Rashfulness is a disease, says a medical writer. Still it's not the kind to fear, because it doesn't seem to be catching. The port of Hiogo, Japan, was opened to the world in 1868. Re ginning with nothing, its commerce has increased to 380,000,000 annually. In extent of territorial possessions Uncle Sam ranks fifth among the great landlords of the world. Rritain, Rus sia, China and France each own a larger portion of the globe than that belonging to the United States. The report of the railway commis sioners of New South Wales for the year ended June 30, shows that there are now 2091 miles of railways open, and of tramways 05 miles. The total earnings amounted to $16,700,000, showing an increase of SIO,OOO ovei the previous year. The increase is largely due to mining aud agricultural development. "Alabama," observes the SavannnL News, "contributes three luminous names that will live in the history ol the war with Spain. They are those of Major-General Joseph Wheeler, ol intrepid courage and brilliant military übility; his daughter, Annie Laurie Early, of courage no less than her sire, but employed in a diametrically different manner, and Lieutenant liobson." The supreme court of Massachu setts has decided that the eity of Bos ton is the trustee of the fund created by Dr. Benjamin Franklin in 1790, now amounting to about $500,000, Franklin designated that the fund should be "'managed by the selectmen of the town, and the ministers of the oldest Episcopal, Congregational and Presbyterian churches," and it was contended before the court that this was tantamount to creatMg a board of trustees. The court rules in a deci sion written by Judge Allen that the gift to the town passed to the city on its incorporation, and that u munici pality may be a trustee for a public charity. Some statistics on education collated by a writer in the Chicago Times- Herald have special interest now that the school year has begun. It appears from these figures that the public schools in the United States have an enrolment of 14,465,891. All of them do not goto school every day, the overage daily attendance being 9,747,- 015 children. To teach these requires the services of 400,825 instructors, ol whom 130,366 are male and 269,959 are female. There are 240,968 school houses, and the value of all school property is $455,948,164. The cost of the public schools is $181,453,780 per year, or $2.61 per capita of popu lation. For each pupil it costs $18.62. On the basis of these and other fig ures, the assertion is made that the United States, with but one-twentieth the population of the world, withiu her confines has one-third of the world's schoolchildren, aud speuds one-half of the amount spent by the world for education. Judging from the intermediary state censuses and from other enumerations of the people, the Philadelphia Press expects the national census of 1900 to show that the centre of population has stoped moving westward and has gone toward the southeast. It points out thi> largo increase in Massachu setts of 256,402 in 1895 over 1890,nnd MI iuerease of 553,204 between 1885 and 1895, an increase nearly twice as groat as was made during the previous teu years. Rhode Island's census also showed a larger percentage of increase in population between 1890 and 1895 than it had iu the previous five years. Cited also in evidence is the well known fact of the rapid growth iu population of the New England cities, and of the cities in New York and Pennsylvania. More striking, how ever, is the record iu New Jersey of an increase in 1895 of 228,009 over 1890, or two-thirds as much increase in five years as the state male in the previous teu years. On the other baud state censuses iu Michigan, Wis consin, Minnesota, and lowa, aud es timates based on school or other enumeration iu other states in the middle West, while iusuring an en couraging gain in that section, do not equal the large percentage of increase found in the states on this side of the Alleghanies. Two causes for this change in growth occur to the Press, One is the fact that the limit of prof itable agriculture has, for the pres ent, been reached, and has rolled back the tide of population. The oth er reason is the growth of manufac turing in the eastern §tates, which is drawing to the cities the increase which «mce went ao largely to the Waal The Czar of Rn:;si» wants peac< and the reduction of armaments. Russia keeps 900,000 men under arms. Why does not the Czar tell half a million soldiers togo home and go to work? Professor Martin, the Swedish sa vant, has discovered in the Kremlin al Moscow, Russia, a large portion ol the Swedish war booty captured by Gustavus Adolphus. It appears that the majority of the silver vessels and ornaments kept in the treasury at the Kre.ulin are presents made at differ ent times by various kings of Sweden to the czars of Russia. To each of the nearly six hundred public and private schools in Porta Rico an American flag is to be pre sented by Lafayette post, G. A. R., ol New York eity. With the stars and stripes floating over the school chil dren, and with their parents constant ly experiencing the contrast between American and Spanish rule, it will nol be long before Porto Rico will become one of the most loyal and patriotic possessions of the United States. The scream of the locomotive is to sound in the monntain fastnesses ol Madagascar. A French company has been granted the concession to build a railway which will run from Tama tave to Tananarive, shortening the distance between the places by fifty per cent, and affording facilities for transportation of freight and passen gers to the various distributing point? on the south and west coasts of the huge island. Recause of the chasmed country the road will be very expen sive. Construction is to begin at once. The decisive battle of OmdurmaP in the Sotidau shows the perseverance of the English government. The ad vance of this expedition has consumed two years, and has been a striking ex ample of sustained and steady effort. The caprices of the Nile had to be waited for, a railway had to be built, half-trained Egyptian troops had to be fully trained, and 25,000 men bad tc be moved hundreds of miles across ilesert wastes, and every mile of that way well guarded. It was a great un dertaking, and as compared with the disastrous campaign of the Abyssinia shows most distinctly the difference between the Anglo-Saxon and the Latin races as soldiers. A new phase of philanthropy has appeared in Allegheny, Pa., in a move ment for the cheer of the sick in hos pitals. It is proposed to establish uu association for the loaning of pictures to be hung on the Avails of the hos pitals, the pictures to make the tour of the hospitals, and then to be re turned to their owners. One of the first to respond offered sixty of the pictures from his home. In an ac companying letter he remarked that many persons spend a part of the year out of the city, and during that time the pictures would do much good in the hospitals without in the least depriving their owners of the enjoy ment of them. It is a beautiful char ity, akin to that of providing flowers for the hospitals, and may be widely copied if arrangements can be made for insuring the safety of the pictures while out of their owners' possession. The New York Sun savs: - The ca ble cars are not alone responsible for a new ailment which has lately made its appearance. A medical journal which has published an account of the new ailment attributes it chiefly to the trolley, although in both cases the active participation of the patient is necessary. According to the investi gations of a physician, this new trou ble consists of a fracture of one of the bones of the spine caused by striking the back of the seat iu a street car. He finds that most persons rise in their seats before they have reached their destination or before the car has come to a full stop. Iu many cases t'uey are thrown back on their seats when this happens or against the back of the seat, and this violent contact is likely to break one of the small bones in the spine. Luckily the result is not nearly so serious as it sounds and is much more likely to be incon venient than dangerous. As the in vestigations which proved the exist ence of the new ailment were made in a Western town where transportation was chiefly by means of the trolley?, the same effects might not have been expected here. But the physician found that the trouble was likely to be caused by any quickly moving ve hicle quite independently of what the motor power was. So persons suffer ing from unexplained backaches may discover that they stood up too soon while those who lmvo so far escaped may take warning and keap their seats, in the words of tlis conductor, until the car stops. , AUTUMN. ilong the leaf-strewed paths I walk Yet all thy splendors but presage Recalling summer days; The denotation near; Sot in a mood for human talk, For Nature, though she did engage I ponder Nature's ways. You artist of the year, nil Summer parted with hor breath, Will send a rude und vandal band No Autumn s sun could shine; Ere the new year is born, 'There Is no life but eomes from death," Whose ruthless ruvage through the land Said Plato the divine. Will blast what you adorn. Then, Autumn ! deem not all thine own Harsher than Summer's seems thy fate; The splendors which we see, For hor thou didßt caress, Tor had we not the Summer known And showed her as she lingered late These splendors could not be. The utmost tenderness. ffe love to see your banners red To thee, when summoned hence to leave, Whieh Summer helped to weave, No kindness will be shown; Lnd ev'ry canvas Summer spread For heartless Winter cunnot brieve Thy gorgeous tints receive. For all thy splendor flown. —Aaron Kingsbury In the Boston Evening Transcript. t At The Appetite=Cure. \ A. XZoalth nesort Comedy. Ley mark twain. 112 A piece of fiction—fiction with a :>ig F—by Mark Twain the well mown humorist, which came out in a ate Cosmopolitan, has attracted no little attention, not only for the anmor of which it is full, but for the undoubted scientific fact to which it calls attention. It is true that we jivilized Americans eat far too much, »nd equally true that no small amount of our disease is due to that habit. This theme the great humorist has jlothed in the following attractive form: This establishment's name is Hoch berghaus. It is in Bohemia, a short ilay's journey from Vienna, and being In the Austrian empire, is, of course. i health resort. All unhealthy peo ple ought to domicile themselves* in Vienna, and use that as a base for making flights, from time to time, to 1 the outlying resorts, accordiug to J need. A* flight to Marieubad to get 1 rid of fat; a Wight to Carlsbad to get ! rid of rheumatism; a flight to Kalten- ! leutgebeu to take the water cure, and ; get r.d of the rest of the diseases. It ■ Is all bo handy. You can stand in Vienna and toss a biscuit into Kal tenleutgeben, with a twelve-inch gun. You can run out thither at any time of the day; you can go by the phe- ! uomeually slow trains, and - yet inside | of an hour you have exchanged the | glare aud swelter of the city for the ■ wooded hills, and shady forest paths and soft cool airs, and the music of the birds, and the repose and peace of ! paradise. There are abundance ol ( Health resorts, as I have said. Among , them this place—Hochberghaus. It ! stands solitary on the top of a densely 1 wooded mountain aud is a building of ; great size. It is called the Appetite Anstallt, and people who have lost their appetites come here to get them restored. When I arrived, I was takeu by Professor Haimberger to his consulting room aud questioned: "It is six o'clock. When did you ! eat last?" "At noon." "What did you eat?" "Next to nothing." "What was ou the table?" "The usual things." "Chops, chicken, vegetables, and , SO OU?" I "Yes; but don't mention then—l j can't bear it." "Are you tired of them?" "Oh, utterly. 1 wish 1 might never hear of them again." "The mere sight of food offeuds yon, does it?" "More, it revolts me." The doctor considered awhile, then got out a long menu and ran his eye ! • lowly down it. "I think," said he, "that what you | need to eat is—but here, choose for ; yourself." 1 glanced at the list and my stomach threw a handspring. Of all the bar- i barous layouts that were ever con- j trived, this was the most atrocious. At the top stood "tough, underdone, overdue tripe, garnished with garlic;" half way down the bill stood "young cat; old cat; scrambled cat;" at the bottom stood "sailor boots, softeued with tallow—served raw." The wide intervals of the bill were packed with dishes calculated to insult a can nibal. T said: "Doctor, it is not fair to joke over such a serious ca-<e as mine. I came here to get an appetite— not to throw away the remnant that's left." He said gravely: "I am not joking; why should I joke?" "But I can't eat these horrors." "Why uot?" He said it with a naivete that'was admirable, whether it was real or as sumed. "Why not? Because—why, doc tor, for months I have seldom been able to endure anytliiug more sub stantial than omelettes and custards. These unspeakable dishes of yours "Oh, you will come to like them. They are very good. Aud you must eat them. It is the rule of the place aud is strict. I can uot permit any de parture from it." 1 said, smiling: "Well, then, doc tor, you will have to permit the de parture of the patient. lain going." He looked hurt, and said in a way which changed the aspect of things: "I am sure you would not do me that injustice. I accepted you iu good faith —you will uot shame that con fidence. This appetite cure is my whole living. If you should go forth from it with the sort of appetite which you now have,it could become known, aud you can see yourself that people would say my cure failed in your case and hence can fail iu other cases. You will not go; you will uot do me this hurt." I apologized aud said I would stay. The professor liauded me that odi ous menu. "Choose—or will you haveitlaterV" "Oh, dear me, sliow ine to my room; I forgot your Lard rule." "Wuit just a moment before you finally decide. There is another rule. If you choose now, the order will be tilled at once; but if you wait, yon will have to await my pleasure. You cannot get a dish from that entire bill until I consent." "All right. Show me to my room and seud the cook to bed; there is not going to bo nuy hurry." The professor took mo up one flight of stairs and showed ine into a most inviting and comfortable apartment cousisting of parlor, bedchamber and bathroom. In the parlor were many shelves tilled with books. The pro fessor said he would now leave me to myself and added: "Smoke and read as much as you piease, drink all the water yon like. When you get hungry, ring and give your order, and I will decide whether it shall be filled or not. Yours is a stubborn, bad case, and therefore I shall be gratified if you will restrain yourself and skip down to No. 10 aud begin with that." Then he left me and I began to un dress. for 1 was dog-tired aud very sleepy. I slept 15 hours and woke up finely refreshed at 10 the next morn ing. Vienna coffee! It was the first thing I thought of —that unapproach able luxury—that sumptuous coffee house coffee, compared with which all other European coffee, and all Ameri can hotel coffee is mere fluid poverty. 1 rang aud ordered it; also Vienna bread, that delicious invention. The servant spoke through the wicket in door and said—but you know what he said. He referred me to the bill of fare. I allowed him to go—l had no further use for him. After the bath I dressed aud started j for a walk, and got as far as the door. It was locked on the outside. I rang and the servant came and explained that it was auother rule. The seclu sion of the patient was required until i after the first meal. I had not been i particularly anxious to get out before; | but it was different now. Being locked in makes a person wishful to get out. I soon begau to find it difficult to put . in the time. At '2 o'clock I had been 2(j hours without food. I had been growing hungry for some time; I rec ognized that I was not only hungry, now, but hungry with a strong adjec tive in front of it. Yet I was not hun gry enough to face the bill of fare. I must putin the time somehow. I would read and smoke. I did it; h >ur by hour. The books were all of one breed— shipwrecks; people lost iu deserts; people shut up iu caved-in mines; peo ple starving in besieged cities. 1 read about all the revolting dishes that ever famished men stayed their hunger with. During the first hours these things nauseated me; hours followed in which they did uot so afl'ect ine; still other hours followed in which 1 found myself smacking my lips over some tolerably infernal messes. When I had been without food 45 hours I ran eagerly to the bell aud ordered the second dish on the bill, which was a sort of dumplings containing a com post made of caviar aud tar. It was refused. During the next 15 hours 1 visited the bell every now aud then aud ordered a dish that was further down the list. Always a re fusal. But I was conquering preju dice after prejudice, right along; I was making sure progress; I was creeping up on No. 15 with deadly certainty, and my heart beat faster and faster, my hopes rose higher and higher. At last when food had not passed my lips for 150 hours,victory was mine and I ordered No. 15: "Soft-boiled spring chicken—in th» egg; six dozen, hot and fragrant." In 15 minutes it was there aud the doctor aloug with it, rubbing his hauds with joy. He said with great excitement: "It's a cure, it's a cure! I knew I could do it. Dear sir, my gland sys tem never fails —never. You've got your appetite back —you know you have; say it and make me happy." "Bring on your carrion—l can cat anything in the bill." "Oil, this is noble, this is splendid —but I knew I could do it, the system never fails. How are the birds?" "Never was anything so delicious in the world; aud yet, as a rule, I don't care for game. But don't inter rupt me, don't—l can't spare my mouth, I really can't." Then the doctor said: "The cure is perfect. There is no more doubt or danger. Let the pout try alone; I can trust yon with a beef steak uow." The beefsteak came—as much as a basketful of it—with potatoes and Vienna bread and coffee; and I ate a meal then that was worth all the cost ly preparation I had made for it. And dripped tears of gratitude into the gravy all the time—gratitude to the ; doctor for putting a littla common sense in me when I had been eraptj of it 80 many, many years." In a second chapter the writer tells how Dr. Haimberger stunvDled across the idea of his cure through a ship wreck which stimulated the once fail ing appetites of the ship's passengers. POPULAR INTEREST IN DEWEY. Of Sueli a Nature That Any of Us It Likely to Be Affected. A retired business man of Cleveland, who has a reputation among people who know him for his kindness of heart, was tilled with distress the other afternoon when he was ap proached by the five-year-old sou of one of the neighbors. The little fel low was crying bitterly, and the kind hearted man lost no time in making inquiries as to the nature of the child's troubles, "Come," he said, patting the boy's head, "tell me all about it. Who hurt you?" "N-n-nobody didn't hu-hurt me," the sufferer sobbed, "b-b-but Dewey's dead, boo-hoo-lioo-hoo!" Dewey dead! Great heavens! That's terrible. Where's the newsboy? Dear, dear, dear, dear. I'm sorry to hear that!" And forgetting all about the dis tress of the child he rushed into the house, exclaiming to his wife: "Mamma, Dewey's dead!" "Mercy on us!" the lady replied, "where did you hear that?" "Little Francis Parker just told me. Poor child, he's crying as if his heart will break. I suppose his father has just brought the news home from down town. I wish the boys would hurry and get out this way with their papers. By George, this makes me feel blue! There's been some treach ery—you mark my words! Dewey is the victim of foul play. Now I'm foi wiping the whole darned Spanish race oil' the face of the earth. Nothing short of that will atone for our loss!" By this time the gentleman had got to walking arouud iu u circle, and his wife felt it her duty to do somethiug to keep him from breaking down. "Why dou't you go over to the Par kers," she said, "and find out about it? There may be some mistake. Ido hope it isn't true." "Yes, I hope so too," he replied, mechanically, taking his hat as she handed it to him, "but I'm afraid it is. I've hal a kind of premonition from the first that something was go ing to happen to Dewey. This com pletely upsets me. It's just as bad as if I'd lost a member ol' my own fami ly." Then he went over to the Parkers, little Francis having,in the meantime, returned home. Mrs. Parker aud her daughter Gract were sitting ou the porch making things out of fluffy lace aud linen. "Well," the kind hearted mail said, "it's too bad about Dewey, isn't it?" "Yes," Mrs. Parker answered, "we feel real bad about him. We had really become attached to him." "How aud when did it happen?' the gentleman asked, as lie took hi* (•Lair that had been pushed forward by Miss Grace. "He died this afternoon. I guess he must have caught cold. The girl had the hose out yesterday and sprin kled ou him, aud I think that starteu it." The man with the kind heart sal there, looking dumbly at the two ladies for about a minute, after whicL he asked: "What do you mean?" "Why," said Mrs. Parker, "the little chicken that our milkman brought in from the country to Francis. You never saw it, did you? It was a deal little thing. Francis called it Dewey, iu honor of the hero of .Manila. But," she sighed, "it's dead, and Francis has been crying all the afternoon." The kind-hearted man went home I shortly after that, and in answer to | his wife's anxious look merely said: i " 'Nother fake." QUAINT AND CURIOUS. I Blind men outnumber blind womei ! by two to one. j- A blind bat avoids wires aud ob : structious as easily as if it could sei perfectly. Taking all the year round, the cold ' est hour of the twenty-four is liv» o'clock in the morning. A decapitated snail, if kept iu « moist place, will iu a few days grow « new head, audit will be just as ser viceable as the original oue was. As late as IGB'2 squirts were use<i for extinguishing fire in England, au<j | their length did not exceed two Oi three feet witlipipes of leather. AA'ater 1 tight seamless hose was first made h I Bethual Green iu 1720. A Yarmouth (England) man wai ; smoking a pipe, when a spark dropped ' into the tuck of his trousers auu i burned a hole. He made a claim fo: I loss under his fire insurance policy, j aud the company paid the damage. A farmer iu AA'est Bath, Me., be lieves that it is contrary to nature t» i put shoes on horses, and makes all hii ' horses, from coltliood up, travel oi i their hoofs. The absence of shoe: ! does not seem to inconvenience then iu the least. John Hamilton of Wilmington, Del. has a Plymouth Hock hen whicl j catches and kills rats. The hen waits at a rathole in a stable, and pouncei ! upon an animal as it appears, usuall; ! seizing him by the leg. It then shake: i him vigorously and picks out his eyes Centuples GUI. Some of the wooded churches ol Norway are fully 700 years old, and are stiil iu an excellent state of pre servatiou. Their timbers have sue | oessfully resisted the frosty aud al 1 most Arctic wintors because the} Lave been repaid idly coated with tar BEST. There's no use disputing. The dear oM retrain Comes echoing sweetest again and again. And it's tenderest when, with the hardship! gone by, Its cadence brings smiling instead of a sfgl* When it breathes of a welcome of roses and cheer. Instead of the parting which wakens a tenn When it greets the glad pilgrim* from ove» the foam, The simple,nnd threadbare old tune "Home, Sweet llome." The toll of the mnsters no man may disdain. Tut they gave us no gentler or geemliel strain— It lias quickened men's hopes as the slovf hours went by. It has gladdened their souls when reunion was nigh. Let "The Conquering Hero" reverberate clear. Let "Hail to the Chief" bodily sound fai and near; But for laddies returning and laddies who roam, The standby forever is just "Home, Sweet Home." —Washington Star. ' HUMOROUS. "Wouldn't you like to live your life over ngaiu?" "Ami owe twice as much as I do now? Well, I guess not." "Has Miss Dobbins given you any encouragement?" "Well,she declines my offers of love, but she accepts my boxes of candy." "How did Eleanor announce hev engagement to the family?" "She just wiggled the linger that had uu the diamond ring." Little Sister—What's the difference 'tween 'lectricity and lightnin'? Lit« tie Brother You don't have to pay uotliin' fur lightnin'." Old Gentleman—What! Let yon have Ethel? Why, she is my only daughter. Ardent Lover—Yes, 1 know; and I am her only beau. "He says his soldier life reminded liini constantly of home and mother." '•How was that?" "They wouldn't let hi in sleep late mornings." "What seems to be the trouble with Wilson, doctor?" "None at all. Xone at all. I wish every patient I have paid as promptly as Wilson." "Why is it that geniuses are always eccentric?" "I guess it must be be cause that's about the only way iu which genius can obtain recognition." Nephew (to rich uncle, who has fall en down stairs) —I hope you are not hurt. Uncle—Oh, you do, do yon? You know very well that I must be either hurt or dead. "Why," asked the youngest board er, "do they measure the speed of u ship in knots?" "I think," said the Cheerful Idiot, "that it has something to do with the tied." "You had better not go boating with Ada," said Tommy to Ttis sister's liatiee. "Why not, Tommy?" "'Cause J heard her saj- she intended to throw you overboard soon." "There's no choice for me," said the blacksmith. "1 always have to begin at the foot." "Yes," assented the customer. "With you it does seem to be lioss and lioss." "I love you. Won't you give mo your hand?" he pleaded. The maiden hesitated. "Come," he said. "Sure ly you will not refuse me such a little thing." She could resist no longer. Mrs. Short —Here's an invitation to Mr. Long's wedding. What on earth can we send them? Mr. Short—He lost a ten dollar umbrella of mine a year ago. I'll make him a present of it. "Madame has gone out, sir, but she left a message for you." "What was the message?" "She wished that you —Oh, dear, I've forgotten! Just wait a minute, please, and I'll go and nsk her!" Indignant Bicyclist—Madam, your dog snaps at me every time I pass. Here lie comes now. (Starts off"). Old Lady—Sport! Sport ! You fool ish dog! Come here. Them aiu b bones. Them's legs ! Mrs. Chugwater—Josiah, I see a good deal in the papers about infernal machines. What is an infernal ma chine?" Mr. Chugwater—Well, some times I think it's a lawn mower, and Boiuetimes I think it's a piano." Mrs. Myrtle—Jane, where is tho pudding? I told you we would have pudding for dinner. Cook —Y'ou said, "I tliiuk we will have pudding for dinner." But I wouldn't mind it mem; I sometimes thinks things myself that never come off". Hungry Tor » Hwiitlithakr. He was sitting in a park. He looked down-hearted and despondent. His clothes were dusty, but not ragged. There was a look of despair on his boyish face—almost a look of desper ation. Some one noticing his despond eut look sat down by him, saying: "1 judge you are a stranger iu the city; I want to shake hands with you." A briglii look came into the young man's face, and he eagerly held oat his hand. "Oh," he said, "I am so hungry for a handshake! 1 left my home about a week ago with the prayers and best wishes of my friends. Times were hard, and it seemed necessary for mo togo into the world to make a living for myself. I supposed there was lots of work for mo in this city, but I don't think thoro is anything, and I am discouraged." He bit his lip hard as he said this, and his mouth quivered. "I will try again," he went onto say, "sinco some onecares enough for me to shake hands with me.'' That 'iaud-shake was the beginning of his success. Down-hearted and discouraged before, feeliug that there was no one who cared for him in a great city, his heart was made glad by that simple thing, a hand-skake, and he took courage and soon found em ployment. —Bam a Horn.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers