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hwwaa't blooming lMfe. fit «•) l*wior. ' tteacanpaUxm with aotna ill wilderaeM, tlw :«4M4oWhMM Cor floral inta tfa®» low irst, m mtfMr tliiak lit* nwttmit «Rf ilka onto 'AlOtNk : Za<rtfcg^d*y«, ttaa nwie trtiM tha «Ktto> l>lw »wif «fc»id^fay mimBtt'i «i<U, «t wiofcad Who liMlM out 'fanny "Mmplara,* ttd mtdt tba aptnaei. •ound, Wb» m<M vhaoaror apokao to, and fainted if |M frowned. iM gN tb* poet* of lint «ay bar praiaaa oboa* Awl malattie ciodcit vlolat bit floral proto- A ^ jui j; ijMffig* llfTlffW*»ff'W ftMff ---w lif^Tato opemittS OB*•****• w*" Gmisi laoa, and a "paaaantry" Ml Bwwtowlopi tb* arlatocrat, of quality *a- flMd, UtM, long of limb, with broad, low brow, and finely-ctii*e)«>d faca. tint shows its ownaris thadaaghtarol aroliaf : ra«<; Co'd. calm, the envied cynostuw of poor pla- Muej'N- Bow well her regal air (be stately ifly typiflea. RMr; next there comae tb* modern maid, who'* "•imply out ol Bkht,* lha^h»tlix«girl of manniah atyls a»d rare- Ika girl of high and strident votaa, and apaea- davoarins tirlda, Whodoaa roaa'i ooat, hi* "four-ia-toand," and other wear beside, Wboao(&etimeB|Bmoke« a cigarette*,who--worst of all--chews gem; Far bar the florists manufactured the chirr aaa- »nm > is Journal. 1DBBID A LAWYER. ^Bix months with hard labor," said the magistrate, calmly, to the pris­ oner at the ba r. "I will be quits with you before Jong," said the prisoner to the solici­ tor tor the prosecutor, as he turned to descend to the ceils. For Joe Ren*haw felt hurt That particular solicitor, Benjamin Tim- j drank--until he had drained pany (Joe made a note of the name, ; the dregs. and registered a resolution not to for- But it was a lough job, and file and crowbar had to h* brought into play, and Mr. Renshaw's brow was moist before the door showed the slightest signs of yielding. •If I had the man as made thia here " he growled. t4he'd never make no more. The idea o' folks 'aria* awkward furniture like this ill their houses! It's only out ofaggeravatlon to give people unnecessary trouble over their work." But at last the hinges gave way to the brutal but silent attacks of the jimmy whore the die had bitten and gnawed, and Joe, quickly forcing the inner drawers, turned his bull's eye on the contents. "Well," he said, and then he swore. "Arter all nothin' but a pile o' dirty parchment not worth a crown," and he angrily turned over the bundles of deeds which repre­ sented tens of thousands of pounds. But as the last drawee slid open a chuckle escaped him. There lay a bundle of crisp Bank of England notes, which Mr. Timpany had re­ ceived on the completion of a con­ veyancing matted after office hours, on behalf of his client, too late to pay into the bank. > Stuffing the notes into his^pocket, he gathered up his tools 1 and pre* pared to depart,; To his g^n joy be saw upon the table a . boUiebf port wine and--a tumbler. "Oh, ain't he kind," he solilo­ quized, "to perwide refreshment as well as amusement? * He might have left it n a tureen-**n' rosily I don't like drinkin' port out of a tumbler. Beckon he's too thirsty for wine glasses, an* mops it up here on the qt" Taking up the bottle, Mr.Retjshaw placed it to his lips, sad drank and it to get it) had conducted his case with a zeal that seemed to border on ani­ mus, otherwise Mr. Renshaw's ex­ planation as to his presence on en­ closed premises at midnight might bave been accepted. Mr. Timpany heard the ward a He saw the glance that accom anied them. It was not a reassuring glance, if one met it by the light of a bulls- eye at midnight! Ugh! Mr. Timpany shuddered. • •Cleverest cracksman going, Joe." said the sergeant, in a tone almost of admiration. "Electric bells and all that sort of thing don't bother him a bit. He can get through an iron shutter as if it was brown i aper." Mr. Timpany's state of mind be­ came less complacent than ever. He had done his duty to his client in in­ suring th s desperado's conviction; but he began to wonder whether a man could not do his duty too well He began to think how exposed his house was, how low the back garden wall, how close the balconies to the ground, bow rusty the front door Chain, and how insecure the window fastenings. There was, however, one consolation--he had six months' start of J!r. llensbaw. ' fir. Timpany's politeness to the policeman whose heat ^embraced his bouse, aria wiid-had. once been seen Kissing bis housemaid, was surpris­ ing, bavins regard to the indignation lie bad evinced when some t me pre­ viously be had been informed of the housemaid incident The six months of his incarcera­ tion <^id not speed qnlte so quickly for Joe Henshaw as for Mr. Timpany. Joe was averse to labor of any kind, • more especially to the hard variety. He bad, however, ample time and opportunity for meditation on what be considered the vindictive wicked­ ness of Mr. Timpany and the means tor its requital. Artist as he was in Ms own line, in the operation con­ templated be meant to excel himself. He would not hurry over it, he would bide bis time Everything comes, he reflected, to the man who waits; be would wait--on Timpany. At last came the hour when he stepped forth a f**ea man--any way, for a time. He began GO look about for occupation, not work; he had had six months at that, and if he bad eared for honest work outside prison walls it would have been difficult to flpd. One* two, three months since Ben- •haw's sentence hadexpired, and Mr. Timpany began to imagine that he bud forgotten his promise and to sleep soundly of nighta He even ventured occasionally to bring home valuable documents of title and se­ curities in his black bag and to once more believe in the truth of the Replacing the bottle on the table, he picked up his tools. He was a b.t tired after his exertions, though he bad not felt it so ^unmistakably as now. ~ ' He slid' into a chair to rest for a moment' He felt quit? sleepy. If there had been more than half a bottle of port he would have fancied he was drunk. "This won't do/' he muttered- "I must get back to the pony trap. Wasser marrcr, so sleep-eep-eepy! Ahoo!" and he yawned loudly. He essayod to rise, but could not. For a moment he felt a thrill of fright, but it died away in a deep and drowning slumber. His arms sank upon the t&blf-aqft bis bead be­ tween tbem. . * * • , * • / • There, Ave hours later, Mr. Tim­ pany, trotting down in his dressing- gown, found him. For a moment he started, then he said,-- "My friend's a man of his word--I thouirbt be was--though I began to give him up So the glass bottles on the wall, the bulldog, the electric bells, and the iron shutters all failed me. But my own idea, the drugged bottle of wine, which I left in this room ever since this gentleman's last sentence expired, has done its work admirably." Then M;. Timpany trotted upstairs for that patent alarm whistle, and woke up all the sleepers in that lo­ cality, except the burglar who slepa on lor several hours more, and awoke to find himself seated on a hard deal board in a police station celL He is now commencing a term of twelve years* penal servitude, and his constant reflection is that it is "all through doing business with lawyers." --Waverly Magazine. DUDE, DUDINE, AND DOG. M IaddMt Mtowtag a HI«h Degm wt Canine Intelligence. In front of Grace Church the other day 1 was fortunate enough to wit- ness a delightful example of canine intelligence, says a writer in the New York Press. A.young man in a Chesterfield coat, a bell-crown silk hat and white' spats over patent leather shoes, was ambling innocently along and airing a setter dog. He met a pleasing young woman in a blue bonnet, and they stopped to chat Tbe dog, left to himself, in­ vestigated the vicinity to the end of his chain, and then proceeded to de­ scribe a number Qf concentric circles. At the end of the fifth circle he had chained up the two young people in a close embrace. The situation was embarrassing for both, and equal!} so for the dog. The man struggled valiantly and the dog pulled hard, , with the result that several hundred adage that an Englishman's boose is j -people collected to witness the unique bis castle. • • • spectacle of two well-dressed young But one night* while Mr. Timpany people vigorously embracing each was wrapped in gentle sleep and his other in broad davllght .Sexton fM opal, tin AttrUttM* 4ft* H-idaeaba- perflation* 1.. How that opals have been restored- to favor and it is understood that instead of being omens of ill-fortune they are really lucky stones, it is easy to understand wtiy supernatural agencies have been ascribed to the fascinating gem, and it may be of in­ terest to learn something of how to best preserve its brilliancy and beauty, says the New York Sun. There is probably no other stone so susceptible to outside influences as an opal. The stone is a soft stone, compared with other gems, and tbe flifShiog of its colors is due to the re­ fraction of light on the tiny scales and almost invisible fissures within tbe stone, which act like a prism, di­ viding the light and throw.ng out all the varying hues of the rainbow. The play of color is constantly changing. Dullness and brilliancy succeed each other with the regu­ larity of atmospheric variations, moderate warmth having a distinct luminating effect, while much heat is capable of robbing the stone of all its beauty by drying the moisture contained in the minute cells. It is a curious fa t, too, that there are vapors emitted from the human body in certain diseased conditions that are capable n? rendering the stone dull and opaque. And tbe fading of life and fortune and the fading of the opal may be simultaneous, but tbe stone is the innocent victim of the condition of tbe wearer, not the cause of disaster. Sir Walter Scott, in his "Anne of Geierstein," distorts the properties of the opal to heighten the uncanny element in his story, and to carry out this plot makes use of the supernatural To this story may be traced that "uncomfortable feeling" about an opal which people not at ail superstitious in other matters can­ not seem to shake off. If a man or woman attempts to wear one, friends and acquaintances continually bring up the old superstition until the un­ canny atone sometimes ceases to de light But it is time this old super­ stition be sent flying after the old witch and her broomstick; for in the old days the stone was highly prized as an omen of good-fortnne. Most of tbe finest opals come from Hungary, but the principal vein has been exhausted lately, so that the gem in its finest variety is exceed­ ingly rare. The clear, bright opals with the numinous tire come from Mexico. Any opals, anu particularly the Mexican stones, become dulled by washing tbe hands with the rings on, and they lose their brilliant play of color. The stones are not durable, like diamonds, nor will they stand tbe same hard wear. problems? §#?; 1§#:? IIS: pajamas, a thin streak of white light glimmered for an instant along his beck garden. Bendigo, who slept with one eye open, fancied he caught ft glimpse of something that ought not to be and emitted a deep warn­ ing growl. Much to his surprise, as if fay magic, a pie e of savory horse- fesh, just sufficiently underdone to •nit the palate of so dainty a canine epicure, fell within a yard of his nose. With the snorting growl that was his usual expression of delight, the bulldog rose and sniffed it; then fee licked it, and it tasted even mere Savory than it smelled. Bendigo bolted it, and seeing no %lore morsels lying about, turned to ^tfsgaia nis kennel. But ere he oould (teach it, his limbs stiffened, and he 'toiled over without a groan--stone v^ead. A few minutes later a inar- l^peious center bit was running its way Silently, but surely, through Mr. Timpany's iron shutters, just where a Circular hole had been made without »sound in the window pane, by ; means of a glazier's diamond and a ; jpleceof paste-covered brown paper. ^ Before long the shutter had been ^nletly replaced, and Joe Henshaw was seated in the breakfast-room, ^snnirol which his bull's eye flash was moving. The disc of light rested a moment on a small cabinet the lock %f wblch Mr. Henshaw leisurely pro- oeeded to neatly pick. "Tradesmen's bills," he grunted, :^«ii receipted; wot a spendthrift the Mishap must be, throwing away his aionef in paying accounts, t-ome ©ever knows the waliy o' money, ewns his easier than I does." v ffjien, in his list shoes making not (lightest sound, he creot into a ;71pgtt'-'lwbich served Mr. Timpany for or home office. ffels is better," chuckled the f\v .bwifttr. esnring a safe in tbe corner; Brown's successor stood within the doorway of the sAcred edifice and grew purple with indignation. The more the young mati Struggled the closer he was drawn to the young woman. Suddenly the dog stopped pulling, and evidently' made up his mind that something had to be done. Then, with a reproachful look at his master, he deliberately turned and proceeded to trot back over the course be had taken, unwinding tbe chain- When at last the young peo­ ple were free, the crowd cheered. Tbe man potted the dog and tbe young wo mall escaped into a restau­ rant During alj thfetime it never occurred to the young man to fellow around the dog and unwind himself. Art This article appeared in the Farm, Field and Stockman some two years since. To break a dog from eating eggs proceed as follows: "Divide a heaping teaspoonful of tartar emetic into eight or ten doses. Break off the end of an egg, empty a part of the contents Und stir into the re­ mainder left in the shell a dose of tartar emetic. Confine the dog in a room, or tile him, and give him the doctored egg. In an hour or two he will be trying tffturn himself wrong- side out. As soon as he is over the nausea give him a second egg and a third if he will eat it When he re­ fuses to eat the egg, and let it lie by him for several hours untouched, pry open his mouth and for e the egg down his throat Afterward you may trust him m your hen house. The object in tying the dog is to let him get nothing else to eat while he is under treatment or he may think it was tbe last thing eateiji that made bim so sick.- The Idea is to convince him that eggs no longer will lie «?e bis stomach." -* , Are Slaves of the Cook* Cooks have theT rights as well as others people, and that is tbe one reason why the restaurants of "New York are crowded every Sunday night by the people who have numerous servants, Including capable cooka It was a custom for many years, no­ body knows exactly why, savs the New York Sun, to eat a heavy din­ ner in the middle ot the day on Sun­ day. During the prevalence of this custom the COOKS made it a point to take Sunday night off, and that point has now become a prerogative. Men who dine six days in the week at 7 are invarably overloaded and uncom­ fortable when they dine in the mid­ dle of the day on bundaya The effort to have Sunday night dinner at 7 o'clock has resulted in a flat and indubitable failure wherever at­ tempted by householders, and so the knot has been cut by allowing tbe cook to have her regular Sunday night off, while the master of the house and his wife go to a restaurant, and the children scurry about for themselves. If a stranger in New Yory is anxi­ ous to see the heavy weight financial, commercial, legal and other profes­ sional men of this city at dinner with their wives he should visit Del- monico's, the Brunswick, the Savoy, Waldorf or New Netherlands Hotel any Sunday night at about 7 o'clock, it is a curious phase of New York life. Famous men of every conceiv­ able walk of life dine out at these places. The general public is familiar with the.r faces, but not with those of their wives There is often a very strong contrast as, for instance, a small, famous lawyer and his ponderous, domineering wife,who tips the beam at 250 pounds and bullies the waiter;a famous statesman, whose wife is palpably jealous at his slightest glance at his neighbors; an eminent judge of 00 and his flirta­ tious wife of 20, and so on intermin- ably. , \ - - •• • • One Price. The late William G. Twombly of Portland, long a unique figure in tbe piano trade, had a fixed pr ce for each of his pianos, and he would not lower it for any customer, no matter how importunate. "Early in my business career." said Mr. Twombly, not long ago, "I would occasionally ask more than a piano was worth, and then, when the customer tried to beat me dowu, I would take off what I had added to the regular pr ce The way 1 was cured of thatwasthis: A lady came in one day and inquired the price of a piano, which had always sold tor $400. Expecting ber to ask for a reduction. I told her the price was #450. 'Very well,' said she, 'I like the piano, and you may send It up this afternoon. My husband will give you a check lor the amount to­ morrow. ' 1 was puzzled what to do," said Mr. Twombly, ' but I finally toid her that the piano would cost her only $400. Since that time I have never asked more than a piano was worth, and I have never allowed myself to be beaten down."--Lewis- tod Journal % Human Character. There is nothing in the universe, as far as we «£now, so complex, so in­ tricate, so battling to investigation as human character. Motives and tendencies are so mingled and blended that it is impossible to lay them out iu order and take an ac­ count of them. Let anj one hon­ estly attempt so to treat his own. and he will at once feel his inade­ quacy. Yet how much more diffi­ cult is it to enter into another's be­ ing, to detect his manifold propensi­ ties and weieh their power, to count up and discriminate his qualities, to estimate his temptations, to measure his responsibility! Even where, the profoundest interest are involved this 'te'ttafck ihat iaay w#li diauufc Barometer of th» Hettwte. The movesMQts of the press gallery ovei looking tbe senate chamber at Washington are doubtlens the safest bavoaketer of the importance of the doings on the floor below, says tbe Post If the gallery seats are well taken up something is surely trans- spiring in the chamber that is,worth watching, if they are empty the proceedings are apt to possess no in­ terest The public may be mistaken and the visitors'galleries may he over­ flowing, but the curious seekers do not possess tbe delicate instinct of foretellingJrapending crises, and if the press gallery be empty, though expectancy be written on every face that peers down from the cowded balconies, no gladiatorial feats of competing oratory need be looked for, and disappointment will overtake him who disregards the signs. When Mr. Gorman arose to reply to Senator Sherman not. more then two or three heads appeared above the row of seats in the press gallery. Once or twice Mr. Gorman's eye wandered carelessly in that direction and en­ countered a tire of vacant seats, blit­ he had not got far into his subject before head after head appeared over the row of desks, as if by some subtle magic, forty or fifty men were in their seats following the debate with close attention and mentally register­ ing their comments on the proceed­ ings. Each man had come from a different direction and from every conceivable corner of the vast blcck of corridors and committee-room. No one bad told them what was< on. It was the indefinable instinct of impending news developments. Wild Boars. A wild boar is always pictured as a fero ious beast, and hunters agree that they would as soon meet a lion. But young wild boars are far prettier than any one would suspect In their wild state, however, no one has had an opportunity to inspect tbem closely, and it is only in a zoo­ logical garden that their good points can be UDpreciated. Their bodies are slim and elegant, their snouts fine, their ears short* and their legs and feet almost as finely shaped as those of a young antelope. Their color is a bright fawn or a rich tan. with longitudinal stripes like those of a tabby kitten; and, in place of the thick bristles of the other pigs, their bodies are covered with aloug and thick coat of- rough hair. Family 11 e in the wild boars' quar­ ters is harmonious and amusing. For the ttrse month the little orange- striped pigs depend on their mother for food, ana take no notice either of visitors or of each other. Each roams about by itself in tbe most independent fashion, or drops down to sleep on its stomach, with its legs stretched straight out before and behind like a kneeling elephant in miniature. Later, when they have to be satis­ fied with the food provided in the troughs, they become the most amus­ ing and importunate beggars in tbe zoo, tbe old cow and boar setting the example, well supported by the little pigs. The whole family stand upright on their hind legs in a row, with their fore-feet against the rails, andsqueak, grunt, and even climb the wire net­ ting for contributions, A California Oatrtcb Paiiil.. ' : An interesting ostrich farm is &uo» cessfuily conducted at Santa Monica. The birds are in open pens surround­ ing a sort of field, two in each pen; they are fed chiefly oa com, grass, and chopped alfalfa (a sort of Cali­ fornia clover,) with nlenty of gravel and bones thrown in. The plucking begins when they ¥re seven months old, and is continued every seven months, yielding fifteen plumes un­ der ea.-h wing and several from the tail At the pro er time each bird is driven into a corner of his corral or lnclosure, a flour sack is thrown over his head and he is led to a strong box just large enough lor one bird, and bere the feathers are cut otT. If the work is not performed at just the right time the feathers d e and become useless for the market These birds were first brought to this country from South Airica for farm­ ing purposes in 1882. Experiments were tried with them at var ous Voints In the southern part of Cali­ fornia until it was proved that the soil and tbe climate were entirely adapted to them, and there is no reason now why ostrich farming should not become one of the im­ portant and most successful Indus­ tries in these parts--provided, of course, there be a demand for the feathers. I learn that in 1891 the exports of feathers from Cape Co'ony alone amounted to $2,500,000. In Africa the male bird sits on the eggs at n ght, thus sharing the cares and responsibilities of l.'e with his mate, and it is said they are often models of domestic affection in their care for and consideration of eacb other.-- yM,Tlmes. v,. Petri flHctiona. liferth Colorado and parte '^0'Wy­ oming and Montana are genuine mines of petrifactions. There are petrifactions ot every kind, including many varieties of wood, ferns, and plants, fish, toads, snails, frogs, ser­ pents, shell fish and objects which cannot be classified. The deposits often occur in layers, as though some great natural convulsion had de­ stroyed the animal life of a whole district at once. The scientists make very few and tolerably weak at­ tempts to explain the singular phe­ nomenon, aqd the tact is evident that they no more about the matter than do the men who pick out tbe best specimens and sell them to tour- tots. ; t narDMT**y WeU-Thelr In the recent general elections far members ot the New Zealand House of Representatives, for tite firnt time in any British ooinoy, evetf woman over 21 years of age possessed equal voting rights to those held by ma An amusing account of the part which women played in tbe contests is given by a Wellington correspond­ ent of the Birmingham Dally Post The women of the colony, he says, developed a remarkable keenness lor politics. They registered in thou­ sands, and throughout the whcOe election cam pa gn displayed s moet laudable desire to learn their new duties. . Afternoon meetings for women only, at wblch the more soc al side of politics was dealt with, and the new electors instructed bow to use their votes, became part of every candidate's work. Heckling there often was, and that of tbe keenest description, so much so that some candidates are- said to have declared they would sooner face double tbe number of men than be hauled over the coals as they were by these gentle electors. With all the impulsiveness of their sex, the women bccacac almost more partisan than the men, and lucky was the candidate whom they favored. For him were crowded and enthusiastic meetings, ovations when he rose, and often showers of bouquets . when he sat down, while in many cases the vote of thanks and confidence was moved and seconded by some blush­ ing elector who heard ber own voice for the first time in public. Women thronged his committee-rooms and cauvassed for votes with a charming persistence which would not be de­ nied. The whole battery of woman's arguments, personal and theoretical, was brought to bear on the recalci­ trant male elector who was suspected of a leaning to the other tide, and, as has been said, throughout the whole of the campaign the new en­ franchised took a deep interest in the questions at issue, and in the result of the contest It is gratifying to be able to say that as was expected would be the case, women's influence was wholly for good in the conduct of one of the most keenly contested elections that have ever been held in New Zealand, and in no case, as far as can be ascertained, was a candi­ date subjected to the indignities which have at other times disgraced political meetings. Dissent and dis­ approval were of course frequently expressed, but such tangible forms of disapprobation of the speaker's remarks as rotten eggs were but- very rarely resorted to, and, consider-' ing the length and bitterness of the contest, it is a pleasanter one to look back upon than any previous one. The election day was a tvpical New Zealand November day. The women as a rule cast their votes early, so as to avoid the crushing which always occurs In the afternoon and evening, and they went about thefr task with a gravity which betokened their sense of their responsibilities. They showed, it is true, some degree of nervousness, and a good many, when the eventful hour arrived, displayed some slight reluctance to enter tbe booths, but that was soon overcome as they saw their more self-possessed sisters safely emerge from the ordeal, and received their assurances that it was very easy. The result was that when the polls closed it was esti­ mated that one-thlru of those who had recorded their votes were women and it is to the credit of the latter that the number of informal votes was surprisingly small An Ottfeotionable Practitioner. They tell a good story about a judge who is well known in Buffalo, says the Express, of that city. Some time ago a man, who is a "shyster" lawyer, came before him to make a motion. This man lived in one of the suburban towns, and he was not parti uiariy scrupulous as regards his personal appearance. He waited un­ til he had an opportunity to address the judge, and then made his motion. It was merely a perfunctory sort of montion, to o^en up a case or some­ thing of the kind, and not one in a thousand is refused by any judge. Everybody in tbe courtroom was, therefore, greatly surprised when the judge thundered out: "Denied." The man himself was completely taken aback. He rose to his feet and stammered and stuttered, and finally said: "l our Honor, I hope you have not mistaken the import of this mo­ tion. 1 fail to see on what ground you have based your decision." "Denied!" roared the judge again. "But, your Honor," the lawyer went on, "1 think you must be labor­ ing under a misapprehensioa This is of no importance There isn't a soul on earth who isn't willing that the motion should be granted." "it's denied. I tell you," said the judge again. "Will your honor kindly state the grounds on which tbe denial is made?" The judge straightened up in his chair, took off his eyeglasses and leoked severely at the lawyer. He extended his hand and pointed one of liis long fingers at him. "The motion Is denied for two reasons," he said, impressively. "First you are not a regular member of the bar, ana not. entitled to practice in a court of record; second, you need a bath." t# kn«#'li|tflL do would be to mm »#ir on his :two front feet and stop. 1 wait for him to do it this time.1 just buried the raw of tbe rowelrin bis heaving side, fetched bim aeu! with tbe whalebone that made the blood spurts ftbd Bob and I shot od­ der tbe wire easy winners. He never tried that trick on me again, but J beard afterward that be bad gone back to his old habits.*' A Glance Into Antiqltity. Science tometifnes comes to tbe aid of history in fixing tbe dates of re­ mote events in a very remarkable manner. Astronomy has been par* ticularly helpful in this wav. When­ ever an eclipse, or some other remark­ able phenomenon in tbe heavens, has occurred simultaneously with a great battle, for instance, the date of the latter can usually be determined by calculating backward the motions of tbe celestial bodies; and ascertaining when they must have been in the po­ sition they are described as having occupied at the time the battle was fought But astronomy is not alone in thus furnishing assistance to historian*. Recently tbe science of conchology has apparently opened up a glimpse into the ancient history of our race that far transcends in antiquity any human records. Among the ornaments discovered with tbe human skeletons recently unearthed in tbe caverns near Men- tone are several species of shells which had evidently been brought from the shores of the Atlantic, as tbey do not occur in tbe Mediter­ ranean Sea Here, then, is an indication that before the beginning of authentic history men journeyed long distances in Europe, and carried shells for bar­ ter or exchange. But this is not alL Among the ornaments found with human skeletons in other caves on the Ligurian coast, and apparently belonging to a somewhat later race of men, rr to the same race in a later stage of development, are shells which concbologists say must have come from the Indian Ocean! When we remember the dangers and difficulties that in far later and more advanced periods of human his­ tory have attended those who under­ took to pass between the eastern and western halves of the Old World, we cannot but be astonished at this indi­ cation of a line of travel or of trade extending from As a to Europe in the days of primitive man. Forty Years in the Business; ' Augustus Pennoyer, treasurer oifraif Roland Beed company,has been in tbe profession over forty years, and he can count the stars he has managed on the fingers of one hand. For live years he managed Lotta and is very fond of the little woman and her mother. He says that during the five years he believes that every page of his account book would shdw a •charity" entry of from $10 to $300, as Lotta and Mrs. Crabtree were very liberal to unfortunate professionals and others. Mr. Pennoyer says that Lotta made her first appearance out of a bag. Ad Weaver, the old negro comedian, had an act with a partner who played the banjo, and Weaver came on the stage with a bag over his shoulder. The subject of danc­ ing was brought up and Weaver said he had something in the bag that could dance, whereupon he shook it and out hopped Lotta, who danced before a surprised and delighted au­ dience. She learned to play tbe banjo and made a lortune with it but of late years she d diked to have the instrument referred to. • Mr. Pennoyer spent twelve years, also, as manager of Peter and Caroline Rich- ings, the singers. The latter died of smallpox some years ago Pennoyer is still as active as a boy, and often enjoys a lively wrestling bout on the stage with Mr. Reed's uncle, Julian Reed, who has been a member of the company for many years and who is devoted to athletic sports. A Telegram's Travels. The most widely separated points between which a telegram can be sent are British Columbia and New Zealand. The telegram would cross North America, Newfoundland, the Atlantic, England, Germany, iiussia, (European and Asiatic ) China, Janan, Java, and Australia It would make nearly a circuit of the globe, and would traverse over 20,000 miles in •flifrirkur jia. ,, , . . ' < j-.-V '• 'v V'v'-v- His Awful Spurs. Congressman Curtis of Topeka, be­ gan lite as a jockey and rode horses from 1869 to 1874. Then his rela­ tives, who were rich, persuaded him to go to school and he gave up the turf. "One of the fastest quarter-m le horses in the West was Bob Ridley and nobody but me could ride bim," said the Congressman to a Washing­ ton Post correspondent "While he could easily pass anything on tbe track, he had an ugly habit of throw­ ing back his ears and balking. I carefully studied all his habit?, and in a big race that was to be run one day I fixed things so that bob would win, whether he wanted to or not 1 got me a pair of spurs with rowels an inch long and sharp as a needle. To this formidable equipment 1 added a whalebone whip that would cut through the skin, and so armed swung myself into the saddle and took my position. Well, the word was given, and away we went like a cy- dotte, Bob Ridley and 1 in Mm lead* The Man Who Tired Cferlylcu There is a story of Carlyle ln hts old age having taken the following farewell, in his broadest Scotch, of a young friend who had had bim in charge for walks, and who, while al­ most always adapting himself to Carlyle's mood, had on a single oc­ casion ventured to disagree with him, "I would have you to know, young man. that you have the capacity of being tbe greatest bore in Christen­ dom." The boredom had consisted solely in the rather negative sin of not having been convinced of the truth of one of Carlyle's dogmas, a sin all the more heinous, because, in­ stead of standing boldly up to Carlyle, and declaring his doctrine utterly perverse, the companion had betrayed bis weakness by an apologetic tone. Now,Carlyle liked disciples, and he respected«antagonists, but he could not1 endure being merely thwarted with- j out being thoroughly roused. He 1 felt in that case that he had made no impression at all on bis interlocutor, j that be bad neither won him nor ex- ( cited him to resistance And noth-' ing bored him so much as that Of course it is only exceptionally des- j potic minds that are bored in this way.---The Spectator. *' ̂ <}*>*. The I«ap Year Privilege* Why is it that ladles are permitted to propose in leap year? Here is the j answer as given in a contemporary: { "It appears that in the year 1288 a ; statute was publish by the Scotch , Parliament ordaining that during the reign of 'Her Malst Blessit Maj- estie Margaret' everv maided and | lady of high and low estate \ should have liberty to speak to the man she liked. If he refused to take her to be his wife she should bave the privilege of fining him £100 or less, according to his estate, unless he could make it appear that he was betrothed to another woman in which case he would be free to refuse Af­ ter the death of Margaret the women of Scotland beea .se clamorous for In the vielaityW MMBittl oo^a crorn road in Lewistob IV8 ap old man named fHnre.:P Hli abode is with a' aadian tamily. wbo aww mm wben all lived in Canada oa the Si^|Uei« river. Tttts maa li«e a hiA# ̂ as marked peculiarity, says 5eLewiston (Me.) Journal. Let bim till bis own story. Bom in Canada be early enlisted in tbe Xogllsh army and was sent as Leutenant to India, where he fought in several minor rebellions. It was always said of bim that while he was brave he bed reason to be, for be was Impregnable. This was no doubt caused by tbe facts that be possessed then, as be does now, a remarkable power, the like of which a man lathe eastern part of the state is sild to possess. He seems to be a magnetic person and can allay pain by the lay- ing-on the bands--namely, he rubs gently the part affected and pain ceases for some time. He does not understand the cause of it but uses it freely upon every occasion when ha can. Once, he says, in India an officer high up in the service was wounded by a nrie ball which lodged some­ where in the man's abdomen. Peter offered to tell the doctors where it was, but was declined the chance by the stiff-necked physicians, who b* lived no more in his jugglery than in that of the Sepoy magicians. "I can make one of you tell where the ball is," said Peter. "Go ahead," said a doctor, laugh­ ing. Peter walked up to a young phy­ sician who was half-inclined to be­ lieve him, and, placing bis hand upon tbe lads bead, said: 4•sleep." The young man sunk into a chair and slept. Peter stood over bim awhile and then said: •Tell the doctors where the rifle ball is." ' >It is in the cavity of the abdomen, where it has fallen from the ribs. Open the abdomen, and you will And it on the left side. None of the in­ testines are injured." "Am 1 a sepahai?" "No; you are a magnetic person, with mesmeric powers." Peter says that they found the ball as indicated and that after that his prestige was great It was in India that he learned the fluent use of the English language.. Returning to Canada later in life, be was engaged on a whaling ship as harpooner and made money there He has been in the United States for ten years, though he came here from Fall River only last summer. He is about 80 years old and goes about but little. His power to cure headaches, toothaches and all minor kinds of aches and|palns is simply wonderful. He cannot heal his own woes nor can he cure his own ills. As yet bis fame as a magnetic healer has scarce­ ly gone beyond his own neighborhood and the shadow of Bond hill. He has no education and cannot read ot write English, but in his knocks about the world he has picked up con­ siderable information. Failed to Giro Proper Warning. A good story is told by one' of tbe parties interested of a Brooks County judge, who presided at an action for damages against the Savannah, Florida and Western Railroad for the killing of a cow, not many years ago In such cases the testimony of Jbhe engineer and firemen is always al­ lowed In behalf of the defendant, ex­ cept in certain cases. * It seems that in tnis instance tbe cow walked across the track and be­ hind a shed, which stood very near by, and then emerging from behind tbe shed tried to cross again when she was killed by the train. "What did you do when yon saw the cow on the track?" asked tbe plaintiff's attorney of the engineer, who was on the witness stand. "When I first saw her on the track," was the reply, "1 blew my whistle" "What else did you doV" put in tbe attorney. "When 1 saw her cross the tracs again, I put on my air-brakes and blew tbe whistle again." i "Anything else?" ••No, that was ail I could do,;Utt- der the circumstances." : "Why didn't you holler?" as: the judge. . The railroad won its case with th?, jury.--Savannah News. ^ -v Journalism and literatures ,, Mrs. Deland calls journalism "the big brother of literature" What she meant as sarcasm is a fact Journalism is the big brother with­ out whose aid ninety-nine littera­ teurs out of a hundred could not live. This is the age ot daily brains. Those who fancy tbat book and magazine writers are superior to journalist* would revise their opinions did they realize how many more words to ideas are oum in most books and most magazine articles than in news­ papers where space is of far more im­ portance. Journalism is driving so- called literature out of the market The people are the gainers. They buy the contents of a book for 5 cents and less. When their tastes becomes classic the newspaper will be classic, tooy even in the wording of murders and prize fights. --Kate Field's Wash­ ington ' """ ' . An Old Key.. = »„•, J : An old and curious key and lock la attached to the door of Temple Church, in Fleet street, London. The key weighs seven pounds, is eighteen inchcs long and, unlike other keys, was not made for tbe lock. On the contrary, the lock was made for it. Both key and lock have been in use since tbe Crusades, the church itself having been built by the Knights Templar in 1485. An lm^. If at present we were to call a m>f ' an imp, he would possibly be offended. ! But in Spenser's time "imp" had j still a very good sound, and he allows a uoble lady a lady, gent as he calls Thou ̂ ̂ . her, to address Arthur as their privileges, aud to appease them ' Jror^Jiy imp** ^ a®rl® frn th» another act«of Parliament allowed f r, .J mA,nt ^^1^ word, for "imp" meant originally graft then offspring. To graft in tbem U* propose every fourth year."-- Pall Mall Gazette WE sometimes think tbe poor need to be taught gratitude more than the other class need to be taught generos- --- .v;. German is impfea IT has been our experience that women will forgive swearing and drinking whisky quicker than chew- ing fiOhftnffMfci * •* K 1