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9" The first party to travel on the Niger from its upper waters to its mouth reached the sea about the middle of October, almost exactly 105 years after Mungo Park had first stood on its bank afiter months of weary marching. The world has known since 1879 in wh‘aJt district the third largest of Alfrica’s river takes [ts rise, but its actual sources were not discovered till last; year. The fact that more than a cen- tury elapsed after a white explorer; discovered the river before it was trac- ? ed from its source to its mouth shows that geographic knowledge sometimes grows very slowly. For many years the Niger River was the great conundrum of African geography. Nobody knew where its waters reached the sea, but many geographical experts had the wildest theories on the subject. Some of them thought it entered the Sahara and Lost its waters in the sands; oth- ers, that it flowed into Lake Tchadt Mungo Park evolved Uhe fantastic idea that it was the upper part of the Con- go, and the ill-fated Tuckey expedition, sent out by England in 1816, was in-‘ structed to ascend the Congo to the Niger. Some of the most famous African ex« '1 plorers, including m Laing, Clap-o perton, and Deniha’m, made great dis-a coveries in other directions while they were really seeking to solve tlhe Iprob-a lem of the Niger. The only result of their Niger investigations was a fresh! crop of erroneous theories. One of them conjectured that the Niger reach- ed the Atlantic through the Volta, and another through the Lahgos, while Bow- ditch revived the Oantgo hypothesis. All these speculations were duly recorded an the maps, and the cartographic de- lineation of the Niger from 1791 to 1832 is something won-derflul to contemplate. It would seem to be a simple matter to keep to the river when once it was' reached, and follow it to its destination; but that was the very thing the ex~ plorers were unable to do. For one reason or other their advance was checked befiore the clue to the mystery was obtained. 3 Explorers have sometimw amused themselves by ridiculing “armchair" geographers, who, in the quiet of their studies, criticise and comment upon the work of men in the field. The fact is that stayâ€"at-‘hio'ime geographers do as much, in their Spheres, to advance geo- graphic knowledge as explorers do in theirs; and it was the German geogra- pher Reichard, in his library at home. who solved the Niger riddle, some fif- teen years before the Lander brothers, in 1832 proved his assertion true. Ev- erybody knew of the numerous little rivers emptying into the Gulf of Benin, and they were supposed to be indepen- dent stneams of small importance. But Reichard said that the long stretch of coast where these streams reached the ocean was the sea front of a {great delta, and that the Oil rivers were no- thing but the subdivisions of the mighty Niger. That was true, and we now know that the Niger delta is the largest in Africa. In recent years the French have floated down the Upper Niger and planted their flag in the forbid- den city of Timbuctoo, and this is the point from which one of their parties Marvellous Piece of )lecllanlsm Introduc- (‘1! Into the British Army. The au‘tooar is a new military con- veyance intended for use over ordinary roads and level ground. It is driven by a sixteen horse-power hot air (motor, and carries two machine guns, four men, and 5.000 rounds of ammunition. \Vhen called upon these guns can grind out seven hundred shots a min- ute. To accomplish this the marksman has only to sight the gun and blaze away, since in place of. the crank being turned by hand, as in the ordin- ary, everyday machine gun, the motor on the autocar does the work both faster and better, while the speed of firing can instantly be regulated from fifty to seven hundred rounds per minute. The armour covering the men and the machine is of regulation bullet-proof thickness; in fact, experiments by the British \Var Office have demonstrated that it will stand light artillery fire, though to make the safety of the auto- earists ever greater, the men While fir- lng are protected by easements similar to those used in the navy. The two men not actually engaged in regulat- mg and Sighting the guns find shelter below the armour belt, and When only one gun is in. action the remaining gun- ner also retu'es behind the Harveyiz- ed steel plating of the machine’s ar- mour belt. In tests over ordmary roads in Eng- land this autocar, with two guns, equip- ments, ammunition. and four men. has been safely driven at an average speed of 25 miles an hour. “Then the idea of using cycle mounted soldiery was: first broached to military authontiw 1t was thought that men thus mounted could only be used in actual warfare, as_ despatch-carriers and- memngers, but 11: has been demon- strated by the .most thorough tests abroad that time class of soldiery can do much more than this. Thay can be sent in advance of the main body of_ an U“ W‘UO “In tests over ordinary roads in Eng- 01‘ cement, macadam'approaches E0 the land this autocar, with two u_n",e ui - creamery le' the milk wagons, a. ments, ammunition, and fougr nieni1 his lawn that Will cost a few hundred dol- been safely driven at an average speed lars. cropped 01083 31,1(1 clean by the boys 0f 25 miles an hour. in the creameryi HIS butter maker “71131 \Vhen the idea of using cycle mounted have to know 11,13, busmess from aprac- soldiery was first broached to military tical and sclentlflc standpomt, and the authorities it was thought that men man at the receivmg can Wlll have the thus mounted could only be used in Power Of a 0231‘- Bad null: w111 be sent actual warfare, as despatch-carriers back to the patron With Grape on the and messengers, but it has been demon- can. This creamery Inan Will be called Strated by the most thorough tests a. crank, but people W111 come hundreds abroad that this class of soldiery can of 1111196, t0 .888 his creamery, and 1ts do much more than this. Thay can be reputation W111 soon become known am- sent in advance of the main body of an 00% _the eastern .merohants,. who an army at more than twice the speed of lookmg for 3 Bil-Perlatlvely fme article, the finest cavalry in the world, to seize and the. strangest thing of all W111 be astrategic position or to defend or 118- that this man will. .1); ligand make A __ - 12.3.1.2-.. 1-..-n kiss-.3 sun-mu mifih 37:: mm . m ' fia-‘j' N'C’ TES AND COMIHENTS. now descended the nver to the sea. DESIGNED FOR WARFARE. FEBflNLNE DAIRY \VISDDM. Salting regularl'y is one very import- ant matter in the dairy. change both in quantity and quality 0f milk can be noticed. A still better plan is to keep it where each cow can help therself Whenever she desires. The best cows are always the neavy feeders. If they eat heartily and are healthy, and do not lay on fat, you may be sure that it is going somewhere, and you will always find it in the milk pail. Good, regular care will count; now. Breeding and natural capacity are pow- erless to contribute to successful stock raising unless accompanied by though-t- fulness, intelligence and regular care. Merit is not proof against neglect, starvation and abuse. Give a. cow just enough to keep her alive and how can she fill the milk pail? Too many unoBserving' men expect this, and then wonder Why they are P09} cuse for such practices, and is there any other business that will permit 1t? direction for _prqsp_e_rity. . 'W’inté‘f butter productibn is more pro- fitable than summer; then Why not be a wmter producer? .‘Don’t let the heifers form the habit of drying up early. \Vith. plenty of food and good care they will milk nearly the year round.” 1 £__-_‘-__ A Wfinfi @156?" Tiéai‘l; brushjng and gleaming 0t every cow; There IS .noth- mg llke pure, simple, old-fashioned cleanliness. v“- Be sure that linseed meal forms pay: of thJe‘ngau‘l ragtlf‘m inow. ___‘... A“ Get special customers for your butter and furnish it every week. It is worth a few cents per pound to the customer to know that they are eating pure, clean butter, and not oleo or some other manufactured stuff, and there is a. big difference between cash and trad- ing out butter. Keep from food twenty-four hours. Kill by bleeding in the mouth or open- ing the veins in the neck; hang by the feet until properly bled. The head and feet should be left on and the intestines and crop should not be drawn. For scalding poultry the water should be as near the boiling point as possible without actually boiling; pick the legs dry before scalding; hold by the head‘ and legs and immerse and lift up and down three times; if the head is im- mersed it turns the colour of the comb and gives the eyes a shrunken appear- ance, which leads buyers to think the fowl has been sick. The feathers and pin feathers should be removed immed- iately, very cleanly and without break- ing the skin, then “plump" by dipping ten seconds in water nearly or quite boiling hot, and then immediately into cold water; hang in a cool place until the animal heat is entirely out. It should be entirely cold, but not frozen, before being packed. Dry picked chick- ens and turkeys sell best, and we ad- lvise this way of dressing, as they sell lbetter to shippers; scalded chickens and turkeys generally are sold to the local trade. To dry pick chickens and turk- eys properly the work should be done while the bird is bleeding; do not wait to let the bodies get cold; dry picking is more easily done while the bodies are warm. Be careful and do not break and tear the skin. Pack in boxes or barrels; boxes holding 100 to 200 pounds are preferable, and pack snugly; straighten out the body and legs so that ’they will not arrive very much bent and twisted out of shape; fill the pack- age as full as possible to prevent shuf- fling about on the way. Mark kind and weight and shipping directions neatly and plainly on the cover. Barrels an- .wer better for chickens and ducks than Q ent avoid putting more than one kind in a package.- Endeavor to market all old and heavy cocks before January 1st, as after the holidays the demand is for lsmall, round, fat hen turkeys only, old toms being sold at a discount to can- ners. Some day, some time, a man with brains and an air of cleanliness about him will come along and locate in a community where creameries are own- ed and operated by that class of farmers who think that “anything is good enough for a creamery," and this clean, shrewd man will build a creamery that will be so fine in its appointments from cellar to garret that it will make all the others look like soap factories; He will adopt the modern ideas of the beast posted men in the country. He will spend dollars Where farmers have spent dimes, he will have tiled floors, por- celain walls, an office for the butter maker, a_ labopztory for the milk test- ingnp'erfeot drainége and ventilation. He will have mv_1tmg walks_of grayel THEN BUTTER “ILL BE GOOD. THE FARM HOW TO DRESS POULTRY. are always the heavy THE DURHAM CHRONICLE, Jan, 14,1397. ‘Nhen the hog has stopped putting on flesh or fat he must be disposed of, no matter what the market, for after that period all food given is Practically wastâ€" ed. But the case is different with sheep. After reaching their maximum weight and condition as to flesh they will eat but little, and that is amply paid for in the increase in quantity and qmauty of wool.- Besides, prices of mut- ‘ton sheep are always better after the weather begins to_ get . warm! ‘as mirt- ton is moré’ of a hot than cold weath- er food. Again, the market will pay more for nicely Show and well handled wool than the butchers will; and wool can be more cheaply freighted when packed on sacks than when on the sheep’s back. Another consideration is, Shorn sheep, if well fattened, will sell for more than u-nshorn, for the former can be seen by the butter at a glance, while the latter must be carefully in- spected one by one. And lastly shorn sheep will ship more comfortably and 'be in better condition when reaching market than unshorn._ These consid- erations make alfl-wmter feeding most desirable . The Most Formiclahle Fleet Ever Seen in This Hemisphere to be Gathered. Gen. Gascoigne, commanding the Can- adian militia, remarked the other day that the talk over the Venezuelan trouble has opened England’s eyes to the condition of the defences of Canada. For some time correspondence has been passing between the two Governments on the subject, with a View of putting the fortifications of the Dominion on a more warlike footimg. It is understood that a second regi- ment of infantry will be sent out to Halifax and another to British Colum- bia. " A number of new fortifications will be built at different points along the Atlantic seaboard as well as on the coast of Newfoundland as part of the imperial policy. The squadron on the North American station will bestreng- thened to fifteen ships exclusive of tor- pedo destroyers, a number of which have been put into commission for the North Atlantic station. The latest ad- dition to this feet is the cruiser Inde- fatisgable. The cruiser Phaeton, which goes into commission in January will iprobably be sent to Halifax; She is of 4,300 tons and carries ten 6-inch 100- pounder‘ quick-firing guns. The ships on this station winterintgw at Bermuda at present are the Cres- cent, 7,700 tons, 20 :knots; Talbot. 5.1300 tons, 20 knots; Intrepid, 3,600 tons, 20 knots; Indefatigable, 3,600 tons, 20 knots; Pallas, 2,575 tons, 19 knots;'Cordelia, 2.- 380 tons, 10 knots; Tartar, 1,170 tons. 17 knots; Buzzard, 1,140 tons, 12 knots; Partridge ,755 tons, The Ezgeria has bee-n ordered out to this station to join the Rambler in surveyi work. The above list has no reference to torpedo or surâ€" vey boats. The Renown, which is ex- pected to be commissioned for the North American station, is of 12,350 tons, 18 knots speed. ‘I Comrnenting on the proposed strength- enlng of the coast and naval defence of Canada, the Halifax Herald saysi ‘ “Within twelve months it is firmly believed the squadron of British ships at Halifax will be the most formidable assemblage- of modern ships of war ever seen in this hemisphere. The arma- ment of all the new ships is most destruc- tive. Their speed, fine lines, and bunk- er capacity, and their armament will enable them to maintain command of the seas, and either from Halifax,Louis- burg, St. John’s, N.F., or Bermuda to pref upon western ocean commerce at W1 ." How Ibifierem. People Get Along “'Slhout Them. Most people believe that the habit of sitting down as practised by themseLves is a common human habit, old as the race itself, in no way associated with civilization. But Frederick Boyle, Who seems to have one of these inquiring minds that are not content to accept things as they are without first trac- in‘g causes and history, contends that sitting down is an acquired habit that marks the height of civilization. ’He estimates that even at the pre- sent day not more than 10 per cent. of humankind practice sitting on the European plan. Men who do not sit have two atti- tudes for resting; women use one of their own.; Squa'tting “on the heel” is favored in India and China. In this position the weight of the body falls upon the toes, and to keep the balance comfortable the arms must hang over the knees, the hands danglingq A Eur- opean trussed in this manner promptly feels a pain in his, calves, but he can understand that habit makes it a rest- ful posture. In fact, the colliers of Eng- hand use it_ altogethen _ I ‘ The cross-legged attitude is general from Siam eastward through the Malay countries. In the jungle men crouch the knew raised, the arms folded over them, and the chin resting on the arm. The ivome-n of that region rest upon the floor with the knees bent sideways, thus throwing the weight on the outer part; of one thighâ€"a mighty uncomfort- able posture to a. civilized Caucasian; Chairs really seem to be no more ne- cessary to the race than pianos. The most remarkable gold beetles in the world are found in Central Amer- ica. The head and Wing cases are bril- liantly polished with a luster as of gold itself. To sight and touch they have all the seeming of metal. Oddly en- ough, another species from the same regiOn has the" appearance of being FLATTENING SHEEP. CANADA’S DEFENCE. CHAIRS AS A LUXURY. THE GOLD BEETLE. .A middle-aged man, with what ap- peared to be. a load on his mind, visited an arctic steamer and seemed inter- ested in what he saw. Isay, he said, to the officer on deck, I’d like to go on the next expedition. It’s awfully cold up there, remark- ed the officer disoouragingly. I don’t care about that. You’d have very little to eat and might have to starve. That wouldn’t be pleasant, said the visitor. I should say not, returned the offi- cer, and you might be eaten by your comrades. _ I_s that so? That woufld be distinctly And then, continued the officer, you wouldn’t see your Wife for three years and possibly longer. You know you can’t take her with you. “fell, returned the gentleman, after a long pause, I think you can put me down on your books. Your last argu- ment captured me. THE GREAT FAMINES IN HISTORY. The threatened famine in India re- calls others that have occurred within historic times. In Britain, in 272, the people were forced to eat the bark of trees. Again, in 310. 40,000 died through starvation in the same country. In It- aly, ,in 450, parents ate their children. In England, in 1315, the people devour- ed the flesh of horses, dogs, cats, and vermin. At Cape Verd, in 1775, 16,000 starved to death. India has had many great famines. In 1837-38, 800,000 per- ished; in 1860-1, many thousands more; in Bengal and Orissa, 1n 1865-6, the deaths from starvation aggregated 1,- 000,000; in Rajpoatana, etc., in 1868-9, the deaths wereO1,500,000, and in 1877 about 500,000 perlshed in Bombay, Ma- dras, Mysore. etc. In the same year the famine in northern China was so great that 9,500,000 are said to have I periShled. A GLORIOUS OPPORTUNITY. Our Manufacturing Interests MP. James Bphyley Speaks for the public good. Our representative interviewed Mr. James Brayley, of Hamilton, at his office, 58 King William Street. Mr. Brayley is an enterprising business man, and one of Hamilton’s foremost manufacturers. His goods, Saddlery hard- ware, punches, dies, etc., are known from Halifax to Vancouver, and stand very high in the estimation of the trade. Mr. Brayley said: “For years I have been troubled with gravel and weakness of the kidneys. I had to stand up and clench my teeth when urinating, so intense was the pain. The pains around my loins where almost intolerable, and I felt as though a cat were being pulled down my back by the hindlegs. This is the stamp that the letter bore W'hich carried the story far and Wide, Of certain cure for the loathsome sore “ I went from bad to worse till at last I could not urinate at all, and. had to be Operated on. I had no confidence in anything, and made up my mind to sufier torture to my dying day. Reading the testimony published by the Dean Kidney Pills 00., I saw a similar case to my own, and. being in constant agony, decided to give them a trial, and got a box of the pills from Spackman’s drug store, at the corner of Market Square. “ It did me no good, so I got another, and another, until I had taken four boxes, and was about giving up when relief came. I continued to take them till the pain left my back, and I am now as limber as an eel. Instead of getting up a oozen times a. night I never get up more than once now. The urine is now perfectly dear and has no sediment of any kind. That bubbled up from the tainted tide Of the blood below. And ’twas Ayer’s name And his sarsaparilla, that all now, know, That was just beginning its fight of fame w ith its cures of 50 years agoa is the original sarsaparilla. It has behind it a. record for cures unequalled by any blood puri- fying compound. It is the only sarsaparilla honored by a medal at the World’s Fair of 1898. Others imitat e th e remedy; they can’t imitate the TOGO? Ayer’s Sarsaparilla What a. Hamilton Manufacturer Has to Say. 59 Years of Cures. THE PROPER POLICY. Fifty Years Ago. FROST 6:; WOOD, WILKINSON, MAXWELL, Buggies, Road Darts, Waggnns, Stoves}. and Musical nsfiruments All kinds of {hailes McKinnun, UPPER TOWN, What The People A. GORDON, Watchmaker and Jeweler In CONSUMPTION and all LUNG O DISEASES, SPII‘TING or Bmooo. coven. Loss 05‘ APPETITE. 0 namurn’. the hem-ms ofthis a. article are most manifest. Bythe aid of The “D. L." Emulsion. I have got 9 rid of a. backing cough which had troubled me for . over a. year, and have gained amusiderahly in . weight. I liked this Emulsion so we}; I was glad . when the time came around to take it. ’ T. H. W'INGHAM, C.E., Montreal . 500. and $1 per Bottle 9 DAVIS LAWRENCE 60., 3.13., MONTREAL . OOGGGQQQOOOO Do without Implements. becausa they can’t saw or reap profitably wny somany aeaxwlm ugh]! buy forwahandlell atamodew profit. We keep in stock in our Big Warerooms in Upper Town. all kinds of Farm Impletnentn. in- cluding the makes of IN THE TOWN OF DURHAM, IMPLEMENT AGENT, BE SURE AND CALL. EDGE PROPERTY \Vhen they go to buy an article is to find the price in accord- ance with the time. Our prices are always low All we ask is an honest profit Has your clock gone astray or is your watch not keeping time? Bring them to us and we Will set them right. Repairs kept on hand and other well- known manufacturers. EMULSION“ DURHAM