Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

'liie (>;fT •rrura • U» brav«* Wto-n th w«M i» »»ur m ! Whan nothing h t*» f>~u, F«mrh-•* !■• l»t«l HU t«« W hmi *ll ;•'* U. V/lx*n U»<* Un i* <!• i» Flip* weather • fun<* II but V» wl 4-1 it!i And I*' brat* wlkh ar* ••ar*”! Thai* •imjUm’T thing. my «U*ai' An I * 111 <l<» h» nil ,Ih/Aiuhj/ Mittvkrnil in flir < AN EASTER GIFT. •*N ’ mhl In< l*‘ Z b<<l*-4- *n<» w ttJil ’• m ju>l exactly how *t would If. *Th’ y w Iwlkv in Now l< t ’<*m tah** tb«" < <m«*4|wn<« •* “IV i w inwd ’••in iM'fori’lmiid »*iid AllUt Z HlLlh “Th‘ rollhin t r .p</t n<»!l f*n« i than I lint I ’hi '»• Zl» and Aunt I(u< v it looking at < i h other, <»m on <*ith«'r idr of thr biff alow Hh’pliUM’, like tin old in in and woman w<* MomctiiiK** mt hli.ti hl< in a tot *Jk ji Th ) were nn< irnt and v.<h/< ii mid wriiikh d **o thin that it would *••< in jim it u:i < Xtia bl i t from the bra- nozzled iHlow* mud HM’iirrtlh blow ihi'iu away, wiiib th-ir M|hw*tiwl< mlioiic lik< Mnis •tar- from MHne uiih<‘ird of<on-t Ihtlion, r.nd t’.« vi iii’ doo i out lik whip cord /r<*ni 1 <*li I- vi old han I- | o Zlr V. •■! \ it Hu< *. lib v r, won old b.u-hrloi and old fluid All I heir live* lono th* \ hail 4 »*••:. H *vui|iM!id wcrmipiiiz an I pinching, a* if i moniy v.< i t*i • maiiiHpring of thi'if ri•ti’ii . They nriri «w i red • pph; with any npprr* iat ion of it * iirfi fie bra ;ty flic) lliouglil fit only n living >vfth wmu ll ii linrn !, the corn diked and t iMcled ouf only f *<» nisi' h “prime India: .* * d the pink an<l white ' lover* head* r> pn’M iiti'd only p:i4linigr v.'illl*’, .ml the ‘4,ar eyed <lai<• •* wi re nothing mori than “pr*ky w< < <!■, that no critt’-i -on i. •'i woil’d rat.” Ard when, eight y.-n% ago, their Imll M’h Nell) bid nin i« iu iunll • run \ (join four doll.u a month and her hoar 1 to marry a bluek eyed bailor Ind di< I !<• |e Z b nild Aunt Huey had w.< Ji ** I th* ’ skinny hnn Ih of hi i altog< thi i A .* himl ahn k n«dny ’ Love pro\.-l hi.. . f■ kh lr<-d for Hal and Nelly \i bur'll lean on. The young nailor was I(»m( eii die IliM *oynge out after hi' mai •aag< hihl Nidly w*<t left to support her 4'hild u* best alie might It uir an uiiewn buttle livtwvrn life'* ’ tno»hie* and the poor young widow, and when Nelly died, the little girl was m iil home to Spiiggvrdnh , w ith a pitiful let ter fioru the young mother wliom* Min had •ft*.' early. II I m-h Zeb and Aunt Huey alwo lilt* IV dv< liikml to rrc rive N< 11. ain't iiutliiu tolB," said I in de Z »b. •J • her go to Hal Arbii<di\ relation*F' ! aaid A .nt Huey “Eh* hr hadn't non hitim.* Well, I ain't to blame for that, n* I know of.*' S » wouldn't let this < hild go on the towi ►aid Mr. Jon s. the express agent, 14» u-fio rare little Ne|| had bwn ron *igu » as if die were a brown pap< i park ‘ . I would Mild t n< h Zeb. / Why not' tid \unt Kury, bluntly. S» Nt II was taken, with her little iiandboi full of tdoth'-s, to the low io IbUlsc. Tin' matron looked pu/zleil she had no ••lunge* > • young ii* Nt II but -he ki*s.<i th<» i hild, and gave her a piece of gingi i bread tad * »me patchwork, and •«»hl la r to be a good girl. N<di playetl altout until she wa* liretl. anti flat! <am< to t»r matron with wist ful. upturn* d gaze \\ ben am I going htmn '' suit! *hr. “Thi* :s home,” said the imitnm. Nt II * lip tpiivvretl her blue < y,u aw am in tears “I <i‘*u i lik. it ‘ ’ said she “I thm'i t t< live l»> it M imiua *aid I was to hon i al Easter ’ •*W hat d<*vs the chihi mt an’” said the l». wdti i«d matron. ‘ll.'ii't you know “ said Nell • First ' ••i.r * > i sima' tia n L.i'i i ■ Ami malftu Slid I was Ii go holUt it Easter.** U • *hm‘lha\> Eastti 'ln e Vt pt ni»u >• I again M It \ < olotx'd egg*,” said the goml matron. This is holm , my <len> . *>’ put all of that uons-'n*** out of yuur b< ad. Hut Nf’l cried, uu»l irfiivtl Io be ta»m fortrtl. *■< ait I gt» ami plav * oil she, after 4 lhti< while, with the tears y,i on In 1 Mkht k •*Yv» in the bat k yai\|, a* mm h as you p » xtiid the kindly matron. “1 don't lik«’ the buck yard,'* Haiti fa* tidt Nell *’ll* all lud ol brit khat* un<| tomat t uns anti broken bottle* that woß*t Uc'id anything'. I want to go in 4he UtH IM ” “Weil, don't gw tar, thru,'’ said the nuitrwn. who wasbu'y mixing lime for the *prmg white washing, ami |M<rhaps ms .. ’ : . .; \ p.qtrlual qu‘Minning*. No ~w y Went little Nidi, her white • Mwbrir sunb rnuti fluttering in the curly April wtad* down the dells w’hvrr <br firwi pallid xiolct* were thrusting their |»urt>lr hcud* up through layer* of uwojj. drud Irax** and a tender friugx* !of orvrli . jMWrd the of the rivu let, th** hnpbivt little lait« that th*- *uu ever j»lio:i<‘ on “I wi*h I rouhl May b*-re alwny*. and ! live in a <ovc. ami *af la rrie* and o 1- , fri* l»mb and drink wafer from flu . brook ' thwic/ht NII “I don’t want to !go b’w-k t » !-»'• town houw. whr- I’m de | Tmi m k* * tut • • it me, and old Mrs. Hitch’- l ui‘l hak. <» that de -pill* h< r t* 1 nil over the table.” But th* aft inoo.i won* on Siturduy .'.fh’rnoon, alv r. s the bu*i« *t of th*' we k uid M . G df. th*- matron. liegiri t> Im' tin* .i-v ab*ait th’ y< nog’ t inhabitant of the tow 11 house. ••She <m t b<• <lr*»v.m I, for the brook j. it<b' ;> • u »ie*h ml Mr- G;dT But | H a ’. Illg’ • hild ' "•U b*’ lost in them wood*. I'm m'iiioM *«»rry now I let her gw, Es -he ain’t bc k by dnrk, IT *4-nd FimiiMi Frank after her. I ipu** In ’s got *>' n* • enough to bring h* i home if he find* her.” Encl* Z* b nd Aunt Km y Wat* i -«m WOT 1 Miffing their MlpjMi 'i |H»t of W'-ak t< n. - -me l.reu*! and butt* r, and n <li«h of stew.-il p.hh< s whi n the door op« nrd softly, and in • am*’ a little girl of five veins old, w.tli a Minboiiiict flung bail, from In r br<»v. n curls and her apron full of p il<- pink arbut’i*. *|i nd* r *t"niin cd wilil dowers and blue violet* Aunt Hiuy -’urfi’d back ‘•lf- Nd!) ' -aid sic . Marti, d at the wonderful r- mblniire t > the fair face that w a n v. .Ilin d and bur.rd. “Lord .. us’” u a sped I mlr Zb. . who, like miM illitcr.it * men, was not without ; pi'r <1 the sup -i-litmus in hi* n.itui P i t go 11 aigh Ik i . Hu y. May bi -I. i.in’t /. 1 “Yi *. I'm N Uy.” -a;d the child, < un tying lur flower into the old lady’* lap. t “I’ve brought y »u *ome Ea*t a flower. .” And she looked *o|<armly nr.arnl her at the |ir< o thi deep chimney • plac< , the shining r.pprr kritl*. the blossoming ro*4- tree in the window, and th« red re jection* of ‘Un*< I on the wall. “La *ik ” lid Aunt Huey, looking help!' -ly tii-t al the flow* rs and then al th < hild, “where did you ronir from.' “Fr »m th** town house,” said Nell. “But to mormw i Easier |>iy | couni rd it up from th. ciih inlm that hang* under the idoi k mllin Mt GafF* r »<»m. Mamma aid I w.i* to come hom* - on Ea-t. a. I m lr Zeb pul out hi-* <’mn*c, wrinkled hand mid tom hrd Nell’s hair ns softly as tl hr had bri n a piece of Dresden china, in -imigrr of cracking. •‘•She’s a pretty little rnetur. ain’t shif” *aid Ik. “( ouir lari, < hild. Will : yoi, give me a klmf” “Yrs,” answered Nell, putting up her <Oft*l lip* to the old man’s withered fair, ami climbing unreremonhmsiy ii|m>ii his I Inp. “Now give me some bread and milk.” •W i 11, I drclnrr, Zeb!” cried his sister “Efyoii don’t l«H>k ipirei with a little rhilit a si (tin* on your knee!” I klr Z l» wrigglr<l hiinHclf thi* way and «hat. “I dunno ’/.actly how it /iwd*.’’ said he, “but I till you it itilx mighty slick \in*. she got out Nellv's < vr* right over a> ii. i Get Ina ,-muk bn ad and milk, Hur;. Easter! I* it really Easter tn mon >w . You and m< Huey, we ain’t I bev-n to chun h in 1 ]»owerful long time. Let' In how it rem* t morrow Yr s’pu.r We could make th<* little gal up a l»cd on the old trundle in the w est rooms” “You un i goillf t'» keep her?” said A»».il Huey, wilhrac r. <pir*tioning ey<‘ff f i.l of a certain joy. ♦Hi le Zrb stroked the soft, brow II r. rls “Well, I ihl 1110,” *-ml he “It seems ’must a pity to *< nd her back there, doesn’t it . Autil Km y 1 tl. < hd. “I’ve 'uv»'t a mind to try how I lik. hri.” 'aid *ln . “I iiilu- was partial to ( n ml it dot *rem a* if a well Lrhav ♦s| child 11 t In’t b mm h mbrv trouble about th • h-a.'c than a < at ” Ac . \i ell *lr hail In uglil in a blue edged b »wl full <d milk and a goodly sliet of hiraii, *h- . (.tally gat lured up tin fa*t wilting tl »w.-r* and put th« in in a cracked pit< her on tin mantle. “La!" *aid she. a* slu turned around, “if ihv poor chihi ha*a’l fell <h ad asleep, with her head tgiu your waistcoat. Zvb< dev" “I gur*< you'd IkUler undn s* her ami pul her to bed,” said t'mdi Zeb. gmitly laying Jown the limp litt’.r figure, with its check* llii'h-d wt isdimh 1 Will go right up and put tin- 1 inf* of the old trundle together, you ami me.” Aunt Hmy was a little awkward with the Imttor. • and string- It wu* a long time siiid h»a *titl. Mdh .ml* had w mught *uih w.>rk a* thi*; but \< Il u< \er woke up. Slk- d'M s look dreadful pn tty then’. faM asleep." said *he “I I guess wt‘ll keep her. Z b. dev." ' I gu< *s w will,” said the old mm. • FUkfll < all u* dreadful silly.” “Let 'em,” said t n< iv Zrbcde Win Foolish Frank, from th. town hou* . iamt to k. >u “cl they hadn't ‘ now bar * 1n a lilt!, girl,’ VmirZbedce ‘ informed him that they had decided to ke< p huh N. Krbudv “Eh. r ” sia, F .’.i'li Frank. “F r gixkl and all .'” “Yr*." *aid I mlc Z< iv <ice. “for gixwl : and all. Go and tell Mr*, Gall *»« ’ I Foolish Frank went IwA. much wand * rring, Bul little Nell w.»kr up. then 4 xt rnorr *ng. with glittering rye* and nr -r d lips apart. a» in a smile. “If* Ei«t- r Day!” *iid *»v . • I dream ed mamma « aim- to m< and put her hand on my shoulder, find *uid we had l»oth •rot hom*’.” I?k - Z-I- ami Aunt lim y l*»okcd nt eii h other with t arful <•;.<•*. And that da*. tin- fir-t in half a m on- 4»f ycar fh*y went to rhim h. through th' bud ding woo*|.. with Nell skipping m be for.. Ami when th. minister -aw them come in. Ir could not but think of the lin***4*d > riptural word*: “Ami a Etth < hild hall lend them! ‘ Life in Liberia, A < orrr-|»ondrrit at Br. wcrsx ili<‘. Libe ria. writing to the hut t'H,j Mo. ♦ •ay - Thi- plu t- 1 Bri w 4 1 « i)b ; i. fifta-rii mih’s from Monrovia. It i* lift*’< n years bld. It i* tin hugest ttlcnnmt in IJlx ria out-nh of Mon.ovia. All the p*’4>plc who have 4 migrat'd outlier- in the last ten or lift< <ll year- have settled in this pla<-*’. Th*’ jM’ople in th» settlement an poor, and on<’ i*n’t able to help the oth**r in a biisiihMS srira* of view. Tlr re arc m> horses, no mule-, and no oxen in tin whole settlement. They have to do all th* farm xvork with the h*>c, the rake, ami th a\ J have Iwcn out Ikh now six month-. Proph’ ar- in 1 siilf'iing condition for something to .•at ami for < tie (.• va -is. Th« !'<• i*u’( my doctor in this I'ttlement; th'- settlement is too poor to supp'irt one. The inhabitants niimb- r 55f» ( alieo i 25 4'4-nt-jmt yard. \ common laborer, when In- can get w<»rk to'hi. r< < rives 25 < * nt* per day. Pi< kl”'l pork i> 25 4’ents p< r pouml. -hoiihli’i meat 25 .ent* per |M>uml. All th.’ fl'-ur and meat used hen* is imported 1 from England ami Am-ru n. Corn meal i> 1<) cm! p'-r <piart. Common flour ia #ls p« r barrel. This i the greatest plm I- foi -<»n -I . \er saw. There is lu re an in-.a t it-, mime is jig’ r: it is very 'lungrroti- J have seen grown people, and < hihln n. too, with their toe* enten '•lf. Sh'x -ar mar n<*4*ded h<-re than, in Aim rica. It is nr<•< - -ary to wear shoes all th'’ t’.m -> a* to protect your fret from tin - in- *!-. The p<4»plr are u. aid. t.i k. < p sho. s 4>n their children all the time, and a good many of them haw to wear *<»r< tret .til tin year round. My boy’s t. rt have been so -ore he could hardly walk. I hr only way the settlers have to make any money h* rr is by raising and selling coffee, ft will take a m’W-eoiner like my self from tiv< t<> *i.x y. nrs to get a coffeu farm in trim f.»r selling coff -e. The pub li. -a hools arc in a poor lo nlition. There is a ( ln*s of people here who do m»t want tin true condition of things written back hoim . They say if the proph* want to know how times are over lure, let them come ami see for themselves. Origin oft he Steel Pen. Thi* now i!idis|M*iisabh* article was slowly perfected, “and like most inven tions thus p< rfe. trd its m. rits w. rr not at onre acknowledged. When, in 1810, it tii*t made it* appraiain-r in England it was a piece of sheet steel b« nt in a tubu lar form, and cut or til.-d away to imitate th.* shap of a .prill pen. tin junction of tin- two edges forming the nib, which, of coursr extended all up the In. k of the pen. It was given away a* a present, and not for u<o. It was highly polished, per haps gilt or silvered, and sold forasmuch a* 5 shilling-. In 1821 Mi. Jam.*- Perry, the founder of a system of education oik’v famous an tin “Perryan” system, took up the steel |h n is a practical invention, and by in domitable energy overcame the .litlicul ties in its < onstru. tion and the objections to its u*e. Hi patented several varieties, and spared no expense to attain perfec tion. Hi* brother informed Mr. Samuel Timinin*. of Birmingham. England, that he paid 7 shilling* per pound for hi* stei l, and 5 shillings per pen to the first w orkmen he employ ed, and that for year* afterward the price given t * his work men xvas ;:t» shillings p. r gr.*s*. rilh I inf ru i .Hfi. \ Japauese bhertisement. \ bookseller in Tokio. Japan, desiring to *eil hi* wan *, thus a.beriisvd them in the new *pa|H r*: The advantages of our establishment I. Price* cheap a* a lot ten . 2. Book* < legant a* a singing girl. 3, Piint clear a* •ry stal. I. Paper tough a* elephant * hide. 5. Customer* tn ated as politely as by the rival sv*aniship com |Miuir*. 6. Article* »* plentiful a in a library. 7. Goo.l* de*p!itchM <1 as< \|»edi tiously as a cannon bill. *. I .(.-done up with a* much . arc a< that Ikstowed on het husband by a h»\ iug w ife. •.(. All defei ts. *uch as di*si|Hition ami idleness, will l»e cund in young p< pic paying u* frequent xi*it*. anti they will lM*come solid men. 10. Inc other advantage we offer are too many for language to ex pre ** Comirieiitioiis* “Eugvna. didn’t 1 ti ll you an hour ago to *ciul that young man of y<mr* home;" Y>s. papa, dear.” “But he went out ju*t now 1 hvanl him —” ‘Ye.'. |hi pa. dear; but h« went the first time, and then he found h< d taken your umbrella, by mistake, and *o he vam<‘to bring it back. Dea" George is ctmscivntiou* ” /* -t. THE PLANETS. A Few Facts of Interest About the Earth's Neighbors. Points About Venus. Mars. Mercury. Jupi- I ter, Saturn end the Eist Venn-, m> wi 11 known to ns all as the loveliest object in the heaven-, the even ing and the morning star, resembles closely our own earth. Its size is almost th same, its diameter being 7,<500: its day is almost the same length, I ami its density is rather less than five times that of water. It revolves round the sun at a distance of fi11,000,000 miles in tin |>ae •of2 ’4 days. Like Mercury, however. Venus is momb-ss. Passing the earth in the meantime, we come to the well known planet Mars. This plan et is particularly inter sting in many |>oint* of view. Next to Mercury it is the smallest of the four interior planets, its diameter being only 4,200 miles, or littl mote than half that of th ■ Earth or Venus, its distance from the sun is 141,000,000 miles, and it completes itscir cuit in 087 days. The length of its days does not differ materially from that of our own. Marshas two moons, undone of them presents a phenomenon imiipie in the system. .No other moon behaves like this one, for it goes round Mars about three tirir-s everyday; that i< to say, it goes f;: .t. r round Mars than Mars does on its own axis. Imagine our moon rising a.nl setting thr -e tinr-s every ta. aty-fonr hours. Another int resting feature in Mars is this; we can see through our tele scopes what seems to be tile conligura- > tion of its continents and oceans and also accumulation of snow at its poles. \\ e next turn our attention to the nth- • er group of plan- ts - Jupiter. Siturn, I rami-, and Nepture. These are distin guished by their enormous siz. •. immense ; distant - from the snn. rapid revolution i on their own a\i-. and very small dens ty. Tin- chatig.' from Mars t > Jupiter is in- ‘ ileeil remarkable. Th litter planet, ; familiar to every observer of the ht avens, j is indeed a giant among giant-. In mass il is cipial t i all tin other planet' put together, its di am •; -r being no h-ss than 85.1)00 mill-., and il distan ■ ■ from the sun ti-2.000.0.>0 milrs. It takes !.:i32 days to complete it • yearly revolution. Although of such enormous dimensions, , it turns on its own axis in less than ten hours. From the small density (I.JIS) of' Jupiter, we should imagine it to be com posed. in great part at least, of fluid or gaseous matter not yet cooled sufficiently to form solid land. From certain phe nomena on its surface it is evdient that it is almost completely enveloped in clouds, and it is doubtful if we have ever actual- , ly seen the real solid muscles of this plan et. Jupiter is attended by four moons, ' which revolve round him at various dis tances. The study of tin s ■ bodies is of great interest; from watching their move ments we got tin- first hint of the velocity of light. Next inorder in our outward ' journey conies Saturn, at the distance of I 884.000,000 miles from the sun, and tak ing no less than 10.75!) days to complete its revolution round that luminary. This planet, though less than Jupiter, is still of gigantic dimensions, its diameter being 71,000 miles. Saturn is the light est of all the planets, its density being ' only 0.75, so that if placed in a huge i ocean it would float with a fourth of its bulk above the level of the water. The most r luark.ible thing, however, about this planet is the system of rings by [ which it is surrounded. What these rings are has long been a puzzle to as tronomers, but the most plausible expla nation -f i nis t i be that they ar ■ composed of myriad hosts of small in; t- oi-ie bodies circulating at some distance round the Itody of the planet. Saturn has no less than eight moons under its control, and if it has ans inhabitants like ourselves— which is not likely, however the heav ens must be a strange sight to them, with these eight moons and meteoric swarms. (’oss/'ZZ*x l/u;/.7;i..i. Enduring Keproof. There is ]H rhaps no better test of a man's character than the way in which he bear- himself under just reproof. Every man makes mistakes; every man commits faults; but not every man has the honesty and meekness to acknowl edge his errors, and to welcome the criti cisms which point them out to him. It is rarely difficult lor us to find an excuse we are looking for. It is. in fact, al ways easier to spring to an angry defense of Hir-i Ive-. than to calmly acknowledge the justice of another's righteous eondem nation of some wrong action of ours; but to refuse to adopt this latter course, when we know we are wrong is t > revea to our better conseiousnes- of others, an essential defect in our ehnract r. That man is strong who dares to con fess that he is weak; he i- always totter ing to a fall who needs to bolster up the weakness of his personality by all sorts of trans|sirvut sluuns. It is not in vain that Scriptun' says; “Heprove one that has understanding, and he will understand knowledge;" for one of the be-t evidences of the possession of that discreet self government which stands at the basis of tnonil strength, and one of the best means of gaining it when it is lacking, is just thi- willingness tn accept nn rited n proof, and to profit by it when accepted.—Z>.-ty Jtar. A -Mulfl luder Fire. The following incident is taken from the “Recollections of a I‘rivnt •" in the Boston I'oMinerr'uil Rulletii<: I must not forget to chronicle a laughable incident that occurred on Morri' Island, S. < . It was in the early days of the siege. S ’me ammunition was wanted in a battery nt the front and a mule-driv.-r volunt -ereti to deliver it. The only road lay along the sandy beach for a distance of a mile and a half, most of the rout • being with in the range of Forts Sumpter and M ag tier. The mule team started up the beach. Sumpter began shelling furious ly. The driver laid on the lashes, the mule, with ears laid back, plied his legs a hundred revolutions to the minute. A shell would strike the lieach and explode; then another would whizz by the team; then that mule would stop and reflect a moment or try to turn back, when down would come the whip. A fresh start for a short distance and then a halt, as an other shell exploded. Then the driver junijK'd from his seat, caught the animal by the head and went on a dozen rods further. Wagner now opened on him. But still the team gradually moved on, reaching tin- battery finally unhurt. The ammuni tion was quickly delivered and that mule w, s headed for camp and started at its utmost speed. Down the sandy road flew the animal, the driver rapidly plying the whip, till at last they reached the shelter of the sand-hills. Just then a shell from Sumpter cam.’ shrieking through the air. Striking the beach at the rear of the team, it bounded upwards and exploded apparently right above the mule. A cloud of smoke hid the team for a moment, but when it cleared away there stood the old mule, with head down and ears back, kicking most viciously at the cart, that had been smashed and brok en up by a fragment of the shell. The driver lay on the sand, but jumped up; he limped towards the mule, cut him loose from the cart, mounted, and gal loped away to t ie camps. Thousands of men, I nion and Confed erate, watched this performance. Our men on shore and the sailors on the ves sel all joined in hearty cheers and waving of caps. The rebels joined in the demon stration to the pluck of the driver and the comical courage of his long-eared charge. Americanisms. There are three terms very often quoted as American “slang" which possess cer tain peculiarities of locality. These are “guess,” “calculate” and “reckon.” One may travel through what are known as the Southern States for five years and never once hear either of the first two words, unless spoken by a northerner or a man from the West. The Southern er “reckons” everything, except, perhaps, coE-<equences, and they are left to take care of themselves. “Guess’’ is more or less universal in the states, and “calcu late” is common only to the North and extreme East. “Stranger” is frequently erroneously used by English writers and speakers as an ordinary colloquialism of all Americans. It is the property of the South and Southwest only, and even there is rapidly becoming obsolete. But to these expressions it is hardly fair to append the stigma of “slang.” Now, there are plenty of slang words and phrases in vogue in America which prob ably are meaningless to English minds. A lady has purchased an article for con siderably more than its value, she shows it to her husband, proclaiming its beauty and cheapness. He. seeing that she had been overcharged, endeavors to per suade her that such is the case, vainlv. for she is quite satisfied with her bargain. “All right,” says he, “it’s not my fu neral.” This is slang, pure and simple, but it has a derivation. It is an unin tentional protest against the elaborate ob sequial ceremonies indulged in by all classes in the United States, and it is a grim reference to one of those not unfre quent “shindies'’ that take place in west- I ein bar-rooms, from which the men who ■ escape with their whole'kins have reason to thank their stars that “it is not their funeral.’*— Chnn>f>ei's'» Journal. What an Indian Can Eat. “An Indian can eat anything, - ’ said a Robert street commission merchant, as two ancient children of the forest with well-tilled bags over their backs made their exit from the store-room. “These squaws come here once or twice a week " he continued, “and beg fur the tainted meat and decayed vegetables and fruit. They will take everything we give them, and will put the stuff into the bag and , carry it off. 1 have given them things that no white being would think of eat ing, and they seem to think it is all right. I asked one of them how thev could eat such strong-smelling meat, when she in formed me that in cooking it thev de stroyed the offensive odor. For all I know, these squaw' keep Indian board ing-hoUM-s. S’. Paul Pioneer Prrm. When Re Gets Round. W if< John, dear. I notice that your brother James never makes a friendly call upon us unless he is intoxicated. Husband—No. my dear, he doesn't. James reminds mo of the moon. Wife—R. minds you of the moon? Husband—Yes. dear; he never get? J round till he's full.— Ik,.ton Courier. DEAD LETTERS. The Office to Which They are Sent in Washington. Finding All Sorts of Articles in Minivcj That Go Astray. Among the many places of interest to l> • visit -1 in Washington, perhaps then is no other that is so absorbingly inter esting to the great mass of visitors as the Dead Letter Office and the museum con netted with it. There is nothing to be seen here, but everyone is capable of un derstanding and appreciating. Just in. si<le the large hall a space is railed off, where visitors may stand and observe at their leisure the work that is going on so busily. Over 15,000 letters a day to be examined, assorted and disposed of; Wiiat n large corps of clerks is needed lor the work, and how quickly, skillfully and mechanically it goes on! In the first room the letters are opened and as sorted. thos • containing money or arti cles of valu? going one way and all the oth ers going another. A simple motion slits open an envelope with unerring precision. The lett-r is withdrawn, unfolded, re placed. The next letter the same. How fast the heaps of the examined letters grow, but tie- work does not end, for tin supply is never exhausted, but constant ly replenished ns the letters are passed on. Here, as in many other departments, the work is several days or weeks behind time, and fresh appropriations are need ed for more workers. The opened letters containing inclos ures of value are restored to the senders when practicable, otherwise they are re corded and filed away, and may be re claimed at any time. Other letters are not recorded. They are returned to the writers, if pos-ible, and when the writers cannot can be found, the letters are de stroyed. In the year 1884, more than 17,000 letters contained money, amount ing to nearly $34,000. Some 20,000 let ters contained drafts, checks, money or ders, etc., to the value of more than sl,- 500,000. Some idea of the growth of the postal service in the United States for a century may be formed, when we consider in this connection the state ment, quoted from a postal report in 1788, that “305 valuable letters have ac cumulated in the department since 1777. Many thousand letters are received an nually containing photographs, postage stamps and merchandise. Thousands of letters are deposited yearly in the Post Office bearing no superscription what ever, and all such of course are forward ed to the Dead Letter Office for examina tion. Easter cards and Christmas cards are received by the gross. These are dis tributed once a. month among the child ren in hospitals. All reading matter re ceived, papers and magazines, are dis tributed among adults in hospitals. Interesting as is the work that is be ing carried on in the Dead Letter Office, the museum of articles collected there is infinitely more so. Au inconceivable variety of interesting objects, beautiful, horrible, attractive, disgusting, amusing, pathetic, valuable and worthless, are ar ranged in the glass cases. Some nice jewelry is displayed, brooches, lockets, a watch and chain, the latest addition be ing a fine gold-headed cane, brought in the very day of our visit. There are a number of pretty rings, slender and dainty circlets! How many an unwrit ten romance may they not have repre sented! Were they betrothal rings, long looked for with vain expectancy and hope deferred ’ Did the senders wait for a response, till the ardor that prompted the gift grew cold? Who can tell? Only the sibyls, sworn to secrecy, who have persued the messages accompanying the gifts.— Honton Transcript. A Rage for Tattooing. A gentleman writing from Yokohama says: “The Japanese have acquired such a passion for being tattooed that a law has been pas-ed forbidding the marking of natives. The law does not apply to foreigners. It is quite the thing now to be tattooed, and elaborate designs are traced on many travelers as an indelible reminiscence of their sojourn in the east. The sons of the Prince of Wales, when here a few years ago. were tattooed, and several Russian dukes ami sprigs of no bility have undergone the process. The son of Longfellow recently submitted t" a very elaborate tattoo decoration, and for more than three months was in the hands of the tattooer. who did an amount ••f work on him during this time that )•' usually spread over a period of throe or four years. This caused, of course, a severe nervous shock which he was only able to withstand by application «f hy|H>dermic injection- of morphine.' A< ir York Tribune. Inociiliiation Against Snake Poison. The R v. Charles Bixby, a native <■! Surinam, says that in Dutch Guiana pn ventive inoculation of snake p-fison has been practised for centuries. I snake is caught and teased until it' J*’ 1 ' -on glands are swollen with blood and actively secreting. The reptile is th' ll killed, its gland'are extracted, dried and pulverized. An abrasion of the skin “* the wrist (usually ) is made, and some of Uris poison dust rubljcd into the wound. It is stated that those who have been thu-' inoculated may be bitten with impunitj-