f J it
HENRY A. PARSONS, Jr., Editor and Publisher. . NILi DE SPElt ANDTJM. Two Dollars par Annum.
VOL. X. RIDGWAY, ELK COUNTY, PA., THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 1880. NO 37.
castm; in tub Ain.
BT PAUL H. RDBBF.LU
They My it I. foolish for mnrtala to dream
tf bHu more complete on life', turbulent stream
Than that they enjoy, illil they U(M It aright,
Nor cover Sol', raya with cerulean blight.
But I think that the man who ne'er dreama of a da
When hi nanie ahall grow great and his Borrow. 1
cay
In unworthy the form that he lmars and the mind
That wna made to explore In tin- mixta unconnned.
Kor, when the durk halra of the dreamer are Rray,
And hi lot cring limlw nponk ot " paeelng away,"
If Uie ciwth-a he built wore but ca t of Mr,
Vot ileamiiit it naa when he built them folr;
And the memory of dnya when hl fancy had flight
Will soften the. xhadowfl of nwift-coming nliiht,
And he'll eoerly turn to thnt beautiful land
Where the caxtlea aro built, but not built on land,
Abimoton, Mobs.
Thoreau Outdone;
OK,
How Jessie and I Camped Out
BY M. 0. 0.
Jessio find I were not sisters. O, do.
Pretty pink-and-white Jessie lived at
Beechwoods, some utiles out of historic
C , while I was Cousin Kan, down
from the city to spend the summer holi
days in the grand old place, where we
two worked our own sweet will thvough
tlie long bright days ; for was not
" Brother Fred" in a distant city practic
ing his profession, and was not Aunt
Kate the most indulgent of hostesses?
It would be hard to imagine a greater
contrast than Jessie and I presented in
outT ospect. She, with her fluffy,
crimpy waves of golden hair, peach
blossom complexion and' pansy-purple
eyes, beside my glossy jetty braids, my
tawny olive face, with a smothered red
burning in either cheek, and my large
dark orbs, was no more striking differ
ence than her slight, fairy-like form be
side my own goodly stature.
But, despite all this, our tastes wero
very much in common, and our minds
wont to run in the self-same grooves,
though Jessio would persist in looking
up to " Cousin Nan" as a very prodigy
of learning a walking encyclopedia, in
fact, to the uncalled-for detriment of her
own well-stored little head.
It was 1 that brought Thoreau down
from the city the whole set deeming
them suitable mental pabulum for our
country summer. We had been reading
" WaUlen," and became thereby so im
bued with a love of nature, pure and
simple, and such n distaste for the artifi
cial refinements of civilized life as to look
with disdain upon such modern appli
nnccs na cushioned chairs, lace curtains,
and temptingly cozy couches ; even turn
ing away from the dainty repasts where
with Aunt Kate was wont to regale us,
with muttered exclamations such as
these: "O, the 'hurry and waste of
life,' " " We are lost in the whirlpool of
a dinner ;' " and refused the wonted sol
ace afforded by the morning paper, al
leging, in excuse, that "all. news, so
called, is gossip. And Jessie began to
)ity her father openly for having " ln
icrited houses and lands." and for be-
Cuming, as slie was pleased to stylo it,
" a serf of the soil," until geniid Uncle
Ned lifted hands and voice in comical
amazement, crying out, "What ails the
girls, pray tell ?" " Thqy read altogeth
er too much," was Aunt Kate's rejoinder ;
"they must have more company."
Whcret I exclaimed, theatrically,
" Company I What is there that can
bring two minds nearer together ?' " And
Jessie chimed in with the assertion of
having ' " known many coats but few
men.'" And what was there for Aunt
Kate to do but leave the field in despair
ing silence ?
One morning we received a letter
that Thoreau, notwithstanding was
" worth paying the postage on," for was
it not from certain other eousrVis of ours,
and did it not contain glowir g accounts
of their delightful " campin j;-out " ex
periences? This communication was
the metaphorical "last straw," and we
sat in gloomy silence a silence broken,
at last, by a triumphant exclamation
from Jessie :
"I have it!" Then, seeing my in
quiring look, she proceeded to a more
thorough explanation of her plan.
" You know that little cottage dewn
by Clear brook, Nan, where Jim, the
gardener, used to live ? Well, it is in
good repair, not far away, but quiet and
secluded, and just the "place for us to
camp out."
Seeing the gloomy delight in my face,
Bhe went on : " We can take our books
down there and study as well as not.
There is my German and your English
literature that we've scarcely looked into
what with our drives, our sails, and
our toilets " which was literally true,
for Beochwoods was known far and wide
for its hospitality, and the " fair women
and brave men" ef C were well
content to sojourn there for days at a
time
Of course I gave enthusiastic assent,
but queried doubtfully,
" What will Aunt Kate say ?"
Jessie shared my look of doubt for
an instant, but quickly added :
"Nevermind; lean coax her over."
Which proved to be the case, for
hard, indeed, must be the heart that
could withstand the pleading look in
those pansy-purple eyes though for one
instant the prospect was rather dark,
until Uncle Ned come to the rescue with
his hearty,
" Let the midgets go, Kate ; the old
hut is safe?enough, and they'll enjoy it."
And I think the memory of certain of
his boyhood pranks rose very pleasantly
before him just then, prompting a half
wish to share our retreat
So it was settled, and Jessie and I de
voted the remainder of that day to an
inspection of our new home.
The cottage, which we christened
"Walden" at first sight, in honor of
our illustrious prototype, was a small
one-roomed edifice, destitute of paint,
but mantled with a most luxurious
growth of woodbine. A fence, with di
lapidated palings, inclosed the small
garden spot which sloped down to the
banks of Clear brook, with the stretch
of beech woods on one hand that gave
name to the place said bit of wood
land having been left in the earlier days
for convenience, but in these later and
more degenerate days for effect. " But
whatever the cause, the result was one
to us, namely, that of producing the re
quired air of retirement as well aa the
wherewithal to build our morning fire,
for we refused all such modem con
veniences as oil-stoves, classing them
among the snares of civilized life, and
turning in preference to the more-primitive
camp-fire. . ,
Clear brook was, as its name signifies,
a limpid streamlet flowing with dimpling
laughter past our sylvan home, and hitt
ing itself in the shady woodland depths.
"Walden" was scarcely a quarter of a
mile from the house, but, owing to the
fact that one was obliged to ascend a
considerable rise of ground, and descend
its opposite slope before reaching it,
gave it an air of complete seclusion.
Jessie, taking command at once, de
tected the latent capabilities of our
newly-acquired possession and issued
her orders with the air of a General to
the "neat-handed Phillis," our attend
ant. "Oh, it will be just perfect, Nan,
when the floor is cleaned and the win
dows washed I" cried she, standing in
the doorway, wreathed about with wood
bine tendrils, as pretty a picture as need
be seen, adding, as one spray, more dar
ing than the rest, tangled itself in her
fluffy crimps, "I must have John come
down and trim those vines away."
The next day was given by' the ser
vants to the cleansing of the little cot
tage, and by us to the ransacking of the
wide, roomy garret for suitable furnish
ings therefor. Wide, dim and low-raftered
was the Beechwood's garret, and
filled with relics of by-gone days a
very treasure trove, where one might
while away the hours.
There was many an old arm-chair,
with moth-eaten cushions and carved
frame-work, that I would fain have tak
en, but Jessie was a stern disciplinarian,
and met all my proposals with :
" Simplify I simplify I Nan, remem
ber Thoreau 1" until our outfit at the
last was limited enough to suit even out
oracle. The bedstead was of ancient
device, and was to be graced by a most
amazing patch-work quilt of the pattern
yclept by our grandmothers, the "rising
Bun, wherein that luminary is seen dis
played in the most gorgeous reds and
yellows. This Jessie hud unearthed
from an old chest, saying :
Tins will brighten the room up, as
well as being more primitive."
Then there were the two "rockers"
a Windsor one, with ragged patch-work
cushions, and a somewhat treacherous
"cane seat," wliich two were respective
ly christened for " solitude and friend
sliip," while the third, a relentlessly
straight-backed affair, was unanimously
dedicated to "society." But the tri
umph of our "setting out" was to be
found in "the three-legged table,"
which we persuaded ourselves to be an
exact counterpart of the one possessed
by our prototype at the other, and more
famous, "Walden," and prized accord
ingly. It was a somewhat late hour that af
ternoon that found us en route for our
new home. Before us, down, the shaded
path, went faithful John, driving the
wagon, loaded high with our household
possessions, while Jessio and I followed
after, heavily laden with the numerous
books of reference that we proposed
consulting during our retirement.
"Truly, Jessie," quoth I, with my
eyes fastened upon tho shabby outfit
before us, " Thoreau was right when he
said, ' The more a man has of such
things, the poorer he is.
To which Jessie assented as well as
might be consistent with the united en
deavor she was bravely making to carry
the numerous volumes wherewith Bhe
was laden, and at the same time keep
those sunny, wind-tossed crimps from
quite blinding her.
But our journey was soon ended, and
all our possessions heaped upon the
grass, "like the contents of a gypsy's
pack." Nor was it long before order
was brought out of chaos, and the faith
ful John departed, leaving we two girls
alone in the forest-shadowed dell, with
the echo of his lusty singing floating
pleasantly back to us in the low after
noon lights that flooded tho spot.
Very cozy the little room looked with
its plain, dark curtains at either win
dow, for we were not quite up to "Wal
den " usage yet ; its table and chairs,
and the neatly-mado bed, with its
brilliant covering, and very well con
tent were we as we drew forward that
self-same table and proceoded to spread
upon a half newspaper the daintiest of
lunches, and with quickened appetites
to discuss the same.
"Make the most of this, Nan,"
laughed Jessie, "for to-morrow we bid
farewell to the 'flesh-pots of Egypt,'
and return to life pure and simple.
It was growing late, and two very
tired girls resolved to defer all senti
mentalizing in the moonlight until some
future occasion, as they locked the door
and fastened the windows, thereby dis
obeying one of the first tenets of " Wal
den " law, but obeying Aunt Kate, who,
utterly oblivious to our reiterated assur
ances of ample courage, saw to it with
her own eyes that locks and " catches "
of modern contrivance rendered our little
domicile safe, and retired for the night.
Weary as we were, however, we were
long in wooing slumber to our eyelids,
for the sounds of the night were about
us, all, from the chance crackling of a
dry twig to the rippling of the little
stream, sounding strange to our unac
customed ears. We were aroused next
morning by a full flood of sunlight strik
ing across our closed eyelids and awoke
at once to the fact that we were too late
for spectators of the regal advent of the
king of day that one scene of our lit
tle theater had been played to the music
of bird songs while we slept. Begrets
were unavailing, so we made a hasty
toilet, and Jessie, standing in the open
door, cried impulsively:
" Oh, Nan I this is delightful ; come
on ! " and the little rogue, kilting still
shorter her short gray skirts, sprung
down the mossy bank to dip her fingers
in the sparkling waters of Clear brook.
I was not long in following her example,
and, as we wandered up the smooth
green slope again hand in hand, Jessie
said:
" No wonder Thoreau came out in the
woods to 'find what life had to teach.'
Nowhere else, I am sure, can one front
the 'essential facts of life.' "
"Essential facts I'" quoth I dis
dainfully, "'essential facts 1' What
fact do you suppose life holds for most
of the girls of our acquaintance more
essential than the adjusting of their
crimps, or the snaring of some knight in
their artful toils. ' Essential facts,' in
deed!" To all of which did Jessie assent, her
own yellow tresses meanwhile rippling
anil waving in 4 manner to distract less
fortunate trirls. and her own pansy-
purple eyes a maze where many a heart
had been lost all unreoked of by their
owner.
Arrived at our little domicile, how
ever, we wero confronted by the very
"essential fact" that breakfast must be
prepared by our own bonds, and not
only that, but the foundations of the re
past must be laid from the very begin
ning. There was our gypsy fireplace. John
had arranged it the night before ; two
forked sticks with a third one laid across
in these natural angles, upon which a
kettle swung suggestively over the cool,
green sod as yet unsciirred by any flamo.
We had refused, disdainfully, that same
functionary's offer of gathering " a bit
of brush to start it wid, mum," refused
it in the light of loug, delightful rambles
in that same woodland wliich now lay
white and dewy before us, rambles
wherein we would collect dry twigs and
lichen-covered bark, wherewith to build
our morning firo. But now? Well,
"distance lent enchantment to the view"
in this as well os many other cases ; but
there was no time for didlving, for al
ready our appetites were quickened le
yond their wont, and Jessie, gathering her
skirts about her, cried :
" Fill the kettle, Nan, and go after the
roasting ears. I'll get the wood and
build the fire," adding, as she vanished
in the dewy depths, " You'd better get
some potatoes, too, while you are about
it; they'll roast with the corn."
The little witch, what did she mean J
Had she forgotten that my city training
rendered me all unfit for such a task,
and was sho even now laughing at my
perplexity? But there was no help for
it ; bo, talcing basket and hoe, I started
for the field of action, namely, the corn
field, where, nothing deterred by the
showers of dew that fell from the broad
leaves, I gathered a goodly quantity of
that esculent viand, and then turned
my attention toward the potatoes. Here,
owing to my inexperience, I was not
quite so successful, but, after numerous
struggles with the unwieldy (at least in
my hands) weapon, I came off in some
degree conqueror and returned in tri
umph, bearing my sheaves with me. The
scene, however, which mot my eye was
by no means an encouraging one. Jessie
had returned from her woodland ramble,
and the evidences of her toil were to be
seen in the few dry, knotty twigs scat
tered about her as she knelt before a
very small smoky tongue of flame that
flickered in the socket and threatened to
expire momently. Hearing my footsteps
she looked up eagerly, her pretty eyes
red and tear-filled from the eddying
smoke, and a half quiver in her voice as
she cried :
" O, Nan, what shall I do, this firs
won't burn ? "
" You want more kindling, child,"
said I briskly. "Here, this fence is all
falling down, 'twill not be much the
worse for a few more pickets," and, drop
pingbaskotand hoe, I seized the hatchet
and soon reduced one of the aforesaid
pickets to suitable size, through which
timely aid the aspect of things was
changed to such an extent that our ket
tle was soon boiling and bubbling mer
rily away in the most approved gypsy
fashion. We consigned both corn ana
potatoes to its depths, being too hungry
for any slower method, and unanimously
deoided it was too late for any further
efforts in the culinary line, as we drew
our three-legged table to the open door
way ana prepared to discuss our sorely
needed repast. Never, I think, did corn
and potatoes taste better than those
eaten with laugh and jest that quiet
Bummer morning ; albeit many an ear
of the former, owing to my lack of
knowledge, was decidedly young and
"green, and many of the latter tubers,
owing to the same cause, were in a state
of infancy.
"But, Nan," said Jessie, ruefully, in
a pause of our merriment, as our morn
ing troubles came back to her; "we
can't have all this trouble every day
about a fire. What did Thoreau have
for kindling ? "
" Groen hickory, split fine ; don't you
remember?" answered I, promptly.
" I'll tell you what we'll do. though j
Cover the lire every night ; damp grass
and leaves will be just the thing ; then
rake it open in the morning, and start
it with some of this old fence. "
Which we did, and successfully, too.
"Nan," said Jessie again, this time
somewhat hesitatingly "Nan, what
will we have for dinner ? "
" Dinner 1 " echoed I, in dramatic.
tones; "dinner 1 are we never to be fret
from that, not even in these solemn
woods? What did Thoreau have ?"
" Corn bread and molasses ; the bread
simply meal and water kneaded hard.
and baked before the fire," answered the
little puss, demurely. L winced slightly,
lor im somewnat epicurean in my
tastes, ana uie witch Knew it. " J
thought that would be pretty dry, though,
so I'll make ours thin and bake them
fresh every time. See 1 I've borught
griddle."
"And, Nan, I've something else t
show you," she said, triumphantly lead
ing the way down to Clear brook, when
she displayed a small butter jar sunk foi
more than half its depth in the coo
water, and I. firm disciple though I wa
of Thoreau, uttered no word of protest
at this daring innovation against Waldco
rules.
After this our days slipped quietly.
iweetly past ; the three-legged table was
well laden with books so well, indeed,
that, as meal-time circled round and we
removed them from thence to bed or
chair, or vie versa, Jessie was wont to
refer mournfully to th " two pieces of
limestone that Thoreau had, but threw
away, because he found that he must
"dust them."
Our slight duties dispatched, it was
two very prim young ladies in the plain
est of garbs and the smoothest of braids
guiltless alike of " wave or " crimp
at least, mine were ; Jessie's, little
witch, were as distractingly pretty as
ever that sat down at that self same
table, armed respectively with " Taino "
and " Ollendorf, to " con each lesson
ft'pr " Wa u'Ard hnt mvla linvoVAF and
many a pleasant interlude of dreamy
wonderment and girlish gossip floated in
whenever Jessie found a German verb
hard to conjugate, or I paused in some
unavailing search after a new authority
Deanng on the subject at hand.
Hannv. helpful davs were they, varied
by an occasional walk up to the house
when the coast was clear, or sometimes,
standing on the crest of the little rise
lust behind our cottaere. we would but
vey the graveled sweep of Beechwoods'
carriage drive through an old field-glass
Jessie abstracted from " Brother Fred's
room," and laughingly comment on tho
frowning faces some of the fair inmates
of tho cushioned barouches carried
away with them upon learning "Tho
girls have gone farther in the country
for seclusion and study," for Beech
woods was a most delightful place for a
week's sojourn, as they well know : but
Aunt Kate, once won over to our side,
protected us manfully, so that none in
vaded our solitude.
But everything must have an end. and
bo did tho pleasant days that had graced
our week's stay atWaldon, and we awoke
one morning to hear a quick shower
pattering against the windows.
JJear, clear ; our nre win ue an out I
What shall we do, Nan?"
"Do? I don t know. Go np to the
house for breakfast. I suppose. Every
thing will be too wet to kindle it ngain."
" Go np to the house t" echoed Jessie,
indignantly, "inaoea, i suaii do no
such thing. Haven t they been telling
us all this time tnai mo nrst storm
would bring us back? I've no doubt
they're expecting us, and that plates aro
laid for us this very minute (which wo
afterward found to have been the case).
Go back! I'll KO hungry first!" and
Jessie looked very determined and pret
ty, indeed, as sue nnisnea ner toilet and
announced that the rain was over.
"There's blue sky over yonder, Nan ;
get your rubbers and come on;" and
suiting the action to the word she sallied
forth, and I followed suit.
Just as we expected, every spark of
the provoking fire, that we had covered
so jeolously the night before, was out.
Making the best, however, of a bod mat
ter, we set to work bravely, and that
devoted fence suffered as never before.
But it was slow work. Everything was
drenched and dripping, and we were
inexperienced hands so inexperienced
that after an hour of toil breakfast was
still a fair but distant prospect ; and tho
faint and struggling name we had con
jured up flickered dolefully, and threat
ened every instant to expire in smoke.
This was the state oi amurs wne.i.
Jessie having taken her turn in the
chopping department, I was bending
with an anxious face over the fire, striving
to place at the greatest advantage a new
relay of kindlings, I was startled by the
ringing Bound of an unmistakably manly
voice, exclaiming:
"Well, I never ! if there isn't Jess !"
followed simultaneously by an ecstatic
little scream from Jessie, of :
"Brother J;red, wnere did you come
froji?" as she dropped her uplifted
hatchet and rushed to meet him. I rose
to my feet hastily, only to find myself
confronted by a tall, dark, aristocratic
gentleman, whose smile of recognition
brings deeper roses to my cheeks ; for
was not this same gentleman Mr. Archer
from the city, and one of tho greatest
lions of the last season, and my quondam
partner for more than one German dur
ing the previous winter? I place my
hand in his outstretched one, only, how
ever, to withdraw it quickly as I discover
how many and deep are the marks it
displays of its reeent conflict with that
refractory fire, and an added color springs
to my face, lest mat also Dear uie same
traces.
"This is Nan. I know." said tall.
blonde Fred Cameron, releasing himself
from his little sister and turning toward
me "as much of a gypsy as ever, I
see" and well, his greeting was very
brotherly, indeed.
"But what does it mean, Jessie? you
girls out here at this hour on a rainy
morning? anything wrong at the house? '
and a look of anxiety darkened his face.
"Nothing wrong, but where have
you gentlemen been, pray tell me, and
how did you arrive in this out of the way
place, at tins time of day?"
"Been oamping out ; took a fancy to
come up home and bring Archer along ;
walked up from the station to surprise
the folks," replied Fred, briefly.
"Camping out I that is just what we
are doing, Fred, Nan and L"
"Did vou ever. Archer!" said Fred,
appealingly, but that gentleman, with
the relics of Boston conservatism still
clinging to liim, answered never a word,
only smiled aggravatingly whereat I,
aroused, answered coolly using the
very words of our oracle "We came out
in the woods because we wished to live
deliberately, to front only the essential
facts of life, and find out what it had to
teach us." A look of astonishment grew
in their faces.
" Yes," chimed in Jessie, quoting from
the same source, "We were tired of
cabin passage, and wished to go before
the mast, and on the deck of the world."
" Thoreau, as I live," cried Fred, and
the look of astonishment deepened.
"Yes, Thoreau," said Jessie, calmly,
but mischievously.
"No man (or woman, either) can ever
unfold the possibilities of his own mtel
lect who does not at least checker his
Ufe with solitude."
Mischievously I say for the scene
was, to sav the least, slightly amusing.
Time early morning, and a rainy one at
thut. Place the river bank overarched
by dripping trees. Properties a gypsy
fire-place, a smoky fixe two young
ladies engaged in attendance upon it,
and pausing in this occupation to quote
from the classics was somewhat aston
ishing I
A look of amazement, mingled with in
terest from Mr. Archer at t'liis last quota
tionwondering, doubtless, that a young
lady should read other than the latest
novel, or the newest society poem.
"So you read De Quiuey. Miss
Cameron ? He is one of my friends, too I"
" Yes, I admire De Quincy very much,
but Thoreau is our oracle just now ; let
me bid you welcome to Walden.'"
And Mr. Archer's eye brightened as
he caught sight through the open door
of our ponderous volumes, but I inter
rupted here with a dolorous cry,
"The fire has gone out; what shall we
do?"
True enough, that provoking fire, tak
ing advantage of a lull in our extorts, hud
disappeared in smoke.
" O dear, w e'll have to go up to the
house, I suppose, after all our trouble.
Just see how I've hurt my hand." And
while Fred examined critically the little
pink palm I related our "moving ad
ventures." "A fire, is that all ?" said be at their
close. " I have not camped out in vain
all these summers," and his ready knife
soon reduced another picket of that
devoted fence to the requisite size ; and
ere long a sparkling blaze rewarded his
efforts.
" Why need we go up to the house?"
queried Mr. Archer. " No ono knows
we are coming, and I quite long for ono
moro out-door repast Besides, we have
been 'roughing it' so long as to Iwj
Bfarcely wonted to civilized life as yet."
"Capital! cclioed l-retu "What
have you girls got for breakfast ?"
"uorn aim poiiiM rouniuu m mo
ashes, and corn-bread and molasses.
You remember Thorean's bill of fare ; it
is ours, too," replied Jessio, demurely,
with a glance at Mr. Archer aH she spoke.
But the gentlemen professed themselves
entirely satisfied, and I said, oracularly,
"Ho that eats must work, and u you
gentlemen stay you must pay tho pen
alty. Cousiu Fred, tliero is tho lxisket
and hoo, your post will bo tho corn field
and potato patch. Mr. Archer, this fire
will need constant replenishing, so you
may gather sticks." Having thus as
signed them their station, Jessio and I
turned our attention to tho matter ot
hand, and after much merriment and a
groat deal of waiting, wo Bat down to a
very creditable repast of the above-mentioned
articles, further reinforced by
Boston crackers and cold tongue from
the gentlemen's lunch basket. We had
moved the tablo out under the trees,
and what witli improvised Beat, the
novelty of the situation, and tho laugh
ter and jesting consequent thereupon,
passed a pleasant hour.
Jessie and 1 dined at tue house mat
day, but, positively refusing any further
concession to tho world, returned to our
Bolitude and interrupted Btudies
studies, however, doomed to more than
one interruption of tho same nature, for
tue gentlemen professed themselves to
be as much in love with Walden cottage
and life therein as we ourselves, and
countless were tho fishing parties they
instituted, and delicious the chowders
they concocted, and many were the
hunting expeditious from which they re
turned Jaden with small game, to be
cooked in hunter's fashion, but most ap-
rtizingly, at our gypsy Mrt-place, and,
fear me, Taine and Ollendorf were
most sadly neglected the while we gained
in the art of angling, or took long wood
land rambles, from which we returned
with happy faces, and brows crowned
with wild flowers.
It might also have been noted about
this time that sundry changes took
place in our attire, numerous bright
ribbons and fresh lawns taking the place
of our somber serviceable grays, almost
without our knowledge.
It was on one of these sen-same ram
bles late in the month, when Fred and I
had fallen behind Jessie and Mr. Archer,
which, by Uie way. had happened very
often in these latter days, and some way
they never seemed to mind it either 1
it was on one ot these rambles, 1 say,
that Fred bent his handsome blonde
head very low and whispered though
why should he whisper, there was no one
to hear ?
" We are going back hi three days,
Nan ; our vacation is more than paHt.
Shall yon core very much ?"
And I, startled by the sudden an
nouncement, lifted my eyes quickly to
his face, which was not ot all prudent
under the circumstances, and he read
what he chose in their depths, and then
but there, I shall not tell you a word
he said, that is my secret. I only know
that a few minutes after Fred was very
near, and I was turning a jeweled circlet
on my finger, and seeing it through a
mist of tears that dimmed its glitter
Btrangely.
" The time is very near, Nan ; don't
you think you had better break up at
Walden ?" This brought me to myself
with a start, as I exclaimed, remorse
fully :
" Whot will Jessie say?"
" There is your answer," laughed
Fred, pointing down a loner reach of
trees, at whose farther end could be seen
the glimmer of pale blue lawn, with a
most unmistakable coat-sleeve outlined
against it, while tho jetty locks of its
owner wero in dangerous proximity to
the other's blonde crimps. Foiled at
this point. I tried another :
" Three days ! why, I could never get
ready in the world."
" Nothing to wear 1" said Fred, light
ly ; "don't tell me. What does your
oracle, Thoreau, say about it ' IS you
havo any enterprise before you, try it in
your old clothes I
So what could I do? And Jessie
found herself helpless before the same
arguments, and, three days from that
time, we were whirling away from C ,
on the fast express, ere the inhabitants
of that city had fairly recovered their
breath at the astounding announcement
of a " double wedding in high life,"
upon such short notice 1
Efficacy of Prayer.
As an English vicar was walking along
the cans opposite Truro a gust of wind
took off his hat and whirled it
away. Some time after a Methodist
preacher, some distance away, was dis
coursing on prayer, and advised his
hearers to pray for temporal as well as
spiritual blessings, and cited a cose in
his own experience. He said that ho
was recently on the shore about to pro
ceed to a neighboring town, and added :
"My Christian friends, I had on my
head at the time a shocking bad hat, and
somewhat blushed to think of entering
that harbor town and watering-place so
ill-adorned as to my head. Then I lilt
ed up a prayer for covering more suited
to my head. At that solemn moment I
raised my eyes and saw in the spacious
firmament on high the blue ethereal
sky a black spot. It approached it
largened it widened it fell at my feet,
It was a brand-new hut by a celebrated
London maker! I cast my battered
beaver to the waves, my Christian
friends, and walked into town as fast m
I could with a new hat on my head. '
Several undergraduates of the Ger
man University of Marburg have been
ment in a fortress tor dueling.
A New Orleans actress put what she
supposed was arnica on her face, in the
dark ; but it was iodine, and she will not
go on the stage again for a while.
Tan Pope has appropriated $60,000
for a complete and splendid edition ot
the works of St. Thomas Aquinas, his
favorite philosopher.
Sfusoxok Bays that an Englishman,
before starting on foreign tour, ordert
the most ridiculous suit of clothes thai
H is possible for anybody to wear.
FACTS FOR THE CURIOUS.
Tns date of the earliest eclipse of the
sun, recorded in the annals of the Chi
nese, when " on the first day of the last
month of autumn, tho sun and moon did
not meet harmoniously in Fang," or in
that iiart of tho heavens defined by two
stars in tho constellation of Uie Scorpion,
has been determined by Prof. Von Op
polzer, cif Vienna, to have been the
morning of Oct. 23, 2137 B. 0.
A comuMroNDENT of the London
Times gives tho following singular but
interesting information for tho benefit
of those who ore interested in the study
of tho transmission of hereditary qual
ities : Tho foXowing cases ore taken
from a list of seventeen candidates for
election to on institution for the instruc
tion of deaf and dumb children : 1. A.
B. has six brothers and one sister, two
of tho brothers and the sister being deaf
ond dumb. 2. C. D. has four brothers
and one sister, two of the brothers being
also deof and dumb. 3. E. F. has two
1 irothers and one sister. Father, mother,
two brothers, grandfather, two uncles
and an aunt are deaf and dumb.
A rapid penman can write thirty
words in a minute. To do this ho must
draw his pen tlirough the space of a rod,
sixteen and a half feet. In forty min
utes his ten travels ft furlong. We
make, on on average, sixteen curves or
turns of the pen in writing each word.
Writing thirty words in a minute, wo
must make 480 to each minute ; in an
lour, 28,800 : in a dny of only five
hours, 144,000 : in a year of 300 days,
43,200,000. The man who made 1,000,
000 strokes with his pen was not at all
cmorkable. Many men, newspaper
writers, for instance, make 4,000,000.
Here we have, in tho ocrKrecate. a mark
of 300 miles long to be traced on paper
by such a writer m a year.
Tee proportions of tho human figure
are six times the length of the feet.
Whether the form is slender or plump,
tho rule holds good. Any deviation
from it is a departure from the highest
beauty in proportion. The Greeks mode
all their statues according to tin's ride.
The face, from tho highest point of the
forehead, where tho hair begins, to the
chin, is one-tenth of the stature. Tho
hand, from tho wrist to the middle of
the forefinger, is the same. From the
top of tho chest to the highest point of
the forehead is a seventh. If the face.
from the roots of the hair to tho chin,
is divided into three equal parts, the
first division determines the place where
the eyebrows meet, ond the second tho
place of the nostrils. The height from
the feet to the top of the head is tho
distance from the extremity of the fing
ers when the arms aro extended.
Big Robberies.
Lord Eldon. who has iust finished
church at a cost of near $200,000, and
lost valuables worth another $100,000 by
th& hunds of Bill Sykes and company,
represents the largest fortune which ever
came directly from the law. His great
grandfather, the pet Chancellor of
Georges III. and IV. it was not often
that they approved of tho samo man
started with little moro than a prtty ond
shrewd wife, for his marriage compelled
him to give up his fellowship ot Oxtord,
and his father, an old coal-shipper at
Newcastle, albeit well-to-do, was not dis
posed to lavish money on Jack, mora
especially nfter he had dared to elope at
21 with Bessie Sturtees. The habits
of cheeso-parinsr and flint-skinning
which the pair acquired at their start
were never lost in after years ; and
it is well known that when Lord
Eldon went back to town on one
occasion, Lady Eldon had the shoes
taken off his pony and locked them
securely in her desk, to prevent wear and
tear meantime. Not onry did he save
the bulk of great earnings at the bar, but
those also ho had as Chancellor, and for
some twenty years he had from 20,000
to Ji),lHJU a year, tor in those days the
Chancellor was largely paid by fees,
which were enormous. Beside all this,
the bulk of the fortune of liis brother,
Lord Stowell, the pillar of the
international law, ultimately came
to swell the Eldons' wealth. Lord
Stowell, os Judge of the Court ol
Admiralty during the long war period,
positively coined money, and he, too,
was exceedingly careful of what he got.
sso member ot the iamily has since been
conspicuous for ability. The present
Earl, who is grandson of the Chancellor,
is, like his father before him, a quiet
country gentleman( whose voice is never
neara in ine councils oi the nation. The
jewel and plate robberies which have
taken place in England of late yoarj
probably aggregate not less than, $2,500,
000. The usual plan has been to tret into a
lady's room while the family are at din
ner bv a ladder to the window. In thin
way about fifty thefts of immenso amount
have, within ten years, been accom
pnsneu wiin penect impunity. As in
England it is illegal to advertise " no
questions asked." it is probably more
difficult, in the absence of a rocognized
Jonathan Wild, to come to terms with
the plunderers, who, as was shown in
the case of Lady Ellesmere's loss of
property, worth $150,000, while on route
to visit the Queen at Windsor, often get
so little for their plunder from toceivers
that it would be greatly for thoir interest
to come to terms. There is on ugly ru
mor that a now well-known firm of He
brew jewelers emerged mysteriously from
obscurity to importance in the trade
within twelve months of the Ellesmexo
robbery ; and there can be little doubt
that many jewelers do lurgely benefit in
this manner. The gems once out of tho
setting, and the setting in the crucible,
detection becomes almost impossible.
Probably at this moment ot Newport and
Saratoga hundreds of thousands' worth
of these stolen diamonds are being: worn.
which find here the beet market. A'eui
York 'limn.
About 4,200,000 tons of hot water,
averaging iaav junreuiheit are an
nually pumped from the Comstock
mines. To heat this mass of water by
artinciai means would require a con
sumption of over 50,000 tons of coal
year. The water from some of the deep
est shafts, 3,000 feet; has a temperature
n 10 - a anreiuneit.
fu amount' of butter now made in
Iowa creameries is estimated at 60.000.
w pounas per annum.
Watches. .
Watches, by reason of their frncile
construction, and the variations to which
they are liable, can after all only obtain ,
ll : . . i i . : .if.. . f
jiuuwu penecuou in uiuu in-muiii-
anco ; therefore, we must not be aston
ished to find them subject to certain
variations. These variations, which ore
not easy to correct, need not prejudice
the quality of a watch, as will be proved
by the following example. Two watch
es, we will suppose, have been put to
the same time bv an excellent reRulator.
At the end of a month, ono of these
watches is a quarter of an hour too fast;
me other is exactly light to time.
To which of theso two watches
would we give tho preference?
Perhaps to tho ono which is exactly
right. But in making such a choice, we
nevertheless incur tho risk of abandon
ing a good watch for a bad one. Tho
first wateh has. we assume, pained thirty
seconds a day ; and, according to this
rate, it has gained a quarter of on hour
in thirty days. hat must bo done to
make this watch go well? Alter tho
regulator inside from fast to slow, or get
a careful watch-maker to do it for you,
thereby altering its daily rate. Let us
now admit that the other wotch has been
affected during tho month by irregular
going, which has occasioned it some
times to gain, at other times to lose to a
certain extent daily. It may easily oc
cur that at the end ot a month this
gaining and losing compensate each
other, and by this means the
watch indicates the exact hour ot tho
time we look at it. Such a watch can
never be relied upon. The fact is that a
watch which gains in a regular manner or
loscsin a regular manner is superior to
any whose variation is uncertain, and
where its variation comes to bo familiar
the little companion may vie with the
most delicately adjusted ship's chronom
eter. A skillful watchmaker one day
thus reasoned with a customer who com
plained of his wateh. "You com
plain," said he, "that your watch
gains a minute a month. Well, then,
you will congratulate yourself when you
have heard me. You are aware that
in your watch, the balance, which
is the regulator, makes five oscillations
every second, which is 432,000 a dny ;
so that your wateh, exposed to all the
vicissitudes which heat and cold occasion
it, the varying weight of the air, and the
shaking to which it is subjected, has not
varied more than a minute a month, or
two seconds a day. It has only acquired
with each vibration of the balance a va
riation of the two hundred and sixteen
thousandth port of a second. Judge,
then, what must be the extreme perfec
tion of the mechanism of this watch !"
A wateh cannot go for an indefinite
period without being repaired or
cleaned. At the expiration of a certain
time, the oil dries up, dust accumulates.
and wear and tear are the inevitable results
to tho whole machinery, the functions be
coming irregular, and frequetly ceasing
to act altogether. A person possessing
a watch of good quality, and desirous of
preserving it as such, should havo it
cleaned every two years at least. But
core should bo token to confide thw
cleaning or repairing to careful hands ;
an inexperienced workman may do great
injury to a wateh even of tho simples t
construction. Chambers' Journal.
Bathing After Meals.
Two cases, reported by Dr. Nocgli in
the Swiss Medical Journal, illustrate
the truth of the prevalent belief that it
is dangerous to go in bathing when the
stomach is full. The cases were alike
in their history. Ono was that of a boy
of 14, who ate a hearty meal and then
went in the water for a bath. When
swimming along with a comrade he sud
denly gave a cry and sank under the
water. He was speedily brought out on
shore, and the usual means of resuscita
tion were employed. These utterly
failed, however. Fearing some obstruc
tion, the boy s trahcea was opened, and
pieces of food were found in it. These
were removed in part ; but it was not
sufficient, and the boy died. The other
cose had a similar history. At the post
mortem a portion of the contents of the
stomach were found in the trachea and
bronchi.
Stereotyping.
William Ged, the inventor of stereo
typing, was a Scotchman. He was a
jeweler in Edinburgh. So long as he
adhered to his original vocation, ho was
permitted to prosper. When he ventured
to exercise his ingenuity by facilitating
the printer's art, he was doomed. On
his making known his discovery of block
printing, the trade deemed their craft in
danger, and formed a combination for
his destruction. Master printers, jour
neymen and apprentices united against
him as a common enemy ; they loaded
him with inveotives ; they reproached
him with ignorance and assumption.
The arrows of calumny hit him on all
sides. Who could long withstand such
an array of hostilities? Poor Ged, who
ought to have made a fortune out of his
discovery, sank, under the load of perse
cution, and died of a broken heart.
Entertaining Company.
Guests cannot be entertained without
lome trouble. To entertain people suc
cessfully one must give thought to it.
least nail oi the good companionship
of tho world comes from the good' fore
thought of somebody. Someliody has
planned it. The happy occurrence was
not an accident it was the result of
premeditation. All the little and sweet
social surprises of life ; all the little do
mestic secrets between children and
parents, which, in their unfolding, brim
uie uousenoia with gladness; all the
larger and more stately social festivities
that keep the life of a neighborhood and
village buoyant, are only the natural se
quence of benevolent and good-natured
thought on the part of some one who
has made an effort in behalf of others.
That Terrible Inrant.
Little Nellie was looking at some
pictures of wild animals when Mr. Jor
kins called, and appealed to that gentle
man to explain one of the pictures to
her. " That is a wild boar," said he,
and the little lady looked at it thought
fully and replied : " It doesn't look like
you, does it, Mr. Jorkins?" "I hope
not," responded the guest "Whyf"
"Because," said the artless infant,
" mamma said, when your card was sent
up, 'There is that old bore, Jorkins,
here again.'"
'4