Japan is to give China instructions j
!n the a&rt of war. This looks as if
China intended to get civilized in
earnest.
The Insurance Press makes tlia
staggering statement that during the
past 25 years property of the value
of $2,800,000,000 has been destroyed
by fire in the United States.
Italy is fighting her battle of th«
sweets most royally, and it now ap
pears almost certain that within <i
very few years she will be, instead
of a sugar importing country, an ex
oordng one.
It would have greatly amused or
greatly worried such men as Benj.
Franklin to know that a time would
lome in the history of the United
States when a man's private income
would be discussed as affecting his
ability to meet the social obligations
of a cabinet office.
According to the Pennsylvania Bu
reau of Railways, the street railroads
in the Keystone State carried during
the fiscal year ending June 30tii
580.654,629 passengers, and only one
person was killed for every 3,600,000
persons carried. Of the 111 killed
during the year 14 were employes of
the corporations.
. The people of French Indo-China
are physically so weak that scientists
have been looking for the cause in the
various conditions of climate, diet,
etc. The conclusion is that the ab
sence of phosphates in the rice diet is
responsible for the physical weak
ness, so the French governor-general
f.as ordered a cargo of phosphate to
be introduced into the Indo-Chinese
nee fields.
The Dublin Gazette contains the an
nouncement that no fewer than six
prisons have been wholly closed. Of
late years the number of Irish prisons
has been considerably reduced. Two
convict prisons, namely, Spike Island,
in Cork Harbor, and the Harold's
Cross Prison, Dublin, in which Daniel
O'Connell was imprisoned, and from
escaped in 1865 —are now used as mili
tary barracks.
There is a popular impression that
imprisonment for debt has been abol
ished in Great Britain. The County
Court returns for 1900, which are
just published, show that 4692 debtors
were imprisoned during that year.
Technically they were imprisoned for
contempt of court in failing to pay af
ter the judge of the County Court had
ordered them to do so, but the non
payment of debts was the real offence.
The system apparently had a good
effect in the case of the majority of
the debtors, as the returns show that
of 129,044 against whom commitment
warrants were issued 124,352 paid up
when they came face to face with the
alternative of going to prison.
In the forward step that is marking
the advancement of womankind in
many countries today, Chinese women
are seeking the emancipation which
means, first of all, the liberation r.f
their feet. This important news comes
lrom Madam Wu Ting-fang, who re
cently returned from a visit to her na
tive land. "Small feet are no longer
in fashion," she says. "When I went
to China, I found that the rigid bind
ing and forcing back of the growth of
the feet by my countrywomen is being
rapidly abandoned. China has begun
to recognize the custom as barb.i
rous." As there are about 200,000,-
000 women in China, whose feet will,
in course of time, be enlarged by this
innovation, it may be well to call at
tention to a prospective new outlet
lor western hides. —States Success.
The war of the languages is being
waged with great determination on
one side and with desperate courage
on the other in Prussian Poland. The
attempt of the Prussian authorities
in Posen to compel the Polish children
to read the catechism in German in
stead of in their mother tongue has
proven ineffective so far, through the
refusal of the children to obey the in
structions of their schoolmasters, la
spite of floggings and other forms of
physical punishment. The Prussian
government, in explaining its severi
ties, asserts that it is acting under
the pressure of political necessity.
The Poles, in the Reichstag and out of
it, have developed a national political
activity which has proven at time.s
very troublesome to the government.
Now the authorities of Posen are try
ing to obliterate the racial tendencies
of the Poles by relegating the Polish
language to a secondary place in their
campaign, so far, however, has had
the effect of reviving Polish national
sentiment wherever that sentiment
may have been lukewarm, and of unit
ing the Polish race upon a specific
Ustlß
The Boston Herald remarks that
there is growing evidence of the fact
that the dawn of industrial peace be
tween labor and capital is no optical
illusion on the distant horizon.
An estimate that wireless telegraph
messages will cost only one cent a
word has been made public, in spite of
the danger that the old fashioned tele
graph company may be tempted to get
as much ahead of the game as possi
ble in the mean time.
France is beginning to realize the
value of canals. A French economist
has figured out that as compared with
France, the lower freight rates in
Germany effect an annual saving to
the German industries of $40,000,000.
France's great need, he thinks, is
more canals.
It has been computed that in the
whole of the United States there is a
total of 2842 electric lighting stations,
representing a capital of nearly $670,-
000,000. The largest number of sep
arate electric light stations in any
state is in Illinois, while the largest
capital invested is in Pennsylvania,
which also posesses the second larg
est number of stations.
Of the immigrants from southern
write. Those who come from northern
Italy 55 percent can neither read nor
Italy are more intelligent, there being
only 12 percent of illiterates. The
rate of illiteracy among the Portu
guese is 82 percent, and only 1 percent
among the Scandinavians. The Scan
dinavians nearly all become land
holders. The Poles, Portuguese and
Italians mainly add to the army of uu
skilled labor.
The rock-salt mine near Lyons,
Kan., bids fair some day to rival the
wonderful mines of Wieliekza-Bocli
uia. in Austria. The Austrian mines
contain 50 miles of streets, with many
large hails, and skill and ingenuity
have wrought out architectural de
signs and sculptured images. The
Kansas mine has been worked only a
few years, but many streets have p.I
ready been cut and the product is
nearly 500,000 barrels a year.
Kaskaskia, founded by French set
Hers in the seventeenth century, and
after our acquisition of the territory
tile first capital of Illinois has been
wiped off the official map by an order
of the Postmaster-General, abolishing
the postoffice of the place at the be
ginning of the year. Lafayette visit
ed Kaskaskia in 1825. It was once a
prosperous town, but the relentless
Mississippi river, with its floods and
snaky shiftings of channel, destroyed
the bright prospects of Kaskaskia.
During the recent maneuvers of the
Swedish navy this year experiments
were made with wireless telegraphy
which were so successful that the
government has decided to erect an ex
tensive system of coast signal sta
tions. With these in operation the
government will be able to communi
cate direct from Stockholm with any
of its vessels among the islands of the
coast at a distance of 2S miles. Swed
ish engineers are said to have made
several inventions, which increase the
efficiency of wireless communication.
Tiie Odessa correspondent of the
London Standard takes a rather
gloomy view of the prospects of the
Siberian Railway. He says the cost
and time of the overland transit 3f
merchandise from European Russia
and from Western Europe generally
will seriously militate against the
commercial success of the line. As
far as Russia is concerned, cargo can
be transported by steamer from the
Black Sea to the Far East in from
40 to 45 days at a cheaper freight
than the Siberian Railway can afford
to accept, and the present rates o£
oversea freight will bear a considera
ble reduction and still give a fair
profit.
If any imagine that no problems of
vital importance remain unsolved
they greatly err, observes the Sun.
The foremost in all lines of thought
find them constantly before them. But
nothing is so costly as a new fact
and nothing so rare as a new idea.
Who, ten years ago, would have
dreamed ot' telegraphing without
wire? Who, a hundred years ago,
would have dreamed of telegraphing
at all? Who. 50 years ago, would have
dreamed of talking with his friend a
thousand miles away? What new
wonders are possible in this single
department of endeavor? We do not
know. The story of human progress
is a story of individual struggle, and,
for the most part, of individual fail
ures, often avoidable by adequate
tiieans. The dream of the idealist
in education is to provide the mean*
discover the men. equip them for
their work and profit by their acliieva
ment
t HOODWINKED. J
It was at a country house party.
Feeling lazy, I had stopped at home
with my hostess while the others had
gone out pheasant shooting.
Mrs. Carruthers suddenly looked up
from her embroidery and spoke.
However, I was not deceived by the
apparent unpremeditation of her ques
tion, because I had felt for some mo
ments that she was on the point of
saying something.
"Phil, what do you think of Clare
Delayne?" and she resumed her work
in the most unconcerned manner.
I hesitated a moment. Clearly, I
must be very careful, for it is at all
times a most risky thing to give to
one woman your opinion of another.
In the majority of cases —mind, I only
generalize—if your opinion is enthu
siastic you incur the one woman's dis
pleasure; if, on the other hand, your
praise is only qualified—well, keep out
of the other woman's way. And in
the present instance the danger was
doubly great. Why had I, who am
generally so wary, allowed myself to
be left alone with my hostess, the
most inveterate matchmaker in the
country? I felt that my whole future
hung on my reply, and as all this
flashed through my mind a mental res
olution to this effect, that if Mrs. Car
ruthers was a matchmaker she had
now found her match. So I asked, —
"And who is Clare Delayne?"
"Why, you silly boy, that pretty
blonde you took into dinner last
night; you know, she only came yes
terday."
"Oh, that one," I said disrespect
fully, trying to kill a bluebottle. "I
did not catch her name when I was
Introduced," and I resumed my chase
after the bluebottle. There was a
pause while I wondered in which di
rection the next attack would be de
veloped.
"Phil, my question!"
"Which question?"
That bluebottle did fidget me so,
and I made a desperate dash at it,
eleverly managing at the same time to
upset Mrs. Carruthers' work basket.
But all attempts to draw a red herring
across the path seemed futile.
"Open the window, Phil; that's
right, your fly has gone. Now pick up
my basket and tell me what you think
of Clare Delayne."
I was on all fours salvaging needles
and balls of wool.
"I think she" —I suddenly pricked
up my ears and listened. "I do believe
they are coming back," I cried.
"You think she is—what?"
"I haven't thought anything about
her at all. What do you think about
her?"
This sudden turning of the tables
took Mrs. Carruthers by surprise, and
for a moment she was nonplussed.
But she quickly recovered herself and
deployed on the ground from which
I had retreated.
"Well, I was going to tell you when
you interrupted me with that absurd
fly that her father is a dear friend of
mine, and she will inherit fifteen hun
dred pounds a year when he dies —"
"Indeed!" I interrupted with inter
est.
"Of course, it is not much," she went
on, encouraged by my look of interest,
"but it is a little help; and when com
bined with the sweetest nature and all
the domestic virtues—"
"She is just the girl," I putin eager
ly.
"She is, as you say, just the girl to
make a man happy."
"But does she want to marry?" I
asked, jumping up.
"You silly fellow, what girl doesn't?
You have only got to ask them."
"Well, if that is the case —"
"She is also fairly well read, not
too well —man does not want that —
and she is musical."
"If that is the case, as I was saying
before, she is just the girl for Captain
Rodgers," I said. "He is—"
Mrs. Carruthe:*; picked up her woik
ind sailed toward the door.
"You are an ass, Phil!" was her
parting shot.
"Kodgers is musical,"l called out, as
the door slammed.
As a matter of fact, I had been par
ticularly entertained by my partner at
dinner last night, who had seemed to
me what is generally described as "e.
lolly girl with no nonsense about her."
I did not wish to be pestered any more
by Mrs. Carruthers, who had evident
ly come to the conclusion that I was
a fool, and so rather than put her on
her mettle by offering a show of re
sistance I thought the best way io
secure peace would be to do all that
was expected of me, and. like Brer
Rabbit, "lay down and say nuffin'''
And so what more natural than that I
should find myself again taking Miss
Delayne into dinner that evening.
"Do you know, I expected that you
would take me to dinner tonight?"
she said, as we sat down.
I looked up surprised. There was a
I world of mischievious meaning in her
I lone and look and I gasped. Was i
to be taken in the flank by another
enemy, or was it possible that she,
too, understood?"
"Is it 'great expectations?' " I ven
tured.
She nodded. Still, I was not quite
satisfied.
"You surely do not think so badly of
tie as to believe —" 1 hesitated.
She burst out laughing.
"There! I have so much faith in you
that I will congratulate you on having
an income of two thousand pounds a
year!"
"Now, really, this is wonderful!" I
cried. "And I, too, must congratulate
you on being an heiress to the tune
of fifteen hundred pounds a year."
"Say, rather, 'condole with,' " she
added. "But who told you?"
"A little bird," I answered. "And
who told you?"
"Evidently the same little bird."
"A very old bird, if you ask me," I
exclaimed, checking myself too late
to avoid one of those sudden hushes
to which every dinner table is subject.
A titter went round the company. Hor
rors! There was a helping of pheas
ant before me. I heard Mrs. Carruth
ers saying sweetly, "I am so
sorry, Phil; try another piece." I
vainly protested that I had not re
ferred to the fowl, but being greeted
with cries of "Name! Name!" The
contretemps was very annoying—as I
felt that I was now thoroughly in
Mrs. Caruthers' bad books, and al
though she did not know what we had
been talking about, still —such is the
effect of a guilty conscience—l felt
sure she must think that I had re
ferred to her. Miss Delayne also did
not seem over pleased at my innocent
indiscretion which had directed the
company's attention to her, and she
occupied herself with Captain Rodg
ers, who was on her other side. He
was an old acquaintance of mine, one
of those generous, good-hearted sort
of fellows who is always stony broke,
and who will always step into the
breach to help a friend.
I had often told him that I would one
day find him a rich wife, but now that
I saw him talking with Miss Delayne
I did not feel so particularly keen
about my .suggestion to Mrs. Carruth
ers, as it happened to interfere with a
brilliant plan which I had just thought |
of and which would dish Mrs. Carruth
ers so nicely. I recognized at once that
it would be difficult to put the case
too bluntly to Miss Delayne, so accord
ingly, when later in the evening I
found myself ensconced with her in the
conservatory, I proceeded to let her
unfold the plans I had thought out
over my cigar. I little thought what
would happen in the same conserva
tory in about three weeks' time.
"Mrs. Carruthers is a most enter
taining hostess and an amiable wom
an," I remarked, by way of preface,
"and she has one set sin. But this
is the first time she applied "her ener
gies in my direction, although she has
known me ever since I was so high."
"What are you going to do?" asked
Miss Delayne.
"Rather ask, 'What are we going to
do?' " I said, not wishing to reply to
such a delicate personal question. "It
all rests with you," I continued, add
ing quickly, "whether we are to dis
please her by avoiding each other or
deceive her by pretending to fall ;n
with her views."
Miss Delayne's eyes twinkled.
"Mr. Mellor, you forget that there
are other ways. I might, for instance,
pretend that 1 did not want your com
pany, while you could easily satisfy
Mrs. Carruthers by your actions that
you were doing your best to carry out
her schemes."
"Yes," I assented, not at all eagerly.
"Or," she continued, "you could
leave suddenly tomorrow on urgent
private business."
"Quite so," I faltered.
"But it would be very selfish of me
to spoil your holiday here?"
"Not at all,"I interrupted.
"And I rather like your second idea.
In fact, it would be greaf fun, I think,
to upset Mrs. Carruthers' little plans
for once."
"That is just what I thought," I ex
claimed.
"We could be a lot in each other's
company," she said.
"And especially when Mrs. Carruth
ers is about," I added.
"I have expectations, and don't want
any man to marry me for them."
"And I have money, but if I took a
wife she should only take me for my
merits."
"That is capital," she said. "Then
we are agreed in our views of life. Let
us shake hands upon it."
We shook hands.
"We shall have great fun out of it,"
I said.
"And be the best of friends," she
added. "Poor Mrs. Carrutliers," she
laughed, and then a look of doubt
crossed her face. "What shall we say
to her if she puts the direct question
to either or both of us when we
leave?"
"That is very simple," I answered.
"We need merely to say 'We found out
at the beginning that our views of Ufa
were similar, and that it was there
fore no us*' our thinking of mar
riage,' "
"A neat epigram." she laughed.
*****
That evening when I said good night
to Mrs. Carruthers, she remarked play
fully,—
"I am sorry about the old bird,
Phil."
"So am I, very sorry," I said, "but
old birds cannot help being caught
sometimes," and I went to bed feeling
that I had scored.
Another and unlooked for factor
gradually appeared on the scene
to confuse our plans in the
shape of Captain Rodgers. Perhaps I
was really right in thinking that Miss
Delayne was not keeping to her com
pact as much as she ought to, but cer
tainly this was partly the fault of
the captain. The way he looked at
and spoke to her was a source of
great annoyance to me, because no
doubt Mrs. Carruthers would notice
it, and our little game would thereby
be spoiled. And, therefore, I felt that
Miss Delayne should not encouraga
him; but when I mentioned the matter
to her she did not see it in that way ut
all.
Was it possible that Mrs.Carruthers,
having despaired of me, and being
determined to make up a match for
Miss Delayne, had put the captain ou
after all? If that was the case 1 would
thwart her at all costs, and so I mudo
every effort to forestall Rodgers on
all occasions.
Cut the more I tried to be with Miss
Delayne the more she contrived to
keep out of my way; neither could I
get any satisfactory explanation frou
her. In fact, she could not or would
not see that she was not carrying out
her part of the agreement. Her man
ner to me had gradually become more
reserved than it was at first; there
was not the confidence and feeling of
equality which I had found in the be
ginning, and of course, it was all
through that confounded Rodgers. I
began to see that the game was not
going to come off, and the sooner I
left and ended it the better, as much
a triviality was not worth the disturb
ance of my peace of mind. According
ly I made my preparations, and that
evening I told Miss Delayne about my
intentions.
"I find that I shall have to leave to
morrow morning," I replied.
"Indeed!" she replied. "I am very
sorry."
She certainly appeared most con
cerned.
"Why are you sorry?" I said, feel
ing my way onto sentimental ground.
"Well, because you are going before
me, and I am afraid that Mrs. Carruth
ers will ask me the fatal question."
"Is that all?" I asked disappointed
ly. "I was hoping—"
"I see you think it is rather selfiFh
of me," she interrupted, "but I always
think epigrams are so near to —to —"
"To what?" I asked.
"To the truth; at least —" she hesi
tated.
"Well, you should surely not be
afiaid to say it if it is the truth," I
said.
"No, but then, you see, an epigram
is supposed to be Oh, dear, I do
not know what I mean. Why, how late
it is. Suppose we join the others."
All of which was most unsatisfac
tory.
I was to leave in the morning soon
after breakfast, and when the hcur of
departure had come round I went in
search of Miss Delayne to say good
by. Now that I was on the point of
going I felt sorry about it; indeed, it
seemed to me that whatever pleas
ure I might derive from Mrs. Carruth
ers' now very problematical disap
pointment would be more than coun
terbalanced by the uncertainty into
which I should drift as to Miss' De
lavne's future movements. For, to be
truthful, I was rather nervous about
mentioning the subject to her since
this reserve had come between us. I
found her reading in the conservatory,
the place where our plans had been
sown and where their fruits were
about to be gathered. Perhaps
she had thought I should look foi' her
tnere; certainly I was not surprised to
see her.
"I have come to say good-by," I said
awkwardly. She closed her book and
got up with a smile.
"Well, do not say good-by; rather
let it be au revoir," she said.
"You do not mean that," I ex
claimed. "I thought—"
"But why not? We are sure to meet
in town somewhere."
"And you will let me know if Mrs.
Carruthers says anything to you?" I
asked indifferently.
Now that it was all over, the plan
seemed to have fallen to dust in iU
very feebleness. What had it effected?
It had tied me hand and foot, and I
knew, now that I was leaving her,
what had it wrought for me.
"Of course 1 will if yon care," she
said. "We have had very nice times
together, haven't we?"
"I shall not forget them," I said "if
only you—"
"Phil, Phil, where are you?. The
carriage is here," called Mrs. Carruth
ers as she ran into the conservatory.
"Oh, here you are; I am so sorry you
must go."
"Well, good-by," I sa'ul, taking Miss
Delayne's hand and holding it for the
benefit of Mrs. Carruthers, who was
looking curiously at us. I felt the
hand pulled, but I retained it in my
grasp as Mrs. Carruthers said, —
"Now Clare, now, Phil, you naughty
young people, you are not going to
keep anything from me. Come, tell
me all about it before you go."
I still retained the hand; it was so
convenient for the denouement.
Which of us should 'speak? 1 looked at
Miss Delayne, but she gave me no en
couragement.
"I hope you won't mind, Mrs. Car
ruthers," I began, apologetically, "but
—but —" I had forgotten my part.
"We found out at the beginning,'
said Miss Delayne, "that our views of
life," 1 continued hurriedly, "were —"
"Were similar," putin Miss Delayne.
"And that," I added, "that it wa3
therefore no use—" *
I felt the hand tremble. I looked
up into her eyes, and as the scales fell
from mine I went on, "that it was
therefore no use our ever thinking
of parting." Mrs. Carruthers had left
us. I heard her voice saying,—
"Send the carriage back; Mr. Msl
lor is staying on."
Then I heard her say.—
"Captain Rodgers, how can I thanT\
you?"
The old bird had scored after all.—
The Tatler.
Sir Robert Ball says the earth is
moving slower, but It is still going
fast enough for most of us.
THE GREAT DESTROYER
SOME STARTLING FACTS ABOUT
THE VICE OF INTEMPERANCE.
The Wretched Panorama of Human Na
ture Adrift That ttie Bartender Watche
l'ass Before Him—Some Harm Done by
"It," It Alwuyn Memiing Whlfiky -
J his is what the bartender sees: A
young man with a cold face, much ner
vous energy, and a tired-of-the-world ex
pression, leaiiH over the polished, silver
mounted drinking bar.
You look at him and order your drink.
You know what you think of him, and
you think you know what he thinks of you.
Dili you ever stop to think of all the
strange human beings besides yourself that
pass before him?
He stands there as a sentinel, business
man, detective, waiter, general entertain
er and host for the homeless.
In comes a young man, rather early in
the day.
He is a little tired—up too late the night
before. He takes a cocktail. He tells the
bartender that he does not believe in
cocktails. He never takes them, in fact.
"The bitters in the cocktail will eat a hole
through a thin handkerchief—pretty bad
effect on your stomach, eh?" and so on.
Out goes the young man with the cock
tail inside of him.
And the bartender knows that that
young man, with his fine reasonings and
his belief in himself, is the confirmed
drunkard of year after nest. He has seen
the beginning of many such cocktail philo
sophers, and the ending of the same.
The way not to be a drunkard is never
to taste spirits. The bartender knows that.
But his customers do not know it.
At another hour of the day there comes
in the older man. This one is the fresh
faced young oldish man.
He has small gray side whiskers. He
shows several people—whom he does not
know—his book of commutation tickets.
fie changes his mind suddenly from
whisky to lemonade. The bartender pre
pares the lemon slowly, and the man
changes his mind back to whisky.
Then he tries to look more dignified than
the two younger men with him. In the
midst of the effort he begins to sing "The
Heart Bowed Down with Weight of Woe,"
and he tells the bartender "that is from
"The Bohemian Girl."
He sings many other selections, occa
sionally forgetting his dignity, and occa
sionally remembering that he is the head
of a most respectable home—partly paid
for.
The wise man on the outside of the bar
suggests that the oldish man will get into
trouble. But the bartender says:
"No, he will go home all right. But he
won't sing all tlie way there. About the
time he gets home he'll realize what money
he has spent, and you would not like to
be his wife. It won't be any songs that
she'll get."
The bartender knows that the oldish man
—about fifty-one or two has escaped
being a drunkard by mere accident, and
that he has not quite escaped yet.
A little hard luck, too much trouble,
and he'll lose his balance, forget that there
is lemonade, and take to whisky perma
nently.
At the far end of the bar there is the
fnan who comes in slowly and posses his
hand over his face nervously. The bar
tender i.sks no questions, bat pushes out
a bottle of everyday whisky and a small
glass of water.
The whisky goes down. A shiver fol
lows the whisky and a verv little of the
water follows the shiver. The man goes
out with his arms close to his sides, his
gait shuffling, and his head hanging.
It has taken him less than three min
utes to buy, swallow and pay for a liberal
dose of poison.
Savs the bartender:
"That fellow l.od n good business once.
Doesn't look it, does he? .Tim over there
used to work for him. But he couldn't let
it alone."
The"it" mentioned is whisky.
Outside in the cold that man. who
couldn't let it alone, is shuffling his way
against the bitter wind. And even in his
poor sodden brain reform and wisdom are
striving to be heard.
His soul and body are sunk far below
par. His vitality is gone, never to return.
The whisky, with its shiver, that tells
of a shock to the heart, lifts him up for a
second.
He has a little false strength of mind
and brain, and that strength is used to
mumble good resolutions.
He thinks he will stop drinking. He
thinks he could easily get money backing
if he gave up drinking for good. He feels
and really believes that he will stop drink
ing.
Perhaps he goes home, and for the hun
dredth time makes a poor woman believe
him. and makes her weep more for joy.
as she has wept many times from sorrow.
But the bartender knows that that
man's day has gone, and that Niagara
Rher could turn back as easily as he
could remount the swift stream that is
sweeping him to destruction.
Five men come in together. Kach asks
of all the others:
"What are you going to have?"
The bartender spreads out his hands on
the edge of the bar, attentive and prepared
to work quickly.
Every man insists on "buying" some
thing to drink in his turn. Each takes
what the others insist on giving him.
Each thinks that he is hospitable.
But the bartender knows that those men
belong to the Great American Association
for the Manufacture of Drunkards through
"treating."
Each of these men might perhaps take
his glass of beer, or even something worse
with relative safety. But as stupidly a;
stampeded an'mals pushing each other
over a precipice, each insists on buying
poison in his turn. And every one spends
iiis money to make every other one, if pos
sible, a hard drinking and a wasted man.
You. Mr. Reader, have seen al! ihcso
types and many others, have you not?
Why did you sec them? What reason
bad you for seeing then? — New York
Journal.
Needn't Lire Willi Drunkards.
No West Virginia woman need live with
her husband if he is a habitual drunkard,
for the Supreme Court of the State iias
decided that, if. after marriage, the hus
band becomes a drunkard the wife is justi
fied in deserting him. For this cause, fur
thermore, the wife is entitled to her dower
although at the time of his death she be
living apart from him. The decision of the
court is reported in the case of Neeley vs.
Neeley, from Doddridge County. In his
opinion Judge Dent says: "No woman is
compelled to live with the worst of all
brutes—a drunken brute—to the peril of
her health and life, but she has a right to
leave him and live apart from him until
lie furnishes her- indubitable evidence of
reformation."
Need of a Physician.
We know of many men addicted ft
strong drink who have, in their sober mo
ments, prayed ling and faithfully that the
drink-devil might be cast out from them,
but their habit has become a disease, an<'
they cannot heal themselves, even by
means of prayer.
Help Needed.
To tell a man to cure himself of drunk
enness portrays a large quantity of ignor
ance upon the subject and a small amount
of human sympathy It sounds lilr v ■odvin
ing a man togo int» a cage of wild animal
without providing him with weauons o
defense.