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CLIPPINGS FOB THE CURIOUS.
Japanese laws compel fish to Le
sold alive.
According to an eminent Southern
authority on barbecues it takes ten
hours to roast a whole ox to perfec
tion.
In Washington Territory there is a
kind of cedar tree which grows 300
feet high, and is sometimes fifteen feet
in diameter,
Ducks have been poisoned by eat
ing the leaves of the ailanthns.
Death follows in a few hours after
feeding on them.
In their statues the Greeks repre
sent the second toe as longer than the
great toe, while in the modern Euro
pean foot the great toe is generally the
longest.
The late Commodore Gorringe
cherished among his treasures a frag
meat of coal marked distinctly with
fern leaves, which had been found in
the arctic snows by a Polar ex
plorer.
In Russia a conscript is rejected if
his chest does not measure at least
half the length of his stature. To
avoid conscription the device is fre
quently resorted to of reducing the
chest measure by semi-starvation and
other tricks.
It is a curious fact that wasps nests
often take fire a< is supposed, by the
chemical action of the wax upon the
material of which the nest is com
posed. Many of the fires of unknown
origin in haystacks and farm build
ings may thus be accounted for.
To chivalry woman was indebted
in the middle ages for a position she
had never before enjoyed in history,
which gave her a charm almost un
known till then, and which spread
over a society steeped in barbarism a
grace and refinement that have corne
down to our day.
Five out of the twenty-one Presi
dents of the United states were of
Scotch-Irish lineage—Jackson. Polk,
Uuehanan, Johnson and Arthur; two
of Scotch -Grant and Hayes; one of
Welsh—Jefferson, and one of Dutch—
Van Duren; the remaining twelve
being of English descent.
Pliny informs us that those who
dug up the mandrake paid particular
attention to stand so that the wind
was at their back, and before they be
gan to dig they made three circles
round the plant with the point of
their sword, and then proceeding to
the west, began digging it up.
Dr. Delaunay, an eminent French
physician says that the most general
position in sleep is on the right side.
Dreams which come to a sleeper in
that position, he says, as a rule are il
logical, absurd, full of vivavicity and
exaggeration. Those which come to a
w sleeper who lies upon his left side, in
Delaunay’s opinion, are not only less
absurd, but also more intelligent.
They are apt to be concerned with
recent actual events awl less with
re m i n iscenses.
Answering a Challenge.
Half the bugbears of life are such
merely because we fear them, says
Youth's Companion. The old advice
in regard to grasping a nettle may be
applied, in substance, to many another
nuisance. Meet a spectre bravely, and
it melts into thin air, as the following
anecdote will illustrate.
Beggar's Bush, a wild common or.
the outskirts of Dublin, was once dot
ted over with brier-bushes. The story
runs that in olden days when police
men were unknown, this lonely spot
was frequented by a stalwart Irish
man, who made himself the terror of
the neighborhood. He used to place
his hat in the centre of the road, and
then, armed with a blunderbuss, crouch
down behind a bush. Whenever any
one approached his hat, he would jump
up from behind the bush, level his
weapon, and roar out in stentorian
tones, —
“But all the money you have into
that hat, or—
The traveller naturally enough put
- his money into the hat, being only too
9 glad to escape with his life.
One day, however, a powerful, tire
eating fellow-countryman came along,
and was received with the usual
threatening salute—
“ Put all your money into that hat,
or’’—
The man in the road turned, and,
facing the highwayman, brandished
his shillelagh in a most warlike man
ner, exclaiming —-
“Or what?”
“Or get you gone out of that?’ was
the instant reply.
“Arrah, thin, is that-all?” returned
Pat, kicking the hat out of his way,
and whistling as he went leisurely on j
The Cost of the Panama Canal.
Engineer Menocal, in his report on !
the Panama Canal construction says: |
‘Taking the most favorable view of
the situation, and admitting the
River Chagres can be controlled as
proposed and for the amount estimat
ed, and that the mismanagement,
waste and extravagance prevailing
from the inception of the scheme to
the extent of bringing the whole af
fair to the border of a disgraceful
bankruptcy be thoroughly corrected, it
mav be safely stated that the canal
cannot be completed for less than I
$275,000,000. exclusive of interest on j
capital, commissions, etc., in addition I
to what already been spent, • r a
total in cash forth- actual . ost of the
work of 375,000,000.’’
@ljc Summerville
VOL. XII. SUMMERVILLE, GEORGIA, WEDNESDAY EVENING, NOVEMBER 25. 1885. NO. 45.
EMMONS McKEE <fc CO.,
S7 BILOA.ID STREET, ROME, Q-A..,
Are Acknowledged Headquarters in North Georgia For
CLOTHING, FURNISHING GOODS, HATS AND MEN S FINE SHOES,
r IX7 E have made exten-ive preparations for a rousing business during the coming season, and we have taken every precaution to fortify ourselves against disap- 1
_ J VV poin'.ment. Our new stock is all that could be dedred in style, quality and price, and, if extra inducements are a consideration, our store will be the most V
| attractive place in this country for those who want the best for the least money. J
FALL TRADE IS WHA r r WE WANT!
And no stone has been left Unturned, no opportunity has been Neglected, no pains and
expense has been Spared to Secure
Tl}c Stodk of ip l\orqe !
REMEMBER: We fell only goods worn by the MALE SEX-Clothing, Furnishing Goods, Hats, and Men’s Fine Shoes—we can fit you out from head to feet, and hope every reader of this paper will
give us a call. We are always glad to show goods, and think our attractive display cannot fail to please you.
EMMONS McKEE * CO., Men’s and Boys’ Outfitters,
WHEN EVENING COMETH ON.
When evening cometh on,
Slower and statelier in the mellowing eky
The sane-like vnrple-ehadowed clouds arise;
Cooler and balmier doth the soft wind sigh;
Lovelier, lonelier to our wondering eyes
The a -ftening landscape seems. The swallows fly
Swift through the radiant vault; the fleld-lark cries
His thrilling, sweet farewell; and twilight bauds
Os misty silence cross the far-off lands
When evening cometh on.
When evening cometh on,
Peeper and dreamier grows the slumbering dell,
Darker and drearier spreads the bristling wold,
Bluer and heavier roll the hills that swell
In moveless waves against the shimmering gold.
Out from their haunts the insect hordes, that
dwell
Unseen by day, come thronging forth to hold
Their fleeting hour of revel, and by the pool
toft pipings rise up from the grasses cool,
When evening cometh on.
When evening cometh on,
Along their well-known paths with heavier tread
The sad-eyed, loitering kine uniirged return;
The peaceful sheep, by unseen shepherds led,
Wend bleating to the hills, so well they learn
Where Nature's hand their wholesome couch
hath spread.
And through the purpling mist the moon doth
yearn;
Pale,gentle radiance, dear recurring dream,
Soft with the falling dew falls thy faint beam,
\\ hen evening cornelh on.
When evening cometh on,
Loosed from the day’s long toil, the clanking
teams
With halJng steps pass on their jostling ways,
Their gearings glinted by the waning beams;
Close by their heels the he dful collie strays;
All slowly fading m a land of dreams,
J'ransfigured specters of the shrouding haze.
Thus from life’s field the heart’s fond hope doth
fade,
Thus doth the weary spirit seek the shade,
When evening cometn on.
When evening cometh on,
Across the dotted fields of gathered grain
The soul of summer breathes a deep repose,
Mysterious murmur mgs m ogle on the plain,
And from the blurred and biended brane there
flows
The undulating echoes of some strain
Once heard in paradise, perchauce—who knows?
But now the whispering memory sadly strays
Along the dim rows of the rustling maize
When evening cometh on.
When evening cometh on,
Anon there spreads upon the lingering air
The musk of weedy slopes and grasses dank,
And odors from far fields, unseen but fair.
With scent of flowers from many a shade vy bank.
Oh,lost Elysium, art thou hiding there.’
Flows yet that crystal stream whereof I drank,
Ah, wild-eyed Memory, fly from night’s despairt
Thy strong wings droop w.th lieavf' ,r weight of
care
When evening cometh on
When evening cometh on
No sounding phrase can set the heart at rest.
Ibe settling glooip that creeps by wood and
stream,
The bars that lie along the smouldering west,
The tall and lonely silent trees that seem
To mock the groaning earth, and turn to jest
This wavering flame, this agonizing dream,
All, all bring sorrow as the cloud< bring rain,
And evermore life’s struggle see meth vain
When evening cometh on.
When evening cometh on,
A near doth Life stand by the great unknown.
In darkness reaching out her sentient hands;
Philosophies and creeds alike are thrown
Beneath her feet, and questioning she Svanda
Close on the brink, nnfearing and alone,
And lists ihe dull wave breaking on the sands,
Albeit her thoughtful eyes are filled with tears,
Ko lonely and so sad the sound she hea”
When evening cometh on- .
When evening cometh on,
Vain seems the world, and vainer wist man’s
thought.
All colors vanish when the sun goeth down.
Fame’s purple mantle some proud soul hath
caught
No better seems than doth the earth-stained gown
Worn by Content. All names shall be forgot.
Death plucks the stars to deck his sable crown.
The fair enchantment of the golden day
Far through the vale of shadows melt away
When evening cometh on.
When evening cometh on,
Love, only love, can stay the linking soul,
And smooth thought ! racking fever from the
brow;
The wounded heart Love only can console.
Whatever brings a oalm for sorrow now,
So must it oe while this vexed earth shall rolL
Take then the portion which the gods allow.
Dear heart, may I at last on thy warm breast
Sink to forgetfnine-B and silent rest
When evening comcth on ?
—Robert Burna Wtteon, in Harper 9.
IX A BOTTLE.
It was a beautiful day in midsummer,
and the half-a-hundred-odd cabin pas
sengers on the good steamship Nautic
were listlessly lounging about the deck.
They were already nine days out from
Liverpool, and owing to an unfortunate
accident, which hart occurred early on
the voyage, only ha'f the distance to
their port of destination had been ac
complished.
The accident had been attended with
no danger to the precious human freight,
but the monotony of the voyage was"be
coming unbearable, and the passengers
were beginning to grumble,
Every artifice haa been resorted to to
relieve the tedium of the slowly moving
days, and now they were literally at their
wits’ end.
Charades, mock trials, skettles, and
amateur theatricals, lr 1 iu turn been
resorted to, but now, \ h their faces
y turned longingly toward home, they I
’ lounged about the deck, and' bemoaned 1
9 their sad fate.
A particularly discontented group I
leaned against the port-rail, atnidship, !
composed of two young ladies, showily
dressed, two young men who looked
rather jaunty in their semi-sailor dress, ’
a stout, red faced, coarse looking man, I
t and an equally stout, red-faced, and
coarse looking woman.
The two latter were called “papa” and
“mamma’’ by the simpering young ladies,
and deferentially addressed as Mr. and
Mrs. Gale by the young men in semi- ■
sailor dress.
They were venting their indignation |
ll against the steamship, and the comirina- |
tion of untoward circumstances that had
delayed their voyage.
h Standing a little apart from the group
was a slim, pale faced girl, in a dress of
[i quiet-gray, unrelieved save at the throat,
where a bit of cherrv-colored ribbon was
gathered into a prim bow.
This was Elsie Annabel, and she was
maid and companion to the Misses Gale,
who were named respectively Agnes and
g Eunice.
She took no part in the conversation,
but there was a sad and wistful look in
the gray eyes, as she turned her face
toward the western horizon.
“it's outrageous!'' cried Papa Gale.
‘■Shameful!” echoed his wife.
b “It’s killing me!” sighed Miss Eunice.
“lam really faint with ennui!” chir
ruped Miss Agnes.
“It’s doucedly unfortunate!” chorused
the young men.
“If something would only happen!”
continue.. Agnes.
“I tell you what?” cried the cider of ;
the young men, addressing Miss Eunice, '
in particular.
“Well?” interrogated that young lady,
with a listless attempt at interest.
“l et’s write letters to our friends, en
close them in bottles, and throw them
overboard. They’re no doubt consider- J
ably worried over our long absence, and
as it’s impossible to tap the cable and
telegraph them a message, we’ll make
old ocean's waves our letter Cu
■„ “Pshaw, Rob!” retorted Miss Eunice,
shrugging her shoulders. “How senti
mental you are! As though a letter put
t ■ into a bottle and thrown into the sea
t ■ would ever reach anywhere!”
“I’ve read somewhere,’’said Rob Car
rington. “that ship-wrecked sailors
often send messages to their friends that ■
way. “We’re about as bad as ship- j
1 wrecked, why can’t we?”
Let’s ask the captain!” said Eunice; I
and she walked toward that officer, who
was moodily pacing up and down the ,
bridge.
The others followed.
“Yes. Miss,” answered the captain, ;
when Eunice had asked him about the
possibility of the bottles being washed
ashore. I’ve no doubt they’ll each land I
somewhere. The steward will furnish
you with bottles if you desire to make ‘
the experiment.”
There was something novel in the
idea, and every empty bottie on ship
board was soon brought on deck.
Everybody, young and old, began to |
write letters—everybody except Elsie ;
Annabel.
No waiting kindred anxiously ex-
B pected her return, and the only real
friend she had ever had, handsome Guy
Cha rners, was lost to her.
Two years before she had engaged
herself to the young artist, but they had
i quarreled, and separated in anger, as
lovers will.
She was too proud to ask his forgive
ness, and he was too stubborn to ask
hers.
Gradually they had drifted apart, and
finally lost all sight of each other.
Elsie sighed as these thoughts of the ■
s past surged through her mind, and she
sighed—a bitter, quivering sigh.
Papa Gale was a rich pork merchant,
and. in his rough way, was kind to her.
He paid her liberally for the service i
she rendered ia polishing up the some
what neglected educations of his two
daughters, but they were selfish and ca
pricious, and her lot was not, by any
means, a happy one.
The steamship’s deck now rang with
joyous laughter and merry jest, as the
passengers prepared the messages that
they confidently hoped would be wafted
shoreward.
All sorts of letters were written, read
' I over laughingly, placed in their frail re
. . ceptacles. and cast into the sea.
' Even the sailors became interested in
' i the experiment, and sent out messages to
. i waiting friends, or anxious sweethearts,
, ' in dear America.
, ' “Have you written your message yet.
j Miss Annabel.'” asked Agnes Gale, had
ing for a moment beside her maid,as shi
i leaned over the tail and watched Ult
tightly-corked bot les, as they bobbed
. up and down.
i | “My m.ssagef ’ cried Elsie, with a
1 guilty start, for she had just been think-
ing of Guy Chalmers. “Ah—est—realty
—I have no one to write to I”
“No one?’’ persisted Agnes.
“No!” was the low answer, and El
sie’s eyes dropped.
“That’s too bad!” said Agnes, com
miseratingly. “Everybody is sending
I out a message. If I were you I’d just,
I write something and send it off at ran
| dmn. You could sign your name and
address, and perhaps someone would
I find it who’d be anxious to know who
you are and would write. That would
be rcmautic!”
“I’ve no taste for romance!” answered
i Elsie, but she nevertheless procured a
j bottle, and after a moment’s thought,
wrote on a piece of paper.
“lx Mid-Ocean, on Steamer Nantic,
Aug. 12.—An accident which happened to
our propeller has delayed our voyage, and
we are nine days out from Liverpool. The
j Captain says wo are just half way between
I that port and New York. Everybody is
I well.
“Ensue Annabel,
“C ire of John Gale, Esq.,
“Walnut Hills, Cincinnati, Ohio.”
She placed this simple message in a
bottle, corked and sealed it, and tossed
it overboard.
The bottle was particularly long
necked, bright green in color, and her
inexperienced hand had smeared the
whole top with red wax.
She stood watching it a longtime, but
finally it disappeared, and with a weary
sigh she turned and went below.
The Nautic ultimately reached New
York, and Mr. John Gale hurried back
to Cincinnati, to attend to his pork.
Bob Carrington and his cousin, Arthur
Stevens, bade the Misses Gale farewell,
and secretly promised to correspond with
them.
The Gales had been home nearly a
month, when one morning a hired hack
came slowly up the long carriage road
i which wound through the ri h pork
j packer's extensive grounds, and, when it
; finally reached the house, the door
I opened, and a young man leaped lightly
I to the ground.
He inquired of the servant who an
I swered his ring for Miss Elsie Annabel.
! and the man showed him into the back
i parlor.
Elsie was considerably surprised when
! told that a gentleman wished to see her
below, but she went down, and timidly
approached the back parlor.
She halted for a moment on the
threshold, tin 1 the gentleman, who had
been idly drumming on the window,
turned.
At the sight of his face she reeled,
and would have fallen had he not sprang
forward and caught her in his arms.
“Elsie, my darling!” he said, holding
her very tightly. “Have you no word
. of welcome for me?”
“Oh, Guy!” she murmured, as her
' eyes met his. “Have you really come
back to me? i have been so lonely with
I out you! Forgive me for my cruelty!”
“It is I who have -:ome to ask forgive
j ness!” said Guy, leading her to a seat.
| “After we parted, two years ago, and I
got over my stubbornness, I tried to find
you, but you had disappeared, leaving
no trace behind you. I was inconsolable,
and reproached myself for my harshness,
■ because it was all my fault. Finally,
however, I grew moody and cynical, but
I could never bring rnvself to think of
you with aught but love and tenderness.
j Six months after you disappeared mv
; old uncle died, and left me his heir,
j Since that time I have hunted for you,
far and wide. Last summer 1 took
a run along the coast in my
yacht, stopping at every
port. Two weeks ago we were lying
off Cape Breton, in a dead calm. One
of the sailors called my attention to a
bottle that was drifting by us. 1 fished
Jit up with a scoop net. It was sealed,
i and all gathered around to see what it
| contained. I broke the neck, and found
this little note;” and he produced from
an inner pocket the identical message
: she had written on board the Nantic, in
j mid ocean. “You can imagine mv joy
■ at the strange discovery of your hiding
place. and, a breeze springing up, 1 or
dered the yacht put about, and we ran
into Halifax. I have come to you as fast
as steam would carry me. to ask your
forgiveness, and assure you th it I have
never ceased to love you.”
What answer she made him can but
ibe imagined. Anyway—when Pipa
Gale returned to dinner he heard the
whole story, and declared in his hearty
way that he’d give away the bride.
Accordingly, as soon as a suitable
trousseau could be prepared, the two, so
strangely reunited, were made one.
The Misses Gale officiated as brides
maids. and Bob Carrington and his
cousiu were the groom's best men.
Papa Gale, true to his word, gave the
bride away, and the great pyramid of
flowers which occupied the centre of the
banquet table was crowned by the iden
tical bottle that was responsible for the
happy event.
The total number of flowering plants
now knewn in British North America
may be estimated at about 3,000 species
against l»),000 in the United States.
The Caroline islands number 500, big
j and little.
SCIENTIFIC AM) INDUSTRIAL.
The flowering plants and ferns of Cey
lon. according to Dr. Trimen, embrace
1,072 genera, or 3,241) species. There
- are also 408 varieties, of which some may
prove to be distinct species.
Tn Southern Russia vineyards are freed
I from phylloxera by planting hemp near
I the infected vines. The parasites are
i attracted to the hemp by its strong odor,
and.the roots prove to be poisonous to
them.
I A peculiar black paper of Siam and
1 Burmah, made from the bark of certain
i trees, is used very much as are slates in
in Europe and America. The writing
upon it may be rubbed out by the appli
’ cation of betel leaves, just as slate writ
, mg is erased by means of a sponge.
i i The Scientific American, states that
s I plush goods and articles doed with ani
' line colors,faded from exposure to light,
j will look bright as ever after being
sponged with chloroform. Thecomincr
i cial chloroform will answer the purpose
1 very well, and is less expensive than the
purified.
A French surgeon has a method ol
r dressing wounds by which their healing
3 is hastened and the pain made to disap
pear immediately. It consists in the ap
t plication of compresses wet with a de
f eoction of thirty parts of valerian root in
one hundred parts of water. The treat
r rnent is of no avail in deep wounds.
c A “sound-deadener,” consisting of
elastic air cushions to close the external
1 orifices of the ears for the use of me
’ chanics and artillerymen, lias been in
-1 vented by Dr. Ward Cousins, of Liver
pool, England. Boiler makers and other
1 workmen subject to hearing cons'antly
‘ loud and sharp noises are frequently
made deaf thereby. This new invention
may render city noises less troublesome
to nervous people.
r Messrs. McCook and Bell’s observa
tions of the action of corro-i-e sitbliin itc
on a species of ant iu Nicar igiin are ex
ceeuingly interesting. As soon one
of the ants touches the white powder, it
commences to run about wil.il. an I to
1 attack any other ant it urn ts. In a
couple of hours round balls of ants will
, be found all biting each other, and nu
' nierous individuals will be found bitten
, completely iu two.
] The utility of tears to animals in gen
eral, and particularly to those which are
exposed much to the dust, such as birds
which live amid the wind, is easy to tin
, derstand. The eye would soon be dirtied
’ and blocked up had not nature provide I
, this frendly, ever-flowing stream to wadi
I an I refresh it. A very little fluid is nec
essary to keep the eye always clear and
r cle m. But here, again, we must admire
> the wondrous mechanism which work"
the human body; for it is to be observed
’ that, when through some accident ot
. I hurt the eyeball has need of more water
| than usual to cleanse it, nature at once
I turns on a more abundant supply of tears.
I j
’ Corks, Straw anil Wooden Ware.
, “We beat the old world at cutting
, corks, says a Chicago dealer, but it is
t rather strange that America should itn
f port tons of straw. Yet we do every
year buy straw in Germany in the form
: of bottle-covers. These covers cost eight
dollars per 1,000, and they are hand
, made. They cannot be made for one
: fourth the sum in this country, until
I \ somebody gets up a machine to do it
i with. We import something like 100,-
■ [ 000 of these covers every month. Ail
i I of these little tinfoil caps for wine and
i ' soda bottles come from Paris. A New
I York firm has tried to compete, but they
, can’t do it. We have 380,000 at the
t depot, just arrived from Paris. They
I are shipped in hermetically sealed cases,
i “But this country leads iu wooden
■ ware. Perhaps you don’t know it, but
the best wooden ware maker in the
■ United States carried on business in
Chicago for twenty five years. He is
. now over in M.chigan, in the timber
i country, making faucets, bungs, bung
starters, wooden shovels, cork drivers,
■ and vinegar measures and funnels, each
out of one piece of wood without jointoi
; seam. As for bungs, Cincinnati might
properly be called the bungtown of
America, as there are made all
: the bungs used in this country. One
factory there ships 200 barrels of bungs
i every day.’— Chicago Herald.
Fruit All the Year Round.
Florida is. the land of fruit as well as
, of flowers. Apaper.rtf that State says:
“Commencing with January, we have
strawberries then until late in June.
Japan plums from February. Mulberries
are ripe in April and last until August.
Pineapples ripen in June and last nearly
all the year. We have guavas from
July until late the next spring. Os the
various berries—dewberries, blackberries
i and huckleberries—almost any quanitity.
Pei ches from May 1 until July. Melons
trout June until late in the fall. Oranges
the best of the kind—from October
until the next Tune, with lemons and
; limes, persimmons, pomegranates, grape :
; fruit and grapes. j
IE I WERE YOU.
Why did he look so grave! she asked,
What might the trouble be!
“My little maid,” he sighing said,
“Suppose that you were me.
And you a weighty secret owned,
Pray tall nu wliat you’d do!”
“I think I’d tell it somebody,”
Said she, “if I were you!”
But still he sighed and looked askance,
Despite her sympathy.
“Oh, tall me little maid,” he said
Again, “if you wore me,
And it you loved a pretty lass,
Oh, then, what would you do?”
"I think I’d go and toll her so,”
Said she, “if I were you!”
“My little inaid, 'Lis you,” he said.
“Alone are dear to me,”
Ah, then, she turned away her head,
And ne'er a word said she,
But what he whispered in her ear,
And what lie answered too—
Ob, no, I cannot tell you this,
I’d guess, if I were you!
—Chamber's Journal.
HUMOR OF THE DAY.
An important period—The one between
the dollars and cents.
Beats the world—The impecunious
tramp. — Waterloo Obseroor.
A one-legged man will never be
troubled with wet feet.— Brooklyn Tines.
A “duck ot a girl” must be very close
ly watched, or ten to one she’ll go off
and marry some quack.— Chicago Sun.
Baseball is older than we thought, as
a squint at history has made apparent.
The Emperor Doininitian occupied his
leisure in catching flies. Chicago Ledger.
Girls in search of materials for crazy
quilts are advised to apply to the rail
road companies, because they throw away
thousands of old ties every year.— New
York Journal.
Civilization is making gratifying pro
gress in the Congo country. A few
years ago the inhabitants ate white per
sons raw; now they roast them.—lFnsA
ington Republican.
The man who has to endure all the
agonies of solitary confinement is the
clerk who works for a firm that does not
advertise. It’s the next thing to being
buried alive. — Maple Leaf.
Little cricket on the hearth,
Little children full of mirth,
Little breezes blowing long,
Little onions smelling strong,
Little level’s in the dark,
Little kisses—hear them spark.
—Chicago Sun
Customer (entering unexpectedly)—
“So, sir, I’ve cnucht you putting water
in the milk.” Milkm in—“ Yes— er—no
—no, that is, sir, I’m only washing it.
You don’t s'pose I'm going to serve my
customers with dirty milk, do you?”—
Chic 'go News.
HOBSON’S CHOICE.
A thief on his trial re used to be sworn.
•OI what use,” queried lie, - will my evidence
be!
ff I tell the whole truth, I shall get the Old
Nick;
It I toll what's not true, the old Nick will
get me.”
—Centuri/.
Water-Grabbers.
Owing to the system of land piracy,
Nevada has been regularly swindled in
every real estate transaction in which her
inteie ts were concerned. The man who
bought foriy acres of land contiguous
to a spring, river or lake, had the actual
possession and enjoyment of perhaps
10,000 or 20.000 acres adjacent thereto
without the latter costing him a nickel.
The reason is obvious. So long as the
buyer holds a good title to the land bor
dering on a stre im h : is monarch of all
he can see beyond and around that
stream. The owner of forty acres upon
which exists a spring thus has a free
range, or pasturage, of several square
miles, an 1 the State is out of pocket by
the operation. In illustration of this
evil we can cite one case out of a thou
sand. In a certain township there are
about twenty five thousand acres of land,
but only two springs. At $1.25 an ac e
this township ought to realize for the
State the sum of $31,350. But the land
pirate kn >ws that by buying up the land
immediately s irrounding the spring he
practically becomes the owner of twenty
five thousand. He therefore buys the
smallest subdivision which the law per
mits, that is. forty acres around
spring. For these two small tracts heis
allowed twenty years in which to pay
the balance. That for which he ought
to pay $31,250 he gets for SIOO. In
other words, the State has been selling
these water grabbers, mainly consisting
of a rich and powerful syndicate of cat
tlemen, her selected lands at a rate less
than half a cent an acre.— Virginia City
(Ne .) Enterprise.
A citizen of Rochester,Minn., has com
pleted a monument made from stones
gathered from all parts of the United
States. It is about six feet high and
four feet in diameter at the base. Jt
contains stones fr<n> nea. 1 every Ct4'o
I in .he Union and from the highest peals
| ia the RocSy mountains,
SCIENTIFIC SCRAPS.
A prize has been offered by the
Anti-Tobacco Society of France for
the best essay on the liability or non
i liability of smokers to contract chol
i era.
i M. Aime Girard, after careful ex
amination of the composition and ali
: mentary value of the different por
tions of a grain of wheat, concludes
that it is advisable to reject, as far as
possible, the outer layers and reservo
the farinaceous portions only for hu
i man food.
Admiral de Jonquieres.of the French
navy, has called attention to a remark
able phenomenon which may be wit
nessed at Papeete, in the Society is.
lands. At this point there is but one
tide a day instead of the two which
occur at other places on the sea.
A microscopist, Mr. Spencer Moore,
has shown that the bacteria which
produce or accompany “sweating of
i the feet” are identical with those pro
: dueing chemical action in the soil. In
I the latter situation they reduce the
| sulphates to sulphites, and the phos-
I phates to phosphites, and in both situ-
I ations are instrumental in setting free
ammonia.
; Lyell estimated that the gorge of
Niagara river was cut out in about
35,000 years, but surveys to determine
the present recession of the falls indi
| cate that the work may have been
I done in 10,000 years. During forty-
I one years the average annual wear of
I the rock was 2 3-4 feet.
Analyses have shown that the fallen
1 aves of maple contain four per cent.
i of valuable matter (soda, potash, lime
’ magnesia, phosphorous and sulphur
j compounds), and poplar and willow
I five per cent, or more, and that conse
j quently the trees constantly manure
j the curface soil beneath their -branch
! es. Other leaves examined contained
! about two per cent, of fertilizing sub
stances.
Lieut. J. P. Finley, of the United
i States Signal Service, has found that
■ the West is not, as is popularly sup
posed, the peculiar home of the tor
nado in the United States, such storms
being much more frequent in the
South. Os the 180 tornadoes which
occurred last year within the bounda
ries of the Union, only 59 visited the
Western States and Territories, while
the Southern States had 105. The
Western gales are, however, usually
more severe and destructive than those
of other localities.
Caste in India.
i Caste, like a terrible nightmare, is
firmly fastened upon the social life of
India. It is not easy for a stranger
to understand it. During a severe
i famine a man with his wife and child
applii d to a missionary for help.
They had come from a distance and
were thin and pinched with hunger. .
Food was at once brought, but, hun
gry as they were, they could not touch
I it. The child was on the ground
’ ' searching for and eating the raw rice
that was scattered about the door.
. I Rice being given them, they com-
■ menced to cook it, but devoured it be-
■ i fore it was half done. They would
not lose caste by eating food prepared
,! by any one not of their grade. There
3 i are four principal castes. The brah
- mins, or priests, are the highest.
’ i The consider it beneath them to labor.
j To tend cattle or to milk a cow would
be pollution. Formerly if a low-caste
| person touched them (even by acci
dent) they could kill him on the spot
I with impunity. The people yield to
! them as superiors as a matter of
r course. A high-caste man came into
>
a meeting, a whole bench was vacated,
i the occupants taking seats on the
floor. The natives usually travel
’ third-class on the railway. These cars
, are so crowded there is no room to sit
’ | apart. This has a tendency to break
1 i down caste. The railway companies
l had a difficulty in supplying them
water to drink. A high caste man
could not drink water brought by a
man of lower caste. By employing a
high-caste man all can be supplied.
' Those of the lower-caste sit on their
, heels while he pours the water into a
cup made by their hands, from which
they drink without touching the
carrier. Sometimes a low-caste man
may employ one of a higher-caste.
! The latter does not eat with his em
; ployer, but cooks and eats by himself.
I A high-caste man will not drink water
i out of a cup or glass belonging to a-
! European.
, ' In their villages each caste lives by
s i itself. Each has its own shops, or
bazaars. Below the regular castes are
the outcastes—those who have broken
: over some of the various restrictions.
'■ They are rejected by their sect, and
I become pariahs. There are many sub
, divisions among these. Coolies or job
• workers are often of this class. Off
! the lines of railway they are employed
L to transport passengers.— Watch-man
3 and Reflector.
!
, Decorative buckles and clasps are by
. no means confined to ladies' belts, but
, j find places on wraps, dress bodices and
’ 1 draperies in largo sizes, while smaller
s ones are popular on neck ribbons and
f gariers.
Straight, graduated, raised, sunken,
• boitc e, bourrette, broehe, zigzag, waved.
3 and mixed combination, stripes are ail
I een on both wool and silk fabrics thia
1 j fail:
t— .
3 The numb r ul d’u.isti in the United
> Statesis put at ''ho produce 50,-
i 000,000 plaa’.a jeaiV-