i - ;1 1 B. P. SOHWEIER, THE CONSTITUTION-THE UNION AND THE ENFORCEMENT OF THE LAWS. Editor and Proprietor. VOL. XLIIJ. MIFFLINTOWN, JUNIATA COUNTY. PENN A.. WEDNESDAY. JUNE I2. ISS9. NO. 2d. s The real cause of Mind-reader Bish op's death will probably remain a mys tery. It will never be known whether his death was due to natuntl cause, to suffocation in an air-tight casket or to the surgeon's scalpel. The Paris Exhibition is getting along very well notwithstanding th r..vl I bovcott. About 200.XiO people were on ! the exhibition grounds on May 2.5th , ,. , , . ... ,'. and it looks as though it would be success even though the kings and emperors do not smile Uon it. Tut Sultan, it is said, has sent to the Ktnpress of Germany a necklace, val ued at 1.-,0,0W. That is a Royal gift in mi. re senses than one. It is typical of Royalty . to squander money hi that f.ishiou, while the nation is impover ished, and the people overburdened with taves. Seven tkev naval cadets who were found d lieieiit at the Naval Academy last March were allowed to resign, and the Congressmen who had appointed them were notified to fill the vacancies, whereupon eaeh Congressmen rea l i .l the young man whom he had nominated hist year. There are few laws w hii h the average legislator can not get around wl e:i his intluence with h.s constituents appears to lie in linger. The omnipresent sea serpent has been seen again, which one of him is not speeitied. The ingenious mind of the reader is left to determine whether the latest sea serpent was the piscatorial de mon with a ieiichant for turning up in the vicinity or enterprising sea shore resorts at stated periods during the sum mer season or merely the measly mon ster that is frequently seen in al wateis by the long-range, imaginative, vision of "spare"' newsp ucr correspondents. It is not Impossible that some indi vidual now living may witness the final absorption by the great Standard Trust of every source of supplying involving essential materials of industry or neces saries of living that may " constitute a monopoly. To petroleum, cotton oil and dressed meats the Standard mag nates now desire to add white lead They do not propose that any man shall paint his house without paying them tribute. I r i -aid that the Czarina has been "c iitpldely unnerved" by the discov ei y of a plot among ollicers of the army to assasinate the Czar. Such a discov ery is calculated to unnerve anybody, lrthe officers of the army eannot be trusted the autocrat is truly in a lul way. Hut he ought to take such a state of affairs as a symptom that there is something seriously wrong in his gov ernment for which Siberia offers no permanent remedy. A sot ii eh ocean steamer has been run down and sunk and six men are reported as lost. The Certuau Kmperor was at anchor when the Bcresford struck her. It was the old story of a fog nud of running at full speed. Sci ence and Invention ought to le able to provide some means of preventing these collisions which are Increasing in num Wr as the steamships increase in sliced. This is the season of the year when announcements of a phenomenal fruit crop iu lK'!aw:ue are made. A little later on the announcements will be varied and the consumer will be told that the crop w ill lie short. It has come to te understood that all state ments respecting the future of crops must le scrutinized with great care lie fore acceptance. Whether the houest fain er or the n i Idle-man is responsible for this uncertainty is a moot question, but there is one thing certain the con sumer is not to blame for it, although he is the fellow ground between the upier and neiher millstones of pro .lin.t r and seller ill their efforts to raise uucts. . If monuments are to be erected over the graves of soldiers, no better sub jects aie likely to be found than such regimental and brigade commanders as General William McOandless, whose cuuirad. s f the Pennsylvania Keserve A,ciutiv u went out to Mt. Moriah C emetery on Saturday, May ISth, to unveil the granite shaft they had there erected to his memory. He had a splen did moid in the field, participating in nearly all of the hard-fought battles of t'. o Aimy of the Potomac and being wounded twice at Second Bull Kuu and ut spotslvanta. He was not only .i t l soldier; he was also a good citi- eu in time of peace, and served the Mate faithfully after the war. Llsii'Ks the exhibition, Farls has an attractum for some minds iu a succes s'on of international congresses debat ing all manner of questions save those related to politics or religion. Such congresses (tie y are common to all in ternational exhibitions) not iufroquently accomplish a great deal of good by 'thigh g together some of the brightest minds in the world a succession of racialists. Their audiences may be Muall but they are select, and the pub lication of w hat is said and of descrip- t. ons of what is shown carries around , the world the consensus of thought on Vaiious i.ractlcal and scientific subjects. The Elec trical Congrt ss ot 1SS1 was of ilteat value in securing something like . - . . utiiforimtv in nomenclature and Stan- uai'ils of measurement, and tne raec- tr i alt otigress will this year have more uf the same kind of work to do. It sliuuld, for example, get a new standard fr measuring electric lights, and It unut to discuss the subject ot laying ires underground. If it should Buc cved iu settling these questions to the sati-f.,ctton of American cities it will Justify the flood of talk which Paris Invites w hen it -calls together 69 Inter- ntliuual congresses to Uieet then WUUa A BATCH OF FABLES. Said to b From the Persian, by Am brose Pierre. "There, now," sail a kitten Ui , umphantly, laying a passive mouse at the feet of her mother. "1 flatter myself i I am coming on with a very reasonable degree of rapidity, What will become of ,h millor quadrupeds wla I have ''f 7 "trength and ferocity, it Is mournful to conjecture!" 'Did he give you much trouble?" inquired the aged ornament or hearth-aide, with tender solicitude. "Trouble!" echoed the kitten, never had such a light in my life! was a down wrlght savage In the "I He his day." "My Falstaffian Issue," rejoined the Tabby, dropping her eyliJe and com posing ber head for a quiet sleep, the above is a toy mouse." "What have you theie on your back?" said a zebra, jeeringly, to a "ship of the desert" in ballast. "Only a bale of gridirons," was the meek reply. "And wtiat, pray, may you design doing with them?" "What am 1 to do with gridiroui?" repeated the camel, routeuiptuouJy. ' N u e question lor you. who have evi dently just come off one"' l'eople who throw stones jhould not live In glass houses, but there ought to be a few in the vicinity. A man was plucking a live goose, when his victim addressed him thus: "Suppose you were, a gooee; do you think you would relish this sort of thing?" "Well, suppose I were," answered the man, "do you think you wul.l like to pluck me?" "Indeed I would I" was the em phatic natural, but rather injudicious reply. "Just so," concluded her tormentor; "that's the way I feel about the matter myself. A Btieep, making a long journey, found the heat of his fleece Very un comfortable, and seeiug a flock of other sheep iu a fold, evidently waiting for some one, leaped over and joined tnem, iu the hope of being shorn. Perceiv ing the shepherd approaching and the other sheep huddling into a remote corner ot the tola tie shouldered Ills way forward and going ud to the shep herd said: "Did you ever see such a lot of fools! It's lucky I came along to set an ex ample of docility. Seeiug me operated upon, they'll be glad so oSer them selves." "Perhaps so," replied he shepherd, taping hold of the animal' J horns, "but I never kill more than one sheep at a time. Mutton won't keep in hot weather." An old fox and her two cubs were pursued by dogs, when one of the cubs got a thorn In his foot and could go n i turther. betting the other to watch for the pursuers, the mother proceeded, with much tender solicitude, to extract the thorn. Just as she had done so the sentinel gave the alarm. "How near are they?" asked the mother. "Close by. In the next Del J," was the answer. "The deuce they are!" was the re joinder. "However, I presume they will be content with a single fox." And shoving tiie thorn earnestly back into the wonuded foot, this excellent parent took to her heels. This fable proves that humanity does not happen to enjoy a mouopoly of pa ternal affection. The Washington Forgeries. Sir Wm. Harcourt, in a late Bpeech, referred to several alleged letteis of Washington, printed in a pamphlet In London in 1776 and industriously cir culated in this country by the Tones, as somewhat analogous to the Paruell forgeries. A writer In the Pall MaTl Gazette quotes from the preface of the pamphlet a statement of its "editor or forger," that "by the last pacquet be was favored with a letter from a friend now serving in a loyal corpse under briga dier General Uelancey, of .New York, of which we here subjoin a faithful ex tract." This extract then tells how, among the prisoners at Fort I-ee, the writer recognized an old mulatto serv ant ot Washington, by name Billy, who had been left behind as too-ill to attend his master, and who bejged the writer to take care of a small portmanteau of Washington, wherein, together with some socks and shirts, he subsequently found a diary and some letters. These letters purported to be writ" en by Washington in luG, and were ad dressed, one to his wife, one to his step-sou, J. P. Curtis, and the rest to his agent and relative at Mount Ver non. "They are long letters," says the Oa-ette, "and written In wonderful ac cordance with Washington's style." They represent the patriot leader as saying: "There cannot be a situation so truly Irksome to an Ingenious nature as the being perpetually obliged to act a part foreigu to our true feelings." The vote for a Continental army was car ried "with a unanimity that really asu nlshed me because I kne mauy who voted for It were as averse to the independence of America as I was. It has been our policy (and at the time I thought it well founded) to hold out raise lights to the world." In short, h mould be clad even then, on the eve of action, to resign. If be could do so without the imputation or cowaraice. Again, "I do not really wish for inde pendence. I hope there are few who do 1 do assure you that in my opin ion the next misfortune to that of being thrust from our just rank in the order of tree men would be the giving us up n.i Uavln? us to ourselves." Washington did not deem it neces-i-ary to repudiate the letters at the time, but when they were reprinted in ruiladelphla. In lTtfo, be denounced the deed as done "to gratify the spleen of . tin.nt mrtv SDtrit and to effect a purpose even more infamous than the . v. th nrirlnal ill- one CODMJUipi"!" "J - m . t 1 I lni.ntT of nartv spirit in the 1 : . t,i.h Cau)iin(rtfin I tartT days, against which Washington felt called upon to ,.?llcl"SS7 nil areweu 1 .1.1. M.tgAilA. : ""' t famii or sham letters to promote a cause originated before the days of Mnrev." "MurcniSOU' or rigotu 1 5teel tubes are found to retain twice JX..,.,.w. mairnetism as steel rods and are therefore better for permanent mag- i. t. that some of the rays of i '.i. lijrht are hurtful to vegetation, ftKe-e may be held back by tmns- but these may BratglM SAILING AWAY. Scenes at the Pier When a Creat Steamshio Sails. The season of farewells to ocean voy agers Is at hand. An hour before the advertised time of departure the piers look like the floral department of a very successful county fair. Carriages by the dozen are there. and on both pier and steamship wealth, fashion, poverty, friendship, reeret. ex pec tat "ou, pleasure and pain are repre sented. Tiie humble steerage passen gers, w itl their bags ami shabby gar ments, tumble agalust tailor-made men and modishly dressed women. The scene is one of ii congruity and ine quality. It is a strange, wordless coin ment on life. The celebrated histrionic artist rolls up in her carriage, and finds friends and flowers awaiting her in the saioon. lhe health-seeker arrives, with his valet and bundles, great coats and robes, and. as he halts a moment be fore going inside, turns his eyes pa thetically towards the city he is leav ling. The th ught is iu his mind is that he may see it no more forever. lLe young wife and ber new hus band are there, so liappy, so bewilder iugly happy, that words would not express the degree of their felicity; therefore, they do not search for words, but stand smiling while friends say nice things to them. Meantime the trunks go bancrintr down the hold; the fruit sellers call out their enticing prices; here and there tears float in-eyes that hare tried to look cheerful and pleased through it all. Handkerchiefs flutter, lips quiver as they kiss, hands are held in loving clasp, and at last, at last, as they who are to stay tear themselves from those who are going awav, and the gangway raised, the connecting link between ei and laud broken, the great floating cas tle moves slowly off. It swings out into the wider water deliberately but determinedly, and the people on snore watch it with dim eye and bursting hearts until the mass of human beings at the bulkhead be comes a mere b'.ot against the sky. men tne watchers sign and turn away, to go to homes that are, erhaps. lonelier man lliey ever were before. Among those who watched a great steamship move off the other day, was a woman, haudsoma though no longer young, and habited iu black. Her eyes were tearless as she watched the ship crawl slowly out toward the open sea, but they were sadder than sadness itself. She is a widow, and her only son was on board the great ship, going away with a bride on his arm, for a long stay abroad. "1 have lost him forever." she said to a friend, turning her face homeward at last. "O.i, not so bad as that," answered her companion. "I do not mean that I shall see him no more," said the widow, "but that I have lost him. He belongs now more to another woman than to me." It was true. The mother who had brought up her boy witii the greatest care was now left alone. Notwith standing all her love a d self-sacrifice. ttie heart of her sou was hers no longer. The foolish littlo creature by his side absorbed him, and the mother had truly lost him forever. Bobby's High Old Time. Fond mother (to young hopeful) "Now, liobby darling, to-day Is your birthday, and you are 12 years of age. 1 o-day i mean to let you have your own way In everything, so run out anil have a good time." liobby. In high glee, runs out to hunt up Tom Jones, while mamma goes downtown to do some shopping, and tins is the conversation that fo.- lows, when Tom and U. bby meet: 'Hello, Tom, old boy." "Hello, Bob, how is things?" "Oh, evei vlhitig Is lovelv an' I was just looking tor you to help me wreck the garden." 'Why, what's up. JJob?" ' OM it's my biitliday to-dav, and ma has gone downtown, and left me to do just as 1 please." Well, if that ain't a snai l Say I how shall we begin?" 'Well. Tom. tirst I think it would be a good scheme to tie a pale to Un cle Jim's dog's tail and let him loose in the greenhouse, and then let's see! oh, yes. Uncle Jim has got a can of gunpowder up in bis hunting chest, and we will take that and blow up the hen house." "Golly I but you've got a head. Bob. I wouldn't have thought of so much tun in a w hole week. " Two hours later, Bobby's mamma is hastily summoned home to the bedside of her darling boy, where she finds two surgeons working over Bobby and Tom, setting a bane here, sewing up cut there, and bandaging more or less everywhere. The henliouse is a total wreck, likewise the greenhouse. while Uncle Tom's dog has been shot by a police who thought him mad. And as mamma bends over her darling boy. smoothing his damp brow, and weeping motherly tears, she softly whisperss I might have known, JSobby darling, that that horrid Tom Jones would lead you into mischief." Ana in spite of his pain, Bobby smiles and replies: "Yes, mamma, but you ought to have been here to see the fun I I wish I had a birthday once a week " (faint with pain.) Increase of Longevity. It is a prevailing impression among many people that long life was more common iu the time of our ancestors than at present. It seems, however. that facts do not prove this to be a cor rect impression. In the latter part cf the sixteenth century, one-half of all who were born, died under Ave years ot age, and the average proportion of the whole proportion ot tne wnoie popula tion was but eighteen year;. In the seventeenth century one-half of the population died under twelve years. But in the first sixty years ot the eighteenth century, one-half of the population lived over twenty-seven years; in the latter forty-years, one half exceeded thirty-two years of age. In the beginning of the present cen tury, one-half lived over forty years. The average longevity of these suc cessive periods has been increas- d from eighteen years in the eighteenth cen tury up to forty-three years. This increase in the duration of life is, no doubt, due to the progress of medical practice, the improvements in lite coasijuction of houses, the Im proved drainage of streets, and to su perior clothing and a more careful ob servance ot the laws ot health. A Japanese Dinner From the Chinese Tunes. Oat day. with great elation, I received an Ut- viiauon To a dinner that was a la Japonaise; But Judge of my dejection when 1 found, on cloe inspection, A condition that might any one amaze: Ureu must be Jipiuesy, and you know it lsnt eay For one bo's never been to far Japan la know a kakimono froin a cayly flowered ktntOHQ. Or a tatonara tram an Ichiban. Kor a day or so I potidereu, aud very often won dered If ever 1 could muster up a dres : , hut a trenileiiiau who been there, and who tells us w bat he's seen there. Must al my plight have made a clever guess. A hukama he frenl me, and paefo, too; he lent me. ' An obi was not wanted, so be said But I must wear a tabi, or else I should look Khabuv. And a kutti'i too to go upon my head. : - Of the dress I had no notion, so I was In great cnimii mn When I found that It reauired a lot of knack To make the thing look proper; and I nearly came a cropper As I tried to bt a yaHa on itit back. 1 looked uMu;my hauri, au'd 1 aiw that it waa now erv : My loari was according to the law. Aud as to my i'j'mono, twas a clear case of pro bono Publico for every one that saw. I must confess I trembled w hen I saw the guests assembled. And the hoMcss said t-orn ban tea at the door: A ud. as in the room I Khded. 1 v erv soon decided Ibat thry meant to take their dinner on the nor. For bowls in great profusion were spread in wild Confusion. , And fiti Jars were seen on every side. And many little dishes, filled with seaweed and with fishes Whose names I ran t remember, though I've tried. As is usual m such cases, we quickly took our lilacs. Our attitudes were elegant and quaint. iw sluing rouuu or ijing we were a group ne tting Any artist that has ever lived to Dalnt. 1 he feast was just perfection, the taki bore In spect loll. The kuri was all that could be desired. I must not lorget to mention, lor 1 gave It Close attention. Ttiat the ladies' dresses were to be admired. Nor was smoking too forbidden, so we very tumm were hlddf n In the t-atnu from kiAerig of neat form, A ud roNil-o w hose embers, as far as one re- members. Some mistook for the tobacco, rather warm. Itvzo o taki Ijipai." one might think the Missis sippi Would not hold the bow Is of inH that we took ; And oatUnti after, we ate 'mid roars of laugh ter. For t w as fish quite unacquainted with the cook. At length I chanced to strike on an edible call ed daikon. I tasted It : it seemed to be quite nice. So to a lady turning, I thought I should be earning Her thanks at least by offering a slice. .4ri'rn7iifo. yes. w ith pleasure," she tried it at her leisure. One price she found was really quite enough, she called aloud for tiki, akomono, Bhopaki; She said she did not like the "nasty stuff !" With interest undiminished when the feast was nearly finished. Bowls of rice and tea were seen to make a show. Not one of u did stickle to take a little pickle. To correct effects of taki. dou't you know. Aud every one was saying while gratitude dis playing. The evening had proved to be a boon : And all assured the hostess. "The thing to please us most Is Invite us to another very soon." COLONEL KEMP'S WA11D. Colonel Kemp sat at breakfast, on a fine September morning, in the dining room of his country-house, a fine old mansion situated in a beautiful Berk shire glade not far from Windsor. Visa-vis to the old gentleman at the well appointed table was his daughter and only child, Victoria, a blooming, brown-eyed, creamy cheeked young lady of about three-and-twenty. The Colonel, who was a widower, had gained considerable reknown dur ing the war in the l'uujaub. lie had earned a great deal of pi ize-money and numerous medals and crosses; and, having besides his pension, much pri vate property, partly derived from his deceased wile, he was enabled to keep both a country and a town house, and to live in good style. In person he waa a tall, sunburnt man, muscular and active, taking into consideration his sixty-eight years. His eyes were of a clear steel blue, bright and penetrating in their glance, and his teeth were almost as white and well preserved as those of a man of five and twenty. Like many held officers who have seen much active service, his frame seemed rather to have acquired vigor by hard work than to have lost it; and there was mingled with his habitual air of command a natural courtesy which fascinated all with w hom he came in contact. In short. Colonel Kemp was 'an officer and gei. tleinan.' His daughter Victoria owed her name to her father 'a extreme loyalty to his Sovereign. She was 'the apple of his eye, aud well did she deserve his warmest affection. The girl was some what above the height of the majority ot her sex. and rather more strongly formed. Perhaps ber constant partici pation in her father's out door pastimes had something to do with this. She was an accomplished rider and archer ess, followed the hounds occasionally, and knew how to use the trout-rod and to bring down a partridge from a covey w ith a small liht gun which her father had had built es; ecially for her. Yet there was nothing masculine about Vic toria Kemp. True, she joined in her father's sjiorts occasionally, and was his constant companion; but then she had neither mother nor sisters, and her dearly-loved father was as yet her all-in-all. In the home circle Victoria ex hibited all those soft and feminine graces which so well adorn a woman, and which, by force of contract with her owu sterner qualities, are so at 1 1 active to the opposite sex. Besides a Cnely formed figure, V c toiia was endow el with mosi attract ive features. Her nose was straight and finely chiseled, her mouth, though large, exquisitely cut, her complexion of a clear cream color, slightly tanned by the fun, and her eyes were large, lustrous, brown, and full of fee.iug Her leet were small and well arched; but 1 er hands, though nervous and well moulded, were rather larger than is usual In her sex. Her crowning glory, however, was her magnificent chestnut-brown hair, which, braided in natural plaits, formed a splendid crown, and was most appropriate to one with so queeuly a presence, and so queenly a name. The post had just come; and the Colonel, while he twirled bis egg-spoon irritably between his enters, was con ning one ot his let ers with a perplexed look. 'What on earth does it mean?' he muttered, '1 can't make head or tail of if Victoria held her peace, knowing perfectly well that by doing so she would soon be enlightened. Here's a letter, continued the Colo nel,' a letter from Secundabad do Calcutta, from an old friend Chevll stone, containing extraordinary proposition most extraordinary, my dear most extraordinary I' Here the Colonel hemmed, adjusted his eye-glass, and glanced fiercely at the letter. 'Well, papa dear, what is it?' his daughter ventured to ask. 'What is it? Just listen, Vic,' and the Colonel read: Calcutta, Aug. 1st, 1SC7. . Ma Dtar Kemp: Though many (years have elapsed since we fought aiue uy aiue in tne i unjauo, x ieei sat isfied that you retain sufficient regard for your old comrade to do him a real kindness. My eldest son is ordered by the surgeon of our regiment your own old corps, you know to recruit his health by a two-year's visit to Eng- Llaud. I am rich enough to be able to give ulm every indulgence, and he will be in England almost as soon as this letter. 2s ever having left India, he knows nothing of our English ways. I have directed him to you. Be to him as a father, and oblige your dear old friend and companion in arms, ruiLiP Cuevii-stoxe. Victoria laughed d urine the readine of the epistle. . 'Well, papa, she said, you have often wished you had a son; now you will have a ward.' 'A pretty thing, grumbled the Colo nel, 'to be plagued in my old age by some over-grown, overspoilt brat!' ' 'Brat, papa! Why, surely Mr. Chev ilstone cannot have young sons.' 'How do I know that?' retorted the Colonel. 'Many a man makes a fool Of himself in his old age.' 'But, surely, papa, if Mr. Cbevil atone was one of your old companions m arms, he must be about your own age; so it is not likely- 'So, it is not likely,' snapped the Colonel, 'but a good many things hap pen that are not likely, Vic. The let ter doesn't say a word about the fel low's age or anything.' 'It Is certainly vague,' assented Vic toria. Vague! It's a perfect riddlel What are we to do here with a great growing lad who'll eat like a horse, aud make love to all the servant maids?' Oh, papa, it will not be so bad as that! Young Mr. Chevilstone may be an accomplished young man, or' here she laughed 'a very little boy. . The colonel smiled grimly. 'I'll write and say 1 won't have him!' he exclaimed. 'Why am I to be turned into a guardian to an India hobblede hoy against my will?' 'But you can't write, papa, dear! There is no time. Remember, Mr. Chevilstone says his son will soon be here almost as soon as this letter which has announced his arrival.' 'That's true!' muttered the Colonel, quite nonplussed. 'So you must submit with a good grace, papa. And now,' she continued, rising, 'since you have nnisheJ break fast, I'll leave you to read your paper, and go and make preparations for this young Indian, who may be expected any-tienr.- 'Very well,' dear, and the Colonel groaned Inwardly, as he took up bis paper, 'since there's no help for it. By the way, don't forget to tell Jennings that the curry was not hot enough yes terday at dinner, wants more chillies, and I'm sick of rabbits. We have eaten a warren of them, lately, I think. 'Don't grumble, papa; you shall have a brace of partridges to-J ay.' The colonel nodded approvingly, and commenced to read his newspa;-er, whilst his daughter hastened to hold a conference witu the housekeeper. At eight o'clock on the same even ing. Whilst Colonel Kemp was lingering over bis coffee and Victoria singing to him a series of Scotch ballads, iu which the old soldiers delighted, M-. Sydney Chevilstone was announced. The colonel rose hastily from his seat, with an air of doubt and curiosity, treading so violently on the paw of his favorite setter l'syche, who had been crouched at his feet, as to cause ber to set up a dismal howl and growl angrily at the stranger. Victoria, following her father's ex ample, stopped short in the middle or Auld Kobui Gray, aud rose mvoluu tarily. But, as their guest, with a pleasant smile aud extended hand, ad vanced toward the master of the house. It required all the good breeding and self-possession of the veteran aud his daughter to prevent their uttering an exclamation of extreme surprise. The new comer wa3 neither a 'hobble dehoy' nor 'a very little boy,' as sur mised by father and daugnter. He was a tall, handsome, and particularly dignified man of about eight-and-twenty; Sydney Chevilstone, in fact, was so striking in appearance that he would attract attention anywhere. The visitor was, as was to be ex pected from his never having resided out of India, exceedingly dark, so dark, indeed, that his complexion would have been almost disagreeable to the eye ot a European but for the great intel.i-gt-uce in his d.rk eyes and the dazzling whiteness of his teeth, which set off the dusky hue of his skin to advantage. His jet black hair was short, silky, aud i-urly, and a small well trimmed mus tache shaded bis upper lip. '1 guardian to th.'t stately animal? PoohT' muttered the colonel to himself. But he bade him welcome with all the self-possession he could at the moment muster, and introduced him to his daughter. Victoria, who had been prepared to see a boy of certainly not more than sixteen,, for once entirely lost her pres ence ot mind, and colored deeply as she returned young Chevils' one's graceful bow. She felt that she was positively awkward, that her demeanor was more that of a village girl than of a well-bred young lady. She was angry witu her self accordingly, and the consciousness of her gaucherie did not assist her to look . less gauche. Sydney Chevilstone came to her relief. 'You were singing. Miss Kemp. Pray do not let me disturb you.' 'But, put in the Colonel, have you dined, Mr. Chevilstone?' Oh, yes, before I left town!' 'But your traps?' HJh, your butler is seeing to them. Tbey are being carried to my room.' 'His room!' thought the Colonel. Confound his impudence!' At least you will let us offer you a cup of coT fee?' he said aloud, and rang the bell for a fresh supply of cake. 'With much pleasure.' said the vis itor, 'on condition that I do not disturb Miss Kemp. Oh, my daughter was only singing me a Scotch ballad. I have a foolish partiality lor Scotch airs.' 'Ah, so have I! Miss Kemp was singing Auld Robin Gray, I think I caught the air as I came up stairs,' and he looked with interest al the young lady. Go on then, Vic, since Mr. Chevil stone permits it,' said the Colonel. Victoria hesitated. It seemed, at so early a stage of acquaintanceship, very like being 'trotted out for inspection. But she felt that to be occupied any how was preferable to sitting unem ployed under the searching gaze of the new come's large dark eyes; and with some nervousness a thing very unusual with Victoria she resumed her seat at the piano, and commenced the beautiful and touching ballad. Was it wonderful that, inter preted by such an exquisite contialto voice as that of Victoria Kemp, the sad rtory should go straight to Sydney Chevilstone's heart? Never had the young man iu his Auglo-Indian expe rience had the opportunity of listening to so pure and beautiful a voice. So it was not surprising that Sydney Chevil stone was quite taken by storm aud w hen, at the conclusion of her ballad, Victoria ventured to glauce furtively at him, she was astonished aud gratified to perceive that the tears had actually gathered iu his eyes, and that be was incapable of uttering a single word of thanks. Even the old colonel sighed as he stroked l'syche 's long silky brown ears. Ah,' said he, 'that's something like music? I don't know whether it's out of mv regard for the old Highlanders, but the very name of anything Scotch warms my heart. Kiss your old lather, Vic, darling. You sing like a seraph.' Victoria bent over her father. Shall I sing another, papa dear?' Oh, no I that is pray excuse me! burst in Sydney impulsively; aud then he looked embarrassed. The Colonel and Victoria turned to him in surprise. 'You were going to say something?' said the father. The young man looked more and more confused. After a few moments he stammered out 'Well, I was going to ask Miss Kemp not to sing any more. ' 'Ah,' exclaimed the old soldier, de lighted. 'There's a compliment for you Vic, Mr. Chevilstone thinks as I do; that after that nothing will do. He prefers to retain the impression of Auld Robin. Isn't it so, Mr. Chevilstone?' 'Yes, I confess it is.', returned the visitor, looking at Victoria lu a fashion that made her reel strangely agitated, and cast down her eyes involuntarily. 'How absurd I am!' she said to her self angrily; yet she felt pleased and gratified, as by the compliment to ber singing. 'Was there ever such a charming woman?' thought Chevilstone. A month or six weeks had elapsed, and Sydney Chevilstone had become thoroughly domiciled at the Beeches, Colonel Kemp's seat. Already waa the young Anglo-Indian on such friendly and affectionate terms with his host that they had mauy a laugh over the ambiguous wording of the letter writ ten by the former's father. Indeed the young man habitually called the Colo nel 'guardian,' and the soldier's 'ward' liad to undergo much bandiuage from the visitors to the Beeches, the fact of course being that there was no real guardianship iu question. The whole mistake bad arisen from the Colonel's too hasty Interpretation of the letter by Mr. Chevilstone senior. Vet the veteran could not but cotice that wlieu tiie sub ject was alluded to there was a sort of a sly smile ou the young man's lips, as if there were some secret behind all this that he the Co'oiiel was not a sharer in. It was not long, however, before the owner of the Beeches was enlight ened on this head. As to Victoria Kemp and Sydney Chevilstone, both being young, good looking, intellectual, accomplished, aud of similar tastes, what possible termi nation save one could there be to such an acquaintanceship? ydney Chevil stone and Victoria Kemp were 'over iiead and ears' in love with each other; aud though no explanation ha I yet taken place between them, each was conscious of the truth. It was in the mouth of October. The woods were one mass of brown, purple, copper and gold. The copse bushes bent beneath their weight of nuts, and the pheasant and hare reveled over their banquet ot beech-mast. The gardens were ablaze with scarlet geraniums, China asters, chrysanthemums, and a few late dahlias. Tiie air was pure an. I warm and the sky blue and without a cloud. For a day iu mid October the Colonel and Victoria had planned their last picnic of the year, aud by permission of the Ranger it was to take place iu Windsor Great I'ark. Victoria Kemp understood the art of making a fete champetre go off well. She possessed the tact necessary for amusing a crowd composed ot miscel laneous elements, and people strove to get an invitation to her out-door gath erings. The picnic now on the tapis however, was to bo small and select, and to consist of only fifteen or sixteen very intimate friends of the colonel aud his daughter. For a more exquisite day than it turned out for this their last picnic of the season it would have been impossi ble to wish. The whole of the party was charmed with the success of the undertaking. .Never were there such champagne aud such lobster salads, or such genial master or mistress of the ceremonies as the old colonel an 1 his daughter. So de-dared everybody. lhe eating part of the business was happily concluded; the colonel with one or two of the older men were defying the rheumatism by laying at full length on the grass smoking their cigars, while, as a matter ot course, the younger membjrs of the party had paired off, and were talking all sorts of nonsense in couples. Victoria Kemp and Sydney Chevil stone, walking iu one of tiie beautiful glades of the park, were at a consider able distance from their companions; but they did not appear to be aware of the fact, or if they were, it did not cause them any uneasiness. They were laughingly discussing the mysterious letter of Mr. Chevilstone senior, which had introduced his son to the household of the Kemps, and Vic toria maintained that any one, after perusing it, would have supposed that a little boy, or at any rate a great grow ing lad, was about to be Inflicted on them. Chevilstone smiled, and asked what had been ber own opinion. Well, 1 confess, said Victoria, smiling, 'that I fancied we were to receive a little fellow, aged perhaps some twelve years. So persuaded was I of it that I told the hou-ekeeper to get ready a little room which has never been used since the death of my brother, and which contains a cot, here she glanced merrily at his six-foot figure, that you cou-d not by any possibility have used. Ob, hoi' cried her amused listener. Then how was it I found such a charming domicile awaiting me?' Why, we always keep a spare room ready for any chance arrival aad of course the butler, when he had seen you, had seuse euough to conduct you to the right apartment.' 'Ah, just so! And your father?' 'Oh, papa's idea was that we were to be troubled with a great hobbledehoy w ho would eat enormously, and and 'Well. Mis Kemp, and' Victoria colored, and looked a littlt coirused. 'It was only some of papa's nonsense; and, unless you insist ' I insist,' said he mischievously, looking full into her eyes. 'Well, then, paia thought you might make love to the maids.' Sydney Chevilstone frowned for a moment, and then laughed aloud. '1 am honored, 1 am sure! But listen, victoria.' ThW was the first time he had ever called her by her Christian name, aud though, with instinctive subtlety, she kiiew jierfectly well what was coining, and not too well w hat her reply would be, all her woman's modesty rushed to her aid, and she sjid, as if she had only then become aware of the fact 'What a distance we have strayed from our party, Mr. Chevilstone! Had we not lietter return?' 'Not et, I think,' he answered, in a very tender but firm tone that she felt powerless to resist. However, she made one more effort to escape hearing the words she w ished to hear; so she looked at her watch, and said 'Fast five! We really must return and see the sun set over Woodlands; it is a lovely estate, aud almost adjoins papa's. It is quite a Bite to s:-e the last rays of the sun ou that magnificent range of copper-beeches. The young man smiled a curious smile. 'You admire Woodlands, then, Vic toria?' Again ictoria!' This time the hot blood dyed her cheek and brow. 'Oh, yes, of course I do. anybody would! Its owner died only a year ago, aud paper knew him well. We olteu visited there. It is a most lovely place.' 'You do not know its present owner then?' 'No; he has not yet taken Kssession. All we know is that he is a gentleman who has lived muc'.i abroad. I dare say we shall become acquainted with him some day.' 'I dare say you wilL' 'No doubt he is some crusty old nabob with a worn-out liver, who lives on curries aud mulligatawny soup, aud throws the dishes at the beads of his black servants. No doubt he Is.' Bu'. then, one must be civil to next door neighbors, you know.' Oh, of course. Good breeding en joins that. But I do not fancy the new owner of Woodlands wiil be such an ogre as you imagine, ' 'Why not?' 'l'o-ssibly I have the honor of his acquaintance' Vou?' and Victoria looked up at him with uufeigued surprise. What is there so extraordinary in that?' asked he, laughing. 'You do kuow the owner of Wood lands then!' 'lie stands before you.' Victoria Kemp's surprise was so great she could not utter a word. 'Listen, Victoria, dearest,' said the young man, taking both her hands. Vou aud your father have beeu the victims of a plot.' A plot! exclaimed the young lady; but she did not withdraw her ha .ds. 'Ves, but before I tell you about it, I wish to ask you one question. W e are neither of us chil.ireu. we aie neither of us, I think, likely to express our feelings in mauy worJs. You must have seeu that I love you. Victoria, will you be mv wife?' It was a straightforward wooing In deed! No protesta' ions not a single, unnecessary word! How different fioui the general run or lovers. But Victoria understood the straightforward, manly uaturj of Sydney Chevil-toue; she ad mired his character and she loved him. So he simply answered 'Yes.' He put his arm around her, and kisse 1 her passionately. Uut about the plot, Sydney!' asked Victoria after a bilef interval. 'Oh, yes! Well. then, that letter was concocted expressly to deceive your self and the coloue!.' Oil!' 'Yes, dearest, the medical adviser who recommended me to pass two yean in Eu: ope was 10 other than myself. I was surgeon to the th, as any army list would have shown the colonel had lie consulted it.' 'To think we should have been de ceived.' 'Yes; you fell into tin trap easily. 1! it, you see, this was it. The latu owner of Woodlands, who, as you, know, had neither kith nor kin, was my godfather; aud at his death he be queathed the estate and a large sum of money in the Funds to myself. Of course upou this I determine! to quit the army. Whilst my father and I were making inquiries about my new property, It oozed out that the owner of the adjoingiug estate, the Beeches w is no other than Colonel Ken j), my father's old comrade iu arms.' 'Well, though my father and yours had not seen each other for some years, they bad occasionally corresponded; and so, when my match-making sire heard that Colonel Kemp had an only child a daughter he proposed a very little scheme. It was neither more nor less thau to join the two estates.' 'It was veiy Impertinent!' said Vic toria, trying to appear angry. It was, 1 owe.' 'And 1 have a great mind to retract what I have said,' she a ided with a charming smile. 'Ah, I am not afraid! But listen. Of course my father aud I thought that if I announced myself as a man I should not be received at the Beeches as a permanent inmate, but if we so worded the letter as to leave it in doubt " Yes, yes; you knew that, once our guest, we should not be so rude as to turn you out.' That's just It, And now you will forgive me, Victoria.' For what?' 'For having descended to subterfuge unworthy of a gentleman.' She looked up at him, ber brown eyes full of a tender light. 'It was not the right thing to do,' she said, 'but I am the gainer by it, and so I forgive you, Sydney.' The young man took his pardon from her lips. 'But,' added Victoria, 'I don't knov what papa will say to all of this. 'Bat, after having beard the story of his 'ward.' the colonel came to the con clusion that 'all's well that end's well.' Modesty is the politeness ot conosik NEWS IX 1JUIEF. Charles 1'ats.ms, the retiring Art Editor of the illustrated works of Har per & Brother, filled the position credit ably for twenty years. Fred. 1. Sehell, who succeeds him, recently returned to his home in Philadelphia from a three years' ait career in Sydney, Australia, and a subsequent trip around the world. The German Kuijeror received a novel Faster egg last Faster. It w as of candied sugar and was supported by statuettes in sugar of Prince Bismarck aud Count Moll Ke. l'Hn the egg was a group representing the lnix-iial family (likewise in sugar, coloiedi, while the egg itself contained a music box which played the Prussian national hymn. The l.'i'.'tli anniversary of d'irard's birth, found the noble college founded by his generous Ion thought giving sup jxirt and ediwatiou to a little army ot IJik) orphan boys. That is a grand work, and the It-st of it is that it is to goon pel petu ally. The orphans come aud go, s i that the benefaction is ex tended in the course of years to scores of thousands. A passenger who recently arrived by the Catalonia has wntteu a public letter asking why so much condemna tion is visited ou the tenement house oil land and so little on the same system, aggravated, on shipboard, lie says the Catalonia's de.l.iration provided pen alties for more than S.'.J passengers, whereas he was one of over l.VV aboard. It is no wonder the tjucen is report ed to regard the thieatei.ed visit of the Shall with social and pecuniary pangs. When he was last quartcied in liuck inghaiu (in 1ST:'), it was an open secret that she regarded him and his entour age as a nuisance and a bote, and the London journals afterward stated that it cost thousands of dollars to put Ins suite of apartments iu proper shape upon his departure. The Bank of England is said to be the most extensive banking institution in the world. U employs over l,(jo0 clciks and its buildings cover more than eight acres. Seveial other Inter esting things might le mentioned alKut this famous Institution. For one. it issues no note but once. If a customer were to receive a note at the paying teller's window and immediately hand it in again at the receiving teller's desk, the note would lie at once lelired. There Is a t-hootiiig gallery at the Paris Exhibition vvheie, m a painted J jungle, painted hares, rabbits, and other game (even including foxes:) run about for the iitniis. lurnt of lhe .sportsmen. The other day a gentleman, who had a dog with li i in, t.uik a shot and roiled over a rabbit. At once the dog jumped the barrier and leaped into the jungle to retrieve the painted bm n . The shooting-gallery artist is evWutlya second Zeuxis. .London Globe. The largest diamond as discovered was the Koh-i-noor, or "Mountain of Eight," now In-longing to the 11 ltish crown; when found it weighed nearly StHJ carats, but successive cuttings have reduced Us weight to lU-i carats. The largest diamond now in existence Is the IrlolT, set in the sceptic of the Cz.tr of Russia; it weighs l'.l carats. The King of Portugal possesses a diamond about the genuineness of which there is some doubt; it weighs in the rough l,jSij giams, or 4-0 caiats. A quite singular mairiage has just been brought to light. It was celt hmted in New Yolk c t, Apul .'i i. The con tiacting paities ns.de In Wist Virginia, and the disparity ot their aes, us well as the near relationship existing tie tween them, has c.isione.l no little amusement among their fuends. The bl idegiooin is a wealthy bachelor, who hits seen not less than seventy-live sum mers, while the bride is a handsome blonde of "Jo. The gallant lover Is the great-uncle of his youthful spouse, and his marriage to her makes his wile the aunt of her father, the great-aunt of her sisters and the daughter-in-law of her father's grandfather. Workmen, while digging an exca vation for a cellar on the corner of Giorge and Howe streets, New Haven, unearthed the jx rlect skeleton of a man. "The land ou which the skeleton was tound," says an exchange, "has a iecu liar lustoiy. Yeiirsao it was the site of what was known as the 'Wayside Inn,' kept by Mark Travers. The inn was a opuIar place lor travelers to sleep at, and continued so until about ls20, when a man named Francis Thorn, a traveling jx-dd.er, mystei iniisly disap peared. He was known to have entered there, but was never s en alive after ward by anybody. The lindin of this skeleton may probably clear up a mys tery which at that time was one of the most sensational disa:.peaiances on record. ' ' The audience at the Academy of Music, Brooklyn, were ticated to a real fire scene. I luring the peifoi mance of the "still Alaini," lhe wood work un der the gallery took fire. The city lire department was called in, and a few persons showed a disposition to rush out, but Fireman Coleman dealt one man a powerful blow w ith his list. This had the effect of stopping the rush, which might have n-suded in a panic, 'i he audience watched intently the fireman as they battled with and subdued the flames. The orch. stia played with com mendable, vigor, which imparted con fidence during the excitement. W hen the fire had lieen subdued, the leading actor, addressed the audience, compli menting them on the pluck displayed. Among Washington reli.-s called to notice this y ear is the epitaph of John Curtis, fa' her of Martha Washington's first husband. His wife was a good deal of a Tartar; and so, indeed, was he; but she generally managed to say tho last word in their wrangles. When he died he left orders to his sou, on pain of disinheritance, to put this legend on his tombstone, which was done: "L'nder this marble tomb li.-sth- b.i iv ol the I Hon. John Curtis, Esq., of the city of Williamsburg, parish "f Brutou, foi meily of Hungar's Parish, ou the east ern shore of Virginia, and county of Noithampton, aired 71 years, and y.e lived but seven years, which was tht space of time he kept a bachelor's home at Arlington, on the eastern shore of Virginia " And so he bad the last word. New York Tribune. A YOUNOSTF.it, while handling a big army musket in the streets recently, was promptly arrested aud taken before a magistrate. "Where did you buy this gun?" in quired his Honor. "Fidn't buy it," returned the young ster, rattier sulkily. t Where did you get it, then?" "What, the gun?" "Y'esl" "Why, that has been in onr famllj vex since it was a little pbtoL" SLx lllAnthaJ nnnrrn' i.'i. iii'.iil'r.tirfi
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