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X
28
THE SUNDAY OREGONIAK, PORTLAND jOCTOBBB 13, 1901)
r
Bimiii wi Aaaae a aa n gjaal
The Princess of
tHe Purple Palace.
A Story of the Pekin Siege.
. By William Murray Graydon.
(Copyright, 1901, by the Author.)
CHAPTER XIV.
The -answer to the above important
question was speedily forthcoming. Down
through the .flowering shrubbery, among
pagodas, temples and quaint little Sum
mer houses with brilliant-tiled Toofs, Cap.
tain Fang led his companions. At the
"bottom was a' raised wall clustered witn
teahouses, and wide marble steps dropped
to a spacious landing place nearly level
with the -water. Here were moored a
dozen boats of various description. some
junk-shaped, -with tiny cabins and gay
awnings; some with crimson and purple
'sails, and some fashioned like Venetian
gondolas. One -of the number a small,
Tound-bellied craft, fitted with a pair of
oars Captain Pang detached from Mts
ring.
"This will servo your purpose," he said
to the lads, "and it will not be missed,
.since I alone know how many boats are
liept here." He gave a Tevolver each to
.Dan and Alec, and then produced from
xmder the folds of bis clothing two tight
ly rolled parcels. "Tie these about your
bodies," he directed. "They contain caps
and loose blue blouses such as are ordi
narily -worn; you "will not require them
yet, if, Indeed, you have use for them at
all. The -weapons are loaded, but you
are on no account to discharge them while
you are within the limits of the Forbidden
City; such are the Emperor's orders."
The dragon-soldier, an alert figure of
-watchfulness had stopped half-way down
the terraced path. Captain Fang's eyes
-were raised to him for a moment, and
then he turned and pointed across the
lake.
"You perceive yonder speck of yellow
light?" he went on. "It shines from one
of the high towers that stand on either
side of the main western gate of the For
bidden City. Bull over to the far side of
the water, hide the boat carefully and
seek at the base of the wall 100 yards to
the right of the tower, -where the light
shines. Tou will find a knotted rope dang
ling down, and by the aid of that you
must climb singly to the -summit of the
wall and lower yourselves on the outer
side. At the bottom is a moat to be
crossed, and then you will be within the
Imperial City.
A low, clear whistle came floating down
the path, and the next Instant, from the
other side of the hill, a swelling clamor
of voices was distinctly heard.
"They are searching for you in this di
rection, exclaimed Captain Fang. "Quick,
be off!"
"Things are getting unpleasantly hot,"
said Alec, as he jumped Into the boat
and picked up the oars. "Come along,
old chap."
"We're all right now, unless they follow
us by water or cut around," remarked
Dan, when the little craft was receding
from the landing stairs. "But what wor
ries me the most is that -wall; I confess
I don't like the look of it"
The boat, driven by quick, noiseless
strokes of the oars, glided on and on over
the calm, deep surface of the lake. They
were soon in among the Islands exquisite
ly beautiful spots, embowered in foliage,
and each containing a grotto, a temple
or a quaint little villa. The wake of rip
pling water danced farther and farther
behind, and presently the fugitives, look
ing back from a considerable' distance,
caw lights moving at the landing stage
they had Tecently left. It -was not long
now until the boat touched the opposite
side of the lake, and having dragged it to
a Teedy hiding-place, where it was not
likely to be discovered, the lads went on
for a short distance.
Except for the dull rattle of guns they
could hear nothing. The western gate,
with its lofty towers, was directly in
front of them, and by steering a diagonal
course to the right they emerged from
the gardens at the base of the -wall. They
bad calculated -well, and Jx was a great
relief to their minds when, after a brief
search, they found the taiotted rope dang
ling within reach out of the darkness
overhead. Doubtless this was Captain
Fang's doing, though how he had man
aged It could only be surmised.
Viewed at close range, the wall of the
Forbidden City, by reason of its extreme
height, was not exactly reassuring to the
lads. But fortunately it did not present
a sheer surface. It had a slight upward
slope, and the bricks of which it was con
structed -were patched, with ragged and
decayed places.
"It -will take some climbing," said Dan.
"Well, we've got to do It, and the sooner
the better." Alec replied "It may not be
so difficult, after all; there seem to be
plenty of footholds. I'll be the first.
When your turn comes take it cool and
save your breath. Here goes."
A moment later Alec was three yards
above the ground, a vague object fading
Into the gloom. Then, breathless and ex
hausted, he hauled himself over the stone
coping and stood erect on the summit of
the wall.
For a brief second Alec's eyes swept
the view, and then, bending over, he gave
& low whistle. "He grasped the rope and
found it taut
"Coming?" he whispered loudly.
"Yes, Im on the way," was the audible
Tesponse from the depths.
Dan's progress was laboriously slow. To
the lad above, -waiting and -watching -with
fast-beating heart, it seemed a painfully
long interval until the dark, swinging ob
ject grew visible against the purplish
gray surface of the bricks. It advanced
inch by inch, with now and then a full
stop that thrilled Alec with terror.
"Can you do It?" he called down.
The reply, if there was one, was stifled
by a hoarse shout from somewhere in
the gardens of the Imperial Palace; by a
rush of footsteps through the trees and
shrubbery. Another shout; more voices
joined in the devilish clamor.
"Keep your nerve, for Heaven's sake!"
Alec begged, frantically. "Hold tight
don't let .gol Faster! Faster!"
The shouting Increased. The swaying
figure came closer, hesitated, then mount
ted with a rapid spurt. Alec hauled on
the rope with all his strength, reached
for Dan's arms and caught it, and with
a desperate effort pulled him to and over
the parapet.
"Brace upl You'll need all your
strength, he said, sharply.
"Thank God! Tm here," Dan gasped.
"I was sure I would tumble. I'll have
my breath directly. JLA Sheng and the
others are below. They miist have been
lurking thre on the quiet without lights,
and they saw me when I was half-way
up the walL"
Alec scarcely heard the breathless, in
articulate words, nor did he, for tha mo
ment, pay any heed to the noise that
-was ringing from the direction of the
nearest watch tower. The rope the pre
cious rope was all he thought of. He
seized hold of it, and felt -a resistance at
the otter end. Too late! His heart sank.
But no; a desperate jerk, and the man
below lost his grip. Tip came the knotted
coils, yard by yard, tumbling like a snake
over the coping. A pistol flashed and
roared down at the base of the wall, and
a bullet sang viciously by Alec's head.
'Til bet the Tiger did that," muttered
Dan. He glanced to ono side and cried
out In hoarse alarm, "Lrook! look! "We're
In for It now."
Dan's frightened exclamation had been
prompted by the discovery that two men,
who had started well In advance of the
others, -were- running long the top of
the wall. They were already half way
between the towers and the spot where
the fugitives stoDd.
Alec did not hesitate a second? at once
his mind grasped the'slngle slim chance
of escape that the situation filtered.
"The rope," he cried, as he slipped
the noosed end and tossed it to his com
panion. "Fasten it m the oth'er side and
lower yourself. Don't wait for me. I
must stop these two chaps, or It will be
all up with both of us."
The two Chinese soldiers who had dis
covered the lads and were shouting eag--erly
to those behind, drew rapidly near,
their rifles as yet carried In loose grip.
They came within 20 yards 10 eight.
Then Alec's big revolver barked like an
angry cur, and J he foremost soldier was
down in a writhing heap, -with a bullet
Imbedded in some vital part of his anat
omy. Crack! again. The other man spun
round, dropped his rifle, and clapped his
left arm to his right. Then he turned and
bolted with a yell of dismay.
The lad jammed the smoking pistol Into'
his belt and ran to the parapet, where
the rope was swingingfrom the knob of
stone. Dan, who had" been "waiting for
his friend. Immediately began to de
scend. "Don't stop," he urged. "The rope is
strong enough to hear both of us."
"It will have to be," Alec replied, "for
I'm coming now. Look sharp."
He swung himself into the gulf and
vanished beneath the coping. Down the
plucky lads went with scarcely the space
of a yard between them, heedless or
rough bumping and stinging hands down
the precipitous face of the wall, knot by
knot, twisting and spinning dizzily, and
catching what foothold they could on the
the rough brickwork. Above the edge of
the parapet grew dimmer against the
starry sky; below, the flooded ditch lay
calm and glassy.
On and on. Half of the distance cov
ered two-thirds. Excited cries rent the
air oer head, add the savage Chinese
soldiery crowded to the rim of the wall.
Firearms were thrust downward. Crack!
crack, crack! crack! The bullets whis
tled and hummed.
"Drop!" panted Alec
Simultaneously both Ids let go of the
rope, -shot through 20 feet of space, and
plunged with a tremendous splash into the
moat The depth of tfie water proved
their salvation. They -went far under,
came to surface unhurt and struck out
for their lives. "
Side "by side they swam on, amid a
perfect hall of lead that raised spurting
white jets in a circle around them. But
they struggled unscathed through the
deadly shower, and climbed the granite
embankment at the far side of the moat.
The next instant watched breathlessly by
the baffled ruffians on the lofty top of
the wall, they had faded like shadows
into the darkness that shrouded the Im
perial City.
"The worst Is over," gasped Dan.
"Or still ahead of us," Alee replied.
The prospect was now deciaely more
encouraging. Hours of weary tramping
and of ceaseless vigilance, a dark and
perilous detour of miles in the shape of
three sides of a square through the
northern, part of Pekln, found the fugi
tives toward morning in the eastern and
more familiar district of the Tartar City,
and at no great distance from their old
hiding-place in the hollow wall of the Im
perial City.
They had avoided many dangers on the
"vray, yet the worst perils were reserved
for the time when they were nearest to
friends and safety. They bore cautiously
on to the southeast, by deserted streets
and desolate burnt areas, and they were
within half a" mile of the northeast cor
ner of the legation quarter, with the great
east gate little farther off to their left,
when they became aware, by the noise
of shouting and the flashing of torches,
that they were almost surrounded by
oodles of the enemy.
"Tho Tiger is on our track again,"
Dan exclaimed.
"No; I don't believe these fellows are
thinking of us at all' Alec replied.
"But while they are about we can't get
through. "We had better stop where we
are for the present"
A likely-looking refuge was close at
hand a partly-burned mission building,
whose roof had fallen In between still
standing walls and pillars. The lads
crawled deep into the maze of charred
'' " - - -" r . i
'! ' THE BOAT GLIDED OVER THE LAKE.
and twisted beams, and found a hollow
space where they could stretch them
selves full length. Rest was delicious
after their fatiguing adventures, and an
overpowering drowslaess began to steal
upon them.
The day was well advanced when the
lads .woke from slumber woke suddenly,
as if from a bad dream, with a chilling
sense of evil that as quickly materialized
into a very real and imminent peril, for
a man in Boxer garb was kneeling at the
edge of the ruin and peering with a fiend
ish grin into the network of fallen tim
bers. "Mow Chang!" Alec said, hoarsely.
"And he sees" us!" gasped Dan.
It was Indeed Mow Chang, the Tiger's
crafty lieutenant. Hearing the startled
voices, and knowing lhat his eavesdrop
ping was discovered, the ruffian sprang
to his feet, and made off, shouting loudly
as He ran.
"He'll be back directly with a lot more
perhaps with 1.1 Sheng," exclaimed Dan.
"What are we going to do? Is there a
way out behind?"
"None; there is no use to try it," Alec
answered, despairingly, as ho looJCed back
at the closely wedged beams and tiles.
The debris was as impenetrable to right
and left; the only exit was that in front.
For a moment or two the lads listened.
The surrounding city was humming and
buzzing like an angry beehive, echoing
to wild clamor and din, to the blare of
trumpets, and the brazen beating of
gongs. The cannon of the allies thun
dered and crashed, and it was almost pos
sible to distinguish the cheering of the
plucky little Japanese soldiers who were
victoriously storming the great east gate.
Pekln's long-postponed hour of retribution
was at hand.
"The relief force must be within - the
walls," declared Alec. "1 believe the
siege is raised. If we stop here in this
death trap we'll be slaughtered like rats.
What do you say Dan shall we make a
dash for life, before it is too late?"
"I'm with you," Dan assented. "Come
along, and we'll try to "
The sentence froze on his lips. It was
already too late for flight Outside of
the ruined mission building appeared all
at once a half-score of Boxers, armed
with swords and lances. They danred
about like inhuman fiends, and gazed with
hungry, wolfish eyes Into the debris,
where they could vaguely perceive their
Intended victims.
"Kill the foreign devils!" they yelled.
"Off with their heads! Sha! sha!"
With some difficulty, Mow Chang, who
was one of the party, allayedthe clamor.
"Xieave this to me," he said In a per
emptory tones to his companions; and
with that he called loudly to the lads:
"Come out and surrender yourselves, and
you shall not be harmed; by my ances
tors I swear It! The fighting is ended, arid
we will lead you to your friends."
"Do you suppose we are such fools?"
Alec replied. "We know ypu better tnan
that, you lying dog. We shall stop whero
we aro until our friends cpme for us."
Seeing that his cunning ruse had failed,
Mow Chang threw off the mask.
"Go In and take the foreign devils!" he
screamed, foaming at the lips with rage.
"Drag 'them forth! Slice them to death by
Inches!"
There was. a brief, period of inaction.
The capture of the fugitives promised to
be neither safe nor an easy task, and the
matter was hastily discussed.
"They've got us tight and fast," Dan
said bitterly. "It's hard luck. And re
lief so near!"
"Wo can give a good account of our
selves before we go under, 'I Alec replied
through his clenched teeth, "and by
heavens we'll do it, loo. We have 10
shots between us don't waste one of
them. Watch sharp! Here they come!"
Like two grim bulldogs the lads waited,
each with his revolver gripped in his
right hand. They had cleaned the weap
ons and cartridges after the wetting they
received the previous night, and cleaned
them effectively, as the result was to
show.
The passage into the ruin narrowed at
the farther end, but was fairly wide at
the mouth. Three ugly visaged Boxers be
gan to crawl into it, two abreast and one
behind. Bang! went Alec's revolver, and
there was one foe the less to contend with.
Bang! bang! Dan had" fired twice, wound
ing one of the surviving 'ruffians in the
head and pinking the other in the chest.
Howhug with pain, the latter quickly
dragged himself back, and was hauled out
of range by his comrades. Two lay dead,
a ghastly and repulsive sight, within the
cavernous jaws of the burrow.
Tne powder smoke wreathed slowly up
ward amid the jagged beams. The Box
ers, who had not looked for armed resist
ance, -Were paralyzed for a moment, ana
did not show themselves. Then, after
venting their fury In diabolical yells, half
a dozen of the red-sashed miscreants,
whose numbers had increased, darted into
the open and let fly with their lances.
The long, lithe weapons hurtled into the
passage, some lodging half way, while
several penetrated the timbers behind
which the lads timely screened them
selves. It was their turn now, and the quick
barking reports of the two revolvers
seemed to shake the whole mass of de
bris. One Boxer fell dead, and another
crawled away with a bullet in his thigh.
j The rest fled, but not until Mow Chang,
who naa nunerio oeen invisiDie, naa ex-
posed himself for a brief second. It was
long enough for a ball from Alec's re
volver to lodge in his left shoulder, and
with a yell and an oath he reeled out ot
sight
"I wish I had killed him," muttered the
lad. "By Jove, Dan, do you know
there's" really a chance for us, after all?
The advantage Is on our side, and if we
can keep these devils at bay a little
longer, help may reach us from the lega
tions or from the relief force."
"Then we must be sparing of our ammu
nition,'' said Dan. "Howmany shots
have you left?" ,. ,
"Only one," Alec replied.
"And I have two. It's little enough be
tween us." He put an arm. out and se
cured a couple of the lances. "These will
servo us," he said, "when our revolvers
are empty."
But the cheering ray of hope was of
brief duration; it vanished almost as soon
as it was conceived. The Boxers, now
strangely silent, were not inactive. They
were moving aboufbrlskly, as was shown
by wavering shadows on the sunlit sur-
Mi
m
i
ntoww
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"V
.TMEr
face of the street, and of, a sudden hoarse
and triumphant shouts arose. Then the
hissing crackle of flames was heard, and
little red flashes leapt Into view amid the
tangled beams to right and left of the
mouth of the burrow.
"They have .fired the place!" gasped
Alec. "God help us!"
"The fiends!" cried Dan. "Can they be
cruel enough to roast us to death?"
The horror of the fate that threatened
them that seem'ed inevitable held the
lads spellbound and speechless. A min
ute passed. The flames ate deeper into
the dry timbers, constantly darting- forth
their angry tongues in fresh places. Thick,
yellowish smoke poured along the passage,
hiding the Boxers, who were yelling wnn
delight outside.
"I'm suffocating!" panted Dan.
"So am T," Alec cried. "I can't stand
this; give me the sword for preference.
Come on, Dan; we'll rush out and tackle
them. There's a ghost of a chance of
our getting through"
"Listen!" Dan interrupted eagerly.
"What's that?"
(To be continued.)
Why Cats
DisliKe Water.
The Surprising riscatorial
Adventure of Mr. Thomas Cat.
-
(Copyright, 1901. by the author.)
Mr. Thomas Cat was one of the most
fashionable gentlemen that lived In Ani
mal Land, and he prided himself in giving
very select dinners, as well as providing
the very best food for his guests. One
day three of his cousins, Miss Pussy Cat,
Miss Maria Cat and Miss Tabby Cat, came
to see him, and as they were only going
to stay one day, which happened o be
Friday, he determined to give them a flsh
dinner. He was a great swimmer and
could dive like a flash. He never used a
pqlo and line, but stood on the bank and
threw the bait on top of the water; then,
as the fish crowded to the top to eat It,
he would select the largest, spring into the
water and grab it with all his claws. He
seldom (failed to catch the flsh. and then
he would go to another part of the river
and commence all over again. He said
this was much better than fishing with a
pole, for you could always be sure of
catching the largest fish of the lot by his
method.
Mr. Thomas Cat started out very early
on Friday morning so as to be sure to
catch plenty ot fish in time to cook them
properly. He soon arived at the river
and got out his bait. He fished for quite I
a while and had splendid luck, catching
more than he had ever done at one time
before. Ho felt very much pleased with
his skill as a fisherman; indeed, but one
thing was lacking to complete his satis
faction, and that was a very large flsljl
to place In the center of the dinner ta
ble, for he had not caught any above the
medium size. He had gone further down
the stream every time he caught a fish,
and finally he had reached a place where
the water was very deep.
Mr. Blacksnake.
"There should be some whoppers in
here," said Mr. Thomas Cat to himself,
and he threw some pieces of bait into the
river and In a moment there were several
flsh. crowding around and nibbling at
,Ufi
them. Mr. Thomas Cat saw a long "body
stretch up toward the top ot the water,
and a great black jaw seize one of the
fish.
"My, what a. corking big fish!" he said,
and dived In the water at it It was not
a flsh, but Mr. Blacksnake, who was also
Ashing.
He was about six feet loner and almost
as thick as Mr. Thomas- Cat, so when Mr.
Cat caught him, there was a pretty live
ly time. Mr. Blacksnake thrashed around
in the water and finally wound himself
around Mr. Cat and almost squeezed him
to death, but Mr. Cat bit and scratched so
hard that Mr. Blacksnake unwound him
self and tried to get away.
Mr. Cat was glad enough to let him go,
for he was completely exhausted with the
struggle under the water, and almost
smothered for lack of air. He crawled
out on the barik and felt of his ribs very
carefully to see It any had been broken
by the squeezing he had received. He ap
peared to be all right, and so he picked up
his string 6f flsh and started down stream
toward another good place.
"That was a powerful fish," he said. "1
I'VE GOT AN AWFUL LOT OF TOYS
THAT PAPA GAVE TO ME;
GOT MORE THAW ANY OF THE BOYS,
CAUSE I'VE BEEN GOOD, YOU SEE
I'VE GOT A' LITTLE CROCODILE:
THAT RUNS ON WHEELS AND BITES
VTHE OTHER TOYS DON'T LIKE HIM
'CAUSE THEY JHrNK-HE'S-RUDE
ANDV FIGHTS.
I'VE GOT A LITTLE SOLDIER THAT
I WIND UP WITH A KEY,
HE WEARS A GREATr BIGlSOLDIER.
"hat
anef drums his drum forme.
AND" THEN "I'VE COT'SOME'FUNNV
THINGS,
ALL RED AND BLUE AND GREEN;
THEY WALK ALONG AND FLAP THEIR,
. WINGS,
THE FUNNIEST EVER SEEN.
.A LITTLE MOUSE' WITH lilTTLE
WHEELS,
A LITTLE MAN THAT WALKS,
,A DONKEY THAT KICKS UP HIS HEELS
AND ALWAYS, ALWAYS BALKS. ,
I'VE GOT AXOT OF LITTLE MEN,
ALL PAINTED WHITE AND RED.
I THINK I'LL. MAKE A.HOUSEv
THEM
.and.put.themTalCto BED.
FOR?
E-NQ
don't think I will ever dive in that place
again. I am not greedy enough to want flsh
of that size. Why, he was large enough to
supply a dozen families with flshballs for
a week!"
Mr. Mud Turtle.
He soon reached another inviting spot,
and, casting his bail upon the water,
waited for the flsh to come to the sur
face. Several appeared In a moment, one
very much larged than the rest, and Mr.
Cat dived for the large one at once. It wag
not a flsh at all,vbut Mr. Mud Turtle, who
was doing some fishing on his own ac
count. Mr. Cat landed upon Mr. Turtle's back,
and was very much surprised when he
found that he could not Btlck his claws
Into the shell. He hit at it and clawed
with all his might, but this only made
Mr. Turtle so angry that he stretched out
his long neck and caught Mr. Cat by the
tall. Then he sank to the bottom, pulling
Mr. Cat with him.
Mr. Cat struggled with all his might,
and just as he was almost drowned, he
flew around like a perfect cyclone, drag
ging Mr. Turtle with him, like the. tail of
a comef. Round and round they went, and
this made Mr. Turtle so dizzy that he let
go of the tall he had been biting so hard,
and Mr. Cat struggled to the shore.
"That was a narrow escape," said Mr.
Cat, as ho sat on the bank examining his
tall to see If It was much hurt. "I think
I will go further down the river, where
Sead the. cwious boy
JFOT
HIM I mcmi$WI W
i As the leAvcfc J lj Itched down xn tbc beet.,
'"Oh .Why do joir blush? o.rjd Tbe-mzvicUn replied-
To see the bcuc Lirwb of bhe irce&'
y ., .
the flsh are better behaved." Mr. Cat was
very determined and brave, but if it had
not been for his three cousins and his
pride as a fisherman, he would have given
up and gone home. J
Mr. Mini.
He went down stream with his string of
fish and pon found another good place.
Here he threw In his bait, and, as before,
the fish came to the top at once. "Ah,
tehre is a beauty," said Mr. Cat, as he saw
a great fat form gliding along beneath
the surface. "I'll fix that fellow in a
minute," and in he dived. He caught this
time not a fish, but Mr. Mink, who was
also fishing.
Now Mr. Mink was as large as Mr. Cat
and a great fighter, but as Mr. Cat could
not see very well under water, he could
not tell the difference. As soon as he felt
Mr. Cat clawing his back, Mr. Mink lost
his temper, and turning around he did
some clawing, too. They fought so hard
that the water looked as it were boiling,
but Mr. Cat was desperate by this time,
and he nearly killed Mr. -Mink. They
clawed and bit in a shocking manner, and
the only thing that saved Mr. Mink's life
was that he could hold his breath under
the water much, longer than Mr. Cat could,
and so Mr. Cat finally had to stdp fight
ing and swim to the bank to keep from
being drowned. ,
nrv,n .rtnoinji nut nf- thp water he
was a sight. His bathing suit was torn
to ribbons, and he was so Diuen anu
clawed that he looked as if he bad been
through a sausage machine.
"There, that settles it." he said, as soon
as he could get his breath. "When fisn
begin to act as they did today, it is time
for me to keep out of tho water. It was
bad enough to have one tie knots around
me and another try to pull my tail out by
the roots, but ,when they commence to
grow claws like that last ono who tried
to eat me alive, it Is cntlrely'too risky."
Mr. Cat had to borrow a flour sack to
wear-from Mr. Hog before he dared to go
home, for there was hardly enough left
of his bathing suit to make a handker
chief. After all, his cousins Miss Pussy,
Miss Maria and Mis3 Tabby Cat were
just as well pleased with their fish din
ner as if Mr. Thomas Cat had caught
a whale, but when he told them of the
dreadful time he had had with the three
last fishes, who tried to catch him. they
declared they would never go Into the
water again, and they have never done
so. Ever since, cats dislike the water,
and they even, hate to get their feet wot.
RAYMOND FULLER AYERS.
HOME-MADE GYMNASIUM.
Every Boy Can Have One, if He Have
Attlo or Shed.
A gymnasium Is supposed by most boys
to be a room fitted with a large number
of appliances for exercising in various
ways, and those appliances cost a great
'deal when you buy them, and, therefore,
are out of reach of most of our readers.
Still, any one of you can have a gymna
sium, if you have an attic or shed which
your parents will allow you to use, and
better still, you can make the exercises
yourself, and they will not cost you any
thing. , Get two straight hickory saplings, just
Tong enough to 'reach from the floor of
ypur attic to the ceiling, and from three
to four Inches thick. Peel the bark off
carefully and shave off all of the little
lumps with your jackknlfe; then let the
poles stand and dry thoroughly for a
week.
Get four blocks of wood, each about
two feet square and six Inches thick.
Cut holes In the centers of these blocks
just large enough to hold the ends of
the hickory poles. Put one of these blocks
on each end ot both poles and nail them
to the floor of the attic or shed, and to
a beam overhead, so that the poles are
perfectly upright and about two feet
apart. Then your gymnasium Is com
plete. The exercise which you should do the
most and which will do you the most good
Is the most simple of all. Stand with
your feet between the poles, grasp them
firmly with your hands a. little lower than
th. top, button of your coat, lean back
asfar as you can, and then draw your
self slowly forward, without moving your
feet, until your shoulders touch th'e poles.
Repeat this for 50 times at first, but as
you grow used to it, Increase the number.
It will develop your chest and arms
greatly.
You" can do a large number of tricks
and exercises upon the poles, such as
"skinning the cat" and going up the
poles hand over hand with your feet
pointing upward. In fact, the poles will
answer almost any purpose for which the
various exercises In a fully equipped
"gym" are intended.
Prom a Boy's Essay on "Water.
These extracts are from an original es
say on water, taken from the Philadelphia
Inquirer: Ono or two of the writer's Ideas
upon the subject are strikingly novel. For
Instance, he divides all water into four
3ub-headlngs rain water, soda water,
holy water and brine.
"Water," says a youngster It's a boy,
of course "is used for a. good many
things. Sailors use water to go to sea on.
Water is a good thing to fire at boys witn
a squirt gun and to catch fishes in." But
tho strangest of all use3 for water is this:
"Nobody," he says, "could be saved from
drowning if there wasn't water to pull
them out of." This reminds ono of the
boy's essay on pins, In the course of
which he said that pins had saved many
lives by people not swallowing them.
to bhc coy Uitle. girJL.
fVi n. TLSZZL.'. mini ii mm i ll ii i i
Ants in
Fatal Strife.
"Reds" Wage Most Merciless
Warfare on Black. Opponents.
A battle betwen black and red ants,
in which the red ants captured the city
of the black ants and carried away thou
sands of their eggs, was uatched with
much interest recently by J. H. Coonrailt
and his family, of Decatur, 111. Mr.
Coonradt teaches chemistry and zoology
In the Decatur High Schooland has mado
a special study of ants.
It was about i o'clock In the afternoon
when he noticed a long line of red ants
crossing his front walk. The ants were
in" a path about six Inches wide, which
stretched straight across the walk, and
all were coming from one direction. Mr.
Coonradt followed the line back and found
that thousands of ants, all red, wero
marching from a nest hidden in the grass
of the parkins, just outside his fence.
Following the line across the walk a.d
toward the back ot the jard, a distance
of 70 feet, he found the head of the Ioug
line of red ants already in a desperate
battle with an army of black ant3 walch
were just a little larger than the red
ants. They had made a big nest under
a great oleander bush. Though, larger
than the red ants, they (were not a ma'ch
fir them, and had already begun to gtt
the worst of It, when Mr. Coonradt found
them.
Thousands of red ants were swarming
about the nest of the black insects, and
attacking them viciously. A red ant
would pounce on a black one, seize Mm
by the back of the neck and not lt go un
til the black ant fell over dead. Some
of the black ants were trying to escape
with the white egg that nts are of'cn
seen carrying about, and these were al
ways attacked first by the reds. The
black ants would drop their eggs and try
to resist the furious attack made on them.
but they seldom got away with their lUe.
Occasionally two or three black ii'iti
Tould attack a red ant, and in that wry
kill one. So many ants were engaid
that a great many were killed of fco:h
kinds.
Gradually it appeared, however, tllat
the red ants were gaining the victory.
They began to swarm down under th'3
ground into the nest of the black ari
and to come out with eggs. Hundreds
of red ants wero carrying away egg3,
while others were fighting the black own
ers. Occasionally a black ant would a -tack
a red ant with an egg, and then V a
red robber would drop the ogg, attack
the black defender furiously, and Icivo
him dead In a few seconds. Then ho
would pick up the egg and make off up
the lino toward the red ant nest.
The red ants kepj close to the narrow
line by which they came. In a little wil a
the line was made up of reds going la
both directions, some to the nest witn
black ant eggs, and some coming back to
the black ant city to fight again nnd
get other eggs. There were thouia'ids
of red ants In that narrow line.
Mr. Coonradt watched tho battle from
about 5 o'clock until dark, then went to
tho house and left the battle raging.
Next morning not an ant was to be seen.
The passageways had been filled up as
before. NexK day no red ants came.
They apparently had robbed the black
ant city ot Its entire treasures.
Those people who have studied ants and
their ways say that stolen black art
eggs aro hatched out by rqfl. ants, when
the oung become the slaves of the rd
ants, and are made to nurse the yoUmr
red ants, dig the nests of the red ait-,,
store up provisions, and perform other
services.
Most Wonderfnl of Orchid.
One of the rarest and most wonderful
orchidJ known is a native of the Isthmus
of Panama. The early Spanish settler!
there named It Flor del Eapiritu Sant?
(Flour of the Holy Ghost), and those win
have seen It readily understand why. It
grow.3 In marshy places from a decayed
log, or sometimes from the crevice in a
rock. The leaf stalk reaches several feet
In height', and the flower stalk, which
grows from the bulb, bears 12 or 13 bu.ls.
The flower is pure white, and s shaped
something like our jack-ln-the-pulplt In
side the flower, right in the heart ot it, Ij
a perfect image of a dove with drooping
wings, snowy breast, gold-tlnfed head anc'
crimson beak. No effort of the imagina
tion Is necessary to see the resemblance.
It is, declares the New York Herald, in
an account of the wonderful flower, a per
fect image, exquisitely beautiful in tints
and giving oft xn odor that no perfumer
could Imitate.
The Spaniards named it the "Flower of
the Holy Ghost," and regarded It with
superstitious awe, but the native Ind ans,
more superstitious still, worshipped it,
like an idol and would not let the ground
on which It grew be touched.
If In Doubt, Worlc it Out.
A contributor who dreams in figures re
cently sent the following to tho Chicago
Tribune:
1 time 9 plus 2 equals 11
12 times 3 plus 3 equals 111
123 times 9 plus 4 equals 1111
1234 times 3 plus 5 equalslUll
12345 t'mes 9 plus 6 equals 111111
12345G times 9 plus 7 equals mill!
1234567 times 9 plus S equals 11111111
123-15673 times 9 plu& 9 equals 111111111
1 time 8 plus 1 equals 9
12 times S plus- 3 equals 9S
123 times S plus 3 equals 9S7
1231 times 8 plus i equals 9S7G
12315 times 8 plus 5 equals 98763
123436 times 8 plus 6 equals 3S7654
11345S7 times S plus 7 equals 987(1518
1234587S times S plus 3 equa!3 9S7B5432
1224567S9 times S plus 9 equate 987854321
Comlns anil Going:.
Ev'ry time I come to crantlma'a
Grandma calls me "Little dear";
Klesos me. and saya she's very.
Very glad that I am here;
Gives me pie and erjspy cookleo
"Wishes I would stay a. jar.
"When I so home in the Autumn
Tou'd 'moat think grfindma'd be sad,
'ilemberinsr the pleasant Summer
She and I and grandpa'd had.
But' my sokes t she hwlca so amlUnx.
You'd Imagine she, was gladl
New Orleans Picayune.