Newspaper Page Text
WMES-EN'fERPRISfe, THOMASVILLB, ItEPTEMBBR iS, Ml
f ' WALTER BLOOMFIELD
Oopjrtrht iMb bra nm tmui ton.
F CHAPTER XXIX.
P Continued.
"Ha! and bow are Jon oft tot
money? Got none, I suppose."
"Ob, not Quite so bad Is that) t have
the four thousand two bunared dol
lar you aave me this morning Intact,
and the greater part of the thousand
dollars which you gave me juat before
I went to England.”
t "Too are no spendthrift, I am glad
bo And i but the sums you mention are
fltilto useless to a man to take a wife,
ior although In your case the wife
will be wealthy, there will be many
things which must. If only for de-
coney’s take, be paid for by you and
by.no other. Of course you will want
to travel for two or three months be
fore yon make your final plans for
settlement, and during that time you
will appear to better advantage If you
refrain from drawing upon your wife's
estate, bo I will place a sum of money
to yonr credit at Drcxel’s, and provide
you with a cheque-book. Too may re
gard it as a loan and return It to me
Uttsr, If you wills or you may accept
Is as a gift—Just which you prefer.”.
With these words my uncle rose
from big scat and cast away the end
of big cigar, paying not the least at-
ternlbu to the tbdnks with which I
greeted bis extraordinary offer. "I
•roust really smoko less tobacco,l bo
said; "that makes my elgbtb cigar to
day, and It Is not three o’clock. I have
sq-oked more this week tban I gener
ally smoke In a month—1 suppose be
cause of the worry I've been subject
to. By tbs Poworo, I wish I knew
that that girl was safel"
i As, my undo turned to accompany
me downstairs I noticed that tbo ex
pression of hl3 face betrayed consid
erable anxiety, and that hla general
demeanor lacked much of Its accus
tomed buoyancy-
f CHAPTER XXX.
( - TJRCLB BAM DOWN.
" 'About three weeks after tbe events re
lated In the last chapter I eat writing
In n beautiful room which my undo
bad ordered to bo specially arranged
and act apart for my use for so long
ai I remained bis guest, when Con
stancy unexpectedly entered and smil
ingly handed mo a letter. Having ac
cepted the missive and paid Its fair car-
tier with that which among lovers is
accounted cola, I moved from the tabic
to a settee near tbo window; for no
one cifiild have too much light who at
tempted to decipher tbe callgraphy of
the Rev, Mr, Price, which consisted of
a series of hastily scrawled symbols
Without tbo remotest resemblance to
'any known letter—In brief, that kind
of writing wblck breeds errors, blinds
Compositors, maddens proof-rcadent,
and moves the Irritable to profanity.
It took mo at tbo least ten minutes
to acquaint myself wltb tbe writer’s
meaning, and while I was so engaged
toy faithful Connie sat on tbe floor at
my feet and toyed with throe sequins
-Which had recently been attached to
my watchchalu—tho Identical coins al
leged to have been found In the room
which my undo occupied the last time
bo stayed at Holdcnburst Hall.
"Can yon make It all out?" asked
Connie, looking up.
“All but a few words, dear,” I ans
wered; and then proceeded to read the
following letter aloud:
, N. —, East Fifty-ninth Street,
New York City, October 27,18—.
Bear Mlsa Marsh:—This day, the
eve of,my departure for England, I
bnve received from the worthy rector
of Holdcnburst Major, the Rev. Mr.
Silas Fuller, my esteemed friend mid
former colleague, Intelligence of a
grave nature that my Christian con
science will not permit me to conceal
from you, though In acquainting you
herewith I Incur a risk of being cred
ited with low anil personal'motives.
t Tho Rev. Mr. Fuller informs me that
on thb — ult., an ola man, who had
been for many years In the service of
Mr. Robert Truman, died very sud
denly. from some unexplained cause,
during an altercation with Mr. Ernest
Truman. The altercation, which was
la part overheard by another servant.
Is supposed to have related to money.
Circumstances attending tho burial of
the tld butler are no less suspicious
that the rnauncr cf Ills death, Inter
ment having taken plnec by virtue cf
0 certificate given by the local doctor,
a personal friend of the Truraaus.' A
few of the more Intelligent among the
inhabitants of Hcldenlmrst are ask
ing (not unreasonably, I think) v.-by
nn Inquest was not held, and are haz
arding various guesses as to what cir
cumstances tho Truman family desired
to conceal In avoiding so rightful a
course.
Though to my lasting regret there
nay never be any love between us. I
trust that ny respect for your honor
and happiness Is undlmlnished; and I
earnestly hope you may see fit to as
sure yourself, ere It be too late, of the
character of tbo man you have en
gaged to marry, as I am unnl-li- ta
contemplate without the most painful
feelings, your alliance with a nan upon
whom rests the suspicion of trail-
. slaughter or worse. BellSvc me, dear
Mies Marsh, always yo-r faithful
EVAN PRICE.
"What a mead, spiteful fellow Mr.
Price Is, to be sure!” exclaimed Con
stance, “I never liked the expression
of that man’s face, nor bis manner, but
I nm surprised he should write such
a letter as that What good con he
hope to get from It?’
"Don’t yqu see, dear, how much ho
would like to separate us? I have al
ready told you tbe facts upon which
he has based tbls letter."
“Yes, Ernest, and please don’t tell
me again. I’m afraid I’m a little tired
of speaking and thinking about these
things"—alluding to the sequiab which
abe was turning round and round with
her delicate white fingers. “But sup
pose Mr. Price could separate us, hour
would that benefit him? Ha knowo I
would not marry him In any case. I
have told him so In plain Words many
a tlme.’’-
“SpIteMl and mischievous as the man
Is, I don’t In the least dpubt, my dear
Connie, but that he loves you as sin
cerely as his nature allows him to
love. Iodeed, it Is difficult to conceive
of afiy man not lovhlg you who has
once seen you, and It la the quality of
never to entirely despair of achieving
Ita object until that object Is Irrevoca
bly lost This letter was written yes
terday, so by now Mr. Price Is on bis
Way to England; Baforo ho reaches
Liverpool you will ho my wife, and
when he learns that fact perhaps he
will cease to Interest himself li our
affairs. Only six days I Fancy that,
pet!”
'Yes, fancy fit! How sudden It baa
all been! I am In disgrace with my
friends for deserting them, and In de
fending myself I have laid tho Uamc
on yon for monopolizing my time,
say, Ernie, dear, one of tho six girls
whom I have asked to be bridesmaid
has declined.”
Who Is tho?" I inquired.
“Miss Chrlstlson—you know-who I
mean: tho young lady who can’t marry
without losing her fortune.”
“O yes; I remember her. Who will
take her place?”
“Inez Juarrez.”
"You must forglvo, Miss Chrlstlson
on account of her absurd and cruel
circumstances.”
“Of course, dear, but—
At that moment our conversation was
Interrupted by tbe loud and continuous
ringing of electric bells within the
house, and the hasty running of ser
vants up and down the stairs. Con
stance and I started to our feet and
listened for a moment, cud the'con
fusion continuing we left tho room
to ascertain Its cause. Outside tbe
door, upon the landing, we met my
nunt Gertrude, who was descending
the stairs dressed for going out, and
I no sooner saw her face, veiled though
It was, than I perceived that she wus
painfully agitated.
"What la the matter?” wo both asked,
as with one voice.
"Oh, Connie, denr, don’t stop no! A
clerk at Mills Building has Just tele
phoned to say that Sam has been seized
with sudden Illness, and I am not to
lose a moment 1c going to him. I
fear ho is dead, though they say he Is
not,”
' “Dead! Impossible! An hour ago
he was here nnd well!"
But aunt Gcrtrqde could not hear the
exclamations cither of her sister cr me,
for alio had scarcely paused In her de
scent while Imparting this terrible In
formation. A world of confused nnd
painful thoughts f iled my mind, mid a
strange pallor overspread the face of
the dear one at my side; tbe color faded
from her lips, and but for my timely
support Bhe would bare fallen. Tho
next moment the street door was heard
to close, null the carriage containing
mint Gertrude was driven rapidly
away.
Lending Constance back Into the
room, we both Bitt down upon a oeueh
nnd regarded each other lu silence. I
consulted my watch; the hour wanted
twenty minutes to midday. Uncle Sant
bad loft Lome to go to Ills effleo at 10
o'clock, he being then in souud health
nnd high spirits. Constance was the
first to speak. "I can't believe, Ernie,
dear,” she said, "that anything very
serious eau bo tbe matter, though
Gertrude seems so frightened. Hotr
could there be?" But tbo unconcealed
agitation cf the fair speaker belied her
words, and I wun in no rendition to
support them by argument. “Lot tie
go into Sam’s study pud Inquire by
tbe telephone bow be Is Lew," she
presently added.
"Yes, certainly; tLat is r. gocO
thought. But deesn’t uncle keep bis
study locked?”
“Yer; tut Ccrtlc also hat a key of It,
nnd I don't seppoco she ctayed to loci:
It la her baste."
The suggestion was no sooner made
titan adopted, and the study t'cor being
open, as Connie had rurmised, she en
tered and at once made Iter Inquiry.
I can never forget her appearance aa
cite stood with the tube applied tc her
ear. her youthful beauty showing
grandly despite tbe pallor inducedJb.v
iter anxiety, while I watched with
deadly intcrcot the varying expressions
of her face ns a clerk at the Mills
Building Informed her of rude Sam't
condition. Presently Cot-ole restored
the tube to its place, and throwing her
arm* around toy neck. Burst Into tears
in tile manner of one whose fortitude
falls at unexpected release from soifi*
supreme dread.
"What has happened r I asked,
catching my breath.
“Sam learned on arrival at his ofllce
that Miss Wolsejr had died suddenly
In Paris, and the news so upset him
that he talked incoherently tor a time,
nnd then had some sort Of seizure:
greatly frightening his Clerks; but bo
is conscious how and Gertie is With
him,” ■
There ore few tasks which tbe com- :
plex relations Of humankind Impose :
upon OS more pstnful or dlfllcult than
PLUCK, ROMANCE
AND ADVENTURE.
1
A
BOA CLEARS A SHIP.
© HAT boa wbicb is caus
ing to tnticli trouble
Captairi iJlcktdtir tit thft
Yankee brigantine' #ais/*
got loose, and as a result
two watchmen in Sdntli Brooklyn aro
mourning the loss of two faithful flea
beaten curs. Ever since Captalif Dicfc-
, . son caged tbe boa Jn hi* coal locker,
being called td comfort a sdrrbwfdl • tho snake has jp*en trying to smash
one whose burden presses with equal • the door; He would coll up as far
or greater weight upon ourselves, and ; trom the door ^ tie cori i d Hnd tUen
I could scarce restrain my^own grief ) j ea p forward with all the force 6t his
while endeavoring to pacify Constance, 1 twenty feet of steel muscled energy.-
whose agitation arose entirely from th* ; The door was reinforced, but some 1
present circumstances of uncle Sam time after midnight he battered if so
and aunt Gertrude — circumstances that it swung only on the upper binged
which, though I was by no means in- i Then the shr’ue glided out through the
different to them, were In my ease ob- j apace at the bottom,
scurcd by consideration of tbo tragedy j Toward 1,30 o’clock “Tom” Walsh,
in Paris. Con3tancs Marsh had never j one of the watchmen, heard his dog
seen Annie Wolsey, nor was it until ; Screaming iii agouti Walsh’s dog is
(JUlte recent days that she had been Iff- j one of the flea riddert '‘yaHe**' fflri*
formed tit the existence of that tm* j ty, but he had been A faithful ttfmpatb
•'happy woman; and cot cnly that, bbt t ion for nearly nine years, arid Walsh
for other and ctrongcr reasons it wdu14 • thought great deal of him' lie
have been abated to exoert that Con- rushed 10 tbe dog’s rescue, and to bis
stance should regard tho dectb other- •; horror saw a huge snake wrapped
wise than as the welcome extinction of j closely around him. His ardor abated
an unseen but petent power for mis- ! somewhat, but be hunted up a com-
c!ilef. While recognizing this to the ; panlon, and armed with crowbars they
full, I could not but think of the girl-! advanced on the boa. The snake than-
companion of ny childhood; cf hew j doned Its prey and placed himself in
after Annie’s brothers and sisters bad © posture of defense. The men were
one by cno all been laid to rest in • o n the brink of the wharf, while the
the shadow of Holder.hurst church she finakd find tile dog were close to a
alone remained, and was tho only de- , abed some twenty feet from them,
light of her widowed father’s Jirc; I Suddenly the snake shot straight for-
of how, later* che had Ced from him j ^ a rd at Walsh. The man was on the
who loved her co well, and Hw tiro- j alert nnd as the boa lenped forward,
lcssly bo had sought her again until ; ho fell on his face without delay. The
at last Ids efforts were crowned with | boa, missing bis mark, went more than
success, though only to preci pitate vfco j two-thirds of Ills length over the edge
needless and <vwfnl waste cf her young ; of tne pier, and then got a purchase
life. I thought aiso of the cruel effect w jth his tali in a crac; in the flooring,
this disaster must necessarily bare j Before he could utilize his hW to get
upon my grandfather, and wondered j back the two crowbars were brought
if that careworn old man was yet r.c- j down sharply on the tail and the snake
quainted with it. .The fear to which-- plunged overboard. The two men saw
my uncle had several times given ex* him swing away in the darkness, his
pression now being realised, it occurred . head two or three feet above the wa-
to mo that Its ill effects upon my pow* j ter, but did not care to follow him.
erful friend, said to bo already cevcrc* j About two hours later a slight com'
might possibly bo of a permanent char- motion wrs heard at the end of the
acter. Something of these troublesome
thoughts and cpeculatlccs rnpst fcavo
been apparent in ray face to have in
duced Connie to smile at me through
her tears, nnd to repeat those vows
with which we bad consoled each oth’er
in previous difficulties—that come what
might, and wo were both alive, nothing
oLonld again separate us.
Coustnuco and I quitted the ctr.dy
and returned to my room. When acked
to decipher Mr. Price’s letter I was en
gaged in making n fair copy cf a list
of my future wife’s possessions, which
un$le Sam had roughly drawn up for
my use—a heavy task, to which I bad
already devoted two whole days.
Though not more than tbres-fourtbs of
my transcript was completed I per
ceived I was too disturbed to advan
tageously crply myself to it again that
next pier. The watchman there,
Janies Elsoa, whittled for his dog, but
no dog appeared. He went to the end
of the pier whete he knew the dog
hnd been, and found only g slimy trail
and some deep scratches that had been
made, apparently by the claws of bis
dog. He did not know what had be
come of the cur, until later In the
morning when he compared notes with
Walsh, and the fate ot the cur became
apparent.
About 8 o’clock Captain Dickson
went on deck. To his mingled horror
and joy be found that the door of the
locker was partly open. He did not
wait to make further investigation, but
Jumped into the forward rigging and
went aloft. He stayed there for
awhile and then cautiously slid down
a /rtay to the roof of the coal locker.
day, and -therefore hastily put awry Peering cautiously through a small
ray papers and devoted myself to Con
ctance. After nearly an hour had
been spent la a profitless exchange cf
opinions and the venturing of various
surmises, wc decided to go together
to Mills Building nnd ascertain by
actual observation exactly upon wbnt
our anxiety was founded.
Whon wo arrived at Mills Building
we found my uncle’s offices deserted
peephole, ho saw the boa curled up
on the coal, asleep, and with a much
increased girth amidships, marking the
Inst resting place of Bison’s dog. The
captain thought it a good chance,
since the snake was asleep from its
gorging, to capture him, but ns be ap
proached tbe door, he heard; or thought
he heard, the snake move. He then
slipped aloft once more, gave the snake
by all but one clerk, and the usual j another chanco to got quiet, and, dc-
buainess of the place oospended for tbo scendJng, braced and nailed up tbe
rest of the day. Telegraphic tape was door until nothing less than artillery
automatically unwinding from a score ' could dislodge it. Next day the suake
or mere cylinders, and falling unread was sound asleep after its feast. In
into tho baskets placed to receive it. j anticipation of this he borrowed a
On my uncle's desk, In an Inner private ; shotgun nnd the fate of the snake was
room, lay n pile of correspondence, < sealed,
the greater part unopened. The clerl; ———
In charge was brushing bis hat pre- STANLEY’S GREAT EXPLOIT,
punitory to locklns the doors uu do-' .Although tho fume of Sir Henry M.
purling, nnd hud tvo been n few min- | gtnnley, who died In London on- May
utes Inter we should bnvc found the j j 0 rc3t 01l i l)s exploration of the
office closed. From this Indlvlduul we j upper Congo nnd equatorial Africa, it
learned that Mr. Truotm had become I ln hls search for David Livingstone
violently agitated Immediately after; through tbe African Jungles and bis
rending a Idtter, the envelope of which j flndlng of the missing missionary at
boro the Furls postmark; that he hail j xjjijl, on the shore of Tungnnyikl,
rapidly paced up and down his roctn, tlM t appeuls most to the dramatic
Incoherently talking to himself rteac- 1 feeling of the world. In “Eeccntrlcl-
wltlle; and that altogether his bchnv- ; tics of Genius” Major J. B. Foud
tog the region* to the west xnd sooth
of Tanganyika, cared for and alded
by the satires, who reverenced him ss
a superior being.
Stable* Stored Inland from Zanzi
bar to the siring ef 1ST1. By June he
had reached Cnyaiyerebe, .where he
was again delayed. At last he inei
able to proceed Into that vait Wudef*
new, somewhere In which was LI*
Ingstone. Whether Livingstone had
Hone across toward the west coast or
bad tried td move northward toward
the Nile Htantif did not know.
The fact was thdt Livingstone, is
extremity, had returned to Tangan
yika and had reached UJlJf. There,
wher^ fnvw supplies should ndvif
reached him, * tto learned ■that all had
been stolen. He wai Almost hopeles*
and helpless, an old man, til, alone,
with only tbe friendship of a feW to*
live! tribes between him and death.
In the' nick Ot time Stanley arrived,
after a month of wandering and ter
rible hardship. The meeting between
the two was most dramatic. To Liv
ingstone it meant new life. It buoyed
him np till all the hardships were for
gotten. Together the two explored
Tanganyika and then went back to
Uttynayembe, where Stanley provided
Livingstone with new supplies and a
new party of faithful blacks. The old
missionary returned to the jungle, to
die ft few months later, and Stanley
retraced hift steps to give the world
the story of his achievement.
ON THE DESERT. ^ -
Mr. Stewart Edward White, in his
serial, “The Mountains,” now running
in The Outlook, thus ’describes his ex
perience In the California alkali plains.
Most of the time we got on Well
enough. One day only the desert
showed her power. That day, at 5 iu
the afternoon, it was 120 degrees in
the shade. And we, through necessi
ty of reaching the next water, Jour
neyed over the alkali at noon. Then
the desert came close on us and looked
us fair In tbe eyes, concealing nothing.
She killed poor Deuce, the beautiful
setter who had traveled the wild coun
tries so long; she struck West and the
tenderfoot from their horses when
finally they bad reached a long-legged
water tank; she even staggered the
horses themselves. And I, lying un
der a bush, where I had stayed after
the others In the hope of succoring
Deuce, began idly shooting at ghost
ly Jack rabbits that looked real, but
through which the revolver bullet*
passed without resistance.
After this day the tenderfoot wenl
water crazy. Watering the horses be
came almost a mania with him. He
could not boar to pass even a mud
hole without offering the astonished
Tunemab . a chance to fill up, even
though that animal had drunk freely
not twenty rods back. As for himself,
he embraced every opportunity, and
Journeyed draped in many canteens.
After that it was not so bad. The
thermometer stood from 100 to 105 or
100, to be sure, but we were getting
used to it. Discomfort, ordinary phy
sical discomfort, we came to accept
as the normal environment of man. It
Is astonishing how soon uniformly un
comfortable conditions, by very lack
of contrast, do lose their power to
color the habit of mind. I imngiuo j
merely physical nubappiness Is a mat- j
ter more of contrasts than of actual ;
circumstances. We swallowed dust; j
we bumped our shoulders phllosophi-
cally under tho beating of the sun; we
breathed the debris of high winds; wo J
cooked anyhow, ate anything, spent j
long. Idle, fly-infested hours waitinf !
for the noon to pass.
ior had been so extremely different
from Lis usual habit cf self-possessicn
that the people about him became
alarmed. Mr. Truman’s secretary, Mr.
Fisk, who enjoyed Ids employer’s con
fidence more than anybody else, took
tho letter from Mr. Truman's uurezist-
hamls, rxd read it to c^ertai i
what had crea.cd tldo disturbance.
Th? letter, which w:.s very I rief c:ul
couched in affectionate terms, stated
that the writer would that night seek
oblivion in the waters of tho Seim, r.n v l
that she commence J her sou to hla
core. It boro tho signature of Amis
Wolsey.
“And how is Mr. Trrman now?” i
inquired. “I3 h; better, and has ha
gone heme with >'rs. Truman?”
“I think ho is better than h*was,”
replied tho clerk. “We were afraid he
had become crazy and scut, fer Dr.
Hermann. Dr. Hermann, who ar
rived befero Mrs. Truman, caid that
Mr. Truman w,u3 cu.Toring from intenm
excitement, but tLat with proucr treat
ment there wxs no cause .'or alarm.
Tho do;ter scou arterwards took Ida
patient 10 Astor House, where L > net:
is.”
To to continued.
quotes a witty reference to this
achievement, which was made by
I Mark Twain in introducing Mr. Stan
ley to a Boston audience:
j “I nm uot here to disparage Colum
bus,” said Mr. Clemens. “No, I won’t
do that. But when yon come to re
gard the achievements of these two
men, Columbus a'nd Stanley, from the
standpoint of the difficulties they en
countered, the advantage Is with Stan-
ley and against Columbus.
“Columbus started out to discover
America. He. didn’t need to do any
thing at all but sit in the cabin of his
j ship, hold his grip and sail straight
on, and America would discover it-
j self. Here It was, barring his passage
! the whole leugth and breadth of two
; continents. He couldn’t get past ML
He’d got to discover it.
j “But Stanley started out to find Dr.
| Livingstone, who was scattered—scat
tered abroad, as you may say, over tho
! length and breadth of a vast slab of
1 Africa as big as tho United States. It
! was a blind search for one of the
worst scattered of men.”
In October, 1S70, Stanley started out
■ from Bombay on his search for Dr.
j Liviugstone on behalf of two uewspa-
j pers. The great missionary and geog-
, rapher, on the last sad trip of his life,
had plunged into the heart of Africa
from the east coast in the spring of
! I860. For five years he had been fight
ing for his life against the ravages of
fever and disease, contending, vainly
against his old foes, the slave traders.
The Water Power of Fmnr*.
The water power row run ii'.y to
waste in tin livers of Frruca l: cel*.
ciliated by a French engineer named •
Tavernier tc be between S.OOC.JXj
?iorse row"r xnd 5,0X),00) ho'sc p Tver, j
and only 200,003 horse power or tb*j - . . . . . _
cuonuoua total Lzs.jet been utilized., “<» wanderinc slowly about, study.;
EXCEPTION TO THE RULE.
' If you would grow a busines; pitot,
Vnnr Harden won t be nest :
You'll find you can’t allo "' th *
To grow beneath yo>ur Iwt.^ ^
IN THE NEAR FUTURE.
“Mode a colossal fortune, you sayT';
“Yes. He was the first man to pub
lish it Jilao-ecnt magazine.”-Puck. ^
TRUTH.
“Consistency’s u Jewel.”
“That’s all right, but you can t work
It off oa my girl instead of a dlamouA
ring.'' '4
frank.
Osmond—“You always pay as you
go don't you?’
Desmonde—“No, Indeed; I P«y » 9
other people come after me.”
’■ THE BRUTE!
Mrs. Jawkins—“I've been trying .to
(alk to Mary over the telephone, but- i
couldn’t understand half she said.”
Mr. Jawkins—“You’d find it easier if
you were to talk one at a time, my,
deffi/’-Ally Sloper. v \ ,
CAUTION. • ’i
“I don’t want .to be too easily won, ,r
she said.
“Naturally,” ho conceited. .
“So if I say ’No’ now.” she went on.
“yon won’t get cross about it and never
ask me again, will you?” > v
* DEFINED.
“Ask me wlmt the present is,” saiil
the epigramist.
“Well, what?” we v obligingly re
sponded.
“The present,” he replied. Is tne
advance agent cf tbe future.” \
A NEW EXCUSE.
Ofllce Boy—“Mr. Spotcasb*. may T Rb
and attend a choir rehearsal this after
noon?” x
Merchant—“Ah! That nn improve
ment. Of course ycu may go to the
hall game, my boy.”—Chicago Tribute.
A STARTER.*
SKRYDLOFF’S DARING EXPLOIT.
Tho several successful sorties which j
Admiral Skrydloff has made since he j
assumed command of the Russian Via*
dlvostok squadron leads a writer In
Harper’s Weekly to describe the dar.
ing exploit which first made 8kryd*
lofTs name familiar to the Russian
people. The occasion was the passage
of the Danube by the Russian army ot
liberation which was being sent to
put a stop to the Bulgarian atrocities
which Turkey was carrying on at the
time. Russia had no Black Sen fleet
then, while Turkey hnd n number of
powerful ironclads and monitors. Ad
miral Skrydiofrs exploit was to go out
in a small launch, and, nproaching n
Turkish ironclad, attempt to discharge
a “torpedo”—a mere charge of gun
cotton,on a pole—as close as possible
to the Turkish warship. The first at
tempt was unsuccessful, owing to the
fact that when tbe electric current was
turned on Skrydloff found that the
wires had been cut. presumably by a
bullet, and there Gas no way to dis
charge the guncotton.
“May I kiss your hand?”
“Well, that will do to begin with.”—
New York American.
THE DIFFERENCE.
“I am afraid,” said the very wealthy
young woman to the titled wooer,
“that our ideals differ.” .
“In wlint way?”
“I should like to be loved for my
own sake, while you expect to be loved
for the sake of your family.”—Waii»
lugton Star.
BRIGHTENING THE PAPER. *
Bangs—’“Wonder what there was in
the paper to-day about Masterson?”
Grimes—“Didn’t know there was
anything.”
Bangs—“Oh, there must have been.
He was saying to me that to-day’s
issue was unusually interesting.’’—'
Boston Transcript.
HOW HE GOT IT.
De Bore—“How did you catch your
cold?”
De Bristle—“You know colds are con
tagious.”
De Bore—“Yes.”
De Bristle—“Well, I caught it asking
other people how they caught their
»olds.”—New York Weekly.
WOMAN KILLS A TIGER. '
Mrs. Luela Morris, aged twenty-
three, recently killed the largest tiger
ever known in the Kentucky moun
tains. She lives in n lonely spot of
Nicholas County, and while her three-
year-old child was playing in the open
door a tiger suddenly sprang from a
tall pine tree near by.
Mrs. Morris heard tbe big cat growl,
nnd seizing a broom she ran to the
child just as the tiger was preparing
to spring. Mrs. Morris struck the cat j
a blow across the head, breaking the |
broom and causing the tiger to spring, j
The brave woman then struck tho 1
beast again, and it sprang away into
tbe bushes.
Mrs, Morris feared the tiger would i
return, so she locked the baby in the ]
bouse, and taking her husband’s rifle, 1
started to kill the beast. For two miles
into the dense forest she trailed the tlr 1
ger and at last brought it to bay in a !
tree. By a well directed shot the Ken
tucky woman put a bvtllet through the
big cat’s brain. Mrs. Morris summoned
help and skinned the tiger, and has
placed the skiu in her home as a re
membrance.
NONE FOR SCHOOLS.
“That billionaire is a curious per
son.”
“In what way?”
“He’ll give hundreds of thousands cf
dollars to establish universities. But it
makes him cress to sec tbe tax collector
coxing around for Lis share <Jf support
for the public schools.”-^Washington
Star.
IN HIS LINE.
“What is it, sir?” asked the work
man, who had been taiied by Mr. Crab-
ley.
“There’s a piano in here that I want
yon to fix,” said that gentleman.
“Eut I ain’t a piano-tuner; rm*a car
penter.”
“I know. I want ycu to nail tho
lid down.”—Philadelphia Ledger
CIVIL SERVICE EXAMINATION.
“When a nan goes cut for a spin
Jwhat should he wear?”
“Oh, that’s easy; a top-ccat.”
“And when he goes out in his auto-
Ucbile?”
“Why, he should be dressed to kill.”
“When a girl goes to a musical, what
Should she wear?”
“An accordion-pleated skirt.”—Yon
kers Statesman.
