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The Covington Star.
J.'W, ANDERSON, Editor ancUProprietor.
Our True Treasure,
Every ooin of earthly treacnre
We have lavished upon earth,
or our simple worldly pleasure,
May he reckoned something worth;
For the speeding was not losing,
Though the purchase was not small;
It has perished with the using;
We have had it—that is bill
■ut each merciful oblation—
Seeds of pity wisely sown,
What we gave in self negation,
We may truly call our own;
Foy the treasure freely given
Is the treasure that we hoard,
Since the angels keep in heaven
What is lent unto the Lordl
— J. O. Saxe.
A MOTHER’S VISION.
• ■ Oh, dear,” said tidy Mrs. Jewett,
“there’s Willie in the parlor again with
his muddy b ots, and Jennie has finger¬
ed the woodwork of the piano all over,
I see, that I polished so nicely only
yesterday. I know the door of the spare
room has been left open, too, for the
muslin curiaius are pulled all away,
where pussy must have frolicked in the
folds; and, dear, dear, there’s Jack this
minute with his feet in that Bluffed
cmirl”
| i“Come, come mother, I wouldn't
fret, said easy Air. Jewett: “the
children must put their feet somewhere,
and I suppose kittens will be kittens and
fly about where they can find the most
fUD.”
“Oh, yes,” rejoined Mrs. Jewett,
“It’s very easy for you father,
to think children and cats can go
where they like and do what they
please. I’m not frettiug, but it’s hard
work to sweep and polish, and do
clear-starching; and men never did
know and never will • know anything
about the work of a housekeeper and a
mother.”
So saying, Airs. Jewett, with her fair,
pretty face all in wrinkles, went out of
the room with a worried:
. • Oh, dear!”
Aad her husband looked after her
with a compassionate:
i > Poor mother!"
Naturally Mrs. Jewett was of a happy
disposition, but like many another fond,
faithful mother, she was unconsciously
falling into the habit of worrying over
the inevitable faults and thoughtlessness
of her children.
She was a scrupulously neat house¬
keeper, and as her things had not come
as easily as they do to many others, they
acquired all the more vulue aud impor¬
tance in her eyes, once they came into
her possession.
But the usual restlessness of boys and
girls, aud even poor capering kitty herself,
was fast developing into Mrs. Jewett
that irritating fretfulness and impatience
which kills true happiness aud comfort
in many a home, aud where the mother’s
real object is to make all as comfortable
and happy as possible.
In vain Air. Jewett hinted that things
were always going wrong, somehow, and
that there was no end of peevishness and
fault- finding taking root in his family.
At such times Airs. Jewett would shed
tenrs and declare no one could do more
than spend all their time and energies
for the welfare of their family, ii» she
did.
One morning the curtains were discov¬
ered to have been rolled up all to one
side, while the summer suushino was
flooding, with its wholesome light, the
bright pattern of the new Brussels car¬
pet. Jennie and Carrie had left their
school books rcattered around on tho
chairs, and Jack’s muddy boots stood iu
the middle of the floor.
Airs. Jewett burst into a tirade of dis¬
pleasure, but the children were out of
hearing, so instead of judiciously and
patiently calling them in and obliging
them to put things in their places, she
began putting tilings to rights hersc.f,
allowing Air. Jewett, ns frequently hap¬
pened, to bear the brunt of her displeas¬
ure, and for once his good nature gave
way, and he said, pettishly:
<1 I declare, wife, it is a thousand pit¬
ies are any children here to bother
you so.”
Mrs. Jewett made no reply, but going
to her room she sat down for a moment
to consider whether or not her husband
meant what he had ju3t said.
But by degrees the room faded from her
vision, the house became quiet—terribly
quiet—the sunlight died out, and shade
and stillness reigned supreme.
There were footsteps heard, but
hushed, creeping, awed.
All of active life had ceased ; even the
kitty had taken herself off, and was no
where to be seen,
Airs. Jewett roused herself, and went
from kitchen to dining-room, from
dining-room to parlor. The invariable
order was oppressive.
The curtains were rolled with exact
evenness; not the finest line of sunlight
could pierce through crack or crevice
of the niceiy adjusted shutters.
Every book was in its place; the
chairs as guiltless of dust as if just
cleaned, and the unbiurred polish of the
piano reflected each undisturbed orna
ment and object in its vicinity.
But the children I Oh, the children!
A great appalling throb of apprehen¬
sion and withering pam shot
prossed through the mother’s heart
the mention of their name.
COVINGTON, GEORGIA, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 9. 1887.
When) was winsome—no longer
mischievous but winsome—Willie?
Where pray, were sportive Carrie and
lively Jennie? Where, too, bounding,lov¬
ing little Jack? “Yes, she said, vaguely
peering about in the sunless gloom,
where are my precious children?”
She left dining room and parlor and
went from one child’s chamber to an
other—everything ,, ... in .... that same depress- .
1
ing order, . even their ,,. little ..... , beds ,
were un
ruffled, m . each , smooth ..-11 pillow , looked , , as if
unpressed , , by a sunny J , head , for—oh, , , ’
loag
And, ah, misery! What . was that .... in
Willie’s room in the porcelain vase?
Some white flowers tied with white
Qofi satin „ nbbon; ____ and -v.- this heart-breaking i . , i
emblem . , . Jennie’s T . , room? . Her
in picture, 1
sweet child! with 0 <l ln S
flowers encircling it—and hero in Car
rie • . s her , picture, . . the ,, darling, . also ,
room
crowned . with ... immortelles. . ,,
And Jack s room ’ forlorn , . in ... its .... tidi
ness; yes, yes, a funeral wreath in his
room, dear, loving little Jack.
Airs. Jewett’s first impulse was
to disarrange every tiling; tho
quiet and palling neatness were
goading her to madness ;
even kitty had deserted tho simless,
childless house, but the children—oh,
the children ! The mother felt as if her
brain were afire, and her heart was
bursting with its pent grief; she could
not endure it another moment—and she
awoke.
Thank God ! She was sitting directly
in the rare, sweet sunlight which God
made to come in, not to be shut out of
our homes. In the garden she heard
tho sweet, delightsome voices of her
children—the blessed little children.
Kitty, with fluttering little paws, was
clu cbing with unchecked glee at the
tassels of the muslin curtain, aud she
noticed with a sigh of relief that the
mahogany bureau, with its burnished
surface, had been pawed with fresh fin
t,er marks.
Mrs. Jewett arose slowly, locked the
door, then knelt dowm; ufter awhile she
went forth, a new quiet in her heart, a
new smile on her face.
In the dining-room she raised the
curtains, so that the sunlight danced
gaily through the room.
Jennie came in with a torn apron, and
was greeted with a smile of welcome—
rent and all.
Willie had been using paste in
the d ning-room, and had daubed
the cloth, door-knob and his
blouse, but mamma patiently showed
him how to clean the spots away, and
Willie promised with great sincerity to
be more careful another time.
The children had a gloriously happy
day. At night, when they were all
asleep, their mother went from room to
room, gazing with pure thankfulness at
each darling little sleeper, so dear-ah,
so dear! She sighed, then smiled at tho
little porcelain vase in Willie’s room,
filled with sweet, wild flowers of his own
plucking.
Then she went to her own room, and
tearfully told “father” her terrible
dream.
He kissrd his wife’s fair brow fondly,
and said, soothingly:
“Never mind, dear; we’re all right
now.
And they were, The timely warning
was not lost on the mother’s heart, for
she sever forgot how tcniblc it v\as
when in dreams she roamed from one
e epty, orderly room to another in quest
of her children, and could uot ii id them.
And she resolved that she would not
wait to place white flowers in their hand
when the perfume could not reach the
dulled sense and their fading beauty
would only break her heart; the child
ren should have the flowers now, while
their dear eyes were open to behold
them, and their hearts still alive to all
of earth’s comforts aud delights.
And we would that many another
wife and mother, who is drifting into
habits of fretfulness and nervousness
through unduo care for the children’s
bodies rather than their souls “might
dream this lady’s dream.
A Vegetarian Restaurant.
For the first time in London, a licen¬
sed vegetarian restaurant has been estab.
lished, says a correspondent of the Al
bany Journal, where, in addition to a
vegetarian dinner, beverages of all kinds
can be obtained. Never having pre¬
viously subjected myself to a vegetarian
diet, I tried the experiment, and am able
to report favorably on the result, T..e
dishes, which include soups, maccaroni,
numerous preparations of farinaceous food
nd a variety of confections, are all of a
.
tempting description and supplied at ex¬
ceedingly moderate prices; for instance,
the soups are charged six cents, the dif¬
ferent dishes eight cents, and sweets
eight cents. A six-penny tea is alsoserved
from four till six, including bread and
butter or cake, stewed fruits or jam and
a cup of tea, coffee or cocoa.
Wanted llim to Wait a Year.
(t See here, Parker, you havn’t con
gratulated tne on my marriage. Six
months have gone by.”
“Are you in a hurry (hat I should?”
‘Well, not particularly.
“Then wait a year, By that time
you’ll want me to condole with you.”—
Pkiladdyhia Call.
CHINESE FARMING.
Agricultural Doings Among
the Pig-Tailed Celestials.
Heat and Produotiva Farms, Good Garden¬
ing and Myriads of Trees.
1“ passing ?. through the silk growing °
°
district .. , . which , , begins .
very near to
c Shanghai , and extends all around the
° to
1 city of Hangchow, „ writes correspondent
’ a
of the London r Post, , _ I could ,,, but , be
struck indeed with the comfort which
... eVerywhcre , Tbe farm . hou9es
-
°'° r Ut ratc ' n that part of
i ; China, were models of what farm houses
should , be. T I bad , . expected to see squalor
I and , wretchedness, ... and 1 , ill prepared 1 .
was
i for what I really beheld. Exceedingly 6
good , gardi . . "L I of , prepared ,
ning 6 was course 11
tor, , , for Chinese . gardning , . .
is synonymous
Wltl1 ■„ everything ... that .... is neat . and , pro
ductive. . But the orchards . and , mul¬ ,
berry trees all beautifully trimmed, with
the brick-built and excellent houses half
hiddeu away in them, certainly astonish¬
ed me. I chanced to land fr m my
house-boat frequently in order to shoot
woodcock, for it was winter time when I
passed through the district. To get these
birds it was necessary to scramble over
the fields and through the mulbery
orchards of the district, and
I was simply amazed to see how
beautifully the groves of trees were
kept. Underneath great quantities of
vegetables were grown, not a foot of
earth appeared to be wasted, and every
inch was in the most superb order. Had
the whole country been avast garden, it
could not have been better tended and
cared for. There were uot hereabouts
any hedges or walls, the fields were
divided Irom each other bv deep dykes,
which 8erved the doubl ; purp0M of
marking out the land and irrigating or
drainingi as tUe case mi ht be the
aJjacent goiL Thfi ^ of which
there were myriads, were all planted
with mathemat i ca i exactness and in the
greatest order, unlike the trees in many
English orchards, which seem to have
been stuck into the ground with a view
of wasting ns much space as possible
Aud as for the tops of the trees, they
bad all been carefully trimmed to tho
same pattern, every litte bough having
been inspected and cut a* circumstances
chanced to require. I never saw any¬
thing half so orderly in any country in
the world, for these wsre no ornamental
gardens which I was goiug through, but
mulberry orchards, extending over
hundreds of square miles of country
and ownsd by thousands of
different husbandmen. Inside the
house, again, I was surprised at the
comfort which prevailed, In each one
there were at least two rooms set apart
special iy for the si i k . worms> and these
were kept 8Crupu i ous i y c i eaD . The
other rooms of the house were well fur
nished, comfortable, and warm—in
every case very clean also; aud I did not
see in any country house any of the
squalor or misery one sees in many
English, Scotch, and especially Irish
districts.
At the time when I was in this coun
try- too, there was a very general feeling
of increased contentment springing up
owing to the opening of some large silk¬
winding factories at Shanghai by Ameri¬
can and English firms. Hitherto tho
winding of the silk from the cocoons had
been done in most cases by the silk—
growers themselves, and the demand lor
the silk thus indifferently wound aud
the prices paid for it were alike small.
But with the establishment of silk-wind
ing factories filled with steam machinery
at Shanghai it was hoped and ex
pected by the silk-growers that the
price of cocoons would g° UP,
aad that consequently silk growing
would improve as an industry. In any
case the entire population seemed to be
prosperous and welt contented. It does
no t always do to take the dress of any
Chinaman as an index to the wealth he
may possess. He may have many rea¬
sons — among them being a
dread of attracting the attention
of some rapacious mandarin—
for not showing more richness of attire
than is absolutely necessary, and he may
prefer to go about in warm rags than run
the risk of being “squeezed” by tho lo
C al officials, so that many a traveler may
mistake their intentional poverty of at
tire for want of money. I had pointed
out to me in Canton one day, for ex
ample, a particularly woe-begono look
i mg Chinaman going up the street.
The gentleman who was with me, and
who was a resident ou the adjacent isl
and of Shamien, said, “Poor? I wish
I was as rich as that Chinaman, Why,
half the European houses here a re ia his
debt, but if he showed this by hi* dress
^ be mandarin here would soon borrow a
trifle of him.
Too Far Ahead.
“What do you want?” she snapped,
as she held the front door open about
three inches.
“Want to clean the snow off yer side¬
walk,” he replied.
“But it is clean.”
“Then 1 want to engage to saw some
wood for you next summer. The ex:— j
gencies of the ease demand that I get ,
hold of some breakfast somehow or i
other right off.”—Detroit Free Presto j
A Pet Coon.
An old hunter tells the following 3
story . the , Atlanta, . , (Ga.) Constitution: .
m ’
_ Speaking , . of , coons, did ; you have
* b ? ever a
pet coon? . I had a pet \ coon, and he
1 ’
could ,, get , into . , more trouble , ,, than ull the
pets that ever lived , on , father’s , , farm put
1
together. . .. TI lie would ,. steal , threads, , ’ thim
, blcs, , socks, , combs , and , , brushes. ,
Any- J
...... thing that was lost , , would ., , be , looked , for
in tho coon’s , nest. „ He , had , bed .
a up R
the ,. plate , of the , , house—an old-fashioned
i a .uucu
story and a half log house. Everything
ho got a hold of he carried there, and in
every trouble ho got into he made for
that place. Once I carried this coon
with me to a quilting at old man Bag
ley’s. Old man Bagley had a heap of
bees, and you know a coon loves honey
better than anything. The quilting was
proceeding nicely; all tho women folks
sitting around plying their needles,
when in dashed the coon literally cov¬
ered with bees. He rushed under tho
quilt, strewing the mad insects. I tell
you the quilters moved, and the chairs
flew and the dresses flapped, and such a
dancing was never seen before. Pet coons
were not worth much in that market af¬
terward.
The same coon got mo into troublo
again. He would follow me all around
the place. One Sunday Frank and my
self went down into the pasture, just be
hind the horse lot, and the coon came
along too. In the pasture we decided to
take a ride upon a gentle horse that was
grazing there. We got the horse by tho
mane and led him up to a stump, and I
got upon his back and Frank got up be
hind me. Then the coon bounced upon
tho stump and wanted to go up too, so
I reached down and took him up in my
lap. No sooner had the horse started
off than the coon, fearful of fallin o» rr
stuck all his claws into the horses weth
ers, and the fun began. The horse went
running and kicking. Frank soon hit
the ground , and 7 left , -, myself and the coon
un- holding on ^ for - dear -i n.z life. T I stuck . , till ....
on
we reached t i xu the , lot . fence, , and v there,
as
the \ horse n mounted l a i high i and a went s. over,
®
T I came down 3 across the rails, .. and , , left
’
the master . of - the .. situation. Father -r, .
coon
i heard a x, the racket, , . and , the whole , ,
soon
plantation , . .. trying , to catch 4 the , horse
was
to relieve it of its rider. That was the
last of that coon. He got killed aud I
got whipped, aud I've never wanted a pet
since. '
coon
Hanged for Foisoning Racehorses.
About half a century ago, at New¬
market, England, several horses who
stood high iu the betting at different
times, suddenly went off sick just before
the race for which they were entered;
some died, others recovered, but all were
disabled for the time being, and favorites
that a few hours previously outstripped
every rival, would come straggling yards
behind the field. Every one knew they
had been “nobbled,” but for a long
time the perpetrator remained undis¬
covered, at last, however, a notorious
scoundrel, one D.ui Dawson, was caught
red-handed poisoning the troughs. Dur¬
ing the trial it came out that he had
made a regular trade of these nefarious
practices, and it was more than suspected
that not a few of the biggest men on the
turf were bis employers. But, although
he was condemned to death, whether
from the hope that some among his in¬
fluential patrons wouid intercede for a
reprieve, or from the hatred which cer¬
tain men of h:s class have against “peach¬
ing,” he never betrayed them, and re¬
mained silent to the end. The most
minute precautions are taken to guard
the racehorse from such dangers, yet the
cunning or daring of his enemies fre
quently proves more than a match for
the care of his owners.- Chamber's
Journal.
To Sail Under (lie Waves.
A new idea in submarine boats is re¬
ported. An English inventor has eon
structed a boat which is sometimes 60
feet long, and sometimes considerably
less. In other words, it shuts up and
opens out like a telescope, aud sinks in
the former case aud floats in the latter.
A boat of this kind, which could dive
down . and , hang . a torpedo , to an adver- ,
sarys keel would be an awkward custo
mer oica vvi i la a a tle - Per ‘
haps the seafightso the future are go
mg to be deeded undo’water as the
land wars may be decided by baloons in ;
mid-air.
The idea owever . only .
new is m its
infancy yet and may not bo practically
developed for a long while. The
coping boat to which we referred is said
to work satisfactorily, but it has only
been tried, so far, in the shallow and .
placid waters of the Linden docks.—
Golden Argory.
A Novel Life Buoy,
A young Irish sailor named Welch,
in the United States Navy is credited
with having invented a remarkable and
complete life buoy. It is a circular belt
in which are mounted six vertical hoi
low tudes. These arc filled with, first,
Greek fire in sufficient quantity to burn
50 seconds; second, Roman candles that
explode every ten seconds, and third,
with n sort of rocket to which are at
tached life Hues. These, as the rocket
explodes, are projected in different di- j
rections, giving tho drowning man as
many chances for his life.
T1IE FAMILY PHYSICIAN,
To _ Produce „ sleep,
The American Medical , Journal . , says
l ,, mat . in . the decline of c ... life, when ,
I ex
aausted . , , nature , habitually repels , the ..
; r re
itorative ___,• influence . „ of . sleep, , there ., is
aothing • suitablo .. , , to . induce . , , healthful ... ,,
so
, repose 0 as one-half , „ to , one teaspoonful , of .
’
.■*. bromidia at ,, bedtime. ... T It . betaken , ,
i may J
for f years, m the same dose, with ... tho
same effect «. and j without detriment, , , but ,
„ Qeyer cxcept , uader , advice . . of ,,, the family ,
physician.
Itorax and Epllepny.
Dr. C. T. Wilbur, Superintendent of
Schools for Weak-Mindeded Children at
Kalamazoo, writes to a medical journal
recommending borax for epilepsy,
Some time since a boy about 14 years
old was brought to him for treatment.
For two weeks after coming he had from
one to six convulsions a day. He put
lim on fifteen grains of borax, tkreo
uines a day. The Doctor kept this up
lonstantly in the same dose after each
meal, and up to the time of his writing
—a period of six months—the patient
aad not a single convulsion, With a
liberal diet the boy gained thirty pounds,
Another lad, of the same age, appar
;ntly from the use of the same remedy,
; bas had but one attack of convulsions!
ind that, the Doctor thinks, resulted
j [rom an attack of malarial fever, which
won yielded to quinine. Other cases
of epilepsy under his care, however, did
aot yield to the use of borax. From
; these facts we can draw the conclusion,
that it is only of value in some cases,
How to Htmove Scars.
Scars are always unsightly and are
often painful or inconvenient on account
of their propensity to contract as they
become older. Dr. Ward of New York
aSSer ' 8 that the * lna >' be removed b ?
man ‘P ulatl0D ’ whlch ho directa t0 be
employed 1 J as follows: ‘‘Place the ends
of , two or three . fingers a scar if .. ^ it . be
° on
small ,, and _ the _ margin if .. it . _ be
a one, ’, on 6
large, , and vibrate the surface on tho
tissue* . beneath. , rT The ^ t surface , itself .
is
not to , be subject , . , to ( any friction: . . . ill ... the
J
motion must , bo between the integument .
and , Al the deeper Tiie location of ,
1 L parts.
, f ratile motloa sh uld be
V °
chan 8 ed \ e * or b ^eu sec
° n s untl w scar as eetl
treated ’ ,f U bs of moderata
' size. If the be the result of large
scar a
scald or burn, the margin only should be
treated at first; the advances toward tho
centre should be deferred until the nu¬
trition of the margins has been decidediy
improved. Only a little treatment should
be applied to any one spot at the same
time, but the vibrations should be re¬
peated as many as twenty times a day,
but never with sufficient frequency or
severity to cause pain. If the scar be¬
comes irritable, suspend treatment until
it subsides. In the course of two or three
weeks of faithful treatment the surface
of the scars of moderate size become
more movable and will begin to form
wrinkles like true skin when pressed
from side to side. All these changes are
due to improved nutrition, consequent
on better blood circulation—the devel¬
opment entirely new sets of blood ves¬
sels in the cicatrical tissue.
The Submarine Boat.
With reference to the submarine boat,
which has attracted some attention in
daily papers, it may be well to point
out that the idea is certainly more than
350 years old, for in the reign of James
I,a Dutchman, named Drebbel, construct
cJ a boat which traveled uader the 8ur _
face of the Thames. Since then many
gubmarine ve8gel3 have becn designed,
Lut none of theln a8 yet acc0 mplished
%vha t has been done by Professor Turk’s
Pearemaier, in the Hudson River, New
York. That vessel apparently drives
with ease and returns to the surface as
desired. A very powerful submarine
vessel is being built to the designs of
Air. Nerdenfeit, with engines of 1,300
horse power, and it will probably be
ready for trial in Southampton Water in
the Spring .—English Mechanic.
lfow no " a “ Scotch Lassie xuissie Got win Wed. »tiu,
Willie A __ and Maggio B- had
bcC n courting for over two years, meet
ing regularly every Wednesday night in
H ope street, Glasgow. About a fort
ni ht ag0 willie> in parting with his be
lovedj made tUe usual remark . upd
meet ye in Hope street next Wednesday
night . Mind and be punctual.” “Deed
ay< Willie, lad,” replied Meg, wi’ a mer
ry twinkle in her e’e, “we hae met a
lang lime noo iu Hope street, and I wis
jj st dia t ;t wa3 nigh time we were shift
b)g our ( rys ting place a street farther
a i ang- What wad ye say to Union
street?” Willie lias taken the hint, and
the invitations are out.— Scottish Ameri
can. j
Jnst Like Uncle Henry.
4« Why!” exclaimed little Johnny, when
he heard his father telling <r about somo
body who was looking after the loaves
and fishes, “that’s just what mamma
says about Uncle Henry.
“Says about Uncle Henry?” repeated
his father ia astonishment; tf “what do
.
you mean?”
“Why, pa, don t you know, said
Johnny, “mamma says 1 ncle Hinry
only loafs and fishes .”—Boston Tran.
script.
VOL. XIII, NO, 16 .
SCIENTIFIC SCRAPS.
Dr. J. H. Sandberg of Red Wing,
Minn., has sent 6000 specimens of Min¬
nesota flora to the University of Sweden
at Lund.
The discovery of a network of so
called canals on the planet Mars by
Schiapareill several years ago has been
confirmed by observers both in England
and Italy.
There are 172 specimens of blind crea¬
tures known to science, including cray¬
fish, myriapods, etc. They are mostly
white, whether from lack of stimulus
ol the light, or from bleaching out of
the skin. Some species have small eyes
and some have none.
Denmark, as is well known, is a re¬
markably low country. It has long been
supposed that its highest land was a hill
517 feet above sea-level; but the surveys
of the past season show that there are
two higher points in the kingdom—one
reaching an elevation of 550 feet and the
other 540 feet.
A marine alga of Arctic regions grows
at a temperature far below zero, and its
spores disappear at higher temperatures.
It thus appears that intense cold is neces¬
sary to the existence of some forms of
vegetable life, together with extreme
dryness, and this class ol plants proba¬
bly includes the cryptogams of red
snow.
A German professor spent twenty years
In studying the habits and characteris¬
tics of a certain snail, and learned this
interesting fact respecting it: On the
Pacific coast of America, where it is
found in great abundance, it is preyed
upon by a certain fish which abounds in
the Pacific ocean. As an aid in escap¬
ing from its formidable enemy it has
been provided with an eye on the back
of its head. The same snail is found on
the Atlantic coast, exactly like its far
western brother in every particular ex¬
cept that it has no posterior eye. And
the reason for this is that there is no
corresponding fish to prey upon it in the
Atlantic ocean.
Lightning docs not always fall on the
earth at every discharge of electricity
from the clouds. There are flashes that
take place between the earth and the
thundercloud, and it is in such cases
that things on the earth are struck. Ia
most cases lightning flashes from one
cloud to another, one cloud being
charged with positive and the other
with negative electricity. These clouds
discharge themselves on coming near
each other. Lightning is accompanied
by a great noise, which we call thunder,
that is produced by the displacement of
air during the passage of the flash. This
noice is often prolonged by echoes, roll¬
ing from cloud to cloud. The flashes
that pass between the earth and a cloud
produce only a sharp, short thunder clap.
Japanese Wrestlers.
“Wrestling in Japan is always done in
tournaments that last from 6 o’clock in
the morning until about 4 o’clock in the
evening. As fast as one man is downed
another turns up, and the winner of the
most bouts is the winner of the first
prize.”
( i How does Alatsada Sorakichi, now in
America, stand with the crack wrestlers
of Japan?”
“Not very high. He is so much
smaller and physically weaker than the
good ones that be stands no show at all
against them. The best wrestlers are
Ad at a and Umegatani of Tokio. They’re
about as big as Evan Lewis, but a great
deal stronger. Tokio, Osaka, and Kioto
are the greatest sporting centres m Japan.
There is a good reason for Sorakichi’*
inferiority to the oiher wrestler* of hi*
race. For nearly three centuries wrest
i; ng has been the prevailing sport of that
country. Professional wrestlers bred
thsir sons to be wrestlers, and in the
course of half a dozen generations there
was developed a class of brawny atheletesi
big of bone and large of stature, giants
in every respect physically. Against
S uch fellows Sorakichi stands a small
show. One feature of the Japanese
wrestlers that strikes an American at first
glance , is ...... the Aldermamc . paunch ... the
athletes boast. In this country, where
athletes train off every ounce of super
fluoua flegh a man who would step int
a ring * with such a waist girth as Japan- /
eso rest!ers carry aroand wou be
laughed off the stage. The average Jap
w ju we j„ h from 120 to 330 pounds.
No ne of the best wrestlers scale under
2 00 pounds, and all stand head and
shoulders above non-athletic citizens.—
Chicago Ucrald.
Gladstone’s Library.
Ex-Premier Gladstone has a library
containing nearly 15,000 volumes.
Works on theology are the most numer-j
ous. He also has large departments
devoted to Shakespeare, Dante and !
Homer. “The great Florentine poet," j
by the way, whom he quoted on Alonday,
together with the Aristotle, Bishop But¬ j
ler and St. Augustine, are the four
authors to whom Air. Gladstone attri
butes the greatest formative influence on
his own mind. Speaking recently of bis | ;
bookSi the great statesman said: “If :
tbere j s one tb j ng i am valner than an- ]
0 t be f about it is my plan for stacking
book3 . I can got more books into a
( . ivea gpace tbau aay mau j kQOW _»__ i
[Chicago Times.
a
The Village Church.
To all the countryside a landmark fair—
The village church upon the village green;
Whose “heaven pointing finger” far is seen,
Beckoning the heart away from worldly
care
And bidding it for better worlds prepare.
A solemn awe subdues the youth’s proud
mien,
Childhood is hushed and age with hops
serene.
What tender memories haunt the house ol
prayer.
And yet this outer church is not our goal,
Kor should its crowded aisles attract us
most.
Too many sympathies the heart cajole
In multitude secure to make its boast.
Behold God’s kingdom is within the soul;
Ye ore the temple of the Holy Ghost.
— Warren Holden.
HUMOROUS.
The man who paints the town red fre¬
quently gets some of the paint on his
nose.
Twenty widows own twenty adjoining
farms in Greene County, O. What a
country that must be for weeds!
Clocks can be looked upon as among
the most lasting articles of personal prop¬
erty. They so rarely change hands.
The young man who persuades him¬
self that two people can live as cheaply
as one, can always find a girl to help him
try the experiment.
When a man becomes firmly convinced
that he ig*a genius, it is then that tne
fringe slowly begins to form on the bot¬
tom of his trousers’ legs.
An article is now going the round
entitled “What to Wear.” Bless you!
We all know what to wear, but wo
want to know “how to get it.”
“But, Emma, how can you prefer that
plain, shabbily-dressed Julius to my ele¬
gant, handsome brother?” “That is
very simple; your brother is in love with
himself, and Julius with me. ”
You know, my dear, I have often
said that, like the rest of the human
kind, I am only a poor, weak sinner,"
said Mr. Jones, as he was trying to ex¬
cuse himself to his wife. “Yes,” re¬
plied she. “You have so. And I
never saw anybody in my life so anxious
to prove the truth of his statement as
you seem to be.”
South African Diamond Thieves.
Although there is a considerable and
clever detective staff on the diamond
fields, there are those at Kimberley who
can outwit the police, at any rate for a
time, and bo it happens that such a num¬
ber of stones is annually stolen as to
prove a factor in disturbing the market
price. The chances of detection are no
doubt great; but the hope of securing a
few hundred pounds by a little pecula¬
tion is so tempting that there are always
hundreds of men at “the game.” Some
of the thieves, that is, the men who
steal the stones they are paid for un¬
earthing, display great ingenuity in car¬
rying away the gems. The business of
diamond digging is naturally a rough and
ready kind, and presents opportunities
for fraud which are not available in
other industries. When diamond steal¬
ing first became a business, those inter¬
ested, suspecting no evil, were easily
cheated. Btones were then carried
away concealed about the person of tho
laborers. But, as the thefts increased,
greater precautions were taken to insure
the detection of the thieves. Some of
the dodges which have been resorted to
in order to carry diamonds from the dig.
gins have been uot a little remarkable.
We have only room however for a sample
or two. Upon one occasion it is related
that an ingenious laborer wrapped tho
stones in a small piece of soft bread, the
morsel being greedily snapped by a dog.
The dog was carefully looked after till the
mine was left behind, when it was ruth¬
lessly killed to obtain the hidden dia¬
monds, which were contained in its
stomach. Domestic fowls have been
trained to swallow the smaller stones,
which have afterward been cut out of
their crops. A parcel of stolen gems
has been known to have been got out of
a well-watched digging by having been
ingeniously fastened to the hair of a
horse’s tail.
The Latest Thing in Swells.
The dude is dead, and with him has
departed from the manners of the town
the era of vacuous and owlish gravity.
He was a surly, sullen, and inert protest
against loudness and display; but he’s
dead and out of fashion, and men are
hurrying to exploit the very thing he
most abhorred. Now the howling swell,
with a dash of old time fop, is in vogue.
By day he wears showily embroidered
silk and satin waist coats, white over¬
gaiters, brilliant hued scarf, gaudy
gloves, horsey shirts, flowing trousers,
and clothes of many shades. At night
his shirt front is figured and frilled; he
sports gold buttons on his waistcoat, sat
in stripes on his trousers, and adds a
dash of color to it all by thrusting a
bright crimson, yellow, or blue handker¬
chief into his brea f. Nor has he the
manners of the solemn ape of a year or
more ago. He bobs along at a lively
gait, and grins hilarious greetings to his
friends. He’s cheap and onerous at
times, and hence men feel for him mo¬
mentary spasms of dislike; but he’s bet¬
ter than the dude, for after looking at
the dude a man was apt to hat* bins
self.— Washington Star.