Highland Park Public Library Local Newspapers Site

McHenry Plaindealer (McHenry, IL), 18 Jan 1888, p. 6

The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

. myetown ot gold, Uum word* doubtlms thtelprt, «ta* : w «»ifWorn* a * h"m» of Joy, fcaftttoa WiMr, and i know tfca* life la sad, my ratafortuboa, by drop* we ,<-JfN ill »«•«**•« tlwtaewnt. tat oft the joy- drotNtauM." B« died Tb. rtrtppllng in his place the royal „ i world looked tafir to him who now tb* aceptor born. n the tiirone li© emilinsly »at, and m«*nt to mafro it el "S!J Upon the palace tarrct high waa hung a Hlver ^ boll, Which lightest touch aent pealing out far ova* hill and dell, , . M fitoo but drew the cord that hong bMpdo the '<:L- royal chair. -Whore nat the king 'midst knighta and dames, the valiant and the fair. And in the land 'tw«a known to all the king that boll won d l'Ull, when with content unmingled his heart waa •g br mining full, And soarco a day he fondly hoped would paaa w.thout a peal ^ y* • ^ *'Ttt>Pti>n tTool" Qff sTrt'liVa «*» h* shoott • half mile thedogcouldbe heard, %mf» to «M throne: "My togwhat we supposed to he a 'possum. Uncle Mose seized a torch and away we went, and were soon at the tree. "He's up dot 1 >1 aargum; bin up dar er etin' uv dem blng-jum berries. Wen er 'possum olitu'a er blaggum he's sho ter be er big um. But jest let me slune deole rascals eyes! Oh, yes; now I sen's yo' up dare in dot fork, yo' ole eyes er lookin' like two coles er fire. Yo' set tip dare jest like dese woods 'long ter yo'. But I'll bet yer won't bo I so bigety'w'en I gits yer lixed up wid swret taters fer dinner ter morrow. ".Jake yo' go up dat tree 'n catch de ole rasr-al l>y de back uv de neck, 'n tickle 'im in de short ribs so's tui, make em 'sill,' d it 'e won't be er bitin' 'n er growl in' al' de time yo' er bringin' *im down." .1 ake, had not climbed mora than hal' th" distance from tlio ground to the glowing orbs, when right at onr feet fel. a large yellow cat, that quickly darted awav in the darkness The cat seemed to revive Jake's witch story ii Uuole Moae's mind, for he would that lie did f jel. f' Day onto day riccwded fast, and each waa |><y hai!od with mirth IS i . Hot it4 snusot waa Joss joyous than the hoar of / its birth; ; • And oft the king stre'ehed forward to the cord rv_ that daiii K'd fre<>. . . 'But something seemed to check him, and again W. - ' » ho let it 1M. t Otaco strode he tliroagh his lordly halla, joy ' awe 1 ns in hla breaat, Jbr certos the lov.i of faithful friend U of all "lii fif* the best Til line." ho cried: but to hia feet crept one " who l>en ing low IfcbbPdont, "Th« man yon call your friend be­ trays you to your foe." Que« ruRh'd he in, his heart on lire With triumph and with love. k; And aald. "O bell, proclaim my blisa to earth 8JV and heaven nbove." Bet whispered 1-is pale chancellor: "Though " r the " fear fidtit- flair the maiden be. Sot even you can surety «y." r At such deceit the king may smile, he's (mon­ arch in th - land. Be owns a purse with silver lined, foea ft^r Ma heavy hand; Be still has blooming pastures, and fair mead- owe greenly spread, ( Around him, skill of artisans, God's Heaven 4 overhead. . He hied onto his window, looking downward and around. Ibeendle of hia happineaa in every cot he found. Back to the cord he hastened, to ring full loud-- but see Her 'B ono who braaka into the hall, and falls on bended knee. '* , kins! taat 'thou not notioed tte «moa«, the flame, tne crash ? Behold our li:imlet blazing, list to the sworda that clash!" -fa: bold marauders!" cried the With anger wax<ng hot,, Aad drawing his avenging sword, ha touched the bell rope not. Vo Bilver turn'd his love-locks dark, from aorrow grew he old, ~ While still upon the turret high the bell had never tolled. Aad if a pulse that aoemed like joy hia with­ ered heart might move Be thought no mora upon the bell that atill hung mute above. , * Announcing tlm?m:h his broal domains the joy j ™>t allow the do- to trail him, but RUg i crested that wo go home; as ho said a ' dog \von!d not hunt after he had treed a enfc We were about ready to go, when the wind was heard to give a few long sighs among the pines, and low rumbling thunder was heard away off iu the southwest. Then dark clouds went scurrying across the pale face of the moon. The sighs of the wind became a continued moan and then a frightful roaring. The thunder grew louder, vivid lightning flasliotl across the inky sky, and we knew that a terrible storm was upon us. We were about a mile and a half from home, and the nearest place where we could get shelter, was a little log cabin off about a quarter of a mile on the ridge. No one was living to tell the stoey of the lonely little cabin; superstition alone could relate its history. It said that the little mound at the rear of the house, and at the edge of the little clearing, was the grave of a man who, many years before, had sought this secluded place in the deep forest to build this cabin, where1 he lived till he was mysteriously murdered. In connection with this the old slavery- time darkies related many mysterious stories. "No, sur! Can't go todat 'ouse; Ides ez soon be blode er way by de win' ez ter hab dem jack-mer-lan-tons git hoi* er me. Aint I-seed 'em on er rainy, drizzly nite, des er caperin' erroun' dat 'ouse ? An' didn't I on er moon- shiny nite hear sumpin er 'nockin' al' erbout in de 'ouse; an' didn't Ijsee sumpin stan' in de dore erbout er minit 'n den go ter-book-e-ty, ter-book-e-ty, ter-book-e-ty down fru de woods ? tJh! wasn't dat er big clap er thunder, 'n des lis'en how de win' am er blowiij' "n as the king was dying upon hia J»I« high. He heard the sound of weeping and marveled at the cry. Be called to him hia chancellor: "What do they grieve about?* •My lieRe! the father's dying and the children stand without." ^Eead thou my children to me I--and do ye hold ma dear?" "O king, if life by blood ware bought we'd buy thee many a year." : Aad footsteps aoftly sounded through the *«»n so wide and vast Ot thoao who pressed to see their ««g aad bleu hiui at ths last. •And so ye love ma dearly?*' they answered with J a groan. He beard the low, deep murmur and hia face with rapture shone; Be raised him slowly on his couch, to srasp the eotdhe tried-- Ayaal rang out o'er hLU and dala. and smilini atill, hb'died. UNCLE MOSE'S GHOSl > ipr J. M. COIXUM. O'iil-- IAI In the west fast fade* the lingering light And day'a last vestige takes ita silent flight. The echoes of the woodman's ax and the rural lays of the laborers returning from their work had hushed. No noise disturbed the gentle silence except the lonely tinkling of a number of sheep bells. The fanners and their families assembled around their evening fires, retold the stories of which the others never tired. Turrets of blue smoke floated away from the chimneys of the farm-houBes and another day of toil had ended. Tired nature was dozing and fast falling into that sleep that comes with the early hours of night Out in the dense forest that at that time lay along Uchee Creek, three per­ sons were assembled around a light- wood knot fire; a white boy about ten years of age, an old negro man, and, a negro boy of probably eighteen. Down here Dame Nature herself had sought repose; for no clattering of squirrels, eawiug of crows, or twittering of birds fell upon the ears of the belated three. Not a word was being uttered by ahy eoe of the trio who were half reclining around the fire, when Jake, the negro boy, raised himself blowin' 'n de trees am er failin'." "Come, Jake, we must leave here or be killed by the falling timbers; let Uncle Mose remain as long as !;he wishes." * 1 We started off in a run and were soon at the cabin, with Uncle Mose close be­ hind us. We were none too soon, for the heavy timbers were falling thiok and fast before the ranging wind. • As we entered the house a. number of bats and a screech owl fluttered about our heads. After all were on the inside Uncle Mose closed the door against the ghosts, whom he feard more than the fury of the Btorm. Thun a match was struck to get a view of the surroundings, which burned just long enough for all to see the same yellow cat that the dog had treed a short time ago, sitting content­ edly on one of the low joists. In the impenetrable darkness otir excited imaginations pictured hosts of hollow-eyed and grinning demons passing in fantastic dances before ns, their unearthly laughs mocking the storm without. Tap, tap, waa heard at the door against which Uncle Mose was crouching. Then more violent taps were heatd all around the house. Another match was struck; and there in full view of all, at one of the cracks, were two shining eyes. Darkness again, and the taps at the door were turned into ponderous blows; which caused Uncle Mose to leave his place and let the door swing open. Then the light patter, patters, of feet upon the floor made us chrink back in the darkness, ejecting every moment for the hand of a long-fingered skeleton to be placed upon ns. Uncle Mose never spoke a word, but by his labored breathing it could be told that he was badly scared. While undergoing this age of sus­ pense a vivid flash of lightning lit up the interior of the house; and there in the middle of the floor stood an ugly "Billy goat" that had sought his old to a Bitting posture and related the following: . _ "My mammy say w'en she wuz er I haunt as a protection against -the rain little gal her daddy went ofn lef' *n^ storm. her 'n her mammy ter stay al' ni't by the r selves. "She sed w'en'de sun wint down it St dark in erbout er minit. It got rk so quick dat 'er mammy neber had time to cook any supper, so dev wint iu de house 'n shet de do' an' put'de peg In, 'n den put sum taters in de fire, des ter make out on. taters er 'bout half don', sumpin' got ter i>cratchin' oa de do' an' 'er mammy fink it wna 'er daddy cum home, 'n sed. 'Who dat!' sj "Bui nobody say nuttin. Den arter er whil dev hyar er fuss on de top er i' de house, 'n den 'er mammy sav er gin, lb.. *Who dat!' but still nobody say nuffiu. <, "Den 'er mammy say she spec de ta- - ters "er 'bout dun. 'n git de fire stick 'n £<'<•-< gin' to git dem out. ' "But erbout dat time er great big ole * ' yaller cat fell rite down in de middle v ©b de flo\ 'n gin ter 'meow,' 'n sidle up ' ter de fire. Den 'e stuck his fore paw ^ fat <je live coles 'n pull de taters out 'n i;>, *gin ter eat 'em. •;* "Dis made 'er mammy mad, so she ,;i hit deole yaller cat wid de fire stick 'n ^ - make'm jump outen de chimney. Her f; f *tt 'er mammy den gin tei ete de taters demselves. But de ole yaller cat des / keep er gwine roun' de house er 'meow- •M;<> ing\ a er stickin' er his feet fru de cracks *nunder dedore, tell 'er mammy got tired er it. "Bo she git de cliop-ax, 'n slip up ter whar deole yaller cat wuz stickin' er one Ben Butler and the Apple. An old-timer who was in the ibob said: "I was quite a shaver at the time Gen. Butler made his famous speech in this city. It was not made in Union Square, but in the city hall park oppo­ site the city hall, alongside the old, But 'bout de time de J hideous statue of Washington, which stood a few feet from where the present park fountain stands. Butler did not take an apple out of his pocket. The fact is the mob had been throwing all sorts of things at the General, none of which hit him, bat some fellow in the crowd, with a more accurate aim than that of the others, threw an apple which hit him plump in the stomach. As the apple struck him he instinctively slapped his hand over his stomach, and in doing so caught the apple against his vest It was then that he deliberately took out his penknife, coolly proceded to peel it, and then began eating it. The mob. which had up to this tim« been savage in its attacks, broke out in roars of laughter, and Butler won the day. The speech he delivered was a 'corker,' One of the mildest things that he told his listeners was that when he was in New Orleans he had hanged better men than they were.--New York Telegram. k- The Chinese Census. j The recent census of the Empire dt , , -- , China gives a population of 392,000,000 iz feet under de dore. n wham down ! of souls--Chinese souls. The census in on it. •J; "Den 'er mammy know de ole yaller : eat wuz er witch; fer dare lay two fingers ; often er white 'omans ban', 'n one uv ! dem had er gole ring on it ~ WW he is la-lb* TMrtHMl and the Aatt^ TlM»l>offsaM Oats of Atlanta. [Atlanta OoMHtction ] "Pictures and writing don't learn yon much erboat er battlefield," said old man Phuket "IfH mighty nice," continued the old man, "to look at ar-picture in er book and see the horses er raring and the er floating and the brave men er dashing, but it haint so nice to be thar. Thar's danger and death eroand that flag, aad the air is filled with the zip, zip, sip of the minnie ball that is worse than er nest er hornets darting arter yon, and the boom and zoon and the whiz df the shell--like thar waz er shuck tied to 'em--haint no pleasant thing and I haint seed many folks but what it would take peart w You can march er man and perish er man till he'd as soon die as live, but whenever you begin to throw bomb­ shells erronnd he's as fresh as if he'd just got outen bed and e it er hearty breakfast, at least that's my experience, and I've he'rd men that I know was as brave as could be say the same thing. I seed er long gaunt North Carolinian Ben Whangdoedie Baxter m backer.** De subject ob dis ebenin's discourse am de wice ob terbacker. On dis heah sttbjec' dar's a great diffomce of erpinynn wedder or not terbacker am calkerlate ter injure de human frame, and permote premature insalubrity or ode r wise. > Fur one, I'se not erposed ter smokin' oigerettes, sence 1 heered dat hit kills off de doodes. De smoke ob de eiger>> ette am no doubt de bes* disinfectant. No self-respectin' cholera germ or yal­ ler ieeber germ would stay in de naborhood whar dar was one ob dose cigarette suckers. Dar may be cigar­ ettes what has good terbacker in 'em, but dey ain't made'in dis keutry. Talking about cigars, I mas' toll yer a story about Sam Jolmsing. He was employed as a sarvant by Kurnel Yerger, andde Kurnel he cotched Sam smoking one ob his fine Conneterkut cigars. Kurnel Yerger was gwinter cuss Sam out, when dat niggah spoke once get so tired that he just thought u?,,^ b&vh: Ef dermestiu cigars he couldn't live any longer without er t intended for de any longer little rest, and so he just put his cart­ ridge box under his head and turned over on his back and was ersleep in four seconds. One of the fellows took his knife and dug up the ground right use op dermestics whaffor am dey called by our name for?" Dat broke de Kurnel all u|>.' Terbacker was first interdooced inter England by Sir Walter Raw ley, but between his legs, and then hopped off to ilis fPPertitei for smoking was inter- i .* . t « TAPAil wiil hv iito navintf hia naftrl Aiif. An one side and gathered er great long shell and took it and put it down on the fresh loosened dirt and then shook the fellow and waked him, and when he opened his eyes and seed the shell be­ tween his legs he give er spring and er whirl the same as er circus actor and got off er piece and turned erronnd the same as you've seed horses run off and turn erround and snort, and then axed; "Did that shell fall thar?" "They told him it did, and tried to get him to take ernother nap; but no, he warn't sleepy nor tired either any more. "You never seed the like er dogs that was through these woods arter old Sherman felt The people refugeed and the niggers run away and the dogs went wild and took to the woods and er fellow had to be mighty carefol how he moved erround or they'd get arter him. I've seed as many as 150 dogs in one gang twixed here and Atlanta and it warn't no great ways twixt gangs either. I can't say for certain, but I think thar was at least 45,000 dogs left in Atlanta and they took up old Sherman's way of foraging on the country. "And cats! You've heerd of cats being drawn to catnip patches, but that aint nothing to what the broiling of er piece of meat anywhere erround At­ lanta would do arter Sherman left. "Me and Brown went up to Atlanta arter old Sherman left, and Brown he had got er hold of er good size piece of meat skin and carried it erlong, and when we got hungry we just stepped over ermong some brick and rubish on Alabama streets and went to briling it on the coals, and it hadn't mor'n struck the fire till we begin to hear the cats squall erround, and it warn't mor'n er minit till here they .come from every direction, and Brown he jerked the meat up off the coals and lowed if any cats gets this meat skin he'd have to be er better man than I is; and we both took to er middle wall that was er little to one side and got upon it and thar we stood and eat for er minit, but it warn't long, for the cats begin to make for us and we seed we'd have to fight, so we put our eating in our coat pockets and let in with hickory sticks what we had, and if you ever seed dead cats 'it was Ahar. "We were up on er piece of the mid­ dle wall what was left standing, and the cats couldn't crowd more'n forty or fifty at a time, and we'd let 'em h#ve it with our sticks, and Brown, he never failed to kill one, and sometimes two at every lick, and I warn't er sleeping, and I'd just hate to tell you how many oats we killed, for I know you'd think it looked out of all reason, but I'll say 10,000 anyhow, and Brown would be willing to swear right now that 'wouldn't er made er hole in 'em.* "Whatever Plunket tells you will do to depend on," said old man Brown. "People these days think these things out of reason, and that's why you don't hear more erbout these wild dogs and cats than you do--er fellow can mighty easy get up er reputation as a first-class liar by telling the truth erbout things that happened erround here in 65."-- Atlanta Constitution. China is taken for purposes of taxation, and the method is very simple. The Emperor makes up his mind about how much money he wants; then, in ordev to make the burden of taxation very ., . *aP Angers up 'n put, light, he estimates about five thousand ^ dem m er chist, n nex monun'she. sho people to the dollar; the money comes |»dem to er mistis, n er mistis say she j in, and nobody could be mean enough le dem fingers n dot ring. to protest. Protest is a Chinese idiom, Den she w^iit down ter er ole white my aon. X don't wonder voti don't un- house^'n find 'e* all rapt npin derstand it ^air bed. Slie jaxt de ole 'oman ter let i to our [dette. i It is similar in meaning United States "kick.**--Bur A Clever Dodge. A young provincial, coming to Paris for the purpose of negotiating the pur­ chase of a share in a commercial house, had on his arrival entrusted for safe keeping his capital, amounting to 50,- 000 livres, to a friend; and, the neces­ sary arrangements having been com­ pleted, applied to him for a restitution of the deposit His friend, who in the meantime had converted the sum to his own use, stared at him with well-feigned astonishment, and flatly denied having received any money from him; and on the other's reproaching him for his treachery, cut short the interview by accusing bim of an attempt at extor­ tion. Finding all remonstrance useless, the young man betook himself as a last resource to the hotel of the lieutenant of police, ^pd related to him the whole story. j When he had finished, M. de Sartine inquired if hepiad not asked for a written acknowledgment of the de­ posit "No," he replied, "I had no reason to doubt my friend's good faith, and de­ manded nona " "Were any witnesses present on the occasion ?" continued his questioner. "Only his wife." "That is quite sufficient," said the magistrate. Go into the next room, and remain there until' I send for you." ' Summoning one of his exempts, he dispatched him in quest of the individual suspected of fraud, and on the arrival of the latter informed him that he was charged with refusing to give back a deposit of 50,000 livres which had been confided to his care. "I know nothing about it," was the reply. "That may be," said the lieutenant; "but to satisfy me of your innocence, you will write to your wife, who, 9 am told, witnessed the transaction, to this effect: 'Deliver to the bearer the 50,TMX) livres I received in deposit from Mon­ sieur Jules Dutailleur,' and add your customary signature." Not daring to disobey the order, the man, though with evident reluctance, did as he was enjoined; and the same exempt taking charge of the missive, returned in a short time with the money. Confounded by the discovery of his guilt, the culprit fell on his knees before the magistrate and implored his clemency; whereupon M. de Sartine, after severelv reprimanding him for his treachery, added to his confusion by fered wid by his having his head out off. Dis goes ter show de unhealfulness ob terbacker. I knows an oder instance ob de un­ healfulness ob terbacker. Hit killed a niggar in Houston so dead he nebber kicked. A hogshead ob de stuff fell on him from de second story ob da warehouse. Den, agin, smoking has hits ladvan- terges. De cannibals in de Souf Sea Island what eats de mishunaries we sends 'em nebber teches de meat ob a man who has been in de habit ob chewin' terbacker. I heahs a heap a talk about de money de man who don't use terbacker sabes up in a yeah, but ef yer wanter stump him jess ask him ter show yer de money. Dar's a great deal ob smokin' what hasn't got nufiin ter do wid terbacker. In der langwidge ob Tom Chrystal, ob do Sunday Morning New York Jour­ nal, dar's a tendency ter palm oft oleocabinage cigars fer de generwuie Havanner. Hit's no use ter preach erbout de evils ob terbacker so long as dar am in ebery communerty a man who nebber uses terbacker in no shape, and who am so triflin' and wuffless dat he ain't wuff de powder hit would take ter shoot him.--Texas •Sittings. The Word "Dollar." Our word dollar dates back to 1785, when a resolution was pas ed by Con­ gress which provided that it should be a unit of money in the United States. Another resolution was passed in 1785, August 5, providing that it should weigh 375.64 grains of pure silver. The mint was established in 1791, and then required to coin silver dollars contain­ ing 371.25 grains of pure silver. This was due to the efforts of Alexander Hamilton. No dollars were coined un­ til 1794, and then irregular. They are now worth $100 each. In 1794 the coinage of regular dol­ lars began. Our coin Was an adapta­ tion of the Spanish milled dollar, a coin very popular wherever the Spaniards traveled. The coin was called "piastre," meaning a flat piece of metal; it is synonymous with plaster. It is supposed that the Spaniards took the German "thaler" and called it by the name of "piaster." The word dollar is entered in Bailey's English Dictionary in 1745, and was used repeatedly by Shakespeare at the beginning of the seventeenth century, especially in "Macbeth" ii: 2. 62: "Till she dis­ bursed * * * $10,000 to our general use." (See also the "Tempest," ii 17;> A The question where Shakespes found the wo^d dollar is answered the fact that the Hanseatic towns ma tained a great establishment called t Steel Yard in London. The Steel Ya merchants were mostly North G mans, who would call the Germ thaler as if it was spelled "dah-le The same merchants originated t word sterling; an abbreviation of t "esterling." As the Hanseatic tra was particularly brisk on the Bal and in Russia the standard coins the Hanse merchants were called est< lings, and sterling came to mean BOM thing genuine and desirable. 1% word dollar is the English for thale^., axrmuiia &ir tlif a~pmauu wuu uau the first of which was coined about vto something he eoold nover hope to V ** 04BX. DUKDSB. ' down Idoan* shtop to ask where he oomes from no* neither he goes. I haf aeea lots of great men- buried in costly caskets, but dey vhas shust as dead as der poor man in hia pine coffin. Some folks dot doan' whistle nor sing haf lots of time to ponder oafer deviltry. Vhen I find a poy who doan' whistle I look oudt for my apples. I haf noticed sometimes dot I get madt oafer vhas I doan' know aboudt sooner dan if I know all aboudt her. We can forgive men who dispute facts sooner dan men who dispute theories. After all, vhat was it to us if der worldt vhas made in six days or six hoondered years? We look more dot it shall be a good year for cucumbers. It vhas like all of us dot we could f train oop somepody else's poy in der vhay he should go, while our own trains himself oop. Der man who runs a wagon all del time mitout any grease would be called a fool. Der man who never allows him­ self a play-spell vhas no petter. I haf no use for somepody who gets drunk. It has taken man too long al­ ready to reach a point vhere der peast leaves off und der man pegins. Maype, if you watch eafery dav for feefty years, you can tell from del'sun­ set vbas der weather next day shall pe, bufe. if you spend dot same time mit der pumpkins you vhas rich und doan' care for weather. To say of some mans dot he vhas goot-hearted vhas a more shentle vhay of saying dot he got left pehind vhen der rest of der peoples goes mit der idiot asylum. Maype I shall agree mit my neigh­ bors ; maype not A good deal depends on whether my shickens scratch on my land or his. Envy vhas a canker dot gnaws at der heart If some rich mans vhas poor dot doan' make me any petter off, Vhen somepody goes by mit a carriage der pest vhay vhas to pelief dot walking vhas der pest for der health. I know peoples who' pelief in luck, und I know some lucky people. Der last vhas peoples who vhas willing to work hardt und pe saving. Der former vhas peoples who lif on deir neighbors. If I find a man who doan' haf some troubles I put him down as a person who vhas either too hard-hearted to feel grief or of too little consequence for der Lord to notice. Maype I belief in second marriages, but I also like to say dot all der first husband's clothes should be sold py der peddlers, und dot der second husband doan' pay for der gravestone. Vhen you find a man ready to fight for his opinion you must walk avhay. He vhas more certain to be deadt wrong, und if you lick him he vhas no petter.--Detroit Free Preas. Good Enough for Anybody# There was Westerner at Cologne, Germany, months ago, who caused considerable laughter. He was suffer­ ing from linguistic difficulty in the at­ tempt to explain to a custom official t necessity ot carrying two bottles liquor. Owing to the inability of eitl of the men to comprehend the oth the loss of one or both of the precic bottles waa imminent, when a Germi speaking Englishman, who had be antertained by the controversy, stepp up and offered his assistance to tl American. "I will very cheorfully h< you out," said he. "You're an Englishman, i Mckon suggested the Westerner. ^ * "I am, but speak German, and w' be pleased to interpret for you," a: then the Englishman proceeded to t the officer that it was customary America to earry about two or three bottles in one's satchel. ilTf ' ' 11 I of ; aiwatod paasive' lor yeMS, emerging at length into fellowship with the outer world, ohiefly through the persistenoe of PfeataMas aad Greek merchants, and mueh In the same man­ ner as the peculiar nations of China and Japan are, in our own day, gradu­ ally being opened to western oom- meroe. There is reason to believe that Egypt was a settled nation long before the foundation of Nineveh ami Baby­ lon, and that these derived their civili­ zation from Egypt; but Egypt did not enter into free intercourse with the rest of the world till aftnr the time of Alexandria. Two sea boundaries gave it an extensive line of coast It is united to Asia by the Isthmus of Suez, and lies open to the interior of Africa, the Nile forming a grand channel of communication with the South. The country, as now, was flooded three months in every year by the overflow of its river, and was likewise artificially irrigated by a network of canals, as well as from Lake Moeris, constructed by the king whose name it bears as a reservoir for the superabundant waters at the time of the inundation. Inland boats and barges, made of boards and Sapyrus, were in general use on the iile and on the canals as the common means of communication between the towns. A sailor caste is spoken of, and boats occupied a conspicuous place in the religious festivals. Later in his­ tory Egypt owned a fleet of four hun­ dred vessels, used in the coasting trade, and even venturing as far as India. The wood, copper, and iron necessary for their construction were obtained from the Phoenicians. The Egyptians reached, perhaps, the highest develop­ ment possible to a people excluding themselves from association with all others. Their system of castes con­ fined trades and professions to certain families, and made productive skill ia the various arts and handi­ crafts descend as an heirloom from parent to child. Resulting from this practice, a superior degree of excel­ lence was manifested in their works of metal and wood. Their harps excelled those of modern make in beauty of form and their chairs and couches were of chaste designs. Even in wicker- work they showed artistic skill. For many purposes of art and utility they used a compound metal of a green color, the method of alloying which is now lost Their cutlery and weapons of war were also made of a compound metal, & kind of brass bronze. Ele­ gance was specially aimed at in their pottery; the examples now in our mu­ seums are made iff fine clay, and are very beautiful. Excellent cotton cloths and muslins, together with woolen fab­ rics and embroidered work or tapestry, were among the products of their in­ dustry. Buying and selling fell to the lot of the women. Household duties were attended to by the men. In ac­ cordance with this custom it was the daughter, not thfr son, on whom de­ volved the duty of supporting a help­ less parent. The laws promoted self- dependence. Securities for loans were contrived, usury was forbidden, and the rights of creditors were limited to the property of their debtors. They were |of Eip aad Gi&ia Wool Li&sd ij" Hen's, Women's. Misses &<« Hlg-fc • "Ontti 11 1485, and corresponds quite closely to our present American silver dollars. The word thaler means coming from a dale or valley, the first dollar having been coined in a Bohemian valley called Joachimsthal. It was under Charles V., Emperor of Germany, King of Spain and lord of Spanish America that the German thaler became the coin of the world.--The Financier. A Sensitive Man. ' "Ah, good morning," said a well- known Kentucky gentleman, address­ ing a man whom he met in the street. "How are you, Colonel?" "Look here," the first speaker, after a short pause, continued, "every day I discover additional evidences of the fact that you db not like me. Whv is it?" "Do you mean why you discover the evidences or why I do not like you?" "Why you do not like me, of course." "Weil, in the firat place, yon are such an outrageous liar." "Yes." "And, in the seeond plane, it baa been proved that you are a thief." "Well," said the Colonel, "I merely wanted to know, and it strikes me that your reasons sre very good. I am a sensitive man, and it nettles me to think that any one dislikes me without a cause. I am glad that you have ex­ plained yourself so olearly."--Arkan- aaw Traveler. ^ Oirantic Mushrooms. • In a field near the cas'tle of Peters­ burg, at Silz, in Tyrol, Austria, a species of mushroom called lycoperdon bovista, giganteum is found iu abund­ ance. A few weeks ago one of them was sent to Vienna measuring length­ ways (it is egg-shaped) 3J feet around and the other way 3£. It weighed upward of seven pounds. It grows generally to the size of a child's head and weighs some two and a half pounds. A correspondent .maintains he onoe found a mushroom of the kind the diameter of which was nearly two feet, which would make the circumference upward of six foet It weighed • eight | pounds. They are eatable when young. | --Manchenier Times. confronting him with his dupe. : -&*• - v./'" TALENTS are best matured in solitude; | character is best formed in the stormy to who^i billows of th© *#14,- # S • . i 'ii. •' ' 'j* t *1 * ' w' '• # ~ -;'v' , understand.--Boston Advertiser. Sun and Fire Symbols. There are to be found occasionally upon the walls of old brick houses, at about the line of division between the first and second stories, flat pieees of iron five or six inches in length and shaped somewhat like the letter S. The use of these articles was clearly brought from England, where it still continues, and a writer in a recent num­ ber of Nature gives & curious account of its origin and meaning. This writer says that the figure in question is an early symbol of the sun. It is still used in Herefordshire and other parts of England. He once asked an old servant of the family--a Glouces­ tershire man--the reason for the particular form of these irons, and the reply was that "they were made thus in order to protect the house from fire, as well as from falling down." If one will examine into the antiqui­ ties of the Isle of Man he will find the seal of the Government shows a curious combination in this figure. The same was on the official Beal of Sicily. We can trace its use to the oldest countries of Asia, but its origin was earlier than history gives any reoord.--Youth** Companion. A Millionaire's Gift to the P4p» Senator Stanford is building near San Francisco a great University, and this is what he says about it: "It will be built with a sole regard to the poor. No rich man's son or daughter will want to go there. The houses for the eom- fort and convenience of my guests will be plain but substantial, and due regard will be had to every want of the pupils, but nothing ornate or grand will be al­ lowed. This institution will absurb my wealth and be a monument to the mem­ ory of my son. The poor alone will be welcome; it will not be built for the rich." AN .English gardener has noticed roots protruding from the stoek end of a cucumber which had been immersed in water. The fruits of the prickly pears, which have the same botanical conformation, have been known to root in the same manner, and the plant has be on propagated this way. LIKR clings to unlike more than to ft ; i'« • ^ ver, that in aelmowTeclgihg that there may be truth in astrology, charlatanism, and all the rest, they have been in a manner brought into a mystio brotherhood, and most people have a certain secret notion that the very confession of Jaith is in some way a sort of propitiatory offspring to un­ seen powers. Mystery has always a fascination for man, and almost any scheme of decep­ tion can succeed if it can but veil itself into a semi-obscurity and pique the awe-struck curiosity of the ignorant A very small basis of truth serves as a sufficient basis upon which to erect a very substantial structure of delusion, as the history of innumerable quacks and impostors has testified through all the centuries since civilization began. It is not so much that men like to be deceived as that they enjoy deceiving themselves under the pretense that they stand in the presence of some in­ scrutable mystery before which, since human reason is sure to prow unavail­ ing, it is foolish to attempt to be reas­ onable or logical at all. To be freed from thinking is, after all, the delight which ensnares more of mankind than any other temptation.--.Boston Budget Philosophy. Philosophy in its wisest expressions does little to shape the conduct of masses of men. This is in itself a vindi­ cation of law and religion. The one oompels by prohibitions and penalties, and the other moves by impulses of awe and hope, and by their combined agency the world is made socially hab­ itable. If the practical sense and mor­ ality ot the best philosophers were really made a guide by a large majority of'men and woman, religion would be greatly modified and law would be a mere incident of human affairs, relat­ ing to convenient adjustment rather than an ever present and active con­ servator of peace and order. It seems strange that the condensed good sense el so many ages which is embodied in philosophy running from Epictetus to- Franklin, ahd from Franklin to Emor- son, should not be the inspiration of the mass of intelligent people, but so. it is, and hence the laws have to check the unruly and religion attempt a ref­ lation of mind and character. It will not do, as the world is constituted, to relax in conception of the foroe and necessity of law, and those who fancy religion can be dispensed with are poor students of human nature. She Would Be Equal to t he Occasion. "Clara," he said, tenderly, "if busi-, ness reverses should come to me after wo are married and we should get to be very, very poor, would your. love for me grow less?" "Never, George," replied the noble girl. "And could you go into the kitchen, dear, and make a loaf of bread with those dainty little hands ?" "You are very nice to say such a pretty thing about my hands, but, George, love, don't be foolish about the bread. Why, I would send on« of the servants arouud to the baker'% for it"--New York Sun. Two GERMAK seedsmen of large ex­ perience give eight years as the limit of meittat News. THE baker thinks it's all right to sponge his living. -~Dulvth Para- raphger. TH* voice of a dog on a raft at sea ii very apt to be a hark in distress. New, Orleans Picaune. WHEN a photographer goes to sea he . • doesn't feel at home anywhere but titM the focus-tie.--Texas Siftings. ,, * JAY GOULD'S favorite dish is baked ^ potatoes.--Ex. Now and then he * ~< a slice of lamb.--Texas Sifting a. *' IT is difficult for a sailor to make 8 1 tiller of. the soiL He can make it of * wood," though.--Texas Siftings. < ^ FUNNY enough the fellow that gets oft • his base never gets onto the even-tenor . * ||f of his way.--Duluth Paragrapher. * . NATURE is full of wise provisions. Wives do their worst cooking when they N are young and irresistible.--Omahit -iA World. THK best reason yet advanced for having Monday, washing day, the next day after Sunday, is because cleanliness J is next to godlinesa jjg| NEXT summer the Concord School of - Js Philosophy will discuss whether a mail ^ shall have his beard or his face shaved. --New Orleans Picayune. "WHAT kind of boys go to Heaven?" ' ^ asked the Sunday-school superintend""* 1 eht. "Dead boys," yelled the youngest member of the infant class. \ MICHIGAN makes more shingles than »• ^ other States in the Union, but, curi-. - ously enough, it has no more than the -j usual percentage of good boys.--Bur* * ' " ling ton Free Press. v ^ TKAVIS--Do you belong to any so» _ ciety? Ponsonby--Certainly; I am a i , member of the Helping Hand Society., -f. t Travis--Indeed I Ponsonby--Yes; therein is no waiter a!> our boarding house. -- « Burlington Free Press. TIMID young suitor who has won con- .• sent Of papa*--And now may I ask you, sir, whether--fli--whether your daugh-J# ter has any domestic accomplishments ?|j Papa ^ (sarcastically) -- Yes, sir; she •' sometimes knits her brows."--Detroit; : Free Press. '>&• • g| BUBAL VISITOR (to waiter)--Reckon ;*f you may bring me some clams. Waiter * i --Little Necks, sir? Rural Visitor-- H:1 Naw, gimme the biggest you've got. *. J Just sold a load of hay, an' I'm going"" « to have a good time if it coats twenty ^ cents.--Pittsburgh Chronicle. ( I A FUNNY QUESTION. • • . > " J "Oh, yea, the championship wo've won," * •' Thus to his girl speak8 Charley Day, , , ' < • S "But 'twas, when all is said and done, A. pretty tight squeeze for us, May." > ' * May bluhes to the golden bangs ' . , " !| That shine beneath her high-crowned hai ., < ; And asks, the while her head she hangs, *, Lp, A tight squeeze, Charley I What Is that?* ?is™ 4 --Boston Courier. J "MY family is very ancient,"•remarked!^:?! an English tourist in Ohio. "It dates. , back to the crusaders." "So does mine,"^ 1 replied the Buckeye. "My mother was a crusader herself. And what a noble > !v#! stand they made against the liquor . •:. 1 traffic, too!" "Aw," said the English- - * man, considerably mystified. < ; LITTLE TOMMY RAY quarreled wither,-?! his sister, and would not kiss and be ~ ; „ friends. His aunt said, "Oh, don't you>; i remember what papa read at family • j prayers this morning, that we- were to-' ;* ^ forgive seventy times seven?"* "Yes," replied Tommy; "but I tickerlavly. notice it was to your brother, not # sister." "THIS astonishing statement was'v--' *-• copied from a Baltimore newspaper.*1 "The statement may be correct," re- ^ i , plied the judge, but there is one inoon- in­ sistency regarding what you say." "What is that?" "You said that it was k copied from a Baltimore paper." "Yes,*'^'^ "And in that remark lies the incSnsis- tency, for my dear sir, there was never-* ^ J anything copied from a Baltimore pra- ' j per."--Arkansaw Traveler. DURING one of General Bragg's cam­ paigns a Colonel of one of the Confed- <$rate infantry regiments was cashiered for failure to appear with his regiment • ) , ' at some critical moment An old West- Pointer who was hanging around Bragg's headquarters with nothing to do was ordered to command the regi­ ment in the next battle. When the regiment was ordered to charge, they | raised the rebel yell and rushed for- t ward-; but the Colonel's horse --an old' . • "scrub" he had borrowed--""bucked," and refused to move. On went the men; ^ ;* » but the Colonel's beast held his ground, i*/'-' But about the time the opposing line • - " ' broke, the Colonel got under way, and was received; as he galloped mp, with ? wild cheers. "I don't wonder,-" he ex- ' 'M claimed, "that Colonel was cash- \ iered for being in the rear; there aint a ^ h o r s e i n t h e a r m y c o u l d k e e p u p w i t h " ' this regiment on a charge."--Editof'a Drawer, in Harper's Magazine: That Erratic Chronometer. A prominent storekeeper said to- a re­ porter, "Did you see that man with an eight dollar watch who just walked up to the five hundred dollar chronometer in my window, looked at it, shook his head and walked away? So great is >/ i the faith in his time-piece that I dare say he believes- in its correstness even ?>"• though my chronometer shows it to be five or ten minutes ont of the way. > , This, reminds me of a fnnny incident , - »*' which occurred seVeral years ago. A small dealer on the Bowery through"-- ^ .n some means secured the dial and hands of a chronometer of excellent English ^ make, which lie duly attachedito a cheap lever movement, hiding all but the | dial, and exhibited it in his show win- daw with a grand flourish and a neat '% l.v sign reading, 'Correct city time.' The \ business men in the neighborhood were all very much pleased to have such an - ,»"i; excellent timepiece to regnHate their <<4> watches by, and they all set them care­ fully to conform with the olisonometer. It - i"\ "For several weeks after that anxious looking men were to be set-n standing J before tha wiudow in which, the 'chro- - nometer' was displayed, perplexedly " figuring up either a lose or g»in in time. At the end of th» third week -v the jeweler had nearly every watch in ,\j! the neighborhood brought to him to . clean and regulate, and money fairly - - poured in own him while his rivals -?£ Were all but starving. ; j, "One unlucky Saturday night his fa- voritacat crawled into the show.wia- ,»fss dow* and in her frisky i-tiase after flies •. •% or mice succeeded in tangling herself up in the velvet, which shrouded all < but the dial of the 'chronometer' and pulled it completely off. All day Sun­ day there lay that 'chronometer's'^ movement exposed to full view with. the name of an American company which makes cheap watches plainly en- 5' graved on it, and before the proprietor of the store opened on Monday morn-l­ ing nearly everybody had seen it, "He never got any work Jrom that quarter of the city, and eventually had to move up to Harlem to put himself beyond the reach of the never-ending chaffing from former Tj»trons who had wanted their watches regulated to rnu j with the 'chronometer.' "--Jewelers' iFfeefcty. . i r. J ' \4 .M. 'Ma. c .^4 . i' . y f . / •C; * ' i L U-iK.-.

Powered by / Alimenté par VITA Toolkit
Privacy Policy