Newspaper Page Text
Bv R . S. HOWARD.
VOLUME VI.
J The Fly.
I .nisi', as ’die dot ol an t
I jv tie brain ol a little fly,
I And jet tic can think;
I dull rat and can drink;
I jj,i tan hear and see
i ;jje y u or l*ke me;
He eft" My and walk.
Can buzz but not talk;
£., n climb up a wall,
And thi:t is not all.
As you lie in bed
Look up over head,
you’ll see him stealing
Across the ceiling.
W, to you to do that
You’d tail down Hat.
So that little fly,
Outlie ceiling high,
With his tiny brain,
. May rightly he vain
For surely ’tis true
He’s smarter than you.
go strong is his will
jluit it you keep stdl
And would like to sloe
Hesl ivdy will creep
0 ; i your cheek or ear,
a ,1 then I much fear,
His wiil is so strong,
It will not be long
Oetore you will shako
At i! lie will awake.
II s w.il then you seo
Tr.e stiongest will be.
And on I might go
Amt cause you to know
Hut this little fly
Iks h blighter eye,
Is swittcr to act,
Merc cunring in lact
With his brain so small
He yet beats ns all.
J t Howler, in J\ r orristoivn Herald.
IN’ / NUTSHELL.
I o;.i !’k Sumi r-et, hale and hearty,
Hj,;v:'l!-i:n)(l:n<r 1 1 is seventy years,
I: i,; i.f a headache one morning;
y;: !;i'i wi' 1 1 s' an dins Moilie Pore’s en
h * ~lioull stay at home, he
II going !() his office as usual.
IF ■ vli ty years he had gone to
I :: (m:i nor shine, every morning.
;"'v hr- scorned to have his first
Ivmtiv caused by anything so trifling
Hsahpadaclje.
Si hi- patted Moilie on the cheek.
I• " f ‘: white brow, and stepped into
while the young girl stood
wm! w ;tnd looked wistfull\
I •' ■ r, 'teiy after him, till she
I O 11/, r see even the dust raised
liyIiy dii' earring-* wheels.
" I hereshe exclaimed, turning
' v ! 111 c window, “ I ought not
r, w !i lied him out ot sight—they
Hovit's unlucky.”
I A ; 'd then, with a rather forced laugh
cwn superstition, Moilie went
Hwiiy to her room.
I She was very fond of the old man
ll! ju t ’eft the house, and with
; • ,vas °n. too, for he *'ad adopted
‘ when she was left alone in the
■ friendless and an orphan; and
utliat h ur she had never known
■ the want of parents.
| Heiov-d her as though he had been
i r ami mother, too, feeling himself
a place of both; and Moilie rewarded
dutiful and tender a free
■wit of a daughter.
I ’ i-t as the various city clocks marked
|IOU; ’ ot noon, old Mr. Somerset was
: [ rou ? ht h °nie, dead-the headache had
‘n a premonitory system, which.be
'■ yarded, nature had revenged
me ; f b >’ striking the old man with
I ‘Poplexy.
I J!'f heul fell f °rward on his desk,
I “e never raised it again.
I .°" rMollie W; is stricken to the heart,
■Mourned as one who refused to be
I ftw forted.
I .3' poor young and inexperi
•'carcely knew what to do, but
' lu ‘b Presence of mind as she could
I m uto b° r a id, gave directions that
• omi'i set’s relatives should be tele
' ■n.id for; and in the meantime an
a ' Us ‘ ness friend of the deceased mer
- i undertook to superintend arrange
‘or the funeral.
" it Moilie said was respectfully
,: n V f ‘ ta byihe servants, for she was
-i. as the future mistress of the
f; 'UM?hmont.
; >ollu 'rset had spoken of her as his
; ' :inc * S^ie had not been left
L, 1 ' S ’ ler e were, at least, good
•.,' U “l'' 1 -'Opposing that she had been
‘nnt:y provided (or.
; !( ‘ i 'div t sof Mr. Somerset arrived
•''"rat day.
ar * U °, l ! e . t ' urce persons— the cousin,
> dying blood relation of the
Ti !i ’ ihs wife and family,
ju tOJ h U P their abode in the rich
f a . ! ' Vl ? ant home, the head of the
r ‘ ‘ blently feeling himself in his
l! ; lawful ulace, and his w r ife no
p, 1 lU1,; him in asserting her claims.
> looked with much disfavor on
j^. 1 ’ >ore but were somewhat at a
. o treat her, and at times were
i, , °dier times chilling, almost to
th.; '■ * . 011 l^ie a^ter 'he funeral,
1 J s were made up to a steady
■p N ' (,! l he latter treatment.
af . ’-nerai and all its melancholy
n, T u ’ f ’ a; dments being over, it became
7-ry to read the will —but none
I*.‘Wt'acoming.
■ *- douse was searched, almost from
j to cellar — every possible place in
s i! , a document could have been
, * and was ransacked, but in vain!
v , , customary legal ad
t ; : !j t ing applied to declared that he
a a V never drawn a will for his client,
_ ugh he would not venture to say
i * a -. n,, ne had been made, because, on
ug broached the subject more than
■ out oi respect and admiration for
liore, Mr. Somerset had always
the forest news.
assured him that his adopted daughter
had been provided for. g
-I ] U Z D r. is ‘thoroughly attended to
teLt aMr U d “ fter MUS Dore ’ S *-
n „ ® i M • Somerset had said, fre
fi ntly always adding with a chuckle
nntJhT 118 ® Batißfaction “It lies in a
S! 1, my dear fellow—the whole
u.ing bes in a nutshell.”
But the will—if any existed—could
>e ound; and the precise meaning
the phrase which seemed to afford
Mr. Somerset so much satisfaction re
mained a profound mystery.
As the natural heirs of the deceased,
Mr Harwood, with his wife and family,
took possession of the dead man’s mag
nificent establishment and great wealth,
the necessary legal preliminaries having
been, meantime, properly attended to:
and then poor Moilie Dore began to
lealize that her lines had fallen in very
unpleasant places.
But for “the speech of people,” as
Mrs. Harwood expressed it, they would
nave turned the poor girl into the street
to starve, for what they cared; but as
it was they permitted her a small, mis
erably furnished upstair room in the
mansion where she had for years reigned
.as mistress,while she was obliged to oc
cupy the position of governess to the
younger children to pay for her food
and lodging.
Indeed in any other house her duties
would have been lighter, and she would
have had a salary for her services be
sides, for she was brilliantly educated
and accomplished.
Moilie was aware of this, and she
more than once thought that she would
apply to some of Mr. Somerset’s friends
to interest themselves in her behalf; but
she was too timid and retiring by na
ture, and dreaded to go among strangers
and away from the root that had from
childhood been her home.
There was another reason, too, why—
like Hamlet—she preferred the ills she
had to flying to others that she knew
not of; one of the Harwood family had
never treated her with harshness or even
coldness; on the contrary he had striven
by every delicate and manly attention to
atone for the cruel neglect and indig
nity which the poor girl was com
peted .to suffer from the rest of the
family.
Edward Harwood had admired the
sweet face and gentle eyes of Moilie
Dore from the first; and as he observed
from day to day the calm dignity of her
manner and the beauty of her unselfish,
uncomplaining character, he soon grew
to love her even as much as he had ad
mired her.
And Moilie was not blind to the fact;
sh ■ loved him ii return, as was natural;
and notwithstanding the many eyes bent
on them from morning till evening the
two young people had contrived to
make known and to mutually acknowl
edge the love which they felt for each
other.
Then, as declared lovers are apt to do,
they became a little reckless in the dis
play of their attachment to each other;
and one evening Mr. Harwood coming
into the parlor found his son and his
‘•governess.” as he called Moilie, sitting
hand in hand beside each other.
The gas was not yet lighted, and t ie
tender twilight had betrayed them into
that piece of imprudence.
Mr. Harwood could scarcely believe
his eyes, and rubbed them pretty hard
to be sure that he was not dreaming;
and then he burst out in a fury :
“You young scoundrel, what is the
meaning of this? And as for you, miss,
what kind of conduct is thi3 for a re
spectable house, and what kind of a
young woman do you call yourself?”
Moilie instinctively raised her hands,
and covered her ears to shut out the
sound of some opprobrious words that
she felt were about to follow; but Ed
ward rose, and stepping in front of the
girl he loved, confronted his father re
spectfully but firmly.
“ Please be careful how you address
this young lady, sir,” he said in deep,
quiet t >nes, “ for she is my promised
wife, and I can allow no man to insult
her. even by a thought.”
“Promised fiddlestick!’’ blurted out
Mr. Ilarwood, with increasing fury.
“ Let me tell you, sir, this is my
house, and I shall do and say what I
please in it. Insult her, indeed! I
guess a man’s thoughts are free, and
I’ll think what I choose, ana say it, too,
if l want to! And what I do say is
this, that if you mean to marry the
designing minx there you may under
stand this —she can’t pull the wool over
my eyes as she did over that old fool
Somerset, and you may both of you
clear out of my house this night and
forever, if you are such a fool as to stand
by what you say and marry her.”
“Very well, sir. I am just such a
fool as that,” Edward returned, with
a touch of sarcasm. Then turning to
Mollie, he added: “Go and put on
your hat, darling, and come with me.”
The girl looked at him wonderingly
for a moment, then rose and left the
room to obey. Edward sat down and
waited for her, while Mr. Harwood
alternately fumed and exploded with
rage.
When he had ordered his son from his
house he had not contemplated the pos
sibility of the young man taking him at
his word. And his promptness in doing
so had placed the father on the horns of
a dilemma. He could not retract his
words and bid Edward stay; in fact, he
determined he should starve rather than
marry the girl he had chosen without
his consent.
But Edward was his mother’s darling,
and Mrs. Harold ruled in the house of
that name. What should he do? how
withstand the anger of bis wife? But
then, as he speedily reflected, “Matilda
would be as savage as himself at the
their son marrying that penniless, impu-
JEFFERSON, GA., FRIDAY, JULY 2, 1880.
dent upstart.” Happy thought. He
would go at once and tell his wife, and
take her advice on the subject. Mean
time he did not greatly fear that Eaward
would leave the paternal mansion at
least that evening; for the very good
reason that he was quite dependent on
his father and had no place to go.
But Mr Harwcod was mistaken. Ed
ward quite intended to take his father
at his word; and, worse still, to do so
immediately.
As Mr. Harwood left by one door,
Molly Dore entered by the other. The
preparations were simple, and had
taken but a few minutes to make.
All her fine dresses—in which her
adopted father had so liked to see her—
had been folded away in trunks when
she put on mourn ng for him; and the
few articles she had since acquired had
been easily packed away in less than five
minutes.
She left her trunks to be sent for, and
of all her belongings she carried in her
hand only a little jewel-case, containing
many costly trinkets given to her by
Mr. Somerset, and which—since they
were undeniably her own property—
Mrs. Harwood had not dared to take
from her although she would have liked
to do so.
Edward took charge of her jewel-case,
and the lovers immediately left the
house together. Although their affairs
had been brought to a crisis with un
expected suddenness, they were not
wholly unprepared, for Edward had
already spoken to a clerical friend in
view of just such an emergency.
So they walked directly to the Rev.
Mr. Marnor’s and were speedily made
man and wife. From there they went
to a hotel, and the deposit of Mollie's
jewel-case with the proprietor was a
sufficient guarantee, although they
brought no baggage; but the young
wife immediately sent for her trunks.
In opening her jewel-case, that the
proprietor might take an inventory of
its contents, before giving her a receipt
for it, Edward’s attention was attracted
by a little article of carved wood, and
he pointed it out to Moilie. She a3ked
him to take possession of it, and then,
when they were in their room, she an
swered his questions about it.
“ I don’t know what it is, dear,” she
said ; “Mr. Somerset gave it to me a long
time ago, and I locked it in my jewel
case, because he said it contained some
thing very precious. He made me
promise not to open it as long as he
lived, and I never did; but I know how
—he showed me this little silver knob to
press on. Isn’t it beautifully carved?
It looks like the shell of some curious
large nut.”
“Like a nutshell?—and so it does,”
said Edward, his heart beating wildly,
for he happened to be aware of the
phrase used by Mr. Somerset when his
lawyer had spoken to him about making
a will.
“Open it, Moilie, dear; open it now!”
he cried, eagerly. “I am dying to see
the inside of it.”
Moilie laughed and pressed the little
silver spring, and the nutshell opened
just in the middle.
A paper, very closely and neatly
folded, was inclosed ; and this paper Ed
ward caught at with a degree of anxiety
that caused Moilie to smile But she,
too, became interested and then a little
anxious, when her husband cried out:
“ It is the missing will—Mr. Somer
set’s will, that couldn’t be found ! Come,
my darling, we will take it to the law
yer at o.ice. Make no objections—of
course I know it’s after office hours, but
f know where his house is,” and he
helped Moilie to tie on hat, and put
on her mantle.
The paper was, indeed, Mr. Somer
set’s will —drawn up by a strange law
yer, but properly witnessed, and correct
n every particular; and by it Moilie
iDore, now Edward Harwood’s wife,
was declared sole heiress to nearly a
quarter of a million, to the fine house
she had just been turned out of, and, in
short, to everything which her adopted
father had left.
Well, Moilie was a good and forgiv
ing girl, and she did not exult over the
downfall of her enemies; but Mr. and
Mrs. Harwood felt that retribution had
come, and spent the greater pa rt o
their future lives in mutually upbraiding
each other for their treatment of Moilie
and Edward.
The Dandy Crab.
Society and occupation in the world of
the sea are represented by masons,
builders, marauders, usurpers and plun
derers, and all have their distinguishing
peculiarities. A fancy of the quaint
spider crab, or “ dandy crab,” as he is
sometimes called, is to decorated him
self with algfe and sponges, and none
but the most brilliant in color seem to
please him; this, however, not for vain
display, but, primarily at least, for per
sonal protection. When wishing to
array himself, he finds a brilliant
sponge and pinches off piece after piece
with his long, slender claws; these
when broken, are dipped in a glutinous
fluid contained in the mouth, and are
carried to the back and fastened se-
curely. Sometimes after he has at
tached a particular fragment hp reaches
back his claw a second time to satisfy
himself that it is secure. This practice
is indulged in only when the crabs are
young and in the fall, and its object is
to obscure the crab from hungry stur
geons and skates. When placed in a
tank with many animals the crabs take
the same precaution against possible
enemies, and often cover themselves.
A correspondent wants to know how
long bees live. About the same as short
bees, we suppose.
FOR THE PEOPLE.
FARM, GARDEN AND HOUSEHOLD
Recipes.
Gikger Nuts.—A pint of molasses,
three-quarters of a pound of butter,
three-quarters of a pound of sugar, a
teaspoon of soda, two ounces of ginger,
a little nutmeg and cinnamon; flour
enough to roll into sheets.
Spiced Beef.— Five pounds of the
shank boiled five hours with celery
seed. Drain off the gelatine; then chop
the meat very fine. Add pepper and
salt to suit the taste, and pat it into a
cloth on a plaster. Cover it with the
cloth and press it.
ShortCake. —Prepare thi dough as
for biscuit, only much richer; roll two
crusts nearly as thick as for pie crust;
put them together, spreading a little
butter between them; bake in a quick
oven. When done, place the fruit or
preserves between the crusts. Wuen it
is notin the fruit season, dried fruit or
preserves make a very good substitute.
Homint Fritters.—Take hominy
that has been well boiled (the large
hominy is the best), mash it fine, and
add to it three eggs, well beaten, one
cup of flour, two tablespoons of milk
and a little salt. Make it of the con
sistency of hominy baiter, and fry in
hot lard. These proportions need about
a quart of hominy after it is boiled. A
very nice breakfast dish.
Nuremberg Pudding.— Three cups
of flour, two-thirds of a cup of suet
chopped fine, one cup of molasses, one
cup of stoned raisins, one cup of sour
milk and one teaspoon of soda in the
milk. Mix well, and put into a but
tered tin basin, then into a steamer,
and steam for three hours. When
done, you can try it by running a straw
through it. Set it into a hot oven for
five or ten minutes.
Permitting; Tonne Pruit Trees to Bear
Eirly.
It very frequently happens that young
pear and other fruit trees blossom and,
if permitted to do so, bear fruit the
same season that they are planted. We
have had the blossoms and fruit of such
trees pointed out to us as evidence that
the trees were thriving particularly
well. Such evidence, however, is indi
cative rather of weakness than of vigor.
There is nothing more harmful to young
trees than to permit them to bear fruit
the year of transplantation. Even for
dwarf pears, the third year is soon
enough for them to bear, and the sixth
year is soon enough for the generality
of standards. Our readers will find that
if they sutler young trees to mature
fruit the first or second year, their
vigor will, in most cases, be impaired
forever nfter, and having borne at this
early age, they will not, as a rule, bear
again in five or six years afterward.
The temptation to inexperienced fruit
growers to see their young trees in fruit
as soon as may be, is considerable. It
it because we yielded to such tempta
tions, that we are now able to guard
our readers again.st falling into the
same error. Fruit-bearing is an ex
hausting process, and only trees that
have arrived at a certain age or maturity
can exercise the function without en
dangering their health and strengtq
(lot; Pens and (lot; Cholera.
Many a farmer keeps his pigs in a
little or pen, often near the house,
where the mud is as deep as they can
wallow through. He throws their feed
in the mud, from which they must pick
it as best they can, and clean water is
something that they do not get from one
year’s end to another. Yet such a man
will wonder why his family have the
fever and his hogs the cnolera! I have
seen hogs kept in this way, or, worse
yet, in floored pens which were never
cleaned, until at killing time their bel
lies were full of small ulcers; and such
meat is packed and shipped to the East
as prime mess pork! Places where filth
always reigns supreme are the fattening
pens connected with distilleries. I be
lieve that such places have as much to
do with spreading disease among hogs as
among cattle. So far as I have known,
when cholera makes its first appearance
in any district, it has nearly always been
among the swill-fed bogs of distilleries
or flocks treated as described above. I
do not claim that in great cleanliness
we have an infallible preventive of
cholera; but I do claim that with
cleanliness and proper variety of food,
the appearance of the malady would be
less frequent and its victims fewer; that
farmers by little care and attention
might save themselves much loss. Men
shut a pig up in a filthy pen and give
him filthy garbage to eat, and then
abuse him because he is an unclean
animal; but let them give him a clean
place to stay in, clean food and clean
water; in short, treat him as well as
other animals. Now, farmers, try a
little wholesome cleanliness with your
hogs and see if they do not pay better. —
V. J. Emery, in Rural New Yorker.
Materials for Mulching.
Professor W. J. Beal, of the Michigan
agricultural college, gives the results of
several experiments to determine the
best materials to mulch strawberries
and other plants, and arrives at the con
clusion that the best is chopped straw.
He finds a thick coat of manure excel
lent for bedding plants. He tried old
clover hay, and had a fine crop of clover
plants to kill the next spring. Hay
gives a similar result in a young crop of
grass. Straw badlv threshed furnished
in the same way a young grain crop in
the garden. Forest leaves held down
by cornstalks gradually blew away dur
ing winter, and the cornstalks alone re
mained in the spring after an open win
ter. Pine shavings worked into the
soil have proved a nuisance. Tne same
objection existed with tan bark. Clean
straw, old or new, or corn fodder cut
two inches long, less or more, answered
I the best purpose.
Strack by Lightning.
Near Lampassus, Texas, lightning en
tered the house of a farmer named Con
nett, who was sitting reading with his
four children. One child, a boy, was
instantly killed. The rest were knocked
senseless, and so found by Mrs. Connett
on her return home.
At Baraboo, Wis., the house of a Mr.
Cheek was struck by lightning, and his
oldest son Robert was instantly killed
At Athens, Ga., lightning struck a
large tree close by the Rev. Mr. Bing
ham’s house, and the whole family
were knocked senseless, but finally re
covered consciousness, though suffering
terrible nervous prostration.
Near Nashville, Ind , a dissolute wo
man named Mary Fleetwood, returning
home from the deathbed of an associate
who had died of drink, was struck by
lightning at the door of her own house,
and fell dead on the steps.
Henry Thomas, a much-respected
gentleman, living about a mile east of
New Canton, Pike county, 111., was
killed recently by lightning. His team
was killed at the same time, and his
barn set on fire and destroyed. His
wife was a witness of the dreadful event,
and was just able to drag his body from
the barn in time to save it from the
flames. Mr. Thomas was in the act of
hitching his span of mules to a wagon
when the lightning struck the barn.
Mr. John Stroll, a well-to-do farmer
of Milford township, Ohio, while fish
ing, took shelter beneath a tree, and
was instantly killed by lightning. He
was about fifty-eight years old.
Frank Shupeter, of Madison township,
lowa, was killed by lightning while
sitting by a window. The building
was nearly destroyed. J. H. Work and
wife, living near by, were severely in
jured at the same time.
In Brown township, lowa, Henry
Davis, who was at work in a barn, was
struck by lightningand instantly killed.
A Strange Ceremony.
The strange ceremony of plowing
around a village in order to drive away
the cattle plague recently took place in
one of the villages of Russia. The
Russfry Courier describes it thus: ‘ 4 The
cattle plague broke out in the village of
Ozerek, in the province of Kaluga. In a
ew days thirteen cows died, and the
peasants were panic stricken. After
warm discussions, it was decided to
drive out the plague after the manner of
our forefathers in similar emergencies—
that is, by ploughing around the village.
At midnight, all the women of the vil
lage assembled at a spot, to which were
brought the things needed for that half
pagan, half Christian ceremony, to wit,
a holy image, a plough, harness, a bag
of sand, and a pail of tar. A strong
young woman was liar essed to the
plough, and, with the assistance of two
other girls, proceeded to pull it along.
A young girl carrying the holy image
(ikonn) headed the procession; she was
followed by an old woman with the
sand bag, who threw the sand right and
left, the ploughing party trying to cover
the sand in ploughing, while the woman
with the tar pail besprinkled the soil
with tar. A crowd of girls and women
ollowed ; each carrying some article
with which to make a noise, scythes,
tin cans, iron pans, boilers, basins,
pokers, and other utensils. Though the
noise made was indescrtbable, and the
women’s yelling and shouting incessant,
they were ineffectual to frighten off the
plague spirit, for its ravages in that vil
lage are undiminished.”
Premeditated Murder by Rats.
Mr. George Clayton, residing in the
village of Lansingburg, was the pos
sessor of a white rat, of which he made
a great pet, and keDt him housed in a
snug cage. Last night the pet rodent
was foully murdered, and the evidence
gleaned from a vie w of the surroundings
this morning tends to show that the
homicide was committed by other
rodents of a darker hue that had not
been petted. The box or cage of the
pet rat had been literally gnawed to
pieces, and the pet torn to pieces as the
marks plainly show. There must have
been quite a number of rats concerned
in the murder, as the incisors of one or
two could not have done the work in a
week that was done last night. The
destruction of the animal will furnish
food for speculation as to the motive for
the massacre, and adds a chapter to the
statistics on rats.— Troy (N. F.) Press.
Fooled Into Fatness.
In Italy wealthy connoisseurs are very
ond of fat ortolans, and this is the de
vice by which they obtain them: They
shut the birds up in a dark chamber
(knowing that in their natural state it
is their habit to feed at sunrise). They
then arrange artificial lights which can
be cast at will into the dark prison of
the birds, on seeing which the ortolans
immediately seek the food which is pro
vided for them; the light is withdrawns
and they go to sleep; after a few hours
it is again introduced, and so the process
is repeated five or six times in the twen
ty-four hours, so that the birds are kept
constantly feeding or sleeping; the con
sequence is that in about three days the
ortolan become a delicious ball of fat,
and ready for the table. —Popular Science
Monthly.
The custom of the Fijians, that when
a man dies his widow must be strangled
by her brother, resulted in the arrange
ment by which she is told to expel her
breath as long as possible and give a
signal, when the cord is tightened and
lmost immediately all is over.
So<ne or the Beauties of Polygamy.
A letter to the Salt Lake Anti-Polyg
amy Standard says: In Sugarhouse
Ward, two miles north of Salt Lake
City, lives a good Danish saint who, of
course, lives his religion, and has sev
eral wives. It was the duty of one of
the plural women to work on the farm
and take care of the cattle and the
mules. When not engaged in other
saintly avocations, it was the husband’s
custom to sit on the fence, holding a
horsewhip in his hand, and oversee the
woman when she was at labor in the
field. If she failed to perform the work
according to his ideas or instructions,
he used to lash her like a refractory
horse or mule; in fact he often whipped
her more severely than he would his
animals, for he held a mule in far higher
estimation than he did a woman. “He
could get another wife any day, but it
co>t money to get a muie.” Occasion
ally, when there was not enough to
keep her busy on the farm, he hired her
out as a house servant, and always col
lected her wages himself, asking quite a
high price for her services. She hap
pened to be hired to a neighbor of mine,
and one day when he came for her
wages he demanded an extra dollar a
week because he had to hire a man to
do her chores in the field. This saint
believed in polygamy, because when one
woman wore out or outlived her useful
ness as a laborer, he could easily re
place her with a fresh one.
A few miles further from the house,
on what is called Mill creek, lives an
other polygamist, whose three wives
are held to the strictest account for
every pound of butter, every chicken or
egg on the place, and woe to the adven
turous one who dares to dispose oi
either without the consent of her lord
and master. The first wife, who is old
and crippled with rheumatism, once
longed for a cup of tea, a luxury for
bidden the women, who are required to
keep the word of wisdom, although the
husband frequently indulged in that and
material comlorts. She watched an op
portunity when he was absent and
traded a few eggs for the wherewithal
to make the coveted beverage, which
she enjoyed, as she thought, in secret.
The husband, however, found it out—a
man in polygamy has no lack ot tale
bearers —and he dragged the poor old
woman to the creek, plunged her under
the water and held her there until he
thought her sufficiently punished for her
sin in breaking the word of wisdom, as
well as for meddling with his eggs, and
until she promised never to repeat the
offense. I have suppressed the names
in both of the above cases, although I
could have given them, because I under
stand that it is the policy of the Stand
ard not to shnw up individuals, but to
expose the workings and the debasing
effects of the system. The first incident
shows in what estimation the majority
of men hold the women, and to what
depths of degradation the system can
reduce a woman who allows herself to
be placed in such a position.
Historic Doubts.
It has been strongly doubted whether
Joan of Arc ever suffered the punishment
that has made her a martyr, though de
tails of her execution and last moments
grace the civic records of Rouen. Sev
eral boots have been published discuss
ing the question. A Belgian lawyer is
the author of one of these. He contends
that the historians—who have done
nothing but copy each other in the nar
ratives of her death—err exceedingly in
saying that it took place on the last day
of May, 1473, the fact being that she was
alive and well many years after that
dale. There are good grounds, too, for
believing that the pretty tale of Abelard
and Heloise is a pure fiction.
Nobody has yet unriddled the mys
tery of the Man in the Iron Mask, and
nobody seems likely to do so, while the
identity of the writer of the “Junius”
letters is as far from being settled as
ever. These are two insoluble enigmas,
impenetrable mysteries that baffle solu
tion, and about which, perhaps, the
public has become tired of surmises.
An extremely witty and characteris
tic anecdote told of Lord Beaconsfield
will bear repetition. An adherent from
a distant county brought his two sons to
the then Mr. Disraeli, and asked him to
give them a word of advice on their in
troduction into life. “Never try to ascer
tain,” said the illustrious statesman to
the elder boy, “who was the man who
wo.e the iron mask, or you will be
thought a terrible bore. Nor do you,’
turning to the second, “ask who was
the author of ‘Junius,’ or you will be
thought a bigger bore than your
brother.”
Walpole wrote an ingenious work to
show—taking for his base the conflict
ing statements in history and biography
that no such person as Richard 111.
ever existed, or that if he did he could
have been neither a tyrant nor a hunch
back. Historic doubts relative to Na
poleon Bonaparte was published in Lon
don in 1810, and created widespread
amusement because of its amazing
cleverness. Napoleon, who was a cap
tive at St. Helena, admired the compo
sition greatly. Archbishop Whately
and Sydney Smith were botn reputed to
be the author. Since the publication of
that skit numerous imitations have
been issued, but none have shown much
originality or literary skill, and have
therefor vanished into the darkness of
merited obli^on. — London Globe.
It has been discovered that persons
who work in petroleum, if they have any
bronchial troubles are at once relieved
of them; pulmonary affections also yield
before the same influence.
PRICE—S 1,60 PER ANNUM.
NUMBER 4.
The Cradle.
How steadfastly she’d worked at itf
How lovingly had drest,
With all her would-be mother’s wit,.
That little rosy nest!
How longingly she’d hung on it!
It sometimes seemed, she said,
There lay beneath its coverlet
A. litt'e sleeping head.
He came at last, the tiny guest,
3*>e bleak December fled;
That, rosy nest he never prest—
Her coftln was bis bed.
• — E. C. Steadman.
ITEMS OF INTEREST,
A low story.—The basement.
There are 3,000 births every week iu
London.
Motherly wisdom—Stick to your flan
nels until they stick to you.
A gentleman named his dog Penny
because it was one sent to him.
Naturally enough, the spat moat dear
to cattle is their fodderland.
There are 6,000 miles of telephone and
telegraphic wires in New York city.
Water, when it becomes steam, is ex
panded 1,700 times its original bulk.
The ordinary strength of an elephant
is calculated as equal to that ot 117
men.
The area of arable lands in the United
States is [.estimated at 1,500,000,000
square miles.
There was a law enacted in Massachu
setts in 1646 lining any one who made a
long speech.
Since the beginning of the present
century ten general famines have pre
vailed in Ireland.
The acknowledged version of the
Christian Bible has been translated into
226 different languages and dialects.
Rev. Louis Wazawcanayana is a Da
kota clergyman. He has one satisfac
tion, however. Nobody opens his let
ters by mistake.
It is just now the study of the age to
see how many words can be crowded
on to a square inch of postal card. —
Wattrloo Observer.
We are told “the evening wore on,’
but we are never told what the evening
wore on that occasion. W*s it the
close of a summer's day?
The only difference between a pig
making a glutton of itself and a man
making a pig of himself is, that the pig,
at some future day, will be cured.
Three days after a baby is born every
body says, “ Ketchetty, ketchetty,” and
digs its ribs with a forefinger. Hence
the prevalence of ill-temper in adults.
The United States produce 7,800,000
gallons of cotton seed oil a year, ?nd a
share of it gets around to aristocratic
pining tables lablled “Huile d’Olive.”
Philadelphia contains 103 distinct iron
factories, giving employment to neariy
12,000 hands, without including those
employed at the Baldwin locomotive
works.
Chickweed is an excellent barometer.
When the flower expands fully, we
are not to expect rain for several hours;
should it continue in that state, no rain
will fall.
Japan has a surplus of rice equal in
value to $25,000,000, but which it can
not realize upon, in consequence of the
exclusive character of the navigation
laws of the empire.
Thirteen years ago nine brisk young
fellows went into the torpedo business
n the oil region. Only one, Tom Wal
ley, is left. The others were all killed
by their own torpedoes.
The sun shines down
In red-hot beams,
And starts the sweat
In trickling streams;
While we, until the thing will stop,
Must mop, and mop, and mop, and mop.
A man was asked the other day how
many children he had, and he replied:
“ Five boys, and each boy has two sis
ters.” This may be called the new
puzzle of fifteen for those who think he
has an unusually large family.
How doth the busy little fly
Improve each chance, to light
Upon the tip end of your nose,
And dance with all his might.
—Danielsonville Sentinel.
An editor whose office was taken for
the den of a taxidermist, had some
trouble to explain that so far from stuff
ing birds, and minx and things, he had
to “ hustle around pretty lively in order
to get enough stuffing for himself.”
There is little fear of a famine in this
country if the reports from the great
producing regions may be believed. Out
along the iine of the Northern Pacific,
where last year the yield was 6,000,000
bushels, the promise now is of 10,003,-
000.
A few months ago the Emperor of
Morocco gave President Grevy, of the
French republic, six splendid horses.
The animals proved so refractory and
restive that no use has been made of
them, and they are eating their heads oil'
in the presidential stables.
There are 7,000,000 of tubes or pores on
the surface of the body, which in health
are constantly open, conveying from the
system, by what is called insensible per
spiration, this internal heat, which,
having answered its purpose, passes off
like the jets of steam which are thrown
from the escape pipes, in puff's, of any
ordinary steam engine; but this insen
sible perspiration carries with it, in a
dissolved form, very much of the waste
matter of the system, to the extent of a
pound or two, or more, every twenty
our hours.