China is to-day the scene of the
greatest land-grabbing raids that the
fcorld has ever -witnessed. At the
present rate it will be only a little
while nntil there is nothing left of 'Sie
ancient empire except its great wall
and a job lot of musty superstitions.
The State and Federal Fish Com
missioners are now engaged an re
stocking the Delaware witl) shad,
their purpose being to deposit £t least
30,000,000 small fry this season. If
kept up a few years this will mean the
development of an important industry
and the establishment of a reliable
source of food supply.
The Postoffice Department of Can.
Ada does not pay expenses, but the
deficit last year was only §586,539,
while in 1896 it was §781,152. Dar
ing the last year 123,830,000 let
ters and 26,140,000 postal cards
passed through the mails. Of the
letters 3,509,500 were registered. The
number of newspapers and books
mailed in the year was 22,015,000.
Canada looks carefully after its win
ter quail, the farmers feeding and pro
tecting them and the local protectors
of the preserves making regular trips
jnto the country to see how the inno
#ent birds are faring. Without such
attention to their needs the rigorous
climate would exterminate them; with
it they have come through the pres
ent winter remarkably well, and in
the coming shooting season the sports
men of Our Lady of the Snows will
vise up and call their protectors
blessed.
Says the New York Post: Atimelyre
buke has been administered by Justice
Mitchell, of Pennsylvania, to pettifog
ging, or what the Pennsylvania court
calls "perverted ingenuity." The oc
casion was the filing of an appeal in
the case of a man condemned to death
on the morning of the day of execu
tion, not a ground of newly discovered
evidence, but on alleged errors of the
most formal and perfunctory kind,
which had been already passed upon
by the lower court in refusing a new
trial. It was simply a move for delay,
or, in the language of the court, "a
flagrant example of the perverted
standard of professional ethics, which
assumes that counsel should help his
client to escape the proper conse
quences of his act by any move or de
vice, short, perhaps, of actual fraud
or imposition. This is a very serious
error and apparently becoming more
widespread, especially in cases invol
ving life. The boundaries of pro
fessional privilege and professional
obligation are clearly defined, and in
no way doubtful. Counsel represents
the prisoner to defend his rights. In
BO doing he is bound to exercise com
petent learning and to be faithful, vig
ilant, resolute. But he is at the same
time an officer of the court, part of the
system which the law provides for the
preservation of individual rights in
the administration of justice, and
bound by his official oath to fidelity
as well to the court as to the client."
Japan's industrial enterprise con
tinues to excite fresh wonder and as
tonishment. Without the least exag
geration it may be affirmed that this
little island empire is entitled to the
world's record for its growth and pro
gress within the past few years.
Prior to the reoent war between Japan
and China, the former country was
little understood in this hemisphere.
Most people labored under the impres
sion that Japan was wedded to her
idols, and that progress in the modern
sense of that expression was wholly
foreign to the atmosphere which she
inhaled. But even prior to the war
which brought her to the front with so
much prestige, Japan had seriously
to rid herself of her en
cumbering superstitions and to borrow
western ideas of life. To-day the lo
comotive, the telephone, _ the tele
graph and the electric light are mir
acles of progress as familiar almost to
the Japs as they are to us, who first
produced them. From some interest
ing data recently compiled by one of
our consuls to Japan, it appears that
the manufacture of matches is exten
sively carried on in the kingdom.
There are now some forty-five estab
lishments in all, employing not less
than 11,000 operatives. Since 1893
the growth of this industry, although
retarded by the recent war, has been
phenomenal. In 1896 the value of its
total output aggregated .$1,672,79G
and in 1897, 81,706,612. The wide,
awake enterprise of the kingdom is
atill fnrtlier illustrated in the activity
displayed in its navy yards. At the
present time Japan is engaged in th
construction of seven war vessels. I
Japan continues to develop at the pres
cnt rate, there is no telling what pos
sibilities of national expansion lie be
(ore her.
THE LOO-DRIVE.
When the log-boora's on the drive
The woods, snow-fresh, start up alive;
There's swell of brook and bursting bud,
There's spruce log leaping down the flood.
Cm tain of the log-boom's crew.
Tall Autolne—feeling spring-time too—
Lets his love thoughts hum- back
To the river's northmopt track,
To a hut in sprucelands set,
To the homo of white Jftttnnette:
Let his love-song cleave the air,
Bidding nil things love aid pair;
Till the mating lish-hawki cry.
Till the moose bull snorts reply-
Till every wild tiling does its part.
And cries a welcome to his heart.
—Francis S. Palmer, iu Harper's Weekly.
! TIE BORROWED HORSE, i
0 o
CDODO3DOOOOOOOOOOOCSOODOGOJ
FB the horse down
/w / I we l' and don't
3 I 1 * fill he is
g B perfectly cool."
I* Jft The above was
addressed to the
Dostlei* of a hotel,
\i In * n Brighton, by a
handsome, middle
-1 flseil gentleman,
/ 'i IvT dressed in the
1 (mATA/A height of fashion,
V vW'ift'Ml A a8 alighted from
\v Mt NW au e ' e " an ' black
VrfilviVi horse, and tossed
v\ i\ the rein to the at
tendant.
" "And now," said
the horseman, addressing a waiter,
"show ine into a private parlor."
A well-dressed man, who rides a
handsome nag, is always sure of a
warm welcome at a public house, all
th. world over. He soon found him
self in a neat parlor, with flowers and
vases on the mantlepiece, and the
blinds (for it was a warm summer af
ternoon) carefully closed, while the
open window permitted a free current
of air to circulate through the apart
ment.
The waiter remained standing near
the door.
"Any orders, sir?"
"No—yet stay. Who came in that
handsome phaeton I saw standing in
the yard?"
"A lady, sir."
"Ah!"
"A young widow."
"Bab!"
"She is very handsome."
"Go along, and shut the door after
you," muttered the traveler, testily.
"A woman, but a widow," he solilo
quized. "X am glad I don't know her.
I am certainly very fortunate to have
attained the age of forty without any
feminine attachment. Peculiarly in
dependent, and not ill-looking—l
think I must admit that—l should
make what those busybody match
makers call a grand catch. But,
thank my stars! I have preserved
my content and independence so far,
and I'm not likely to succumb now.
No, no! Jack Campion was born to
live and die a bachelor! And now for
the newspaper.'"
In the meantime, another horseman
had come to the hotel, his horse reek
ing with sweat.
The same hostler—an Irishman—
made au appearance.
"Pat," said the young man, fash
ionably attired, "put my mare in the
stable, and do the best you can for
her."
"Ocli, Mistliu Traverse, she's kilt
entirely!"
"I'm afraid so."
"And what made ye crowd her so?"
"No matter. Is my sister here?"
"Yis, sur. Bill, show the gentle
man into the ladies' parlor."
"Ah, Belle!" said the young man,
entering the parlor, "you here?"
"Yes," replied a beautiful young
lady, rising to meet him; "but what's
the matter?"
"Nothing, Belle—nothing!"
"Something is certainly the mat
ter. You are (lushed and excited."
"I must be brief, for I am pur
sued!"
"Pursued?"
"Yes. You know that fellow who
insulted you in the coach the other
day?" said the young man. "Well, I
have been on his track for over a week.
I met him to-day in the street, and
gave him a horsewhipping. I handled
him roughly, I'm afraid. He instantly
got out a warrant against me, and not
wishing to be taken into court till I
was ready, I mounted my horse and
gave the officers the slip. Perhaps
I'd better have waited and braved it
out; but having taken this step, Fm
bound to baffle them. To-morrow I
wilj surrender myself. Now, Belle, if
your pony will take mo to our uncle's
in Ave minutes, I'm your man."
"Poop Charley couldn't do it," an
swered ilia y.mng lady. ""■
"Then I'll make other arrange
ments. By-the-by, I'll meet yon at
the villa."- -
From tlio drawing-room the young
man rushed to the stable.
"Pat," said he, "give me a horse,
ind u good one."
"Sorra the horse we've got in the
Stable, except this black, and that be
longs to a gintleman who came here
just afore ye. Oeh, but he's a good
one, yer honor, two-forty to a cint."
"I'll borrow him," said Traverse,
jumping on his back. "Tell Belle to
drive the gentleman to the villa, and
he shall have his horse."
"But,'yer honor " remonstrated
the hostler.
In vain. Traverse had set spurs to
the horse, and was oil like a thunder
bolt.
"Ok.wirra, wirrah'said the hostler,
i "what'll become of me? I'jp ruined
i intirely!"
| Shortly afterward Mrs. Leslie rang
for her phaeton, and at the sametirae,
Mr. Campion, the bachelor, ordered
his horse. The pony cams round to
the front door, and the young widow
"tepped lightly into the phaeton.
"All right!" said she to Patrick, 1
with a smile, nodding, and taking the
reins. "Give him his head."
"Och, it's all wrong, my lady," re
plied Patrick, keeping hold of the
bridle. "Your carriage can take two
inside."
"Very well; but I came alone."
"You've got to take a passenger."
"What do you mean?"
"Oh, wirra!—your brother has been
stealing a horse."
"Stealing a horse!" exclaimed the
widow.
"Yes, that gintleman's," meaning
the bachelor. "And he said youwere
to take the gintleman to the villa, to
get the horse back again."
"Very singular!" said the widow;
"but William was always very eccen
tric."
At this crisis, Mr. Campion ap
peared.
"My horse ready?"
"Jump iu, sir."
"t didn't come in a carriage."
"Iu wid yez!" shouted the hostler.
"Take a seat beside me, if you
please, sir," said the widow, with a
fascinating smile.
Mr. Campion approached the step
to inquire the meaning, when the
hostler seized him with a vigorous
hand, thrust him into the phaeton,
while the pony, startled at the move
ment, dashed off on a run.
Poor Captain Campion! Here was
a situation. A confirmed old bache
lor, bodily abducted by a fascinating
young widow. The captain bad to
lend assistance to the lady in man
aging the pony, who was shortly re
duced to his usual slow and quiet
pace; and then after thanking her
companion for his assistance, Mrs.
Leslie told him that in a few minutes
he should be put in possession of his
horse, which had been borrowed by a
gentleman. This was all the expla
nation she vouchsafed. She required,
in turn, to be made acquainted with
the name of her companion, after giv
ing her own.
In a few minutes, the captain be
gan to feel somewhat more at ease—
in fact, he began to like bis position.
He had never sat so near to a pretty
woman in his life, and he began to
ask himself whether, if the proximity
wan so pleasant for a few moments, a
constant not
prune as agreeable. While her atten
tion was engaged upon her pony, he
had au opportunity to survey her
features. Her large, dark and lumin
ous eyes seemed to be swimming in
liquid lustre; ber cheeks were as soft
and blooming as the sunny side of a
peach. Her profile was strictly Gre
cian, and her parted lips showed a
row of tiny pearls as white as snow.
The most delicate taper fingers, en
eased in French kids, closed upon the
reins, and the varnished tip of a
dainty boot indicated a foot that Cin
derella might have envied.
"Do you live very far from here,
madam?" asked the captain.
"Not very far. The pony can mend
his pace if you are in a hurry."
"Not for the world. The pace
seems r>. very fast one."
The widow turned those witching
black eyes of hers upon the old bach
elor, and smiled. It was all over
with him. When he sprang out
at the gate of the villa and
touched the fairy fingers of the widow
as he assisted her to alight, his heart
was irretrievably lost.
A red-faqed old gentleman, in a
dressing gown, reoeived them at the
door.
"My friend, Captain Campion,
uncle," said the widow. "Excuse
me. for a moment, sir."
"Very happy to see you, sir," said
the old gentleman. "Walk in. Warm
day."
"Very," said the captain.
1 'llis looks seemed to corroborate bis
statement, for be was as red as a
peony.
The captain and the old gentleman
were soon chatting together familiar
ly, and the former felt himself com
pletely at home. After an hour spent
in this manner, his host excused
himself, and the bachelor was left
alone.
A dreamy reverie was interrupted
by the sound of voices iu the hall.
The captain easily recognized the
widow's, and a glance through the
halt-open door showed him that her
companion was a very handsome yonng
gentleman.
"There, dear Belle," said the young
man, "don't scold me any more. I
won't do so again, I promise you.
Give me one kiss."
A hearty smack followed. It was a
veritable, genuine kiss. The captain
saw and beard it. A pang shot
through his heart.
"The only woman I could ever
love," he said to himself, "and she's
engaged."
The widow tripped into the room.
If she was pleasing in her carriage
dress, she was perfectly bewitching
in her drawing-room attire. Campion
could now see the whole of that de
! licate fairy foot.
"My dear sir," said she, "your horse
is at your service now."
Campion rose.
"But," she added, "if you will stay
and take dinner with us, my uncle
will be very much gratified, and I shall
be highly pleased."
"The coquette!" thought Campion.
"I am really obliged to you, madam,"
ho said, "but I have another engage
ment."
"Then we cannot hope to detain yon,
sir; hut you must first allow me to
present you to my brother."
The handsome yonng man nowmade
his appearance, and shook hands with
the bachelor.
"That's the horse-thief, captain!"
said the widow, laughing.
The yonng man apologized, and ex
plained the circumstauces which had
impelled him to take the liberty.
"I am sorry," he added, "that we
cannot improve the acquaintance thus
casually made by enjoying your com
pany at dinner. I am sorry that you
are otherwise engaged."
"Why, as to that," said the captain,
pulling off his gloves, "your offer is
too tempting, and I feel compelled to
accept it."
So his horse was remanded to the
stable, and he stopped to dinner.
After dinner, they had music, for
Sirs. Leslie played and sang charm
ingly. Then he was persuaded to
stay to tea, and in the evening the
iamily rambled in the garden, and'the
captain secured a ten minutes' tete-a
tete with the widow, in a summer
bouse overgrown with Madeira vines,
and inhabited by a spider and six ear
wigs.
It was ten o'clock when be monuted
bis horse to return to Boston; but it
was bright moonlight, and he was
romantically inclined.
The next morning be repeated his
visit, and the next, and the next. In
short, the episode of the borrowed
horse produoed a declaration and an
acceptance, and though years have
passed away, the captain has had no
occasion to regret his ride with the
widow, in the pony phaeton.—Satur
day Night.
OSACE INDIANS.
A Community So Itloh That ItH Member*
Are Rapidly Regenerating.
The Osage Indians are the richest
oommunity in the world. They nit tu
ber but 1729 souls, all told—men,
women and children; they own 1,500,•
000 acreß of valuable land; have
89,000,000 in trust with the govern
ment which pays 5 per cent, interest,
and have leases with cattlemen for the
use of their pasture lands which bring
them between 810,000 and 550.000 u
year, without counting the rent from
the agricultural lands and Ithe pro
ceeds of their own labor. That, how
ever, is very small. They have so
much money that they are lazy, idle
and in a state of rapid degeneration.
There is no more striking example of
the corrupting influences of wealth
and idleness. The Indians have no
incentive for education or labor, but
spend their time loafing and visiting
each others' homes, where, as the
agent says, "they feast and gossip
until one might suppose their capacity
for both was exhausted; but each
trifling occurrence serves as a text,
which is discussed from every possible
point of view. The old men find great
pleasure in recounting the past history
of the people, and have eager and in
terested in the children. ]
find the most efficient weapons I cau
use against these tendencies to be
ridicule ami moral suasion whereby I
impress upon them the necessity of
looking forward and of staying at tbeii
homes to look more closely after their
property and the interests of their
children."
The entire tribe is composed of
about 300 families, of which 1170 are
adults and 559 are children of school
age. This gives them over 5000 acres
of laud for eah family, with 830,000
cash for every family. Including the
"grass money," as they I'call it, which
is received from leasing the pastures,
the income of the tribe will average
8500,000 a year, which is about 8300
per capita, or 81000 per family, with
out any labor whatever. This enor
mous wealth, and the increasing value
of the lands which lie just south
of the Kansas line and consist ol
valuable timber and large tracts of rich
soil suitable for agriculture, have
made citizenship of great value, and
has caused many dissolute white men
to marry into the tribe, so that 829,
mostly children, are of mixed blood.
The "squaw men," as the whites who
marry Indian women are called, arc
not enrolled, and receive nothing
directly, but indirectly they control
the shares of their wives and children,
and have been gaining more and more
influence among the people. The
tribe is governed by a chief and fifteen
councilors, and at the last election
the mixed-bloods, or "squaw men,"
by bribers and other influences, suc
ceeded in electing their candidates
for chief and the council. This has
caused a great deal of discontent
among the l'ullbloods, and it is prob
able that the government will be conn
pelled to interfere in order to proteel
those who are really entitled to a share
in the rights of the tribe.—Chicago
Record.
Turning Seas Into Farms.
Turning inland seas into farm lairds
is what is being done in California by
the River Land and Reclamation Com
pany. Thousands of acres in the San
Joaquin Valley that were only watered
wastes full of tule and peat bogs have
been made into the be9t land in the
State, and more are being improved.
All the work has been done in the last
year.
Through the land a canal three miles
long, 100 feet wide and ten feet deep
was dug. Then levels twenty feet
wide at the base and as wide as a good
wagon road at the top, twelve feet
above the water line, were built. Af
ter dredges took all the mud from the
inclosures, pumps drained them dry,
leaving excellent farming land. The I
company making this improvement
will sell none of the reclaimed land.
It leases it to those who will farm large !
tracts on shares.
Two Curious Clock*.
The ingenuity of the scientist who
established a "clock of flowers" by
planting in regular order speci
mens whose corollas opened at specified
hours has been matched by a German
who has composed a "clock of birds."
This is especially a night clock. The
birds aud hours of their songs are as
follows: The chaffinch, 1.30 to 2 a.
in.; the titmouse, 2to 2.30; the quail,
2.30 to 3; the redstart, 3 to 3.30; the
ousel, 3.30 to 4; the warbler, 4 to 4.30;
the marshtit, 4.30t0 5; the sparrow,
5. This arrangement is, of course,
I good only in the Old World and not
I in Americr
UN SPAIN'S PHILIPPINES.
i HER RULE A CURSE TO
FERTILE ISLANDS.
flie Lot of tlie Native is Not a Happy One
—Extortion and Cruelty Practiced I) 3'
the Spauiar.ls—Characteristics of the
Islands and Their Inhabitants.
Tk9 Philippines lie wholly within
the tropics, reaching at the south to
within four auil a half degrees of the
equator, writes Dean 0. Worcester, of
the University of Michigan in the New
York Independent. Big and little, they
number some six hundred, varying in
size from Luzon, with its 40,000 square
miles, to tiny islets hardly worthy of
the name. Destructive eruptions have
occurred within recent times, while
earthquakes are frequent and often of
great violence.
The climate is intensely hot, and in
many of the islands very unhealthy for
Europeans. There are four months of
rain, four of sun, with intense heat,
and two months of variable weather at
each change of the monsoons.
The tropical scenery in the forests of
this archipelago is of unsurpassed
splendor, the heat and moisture com
bining to produce vegetation of a mag
nificence which beggars description.
Gigantic tress, towering to a height of
200 or 300 feet, are festooned with
graceful rattans, beautiful ferns, and
exquisite orchids, while underneath
splendid tree ferns rear their lovely
heads thirty or forty feet into air.
The population of the islands is es
timated at from eight to ten millions.
Excluding foreigners for the moment,
we find the natives divided into some
thing like two hundred tribes, each
with its peculiar dialect and customs.
With the single exception of the Ne
gritos, these tribes are of Malay ex
traction. The Negritos are a race of
dwarfish blacks, confined at present to
a few of the loftiest mountain ranges.
They are commonly believed to be the
aborigines of the islands. They are
a puny, sickly race, and are rapid
ly becoming extinct.
The tribes of Malay origin vary in
their development from a state of ab
solute savagery to civilization.
Extreme poverty is the rule among
the civilized natives, and its cause is
found in the heavy burden of taxation
imposed upon them by their Spanish
masters. Every person over eighteen
years of age is required to procure
annually a credula personal, or docu
ment of identification, the charge for
which varies from 81.50 to §25, ac
cording t the means of the applicaut.
Should these sums seem insignificant
it must be remembered that the aver
age native has little or no opportunity
to work for hire; that if ;he does suc
ceed in securing employment his wages
are often not more than five cents per
day and that he is usually unable to
dispose of his farm products for cash,
being compelled to exchango tnem for
other commodities. In addition to
this personal tax there is a tax on co
coanut trees, a tax on beasts of bur
den, a tax on killing animals for food,
a tax for keeping a shop, a tax on
mills or oil presses, a tax on weights
and measures, a tax on cock fighting,
and so on to the end of the chapter.
At every turn the poor native finds
himself face to face with the dire ne
cessity of paying tribnto; and he fre
quently spends his life in an ineffect
ual effort to meet the obligations thus
imposed.
Delinquent taxpayers are treated
with the utmost severity. The first
Btep is usually to strip them to the
waist, tie them to a bench or post, and
beat them unmercifully. Women are
subjected to this treatment. Should
none of these methods prove effective
deportation follows, with confiscation
of property and the leaving of women
and children to shift for themselves.
I once saw forty-four men deported
from Siquijor because they owed taxes
varying in amount from two to forty
dollars. I was informed that they
would be allowed to return to
their families, if they could find
thein, after working out the amount
of their several debts. The wages
allowed them were to be six cents per
day. Board was to be furnished them
at a cost of five cents per day, and
they were to clothe and shelter them
selves! In other words, their sen
tence amounted to deportation for
life.
Should a native manage to get
abroad and secure some little educa
tion, he is likely to be invited on
board a gunboat some evening and not
heard from thereafter, the reason for
his disappearance being that he knew
oo much.
The Governor-General is surround
ed by a numerous corps of officials to
lid biin in the performance of his du
ties, while the islands are divided
bto provinces, over each of which
presides a Governor and a horde of
lainor officials. The whole Adminis
tration is rotten from skin to core.
tVith few exceptions, these officials
Cave come from Spain with the delib
erate and frankly expressed intention
Df improving their pecuniary status.
A few years "ago it used to he said
that the Governor of a provinoe who
failed to become wealthy iu two years
was a fool.
Hostility toward foreigners 13 in
tense. The extensive export and im
port trade of the islands is in the
hands of foreign houses, to the great
disgust of the Spanish, who never
weary in their attempts to frame leg
islation for tho ruin of these money
making interlopers.
All in all, it can hardly he said that
the lot of a Philippine native is a
happy one. He constantly chafes un
der his burden, while the half castes,
with their greater sensitiveness and
superior intelligence, are perpetually
boiling with more or less well-con
cealed fury. Were arms and ammu
nition to be bod, Spain's rule in these
islands would be speedily terminated.
As it is. the natives, stirred un and
led by the half-castes, have repeatedly
risen against the Government.
Naturally the Philippine native is a
peaceable, easy-going fellow. Under
a decent form of government he would
give little trouble. No one familiar
with existing conditions can doubt
| that Spanish rule has been a curss to
I these islands, and it would be a happy
| day for them should some civilized
power take possession of them. Their
largest cities are well-nigh defense
less and could be readily captured
unless defended by a powerful naval
force.
Flower-Viewing in Japan.
Miss Ida Tigner Hodnett writes ol
"The Little Japanese at Home" in St.
Nicholas. Miss Hodnett says:
It is one of the national customs to
go out on excursions, in parties of two
or three families, to view the flower
ing trees and plants in their season.
The Japanese love all flowers, but
prefer those to which they look up—
the flowers of trees. They visit the
plum blossoms in February or earlj
March; the cherry, especially be
loved, in April; the lotus, in July;
azaleas, during the summer; chrysan
themums, in the autumn, and camel
lias, in December. In the pleasure
grounds connected with every temple
there are always magnificent colleo
tions of flowers. An expedition es
pecially to see the flowers is called s
hanami, or flower view. The bank of
the Sumida River, which crosses the
city of Tokio, is covered with cherry
trees. These give a pleasant shade,
and the spot is a favorite promenade
for the citizens all the year round,
but in time of "cherry bloom" the
crowds that throng the avenue art
larger than ever. It is crowded on
moonlight nights, and also when the
snow lies freshly fallen.
Being fully alive to the beauty of
their country, wherever there is a
jjoiut from which a picturesque view
may be obtained the Japanese will
build a pavilion, or a tea house, or
some similar place of repose, from
which the eyes may feast on the lovely
landscape. In the family picnics or
excursions, which are frequent, some
place of beautiful situation from which
there is a good view either of land or
sea is always selected.
These expeditions are not discon
tinued even when the cold of winter
comes. Snow scenes are greatly en
joyed, and when the freshly fallen
snow is lying on the ground numerous
parties are seen at points commanding
a fine view. The children are never
excluded, but accompany their elders
on all such occasions.
Profit in Whtß'ters.
A peculiar but profitable industry
among the natives of Alaska is the
preparation and sale of walrus whis
kers for toothpicks.
Nature has armed the animal with
whiskers that extend three or four
inches from its snout, and the appar
ent use of which is to enable it to de
tect an iceberg before actual contact
has taken place.
These whiskers are quite stiff, and
this quality increases with age. After
a walrus has been killed the natives,
with the aid of rude pincers, pro
ceed to pull out each separate hair.
After a thorough drying these hairs
are arranged in neat packages and ex
ported to China, where Chinamen of
the upper class use them in their
toilet.
A Strunge Accident.
A strange accident is reported from !
Logan County. Mrs. Lizzie Bowers,
wife of a farmer nearLewisburg, went
out to ring the bell for the farm hands
to come to dinner, and the clapper
from the bell fell out and struck her
on the head. Her skull was fractured
aud she fell to the ground insensible,
where she lay until the men came to
the house. She has suffered a great
deal, but will probably recover.—
Louisville Courier-Journal.
A London Idea of American Manners.
In aii article describing the ladies'
billiard saloon of the Waldorf-Astoria
Hotel, in New York, the London
Globe enlightens its readers with the
following veracious observation: "If
a man should be so bold as to remove
bis coat, au attendant instantly bauds
him a lounge jacket. All present shut
their eyes, and do not open them again
until the ringing of a bell announces
that the shirt sleeves have been cov
ered."
Of Course He Got Her.
The Old Gentleman —"l would
rather see my daughter in her coffin
than married to yon!"
The Young Fellow—"Oh, come,
now, you can't mean that. I know {
coffins are cheap at present, but she 1
tells mo she'll be satisfied with a very
modest wedding outfit, and I'm will- S
ing to pay for the gas that's burned j
during the ceremony." Chicago!
News.
Aii Old Papyrus.
The old saying that nothing is ever :
lost is unexpectedly verified by the i
recent finding in a tomb at Luxor, :
Egypt, where it had lain concealed j
for 1800 years, of a papyrus contain-!
ing twenty poems by Bncchylides, a
great Greek poet, whose writings had .
wholly disappeared.
A Pert Uueglioo.
Willy Peck—"Say, Popper, Tom-!
my Strongwill's father nsked me o i
funny question the other day."
Mr. Henry Peck—"Did he, my i
son? What was it?"
Willy Peck—"He asked me what
your name was before you were mar
ried."—Puck.
Society News In India.
We learn from an Indian paper thai
Mr. and-Mrs. Thambynayagampillai
are now on a visit to Kovilkudyirruppu.
Mr. Thambynayagampillai is the son
of Judge G. S. Arianayagampillai and
son-in-law of Mr. A. Jambulingam
mudelliar.—Westminster Gazette.
A CUBAN CHARCE.
Much I>cpen<lft on the Machete ami St'lngl
ami Thong* Are Factor.,
Strings, thongs and snap-catches
play important parts in the held uni
form of a Cuban insurgent. Persons
who have seen the little band of Cu
ban patriots with Buffalo Bill's Wild
West Show come dashiug into the
arena have noticed that each man, by
a quick .rovement of the head, throws
off his straw hat. The hat, which is
held by a string, dangles npon the
horseman's shoulders during his ride.
The movement, revealing the line,
alert and spirited faces of the men who
served under Gomez aud Maceo, looks
like a trick for theatric effect, but it
is what they always do when riding
into action, so one of the little band
explained the other day.
I "The Spanish soldiers," he said,
"have the Mauser rifle, which kills at
1000 or 1200 yards, while we have only
the Remington carbine, which is of
short range. It is all we can afford.
If we remain at a distance, the Span
ish without danger to themselves will,
as you Americans says, 'wipe us out.'
So we must get close to them. That
is the first consideration. The Mau
ser bullet will not kill any more at one
yard than at 1000, but it is different
with the machete. For it close quar
ters is neoessary.
"Now, see how we are prepared for
an attack. The carbine hangs by this
snap-catch from the belt on the left
side. The revolver, suspended by a
strong string through its butt, hangs
on the left side. The machete, by a
thong through the handle, swings
from the right wrist. The hat is made
fast by a string so that it may be
thrown back, out of the way but not
lost, for we are too poor to lose any
thing, even an old straw hat, and
when the fight is over, if we are alive
we will want our hats. But during
the fight we want our heads bare,
clear, that we may see. The Span
iard pulls his hat down over his eyes.
"The order is given to charge!
Three, four, or five hundred yards we
must go very fast—straight for the
Spaniards, who all the time have us
in range of their Mausers, while we
can do nothing to them. Then we
are close enough for the carbine to
have effect anil they go bang-bang
baug, fast as we can load and fire. Ah!
If we only had magazine guns like
yours; but they are too costly for us.
Quickly we are close enough for the
revolver to do execution. The carbine
goes back to its hook on the belt and
the revolver speaks bang-baug-bang
until it is empty, when it is dropped
for the string to take care of.
"By that time we are on our enemy
with the machete. That is the tool
to kill with. Shots tired in a gallop
may miss, but there is no mistake
about the chop of the machete. The
Spaniard knows it and dislikes it ex
ceedingly. A man who knows how to
handle the machete can lop off an arm
or a head or split a man like a carrot
with it. A gun may get out of order,
ammunition may be exhausted, but
the good machete is always ready for
service. Grind it sharp when it is
dulled on bones, and it will not fail to
serve you well.
"When the fight is over everything
is in place. The hat is put back on
the head, for our sun is very hot; the
revolver and carbine hang in their
places ready for reloading, and we are
prepared for another fight."—"-New
York Sun.
Traveling llagl For Fifth.
A new method of transportation for
live fish from seaports into the in
terior has just been . patented by a
Danish fish dealer, P. H. Lohman, of
Copenhagen, aud the system is so
simple and yet so perfect that one
wonders that it has never been thought
of before.
The inventor had a number of large
bags made of waterproof material,
strong oilcloth appearing to give the
best results. These bags, after being
filled with water and the fish to be
sent inland, are laced at the top and
either suspended in the cars from
hooks in the roof of the car, or from
folding frames, taking almost no
space, and allowing the close hanging
of these bags, so that there is but lit
tle movement between the bags. They
may also be set upright alongside each
other, but suspension has been found
to be preferable, particularly for long
distance. Several transports of fish
made over long distances have shown
the splendid features of the new sys
tem, for the fish arrived in excellent
condition after a sixtcen-hour ride.—
Philadelphia Record.
The Oiliest Throne.
The oldest throne or State chair in
existence is that which belonged to
Queen Hatshepsu, who lived about
1600 years B. C. This throne is now
In the British Museum. It is made of
iiard wood and highly ornameuted, the
carving being very curious through
out. Bound the legs there is a quantity
of gold filigree work, aud from these
spring out. as it were, two cobras
modelled in silver. The terminations
of the throne-legs are well designed
hoofs. The back is inlaid with silver
and there are other cobras enlacing the
arms, which are highly gilded.
The One Except,on.
"Everybody seems to have a new
bonnet this morning," whispered .
Mrs. Highmore, "except that little
woman in the brown dress who just
now came in."
"Yes," whispered Mrs. Upjohn in
reply. "It's more than likely she
can't afford it. She's the pastor's
wife."—Chicago Tribune.
One Stat eg man's Start.
Governor Renfrew, of Oklahoma,
got his start in life exhibiting a pet
rified child in Arkansas twenty years
ago. He says that he recognized the
child the other day, but that it has
grown some and is now being exhib
ited as a petrified woman.