SONG FOR AN AUTUMN DAY. BY CLINTON SCOLLAUD, Sullen sky, and a sea That heaves its sombre breast; 'And a wind that dirges ceaselessly In blind unrest. And yet. and yet one heart Is blithe as a May-tide flower; One soaring spirit bears no part In the gloaming hour! Blue is the sky (her eyes!) And bright is the sun (her smile!) And there is a right of paradise For a dreaming while. —Collier's Weekly. THE STRAWS OF DEATH How a Rivalry Was Settled on the Firing-Line. By XV. O. Gei-han. Till! regiment was settling down for the night with some grumbling aud much f. profane jesting, for Western volunteers possess a sense of humor superior to the most trying conditions. Somewhere in the darkness in front, the Filipinos were taking pot shots between their cigarettes, as au occa sional zcu! attested. "There go tlie blamed typewriters," cried a young private. "Firing at fireflies, as usual. X'o sleep to-night." "Typewriters" was a contemptuous appellation given to the Fourteenth Regulars, because the poppiug of their magazine guns in tlie distance slightly resembled tue noise of the machine of peace. •Tut your moutli on the safety notch," ordered the captain from the right of the company. "They're send ing out the outposts. Get their bear ings so that you can shoot around them if the bail opens up." Two men were receiving final in structions from tlie colonel, previous to venturing into the hostile country in front. "Sneak out about 200 yards," ordered the officer, "and lie low. If you see any signs of an attack, try to get back and warn us. If you can't get back, you must warn us somehow, and take your clianees. X'o need to tell you to be careful. You hold the lives of many men in your bauds. Good luck, boys." This sort of work is called Cossack outpost duty, and men detailed upon it. should not be men of family or nerves. A few nights previously two nervous men were detailed upon it. One of tlicm fired at a white pariah dog. The shot caused the Filipinos to concentrate a series of volleys last ing thirty minutes in the direction of the outposts. The Americans awak ened from a sound sleep and let go several unauthorized volleys. Conse quently tile two nervous men, being between two fires, were riddled with two kinds of ammunition. The two men detailed for this even ing's work were of different metal. "Morlturi to salutnmus, colonel," said one with a reckless laugh. With the easy nonchalance of veterans, they gave the rifle salute, and, sliding over the top of tlie trench, disappeared into the night. "There go two good men, observed the colonel. The two men tiptoed across the dry rice paddies, each holding his rifle at the ready. There was no sound ex cept the occasional hiss of a random bullet, or tlio faint aud distant pop of n rifle. "Guess tlds is far enough," said one of the men at length; "here is a little hollow. Why, it is almost as safe as the trench." The other acquiesced with a faint murmur, and they sprawled upon tlie ground facing the enemy's territory. "It's a queer freak of fate that we two should be detailed on this to gether," observed the shorter of the two, "after avoiding each other so suc cessfully." "It's blamed queer, Osbourne," re turned the other, "but we'll have to stand it." "It is not that I would want a better man for a tight place, Wade," said Os bourne, "but there is tliat one tiling." "Yes, I know," wearily; "that's the trouble. If you were not as good or a better man than I, there would be no danger of Helen Eartiett caring for you." "We wore good friouds in the old days, Billy," said Osbourne, rather huskily; "if oue of us only loved her a little less." "X'o go, Tom," replied the other. "It is cither her or tlie jumping off place for me. Our friendship was a friendly thing, but she is above that. Would you " "X'o, you arc right. It's no thorough fare. I wish it were elided, oue way or the other." "What can wo do?" queried Wade, with studied composure. "We can't gouge each other with bayonets out here, and Springflelds at two yards is a bit too unique." Osbourne laughed harshly. "We might draw straws, the loser speedily to meet au accidental death." "X'o, thanks," replied Wade. "I am am willing to take my bullet, if It comes, but not that way. One of us might get it decently at any time." "You're right. IVade," said Osbourne. "You're a good, fellow." "Same to you," returned Wade. "Let's quit chatting aud attend to our work." For some time they lay silent, star ing into tlie darkness for things they could not see, even had they boon there. Only the intermittent popping of musketry and tile occasional zeu! of a Mauser bullet broke tbe silence. Now and tlien they eotild see through the blackness a faint, momentary red flare. "Confound them," observed Os bourne, "the Filipinos can smoke, any how. I'm dying for a cigarette." "If you light a match here," said Wade, "we'll be targets for about 4000 ifles." "That's true enough," agreed Os bourne. with a soft chuckle; "cigarettes fire rather expensive out here." An other period of silence followed. "Wade," inquired Osbourne, sudden ly, "are you willing to try a wild scheme for settling this matter for ever?" "Anything fair and reasonable," re plied the other. "What's your plan?" "Draw straws," said Osbourne, brief ly, "the man who gets the short one to stand up and light a match, and— go to his fathers." Wade caught Ids breath and re mained mute for some time, consider ing. "Not so bad," he observe*], after a time; "but we are on duty now." "O, Fudge!" said Osbourne, lightly; "the Filipinos wouldn't attack for ail the loot of Manila. An outpost here is merely a matter of form. Besides, one of us will be left." "That's so." returned Wade, "and I see no objection." "You fix the straws, then," said Os bourne, quickly. "I'll draw." He be gan to whistle softly in a nervous fashion, as men do when they are close to death. Wade fumbled silently with some fragments of rice straw. Ilis movements were slow and mechan ical. b'oine men are constituted that way. "Here, Tom," he said, stretching out his right list. "May the better man get it." Osbourne extended a hand that trembled slightly, and fingered the dis closed ends of the straw for a brief time. Suddenly he clutched one and pulled it out. At the same instant there was a strange, soft thud, and Wade fell upon ills lace. Ilis limits moved convulsively for a moment; then he lay motionless. "For heaven's sake, Billy! what's up?" cried Osbourne, in an agonized whisper. He laid bis hand on the man's face, but jerked it away horri fied, for it touched something warm and wet. "She's mine!" he muttered, with fierce triumph; then, "Poor Billy." A thought came that caused him to gasp and shiver. He hesitated, reached for the dead man's hand, and loosened its clasp from the otiier straw. It was several Inches longer than the one he had drawn. "What snail I do?" lie moaned. "Oh. Billy!" he cried, shaking the dead man's shoulder, as If to rouse him. "What Shall I do?" Only the far-off popping of the rifles broke the oppres sive stillness. "What would you have done?" he asked in the same strain. "By Jove!" suddenly, "you were a good man. You would have kept the compact. I lost fairly. Bear witness, Billy, I am as good a man as you." lie laid his hand for an instant on tlie dead man's forehead. Then lie rose slowly, ami fumbled in his pocket. At length he found a match. For a moment lie stood irresolute, inhaling strong breaths of air. Already he had begun to feel the horror of being shut out from it forever. It was hard to give the signal for his own death. His teeth came together with a click, and, scratching the match on his shoe, lie held the flame before his breast.— San Francisco Argonaut. Making tlie Dead Lite. Dr. Lnborde, of Paris, appears to have given a striking demonstration of tlie possibility of restoring to life persons apparently drowned or other wise asphyxiated. It Is well known that forced or artificial respiration has often been successful when all hope seemed to have vanished. Dr. La borde's method consists in producing rhythmical traction of the tongue, which has been found to revive res piration when other means had failed, and he has invented a small apparatus for the purpose. In the course of ex periments he chloroformed a vigorous bulldog, so that breathing seemed to have censed. After fifteen minutes tongue traction the animal recovered. In another experiment anaesthesia was carried to a more extreme point, and it tool; two hours of the action upon the tongue to restore sensibility. In tlie case of a human patient the sub ject is laid on his back and tlie tongue is grasped by a pair of tweezers, at tached to tlie apparatus, by means of which a continual pulling in and out process is kept up. The experiences seem to point to the assumption that, athougli an animal organism may have apparently ceased to live, a germ of life may exist somewhere within which is kept alive, and gradually the in fluence of the living spark spreads to the rest of the system.—London Tele graph. Autumn Leaves Instead of Crapei "Within the last two months I have had at. least a dozen orders from my customers to supply autumn leaves in stead of crape as a badge of mourn ins," said a Columbus avenue under taker. "These leaves are wovc*n into a wreath and tied with black ribbon, and they make, to my mind, a much more artistic emblem of grief than the long streamers of crape usually fast ened to tlie front door. "I don't know who is responsible for the innovation, but I certainly think the idea a pretty one, and I hope it will keep on growing."—New York Tribune. An Abgurriity* The craze l'or affixing tablets to his toric houses has now reached the ba thetical stage. It is announced that a tablet has been affixed to a house at Sodeu, near Frankfort, with tlie fol lowing Inscription: "In this house Itiehard Wagner spent the first night on German soil after his exile of eleven years. August 12-13, 1800."—London Cost, Tlie Hungry lllackbird. fiaid the blackbird at the glowworm's door: "I've lost my way to-night; Please come out and guide me homeward with Your pretty little light." Said the glowworm: "Sir, I greatly fear If I come out to shine, Though you might reach your home, that 1 Should not return to mine! And she kept the door shut all the time And would not show her head, So that naughty, hungry blackbird went Off supperless to bed. —Chicago Record-Herald. Ills He ward. It was Donald's first year at school and lvo came liomo one day a very sober boy. "Mamma," ho said, "the teacher says If we do it again we'll all have to stay after school.- I don't know just what it is—if we whisper or we don't study but anyway it's something like that, and when she told us, we all cried together." "Well," said mamma, "you need not feel badly, because 1 don't suppose you will have to stay," and she gave Donald a reassuring smile. "Why?" he asked. "Because 3'ou have too much sense. It must be a very stupid boy who will play and whisper in school and then have to stay in and study in play time." Donald seemed satisfied with this hopeful view of the case. Two days after, his mamma saw him coming up the street, holding his head so high he fairly leaned over back ward. lie ecme in and hung up his hat. "IIo! Some boys may like to play and whisper and get kept, but I've got sense! All the boys but me got kept. MISSING PARENTS' PUZZLE %:S A J : 1 : ;■;: p Find the lather and mother of these children. We can't tell yet which it was—whis per or not study—but it was one of 'em, and I just was still and worked, und here I am!" —Youth's Companion. A Trick Willi 11 Coin. "Give me a live-cent piece and a handkerchief. I place the coin in the middle of the cloth, and cover it with all four ends of the handkerchief, un til the coin cannot bo seen any more. Convince yourself, please, that the coin Is still in its place." The performer slips his two bauds In between "a" and "b," pulls the handkerchief apart, and the coin is gone, absolutely gone. "While folding ciul "a" over the coin the performer slips a small ball of wax underneath the end and presses the odd against the coin, fastening the two together. When he pulls the handkerchief apart the coin slips into liis left hand. Shaking the handker chief, lie removes wax and coin, and returns the handkerchief to its owner. —New York Tribune. An AtnnHing Trick With Fire. Soak a piece of linen thread in a strong solution of salt (two tublespoon fuls of water to one tablespoonful of salt). Take it out and let it dry, re peating this throe or four times before you are ready for the performance of this marvelous trick. Show the piece of thread to the audi ence, and as the thread will look like an ordinary piece of linen thread, no body will know that it has been pre pared. Suspend a light ring from the thread; set lire to the thread and burn it up. The ring will stay sus pended, although the thread Is burnt. This experiment must he executed with great care, as a tine fibre of salt suspends the ring Instead of the burnt thread, and the least hit of draft or shaking will spoil the experiment. This trick can also be done iu the following manner: Take a small piece of muslin and tie a piece of linen thread to each of the four corners, as the figure shows, forming a sort of hammock. This hammock, together with the thread, place in a strong solution of salt, as described before. Take it out and dry it. and repeat this treatment three or four times before the per formance. Hang it up, as shown in figure, and put an empty egg shell in the hammock. .Set fire to it, and you will see that although the threads and muslin are burnt up, the egg will stay suspended in the air.—Chicago Tribune. A Tu if-of-War. Spooky was a very greedy little chicken. Whenever Mother lien gave him a big, fat worm to divide among his little brothers and sisters, naughty Specky would run off with it to an other corner of the yard and gobble it all up himself. Mother lien soon found out this greedy trick of Mr. Specky, and so one day when she found a nice juicy worm, instead of giving it to him, she called little Topknot. Topknot ran off with her prize and nil the rest of the chickens after her. Spooky went, too, you may be sure, and because he was stronger than the rest, lie pushed through and grabbed bold of that lovely worm. Then all the little chickens wore scared, for tliey know that he was much stronger than Topknot and would soon get it away from her. So they all grabbed hold of Topknot's cud and tugged away, live of them pulling against one. I don't know how it would have ended, for Specky was very strong, but Mother Hen saw tlie tug-of-wnr and with angry clucks she marched over to the struggling chicks. Poor Specky! She gave him a peck that sent him flying, and away tumbled the others over backward. And 'then Mother lien ate the worm herself, after nil!— Brooklyn Eagle, Invasion of Canada. The "American invasion" of Canada is assuming proportions that are al most alarming to those who fear the future domination of settlers from the i'tatcs. It is estimated that in the first seven months of the present year over ii.OOU.OOO acres of land In Manitoba and Northwest Canada have been pur chased by citizens of the United States. A recent issue of the Medicine Hat News says: "The influx of settlers to the Canadian West is simply wonder ful. At Medicine Hat we are in a po sition to size up the great incoming, es pecially of Americans, as we see here, daily, train load after train load of would-be settlers, bringing with them car-loads of miscellaneous effects— horses, cattle, implements, household stuff. The rush of settlers is unprece dented, and is taxing the railways to the limit to handle the business in con nection with their trade." How to Grow. The proprietor of a small store in New York says his trade came from only a small section of the city until he began to advertise in a newspaper. Now lie draws enough trade from be yond ills old limits to mure than pay for his advertising. "Besides," lie says, "I am sowing seed for the time when I shall have a large department store. The only way for my establishment to grow is by newspaper advertising." Americans Are Forest Lovers By Eben Grcenough Scott. F all the forest-loving races of Europe, none has sought the wood* Ofor the woods' sake, like auto the English-speaking people; 110. has ever afforded the spectacle of an annual migration to the wilderness in such magnitude ns do the Americans of to-day. They go with the eagerness of hounds loosed from the leash, and, buoyant with the spirit of adventure, accept adventure's strokes or rewards with the indifference or delight of a knight of Ln "ITiTi Maneha. Nor have the Americans stayed at the mere ~in niim ■ of their adventure; they have embodied it in their literature. > They have been the first people to introduce into fiction the life, savage and civilized, of the forest, and to portray in classical accents the real life of the woods, the lakes, and the plains. Their first novelist of reputation. Cooper, laid his scenes in the forests of the upper Hudson, of the Susquehanna, and in the Oak Openings of Michigan; Irving descends the Hig Horn in a bull boat, and follows the adventurers across the Great Plains and the Rocky Moun tains, and through the desolation of Snake River to the Oregon; and I'arkman, enlightened by his tribeship with the Ogalallas, has endued history with the spirit of the wilderness, and lias drawn inspiration from its woods and streams. The greatest and best of the Americans, their writers, poets, philosophers and statesmen, all have worshiped Great Tan in his groves. Bryant, Lowell, Emerson, Agassiz made annual pilgrimages to the woods; Webster composed a part of his Bunker Hill Monument oration on a trout stream; deatli overtook Governor Russell on the banks of a salmon river; and the present President of the United States was called out of the Adirondacks to assume his oifiee; while President Harrison, the moment his duties were done, turned his back on the White House and sought repose in a cabin on the Fulton Chain. These are a few only of the worthies of our land out of the great number who have to the woods for rest, recreation, observation and inspiration; who. indeed, have gone into the woods for the woods' sake. We can say of the American i forest what Jacques do Bols said of the forest of Arden: Men of great worthtf resorted to this forest every day. f 999 9 * 9 Imaginary Crimes By Major Richard Sylvester, Superintendent of the Washington (D. C.) Police. SN every walk of life we meet with queer aud at times sur prising experiences, hut the police hear and see more that tends to question humanity than employes in any other line It seems strange, hut nevertheless it is true, that persons have dreams and hallucinations which arc reported to the police as facts for Investigation. Dreaming of robbers, they have awakened suddenly with all the excitement and alarm ~ that would attach to a genuine case, fired revolvers at the supposed intruder and only been reconciled to their mistake after close Inquiry proves it such. I know of a ease where it was reported that a burglar knocked at the bedroom door before entering to carry off money and valuables. There was another instance of a prominent official of the Government who, while perieneing the wildest horrors in his sleep, jumped out of bed and fought the \ bedpost, imagiuing that he wns attacked by burglars, aud the exhaustion which followed his miduight defense was as great as if he had actually encountered marauders. This gentleman had seen service in the Mexican War and through the Civil War, and had hand-to-hand encounters which, however, were attend ed with hardly more serious results than the imaginary conflict. The greatest imposition is that which occurs a great mnny times a year when persons who cannot or do not want to pay their just debts report that they have been robbed of sums of money. They will prearrange to give color to the truth of their report, but are genernlly fouud out in the end. A man has been known to have reported being held up by footpads In order to avoid paying out part of his income to his wife, and all kinds of losses have occurred to those who courted the sympathy of creditors about the first of the month. The public should not believe everything they read and hear about burg laries and highway robberies, for many of the cases so reported, after investi gation, are shown to be without foundation. 999 9 9 9 America's Great Future. By President Roosevelt. p'ttrewrsrosracsss HE world has never seen more marvellous prosperity than M yj that which we now enjoy, and this prosperity 1s not K 3 ephemeral. We shall have our ups and downs. The wavi B 5 H at times will recede, hut the tide will go steadily higher. S 8 fl This country has never yet been called upon to meet a crisis v I' a TVar 01 a cr ' s ' B ' n Peace tq which it did not eventually prove 1 ■ equal, and decade by decade its power grows greater and the gattHMßaCKi likelihood of its meeting successfully any crisis becomes even more assured. We are optimists. We spurn the teachings of despair and distrust. We have an abiding faith in the growing strength, the growing future of the mighty young nation still in, the flush of its youth and yet already with the might of a giant which stands on a continent and grasps an ocean with either hand. Succeed? Of course we shall succeed. How can success fall to come to a race of masterful energy and resolute character, which has a continent for tlie base of Its domain, and which feels within its veins the thrill that eoiues to generous souls when their strength stirs lu them and they know that the future is theirs. No great destiny ever yet came to a nation whose people were laggards ot faint-hearted. No great destiny ever yet came to a people walking with their eyes on the ground and their faces shrouded ln gloom. No great destiny ever J yet came to a people who feared the future, who feared failure more thajJL they hoped for success. With such as these we have no part. We know there are dangers ahead, as we know there are evils to fight and overcome, but we feel to the full that pulse of the prosperity which we eujoy. Stout of heart we see across the dangers the great future that lies beyoinl, nnd we rejoice as a giant refreshed, aa a strong man girt for the race; and wo go down into the arena where the nations strive for mastery, our hearts lifted with the faith that to us and to our children and our children's children It shall he given to make this Republic the greatest of all the peoples ot mankind. 9¥V * 9 9 Why Coimtry Boys Succeed By John Gilmer Speed. COUNTRY boy's lack of opportunity is his best equipment fot the serious struggles of life. This sounds paradoxical, but It is vy . ||j true. It Is just as true as the opposite proposition, that the O ym, to greatest hindrances a city boy has to contend with are the op- U jtj portunlties which beset him when young and pursue him uulil U .J|7 lie begins the real business of life—a busiuess which each indl '.J UUCTOVI vidual must carry ou lor himself. For (he city boy everything is made as easy as possible. Even pleasure becomes to hlm an old story before he is out of his teens. Brought up in the feverish rush a place where great tilings are happening day by day, he sees the world* with a cynic's eyes and despises the small things which, like the bricks in a house, go to the upbuilding of characters and careers. He believes in using large markers In the game of life; for pennies and small units of value he lias little taste nnd scant regard. The conditions surrounding the country boy are as different as possible. There Is a deal of regular work that every country hoy must do, und tills regularity of employment, mostly out of doors, inculcates Industrious habits, while It contributes to a physical development which In after years Is just ns valuable ns auy athletic training'that can he had. He cannot run as fast, perhaps, as those trained by a system; he may not be able to jump so high or so fur, or excel in any of the sports upon which we bestow so much time and from which we get so much of pleasure, but his developmeut enables him to buckle down to the hard work in which hours are consumed and from which very little or no immediate pleasure is extracted. His strength may be some thing like that of the cart horse, but the cart horse is to be preferred where a long aud steady pull is required. The thoroughbred race horse has a fine flight of speed and canters with delightful lightness and grace along the park bridle paths, hut the heavy work is the work most in demand, and for that we want , the draft animals every time. \ Enthusiasm is the spur to endeavor, and at the same time it is the savor of * lit'e. The country hoy whose ambition has taken him to town comes filled with enthusiasms. Even the little things arc novelties to him, and as he accomplishes this nnd that he feels that he is doing something not only interesting hut valuable. His simple tastes have not been spoiled by a multiplicity of gratifi cations, and so he is glad of everything good that comes his way. At thirty, if lie leads a clean life, he has more of the boy in him than his city cousin has left at fifteen. He does what is before him because it is his duly, while the other is too apt cynically to question the value of doing anything and ask, "What is he use?"
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers