FARMER JOHN
Yea, Bary, there's been quit a change
Ince seventy years ago;
If quite a time to look back to, but
yet It don't seem ao;
M only seems a little while alnet I was
but a child,
And you a girl In pantalettea a-rompln'
round ao wild.
But time flies on with nimble wings, and
(aster ev'ry year,
Till we've "most reached the end of life;
the grave Is drawin' near;
And lookln' hack through nil those years,
comparing them Willi now,
The progress made In everything la won
drous, I'll allow.
my father used a wooden plow In plowln
up hla Innd,
!Aad renpin' grain, In them old days, was
always done by hand;
The women worked out In the fields a-
helpln' mke and bind.
And did as much at hocln' corn aa any
man you'd find.
Our women used to card and apln and
weave the clothes we wore;
Tew pants and shirts were good enough
Imck In those days of yore;
And linsey-woolsey dresses that the wo
men used to wear,
If seen upon a woman now, would make
our ladles stare.
We didn't have no railroads then, with
pnlacc-cnrs so gay,
Where one can go a hundred mtlea and
get back the snme day.
Our grain we hauled to market In our
lumber-wagons then;
Twould take a couple of days or more
to go and back again.
But everything has changed so much
grandfather's wooden plow
Has passed away, and farmers till their
land with steam-plows now,
And women folks a-reapln' In the graln-
llelds now ain't seen.
For all such work Is quicker done with
some all-round machine.
Although still under thirty years of
ge. Walking Moose was one of the
most successful furtakers of Mb tribe.
His hunting-ground, which ran north
and west between Hudson Bay and
the great mountains, was vaster than
many kingdoms. Now, after a pros
perous winter, he and his squaw and
twd sledge-dogs crossed the weaken
ing ice on Smoke River and ascended
the bank toward the three log shan
ties of Alexander's Hope.
Walking Moose stalked In front, car
rying his trade gun, in its blanket
sack, under his right arm. Behind
came the squaw and the dogs, drag
ging the sledge piled high with pelts
of marten and fox, deer and bear.
Pleasurable anticipation glowed In
the hearts of all four of the little
party. The two Indians thought of
the treasures of the post. Tobacco
and tea would again be theirs, and per
lap; the hunter would indulge In a
red shirt and the squaw she was a
good aquaw would be treated to a
blanket and a few yards of gaudy cot
ton cloth. Ammunition must be
bought for the trade gun, for already
the streams were breaking from their
fetters, and the beavers, leaving their
strongholds, presented tempting marks
tor well-directed bullets. The dogs
leoked forward to a few extra feeds
and the summer freedom from the
ledge.
The hunter paused half-way up the
lope, and turned upon his wife with
a cicely calculated grunt The grUnt,
and a gesture of the left hand, con
Teyed the truth to her. She ceased
pulling at the sledge and looked keen
ly toward the shanties.
"McLeod not come yet!" she cried,
tn a shrill voice. "He still way down
at the big fort. He not think at all
f the poor Injuns."
"Walking Moose nodded, smiled wist
fully, and continued the ascent. The
squaw stooped again and dragged on
the leathern thong, but now with a
Ttctousness that disturbed the tolling
togs. Well, the poor woman bad cer
tainly been building on the tea and
mew blanket They halted In the lit
tle clearing that surrounded the cab
Ins, and gazed about disconsolately.
The snow lay unbroken by any human
nark, and the chimneys stood smoke
less above the low roofs. Accustomed
M they were to the silence and lone
Kness of forest and hill, the still
ness of the empty clearing and de
serted buildings daunted them.
"Too early!" exclaimed the hunter.
"No bacey, no tea, no powder and
lead .till McLeod come -up from St.
John's."
McLeod's absence from the little
summer post of Alexander's Hope was
keen blow to the plans of Walking
Moose. The store contained food and
unmunltlon that he needed and tea
nd tobacco that he craved; his sledge
was heaped with the good currency of
the land yet he and his squaw must
sit idle and hungry until the agent
erurned from his winter quarters,
three days Journey to the southward.
The beavers would expose themselves
long hundreds of flooded streams
that he knew, while he must sit in
Idleness before the empty shacks. He
bad intended to rest at the post for
only two days, and then set out for
bis summer camp on a distant river,
bulling beaver as he went.
Bnt perhaps the trader even now
was travelling northward. Hope glow
erf at the thought
The dogs were loosed and given
their scanty feed of dried moose-meat.
fi, fire was lighted before a thicket
at the edge of the clearing, a rough
shelter was built, and the valuable
turs were placed under cover. In
silence the two ate their meal of pern
nlcan, uncheered by teat uncrowned
y the comforting pipe and for weeks
they had looked forward to those
simple luxuries.
Early the next morning Walking
Moose climbed to the summit of a hill
behind the post and gazed southward.
Dark woods and white plains stretched
sway foi miles; but not a sign of the
CI THE TRADING OF WALKING MOOSE. 3
By THEODORE ROBERTS. ft
ON PROGRESS.
Wo used to think tho post-boy's horse
the fastest thing we knew.
And thouL'ht that news was travelln' fast
as 'long the road lie flew;
Now the telegraph will carry newa from
hare to any state,
And bring an unswer back to us by wire
while we wait.
We used to think, tn those old times,
'most everything was known,
And no one drenmeU 'twas possible to
make a telephone
Where we can stand and talk with friends
a hundred miles away,
And though the dlstnriee seems so great,
hear every word they ny.
Then, Snry, there's the phonograph, that
wonderful machine
That takes the cake on everything that
I have ever seen;
It bottles up for future use the speeches
that It hears,.
And pours them out when wanted, though
uicy limy ue ncyi mi
Now ocean cables bind together each
And news from Europe reaches us be-
lore wiu iimiw 11. d Bciii.
They send us news of happenln s on some
far foreign shore.
And we read It In our papers here the
evenin ueiuio.
Electric lights change night to day make
midnight seem like noon
And 'twouldn't be surprisln' if It hap
pened putty soon
They'd get to bottlln' daylight to save
up lor me nigni.
If things go on progressln' for the com-
In flrty years
As they have done in fifty past, I II cer
tnlnlv hnvA feArs
Some plan will be contrived to change
Nature's old-fashioned laws,
And stop this old earth's whirlin' with
a migiuy suuaen psuso.
H. H. Johnson.
tardy agent was to be seen. Return
ing to the clearing, he discovered his
wife at one of the windows of the
store, her face pressed against the
parchment that served for glass. He
pushed her aside roughly; then, un
able to withstand the temptation, he
took her place and peered Into the
dusky treasure-house.
There hung shirts of red flannel
and blue; gaudy blanketings; woolen
stockings of many hues, with dang
ling tassels; and here and there he
caught the gleams from canisters of
tobacco and tea. At one end of the
dusty counter stood little kegs of
gun-powder and leaden bullets. And
as he searched for other treasures
with longing eyes, he caught the shad
ows of the squaw'B face against the
window in the opposite wall of the
store. At that he turned away and
called to her angrily. But pity for
the woman who had worked so well
and cheerfully through all that long
winter ached in his breast.
McLeod did not arrive at the post
that day. Neither did he appear on
the next. Walking Moose haunted
the store, sometimes fingering his
empty tobacco-pipe, sometimes contem
plating his empty musket. The Bquaw
worked listlessly at the dressing of
a moose hide, sitting for hours before
their rough shelter without saying
a word or lifting her eyes. A thou
sand swollen streams broke their
fetters of Ice, and the beavers swam
up from their winter retreats.
"Me go get McLeod," said Walking
Moose, on the morning of the third
day after their arrival at Alexander's
Hope, "and you stay with he skins
and the dogs."
The woman looked up at him pite
ously. She was a good squaw and
young and her eyes were large and
bright.
"Yes, me go," repeated the hunter,
firmly. ' "Three days to St. John's, and
three days back and you take care
of the skins." He glanced about him
uneasily, high and low, to right and
left anywhere but at the woman.
"Me travel fast all alone," ho add
ed. -
A few minutes later he set out on
the three days' Journey to the south
ward, with snow-shoes on his feet, a
pouchful of dried meat at his side,
and his useless firearm on his shoul
der. The dogs ran after him, but were
called back by the squaw.
Walking Moose travelled stolidly for
ten miles.
McLeod and the big fort seemed
to be a whole world's length away;
but behind him, at the end of the
tral lot his snow-shoes, were a woman
and two dogs. He continued, the south
ward Journey.
The sun was In the west, a
handbreath above the far hills,
when the heart of Walking
Moose rebelled against the desola
tion and unreason of the lonely Jour
ney. Turning square in his tracks,
the hunter began to reclaim the miles
he had so wearily unraveled. The
north cal!s3 to him with the voice of
the lonely woman and the enchant
ment of the little store at Alexander's
Hope. The memory of the red shirts,
the powder, the tea and the tasseled
stockings drew him and mocked him
In the same turn of thought Ont
voice spoke within him, "The door
is weak. Tou will take what you need
and pay fairly with the good skins.
It is your duty to supply you7selt with
powder and ball for your gun, that
you may kill the beaver and musquash
and wild geese. And you and the
woman deserve tea and tobacco and
you have the good furs with which
to pay."
But another voice whispered that
such a thing could not be done; that
only an agent of the great company
might unasten that door and measure
out those needful and desirable stores;
that the name of Walking Moose
would become a name of scorn In
the world if he did hla trading with
out waiting for McLeod. But the
first voice was the stronger; ane
Waging Moose sped along through
the fading twilight, stilling the lesser
voice at every stride.
The sky was clear .and In the star
shine the trail of the snow-shoes was
plain under the buntsr's feet He ran
in the level and open places; and no
where did ho halt to draw breath
until half of tho return Journey was
accomplished. Then he ate sparingly
and rested for an hour.
Dawn was cray In the east when
the huskies uiinounced their master's
return with furious barking.
The squaw ran from the lodge.
"No wait for McLeod," said the
hunter. "Come now, and see me make
honest trade. Bring the skins."
By the pale and unearthly light
they broke the wooden hinges of
the door and entered the treasure
house. "Walking Moose make this trade all
alone. You no touch," said the brave.
First of all he opened a canister of
tobacco and weighed out five pounds
of the gold-brown luxury, and placed
five marten skins In payment on top
of the canister. Of flour he measured
out four skins' worth; of powder and
lead, ten skins' worth; of tea, five and
of dry-goods, seven. In each case he
placed the furs on the shelf or pack
age from which he had taken the
goods. Then he stacked the remain
der of his winter's catch on the floor
and placed his signature on top of
the pile a spruce cone, a strip of
birch bark and a porcupine quill
that McLeod might know to whose
credit to place the furs.
They mended the door with care;
then pipes were lighted and tea
brewed, and the bitterness of the long
trails was forgotten.
The first enow had fallen In a night
and melted in a day. It was in that
elusive season called Vidian summer
that Walking Mpose came again to
Alexander's Hope, this time to buy
an outfit for the winter campaign. The
squaw and the huskies, and even the
brave himself, carried packs of pern
mlcan, beaver-skins and Bmoked fish
on their backs. The sledge and snow
shoes had been cached in the woods
near Alexander's Hope. Walking
Moose found a stranger a young man
with spectacles on his nose smoking
a pipe In front of the store.
"Where McLeod?" he Inquired.
"Mr. MeLeod was promoted to the
Bear River post last April," replied the
stranger. "I am in charge here now.
Post has been closed ha'f the summer.
You've come Just In time, if you want
to trade, because I'm going to shut
"My men are coming up from St.
up shop In a few days."
The hunter nodded.
John's before freezing, with the boats,"
continued the agent, "and we'll take
all the trade back to the big fort. It
ain't safe here. Some one got into
the store last winter and helped him
self." Walking Moose straightened him
self with dignity. "Me, Walkln'
Moose, done that," be said. "Made
good trade; paid honest; left big heap
of skins for credit, and mended door."
"It was you, was It?" sneered the
agent. "You're the honest Injun, are
you?"
Walking Moose nodded gravely.
"Do you expect me to believe that
you didn't take tobacco and rum and
stuff to the full value of all the furs
you left?" said the other. "I know
more about Injuns than you think,
Mr. Moose."
"Me honest trapper," replied the
brave. "McLeod he trust me. He full
growed man, McLeod.
The other laughed unpleasantly.
"Well, do you want to trade your
beaver?" he asked.
Walking Moose shook his head.
"Me take beaver way east, to Bear
River now," he said. "But take trade
for skins on my credit all right."
"No you don't, my son," said the
agent "You Can't fool Benjamin
Brown with your tricks." ,
"No give me baccy an' powder for
my credit, for my good skins in the
store?" asked the hunter, sharply.
. "That's what I mean exactly. This
post doesn't pay twice over for skins
when I'm In charge of it," answered
the white man.
Walking Moose looked round him on
every side. His squaw and the hus
kies and the robber in front of him
were the only living creatures In sight
His hand shot out and clutched the
front of the agent's shirt. A quick
Jerk brought the offender to his knees.
In a minute he was bound with thongs
at ankles and wrists.
Walking Moose, his countenance un
ruffled, lifted the agent of the great
company Into the store and propped
him against a stack of flour-bags.
Then he motioned to the squaw to
enter.
"Now," said he, "you two tee good
trade."
He found his bundle of skins heap
ed In a corner with others, drew It
forth and unfastened it For half
an hour he measured and weighed
provisions and counted skins. Now
and then he inquired the rate of trade
of the agent When the last skin was
spent, he helped the woman make the
purchases into packs. Then he turn
ed to the agent
"Me leave little fire outside. You
hop out pretty soon, and burn your
bands free. Easy 'nough to do. Walk
ing Moose had to do it once himself.
Then you better wait for your, men
an' don't try follow Walking Moose."
The squaw exclaimed then in ad
miration. Her husband frowned
slightly.
- "Me no bad Injun," he said. "No
rough Injun 'cept with fool. Now we
go to Bear River and trade the beaver
with McLeod." Youth's Companion.
A Prehistoric Reptile.
I'HB DIPLODOCUS SKELETON IN THE CARNEGIE MUSEUM AT
PITTSBURG MR. CARNEGIE RECENTLY PRESENTED A REP
LICA TO THE GERMAN GOVERNMENT.
Ile Cutter.
A California man thinks that the
common method of dissecting pies by
the aid of the ordinary knife Is too
Blow and also too Inaccurate for these
days of hustle and bustle. He came
to the conclusion that a specially de
signed pie cutter was necessary for
the purpose, and consequently con
cluded to devise one, the result of
his work being shown in the illus
tration. This pie cutter comprises a
base adapted to support a pie of the
common size and shape.. Hinged
to the back of the box Is the cutter
proper, consisting of a lever and the
knife blades. The latter are sus
pended from the lover directly over
the place designated for the pie, and
are arranged to divide the pie Into
six or more pieces at one operation
of the lever. - Families containing
many children would find this novel
pie cutter invaluable. As the pie
would be divided into pieces of ex
actly equal size, there would be no
possibility of showing partiality, and
petty quarrels over who was to get
the biggest piece would be elimin
ated. Too Hasty.
Governor Harris, of Ohio, said in
an after dinner speech In Columbus:
"This matter is a serious matter,
and it must be tal.en seriously. Haste
is a bad thlig. It surely always
causes error.
Mused to know a manufacturer.
He was a good, honeBt man, but rath
er strict, rather close. Furthermore,
he was Inclined to be a little hasty.
"He had Instituted In bis mill a
system of fines fines for lateness,
fines for mistakes, fines for spoiled
work, and so on.
"Well, In the rush season, happen
ing to awake one morning very early,
he wen: to the mill a little after
starting time. As he got out of his
automobile he saw a pale,' haggard,
hollow-eyed man walk wearily
through the gate.
" 'Aha, Joe Harris,' he shouted an
grily, 'ten minutes late, eh? Well,
you're fined fifteen cents. Not a word
now. That's the rule.'
" 'Take you're time, boss,' Harris
answered. 'I ain't knocked off from
yesterday, yet' " Washington Star.
A Judge's Sharp Tongue.
Many aint sayings of Lord
Young, a famous Scotch lawyer who
has Just died, are being recalled by
the English press. Once a ilttle ad
vocate who was slightly misshapen
heckled the great lawyer beyond
what his patience would stand, anl
finally pinned him oh the exact mean
lig of a mark of Interrogation. "I
would called it," said Lord Young,
fixing his eyeslasa In his eye, a little
crooked thing thai, asks questions."
It ris not long ago that, looking
HOW MODERN PROGRESS BREAKS
f
: 4.' A- 1122
A RAILKOAO ENTERING PE
across the table at a public dinner
at the over-rubicund cheeks and fishy
eyes of his opposite neighbor, he In
quired who tho owner of the vinous
countenance mlgUt be and was told
he was the president of a water
trust. "Aye," said Lord Young, "well,
be looks like a man that could be
trusted with any amount of water!"
Some one told Lord Young that the
House of Lords had on appeal af
firmed a decision of his. "It may
be right, after all," was his lordship's
reply. Bellman.
The Happy Reign.
Happy, it has been said, is the peo
ple that has no history. Yet mori
happy the kings who are In the same
case. Recently Oscar II. of Sweden
visited a Stockholm school. He ques
tioned a pupIL the best of the class,
they bad told the King.
"My little friend," said Oscar, "tell
me some remarkable' fact of my
reign."
The child reflected, hesitated, was
greatly puzzled, tben broke Into sobs.
"Why do you cry?" said the King
gently.
"It 1s It Is, tiro, be-cause I do not
know any remarkable fact of yur
reign."
"No more do I," responded the de
scendant o' Bernadotte. Le Crl de
Paris.
Collector of Baby Pictures.
The Prince of Wales' pet diver
sions, next to shooting, are smoking
and stamp collecting. Another queer
hobby is collecting babies' photo
graphs. The more comical the face of the
baby the better its portrait pleases
His Royal Highness. He even col
lects pictures of babies published as
advertisements by proprietors of in
fants' foods. His collection of post
age stamps is worth at least 20,000.
So keen a philatelist is he that on
several occasions collectors have had
to thank him for throwing light on
uncertain scientific points concerning
the study of stamps. Tit-Bits. .
To Make Pencil Sharpener.
How can 1 make a simple pencil
point sharpener? B. K.
Take a paper dip, A, and a piece
of emery cloth, B. Fold the edges
over as shown. The pencil point Is
Pencil Sharpener In Use.
placed In the cravice and moved up
and down, resulting in a point as fino
as may be desired. If tje pencil .s
revolved between the fingers, while
sharpening a round point will be the
result. Technical World Magazine.
Italian Submarines.
It is reported that, In consequence
of the success which attended the re
cent trials of the Italian submarine
Glauco in the open sea off Taranto,
at a depth of twenty-two fathoms,
the Italian naval authorities are dis
posed to establish there a station for
submarines. Owing to the shallow
ness of the local waters, Venice is
far from being a satisfactory base for
carrying out trials with submarine
boats. Engineer.
It has been calculated that the
cost of a muddy day In London is
something like $25,000.
DOWN THE CHINESE WALL.
1
1: iLT KB ra sob rJa
VfVs. if-
KIN NEAR THE SOUTH GATE.
W. Burnham.
PEARLS OF THOUGHT.
Time may be money, but It isn't ao
scarce.
Pome fellows never pay up tilt you
run them down. , '
It's generally the nerve of other peo
ple that gets on ours.
Even a family tree may occasional
ly need a little pruning.
Some peoplo are satisfied to be un
der studies all their lives.
Few men thank heaven that they
have more than they deserve.
Clothes don't make a man any more
than a complexion makes a woman.
There are few thipgs more certain
than expenses we hadn't counted on.
Many a man who Is up with the
lark has really 'kept the lark up all
night.
Even after a woman becomes a
Mrs. she may discover that things go
amiss.
A girl can generally manage to
keep the tears back if crying makes
her nose red.
You can't always tell If a man is
well bred from the amount of dough
In his possession.
It Isn't until a man asks a favor
that he discovers some of his friends
are merely acquaintances.
Perhaps It Is possible for a woman
to keep a secret, but most of them
are terribly out of practice.
It would do the chronic bore a lot
of good to take a few days oft and
get acquainted with himself.
Some fellows are in such a hurry
to do things that they hate to lose
time finding out how to do tbem.
The man who takes a cork out of
a bottle by pushing it in Is apt to do
everything else on the same princi
ple. From the Gentle Cynic in the
New York Times.
LONGEST CIRCUIT.
How Telegraph Line from London to
Teheran Is Worked.
Probably the longest telegraph cir
cuit In the world, says St Martln's-le-Grand,
has been in operation for over
a year on the lines of the Indo-Euro-peon
Telegraph company, between
London and Teheran, Persia's capital.
This circuit is 4000 miles In length,
and In Its course it traverses the
North Sea for 200 miles and passes
through Belgium, Germany, Russia,
Turkey In Asia and Persia. The
Wheatstone automatic system of
transmission and reception Is em
ployed on the circuit. By this sys
tem messages are transmitted at the
rate of from 80 to 400 words a minute,
according to the nature of the circuit,
as against 25 to 35 words by manual
More transmission.
On the London-Teheran circuit
there are ten automatic repeating sta
tions namely, at Lowestoft, Emden,
Berlin, Warsaw, Rouno, Odessa,
Kertch, Sukhum Kaleh, Tlflls and
Tauris. The business for and from
Manchester and Liverpool is also ban
died direct with Teheran.
It will be understood that automatic
repeaters virtually take the place of
operators at the repeating stations. In
the case of the circuit under consider
ation there are repeating instruments
and batteries at each of the ten re
peating stations. As the line is di
vided into 11 parts, each part is com
paratively short.
Speculation.
Morris Sellers Largey, the young
Montana millionaire, who is devoting
himself to the theatrical business, said
at a dinner apropos of his new theatre
in New York:
"I think that theatricals offer a fine
field for shrewd investors. They are
very steady. They are not as the
slave trade was during the Civil War.
"Perhaps you have heard of the
slave who wanted to buy his freedom.
This was before the war, and, since
he was a very good slave, his master
would not sell him to himself at any
price.
"But as the war approached Its end
the master not unnaturally changed
his mind. He sent for the slave one
morning and asked him If he was still
of the same mind about purchasing
himself.
"The slave scratched his head, look
ed at the ground and faltered:
" 'Well, Marse Henry, Ah did wanter
buy maself, but Ah been a-studyln'
about it right smaht lately, sab, an' Ah
done come to de 'elusion dat in these
times ntggah prop'ty am too onsartln,
Bah, to put any money In.' " Washing
ton Star.
Parliamentary Language.
Representative Champ Clark of
Missouri tells a story about former
Representative Henry U. John-on of
Indiana.
"Mr. Johnson." he said, "was en
gaged In a debate with an Illinois
Congressman and called him an ass.
This was unparliamentary, of course,
and had to be withdrawn. Pursuant
to the order of the speaker, Mr. John
son said:
"'I withdraw the language I used,
Mr. Speaker, but I Insist that the gen
tleman from Illinois Is out of order.'
" 'How am I out of order" demanded
the Illinois man, with considerable
heat.
" 'Probably a veterinary surgeon can
tell you,' retorted Johnson. This was
parliamentary and went to the Rec
ord." Indianapolis News.
St Thomas Episcopal church in
New York Is about equally divided
whether to expend 11,000,000 on a
new church or split the amount and
give one-half of it to mission work,
using the other half for a church.