Democratic Sentinel, Volume 20, Number 48, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 4 December 1896 — FOR THE YOUNG FORKS. [ARTICLE]

FOR THE YOUNG FORKS.

SINT DONKEYS AND SEVEN. In Turkey professional story-tellers go about gayly dressed iu waistcoat aud baggy trousers of gaudy colors trimmed with gold and amuse the people with their stories. Often they sit in the restaurants and public squares and as they talk they shrug vlieir shoulders, gesticulate and make faces to impress their hearers. This is one of the fables that a famous storyteller relates: One day a wealthy man called upon Nasartin Hodja to ask him 1.-ow much he would charge to educate his sou. ‘Three hundred piasters.” said the Hodja. “What are you talking about,” exclaimed the man. "That is too much. I cau buy six donkeys for iiOO piasters.” “That is well said,” answered Nasartin, “but if you buy six donkeys with your :i<)o piasters instead of educating your son you will be master of seven donkeys, Including your son.”

MENTAL EPIDEMICS PAST AND PRESENT. In looking back to the medieval ages avi- find them to he times in which abnormal social phenomena were displayed on it grand scale—times teeming Avith mobs, riots, revolts; with blind movements of vast human mosses; with terrible epidemics that ravaged Europe from end to end. They were ages peculiar for the strange, striking fact that Avhole cities, extensive provinces, great countries, were stricken by one disease. Men went mad in packs, by the thousands. Au obscure individual in some remote •country place had (Its of hysterics, and soon all Europe was wriggling and struggling in convulsions of hysterical Insanity. The dark ages were strange, peculiar—so, at least, do they appear to us, who consider ourselves vastly superior to the poor, Ignorant medieval peasant, burgher, knight, Avith their superstitions, religious fervor, and recurrent epidemic insanities. I am afraid, however, that a similar fate may overtake us. May not a future historiun look back to our own times Avith dismay, and perhaps with horror? Tie will represent our age ns dark and cruel—an age of the blind, senseless Napoleonic wars, of great commercial panics, industrial crises, Black Fridays, and mobs and craws of all sorts aud descriptions. HOW THE PIGS GOT THE PLUMS. I once lived on a farm in the western part of Illinois. My father oAvned a great many fruit trees, but the finest fruit on tlie farm grew on a plum tree Avliich stood In the centre of a small meadow, in which a few of tin- hogs were wont to run. There Avere a few other trees in the meadow, and altogether it made a very nice place to be in on it warm day. One moming2»vhen the plums were at their best my mother gave me a small basket and asked me to go down to the tree and All it. The tree was loaded with the bright red plums, aud 1 soon filled my basket, aud then .«»it dowu ou the grass under a large shady tree to eat some of tba delicious fruit. Soon I heard a gruff “Ugli! Ugh!” followed by the falling of a perfect shower of plums from the tree. Quickly turning, I saw six large hogs standing under the tree quietly munching the fruit aud racking the pits between their teeth. Having consumed all the plums on the ground, one old hog, that seemed to be the leader, went up to the tree, and giving another “Ugh! Ugh!” rubbed his body against the trunk of the tree, and shook down another supply. 1 Avatched this performance for some time, and then informed my father about it. It is needless to say the pigs Avert: promptly turned out of the meadow.—Chicago Record,

CANINE FRIEND IN NEED.

“Talk about the sagacity of dogs,” remarked Jenkins, as lie scornfully surveyed the records of the good deeds done by canines in general, “Why, 1 saw something the other day which beats the world—something which, in addition to proving the reasoning power of dogs, showed also that some of them at least possess a great capacity for affection for their own kind. A friend of mine uptown owns several dogs, among the lot being a magnificent greyhound and a diminutive spaniel, the two dogs, notwithstanding the disparity in size, being warm friends. The other day the dog-catcher wagon was making the rounds, and, as usual, missing the curs while corraling the animals which are well taken care of. It happened that my friend’s front gate had been left ojjen, and the two dog mentioned escaped to the street just as the wagon turned the corner. There was a great cry on the part of the catchers, who grasped their nets and made a scramble for the little spaniel, not securing to like the idea of tackling the big hound. Tile poor little spaniel realized her danger and attempted to escape.' She flew like one possessed in every direction, only to be headed off by the men witlr the nets and a score of sninll boys. She finally halted, panting, in the middle of the