l'orto Rico means door to riches.
The Spaniards have kept it shut and
locked so long that it may prove a
misnomer.
The formation and title of the Ig
norance club of Rochester, N. Y. f
was suggested by a magazine nrticle
which related the experience of a man
who had a habit of jotting down in
his notebook such tojjica as he found
himself ignorant of, the desired in
formation being sought at the earliest
opportunity.
The officers of the Philadelphia
Museum have receive 1 a letter from
New South Wales, in which it is said ;
"When the federation of the Austral
ian colonies shall have been accom
plished English and American dealers
will commence to build* large factories
in and near Sydney. Several largfl
firms have already arranged for them." j
Many an American boy, as he reads
of the delirious feminine effusions on
Hobson kisser, dancer ard best
man and the extravagant mascu
line panegyrics on Hobson man
of courage, good habits aud brains
—looks at himself in a glass
and wonders if he possesses any
of the attributes of embryonic great
ness, if he ever will have a chance tc
sink a Merrimac, it' he will be the
idol of all the people. Without such 1
ideals as Hobson to look up to out
youth would degenerate into a very 1
leprosy of effeminacy.
The Baltimore American says: "The !
effort to introduce foreign quail into !
this country has apparently proven o
complete failure. Several years ago
sportsmen through this country were
deeply interested in the attempt made
in this state to propagate quail from
other countries. Many birds were
imported into this city,and then liber
ated throughout the state. These
have apparently all disappeared. The
most conspicuous attempts were trans
porting here of birds from the Scillj
Isands and from China. The money
spent in this direction was a loss.
The last attempt on an elaborate scale
lo stock Maryland with exotic birde
was by Frank T. Redwood, the stock
broker and member of the Baltimore
Yacht club, and a hunt for his birds
reveals the fact that none of thorn are
to be found."
The Berlin (Germany) Reichsanzel
ger has published an official statement
of the finances of the kingdom ol
Prussia which is of great interest in
many ways. It shows Prussia to be the
most prosperous industrial state ill
the world, and explains how it is able
to meet the heavy charges imposed
by tlie political and military situation
of Germany. With a population ol
about 32,000,000, tlie public debt ol
Prussia is rather more than 850 pei
capita, or about 81,625,000,000. It
has been increased by 8450,000,000 in
the last six years, but of tliis amount
only about 825,000,000 was expended
on unproductive work. Tho cost tc
the state of the whole debt is only
Boo,t)00,000 a year, while the net rev
enue received from the public works
and state properties is over 8135,000,
000. The net revenue of the railways
belonging to the state, which in 1880-
61 was only 823,000,000 during past
years has averaged close 011 875,000,
000, and for 1808-90 is estimated at
8109,500,000. The state domains am
forests yield an average of 812,500,000.
A new an 1 a widening feature in
library work has been introduced iu
tbe public library of Cleveland aud in
the Cambridge (Mass.) public library.
It is that of looking up references
needed by members of various literary
societies or clubs, aud systematizing
the same by cards. In Cleveland
clubs deposit their programs for the
year's work with the woman in charge
of this department, whose assistant"
look up tho subject-matter in advance
thus greatly facilitating the prepara
tion of club papers. The board has
also sot apart an alcove to bo knowr
as Club Corner for tho special conven
ience of club members, men and worn
cn. It is filled with cases of books
most called for by clubs —histories,
travels, etc. TTo samo lino of work
has been carried on in Cambridge ii
connection with the Economy club, t
society of about seventy-five young
men, who meet once a fortnight tc
discuss economic an 1 political qnos
Hons. Ihe club issue's a prospectus
at the beginning of each of its twe
terms, giving the subject to bo con
aidered at each meeting, the subject!
of one or more essays, and tbe res
olutions upon which there will be 0
debate. The librarian and his assist
ants follow this list, and for the tvvc
weeks preceding each meeting kooj
a selected list of books nnd back num
hers of periodicals designed to fur
nish tlio information needed 011 the
enbjoet specially reserved for the
members of the club.
1 THUS THE INDIANS LIVED. 1
i°: <<&
_ —; —r — §
i$ Incidents of a I rader's Visit to a Camp on the 53
53 Plains.
FALL was a month
away, aud the
days passed slow
ly and with un
varied monotony
atKipp, Montana,
our trading post
I WJ on the upper Mis
| souri. The In
dians were far out
i on the prairie, camping with the buf
falo and securing the thin, light sum
mer skins with which to rnako new
lodges, moccasins, and various other
things. It was hot iu the river valley;
not a baeath of wind stirred the foli
age of the cotton-woods, and we
wandered from one place to another
trying to find tlio coolest nook. There
was nothiug to do to pass the time ex
cept sleep aud eat and count tho days
that must pass ere the cold weather
would drivo the Indians back to the
river and trade would begin again. I
was not a little pleased, then, when
one day a runner from the Blood lu
diau camp brought word that the chief
desired a wagonload of trade goods
sent out to them, aud the head trader
ordered me to go, selecting as my as
sistant a French half-breed employe
named Archie, a trusty man aud a
cheerful companion. Long before
noon we loaded a heavy wagon with
sugar, coffee, tobacco and cartridges,
hitched on four good horses and be
gan to pull up the long, steep hill
which wound up through the pines to
the prairies, several miles from the
river. At last we reached the level of
the rolling table land, and how pleas
] ant it was to feel the cool prairie
breeze in our faces and to gaze upon
i the endless expanse of plains and
mountains about us! Southward the
snowy mountains loomed up as dis
! tiuct and clear cut as if they were but
a mile or two away, yet they were
nearly fifty. Off to the cast and south
east numberless flat-topped aud pine
clad buttes rose from the plain as far
as we could see, and everywhere was
the bright sunlit prairies, the clear
blue sky, and the cooling wind.
Our horses were fresh aud we made
good time under Archie's skilful driv
ing, reaching big Crooked Creek,
twenty miles or more from the river,
long before dark. While Archie cared
for the horses I went up the creek a
j little way with my rifle and secured a
I fat antelope from a bunch which was
| coming iu to the water. We soon built
| a fire of buffalo chips and had a hearty
i meal of liver, hard bread and tea.
! The country we were in was infested
by war parties of hostile Indians,
j especially tli6 Sioux, aud we knew we
' were running a good chance of losing
! our scalps by camping there. So as
i soou as supper was over we put out
[ the fire, aud carrying our bedding
some distance away, lay down for the
night, not omitting to coil a hair rope
around the robes to ward off any stray
rattlesnakes which might come along.
| Some time in the night a small herd of
! buffalo came along and got quite close
to us before they bad our wind; then
they ran off, snorting and pounding
1 the prairie like thunder with their
heavy hoofs; but our horses were used
to them and did not stampede, as we
feared they might.
i About 10 o'clock the next day we
came iu sight of tlio Bload camp,which
was strung up and down a little stream
whoso head is in the Snowy Mountains.
Almost every family had a new lodge,
and very white and neat they looked
in the clear sunlight. Game of all
kinds was evidently very plenty in the
vicinity, for about every lodge hung
: long lines of drying meat, aud tho
j ground was covered with the skins of
j buffalo, elk, antelope aud deer, pegged
! cut to dry. We drove at once to the
j chief's lodge, aud he greeted us very
! kindly, ordered his wives—ho had five
| —to unload our wagon aud stow the
! goods inside the lodge, and made us
j sit with him and smoke aud eat and
exebango the news. But we were not
to rest very long; the camp was short
of cartridges aud tobacco, and soou
wo had the lodge surrounded with
men anxious to trade. Antelope aud
deer skins were quoted at forty cents
a pound that season, or about a dollar
each, aud elk hides were worth as
much again. For tho former we paid
eight cartridges, and for tho latter
twelve, at a cost of sixteen or twenty
four cents; and tobacco, tea, sugar and
other things wo disposed of at a like
ratio. But the Indians were well sat-
I isfied, aud returned to their lodges
with their iittle purchases rejoicing.
Our host, Chief Pe-uuk-wi-im, was
one of tho jolliest old Indians I ever
knew. Ho was very portly, aud had
long since given up the chase, but he
could well afford to do so, for he
had several hundred head of horses,
1 which he had uo difficulty in lending
! to poor young men for half tho spoils
j of the chase, and one or two young
i orphan boys lived with him and cared
| for them for their board and clothes.
His five wives toiled unceasingly to
tan and dry tho robes and hides which
! were constantly being brought in.
j Yet they bad a comparatively easy
time, for they did not work very long
hours, tliey rested when they pleased,
aud they were contented, for they
knew that the lot of women was to
toil and to serve their lord nnd mas
ter. While there was no open jealousy
among them, they vied with one nn
•ether in their attentions to the chief,
and ho in turn seemed to regard them
all with equal favor. The head, or
oldest, wife was in a measure the
ovorsoor of tho others and directed
their work, and her place in tho lodge
*"3 always by tho sidi of her husband
lat his right hand. Yet this appar
ently gave her no advantage over
them in any respect.
As the sun went down all work
ceased. Tho hunters returned from
the chase, feasts were called out here
nnd there, aud the camp was filled
with song nnd laughter. Among the
younger people dances and games of
chance were in order, while the older
oues smoked aud told stories of war,
the chase, or recounted tho wonderful
doings of the gods. Every evening
the head men of the tribe, the noted
warriors, medicine men and sages
gathered in Pe-nuk-wi-im's lodge,and
I was always interested in listening to
their tales, and so was Archie, so long
as the story was of tho chase or war.
But when they talked of religion, of
the power and greatness of their gods,
Archie would become impatient,, for,
like all tho halfbreeds of French de
scent, he was a strict Catholic, aud
had no faith in their heathen ways.
It was amusing to hear him argue
with theui as to the relative strength
of their gods and his, and I cannot say
that he ever got the bettor of the ar
gument. One evening Archie, with
great pains and detail told about Dan
iel iu the liou's deu, and when he had
finished a tall, brawny warrior re
marked that the beasts bad probably
just eaten a hearty meal and were too
lazy to move.
"I myself," be said, "single handed
and with only a knife, once crawled
into a bear's den I found. I prayed
to the Sun to aid me, and when I saw
the bears I stabbed with all my might.
There were three in the den, and I
killed them all. That's more than
your mau did, for by your own account
it would seem he was afraid to fight."
Very early one morning it was re
ported that a large herd of buffalo
were feeding on a high table land
three or four miles east of tho camp.
Tho camp) crier was soon abroad,
shouting oat the news, and the war
riors, aroused from their sleep, came
tumbling out of the lodges iu baste
for their horses. One of the strictest
rules for the government of the people
was that regarding the buffalo limit
ing. Thinking life was dependent on
a supply of these animals, which were
their food, clothiug and shelter, a
liuuter might go by himself to bunt
deer, elk or other small game, but
when buffalo was discovered no one
was allowed to hunt them alone, un
der penalty of confiscation and de
struction of his property, and even
death. Sharp lookouts were always
watching for a herd, aud when one
was seen the camp crier spread the
news. The hnuters assembled at the
chief's lodge, and when all were ready
they started out together, under the
leadership of some chief, aud thus
had an equal chance.
It was not half an hour after the
alarm lind-been given before tbe war
riors, mounted 011 their fleet ponies,
were assembled about us. Saddles
bad been discarded, aud eveu cloth
iug, many of the men wearing only
tho breeehclout and moccasins. .Most
of them were armed with rifles, hut
some carried bows and arrows, which
at close quarters were almost as rapid
and effective as guns. It was a grand
sight to see these lithe and sinewy
men move off at the signal of their
leader. The impatient horses strained
at their bits aud curvetted from side
to side, and their riders, erect aud
graceful, sat them as if horses and
riders were one. No sooner were the
men gone than the women began to
string out after them, mounted ou
their gentler ponies, nnd boys went
with them driving strings of pack ani
mals which were to bring back the
meat and hides. By this time the
chief's wives had prepared our morn
ing meal, and after eating I borrowed
a horse from the old chief aud rode
out toward the scene of the hunt. I
was much too late to join in the chase.
By the time I reached tho plateau ou
which tho buffalo bad been discovered,
the herd bad been run and the sur
vivors were gone, but the sagebnsh
plain was thickly dotted with the huge
forms of the slain to tlio number of
several hundred, and now the hunters,
the women nnd the boys were busy
skinning them and cutting up tho
meat. Here aud thero a couple of
moil were quarreling over the owner
ship of a fat cow, which both claimed
to have shot. But these disputes were
seldom serious, aud generally eudod
iu a division of the meat. Iu the old
days, when tho bow and arrow was
the only weapon used these quarrels
seldom occurred, for each Indian had
a mark on his shafts.
Many of the hunters, havingpointed
out to their women tho animals they
had killed, now began to ride slowly
toward liome. They had done their
sliaro of tlio work. They were very
happy over their success, aud nearly
every ono ivlio passed called out that
lie would send a tongue over to tbe
chief's lodge for 1110. Not a littlo in
terested in watching the women out
i up tho buffalo, although I bad seen
I them at such work lunny times, I rode
out along the line of chase, which ox
j tended several miles. Tho women
were iu very good liuuior, too, that
morning, and laughed and joked with
each other while they worked. There
is nothing so conducive to content
ment as a goodly store of provisions.
As I rodo among tliom they turned
their witticisms cn me, and I cannot
I say that I got tho better of these en
counters.
While I was jolting with them we
were startled by hearing heavy filing
beyond, and looking toward the enil
of the line of the chase, we saw a large
party of yelling horsemen swooping
down on the scattered groups of wo
men and men. They were firing their
guns rapidly, and nlready had killed
several of our people. By this time
very few of our men remained on the
grounds, most of them having re
turned to camp; hut what few were
left instantly mounted their horses
and rode swiftly toward the enemy,
and I went with them. When the
enemy had first been discovered, as
they rode up over the edgo of the
plateau, the women had instinctively
rushed to the men for protection, but
some had already been cut off and were
killed and scalped. The survivors
now formed five different groups, each
one protected by from three to seven
or eight men, who were liriug rapidly
at the circling enemy. And as for the
enemy, they seemed to be everywhere,
at once, wheeling, circling 011 their
lleet horses, never bunching, and pre
senting a difficult mark. They were
Sioux, and decked out in the full war
costume peculiar to them. There wera
a dozen of us hastening to the defence
of those beyond, and as we drew near
tho Sioux circled out and made for the
women we had left behind, who were
shrieking and chattering with fear.
Wo turned then and headed them off,
killing two of their number, and they
shot a man who was riding by my
side. The poor follow threw up his
hands aud tumbled off his horse stone
dead. All this time we were being
reinforced by men from the different
groups, an.l soon there were twenty
three of us, charging and checking
every move of tho Sioux, who num
bered forty-one, including the two we
had killed. They weife good fighters,
hut our people were better, for they
were fighting with desperation for
their women aud children. As they
drew away from our pursuit we deter
mined to lot them go, aud turned back
toward tho women, thinking the fight
was over. In the meantime the Sioux
had stopped and evidently held a
council, for suddenly they started to
ward us again, spreading out like a
fan, so as to attack the whole length
of our line. Wo scattered, too, aud
with three others I hastened toward
tho women at the point from which I
had at first started. And now all along
began a general fusillade. Our men
had all dismounted here and there
among the women, and their shots be
gan to tell, for every minute or two a
Sioux, and sometimes both horse and
rider, would fall among the sage bush.
Their shooting even from the backs of
their Hying horses was not without
effect, for they killed two more women
aud wounded a man. But now rein
forcements began to come in sight, for
some of our hunters, who were riding
leisurely home, had heard the shoot
ing aud returned to see what was up.
As soon as the enemy saw them com
ing they ceased tiring at us aud started
off to the south as fast as they could
go, pursued by some of the men who
had been protecting the women, aud
all of the newcomers, fifty-four all told.
We now had time to count up our
losses, which we found to be two men,
seven women and one hoy killed, and
three men, eight women and four boys
and girls wounded. Of the enemy '
we had killed seven aud seriously
wounded one, who was quickly des
patched. Three of our party who
were killed lost their scalps, and we,
of course, took eight. It did not take
me long to hasten back to camp and
tell what had befallen us, and then
what excitement there was! Men ex
citedly mshed for their arms and
horses and hastened away. Women
cried and wailed and surrounded me,
begging to know who lmd been killed, j
I could not, of course, give tho names
of tho women, but when I told who !
the men were their relatives in the
crowd hastened away, sobbing out
their names, to prepare for their bur
ial. In an hour or two tho dead and
wounded were brought in, and tho
sound of mourning was heard on
every hand,, and mingled with it one
could hear the relatives of those who
had killed an enemy calling out their
names and praising their courage and
success. About sundown the pursu
ing party returned, having had a run
ning fight with the Sioux for miles.
They had killed two more of them,
but had finally given up the chase, as
tho enemy had better horses.
Archie and I put in a sleepless
night, for tho mourning was kept up
without intermission. Even iu our
lodge there was sorrow and gloom, for
one of tho chief's wives had lost a
brother. We both were depressed by
the calamity which had befallen the
people. Early iu the morning tho
dead, carefully wrapped and bound iu
blankets and robes, were carried on
tvnvois to a grove of cottonwoods up
tho stream and then placed on plat
forms lashed to the branches, for their
eternal sleep. Beneath the aerial
graves of tho men horses were killed
that they might not go nfoot to the
sandhills, aud by their sides or
wrapped up with them were their
weapons and war clothes. Mission
aries and others have made such an
outcry against this practice that the
Government long ago forbade it.
Tho next afternoon the scalp dance
took place. Those who had lost rela
tives painted their faces black, the
women cutting off their hair and scari
fying their arms and ankles. They
carried the scalps of the enemy sus
pended from sticks, and went about
through tho camp, stopping here and
- there to dance aud sing the plaintive
scalp song. Few white persons have
1 any tasto for Indian music, yet some
of onr greatest musicians have pro
nounced it purely classical in con
struction. One could clearly por
ceivo in this scalp song the domiuant
thome of sorrow for the dead kindred,
and a minor one of joy that they had
been avenged. Afterward theao
scalps wero handed over to the war
riors, Rud thef in turn danced with
them; bnt thai.' song was one of exul
tant victory,--Now York Sun.
ig3i©ieK?ieiei€^KvK3(©i®©!e4©i©fo(efefei©!©feie
I GOOD ROADS NOTES. I
iiOioieieieieieieieieieieiaieK^Neieieieieieieieieie
Weight of Roatl Rollers.
There are sections of the country
which pride themselves on their mac
adam roads, but which fail to con
struct them in a scientific manner,
and do not get the results that should
follow sueli heavy expenditures as
they make. One serious fault is the
lack of proper rolling, light rollers
drawn by two or four horses being
employed. They cannot compact the
stone by such methods, and, conse
quently, resort to a free use of cloy
for "binding" purposes. A smooth
surface is secured at the outset, but it
soon wears and ruts, and gets muddy
with every storm.
Iu considering the best weight forn
roller tho Municipal World states the
case fairly, as follows: "A heavy
load roller is without question an in
dispensable implement in the con
struction of macadam streets. Muo
adam roads were, of coarse, built be
fore steam rollers were invented, bnt
crops were harvested before self-bind
ers were invented. The effect of a
roller in road making is as great an
advance on the old results as is the
use of the self-hinder on the work of
the cradle.
"There are different kinds and.
classes of rollers. The horsa roller,
weighing six or eight tons, will do
iairly well if a steam roller cannot be
afforded, but the horse roller is no.t
sufficiently heavy, and has to be used
much longer on a given section than a
heavy steam roller to produce the
best results. Tho feet of the horses,
in exerting sufficient strength to move
the roller, sink into aud disturb the
road metal, and thereby injure the
shape and quality of the roadway.
There is a dangor, 011 the other hand,
of having a steam roller which is too
heavy. Avery heavy roller will some
times sink into loose soil and create a
mound over which it cannot pass.
The same result will sometimes occur
with an excessively heavy roller on a
layer of loose stone. The heavy
roller is move liable, too, to injure
underground pipes, catch-basins, cul
verts, bridges or disturb sidewalks.
"For these reasons, a roller exceed
ing ten or twelve tons in weight is
frequently not desirable. In districts
where the natural soil is gravelly, or
of a stiff clay, a heavy roller may gen
erally be operated successfully, but
some municipalities have made the
mistake of purchasing a too heavy
roller and have found it necessary to
use a light-horse roller in consolidat
ing the sub-soil and first layers. Nor
if the stone used in the construction
of macadam streets is of a soft nature,
is a heavy roller, say of twenty tons,
desirable even in the finishing courses,
as the crushing effect has been found
in some cases to crumble aud pulver
ize the stone, rather than merely con
solidate it.
"For new work, in which the dirt
foundation must be rolled, a weight
of twelve tons is generally the most
serviceable; bnt for picking up an old
roadway and reconsolidating it or for
finishing a new work, fifteen tons is
better. Where a town owns only one
roller it is generally advisable to con
sider very carefully the work to be
done before purchasing a roller of
over twelve tons' weight."
Live Up to the Specifications.
Specifications and contract for a road
may he all right, but tho work of
construction needs to be constantly
watched in order to insure the literal
carrying out of their provisions. Con
tractors, as a rule, do not appreciate
tho necessity for being precise in fol
lowing out details. They are neither
engineers nor scientitto road-lmilders,
aud a little variation iu the size of the
3tone, the effect of light rollers aud
insufficient rolling, or the use of clay
for binding purposes, does not seem
to them to bo of much moment. They
know that they can finish up a job
with a horse-roller and plenty of clay
for binding and make the surface ap
pear as fine as can be desired. There
their concern onds. The mud chat
works out with every rain and the rap
idity with which large stones show
through the surface do not trouble
them.
Mucadam is not perhaps au ideal
road, but there is a vast difference be
tween different sorts of road built
under that name. If rightly construct
ed and judiciously maintained, thor
oughly satisfactory results are assured;
hut if more or less crudely built, and
then indifferently maintained or neg
lected, as is apt to bo the case, it is
an expensive luxury likely to cause
disappointment. It is folly to suppose
that anyone can build a road. It re
quires special knowledge aud experi
ence to construct one properly and a
rigid adherence to the terms of prop
erly-drawn specifications.—L. A. W.
Bulletin.
Wide Tiro Experience.
I have used a set of steel wheels
Iwo years, writes J . E. Hollar, and they
proved a success, as they never roll
the mud as the narrow tiro with
wooden felloes and spokes, and I think
Missouri mud will roll if it will auy
whore. I usud them auywliero and
everywhere, hard roads, dusty roads,
in deep mud, and in soft. Deep mud
is where I found their advantage over
narrow tires the greatest, and in
handling and loading anything and
everything they uro better by a great
deal than narrow tires.
The Warfare Against Ruts.
If every man will seo that the road
in his vicinity is fixed the rest will he
easily cared for.
So long as wagons abuse highways
by cutting them up with narrow tires
so long ought all sueli vehioles to pay
a tire tax for the privilege.
"If poor roads are good enough,"
asks the Hope Valley (R. I.) Adver
tiser, "who can say at what degree of
poorness it is best to maintain them?"
There is no greater mistake tAan to
suppose that a macadam road once
laid needs no care. The most econo
mical method of maintenance is to
give it constant attention.
Any one who can devise a method
to make drivers, especially with heavy
teams, keep out of tbe ruts, which are
the ruin of all roads, will be a bene
factor to all who use the highways.
Some of the newspapars of the City
of Mexico are beginning to point out
the importance to their republic ol
having ample means of communication
besides those furnished by the rail
roads. At present their highway
facilities are very meagre.
The roadsides of this country are
the most neglected of any of tho
civilized globe. They are, as a rule,
merely seed beds for all the pestifer
ous weeds that grow in the country.
Every farmer should keep his own
share of the roads free from weeds as
a matter of policy.
Tlie Woodcliuck a* Food.
The flesh of tho woodchuck is not
of a quality or flavor that commends it
to the palate of tho average mau, and
if it is not carefully and properly pre
pared for cooking it becomes positive
ly offensive. In the Pennsylvania
Dutch counties, especially Laucastor
and Berks, the cooking and serving
of woodcliuck has been reduced to a
culinary science, and "grouuhog
luncbes" are among the favorite
dishes of the epicure there. Uudor
tho manipulation of the thrifty house
wives and careful restaurateurs there
abouts the woodcliuck becomes a
morsel that the most fastidious gour
met cannot treat with contempt. The
tciulerest and sweetest broiled chicken
is not superior to the "groundhog,
Lancaster style."
Another use to which tho wood
chuck is put in that part of Pennsyl
vania cannot bo recommended us
highly as tho cooking of it. The aui
mal is taken alive by patient and ex
pert trappers and is kept for a sport
similar to the once favorite English
sport of badger-bating. Dogs are
trained pnrposely for this. They are
either unbroken bird dogs, or dogs
that are a cross between a fox
hound and a beaglehound. These
baiting matches are said to rival tho
fiercest encounters between blooded
bulldogs, for the .woodcliuck, when
cornered, is a terrible antagonist. If
once it thrusts its long, rodent teetli
into a dog they pass clear through
and lock into the flesh, and the hold
can be broken only by tearing the
flesli away. It takes a good dog to
master a woodcliuck in these matches,
and more than one good one has been
known to have been killed by a wood
chuck before it itself met its fate.—
New York Sun.
XVh.n Snmp.on Ileal-.1 I lie New..
It may not be generally known, but
Admiral Sampson is ail inventive gen
ius as well as a naval fighter. In the
early days of his career in the service
this genius received a severe shook,
from which the admiral never fully re
covered. Or at least that is what a
number of his associates in the navy
declare. It was also in the early days
of tho new navy when the incident
about to be related occurred. Tho ad
miral was at the time n lieutenant, and
was in command of a small sailing ves
sel. For many years he had worked
on a kind of anemometer, or wind
gauge. It was his hobby, and was
nearer and dearer to him than nllfelse
iu the world. Finally it was complete,
and one day it stood on the roof of tho
cabin, tliat 'protruded for some dis
tance above the deck. The little boat
was rocking idly to and fro in a calm.
Lieutenant Sampson was below en
joying a siesta. Suddenly a gush of
wind rippled the water, the mainsail
boom swung violently across liij deck.
Smash! and over into the fathomless
deep went that precious anemome
ter.
"Orderly," called the officer of the
deck.
"Yes, sir?" replied a bluejacket,
saluting.
"Inform tbe commander of tho ship
that his anemometer has gone over
board."
"Yes, sir." The orderly made for
tbe cabin oompauionway.
"And, orderly "
"Yes, sir?"
"Brenk it to him gently."—Wash
ington Star.
What Should Ie Taxed.
Some years since (1873) a citizen of
Tennessee, Mr. Enoch Ensley, mak
ing no pretense of scholastic learning
or private interests, but earnestly de
siriug the material development of his
section of the country (Tennessee),
and that it should not be retarded by
the adoption of an unsound system of
State or municipal taxation, published
ill the form of a letter addressed to
tho Governor of the State a little
pamphlet entitled "What Should Be
Taxed," which sels forth certain fun
damental propositions in respect to
local taxation, and supported them
with such homely and clear illustra
tions as to entitle the essay to a per
manent place in economic and legal
literature.
Mr. Ensley commences by propos
ing the following rule of maxim as the
basis for a State (Teunessee), city, or
county system of taxation;
"Never tax anything that would be
of value to your State, that could and
would run away, or that could or
would come to you." Appletona'
Popular Science Monthly.
A l'.'ant Sarretl to the Druids/
The plant known as tho vervain,
common name of plants of the genus
verbena, which is not distinguished
ior its beauty, and which grows now
adays utterly disregarded, was sc
sacred to tbe Druids that they only
gathered it for their divinations when
the great dog star arose, in order that
neither sun or moon should see the
deed. i
RELIGION AMONG OUR FIGHTERS.
Request* For Prayer* Received at Camp
Meetings From Soldier* and Sailor*.
Features of camp meetings in Penn
sylvania this year are prayers for sol
diers at the front and letters from
soldiers 011 religious matters. At
Joana Heiglits one elderly woman
said she had a letter from her son at
Siboney, Cuba, saying that he was so
tired in the trenches just before the
surrender of Santiago that he forgot
to pray. He asked for the prayers of
those at home, and suggested that
during the present season people all
over the United States worshiping in
church or in woods, should pray for
the boys, as during the stormy war
scenes the lads were too apt to forget
their religious duty.
In the Menuonite camp meeting in
the Schuylkill Valley one woman said:
"I have a letter from my nephew in
Santiago. He says his thoughts are*
frequently on camp meetings now,,
where he known we are now." An
other woman had a letter from her
grandson with Sampson's fleet. He
said his comrades were all religious,
and had services on the battleship
Massachusetts. "We have service."
he said, "but it is not the dear old
camp meeting hymns, praise, sermons,
prayers, experiences, revivals and
happy conversions that made us all so
joyful last year. This season I shall
miss our camp meetings very much."
At the Lanaisville camp meeting
several letters were shown privately
to friends from absent soldiers, who
deeply regretted they were not home
at camp meeting. All prized tho
Christian services on shipboard, but
anything liko Methodist revival ser
vices could not be expected among tho
fighters of the battleships, they said.
However, they added, the service
kept men in line to think of their re
ligion and church at home.
One soldier on the heights of El
Cancy wrote to his mother at the
Adamstown camp meeting to the effect
that quite a squad of regulars after
the surrender got together at night
and sang "Nearer My God to Thee,"
"Praise God From Whom All Bless
ings Flew," and other hymns after tho
bauds had ceased playing patriotic
airs. Some soldiers could sing only
one stanza, but this was repeated over
and over again. All along the lines*
could .be heard some such singing.
Very many soldiers, it was reported in
the camp meetings, attributed all the-
American victories on sea and land to
the Lord. One letter shown by a sol
dier's sister read: "Of course, wo say
the Lord's prayer, especially where it
says, 'Lead us not into temptation,,
but deliver us from evil/"
Some Marriage Ceremonies.
Marriage by capture, says the Lon
don Spectator, is symbolized more or
less in ceremonies all the world over,,
except in such places where it is still
the habit to secure a wife by knock
ing her down first, as the Australian
does with his "waddy" or his "nul
lanulla." The Chinaman, if the par
ents of his intended are obstinate,
carries her off; the Abyssinian carries,
his wife round her own house or to
bis own; and the Kabylo carries his
bride across tho threshold, as do also
the Chinese, and the Swiss in some
parts. The Druses have n regular
sham-fight in which the bride's party
drive the bridegioom into his own
village; and in some Arab tribes, the
Aeuezes, for instance, the bride runs
from tent to tent before she is caught.
Crossing the threshold was and is the
most critical period of tho wedding
day with all races, not even excepting
the Anglo-Saxon.
The superstitious fears of the many,
always particularly alert 011 the occa
sion of a marriage, culminate in this
fiuai act of the drama. The lifting of
the bride over the threshold or her
stopping across it io the signal in
Persia, Arabia, and among the Itopts
of Egypt for the sacrifice of a goat
or a sheep. Among tbe Aenezes, ac
cording to Burckhardt, the bride
groom simply kills a lamb in front of
his father-in-law's tent, and the cere
mony, but for the running of the
bride from 0110 tent to another, is
complete. Terhaps the purest sym
bolical act is that of the Transylvan
ian Saxon bridal pair, who step over
the threshold with their bauds tied
together. Some of these Transylvan
ian customs are remarkable, and must
bo survivals from a very ancient per
iod. The bridegroom never wears
the shirt made for him by the bride,
except on bis wedding day and at bis
burial, just as the veil of tho Jap
anese bride becomes one day her
shroud.
All K|e Forgiven.
Ono of our lively citizens, Mr. Sum
mit Parker, returned recently from
tlie Adiromlacks. No sooner liad he
arrived than he discovered that he
had brought away the key of his room
in tho hotel. He despatched it at
once to the proprietor of the hotel,
saying that apologies would follow
later in a larger envelope. This morn
ing he received tho following ac
knowledgment from his host:
DEAR PARKER: Key returned in
good condition. Never mind th&
spoons and napkins. NILES.
Mr. Summit Parker is devoting all
his spare minutes to reading and re
reading this brief letter.—Utica Ob
server.
The Esquimau Carver'* Art.
Tho Esquimau carver possessed of
the most notable skill and showing
the most distinct artistic spirit is tho
Esquimau of Western and Southwest
ern Alaska. In Eastern Alaska it is
notable that the few examples of carv
ing to bo found are limited to a crude
ornamentation of lines and perfora*
tious. The Esquimau of the east and
the Esquimau of the extreme north
rarely or never attempts graphic
representations. The most skillful
carvers are found among the Kauiaks*
—Sau Francisco Chronicle.