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THE STANDARD AND EXPRESS.
I.iUAKW HALK 1
W . A. IttAMtJH lIALK,/ Editors and Proprietors.
IN MEMORIAM.
Andrew Johnson.
BY ANNIE SOMERS GILCHRIST.
B <> night-lamps dimly burn,
•j nth-moth’s ghostly tap is on the floor,
I e gray owl silent flits around the tarn,
B ad '< w winds creep alorg the wild ola moor.
■ . ( Id, pale stars cast through
m - inhlii'g clouds a solemn, ghastly glow ■
m g dewdrops hiss the violet’s cups of blue,
■ ini gray bats through the gloom dart to and frc
I yihin the darksome dells
t; deadly nightshade spreads her poison leaves
I t i through the acicii boughs with solemn swed
B tet cadences a mournful authem grieves.
I fjjfrefore is ah this sid. ess?
Xhrmighout the go.den, flowery summer day
I j;p birds and breezes chanted notes of gladness-
B ' Why traileth sorrow’s sable robes this way l
B p,| fr , yes, fainter grow
‘ ften ystic stars- the night i* almrst spent;
I He pallid morn looks :in, and, bowing low,
Her tears are with the morning bra zes blent.
9 fith drooping wing each bird
Forgets to greet the grayly dawning sun,
I And weird, unearthly music soft is heard,
is r'er JJolian harps the sad winds play.
■ A/*r the matin bell
Bings out a dreary, sullen monotone.
| y lore is this ? YestereVn the witching spell
| 0 Joyous beauty o’er the'glad earth shone
■ yw, in the v, ailing breeze
I rite crimson-hearted fuscbia slowly swings,
m i. iin the somber depths of shuddering trees
I the -aterp llai weaves her finny rings.
I y: ere the sun’s gold ray
' pid flood the Southern hills with ruby wines
9 i* iadrew Johnson’s life hath passed a way,”
Cams flashing o’er the telegraphic line?.
I firiff spreads her tear-steeped zones
From broad Atlantic’s silvery sanded shore
I Pacific’s coast. The nation mourns
A patriotic statesman is no more.
I put from the purple West
Bring flowers. O, sorrowing South, thy raresl
I bloom
I _ thou. Thy garlands bring, oh North and
I Hast,
Wherewith to wreath the noble patriot’s tomb.
1*: still’s the thrilling voice
Thai changed all hearts wita glowing eloquenoe.
■ p/üßtidden gne-t his sable wing did poise
£e-i<te n r noblest brave, and bore him hence
To that bright country where
\ tears e'er fall, no darksome tempests rise.
mi the track of weird N'ght’s dusky car.
3 ronnesst e, thy proudest, brightest star
I- crowned with bays beneath uufoldiDg skies !
sETEXIEEn YE.\K> a SAYAGE,
r . F.firnordinarv Narrative of Narcisse Pierre
Plticr—Abandoned on a Barren Coast token a
Sou 1!,- is Adopted by a Tribe of Blacks, and
lirnics Up Among Than.
The London Times publishes the fol
ding extraordinary story from a cor
respondent, who dates his letter, serew
sit’nmer Brisbane, Keppel Bay, May 20:
Ou the 11th of April, in the present
tear, the John Bell scheoner, engaged
in the beche de mer fishery, aehored at
Night, Island, a small island off the
northeast coast of Queensland, in lat.
idegs. 10 mins, south, long. 143 degs!
5 east, about three miles distant from
lire mainland, to which boats were dis
patched from the ship in search cf
water. The sailors sent on this duty
encountered in the bush a party of
blacks with whom they found
i white man, who was, like the ‘blacks,
perfectly naked, and appeared to be
completely identified with them in
.alignage and habits. On these facts
•’mg reported to the master of the
John Bell, he determined to make an
’ rt to rescue the man, and with this
new sent on shore the following day a
large supply of articles of barter, which
it was endeavored to explain to the na
tives were intended to be exchanged
for their guest or captive. The white
savage was induced to enter one of the
ship s boats, where he was given biscuit
ifl eat and told to sit still, muskets be
g at the same time pointed at the
natives and fired over their heads to
induce them to retire, which they were
very unwilling to do without being ac
mpanied by tho white man, whom
they begged to return with them. This,
-e has since explained, he wished to do,
it was afraid of the guns held by the
a has, and thought they would shoot
i.tn if he tried to leave the boat, where
lie had been bidden to remain.
The John Bell brought her prize to
Somerset, the settlement at Cape York,
where he was clothed and cared for by
the resident magistrate, Mr. Alpin.
For some days after his arrival he sat
the greater part of the day perched on
’he rail fence of a paddock, “like a
Mrd,' as an eye-witness describes it,
casting quick, eager, suspicious glances
sronnd him on every side, and at every
abject that came within his view, rarely
speaking, and apparently unable to re
member more than a few worris of his
wn language, ahhough he said enough
o show that he was a Frenchman, and
*rote down on a paper, in a stiff, up
tight French hand, his own name and a
ow almost unintelligible sentences,
winch were subsequently found to con
tain a short account of bis history. On
'“ e return to Cape fork of Lieutenan
Connor, Royal Navy, who speaks
• reach iluently, a good deal more was
extracted from the savage, and it ap
peared that his name was Pierre Peltier,
r Pelletier, son of Martin Peltier,
at St. Gille’s, Department
c ' Sendee, France. At the age o
twelve Narcisse Peltier embarked as a
boy on board the St. Paul, of
Bordeaux. This ship sailed from China
ior Australia in the year 1858, having
° Q board some three hundred and fifty
Chinese coolies. She never, however,
reached her destination, having been
'recked one dark night on a reef off
ousael Island, in the Louisiade Arch
elago. The captain and sailors got
I in three boats and made for the main
island, while the Chinese, with whom
Narcisse, walked along tlie reef to
II SlUa ll island situated upon it. An
attack was subsequently made by the
datives upon the captain’s party, which
as compelled to retreat to the island
the Chinese were, leaving in the
Samis of the savages the second officer,
; sailor, and an apprentice. Dis
gustful of the Chinese, and totally
with means of convey
ed for so large a number, the
aptain and European sailors deter
rcine( i to abandon them secretly and
ESCAPE IN THEIB BOATS*,
basing for the Australian coast, in the
?°P® falling in with some Euglish
or European vessel. This
an they accordingly carried out in the
Sat They had intended also to leave
'Uiud the boy Narcisse, but he had
what was contemplated and
mowed the crew down to the boats,
mo which they did not refuse him ad
■ , <;on \ ,H° W long their voyage lasted
'uncertain. They subsisted onapaste
aQ d water, and such sea birds
Itey could catch, which were de
mred raw. Two or three days before
e , v reached the Australian coast their
i ppiv of fresh water failed, and when
they male the shore, which
rf'l. at First Red Rock Point, south
*l Direction; latitude 43 dee. 4
“to. south, longitude 143 deg. 3 min.
their first thought was the allevia
tr "hirst. Leaving the boat, they
V; r a enial l quantity of water, the
°- e °f which was eagerly drank by the
i>ov ’ , eavia £ none for the poor little cabin
h naif dead with hunger, thirst, ex
at>d fatigue, and whose feet were
rt . tn 'Pieces by the sharp coral of the
u,, ' bheir thirst having been quenched,
ca Ptain and his men —eight in all
to their boat and sailed away
e£ ;' a > leaving the boy to die by the
n.Pjf water hole. They reached New
caw ■ ia bi safety, and there the
‘ I' Uiin reported the loss of his vessel
and the hardships which he and his
companions had undergone. He did
not report his abandonment
of Narcisse Peltier.
The Chinese left at Roussel Island
wer ®* , was aft erward ascertained
gradually killed and eaten by the na
tives with the exception of some
tW mu ty ’ wlk > ultimately escaped.
The career of the boy Narcisse Peltier
would undoubtedly have come to a close
even before his captain’s arrival in New
Caledonia, had it not chanced that some
blacks crossed the footprints left by the
sailors in their seach for water, and fol
lowed them up until they found the
dying boy by the side of the dried-up
well. They gave him food, which he
describes as “des noisettes,” and then
led him away gently by the hand to
their tribe, with which he has remained
uninterruptedly until the present time,
a period of no less than seventeen years.
Narcisse is a short, thick-set, active
man. His skin is of a bright red color,
and glazed upon the surface by con
tinued exposure to the sun. He is clean
in his person, and says that the blacks
among whom he has lived are so also—
a statement apparently confirmed by
the disgust he expressed for the Chinese
on board the Brisbane, whom he styled
dirty pigs (“ dcs sales cochens ”). Across
his chest are two horizontal lines of
raised flesh about the thickness of an
ordinary lead pencil. The upper one
extends from nipplj to nipple, the
other, rather shorter, is about an inch
lower. Above the other, and on the
upper part of the right arm a sort of
gridiron has been scored, consisting of
four vertical cuts inclosed in one passing
all round them. These cuts were made
with pieces of broken bottles obtained
from ships, and the tips of the cut
raised by continually pinching them up.
rvo earth or other foreign matter had
been introduced into the cut. These
scars, he states, are made simply for
ornament, and he is proud of them, or
was a short time since. The lobe of
his right ear has been pierced, and the
flesh itself considerably drawn down,
apparently between two and three
inches. When found he wore a piece of
wood in this aperture about half an
inch in diameter and four inches long.
This ornament he gave to one of the
sailors of the schooner which brought
him to Somerset. When speaking of
the size to which the oar had been drawn
down, he mentioned, with evident ad
miration, some men of his tribe who
had trained the lobe of the ear down or
nearly down to the shoulder. After
having been on board the Brisbane a
day or two, however, he came to the
conclusion that the best thing he could
do would be to have the lower part of
his ear cut off, as not being “ the right
thing” in civilized society.
His nose is also pierced, and he was
accustomed to wear in it a piece of
white shell, probably that of the pearl
oyster. Wheß first found by the blacks !
he says he was very unhappy, often
thought of his father, mother, and
brothers, and longed to get away. In
the course of time the recollection of
them became less vivid and painful, and
he ultimately completely identified
himself with the tribe. He had never
made an attempt to eseapo, as, being
alono, ho oonld not have managed n
canoe out at sea ; and though he had
often seen tcsbclb passing along the
coast, he had never been allowed to get
near them, having been always sent by
the blacks into the woods in the inte
rior when they went on board a ship.
It is not clear how they came to allow
him to be seen at last by the sailors of
the John Bell.
When first recaptured he could hardly j
recall a word of French, and the rapid
ity with which he has recovered it is
remarkable. Even when he came on j
board the Brisbane a week ago his
knowledge of his own language was
very limited, and it was curious to see
the manner in which a word or its
meaning would suddenly recur to his
recollection. He now speaks French
fluently, and in proportion as it returns
to him he forgets the language of his j
tribe, of which, however, about 100.
words have been collected from him
and much more .remarkable, however,
than his recovery of his mother tongue,
is the fact that he has not lost the
powers of reading or writing after a
disuse of several years, during which
he of coarse never saw a book, and, as
be says, nevir wrote a line; nor, indeed,
did the blacks know that he possessed
the power to do so. Very probably he
did not know it himself. After two or
three weeks residence at Somerset, how
ever, he wrote, as has already been
mentioned, a few almost unintelligible
lines. Before coming on board the
Brisbane he had much improved in in
telligence, and pronounced correctly the
names he saw written upon the boats
and elsewhere about the ship. His pro
gress since has been most rapid- He
now spends a good deal of every day in
reading, though whether he understands
all that he reads may possibly be
doubted. He displays considerable in
telligence, but at the same time a child
ish dependence and imitativeness of
others. That anything is done by les
autres is sufficient to induce him to
attempt it himself. He is generally
good-humored, though with occasional
fits of apparently causeless sulkiness ;
he frequently coughs violently, and his
habits of crouching about here and there
are those of a savage. He can count in
French up to 100, having, however, at
the first attempt, stuck at eighty, pass
ing from seventy-nine to 100 (“ soixante
dix neuf—cent.”) The blacks, he says,
have no names for the different numbers,
and can only count by signs up to ten,
signified by touching different parts of
the body.
He is very bitter against the captain
of the Saint Paul for deserting him, but
at the same time appears to be afraid of
him. He speaks with kindness of his
family, which he distinctly remembers,
but always maintains that they must all,
even including his younger brothers, be
now dead, and it would appear as if,
hsving no measure of the time he has
passed with the savages, the past ap
pears to him at so great a distance as to
have given him the impression that he
is extremely old, although, in fact, bare
ly 30. He'says
HE WISHED TO REMAIN WITH THE BLACKS
and, although he acquiesced in his re
moval, he is evidently no means as
vet either happy or satisfied.
The name of the tribe with which he
lived is Macadama. They have no kings,
chiefs, nor leading iflen among them,
all the males being equal. The men,
he says, are very strong, but observes
with pride that he himself is very strong,
much stronger than the blacks. On the
other hand, though he says he is a good
swimmer and diver, he acknowledges
that in the water the blacks far surpass
him. The tribe subsists chiefly on fish,
turtles, turtles’ eggs, alligators’ eggs,
and roots and fruits. Sometimes they
hunt animals, but apparently not often.
The occupation of the men is fishing,
that of the women to gather roots, end
sometimes also they get honey. They
have no knowledge of nets, lines, or
hooks. The larger fish are harpooned
from canoes, the smaller speared with
a three-pronged spear. The canoes are
cut out of trees with knives formed of
hoop-iron, obtained from barrels washed
up from wrecks. Of this hoop-iron,
also, the heads of their spears and liar
poons are made. Narcisse says he him
self constructed two canoes, which he
has left behind him.
THE WOMEN
appear to be more numerous than the
men, every man having from two to five
women in his suite. Their position is
a low one, as appears from the fact that
although there are separate names for
. man >” “brother,” and “son,” there
is only one word—“ beycheynumma”—
101I 01 “ and “ daugh
ter. The terms “husband” and “wife”
are of course unknown, as are the ideas
which they imply. The relations of the
sexes are strictly animal, and “might
makes right.” The men. he says, not
unfrequently fight with spea/s for the
possession of a woman, while the women
fight among themselves about a maD,
their weapons being heavy staves, with
which they beat one another about the
head till the blood flows. These quar
rels probably arise when a decided pref
erence is shown to one woman over
another by their lord. The men have
no clothing whatever, not even opossum
rugs or other covering at night; the
women wear a fringe of cords extending
from the waist half way down the thigh.
They have no houses or hnts, but when
it rams they put up some temporary
shelter of the branches of trees or barli.
He maintains, however, that they never
feel cold, because they always have fires.
On board he feels the cold bitterly, and
dislikes the wind. Like all savages he
can make fire by rubbing together two
pieces of wood. He describes the tribe
he has been attached to as very peace
able, and says that he has never seen
one of its number killed by another
member of the tiibe. Battles, however,
sometimes occur between two tribes.
He describes one in which he took a
part. A tribe named the Echaus killed
some of the Maccadamas, upon which
the latter retaliated by surprising the
Echaus when asleep one night, and kill
ing a large number. Two were speared
by Narcisse himself.
The blacks have no knowledge of any
Superior Being, and no fotm of religion
of auy kind whatever. The dead are
tied up with cords after the fashion of a
mummy, and exposed to the action of
the sun either in the forks of trees or on
a rough scaffold. He describes the
treatment he has received from the tribe
as having been uniformly kind, and he
thinks they would treat any white man
well. They are not afraid, he says, of
white men, but of white men’s guns.
They are not cannibals, nor does he
think that any of the tribes in that re
gion are so. He states that he has heard
that in his tribe there was an old white
man who had lived among them for
many years, aud was at last drowned
while out fishing. He does not recollect
having seen this man himself, and is
not sure when his death occurred.
The Girls of Manilla.
A m ouiiuuer s
Monthly of a ball in Manilla as follow :
Promptly at eight o’clock we drove into
the widow’s basement; we ascended the
stone stairway, and a scene of splendor,
brilliant colors, and black eyes burst
upon our view. The Mestiza girls were
sitting in a row on one side or the room,
about forty of them; some decked in
gay plnmage, yellow, pink, and green
being prominent colors, others dressed
in sombre hues ; they were mostly very
pretty, with lithe, graceful figures, and
eyes as black as coal. The gentlemen
hovered near the doors of the grand
sala, like hawks eying chickens ; at the
first note of the music hey all made a
pounce for partners. As I saw that
pouncing was the go, I made a dive for
a pretty yellow-and green, rattled off a
sentence from the fifteenth lesson in
Ollendorf, “Will you do me the favor
to bailar conmigo?" and started off on a
dance I had never seen before, but
which was easy to learn ; it was the
Habanera, a sort of walking embrace
to slow music ; you make a step to the
right, rise on your toes, step to the left,
rise, swing round, step to the right, and
so on; then, when you wish to balance,
you wink at some fellow, stop in front
of him and go through the ladies’ chain,
then clasp your partner’s waist and take
the other lady’s right hand ; the other
ellow does the same, and now with the
music you sway up to the centre, sway
back, and revolve in an eliptic at the
same time, after the manner of the
planets. After swaying six times you
drop the other lady’s hand and gradually
sail off again with the 6tep and turn.
The girls cling quite closely and gaze
up occasionally, Spanish fashion. When
ever the couples ran against each other
the girls sang out with a sharp little
“Hi!” which was very amusing. They
have a great way of kissing each other
all the evening, and the fanciest kieses
I ever saw ; first, both kiss to starboard,
and then to port. The first time I
noticed it, a young damsel kissed my
partner good-hy as she started to dance
with me. 1 was astonished, and said
we were not going far, which made
them laugh. 1 found that the girls in
contiguous seats kissed good-by before
every dance, as if to say, “You will
elope this time, sure.” When the time
for supper came, I fell into the line,
and escorted a blooming Philippina to
the table. I asked a resident American
what I should help her to, and he said,
emphatically, “Ham and turkey ! Give
her plenty of ham and turkey !” I gave
her a full plate, which she soon des
patched and called for more. Every
body ate liam and turkey. The gentle
men acted as waiters, and afterwards
safe down together, Spaniards are ter
rible eaters. Aud no wonder, on this
occasion, for they came to the ball at
eight o'clock aud danced until five a. m.
A Cooler. —A writer on public health
recommends that a dish or basin large
enough to present a good surface of wa
ter be placed in rooms where the heat is
oppressive, aud the water changed once
or twice on very hot days, to secure a
general lowering of the temperature.
The hot air of the room takes up the
water in the form of atmospherio vapor,
and diffuses the greater coolness of the
vapor thioughont the room, until air
and water become of the same tempera
ture. When this takes place fresh wa
ter should be put in the dish. He says
that he has found a tumblerful of water
“potential” enough when he has been
sitting in a small study, but the greater
the surface of the water in contact with
the air the more effectual will be the
diffusion of the atmospheric vapor.
The Duke of Edinburg, Queen Vic
toria’s second son and heir apparent to
the throne of Saxe Coburg Gotha, in
Central Germany, has sold the righr of
succession to that Duchy to the German
government for the consideration of an
annuity of $400,000,
CARTERS VILLE, GEORGIA, MONDAY EVENING, AUGUST 30, 1575.
SUN SPOTS.
What they Have to Do with Terrestrial Phe
nomena.
In the opinion of many distinguished
scientists there is an intimatic connec
tion between tbe commotions that occur
in the sun, and which are indicated by
the appearance of spots, and various
terrestrial phenomena of a general na
ture. The extent of the solar spots
varies from year to year, being greatest
at periods about ten or eleven years
apart. Beginning with a maximum
year, the spots decrease in extent for
about five years, on an average, and
then gradually increase till a second
maximum is reached in about five years
more, after which the decrease begins
again and so on in continual alterna
tion. This interval of ten or eleven
yenrß is called the “sun-Rpot cvcle.”
The researches of Mr. Mcddrum, tbe
director of the Meteorological Observa
tory of Mauritius, indicated a connec
tion between the cyclones of the Indian
ocean and of the West Indies and the
smi-spots; the one varying with the
other. Prof. Loomis has shown that
there is a striking similarity between
the curves that represent the changes
in the extent of the solar spots and
those which represent respectively the
mean daily range of the magnetio de
clination, and the number of auroras
observed each year. According to
Poey, the commotions of the earth re
spond to those in the sun, and earth
quakes and volcanic eruption vary in
their frequency with the fluctuations of
the solar spots.
From ninety-three tables of rainfall
for various parts of the world, almost
entirely excluding America, Mr. Meld
rum has found that, without exception,
more rain falls in the maxima than in
minima sun-spot years. A late discus
sion of Mr. C. A. Schott’s article on the
“Rainfall of the United States,” iu
which the respective rainfalls at one
hundred aDd seven stations are t iken
for comparison, points to the same con
clusion.
Rochefort and Cassagnac’s Compli
“ mints to Each Other.
In his letter challenging M. Paul de
Cassagnac to fight a duel with him, M.
Rochefort said : “The abuse for which
I ask satisfaction from you contains at
the same time an engagement on your
part, from which it is impossible for
you to withdraw. Be good enough to
start immediately for Geneva with your
seconds. Mine await you. You will
not invoke legal interference, as you
did with regard to M. Olemenceau. I
am not pardoned, pardon being only
granted to those who ask it; but lam
free. I demand the satisfaction which
you declare yourself prepared to grant
beforehand, and I beg you, moreover,
to prevent your honorable father from
warning the prefect of police. My two
friends, Puissant and Bouvier/ who
wi 1 hand this letter to you, will under
take to transmit vour answer.” In his
reply to this Mr. de Cassagnac wrote :
“Since you have had the condescension
to write to me permit me not to be
hindhand to give you counsels. In
about you. It is a good tiling one* SSP*
way; it would not be fair a second
time. Siuoe Ido not care about per
petuating meetings of this kind. I
should very much wish that this not
over-convenient way of wearing a shirt
of mail should not save your life as was
once the case with me. Next, do not
forget your bottle of English smelling
salts. Your fainting fits have remained
famous, and I should be very sorry to
go so far as to unlaoe your stays and
andminister perfumes to you.”
The seconds of both individuals met,
but as already announced, they could
uot agree to terms.
Wather UP the Fragments.
How many lives are, so to speak,
mere relics of an ended feast, fragments
which may be either left to waste, or
be taken up and made the most of!
For we cannot lie just when we wish it,
and because we wish it. The fact may
be very unromantic, but it is a fact,
that a too large dinner or a false step
on the stairs kills much more easily
than a great sorrow. Nature compels
us to live on, even with broken hearts,
as with lopped-off members. True, we
are never quite the same again, never
the complete human being; but we
may still be a very respectable, healthy
human being, capable of living out our
three-score years and ten with tolerable
comfort after all.
These “fragments” of lives, how
they strew ‘our daily p iths on every
side ! Not a house do we enter not a
company do we mix with, but we more
than guess—we know—that these, your
friends, men and women, who go about
the world doing their work and taking
their pleasure therein, all carry about
them a secret burden—of bitter disap
pointments, vanished hopes, unfulfilled
ambitions, lost lovers. Probably every
one of them, when his or her smiling
face vanishes from the circle, will
change it into another, serious, anxious,
sad—happy if it be only sad, with no
mingling of either bitterness or bad
ness. That complete felicity which the
young believe in, and exneefc almost as
a matter of certainty to come, never
does come. Soon or late we have to
make up our minds to do without it, to
take up tlie fra -ments of our blessings,
thankful that we have what wc have
aud are what we are ; above all, that we
have our own burden to bear, and not
our neighbor’s. But, whatever it is,
we must bear it alone ; and this gather
ing up of fragments, which I am so
earnestly advising, is also a thing which
must ba done alone.— Mis, s Mulock,
Crown Muds in Russia.
There are seven crown studs in Rus
sia and one in Poland, containing
altogether 3,602 brood mares and horses,
with twelve crowu stables having 945
stallions. The Carjauov stud, pur
chased by the crown thirty years
from the heirs of Count Orloff, is di
vided into three sections, one devoted
to pure English horses, another to sad
dle horses, and the third to trotting
horses. The Derkuli stud breeds Eng
lish carriage horses, the New Alexan
drov, a kind of half blood saddle horse,
the Simarevsk thoroughbred Arabs,
and the Strjeletzl Oriental horses. In
the Orenburg stud horses are bred for
the light cavalry and the artillery.
Russia farther possesses 2,444 private
studs, having 6,496 stallions and about
70,000 brood mares, besides upward
of 69,000 stallions and 620,000 brood
mares m the Capaek and steppe “tabu
nes.” Horae breeding has increased
on private estates since the emancipa
tion of the serfs, and many of the studs
have been broken up, and have passed
in part into the hands of the peasantry.
In Russia there are 380 horse fairs, at
which about 150,000 animals are an
nually sold, out of about 263,000 aie
brought to market. The average price
ot a horse is 60 roubles—about SSO,
Washing Days in the Olden Time.
Washing day, now a bngbear in every
household, does not seem to have been
much of an institution in the days of
our great-great grandmothers, says the
American Grocer. Indeed, we are forced
to the conclusion, mortifying as it is,
that they were not very cleanly in their
personal habits. Linen and oot on,
materials that can be washed, were not
popular in England two centuries and a
half ago. Velvets, taffets and rich silks j
were, in the middle ages, often worn by
the wealthy without any under-clothing
whatever, while the domestics and the I
people of the lower order wore ojarse
linen, also without under-clothing. The j
possession of a linen shirt, even with |
the highest nobles, was a matter of
note, and it was but few wardrobes that
contained them. Under the Tadors,
night-gowns were zvorn, though they
had not been before, but they were
formed mostly of silk or velvet, so that
no washing was required. Anne Bo
leyne’s night-dress was made of black
satin, bound with black taffets, and j
edged with velvet of the same color.
One of Queen Elizabeth’s night-gowns
was of black velvet, trimmed with silk
lace and lined with fur, and in 1558 her
majesty ordered George Bradyman to
delivor “ three score and six shymies,
to furnish as a night-gown.” In another
warrant from her majesty in 1572 she
outers the delivery of “twelve yards of
pnrple velvet, frizzed on the back side
with white or russet silks,” for a night
gown for herself, and also orders the
delivery of fourteen yards of murry
damask for the “ making of a night
gown for the Earl of Leycester.” Night
dresses for ladies were of a later period,
called night-veils, and in the reign of
Queen Anne it became the fashion for
them to be w T orn in the day time on the
streets, over the usual dress. A nice
looking overdress they must have been,
particularly if the ladies of Queen
Aduc’s time were as restless sleepers as
some of their descendants. If anything
were needed to show that the “ good
old times ” never existed, and that the
present is infinitely superior as a time
to live in to the past, it would be that
the reign of the washerwoman has suc
ceeded that of the dyer and scourer.
Cleanliness is said to be next to godli
ness, but we believe it is the right hand
of godliness, and that godliness seldom
exists without its most important mem
ber.
Luxurious Gypsies,
The Reading, (Pa.) Eagle describing
a K.Ypey camp, says : Standing near the
group of gypsy women and children was
a very large wagon. It looked much
like one of those beautiful affairs gen
erally seen with a circus company. It
was open for an airing. The body was
large, and extended out over the wheels.
It was supported by heavy springs.
The wagon was fitted up as a bedroom.
It ivas as beautiful as a bridal chamber,
and Mrs. Guy smiled approvingly when
the reporter mentioned tbe comparison.
“Yes, sir,” she said, “yon guessed it
pretty wall. That is our chamber.
My husband’s and mine.” A pe'ep in
side showed everything as neat and as
walnut, aud bedding" of the'finest linen.*
The walls were ornamented, and the
best, kind of carpet was on the floor.
Looking-glasses, wardrobes, closets,
dressing-cases, and everything seen in a
first-class bedroom was there. The
wagon was specially built for the party
in Frederick, Maryland, and cost 8700
in cash. The bedroom was divided off
from the front part of the wagon, which
is occupied by the driver’s position.
The leather curtains around the wagon
were all thrown up yesterday, and it
seemed as if a hotel bridal chamber had
been suddenly brought out there. The
wagon body outside is painted and var
nished in the most costly manner and
the gilding and ornamental work are
very neat. The vehicle is large and
roomy, and seems much out of place in
the woods. The owner came along
shortly, and he expressed himself as fol
lows : “I live in the woods and move
around from one place to another. I
want to live with all the comforts I can
provide, and in that wagon my wife and
T sleep as good as the rest of the world.”
Everything about the wagon is fitted uo
in the best style, and the blankets,
sheets, counterpanes, and piliew-cases
were just as clean as could be. Many
of the blankets were dark, with gray
stripes. There were three other wagons
of the same pattern, but none of them
were fitted up in so costly a manner.
One large wagon had a row of beds in
it made for the children.
Length of Roots.
The nature of the soil has much to
do with the length a.sd nnmner of roots.
In light, poor oil I find roots of June
grass four feet below the surface. Peo
ple are apt to under-estimate the length,
amount and importance of the roots of
the finer grasses, wheat, oats, etc. A
young wheat plaut when pulled up only
shows a small part of its roots. They
often go down four or six feet or more.
The roots of a two year-old peach tree
in light soil were fouud seven feet four
inches long. In dry, light soil, this
season we pulled up one parsnip three
feet and a half long. Of course smaller
roots went down still further. The
noted buffalo grass on the dry western
prairies is described in the agricultural
reports at Washington as having very
short roots ; but Mr. Felker, one of our
college graduates, found, where a well
was being dug, that the roots went down
seven feet. The roots grow best where
the best food is to be found. They
grow in greater or less quantity in
every direction. If a root meets with
good food it flourishes and sends out
numerous branches. Roots do not
“search” for food as vegetable physi
ologists now understand it. Many of
the smaller roots of trees die every
autumn when the leaves die, and others
grow in spring.
Somebody interviewed George Francis
Traiu, and the* latter said: “Do you
see these hands ? See the blood runs
into them. There's health for you? All
comes from vegetable diet, sir. No
meat for me. I eat nothing but veget
ables. Vegetables make muscle, smew,
strength, manhood.” “ Yes, George,”
said his auditor, laughing, “you’re right,
meat is weakening. I always notics ail
the strong animals live on vegetables.
There’s the weak lion and panther, they
live on meat; end there’s the sturdy
sheep, the goose, the cilf, and jackass,
they live on vegetables entirely. They—”
“ It always makes rem mad to talk to an
infernal fool,” said Train, coloring up,
while he turned on his heel and left in a
huff.
Mobile people judge of a maa’s
wealth by the size of the cigar-stub he
throws away. If he smokes it cloie he
is looked upon as a fellow of no account.
A MODERN SAMSON.
The Prodigious Feats of a St. John River New
Brunstoieker.
From the New Brnngwick Reporter.’
Thomas, or Tom Gardner, as he was
familiarly oalled, was born on the River
St. John, one mile above the mouth of
the Mactaquack stream, in the year 1798.
Viewed casually, Gardner gave no evi
dence of unusual power, but when strip
ped his muscular development was tre
mendous, and it is affirmed that instead
of the ordinary ribs he possessed a solid
bony wall on either side, and that there
was no separation whatever. He stood
five feet ten and a half inches, erect and
full chested, and never exceeded 190
pounds in weight.
The late Charles Long informed us
that at one time he saw Gardner lift
from a towboat a pnucheon ef corn,
containing at leas' twelve bushels, and,
swinging around, deposit it on the sand.
In so doing he tore the sole off his boot.
On another occasion a number of men
were trying to lift a stick of timber. In
ail the crowd only one man could raise
it above two inches from the skids.
Gardner told four men to sit upon it,
and then lifted it so high that the men
jumped off to save themselves from the
fall. Mr. McKeen has frequently known
him in lifting to break boom poles six
inches thich. He has known him also
with one hand to lift, by the rung of a
chair, the chair itself and a man weigh
ing nearly 200 weight. Once in attempt
ing to lift a very heavy man he wrenched
the rung entirely from the chair.
Gardner at one time was possessed of
a balky horse with which he exercised
great patienoe; but when patience
ceased to be a virtue he would fell him
to the ground with his clenched fist,
striking him behind the ear. It is re
lated of Gardener’s sister that on one
occasion a famous wrestler traveled all
the way from Miramichi to Tom’s home
in order to “ try a fall with him.” Tom
was absent, but the sister, looking con
temptuously upon the intruder, declared
she could throw him herself, and, suit
ing the action to the word, in a fair trial
threw him fairly three times in succes
sion. The stranger’s experience with
the sister was sufficient; be never sought
a future interview with the brother.
The greatest feat which Gardner was
ever known to'peiform was on one of
the wharves in St. John. Mr. McKean
saw him lift and carry an anchor weigh •
ing 1,200 pounds, numbers of other
witnesses standing by, some of whom
are yet alive. Frequently he has seen
him carrying a barrel of pork under
each arm, and once he saw him shoulder
a barrel of poris while standing in an
ordinary brandy box. When about 40
years of age Gardner removed to the
United States, and never returned to
his native province.
It is commonly reported and believed
that he met with a sad adventure on
board a Mississippi steamer. A heavy
bell was on board as a portion of the
freight, and the captain, a great, power
ful fellow, was concerned as to how he
should remove it from its place in order
to make more room on deck. While
captain and passengers were at dinner,
Tom, in presence of the crew, to their
utter amazement, lifted the bell and
boat. When the captain refurnd’a' he
asked how that had been accomplished,
and when Gardner laughingly remarked
that he carried it there, the former gave
him the lie, and as one word brought on
another, he presently struck Tom in the
face. This was too much, and for the
first time in his life the strong man gave
blow for blow ; but one buffet was suf
ficient. The captain never spoke again,
killed dead on the instant. Tom made
his escape, went west, and has never
been heard of since.
DRESSM VKING AS A FINE ARr.
Within the last few years there has
been a great revival in many branches
of decorative art. The schooi of needle
work at South Kensington is rich in
designs for costly and beautiful hang
ings. There are a large number of effi
cient workers employed there, and some
of the embroidery produced-by the
ladies is'extremely good. In many shop
windows are to be seen fine plaques of
china and admirable tiles, while even
the convicts at Woking turn out very
creditable mosaic. Wall papers have
reach the point of being really decora
tive, and the most fastidious person can
hardly fail to find something to please
him amongst the many patterns brougnt
out by competent people who have
studied the subject. It is now possible
to get both men and women so well edu
cated in art and archaeology that they
are able to design appropriate furniture
to suit any given style of architecture.
It is surely time to try art dressmaking.
So long as we were contented to follow
French fashions with regard to the
furnishing of our houses it was perhaps
natural that our wives and daughters
should get their dresses from Paris.
Now that we have ceased to look across
the channel for the patterns of our
carpets and clocks there is no reason
why dress should not also be provided ;
at home in harmony with other decora- j
tions. Ladies with delicate .perception
and sufficient skill to know how to
furnish their rooms often express a wish
that they could order their dresses from
the pame artist who paints their rooms,
but as that is impossible, they go to
Mr. Worth instead, and try to conform
their taste to the last new Taris whim,
no matter how ugly or indecorous it
may be. The fashions which have been
worn for the last six or seven years are
certainly much more picturesque than
thoe of the days of crinoline. More
care has been taken by the milliners
that colors shall be few aud harmonious.
The wearing of black even by those not
in mourning has been very generally
adopted, and, as it suits almost every
one, and looks well out of doors, it is at
least unobjectionable. Still there is an
immense amount of bad dressing to be
seen everywhere which is quite needless,
and which would be simply impossible
if the art was at all understood by either
dressmakers or dress wearers.
Dressmakers, as a class, are vulgar
and uneducated, with little appreciation
of the artistic subtleties of their art, or
even its more obvious proprieties. They
have learned to load their work with ugly
and senseless frills which do not end
anything, with bows which do not tie
anything, and with buttons which are
of no use, until their eyes are incapable
of seeing or their minds of understand
ing the grace of simplicity and the
charm of suitability. Of what consti
tutes true beauty in the female form
they are entirely ignorant, and they
adore a waist that can be spanned.
They think that a dress is a perfect fit
in which a lady can neither raise her
arms nor use her legs. Artificial flowers
and glass beads are the highest ideal of
decoration and costly trimmings of art.
A novelty, however ugly, if stamped
with the approval of Paris, is accepted
without a thought, but the suggestion
of some pretty design which has not
emanated from that centre of frivolity
is at onoe rejected with scorn because it
has no “style.” It is not uncommon to
see vigorous efforts made on the part of
some ladies to emancipate themselves
from the thraldom of fashion and to
strike r ut a line for themselves. Too
often these efforts are signal failures
from want of sufficient knowledge of
the subject. There are very few people
who have a genius for dressing them
selves or even the perception to know
what style suits them best. A good
design is spoilt when badly carried out,
or when the workmanship is not highly
finished. Laces of different periods and
countries are olten ignorantly mixed up
together and sleeves of one century
worn with bodies of another. It is un
pleasant to see a Stuart costume sur
mounted by a Victorian chignon or an
Elizabethan head dress finished with a
mob cap. Some ladies, too, will appear
in a mediaeval dress one day and in a
Pompadour robe the next, giving one
the impression that they are using up
their fancy ball costumes. Every
woman has a certain style of appear
ance, and her dress should correspond
with it. In French fashions there is
generally a great want of dignity—the
dignity of simplicity. To a country
gentleman accustomed to see his women
folk in fresh muslins and clean prints it
is not a little surprising to be taken to
the homes of some of the literary and
semi-artistic families living in and near
London. An atmosphere of mouldy
decay pervades the house, which is
painted in dark green blues. The walls
are hung with every conceivable absur
dity—sconces where no candles are ever
lighted, go- gs which are not to sound,
curtains which have no purpose and give
the air of an old clothes shop. Whole
dinner services of china are strung on
the staircase, and everything is covered
thick with a black, oiiy dust made by
smoke, smuts, and fog. The poor girls
try to dress in a way which they fondly
believe to be artistic, -nd end in looking
like rag dolls. They tie the refuse cf
Cairo round their waists, and wisps of
strange fabries round their necks. Pea
cock’s feathers eye us from unaccounta
ble situations, and frills of old lace, so
dirty as to be almost nasty, garnish
throats which would look much better
in clean linen collars. But clean linen
collars and cuffs have unfortunately no
tone ; they are incompatible with artistic
dressing. Then, too, tidyliair is inad
missible. There is another style of
artistic dressing which when badly done
is almost as offensive as the withered
style. Wo may call it, fot want of a
better name, Free Claf sic. It is gener
ally adopted by short fat people with
high shoulders. It consists for the
most part of a shapeless cream oolored
cotton or woollen robe, with a gold
girdle. On stout figures the effect is
by no means attractive. A model atrired
in a night-gown which has been properly
damped and draped no doubt looks very
well, but a night-gown over a reasona
ble amount of under-garments is merely
ungainly and shapeless. Dresses of
this pattern must be either ugly or in
delicate. Good artistic and good fash
ionable dressing both involve expense,
and neither of them can be well carried
out without thought, knowledge, and
money. We are very unfortunate in
fetrenißnrw/ifiiaw] aonfnmp Tt, wnnld
hideous in the dress of the lower orders,
and perhaps enable them to have clean,
serviceable clothing, instead of trum
pery second-hand finery. If our middle
class young ladies are to do cooking and
housemaid’s work they, too, should
have a picturesque costume.
Women should either adopt a uni
form, as men have done, or else dress
making should be elevated into the posi
tion of a fine art and treated as such.
It should be undertaken by people of
culture and refinement in the same way
that cookery has been. There ought to
be a school of art dressmaking. There
are always a large number of ladies who
say they have got no work to do. Here
is an opening for them. Their first step
ought to be to petition Her Majesty not
to insist upon ladies who are delicate or
spare in figure wearing low dresses at
morning drawing-rooms. Their second
one ought to be to abolish the use of the
word “fashionable” in its present
sense, and to substitute for it the word
“ becoming,” which would indicate both
economy where it is necessary and mag
nificence where it is suituable.—iSatur
day Review.
Japanese Fan Decoration.
A New York correspondent of the
Boston Gazette says: What do you
suppose our people of taste are using to
decorate their houses with ? I don,t
mind putting you on the track, for I
shall have laid in my stock before this
letter gets in print." They are using
nothing more or less expensive than
Japanese fans—the kind you buy for
three cents a piece. I fear, though, as
soon as the dealers find out they are
worth more to us, that they will raise
the price. For a couple of dollars you
can get some beautiful specimens of
Japanese art, and unless you have tried
it you have no idea how beautiful it is
for deooration. Stick two or tnree fans
behind a picture, or up against the
chimney-piece, or back in the shelves
where you keep your old china. I heard
of a lady the other day who had a bor
der of these fans running around her
parlor wall. A young artist I know
lives in a rented house which has a very
ugly plaster center-piece on the parlor
ceiling. He could not afford to get a
new one, so he has the offensive piece
stuck full of brilliant fans. Alma
Tadema had his beautiful drawing
i room on the banks of the Thames deco
rated with these fans, and the effect
was striking and beautiful. Japanese
wall paper is expensive and hard to get;
; so that we who have not the wealth of
Mr. Russell Sturges have to content
ourselves with the fans, for which we
are truly grateful.
Flize. —l hate a fli. A fii has got no
manners. He ain’t no gentleman. He
is an introoder; don’t send in no kard,
nor ax an introduckshun, nor don’t
knock at the front door, and never
thinx of taking off his hat. Fust you
kuo he is in bed with yon and up your
nose—tho wat they want there is a mis
try ; and he invites hiss elf to breakfast
and sits down in your butter thout
brushing his pants. I hate a fli. Dam a
fli.— Josh Billings.
If your girl, or her big brother, comes
along and points a pistol at you, an<i
tells you to walk down to the minister’s
and be married, go right along and do
it; the marriage will be bogus. That
has recently been decided by the su
preme court of New York.
The Louisville clergymen recommend
that slates oe hung iu the church vesti
bules to enable the girls to register their
names on entering for morning services.
This will obviate the disturbance cre
ated by the young men who come in to
see whether the charmers are present.
VOL. 16-NO. 31
SAYINGS AND DOINGS.
A Brookltn girl was heard to remark
as she was leaving churoh last Sunday
evening : “ There’s my foolish father
has gone and given 850 to the heathen,
and the new spring hats are ont, and I
shall have to buy a cheap one or put up
with a straw.”
An ordinary lighthonse where oil is
used, gives an illuminating power equal
to about ‘2OO candles. An electric light
in England flashes over the North see
its condensed beams, each of which is
more than an equivalent to the com
bined light of 800,000 candles.
A Scotch granite monument at Cam
bridge City, Indiana, was recently
struck by lightning, the current follow
ing the shaft to the limestone base, tak
ing out every paiticle of red color, and
leaving a white zig-zag strip about an
inch in width. The monument was not
injured.
A precocious boy was asked which
was the greater evil of the two, hurting
another’s feelings or his finger ? He
said the former. “ Right, my dear
child,” said the gratified questioner.
“ And why is it worse to hurt the feel
ings ?” “ Becanse you can’t tie a rag
around them,” explained the dear chili
A project for tunneling the Mersey
has been revived, and apropos thereto
Mr. Gladstone writes : “ Assuredly it
will seem strange to future rimes that
we should in 1875 have been far ad
vanced in maturing a project for a tun
nel under the Straits of Dover, while
we have not yet tunneled under a single
river of the many that indent our
shores.” Mr. Gladstone Beeme to have
forgotten the Thames tunnel.
A boy of five years old was “ playing
railroad ” with his sister of two and a
half. Drawing her upon a footstool, he
imagined himself both the engine and
the cond actor. After imitating the
puffing noise of the Bteam, he stopped
and called out “ New York,” and, in a
moment aftr, “Paterson,” and then
“Philadelphia.” His knowledge of
towns was now exhausted, and the next
place he cried “Heaven.” His little
sister said eagerly: “ Top, Ides I’ll
det out here.”
An old-fashioned clergyman named
More was riding on horseback one
stormy day, enveloped in a loose cloak
of large proportions and having a broad,
scarlet collar. By the action of the
wind the cloak was tossing about in all
directions, when a gentleman rode up
on a spirited horse, which shied and al
most threw the rider. “ That cloak of
yours would frighten the devil,” said
the gentleman. “You don’t say so!”
replied Mr. More ; “ why, that’s just my
trade.”
What Arm,? of Toad-Jitools Did.
Did yon ever think how strong the
growing plants mnst be to force their
way up through the earth? Even the
green daisy tips and the tiny blades of
grass, that bow before a breath, have to
exert a force in ooming through, that, in
proportion to their size, is greater than
you would exert in rising from under a
mound of oobble stones. And think of
toad stools—what soft, tender things
can ten you, >juvv
their way.
Charles Kingsley, the celebrated Eng
lish priest and novelist, was a close
observer of nature. One evening he
noticed particularly a square flat stone,
that, I should say, was about as long
and as broad as the length of three big
burdock leaves, He thought it would
require quite a strong man to lift a stone
like that. In the morning he looked
again, and lo ! the stone was raised so
that he could see the light under it.
What was his surprise fo find on oloser
examination, that a crop of toad-stools
had sprung up under the stone in the
night and raised it up on their little
round shoulders as they came !
I’m told that Canon Kingsley gives an
account of this in his book called
“ Christmas in the West Indies,” but it
was in England that he saw it.
Knowing that he was so close an ob
server, I shouldn’t be one bit surprised
if he went still further and fonDd oat
that one secret of the toad-stools being
able to lift the stone was that they
didn’t waste time and strength in urging
each other to the work, but each one
did his veiy best without quarreling
about whose turn it was, or whether
Pink Shoulder or Brown Button was
shirking his share. But then the toad
stools must have been strong.
Qneen Vic’s Common Klnfiness.
In noticing the “ Eoglish-Gypsy
songs,” by Miss Tnckey, we omitted to
mention that one of the poems in the
book, entiLed “ Told near Windsor,” is
founded on an incident in the Queen’B
life, but little known out of the
charmed Ilommany circle. One bitter
winter? day, when the enow was lying
thick all ever Windsor park, a gypsy
family were crossing it, when the tent
had to be suddenly pitched, the pangs
of labor having overtaken the mother.
A few sticks were hurredly gathered,
but there was hardly any time to
scrape away the snow and get the fire
lit before the gypsy woman gave birth
to twins. The park-keepers, of course,
came up, and ordered the tent to be
taken off the ground. But the birth of
the twins in the snow under her windows
reached the ears of her majesty, who at
once sent food and drink and clothing to
the wanderers. Amongst the presents
were some babies’ woolen stockings, knit
by her majesty’s own hands, and a pair
of blankets, which, bnt a short time be
fore, had lain on a state bed. Gypsies
repeat this with great pride, and “ the
socks knitted by the Queen of the
Gorgios ” are frequently refer red to by
them when they speak of deeds of
thoughtful and timely charity.— The
Athenaeum.
A Just Admission. —A long, illus
trated article on caricatures of women, in
Harper’s Monthly for Augnsit, closes
with the following just of
the fact that woman’s inferiority in
business career and unwonted fields of
employment is due to previous con
dition" rather than a natural want of
capacity, and will be fully remedied by
a different education and training :
“Equal rights, equal education, equal
chances for independent careers —when
women have enjoyed these for so much
as a single oentury in any country, the
foibles afcwhich men have laughed for
so many ages will probably no longer be
remarked, for they are either the follies
of ignorance or the vices resulting from
a previous condition of servitude. Nor
will men of right feeling ever regard
women with the cold, critical eye of a
Chesterfield or a Rouohefoucatdd, but
rather with something of. the exalted
sentiment which caused old. Homer,
whenever ne had occasion to speak of a
mother, tc prefix an adjective usually
applicable to goddesses and queens,
which we can translate best, perhaps,
by our English word ‘ august.’ ’’