to form a bank of issue, which
emitted money in series, some payable
very three yari.AirwWrt vmury
The Prince of Impostors.
The London Telegraph says: Somos
keoy, the renowned Hungarian swin
dler whose extraordinary career in
America has recently been interfered
with in a manner which will seclude
him from society for some years to
come, must be a man gifted with singu
lar pluck and self-possession. if half the
stories of his exploits be founded on fact.
According to our Magyar contemporary,
1'esli Hirlap, the Philadelphia exhibition
was the scene of more than one bold
mystification on his part. A few min
utes before the time appointed for the
opening ceremony, Somoskeoy, arrayed
in Hungarian national costume, and
wearing the star of hn Austrian order
on his left breast, drove up to the Palace
of Industry in a splendid equipage.
Passing with a dignified mien through
tho line of attendants, he entered the re
ception hall, where the exhibition com
missioners, headed by their chairman,
were drawn up to receive the illustrious
personages invited to take part in the
festive celebrations of the day . He then
advanced toward the chairman, and ac
costed him with the words : " Sir, I am
Count Veycrey, the royal Hungarian
commissioner." The chairman bowed
and held out h( hnnd in welcome, but
cast a perplexed glance toward the real
representative ot Hungary, wuo naa
already arrived and was standing hard
by. The latter stepped forward, and
speaking in the Magyar idiom, observed:
"I beg your pardon, but I am the
Hungarian commissioner." Somoskeoy
stared at him contemptuously, nnd re
plied in English: "Within three days
vou will receive vour recall. Mean-
while, be good enough to remember
whpre vou are. and sneak English!"
Just at that moment the President of
the republic entered the building, and
his arrival diverted the attention of the
puzzled commissioners from rival repre
sentatives of Madyar-land.
With unheard-ot audacity, somos
keoy kept his place in the group of dig
nitaries gathered round the commission ;
and, as soon as the President had been
duly greeted, the opening ceremony
commenced with the delivery of several
long speeches. Finding the otliciai ora
tory somewhat tiresome, Somoskeoy
soon slipped out of the circle, and con
trived to make his way to the grand
entrance, at which the foreign secretary
was stationed, to receive certain ex
pected guests of imperial and royal rank.
To this portal tne impress oi rtrazu
.rpspiii.lv drnve un: whereUDon oomos-
keoy, pushing aside the secretary of
state,' gracefully assisted her imperial
majesty to alight from her carriage, ano
offering her his nrm with a profound
obeisance, led her into tho building. It
is positively asserted in the account of
this amazing adventure, published in
the Pesli Hirlap, that the American
officers, not wishing to run the risk of
alarming the empress, and desirous to
avoid a public scandal upon so important
an occasion, forbore from all interfer
ence with this prince of impostors, and
that he acted as her majesty s cicerone
during her whole stay in the Exhibition
palace, which lasted for severul hours.
Upon the imbroglio being subsequently
explained to the empress, sho is re
reported to have said that "judging by
the manners and conversation of the
person who had accompanied her
through the exhibition, she had im
agined him to be some European per-
"ouage of exalted rank." It would ap
pear, indeed, lrom evidence given uy
foreign diplomatists and American
statesmen at his late trial, that Somos
keoy, as far as his outward bearing and
demeanor are concerned, is a refined
and polished gentleman.
Walking Sticks.
A walking stick has always been con
sidered a useful and graceful present,
likely to be of pleasant service, and long
possessed. Some are inclined to think
that the pilgrim's staff, the bishop's
crosier, the drum major's gorgeous mace
and the usher s wand have u common
origin with the. walking stick ; at least,
we know that change ol liaiut, and that
most unaccountable change of fashion,
has in our own time worked some
curious results: the various materials
called into use "are alone sufficient to
cause surprise. Walking slicks have
been made of tortoise shell, the back
bone or vertebne of the shark, the tusk
of the rhinoceros, and woods of every
conceivable variety, and lately one was
exhibited made entirely ot champagne
cords, with a wire missed through them
The handles have many more sources to
boast, as there are many materials not
large enough to make whole sticks, such
for instance as the teeth of the giraffe,
the walrus, the elephant; and, in fact,
most large teeth and ail herns are use -ful
for the purpose. It is a remarkable
fact that women are seldom employed
at stick making, and boys but little,
there being so much knowledge and
skill required lor the various processes
that men are chiefly employed ; it is also
singular that steam power is not in use
to any Jarge extent; machinery has the
power of turning out large quantities of
goods all alike, but cannot vary them;
this is the reason of its not being gener
ally adopted, for the very charm of u
stick is its natural peculiarities, ihere
must not be two alike, and if nature is
humored, as it is by a skilled workman,
they cannot be; it will readily be seen
that a fixed method cannot be applied
to all, as each stick must receive treat
ment peculiar to itself. Uallers' (Jazette.
Deer on Ice.
Clay Rice, an old hunter of Lyon
county, Kentucky, went over into the
Missouri swamps, back oi tne town ol
New Madrid, a few weeks ago, and
there met with an extraordinary run of
luck in deer shooting. He, with his
son and a companion of the latter, killed
ninety-three deer in as many hours.
Rice ascribes his success to a sheet of
water under which the whole country,
by reason of recent storms, rested. At
various points in the swamp lands
small islands or ridges stuck up just
above the overflow, and upon these
islands the deer congregated. Shortly
after the arrival ef Rice and his fellows
a cold snap covered the water with a
thick sheeting of ice, and as the deer
were unable to run with speed over the
slippery surface the hunters found every
advantage in their favor. Rice on one
occasion killed eight royal bucks with
out moving from his tracks, and on an
other two of the party, having hemmed
iu a herd of fifty, killed eighteen of
them, mx oi tne eighteen were caught
without a shot, as they tell on the tee and
remained there, though resisting franti
cally until their throats had been cut
with a bowie. Many of the incidents
ot the hunt were exciting in the ex
treme. and no painting could do justice
to the piaturetqueness of soma ef the
ceneii
The Loss of Memory Through Shock.
Mental depression, incoherence of
thought nnd absolute insensibility are,
of course, the common symptoms ac
companying shock, varying with its
amount; and moments, hours, days,
weeks, or even months of blank follow
upon a jar of the brain, according to the
degree of disturbance to which it may
have been subjected. These are ordin
ary phenomena; but while it has been
common to note the time at which the
patient comes to himself and memory
resumes its action, it is not so general to
inquire as to what particular moment
recollection vanished. I think we are
generally content to date this from the
time when the injury was received, and
yet, under some circumstances, it will
be found that there lit been quite an
appreciable period antecedent to this, ot
which all record has been wipe from
the brain; and this fact may be of im
portance in several ways. Several
cases in my experience, illustrating the
truth of the proposition laid down, Hap
pening in swift succession, induces me
to make a record oi tnem.
1. A gentleman returning to his home
one night went first to the front door to
get in, but this being locked he went
round the house to the back door. Along
side of this entrance were steep steps
leading to an open basement, and, the
night being very dark, he missed his
way and fell into it, a distance of eight
feet. When found, supposably within a
half hour afterward, he was completely
unconscious, and upon examination it
was discovered he had a scalp wound on
the back of his head down to the bone,
which was unbroken. He was restored
to consciousness in a few hours, and the
next morning was wholly cognizant of
passing events, and several days later
was nbout as usual. He retained no
memory whatever ot his fall, all recol
lection ceasing at the time when he
turned away from his front door to go
around the house, though nfter this he
had to traverse a distance of a hun
dred feet to reach the point whore he
fell.
2. Two weeks since I attended a gen
tleman who had fallen through a hatch
way of a warehouse, a distance of nine
feet, into a cellar. He had a rib broken
and a deep wound in his chin. Within
a half hour after his fall he was removed
to a carriage, assisting somewhat those
who were helping him. He had great
confusion of thought for several hours
alter ward, asking continually where lie
was, what was the matter with mm,
etc. He had a sharp surgical fever, an
abscess developing in his jaw ; but after
the hrst thirty-six hours his intelligence
was completely restored. He had no
recollection of his accident. All that he
remembered was that he and his brothe
had entered t lie warehouse together at
dark ; that he had sat down by the stove
near the front door, nnd his brother had
gone back some distance to the counting-room;
that when he had warmed
himself he rose to follow him. The
rest was blank. From the stove to the
hatchway was a distance of thirty feet.
3. A boy five years of age was in the
habit of climbing tfut upon a window
sill, for which his mother had punished
him. Entering the room one day she
saw him again in his perilous situation.
Afraid to alarm him by speaking to him,
she ran below to warn him back nnd to
catch him in case he shoutd fall. She
was too late, however, finding him lying
insensible on the pavement from a fall
of a dozen feet. The injury sustained
was apparently a fracture at the base of
the skull, hemorrhage nnd a serous dis
charge coming from his ears, lie re
covered, however, and his conscious
ness returned in forty-eight hours. His
account to his mother of his fall was :
" I wasn't bad, mamma. I got out on
the window, but I got back before any
one told me."
The comments 1 have to maVe on the
cases narrated shall be brief. They are :
First That the point at which mem
ory leaves one in injuries accompanied
by great shock seems to be at the record
of the last prominent idea. In the first
case the walk nrouud the Jious was
monotonous, nnd the gentleman was no
doubt all the while occupied with the
circumstances connected with his not
getting in his front door, as he had at
first intended. In case second the
prominent idea of the man was in leav
ing the comfortable stove to join his
brother. In case third it was the
mother's injunction.
Second The points noted seem to es
tablish tiie fact of cnlhanasia in cases of
violent death, not only to actual pain
inflicted by the injury, but as to the an
ticipation of the horrible event. li. O.
fowling, M. D., xn Medical Practitioner.
Washington as a Voter.
Washington voted at all the Fairfax
elections until the close of his life, uni
formly supporting the Federal candi
dates. Although living some distance
from the court house, at the Alexandria
market, he generally voted early. 1 he
polls were reached by a flight of steps
outside, which in 17U9 had become old
nnd shaky. When the general readied
the steps, he placed one foot upon them
and shook thu crazy ascent as if to try
its strength, instantly twenty brawny
arms, one above the other, grasped the
stairway, and a dozen men's shoulders
braced it. Nor did a man move until
the venerable chief deposited his vote
and returned. " I saw his last bow,"
said one of them half a century after
ward ; "it was more than kingly."
Harper's Magatine.
Save the Rags.
The price of paper has been advanced
from six and one-half to ten cents all
over the country. If this price is main
tained, the public will be compelled to
pay more for their newspapers.' Many
daily papers have already increased
their price from twenty cents to thirty
cents per week, and weekly papers from
$1.50 to $3 00.
The advance in paper can be stopped
if the people will save and sell their old
paper and rags. Three months' saving
of rags and old paper by the entire popu
lation, and selling them in the markets,
would check the advance in paper. Rags
are worth three to three and one-half
cents p?r pound.
Every newspaper in the land should
appeal to the people in this matter. And
they should also economize in the con
sumption as much as possible.
The mayor of Cincinnati has signed
the ordinances authorizing a person to
lay steam pipes through the streets of
Cincinnati in a certain district for the
purpose of supplying steam In at and
power to public and private buildings,
according to the method known as " the
Holly yBtm of itftm heating In ulties. "
ITEMS OF INTEREST.
Alwayson hand Knuckles and finger
nails. Xcw York News.
Boots and shoes for dolls nre tuird
out of one London house at the rats of
1,000 a week.
"Give the Indians a show," says a
Western paper. Yes; give them an
amateur " Pinafore." BostonAdvertiser.
Adelina Patti received about seven
dollars a minute during the perform
ance of each opera in which she sang at
Vienna.
" Switch off!" as the car conductor
said to his wile when she took down
her back hair before going to bed.
Salem Sunbeam.
Government topographical surveyors
report wonderfully great veins of silver
in the newly-opened ore districts of
Southwestern Utah.
Physicians say it takes hours to get
over a too sudden rising. We have ob
served the same in connection with fall
ing. New York Commercial.
A religious paper says that the Ameri
can preachers receive $12,0"0.000 an
nually, lawyers six times as much, and.
the. national liquor bill is somo $200,
000,000. A sailor is not a sailor when he is a
board ; a sailor is not a sailor when he
is a shore; but he must be either ashore
or abroad; therefore, a sailor is not a
sailor.
Iu the north of England a habit ol
ether-imbibing is said to prevail. As
" a drunk " on sulphuric ether is less ex
pensive than on alcoholic liquids, the
practice is increasing.
A merchant may manage to grub
along without advertising, and so may
a man empty a hogshead of water with
a teaspoon, but both are decidedly
tedious undertakings.
CUKIOSITV.
Watching the liees, he oft is stung
Who o'er the hives too clone his head has hung;
So, too, and rightcoitHly, he fires
Who thrusts himsell in other folks' nllhirs.
Geoiae Birdseye.
A puzzle to scientists is the remark
able persistence of certain odors. More
than one thousand years ago the mortar
used in the construction of the mosque
of St. Sophia, in Constantinople, was
charged with musk, the perfume ot
which permeates the building to this
day.
The number of suicides nt Vienna and
its suburbs last year attained the con
siderable figure o'f 207, of which forty
six were of women. In most cases re
verse of fortune, misery, or want of work
was the disposing cause, and tho ma
jority of the unfortunates belonged to
the poorer classes.
She hung upon his arm so lovingly,
and beamed up in his face with all the
radiance of those pale blue t-yes. Her
heart would speak, and yet the tongue
refused its utterance. But love and
admiration broke the spell, and from the
rapture of her soul she breathed forth,
" Your mustache is beginning to grow."
Klvrira Qazetle.
The American Manufacturer says that
this country is now making more than
one-third of all the paper in the world.
The product is about 1,830 tons daily,
amounting to about 640,500 tons per
year. There nre now 927 mills, repre
senting a capital of 8 100,000,000 These
mills employ 22. COO persons, wit draw
about $!J,550,000 in salaries per . ,ir.
The ten orphan children oi General
Hood are to live in AustinTexas. They
will be under the especial enre of Mrs.
E. R. Hcnnen. their grandmother, to
whom they were consigned bv General
Hood only a few hours before his death.
The fund raised for the orphans amounts
to about ff 14.000, of which 12,000 have
been invested in government bonds.
Lost His Miavrl.
A gentleman returning from Europe
bought a very handsome and expensive
shawl for his wife. It cost between
$2,000 ano 93.00O, ai;d he was naturally
desirous of avoiding the disagreeable
lie, essity of pajing several hundred
dollars more in the shape of customs
du'.y. On board the vessel was an ex
ceedingly attractive lady, to whom
when tiiey were in sight of land he con
fided his dilemma. ' Why, my dear
6ir," she said, naively, "that is no
dilemma nt all. I will wear tho shawl
ashore, nnd then uo questions will be
nsked." The gentleman paid a glowing
tribute to the wonderful fertility of the
feii.inine mind and accepted the oiler.
The shawl graced the lady's shoulders,
anil was certainly very becomini. The
trunks were examined nnd passed with
that mysterious chalk mark, without
which no baggage can receive the bene
diction of Uncle S.im, and then the gen
tleman saluted the lady, spoko of the
pleasure ho had enjoyed in her com
pany, hoped they would have the plea
sure of crossing the ocean together
again, and then asked for tho shawl.
' X beg your pardon," she said, " but
what shawl do you refer tJ?" lie
naturally answered, " Why, the one you
have on, to be sure." "And why
should I give you my shawl?" she in
quired, in a word, the dialogue waxed
so warm that she threatened to call a
policeman unless he desisted, and since
lie could not legally claim the shawl
without convicting him.self of a deliber
ate atlcuipl to swindle tho government,
he was compelled to leave with the fair
stranger the present which he had in
tended for his wife.
An Eagle Confiscates a Hawk's Prey;
A correspondent, writing from Sura
sotti, Fla., dicribes a sctne the like of
whieii lie iiever witnessed before, though
he had " read and heard of it frequently."
He was paddling along the North creek,
when "a savage fish-hawk that had
been searing up nnd down the stream
saw a good-sized fish lying near the sur
face of the water, nnd, folding its wings
close to its body, darted down upon It
with the velocity ol an arrow, caught it
and carried it up into the top of a low
pino tree, where it prepared to make a
meal of it A great bald eagle, which
had been sitting secreted in the top of
one of the tallest pines in the neighbor
hood awaiting this opportunity, pitched
from its lofty perch, reefed its pinions,
sped through the air like a bolt of light
ning and struck the tisti-hawk with such
force as to send it whirling through the
branches of the tree. The fish fell to the
ground. The eagle followed, picked it
up and carried it away. The fish-hawk,
after recovering from the ell'ects of the
shock it had received, flew into a neigh
boring tree and sat there, silent and sul
len, brooding over the burning Insult it
had received, but was unable on account
of inferior size and strength to resent. I
left the poor bird there and went my
way, unwilling to add to hie wrongs bv
sending a bail fter him."