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PRA.ISE-GOD-BAREBONES.
I and nay C'jubIu Wlldalr met
Anil toised a pot together;
Burnt sacs it was that Mollle brewed,
For it was nlppln< weather.
’Fore George ! To see Dici buss the wench
Set all the inn folk laughing !
They dubbed him pearl of cavaliers
At kissing and at quaffing.
“Odd-fish!” says Dick,‘the sack Is rare,
And rarely burnt, la'r Molly ;
’Twould cure the sourrst Crop-ear yet
‘‘OfPious Melancholy.”
“Egad !” says I, “uere cometh one
Hath been at’s prayers but lately.”
—Sooth, Master Pralse-Gnd-Barebones step
ped
Along the streets sedately.
Dick Wildair, with a swashing bow
And touch ol his Toledo
Gave Merry Xmas to the rogue
And bade him say his Creio.
Next crush a cup to the Kinj’s health
And eke to pretty Molly—
“’Twill cure your Saintliness,” says Dick,
Of Pious Melancholy."
Then Master Barebones stopped and lrowned,
My heart stood still a minute,
Thinks I both Dick and I will hang,
Or else the devil’s in it!
For me I oare not for old Noll
Nor all the Rump together;
Yet, faith ! ’tis best to be alive
In pleasant Xmas weather.
His worship, Barebones, grimly smiled,
“I love not blows nor brawling ;
Vet will I give thee, fool, a pledge!”
And, zooks! he sent Dick sprawling !
When Moll and I helped Wlldalr up,
No longer trim and Jolly—
“Feel’st not, Sir Dick,” says saucy M ill
"A Pious Melancholy ?”
A Daughter of the Gods.
The first time I saw her—and I
never saw her but twice—there was
nothing visible but a slat sun-bonnet
and a pair of red angular elbows keep
ing time to a monotonous chant:
" Ma-ry and Marthy served tha Lawd,
Ma-ry and Marthy serve! tha Lawd,
Ma-ry and Marthy served tha Lawd,
And I kin serve Him tew.”
This was followed by a vigorous rub
bing, the slat sun-bonnet flapping and
the elbows flying on a home-made
rickety pine wash-board—for she was
washing, standing on a bench and
leaning over so far into the hot,
steaming water that there was danger
of her losing her balance and drown
ing. The sound of the rubbing and
splashing and her own voice had
prevented her hearing my approach,
and she jumped like a frightened
partridge and looked at me with a
frightened stare when I addressed her.
‘Don’t be alarmed, little one,” I
id, “I have only lost my way, and
topped to ask you where the hotel
She wrung the water out of her lean,
, hands, pushed back her sun-bon-
and stepped of! the bench.
Dew you live at the tavern?” she
ked, putting her brown head over
one shoulder like a bird, and look-
at me with bright, inquisitive
es! What a shame to let such a
as you wash ; you ought to be
ying with dolls,” I remarked, in-
nantly.
he looked at me covertly from un-
r the lashes of her soft, shy eyes as
' wondering if I would do her a harm,
drew her small form up pr judly and
pointed to the mountain.
“Keep rite on up; tha’s yoh place;
o wha the road turns, and yew’ll site
he tavern.”
She buiied her head in the tub and
resumed her chanting:
“Ma-ry and Marthy served the Lawd.”
Wnen I was half up the mountain
side I turned and saw her standing
bareheaded in the sun, looking after
me, but she was gone like a squirrel
when she saw me watching her.
The next time 1 saw her was when I
was looking for a particular species of
beetle—I am fond of bugs and worms
—and, being caught in a storm, sought
shelter in the first cabin, which was
hers ! She did not open the door until
I had knocked and pounded a num
ber of times.
“An’ it’s yew,” was her laconic
greeting, as she swung the old boards
that served for a door and reluctantly
admitted me.
There was a Are on a stone hearth
ere was a very old man asleep in
r, and a great brindled cat, with
green eyes, arched itself at his side.
The room was a clean, bright, warm
}, that was more picturesque than
nything I had seen in the dreary
lace called the Pocket country, which
ies between Kentucky and Vlrgiuia
where fate had cast me for a few
iely weeks. I looked every mo-
ent for some woman to make her
ppearance; yet it would be hard to
where she would ffi.me from, un
less she had been in the loft above
There was a curtain hung across
division of the cabin, Iqgg^con-
nothing
lie»o alone?”
{feyther
She nodded her answer; I sat on
the bench and dried m,> self in the
firelight; the old man reused himself
and looked curiously at me with red,
ferret-like eyes, tnat had no lashes to
their weak lids. The little girl whis
pered to him and he went to sleep
again.
“How old are you ?” I asked, when
we had talked a little, and she was
not so much afraid of me.
“What do you think ?” she asked,
in her quaint way.
I looked at her small, childish fig
ure and guessed, “10?”
She laughad a little and shook her
small head.
I remarked the sharp curved chin
and ventured “15 ?”
“Try agen.”
She drew back her sun-burned hair
and looked full into mine with her
bright, restless eye.
3§“Seventeen ?”—for I "caught the
glimpse of a woman’s nature in their
clear depths.
%oh all out.” She sighed as she
spoke.
“I believe you are fifty,” I said
sharply, there was such a change in
each movement of the little woman.
“Y’ime twenty,” she replied in her
childish voice.
I tmnk if she had said one hundred
I would not have been surprised,
she was so wierdly quaint and old.
As we were sitting silent, she watch
ing every movement I made, there
was a great clattering at the door, and
she flew, with that swift motion of
hers, to open it. There was a loud,
angry voice, which she at once an
swered in her soft tones, and then a
man stumbled into the room, and
without noticing me threw himself on
the low little bed and snored instant
ly—an ugly, unkempt, drunken man,
shabbily garbed and forbidding-look
ing.
“It’s feyther,” she sighed, “he’s
tooken agen ; it’s the mountin agoo
he’s got, an’ it takes holt rite sharp,
so’s he cannot do a stroke of work.
Poh feyther.”
“And the old man?” I queried,
pointing to the slumbering figure in
the chair.
“ Gran’feyther, He’s a comfort toh
me mostly; hfe hasn’t the agoo yoh
see.”
“ Do you take care of these”—these
dreadful people I had nearly said, but
checked myself—“ your lather and
grandfather?’’
Yes, an’ Kedsie! Wait, till yoh
see Kedsie 1”
The first happy look I had seen
came into her eyes. She was listening
—a step was at the door, which open
ed, and a young, fresh, fair-looking
man came softly in. He was rather
neatly dressed, but one look at his
long, smooth chin and open mouth,
told the story—he was wistless,
But the girl’s face brighted into a
sunny smile ; she reached on tiptoe to
kiss the pale, flabby cheek of her
brother, and she opened the folded
fingers of one nerveless hand to see
what he had there—It was a little field-
mouse, the life crushed out by the
tension of the long Augers that had
imprisoned it.
Yoh killed it, Kedsie,” said the
girl, sadly. “ Look yeah how its eyes
wimple; tha’s teahs in ’em.”
The foolish boy laughed; then he
drew a pretty green lizard from his
pocket and held it with his thumb
and flager, its long, narrow green
head undulating like a snake; he
made a sound that resembled the chat
tering of a monkey, and it was evi
dent that he kqew no power of speech.
“It’s wuth money,” said the girl,
looking at it critically. “Yoh can
dicker foh it at the tavern.”
The sun came out and I rose to go ;
the cat followed me to the door ; the
old grandfather rose feebly an!l totter
ed out to look at the weather; the
drunken man snored ; the little child-
woman eaned against her foolish
brother In the doorway, and patted
the soft leaden hand which she held in
hers; I was never one to say a grace
ful or pretty thing when I should,and
I blurted out abruptly to tbe girl:
“Do you help them all ?”
She drew herself up on tiptoe aud
looked up lovingly into the foolish,
imbecile face.
“Na,” she said in a loying voice,
“tha help me 1”
I did the next worst thing I could
have done—took out a silver half-
dollar; fortunately I saw that the lit
tle mountain washerwoman was a
princess in disguise, and I asked hum
bly :
“May I buy the lizard ?”
ok the reptile home wRl
f a hr
unselfish being whose history, known
in all the Pocket country, is the sad
dest I ever heard. The last I saw of
her she stood in the rough doorway,
regarding with a look of rapt devo
tion her imbeeile brother, while the
old man leaned on his hickory staff be
side her, and the cat purred trust
ingly at her feet, and in the room
back of her a horror as of death
awaited her. 8o small, so trusting,
unconscious of any labor of love to
commend the notice of the angels, I
saw as in a dream, that small stature
growing to heavenly heights.
Humor of the Day.
A stump-speech : “Gimme the butt
of yer cigar, mister ?”
A Buffalo is not a bird, but we have
often heard of a buffalo bill.
The man who scissors off coupons is
the genuine revenue cutter.
When the average man laughs he
gets fat. When the printer gets fat he
laughs.
The moralist says : “Every man Is
occasionally what he ought to be per
petually.” Then, again, some men
are perpetually what they ought to be
only occasionally.
A very old lady on her death-bed, in
penitential mood, said : “I have been
a great sinner more than eighty years,
and didn’t know it.” An old colored
woman, who had lived with her a
long time, exclaimed, “Laws, I
kuowed it all the time.”
“Look at you !” shrieked Mrs. Eeoni,
as the nurse let the baby fall over the
second floor baluster. “Two inches
nearer the wall and that child would
have smashed a $50 statuette and the
hall lamp.” And then they picked
up the baby.
The deacon’s son was telling the
minister about the bees stinging his
pa, and the minister inquiied : “Stung
your pa, did they? Well, what did
you pa sav ?” “Step this way a mo
ment,” said the boy, “I’d rather whis
per it to you.”
P.ofessor—“Now, Mr. Snodkins,
you may criticise the theme I have
just read.” Snodkins—“I’d rather
write a criticism, sir, I can’t talk so
wall as I can write.” Professor (who
has waded through Snodkins’ last
theme with great difficulty)—“Then,
sir, I’m sorry for you.”
“What a man your father is,” ex
claimed Mrs. Hopospun, looking up
from the letter she held in her hand.
“He says he has bought a French
clock, and will bring it home with
him. What will it be good for except
as an ornament. None of us can tell
the time by it, unless you can, iSdith.
You know something about French,
don’t you ?’’
Suggestive.
Food should never be mixed on the
plate.
Arasene embroidery is now used to
decorate the plush frames for beveled
mirrors.
Oranges are held on a fork while
peeled and are divided without break
ing the skin.
Cheese should never be touched
with the fingers, but crumbled and
eaten with a fork.
An odd ceiling for an elegant
drawing room is of cathedral glass,
s dd to have cost $5000.
A gentleman should not shake
hands with a lady not a relative, un
less she offers to do so.
Cheap and pretty bedroom curtains
are of cheese-cloth, trimmed with very
deep torchon lace.
There are new English rugs which
make pretty and inexpensive cover
ings for parquetry floors.
Autumn leaves and wild flowers are
much used for decorative purposes
also red, golden and purple aslert.
Coffee grounds, thoroughly dried,
make an excellent filling for a pin
cushion. As they do not gather
moisture they do not rust the needles.
New sconces are of chased brass
forming a panel worked in relief, in
stead of an upright mirror at the back
for the swinging sockets for candles.
A great deal of lace is used for bed
room decorations. It is seen in pro
fusion on tne counterpanes and pillow
covers and the toilet mats and table
covers.
A novel set of finger-bowl napkins
are embroidered with twelve figures
from “Patience” on tne dozen napkins;
the edges are fringed out and hem
stitched.
Table mats are no longer used in
stylish houses, either at luncheon or
dinner. The waiter should have a
coarse towel outside and wipe each
dish before he puts it on the table.
An odd and handsome mat for a
small table or a tete-a-tete set is made
of felt. Make the centre of some dark
colored felt, and then make a border
of points of different colors and dif
ferent widths. Button-hole stitch
these with embroidery silk, fasten to
gether at the centra, and where the
edges join catch with a few stitches.
On the wider point fasten six brass
curtain rings with gay-colored embroi
dery silk aud on the narrower point
sew five rings. Fill in the enclosed
circle with fancy stitches of the silk.
A Dutch Idea.*
The Household, a newspaper of
Amsterdam, Holland, attempts to
comment upon the result of the late
elections in the United States. It
says : “Last Tuesday being the day
the Uaited States set apart for the elec
tion of members of Congress and of
other officers of the Government, the
two great parties which in that coun
try contend for power met in combat.
It is well known that these two par
ties are known respectively as the
Republican aud the Democratic pariy,
names which, however, have not the
same meaning in Europeas they have
in America. The Republicans are in
favor of centralization, while the Dem
ocrats are the advocates of federalism
and decentralization. The former
party has been in power uninterrupt
edly since the year 1860, their recent
defeat being a result of the assassina
tion of Mr. Garfield. It is also known
that it is customary in the United
States when one party obtains the
Presidency for the other party to he
given the Vice-Preddential chair.
Owing therefore, to the efforts of Pres
dent Arthur, temporary heir of Mr.
Garfield, the Democrats have once
more taken possession of the White
House. The new President has not
been idle during his administration,
having put all the wheels in motion
in order to influence the elections in
the interest of his politloal friends.
As might have been expected, the
Djinoorats have gained the vic
tory ; hence the future of America is
In ihe hands of that party. When we
r 'Call to mind the mean practical of
which the Democrats have frequently
been guilty, wo see that the future of
the United St vtes looks anything but
jheerful. Now, more than ever before,
^ ^predate bow oalamitiqus to t
the
Exploring for Fanaticism.
There is something exquisitely
ludicrous in the following telegram
from the Cairo correspondent of the
Times: “Accompanied by Mr. Mar.
riott, a member of Parliament, I have
visited the Azhar Mosque University,
the centre of Islamism. I sought
vainly for traces of fanaticism ; there
was only the same amused indiffer
ence that I found four years ago.
The Coptic clerk from the Miuistry of
Public Instruction who accompanied
us said that fanaticism did not exist
in Egypt. This settles the matter,
and henceforth let us hear no more
about fanaticism in Egypt. But how
delightful it would have been to have
seen the pair on their tour of discovery
through the famous university, and
heard them conducting the exhaus
tive inquiry which has had such con
clusive and satisfactory results. The
annual inspection of the vaults under
Parliament House would be nothing to
this wonderful exploration. Possibly
they expected to find the dreadful
commodity neatly done up in canisters
and labled like gunpowder, or perhaps
they hoped to detect it by the smell.
Unfortunately for our peace of mind
an authority who has just assured us
that 90 per cent, of the natives do not
even think at all, was not exactly the
best qualified to divine the secret
thoughts of the Moslems at El Azhar.
The Pasteur process of vaccinating
sheep as a preventive against charbon,
after proving a success in the North of
France, has turned out the same In
the warm South. The point on which
attention is now fixed is for how long
—six, twelve or thirty-six months—
does the efficacy of the pock endure?
Time of course will settle the point.
Native Barbary sheep are proverbially
known to resist charbon, but wheu
oroesed iu France that immunity dis
appears.
joej^^jee or regret should
The Gulf Stream.
Commander Bartlett, of the English
Coast Survey, has been investigating
the Gulf Stream, and at a recent meet
ing at Montreal he gave some of the
results of his work. He made havoc
among certain generally received ideas
concerning that famous current,
which, he says, does not flow out of
the Gulf of Mexico, nor over a bottom
channeled with ridges and valleys
parallel with the Appalachian system.
He says that there is a wide plateau
extending along the coast from the
Bermuda Banks, over which the guli
stream flows, sweeping it clean to its
hard coral bottom ; beyond this the
bottom slopes rapidly downward and
is oozy with the wioah from the plateau.
The stream is not a river of warm water
flowing over cold, and the Arctic cur
rent does not run inside. This will b
all new to most people, and especially
to those whose ideas of the Gulf S'ream
are indefinite anyway. Perhaps
fact which will interest these people
most in connection with the matter is
the tribute Commander Bartlett paid
to Yankee ingenuity at the meeting
referred to above. Dr. Carpenter hav
ing expressed his admiration of the
work, added that it pleased him t
know that the results were obtained
with British instruments. To tnis
Commander Bartlett replied that Sir
William Thompson did invent an aj
paratus and kindly forwarded it to the
Coast Survey, but it would not work.
Yankee ingenuity then invented an
attachment by which it was made so
efficient that soundings of 3000 fathoms
can be made in thirty minutes and
without deflecting more than a fathom
from the perpendicular.
More Petroleum.
•
The reported discovery of extensive
petroleum deposits in Braz’l, Venez
uela, Russia, Roumania, Hung ar
and elsewhere outside of I^ennsylv
nia and the Canadian Dominions, h~
excited some attention of.date. T
latest news in this line is that pet
liurn abounds in paying quantities
S'guenza, Spain, about.,a hun
miles northeast of Mrfdrid, on tTie jfin
of railway leading to the latter city.
It is stated that wells in that locality
have been worked for about two years
by the proprietor, aud that they are
capable of beiDg greatly extended. To
this end articles of association of a
new mining company have been filed
at Madrid. The analyses of the oil
are good. Furnaces, retorts and other
necessary appliances have been al
ready put down. The Manchester
Guardian says of the project: “Judg
ing from the quantities of oil which
are yearly imported into Spain from
Pennsylvania, and the high pric
ruling, the success of the 6ompany is
considered more than probable, It
will be interesting to note its pro
gress.” ^
When to Smoke,
There is very little, if anything,say
the London Lancet, to be said against
the use of tobacco in the average state
of the organism. Those who are un
favorable affected by it should abstain,
and it is wholly Inadmissible in youth...
We should go so far as to say that no
young man should smoke before he
has attained his majority, and i
would be well if he deferred the use
tobacco altogether in every form uni
the extreme limit of development,
which may be placed at the age of 26
years. It is impossible to give any
precept as to the time and mode of
smoking. Speaking generally, the
points of caution should be to avoid ir
ritation of the mucous membrane cf
the mouth and fauces, loss of salivary
secretion and super excitement of the
nerves and nerve centres, Cigars are
better than pipes, and far better than
cigarettes; but no oigar should be
smoked for more than three-fourths of
its length, even with a mouthpiece.
The smoke should be taken into the
front of the mouth aud ej dieted as rap.
idly as possible. Properly and moder
ately enjoyed tobacco smoking, the
writer concludes, is not a baneful hab
it, but one that may be reasonably
enjoyed.
“Yes, sir,” he said, “that’s kn aw
ful knowing bulldog o’ mine. He was
jam full o’ fleas, and he got sick o’
wrenching his spine and tUe oords of
his neck reaching rcund to gnaw ’em,
and besides, he was rather tired o’ the
taste of himself. What did he do?
Went out,sir,and got into a fight with
another dog, aud and let that dog do
the gnawing for him. Mighty Intelli
gent dog, sir.”
“I don’t believe in a good-natured
husband,” saidMrs. Jeeus. 'fltmaki
brluj^iome too.