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various expedients for allaying thirst and for obtaining water. Wheeler gave it as his experience, that, in long and thirsty marches, such as he had made in Mexico and the Kocky Mountains, it is better to drink well at the start, and to drink no more until the halt, and at the same time to keep the mouth shut during the march, breathing only through the.nostrils. Thompson said that his experience was like Wheeler’s, and that whenever his thirst became great, lie found it better to quench it by drinking a tea-spoonful at a time, very often, than by swallowing large draughts at long intervals. Jones remarked, that on a march, his own habit had been to keep a bullet or a pebble in his mouth, or to chew' a leaf or straw; and that, according to his experi ence, a small piece of clove kept in the mouth will create moisture, there for a long time. Dr. Gordon said that a little vinegar mixed with the water will greatly allay the sensation of thirst, and so will any sub-acid fruit, and that the mucilaginous leaves of the sassafras and of the prickly pear are often used for the same purpose. Tomkins added, that he had once car ried with him to the battle field a canteen of cold tea, and found it to have the effect of both food and water, and that he had no doubt a canteen of cold coffee would do equally as well. “When I was crossing the ocean,” said Magruder, “ our water became very stale, and the ship’s company began to suffer, when our captain gave us a treat in the way of drink that none of us will be apt tojorget if we live to the age of Methu selah—it was a drink of ice water fresh from the clouds. There came up a hail storm in the midst of our distress, and the captain stretched several large sails to catch it. The water soon began to collect into the middle of the sail, and to pour through it in a perfect stream. We caught more than two bar’ls of it, though the captain did not allow any of it to enter the bar’ls until the salt had been all washed out of the sails.” “ I was present once,” said Wheeler, ‘‘when some thirsty men, for the lack of sails, spread their own clothes in the rain, and then wrung out the water into cups to drink. I confess I preferred to starve a little longer for water than to drink what was wrung from dirty clothing.” “A clever mode,” added Dr. Gordon, “would have been to collect the rain drops from the trees by means of a sponge or a clean cloth. Even dew-drops ma y be collected in this way of a damp BURKE’S WEEKLY. morning, and it is surprising to know how much water they will afford.” Wheeler said he had once tasted water from the paunch of a newly-killed deer, and it was fresh, but unpleasantly sweet ish. lie had also heard fisherman say that the water to be found in a little sac around the heart of the sea-turtle is fresh enough to quench thirst, but he had never tried it. Wild Cat, who had been silent through all this colloquy, now whispered modestly to Jones that he had often quenched his thirst, during the spring and early sum mer, from the vine of the wild grape, which, on being cut or even bruised, will emit for days a quantity of very pala table water. “ While we are talking about fresh water,” said Tomkins, “there comes to our cars the sign of it not half a mile away. Do you hear the cawing and chattering of those sea-birds going to roost ? There are cranes, and herons, and gannets, and water-turkeys, that wade in the salt water and feed upon salt food all day, but I observe that they always try to sleep over a fresh water pool at night.” Wheeler stated that hunters among the wild mountains and boundless prairies of the West would often die for want of water, were it not for knowing that the paths worn by wild beasts almost invari ably lead to water, of which they are next to certain when they can find two of them converging to the same point, lie said there was one fresh water sign which had never yet deceived him, and this was the growth of grasses with a three-cornered stalk; wherever these were to be found, on hill-side or valley, there was sure to be water near the root. Another sign, he said, was nearly as good, though by no means so precise, and this consisted in dancing companies of mos quitoes and other gnats, for these trouble some insects being born and bred in water, and laying their eggs in water, cannot afford to travel very fill* from it. He also described the process of trying for water in moist-looking places. An iron ramrod is first shoved into the ground as deep as it will go, and if it comes up moist there is water there, It is usual to commence digging by first sinking a hole not larger than a mans arm, and afterwards to enlarge it. After the hole has been sunk beyond the reach of the hand, it is easy to loosen the dirt by means of a sharpened stick, the point of which is hardened in the fire, and that the*loosened dirt can be taken out by means of a very large cane, split into three or four pieces at the larger end — the dirt is caught and held between the split portions, till it can be drawn up and shaken out. In cases where a reed is not to be had sufficiently large, then a substitute for it can be contrived out of long tough splin ters tied around the end of a rod, so as to leave a hollow in the midst. With a sharpened stick and a dirt-lifter, it is easy to bore into soft earth to the depth of ten or fifteen or perhaps even of twenty feet. With this lively chat about water, which interested all by its promise of usefulness, they passed the evening from sun-set to bed-time, when, just as they were preparing to turn in for the night, they weie all aroused by an incident which will be recorded in the next chap ter. A Timely Word. Lost for want of a word, A word that I might have spoken; Who knows what eyes are dimmed, What hearts are aching and broken ? Go scatter beside all waters, Nor sicken at hope deferred, Let never a soul by thy dumbness Be lost for want of a word. Knocking Away Props. “See, father,” said a lad who was walk ing with his father, “they are knocking away props from under the bridge; what are they doing that for ; won’t the bridge fall?” * “They are knocking them away,” said the father, “that the timbers may rest more firmly upon the stone piers which are now finished.” God often takes away our earthly props, that we may rest more firmly on Him.— God sometimes takes away a man’s health, that he may rest upon Him for his daily bread. Before his health failed, though he, perhaps, repeated daily the words “give us this day our daily bread,” he looked to his own industry for that which he asked of God. That prop being taken away, he rests wholly upon God’s bounty. When he receives his bread, he receives it as the gift of God. God takes away our friends that avo may look to Him for sympathy. W hen our affections Avcre exercised upon objects around us, Avhen avc rejoiced in their abundant sympathy, aa’O did not leel the need of Divine sympathy. But Avhen they Avere taken aAvay, Ave felt our need of God’s sympathy and support. "W e AA r ere brought to realize that He alone could give sup port, and form an adequate protection for the soul. Thus are our earthly props re moved, that avo may rest firmly and Avhol ]y upon God, 95