CAROLINA.
Mountaineer.
4
VOL. IX.
AIORGANTON, N. C, SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 1884.
NO. 15.
" irijf sftotirf'f jr."
canary sing tlie whole d:iy long,
ifhiatl lils gi'.JeJ bars,
t in t o:n all that birds enjoy
I"
The
O
11
n!er the sun and stars;
iivilom, frr.ice anl action fine
; wi.d biriWhc foregoes,
site of that, with happiness
1? little heart ocrfl'wa.
: The world is wide;
AnJ birds outside
In happy cheer always abide
AViV shouldn't IT"
I, too, m :st dwell behind thebaic
in Kil and sacrifice;
From heavy heart end weary brain
My pin ers or scngs arise ;
lv;t all aroim 1,'sad hearts abound,
VnJ troubles worse than mine,
I; jtnlit of c.-inf rt I can bring
i them, shall I repine?
Gods world is wide;
If 1 1 an h;de
The crowding tears and sing beside,
W hy shouldn't 1?
The Major's Discomfiture,
ity-five is not so very old. Xo(
inleeil!
It' i-ne is still straight, with a ser
i.eal lj eve and a tolerable hearing,
m addition to a well-filled pocket book,
why. what is sixty-five?
I'o count sixty-live distinct summers,
iu s-ixty-five mellow autumns, that
drowse into peaceful winters and
av.akea in refreshing springs, is a
great privilege. Think of the accu
mulation of idea3 and experiences,, of
friends and memories. A rare age,
surely, to be enjoyed in spite of rheu
matic twinges.
Major "Weatherbeam, buttoning his
elegant fall overcoat about him as be
strode down the avenue under the
maples, was sure he would not give
his ripe perfection for the callow and
tasteless experience of the past. He
smiled up at the bright foliage, and
knocked the head off a straggling aster
in his complacency. He found a dime
for a little boy peeping, wide-eyed, into
a candy-shop, and stood still to watch
the urchin as he bolted for the door,
and nodded in good fellowship to a
woman who watched with him amused.
The major's little terrier ; followed for
' ence, quite iinrebuked,"and turned
with him up a broad macadamized
srteet at the right. The lirm stride
traversed two blocks quickly, and
paused before a brown stone mansion,
with a pine-dotted lawn in front. One
naturally puffs" a little at the end of a
long walk, whether one is sixty-five or
net, and if by nature discrtet,
pauses awhileTo regain the breath be
fore venturing to call on ladies. Any
tidy man will dust his clothes a little
with his handkerchief, and twist his
moustache a trifle when he v.ishes to
look welt- The major presses the bell
beside the stately door, and stands
erect. A little pause folio ws, in which
he listens to the wind running the
gafaiit of ellin melody in those grouped
;iaei; then 'the heavy doors unfold; a
salute no younger man could imitate;
an inqiury, and closed doors again,
with the major inside. The mansion
is divided hi quarters by two huge
halls, and a wile fireplace gives forth
a glorious radiation of heat and light
over the statues and frescoed walls.
The major seats himself before, the
blaze, and counts the tiles and de
ciphers the inscriptions about the
mantel. There is a rustle of silk skirt.!
and a tap of feet on the oak stairs
The major rises, with a sudden rush Of
blood to the head not apoplectic
surely andj salutes the red-draped
figure through the interstices' of the
balustrade.
He handed the ladv down-the last
m
steps, and led her across the hall, while
a green parrot hopped at her heels.
"Miss Margery" his voice watf like
a violoncello "it is not usiSal for a
business aiAiA-ie myself to call on a
hdy of an afternoorj."
"Therefore, sir, is the honor all the
greater;" poising one toe on the fender
to aid her balance in the high-seated
leather chair.
"Therefore is the nedd great, my
dear young lady."
"Oh! ha! ba! ha!" in musical staccato
from the high-backed chair. At sixty
five one is too dignified to like such a
laugh in connection with one's self.
"Yes, Miss Wheatcroft, I felt I could
not, in justice to you or myself, remain
longer without confessing to you my
ittitade towards you."
"Oh, how kind of you," Very sincere
ly. "I looked I looked for you all day
yesterday, sir" a little hurriedly with
the red deepening .about the dimples.
The major's head gave an inyolunr
taryjerk. Girls were, once, more de
corous. His deceased Julia Ann
would never have shown such im-
pulsiveness. Yet it must be confessed
'twas extremely flattering; and 'then,
good heavens, what eyes! The apoplec
tic symptoms returned.
"Miss Margery, how gracious of you
t( say sd rm sure i never hoped
es, and I was mak?-T all sorts of
lUns for us tv,. me tiownj
Major, she's trying to pull your hair!
Look out, sir; she'll scratch you!
Here, give her to me! There, Miss
Toll, you sit on my chair. You can't
pull my hair, because 1 don't reach up
high enough 1 a! ha! ha! eh, Major?"
her teeth gleaming out in the glow
from the cedar fire. "Yes, I was
thinking, you see, how proud I should
be of you. You are so tall, and now,
don't mind, for I'm going to flatter you
all the rest of your days and so hand
some! And how proud I hoped you
would be of me!" (A half-rising atti
uJs on the part of the major, who is
forgetting decorum, and how girls
were forty years ago.)
"Oh, major, you are finding the blaze
too hot How stupid of ma to let you
roast in that manner. Here, let me
put up the screen. Isn't it a pretty
one? I embroidered it myself. See
it represents an Italian princess under
an ilex tree. I think she looks a trifle
like your son, Ned, only, of course, he's
not done in Kensington. "Well, I was
planning that once in a while, on very
grand occasions, you might take me
out with you "
"Once in a tchile, madam?' The
major was a vast substantial protest.
"Oh, I know, of course, what you
think you have to say. But don't do
it. Besides, we couldn't leave Ned be
hind very often." A lurking laugh, in
j the corners of two brown eyes. "Or,
; he might go with Aunt ' Maria, eh ?
Oh o o o!"
Tfcejcajor couldn't see anything fun-
t in that commonplace arrangement.
J "My aear Miss Margery" (Con
I found those chairs! A man couldn't
move them an inch without getting red
! in the face, they were so heavy.)
"you are surely determined to defraud
; me of my share of the conversation,
j though I cannot tell you bow relieved
j I am to find you prepared to receive
! my overtures. I confess there were
! moments when I feared you might be
! less fond of me on account of the dis
I parity of our ages "
"Why, goodness, it wouldn't seem
half so lovely any other way! That's
just the nicest part of it!" How that
presumptuous firelight clambered up
froni her' little" feet to the dimples in
her hands and the rosy folds about her
neck, and, climbing still, stopped at
her rosier lips! Her last sentence, and
thefirelight stopping right there,where
it did, made the major gasp.
"This is one of the most delightful
surprises of my life," he went on,
when he could speak. "I want to. tell
you how fondly I shall cherish you;
how earnestly I shall strive to gratify
every wish that you can make, how
truly proud I shall be of my beautiful
young "
"Oh, stop! You praise me more
than I can ever deserve." Two limpid
tears showed through the gathering
bloom. "I never dared .hope you
would receive me so tenderly. I am
coming right over there, sir and
right behind your chair fo on my
ip-toes. and put one little kiss
ike thatl on your dear old forehead."
The major grew more agile than he
had been for twenty years. Mean
while Poll had got to screaming, and
would not leave off.
"Oh; yes, I'm so thankful you like
me! And. we'll all be so happy to
gether, won't we? And we both are
grateful, I assure you. Here's the
ring he gave me. See! .Two beauti
ful pearls and that twinkling diamond.
Doesn't it look, charming in the fire
light? Ned said don't think rrie sil
ly for telling you that if you were
satisfied with the little wife he had
chosen he believed be would go half
mad with joy. But- really I didn't
Link he'd tell you so soon, for he felt
a little timid about it." A long pause1,
during which the major relaxes his
fatherly embrace somewhat. Then a
venture from a girl: "I'm afraid I've
talked too freely with you! Or, per
haps you feel sad when you remember
Ned is goings to belong tome?" The
head bows so low that the light climbs
to that now.
"But we'll live somewhere near you,
and see you every - day. r "Why must
you be going? Can't you stay to tea.
"Well, button up your coat well.-.; Now,
please give your new child one more
kiss, to tell her that you mean all you
have said. Good-bye! Good-bye!''
How the bird screams. The wind
has iiien very fast, and the pines
strike at each other angrily. There is
a promise of a dismal rain, and the
usk hides all the autumn's beautyy
and leaves only its leaflcssness ap
parent. Sixty-five, sixty-five! At that age it
i3 hard climbing a hill in the teeth of
the wind. Elfa W. Peattie in the
Current.
The London Times says that there
are in England over 300,000 cyclists,
and that the capital invested in the
manufacture of bicycles and tricycles
is about $15,000,000, employing from
6,000 to 10.000 men.
SCIENTIFIC SCIt APS.
In the moon are five mountains over
20,000 feet high, the highvst measur
ing 28,975 feet.
Prof. A. II. Sayce has deciphered an
Assyrian tablet, which gives an ac
count of a transit of Venus, I600year3
B. C.
According to the latest results of the
finest instrumental tests, as to the
propagation of electricity, an electric
signal travels at the rate of 16,000
miles per second. ,;
P. K. Hoy describes the ' manner in
which Indians make their stone im
plements. From an extended series of
experiments with rocks he comes to
the conclusion that all the instruments
thus far found could not have been
made by chipping rocks with round
stones.
It is reported that the decayed and
dead parts of white moss, abundant
in Sweden and Norway, make a much
stronger paper .than can be made from
wood pulp. Perhaps this discovery
may lead to experiments! with the
superabundant trailing moss of our
Southern forests.
Notwithstanding the formidable
economic and meteorological objections
that have been advancad against. the
practicability or utility of any 'such
scheme, Mr Edwin Lowe has again
advcc.ited the firing of cannon and the
use of explosives for bringing about
an increased rainfall in New South
Wales.
After investigations concerning the
relative value of different kinds of an
imal food. Prof. W. O. Atwater has
concluded that fish is as nutritive as
the flesh of land animgls, but that
oysters rank below fish in nutritive
qualities. .
The diameter of trees varies not
only from summer to winter, but from
day to day. They are larger from
noon until' twilight next morning
than from' twilight to noon; they are
smaller .in winter than in summer."
"Water and the "sap of trees expand
r. only in proportion as they rise
above but also as .they go below; the
freezing point. Lowtemperature as
well as high promotes evaporation,
and the "trees evaporate from their
branches in winter, and so the colder
the weather the more they shrink, -
lltt Kraut Got Into West Point.
In a New York letter to the Detroit
Free Press we find the following: "It
was mere accident that put me into
the army," said General Grant ; to an
old comrade. "I hadu t much fight in
me and didn't Avant to go to war. I
thought of being a farmer, and I
thought of going to sea; but of all
the possible futures I dreamed of
when a boy, being a soldier wasn't
among them. I am not sure I had
even heard of "West Point Avhen my
father told me to get ready to go on
for my preliminary examination.
This- is the way it was: Our next
neighbor's boy got a chance' from our
Congressman to go td West Point.
He went and failed to pass the exam
ination fpr physical reasons, I be
lieve. He did noV come home after
that; and the family did not allude to
his failure, but his motherj who felt
very sore about it, came and told my
mother, "confidentially, what was
troubling her.- Mother told father,
and 'father wrote straight to our Con
gressman and got the chance f or me.
0 yes,-"l know that those whq remem
ber my-boyhood tell about my firing s
pistol without flinching when I was
two years, old and trying for more of
it, b'ut I don't think such tendencies
were strong. " I never thought of be
ing a soldier. Going to "West Point
was just the accident I have told you,".
"How oame you to pass the examin
ation?" "Almost arfy boy can do that,"
answered the General. I was 17
years old, and all that" was ' required
wa some knowledge of reading', writ
ing, spelling and arithmetic to deci
mal fractions. If I was superstitious
1 should think there was some fatality
in my going to .West Pointt for when
the war was over I, figured up, and as
near as I could find put ..that liftle
country village -of Georgetown, O
from whichT I went-a place of a
couple of hundredppi&-sent to the
war one full' G'eneral (myself), three
Major-Generals, two Brigadier-Generals,
three Gohonetoi three or four line
officers and one private; soldier!;: .'Tlie
private soldier deserted, I think."
?I-hadno very easy .time of ii'"at
"West Point. In a class of .more than a
hundred I was behind thai,.all in al
most everything. I,nev,er succeeded
in getting.very . near eiWier . the heg,d
or foot of the- tJlass. I;was within
three of the ! foot in languages, I be
lieve and -within five of the head in
mathematics. I was at the head in
horsemanship, but that didn't count.
I graduated as No 21,-and was glad to
get it."
CHINA'S -YOUN.j EMPEROR.
Adoration of the Ruler by His
- Subjects.
Daily Life and Surroundings of the Head
of 250,000,000 People,
The following are extracts from an
interesting article on the Chinese em
pire in the Ladi&rTreasui'y ."-."Upwards
of 1100 vears before ChrisLthe Chinese
were a people ruled by dynasty of
kings, of whom, like the Pharaohs of
Old, there is no clear history, and not
until the 'Chow' dynasty, b. c 1125,' is
there any clear history of the main
Chinese states. The Chinese them
selves take their history back to the
time of Noah. This very ancient em
pire has borne in its time many names
for it was a custom when a new
dynasty ascended the throne to give
another name, to the empire, as Hia
que, Cham-que, Han-que, etc., accord
ing to the name of the ruling monarch
The true name is said to be Chum-quet
the center kingdom of the world.'
This term was by usage corrupted to
Chin-que and from this word the
Portugese gave it the name of China.
In Thibet the country was termed
Catei and the merchants of India call
ed it Cataio. China proper consists of
eighteen provinces, containing 250,
000,000 of people. the artificers in
China, as of old, carry the implements
of their trade from door to door and
perform any work that is required in
the household. Literature is thought
more highly of than ancestry; an in
telligent, well-cultivated man, accord
ing, to Chinese ideas of education, can
rise - to the highest dignities before
birth and wealth alone. The present
emperor of China is of Mongolian de
scent. He was born in 1871 and suc
ceeded to the throne in 1875. He is
now 13 years old and will shortly at
tain his majority. The North China
Herald gives the following account of
this boy, who governs the enormous
population of China: "The Emperor
was vaccinated when an infant, before
his high destiny was thought of;
otherwise it would have been difficult
to vaccinate him, 'or, hi person being
sacred when Emperor, no lancet can
touch him. His mother, the Princess
of Ch'un, who is a sister of the Empress
of thie West, will be raised to. the rank
of Empress of Dowager when he is 16,
and his father will also be made T'ai
shangi Huang. At least, this is to ba
expected by precedeut, so that after
three years we shall have two Em
presses Dowager, but in this case they
wiU be sisters. - The princess, -his
mother, goes in to see him once a
month, and kneels when she first
speaks, but- rises afterwards. His
father does so, too. The Emperor
studies Chinese daily for an hour' and
a lr.ilf, and Manchu also for an hour
and a half. He spends two hours in
archery and riding, and in winter
amuses himself with sledging. . He has
a' little brother of five, whom, it may
be hoped, the mother takes with her
Avhen she goes to the palace. The
teachers who instruct him kneel to
him on entering, but afterwards sit.
The Emperor has eight eunuchs who
constantly attend him, besides an in
definite number for special occasions
He has his meals alone, and the eight
eunuchs wait round him, restraining
him if he takes too much of any one
thing. The present Emperor inhabits
the same apartments in which lived his
predecessor. In these he sleeps on a
large Ningpo bedstead, richly carved
and ornamented with ivory and goid;
the same on which the noble-minded
Emperors Kang Hsi and Chien Lung
used to recline alter the day's fatigue,
last century and the century , before.
Like one of those living Buddhas who
m-y. be seen in a lamasery on the
Mongolian plateau this bxy. Emperor
is fe&elt to by sall"hia' attendants, and
honored as a god. There is this differ
ence, that ...the, respect felt for him is
more prof ound'than'fof' the god. That
j the Emperor "should possess electrical
! machines la, perhaps, something new;
1 but, centuries since, a, large observatory
1 had its place-in, Pekin; also a celestial
'.globe six feet , in diameter (eighteen
feet round)," yielding easily, even to'
the touch of a child. The Chinese h'ad
'lalso a 'Weather Office,' if it can be so
termed, 'where they took notice of the
-winds, rain, eclipses, meteors, and
whatever else is unusual, of which
they gave notice. e very morning to the
Surveyors of the Mathematics that they
might register it.'" Th Chinese knew .
the use of the compass -twelve centuries
. before Christ Marco Polo, a Venetian
brought it into Europe, and with- it a
description, : in A; .p. -1260, that is to
say, upwards of .two? thousand yean
' after HheTChinese'iiime acquainted
witn it. xn.-sizevnina pcc.upt.es one
twelfth part of the entire lancf "surface,
of the globe. " '";-' he-'Chin'ese, '.most of
them, are extremely superstitious, but
perhaps not more so than many other
of the earth's peoples who believe in
efficacy of prayer by proxy. The t
Chinese believe that - their bonzes
(priests who dwell in the monasteries')
have power, oyer- hoaven, earth, life
and death."
The Xavy Yard a Vegetable Garden.
I hear some very good, stories about
the Norfolk Navy-Yard and its com
mandant, whose -predilection for live
stock is the subject of many good
jokes among naval men. I was told
by- a young "sea dog," not long since,
that the yard had been converted
into a rural paradise. Hogs, cows,
chickens and turkeys roam at large
among the awful implements of war.
A small island near the yard is devoted
to agriculture, and all the vegetables
for the officers' mess are grown on this
piece of public domain. Praiseworthy
economy, isn't it? It is a standing
joke that the commandant is feeding up
his hundred or more turkeys for the
purpose of mounting the marines and
drilling them in cavply practice.
The funniest thing of all happened
a few weeks ago. Two of his
cows got loose one dark night and
started out for a lark. They took it
into their bovine heads to run a race
along the main avenue of the yard.
A sentry stationed about the middle
of the avenue heard the noise, and,
with his mind full of general up
risings and bloodly massacres, timidly
called out "halt," but the noise drew
nearer to him. His " knees began to
knock together and his hair to stand
on end. He wildly shrieked for the
corporal of the guard. The whole
force turned out and with great diffi
culty captured, the breakers of the
peace. When the co.ws were brought
to bay the men didnt know whether
to laugh or swear. They did a little
of both and were satisfied. I tell you
the navy should certainly be well sup
ported when its men have nothing
better to do than herd cows and attend
to the wpnts of live stock generally.
Washington Capital.
Solace of Sitting in the Firelight.
"I think the time is coming." said a
builder, "when houses will be f urnished
with more open grates and fireplaces
than they are today. Of late years
everything has been running to hot-air
furnaces and steam-heating apparatus,
aad the" system of warming flats has
been reduced to a science. But only
those who have been brought up in
the country can realize the charni of
the big, wide fireplace" with its crack--ling
back logs and re I hot embers
that form themselves into so many
fantastic shapes to fascinate the family
gathered around. ,; What do they see
there, what thoughts does the fire sug
gest.that all who gather around it soon-,
er or later find themselves staring va.
cantly 'at it, oblivious to all surround
ings? What is more consoling than to
blow out the lamp, or to turn out the
gas. and sit by the firelight alone with
one's heels perched upon' the fender?
There's little of that in the city, but I
believe there is going to be more of it
not open fireplaces, but grates.
"Do you know how we build fires in
Vermont? No! Well, our fireplaces in
the country sometimes take up a whole
side of the hoaie.- On each side is a
door big enough; to drive a wagon
through, and when we want a fire we
just open: one door, drive in, unload
the wagon in the fireplace, and drive
put the other door. One load will last
about a day. .That's what I call liv
ing." lit tea Herald'..
' .'' .at
Honey Dew Ftrltitog iA Kevaila.
Some time - since, says: the-Austin
Reveille, 'vQ published an. item to the
effect that a Keno farmer had a peeu
Jiar kind of grass iMch.. was so full. of :
honey- that it ; clogged the .knives when
being cut, , and that rCdttle was very
fond of it. .',.4!h,e .time wetffqught it
was very peculiar,..bvt :a.yen-in'formecl
granger, of , Grass galley informs us
that itis very comradn. "'lie saw it at
Walker Lake in I860, ahd'"he has had
i every year on, his ranch and the
ranchers in his" vicinity tnink nothing
ofit. '-liT'.-TV"..-:.'?:'
: He brftught us a bunch of grass,
willow' "branches and weeds; which hid
so much of the sugar honey that they
had matted together, and after handling
them ' the hand1 became -sticky;- It
tastes sweet in its natural state, and, is
much prized by? the: Indians, who in,
dustriously gather it.. , It is evidently
a dew, because it is found on every
kind of shrub, and is not confined to
any par.icular locality. We have no
theory to advance for it, but content
ourself by stating a simple facti'
-' A Big Vulture.
Arthur Spring, of . Monticello, Santa
Barbara county, California, killed, a
vulture the other day which measured
from tip to tip of its wings,, nine feet
nine inches; its..talons between eight
and ten inches, and the carcass weigh-
ied thirty, pounds. It was capable pf
carrying off to its hiding place a full
grown sheep, and is said to be the
largest specimen of its kind ever killed
in Santa Barbara' county.
A FAMOUS CITY IN JAPAN.
A
United States Consul Tells
About Kumamoto.
Its Garden, Bridge Bathing Placas and
Great Castle Described.
A very interesting description of a
famous Japanese city is. given by
United States Consul Alexander C.
Jones. He says: . .
Ivumamoto is an inland city, about
seven miles, from the gulf. Its sea
port, Hiyakwan, a small village,. .'but
of considerable activity, has the draw
back of bad fiarbor. Vessels of the
lightest draught cannot ap; roach near
er than half a mile. I am informed,
however, that a new and excellent har
bor lower down the coast has been
found and surveyed, from which a
road to Kumamoto will be builtby the
time the province is opened.
Kumamoto is a "very attractive city.
It is situated on a plain with two fine
rivers running through it, over which
there are many curious stone bridges
The houses have terraced gardens .. to ;
the water's : edge, and the streets are
planted in shade trees. In the sum-
! mer evenings the rivers are alive with
pleasure boats. Of an afternoon you
may see half the population of both
sexes bathing together, in high glee,
innocent of any garments and uncon
scious of any shame.
Just outside of the city is & public
garden of considerable extent, laid out
in the inimitable style of the Japanese
in lake and grove and mountain and
waterfall.
In the center of the city, built on a
high, -conical hill, is a famous castle
that commands the approaches in all
directions. A broad, swif c river
sweeps its base on two sides, and with
deep, wailed ditches defend the Other
sides. The castle walls, of massive
stone work, rise, on terraces, rampart
after rampart, from the base to the
summit. Itwasouiltin 192 by Kat
Kiyomassa, a celebrated warrior of the
time, and. has withstood more than
one obstinate siege. The last wa3 in
1877S during the Satsu ma rebellion,
when Gen. Saigo threw his artillery
against it in vain. ,
The Governor of Kumamoto, who
was .an inmate of the castle and one pf
its defenders in this siege, is the au.
thority to me for the story that the
garrison;, having . entirely exhausted
.their supplies,, had killed and eaten
their horses, and these being finished,
were again reduced to the famishing
point, when one night, at their direst
extremity, every cat in the neighbor
hood swain the river, and, with a pat
riotic self-sacrifice never known before
in the animal world, swarmed through
the port holes and saved the garrison.
It is related on authority that Kato
Kiyomassa, when this castle was com
pleted in 1592, put to death all the
workmen engaged in its construction,
several thousand men, that none might
know the secrets of its interior arrange
ments. The castle is now garrisoned by im
perial troops. 'The J apanese army,
numbering 35,000 rank and file, has
been under instruction of French offi
cers in all its different arms for several
years. The headquarters are at Tokio,
and several thqusand troops are always
retained there.- . The others are sta
tioned throughout the country, and for
the most part garrison the Old castles.
The uniform and arms are after the
French pattern. ' The garrison main
tained a Kumaihotois a source of con."
siderabie revenuje to the various indusr
tries;of the city. and the daily parades
and drills of the different arms of . the
service and the officers and soldiers off
duty, mingling with the. population add
more or less to its bright and busy ap
pearance. :;..
A cotton manufactory has recently
.been established here which gives em
ploymeut to 400 or 500 female opera
tives. . -They .receive a compensation of
ten sous a day, the establishment pro
viding them wilhtheir midday meal of
rice, fish, and vegetables, and are en
tirely content with-this remuneration.
F The manufactory is termed a school,
the operatives being required to teach
the art to others' throughout the pro
vince at the expiration of their service.
They use the old-fashioned, simple loom
and shuttle, and handle them with dex
.terity. - ''i. , . .
The Death Struck. Fall Forward.
The critics do not seem to have no
ticed at least they have not comment
ed upon the natural way in which
Henry Irving counterfeita the death
struggle upon the stage. The Ameri
can actors invariably fall backwards
when they cprpe to the" death scene in
their tragedies; Mr. 'irying falls for
ward full upon his face, and this, we
are told by physicians and soldiers, is
the natural way with those suddenly
overtaken by death. .
Virginia will contribute 1,100,000
iuisaels of peanuts to human bap-
ess this vca;-.
- nujionovsi
A gkl is S'.vo; t,
But oh! howbiitci
Thosamc piilii
When her clonics doa't f.t lov.
An editor, at a dinner table,being
asked if he wouldn't take some pud
ding, replied, in a lit of abstract on
'Owing to a crowd of other matter we
are unable to find room for it."
At . a railway festival in thi
West the following striking toast wat
given: "Our mothers The only faith,
ful tenders :who ever misplaced
switch." ' ' - ' ' " ' ,' , -r
There was a young man from
Havana, who trod on a piece oi
banana; His heels flew up, the res!
slid down, And he was injured in
most frightful manna.
Ethel writes to ask if we think higb
heel3 . injurious., We think' they are
Ethel, very-injurious and extremelj
dangerous, and when they are on a bay
mule with zebra legs they may bfl
rated as extra hazardous.
A European capitalist, has offered
$2,000,000 for the copyright of Wag
ner's operas. He wants to make sure
that his daughters ;wiil never play
them on the piano. .
Oscar Wilde is lecturing in Eng
land on " Dress." But just let Oscar
wait until his fair young bride begins
to lecture him on the subject of new
bonnets and lace, and white silk dres
ses and sealskin saeques.
Miss Westoyer, a female suffrage
agitator, who is described as being "one
of the prettiest women in England,'
has delivered 200 rddresses in the
last six months. Miss Westover ap
pears to be a thing of beauty and a jaw
forever.
"Everybody must grow old, you
know, my dear madam e," said a
physician to a lady, who evidently
looked upon the remark as a persona
one, for she promptly replied, "No
everybody, doctor; a great many of
your patients will never grow old."
"Do you like banga?" inquired Mrs'
Snip of Mr. Temple. "No, ma lam, I
do not." "Oh, indeed; you surprise
me. Why not?" "Beeausrj mywV
and daughters play the piano and r'"
devoted to Wagner's music."
A Quicli Wittvtl rortn .
; An elderly lady with a profusion of
luggage arriyel . vX the terminus of
an Irish lailway and immediately
attracted the attention of a railway
poner, who considered her to be a verj
good mark for 'the unbidden j,ia"i iity.
Haying.safely deposited her. luggage
in the carriage he observed byji fum
Uling motion that she was going to
reward him for., his attentions. He
glanced along the platform, and to his
dismay, observed the official eye was
on him. To put out his hand for the
gratuity meant instant dismissal. A
bright idea flashed across bis fertile
mind. It was but the work of an in
stant to dive his head into the car
riage window under the pretext of
inquiring if the old. lady's luggage
was safe, but in reality to request the
old lady to place the silver coin in his
mouth, and having thanked her for
helping him out of his difficulty,
away he went, rejoicing at having out
witted his traffic manager. .. . '
An Indian's Appetite.
The improvidence of the Indian is
proverbial. They toil not, if they can
help it, neither do they spin, unless it
is around the kitchen about meal time.
They take no thought for the morrow,
but will gorge their capacious stomachs
to. the highest notch, utterly indiffer
ent of the coming day. To feast one
day and fast six is a pretty fair aver
age, though hardly up to the Indian
wish. ...
Night before last, the motor crew
tried to measure the appetite of a
guileless Piute of ten sagebrush sum
mers, and to his demand for some
thing to eat gave him their lunches.
Hale, Kice and Merrigan emptied
their bucke - 'the. young redman
swallowed all and drank three quarts
of tea and coffee mixed. He then took
a jaunt down to Battle Mountain, but
appeared again last night to see if he
would not strike another grub bonan
za, but the railroad boys did not re
spond and gave up the contract- for
filling. such a capacious maw. Austin
(Nev.) Reveille.
There will be 600,000,000 pounds of
tobacco, grown in the United Stales
this season, of which one-half will be
manufactured into chewing and
smoking tobacco and snuff. There
are over 16,000 cigar factories in the
counfry, which last year made over
3,000,000,000 of cigars a- d 750,000,000
of cigarettes, using 75,000,000 pounds
of tobacco.
A Webster (Ga.) farmer has a plow
that has been in continuous use in a
family for 160 years.
V