HIS BEST DAY.
"I know a toy likes Chrls'mas beat
'Cuh Santa t.'liius com.-s then;
He liki-8 to hang his stocking up,
An take It down au.r,
An' count his pr.'i-en.s . lit but
1-
I'druther have It Fourth J..ly.
"TUat otlier boy likes Chrls'mas best
'Cos o' the Cliris'inas trees
To Sunday schools uu' things to eat,
An' when they's been a freeze,
He likes to slide and skate, but my!
What's that longs.de o' Fourth July?
"C'hiis'mas is Rood, but Fourth July!
That diiy's the best of all
0 my! I wlfht could be Hie Fourth
All summer an' all fall!
No other time begins to be
So good as Fourth July to me!
"I hope 'at when the Fourth Is here
My niother'll think Its right
To let me creep down stairs an' fire
My crackers olT 'fore light.
I'll blow my horn, and shoot my gun!
An' wake up pn! un' have such fun!
"At dark I'll fire my shooting stars,
An' let my rockets gl ue,
An' ret my Hoiiian candles t ff
AVu:z! Itush! Hnssis! Hani;! Pop! Flare!
riiris'mas Is gond 'nough, but my!
I'druther have It Four h July!
1 wlsht 'twas always Fourth July!"
Womankind.
ooooooooooooooooooooooocoo
A Fireworks Capture.
OGOOOOOOOOOCOCOOCOOOOOOCOJ
OTp ROUBLE rased on the irrigation
J ditch. The upper gang and the low
or gnr.g were at outs. The former
had lost a horse and the lower gang was
ijliii0.u-u iu iiiiliiuu uie luiel.
"It just means a fight," exclaimed Mack
to Simpson, as the two members of the
lower gang rode over the plains one sum
mer night. "There can't be any horse
stealing around these parts and not have
lighting."
"No; and the fooling isn't any too good
already," added the otlier.
The ponies loped easily, and turning
down the trail went swiftly into the thick
sunllowors of a ravine. It was nearly sun
set and the tall weeds seemed to be al
most like young saplings. Suddenly the
horses stopped; ahead was an unusual
night, a white-topped prairie schooner.
"A one-horse rig, too," exclaimed Simp
son, looking at the thills that were on the
front of the wagon.
"And deserted, too," and Matt drew
nearer to the strange outfit.
"Well, what do you think of n man that
will do this?" He pulled the curtains
aside and showed the sleeping form of n
boy perhaps 7 years old. The little fel
low looked peaked and helpless and the
fympailiios of both the men were nroused
by the sight.
"Well, he's a rascal," was the reply at
last and the curtain was dropped.
"J lo ain't a rascal," came from the in
side of the wagon. "My papa is good to
1110."
"Hello, there, what are you doing horeV"
usked Matt.
"Waiting for fireworks; papa has gone
lifter thciii. He always gets them for me
till the 1-Vthor duly."
"What did he say?" asked Matt.
"Hays his father has gone after fire
works a likely story. The boy's hungry;
that is what is the matter with him."
"Weil, Id's feed him. I'll go over and
get him something from the camp. And,
nay, I'll bring him some fireworks, too.
I'd forgot it, but to-day is the Fourth of
July, and the boss has a lot of rockets and
things ready to lire oft". All the men are
out hunting for the horse thief and they
have rorgottou all about it. I can steal a
few."
Away rode Matt in the gathering dark
ness, and although the pony went very
fast, and the man did not stay in camp
more than a few tnouieu s, the wait seem
ed a long one to the watcher in the ravine
with tlie boy. The child was hungry and
nervous and confided to the man that he
liad been "awful sick." Simpson felt ex
ceedingly sorry for the little one, and was
more and more indignant at the actions of
the lean who had forsaken such a precious
charge.
"Here he conies," he said at last, when
the rattle of horse's hoofs was heard on
the prairie sod. Matt came down the ra
vine ami had some dillleulty in finding
the wagon hidden in the sunllowers. At
last he opened the package of food and
laid the fireworks on the grass beside the
boy.
Nipper first, was the order from
Simpson, and the three alctlio generous
supply that had been brought.
"Good thing not to take the kid to the
ranch,' said Matt. "The men will have
o rough tune there to-night, and they
wouldn't spare the boy."
"Now for the fun," and away went one
of tin? rockets into the darkness, scatter
ing its splendor over the level plains that
spread Irom the edge of the ravine. The
jack rabbits and the prairie owls saw it
nnil wondered what it could be.
Somebody else saw it, for away off to
Uie south, where its light was visible only
ns a faint glimmer, there was n eonmanv
of horsemen, and they turned their ani
mals in that direction.
"Hark!" said .Matt, as the fun was nt
Its height. "Somebody s coming."
The light of the last rocket had given
it passing view of a man on horseback at
the crest of a ravine. In n moment the
man was near them and he was accompan
led by a large number. In the midst of
the party, Willi his head bound In a large
red handkerchref, was seen the figure of a
inn ti tied on a horse.
"We have got the thief," said the leader
cf the newcomers.
"Well," replied Matt, "what are you
wringing mm Mere for i
-.. i . ..
n i- niiiii in mm tmr way ana we
thought this was the camp. Hut we are
going to settle with the rascal right here.
miyhow. It might not be best to take
lilm to the camp, arter all."
"Sure It Is the man?"
"Hound to be got the horse."
In the dim light of Uie little fire of sun
flower stalks that Homebody had kindled
the prisoner was brought forth. He pre
sented a pitiful appearance and the men
almost felt sorry for him. Still, they
knew the uuwrilten law.
1. Jack Rabbit roily, want a cracker? 2. Toll I'll go you. But won't yot.
Poll Not on your life, Jacky. I've have a cracker, Jack? LV have one 'on
sworn off smoking. me.
Jack Then let's have a Fourth of July
race. I'm a regular crackerjack at sprinting.
kit tit.-
i. T ' m .. y
C. Iljuiou! This looks like one on me.
4
5. Tolly How's that for a cracker,
Jack?
"What have you there?" remarked one
of the newcomers, pointing to the boy who
stood by, looking with open-mouthed as
tonishment on the weird scene.
"Nothiug but a kid that we nicked urt."
answered Matt. "Lot him alone, will
you?"
"Say, fellows," went on the visitor,
what's the mntter with lettinir the bov
fire some of his rockets and make a re
sectable illumination for this proceed
ing?"
The others acrppd. and the child wns
placed in nosition at the henrl of the two
lines that had formed and had in his hand
a big rocket that was to be tired at the
signal, and then the bands were to be
taken from the prisoner and he could be
hit by any one who was quick enough. It
was thought that he would get enough
punishment to prevent him from ever re
turning lo that section again. He evident
ly thought so, too, for he was trying his
best to escape.
"All ready," called Matt. "Go!"
The bandage was drooned from the
man's eyes and the rones came from off
his feet and arms. A dozen whips were
raised to strike, but before they could be
used a dratnatic scene followed. The bov
who was to fire the rocket dropped the
signal in the grass and the bunches of
fire went skurrying away in the tall sun-
nowers. l-or himself, the little fellow
made one lean, and before a whin descend
ed he was clinging to the man's neck with
iiotn arms around the same in an embrace
that meant a great deal.
"Oh, it's papa!" he cried, and the man,
instead of running, stood holding the child
to his breast.
"Well, this is a go," said Matt. "What
have you men been doing?"
"Make him run," called one of the more
excitable ones among them. He raised
his whip again, but Simpson stood be
tween and would have received the blow
on his own shoulders.
"Yon have captured the wrong man,"
said the stranger.
"Hut you didn't say so."
"How could I when you had put a yard
of cotton over my mouth? I was looking
for something to eat, and you made a
rush nnd got me tied before I could get
word to you. I tried not to let you get me,
though."
"Yes, you fought like a tiger."
"My boy nnd I are traveling back east,"
went on the man. "One of our horses unvo
out back here a ways, and we had to get
along with one. The boy's mother died
in the mountains, and I must take him to
my folks. We are very poor, but we are
honest."
"Then how did you get the horse that
belongs to the gang?"
"I did not get the horse. This is my own
horse.
"We'll see about that. Come on. boys."
said the leader, and they went toward the
rnnehe house, where the tnen had their
headquarter.
"Hrmg little fireworks and his play
things, called one of the men, and they
gathered up the remainder of the roeWa.
On the way the boy tired several, and their
path was thus marked with lire and shout
ing, for the meu enjoyed the sight as well
as he.
As the.v came Into camn tbev nw nil th
tipper gang men and the remainder of the
lower gang employes gathered there. This
unwonted sight made them afraid that
trouble was in the air.
"We have got your horse," called Matt,
as they drew nearer.
"So have we." came the strnneo nninw
Sure enough, as they entered the camp
there was brought a horse with a piece
of picket rope tied to his neck, and when
1 1 1 1 ' V RtoOil hilll beside tlu linran rl,l.l., l,-
the stranger the two animals looked like
as twins.
"Hut thin la the riirht mm" ortd.ilnn.l
... - ' . 1 1 1 1 n v, .
oue of the men, poiutiug to the rope, "lie I
4. Tut! tut! hat's this? 1 smell
powder.
&VS ,
G. Zip! Kerzoom! End of the Tale.
San Francisco Examiner.
had been in the tall weeds and was tan
gled by his rope."
"Seems to me that we owe you an apol
ogy," said Matt, addressing the stranger.
"Let's oelebrate it," added the happy
Simpson. "If it hadn't been for the boy
we would have given the man pretty bad
treatment. Let him fire his rockets."
So the remainder of the fireworks went
into the dark and illuminated the scene
that was so unusual on the plains.
"While we are about it," went on Simp
son, "let's shake hands and be friends
again."
The men of both gangs liked the sugges
tion and spent a happy 'evening together.
W'hen the boy and the emigrant drove
on east a few days afterward they were
seated behind two horses, and the good
wishes of both camps went with them.
Chicago Ikecord.
TWO MEMORABLE FOURTH?.
One Followed the Fall of Gettysburg,
the Other the Victory ut Santiago.
ITIS
'M.n seen some sensa-
Wdy-tfM tional and dramatic
'lelirations of the
'ourth of Julv. nnd
these same go to en.
force historical sig
nificance with thosi.
whose memory
reaches back into
the past generation.
Just 3(5 years ago
this Independence
Day, that of lSt!3
was one of expres
sive, heartfelt emotion. When the sun
rose on that vivid Fourth of July. and the
preparations were made in the midst of
devastating war to pay homage to the na
tion's natal day, the wires Hashed the
news that Gettysburg had seen tlie most
momentous victory for the Union arms,
and that Vicksburg had fallen. It was
perhaps the most critical period of the war
the high-water mark of the prowess of
one army, when its forces had pursued a
victorious march and were actually hi
ripe alien territory. The whole nation
quivered with excitement, and it was In
deed a glorious Fourth when the news
came that Grant aud Meade had simul
taneously won two such vital victories.
It is a singular coincidental situation
that exactly one year ago practically the
same interest and anxiety as that mani
fested in 18(53 hovered alnnit the Fourth
of July, 181)8. It requires brief exercise
of memory to revive with a thrill the rare
eagerness with which the whole people of
this country were awaiting news of the
naval campaign in Culm as the month of
July drifted in. It was July 3 that the
most remarkable exploit ever accomplish
ed by American arms came to fruition-,
on that day the United States navy met
the foe long sought for, and Cervera'g
fleet was destroyed in Santiago harbor.
The series of thrilling events that accom
panied this Important occurrence, the in
tense national anxiety of July 3 that was
followed by widespread rejoicing the en
suing day, mark an epoch in ardent his
torical event that, being within our near
actual knowledge and participation, wili
never be forgotten.
9' jZ
"They're off in a bunch."
s 3
llnclng Term,
r -A)
UNITED STATES NAVY
MUCH INTEREST AROUSED BY
ITS ACHIEVEMENTS.
tacts with Which the General Public
la Unacquainted-The Wases Paid
to Unlisted Men Far Above the Aver
age Flghtlnit tblps.
That the easy and successful manner
In which the American navy disposed
of that of Spain has created a revival
of interest In that Important and pow
erful branch of the fighting service of
Uncle Sam Is fully attested by the
thousands of queries that reach the
newspapers from the public requesting
Information about the navy and all that
pertains thereto. The inquiries come
principally from the interior, where a
Jackie In full regalia Is as much of a
hero as Admiral Dewey, the greatest
of the great. That the next few years
will see the Injection of more energy
and Intelligence Into the navy that is,
among the enlisted men and the elim
ination of the foreign element that Is
actuated more by the substantial
wages paid rather than the love of
country, Is demonstrated by the wish
of thousands of bright nnd courageous
young Americans to enter the service
In view of the conditions that prevail.
The personnel of the navy is as fol
lows: Admirals
Rear Admirals
Comm;dore3
Commanders
L'eu.enaat Comn.anderB. . . .
Lieutenants (senior)
Lleuteuauts ijunlor)
Ens gns
Chief Engineers
1'ay Ass srant Knglueers...
Assistant Eiigiueerj
1
7
t)
85
74
250
70
157
70
08
881
Total official persotinel
Enlisted men (three years)
Enlisted men (two years)
Apprentices
. 1,538
.11,1)37
. 4,472
. 2,278
Total 18,085
In the Marine Corps there are 72 of
ficers and 3,170 men, making a total in
the navy, officers and men, of 23,591.
The aggregate number of these vessels
in the regular navy, Including all ves
sels in service and under construction,
is 189, divided as follows:
First class battleships 12
Second class battleships 1
Armored cruisers 2
louble turreted monitors " 0
Single steel turreted monitors 4
S.ngle Iron turreted monitors 13
Protected cruisers 13
Protected cruisers sheathed with wood..'! 2
Unprotected cruisers 3
uunooacs . : y
Mght-druught gunboats '. "3
Composite gtiuhoats 0
Training ship ..".!!."! 1
Special class 2
xorpeuj uoat destroyers 10
Lurneuo OOIUS 35
aiinumriuo lorp -co boat 1
Vood torpedo boat 1
jurpcuo oonts captured iu last war 8
null ITU B..TS
Woodeu cruisers !!.!!!!!
Sailing vessels
rugs
Wooden steam vessels unlit for atti ser
vice
Wooden silling vets-Is unlit for sea ser-
0
Of tbe seaman branch, seamen trim
ners receive $20 monthly, seamen S9-i
nnd first-class apprentices ?21. An or-
uinary seaman gets $19 a month nnd
second-class apprentices $15, while
landsmen are allowed $10 and third
class apprentices $9. Of the chief pet
ty officers the chief mnster-nr-nrm
which position nny bright apprentice
can achieve la time, receives $03 per
month. Chief gunners' mates and chief
gun captains get $50 each.
The petty officers are classified as
chiefs, first, second nnd third Hna
each being paid in proportion to the
class to which he belongs. The same
scale prevails among the enlisted men
me landsman is the recruit from
shore, who Joins the navy with no pre
vlous experience. He does the monini
work, nnd sometimes he attains the
dignity of coal-passer. Three or four
enlistments will enable him to be called
n seaman. Landsmen nssienpri in
as Jacks-of-the-dust and lamplighters
receive o a month in addition to their
pay. The boy of robust onnriitinn
average- intelligence can become an ap
prentice upon application, provided he
is supplied with the written or
consent of his parents nnd the neces-
sary letters of recommendation. Cin
cinnatl Enquirer.
EGYPTIAN ELECTRIC FISH.
Ppcciei Found In ths Nile that Give
Considerable t hoc.
An interesting nsh that inhabits the
waters of the Nile is the malapterurus
electrieus, which Is considered about
uie uesi species or electrical flsh, for,
limine xue gymnotus nnd torpedo, Its
eiectric organs cio not affect its mo
uuu. iu u paper recently presented to
uie itoyai institution at London, the
uieory is auvaneeil by Professor (Joteh
that the sent of the electro-motive
force Is the nerve-center itself, and not
mo collection of plntes which have
uunerto oeen considered the electric
organ of the flsh. These plates num
ber About tWO mlll!ntl on,l
modified muscular substance separated
v) iiu uiuuiumous composition, wlillo
each is connected by a single nerve
fiber to the nerve-center. A measure
ment of the electro-motive force of the
n.io a .inuiiuy electrometer re-
euiea me met mat the electro-motive
iuicu us oi me same order as
produced by the contrnettnn nt n
that
mus
cle, and amounted to nbout .04 or
.03
toiu between the excitation of
the
nerve and the maximum i....
tive force there Is a time-lag 0f aim.
1-1,000 of a second, nnd an oscillator,
electro-motive force is generated bv
single momentary excitation of tl'
nerve. At the lecture befm-P i1Q n
Institution already referred to th all
trie current from two of thoaQ i,'
electric fishes was shown with a teh
phone, and also shocks plven to tnanj
of the audience." Some of throw tlul
were procured by the Scuff exix-diri
of Columbia University . while at tli
iMip lust, Buiuiuer, ana are exhibited
in the museum of the department ot
zoology of that lnstitution.-Boston
Transcript.
50C
Ate. tit
NATURE & SCIENCE. .....
The weight of a man's brain has it
Is said, nothing to do with his mental
power. It is a question of climate, not
of intellect. The colder the climate,
the greater the size of the brain.
American engineers estimate that the
ore In sight In the South African gold
district called the Rand, contains
about $4,000,000,000 worth of the pre
clous metnl. But unless more ranld
?t!lGdo Cf production ai"tt C'inpioved, it
will require fifty years to put this gold
Into circulation and use.
V. H. Treece, president of the British
Institution of Civil Engineers, In a re
cent address, said that speech Is now
practically possible between any two
post-offices ill the United Kingdom,
Theoretically it is possible to talk be
tween London and eyej'y capital In
Europe, and the British post-offlee au
thorities are considering the submer
sion of special telephone cables to Bel
glum, Ilollnnd and Germany.
An organized effort fs lieing made tc
stamp out consumption in Germany by
scientific methods of treatmeut. Al
ready 20 sanatoria for patients have
been opened, and others are to be pro
vided. A congress Is to be held in Ber
lin for the purpose of maklntr the war
against consumption a national move
ment throughout the German empire.
It has been decided to establish a
meteorological observatory nt the top
of the great cathedral spire in Ulm,
Germany. The Ulm cathedral is one
of the most extraordinary In existence,
on account of tbe great size nnd height
of its single spire, which reaches an
elevation of 52S feet. Although the
great church was begun more than Ave
hundred years ago, the spire was not
completed until 1890.
R. Lydekker, the English naturalist,
says that tortoise-shell, which Is made
from the horny skin overlying the bony
ease of most species of turtles, pos
sesses the property of welding so per
fectly that no trace of junction is visi
ble. Two plates to be united have
their adjacent edges bevelled iu oppo
site directions, nnd are then squeezed
together In a metal press, under the
action of boiling water. Imitation tortoise-shell
is made by painting horn
with a paste of lime litharge and soda,
which is rubbed off after drying. This
process lenves dark spots of lead sul
phide in the horn, resembling the mot
tling of real tortoise-shell.
Youthful Bravery.
Boys from 10 to 21 make the besl
fighting soldiers. Their youthful ardor
carries them away, and they face clan
ger in an exalted moad, which robs
war of its terrors. There were many
captains in the civil wnr who were un
der 21 years of age. There were briga
dier generals only 21 years old. General
Grant was under 40 when he entered
the wnr. Stonewall Jackson had won
Immortal fame nt 38 nnd died nt 39.
General Sheridan was a general at 30.
Fitzhugh Lee was a major general at
29. Alexander had conquered the world
before he was 33. Napoleon became
master of Egypt, crossed the Alps, and
fought the battle of Marengo, at 30.
Young men make the best soldiers. The
civil war was fought by young men
and boys. There are living veterans of
that war who are now only 50 years ol
age; yet that war began thirty-elghl
years ago.
A Penny Saved.
The individual who saves a dollar In
one direction and immediately pro
ceeds to spend two In nnother, as a
sort of reward of virtue, is a familiar
chnrncter. "I've stopped economizing,"
said the girl with the violets, as sh
stirred her chocolate. "I can't afford It
I trimmed this hat I'm wearing last
mouth, and saved pvpr nr much. 1
saved so much that I felt able to buy
a new gown, and It will cost three
times what I saved before It's finished.
It's always the way. If I save a car
ticket by walking down fown, I spend
a dollar for violets before I get home.
I'm going to stop trying to 6ave, and
I've painted a proverb to go on my
mantel to remind me of It: A penny
saved is a dollar wasted.' "
Every time we meet a school teacher
we find that we have always been pro
nouncing another word incorrectly.
When a boy claims to be sick in the
morning It Is usually a sign that a
wants to go fishing before Saturday.
V N