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/ A .'DISCOURAGED FARMER. sllie summer wind is sniffiii' round tie bloom in' locus' trees, ' ' - (And the clover in the pastnt' Is a 'big thing for the bees,° (And they've been a-sViggin' honey above board agd-:on the sly, •Kir they" stutter in their buzzin' and stagger as they fly. . °Y ... * * * r * * * ®hey's been a heap of rain, bat the sunV out to-day, 'And the weeds is all the greener and the • grass is greener still; 3t may rain again to-morrow, but I don't „ rV think it will. Some say the crops is ruined and the corn's drowned out, And prophesy the wheat will be a failure without doubt; But the kind Providence that has never failed us yet Will be on hand once more at the eleventh hour, I bet! {Does the meadow lark complain as he syvims high and dry ,* ^Through^the waves of the wind and the ,..N blue of the sky? Does the quail set up, and whistle in a • ; 'disappointed way, *Br hang "his head in silence and sorrow all the day?. ' v Is the chipmunk's health a failure 1 Does he Walk or does he run? • "DsHrt/the bu^lirti'ds ooze around up there jest'like- they've alius done? Is the're; anything the, matter with the - . _ rooster's lungs or' ydief?? - • Ort a mortaj. he complainiu' when dumb aniniais rejoice? Then let us. one and all, be contented with 0111s. lot; : • 11 - " . The June is here this morning and the sun is shining hot, 0, let us fill our hearts with the glory of the day, And banish every doubt and care and sorrow far away. Whatever be our station, with Providence for a guide, Such fine circumstances ort to make us satisfied, For the world is full of roses and the roses full of dew, And the dew is full of Heavenly love that drips for me and you. --James Whit comb Riley. IN TH E GRAY OF DAWN "I don't like the look of things," said the first mate of the Valentine. The remark was addressed to tin* captain, Who stood beside the senior officer on the bridge. The Valentine, an iron steamer, of 2,000 tons, had. that afternoon, frac­ tured her propeller shaft. It was in the Malay archipelago. Steaming too close to one of the numerous islands, the screw had encountered a spur of an outlying coral reef. The shock was severe, and the shaft had been unable to stand the strain. The examination made by the first engineer showed that Jt would take a good many hours to re­ pair the damager Meantime, the only thing to be done was to lay to. Shel- tei'ed by a long line of islands, which showed, some close at hand, some dim­ ly in the distance, the vessel found com­ fortable anchorage. It was not this which troubled the first mate. Many years of experience in these seas had taught him that among these islands a crippled vessel, unless heavily armed, was like a sheep amid a pack of wolves. More than one ugly story was current of the fate which had befallen trading ships so placed at the mercy of the islanders; nor was Captain James unaware of the danger. However, he put a bold face on it. "I know what you mean, Mr. Jack­ son," he said. "But there's no use of borrowing trouble. We shall get off by to-morrow noon, I hope; and we may not have been observed." With that he turned on his neel and went below. But the first mate shook his head doubtfully. He felt certain that they had been seen, though he could not have brought forward the evidence to back up his opinion. And his, fore­ bodings were not unfounded. The work of repairing the broken shaft went ahead steadily, btft slowly. On deck a double watch was stationed. Arms even laid in readiness along the shelter of the bulwarks. The officers, in turn, walked the bridge all night. But it was clear as a bell overhead, and absolute quiet prevailed until the gray hours of dawn. Then the first mate, who was leaning with his arms bent on tlie rail of tire bridge, suddenly heard a whisper j.ust below him. It was the boatswain's mate. "Darby, forward, says he sees something coming out of the shadow of the island off the first quarter," be said in low tones. The first mate turned and glanced searchingly in the direction indicated. For a moment he could see nothing but the dull glitter of the water, rising and falling with the swell. A half mist was rising from the ocean's surface. But presently, on this background of gray, he detected two, three and finally four, spots or darker color. What they were his experience told him, though his eyes did not. - "Call the men up, Clark," he ordered, In a resolute voice, "and send a mes­ sage to the captain. Divide along the port and starboard quarters. Send the engineer and his men aft. See that the men are all ready. They'll close in on us on the chains on either bow. But fire not a shot till you hear the w7ord from the bridge. Then give it to them. If we can drive them off this time we may be able to get out of here before they get together enough to make an­ other attack. Be lively, now!" In a couple of minutes Captain Jones Btood beside his mate. "They found us out, Mr. Jackson," he said. "Yes," was the other's laconic an­ swer. No more words passed between them. Their plans were all made and the crew were instructed in their parts. Ten minutes went by. The men for­ ward crouched along the bulwarks, the engineers and firemen aft, every man grasping rifle, musket, pistol or knife and watching with all his senses strain­ ed. But it was ten minutes before the . faint dip of the paddles, so soft a§ scarcely to be perceptible, gave evi­ dence that the Malay islanders were at - band. Prom the bridge the captain * liad already noted their approach. ' " Each man gripped his weapon more tightly. Then, on either side of the ^vessel, grativi the bow of a canoe. From the bridge at that same instant came - jUie command: * . • ' The sailor of the Valentine lejaped ut>, A sheet of flame- from a; dosen muskets and rifles lighted up the bul­ warks. Quick flashes from the pistols followed, their sharp crack punctuat­ ing* the reverberations of the heavier pieces. A serieiTxf shrieks succeeded by loud splashes, as thCvmen who were shot tumbled into the water, told how effective had been the tire. A furious rain of blows from musket butts and clubbed rifles and belaying pins beat off the few who had secured a hold on .the Valentine's rail and were attempt­ ing to reach the deck. » Aft the attacking party had met with a similar fate. The Malays made a dash to swarm up the vessel's side, just as the fire was opened from the bow, but they got so warm a reception from the revolvers of the captain and first mate that the engineers and five men, who stood ready to repel boarders with whatever weapon they could pick up, had no opportunity to make themselves useful. The canoe, with at least half its party shot, was turned about and paddled away with, a speed which showed' the terror of its occupants. The attack on the Valentine had been a.complete failure. Captain James' cheery voice was now heard calling out for information as to how much damage had been dope, and when he learned that not a man on board' had got so much as a scratch, he fairly shouted for joy. ' . - .... • '"We made it too warm for them that time, Mr. Jackson!" he exclaimed, tri­ umphantly. •• -. '•.. ••.* • "Yes," returned Jackson, without en-, fhushism. ' . - "Why, what's the matter,, man?" cried the captain/' "Nothing, only we've not done with them yet," said the mate. "Come, you don't think that?" "I do, sir!" "They've had too bad a licking," said the captain, decidedly, and as if that ended the matter he left the bridge. A grim smile flitted over Jackson's face, but he went about his duties without a word on the subject till noon. Then he lit his pipe and found a seat beside the captain, who presently re­ marked: "They say they can't finish work on the shaft so that we can go ahead till to-morrow morning?" "Yes." The captain had something on his mind. "You really don't think there's any further danger from those yellow rascals, do you?" he inquired. "I don't think there is," returned the mate. "I know there is. They'll be on us again to-night, and there'll be two three for every one of them that tried the trick this morning. They know we're in a fix, and they have found out that we haven't any heavy guns. Do you think they'll let a prize like the Valentine escape them? What if a couple of dozen of them are killed? That won't stop them. Mark my words, we'll hare to fight for our lives^to- nightT11 The captain looked grave. "Can't we drive them off tf they do try to board again?" he asked. The mate raised his brows. "You know as much about that as I do. I have my doubts. But, of course. I'm hoping I'm wrong." Then his face knotted in a hard frown for a moment, but cleared as quickly; the next mo­ ment he sprang to his feet. "It might be done! It might be done!" he exclaimed. The action aroused the captain from the abstraction into which he had fallen. The mate leaned toward him pulling on his pipe in short, excited puffs, and explained the plan which had just come to him. For two hours before sundown all the deck hands were engaged in an oc­ cupation rather strange on a vessel which was hundreds of miles from port. They were partly unloading the ship. When darkness fell the Valentine was slowly rising and dropping^in a gentle swell. The current, such as there was, set in toward the islands from which the Malays had come. There was no wind. As soon as night had blotted the islands from sight, the first mate went forward. Ranged along deck was a couple of dozen bar­ rels of oil. The donkey engine, by means of a sling was bringing up more barrels from the cargo In the hold. Ten minutes after Mr. Jackson's ap­ pearance three of the barrels had been wheeled aft on trucks, and lifted upon the gunwales, where they were firmly secured with lashings to the rigging on the port side. Four more barrels, in the open gangway forward, were tilted on the sides and held there. A few blows from a mallet on a spike drove in the bungs. So fixed that their bung- holes were hung over the sea outside the ship's rail, each barrel immediately began to discharge a good-sized stream of oil into the water. As fast as a barrel was emptied a full one was put in its place. Within an hour forty barrels of oil had flowed into the sea. Then Mr. Jackson called a halt. The deck and rail were carefully mopped up, and wiped with cotton waste; the donkey engine gave a pull on the anchor chain, and the Valentine lay twenty fathoms ahead of her former position. Mr. Jackson saw a fresh .supply of full barrels put in position read}' to be used as the first had been. Then the watch was set and all lights which would show were doused. The captain and mate took their places on deck. The men had been instructed what to do when the time came. The stars gave just enough light to show the sea. Its glimmering surface near at hand had a strange look, for a coating of oil several acres in extent was spread over it on the port side of the vessel. The oily space was widen ing every minute, though very slowly for the set of the current was slight. An hour later half a dozen more barrels of ^oil grugled their contents Into the sea. At midnight the same number were again emptied over the ship' side. From the bridge Captain James and his senior officer closely scanned the sea in the direction of the isl&nds, but no sign of a canoe was visible. The captain had begun, to think that, after all, Jackson, his mate, was wrong, when Jackson laid a hand on his arm "There they come!" he said. Stealing into sight, though" as yet very Indistinct, both men could see half , a dozen specks, which, as they looked, grew larger,. They were almost abreast of each other,, seemingly, and were ad­ vancing fast.* The captain had scarce­ ly noted the absence of Jackson, who slipped silently from his side, when, behind, the first group of canoes he made out a second. Though the near­ est were too far off, as yet, to be seen clearly, he knew they were crammed with the yellow-skinned savage rascals. When they struck the edge of the ex­ panse of oily water the captain noted that they had stopped. For a couple of minutes they remained motionless. He could not distinguish the men in the canoes, but he was sure that they had remarked the curious condition of the sea's surface, and were examining it. But plainly they were satisfied with their inspection, for they shortly came on again. Presently they were within 100 yards of the ship. There the first group waked for the remainder. When the latter had come up the captain counted fourteen long canoes in all. They were made of long hollow logs, and held a dozen men each. . Then the. little fleet separated and swung out in two Wings, one making for the bow of the Valentine, with the intention of rounding the vessol and repeating the atactics of the first at­ tempt, the. other sweeping toward the stern with a similar end in view. .. Cap­ tain James immediately awaited a move from his crew, but nothing hap­ pened until two of the foremost canoes were within fifty feet of the vessel. Then a spark appeared close to tho bulwarks; another glowed from further aft. A moment later "two buckets of cotton waste, saturated with oil and blazing furiously, were pitched over­ board. As they touched the sea, twen­ ty feet or more from the side of the Valentine, a flame shot up from the water, not high, but of prodigious fierceness. Swiftly it spread over the sea in every direction but one, a low wall of fire sweeping onward from the ship. In a few seconds it had com­ pletely enveloped the fleet of canoes. Then a dire yell of terror burst forth from the Malays. In the weird light of the burning oil their dark forms could be seen con­ fusedly moving about. But this lasted for so short a time that those watching on the Valentine had scarce space to take in the scene before the tragedy had been enacted. In quick succession the canoes were overturned by the struggles of their occupants and the men precipitated into the sea. But it was not the element with which the na­ tives were almost as familiar as fishes. It was a blinding sea of fire, and the shrieks of the wretches told of their fate. The flames quickly exhausted the layer of oil, which wTae, of course, very thin. But those whom the fire left in a condition to keep afloat were, in most cases, so paralyzed with terror that they soon went down from their inability to make use of their limbs. Away to the port the fire was still burning faintly in patches. But it had done its woi-k. Only the dark forms of the canoes drifting about upon the ater were left to show what had hap­ pened. Whether any of the Malays got ashore the Valentine's crew and officers never knew. They were rather sick­ ened by the scene they had witnessed. But there came to each the thought of what would have been his lot If the crew who had so lately perished had once got a foothold on the deck.--Pitts­ burg Dispatch. AGRICULTURAL NEWS •nil. THINGS PERTAINING TO FARM 'AND HOME. THE Intensive Farming in Practice--Two Uses for Corticobs--Our Barnyards Too Larac-gVp^ihii Not Good on . Strawberries--The Dairy Cow. Results from a Quarter Acre. • Two years ago I planted one-fourth of an acre in early potatoes. As soon as we were done working the potatoes we planted tobacco between the rows of the potatoes." When the potatoes1' were dug for cd&rket the stalks were carried off and .the ground cultivated, when the lot had tlie appearance of a tobacco field, writes a correspondent to the Orange County Farmer. It was then sown to turnip seed, and after the tobacco was taken off it was a com­ plete turnip field. The result was fifty bushels of potatoes, average price $1 per bushel, §5Qj' -£00 pounds of tobacco at 12 cents, $4$; forty bushels of tur­ nips at 30 cents a bushel, $12; total, $102, or about as much as would be realized at present prices from five acres , of corn .rit' eighty bushels per acre, or seven ifcres of wheat, or four acres of hay. . And yet. the taxes were paid for only .'one-fourth of an acre. This,- in my opinion, was intensive farming. ;. The best crop of corn that I ever rais­ ed was grown.^n a four-acre lot,-on.- which the second growth of the previ­ ous yeat^s clover crop was left standing and then plowed down. The ground was thoroughly prepared before plant­ ing, for I held to.the theory that ground cannot be prepared after tne crop is planted. The field was clieck-rowed, or marked tw6 ways, and the corn planted very thickly, and, after it was cultivated eight or ten times with a cultivator, we went over the field and thinned down every hill to. not more than three stalks. I do not think there was a vacant bill In the field. The re­ sult was 600 bushels of corn ears (150 bushels per acre), six large two-horse loads of corn fodder and half a dozen loads of pumpkins, equal to about as much as is ordinarily raised on twice the number of acres. The next year the same field produced over 200 bushels of oats. limit. Feed not only a liberal ration, ,lmL„eomiponM^the taking pains/to have .It well balanced. Of course, it is always well to know just which grains and fodder are most easily and cheaply obtained, and as riiuch of these should be used as pos­ sible without Injuring , the quality of the ration. Gluten and linseed meals are now very cheap, and as they are exceedingly rich, they can be profit­ ably mixed with bran and cornmeal in compounding rations bhat are not only nutritious, but of a quality to produce excellent manure. o; Easy-Going. Poverty---comparative poverty--has its fair side. The Scripture pronounces blessing upon it, and tlie author of From Palm to Glacier" declares that although in a Northern city one longs to "reform," to "help," to "improve" the condition of the poor, yet when you go among the cabins of Virginia ne­ groes your first impression is likely to be "that the poor are wiser that you are. You have a dim conviction that you could not teach them anything that would not spoil them. The rags, the squalor, the ignorance that distress you so in Northern slums, seem here a righteous habit of contentment with little." Mrs. Rollins is giving only one side of the picture, of course, but it is the one which is not very often present­ ed. For a moment it seems better to be sweet-liearted, sunny-natured and con­ tented, than even to be wise and capa­ ble and ambitious. We begin to be ashamed of such a thing as "aspira­ tions." Passing a beautiful tree unknown to us, in full and'glossy leaf, we stop the carriage to--enjoy its beauty? Alas, no! not yet have we succeeded in divesting our Puritan conscience of the restless desire to improve . our minds; we are anxious to discover its name and species. We accost Sambo as he passes; would he please tell us the name of that tree? Full of interest In our desire to 'know," though perfectly indifferent himself to anything but the fact that it is a tree, Sambo pauses leisurely, takes off his hat, apparently more to the tree than to us, surveys the beau­ tiful thing from leafy crown to root, and then answers slowly, with infinite regret in his tone; "No; nebber knew it had no qame." Long after we have passed on, we turn our heads to discover Sambo still planted in the road, gazing curiously and respectfully at the tree, in mute wonder as to what new grace a name could possibly confer upon it. Then and there we adjure forever--that is, until we return to the insistent North- all effort to "classify" our impressions of Southern vegetation. Might this perhaps be the straight road to Old Point Comfort? we ask of a pretty negress in a cabin door. She looks smilingly along the road, with that same earnest effort to find out for us which had filled Sambo with regret, but she "dunno;" she "reckons it is." She is a stranger here, then? "Oh, no! lived here more'n two year." A man whom we ask a little later .on if we are on the right road, "reckons we are;" at any rate, he assures us, it won't be more'n two miles out of our way. And we start our horses again, curiously indifferent ourselves as to whether we are on the right road or not., "Do you know," said one of the party, "it seems to me positively vulgar to be white." " It takes, a igood deal of ability to do anythio,g^ell. . p Uses for Corncobs. I utilize my corncobs in two ways-- by grinding with the grain, and by kin­ dling fires, says a writer in the Coun­ try Gentleman. The experiment sta­ tions have shown beyond discussion <.^at cob meal, when fed to cattle, is fully as valuable, measure for meas­ ure, as clear meal, cwing, it is pre­ sumed, to the fact that the cob so separates the particles of grain that the digestive secretions of the, animal can more thoroughly act on them. I also kindle my cbal fires with them. By dropping a few chips of . paper, and then filling up the stove with cobs, and when these are well on fii*e, adding a few more, and on these immediately pouring the hod of coal, I have no trouble in kindling the hardest of coal. I use more or less also in my fireplace, where they make a heat more intense than any harwood fire. I have on hand some cords of cobs, left from the shell­ ing of my seed sweet corn. These I pro­ pose to have ground up with the com­ mon yellow corn of the market, and so practically change it into meal value, bulk for bulk. Corncobs are enormous­ ly rich in potash, their ashes contain­ ing over twenty-three per cent., but it takes a vast pile of cobs to make a very small pile of ashes.. Tlie Size of Barnyards. As the farmer in the closing days of winter is busy scraping up the scat­ tered manure in his barnyard to draw away to the fields he will almost al­ ways admit that his barnyard is larger than it should be. Our large barnyards are a relic of the times when stock was mainly fed out of doors, and the large surface was intended to make it con­ venient for feeding so that stock would not crowd each other. Nowadays stock are all stabled a^ "night, and are always fed under cover, wasting less than by the old method of' throwing the fodder on the ground or in the corner of a crooked rail fence. Where stock is kept up at night it needs a very small yard for it to exercise in during the day. The practice of dehorning is also hiaking it less necessary to have large barnyards, so to prevent vicious horned stock frtfrn killing or injuring those that are weaker than themselves. Gypsum ori Strawberries. It is not a good plan to sow gypsum on strawberries.' It will usually en­ courage so large a "growth of clover that it will be nearly impossible to keep the rows clean even for the first year. The gypsum has besides no special effect in making a large growth of the strawberry vines. The mineral fertilizer that strawberries most. need Is potash. If this were applied more freely the crop of berries will be large, and they will be of better quality and color. All the highly colored fruits need large supplies of potash. Apple Orchards as Windbreaks. Wherever forests are cleared off there soon comes a demand for a windbreak of some kind to shelter buildings and stock from cold blasts, and to protect the farm from "the severest winter winds. It is a good practice to set an orchard either on the windward side of tlie farm or of the house and other farm buildings. It is true the trees are bare in winter, and unless there is a close fence to obstruct the wind near the surface it will blow under the trees nearly as strong as if no orchard were in the way. This can be remedied by planting a row of evergreens on the windward side. This ..will also hold the snow from being blown away from the .orchard. Most fruit trees suffer from lack of water in the summer -sea­ son when they are perfecting their fruit, It is abundance of water that enables .their roots to take up the min­ eral plant food which is essential to seed production. It is the lack of Water that causes so large a proportion of fruit to fall soon after it is formed. The time comes for forming the seed, and the mineral element needed is either not in the soil or is unavailable, because there Is not water in the soil to dissolve it. Cornstalks in Spring Dried cornstalks rapidly lose their sap by the drying which alternate freezing and thawing exposes them to, and they are much less nutritious and palatable than in their sappy green state in the fall. Properly kept ensi­ lage can be preserved better until late in the season than can the dried corn­ stalks, no matter how much care is taken to keep, them from getting wet and being spoiled. When corn-stalks are cut and piled in heaps they dry out slowly; because the slight heating which they undergo exposes them to contact with carbonic acid gas, as in the silo. This gas is a good check on fermentation, which requires oxygen to keep it in progress. Sharpening; Tools. Before the season for outdoor work begins a LI the hoes, cultivators and oth­ er farm implements should be got in condition for effective use. Labor is too dear to be wasted in working with a dull tool, and the farmer stands in his own light who allows labor to be thrown a Way because the tools it works with are inferior. Solomon long ago observed that "when the axe is dull then must be put forth more strength." As he immediately added, "But wisdom is profitable to direct," he gave his opinion pretty plainly that no man with much sense would be caught using a dull axe. Due to Tree Agents. It is due to the tree agents and even to the tree peddlers and scalpers to say that there are doubtless thousands of fruit trees now growing that would never have been planted if they had not stirred up sleepy farmers by their wonderful stories to buy and plant, when the same men Would not have gone three miles to a local nursery of their own accord. Oats and Peas. One of the best early feeds for stock, especially breeding animals, may be secured by sowing oats and peas some­ what thickly, either to be pastured or cut for soiling. For this purpose it is best to sow fully three bushels of seed per iacre, while If the crop is to be grown for its grain two bushels of seed Is a great plenty. The crop shouid be sown at different times, so that it will come in order for cutting in succes­ sion. This soiling crop may be grown on rich land where a later crop of cab­ bage, celery or other vegetables Is to be grown. 1 t The Dairy Cow. The modern dairy cow Is an extreme­ ly artificial development, and as such should be entrusted only to the expert breeder, feeder and handler, just as a complicated machine is placed in the hands of none but skilled mechanics. The best dairy cow Is of an Intensely nervous nature, and-needs to be treat­ ed with great consideration, says M. B. P., in the Ohio Farmer. Kicking a cow is a wicked habit that results in much loss. A cow kept in constant fear of being punished cannot prove profit­ able to her owner. Give the" dairy cow a quiet, sensible, intelligent keep­ er. Such a man's services are worth money. Do not withhold food. It takes' a good deal of food to produce a liberal flow of milk. The more food the greater the product up to a certain that some new variety is better. FARM FIT FOR A KING. Odds and Knds. One part acetic acid to seven parts water rubbed well into the scalp once a day, will, it is said, induce a new growth of hair. To remove a grease spot from wall paper, hold a piece of blotting paper over the spot with a hot flatiron for a few moments. Try tying a piece of stale bread in a white muslin cloth and dropping it in­ to your kettle with your boiling cab­ bage. It will absorb all the offensive odor. According to a wholesale furniture dealer, the best furniture polish is made of one-tliird alcohol and two-thirds sweet oil. Apply it with a soft cloth and rub with another cloth. When your stove has burned red and your blacking won't stick to it, put a little fat fried from salt pork into the water in which you dissolve your black­ ing and try again. Try chopping your bread instead of -kneading it so long. It is a great help. Put plenty of flour on your bread board and on your dough, when it has been stirred very stiff, and turn your bread often as you chop it. Try to avoid having the bread and cake crack open while baking. This cracking on the top is caused by hav­ ing the oven too hot when the ioaf Is put in, arid the crust formed before the heat has caused the dough to expand. You may remove the tightness caused by a cold almost instantly by mixing ammonia and sweet oil, or fresh hen's oil will do, shaking it thoroughly and rubbing it'on the nose and forehead. By adding laudanum you have a splen­ did liniment. Fruit is not a complete dietary in it­ self, but it is excellent to accompany a meat diet. The acid contained in the fruits assist digestion, and it is for this reason that apple sauce should be served with roast pork or goose, the fat of which is rendered more assimilable by It. Farmers may make a mistake in overlooking their local markets. When articles are shipped to the large cities, owing to inducements in the shape of better prices, the commissions and cost of transportation may leave less profit than could be secured nearer home. Butter and eggs can always find a good market and ready sale, being in der mand everywhere. There are more than the usual num­ ber of new varieties of potatoes of­ fered this season, and it is safe to claim that the majority of them will drop out of siglit next year to give placo to another batch of new vari­ eties, but this may be done to advan­ tage with one or two potatoes. For your general crop stick to the kinds that you know are adapted to your soil and climate until you are sure Secretary Morton Admires Vander- hilt's. Instate at Biltjnore. ..-Win. E. Curtis writes as follow® to the Chicago Record: Secretary Mor­ ton recently spent a week at Biltmore, N. C., investigating the famous estate of George Vanderbilt, and he told his Colleagues at the Cabinet meeting the oither day that there was nothing in the wbrld owned by sovereign or subject that will compare with it either as a residence or an object" lesson in the agricultural arts. "It is the grandest idea," said Mr. Monton, "that young Mr. Vanderbilt is trying to catrry out. It is unique, and none but a man of enormous wealth oould undertake it. Few kings have either funds or the good of their people at heart sufficient to conceive and carry out what Mr. Vanderbilt has success­ fully demonistraJted. I do not know how much money he has spent there, nor how much more he intends to in­ vest, but it is one of the grandest un­ dertakings that individual enterprise over attempted, and I understand that it is th^ owner's intention to leave It as a legacy to the public when he can no-longer enjoy it himself. "There are 95,000 acres in the estatu, and every inch of it may be said to be under scientific cultivation, eanbrac- ing every branch of the vegetable king- •dom. Combined with this he had the most perfect system of roadways that I have-ever seen, and you can drive .100 ,n>Hes over macadamized pavement without going off his estate. As an ex­ hibition of landscape gardening it Is without equal.. Fred Law Olmstead has had charge of that branch of the work, and the late Mr. Hunt was the architect of all the buildings, which -for their several uses surpass any that exist on earth. There is no palace in Europe that can equal Mr. Vanderbilt's villa for elegance, comfort and conve­ nience, and he is gathering there a col­ lection of works of art that would make it famous if it had no other attraction. Ills stables, his barns, his dairies, his propagating houses, his henneries and other features of his establishment are all on the same grand scale. He has undertaken to furnish the highest pos­ sible example of the science of food cul­ ture in every one of its branches. Ho has employed the best men he can find to take charge of his experiments and pays them salaries that are commen­ surate with their services. There are Germans and Frenchmen, Italians and Englishmen, as well as Americans, em­ ployed. The foreigners are usually men of high professional reputations who are attached to universities in the old world and spend their vacations •three, four or six months on Mr. Van­ derbilt's estate looking after their re­ spective departments. While the work has not yet been carried far enough to show results, the possibilities of use­ fulness offered by Mr. Vanderbilt's en­ terprise are unlimited. "I consider his work there just as important to the agricultural interests of this country as Che Department of Agriculture at Washington. He em­ ploys-more men than I 'have under my charge, and I think he is spending more money every year than Congress appro­ priates for this department, although 1 do not know his figure^. He has near­ ly a thousand names on' his pay roll &nd we (have about 700. His men are promoted for efficiency according to the •most practical civil service rules. If a man who is employed at a dollar a day to siliovel dirt shows that he is cap­ able of something better his work and his wages are both advanced, and the same rule applies to everybody on the estate. "If there were nothing else to be accomplished, Mr. Vanderbilt is at least •building up an educationnal institution that will furnish scientific farmers and teachers for the instruction of the rest of mankind, and I feel like thanking old Commodore Vanderbilt for having given us a grandson who has the brains and the benevolence to devote his wealth to afford the public such valua­ ble object lessons in art, architucture, agriculture, forestry, viticulture, dairy­ ing, roadimaking and other useful sci­ ences. ,"The people down there talk about the enormous amount of money that Mr. Vanderbilt is investing to gratify "his taste and pride, 'to provide luxur­ ies for his appetite and magnificent dis­ plays to flatter his vanity, but the poor 'creatures do not comprehend the first letter in the alphabet of his ambition. Their vision is not broad enough, their Intelligence is not sufficient to grasp a isingle fragment of the idea he is de­ veloping, and while they imagine that It is all due to selfishness he is a great 'benefactor working for them. They talk about the land being worn out down there in North Carolina. It's the people. The land is all right if brains and energy were applied to its cultiva­ tion." In the Suburbs. Mangles--Is this a church-going town? . Citizen--Yes, siree. Every man in town is a stanch Christian except for an hour every Tuesday and Friday morning. Mangles--What happens then? Citizen--That's the time they meet to trade horses.--New York World. Very Likely. Mrs. Snaggs--In case of war on ac­ count of the Cuban resolutions what would be likely to be the first hostile movement? Mr. Snaggs--I think tihe Madrid Gov­ ernment would capture all our castles in Spain--Pittsburg Chronicle-Tele­ graph. ; Where? Scene--Walihalla Hall. Time--Sunday afternoon. Green Orator--This age demands men who have convictions! Where shall we find them ? Member of Crowd--In jail.--Ex­ change. Women Revivalists. Two young unmarried women have been conducting a revival at Malta Bend, Mich., during the past week or so, and with "wonderful" results. Among, the many converts are several men more than 70 years old. to Very Proper. "Is Spenwell a proper °person know?' . . "Certainly; he always has plenty of money with him."--To-Date. Experience proves tha't it is easier to get a wife tiy advertising than It i* to get a situation. . TURKISH OFFICIALDOM. An American Painter's Experience with the Policy. F. Hopkinson Smith contributes to the Century a paper entitled "A Person­ ally Conducted Arrest in Constanti­ nople,", giving his experiences'with the police in that city^ He was "personally conducted" by a dragoman of the Min­ ister of Police to see that he did not sketch any forbidden scenes. But he managed to elude the vigilance of the official on several occasions, as some of his illustrations will show. Of his in­ terview with the Minister of Police, Mr. Smith writes:' At the end of a flight , of wooden steps crowded with soldiers, a long, Wide hall, and a dingy room, I found the chief dragoman of the Minister of Police- not a dragoman after the order* of Cas- imir, but a dragoman who spoke seven languages and had the manners of a diplomat: In Constantinople there are of course dragomans and dragomans. Each em­ bassy has one as an interpreter. Many of them are of high rank, the German dragoman being a count. These men, as translators, are intrusted, of course, with secrets of great moment. Every consulate has a dragoman, who trans­ lates the jargon of the East--Arabic, Turkish, modern Greek, Bulgarian pa­ tois, and the like'--into intelligent Eng­ lish, French, or German; and so* has every high native official with much or little to do w ith the various nationali­ ties that make up the Ottoman empire and its neighbors. There are, too, the modern guides called dragomans, Who interpret in many tongues, and who lie in all. When appealed, to, this high-caste dragoman of the minister said evasively that he believed he remembered Casi- mir--he was not sure, fit -"was nec­ essary, however, for me, before ap­ proaching his Excellency, to be armed with a passport and a letter from my consul vouching for my standing and integrity. Something might then be done, although the prospect was not cheering; still, with a wave of his hand and a profound bow, he would do his utmost. I instantly produced my passport--I always wore it in my inside pocket, over my heart--and at once called bis attention to the cabalistic signature of" the official who had vised it on the day of my arrival--three wiggles and a dot, a sign manual bearing a strong resem­ blance to an angleworm writhing in great agony. The next day--there is not the slight­ est hurry in the East--I handed in my second document, emblazoned on the seal with the arms of my country, and certifying to my peaceful and non-revo­ lutionary character, my blameless life, and the harmless nature of my calling. Seated at a common folding desk lit­ tered with papers, surrounded by sec­ retaries and officers, sat a man perhaps fifty years of age, with calm, resolute, clear-cut face and an eye that could have drawn the secrets from the sphinx. He was neatly dressed In dark clothes, with plain black necktie. The only spots of color about him were a speck of red in his buttonhole and the ver­ milion fez that crowned his well-mod­ eled head. In his hand he held the con­ sul's letter and my passport and visit­ ing card. For an instant he bored me full of holes, and then with a satisfied glance motioned me to a seat. Casimir, who had preceded me, was bent double In profound obeisance, his head almost on the floor. I returned his Excellency's glance as fearlessly as I could, and sat down to look him over. At this instant a clerk entered with Some papers and advanced rapidly toward his desk. The interruption evidently was inoppor­ tune, for the same eye that had compre­ hended my entirety shot an angry look at the intruder, who stopped, wavered, and then, shriveling up like a burned leaf, glided back out of the room. Not a word was spoken by either. The power of the eye had been enough. When I crossed the Galata bridge the following morning I was attended by two men: one the ever-suppliant Casi­ mir, carrying my outfit as triumphantly as if it contained the freedom of the city, and the other a thick-set, broad- shouldered man with a firm, deter­ mined face and quick, restless eyes, whom the gendarmes saluted with marked respect as we passed. This was Mahmoud, attached to tlie minis­ ter's personal staff, and now detailed for special duty in my service. He was responsible for my conduct, the char­ acter of my work, and my life, with full power to strike down any one who molested me, and with equal power to hurry me to the nearest lock-up if I departed a hair-line from the subjects which, by the graciousness of his chief, I was permitted to paint. The sketches on these pages would never have been possible except for his ceaseless care and constant watchfulness of me. A Mohammedan crowd is not always con­ siderate of an infidel dog, especially when he is painting sacred mosques and tombs. Morevoer, stones vare conven­ ient missiles when such giaours are about! The Holstein-Jersey Cross. This cross is often tried, and with va­ ried succe«*s, says the Practical Dairy­ man. Occasionally a good animal is obtained, but, as a rule, the results are disappointing. In the first place, the types of the breeds are too wide apart. The Jersey gives a small amount of rich milk containing large fat globules, while the Holstein gives a large flow of thin milk in which the rat globules are small. In the cross-bred animal, the fat gtlobules are found to be of various sizes, some small and some large, and for this reason the cream does not sep­ arate rea<diV^ from the milk by any gravity process, nor does itghurn uni­ formly. In writing upony£Ms cress in in exchange, Solomon Hoxie, a noted Holstein judge and writer, says that the cross of medlumrweight Holstein bulls on Jersey cows Is a success, but that Jersey bulls on Holstein cows do not. produce nearly so^good results. Ruined by Relic Hnnters. The furnishings of the historic palace of Henry VIII., at Hampton Court, are being taken away in bits by visitors from America and the continent. Some beautiful tapestry chairs have been de­ stroyed, and even valuable tapestries have been ruined by the insatiate relic hunters, through lack of an adequate force of attendants. We often wish that people would pay less attention to religion, and more to gentility. ' '