nBH0tIHMHBHHB
The Great
Tontine
by
HAWLEY SMART
AutKor of "Brolrn Bondt," 'Bound to Win,"
tlo.
CHAPTER XI.
Mr. TIemmingby. upon his return to
town, duly apprise Lord Iiakingion that
he had executed his commission. Forty
eight hours after ho received the man
ager's note on me another from Mr. Peg
ram. requesting to know when it would
he convenient for him to wait upon his
lordship uxn a matter of business: to
which the Viscount replied, he should be
at home tlio next day at twelve.
Punctual to the moment came Mr. Ter
rain's knock at the door, and in another
moment he was ushered into the Vis
count's snuggery. Ixrd Lakington looked
his visitor sharply over as he motioned
him to a chair. A little wizened old man,
with spiky hair of iron grey, and small,
keen. restless eyes. "A more uncompro
mising person to do business with,"
thought his lordship, "I think I have sel
dom come across."
"I have ventured ro request you to see
mo on a matter of business. Lord Lak
iugron. in consequence of some conversa
tion I had with our mutual friend, Mr.
Ilcmminghy, last week. We are both, it
Fee ins. concerned in the impending decis
ion of this great lottery. In all human
probability, the eight thousand per an
num it represents must fall to either you
or I in the course of the next year or
two. It is a very big property, my lord,'!
and would bear dividing. Many people,
for instance, would think it more judi
cious to make a certainty of half than,
by seeing their fuck out, lose all. I do
not know whether I am right, but I rath
er understood Mr. Ilemmingby that you
were somewhat of this way of thinking.''
"I have gambled. Mr. Pegmm. as high
as most men of my time, but I have done
with all that now, and I honestly own I
should be quite content to make a cer
tainty of four thousand a year."
"And yet it seems a pity not to leave
such a fine property intact. 1 am a great
advocate for the law of primogeniture. I
have always been thankful that I have
but one child myself a son, my lord."
"You know best, perhaps. Mr. Pegramt"
replied Ixrd Lakington, with a languid
smile; "but do you really think that your
family affairs have any bearing upon the
matter in hand?"
"I think they have." replied the law
yer dryly. "Suppose I could show you a
scheme by which this four thousand a
year should be insured to you for life,
while the other half of the 'Tontine'
would at once become the income of your
daughter, the whole eight thousand per
annum Incoming her property at your
death. I told you, my lord, that I had
one son; you. I understand, have also an
only daughter. If you will consent to
their making a match of it. I will settle
my half of the 'Tontine' on your daugh
ter at her marriage. Your half would,
of course, remain as it is. with the sole
condition that it went- to your daughter
at your death."
Lord Lakington rose slowly from his
chair with a net look upon his face that
even the old lawyer could see boded dan
ger. "Do you know, sir." said the Vis
count, in low, measured toues, "that if
you were a few years younger I should
probably throw you out of the window?"
"I beg iardon, my lord," said the law
yer in the most deprecatory tones, "but
Jt is so obviously the way to keep the
property together. Of course T know Boh
is no match for the Honorable Miss Phil
limore, but I thought that, under the cir
cumstances. I might venture to suggest
It to your lordship: and again. I had not
time to mention it before, but I shall
have something pretty comfortable to
leave behind me when my time comes, and
that of course would go to my son.
"I tell you once for all. Mr. Pegram,
that your proposition is ridiculous, 1 may
aav impertinent. I was in hopes you
had some reasonable compromise to offer
me. When vou have. I shall be happy to
nee vou again. In the meanwhile I have
the honor to wish you good morning,
and as he finished. Iord Iakingron laid
his hand on the bell.
"Good morning, my lord, good morning.
If you could only be brought to see it in
a business point of view, it is the most
, perfect arrangement that could possibly
be made. Bob will be sorely disappointed
-ben he hears your lordship will not
consent."
Jxrd Lakington paced up and down his
little room in a perfect storm of indig
nation for a good half hour after Mr.
Pegram left him. but gradually he found
himself reverting to the old lawyers idea
What a confounded pity, he thought, th
fellow is not a gentleman '. Kvery point
hat the old lawyer had so artfully in
stilled into his mind recalled itself. At
the end of the week a note reached jur
Pegram to the effect that, considering
what a large sum 01 money was involved
Ixird Lakington thought it would be ad
-ible to see Mr. Pegram again, to dis
cubs if th compromise of the "Tontine"
was possible between them.
Some four or five days had elapsed
i'mce Robert Pegram had made his first
.miifc in Victoria road, and still
t vrA lakington had not broken the in
ontinn of bis being there to his dauehter
It was not that the Viscount faltered
fh 1ast in his purpose. He had reason-
d bimaelf quite comfortably into the
Idea that he was promoting his daughter's
liapplness by luruienng mm iua. i
and still more clearly did he s that such
an arrangement would ensure his own
comfort for hi. lifetime; but yet, wirh
II this, he felt a lurking suspicion that
rbi marriage would be highly distasteful
to Beatrice.
-Beatrice.' said the Viscount one day.
t baa bc-omt necessary that I should
niak, you clearly understand the very
sinful situation in which I am placed.
Fifteen, or even ten. years ago I was
that most abject thing on erth-a pau-91-
peer, shrinking from my fellow. be
cause I had not the wherewithal to asso
ciate wilh them. Xolvody expected din
ners from the ruined 1-ord Iakington,
but they did expect that he should " i
decently gloved, and wear a hat (hat
cast no shame uHn those to wriom it
was lifted. I have known, Beatrice, what
it was to scheme for my gloves, to re
flect that trinkets were not a necessity,
and might be profitably converted into
boots or umbrellas : to walk, because I
could not afford cabs, and was ashamed
to be seen getting in or out of an omni
bus. I declare I would sooner die than
go through that grinding poverty again;
and It rests with you to save mo."
"With me, papa!" faltered the girl, and
her cheeks blanched as the words foil
from her lips.
"Yes, Trixie. You and your grand
mother think mv imnroved circumstances
of late are owing to my estates having
what is termed come round: to mort
gages having been paid off ; to creditors
having been apiea8ed, etc. It is not so.
I nm as honelesslv ruined as I was when
Thormanby won the derby seventeen years
ago and your grandfather failed for over
a million. Whit has kept me going has
been sinmlv the laree interest I now de
rive from a lottery called the 'Great
Tontine." My dividend in that amounts
at present to something like three thou
sand a year;" and heretion the Viscount
ptoceeded to explain to his daughter the
history of that quaint coquetry with for
tune in which he had embarked in 18(50.
It took Beatrice some time before she un
derstood the whole thing; hut, as it grad
ually became clear to her. she positively
sickened on recognizing how her father's
future income depended upon her saying
"Yes" to Kobert Pegram's suit. And be
too was seeking her hand, not because
he loved and admired her, but as a
mere matter of expediency ; because
hi' would be, like her father, made cer
tain of a moietv of this income during
t lie Viscount's life, and would come into
the whole of the property at his death.
-Let me think, papa, let me think !"
lie pvi'l.iimed. as she pushed back the
dusky masses of hair from her temples.
"I must of course be a true daughter to
von nnvthinz rather than you shonld go
through such humiliations again as you
have told me of. My cheeks tingle even
now at the bare recital of them; but oh,
father dearest. I had dreamed of some
thing so very different if ever I left you."
CHAPTER XII.
Jack I "hi Hi more, sieeding homeward,
has ample leisure to reflect upon the
heavy clouds that have gathered over his
love affair. Xaturally one of the gayest
and lightest hearted officers in Her Ma
jesty's fleet, two or three, acquaintances
he had on board could not at all under
stand him in his present somber mood.
But .Tack was terribly earnest in his love
for his cousin. That Beatrice had thrown
him over for mere wealth he could not
and would not believe, and Mrs. Lyme
Wregis's letter supported him in his in
credulity. However, one thing was quite
lear the fust thing he had to do on es
tablishing himself in fcondon was to go
straight to the Victoria road.
Lord Lakington is not at home, but
the ladies are in the drawing room," said
the man servant in response to his knock.
Glad to see you back, Mr. Phillimore,
continued Jackson, as he preceded the
visitor up the stairs, for the young naval
officer was very popular with all the do
mestics.
Mrs. Lyme W regis was ensconced in
her favorite seat in the window. She
had seen the arrival of the mail steamer
in the morning papers, and mid been ex
pecting Jack for the last hour. She wel
comed him cordially, of course said noth
ing about Beatrice's abrupt disappear
ance, and, upon second thoughts, came
to the conclusion that perhaps it was for
the best. It would give her a few min
utes in which to tell her story, while the
girl might well require a little time to
prepare herself for a meeting with tier
old lover.
Jack Phillimore was soon in possession
of all that Mrs. Lyme V regis had to tell
him, which, after all. was very little
more than she had already marde him
acquainted with by letter. He certainly
learned that not only was the marriage
most definitely settled, but that the very-
day for it was fixed. He was further in
formed that his successful rival was a
Mr. Robert Pegram, the son of a gentle
man of considerable property in Wales;
that the young couple were to commence
life upon an income of four thousand a
year; that Lord lakington and Beatrice
"were both most lavish regarding the
trousseau; and lastly, that she, Mrs.
Lvme Wregis, felt perfectly sure and in
snite of what her granddaughter might
say to the contrary- that Beatrice was
going to the altar under some sort of com
pulsion, and that her feeling for her be
trothed was rather that of repugnance
than mere indifference.
Having told her 'story which, as Jack
Phillimore remarked, contained not the
slightest allusion to the Viscount's
wealthy prospects. Jack came to the con
clusion that as yet he was a very long
wav from unraveling the tangled skein of
bis love.
"But where is Trixie? Surely she will
see me? She must feel bound to; if it
is only," he concluded, with a somewhat
bitter smile, "to receive my congratula
tions on her wedding.
"Of course she will see you," replied
the old lady. "Ring the bell, and I will
send for her. Jackson," continued the
old lady, as that servant made his appear
ance in answer to the summons, "tell one
of the maids to let Miss Beatrice know
that Mr. Phillimore is here, and anxious
to see her."
A few minutes' delay, and then a smart
lfldv's maid entered the room.
"Miss Beatrice's love, sir, and she Is
very glad that you are back again; but
she is to much engaged just now that
it is impossible for her to come down.
"It is useless, vou see," said Jack Phil
limore, as the girl left the room; "she
won't even see me.
lie had hardly got down the stairs, the
sound of his feet bad scarce died away
in the hall, when the drawing room door
was dashed oin, and in rushed Beatrice,
flushed and almost breathless with ex
citement.
"What did he say, grandmamma? lie
must look upon me as the meanest and
most despicable girl he not only ever
met, but ever heard of. It was unkind of
you, grandmamma, to bring him home till
all was over. But wnat aia ne say i
"Like other people, be wants an ex
plaaadon of your mysterious engagemant,
and declares he will see you before the
wedding day.
"That ho shall never do," replied the
girl; and even as she spoke the door of
the drawing room quietly opened, and
her cousin stood before her.
Jack Phillimore owed his noiseless ap
pearance to a little bit of romance on
the part of a woman. I have before said
that the sympathies of the domestics of
the house were all In Jack Phiilimoie's
favor, and they were ns indignant in their
way as Mrs. Lyme Wregis at Beatrice's
bleach of faith. So sympathetic was the
lady's maid that she volunteered to lot
Jack Phillimore out. and bavins done
stood at the open door watching him as
he walked slowly away, when putting
his hands in bis pockets for his gloves,
Phillimore discovered that they were miss
ing. He was quite sure he had thera
when he called, so it was evident he must
have left them in Mrs. Lyme Wregis'
drawing room. He turned and went back
for them, and as the girl was still stand
ing at the open door, there was of course
no necessity for knocking, so his re-entrance
was noiseless.
"Beatrice!" he exclaimed.
Her eyes flashed, and an angry flush
crossed her face as she exclaimed:
"If this is a little comedy of yours and
grandmamma's, allow me to observe that
I consider it in very bad taste. To per
sist on seeing me against my will is un
generous, unmanly."
Jack Phillimore was. in the main, by
no means a hot-tempered fellow, but this
was rather more than he could stand. He
conceived, as I think most men in his
situation would have done, that an ex
planation, under the circumstances, was
most certainly due to him, and that he
certainly did not merit being overwhelm
ed with reproaches for what was the
veriest accident.
"I have simply come back for this pair
of gloves on the table," he rejoined in
a hard, constrained voice, "and had no
intention of forcing an interview upon
you. I most certainly hold that you owe
me some explanation of the sudden change
in vour feelings. When you throw, over
the man that .vou were virtually engaged
to three months ago. I think you should,
at all events, explain to him why you do
it. The most heartless flirts let then
adorers down easier than you. We are
not a familv noted for any great virtues,
but a Phillimore's word has been gener
ally thought to be relied on."
"I never pledged myself to you, she
replied faintly.
"Xot actually in words. I grant you;
but you know' very well that we both
looked upon ourselves as betrothed. There
are promises' of implication just as bind
ing as promises of words."
"Spare me. Jack, spare me," she mur
mured faintly; "indeed, I can not help
mvself." .
"I will relieve you of my presence, and
with congratulations upon your approach
ing marriage, bid you good-by."
The softer mood was all out of her
now, her eves flashed through her tears,
and her cheeks flamed with anger, as she
made two or three rapid steps towards
h""Coward!" she hissed between her
teeth "How dare you insult me thus?"
and she swept from the room in right
regal fashion.
(To be continued.)
LONG COACHING TKIP.
How M. K. Ilowlett Kxpectn
the Continent in Ninety
Morris E. Ilowlett, the professional
t ii,i whin, it was saiu uic
other day. will about the middle of
t rr,hnhlv make the attempt to
drive the road coach Magnet from San
Francisco to New York, a liitnerto un
attempted feat in road coach driving.
The present intention is to start from
the Palace Hotel, in San Francisco,
and finish at the Holland House, rum
avenue and Thirtieth street, Xew York
W ... . t. '
The Magnet will, oe sent to m..
Francisco by rail. Mr. Hewlett's plan
n fiiow the old overland route
used by the forty-niners between the
i ',,iist and the Missouri tuver
and then proceed through Iowa and
IHinois into Chicago and from Chicago
follow the lines of the New ion; v en
tral and Lake Shore Railroads into Al-
!,, frr.ni which city an attempt wut
be made to drive to the Holland House,
in Xew York, in one day.
The dista'iice by road will be nearly
4,frfi0 miles, which is about TOO miles
greater than the shortest railroad dis
i'Dt,ri hf.twcen Xew York and San Fran
cisco. From San Francisco to Albany
only green horses hired en route will
be used, and the calculation is that
about l,.r00 animals will be required.
Mr. Ilowlett will drive his own horses
from Albany.
Xinety days Is the time limit In
which Mr. Ilowlett hoes to make the
journey. It will be by nearly 2.n0
miles the longest coach trip ever made,
the longest smaller American journey
being from the Missouri Kiver to San
Francisco.
Knny for Sherlock.
The modern Sherlock climbed through
the kitchen window.
" h "' exclaimed Sherlock, surveying
the surroundings. "I find that his wife
ia away."
"And how long has she been away?"
asked his assistant.
"Thirty days, exactly."
"How in the world can you tell?"
"By the unwashed dishes and sau
cers. There are ninety of each in all.
which shows that he has used three
ah day for ihirty days and left them
for her to wash when she comes home.
I giff-ss I know something about mar
ried men keeping 'bachelor's hall.'"
Tommy Wan Cntr.
"Tommy," asked the visitor, "what
are you going to be when you grow
up to be a man?"
"I'm going to tte an arctic explorer,"
resiKtnded the bright little boy, "and
now will you give me a quarter?"
"Gracious, Tommy. What do you
want with a quarter?"
MI want to get five Icecream sodas
and find out bow much cold I can
stand.
For FIllliiK Sacks.
In filling sacks with grain, flour, ce
ment, etc., It hns been found Impossible
for one man to do tho work. A second
laborer Is required to hold open the
mouth of the bag while the other does
the Ailing. The necessity of the ex
tra laborer Is eliminated in the Back
filling apparatus shown here, the -Invention
of a Washington man. This
apparatus was designed primarily to
provide a device by which bags could
be quickly and economically filled by
9ne man. A hopper Is provided, to
which a pulley Is attached at one end.
At the front are the frames for sup
porting the bags after the later have
been fastened In position. The grain
ar other article to be placed In the
HOLDS BACS OPE
ags Is shoveled Into the hopper, from
vhich it drops by gravity Into the bags.
s the grain descends the bags are
ihaken at regular intervals by an ar
rangement attached to the pulley. The
lags are In this way automatically
ifted off the ground a trifle at each
:urn of the pulley, allowing the grain
:o settle, filling the bags to their ut
nost capacity. This does awny with
he ordinary laborious method formerly
mployed by hand. It is claimed that
rhe bags can be filled in one-fourth the
hue heretofore required and by one
nan.
Causes of Houp.
When fowls crow at night, which is
the fact when the numler quartered Is
greater than the capacity of the house,
they sweat. This sweating causes the
feathers to rot at the base, giving them
the very appearance of molting. This
explains why so many flocks look
ragged In early summer.
It is a noted fact that the majority
of cases where roup has become epi
demic ' among fowls the latter were
crowded in tightly-built houses when
the weather is very cold and allowing
the houses to remain closed all the next
dav. This creates a moisture which
generates dampness, and the whole
house feels very much like a vault. At
night the house Is more or less filled
with dampness emanating from the
'owls' breath, but If, on the following
morning, the windows are opened wide,
this dampness will be dispelled. This
Is a great point in favor of the scratch
ing shed plan of house.
Hog Cholera.
The Kansas exiterlment station has
carried out an extensive series of ex
periments along the line of hog chol
era and Its prevention. The methixl
of rendering hogs Immune to the dis
ease was by vaccination. A virus was
introduced Into the system which re
acted upon possible contagion, thus
protecting the animal against the dis
ease for a period of several months.
The experiment showed that through,
this process the successfully vaccinated
hog Is Immunized and can be kept with
no risk of infection for a period long
enough to fatten and prepare for mar
ket. Popular Ilreeil of Poultry.
Leghorns if compelled to roost in
'old houses and pick a living from
the Blush of a barnyard will not lay.
But when warmly
housed and prop
erly fed they are
the best of winter
layers. The best
bred leghorns are
practically non-sit-
:lW!BlirJf77, ters and should
not be counted on
to rear their
THE I.EGIIORX. "
young. For those
who are so situated that they can hatch
and rear their pullets artificially or
ivltb hens of other breeds, and who
give their hens suitable care In winter,
the leghorn will prove a very profitable
treed for the farm.
Wash F.kk nr Market.
It would In a sense tie better to
wash eggs sent to market than to send
them lu a dirty condition. But washed
eggs have no keeping qualities. The
water appears to dissolve the gela
tinous substance which seals the pores
of th shell, and air Is thus admitted
and oon starts decomposition. The
better way to treat dirty eggs Is to
take a woolen rag only slightly mois
tened with water and gently rub off
th dirt
fcdLJ
Trnnaulnntlns;.
An the time approaches for removing
young plants from the flats In the
house or from tho hotbed outside, nn
extra amount of airing must be given
to harden them. Plants which have
started Indoors or under glass are
more or less tender and will not be
able to thrive under the rigor of early
spring planting without treatment.
They must become hardened, or accli
mated, to the new conditions.
At least a week before transplanting
remove the sash entirely from the hot
bed during the day and allow abund
ance of ventilation at night, except
when heavy frost threatens. This will
give the plants practically an outsldo
temperature for the greater part of tho
day and they will grow stronger and
harder thereby. At this time also less
watering should be given to check
growth and nake the plants more re
sistant to the cold. All plants can en
dure a lower degree of temperature un
der dry than under moist conditions.
Most seedlings are transplanted di
rect from the flat or hotbed to the open
garden when they have attained a
height of from four to six Inches or
more. When facilities are at hand a
better way Is to first transplant them
to a cold frame, which Is the same as
a hotbed without the heat. In the cold
frames fhey become accustomed to low
er temperature and are still protected
from frost of nights and on cold days.
A still better way Is to transplant the
young plants at the appearance of
their second or third set of true leaves
to two Inch flower pots.
Disking; Alfalfa.
' The work of disking alfalfa requires
a little bit of skill. The disk vmust be
set Just so It will cut the ground suf
ficiently and do as little damage as
possible. A little experience will en
able any Intelligent man to do the very
best work in the field. There are times
and conditions when the spring tooth
harrow may do all right, but gener
ally nothing but a good sharp disk with
enough big horses In front and a com
petent man on the seat can do the
work. I use only the smoothing har
row In the early spring, but after each
mowing I use a disk or spring tooth,
whichever I think best, always finish
ing with a spike tooth, so as to leave
the field in the very best possible con
dition for the growing crop. It is a
real pleasure to see the alfalfa start
out anew and grow about one Inch a
day on an average. Denver Field and
Farm.
Foundered Homes.
A. S. Alexander, veternary surgeon,
explodes the old Idea that a horse can
become "chest-foundered." He says
that such cases are those suffering
from chronic founder (lamlnitls),
which affects the feet and not the chest.
In old-standing cases of foot lameness
the chest muscles may waste away in
sympathy, and that fact has led to
the "chest founder" Idea. Such a horse
should be shod with wide-webbed, Hat
bar shoes, put on over dressing of tar
and oakum, and a thick leather sole.
Then clip off the hair and blister the
hoof heads (coronets) of forefeet with
a mixture of one dram of blniodlde of
mercury and two ounces of cerate of
cantharldes rubbed in for fifteen min
utes. Wash blister off In forty-eight
hours, then apply lard dally. Bliste
every three or four weeks.
A Cow Yard Gateway.
-,11 i. V
...,
A handy entrance Into the cow yard
Is made by cutting the wires between
posts and putting in two tall posts.
Wire them together at top, put on
fence wires and you can get through,
but the cows cannot.
Klectro-Chemlonl FertlHiierK.
By the aid of electro-chemical pro
duction of manures containing atmos
pheric nitrogen. Cermany -expects soon
to largely decrease its Importations of
salllK-tre from Chill.
llelpfnl liinta.
Oil up the work harness.
The neglected colt or calf will prove
profitless.
Cattle will never do well In the Bame
pasture as sheep.
Wood charcoal should always be
kept In the hog pen.
How are the farm implements? Any
of them need repairs? t
To improve live stock, requires In
telligence and thought.
It Is a good plan to have the horses
and cows clean up their mangers after
each feed.
There Is such a thing as overfeeding.
Feed stock all the food they will as
similate, but not more.
Don't have a lot of manure lying
in the yards all summer. It will lose
just about half of Its value by fall.
It Is better to feed the cows fodder
and hay after milking, as It keeps
the dust down. Feed the grain before
milking.
Don't plant poor, weak seed corn
next spring. It Is time and money
thrown away. There Is plenty of g-ood.
atnn seed to be bad.
'HE WEEKLY
i
ISTORIAN
1000 Henry Hudson sailed from Holland
in search of the Northwest passage.
1774 The bill for closing the port of
Boston received tho royal assent.
1775 New York Colonial Legislature
held Its last session.
179i The New York Legislature passed
a law for the gradual abolition of
slavery in that State.1
1804 A French cruiser blockaded the
port of Charleston, H. C....A11 the
territory ceded to the United States
by the State of (ieorgia, north of the
Mississippi territory and south of
Tennessee, annexed to Mississippi by
act of CongToss.
1812 Congress passed an embargo law
for ninety days. . . . Badajos, an im
portant barrier fortress in south
western Spain, surrendered to the
French under Marshal Soult.
1S29 A large section of Augusta, da.,
destroyed by tire.
18.30 Survey made for laying out the
city of Chicago.
1841 The foundations of the Mormon
temple were laid at Xauvoo, 111.
18."i0 More than 4t(0 persons pe.-ished in
the wreck of the steamer Koyal Ade
laide off Margate, England.
18T)2 Tremont Temple, Boston, destroy.
ed by fire.
is;
First treaty between the United
States and Japan signed.... A com
bined force of Americans and En
glish attacked and routed a Chinese
imperial army of 10,K0 at Shanghai.
18.") Bronze equestrian statue of wen.
Andrew Jackson unveiled in New
Orleans. .. .Core expedition left St.
Ixniis to explore the headwaters of
the Powder Kiver in Montana....
The State prison at Nashville, Tenn
destroyed by fire. .. .The electrio
telegraph between. London and Bal
aclava completed.
1801 South Carolina convention ratified
the Confederate constitution.
1S04 House of Kepresentatives adopted
resolutions declaring that France
would not he allowed to form a mon
archy in Mexico.
IKOS Michigan voted against negro suf
frage.
lMTO A bill readmitting lexas to rep
resentation in Congress was ap
proved. 1872 Farthcpiake at Antioch, resulting
iu the loss of l.(MK) lives.
1S7S Xearlv .(M) lives lost in the wreck
of the steamship Atlantic off the
coast of Xova Scotia.
1,S7." Kiots of striking coal miners in
Pennsylvania.
1881 Decennial census of the Dominion
of Canada showed the population to
be 4,324,810.
Si82 Steamer (Jolden (iate burned near
Memphis, with loss of twenty lives
....Jesse James, noted desperado,
killed by the Ford brothers, at St.
Joseph, Mo.
188.1 Ship of war Hawk burned at Port
Discovery, Washington.
1884 Douse of Kepresentatives passed a
bill for the redemption of the silver
trade dollar. .. .Kioters attacked and
burned the court house in Cincin
nati. 1888 Four thousand persons killed by
earthquake at Yunnan, China.
1S02 Mormon temple at Salt Lake City
completed.
ISiVl President Cleveland vetoed the
Bland silver bill.
18!).") The Iowa Supreme Court sustain
ed the construction of the mulct law
of IS! 14.
1!M) Queen Victoria visited Ireland,
landing at (Jueenstown . . . .The Ken
tucky court of appeals declared Beck
ham Governor.
1903 Statue to William 10. Gladstone
erected in Westminster Abjiey.
1!HM Chicago voted for municipal own
ership of street railways.
1908 The Czar dissolved the Finnish
diet for expressed sympathy with the
Terrorists. .. .The Fifth Avenue Ho
tel of Xew York closed its doors....
General suspension of bituminous
coal mining occurred pending settle
ment of new scale.
PKAIRIE DOGS TO BE POISONED.
Coaled Whrat in to lie Fed to F.neiny
of Fiirinrra In the AVrnt.
Poisoned wheat is to be used as bait to
kill off the prairie dogs, the stockmen's
enemy, that now infest Arizona and Xew
Mexico and have become a menace to the
forest ranges there. On ranch lands prai
rie dogs have been destructive to wheat,
grain, potatoes and sugar lcet; while
on grazing lands they destroy so much
grass that the grazing capacity of the
land is reduced to 75 per cent. Iast
spring a successful campaign was waged
against the prairie dog and this year it
will be conducted on a larger scale. The
poison is prepared by coating the wheat
with a preparation of strychnine, cyanide
of potassium, anise oil and molasses.
Birth In Amrriri Icorralna-.
According to figures compiled by the
Census Bureau, the birth rate in this
country has fallen off. decidedly. In 1790
the average family in this country con
sisted of 5.8 persons and in 1900 it was
only 4.0 persons. The ratio of children
to women since 1790 hae been cut in
half, the number being in 19O0 one child
to each woman over Ift years old, the
same as the ratio in Great Britain at
I that time. In France it was .8, and la
Germany 1.1.