The total produet of the dairies of the United Btntcs Is estimated nt 1450,000,000 per year. That Is pretty rich skimming. The Now York Joiirnnl thinks acl enlists in rounding up the microbe re rather overdoing the business when thoy disoorn lurking ilnugcr infrosh cgqs. FiisbioD effects suicide n well ns other things "The time was," says the London Lancet, "when laudanum, morphia and opium were the favorite poisons, but now onrboiia ncid has taken their place, and according to the Inst available return (1801), the latter ennsed more than twicu ns many uioidnl deaths a the three former combined, for, whereas tho opiate poisoned 82 poison, carbolic acid poisoned 107." Tho Chicago Timbermuu estimates that the agricultural implamout man ufacturers of this country line a total of 1,448,293,750 feet of lumber annually, of which white pino, prin cipally low-grade stock for packing purposes, furnishes 29 per cent, ash 19 per cent.onk nine per cent., yellow pino 8 per cent, poplar eight per 0;nt., hickory seven per cent., mnplo seven per cunt., elm, very largely rock elm, four per cent., and busswood one per cent. The civilizing effects of clean streets on the teuoraent-houso districts in New York City are distinctly raarkod. Fresher paint on the stores, clean windows.aud other tokens of a change for tho better, nttost the valuo of tho object-lesson of at roots no longer a disgrace to the municipality. Observ ers also noto that tenement-hose en trances are not tracked with street mud. Even the children seom to look more tidy. The moral infltionca of ways fit for the foot to walk upon and for the eye to rest upon is un doubted. "No nobler career is open to young men than American agriculture of fers," maintains the New England Homestead. "The man who is a good farmer, who pays his debts, raises and educates a family, docs bis private duty in town, connty, state and national affairs, and faithfully exe cutes the political social or religious trust reposed in him by his peers that man's life is full of all that is best in this world. Ho may not ac quire millions, bnt he does obtain a modest competence npon which to live in comfort." The irou masters of Amorioa have broken into the markets of the world, boasts the Boston Cultivator. They are now shipping iron to Livorpool, Manchester, Rotterdam, Vienns, Ge noa, Trieste, Yokohama, and Calcutta. Tbey con compoto with tbo largest Scotoh and English irou furnuces everywhere. The largost iron con orn in Tennossoo claims that 30 years f work on their estate has but scratched away one per cent, of its tontents, while the soratohiug prooess has increased the value of the remain der five or six tinios over. No doubt the possession of the finost iron and oal mine in tho world will give the United States a manufacturing su premacy nnequalod by lany other na tion oa earth. A Kansas City firm that makes anned soups of various sorts was ear- . prised to receive from Bhode Island, the other day, an inquiry as to the terms at which it would sell "wish bones" in thousand lots. This re quest, says the Now York Times, has revealed to the company new source of inoome, and one not wholly unim portant. Hitherto the skeletous of the numorous fowls have boon ground into fertilizer, but having discovered that there is a demand for "wish bones," to be nsed for various deoo rntive and sentimental purposes, the ' Kansas City men think thut by prop erly pushing the trude tbey can get more for this one bouethan they have been reoeiviug for all the rest. A movement is on foot in New York to prevent -the ereotion of any more extravagantly high buildings. It is the opinion expressed by those who studied the matter that it the present praotioe is oontiuued, in less than five years the water and draiuuge systems will beoome so overtaxed as to be prac tically useless. Especially will the sewer system beoome inadequate to accommodate the immense volume of sewage, and it is feared in that event that an epidemic of disease will bresk out. It has also, In this same connec tion, been officially reported that there we oror three thonsaud unsafe build logs in the city, some of them among be largest and all of which have to be onstantiy watched to prevent d'aaster. YVONNETTE. Yvonnette was a fair liitla girl o' five summers,' and with her weo tight fitting wbito hood and tiny sabots was as pretty a child ns could have becu found anywhere in Vendee. Jean MhIo, her father, a farmer on the estate of Count de Mordine, had quitted his home for some woeks pre viously with several companions, with his gun slung over his shonlder and a stout club io his haud, to hunt the boar at least, so ho said. But it was in 1793; Genoral Santcrre's grenadiers had invaded Brittany, and Yvonnette's mother had grave reason to fear that he had gone on an infinitely more dangerous hunt. Rumors of lighting bad circulated freely throughout the provinoe, the tosoin clanged from church towers, and in response thereto ths youth of the villages were flocking to thostand ard of Gatheliuonil, whom the Bretons bad chosen for their commauder-in-chief. On the day on which this story opeus Yvonnette's mother was more thoughtful and agitated than usual, so mnch so that her trouble was noticed by the child, who damanded several times: "Where is papa?" Receiving no answer to this and other questions, she at last drew ber little stool up to the window, and sought consolation with ber doll Rose, The latter was a beautiful Breton doll that her futher bad bought at the fair at Auray, a year before, and was Yvonnette's inseparable companion and the recipient of all ber confi dences. Suddenly shouts were heard outside, followed by several shots fired in quick suocossion. The child wss in no way frightened. The dunging of the bells, the sound of firearms and the abonting of an excited crowd were familiar sounds to ber,and were mere ly associated in ber baby mind with the holidays, when the grand lords and ladies from the neigh boring castle deigned to take part in the fetes and dancing upon the village green. But A tine Malo.hor mother, white and rigid as a taper, aud her bands pressed tightly npon ber heart, was gazing ont of the window with wido, frightened eyes. "What is tho matter, mamma?" qneationed the obild. "Huh,daringl"was the only reply of the farmer's wife, who suddenly reeovered herself, closed the shutters, lit the lamp and dropped on ber knees beside the bod. Yvonnotte watched ber wonderingly and ber big blue eyes wandered from the kneeling figure to the high gothio fireplaoe, beaide which the cat was purring and blinking contoutedly. She was about to follow ber inclina tion and go to play with him, when the door was flung open and a countryman, pale and bedraggled, with a gun in ouo band and a flag in the other, burst into the bouse and slammed the door behind him. "Papal Papal" screamed Yvon nette, delightedly. Anne Mulo had sprung to her feet and thrown herself into her husband's arms "Whatever has happened?" she sobbed. "I have beeu nearly wild with anxiety every hour since you have been away." All is lost I" responded the farmer moodily. "Take this flag and bide it carefully. If ever the Blues should find it here it would be all np with us." He kissed the standard reverently and lauded it to ber. At be did so a few drops of blood oozed from under his cap and down bis matted bair. "Jean, you are wounded 1" ex claimed Anne. 1 "No, it is nothing," replied Cbouan, picking np bis gun. "Where are you going?" she the de- manded, resolutely barring the door with her body, , "To fight with the others." "Yon will do nothing of the kind." "Wife, let me pass," ordered Mulo. "My comrade are waiting for me. It if my duty,' "You shall not go," she repeated. Then stooping swiftly aim picked up th- eiild aud held lior out to him. "You haven't even kissod baby,"sho exclaimed, reproachfully. Mulo wavered. "They will think I am a coward." begroauoit, staggering against the bed in tpiteof himself nnd leaning upon it for support. "Jeiiii you are wounded, 1 know it. Come into the n'llitr ami let me take cure of yon," slio ontrented. "The em my might search for you, aud you miidt live for me for Yvonnotte." "No, I must go," ho iusistod, brac ing himself with an effort; but his strength gave out an he said it, and he reeled iuto her arms Hue supported him into tbo obscure cellar and laid him among the bundles of straw. Then shn returned to the dwelling room. Now that he was no longer there she could aot. Hue took tho flag, broke tho staff over ber knee aud threw tho pieces into tho fire. Next slio hid the guu under n pile of fag gots in the corner. Then pouring some viuigir aud water iu n bowl, she told the child to bo good aud not make a noiso and went to atteud to her wounded husband. Yvonnetto continued to piny with ber doll, but hor attention was at tracted to a strip of the flag which tho flames had respected. It was a piece of white silk with flunr de lys em bossed in gold npon it. She drew it ont of the embers with a cry of de light, and sotting ber doll upon ber knee was engaged in pinning the silk npon it in the shape of a dress wbon the door opened aud a big, fierce, white moustached soldier in a blno tunic, white breeches and high gai ters entered. He was n sergeant of grenadiers of the Republic, He glanced around the room and at once noticed that tbo gun rack was empty. "One of thosa wolves who havo boon peppering us from ambush evi dently lives here," be muttered. "There's a gun missing, A thousand thunders) If we cntoli any of the ras cals they will got a short shrift aud no ceremony." He tore aside the curtains of the bed, peered arouud aud sud denly esnght sight of Yvonuetto, who, not in the least oonoorned went on dressing ber doll. The savage expression of bis face softened into a tondcr smile and bo went towards ber. "What a shame to leave her all alone in that bonne at such a time ns this," be muttored. Ho bent, took her in his arms aud kissed ber. "What's your nsuio, little dear?" ho asked, "Yvonnetto," replied tho child. "Why, I'vo got a little Yvonnetto, too, just like yon, ami throe little boys ss well," he said, and the reool leotion of his littlo brood in Paris brought the tears into the soldier's eyes. At that instant he cotiood the silk on tho doll and tho hard, florae ex pression returned to his fuoe again. "Where did you got that?" he ex claimed harshly, dropping the child and seizing the stuff. "There," said Yvonnette, half frightened at his chaugo of manner, pointing to the fire. He rushed to the hearth, drew some of the half burnt pieces of the flag stuff from the flumo, with a piece of scorched silk, and recognized them. "Who do those beloug to?" be went on. ."To papa." "Where is your papa?" "There," said Yvonnotte, pointiug to the door, , "I've got one of them at last," growled the sergeant savagely, seiziug bis gun. "And if I don't fill him with lead enough to siuk biin to the bottom of the sea iuside of two minutes, my name's not Ladoroute." Ho strode to the cellar door and shook it. It was bolted on the inside, and still further enraged he raised bis rifle and was about to spliuter the frail partition with the butt end of the weapoa when he beard a sound that made him turn bis bead. Without realizing the danger ber futher was in, but instinctively fright ened by the gestures of the grenadier Yvonnette bad burst out crying. The sergeant looked at ber and low ered bis gun, and a guilty flush suf fused bis face. - "I kissed ber a moment ago and now I was going to kill ber father," be mattered. "Laderoijte, you're blanked, blanked, blnnkely-blunkod cuss. That's what you are." r He hastily gathered np the incrim inating debris of tho flngnnd piled the embers npon them. As he did so a company of soldiers marched up to tho bouso. Sergeant Ladoroute took Yvonetto on his arm mid stood in the doorway to prevent them from enter ing. "No one here but this little lady," be suid. "Right about fuoe march I" Then bo kissed the child. "For my own littlo Yvonuetto's sake," he mur mured. "Goodbye, sweetheart," and putting her down, closed the door ami hurried after bis comrades. Twinkles. 60,000,000 Slaves In Africa. Huli Cbutelain, a traveler in the Dark Continent, lectured bofore the American Geographical Society in New York on "The Internal Slave Trade iu Africa." "If any one thinks that slave trad ing is a thing of the past," he said, quoted in the Now York Sun, "he is mistaken. Among tho 200,000,000 of people in Africa, at least 50,000,000 are slaves." If a British estimate to which he re ferred wus correct, Mr. Ohatelain said, 000,000 lives were sacrificed every year in the traffic. For every slave that reached the coast, eight or nine were sent to the interior. The idea still prevailing that all of the slave traclor in Africa were Arabs or na tives was a gross error. In a large part of the interior, slaves were tho regular currency. Parents sold thoir children. This internal slave trade of Africa wns the real open sore of the world, ns it was iu Livingston's time. "In Morocco," tho locturor addod, "slave trading is carried on under the protection of our Stars and Stripes. Moroccan Jews, who are prohibited by law from holding slaves, place them solves under the protection of our flag in order to carry on the traffic" Thero wero in some parts of the country, be continued, housos for rais ing slave children, who f mod a ready market He told as au instance of the mortality among the slaves, by whom most of tho porterage is done, of one explorer who Btarted in with 450 men, of whom all that came out wore 100. "Tho first slave caravau that I saw," bo said, "hud twenty women. The leader told mo that fifty of bis lot bad died on tho way to the count. " The lecturer showed a picture of a slave so fastouod that ho could not movo a limb or turn bis face from the broiliug sun that beat on it. He also showed pictures of slaves who had been abandoned to dio along the oaravan roads. According to tho re port of a Gcrmau consul, strangers who know not the rond to ouo city bad only to keep in tho uiiddlo be tweon the two lines of blonohiug bonos of hIuvos wb'o bad been left to die there, and they could not miss their Turn About Was Fair Play. Tho woll from which Irish stories aro drawn is inexhaustible- Here is a good example of Pat's wit and roadi noss. An Irish witness was being ex amined as to bis knowledge of a shoot ing affair.' "Did you see tho shot fired?" the magistrate asked. "No, sorr, I only beard it, ".was the evusivo reply. "That evidonce is not satisfactory," replied the magistrate sternly. "Staud down!" The witnoss turned round to leave the box, and direotly bis back was turned he laughed derisively. The magistrate, iudiguant at thisoontempt of oourt, called bint back, and asked him how he dared to laugh in court. "Did you see me langb, your hon or?" queried the offender. "No, sir; but I hoard you," was the irate reply. "That evideuco is not satisfactory," said Pat quietly, bnt with a twiuklo in bis eye. And this time everybody luugbed except the magistrate. West minster Gazette. An Aged tialdflsh. The goldfish is not as tender an ani mal as is imagined, for in handling and moving them from one pond to another they are dipped np in nets and carried about in baskets, uiuob like oorn or potatoes. Sometimes they are out of the water thirty min utes, and seldom is it that tbey are in jured. How long tbey will live de pends altogether on their treatment Iu the Government aquarium at Wash ington is a goldfish thut is known to be fifty years of age, and it is not per ceptibly larger than when first placed thore. There is said to bo in the Royal aquarium at Rome, Ituly, a fish that is more than a hundred years of ago, but it has grown - slightly in the lust twenty-live years. Its color is tbe same exoept a slight obange with th seasons. Indianapolis Journal, A 0UEER TOWN. England Has One of tho Strang est Municipal Freak? on Earth. Why a General Appearance of Topsy-Turveydom prevails. Assuredly tho most curious town in England, and tho most upside-down-looking plnco, is Northwich. As a stranger walks up one of tbe streets lio wonders whether he is the victim ofadisordered imagination or whether an earthquake has been visiting the locality. Here two bouses are lean iug one ngninst the other, as if for mutual support; threa more are lean ing from each other, as if in sullen anger; higher i:p aro dwellings sunk en in the center or nt the ends; tho pavement on ouo side in certain places is higher thnu the othor, whilo a littlo further ou it is lower. In short, everything has a general appcaranoeof topsy-turveydoin in this town of what are described ns"drunk en bouses." The cause of it all is not fnr to seek. Northwich, as every ono knows, or ought to know.is the center of tbn salt industry, and it is the draw ing of brine and rock salt for the man ufacture of this very necessary com modity that is the moving factor in the mischief. On nearly all sides of tho town are big sslt works, with their engines pumping hundreds of thou sands of gallons of brine every week, whilo the extensive mines of rock salt are being cut iuto in all directions. At a depth or some 200 or 300 feet are immense submarine lakes of briue, and ns tho contents of those are pumped and pumped away tho nppor crust of earth is correspondingly weakened nod the rosult is an occa sional subsideuco. In some of tbe mines where the salt is blasted and cnt away ono can travel a mile in cer tain directions. As the glistening white or deep red rook is cut away great pillars of it, some eight feet square, with n large thickness all along the roof, are left to support tbe earth above. Sometimes, bow ever, the mine is flooded, tbe pillars dissolve in the water aud tbe earth falls in, with all on top of it Luckily this kind of subsidence generally hap pens in upots where bouses are not numerous, and for this ron son no lives hsve been lost within recent years. Ouo morning a few years ago a borsu left in a stable ovornigbt was found to bo missing, und a hole flllod with water occupying tbe plaoe where tbo animal should have been. Near Winobain aud Murstoo, suburbs of Northwich, lakes ncrcs in extent are now seen where green fields usod to be, and there is a spot whore the highway takes tho form of a railway embank in out. Ou either sido are big ponds where tbe earth had subsided and the road goes through liko a bridge. This itsolf is bound to go at some future time, and it is to be hoped at thut time no one will bo in tho immediate iigbborboo('. All these subsidences have a "pull ing" effect ou the nearest buildiugs, which are drawn "all ways," Such a state of things is amusing as woll as interesting. "This desirable property to lot" is tbe sign one may seek cheok by jowl with one at the boginning of a stile road besring tbo legeud : "This road is dangerous." Oue has to be aware of such roads at night time in this neighborhood. A part of tho path may have sunk 100 feet or wore during the preceding hour and an in voluntary drop into the water, which rises as fast as tbe earth fulls, is a rapid way out of this world. In order to make all buildings last a fuirly decent length of time all now erections are built iu frames of wood, this style holding the bricks together a longer length of tituu than if the building was ou tbe ordiuary princi ples. Even uudor those conditions, and taking into consideration the fact thut iu the town itself the subsidences are gradual and givj some warning, living must be rather exciting in cer tain portiousof Northwich.- Philadel phia Telegraph. Metals More Precious Than (iold. We commonly think of gold as the most vuluable of metals, beouuse it is the most precious of metuls that are produced in auflioient quautity to be in common use. There are, however, several rare metals that are uiuob more valuable than gold. Gallium, for ex ample, is quoted in the niurkot at $3,000 an ouuoe avoirdupois, Truoes of it occur iu some siuo-ores, tons of whioh must bs worked over in order to obtuiu a trifling quautity. Gulliuni is a very remarkable substuuoe. At the ordinary summer temperature of eighty-six' degrees Fahr.' it becomes liquid like aneroury. Tho lutter becomes solid at thirty eight degrees below zero. Most costly of all niotnls nave only gallium is germanium, which is quoted nt 81.25 per ounce. Rhodium is worth 8112.50 an ounce; ruthenium, $90 nt ounce; osmium, $20 au ounoe ; nnd palladium, 24 an ouuoe. The last is about equal in value to gold. ' Thcso metals are of no great commercial im portance. Most of thorn aro mere curiosities of the laboratory, having boon discovered originally by acci-' dent incidental to the analysis of oros. It has been suggested that some of them might be coined, but the supply of them is too uncer tain. That was the difficulty with platinum, which the Rus sian Government minted iu the first half of the present century. Iri dium is utilized to some extent for mak ing instruments of delicacy, which must have tbe property of not cor roding. It is obtuinod from 'iridos niin,' a natural alloy of iridium, osmi um, rhodium, platinum and ruthen ium. This extraordinary mixture of raro metals is white. Much of it is found in washing for gold in tbe beach sands of Oregon. It resists tbe notion of all single acids. Its only important use is for tipping gold pens. For this purpose the grains of it, which are flat like gold dust, arepioked out with magnifying glasses. At the mints it makes a good deal of trouble, tbe dif ficulty being found in separating it from gold bullion. American Journal Photography. Where the Duck Found Oold. News comes from Ainslie, Lewis. County, Wash., that Mrs. N. Hender son Inst week found several pieces "pnnkin teed" gold in tbe oraw of a duck she bad purchased of a local butcher, says the San Francisco Call. Tne pieces were larger than a flat seed and looked as though they bad boon in the duck's storage department for some time. Mulo members of the Henderson family began an immediate investiga tion. Tbe found the duck had been secured from a Winlock firm, whioh it tu,rn bad purchased it of settlers living in the Cowlitz Valley, east of Win lock. Near their ranch a range of bills ris'i up from the valley. It was de cided to do some prospecting among these bills and an expedition was organized. Lite last week tbe pros pectors' search wns rewardod by tbo finding of several quartz soams near together nt a point about seven miles from Wiulock. Charles Johnson and one of Mrs. Henderson's sons are re ported to have mads the luoky discov ery. They staked out olaims and thou returned home for provisions and tools with whioh to do development work. Since then snow has covered the hills, bnt if it does not get too doop a shaft will be sunk this winter. The quartz found appears to bo rich iu gold, and nssays are now beiug made. From the way tho seams run it is be -liuvod that they will form into one wide vein a short distance below tbe surface. ' The find has caused considerable ex oitemeut at Winlock. - Sovaral ducks and geese iu the valley have subse quently been killed to prove tbe Hen derson story from Ainslie. In one of these course gold, identioal in char acter with thut first found, wus discovered. Schools for Cash Ulrls. Following the lend uf puiougo, a New York dry goods house is about to start a littlo school iu its own prem ises where tbe cush girls can obtain instruction one or two hours every dny, as also those older ones whoso early schooling has been neglected. In ono of the largo dry goods store, of Chicago a day and night school is muintuiued, with coinpu tout teachers uud all the mod ern accessories of a first-clsss school room, where the employes of the store nre given free cducntiou. In Milwau kee one of the greatest breweries con ducts a school, library and reading room for its employes, who are over 10,000 in uumber. All tbree were established dospite tbe protests of those who suid the sdvautugns would uever be utilized, and ull triumphed from the outset Tbe school oumpurusv favorably with the best publio schools in the city, tbe reading room is well patronized, aud the library is em pluyed to its 'full cupuoity. Chicago. Tribuue. hlze of Atlantic's Waves. From Dr. Scoresby's observations it appears that iu a vary heavy gale on the Atluntio waves may run wbiuU are from thirty-six to forty foot iu height, or from twelve, to eighteen foet above the main level of the sea. Waves of tbe above sorts are from 400 to 000 feet from 'crest to crust
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers