ill '11 Ily
Ay
B, F. BOHWEIER,
THE CONSTITUTION THE UNION AND THE ENFORCEMENT OF THE LAWS.
Editor and Proprietor.
VOL. XL VI.
MIFFLINTOWIS. JUNIATA COUNTY. PENNA.. WEDNESDAY. DECEMBER 7. 1S92.
NO. 51.
.N EVENIIMo HYMN.
t;;.t nltii u: ''f ' ' toward ev.ulug."
l.vkJ xsiv. 29.
v ,,k ilt- inn ! solemn splendor,
i.r' tr f:i-t Hi i-f nlirrit.
,r i! oi.Miir.' Hue of pTt-nhiK
Day hi" 'l.arfr hr foiilfn light.
Vtrr'-il with tti work Thou caveat.
Ktelnv ilone, yet done f.ir Tbea,
i.: 1 ku-rl 'or benediction.
b,c;s me. Saviour eveu in.
Ui.re !" '- hevond recalling,
, .i.o M-1 our' in nnniites tied,
t,,.n.- I' c il'fl' Mit cin't be cancelled,
V- .m'H turn cannot re imiaid.
L, iv hfimlni! Ht Thy footstool
11.: mv vesper pruver shall bo:
r..i nil -iin a lull (ori;lve..es
u.diit us, saviour .veil m.
i.-d i ue sombre hue of everilnn
.;a'i.tr nr l'fN closing Uny.
;.)4v in heavenly guards lbou 3eiidjt
ti. ier in wiult I pray.
,i.ni. i l.it. vilien aieuvulcos
t'H'i n:y int 1'arK to lhee,
i nit- uav tii.it ku ws no eveulua
I'ie me. Saviour jveD mo.
Antonello tlic Gondolier.
iSutl . n otniiA.N OF FBEIHEBB OAtilV.
it s pint halt a century since I closed
:Lo cve f't my good father the best
jt comrades, the fondest of husbands.
;h.. most honest Venetian of bis time.
AL, if von hd known my father, jou
ojKi have a kn ledged him the har
li t.i, buldetit feilo in the Repablio,
:Ua eicvert-st mandolin-player, the best
;iiiP :er of Tuhsk, the smartest gondolier
ii.e um over lashed to foam the
at r- ! the Caualazzo. All this mnst
:-e my ticuse. for rescuing from the
..blivi.iu of tite fleeting years the frag
nvLt of Lia life I now relate.
Mj father felt his end approaching.
With closed eyes he lay on a coaoh
smiled with maize-straw, a rosary in
m m iukled bunds, and bis pale lips
movies in silent prayer. A death-like
itillness fills 1 the room, broken only
by trie sobs of wife and ohildren. The
toys of the evening sun buret through
:Lo vine-espalier that grew round oar
Uume; and over the ftce of tbe dying
L,nst J now nutches of rosy light, and
anw the .ha los of the broad leaves.
I .-es-nt y he opened the large, black,
4. cp! v-sunken eyes once more, looked
aiowly round as if to make sure that we
re all ti ere and then began wearily
aiid with difficulty to speak.
"For years, now," he said, "I have
bull waiting to make yon tne co fi
Jiijto of a strange, almost incredible
DVent which happened to me in my
touth. 1 put it off from day to day,
fur une it-awou or another but I put
.t utF too long. Xow, I know not
whether the tiine that is left to me suf
tloes for the telling of this long-guarded
iecret. ListeD, however but first
ewear on this, dying hand that no word
ut the secret shall pass yonr lips till
ufty year-i have gone. The heir of a
jitat and powerful family has been
involved in tho destiny of so humble a
uittQ as uv-elf and the Tribunal of
the Inquisition was compelled to inter
vene. An nng' arded word may ei
fcse you to the vengeance of an un
disciplined aud powerful nobility, or
to the severitv of the legal authorities.
Swear, therefore, a silence of fifty
years!"
We obeyed the last command of oar
father; we laid our hands iu his, and
pronounced the binding oath. We
Lave kept it faithfully my mother and
sisters till their death; 1, the lst sur-
iving, till the period assigned has ex
pired, and the time arrived when I
have to fear neither the vengeance of
ihe nobles or the tyranny of the Coun
cil of Ten; but to the point.
"It was at three o'clock on a sultry
iummer afternoon" began my father
"that 1 sat myself down at the base
of the granite pillar which supports
the saintly Teodoro, and stretched my
lazy limbs on the etons slabs below it.
I fell to counting, with sleepy eyes,
the pillars of the Doge's Palace, np and
down, then down and np; miscounted
them, and tried again feeling my eye
lids becoming heavier with each num
ber I told. The footsteps of the guard
holding watch nnder the colonnade
fell ever duller and fainter on my ears.
Now and then one of the pigeons from
the Palace of tit. Mark whirred past
over my head, hastening to seek refuge
from the glowing heat nnder the eaves
of the church. It was so still, that I
could bear the little wavelets as they
broke against the bows of the gondo
las. All the world was having its
siesta, and I was in a good way to fol
low suit, when tbe shout, 'Bit An
tonello, up there 1 A league's row on
tbe canal!' startled me out of my doze.
'The shout proceded from Count
Orazio Memmo the most amiable
good-for-nothing in all Venice. Three
and-twenty years old, tail and lim,
wsll-cut pale lace, witn tne disck
rst and most brilliant eyes in the
world; as clever as daring, as rich as
generous, a bold gamester, a passion
ate worehipper of women such was
my patron.
"Mistrustful of the gondoliers of his
uncle, the Councillor, in whom, not
without ground, he suspected spies on
his goings and comings, the young gal
lant needed on bis adventures a quick
witted, fearless fellow, a silent, per
fectly reliable assistant and in mo he
had found his man. Ah, when I think
of those old wild times, those brilliant
Carnivals, those nightly revelries and
serenades, those mysterious rendez
vous in the gardens of the Giudeocal
Fathers and lovers cnrsed Orazio
Memmo worse than the Grand Turk,
and many a handful of silver ooin has
poured into my cup when my swift
gondola has distanced the enraged pur
suer, aud I have landed tbe happy
lover, undiscovered, on the marble
steps of the Caoa Memmo.
"Quick as thought did I spring to
my legs at the sound of the well-known
voice, then loosed the chain from the
stake, and when his Excellency had
seated hiaiself on the luxurious ooh
ions, pushed off vigorously from the
lantl
"The boat may have been gliding
gently over tho water for about a half
hour. Inaadibly fell the oar into the
green waves but there was no hurry,
and uiy patron had no aim but to
aream away an honr in do Ice far
niaUe. Presently, however, a foreign
gondola rushed op with hasty strokes
of the oars bobind us. and then shot
quickly past The deck was covered
with a silver car pot streaked in red,
and tho heavy bilk tassels that hung
from tho gunwales traded along the
eurface of the water. Tho two row
ers were clothed iu a rich stufl
of the same design, in front of
tho cabin ait on a broendod cush
ion a Moorish boy, with a broad golden
neck band, a dagger hnuging from
glittering cbdini by his side, and
balancing on bis fist a shrill, rainbow
colored parrot. The Venetian blinds were
diawn np On both (idee, and the eye
could pt uctrate into the interior of tbe
boat as sho flew past.
"Oa the cushions reclined a divinely
b&utiful woman. A olosely-flttiag,
tdabroldered over-gArment en
veloped her dainty figure, and wide.
ove,Vttl ?0a" ' Ea,,ern cut
flowers ThPPr' pretVy wotked ia
scen Jed from the snowy whiteness of
,i - - " ia ouny waves npon
the shoulders nrl ut
can I describe to yon the sorcery of
that lovely countenance, the moist
glance of those blaok eyes, the smile
if t,P4yeAr.onnd tho'M Pomegranate
P t As the foreign boat floated past
our own, the lady put down the lontr
neo ked guitar, on whose golden strings
he rangers had been dallving, and,
with a skilful throw, cast a lily into our
cabin calling out at the same time a
lew foreign sounding words. The
rowers at once began to ply their ours
lustily, and in the twinkling of an eve
were a hundred yards in front.
"Vrollow, follow, Antonello!' cried
the patrician twenty sequins are
thine if we overtake her, if we discover
the home of this angelio si ranger.'
" 'You may rely npon me Excellenza.
so long as the oar does not break, and
mJ 'n retains it strength, tbe beauti
ful heathen shall not escape us.'
fAnd now to kep my word to
maintain my hard-won fame. Swift as
the flight of doves fled the stranger be
fore us, and like a bloodthirsty falcon
we followed np behind. On the left
they turned into one of the side streets,
and there seemed to slacken their
speed as if to make sure we had not
lost their track, as if they wih'd to be
followed and then onco more started
in wild haste through large and small
canals past San Kicolo till at last
both the gondolas were rocking on the
waters of the lagoon that lies on the
road to Fuaina.
"Still onward fld the enchanting
boat Sometimes it was as if a shoot
ing star was before ns, so gloriously
did the sun stream down on the flitter.
ing deck, and I was obliged to close
my eyes to shut out the glare, and
wnae ior a moment to row. Then the
Connt wonl 1 nrgeme on to still greater
efforts, and I would fall on my knee,
and drivA tVt nap dAan iVia iha
I ' - Ufcu .U&V UD "Hit.
' ;n i 3 l . , .
.in iw iuiui Bwinuu mgo ro lue lron
: comb of the figure-head.
r rom out the pursued goudola
sounded now and then the sharp cry of
the parrot, and then again the notes of
a lute, to which the Moorish boy an
swered with the rattle of the tambour
ine, and at intervals the bewitching,
entioing voice of the Eastern. She
sang:
Where arcade of olt-ander.
Purple in the glnnmlwr tbow,
Where In founts mnrmorran wander
FJsb that gold and si ver irlow ;
Where nltrhttnirates
iifh out their wail?,
To love-ah k maidens inurm'rlug Ijw
There, there,
Shalt thou with me my secret share.
H'bere tbe darts from Phoebus' quiver
Never pierce the myrtle grovea.
Where by many a lonely river
birds trill out their happy lovea;
Wbtro the gu.hing
Streamlet ruthina
Tbrough tbe starlit dingle rove.
There, there,
Sbalt thou with me my secret share.
Orazio Memmo, one of the cleverest
improvisers of bis time, seized my
zituer, and answered at once;
Where tbou Itadest I will follow.
Sweet enia-ma, after tl.ee;
Heed I not If Joy or sorrow
Tne g-uerdnn ol my quest (bail be
Yet on tbe ttrand.
Encbanlreri, land.
And if thy heart incline to me
Th'-re. there,
Shall I with tbee thy secret share.
"We were approaching nearer aud
nearer to the strange gondola. Our bow
cut anew the waves before the track of
theirs had disappeared on the water,
and the foam that followed hr was
like a siver cord which she had thrown
out to drag ns, like prisoners, behind
her. Thus we ran into tbe Brenta
Canal, flew past the sumptuous viiIhs
and pleasure houses of the rich Vene
tians, and stopped before a high mar
ble portal, through the gilt bars of
which we could look into a spacious
garden laid out with princely magnifi
cence. "The stranger stepped oat. By Saa
Maroo! a queenly form with witvhlng
grace in every movement. Slowly she
turned her face, lighted with the
sweetest smile, once more toward my
master; from the soft, black, gazelle
like eyes gleamed on him a friendly
light, and then sue moved forward
from the spot The little Moor, hold
ing a gaudy sunshade over the bead of
his mistress, and the chattering bird on
his fist, followed close at her heels.
Tbe gates flew open, shut clashing be
hind them; the pair then slowly ap
proached the castle throngh a lane
termed of laurels and myrtles, and
vanished.
" 'Beautiful as a dream!' cried Signor
Memmo, rousing himself from his be
wilderment; 'and to whom does the
garden, the castle, belong?'
"1 do not know at all, Excellenza;
1 see them to-day for the first time;
and yet this is the Brenta Canal a
thousand times have I rowed over it; I
know every gate, every villa, every
bush but by San Antonio, never have
I seen a stone of this castle before.
Ah, Ulnstrissimo. take my word for
it, all is not as it should be herel it is
the delusion of the devil, nothing
more. Utter but one 'patermoter,'
and the whole phantasm will vanish
like a streak of mist. Have you not
heard of vampires? Yon have only to
ask tbe Grecian and lllyrian boatmen,
and they will tell you how the wraiths
of thetecbild murderers appear as
yonng and beautiful women, and fill
with love the brains of the young men,
and suck out their hearts' blood as
they slumber. ' And such a vampire is
the Eastern princess there 1 will take
the sacrament to it! Take my advice,
Excellenza. Let ns return, and that
as quickly as possible Here we stand
on unholy ground.'
I M looked round now for the strange
I gondola; she had vanished completely.
as though swauowea Dy ine rrenia.
I pointed this out to my
master; be called me super,
stitions and a simpleton. I began to
repeat an ave,' but the castle refused
to vanish, and remained before my
eyes a substantial and obstinate fact.
Black cypresses looked with elongated
necks over the wall, and fia-treea
etretohed gnarled branches like fin
grrs toward ns, as if to beckon ns in:
Glittering lizards crept np the para
pets and looked at ns with sparkling,
spiteful eyes. On the eorniots stood
iiideons figures in marble of the most
repulsive ugliness goat-footed satyrs
that made faces at vs. little hunch
backed creatures with three cornered
hats, crinolined dames with horses
heads, dragons, griflius. monsters with
grins and leers and dis ortions that
only diabolus could invent Among
the hateful masks walked a peacock
with a long trail, its blue neck sh.m
mering in the sun. ,.,
'How to get tbe into garden? innr
mured Count Orazio, staring dreamily
before him. "Ine gate might be scaled
a bold apring. Jxd"
" 'What are you thinking of, Excel
lentissimo?' said I. warningly. 'For
the Madonna's sake, give np the
thongbt. Your body and sonl are alike
at stake. Believe me, tbe devil walk
eth about like a roaring lion, seeking
whom he may devour.'
"My warning sounded in deaf ears.
He had already sprung from the gon
dola, when a wicket opened, and an
old Moor stepped before him with a
deep curtesy ; he brought a request
from bis mistress, the Signora Suier
alda, for the honor of a visit in her
garden. In vain did I hold back the
blinded and intoxicated patrician by
his black silk mantle; in vain did 1 try
to excuse mvself from following him;
he rushed through the gate, dragging
me with him, while tbe old slave re
mained to gaard onr gondola.
"Strange flowers, never 6een before,
such as can only be supposed to grow
in the pleasnre gardens of the Grand
Mogul himself, nodded drowsily to ns
as we passed. Rainbow colored birds
flew from branch to branch,twlttering,
smging. shouting with almost human
voice, bke chorus of happy, chattering
maidens. Once an Ugly, long-tailed
monkey swung himself down from a
tree before us, holding on with his
tail to a branch, grinned spitefully at
ns, and then hnrried off once more in
to the wilderness of foliage. From one
of the side alleys stepped a purple
colored stork, as gravely as a major
domo, before ns, swayed his long neck
hither and thither, as if bowing to us,
and then walked forward as onr guide,
ever and anon looking round to see if
we followed. For my part, I followed
as in a dream, resisting, and yet drawn
forward as by some inexplicable mag
ic. "Presently we stood before an im
mense, strange looking tree, with
broad shining leaves hung thick with
silvery bell-shapsd blossoms, in the
shade of its branches lay costly Persian
carpets and cushions of crimson velvet
embroidered in pearls, and on them
the heathen Princess, surrounded by a
bevy of beauteous maidens, was re
clining with the utmost grace. The
little Moor stood at her head, fanning
her with a broad fan of bright pea
cock's feathers. The red stork, which
had hitherto walked before ns, now
stood still, opened wide his legs, drove
bis long beak into the earth, and so,
slightly raising its wings for cushions,
formed a three-legged easy chair on
which Count Orazio, at a sign from
the lady, sat down.
"Lost in gazing at the fair Smeralda,
the Count bad sat down speechless
before her, while she, calling for her
lnte, discoursed sweet mnsio; I had
stood beside his tripodal chair torn by
many feelings, when the young Moor
with a cunningly worked golden gob
let full of a dark red foaming wine
stepped np to my master. '.Drink not
of this brew of hell, bignor 1' 1 whis
pered, and at tbe same time folt my
self embraced by the white arm ot
lovely little witch who offered me a
similar draught.
"My first instinct was to spurn from
me the beautifnl little elf, to dash away
tbe niagio draught but the wine gave
cut so sweet an aroma, sparkled so
enticingly.so brightly, within the gold
en walls 1 The eyes of the elf glanced
so entreatingly at me, her arms wound
themselves to tenderly about me ah,
the spirit truly was willing, bnt the
flesh was weakl
'Only one sip, thought I. only the
wetting of the tip of my tongue
tbat will hardly cost me my neck. And
then I sipped, I tasted, I sucked, 1
gulped down tne liquid to the very
last drop then X fell on the neck of
the pretty temptress, aod on looking
round saw my master on his knees be
fore tbe seductive Smeralda. I touched
with my own tbe lips of my charmer
my senses whirled in a transport of
delight when, breathless from out the
bashes rushed tbe negro boy, crying,
'i-iyl Fly I All is lost! Porporinazzo,
onr gracious master, is coming! He
raves in his rage!'
"Ah, tbe warning voice had cone too
late; scarcely bad it sounded when a
short, globular creature, of tbe form
and color of a dark red apple, rolled np
to Skneralda and ber inamorato. On
close observation there might certainly
be discovered some indications, at the
extremiliM of the creature, of the,ex
istence of limbs, which yon might or
might not take to be head, arms, and
legs; bnt of the depressions and bumps
of the north pole of this globe, to con
struct in fancy eyes, nose and mouth,
required a quite special faculty of
whioU I was not the master.
" 'Is this the thanks, serpent, for tbe
trust reposed in you?' shrieked Porpo
rinazzo to the pale Smeralda. 'Is this
the reward of my true and constant
love? You stoop to this unbelieving
dog; and me, Don Porporinazzo, tbe
Grand Master of the Wardrobe of tbe
Sultan, thou desertestl Ha, by Ma
homet's sacred eat. this cries aloud for
bloody vengeancel Slaves, approach!'
"Six negroes, with diabolical physi
ognomies, with arms and sabres bare,
started from the hedges, seized Orazio
and myself and tied our hands behind
our backs. In vain did the Connt plead
his inviolability as a Venetian noble; in
vain did he threaten with the wrath of
the Doge and of the Senate. The little
Grand Master made a sign with his
little arm a flash, a sabre-stroke and
our two heads were rolling on the
gronndl
"My fair one had long ago fled be
hind the myrtle heJge, and Signora
Smeralda had taken the sterotype step
of ladies in desperate circumstances
she had fainted. The tvrant Porporin
azzo, proud of bis bloody deed, had
now retired once more into the palaoe.
I could see all, for my head was lying
on the ground, with its nose turned
skywards. Once or twice 1 made con
vulsive efforts with my arms to catch
it, aod fix It on my trunk again but
my hands clutched only empty air,
and sank, nerveless, down. Ko words
can describe my condition; only those
who have found themselves in a like
position, and felt their beads at so
unreasonable a distance from their
bodies, can at all appreciate my emo
tions at that moment.
"The spbenoal Grand Master of tbe
Wardrobe had scarcely turned his
back, when Smeralda awoke out of her
faint, bnrst into a flood of tears, and
despairingly wrung her hands. At the
same moment my fugitive loved one
emerged from ber hiding place, but
lost no time in meaningless common-
places, urging on her mistress to make
the best of the precious moments i
'For heaven's sake, Signora," she '
said, 'send for a doctor, tbe cleverest
there is to be had. Quick I With every I
second the blood grows colder and
collier. In five minutes it will be too
late. The mafia doctor. KartoHnattn I
of Padua, would be just the man only
quick, quiekl Send Don Flamingo to
Padua -for on his activity and fidelity
'Happy thought, Libella,' answered '
the Princess; 'call the Don.' I
"She clapped her hands thrice. The
great red stork strode quickly up, and
at a few whispered words from the elf,
nodded as if in assent, and flew crow
ing into tbe air.
"Four pairs of eyes gazed now with
anxious expectancy toward heaven. A
horrid pause, during which the fair
ladies dared not, and the Court and I
eould not, breathe, ensued. But be
fore you eould say a 'paternoster,'
there was once more a rushing noise
high in the air, and the mighty bird
stormed down, holding Doctor Barto
linetto, like a half penny doll, in his
beak, and placed him, a little thin
brown man, neat and well dressed,
though a little out of brr -th, npon tbe
ground.
"A glance sufficed to make tbe
learned man acquainted with tbe state
of affairs. He felt our pulse, then
drew from his pocket the famous Per
limfjimpino powder, his own infallible
discovery, and turned np bis coat
sleeves. He was grumbling all tbe
time at the indelicaoy of bis being
interrupted in the middle of lectue
and dragged forcibly out of his college,
to the scandal of bis audience, aiid
loudly bemoaned the derangement of
his . powdered wig, which had some
what suffered in his aerial journey;
then be seized my bead by tbe nose,
sprinkled some of the Perlimpimpino
powder on the neck, dabbed it on to
the defective part, took Orazio's head,
did the same with that we sneezed
three times with some emphaaU,sprang
blithely np, shook ourselve. sneezed
once more the cure was complete!
"Ti e fair ones flew joyfully to our
arms; on my cheek burned the kiss of
the lantiful Smeralda, while .Libella
hugged the Connt bnt to kiss, to tear
awtv from the embrace, to utter a
startled cry, wae the work of an in
stant Dreadful mistake! Tbe doctor
n bis hurry had stuck my head on
Orazio's shoulders, and that of the
noble on the trnnk of the poor gondo
lier! "On recovering from the first shook
at the discovery we turned to vent our
wrath on the doctor. The nobleman
promised him a hundred lashes, and I
threatened still worse things, unless
he restored to each bis own.
Poor Bartolinetto shrugged his shoul
ders till they reached his ears, made
the most profuse apologies, and sought
to pacify ns with the sophism that
'after all, a head was a head.' But
everyone felt the hollowness of the
plea; Smeralda called him a 'wretched
old quack,' Libella threatened to ninke
for his eyes. His reproaches of in
gratitude were unheeded, his sugges
tion of a fee was rejected with scornful
laughter. At a sign from Libella, he
was again seized by the stork, and car
ried back thus iguominiously to
Padua.
"We now directed our rage against
each other. Onr imprecations and
threats would soon have developed
into actual violence, had not each
feared to do a part of himself some in
jury while belaboring his antagonist
Which was now Orazio, which An
tonello? Which noblemaj. and which
gondolier? My old head pleaded i's
new and noble body as the most im
portant half, maintaining that the hull
of a ship alone determined its class,
the flag which might happen to be
hoisted at its stern being a mere sec
ondary detail. My opponent, on tbe
other hand, compared himself to a
column in which the capital is tbe sole
feature determining to what order it
is to belong. Tbe two fair ladies tried
to settle onr dispute bnt they were
themselves soon hopeleesly confused,
and ended by advising us to teturn to
Venice and lay onr case before the
magistrates
"Coldly we bade them farewell and
deprrted. Antonello-Orazio, or the
peasant bead on the noUe trunk,
threw himself in a lazy and distin
guished way on the cushions, and
haughtily commanded Orazio-Antonello
to row back. The latter was com
pelled to obey, for his plebeian arms
alone could ply the oars and guide the
helm but he gnashed his teeth, and
swore to take dreadful vengeance for
this insult; and so we rowed back - the
grandee with the coarse red condolier's
cap sitting on tbe cushions, and laugh
ing to scorn the proud peasant in the
bows with his feathered hat and fault
lestdv dainty wig.
"We landed at the piazzetta. Negli
gently I drew oat this purse whioli 1
found in my new clothes, and tossed
the rower coin.
" "Give me back my money!' he
cried; 'give me my rings, my watou,
my head!'
" 'Silence, wr:tched slave,' 1 cried;
darest thou lay hands on my inviolate
person? Help, help, against this crack
brained gondolier!'
" 'Help, help,' he exclaimed, 'against
this insolent boatman 1'
"A crowd bad by this 'time as
sembled, some taking my part and
some his.. The Doge, who was just
then walk'ng np ana aown the oilou
nade of his palaoe, beard the eoandal,
and ordered ns to be placed in tbe in
ner dungeon of the Inquisition, and
brought up for trial the same even
ing. "The Publio Prosecutor accused us,
not only of the black art itself, but of
being disturbers of the publio peace
and conspirators against the safety of
the State. 'What have we come to,'
he exclaimed, 'when onr senators and
partricians begin to change their beads
as often as their wigs? To lose the
head is human. Tbe history of tbe il
lustrious Republic is not poor in ex
amples of senators and generals, aye,
and Doges too, who have suffered this
misfortnne but an exchange of heads,
that is, indeed, an unparalleled pro
ceeding! What endless upheavals of
the Constitution may not be expected
when nob e and common blood begins
to mingle in the same body? What
endless confusion of aristocratic demo
cratic principles in the tame man! A
short-sighted leniency in this matter
may mean the disruption of the State,
tbe crumbling into atoms of the Re
public. I decree therefore the death
by bebeadal of both the criminal."
"The Secretary of the Inquisition
informed us of our doom; at midnight
we were to pay the penalty of the little
doctor's mistake. Ab, what mortal
has ever met a fate like ours? Who
is there can boast of being, like us,
beheaded twice wit. in the space of
four-and-twenty honrs?
"The keeper of the prison was, as it
happened, an old friend of mine, and
a tecond oonsin. The unspeakable
pickle I was in moved him even to
tears, and he tried to oomfort me by I
tbe assurance tbat the pain of beheadal
was nothing to speak of a short
electric shock a tickling sensation
made piquant with a dash of pain that
was alii Bnt I shook my bead sadly, and
wept Of all thin I already knew some
what more than he could tell me Sud
denly a glorious thought struck me.
After our miraculous cure, as X now
remembered, my fingers, guided either
by the directing brain of Orazio or by
the old inttmOof Antocello, had picked
np tbe remr Jj of e PeTliropimpiao
powder left by the doctor. 'Cousin 1'
I now exclaimed, you c m save me
yet; you can save the CountI Hasten
to his cell, remind him of tbe remains
ol tbe powder in bis pocket, and learn
from him the way to use it and all will
yet be wel !' He shook his head in
credulously, pressed my hand, and
went
"Sadly passed tbe minutes away.
Tbe horrid doubt oppressed me,
whether the powder would exercise its
wondrous efficacy in tbe absence o'f
the doctor; whether the mystio sentenc
es he spoke over it had not everything
to do with its power; whether the
gaoler could exercise the necesary
quickness and accuracy in its use. Tbe
lamp tbat half lit op my low vault
burnt darkly and sadly, as if im
patiently waiting my departure, so that
it, too, might go to sleep. In despair
I threw myself on the marble bench
and shut my eyes, but the glitter of
the dreadful axe shone through my
fast-closed eyelids. Then a knock at
the door sounded in my ears, and the
words: 'Wake np, Antonello, the
priest is waiting; take thy beheading,
cousin, and aiterwards thnu mayeat
sleep till the trump of doom!'
"The memory of what followed ot
confession and absolution, of tbe exe
cutioner's block has completely van
ished from my brain. I only know
that I sneezed violently, opened my
eyes, and found myself once more in
my usual dress, lying at the foot of the
column under the shadow of the holy
Teodoro; tbat I saw standing at my
feet the patrician Orazio Memmo, and
that I heard him calling: 'Hi. wake
np, Antonello! A league s row on the
canal!' '
" 'Excellenza!' I orled, 'and you
will go a?ain to the enchanted gar
den of Proporinazzo? And we are
both really alive and free, and the oon
fusion with our beads is now happily
disposed of?'
"He measured me with his eye,
shook his head as if at a loss to under
stand me, and asked if I was still
dreaming, or if the cheap Vincentin
wine was muddling my brain. Deject
ed and silent I loosed the chain and
rowed the nobleman up and down.
No trace of any strange red and silver
goudoLi con Id be seen, far or near.
Connt Orazio dozed away the hour on
the water with a composure that
seemed inexplicable to me. When we
landed, I implored him at least to tell
me whether we had no further conse
quences to fear on tbe part of the
Tribunal; whether be had not saved a
pinch or two of the Perlimpimpino
powder for future contingencies. But
he persisted In pretending surprise and
called me a fool; and I then concluded
that a stony silence had been imposed
on him by the Inquisition, and that he
pretended ignorance with design.
"Since that day I have not breathed
a word of the- incident to any human
being; and you, my children, are the
first to whom, under the seal of an
oath, I entrust it Had I not, since
that day, suffered from a peculiar
twitching sensation in tbe neck, at the
plice where the double wound was
made especially when tbe weather
changes I might luure taken the whole
for a drea Iful dream. As it is, how
ever, tbe plain facts remain, burned
in, iu vivid colors on my brain."
With these words my father cl sed
bis story, tbe telling of which had used
np all his remaining strength. We
sent at once for the priest of San
Moise. He came with the holy Viati
cum, and aunointed tbe forehead of
my father, who soon after breathed
out his last sigh. Peace be with Ui
soul of the honest man.
Too Much lc.
"I wish," said an (xperlenced pby
sicIud, "tbat I could impress on mv
patients and the public generally tbe
fact that b'ed food and beverages are
slaying their thousands and tens of
thousands la the large cities of this
country every vear. There are few
things in which the majority of peo
ple Indulge that are so deadly la their
effects. Of course, things taste well,
and no injurious results are observed
iuime li itely. but all tbe same tbe
deadly ccld Is doing Its work by sap
ping tbe vitality and entirely under
mining the whole system. The pow
ers of the human family are limited;
and, as a natural consequence, when
there is a continual draught oa the
vitality, there must come a time
when it shows signs of lallure.
"Many of our recipes give directions,
for covering this, that and the other
vegetable with chopped ice, pounded
Ice or shaved ice anything to lower
the temperature; or the food is pre
pared for the table and placed in tbe
ice-box or on the block of ice until it
Is thoroughly chilled; and then prob
ably corning in from the intense beat
of a summer day, people sit down to
the table and partake freely of these
things, often eating Immoderately,
because It Is so cool and refreshing,
as they say; then deluging tbe stom
ach with glass after glass of ice-water
or iced tea, they arise from the table
with a long breath of satisfaction,
ana declare tbat they feel so mucb
better.
"Well, probably they do for the
moment, and they never seem able to
comprehend that when some hours
after thev feel overtaxed and have a
headache and nausea and blioa spells,
that they are paving the legitimate
penalty for their over-indulgence in
such abominations.
"I venture the assertion, and I am
iure mv brethren In the profession
would sustaiu me, tbat half tbe dis
eases Incident to the summer season
are produced or aggravated by eating
cold food. And it seems so hopeless
to try to Impress this on the minds
of the people generally, that I have
almost given up in despair, and have
concluded that unless the sufferers
are persons over whom I have author
ity, it is a waste of time to express an
opinion." 2Cew York'Ledger.
Tree-Stump.
Hotting tree stumps may be easli
removed In this way: With a one-and-a-quarter-inch
auger bore a hole in
the center of the stump about eight
een Inches deep and put in twenty
ounces of saltpeter, fill tho hole with
water and plug it tight In tbe
spring take out tbe plug, pour Into
the hole a half-pint of crude petro
leum and set It on fire. Tbe stumc
will burn and smoulder to the end ot
tbe roots, leaving nothing but ashes.
Ix does a gosling; no good to have
an eagle as his ideal. On the con
trary, a good goose i often spoiled la
Its efforts to become an eagle. Then
Is a great deal oi. foolish nes la tht
ideal business.
THE I Mr ASS A CLE WALL.
i tlmpl. Rope. Suspended Vertically W1H
Protect m Fragile Object.
If you strike with a cane the lowet
end of a c;rd or rope suspended ver
tically you will be surprised "at tbe
slight effect which your blow will
oroduce. Instead of throwing th
cord or rope away back It will be
moved but slightly. The cause of tbe
phenomenon is easily discovered. Be
cause of the inertia the lower end of
the cord tends to remain still while
the part struck tends to move. Tbe
result is that the end of the cord
rise's and winds around the cane,
checking the blow completely. This
si i j pie observation will explain the
little trick known as the magic or tht
impassable wall.
Suspend a series ot these stout
cords or small ropes by stringing them
on a broomstick, which you can sup
port by laying across the tops of tw?
doors, as indicated In the cut.
B.-hind these cords thus suspeudec
place upon the floor any fragile object
even a costly one and defy one ol
your friends, placed outside the "wall,"
to break that object 2So matter how
hard be strikes at It with his cane
across the ropes he will succeed In
doing nothing but getting wound up
in tbe cords and may strike as. long as
he likes, he wilt not hit the artlcl'
aimed at.
To Keep Cool.
A possibly profitable Held for In
ventors has recently been proposed by
C. W. Baker, of New York. H
found the hot weather of the sum
mer months extremely oppressive,
and accordingly made a few calcula
tions which are certainly interesting.
Assuming that each person in an
office building requires 2,000 cubic
feet, or 147.2 rounds, of fresh air an
hour, aod tbat this air is at a tem
perature of bo decrees, the number
of heat units that must be abstracted
In order to reduce the temperature to
70 degrees he finds to be 250 an hour.
2fow Profs. Duton and Jacobus, of
Stevens Institute, have founl that a
pound of coal used in making steam
for a fairly efficient refrigerating
machine will pnduce an actual cool
ing effect equal to that of sixteen or
forty pounds of ice. Taking the
lower of these limits, sixteen pounds
f Ice, which will aostract about
2.275 beat units while melting, it is
easy to see that one- pound of coal will
accordingly reduce the temperature
of the supply of air for one person for
six and one-half hours, under the
above assumptions. Estimating the
price ot coal at $3 a ton ani assuming
that the air is to be cooled for ten
hours a day, the co.-t is, therefore,
but 15 cents per thousand people per
hour. This seems a remarkable de
duction, but the data used in arriv
ing at It are all given by the bet
American experimenters, and manu
facturers of heating and ventilating
apparatus may hnd It to their ad
vantage to give the subjeot a fair
trial.
Disoooraslns
Sometimes youog men are deterred
from entering upon matrimony by
such incidents as the following, wbicb
Is of actual occurrence:
A young man passing through a
jrowd in a great dry goods store
found himself side by side with a
timid-looking little man, and exactly
behind a lady. A movement of the
crowd forced the young man to step
upon the hem of the lady's skirt.
She turned quickly around, with
furious look, and was evidently about
to address some fierce remark to him,
when a change came over her face
suddenly.
"Oh, I besr your pardon, sir," she
ald. "I was going to get very angry.
You see I thought it was my hus
band." The timid little man smiled faint,
ly, and the young man said to him
self: "If wives get angry so much
more quickly with their husbands
than they do with other ni-n, what
is the use of being a husband?"
A Methodical German. Kecord.
A methodical man died in Berlin a
few days ao, aged "3. At the age
of 18 he be Tan keeping a record,
which he continued for fifty-two
years, and then closed with the
words: "Omnia, tentavi, nwulta per
spexl, nihil rerfeci." This book
showed that in flfty-two years he bad
smoked 623,715 cigars, of which he
had received 43,692 as presents, while
for the remaining 535,021 he had
paid about $10,433. During the same
! . 1 V, v. .. .1 1 J c- : -
fvi iuu lc udu ua'a co pairs oi trousers
made 74 coats and waistcoats, and 62
pairs of boots. He wore cut 293
shirts and "fronts' and 326 collars.
In tram fares be spent not far from
1423. In fifteen years, according to
his biokkeeplng, he had drunk 28,";6
glasses of Bavarian beer, of which,
however, 21.261 were only small
ones. For this beer and 36, 031 glasses
of cognac and spirits be spent $5.3 a
He gave tips amounting to $1,305.
Mrs. JruiA Warp Howe's grands n,
Samuel Pre! not t Hall, is m Junior in
Harvard, and has been an "honor
, man" all through bis college course.
IThe o'dest newsparer in the world is
aid to be the "b-irg-psn," or ct pital
sheet, which is published at Pekin,
CbiLa, It first appeared in 91 , and
sicca 1312 has not missed a single
weekly issue.
Thx Methodist Mission at Sierra
Leone has been conducted for several
j months by Miss Alice Harris, an Iowa
physician.
SPECTACLES ON THE STREET.
tilvery Other Pwtraeta On MmU Sea to
Hat. Imperrtitot Viaioife
Comparatively few persons nowaday-,
are blessed with normal or perfect
eyesight. The optlciansare authority
for this statement It is pa be pre
sumed they know what they are t&l
log about Children wearing spec
tacles in tbe streets. In the schools
and in public places are almost as
nuuierous as the members of that
large class who have been compelled
to resort tolhe artificial aid of glasses
because of sight made dim by years.
You often hear persons of your ac
quaintance say: "I see so many
young men and young women wear
ing eyeglasses with showy little gold
chains attachments or gold-bowed
spectacles every time I go down town.
AVhy is it? Has it become the
fashion? Is it considered stylish?
At the theater, when I go to church,
or to the restaurant or club, or to a
swell reception I notice the same
tendency - among young people and
those in tne prime of life to wear
lasses."
For every person, young or old.
who resorted to spectacles a few years
Rgo there are ten now. Spectacles
used to be the signals of advancing
age and the companion of gray hairs
and wrinkled faces. If a young man
in a country village put on glasses be
cause of some defect in his vision a
few years ago, he was an object of
curiosity and was looked upon as a
coxcomb by all the yokels. To wear
spectacles was to open a way for ridi
cule as surely as when he appeared
on the village street with his first
chimney-pot hat, So the young miss
In her teens, who, because ol near
sightedness, could not see the stars
at night, was the innocent cause of
gossip about her pedantry as soon as
she put on glasses. These ideas
about nature supplying everything
needful for the young have suffered a
revolution.
"Thirty years ago." said an optl
clan, "we made only about eighty dif
ferent combinations with ground
glasses for defects of sight. We now
make over 400,000 different combina
tions. All this has been accomplished
through the study of astigmatism and
the grinding of astigmatic glasses.
This defect Is described by opticians
as a cond.tion in which there is a dif
ference in the refractory power (and
hence focal distance) of the diameters '
or the mediatcornea and lensjthrouga
which light passes while enteringtbe
eve. Instead ot rays of light being
focussed to a point on tbe retina there
is aq oval or a line formed. Astigma
tism may occur not only in an emme
tropic or normal eve, but also in those
in which, nearsightedness or farsight
edness exists. So, you see, it has a
very wide sweep, and requires many
t houf auds of different combinaiions
In glasses.
"Reading the indistinct print ot
cheap novels injures many eyes in
young people. In former years when
persons suffering from astigmatism in
some form or other which caused head
ache, nervousness or lassitude, called
on an occullst he would prescribe
blue, green or smoked glasses to give
them relief. But thev went home and
got no relief. At present we correct
ninety-nine In every hundred of these
cases with plain glasses properly
ground and In proper combinations,
Another thing that occuliscs have
learned is tbat any defect of vision
will manifest itself quicker in a per
son weakened by disease than in an
ordinary strong and healthy one. Cp
to the age of forty a strong constitu
tion, I have noticed, may continue to
overcome almost any defect in the
eyes. But as soon as the bodily
strength begins to fail the defect
comes to tbe front and the sight be
gins to weaken. It you stral the
optic nerve by forcing it to do what it
should not do (you are certain some
dav to pav the penalty. The sight
may not only be permanently injured,
but the nervous system may become
deranged and the brain affected.
Most young persons who wear glasses
are afflicted, I find, with myopia or
nearsightedness and with astigma
tism. The reason then why more
glasses are worn than formerly, is be
cause more defects can now be reme
died by tbem and more people are be
ginning to find out that their vision
Is not what nature intended It should
be. Chicago Herald.
rnet Banan.
The late Orientalist Renan, with
all his learning, appears to have been
something of a Bohemian, as uncon
ventional as his friend Heine, and
constitutionally adverse to social
formalities. On the conference days
ot the Academic Francaise he made
it a rule to come too late for tbe in
troductory speeches, and on meeting
an acquaintance on the street always
opened the conver-atlon with a bon
mot or a. bit of banter. He was an
accomplished Arab scholar, and on
his occasional visits to the Elysees
now and then treated himself to the
fun ot taking a seat on a bench along
side of a Syrian peddler, aud aston
ishing tbe poor Mussulman by sud
denly addressing him in his native
tongue. On his way home he gener-
' ally managed to lug along an ac
quaintance for table-talk purposes.
"No excuse; I can t spare you," he
Would overrule the protests of bis
friend bandeau, "the cackle, of
my womenfolks has to be spiced
with rational speech." In tbe
beat of a controversial soiree be would
sometimes f .rget the lapse of time
and argue away till the caller of the
market wagons announced the dawn
of the morning twilight On tbe oc
casion of that kind he extolled tbe
superiority of Averroes and otnV
Arabian savants, at the expense of
the Grecian philosopher, but his re
spondent, Mods. Prudhomme, bad
strong convictions of bis own, and
the dispute continued till Prud
homme suddenly took a peep at his
jratcb. "Look here; it's 5 a. m., and
' rour stove is getting cold: if you don't
adjourn our debate, we 11 have to
j burn tbe works of Averroes to keep
from freezing."
Libraries are the warJ-bes of lit
eratura whe nee men, propt-i ly luformeJ,
might bring forth amutuiug fur orna
ment, much for curiofci'.y ana more for
use.
Lampblack was invented by Mlsi in
Xii S IS iUEJP
Stammering Is almost unknown
anro .g savages.
Parrots are only ten cents apiece lit
Central America.
Three thousand marriages are pet'
formed every day all over the wot Id.
Opossums are the only animals
that uuuke a more elaborate toilet than
cats.
Strawberries four Inches in diam
eter have been grown In Oregon, near
Colv.lle.
Free drawing schools for girls were
first organized In France by Rosa Bon
he ur.
Thousands of Illuminated Sclp
turn texts are circulated la Uganda,
Africa.
The temperature of the planet
N-iiune is estimated to be 900 degrees
below zero.
Among tbe newer popular diver
sions In the line ot athletics Is that of
waiting backward,
In China triey bellve tbat women
by clinging to vegetarianism will be
come men on Judgment day.
Among the wealthy classes of Japan
It is considered nndigulfied to ride a
horse faster than a walk.
Among the curious things they dig
out of tbe grournl la Jasper County,
Missouri, are petrifl -d butterflies.
A fouruen-y-'j-r-old boy at San
Jo-e, Cal , thrashed bis father because
he ordered him to bring in some bay.
Don't go Into the woods with a dull
ax. D.m't go Into the markets of tbe
world with a dull, uneducated mind.
Tn Germany marr'ed men wear
we 'ding rings, a custom which many
writers have advocated in other coun
ties. In Corfu, sheets of paper pass fot
mono ; one she't buys one quart of
roe, or twenty sheets a piece of hemp
cloth.
Tbe largest whale ever captured
was the priz or a New London. Conn.,
whaler in lt8i. It yielded 103 barrels
if o l.
Among tie Zulus the mother-in-law
cannot face tbe son-in-law, but
must hide, or pretend to do so, when
ever she sees him.
The first oil well was discovered in
Wayne County, Kentucky, in 1829.
thirty years before tje discovery ot oil
'n Pennsylvania.
The extreme western boundary ot
the United State?, the Island of Altoo,
is as far west of San Francisco as that
lity Is west of Bangor.
Cbatles D. Pounj of Denver, CoL,
has built a perfect miniature locomo
tive, which is but five feet long and
weighs but 235 pounds.
A woman in Paris recently com
mitu-d suicide by api lying leeches all
over her body, dylr.g from exhaustion
of the capillary system.
A shower of frojs citne from the
clouds during a ram storm in Mexico.
Mo. a farmer says that over 10,000
Uvinz frogs feil bis laud.
There is a village on the ortherv
1'acidc railroad which has fifty-four
inbabltants aud two churches, both
Presbyienaa.
Dr. A. P. Peabody, chaplain o.
Harvard tvllegf, graduated from thai
ln-titutlou l 182d, three years before
Oliver Wendell Hjl.aes.
Weeds are mathematicians. The
mnl'ply raplily, they add to your
work, thev S 'b'ract from your comfort
and they divide your oroQts.
A' rial n-tvigatlm is not yet at
acc mpl sbe l fact, but aerial arcnitecl
ii re, or building castles in the air, em
olos the powers ot many miads.
Mrs. Flora v. Wood ward Tibbetts,
of Chica; , but form rly of Kentucky,
has btn sworn in as a practicing at
ton ey tx-fore the Cours of Appeals at
frankfoit
Louise Mich?), the famous socialist
agitator, oee-ms to have tired ot ber
tumultuous caieer and has settled down
to teaching tchoU in a quiet par'' of
London.
Loudon has onlv 4"9 churches foi
Its uopdlauoQ of 5,c4?,0O0. Chicago
has nearly it not q .'u tbat many
cnuribea for a population of 1.5J3,
'KrO. During the nast'yiar, in the fieli
coveied by the Xorth I idu conference
uf tbe Methodist EoUcojal church,
baptisms of co:. verted bealuena have
tggn gated 16, Ot 0
- S I ght Is the spider's web tbat a
pound we gbi f it will n-ach around
the world, 4; d th -n lcavi enough to
reach from .New York tj San franclj--.0.
The weeds on the monitor Monad
nock, bicb vessel has boeu lying for
Mime time pant at the Mae Island
Cal. dockyard were found recently
'o be fioui Hire -1 four iuclics lo Jg.
Miss Martha D. Bssey, who de
signed the Commi-sioners b dge fot
tLe World's Fair Board ot Lady Manager-1,
is the only woman regularly
employed by Tiffany & Co., ffew VoiV
City.
Cojntefs Brazza dl Savorgnan,
"Isiei-ln-iaw of the celebrated AiricvD
traveler, has foun.lel three schools foi
teaching lacemating to 'title girls out
of th- lr school and w rking hours.
Dr. GeorgeS. Burroughs, profesoi
of bud ical literature at Anvierst, has
accepte I the presid-nc? or Wauash Col-lg-,
Indiana. lie is a graduate of
Price -ton, class of '73.
The wife of China's great state J
man, Li Hun Chau;, died faw years
to. Her p ys ciau tor a 1j.i2 Urns
n Dr. rlo ir.i, an A neruau laly
connected With the Woman's' Foreign
Missionary society in T.eu- i'sij.
A new dig1! appeared lately on th
menu ot S'i-i tattle d'hotes which
puzzled every ono who read only Its
auie Ariostu Those who risked a
trial were am used to rind and old fneW
Irish stew.
A m ther cat bftlonln; to Joseph
Groves, who lives a- a - lie ver Fails,
Peun , l ot her two KiUeus, but she
immediately ad-jpeed ta y-mn rab
bits wnich she is tenietly rearing
Pussy and bunnies are well contented.
A B..fton dentist advocsted hypno
tism as a IocaI at seitbetic in a papei
ead before the New England Dental
S ciety and hypnotized a patleat there
and then as an object lesm In the
pr ciice, peifrirmini a de til cutting
ilhoti 1 cit 'li from lb- oMlntauy
ui.iui ea'a lo i of feeling. Ti-i paper
w -a unaccompanied by draw.ngs.
Mia. Henry Norman (Miss Muriel
Dowle) la writing a preface to a yo1ubi
on women adventurer.