THE CENTURY MARK SYSTEM.
A Relic With Us Now.
Tliero's a custom handed down In Collcgo history,
That whonovor College boys are caught In larks,
Tlio only way to sottle with them fairly
Is to dual them oat tlielr pay In eonsuro marks.
This is the oustom which once was hero adoptod,
And I’ll toll you how t’was managed different ways,
So that circumstances, purposely ooncooted,
Could bo mada to answer any 'speolal caso,"
It was In an arithmetical progression
Whoso first term and common dlfforonco wore ten,
That three mlsdomcanors in qulok succession
Gave sixty fora sum of sorlos. And then—?
T'was the “painful duty" on the part of our Prox.,
Slnoo wo willingly broke a statute forsooth ,
To kindly sond notice our parents to vex;
For they took, It of course, as they would the gospel
truth.
One hundred and fifty moant suspension they said;
Unless we affirmed with a confident look,—
When down on the carpet to aoaounts we wore led,—
That siokness or mistake caused those marks on
the book,
Whore absonee was noted wo said wo were late;
If then to the “Scribe" wo made not our easo clear,
Our memory failed us when given the dato,
And most of those marks did straightway disappear.
Like taking a Journoy by railroad It seemed,
When evory tlmo we stopped at a station,
Those who failed to have tickets, (plans bold soheemod,)
Took a limited train called the “Probation.”
Wo were told wc wore glvon the full length of our rope;
If furthor a stop wo insisted to go,
It might be construed in the faculty's soope
That we could have a trip home on a furlough,
Then Indeed wo were In a most orltlcal state;
Wo “looked out the next time for our baoon
We never fulled to oonneot, and arrive too late
To got a free pass on the “Speolal Probation.”
An "Extra Speolal" was run as seoond section,
And It also was run on the same schedule time;
We wont on the first when wo had the soleotlon;
' Tho first held the road though the tlmo was the same.
A train In reserve called the “Holtor Probation"
Took Its name from a speolal’passenger,
Who safely got through on a special occasion,
Saved the faculty’s stooks and his own legal tender.
Beyond this resort it is needless to say
Of giving passos the faoulty wore tired;
jf any small matter oarne up in tho way,
’ T’was tlmo to pock up and propare tp bo "flrod."
THE FREE LANCE.
The number of times a man can “flunk” and still
retain confidence in his abilities and maintain his
self-respect is a question. Some have little self
respect to lose, and others are careless of the great
capacity they possess.
But a man who has only moderate power with
great application and pride in maintaining him
self before his fellows, suffers very greatly when
he cannot grasp the subject with which he deals.
It is granted that the teacher should have a
thorough comprehension of what he teaches, and
it should be the aim of the student to get a great
er or less hold upon what he is learning. Now
there have been teachers whose delight it has
been to give a man a “zip,” even when the stu
dent succeeds more or less in getting a grasp upon
his work. Of course when a man is inclined to
be self-conscious, and thinks he knows as much
as his teacher, it becomes necessary to show the
youth the exact height of his elevation; but when
the student does his best to get the subject and
fails, he should be treated with some considera
tion.
The man who is continually brow-beaten loses
his confidence and self-respect, and is assuredly
crippled for aggressive contact with his fellows
in life.
A NEW VARIETY OF ZINC SULPHIDE.
A new and peculiar sulphide of zinc was found
in Southeastern Kansas a short time since, re
markable from the fact that it is nearly pure
white and completely amorphous.
This singular mineral is found on the Moll
Tract in the centre of the town of Galena, Chero
kee County, Kansas. The ore body, which is
reached by a shaft about 90 feet in depth, consists
of zinc blende with some large crystals of galena
distributed through it. It is about 25 feet wide >
20 feet high, and 100 feet long, so far as ex
plored.
MORE MERCY.
fh? bjende has undergone much decompose