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well protected underneath his blanket.
Wildcat stripped off his deerskin hunt
in(, shirt wholly from one arm, and part
lylfrom the other, doubling the loose end
of the partly filled sleeve to cover the en
closed hand, and spreading the body of
the shirt over all other parts exposed, ex
cept his head, which he closely enveloped
in his turban, leaving only a small orifice
for breathing.
Dr. Gordon, well knowing the reputa
tion of the coast for musquitoes, had pro
vided himself, before leaving home, with
a yard or two of musquito netting, by
means of which he was perfectly safe
from attack.
Poor Thompson and Magruder resorted
first to one device then another, and were
satisfied the next morning, (at least
Thompson said that he was,) that they
had received their full share of attention
from their nimble little visitors. But
when they came to talk the matter over,
Magruder, looking at his swollen hands,
said—
“ You, who were born and raised in a
musquito country, may know better than
I how to keep from being stung, but—
every man to his trade ! I have an ad
vantage over you all, as cook, in curing
the bites after they have been made,” and
with this he took from the cook’s stores
a spoonful of soda, which he dissolved in
a little water and applied to the swollen
places, remarking that wet soda, or even
strong salt and water, would relieve the
sting of any poisonous creature, whether
gnat, wasp, or scorpion.
To which Dr. Gordon added : “ That is
true, for animal poisons are said to be
powerful acids, and the best corrective of
these are alkalies, such as hartshorn, soda,
potash, or even lye or soap suds.”
And Thompson also said: “If we are
to take Magruder’s rule, ‘ Every man to
his trade,’ I must not slight mine, for I
carry with me a cure for every sting I
have tried yet. It is the oil to be had
from the stem of my pipe. It is awful
bad-smelling, but it is as good to cure as
it is bad to smell.”
By unanimous vote, the island was
named Musquito Key.
•
Always Sunshine Somewhere. —The
sun is always shining; the flowers are al
ways blooming; the birds are always
singing j the grain is always -waving
somewhere in this wicked world.
Boy, did you let off that gun ?”
exclaimed an enraged schoolmaster. “Yes,
sir.” “Well, what do you think I ought
to do to you ?” “Why, let me off.”
BXJRKE’S ‘WEEKLY.
Written for Burke’s Weekly.
A LITTLE HELP.
BY ENA MAY.
KIIY, Carrie, what is the
matter? You, the sun
beam of the school in
tears! What is break
ing your heart ?”
iot do this hard example,
i Wilson says she will
punish me if I do not finish and
4s) explain it.”
Carrie was the smallest and the pet
scholar in Miss Wilson’s school, while
Julia -was one of the larger girls.
“ Come here, Carrie, and let me see if
I can help you any. It is a long division
sum, I see, and your divisor is twenty
seven ; now, what are the two first fig
ures of your dividend?”
“ Seventeen.”
“Very well; now, is twenty-seven con
tained in seventeen ?”
“No.”
“ That’s right; because twenty-seven is
a larger number than seventeen. Now
annex the next figure of your dividend to
the seventeen. The next figure is two ;
so that will make one hundred and seven
ty-two. Now, how many times will
twenty-seven go into one hundred and
seventy-two, Carrie?”
“ Six times, with ten for a remainder,”
said Carrie.
“ Yes ; I see you understand it—all you
want is a little thought and patience.
Now, do you think you can explain it?”
“Yes, thank you, dear Miss Julia. I
will never forget what you have told
me.”
“Yery well; mind, I don’t want to see
any more tears, and whenever you have
a hard example, come to me, and let me
help you.”
And Julia went away, a much happier
girl for having made another happy.
When Carrie grew to be a big girl, she
always helped the smaller ones, and nev
er felt that she had lost time by so doing,
for they were all her friends.
Liquid Glue.
The following is the method of prepar
ing liquid glue, by the celebrated French
chemist, Dumoulin:
“ Pour a small quantity of nitric acid
into a solution of common glue, or gela
tine, in its own weight of water. This
glue, of two sorts, brown and white, is
very strong, and is employed in private
houses, workshops, and by jewellers,
clock-makers, etc.”
Caution to the Young.
friend, beware of
the card-playing circle !
Ettf Beware of the billiard
saloon! Beware of the
theatre! Yes, young friend,
beware of such resorts. You
can find sufficient recreation
elsewhere. There are amuse
ments enough without recourse
to any of these. Be on your guard
against the seductive influence of all of
them. Direct your footsteps into wiser
and safer paths. “Avoid them; pass not
by them ; turn from them and pass
away.”
None of these are necessary to your re
spectability or happiness, to your health
of body or purity of mind, to the educa
tion of the intellect or the salvation of the
soul, to your prosperity through time or
welfare in eternity. They are positively
dangerous to your peace of conscience,
future, if not present; dangerous to hab
its of industry, and dangerous to your
morals. They all peril the dearest inter
est of your immortal nature. In the hour
of sober conviction, on the bed of death
and at the judgment of the great day, you
will be ready to acknowledge it, if not
before. There is no need of thus risking
your good name in the estimation of the
best part of the community; and, what
is worse than all, risking the possession
of an unsullied character and virtuous
principles in your own and God’s estima
tion.
Remember, that while “ the way of
transgressors is hard,” and while sin at
the last “ biteth like a serpent and sting
eth like an adder,” it is also true, for our
encouragement, that “religion never was
designed to make our pleasures less,” and
that “ wisdom’s ways are ways of pleas
antness, and all her paths are peace.”—
Am. Messenger.
A Schoolmaster and his Pupil.
“John,” inquired a master of a hopeful
pupil, “what is a nailer?”
“A man who makes nails,” said John.
“Yery good. What is a tailor?”
“A man who makes tails.”
“Oh, you stupid fellow,” said his mas
ter, biting his lips; “ a man who makes
tails?”
“Yes, master,” returned John, “if the
tailor did not put tails to the coats he
made, they would be all jackets.
Wealth gotten by vanity shall be
diminished; but he that gathereth by his
labor shall increase.
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