A SINGLE STITCH.
One stitch dropped an the weaver dror* '
His nimble shuttle to and fro, "Vj!
In end out, beneath, above, ' *7'
Till the pattern seemed to bud and grxm
A§ if the fairies had helping been—
One email stitch which could scarce be ieen.
But the one etitch dropped pulled the next stitch
out,
And a place RTVW in the fabric stout.
And the perfect pattern was marred for aye
By the one small atitch that had dropped that
day.
One small life in God's great plan.
How futile it aeems aa the ages roll, j.
Do what it may or strive how it can
To alter the sweep of the infinite wholel
A single atitch in an endlesa web,
A drop in the ocean's flow and ebb,
But the is rent where the atitch la lost
Or marred where the tangled threads have crossed,
And each life that fails of its true intent
Mara the perfect plan that its Master meant.
—Susan Coolidge.
•A*A*A*A*A*A*A*A*A*A*A*A*A
| GENTLEMEN |
| CONVICTS |
? By C\. QUAD. £
4 k
* corvmoHT, 1000, BY C. B. LEWIS. ST
- _ ►
• 7*T*Y*T*
It was a queer chapter of accidents
that overtook the bark Nonesuch on the
Bouth Amerlcnn coast in the year 1870.
We were bound from Philadelphia to
Pernambuco, being a well found craft
and a willing crew, nnd we lost a mau
overboard before we had been out 24
hours. Off the Bahamas the second
mate aud two men pulled away in tbe
dingey to Inspect some wreckage which
seemed to prove tbe loss of a steamer,
and as they were returning a small
whale rose under the boat aud smashed
her to match wood, nnd then two sail
ors were drowned. Tills left us three
men short, and we put In at the Wind
ward Islands to replace them. After
much trouble we got two men, but as
we were leaving port the captain was
bitten on tbe cheek and the first inate
on the hand by a flying Insect Bome
wbat resembling the so called "darning
THE CAPTAIN'S WIFE AT THE WHEEL.
needles" to be found In the United
States. Within an hour they were suf
fering as much as If they bad been
stung l>y nu asp.
Tbe captain's wife was aboard, and
of course she did all In Iter power, but
it was three or four days before tbe
men could move about again, and then
only tbe mate could return to duty.
Tlie captain lind what seemed to be a
carbuncle appear utidcr bis right eye,
and for ten days lie suffered so acutely
that at times be was out of Ids senses.
We should have run Into Deinerarn had
be not begun to improve, but It would
linve been better bad we doue so any
how. The two fellows we picked up at
the Windward islands proved to he
worthless sailors and had men, and
they worked the bark an evil turn.
Oue night as we lay becalmed, with the
captain and mate still suffering from
the poisonous bites, they overpowered
and bound the second mate, provision
ed and lowered a boat and Induced four
of the original crew to embark with
them. We nfterwnrd came to know
that they had been tnlking a great deal
about n treasure burled on the Dutch
Uulana const, from wlilch we were dis
tant about 7G miles. We were thus left
with only three able bauds aboard, and
the cnptuln'B wife had to take her
trick at the wheel while we headed for
Cayenne to get relief. We hud crawled
along to within 30 miles off the French
penal port when the wind beaded us,
nnd we could do no better than drift
off to the eastward and wait for a
change.
After about 30 hours of drifting tlie
wind changed in our favor, and one
morning at sunrise we were making
shift to get ou our course again when
we espied a raft with 12 men on It
close at hand. With the naked eye ono
could mnke out that they were clothed
In convict garb, and of course tbe de
duction was that Ibey had escaped
from the const. There were two rude
sails on the raft, and the clumsy struc
ture had bad a fair breeze behind her
for a day aud a half. As tbe raft wan
not easily managed, we could have
evaded It by putting up our helm. We
were for dofag llils at once, nil but the
captain's wife. She knew they were
convicts and desperate men and that
ouce aboard of us we should be at
their mercy, but she nevertheless in
sisted that we should pick them up.
They were GO miles off the coast, with
the signs of a storm coming on, and sbo
declared that It would be n cruel act
to leave them to perish. 1 was of a
mind to lock ber up in her stateroom
and dodge Hie raft, but tbe other two
men were against me. and ten minutes
later tbe float was alongside and tbe
#onvlets were climbing aboard. 1 ex
pected nothing less than an Immediate
ntlack from tbetn. for 12 tougher look
ing men I never set eyes on; but. to my
surprise, they baited at the rail while
their leader advanced, doffed Ills cap,
with a scrape of bis foot, and In pas
sable English Inquired for tbe captain.
He was told of the captain's illness
aud of our being short handed, and be
bowed and Bcraped again and said to
tbe woman:
"Madam, bate do fears. You prob-
ably know tbnt we are escaped con
victs from Cayenne, but no man will
offer barm to any one aboard. We
may be robbers and murderers, but
we are also gentlemen In away. There
lls bad weather coming on. We have
arrived at an opportune moment,
j Most of us are sailors, and all of us
are at your orders."
When I looked Into tlielr vicious
faces, I fould not help but suspect that
they had a game to play and were only
delaying It, but it was policy to tako
them at their word. As soon as the
captain and mate heard of the arrival
of the gang they became almost panic
| stricken and advised this nnd that, and
the wife was the only one who had the
least confidence In the promises made.
It was well that she had and that her
| advice to trust them was followed by
all of us. We could not have kept them
from coming aboard with our feeble
crew, and to have shown our distrust
afterward would have angered them.
They took hold with us at once after
being given food, and before night we
had cause to rejoice that they were
with us. We got dirty weather, which
lasted three days, and but for their aid
the Nonesuch would haw become a
helpless wreck or gone to the bottom.
We had to run off to the east during
this spell, and It was only when the
weather cleared that the leader of the
convicts had a conference with the cap
tain and his wife nnd asked that Ills
gang be set ashore In ltrnztllnn territo
ry. This was promised him, aud I
must say that I never worked with a
more cheerful and willing crew aboard
of any craft. Seven of the 12 had been
convicted of murder, nnd all were des
perate men, but they were ns obedient
as children and ns good nntured ns you
please. They were careful of their Inn
gunge, respectful In their demeanor,
nnd not once did I hear one of them
grumble or complain. We ran Into the
Amazon nnd up that river for 40 miles
to set them ashore. In his gratitude to
them the captain gave them sailcloth
for two tents, a musket, a lot of clothes
from the slop chest nnd all the provi
sions we could spare. With cooking
utensils, fishhooks nnd a few carpen
ters' tools they were fairly well rigged
out for a life on the bnnks of the stream
fqr half a year to come, nnd at parting
there were ns much handshakings and
ns many fnrewells ns If a band of old
friends was breaking up. Their escape
from the colony was a desperate one
nnd the authorities made an exhaustive
search; but, so far ns 1 have been able
to learn, not one of the dozen has ever
been retaken.
Not Above Ills Business.
Young Ilrodhead. scion of a wealthy
family, cherished journalistic ambi
tions and, like a sensible youth, had re
solved to begin at the beginning.
lie had applied for and obtained a
position as a reporter on a dally paper
at a moderate salary, where he was
treated precisely like any other report
er, shirking no assignment that came
in his way and putting on no airs oil
account of his wealth or social stand
ing.
He had not thought It worth while,
however, to acquaint the family serv
ants with the nature of his daily occu
pations, and when a rellow reporter
came to the house one day with a mes
sage from the city editor the flunky In
attendance at the front door took him
around the house nnd brought him up
to the young man's room by a back
stairway.
"Why didn't you show Mr. Craig up
byway of the front liallV" demanded
young Brodhead.
"He's only a reporter," whispered the
butler.
Imagine the dignified flunky's horror
when his master responded in an audi
ble voice:
"I'm only a reporter myself, you don
key!"— Youth's Companion.
Webster and tbe Trout.
With each Increase of Webster's
fame as a lawyer and an orator, writes
Professor McMaster In The Ceutury,
friends and admirers grew more nnd
more urgent that he Bliould once more
return to public life. He did Indeed
consent to serve as a presidential elect
or and for ten days sat In the Massa
chusetts legislature. Many yenrs after
ward In the course of a speech Web
ster referred to this service and told
Ids hearers a story quite characteris
tic of the man. "It so happens," said
he. "that all the public services which
1 have rendered In this world In my
day nnd generation have been connect
ed with the general government I
think I ought to make one exception.
I was ten days a member of the Mas
sachusetts legislature, and I turned my
thoughts to the search for some good
object In which I could be useful In
that position, nnd after much reflection
■ I introduced a bill which, with the gen
eral consent of both houses of the Mns
j sachusetts legislature, passed Into a
law and Is now a law of the state
which enacts that no man In the state
shall catch trout In any other manner
than In the old way, with an ordinary
book and line."
Pickled Railroad Ties.
Pickled railroad ties ore now being
used to a great extent all over the
eouutry. A number of railroads. In
cluding the Burlington, the Santa Fe
and the Southern Pacific, have plants
: of their own In which the ties are
pickled. How to preserve the ties and
add to their life and durability has
lieen a serious problem for railroad
operatives ever since the early days of
transportation by rail. The constant
; wear and tear of ties has necessitated
their replacement as soon as they were
perceptibly worn. A solution of ehlo
' ride of zinc Is applied by a specially
arranged process. The ties are put In
large airtight cylinders, the air Is
pumped out and the ties arc heated by
steam. The chemicals are then pump
ed in and the ties kept In the solution
under high pressure until they are sat
tifatfed.-Pbllatlflphia Record.
ITS PRICES THAT TILE
AT
NEUBURGER'S
Freeland's Greatest Store.
Several Lucky Purchases Have Brought to the
Big Store Positively the Greatest Stocks of
Clii, Sloes, Dry Cools, FnralsMnis, Hats, Caps, Nations, Etc.,
Which are now offered at the lowest prices high-grade merchandise has ever been sold
•n' n *- uzerne co H n Jy* Without all question of doubt (which a visit of inspection
+u l ioi 3r i+ ve c Neußurger s offer extraordinary bargains during the sale of
these stocks. The goods are all of this season's make and were bought from
manufacturers hard-pressed for ready cash : They came direct from the factories
and workshops to Neußurger s, thus insuring you the greatest bargains that will
be offered this season. The brief group of values offered below were picked at
random from the tremendous stock.
ITEM CI A "R.TTiiT'TTT .T
CLOTHING
Boys' all-wool fast color Never-Rip Knee Pants. "I (In
per pair X *J\J
The ESBE 75c cavalry-seated Never-Rip Knee
Pants, with patent hold-fast buttons, ten styles, KAn
in sizes 3 to 16, go per pair during this sale at V/l^
Young Men's all-wool Cassimere Trousers, per
Men's all-wool tricot long gray mixed $1.75 Trou
sers wOL
200 Children's all-wool $2.00 Blouse Suits in four
colors—steely gray, drab and blue—during sale
1 9^
\ouths' j2.00 Double Breasted Blue Suits
Youths' $3.00 Double Breasted Blue Suits 2.00
Children's Pure Worsted Serge Blouse Suits 2.00
Young Men's three-pieced all wool Long Pants •/ QQ
Suits
Youths' three-pieced silk-striped Teasdale Cassi- Q
mere >6.00 Suits
2 08
Men's 55.00 Fancy Worsted Suits 9Jv.J
Men's <8.50 Fine Black Clay Worsted and Cassi- PC A(I
mere Suits VJ
Men's custom-made absolutely pure wool Suits, <T PCL4
ten styles, the greatest value of the season, at 4 ••Jvf
The Men's Suits which we are offering at SS, $lO, sl2
and sls are the finest to be had and the values are not to
be matched in the state.
SHOES
Our Boys', Youths' and Misses' Shoes are unequalled 98c
Men's strictly solid leather Dress Shoes in all the ~| •/ PC
new shapes, per pair A
Men's Best Mining Shoes, per pair 1.10
Men's Fine Vici Kid Oxford Ties and Shoes, $2 "1 PC4"I
values, per pair
Ladies' Fine Vici Kid Shoes, with patent and plain "1 9^
tips, the Arline make, $1.75 value, per pair JL
THE ALBION Ladies' Fine Kid Shoes which are
as well made as Ladies' shoes can be and are
the shoes so extensively advertised at $3 under
another name. We offer four styles of these •/ AA
high grade shoes, per pair, at
THE CRUSADER Men's Fine Dress Shoes adver
tised very extensively throughout the land at
Jos. INleußurger Estate,
P. O. S. of A. BUILDING, - FREELAND, PA.
$2.50 under another name and made of same
stock and in same way the)' are made for us in
large quantities and with our price, #1.69, ~t AA
stamped on bottom of each pair. JL \J oJ
FURNISHINGS
Men's large size fancy border linen finished Hand- 9/"
kerchiefs, each
Men's seamless 10c Socks, per pair oc
Men's reinforced back and front heaviest quality
black and white stripe cheviot full 36 inch long 38c
Boys' 8-oz heavy Blue Denim Apron Overalls, sizes
4 to 14, per pair MdfJKj
Men's g-oz Blue Denim Overalls, made with double
stitched felled seams, Swinging Pockets, coats /| l-v/t
of same material, made with 3 pockets
Boys' and Men's 75c absolutely fast color Madras
Cloth Shirts, made in Shirt and Shirt-Waist
styles, with the new style box pleat bosoms and
plain. Twenty styles to select from of the
prettiest ever shown in town.
Children's Blouse Waists, six styles 25c
Men's 50c imported French Ballbriggan Fancy Un
-1 derwear GOL
Boys' and Girls' Fast Black Heavy Ribbed Double "I j
Knee, Heel and Toe 15c Stockings, per pair JLYrU'
DRY GOODS.
i The Greatest Values aver in Summer Dress Goods we have now
placed on sale.
The P. W. P. fine fast color fancy figured lawns in
the season's newest shades, made to be and are
sold at 9c, per yard
t The "Alloeutte," the prettiest and most serviceable
1 Cotton Fabric made for this season's dresses, in
all the pretty combination of colors on grounds
of the season's rage—Old Rose, Rosanti, Pastel
• Green, Nill Green and Lavender—a full and ~|
regular 18c Dress Fabric, per yard JL aJU'
' Lancaster Apron Ginghams, per yard 5^
Full yard-wide fine Muslin, per yard g c
' Best Calicoes, per yard g c
Potter's Best 49-inch wide Table Oil Cloth, per yard |4c
' Fine Bleached Table Linen, per yard 25c
Old Rose, Pastel, Ecru and all the popular shades
in fine 40-inch Henrietta
| For Ladies' and Misses' Shirt Waists, Skirts and Wrappers we
are showing an endless stock at very lowest prices.
Our Hat and Cap Department is the most complete in town, and
every new style is to be seen at way down prices.