Democratic Sentinel, Volume 17, Number 8, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 March 1893 — Page 4

THE FELON'S GRAVE. BY EUGENE DAVIS. His is no finely sculptured tomb As gorgeous as a throne; He sleeps within the prison gloom Beneath a nameless stone; No dew-d: ops from the starry skies Weep the departed brave, Where, in ihe chill cold ground it lies, The Irish felon’s grave. No epitaph is penned above The lay where he do'h dwell— No tender words of hope or lovo — No lingering farewell, But yet as long as time shall roll— In characters of flame Upon a nation’s grateful soul Is writ the felon’s name. He died not on the opeu field, In championing his land; To God his spirit he did yield With gyves upon each hand: He gave to save a struggling race His manhood in its prime, And with a smile upon his face The Irish te!ou died. More dair to ns than Mecca’s sbiino To pilgrims of the east, More sacra 1 tha i the d nne divine Where Isis hath her priest, As dear as is a only grot Where cedar f r ?st.-. wave, Is that thrice bless’d aud g ori ous spot— The Irish felon's grave.

HER PROMISE.

Old Abner Marsden moved uneasily in his big arm-chair. ‘.‘Seems to me Luce is a mighty long time getting that water,” he muttered, as he rose aiid hobbled to the end of the cottage porch. He put aside the vines that screened the view and looked down toward the lower end of the garden, where a cool spring gurgled up from the earth. “Well, if she ain't talkin’ agin with that pauper, Ang Howland,” growled the old man. “Luce! say, Luce, I want you!” he called. “I’ll be there in a minute, father,” called back a comely girl of eighteen, who stood near the spring chatting with a plainly dressed youth of about the same age. She reached for the pail of water, which Angus Howland still held in his baud, and said with a smile: “I must go, Aug, Father wants me." “It .seems tome, Luce,” said Angus, as he gave her the 'pail, “that your father always wants you when lie sees me around, lie hates me for some reason, but if it's all light with you, lean stand it.” Lucia looked troubled as she said, “Good-by, Ang,” and turned toward the house. Old Marsden was an extremely illiterate man, but in business ventures he had always been successful, and now, though a confirmed invalid, his head was full of schemes and devices, and he used to sit for hours at a time planuing measures by whiydi his hoard of wealth might be increased. j,u?ia took after her mother, who had been “a powerful good woman, - ’ so people said. “Luce,” said the old mau as she appeared at the door, “I want this to bj the last of your talking with that good for nothing lout, Ang Howland. The idea of a likely girl like you talking friendly with such trash 1 I won't have it, and if he don’t steer clear I’ll give him something to remember me by,” and the old man shook his oane vigorously. “I do not see why you should dislike him so,” said Lucia. “He has had a hard time getting along, but that isn’t his fault.” “His father was cut out to die in the poorhouse,” yelled the old man, “and why didn’t he die there ?” “Because," Lucie answered, “Ang worked hard and took care of the old folks."

Her'father scowled. , “Oil Howland was intended for the poorhouse, and no good comes of fightin’ Providence. He died without a cent, and so will the young feller. But that ain’t the point; there are plenty of fellers ’round here that has money, but there ain’t many such gals as you be, I reckon. Why, Luce, you have the choice of the town, and it's your solemn duty not to be rash.” .The miserly features of the old man relaxed somewhat as he admired his daughter’s comely face. He experienced a kind of fatherly affection for her, aud was even willing to spend money freely that she might make a good appearance. When he saw her dressed in some new article of apparel he would mutter to himself, “It’s all right, it will all come back; I know a good investment, for I have made a good many—yes, a good many.” A few evehings after the event above mentioned, Lucia was walking in the garden when she heard some one tap lightly at the gate, and in the moonlight saw Angus Howland. “He wants to see me,” she thought, as she hurried through the lilacs to the garden path. “Father

m I will miss me if I am gone long,” said Lucia, on approaching, “hut we can visit for a minute.” “Luce,” said Angus, “I have come to say good-bye. Your father says for me to keep away from you because I am poor, and he doesn’t want you to marry a pauper. Well, I am going away for five years, and when I come back I’ll be rich—rich enough to suit your father,” he exclaimed excitedly, striking the ► fence a heavy blow with his fist. “I don’t care about you being so rich,” said Lucia. “I’ll like you just as well if you are poor; but don’t stay away so long,” and she looked beseechingly ipto his face. “You may have bad luck, you know, and not earn very much money after all, but I’ll think just as much of you. Are you going far?” she asked, looking down at the ground. “To California,’’ said Angus, “and I know just what I shall do wlieu I get there, too. Father often told me ol a valley in California where all sorts of trait will grow almost without cultivation. Father wandered down there when he was out among the mines, and'being used to a fruit country he knew just what a wonderful place it was. He’d have gone there himself if his sickness hadn’t come on, but he told me about it time and time again, and he gave me this little map,” aud Howland took an old torn paper from his pocket, and carefully opening it, pointed out by the bright moonlight, which . broke through the trees, tty; Eldorado of his hopes and ambition. “That valley is mine,” said he, “and lam going there and plant trees.” “Luce!” called old Marsden from the house, “where are you V “Here l am, father,” Lucia replied. “Well, it seems to me that you are a long time gone,” cried the old man, “but comedo the house, for young Hinton is here and wants to see you.” Lucia saw the troubled look that came into Howland’s face and hastily murmured : “Father wants me to marry him, but I won’t : i’ll marry you. Be sure and write often sad don't stay to long,” she

pleaded as she raised her face for a farewell kiss. The next morning old Marsden said to his daughter with an inquisitive look, “Young Hinton didn’t stay long last night, did he?" “No,” answered Lucia; “not very long.” “Did he ask you to have him ? "added the old man. “Yes; father, he did,” answered Lucia “but I told him I couldn’t.” “Told him ye couldn.’t 1 ’’ screamed the o.d man. “Why couldn’t ye ? ” “Because I don’t love him,” said the daughter, looking her father steadily in the eve.

“Love him, Luce 1 I tell ye. people don’t marry for love. They marry to make a good thing. When they get the worst end of it it’s like any other bad bargain; but young Hinton has money and, Luce, you’d better ohangc your mind and send him word that you like him well enough. I'll give you a good start, and you’ll find out thatipu have a pretty good old dad after all.^ Lucia kissed her father, but replied: “Not him. I can never marry him.” The years crept slowly by and brought their usual round of bright aud cloudy days. Lucia had grown taller and morebeautiful. Her father was still as grasping as ever. “I agree with you, Luce,” he used to say, “ there's no special hurry; but you drop them almost too quick sometimes, it seems to me.” One day he hobbled into the room where Lucia sat at work and said in a severe, low tone: “ I hear that you get letters from that Ang Howland. Is it true?” “ I have received ietters from him,” Lucia replied, “and he is doing very well, 1 understand.” "I don't care how he is doing. That feller'll die poor,” growled the old man. He went outside and sat down on the garden bench. “I'll see Cicely," said he, with a crafty look on his face. Cicely was the girl who sorted and dealt out the mail at the village postoffice. Not long after this Lucia ceased receiving letters with a California post-mark. Time passed, and it was now nearly ten years since Luci:; and Angus had stood at the garden gate and said goodbye. Old Marsden had fallen into a state of despondency so utterly abject that Lucia was sometimes on the point of yielding to his wishes, but she thought, "I’ll wait awhile longer; something has happened or he’d never have broken his word.”

One day her father called her to him. He was unable to get about the house now, but lay propped up in his chair all day with his eyes dosed, a very unhappy old man. “Luce,” said he,” “I’ll make short work of it. The last investment 1 made I staked all and I lost. It was the first time. Luce, and your father has had many a bargain in his day, but this time he has outdone them all. In a month from now we won't have .a house to cover our heads. I hoped this sickness might hurry me off, but I see it’s going to give me time, aud I’ll have to go to the poor-house, Luce, unless,"and the old man looked at her pitifully, “unless you save your old dad.” “I’ll work for you!” cried Lucia. “ You shall never go to the poor-house." And she wasjmore tender in the care of her father after that. One day as she stood near her favorite bed of flowers sadly thinking how soon she would have to leave them, a voice broke the silence of her meditations: “ I beg your pardon, but your flowers look very pretty and I had to stop to admire them.” and looking up Lucia saw a tall, well-dressed gentleman standing at the garden gate. “I raise a great many flowers myself,” said the gentleman, “and I always take an interest in them, but I live in a flower country where they grow much more luxuriantly than here." Lucia gave a startled look—but no; how foolish; it couldn’t be he. Angus Howard could never have developed into such a handsome man. “I declare, Luce, you don’t know me,” said the gentleman with a smile. “Oh, Ang! 1 know you now, for you speak with vour old voice, but you have been away a long time.” “You stopped writing, and I read in a California paper that you were married,” said Angus; “but recently learned that it was a false report, and am here once more to ask you to be mine.” “Father, this gentleman wishes to see yon.” said Lucia, as she ushered Howland into her father’s room. The old man opened his eyes and murmured, “Well, have a chair.” “I understand that you have suffered a misfortune,"said the gentleman kindly. The old man groaned. “I’ll have to die in the poor-house; there’s no help for it.”

“It may not be so bad as that,” said the gentleman. The old man turned on him fiercely. “What do yon want with me, I’d like to know? Ain’t it bad enough to be ruined, but a lot of vultures have got to come and hover around me before I’m dead?” ‘ ‘I have been investigating the matter, ” said the gentleman, “and I am sure that 'it is not so bad as you think, and here is evidence that you will not be turned out of your home at any rate,” and he opened before the old man’s eyes the canceled mortgage. “This place is yours,” said the gentleman, “and all your other property is safe, for I have been making investigations.” “Who are you,” erjed old Marsden, “that comes at this time and saves me from the poor house?” “It w not so bad as that,” said the gentleman, smiling, “but my name is Angus Howland.” The remaining few months of the old man’s life worked a great change in his character. One day when the autumn leaver were turning he called his children to him. "Good-bye,” said he, “I am going. You are a good boy, Ang, and will make her happy.” aud his eyes closed forever. —[Chicago News.

The Chinook Wind.

There is only one impression respecting the Chinook wind which I think it would be well to correct, and that is that it is a wind peculiar to this part of the world, writes a correspondent. It is only characteristic of this region in its greater prevalence and its more distinctly traceable and widespread effects. I might add that it also has a peculiar name here, but it is nothing more and nothing less than the west wind of the world—the west wind that Virgil so often refers to, the wind that Homer describes in the Odyssey as blowing soft from the ocean upon those fabled islands where winter is not, nor any burning summer heat. It is also noticed by Longfellow as descending upon the coast of Norway, and be aod other writers of poetry and prose have often noted it in descriptions of New England. I was familiar with it during iny early life in the Connecticut valley, and when I first felt it on the Columbia I recognized it as an old acquaintance. Whence it cornea or whither it goes is to a certain extent mysterious, but it belongs to no one quarter of the globe. It is more distinctive of this region, I

believe, tlian of any other. It is many times more abundant and prevalent here than on the Atlantic coast or in the interior of this country. But I think lam not mistaken in saying that we v arc favored beyond many other parts only in having more of it. Sweeping in from the west in these latitudes, it gives Eastern, Washington and Montana an earlier spring than Minnesota, and it is not exhausted entirely in crossing the continent, but touches the New England hills and valleys to unlock the rigors of winter still later there. —[Seattle (Washington) Post-Intelligencer.

SUNDAY ON A MAN O’-WAR.

Inspection and General Muster the Bane of a Sailor’s Kxlstence. To the average American bluejacket the function known as Sunday inspection and general muster is a specimen of elaborate nonsense that overtops all others. On board a commissioned man-of-war it takes place tifty-two times a year, and takes precedence over everything else short of shipwreck, fire, or some other disaster. The preparations ihat are made for it would lead an observer who is not familiar with the ways of war vessels to think that it was a sort of state affair that happened once in a hundred years. They are begun Friday night, when grease spots and stains on the deck are coated with lime to render them more susceptible to the influence of the holystone. Saturday morning all hands are called at early daylight and set to scrubbing and holystoning the decks. AVhcn the decks are white and clean, other woodwork, together with ladders, ramrods handspikes, etc., is attacked and scrubbed into an immaculate whiteness. After breakfast attention is given to the brasswork of the deck aud battery, and both are polished until they are as bright as cleaning gear can make them. The day is generally occupied in touching up spots with fresh paint where the old has been worn off, and coating cables, bitts, and ringbolts with coal tar. With the exception of the holystoning the decks, the same performance is gone through with Sunday morning. Alter breakfast the crew array themselves in their best suits of mustering clothes, the marines put an extra coat of pipe clay on their helmets a d belts, and everybody hides everything that belongs to him somewhere out of sight. Woe betide the luckless person who leaves any part of his property lying around. It is promptly confiscated by the sailor's natural enemy, the master at arms, and the owner is reported for the offence. Finally the bugle sounds the call for inspection, and the crew muster in the parts of the ship where they belong. The commanding officer emerges from his cabin and, accompanied by his first lieutenant aud the officers of the deck, starts on a tour of inspection, which generally lasts about an hour. “Quarters” and “general muster" follow. The “Articles of War,” which every one among the crew generally knows by rote, are read by the executive officer. The reading takes half an hour or so, and when it is concluded such general orders as may have been issued by the Navy Department since the last muster are read. The Paymaster next takes the crew in hand and calls the name of every person attached to the ship,who answers with his name and rank. The entire forenoon is occupied with these various matters, and the result is that Sunday to the man-o’-warsman is a day of penance instead of a day or rest.

The Fish Industry.

Everybody,knows that fishing is one of the important industries of towns on the coast, but it is a question if any one has a definite idea of what a bountiful mother the sea is to us. The Dominion of Canada is particularly noted for its great fisheries, and the value of the fish drawn from the waters on its coast in one year is about $12,000,003. This does not include fish taken from the waters of British Columbia, Manitoba or the Northwest If these be added nearly $20,000,000 will he the total. Another $20,000,000 will represent the trade done in this country. In these figures the yields from all branches of fisheries are given. Splitting it up into items the largest we have is the cod, the yearly yield being about $0,000,000. Nova Scotia alone secures $2,500,000 of this and $1,500,000 worth of mackerel. The cod is as far ahead of mackerel as that fish is ahead of all the others. The cod is an inhabitant of the temperate zone. He is found in great abundance off the Cape of Good Hope, where he nibbles freely nt the baited hook dropped from the sides of ships by sailors becalmed on their way home from the East Indies. He also exists in Australian waters, but his chief homes are the Banks of Cape Breton shore and some portions of the Bay of Fundy. He is not particular about the bottom. His chief care is to allay the cVavings of a capacious stomach, which is ready to accommodate itself to anything that turns up without much discrimination. He lies close to the bottom usually, awaiting his prey, his dark back and sides scarcely discernible from the surrounding rocks, and darts like a flash upon any of the smaller fry that are so unfortunate as to come within his reach. If herring and similar fish be scarce he searches among the stones for crabs, clams or other shellfish.—[New York Advertiser.

Air. Gladstone at Home.

When relieved from the affairs of state, Mr. Gladstone finds no pleasure so great as his home life at Hawarden. There his family are gathered together, and the great man romps and plays with his grandchildren as though he never knew what it was to be blamed for everything that went wrong in all Great Britain aud her colonies. Air. Gladstone is a wonderful scholar, a busy writer and speaker, but the little Gladstone children know him best as a good, kind grandfather who is fond of fun. He, too, would prefer to qnjov their company rather than to he surrounded by England’s great men at an all-night session of Parliament. His only recreations are walking, and—this is really very funny—chopping down trees. Our great George Washington, according to tradition, had a like fondness in his youth, but by the tima he became President he had probably outgrown such, fancies. Ala Gladstone, however, is an expert woodsman, and though he doesn’t destroy valuable cherry trees, he goes out with his axe and takes the keenest pleasure in felling trees in Hawarden Park, A visitor to the castle one day noticed an axe behind the door in the great hall, where it had been left by the statesman after one of his chopping expeditions. A curious ornament for such a place, it seems. It may be out of compliment to the boy George Washington and his hatchet that the. “Grand Old Man” prefers to use r.u American axe.—[Harper’s Young People. The carnival veil is the fad of the hour in vrilture.

GRASSHOPPER PLAGUE.

A SOLID WALL OK INSECTS SIX INCHES THICK. An Old Kansan’s Account of a Sudden Invasion of Myriads of Grasshoppers and the Ruin They Wrought. An old resident of Kansas has been giving a New York Tribune correspondent a graphic account of a remarkable visitation of grasshoppers which he witnessed once upon a time in that State? He was working upon a railroad as a construction band, at the time. We quote from his narrative as follows: “I rented a house with a good-sized garden attached, and devoted my spare moments to its cultivation, taking great pleasure in watching the rapid growth of the vegetables, including sweet potatoes and watermelons, and fondly anticipating the time when they should reach a state of usefulness. Meantime we heard rumors about the approach of immense swarms of grasshoppers, and my fellowworkmen would regale me with stories of the devastation wrought by them which seemed so incredible that I merely regarded them as attempts to delude a ‘tenderfoot,’ as they called me. As the weeks passed by and the threatened invasion did not occur, a feeling of security took possession of all, and we came to the conclusion that the impefiding scourge had passed in some other direction. My garden was rapidly nearing that state of maturity when I could have my own vegetables and melons in abundance. One morning I told my wife that in another week we would have our own sweet potatoes and beets and cabbages, while the melons would not be far behind.

“We were engaged that- day in preparing to move the tracks further back from the enroaching river. The heat was intense, no rain having fallen in several weeks, and the parched and baked earth reflected the rays of the burning sun until the air seemed to come from an oven. About 4 o’clock in the afternoon, while we were working in a half-hearted, listless way,, about ready to drop from the enervating effects of the heat, we suddenly heard a rustling among the branches of the trees on the bluff near us. “ ‘Thank Gftd !’ cried one of the men dropping his shovel, ‘there comes a breeze at last.’ “We all straightened up to catch the first faint breath of the welcome stir of the superheated atmosphere, and lifted our hats to let it play upon our throbbing temples. All at once the foreman cried out in a tone of consternation, ‘Hoppers, by !’ The long-threatened visitation had come sure enough, and what w'e had fancied to be the gentle rustling of the longed-for breeze was the sound of the onward rush of the countless multitude of grasshoppers through the foliage of the forest nearby. First one settled upon the ground at our feet, then another and another, and in an incredibly short time the ground was swarming with and literally buried from sight by the ever-increasing army. Talk about a blizzard ! I have never, seen a blizzard that obliterated everything as quickly as that grasshopper blizzard did. They Swarmed all over fls—in our faces, down our necks, and we had to keep our mouths closed to keep them from getting down our throats. We could not step without crushing a mass of them under our feet. To me who had never seen them before the sight was appalling. Still they continued to come, the air being darkened by tbe oncoming hosts. And as soon ns they touched the ground they went to eating. What appetites those varmints had ! Soon the weeds and grass aud leaves on the trees and bushes began t(/disappear as if by magic. Almost everything was to their taste unless it was sweet. They would not touch sorghum or sweet potatoes or anything like that. Pretty soon a passenger train came tearing along a down-grade some distance below, but near us the grade began a sharp ascent, and as the train drew near the driving-wheels of the engine flew around at a tremendous rate and the train slackened its speed while the engineer frantically sanded the rails, trying to make them hold. Bn; it was of no use.. The grasshoppers covered the rails so densely that myriads of them had been crushed under the wheels, greasing them so thoroughly that the train was stalled. The train hands got a couple of brooms, aud, shortening the handles, fastened one on each side of the pilot of the engine so that they just swept the rails. The mass of crushed hoppers was cleaned from the driving wheels, the rails were well sanded, and after several efforts the train at last started, the brooms sweeping the insects from the rails before it. I had often been told of the hoppers stopping trains, but I had never believed it until I saw it with my own eves.

“When I reached home that night my pretty garden presented a sad sight to my sorrowful gaze. The vegetables had nearly all disappeared. A few cabbage stumps were sticking out of the ground ir. ruined loneliness. The sweet potatoes •were the only thing remaining unharmed ; while my melons, what a wreck they were ! The rinds and outer shells of white had all been eaten away, leaving the juicy red meat lying upon the ground untouched. As I gazed into the tearful eyes of my wife I was too full foruttcrance. Adjoining was a large fifty-acre cornfield. There were about a dozen rows of sorghum corn along one end, and they had not been molested. All that remained of the rest were the bare, hard stalks. Everything else was eaten off clean. The grasshoppers were in the house, in the victuals on the table—in everything. As the sun sank in the west we went out in the yard to see if there was anything left, but all we could see was the countless myriads of hoppers. They were in the air as thick as snowflakes in the driving storm; the ground was piled with them, in some places over a foot dee]). Around my lot was a high picket fence. This presented the appearance of a solid wall of grasshoppers five or six inches thick, nil the spaces between the pickets being completely filled up. The sides of the house aud the roof were buried under the clinging mass. The next raorniug when I lighted the fire, which I had prepared the night before, I heard a lively scrambling in the stove, and liftingthe lid I found it chuck full of hoppers who were trying to escape from their fiery imprisonment. “At the close of the second day the country presented the appearance of a desert. Nearly everything green had disappeared from the face of the earth. The grass and weeds and growing crops had been eaten close to the ground, and the trees aud bushes were stripped of their foliage. Such a scene of desolation I hope never to see again. Having completely destroyed everything, the grasshoppers passed on to lay in waste other portions of the country. The loss to the farmers was complete and much suffering ensued that fall and winter, but the next season the crops were bounteous and plenty, and contentment reigned once mors.”

ABOUND THE HOUSE.

Try fresh cologne for removing oil spots from cloth. For polishing tables and wooden trays use a soft cloth sprinkled with linseed oil. You can drive nails into hardened wood without bending them if you dip them first in lard. Dusting and Sweeping. —An apartment may lie, to all appearance, neat and well swept, says the household editor of the Tribune , when in reality the dirt is only hidden. It surges from the carpet under a heavy footfall; it is under the furniture; it is all over the doors and windows, but to the careless observer the room may seem perfectly neat. If the weekly sweeping of the rooms is thoroughly done, it will be only necessary to brush them up and dust them at other times. If it is done in a perfunctory manner the rooms will bs in disorder continually and require sweeping two or three times a week and yet will never be clean. It is the old story of Molidusta, “who is anon and anon, sir, frisking about in a whirlpool of bustle ‘ and confusiou, and is always dirty under pretence of being always cleaning.” The first thing to do when the time for the weekly sweeping of a room arrives is to open the windows and close the register. The blinds and the window-sills should then be brushed and dusted, so that no dust from them will fly into the room. Then the smaller pieces of movable furniture, including the chairs and stands, should be dusted and taken out of the room, with all the bric-a-brac and tiny ornaments. The larger pieces should then be dusted and covered up closely. The ceiling should be brushed down with long brushes for the purpose, and then the sweeping should begin. Sweep with short, strong strokes, first a space in the direction of the rep of the carpet, then across the same space. When the carpet has been thoroughly gone over in this way and the dust taken up, go over it a second time with a broom dampened with salt and water. Use a half worn broom for this purpose, as the dampening would soon ruin the regular broom. Then brush out all the edges of the carpet and the corners with a little whisk-broom. The dust will have settled enough under these operations to begin dusting. Dust the windows, the ledges,over the windows and doors; and all the ledges of the walls. Dust off the mantelpiece and wipe off -the hearth if there is an open fireplace, or if there is a register, dust out the register. It is almost needless to say that in the case of an open fire or stove in the room, the removal of the ashes is the first thing to do before the sweeping is begun. Now remove the dusting sheets from the larger pieces of furniture and wipe off any dust which may have gathered under the sheets. Wash • the mirrors. Examine the glass globes and wash or dust them, according to their condition. Wash the windows after the dusting-sheets have been shaken’outof them. Put down tha windows, arrange the window-shades in place, bring back the smaller pieces of furniture and the bric-a-bac and ornaments. Then is the room thoroughly swept and dusted and purified, so that it may be kept clean with slight care for a week.

Sounds We May Not Hear.

Animals may here sounds that are inaudible to us. Certainly the sounds that give the keenest pleasure to many animals —cats, for example—are seldom capable of giving pleasure to us. We know, of course, that sounds may be too low or too high—that is, the vibrations may be too slow or too rapid—to be audible to the human ear; but it does not follow that they are equally inaudible to differentlv-tuned ears. The limits of audible sound are not invariable even in the human ear; women can usually hear higher sounds than men, and the two ears are not, as a rule, equally keen. A sound may be quite inaudible to one person and plainly heard by another. Professor LloydMorgan mentions as an instance of this a case in which the piping of some frogs in Africa was so loud to him as almost to drown his friend’s voice, but of which his friend heard absolutely nothing! The same thiug may be observed by any one possessing the little instrument known as Gabon’s whistle. The sound made by this whistle can be made more and .more shrill, until at last it ceases to be heard at all by most persons.* Some can still hear it; but by raising thrsound still higher even they cease to hear. The sound is still being made—that is, the whistle is causing the air still to vibrate, but so rapidly that our ears no longer recognize it, though the existence of these inaudible vibrations is detected by a “sensitive flame,” as was first shown by Professor Barrett in 1877. —[Chambers’ Journal.

Tennessee Onyx Caves.

“What I believe to be the largest and finest onyx deposits in the world,” said Philo B. Shepard, “have recently been discovered in some caves in the Cumberland Mountains of West Tennessee. It has been known for some time tint there was a fine quality of onyx or chalcedony there, but the mines or caves have scarcely been touched, aDd recently my attention was brought to the existence of large caves in Anderson County, the roofs of which are bristling with stalactities of onyx, and in some cases the columns reach to the floor of the cavern. I found one column fourteen feet in length, the top of which is more than four feet iu diameter, and, I believe, an onyx slab four feec wide by six long could be sawed from it. The onyx in these caves is wonderfully free from sand pockets and other blemishes, and is more richly colored than any I ever saw,, and seems to exist in unlimited quautitv. Onyx, as you may know, is formed by the drippings of limestone, and in early stages looks like prisms of glass or frosted icicles hanging from the roof, and countless ages must elapse before even the smallest cone of onyx could form, while the large column I have described must have been grdwin** since the beginning of time. When the value of these stones becomes known to the world then Tennessee onyx will be more widely known than Italian marble, but as yet only a few samples have been taken out.”—[St. Louis Globe-Demo-crat.

A local paper tells how Albert Smith, of Milford, Penn., allowed an old appletree to stand between him and a fortune. A party of oil prospectors, having become convinced that there was oil on his farm, decided to bore a well in his orchard. Smith objected strenuously because it would destroy au apple-tree for which he had a particular fondness. After vaiol/ endeavoring to have Smith change his mind, the prospectors removed their apparatus a few feet beyond his tree., on the edge of another man’s land, and in a few days oil was flowing at the rate of 100 barrels an hour. Fa* mer Smith saved his apple-tree and his neighbor got $3b,000 in royalties.

NOTE AND COMMENTS.

The discovery was made the other day that the only authentic copy the coat-of-arms of the State of Pennsylvania had disappeared from the walls of Independence Hall. An investigation was made, and then it came out, although no one had noticed the omission, that the copy h6d been missing for several years from among the shields of the various States that may be seen hanging side by side. Capt. Ilauson, a member of the Pennsylvania Board eff World’s Fair Managers,' who wanted to have a duplicate made lot use at Chicago, can explain the disappearance only in this way: “In 1874 or thereabouts the Legislature appropriated #3OO for the express purpose of correcting certain defects which were said to exist in the coat-of-arms used on official sea's. To accomplish this work a committee, consisting of the Governor, Attorney-General, and Secretary of State, was appointed and empowered to act. So far as I know or can discover this committee has never reported. It is possible that the Committee appointed by the Legislature removed it in 1875 to have copies made, and that it now lies hidden in some painter’s shop or in some one’s attic or cellar.”

According to a Belgian gentleman now in this country, the territory of Moresnet, lying between Belgium and Germany, is the smallest Government in the world. It has a population of nearly 2,003. The people are entirely to the tin mining industry. T’here is no military service, and election 1 days are things they never hear of. There is a Senate of ten members who are appointed by the Mayor. He gets a place by being appointed by two delegates, one from Germany and one from Belgium. The police force consists x>t one man. He is paid out of the annual revenue, which is about 1,200 francs; this algo pays for the maintenance of the roads and the schools. The territory was made independent in 1815. to settle a dispute. Germany and Belgium both wanted it on account of its tin mines, but neither of them got it. The territory contains a trifle over two square miles of ground. There are twenty well-built towns in Kansas without a single inhabitant to waken the echoes of their deserted streets. Saratoga had a #30,000 operahouse. a large brick hotel; a #20,000 school-house, yet there is nobody even to claim a place to sleep. At Fargo a #20,000 school-house stands on the side of the hill, a monument to the bondvoting craze. A herder and his family constitute the sole population of what was once an incorporated city. This is a sad commentary on unhealthy booms. Those Kansas towns, like Wichita, advertised themselves as phenomenal boom cities. For awhile “everything was lovely,t’ but at last dry rot took hold of the boom towns and killed them.

The rural prophets say that the yield of maple-syrup will be unusually good this spring. According to one of them: “It is well known to those engaged in the business of sugar-making that a good season always follows a severe winter. The maplc-san then furnishes.a larger percentage of sugar. Not only that, but the trees yield a larger quantity of sap then than they do after a winter of frequent thaws. The snow in the interior counties is very deep, and unless remarkable warm weather should come it will be on the ground until w r ell along in April. Sugar-making will not commence until late in the season, but when we get at it we shall make more of the toothsome sweet than we have made before in years.” . The experience of the man who recently sold his interest in a large manufacturing concern near Boston for over a million of dollars, a large part if not the whole of which he invested in Western lands and Nova Scotia gold mines, and who a few days ago found himself so much impoverished by his transactions that he was unable to meet a note for #702, and had to go to jail; should be a warning to other men who are not satisfied with the constant and legitimate profits of a good business, but who wish to wake up Goulds or Vanderbilts after the sleep of a single night.

Tub cold lias been excessive in St. Petersburg, and for weeks wood fires have been burned in the squares and streets of the city in an effort to make necessary outdoor business endurable. The streets have, however, been practically deserted. The double windows in the stores and houses are mostly iced over, and frozen up. From north and central Russia a temperature of thirty to thirty-nine degrees below zero is reportedj which is twenty-seven degrees below the average. In Siberia it has fallen to forty-five degrees below zero. The severity of British justice was well illustrated at Northampton recently, where a trial for murder was in progress. The jury having been permitted to partake ofalunch in their room, one of their number profited by the opportunity to step out of doors and post a letter. The judge to whom this act was reported, promptly gave the offending juror a sharp lecture and fined him $350. He dismissed the jury and a new one was impaneled. The Refuse Disposal Company, London, has lately published a pamphlet on the question as to the practical means by which the dust refuse of towns can be utilized for electric lighting purposes. The company claim that 20,000 tons of house dust, if treated as they suggest, and burnt in suitable boilers, might be made to produce as much as 5.600,000 indicated horse power working for 4,734 hours, for electric lighting.

Presidents seem to be horn Nimrods. Harrison has relieved the tedium of official duties by knocking down sandsnipe and canvasbacks, while Cleveland has slaughtered ducks when the temperature necessitated a stove in the boat to keep the huntsmen warm. President Dias, of Mexico, has the same propensity for cannonading, and just the.other day bowled over a bear, a wildcat and other beasts of prey that he happened to encounter. HerrJlabxtcht of Gotha has satisfied himself that there is a distinct connection between the number of icebergs carried into the Gulf Stream and the character of the subsequent weather experienced in Europe. Dr. Gatling is getting even more fastidious in the matter of guns than he used to.be. He has harnessed to a new one an electric motor that gives a result of 3,000 shots a minute, according to his own claims. Mexico has 6,770 miles of railroad, which are largely responsible for the increase of her revenue from a little over $17,000,000 in 1877 to nearly $38,000000 last year. Princess dresses of pink bengaline artistically trimmed with pink chiffon of the same shade, are worn by bridesmaids with large picture hats of black velvet, with pink tips and rosettes«of the pink velvet.

NOW AND THEN.

Como sit beside ine, dearest — i or the cold night winds blow. While by the pine woods cheerful blaze, 1 sing of long ag >. ’Twas in the merry springtide. The ark sang in th) sky; Two children played— A boy and vnsid— Light hearted—you and I. ii. And many a year rolled o’er us— Bright springs with sun and show’ra, And summers with their wealth of bloom. And plebitude of flowers. ’Twas eve in golden autumn, The blackbird whistled nigh, A man and maid— Sat in the shade— Twolovirs—you andl. m. And now tis winter dreary; And snow lies on the ground, The sky is dark and raves the wind Our forest home around. But light is in our dwelling, And sweet the hours go by, The happy life— Of man and wife— Two lovers —you and I. —[J. J. G., in Cork Examiner.

CYCLIST INFANTRY.

Its Advantages As a Branch of the Military Service. The speed and endurance of cyclists are powerful recommendations. Their capability of making wide turning movements, and suddenly and unexpectedly appearing as infantry in unknown strength on the enemy’s flank, and their power of seizing distant defensible positions with great rapidity, and with a force unknown to the enemy, must not be underestimated. Silence of movement is also a great advantage. At night, provided there is light enough to see the edges of the roads, cyclists can attack outposts without betraying their presence till they are up to the line of sentries; whereas cavalry, or infantry mounted on horses, would not only betray their presence, but give an indication of their numbers by the noise of the hoofs. The moral effect of this power of stealthy approach, noiselessly and in unknown force, from distances beyond the march of infantry, must produce a feeling of nervousness and dread, and necessitate strengthening the outposts. It would be trying work for an enemy to suddenly find’ Bodies of' infantry of unknown reservepporerw r er appear vaguely out of space and behaving with cruel concreteness jn the matter of bullets. It has been claimed that a cyclist cannot ride cross country; but it is being proved that a bicycle can be ridden, especially with pneumatic tires, where it was before considered impossible. As to the riding of a bicycle across country, the most bitter opponent of the wheel must admit that he could get it over a barbed-wire fence easier than he could a horse. The recent “relay race” from Chicago to New York, by which General Miles at Chicago sent a message tc General Howard at New York by relays of bicycle riders, demonstrates the fact that bicycles can be ridden in places once considered impossible. Much of the country was at that time submerged, and many miles were ridden throu*?!’ water and mud inches deep. Seveit hundred miles of the distance were rid* den on the Lake Shore Railroad track, the surrounding country being under water. One rider rode six miles in twenty-one minutes, and dismounted to cross seven culverts and a railroad bridge. Finally, a great advantage of cyclists is their superior ability as marksmen. In these days of long-range rifles it is allimportant that a soldier be able to shoot well at any time. A cycle cannot pull a man’s hands or bump him in such a manner as to disturb his internal arrangements; therefore a man throwing himself off a cycle must be in better condition for immediate shooting than a man throwing himself off a horse.—[Harper’s Weekly.

Teething in Animals.

Teething in young animals is often attended with considerable ‘irritation and fever. Three-year-old colts probably suffer most. At this period they cut four front teeth and eight back ones. During the fourth year, they also cut four front teeth, eight back, and four tushes. Sometimes they become thiD from the pain in eating even moderately soft feed or fodder. Though young cattle suffer less, yet their period of greatest irritation from teething occurs from the second to the third year. At this period of life, they have arrived at greater maturity than colts of the same age. Young .cattle suffer more from the fact that one of the first grinders, coming at this period, sometimes causes great irritation, from coming in contact with the crown of its preceding tooth, resulting in loss of appetite' from sore mouth and fetid breath, and soreness from ulceration of the gums. In puppies and kittens, convulsions occur, between the third and sixth month, from dentitioD. By extracting the temporary tushes before the permanent ones come, much pain may be saved the animals. Redness, swelling and tenderness readily travel down the mucous membranes to the nose, causing sneezing, and to the throat, causing great anuoyauce by a teasing cough. The indication is to modify the irritation by soft mucilaginous food and drinks, and keeping the bowels in proper condition. Teething animals should have good care, gentle management, and moderate work. —[ American Agriculturist.

Value of Green Salads.

Persons of delicate digestive powers .should realize the value green salads taken with the proper proportion of sweet olive oil and acid which go to make a French dressing. The foolish fear of condiments which are the most valuable assistants to digestion has done more to made dyspeptics than probably any other one thing. Vegetable oils like olive oil are more easily digested than animal fats, and are rich in nutriment and soothing. Hence the hygienic value of simple salads which contain olive oil.—[New York Tribune.

THE LITTLE GIRL THAT CRIED.

Once the Little Girl that Cried, Looking through her tears, espied Lovely motes of colored light In the fringes of her eye— Just as when the weather clears. And the clouds are put to flight, There’s a rainbow in the sky. And the Little Girl that Cried, When she saw this lovely sight,— This fine rainbow in her tears, — Would forget the reason why She had thought it best to cry. —[Edith M. Thomas, in St. Nicholas. Rew Jersey is now considered the lcsdci among poultry growing sections.