II ' i - .fa B. P. SCHWEIER, TEE OOISTITinTOI-THE OTIOI-AID THE E1T0SOEMEIT OF THE LAF8. Editor and Proprietor. VOL. XXXTII. MIFFLINTOWN, JUNIATA COUNTY. PENN A.. WEDNESDAY. JUNE 20. 1SS3. NO. 25. A NOKTMKKX MAT. The n.l of a Uuit ,,.ks her , lorn i Is doim'd too ,rly fr the spring-tide "a a'"l" ,"r '"-w a cant. In futile Henrch for downy shelter there Her Mnv riua aru.s uj-.n her br.-o.st are CtlMHll; The airy veil a We her golden hair Is all aglow with diamonds of frost. And from her hands a wreath of dairies slil. And at her feet, in blighted beauty, lies; The smile Is fatten on her lovely lips' Au iey terror dims her devy eyes. ' Turn Wk, O May! turn Wk and warm thy w luifs In Time's ol.l rave, at 'Winter's funeral l.yre, And route not forth till Earth, thy bride groom, springs To clasp t hee, flowing, to his heart of fire! LOST AM) I'UI'Mi, My Aunt Hester declared it to lie an liisuiteralile nuisance living ju the midst i innis ana lactones, having f.tr ycuir neighliors workmen ami mill-liaitds. Indeed, her august indisrnation knew no lK.nnds when the manufactory of Mr. Shields was erected just outside her gar deii, on 'the ground adjoining. The village was a village no longer 1'iit a town, sureailiti!' it Ur.l..ru ..... tlie hills to the east and west, to the north and south. And down in the valley was the throlt bing heart, teeming with its busy peo- le. Its f;u'tories and mills were being erected in what had once been the suburbs of a village. My aunt. Hester Stuart, and her daughters, Geraldine and Clotildc, were ladies of fashion, and all that the word implies they were. The greatest "catch" of the sea-son. the newest ojiera. and the styles were the sum total of their conversation. It was concedod by all the household that Miss Geraldine was the lady of the house. Even the mamma called her Miss Geraldine. It wasa high misdemeanor to omit the imixirtaiit prefix. Miss Geraldine always had the first ami liest of even thing; and Clot ilde was obliged to submit to her, sometimes in a very humiliating manner. I, the poor dependent orphan niece, was chilled by one and upbraided by another, until, between them all my 'lines'"' were hard ones. I thought if my aunt jmssessetl such a thing as a conscience, surely it would say to her. "Sleep no more." When Mr. Shields was building, and my aunt was unacquainted w ith his ier sonal history, this sooty manufactory, with its smoky chimneys, was an eye Sore to her fastidious taste. "It ought to le declared a nuisance, this grimy old factory and those greasy workmen! . "What a desirable view from our sitting-room window! "It is outrageous!" Thus would my aunt comment upon Mr. Shields" workshop. Hut very soon it liegan to lie generally known that Mr. Shields was a bachelor. Then she liegan to cultivate his ac quaintance and to court his favor. He was rich. He would lie such a capital husband for Miss Geraldine. Siege was laid immediately, and if cunning diplomacy was to lie deluded iilMin, surely the citadel must surrender. Mr. Shields was rejiorted toliejier fectly imiiervious to the arts and wiles spread out for him by mammas and daughters who were on the "look-out'' so to speak. It was generally supjiosed that he had lieen through "deep waters." The gossips said that he had, when a journeyman and poor, loved a lady whose rather would not consent to the match until he could produce a stipulated sum. He worked hard, and liegan to amass a fortune. Uut the girl was fickle, and before he was ready had married another. This embittered him. Now be was wedded to his work. lbisiness was his idol; money his wife and children. He scarcely gave a second glance to anv woman. My aunt and Miss Geraldine liegan to lav their plans, and the distant, reserved Mr. Shields was often invited to balls and dinners- ' Almost anv afternoon you could hear them laughing and exchanging merry sillies from the window. As the days went by I often noticed him hoiking intently at meas liK-rtoini-ed mv daily work. Sometimes, when I was dusting the sUting-rooin, I would chance to look toward the mill and catch his glance. I often wondered what he thought ol me, if he thought of me at ail. lerhais he was only meditating, lost in his sixt ulations, and his eyes Impell ed to rest on me. I tortured my brain to find a solution to this enigma, asking myself if I was vain enough to suppose tliat Kenneth Shields was thinking of me. This indifferent man w as only tlnuK in" of his gains aud losses. . lie had no iwssible interest m a girl w ho w ashed dishes and dusted rooms m Iter aunt's line establishment. hall 1 tell you how his apiaraiice struck ine, and how deeply 1 became in terested in him, in those days 1 cannot describe him quite as he amieared to me. , 1 can tell vou only of Lis sunny blonde hair and bis" deep gray ye, of the weU built tignre, standing l-ei-haps live feet Tcaimot tell of a beautiful Apollo, fairer faces had no lower to do. 1 felt my por heart fluttering when ... ..lutll HIP. his eyes mu ,,. .Ul t nf steer sol. in bitter anger, . ice fill hereafter, had better let thin; alone!" 1 m Jl,,er niauima, she said, i J M'''Ms always takes my fan, if I hanee to lay it down, and now it's thinlX' by t,",cari''s'MSs f that She looked daggers at me. Aunt Hester, I thought, might have pen me some sym1Klthv; sheonlv turn ed and said, "Mona, hereafter try to be careful; you have irritated Miss Ger aldine considerably, Do not vex Tour self; I will g,-t another for vou, "dear child " she said to her daughter. Ileu tLey were gone, I threw mvselv uiKtn the sofa and gave vent to my iieut uj sorrow. No renroaclips lmnwor !...;.,- . ...... v . v m .in j h.ii aim narsJi, no cutting reprimands, no scorn- nii iooks, could cause me to crv in their presence; I kept control over my emo- nojiB, aim weji; only when alone. 1 cried and soblied, and longed for most any fate that would free me from this thraldom. Finally I must have fallt ii into .in un easy siuniltcr. lhe sense that tells us 'someone i near awoke me. Standing motionless looking down uimn me in silent pity, was Mr. Shields. I hurriedly started up, muttering some kind of ajHilogy, and very much ashamed of my tear-stained face and rumpled hair. I requested him to lie seated, and he sat down, not on the chair near him, but lieside me on the sof;u I was confused, and knew not what to do or say. I supiHise he had perception enough to notice my agitation. He was all calmness and ease. I wondered if it wereiossible he could hear my foolish heart beat, and see the tremor of my lips, when I tried to answer his questions. "You are in trouble to-night, Mona?"' I shall remember to my dying day the inexpressible sweetness of those sym IKtthizing tones. I thought, as I alwas have since, that it was the most musical voice 1 hud heard in all my troubled,1 dreary life. "You were sobbing in your sleep when I came in; what was it? lire you lone ly? Aunt and cousins are gone, aren't they i ell, cheer tip; I will stay here until they return. Are they unkind to you?" I could not tell an untruth now, with the tear-stains still on my cheeks; so I replied "Miss Geraldine scolded me lie cause I dropped her fan and broke the mirror, and Aunt Hester, too." Here I completely broke down, and cried as if I was nevergoing to stop. He sit awhile in silence, and let me sob un- disturlied; then he said, laying his hand iiKm my head, "Don t give way to your grief; come, cheer up; you are hurt by cross wcrds and reproaches, but there is sunshine after rain. Mona, to-night you ami 1 are drawing very near to each other; I too, have lieen stung by ingrati tude. I have sounded the depths of bitter waters and bv the pertidy of one person I was sunk to the depths of des pair, liut I am out of this slough of desiHHid, and am now far happier than I would have lieen had affairs gone dif ferently. I am in a position which jier hajis I should not have attained if 1 had gained what 1 coveted altove all these at one time, l ouigrew my inner cus apitointment, and in my work I found a iKtuacea. Now I am in a very tranquil state ol mind; and Mona, little friend, 1 have oltserved you, and am aware you are not happy. e will svmpathize with each oilier. and in our mutual friendship dispel part of the gloom." His kind words, so mildly siKiKen.tne most gentle that it had been my good fortune to hear since I was an inmate of my aunt's house, went to my lonely heart like a soothing lialm. I rallied and soon we began to talk. The hours Hew by rapidly. lou and 1 are only beginning io know each other, Mona," said my new found friend at last. We are going to be capital friends, and " No more was said, for aunt and cousins came m, ami our eciimg to gether was cut short. They were profuse in playful re proaches, and Mr. Shields was scoideo: in a pretty way for nt it attending the partv. He said, ""Well, you see, I was de tained bv nniHtrtaiit business until 1 feared it was too late; then 1 dropiied in here, thinking perhaps some of you were at home. 1 found Miss Mona, and as si.e was all alone, I thought I should lie doing my dutv bv remaining Willi net. 'So i staved, and we have had quite a delightful talk.'' Aunt Hester made some reply, cal culated to annihilate me. They all seemed to want to box mj ears. . , S I just "folded my tent liKe an .vrau, and as silently stole away." The next morning I had my orders. I was given my dismissal. I was soundlv reprimanded for my forwardness, and my aunt and cousins took turns in taunting me. Then I was spirited away m the ni.'ht-time to my aunt's farm far out in the country, exiled, abandoned, driven "Thie evening I w ent to a neighbor's to get a book. , . The short w inter day was closing in on my return. A w agon passed me. It's occupant, a man, was muftled up, he looked at me as he fussed; the ejacu lation, "Mona!" came out in a very em phatic manner. 1 looked up; it was Kenneth Shields. Hurriedly he jumped out. . 'Mona, where are you going? Is this where vou have been all this time? I lla.l 1-1 inouire vour whereabouts, but your aunt gave me very unsatisfac tory answers. . "You did steal away in a dreadfully mvsterious manner. 'from standing at my elbow you lied T couldbanily speak for joy; ix light in Kenneiu s ejea .j fl1w ioner accused myself of vanity JL f Sted with delight that he reallv did think of me. .1.1.1 old stOIT. he '. x dafT'bade adieu to the drea farm, and with my promised wiucu w married. stayed till '""- - anllts, and Then we ... T-..0ii introuueeu jvriu"-"- . MinsmS. K!natolenib.yLo8- stayed to dinner; still a latent siark of resentment lingered underneath the show of gotid-will. "Mona, dear," said my husliand w hen we were alone, "were you resigned to your fate, and would you have made no effort to let me know your place of resi dence? You did not intend to forget me? "Indeed I di.l not; and if von had not come to rescue me, 1 don't think I could have gone on living. Hut I am happy now so let us forget the past The Vl eciuu. Metal. The sjiecial reort of Mr. Ibirchard, Director of the Mint, Uhhi the produc tion of the precious metals in theUnited States, which was ordered to lie printed by the last Conirress. shows that the yield of the mines of the United States for the year 1SSJ was i,."iOU,0K in gold, ;B;.uu,uih) in silver, a total of 7'.,:!(iu,ti00 a decline ot S2.Litl,iJiX) or gold and an increase of j.'l,S00,U(i0 of silver comared with the preceding year. The greatest relative decline" was in California, while in silver production Idaho, Montana and New Mexico showed the greatest incre;ise. The ex cess of production over consumption of the year, added to the net iniorts of gold, resulted in a net gain to the circulation of less than $2oO,XH) in gold, but by coinage and net import of coin the metallic circulation gained nearly SJ'.),T00,0J0 in gold aud about $J7,0UO, Wm in silver coin. The California gold fields show no evidence of exhaustion, and Nevada gives signs of recovery from the mis management and stock speculation that have affected its production. Idaho, Montana, Utah and New Mexico furn ish evidence of the increased imrtauce ot mining industry m those Territories. w hile Arizona maintains her large pro duction of the pim ious metals. The Verity Course. A yonng American who lias traveled, says in correspondence alxrat the Derby track at Lpsom, that the course is en tirely different from anything we Lave in America. There are not titty yards of level ground anywhere. I should say that a run ot the whole circuit ninst be about two miles long. On this side the ground slopes rapidly down into a deep valley, so that tue hones ran on ground that slants up toward the out side rail. From the bottom of the valley the way np on the other side is very steep, where the track runs along the crest of a ridgi beyond, it mast be four or five hundred feet higher than where we tit. Up towards the be ginning of the borne stretch is tbe place which they csil Tottenham comer, and all Eogl&ud tells you what terrible place it is for a hoi so to rome around. Cat that is taffy. There are worse turns at Jerome Park and SheepsUead Buy. The only d.fficnlty about thi; one is that it occurs where the horses are coning down a slight slope. The Derby races begin part way a uud the course, as the distance they run is abont a mile and a quarter, I believe. They start in an upward slope to the crest of the distant ridge, come down aronud Tottenham corner, into the straight stretch homo, and enj on a down hill part of the track. The course is turfed, not turned np like those in America. Alucli of the space down in the valley, inside the track and up on the hill beyond, is taken np with refreshment tents. Punch and Judy shows, those machines whicb send wooden horses around in a circle, parties of men with blackened faces, singing and dancing without time or tune, jugglers, acrobats and a surging mass of people. From the grand stand for half a mile in each direction, out side the track, there la the samci sort of thing, added to a tremendous crash of carnages, from whicb the horses Lave been taken and boused for tbe day. A third of the people present want to sell you something that is of no earthly use, and that you wouldn't be found dead with, and tbe other two-thirds want to steal whatever you may Lave around in your clothes. They are t'je most accomplished thitves I ever struck, and they will steal anything they can lay Lands on, no matter whether it is worth anything or not. I Lave seen some pretty big aud some rather promiscuous crowds in America, but this one certainly captured the prize in all respects. There must Lave been six hundred thousand to one mil lion people there. Nobody can convey a notion ot sucn a crowd wun mere figures. It was ajt least ten times as large a gathering as I ever saw at a race before. Clouds and Kunhine. Rainy days in tbe country would be robbed of half their terror to adults if a little provision were made for tbe chil dren. When it is gloomy outside we must create, artificial brightness within. Every country house has a large spare room, an attic or at least a good corner in tbe barn; any o these will answer for the purpose of a playroom, wbicli. If provided, will not only keep the little ones sun, dui nappy, xuose urcamy delightful days for reading are rescued from tbe intolerable noise ana iuss mai invariably follow the Imprisonment of juveniles. If we are going out of town - iia . . i , let us give up a lew ruinia, ii neeu oe, and make the fittings for the little folks. To cover walls choose plain, coarse cotton cloth for a foundation. The best covering W'U be found at tbe paper bangers, where nursery rhymes are pictured in most be. witching form, and the '"frog that would a-wooiog go" becomes only one of the favorites tnat are lollowed along the spaces. The foundation can be com pletely covered, and should be one yard in depth. It can be attached to the wall by tiny steel nails. Above tbe dado thus formed Japanese pictures can be placed, and their bright, quaint grouping always plcsses children. Wall rolls can be pur chased, or made of bright cambric, and pictures pasted on. The tops can be attached to a cane or old broom handle painted red. The file of bright pictures will furnish material for stories and afford amusement to the children, who can do all tbe pasting necessary with little help. A small folding table is easily transported for this room, and boxes to hold playthings can be covered with chintz. A beautiful room ot this kind is Hi ted with turkey red made to cover the entire walk attached to the top of tbe wall by tiny books, the border finished "with row of coarse German lace. Arranged in pretty groups are figures from old fashioned plates, and an thing that pleases from tbe illustrated papers, the arrangements should be studied, in crder to place the large group at the base, and when the distance of three feet from the base is finished the remainder can be done at random with good effect. If' tbe ceiling is tinted a light blue and the floor painted chocolate colx, it gives good effect. Cue. Tbe homb'e habit of Americans of put ting their hands in their pockets bas led to the popularity of canes in this country. Tbe Japanese rentleman shows apprecia tion to the fame feeling when bis costume is incomplete without his shutting fan, which be haDg at his belt, over bis riirhl krulder, ex m the breast folds of his silken gown, the rreccb or tunglisb gentleman for the same reason never attends a full- dress party without bis crush hat in bis hand. The fashion of carrying canes, however, au.ong the swells and lab de-dab lads of New York bas each season its rules which are observed with as much exquisite punctilious those of ladies who wear a poke bono st one year -and s joop hat the next. Host of these fashions originate in Europe. A year or two ago there were two styles the shepherd's crook, shaped like a fishhook, and a Z llu crook, a plain, curved handle. Tbe Zulu came from Fans, the shepherd from .London. These styles In canes were introduced in the sprintr, and were preceded by the crutch. When our fathers were lads tbe whalebone cane was tbe proper thine. How they are so scarce that they are worth to the dealer from 3 to $3,50. Last year the fashion was to carry a silver ball cane. Then there is a style in carrying a cane, and this varies each year. One year it was to walk with a spring gait, with bent knees and arms akimbo as far forward as possible, and the cane was held between one linger and thumb, correctly balanced so as to swing gracefully. Then came the esthetic style. The cane was held in front of the body by the first and second fingers of both bands, and was allowed to bang limp, while the elbows were still further forward, and the shoulders, if possible, more round. Then there was a fashion last year of holding tbe ferute down. This year it is tt hold it in the middle, with the ferule to the front, just as Mr. Spot Daudri.lge does after his return from the east. That's the proper "caper." The material is as various as can well nigh be conceived of. Many are of im ported woods: some fram the ttopics, China, and the East Indies. The cele brated Whongec canes are from China, where they are well known and celebrated for the regularity of their joints, which are the points from which the leaves are given off, and. the stems of a species of phyllosiachys, a gignatic grass, closely allied to the bamboo. Tbe orange and emon are highly prized, tbey are imported chiefly from the V est Indies, and perfect specimens command enormous prices. Tbe orange stick is known by its beautiru1 green bark, with fiae white longitudinal markings, and the lemon by the symmetry of -its proportions and both prominence and regularity of its knots. Myrtle sticks possess also a value, since their appearance -.a so peculiar that their owner would sel dom fad to recogmxe them. They are lm lorted from Algeria. Tbe rajah stick is an importation. It ts tbo stem ot a palm, and a species of calamus. It is grown in B jrneo, and takes its name from the fact that the rajah wil: not allow any to go out of the country unless a heavy duty is paid. These canes known as palm canes are dis tinguished by an angular and more or less fiat appearance. Their color is brownish, spotted, and they are quite straight, with neither knob nor curb Tbey are the petioles of leaf stalks of the date palm. Perhaps the most celebrated of the foreign canes are tbe Malacca, being the stems of the calamus sceptonuin, a slender climbing palm, and not growing alxnit Malacca, as tbe name would seem to indicate, but im ported from btak on the opposite coast of Sumatra. Other foreign canes are ot ebony, rosewood, partridge, or hairwood, and cactus, whicb, when the pith is cut out, presents a most novel appearance, hollow, and full cf holes. The manufacture of canes Is by no means the simple process of cutting the sticks in the woods, peeling off the bark, whittling down tbe knots, sandpapering the rough surface, and soiling a touch ot varnish, a curiously carved handle or head, and tip ping tbe end with a ferule. In the sand tlats of New Jersey whole families support themselves by gathering naaneberry sticks, which tbey gather in the swamp?, straight en with an old vise, steam over au old kettle, and, perhaps, scrape down or whittle into size. Thee are packed in large bundles to New York city aud sold to the cane lactones Many imported sticks, however, have to go through a process of straightening by mechanical means, which are a mystery to the uninitiated. They are buned in hot sand until tbey become pliable. In front ot the heap of hot sand in which the sticks are plunged is a stout board from five to six feet long, fixed at an angle inclined to the workman, and having two or more notches cut in the edge. When tbe stick has become per fectly pliable the workmau places it on one of the notches, and, bending it in the opposite direction to which it is natirally bent, straightens it. Thus, sticks appar ency crooked, bent, warped and worthless are by this iimple process straightened; but the most curious part of tbe work is observed in the formation of the crook er curl for the handles, which are not natur ally supplied with a hook or knob. The workman places one end of the cane firmly in a vise, and pours continuous stream of fire from a gas pipe on the part which is to be bent. When sufficient heat bas been applied, the cane is pulled slowly and gradually round unUl the hook is complete ly formed, and then secured with a string. An additional application of heat serves to bake and permanently fix the curL The uader part of the handle is frequently charred by the action of the gas, and this is rubber down with sandpaper untd the requisite degree ot smoothness is attained. Gathering and Orjinz Tea in Japan. Tea gatberlng Is commenced in May Girls are employed, at an average of five cents a day, from sunrise to snnset. I he sprig of leaves is nipped off carefully with the finger nails and deposited in a basket, and other servants carry these baskets, as they are filled, to the tea planter's house and necessary outhouses. Here other employes spread them out on large palm mats and here the first and only adulteration essayed by tbe tea planter is executed. Having decided the percentage of exhausted leaves to mix with his fresh leaves these are put also on the mats. The drying Is m the open air and in the sunlight. That having been completed, the next operation is the cart ing. To effect this the dried leaves are poured into open cast-iron receptacles ovei a charcoal furnace beneath of accurately graded heat. Sufficient laborers are placed around thebe pans to constantly take in their bands the leaves as they be c:uue heated and to roll them. When the curling is done the leaves are packed in coarse, cheap boxes, freighted to the nearest tea market and there sold to a foreign tea dealer. .Every foreigner keeps a special variety of tea-taster, who has to tell tbe quality of the fresh leaf and to make a guess at the amount of leaves; that have already done service. In contemplation of created things, by steps we may ascend to God. A "Crowing" Match. This peculianty of the barn yard cham pion became the subject of conversation at a little dinner given at Di-iraoaico's, New York, on the 8 b of last January, the occasion being the commemoration ot the birthday of Mr. Larry Jerome, who asserts that he is ot the same age as General Andrew Jackson. "I don't see," said Mr. Alexander Taylor, Jr., "why if this is so, a rooster cannot be trained to crow as welt as to fight. I believe that by taking one when a mere chick and cultivating its lung power assidioosly, putting before it, from its earliest infaucv, tbe best and most illustrious crowers, a rooster could be trained to crow a dozen times consecu tively." Mr. Jerome seeiBg here an opportunity for a wager something whi b be never neglected said: "It would all depend upon a man's own training. 1 f brought up in the country, as I was, observant of the habits of the fowl from boyhood, there is little doubt but that experiment of this kind would be a success. -1 think, however, that you would fail." "I'll bet you $5,000,'' said Mr. Tay lor, promptly, "that m six months I'll produce a cock that will outcrow any thing you can show." 1 11 take that bet, said Mr. Jerome, quietly, ami tbe conversation diverged to other topics, neither party agaia alludine to it, and each gentleman trusting that the other would forget all about it so that be might be able to claim a default when settling day arrived. The next morning Mr. Taylor went bnght and early to ft ashmgton Market, and, from information there obtained, was induced to go to Rosedale, N. J., where Mr. 1 hilip limpson resides. In giving the particulars to a reporter, Mr, Taylor said: "I learned that flu! Timpson was a most successful hatcher of chickens by artificial process, and I went to him and told bun I wanted a lot hatched, all cocks and of the best crowing breeds, lie said I'd have to take 'em as they coins, cocks and bens together, aud that he bad no process for hatching cocks exclusively. lie said, bowever, that he would lay the world under contribution for eggs, and that if 1 would agree to take all that he would hatch there was no doubt that among the lot I should be able to secure the champion crower. "So, after signing a contract, I returned to my place at Mamaroneck, and bad a bouse built 160 feet on the water-line sho, I don't mean that 1 thought 1 was speaalug of a yacht: but she s 1 jO feet over all; that is, it is that length along the water, and I've bad it fitted up with porches at different elevations, so that at the earliest ace tbe young rooster will have a place from which to crow, and can advance from perch to perch, raising his n )tes at each elevation." "I've got over 600 f jwl there already. and Timpson is gome to have 500 more on Thursday morning. Untd about a week ago I thought that I bad a sure thing on Larry Jerome, but I then learned that be had constructed a crowing nursery at Oyster Bay, L. L, under the superin tendence of bis brother, Tom Jerome. Still I think I'll beat him, after ail, for Vimpson says that there's not a known breed of fowl but what I possess of it a representative cock." Mr. Jerome was found immersed in weighty transactions at the Stock Ex change, lie had but a moment to spare for an Interview and said that he consid ered it a gross breach of confidence on the part of Mr. Taylor to have given the Ihlng away. "Since u has gone so far, how ever," said he, "I may say that my -hen nery ut Oyster B&v is 250 feet long and 50 feet in width. My fowls, of which 1 have 2,000, represent 100 distinct breeds. all of which have been produced by patent prociss and with especial reference to crowing. 1 don t feel the least anxiety about the matter, as I have no doubt but that my bird will win." lire will the trial take p'.ace, Mr. Uerome?" We have not decided upon that as ycL We of course never imagined that the event would be of so much public interest, and expected to have it up at Taylor's place at Mamaroncck, or else down at Oyster Bay, with only a few of our friends present; but the interest in it seems to have been aroused to such an extent that I told Alec the other day that 1 thought we would have to secure tbe Garden, or else the American Institute building in Third avenue. The judges are Mr. Andrew Cahoon for Mr. Taylor, and I have asked Mr. Charles Mm ton, the Secretary of the Hew York acb t Club, to act for me; they two to choose a third if necessary. IMfclloouiug tv the l'ule. Two great scientific questions are now agitating the minds of some of the bal loonists in this country and Europe. One is the pocsibihty of reaching the North Pole in a balloon, aud the other the practicability of getting into the eastern current two miles above the earth and crossing the Atlantic Com mander Cheyne bas aroused so much interest in the first question that a com pany has been formed in Loudon, On tario, for the purpose of organizing a balloon expedition to the North I'ole. A reporter had a conversation a few days ago with Dir. Grunley, a well-known aeronaut on the subject in question. "if Commander Cheyne bad any ex perience in ballooning under au verse circumstances," said Mr. Gnmley, "I think he would see tbe impracticability of Lis views. I Lav9 no doubt .that he may be honest euongh in his intentions, but he is working at a thing he does not understand.". "Have you ever met him?" inquired the reporter, "No, but I know a good deal about him. I have been following the course of but lectures, and I wrote to him some time ago asking him to give me an ex planation of his proposed plan of over coming tbe difficulties in the way of reaching tbe I'ole in a balloon, and he has not yet answered me. 1 know he has a very persuasive manner, and is a great enuiusiast in the possibilities of uallooniug; but he has not been in the habit of reducing Lis theory to practice, if Le did, I think he would talk differ ently." "What, in your estimation, appears to be the impracticable part ot Cuerue's theory?" "He seems to disregard every essen tial connected with ballooning. I am quite familiar with the whole history of balioumng, besides having made over one Lnnured assents myself, many of them being quite successful, and from all my knowledge and experience I Lave come to the couciusiou that a Polar ex pedition in a balloon is impracticable." Mr. Urimley then entered minutely into the arguments, showing the alleged impracticability of a Polar balloon voyage, regretting at the same time that the proofs were not all on Commander Cheyne's aide. I assure you," said the aeronaut, Vif I could see any practi cability in it, I should have made the experiment long ago, and would be only tx happy to co-operate with Comman der Cheyne, if he would give me tbe chance, and convince me by scientific explanation that the thing is possible. To go into iarticulars, then, about the posNibihty of the enterprise, the intense cold is the first great barrier. Tue ouly good scientific point abont Cheyne's theory is that the temperature would lie favorable for cooling dowu the gas, but this is only a small advantage when you come to make an offset of the disadvan tages. The place where he proposes to in tin te the balloon is 700 miles lrom tiie Pole, and the thermometer is forty de grees below ziro." "How wonl l this cold interfere with the enterprise?" "In the first place, the balloonist wonld Lave to use oil-silk, because the objections to rubber are so nnmerons that I need not say anything about lL Well, everybody kuows that au oiled surface in a temperature like that be comes brittle and almost impossible to handle. It would be easy to make the gas, if tbey could get a balloon to hold together until it was filled." 'And what would prevent it from holding together?-' "Why, it would become stiff as board and break all np, so that the gas wonld escape. . "Suppose he could overcome tnis oli- jecticn and furnish material for the bid- loon that would be impervious to the Irofct?" "Well, suppose he could. The rext difficulty would be in the gas. As said, it could be easily made: but then the only gas namely, hydrogen that would lie sufficient for inditing pur poses would in that temperature con dense almost as f ist as it could be made. and consequently lose a portion of its elevating power very rapidly. It wonld become detcnorated in the ratio of the increase of cold.'' "Suppose the balloon was tilled in a higher temperature? "Then all these objections wtnld apply with equal force as soon as it reached the fnjjid regions, with the ad ditional objection that in making that distance a portion of the gas would be seut under circumstances in which economy in gaa would be of the first im portance." "Suppose Cheyne should overcome all the objections thus far, inflate the balloon, aud soar heavenward at fortv degrees lelow zero and within 700 miles of the Pole, what would be the new dif ficulties then? "The difficulties then, co uparcl with the launch in an ordinary voyage are all seriously aggravated. So mueu so that without something unknown to the scientific woi Id they appear to be insn- perable. To begin with, 700 miles is an enormous tnp for a balloon, nnder the most favorable circumstances. There is nothing on record, I believe, to ex ceed that if we except the instance of the one tnat was caught in a gale during the siege of Paris and was blown a dis tance of 1,C00 miles to Norway, the two occupants having a marvelous esc:ije. Then, as I understand him, Cheyne pro poses to go to the Pole by eay stages. He intends to stop, poised in mid-air oecat-ionall v, awaiting favorable breezes. just as a captain would lay to at sea. To my mm J, however, there is no such certainty abont atrial navigation as this. "But suppose all these difficulties were overcome and that he did reach the Pole," said the aeronaut, this time put ting his own uiterrogatory, "what would he do then if be did not find inhabitants there? How should he get back and cross that insuperable barrier o? ice 4o0 miles bom the 1 t ie? Has he any reason to conclude that it would be easier crossed coming from the Pole than going toward it, if he should he able to sur mount the unknown difficulties that may intervene?" If the Arctic expedition is not found to be practicable, balloonist need not despair, for it seems that a few cf the most eminent of them have an enter prise on hand that they are convinced will be a grand success, and of equal importance to science and humanity. This is nothing less than a trans-Atlantic tnp in the eastern current, and probably a voyage round the world, in so short a time that I uineas rogg, with all his imperturabdity, would stand aghast at the mere conception of it. Several of the prominent wronauts on both sides of the ocean have agreed to make an ex periment this summer that will settle the question as to whether the eastern current blows steadily in the some direction without veering. "Ibis experiment will be niaue, said 3lr. Urimley, "by putting np two bal loons at the same time. One of these will rise to the attitude of the current, while the other will remain iu the at mosphere below. By this means we shall be able to measure the velocity of the current, aud to demonstrate the in rariability of its course eastward.'" ''ion have no doubt about its exis tence eastward?" 'None whatever; upon that point I am fully satisfied,- having been experi menting upon it at intervals for several years-" "Is it independent of stortns? "Practically so. All the (.tonus aris ing from electrical phenomena, occur in the lower atmosphere. Atgreatheight their influence, though philosophically appreciable, are not materially so as to interfere with the navigation of a bal loon." 'Where will the experiment start?" "From the Polo Grounds in this city, I believe. The Loudon and Paris Jiro nan tic Associations have expressed their willingness to unite with us on this side in tne experiment, and will contnbute liberally in fitting oat the balloons for the voyage. Ljtnips in Yokohama. As tbe hour approaches for the lighting of lamps is the evening at Yokohama, the sound of the patrol is heard, and ail night long the streets are perambulated by these warning guardians, who beat two hand sticks or clappers together with the regu larity of clockwork, giving forth a sharp, ringing sound that there is no mistaking, and they also have a regular note of warn ing, which they cy out at regular intervals ot time, so that the necessity of precaution is present to the mind of all the dwellers in the city, throughout the hnursof darkness, whether they wnT or no. The incendiary is the most depraved of criminals in the estimation of tbe people, and none others were so ferully punished in the past. At preseut death is the penalty meted out to one who commits arson. An entire suite of bedroom furni ture made of glass is the freak of it Spanish grandee. TeuiplcM of the nun. In Persia, in ancient times, they haI temple which they called "Temp! tbe Sun," and they worshiped the sun always. They felt that It was be who presided over the destinies of mankim who gave them the light of day and also warmth, who was tbe founder of tneir empire, and in nearly every city temples dedicated to the sun were raised. They acknowledged Supreme Being, a Creator of the world in fact, but he did not seem to bold the first place in their hearts, for only one small tempi was erected to hm. Tbe grandest tern pie of all was in the citv of Cuzco and it as such a rich temple that it was called "CoricaneAa," which meant "The Place of Gold." it was built of hewn stoneso beautifully put together, the place of join ing could not be discovered, and it con sisted of a chief budding with chapels adjoining, and several other inferior buildings, and covered .quite an area. Everything inside the tempie was gorgeous beyond description. On the western wall the Sun Deity w represented. It con sisted of a human face surrounded by rays of light. Tins face and nuure was en graved on an immense plate ot gold, massive and heavy and thickly bestrewn with diamonds, emeralds and other pre cious stones, ft hen the sun rose in tbe morning, the figure was so placed in tbe temple the light fell full upon it, making a most dazzling effect, and all the gold in the room (and the walls were adorned and mlaid aad overlaid with gold) caught up the glory and reflected it, and everywhere were shining plates of gold and heavy ornaments of the precious metal and those. too, sent back a fljod of light as the sua beams fell upon them. One of tne smaller chapels was dedicated to the moon, the next deity of importance, styled the "Mother of the lncas." All the decora tions of this room, as well as the figure representing the ni-wu, and tbe burnished plates, etc., were of silver. Then there were other chapels one consecrated to the stars, an-it her to the ra'noow, and an other to thunder aud lightning. All these lx.-lor.ged, you must remember, to the Temple of the Sun. Everything used in connectiou with the wiirship ot the sun wai of gold and silver. There were a dozen or more silver vases of immense size, standing on the flxr of the main room, filled with Indian corn. "the censers for the perfumes, the ewers which held the sacred water, the pipes which conducted it through subterranean chan nels into the buildings, the reservoir that received it, were all of gold or stiver." rhen there were artificial gar.len3 outside. with plants in them, curiously constructed of silver and gold and precious stones; there were animals of gold, life siz- and even the agricultural implements used in he garden were of the precious metaL lhe came of Inca was applied 1 1 the Sovereigns of Pern as well as to all those males who descended from them. Tbe Sovereign was far, above his people, even the noblest of the Inca nobility could not enter into the presence of the retiming Inca without making bare his feet and C-trrying a slight burden to signify homage. Ine Inca was onaidereJ the suu's repre sentative, and he claimed to be vastly uperior to all others, and livd and dressed in grand style. He hail a num uer of wives, a great many children and devoted attemUnls. When an Inca died, his wealth did not descend to his heir, I but all his treasures remained Just as he had left them, aud all his palaces ex cept one were closed up forever. They believed the spirit would return some dey aad would require ail bis personal effects. The funeral was an occasion for grand display, and sometimes thous ands among them his wives and attend ants were sacrificed on his tomb. The bady of the inca was enbalmed, and robed in royal attire, placed oa a gold chair, taken to the Temple of the Sun. There all the dea l Incas sat with their hands crossed and their heads inclined in the midst of all the gold and silver, the men on the nght and the q'leens on the left of the blazing effigy of the Sun. lhe one paiace or mansion of the inca that was not closed up was kept just as if the owner had gone for a day and was expected to return at any moment. The guard was retained, the servants were all at their posts and everything went on as before. Sometimes entertainments were provided in the name of a dead Inca by the Captain of the guard stationed in tbe unclosed house of the Inca. Then the body of the Inca would be brought out into the public square with great pomp and ceremony, and tbe display of gold and silver plate and jewels was something far ahead of anything we can now imagine, the Peruvian process of enbalming bodies was as successful as the Egyptian, but it is supposed that it was much more simple and brought about by exposing the body to the action of tbe peculiar anj ran fled mountain atmosphere; and they were as perfect as life, "and not even the hair of an eye-brow lacking," while their counte nances retained their natural, somewhat swarthy hue. A portion of the body, the mtestiaes, etc, were buned and with them a quantity of treasure, and it was at tli is lime and place their wives and attend ants were sacrificed. A Uruml crm ceue. Jesse Brritt, Couuty Superintendent of Schools, in Missouri, recently, while going from Uillsboro to Butler, a village four miles northwest of liillsboro, witnessed one of the most magnificent sights he ever saw and one which, perhaps, few men have ever had the opportunity of seeing. Arriving at the top of Cross Hill, a hmh eminence about two miles west of UiUsboro, he says the air sud denly became entirely calm, producing au oppressive, stifling sensation, which was followed by a peculiar, sickeninz smell. lie then saw five distinct cyclones in tbe west and southwest, which h: describes as huge balls of cloud travel ing in a northeasterly direction at a tenifte rate of speed. All were dis tinctly outlined and appeared at times to come to the ground and bound into tbe air to a great height. They were in a constant state of agitation and as they rose from the earth they became illumi nated; while near the earth they ap peared to be of a greenish color. They were accompanied by a deafening roar. One of them passed unniediately over him, but, fortunately, dii not reach low enoii'-h to do any damage. lie asserts that be saw nothing of the funnel shape so often described, but that they appeared most o: the time perfectly round. They wtre a number of miles apart apparently, but all going in the same direction. He says that while the display was grand beyond description, he never wants to witness such a sight again; but tney were evidently stragglers belonging to the army of cyclones that passed over our Slate an hour or two before, and fortunately had no time to nnsbeath their devastating "funnel" and strike the earth. Only those that appeared at a great distance rccmed to come to the zround. ThtT passed out ot sight In less than three minutes and were fol lowed br a heavy wind and torrents Of rain. NEWS IN KK1KF. Chicago, it is said, ha.- 1mi onjuui eaters. Missouri issending acorns to Europe to improve the forests. The Venezuela cow tree jields a liquid with the flavor of cream. There is said to lie oue phvsii-iaii to even' thirteen families in the I uited States. In ITiVI England had over 20.1 Nio negro slaves, ami tliev wore collars like dog collars. Of the 1,4;K.Ss7..1is inhabitants on earth about S."ii.0i0,INM) are idolators, 170,000,0011 Mohamiuedansor Jews. In lVi the United States produced onlv 2.Uthi.miO tons of coal, while last year uNuit 70,ikh,ihh tons were pro duced. Arrangements for the work of Moodv and S.mkev in Imdoii in the autumn are alread y making. A Jewish synagogue of the third or fourth century hits lieen discovered near Carthage aud almut ten miles from Tunis. Miss Clam llarton has declined the siiperintendeiicy of the Massachusetts Woman's Prison on the plea of ill health. The pension list will till furtv-eight volumes of liOO uiges each. The public will soon lie informed who draw the lieusions. Isaac Qiiinn, a colored voiith of Gaston Countv. N. C, 17 vears old. is feet 7 inches in height, and is still growing. According to an Avr.-sliire miier there L-s not a singl. copy of Burns' poems in the Five Public Library at Manchline. The Australians, who wish to ex terminate the English sparrows, pai 1 up o November last fur J...!l head and 7,212 eggs. A young lady of Ruiilierg, (ermany, as lx-en punished bv a line and costs tor he offence of playing the piano at niht by an open window. An English inventor has patented a process of making straw incombustible. and now proposes to build cheap straw ttages for the poor. The town of Ijriuuell. Iowa, which iffered so much by a tornado last sum mer, lias just sent l to the sufferers y the cyclone in Mississippi. Tiie nuinb -i-of umbrella linkers in iris has inure ised from 11 " in l- : to S in lssj, ;i 1 1 jiL, value of t'l-ir in-.w uct from jjjj.o )) to ?2,ii.i ,0 M. The largest vessels in tlie English ivy cost a million and a quarter to luiid, and nearly a thousand dollars a ly to keep them at sea afterward. Of tliirtv-nine feunle students of medicine attending the le;-tuivs of the iris Faeulty last war, eleven were nglish, live Am 'rican, and one la liau. A jiearl worth ),ihk, now in the session of the I Tineess- oiissoiiolT. us brought from India In bfio bv (ion- bus of Calais ami boii 'lit bv Philin V. The Halt im ire Sim states that of 1 iu tornadoes recorded since bi'.).". icre were lt in the Southern States, and or these '') were unusually destruc tive. Au English traveller in America records as oue result of his observations the general sadness on the faces of our men of affairs as tliev go about the streets. Bargue, a painter of exquisite little ictures, the liest of which are said to Ik in the hands of Miss V olte aud Mr. Vanderbilt, died latelv in a Paris luna tic asylum. Sir Henry Maine has b:eti eh-cted Corre.sHmding Meinlier of the Frei ch Academy ot Moral ami Political Sciences, in the place of ltilph Waldo .Emerson. Following the Chinese plan, the liritish Government has conferred a title Uin a dead man. That is to. say, it has made the late Sir George Jesse! 's sou a aronet for his father's sake. The Empress of Ausfvia has been writing poetry, and has had a printing thce set up in the pal. we, and Is learn ing to set tyjie and iiimage a press, so that she can print her own poems. John W. Garrett has sjient -51."i in exi-eriments on the liruid Hill Park Aquarium in llaltiuiore. His latest gift is iu the sha)ie of sea lions, which ire on their way from San r rancisco. Mackerel are decidedly earlier this season than hist. Last vear on the Caiw Cod coast the first dateof catch in weirs was as late as June 2iM.li. The earliest was in ls0, when they were tjikeii April Olll. A tree standing iierm-ndieiilaily has been discovered at a depth of 'ii feet in lioring an artesian well at San liernardmo, Cal. Great pieeesof wood, which appear to lie sy.-amore, are brought up. The people of Mound City, neix Cairo, 111., have employed an engine r to make estimates of the cost of biiildin their levees one foot higher than the highest flood line. The work is to In- done at once. More than 4'J"H) flora! crow ns were heaped around Gauil-etta's cotlin in the Palais lloiirlion, and a writer in t'i'j'Uo estimates their value at iluO.iMi. Paris and iU environs produced them all, nat ural as well as aititicial. The latest paiH-rs from South Aus. tralia gives an account of w heat harvest ings and thunder .storms. England possesses a Sin-ietv for the Preservation of Funeral Monuments and Epitaphs, w hich takes record of the de struction of memorials of the dead and repairs inscriptions that are iu danger of being effaced. A tramway isalioiit to be construct ed for the traiis'mrtat ion of visitors to the summit of Pike's Peak. The cost of the work is estimated at $lJ,UUU, and the ascent, which now requires about a lav and a halt, will then le made in three hours. In one of the public schools in llos- ton a room has been lilted up for instruc tion in wood-work, and two classes have .riven two hours a week to manual study. The bovs are delighted with the carjen- try, ami the experiment is said to be a great success. The marks of the schol ars are all high, averaging as well as, or better than bctore. Some very tine siieciinens of aslies- tos are being found m Nevada, lhe fibre of the specimens shown is from four to six inches in length, aud is.soft and silky. A strand of it can be tied into a knot tlie same as flax fibre. It is found iu what, from the description given, appears to be serpentine rock, and not very tar from the crater of au extinct volcano. . t ' J -i nej - , f f0rm's sake we piUible manner; and lor ioim
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers