Rensselaer Republican, Volume 21, Number 11, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 15 November 1888 — Page 2

1 r TIR.KD I a®rotired to-day: I long to lay Mj head, lot rest, upon the pillow grfen Otaocra still churchyard grave, and ihut me 4- ■■ ■ - ■' ■ J;, From all the care*, the worrte*. and the strife Of all this anxious, restless motherdife, And riesp, please Ood. for aye. Ah! Little children with your dancing feel ~ And glances sweet! I have so weary of my burdens grown. I fain wonid loose your fingers from, my own - And leave to other hands the dear delight Of guiding bfiby footsteps un the heW>L And thus my us* complete But, weary mother*, wauld I have it so! Would If Ah! 09. I could ,ot sleep within my grassy bed. For hearing psttering fbotsu ps overhead. I Thi* mother-hesrt, though turned to dust, won'd throb Responsive to the baby's lonely sob. However faint and low. And so I could not rest me afler all; The gra aes tall ' And snowv daisies could not bring me peace The aching rr other-love would never cease. Ohl Christ, who gave this love with motherhood. On mothers tired bestow this greater good. Patienee--jvh*te’er befall! „ —The Home-Maker.

THE POETRY OF WAR.

BY DORCAS ALTHEA MARX.

It w«8 at Franklin that Charley Sherwood and I were separated for the first time—and for the last time. We had grown up together, sat on the same form in the country school, belonged to the same class in the Sunday-school, went to the academy together, entered college at the ) same time, enlisted the same night, were sworn in with our hands clasped, and for two years had slept under the same blanket and shared each other’s letters and confidences. I thought of it aflthat afternoon as we put up our head-log. It was something entirely new to us to fight behind breastworks, as all our campaigns had been in the open field. It promised to be a stern fight, and that was why we put up the head-log. The boys grumbled a little when this extra precaution was ordered, but Maj. Sterne was inflexible. He knew, whnt we did not then, that the enemy outnumbered us six to one, and that Franklin was the key to Nashville and possibly all north of it. “I say, Tom,” said Charley as we rested a little after finishing our* defensive works, “how does that field opt there remind you of the ball ground back of old number 6?" I smiled sickly at the ghastly Remembrance, though the field did have the old ball-ground look to it. “It will be worse than “mtish-pot’ in a few minutes,” continued Charley. “Don’t you see them choosing up and getting their side in order? We’ll have to play it mighty fine to get out. I take its” *“My eyes are not as good as yours, Charley, you know,” I replied. “You must never forget that I am a little nearsighted.” This sobered him, and he pressed my hand for a reply. It was an open secret with the mess that in times of peculiar danger, when good sight was essential Charley always maneuvered to get himaelf appointed to take my place on picket Why not? We were as Orestes and Plyades. I thought of these things afterward. I have neve forgotton a single detail of Hitvmoon ■a experience I never will. ' — It was after the sixth charge and repulse that we were separated. Our captain was on staff duty, the first lieutenant on sick-leave, and poor Stahley, who was in command, was carried to the rear with a bullet in bis brain. Then Charley had to go the head and I to the foot' of the company. ; The boys gave a cheer when Charley gave his first order. It was a little cheer, tinged-with sadness for the dead lieutenant. Everybody loved Charley, with his blue eyes, sunny curls, and gentle ways. He was a good boy as weil as a good soldier, and even in the army there is some premium on goodness. The next charge was not long delayed. It was terrific charge. It was plucky. The enemy came on with a sweep that was admirable. We felt like cheering him for his gallantry, and probably would if we could have afforded it. As it was, our business was to kill as much of him as we could, and we addressed ourselves to the task with dispatch. We poured volley after volley into him as he came at us; but on the columns came. I could hear Charley’s voice occasionally above the din of battle, and I knew he was all right It gave me ease. Somehow, I could not get my thoughts off him that afternoon. — ——

When the columns were within thirty yards of our works they staggered; but they did not go back. A breath of air from the distant hills blew over the field at that moment, lifting the smoke. We could look into each others’ eyes distinctly. We measured each others’ strength, and then the artillery smoke behind them and us rolled down. It was the supreme moment just before the falling of the curtain. I saw much in that moment They were a magnificent body of men. I never looked on a grander sight. Behind and before them the ground was as thickly strewn with dead bodies as sheaves of oats in a Pennsylvania harvest field. We spoke of this afterward. They were Confederate dead. It was a beautiful sight to us who had done the

strewing. It must have been gruesome enough to them. Directly in front of me was a young fellow with a gold hand ondiis shoulders. Somehow the smurch of battle had missed him and his face was clean, his unifortai bright. I could see,his eyes sparkling with the enthusiasm of-battle. They were blue eyes, I knew, and reminded me x>f Charley's. He seemed about 22—just Charley’s age. The shoulder bands indicated that he had wealth an influence behind him to wear such decorations at that age. - He looked directly into my eyes as I raised my musket an<l at. him. There was no fear there, only a sort of dumb, beseeching look such as one sees in the eyes es the fawn. I could not do it" There was a mother somewhere in the sunny souuth that must not be robbed of her boy; not by me at least. There was a sister that would wait, dryeyed and sad, for a brother that would never return. A sweetheart, who would short line. “Fire low and keep cool.” I lowered my musket to the fifth button on his gray coat. It was a neatfitting coat, and quite new. I run my eyes along the buttons as I lowered the range. I could not disfigure that sweat face.

After the repulse T went , out to see him. There was a straight builet-hole just above the fifth .button. He was quite dead. There were seven other musket balls in his body. Possibly mine was not. the first. The serenity of the young face was marred by some one less scrupulous than I. A minify ball had entered the forehead and plowed a groove straight back through the jet curls. Another had .penetrated the left cheek and left a.mafk on the ear. Oh, yes, he was quite dead! Therq would be darkness in some tender hear:s when the report of this battle was, sent south ward a darkness that nothing could brighten. There would be sadness in sojne homes that time could never dispel. It was sad to think about. But it was the fortune of glorious war! After that last volley the smoke settled down thickly upon us. We saw through a glass, darkly. The next breeze that came revealed the enemy almost at our works. I was behind the line a pace, and near the head of the company, opening a fresh cartridge box. I heard Charleyjshout: “Bayonets; infantry guard and repulse attack.” Aha; this was war, indeed! No more trusting to powder and lead! It was at them with cold steel! I dropped the cartridges, grasped my musset, and rushed up to the works. I did not go to my place, but came up by Charley’s side. At the moment I reached the right place two gray-coats jumped on the works directly in front of us. They were big, burly fellows Texans, I think —and not over six feet from us. They were not savage-looking at all. On the contrary, they looked very kindly at us, straight into our eyes, as they brought their guns to their shoulders. They were going to kill us! They could not possibly miss us, as our heads would be more than three feet from the muzzles of their guns. My gun was empty; it had a bullet in the 11111 zzle, but T had not time to ram it down. They picked their men and fired. I felt a sharp sting on the my right ear, a sharp breath of air, and the Windingnf that eye. t staggered back and dropped my gun. My hand went to the ground to stay the fall. It touched another gun, which I instinctively grasped. I thrust it against the breast of one of the men -and pulled the trigger. To my surprise—afterward, not then—the gun was loaded. I did not wait to see the effect, but struck at he ojher man with the bayonet. He was too far away. I trust at him twice , before 1 realized that his eyes pleaded for mercy but he was-game'to the last. He stood his ground, though he saw murder in my eyes. I had the advantage ot position for bayonet exercise,and he saw it. How his eyes did plead with me! Would I spare him? Aye, would I, were it ten times war and glory more excellent! Ah, what is this? I felt, rather than saw, a vacancy at my elbow. He had made it He must die. I placed the butt of the musket in my right hand and thrust out the steel with the full stretch of my arm. It was fine. I never saw a grander stroke. The point entered his bosom just below the fifth button again and I saw the point protrude beyond his shoulders tinged to a beautiful scarlet. His head dropped forward on his breast and his body fell backward. I released my hold on the gun and allowed it to be drawn backward with him. 4 picked Charley up in my arms and carried him bsfck a dozen yards. His eyes were open and fixed on my face; but their light was dim and growing dimmer. “Can 1 do Charley?” There was no voice; the eyes said: “No.” « I tool out my pen-knife, cut his belt, and opened his blouse. He gave a full, breath as the pressure of the dress and trappings was removed, and there was something that suggested a smile of relief. That was all. I laid him down’ on the ground, gently and tenderly. Then I stepped into his place at the head of the company. 'lt was war, and there was no time to think of the dead. We must kill the living; There was no cheer when I gave my first order. For the second time that

afternoon had that place been made vacant. Even soldiers cannot always cheer' over a dead body. When the battle was over I carried Charley over the hill and laid him in a grave we scooped out. That was the end. There was a single drop of blood on hia breast where the fatal bullet had entered. He had bled inwardly." As I carried him over the hill that drop came off on the sleeve of my b’ouse. Three years later I told a brokenhearted woman„in the north about that drop of blood and showed her where it had lain. It was a coarse weather-‘and-war-stained coat. But when I showed the spot the woman stooped down and kissed it. She was Charley’s mother.

How to Save the Eyesight. Next to sunlight the incandescent light® gives the best illumination for reading, and all motions of the injurious effect on the eyes of the electric light are erroneous. The vast majority of people who wear glasses can see well without them: They use them to avoid a constant strain of the eyes. The act of fopalization is a muscular one and raisesup nervous energy. The oversighted eye, in which the focus comes behind the retina, has to perform this muscular act continually. The results are headaches* irritability, and nausea. The only remedy in such cases is to wear glasses. The near-sighted child should wear spectacles, because they are the best preventive against increase of nearsightedness, and also because he looses a great part of his education in not being able to see more than a few reet away. For the eyes in a healthy state there is but one safe wash—pure cold water. When the eyelids are inflamed the nest lotion is a weak solution of a3.lt and and water. Never apply poultices to the eyes or use “eye-water” without the advice of a physician. At the first symptoms of near-sighted-neus spectacles should be worn. There is a great deal of popular prejudice against spectacles, but there are two good reasons why they should be worn, and only two—one is that we r can see better, and the other that the strain" on the eyes may be relieved. - In reading the book or paper should be held at a distance of from ten to fifteen inches from the eyes. The reader’s position should be such that the light may fall on the book and not on the eyes. The light itself should be sufficient. Nothing is so injurous to the eyes as poor light reading.

Honeyßeesas Pets. A young grammar school lad [in the Sixteenth Ward sends the New York Telegram the following account of a colony of honey bees in an up-toWn tenement. He says: “I was surprised to find a colony of bees on top of a tall tenement in East Harlem, near 112th street, the other day. The hives stood in a kitchen, by an open window, and, strangely enough, they were allowed to go all ever the house-at their will. They are the pete of an intelligent Italian factory man, who said (translated into English): “I am very fond of bees, and have kept ggrgrarwafflig of theui ever since-F came here. They are the most intelligent pets I ever had.’ ’ “But don’t they sting?” asked the reporter, as a quart of the insects prepared to settle about his head. “Oh, no; they love us all, and will never sting unless compelled to do so in sel f -defehse, when we accidentally sit on them. “Their worst habit is stealing. They watch their chance to get into the pantry and steal sugar and sweetmeats. On several occasions the sugar bowl has been left uncovered, and long enough for the bees to carry off its contents.” “Do they make much honey?” “Yes, indeed they do. The hive is nearly full all the time. We give it a wide berth, as we only keep the bees for pets; thus, their confidence in us remains unshaken, and they love us and grow tame. You can’t fool a honey bee. It understands its business better than most men, and will investigate all wrongs done to its household with nearly as much logic as the average lawyer uses in a criminal case. When its presents its little bill back accounts are are soon settled. “They swarm every summer, but take care to give as little trouble as possible. They Sways light on the bed or bureau (never on the stove), and when they settle in a bunch I put the m, with my bare hands, into another hive. When we have more bees than we care for I give ’em away.) I formerly lived in New Jersey, where I kept forty or fifty swarms. - )- “They are great travelers, and sometimes go many miles for honey. Their principle routes are to the city parks, to Staten Island and the buckwheat fields of Long Island and New Jersey.” One of the boys of the household, who has, no doubt, carefully investigated the bees, said the hive was “overflowing” with honey. The Itallian bees are loved, by every member of the family except a big, old cat, who once intruded upon the insects with disastrous results. Since then the cat gives them a wide berth and wears a sour face when they swarm.

RABBIT AND KANGAROO.

Attempts to Exterminate These Pestiferous Animals in the Australian Colonies. San Francisco JCxaminer. * lately concerning the wholesale slaughter of rabbits in Fresno and the adjoining counties by means of “drives” is true, a dual object has beep attained*, viz, the infroductirfln of a novel and excitijig sport and the discovery of an antidote to the ravages of those herbivorous pests. Just fancy ten thousand being exterminated ■"■at one and the modus operandi of rounding up, viz, the stretching of two light wire netting fences, which converge until they culminate in a kind of stockyard, into which the beaters drive their quarry, is so simple that the wonder is it was not thought of long ago. It is morally certain that Australia and New Zealand, those rabbit-ridden countries, will be quick to adopt the idea, and probably the farmers of those distant islands will find the method more effective in the matter of allaying the rabbit nuisance than all the theories of inoculation. ' An examiner reporter met a gentleman recently who had been, largely indentified with pastoral interests both in Australia and New Zealand; and from him some interesting facts were, ascertained in connection with the efforts of antipodean agriculturists to combat the plague of the long-eared pests. “The driv.e idea,” said the gentleman, is not entirely new to Australians. They have for years employed a somewhat similar method of ridding pastoral lands of the destructive kangaroo. The usual way was to build a capacious stockyard with a very high fence, for your ablebodied kangaroo is no slouch at playing leap-frog. The location generally chosen was on the fork of a river, for kangaroos are not extra partial to water. Invitations to the round-up would be sent to the neighboring farmers, and on a specified morning, mounted,-and accompanied .by whatever kangaroo hounds they chanced to possess. Dogs and owners would then get away back and scatter out in skirmishing order until a large section of country was covered, and then circum-navigation was in order, the object point, of course, being the lofty stockyard. “Prety soon you would hear the baying of scores of hounds, and then the" long-jumping marsupials would .be seen leaping like gigantic frogs, while the skirmishers would advance a nfl close in steadily and systematically, controlling the hounds the while, so as to direct the hopping kangaroos to the desired point. When the mob, which on occasion numbered many hundreds, were finally housed in the places of slaughter some one was sent to close the drawgate on them, and the fun commenced, The dogs were restrained, and family relics in the shape of blunderbusses and ancient flintlochs were brought into requisition until the last grass and crop despoiler had bitten the dust.” \ “Kangaroos make it rough for the hounds on some occasions, do they not?” asked the reporter. “You bet they do. An old man kangaroo is just as tough a bit of mechanism as ever a dog tackled. When fairly connered he will place his back against a dree.or roek-andiny i te -the-best -dog-4n-the pack to come on. Old dogs are wary of them, and use their best endeavors to get an ear or neck hold from behind, but a young hound will frequently rush into the bayed marsupial’s arms, so to speak, and if he gets away alive he is lucky. The kangaroo will balance himself firmly,on his tail, which is both powerful and springy, and will clasp the dog around the body with his hind legs, while he will utilize the sharp claws of his fore paws to tear the brute’s stomach into ribbons and haul its entrails out. “I remarked; before that kangaroos did not take kindly to water, but when goaded to desperation on a plain where there are no trees or rocks in sight to back up against they will not hesitate to flop into a water hole, and it is a matter of history that a kangaroo thus placed has been known to grasp an attacking hound and hold him under water until he was drowned. “The days of rounding up are pretty well at an end now, as the Government of the different Australian colonies pay so much a scalp for kangaroos, and this has induced-numbers of hunters to follow the business of kangaroo shooting. By this meant the troublesome animals are kept down, and it is only'A question of a little time when they will wholly exterminated.” • From kangaroos the conversation drifted back to the rabbit question, the gentleman from the antipodes related his experience in the matter, together with the of colonial governments to subdue the pests. “First of all, I suppose you have heard that valuable pastoral holdings, both in New Zealand and Australia, have had to be abandoned through the depredation of rabbits, and I assure you that the losses these harmless-looking creatures have entailed have been very much underestimated. The rabbits in the colonies are borrowers, and this makes them harder to get at A few years ago a system of fencing with wire netting was introduced there, but it only proved effective on uniformly leve land. Rabbits do not, as a rule, burrow fiat places, but where the fence ran over

the slightest knoll or hill bunny would get his deadly work in by riddling the mound with holes and opening up an avenue to the inner pastures. “On small holdings she owners obviated the difficulty “by. sinking narrow Ireiffhee and inserfingthe wire netting* below ground, but the cost this- system would entail in making a large run rabbit proof would constitute total aban ? donment of the place a profitable alternate. It is only on these large runs that the depredations are felt severely, as around farms and tillage lands the constant presence of ploughmen and other" laborers scares away the colonial rabbit, which is as shy as it is destructive, J/ have often read of grasshopper plagues in this and othdr countries, but I don’t think there can be a more’desolate sight than that of a run which has been abandoned to rabbits. I believe that out that way the furry destroyers breed four or five times a yehr. “The methods experimented with in order to exterminate them have been as varied as they were ineffective. Poisoned grain was tried, but a short experience illustrated the fact that valuable sheep and cattle dogs were killed through eating poisoned rabbits, while sheep were occasionally poisoned by eating the grain. Then an enterprising German- came along and announced to the long suffering colonial stockmen that he had an infallible remedy for the curse. His plan was to inject some poisonous acids into the burrows, but as far as appeared on the surface the rabbits devoured his patent medicine and asked for more. Then we began to introduce ferrets and kindred small but vindictive animals, which it was expected would glide noiselessly into the burrows, and in time wipe the rabbits off our section of the globe. The ferrety, however, after awhile tired of an exchisi \ ( ral)bit diet and turned their attention to poultry. They have also been known to attack children, there being oije case in particular where a child at Damara, New Zealand, had its eyes nearly eaten out before assistance arrived. I have not heard anything anent the ferret question lately, but I should not wonder if the colonists are? not, in pursuance of the chain of destruction they have organized, looking around for some antidote to ferrets. The. only method there has been in any manner, effective in keeping the rabbits down iff the colbnies has been the employment of men known as rabbiters. They are, as a rule, clever with the fowling piece, and the run-holders supply them with ammunition and ‘tucker’ (Anglice, provisions). They wage a steady and merciless war on the pests, and as rabbit skins properly cured find a ready sale, rabbiting is a fairly lucrative calling. The introduction of this method of meeting the difficulty on the New Zealand side has been brought about by the establishment of a rabbit department, the maintenance of which costs the government SIOO,OOO a year.”

Dr. Dunning Surprises a “Drummer." Lewiston Journal-- - “ • —- — : -—The Rev. A. E. Dunning, D. D., the manager of the Congregational ist publishing house and Sabbath-school work, and one of the busiest men in Boston, is an off-hand, approachable man with a bright, winning face, easy manner and personal magnetism, that contribute much to his success. He has none of but looks more like a business man. He travels nearly all of the time and he says that in the cars he generally passes as a drummer and is recognized by the fraternity as one of their number. On going to. Minneapolis one Saturday evening, a smart young fellow approached him in a free and easy way: “Going to stop over Sunday?” “Yes,” replied the Doctor. “Stop at the Blank Hotel, I suppose?”“No, lam going to stop with a friend.” “Come round to the hotel to-morrow afternoon and we’ll have a racket. Quite a number of the boys will be there” , <• ' ; “But to-morrow is Sunday.” “I know it, and that’s why we can have such a devil of a good time.” “Oh, I think that we fellows who are traveling all the time ought to keep Sunday,” said the Doctor. “Yes,” assented the drummer goodnaturedly, “but I’ll bet you won’t!” tlL’ll tell you what I’ll do; I’ll go to church to-morrow if you will!” “I’ll do it! Where shall we go?” “To the First Congregational. It’s the best church in town.” . “All right. I’ll be there, but I bet yon won’t!” The drummer was there according to his promise, and could hardly believe his eyes when he saw his friend of the night before ascend to the pulpit. Dr. Dunning tried to find him after the service, but he had fled.

The Persian Minister at Washington Hadji Hassein Khouli Khan, Persian ambassador at Washington, always sleeps with his hands resting in a pan of cold water. He got into this habit partially because he has been used to a warm climate and could cool his blood in this way, and also because in Teheran mosquitoes are a great pest Hadji claims that a mosquito will not bite a man who has both hands plunged in water. He asserts that it is heated blood which a mosquito desires, and I that a person whose veins have been slightly chilled offers na attraction to the pernicious insect.

NOTES OF THE FASHIONS.

Goods for Fall—The New Headgear— Beautiful Ornaments. ' ■ NeW York Graphic. Although stimmer toilets will not be "discarded for some time- to come, the display of fall goods in the shops opens for discussion the subject, What will be worn this autumn? ' . / * Let us then begin at the very top-, ‘or Inffiher words the head covering. In the new hats crowns are bnly moderately highland some are very low, and all tastes <and types of beauty can be" suited tn'the widths and arrangements of the brims. Close fitting bonnets and various turban shapes—which are a sort of compromise between a bonnet and a hat —will be very popular. For earliest fall wear English straws and coarse, fancy braids will prevail; later, fine plain and fancy felts will be in favor. As the season advances the velvet hat will supersede all others, even for ordinary be the trimming. In Paris, green feathers are seen on black hats, such as short ostrich tips, bandeaux of feathers and stiff quills or cocks’ plumes cut off bluntly at the top and much shorter than those lately worn here. Very small black birds are used for trimming colored hats and for bonnets also. Another French novelty is like a ribbon of feathers, short bands of plumage woven or sewed together, being folded in loops and in pointed ends, precisely as ribbon is done. Ornaments of oxidized silver are very fashionable, and every article of the toilet that will admit of its use, such as fans, parasol handles, etc., are finished with mountings of oxidized metal. It is also very popular for jewelry. The favorite colors for autumn goods are green, red and gray. Every shade of green flourishes, from the vivid rich emerald to nil or Nile green, a light water color. Scarabee is a dark, yellowish green, and couroucou and peuplier are lighter shades of the same color. In combination green is especially pleasing and it is this fact, doubtless, which has given it such popularity. The brighter reds are coquelicot, or poppy-red, cardinal and Boulanger, a bright, vivid blood red. Bouton d’or or buttercup yellow, of the beautiful golden tints of those well-known field flowers, and maize color will be combined with white, black or deep browns for rich evening toilets in silk materials. The new shades of brown are alezan, a dark.reddish brown, and pactole, a light golden brown. In blues, ocean blues and luciole, the latter a shade between gendarme ’ and ocna, are the favorites, At a recent wedding in England th» attendants were all little children. Tw» little pages bore the bride’s train. They were dressed in blue plush suits, with white silk waistcoats, blue silk stockings and steel buckles on their shoes. Bunches of pink flowers were fastened on their vests with pearl horse shoes. Three little boys followed, dressed in the same style in China silk instead of plushf* Three little girls wore rose pinx frocks of silk, trimmed with deep cream lace, pink sashes and white straw hats adorned with pink roses. Their brooches were crystal and they carried baskets of flowers, the handles of which were tied with pink and cream-colored satin ribbon. Colored leather is becoming fashionable in England for the .decoration of dresses, A ntnmn gowns are made with perforated panels and vests, the perforation being carried out in design. Long scarfs of black Chantilly lace and also of hand-run Spanish lace are imported to be worn around the neck in the way no.w in favor with English women, and formerly so popular here. They are gathered closely around the neck, and should be long enough to reach almost to the foot of the dress. Large fichus or shawls of black Or white net edge with deep Trills of gathered lace havle been worn all summer and similar fichus are now made of China crepe in black, in white and in colors. ■ . ■ , . The black lace boas in vogue at the watering places will be followed this autumn by boas of natural gray ostrich feathers, wnich will be worn without other wraps as long as the weather wiH permit. * , Cashmere-colored brocade ribbons are in all widths for bonnet trimmings an*L for sashes, the latter being wide enough’ to use as vests, plastrons and insertions in black and dark colored silk gowns. Charming novelties in pocket handkerchiefs have appeared. They are of all colors. On a ground of pink, red and blue or lilac extends a sprinkling of tiny crescents, horseshoes, spots, stars -in some widely contrasting shade, such as red on blue or pink, black on pale blue. Large buttons are a feature of the fashionable Directoire gowns, and , made of old silver or of filigree gold or of porcelain painted with French designs of landscapes, flowers, milkmaids, Ac. At least a duzen bottons are usually required for a Directoire basqug, three for each side of the front and six for the back or lapels for the pockets, and when one has to pay from $lO a dozen upwards •for the buttons alone, the cost of the dress is considerably .increased. Among the noteworthy evolutions of fashion thia fall is a marked decrease in the size of ladies’ watches. ' The leg of mutton sleeve is fashionable for all dresses of light weight material. E. R. C. When the political cauldron boils, the senm naturally rises to the top.