BEAUTIFUL DEADLY ORCHIDS A Forest of Ueautil'ul Flowers That No One Can Approach. M. Serge Belaguine, a Russian ex i/rer of Brazil, states in an interview ent!y published in The Gaulois that .■ L'\V degrees below the equator he dis covered a forest of flowers that pre vented him from approaching them. With every deference to Mr. Belaguine, that forest seems to have been discov ered before, says Collier's Weekly. Two years ago there appeared in a San Francisco paper an account provided by a bulb hunter returning from the same region, who declared that after noticing in a forest an odor, vague and sweet at first, but' which increased as he advanced, ultimately he reached a clearing, and there, straight ahead, was a wilderness of orchids. Trees were loaded with them, underbrush was covered with them, they trailed on the ground, mounted in beckoning con tortions, dangled from branches, fell In sheets, and elongated and expanded as far as the eye could reach. A breeze passed and they swayed with it, mov ing with a life of their own, dancing in the glare of the equatorial sun, and as they danced exhaling an odor that pro tected them more sheerly than a wall. In vain did that hunter endeavor to ap proach. There was a veil of perfumed chloroform through which he could see, but through which, try as he might, he could not pass. If held him back more effectually than bayonets, and it was torture to trim to see those flowers and to feel that before he could reach them he must die, suffocated by the very splendors of which he was in search, poisoned by floral jewels such as no one perhaps had seen before. At the time the place was known as the vil lage of demon flowers. Porto Itimn Filter*. Water is filtered in Porto Itico in a manner which affords an opening for American enterprise. In the courtyard of nearly every house stands one oi two of the native filters. They are made in two main parts. The upper is t A NATIVR I ILTF.n. ponderous porous stone, hollowed out to the shape of a wash basin. By a jlatwork of uprights it is supported di rectly over a stone receptacle on the ground. A gallon or two of water Is poured into the upper, and falls drop by drop into the lower. The water is made clear as crystal, and, while the method is slow, It if sure. An inspec tion of the moss-covered lower half of the tipper stone detracts a little from the esteem which the water wins at a first glance. Ekk I'lnntM Hnrtl to Grow. Of all the vegetables which come j into the summer market the most dilll- i cult to raise is the egg plant, and for ; this reason few truckers care to take the trouble with theTn. Few people in the city really know how an egg plant grows. The general impression is that it grows egg upward on a stock like the cauliflower and there are some who be lieve it grows in the ground like a tur nip. In fact, it grows on a bush with a large leaf, and is never so large as a tomato-vine. The plants must be raised in a hotbed and set out in May and require more than ordinary care. A slight rain will sometimes cause all the eggs to rot and occasionally they rot without any rain. One egg in half a dozen fit for the market is a good average. Italy'* I'oor. Marvelous economy is practised by the poor of Italy in looking after the wants of the inner nmn. Coffee grounds from the wealthy man's kitchen are dried and resold to Ihe poor. In a sim ilar way oil is twice, and sometimes three times used, the drippings after each successive frying being gathered from the pan and soUl to the poor. A Mextcif.n Lair. The laws of Mexico provide that a Mormon who wisher, to take a second wife must present a certificate, signed by his first help-meet, to the effect that she is willing; and he must also have the express consent of the sencond wife and her parents. Chealilre Cheeae. Cheshire cheese owes its excellence partly to geological causes, the red, sandstone and boulder clay, with its immense salt deposits, of which the country is formed, producing an herbi age peculiarly suited for cheese pro duction. Auatrollnn Miorlnlne*. The Australian aborigines are now ranked by ethnographers as fifth or sixth in the list of so called natural races, the Veddahs of Ceylon being the lowest in the scale of savage culture. Ulan* In Manila. The best houses in the city of Manila are of stone and are handsome resi dences. Glass is not used for the win dows, which are glazed with translu cent oyster shells. MOST REMARKABLE LAKE. A Strange lilack Fluid Tliat lloars No ll«- temblance to \Vnter. The most remarkable body of water ia the world lies In the vicinity of the Colorado river, in Southern California. In this region of ugly volcanoes, deso late wastes and slimy swamps, ihe strangest phenomenon of all is what tne naturalists call a "lake of ink." Nu other description Jits so well. The strange, black fluid that forms the lake bears no resemblance to wa ter. The pool of ink is situated about half a mile from a volcano. It is about an acre in area. The surface is coated with gray ashes from the volcanoes to the thickness of about six inches, thus concealing its real nature. Experiment has proved that the black fluid of the lake is not poisonous. It acts as a dye, and cotton goods soak ed In it keep their color for months, even when exposed to the sun. They also acquire a stiffness similar to that produced by weak starch. The fluid has been analyzed, but its component parts | have not been made known. \o the , source of the supply of the lal 110 t- j ing definite has been ascertained. It ; is undoubtedly of volcanic origin, but nothing more definite is known. This is a bad land that has never j been traversed. Human beings have j tried it, but they never return to tell of their experience of their discoveries. Need of Covering Durinn Sleep. The reason that it is necessary to be well covered while sleeping is that when the body lies down it is the in tention of nature that it should rest, and the heart especially should be re lieved of its regular work temporarily. So that organ makes ten strokes a min ute less than when the body is in an upright posture. This means tiOO : stokes in sixty minutes. Therefore, in ' the eight hours that a man usually spends in taking his night's rest, the heart is saved nearly five thousand strokes. As it pumps six ounces of blood with each stroke, it lifts 30,000 ounces less of blood in this night's ses sion than it would (luring the day, when a man is usually in an upright position. Now, the body is dependent for its warmth on the vigor of the cir culation, and as the blood flows so much more slowly through the veins when one is lying down, the warmth lost in the reduced circulation must be supplied by extra coverings.—"Even ing Wisconsin." I,ardent Hotel In tlic* World. The sultan is said to have nearly completed the largest hotel in the world at Mecca. This establishment is to lodge t>,ooo pilgrims at once, with, presumably, their camels and other beasts of burden, and promises to be one of the most picturesque places to stay at in the world, although, of course, inlidel dogs are not allowed to approach it. Its vast size has drawn attention to monster residences. The largest dwelling house in existence is in Vienna where there is an apart ment-house with 1,500 rooms in it, oc cupied by more than 3,000 people. This building has thirty-two staircases, thir teen interior courts and SSO windows on the street. The Mmiilii <'nl> System. The natives of Manila has a unique cab system. Not elaborate two and four wheels with coachmen and grooms in livery, high-stepping horses and high seats —these are superfluities, they consider. Only a single wheel, clumsy A NATIVE ( All and shaky, with the other parts on the lines of an American wheel-barrow, constitutes the cab of Manila, on the top of which the passenger crouches. They are propelled by attendants who are strong, polite and speedy. Aeenruey of limine Kinder. So accurate is the range finder used on American ships that in a recent test with two shots the projectiles fell within 30 yards of each other at a dis tance of 12 miles. Both would have hit the hull of a ship farther than the un aided eye could reach. Very Thick Skin*. Kongo negroes are remarkable for their thick skins. A case ia mention ed of a black slashed with a razor in a scuffle. The hospital surgeon broke two needles in trying to putin the stitches and at last was driven to use a brad awl. t'orean llat*. The ordinary outdoor hat in Corea is a curious looking thing, having a brim a foot and a half wide, and being made of a kind of stiff gossamer, of silk or horsehair, dexterously worked in with finely split bamboos. Elrplinnt'n Kent »*e. In India elephants over twelve and up to forty-five years of age are deem ed the best to purchase, and will gen erally work until they are eighty years old. Tbicli Hoot Wall*. j The outside walls of many of the i houses In Mexico are from three to six i feet thick to withstand earthquake abocty. Hindoo Tritil" ii"ii Uukr (ionil l'*o of Their | IVit-il KYtr^mi(i«n. The French <*thrc' ;ri.->t, Professor F. j Jtegnault, lias m.ndo 1 senile* In | the far «?asl in legr.rrf ;n ai ilily >ti j the Hindoos to make >- <' i'.< as auxiliaries r.t i . hand:-. T'-ts i ability U iWtiiulni 1: ..(.••!• ! one watches llinitro •• men .Ir ir work. Tho f.i'.r file: I''- as a vise an result i of several changes in the physical de ! velopment which the Hindoo race has undergone in the course of time through outward agencies. Their hip ! joints are much freer and more limber | than ours, and will permit them to I squat on the ground and at the same time approach the feet so near to their j hands that they can grasp with their ] feet the work i'i hand, and hold it j with some exiieji.-i of strength. The ankle joint limber, and work.; ' freely, and the toe i-s more devel ! oped and can In t; oved by th« m at will i j as regards its betiding and stretching, | its separating 112: m and approaching | toward the second toe. The normal t'i ■ ' of the Hindoo shows a large space be: v. et-n the big toe and ! the second; this. • -w« ver, is due solely to their wearing .-.at.dals, which are held in place by a wooden peg placed between these two toon. The constant muscular exercise practiced in holding the sandals naturally tends to strengthen these toes, and the use of the feet being a general custom and tried even by children of the tenderer age, has gradually changed the Hln | doo anatomy. FII II era IN In Arithla. "One of the strongest and n;;jsi af ] fecting sights in an Arab town." ■>> - 1 | Tunis correspondent of London Sketch, "is that of the funerals, which may be met at any street corner. The corpse 1 is merely wrapped in a ii at of esparto 1 grass and carried eith .• on a h'< r «;• on men's shoulders. The mourr.c: s iuuiue I along, some in front and sona he'ait.d, crooning verses of the koran in melan choly tones, which haunt one for days afterward. "This wailing is. liowi ver, nothing to that which on iu the hoi s, of the deceased. When i was staying in the country near Tunis .I heard i: V:"j>t ap during a whole night :'u a : a .s village, and I tan conceive . :a... I more desperately depressing than lu.se strains of lamentation w.-fted through the darkness ! y the : r .? .M 1 g stood it even .e than 1 ■al felt constrained :u join in tit" . . ; chori's until 1 wa» half-tempted ,>-r. i a bullet through If.- head. I' . ,i j the strongest of ail the ftfticral- I .-av. I was at Bizei'to. ! was th; of a lml»v. ! which was being carried • i - pave I In an esparto basket." Sln\ i'N i n Fin I u ml. A regular slavr-mait exUis iu many country districts of Finland. Once a year such paupers, lunatics, and aged people of each parish as cannot support themselves are put up at pub lic auction, and consigned to those families or farmers who will hoard them at the lowest price offered by the parish authorities. The helpless erea- I tures are made to work as much as possible by their owners, who have the right to chastise them. I'lrat I'mier Mill. The first paper mill was e.e.ted in 1690 at Roxboro. Pa., on a stream since called Paper Mill run. which empties into the Wissahickon, by William Hit i tinghuysen, who emigrated from liol : land. He, in conjunction with Wil liam Bradford, was the proprietor in I the manufacture of paper, made from linen rags, the product of liax grown in the vicinity, which had been nianu j factored into wearing apparel. Fnli* for OIM* aN tin* Oilier, Country roads iu China are never by fences, but are entirely un defined. While the farmer has the j right to plough up any road passing through his land, drivers of vehicles have an equal right, and they exercise | it, to traverse any portion of the eoun ! try at will. £CATHARTIC CURE CONSTIPATION JFC ALL i Try The News Item Job Office OnceT Fine Printing | NEAT waits \I f' pi • ' A MODERN FACILITIES. \y 0 I Tint To Please. Subscribe for the NEWS ITEM. I Your Itnwcis With OiwnirMt, | Cflmiy t\ . • .• 11:.•. <• •:! •• « onstipntion forever. ! 10c,. jf. i; r. C. O. tall, druggists refund money. Fxcvllf-nt w luTit lionf from SI.IO fo sl.J.j til A. I". Arm-.l<>ii<>-. Sonos (<>\Vtl. I'll. No-To-liar fort ill;, tciii*. ! ! t ,vic.fi ;i .i:n J i : J I id gi«"l ijiiatit v of undi-i » an- at itit -BSJH:I:(.. I'A., XOII- i MAI, oilers superior ntncational advantage*. I (otiltliful andjl'ieturi'st]ur Location iti tlio restart reyion of tin* Building'.-' new uti. The lirst Normal: in the state to introduce Plain and Fancy Sewing. U'ollege Preparatory, Music and Klo cutionury Departments. H VtVf.' of once for a catalogue, free. \VIXT Kit TKI:M OPENS JAN. '99. j Add res <>EO. P. BIREE, A. M., Principal. ■' are lhc chi! * • , 1 |«| dren this summer? 1 .' Iw I Are they doing C » «= ' well? Do they c " ( get all the benefit they / I' ( should from their food? > | Are their cheeks and lips \ | of good color? And are y ,» they hearty and robust in v » everyway? c ! ", If not, then give them / •; Scott's Emulsion > ,' of cod liver oil j and better blood. (' It is just so with the ,' baby also. A little Scott's ■ . * Emulsion, three or four '. I , * ti:ties a day, will make ', ► the thin baby plump and < '' /JL^P ros P erous - ' 1 '' j '» /MIIL urn ' s^es 'he ,' ' • Jjjfeffl young body with » • JO just the material '. j j, l fl IT] necessary for j ( > 8/i 11 growing bones < '» and nerves. ( ' j I All Druggists, toe. und si. ( I SCOTT