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•ggp ; inttf^laiiiElealcr I. ¥AS SLTKc, Editvr fen4 PsWUhdi ateggN^Y, ,£ •;»*. ;,-• ILLINOIS. ^ THE IDEAL AND THE REM* -vV. Sunshine of a summer morning; , v 1 r - ' BUnahlne in * lofty ImH. s 'A S'sSIss "Ti t>ic mnrl.lo statues • •" ®,,' tmmufi <n» tua froscocd wflV\ Ci :%i'i IMMlttg where a tmiuUT Ittourss . - ^ BarA to catch tne > imple gr«* ••• - ' ~ AH the tender, wistful beauty Cf a maiden'# nptnrne 1 faeet.V. I f.Bnt a fiifih escapes the painioy: Ts,, ] In his heart's m 1st »e 're! sbb® _; ) Dwells a maiden in her beauty*' \V£ Fairer, purer, more divine. ' • •^ !Midnight darkness barely pie*»*4:\,!Y1/jj ? By 11 taper's glimmering light, , ;., "Where a poet R)«<11y ling rs, _ , ' Writing through the livelong night. J •-1'is a strange romantic story, ; Htory of a time long past, * \ And tho bard thrills with emotion, While the words keep coming fast; . • - •'"Yet lj« reads, when all is «>er.t • 1 With a sorrow n' his heart;^ f-j' "4^:' lOf the song he fain wonli utt|p" / • *& ' This is l>at the moaner part.. ' w. fan may work-- but Kcnso of failn o Dashes all his finished schemes, 'rtr Via »l*n And the glory of hie divamr.: me alone might rest from labor* At the build.ng of the mirth,. Then the utaro >ang songs together In the triumph of their hsrtli; '•no alone 1 night 1 .ok in b'os.-ing Wlier? the lofty niouMlskius stood IWhere the ocean wavei ret reaped. And (ie.-lnrc that 'all v»3 good." Yet tafce courage! for the datiWm - s Sairely brighten* into day. Kffinrnacencis means frr.itlon, t Angjst fallows after Mar : tKAnnL'11>1wn In the infinite -To-Ke," , :i : Waits the unalloyed i>«rfeetie.a, t: r. Waits tli* £iand realitv ; " • : ; And the bnra sr.nii iu;u bin aWtft,- In the wnTvliip of sweet song, ' And the pain tor in tb' benuty . He has loved and sought »o louj. YELLOW Suite When the stage ••went light" they fan oat the buckboard: but when there were more than four passengers the big mud-wagon was 4-put on." This was a buckboard day, for there not a single passenger. What more to the point, as the Gold sing Company regarded it, that under the driver's seat was a box with ten ' thousand dollars in the newest of new tons and twenties in It. '•($> * The driver had looked very blue when he drove his four mustangs from the post-office--where he took on a very fiat leather bag. which spoke loudly of the incapacity or disinclina­ tion of the Thimble Spring people fofr lott^r-writing--over to the railroad station, where he was to take on the box. Tilings were going all wrong at home. That was why his brown face !oa!:?d so haggard; that was why he j driver like he . conscience qt* , it would Besides thnt only iMnfc ten; tSw- sand! % hat would the people down in Mexico or Guatemala, where he would fly, know or care if somebody up in far-off Nevada had dumped a -box off his backboard and gone back and got It after a few days--maylvj a week'? It would have to be a dark .'•night, wouldn't it? Von couldn't ,ro iand get a box like that In the day­ time and take it, anywhere, for the wbolfc country would be out looking for the man who had it. Maybe a month. That would lie better. It would all blow over by that time. pLet's see, would it? Ten thousand J^was a good deal. Those st.ure-stop­ pers were always striking the box on jthe wrong day. They never got so |much as that at one haul. In two ^months, then--perhaps two. months, ilut it would have to be w^ll-hidtlen. i And the thought stuck to him, de­ spite all nttempts to keep it off, -t hough by the time he had driven the ^mustangs into T??«J Canyon, h!s m;lig* nation at havisig been suspected, by the company had died dotrn. The "box at his feet had taken on a new meaning for him. It meant smart gowns for the wife. It meant a go;Kl schooling for the children. Those five little ones had had a hard "rustle" of it to get what few scraps or learn­ ing they had thus far managed to iclutch; and, as for clothes, they were dressed .ike juvenile scarecrows. Yes, .all the hard scratching would be lover if he dared to do what many •another hard-pusfied man had done. Hxesolving the whole ̂ matter down to ;a plain, deal-cut proposition, it was, after all, simply a question of "nerve." Here was the placfr.to do it.; fijght here, where the high, scraggly rocks, with the patches of sage-brush atop, came so near to the buckboard. It could be thrown over there--any­ where--jnto't-he sage-brush. It would be as well-conceafctl as though buried in six feet of earth. The buckboard had reached the top of a long down­ grade. Zach put on the brake and twisted the reins about the brake- handle. As if about to take a plunge into ice-cold water, he reached down for the box. Jiut wait a. bit. He took off his big sombrero and hung it on a projecting rock. Then tlshing out his six-shooter, he sent a bullet through the brim of the hat, which he then replaced on his head. Though it had been hot enough" when he started out from Thimble Spring, there seemed to be a chill in the air 1 just now. Would they believe the 'story that he would have to concoct, so loosely to the "lines": that. _ , . . , _ . , why he chewed so hard on the cven thoagh he showed them the hole g bit of "plug" in his mouth. "Such hard scratch in' I never seed afore/' was what he had said as he &ad listlessly thrown the mail-bag into the wagon; "can't , git no decent Job nowadays Nothin" ter be hed by pruspeetin'--tried thet time an' agin; ef I git anything it peters out j inside of a week. I might make a j strike over ter Sand Gulch, but it's a In the hat-brim? What would he care whether they did or not? They already suspected him. If he had the name, he might as well have the game., He looked at a spot where the sage-brush clustered thickest; and made a mental throw or tw;o in a tentative way, in order to "get the I distance." Then he laid two nervous hands on derned long way off, an" me *n' Sue box. He gave a little tug. Lord, aa* the kids hez moved so often 'at ^ow ^eav5" it was! Could it be tossed we can't raise nothin' ter move on ;<>ver there, after ail? It might have irow. Why in Sam Hill did Sue< hev I ,je carried. He lifted it upon the ter git that riieuaiatiz jesnow, when ! sp.at- . "Via Thimble -Spring Stage lW?s so hard up, an' afore she weaned ! Line." What was the sense in put- the baby? It's a damned shame, j ting on such a direction as that? It Why can't Bill git somethin' ter dor. was on,y wa>r ^ could go. The --great, big, lunk-headed cuss. Ef I iODiv wa>- And that wa-v was now 1 closed, for he was about to s a brother, poorer'n a crow, d'ye think I'd go an' live on him, an' live on him, till thar warn't nuthin' ter eat in the house? Sho, Zach Springer, you're a blamed fool. Bill hain't done that. He ain't ter blame fer gittin' his leg broke that time. Bill's all right, but he's onlucky. Been tryi n' fur a month ter git a job, an' can't git in nowhere. He's willin' ter work. He'd stan' crotch-deep in the creek all day long washin' out teilin's, ef he could make his salt at it. Tried it fer six weeks an' didn't git enough to buy a pair o' gum-boots. Whoa* Buckskin! Damn that one- 6Jred crow-bait! he'd jam right inter the station platform cf yer didn't saw his teeth eout." And then the box was taken on, the express-agent had something "God, kain't they trust- you--you. Zach Springer. Kan't they trust Old Zach?" he burst out, hoarsely. "Yes, but why don't- they do as any other decent minin' comp'ny does--turn their stuff into the bank at Frisco, arter it'g minted? What in hell do they want on it up thar?" Well, after all, that was their busi­ ness. But he couldn't be trusted. What would Bill say? Bill was an honest man. He would blush with shame every time his brother's name was mentioned after that -- for, of course, he would know. Sue would I never suspect. Any kind of a story J would bamboozle h$r. Bill was I smart. He could put two and two to- i gether as quickly as any man in the o ! country. And yet Bill hitpself was a to say. That "something" was not jlittle rec^less sometimes. He had to Zach Springer's liking. He chewed ! i3een acting very queer of late, and harder than ever on the bit of plug, i l)e®n over to Johnson's a good »ad sawed the hard mouths of the :dea!' drinking and playing cards with mustangsby an unnecessary yankingof jthe toys. That would not do. Bill the reins. It was a positive rielief to ' must he looked after. He was face and u very' In his hand, had stiffiie^lfiling, and right! j the muzzle loofeeAr't^iiir TOTO Zach's j big, iuuiid eyes. Tne brake scraped the wheels and made the sparks iiy. The mustangs came to a sudden staiffi. There was n6 getting by that Winchester. "I reckon you've got ther drop oh me, stranger, " t^ie driver coolly made remark. "Stick up mv hands® In course*I <f!!! ff «•"" insist' on it; but•> | tell yer these 'ore mustangs. mighty skittish, an' its on tftar daown-grade. So yer needn't shoot cf they start tip, fur it'll be yer own fault. I s'pose yer arter this ere box. Throw it out? It's too blamed heavy fer that, , Yc'll hev ;ter gixo : us a lift." : >y The man with the gun bad said nothing; but the subtleof the holding-up process were not so line but that. Zach understood every wave of the stranger's hand and every shrug of his shoulders, when the waves and shrugs meant anything. Zach ha:l been he!d-up before. He df the calico mask did not step forward tit once. In this suggestion that he should as­ sist in taking off the box lie seemea to suspect some trick. But one of Zach's hands was held aloft and the other, with the four reins in it, was? on the level of his shoulder. The man edged up to the buckboard, ex­ changing the weapon which he prc- presentcd at Zach's head for a six- shot revolver. V • Thanks, stranger,"said Zach,With forced merriment. "I never like to hev one o' them air long-barreled things p'inted at me. They shoot too d urn straight. "Sow, here ye are." " • With his foot he shoved the box along until it was near the edge of the wagon. 6 "Thar it is, help yourself; butye'il find it a blamed heavy load ter pack, ef yer goin' lar--over forty pounds." The robber's fingers grasped the box nervousiv. "A green un at the biz," thought Zach: "mebbe thar'il he an openin' here yit." v The robber pulled and hauled at the box, but it would not budge, for it was caught on a nail-head in the bottom of the wagon. In his feverish anxiety to secure the gold, he lowered the revolver a little and grasped thf box with both hands. Swiftly Zach's right hand fell to his hip and out he whipped his bright-barrelled pistol ..-"Got the dead drop, stranger ! It's no go!" he shouted. "Put that weepin daown, you fool!" for the man was raising his pistol. "Ybu won't? Then take that." A flash, a report, and back fell the robber without a moan. His fingers clawed the dust fof a moment, as if be were grasping for a hold on life. But the hold was not to be had, and gave it up, and lay there quietly in the dust. The driver shoved his pistol into its holster, and wiped the sweat from his brow. It had been a close shave for the box and a closer shave for hkn. "Takes a purty keen.un ter git erwav with Ol' Zach, arter all," he chuckled, springing lightly from the buckboard, while a broad smile lit up his brown face. "This'ere means a big raise from ther stage comp'ny an' a hundred er two from the Gold Butte folks. I Guess they'll think the ol' man's 'bout right arter this. Hooray for hooray! my stock's riz! It's way up ter a hundred an'fafty. Whoop-e-e! Haw-haw-haw!" He stooped down over the dead man and lifted the bit of cloth from his face. ' "Almighty God! It's Bill ^Ar­ gonaut. be able at last to whack his lash down upon the sides of the nervous brutes and turn them loose for the forty-mile run to Gold Butte. Why had he needed a" lecture from a hireling of the express company, and why should that smooth-jowled agent have looked at him with such dark sus­ picion? "They think 'cos I got stood Up down ter Black Eoeks las' time I had a big load o' gold, thet I need to be preached to every time I go out now with a full box. Damned stoop-sboul- dered, desk-settin' hounds! I'd like ter see someone on 'em handlin' the ribbons when thar's a Winchester lookin' at 'em with an eye as big as a bar'l-head. Can't tell me they wouldn't give in! The sweet-scented, calf-skin booted young ladies! Thar ain't a man among em!" v Zach Springer's indignation was now in ibore complete possession of •Wm than had been his feelings of "blueness a little earlier. What he only a young fellow -- a mere boy, even if he had been trying to raise a mustache lately. Yes, Biil was a good deal younger than he. Why, he remembered well the day he was born, when tuey took him in to show him his new baby brother. He used to carry Bill all around, and he was the first one to stand him on his legs and try to make jiim walk. He remembered how it used to hurt his own head when Bill got a knock by falling out of his high-chair. Bill was just as much to him now as ever, and those knocks which fate and the weakness of his nature were giving him now hurt him just as badly---worse, perhaps, than they did Brother Bill. What would Bill say? He laid his hands upon the box again. It would be safe enough be­ hind the rocks there under the sage­ brush--as safe as if "Git up thar, damn ye Git, Buck­ skin! Git, old Gab?! Ye lazy crit- had delivered himself of just now was I ters. G'lang!" And down came the not what he wou.d have said had he long lash upon the dust-covered backs •diced his true sentiments with refer-! the mustangs, and - off down the «nce to the express-agent's lecture. I lonff grade they ran, making the dust . . , L , In between the words ran the thought 1 fly in the canon as it never flew be- j seaweed, grass and leaves builds a . . . ... .. • . ... ® ..... . . naut /»I'Ql 1 n unot\a tarhtnn #/\«» V.nn The Celebrated "tfsf Ant," One of the oldest little creatures in all animal nature is the "leaf ant" of Central America. Although different species of this oddity are known to in­ habit the American continent from Brazil to Mexico, the real home of the true leaf ant is in Nicaragua: To all outward appearances this ii'ttle insect is a common ant, but one of gigantic size, it must be admitted when com­ pared with the ants of our temperate regions, being on an average over an an inch in length. The habit for which these ants are so cele­ brated, and one which we could hardly believe were it notBfor the tes­ timony of reputable naturalists, is that of carrying a leaf for a sunshade, jusf, as our women and men carry parasols and umbrellas for the same purpose. When at work the leaf carrying ants look like a little array in which each individual member is protected from the sun's rays by a little banner of green. Another , remarkable fact in connection witfi the leaf carrier is that only those at work carry the little leafy protection. When a long file of burden bearers have deposited their, budgets they dis-card their parasols and return for a load with­ out the leaf which made them such conspicuous objects when on the "up trip." _ A,l*iMmtoriai Wender. The flsh known to naturalists as the ophiocephalus, a species of which is found in the Sea of Gallilee, is one of the oddest creatures that ever swam in the waters of either orient­ al or occidental countries. At the approach of the breeding season this finny oddity seeks a favorable place, such as an old root or rock projecting under the water, and out of bits of TTHiTnT 15' lU^UJS »V!Q Hi y IfOSK. ".5 that "they" had suspected him of {fore. For Zach had grasped the reins having a hand in the Black Iloeks robbery. It bad come to him before In what he called a "leftrhanded" way, and he had had othef outbursts of righteous indignation, but none in Wjrich the upheaval was so great as tbat of the present. Had that been the reason the stage company had cut down his pay to "sixty^,a monthv The chances were that'll was. It wias too blamed mean for a lot of swine, like these people, to come it so high-handedly over a poor man who only wanted his own. Wouldn't It serve them just right, if-- The white dust of the desert rolled «p from the mustangs' hoofs in tittle puffs, and sprays of it, powdery fine, followed the turn of the wheels half- , way up, there to be caught by the :Xr; lireeze and drifted behind in a long oud that followed the buckboard ke a haunting spirit. Sometimes ,s the light breeze shifted it came i upon the buckboard and its in a grip of iron, and both his big cowhide boots were planted firmly on the box. "This "ere is What I call gtftn' heliy-ty split!" he said, ten minutes later, as they were still flying d6wn the grade. "But I lost time with a blamed-fool notion that I orter a ben licked for ev<ft- thmkift' on a minit. Wal, the mustangs got a good rest. Makm' up fer it now, though. They'll soon be in a lather. I'll gio to the half-way house in quarter of an hour, and then I'li take a good horn. I feel kinder narvous yit. Thet 'ere box is a durned heavy load on a man's mind. I s'pose the sup'rin- tendent up to Gold Butte is worryin' about it. too. Never mind, ole feller, you'll see that stuff stowed away in yer safe afore sundown. "What's this? A hold-up, sure as sbootin"." Out from behind a tall rock, a man, with a piece of dark calico over his THS STyKV OFTriS BUCCSSS OF THI karm department. « nest oval in shape, which for beauty of design and elegance of workman­ ship excels the efforts of the majority of feathered nest builders. rough a funnel like opening in the top of this oddly constructed little domicile the mother fish deposits her eggs, and | v^hen the proper space of time has elapsed, the nest is full to overflow- j ing with little baby nest builders. One of the most curious traits oif ophiocephalus is her mode of protect- ! ing her young. When threatened with danger the little ones are taken into the capacious mouth of the par­ ent flsh and thus shielded from im­ pending calamity. There are several varieties of flsh which GO this very same thing. A species of catfish, called "laulau," takes its young into its mouth upon the very slightest alarm. No wokdcr highwaymen are so numerous in this country, when every schoolboy on declamation day Is taught to "stand and deliver." Who Was CqiuMl by the Otsdly ̂ arKltel--Why Afrtoaltttml • Not T»xe«t--The Hi»- doa'a Commercial Progress • BretiUw ' Worth Btsdi^g. VPbftt Has StaeiiiDona for American >lWH '• ' i 'w*'lu Co an tries. When the present ad ministratum came into power jthere wu no class of people in the country whose prospect looked less bright than the farmers; so much so, that agricultural depression had be- cove a familiar term among speakers ana writers of all classes and of all par­ ties. It was clear that much depended upon the new head of the Department ot Agriculture, whoever he might be. To fill this important post, to repre- sent the agricultural interests in the cabinet of the President of the United States, and to direct the machinery of the department devoted especially to the advancement of the farmers' inter- ProoTHonfr Worriaon aploptixj o rtifln whose entire life had been bo spent as to assure ta him an experience which could not but be valuable in such a situ­ ation. Brought up on a larm, owning and tilling a farm throughout his entire life, and consequently thor­ oughly familiar with the wants and dif­ ficulties, and the views of the farmers themselves, he was withal a man hav­ ing business qualifications, wonderful energy and administrative abilities, of which he has furnished a iiipic evidence is several important onhhc positions, as a member of the state legislature, aB a congressman, as comipander of a regi­ ment in the field, and as governor of a great state. To review in detail the work accom­ plished under an administration so auspiciously begun, down to the present date, would require many chapters. For the present we will select but one feature of the vast work accomplished undersecretary Rusk's administration, namely the breaking down of the arti­ ficial Barriers erected against American meat products in foreign countries. In Germany, France, Austria-Hun­ gary, Italy, and other European coun­ tries, the importation of American hog products had been absolutely prohibited in 1581, and a very hw figuiss y.ill she?; the damage inflicted on American agri­ culture by these harsh and unnecessary laws. By reliable authorities it was es­ timated that the requirement of imme­ diate slaughter by Great Britain depre­ ciated the price of American cattle in that market irom $10 to $15 per head as compared with Canadian bullocks ad- mitte d without restriction. i.-v*enstthe lower figure this meant, at the rate of exportation prevailing during the oast lew years, a direct loss of about $4,000,- ,000 per annum, and for the period dur­ ing which the prohibition has been en­ forced, over $20,000,000; but the indi­ rect losses were necessarily far greater, lor this depression affected the price of every Bteer marketed in the United States, a loss estimated by the best in­ formed cattle dealers m aggregating in the neighborhood of $25,000,000 yearly, while as to sheep and hogs, the restric­ tion practically effected a prohibition of the export trade. Such a situation of affairs very promptly attracted the attention of Sec­ retary Rusk and he at once resolved upon the measures necessary to meet, to abate if not to remove, these obsta­ cles to our trade. To assure ourselves of the absolute healthfulness of all cattle shipped abroad, a system of inspection and identification was undertaken and suc­ cessfully established, in spite of the declarations from many sources that such a vast undertaking could not pos­ sibly be carried out successfully. Under this system about 400,000 individual an­ imals have been annually inspected, and each one numbered and tagged for identification, inspected again on ar­ rival at tho foreign port, and we need hardty say, the British officials ren­ dered' so conservative in their diagnosis of American imported animals that, for more than a year past, only three com­ plaints of this kind have reached us, which have been conclusively proven unfounded. . The energetic measures ̂ adopted by the administration in this regard, has led the antagonists of our live cattle trade abroad to seek other grounds upon which to oppose it. Humanitarians were invoked, and quite successfully, to oppose this trade on the ground of the sufferings entailed upon the cattle trans­ ported, cases not being difficult to find, where, on vessels unprovided with the necessary facilities for the proper care and feeding of the animals, considera­ ble suffering has been entailed. As soon as it was found that this move­ ment was assuming proportions liable to interfere with our trade, and obtaining recognition and consideration in the Brit­ ish Parliament, a short bill was drafted in the Department of Agriculture, and presented by the Secretary.to Congress, where it was soon passed, empowering him to direct and control the interior fittings of all cattle-carrying vessels en­ gaged in foreign trade, and making the certificate of an officer of the depart­ ment, as to due compliance with the in­ structions of the Secretary in these par­ ticulars, essential to the clearing of the vessel by the custom-house authorities. The movement undertaken on humani­ tarian grounds was thus immediately checkmated, humanitarians themselves being promptly satisfied by the meas­ ures adopted by the secretary of agri­ culture for the protection of animals in transit. ' Another effort was made towards the same end, grounded on the alleged ex­ istence among animals exported from this country, of Texas fever and the danger of conveying the same to cattle in Great Britain, while, for reasons ob­ vious to every well-informed veterina­ rian who has studied this disease, such ianger was purely imaginary. The Secretary concluded that action would be more efficient than argument, and immediately adopted such measures in reference to the transportation of cat tie in this country from south of the fever line, as not only greatly mitigated the possibility of any infected animals being exported, but effectually cleared our own stock yards from danger of in- feetion, so that feeders could buveattle for removal to their farms without dan­ ger of conveying disease. This meas­ ure had, moreover, the effect of reduc ing the cost of insurance on export ani­ mals by something like $5 a head. * The fight the prohibitions on the hog trade established by the governments of continental Europe, was an even more difficult matter. American diplo­ macy had for years fruitlessly exhausted its best effort to secure their removal. These countries, imposing upon their own producers the burden of an in­ spection for trichina;, maintained an apparent justification for excluding all products not subjected to a similiar in­ spection, notwithstanding the fact that leading scientists throughout Europe concurred in the opinion that, from the method of curing and salting American hog products in use m this country, no danger from trichina} was to be appre hende i from the use of American pork I n this case, agai nargument having bee n found unavailing, the Secretary deter­ mined upon action. Thorough inspec Con of all hog products intended for ox port was decided upon, including the microscopic, and this, in spite of a loud outcry against the possibility of enforc­ ing any such inspection without an in­ terference with tne trade so great as to render the proposed remedy more hurt­ ful than the evil. Without asking an ad U: pe sary-« in Ins „ for ths Amtnai the Secretary proposed a' svsfem of inspection which was snail* the efejting days of the the Fifty-first Congress, and immsdl- ateljr mpeMded to put it In force to an extsntlimftstf bjr the want of necessary funds for its general application, but amplv-sufficientto prov.^ it* feasibility. In this the department 1ms been very successful, ana it has been found and admitted by ail parties interested, that Buef? 5r>Bpectiof> "««? h? effecltmHy car­ ried on wiUioat interfering in any de­ gree with the rights and businem of the packers, and without causing any delay m their work. Armed with tne new weapon thus provided, the Department of State renewed the struggle on behalf of American producers, and this time successfully, as everybody* knows. It is gratifying to be able to point to resolutions adopted on many occasions at important representative gatherings of representative farmers, all concur­ ring in commendation of the work done for the farmer under the present ad­ ministration, work which, while mninlv inspired and carried on by the secretary of Agriculture himself, has met at all times with the heartiest co-operation on the part of the President of the United States, the secretary of state, and his other colleagues in the cabinet. Why Agricultural Implements Are Not Taxed.- When the free trade "reformer" tells theriTarmer's wife that her calico dress is taxed 5 cents a yard she can effective­ ly squelch hkn by producing the bill from the vtiiage merchant ana pointing out the fact that its entire cost was only cents a yard. But when the same "reformer" buttonholes the farmer himself and tells him that his plows and cultivators are taxed 45 per cent, the demonstration of the dishonesty of his statement is not so easily effected, though the tax here is as purely imag­ inary as in the former case. When the }>rice of the calico is lower than the al-eged tax we see at once the absurdity of the tax theory. But this never oc­ curs except where the duty is specific.^ No matter how low the price falls, an0 ad valorem duty of any rate below 100^! per cent, must necessarily be less thanL1 the price. So the farmer is debarred: from using his wife's formula on the , free trader. But he has at hand anoth- • er equally effective argument. He can show that nnloHg the tariff stands between him and cheaper imple­ ments whieb he might buy from foreign countries if it were abolished, then it cannot tax him. The tariff "reformer" will have to admit that. Then he can appeal to fact and prove that there is not on earth a country where farmers buy so serviceable and cheap farm ma­ chinery as that bought by American farmers. If the tariff' were abolished to-morrow not a piece of foreign agri­ cultural machinery could find sale in this country. In the words of Consul Dunlap, who describes a great exhibi­ tion of the cream of foreign implements held in Breslau, Germany, "no Ameri­ can farmer would take a single one of tne plows on exhibition as & gift; he would be ashamed to be seen in i ts com­ pany." He comments further as fol­ lows: * I have not a table of prices oi American machinery and, tools from which i can make comparisons, but I desire to say this, that the agricultural machinery on exhibi­ tion at this exposition, if a fair sample-- and I have every reason to beiieve ii is-- would, with the exception of the steam en­ gines (none of which are relf-propefling) meet with nothinti but expressions of dis­ gust from American farmers. It is not equal in finish to the machinery in com­ mon use in the U nited States thirty years ago. It is heavy, coarse, rouuh and wholly unsuited to work in any but a sandy 01; gravelly soil. The prices given are, there­ fore, with the exceptions of the American- made machines on exhibition, not to be compared with American h^;Ii finished, light and easy-working machines and im­ plements, but with what might be called second or third-class machines made by some amateur workmen in a backwoods country shop thirty or forty years auo. Is it reasonable «that American farm­ ers are waiting for the abolition of the tariff to rush out after these crude im­ plements? If not, then the tax theory must fail here, as in the case of the calico dress, and the free trader is again covered with confusion.--New York Press. The Nation's Commercial Progress. Opponents of an American protective policy may well desire to suppress the publication of official reports. Is it al­ together an accident that, in the first full year after the new protective tariff and its reciprocity clause went into force, the merchandise exports from the United States and the merchandise im­ ports into the United StateB were both, much the largest in value ever known in any calendar year? Is it altogether an accident that the merchandise ex­ ports m the last month of.that year were tne largest ever known in any month, as the exports for November and for October had been in their turn? Is it entirely an accident that the in­ crease in exports during the last ten years has been small in breadstuff's, pro­ visions and oil, only about 25 per cent, in cottop, but 58 per cent, in other arti­ cles which are largely products of man­ ufacture ? The official report for December and for the year 1891 is one of peculiar .in­ terest lor all Americans who take pride in,the progress of their country. There is, first, the surprising fact that fhat the value of exports in December was near­ ly 22 per cent, larger than in the same month of 1890, when the amount was greater than it had been in any month excepting October and November of 1891. With $119,932,^32 exports, and only $69,444,055 imports, the excess of exports was $50,487,877, which is also unprecedented. In the last six months of 1892 the excess of exports over im­ ports was $155,455,207, and the aggre­ gate value of exports was $551,121,831, which has never been approached in anv previous naif-year. Next there is the fact that, in spite of e depression of trade in breadstuff's during tho first half of 1891 because of the partial failure of crops in 1890, the value of exports was greater in the full vear than in any previous year, exceed­ ing by almost $81,000,000 the aggregate in 1880, which prior to this year had never been equaled. The exports in 1891,1890 and 1881 are thus compared in the official state­ ment: 188t 1890. 1891. Animals and products...S152,875,813 $177,322,045 *169,909.221 Breadslutts... 22A407.648 141,602.847 231,492,890 Cotton *22,136,837 254,275.863 276.658,029 Mineral oils 48,556,103 62.270,653 46,187,159 All other art­ icles 161.6K/.050 220.527.896 856,808,983 •814.162,951 $845,999,603 $970,506,2M From this statement it appears that the great increase in ten years, $94,621.- 933, or 58.7 per cent, has beenin "all other articles," of which the principal imports in eleven months of 1891 were about $28,000,000 iron manufactures, $23,000,000 tobacco and manufactures thereof, $23,000,000 wood and manu­ factures thereof, $15,(500,000 copper ore, ingots and manufactures, $13,000,000 cot­ ton manufactures, $13,000,000 leather and manufactures thereof, $'1,000,000 fruits and flsh, mainly canned or pre­ served, $8,000,000 coal, $8,000,000 naval stores, $7,000,000 oilcake, $7,000,000 cot­ ton-seed oil and paraffine, $6,000,000 chemicals and glucose, • $6,000,000 car­ riages, cars and instruments, and $5,000,000 sugars. Into such items go, not only the labor and enterprise of Americans who produce the raw mate­ rial from the earth, but the labor and enterprise of other Americana who •B Mr. •sfcotshoi'. tils p*s#« has )mm busily > »or some lime in quoting th« •tatenants of ex-Consul X Bchomhof, Ta&staii, Eng., in regard w iiio heat? tax the working people of tbs ted,Slates ars compelled b> pay for their dothi&g tn tonssQtisp*^ of tho tariff duties, Mr. Sehwtihel is a taritf "informer" after th« Mr. Ulovela&d, He want* Hohonn oln&iiM for ths mitUona.?' as be puts it and has frequently mea to makejh* people be- heve that they fears snifertiig of the robber tafill. He furn\sbss the Democratic press a lot of trick-mule statistics in the effort to show that pro­ tection is not necessary to elevate labor or cheapen articles of clothing. There was a time, only a short time ago, whem Mr. Schoenbof wan in tho service of the United States aa < He was requested to report to the State Department concerning the wages and cost of living of ifingfish workmen at Tunstall. He gave his views on the subject, and what these were wl»«n he was consul, and what his views were when he became a Democratic "ratfxvn>. er," are printed side by side, and will prove interesting reading: tetter of " Ktformer * ' Schmnhof to the Hew BATMENT OF - S< Oinmt Sekem. bnf to the DefmrtnmU York Timet. of State. To concentrate our So far as clothing and efforts on one great dry goods in general line, which embrace:; uro confined r «t„s everything of prime im-iths t cotton goods are portance in the tariff^ fully as cheap in the issue, like wool Rtulii?uUe<i States as here, woolens, accomplishesiKhirtlng* and sheet- all that can be expect-,Iiiks. if anything, are e<i without engaging us superior in quality for in the risks oi'an oppo-the same money with site policy. If such a n* so far as i can judge ueHBure iic uc^nicu J kum lun hi the Semite or vetoed byjposed for sale in tha the President, upou retail stores. Articles than iho raonnr<. un jorsaa? fo* mnm . sibllity. If it 'becomes en, made of muslin, a law, thenl the Demo-are far superior in cratic party will have workmanship mid iin- all the credit due it ish and chfaprr in price from having secured to in the United States. . . the millions cheap; . Nor can i find that woolen clothing and to me n '«Ni hirts, when the manufacturers and chiefly of co'.ton, are their work-people the any chenper here. Of great boon of free wool boots ami shoes, if fac- upon which to exercise tory made, the same t h e i r e f f o r t s a n d g r e a t m a j b e s a i d . . . . I n productive power. • • v ; . " ' i • Workmanship and fin­ ish I find corresponding articles of the wholesale process of manufacture superior in the United States. This is true of clothing as well as of collars, cufft, and like articles. 8o here is the difference between the opinions of one man when he reports facts as an official of his government, and when he appears in the role of a politician. On which does Mr. Schoen- hof wish to rest his reputation? Row Pretefltlon Protects. Not many comprehend what it means when they see that the country is turn­ ing out 188,000 tons of pig-iron every week.**' It means that this great industry has been so thoroughly established by protection that it is now able to supply more than ten times the quantity of iron produced in 1860, the last year of a rev­ enue tariff, and at prices averaging over $5 lesB per ton. The best known brands ot No. 1 anthracite now sell at $17.50 m the same market where iron by no means as good averaged $22.75 in 1860, and had never sola for less than $20 even in a period of ex­ traordinary depression. Only once, and for a month or two, has iron ever been cheaper than it is now, if indeed the improvement in quality and grading does not warrant the statement that it was never cheaper. But in 1878, when the average for one month was $16.50, the production was only 2,577,361 net tons, whereas for the last seven months it has been at the rate of 11,000,000 net tons in a year, and in 1890 the produc­ tion was 10,307,028 net tons. What a marvelous increase in only twelve years ! Yet the circumstances differ even more than the figures; in 1878 the industry was prostrated, and even the furnaces in operation were scarcely able to make ends meet; but now furnaces are thriv­ ing so far that new works are being hastened to completion or have recent­ ly gone into operation, although 11,000,- (iOO tons of iron are going to consumers at prices scarcely above those of 1878. This would have been utterly impos­ sible had not the manufacture of iron and steel in forms for use been rigor­ ously protected. The industry has grown, not because especial advantages have been given to makers of pig iron, but because a home demand has been steadily developed for all the iron they have been able to produce. Now ana then, for short periods, as within the last year, it has seemed questionable whether production had not outrun the demand. But the consumption in 1878 was not more than 2,500,000 gross tons, foreign and domestic iron included, while in 1890 it was about 9,000,000 groBS tons, and during the last half of 1891 has been at an even greater rate. Some features of the new tariff con­ tribute powerfully to this increase of the domestic demand. Owing to defects in the former tariff the country used to get most of-itscotton-ties from Europe; now substantially the whole supply is made here. Imports of wire rods, steel ingots, and cutlery have been greatly reduced, and all those changes involved the use of many thousand tons of American iron, besides employing the additional hands required in new manufacturing works. The tin-plate duty aloner if sustained until it works out its legitimate results, will add more than 300,000 tons to the consumption of American iron, besides employing many _ thousand hands in working up the iron into tin plates. As if they instinctively hated most of those duties which promised most ben­ efit to American labor and home incus- try, the Democrats have been constant­ ly threatening to repeal the new duty on tin plates. But they will find it rec- essary to elect a President first.--New York Tribune. ^ Brevities Worth Beading. There are in the United States 12,000,- 000 families, and of these 10,025,000 are living in houses or on farms that are not encumbered by any mortgage obliga­ tions.--Burlington Free Press. Elegant extracts from the Democratic anthology: "Oh, go home and soak your head."--Roger Q. Mills. "The nogs hadn't the decency to stop eating when 1 got up to speak."--David B. Hill. "Rats! Rats!"--Rosweii P. Flower. Next.--New York Tribune. Our disgusted contemporary, the Evening Post, savs: "Mr. Hill isattempt- ing to steal the presidential nomination, and with it the character of his party." This is a new feature in the evolution of crime. We have heard of men who would not hesitate to steal a red-hot stove, but the attempt to steal stinking fish is a new revelation of total depravi- ty.--New York Tribune. Estimating five persons in each fami­ ly, census bureau calculations demon­ strate that the federal debt of the Unit­ ed States amounts to $78.15 per family. On a similar basis of calculation the debt ot Great Britain is $337.60 per family; of Austro-Hungary,$354.20, and of France, $581.75. Germany has no statistics from which to figure out accu­ rately her debt per family, but the in­ debtedness is estimated at $400. It is one of the notable features of the financial stability of this nation that the national debt per family is so low, and it is the subject of comment that while the ratio of national debt to families hai fcjfts Pt fit* 3 Sent fey1 into i ©reJg^ j^euntrje*. . i Horrors of ssoidiw^#e In the rore0*i 1 legions of France are described by a | German officer who once served in the - midst of them. He arrived at Oran, where the foreign letfioag. 20,Q00 •$ strong, are stationed, after a stormy ^ voyage of three days, and was at once % «!•;. ft! breaking stone. Itls comrades , at the work were counts, doctors, J barons, lawyers, ijtrid all sortsof | educated men of every European ha. I tloriallty, for the foreign legions are a ? refuge to which any sound man be- tween 15 and 45 years is welcomed* t whatever his blood, record or char- % aeter. A!) the soldiers work like day- | lalMjrers with picks and shovels, and I If one of them tries to rest for a mo- s ment during working hours he is r spurred on by a kick or a blow from f a non-commissioned officer iq com- | mand. This kind of abuse is so fre- | quent and so recklessly applied that | nhnrtl v t.ho oftlCCr'S 2?- 1 rival a young Austrian had knocked j out bis own teeth In order that he might be discharged and thus escape 3 it. The smallest offenses are pun- § Ished by arrest and confinement. ?• Thirty of thirty-five men are thrust > into a room not large enough for ten, and therefore so crowded that at I night each has to sleep sitting, with j his knees under his chin. During the | day the prisoners are exercised in run- I j'-iiiiplrig and the mo«t difficult | military movements for six hours | without cessation. Few men are to endure the fatigue. Dozens faint ? from exhaustion in the third or fourth $ hour and are carried from the parade v grourd. The terror of all legionaries | is confinement in the sylos, a hole in the ground, with a narrow entrance , '! and a broad lx>ttom. The depth of 'i the hole is twelve feet, and the pris- f oner is let down on a string. The heat in the sylos, unshaded from the ? African. sun, is so terrible that but a f few days of imprisionment suffice to I transform a healthy man into a white- f faced emaciated and nerveless in valid. Pretty Things. Gob-webbing is used like ft. ribtxm to tie up the hair. * Leather jewelry boxes are luxuri- s ously -mounted with perforated silver ^ ornaments. j A sprjiy of boliy with coral berries is one of the new-contributions~to i season. t s A silver box for playing cards is ; appropriately decorated, by five cards : and the inscription below, "A good | hand." i Manicure files, button-hooks, and | paper knives and silver handles, the f surface of which are cross-thatched. if Square ivory handles, with incised 5 lines for ornaments, are attached to % the tea and coffee pots in some of the new silver services. A i Bread and cake dishes of silver ate ^ on low plain stands, oblong in shape, w slightly hollowed In the center, with | flaring ends and a broken edge of | ornament. | Lorgnon sticks of perforated silver | masquerade in the shape of paper knives, and opera-glass holders take the forms of the caduceus, Mercury's emblem. . | A shrimp salad bowl is shaped like % an old and slightly-battered tin pan J with wave-like indentations over the * gilt interior and shapes of sea mon- 1 sters, dimly seem as if through water. I The latest service of the! bowknot J is the very last that might be ex- j pected. A set of after-dinner coffee £ cups of Royal Worcester are bound I' with gilt ribbons tied in a bowknot ^ at the side. It is a charming device ^ as well as a novel. Each cup stands | on a„Iitt(te Kilt base.^ cular*'.., , 'v.. '-0 ^ Won't Worry. ,. One day at a' time conscientiously lived np to will keep the eyes bright and the cheeks round and rosy Don't <.• begin to worry about things days be- > forehand. It will be time enough ; when they happen. It is the dread 3 of what may come, not what is, that | makes one old before the time. If f you lie awake half the night worry­ ing about something that is going to occur the next morning ypu will be „ far less able to face bravely and work | out the problem than if you had made an effort and thought of something | else till sleep came. It is not half as % hard as it sounds and will grow easier % every time you try it. Perhaps after g all the disaster will not befall vou or | will be less awful than you antici- ; pated and just think what a lot of \ unnecessary wrinkles you have wor- | ried into your face. | Another thing, don't torment your- | self about what other people are go- ing to think about this and th'atac-. v" tion. No matter what you do or | leave undone s'»me one will criticise ^ you severely, and the very best rule * for getting through life with com- parative comfort is after you have 1 made up your mind as to the pro- • priety and advisability of a certain a course^ pursue it calmly, without pay- " ing the slightest attention to, the criticisms of the lookers on from the 3 outside. You see, just because they £ are on the outside they can only see ^ surface. It does not matter in the ^ least what they think.--New York Press. - • _1 •-.' ; A Story With a Moral. " ' | He knocked at the back door of a suburban house and the cook opened it. He was a sinister-looking fellow h and she held on to the door. | "Lady of the house in?" he inquired ~ gruffly... "No, trembled the cook." • >; "Man of the house here?** ' h "None of the people in?" ^ "None but me," and she feed to | shut the door. "Aw, come off," he growled, setting I his foot against it: "I guess I'll come i in and have a good eat. Step lively ^ now, er I'll^jrabyou." * She let go of the door and the ! tramp forged in and fell into the arms ; of a big policeman, who was Courting the cook contrary to o»der&~Fi«6 * Press. % 5? A *pot In Asia. " Jj The Pamir Plateau is a sort pf11^* batable ground," or "no main's"lanaT" situated at the junction of the Hima- decreased steadily the national weatk l layas with the Thian Shan range, and has been growing faster than that of any nation on the globe, and our capital and resources have improved more rapidly than those of any other nation* --Ntw Fort iVm. • " is bounded on the north by Russia, the east by China, and on tfte south and west by Afghanistan. The cli­ mate is very severe, except during ths brief summer. & n \ - T • : 1A?" £ . V"/ C;;s«r »; 'V