inions of Great Papers on flmportant Subjects.
5
m
Looking for Eosy Jobs.
N ngod colored man was recently arrested In
Washington and pronounced Insane after a
nut! lea I examination. One of tho chief proofs
of IiIh insanity was his stul)born insistence that
the government owed him u living and that Ju
was entitled by riglit to a position in one of
the Federal Departments.
The occurrence furnishes a tit text for the pen o the
humorist. Yet us u matter of fact is it not true that a
very large number of white men who are young, vigorous
and presumably capable of making a place for themselves
in tho world are likewise possessed of this particular form
of lunacy? How many Senators and Congressmen, If they
Uiould speak out frankly, could furnish some interesting
revelations regarding the extent and persistency of the
Importunity -to which they have been subjected by people
who were convinced that they ought to have a government
job and who frankly based their preference for this sort
of employment on their belief that it was about the easiest
that could be found anywhere?
There Is, of course, nothing dishonorable In seeking n
mbordinato position under the government In some
brunches of tho public service, owing to the gradual Intro
duction of the merit system, there Is more chance than
iormerly for promotion based on fitness and capacity. -Hut
It Is undoubtedly true that the belief that work for the
government Is usually "an ensy Job," Inspires the bulk of
the applicants who annoy members of both houses of Con
gress with their appeals. Yet ls this the way to win gen
uine success? Is a task that is "easy" the kind which the
averago healthy young person should look for?
Men who have risen to eminence in trade, industry '4iul
professional life have not wasted their time In hunting
up places where they would have little to do with com
paratively small prospect of advancement. They have reso
lutely looked for openings which were accompanied by
hard labor and plenty of It; and when they liavo secured
uch 4in opening they have usually proved that they had
the right stuff In them by buckling down with energy to do
their best. Philadelphia Bulletin.
slans at Liu Yang and Port Arthur with nrmlcs greater in
tho aggregate than Unit which Napoleon III. mobilized for
tho Invasion of Germany. Of the quality of these forces it
Is unnecessary to speak. Sailors and soldiers alike are, in
discipline, in speed of. marching, and In endurance of
fatigue, the equals of any that Europe lias produced; while
In their reckless contempt of death they display a special
quality which, as great Russian ollicers admit, sometimes
appals and demoralizes their own stubbornly bravo men.
Whore In all this Is tho evidence of the "littleness' upon
which their press dcclnres to bo a guarantee of their own
ultimata victory? London Spectator.
Why "Little" Japan?
i-rretftra 1 111... I . t l t 1.1 t.
HimfciU IS UIIU IIIUMJUU UlMJlll .lUpiHl WHICH BC-UIHM
& H J to survlvo evidence and to work most serious
political nusenler. The Continental Powers,
and Russia more especially, cannot get rid of
the belief that the Island Empire, however
brave or astute or lucky its children may be, ls,
after nil. but u "little" State, which In n very
amort time must "bleed to death." It is not very easy to
trace the origin of tills belief, unless It bo tho habit of
expecting great) size In all Asiatic Empires, or of comparing
the area of Japan with that of China, or of Russia Itself,
tto compared, Japan ls, of course, a little place, which looks
on tho maps almost insignificant. Compared, however, in
a more sensible way, with tho other Island Empire which
lias so long been one of the (.5 resit Powers of the world,
Jupan Is by no means small. Its total area, without count
tng Formosa, ls by twenty-seven thousand squaro miles
greater than that of the British isles, and as .largo a pro
portion of It ls fertile and thickly populated. That popula
tion, again, ls forty-four millions, or three millions greater
thnn that of Britain, six millions greater than that of
If ranee, and almost equal to that of Austria-Hungary. If
tho word "little," again, refers to strength for war, that
strength ls In ninny respects superior to our own. We
could probably destroy tho Japanese tleet, but tho Japanese
fleet has destroyed that of Russia, and could, If allowance
Is made for position, maintain a contest) with that of
Franco or Germany which would not be absolutely hope
less. As regards soldiers, Japan has n conscription, and the
conscription obviously works. Within the last six mouths
tho country has sent out six armies, each nearly equal to
either of the forces that contended at Waterloo. We
thought we had done a great thing when avo sent eighty
thousand men to India in 1857, and an extraordinary one
when we transported two hundred thousand men to South
Africa In 11)00. But Japan has transported more than four
liuudrcd thousand men across the sea, and defied the Bus-
Lovo and Work.
DDAiLISM us an Interpretation of life, u vision
of ultimate cads and conditions, has always
won to itself the ardent, the poetic, and tho
high-minded the great . company of seekers
after light and love in every generation, who
rcbol against the hnrdncss and Injustice of tho
world, hate Its noise and brutality, its fierce
competitions and Its stolid Indifference to the defeated.
Vjven in the presenco of the great purpose which runs
through the visible order of things and the society In which
men have arranged themselves, and which has come to
light, as one of the most spiritual men of tho day has snld,
Just in time to snve some of the best men nnd women from
dospnlr, It ls hard for the sensitive and aspiring and tender
hearted to bear the sorrows of the world and to sit with a
cheerful spirit while so many losses ravage the homes that
are dear to them and despoil tho best fortunes of men.
There are hostN of men and women who go through life
with a noble discontent in their hearts, a sense of loneli
ness and Isolation in their souls; they are homesick for a
world In which men help lnstend of smite, bind up instead
of wound, are quick to recognize tho good Insetad of eager
to find the evil, Btand ready in all crises to rebuild the
fnlicn, are patient of spirit with the weak, love the sinner
while they loathe the sin, are kindly In speech because kind
ly In thought, nre indifferent to external conditions because
conditions nro tho happenings of life while the soul ls its
great and enduring reality, are bound together in a vast
conspiracy to cheer, to aid, to give heart and hope, to make
the highways of life bloom with spontaneous kindness, and
to make the lonely world a warm, hospitable, many-windowed
home for all who pass tills way on the Journey of
life.
Men are made happy, not by the things which surround
them nor by the things which they take to themselves,
but by the noble putting forth of the soul in lovo and work;
the two great activities which are never divorced In the
'harmonious and balanced life, the two languages in which
every true Idealist makes confession of his faith and gives
evidence of its reality. For love Is the ultimate expression
of faith, and without works faith Is a vain shadow. The
Outlook.
T
Criminal Frequency of Railroad Wrecks.
HE frequency and frightful fatality of railroad
accidents in this country must sooner or later
bring about determined governmental action
for the protection of the traveling public. There
Is not another country in the world where as
unnecessarily large a proportion of railroad pas
sengers lose me or iiinu.
The fact) that so many American railroads are composed
of but a single track is a partial explanation of this awful
slaughter, but it does not account for everything. In Eng
land, where accidents of serious proportions arc so com
paratively few, railroad precautions for the safety of tho
public are prescribed, and supervised, by tho Board of
Trade, and tho wbolosomemess of this regulation was rec
ognized by a bill which was Introduced In Congress last
winter, providing for a similar supervision of our roads by
the Interstate Commerce Commission.
The Interstate Commerce Commission Is already n use
ful body, but it would be of larger use If this new power
were given to iL The railroad Influence blocked tho bill
Just mentioned at the last session, but this fact should not
doter tho vigorous revival of the measure. Pittsburg Press.
4ExS'$&$lSJ3xS3Sx5'
1 MINING ARSENIC
A Virginia farmer, up among th.5
foot-hills of the Blue Bldge Moun
tains, cleared a new field and pastur
ed his cows there. Before long the ani
mals sickened and one died. Think
ing that perhaps the spring which
tubbled from tho rocks in apparent
purity might be tho cause, the fanner
caused Its waters to bo analyzed, it
was found that they contained arsenic
in such quantities as to render them
dangerous to man and beast. This
discovery, says the Boston Herald, led
to an Industry, unique, not only In tho
United States, but in the western
hemisphere; that Is, the mining of ar
senic ores and tho manufacture of
wlilto arsenic, for tho supply of which
America has hitherto depended en
tirely upon foreign markets.
""Arscnsie is mined in Japan, Italy,
Portugal, Spain, Germany and Eng
land. Its uses nro many. As a poi
son it hiiB been known from vary ear
ly times. Tho peasant women of Aus
1rla consume largo quantities of It,
Mining faith In Its virtues as a beuu
tlllcr. and tho men of the- same region
nre addicted to Its use in 'the mistaken
he'llof that it Increases their llodliy
strength and endurance.
,. Arsenic la a usef.ul mineral. It Is
Mriod In the.'jnamil'Victaw mf.--gins,
white. iiie.taL'iPtuis greiiti ml- a-great
variety of paints: in printing calico.-
lu making toilet soap, cosme.us ami
complexion powdcoi;, In the manufac
ture of fireworks amd as a constituent
of many alloys, ljor theso and simi
lar purposes between five and six
thousand tons arc, Imported into the
United States every year. Tho aver
ago value of wlilto arsenic may be
placed at about eighty-live dollars a
ton.
It was only about a year ago that
the arsenic ore was discovered In Vir
ginia; then the mountain top round the
present mining town of Brluton was
an almost unbroken wilderness. The
story of Its transformation Into a busy
Industrial community is a good illus
tration of the pluck and indomitable
will to which America owes its indus
trial supremacy. The mine Is located
at the summit of a mountain, three
thousand feet above the sea-level.
Tho physical difficulties that had to
be overcome were enormous.
The ore body averages twenty-five
to thirty per cent pure arsenic. It ls
found In fissure veins, cropping out
nt the surface and extending into the
earth for nn unknown distance.
Twenty distinct veins have been dis
covered, outcropping for a distance of
seven miles, so that the deposits are
oxtonstve enough to supply the world's
demands for an Indefinite period.
From the time when the oro enters
the crushers until the finished prod
uct reaches the disks It Is untouched
by human bauds. ,lt is carried along
from,. point to point by automatic ar
rangemoiits through onoii process of
manufacture. The impalpable dint
I and poisonous gases generated nre so
dangerous that the atmosphere of the
plant has to be kept pure by artificial
means. As a further precaution the
works are provided with hot and cold
baths, of which the men are required
to make use as soon as their dally task
Is completed.
At tho present time the output ls
three tons of white arsenic a day.
When one stops to think of them,
these figures contain some startling
possibilities. The output for four days
would furnish a fatal doso for every
man, woman and child In the United
States. In a few weeks the p ant could
turn out enough arsenic to wipe out
the entire population of the globe.
Put's Answer to tho Sergeant.
An Irish soldier was crossing a bar
rack square- with a pall, In which he
was going to get some water. A ser
geant, passing at tjio time, noticed Unit
Put had a very disreputable-looking
pair of trousors on, and, wishing to
make a report, stopped tho mnu and
asked:
"Where nre you going?"
"To "e f'MVi watr."
"What! In thoso trousers?"
"No, sergeant, In tho pail."
Quoons' Names m Publio Places
Many English queens lmvo chosen
oak trees in Windsor forest whereon
their names, with iihe dates of their
choice, have been commemorated by
moans .of brass plate. In different
parts of the forest, with seats around
them, are oaks bearing the named .of
Queen Elizabeth. Queen Caroline,
Qucuu Charlotte and Queen Victoria.
Francis Newton Thorpe, author of
several constitutional histories, has
written "A Short Constitutional His
tory of the United States," which Lit
tle, Brown & Co., Boston, will pub
lish. It ls said that Gertrude Athcrton's
"Bulors of Kings" will not be pub-
Iti.lww! t.i Mittinwiti.) lnrinnttA 'f It., , . n ll -
' nltz dares not publishes It." It may
not be the precise truth, but It ls u
fairly good story and a much better
advertisement.
"The Wolverine," by Albert L. Law
rence, ls u new romance of love and
politics. It scenes are laid in Detroit
just before Michigan became u Stute,
when that Territory nnd the Stute of
Ohio were nearly at open war over
tho boundary line.
Tudor Jenks, who wns for many
years on the editorial staff of "St
Nicholas," has written the first vol
ume In A. S. Barnes' now series of
"Lives of Great Writers," under the
title of "In the Days of Chaucor," to
which Hamilton Wright Muble hus
contributed an Introduction.
Owen Klidare, who has sprung into
wide fame in a very short time, has
written u new book with the striking
title, "The Good of the Wicked," a
story of Bowery life In New York,
which tho Baker &Taylor Company,
New York, will publish, together with
"The Party Sketches," heretofore pub
lished serially.
Frederick S. Isham, author of
"Black Friday," Just published by the
Bobbs-Menill Company, is a nntlve of
Detroit. After ho wns grnduutcd from
the high school he devoted himself to
travel abroad, setting down at the end
of that migratory period to student
life in Munich. Twelve mouths later
Bohemian London became his next
place of ubode. For two years he at
tended tho ltoynl Academy of Music
n Hanover Square. From this fra
ternal and artistic attnsophcrc Mr.
Isham came home to the busy life oi
newspnperdom. He served In various
capacities on the Detroit Free Press
nnd other papers. Mr. Isluun's pro-
lous novels, "The Strollers" nnd "Un
der tho Rose." were both extraordina
rily successful and "Black Friday"
scorns destined to nn equal popular
ly. The uctual writing of the book
wns done In a villa overlooking the
sou on the north coast of France.
Maarten Maartens, the author of
'Dorothea," lately published by tho
ipplotons, nnd of many other novels,
related recently an anecdote of his
boyhood days, when he was spending
the summer at Bnrblzon, tho home of
Jean Francois Millet. The future nov
elist, who was about ten years old nt
the time, wns sitting on a gate-post
watching a dog fight The partici
pants were Ills landlord's dog nnd a
neighbor's, in which the strnngor wns
eventually killed. Young Maartens
was so excited at the tragic outcome
that he fell off his perch on top of
the animals, Just as tho neighbor's
wife rushed out of her house across
the road, and accused the boy of Idli
ng her dog. The old woman saw the
marks of the teeth on her dog's thront,
and then glanced suspiciously nt the
little foreigner. "Come hero, little
boy," sho culled out, "nnd show me
your teeth!" "But they didn't fit,"
Mr. Maartens linstens to explain when
ho tells the story.
It is only a few months since the
veteran uctor-munager, John Coleman,
wns buried, ne died before the Inst
proof-shoots of this book reached him.
Its two volumes must have given him
great satisfaction, had he lived to see
thorn in print. Barely is such a vast
array of interesting nnrratlve nnd un
usual incident pucked Into the spnee
Mr. Colemnn gives to his life story.
Fifty Years of an Actor's Life" is
ono rapid succession of lllumlnntlng
pictures of such people ns the Kom
bles, the Koans, the SIddons, tho Cush-
mans. Mncready, Charles Dickens, Sic
Robert Peel, the Queen oven; Lady
Blesslngton and Count D'Orsay, Dis
raeli, Louis Bonaparte, Edwin Forresr,
the Terrys, Kate and Ellen,. Henry
Irving. A thorough-going London r.
a man of high Ideals for the singe, ono
whoso name is inseparably connected
with the Shakespeare memorials at
Stratford-on-Avon, Mr. Colemnn un
derstood in tho writing of Ills auto
biography what would Interest the
most casual reader.
food being tho only thing common U
both types of educational community,
To the uninitiated beholders, th
American college girl's room, with
tings and posters nnd sporting souven.
irs nnd cinss symbols, with men's pio
tures on desks nnd dressing tublo,
might be a college boy's.
On tho other side of tho ocean young
women ure supposed not to keop
young men's portraits in their rooms,
just as they are not supposed to meet
on equal terms of comradeship tho
subjects of the aforesaid pictures.-Tho
nbsence of books in the room nnd tho
conspicuous presenco of candy boxes
nnd fruit bnskets might nlso strlko
the European observer us peculiar.
All tills corresponds with a radical
difference in the life of woman stu
dents In Amerlcn nnd in Europe. Tin
European girl goes to her university
purely for learning, and in the lowei
educational Institutions It ls the same.
Study Is the business of life, and only
those fortunate ones who have friends
and relatives' to take them out occa
sionally and give them a good tlino
over get any fun.
In America the college Is u school ol
life, with nil sorts of activities besides
study. Tlio European college girl bus
to find out nfter sho leaves collego
everything that her American sister
learns while at college, though occa
sionally in old Europe a girl has a
chance of getting out of her life pen
haps more experience and at least the
same amount of pleasure as tho Amen
lean girl does, although in a way en
tirely different; this is n girl who ut
tends a university for men and enjoys
In the old world, among hundreds of
men, the perfect freedom of movement
nnd the feeling of independence which
characterize the happy life of thfl
Amerlcnn college girl (hnppy in thnl
she realizes by herself an idenl of fre
and intelligent life, without tho in.
evltnble strain which comes to th
same life when lived by ono gle
among a crowd of men).
The chief characteristic of th
Amerlcnn womun's college ls well do
fined, tho critic proceeds, by the ills
torlcnl words, "life, liberty nnd tht
pursuit of happiness."
To tho college girl's happiness manj
elements are co-operntlng, among
which, notably, ure papa's checks and
tho advantages depending thereon
faculty votes forbidding a schedule o(
over so many hours a week or mor
than a certain number of courses foi
the semester; constant anxiety ou th
part of "Prex" and "M. D." lest tht
young buds of hope break down undei
the strain of study, and so forth.
This lust appears particularly
srrnnge to the Europcun mind. No ou
gives a thought there, it appears, tt
the effects of study on the health ot
the students. "We may moan, sigl
or revolt," says tho writer, "we maj
strike, protest or die in tho attempt
from the serene Olympus of tho fao
ulty tho gods watch with calm, un
rutfied brow the struggle of the non
entitles down in the halls of learning.'
Outlook.
AMERICAN COLLEGE GIRL.
She IIH Much More 1-Yccilmu thnn Her
Kuropoan SUtcr.
The American womun's collego Is a
thing wholly nmnzlng Ip European
eyes, according to this critic. No Euro
pean educational Institution would
think of allowing to Its Inmn'tes such
luxurlonsuotis of surroundings as ap
peal's in the American (flrl's college
room, the extreme simplicity of the
Tho Souse of Sight.
Like every other sense, thnt of sigh
Improves by use under hen 1 thy condl
tions, nnd therefore the people wlu
have the greatest exercise of their vis
ion In the open uir under the light oi
the sun have the best eyesight. Gei
orally speaking, savage tribes posses
the keenest eyesight, acquired throng)
hunting. Natives of the Solomon Isl
nnds are very quick nt perceiving dls
tunt objects, such us ships nt sen, nn
will pick out birds concealed in densi
foliage some sixty or seventy fea
high. Shepherds und sailors are blcssoi
with good sight
Eskimos will detect u white fox la
the snow a grent distance uwny, wlUU
tho Arabs of tho deserts of Arubli
have such extreme powers of visioi
that on tho vast plains of the deserl
they will pick out objects Invisible tt
the ordinary eye at ranges from ont
to ten miles distant. Among civilized
peoples the Norwegians have bettei
eyesight than most, If not all, others,
as tiny more generally fulfill tho nec
essary conditions. Tho reason why
defective eyes are so much on tho lr
crease in this country und In Europt
llr in too much study of books In earlj
life and In badly lighted rooms.
Elephants Good Worker.".
Any one who thinks tho elephant o
slow, clumsy beast would have cause
to change his opinion on seeing him
nt work along tho river of northern
Slam. Tho rainy season, which bo
gins in April, is the time when tho
teak logs, cut during the dry season in
the forests about tho upper waters of
the Meuam River, ure llonted down
to Ruhung, whore they are caught and
rafted to Bangkok. Instead of red
shlrtcd, splko-shoed "river drivers"
such as handle tho logs In their down
stream journey to the sawmills on the
Penobscot nnd Kennebec in Maine,
tho "lumber-driving" of tho Slnmeso
rivers is done by barefooted, half
naked men on .elephants, and the
"bone" labor and much or ute i minc
ing Involved in the, operation are dono
by the elephants. St. .Nicholas.
if a. woman has had troubio AND
twlns, the blight side 'must be undr
too many lay era to bo worth looking
for. :