meetings in which to discuss our pros­
pects, which at present look gloomy
enough."
Thank God for Life Life h not sweet always,
Hand# may be heavy laden, heart care full.
“Nevertheless you are the happiest
Unwelcome nigh a follow unwelcome daya,
man on earth', for you have the cer
And dreanu* divine end In awakening dull;
Still It Is life, and life is cause for praise;
tainty of Margaret’s love. I will keep
Tliis ache, this restlwwoesa, thin quickening sting. your secret inviolable, Dynecourt; but
Prove me no torpid and inanimate thing,
this conversation is too powerful for
Prove me of him who is of life the spring:
1 am alive—and that is beautiful
both of us, so it had better cease. 1
Thank God for Love, though love may hurt and shall be off soon now. If you ever care
wound.
to hear of me again this is my address
Though Met with sharpest thorns its rose may be: in New York." And Gaston wrote a
poHes are not of winter, all attuned
few words on a card which Geoffrey
Must be the earth, filled with roft air and free,
And warm ere dawn# the rose upon its tree.
placed with the others in his card ease.
Fresh currents through my frozen pulsbs run.
“Now, good-by, old fellow. I shall not
My heart lias tasted summer, tasted sun;
see you again probably, as I must spend
And 1 must thank thee, lx>rd, although not one
Of all the many roses blooms for me
my last days in the old country with my
Thank God for Death Bright thing with dreary relatives in Clare, and shall go directly
name;
from there."
We wrong with mournful flowers her pure, still
“Good-by, Lay I Be assured of my
brow
best wishes for your welfare on the
We heap her with reproach-** and with blame;
Her sweetness and her fitness disallow.
other side of the water,”
Questioning bitterly on the why and how;
After a few more words at parting
But calmly 'mid our clamor antf surmise
these two men separated, never to meet
She touches each in turn, and each grows wise,
Taught by the light in her mysterious eyei;
again in this world.
1 shall be glad, and I am thankful now!
.The day after the occurrence above
—Susan Coolidge
narrated 1 was again in my favorite
grotto, thinking, as was my wont, of
A FATAL MISTAKE.
Geoffrey Dynecourt. What happiness
would be ours could my father’s preju­
Sitting in this quiet, gloomy house dice be overruled. I should never
alone this evening I, a solitary, gray know a moment’s peace if I married
haired old woman, am keeping the without his blessing, but certainly my
melancholy anniversary of the event present life knew no element of repose.
which cast a blight on my whole life. I was incurring my father’s anger on
Years ago 1 wits the idolized child of every occasion that I met Geoffrey, yet
the kindest of fathers. Sir Hugh Lux- each day that passed without this meet­
moore, my widowed father, was re­ ing was one long, dreary blank for me.
At this point my reflections; were in­
puted to be the wealthiest man in the
county of Wicklow, and to me, Marga­ terrupted by a shadow falling across
ret. bis only child, in my lovely home the entrance of the grotto. The next
of Eagle’s Nest, the time flew by in a instant Geoffrey Dynecourt seized both
golden dream. The Luxmoores were a my hands in his and smothered my ex­
handsome race, and after so many clamations of delighted surprise by a
years 1 can say, without conceit, that I shower of kisses.
“I have had another proof of my
did not prove an exception to my an
cestors in this respect. My good name darling’s constancy.” he began; and
and wealth attracted many suitors to then he described the interview with
Eagle’s Nest; but among these 1 will Gaston Lay “But, Margaret, I have
only describe the two who were at once many gloomy forebodings that you
the happiness and misery of my life.
may regret discarding a handsome
I was sitting alone one summer even­ young fellow like Lay for the sake of
ing in a grot.to by the lake, my favorite an unhappy wretch such as myself,
retreat, .when suddenly a hand laid branded, as it were, with the curse of
lightly on my arm caused me to turn, his ancestors. Margaret, the thought
and I beheld Gaston Lay standing be­ that you may one day blast my happi­
fore me
ness forever by sharing your father’s
“I could not go away without seeing opinion concerning me drives me al­
you once more, my darling Margaret I” most wild at times. I believe that the
began he. “The hope that you might curse of insanity died out of our family
retract your cruel words has held me generations ago; but you have no proof
here day after day Say that there is of this, and your father may convince
one small ray of hope for me I”
you that his judgment is best.”
“Mr. Lay. I intended my answer,
“Oh, Geoffrey, bow can you distress
given to you a week ago. to be final. I me so by these suspicions? How often
expressed then, as plainly as was in my must I tell you that you are the light
power, and I repeat it now, that I do and happiness of my' life, and I would
not love you, and can never be your rather die than give you up? It is hard
wife. The continued renewal of this to be content with these short-, stolen
subject is most painful to me, and if visits, but brighter days -will dawn for
longer persisted in my friendship for us, I am sure. When word of miné
you will be turned into positive en­ forbids your presence here you may
mity.”
know that I have succumbed to my
“I would not offend you for worlds. father’s will; till then trust me, will
Miss Luxmoore, and as now my last you not?"
hope lias crumbled to ashes I will re­
“I will forever I”
lieve you of my very obnoxious pres­
But just then the sound of footsteps
ence. But in parting will you answer put an end to our conversation, and
me one question?”
with a hurried farewell Geoffrey left
“If reasonable, yes."
the grotto. I then flew to meet my
“Is aiiy other man so fortunate as to father, who bad just returned from a
gain that. precious love which is not three weeks’ visit in the north of Ire­
for me?”
land. The delight at se'eing him again
“Perhaps it will strengthen what I put all thought of Geoffrey out of
have already said to tell you that I am my mind for the present, and we
not quite whole hearted, Mr. Lay.”
went back to the house chatting mer
“Is it Capt. Dyuecourt?”
rily.
“I eati gratify your curiosity no fur
The next evening was dark and
ther on this subject. But it- is growing gloomy, with unceasing rain. I was
late, and 1 cannot remain out later. sitting alone at my window, gazing out
Good night, and good-by for the last at the very cheerless prospect, when a
time, Gaston."
servant brought in a sealed envelope,
Two months ago the passionate, de­ addressed to me in a hurried hand
spairing way in which this man covered which I supposed to be Geoffrey’s, but
my hand with kisses at parting would on opening it I discovered a card bear­
have excited my strongest sympathy, ing the name “Gaston Lay,” with a
but during the past few weeks his per­ foreign address written underneath.
sistence in declaring his love, which I Scratched hurriedly on the back were
never reciprocated, had made him al­ the words:
most an object of abhorrence to me.
“Mv D arling —I am called sudden
Our families had been friendly for ly away,' but will risk a few moments'
many years, and as a child I was fond delay for a parting word with you.
of Gaston Lay, but nothing more. When and where can 1 see you ? Answer
During the past season a new star had immediately."
arisen in my firmament, which eclipsed
My first and only impression on read­
all previous ones. This star was my ing this was one of extreme anger and
secretly betrothed husband, Geoffrey disgust. I knew perfectly well that
Dynecourt.'
Gaston Lay was on the eve of his de
After leaving me in the grotto that parture for America. We had a full,
summer evening Gaston Lay betook understanding with each other that
himself to his club, to see some friends evening by the lake, and had agreed
before his departure to America. Find­ that our parting then and there should
ing the reading room empty, he took be final. It was the height of insolence
the opport'" *ty to write a few urgent on his part to renew the subject.again
letters. T’-'s occupation finished he in such direct opposition to my wishes.
leaned back in Lis chair and buried his Fired at the thought of his insolence 1
face' in liis hands. His meditations hastily inclosed the following lines in a
were finally interrupted by the entrance blank envelope to avoid detection:
e.I theca use of his unhappiness, Geoffrey
“From this time forth our destinies
Dyr ecourt.
are sundered.. Our parting in the
“Dyuecourt,” he began abruptly, “in grotto was sufficient. I cannot see you
three days 1 leave this country, forever again, and I sincerely hope that change
probably. For three years I have eher of scene may induce you to forget.
islied the idea that Margaret Lux­
“M argaret L uxmoore .”
moore would one day be my wife, but
This note 1 dispatched by the mes­
now. after a final understanding, I find senger who had brought the card, lit­
I have spoken too late. Her heart is tle guessing the effect of my hastily
another's, and, though I have no word written words.'
of hers as proof, yet I feel certain that
The following day passed witliou
yon, Dyuecourt, are the happy possess Geoffrey's accustomed visit. This did
or of what 1 considered my prize. 1 not surprise tne, but when day aftei
envy you more than tongue can ex day elapsed with no tidings of him 1
press,-but 1 bear no malice, and desire became seriously alarmed. At t-lie end
that we part friends."
of a week I heard from a friend that
“1 cannot express my sympathy and Capt. Dynecourt had left Ireland for ;■
astonishment at hearing this. Lay. 1
never supposed that yours was more year’s residence on the continent, after
than an ordinary friendship for Miss which he intended to join his regiment
Luxmoore. Your candor on the subject in India. The news struck me with
invites my confidence, which is this: stunning.force. Geoffrey gone without
With inexpressible pride I can say that a word! What did it all mean? With
Margaret Luxmoore loves me—loves such thoughts coursing wildly through
in«, and has promised to be po other my brain it is no wonder that I became
man’s wife. This is the bright side of insensible.
For many long weeks I lay ill of a
the picture; hear the reverse, which I
impart to you in the strictest confi­ violent fever, from which I recovered
only to learn that during that time
dence.
“In our family, on my mother's’side, there had been no tidings of Geoffrey.
there is a streak of insanity. There is I finally began to realize in a dull, de
no proof that it still exists; but in one spondent way that he was either cruelly
perfidious or really insane. I seemed
instance, many generations back, it has I to grow years older as the months
proved hereditary. Sir Hugh Luxmoore I went by, and 1 settle’d down in a gloomy
knows this, and, therefore, has refused I apathy which was painfully disturbed
me the hand of his daughter, and for­ by the death of my father. Shortly
bidden all intercourse between us. before he died he called me to him and
Were it not that Margaret loves me de­ expressed contrition for his harsh judg­
votedly I should feel it my painful ment of Geoffrey. But this confession
duty to fly from the allurements of her I came too late to awaken a ray of happi­
lovely face, but she encouraged me to ness in my desolate heart
stay, in the hope that her father may
After my father’s death people said
become reconciled to our marriage. It : that Margaret Luxmoore was in a rapid
is a hard verdict that he has pronounced . decline, and I sincerely hoped they
over us, but my darling has sworn to be were not mistaken. Such was the state
true to we. We have occasional stolen of things when I received the following
BENEDICAM
DOMINO.
letter, which flooded my desolate heart
with light and happiness:
“M y D ea rest M argaret —It is pos­
sible the explanation I have to make
may effect a reconciliation between us;
therefore 1 beg that you read and con­
sider this carefully before replying.
During my last interview with Gaston
Lay he left me his card with his writ­
ten address in New York. This card I
carelessly placed among some of my
own in a card ease. A week ago I had
occasion to refer to this address, and
on looking through my card case Gas­
ton’s card proved to be missing. The
circumstance surprised me very much,
as 1 remembered that I had opened the
case on only one occasion since—when
I took out a card to write you, asking
for a parting word before going on an
unexpected journey. The cold, scorn­
ful answer 1 received from you in re­
turn filled me with a mixture of aston­
ishment. rage and despair. I went—as
you bade me go—and felt that the real
approach of the supposed insanity, for
which you discarded me, would be my
greatest blessing. From that time my
life became a weary burden, almost too
heavy to bear.
“During the last month I had re­
solved to visit America, and wrote to
Gaston Lay on the subject, It was
just before sending this letter I diseov-
ered the loss of Gaston’s card, I can
account for its disappearance in only
one way, which is that on that dark
evening, a year ago, I must in my hurry
ha ye written on Gaston’s card instead,
of my own. The words were scratched
by the dim light of a carriage lamp,
and the mistake was quite possible,
though my culpable carelessness merits
the punishment I have undergone dur­
ing the last year. Naturally, under the
circumstances, such a message received
from Gaston would be offensive to you
and would have prompted the angry
message I received. If my supposition
be true, that this estrangement between
us is all a misunderstanding, answer by
the messenger that brings this letter,
and I will be with you in a few hours.
“G eoffrey D ynecourt ."
What a tide of blissful thoughts bin’s!
upon me at reading these lines 1 It was
even as he supposed—our mutual
misery of the past year was all owing
to an apparently trivial mistake?—and
Geoffrey was true to me 1 1 tried to ex­
press my joy in a letter to him, but my
hand trembled too violently to write
more than the word, “Come.”
The hour spent waiting for his return
seemed an eternity; but my impatience
was finally relieved by the cl'atter of
horse’s hoofs in the avenue. Almost
wild with excitement I flew to the door
in time to see Geoffrey’s horse gallop
past riderless. A chill stole over me;
with a cry of terror I flew out into the
night, calling for the servants to follow
with lights.
I rushed wildly through the avenue,
and by the lodge gates discovered the
object of my search. Geoffrey Dyne­
court lay on the grass, apparently dead
from a wound on the temple, caused
by being thrown from his horse against
one of the stone statues at the gate.
He was carried into the lodge and
everything done that medical aid could
suggest, but all to no effect. My dar­
ling did not survive the night, ahd my
prayers and supplications were fruit­
less. His last expiring breath was
spent in the fault articulation, “Too
late!”
My story is told. It is thirty years
to-night since Geoffrey died, yet the
dreary pain gnawing at my heart now
is as keen as my suffering then.—New
York World.
K SUN TO BE
WHERE SHE SOMETIMES FAILS.
?n t’le Domain of Woman Man Very Fre­
quently Excels, as Is Shown Here.
BY THE GROW-
BUSIN ESS.
FIELD
ING
AN ENGLISH TOURIST.
Of course, it is rank heresy to men­ HE HEARS A STORY OF HOW HER­
MIT MOUNTAIN WAS NAMED.
tion it. but does it ever occur to the
advanced woman that, while as yet
she lias failed to demonstrate her su­
perior ability in any of the professions
or industries of man’s province, when­
ever the man invades her domain he
invariably excels her in skill and suc­
cess? The woman doctor takes second
place to the man, yet the man cook is
the greater, the better paid, the more
successful than the woman.
The greatest lawyer is the world is
not a woman, but the greatest milliner
is a man and the most famous dress­
maker is also a man. The best tailors
for women are men, the greatest de­
signers of house decoration, architec­
ture and furnishings are men, and the
best housekeepers are men.
Of course the women will rise up in
their wrath, but you ask any man who
lives at a first class club, managed en­
tirely by men, if he can have the same
comfort, the same excellence of cook­
ing and variety of menu, the same ab-
scence of friction and annoyance, for
the same amount ot money, provided
by the most thoughtful, painstaking
little wife in the world.
In any household, if a man is al­
lowed to have dominion over his own
particular apartment, if he exercise his
own unbiased taste in furnishing and
arrangement, you will invariably find
that the man’s room is the favorite
place in the house, and that rarely is
the man permitted to enjoy in it peace­
ful seclusion. Why?
Because it is restful in coloring and
has no glaring contrasts of tint. The
chairs are comfortable when you sit in
them and aren’t done up with vexa­
tious sashes. The lights are arranged
so you can see to read or write if you
like, and are not so buried in frills and
millinery and frou frou that their orig­
inal purpose is lost. There are wel­
come space effects in the man’s room-
happy contrast with the cluttered,
crowded confusion of the woman’s
room.
Things are exactly where you can
put your hands on them when you
want them without any forethought.
Nothing is in the way of something
else. There are no knickknacks to fall
down, no traps to trip your feet. Every­
thing has purpose. The pictures are
hung where you can see them and are
worth looking at. The books are where
you can reach them and are books you
want to read.
The bits of bric-a-brac have a pur­
pose as well as a-history. The whole
idea of the man’s room is in a word­
comfort. Of the woman’s room the
idea is effect. In searching after his
ideal the man frequently attains the
woman’s ideal as well. The woman
often misses both in striving after the
one of lesser importance.—New York
Sun.
lecJrlelty Has Been So
rise Advnix-e In Ele<#
Rapid That It Ha»> Progressed Faster
Than I he Intelllgeti lice Necessary to
Handle It—Good Wage» Paid.
I Wo men were sitting face to face be­
tween the car track* on‘Park row the
other ilay It seemeq to be a dangerous
position, for they could not follow their
work and at the same time keep their
eyes on the rattling teams on either
nanil They had to keep their elbows
in too, or the cars would blimp them
They were seated atia manhole, testing
cables of wire which were in the subway
Deneath. Each hadithe end of a cable
in hand and a portable galvanometer—a
square box about thessizeof a cigar box
—in front of him.
But a few years ago the man engaged
in connecting wires in this way touched
the tip of each wire in turn to the tip of
nis tongue. If therewas a current run­
ning throngh the wire he felt a little
pricking and a sour teste. He did this
the whole day through, -nd was none the
worse for receiving so many slight elec­
tric shocks and tasting so much copper
It was a very primitive test, but a very
good one. and old wire testers still use it
when in a hurry But soon a galvan­
ometer was made, which not only finds
the current but give some idea of its
strength. The rapidlway in which in-
ventipu-has.be
'entionjn.
the electrical world is Earvelous, and it
seems surprising that a sufficient num­
ber of workmen of sufficient intelligence
should be found in such a burry to prac­
tically put these inventions into use.
A question upon this very point was
pnt to a well known electrician who
happened to sannter by the two men at
work.
BAD WORK.
“It is only surprising in a measure,’’
he said. ‘As a matter of fact, the busi­
ness has grown much faster than the
intelligence necessary to nandje it, and
many accidents are due to that fact. The
electric light people at first had to rely
very largely on the workmen engaged by
the telegraph companies, and both had
to draft in a large number of new men
and train them to the work. Any man
with a littie knowledge of mechanics
and the handling of tools soon makes a
good lineman. There is no great skill re­
quired. except in care that the wire does
not become abraded in handling; while
the good wages paid for the work—
seventy-five dollars a month—are a great
inducement. But the business has un­
doubtedly suffered in its rapid progress
for the want of skilled men, and the
market is by no means overstocked yet.
Only the other day one of the New York
companies had to send to the New Eng­
land Cable company to borrow men to
make joints in city lines.
‘Some of the underground work, too,
has been badly done, but much of this
has been quite as much due to keen com­
petition and the proverbial economy of
the unscientific stockholders. When it
comes to buying wire, costing from
$1.400 to $1.500 a mile, the stockholder
nas a lot to say about it, and cheap wire
is too often a result. One of the electric
light companies runs an alternating cur­
rent. and it now begins to find, all over
the country, that its wires are already
becoming faulty They cannot stand
the strain.
VVliat the Minister Said.
It is a tribute to the basis of real dig­
nity that there is in the American girl’s
character that a well bred foreigner
will take simply as they are meant the
constant surprises she affords him in
the way of daring escapades, any one
of which would at once destroy his re­
spect for one of his own unmarried
countrywomen. A transatlantic mar­
riage which was started by a practical
joke was that of the young minister from
——-, who asked his lively neighbor at
a dinner how he should make his
adieux to his hostess, as she did not
speak French and his own knowledge
of English was of the slightest. Quite
seriously she taught him to say, “Golly,
Mrs. A., I have' had a bully time;” and
he repeated the absurd and dreadful
little speech with great distinctness to
his hostess, who at once detected the
source of the poor man’s blunder and
naturally greatly resented it. M. de F.,
however, had a sense of humor and, far
from harboring a grudge against the
impertinent young lady, was greatly
amused by her audacity, and thus in
this instance began the “wooing o’n’t.”
—New York Tribune.
CHANCE
‘One of the thingsARirbing the atten­
tion of electric men today is to find an
insulator which will stand 'heavy alter­
nating currents. So the trouble has been
as much a matter of cheap material as
unskilled labor."
“Have the workmen a union yet!”
“No. not yet. There is an association
called the Society of Electrical Engi­
A Jeweler’» Story.
neers. ”
“And where do the engineers and
A jeweler relates this surprising story:
‘Some time ago Mr. A. came to my executive men come from?’
‘A good many of the heads of depart­
place and bought a pair of diamond ear­
drops for his daughter, a girl of seven­ ments have their training at the various
teen or eighteen, who was attending schools of technology, such as the Stev­
school. Her teacher was struck with ens institute, Cornell university, the
the gems and asked leave to borrow Massachusetts School of Technology. In­
them and take them home. This per­ deed. nearly all the universities have
mission was readily given. A few days classes in electricity now, and they sup­
later 1 went into a lapidary’s shop that ply a good deal of the talent for the busi­
I was in the habit of visiting to get jobs ness.
‘These young fellows from the schools
done once in a while, and there I saw a
pair of earrings beside the cutting wheel. of technology have started in the black­
'Hello/ said 1, ‘where did these come smith shop and worked right up, and
the only thing about electrical matters
from?
“The lapidary said: ‘Oh, that’s a_job they have no knowledge of is the busi­
that came in this morning from Funken- ness end ¿of it. They easily find posi­
stein, down the street. He wants the tions at from $60 to $100 a month at the
diamonds taken out and paste put in start, and readily get more according to
the ability they display.
their place.
“ ‘Well.’ said 1, ’you’d better save your
‘It is a great business for a man to get
labor. Don't do any work on those until into, whether he is well educated or not.
you hear from me.’ 1 we»t to Mr. A., There is such an enormous field for the
brought him to see the earrings, then we application of electric power outside of
went to Funkenstein’s together and asked the electric light. See how fast the
how he came by them—for they were the electric street cars have grown through­
pair that 1 had sold a few days before. out the country! Then there are the
He said that they had been brought to other almost innumerable applications
him by Mrs. ——, a school teacher, who ot the force- which will soon be in de­
had concluded to sell the stones and re­ mand. No. sir, the skilled workman
place them with imitations. We decided who goes into the electric business, of
to spare the woman, and of course the | whatever grade he may be, need feel no
diamonds were returned, but 1 never i fears of his labor market being over­
learned how Funkenstein squared ac­ crowded.”—New York Advertiser.
counts with her. ”—Brooklyn Eagle.
The Philosophical Bumblebees.
The household arrangements of Em­
erson’s bumblebee are peculiar. There
are a few queens left over from each
nest in the autumn. These in Novem­
ber crawl into snug places, where they
hibernate, gathering pollen in the
spring and laying their eggs in it. Only,
the queen survives, all the workers and
drones dying, so that every bumblebee
hive is wiped out each autumn.
They do not accumulate large stores
of honey, notwithstanding their indus­
try, for a single colony will not number
more than thirty or forty. And their
cells are huddled together without or­
der, so that the honey cannot well be
obtained from the combs in a clear
state, as schoolboys and farm lads very
well know. But these bees are philoso­
Calculations Are Sometimes Upset.
phers all the same; perhaps that is why
An ingenious gentleman, comment­ they lay up so little.—Boston Advqr-,
Latent Diphtheritic Germs.
I might mention many physicians’ I ing on the statement that the Amer­ tiser.
families that have been desolated by i icans use annually LyffiSs of
Wanted It Back.
diphtheria contracted from them. The gold, worth about E90TOOO, Tn stop­
Melton—While Travers was calling
occasional latency of diphtheria, and the ping decayed teeth, makes the inevit­
necessity of a more frequent inspection able “simplecalculation,"and arrives on a lady the other night a man rang
of the fauces of children who have been at the conclusion that in 100 years the bell, gave his name as Mr. Slow,
exposed to the disease, so as to be able the American cemeteries will contain took Travers’ overcoat and vanished.
Beaver—Well, well. Did he find it
to detect and isolate these walking cases, more gold than now exists in France.
was forcibly shown by the following in­ Will they, really? This good hand again?
stance:
Melton—Oh, yes. He knows where
at figures must have heard that more
1 was once called to a boy. with diph­ than once—notably in Paris some it is. Mr. Slow is his tailor.—Clothier
theria, and it occurred to me to examine
and Furnisher.
his sister, who had left the call at my i twenty years ago—it has seriously
been
proposed
to
start
companies
for
To Stimulate the Salivary Glands.
office. She was then in the street with i
some playmates, and was apparently as i the purpose of taking gold stoppings
If there is a lack of saliva, or that of
well and cheerful as they were. On in- i from the jaws of corpses which lay proper quality, it is often best to eat
specting her fauces a small but charac-1 in burying grounds. Statistics are some hard kind of bread, as thin, hard,
teristic grayish white patch was ob- ■ all very well, but they do not take Scotch oatmeal bread, bread crusts,
served over one tonsil.—Dr. J. Lewis, into account contingencies of this rusks, etc., very slowly, and thus nat­
Smith in Babyhood.
nature.—Cassell’s Journal.
urally increase the amount ahd quality
of the saliva.—Exchange.
Weak Human Nature.
Funny Speeches.
Grose relates that Caulfield, meeting
From many selections from Marcus
The state historian of South Carolina
Mr. Thomas Sandby, said: “My dear Aurelius we choose this, as showing has investigated twenty-eight cases of
Sandby, I’m glad to see you. Pray, is it his keen insight into this weak hu­ people claiming to be over 90 years of
you or your brother?’ It was a Spaniard man nature of ours, “I have often age, and in all but two he found facts
who remarked ingeniously that an au­ wondered how it is that every man to prove that they had advanced them­
thor should always write his own index, loves himself more than all the rest selves from five to eight years. He
let who will write the book. Edgeworth of men, but yet sets less value on his can’t find anybody who ever lived to be.
relates the story of an English shop­
keeper who did pretty well in the direc­ own opinion of himself than on. the 100.—Detroit Free Press.
tion of the bull proper, when, to recom­ opinion of others.”
Life in the little German village of
mend the durability of some fabric for
Strobeek, in the Hartz mountains, is
Little
Dorothy
(to
old
wooden
horse
a lady’s dress, he said, “Madam, it Will
wear forever and make you a petticoat which she insists on taking to bed almost entirely given up to chess play­
“■
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• •
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old ing. Even the children in the schools
W4VV4
»Wilt.
A MlQ *o
LU VO VtjUtU
bud i with her every
-
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J dear
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afterward."
This
is quite
equal - W
to the
Irishman’s rope which had only one end, (I arn a good mina to call you are proficient in the ancient and royal
game.
because the other had been cut away.- (sweetest nightmare.
i
An American Commercial Traveler Tells
a Strange Yarn About the Lonely,
Lovesick Miner of the Selkirks—The
Mountain Was Named for Him.
The train had stopped near the heart
of the Selkirks, under the shadow of a
great bare crag, which the guide book
said was the Hermit mountain. The
rock rose almost precipitously, culminat­
ing in a crest extending for hundreds of
feet to the north, and the top of the crest
seemed almost as sharp as a razor. With
arms akimbo on the rail of the observa­
tion car was an English tourist, who
wore a monocle and a stare, and seemed
very much bored by the scenery. Near
him stood a commercial traveler of To­
ronto, who was explaining how the
mountain got its name.
“Follow the edge of the mountain
from its front to the rear,” he said.
“Right where the edge breaks off you
see a solitary pyramid. From here it
seems to be only about six feet tall,
though in reality it is about ’thirty feet
high. Don’t you see it bears some re­
semblance to a man? That is the hermit,
and it is this solitary pillar that gave
name to the mountain."
The English tourist suddenly’showed
indications of interest. He edged a little
nearer, and remarked:
“Beg pardon, did I hear you say some­
thing about a hermit?’
The commercial traveler gave his com­
rade a dig in the ribs. “Why, yes,” he
said to the tourist; “didn’t you ever hear
the remarkable facts about the hermit
here?’
“No," said the tourist.
a drummer ’ s story .
“Well, I’ll tell you the story,” said the
drummer. “It’s a remarkable one, and
every traveler ought to know it. You
see, about the time of the gold excite­
ment in the Frazer river country ’way
back in 1856 a man came here to make
his fortune. One of the miners had
brought into this wild region his little
family, and among them was his daugh­
ter, a very pretty girl, with whom this
other fellow fell madly in love. He had
a hated rival, of course, and in a few
months this rival carried off the prize,
and fife became a hollow mockery to the
disappointed lover. He became not only
a woman hater, but a hater of his kind,
and he made up his mind he would spend
the rest of his life as a hermit.
“So he came to this mountain, and
he clambered up that brush that you see
alongside, and he built him a hut of
stones and branches, and there he began
his new life. He had a gun and lived on
what he could shoot, a littie flour he got
from the settlement and the berries and
roots he gathered. He lived that way a
good many years, bringing down from
the mountain an occasional fur or bear­
skin, which he sold for provisions. For
years now he has been old and unable to
hunt well, but nothing has ever induced
him to give up his queer life.”
By this time the English tourist was
all eyes and ears. “You don’t mean to
tell me,” he said. “How on earth does
he live now?’
“Well, once a week the people who
live in this little hamlet you see here fill
a basket with provisions and one of them
takes it up to the top of the mountain.
When the hermit hears anybody coming
he leaves his hut and retreats into the
woods. The man with the supplies
leaves the basket at the door, and the
next fellow who comes up with provis­
ions leaves another basket and takes
back the empty one.
THE TOURIST BELIEVED IT.
“The hermit never speaks to anybody.
Early in the winter, before there is dan­
ger of a big fall of snow, a lot of pro­
visions is taken up to him, for fear that
a heavy snowfall will prevent any one
from reaching the top.”
“Why, doesn’t he get sick and need a
doctor sometimes?’ asked the tourist.
“Nobody knows that he ever had a
sick day. He is old, but he’s well. You
see the-air up there is magnificent, and
there’s no reason he should be sick.
There he is now,” continued the drum­
mer, in a state of wild excitement.
“There he is; near the edge of that rock.
Don’t you see him?’
The Englishman looked, but could see
nothing. He borrowed a field glass and
was adjusting the focus when the man
exclaimed:
“There, he’s gone. I just caught a
glimpse of him. He’s up so high he
didn’t look bigger’n a speck, any way.”
“Remarkable,” said the Englishman,
as he lapsed into a seat. He rolled it all
over in his mind for a couple of hours.
.Meanwhile the story of the Englishman’s
interest in the hermit had been told to a
number of choice spirits, and there had
been much hilarity. One of the men
who shared the fun was standing near
the Toronto drummer, when the English
tourist sidled up to him again.
“Now, look a-here,” he said; “honest, is
that really all true about the hermit?”
“Certainly, it’s true," said the com­
mercial traveler. “Most all tourists
know it, and any one who lives in this
country can tell yon all about it. Ask
this man here.”
The Englishman turned to the other
man. who told the story of the hermit
over again, with some graphic and cir- I
cumstantial additions. The Englishman
will probably prepare an account of the
wonderful hermit for the British press.
—New York Sun.
Lovers in Mackinac.
Mackinac is a perfect heaven for lov­
ers. The Grand hotel has its front all
dotted with little balconies, one to every
other window and each strongly sug­
gestive of the prettiest scene in “Romeo
and Juliet.” On a distant balcony I
have seen a lovely girl appear to hold a
long whispered conversation with her
beau three times after leaving him for
the night below stairs—once when she
reached her room, again when she
thought of another thing to say before
disrobing, and yet again in her wrapper,
after she had made herself otherwise
ready for bed. And at that time there
were other lovers talking from one bal­
cony to another, others in the grove in
front of the great hotel, others on the
board walks leading to the village, and
still others, 1 doubt not, every where that
the moon shone and the breezes fanned
the island.—Julian Ralph in New York
Sun.
A curious white frog has been on ex­
hibition in London. It is a full grown
specimen of a pure white color, its ruby
eyes fringed with a golden hue, strangely
contrasting with its pink iris and milky
cuticle.
QUEER KINDS OF COINS.
interesting by Reason of Their Ago and
for Various Other Causes.
“Here is the oldest coin ever made
in the world,” said a collector. “It was
made about the year 700 B. C. in
Ægina, and you will observo that the
design in high relief represents a tor­
toise crawling across the face of the
piece. You will not find any date upon
it, because no coin was dated prior to
400 years ago. The most beautiful coin
ever made, in my opinion, is this silver
piece of Macedonia, which was current
in Macedon, now Constantinople, 600
years before Christ, or 200 years earlier
than the time of Alexander the Great.
Though its face value is only fifty-three
cents the coin is worth a price today
that would astonish you.
“Here is a specimen of the coin of
the smallest value ever issued. It is the
‘mite,’ so called, such as the widow of
the Bible story dropped into the slot
for the poor, though it was her last
one. One-fiftieth of a cent it was
worth, and you observe that its
shape is hexagonal. Close by you will
notice a pieco of money worth §220. It
is simply a rectangular piece of gold,
stamped with the characters of China,
from which country it comes. Lumps
of gold are used in China for currency
of large denominations.
‘ ‘This coin with the head of the beauti­
ful woman upon it, so exquisitely de­
signed, was minted in Egypt during the
reign of Ptolemy Philadelphus, 2,249
years before Christ. The lovely head is
a likeness of Ptolemy’s wife and queen,
Arsonoe, who was grandmother by six
removes to the famous Cleopatra. I
put it that way because there were in
reality several Cleopatras, though most
people imagine that there was but one.
“Here is a gold piece that was issued
by Darius the Great before the children
of Israel returned from the captivity.
This is something comparatively mod­
ern—the ‘marriage piece’ of Ferdinand
and Isabella, issued to celebrate their
union some time before Columbus dis­
covered America. Here is the smallest
coin ever issued—the thirty-second of a
ducat, minted in the year A. D. 1560,
in the free city of Nuremberg. It was
worth seven and a quarter cents. By
the way, the Swiss it was who first put
dates on their coins.
“Perhaps the funniest coins in the
world are those roundish, irregular
lumps of silver from Siam, running
down from the bigness of a walnut to
the size of a ■ buckshot, according to
value represented. You will notice
from the display of United States coins
in this other case that during the first
year when we coined money in this
country, in 1792, we bad nothing but
copper. In 1794 we obtained some sil­
ver from Mexico, and two kinds of sil­
ver coins appeared. Not till 1795 did
we have gold coins, consequent upon
the discovery of the precious metal in
different parts of the United States.”—
Washington Star.
Novel Use of the Telephone.
One of the most novel uses to which
the telephone has been turned is re­
ported at Woodstock, Ont., during the
progress of thé trial of Birchall for
murder. The court room is very small,
and could hardly accommodate the
court attendants, attorneys, reporters
and witnesses, much less the eager
crowds which the sensational character
of tile trial drew to the town. A smart
public house keeper, however, saw the
chance of doing a good stroke Of busi­
ness, and’ he very effectively carried
out his ideas.
On the wall over the judge’s head he
managed to have fixed a large tele­
phone receiver, which he connected
with twenty instruments at his place
of business. Here the tubes were rent­
ed for a certain time at twenty-five
cents a head, and four of the tubes
were placed in a private room for ladies.
It is needless to say that all day long
each day of the trial the hotel telephone
was in requisition, and every word that
was said in the court was thus carried
to the ears of the distant listeners.—
New York Commercial Advertiser.
A Boston Man’s Gratitude.
A gentleman of this village, while in
the New England news- rooms in Bos­
ton the other day, saw a man drop a
roll of money and pass on. Waiting a
moment the finder stepped up to the
loser and said, “Would you like to see
me?’ “No, I don’t know as I would.
I never saw you before.” “Well, how
about this?” producing the roll. “Gra­
cious goodness I” exclaimed the other,
“if I had lost that it would have ruined
me. But I suppose you’d consider it
an insult if I were to offer you a re­
ward. However, thanks, many thanks.”
Thus does honesty carry its own bless­
ing. and in an approving conscience
Edward has the greater reward.—North
Abington Public.
Metal Ceilings.
One of the most excellent of recent
innovations is the introduction of
metal ceilings in place of wood and
plaster. These ceilings do not shrink
or burn like wood; they will not stain,
crack or fall off like plaster, but being
permanent, durable, fireproof and or­
namental, will eventually supersede
both wood and plaster, besides being
in the end far more economical than
either.—New York Commercial Ad­
vertiser.
Uncle Sam’s Carpets.
Strangers who come to Washington
discover things of the existence of which
residents know nothing. How many
people know there is a large room in the
treasury building in which every yard
of carpet used in government buildings
all over the United States is cut and
sewed? The work is done by contract
and carpets are fitted from the architect's
plans.—Washington Post.
Stealing a March.
“1 want to give you a piece of ad­
vice.”
“All right, let me give you one first-
follow it."—New York Epoch.
There is no longer any question that
the educated natives of India are ac­
quiring a taste for British athletics.
Not long ago a team of young Bengali
footballers gave a fair and square beat­
ing to the crack players of an English
regiment, while almost any college of
any pretensions can place a smart
deven in the cricket field.