' HORRORS OF THE ARCTIC. Terrible Experience of the Crew of the III Fated Jeannette. When Ross In 1SKS tombed Ht Etnli the Esks thought tlie.v were being vis ited by ghosts. With tier white mills appearing on the horizon, where l he sky melts Into un ubyss ot oreuu. what else could the ship be but mime great white winged ghost, and wlmt those strauge creatures on ber decks but lost souls? They thought she. a great bird. hadBown from the moon. . where wood was abundant, and when they saw her close, her wooden belly and her masts, they whispered, "Ilow 1 much wood there Is In the moon-how j very much!" Wood Is like gold to the Esks. One of the unhappy crew of the Jeannette writes: "1 put some mercury to freeze and beat It out ou the auvll. Our frozen brandy looked like black topaz. We divided meat, oil and bread with a hatchet. Joshua forgot to put on his right glove; In a moment his hand was frozen. The poor devil wish ed to thuw bis lifeless hand In warm water. It was Immediately covered with pieces of lee. The doctor was forced to cut the unlucky mate's bund off, and he died next day. Toward the middle of January a enrnvan of Esks came to ask us for some dried tlsh and brandy. We ndded a little tobacco to these presents, which they received with tears of Joy. The chtef. a feeble old man, told us that the week before be had eaten his wife and two sous." Cold more terrlWe than the white wolf and bear seizes its victims un awares. Instantaneously, fatally. The cold purines the blood, sharpeus appe tite, favors digestion and stomach, it soothes to sleep by bringing death In the midst of beautiful dreams. This i Intense cold, so dry, so pure, stops pu trefaction, sweetens the air by greatly Increasing Its density and purifies wa ter. Cold takes the place of cooking, for It makes raw meat, raw Bsh and tallow eatable. A Roman nosed people could not hold their own In the arctic. A Roman nose would be too often frozen off. The Esk flat nose Is less exposed. The name Eskimo, or raw food eaters, Is a nickname given by the Labrador In dians. Their true inline in their own tongue Is Inolt and menus "man." If patriotism be a virtue the Ksks have It surpassingly. Never was a land of verdant groves, golden hnrvests and willows mirrored In the streamlets and silvery waves better beloved than their ' snow fields and Ice hills and gloomy, stinking tents and Igloos. New York Press. . THE CENTURY PLANT. It Blooms, Says a Florist, Every Twenty-five to Forty Years. "The regular century plant," said nn expert In floriculture, "Is uotn cactus. It belongs to a family by Itself, it has a large, broad leaf, sometimes two or three feet long and several Inches thick where they branch from the cen ter. There are two varieties, one1 the variegated and the other green. The only difference Is that the variegated has a white stripe along the outer edge of the leaf. Both bloom every twenty five to forty years.- A stock perhaps eight or ten inches In diameter shoots np from the center to a height of fif teen or twenty feet, and around this stock cluster small blossoms. They are neither pretty nor fragrant Tbey were formerly supposed to bloom once In a hundred years. 'The nearest thing to a century plant Is a night blooming cereus. It is a cactus and blooms once in about every twenty-Ove years or so. The flower is large, very beautiful and has a delightful odor. One plant may have several blossoms, but each flower lasts only one night, "There Is no such plant as a 'century cactus.' The cactuses that many have mistaken for 'century cactuses' will bloom in four -or Hve years If kept un der glass or about seven years if not In a hothouse. Because tbey are so long in blooming, 1 suppose, tbey have been called 'century cactuses,' and the name has been banded down until It Is considered, the proper term for them. They bloom yearly after the first blos ' soms appear. Tbey are Just an ordi nary cactus, but tbey have a pretty, fragrant flower." Seattle Times. The Canny Scot. In the differences that would some times arise between members of his tenantry the Duke of Argyll was often Invited to arbitrate upon the matter in dispute, and he used to tell a charac teristically Scottish story of one of the occasions. Two tenants having waited upon him and asked blm to decide the question at issue, the duke put what be . always regarded as a very necessary preliminary question, "Will you abide by my award?" "Well your grace," was the reply of one of the bard beaded old disputants, -I'd like to ken first what It is." Lon don Chronicle. , . The Other Way With Him. . "Remember, sir, that you owe some thing to your constituents," said one member 6f a town council to another. ' "Humph!" said the otber. "If you we anything to your constituents all I've got to say Is that you're lucky. Why, there are hot balf a dozen voters In my ward that have not borrowed thoney from me." Stray Stories. Pitfalls of Slang. Host (In India) Do you see that fa ' natlc over there? Be bas sat on thai corner and In that posture without -moving for six ' months. Traveler from America) Gee, that's going oomel CbkAgo Tribune. Little minds are tamed and subdued by misfortune, but great minds rise tove it Irving;. DIPLOMACY. j A Vagua Threat That Meant Nothing, but Brought Quick Results. The lute Lord Salisbury moiiih years ago seut a foreign ollice emissary to make some demands of a Smith Amer ican republic. Hefore selling out ou bis mission the emissary, to whom his lordship hud explained the exact na ture of the demands, desired to be In formed as to the course to take If. after he had said everything, there was a refusal. "Oh." answered Lord Salisbury, "this is not a matter In which we have the least thought of lighting: If the pres ident refuses, why. you will simply have to come home agalu." The emissary went and had his say to the presldeut of the republic, who blankly refused to 'give In. and the diplomat retired to think things over. A few hourB Inter he wrote to the pres ident: "1 regret that your excellency does not see your way to recognize the just ness of the claims which 1 have had the honor to presenf. I have now to say, on behalf of her Britannic majes ty's government, that unless your ex cellency yields on nil points which I have mimed It will be my painful duty to act on the second half of myjn Btructlons." Under this vague and significant threat the president yielded at once. London Telegraph. S . HAUNTED ALASKAN ISLAND. Ghosts of Russian Exiles Who Died of Starvation or Torture. To the south and west of Kodiak. distant about 100 miles and forming one of the Semidl group, is the Islund of Chlrikof, the haunted Island of Alaska. Enshrouded for a great portion of the time with almost impenetrable fog. this lonely isle Is au object of terror to the natives, who claim It is haunted by the ghosts of Russian exiles. The natives will not go near the Is land, saying It means certain death to Invade the canny confines, and there are few men In the fnr north who have the temerity to test the truth of the many and weird tales told of this for bidding and barren Island. Shipmasters and sailors passing the place assert that the agonizing cries of Ilusslan exiles sent there to starve or die by torture are sometimes henrd on quiet nights, while the clink of, chains and the sound of blows are tes tified to In an affidavit by a white man who once attempted to remain there for a week and who nearly lost his reason. Tanana Tribune. The Noise Habit. A personnl experience first showed the writer the possibility of a state of n (Tn Irs where the habit of noise could become as fixed' as the habit of a drug. Waking one night In the quiet of a country house far from other habita tions, I suddenly heard the starting of the hot air engine which pumped the water chug, chug, chug, chug. I lay listening to Its monotonous vibrations and wondering at the unusual hour for pumping until I fell asleep. The next night the sound was repeated. On mentioning the matter to my host he confessedthat he could not sleep In the quiet of the country; that the sud den change from the roar of n great city to the silence of the woods was so great as to cause him real suffering. As bis only way to rest be would leave the bouse tn the middle of the night, start up the pump and, lying down In a nearby hammock, find sleep brought him by the lullaby of the hot air en gine. That man recognized that be had the noise habit and finally conquered it.-Hollls Godfrey In Atlantic. Oddly Named. A Mr. Hudson, who had made a large fortune as a dentist, bad built a Very expensive country bouse near Dublin, but of such an extraordinary construction as to bid defiance to the criticism of the architect. One day after dinner at Curran's this singular mansion became a subject of merriment for his guests. The question for their satirical Inquiry was, "What was Its order of architecture?" One said it certainly was Grecian, another contended It was Saxon and a third that It was oriental, when their host thus Interposed: "Excuse me, gentlemen, you are nil wrong. It is Tusk-un. From the ir regularities of the mansion and from Its proprietor being a dentist the Irish call It Snaggletooth nail."1 London An swers. ) Not Worth a Rush. "Not worth a rush" Is, as a popular saying, the predecessor of the now more common simile "not worth a straw." In precarpet days it was the custom to strew the floors of dwelling houses. "When guests of rank were en tertained fresh rushes were spread for them, but folk of lower degree bad to be content with rushes that had al ready been used, while still humbler persons bad none, as not even being "worth a rush." London Standard. The Benefit of the Doubt. Horrified Citizen Hey, there t What are you' pounding that man for? Man on Top He says be can't remember whether be ever called me a liar or not. I'm (biff) giving blm (biff) the benefit of the doubt Chicago Tribune. The Producer. , . "Does your husband play cards for money?" "Judging from practical results," an swered young Mrs. Torklns, "I should say not But all the other men in tbe game do." Washington Star. . The man who loves home best and loves It. most unselfishly loves bis country Best. J. G. Holland. I PLAYED WITH A LION. A South African Child Who Ran to I Meet the Big "Doggio." The infant sou of one uf the Dutch settlers iu South Africa hud strayed away.- After some lime ti search par ty illm-iivi-i'cil Utile l'uotiii'iiits leadiuu In the directum of the bush. Follow- j lug up these, the search purty came upou a largo open space, at the far ther side of which they discovered the ' object of their search sitting hugging a little wooden doll and munching a piece of bread and butter. Before they could make their way through the thick, tangled undergrowth a large Hon sprang Into the clearing. The lit tle boy, far from being frightened, ran to meet the lion, holding up his bread and butter and said. "Take a bite, doggie." The father stood powerless to move or speak through fear, expecting each Instant to see the child crushed under the lion's paw, but Instead of doing as he dreaded the Hon turned himself over and lay on his back at the child's feet, looking up In his face as a cat would do at piny. Watching his op portunity, the father rnlsed his gun and fired, hiding the lion in the leg. The animal sprang up and, leaving the child, rushed on the party, Injuring two of the number before it was final ly killed. From this circumstance the child was Immediately christened by the settlers "Daniel." London Family Herald. WAITED FOR HEALY. An Incident of the Land League Agi tation In Ireland. One morning during the Land league agitation Mr. I'arueir left Dublin by the early mail train for Roscommon to address tt meeting. Qu arriving In the town he received a telegram from Dublin which ran: Missed mall train. Will get down at 8 o'clock. Postpone meeting till I arrive. HEALY. Mr. Taruell was pleased to learn that T. M. Ilealy, M. P., was comlug down. Delighted, too, were the local promo ters of the demonstration, and the meet ing was gladly postponed for a few hours. At 3 o'clock the railway station and Its approaches were thronged with people with bnnds and banners, and the train from Dublin steamed in amid terrific cheerlngTor Tlin Henly. The train pulled up, a carriage door opened, and the local reception com mittee rushed to it, when out stepped 'Healy," but it was uot T. M. Uenly. M. P. It was W. Wallace Uealy, a well known reporter on the stuff of the Irish Times. , . He had been assigned to the Hoscom mou meeting, had missed the mall train, aud It was most important that his paper should have a report of Mr. Paruell's speech; hence the telegram. Pearson's Weekly. What Yeomen Were. Yeomen were formerly considered to be by their title on a level with 'es quires, and they were called yeomen because. In addition to tbe weapons proper for close engagements, they fought In the wars with arrows and u bow which was made of yew; hence the word. After the conquest the nnme of yeoman, In reference to the original office hi war. was changed to that of archer. The term, however, waB coutluued with additions the yeo man of the crown, of the chamber, yeoman usher, etc. aud we find that considerable grants were bestowed on somo of tbem. in tbe legal view a yeoman is defined to be one that bas fee land of tbe value of 40 shillings a year and Is thereby qualified to serve on Juries, to vote for knights of the shire and to do any other act which the law may require. The yeomen al ways took a leading part in whatever concerned the regulations or Interests of the kingdom, and their renown as warriors Is fully established by their numerous heroic achievements. Lon don Globe. Insects and Flowers. Experiments on Bhowy flowers like the poppy tend to show that Insects are not nhvays attracted to flowers by the brightly colored petals, but rather by the perception doubtless by means of smell that there Is honey or pollen. In these experiments tbe unopened flower bud is Inclosed In a gauze net so as to protect it from lnsepts, and when it expands tbe petals are care fully removed without touching the re maining parts with the fingers (for bees avoid a flower if the smell of hu man fingers Is left on It), and the petal less flowers receive practically as many insect visits as untouched flow ers do. - Her Complexion. We once knew a woman who quar reled with ber complexion. At one time she touched it up so much that It became touchy. At another time it was beyond the pale. Occasionally it broke out and became very fiery. 'But. however much she quarreled with' It. she was always ready to make it up. A Merger. Regular Customer There used to be two or three little bald spots on tbe crown of my head, away back. Are they there yet? 1 Barber No, sir; it ain't so bad' as all that Where those spots used to be, sir, there's only one now. Chicago Tribune. ' ' A Hard On. "When," be demanded, "will you pay this bill?" . , . Smiling, we"waved him toward our confrere. - . ' "Ton must ask," we said, "the puz zle editor." Exchange. Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm. Emerson. x PLENTY OP ROOM. No Trouble to Find a Place Foi Him to Rest In Sleep. His blanket the xnidlei Hikes along on the inarch, but usually uol his tent Dsime soon makes ibe ground as soft a bed as he wants. The case Is pretty nearly Ihe same with the prospector and the frontiersman In writing of the "Highways and Byway" of Ihe Pacific Coast" Mr. Clifton Johnson tells of the practice on the ranches of the west. He was the guest of an early settler While we were chnttlng a laborer passed, shouldering a roll of blankets Tbe butcher had come to the door, and be pointed to Ibe passer and said: "You see that fellow, don't you? Well, when"! first reached here from the east I thought a man with a bed on his bark was Ibe funniest thing I'd ever come across. . "A rancher In this country won't take bis hired man Into his house They've got to furnish their own blan kets and usually sleep on the hay In tbe barn. "1 know a fellow who. when he'd Just arrived and didn't understand the way they manage, got a Job harvest ing on a big wheat ranch. Tbe help' usually sleep In the straw slacks then, and It's precious little time they get to sleep anywhere. But he didn't know anything about that, and he was sitting around in the evening and final ly said to the rancher, 'Where am sleep tonight?' , "'Why, I don't care where you sleep,' said the rancher. 'I've got 9(10 acres of land around here, and If you can't And a place to sleep on that I'll get my next neighbor to lend me a piece of his.' " TOWER OF BABEL Traditions as to the Height of the Fa mous Structure. The actual height at which the last stone of that famous structure, the tower of Babel, rested cannot, on ac count of the remoteness of the times at which It is said to have existed, ever become more thnn a matter of merest conjecture. Herodotus, who 'lived about 1.700 years after that "great spiral way to heaven" Is said to have been attempted, says that he Raw at Babylon a structure consisting of eight towers raised one above an other, eacb seventy-five feet In height, but whether this ruin was the re mains of the tower of Babel It was even then Impossible to ascertain. He rodotus, usually minutely exact In his writlnc. leaves us In Ignorance as to how the upper level of eacb of these seventy-five foot towers was reacnen from the level below. As might be expected, even In tra dition, a wide difference of opinion ex lata as tn the helcht of the tower. Most orientalists maintain that God did not put a stop to tbe work until tbe tower bad reached a height of 10.000 fatb- nma nr nhnnt twelve miles. In Ley lonese tradition It Is snld to have been as high as 20.000 elephants,' each rnnrllnrr one above tbe Other. Vol Jerome asserts on the authority of persons who had examined tbe ruins that It did not reach a beignt exceea Ing four miles. Otber statements are still more extravagant London Hat urday Review. . Hanov Evants. A teacher in one ot tbe public schools of Vienna In order to test the ability of her Junior class girls eight to nine years old in composition writing gave eacb little miss a subject to be dis cussed "at once without consultation and without heln of anv kind. ' Tbe articles were found to be so Interest ing and amusing that tbey bave been collected for publication. One article on "My Three Happiest Days" is nota ble In the unique collection. In well chosen words and clearly rounded sen tences tbe little girl says that being lost In the woods, having to run away from a fire which broke out In their bouse and watching a little boat as the wind tossed it on tbe waves and finally smashed It were tbe most "hap nv pventa" that she could think of Another in describing "fairyland" said thnt It must be a Dlace where "every- -thins la as It ts here except that the lakes should be frozen nan across ai all times ot the year so that we could take a swim and Jump out and skate Jamea I. and Billiards. James I. appears to have Inherited bis mother's love ot billiards. Among the payments from bis privy purse not ed in the exchequer records ts one to "Henry Waller, our Joyner. for a bil liards boarde. Twelve foote long and fower foote broade, tbe frame being wallnuttree, well wrought and carved, with eight great skrewes and eighteen mall skrewes." A salutary billiard rule In force in tbe days of tbe Stu arts was one to tbe effect that no by stander, even tbongb be was betting on tbe game, should be allowed to offer advice unless asked. It be did so it was provided that "be shall for every fault instantly forfeit twopence for tbe good of tbe company or not be offered to stay In tbe room." London Chronicle. V His Early Home Coming. "Does your husband carry, a latch key. Mrs. Homebody?" "No, I never knew blm to." "Oh, tben be comes In early! That must be due to your tralnlngr "Not In tbe least There Is always some one up wben.be gets borne In tbe morning." Chicago Record-Herald. Answering Little Eddie. Little Eddie-Say. pa. do political enemies belong to different parties? Pa No, my son; tbey belong to differ ent factions in tbe same party. Ei-change. THE KING'S ORDER. It Was Obeyed, and Yet the Monarch Waa Not Happy. When King Gustavus III. of Sweden was In Paris he was ylslted by a depu tation of tbe Sor boll ne. That leurned body congratulated tbe king on the happy fortune which bad given him so great a man as Scheele, the discoverer of magnesium, as his subject and fel low countryman. Tbe king, who took small luterest in the progress of science, felt somewhat ashamed that he should be so Ignorant as never even to have beard of tbe re nowned chemist He dispatched a cou rier at once to Sweden with the laconic order, "Scheele is to be Immediately raised to the dignity and title of a count" 'His majesty must be obeyed." said the prime minister as be read the or der, "but who in the world is Scheele?" A secretary was told to make Inquiries. He came back to the premier with very full Information. "Scheele Is a good sort of fellow," said he, "a lieu tenant In the artillery, a capital shot and a first rate hand at billiards. Tbe next day the lieutenant became a count, and the Illustrious scholar and scientist remained n simple burgher. The error was not discovered until the king returned home, nis majesty was Indignant. "You must all bo fools." he exclaimed, "not to know who Scheele Is!" Argonaut. THE CRISIS. A Loving Mother Guides Her Girl at the Fateful Moment. "Your whole future life depends upon It." The mother, her face tinged with sympnthy which we must ever feel in the presence of an Immaturity that Is hesitating between right and wrong, laid her bnnd over that of her beauti ful daughter. "Yes, dear." she continued, "Into every life there comes at one time of another a supreme temptation. If the crisis is passed ail is safe, but if you yield at the fatal moment you cannot retrace your steps. Vou are then com mitted to a fatal policy." "But, mother, father says he cannot afford It." "Exactly. .Fathers from time Im memorial have always said that. It Is their way of Imposing on youth and innocence. Go forth at once and buy the gown. Do not forget that I am with you, that I will stand bnck of you with all the feeble strength I can command." So saying, tbe proud woman folded into her arms the weift: creature, who even then, if It had not been for her timely rescue, would have been be trayed Into a humiliating and shame ful surrender. Success Magazine. A Stage Manager's Ruse. The house bill of the Imperial the ater of La Uoche-snr-Yon announced for the evening performance "La Tour de Nesle." a five act melodrama, and "La Soeur de Jocrisse," a one act farce. Tbe drama bad been disposed of, but tbe low 'comedian was missing and could not be found. What was to be done? A luminous idea finally entered the manager's mind. The orchestra played an overture, -,then another, then a third, tben a polka and finally a quadrille. At last when the audi ence bad grown quite obstreperous, tbe stage manager appeared. He ad dressed the three conventional bows to the spectators and said: "Ladies and gentlemen, you are anxious, I know, to listen to 'Lu Soeur de Jocrisse.' The piece bas Just been acted, but through an unaccountable oversight on the part of tbe stage hands tbey forgot to raise the curtain." Saw It In a Dream. For many years Ivory manufacturers were trying to devise a machine for turning out a billiard ball as nearly perfect as possible and at the same time avoiding waste. Among those who strove to perfect such a machine was Mr. John Carter of tbe firm of John Carter & Son. well known ivory manufacturers.' One night, after Mr. Carter had been striving to solve the problem for some time, he suddenly awoke his wife by shouting out. "1 have got it." and rushed downstairs into his study, where he made a draw ing of the last knife for the want of which he had been so long waiting in order to complete his machine. It ap pears that he bad fallen asleep and dreamed about the machine, and in the dream tbe solution of the difficulty was revealed to him. tmtVm 'ix 317 Fourth , Want Column. Rates! Ont cent per word for eacb sod STorv Insertion For Rent or Sale Tbe Geo. Tapper place near Pre&oottvlile. Inquire of Thus. F. Adam. For Sale Two seated sleigh and surry. Inquire of Emil Persyn. For 8ale Pair bobsleds. G. T. Woodford, pup man. ubacrlbe for The X Star City Cab to All Trains Why walk when you can get a cab? I am running a cab to ail trains for accommodation of the public. If you want the cab to take you or your friends to train or meet somebody at the sta tion and take them any where in town, give me your order by either 'phone or in person, and tbe cab will be at your service. Tbe cab Is comfortable and easy to ride in. Reason able prices, ' Thos. Tapper, Two doors from postoffice. 9 HUGHES & FLEMING. FUNERAL DIRECTORS. Main Street. Reynoldsville, Pa jgXECUTRIX'S NOTICE. Estate of Nathan A. Tleadlcy, latoofReyn olusvllle Borough, Deceased. . 'Notice la hereby Riven that letters testa mentary on the estate of Nathan A. Heauley, late of Keynoldsvllle boruunli, county of Jefferson and state of Pennsylvania, de ceased, bave been granted to Ihe under BlKned, to whom all persons Indebted to said estate are requested to make payment, and those having claims or demands will make ' known the same without delay. Mhs. Blanche IlEAOMtv, Dec. 21, 1909. Executrix. TOCKHOLDERS' MEETING. fl You are hereby Informed that the annual meeting of the stockholders of the Summer vllle Telephone Company will be held at the general nice of the Company in Krookyllle, fa., on Wednesday, the 12th bay of January, A. D., 1910, at the hour of ten o'clock a. m., for the purpose of electing a boaid of direc tors for the Company for tbe ensuing year, and for the transaction of such other business as may properly come before said meeting. J. K. Brown, J. H. Hammond, President. Secretary. For anything you need In flour or feed don't fail to get prices from Robinson & Mundorff before buying. Bulties Best Flour, tbe best flour you can buy, at any price. We sell it. Rob inson & Mundorff. We keep only best quality iof goods and make best prices on flour and feed. See us before you buy. Our winter wheat shorts makes your pips grow faster and- your cows give more milk than any other feed. Try it.. Robinson & Mundorff. Reduction in flours. See Robinson & Mundorff for prices. It Costs Just a Post Card to learn how to increase your income on your savings and how to bank by mail and how to insure youtHbanlc deposits, without cost, with a fund of ten million dollars. Writi today for Interesting Free Booklet Capital and Surplus, $10,000,000.00 "la Capital and Surplu, there is Strength." TtGLiiALTiivsrMFAijy (SAVINGS BANK). Ave. 314 te 31S Diamond St PITTSBURGH, PA. " o T