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ROMANCE OF THE INSANE.
■Only the Image of a First Wife Left on the
Brain.
A short time ago a young-looking wo
man of the middle class, who had seem
ingly lost her mind, was arrested in a
semi-destitute condition and carried to
the central station on Carondelet street,
charged on the books with being insane
and not being able to give satisfactory
account of herself.
Though her hair was unkempt and dis
heveled, and her clothing scant, soiled
and draggled from her wanderings far
ami wide in the slioeU ‘‘looking for her
lost husband,” as she said, there was
such a pitiful look about her face and
■eyes that the officials, and especially
Lynch, the turnkey of the station,
treated her with more consideration
than is usually shown prisonersofher class.
And as she sat in her cell swaying to
and fro, as suffering women often do—a
sort of keeping time, as it were, to her
■sobs and moans, all about her lost hus
band—Lynch, who looked in upon her,
thought he recognized in the Mary
■Stephens before him the wife of Stephen
MaGill, a confirmed lunatic, who had
been sent to the insane asylum several
months ago.
This suspicion he communicated to
Dr. Cooper, who at once had the woman
removed to the insane asylum, whither
she would have been sent in the end, had
.she been duly arraigned before Judge
Evans.
When taken to the asylum, she was
placed in the reception room and shortly
-afterwards Stephen McGill, the lunatic,
was brought in and placed before her.
Instantly the poor woman sprang to
her feet, and rushed forward placed her
arms about her husband. McGill, for a
moment, stood as though more dazed
than ever, and then rubbing his eyes and
face with his hands and shaking his head
.slowly, as if to clear away the obstruc
tion placed upon his brain by his disease,
•said, “Is it you, Kate? Have you come
to see me at last?”
At this mention of the name of Kate
the face of the woman flushed and
■clouded for a moment, and then recover
ing herself quickly she said: “No, it is
not Kate, your firt wife, Steve, hut
Mary Stephens, whom you married after
wards.”
McGill, however, could not under
stand how it was that the woman before
him was not his Kate of early days, and do
what slie would he kept calling her sim
ply “ Kate, Kate.” The second marriage
was evidently blotted out from his dis
tempered mind as though it had never
been a reality.
Then the two were separated and the
man went hack to his place of confine
ment calling now and then for his Kate,
his “own dear wife Kate,” until his
•daily ravings came on and he was again
stark mad—forgetful even of his first love.
The shock of the meeting had a con
trary effect upon the woman. She is
growing better and better and will short
ly he able to come out again into the
world alone and join in the multitude of
toilers seeking tneir daily bread.—New
‘Orleans Picayune.
Which Is the Better Breed of Hens.
A correspondent of the American
Fancier’s Gazette submits this interroga
tion, which, it must he confessed, is like
-asking which is the best horse. If you
want a horse to run or to trot you would
not choose a cart horse, and if you wanted
a dray horse you would not choose a fine-
bred blood. The same with fowls. If
ou want egg producers, you want one
ind; and if you want flesh or good
hatchers you want another. In regard
to common fowls, or mongrels, this is
just the difference between them and
pure bred—the one has no distinguished
properties, while the other has. It is
impossible to combine the prolificacy of
the egg producers to retain it, with the
feeding and hatching properties of the
■other. For food that is converted into
producing eggs will certainly nut produce
Lit and flesh; and, conversely, the ele
ments <>f nutrition which <jo to Iniihi up
the body cannot be converted into supply
ing eggs’. The properties andquantitiesof
thoroughbred fowls have been attained
by the same attention to breeding that
hiis Brought other stock to perfection—
by observing the qualities most developed
,i« the animal.
The following may he beneficial to
those not acquainted with the prominent
points of some of our pure breeds: In
the egg-producing class the Leghorns
stand pre-eminently above all others.
This variety consists of the white and
brown. The browns appear to he the
favorites, being hardy, easily raised, and
maturing quicaly—the pullets often lay
ing at four months. Pulletsof thisbreed
often lay as high as 260 eggs during the
year; tneir large combs ana pendants re
quire a warm house during our vigorous
winters.
The next in high favor is the black
Spanish. These, like the former, are
non-sitters and prolific, but not so easily
raised. They do not until nearly grown
get their full feathers, being generally half
naked for a considerable time after hatch
ing. These, like the Leghorn, require
fforfrtiiit* winter imi„i icr*. mvni>> in
their large comb and wattles.
The Hou toils, a French breed come
next as layers and non-sitters. This is
what they call a made breed between the
Poland and Dorking, showing the char
acteristic crest of the former and the
fifth toe of the latter. Although not as
continual layers as the two varieties
mentioned, yet they possess points supe
rior to the others, as size, delicacy of
flesh, and hardihood.
The small breeds, the different varie
ties of Hamburgs and Polands, have
their admirers as fancy fowls. They are
excellent layers, partially non-incubators,
but are not recommendable, owing to
their size, as likely to improve our
present stock of common fowls.
The Dorkings as a class may be con
sidered the standard English fowl, and
combine more general qualities than any
other—regular sitters, large size, plump,
square built, delicate flesh, and highly
flavored. They lay a full supply of eggs,
and are probably the best table fowl
raised. They likewise have large combs
and wattles, like the Leghorn and Span
ish. They do not thrive well on damp
soil.
The Asiatics are the most extensively
bred and most fashionable class at present
raised in America, and, on the whole, are
probably better adapted to the rigorous
winters of the United States and Can
adas than any other, being well supplied
with an abundance of feathers, down to
their toes.
An Item for the Boys.—The amuse
ment of flying kites does not prevail quite
as extensively at the present time as in
former years. The amusement is a very
ancient one. In Central Asia it is as pop
ular as in America or Europe, but is made
to yield a double gratification. It delights
the ear by an emission of soft, melodious
murmuring, at the same time that it
pleases the eye with its graceful bird-like
motions. Each kite is so constructed as
to produce the effect of an seolian harp,
and thus the flight and song of winged
warblers are both imitated in the ingen
ious plaything. A traveler gives thv fol
lowing description of these musical kites:
“ Each kite is a square formed upon two
d iagonals of light wood, whose extremi-
ies are connected by a tight string, form-
ting the sides of the square. Over th«
whole paper is pasted. A loose string
upon the upright diagonal receives’, the
string by which the kite is to be held, and
a tail is fastened to its lowest extremity.
The transverse diagonal or cross stick is
then bent hack like a strong bow and fast
ened by a thread of catgut. Of course,
every breeze that passes the kite vibrates
this tight cord, and the vibrations are com
municated to the highly sonorous frame
of the kite, and as numbers of these kites
are left floating in the air all night, the
effect is that of aerial music, monotonous,
but full of melancholy interest.”
i —
Why Boats with Valuable Car
goes are Burned.—An American Plim-
soll has been brought to new notice by
the Chicago Tribune. His name Swasid-
ney S. Burton, and in the era of reck
less steamboating on the Mississippi and
the Ohio he lived in Cleveland. He no
ticed in reading newspaper reports of
wrecks, that an undue number of ves
sels valuably laden were burned in lone
ly spots and sunk in deep water. At
length the well-remembered burning of
the Matha Washington occurred, caus
ing terrible loss of life. He hurried to
Cincinnati and talked with the official?
iff the companies which had insured the
cargo. Incited hv his representations, a
thorough examination of the sunken
boat was made by divers. It was found
that boxes described in the manifest as
filled with silk held sawdust, and that
wine bottles contained colored water,
and that in like ways a sham cargo had
been prepared. The owners were tried,
and although they escaped conviction,
the murderous practice was stopped.
Deposits of silver of extraordinary
richness at Rifle River, Michigan, are re
ported.
GERMANY ON THE OCEAN
ller Bid for the Naval and Commercial
Supremacy of (he World.
The openly-avowd policy of the Ger
man Government in building up a navy
corresponding to the vast militarystrength
of the empire, and capable of competing
with the great maratlme powers of Eu
rope, involves issues of the very greatest
importance to the whole commercial world.
To the government and people of England
this policy involves the most momentous
consequences. Against Germany as a
mere military power, that government
can afford to be indifferent. With her
vast fleet sho is all but impervious to the
colossal military strength of the conti
nental nations. But as against a naval
and commercial Germany the conditions
are entirely changed. In that contin
gency the points of attack and defence are
reduced to an equality. It has long been
a maxim that commercial and naval power
followed in the track of military power,
and Germany seems likely to afford the
world another illustration of this fact.
We can therefore well understand the
scarcely concealed anxiety of English
writers and statesmen at the prodigious
development of the naval resources of
Germany that has taken place during the
last ten years. And now with the pres
tige and advantages derived from her re
cent victories the same policy is pursued
with all the vigor and determination
characteristic of the great Bismacrk.
The real object of her immense arma
ments is the building up of a naval and
commercial marine that will enable Ger
many to take a commanding position as
a commercial nation. That they will
really add anything to the effective mili
tary strength of the empire, is scarcely
pretended. In addition to these arma
ments, with which it appears Germany
ought to be content, there always looms
up the danger of a sudden political com
plication that will enable Germany to ac
quire the control of Belgium and Holland.
But it will be seen that Germany pushes
with remorseless tenacity the idea of com
mercial supremacy, and tiiere seems no
good reasons why 'it should not attain it.
To Great Britain theses changes involve
the most momentous consequences. They
strike at the very root of the commercial
prosperity of that country. With the
entire coast line opposite to England in
the hands of a competing power, it is easy
to see that the commercial prestige of
England would undergo a shock from
which it would be slow to recover.—
United States Economist.
Ireland’s Agricultural Condition.
The registrar-general’s report on the
agricultural statistics of Ireland for 1875
comes to confirm the sanguine estimate
of Irish prosperity in which the lord-
lieutenant indulged at Derry. Perhaps
the most striking piece of evidence is
that of emigration returns, which we can
only include among agricultural statistics
by something like a “bull.” That 31,-
000 persons left the shores of Ireland
during the first six months of the present
year, as compared with the 45,000 who
emigrated in the same period last year,
shows that the demand for labor is really
improving. The inference is suggested
by the return of total acreage under
crops, as compared with the acreage un
der grass—the former showing an increase
of 62,000 ncres, the latter a decrease of
40,000 acres. Thus there is a slight
turn in the tide which set in after the
famine, and some land apparently that
was given up to pasture has been recon
quered by the plow. The danger is that
in the uncertain climate of Ireland this
reaction may go too far, and that crops
of too speculative a kind may again be
grown. At present this is not so; the
acreage under wheat, of which the culti
vation in Ireland is not safe in one year
out of five, has diminished by one-third
since 1871, while oats, barley, and green
crops show an increase. Potatoes, which
are a fine crop this year, arc less in favor
than they were, partly owing to the pop
ular change of habits, and partly to the
dread of the American jiest—the Colo
rado beetle.—London Spectator.
A country mother visiting Detroit
with her daughter, a girl of fifteen, said
to the child, who was about drinking a
glass of soda-water; “Now, Mary, lie
careful; don’t gulp it down in three
swallows and get exploded all to pieces
by the gas, but sip and don t run any
risks.”
The Scotchmen, in order to escape de
feat, left the country the day before the
American team arrived. It is the first
time a Scotchman has ever failed to come
to the “scratch.”
CHOICE RECIPES.
Rice Coffee.—This is a good food for
children who are suffering from summer
complaints, and is made by browning
the grains of rice like coffee, and after
ward boiling them. It is not unpala
table, very nourishing, and can be made
any strength that may ’ be required.
With the addition of sweet cream and
loaf sugar, a child of 2 or 3 years will
require no other food until the disease is
removed.
Plum or Crab-apple Catsup.—This
catsup forms one of the best of relishes,
and should he more generally on the
table. At this season it may be put up
to advantage. The recipe is three
pounds of fruit, one and three-fourths
pounds of sugar, one quart of vinegar,
one tablespoonful of cloves, the same of
pepper and cinnamon, one tablespoonful
of salt. Scald the fruit, rub through
the colander, then mix all together and
boil until it is about like jam.
Crab Apple Preserves.—One auart
of water, two and a quarter pounds of
loaf sugar, one lemon peel. Put two
pounds of loaf sugar into a preserving
pan, with the peel of a small lemon and
n quart of water. Boil it till it becomes
a thick syrup. Take some fine red crab
apples with their stalks on, prick them
with a needle, and put them into the
syrup. When the skins begin to crack,
take them carefully out, and drain them
separately on a dish; add the rest of the
sugar to the syrup, and boil it up agnin
to thicken it; then take out the peel,
put the apples into wide-mouthed bot
tles, and pour the syrup over them.
When it is cool, tie down tight to exclude
the air.
Something About Moxa.—The
dreadful experience through which Clara
Morris has gone in Paris in the treatment
of a lesion of the the spinal cord excites
interest in the terrible “ moxa,” as thl
treatment with white-hot iron is called.
It is a Japanese invention, and has been
used in Japan as a counter-irritant for
many centuries. The word itself means
“ burning glass,” and is thus used because
the Japanese custom is to place the finer
woolly parts of the young leaves of
wormwood on the skin, in the form of
small cones, and set them on fire by
means of a burning glass. They burn
slowly and leave a scar or blister, but
the operation is not very painful; ii.can
not for a moment be compared with the
agony occasioned by the scoring of the
quivering flesh with iron heated to white-
ness, which is what we call moxa. Its
use in Japan, where it is looked upon as
a cure for a great number of diseases,
such as pleurisy, asthma, rheumatism,
and even indigestion, is almost universal,
nearly evary person, especially among the
lower classes, being scarred with moxa
spots.—New York Graphic.
An old farmer once said that he would
not have a hired man on his farm who
did habitually whistle. He always hired
whistlers; said he never knew a whistling
laborer to find fault with his food, his
bed, or complain of any little extra work
he was asked to perform. Such a man
was generally kind to children and to
animals in his care. He would whistle a
a chilled lamb into warmth and life, and
would bring in his hat full of eggs from
the barn without breaking one of them.
He found such a man more careful about
closing gates, putting up bars, and see
ing that the nuts on his plow were all
properly tightened before he took it into
the field. He never knew a whistling
hired man to kick or beat a co^nor
drive her on a run in to a stable. He had
noticed that the sheep he fed in the yard
and shed gathered around him as he
whistled without fear. He never had
employed a whistler who was qot thought
ful and economical.
“ You have been here a long time, i
suppose?” said a traveler to an old hunter
Oregon. “ You m ay swear I have, and
then pointed to Mount Hood, he con
tinued : “ You see that mountain
there? Well, sir, when I first came to
this country that mountain was a hole in
the ground,’J
When corn arrives at full roasting ear
state, it can be fed most profitably by
being cut and fed stalk and ear together,
since at no period is there more sugar—
which is necessary in fattening—to lie
found in the plant, and hogs then eat
every part with an appetite that shows
their appreciation of the dainty food
provided for them.
A marriage on a railway train may
properly be termed a railroad tie.