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" T Dark Days Passed. “Won’t you buy a bunch of flowers f>r your lady ?” The gentleman to whom this ques- iion was addressed looked down into ibe face of the speaker, a rpsy cheeked boy of eight or nine summers. The Ilittle fellow had a tiny basket on his nn, fille<l with bouquets such as we are wont to see in May or June. Flo wers of the spring time, suggestive of the bright and happy days of our childhood when we were told by the teacher that we might vote for our next May Queen. Roses there were, white and pinkmoss roses, wild roses, and snowdrops; lilacs there were, too’, and all made up in lovely bouquets that it needed but a glance to know' that a most artistic hand had arranged these chilkreu of the spring. “ But, my boy, it is the beginning of September—where did you get these lilies and roses from ?” “They are not real flowers, sir, they are artificial. Mother and auntie make them.” j The gentleman looked more astonish ed than before, and after a keen look at the lad, he asked : “Where do you live, my boy ?” “ Away outside the city, in a cottage. We have real flowers, too. I have a flower patch of my own, and mother lets me plant just what I please. But, w'on’t you buy a bunch of these, sir ? They are only twenty-five cents, and they w'on’t fade as soon as other flowers.” “Yes, I will buy two bunches of you, if you bring me a bouquet out of your garden to-morrow 7 . Here is a half a dollar for these and another half for the flowers you are to bring to-morrow. Don’t fail; I shall expect you at this hour, here in this saloon, where I generally drink a cup of choco late.” The little fellow 7 thanked the man, and was off in a moment. Why had the man questioned the lad so about his mother’s dwelling place ? He could not account to himself for it. He, who came and went every day, and drank his chocolate in silence, hardly looking up at any one, had actu ally held a conversation of ten minutes duration with a little boy. Soon after he left the house, forgetting to empty his cup. Well, that was something new, amd the waiters noticed it and commented upon it; for tli-fe gentleman had been their regular customer every day, for nearly a year, and they had never kj*own him to speak to any one before, except to order his customary beverage, and after drinking it in silence he w 7 ould lay his money down and walk out as moodily as he had en tered. The next day after his conversation with the boy, the man came a half hour sooner than was his wont, and he seemed exited. Every now and then he glanced toward the door, as if his life depended on the flowets that he ^was expecting. He had not long to ► for the little fellow had evidently as anxious to bring them in time i the gentleman to get them. After a 0 .ance at the beautiful bouquet, he said, more to himself than to the child, who seemed to be expecting a word of praise for his quickness or beauty of his pets. “ I thought I was not mistaken. No one knew how to arrant a bouquet i like her. And the resemblance of this [child ! My God ! could I, after all, have [been deceived ? It cannot be ; I must "have eertainty.” Rising hastily from his chair, he grasped the astonished child ,by the hand and said: “Come, show 7 ' me where your mother lives, my boy, I must see her.” “But mother never sees company, sir. She only lets the old gardener (come into our house to tend to the , flowers.” But 1 must see her. your mother’s name ¥ bought of that before.” ■ Mrs. Norton, sir.” l shade of disappointment flashed rer the man’s face, but only for a aoment. “ J must see your mother, child, else jur face, too, deceives me. ” j The lad made no more objections. “If like the shortest road home,” he B we must go through the market Jiere, and then the other streets |ji be passed.” ilk was quite long, aid espe- to the gentleman^jnho jjfas the I 1 , Stop! What I might have could hardly be seen, so thickly was it j covered by vines and creeping plants. ; But one glance showed to an observer that no unskillful’' hand had been at work, and an uncommon mind mustbave planned the whole, to make the small place so complete a paradise. Opening the gate, the child led the way up the graveled walk toward the house. On the portico, which was not only conceal ed by vines, but two splendid chestnut trees, he was received by a voice of sur prise : “ Why, Harvey ! back already ? and your flowers you’ve brought back. What has happened ¥” “ Mother, dear, don’t be angry. The gentleman who wanted my flowers said he-must see you. Here he is.” As he said this, the boy pointed to the gentleman, who was just stepping on the portico. He had stopped at the sound of the voice^ and then reeled as if about to faint; but, rallying himself, he walk ed on until he confronted Harvey’s mother. The lady looked at the gentle man in surprise, and was about to turn away ; but one more look and then a cry, and she would have sunk to the floor had not the strong arm of the jnan caught her. But she did not faint; she was only overcome for the moment. “Harvey, dearest, it is you or I dream ¥” “ Yes, my beloved wife, it is I. After a whole year’s search I have at last found you, through what 1 know as- our boy, whom I left as a babe.” After mutual explanations, the gentleman said : “Ah these were bad da ye, when I had to leave you and our darling boy so destitute through the failure of that bank.” “Did our creditors seize all ? “ Yes, all; except our jewels.” “But why did you let me mourn you as dead all these years? Tell me that first.” “Darling, I wrote so often and never received a reply. Not a word of en couragement in these weary years of turmoil and trial. You know I left for China. I wrote from every port where we stopped and with every returning ship or steamer I sent you letters. After my arrival at Pekin, I wrote to you again to take heart, as I had the good fortune to get a situation in an Amer ican tea-house, and would, as I did send you half of my salary which was to be deposited semi-annually at the bank of New Y’ork.” “It must be there yet, then, fori have never drawn any, nor heard a word from you and mourned you as dead, as you can see by my wearing widow’s^ weeds yet. AVhen I turned my jewels into money, I labored hard, for more than a year at a millinery store, sister taking care of our boy. That was the hardest of all, to be separated from him so much. But I did it, and after I had learned the art of flower making, I got along very comfortably, for sister Ruth assisted me so faithfully. At last I had accumulated enough to lease this little place which w r as at that time a perfect wilderness and you see what four years of patient toil have made of it. We had ample time to make our artificia flowers, and for more than a year, Harvey has been in the habit of selling them for us. Yesterday I arranged some bunches as I used to (ft for you, and gave them to Ilarvey to sell.” “ And it has been the means of my finding you ; fpr I had made inquiries jor you everywhere, and no one knew of your whereabouts. Thank the kind Lord who aided me. We will purchase his place, for I have ample means and we will forget in our future happiness the dark days that are past.” Home Economies. The Age of the Hippopotamus Adhela, the female hippopotami!! of the London Zoological Gardens, died on December 1(5, after a life of twenty- nine years in the gardens. Her mate (Obaysch) died in 1877, alter twenty- seven years spent in captivity. As both were young when brought to' England, and evidently died of old age, it is pro bable that thirty yearn is the extreme duration oftne life of this behemoth. A lady dropped in on one of her neighbors for an afternoon call. “IIow is your daughter,” she inquired. “Splendid. She has just got throq the Normal schocd where she ciplj cleurthroufch from ambitions id then she t Braised Turkey.—Truss the tur key as for boiling; stuff it with either sausage meat, forcemeat, potato or chestnut stuffing. Line the bottom of a braising pan with slices of bacon ; lay the turkey on these, and place more slices of bacon on the top of it. Put in two carrots and two onions cut in slices, and sweet herbs, parsley, bay leaf, a clove of garlic, whole pepper and salt to taste ; moisten with some stock. Lay a round of buttered paper on the top, put, on the lid and braise with a moderate fire (under and above) for about four hours; then serve with gravy strained and freed from excess of fat. Egyptian Kabobs.— Cut the lean of a neck or loin of mutton into dice about one inch square or larger. Have some onions or tomatoes chopped to gether, and rub on these pieces, allow ing them to stand in the mixture two hours. Then put about four pieces on- a skewer (six skewers full make a dish), stand them up in front of the fire or in the oven, and turn as the meat becomes brown, basting with the tomato juice, and sprinkling with flour. Pour the tomato juice and the gravy around the kabobs when served. Make a broth of the scraps and bones that are left in preparing the kabobs. Oyster Fritters.—Fifty small oys ters, two eggs, one pint of flour, one heaping teaspoonful of salt, one table spoonful of salad oil, enough water with the oyster liquor to make a scant half pint. Drain and chop the oysters, add the water and salt to the liquor. Pour part of this on the flour, and when smooth add the remainder. Add the oil and eggs, first well beaten. Stir the oysters into the batter. Drop small spoonfulls of this into boiling fat, and fry until brown. Drain and serve hot. Saved by Sally. Not long since a young man in Car- son got married and started for Califor nia with his young wife. As lie boarded the train his father bade him good-by and gave him the paternal blessing. “My son,” said the aged sire, shak ing with emotion, etc., “remember these words if you never see me again : Never go into a place where you 7 would not take your wife.” The couple settled in Mariposo coun ty, and last week- the old man went down to visit them. lie proposed a bear hunt, and they were fortunate enough to track a grizzly to his lair among some of the bowlders in the chaparral. As the two approached the bear roused up and sent forth a growl of defiance which shook the trees. “Go in there and kill ’im,” said the old man, excitedly. The son held back, further acquain tance with the bear seeming in some respects undesirable. “ Count me out,” he said. “Have I crossed the seas and settled in America to raise a coward ?” shout ed the father, brandishing the gun. “I but recollect your advice when I left Carson,” was the reply. “How can I forget your sage precepts. Didn’t ^ou tell me never to go where I couldn’t take my wife V How would Sal look there with that bear*?” The old man clasped his dutiful son to his bosom, and, as the bear issued forth, exclaimed: “Speaking of Sally, let us hasten home; our prolonged absence might cause her needless alarm.” In about fifteen minutes they had reached the ranch, the old man a little ahead, and the distance was about four miles.—Cavson (Nev.) Appeal. Tho Man of Uniform Ways. Tne Emperor William’s uniforms comprise one of each of the regiments of the guards and of the body regiments, one each of Baden, Bavaria, Saxony, Wurtemberg, four Russian uniforms, and one each of his Austrian regiments of the line and hussars. The civilian suits are elegant and chiefly dark, al though a light pair of trousers is now now and then tolerated. The regular head covering is the high silk hat. The hunting suits are rarely renewed, on the principle, probably, that the older the better. Perhaps the most remark able piece is the emperor’s brownish gray lmvelock, which he wears in the spring and fall in his drives, and with which, though twenty-live years old, he is not willing to part with. All his uni- s and suits were made by a member same family, whose predecessors id tho young Prince Wj]^| is first uniform content^>f his A Provident Englishman. An affable though somewhat desic cated American was on his way the other day to the city of Boston. He had, with that thrifty forethought of his nation, secured a lower berth, and was meditating upon the wisdom of gathering his body behind the curtains when he was accosted by an Englishman in a tweed suit. The Englishman was of an ample presence and had the air of one who had been pastured on mutton chops all his life. . t “You will excuse me,” said he of the tweed suit, “but am I right in suppos ing that you have the lower berth ?” “You bet your life,” replied the other. “My sister,” said the owner of the tweed suit, “has the upper berth, which is. deuced awkward, you know. The fact is,” added the Englishman, with frank urbanity, “it’s unpleasant for ladies to climb up past a man in a low 7 er berth. Now, might I ask you, sir, to do me the extreme favor of occupying the upper berth and permuting my sis ter to take yours ?” The request was scarcely proffered when the American, with the gallantry of a genuine Yank, hastened to assure his English acquaintance that nothing could give him more pleasure than to be of service to a lady. On the following morning the Ameri can was astonished to see a pairef tweed legs emerge from a lower berth opposite that which he had politely given up, and the next moment the adipose upper extremities of the Englishman. “Say,” said the American, as an air of grave disgust began to creep over his astonished physiognomy, “didn’t you ask.me to give up my low 7 er berth to your sister?” “Certainly, my dear fellow,” replied the gentleman addressed, “hope you slept will ?” “And you had a lower berth ?” “Of course.” “And then you got me to give up mine to your sister, sir ?” “Why, my dear fellow,” said the Englishman, in his turn, “you didn’t expect I’d give up a lower berth to my ow 7 n sister, did you ?”—Toronto News. For our Better Halves. Somebody has found a new use for the rubber-cloth hooded garments. If glazed on the inside, they make excellent fever- proof suits, and may be worn by doctors, nurses and other persons compelled to enter the rooms of those sick with contagious disease. Silk muslin kerchiefs in white or colors are made up for house -wear in very simple styles. They are bordered with a frill of lace, and have a small velvet flower in one corner. Net squares and scarfs have the flowers from Spanish lace applied in the ends or comers. Scarfs of Oriental lace almost a yard wide and two yards long are shown for summer wear. They have very deep borders on the end of medalions or flower designs set close together and are sprigged over 7 nearly their whole surface. The Bazar patterns for summer dresses indicate a decided lowering of the standard of good taste, for every one of them is made of flowered mate rials, and two have birds in the design. There is nothing very new about the styles in'which tl;ey are made, although in two the drapery is massed very high, apparently puffed out by some stiff sub stance, and in one model this arrage- ment is carried to absurdity, the’ puff being so large as to suggest that it is meant for a child to sit upon while the/ wearer stands. As for sitting down while arrayed in this way it is clearly impossible. Black illusion dresses are dotted with pearl spangles, beetles’ wings or butter flies, rather than with jet, by Ixmdon dressmakers. The effect is better than that seen when jet was worn by every second woman in a ballroom. The waist most in use for young girls’ ball dresses in Baris is crossed in froi and at the back and haftj by a rosette. It has old fashion which at all Curious Facts. A spring in St. Tammany parish, Louisiana, pours forth clear,cold water all day, but at sunset it suddenly goes dry, discharging no water until the sun rises again. While sawing veneer from a wal nut knot an Indianian discovered in the twisted fibres of the wood a perfect pic ture of a spaniel’s head. The lines are as accurately drawn as if by the pencil of an artist, and when framed this na tural curiosity has all the semblance of art. One theatrical sham which has been revealed by a florist is the remodelling qf designs received by actors and actress es. The material of a flower ship re ceived in the first act appears in the shape of a harp in the second, of an an chor in the third, or of any other de sign. And all the time the audience is amazed at the extravagant profusion of flowers. The contrarieties of the Chinese, as compared with us, have often been commented on. The Rev. Selah Brown writes about them as follows: We shake hands as a salutation; a China man shakes hands with himself. He stands at a distance, and clasping both together, he shakes them up and down at you. We uncover the head as a mark of respect; they keep their heads cov ered, but take off their shoes for polite ness. We shave the face; they shave head and eyebrows. We cut our finger nails ; they consider it aristocratic to have nails from three to five inches long, which they are obliged to protect in sil ver cases. The Chinaman’s waistcoat is outside his coat, and his drawers out side his trousers. We blacken our shoes; he whitens them. We have soup as a first course at dinner, and dessert at last; they have dessert at first and soup at last. We want our wines ice cold; the Chinese drink theirs scalding hot. We bury in the earth; they on its surface. With us, black clothing is a badge of mourning ; with them, white garments indicate the loss of friends. In that land of opposites it is the old men who fly kites, walk on shirts, and play the shuttlecock, and, to keep up their odd ways of doing things, they p'lay the latter with their feet instead of ti, n ir handio In China women do men’s work,’ kpd men are the milliners, dressmakers ahd washerwomen. With us the right hand is the place of honor; with them it is the left hand. In dating letters we place the year last; they write it first. Thev always speak of the mariner’s compass (their own invention) as pointing to the south. We pay our physicians when we are sick ; they pay while they are well, but as soon they get sick the pay stops.. Here men kill their enemies, a China man gets revenge by killing himself. We use a soft pillow; they a block of wood. They launch ships sidewise, ring bells from the outside, and j ly turn their screws in the oppj rection from ours. Street Arab’s Hon( “Sergeant,” saicla diminutivl men of the street Arab, as he officer wearing a Sergeant uniform} the street about 10 o’clock last nigt “can you send an officer to guard soi property to-night?” The urchin’s clothes were tattered, face was dirty, and he w r as soaked wit? rain, but there was a manly air about kim for all that. The officer looked somewhat astonished at the request com ing from such a strange source, and said kindly : “What do you want an bfficer for, my boy?” •"*•« “Because,” answered the child, and tears filled his eyes, “ I was leaning against a stere window on C%esthut‘ street, and I guess I pushed too hard, and the glass broke, and I couldn’t make anybody hear, so I started as fast could to find, an officer, to keep anyl from stealing the things in the wine And, Sergeant, I have thirty-five I made selling papers to-day. It you that, don’t you think they \\ me go until I could make enouj for the glass ? It is every but I don’t wan^|^> to “Keen \j office