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THREE, One! Two! Tliroe! . , fiov? whore Can the baby- be? * Only the briefest while ago W« went Into ecstasies over his "crow." Then he was cfeeping about the floor, And into our hearts he went all four! If then we" had lost him, what had we done la the wonderful year of Onel One! Two! Three! What a kidnaper Time can be! He's stolen my little child away That spoke my name but yesterday. -- **!Jake all that I have of silver and gold And give me again little Two-year-old"-- Such reward I had offered to you, and to you, ~ • In the beautiful year of Twol One! Two! Three! 1 *Tis God's sweet mystery! Time's not a thief, but a bringer of joy, And has doubled my blessings in this dear ' boy. ' ' - Oh, give me to love him, and'-do not re- §2^ fuse, ' Kind Fortune, what's needed for stock­ ings and shoes! , To love him in wisdom, that he may love me Long years that may follow year Three! • --William S. Lord. - 4 CURING BROWI ; of BROWN was the sworn foe of superstition. He derided all the good old saws, and he jeered at omens. It was his one hobby, this war­ fare with the believers in signs and por­ tents. There was no mercy In him for the credulous. He laughed at broken mirrors; nothing pleased him better than to see the new moon over his left shoulder; the ever-recurring terror of thirteen at £able he had reduced to a mathematical problem to be solved through the law of chances and the sta­ tistics of life insurance actuaries. Three mornings in the week he put on his right shoe firstTon the other four the left preceded the right. Last, but not least, he had taken lodgings in a rath- j er poor neighborhood, because it abounded in white cats, and the likell- hood of one of the unlucky animals ; crossing his path was thereby greatly > stammered. ination of tbe honest poor, who've put good mnnoy. into that stock." Brown's friends bade him good night at the door of the restaurant. ---Well, what do yoti think?" said Fer­ guson to'Randall, as they walked up­ town together. "Ch, if anybody else had had such a dream I'd be worried," said Randall to Ferguson. /'But Brown .won't be even frightened--more's the pity. By the way, he has loaned me one of his scien­ tific anti-ghost books. I'm going to read it as a personal favor to him--that is, if I can. It's heavy enough, though, to make me doubt my ability to finish it." And he took a tighter grip on the neatly wrapped volume he had fucked under one arm. « „ To Randal?, at work in his office the following Saturday afternoon, appeared Ferguson, who thrust a newspaper into his hand and dropped into a chair be­ side his desk. "Look at the stock table!" gasped the caller. . "Um! what of it?" Randall asked. "Great Eastern at 20." "So I observe. Insiders have boosted the stuff, that's all." "Now read an item on the first page, third column, about half way down." "All right,""- said the Other. "Hullo!" he added a moment later,'"that's! odd, isn't it?" " 'Odd!' It's terrible; poor Brown!" "It's odd, very odd." Randall repeat­ ed. "So the Yankeeland was in col­ lision, eh? Nothing said about, anybody being injured." •; ,r:. "They've suppressed that part," groaned Ferguson. "Poor old Brown! Can't we do something? Let's go to his rooms; they may have had word there." "Very well," said Randall, rising and putting on his hat; "I'm with you. But, if I were you, I wouldn't give up hope by any manner of means." As the pair approached the house in which Brown had lodgings that gentle­ man opened the d6or and came down the steps. He carried a valise. Fergu­ son gave a cry of relief at sight of him; Randall laughed softly. • "You didn't take the boat, then?" he asked. "No; I was er-er-detained," Brown "I'm going to Forty-sec- ,vWhen are you going to tell Brown?" i^ot' ior sonic tiras," said . Randall, decisive^" "Nature has a way of av eraglng up things. Brown has allot of believlng-to do to make up for his unbelief. Yoli wouldn't have me inter­ fering prematurely with the benevolent processes of nature, would you ?"--N. Y, Times* •; SOCIALISM IN CHINA. Increased. j ond street now to catch a train." These things did not add to "his popu- j "Have you seen the papers?" Fergu- larity. Most men shunned him- So j son put in. "Great Eastern run up and did some women, though their aversion j the Yankeeland run down--notice it?" to him interested no one but them- j "I've read the items," Brown confess- selves, for Brown would have been a j ed. "Curious coincidence, so to speak, THIS CORN IS KING. New Variety of Maize Four primes the Size of the Prevailing: Kind. Samples of corn of a giant species, have been obtained from Peru by the Department of Agriculture. The grains are four times the size of those of ordi­ nary maize, and Secretary Morton be- Uevesxthat the plant may be turned to most valuable account in this country. It is very prolific and bears ears of huge dimensions. The species is quite distinct from any known in North America, and the name "zea amylacea" has been given to it The grains -are extraordinarily starchy, even for corn; hence the name "amylacea." Already ten distinct va­ rieties of the species have been ascer­ tained. One of theni would probably be excellent for canning, inasmuch as it contains an unusual percentage of sugar. It has been named "zea amy­ lacea saccharata." . Undoubtedly the species is derived from the same source as the maize of the United States. All known varieties of this cereal, it is be­ lieved,/came originally from the "zea tunlcata," or "clothed" corn, Which still grows wild in Mexico. Each grain on an ear of this primitive maize is in­ closed in a little husk. It is believed that the ear.liest home of the maize plant was the highlands of central Mex­ ico. The vegetable originated in a cir­ cumscribed locality, above 4,500 feet elevation, north of the Isthmus of Te- liuautepec and south of the twenty-sec­ ond degree of north latitude, near the ancient seat of the Maya tribes. The Mayas were- the first to cultivate it, and from them the use of it spread north and south. Probably corn was known all along the Rio Grande by 700 A. D. Three hundred years later it had reached the coast of Maine, In Peru the Incas grew it before the year 700. The tombs of ancient Peruviana are commonly found to contain maize. They built great irrigation works to help the cultivation of corn.--St Louis Globe-Democrat misogynist had he been able to cherish two great hatreds simultaneously. Sometimes, though, he longed for more friends of his own sex. He had but two or three, and he could not preach to them always. There was a point at- which they rebelled, and when that point was reached Brown felt alone in the world. So at last through growing dread of isolation, he came to spare these two or three, which proves that the man of one idea may learn in the school of bit­ ter experience. Even when, out of the goodness of their hearts, they now and then cleared the lists for him to break a lance in his favorite cause he declined the challenge--sometimes. And then • the others began to fear for his health. "Your trouble. Brown, is that you • lack an actual test," observed Fergu- |»on on one of these occasions of com­ bat declined. "You're theoretical; you've never faced a'ghost, nor heard a supernatural voice. Now, if you only could have something uncanny hap­ pen." Ferguson paused, partly because he thought he had-said enough in the way of encouragement, but more because his cigar demanded attention. Ran­ dall nodded approval of the curtailed sentiment. The three had been dining together and were lingering over the coffee. "No; Bve escaped so far," Brown an­ swered slo*vl'y; "at least--well, nothing has occurred ,to shake my common Bense. Truth is, though, I may be able to tell you something convincing in a few days. Last night I had what some gools would call a warning." "What?" cried Randall. •"You had?" asked Ferguson, incredu­ lously. "I had a dream," Brown continued. "I don't know where the scene was laid, or whether there was any. But I held a piece of newspaper, with edged jag­ ged, as if it had been torn from the sheet On one side was what seemed to be an account of a curious accident to a Sound steamer,r.w.hi.ch was run into by a schooner,--"whose jibboom pierced the wall of a stateroom and impaled the occupant. The name of the steam­ er was missing." "And the passenger's name?" queried Randall. "It was not to be found in the part •of the article before me." •"Sure it was a Sound steamer?" Fer- ,-guson asked. "Yes; something in the context made that clear. There, was no hint of the 'date. I turned the paper over, but "found on the other side nothing but part of a table of stock quotations. Great Eastern common had closed at 20--that's all I remember to have no­ ticed." "I'd like to see the stuff there, even In a dream," said Ferguson, feelingly. He ventured into Wall street occasion­ ally. "No doubt you would," said Randall. "But, Brown* where's the warning? Are you going down East?" "Yes. I'm due in Boston next Satur­ day morning. And I always go by boat" "This time, too?" "Certainly," responded Brown, with dignity; "this time of all times." "Well, I'd stay ashore, if I were you," Randall counseled. "As a boy I had , my fill of^irying to see if things were loaded." The-steep-tie smiled a superior smile. *"I have already arranged for the trip," he announced. "This morning I reserved a stateroom on the Yankee- land--she's next Friday's boat. In . short, I propose-to prove so conclusive­ ly the " ""Precisely," said Ferguson, rising from the table in some haste, "we real­ ize V hat you expect to prove, old man. I know you think it too good a chance to be wasted; but, just as a friend of yours, I'd get out an injunction to keep you from going--I would, indeed--if it were n<5t for that quotation of Great / Eastern at twenty. In-.,view of such a ; freak of midnight phantasy I guess I won't hav£you dragged into court. But you ought to be fined for dreaming such a tiling and unduly exciting the imag- wasn't it? I--I--don't know just what to make of it." "Oh, I'll be honest with you,"- re­ sponded Brown, with an effort "1 wasn't actually detained--that is, 1 might have caught the boat But it had occurred to me--I had four days to think things over, you know--that, per­ haps,--, by staying in town and waiting to see if the Yankeeland met with an accident, I'd have just as good-a chance to prove the falsity of the omen." "Do you call it proved false?" "Um! Hardly, hardly," said Brown. "An unfortunate incident very unfor­ tunate, I must §ay. It has almost un­ settled my convictions." And he glanc­ ed about him nervously. "You'll be taking a car at the corner," said Randail. "We'll toddle along with you." The three had advanced hardly fifty feet when Brown dashed from between his companions and ran to the gutter. "Look out!" he cried. "Don't you see those painters at work overhead? They're on a ladder. Don't walk under it--it's unlucky." No sooner had this peril been avoided than he dropped to his knees, and fell to picking at a crack in the sidewalk. "Horribly unlucky to pass that," he explained, lifting a pin from the crev­ ice. "So I've been told," said Randall, with a chuckle. Ferguson lacked words appropriate to the occasion. They halted at the corner, but Brown pretended not to see the first car which passed. The others saw it very plainly. It was No. 13. They put their friend aboard the next, which proved to have a number above suspicion. "This affair beats me." said Fergu­ son, soberly. "What ails Brown, any­ way?" "Nothing much," replied Randall, "only he's gone from one extreme to the other; he didn't believe anything; now he believes everything; that's all." "I don't blame him--after such an es­ cape." "You think the spirits warned him?" "Who else?" "One Brown." "He warned himself? Impossible!", "Not at all; his own memory did the business." "Memory of something to happen in the future! That's nonsense." "No more nonsense than his new-born fears." "I give up the conundrum. What's the answer?" "I can't tell you in a word. You rec­ ollect the book he lent me the other night, don't you? Well, he'd been read­ ing It the evening before--at least so he told me--and that was the evening preceding the vision. When I got home I took off the old newspaper in which the book had been wrapped, and fell to skimming--skipping about, you un­ derstand. Pretty soon I found a piece of paper stuck between two pages, evi­ dently to mark the place where Brown had stopped. Not being much interest­ ed in the book, I began to look over the slip--and what do you suppose'it was? The very fragment Brown had seen in his dream!" "Eh?" "Yes, sir; the very same. Then I thought of the paper which had been around the book, picked it up from the floor " "Go on, man; go on!" cried Ferguson. "And found that the small piece just fitted a hole in it That newspaper was nearly six months old, as it had to be to contain a quotation of Great Eastern at 20. It was clear enough what had happened. Brown, when ho tore off the slip to stick in the book, read both sides of it without really knowing what he ^vas doing. Then he prist have dream­ ed about it--and you know as well as I do what resulted." "But the accident to the steamer-- it was a Sound steamer " < > "Puget sound. The Item was reprint­ ed from a Western paper, and was duly credited. There lias been a curious, co­ incidence--that's a fact--out the warn­ ing theory is rather spoiled." The pair strode on in silence-for a time. At last Ferguson turned toward hia companion with a question: Amusing Advertisements. Matrimonial advertisements,, accord­ ing to a contemporary correspondent at Vienna, are marked by an acceptable humorous audacity. Here, for instance, is one that ran for six or seven days: "Wanted--a rich lady--no matter how old--who will finance a student of med­ icine until such time as he obtains his degree, when he engages to marry his benefactress." Another is quoted wherein a young prince seeks a handsome girl with a dowry of not less than one million dol­ lars. When the desired mate is obtain­ ed, all one's(needs are apparently satis­ fied, judging from this advertisement for a purchaser for a "well-trained monkey, a talkative parrot, and a beau­ tiful, sympathetic cat," which belong to a lady who, owing to her approaching marriage, has no further use for them. The most amusing of the advertise­ ments quoted by our contemporary is, however, that of the very Irish peru- quier who makes wigs for "men of in­ tellect philosophers, scholars and phy­ sicians, whose severe mental labor in the cause of humanity has filled their brains with genial ideas, while depriv­ ing their heads of their natural capil­ lary envelopes." These "artistically finished wigs," the advertiser contin­ ues, "while extremely useful are high­ ly ornamental, and are guaranteed ab­ solutely invisible to the spectator. They can be seen any day in my private show rooms." Skull Cap and Pillow in One. The pneumatic tire system has been applied to all sorts of things lately. A traveling cap, for instance, has just' been brought out which is nothing more than a pneumatic tire adapted to the purposes of head gear. It is an ordi­ nary cap, to all appearance, and would not excite too much attention in a rail­ way carriage or on the platform of a station, but wrhen filled with air It forms a pillow on which the weary trav­ eler can rest his head against the side of the carriage and sleep in peace. Another adaptation is to the rollers of washing and finishing machines. So far, whether of wood, iron or even India rubber, these are deficieut in elasticity, and the latest idea is to Wind a spiral India rubber tubing around the two cylinders of the washing machine throughout the whole length of their surface. The ends of these tubes can be attached to an air pump, by which means they can be so filled with air that uniform and regulated pressure can be put on the goods passing through the cylinders. Sarfert the inventor of this system, claims that the flattening of the tubes at the point of contact giveS a rubbing action between the India rubber and the stuff, which al­ lows the cleaning of the fabric to be done in a third of the time necessary with the system of rollers. A Railroad in Siberia. The Siberian Railway Is now in com­ plete runuing condition and open to Omsk, 2,200 miles from St. Petersburg, and four days and the half of another are occupied in making the journey.' In view of complications with Japan and to thoroughly secure Vladlvostock as a seaport, the work of building Is about the most vigorous thing Russia is engaged in this hot season. In the construction of the line the engineers and men engaged in draining a bog sixty miles wide had to, live in huts built on piles, which could be approach­ ed only in boats. Themosquitpes were so plentiful that masks had to brworii and 4,000 were in use. That section of the road will be a cheerful-and exhil­ arating one for tourists. Electricity to. Run a Sawmill. The first electric sawmill on the Pa­ cific coast is now building at Tiicoma. It is an experiment, which, if success­ ful, will mean much for the greater de­ velopment of the lumber region about Puget Sound. She owned that her foot **rjis number • • : s i x , . ' And the grateful clerk did not divine That she was up to the same old tricks, , Till he saw that she really wore num­ ber nine. a --Clijcago Record. I* Existed/ but ~Failed in Practice Many Centuries Ago, Leon Caubert recently delivered a lecture at the French Academy upon an ancient experiment in socialism made i£» China. About the time when Cloyis, King of France, was baptized and ^Christianity had only just"begun to take jjoot in western Europe, a great Chinese scholar named Ouang" Ngam Clie was wrltlpg and preaching the principles which underlie modern so­ cialism. The first necessity ,to perfect social life, said this ancient father of Chinese socialism*- is that the land and all of which it produces shall belong to ^everybody. The second necessity is ^that the government authorities shall regard It as their chief business to bring about this happy result as qtiiek- ljr as possible; China had at that time been devas­ tated by teazle Inundations which had &ut off thousands of the people, and the starving survivors were clamoring for reform. It was then that Auang Ngam Che went straight to the emperor, Clienu Tsong, and told the monarch that it was his dufy to save the people. The social prophet was welcomed at the court as the great thinker of the age. The emperor listened with the zeal of a disciple to the socialistic pro­ phet, and, availing, himself of his un­ limited powers as a benevolent auto­ crat, abolished by an imperial decree all private ownership of land. The great nobles of the country were com­ pelled to renounce their huge estates. Th£ vacatedlas® were " ifrstrlbuted among the heads of families, every fam­ ily receiving so much land, but the proprietorship of the lauds remained absolutely iu the power of the em­ p e r o r . : • ; • . . 8 The cultivation of lands was regulat­ ed by a strict plan devised by Ouang Ngam Che and made obligatory by the emperor. All excessive produce over and above that which each family need­ ed for sustenance and for seed Was de­ clared to be the property of the com­ monwealth. Those families , which were occupied with the breeding of cattle were required to present all their young cattle to the inspector of the commonwealth, who had the right of appropriating a certain proportion as the property of the whole community and distributing the younger cattle aniong the families that needed them. Even the forests were treated as com­ munal property, and each family had a legal claim, to a sufficient quantity of lumber aud firewood. Everything went well for one generation. The people were happy and contented. The social revolution, preached by Ouang Ngam Che and enforced by the emperor, was a great success. So long as the social reform was a novelty there was zeal enough for its maintenance, and it seemed to promise a glorious feature. "But the next generation," says M. Caubert, "showed signs of backsliding. The old Adam asserted himself. The farmers, instead of sowing the seed which the State had distributed among them, found it more convenient to grind it and live upon it, and so tli% fields were unplauted, and there came years in this or that district without any bar- vest at all. The cattle breeders lost their personal interest in the produc­ tion and nurture of horses, oxen and sheep, which they had to hand over, at the eud of all their pains, to the,inspec­ tor of the commonwealth. The mei\ who were employed in the forests to cut down trees for the community rest­ ed from their labors as soon as they had cut down enough to serve them­ selves. The women, whom Ouang Ngam Che required to be set free from all physical labor, soon found them­ selves obliged to put their hands to work to save themselves and their chil­ dren from the starvation with which tiiey were threatened by the idleness of the head of the family. One farmer would complain that his land was so bad that auy attempt at cultivation was a waste of time and labor; another grumbled because his neighbor had twice as much land as himself. Hun­ ger, misery and competition for sheer bread returned. The Chinamen were not good enough for Ouang Ngam Che's socialistic system; and the social re­ former himself died in his old age a neglected and disappointed man, con­ fessing with regret that his scheme of reform was impracticable."--N. Y. Sun. An Ironclad Canal Boat. One of the oldest and most unique war vessels in the world is the iron­ clad boat belonging to Holland's navy. The canal boat is a completely equip­ ped war ship in miniature, and is in­ tended for service on Holland's exten­ sive canal systems. The boat is about forty feet in length and fifteen in width, and her upper deck is between three and four feet above the water line. Her sides are armored and her deck is pro­ vided with two little turrets, one fore and one aft. There are two masts, about twelve feet in height, and the bulwarks are not much over a foot In height The turrets are supplied with the heaviest guns which may be used to advantage in such close quarters, and her tops are provided with efficient machine guns. The canal boat Is a valuable part of the defensive armament of Holland." The canals of Holland are in many sections several feet above the level of the surrounding country, and they af­ ford an important vantage point for the war ship's guns. The canals, be­ side, penetrate every part of the coun­ try, in most cases passing right through the cities and towns, and it Is, there­ fore, of the greatest importance that a warship of justthatpattern should be at hand. Holland's navy includes, besides this unique feature, about one hundred and fifty men-of-war; of this number, some twenty-five are ironclads, some comparing favorably with the best war ships of other navies. Soon afterward another woman Join­ ed her. the wife of ope of the chiefs, She was really pretty. Her teeth were even and white, her ^feet and hands Bhapely, her- eyes of a dark hatfel colpr, and a pretty, tinge of red showed through,^the clear olive brown of her cheeks. Her black, heavy hair was plaited on each side of her head in a short, doubled braid, and she had a huge knot on top of her head that look­ ed like a handle. Tills is made from the hair from the crown of the hus­ band's head, which is shaved period­ ically and collected to add to the wife's topknot. This woman wore a beautifully sewed and elaborately trimmed dress made of reindeer skin with the hair on. It con­ sisted of a skirt, reaching to the middle of the thigh, and trousers and shoes made in one garment, the trousers of the White, short hair of the legs of the deer, and shoes or moccasins of dressed sealskin. The upper garment was trim­ med with bands of white deerskin and strips of1 wolverine fur, and the im­ mense hood, in which the babies are carried, was edged with wolf's fur. An ermine skin, with head and claws still on, and an eagle's feather were, at­ tached to'the hood as ornaments. .From her waist was Suspended a cord of whaleskln, to fPhlch were fastened; needlecase, seam presser, shuttle for making nets--all of Walrus ivory--arid little thimbles of Sealskin shaped like the end of a glove, with the Side seams opened and fastened to the forefinger by a, loop of the skin. y ~ Fancies of Invalids. About the manner of 'serving their food patients sometimes have curious fancies. In one case a woman flatly refused to take her beef tea unless the bread which accompanied it Was cut in the shape of diamonds, while in anoth­ er it is always necessary to serve the food in a blue basin, for out of nothing else whatever would she take nourish­ ment. A boy who was attacked with scarlet fever showed great disinclination to take his food, but finally agreed to swallow what was necessary, provided he was fed in the following way: The beef tea, or whatever wras to be given him, was put into a silver teapot, the spout was placed iu his mouth, and in this maimer the food was poured down his throat. An elderly gentleman, who had spent much of his time hunting iu Africa, on being asked if he fancied any particu­ lar dish, replied that he would like a bit of elephant's foot. Under certain circumstances, we believe, this dish is a dainty and nourishiug one, but the price of elephant in this country being pro­ hibitive, this elderly Nimrod was forc­ ed to content hii^self with beefsteak instead. ' A clergyman with a broken leg had a great longing to put on a pair of stilts, a pastime which lie had never yet tried, while a man whose leg had been am­ putated, although admitting the imprac­ ticability of the wish, declared that a passion for skating had so seized upon him since the loss of his limb that he regretted being operated upou chiefly on that account HOW TO BECOME GREAT. SOME VARIED OPINIONS UPON A SUBJECT OF REAL INTEREST. Languages of Palestine. As regards the languages spoken in Palestine in the time of Christ, much that is of high importance lias resulted from recent exploration. A dedication of Herod was written both in Aramaic and in Greek, and there are a great many Greek texts of this age in all parts of the country, which show us that the old Canaanite religions had not yet died out, but were mingled with Greek mythology, so that the names of native and of Greek deities stand side by side. The region where the Greeks were most numerous was apparently De- capolis, east of the sea of Galilee, and it seems to me probable that the people of Gadara, who kept swine, were Greeks, for the pig was regarded as an unclean animal by the Phoeni­ cians and other natives as well as by the Jews. It has often been disputed whether the gospels were originally written in Greek or Aramaic, but it has now been rendered certain by ex­ ploration that Greek was very widely used in Palestine at this time, and that it was understood by the Jews as well as by the others. We have recovered the stone written in Greek, which warn­ ed the Gentiles not to enter the inner court of the temple, and have found early Jewish bone boxes on Olivet in­ scribed in Greek. i Wear "Ermine Every Day. A fat. old woman toddled down to meet me" while in Lapland, her broad face shining with whale oil, her dress inside out to keep it clean, her hus band's hair in a bunch on top of her head, her toes turned in and her elbows turned out' I felt that I had fully real­ ized my ideal. W 1th convulsive giggles she grasped my hand firmly in one ,of hers. With the other she patted me affectionately on theshoulder. Evidently I Impressed Jier as presenting an utterly absurd appearance, for after looking me all over she would shut her eyes, shake her head from side to side and go off into a .Jit of laughter. Making Shot in AVater. The shotmaking trade has a legend which recites that back in the days when guns were shot off by lighted matches and were swiveled to supports because tliey were too big and clumsy to be lifted to the shoulder, and when all shot was molded as bullets are to­ day, some workmen were fastening an iron grating to the wall of a castle. They had cut out the hole in the stone, arid', after placing the iron in the hole, poured some lead in to hold the iron in place, just as they do to-day. Some of the lead escaped and ran over the edge of the wall into the moat below. Soon afterward the attention of the soldiers was attracted to the lead in the clear water, and, dipping It out, they found that the metal In falling from the height had become globules. After that those soldiers made their bullets by sprinkling melted lead over the castle wall into the waters of the moat- Hardware. * Musical Sign. A ruddy-faced man, evidently a some­ what recent arrival in America, with his broadly shilling wife on his arm, stood gazing at some Chinese hierogly-11 plilcs which hung at the door of a laundry. "DInnis," said the woman, after a long stare at the puzzling sign, "fwhat be thim little Aggers? Be they notes or fwhat, I dunno." "Notes, av coorse; fwhat ilse c'd they be?" responded the man without hesita­ tion. "Rade tliim aff t' me, Dinnls," de­ manded the wife, after another stare. "Naw," said the man firmly, "that O'll not, fer it's square, notes they are intoirely, an' it's raesllf that's out av practice. But had Oi me flute, Nora," lie added, in a conciliatory tone, "had O me flute, Oi'd play tliim for yez in a minute, darlin'." ^ Every woman in love becomes a sort of a detective. < Wlijr .Social, Political, Literary and Business Ambitions Enchain Men's Attention--Diligence,"' Perseverance, and Genius May Be of Son^b Help, but It Is Ingenioiis Advertisinjf that - Tells in the Long ' Run--Many In­ stances that Prove This True. Eve^y man who is worthy of that title desires public recognition. Socially he would be better known and respected. If he assumes to ignore what is generally known as "society," he surely turns to some other kindred ambition. Politics mav engross his attention,/and, if lie Would rise in that line he nlust, by per­ sonal address, by party services, or by public speaking, win the confidence and good will not only of his own party, but of the wider public. If as a student he buries himself in a library, and works through lonely days and nights, still, it is only, in the hope of leaving some work "so writ, as future ages shall not willing­ ly let die." Socially, politically, in art or literature, yes, even iu commerce, the do- sire for a wider publicity is inspiring and ennobling. - '/V J'-" V /•- Ambition is a strong virtue until it steps beyond-pnideiiCe or, proper modesty... "By that sin fell the angels;" and thousands of thoughtless mortals who try to rush in where the better angels fear to. tread, de­ stroy all hopes of ;pu'blic, approval. Their rudenes^rmRs^them sociallyi Their eag­ erness for office defeats their political as­ pirations. Their ambition for rapid rec­ ognition clouds their literary efforts: Their "penny dips" are,blown out before they have set the river afire. In business lit- tle fools ape the actions of successful men until whole hordes are following Wan- amaker's advertising or imitating the Ris­ ing Sun stove polish, or copying the plans of really successful houses. The public measures them quickly--they are asses clothed in lions' skins. The first rule of real success is to be original. „ Not strangely, queerly original --but that every act, aud utterance shall spring from an honest interior. It is not- possible to achieve greatness by imitation. Real greatness often comes to men of humble birth and surroundings, whose hearts are true and firm, while in times which try the souls of men the feeble and vacillating ones are swept aside as by a plague. Arnold of Winkelried was a pri­ vate soldier, but his brave act in burying a dozen spears in his own breast ta make way for his fellow soldiers won him a de­ served immortality. Bunyan's simple but lieart-told story surpasses in wide pub­ licity any literary effort 6f the greatest of scholars. The simplest articles have built up the greatest trade successes. It was a farmer who was kindly trying to amuse his little children who invented the now famous "Pigs in Clover," and it paid him better than a gold mine. But as an instance of solid success, built up by - honest means, used to popularize a simple but original article, Sapolio gives us.a capital illustration. It is a solid cake of scouring soap, but it is the best of its kind--its manufacturers have never alter­ ed %r neglected its quality. It is an article naturally of moderate consumption, but it is used everywhere. Not in the United States only, where, from California to Maine, it is a household word, but in In­ dia, China, and Japan, in Australia and all the countries of South America, it marks the progress of civilization by its mere presence. Its traveling salesmen can claim in common with itself that they scour the world! The methods used in conducting its vast business rival in care­ ful consideration the conduct of enter­ prises apparently more important, but the secret of fts success is that no honest method of obtaining and of retaining pub­ lic attention is neglected. Look at fthe simple little cake of Sapolio, lying half used, perhaps, on the kitchen sink, and try to realize that the sun never sets on its sales. Consider that it cost you but a few cents, although its manufacturers spend hundreds of thousands in advertis­ ing it to the (millions whom they wish to remind. It is like a fairy tale. . Aladdin rubbed his lamp to no better purpose than ihe public does Sapolio, for, as a universal servant, its services are without measure, and its worth brings back golden returns to its owners. How has such wide popularity been ob­ tained? By original merit and patient perseverance. Probably the most interest­ ing side of the story lies in the well-known advertising which has been used. We can reveal some of its methods. Its adver­ tising department is presided over by a man who talks proverbs at breakfast, dinner aud supper, and twists them to tit Sapolio while the rest of the world sleeps. An artist is employed by the year, al­ though countless sketches and ideas are contributed by outsiders. Poets--not mere rhymesters--are paid to. tell its merits in original verses, and the most novel schemes are made use of to attract atten­ tion. Two hundred and fifty thousand boxes of dominoes were sent out last year. Japan furnished twenty thousand feath­ ered owls aud fifty thousand puzzles, be­ sides thousands of hand-painted panels. Domestic puzzles passed away long ago, but not until millions of them had been used. Pamphlets are printed in vast num­ bers, and the famous Sapolio alphabet has nearly reached its tenth million. Five hundred dollars will rent a large farm, but it goes to pay for one half-page insertion in a daily paper. Yes, one thousand dol­ lars has been paid for a single column in a weekly paper, but of course the circula­ tion, like the consumption of Sapolio, was enormous. Bold methods they may well be called when over two thousand dollars is paid for the rental of one sign on the most prominent building in America. As odd methods we may mention the employ­ ment of an "advertising orator" who made stump speeches in all the principal cities, and the posting of signs reading "Keep off the Grass" on all the snow banks in New York after its great, blizzard. But our readers khow only too well how thor­ oughly it is advertised. Every city, town, and railroad is decorated with its signs; the magazines publish its pictures; the street cars are enlivened by its proverbs; the newspapers continually remind the public of its merits. But even if it was not so prominent in its own behalf, the dozens of imitators who try to impose their wares on the public, as "just as good as Sapolio," would prove to the world that it was the standard. Who can read the bright verses which tell us how to make this world brighter without the tribute of a smile? Who can glance at their pictures without admitting that advertising is- an art itself? We have not room for many, but feel that this ar­ ticle would be incomplete without some specimens of them. Aboii Ben Kelly. Abou Ben Kelly (may her tribe mcreasey Was much disturbed one night aud had no peace; For there upon the wall within her room. Bright with tlie moonlight that dispelled " :/• the gloom, A man was scribbling with a wand of gold. Now, Mrs. Kelly was a warrior bold. And to the presence in the room she said, "Wliat writest thou?" The scribbler raised his head. And with a look that made Ben Kelly hot. Answered: "The name of that which leaves no spot." "And what is that?" said Abou. "Not so fast," -Replied the scribbler. Kelly opened vast Her mouth angelic; then in whisper said, : "What is this marvel, quick? I must to bed." 4 "Hie scribbler wrote and vanished. The I . .- v next night He came again with much awakening light, '• | And showed" the names that nation|Jong , have blessed. , ' : ~V--' j And to! Sapolio's ijiame led all the re«V ' The Monogram U. 8. There is a little monogram ---- We see where'er we go; It offers us protection Against a foreign foe. It stands for light and progress In every foreign clime, And its glory and its greatness Are the themes of many a rhyme. But few have ever really known, And few would ever guess What our country means by marking All her chattels with U. S.; It may stand for United States, Or yet for Uncle Sam; But there's still another meaning To this simple monogram. . We see it on our bonds and billB, And on our ppstal cards; It decorates Our Capitol, Shadowed by -Stripes and Stars. -- In au our barracks, posts and forts It plays a leading part; • And the jolly sailor loves it i And enshrines it in his heart Now, have you guessed the message Which these mystic letters bear? Or recognized the untold good They're spreading everywhere? Echo the joyful tidings, I And let the people know That the U. S. of our nation means . Wo--Use Sapolio. A Ballad of May* You must wake and call,me early;- Call me early, Bridget, do, - For to-morrow's such a busy day I fear we'll ne'er get through; With the scrubbing and the cleaning, And tlie^scouring/Upi you kno#, • If it wasn't for our tried old friend, Morgan's SAPOLIXX ; ;/ • "Needles and pins, needles and pina, " ' When a man marries his trouble begins." But all of us know that it would not be sc If he would provide her with S-A-P-O- L-I-O. Lament of tha Emigrant. I'm sitting on the stile, Mary, Where we sat long ago, I've walked a many a mile, Mary, » To find Sapolio., I mind me how you told, Mary, When we were side by side, Its match could not be bought for gold In all the world so wide. Our home was bright and fair, Mary, You 'keptit so for aye, And yet had time to spare, Mary; Would yoii were there to-day. You made the work but play, Mary; All women might do so, And all should know the charm you say Lies in Sapolio. But now I sit and weep, Mary, Nor fear to break your rest, For I laid you, darling, down to sleep. With your baby on your breast. The graves are not a few, Mary, Hard work brings many low; It was not so-with you, Mary, •" You used Sapolio. " Rebus. When lingers spring in winter's lap, And thoughts of love are. rife. To get my first, the trees they tap; "The sweetest thing in life." When winter evening firesides cheer And music fills the soul, heigho; When mixed selections charm the ear, My second is in the folio. Like "sunshine in a shady place," My whole each object heightening. Makes labor light, and work delight; It cleans "as quick as lightning." High Bates of Interest. Many governments in good credit can borrow money at 3 per cent, or even less. When security cannot be given, or when credit is not good, the rate ex­ acted of private borrowers is much higher. A case has been found in Lon­ don where interest was paid on short loans at a rate which would amount to five thousand two hundred per cent a year. A ilr. Moon, who has contributed an article on the subject to an English re­ view, has made a personal investigation of the matter among the pawnbrokers of Wliitecliapel, London. These men and women are regarded by the wretch­ edly poor people about, them as phil­ anthropists rather than usurers. An act of Parliament permits these pawnbrokers to collect on all loans of two shillings or less an interest of at least half-penny a montb. This appears very reasonable to the poor people of Wliitechapel; but many , loans of six­ pence are made, and as in the case of sixpence loans no time longer than a week is ever given for payment, and as the half-penny is always collected the same as for a month, the rate on these little loans amounts to what would be equal to four hundred per cent a year. But the way in vyhieh this sort of usury may be carried very much fur­ ther is described in Mr. Moon's narra­ tion. A pawnbroker said toliim: "There's things here, sir, that don't stay here not a day.. Last winter wo­ man brought me in one fevening a child's pair of shoes, and I lent her a sixpence on tliem. * "Next morning very early in she comes, sir, with a bed coverlet. It must have just come off the bed, for It was as warm as could be to the harids. I lent her sixpence on it, and with that sixpence and a half-penny that she brought with her, she took the child's shoes out of pawn and went away with them. " 'Now then,' says she, 'the little 'un can go to school.' "And in the evening back she comes again with the child's shoes once more, and puts 'em up for sixpence, and gets the coverlet and pays her half-penny on that, and goes away with that to sleep under for the night. "And that she kept up, sir, day after day and night after night, until the mild weather came again, and a cover­ let on a bed wasn't no longer neces- sary." This woman was really paying Inter­ est, therefore, at the rate of a hundred per cent a week, or fifty-£wo hundred per cent, a year. A Galloway Flail. The Gallovidians of old had a re­ markable war weapon knOwn as the Galloway flail. It seems to have been Indigenous to this corner'of Scotland, and in the traditions-of the province It occupies a prominent place. The tide of battle has been turned on more than one occasion by the skillful mani­ pulation of the GAlloway flail. The handstaff was a tough ash sapling about five feet in length, and the soople. the part for striking the barn floor when threshing, was made, of iron, about four feet long; with three joints, equi­ distant from eaeh other. ~No swords­ men could withstand an attack with the flail. One stroke would shiver the sword to pieces and. leave the unfortu­ nate individual at the mercy of his op­ ponent. Theu the soople with its iron Joints would encircle its victim aid crush him just as a hpa constrictor would. <