f ROST on the punkin.
Vbcn the frost Is on the punkin and the
fodder's iu the shock,
lad you upar tnw kJ'0,,ck and gobble of
the Btrnttin' turkey-cock,
And the claokiu' of the guineys, and the
cluokin' of the hens,
And the rooster's hallylooyer as he tip
toes on the fence;
0 it's then's the times a feller Is a feel
' in' at his best,
jVkh tlie lisiu' 8,111 t0 Kroot him from a
night of peaceful rest,
As he leaves the house, bare headed, and
goes out to feed the slock,
When the frost is on the punkin and the
fodder's in the shock.
Whey's something kind o' heartylike
about the atmosphere
When (lie best of summer's over and the
oooliu' fall is here
of course we miss the (lowers and the
blossoms on the trees,
And the mumble of the hnmmin' birds
mid bnzzin' of the bees,
Bat the air's so appctizin', and the land
scape through the haze
Of a crisp and sunny morning of the
enrly autumn days
ts a piilur' that no painter has the color
in' to mock
When the frost is on the punkin and the
fodder's in the shock.
The husky, rusty rustle of the tossel of
the corn,
And the raspin' of the tangled leaves, as
golden as the morn;
The stubble in the fnrries kind o' lo?ie-
someliko, but still
A-prenrhiii' sermons to us of the barns
they growed to fill;
The strawstack hi the medder, and the
renner iu the shed:
The hosses in their stalls below the
clover overhead
0, It sets ray heart a-clickin' like the
tickiu' of a clock,
When the frost is on the punkin and the
fodder's in the shock.
-James Whitcomb Riley. .
NAN'S KINDEfiGABTEN
56T?F cver 1 wns thankful I am
II this minute," said Nan Gray,
as she threw herself in an
easy chair on the piazza. "It did seem
as if school would never end, but ev
erything has an end If you can only
wait for it, and this blessed day winds
up the term, and now for a good sum
mer's rest from teaching the young
idea and all Its attendant afflictions."
"Well, dear, are you tired?" said her
mother as she entered.
"Tired to death, and I believe I al
most wish I might not see a child again
uutil September. Don't, please, don't
take any children to board at the cot
tage this summer, ma."
"Why, Nan Gray, 1 always thought
you loved children."
"So I do, mamma, but after one has
eaten a pound of chocolates she doesn't
care for any more Immediately, does
she? Don't you understand?"
"Yes, Nan, I see. We will announce
'Ko children need apply,' bo don't
worry."
The next morning Nan and George,
with their mother, started for their
house at the beach, where they were
to take a few boarders.- On the steamer
sitting near them was a young man
with three children and a nurse maid.
The youngest child was about a year
old, a bright, pretty little thing. The
other two were boys, perhaps 3 and 5
years old, with sweet faces and cun
ning ways.
"Kan," saicf'George, "go and ask him
If lie doesn't want a nice boarding
place for the summer. That's just
what you've been looking for In the
way of boarders, you know."
Nan flashed a look at her brother,
then turned her eyes to the broad ex
panse of sea, but in spite of herself
her thoughts would come back to the
group near by. "I 'wonder where they
ore going. Where's the mamma? Per
haps she'8 dead. He does look sad and
serious. How lovingly he holds the
little boy!" But It was nearly time
for our travelers to land, and they be
gan to pick up their bundles and bags.
"Look, Nan, they laud here, too. I'll
bet a cookie they are coming in answer
to that 'ad' for a few boarders you put
'n the paper. Jolly t wouldn't It be a
Joke on you, though, sis?" And George
chuckled heartily.
"Dear me, I ought to have added 'No
' liildren,' but I forgot. Do you sup
pose they can be coming to our house,
nia?"
"Time will tell, Nan," said her moth
er, smiling. They walked briskly on
nud reached their house a. few minutes
to advance of the "kindergarten par
ty." as Nan's brother called it.
Looking around, they observed the
gentleman evidently Inquiring the way
somewhere. He had stopped the local
fish merchant, and from all appear
auees was being directed to the Gray
cottage. In a moment came a ring at
the door, to which George responded.
"Does Mrs. Gray live here?" Inquired
the stranger, who was lending the lit
t'e boy of 3 or 4. Closely following
was another boy two or three years old
er, and the nurse with the baby girl on
her arms.
George, though Intensely amused at
Nan's predicament, Invited the party
till VI. I'V hlltnl.. n..n1rn l.tt.
juother.
: Nan, who had dropped into a chair In
the further part of the room, sat gaz
tog out of the window Into the orchard.
She henrtf the gentleman Introduce
himself as Mr. Bailey and tell her
mother that he had Been the advertise
ment In the paner. TTla a,
a year ago. ,, fiInce " toe 2
arter his little ones and directed the
servants. IU.t Illness In her own home
had ca,led her there, and for the sum!
"e at least she must remain away
After seeing the "ad" yesterday he
JejMed this morning to g. ve he ab
a sail down the harbor and see if any
mTangcmntforasnrnmerhomecouW
St, d ? CT a flultab,e P'ac. was
round. The doctor had advised the
"ashore, and he wanted then, near
enough the city so he could see then
every day. "I ngBure you n J
ch Wren. Mrs. Gray, and Nu'rse Ma -y
" see that they trouble no one. 1
vl 1 pay you well If you will let them
ha e a home with you for a while."
i( Motherly Mrs. Gray would have said
yes immediately to his pleading but
she remembered her promise to" Nan
'sensing herself, she beckoned Nan
uto a side room. "Well. Nan, you have
heard the plea, what do you say?"
'Oh, dear," said Nan. "I don't see how
we can say 'no' with those little moth
erless things right before us. If I had
only been a little wiser on wording that
au. i kuow now anxious you are to
take the whole brood under your wing,
and I know too well what its shelter
means to urge you to say no, when your
heart says 'yes,' you dear mother soul!"
So the little family stayed many
weeks. Papa Bailey coming down ev
ery night. And so dear did they be
come to Nan that It was only with feel
ings of sadness that she thought of the:r
leuviug.
It was the last Saturday of vacation.
Nan had taken Baby May into the ham
mock In the orchard and had sung her
to sleep In her arms. "You little dar
ling, I wish I might keep you always."
she whispered, as she gazed down Into
the sweet, rosy little face.
Looking up she saw bending over the
hammock baby's papa. "I wish I dared
to say the same thing to you. Nan,"
whispered he, as he looked into Nan's
blushing face. "I have wished so many
times this summer that I might always
have you near. Won't you give up
your large school and take a smaller
one? We will be good pupils."
"I am not used to mixed grades."
said Nan, mischievously, "but will try
it If you wish it very much. But 1
must tell you a little story first. Per
haps you won't care for such a teacher
then." So Nan told him of ber weari
ness at the close of school, and the nar
row escape he had from being summar
ily dismissed when he applied for board
for his babies.
He understood perfectly, and with a
loving kiss to both occupants of the
hammock be slipped a ring on Nan's
finger. In the early fell Nan became
Mrs. Bailey, and happiness reigned In
the Bailey kindergarten.
KEV. MORHISOJf.
be was Innocent,
FROM PULPIT TO GALLOWS.
.Weer of a Tlw Preacher Ended in a
Ilatigniau'a Noose.
The way of the transgressor, no mat
.er what his condition In life, is hard
luls thought is brought forcibly to
mind by the recent
execution of Rev.
George E. Morri
son, at Vernon,
Texas, f .-,i the mur
der of his wife in
18517. He adminis
tered poison to h'. r,
iu order to get rid
of her and marry
another woman.
Morrison met his
death resignedly,
but declared that
which he had no control pluclnir him
where he was. He had a largo follow
ing of friends who made strenuous ef
forts to have the Governor communte
the sentence to imprisonment for life,
but without success.
Morrison was married to his wife,
who was Minnie Brady, at Hanford.
Texas, in 1881. She sang In the church
choir. Later they mover to Pan Han
dle City. In 1897 he went to Topeka,
Kan., to attend a Sunday school con
vention. Here he met Miss Anna
Whittlesey, whom he knew at school.
She had fallen heir to $100,000, and he
fell deeply In love with her. He told
lier that his wife had been dead eleven
years, that he had retired from preaeh
ine and owned a ranch near Hiirehis.
Texas. He made her an offer of mar
riage and she agreed to become his
wife. He returned to Texas and kept
up a correspondence with Miss Whit
tlesey. To get his wife out of the way
was the next question. He made up his
mind to murder her. This was In Oc
tober, 1807. He went to a druggist to
GEN. CIPRIANO CASTRO.
the
GEN. CASTRO.
Who Has Fought Ilia "Way to
Presidency of Venezuela.
Gen. Ciprlano Castro, the new presi
dent of Venezuela, Is only 30 years old,
but he has been In politics for a long
time. He was always
one of the warmest
supporters of the Lib
eral party, and took
part In the war of de
fense during the rev-
' V y Crespo. That gen
eral did all he could
to Influence Castro to
his side, and even of
fered him a portfolio,
but Castro could not be persuaded to
take It. The reverse, indeed, was the
fact, for Castro severely criticised
Crespo's administration. When And
rade's star began to rise Castro led a
movement against him and Crespo.
After the failure of the "Mocho" Her
nandez revolution the man who Is now
president successfully defeated Mo
rales and Larrla and became the domi
nant military power of the country.
With his new success came hordes of
followers, and Castro, afrer carrying
numerous towns, at last took the capi
tal Itself. President Castro is a highly
educated young man and a hard work
er, but he Is handicapped with that ex
ploslveness of character that Is the
greatest handicap to the Latin race.
Sorry He Said It.
There are so many things In this
wicked world we would rather not have
said. Mean things, spiteful things, un
feeling things, reckless things which
trickle over the lips before we realize
it. An estimable man In town has a
wife who Is a good woman, though she
can never be a candidate at a beauty
show. He admires her, however, and
as he Is the one to be pleased her lack
of loveliness Is a small matter. One
day he was talking with some friends
about his disposition.
"No," said he candidly, "you rarely
see me get worked up, nervous and
cross. I am the easiest person In the
world to please."
"One glance at your wife shows that,"
replied a dear friend, who is the soul
of politeness, and who, poor wretch,
really meant to imply she did not have
the looks of a nagged or brow-beaten
woman, nnd must get on easily with
him. But, oh, It didn't sound that way,
and that man would gladly have given
cm ,wn for a hole in the ground Just
about that tlme.-Louisvllle Times.
The one great drawback about loaf
ing Is the unsatisfactory compensation.
MRS. MORRISON.
MISS WHITTI.ESKV.
obtain some strychnine, which, he said,
was to poison some "varmints" that
were killing his chickens.
The crime was committed on a Sun
day night Before the deed he preached
a particularly effective sermon, speak
ing In a pathetic manner of the sad
parting with loved ones at death. Then
he went home and gave his wife an ap
ple In which he had put some of the
strychnine. She died the same night
with her arms about her husband's
neck. She never knew of n s treachery.
He still continued the correspondence
with Miss Whittlesey and the day after
his wife's burial he sent a letter In
which he expressed his love in the
most lavish terms. He went to To
peka a few days later and obtained
promise from Miss Whittlesey that she
would become his bride. On his return
he was arrested, suspicious circum
stances coming to light concerning his
wife's death, but was soon relea.-ed. Il
tied, but three mouths biter was rear
rested in San Francisco and takea back
to Texas, where the full extent of his
villainy became known. At the trial
Miss Whittlesey was the principal pros
ecuting witness and her testimony sent
nini to the gallows.
Alligator Hiding.
Jim Frazier, of Florida, Is called
"Wild Jim" because he Is the king of
alligator hunters. "Wild Jim" hunts
alligators In the Florida Everglades.
Ills specialty Is In furnishing baby alli
gators to the Northern trade, though
he also catches ndult alligators and
sells their teeth nnd skins. It is said
that he employs several hundred alli
gator catchers, and has made a fortune
out of his hotel business.
Ills favorite pastime Is to watch alli
gators eat dogs and cats that he has
thrown Into the water to feed them.
During the winter he secures hundreds
of worthless curs and screaming cats,
and In the spring he drives the canines
and felines down to his alligator ranch
In the everglades, where he amuses
himself with alligator-back riding.
He Is an alligator charmer and tamer,
and is the only man in Florida that
would dare mount the back of an old
alligator In the water. When he wants
to ride he throws his nlligator' muzzle
over the head of an nlligator and Jumps
on the monster's bnck. The alligator
cannot reach the Intrepid rider with
his tall, and his mouth Is muzzled.
"Wild Jim's" wiry legs are entwined
around the forelegs of the nlligator,
while the alligator dives and swims
nnd lnshes his tall, trying to be free.
When Jim gets tired he makes the alli
gators swim to the shore, where he
Jumps oft and dispatches It.
Home of the South Sea Hubble.
South Sea House, London, the home
of the South Sea bubble, which con
vulsed England in the early part of
the eighteenth century, Is soon to be
torn down to make way for new ware
houses. For a century after 1720,
when the bubble burst, the building
stood practically untenanted; but of
late years it has been the headquarters
of prosperous traders.
GEN. GRANT'S WIDOW.
DIDN'T LIKE THE SMELL,
At 75, She Is Still Physically and Men- rc Saldf After Blowl Cnt the Qa,
Mr Tll rrT Bleeping Thirty Hours.
wJ ' ,5" . a fDt- Grant the . Venor- A very "bra mon" is "Scotty" Patter-
idnr h. , luei"u'ousarr oiri-re-1on. and he has been away from tbe
hi.S reopTd 1,er W ashington Heelands" but fourteen mouths. This
?,5rn bsTe of nourly five n Part accounts for his thoughtless act
ujuuius. .ir. virant returns in excel
lent health and spirits. Her outing,
' MRS. JULIA DENT GRANT.
spent in Saratoga, Magnolia, Mass., and
later in Newport, where she attended
the wedding of her favorite grand
daughter, Julia Dent Grant, proved re
plete with Interesting adventures. She
especially enjoyed the gayetles attend
f Saturday night. Scotty works In the
Scotten stables, and takes his niealu
In Kurth's Hotel.
On Saturday night the Kurth's man-if-all-work,
who also comes from the
land of golf and the "Bonny Briar
Bush," gathered In Scotty. and the two
sat quite late over reminiscences an.t
Scotch whisky. When it came time for
Scotty to return to his room over the
stables they found that the Scotch whis
ky had quito paralyzed his power of
locomotion, as well as his sense of direc
tion. Scotty suggested that a vacant
room In Kurth's Hotel might simplify
matters, and as the hotel was Just
across the street, "Jalmle," the chore
man, fell in with the suggestion. Ha
pulled Scotty up the back stairs and
locked him in. Then Scotty blew out
the gas at the third lunge and jumped
at the bed.
This morning Mrs. Kurth found Scot
ty's door locked, In fact she didn't know
that Scotty was there at all. They
looked over the transom and saw a pair
of feet protruding from the foot of the
bed, for Scotty had crawled under It
Inir the nuntlals of the Prl
cuzzene, and Is never tired of relating ' The 8me11 of eBCaplng gas was suffo
her experiences to her friends. This catInS but lhey kicked In the door and
venerable woman, although 75 years of pulled Scotty out H's chaperon had
age, Is remarkably vigorous physically qulte forStten n's good Samaritan
and mentally. She receives her friends
almost every morning In her plensant
sitting room In her Massachusetts ave
nue home. She Is perfectly Impartial
In the reception of these guests. The
lowly friends of early years are as wel
come as the leaders of society.
KING MENELEK.
' '
KISTO HRNKLKK OF ABYSSINIA.
I
He Is Said to Bo the Greatest of All
Africun Monarchs.
It Is announced that King Menelek
of Abyssinia will visit the Paris expo
sition and that on the way to the
French capital from his little kingdom
In eastern Africa be will call on his
friend, the Czar of Russia. The black
king is the most picturesque as he is
the greatest of African monarchs. A
giant In stature, he rules his kingdom
with a rod of Iron, and the great pow
ers of Europe are all glad to be on
good terms with him. He has an army
work. The dazed msn was sot down 'n
the yard, where he soon recovered.
He had been In tho room for over
thirty hours, inhaling the poisonous
fumes, and hia "bra" constitution and.
tho two Inches of opened transom are
all that saved his life.
Scotty said few things when they
pulled him out at 10 o'clock this morn
ing. One of his remarks was:
"Hoot. mon. but I dlnna like the
smeel over weel." Detroit Journal.
Sludy of Hhakupeare.
"The practice of reading aloud In
small or modeinte-slztd gatherings U
iu every way to be commended," writes
Sir Heury Irving, of "The Study of
Shakspenre In Small Communities," in
the Ladies' Home Journal. "It is good
for the individual, good for the mem
bers of the group, good for the locality,
good for the nation. No community can
be too small for the practice of reading
of real fighting men, armed with mod-' In public. If there.be only two per-
ern weapons, and both England and !
Italy know to their cost that he has
skillful and daring generals and that
his soldiers are brave and Impetuous.
The king lives In the Interior of his
country, surrounded by a great desert,
so that it would be almost Impossible
for an invading army to reach him. In
the center of the royal city he has
caused a tall tower to be erected. To
this tower he ascends at frequent in
tervals, and with a telescope observes
bow bis people are behaving them
selves In the city below him. Offend
ers are punished with great severity,
and as a result there Is little disorder
of any kind at the court or about It.
The king and most of his people are
nominally Christians, ami the Golden
Rule Is said to be the ruling principle
of the Government, In spite of the se
verity of the punishments sometimes
Inflicted.
sous, eucu may, in turn, learn some
thing from the successes or failures of
the other. No one need be diffident at
the beginning; there Is noth ng really
difficult. There is no arduous labor;
there is no possibility of absolute fail
ure where theie. is honest, careful ef
fort. Any form or subject of reading,
worthy In itself, can be of usa for the
Study of elocution. It Is, however, pos
sible to get together groups of persons
Interested In some common theme,
when the mere getting them together
without, such an agglomeratlve cause la
lacking; and Shaksptare has been, Is,
and ever will be, a name to conjure
with. A play rend weekly or monthly,
with the various characters allotted be
forehand, has been a source of much
and continuous plensure.'productive of
thought and study, ameliorative of de
fective power of utterance, a win
nower of the chaff of harsh accent or
ultra-colloquial mannerism."
Peace Offering Precede I Him.
She received a large box full of Amer
ican beauty roses by messenger from
her husband along toward 4 o'clock the
other afternoon.
"James Is absorbing Martlgny cock
tails again," she mused shrewly.
Half an hour later another messen
ger brought her five pounds of expen
sive candy from her husband.
"James has ordered that $80 over
coat he was talking about, but said he
couldn't afford," she mused again.
Half an hour later a wagon drew up,
with a florist's name painted on the
sides thereof, and two hnndsome, full
grown palms were delivered at her
door, marked as coming from her hus
band. "Olive branches preceding him." she
mused some more. "He'll be home by
dark."
He was home by dark. He hnd been
absorbing Martlgnys. He had ordered
the $80 overcoat The prescience of the
modern married woman Is sufficiently
iawe-lnsplrlng to persuade any man to
raise his bonnet thereto. Washington
rost
Jufttlce Among the Pursers.
Among the Parsees a murderer Is
tpunlshcd with ninety stripes on h s
bare back, while a master who neglect
his dog receives 200 stripes.
Counting the People by Jtlaohinery.
Our first census, made in 1795, showed
the population of tbe United States to
be five million, and the count cost Uncle
Sam, who was comparatively poor then,
one cent for each person. It Is esti
mated that the twelfth census, to bo
made In June, 1000, will show that our
people number seventy-five million, and
that the Item of clerk hire, In the Cen
sus Bureau alone, will exceed $5,000,
000. Clifford Howard, writing of "How
the Next Census Will Be Takeu," In
the Ladles' Home Journal, says that
"although the work of enumeration will
be completed by the first of July, It will
probably be two or even three month9
later before the last of the schedules
are received at the census office; for not
only must they all be first examined by
the supervisors, but In many cases they
will probably require revision because
of some error or Informality. The act
ual counting of the people will not be
done until the schedules are turned Into
the census office. The enumerators
simply gather the facts, and the office
force In Washington does the counting
and the compiling, which Is done by
electricity. In 100 days all the facts re
lating to 75,000,000 people will be tabulated."
Gladstone's Memori I.
A marble and alabaster Gladstone
memorial tablet has been placed In
Hawarden Church, between the pulpit
and Armenian window. In the upper
part are the words, "That rock was
Christ," and on one side are four verses
of the late stateman's favorite hymn,
"Rock of Ages." On the opposite panel
are the same verses In Latin, with the
Inscription at the foot, "Translated In
1848 by William Ewart Gladstone.
Placed by his grandchildren, In love,
gratitude and reverence." London
Chronicle.
A man with but one Idea Is some
times worse off than a man with no
Idea at all.
Don't worry about slander; It will rub
off when It gets dry.