'the HOMESTEADER. .Wind-swept nd fire-swept and swept with bitter rain Thin was the world I cam to when I cams acroM tha sea-Sun-drenched ami panting, a pregnant, waiting plain Calling out to humankind, culling out to wel Leafy lanes and gentle skies and little fields all green This was the world I came from whpn 1 fared across the sea The mansion and the village and the farmhouse in between, Never any room for more, never room for me! I've fought the wind and braved it. I cringe to it no more! I've fought the creeping tire hack ami rleircd to see it die. I've bIi ut the hitter rum outside anil safe within my door Laughed to think I feared a thing not as strong as II I mind the long white road that ran between the hedgerows neat, In that little, strange old world I left behind me long ago, I mind the air so full of bells at evening, fur and sweet All and all for some 0110 elsL I had leave to go! And this is what I enme to when I came across the sna. Miles and miles of unused sky and miles of unturned loam, And miles of room for some one else nnd miles of room for me The cry of exilo changing to the sweeter cry of "Home!" Isabel Kcclestime M ickay, in Youth's Companion, ))" M tlMltH(4tll,4satas(t iiiiiit rfiTn vvrmi no it nn im cmi:dpi:mpv WW BIS klllkllUkllU I - tttnnm Estelle's mother sat at the break fast table reading a letter, a look Pt consternation growing on her face ta she followed Its contents. Estelle's father bad gone down town to his Office before the po9tuian had brought tbe mall, and Estelle and her mother were finishing their breakfast alone. Baby a little tot of four was still asleep In his room. "Mercy me, daughter, what do you think? Uncle Ned and his young on whom we have never had the pleasure ot seeing are passing through our town to-morrow and will stop off to pay us a few hours' visit between trains. And what a predicament I am In Bridget called borne on account of a sick sister and my laundress late with her work. There Isn't a clean napkin a clean good one, I mean in the house, and the best damask table cloth is soiled from the luncheon we had last week. Now Isn't it just the worst luck, dear? I could almost cry, it crying would help me out in this matter. Uncle Ned's wife Is tha finest house keeper ever knew; nothing ever seems to go wrong with ber house hold." Estelle sat thinking a minute. Then she said: "To-morrow is Sat - nrday. That's good luck, anyway, mamma, for I shall be at home to help you." "No, dear; you'll have your music lesBon to take In the morning and ysur Sunday-school lesson to prepare In the afternoon, and you know you Invited Sadie Martin over to spend part of the evening with you. So IH1 just have to do the best I can and make my apologies to Uncle Ned atd young Cousin Frank. But though we are to be found In this predicament, I cannot feel sorry that uncle and Frank are coming, for I always loved uncle as though he were my brother. You know he Is only a few years older than I am, and Frank Is Just three years older than you. So the visit though hort will be such a pleasant one." Estelle had risen from the table and was quickly clearing the things away. "Now, mamma, it's getting close upon school time, and I must help you with the breakfast work be- J fore I go. So let's not fret ourselves about to-morrow till it dawns. You know what papa always says, 'Never cross the bridge till you come to it.' 6o I have partly made up my mind what to do for to-morrow; but I hall give you my suggestion this evening after school." "Estelle, you're going to be a practical, capable woman; I know It." And the mother stopped stacking up dishes long enough to kiss the cheek of ber pretty daughter, who was bustling about as busy as a bee. "Well, mamma, I hope I shall al ways know how to act in an emerg ency," Estelle replied, putting on a big kitchen apron and beginning to wash the dishes. "And it's the emergency that puts me all out and gets me fiustrated," aid the mother. "I never was good at planning ways and means." "Well, we'll have our ways and means this time," laughed Estelle. Half an hour later Estelle was off to school, her bright face serious as she hurried along. "Let me see I'll just drop by the gTocer's and the butcher's this evening and give or ders for to-morrow. We'll have rOast fowl and cauliflower, dressed with cream, and but there's the school bell! No more about victuals, Miss Estelle Brown, unless you wish to miss your grammar lesson. Gram mar doesn't mix well with cauli flower. So let things to eat wait their turn." That afternoon after school Es telle hurried round to the grocer's and the butcher's, giving orders lor the following morning. "You'd best deliver the chicken this evening, so that I may have it all picked and prepared for roasting to-morrow morning," she said to the obliging butcher. When Estelle reached home she found a new complication. Her little brother, called Baby, had crushed his linger between some tones In the yard and required much of his mother's attention. And there, sitting In the rocking chair, the cry ing baby on her lap, was poor mother, ber face full of distress. "Oh, daughter," she moaned; "poor baby's linger la badly bruiaed, and I Just can't put him down to attend ta preparation (or to-morrow. I oeo I t" nMii r llc uuulu y I guess you'll have to phone to the grocery and the bu " "I've been at the grocery and left our order for to-morrow," said Es telle, stooplug to kiss the now hushed brother. "Why, you thoughtful girl!" ex claimed Mrs. Brown. "But chicken? Why, how did you ever think to get one? I hadn't made up my mind yet Just what we'd have for dinner to-morrow. Once I thought we'd Just have a cutlet or a steak." "And I have decided on the menu, If you please, mamma. For the first course we'll have grape fruit. It's so much nicer this warm weather than soup. We'll omit fish nnd have the chicken, apple dressing, cauli flower, browned sweet potatoes, pickles, thin slices of bread for sec ond course. Then " we'll have a mixed vegetable and fruit salad, fol lowed by Ice cream and cake. Then cheese, crackers, coffee." "Well, daughter, that sounds tempting enough to suit any one," declared Mrs. Brown. "But it will require lots ot work, and I'll be all A A'-aA lvtJ,l4 SUCCESS. 111 v itiltlAtil Wt ! tfvlU 4Abvtl l ! tl( 4tW v vt,t AA tMt IW vMvlvt I;MAI and tuis was her answer : "He his achieved success who has lived well, laughed often, and loved much; who has gained the respect ol intelligent men and the love ol little children; who has filled his niche, has accomplished his task; who has left the world better than he found it, whether by an improved poppy, a perfect poem, or rescued soul; who hi? never lic'sed appreciation of eirth's beauty o? failed to express it; who has always looked for the best in others and given tho best he had; whose life was an inspiration; whose money a benediction. e74 y ... .. .i m tj a tired out and not feel like enjoying uncle and Frank. It's suc'a a task to prepare a dinner for company, dear." "Not when you have a cook and a cooks assistant, said Estelle. "What time does Uncle Ned ar rive?" "At precisely 2 o'clock, and leaves at 7." "Then we'll dine at exactly 6," said Estelle. "An early hour, but it can't be remedied." "What a little helper- you are, dearie," said the poor mother, feel ing that a load had been lifted from her shoulders by this dear fourteen-year-old daughter. "But you said we have a cook and s cook's assist ant, dear. Pray, who are they?" "I'm the cook, mamma, and you're the assistant," smiled Estelle. "To morrow is to be my day in the kitchen, and I shall be all rested be fore the company arrives, too. The dinner will be ready for the cooking before they come, and all I'll have to do is to put it in and on the stove and let the heat do the rest." "I've spent the day laundering some napkins, our ,best table cloth and going all over the china and silver," explained the mother,' catch ing some of Estelle's enthusiasm. The next day Mrs. Brown found just how capable Estelle was in an emergency. The guests arrived on time and found Mrs. Brown in a dainty frock waiting to receive them in the parity. Estelle had decided she would not appear on the scene, as she put it, . till the dinner was served. Then she'd meet Uncle Ned and Frank at table. After everything was la readiness, even the Ice cream packed in ice in the cellar, Estelle rait out on the back porch to cool her face a bit before calling the guests to dinner. The flower beds in the rear yard were still In bloom, untouched by frost as yet, snd Estelle decided to gather another handful of posies for tha table, though (he had atread placed a great bowl of them there. Just as she was stooping to gather some ot the finest flowers Bhe heard a step behind her, and, looking around, behold a tall, handsome young chap of about seventeen years of age. A smile flitted over Estelle's face as she rose and bowed low to the stranger. "Ah, do you wish a noRPgay, Blr?" she said, prettily, knowing that the youth was her sec ond cousin, Frank, who was doubt less stretching his legs by walking about the grounds after his tiresome and long train ride. "With pleasure," smiled Frank, reaching for-the blossoms. "And whom have I the pleasure ot thank ing for theso?" he asked, "Oh, Mrs. Brown's cook," said Estelle, dropping her face to hide the look of mischief lurking there. "Ah-h-h!" And Frank fairly gasped. "Why, are you you a a " "Yes, a cook, and you shall sam ple my dinner In five minutes," de clared Estelle, "and I beg your par don, sir, for being so bold as to speak to you; but I think you are one of the newly arrived guests, aren't you?" And then she tripped away, going Into the kitchen and closing the door behind her, leaving Frank looking after her In amazement. "Whew! If she's a cook! Well, I'll ent my hat! She's as pretty as a blossom and such manners and lan guage and voice! Why, I'd swear she was a born lady." Then he returned to the house and all went into the dining room, where Estelle, shorn of the' big kitchen apron and her face blushing and smiling, received them and was In troduced to Undo Ned and Frank. "Cook And Frank took both Estelle's Trends in greeting. "Well, I knew there was a mistake some where." 'No, just a good Joke," laughed Estelle. And then as they all en joyed the delightful dinner Mrs. Brown explained their dilemma re garding their cook, saying: "And It Is EBtelle's own, dinner, planned and prepared by" herBelf that you now have before you." "Ah, wonderful," cried Uncle Ned. "And now I understand why Estelle dmmfo wmit, WAtMMvV BOSTON FIRM RECENTLY OFFERED t prize lor the best delinittoa ol what constituted success. A Kan- ' sas woman was awarded the prize, iM.U OaI a. .. m vi u m si m v V "tesf did not come to greet us on our ar rival." ' "Jf you'd caught her as I did back In the garden," said Frank, knowingly, "you'd have seen her in her kitchen regalia. And It's aw fully becoming, too." "Youd best pay attention to your grape fruit, Bir," said Estelle with mock gravity. "And as for kitchen regalia well, how do you like flirt ing with the cook?" Then the laugh was at Frank's ex pense, his father saying dryly: "I'll have to keep a watchful eye on you, Frank, if you're given to visiting the little cook's flower gar den. Next thing we'll have you ask ing her to take a stroll with you through the park, eh?" And so Estelle saved the day, and the dinner and the visit were a de cided success, and Frank at parting said, bending over her pretty hand: "Cousin, what would you think if I should tell you that I should love to correspond with a cook-lady?" "In order to get all her secret recipes for dainty dishes, I presume," retorted Estelle. And again Frank was the subject ot laughter. Wash ington Star. , A Strong Endorsement. "Madam," said the teller of a bank in Baltimore to a woman who had handed him a check to cash "madam, you have forgotten to en dorse." A worried smile came to the wom an's face; but she took the paper and wrote something on the back thereof. When again the teller looked at the check he found that the woman had endorsed as follows: "The Bank has always paid me whatever it owed, and you need have no worry. Therefore, I endorse this check. Very truly yours, Anna M. Blank." Harper's Weekly. The United States has the greatest variety of postage stamps. Indications point to a general re sumption in tho Klondyke and Con- nullHvlllo coking flflds. Fred C. Kelghley, superintendent of the Oli ver & Hnyiler Steel Cmnpnny's three plants at Oliver, lias Riven orders 'to put every oven in full operation on Doeomlior 1. W. II. 13. Royee, mipcrliitoiidctit of the Republic Iron unci Steel Compa ny's plunt nt Republic, received or ders to put Ihe entire plant in full operation Mondny. O. W. Kennedy, general manager of the Orient Coke nnd Coal Company, said next Monday will seo tho 480 ovens of that plant burning In full. The fact that the independents are preparing for a resumption In full is regarded as evidence that the II. C. Frlck Coke Company will soon send out notice of a general resumption. The price of coke la advancing nnd there are Increasing Inquiries for tho product. The laet statement or Onorge B. Irwin, secretary of tho Independent Coke Producers' Association, show ed 63 per cent of the Independent ovens In blast and 40 per cent of the corporation ovens burning. It show ed a gain of 3 per cent over that of last week. The shipments have shown a noticeable Increase. Few of the foreigners who loft the coke region a year ago have return ed. Coal miners nre hard to get aud for this reason' many ovens must re main Idle until the former workmen come back. The Republic Iron and Steel Com pany has sent out a request for min ers. The Orient Coal and Coke Com pany is similarly situated. Tho coal nnd coke trndo In the Ir win field has shown mnrked Improve ment since tho flection. It is esti mated that fully 100,0(10 tons of slack hns been piled up during the past six months on nctottnt of mills with pat ent Btokers having been Idle. This slack is now going out. The Jamison Coal & Coke Company reports all its Idle ovens hnve been fired, except 150, which cannot be operated on account of shortage of water. The Keystone Coal & Coke Com pany reports orders that Insure full operations within a few dnys. The Penn das Cool Company hns been running full the Inst week, while the Westmoreland Coal Company re ports tho receipt of large orders In the last few dnys. The government experimental sta tion for the testing of explosives tised In mining, tho plant being located In Arsenal Park. Pittsburg, will be for mally opened December 4, while tho convention of the American Mining congress is In session here. The opening of tho station will bo attend ed by several hundred of the lending scientists and elglneers of the coun try. . ' Members of the nntlonal advlsorv board on fuels and structural mater ials appointed somo time nco bv Pres ident Roosevelt to aid In the conser vation of the nntlonal resources of the country, will be the quests of hon or. The board Includes such men as Dr. C. B. Dudley of Altoona. rhlor testing engineer of tho Pennsylvania railroad; Prof. W. F. M. Goss, donn of the department of engineering, University of Illinois; Georce Webs ter, chief engineer of the Philadelphia water works system, and James Knox Taylor, tho supervising nrehl ect of the treasury. The experimental stntton hns al ready been of much service In show ing how dangers of mining mav be eliminated. Discussing this Satur day, J. F. Cnllbrenth, Jr.. secretary of the mining congress, said: The fact tho,? n number of the well-known nnd widely-used so-called 'safety explosives' have lcnlted the Are damp In the explosives' chamber nt the plant, when all these, If they lived tip to their names, should not have touched off the deadly eases, haa brought vividly to the mind of the tin. derground toller the constant dangers of his work. "The fact also, tha,t In practically every instance, in the tests, the coal dust has been exploded, has left a deep impre.-sion upon the minds of both the miner and the operator. One of .the strange things about mining Is mat tne practical men, the miners and the owners, are the last to believe that coal dust is as dangerous an ex plosive as fire damp. This has led to much carelessness in waterine of mines. " . "Now that the government plant al- ready has shown several hundred miners and owners that ccal dust is a dangerous explosive, I. expect to see much more care given to the sprink ling of the mines. This will be of great aid In lowering our disgraceful death rate In the mines, which Is now four times as great for every 1,000 men employed as any country of Eu rope. I learn from unofficial sources that the number of deaths this year in the coal mines will be about 1.000 less than the year before. This is partly due to the agitation at the time of Ihe big explosions last De cember, but more particularly to the moral effect cf the federal govern ment taking up this question." John Mitchell and President Thorn- is L. Lewis, of the United Mine Work ers, and several prominent coal oper ators of the State, will meet with Congressman John C. McHenry. In Shamokin. Pa., November 25. to con sult on the framing of a bill to pro vide for a State tax to be used for the aid of Injured miners and families of men killed in the mines. Congressman McHenry wants to have the bill presented to the Penn sylvania State Assembly. He intro duced a like bill in the last Congress, but It was killed. The biggest labor leader now Is Tran" Koefe of the Shorelmen's Union. . Tho Iron City Trades Council hnd $974.31 to their credit as the result of last Labor Day. Stato Mine Inspector Henry Loutltt wob wheeled over tho principal streets of Monongithela City, . Pu., Saturday, by Mrs. Elizabeth Spence Contsworth in payment or a presidential election bet. Nearly a thousand neonlo fol lowed 'them and burned red fire. The bet whs that the wife or the loser was to wheel the winner and Mrs. Coats worth proved herself a good Demo crat. Tho International Typographical Union has $222,225.(12 in its treasury. Of this amount $)0,9H2 belongs to the old age pension fund. The International Typographical Union paid out $2,775 to bury Its dead last month. It hns also paid pen sions to the amount of $0,358 for Sep tember. Members of the International Ty pographical Union are advocating the adoption of an insurnnce feature to Its other luudable efforts. At the annual meeting of the Penn sylvania Mothers' Congress held at Old City lnst week, a paper by Prof. Mussey of Bryn Mawr College was read, In which he said Pennsylvania uses more child labor than any other of the Middle States, having as many children under 10 years at work In manufactories as Massachusetts, New York and Illinois combined. He de clared there Is a greater proportion of Illiterate children In Pennsylvania than In all the New England and Mid dle States together, besides the most Inadequate and most weakly enforced laws for tho protection of women and children In industry to he found In any Northern State. This Is the ef fect of having a politician as factory Inspector Instead of a worklngmnn like "Jim" Campbell. A revolt against the continuation of Tom LewlB as president of the United Mine Workers has broken out In some districts and some unions are nominating John Walker" for the pres idency. In a few districts John Mitchell's name has been indorsed for the presidency, but Mitchell gays he will positively decline to run. W. D. Rvan will red tn hcxninn a commissioner for the Southwestern Operators' Association. Vice President J. P. Whlto will r. tire "because of his health." Rva and White nre MWehnll mnn and their retirement will remove al most the last of the nM Mitchell crowd. Conservative leaders In the United Mine Workers In nil parts of the country are reported as realizing that a crisis has been reached In the his tory of the organization. Joplln (Mo.) Trade Unionist. The Pittsburg Plate Glass Comnanv hns Issued orders to have Its big mines at Mosgrove, Pa., placed In full operation ns quickly ns possible. Th plant has been eloped down for months nnd several hundred men art employed. A special from Birmingham, Ala., says: Alabama Iron manufacturers pold 50,000 tons of pig iron In the first 24 hours after tho election and Inquiry for a large tonnage is in hand. The Iron sold Is to be delivered dur ing tho first quarter of tho coming year. Having saved the life of Harry Jones, General Manager of the Hazel mine of '!he Pittsburg & Buffalo Coal Company at Canonsburg, and proved the practical utility of oxygen hel mets in fighting mine fires, Govern ment mine and explosive experts at tached to the arsenal testing plant returned to Pittsburg last Friday. Wearing the recently Invented hel mets, the experts carried the uncon scious form of Mr. Jones several hun dred feet, until a point in the mine was reached where the air was fairly pure. For 30 minutes they gave him the oxygen treatment, finally resus citating him. It wns the first practi cal test of the method. They carried with them a trunk containing the proper appliances. So close did the experts approach the seat of fire that solder on their helmets was melted and their necks were blistered under the protection. Miners gained confidence by the ex ample and soon rivaled their Instruc tors in advancing far into the mine, wearing the new appliances. Thousands of dollars to workmen and operators have been saved by prompt action of the experts In two mine fires within the last 10 days. They lent -their aid In subduing the nre which broke out In the mine of the Washington Coal & Coke Compa ny at Star Junction on October 20, and have won a second victory at Canonsburg. In each case under old methods it Is believed the fire would have burned for weeks. Smokeless coal mined In Somerset county was given a thorough test which proved successful in Pittsburg last week. The coal was taken from the new Somerset mine of the Fi9her Coal Company and is handled by the Rex Carbon Coal Company, ot Pitts burg. The coal Is brittle and cannot be taken out In lump form. On account of he poor facilities for ventilation there has been consid erable trouble in using bituminous coal In the furnaces of some of the buildings In the downtown section of the city, bat without success. Some of the coal brought here from the new mine was given a thorough test In the furnace of the McCance building. Lib erty and Seventh avenues, with ht result that there was no smoks. BALLADE OF THE IlECEPTIOIf. Drar me, how do you dot I've longed to see you to. iWhy, what a pretty bluel i It s new I'm certain No? ' My drewea always show; But you you've such a way A bit of lace a bow (Yes, such a pleasant day!) Thnt Pmilh woman I Well, who invited her here? Oh, Indeed! You like her, too? lint she's so rnninion, though; Yes, really quite ile trop, lAud then the neiuhlinra any (If course tliene Ktnrins grow (Yea, such a pleasant day!) Dear Mrs. Smith, it's you! Here I've looked ImrIi and loir To find someone 1 knew . , . A soiik! How bcnutly alow! And May! voice like a crow. I loved Unit Inst one, May, It seemed so apropos (Yes, such a plcusunt day!) ' ENVOY. No. really, I must go; 1 d simply love tu stay, Bui "best of friends" yon know I Yes, such a pleasant day!) Horatio Winsluw, in I'uck. Brlggs "Even divorce, nowadays, offers no sure relief." Griggs "How so?" "Why, in nine cases out ot tea a man 1b free to marry again," Life. Doctor "You havo not very long to live, my man." Patrlquo Doollgan "Phalx, Ol knowed that as soon as iver yez commlnced doctkortn' me." Judge. ; "I wonder what becomes of all the newspapers?" "Most of them lose their Identity In the paper mills, but the jokes keep bobbing up for years afterward." Cleveland Plain Dealer. There was a red hen Who laid eggs in a pen. Hut I do nut know how Nor do I know when Though I know she's a Hcnny-pen penny pen hen. Children's Magazine. "They say Brushington Is getting enormous prices for his pictures." "Yes, I've heard so." "I never thought he was a great artist." "He Isn't, but as a salesman he's a won der." Chicago Record-Herald. A young fellow lived in Squedunk, Who said: "Life in these times is punk: Quite plainly 1 see 'they've waited far me To give thein of wisdom a chunk." Baltimore American. "How did you come to write that thrilling story, so full of absorbing heart Interest?" "Well," answered the eminent author, "the publishers wanted about 40,000 words with which to wedge the illustrations apart. " Louisville Courier-Journal. "If plants have thoughts, feelings and emotions similar to those of hu man beings " "Well?" "How the average cantaloupe must chuckle with malicious glee at the look of disap pointment on the face of the person who has just cut it open!" Chicago Tribune. "Has your order been taken?" asked one of the waiters. "Yes," said Mr. Welbroke, "fifteen minutes ago. If It Isn't too late, though, I'd like to change it." "To change your order, sir?" "Yes; If you don't mind I'll change It to an entreaty." Chi cago Tribune. "Your speech didn't Impress me as containing any new ideas," remarked the friend doubtfully. "That's good," answered Senator Sorghum. "A' speech with new Ideas Is very lia'jle to result in giving your enemies a chance to denounce you as the cham pion of some sort of an 'ism.' " Washington Star. Mrs. Jones (a suffragette) "I don't ask special privileges, Mr. Jones. What I should ask is that you, for Instance, a man, should treat me exactly as you would another man. Instead of talking small talk, and treating me like a thing to be pro tected, and all that, assume towards me the attitude you do to Mr. War rington. Treat me like a good fel low." Mr. Jones (quickly) "Why, certainly, old chap. Lend me a fiver, will you?" Philadelphia Inquirer. Photography and the Moon. It has been observed that on ac count of the absence of an atmos phere on the moon, and the conse quent lack of gradation in shadows, the eye of the observer Is seriously misled In judging the-actual relief ot object" forming the lunar landscapes. Professor Prlnz, of Brussels, has recently developed a method of avoiding this difficulty, and ot seeing the craters and other details on the moon In their natural proportions, taking advantage of the fact that as the moon travels round the earth the eccentricity ot Its orbit produces the effect of a slow llbratlon, or balanc ing to and fro, which causes Its face to be Inclined now a little one way and then a little the other way. Professor Prlnz makes two photo graphs of the lunar object to be stu died, at opposite points In the llbra tlon, and then combines them In a stereoscope, whereupon the object stands forth In full relief. This prin ciple has hitherto been applied only to photographs ot the moon as. a whole, and not to particular craters or regions. The Elusive Carp. To become a successful carp fisher the first essential Is patience, as with the most suitable tackle, baits and weather, and with care taken to in sure success. It Is -quite possible to fish for days without getting so much as a carp bite, and this, too. In waters known to be well stocked with them. Carp fishing la a very high branch of the angler's art. Fishing Gazette. The voice of a man has been knows to carry three miles through a twen ty-foot trumpet.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers