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very tough and fibrous, but at the same
time spongy, the balls on striking buri
ed themselves as if they entered a soft
cushion. They penetrated deep into the
wood, without breaking or splintering it.
“ Although the Palmetto is rarely
found except on the Sea Islands, and im
mediately near the shores of the sea, a
very large tree stands in the streets of
Charleston, having been planted there
nearly forty years ago by one of the
residents of the city. It being a success
ful attempt to transplant and raise the
tree beyond the immediate action of the
salt-water, an iron railing has been
placed around the tree, and it is cherish
ed by all the citizens ot Charleston as a
symbol of the individual existence of the
State.*
* Prof. Holincs.'of University of Virginia.
Common Sense.
PEAK children, I've set you
A lesson in rhymes,
And trust that you each will
fHave learned it betimes:
Don’t give up a grain of
Your plain, commom sense,
For all the world’s glitter
Os sham and pretence:
But when you are told
That a round thing is flat.
See what common sense says.
And listen to that!
If some crazy zealot
Should say black is white.
Don’t take it for granted,
And go by his sight :
But ask the opinion
Os more minds than one.
And see what the judgment is
In the long run ;
And then take the black thing,
And look it quite thi-ough,
And see what your common
Sense says of the hue!
If any man calls himself
Perfect and wise,
Take care you don’t count
His assertions for lies ;
But look to his doing,
And look to his aims.
And see how they square to
The thing he proclaims;
For good sense its judgment
Will base on’the crcod:
The tree, by its fruitage.
The man, by his deed!
Skating in the Olden time,
Fitzstjsphen, who died in the year
1191. says : “It was customary in the
winter, when the ice would bear them,
for the young citizens of London to fas
ten the leg bones of animals under the
soles of their feet by tying them round
their ankles ; and then, taking a pole
shod with iron into their hands, they
pushed themselves forward by striking
it into the ice, and moving with celeri
ty equal to a bird flying through the air,
or an arrow from a cross-bow.”
Christians are all cross-bearers. It
is truly a family badge. Sometimes it
is lighter, sometimes heavier ; but they
carry it with them wherever they go;
no cross, no saint.
BURKE’S WEEKLY FOR BOYS AND GIRLS.
AVritten for Burke’s Weekly
SAL-O-QUAH;
OR,
Boy-Life Among tlio Indians
3Y REV. F. R. G GUIDING,
Author of “ Young Marooner's “ Alarooner's
Islandetc.
CHAPTER XLII.
ECONOMIZING FOOD, A LESSON FROM TIIE
RICHEST BEING IN TIIE UNIVERSE
CHEROKEE ELECTION DAY, AND METHOD
OF ELECTION.
Mp -
0T WITHSTAN DING the rain
which fell during the night,
and which continued to fall
during the morning, the woods around
lvaneeka’s “ preach-place ” were alive
at ten o’clock with a larger number of
Indians than we had ever seen there be
fore. This increase of number was no
doubt due to the lively zeal of Kaneeka
and Scossit-equah —so contagious is
simple earnestness in almost everything.
My lather and Cousin Aleck felt much
encouraged, nor could we boys, though
at a thoughtless age, feel indifferent
when we saw the eagerness of this heath
en people to hear the tidings brought to
them by the Book of books.
Nothing of special interest occurred
that thiy, except a talk of Cousin Aleck
with us boys. The occasion was trivial,
as is the case oftentimes with the gravest
events of life, but trivial only as is the
dropping into the ground of an acorn,
which is to grow and wave for centuries
after our marble tombstones have moul
dered. Certain it is that this little talk
lias more or less influenced almost every
day of my life since, and it makes me
smile as I write, to remember that part
of it was impressed upon us by spar
rows and ants.
It was soon after dinner. A tiny pud
dle of rain-water, clear as crystal, had
collected in an equally transparent cup
of turpentine that had oozed from the
base of a large pine. The combination
was strikingly beautiful; but what in
terested us not less was an iridescent
scum upon the surface that sparkled
with the brightest colorsof the rainbow.
After watching it for a time, and wish
ing to vary the phenomenon, we had
pushed down into the mass a piece of
bread and butter, and were watching to
see if any effect followed the incongru
ous combination of grease, turpentine
and water. Without knowing it, we
were studying chemistry, and Cousin
Aleck, who would gladly have aided us
in it if he had known vvhat we were
about, but who only saw what seemed
to him an act of wanton waste, passed
near us and said :
“ What, boys! destroying food?”
“We had finished eating. Wo do not
need it,” was our reply.
“ But perhaps somebody or something
else does,” he continued.
“ Who or what can it be ?” we inqui
red, looking at our well-fed dogs, for
we knew that Scipio was at that mo
ment enjoying a bountiful repast we
had brought him from our table, and
there were no poor Indians in sight.
“Nobody, nothing near at hand, that
I know of,” he answered. “ Only as I
saw that nice piece of bread and butter
ruined by being mixed with turpentine,
I had a painful recollection of an old
Jewish saying, ‘ Great will be the pun
ishment of those who waste food, de
stroy seed, and refuse to obey the law.’ ’
To this we had no reply. We there
fore looked meekly upon the ground.
Indeed, the quotation opened to our
minds anew field of thought: that
waste was not only bad economy, meas
urable by dollars and cents, but a sin,
obnoxious to the Divine displeasure.
Cousin Aleck seemed to catch intuitive
ly our train of thought, for we had not
uttered a word, and inquired :
“ Do you recollect, boys, the story of
our Saviour feeding five thousand peo
ple in the desert, with five loaves and
two fishes?”
We answered that we remembered it
well.
“How did he obtain the food?”
“ From a boy among the multitude.”
“Yes, the five loaves and the two
fishes that he began with, but how did
He obtain the quantity sufficient to feed
so large a multitude?”
“ He created it as it was distributed.”
“ Do you not suppose that the Power
which could thus feed five thousand
could as easily have fed ten times or an
hundred times the number?”
“We do.”
“ Then, as it could not have been
from any scantiness or want on his part,
why do you suppose he said to his dis
ciples, after the multitude had eaten,
‘ Gather up the fragments, that nothing
be lost?’ ”
We answered that we had never re
flected on the subject.
He added : “I will tell you what I
think. The reason was two-fold : First,
to reward the boy’s generosity, or faith,
as it might be, by returning to him
twelve baskets full of food in place of
the handful he had given up; and,
Secondly, to teach us by example that
the richest Being in all the universe
Himself practices economy, and would
have us do the same. But 1 think I can
give you a practical illustration of His
way of economizing. Scipio !” he call
ed aloud, “ have you done your din
ner?”
Scipio wiped his full mouth and look
ed down into an empty plate, unable for
an instant to give answer. But the act
was sufficient.
“Scipio,” said Cousin Aleck, “I
wish you would take what bones and
pieces of bread are left to yon tree,”
pointing to one near Kaneeka’s house,
“ and there give them to the dogs.”
Scipio did as was desired. The dogs
ate and left the place. Soon there came
along a hen and chickens, which Cousin
Aleck had spied before giving his order.
She uttered a joyful cluck, and her brood
ran to her. For several minutes they
feasted upon the scraps left by the dogs.
We smiled,Tor we at once perceived the
nature of the illustration intended.
“Hold on, boys! We are not half
done yet,” said Cousin Aleck.
The hen, with her well-fed brood had
not withdrawn many steps, before a red
headed wood pecker, and after it a
crested sparrow came, picked up a
crumb and flow away. The sparrow re
turned moie than once?
“Come, boys! To see the rest of
this show we must draw nearer,” said
Cousin Aleck, moving forward.
Several yellow-jackets, a large blue
fly, and a number of houseflies, had
alighted on the hard bones left by the
dogs, and were sucking a luxurious re
past from their oily surfaces.
“ Let us examine more closely still,”
said Cousin Aleck.
We came and found, at a place where
one of the dogs had gnawed his bone, a
multitude of ants of several species,
some feasting on the marrow hidden
away in crevices beyond the reach of
flies and yellow-jackets, and others tug
ging off some of the smaller fragments
to their homes.
“ We need not stop even yet,” said
Cousin Aleck, “ though this scene pro
bably closes all that can be discerned
by the naked eye ami at the present
time. But were you to come here after
a few hours with a suitable microscope,
you would find every bone, and leaf, and
pebble on which the food had rested
giving token of still minuter forms of
life ; and later still, after these animal
culm have eaten their fill and spent their
little day in enjoyment, these same re
mains will swarm with minute vegetable
growth, and will then dissolve gradual
ly into the soil and become food for
larger plants. Now, boys, in view of
these facts, I should like to know who
it is that in all the universe is the most
perfect economist?”
Lorenzo took off his hat and rever
ently answered “ Cod.”
“You are right,” rejoined Cousin
Aleck, impressed with this act of prac
tical worship on Lorenzo’s part, and
also taking off his hat, “ the Richest of
beings is also the most frugal and pru
dent. He cares tor all His creatures,
and would have us do the same. Let
us endeavor to be more fully ‘ the chil
dren of our Father which is in heaven’
by following his example; and let us
remember that the lesson taught us to
day is, Never waste food.”
The election next day took place at
the council-house of the neighborhood,
—the same place we had visited at the
time of Sotih’s rescue from unjust exe
cution. When we arrived several knots
of the neighbors were already assem-