VOL. XXXXI. Bargains In Boots, Shoes K and Rubber Goods At Bickel's. p'Wh If you want the biggest values for the f \ C|/|V money ever offered come to this sale. \ 11/ A grand opportunity to get good solid p)L footwear at a big saving. Ladies' fine Dongola patent tip shoes SI.OO Misses' fine Dongola pateDt tip shoes 85 & Ladies' warm lined shoes 85 N\ Infants' fine soft sole shoe 3 18 Y\ Boys' every day shoes 90 wiA t \ Men's good working sboes 1.00 Men's fine Patent Leather shoes 1.75 wr Ladies' fine Patent Leather shoes ... 1.75 j§ Children's fine Dongola shoes 35c, 50c, 75 Ladies' warm lined slippers 45 EXffemelyTafge slock of Rubber & Felt Goods of all kinds. Ladies'. Gents', Boys', Misses' and Children's felt Boots and Stockings with good heavy overs. High cut arctics in all sizes. Large assortment of Ladies', Gents', Misses and Children s Leggins and Overgaiters at prices sure to interest you. At all times a full stock of Gokey's hand-made box-toe and plain toe shoes. Gokey's high-cut copper-tipped shoes for boys and heavy school shoes for girls. See our line of Men's high-cut shoes. Just the kind ior winter wear. JOHN BICKEL, BUTLER. PA. » Fall and Winter Millinery. § \\ Arrival of a large line of Street Hats, Tailor-made 3; »!• and ready-to-wear Hats. All the new ideas and :? designs in Millinery Novelties. Trimmed and Un- Hi |; trimmed Hats for Ladies, Misses and Children. All £ H the new things in Wings, Pom-pons; Feathers, & j1 Ostrich Goods, etc, etc. 4i i| Ropkenstein's S I • 5 Millir\ery Emporium, j| 838 South Main J J ± li Jewelry, Silverware. !• Now is the Time to select Holiday Goods. •T CALL AT jg ] j Cleeland's Jewelry Store | i i and look over a very fine stock of Watches, Solid ;|i \ ? Silverware, Hand Painted and Imported China, Gold fj f Jewelry, finest plated ware and many other new and w !: up to date goods suitable for a nice wedding or !g ;; Christmas gift. -p I D. L. CLEELAND, | ii 125 South Main street, - - - Butler, Pa. & , TDO YOU KNOW THAT THE HOLIDAY £ / SEASON IS FAST APPROACHING ? > ABE YOU GOING TO HAVE A # ? ) FEW DAYS VACATION JF > S HAVE YOU SELECTED YOUR ■ ) / WINTER SUIT, OVERCOAT AND HAT I \ The last ciuestion is the one we as well as yourself are interested in. / r We sell the liest made clothing in Bntler. S 1 Yon know what the DOIJTEIETT & GItAHAM label mean*. ( v Oar snits at flfi.OO, f 18.00 and fiJO.OO are the kind yon want and the J i merchant tailor envies. C £ Our Overcoats are the talk of the town and the Overcoat you are J 1 looking for yon will find here at a price that you will find saving to your r C pocket book j 1 Ilati and Furnishing* we have just what von want. v L it costs nothing to look so come in we wifi be pleased to show ycu. / (AND DON'T FORGET YOUR BOY. 4 J So many nice things for the little fellow wc could not attempt to tell f I you all in so small a space. \ # Keep your eye open for our Holiday suggestions j n oar next ad. and i r watch window display. C ) YOURS FOR YOUB NEEDS, / | Douthett & Graham. j / INCORPORATED I A Big: Purchase of Jewelry Samples From large manufacturers at less than cost of making. Sale begins 1) o'clock Saturday morn ing, December I Oth, and will continue until Christmas This purchase includes a large assort ment of Gents' and Ladies Watches, Kings, Brooches, Scarf Pins, Fobs, Chains, Cuff Buttons, Beads, Pins, and hundreds of other pieces. Send for catalogue. Ralston & Smith, Successors of W. E. Ralston, 110 W. Jefferson Street, Butler, Pa. -THE BUTLER CITIZEN. Isay.XmasisNearll YOU WILL BUY SOMETHING Wj jtJ USCfUI for the HOIHC | Fi pj WA This store has the kind of Useful Presents LI Li that lasts for years. Why not buy Furniture. Va fA Our stock is large and assortment fine. Better take a look at us before buying. rJ 10 How About A Rocking Chair M 4j One of the most useful and pleasing articles of the f $ home. Never can have too many comfortable Rock ing Chairs. We are showing at least 100 diilerent . s rf® patterns —all kinds —inexpensive —at $2.00, 2.50, fej 3.00, 3.so—comfortable—durable. Parior Chairs— F® polished —odd patterns at $5.00, 6.00 up to 10.00. Fine Leather Rockers for sl2 to 20.00. T® s PARLOR TABLES tt fd We are shoving a large assortment. Meat polish [L * patterns in small sizes at $1.50, 2.00 and up to m f4 5.00. The better ones—in mahogany and oak from kj SB.OO to 20.00. I ODD PARLOR PIECES In gilt, oak, mahogany —artistic pieces to tone up pj wa —make home look beautiful —inexpensive, if you wish, or more elaborate, as you please. pj rJ Music Cabinets here from SB.OO to $25.00. kj fi WRITING DESKS for the Ladies—in oak or ma hogany —bird's eye maple —from $5.00 to 15.00. w2 VA How about u tiue Rug oi Carpet for your beat kj room? We have them. M COME IN AND COMPARET M |] BROWN CO.|| No. 136 North Main St., Butler. Jk Kelsey, Crown, Boomer I Coal and Slacl< Heaters, Gas and Coal■ Ranges and Gas Stoves. 1904 Washers,® Sowing /Machines, Needles Jor all mal, 1904. PROFESSIONAL CARDS. PHYSICIANS, [ C. BOYLE, SI. F>. FF I EVE, E\R, XOSE and THROAT, Sf'Ef.'l ALIST. 121 Cunningham Street. Office Hours 11 to 12 a. m.. 3 to 5 and I T to 9 p. m. BOTH TELEPHONES. i IkR JULIA K. FOSTER. 1/ OSTEOPATH. Consultation and examination free. Office hours - 0 to 12 A M.. 2 to M., daily except Sanday. Evening 1 appointment. Office—Stein Block, Rooms 9-10, But ler, Pa. People's Phone 47>. DLI H. J. NEELV Rooms 6 and 7. Hujibes Building, Sonth Main St. Chronic diseases of genito urinary organs and reetmu treate .i by tie i. Os approved methods. PLARA E. MORROW, D. 0., V GRADUATE BOSTON COLLEGE OE OSTEOPATHY. Women's diseases ;t specialty. Con sultatian and esamiuation free. Office Hours, 9 to 12 m., 2 to 3 p. m 1 People's Phone 573. 116 S. !\ T M» n Mrctt, fut'c:, ia j M. ZIMMERMAN 'I • PHYSICIAN AND SHKGKON At "2' N Main Sr. I R. HAZLETT, M. D., Ij. 106 West Dlamoiid, Dr. Graham's formtr of r >ce. Special attention y ve.. to Kye, v o e j and Throat People's Phune 274. OA.MUELM. BIFFOS, PHY3ICIAN AND SC7RGKOH 200 West Cunningham St. DENTISTS. DR. FORD II HAYES. DENTIST. Graduate of Dental Department, j University of Pennsylvania. Office—2ls S. Main Street, Butler, Pa. •, DR. S A. JOHNSTON. SUKGEON DENTIST. Formerly of Bntler, * Has located opposite Lowry Honse, | Main St , Butler, Pa. The finest: work ; n specialty. Expert painless extractor j of teeth by his new method, no rnedi j cine used or jabbing a noedle into the gums; J:1SO gas and ether used. Corn mnnications by mail receive prompt at tention. DR J. WILHERT McKEE, SITKGEON DENTIST. Office over Leighner's Jewelry store, Butler, Pa Peoples Telephone 505. A specialty made of gold fillings, gold crown and bridge work. \V J HIND MAN, ' 1 • DENTIST. 12,'t South Main street, (ov Metzer's shoe store.) DR. H. A. MCCANDLESS, DENTIST. Office in Butler County National Bank Building, 2nd floor. DR. M D. KOTTRABA, Successor to Dr. Jolint>ion. DENTIST Office at No 114 K. Jeflerson St., over <>. \V. Miller's grocery ATTORNEYS. RP. SCOTT, • ATTORNEY-AT-LAW, Office in Bntler County National Bank building. i T. scon . A*. ATTORNEY AT LAW. Office at No. West Diamond St. But ler, Pa. POIJLTER & BAKER, * J ATTORNEYS AT LAW. Offi.-e in Butler C'innly National Bjrik building. JOHN W. COULTER, 'I ATTORNEY-AT-LAW. Offi;;o on Diamond, Butler, Pa. Special stleutiou given to collections and business matters. I D McJUNKIN, T) « ATTOUNKY-AT-LA w. Office in Keiber building, cornet Main and R. Cunningham Sts, Entrance on Maiu street. 1 It. BKEDIN, TF • ATTORNEY AT LAW. Office on Main St. near Couit llousi HII. GOUCHKR, • ATTORNEY AT LAW. Office In Wine buildinit I: H. NKGLEY, J• ATTORNEY AT LAW. Oflice In the N*-jjley B'lildlug, We t Diamond W C. FINDLE*. M • ATTOUNKY-AT-LAW. AND PENSION ATTORN ICY. Office on South side of Diamond, Bntler, Pa. MISCELLANEOUS. p P. L. McQUISTION, V. CIVIL ENGINEER AND SURVEYOR Oeicc near Court House I WALKER, IJ« NOTA UY PUUMC, BUTLER, Office with Berkmer, u»-»i d<«»r to P. O I) F MILLIARD, I). GHNKKAI, SURVEYING. Mines and Land. County Surveyor. It. F D. 40, West Snnbury. Pa. X?! C. F. T. Papej I iJEWELERI \ / 121 E. Jefferson Street. / $350 PIANO ONLY $l4O lloffmaaa's, SJ7 Seiithflcld SI., Pittsburg. A handsome mahogany upright piano with beautiful, mellow tone, worth will»« sold for 1110, including stool and cover. This is a high grade, slightly used piano, in perfect condition and an i xcepttonal bargain. If yon want a piano and can bny one at about half Its regular value would it not pay well 10 investigate this oxtra ordinary offer? If so, call or write for full particulars J. M. HOFFMANN CO., 587 Hmithfield street, Pittsburg, IV Established 1M». Sole representatives for Sohuier, Vose and Behniug Pianos. ''tflTlTfff § The Simple life By CHARLES WAGNER { t Copyright. 1901. by McClure. Phillips O- Co. __l CHAPTER 111. SIMPLICITY OF THOUOHT. IT Is not alone among the practical manifestations of our life that there Is need of making a clear ing; the domain of our Ideas is in the same case. Anarchy reigns in hu man thought. We walk In the woods without compass or sun, lost among tho brambles and briers of Infinite de tail. When once man has recognized tho fact that he bas an aim, and that this aim Is to be a man, he organizes his thought accordingly. Every mode of thinking or Judging which does not make him better and stronger he re jects as dangerous. And first of all he flees the too com mon contrariety of amusing himself with his thought. Thought is a tool, with its own proper function; It Isn't n toy. Let us take an example. Here Is the studio of a painter. The Implements arc all in place; everything indicates that this assemblage of means Is ar ranged with view to an end. Throw the room open to opes. They will climb on the benches, swing from the cords, rig themselves In draperies, coif them selves with slippers. Juggle with brush es, nibble the colors and pierce the can vases to see what is behind the paint. I don't question their enjoyment. Cer tainly they must find this kind of ex ercise extremely Interesting. But an atelier is not made to let monkeys loose in. No more is thought a ground for acrobatic evolutions. A man worthy of the name thinks as he is, as his tastes are; he goes about it with his whole heart, and not with that fitful and sterile curiosity which, under pre text of observing and noting every thing, runs the risk of never experienc ing a deep and true emotion or accom plishing a right deed. Another habit in urgent need of cor rection, ordinary attendant on conven tional life, is the mania for examining and analyzing oneself at every turn. I do not Invito men to neglect Intro spectlon and the examination of con science. The endeavor to understand one's own mental attitudes and motives of conduct Is an essential element of good living. Hut quite other Is this ex treme vigilance, this incessant obser vation of one's life and thoughts, this dissecting of oneself, like a piece of mechanism. It Is a waste of time and goes wide of the mark. Tho man who, to prepare himself the better for walk ing. should begin by making a rigid anatomical examination of his means of locomotion, would risk dislocating something before lie had taken u step. You have what you need to walk with, then forward! lake care not to fall, und use your forces with discretion. Potterers and scruple mongers nre soon reduced to inaction. It needs but a glimmer of common sense to perceive that man Is not made to pass his llfo In a self centered trance. And common sense- do you not find what Is designated by this name lie comlng as rare as the common sense customs of other days? Common sense has become an old story. We must have something new. and we create a factitious existence, a refinement of living, thnt the vulgar crowd has not the wherewithal to procure. It Is so agreeable to be distinguished! Instead of conducting ourselves like rational beings and using the means most ob viously at our command we arrive, by dint of absolute genius, at the most astonishing singularities. Better off the track than on the main line! All the bodily defects and deformities that orthopedy treats give but a feeble Idea of the huinps, the tortuosities, the dis locations we have Inflicted upon our selves In order to depart from simple common sense, and at our own ex pense we learn that one does not de form himself with Impunity. Novelty, after all, Is ephemeral. Nothing en dures but the eternal commonplace, anil If one departs from that It Is to run the most perilous risks. Happy he who Is able to reelulm himself, who finds the way back to simplicity. Good plain sense Is not, as Is often Imagined, the Innate possession of the first chance comer, a mean and paltry equipment that has cost nothing to any one. I would compare It to those old folk songs, unfathered, but death less, which sceiu to have risen out of the very heart of the people. Good senile Is a fund slowly and painfully accumulated by the lalsir of centuries. It Is u Jewel of the first water, whose value he alone understands who has lost It or who observes the lives of others who have lost It. For my part I think no price too great to pay for gaining It and keeping it for the pos session of eyes that see and a Judg ment that discerns. One takes good cure of his sword that It be not bent or rusted; with greater reason should he give heed to' his thought. But let this be well understood: An uppcal to common sense Is not an ap peal to thought that grovels, to narrow positivism which denies everything It cannot or touch; for to wish that man should be absorbed lu material sensations, to the exclusion of the high realities of the Inner life, Is also a want of g<*Ml sense. Here we touch upon a tender point, round which the greatest battles of humanity are waging. In truth, we are striving to attain a con ccptloii of life, searching It out amid countless obscurities and griefs, and everything that touches upon spiritual realities becomes day by day more painful. In tho midst of the grave perplexities and transient disorders that accompany great crises of thought It seems more difficult than ever to e.i Cape with any simple principles. Yet necessity Itself comes to our aid, as II has done for the men of all times. The programme of life In terribly simple after all, and lu the fact that existence so Imperiously forces herself upon us she gives us notice that sho preeedes any Idea of her which we may make for ourselves and that no one can put off living pending an attempt to under stand life. Our philosophies, our ev planations, our beliefs, are everywhere confronted by facts, and these facts, prodigious, Irrefutable, call us to order when we would deduco life from our reasonings and would wait to act until we have ended philosophizing. It Is this happy necessity that prevents the world from stopping while man ques tloiis his route. Travelers of a day, we are carried along In a vust move ment to which we are called upon to contribute, but which we have not fore seen nor embraced lu Its entirety nor j>euetrated as to its ultimate alms. Our part is to fill faithfully the role of private, which has devolved upoa us, and our thought should adapt Itself to the situation. Do not say that we live in more trying times than our ances tors. for things seen from afar are of ten seen Imperfectly. It Is, moreover, scarcely gracious to complain of not havlner been born in the days of one's grandfather. What we may believe least contesta ble on the subject is this: From the be ginning of the world it has been hard to see clearly; right thinking has been difficult everywhere and always. In the matter the ancients were In no wise privileged above the moderns, and it might be added that there is no dif ference between men when they are considered from this point of view. Master and servant, teacher and learn er, writer and artisan, discern truth at the same cost. The light that humanity acquires In advancing is no doubt of the greatest use, but It also multiplies the number and extent of human prob lems. The difficulty Is never removed; the mind always encounters its obsta cle. The unknown controls us and hems us In on all sides. But just as one need not exhaust a spring to quench his thirst, so we need not know everything to live. Humanity lives and always has lived on certain elemental provisions. We will try to point them out. First of all, humanity lives by confidence. In so doing It but reflects, commensurate wlfh its conscious thought, that which Is the hidden source of all beings. An Imperturbable faith in the stability of the universe and its intelligent order ing sleeps In everything that exists. The flowers, the trees, the beasts of the field, live in calm strength, in entire se curity. There U conlldence In the fall ing rain, in dawning day. in the brook running to the sea. Everything that Is seems to say: "I am, therefore I should be. There are good reasons for this, rest assured." So, too, mankind lives by confidence. From the simple fact that he is, man has within him the sufficient reason for his being—a pledgo of assurance. He reposes in the power which has willed that lie should be. To safeguard this confidence, to see that nothing diseon certs It, to cultivate it, render it more personal, more evident—toward this should tend the first effort of our thought. All that augments confidence within us Is good, for from confidence is born the life without haste —tranquil energy, calm action, the love of life und Its fruitful labor. I>eep seated con fidence Is the mysterious spring that sets In motion the energy within us. It is our nutriment. By it man lives much more than by the bread he eats. And so everything thnt shakes this confi dence Is evil—poison, not food. Dangerous Is every system of thought that attacks tho very fact of life, de claring it to be an evil, IJfe has been too often wrongly estimated In this century. What wonder that tho tree withers when its roots are watered with corrosives. And there Is an ex tremely simple reflection that might bo made In the face of all this nega tion. You say llf# Is r.n evil. Well, what remedy for It do you offer? Can you combat It, suppress It? I do not ask you to suppress your own life, to commit suicide— of what advantage would that be to us? but to suppress life, not luorely human life, but llfo at Its deep and hidden origin, all this upHprlnglng of existence that pushes toward the light and, to your mind, is rushing to misfortune; I ask you to lupprcss the will to live tliut trembles through the Immensities of space, to suppress, in short, the source of life. Can you do It? No. Then leave us In pence. Kline no one can hold life In check Is It not better to respect It and use It than to go about making other people disgusted with It? When one knows that certain food is danger ous to health he does not eat It, and when a certain fashion of thinking robs us of confidence, cheerfulness and strength we should reject that, certain not only that It Is a nutriment noxious to the mind, but also that It Is false. There Is no truth for man but In thoughts (hat are human, and pessimism ts In human. Besides, It wants as much In modesty as In logic. To permit one self to count as evil this prodigious thing that wo call life one needs have seen Its very foundation, almost to have made It. What a strange atti tude Is that of certain great thinkers of our times! They pet as If they had created the world very long ago, in their youth, but decidedly It was a mis take, and they had well repented it. I,et us nourish ourselves from other meat, strengthen our souls with cheer ing thoughts. What Is truest for man Is what best fortifies him. If mankind lives by confidence, It lives also bjr hope that form of confi dence which turns toward the future. All life Is a result and an aspiration; all that exists supposes an origin and tends towaril an end. Lin» Is progres HIOII; progression Is aspiration. The progress of the future Is an Infinitude of hope. Hope Is at the root of things and must be reflected In the heart of man; no hope, no life. Tho same pow er which brought us Into being urges us to go up higher. What Is the mean lng of this persistent instinct which pushes us on? The true meaning Is that something Is to result from life, that out of It is being wrought a good greater than Itself, toward which It slowly moves, and that this painful sower called man needs, like every sower, to count on the morrow. The history of humanity Is the history of indomitable hope; otherwise everything would have been over long ago. To press forward under his burdens, to guide himself In the night, to retrieve his falls and his fiilures, to escape de spair even lu death, man has need of hoping always, and sometimes iigalnst all hope. Here Is the cordial that sus tains him. Had we only logic wo should have long ago drawn the con clusion, Death has everywhere the last word, anil we should be dead of tho Idea. Hut we have hope, und that is why we live and believe In life. Huso, the great monk and mystic, one*of the simplest and best men that ever lived, had a touching custom. Whenever he encountered a woman, were she the poorust and oldest, ho stepped respectfully aside, though his bare feet must tread among thorns or In the gutter. "I do that," he said, "to render homage to our holy lady the Virgin Mar j " I.et lis offer to hope a like re\ereuce. If we meet It In tho shape of a blade of wheat piercing the i furrow, a bird on Its nest, a poor wounded \>east. recovering itself, rising and continuing iu way; a peas ant plowing and sowing a field that h.u been ravaged by flood or hail, a nation slowly repairing Its losses and healing its wounds under whatever guise of humanity or suffering it ap i pears to us, let us salute it. When we encounter it in legends, in untutored songs, in simple creeds, let us still sa lute it, for it is always the same, inde structible, the immortal daughter of God. We do not dare hope enough. The men of our day have developed strange timidities. The apprehension that the sky ivlll fall—that acme of absurdity among the fears of our Gallic forefa thers—has entered our own hearts. Does the raindrop doubt the ocean, the ray mistrust the sun? Our senile wisdom has arrived at this prodigy. It resembles those testy old pedagogues | whose chief office is to rail at the mer ry pranks or the youthful enthusiasms of their pupils. It Is time to become i little children once more, to learn | again to stand with clasped hands and j wide eyes before the mystery around | us; to remember that, in spite of our knowledge, what we know is but a trifle, and that the world is greater tlinn our mind, which Is well, for, be ing so prodigious, it must hold in re serve untold resources, and we may allow It some credit without accusing ourselves of improvidence. Let us not treat it as creditors do an insolvent debtor; we should fire its courage, re light the sacred flame of hope. Since tbo sun still rises, since earth puts forth her blossoms anew, since the bird builds its nest and the mother smiles at her child, let us have the courage to be men and commit the rest to htm who has numbered the stars. For my part I would I might find glowing f.ords to say to whomsoever has lost heart In these times of disillusion: Rouse your courage; hope on. He is sure of being least deluded who has the daring to do that The most Ingenuous hope is nearer truth than the most ra tional despair. Another source of light on the path of human life is goodness. I am not of those who believe In the natural per fection of man and teach that society corrupts him. On the contrary, of all forms of evil the one which most dis mays mo Is heredity. But I sometimes ask myself bow It Is that this effete and deadly virus of low instincts, of vices Inoculated in the blood, the whole assemblage of disabilities Imposed up on us by the past—how all this has not got the better of us. It must be because of something else. Thin other thing is love. Given the unknown brooding above our heads, our limited Intelligence, the grievous and contradictory enigma of #iiuiui destiny, falsehood, hatred, cor fuptlon, suffering, death—what can we think, what do? To all these questions a sublime and mysterious voice has an swered. Love your fellow men. Love must Indeed be divine, like faith and hope, since she cannot die when so many powers are arrayed against her. She has to combat the natural ferocity of What may be culled the beast In man. She has f6 meet ruse, force, self Inter est, above all. lngratltudo. How Is it "id scathless In tiuwnTastof tnese dark enemies, like the prophet of the sacred legend among the roaring beasts? It Is becuuse her enemies are of the earth und love Is from above. Horns, teeth, claws, eyes full of murderous lire, are powerless against tho swift wing that soars to ward the heights and eludes them. Thus love escapes the undertakings of her foes. She does even better—she has sometimes known the One triumph of winning over her persecutors. Sho lias seen the wild beasts grow calm, lie down at her feet, obey her law. At the very heart of the Christian faith, the most sublime of Its teach ings, and to him who penetrates Its deepest sense the most human, Is this; To save lost humanity the Invisible God came to dwell among us In tho form of a man and willed to make himself known by this single sign love. Healing, consoling, tender to tho un fortunate, even to tho evil, love engen ders light beneath her feet. She clari ties, she.simplifies. She has chosen the humblest part -to bind up wounds, wipe away tears, relieve distress, soothe aching hearts, pardon, make peace. Yet It Is of love that we hnvo the greatest need. And as wo meditate on the best way to render thought fruit ful, simple, really conformable to our destiny, the method sums Itself up In these words: Have confidence and hope; be kind. I would not discourage lofty specula tion, dissuade any one whomsoever from brooding over the problems of tho unknown, over the vast abysses of sci ence or philosophy; l>tit v.e have al ways to come back from those fur Jour neys to the point where we arc, often to a place where we seem to stand marking time with 110 result. There are conditions of life ami social com plications In which the sage, the think er and the Ignorant are alike unable to see clearly. The present ago hits often brought us face to face with such situations. I am sure that ho who meets them with our method will soon recognise Its worth. Since 1 have touched here upon rell glotis ground, at least In a general way, some one may ask me to say In a few simple words what religion Is the best, and 1 gladly express myself on this subject Hut It might be better not to put tho question in this form. AU re ligions have of necessity certain fixed characteristics, and each has Its Inhor ent qualities or defects. Strictly spcak lUK. then, they may be compared among themselves. But there are always in voluntary partialities or foregone con clusions. It Is better to put the ques tlon otherwise and ask, Is my own re llglon good, and how may I know It? To this question this answer: Your re ligion Is good If It Is vital and active, if it nourishes in you confidence, hope, love and a sentiment of tho luflnlto value of existence; If It Is silled with what Is best In you against what Is worst and holds forever before you the necessity of becoming a new man; if It makes you understand that pain is a deliverer; If It Increases your rospoct for the conscience of others; If It ren ders forgiveness more «'asy, fortune less arrogant, duty more dear, the be yond less visionary. If It does tbsso things It Is good, little matter its name. However rudimentary It may be, when It fills this office It eomes from the true source; It binds you to mau und to God But does It perchance serve to make you think yourself better thau others, quibble over texts, wear sour looks, domineer over others' consciences or give your own over to bondage, stlflo your scruples, follow religious forms for fashion or gain, do good In the hope of escaping future punishment? oh, then, If you proclaim yourself the fol lower or Huddha. Moses, Mohammed or even t'hrlst, your religion Is worth less; It separates you from God and man. 1 have not perhaps the right to speak thus In my owu name, but others bave m> fcuukeu before iu« who ur« Kltfcttf No. 48 I than If and notably he who recounted I to the questioning scribe the parable 1 of the good Samaritan. I Intrench my -1 self behind his authority. [TO BE coirrnrtTHx] fHE SHAMROCK. fc-clnnd's Wood Sorrel Said to Be St. Patrlrk'i Emblem. There are many people who do not know what the real shamrock is. The plan? which is often called shamrock and generally passes for It in Ireland Is the Trlfolium repens, or white clo ver. This plant could not have been the one which St Patrick held up to illustrate the doctrine of the Trinity, as Jt has been known only 200 years In Ireland and Is a cultivated plant and not native to the soil. Edmund Spenser says of the Irish of 1580 that "whenever they found a plot of shamrocks, or watercress, they had a feast. There were some who gob bled the green food as It came, some looked for the faultless stalk and the bloom on the leaf." This shamrock of Spenser's time was without doubt the Oxalls acetosella, which is commonly known as wood sorrel. It makes an ex cellent salad herb, though it has never become a market herb in France or this country. The sorrel of Paris and New York markets is a species of dock. The wood sorrel Is indigenous to the soil of Ireland and is believed by botanists to be the original "herb trini ty" with which St Patrick used to il lustrate his doctrines.—New York Trib une. MONEY IN CORNERSTONES. The Sirrlral of an Older sad More Traarie Culom. The practice of putting money under the foundation stone of a new building is the shadow of an older tragic cus tom. The money stands theoretically for the ransom of the human being who by ancient superstition should have been burled in Its place. Other wise, it was held, the building would not stand firm and endure. There was a time when this particu lar kind of human sacrifice bad a rogue extending to most parts of the world. Eren in England skeletons bave been found imbedded in the bases of castle walls, and there is record of one German fortress at the building of which a child was bought from its mother with hard cash and walled in to the donjon tower, the unnatural mother, according to the story, looking on the while. Effigies of human be ings are still used in some parts of Europe as harmless substitutes, and in remoter and more ruthless places the old custom crops out from time to time In all Its grim reality. Within the last half century two children, a boy and a girl, were, it was reported, walled into a blockhouse by some laborws at Duga, Asiatic Turkey. New York Times. THE ESKIMO DOG. He XeTer Knows tbe Luxury of s Shelter or • Bed. The Eskimo dog from bis birth to his death, which In many instances is a violent one, never knows the luxury of shelter or a "bed. Ho spends his exist ence outdoors and appears to be far more comfortable in Printer than in summer. The pups when hardly able to toddle instinctively show an ambi tion to run with sleighs (they never bark) and Join with their treble squeals tho enthusiastic chorus of hbwla with which the Eskimo dog invariably greets the first fall of snow. The ambi tion of the young dogs is soon taken advantage of by tbe Eskimos. Tho little fellows are hitched to sleds in company with full grown dogs, and to prevent them from being run over they are tied by the neck to the tow line, so that when tho run starts oat they aro compelled to keep up or be dragged by tho team. This simple though brutal method of training is very effective, and after one or two runs tho young dog uderstands what is wanted of him. Even before he is fall grown be Is thoroughly conversant with bis duties. DrownUt'i Modest?. The only sou of Robert B rooming and h|s illustrious wife was a diligent art student when he grew to manhood. He was believed to have a promising ca reer, but onco when tho tether was showing a friend some of his son's pic tures lie expressed a fear that he might suffer from tbe high hopes built upon him. "Ho is placed at a disadvantage," said Browning. Then ho explained further. In a phrase as modest as any ever uttered by a great man: "People expect much from him, you seo, becauso he had such a clever moth er." Some Old Style Bets. The gold laced cocked hot was large ly used In 1778 not only on account of It* military look, but bocause it proba bly protected the wearer from seizure by tho press gangs, which were at that tlino more than usually active. Tho tint, folding, crescent shaped Reaver known us the cocked hat was ktili to be seen as late as 1818. One or the Other. Mrs. Smlthers—l called on Mrs. Rlumpter yesterday, and sho returned tho call today. Must think a great deal of me. don't you think? Mr. Bmlthers —Well, either that or abe's one of these wlso ones who relieve the mind by per forming a disagreeable duty as soon as possible.—lndlunapolls Bun. Thousands of Heesons. "I really cannot seo what she finds attractive about blm." "Why, there are thousands of rea sons for her loving him." "What are they?" "Dollars."—St. Louis Bepubllo. Dlsooaroclsi Competition. May—Your fiuucoo tells me she has a pcrfoct trust In you, and— Ned—Trust? Sho bus a perfect monopoly of me. I guess Unit's what sho means.—Phila delphia Ledger. Hard Hearted. ■be—After ull, George, I think a pub lic wedding would be bettor. He—Anil give up the elopement? You so*, pups lius refused to lend us his automobile, so what's the uso? Judge. Why Dnrton Committed Snlcldr. Burton, tho vivacious author of "Tho Anatomy of Melancholy," who had the repututlon of being able to raise laugh ter In uny company, however "mule and mopish," was in reality constitu tionally dopressedt and It is believed that he was at Inst so overcomo by his malady that ho ended his life In a flt of melancholy. A Cold Cold. "I understand that prima donna fail ed to give her farewell concert because she had a eold." "Yes," answered the manager. "How did sho contract it?" "Well, it wasn't an ordinary cold. It is what Is technically known as a box office chill."- Exchange.