MARKET. I went to Market yesterday, And it ia like a Fair Of everything you like to aee; . But nothing Live ia there. The Pigeona, hanging up to eat And Rahhita, by their little feet But no one aeemeu to care. And there were Fiahea out in rows Bright onea, of every kind: 'And aome were Pink, and Silver, tooj But all of them ware blind Vea, everything you want to touch: It would not make you happy, much But no one aeemed to mind. 'And lovelieat of all a Deer! Only Ita eyea were blurred. And hanging by It, very near. A beautiful great Bird; So I could smooth hie feathera through, And 'kiaa them ( very aoftly ) , too But oh. he never atimn! Joaepsme Preaton Peabody. in Harper'a, IN THE COILS OF A BOA-CONSTRICTOR. v o. p. KING8LIY Early In the year 1900 I was atn tloned In the south of Negros Island, In the Philippine group, at the little pueblo" (village) of Bayanan. Here I acted In the capacity of sanitary In spector of the La Carlota Sub-District of Negros". The territory In cluded in my district was many miles In extent, but owing to the fact that the greater portion was wild, and inhabited only by roving tribes of Visayans, whose haunts lay far in the unexplored interior, my work was confined to the small settlements lo cated within a radius of forty miles, many of these being extremely diffi cult of access on account of the dense tropical growth and the unsettled condition of the country. As I sat in my office one pleasant morning, contentedly smoking a ci gar and contemplating with pleasure a short trip I had planned for the afternoon, a sharp rap on the door brought me back abruptly from my reverie. At my invitation a native entered, bearing a letter, which he deposited upon the desk and with drew. A glance at the address showed me that It was from the Chief Inspector of the Department. The contents, which I rapidly glanced Over, directed me to proceed without delay to a little "barrla" called La Paz, situated some thirty miles in land, to investigate a reported epi demic of smallpox raging in that vi cinity among the natives. Realizing the gravity of the situa tion, should the report be true, I de cided to start at once. I had never Tlsited the place before, and was not .ure of the exact distance or the dif ficulties liable to be met with en route; for these reasons I was de sirous of having plenty of daylight to travel by. Hastily collecting the necessary equipment, together with my revolvers and ammunition, I crammed the things into mj saddle bags and stepped out Just as the horses were brought up one for my self, the other for my old servant Juan, who was to act as guide and interpreter. Our route for several miles lay llong a well-beaten trail, which would have been pleasant enough for ordi nary travel had it not been for the fierce heat of the sun. Soon, how ever, we reached the Rio del Sangre, the bamboos along the banks of which afforded a delicious shade, though the river-bed was practically dry. My guide now informed me that by following the channel we could shorten the distance by several miles, and I therefore turned my horse up stream, glad enough to. keep in the shade. As we advanced toward the inte rior the scenery became more wild and picturesque, the vegetation rank and luxuriant, the trees meeting in many places and forming a series of leafy tunnels. The only sound was the dull thud, thud, of our horses' hoofs, hardly audible in the soft river-bed, with an occasional shrill cry from a monkey who had discovered us from his leafy bower, or the lazy flutter of a gaily-pluined parrot as it changed its position. Advancing in single file, owing to the narrownoss of the river-bed and the many obstructions that were constantly being met with In the form of roots and fallen tree-trunks, I was soon some distance ahead, and, en tering a space comparatively clear of obstructions, I spurred my mount in to a gallop, as the sun was rapidly sinking towards the horizon and I was autious to reach my destination before dark. Rounding a sharp bend, my horse, with a wild snort, plunged heavily, wheeling Bharply to the right. Being unprepared for such a manaeuvre, I was hurled headlong from the saddle, striking upon my head and shoulder In the soft, mud dy river-bed. My face was smeared with the filthy, ill-smelling muck, my neck felt as though it was broken, my brain was In a dizzy whirl, and my eyes were, blinded with the odor oub mud. For a moment I did not attempt to move. Although I was aware of a curious movement beneath me, I sup posed I had been thrown upon aome roots, which were slowly giving way beneath my weight. Suddenly my attention was at tracted by a strange hissing noise which sounded quite close to me, and which, in my dazed condition, I was at a loss to account for. Meanwhile, the movement beneath me increased rather than diminished. This was certainly unnatural, and I rolled over with the Intention of reaching firmer ground, but found that njy right leg was entangled in something. At my first movement the mysterious hiss ing Increased until it sounded like escaping steam, and the movement beneath me became so violent as to partially raise mv hndv from thn river-bed. Dashing the mud from my eyes as uest i could, I threw out my hands for some available support. My right grasped mud, but the loft caught hold of a cold, slimy, wrig gling body. And then the truth o( my situation dawned unon m i all freezing my blood with honor, .while the most sickening sensation I it". I lay In the folds of a greut boa constrictor! Had I been in the beat of physical condition, tunarmed I should have been no match for this great reptile, an situated as I was practically In a semi-conscious state I must sure ly fall an ensy victim. The thought of my position mad me frenzied. I attempted to rogaln my feet, but now my left log waa pinioned with my right, and, strug gle as I would, I could not free them. In frantic rage I clutched the slimy colls, to fling them from me; but only to be dashed down with stun ning force. Again and again I tried to wrench myself free, but all In vain. With clenched flats I beat the great body, and endeavored to tear the creature to pieces with my nails, but the thick scales were as proof against my at tack as armour-plate. Meanwhile we rolled over and over In the river bed, as with strength born of des peration I fought the loathsome mon ster, which was slowly crushing the life out of me. The thought of my pistol flashed through my mind, and I felt for my holster, but it was emp ty; I had placed the weapon In my saddle-bags. Frantically I endeav ored to tear from my body the ever tightening folds, but, struggle aa I would, it was of no avail. I waa fast becoming exhausted, a dlixinesa seized me, and the trees and shrubs seemed to be tumbling and whirling about in wild conclusion. Suddenly my strength seemed to desert me al together, and I ceased to struggle, while just above my face, swaying now to the right, now to the left, waa the snake's head, like a pendulum of death, whose every stroke was bring ing me nearer to destruction. Strange thoughts flitted across my mind; incidents of boyhood life long since forgotten were brought vividly to memory, and I seemed to stand again in the old homestead with ray friends about me, though all were strangely silent. Aa I watched, the scene began to melt away like a mist. A blinding flash, accompanied by a deafening report; the rush of a dark body over me; then all was darkneaa. When next I opened my eyes my na tive guide was rapidly unwinding the now lifeless serpent from my body) while on the ground beBlde me lay a blood-stained dagger and a pistol, still smoking. Having freed me from the reptile, Juan brought water and proceeded to remove the worst ol the filth from my person. The cold water also served to revive me, but I lay helplessly upon the soft grasi while my guide recaptured mv horan This done, Juan assisted me Into the saddle and supported me until a settlement was reached, where I re mained at the house of a friendly na tive until I had recovered somewhat from the effects of encounter. My nerves, however, remained In a wretched state for months: mw dreams were haunted by great dra gons and hydraheaded monsters, who chased me over river and lunclo Just as they were on the point ot crushing me to death I would awake with a wild yell, bathed In cold ner. splratlon and trembling in every. iimD, nut by degrees this wore off until I became my natural self. Juan, good fellow that he was. . cured and preserved for me the Bkln of the reptile which so nearly made an end of me. It measured fourteen and a half feet in length and eleven Inches in circumference. In due sea. son I had it mounted as a little souve nir of my sojourn In the Philippine Islands, and with the revolver and dagger which put an end to its ca reer. The Wide World Magazine.- Tests For Boiler Water. Will you please print some simple tests for boiler water? E. G. A. Answer. Test for hard or soft water: Dissolve a small piece of good soap in alcohol. Let a few drops of the solution fall Into a glas? of the water. If it turns milky, it is hard water; If it turns clear, it Is soft water. Test for earthy matters or alkali: Take litmus-paper dipped In vinegar, and, if on immersion the paper re turns to its true shade, the water doeB not contain earthy matter or al kali. If a few drops of syrup be added to a water containing any earthy matter, It will turn green. Test for carbonic acid: Take equal parts of water and clear lime water. If combined or free, carbonic acid is present, a precipitate is seen, and If a few drops of muriatic acid be added, effervesence commences. Teat of magnesia: Boll the water to twentieth part of its weight, and then drop a few grains of neutral carbonate of ammonia into a glass of It and a few drops of phospbato of soda. It magnesia is present, It will fall to the bottom. Test for iron: Boll a little nut-gall and add to the water. If it turns gray or slate-black, iron is present. I Second: Dissolve a little prussiate ot potash, and, if iron is present, it will turn blue. Technical World Maga ! Thackeray used to lift his hat whenever he passed the house In which he wrote "Vanity Fair." Robert Browning could not sit still. With the constant shuffling of his feet holes were worn In the carpet. Chicago, It Is said, has more rats, in proportion to Its p6pulatlon, than any other city in the world. The average Is about two rats for each inhabitant. Three good washes are received by an Abyssinian during his career at his birth, on his marriage-morn, and at his death. At all other times he shuns soap and wacer. Dinlzulu, the Zulu chief, has a graphophone, with which he enter tains his guests, and also an organ of England build, nn which he him self performs. The number thirteen Is deemed so unlucky In Paris and Berne that none of the houses In these cities bear that numeral. Instead of It the num ber twelve and a half is used. The English city of Birmingham ts securing control ot the street-car systems there. Early in January the municipality instituted electric trac tion covering eighty miles of track age. Schoolchildren in Copenhagen, Denmark, must keep clean. Three times a week they have to bathe, and while they are thus engaged their clothing is being purified in steam ovens. In England a man devised a train wrecking scene for the amusement o( an audience. The engine driver en tered so recklessly into the spirit ol the occasion that he killed the author of the entertainment, who was lying bound upon the track. A native of Egypt who recently died left $400,000 stored in gold in his house. Many Egyptians who are possessed of wealth will borrow mon ey at interest to conceal the fact. Large quantities of gold coin are an nually melted In Egypt and converted into ornaments. The Philadelphia Record declares that Charles C. Reber, an employe in a shirt factory at Strausstown. Berks County, Pa., Is an expert at sewing on buttons. He sewed on 4200 buttons last Friday in Ave and one-half hours, which means six hundred shirts, seven buttons to a shirt, or about fourteen buttons in a minute. At another time, not being aware of the fact that he was being timed, he sewed on seven buttons in twenty-five seconds. Mr. Reber claims he can fasten, on a wager, twenty-one buttons In a minute, sev en buttons to a shirt. PICTURES OF SLEUTHS. Chile' Deposit of Saltpetre. Conflicting stories are told about the nitrate beds of Chile. Rumors have been current in this country and Europe to the effect that the sup ply was limited and likely to give out in twenty-five years, It the present rate ot consumption is maintained. This statement is now contradicted by the United States Consul at Val paraiso. He says that a Chilean offi cial whose business it is to keep track of the matter is quoted by the Chilean Times as saying that the Government still possesses 2,000,000 hectares of nitrate grounds. Even if the deposits were limited to 1,000, 000 hectares they ought to yield ten thousand million quintals of nltiate. A quintal is 101.41 pounds. The ex portation has never reached 40,000, 000 quintals a year, but even It It were 80,000,000 the supply ought to last 125 years. "If to these 1,000, 000 hectares belonging to the State," aays the official, "there be added the grounds belonging to private persons, the number of years of duration would be three orfourtlmes greater." The cost ot living Is still Increas ing in German cltlos at an alarming rat. Criminals WhoSnapshot Detectives Uses of the Photographs. Have you ever noticed to use an Irishism that you hardly ever no tice the portraits ot Scotland Yard detectives In the Illustrated papers until they are either retired or are just about to retire? Did you, for Instance, know how Detective Inspector Walsh looked prior to his quitting his service the other day, or were you familiar with Chief Inspector Arrow'B features un til he accepted, a month or two ago, the post of chief of police at Barce lona? If you think carefully over these two questions you will have to con fess to yourself that you are unable to answer either of them in the af firmative, the reason being that nei ther of the officers mentioned was ever previously photographed for publication. This Is one of the many unwritten laws of Scotland Yard. Nevertheless there Is hardly a de tective in London who has not been photographed over and over again, for the simple reason that there is in existence a class of men who make a specialty ot snapshotting police of ficers, with a view to selling the por traits so obtained to professional criminals. Such photographs are, for obvious reasons, greatly sought for. Certain detectives make a specialty of cer tain lines of crime'. One, for exam ple, deals with coiners, another with anarchists and undesirable aliens generally, and so on. All really high class criminals also specialize In crime. There you havo the thing la a nutshell. For a professional coin er to be familiar with the features of the man who Is on the lookout for him is, from his point ot view, emi nently desirable. And be usually is familiar with them, thanks to the snapshotters, themselves for the most part crim inals or ex-criminals. In fact, one notorious counterfeiter arrested the other day by a clever ruse waa found to be in possession not only of the photographs of the men who arrested him, but of carefully tabulated writ ten descriptions of them into the bar gain. Pearson's Weekly. A Precautionary Measure By TOM P. MORGAN. "Uh-well, snh," Judicially remarked old Brother Quackenboss. "I Isn't parsln' no 'pinions on de eppersody, one way or do tudder, muhse'f, but ! dess glvln' yo' de skin and bones of de pubseedin's and leavln' yo' to draw yo' own exclusions. 'Twuz dls- j uh-way: Endurin' of de funyal, uh- i whilst Pahson Bagster was delivering of as comp'mentary an address to de ! cawpse as yo' 'most ever ltstened to. a aection ot de plaster, 'bout dat wide and mebby die long, fotched looao turn de cellln' and 'acended on do Pahson's head and knocked htm1 senseless Yeasah, put him plumb, out'n business for de time beln'l' Well, uh-cou'se, yo' know, de orgies hatter go on uh-kase dar was de cawpse and dar was de 'semblage, ah-waiUn' wld polite impatience but dar wasn't a-nndder preacher td be had; so Puhfessah Toombs, de un dertaker, stepped into de brltch, aa yo' mought say, wld his mout uh anappin' like a steel-trap, and aays he, sawtah dognatlously : " 'Yo'-all will please make note, Bruddren and Slstahs, dat I takei muh stand right whuh de Pahson stood, uh-kaze turn de place whuh de plaster done fell down dar kaln'l no mo' plaster fall down, uh-kaz It's plumb dono down and th'ofl fallin', no matter how bad I stretches' de troof; and wld dese few words o 'applanation I'll puh-seed, not uh-kaz I'a stuck on de lamentable, but uh kaze I takes a puhfessional pride Iri muh Art and admires to have d celebration go off fltten and ship abape wid de fudder conformation dat die yuh isn't muh pussonel sedi ments (not by sev'ral, uh-kaze our depahted feller-citizen, uh-lyln' dar, done owes me a balance of six dol Iahs on de funyal of his fou'th wife) I'll puhseed to read fum dls yuh book de remahks dat was writ to be used in a burial at sea, b'llevln' dat dey sounds solemncholy enough to fit de 'casion and far enough fum de troof not to cause no mo' plasterln' to fall.' "And den he done so. Dat's de way 'twuz, Brudder Bosanko yo can cut It over to suit yo own bias." From Puck. News of Pennsylvania WORDS OF WISDOM. All compromises with evil are , bonaage. . i Some men would rather "lose out", than "win out." The world likes its apologists, but hates Ita friends. . i The law of giving is the law ot life no more, no less. Blessed are the pure In heart, for they shall see people. A Pharisee has never yet had pow er to deliver a publican. All painting in "clay" Is doubtfu) until it has been "fired." Noon is the vindication of the fa natlc streaks of the dawn. . I In the human heart are burled vast belongings that are eternal. God ne'er dooms to waste the strength He deigns to impart. I must live pure, speak true, right wrong follow the King else where for born? Be a whole man not legs or arms, or stomach or shoulders, or even a 1 head but be a whole man. Home I Herald. I UNABLE TO CHKCK SLAUHGTKR. Chief Ins,,, , i, ,, Roderick's Annual Report I inn I stni i n (Special). Increase of the number of mine Inspectors has failed to bring about the hoped for decrease In the number of min ing accidents. Chief of the Depart ment of Mines Roderick makes this admission In the first part of his an nual report for the year ending De cember 31, 1906, Just made public. Mr. Roderick compares the United States with Great Britain, pointing out that Great Britain has thirty eight Inspectors with 103 mines In charge ot each inspector In addition to quarries, with a total of 18,642 employees inside mines under the Inspector's Jurisdiction and a total production of 6,663,870 tons for each Inspector. Pennsylvania has twenty bituminous inspectors with jlxty-nine mines each, with a total of 7,093 employees and a produc tion of 6,476,649 tons per Inspector. Pennsylvania also has twenty anthra cite Inspectors for thirty-two mlne3 each, and 5, SIS employees and 3, 511,028 tons per Inspector. Mr. Roderick then says: "In the anthracite coal fields of Pennsylvania the number ot Inspec tors has been Increased since 1900 from eight to twenty, and in the bituminous fields from ten to twen ty, and In the hope that the augment ed number might result in hrlnglnc; about a decrease in the number of accidents. The records show, how ever, that the reverse has been the case, and It will be necessary, there fore, to resort to some other method to bring about this greatly desired result." The chief does not suggest anoth er method, but a little later on in his report says: "Assuming that the English Gov ernment takes as great care as any other European country of the mine workers, It appears that Pennsylvan ia Is greatly in advance of European countries In the care and protection afforded Its mine workers, and yet the number of fatal accidents In this State Is greater than in any of those countries. The department has frequently been subjected to very unfair criticism for undertak ing to place the responsibility for fatal accidents where it belongs." The statistics are quoted showing that of 557 persons killed at an thracite mines, 274 wero the result of the victims' carelessness; sixty nine to carelessness of others, 188 unavoidable and twenty-six resulted from accident for which responsi bility could not be fixed. Of the 477 killed at bituminous mines. 307 victims died from their own carelessness, ten by the carelessness of others, 142 unavoidable and eighteen by accidents for which re sponsibility could not be placed. The chief then says that the fig ures show that two-thirds of the accidents resulted from the victims own carelessness and tnat the re maining third may be taken as the reasonable percentage of accidents to miners. "It seems impossible to adopt any methods," ho proceeds, "either by legislative enactment or by special rules, that will tend to lessen the loss of life among the mlne-worker3." BURNED DIG R.ARN. To Discharged Employe Confesses Constable. Allentown (Special). Justice of the Peace Llnderman and Conatable Lelby, of Egypt, distinguished them selves again by arresting another firebug In the person of James Shaf r, aged 17 years, from whom they got a confession concerning the barn Ing of a barn of Charlea Snyder on the nlgbt of July 7. Llnderman and Lelby several weeks ago arrested Robert Hartsel, a member of the gang which had burned so many barns and houses In Lehigh and Northampton Counties, after Hartsel had successfully eluded the Allen town police. Llnderman heard that Sharer had been langhlng at Snyder while the latter was talking of his loss to an other man, and the boy was arrested. Four hours scientific sweating gained the confession, and Shafer is now in the Lehigh County Jail on a charge of arson. In the fire which destroy ed Snyder's barn eleven horses were burned to death. Shafer said that revenge for being discharged from Snyder's employ had prompted the deed. MARRIED HIS NURSE. Norrlstown Man Married Woman Who Helped Him Back To Health. Norrlstown (Special). A pretty little romance has Just come to light by the announcement of the wedding of Louis R. Derr, a young society man, and Miss Llllle M. Smith, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. William T. Smith, of Pennsburg. The bride is a professional nurse, and It was while serving in that capacity In the Derr household when the bride-groom suffered a severe and protracted ill ness that the little god Cupid played his pranks. When the family bid good-bye to the nurse last June they little dream ed that she was to return a member of the household. A letter received this week from the bridegroom pre pared the family to be in readiness for a bridal reception, as it stated that he had married Miss Smith and was spending the honeymoon at Rockvllle, Md. OLD AGE A FAMILY TRAIT. STARTLING LETTER. Received By Wealthy Lancaster Man. Lead Pencils. Cedar suitable for use in the man ufacture of lead pencils is yearly ber coming more scarce and expensive. Germany alone exports 16,166 tons to foreign countries every year, or about 3,033,200,000 pencils. The difficulty and axpense of procuring suitable wood led to careful Investigation for a substitute and for some time a German company has been making pencils the core of which ia encased In a composition whose principal in gredient is potatoes. It Is said these pencils are a trifle heavier than those made of cedar, but they are easier to sharpen, and the available supply of potatoes is practically Inexhaustible. A pencil of the best quality costs the manufacturers only $0.00928, while one of second quality can be marketed for about half that figure. The pos sible yearly output is estimated at 14,000,000,000 pencils. Forest and Stream. Lancaster (Special). "Give up $10,000, or be murdered where you sit," was the demand made upon Charles B. Grubb, the last male rep representative of the family of that well-known name In this section, and one of Lancaster's wealthiest men. The letter was received by Mr. Grubb at his rooms in a local hotel, where he is almost a recluse. The letter says that the writer had been chosen by lot as a mem ber of an organized hand, "the I Strong Forty-two," to secure from ! him, $10,000, or if he refused to give it, take his life. It was directed i that the money be placed beneath a water trough near the Quarryvllle Railroad, and a failure to comply , would result In death. The attention' of the police was called to the matter and the threat ening epistle was sent to Postmaster I S. Clay Miller, who believes he knows j the writer and It is likely he will ! Boon be found and arrested. Grundpurcnts Of Those At Miller Reunion Weiss- Centenarians. Spring City (Special). At the an nual reunion of the Wllmer Miller family, held at the home of Elmer Miller, the four children were pres ent, whose ages total near the 300 nark. This family are noted for their iong living, as the grandfather lived to the good old age of 101 years, while the grandmother died at the age of 104 years. The four brothers and sisters, who all enjoy the beBt of health, are Miss Eliza Miller, ot Phoenlxvllle, aged 68 years; Mrs. Martha Russell, of Philadelphia, aged 75 years; Mr. Samuel Miller, of Atchison, Kas., aged 71 years, and Mr. John C. Mil ler, of Phoenlxvllle, aged 80 years. Another brother, Joseph Miller, who was absent at this annual event ow ing to sickness, is 78 years of age. Jack The Slnsher. York (Special). "Jack the Stock Slasher" Is at work in this county, and E. E. Horn, who owns a farm near Blttersville, discovered that a portion of the tall of his driving horse had been hacked off and that the animal's mane was gone. At the adjoining farm of Bert smith a cow was taken from its stall and an ear was found split the entire length and a portion of the tail cut off. The cow In this condi tion was put to pasture, where It was discovered. York detectives are trying to fer ret out the case and apprehend the flend who Is Inflicting the cruel treat ment on dumb animals. 'LEAKING HOUSE FOR II ABIES Pittsburg Dub Wobmd'i Plan Otj Caring For Stray Infants. . Pittsburg (Special). PlttsburJ club women propose to establish M clearing house for stray babies. project caused a long discussion a union meeting of different club), but friends of the id won finally The Idea Is to establish some cen- tral place where unfortunate womft, ran leave their children for adoptloU At present, friends of the schema charge, mothers are compelled to abandon their Infants, leaving them on doorsteps, and when found the1 little ones are in such physical conX lit bin that they die Opponents of the idea declared that a clearing house would encour age women to desert their little onesy as they would thus be relieved of Inconvenience In keeping them. STOLE FOR WEDDING OUTFIT. Abraham McLaughlin, of Laneastort Arrested For Stealing Hones. Lancaster (Special). His eager uess to get married landed Abraham McLaughlin, aged 23 years, of thlaf city. In the county Jail a self-con fessed horse thief. Instead of the, connubial bliss he anticipated M63 Laughlln, who is a well-known young man. faces a long term of Imprison ment. On Monday night a team belong Ing to H. G. Rush, of West Willow, was stolen. A description of thai stolen property was telephoned all over the county. Tuesday morning a man endeavored to dispose of a team answering the description to George K. Dlller, of Blue Ball, for $100, about one-third of the actual' value. The Intending purchaser, becom ing suspicious, telephoned to police headquarters here and he was told to take the man into custody This he did and the thief gave his name and admitted the theft. He was to have been married in a few days and said he wanted money. SILK LOCKOUT MAY COME. Twenty-Two Mills Now Affected By The Scranton Strike. Scranton ( Special ) . Twenty-two silk mills In this vicinity are now affected by the strike. The last to show its influence is the Providence. Mill, which has shut down, throwing 150 girls out of employment, who. it is said, had no lntenion of striking. mere are now 3701 girls on strike. It Is intimated that a ereneral lockout will be the next step, al though the operators are reluctant to take such a course. Running short-handed Is profitless, and it is probable that the owners will close their mills unless a settlement can be reached. The owners declare that an eight-hour day is Impossible except under the conditions which can be made general throughout the country. Seventy-flve of the one hundred girls employed at the West Pitts ton Mill of Frost and Van Riper went on strike in sympathy with the other striking silk mill workers. They had presented no grievances and made no complaint to the managers. Violating the Unities. Theatrical folk, as a rule, cannot resist the temptation to respond to applause. It Is music to their ears. To "get a hand" gratifies the ambi tion ot the humblest actor and the "star" alike, and they are prompt to render their acknowledgment, regard less of the shock it may give to the Illusion of the play. A well-known actor bad taken the part of the hero In a drama in which it was necessary tor hlzi to be killed off In the next to the last acene In the last act. He had won tremendous applause by dying In a most realistic manner. The curtain went down, but the hand-clapping was insistent, and he appeared before the curtain, bow ing and smiling. "Oo back!" yelled a deeply -interested but horrified little boy in the gallery. "Don't you know you're dead?" Youth's Companion. A Lake ot Quicksilver. A lake ot quicksilver more than three acres in extent and from ten to fifty feet in depth has been dis covered in Vera Cruz, Mexico. It la said to be worth millions of dollars and has been known to the Indians for eome time. It Is high up in the mountains and almost Inaccessible. A plan is on foot to dig a tunnel from the base of the mountains to the bot tom ot the lake and let the quicksil ver leak out that way. Kansas City Journal. There are 27,941,960 people whose lives are Insured in the United King dom, the total value of the policies In force amounting to thu enarscous sum of 10, 005,808,5811. Use of a Volcano. Residents of the district round Ve suvius have p it to practical use the lava which has flowed from the vol cano in past and recent eruptions. Naples and its vicinity appear to be a world of lava. The streets are paved with It. There are lava stair-cases and statues, drinking troughB, bric-a-brac, and even Jewelry. The guides make profit out ot It by pressing coins or other objects on partly cooled fragments and selling these to visitors. On the asby sides of the mountain there Is enough lava to build a large city. In appearance It' resembles u shoreless, frozen sea ot dull black that shimmers strangely .purple in some lights. Loudon Dally Mall. Two Killed By Train. Pittston (Special) George Wright and Michael Ahren, of this city, were run down and killed by trains wlth I In half an hour of each other. ' Wright was on his way home and as I he crossed the Delaware. Lackawan I na ft Western aRallroad tracks be came confused by the passing of two ! trains and was struck and killed by one of them. Ahren was killed In ! almost the same manner at the j Broad Street crossing of the Erie j Railroad. Prospecting For CotkL Hazleton (Special). Four large I tracts of land In Carbon County have j been leased by H. D. Stlmson, a 1 wealthy Philadelphia soap manufac- turer, who Intends to embark In the I coal business. He has organized the j Penn Forest Coal Company, which I will do the prospecting. One of the tracts Is In Banks township and the other three In Penn Forest and are heavily underlaid with coal. First Ride In The Cars. York Opeclal). Mrs. Leslie Sheeler, of Red Lion, who Is 66 years old, made her first trio on a steam ' car coming to York over the Mary 1 land and Pennsylvania Railroad. 1 On account of fear of a wreck Mrj. ; Sheeler could nevor be Induced to board a train. In 1898 her son was killed In a wreck near Port Royal, Pa., while I on his way homo from the World's j Fair, Chicago. In speaking of her first ride on the cars she said she I really enjoyed It. There are 10,000,000 American women doing their own work In their own homes without pay, while 1,500, 000 servants and waiters look after the wants ol the remaining 6,000,000 families lu thla country. Shot Wrong Man. South Bethlehem (Special). After a scrap at the New Jersey Zinc Works between Rudolph Philippl and William Alcorn, Philippl, who got the worse of the fight, went to bis home, socured a shotgun and return ed to the works, discharging a load of buckshot into the legs ot Thomas Alcorn, whom he mistook for W il liam. Philippl then took to the woods and has not yet been apprehended. Alcorn's wounds are serious. York Factory Burned. York (Special). A fire entailing a loss of $125,000, totally destroy ed the plant of the York Felt and Paper Company. Jere S. Black, late Fusion candidate for Lieutenant Governor, is president of the com pany. Five loaded freight cars, standing on a siding, were destroyed by the flames. Three employees of the plant were compelled to jump from windows to escape the flames, but none were hurt. There was a partial Insurance on the plant. Spontaieous combustion caused the Are and ttm flames spread so rapidly that the York Fire De partment was powerless to check them. Locomotive Spark Starts Fire. Lancaster (Special). Sparks from a locomotive on the Quarryvllle Rail road set fire to a shed in the lum ber and coal yards of W. O. Mellinor ft Bro., at West Willow, and owing to Inadequate Are protection, the en tire plant was destroyed. More than 000 tons of coal were set on Are and the blaze will continue for sev eral days. The loss will reach $12,- 000. Escaped From Prison Guard. Allentown (Special). While em ployed with a gang of other prison ers in grading the prison yard here, William Meeker, serving a term of six months for receiving stolen goods, escaped from the guard. Meeker simply put on a black coat which one of his tramp co-workers had lM off, over his atrlped suit, and walked out ot the prison yard. When the guard discovered what ho waa doing ne nrea several shots at. the fleeing man, but none took effect. Dives With His Crutch. Chester (Special). One of the most expert, youthful swimmers in this city is Harry Brown. 15 veara old, a one-legged boy, who learned to swim before he became a cripple. A few years ago he was run over by a train on the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad, his leg being cut off near the knee. Since meeting with the accident Harry has been going about with the aid of a crutch. He frequently makes a dive at a point eight feet above the water, carrying the crutch with him, in or der that he may be able to walk when In shallow depth. He swims with apparently as much ease aa any of his companions and ia re puted to be the best diver of them all. STATE OBITUARY. York. Samuel E. Ilgenfrltz, one of York's oldest and most respected cltlens, died suddenly here from heart disease. The deceased was 70 years of age and leaves a family surviving. Carlisle. Mrs. Ellen Duncan FV Reflly, a former poBtmlBtrcss of Car lisle, and the widow of the late Mat. or William F. Reilly, died here af ter an extended illness. The de ceased's first husband, who died twenty years ago, was Abner Rheem. a prominent Carlisle bualnaaa man Mrs. Reilly had many prominent friends in southern Pennsylvania. ITEMS IN BRIEF. Mine Official Killed. Irwin (Special). John H. Jones. ot Pittsburg, general manager ot the United Coal Company, and Joseph Graham, Are boss, were killed In Edna Mine, No. 1, by a fall of slate. The officials were Inspecting the mine When caught by the sudden cave-In and killed. Michael Boyle, ot Coaldale, while at work In a mine, lost bis balauco anil fell headlong down a chute, a distance of 145 fet, escaping with no more serious Injury fractured rtbe. Miss Mae Wells, of Wllkes-Barre. who left two weeks auo to vialt. friends at Bridgeport, Conn., has sent word to Wllkes-Barre friends that she has been married to Albert Smith, of Bridgeport. The rapid increase of earn In the Bald Eagle Creek is causlna- alarm to Center County fishermen, aa the carp are destroying the bass. Joseph Klsis. aged 15 years, of Port Griffith, on returning home from work In the breaker, started for the Susquehanna River to waah. While croasiug the Lehigh Valley Railroad be was struck by the Black Diamond Express and Instantly 'kill ed. The Pennsylvania Railroad Com pany will epend a million and a half of dollars in the construction of a new yard at Wllllamsport. Tho new yards will be adjacent to the mammonth yards of the Reading and the New York Central. Captain Smith, of Troop C, State Constabulary, stationed at Blading, has aunounced the promotion ot John 8. Van VoorJUs to Arst uemeant. Bnd Mark A. Prynn, from private to sergeant. Mrs. Agnes Healy, of Delta, whil descending a flight of stairs, caught her foot in her dresa and alio plunged iiemnuuft uumi me inn dislocating her hip and otherwise badly injur ing herself. Mrs. Mary Naae. of Aiaus. who is nearly 90 years old. took nan In a than several Icakewalk at a festival near her fcozaa I and won the rake