. r FARM AND GARDEN. llrtar In I'ltnt-jrcm, On land where briers grow natural y, it is ditlleult to eradicate thorn. Pastures mny be overstocked with sheep, which are fed vitro. Arid lu this wny cleared tip, but mowing them off each year will not run thoin out. A few Aurora goals ore undoubtedly the host menu to clear them up. Tim goat will tut briers uud brush In prof-M-iAicc to grass. TltH I! ITi-ronee in lluliic-i. Governor Hoard reports 11 difference in thu annual profits between two patrons of creameries managed by lihn t. fJ'-ii.llN per cow cm account of the Jlffcreiicn in amount or production, .1110 herd nveriiftliiK ft gross Income of fti.",iS per row while ii lint Iht averaged mily $:',?, the C rut netting $.".) In ex cess of the cost of kccplug and I bo lecotid only $r. TIjo Kansas Agricultural College In oini! Invest Igatlons In the' Mimmer of IMi-S nt thy Meridoii creamery, fot;nd lh:il t!in poorest cow averaged .T.."I, md the best o'io ?i:M!, mnkln a dif ference of J?:;!..". Tim average per row of llu; poorest live herds was $!.11 nut for the live I.eM, $.'!::.71, n differ ence of $ Jl.no. AVi(-ilii Hot ttif Soil of .llolfttiirn. There Is probably nothing, except Ii r ion, Hint will do ho iiiih Ii In help a crop resist droughts ns fre.pient but li:illow cultivation. This cultivation prevents n great waste of moisture by destroying the weeds us well ns checking evaporation, although some farmers would not believe this to bo i ho case. Sonic believe that weeds nro n detri ment to the fanner only by Increasing the labor of harvesting crops 11 nil in using tip Iho plant food that would otherwise be taken up by the culti vated plants. Tills Is nil true, but there Is another wny In which the weeds are detri mental, nud l hat is by using the wat er or moisture in ihe soil which Is al ways needed by til" growing crop, and tills Is especially true during dry seasons. The farmer who keeps his land free from weeds Is, so to speak, putting barrels upen barrels of water upon his laud, and it is done with a great deal less labor than If the water Were applied directly. How In Huim lllrdrt All Wllllrr. It Is not so wild a rpiesthm as It at llrst seems to be, whether we may l.e able to have birds with v.s quite freely nil winter, and to Increase the number f species that will give up migrating. 1 believe tiiat it is pretiy Well under Ktood thai birds do not leave the nori u on aii'i-iini ot the liinialo, so much as because of n decrease of the food supply. Those vark-tfes of birds which can live upon the eggs of In sects, uiitl weed seeds, have adjusted themselves to n permanent homo with lis by -changing coat nnd color. Wo have found that the thrushes are also eiulto willing to stay all winter. At least n lew robins remain wherever there arc warm shelters and plenty of food. It Is worth our while to consider the conditions essential to the Increase of tiieso winter neighbors. I find that the food most relish. d by the thrushes is the berries of the mountain ash. Other species of birds drop dowu In flocks, on their way north or south, and dine from the same trees. It is astonishing how much food il single treo can furnish. And yet utmost any farmer cnu easily find room for ii half dozen of these I rem. For the pine grosbeak the high-bush cranberry is preferable. I suggest the pluming of evergreen windbreaks, and the larger supply of the trees and shrubs that I have named as an cNperlmeiir. I have had robins with me nil -winter, lint other winter birds have been more scarce than usual. E. P. I'uwell, in New England Homestead. A Cook Stove Kvuporutor. An evaporator Is a luxury few farm ors can nfford unless they Intend go ing into tin- fruit business to quite an extent. The Illustration shows a cheap and handy evaporator within the reach of all. The frames are made of any idze desired, lixl feet being handy di mensions if Hie stove is large enough to accommodate it. Over the frames, STAI'ORATOK OS TniJ COOK STOVE. which should be Hindi of two and a hulf or three Inch strips of board, screen wire netting Is (Irmly tacked. For the legs to be fastened on the bot tom frame, take four ploeis of strap iron from a foot and a half to two feet long. Through vuo end of eaeli iron di-lll two or three holes for screws. Fasten these to the bottom side of the frame with Inch screws and then with a wrench or somu other tool bend the legs lu such a wny ns to leave a space of from tt foot to eighteen Inches be twecu thu frame uud surface of the stove. On the upper side and near the corners of the frame, drive in small nails so that they penetrate the wood deep enough to leave an Inch in length sticking up. Over these slip four thread spools. Iiy driving correspond ing nulls Into the bottom side of the second frame to slip down Into the spools, it Is held lu place. The third fro ma Is fastened In thu same way and as many more as desired can be added. Thu frames are high enough above the stove so as not to Interfere with cook lug. The fruit dried lu this way Is of a good quality, uud the work can be doue as rapidly as lu high-priced evaporator. J. L. Irwin In American Agriculturist. ' Hlg-b rTlcd Fed. This season promises to be one of high priced feeding stuffs, liny was a short crop In tills country, nnd travt will be high. 'While, we have n, good crop of corn, It Is not excessively Inrpo, and the usual reserves have been used lip very close. Exports tend to Increase, mid the feeding demand at homo will again be large. There in L-cason to believe that the price or corn will rule fairly high all season. Such conditions should lead to belter cam of corn stover than has been given by many in the past. The amount of stover from an Here of land varies so much with variety and latitude that figures are not sat isfactory; but In what may be called the centre of the corn licit we tuny count upon one and one-lialC tons nf stover from an acre of fairly good corn. Two-thirds of 1 tint, or one ton, will be eaten by stock with relish, and experiments by Bclentllle men show that the part eaten is Just about as digestible nnd nutritious us tin equal weight or timothy bay. That Is to say, we should place about the same value upon Ihe stover of an acre of land as we do upon n ton of hay If wanted for feed. This Is In accord not only wlili tlic? experiments of sci entists, but also with the experience of thousands of practical farmers. For horses at bard labor the stover Is in ferior, but for idle horses and for cows il is superior. Viewing the mat ter as It Is, no slover ncdeil for feed should be left to weather In the Held until midwinter. There are better ways within the reach of every one. David, lu Fnrni and Fireside. Storing Knot Crop. A common and practical wny of building root cellars Is shown lu the Illustration. This method of con struction is commonly used in the great potato growing sections of the country. Excavate by means of it scraper, and then set up the retaining walls. The upright pieces at the shleii should be two by four studding placed not more than four feet apart. Tin? floor may be of plank, or may be sim ply of earth. If no planks an used, the studding should have the lower end Imbedded lu the earth to prevent it from slipping. The siding may be of Inch boards It ', A rr.ACTICAL HOOT I'ltM.All. and should be nailed to tin- studding before they are raised into position. The Joists (I!, O, C' should be of two by four, and the supports for the roof should bo of the sainii material. The space above the Joists may be illhd with straw or leaves, or hay, to pre vent freezing in the cellar. The plates, which are secured at the top of the studding, may bo placed somewhat above the level of the surface of thr ground, l'art of the earth which is removed lu excnvatlng should bo banked up against the walls undei the roof, so that thu slope of the ground will bo away from the cellar. Doors may be placed nt Intervals in the roof so that roots can be shov eled from a wagon directly into tlic cellar. At one end of the pit thera should be solid double doors, so that entrance may be hud to the cellar il) cold weather without permitting the cold to enter. The upright center piece (A, I.i should not bo more than live to six feet high, nnd the length of the cellar may be as great as do sired. The width may be from ciglil to ten feet. If this can be constructed on a slight slope of land it will be iU the better. Country (Jelitleman. Onliunl Culture, A large tipple crop such ns we lm vt this year always encourages the plant lug of more orchards, and we suppose this yenr will be no exception. In set ting an orchard a man has many years to wait before he can receive any re turn from his investment, and during all those years he should give good cul tlvation, fertilization nnd care in t lie way of pruning or training, which h the better word, because It expresses the better way. When this has bcci' done properly and the trees begin hear ing he has an investment which will give good returns for many years il the Hire Is kept up. It Is then false economy to take any chances In the start by purchasing cheap trees, or bj carelessness in preparing the grounc for them. Thoroughly decide on tlic varieties to be set, selecting such as are adapted to the soil and climate from among those that ave In deniaue' in the market. Hay only a rcliatih party, who can be depended upon tr furnish healthy, vigorous trees, trim lo name, and see that they are taker up wlik care. To obtain such it iniij Ik- necessary lo pay a little more thai' some would sell for, but scrub stocL lu mi orchard Is as bad as elsewhere oti the farm. Do not commit the mistake of milk ing the laud too rich, or of put Hot mail lire into the hole before setting he tree, but have thu land in good coiidi tton, say as good as for u corn crop (live it good cultivation while the treei are growing, avoid the small craic crops, but growing corn, beans ot peas, roots, tunatoes or squashes be tweeu the rows to get some pay foi t lie use of thu land and for Ihe laboi of working it each year. It Is easj from the above list to wake a rotation that would last until the trees well (llled tin- ground, or If it docs not there ure others, like small fruits, whlcL might bo added, or even a crop ol chickens. The fertilizer used for tues hoed crops would fe-cd the trees also and It would be placed Just where the trees most needed It, beyond the ex trenilty of the branches, to tempt tin feeding roots to extend out after theli food. Whatever crop luny bo chnsec do not crowd the trees with It. While the ground will need working cleai to the trunk of the trees, It is bettei that there should be space enough t work there after the crop has growr too large to cultivate nuioug. He tvhe does this will probubly guard ngalns' borers uud other Insect pests, uud wll have an orchard that will give bolt plensurs nnd profit. MsssachusetU rtoui'iuuau. goo Aid to Kumt Highways. NEW YOKtv wnnU good roads. This fact has been demon strafed in no linccrtnln way Ct by the number of petitions for road improvements which have been presented since the pnssage of the lllghblc-Armsti'oiig law. These petitions were from nil parts of the Stnte, and speedily showed Hint the appropriation of y.lO.OOO for State aid would not meet half the demnnd. In the law are Incorporated the most desirable features of the Stnto aid laws of other States, while the object lonal ones have been eliminated. The following notes of explanation are by William W. Armstrong, who Introduced nnd helped lo secure the passage of the law. The lllghblc-Armstrong t!ood ltoads bill is tin. result of several years of hard work and earnest discussion, and from year to year has been nltercd nnd mutinied to meet criticism and op position. On iiccount of the changes so made fro'n time to time there seems to be some confusion about the provisions of the act which was finally approved. An Intelligent considera tion of the subject, therefore, requires at the outset n brief statement of tho provisions of the law. The net provides that any board of supervisors 'may" adopt a resolution declaring that public interest demands the Improvement of a certain piece ot highway not located lu a city or vil lage, nnd that upon a petition of the owners of a majority of the lineal feet fronting upon such a highway it "must" adopt such a resolution. A copy of this resolution Is then to be transmitted to the Stute Engineer, who shall llrst determine whether the piece of highway Indicated Is of suf ficient public Importance to receive (State aid; if so, he shall map the high way, cause plans uud specifications for the improvement and nu estimate of the cost to be made, and transmit copies thereof to t lie Hoard of Super visors. The Hoard of Supervisors, with these facts and figures before them, 'may" then adopt a second reso lution, declaring that such a highway shall be lmprove-d, or it may refuse to go any further with the matter if It so chooses. Tills plan was adopted after a most careful consideration, so as to preserve the principle of home rule to the coun ties of tin- Stale; so that no county could be compelled, if unwilling, to improve any portion of its highway; and so that no county should lie per mitted to do so until it had all the fads and figures before it. If a county, therefore, desires merely to know how much It will cost to Im prove a certain piece of highway, it need only adopt the first resolution and get the plans and estimate the cost, free of charge, without going any further. If it Chooses, after ascer taining the cost, to adopt the second resolution. It may, but it cannot be compelled to do so. If, however, the Hoard of Supervis ors adopts the second resolution, it must transmit a copy of it to the State Engineer, who then advertises for bids for the work. If no responsible bid is made within his estimate, he must make n new estimate and transmit it to the Hoard of Supervisors; and, if the Hoard of Supervisors then adopts a new resolution, baseu upon the new estimate, declaring tbut nevertheless such highway shall oe Improved, I lie Stale Engineer must advertise for bids as before. When a responsible bid within his estimate is made the State Engineer awards Hie contract; but if the town or county desires to do the work Itself it has the preference over all bidders. This provision enables localities hav lug scrapers and other appliances for improving their roads to utilize them in doing their own work under this act, and so keep ail the money expend ed at home. Each Hoard of Supervisors lias, un der thu general highway law, the pow er to elect a County Engineer. If It has elected such an olllcer the State Engineer must act through him. If It has not he must supervise tho per formance of ihe contract himself. When the work Is completed lie must draw a warrant upon the State Treas urer for one-half the cost of the work, nnd certify the oilier half to the Hoard of Supervisors, which must levy thirty-live per cent, of the whole cost of the work upon the county. The other lilleen per cent, is payable in one ot two ways, namely: If ihe Hoard of Supervisors adopted the llrst resolu tion for the Improvement without a petition from the adjoining owners, tho Hoard of Supervisors must levy the lifte-en per cent, upon the town in which the improved highway Is; but It the lirsl resolution was adopted uftet such a petition, Ihe Hoard of Super visors must cause thu Town Assessors to levy tho nfteeu per cent, upon tho property owners on the improved high way. Such, In brief, is the plan which lias finally been approved by the Legisla ture for atfording aid in the Improve ment ot rural highways.-Xcw York Journal. Vuluci or (loud Jtond. It has bee-u ngurcd out in New Jer soy that land values tend to rise thirty per cent, in value wherevei good roads aro Introduced, irrespective of other natural benefits. They are Invariably the forerunners of other Im provements, such as the electric rail ways, free mall delivery, increased de niaud for country residences and so on. They crente far greater social uulty, they spread Intelligence, thej give to the lsolated citizen a political significance not otherwise attluuble. l'luced rt IlMtdtn.nt4t-e. The farmer who is compelled to us bud ronds when he Is able to get to market, generally finds it forestalled and himself obliged to ship to soins distant point, while the farmers along the railroads of the Far West or on the good wagon roads of Ohio, Indi ana, New Jersey and Canada ar sup plying his home market lu Milwaukee recently during a rainstorm several trees were set ou lira by diverted electric currents. ENCOURAGING THRIFT. A IlnnlnM fit on Who lint Found Tbut It Vnyu. "I alwnys have confidence. In petinlo who save a little money out of their salaries," said a prominent Westn'tn' merchant, "and I do wlmt I con to' encourage habits of thrift. I employ, about seventy-live clerks In my estab lishment, to whom I pay weekly sala ries ranging from $10 to ?I0. Nntur- ally enough more of them get tho for- l nier than the latter amount, but thy are none tho less worthy on that re count. In the beginning, when I em ployed only two people, I lived pretty, close- to thc-tii, and I knew how thrift less they could be when they were not encouraged to be otherwise. I have discharged more clerks for that sort ot thing thnn for any other cause. They spent their salaries, large or small, ns might be, in a reckless fash ion, nnd let debt accumulate qulto re gardless of the rights of creditors. As my business Increased, nnd with it my profits and nty force of people, I be gan lo give thu matter more study, and lu the end, when I felt able to be of material assistance In encouraging thrift and honesty, I proposed a year ly recognition of those who would save something out of their salaries. It was small at llrst, but was so suc cessful that to-day I haven't a clerk who tins not some kind of a bank ac count, nnd not one who wilfully re fuses lo pay bis debt. When we get a new one who refuses to lake advan tage of the opportunities n Horded we let him go nt 1 ho end of his .tlrst. yenr. "My present plan is to double tho savings of nil clerks who receive .10, ?1'J and 1.1 a week; to add twenty-live per cent, to nil who receive from flo to $Jo, nnd ten for those over ?J.". A ch-rk on Slo a week or under cannot save much, but us a rule that class ot clerks have no one lo maintain but themselves, and It one cannot save more thnn -" oltt his year's labor. It is rather pleasant for lilui to get 5J5 clear profit. Those who receive the larger amounts usually have families, nnd their savings nro not large, but whatever tkoy lire they are comforta bly increased. One of my ?lJ00 a-year clerks, with n wife and two small chil eVen, stive fioo last yenr, and my check for a hundred additional was deposited to his nccount the day after New Year. A young woman lu charge of a department at $1100 a year has almost paid for a nice little cot tage In the suburbs out of her extra, nnd so the list rims on through every branch of the business, I make It a condition that all current obligations must be met at the end of the yenr. so t lint the savings are actual net profit. Every year some of the clerks are not (milled to any extra, but it this Is the result of sickness I assume a part or nil of the doctor's bills. You may say It costs something for mc to do It, nnd you are right. Hut I have the best class of clerks in the city, and ns a re sult I have, the best class of custom In the city, and I guess I don't lose enough by It to necessitate an assign ment at an early date," and tly; mer chant smiled with very evident satis faction. Washington Stnr. Ht-r KiioivIihIko of C'lilnpno. " A young woman at u watering place this summer made it reputation as u profound linguist in a rather odd milli ner. .She called one day at a Chinese laundry, where she had left a shirt waist, but It could not be found, as there was no entry in the book of hieroglyphs corresponding to her pink slip. After a half hour's search tho Chbiaman found thu entry. A mis take had been made, the entry crossed out and a new set of hieroglyphs in tiny characters placed below. She was told that that waist would bo laundered immediately and she could get it Ihe next day. The next day the young woman called for If, accompanied by three other young wonieu. At the seashore tho excitement of a visit to tho Chi nese laundry Is not to bo desphied. The Chinaman to whom the pink slip was presented was not the lauudryman of Ihe day before and he experienced tho same dllllculty In finding the Identi fying characters, finally saying, "Not in book." The girl answered calmly, "I can dud It," and the Chinaman al lowed her to take the book. Turning the leaves until she came to one that had an entry crossed out, with another in tiny characters under It, she handed it to ihe Chinaman. 'Then- it is," and, to Ids surprise, ho found It. "You only lady 1 know splk Chi nese," lie said. And the other girls looked upon her with admiration. Kansas City World. Snvnl tlio ( I.lfu. Mrs. William Ditchlicld, of Upland, has not studied medicine or surgery, but she has performed a surgical op eration on a chicken ut her homo and the chicken Is now living and well, having entirely recovered. Srrs. IUtcblleld prides herself ou her cliicueiis. The other day one of them was taken sick. After diagnosing thu the case she determined that if thu chicken's life was to bo saved mi op eration was necessary. Accordingly sho whetted up a knife and, screwing up her courage to the necessary notch, she cut open tho chicken's craw nnd there found imbedded In the side a sninll sliver of bono. After much trou ble she succeeded in removing It. Fin ishing the thing lu n style almost pro fessional, she neatly sewed up thu In cision with silk thread. The chicken is to-day running around ns lively as any of the brood. Mrs. Ldtchfield is now looking for more chickens with bones in their craws. Philadelphia Inquirer. How Mexlcuns Make Ice. In one of the highest vuileys of Onx aca, Mexico, nt un elevation of 8000 or D000 feet, there Is a flourishing Ice Industry, which Is bused on the well known principle of the reduction of temperature hy radiation of tempera ture during the night. The ground Is covered with a lurga number of wood en troughs, which are tilled with wat er, and during the winter nights a film of Ice not more than one-eight b of an Inch in thickness Is formed. This lew la removed on the following morning, shovtV-d Into holes In the ground, and then covered with earth. ' It rapidly solidities, and Is then cut into blocks, nnd acuiTby mules to thu cities below, where It Is readily sold. San Francis co Cull. THE MUSKRAT AT HOME.: Ilnw Ho Unlldn nd I,Itm tend Munqm-r. den M Terrapin. The nmskrats bnxe begun lo build their winter houses nnd put ou t licit whiter coats. Among the waving flags thousands of concsliapcd musk rat, houses are In course ot construc tion. Tho family habitation Is made of dry. coarse flags ond grosses, small pieces of watcr-soiikcd wood nud small stones, .til cemented together by ft pe culiar niorlnr which -only Ihe ninskral knows bow to prepare by chewing clay nnd mud into a line preparation. The old negro hunter declares thai the ce menting is donei with evenness and precision by the industrious little worker by mentis of its paws. Two or three holes or "lends" allow thr rnts to pass out or enter below the Ice. The houses ure rough on I lie oulslde nnd nre built from three lo five feet high. Old hunters nnd close observers of the habits of the muskrnt say that tho little marsh dwellers know In ad vance how high the spring tides will rise. As verlflcntlon of this claim It Is observed that all beds In a given marsh nre of the same height. The houses below the water line nre bare, mud Inside, with n floor of sticks and grasses a few feet above the water. Upon this scaffold-like floor the rats nre said to lie with their bends toward Ihe "lend," ready at n moment's notice to dash out and appear at the surface L'OO yards away lu deep water. The law passed by the last Legislature gives added pro tection to these, Ihe most popular fur producers on the Eastern Shore of Maryland and Delaware, which are caught by the hundred thousand each winter. The Utile animals are lu many cases caught In steel traps secured by stroug chains. As soon ns tlic nil Is trapped It plunges Into the water weighed down by Ihe trap, ami Is drowned. A muskrat. au thority gives the interesting bit of In formation (hat, while a muskrat is compelled lo breathe under water, It can travel for miles under the lee by n scientific nlr-prodiiclng process which enables It to remain under tho Icy covering for hours. In order to do tills It must stop ns often us ouce in twenty minutes nnd eject Its brcnth Into Ihe water. This nlr rises to tho surface, forming a big pnle bubble. After it has been exposed lo the water fur a few minutes Hie bubble becomes oxygenated, when Ihe rat Inhales thw Jsiobnle nud resumes its Journey. Muskrats when served by Ihe Kast cru Shore cook as "mock terrapin" will challenge tin epicure to distinguish it from the real Chesapeake diamond back. When properly sUluned ihe musky laste and odor entirely disap pear and when properly cooked the almost black flesh Is Juicy, tender and sweet. The food of Ihe rat is the roots of marsh grasses and shrubs which grow on the shores and no morsel of food Is touched Until it litis been thor oughly washed. Chestertown Old.) Correspondence in Ihe Haltlmore Sun. CURIOUS FACTS. Tlic report comes from Damascus that the remains of a valuable library that escaped destruction when Tomer lane sacked the city in inn have been discovered by one of the city ollicinls. The Journal IApiculteur records n curious observation of a specialist, nauicly, that nightingales devour tho drones of n hive nud leuve workers unmolested. As nu experiment, twelve of the former nnd six of the latter were killed nnd placed by I lie hive; the twelve were eaten, the six not touched. The remains of an ancient gallery were recently found six feet below the surface nt Tottenham marshes during the excavations for the new reservo'rs of the East London Water Company. It is supposed to have belonged to the Danes, who were defeated In Leu Vul ley by King Alfred lu K)l A. 1). One of the skyscrapers in New York Cily has a daily population of Si 00, nnd tho mnll sent out I rom it nverugos 38,000 pieces u day. Every forty-live minutes a mall wagon from the I'osl otn.ee carries away from this building about sevcnly-llve pounds of outgoing mnll. Another New York oillco build ing sends out :io,000 pieces of mail every week day. A remarkable case of I lie death of a little girl from the bite of a fly comes from St. Bartholomew's Hospital, Lou don. The child complained that a fly had bitten her on the nose. Her face soon began to swell, it was not long before she was delirious, and In spile of every effort she died. The hospital autopsy developed the fact that blood poisoning had resulted probably from poisonous microbes Introduced into the system by the tly. Such cases aro not without precedent, but an rare. The village of Noodeshn, Kan., was recently visited by n tornado, and at the end of the excitement a farmer living in tho vicinity stuck his head out of his cyclone cellar and found that bis choicest field wns occupied hy a strange house of small dimensions. He could not Identify the building ns belonging to any of his acquaintances, nnd up to date nil his efforu to do so have been univalll'ig. Mr. Chamborlnln' Ori-lilil. On tho Qnal des Flours, in Farls, Mr. Chamberlain saw one day u rare orchid. "How much?" asked the future Min ister." "Twenty pounds, monsieur; It is tho only specimen In France." "Here Is the money," replied Cham berlain, and, drawing the notes from his pocket, ho took tile (lower, tore It to pieces nnd trampled It under foot, saying, "I have It In my own collec tion, and I object to a Frenchman hav lug a dupllcnte." I'nrls Letter to Tou louse Express. Blngiilnr Wntch Charm. Miniature Bibles are worn as watch charms lu Kusshi. They are each one Inch long, three-fourths of an Inch wide, and three-eighths of an iueh thick, und contain tho first live books of the Old Testumeut. The text Is In Ilebrow, and can be read with thu aid of a magnifying glass. v WHY' SOME "men" CROW f ALL. I.-nlh nf I.lnib nnd lliiily Are Indication of Vnontoral Growth. Tho biggest living man Is Lewis Wll kins, who Is now arousing great Inter est in the scientific circles of Europe. Wlik Ins wns born on a farm near St. Haul. Minn., In 1S7-1. When he wns but ten years old he measured six feet lu height, and now has' grown to the tremendous height of 107 Inches Just three-quarters of nn Inch less than nine feet nnd weighs Silt pounds. There hnve been other tn II men nnd women before Wllklns, nnd scientists have striven In vnln to account for these freaks of nntiire. . Only lately n plausible story has been put forward by a French physician, Dr. Marie, who soys Hint giantism Is nothing more or less than a disease. This disease gen erally occurs In patients between the ages of eighteen and thlrly-flvc, and Is llrst. culled acromegaly (from two Greek words moaning "enlargement of the extremities"), if tho patient Is not attacked tint II nftcr hi is eighteen 11k ends of the bones In the arms nnd legs are enlarged and prolonged slight ly, but If this disease lias attacked a child nt or soon after birlh giantism l. the result. The bones arc prolonged nil r.long (heir length, grow initial ur ally, anil the result Is n giant. When you see a big man It is, there fore, a quevtion whether he Is unusu ally strong or whether In is a sufferer from ncroniegaly. All giants have not been acronoigalle, according to Dr. Marie, lie mentions two giants In the French nrmy who did not belong lo this class. One was Charles Front, a cavalry soldier, who was six feel eleven Inches, nnd another was Mar nat, a drum major In the Nineteenth lteglment of infantry, who measured six feet nine inches. I'crhaps the greatest giant who ever lived before Wllklns was Charles Byrne, an Irishman. Ho measured nine feet two Inches. Ills skeleton Is still preserved, proving beyond ques tion Ills enormous size. He was prob ubly acromegalic. Other giants were Coiislanllne, bom nt Zurich, Switzerland, eight feet one Inch; Ilcrold, born at Lelpsle, seven feet live Inches, and Lady Emma, eight feet one inch. Tim Cold Kill lot. A weird story is told of a man by the inline of Van Bosboom, who Is dis tinguished in Ihe Transvaal as the best shot lu the itcpublio. lie is nrty tive years old and never, il Is claimed, lias be missed an object nt , liidi he fired. A few months ago he had a productive gold mine and a flourishing family, but h" lost his mine recently, ami soon after his two sons were slain ns Ihey were lighting against the Eng lish. The loss of his mine troubled him little, but when ho learned that his stalwart sons were no more a change came over blui. Ho took his old flint lock rille, which lie 'calls Lo betigula, and with a bag of golden bullets he went to the front to light the foes of ids country. And it is said that during the ri'i-ent battles when the ambulances removed each day those who had fallen in battle, the physicians could readily pick out thu eilllcers who laid been killed by Van Bosboom, for Instead of two ounces of lend or steel they had two ounces of gold either in the heart or lu the forehead. Whether Ibis be truth or (let Ion I know not, but I do know that there nre multitudes of men nnd women who are shot to death in llicsn days, not only in South Africa, but in Europe nnd America us well, by tlio bullets of gold. llomlletlc He-view. Trcnur(- of Aztec Tlmen. The work (hut is being enrried on in the C'nlle do las Escaleralllas for the laying of the sewer mains has led to important archaeological discoveries, for as is well known, that street, an well as Iho present cathedral, formed part of the site of the great temple ot Huitzilopochtll, Hit Aztec god of war. The latest discoveries seem to be the most important of nil. Foremost among them nre two figures of the god Ehecatl (god of air), tlio compan ion of Unclznccutl. One of these fig ures Is painted red, yellow and black, ami In spite of the dampness of the ground where it has lain for centuries, tho colors have remained fresh uud vivid. These Idols are adorned with disks of gold, which are polished nud en graved in a remarkable maimer. The disks nre about twenty centimeters In diameter and the gold plate Is of fair thickness. Other objects found nt the same time were four ear ornaments of golfl, a gold Jewel case belonging to the god of nlr, beads, amulets of green stones, axes of sllex, small Idols of stone, lances of sharp stones, a curious mask of pyrile of iron, knives of large di mensions, n mask of dlorite, censers of earthenware painted in colors, and many other figures of stone and ce ment, tlio latter being always poly chromatic Mexican 1 Icrahl. ('oralf. In the main, Corsica, where It has no French ollicinls to lcavon Its poli tics, is still Corslcan rather thuu French; and lu the mountains tho old spirit of Independence Is fur from elcaiL For these and other obvious reasons, France Is bound to keep ac tive garrisons In the Island, though sho would do better by miici! with the more acceptable chains of a maternal administration. More railways, drained marshes, increased education, and a dally steamboat service would bind the island to the continent In seif-lutercst nnd gratitude. As It Is, It is scarcely too much to say that Corsica is only kept from open revolt by thu clement of prosperity brought to her by the tourists of winter. Chambers's Jour nal. Ilangor nr-HIgh" Unrae. The eating of "high" game Is un doubtedly attended with risks, aud tho poisonous effects are probably due to the toxins produced In the earlier stages of putrefactive process. Tho advantage, of course, of hanging game Is that the flesh becomes tender aud decidedly more digestible than whei It Is quite fresh. The rlpenlug pn'--cess, however, may mean the elatie atloo of toxins. It la a curious t M that game can be mado to look "rluu" and greeu by Injecting Into the ftVob tieBU potassium sulphide. Lancet, , . mi i 3un imw oTii .AUCHTER.PROvoKiNf StoJ LOVERS OF r.,r nr.. . . I Amendment m.r. . ,rt co.JeH,..,,,vj:,.r: He I.HM.n.ed , ,, "Ji "For your thoRllU. " 1 . will Kindly Kiv,, t - I Saul the youth, BlHl, M I "Well, I think one k,L ' I I would Hi.r,.i,. . I Answered the 'm y - many." U' ,r,"n "Well, uuihrclli,, lnv. ning," said Mr. Hn,,.-, J "Perhaps yo ,,. iswered Mrs. SiinKK,. ,-'"yllli,,. 'I Pity authors w, ),,., such sedentary lives." "Sedentary! You ,itl-t ,. publishers a seileiiinry lif,. -hicago Kccord, '1'" !Mnllfl.nti, "Yes. T advertise! for , Ihe coal di-nl-r, llirov.;,,, , , "What qualifications ,;,v' , "I cnu lie a linl,., s;l-' ' boy, timidly. - An.Mvi-i-fi. 'H Ciin,i-,,lri, Servant 'Tiii.r,.-s ., ,.,,, says he Is Imn-r.v ,! Mr. (iotrox -"Asls ,im vi daughters It Is t.;i . w.,nt, be another one of tlisl. !m men." Judge. liUIITil In lllMinlfr. "Jack, j on ought t your v riling biolr." "Lemme alone, Julia; straighten up this table' l r. a thing on it until it SMt n up again."-Iniliaii.-iiiisj,,,',, How 1l- lll.pnli. ilof i "Yes. sir," said ti. r,,(,ltll dlker, "one of my (lugs-Just J mongrel saved my ut,," "And yon were in 1 lu-nrtl-; to sell him, were ji,Y' (hey "inw. 1 ate liii!i."-li,, Press. A r'lrld For llu- Inujjln:, Mrs. Fiisslnnge-"A1I suris nro going around tiSut t. inses." Mrs. Snoop- "No m oiclcr' been living in tlio w-M month and nolimly kibvi about them."- I'm k. Couli. I,!i,-i-.,. Cy ulcus- ' l love-" Miss-Antcck-"Ali! J' vi s: : nil along you linuuiity m, Cynlciis- " love tin- dili. elolil of bacheloi liunil." Miss Antei-k --"bruit!"- (Ohio) Stilt. Join mil. II i Vt-ry Oirn. "It Is a Kllbi'lis. Is It lint: visitor, turning from tin In-; the painting to the lnj.-le.- ' .My liusliiinil s inline, ml Caswell, with ( lilting illstit William. It's his till viitlit.tU j:tld S7000 for ll."-(.'lili'iis Tim l.:iti Stuttering Einplojvr lri; tcrl "B b-b-bny, hand menu bl--" Oince Boy "A blottiT. wish?" Stuttering Employci -''' n-n-u-now; the ink lias (Id Harper's Bazar. Sonrre tr Hl tmplrali The poet's eyes llasln'il :l ! woman's footsteps upr-n tlio "Ah," he nntseil, "'tis sli. splratlon!" And fell to writ in: npiin For he bad hefinl (lie f' bis landlady, niul lil' 'm due. Harper's i'-tinr. Not a I n" ' 111:11 Kil "Now that you rc lior intimate friend. "il lo hyphenate your Mine a"" self Mrs. l'lumh-Mm-' "No," replied tllf k'V'ly a Shy glance nt lr '' young husband. "T'tl '8 bolidatloii. it's tinjiliior The Mia' The sweet antes of tup c ...... il... ti-ts' riiuin ell low. "I'm saddest when I words. "Most women nro." t;i'"Kl ii on Ihe floor lim-Vi, m can't: sing and talk "t f: Detroit Free Press. HIirL-er ll'li'l Ladv of the House ItMiJn" .1 1.1 ..II,. witli 1 Il-.e-.-n-ui-o.il . m had been Invited to ilW'-t little man, how Jul )uu dinners" .., Yoiiugster-'Trrtty '" we don't have liny 'ltl,l' home; but I always sot m, Berliner Tiigt'l'laH. ...... .... eioi I'-'"!-1" "Did you ever got '''" tho revivalist. "Well, I should nay w' of It," replied the nun. "A hundred and l1,irl. of religion!" cried the rcn did you get tlint';" 0-l..k Wll Ul'11 1 i'a4 moil ever gee " ,., "I married it -fuU . ..ll.r,!l. ... TrT-rwrilnf worm-- . norroughs-"Sorry;;a wuillag so long '"r ,, you, but rn scud r 0 rMarklcy-"l'-or don't!" I Borrougbs-"W1- i .....,... tilt. ..until Iu .1 to throw In another for U."-Cuth01lcHtauaara r.-i-T'"5S "How do you got w neighbors?" (lfj "Very nicely." Una 'Wfi DUrSUOd gramme, and as 1000 J sent over aud aW '"J wash tubs, flat Iron baby grand piano- -, "But you have a" ,u elf. . , i in "Of course. Wbw J was to head tbcu Btar. i I
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers