THE SILENT MARCH.
l OT with the cltis?i of the sabers, not with
' the roll of the dnimg
Or the cheers that greet the hero when borne
from the buttle he cornea,
Not to the sound of the bugle, mellow and
clear and sweet,
Do they pass on the homeward march with
never returning feet.
But Into the dim, deep stillness, where nev
ermore strife may come,
With never a footfull sounding, the soldiers
are marching home.
Bide by side, the line unbroken, as 'twas In
the years ago,
When they went with flying banners to meet
the ranks of the foe.
These were the youthful heroes who fought
for the nation then,
These who march to silent music, scarred
and gruy, like ghosts of men.
For them no bayonets flashing In the tide of
the noonday sun,
For them the echoless silence, long since
were their battles won.
Now are the batteries silent that breathed
their murdernus breath,
That laid like gruln of the harvest the long,
dark swath of death.
Gone Is the smoke of the battle that hung
o'er the far-drawn line
Till the sky was hid at noonday and the sun
forgot to shine,
And where the tide of carnuge surged over
the troddou plain
No whisper comes to grass or flower of all
its crimson stulu.
There were tears and hours of longing for
those who come no more.
For the voices hushed to silence and the
footstep on the floor.
In those far days of battle, those days of
bitterest strife,
When a man for his country's glory get no
price upon his life.
But guarded that nation's honor down to his
latent breath,
The soldier brave who knew no fear, who
parleyed not with deuth.
And ever since the wartime, when love and
home were sweet.
Have the soldiers Joined the silent march,
with never returning feet,
Out from the door of the cottage, from pal
ace of wealth, they came,
And the path led on In silence, the way wn
ever the same,
And still the silent army Is marching awny
a way.
And the last recruit will Join the ranks and
be mustered lu some day.
Buffalo News.
A VILLAGE
They called it Decoration day In n little
village some twenty years ago. It was
one of the great days of the yenr. The
village itself was nil green and white.
The houses were white, with green Minds,
ml white fences inclosed the ample yards.
The green branches of majestic trees met
over the long, white roadways. The
stores, with their green, bntteu shutters,
the flagpole in "the square," the town
hall, with the hitching posts about It,
were all white. And ou the hill stood the
white church.
In this hill church, the services of Dec
oration day were always held. The people
v ho looked down ou the riling? from "the
ridge" could see the white steeple with its
four little spires rising out of the dense
green. It wns it landmark. The church
bell wns sweet, clear nnd far-reaching. Iu
the rear of the church were the long, low
sheds for the horses ami carriages. From
each side n little cemetery stretched
away; the "old cemetery" on the left,
with time-worn opitnphs on gray head
stones, where the white-haired men and
women walked; the "new cemetery" on
the right, wl'h white monuments nnd
flower-bordered plots, where children lov
ed to play. Soldiers lay sleeping in both.
Up In the high belfry-tower are little
wooden monuments use'd only on Decora
tion day upon the soldiers' graves. Each
year they are trimmed with flowers and
evergreens, and for that one day placed
at the head of the graves. Each has up
on It In black letters the name of a sol
dier. These nre brought down to be fresh
ly ornamented the day before Decoration
day. Certain of these little mouuments
are placed unquestloningly aside, some
times with a whispered word of those who
would trim them. A widow takes one of
these, bearing her husband's name. Two
belong to her; but her son's she leaves,
nnd glances about the vestibule. Miss
Hannah, with sweet, sad face, goes to
her and takes the other one. The two
women go out together to the side porch,
from which they can look across to the
spot, under shading trees, where the two
men lie. Others follow them, till all those
monuments set aside have been claimed,
and a little apart from the gossip on the
porch a group of sad-fuced women sit in
silence. Each twines the evergreens upon
the little monument before her with ten
dor, stumbling fingers. The name upon it
her eyes cannot read, for the tears that
blind her, but it is written on her heart,
and on the "Roll of Our Honored Dead."
For weeks before the 30th of May plans
for the decorations were being made by
the committee. The dny before Decora
tion day the congregation met. A vesti
bule ran across the front of the church
'rfc- .-sWit-f ;.--- "
GARLAXD9 OF FLOWERS.
from the side doors that opened out on to
the small stone porches, nnd there the
men cast down great armfuls of fragrant
evergreens. The little wooden soldier
monuments, painted white, were brought
into the vestibule to be trimmed. The
chatter and bustle began with the work.
Little groups formed. Busy lingers soon
lowered the heaps of pungent green. Then
often some young man and maiden would
slip out together to gather a new supply.
And were it not for others who lmilt- nn
the dwindling piles of spruce, the workers
wouiu wait long for tlte two who first
went. When they finally came back, he
with his conscious face hidden behind the
odorous green branches, nnd she, so flush
ed nnd shy, the merry jests were ut their
expense. But, though persecuted, the
faces of the lovers showed thnt it was
good to live.
Within the church, behind the pulpit on
the platform, two white columns rose, out
lined with the woven greens, their sides
hung with wreaths. These were connect
ed by a broader structure on which were
the words: "Koll of Our Honored Dead,"
and in smaller black letters, in two long
columns, were the nnmes of those soldiers
lying in the little cemeteries beside the
church. Spaces were left for the bunches
of flowers, to be added In the morning. At
the top of each column the white statue
of an angel stood. Long ropes of green
were draped about the high gallery, iu the
rear where the choir sat and ubout the
side lights and windows were more grace
ful loops.
As dusk fell the lads nnd lassies had
made their engagements for the nest day,
possibly for life, and home duties were
calling the matrons. The little groups
hurried away nnd the church was left In
quiet. Each white pew door Is closed
upon the green, well-pounded cushions on
the narrow, high-backed seats within.
The little footstools are In prim array.
The hymnals nnd the palm lenr fans staud
neatly in the racks. The gilt pipes of the
organ In the gnllery show above the rail,
and the moon-faced brass clock on the
front of the gallery ticks in a loud, meas
ured tone. The odor of the fresh-cut ever
greens is like some heavy Incense. The
pulpit looms up high and dark with the
big Bible, the hymnal, nnd the little book
of psalms arranged upon It in a severe
pyramid. The moonlight creeps Into the
quiet there, touching the names of "Our
Honored Dead" with its cold fingers, two
by two, up the long columns, till the roll
stands clear.
Through the village, as the evening
prows, the sound of the band practicing
diligently Is heard. A neighboring band
Joins in the ceremonies of the next day
and the rivalry is keen. All the little
girls with long hair, at the Important age
of 7 are to assist in decorating the graves.
Each fond mother braids her small vestai
virgin's hair in tiny strands to produce
the required crlmplness. A warm, spicy
odor from pantry and kitchen in the home
where the out-of-town speaker is to be
entertained speaks for him a comfortable
inner man. One of the prominent men of
the village is to make u tive-miuute speech
nt the monument "To Our . Uuknown
Dead." He has rehearsr-d it for hours
in a meadow behind a hay stack.
The day dawns. The dew is brushed
awny by passing skirts as the women
hasten to their gardens to pick their choic
est flowers each culls unsparingly. Early
in the forenoon the vestibule of the church
is filled with fragrance. Flowers of the
garden, cultivated so tenderly and gath
ered so willingly, are there, and great
masses of snowballs, branches of dog
wood, with their white petals crimson
splashed, the sweet cioi k-orange. the rosy,
flowering almond, nil add their beauty.
The work presses; bouqueis to tack on to
the little monuments, nnd each to be car
ried to its place; great bunches of flow
ers to be placed in the church windows;
everywhere flowers to be lavished. Up
stairs in the "infants' room," nre trays
to be filled with the bouquets each child
is to weur, and the lurge ones for the
soldiers' graves.
Already, from every direction, lines of
vehicles are coming into the village from
nil the little towns surrounding. The
band wagon is brought out, nnd trimmed
with flags. The eight white horses which
draw it have tiny flags between their ears
aim waving on their backs; white horses
always, the whitest in the lead, and the
more speckled nt the wheels. The little
maidens rise from their uncomfortable
night's sleep, with sore heads and exceed
ingly wavy hair. The out-of-town sin-ak-er
has arrived. The bell in the steeple of
the white church on the hill tolls the hour.
The flowers have been placed upon the
white columns; masses of bloom are about
the dark, old pulpit, around the side
lamps, on the walls, nnd following the
gallery rait. The church is ready.
The procession of veterans forms in
"the square." They march to the shrill,
weird notes of a fife, and the intrepid roll
of a drum. The neigh Iwjring baud has
come with but six horses, and none of
them white. The church is packed to suf
focntion. The ministers of nil the
churches sit with the speakers in the pul
pit. The veterans file in. The band clat
ters to the gnllery, nnd sits with the choir.
The standard-bearer drops the great Hug
across the gallery rail, and its soft, silken
stripes sweep td the heads or those sitting
beneath. The little girls in white, nnd
the proudest moment of their lives, march
to the front seats.
The ceremonies begin. They nre very
long. The commander of the O. A. It.
leads the services. The nir grows oppres
sive with the heat nnd the strong frn
grnnce of the flowers. "A selection from
the bnnd" endangers the tympanums of
every one present. A poetess recites with
fervor nn original poem of many stnnzns
to "Our Heroes." The choir has a solo
for the leading soprano of each church,
and other numbers interspersed among
the readings, prayers and speeches.
Then the procession forms. The flower
girls have their baskets of flowers. The
band leads the way to the cemeteries. A
grnve is reached. Two little flower girls
come forwnrd nnd kneel at either side of
the grave. The name of the soldier, his
age, rank, regiment, last battle, nnd date
of death are solemnly rend. A short
prayer follows. The children plnce their
flowers upon the mound. The band gives
three solemn signnls, and at ench the
Stars and Stripes sweep in salute over the
soldier's grnve. From grave to grave they
go, till all have been remembered, and the
sun Is sinking in the west.
The village homes nre full of friends
and relatives from out of town, staying to
ten. Young couples stroll In the twilight
through the shaded streets. Old soldiers
sit In groups, recalling their battle scenes.
In the cemeteries on the hill, the flowers
have faded on the soldiers' graves. The
little monuments show their whiteness
thickly under the dark pines. Chicago
Inter Ocean.
Bull Run and Appomattox.
It Is a fact not generally known that th
first and the Inst stand of the Confeder
ates were made on land owned by the
same man. A part of Bull Run battle
field was owned by Mr. McLean. After
this famous battle he decided to move to
a locality where there would be less fear
from the ravages of wnr. By tt strange
coincidence he took up his abode at Appo
mattox, which subsequently proved U fa
the final battlefield 0f the civil war.
CHINESE JEWS.
A Splendid Tabernacle In the Flowery
Kingdom.
The Biblical prophecy thnt the Jews
should be scattered abroad over the
face of the earth Is certainly a true
one, for there Is no country In the world
which does not contain Its portion of
these thrifty people. Even in China
they have long been known. Early In
the seventeenth century, and shortly
after the Italian missionaries had como
to Peking, one of them, Matthew Kiccl,
received a morning call. Ills visitor
wore the gorgeous Chinese dress, In
cluding the queue, but the figure and
face were not Mongolian, and the smil
ing countenance was not in keeping
with the dignified solemnity of a Chi
naman. The gentleman's name was
Ngai, and he had heard of the arrival
of some foreigners who worshiped one
Lord of heaven nnd earth, and yet who
were not Mohammedans; he belonged
to the same religion, he explained, and
had called to make their acquaintance.
Now, Master Ngal made it clear that
he was an Israelite, a native of Kae-Fung-Foo,
the capital of Houan. He
had come to Teking to pass an examina
tion for a mandarin degree, and had
been led by curiosity and brotherly
feeling to call at the mission house.
In his native city, he yaid, there were
ten or twelve families of IsrsMites, and
a synagogue, which they hu4 recently
restored at the expense . of 10,000
rrnwno, nnd they had a roll cf the l.iw
400 or 500 years old. The missionary's
letetrs described this (synagogue. It
occupied a space between 300 nnd 400
feet in length by about 150 feet in
breadth, and was divided into four
courts. It had borrowed some decora
tive splendor from China. The In
scription In Hebrew, "Hear, O Israel;
the Lord our God Is one Lord, blessed
be the name of the glory of His king
dom for ever and ever," and the Ten
Commandments were emblazoned in
gold. Silken curtains Inclosed the
"Bethel" which enshrined the sacred
books, and which only the rabbi might
enter during the time of nraver. Ev
ery detail of this place, with its In
cense, its furniture and all Its types of
good things yet to come. Is Interesting
There, In the last century, the children
or Israel nt Kae-Fung-Foo worshiped
the God of their fathers with the rites
that poiuted to the Messiah, of whose
navent, as far as It can be ascertained,
they never heard until the arrival of
the Italian missionaries.
Learned men have entered Into dis
cussion ns to whether these people
were Jews or Israelites, whether they
come to China from the Assyrian cap
tivity or the Roman dispersion. They
themselves say that their forefathers
came from the West, and it Is prob
able that the settlers arrived bj ,-y of
Khorassan and Samarcaud. They
must have been numerous lu the ninth
century, for two Mohammedan trav
elers of that period describe s. rebel,
named Bae-Choo, taking Canton by
etorui In A. D. 877 nnd slaughtering
120,000 Jews, Mohammedans, . Chris
tians and Parsees. More than one Jew
of Kae-Fung-Foo is known to have
gained the right to wear the little,
round button on the top of his cap so
dear to the ambition of a Ghiuaman.
The Talping rebellion dispersed the
settlement, and the remnant who re
main faithful to the memory of old
traditions are chiefly poor and dis
tressed. Eccentricities Not S Rns of Insanity.
au eastern physician has broached a
theory In regard to some noticeable
ecentrlcltles. Many of the foremost
men of the world nt present and in the
past have had queer little habits which
make them a laughing-stock, some
times behind their backs only, to their
friends and acquaintances. The great
Samuel Johnson, for Instance, never
could pass a lamp-post without touch
ing it, nnd always kept a collection of
lemon nnd orange peels under his pil
low. Eiuile Zola has many little hu
mors, the gratification of which form
the basis of his daily happiness. These,
says the psychologist, are not signs of
Insanity, but of overwork. The tired
brnin feels impelled to do certain
things. The human mind is a. most
complicated machine, and although a
nice exposition of the causes of these
really iusignlflcant matters Is impossl
ble to a general public, it can be con
fldently stated that the healthy mind
when fatigued by a. day's hard work, is
none the less sound for the queer things
it may impel the hand to do.
Chleanoans with Short Names.
The Chicago directory contains hun
dreds of thousands of names. The fact
that there are but ten names of two let
tors la the book shows how rare such
names are among the nntlons. It would
seem that nearly every man born with
a name of two letters promptly tacks
ou another. The directory contains
hundreds of three-lettered names
Those who boast but two letters and
apparently have enough are Maurice
Ax, Emily Eg. Axel Ek, David Ex. Ed
ward Ey. William Gy, Sawg To. George
J. Ty, Nicholas Be nnd Emil Ru. On
posed to them Is William Zwlerzykow
bkl. Chicago Chronicle.
Lots of men who have traces of
greatness In their make-up spoil every,
thing by kicking over the traces.
Throwing mud nt a good man only
resulta lu colling your wu hands.
UABASTINE Is the oh .
an?, "'y drab'e wan
........ c.., uiuc.eni rrom a't i.r
somines. Readv for
white or twclve'fceautifni ?, to
by addingr cold water. tlntl
AD1ES naturally prefer at.
BASTINE for waTls ? and
Ings, because It is pure V1
durable. Put up in dr'v iean
dered form, in five-pounJS"
ages, with full direction4
LL kalsomlnes are cheap tom
porary preparations made S
whiting, chalks, clays I?
and stuck on walls with
cayln? animal glue. ALABa?
TINE 19 not a kalsoraine
EWARE of the dealer
says he can sell you the 'W
thing" as AUABASTINE m
"something Just as good u.
is either not posted or Is tr!
lng to deceive you. 1
ND IN OFFERING somethln.
he has bougnt cheao and tn
to sell on ALABASTINE'8 Id.
mands, he may not realize th
damage you will suffer by
kalsomlne on your walls
EN SI BLE dealers will not nil
a lawsuit. Dealers risk one bv
selling and consumers by uslni
Infringement. Alabastine Co
own right to make wall coas
lng to mix with cold water.
HE INTERIOR WALLS of
every schoolhouse should hi
iaieJoni?xWJ.th pure' duraMe
ALABASTINE. It safeguard
health. Hundreds of tons ar
used annually for this wor
N BUYING ALABASTINE, sej
that packages are properly la.
beled. Beware of largo fonr.
pound package light kalso
mlne, offered to customers a
a flvc-pound package.
UISANCE of wall pacer Is ob
viated by ALABASTINE. it
can he Uo u on jiu&iered wails,
wood celllnRs, brick or can
vas. A child can brush it on.
It does not rub or scale off.
ST.ABLISHEiD !n favor. Shun
aW Imitations. Ask paint dealer
or druggist for tint card. Write
for "Alabastine Era," free, to
ALABASTINE CO., Grand
Rapids, Michigan.
I'ny of Lawmaker.
The lawmakers in Austria and
France are paid $5 a day; in Greece the
senators get $100 a month and the
deputies $50; in Germany members
of both houses receive about $2.50 a
day; in Denmark the members of the
"landsthing" each receive about $3a
day; in Belgium each member of the
chamber of representatives gets $85 a
month; in Portugal the peers and com
mons are paid the same sum, which ia
about $355 a year; in Spain the mem
bers of the cortes are not paid for their
sbt vices, but enjoy many advantages
and immunities; in Switzerland the
members of the national council get
$2.50 a day, and the council of states,
the lower house, $1.50; in Italy the
senators and deputies are not paid at
all, but are allowed traveling expenses.
England is the only countty where
members of parliament are not only
unpaid, but have no special rights oi
privileges. Chicago Chronicle.
A Sinn or a Mlnlnter.
A distinguished Massachusetts cler
gyman tells a good story at his own
expense. lie was on a tramp through
the White mountains with another
clergyman for a companion. One day
they mounted the driver's seat of a
stage coach. As is often the case, the
stage driver was an interesting char
acter whose conversation abounded in
good stories. The three sneedily be
came friendly and it was with reluct
anoe that they parted at the end of tin
journey. "I'm glad ter hev met yet
fellers," said the driver, on leaving
them. "Yer see, I haven't seen a man
this Bummer exceptin ministers."
Does anybody doubt that these twe
men had more influence for pood ot
this driver than all the duly uniformed
ministers he had met that Bummer?
Anecdotes and Morals.
Iteprovlng an Archbishop.
An English paper tells how tin
archbishop of Canterbury, some time
ago entered an East End (London)
church during a week-night service,
and, taking a back 6eat, joined in sing
ing one of Moody and Sankey's hymns.
Next to him was a workingman who
was singing lustily in tune. Tb
primate was wretchedly out of tune,
and his singing evidently upset the
workingman, who patiently endured
the discord as long as he could, and
then, nudging the archbishop.whisper'
ed in his ear: " 'Ere, dry up, misterl
You're sp'iling the ehowl" Chicago
Chronicle.
, Only One.
Nice Young Man (leoturing in
Sunday school) Now, is there anj
little boy or girl who would like to
asK any questions? Well, little boy.
J see your hand; would you like to
ask?
Small Boy How much longer U
this talkin' going to last?
collapse of lecturer. Tit-Bits.
Proper Tr.inin.
A business man is training his two
little sons to repeat invariably, in con
versation, the name of the person to
whom they are speaking, as: "Yea,
Mr. Browne;" "Good afternoon, Mil
Greene;" "N0, Miss Mary," etc. Ha
Insists on this form of courtesy, be
cause of the special value it may be to
the boys in business life. To call
person promptly by name is a subtle
compliment, which many times may
have a commercial value. Housewife.
A proverb found in one form oi an
other in every European or Asiatic
iKUHge naving a literature is "Fa
miliarity breeds contempt." Its earl
iest form is believed to be of the San
knt.