TOPICS OF THE TIMES.
A CHOICE SELECTION OF INTER.
E8TIN0 ITEM8.
Coimants and Criticisms ru.td dpoa
tli Happening of iha Day Hlstorl
J and Nawa Nat.
A Brooklyn church, yearning for
pence on earth, ha abolished the
choir.
-The weight of expert opinion seems
to ha that tpelltng correctly It a sift,
tha tamo as spellbinding.
YVbn trust magnates begin shying
itonei at one another there 1 sure to
ba a great shattering of glatt.
, We often hear of a middle-aged man,
hot never of a middle-aged woman, A
woman la cither young or old.
, George Kennan Is bearing up un
der the repeated misfortunes of the
Itusstant as well as could be expected.
The man who thinks a good deal of
his wife should not attempt to conceal
hit thoughts when he Is alone with her.
A New York man Is learning to
talk without a tongue. This Is new;
but many people have learned to talk
without brains.
Andrew Carnegie has now given
away more than f 100,000,000. Hur
rah for Andy. May he not stop till
he makes It a billion.
rlt Is comparatively easy to discover
the germ that produces dlteaae. The
real trick It to prevent tue germ from
discovering bis victim.
An excited doctor has run a pin
through the mump microbe. It will
be a great triumph when they coral
the stone bruise microbe.
Many a candidate wbo thinks be
hears the voice of the people calling
to him, discovers later on that be has
responded to a false alarm.
Sir Charles Dllke will now be voted
the loveliest man In all England. He
haa come out flat-footed for the admis
sion of women to parliament
Another trained nurse has married
a millionaire patient The training of
nurses In some quarters seems to be a
comprehensive sort of tutelage.
A great many people devote their
best thoughts and energies to bring
ing prison reforms who never give a
thought to the man that never did
anything to merit imprisonment
The geological discovery that the
' western mines of the United States
can produce unlimited quantities of
radium follows closely upon the heels
of the discovery that radium Is not
good for anything.
America has begun to set the styles
of the world in wearing apparel, as
well as In freedom. An English shoe
manufacturer with branch stores in
many large European cities Is making
shoes on the American model because
bis customers demand them.
Dr. E. Benjamin Andrews says that
the President's race suicide theory Is
a good one but that It can be over
worked. Dr. Andrews says that ten
children Is too many. A few more
bits of wise advice and the American
people may yet learn bow to regulate
their family affairs.
Public opinion has turned against
lynching so steadily of late that the
action of the Colorado sheriff who.
single-handed, stood off a mob at the
point of his pistol represents a popu
lar new fashion In officers of the law.
A few more such Instances of deter
mined official fidelity and courage will
greatly help to cure the lynching habit
The frequency of the remarks that
Russia and Japan will get rich ou of
their war shows the long life of a
popular misconception. Countries at
war get poorer with startling rapid
ity. War does three things which
make a nation look prosperous: It
makes a scarcity of labor; It taxes the
future for an Indefinite period and
spends the tax money at once in lavish
sums; and It enables a handful of cap
italists to reap vast fortunes out of the
profuse expenditure of money, This
true statement of the case cannot too
early be mastered.
Verestchagln, the Russian painter
who has devoted his life to depicting
the horrors of war, with the intention
Df abolishing the cruel curse of the
ages, was on board the Russian bat
tleship Petropavlovsk. He died In
carrying out the cause to which bis
art was dedicated the securing of
peace to the world. He was only In
the military camps and upon the mur
derous engines of sea battle to study
realities so as to present to the world
tha scenes Inseparable from war. It
was his hope that when the nations
aaw what they were fostering in the
military spirit, they would revolt from
It and bring about a now reign of
peace on earth, good will to men. Tha
war canvases of Verestchagln have
been forbidden the galleries of Russia
and of Germany by more than one de
cree. They were feared for the effect
they would have upon the masses.
George Collins, a young man, was
hanged in St. Louis recently, A few
hours before his execution he said In
en interview with a newspaper report
er: "My parents never gavo me a
show," Nor did be say this because
of pique, nor to Justify himself. As
revealed by bis life's history what
be said was true. The boy did not
get a fair chance at life. In fact bis
parents gave him no chance at all.
Ills father and mother were unlit for
parenthood. They allowed their son
to grow up in the streets. There was
no homo atmosphere nor Influence nor
training. The only training was lit
the direction of evil. Very early In
life young Collins came Into conflict
with the police. They pronounced him
a bad lot and Anally bad him sent to
"the reform school. In this school
Collins simply took a post graduate
In vice. After thus fitting himself for 1
a criminal career ho was released to
prey upon society. The road to the
scaffold was a short one. Primarily
the blame rests with the parents. Hnd
tbey given blm a fair chanco ha could
then blame hlmtclf for hit wrong,
doing. Ills father and mother sent
hlra to tho gallows. The lesson of
bis mUspont llfo Is for parents: Ho
gin tho education of yonr boy before
he it born with yourself.
During a discussion at the Chicago
Woman's Club Professor Arnold Tomp
kins of the Chicago Normal School
said: "A man should dress well so
should a woman but not too well; ho
should comb, but not too well; bo
should write well, but not too well,
and ho should spell, but not too well.
The press recently criticised high
school pupils because they were poor
spellers. It was the highest compli
ment ever paid to them, because It
proved they were In better business."
Another speaker Indorsed this notion
by declaring that there were more Im
portant things In education than good
spelling, and that the time was coming
when the poor speller would no longer
bo considered illiterate. From these
assertions and others like them which
proceed from the mouths of school
trachcrs we may Infer that a contempt
for spelling Is being rather assiduous,
ly cultivated by a considerable number
of our modern educators, and the
question arises whether they are not
Inviting contempt for themselves. It
Is to be noted, moreover, that tbey can
put forward no superior claims to au
thority In the matter, because the test
of the value of spelling Is not connncd
to the classroom. It Is being applied
every day In business nnd In the pro
fessions. The high school boy who Is
assured by Professor Tompkins that
the censure of his errors In spelling Is
In fact a compliment may find that
the more be Justifies such compliments
tho more difficult It will be for him
to secure the favorable attention of
those upon whom he depends for em
ployment. That is a phase of the sub'
ject that is of very great practical Im
portance, and that admits, we should
say, of little difference of opinion
among persons of experience in the
world's work. It Is a fair conclusion
also that where slovenliness Is encour
aged In one branch of study Its Influ
ence is likely to be felt In others, and
if there are occasionally Instances from
which It appears that poor spelling nnd
brood general culture are not lucom-
patlble they are to be taken ns curl
ous exceptions. Furthermore, when
we are Informed that there arc more
Important things In education than
good spelling we are entitled to a Mil
of particulars; also to proof that Inac
curacy In spelling Instead of being the
sign of general slovenliness Is evi
dence of devotion to the more Impor
tant things. Upon the whole, it would
seem that the high school boy Is get
ting slops when he needs discipline,
and If a professor may defy the rules
with impunity the boy enjoys no such
privilege. In this connection a story
that Is told of Dr. Parr, an eminent
English scholar and educator. Is perti
nent When a gentleman defended his
pronunciation of Alexandria with the
accent upon the "1" by an appeal to
the authority of Richard Bentley, Parr
came down upon blm with the com
ment that he (Parr) and Bentley
might pronounce the word that way.
but that the gentleman had better
stick to the ordinary usage. So Dr.
Tompkins may spell as be pleases, but
be ought to refrain from making a
laughing stock of bis pupils.
1-1 I 1 I 1 1 I 1 1 ! 1 I 1 I I I I I I 1 lit I-
A COMIC TTAGEDY.
111! II 1 1 I I It I I It III I I-M -!;.
John Banvard, wbo afterward be
came famous as the painter of a great
panorama of Mississippi scenery, set
out In bis boyhood. In the early thir
ties, to travel down the "Great Water"
In a fiatboat with a number of com
panions. They built their boat on
the Wabash, and were to pay their
way by exhibiting dloramlc views In
the cabin at landings. Unfortunately
the candle-lights were not then shin
ing through the sycamores along the
Wabash, and before the adventurers
reached a settled region they ran out
of provisions. In tbe woods they
could find nothing but papaws, lus
cious at first but quickly cloying.
For two days, wrote the sixteen-year-old
Banvard, we had nothing
whatever to eat but those awful pa-
paws. The very sight or memory of
one made me shudder. Then, on a Joy
ful sunny afternoon, we approached
Shawneetown, III., on the Ohio river, '
where we were advertised to exhlb.t I
As we came In we could see on tbe
bank a crowd of the people. Some
carried chickens, some eggs, some
yams, some potatoes, some "side-meat"
(bacon) and some corn meal. Our din
ner was In sight, for all those things
were Intended as payment for admis
sion at the door, and all were "good."
Our stomachs hungered and our
mouths watered for tbe feast; but alasl
we were too eager. Working our boat
toward land, we ran upon a reef and
stuck fast Every effort to set us
free failed. Darkness came on, and
before our eyes our "house" disband
ed and went home, carrying our sup
per with It
Discouraged and forlorn, we turned
to our bag of papaws -for what con
solation we could find, then went to
sleep. In tbe nlgbt we floated free,
and at daylight were In the woods
again, eight miles below those luscious
provisions. That was one of tho most
awful tragedies of my life.
Advice iu t'oust-Ulvers.
The toast Is really a short address.
Here, mora than ever, brevity Is the
golden rule, says Benjamin A. Hey
drlck In tbe Chautauquan. One other
suggestion may be helpful; In giving a
toast be yourself. Don't try to give
a toast like this humorist or that mas
ter of epigram; give your own kind of
speech. But you reply: "I'm not a
wit I'm Just a plain person, without
any brilliancy at all, and I don't see
why they put me down for this toast
anyway?" Well, the people who put
you ou knowyou wero not'brllllantand
do not expect brilliancy from you. And
it is much better to appear as a plain
person who is making a plain speech
than as a plain person who Is trying to
bo brilliant and not succeeding.
Borne mothers save slipper soles uDd
spoil children. 1
5
t
Opinions of
OffcVil Corruption.
HE great Governments and the great municipal
ities of the worldhnve a problem before them
1
U I which at yet they have not
I .vlili.li th.M nin.t fnort If tlti.v
Ml
11 times of emergency of the elllolenoy of their
igents. The growing hunger for money as the
one absolute condition of endurable life, the
increasing severity of the competition
and the decaying abhorrence of suicide
velopment of "corruption" In Its olllclal
bribe-taking by officials, and of stealing from State and
municipal departments. No form of
protect the nations from It We have
countries, because under our social
which really governs has been taught
to regard bribe-taking as a worse dishonor even than cheat
ing at cards, and because those who suffer are absolutely
free to complain: but even here, when the Government Is
forced to spend millions suddenly, rings are formed to get
some of that money, and the taxpayer Is fleeced through
preposterous charges and Illicit commissions.
It Is a great blot on modern civilization, which In many
respects depends upon efficiency for success. Efficiency and
corruption are wholly Incompatible.
ruption produces only waste, and that
but that Is a false view. Corruption,
arrests the employment of the best
tlons, for the whole energy of the corrupt Is devoted to
preventing their promotion, or If they are promoted, to
rendering their positions ut.tcn.ible. In the sccoud place,
corruption makes energetic administration nearly tmpossl
ble. for no Government ever loses the
It; and to prevent It most of them
"checks," every one of which occupies
the executive officer, nnd Increases the load of responsi
bility under which nt last he dare do nothing without pre
vlous sanction. And, In the third place, corruption Is not
only fatal to the very Idea of duty, but to the habit of
performing It.
A perfect remedy for corruption Is
It requires a change In the motives of
Governments cannot produce, and which
at the pains to encourage effectively;
palliatives might at least be tried. One
who complain. Another Is to pay nil
thing whatever to do with contracts at least decently, a rule
often neglected In the case of the experienced but subor
dinate men upon whose Judgment their less experienced
superiors In matters of business compelled to rely. And a
third Is to declare bribe-giving and brlbe
treason severely punishable whenever It
Spectator.
Social Gravitation.
Itn census proves Incontestable that the drift
r
I of population cityward reached Its maximum
one years ago, aim lins ueguu iu rvecue. unii
ne b.is said: "Hereafter the city and tbe coun
try will march side by side, with even step."
Even this Is hardly probable. The change of
drift Is owing to economical conditions that
will continue strongly to favor tho country. Population
will still move out and differentiate from the masses. In
fact the coming deal seems to be rather an evenly dis
tributed suburbanlsm, covering tho whole country; while
the cities will remain as ganglia. Following this Ideal the
city will grow more country-like, while
steadily acquire those privileges which
longed to the city.
According to n recent census bulletin,
an Increase of 32 per cent during the last ten years, which
Is about the average of the" Increase of the whole country.
The relative gain of cities from 1SS0 to 1S00 was from 22
to 29 per cent or 7 per cent positive
1S00 to 1000 this Increase was only
This tells the story with accuracy. It
In assuming that cities will cease to grow, but that rela
tively they will cease to grow as fast as the country.
A potent cause for depopulating the country came In with
Improved machinery. Farm work could be done with few
er hands. A single reaper would replace ten men. Costly
machinery could be profitably used only
yet a single reaper might serve n dozen
I GREAT AGRICULTURAL DISCOVERY
Four-fifths of every brenth of air
which the lungs Inhale la pure nitro
gen. It Is one of the commonest of
tho elements. And yet says a writer
in Harper's Monthly, It Is the one thing
for the lack of which wheat fields,
cotton fields and corn fields are aban
doned as "worn out" because it Is the
most expensive plant food for mun to
supply to the soil, aud one which most
plants are unable to absorb In Its pure
state from tha air. To remedy this
the Department of Agriculture nt
Washington Is preparing to distribute
among farmers a substance resembling
compressed yeast which will raise, not
bread, but crops; for vihen applied
to certain plnnts It will ennble them
to take abundant nitrogen from the at
mosphere. The "yeast" It really a
mass of germs, which bid fair to be
come moit efficient gardeners.
It has long been known that clover
and other leguminous crops flourish Iu
"worn-out" soil, and when plowed Into
It partially restore the fertility of it.
Studying this phenomenon, scientists
have found that In such a soil tho
plnnts have nodules, little bunches or
swellings, on their roots, which they
do not have when grown elsewhere.
These nodules are formed by bacteria
called rndlocola.
Professor Nobbe, a German Investi
gator, found that lupines which had
the nodules would grow In soli devoid
of nitrogen. Without the nodulex the
lupines would not grow. He obtained
somo of the rndlocola from tbe nodules
nnd propagated them In gelatine till
he had many millions of the germs,
He then put into three Jnrs equal
quantities of sterilized sand contain
ing no nitrogen whatever. In each Jar
be planted beans. The first he fer
tilized with all the usual plant foods
except nitrogen. Tho second he (.up
plied with the same food and salt
peter, a form of nitrogen enslly ab
sorbed by plants. The third he fed
like tho first, and in addition Inoculat
ed sand with his rndlocola.
The result was extremely Interest
ing. The beans all came up, and for a
few days grew alike. Then the first
lot, having no nitrogen, turned yellow
nnd died, The second continued to
grow in normal fashion, But the third,
although It got no nitrogen In the soil,
flourished far beyond Its neighbor, and
developed a luxuriant nnd healthy
growth, showing that tbe radlocola
Great Papers on Important Subjects.
fairly faced, but
nn to innko sure
for great contracts
all tend to the de
sense, that Is. of
government seems to
loss of It than most
conditions the class
from early childhood
Some think that cor
fol
they can bear waste:
In tbe first place.
men In leading post
heavy
hope of preventing
apply an luflnlty of
part of the time of
whlle for France
bird to find, because
the corrupt which
society will not be
but two or three
Is to protect those
those wlio have any
- recclvlng a form of
Is proved. Loudon
i.omon Mill auove
are certain to bo
llchts to guide It
flash of the nuns,
also likely that the
the country will
have heretofore be
159 towns show
Increase but from
or to coerce the
about 2 per cent.
does not warrant us
tlii. IThIImI XtnlP
regard with entire
hope for constantly
on large farms.
small farm owners
these two sovereign
had enabled It to draw Us nitrogen
from the air.
Trofessor Nobbe carried his experi
ments much further. He showed that
while In neutral soli rndlocola are all
alike, once they have associated them
selves with a given plant, as clover,
they become very nearly useless for
other plants, such as beans nnd
lupines. Accordingly he has labored
to produce highly specialized bacteria
for each crop gardening germs
trained to grow their speclnlty.
Having done this, his next move was
to place tbem In tho fnrmers' hands.
He grew them by millions nnd pneked
them In bottles of gelatine. All thnt
tho farmer needed to do wns to dilute
the gelatine with warm water, mix it
with the seed and a little soil, partially
dry tho mixture and sow It Tbe
germs did the rest.
There was much opposition to the
new "fertilizer," and one old farmer
who did not believe In It planted In
a big Held n lot of the Inoculated seed
In a big letter "N," Professor Nobbe
having named the gelatine compound
"Nitrogen." The .farmer was amazed
and convinced when above all his oth
er beans thnt yenr there stood out the
letter "N" In luxuriant and healthy
plnnts.
Professor Nohbe's glass Jars are In
convenient to handle, so tho United
Stitcs Department of Agriculture, fol
lowing up his experiments, has bit
upon the "compressed yeast cake
plan" as stmplo and satisfactory.
Bmall Farms In Ilermuda. ,
The farms In tbe Bermuda Islands
are not such as to Impress one with
an Idea of the greatness of tho coun
try. The Islands being extremely
rocky, tha farms consist for the most
part of tiny detached fields In tbe
pleasant hollows, where the accumula
tion of vegetable matter and of wash
ings has made a shallow soli. In these
llttlo Islands one sees flehls from the
size of a parlor floor to that of two
acres the latter size being uncommon.
It Is strange enough to tho visitor
from moro ambitious lands to see a
patch of onions or lilies or potatoes
only a few feet square bravely assert
ing Its Importance In some front-yard
or by the highway.
But although these fields are dimin
utive they are numerous, and the com
bined output makes up a largo trade
In Bermudan products in the Now
York markets, for probably ntne-tentbs
of the product, except bananas, finds a
market there in spite of the duties,
The lands vary wonderfully In price
from very little for tbe exposed oleva-
co operatively. So far, the Eastern States wcro at the
greater disadvantage, the deserted farms were common
throughout New England. It was wiser to go West with
small capital, and leave the homestead to go back to wll-
dornoss, rather than to remain nnd be, starved. This state
of affairs, In aggravated symptoms, continued until near
the close of the nineteenth century. A cause for
the reaction which we chronicle. Is tho splendid Increase In
the value of farm products, brought about by our having
secured the world's markets. Commercial expansion dur-
lug the last ten years has Immensely Increased tho eipor-
tntlon of nearly everything that tho farm produces. Our
fruits, our meats, our corn are now found In every market
of the globe. There Is no longer any fear of overprodue
Hon; we have only to Insist on the open door principle and
fro competition. The farmer can apply his whole attention
to the Increase of products, and the conquest of Insect and
fungoid enemies. Agriculture Is proving Itself to be once
more what It was In the early part of the last century,
tho most independent of all tho Industries. Now York In
dependent
forts and Naval Attacks.
NE of the surprises of the Fnr Eastern war is
the failure of the fort guns to do more damage
In the attacking fleets. It was a matter of faith
ti. n,,iiwriti. thnt nni oi-n iiin .troiir
est modern battleship could safely attack an
effective modern fort, armed with long range
guns. England Is at present making a
even to take her Channel squadron 011
number of lougrnnge fort guns for the defense of her south "",' "V A . . to get his rubber bouts. As he ran l
coast, aud It Is calculated that these guns will easily be '"r " other vessels be very near tu, nt , XMMuKi lllM ,
able to throw a twelve or thlrteen lnch shell across the w ,1w " lH)'"1 chance ol Ilnftf , ,., , ,,,, frolll
Straits of Dover, so that It would not seem to be wortl lmm,ful f 'wnrt swim- , ,4U , . ,vl,,ow alK.ve the lad.Ur
of port much les, tc , at temp to land In the face o u
overwhelming attack. Hut this Is mere theory. The trull
Is. that although the weight and range of th'eso guns havi
oeen steadily Increasing tho human powers which are b
use them have not shown, and are not likely to show a cor
responding progress. While a gun can carry n shell ncros
the Straits of Dover, tho gunner who could make a hit 01
twenty miles Is yet unborn; neither eyesight nor flncnesi
of hand are equal to the task. Nor would the ntmnsphen
permit It, If they were. Attacks by fleets are made by sen
and tho sea Is proverbially untrustworthy In the matter 01
weather. Air currents, mists, uneven radiation, mlrngi
and a dozen similar causes deflect the shot aud the vNloi
which directs It. Moreover, no one nowadays Is likely ti
attack a fort at close range In broad daylight. The Por
Arthur bombardments were nearly all at night, and sunn
of Uiem In snowstorms. It Is Intelligible that n ship a
sea can more or less locate n position on laud, such ns tin
1 on Aruiur, over a iowh vm-rc iin-ri 1
somo lights at least; but the fort has no
In locating the ship, except the momentar)
which give hardly any opportunity for
aiming. In tho case of tho Vladivostok bombardment it
seems that the Japanese fleet were too far off to do an)
damage, nnd. therefore, too far off to receive any. It l
object of that attack was to draw tin
Russian Are In order to locate their forts; tbe Itusslnn
secmed to have divined this, and naturally abstained fron
firing. Harper's Weekly.
No Thought of Annexation.
HE United States regards Canada at undi
British Imperial suzerainty, an Independent
sovereign nation, whoe title Is as valid as tha'
of any nation on the globe. It has no though
of nnnexliiK Canada aealnst her will, nor doe-
It. Indeed, regard annexation as necessary 01
Inevltnlile. It Ih not slltlni? nn n' tilclita tu pon
Dominion Into union with the Republic
If ever Canada should nt her own will seek such union,
wnlltil lirnlinMr lin mrdhillr ro.nniuiU-r
Hut. If Canada never does seek It. the United Slates wll
unanimity nnd satisfaction the prospect
of continuing for all time to share this continent with an
other great English-speaking commonwealth, and will onlj
Increasing sentiments of mutual esteem
and constantly strencthenlnir bonds of frlendshlu between
nations. New Y'ork Tribune.
. luc am.- ...... ...
iii-nt; ii-l9 Ollii IIIMIl;.. niimuiH ui
land on the Islands there are less
Ui 11 n 10,000 acres nil told lias en
forced a very high state of cultivation I
of tho lands. The Islands comprise a '
prise a
series of smart garden hollows, nnd
tho hard.metaled, whlln walled roads, one hunting In tho woods to kill or In
white, smug houses and profusion of Jure another accidentally. Tho Inw Is
compact garden growth all unlto to the result of the many accidents In
make tbe placo a dlmlnutlvo picture- which human beings were mistaken
land. for animals and were shot. The pen
an
Comrades.
Bobby was ten years old and
alarmingly light-hearted nnd cnreless
young person. It wns supposed, how
ever, thnt he would be capable of es
carting his grandmother to the family
Christmas dinner, one block away from
lier home, without mishap.
He wns tall for his age, nnd he of-
icreu 111s arm 10 nis granmnoiucr in a
gnllant nnd satisfactory manner as
they started off together.
"I hopo he will remember that she N
almost ninety, and not try to hurry
her. I'm sure I've cautioned him
enough," said Bobby's mother, ns she
began to dress her jounger children.
But when she arrived at tho family
party It appeared that grandmother
hnd turned her ankle and was lying
on the lounge,
"Bobby," said tho mother, reproach
fully, "where wcro you when grandma
slipped?"
"Now I won't have that boy
blamed," said grandmother, briskly,
smiling up Into Bobby's remorseful
face. "Wo came to a fine Ice slide,
and he asked mo If I thought I could
do It, and I told him I did. And I want
you children to remember ono thing:
when you get to be most ninety you'll
count a turned ankle a small thing
compared with having somebody for.
L.t thnt vnu'vo outlived evervllilne l,..l
llieumatlsm .and sitting still. Anybody
that likes can rub this ankle a minute
or two with some liniment hut I want
Bobby next me at dinner, mlndl"
TWO HdHSOIIS.
Towne Got your tprlng suit yet?
Browne No; I was thinking of a
ntta nnr notinor Ann anlt IVImf tin
you ilium ui 111
Towno Thnt sounds seasonable.
Philadelphia Press.
IVh.n .mnll ltw f.nt ,a Rnn..
caught In the pantry door it isn't tho
jam he is looking for.
Of course, the real test of a pudding
is your Inability to sleep after eat
ing it
MODERN SEA BATTLES.
Nona of the Pomp nnd 1'aatantry ol
Notion'. Dny.
Tho pomp and pageantry of sea war
fare In Nelson's day, with lis stripped
crowds of men swarming about tho
encumbered decks nnd streaming llngt
from very mast, have gone with tha
towering ranges of stills and nimble
tailors who leaped nhout nloft handling
them even during tho height of bullle.
The now tunn-of-war goes Into tha
fight grim, unadorned and apparently
procccdltur by her own volition, llkt
tome unthinkable inarluo monster,
Far mora terrible, but mercifully far
more swift, will bo the conflict between
hostile fleets In the future. There will
bo scarcely any such thing as the tin-
gerlng agony, long-drawn out, of tha
old days of sea fighting. For one thing.
modern Ironclad and cruisers going
Into action will chouse the Icsmt of
two evils confronting them. Hecnust
of the deadly peril of splinters and of
tire everything of wood In their tlttlngs,
even to the boats, will bo cast away at
the beginning of the fight.
I Then, when tho battle Is Joined, tin
"cauinn must needs have a heart of
brass Incased In triple steel, n mind
Hint refuses to meditate upon tho tin-
mcllato possibility of one of those tcr-
rlblo twelve-Inch projectiles plunging
d""'" "P0" vessel's deck, and out
amid the disintegration of nil her gang-
llnn" of ngr, through tho bottom,
rendering her an easy target to an un-
Injured foo and her sinking a mutter
of minutes.
modern man-of-war will not, at
anX rnt. Prolong the agonies of her
crow whn "lle tcuttlcd. She will
go down quick Into the pit In a halo of
steam. whirling vortex of waves, and
"' five minutes from he commence-
"7 "
miTs wiiose superliuuian struggl
have wrenched them clear of the 1I0-
, dowu-dragglng eddlcs.I.on
i jj
AWAITED THE EXPLOSION.
MU.ourl l'lont.r TclU or I'lr.l tt.a ol
Kero.eiia Oil.
When the electric light was turned
on here this week It recal ed, to U. M.
Shackelford, a pioneer resident of the
county, an event of IMS that cre.itcd
far more excitement, rays tho Kansas
City Star correspondent at Clareme,
Mo.
"I was running a drug store at Hhel
byvllle, the county sent," said Mr.
Shackelford, "and on one of my trips
to St. Uiuls I purchased a couple of
lamps and two gallons of coal nit.
j When my fellow citizens teamed of
the proposed Illumination something
like a hundred of them assembled at
the store to watch the anticipated ex-
plosion. I didn't feel so safe inoelf,
but as It was my show I had to faco
tbe music. I loaded tho lamp ind
turned up the wick. Then I gut a lung
pole, and tied a piece of paper to tha
end. Tha paper v. as lighted, ami tha
crowd ran out and looked In at tha
window. I reached the fuse over nnd
touched off tha wick, without casualty.
Tha boyt filed In and watched the
lamp glow, with contradictory opln
Ions. I bought several more gallom
of oil, and I 'tried to Induce the farm
ers to use it, but sold only one gallon
"e year rollowing.
I "Oil then cost f3 a gallon, and tho
'bome-mado candle was regarded as
"cier ami ciicaper. ine inanuiaciuro
Of Candles was tlirmil over to 1110
housewife and one of the rhldr n,
Tlicre were molds that would liuld
,rom I0llr 10 " "n. ami ctcry raruu-r
bai plenty of fat aud grease to mil:o
,ue canines, minuy iw mwui mo
"a ",n" "'"K m mm
the family a year, and they were laid
evenly away In boxei. They furulihed
a, ma fl.f mntnrv Mtrht nml I tiAl-Ar ttimril
troul)le wltn tMr (.y,.,, An(J ,,pre wn,
no swearing by the head of the homo
about gas nnd electric light hills.'
A Uw to I'rotrot Hunters,
1 Michigan recently passed a statuto
which makes It a criminal offrnto fnr
ally Is ten years' Imprisonment or u
thousand dollars' fine.
1 phtinrn In tr.f tlm npw Inw rnmn
at onco ,lurll2 ,,, ,,t op(,n ,cn,0
A man shot and killed another sport 1-
man, whom ho mistook for a deer.
Tha caso was Interesting In Its out
comr
Tho offending hunter was acquitted
because tbe victim, clad In garments
a0mewlint resembling a deer's hide,
wni uneonsclosIy Imitating the move-
menU of fleeB rteer ns lle ienpea
rrom 0(f (o log ,n ,ll0 CC(lnr Vnmii.
Moreover, such Is the grim humor of
CTenUi u prove(j ,i,nt , vcllm wa,
,talulnK tle man who shot blm, under
,be Mme delusion; thus It was merely
nueston wnch should happen to
(hoot first
A similar statute was enacted In
Maine In 1001. It la almost linposslblo
to convict any one under a law which
makes a special crime of an nrcldent
Tho principle at bottom of the law
seems to bo tho old principle of crim
inal negligence.
Iter Opportunity.
Nell Miss Hpcltz has been talking
about you again,
Belle Y'es, I was delighted to meet
al .umul '. ,u ""
cU-1 wouldn't think youd be
Plc8,cd t0 meet her nt nny time.
was IUIS lime. Ulirillg tue
crush I found a chanco to give her a
fcw Bood pokes on my owu aceount-
1'mraaeipnia i-iiimc i.ocigcr.
Horrible Unite.
"Wbatl" demanded her mother, "you
haven't left your husband?"
Yes," sobbed tho wretched young
Wife,'tio Insulted mo Insulted me hor-
..
"How? What?"
"We were Just having n llttlo spat,
and nll of a sudden he snld: 'Oh, you
women! You'ro nil alike.' " Phllndol
phla IfC"'
When you hear ono woman refe
to another woman of no us n glr', t
a pretty safe bet' that she Is also car
I rytng weight for ago.
a hero or hie hour. J
M.4j..Hl'
i 11,. v.irlt lire department nil
ncta 0f heroism nro compared with
wbnt Jim McEvoy did that Huudiiy
morning In May, 1MK1, when ha ear.
rea bis partner, McNally. living
torch, out of a burning tenement. A
writer In Everybody's Mitgatlna tcllt
tha story:
a pot of lard boiled over In n bake-
,i,op n 1 1 1 0 firtt story of n New York
Kntt Hide tenement, and In n few
minutes the building was In llamea,
when tha policeman rushed tniougii
the house ho fuund moot of the tenants
tctt. He hammered on door after
,lH)ri ntut u-eclug retreat cut off from
Mow, commanded I ho frightened pen-
to follow him to the roof. They
,11,1, n,t ,0 inili their escape through
t,0 irultlot nrross the roofs and down
ttirtitiicti tha neighboring houses to tho
,lrrot, Thru it was found Unit una
, Cni,lnetmaker, had bout for-
gotten.
Trurk , to which McNally and Mc-
Kyoy ipi0,)K(h1, hnd nrilvcd by Ihls
lw Bj ni,fr was put up to
wnrj t,0 window of tho ciiblnelmak.
. ro))m (, nro had gained
lcll lcn,,vnr ttsnt It was deemed mi-
ta ,,, or,,,r tll nroiucn to mount
, ,,,,, McNally found nut that
., , ,,, ,, building, .mil
...i.hn.n .v.itinir fr orders he mounted
h M(1,r .nppcan d through tha
window.
, lnt onp ,,, Mm Kt
w,lf ( n(tht cn,Ur ,,,, fl)r , t.mok
wn( (llcK nl(, ,,, m.n,.,,,,,,,! Intense.
,i.,i., 1..,., i,,,,.,,,.,! i .imili then
R1(, ,lcr4 , (or , ,,,, e,ance.
M(.,:voJ ,.,, for
lnlcki w,li h wa. round the comer.
a face. McEvoy forgot his boots, and,
running forward, he, too, climbed the
ladder.
window, from cmfwytaolni!rin(Tin,.fl:;
Ho mounted steadily toward Ihn
window, from which tho flames were
belching as from a furnace. During
an Interval when tho blast seemed
less severe he caught tho sill and
dived through. No one expected lilm
to reappear, but In a mlnuto ho was
back with what looked like a hugu
torch In his arms. The torch was Mc
Nally, who was aflame from head to
foot.
McNally, when he entered, had
missed his footing aud fallen head
long downstairs Into the fire. Never
theless he managed to crawl up to
tha window again, and It was nt tho
moment when ho looked out Hint Mc
Evoy had seen his faro. The Haines
, had eaten through hts rubber coal.
j and ha was burning up. To touch
, him wat like hnudllng n hot brand,
' And yet McEvoy put hit hands round
tha brand and lifted It through tho
. window.
"Somehow or other." as he says him
self, ha managed to pass McNally
down to where Shaughiiessy was wait
ing, and together they got blm down,
while tba stream from the hoie played
on them to keep them from burning
to death.
McNally died after days of suffer
ing. Ills courage had been equal to
that of McEvoy, whose Injuries were
severely burned arms and hands. Tim
cabinetmaker, after nil, succeeded In
making his escape from the opposite
slda of the building.
WONDERFUL COMMON NETTLE.
Was Not Alnny lli Dr.iit.cd Wrrri
Tlmt It U Now.
Thrra was a tluio once when the
common uettlo was not thn deiplscd
weed It It now. People did not root
It out of existence or shun It ns n
nuisance, but cultivated It fnr use as
food, for clothing and for npcr tnanu
facture. It certainly dors not look Inviting
as a food, and yet during tho Irish
(amino hundreds of poor people exlited
entirely on It, cooking the young plant
as a xrccn. There was a method
of blanching It by "earthing up," ns Is
now used for'sea knle.
Animals, while refuting to touch tliu
growing nettle, devour It cngerly when
mnde Into hay, and In Rutsln, Sweden
nnd Holland It Is mown several times
a year for fodder.
Tho nettle lielongt lo tho genus
urttca. That term comes from a l.ntln
word meaning "to burn," nnd It Is m
npt name. Tho sting Is hot ns n hum
nnd most painful. , An old herbalist.
Culpepper, says It "may bo found by
feeling, on the darkest night!"
Tho common naimi given to tho net
tle In somo languages menus "lliut
with which ono sous," fnr tho fiber
wns used ns n thrend several ccnlurlo
ago.
In Kamchatka (ho natives use the
thread for fishing line and cordnge.
In France It la used for paper. In Hin
dustan and China It Is woven Into
grass cloth, and the Scotch have pre
pared, spun nnd woven It Into ns gojd
linen as the flax makes.
When King Cotton went to Europe n
century ngo tho now-romer superseded
tho home-grown plnnt, nnd It sank Into
a state of neglect, until n few years
ngo, when tho Germans made an effort
to revlvo Its culture.
Prof, renlenux begged the peoplu to
turn their attention to the stluglug
nettle as a thread producer, nnd Mini
amo Itocszler-I.nde tiled, In 187.1, in
rnlso It on her own eslnto. Hut sho
could not mnko tho stupid pcasnuti
follow her orders, for they scorned
tho plant and her Ideas, Later, In 1R7T.
sho succeeded In exhibiting nottlo liber
Iu nil stages, from llio beginning to
spun yarn, nnd it wns n great triumph
for her. Immediately Switzerland,
Poland, Sweden, Austria nnd North
America hastened to grow nettles, nnd
tbe noses that had been turned up as
sumed a different expression.
The Chinese ncttlo yields n fiber 11s
soft as silk, nnd there Is now In Dres
den a "China grass" manufnc'oiy, do
voted to the Industry of weaving cloth
from this and tho common nettle,
Somo men look to sco If tho tldo li
coming in before casting their btcad
upon the wnlcr.
After tha matrimonial knot Is tied
there is always a lighting chanco for
happiness.
P.