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B. F. SCHWEIER, " " " THE COXSTITCTIOS-THE U5I0X-AXD THE ENFORCEMENT OF TnE LAWS Editor and Proprietor.
VOL. XXVIIL MIFFLIXTWN, JUXI ATA COUNTY, PEXNA., MARCH 111874. NO. 10.
Poetry.
Acne.
BT AEaAAET J. raESTO.
Sarely there heapa A dimmer thine
Over the sky tbAa A month Ago; -
And it eeetnt tome thte eonhIu2 pine
rise tears la iu vo;c4 It is sobbing to !
Trader A lone'y robia weavee
WawlA heart-breaks iaUi hi plaiullre a eel;
" Aae esse the scarlet la ie leaves
FaII with a sigh abont at feet ;
And tbe Indian sninm-r bale droop win,
j4y.'jj fosrc.' .
II.
T'.cr la tb reason : Oat of the eke,
Parpled and paled with dream y ml -t,
6 takaa froai breeiy wafta tint Ua
Calmed 1a tkelr Ula of amethyrt
OargllAg from every bird that croona.
Hoard la tba leaf-fall, beard la tr-e rata.
Under tbe a ghte aad ander tba moone.
Ever tbara aoaada tbe aad refrain,
TitrobMng aad ebbing over aad on,
Ajnex ha' yoie .
Ill
Ah, for tba ?e( who bear to mlsa
Oat of their Uvea thla Ufa boar rare '
Tender, to tender'. aa angel'a kiss
Hallowed It daily unaware;
Gracious aa aanshine sweet at dew
Shut la a lily's (olden core,
Fragrant with goodness tbroagb aad throng-h.
Para aa tba apikeaard llary bora, .
Pen-ire a twilight calm aa dawa
Agna. baa gona.
IV.
4. lose by tba aide of onr 11 ?ro lay,
(Said aba Bot so?) tbe darling down ;
Clone, that tba ahadowinga of tba bay
Jointly her rating-place may erowa ;
Hae aba not bom ber woman's part,
Bitterness, exile, lo-s as ht
Pillow ma then oa the rural heart,
baachter arUb father Lea wltb L e -Sootbed,
that xm Kim, tbovgh from u withdraw,
Agnes hns aJae.
Sflf-Krlinnrr.
T Lara A thokstov
Oh ' eager heart, oh t earnest mind,
That travel oa tba crowded way.
How recklessly yes Larry on, .
Impatient of aa boor's delay 1
Ton faint beneath tba blinding beat,
Tba vista at retches bare and long ;
Ob, wheref jr blindly follow that
Tbe cooim-w road, the commoa throng
Expressing stLl yoar eager steps
To formal stages, dull and alow ;
Though fretting at tba forced restraint,
And eager far abend to go.
oh, cat aside tbe base restraint,
"or let tbe world yoar tbongbts control ;
Aad ia Its place take ye for gvide
Tbe earnest heart, the lofty soul. -
go shall ye tread life's higher paths ;
So shall yoar ewnls ifrow flrm nnd strong ;
For God w 11 give to those who seek
Will gcldi to right, protect fnm wrong.
JnV:-o7, rebranrr, lsT4.
3 1 i s oe 1 1 . 1 1 j-.
Tfar Adoration of IVoiuan.
That adoration winch a young man
gives to a woman whom be feels to lie
greater and letter than himself, is
hurdly distinguishable from a religions
feeling. What tleep ami worthy love is
not bo ? whether ol woman or child, or
art or mnsic ? 0;ir caresses, onr tender
words, onr still rapture nnder the iuflu
euee of Antumn sunsets, or pillared
vistas, or calm, majestic statues, or
Beethoven symphonies, all bring sith
them the consciousness that they are
were waves and ripples in an unfathom
able ocean of love and beauty ; our
emotions in its keenest moment passes
from expression into silence ; onr love
tit its highest flood rushes beyond its
object, and loses itself in the sense of
divine mystery. Is it any weakness,
pray, to be wrought on by exquisite
music? to feel its wondrons harmonies
searching the sublest windings of your
eoul, the delicate fibres of life where no
memory can penetrate, and binding to
gether your whole being, past and
Iresent, in one unspeakable vibration,
melting you iu one moment with all the
tenderness, all the love that has been
scattered throngh the toilsome years,
concentrating in one emotion of heroic
courage or resignation all the Lard
learned lessons of self-renouncing sym
pathy, blending yonr present joy with
past sorrow, and your present sorrow
with all your past joy ? If not, then
neither is it a weakness to be so wrought
upon by the exquisite curves on a
woman's cheek and neck and arms, by
the liquid depths of her beseeching eyes
or the sweet childish pout of her hps.
For the beauty of a lovely woman is
like music, what can one say more?
Beauty has an expression beyond and
far above woman's soul, that it clothes,
as the words of genius have a wider
meaning than thethonght that prompted
them ; it is more than woman's love
that moves as in a woman's eyes it
seems to be a fur -off mighty love that
has come near to us, and mode speech
for itself there ; the rounded neck, the
dimpled arm, move us by something
more than their prettiness by their
rlose kinskip with all we have known
of tenderness and peace. The expres
sion in beauty tit is needless to say that
there are gentlemen with whiskers dyed
and nndyed who see none of it whatever)
and for this reason the noblest nature
is often the most blinded to the char
acter of the woman's soul, that the
beauty clothes. Whence, I fear, the
tragedy of human life is likely to con
tinue for a long time to come, in spite
of mental philosophers, who are ready
with the best receipts for avoiding all
mistakes of the kind. Ovorge JCliot.
A Lrnte on a Mountain Top.
A New England journal relates the
following: A body of water, said to
cover an area of two acres or more, has
just been discovered on the top of one
of the mountains in Glatenbnry. Some
of the oldest inhabitants say that many
years ago it was known to le there and
was called the "Lost l'ond," and that
one dat Stephen Pratt, then of Benning
ton, VL, and two other gentlemen were
roaming about in the then seemingly
interminable forests. Happening to
have hooks and lines in their pockets,
they determined to see if there wasn't
some trout in the small brook which
they came across. After getting every
thing in readiness they threw their
hooks into the little brook, and to their
amazement, as they afterward expressed
it themselves, "it was filled with trout!"
They fished along np the stream a few
rods, and to their utter astonishment
came to the pond above mentioned.
There they said the trout "took hold
too fast for sport I" They caught more
than they could bring home through the
woods, and were consequently obliged
to leave some, but with a determination
that they would visit the pond tbe next
day. After a long march, tbey finally
reached the road to town, where they
had left their team, bnt greatly fatigued.
They traveled all the next day, bnt
could not find the pond, and it has not
been discovered until now.
in irrKT srncEK.
I'Every one has a lucky number,"
aid the old gentleman.. ''Mine is
twenty-one. Twenty-nine might have
been, would have "been, an unlucky
number for me. Yet I didn't know it ;
both were painted in black letters on a
white ovaL Twenty-one twenty-nine.
Not much difference, you see 21, 29
very like indeed ; and yet because I
chose the number without a flourish and
a long leg, I am here to-day, and have
had a loug and happy life, I should
have been the occupant of a suicide's
grave ever so many years ago had I
chosen twenty-nine."
"I really can't understand," said L
"Was it a lottery or a draft, a conscrip
tion, or what ? Was it a game was it?"
"It was the number on a door," said
the old gentleman. "Wait a minute:
I'll tell you all about it"
"I was very much in love ; everybody
is at some time in his life. At twenty
five I was desperate. Talk about Romeo!
fie was nothing compared with me.
"I'm not ashamed of it. tthe was a
worthy object. Not only because she
was beautiful, but she was good and
amiable, and such a singer. She sing
soprano in the church choir. And I've
heard strangers whisper to each other,
"is there really an angel np there ?"
When she sang her part alone, clear
and sweet, and d ite-like her voice was.
I've never heard its equal."
"Well, I loved her, and, thought she
liked me ; but I wasn't snre. I courted
her a good while, Lut she was as shy as
any bird, and I couldn't satisfy myself
as to her leelinrrs. no 1 made np my
mind to a?k and know for certain. Some
old p-jct says :
" He either fesrs his f-tetoo much,
9 Or his dee ts are stuall ;
Vt h fr. to put- it t th- tonch.
And win or lose tt all."
. "I agreed with him ; and one evening
as I walked home from a little party
where we had met, with her on my arm,
I stopped under a great willow tree,
and tojk her hand in mine, an! said:
"Jestie, I love you better than my
life will yon marry me?"
"1 waited for an answer.
"She gave none.
"Jessie," I said, "won't you speak to
me?"
"Then she did speak:
"Xo oh, dear, no!"
"I offered her my arm nguin, and took
her home without a word. She did not
speak either. She had told me before
that she should start with the dawn to
visit an aunt in New York ; but I did
not even pay good-bye at the door. 1
bowed ; that was alL Then when she
was out of sight, and I stood alone in
the village street, I felt desperate
enough to kill myself."
"What had I done to nave so cold a
refusal ? Wh v should she scorn me so ?
Oh, dear, no ! I grew furious as I re
peated these words.
"Yet, it stung me all the same. I
tossed from side to Ride of my bed all
night, anil thnnght I could endure it no
longer. But I would not paiu and dis
grace my respectable relatives by com
mitting suicide in the place wherein
they dwelt and were well known and
thought of. I would go to Xew York
even then a very large city and,
seeking some hotel, register an assumed
name, and, retiring at night with a
bottle of laudanum and a brace of pis
tols, awake no more, and so le rid of
my misery. I arranged my affairs to
the best of my ability, and received an
imaginary letter from a friend in Xew
York, requesting my presence on a mat
ter of busiuess. I burdened myself with
no unnecessary lnggage. What did an
'unknown suicide' want of another coat
and a change of linen ?
"I kissed my mother and sister, and
startled my grandmother by an embrace,
and started upon what I mentally called
my last journey, with a determined
spirit.
"There was a certain hotel to which
many of the people of our village were
in the habit of going. This I avoided. 1
Another, chosen at a hazard, seemed to
be better. Thither I walked, deter
mined to leave no trace of my destina
tion t J those who knew me no clew to
my identity to tliO!9 who shall find me
dead."
"I hail no mark upon my clothing, no
card, paper or letter with me. I had
torn the hatter's mark from my beaver.
As I ascended the hotel steps I felt, so
to speak, like one going to his own
funeral.
"A grinning waiter bowed before me.
A pert clerk lifted up his head and
stared. I was an ordinary traveler to
them that was evident.
"It was late in the evening. The
place wore an air of repose. Laughter
and a faint chink of glasses in an inner
apartment, told of some conviviality.
One old man read his newspaper before
the fire. Nothing else was astir.
"I asked for a room. The clerk
nodded.
"Do yon care what floor?" he asked.
"I shook my head.
"Xumber twenty-nine is empty," he
said, and tossed a key to the waiter,
whom I followed at once.
"We reached the room by two flights
of stairs. At : the door the waiter
paused.
"Though he said twenty-nine, he
muttered, "the key is twenty-one."
"Then open twenty-one with it," I
said. "I don't care for the number of
the room."
"So sir to be snre, sir, said the
waiter, and passed aloDg few Bteps
further.
"Twenty-one," he said, and, unlock
ing a door, pushed it open.
"Shall I bring you anything, sir?"
he Raid.
"I answered 'So,' and he left me,
having put the candle on my bnreau.
"Tli hour had oome. As I shut the
door, a heavy sigh escaped me. Alas !
that life had become so woeful a thing
to me that I should desire to be rid of
'Hii. ,i.a ,i,m lirht of my one candle, I
paced the floor, and thought bitterly of
the girl I loved so dearly.
"It was in the days ot curtained leils.
The bed in this room was hung with
dark chintr,; so were the windows.
Over the bureau was a looking glass,
with a portrait of a lady in puffod
sleeves and high comb, at the top, by
way of ornament. Tbete were four
stuffed chairs, and a brass shovel and
tongs stood guard beside the grate. 1
fancied mvsell l.viug aeau on
mi,Ut all" these beloneings, and felt
sorry for myself. Then I took my pis-
tola from my portmanteau, "-'-"o
a. An,- unlocked, for why should 1
put the landlord to the trouble of break
ing it open, I lay down on the bed,
drew the curtains, took a pistol in each
hand, and, as true as I now speak to
you. had the muzzle of each to a temple,
fhA ilonr. and
wnen some uud k--"- T
"There, now. Jessie." said a voice, 1
told yon you didn't lock it." -"I
did," said another voice, "and
sent the key to the omce rjy me cuaui-ber-maid."
, , ,
"I laid the pistols down and peeped
through the curtains. There were two
ladies in the room. One an old lady in
a brown front of false curls, the other
my cruel lady-love, Jessie Grey. For
moment I fancied I must be dream
ing. "Sure it's the right number? asked
Jessie.
"Twenty -one yes," said the other.
"And here's my band -box. Oil, dear!
I'm sleepy."
"I am not," said Jessie. "I wish I
was, aunt."
"You didn't sleep a wink last night,"
said the aunt. "Nor you haven't eaten
your meals to day. "You'll go into a
decline if you go on that way. I'll see
Dr. Black about yon to morrow."
"1 don't want Dr. Black to be called,
sighed Jessie. "I'd rather die,"
"What's the matter ?" cried the old
lady. 'You are not yourself. You don't
eat or sleep, and cry perpetually. What
ails you ?"
"I'm miserable," said Jessie.
"Why?" cried her aunt.
"Oh, aunt," said Jessie, "it's all your
fault. You told me over and over again,
that a girl must never jump at an offer ;
that a man must be refused at least
once, or he'd not value a girL And I
liked him so ! Aud, oh ; he liked me !
And when he asked me I felt so glad !
But I remembered what you said, and
oh, how could I do it? I said, 'Oh,
dear, no !' and he left me without a
word. And I'm so sorry ! oh. so sorry !
because I loved him, aunty."
"You little goose !" cried the old lady.
"As for me, you can fancy how I felt.
I bad no thought of suicide now. My
desire was to live and ask that question
of mine over again. I pocketed my
pistols and crept down on the other side
of the bed. I stepped toward the bu
reau and blew out the candle. The faint
red light of the fire was still in the room.
As I dashed out at the door, I heard
two female screams, but I escaped in
safety.
'1 met tbe waiter on the stairs.
"Found out the mistake, sir;" he said.
"Just coming to rectify it."
"Don't mention it," I said. "Im very
glad that is, it don't matter. Here ia
something for your trouble,' and I gave
him a five dollar bilL
"He said, 'I thank ye, sir," but I saw
that he thought me crazy. He was con
firmed in Lis opinion when, as I passed
to tbe door of my own room, I cried :
"Heaven bless tenty-oue! It's a
lucky number !" . .
"But I never was saner than I was
then, and never half so happy
"Of course, 1 propised to Jessie the
very next day. and I need not tell you
that her answer was not 'Oh, dear, no ;' I
and that s whv 1 call twenty-one my
lucky nnmljer.''
.4 MolliPr'M Tacl.
The mother was sewing, and Josie
sitting on the carpet beside her, and
provided with dnll, round scissors and
some oil magazines, was just as busy
cutting ont pictures. .
"It would litter the enrpet so," said
Aunt Maltha, who had come in for a
cosy chat.
Mamma Knew this, bnt she knew, too,
that a few minutes work would make all
right again, and Josie was happy.
All went well till the little boy found
he had cnt off a leg of his horse which
he had considered a marvel of lieanty.
It was a real disappointment and grief
to the little one.
"Mamma, see 1" and half crriug he
held it np.
"I'lay he's holding np one foot," his
mother said quickly.
"Do real horses, mamma?"
"Ob, yes sometimes."
"I will ;" and sunshine chased away
the cloud that iu another minute would
have rained down.
It was a little thing, the mother's an
swer, but the quick sympathy, and ready
tact, made all right. The boy's heart
was comforted, aud he went on with his
play ; while the mother sewed quietly,
with no jar of nerves, and anntie's call
lost none of its pleasantness.
"I'm tired of cutting pies' mamma,",
said Josie after awhile.
"Well, get your horse-wagon, and
play those bite of paper are wood, aud
you are going to bring me a load. Draw
it over to tbe corner by tbe fire, and put
them into the kindling box ; play that's
the wood house."
Pleased and proud, the little teamster
drew load after, load, till the papers
were all picked np, without ever think
ing he was doing anything bnt play.
"Well, I declare," said Aunt Martha,
"old as I am I've learned to-day, and I
wish Emily would come in and take les
sons, I do."
Mrs. Wade looked np iu surprise.
"What do you mean, auntie?"
"Well, I spent yesterday afternoon
over there," (the old lady had weak
ness for visiting, and was "auntie" to
people generally) "and things were in a
snarl and high delow all the time
starting with less than Josie's given you
a dozen times since I've sat here. I've
had a good talk with yor, and you've
given me pleasant thoughts for a week
to come ; over there we could not hear
ourselves speak. It was 'don't do that,'
and . "you naughty child ;" spill and
scratch, and break and tumble, and slap,
half the time, Emily means well ; she
loves her children, and never spares
herself sewing for them, or nursing them
when they are sick. She has a world
of patience some ways, but she don't
seem to have the faculty for managing
them. Well, well, I'll send her over
here, only I won't let on why ;" and the
old lady rolled up her knitting as tbe
bell rang for tea.
A little tact springing from thought
ful love how good it is !
An Eccentric PernTlan riant.
In speaking of the wonderful fertility
of the soil in i'eru, I have never spoken
of a little plant, or leaf, they have here,
which I never met with in any other
place or country. I do not know the
botanical name, and I hope that some
botanist or savant can give me the name
and species. The natives take simple
pale-green leaf, something like a fern,
and pin it to the wall with a common
pin stuck through it just pin it on to
the plain adobe wall. Sometimes they
fasten it np with a tack. The leaf itself
is not so large as a geranium leaf. In
credible as it may seem, from this leaf
will spread out tiny tendrils and shoots,
and delicate leaves will form, and will
spread, and run, and cover the whole
walL I had one in my own sideyard,
or corral, that covered the entire side of
the wall, and it grew from one small
leaf, pinned on to the adobe to hold it
in place. II becomes a thrifty running
vine. I would not believe it possible,
bnt that I have seen it repeatedly and
successfully tried. Corn of Chicago
Tribune.
In England, street railroads are com
monly known aa tramways. The word
"tram" is said to be an abbreviation of
"Ootram," the father of Sir James Out
ram, renowned for his military exploits
in India, having been the inventor of
trams and tramways.
The Blackbird and Crow.
Once npon a time a crow and a black
bird stood on a fence-rail conversing.
The blackbird looked jrratef ully up to
the large relation who spoke to him so
kindly ; the crow, who wears Sunday
clothes all the week, and couldn't be
more dignified, even with spectacles,
spoke as follows :
"You blackbirds are doubtless aware
that we look upon yon with tender ad
miration ; in fact, some have gone so
far as to consider the blackbird heaven's
first best gift to the crow."
"First best gift how pretty I" said
the blackbird ; and be straightway made
it into a little song.
"That's right," said tbe crow; "I am
pleased with yon ; we don't siug our
selves because be-caw caw" here he
set his head on one side and stopped to
ponder.
"Becanse you can't," suggested the
blackbird, respectfully.
"Not at all, said the crow ; it's be
caw in fact, it's a question of spheres.
Our sphere, you observe, is the world ;
for instance, we see to the weather, and
preside over corn-plantings, and hold
conventions, and continually prepare
new theorems concerning that still un
fathomed mystery; bnt why oppress
with these ponderous themes a little,
simple songstress ?"
"Bnt you would, perhaps, explain,"
said the blackbird, with deference.
"I refer to the question the question
of ajres preceding this why men, when
they have prepared ns a field of corn,
and by stretching unmeaning lines
across it, and even erect strange beings,
with spreading arms, in the midst.
These things do not help us ; on tbe
contrary, they are unpleasantly bewil
dering. Why, then ? 1 never shall rest
until I find out why."
"That comes of your logical mind,"
said tbe blackbird.
"1 am pleased with you," said the
crow, and, getting down from the fence,
he stepped about on the ground in a
highly snperior manner.
"How distinguished !" thought the
blackbird. "And we, sir?"
"You? Oh-haw. Wo do all these
things, and yon sing to us while we are
doing tbein. You've no idea how in
spiring it is to ns, when we are engaged
iu these important matters, to know
tbnt you are sympathizing at a distance
suiting yonr nice little tunes to all our
changes, and setting, so to speak, our
lives to music Haw !"
"Oh, how sweet I" said the blackbird,
beginning at ouce to whistle it, "But
suppose," ho suggested, "just suppose,
you know, that some of ns didn't like
singing, or wished to try those other
ways of living?"
"That wouldn't do at all," said the
crow, coming back. "You must be fond
of singing. A crow without a blackbird
to ameliorate him? It might subvert
tbe unities. Haw 1"
"Still, if we should," said the black
bird, with timid persistence. .
"Then," said the crow, severely, "you
would lose your influence ;" and again
he got down from the fence, and stepped
abont.
"Dear, dear," said the little one trem
bling. "I'll never do it. I'lease, sir,
what is influence?"'
"Influence, my child, is that bcanti
ful bawl that indescribable caw I In
short, it means that, if yon only take
pains to find ont what we like to do,
you can almost always I othe us into
iloing it. But, whatever you may think
of our doings, always remember that
onr high-toned natures cannot brook
censure, and that tbe ouly way to pre
serve your influence i3 to meet ns with
a song."
'I'll try to remember," the blackbird
said, and they parted.
The next day. Jack and Jenny Black
bird were happy, feediog their very first
brood.
"There's shonldpr for yon," said
Jenny. "Sweet, sweet, spread out yonr
wings. I think they'll fly by to-morrow."
"I consider this a really remarkably
moutb," said Jacky, dropping worm
into it. "I don't see why. with our so
cial advantages, we couldn't train them
to be almost equal to crows. I'm sure
our cousin will visit us. And he says
if we want to keep on good terms, we
must always meet him with a song, and
be constantly careful not to lose our in
fluence." "What's that ?" said Jenny. "Do see
how he balances ! He'll certainly fly by
to-morrow."
"I don't know exactly ; but we keep
it by letting them have their own way,
and especially by singing ; and if we
lose it, they'll be sure to despise ns."
"You don't say so !" said Jenny.
"That we couldn't endure. Ah, heaven
above, what's this ?"
For something suddenly swooped
down into the nest, aud carried off the
fledgling in his talons.
"Oh, cousin," cried Jacky, "you've
made a mistake you've got our eldest
child V
"Yes, I'm quite fond of them," said
tbe large cousin, affably. "What a nice
little pair you are ! But why don't you
sing? As I told you, we always expect
to be met with a song."
"But you've got our child," screamed
Jenny. "Oh, you're hurting him."
"I won't hurt him more than I must,"
said the crow, considerately. "Bat, par
don me if I notice haw I an absence of
that serene cheerfulness which ought to
be a distinguished blackbird trait.
What 1 still no music? Then I begin to
suspect "
".Let us try our influence," gasped
Jacky; "perhaps it may soften him."
And they began to sing a wavering song.
"How improving that is I" said the
crow, with a claw suspended. "Keallj
there was one instant when I felt so ex
alted that I was on the point of putting
the morsel back in the nest, if it hadn't
been so juicy. However, may be I won't
come back for more."
"Still, let us sing," said the parents ;
"if we lose our influence he will eat
them alL" And while he was picking
the little bones, they sang until their
voices failed with anguish.
Soon their large cousin left, but next
day he returned.
"I regret," he remarked, "lhat you
fail to bring me more fully under your
influence. A little more would have
done it. But I feel assured that the
sight of so much patience and humility
will have an indirectly exalting effect
on my nature." And he clawed out an
other birdling.
"Ob, cousin, don't!" cried the parents,
no longer singing. "Don't take our
children ! don't make us so nnhappy 1"
"There is something quite amiss
here," said the crow, with displeasure.
"Blackbirds waiting and expostulating
proclaiming themselves unhappy in
their relations with ns ? Why, that is
as much to say that we do wrong I And
how impolitic in them to scream away
the sweetness of that voice which is
their only charm ! I declare they look
so dowdy with their wings all drooping,
that I feel no compunction at all in in
conveniencing such creatures." And
he tweakel the second head with added
gusto.
"Cruel, cruel 1" cried Jacky.
"Wretch and robber I " screamed
Jenny, and they flew to and fro, and
pecked him with their beaks.
"Oh, very well 1" said the crow, re
tiring with his dinner. "If you step
from your sphere, and attempt to fight
your own battles, you may take the con
sequences. Look for me to-morrow."
But between that day and the morrow
another thing happened. The parent
birds, grown reckIess,abandoned music,
and took to holding conventions. Far
and near were heard the flutter of wings,
and the sound of blackbirds' voices,
not practising tunes,, but joining in
eager discussion and lamentation.
"Strange," said the crow, "that these
creatures will make themselves so nn
pleasing to us I If there's anything in
this world I find offensive to all my
finer feelings, it's a blackbird conven
tion. When blackbirds so far forget
themselves, they must expect that crows
will give them trouble;" and he started
to get his third dinner.
- But, lo and behold ! the nest was al
ready snrronnded by friends and rela
tions, who swarmed abont him, and
with untnneful cries and ungentle beaks
convinced him of his error.
"I knew what wonld happen," said
the crow, as he sailed away dishevelled
and dinnerle6s ; "you have disgusted
me ; now you have lost your influence
forever."
Moral. Bat tbey saved their other
three children.
Mirhclct.
It is not often that a man wins emi
nence in two distinct fields of litera
ture. Sir Walter Scott, who became
the first of novelists long after he had
been recognized as one of the first of
poe'R, is the most prominent instance
in English literature of an author who
gained a "double first ;" and the late
Jules Michelet, the historian and social
essayist, affords the only instance
among recent French authors of a par
allel success. Michelet for the first fifty
years of his life was wholly devoted to
the study of history. His lectures were
alike distinguished for their learning
aud brilliancy, and his historical works
have gained a permanent place in French
literatnre. But when at the age of fifty
three the Government forbade him to
lecture, he abandoned history and made
for himself a new reputation by the cu
rious essays, half scientilic, half roman
tic, by which he is best known iu this
country. The publication of "L'Amonr"
was greeted with as much surprise as
thongh it hail been the first work of a
new author. There was nothing in
common lietween it and the previous
works of Michelet. The grave dignity
and calm marshalling of facts which
had been tbe leading characteristics of
the author of "The History of France"
were here succeeded by a keen analysis"
of emotion and a poetic bcanfy of style
that no professional romance writer has
surpassed. 'L'Amonr' aud 'La Femme'
were not books which an Englishman
would have ventnred to write, bnt, in
spite of their fearless handling of deli
cate topics, they were eminently pure
and wholesome. Women the world over
owe Michelet a debt of gratitude for his
efforts to secure for them the true re
spect and appreciation of the other sex.
Tbe charm of the author's style would
alone have made his Inter writings pop
ular, bnt tbey also gained tbe admira
tion aud gratitude of all noble natures
by the loftiness and pnrity of their aim.
The great author had reached the age
of seventy-six at the time of his death.
During ttiat lopg aud busy life there is
no act of the man or seutence of the
author which needs apology. He was
always tbo friend of liberty, morality,
and truth ; and there have been few
Frenchmen of the present century
whose death has been sr great a loss to
literature as that of Michelet, tbe his
torian and the essayist.
TUe Law or Courtship.
We clip from an old paper the follow
ing account of a trial for breach of
promise of marriage, in which the judge
laid down a new doctrine, which we
should not be sorry to see adopted :
A case was recently tried in Rutland,
Vermont, in which a Miss Mnnson re-1
covered Sl,4i of a Mr. Hastings for a
breach of marriage contract. The curi
osity of tbe thing is this : the Vermont
judge charged the jury that no explicit
promise was necessary to bind the par
ties to a marriage contract, bnt that
long continued attentions or intimacy
with a female was as good evidence of
intended matrimony as a special con
tract. The principle of the case un
doubtedly is, that if Hastings did not j
fromise, be onght to have done so the
aw holds him responsible for the non-!
performance of his duty. A most ex- j
cellent decision ; a most righteous I
judge, compared with whom Daniel
wonld appear but a common squire !
We have no idea of young fellows dang
ling abont after girls for a year or two,
and then going off, leaving their sweet
hearts half courted ; we hate this ever-1
lasting nibble and never a bite, this :
beating the bush and never starting the '
game ; it is one ol the crying sins ol tne
age. There is not one girl in twenty
can tell whether she is courted or not.
So wonder that when Betty Simper's
cousin asked if Billy Doubtful courted
her, she replied, "I don't know exactly
he's a sorter courtin' and a sorter not
courtin'." We have no doubt that this
Hastings is one of these "sorter not
courtin' " felloe's, and most heartily do
we rejoice that the judge has bronght
him to book with a $1,123 verdict. The
judge says that long-continued atten
tions or intimacy is just as good as a
regular promise. Now. we do not know
what would pass for intimacy accord
ing to the laws of Vermont, but sup
posing attentions to consist of visiting
a girl twice a week, an 1 estimating the
time wasted by Miss Munson at each
visit to be worth a dollar (which is too
cheap) Mr. Hastings has been making
a fool of himself fourteen years and
some odd weeks. This decision makes
a new era in tbe law of love, aad we
make no doubt will tend to tbe promo
tion of matrimony and morality.
A Beanty of the Land of Flower.
"Silver spring," according to a Flo
rida correspondent, is the most unique
spot near that most unique of rivers,
the Oclawaha. One marvels over the
clear transparent water. Your boat
seems to float in the air, and objects
can be seen eighty feet down at the bot
tom fish, too, are plainly seen. The
bottom is silver sand, vaned with pale
emeralds, hnge colored rock, strange
formations of lime crystals and white
coral The spring throws out thousands
of gallons of water minute, but there
is scarcely discernible a ripple on its
surface. Drop in a coin and you can
follow it with your eyes to the sand at
the bottom as it zigzags downward.
The Iowa Senate is heavy body, the
average weight of each member being
over 170 pounds.
A Woman Wh Rated.
Mrs. Westmoreland, in a letter to the
Atlanta Lwitttlution, says : "Through
Dr. Deems I learned that the celebrated
Mrs. E iton, who did the honors of the
White Honse during General Jackson's
Administration, still lived was in this
city, and was one of his congregation.
Naturally I felt an interest in and some
curiosity to see a person who had played
so conspicuous a part in the affairs of
the nation at one time, and, learning
that she was fond of company and
would consider it no intrusion, I called.
In doing so I was more forcibly re
minded than ever before of what slaves
we are to the caprices of fortune what
victims to the vicissitudes of life, over
which we have no control. Here was a
woman who once held the destinies of
a nation in her hand. To win her ap
proval augured success tii aronse her
anger meant defeat. Healtb, luxury,
flattery, honors everything this world
could give was laid at her feet. Now
an old, feeble, and jaded woman, de
serted by friends, forgotten by tbe
world, she ekes ont a bare existence in
a retired boarding-house, which over
looks Washington square. Although
in the seventy-sixth year, the still bears
the traces of having been a beautiful
woman, and thongh miserably dressed,
she received ns with the grace and
elegance of a queen. We found her
very accessible ; the conversation nat
urally Hrned npon events of tbe past,
and we were surprised to find every
incident connected with her eventful
life as fresh in her memory as if they
had only just occurred. Her story varies
somewhat from the facts laid down in
history, and perhaps who knows she j
may be right and the historian wrong, j
Such things have happened (?), for of
all people who profess to be entirely
unprejudiced, we think the generality
ol historians are more prejudiced than
any other class of writers. She spoke
of Mrs. lUndolnh and the Dnchess de
Fensendeck as her only children, and,
in the midst of many changes and heavy
losses, she said she considered herself
blessed in being surrounded by her
grandchildren, who are very devoted
to her, and console and comfort her in
ber old age. Mrs. Randolph has been
dead many years, and it is this family
of children she has reared, and who now
care for her, tbe youngest son making
it his duty and pleasure to provide for
his grandmother, whom he seems to
love with a devotion bordering on ro
mance. She mentioned in conversation
that her son-in-law, the Duke, had two
titles, the other one being the Duke
de Sampayo, and that their only child,
a daughter, was married to one of tbe
Rothschilds, the son of the elder Crassns.
She said her daughter had become
thoroughly foreignized and hated Amer
ica so that she would not allow her hus
band to accept a position to this country
which was offered him two years ago.
I asked her if she 'ever visited Washing
ton now ?' She said, 'No ; my recollec
tions of Washington are so painful that
I do not like to go there any more,'
then added, 'I very foolishly married a
third time, althongh this marriage lost
all of my property ; and it is not pleasant
to go back and see other people enjoy
ing what rightfully lielongs to me. He
married me for my money, and it took
him ten years aud seven months to get
it iuto his osei8ion. Then when he
gt it airhe left me, taking some woman
uom he fancied, and left tbe country.
was in complete ignorance of his move
ments until a letter reached me which
he had written from the steamer, saying
he returned to me my honored name,
and left the country because he was not
worthy to be associated with me and my
family, confessed himself a vidian and
an adventurer, aud assured me he would
never trouble me again.' The name of
this magnificent scoundrel was Antonio
Buchiguaui, aud, Mrs. Eaton says, a
very handsome and elegant man a man
who had served as librarian at Wash
ington, although he was aa Italian ad
venturer of whom nothing was known.
Of course, she at once resumed the
name which bad been so generously re
stored to her, and for the distinguished
honor of playing the short role of Ma
dame Buchiguaui she paid the princely
sum of nineteen houses and six Lqnare
blocks of real estate in Washington City.
A few more years and the muds of life
will cease to flow for this wo nun, whose
career is without a parallel."
Another Freak or Xalnre.
The Brooklyn Eagle states that there
were once female rivals to the Siamese
twins in Biddington, Essex, England.
"They were joined at the shoulder and
hips. They were somewhat noted for
their comely looks, and were the happy
possessors of a large circle of acquaint
ances. They were connected with a
family of culture and considerable
property, and lived to about the prime
of life. " So far as is now known, they
were born about the year 1831 or 1832.
They were of that refinement of nature
which precluded their putting them
selves on pnblio exhibition, and there
fore remained quietly at home superin
tending their domestic affairs. The
arch little God of Love never planted
an arrow in either of their hearts, and
they lived their comparatively few years
wholly devoted to each other and their
mutual friends. Their property, at the
time of their death, which occurred
some fifteen years since, was consider
able. They owned a large tract of land
in Biddington, and by their wills,
opened after tbeii death, the interest
on it was left for the benefit of the
poor. The provision of the wills was
to tbe effect that on a certain day of the
year a sermon was to be preached in
one of the churches of Biddington, the
expense of which was defnyed ont of
the interest fund. The following day
the fnll amount of the interest on their
property after the settlement of charges
for preaching and church opening was
divided in equal shai-s among the poor
of Biddington. A provision of the will
whioh waa religiously observed was that
the maidens of the village of Bidding
ton should once every year decorate the
graves of tbe sisters with choice flowers,
and npon this occasion small pamphlets
containing an historical account of their
lives and death were gratuitously dis
tributed. These twin sisters, who had
lived joined together dnring thirty years
died within two hours of each other."
The Good and Bad in Humanity.
You make out humanity worse than
it is. I have seen many countries,
studied many men, mingled in many
public transactions, and the result of
my observation is not what you sup
pose. Men in general are neither very
good nor very bad ; they are simply
mediocre. I have never closely exam
ined even the best without discovering
faults and frailtries invisible at first. I
have always in tbe end found among
the worst certain elements arul holding
points of honesty. There are two men
in every man ; it is childish to see only
one : it is sad and nrrjust to look only
at the other. De Tocqrtevilte.
1 s.-- is-tnW-sn 1 a
If you cannot do as well as yon wish,
do as well as you can.
Youths Column.
Misical Mica. It is well-known
fact, that pleasant sounds attract mice
from their hiding-places, and cause
them to forget all fear. They come in
broad daylight into a room where one
is playing on a mnsioal instrument.
Some people declare that mice walk
over the keys of pianos which are left
open, to liear the tones, and many
stories are related of m!oe learning to
sing that is, to utter sounds which
resemble the low notes of the canary
and other caged birds. Disputes have
arisen among learned people about this
singing, some declaring it to be only a
plaintive utterance ot uanger or distress.
whilst others say that mice in their
healthiest and gayest moods utter these
pleasant sounds. A man whose name I
do not remember says, 'Some mice had
chosen their habitation behind the
woodwork in my kitchen. I allowed
them to go on undisturbed. What a
charming family they were I A fine
singing canary hung iu the kitchen ;
and, strange to say, the twittering of
the mice became a complete imitation
of tbe notes of the canary, at first weak
and imperfect, but improving from day
to day. Although it did not reach the
strength, fullness and richness of the
notes of the bird, yet it excelled them
in softness and tenderness. I often
listened to them with the greatest plea
sure in the evening, when the canary,
with its head nnder its wing, was fast
asleep. More than one kitchen guest
looked toward the canary and about the
room with astonishment, savinir. "Is
that a bird singing, sir V "
A lady writes : "When I was a girl,
I used to practice my music in an old
fashioned parlor, separated from the
rest of tbe house by a large halL I think
I might have felt lonely, shut np in that
room three consecutive hours every day
but for a dear little mouse that evi
dently appreciated my music more than
I did, and often made me a visit,
"For more than a month that little
creature, or some other, seated itself
fearlessly near the instrument every
time I began to practice, and often re
mained half an hour or more. Some
times it would go and come two or three
times in the course of the forenoon. It
must have come for the music, for no
food was ever allowed in that stately
old room."
Facts Asorr the Flavi:oo. The
flamingo is a wader, and, of course, has
exceedingly long, thin letrs. Probably
the joinU are too long and awkward to
be tidily folded up in any pretty nest,
and so this is the plan resorted to : The
bird builds the "under-pinning" of her
nest of sticks and dead weeds, mnch in
the shape of the old-fashioned dasher
chnrn. It is compact, and symmetrical
and high, and on tbe summit the nest
is carefully modeled and softly lined.
On this the bird actually sits astride,
like man on a mile-stone, a long leg
touching the ground on either side.
Coming npon the flamingo taking his
noonday nap, no one would be apt to
recognize a bird in tbe snowy ball of
features poised above tbe water upon a
tall, slender crimson reed ; yet the
crimson reed is a leg, and the perfectly
round ball conceals the head and neck
somehow packed under the wing.
In the Garden of Plants, at Paris,
there is a flamingo pond, well shaded
on one side, and. planted with water
weeds, where thee birds may be seen
in most flourishing condition. One
species has a brilliant streak of ciimson
along the whole length of the wing. It
was one of this variety that had the
misfortune, some years ago, to lose one
of its legs. Of course, walking was
impossible after that, for it must be
quite a feat to preserve equilibrium
even on two (nob legs as the flamingo's.
In this strait of the poor bird, a kind
surgeon of the society tried the experi
ment of fitting him a wooden leg. It
worked admirably, and, no doubt, he
may be seen still hobbling about like
an old soldier ; for in the massacre of
the animals in tbe Garden of Plants
during tbe siege of Paris, we may be
sure that French sentiment was careful
to spare a bird havingso singular a his
tory. Pepper. If you like to season yonr
food with pepper, you may venture to
ask for it in almost any land and feel
pretty sure of being understood. In
Latin it is piper ; in Italian prpe ; in
French poivre ; in old Saxon prppor ;
in Dntch pepcr ; in German pfrffer ; in
Danish peber ; in Swedish peppar;
and the tongue of Iceland pi par. All
wonderfully alike, and all quite peppery
in sound ; but it does not seem quite
clear how they manufactured tbe name
out of capticum, for that is what the
botanists call all the pepper family,
wherever they grow. They all like a
hot climate, as yon might guess from
their fiery nature, but are not very par
ticular about anything else. Black
pepper, as we see it, is the dried berry
of a climbing-plant that grows in tbe
East Iurlids. White pepper is the same
berry, steeped in water until tbe skin
comes off, and then dried in the sun.
Red pepper grows in Cayenne. Guinea
pepper in Africa.
Pont and thk Maiu A very severe
winter, when the ferry boats on the
Tyne were stopped by ice, the mails
were carried on horseback. One day
when the carrier was fording Whittle
Deaa Burn, his horse grew restive, and
threw him and the two mailbags into
tbe water. The man succeeded in get
ting upon the bank, bnt the bags were
floating fast down the current. A large
and strong Newfoundland dog, belong
ing to llev. W. T. Shields, and liviDg
close by, plunged into the river of his
own accord, and brought one bag to
shore. Not waiting to rest, he swam
after tbe other, and landed that also in
safety. The first letter that was deliv
ered "from this mail contained large
sum of money.
The owner in his grateful feeling gave
the dog a hasdsome collar. Children'
Hour.
Decaptitiox Behead a river in In
diana, and leave to confure.
Behead a gulf in Africa, and leave a
cave.
Behead, a river in the United States,
and leave a boy's name.
Behead a cape in North America, and
leave capable.
Behead a river in K ., and leave
marsh.
Behead lake in the United States,
and leave correct.
The initials of the words beheaded
spell a city ia Europe.
Solution .- W)ibab; ()len; (R)ed;
(Stable; (A)moor; (W).ight; Warsaw.
Word Scjcabr.
Performed
A boy's name.
A valley.
A girl's name.
.rtnru-srr.- M A D E
A B E It
DELI
E L D A
urictles.
A life properly seasoned with grace
has a uniform flavor.
Men deride tbe self-conceit of power,
but cringe to its injustice.
Hair-ontting is one dollar in Prcscott,
Arizona, by licensed barber.
Minnesota thinks of annexing the
Chippewa Indians, and admitting them
to the rights of citizenship.
The Legislature of Western Virginia
is said to h.ve passed a law "to prevent
the owners of hogs from running at
large."
A Washington paper is horrified at
the thoughts of how much influence the
fashion magazines will wield when wo
men vote.
A Kansas clergyman travels through
that State with a portable tent, capable
of holding 7,000 persons, to accommo
date those to whom he may preach.
It is stated that tbe Mormons are
abont to re establish themselves at
Nauvoo, the place from which they wero
forcibly ejected by the citizens of Illi
nois, about twenty-five years ago.
A couple from Staunton. Va.. drove
out from that city on Christmas day.
and, meeting by appointment, a clergy
man at a designated part of tbe road,
were married as they But in their buggy.
Here is a curious old Gaelic adage
concerning longevity :
Thrice the aire of a doe; ia that of a horse ;
1 hrKe the aire of a ti. re is that of n man ;
Thrice tbe age of a nun ie that of a deer
Thrice the aKe of a Oeer w that of an eaaTe ;
Thrice the atfe of an eaKl ! Hi .t of an oaa-tree.
ATopeka lady sumi np the first three
years of her experience in married life
as follow: The first year he called me
dear, the second year, 'Mrs. A. and
the thinl year, "old" sorrel top."
A train going at full speed, it is said.
was recently stopped in a very curious
way. A hen on the track was struck by
the locomotive, and portion of the
body, by some acciJeut. struck the air
brake in snch a way as to set it in action
and stop the train."
There was a method in the supposed
madness of the spiritualist who recently
committed suicide. Even in his pre
parations for death he was unable to
resist the temptation to perpetrate a
joke. In a written memoradnm left
behind he says: "I have purified my
soul twenty five or thirty years. I think
I must be a rectiUeJ spirit.
Topeka, Kansas, will soon have ex
tensive rolling-mills at work. A local
paper hails this as a promise of future
greatness, and hospitably observes:
"We are the busiest city in tbe West,
our population is increasing rapidly,
and if any sojourner in this bleak world
is looking for a place where his life will
be happy and pleasant, and where he
will be bandy to heaven when he dies,
we invite hi in to come to Topeka."
A suitor for the hand of Princess Bea
trice, the youngest daughter of Queen
Victoria, is said to have appeared. He
is a young German Prince, a consin of
Prince Ijouis of Hesse, and an officer in
the German navy. Princess Beatrice
was born in April, 1H57, and is conse
quently not yet 17 years of age." Her
eldest sister, the Princess Royal, was
married to the Crown Prince of Russia
when only a little over 17 years of age.
Five hundred ladies and a like num
ber of gentlemen have agreed to form a
club in London, where both sexes will
have all the privilege's now confined to
masculine club members. At least, so
says Moncire D. Conway, who further
adds that the experiment of a mixed
club has already been successfully tried
in a small way. It is rather strange
that London should be in advance of
us in this matter. We have all the ma
terials for snch a club here, bnt as yet
they have failed to coalesce.
Governor Safford of Arizona plainly
describes tbe class of people that don't
get along in the Weet. He says that
"gentlemaulr farmers, who commence
without means and have hired all their
work done, will undoubtedly be obliged
to quit the business : and those who
have invested the largest portion of
their crops iu poor whiskey at twenty
five cents per glass will hardly be able
to meet their obligations and inspire
sufficient confidence to obtain credit in
the future." That style of doing busi
ness is equally unsuccessful in the East.
A Cape May correspondent writes :
A large fiah, measuring twelve feet in
length, three in width, and two in thick
ness, was captured in the breakers re
cently by the crew of the Life Saving
Station, No. 32, Peck's Beach. He bad
evidently made no calculation for tbe
ebbing of the tide, and when first dis
covered was making frantio efforts to
find deeper soundings. A conple of
loads of shot, followed by an attack
with boat hooks, soon put him in an
unfit condition for future voyages. His
back is of a light yellowi-A color, and
belly white. He has teeth in the lower
jaw, and side fins about one foot in
length; his back fin six inches. He
weighs about 1,200 pounds. The erew,
though composed of seafaring men, are
unable to name the fish.
A Colorado paper, of recent date, re
lates the following story : A gentleman
was walking down Virginia Canon the
other day. There was no perceptible
breeze at the time. Suddenly he was
surprised by a roaring noise behind
him a noise like that of an express
train when crossing a bridge or passing
a rocky wall. Stopping a moment to
listen, the whirlwind, apparently not
more than a jard in diameter, and tra
veling no faster than a spirited walk,
picked him np, as it were, and waltzed
off down the road with him. Its verti
cal force was sufficient to invert the
tails of his coat above his head, not
withstanding the pockets were loaded
with specimens of silver ore, and at the
same time he was carried along for a
hundred feet or more like a feather,
with both feet occasionally off the
ground, while under him was a noise
hke that of an empty car bouncing over
a stony street.
A writer in Mr. Bergh's paper. The
Animal A'ingrltjm, presents some curi
ous statistics of tbe connection between
crime and cruelty. Ont of 2,000 con
victs of whom inquiry waa made, only
12 admitted that they left pets at home.
This is in accordance with the experi
ence of all visitors among the poor.
They will tell as that the flewer-pot in
the window, the canary hung in the sun
shine, the comfortable cat on the hearth,
are sure indications of tbe best house
in the district or the quietest room in
the tenement. It is going too far per
haps to claim that cruelty to animals ia
the first step in crime. Crime and
cruelty are equally tbe results of a bad
disposition and bad training. It is cer
tain, however, that tenderness to tho
brute creation does mollify and refine
the temper, and so it is from no mere
sentimental tenderness that we applaud
Mr. Bergh's noble efforts, but from a
conviction that they are indirectly
doing as much good to men as to
brutes.
X
I