THE COOD THINGS WE HAVE MISSED.
(Ah, how wc pity our poor selves
In looking back along the days:
fWe think of joys we might have nad„
©f blessings that had made us glad
If we had traveled other ways;
[We sigh o'er chances that were lost
And fret and grumble and persist,
'As men have always heretofore,
In vainly, sadly counting o'er
The many good things we have missed.
[We-mourn the dead past and forget
The splendid future that remains;
Upon the fates our blame is tossed
For all the profits we have lost,
Rut never credit for our gains;
We name the old, lost chances o'er
And, every day, add to the list.
Forgetting all the joys we've had
In looking back and feeling sad
Because of good things we have missed.
—Chicago Record-llerald.
IN THE DARK.
A Strange Adventure in a
Railway Compartment.
IWENT one morning to Foissy to
see a little house to which I
had fallen heir, and, after break
fast, I took my keys to the fam
ily attorney. As I was about to leave
the ottlce the head elerk called me to
lits desk and said: "There is also some
money coming to you from your uncle's
estate. Six thousand francs. Here It
Is."
The surprise was most agreeable to
me. I took the blue bills and slipped
them Into my pocketbook without
counting them. Because of this delay
I had to hurry to get to the station in
time. Fortunately, the train was late.
It pulled In just as I stepped on the
platform. Seeing an empty compart
ment. as I supposed. I hurriedly en
tered it.
As I sat down I saw that I was not
alone. A lady sat in the right-hand
corner of the seat facing me. I drew
back as far as possible in the left-hand
corner, not beenuse of suspicion, as I
had already forgotten my windfall,
but in order to stretch out and reflect
at iny case.
The lady was young, beautiful and
elegant. A dark-blup traveling dress of
a correct cut set off her slender, grace
ful figure. Masses of golden hair rip
pled back under a dark-blue felt hat,
trimmed with a band of ribbon and a
quill. A dainty patent-leather shoe
was visible below the hem of her skirt.
A watch with some coquettish trinkets
hung from her belt, while a banglcd
bracelet on her left wrist indicated a
pretty feminine vanity. A gold
handled umbrella, in its sheath, leaned
against a portiere near her. From my
observations I gained an Impression
of sober luxury, a trifle English in its
rigor. A newspaper lay on the lady's
lap, and she was reading it with such
perfect unconsciousness of my sur
veillance that I could not even sec the
color of her eyes.
After we had left the Malsons Lafittc
Station the thought occurred to me to
read over some letters whieli I had
merely glanced at in the morning. I
put my hand in my pocket to get them,
and I felt the pocketbook. A feeling
of pleasure came over me at the re
membranee of my bequest, and I could
not resist n childish desire to handle
my, little fortune. I took the bills
from my purse nnd, in the perfect
security of the closed compartment, I
counted them without the slightest
suspicion of being watched. The 0000
francs were there. I folded the money
up, put It back into the pocketbook,
and, with my usual heedlessness, laid
the purse down beside me with the
letters I was going to read. 1 now took
these up, one by one, read them, and
tossed them back on the seat.
I was soon made aware, by the vibra
tion of the coach, that we had reached
the Asnleres Bridge. The young
woman folded up her newspaper, and,
without glancing in my direction, be
gan slowly and composedly to unlace
the glove on her right hand. Finally
she drew It off. "We were about to
reach our destination. It was not the
time for removing one's gloves. Still
the act did not impress me at the time.
I merely admired the slim, nervous
hand, with its tapering fingers. The
girl clasped and unclasped them with
marvelous agility, as if they were
numb from their bondage. The
shadow of the great wall of the Batig
nolies soon fell upon our car, and I
noticed that the lantern was not light
ed. A moment afterward, with a eon
fused rumbling of wheels and 1 rails,
We entered the tunnel.
Soon I fancied I heard—the sound
Was barely perceptible in the general
fraens—a slight rustling among the
papers nt my side. Careless ns I usual
ly am, It is a wonder that the sound
attracted my attention, and still more
of one that I thought of my pocket
book. By some intuition, however, I
did so.
Not intentionally, but with an in
stinctive, rough gesture, of which I
should have been ashamed in the day
light, I forcibly threw both my hands
over the scattered papers and pressed
them down with all my might. Then,
with a start, I felt something move
under the pile, like an animal in a
trap trying to escape by twisting, turn
ing and pulling. I bore down all the
harder. Just then the train whistle
shrieked out. The speed slackened and
we came to a standstill In the black
ness of the tunnel. For a moment I
experienced a veritable nightmare.
With a rustling and tearing of papers
the struggle continued, silently but
fiercely.
After having wriggled and turned
desperately in every direction, like n
strangled reptile, the hand, crushed
under my palms, lay quiet. I saw
nothing, heard nothing—not oven a
breath. I knew, however, that my
companion was on the alert, noting
my every movement. Suffocated by
emotion and wearied by the tension of
my nerves, I waited for the daylight
tor deliverance.
After a period of time, very short,
probably, but the length of which I
could not estimate, the train began to
move slowly. My relief at this was 60
great that my whole being involunttr
ily relaxed from its tension. This was
evidently expected, for the hand again
tried to free itself, not by violent jerks
this tipic, but by a strong, steady pull
ing. I felt it slipping along, little by
little, under the papers. I imprudently
raised my palm a bit to get a fresh
hold. When I again bore down I
clasped only my pocketbook. The
hand had escaped, I knew not when
nor how.
I hastily opened the purse, felt that
its contents were there, then put It Into
my vest pocket and stupidly crossed
my arms over it.
At last a gray light penetrated Into
the compartment, followed by the
brigjit light of day. My first glutce
was at the lady opposite. She sat in
exactly the same place, with the same
air of haughty indifference. Nothing
about her toilet was disarranged in
the least Not a fold of her dress
seemed to have been moved. The
newspaper lay folded in her lap, the
gold-handled umbrella leaned against
the portiere, the patent-leather toe
protruded slightly below the hem of
her skirt.
She looked pale, however, and her
eyes were bent on her right hand, as
she slowly laced up her glove. It
truly seemed as if I were waking from
a dream. And what proof could I
offer to the contrary.
The train stopped and the platform
was on my side. The lady rose, drop
ping the paper from her lap, took her
umbrella, and with a perfectly com
posed and polite "Pardon me, sir,"
passed in front of me.
Feeling stupid and duped, I put out
my arm to detain her. But she was
already on the steps, and, noticing my
gesture, she turned half round, and for
the first time I saw her eyes.
They were as blue as the sky and
limpid nnd beautiful in expression,
They gazed at me with so much sur
prise and candor that I was disarmed
completely, and I let her go unmolest
ed. Had it not been for the rumpled,
torn papers on the seat beside me, 1
might have been tempted to believe
that the mute but fierce duel in the
dark was merely a hallucination or a
bad dream.—Translated from the
French of Charles Foley by H.
Twitchell, for the Argonaut.
Mnlo .Judicially Declared Treacherona.
The Western Missouri Court of Ap
peals has decided that a mule Is a
treacherous and vicious animal, nnd
that so well known is this fact that if a
workman is injured because of those
traits of disposition in the mule, the
employer cannot plead ignorance of the
mule's nature as a defense.
This decision was made in the case
of Pete Borden against the Falk Con
struction Company. Borden worked
for the company. He went beneath a
heavy machine on wheels to hook a
chain. A span of mules was hitched
to the machine, and while Borden was
beneath it the driver of the mules was
ordered by the superintendent to go be
neath the machine to help Borden.
Thereupon the mules started and ono
of the machine's wheels ran over Bor
den's foot and crushed it. He sued
the Folk company and obtained judg
ment that was affirmed by the Court
of Appeals, which says:
"The mule is a domestic animal
whose treacherous nnd vicious nature
is so generally known that even courts
may take notice of it. The company
cannot be heard to claim that it did
not know of the treacherous nnd unre
liable qualities of this animal. It
seems to us that the defendant was
guilty of grossest negligence in order
ing the teamster to assist Borden. Any
man of ordinary prudence, under such
circumstances, would have not only
placed himself In front of the mules,
but ho would with Ills hands have
firmly grappled nnd held the bridle
bits of cnch of them."—Cleveland
Leader.
Wit at Mr. Feed's Expense.
Sarcastic himself, Thomas B. Heed
appreciated a joke at his own expense.
Here is a story that has never seen
the daylight of print, nnd it illustrates
how well he liked a witticism, even if
lie was its target. One day he was
browsing in Guild's dingy bookshop at
the foot of the Capitol. He took up a
number of hooks and finally the novel
"Scruples."
"What is the price of this?" asked
Mr. Eeed.
"A dollar, sir," replied the old man
rather tartly.
"Too much," said Reed, laconically,
nnd laid the hook down.
"Well, sir," retorted Guild, who has
a sharp tongue of his own. "I don't
know of nny law you have passed
that compels you to buy it if you dou't
want to. Besides, I don't see what a
member of Congress wants with a
book with that title, anyway."
Reed broke into a hearty laugh, nnd
as he rolled down the avenue ho was
still smiling at the old man's reply.-
Baltimore Sun.
He Came to Fish.
The Rev. E. A. Ilortori was one of
the guests at the recent dinner given
by the Wollaston Unitarian Club.
When called upon for a post prandial
address he prefaced his remarks with
the story of a fellow-divine who went
llshing last summer. Not being fami
liar with rod and reel the reverend
gentleman became excited when a big
fish took his bait, and In bis efforts to
land it fell into the stream. He was
pulled out by a farmer who chanced to
be passing.
"How did you come to fall in?"asked
the farmer, while the Pverend gentle
man was trying to wring some of the
water from his clothes.
"I didn't come to fall In at all," was
the reply. "I came to Hah."—Boston
Post,
&nel ® ©
® © /\dv©n.ture.
| RACE FOR LIFE WITH WOLVES.
INTELLIGENCE lias just been re
ceived of one of those startling
tragedies which now and then
direct attention to a class of men
! who spend more than half the months
1 of each year in the solitude of the
| Canadian pine woods. Secluded in
I their log shanties from early in Sep
| tember, with, as a rule, no connection
with the civilized world until the frost
| permits teamsters to bring their horses
j along the bush roads and over the
; lakes, these men are glad to seize every
! opportunity for a change.
| When the lakes were covered with a
j clear sheeting of ice recently two
i young fellows employed on the shore
| of Deer Lake secured two pairs of
j skates which chanced to be in the
I place and set out at night to visit an
: other band of men about nine miles
1 nway. With the exception of a little
j portage of about half a mile between
i two lakes, the whole journey was by
ice and was no very formidable under
taking to the two sturdy log makers.
As they were hobbling over the
i portage on their skates, they were
startled by the sudden breaking across
their path of a red deer followed by
three or four wolves, who were close
upon the heels of their prey. Being
without defensive weapons of any
kind, they realized their danger if an
other pack of wolves should, as is
often the case, follow after the beasts
they had seen pass, and they made all
speed to the lake before them.
Just as they were breaking through
the thin ice at the lake side, they heard
a whining behind them and then the
low howl which told them that their
track had been discovered and that
they would certainly be followed. But
by the time the wolves reached the
waterside, where they caught their
first sight of the men they were track
ing, the two shanty men had reached
the firm ice and were skating in ear
nest.
Fortunately for them there were a
few hundred yards of thin ice to be
crossed, which almost, but not quite
held up the wolves, and by its sharp
edges wounded and hindered them
greatly. Otherwise they would have
caught up with the men, and probably
have overpowered them before they
had gone half a tnile.
As it was they had almost overtaken
them before they had covered the first
half of their four-mile race. Neither
of the men was a hunter and this was
their first experience with wolves.
But by mutual agreement, they adopt
ed the very best tactics possible, And
when their pursuers came too near to
them, wheeled sharply to one side. As
the smooth Ice afforded no grip to their
claws, the wolves could not turn or
stop suddenly, but generally shot for
ward and made several stumbles, and
sometimes somersaults before getting
on to the fresh tnek.
In this manner the skaters avoided
the brutes for some time, and would
probably have reached their destina
tion but for an unfortunate suggestion
of the younger man, that they would
be more likely to tire out the wolves
if they separated. In accordance witli
this plan they wheeled in different di
rections at the end of an island they
were approaching.
As the elder man reached the other
end of this wooded island lie saw
before him the sparks which Issued
from the huge chimney of the shanty
he was searching for. Putting on all
of his remaining strength he spurted
on to where the cook's path led from
the shanty to the water hole. There,
the two big gray timber wolves which
had elected to follow him, turned tail
and with a parting yelp turned in their
tracks.
By some curious accident the poor
fellow stumbled as lie was approach
ing the low door of the shanty and fell,
breaking his right leg just below the
knee. The pain and the previous ex
ertion were too much for his over
strained nerves, and it was upward of
an hour before the shantymen could
recover him from the swoon into which
he fell as he was carried inside.
When consciousness returned his
first question was for his companion,
whom ho had last seen as ho skated
around the little island in the lake.
As soon as the men could bo made to
understand the situation, a dozen of
them started out to see what had be
fallen the other traveler.
Within 200 hundred yards of their
winter home they found the blood
stained spot where the unfortunate
young fellow had been attacked in
front by the two brutes which had
chased his friend. In the lightly fall
ing snow could bo read the whole
story of his destruction. His boots
and skates and a few fragments of
clothing were all the tangible signs of
tile tragedy left by the wolves.
Happily for the injured man, a
shanty missionary on his rounds
reached the island where he lav that
same night, and being a medical man
also was able to set his leg with some
degree of satisfaction. Strangely
enough, as it happened, the clergyman
had taken with him, as his driver for
the trip, an uncle of the man devoured
on the ice, who was greatly attached
to his nephew and was conveying to
him subatantlal token of his regard
in hard cash.—New York Sun.
DARING RESCUE.
A crowd of 200 people were skating
on the Hudson opposite the lower
landing in Poughkeepsie, N. Y., when
the cry was rnised that somebody had
broken through the ice. Looking to the
southward the skaters saw, far away
from the field of safe ice, a boy slowly
working his way on his stomach to
ward a hole through which the head of
another boy could just be seen.
The boys were Louis Hof, aged
fourteen, and Frank Gazan, aged thir
teen, who are playmates. Gazan was
in the river and Hof was heroically
trying to reach arid Help him. They
had been skating hand in hand when
Frank suggested going further out in
the river where the ice looked
smoother. It proved to be new Ice
just a skim made the night before
over a spot which the tide had hither
to kept open.
At they skimmed along over the ice
it cracked and snapped under them,
The older boy suggested that it wasn't
safe and that they would better go
back to the crowd. Hardly had he
spoken when the ice broke under his
companion and young Gazan sank
into the water. Louis Hof let go his
hand and, making a sharp turn to the
right, skated away to a distance of
twenty feet, where he stretched him
self on the ico and begun to work his
way back.
"The moment I felt myself going
down I began to pedal with both
feet," said Frank Gazan, describing
his adventure.
"It worked fine, keeping me from
going down "and coming up under the
ice. I then caught hold of the ice at
the edge of the hole, but it broke each
time that I tried to lift myself upon
it.
"I called to Louis to take off his
overcoat and throw it to me, but in
stead of doing that he lay down on his
stomach and worked his way toward
me. I saw that many of the skaters
saw us and were skating toward us."
"Yes. and I saw them, too," spoke
tip Hof, "and I called to them to go
back because I was afraid they'd all
go through and a lot of us would be
drowned. The ice was very thin, and
even though I was stretched out full
length—l didn't dare get on my knees
or I would have gone through sure-
It cracked under my weight, and sev
eral times my heart was in my mouth."
"Yes, and it seemed hours before he
reached me," said Gazan. Finally
Louis was close enough to put out one
hand, which I grabbed. Sticking the
ends of his skates in the ice he pulled
himself back, while I at the same time
raised my legs and kicked out behind
as if I was swimming.
"In that way I was able to work
my body out upon the Ice and to
gether we crawled along for nine or
ten feet, when we both got up and
skated for dear life to the shore. I
could hear the people cheering us we
climbed up the bank."
IN AN AVALANCHE.
The sense of helplessness is said to
be one of the most terrible parts of the
experience of falling in an avalanche
of snow. In writing of the dangers of
the Alps in the Pall Mall Magazine,
Mr. Harold Spender recounts the ad
venture of Mr. Gossett, who was ac
tually covered up by a wave of snow
which came from behind him and
closed over his head. He managed to
work himself to the surface, where ho
was so borne along that he could watch
ail that took place, although unable at
the time to free or even to help him
self much. This is his own story:
"I was on the wnve of the avalanche,
and saw it before me as I was carried
down. It was the most awful sight I
ever witnessed. The head of the aval
anche was already at the spot where
we had made our last halt. The head
alone was preceded by a thick cloud
of snow-dust; the rest of the avalanche
was clear.
"Around me I heard the horrid hiss
ing of the snow, and far before me the
thundering of the foremost part of the
avalanche. To prevent myself from
sinking again I made use of my arms
much in the same way as when swim
ming in a standing position.
"At last I noticed that I was moving
slowly; then I saw the pieces of snow
in front of me stop at some yards' dis
tance; then tiie snow straight before
me stopped, and I heard on a largo
scale the same creaking sound that is
produced when a heavy cart passes
over hard-frozen snow in winter. I
felt that I also stopped, and instantly
threw up both arms to protect my head
in case I should again be covered up."
Mr. Gossett and three of his com
panions escaped. The other two were
burled by the avalanche.
GUARDSMAN A RESCUER.
David F. Silver, a member of the
Seventy-first Regiment, rescued Wil
liam Nelson, aged twelve, from drown
ing in Tarrytown (N. Y.) Lake, where
many were skating. When the boy
broke through the ice Mr. Silver
plunged in after him, but the boy sank
three times before he could get hold
of him.
The rescuer had to dive to the bot
tom of the lake, and he nearly lost his
life. When he began to ascend with
the boy one of his skates caught in
something on the bottom of the lake,
but be managed to kick it loose. On
reaching the surface Mr. Silver lifted
the boy out as far as he could, and
two boys went out to iiaul the uncon
scious boy on to stronger ice, but they
broke through. When they came up
they managed to reach ice that would
hold ttieir weight and were'hauled nut.
Mr. Silver and his burden were hauled
out and the Nelson boy was revived.
SWAM A MILE AMID SHARKS.
A boat's crew from the United States
cruiser Don Juan de Austria made the
first successful attack on the mine
fields near Subig Bay, Manila.Bay, in
the naval manoeuvres.
The boat capsized as it was ap
proaching the mines, and part of the
crew, with Ensign John.F. BabcoCk
leading, swam a mile, though the water
was infested with sharks, towing coun
ter-mine buoys, which were success
fully placed. The searchlights of the
warships did not discover the opera
tion.
A married woman always travels un
der an assumed name.
BABY AND CANDY.
Babv is cutting his teeth;
All day he does nothing but cry;
Sister cannot make him smile,
No matter how hard she may try.
Given some candy, wee Kate
Came running with him to divide.
Turning, a moment he hushed,
Kcfused it, then harder he cried.
Soberly looking at him,
She said, with a sigh: "The poor pet,
He doesn't like candy. I s'pose
His sweet tooth he hasn't cut yet."
—Washington Star,
THE BIRD IN THE CAGE.
Draw on n sheet of paper a bird cage
and at a little distance a bird. You can
now make the bird pass over and enter
the cage. Take an ordinary visiting
card l>etwcen two fingers and place it
edgewise perpendicularly on the paper
between the cage and the bird. Then
place the end of your nose 011 the upper
edge of the card and look at the two
objects. The bird will Immediately
take flight and you will see it in the
cage.
The figure on the right will save the
trouble of making the drawing, al
though it is too small to get the best
results. The line Indicates the position
of the card. Be careful that the card is
PUZZLE OF MISSING MEN.
Two men have given this man a counterfeit coin. Can you help Mm
Qnd them?
i
BO placed with reference to the Unlit
that It does not cast a shadow on either
side. This simple experiment illus
trates what is called binocular vision-
New York World.
OWLS IN WINTER.
Owls are really much commoner In
winter than one is led to believe by the
occasional specimens which are se.en
abroad in the daytime. If we searched
the hollow trees systematically this
morning we should probably discover
several screech owls, and perhaps some
of the larger species. We might he sur
prised to And some of the screech owls
red nnd others gray, and. like the early
ornithologists, we might conclude that
the difference in color was due to dif
ference in age or sex. It is now known
that there are two distinct color phases
of this species not dependent on either
age or sex, though just what they are
dependent on is not yet known.
When taken from' their retreats in
winter these birds frequently feign
death—shutting their eyes, nnd lying
perfectly still In the hand. By and by,
when they find that their little ruse
does not succeed, they will snap their
bills and bite nnd scratch in a solemn
but very effective manner. How they
manage to get enough to eat on these
dark, cold nights is a mystery to those
unacquainted with the woods, but as a
matter of fact there is more prey
abroad on winter nights than is gener
ally supposed. Wild mice are very nu
merous—a fact which is attested by
their footprints In the newly fallen
snow —and owls are most expert mouse
catchers. Their hearing Is so acute
that not a squeak escapes them, and
they themselves are so soft on the wing
that they do not alarm the game.—
Woman's Home Companion.
A BLIND SQUIRREL.
"Here, Bunny, Bunny, Bunny!" It
was the day of the first snowfall, and
the woman who called was one of the i
many women who find pleasure In
going to Central Park dally, carrying
With them bags of nuts with which to
feed the squirrels that find tnelr homes
there.
As she called there was a flash of
gray, a whisk of a bushy tail, and there
appeared before her a lively little ro
dent with his tiny hand raised dra
matically to his breast. A dull, white
eyeball told the story of sightlessness
in one eye.
"You see," said the woman, turning
to an interested onlooker, as the squir
rel began feeding, "you see. when these'
little one-eyed pets are eating they
always sit with the blind side toward
their benefactor, while devouring the 1
dainty given them. Do you know why J
that is? 7
"Well," she explained, throwing the
squirrel another nut. "they are con
scious that they are near a friend, and
need not watch her closely, so they
keep a sharp lookout on the other side
for stray dogs or other enemies."
True enough. Even as the woman
spoke, one of the many dogs that take
their daily airing up and down the
walk by the West Drive escaped from
its young mistress, and with its leader
dangling made a dash for the squirrel.
There was another flash of gray, a
whisk of a bushy tail and a sharp
squeak of fear as the wary little
creature with the one eye darted away
to a safe bough to blink and chatter
and finish his peanut in safety.
"Are there many of these blind
squirrels in Central Park?" asked the
onlooker of the woman, who seemetjl
versed in squirrel lore. W
"There are a good many, I'm afraid.
You see. it is the work of mischievous
boys, who come here to the park with
slingshots, diabolical little instruments
of wood and rubber, and deliberately
shoot out the eyes of these harmless
creatures. However, the policemen
keep a sharp lookout for such boys.'y"
and their misdemeanors are becoming
fewer, as they have learned that a
park policeman swings his stick with
much vigor."—New York Tribune.
A SIMPLE TOOL CIIEST.
The boy who works with tools should
llrst of all have a place where these
tools may be safely kept. It seems to
be a matter of pride with most carpen
ters not to buy a tool chest, but to
make one, and many very handsomely
finished chests are to be seen in conse
quence. In the case of the youthful
woodworker It will be best at first to
be content with a plain but neat little
chest. Later on, with more experience,
something more elaborate can be at
tempted. This cut shows such a box
as Is used by dealers in boots and shoes
for packing their goods for shipment.
These boxes are always made of excel
lent material, and all very neatly put
together. Secure such a box with its
cover and put the latter securely lot
place with round-headed screws oy
nails. Now draw a line around the box
just three inches below the top, and!
saw the top off on this line. Put hinges V
upon the back and catches upon the I
front, and the chest is complete. It Is
desirable, however, to have a tray that
can be set Inside to rest upon cleats at
tached to the inside of the ends. In'
this tray can be kept all the smaller
and more delicate tools, while the sawß,
planes, etc., can be placed below it In
the bottom of the chest—Washington
Star,