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m«l » ^y,t^» -ml^ MtMippiaaM fOSK YODBJIE TALENT God Rewards Men in Proportion to the Use They Make of Their Gifts. And nnto one He gave five tal- OBts, to anolhcr two and to another one; to every man according to his several ability. â€"Matthew xxv. Id. Tliis parable treats of the self- evident diversity iu the natural gifts of men. Some are two, five, or even ten talented. They are quick, elover, resourceful. This jiower is a gift. The child is born with or without it. No power can create it in the ir.an lacking it. VShiit a power for good is such a richly gifted personality ! Yet to how many have these brilliant parts proven not an opportunity, but a temptation, a (oil and a snare. The saddest chapter of licrature is the career of the sons of genius. Over against these exceptionally gifted souls our parable presents the one-talent man. He is dull, ilow, grudgingly endowed. What he gets must be by toil of brain and sweat of brow. Tliese inequa- lities seem to be part of God's plan, and are no doubt meant for A WIS.. PURPOSE i'ust as mountains and plains en- lance the beauty and pr(jniote the life and fruitfulncss of nature. As a level earth would mean a sand desert, so socialismâ€" a dead level of eondilions â€" would mean social stag- nation. Nevertheless, the one-talent man feels sorely his disadvantage, and i.t tempted, as in the parable, to complain and churlishly sit down and attempt nothing. This ten- dency the great teacher here means to reprove. He shows that God rewards men not in proportion to their gifts, but to the use they make of them. To the one who doubles his one talent the very same power h given as to the one who multi- plies his ten talents. "Well done, thou good and faith- ful servant ; thou hast been faith- ful over a few things ; I will make thee ruler over many things." The duty of the person not bril- liantly gifted is to work his one talent to the highest point of oflSci- cncy. And the pains he requires to advance becomes a discipline oft a morovaliiableby tar tlian quick na- tural paits. How often thus the gift- ed scholar, snared by hia very facili- ty, sees himself left behind the plod- ding but trained and applying pu- pil. And the same fact is illustrat- ed in business and in every sphere of life. This parable concerns the great majority of us. Tho one-talented many are really of far more import- ance than THE FEW OF GENIUS. For it is by means of the great company of mediocre minds that the chief work and happiness of the v.orld must be maintained. "This Ecems very certain," wrote, Phillips Brooks, "that the world io to grow better and richer ir the future, not by the magnifi- cent achievements of the highly g'ftod few, but by the patient faith- fulness of the one-talented many." It is by common men and women realizing the importance of com- mon and lowly tasks that the wel- fare of every home and the general well being of mankind are to be promoted And, none the less, is it by these that God's wise and bles.scd purposes to the race are to be completed. Let us. then, bear in mind that usefulne.ss, success, happiness and the divine blessing depend not up- on our talents, many or few, bril- liant or dull, but upon our wise, patient, earnest use of such capaci- ties' as we have. "The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong," but to the faithful and deserving. It is thofe who have had an in- feriority of natural powers and who, in spite of disadvantages, have made thenaselves a help and a bless- ing who deserve best of the race and shall shine the brightest in the kingdom of heaven. JUNIUS B. REMENENYDER. THE S. S. LESSON INTKRNATIONAL LESSON, 8KPT. 5. LetssOD X. Paul's Third Missionary Journey, tiolden Tc.\t, Phil, i : 13. I. Paul's Journeyings Among tho European Churches. â€" Vs. J-0. Wo learn from 2 Cor. 1 : 8-10, written not a great while after Paul left Kphesus he took a trading vessel to Troag on his way to Philippi. II. Paul's Experience at Troas. â€" â- Vs. G 12. Paul and his company re- mained a week at Troas, a seaport «n the Aegean Sea, a number of miles south of Homer's Troy. They reached Troas five days after the I'assover, which in A. D. 67 was celebrated April 7-H. Paul, on tho evening of the lyord's day, held a preaching service and holy commun- ion in an upper chamber. As Paul was to sail the nc^t morning tho service lasted till midnight. A young man named Eutyehus was kitting in the latticed window of the third story. The place was crowded and hut, the Imiir was late, mid the young man was weary, kh he was overpowered by bleep and fell <lo\vn three stories to tho |{ioun<l and was taken up for dead. Paul immediately went down by tho outside stairs <onimon in Oriental liouKos, and fell on him, embracing liim, as Elijah in the case of the Min of tho widow of Zarephath (1 Kings 17: 21), and Elisha, in that i.f the Shunainmitc's son. Doubtless Paul prayed as earnestly as those prophets, "and the close contact, the clasp of warm affection gavo iiew intensity to the prayer of faith." His prayer was answered, aim! the young man was restored. The whole incident was very ini- picbsive and also comforting. It revealed the love, the faith and tho power of Paul ard tho religion he represented. Ill Paul's Review of His Life at Ephesus.â€" Vs. 13 27. The change of proniJiins to "we" ill v. i:i shows that Luke had now joinr<l the party, and he continues with them till they reach Jerusa- lem (Acts 21 : 17). From Troas to Assos, one day's sail, there were two routes. The delegation went by vessel the long way around the promontory of l.oe- tuin. and on account <if the pecu- liarity of the winds ut tliut season thc.v must start very early, "soon afl'T midnight" Paul <leei<led to wait a little while longer at Troas and take the short- er land route, twenty miles across (he promontory, and join the cmn- pany nt .\s>iOs. It is frobable that h< wanted to r<-niBin longer on ac- roint nf ^.llty<•hu^, and to complpte I, If address which was interrupted • tH» ace) .lent. 1 the feurth «,'ay they reached Miletus beyond Ephesus. The ves- sel was detained hero for an un- certain length of time, and Paul sent for tho Ephesian elders to come to Miletus and meet him, for it would not be safe for hlrn not to be ready to embark at short no- tice. Luke was probably present at the meeting, so that ho was able to re- port what Paul said. Those present knew that he was speaking the truth. What ho had done and taught was an example for them to follow, and on inspira- tion to faithfulness. IV. Farewell Counsels to the Ephesians.â€" Vs. 29-35. 1 V. 28. Take heed . . . unto yourselves. See that you are fit instruments for the work God has given you to do, end set an example that aids your work. Take heed to your intellec- tual life, to your spiritual life, and to your bodily life that your body may be the most perfect instrument of the spirit' QLEEN VICTORIA OF SPAIN. Despite Tier Leaning; to Engli8h IdealM, is Popular. Spaniards are beginning to rea- lize that Victoria is made of stron- ger stuff than her husbami, and, <lespite her open leaning to Eng- lish ideas, she continues to gain in popularity. It is known she attends bullfights only as a concession to public wish and national custom, aiid it would excite no astonishment were she to announce her absence from all bull- fights in tho future. Against determined opposition she has effected a revision of tho rules of tho Spanish court, and has introduced a system which makes for the liberality of the English court, in which she was raised and from which Alfon.so carried her off a bride less than three years ago. Old-fashioned Spaniards profess to bo shocked by tho reforms the young queen has wrought, but just the same they have been unable to withhold admiration for her strength of will. It has taken brief time, in truth, to mark Victoria as tho most au- thoritative of the women sharing aK consorts tho thrones of the old world. OUIOIN OF BEAUTY. Beauty -and <lignity are built from within, and tho qualities thus produoed are warranted to wear. Even homely features arc trans- figured by IV noble kouI, while the beauty from whicii soul is absent is but a joyl(-ss mask. For what- ever may be said to the contrary, we are spiritual lieingM. The garb of (lesh that the spirit for a time wears is niodil'K'd and uffcctpcl for tho Ix'ttir or fur the worse. The face becomes more and more, the longer we live, the rofle.\ and the indication of tho inaor mII. HOW WIRE 18 DRAWN. Securing Length und Firmne8B â€" Preventing firittlencss. Bars of metal four inches square are heated and passed while hot and plastic through rapidly revolving rolls, reducing them to wire rods which vary from one-quarter of an inch to an inch or more iu diame- ter, depending upon the finished size of wire wanted. Tbeso rods, which are formed in- to coils as they pass through the rolls, are dipped in acid baths to remove loose scale and provide a lubricant for drawing. Drawing consists of pulling rods while cold through holes of gradually decreas- ing diameter drilled in steel plates. During this process the particles of metal become elongated and strain- ed, making the wire harder and more brittle. To restore it to a pro per temper it is necessary to heat or anneal it. When a fine diameter is required there must be repeated annealings aud drawings. "This may be done until the bar, which originally was four inches square and four feet long, becomes reduced to a diame- ter of a single thousandth of an inch and extended 13,000 miles in length. Before so fine a size is reached the wire will cut into the steel of the die plate, so the usual die plates must be discarded and the drawing continued through holes drilled in diamonds, the dia- meter of these diamond dies de- creasing by f actional parts of a thousandth of an inch. This wire afiords a striking illustration of a iiiaiterial made more valuable by the application of labor. From the time the bar of metal enters the furnace nothing is added ti- it. All the work is done with one article, which is passed through rolls and drawn through die plates until it is finished. The wire is made from an extra high grade of steel worth in the bar six cents a pound, which is much above the price of the greater bulk of steel. Ih tho finished wire the value is in- ci cased from six cents to $50 a pound. Wire for fencing and the common giades of so-called market wire do not involve a high labor cost and sell at a small advance above the price of the metal bar. Other wires drawn for more exacting purposes pell at higher prices. Wire one one- thousandth of an inch in diameter is of course exceptional, being pre- pared for delicate electrical tests of such importance that it is deem- ed advisable to go to great expense to make it exactly the required size. WINDSOR TREASURES. riaboratc Sy.stcm of Protection Against Fire. Extraordinary precautions have been taken to protect the treasures â- p. Windsor Castle from destruction by fire. An up-to-<Iato fire brigade, with every modern appliance, and an ef- ficient salvage corps, is now attach- ed to the Castle, and the protec- tion has been strengthened by tho installation of an excellent system of alarms- No fewer than 36 fire-alarm boxes have been erected at different points of the palace, and each one bears a distinctive number. When the handle is pulled tho box num- ber is signaled over the entire sys- tem, including the residences in the town of men connected with tho bri- gade. Each box is also fitted with a te- lephone apparatus, by means of which telephonic communication can be effected with the fire-station. Although a serious outbreak of fire has not occurred for over half ,a century, the precautions have never been relaxed. It would be impossible to replace many of the treasures in the castle, the value ol which cannot even be estimated. LIFE 5,000 YEARS AGO. Objects Found in the Tomb of a Child. A small exhibition, illustrative of the art and ceremonial obscrv- nnces of the Egyptians and of life ri.OOO years before the birth of C;hriBt has been opene<l at King's College, Strand, England, Tho exhibits are the result of last year's excavations by Professor Neville, of Geneva, and Messrs. E. II. Ayr- ton and L. Loat, ofiicers deputed by the Egypt Exploration Fund to work last winter at Abydos, 400 miles south of Cairo, a place speci- ally eacrcd because the head of the god Osiris was buried there. Tho "finds" relate to the sixth dynasty (3,500 B.C.), tho eighteenth dynasty (1,500 B.C.), and the first of tho great Egyptian houses (4,- 700 B.C.). Among them aro the ob- jects found in the tomb of a child dating back some 5,000 years. These include the slat© palette used for grinding eye paint, a copper bracelet which a child wore on ii.s wrist, and small glazed beads, and a cornelian pendant which adorned it." neck. Five cents worth of sugar of lead rr.VHlal <liasolve(l in a pailful of water makes a solution which fixes the tone of pinks, blues and lav- enders. The fabrics should remain i'. the sugar of lead bath about half ' 0.1 hour or so before going to the suds. Ih^ Home CANNING AND PRESEllVINQ. Bleeding Heart Pickles.â€" Select fine, large blood beets; cook until tender ; plunge into cold water for five minutes; remove skins. Cut into slices one inch thick. Then re- cut with heart shaped cutter. ..Pickle in the usual way. These 'are especially nice to serve with a plate lunch â€" one heart to each plate. When Making Jams. â€" When making jams and marmalades try the easier and altogether more sat- isfactory way of baking them in the oven instead of cooking on top of the range, where constant atten- tion and stirring are imperative. Turn the burner down low and as your jam thickens around the edg- es of the pan, kettle, or crock, stir it down. No further attention is necessary until it is done and you run absolutely no risk of burning it India Relish. â€" One peck green tomatoes, six large onions, three small peppers, one gallon vinegar, one ounce celery seed, one ounce white mustard seed, one ounce black mustard seed, and one ounce tumeric powder. Run tomatoes through a meat chopper or chop (ine. Drain off juice. Chop on- ions and peppers. Put all the in- gredients together and boil twenty minutes. Do not add all the vine- gar until you find whether so much IS needed to make sauce of pro- per thickness- Often the full gal- lon of vinegar is not needed. Quick Jelly. â€" This method is good for all fruits but pineapple, crabapple and quinces : Mash the raw fruit until all is well broken, then take a cupful at a time and put in a bag â€" a salt bag is good for the purpose â€" and ge.itly squeeze the juice into a dish. When all of the fruit is thus treated measure the juice and place in a kettle and put over the fire to cook. Measure one cupful of sugar for every cup- ful of juice, putting on the stove or in the oven where it will be- come hot, but do not let it scorch. Let the juice boil for about eight ir.inutes and skim, then add tho hot sugar, bring to a boil, and cook one minute more. The color and flavor of the fruit is much better preserved by this plan than by the more tedious process. From be- ginning to end it will take less than an hour to make the jelly. IN THE SEWING ROOM. When Making Plaits. -^In making plaits in skirts, particularly in wash materials, if the plaits are stitched on the inside close to the outer edge where it is creased about half way down the plaits will always be easy to keep in place when ironed. Corset Covers. â€" To make the embroidery corset covers, cut out the half circles for the arms, from the top of these half circles cut a strip to go over the shoulders and stiteh in place on the machine, trim tho armholes evenly and hem. The part over tho shoulders will bf like the rest of the cover and will look much better than if a dif- ferent kind of beading is used. The bottom can be finished with stitch- ed plaits from the waist line to the bottom or with a peplum. Tailor's Hint. â€" A skirt could bo finished in the same way a tailor finishes men's trousers. Tho skirt binding braid may be stitched at the bottom in the usual way, but when turning it up to baste put in a strip of mending tissue the width ol the braid, and press with a hot iron. Fasten the braid at each sram and you havo a much neater finished skirt than by the old me- thod. Two Uses of Elastic. â€" A great many girls use rubber bands to keep their short sleeves in place, but a far better way is to make a pair of elastic arm bands about one-fourth of an inch wide and just big enough to slip over the elbow without stretching. They are ser- viceable and comfortable and do not stop tho circulation. It is best to have a white pair for light waists and a block pair for dark ones ; although they never show, it is safer. These bands may be used to hold up children's socks. They keep them from slipping down and c'o not bind. "Flat Chest" Corset Cover.â€" If you are tiat chested, try making your corset cover this way : Fasten in tho back, gather the front along the top. Make a ruffle about four inches wide and put it across the front, beginning about two inches from the shoulder seam, turning" downward ; then another ruffle fthout an inch narrower, turning upward. Finish the top with a bias tape, trim all edges with lace, and when you put the corset cover on turn down the upper ruffle. This gives a pretty, fnlly fullness to the shirtwaist. GINGERBREAD. Tip Top Gingerbread.â€" Half cup- ful of butter, naif cupful of sugar, halt cupful molasses, half cupful of sour milk, two cupfuls flour, two eggs (not beaten), two teaspoonfuls of ginger, one of cinnamon, one teaspoonful of soda. Put soda in molasses and beat thoroughly. This makes it light and tender. Ideal Gingerbread. â€" One cupful of sugar, one-quarter onpful of New Orleans molasses, one cupful of butter and lard, three eggs well beaten, one saltspoonful of salt, one small tablespoonful of ginger, one-quarter teaspoonful of cloves, one-half teaspoonful of cinnamoa, one cupful sweet milk, two tea- spoonfuls of baking powder, and one-quarter teaspoonful of soda, two and one-half cupfuls of flour. Heat sugar, molasses, butter, ano spices until thoroughly warm. Bec-t up well. Tnen a<ld other ingredi- ents. Bake in mutfin pans. Premium Gingerbread. â€" Cream together one cupful of sugar, ons- half cupful butter, one-half cupful of lard. Beat two eggs well anJ add to this. Then add one cupfu' of dark New Orleans molassis. Take one cupful of sour milk, put. into this one teaspoonful of soda. Then add to the entire mixture enough flour to stiffen not quite as stiff as cake dough- Last add jn3 and one-half teaspoonfuls of gin- ger. Cover bottom of pan wi'.h thick greased paper, as it burns : easily. USEFLT. HINTS. Vegetables should always be kept on a stone floor out of the air. Iron body linen on the right side only and taMe linen both sides, wrong side first. A pudding cloth made of cheese cloth does not retain the grease, and is easily cleaned. Garnish boiled mutton with beet- root cut in thin slices and a hi- | tie chopped parsley on each. Wheat bran placed in coarse llan- i nel bags is e.xcellent for cleaning dust from delicate wall p.ipera. I Dissolve a tablespoonful of rock , ammonia in a bath. This makes '..lie ! water soft and invigorating. ! When stewing fruit, add a pinch cf salt to every pound, and yo i ; will find the flavor greatly impr v- 1 ed. New tan boots should be poli'h- ' ed several times before they are worn. This will prevent th"'ir staining easily. Before boiling milk put a lit^'e water at the bottom of the sauce- pan and it will prevent, the miik from burning. Use tube muslin for pillow oases. Ii is only necessary to sew one end and hem the other, and tho deed is done- Cucumber cut into slices, dredged with flour, and fried, makes an ex- cellent accompanfment to chops and steaks. To fix the colors of print dresses, colored shirts, and other similar things, rinse the goodt in a little weak brine for the first few wash- ings. Choose lamp wicks that are soft and loosely woven. Soak them in vinegar before using, and dry in a cool oven. This is the surest way to obtain a goou light without smoke. Stuffing for Ducks.â€" Chop -very finely one apple, one onion, and one ounce of sage leaves. Add to it six ()unces of breadcrumbs, one egg, pepper aud salt. Mix with a raw egg- Keeping Vegetables Crisp.â€" Wash your green vegetables, such as let- tuce and spinach, inclose in cover- ed dish and let stand. Vegetables treated in this manner will keep fresh and crisp for days. To Tighten Lid on Glass Jar. â€" Break white of an egg into a sau- cer and dip the rubber and lid of the jar into the egg and place them up<in the jar and tighten and there will be no danger cf the fruit fer- nienting- To wash colored stockings put a tablespoonful of salt in a quart of water- Let the stockings soak in that for ten minutes, and then take tliem out and wash in soap and water. Brush skirts directly they are taken off, remove tiny spots and stains before they leconie too set, and hong evervthing in its proper place, instead of throwing it just anyhow on a diair. A teaspoonful of baking soda dis- solved in a teacupful of hot water is a good mouth wash for toothache cr inflamed gums. It can also be used as a gargle for sore throats. Baking soda powdered on warts will destroy them. When covering jam jars use white of egg and white papier. Di- rectly the pots are filled wipe them free of anything sticky, brush over some rounds of white kitchen paper with the white of egg and put them on the jars at once. When washing black materials, such as nun's veiling, the tempera- ture of the water should be tepid, not hot, or the dye will run and. the black become rusty-looking. Wash the material in suds, and rinse in water of the same temperature. Clothes will not dry out so quick- ly in summer tiino if sprinkled and packed in a tin tub the night be- fore ironing day. Place a sheet in the tub, pack the clothes os tightly as possible, fold over the y aeet cor- ners and cover with a "vianket. To peel tomatoes without scald- ing rub the back of a knife over iho entire surface of the tomato, thus separating the thin skin from the tomato. Break the skin at the stem part and gently pul! it away from the tomato. In this way t-o- natoes may be prepared without }he semi-cooked taste which scald; ng gives them. SPAIN IS AWAKENING. Dawo of a New Era is at Hand for; the Country. There is much leeway to be madet up ere Spain comes into line with! modern methods. Only ten years! ago there were 260 schoolmasters in one province alone whose salaries did not amount to 990 per annum each ! A joke was formerly current of a policeman who found the dead body of a man in the public high- way. In making out his report for the authorities he was at a loss how to describe the profession of the de- ceased, there being no papers by which to identify him. In his per- plexity the officer consulted th» magistrate investigating the affair. "Of what did he dief asked this worthy. "Of starvation, your Hon- or-" "Then write him down & schoolmaster," was the reply. This "joke" explains 75 per cent, of th« cause of Spain's present condition. But the lesson is now being learned, though tardily, that the ferrule is more powerful than the bullet. An observant traveller in the days antecedent to even the Grand Tour tells of a cobbler in Madrid who when he went to a custO;T,er's house to try on a pair of new shoes al- . ways took with him his two appren- tices, one to carry each shoe, and ' "away he struts in his satin suit, • cloak, and dagger like somebody.". The principles of that cobbler stilly obtain largely in all ra.iks of so- ciety. The reverence for departed greatness all to<, freq';ently ob-- scures the necessity for present ac- tion. Spain, after her glorious, achievements of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, sank into a ' Rip Van W'inkle-like slu.-'iber and has dreamed on ever si lee But the dawn of a new era is a* hand and the possibilities for a wise Govern- ment art great. One of the many reforms to be grappled with is that of the admin- istration of the law. T'lere is an old proverb that "Jus" ice in Spain io long and bad," and the gipsies have a curse which they hurl at thpir enemies, "Miv yo-' h-'ve law- suits zad win 'hem," 'he 'i 11 signifi- cance of which is only appreciated by those who have bee' unfortu-l nate enough to have dealings witbj tho law. THE BANK OF ENGLAND. Troaisure Vaults as Ne.Tr Iniprcg-j nable as J'ossiblc. The question as to whether tho, treasure vaults of the Bank of Eng-' land are strong enough to resist^ explosives dropped upon t'leiu from, airships, which was raised by a^ shareholder at a recent meeting,. i.> an interesting one in view of thol fact that bullion worth £40,000,000^ is kept there. ; And the bullion, of course, con-, stitutes only a j crtion of the wealth of the Old Lady of Threadneedle Street. Jewels, plate, and similar costly articles to the aggregate value of considerably over £100,- 000,000 are regularly stored for th» convenience of customers. Is this treasure â€" the greatest, probably, that has ever been gath-, ered together in one placeâ€" safe tt Mr. E. Newby, the shareholder in| question, thinks not. Putting asid»i altogether the hypothetical danger fi>om future airships, to which he- drew attention, he points out that, tube railways have been construct- ed in close proximity to wh©re| some, at all events, of the subter- ranean strong-rooms are supposed to be situated. The inference is. obvious. Against this, however, must b» placed the undoubted fact thot to tunnel into one of them would be a very big job indeed for anybody to tackle. For one thing, no out- sider knows the actual position of the principal treasure vaults. | The bullion room into which or-, diuary visitors to the Bank are con-^ ducted is moro for show than use, and usually contains only aboui £2,000,000 worth of bar gold. It is, in fact, little more than a white- washed cellar, and tho domed roof is not even thick enough to entire- ly, shut out the sounds of tho foot- steps of the people immediately overhead. Deep down below thi», however, are the real treasure vaults, the innermost and largest of which is a veritable Aladdin's Cave. It is as near impregnable as possible. That is to s»y, very heavy charges of some high explosive, such as dy- namite, for example, would be nec- essary t-o shatter it. While it can only be opened in the ordinary way by the mutual co-operation of the governor, the deputy-governor, and the chief cashier, each of whom has a different key. .1. Heavy brooms should always be selected in preference to light ones, for thorough sweeping, as the weight aids in the process. In buy- ing a broom test it by pressing the edge against the floor ; if the straws bristle out and bend the broom is a poor one, for they should remain in a firm, solid mass. ' Boiling a pudding in a double saucepan will be found an impro\e- tiient on the u-ie of the old time pudding cloths. Fill the lower part V. ith boiling water and keep it boiling, in the upper pan put first a disc cut from oiled paper, then jHUir in the pidding. It will coiue out a good shape. ,