I 1URDER 0R MERCY.
_
M ASIory ofTo-Dny.
; It was half-past four , and the
norning room at Minton Court was
B dotted with confidential groups.
M Eugologs blazed in the two fire-
places , but no lamps or candles had
been brought in to disturb the in-
B timacy of the twilight hour. Tea at
H Milton-Court was always drunk by
H firelight on winter afternoons ,
W " "Darkness is such an aid to scandal. "
K ILady Minton used to say ; "how can
Hfwe pull our neighbors to pieces in the
| j ijglare of those odious lamps ? Ilalf
B efche best things 1 havo ever heard
jR fhave been told me in the dusk. "
H The hour of tea was a sociable one ,
B * and the surroundings were thoroughc
B Uy feminine. The morning room was
B 'furnished in that heterogeneous manc
B mer which is the characteristic of our
H * time. There were many screens , and
B jpalms in brass pots , Indian mats
B nd Japanese tables , Turkish divans
f ? ind Smyrnese carvings , while a numt
, J tier of Bajon etchings , framed in
J § Salack , made a sad note on the Pom8
K speian red walls , giving the other-
B wise over-luxurious room that touch
9 of studied pathos which is ever prost
M nt in the complex and many-sided
; :1 : life of to-day. The curtains were not
, i yet drawn , and far off , apart from
| ' the group of dainty fingers who were
ije clustering round the tea-table and
j § the fire , stood a young girl with her
JS < face pressed against the window. It
m was a cold , melancholy afteroon , and
m outside a heavy white fog was gathc
1 eringover the frost-bitten ground ,
| naking a fine contrast to the gay
I -and cheery scene within doors. Sud-
i < denly 6he turned with a cynical little
1 faugh from the window. "What a
1 flfool I am"said ! the girl to herself.
1 " * 'I have been standing at that cold
1 window for exactly twenty minutes ,
I .And for what reason ? Because Dr.
i Brooke chose to go out for a walk
1 oves the moors on a particularly im-
§ possible day , and hasn't come back
| .yet. Is that a reason why I should
I ; go without my tea , not to mention
a 1fche awful possiblity of catching a
i cold in my head , and having a red
1 nose ? Oh , thanks , Capt. Egerton ,
1 I should like some tea , awfully"
and repeating thelastsentencealoud ,
Alison Bligh came forward into the
fire-light.
j Even in the flickering fire-rays she
I j revealed herself as a very striking
II jirl. There was an unmistakable
1 * ouch of sensuousness in the full lips
| and in the clear-cut nostrils , which
Hj rere the best part of a nose which
B "was somewhat too thick for a worns
I .n , and in the fine curves of her
I houlders and bust. But intellect
H Tvas not wanting , as her broad , well-
I narked forehead proved ; nor deter-
B anination , whic.li was revealed in the
B square lines of her jaw and chin ; nor
B a. certain amount of ideality , which
B looked out of her somewhat dreamy
B -eyes dark , Southern eyes which were
B Jin direct contradiction to the twists
B of pale red-gold hair which crowned
B 3ier head. In sum , a very danger-
B -ous young woman , whom Lad3' ' Min-
B * on was wont to declare she would
B 3iot trust with her own husband , aln
B though Sir Francis was past 70 , and
B m model of the conjugal virtues.
B Miss Bligh felt her spirits rise sud-
B denly as she took her place in the
B * cheery round and fire , and she smiled
B tivhen. she thought of her watch by the
B window just now. How cold and
B "miserable she had felt how ridicu- *
B lous to have ceded to such a senti-
B mental impulse ! That was not her
B way either ; she who had long ago
B made up her mind to snatch every P
B anoment of happiness every pleasure- "
B ; able emotion even lite could offer
B iher. And then the soft voice ofLady °
B IMintonwas heard saying : "Alison , w
B whea you have quite finished • with ?
B apt. Egerton and those muffins , "
B 5 > ass them both'on. And do , like a
B dear child , sing us something. "
Miss Bligh thereupon sprang up * >
Mmy and went to the open piano. ni
p "I will sing you , " she said gravely ,
I * < ca little romance which I heard once e3
I at the Varietes. I believe it has a
amoral. Judic used to sing it , " and
I striking up a quaint accompani-
I vment , she sang some words familiar tl
enough on the boulevards. tl
B While the room was echoing with w
B iplaudits on her rather risky te
B performance , the door opened and a w
B ' anan of about 35 came in and sat lii
B ndown in a rocking-chair at the far he
B end of the room. pi
B • "Awfully good , by Jove ! " cried tl
B Capt , Egerton , who was leaning on lii
B the piano. "I could have sworn it vi
B vas Judic , herself , only you aren't in
B ffat , you know. " The last part of w
B the gallant captain's sentence was cje
B a tender whisper intended for Miss lii
B Bligh's ear alone , but , like many ti
B other soft speeches , was audible to w
B the rest of the room. Dr. Brooke w
B frowned as ho moved from his seat S
B near the door and , coming forward G
B into the firelight , asked Lady Mina
B ton for a cup of tea. ai
B * "So glad you're back , Doctor ! We tl
B xall thought you were lost on as
B Exmoor , " said Lady Minton purring at
B over her guest as she poured him out ir
some tea. w
B "Yes , we were all looking forward tl
I -to seeing you brought home stiffiy bi
I frozen on a shutter ! " cried Allison , fl
I who seemed in the highest spirits , tl
jHad she forgotten her impatient hi
I -watch by the window only half an 1c
I fcour before ? r (
B "Ah , the gods don't love me. I y
I .shall not die young , " said the Doctl
tor whose keen eyes were riveted on A
I aer ' face. Thenthepartybrokeupin t <
B tto small groups , and it was either la
B tbv choice or by chance that she found
B ifcprfielf only a few minutes later , hi
I fUSinValine with him at the same fij
I Sow which she had watched te
B half hour before. n
I aa are back , " she said
" glad you
B "I am . the ter
, Af ahvlv. as young man
B " ' 0 • -
I BI BBHBfli BBBNf9HM9MK BHBMBB9HHflBCBHHBHHB
f
"Are you ! You know I was out
then ? "
"Yes. "
"None of the othera missed me , I
should imagine. They were playing
somegamo which looked uncommon
ly ] liko 'kiss-in-the-ring' when I left ,
Wero you one of that lot ? "
"Oh , no. I havo been in my room
all the afternoon. "
"Thank heaven for that ! "
Alison smiles at the fervor of hi
tone. l
"Would you have minded much if
j had been 'one of that lot ? "
The Doctor frowned. "I should
havo 1 been rather disappointed. I
should havo thought very little of
you if you had. "
"Well I wasn't. But I am afraid
it j is not a sense of the outraged proj
prieties which kept me from playing
'kiss in the ring' in the hall , if it
could possibly have amused me , I
should have done so. I believe in
amusing oneself. But somehow or
other , that sort of thing doesn't ent
tertain me. Perhaps I am too old
er not old enough ; anyhow , I don't
care for the infantine pastimes which
are the fashion now. Isupposewhen
I am getting on for forty I shall like
them. "
"No , I don't think you ever will , "
said Brooke , smiling down at her
charming upturned face.
"But I am afraid you don't under-
stand me , " she said quickly ; "you
think me better than I am. I havo
no moral aim , no aspirations , nothj
ing of that kind. I simply enjoy the
present. I suppose , if I wanted to
poseIshould call myself an epicurean.
It is strange , but 'to-morrow' has
absolutely , no meaning for me ; I be-
Hove in 'to-day. ' I mean to enjoy
every hour of my life. After all , what
do we know of 'to-morrow ? ' Nothj
ing. But we do know that roses aro
divine ! " And pulling a hothouse
flower from her waist belt , the girl
pressed it , with a pretty , unconven
tional gesture , to her lips.
"At that rate , " said the Doctor ,
"if you were to have some great mis-
fortune ( to lose all your money , for
instance , or catch the smallpox you
would have very little to fall back
upon. You might feel the want of
the 'consolations of religion. ' "
"No , I don't think I should. If
any great unhappiness , " she added
dreamily , "were ever to befall me , I
should not want to live. I did not
ask to come into the world , and why ,
forsooth < , should I not go when I am
tired of it ? Life after all , is very like
? party to which some one else has
insisted on our going. If we are
bored , we are surety not bound to
wait till the very end. We leave
when we please. "
Dr. Brooke looked steadily at
her.
"You are a very strange girl , Miss
Bligh. Not one woman in a
thousand would dare to say such a
thing as that. But I think yon are
right. There are cases when death is
9 release from torture , mental and
bodily. "
"How did we get on such a lugu
brious topic ? " said Alison , shivering
slightly and turning away from the
dark landscape.
There was a pause and then the
young man said suddenly :
' 'Why did you sing that song just
now ? "
"I don't know , " said Alison with
droopingeyes.
"Do you know what itmeans ? "
"Do you ? " she said , raising her
eyebrows innocently.
" 1 walked the hospitals in Pai-is
for two years. I understood every
word. "
"Oh , I am sorry. I thought , with
my . accent and an English audience ,
that I should be perfectly safe. "
"Don't do it again , " he said ; "for
heaven's sake , don't. You can't imv
agine how dreadful it is to see you
do a thing like that. "
"Thank you for saying that , " he
answered , gravely. "Sing something
for me now , will you ? "
Miss Bligh answered by.moving
away to the piano. Brooke stood
still by the window , looking out over
the snow-covered grounds and wait
ing to hear what she would sing ,
Allison's fingers strayed tentatively
over the keys , as if seeking the strain
which suited her mood best. Presv
ently her clearyoung voice was heard
in Handel's immortal air , "Lascia I
Ch'io Pianga. " n
"Handel , instead of boulevard ft
songs" Duncan Brooke smiled to b
himself "that will do. Allison loves
me. I know itrI can see it in her a
eyes. " Ia
• a
It was a passionate yet half-pater-
nal feeling that Dr. Brooke had for n
this beautiful girl ; a ieeling akin to
that which the tiger cherishes tou
ward its cub , and yet with a yearning *
tenderness , too. He felt that lie CJ
would gladly have thrown away his "
life to save her pain , but as it was , D
meant to devote his life to her
pleasure. Nothing should be spared
that could give her pleasure this r
little epicurean who believed so de8
voutly in the Now ! There was noth
ing , too , which could stand in the j *
way of an immediate marriage. Dunu
can Brooke had already made a bril- *
liant reputation and a large prac- "
tice , and Alison being an orphan , J
with a fortune of her own , there "j
would be no difficulties about their *
settling down at once. His house in
Grosvenor street was a fair-sized one , a
and : with Alison's taste in furniture
and pictures , might be made one of
the prettiest in London. He smiled 0
he saw a vision of her radiant face
the head of his dinner-table , smil- &
ing at his guests , perfect in her young
matronhood , Somehow he always "
thought of her in connection with a
beautiful and pleasant things ; with r
flowers < , andpicturers , and music , and ni
the sparkle of dinner-table wit. She w
had told him that day that she n
loved roses ; well , she should have Je
roses on her table every day of the n
year. < And then Brooke remembered ni
that pearls were another hobby of 0 ]
Alison's. He would telegraph to B }
town to-morrow for the finest neck- "
lace he could get. si
That night , when Lady Minton b <
had sent her maid away , a pink robed s *
figure knocked at her door and knotw
ted a pair of soft arms tight round
her neck.
"My dear child , what is the mat- "
? " she grasped in the midst ofthis rt
impetuous embrace. on ]
, * r ' .
' - < - - * - -
"It's all seUiKu and I'm bo hap1
p.v [ ! "
"Indeed , " said Lady Minton , la u . 'rh1
ing. i "And may I ask who is tlie lucky
man ? "
"Oh , Dr. Brooke , of course. How
can you ask ? "
" v\fy dear , all the men in the house
are mad about you. I listen to their
confidences you know my way. "
"Well , you shan't bebored with
any more , you dear thing. Please
let 1 them know that lam the hap-
piest I woman in the world. "
hi.
A weak later Lady Minton and
two or three of her guests stood at
the hall door to see the Doctor and
Miss Bligh mount the dog-cart for a
drive. Lady Minton was profuse in
her j advice.
"Now , mind you take care of Alison ,
Doctor. That mare is rather frisky
and the roads aro slippery to-day.
You've got to bring Alison back safe
and sound. We don't want to have a
'case' { for you down here. "
The doctor smiled as Miss Bligh
came down the wide oaken staircase.
A week's happiness had changed a
handsome j girl into ayoung goddess.
In her tight-fiting , manly garments ,
and the soft furs at her throat , she
looked j the personification of youth.
Her eyes always fine seemed twice
as large , and had acquired a soft exI
pression which was irresistible ; the
cynical little laugh , which had formn
erly been one of her characteristics ,
had disappeared.
Another two minutes and the girl
was snugly tucked under a fur rug
on the front seat of the high doge
cart , and Brooke , touching the mare
with his whip , sent her flying down
the long carriage drive.
How ridiculously those people are
in j love with each other ! " said Lady
Minton , with a little sigh. "Upon
my word , it is quite Acadian. I
wonder how long it will last ? "
"About six months , I take it , "
drawled Capt. Egerton ; "at least I
hope so. Miss Bligh won't look at
any other fellow than saw-bones.
But it can't last , that sort of thing ,
Quite uncivilized you know. "
"Well they are to be married in six
weeks , " laughed lady Minton. "So
this time next year we shall see you
making the running' with the beauti-
ful Mrs. Brooke ? "
"Nothing more likely in the world , "
replied Capt Egertonwho had a roy-
al idea of his own powers of fascinar
tion.
At the luncheon table two chairs
were vacant. "I wonder where our
two young people have got to ? " said
Lady Minton. "I wish Dr. Brooke
would not take her these long expofc
ditions , it makes me very uneasy. "
"They are probably lunching some-
where a deux , dear Lady Minton , "
suggested the "frisky matron" of the
party.
" 1 don't know where they
will lunch out on Exmore
and I don't feel at all sure
about that mare. She is getting a
regular jade. "
The afternoon closed in and there
were still no signs of the girl and her
lover. ' Tea had been brought in and
Lady Minton was trying to hide her
growing alarm as she chatted with
guesls and did the honors of the tea
table.
"I am sure I heard wheels at the
front door of the house , " she said
suddenly.
"Yes , but it is not the dog-cart ,
said Capt. Egerton ; "those were
cart-wheels I heard. " ;
"Go out and see what it is , for
goodness' sake. No carts ever come
up to the court after dusk ! "
The young man hurried out of the '
room and a minute later a scared
footman < came and whispered to lady
Minton. \ Hurrying into the hall she
was met by Egerton and Brooke ,
The Doctor's face was destitute of
every vestige of color and his eyes g
seemed to have sunk far back into
his head.
"There has been a bad accident
"
-
"Where is Allison , " cried Lady
Minton ; "she is not "
"No , not dead ; but she is very serig
ously wounded. Can you bear the t
worst ? "
"Take me to her , my poor darling ! " si
wailed Lady Minton.
"We have carried her here , into Sir p
Francis' study ; and she must not be p
moved any more. Don't look at her
face , Lady Minton. I want you to n
be strong to help me. " si
A motionless heap lay on the sofa , n
and that heap was Alison Bligh. y
Piteous groans came from her lips , &
and one side of her face was carefully ]
bound up with a man's white silk Q
handkerchief. y
"Make up a bed quickly here. Call tl
her maid if she has strong nerves y
to ' help you take of her clothes. I u
can tell you nothing definite till I nj
have examined her. Bring some st
brandy. " of
These orders were briefly given by p
the Doctor as he hurried from the tl
room < to fetch his case of surgical in- p
struments. b
An hour later the worst was sj
known. The girl's spine was badly d
injured that she would never be able ft
to ' rise again. One side of her face hi
had been so terribly crushed thatshe ni
was hardly recognizable , and her suf- (
ferings were acute. She might live , m
the Doctor thought , but her life yy
would be so many years of mental ej
and bodily anguish. D
IV Jy ]
The house party at Minton Court s\
broke : up immediately , and by noon
the next day the last carriageful of
guests had swept down the drive.
Silence in the Fl
: reigned large rambling
house ' , Lady Minton and Miss Bligh's
maid taking their turn in the sick li
room. As for Duncan Brooke , he 1
hardly left his patient's bedside. Al- -
ways a reticent man , not even his
hostess < ever guessed what .he suf8l
fered , during those long days and e\
nights ] of anxious watching. At tl
night , particularly , he would let no a (
one else sit up with her , even if he a
snatched an hour or two's sleep duw
ring the day. For a whole fortnight bl
she lay almost unconscious on the it
bed , unable to articulate , and only oi
showing by her low groans that sho ki
was still alive and suffering. ' pi
Then came a chnnjre3 and Alison in
was able to speak again. One day it
the Doctor was alone with her in tho a
room where they had laid her down a
the day of the accident. The great hi
house 1 was hushed into perfect still
ness , and not a sound was to be
heard 1 but tho occasional fall of a
cinder < on the hearth.
"Duncan , " she whispered suddenly ,
with a very little sigh.
"What is it , my darling ? " said tho
Doctor ] , bending his head to listen.
"I 1 want to go to sleep. "
"So you shall , dear. 1 will give
you i an opiate to-night. "
"Oh , but I want to go to sleep for
. nUva\s. I cannot bear it any more.
It ] is all over for me now ; all over ,
and I am only 22 ? I should go mad
chained J to a bed all the years I may
have to live. * * * And you
would learn to hate mc how could
you help it ? I know I am a horrible ,
maimed mass , although you have
never let me see my face since. * *
* Oh , Duncan , and the pain ! I can
not bear it. I always hated pain ; I
am sure I feel it more than other peoc
pie do. And what I suffer now is in-
human * ! What havo I done that I
should have to bear this terrible agf
ony ? We would not let a dog suffer
what you all look on and sue me enri
dure ! It is cruel cruel ! "
"Alison , I would give my life to
save you one pang. "
"Would you ? " she said eagerly. "I
know you are bravo and good. Have
you the courage to help me now ? Oh ,
Duncan ! when you give me that chlo-
ral to-night give me enough to send
me to sleep for always. No one will
over know. Oh , my darling , do me
one last service ! "
"I cannot do it , " he whispered
back , some inward voice telling him ,
even as he spoke the words , that here
was the merciful euthanasia for this
poor maimed girl. He knew that her
life ] even if she live I would be hence-
forward a martyrdom , and that nevfc
er again would she rise from her
" "
"mattress grave.
As night closed in Alison grewt
worse. She was evidently suffering
frightfully. "I shall notleave her an
instant j to-night , " said Brooks to
Lady Minton , who stood with scared ,
white face at the bedside. "I cannot
tell what may happen , " he added at
the door , having persuaded his host
ess to take an hour or two's rest ,
"She might succumb now from the
shock or she might live for years.
I shall give her a strong opiate tot
night she must have sleep. "
"Thank heaven for one thing , "said
Lady Minton "and that is that you
are here in the house. Think if we
had been obliged to rely on the local
practioner ! It is simply a mercy
that you are here ! "
"A mercy ! " repeated the Doctor
gravely. "Yes ; perhaps it is. "
When the day dawned the house
was , all astir. Swiftly moving figures
hurried j up and down stairs , and the
Doctor , meeting Lady Minton in the
cold , gray light , at the door of the
sick room , took her hand and led her
away.
"Allison is gone , " he whispered.e
"She I passed away last night without
pain. I was with her ; she died in my
arms. "
"Poor darling ! It is a merciful re-
lease ! < , " sobbed the kind-hearted worn-
an.
"Yes , a merciful release , " repeated
Brooke , pressing his hostess' hand.
Next day Lady Minton went with
n sinking heart to the Doctor's door. e
He had locked himself in ever since
Alison's death , and had refused all
food < on tiie plea that he wished to
sleep ; but she found him sitting
dressed l at his writing table , having
obviously never been to bed. Some
medical books and sheets of manuu
script lay about , he seemed to be
writing. I
"I am so pained to speak of anycl
thing connected with this awful aft
fair , but you know there are the usg
ual formalities to be observed. Poor sc
Alison had no near relations living ,
so , we must arrange all the last sad
offices. Here is the Registrar's ft
certificate. Will you , as you were t
her only medical attendant , fill in g
the cause of death. h
"The cause of death ! " cried Brooke , Vi
rising from his chair , "I I cannot w
say ; howshould [ know ? " he shouted , tl
throwing ] up his hands. s1
The next instant he . was lying in a i
senseless heap on the floor. * * *
Six months after , the • following
paragraph appeared in an evening
paper :
"A Heko of the Hospital. Once
more one of our most eminent phyoi
sicians has proved that heroism is Dl
not confined to the winners of the
Victoria Cross. It is with the deep
est regret that we record the untime-
ly death of Dr. Duncan Brooke ot si
Grosvenor street , physician to the bi
Whiteckapel Hospital. It appears -
that an impatient a boy of eleven a
years , of age was suffering from w
acute < diphtheria. The physicians m
agreed that there was a chance of a
saving the child's life if the operation ja
tracheotomy could be successfully n
performed. ( It will be remembered w
that in this operation the putrid and
poisonous ( matter has to be sucked
by the operator through a tube. In jn
spite of the opposition of the other j1
doctors , , Dr. Brooke insisted on perj j
forming the operation , which was jj
highly successful , the boy being now a
nearly convalescent. Dr. Brooke j
who , it appears , received a severe
mental shock some six months ago )
was taken ill shortly afterward , and
expired this morning in the hospital.
Deceased was widely known and highW
respected. [ E. Hepworth Dickp
son , in the Woman's World.
Superstition Rife To-day.
From the Bufiulo Express. ] u
People are wont to host of the enyc
lightment of this age and. laugh at w.
the superstitions of their forefathers it *
But it is quite safe to say that g
superstition is as rife to-day as it se
ever was , the only' difference being ea
that now people are ashamed to si
acknowledge their weaknesses. Said se
real estate man : There is nothing as
which gives a building a lasting pi
black eye quicker than a report that p <
is or was haunted. The slamming in
a door , the rattling of a window , a1
knocking down of a tin pan by w
pussy cat are all the work of ghosts hi
such buildings And the worst of tl
is that people are just as afraid of lo
new building erected on the site of cl
haunted one as they areof the H
haunted one itself. In
f - - V I T • • --f-
I
Curiosities o ! Currency.
From ] Texas Siftings.
Almost every nation and tribe , as
well as every epoch , has its peculiar
currency. Not only gold , silver , cop-
per ] , brass , iron , lead and paper , but
glass j , shells , bends , books , stones ,
soap , bits of various colored cloth
and numerous other articles have
been used to represent money. The
Burmese 1 , Karens and Ghans have no
coined money , lead and silver in bull-
ion \ beingthe ordinary tender in trade ,
weight and purity beingthestandard
of value. It must be a curious spec-
tacle to see a Burmese out on a "hur-
rah" with a lot of pig lead to spend
at bars.
Salt was , for a long time , the or-
dinary money of the Abyssinians ,
which rendered it difficult for them to
get f a fresh supply when they were
broke. Fish has long been and is
now the legal tender of Iceland
"Shad scales" as money probably ,
originated there.
The Carthagenians were the firstto
introduce a stamped leather currency ,
Leather coins with a silver nail in
the center were issued in France by
King John tho Good in 1306 , but
they are not good now ,
In the interior towns of Northern
China slips of the bark of the mult
berry tree , bearing the imperial
"chop" and a stamp to denote their
worth , have long been used as we use
bank notes , and malefactors who
conterfeited them got the imperial
"chop" also. Marco Polo found this
kind of money there in his time , and
they have still an extensive local cir-
culation.
In some small villages in Scotland
laborers \ formerly carried in their
pockets nails in place of coin to "pay
on the nail" for the day's supply of
bread and ale , just as a native Au-
stralian divests himself of a string of
beads for the purchase of some
coveted luxury.
A Scotch missionary to a little
group of islands in the South Pacific
found , bits of red flannel circulating
as money , when they were not needed
to tie up a sore throat. This came
about in a curious manner. The
body of a shipwrecked sailor had
drifted ashore , and to these untutored
savages , who had never before seen
clothing of any description , his red -
flannel shirt was an object of wonder ,
and admiration. By common con-
sent they cut the garment into
shreds , which thenceforth became the
currency of the island. A savage
destitute of flannel was said to have
"nary red , " we suppose.
A Finnish Girl's Farewell.
At Tavastehuus I saw a group of
eight or ten women , all well dressed , 1 -
on the platform of the railway
station. One of them was a rosy
faced , pretty girl fo 20. She carried r
a magnificent bouquet. She was the
recipient of much attention from the
others , who kissed her twice around ,
When the last warning bellrang T
she was locked in the arms of an *
elderly ] woman , who , with streaming _
eyes , strained her again and again f0
to her heart , and I saw , asked the gi
good God to bless her child. I knew
they were mother and daughter.C1
As the train pulled out the girl stood
upon the car platform and bade •
them adieu with wet cheeks. But If
thought I saw a ray a gleam of
cherry hope shining through her \
tears. I asked a man where she was
going. Till America till Mjnne-
sota , " was the reply.
Ah ! I then read that hopeful light Jj
it her tearful eyes. She was leaving
friends and kindred to go all alone a
to the far offiand , where her lover had
gone before , and to fill the nest he
had built up for his coming matem
Who knows what places high in the ,
world the young to be hatched in
that free nest may fill in the lake .1
state of the north. Carter Harrison J
in Chicago Mail.
>
3S'o Wonder He Felt Old. th
"The singular mistake , " explains of
the editor of a Texas paper , "by which
our leading editorial appeared at the ac
bottom of a column on the third page B
was caused by our having intrusted th
the setting up of the same to a long W
be
slabsided Yankee jour printer who
happened along and wanted a job. m
We told him to make up the forms
and ] work the papers off while we nr
went home to give our wife some at
much-needed assistance in making her ca
apple-butter. The article was in rear
lation to the recent act of the goverhe
nor ) in pardoning a sheep thief , and in
was headed 'Crowning Folly. ' The wi
blundering tramp set it up "Cranex
berry ( Jelly' and chucked the article All
the department of 'Useful Houseth
hold ( Becipes. ' It is such things as tic
these that make the life of a journate
list one of constant care and anxiety be
and make him an old man before his wj
time. " th
AV
EH Perkins on Bed Bugs. to
sti
A remarkable case of the death of a
s
woman ( was reported recently from esi
Franklin township , Beaver county * an
Pa. The death occurred while the P
woman was suffering from a violent Y
attactofthe heahache , to which she P
had been subject for nearly three ai3
years she has been living in a house j : ul
which has been badly infosted with
bed bugs. Shortly after moving into
she began to be troubled with a 6 < 2
af
strange type of a headache which ° ,
seemed to increase in violen'e with
each returning attack until at times j
she was renderd unconscious by the , ,
severe pains , which she often described
resembling a heavy weight or P
presure on the top of her head. The . ,
peculiar nature of the case and his
inability to render relief aroused the .
attending physician's curiosity and ing
with the consent of the bereaved "
husband he cut open the skull after
j fn
the woman's death. He found firmly
lodged on the top of the brain in a : .
clotted mass , a number of bedbugs. ,
How they got there baffles all who ,
have heard of the case.
nv
{
A Wonderful Cattle Pen.
Indian tradition as well ns white
lore i tells that seventy-five miles
northwest : of Meeker , Col. , is the
most : wonderful cattle ranch in the
world. Within a space of five miles
in j length and a half mile in width
roam , a herd upon whose sides tho
branding ] iron has never been placed ,
and , around whose horns tho lariat
has ] never tightened.
But a score or oven fewer of them
have ] ever seen a man or horse or
other animal of their kind , and , in
truth , their kin , except at a distance
of nearly GOO feet high above them.
The Uto Iniians call them "p'chek-
up" or red buffalo. And yet if an
Indian who had seen them should bb
asked about it he would laugh and
shake his head , and all the informa
tion obtainable would be "P'cheku
up ; em 'em red no ketch 'em , " There
are more than 600 ofthis herd , and
yec no man owns them ; nor is thero
any man , white , or black or copper
colored , who has ever been able to
possess a hoof of these fat and
tempting beeves.
The cattle are in a prison. Out of
it there is one method of escape , but
to travel that road means death to
the adventurovs one. There is no
way to get in except it be by use of a
rope a thousand feet in length. As
the . Indians say , "Heap see em ; no
ketchum ; no come away. " On the
two sides of the oblong space in
which these cattle roam , rise pre
cipitous and even concaved rocks for
500 and GOO feet. At either end
seethes and rushes the Yampa or
Bear Biver.
For miles above and for miles be-
low j ( it plunges on in its headlong •
haste to reach the arms of its par-
ent , the scarcely less tumultuous but |
deeper Green Biver. Like the won-
derful flat-top mountains of Colo-
rado , this home of the imprisoned
herd has no likeness in the world. It r
recalls ) , in its inaccessibility the
marvelous stories of the valley of r
verdure into which Mayne Beid's ad- +
venturers only found their way by
the assistance of the-balloon. _
The story of the way m which these *
cattle came there is as strange as
their existence is curious. Fifteen
.
years ( ago , when the government
troops , . were pursuing the Mormon
murderers of the innocent victims of j
the j Mountain Meadow Massacre , the
Danites ) , or Avenging Angels of the i
Mormons , fled into what was then
literally the wilderness. A few of
those who had been the blindest fol
lowers of Lee , the Mormon fiend in11
carnate , whose hands were red with
blood of women and children , found jjC
in ] their wandering a pretty valley on
a stream which flows from the Wasm
atch range into the Green Biver.
They stuck their stakes , built their la
sagacious leaders had a vision which sa
told them where to stay. They could . "
scarcely have chosen in all Utah a
more fertile or more isolated spot. ,
They called it Ashley , and about . '
them have since gathered more of I ,1
their sect , until where the refugees
q
posted the picket of guards on the j ' ; ?
lonely nights of the first summer has | ?
grown a thriving village. , .
It is 140 miles from the Union Pa- - 1
cific Bailroad south and 14. > miles " •
north of the Rio Grande Western. . /
Until within five years it has been :
isolated entirely but now it is ? ?
thirty-five miles from the Utah BesorV'
V.
vation , and furnishing supplies for it
the agency forms quite a business ; -
for the community.
It is a tenet of the Danites that
robbing or theft from a Gentile is no
crime. So it was thought to be only Fr
cunning trick when Joe Wycliffe ,
one of the Mormon settlers of the
new town , and his three sons made a
night sortie on Henry's Ford in a l
Wyoming , and carried away 800 sin
head of cattle ranging there. This of
was in 1S76. The " owners of the catj10
tie discovered the loss of the stock a , ,
few , days after they were gone and
started in pursuit. J112
TheWycliffes had their friends along jlc
the trail , and were warned b } ' signals ? .
the gang of the pursuing party , .
Accordingly they drove the cattle as l\a
last asthej'could travel on eastward , .
Eicross Green Biver and up along the ° , 1
Bear , with the intention of reaching ? .vf
the Elk Mountain country in North- \
western Colorado , where they would
parctically safe from detection , cm
and their stock , also could secure the co1
most succulent of feed. ma
The ' thieves and the stolon herd
aad reached a mesa of inviting grass
sundowh one day and halted to Frc
camp for the night. A terrific storm <
arose. The four men desperately
held the terrorstricken cattle by rid-
ing about them constantly. But the " ; '
tvild fearfulness of the furious storm bili
2xcited the brutes beyond measure , anj
at once , as if by one wild impulse , jjjn
they stampeded. Astampede of cat- .
by day is calculated to strike
terror to any heart lest there aJt
some human being in the pathhm
ivay. A stampede by night is one of lem
the most appalling spectacles. John ma
Wyckliffe and his sons endeavored to
head off the stampeding herd. Infree
stead , they and their horses were heij
swept on and driven in the terror to beg
escape the charge of the maddened ner
minials , over tiie brink ot the awful sen
precipice which frowns up from the wit
Ivaters of the Bear. After them the
blunged the whole frightened herd , effe
md down to the bottom of the fear-
fall went horses and riders and
lorned creatures. _
Out { of this plunge , to what was r
seemingly certain death for all. a few
the herd were not killed. Those at
ivhich had gone ahead formed a att
mshion of death. Maimed , stunned
ie
Out still invested with a spark of life ,
vhen the storm was over the living anc
cattle formed the nucleus for the pla
ierd which now roams at will within thei
bheir rocky confines. Chii
On ( the bank of the river , stretchtha
back a few hundred j-ards , grow He
succulent grasses , and upon this the f her
cattle have propagated and thrived , san
looking over the precipice , one her
an see that they are small and as brii
ivild and agile as deer. They have lad.
been shot so as to see the effect , and ma
mue learned to regard the appearwer
nce of a man. whether Indian or lev .
* ' 1
i ,
i '
, " ;
white , as a menace from which thoy
;
flee , clambering over rocks and
through underbrush to a point of
concealment.
The place whore the thieves and
their i horses and herd fell is plainly
marked by a pyramid of bones ' j
which ] rises to tho height of twenty
feet. Tho ghastly reminders , relics
of the human and animal victims of , i ,
tho terrible leap shine forth white /
and glistening. Tho progeny of the |
surviving ! animals from tho fall aro ] 1
fat and sleek , though , and have !
their sunny , beds , deer like , whero s A
the'lie for wurmth in tho winter. '
There is no fierce mountain lion or
more dangerous bear , nor , in fact ,
any other animate thing within this
cow garden of Eden. As yet , too. '
no man has been able to reach
or disturb them. Philadelphia
Times.
-t > - en i
How Ho Gave the Flics a Chance. j
Ho was eating a substantial break- 1
fast of steak and eggs in a well known I
restaurant a few days since , and the * ;
meal was enlivened by the presence . ,
of a small army of hungry flies , which h\ \
perched contentedly upon tho food j *
and clung thereto much closer than I
a brother , varying their exercise by ' ; '
lighting 1 ; on his face to rest from their \t \ *
labors. He bore the ordeal with su- } |
premo patience and unconcern for
a time , but he had ordered a square r
mealand as the waiter had deposited \ \
the 'check therefor he naturally f
desired to appropriate the majority '
j
part of the edibles to himself and to ii
contribute ( but little to the voracious M
insects. 'H
Finally he muttered an expressive \
oath as a detachment of the enemy 'i ' ?
made a bold attempt to carry off a \j \
roll , and dipping his spoon in the 'M
sugar he proceeded to erect sundry pi
little , piles of the saccharine pellets at fi $
intervals of several feet from tho ]
plateto j which he invited their atten- .1 j
tion j and earnestly besought tho buz- • | |
zing j besiegers to communicate their ' ;
relatives and friends. ,9 , j
The experiment worked to a charm , jj !
for the dainty creatures preferred tbo .a
sugar to the rump steak , and they jli
feasted right royally and in utter con- MJ
tempt of the j'oimg man. When he p
left the table his face wore a triumph
ant smile , and he paid his check
with so much promptness and satis- .
faction that the clerk ventured to re- '
mark that the meal miicst have boen
uncommonly well prepared. He re
plied , aft r some hesitation , that he j
had A given the flies a chance and was j
at peace with all the world. Provi- j
tlenceJournal.
• - 1
A Diet for Sharks. '
1
Philadelphia : l'rcss.
When Capt. Andrews , in his little
boat "Dark Secret , " was about 1,000 '
miles out , he met sharks. This is '
tvhat he did : "I had several cans of
Iambs' : tongues , pickled lobsters , ami
sardines , that wero partly spoiled. I 1
"ook the tongues and tossed them '
aver one at a time , and letthesharks
nistle for them. I fed out all tho
iongues and some sardines. Then I
thought ' I would give them a change.
o 1 took one of my cannon salute '
cylinders , made to explode under .
vater or anywhere. These are about
ive inches long and two and one-half *
nches in diameter , and as loud as a
iix pounder. I lit the fuse to one of '
hese , put it inn can , and threw it
ver board. The quic kest shark got . '
' and he soon became a flying fish. j
deluge ' of bloody water swept over |
he boat , shark's meat Hew into the .
lir , and the other sharks scooted. " \ '
' oei „
Every Man His Own Pasteur. " _
021 Galignani's Me = songer. " '
A man went down from Paris to ;
4
Lutenil a few weeks ago and , hiring ' 2
room in a secluded part of the city. {
hut himself up in it with a quantity 4
provisions. He stuffed the key- 1
lole with paper , pasted paper over
" window panes and in other ways I ;
nanifested a desire for secrecy. After
had remained there several days '
inhabitants told the police about ' \
iim , and the doors were burst in. It \
ras then found he was inoculating
hree terriers with his own blool , in j
u'der to ascertain whether a bite \
hat he had received from a dog was , , " '
ikely to prove fatal. He explained \i \ $
hat he was experimenting in the i/
ause of science and expected to dis- ! '
over some means by which every ;
nan could be his own Pasteur. '
The Painlessness of Heath. j
rom the Forum. ' ]
The act of dying , it is now ascer- { ;
ained . , is absolutely fret from suf- ;
ring ; is really unconscious , insensi- j 1
ility always preceding it. Any t ;
nguish that may attend mortal j
Iness ceases before the close , as j
iiousands who have recovered , ' |
iter < hope had been surrendered , ' J
ave borne witness. Sudden and vio- i
death , shocking to the senses , t } (
my not be , probably is not , jiainful | :
the 1 victim. Drowning , hanging , , •
eezing , shooting , falling from a ( " \
eight , poisoning of many kinds , J *
eget stupor or numbness of the } \ \
arves , which is incompatible with j \ \
msation. Persons who have met ' '
such accidents , and survived .
lem , testify to this. Becords to the
feet are numberless. j
-m& m- 1 jfl
A Romance of the Wire. '
rom the Chicago Herald. 'i
Mr. J Lloyd told of a lady operator I | ]
Omaha < and of a male operator ' . *
the Chicago office who talked over ( . %
wires unheard of those around , y !
how the talk led from common- * M
laces < to expressions of esteem , and i 1
to pleadings of love from j f\ \
liicago , with answers from Omaha s • 1
thrilled his heart with bliss. ' |
had never seen her face nor heard !
voice , yet he loved her just the ! j
ime , and had promised to make ! <
his wife. He asked Mr. Lloyd to • j
ring them together , and the young | V
was transferred to the Chicago j } |
ain ; office. Two months ago they H
married and went West whero [ . '
now live. ' • -
? a
w
