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' , . - 1 - i :
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HENRY A. PARSONS, Jr., Editor and Publisher.
NIL. DESPERANDUM.
Two Dollars per Annum.
VOL. XII.
HIDGWAY, ELK COUNTY, PA., TtfUBSDAY, OCTOBEE 26. 1882.
KO. 36.
A Falliolio Poem.
Maro Coolc ("Van Pylte Brown"), the
young poet who died in Utica, N. Y., recently,
of comitmptinn. left one or two poems
touching his sickness nnd the prospect of his
early death, whioh are Tory pnthelic. Hero
is one with a sigh in every lino s
AWAITINO TBB EXD.
Never again to know
Health's warming, radiant clow (
Never again to feel the pulse's quickoned
beat,
The sinews pliant as steel, tempered in
action's heat,
The sweat of honest toil, bringing its respite
sweet i
Bnt day and night, night and day,
To mark the body's slow decay,
A.nd know that Death scores one in the game
(In sunshine and shadow nil the Bame),
Every day, every day 1
Never again to dream
Of all that may be, or seem,
In the snnlit future hid from the eager eye
of youth )
Never to raise the lid of the precious casket
of truth j
Never to hope to delve in the field of thought,
forsooth j
But day and night, night and day,
To watoh the hours waste awy, .
- Still in the worlil and still not of it
Still learning more and mora to love it
Every day, every day I
Never again to stand
In the thick of the battle grand
In the God-led battle of life, the goodliest
battle of all,
Where noble it were in the strife, manfully
fighting to fall j
Never in action's ranks to answer the bugle
day and night, night and day,
To passively sit and watch the fray,
With a skeluton spector always nigh
Oh, worse than a thousand times to die
Every dny, every day! Hr
THEIR CO.ISLIOIT BOITD.
Several explosive sneezes interrupted
Loye Travis as she added the last
touches of charming disorder to the
fringe of curling bronze hair which lay
on her forehead. As a particularly
energetic " Ah-tish-oo!" rent the air,
nnd caused her to perform an invol
untary courtesy, her straight, dark
brows met in the thoughtful little
frown which was peculiar to her, and,
looking meditatively into the mirror
she observed that her blue-gray eyes
were inflamed, and that her pretty
nose, with its suspicion of tip-tilted-ness,
had, on this occasion, more than
a suspicion of redness.
, " I can't have taken a cold," Loye
meditated. " It must be; yes, it is the
fifteenth of August!" she exclaimed,
as she glanced at the calendar which
hung on the wall of her room. " It
has come!" she announced, solemnly,
as she walked into the room where
the family were assembled at break
fast. " "What ? The Day of Judgment, or
a cyclone?" demanded Kate, Loye's
younger sister.
" None of your flippancy, miss !" re
buked Loye. "What evil genius has
dogged my footsteps since my earliest
teens, lying in wait for me, and pounc
ing upon me with mathematical pre
cision every year on the fifteenth of
August ? "What diabolical spirit, may
I ask you, holds me in its clutches
from that date onward, making me
sneeze, and gasp, and cough at its own
sweet will (not mine, I assure you I)
until frost releases me from captivity?
'Of all end words of torifne or pen,
The saddest are, " tiay fuvor time again" 1' "
she continued, with mock despair and
real vexation. " But," brightening,
and speaking with sudden resolution :
" "Tis well for ns nil that a region Ucs
Where the Infusoria never rise,'
and I'm going there this summer 1"
Mrs. Travis, Kate and Johnny stared
In amazement. Had Loye developed
latent lunacy? Only last evening
they had all assembled in solemn con
clave to discuss ways and means to
pay the butcher's bill, and here was
Loye coolly announcing that she wa3
about to take' a pleasure trip !
"How?" inquired Kate.
" ' She'll take her knapvick on her hack,
And travel on the railway track,'"
sang Johnny, in an irritating falsetto.
" You know I'd bo glad to have you
go to Michigan, or to some of those
Northern Mates, dear, but" began
Mrs Travis.
" Yes," interrupted Loye, "I know
the family exchequer is not filled to
overflowing. IJut I have a plan, and
if Kate and Johnny will stop glaring
at me as if I were a two-headed lady,
I'll tell you about."
She accordingly unfolded her plan,
and, after many feeble jokes and much
scoffing on the part of Kato and
Johnny, great perplexity on the part
of Mrs. Travis, and much triumphant
proving of points at issue on the part
of Loye, she won Iter mother's con
sent to what sho wished to do, and
cheerfully dispensed with the approval
of jeering Kate and Johnny.
One afternoon, late in August, Don
ald Trafton stood by the river at a
Wisconsin summer resort skipping
stones. As he was sauntering along
the wooded banks of the Lac la Utile,
Its smooth expanse suggested a re
newal, sit thirty, of one of his boyish
sports at ten. Acting upon the sug
' gestion, he had collected a small moun
tain of thin, smooth stones, and for the
past ten minutes or. more had been
laboriously trying to make them skip
properly. But instead of giving the
graceful little leaps which Trafton had
expected them to do as a matter of
course, they ineffectually grazed the
surface of the river and then plunged
at once beneath. They made a pretty
show of sparkles and dancing rings on
the water, it is true, but they were not
by any means fulfilling the duty of
skipping stones. Donald paused and
ruefully admitted that his success was
not brilliant. So evidently thought an
unseen spectator, for, to Trafton's
stupefaction, there swooped upon him
an apparition in an ivory flannel dress,
with a dark green sailor hat atilt on a
bronze confusion of curl and wave, and
a pair of
" Kyes of a deep, soft, lurent hne,
Kyes too expressive to bo bluo,
Too lovely to bo (jrsy,"
met his with the direct gaze of a child,
while a sweet voice pleaded :
. " Oh, please let me show youl"
As Trafton turned, a slight redden
ing, which would have been an unde
niable blush in a fairer man, over
spread his face, and he met the gaze of
the pretty stranger with a look of re
cognition and pleasure which was in
stantly suppressed. She did not notice
this look, however, for her fingers were
tingling for the skipping-stones as on
artist's may tingle for pencil and brush
when he sees them used by unskillful
hands. Trafton making no reply to
her request, sho again pleaded: .
" Oil, do let me show you!"
He yielded his place at once to the
ncognita in ivory-and-green, and, after
ruthlessly demolishing Trafton's carefully-built
mountain, s-he gleaned from
the scattered stones a few that met
with her approval, and proceeded to
" show " hiin. How pretty she looked
as she stooped poised on the bank, tak
ing careful aiml "With her fringe of
hair blown by the winds into count
less curly tendrils, her lashes resting
heavily on her checks like black satin
on peach blossoms, and resolute little
dimples deepening at the corners of
her mouth, Trafton thought ho had
never seen anything more satisfactory
to look upon.
In another instant the stone was
thrown. A deft turn of the wrist
sent It spinningoverthe river, touching
its surface and" bounding onward four
separate times. Incognita breathed a
quick, satisfied sigh at the successful
accomplishment of her feat, and said,
excitedly, "There ! Johnny himself
couldn't have done better 1" Then she
suddenly seemed to awaken to the
enormity of her conduct in thus
thrusting herself into the society of an
unknown gentleman, taking forcible
possession of his retreat, and insisting
upon teaching him to skip stones, wiil
lie, nill he. Sudden scarlet eclipsed
cheek peach blossoms, and she began
to stammer apologies.
" "What will you think of me?" she
began. "Indeed I am not bold and
improper, although I know that I
must have seemed so this afternoon.
You may ask any one at Fort Kaynor
if I am." And then, recollecting that
she was speaking to some one who had
probably never seen Fort Kaynor, she
added, hastily, "Or I will give you the
address of my minister and my Bible
class teacher, and you may write and
asic them.
Trafton looked at her with smiling
dark eyes as she stood, in wild anxiety,
to clear herself from all suspicion of
being an improper person. Thei, as
she concluded, he said, reassuringly :
" There is no necessity for writing.
I am fully convinced that you are the
very pink and pinnacle of propriety.
Why, any young lady who had a spark
of the missionary spirit in her compo
sition would feel it an imperative duty
to hasten to the instruction of a be
nighted heathen, who was struggling,
unaided and alone, to make some pro
gress in the noble art of skipping
stones."
"You really were doing very badly,"
said the pratty missionary, candidly.
"Still, if you really insist upon it,"
continued Traftori, looking at her quiz
zically, "when I return to Fort H ay
nor I will question your pastor and
teacher with regard to you, Miss
Travis !"
The tallies of surprise were com
pletely turned upon Loye. Sho re
peated, blankly, "Fort Kaynor! Miss
Travis!" then recovering herself
slightly, said: " I know that it is not
polite to stare at you so, and repeat
your words as if I was a parrot ; bnt
you have completely petrified me.
Please turn me to flesh and blood as
quickly as possible, by explaining
what you. meant by exploding these
names upon me like two Fourth of
July iireerackers."
"Arery well, Miss Galatea. I live
at Fort Kaynor. I am Donald Traf
ton, of the (inn of Trafton & Det
wilcr, hardware merchants. I" have
seen you in church, and learned your
name, although I have never chanced
to meet you anywhere until to-day."
" We have only lived in Fort Kaynor
for two months," explained Loye, "and
wo have been busy settling, and
mother's health is poor, so that I've
been almost nowhere a3 yet, except
to church and the confectioner's," she
added, with a whimsical reflectiveness.
" Sometimes, when I feel as if 1 were
absolutely rolling in gold that is,
have a dime to spare 1 treat myself
to some chocolates. Now, if you had
only chosen to sell candy instead of
stoves and nails, this double surprise
might have been avoided. But you
would have learned what a temper I
have if you had sold mo stale choco
late." " Never would I have been guilty of
such baseness !" returned Trafton, fer
vently. "But have I dissolved the
stony spell which bound you ?"
" Yes, I believe so," said Loye, giv
ing herself a playful little shake. "But
I am turned to flesh only to fly, for it's
a quarter past five," she announced,
glancing at her watch and returning it
to her girdle of dark-green velvet.
Then, before Trafton could carry out
his intention of looking at his time
piece, and declaring that hers was ab
surdly fast, she had bidden him good
afternoon and sped away.
He hurried after her to express a
wish that they might meet often. She
never paused, but merely tossed over
her shoulder a cool, "It isn't likely, for
I am so busy."
"What can she bo 'so busy' about,"
Trafton pondered, shrugging his
shoulders in annoyance. " For what
fancy work (or fane Idleness) she has
thrown me over, I wonder ? Probably,
like the rest of womankind, she has
fallen under the baleful influence of
sunflowers and cat-tails. But sho is
carrying her devotions to extremes, if,
even for their (esthetic sake, she es
chews the society of her kind."
Trafton felt amazed, as well tis net
tled, by Loye's cavalier dismissal of
his request. He was by no means
vain ; still, he could not but be con
scious that he had a well-knit, athletic
figure and a remarkably handsome
face j and he knew there Avere few
young ladies who would not prefer his
society to seclusion, even when bright
ened by the yellow charms of the most
gorgeous sunflower that ever lit a
Kansas prairio or bloomed upon a
chair-back. He reflected, however,
that Miss Travis' apparent check upon
his advances might be only a coquet
tish thorn, intended to sting and stim
ulate him into seeking the rose, her
self. And then ho fell to wondering
if he would see her at the lawn social
that evening.
He had told her that he had seen her
sometimes at church, but he had not
informed her that, after his first sight
of her there, he had attended its ser
vices regularly foi the sole purpose of
looking at her.
He had strolled into the Episcopal
church at Fort Kaynor, and his atten
tion had been attracted by a very
pretty girl who looked, as she listened
to the sermon, like a child listening to
an absorbing fairy itory. Her eyes
were wide and attentive, her head
thrown, a little back and her lips
slightly parted. Loye never posed for
effect, but sho had a wav of doinar
heartily whatever she did, which habit
included even listening to a rather poor
sermon.
Trafton came again and again, mak
ing the lovely face, with its fascinating
combination of earnestness and pi
quancy, his prayer-book, sermon and
song. Ho had never been able to ob
tain an introduction to its owner, for
the reason which she herself had given
that afternoon. Then tho time for
his annual hay-ffcvor coming around,
lie had run away from it to this north
ern retreat, trusting to find Miss
Travis in her usual place on his re
turn. She was not at the lawn social, nor
did he meet any one who knew her, so
he was forced to fall back upon the
hope of another chance encounter.
It came three days later. He found
her seated on a camp stool trying to
sketch a bit of river scenery, lie msos
as familiar with paint brush and pen
cil as sho was with skipping stones,
and under his instructions and finish
ing touches the sketch was much more
satisfactory than it would have been'
otherwise.
"My self-respect is at last restored,"
said Trafton. " Wo have mutually in
structed and surprised each other and
may as well cry quits."
" Perhaps," said Loye, with a look
which suggested the possibility of her
having further surprises in store.
Then she gathered up her materials
preparatory to another flight.
"Are you Cinderella running off to
your pots and pans?" laughingly in
quired Trafton, as he noted the quick
look at her watch with which she pre
faced iier withdrawal.
" Perhaps," tersely replied this mys
terious young woman. " I am stop
ping at Mrs. Blanding's," sho added,
witlt an odtl little dimpling smile, as
Trafton begged her to tell him where
she hoarded ; then walked away with a
swift, elastic tread.
The next morning found Trafton in
stalled as a guest at Mrs. Blanding's.
Tn tho margin in' time which bordered
the dinner hour some of his fellow
boarders assembled in the wide hall or
on the shaded porch. He scanned the
little knot for Loye, but she was not
visible. Eminent among the ladies
were a classical girl, two scientific girls
and a flirting girl. The classical girl
had woven several Homeric tiireads
into the web of desultory conversa
tion; tho scientific girls had set up
Darwin and Herbert Spencer in op
position to Homer; the flirting girl
had angled for and obtained several
neat little compliments, yet Loye did
not appear. They were at tho dinner
table; every chair was occupied;
Trafton's eyes wandered eagerly in
search of Loye, still she was unac
countably absent. Ho turned suddenly
as a sweet, unusual voico behind his
chair inquired his choice of soups, and
his eyes rested upon the face for which
lie had been searching.
This creature of surprises wore a
blue gingham, with a white apron and
white collar and cuffs. Her wayward
hair was filleted and coiled into subjec
tion, and if any merriment lay in am
bush under the dark lashes it revealed
itself only by the merest twinkle. Be
,'.i this severely grave young person
Z ilton's ideal woman, as exemplified
iu Eve waiting on her celestial visitors,
would have appeared a giddy tiling.
In his amazement he had not an
swered her question, and sho repeated
it. He stammered something in reply,
and sho flitted away. Awaiting her
return, he glanced at the other occu
pants of the table to see what they
thought of having Miss Travis for a
waitress. Apparently, tfley thought
nothing of it, for their faces showed
no marks of, surprise, and they contin
ued sipping soup so placidly that Traf
ton soliloquized t somewhat savagely:
" If an angel should drop down in a
casual way, fold its wings carefully so
as to keep the feathers out of the but
ter, put a large apron over its ' robe
(if white samite, mystic, wonderful,'
and begin to wait on the table, they
would take it as a matter of course."
Loye soon returned with the soup,
and placing it before Trafton, said, in
a solemn, measured whisper, "Are we
quits?" Then her lips suddenly
curved, and a voiceless laugli ran over
her face, setting free a host of dimples
and brimming over in her blue-gray
eyes. A second later her face was un
challengeable demure, and sho darted
away to supply somebody with water.
Trafton wished that the merry bud
of laughter could have blossomed. He
would have liked to loin in the silver
peal, even though it had rung at his
own expense.
Llsiht had broken unon him. He
fancied that he held the clew to Loye's
lreaki Kememuenng her pregnant
"Perhaps I" in answer to his remark
that they might its well cry tjuitsj he
concluded that she had planned this
surprise on the spot in order to turn
tlte scale once more in her favor, and
that she had taken the boarders into
her confidence and hound them to si
lence. And he would not question any
one. Tho little witch should have her
triumph ; he would not mar it by any
Paul Prying.
As the days went on he was rather
surprised to see her remain at her post
and take no share in tho festivities of
the place ; but perhaps sho had a taste
for private theatricals and wished to
make her part consistent. At all
events, freakishness was to Loye what
freakedness is to the pansy an added
grace.
Loye, having got the better of Traf
ton, felt friendly toward him in conse
quence, and graciously allowed him to
fill her intervals of leisure with boat
ing, sketching, rambling and all the
other pleasant and-so-fortlm of sum
mer idling-time, which can be con
ducted a deux, and from which, there
fore, she was not debarred
So the days sped by as lightly as
thistledown puffs on a buoyant breeze
till the woods began to blush and the
summer sojourners to ebb awav. Traf
ton was not certain that Loye returned
his love, for she was by no means
girl to wear a sweet secret as openly
as tho flowers at her belt. One morn
ing, however, ho resolved to put ti
plain question, and wait for a straight
forward answer.
They were resting in a scarlet nook
of tho woods after a long ramble. She
was looking up at the point where red
tree-shafts and blue sky meet, with
the wide, intent gaze which ho re
membered of old.
"Loye," lie said, suddenly, "what
do you suppose I went to church at
Fort Kavnor for?"
" Why, how can I tell ?" bringing
her gaze from the tree-tops to his face.
" l'erliaps you went to show yor new
clothes, or to see what the other gen
tlemen wore ; or," she suggested as
remote possibility, "you may. have
gone to hear the sermon."
"I went to look at you. And
looked at you because " here he fal
tered, then went on quickly and pas
sionately because l loved you.
Did a flush spring to Love's cheek
or was it only a reflection etist by the
rosy leaves ? Did a quick smile curve
her lips, or was it onlv a trick of tho
sunlight that plaved on her face
Trafton could not tell, for she turned
her head so quicklv.
" Loye," he pleaded, after moments
had passed into minutes, "what do
you say? Better 'No than nothing,
but make it 'Yes' if you can."
That was a neat little model of an
Egyptian pyramid which she was con
structing with the scattered acorns ;
but he wanted his answer, and she
seemed in no haste to give it. Sho was
beginning to weave a very tasteful
wreath of the tinted leaves ; but his
long-stretched patience would snap be-
fore it was done
At last she turned and said, in her
pretty, thoughtful way, with wide eyes
and a reflective little frown :
"How strange it is that some words
are so hard to pionounce although they
are really very short ! ' Yes,' for ex
ample." Then there was a second
edition of the smile and blush which
were unequivocal verities, and Trafton
read in tho lovely eyes the answer that
the lips had only skirted.
"
" That was a blessed caprice of yours,
Loye. If it hadn't been for that I
couldn't have monopolized you as 1
have done all those weeks. And per
haps, but for that, you would have said
' Yes ' to some one else, and I couldn't
have you for my own all a long life
time, as I hope to do, sweetheart," said
Trafton, a few days later, as he slipped
a gleaming ring on her finger.
" Caprice!" she echoed.
"Yes, the caprice that led you to
wait at Mrs. Blanding's table in order
to give me a finishing surprise."
" As if you were worth the trouble!"
she retorted. " Perhaps it is a caprice
to have the hay fever?" she mildly in
quired. "No! a thousand times no!" ex
claimed Trafton, energetically.
" It may he a caprice, to wish to go
where you will not have it?"
"There could not be a more emi
nently sensible desire," fervently re
turned Trafton.
" And I suppose, of course, that it
is a caprice not to have much money,"
continued Loye, with deadly sarcasm.
" Alas for freakish humanity if that
be so."
"I have sneezed through the hay
fever for so many years that I wanted
desperately to escape from it. But we
haven't nearly enough money to allow
me to go as a butterfly, so I decided to
go as a bee. The New England girls at
the "White Mountains put the
idea in my head, and I recol
lected Mrs. Blanding, an old neighbor
of ours in New York, who was
keeping boarders here. I wrote to
her, stating my dire need, and asking
if I could come as waitress. She re
plied that I might. -So here I came
and hero I met Prince Charming, who
lias been very good to mo and given
me a lovely ring." AVith a glance at
the sparkling ring and a smile to its
donor, she added, "Am I acquitted of
caprieiousness?"
' In regard to tho heat-handed Phyl
lis episode yes! But I suppose you
inquire why I tamo here?"
" Why did you?" sho returned, obediently
if Because I. also, have the hay fevetl
Loyej it is clear that you and I Were
made for eacii other j vor aro . we not
pursued by a comliiori enemy and
united by a common oona t
"A Celebrated Case."
More than twenty years ago Win.
Wackerle was a Minnesota farmer.
He served in tho army during the war
and was disabled, for Which he drew a
pensiofli He and ids' family Would
seem to tiave been of wandering hab'
its; haying lived in New Orleans, Gin
cinnati; Milwaukee; Chicago and De
troit, at which latter place, in loou, no
left his wife and went to California,;
whither she soon followed him. Their
married daughter having died there
they returned to Quincy, 111., where
they lived until 1872, when the bus
band went again to California. Tho
next tidings she had from him that
year were those of his death in Louisi
ana, where he was run over by a train
near Shreveport.
He had two insurance policies on his
life, one of them in the Etna company
and the other in the New York Mutual
Life. -She had worked hard during
his absences, and by her own labor had
succeeded in keeping tho premiums
paid. On hearing of his death she
went to Louisiana, had the remains
exhumed and identified them. The
Etna company refused to acknowledge
this identity and she sued them in
Louisiana, getting a verdict in her
favor, which was reversed in the
supreme court of that State.
In the meanwhile an alleged William
Wackerle made himself known on the
Pacific coast and continued drawing a
pension from the United States govern
ment. Mrs. Wackerle set out upon a
tour of the United States collect
ing proofs of her claim upon her
insurance companies and of hex
husband's death. She was known
iu New England as well as jn
Minnesota, in Missouri ns well as in
Louisiana. She was without money,
but not without friends, whose sympa
thies she excited, and whose aid she
invoked, and who listened to her,
trusted her and helped her on her
way. She refused all offers of com
promise, but insisted on her full claim.
To get it became the object of her life,
and although having nothing but the
clothes sho wore, and tho documents
she carried, site still continued to enlist
the support and assistance of those
who knew her. Even when she
learned that a man claiming to lie her
husband had appeared to thwart her
sho did not despair, but kept up
the light, beginning it nt last and
when fully prepared by a suit against
the Mutual company in St. Lotus.
A Minnesota attorney agreed to pro
duce William Wackerle, her husband,
to testily in behalf ot the insurance
company. So when the trial com
menced tho alleged Californian went
upon the stand, swore that he was
William Wackerle, the husband of the
plaintiff, and that lie still drew his
pension from the government. He be
t rayed great familiarity with the life
ami wandering career of William
Wackerle, and in several points was
able to establish, a startling imitation
of the identity he asserted. She, on the
contrary, protested that he was not her
husband, but one of his brothers, proba
bly a younger one, "Chris." Wackerle.
She then entered upon a clear, exact
and circumstantial account of her life
with her husband, their various resi
dences, their varying fortunes and ml
ventures, and the birlhs, deaths and
sex of their children. In regard to the
children the claimant had shown him
self extremely defective in memory and
wanting in accuracy. He also contra
dieted other evidence of the defense in
regard to Wackerle's residenco in Cin
cinnati. Several reputable and intelli
gent witnesses repudiated him, de
claring that in his looks, features,
complexion, color of hair and beard,
lie did not resemble William Wackerle,
some of these points being exactly op
posite to those of the claimant.
The case was then submitted to the
jury, who speedily brought in a ver
dict for Mrs. Wackerle and against the
company in tho sum of $0,500, a ver
dict from which the company intends
appealing to the supremo court of tlrj
United States. As they have millions
and Mrs. Wackerle nothing, tho ad
vantage is altogether on their side;
and tho combative widow or de
f rander, as the case may be, will again
have to call upon all her pluck anil pa
tience for another fight. Detroit Free
Press.
How tho Emperor of Brazil Hides.
A correspondent writes to the Nor
ristown Herald: Hark! Do you hear
that racket? Clear the track! iet
out of tho way there ! Here comes a
calvacade that won't stop for any
thing. Don't stop to look until you
have dodged into the shelter of a door
way, but when you are safe you will
see first, a half dozen horse guards
with drawn sabers flashing in the sun;
then a couple of mounted chamber
lains; then an old black coach drawn
by six brass-mounted mules (harness
brass mounted), ridden by postillions,
two gaudy footmen standing at the
back of the "trap;" inside the carriage
nits a white-haired, white-bearded,
handsome man in military costume,
his kindly face beaming on the
startled people who had so hastily
taken shelter. When tho coach and
the company of cavalry following it
have passed with all the speed that
mules, and yellow mules at that, are
capable of, I draw a sigh of relief. I
have seen this turnout almost every
day since I have been in Kio, but you
will probably have to bo informed that
it was his majesty Dom Pedro II.,
"constitutional emperor and perpetual
defender of Brazil," who has just
passed. Although Dom Pedro is
rather more progressive-minded than
most or ins countrymen, ho still re
tains an affected display of pomp and
power which he does not really
possess.
WISE WORDS,
If yoti wish to remove avarice you
must remove its mother, luxury.
The sweetest thing on earth is a little
Child when it has learned to know and
love.
Conversation enriches the under
standing-, but solitude is th school of
gen!"s-
tie who lives to benetit muist;;.
confers on the world a benefit when
he dies.
Brain is the Impelling force of the
world, and thought is the symbol of
progress
Genius at first Is littlo more
than rt great capacity for receiving
discipline.
There are more fools than Bilges ; and
among tho sages there is more folly
than wisdom.
Education is the only interest worthy
the deep, controlling authority of the
thoughtful man.
A woman's dress is like the envelope
of a letter ; tho cover is frequently an
index to the contents.
Tho trouble and worry and wear and
tear that comes from hating people
makes hitting unprofitable.
To the genefous mind the heaviest
debt is that of gratitude when it is
not in our powor to repay It,
He that wrestles with us strengthens
oiir nerves and sharpens our skill.
Our antagonist is our helper.
Tho best portion of a good man's
life is his little nameless, unretnein
bered acts of kindness and of love.
Every real and searching effort at
self-improvement Is of itself a lesson
of profound humility. For we cannot
move a step without learning nnd feel
ing the waywardness, the weakness,
the vacillation of our movements, or
without desiring to be set on the rock
that is higher than ourselves.
Properties of Nilro Glycerine.
It has a sweet, aromatic, pungent
laste, and possesses the very peculiar
property of causing an extremely vio
lent headacho when placed in a small
quantity upon the tongue, or any other
portion of the skin, particularly Upon
the wrist. It lias long been employed
by homeopathic practitioners as a rem
edy in certain kinds of headaches, Jn
those who work much with it tlte ten
dency to headache is generally over
come, though not always. It freezes
at about forty degrees Fahrenheit, be
coming a white, half-crystallized mass,
which must bo melted by the appli
cation of water at a temper
aturo of about 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
If perfectly pure that is, if the wash
ing has been so complete as to remove
all traces of tho acid it can be kept
lor an indehnitc period of tune; and,
while many cases of spontaneous de
composition have occurred in impure
specimens, there has never been known
Mich an instance where the proper care
has been given to all the details of tho
manufacture.
When pure nitro-glycerine is not
verv sensitive to friction, or even to
moderate percussion, if a small quan
tit v be placed on an anvil and struck
with a hammer, that portion which is
touched explodes sharply, but so quick
ly as to drive away the other particles;
if, however, it were even slightly con-
lmed so that none could escape, it
would all explode or detonate. It must
be fired by a fuse containing fulminate
of mercury (the compound used in per-
ussion caps), not lieing either readily
or certainly hred by gunpowder, the
shock of the latter not being sufficient
ly quick or sharp to detonate tiie nitro
glycerine.
If Hamo be applied to nitro-glvcerine
it will not explode, but burn with com-
aiative sluggishness. lien frozen it
is difficult and uncertain of firing. If
the material be perfectly pure it forms
upon detonation a volume or gases
nearly 1,300 times ns great as that of
tho original liquid; these gases are
also f urtlter expanded by the heat de
veloped to a theoretical (though not
practical) volume 10,000 times as great
as that of . the charge. Practically
speaking, the rorces exerted by gun
powder and nitro-glycerine are in the
proportion of one to eighth 1'opular
licit nee Montnly.
A Dangerous Headland.
Capo Kace, tho scene of many marine
disasters, is neur the southeastern ex
tremity of Newfoundland, latitude
forty-six degrees thirty-nine minutes
north, longitude litty-three degrees
four minutes. It is a lofty and pre
cipitous headland, extending into the
Atlantic from the southernmost point
of tho division of that island called
Ferryland. It forms a prominent
point tor navigators in the North At
lantic, lying near the ordinary route
of vessels between the eastern ports of
the Lnited (states and England, and
being the last point of American land
sighted or passed in the eastern pass
age. It is a point very dangerous to
ships sailing iu foggy weather between
tho United States and Europe. On it
is a revolving light 180 feet above the
sea. It was established by the British
government, and is sustained by a tax
upon all ships from or to Great
Britain, to or from Canada and the
northeastern part of the United
States.
A lVt's Appeal for a Blind Man.
Victor Hugo, leaving the Cafe de
Paris, where lie had just breakfasted,
saw on the boulevards a wretchedly
poor blind man, and in an impulse of
pity improvised the following lines,
which he wrote on tho placard hung
around tho beggar's neck. Freely
translated the lines are:
"Blind, as was Homer; as Belisnrius, blind,
But a weak child to guide bis vision dim.
Tho hand which dealt htm bread, In pit;
kind
He'll mjo it not: God sees it, though, for
him."
The sous of the passers-by flowed
freely after reading this touching ap
peal to their eommueratloni
In a Sunbeam;
In a sunbeam eyelids white,
Hiding merry, sparkling eyes t
Ourls half-biown, half turned to gold"
Fast asleep the baby lies,
Bnt a little gargling laugh
From the parted lips steal out r
What do babies, fast asleep
In a sunbeam, dream about?
Bndi and flowers, (
RainbowB, showers,
Butterflies and honey-beee j
Reaches, cherries,
Apples', berries,
Birdies sinfc?ng in th tree8
Grass all over ,
Fragrant clover,
Dandelions golden bright
Chickens peeping, -
Squirrels leaping,
Big-eyed cows in daised meadows,
Bweet warm milk and yellow cream
Of all these, when in a eunbeam
Babies fall asleep, they dream.
Madge Elliott, in Baldvrin'a HontMy.
HUMOR OF THE DAT.
A cuff on the wrist is worth two on
the ear.
In point of real value the hen over
lays all domestic fowls.
Misery loves company, and so aoes
a marriageable young lady.
A well-conducted husband, like a
well-conducted candle, never goes out
at night,
Latin is a dead language, anu tnai is
why doctors use it lor writing out
their prescriptions.
A popular writer, speaking or tno
ocean telegraph, wonders whether tne
news transmitted through tho Bait
water will be fresh.
It is said ninety millions of postage
stamps are annually sold in this coun
try, and all of them have to bJ licked
before they will do their duty.
Arthur to Kaoul "Well, did yovt
kill manv partridges?" "Not one, but
still I am very well satisfied with my
self. I came much -nearer than last
year 1"
A mother, who fondly put the qncry
to her young son, "What wouiu jou
do without a mother, lorn was
dumbfounded with the reply: "Do as I .
like, ma."
"Some scoundrel tucked a plugged
half-dollar off on me." "Cant you
pass it?" asked his friend. "Well, I
don't know," ho said, "but you Det 1
shall try."
Professor Sharpless has published a.
new antl popular worK on asvroiiuiuy.
It will fill a long felt want in phoso
cities where banana peel is thick nn
th osidewalk.
Some philosopher has observed that
"To be a good conversationalist, one
must needs be a good listener." This
is especially true if the conversation is
o be by telephone.
"Do you buy your music by tho
roll?" inquired a young lady of tho
deacon's daughter. " Oh, no," she re
plied. " I always wait, until fcunday,
and then I get it by the choir."
About the most discouraging thing
that can happen to a man is to bo
doing the handsome thing in keeping
ahead of a cross bull, and find, on
reaching the fence, that it is of barbed
wire.
HEALTH HINTS.
Alcohol introduced into the blood
changes its constituent elements and
also impairs the integrity of the blood
vessels.
Wheat, made into bread, puddings,
etc., will make more muscle twice
over, pound for pound, than fat meat
of any land.
Sudden deaths do not come from
heart disease, one case in twenty, but
from congestion of the lungs or brain,
or from apoplexy. .More die lrom con
gestion of the lungs than of the brain,
and more of congestion of the brain
than from apoplexy.
A severe cold can be soonest cured
by remaining within doors, in a warn
room and near the lire, until uu sigi.s
of it have disappeared. Then taro
should be taken to prevent a relapse
by having the feet warmly clad, and
the whole body, and particularly tho
chest and the back of tho neck, weli
protected when going otit.
Kingworm is not an animal but a
vegetable parasito that can best bo
destroyed by tho uso of boraeio acid,
or of citrine ointment tho latter
being an oflieinal preparation kept by
all druggists. The citrine ointment m
a caustic preparation that must he
applied "with extreme care, and not
left carelessly around the house. Dr.
Fuote'n Health Monthly.
A Great Discovery of Oysters.
A Mr. Olsen has published a pai.er
in England from which it appears that
vast oyster beds have been discovered
in the North Sea fisheries. Two hun
dred miles of oyster beds, thirty to
seventy miles wide that is to say,
10,000 acres of splendid oysters within
easy distance of the British coast is a
discovery to which all of those of
Stanley and Livingstone sink into in
significance. One curious feature
about it is that the oysters lie at a
depth of twenty-one fathoms, thus
disposing summarily of the prevalent
idea that oysters can only bo raised
successfully in shallow water. Tho
man who invents a new cish, accord
ing to some, the man who plants a treo
according to tho Mahoinmedans, de
serves .well of mankind; but what is
the reward of a man who discovers
10,000 acres of oysters? The oysters
thus opened up to coiiini rco are sai l
to surpass In flavor all that are so far
known to epicures. We uhall soon bo
able to keep our oysters at home. We
sent no less than f iOO.OOO worth last
year to England aloue. They oufht
soon to become cheaper here. Boston
J
fk