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M" t . *•<* I f f t l f t .. He \lf. .„• tfh« ' \ . - - ' * ' ,. V . - srvmivi -"W^ X . While UidtMit'ii nwfnl Uomp May53k»rtfe«*lonir»tod. t • . bBMUt < r i law « town » fury, aaa^saysig^s^, „ Vkanftm •him both Jodie Mid Jttf. If von meet» wicked roan. Fall of wrath And UtlffJitioq, ^ Though he tempt , provoke aM I"*®« Beooncile him II yon can, 95, * I , And retain your reputation^*""iW. Law hM proved a losing gun&*'*.-*${> i Better Buffer loss than try Wv ^ , i Win or lose your money clalip Mav turn outa little lame-- ;m. •em only profit by It. f inns. ill ]>'•: THE BfiowR MYSTERY. 7 !*? 1^1 BY r. O. FLOWER. story opens in a quaint New En­ gland village which is situated oh the wave washed coast of Maine, command­ ing a fine view of the ocean and sur­ rounding country. That which I am about to relate happened when I was a mere boy, just entering my teens, but I remember all of the circumstances as well as though it happened but yester­ day. There lived near the center of the town an old gentleman of English ex­ traction, known far and wide as "Chari­ ty Brown," which cognomen h© held from my earliest recollections on ac­ count of his great charity for the poor, giving annually to them what to many would be a fortune. No one knew his history further than the time of his ad­ vent among us; and what did the villa­ gers care as long as he continued to be­ stow such magnificent sums on every public institution, beside giving large amounts to the poor of the surrounding OOuntry ? But there was one who did care--not for the old man's gold, but who courted liis lovely young daughter Frances. She was a sickly wee bit of a thing when they first came to Iiock Beach, but the sea air and healthy climate soon brought the roses to her cheeks, and people would stare in open wonderment at her rapid growth on each succeeding oocasion of her appearance among them; for, be it understood, the seclu- fion of his daughter from the rest of the world was one of "Charity Brown's" peculiarities, and we only saw her two or three times during each year. Of oolurse this caused much comment among the villagers, especially the young j»eople of my sex, all of whom were anxious to appear well in the eyes •f Miss Frances, and were always ready to.pit her, for beauty, against the hand­ somest girl in the town; and as to good­ ness, they would all swear she was an angel, especially after getting one glimpse of her eyes. What caused much wonderment among us boys was the iaot that Willie Burke, the son of a poor laborer, should be in favor with her, and that she held stolen interviews with him while the old man was asleep, a luxury he always indulged in after his noon meal; and so many of us who could boast of being the sons of rich fathers | had to stand aside and relinquish all hopes of securing the prize. was now in her sixteenth ye*r, «6d Willie three years her senior, while "ftharity" was about entering on Jus fifty-sixth birthday. It was on the eve of a beautiful au­ tumn day that a stranger, with a servant and an enormous amount of baggage, made his appearance in the village and asked for the Brown residence, which, «n being pointed out, he entered with­ out announcing himself and was lost sight of for a number of dpys; and when he did appear it was in the com­ pany of Frances, who, although she ap­ peared gay and pleasant, had an ex­ pression of sadness upon her face not an-keeping with her hitherto joyous and happy moods when among us. i There were many surmises as to who the handsome and stylish young fellow was. About two weeks after his com­ ing, young Burke announced, to every­ body's delight and the gossips' relief, that it was her brother, who had been Studying in Germany for a number of rears preparatory to entering the med- idal profession. There is no need at this time to tell the various stories afloat in the village regarding this new member of the Blown, family and the cause which led * Charity" to keep his son's existence a secret. Let us now look into the Brown mansion: Seated in a large •asy-chair in front of the huge fire- pfoce ig the old man, his gray locks hanging loosely oyer his broad shoul­ ders, and his eyes fixed intently on the burning log in front of him. As he sits thus, a pleased expression dwells momentarily on his broad, open counte­ nance. to be immediately lost in one of pain and sorrow. While the old man is TO6S living over his past, his sou is en- ,gjig^d with his gun in the kitchen, where Frances is preparing his supper, in anticipation of a good hunt on the morrow in the large forest back of the and one morning the jailer awoke to find his watchman and young Mooro- house missing. From that tinto up to the present nothing more waa heard of him or the watchman in the town in which they lived. The father was charged with assisting his son to escape, and was tried for that offense, but no evidence was produced to show that he was guilty, and he was released, when he immediately left the country of his birth and came to America snd settled at Bock Beach. The son calmed himself as best he could and proceeded with the drawing of the will, which finished he retired to his room, leaving the old man alone. After Frederick had gone, the old man fell into a deep reverie, which ended in sleep, from which he was awakened by a hand upon his shoulder, and a rough voice whispered in his ear: "Old man, where's your money ?" He arose and grappled with his enemy, and being a man of great strength threw the villain heavily to the floor and uttered the word "Fred­ erick!" That was the last, for a blow from an -unseen enemy caused him to loose his grasp and drop to the side of the one who but a moment previous was in his power. The blow was a terrific one and caused almost instant death, the murderers secured all the booty possible, and left their victim where he had fallen. What need to tell of the scene on the following morning when the innocent Frances appeared to prepare breakfast ? Who can depict the anguish of that loving heart at the sight of her father weltering in his own life-blood ? What wonder that she asked to share the same fate? Frederick was awakened by her cries, and came rushing in to learn the cause. Did you ever see a strong man become petrified with some great and sud­ den sorrow? Have you ever expe­ rienced the same feelings? Then you know nothing of what his condition of mind was upon discovering what had caused his sister's wail of lamentation and horror. God grant that not one of my dear readers may ever know from personal experience what were the feelings of those fond hearts when they saw their kind and loving father, whom they had left but a few hours previously in fall health, lying dead upon the floor of their home, stricken ruthlessly by the hand of an assassin. An inquest followed, resulting in nothing definite, which in due time was followed by numerous detectives from Boston paying the place a visit and proffering their services, two of whom found favor in FrMerick's eyes and were employed, beginning their task in less than a week from the time of the murder. Young Burke remained away from his trysting place until the end of two weeks, when Frances sent for him to visit her, which he did, and a mutual understanding was soon arrived at be­ tween Burke and the brother of Frances. The greeting Frances gave Burke was enough to convince Frederick of the relations which existed between them. All that long, never-to-be-fqrgotten evening he maintained a studious ab­ sence from the room which the lovers occupied until called by Frances, who told him all that had passed between them--how Will was going to search for the murderers with money she was to furnish him, and she added: "He says he will never come back to Bock Beach until he has found the guilty ones and brought them to<}ustioe, but I protest iigfimst &uything G* tli6 kind; don't you, brother ?" "Yes, my dear sister; if your happi­ ness is involved, I certainly do." One look at Will and she threw her­ self into his arms,, sobbing as if her heart would break. "Oh, yes, dear brother, it would--it does involve my happiness, for I love him as I do my own life; he it wa&,who taught me what the meaning of the word love is. No, no! Will, you shall not leave me with any such promise to yourself. Promise me you will return in one year if you fail in your object and I will try and reconcile myself to it." The promise was given, and, after settling the matter of furnishing him with money for the coming journey, young Frederick again withdrew and the lovers were left alone to spend the last few hours they were to have to­ gether in a whole year--perhaps for­ ever--in each other's company. Vows were made, their troths plighted over and over again, until chanticleer's notes betokened the approach of dawn, and they parted. That day William Burke, now a man in mind and body, left Bock Beach on his mission. H^ went direct to Bos­ ton, where, believing he had found a clew to the murderers, he followed them to New York and from there to Lon­ don. Those who know of the slum- holes and dens of iniquity in this vast city can readilv realize what a task he Do you wonder that Frederick sick­ ened and died in less than two months from the time of hie arrest? He was taken aiok soon after Id* incaroeration, and was gaining rapidly when the late of Frances reaoned him;he grew worse rapidly and soon died. He was buried beside his father, unmourned, unat­ tended and alone. Why should it be otherwise, when, in the eyes of the world, he was a convict, a murderer? Could tbf? Tw*Anlo Ka fo? they felt convinced that he was guilty and" not deserving of their pity. In the present oentury, people do not pass judgment on hearsay or circumstantial evidence. The persecutions and sorrow of many innooent and worthy people is one of the inexplicable things which we can only leave for time and future genera­ tions to solve, but certain it is that such is the case, and there are those among us to-day who seem to be pur­ sued by a relentless fate from which they cannot escape, many of whom merit blessings instead of persecutions; of these the Mooreliouso family at that time were a part. The year is nearly gone and young Burke is still absent with no tidings of him since the day of Frederick's arrest, when he wrote a hopeful letter and ex- Eressed the opinion that he oould fulfill is promise, and spoke of the persona he was watching and whom he hoped to bring back with him as the guilty ones. When Frances showed the offi­ cials this letter and begged for her brother's release, they only spoke de­ spairingly, and said Burke was mis­ taken. "Poor girl," they said, "why should she not believe him innocent, and who would, if not her?" ; , .Sow let. us return to London, where we left William Burke, working night and day to find some clew to enable him to fasten the guilt of the old man's mur­ der upon those whom he was satisfied were the guilty ones. To do this was a hard matter, made doubly so on account of their being so far away from the place where the crime was committed with no pro6f whatever of their guilt save that pos­ sessed by him alone--and what did that avail ?--nothing. He had learned the name of the vessel on which they shipped from Boston, as sailors, and ere the year was up in which he was to return he oould see her Captain, and, perhaps, get him to make affidavit that these were the men who shipped with him at Boston, a few days subsequent to the murder; but what would this gain him?--it would only he the first link in the chain which was in the end to mete out to them the reward which they so thoroughly merited; and, too, how was he to tell that the Captain was not one of their accomplices? The rea­ soning of Burke as he lay upon his couch in the St. Nicholas, planning his future actions. It had been a warm, foggy day, such as London only knows how to produce, and it told perceptibly upon him, as he was totally unaccus­ tomed to such weather. "Yes," he said, "I must take another course, and that at once." With him to resolve was to act, and time was getting precious, for there were now but seven short weeks which he could call his own; for it was now the beginning of November, and part of the time between this and the first of the year would have to be occupied in his return trip across the ocean. What thoughts the word home brought to his mind--what possibilities! Then came the thought of what it would be should fate rule that it be empty-handed. "No, it shall not be! I swear it shall not be!" he cried, as he arose, with his throbbing temples and fevered frame. He pressed his hands to his head. "O God, am I now to be stricken by dis­ ease just at the moment when the hard­ ships and toil of the whole year are about to result in success ? I will not believe it! I'll go out and visit again that den of infamy and see what I can bring forth. I think the night air will do me goodand he started out, little realizing what it was all to result in. He soon found himself in the vicinity of Rotten Row, the abode of the worst thugs and thieves in all London. It was here he had traced the two char­ acters on whom he was endeavoring to fasten cdinviction. They lived with an old hag who had no visible means of support and yet always appeared to have money, for every place in Rotten Row, where liquor was dealt out, she was called their best customer, and would oftentimes "set them up" for the crowd time after time until every occu­ pant would be in the power of the pois­ onous fluid. These freaks were period­ ical, which offered the suggestion to Burke's mind that she was receiving what is termed that class of people "hush money," meaning that she was in possession of knowledge which she was paid to suppress. These facts had imposed upon himself. He worked j Burke had learned from his long inter- night and day, fully convinced that he was on the right track and which would eventually lead to the desired result. He continued on until the year was nearly spent, and he seemed no nearer his object than when he l>egan; for, al­ though he was convinced ho had traced the guilty ones and had them under his eyes every day, he could not fasten JHivLiV it 1 tl Vi-it" iUl vol UcHii U1 VIit? I 1 * * Tillage. The supper is soon prepared ' ™*eir guilt upon them. and disposed of, after which the trio gathers in the spacious draw in g- Jroom, and cards and wine are indulged In to a late hoar, when Frances with­ draws in fatigue to her room, with a good-night kiss to father and brother, and the two are left alone. * "Well, father, now to business," the M>n exclaimed, as the door closed be- •i§M the form of Frances. S "Yes; bring the paper, pen and ink, 4pd we will dispose of this duty of mine mt once. Fred, my boy, you have no idea of how it makes me feel when we talk of my making my will. I feel as get the flask frota whioh they drank re­ plenished, but it was aooomplished at laaMb by the previous di­ rections of Burke, -beooming, -appar­ ently, as muoh intoxicated as were the two villains whom she was in trapping. Then began the hardest task of all--to wring from then a confession of their crime. . Stories of numerous advent­ ures were told by the'old woman, of hairbreadth escapes from the minions of the Is™, sad finally of her nasy crimes, which she ended by saying that she would wager the drinks that she had killed more people than both the fellows that she was entertaining. This was too muoh for them and they swore that no woman could equal them in their noble calling, and began at once to recount the crimes which they had committed, oeing met every time with a blood-curdling tale from the old woman, until the hour of midnight had come and gone and yet they had not reached the story of their last orime. More liquor was given them by the old woman, she. as well as Burke and the detective, believing that they had not told one truth in Teoounting their crimes. After some time had elapsed and the effects of the last dose of poisonous liquor had accomplished its work did they begin to talk in disconnected sentences of their real crimes and past lives, and not until asked by the old woman how much money they secured when they made their trip to America did they tell of what happened, which, in their drunken condition, came in half sen­ tences, but enough was told to fasten oonviction on them beyond a doubt, and young Burke and the detective came forth and arrested them on the charge of murder. They were too intoxicated to know or care what they were arrest­ ed for, but on the following morning, when told the charge against them, their countenances presented a woe­ begone appearance as they looked out through the bars of their prison cells. Afterward the proofs against them were taken, and the necessary papers made out for their transfer to American soil. The next steamer left for Boston in six days. What a long time to wait for one who had so many reasons for again visiting his native shore. It had been many weeks since Burke had heard from home, as he had communicated with no one save Frances. He informed his parents when he went away of what his mission was, and that he would not write unless something were to hap­ pen him. Time continued, and the day came at last when he was to set sail for America. The awful hand of a perverse fate seemed watching over him, for he was ship­ wrecked at sea and was the only one saved of the entire crew which set sail on the Sea Bird that fatal morning. He was picked up by an out-bound ves­ sel and landed in Australia, where the vessel remained nearly two months, going from there to Havre, France; thence to England again, from which- country he again shipped for America; this time effectually landing in San Francisco. He was now almost as far away from the land of his birth as when in the Old World, and not a ves­ sel going to Eastern ports from this point for over a month. He had but one alternative left him, which was to go overland to St. Louis, then the nearest point reached by railroad. In this undertaking he was successful after numerous encounters with* savage tribes of Indians, reaching home in June, two and one-half years after leav­ ing his native sofft It is needless to add to my already- long account of what his sufferings were when he learned for the first time what had happened. But Frances re­ gained her mind soon afterward--oc­ casioned the physicians said by the shock which the sight of Burke, gave her, for she reoognused him at once, and with a wild ory "Tell to the floor in a swoon. It was amusing to hear the villagers say, after hearing Burke's story qf Frederick's innocence, and of the cap­ ture of the real murderers, and also their confession to the very crime which drove poor Frederick and his father from England: "I told you so; I was always positive that that poor young man did not kill his father!" And' numerous other like expressions. But we will draw a veil over their weaknesses and let them go unrecorded. Frederick and Frances were married, as it is right they should be, and are now old and grev headed, surrounded by children and grandchildren to whom the old gentleman often relates the stories of his adventures. Every­ thing turned out right at last, and out of the tempest came sunlight and happiness.--Chicago Ledger. Let us now go back to Bock Beach and visit again the Brown mansion. It is autumn again, and, as the leaves turn, so turn and fade the brightness and bloom from the face and life of i Frances Brown, or Moorehouse, as we ; will call her hereafter. Since her father's death she has, upon the earnest solicitations of Frederick, been out more during the summer and has made the acquaintance of a large num­ ber of the towns-people who were not on her list of acquaintances before and who have done much toward comforting her, but of late she has been treated tfiough I were looking into my grave, ! coldly, and many of her former friends fend life is so dear to me, and" I do so ' have passed by her many times without Want to live to see you vindicated in j deigning a look in her direction. Fred­ die eyes of the world, and my own pre- i erick had the same experience among i ? sjp«us little Frances restored to the J l»i« acquaintances, and then, to add i ' place in society to which she is entitled, j more to the bittet cut, no letter from j ?$?here, there, my boy, don't let us think j the absent one had reached her in over j f ay more about it," he said as he saw j a niontli; she had, indeed, cause fori ow his words had affected his son. j sorrow. ; Ten years ago this very night, Fred- j They had not long to wait for the j «*. v^rick Moorehouse was arrested in En- j cause, for soon after this demonstration \ Aland, where they then lived,for a crime, on the part of their acquaintances the ' |ie never committed. He was tried afc j Sheriff of the county called at their.' . ihe guilty party, and easily convicted residence, and, with many expressions 1 "Upon the evidence produced against • of regret, said that it "became his pain- ," liim, which, although wholly circum-1 ful duty, but.the law had to be obeyed, ^ .jstantial, was uucontradictory, and suffi-1 and he must, as an officer of the law, ^ Jpierit for the jury to feel justified in * - pronouncing him guilty of the worst ! .fsrime man can commit--murder. There >*'\*'rijpas but one alternative, and that was fiV'^pabape; for nothing which money oould *. 1 JAo to save him had been left undone. But no use ami his only chance was ^ *' • In escape from the jail where he was I when she recovered, it was oiily in the J:H*teonfmed. Money, which failed to sectiro i form of a raving maniac. She was jhis acquittal by the law, was now j taken to an rrmff to bear in another direction, confined. , Ms and to do his duty, etc., serve a warrant of arrest on Frederick charging him with the murder of his father. This was the straw that broke the camel's back. Frances was prostrated with brain fever from the effects of the shock which the news gave her. and course with the people of the plaoe, having assumed the garb of a sailor and visited their haunts by night and day. To-night, as he walked along, en­ deavoring to form some new mode of action, the thought occurred to him that perhaps this old hag could be of service to him. He would try her. He knew her place of abode, and toward it he turned his footsteps. She lived in a cellar or basement which waa reached by a back stairway, which, in turn, had to be approached by passing through a dark alley, narrow and forbidding, in­ habited by those who knew no law ex­ cept that of self-protection. He hesi­ tated as the black gloom and stench confronted him, but, remembering his oath, he passed on, reaching the old woman's hovel in safety. He found her within, and what passed between them it is unnecessary to record. Money to such as she is sufficient inducement to undertake any task, and she was no ex­ ception. Two nights afterward young Burke could have been seen, in company with a detective, wending his way toward the building occupied by this ancient fe­ male. There is a turning point in the life of every man; a time, perhaps, "when the ambition of a lifetime is al>out to be realized. To those who have had this experience the feelings of young Burke can readily be appceciated. On this dark and evil-looking night he an­ ticipated the consummation of his hopes for nearly a whole year. The interview which he had held with the old woman the night previous had resulted satis­ factorily, and, for a sum of money which to her seemed large, she had agreed to help young Burke fasten the guilt on the two roughs. She was to invite them to her house, and get them under the influence of liquor, and then endeavor to get them to confess their crime while young Burke and the detective listqped in an adjoining room. They came as they agreed, and the task of getting them under the influence of liquor began. It was no easy task, as was shown the repeated visits of the old dame to the nearest dram-shop .to Flaying Chess With a Thug. The announcement that a clergyman in the North of Englaud is about to play a game of chess on his lawn with living Eieces supplied from the children of is parish, recalls one of the most amusing of the "Contes Eccentriques" of Adrien Robert. The Thugs, ac­ cording to the French writer, who wished to have it all their own way in India, having made five attempts to stab, poison and blow up the Governor of the East India Company, attributed their want of success to a talisman in the shape of his felt hat, unknown tall then in India. His passion was chess, and it was determined by the chief of the sect to challenge him at the game. The stake was the Governor's hat on the one side and the surrender of the ringleaders of the Thugs on the other. On the plains of Barrackpore a chess­ board 100 yards square was marked out. There were elephants for the cas­ tles, and knights in armor, and living pawns. The Governor's men were supplied at £25 apiece by his rival. The game lasted all day, for all the pieces were killed as they were taken. Just as the Thug queen was in danger, hav­ ing taken the white queen, the im­ perturbable Governor adjourned to lunch, where he staid two hours. His rival was in anguish, for the queen was his own wife. On the return of the Governor the white king advanced to take her, but the magnanimity of the Englishman stepped in, and he took her prisoner. The generosity so de­ moralized his opponent that in a few more moves the game was over, the conspirators handed over to the mercies of John Company, and India saved from perishing.--FaU Mali Gazette. Eu PERKINS and Sojourner Truth met for the first time. El iwas quite overcome, and remarked: "Is it possi­ ble that you have lived to be 100 years old and never met me before? Where could I have boen?" "Wandering in paths where truth is never foond, I reckon!" pointedly returned the centen­ arian.--Yonkers Gazette. TEE operators in mythical mines are always willing to let yon in; but there is quite a differenoe between letting yon in and letting yon irtn. CUBIOUg AMP SCIENTIFIC. * Max* tha goat and the wild oarnfoori ar» onto «nfa«tit§oapable at resisting the tseteefly of Afnca. . As TO the nature and propagation of electricity, M. Ledies holds that they are substantially subject to the same mechanical laws which govern light and heat. The editor of the Journal of Science lWvulo iuiti A jrOUiig liutit of his OC quaintance has been in some danger from the sting of a bee. Altogether the symptoms were such as to excite no lit­ tle alarm. The roof of the mouth swelled, the oesophagus was for a time completely closed, and breathing be­ came exceedingly difficult. ACCORDING to the Medical Times and Gazette the oyster contains 14 per cent, of flesh-forming material, tliis being al­ most precisely the amount obtained from the egg. Lean beef contains but 5 per cent, more of mqsQle-making mat­ ter, and but 2 per cent, more of fat than the oyster. TREES with cut tops, says Magerstein and Bilek, produce a larger quantity of reserve matter than if they vere left alone; the clipping from the roots has a like result. Healthy fruit trees should have the roots cut, but not their tops; but in the case of stone-fruit trees the tops may be pruned with the ad­ vantageous effect of conducing to their general development. HERE is a hint by Dr. G. Boeck which ftay be of industrial value. If potatoes are peeled and treated with 8 parts sulphuric acid and 100 parts of water, and then dried and pressed, a mass is obtained very like celluloid, and which can be used instead Of meerschaum or ivory. It is not stated whether the invention is protected by a patent or not. A FRAUDULENT substitute for glycer­ ine has been introduced into the French markets. The ordinary physical char­ acter of the liquid closely resembles a fine specimen of glycerine; it, however, has a bitter taste, due to an impure sul­ phate of magnesium, and contains glu­ cose. Quantitative analysis showed that the preparation was simply a sat­ urated solution of sulphate of magne­ sium, with 160 grains of glucose to the liter, to disguise the taste of the salt. SOME time in 1863 salt deposits were discovered near Middlesbrough, Eng­ land, at a depth of about 1,200 feet. An attempt to make the salt an indus­ trial success failed at first. Now the efforts to bring it to the surface are very profitable. Wells are sunk down, and in them two tubes are placed, one within the other so that an anuualar space is left between them. Into the circular space water is poured, which dissolves the salt, and the brine thus formed and subsequently pumped out yields abont 160 ton of salt a week when evaporated The Yesemtte Yalfey. The Yosemite V alley, currently spoken of as the "Valley" simply, is in­ cluded in a belt formed by drawing lines across the State from San Fran­ cisco and Monterey respectively. It is a wild, strange nook, far to the east- word among the wintry Sierras. It per­ haps hardly comes within the scope of our inquiry, yet I can not refrein from making mention of it as a place not only not disappointing, but wortny of even more, praise than has ever been bestow­ ed upontit. It is like one of those dim­ ly mysterious spots situated on the out­ skirts of the fairy-land or paradise de­ scribed in ttie story-books. It is a standing diversion and field of adven­ ture to all who come to California, either temporarily or to take up a per­ manent abode. I reached the Yosemite by a stage ride of sixty miles from the Soathern Pacific railroad, at Madera, to Clark's Station, and thence by a stage and horseback journey of twenty- five miles further. The autumn days were lovely there. The foliage, turned by a local climate quite as severe as that of New England, glowed with a vivid richness. A gentle stream, paus­ ing in mirror-like pools, meanders among it, along the bottom of the val­ ley, which is as level as a floor. Walls of rocks rise on either hand to an in­ credible height. The place is rather a chasm than a valley. At night a full yellow moon irradiated it and invested its wonders with heightened enchant­ ment. The cliffs here are what it seems that cliffs should be, but seldom are. They are of the hardest granite, pleas­ antly gray in oolor, and terminate in castle and dome-like forms. The prec­ ipices are sheer and unbroken to the base. They have almost none of those slopes of debris that detract from the height of precipices in general. It is a little valley that would have been suit­ able, without a hair's-breadth of altera­ tion, to the purposes of any giant, en­ chanter, or yellow dwarf of romance. This is the kind of quaint impression to which it gives rise. It i$> such scenery as that which Dore has imagined for the "Idyls of the King," and one should be Sir Lancelot or Sir Gawain riding in on his charger in search of adven­ ture along this lovely and majestic mountain trail. He should wear chain- mail and a winged helmet on his head, and a good sword by his side, upon the cross of which he had sworn to do deeds of redoubtable valor. A Beantiftd Hoase. A man blesses the whole community in building it. No man wants to build an ugly house thereafter, but strives to build a handsomer. Little by little it lifts the people from the low grade of insensibility to beauty, to appreciating it and following it. I think every Christian man who has money should see to it that the town in which he lives is steadily growing more and more beautiful. Never allow a church, for want of your contribution, to be built homely. Never suffer any commission­ ers to build homely town halls or other public buildings. Never consider money wasted whioh the community, county or town pays for providing those large, strong, thoroughly well- built, and beautiful. Long after yon are gone their insensible influence will be felt by generation after generation. --DemoresVs Monthly. A Humorist In a New Role. Josh Billings thinks the charity of this world a conundrum, and he gives it up. One cold, snowy afternoon he saw a thinly-clad man trying to sell a couple of lead-pencils at the foot of an elevated railway station, imploring each passer-by to purchase, as he was starv­ ing. Seven passed without buying; "Josh" was the eighth, and he bought them and passed on to the Fifth Avenue Hotel. Soon, having an errand at the Gilsey House, he thought he would try his luck selling pencils on the way. He took the two he had bought, pulled his coat-collar up and his hat-brim down, and set out in the dark. At Twenty- fourth street he stopped a benevolent- looking pedestrian with: "Please ̂ buy my two pencils for 10 oents apiece; 4 am starving; I have had nothing to eat for twe&ty-four hottlfc" etc. Star man pushed him aside, saving gruffly: "I can buy three for a quarter . doim the street, and went on. Three others be­ ing appealed to, did about the same. At last he slouched into the Gilsey House and tried the dodge on a man at the bar, who tossed him a quarter, say­ ing ; "Take that, old m»n( f don't want any pencils." Then "Josh" revealed himself, and told the story of his ex­ perience as an amateur pencil-seller to the great amusement of the assembled eompany. ' German and Freadk A traveled testhete writes to the Fa Mall Gazette as follows: "Juvenal de­ scribes a carving school in the Oheap- side of ancient Rome--that is, a place where pupils were instructed, by means of wooden models, in the all-important art oi cutting up joints and fowls ele­ gantly. I would venture to suggest that, as without vanity we may call our­ selves the only people in the world who know how to eat, we should set up classes in Berlin, and elsewhere for the initiation if our Continental neighbors in the art of eating. In good German society--that is among barons and baronesses, grafs and grafins, we find the knife popped into the mouth as of old, and a certain unmentionable little instrument freely used at the dinner- table even--horror of horrors! by ador­ able maidens with blue eyes and golden hair!--while from the noise made over the soup, we might suppose that the rhythmic chorus thereby produced formed the chief enjoyment of this part of the meal. Alas! our French neigh­ bors, so endowed with taste in other matters, are not much ahead of the Teuton in this most important accom­ plishment. We are upbraided by both in the neglectrof dinner napkins; but the fact is, English fingers are as clean at the end of a repast as at the begin­ ning. Over the water, what with the taking up of bones in the fingers, mop­ ping up gravy with pieces of bread, and other propensities, things are no better than if knives and forks had never been invented--worse, indeed! Heavens 1 can I ever forget a spectacle recently witnessed, eggs in the shell, boiled soft, demolished by papa, mamma, and chil­ dren with knife and fork. I turned my head the other way; but after the dis­ appearance of the eggs no one seemed the worse. Again--how these terrible things print themselves on my memory! --what were my feelings the other day, at a eharming breakfast party in an ele­ gant country-house, to see a graceful young lady on sitting down to table quietly place before her a box of digest­ ive pills! Two were taken in a spoon, and the pill-box remained on the table till the end of the repast. Now just as French people have taught us how to cook dinners, I propose that English professors should open classes in order to teach how dinners should be eaten. The delicate matter of enjoying and making the most of a partridge or quail, for instance, without once touch­ ing it with the fingers, would occupy at least one entire lesson; to swallow soup SQ as not to be heard, another; and so on, a complete course lasting about'half a year. I am sure the thing would P»y-" * , ; le. 7TJ,pith border of-blue zephyr oat How American Girls Talk, The young American ladies tak& Wb reins in their hands very early in life. At 15 they ease their mam­ mas considerably in that respect, and, singularly enough, with their mammas' consent. The English mammas, at that age, would prefer conversationally sleeping daughters. About this early American talk there is no gabble. These young women ris­ ing 16 speak as deliberately and naturally as Mr. Henry Irving, and without the mocking twinkle of having something in reserve which renders the talk of that eminent actor not unpleas­ antly irritating. English girls at the same age talk, as it were, with their hands behind them, as if too conceal a skipping rope. The Yankee girl looks you straight and serenely in the face-- we never ourselves shirked the ordeal-- and sereels off an easy bobbin of con­ versation. You may act as "piercer" if you please, but generally she does the "piercing" herself; you have sat down to talk to your companion as a child and before the talk is over an interval of three years is supposed to have elapsed and you say good afternoon to a self-possessed woman. Should any one run away with the idea that all this is unnatural or precocious he should be undeceived.. For us it was one of the pleasantest pastimes on the ship, and when the sun was shining and the waves were dancing there could be no more agreeable accompaniment than the unaccustomed chant of the New England dialect, with its note of inter­ rogation at the end.--An Englishman in the Manchester Examiner. How a Judge Checked Perjury. A Danish Colonial Magistrate, for whose exceptional character and ability we can vouch, once made a grimly comic experiment in this direction, and upon this principle: He was appalled by the endless perjuries committed in cases before him, determined to stop them, and did. He, of course, said nothing of his method, but an English friend seated beside him on the bench noticed that whenever a witness told a palpable lie he jumped. He asked the reason, and the magistrate, after a caution, re­ vealed his secret. "My orderly stands behind the witness, and whenever I put my left hand to my ear that indicates tl>at the evidence is false, and he runs a pin into him." It is a well-known fact to the many who will recognize this story that the "sting of conscience" in this material form proved effectual, and that the magistrate, who died honored throughout Denmark, in three years turned an Alsatia into one of the most orderly and law-abiding of communi­ ties. He could always get Ihf .JtCuth.-- London Spectator. Cheap Sentiment. One of those cheap bits of copy-book sentiment is now traveling around in the newspapers to the effect that this world was not made for mourning be­ cause the flowers are not black. On the same theory it is not made for dancing because the ground is not waxed; nor for fishing because the whales don't bite; nor for smoking because people •don't like to stand to windward of a G-center; ijor for burnt cork because minstrel jokes were all originated by .Noah in the ark; nor for sensible men because editors keep clipping such trash.--San Francinco Post. BOSTON may brag of its erudition; but it is stated as a fact that not one of its schoolmasters was born in that city. Now "let the galled jad# York Advertiser. Stm&Mf cutout* center i a crochet each. WALL papers should aot be too dark. They should not lHlte tM imffiBtOtoed a pattern. Tkob** papaae <*» A itoall room are those, which give a quiet ef- feot of colo? and ia which tits, figure does not obtrude itself. A good paper goes a long way toward furnishing a room. PRETTY and simple blankets for babies are made of pink or blue.fancy flannel, with the edges pinked and em­ broidered with daisies, or buttonhole- stitch the edge and put a full frill of soft lace around it. Other warn and lovely blankets are made of Eephyy or Saxony yarn in the sheU-sfciMh/ Ifee i same as the shawls for ladies. SHOPPING BAG.--Use narrow blue and white striped ticking, cut about i eight inches long and ten inches wide. The blue stripes are covered with gilt braid, and the white stripes ornamented with point-russe stitch in colored silks. The bag is then topped with colored satin, red, brown, blue or green, and is gathered with a draw string at the top. A "HANDY" for A gentleman's room, which is intended for brushes, combs, razors, etc., has the foundation of ecru or light-blue kid embroidered in outline with some humorous design, and the straps of contrasting color so arranged as to form special places for the article to be put in it. Perfumery bottles and medicine flasks may $lso be kept in tl^e "handy." ' PRETTY baskets, whioh are nice for serving large fruit at dinner or lunch­ eon, are easily made. Take four pieces of card-board and cover with any ma­ terial preferred, and on each piece work or paint the flower of Che fruit whi6h the basket will contain. Fasten the pieces together by a knotted cord so' ar- ranged as to look like tinv twigs. Over the fruit throw a square of deljoate ma- crame lace. A LOVELY plain blue satin spread has a cluster of pansies appliqued on the center. Cut the required number of leaves out of deep yellow, purple, white, lavender, and pale yellow velvet, and ar­ range them in the form of the flower on the satin and work the edges over and over in shaded silks. Work tlie ste/ms in Kensington and applique a few green leaves; make the border of plush of any of the shades of the posies. WALL POCKET DESIGN.--A pretty de­ sign for a wall-pocket is a pair of bel­ lows. The shape of the bellows should be cut out of thin wood or pasteboard, and covered with cretonne satin, or plush, as may be desired! Three-cor­ nered pieces of silk are fitted in tne sides, and' the nozzle is formed of a graduated roll of pasteboard, covered with gilt paper. The front m^y be dec­ orated in any way that fancy dictates. TABLE COVERS.--A handsome and durable cover is made of a large square of drab Aida canvas, with a plush square in the center. The edge of the plush is scalloped and bound with, silk or satin, or is button-holed, as one's taste may decree. The border is of the cloth, and is to be embroidered in many colors. The predominating color should harmonize with the plush used at the center. The pattern should be chosen with reference to the effect produced by looking at it from a distance, say from >So tils room. If cconosijr is considered, a narrow band of plush above this porder and below it makes it particularly handsome. The edge should be finished with a tassel-like fringe. The crazy patchwork which is attract­ ing so much attention, and which, like the little girl is, when good, very good, and when bad, is horrid, is used a great deal in the construction of table-covers. A scarf made in this way is much ad­ mired ; its center is of dark olive:felt; across the ends bands of plush are put on diagonally, and then the corners above and below this are filled in with the crazy patchwork; the pieces are all small, and of elegant silk, satins, and velvets joined with innumerable fancy stitches in various colored silks; the ends are completed by a fringe of tas­ sel tied in with gilt crescents. Another and more simply elegant square spread is of felt with the corners alone em­ broidered, in crewells. A square felt cover was recently .exhiliited in a fancy store, with a border fifteen inches deep, of the crazy patchwork. This was also finished with fringe.--New York JUpen- ing Post. 1 - Dealing in Fiddles. Charles Reade tells one tale of the romance of fiddle-dealing which j® charming. There was a certain precious violoncello at Madrid. It was a gen­ uine Stradivavius. The local maker, one Ortega, had put in a new belly and sold it, keeping the old belly in his shop. M. Chanot, " the beat judge of violins left, now Tarisio is gone," lighted upon the old belly and bought it. Tarisio then discovered it and pestered Chanot till he sold it for 1.000 francs, and told him where tlie remaind­ er was to be found. • The owner • was persuaded to part with it for 4,000 francs, and Tarisio "started exultant for Paris with the Spanish bass in a case. He never left it out of his sight. The pair were caught bv a storm in the Bay of Biscay. The ship rolled; Tarisio clasped his bass tight, and trembled. It was a terrible gale, and for one Whole day they were in real danger. TaHsio spoke of it to me with a shudder. • I will give you his real words, for they struck me at the time, and I have 'often thought of them since: "Ah, my poor Mr. Reade, the bass' of Spain was all but lost." Was not this a true connois­ seur ? A genuine enthusiast ? Observe! There was also an ephemeral insect called Luigi Tarisio, who would have gone down with the bass, but that made no impression on his mind. De mini­ mis non curat Ludoviews. He got it safe to Paris. A certain high priest in these mysteries, called Vuillailme, with the help of a sacred vessel, called the gluepot, soon rewedded the back and sides to the belly, and the bass, being now just what it was when the ruffian Ortega put his finger in the pie, was sold for 20,000 francs (£800). I saw the Spanish bass in Paris twenty- two years ago, and you can see it at any day this month you like, for it' is the identical violoncello now on /show at Kensington, numbered 188. Who would divine its separate adventures, to see it all reposing so calm and uni­ form in that case ? Post tot naufragia t u t u s . " . . . . , , , : "IT was the finest dinner I ever sat down to--the finest that any man ever sat down to," said a prominent politi­ cian. "What did you have to eat?" asked Tom Murphy. "Why, nothing at all; we just drank and drank and drank." This illustrates one side of Washington life.--Washington letter. issiisifsyi