rpsis UK Y B. F. BOHWEIER, THE OONSTITUTION-TH E UNION-AND THE .ENFOROEMENT OF THE LAWS. Editor and Proprietor. VOL. XLT. MIFFLINTOWJS, JUNIATA COUNTY. PENNA.! "WEDNESDAY. MARCH 4. 1891. NO. 11. 11 IX CIU KCIL 1 .u.l.lcii ibifling liut that paints Yoar dead white brow and dtad gold hah Couks ftwa tQe T3'x ot glldd The pupi.t iu th window there. That wuUh and kevp you free from harm. So the iburth teucbes you to say ; But ill the trite could scarcely chartn Your uJIouj tihteousuess away. (netthou!J you know of love and bate? Yoa are like one of those who bore full lamp at watch t.:ne, fain to wait Till ChrUt should piill lUffl through th door. Will sat:ilcd Slid well content, You ice s,iiic n 1th their lamps gone out, Luc!. toru aud jrurmeiits frayed and rout, AuJ take much joy of it, no doubt. lio, wauh and proy ; to-morrow's aun ilav rlii J not your swttt Ilinbs ailv Aud glad for niny a soul undone. Go. watch and pray '. your soul shall ibme; And he that fed dve thousand, he, With loiue n-. ii iL-hes and two loavea, Miail kh-s your dps aud bid you see The lust wail pa.-l Li huddling drove. Could men Iotp youf Men draw nlh To Psphos and the Cypriaa Are Where Venus stood like death ou high Beyond man's love and Clan's desire; For huinr-u eyes learn women's ways. And lingers touch a woman's hair. But youl the window's purple haze Lucrowus you Venus lu its lare Yet once one undtrnood you well With all your m.tic, body and soul, Whote heart you found a thing to sell. Whose cure became an aureole Around your brows. Oh sterile saint, The girls that walk the lampllt way With drawled charms of gauds and paint - kiiali mock you some time. Watch and prayl vr. j. b. Backfronitlie Dead "Tell u how your hair turned white," said C0 of the party at the the?ide. In June, 1S31, srdd the man with the white hair, I left my home in Buffalo, bting in a hurry to return, I took pas sage by the steamer G. P. Griffith for Toledo, late on Sunday afternoon The ship carried over four hundred passengers and crew. I must have slept soundly for about two hours in my berth, when I was awakened by the sound of hurrying footsteps over head, and, looking through the ventil ator to the upper deck, I saw two or three sailors running along dragging a hose-pipc. I partly dres'ed and went forward to the promenade deck, where I heard from the pilot-house above, the voice of the captain crying, "Star board? Hard starboard? and eteerfor the shore I" The ship veerod from hex course and headed for the shore, five miles away, i went back to my stateroom, awakened the man in the other berth, and rapped on several of the doors. As I came out again into the cabin I saw smoke curling out from the aide. The command had been given to call np the passengers, and when I again reached the forward deck they were crowding upon it. Just aroused from sleep, they hurried out half dressed or in their night-clothes, many carrying children, bandboxes, cages, carpet-bags and bundles, all anxious to save some thing. I climbed up on the railing, aud. taking hold of a stanchion, swung myself to the main deck below. Step ping over the forms of many who were lying there still asleep, I went around to the engine, and, looking up, taw that the tire had broken out near the smokestack lit a spot so difficult to get at that in all probably the ship was doomed. Hurrying back to the main deck, upon which the crowd was fast increas ing, I removed ali my clothing but my night-shirt and drawers. Taking my money and valuables, I rolled them up with my trousers, and laid them care fully away on deck, where I might re cover them if the ship should escape destruction. Climbing up on the raft near the gang-plank, 1 held on until Ij the frantic crowd, pressing forward, gunwale to near the wheel on the laud aide, where 1 clung and watched the crowd as they surged forward from the approacliing flames. . There was scarcely a scream heard. As the flames drove them further and further forward whole columns of people were pushed into the water. Husbands caught their wives and child ren, and throwing them overboard, Jumped after them. Women with babet in their arms went about piteously begging some one to save their children, aud when they were pushed or Jumped into the water held their infanta high above their heads. After they were drowned their quilted skirts buoyed them up, aud I saw babies actually try ing with their little hands to catch the dancing light of the flames iu the water. The ship grounded at daybreak In about ten foet of water, a little more than half a mile from the shore. The water all about the forward part of her was full of drowned and drowning people. Many good swimmers struck out for the shore, but from all sides the poor drowning wretches would clutch them aud drag them down. The flames drove mo off at last. In the water beneath me was a struggling crowd of drowning croaturos clinging to each other. Suddenly a space of about twenty feet cleared instantly by their sinking out of sight. I deter mined to Jump, swim toward the stern of the boat until out of the reach of the clutches of the drowning, and thon make a detour for tlio shore. Remem bering how I used to jump into the water as a boy, when learning to swim, I put my feet closely together, arms straight by my s'ide, and plunged down like a wedge to the bottom, with my eyes wide open. For a brief second I saw lying on the bed of the lake heaps of dead bodies in all positions. On rising to the surface I struck out with my arms, but to my horror found my foet bound tightly together. The band of mv drawers had burst, and slipping dofra, Lad bound my ankles as securely as if tied. Turning on my back, I care fully disentangled them from each foot. Thee efforts greatly exhausted me, but, once free, I swam toward tna atnfn T . w i - uuui x was quite ciesr ot an LX obstructions, and then struck out for I the shorn n. : passed tne, and spoke some encourag IPX words. I saw others who must have become dazed, swimming bacfr into the lake. I was an experienced swimmer, but I had passed, as I judged, nearly half the distance to the shore wnen a death like coldues9 and numbness came creeping over me. All the life I had left seemed centred iu mv head, which felt like a ball of fire. I fouud that 1 was turning round and round in the water, now catching glimpses of the burning ship, to which even yet a few human beings were clinging, and now on the beach. Could I ever reach it't ft ea it worth while to struggle any longer? Every movement caused in tense paiu in my chest and lung9. I 'nmd an ev fo die now. I ceased all efforts, and raised my eyes for a last look at the skv. I was 6U uck by a peculiar goldeu haze of the atmosphere, and the air seemed filled with human forms hovering over the drowning. The air was tilled with them, and close beside me I recognized my father, brother, and other friends who had died many years before. They called me by my name. They pressed closely around me, telling me to strugglem and they would aid me that my work was not done that I could not be spared yet. A little strength came bark to me. I remembered that I must be more than half way to the shore. The water could not be over five feet deep. I let myself down and felt the sand under me. Aided by my spirit f rieudB, whose hands and presence were as real to me as any human touch, I crept on my hands and knees on the sand for some distance, rising often to breathe. Be coming too weak for tliis, with my heavy head constantly falling back ward, I sank to the bottom, and drew my body with my arms nearer aud nearer to the shore, rising to the sur face as often as necessary. A man was lying on the beach, one of the few who ever reached it. "Vheu he saw me feebly struggling he crept down to the water's edge, and, reaching out his hands, tried to aid me. I slowly crept np a little way out of the water, but he was so weak that, falling backward, I would lose my hold and sink again. At last I was lying on tho dry sand. How good it seemed to lie there, if only 1 never need move again. My companion spoke roughly yet kindly to me, telling me it was sure death to remain there. I refused to move, but, being much stronger, he compelled mo to get up, and, half supporting me in his arms, dragged me unwillingly along. A farmer met us, and almost earned ma across the Acids to a low two-roomed log cabin. In the smaller room, containing two beds, I was at last permitted to lie down. The leng, black neck of a bottle was in serted between my lips, and I drank and drank until it was gently removed. The draught warmed me. I alternated between consciousness, and unconsciousness, but remembered much that passed about ma. A large man with a tall hat, black satin vest, and heavy gold chain, came in and lay down on the other bed. lie certainly had not been in the water, and I won dered if he had been saved in a boat. A man in the next room was exclaim ing mournfully: "Mine Gottl Mine GoUt Mine monish la all gone. Mine monish is all gone. Mine wife is gone, mine son is gone. O mine Gott, my mouish is all gone!" Again and again that mournful wall went up. Then I heard tho tall man call out wrathfully: "Won't some one kill that blasted Dutchman?" Then I dozed off again. When 1 awoke more people were coming in, bearing a woman, aud they were say ing she was the only woman saved. I heard them say that eight men swam ashore, aud twenty were saved in a boat. Only twenty-eight saved out of over four hundred I Toward evening they put us all in a heavy lumber wag on, on beds of straw, to take us, they said, to "Lloyd's Tavern, seven miles away." Jolting along over a rough road, the pain in my chest and limbs became unbearable, and I remembered nothing more. Days afterward I awoke from what seemed a long sleep. I found myself lying on a bed In a strange room alone. Tne sound of voices came lu through the open window and from the halls, where people were constantly passing to aud fro. They were talking of a great disaster, of dead bodies lying in heaps on the sand waiting to be claimed, aud others being buried in a trench. There was something about county lines, of coroners quarrelling over fees, of thieves In boats at night stripping the drowned bodies and tear ing rings from fingers and ears. Those monotonous voices were forever talking about that one thing. Well, what If they are dead? The dead were at rest. What had I to do with that shipwreck? Why did not some one come to me? What was I doing here in tlds strange room? Why was I so stiff and sore, so full of pain, so weak I could not move? I fell asleep agaiD, and when I awoke till the voices were talking about poor drowned bodies, thieves, coroners and boats ; and then came a dim recollec tion that I had known something about that shipwreck. It all came back to me clear and distinct. Soon afterward a man came with broth and nourishing food, of which I ate with a relish, while ho answered my questions. This was Saturday, and I had left Buffalo on the Sunday preceding. Lloyd's Tavern was fifteen miles from the city of Cleve land. I must get up. How could I lie here? I must get into the air. I must get homo. Home? Why, at home doubtless they mourned mo as dead. I had beeu dead for days to them. I begged the man to bring me some clothes. He brought me some old garments much too large for me, with an old black slouched hat, and helped me to dress, for I was too weak to stand alone. He then placed me in a casv-chair, and told me to rest awhile. At length, feeling rested and stronger, I arose and moved slowly across the room toward the open door. I saw a gray-headed old man coming toward me, poorly dressed, with an old hat in his hand, and a stubby beard on his face. I thought perhaps he was one of the shipwrecked. I spoke to him kindlv, but he did not reply and still advanced. I stopped; ho stopped also. We stared at each other. I spoke again. His Us moved, but not a sound left them. I drew for ward ft chair and i 49wn, He sat down also, staring half f earfullj at tne. Great God I was that myself? That white hair could it be mine? No, it was a wig. Some one was playing a joke upon me. I put up my hand No, it would not come off. 1 went back and lay down upon my bed, very weak, utterly disheartened. Later I was driven slowly down to the beach, aud I saw all that was left of the steamer a few blackened spars, aud the charred bull. Many people were examining, either from curiosity or for identification, the bodies as they were brought in. There was a long trench in the sand, in which were placed those not identified. It ap peared that the steamer had been wrecked ou a couuty line, aud two coroners were there quarrelling over the bodies, and claiming their fees. My friend helped ma out of the wagon, and seated me ou a rock close by a mo9t forlorn and unkempt fig ure I must have presented. Two men stood near where I sat, and one of them spoke of having received another telegram from Cleveland Inquiring if the body of the man K. had beeu found. A cold chill ran down my back. Producing the telegram, he read the description : Twonty-ehjht years of age, five fret nine Inches in height, weinht about one hundred KM! sixty pounds, fair skin, blue eye, black hair, small hands and feet, mole en left (Moulder. Has the body been found Have It properly prepared for burial, aud send U 11., Cleveland. I was "K," and they were hunting for my body to prepare it for burial! My friend came back Just then, and I begged to be taken to the hotel at once. I must start for home, I said, as soon as possible. Arriving at the house, I saw a carriage and horse stand ing before the door. Four gentleman came out and agreed to take me with them. I learned from their conversation .hat my companion had been sent out from Cleveland to identify the dead and find the living. Each related in cidents connected with the search. They spoke of being out in boats, some times all night, dragging for bodies, of seeing the thieves at their villanous work, of the disgraceful quarrelling of the coroners, and of the discomforts of camping out. At length one of the gentlemen said he regretted going back with no news of the young man K., whose friends were so anxious about him. "I half believe," said he, "that he was not on the boat at all. We have seen everybody, dead or alive, who has been found, and no one answering 'bis description is discovered." "Where is his description?" asked another. "I have it. Xb, not hare. I re member, I gave it to the coroners. He was, as I recollect the description, a man about twenty-eight, fair skin, blue eyes and black hair. It is hard to go back with no information. By way, stranger, did you see any one answering that description?" "Would yoa be willing to take the body without preparation for burial? I asked. "Why, of course. Any way we could get it." "Well, then," said I, "drop me at n.'s house." A shout went up from the carriage. A few days later, after having en- oyed the delightful experience of eing kissed, cried over, and wel comed back from the dead, I lighted a cigar, seated myself comfortably, and had the novel experience of reading my own obituary, and a good orthodox obituary it was, too. In Emperor's Stniieut Day. During his school career the German emperor was a model of the studious German youth. He took his place as a common pupil in the public school at Cassel, and studied and played with tho other scholars. At the final exam ination he was, indeed, only tenth on the list; but when he was two years vounger than bis mates, and was right ly considered to have done so well that his tutor was immediately knight ed. There is no cramming system in Germany; he passed without aid or favor. At the University of Bonn I have sat on the same benches with him, and seen him with his little note book, writing down, like a hard worked re porter, nearly all the professor uttered in his lectures on the great German authors or on the genius of Shake speare. The prinoe was also anxious to study subjects not just then in the curriculum, and for these the profes sor attended at his own apartments. By the professors the prince was treated with au almost servile adula tion, and be won their esteem and love. He bad them all in turn to dinner at his rooms in a villa which overhung the Rhine, with the honeysuckle, clem atis and Virginia creepers reaching over and down the garden walls almost to the water's edge. Tha queen sent him out from Eng land a splendid boat costing nearly two hundred pounds, but be used it very little, and it generally lay moored by the bank below his garden, idly rock ing in the ripple of the Rhine. But he took part heartily iu all the amuse ments common among German stu dents, namely, beer-drinking, duelling, torchlight processions, carnage driv ing, bathing and, in winter, sledging. I do not think he ever fought a real duel, but he mingled freely with the duellers, and in knelpen drinking bouts and torchlight serenades, sip ping and sitting with the tippers of light German beer till late into the night. Prepared. "Harry," exclaimed the blushing Laura, "this declaration is so sudden thst I that that I hardly know what to say. I was unprepared for it. II unnerves me." "I was afraid it might," said the vonng druggist rising with alacrity from his knees, "and I brought along a bottlo of my unrivalled nerve anodvne. This preparation, darlintr," ho added, soothingly, as he took a bottlo from his pocket, quickly ex tracted tho cork, and poured a quantity of the medicine into a spoon he had also brought along, "will allay any undue excitement, quiet the nerves and digestiou, and restore lost appetite. I sell it at sixty cents a bottle. This il the dose for an adult. Take it, dear est. Chicago Tribune. Toon was the son of port. THE LONDON COSTERMONGER. A Rough-and-Ready Character of thi British Metropolis. The London costermonger generally wears a fixed kind of dress. His hat is always a black derby, rusty from rain and weather. Hia coat is generally a rusty black frock. He rarely wean a waistcoat. His trousers may be cordu i roy or any kind of the cheaper wooleu I patterns. His shoes are thick soled and j hobnailed. He always wears a colored i handkerchief tied around his neck In ! place of a collar. These handkerchiefs ! are always dirty, except upon rare Sun- day and holiday occasions, when new , ties are donned. These handkerchiefs are always of a fanciful color, lUht blue and red being the favorites. They are worn high up on the neck, leaving a couple of inches of dirty neck showing between the handkerchief and the greasy collar of the shambling frock coat. The handkerchief Is really the badge of the order. This handkerchief about the neck designates the character and standing of a man In England as completely and thoroughly as if he wore a uniform prescribed by net of Parlia ment. The costermongers are men en raged in street traffic ot all kinds. Tliey are generally dealers in vegetables. J hey begin with push-carts, and if they ire prosperous and reach the climax of their ambition they become the owners of small two-wheeled wagons, drawn by little donkeys or ponies. The itrength and endurance of these small animals are phenomenal, I have seen !rom six to eight grown people on a cos lermongtr's cart being drawn at a fuii sua pace by a pony not much larger hau a good Newfoundland dog. The costermoncer never gives his ony any rest. He works him durlug die week in hia business and uses the wretched little animal on Sunday to rive his friends a treat in the shape of a ride to soue cockney resort In the mburbs. The cobtermongers live in ;he street. They are never indoors ex sept for eating aud bleeping. A very levere, driving storm will sometimes 'ovc. thetu into the bouse, but they (f n rally take refuge under an awuituf or tome gateway. They are hardy, tough, loarse-iibred people. They are noisy tnd have a perfect passion for scenes of uproar and excitement. You rarely lear of costermongers murdering any )f their associates or of their using cnives or pistols in their quarrels. They lave a way of pounding aud kickiug each oteer when engaged in a dispute, 3ut are rarely arrested, as they nevet teem to carry malice, and their fights generally wind up in a good-natured ay. The costermonger aud his female ire very often the chief actors in a treet brawl. When ouce a coster aaouger has begun to keep company a-ith a costermoneer female, then she U ionsidered his property. She speaks ot Jim as her man aud she is spoken of ai lis "gal." I saw a dispute the other lay letween the costermonger and his iweetheart which was fairly illustrative f their method of settling disyuttg iu lubllc. It was Sunday morning. The two sad started out evidently for a holiday, lie was in his best. He was a surly, aeavy-Jawed fellow with black eyes, a ihort nose and brawnys hairy fists. He s ore a little black derby hat about three azes too small for his great round head, (lis handkerchief was the light :t of iky-blues. She was buxom, burly, of xiedium height, dressed in true coster nonger style. Their dispute grew out f a difference of opinion as to where .bey should spend the day. She insist id on going one way and he the other. 1'hey disputed for half a moment, and ;heu he turned around and gave her a lick which lifted her about six Inches torn the sidewalk, to convince her that lis way was the best. She turned mlckly and began kicking him lu re .urn. The way she brought her num er ten boots around against bis shins rery soon convinced him that she was it rung at that kind of argument as he. They kicked at each oih r for about five ninutes, tho centre of a delighted and sheering crowd, and then the coster tionger female by her skill in kicking lurried the day. Iu a moment or two note he gave up, grinned good natur ally, aud the two walked off together for a luippy Sabbath. The way domestic brawls are carried n in the streets of Loudon cannot be liatehcrt, I am certain, in any other :ity in the world. T he common people ft'ho w alk the streets regard these quar rels as their own private theatricals, and iternly resent any interference of the Klice. As a general thing the police lo tiOt touch the braw lers, unless they nake too much of a diatuibar.ee, and lock up the streets. The police then limply order them to move on, and uake arrests only where the disturbing arty resists. During my stay in Lou Ion I have seen more street flguta than . had ever before seen in my lite. Tne ictors in these street fights or domestic sniwls appear to take great pride in the jaits which they are called upon to )lay. They are stimulated by the sheers aud roars ot approval from the tudience, and do their best to maintain .heir repuuitlon for courage, ferosity, ind skill in retort. Tbe women are ea jecially exciteable and active in a street igbt. The men generally looK sulky uid sheepish when engaged iu a fight ith his female in public. But the wo neu never give them a chance to back lut. They arc much more vindict.ve ind active than the men. After the nan has been kicked three or four limes ind has had his face scratched up to a )roper btate of rawness, he becomes ex sited and strikes out brutally and iruelly, unless a policeman happens to e too near. The women are generally :he victors in these streets fighis. The ighting women generally have babies u their hiuis. I have seen a number )f costermonger virugos bounding from die ground like hyena?, rushing up and lowu with great leaps, howling insults tud epithets, then sweeping down to wards tbe haled object of their wrath 'or a blow or a kick, and when the mail itrikes out the baby never seems to be esarded as anything more than a but er. The costermonger female uses her )aby as a shield. The poor, wretched )aby is generally a philosopher and urely, if ever, howls or crie. I have lever beard a cornionger baby even jeep during the mostexcitiuj lasesof i street fight, although tbe ui?luer may e howling like a panther in her rago ind excitemeut. BULb-KROGS AND SNAILS. fwo Profitable Additions to the Pro duct of American Farm. There are two new additions to the i.-t ot profitable products of the farm. hich promise to find employment for nany farmers who have the requisite 'acilities. Thef 3 are due lo for-.ig.. vo--.ions and tastes m ported chiefly frcm Fiance and Germany . 'oijg with the aumerous adopted citizens who hail rom those European aboxfts. Ona iai tbe grenouUle, so called by the French who esteem it as a choice article fo Abe exercise of culinary skill. It Is not served up at the first hotels and res'ji-j rants in the larjre cities, New Yorl .especially, and appears in the marke" as a regular article ot sale. The ani mal Is eas.lT bred and reared, and feedi .itself aud thrives most abundantly it marshes. Tiio ether Is called tacargot and is used for making stews and soups but is eaten also boiled and roasted This animal la also easily reared, ant lequires no feeding, but does Lettei when a pasture is provided for it Known in common parlance, tbe fhs as the frog and the other as the snail these readily acclimated animals havi never uutd now been considered as oi any value, but no doubt hereafter wil furnish epecial business here, as the have done for many years In Europe to thou?audsot farmer The French frog farm is much llki ono of our cranberry meadows a ewarrj laid out iu broad ditches with grass banks between them. We . remembei years ago passing one of these farms is the vicinity ot a large French city in the early fvru'.ng, and being drawn tc notice it by' the deafening music frorc the thousands ot fat fellows sitting is the damp grass and -now and then splashing into the ditches and continu ing to sing their lays as they protruded their snouts just abova tbe surface oj the water. These frogs were a special breed, Itenarsrulevt by name, but dif fer.ng very little from our handsome, alender spec! men found in marshes, aud having bright green and brown spotted sku. Our common bullfrog ii Said to be quite as delicate In flavor, aud more acceptable in point of meat, than the esculent species of Europe, aud as the natural stock of them is IaA dbpearing before the nets of the hunter thousands are now imported from Canada for the supply of the Xew York market. Consequently the time has come for the skilled culture of them in counection with other ajuatio products, as brook trout, carp, bass, aud oilier fish, or water cress, which can" be grown conjunctively, and are Very proli table. The esculent snail Is of various kinds; one inha its damp meadows and is fed upon lettuce. Indeed, there art several varieties of these, judging from the character of their shells, which in lmbij fresh water, or rather tbe banks of fresh water streams, and tbe low greasy meadows adjoining. At least one kind is a denizen of the salt water, and is found in the mud of tidal, estuaries, aud as the "periwinkle," is largely consumed by Europeaus and even by the English people. This latter species is boded in salt water, and a3 the small, spii al -shaped animal is drawn from Its shell usually by means of a strong pin, the common name of it is the "piupatch." An tacarame Is quite a well conducted establishment in France, and is always surrounded by a ciose, cate fence to keep the stock from wandering abroad and getting lost. ;t Is commonly sown with clover, lettuce, rai, and other tender herb age, upon which the snails feed, and il laid out with narrow paths for ease in gathering tbe daily supply which is seal lu market. Cooking by Electricity. Resistance cons of platinum or Ger man silver wire have been used for ex perimeutal cooking. The currents used have been of constant direction, and the coils traversed by the currents must needs be in or In close proximity to the substance to be cooked. Further, the surface exposed by a coil taking up considerable room is small, and the amount of heat radiated aud conducted from tbe wire if not nearly red hot will not be large. Cooking by electricity has not come into use as yet; tbe use ot alternating currents offers a solution to the problem. A large electro magnet of great self Induction Is constantly in circuit. The loss ot current tbroncb this coil as loDg as metal ! not brought near it is too small to be measure!. It beiug desired to cxK flapjacks, an iron spider is placed over the poles of the electro magnet. Tbe rapid reversals ot current in tbe coil induce cuirentsiu the - iron spider, which Is thereby heated. For heating liquids, a copper vessel is preferable where it can be used on account of its greater conduc tivity. The metal in wb icb or on which tbe Ci king is doue need not touch the magnet. Indeed, a lessened heating effect is obtained by separating the 1;sh from the electro magnet. A description Is given in Engineering of the new copper I'no alloy just intro duced In London, and which, it la claimed, possesses properties as those ot bronze are to gua metal. The specitio advantages presented by this metal are cuielly great strength and tour!ines!, and capacity for being rolled, forged and drawn. It can be made as hard as steel, and when melted is very liquid, producing sound castings of close Que grain, and the color caO be varied from that of yellow brass to rich gun metal, the surface taking a fine polish, ami, when exposed to tbe air. tarnishing less than brass. When cast in sand tbe metal has a breaking strain of twenty-one to twenty-two tons per squara ino i; when rolled or forged hot into reds tbe breaking strain is found to be forty-three tons per square inch. 171 fact Is now recognized by all architects rit the stability of a build ing under Cue Influence of fire depends largely upon keeping the floors from giving way a matter e.isdy attained when they are of iron and pugging, but requiring special precautions when tbt'y are made of combustible materials. A practice is now being re3orled to, toaconslderabeextent by French build ers, of protecting floors by placing upon them a half inch layer asphalt over an Itch ot argillaceous earth, botn at top and bottom. A hiyer of plaster of Paris, fine concrete, cement or c'. it, three or four millimetres (9.11 to 0.i3 ino)1) thick, ora paving of tiles, permits of waiting for assistance, by preventing the air from coming iu contact w.th the wood aiid thus maintaining combus tion. The purest lard oil la said to be thut wlilcn Is manufactured by submitting solid leaf lard to great pressure during the o.Idest period of winter. Oil of this quality Is used for b'.-i ulug Iu small mechanical lamps. It elves a br'giit flame and does not incrust the wick. To mcreao the quantity of nitrogen which Is given off us ampiU U'iriiig the destructive dist'.ilMilco cf 8b?.! for tht roanurctue of ftiiji. Dr. Urinhsrt mixes with the h.-' before iLirouuciui it into tho rsstorts anu u kaii or a! 4. lino ear.b end thus rrcsittates the cum blca'.ion ot tbe by2roa with tho mitogen. The Great Congo Forest. While in England considering the best routes open to the Xyanza f Albert) , writes the explorer, Stanley, thought I was very liberal in allowing myself two weeks' march to cross the forest region lying between the Congo and the Grass Land, but you may imagine our feelings when month after mouth saw as marching, tearing, ploughing, cut ting through that same continuous forest. It took us 160 days before ire! could say, "Thank God, we are out of the darkness at last." Take a thick Scottish copse dripping with rain; imagine this copse to be a mere undergrowth, nourished under the impenetrable shade of ancient trees ranging from 100 to 180 feet high; briers and thorns abundant; lazy creeks, meandering through the depths of the jungle, and sometimes a deep affluent of i great river. Imagine this forest and jungle in all stages of decay, and growth old trees falling, leaning perilously over, fallen pros trate; ants and insects ot all kinds, sizes, and colors, murmuring around; monkeys and chimpanzees above, queer noises of birds and animals, crashes in the Jungle as troops of elephants rush away; dwarfs with poisoned arrows securely hidden behind some buttress or in some dark recess; strong, brown-bodied abori gines with terribly sharp spears, standing poised, still as dead etumps; rain pattering down on you every other day in the year; an impure atmosphere, with its dread conse quences, fever and dysentery ; gloom throughout the day, and darkness almost palpable throughout tho night ; and then, if you will imngiue such a forest extending the entire distance from Plymouth to Peterhead, you will havo a fair idea of some of tho inconveniences endured by us from June 28 to December 5, 1887, and from Juno 1, 1838, to the present date, to continue again from the present date till about December 10, 1883, when I hope to pay a last farewell to the Congo forest. "Think of the broad Congo, varying from one to sixteen miles wide, which has a stretch of 1,400 miles, supplying another im measurable quantity of moisture to bo distilled into rain and mist and dew over tliis insatiable fore?t, and then another COO miles of tho Aruwimi or Ituri itself, and then you will cease to woudcr that there arc about ouo hun dred and fifty days of rain cverv year In this rcgiou, and that tho Coiijja forest covers such a wide area. Laura DrUgmaa's Occupations. Many ladies learned the finger alpha bet simply to be ublc to talk with her, and sho wrote and received many let ters. Her room had a window faciug south, and she often headed her letters "Sunny Home." She took pleasure in arranging her room and read a great deal. You know that quite a number ot books havo been printed in raised letters for the blind. The letters must be large and arc printed on one side of the page only. It takes sii-tce:i largo volumes to print tho Bible in this way. Most blind persons cultirato one finger for reading until it is very sensitive mA rjn fftfll thn pttnrn vm-v rflnidK- ! but, of course not so rapidly as we uun read with our eyes. Miss Bridgman became qulto an author, too. Almost from the time she learned to write she began to keep daily journals. Those she wrote dur ing her first five years in Boston form quite a large pack, and are full of many interesting things. She recorded all her little daily doings, and in going through them from the earlict to the latest entries you can see how sho gradually used more and mc:o words, and began to use capitals, anil wrote more clearly. She had aUo written a few poems. These have no rhyme, of course, because that depends on the sound. What she says in her poems is iu great part taken or imitated from the Bible. Her spare time wns devoted to knit ting, sewing, crocheting lace and nirts, and talking. I have a very pretty crocheted mat which she made in one evening. Though her lifo was generally a peaceful and happy one, it had also its severe trials. Several of her teachers to whom she was much attached died ; her closest tie witli the world was al ways her constant teacher and com panion, who was eyes, cars, and tongue for her. Her teachers natural ly learned to sympathize with her condi tion more than others could, and the loss of ono of these dear friends was a great affliction. She even had to en dure the loss of her benefactor, Dr. Howe. He had lived to see her grow up into what he had hoped sho might become when he took her from her home in Hanover. His death occurred lu 1876, aud affected Miss Bridgman so seriously that she was very ill and weak for a long time afterward. So she lived her quiet life, so the days grew into months, and the months into years aud so, also, quietly and peacefully lie passed away on the !4th of May, i689. Laura Bridgman'a days of darkness are over. Mauy, many persons will for a long timo to come think of her, and will often speak of the patience she showed in her affliction and the earnestness with wldch she labored to make the most of her life. St. Nicho las. Orange Culture. The proviuco of Palermo is the great orange district of Sicily. Frequently the fruit when gathered is allowed to sweat in the groves from two to thrca days, piled on the ground and covered wills tarpaulins. It is then wrapped iu tissue paper, boxed up and sent to the city. Fruit is also sent directly from tho groves. All fruit, upon reaching tho exporter's warehouse, is carefullv inspected and selected, wrapped in fresh tissue paper and re packed. Exporters ship their oranges as soon as packed. During the shipping season largo firms in Messina employ as many as 300 women and girls, paying them 20 to 25 cents a day, nine hours' work. The women select and wrap up tho fruit. Men arc employed to pack tho fruit and handlo the boxes; they get from 40 to f0 cents a day. Tho s'tevo lores handle the boxes with care. The steamers give all possible vcntihi lion to the fiuit during the voyage. Fruit possessing tho greatest keeping qualities is sent in sailing vessels to tlut United State. THINK FOR YOURSELF. How Yonnjr Men Cu Achieve Boo ccsa lu Their Chosen Calling. Earnest, Independent thought on ttai part ot any boy or oung man who bai set out to make u mechanic of himset will certainly bring him bothknowltdgi and skill in his chosen calling. We hear or see statements evervlltth whiie tbat, as machine shops gradually grow 11110 manuiucturing concerns, tin woik is systematized until there is nothing but routine in the diffeieni classes of voik. and a boy apprenticed to one ot thei-e establishments "gets ut 6liow" iu the shop, and is "no good' wiien His llu e ts out. That a graduate from, say, a stearr pu'jap shop, going to any other shop do ing a ditierent class of work, must Work for small wages in order to "hold a job," because he can not take hold oi v ork as it comes along and do it in-ttilij-'eiitly. He is pictured as being Eiut out of the shop to make re pain upon a steam engine, or line up a shaft in a brewery, or to fix na hydraulic elevator that is on a strike. A.ter wasting an hour or two 01 time, he admits that he is "stuck," and goes crestfallen back to tho shop, taking this me--sage to the foreman: "Send up a machinist next time." And then the parties get their work done at some other shop, and refuse tc pay for what our pump man has done, because he did not kuow what he wai about. He actually caused damage by hi ignorance. Why is this? He might have been a good man in a pump shop, but fails immediately on attempting trinting press or sewing machine work. He has learned to turn and bore, tc plane and slot, to chip, file aud scrape, but lie fails when asked to perform any Oi these op-ration ou any thu g except a steam pump. Is it because he has not learned to do these things well, ot because he did not ue his brains while learning to use his hands? iiacu ne shops are aUays overrun with applicants for apprenticeship. But nme-teuths of the applicants for places never think of anything beyond getting into the shop. Of their own fitness tor the u.a biuists' trade they never in quire into. They expect to work tlnee years for a littie less pay tlian they could gtt shoveling, and then blossom at once into a first-class, well-paid ma chinist, wilh no particular mental efioit on their part. The result is easy to see. We see it every day in the army of workmen who can do only the com monest work, and oftentimes In only a single branch of the trade of which they C8'' themselves masters. This, I claim, is from want of thought on the part of the boy or man himself. The steam-pump man, if he has mas teied the trade as far as taught in the Bteam-pump shop, has mastered the principles upon which the steam-pump operates, aud is a competent man to Btsud out to repair a gas engine or a printing press. But this he cau not do without thought, and thought is but another name for study. The study I hat it takes to master the principles of the steam-pump will incidentally bring knowledge of other machinery that can not fad to be of use some time. A boy once taught the habit of indi vidual thinking about his work, a place in the front rank ot mechanics is sure to be his. Thought wlil give him con fidence and skill, and with these two elements in his mechanical make-up he will prove a valuable man anywhere bo is employed, whether they build saw-mill machinery or machine tools to build saw-mill machinery with. In an account of some experiments on the effect of friction between Various substances, a writer shows that tho beat produced, other conditions teing equal, is In proportion to the hardiness of tbe substances, and, on the other band, tbe greater the diffeience In the bardiuesa of two materials rubbing egalnst each other, the less tbe beat produced by the friction and thebatdi-r or the tweheatsmorethantheothfr. In the relation of these facts to the compo sition of bearings. It Is remarked that tbe alloys of copper and tin In general u-e are rarely homogeneous, with the exception of that which com airs eichty two to eighty-three parts of copper to Feveuteen or eighteen of tin; if there 1 less tin in tie composition, granula tion tares pliice during cooling, which alters the homogeneousness of the alloy and causes the cutting of both bearing and arbor. A good bearing should have its shell very hard and durable, its Interior being filled up with a softer composition. ' yieronauftej has ot late received a Stimulus through the unveiling ot the statue to tbe brothers MoDtgolCer at Anuonay on the occasion ot the cen tensiy of commemorating the invention of baloons. Navigation of the rir does not look so very improbable as electric lighting did a few years ago, and men of considerable mechanical ability and scientific eminence are even now earn estly devoting themselves to tbe task of making the air a practical means of communication. As one scholar and mathematician remarked; "if it can be done, It will be done soon." it Is said that a brilliant lack may be produced ou Iron f.nd steel by ap plying with a fiue, brush a mixture of turpentine and sulphur, boiled together. Whf n the turpentine evaporates there remains on the metal a thin layer ot sulphur, which unites closely with the imn when heated tor a time over a spirit or gas flame. 7he President of the French Meteor o'ogical bureau, M. Mangon reports that 63 per ceDt. of the weather lore casts made by the Bureau have proved good. Of 2o7 tempest warnings sent to seaports. 100 have been fulfll'ed en tirely, 05 partly and 42 not at all. Mr. Ervesl Giles, the explorer, con templates organizing a grand final ex pedition to tiaverse the remaining un explored portions of the Australian continent, and to endeavor to discover acme moie trust worthy traces of Lcic Lardt. Ti Engineering Hevltvo says that the frequeut use of the indicator for determining the amount ot power con sumed In driving shafting Is of gieat va ue. From not less than 30 to SO per cent, of the power of tbe engine il ordinarily used for this purpose. Gntrbira, tl e Russian Czar's homo, contains 700 rooms. In France the 1 arsrupt man is not al lowed to Eeive on the jury. Tlier are neaily 15,000 school teach ers n rennsylvaii'a. T'i poinigs of a sovereign costs the Fng'l.-h miut three-quarters cf a penny. A rubber hiyrr sandwiched la the sole of the shoe is said to prevail wet feel KEW3I?ri;iltEr. The ascisnt Gauls u-ed a reaping machine. The Kt"g of Sweden is financially embarrassed. "Torpy" is the latst society or4 'or anything swellish John Milton is sometimes called tho Homer of Brita n. The an r ranc'so, Cd., grocers are fighting trusts in food proJuets. Breslan, the cnp'tal of Silesia, la to Le made into a Crst class forms. Klnety thonstnd cows have to Oo milked iwlje a day to supply London done. In France there Is a government tax of 2 per cent, levied on a l beta on cacesL San Francisco, Ob. shoo dealers wh sell Cnlneee-mada goods will ba boycotted. Tho native pnpatatlon ot Ala'ka numbers only 4 ),(K), ot whom 17,000 axe Esquimaux. Tbe Michigan Central now leads tbe country in running the highest speeded paiteng r iraln. The large-t peach orchard ia tb wor d is at TJroA'nwood, Tex., which contains 11,00 tnei. The daily surplus of b!rths ever lealbs la the United Kingdom is 1300. -An Orov.l'e (C;.L) man keeps thieves from bis orn.o trees by tying cow-bdis to them. Wh le farmer at Shlpbaoh, Tnn.. was ait'-nding chu.ch his norse froze to iealh oulaiJe. Carlyle is given tho credit ot first having called the newspaper press "th fourth estate. -New green corn was served to gnsts of the Alcazar. t St. Augustine, Fla., oa New Year's Day. IodU takes tho palm for free pott age Postal cards cost, half a cent each, and a letter goes for one tent. There are n'x Mamfte students at Wm' minster College, tsm.ilL institution at Xew Wilmington, Peun. A teicher of ma' hematics says that the simple tear I g up or cutting of pa per is h gre.v. rel.ef to the uiind after mental laior. A tourxallne ledgo recontly discov ered on a farm near Aubu n, lie., is said to have already yielded STuCO wo. la of gems. During the Inst 10) yeirs 35,000 patents have been itsuid uv thn Hulled SUtts. There have b ;en COD. 000 appli cations. There are twentv-alx monarchies and twenty-five reoubl-c m t!:a civll- ' ized world to-day. tiixieen Republic in bouih America. The Indhn chief culled in "erlslon Cow Killer was Rs 1 Jacket. Bntut so ntned him in allusion to hia Uck of physicial courage. A woman's club in St- Louis, Mo , has prot. Blt-d HRaiust the taxation of b iclielors on the ground that they are cect-ssitiet not luxuries. -Three of the richest wo Den of Phila delphia are Mrs. Thomas A. coit, who $3.0 OOOO; Mia .Tjepli Harrison, wtlii (2,(H 0,M) ; and M s. llaldwla, who has a fortuue of S2.OoO.003. Two cUizens nf Palmyra, Me., hart had so ninny quar els that a few days ago a c-nt -act was drawn up between them that In fu'ure they would have nothing to do with ea:h other. Tbe rails on railroads In this conn try, laid in a continuous line, make twelve gudle j for the eaith's circumfer ence. Vestibuled pilace sleeping cri cost more than high class passenger locomo tives, ApiT 'Xl'ii i -W the prics are $15,000 ud i&3U0 respectively. A trade journal has Just published non e statistics concern ii poultry in France. It statei that there are in the country 43 0 jO.OO i o: hens, which rep resent a va ue ot ?2i,410 0J0. It Is estimated that In RussU the yearly loss in rtnmest lc a ilrual : through w elves is over JIO.O o,0 )0, and th 'oss of g-ime from the sam cauw over 513, OJO.OOO. rotsto-srowlng experiments In France allow that the cro; f;-o:n whole seed is about Sflven hundred w.lht per 1 acie more ihan from cut s ed, a'.lxlng for the difference in weignt between tbe I two sorts. A man In Xew Totk has In his pos ! ssion a tin box fu .l of stock certificates tbat cost him ci3,OUO, and are now ut- leily worthless. Marmaduke Watson has been a school teacher fu Pudi 'elnhia fo; flftys four year', during thirty-five of wtiica be baa been a principal. Ha has noar retired to enjoy a well-earned rest. A. M. Cannon, the Spktn Falls, , Washington, rolilinnair. paid $ 0J lor : a q'lart. r ect!on of land ou the border j cf the town a few years ago. He has since so'd off $ 100,000 worth of the .and Xow that the project for a statue ot Red Jacket in Bull do, X. Y., u well under way, the people of that city talk! of simi arly honoring De Witt Clinton, proprietor of the Erie Canal, and La Sal e tbe discoverer, who explored the lake region so bravely. Men's ov rcoati are now being made longer, an J, as a rule, looser, in accordance with the prevailing English style, ssome of 1 he overcoats seen that have been made abroad might nave beeu called '-baggy." Mrs. Jacob nildebrand, of Totk, Penn.. a vlct m to consurptlon. died Islhging. When the doctor Informel DT that t no was dying she raid she wanted to sing. At her request 1 num ber i t neighoors were summoned to her bedside. Duimg the evening her voice mingled w'.t i theirs lu singing her ft70:ite hymns. At 10 o'clock her voice failed her. Tbe Corean alphabet Is phonetic, ard so simple that any oue can learn to read It in a day. It has been calculated that there are about 2' N ,oo families l.ving in London on about i5 a weea. A pchoo'lviv or goo 1 family committed suicide iu Vienna. Austria, because be found La' in so difficult. What has become of thoold-fashloned people who had family prayers lu the evening aud before breakfa-l? Tho African agreement betweisx England and Poilugfd hi favontldt) ta lk latter, . -